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A.M. U. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
VOL. LXXXIX
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1960
FOR. CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
�INDEX TO VOLUME 89
ARTICLES
Alertness to Attitudes----------------------------------------------------------Autobiography of St. Robert Bellarmine_______________________________________
Chaplain and Victory in the Pacific _____________________________________________
Chaplain at Tagaste and the Kasserine Pass_______________________________________
Early Years of Father Laurence Kelly________________________________________________
The Exercises for Individuals and Groups __________________________________________
Geographic Distribution of Jesuits, 1959---------------------------------------------Jesuit Patrologists at Heythrop______________________________________________________________
Jesuits As Chaplains in the Armed Forces 1917-1960__________________________
Letter from Hong Kong ________________________________________________________________________
Liturgical Spirit of the Exercises _____________________________________________________
Prayer Especially for Jesuits _____________________________________________________________
St. Ignatius and the Courtier Type _________________________________________________________
Technical Training for Brothers ___________________________________________________________
149
3
108
30
261
127
157
99
323
240
241
285
231
211
OBITUARIES
John J. Colligan ___________________________________________________________________
Gustave Joseph Dumas____________________________________________________________
Laurence Joseph Kelly-----------------------------------------------------------Laurence Kenny----------------------------------------------------------------Arthur P. McCaffray----------------------------------------------------------Hugh J. 1\IcLa ughlin_______________________________________________________________
John J. Smith __________________________________________________________________________
174
59
261
71
165
169
277
Father
Father
Father
Father
Father
Father
Father
CONTRIBUTORS
BURGHARDT, WALTER J., Jesuit Patrologists at Heythrop ________________
CIOFFI, PAULL. (Tr.), The Liturgical Spirit of the Exercises _________
CoLLINS. JOHN H., Obituary of Father John J. Smith ______________________
CoRLEY, FRANCIS J., Death Comes to Father J<:enny____________________________
CURRAN, FRANCis X., Obituary of Father Arthur P. McCaffray_______
DALY, LOWRIE J., St. Ignatius and the Courtier Type __________________________
GELINEAU, JOSEPH, Liturgical Spirit of the Exercises ___________________________
GIBLIN, GERARD F. (tr.), The Autobiography of St. Robert Bellarmine -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------GIBLIN, GERARD F., Jesuits As Chaplains in the Armed Forces 19171960 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------HUGH, G. A., The Exercises for Individuals and Groups ______________________
KEEFE, JoHN J., Obituary of Father Lawrence Kenny__________________________
KILLEEN, JOHN J., Obituary of Father Hugh J. McLaughlin _____________
KINES, L. BERKELEY, Chaplain at Tagaste and the Kasserine Pass____
KNIGHT, DAVID M., Alertness to Attitudes -----------------------------------------------MEHOK, WILLIAM J., Geographic Distribution of Jesuits, 1959 ___________
O'MEARA, JOHN, Letter from Hong Kong ______________________________________________
O'NEILL, JOSEPH E., Obituary of Father Gustave Joseph Dumas_______
RAY, SAMUEL H., Chaplain and Victory in the Pacific__ __________________________
F'ff,
S'!.
,.,f7'",/
') i
~
~,,
I
., r'/"
,;f 1:'-'/,
99
241
277
75
165
231
241
3
323
127
71
169
30
149
157
240
59
108
�RYAN, E. A., Obituary of Father John J. Colligan ________________________
SANDERS, EDWIN J. (tr.), The Liturgical Spirit of the Exercises ______
SCHILLEBEECKX, L. (tr.), Prayer Especially for Jesuits _____________________
SMYTHE, DoNALD, Early Years of Father Laurence Kelly _________________
TIERNEY, FRANCIS J., Technical Training for Brothers _________________________
174
241
285
261
211
BOOK REVIEWS
APPLETON, LEROY H. AND BRIDGES, STEPHEN, Symbolism in Liturgical
Art (Daniel J. M ulha user) ---------------------------------------------------BARR, STRINGFELLOW, et. al., American Catholics, A ProtestantJewish View (Carroll J. Bourg)____________________________________________
BASET, BERNARD, 200 Gospel Questions and Inquiries (Francisco F.
Claver) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------BEITZELL, EDWIN, The Jesuit Missions of St. Mary's County, Maryland (Francis G. McManamin) _____________________________________________
BENSON, ROBERT HUGH, The Mystical Body and Its Head (Alfredo
G. Parpan) -------------------------------------------------------------------BORDEAUX, HENRY, Edith Stein: Thoughts on Her Life and Times,
Tr. by Donald and !della Gallagher (Henry J. Bertels) _____________
BRADY, IGNATIUS, A History of Ancient Philosophy (Harry R.
Burns) ----------------------------------------------------------------------BRILLET, GASTON, Meditations on the Old Testament: The Narratives, Tr. by Kathryn Sullivan (Joseph B. Neville) __________________
BROUSSE, JACQUES, The Lives of Angel de Joyeuse and Benet Canfield, Edited from Robert Rookwood's translation of 1623 by T.
A. Birrell (Daniel J. M. Callahan) __________________________________________
BURKE, THOMAS J. M., ed., Sinews of Love (Alfredo G. Parpan) ______
CERVANTES, LUCIUS F., And God Made Man and Woman (Joseph
Duhamel) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------CLARK, DENNIS, Cities in Crisis-The Christian Response (Joseph
B. Schuyler) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------COGLEY, JOHN, ed., Religion in America: Original Essays on Religion
in a Free Society (Edward V. Stevens)__________________________________________
CORREIA-AFoNso, JOHN, Even unto the Indies (James N. Gelson) -----CORREIA-AFONSO, JOHN, Jesuit Letters and Indian History (James
N. Gelson) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------DANIELOU, JEAN, The Presence of God, Tr. by Walter Roberts
(Joseph A. O'Hare)-------------------------------------------------------------------------DE GRANDMAISON, LEONCE, We and the Holy Spirit: Talks to Laymen, Tr. by Angeline Bouchard (Paul Osterle) ___________________________
DONOHUE, JOHN W., Work and Education. The Role of Technical
Culture in Some Distinctive Theories of Humanism (George E.
Ganss) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ENGLEBERT, OMER, Catherine Laboure and the Modern Apparitions
of Our Lady, Tr. by Alastair Guinan (Alfredo G. Parpan) ------ESTIBALEZ, L. M., MiSery mi Destino (Francisco P. Nadal)____________
FILAs, FRANCIS L., Saint Joseph and Daily Christian Living (Joseph
B. Neville) ---·------------------.-----------------------------------------------------------
94
87
202
299
192
183
179
313
314
306
79
302
88
189
189
306
206
296
85
82
77
�GARDINER, HAROLD C., In All Conscience: Reflections on Books and
Culture (J. Robert Barth)
95
GILLEMAN, GERARD, The Primacy of Charity in Moral Theology, Tr.
by William F. Ryan and Andre Vachon (Robert H. Springer)_ 181
GOLDBRUNNER, JosEF, Teaching the Catholic Catechism, Volume II:
The Church and the Sacraments, Tr. by Bernard Adkins (Edward V. Stevens)____
197
GORMAN, RALPH, The Last Hours of Jesus (William F. Graham) __ 311
GRAEF, HILDA, Modern Gloo1n and Christian Hope (J. Robert Barth) 182
GREELEY, ANDREW M., The Church and the Suburbs (George L.
Krieger) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 193
GuRR, JOHN EDWIN, The Principle of Sufficient Reason in Some
Scholastic Systems, 1750-1900 (W. Norris Clarke) ______ 177
HAGMAIER, GEORGE, and GLEASON, ROBERT, Counselling the Catholic
(Felix F. Cardegna) _____________________________ 195
HANLEY, THOMAS O'BRIEN, Their Rights and Liberties: The Beginnings of Religious and Political Freedom in Maryland (Francis
G. McManamin) · " - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 185
HARDON, JOHN A., All My Liberty: Theology of the Spiritual Exercises (William Gleason) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 81
HASTINGS, ADRIAN, ed., The Church and the Nations (William J.
Bosch) --------------------------- 303
HIRSCHBERGER, JOHANNES, History of Philosophy, Vol. II, Tr. by
Anthony Fuerst (Robert H. Cousineau)____________
89
HOWARD, RoY J., Liturgical Retreat (William J. McCurdy) _______ 205
HUBER, GEORGES, My Door is Always Open, Tr. by Thomas Finlay
(Paul L. Cioffi)----------------------------------- 190
IPARRAGUIRRE, _IGNACIO, Espiritu de San Ignacio de Loyola (Francisco P. N ada!)----------------------------------- 82
IPARRAGUIRRE, IGNATIUS, How to Give a Retreat, Tr. by Angelo Benedetti (William F. Graham) ____________________________________ 86
JUNGMANN, JOSEF ANDREAS, Handing on the Faith, Tr. by A. N.
Fuerst (Vincent M. Novak) ____________-i:__________________ 77
KNOX, RoNALD, Lightning Meditations (Alfredo G. Parpan) _______ 203
KRISTELLER, PAUL 0SKAR, Latin Manuscript Books Before 1600: A
List of the Printed Catalogues and Unpublished Inventories of
Extant Collections (C. H. Lohr) ________________________________ 316
LAWLER, JusTUS GEORGE, The Catholic Dimension in Higher Education (Joseph C. Glose) _______________________________________________ 197
LECUYER, JOSEPH, What is a Priest?, Tr. by Lancelot C. Sheppard
(Edmund G. Ryan)--------------------------------------------------- 79
LEEN, EDWARD, Retreat Notes for Religious (William F. Graham)__ 86
LEWIS, D. B. WYNDHAM, A Florentine Portrait: St. Philip Benizi
(1233-1285) (Gerard F. Giblin) _______________________________________ 188
LOCHET, Louis, Apparitions of Our Lady: Their Place in the Life
of the Church, Tr. by John Dingle (PaulL. Cioffi) __________________ 312
LUFF, S. G. A., Silent Bedes: Practical Meditations for the Mysteries
oI the Rosary (Erwin G. Beck)---------------------------------------------- 206
LYNCH, WILLIAM F., An Approach to the Metaphysics of Plato
�through the Parmenides (Richard E. Doyle) _________ 90
MARITAIN, JACQUES and RAISSA, Liturgy and Contemplation, Tr. by
Joseph W. Evans (Edward J. Sponga) ____________ 305
McCLUSKEY, NEIL G., Catholic Viewpoint on Education (John M.
Culkin) _ _ _
200
McGLOIN, JoSEPH T., Smile at Your Own Risk! (James A. O'Brien)_ 178
MICHONNEAU, ABBE, My Father's Business, Tr. by Edmund Gilpin
(Francisco F. Claver) _ ____
189
MONIER, PROSPER, Exercises Spirituels (Charles E. O'Neill) ____ 204
MouRoux, J - AN, I Believe: The Personal Structure of Faith, Tr. by
E
Michael Turner (Royden B. Davis) ________________ 308
MULLIGAN, CHARLES W_, and KAMMER, MICHAEL P., For Writing
English (J. Robert Barth)
315
NEILL, THOMAS, et al., History of Western Civilization (William
J. Bosch)
184
NIGG, WALTER, Warriors of God: The Great Religious Orders and
Their Founders, Ed. and tr. by Mary Ilford (James McCann)_ 187
NUTTING, WILLIS D., Schools and the .Means of Education (James A.
O'Donnell) - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 0 0
OHM, THOMAS, Asia Looks at Western Christianity, Tr. by Irene
Marinoff (Edward L. Murphy) ________________ 92
ORAISON, MARC, Love or Constraint, Tr. by Una Morrissy (W. W.
Meissner)
82
PALMER, PAUL F., ed., Sacraments and Forgiveness (Terrence Toland)
-----------------------295
PHELAN, JOHN LEDDY, The Hispanization of the Philippines: Spanish Aims and Filipino Responses, 1565-1700 (Jose Aquino) _ _ 186
PIEPER, JOSEF, Prudence (John W. Healey)___
_
____ 180
RAHNER, HUGO, St. Ignatius Loyola : Letters to Women (Edmund J.
Stumpf) - - - - - - - - - --- - - - - - - - -- - - - 300
RAHNER, KARL, Free Speech in the Church (Henry J. Bertels) ____ 309
RANWEZ, PIERRE, et al., Together Towards God-Religious Training
in the Family, Tr. by Paul Barrett (Joseph B. Schuyler) ______ 194
RITAMARY, SISTER, ed., The Juniorate in Sister Formation (John M.
Culkin) ------ - - - - - - - --- ----- 297
ROUCEK, JOSEPH S., ed., The Challenge of Science Education (Alan
McCarthy)
_
- - - --- - - 199
SAINT-SEVERIN, THE COMMUNITY OF, Confession: Meaning and Practice, Tr. by A. V. Littledale (Nicasio Cruz)
310
SHEED, F. J., Nullity of Marriage (Daniel J. O'Brien)
81
SIMON, M. RAPHAEL, Hammer and Fire. Toward Divine Happiness
and Mental Health (Alfred E. Morris) ______________ 202
SPINKA, MATTHEW, The Quest for Church Unity (Herbert J. Ryan) 307
STOODY, RALPH, A Handbook of Church Public Relations (T. A.
O'Connor)__
_
93
TAVARD, GEORGE, Protestant Hopes and the Catholic Responsibility
(Eugene J. Ahern) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 304
TEILHARD DE CHARDIN, PIERRE, The Phenomenon of Man, Tr. by
Bernard Wall (Edward J. Sponga)-------- - - - - - - - - - 76
�The Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (Tenth Anniversary Commemorative Volume) (Alfred E. Morris) ______________
ULANOV, BARRY, Death: A Book of Preparation and Consolation (J.
Robert Barth) ------------------------------------------------------VALENSIN, AuGUSTE, Joy in the Faith: Meditations, Tr. by Alastair
Guinan (Daniel J. M. Callahan) ________________________
VAN ZELLER, DOJ\1 HUBERT, Approach to Monasticism (Edmund J.
Stumpf) -------------------------------------------------WALTER, ERICH A., ed., Religion and the State University (James
A. O'Donnell) ---------------------------------------------------------WARD, LEO R., The Living Parish (Joseph B. Schuyler) ___________
'VINANCE, ELEUTHERIUS, The Communist Persuasion, Tr. by Emeric
A. Lawrence (Edmund G. Ryan) _____________________________
GENERAL INDEX
Achilles, Paul 140
Adair, Lord 35
~
Agnew, William M. 3;j9, 428
Allen, Paul L. 339, 357
Allen, 'Yilliam Cardinal 14, 21
d'Almeida, Luis 216
Anderson, Edward P. 339, 348
Antoniano, Silvio 21
Aquaviva, Claude 132
d' Armailhacq, Pierre 66
Babb, William H. 339, 357
Bailey, George M. 327, 328, 339, 348, 474
Bain,JohnA.~34, 339,428,441
Baius, Michael 15
Barbaciari, Ambrose 12
Barnett, James n. 339, 357
Baronius, Cardinal 28 ff.
Barras, Gabriel J. 334, 339, 358, 467
Barrett, Alfred J. 339, 358, 474
Barry, John L.334,339,358,441,469
Bartley, Edward L. 339,359,468
Bauer, Francis 111
Beckwith, Albert A. 339, 359
Berganza, Hygino 126
Birraux, Bishop Joseph 44
Bischofberger, George 339, 359
Boggins, Joseph P. 339, 359
Boland, Carroll M. 339, 360
Boland, Jo.oeph E. 339, 360
Bonn, John L. 339, 360
Book of the Courtier, The 232 ff.
Bowdern, William S. 339, 360
Boylan, Bernard R. 339, 361, 442
Boyle, Te1·ence J. 339, 348
-·
95
93
91
299
83
84
191
�Bracken, Edward J. 328, 339, 348
Bradstreet, John R. 336, 339, 361, 467
Brennan, Thomas A. 339, 362
Brock, Lawrence M. 339, 362, 442
Broet, Paschase 6
The Brother 226
Brothers' Training 211 ff.
Brown,JohnP.334,336,339,362,442, 467
Bryant, Robert T. 33!J, 362
Bryant, Thomas J. 339, 363
Burke, Daniel J. 331, 339, 363, 467
Burke, Edmund F. 332, 339, 363, 443
Burns, Leo J. 339, 363
Buschmann, J. Peter 339, 364
Butler, Mother 68 ff.
Byrne, John F. 339, 364
Byrne, Thomas J. 339, 428
Cajetan, Cardinal 18 ff.
Campbell, Daniel V. 339, 364
Cannon, Thomas B. 331, 334, 339, 364, 443, 474
da Canossa, Ludovico 234 ff.
Carasig, Pablo M. 329, 339, 365
Carey, Daniel J. 339, 365
Carr, Edwin F. 340, 365, 467, 474
Carroll, Anthony G. 340, 366, 474
Carroll, James D. 340, 366
Castiglione, Baldesar 232 ff.
de Castillo, Sanchez 146
Cavanaugh, Paul W. 332, 340, 366, 468
Cervini, Alessandro 9
Cervini, Andrew F. 329, 340, 366, 444, 468, 469
Cervini, Erennio 9
Cervini, Riccardo 8
Chehayl, George S. 334, 340, 366, 444
Clancy, John L. 328, 340, 367
Clark, Charles D. 340, 367
Clark, Joseph M. 340, 367
Clark, General Mark 34
Clarkson, Theodore J. 334, 340, 428
Clement VIII 21 ff, 25
Clements, Ernest B. 334, 340, 428, 444, 474
Cochlaeus, Dr. 145 ff.
Codacio, Pietro 144
Coleman, Jeremiah F. 340, 368
Colligan, John J. 174 ff.
Colligan, Patrick J. 174
Colonna, Cardinal Marcantonio 21
Connor, Charles F. 327, 340, 349, 474
Connors, J. Bryan 340, 368
�Constitutiones Societatis Jesu 228
Consunji, Agustin S. 340, 368, 467, 471
Copeland, Raymond F. 331, 340, 368, 467, 474
Corbett, James M. 340, 369
Corboy, William J. 327, 340, 349
Corrigan, Maurice F. 340, 369
Cosgrove, John M. 337
Costa, John Baptist 22
Costello, John 174
Cotter, John A. 340, 349
Courtney, Edward W. 340, 369, 467
Creane, James A. 337
Crimmins, Harry B. 340, 370
de la Croix, Louis 218
Cronin, Robert J. 340, 370
Cross, F. L. 99
Crowley, Wilfred H. 340, 370, 445
Crusius, Father 132~tf.
Cuddy, Gerald J. 332, 340, 370, 445
Cummings, William V. 332, 340, 371, 445, 468
Cunniff, John H. 340, 371, 445
Cunningham, Francis A. 340, 371
Cunningham, Thomas 340, 371, 446
Curran, Francis N. 340, 435
Curran, Joseph P. 340, 372
Daigle, Birdie 109
Dalton, Hugh A. 326, 328, 340, 349, 474
Daly, Peter J. 340, 372, 467
Day, Francis 'T. 340, 372
Deasy, James J. 340, 372
Delihant, Thomas J. 328, 340, 350, 474
DeValles, J. B. 477
Devlin, Eugene J. 340, 436
Devlin, John F. 340, 373
Dias, Francisco 217
Diehl, John J. 340, 373
Dieter, Earl L. 340, 373
Dietz, Francis T. 340, 373, 446
Dimaano, Pedro M. 329, 340, 374, 469
Dinand, Augustine A. 340, 350, 475
Dolan, James F. 340, 436, 446
Dolan, James J. 340, 374, 447
Domenech, Jerome 140, 142, 144
Doody, M:ichael J. 340, 374
Dossogne, Victor J. 341, 374, 467
Downey, Morgan A. 341, 375,475
Doyle, Leo A. 341, 375
Duffy, Edward P. 341, 350, 471
Duffy, William J. 341, 375
-·
�Dugan, John J. 328 ff., 341,375,447,467,469,475
Duhr, Bernard 136
Dumas, Gustave Joseph 59 ff.
Dunne, Edward J. 341, 376, 447
Duross, Thomas A. 341, 376
Eckmann, Lawrence J. 341, 376
Edralin, Isaias X. 329, 341, 377, 447, 469
Egan, Stephen T. 341, 377
Egan, Thomas F. 341, 436
Eisenhower, General Dwight D. 38
English, Michael I. 337, 341, 377
Evett, Lester J. 341, 377, 448
Ewing, Thomas D. 341, 378
Examen Generale 211 ff., 227
Exponi Nobis (Pope Paul III) 211
Exposcit Debitum (Pope Julius III) 211
Faber, Blessed Peter 129 ff., 140, 144 ff.
de Fabiis, Fabius 134
FaHey, Louis A. 327, 341, 350
Faraone, Charles 12 ff.
Farrelly, Peter T. 341, 436
Fay, Thomas A. 341, 378, 472
Fay, Thomas P. 341, 378, 448
Felix, Walter J. 341, 378, 468, 475
Fernan, John J. 341, 379
Finnegan, Bernard J. 341, 379, 467
Fitzgerald, William E. 62
Flaherty, Maurice G. 341, 379, 448, 467
Fleuren, Henry R. 328, 341, 350
Flynn, Francis M. 341, 379
Foley, Henry 217
Foley, John P. 341, 380
Foley, William F. 326, 341, 351
Fox, George G. 328, 341, 351
Fraser, Burton J. 341, 380
Fullam, Raymond B. 341, 437
Gaerlan, Juan E. 329, 341, 380, 467
Gaffney, John C. 341, 380
Gallagher, Frederick A. 3,11, 381, 467
Gannon, Robert I. 67 ff.
Garvey, Leo J. 341, 381
Gaynor, Hugh A. 341, 351
Geary, James F. 341, 381
Geis, Louis J. 341, 381
General Congregations
Twenty-Sixth 215, 221
Twenty-Seventh 215, 221 ff., 238
Thirtieth 222 ff.
Gerhard, John J. 341, 429
�Giambastiani, John F. 341, 382, 467
Gilmore, James A. 331, 341, 382
Goode, Leonard 126
Goodenow, Robert C. 341, 382
Goss, Edward F. 341, 382
Grady, Richard F. 341, 382, 448, 467
Graisy, John J. 341, 437
Gregory XIV 20 ff.
Greif, Harold J. 342, 383
Grimmer, Lt. Col. John P. 48 ff.
Guerin, James B. 342, 429
Haggerty, Gerard A. 334, 342, 383, 467
Haggerty, James E. 342, 383, 449, 474, 475
Hall, Francis B. 4 76
Haller, Joseph S. 342, 384
Halloran, John J. 342, 384
Hamlin, U.S.S. 108 ff.
Haney, Milton L. 476
Hanley, William A. 342, 384
Harley, James L. 337, 342, 384
Harty, William J. 342, 385
Hausmann, Carl W. 329, 342, 385, 450, 467, 469, 475
Heavey, William J. 342, 385
Hendrix, William F. 328
Hennessey, Thomas P. 342, 386, 450, 467
Herreros, Jose 126
Heythrop Conference on Patristic Studies, List of Scholars at 101-103
Heythrop Journal 105
Higgins, James J.~342, 386
Hochhaus, Raphael H. 342, 386, 450
Hoffman, William E. 114
Hogan,JosephF.331,342,386,450,467
Holland, John E. 342, 387
Hoy, David 99
Huby, Pere 136 ff.
Hurld, John L. 334, 342, 429
Huss, Harry L. 342, 387, 451
International Conference on Patristic Studies 99
Ireland, Raymond J. 342, 387, 467
Jansenius, Cornelius 15
Janssens, John Baptist 214 ff, 223 ff.
Jessup, Michael 328, 342, 351
Johnson, Alfred W. 342, 387, 468
Journal de Trevoux 65 ff.
Kane, William T. 327, 342, 351
Kapaun, Emil J. 338
Kasserine Pass 51 ff.
Kavanagh, Cyril R. 342, 388, 467
Keane, Joseph T. 342, 430
-·
�Kearns, A. Bernard 342, 388
Kehrlein, Oliver du F. 334, 335, 342, 430, 451, 469
Kelleher, John J. 342, 388, 467
Kelly, James J. (California Province) 342, 389
Kelly, James J. (Chicago Province) 342, 389,467
Kelly, Laurence 261 ff.
Kelly, Patrick G. 342, 389
Kenealy, William J. 333, 342, 390
Kenedy, Eugene T. 327, 342, 351, 475
Kennedy, Hugh F. 329 ff., 342, 390, 452, 467, 468, 469
Kennedy, James J. 334, 342, 430
Kennedy Thomas 113
Kennedy, Walter E. 342, 390
Kenny, Laurence 71 ff.
Kilp, Alfred J. 339, 342, 391, 453, 467
Kines, L. Berkeley 330, 342, 391, 454, 468, 475
King, George A. 334, 342, 391
King, Terence 327, 328, 342, 352, 475
Kirshbaum;Irving J. 342, 392, 454,468
Kleber, Jerome J. 342, 392
Klocke, John H. 342, 392
Kmieck, George A. 342, 392
Laboon,John F. 343,437,454
Laherty, John J. 343, 352, 471
Lambertini, Prosper (Benedict XIV) 4
Lanahan, John B. 343, 392
Lane, Joseph A. 343, 393
Lang, E. Cecil 343, 393
La Plante, Oscar J. 343, 393
Laynez, James 9, 129 ff., 140 ff., 238, 325
L eedsto wn 31
Le Gault, Eugene B. 343, 393
Leo XI 25
Leonard, William J. 343, 393
Lessius, Leonard 27
Lewis, Thomas X. 343, 394
Libertini, Robert M. 328, 343, 394
LitUl·gy and the Spiritual Exercises 241 ff.
Long, John J. 343, 394, 467
Lynch, Cornelius E. 343, 395, 467
Lynch,DanielJ.327,343,352,395,454,467,475
Lynch, Joseph P. 343,395,467
Lynch Laurence J. 343, 395
Lyons, John F. 343, 395
MacDonald, Francis J. 343, 396
MacLeod, Harry C. 343, 396
Maddigan, John W. 337
Maginnis, Edward D. 343, 396
Maher, Thomas F. 343, 396
�.Malloy, Joseph W. 343, 397
Manhard, Edward P. 343, 397, 467
Marcellus II 4, 6
Marcos, Miguel 219
Mariano, Joseph A. 115
Maring, Joseph 117,121, 333, 343,397
Martellange, Etienne 217
Martin, James A. 343, 398, 455, 475
McAleese, Charles D. 337
McCaffray, Arthur P. 165 ff.
McCall, Thomas D. 343, 438
McCauley, Leo P. 343, 398
McDonald, Donald S. 343, 398
McDonnell, Charles A. 343, 353
McDonnell, Christopher J. 328
McElroy, John 325
McEvoy, William H. 343, 398
McGinnis, James S. 343; 399, 455, 475
1\lcGratty, Arthur R. 343, 399
l\IcGrorey, Raymond I. 343, 399
McGuigan, James T. 343, 399
.McGuire, Francis S. 343, 400
McHugh, Lawrence R. 333, 343, 400, 475
McKeon, Richard M. 343, 400
McLaughlin, Hugh J. 169 ff.
McLaughlin, James D. 343, 400
McLean, G. A. 108, 111
1\lcl\Iahon, Robert E. 334, 343, 401
.McManus, Edwil; G. 343, 401
McManus, Neil P. 3-13, 401
McNally, Herbert P. 329, 343, 401, 467, 475
McNamara, Daniel B. 343, 402
McNulty, Hugh J. 343, 353
_.
McPhelin, .Michael F. 343, 402, 456
MeV eigh, Francis J. 333, 344, 402
Meany, StephenJ.332,344,403,456,467,468,474,475
Messner, William R. 334, 344, 430, 456
Milet, Henry P. 327, 344, 353
Moakley, James I. 327, 344, 353
Moisy, P. 217
Molina's Concordia 28
.Mollner, Joseph 1\1. 334, 335, 344, 403, 457
Montero, Agathonico F. 344, 403
Mooney, Raymond L. 344, 404
Moore, Francis A. 344, 431
Morelli, Camillo 43 ff.
Morgan, Carl H. 344, 404
Morning, John A. 327, 344, 353
Morone, Felice 146 ff.
�Morrisson, John J. 334, 344, 431, 457
Mortell, John T. 327, 344, 353, 475
Motherway, Aloysius T. 344, 404
Mudd, Richard D. 75
Muldoon, Thomas J. 344, 438
Mulhern, Patrick J. 328, 344, 404, 467
Mulligan, Edwin C. 334, 344, 405, 458, 467
Muntsch, Albert J. 344, 405
Murphy, Francis J. 344, 405
Murphy, George L. 344, 405, 467
Murphy, George M. 328, 344, 406, 459
Murphy, Paul J. 344,406,471,472
Murray, John B. 344, 407
Musso, Cornelius 11
Nadal, Jerome 285
Nern, William 124
N eyrand, Joseph 64
de Nobili, Robert 7
North, Arthur A. 344, 407, 467
Nuttall, William I. 344, 407
O'Brien, Francis X. 344, 407, 467
O'Brien, Joseph E. 344, 408
O'Brien, Richard A. 326, 327, 344, 354, 475
O'Brien, Vincent de P. 344, 408, 472
O'Callaghan, Louis T. 344, 408
O'Callahan, Joseph T. 333, 344, 408, 459, 467, 468, 474, 476
O'Connell, Raphael 60
O'Connor, Daniel F. X. 344, 409
O'Connor, Paul L. 123, 333, 344, 409, 475
O'Gara, Donald B. 334, 344, 431
O'Gara, Martin J. 344,409, 467, 477 ff.
O'Keefe, Eugene J. 329 ff., 344, 410, 459, 468, 469
O'Keefe, Leo P. 344, 410
O'Mara, Cornelius J. 334, 344, 4iO
O'Mara, Joseph R. 344, 410
O'Neill, Charles A. 344, 410, 467
O'Neill, Ralph M. 344, 411
Orford, James F. 344, 411
Orlandini, N. 140 ff.
Ortiz, Pacifico 329, 344, 411
Parra, Peter 9
Parsons, Robert A. 344, 412
Patristics, Contemporary Jesuit Work in 103 ff.
Paul V 25
Pettid, Edward J. 345, 431
Pettit, George 175
Pires, Manuel 218
Pius XII, Pope 230
des Places, Edouard 100
�Poullier, Louis 65
Power, Daniel E. 345, 412
Prayer, Jerome Nadal on 285 ff.
Quinn, Daniel J. 60
Quinn, Gerald A. 345, 412, 460
Quinnan, Patrick 174
Rankin, Richard R. 325, 327, 328, 345, 354, 461
Ray, Samuel H. 333, 345, 412, 467, 475
Ray, Theodore A. 345, 413
Reagen, John D. 345, 438
Reardon, Charles J. 345, 413
Records of the English Province of the Society of Jesus 217
Regalado, Alejo G. 345, 413
Regulae Societatis Jesu 219
Rehkopf, Edward B. 334, 345, 432, 461
Reilly, Francis B. 345, 413
Rey, Anthony 325
Reynolds, Robert F. 345, 354
Reynolds, Vincent T. 334;·345, 432, 462
Ricasoli, John 14
Riondel, Henri 63
Robinson, Charles A. 123, 333, 345, 414, 476
Roche, Val J. 345, 414
Roddy, Charles l\L 345, 414
Roggendorf, Joseph 124, 126
Rooney, Richard L. 345, 414
Roothaan, John Philip 208
Ryan, Charles M. 327, 345, 354, 467
Ryan, Daniel F. ~45, 414
Ryan, J. Clement 345, 415, 467
Ryan, Vincent B. 334, 345, 432, 462
St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Beatification of 29
St. Charles Borromeo 17
St. Francis Xavier 144
~St. Ignatius 29, 216, 220
St. Ignatius and the Courtier Type 231 ff.
St. Ignatius and the Spiritual Exercises 127 ff.
St.John, John D. 336,345,415,462,467
St. Robert Bellarmine 3 ff.
Scariglia, Alfonso 8
Schade, Gerard 226
Scheer 34
Schenk, Ralph H. 345, 415
Schuetz, Charles E. 345, 355
Schwitalla, Alphonse M. 328
Seaver, George W. 345, 433
Shanahan, James J. 345, 416
Shanahan, Joseph P. 345,416
Shanahan, Thomas A. 329, 345, 416, 463, 467, 476
Sharp, Curtis J. 345, 417, 468
�Shea, John L. 345, 417
Shea, Richard G. 345, 417
Sheridan, Robert E. 345, 417, 464
Sixtus V 18 ff.
Smith, Aloysius M. 345, 418
Smith, John J. 277 ff.
Smith, Thomas N. 345, 418, 464
Spiritual Exercises, The 127 ff.
Spiritual Exercises and the Liturgy, The 241 ff.
Stinson, William M. 327, 345, 355, 476
Stockman, Harold V. 345, 418
Stretch, Edward M. 345, 418
Sullivan, Charles E. 345, 419
Sullivan, Francis V. 345, 419, 467
Sullivan, Jerome J. 333, 345, 419, 464, 467
Sullivan, Philip V. 345, 420, 464
Suver, Charles F. 333, 345, 420
Tainter, James M. 346, 420
Talbott, Raymond L. 346, 420
Tallmadge, Archibald J. 328, 346, 355
Tallmadge, Robert F. 346, 355
Tardio, Jose 109, 112
Taylor, Marcus Felten 119
Taylor, Zachary 325
Teufel, John L. 334, 335, 346, 433, 465
Thomas Stone 40
Thought 68
Tierney, Francis J. 346, 421
Tirpitz 34
Toomey, William J. 346, 421
Torralba, Luis F. 346, 421
Treacy, Gerald C. 325, 328, 346, 355, 476
Tristano, John 216
Tristano, Lawrence 216
Tulley, Edward M. 127
Tynan, John W. 346, 422, 467
Verceles, Pedro P. 346, 422
Vifquain, Victor L. 346, 422
Vitelleschi, Mutius 3
Walet, Robert E. 346, 422, 466
W allenhorst, George A. 346, 423
Walsh, Edmund 62
Walsh, Henry L. 328, 346, 355
Walsh, Laurence A. 67
Walsh, Lincoln J. 346, 423
Walsh, Philip X. 346, 423
Walter, William J. 346, 423, 467
Ward, Thomas P. 346, 424
Warth, George L. 346, 424
Wauchop, Robert 145
�Weber, John A. 346, 424, 466
White, Henry P. 327, 346, 356
White, John S. 233
Whitford, Clarence F. 346, 424
Whitehead, John 1\I. 476
Wu, John C. H. 261
Zerbini, Julia 140 ff.
Zimmerman, Frederick L. 346, 425
-·
�Errata:
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1
CONTENTS, FEBRUARY 1960
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE -----·Translated by Gerard F. Giblin
3
Introduction by G. F. G. ·---------·-··-···--···--····-··-··-·-···- 3
The Autobiography ---·--·--··-··--····--··---·-·······----·--··--·-·····----
6
CHAPLAIN AT TAGASTE AND THE KASSERINE PASS·······-·-·-· 30
L. Berkeley Kines
FATHER GUSTAVE JOSEPH DUMAS--·-·······-·······-·-·--··-····--···-······ 59
Joseph E. O'Neill
FATHER LAURENCE KENNY-·-····-··-···---·-·····--······---·----··- 71
John J. Keefe
DEATH COMES TO FATHER KENNY-···-·-·---···--------·-··--·------- 75
Francis J. Corley
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS----·---·-·-··--····-··--··-·-···-·--·-·-----·--··--·· 76
�CONTRIBUTORS
Mr. Gerard F. Giblin (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock.
Father L. Berkeley Kines (Maryland Province) is professor of history
at St. Joseph's College, Philadelphia.
Father Joseph E. O'Neill (New York Province) is professor of English
literature at Fordham University and editor of Thought.
Father John J. O'Keefe (Missouri Province) is an operarius and writer,
stationed at St. Louis University.
Father Francis J. Corley (Missouri Province) is professor of theology
at St. Louis University.
-·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maqland, under the ·Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�The Autobiography of
St. Robert Bellarmine, S.J.
Translated with an Introduction by
Gerard F. Giblin, S.J.
Introduction
In 1613 Robert Cardinal Bellarmine was in failing health. Father
Mutius Vitelleschi, S.J.,1 the Italian Assistant, requested the venerable
cardinal to write an account of the principal events of his life. Bellarmine was reluctant to do this. He replied to Father Eudaemon-Joannes,
S.J., who had seconded Father Vitelleschi's request, "I refuse to do any
such thing. It is altogether indecorous to employ tongue and pen in one's
own praises. There are other reasons, too, against it." Father Vitelleschi, however, insisted that an account of Bellarmine's life would be
beneficial to the Society. On this plea Bellarmine wrote, anno aetatis
suae LXXI, an outline in Latin of his career.
Bellarmine never intended the account for publication. It remained
in the archives of the Society until the promoter of the cause of Bellarmine's beatification asked for it in 1675. It was finally published at
Louvain in 1753.
The Autobiography long stood as the major objection in the way of
Bellarmine's beatification. What case the opponents had, they based on
this document. In the eighteenth century Cardinal Passionei set himself against Bellarmine's cause. The incident of the young Bellarmine
and the Dominican prior mentioned in the manuscript resolved to the
conclusion "that a Jesuit is never happier nor more in his element than
when deriding a Dominican." The "theft" of material from St. Basil,
according to Passionei, was proof that "Bellarmine lacked a virtue which
even the pagans possessed and preached to the world."
The case that Cardinal Passionei sought to make against Bellarmine
was not borne out by the facts. The devil's advocate in the process of
1675 stated at the end of his case against Bellarmine: "I have been
ordered to state my true opinion here and now. As all that I urged
1 I?~llinger and Reusch (cf. Sources) in their first paragraph deny
~xphc.Itly that Vitelleschi had anything to do with the original request
o wnte the Autobiography. They base their argument on the statement
~~at other writers claimed that the Autobiography had been written at
e request of the General of the Society, Mutius Vitelleschi. Since the
wthork was written before Vitelleschi became General ( 1615), they deduced
~t Vitelleschi had no part in it. Cardinal Ehrle and Father Brodrick
(cited in Sources) hold for Vitelleschi's intervention. Father Brodrick
eAxp~ains this by saying that Vitelleschi made the request as Italian
ss1stant.
-
3
�AUTOBIOGRAPHY
against the Venerable Servant of God, in accordance with the duties of
my office, seems to have been excellently answered, I consider that there
is the fullest evidence of his having practiced the cardinal and theological
virtues in a heroic degree." As to the Autobiography itself, the canonist
Prosper Lambertini (who later became Benedict XIV) stated that he
did not consider the Autobiography in the least a genuine objection
against Bellarmine's heroism in the service of God.
There is no denying that Bellarmine states frankly his accomplishments and talents. He does not do this to boast, but to show how God
has been glorified in him, that his accomplishments are the accomplishments of God. As for his own virtues, he writes, "I have been silent
about them because I do not know whether I truly possess any." At the
end of his life Bellarmine had arrived at a point of utmost simplicity
where he could speak about his achievements because he realized that
they were all due to~ God.
Bellarmine's Life
The diminutive Jesuit from Montepulciano carved an exceptional
career for himself in the Society of Jesus. He had a two week novitiate
in the Roman College and soon distinguished himself as a student
there. As a regent in 1\Iondovi he gave harrassed Jesuit school masters
a patron saint for the subterfuges necessary to cover the ignorance of
the novice teacher when he learned the night before the Greek he was
to teach the next day.
Bellarmine lectured in Louvain and was ordained almost in passing.
He became a learned scholar and would spend time tracking down the
value of a Hebrew coin so that his translations would have greater accuracy. He rubbed shoulders with future English martyrs from the
college of Douay and was a good friend of Cardinal Allen, their rector.
Bellarmine suffered in Paris during Henry of Navarre's siege which
cost the lives of 30,000 people and almost cost E'ellarmine his. He tilted
in argument with James I of England and his .~theory of divine right
of kings.
He associated with saints. He was the spiritual director of St. Aloysius
Gonzaga. Charles Borromeo wanted him to teach in a college he had
founded. During his lifetime his Controversies influenced St. Francis
de Sales. In a letter St. Francis Borgia asked to be remembered "in
specie" to Robert. On a visit to Leece he knelt before the kneeling St.
Bernardino Realini to receive his blessing.
To his own chagrin he made himself indispensable to the pope.
Clement VIII asked him to revise the Sixtine Bible. Then without warning he created Bellarmine a cardinal. "We elect this man because he
has not his equal for learning in the Church and because he is the
nephew of good Pope Marcellus." Marcellus had helped Clement's father
during a time of distress. The pope sought to return the favor, but he
could not have done, at least in Bellarmine's eyes, a greater disservice.
The brilliant theologian had no other desire than to remain a simple
Jesuit.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
5
Bellarmine did important work in the controversies on grace. He
almost passes over these services and adds them in afterthought in the
appendix of his Autobiography. He was the archbishop of Capua and
later adviser to the pope.
When in 1613 he wrote his Autobiography, he had eight more years to
live. During this time he reconciled Lucca to the Holy See. He notified
Galileo of the Inquisition's verdict against him. In 1621, on September
17, he died quietly at San Andrea. He asked that his body be laid at the
feet of Aloysius Gonzaga, "once my spiritual child."
Bellarmine's cause was subject to many setbacks. Pope Urban VIII
started the process. But his own decree that the causes of confessors
were not to be introduced until fifty years after their death halted the
inquiry. J ansenists, Galli cans and Freemasons by pressures on their
governments caused a postponement of the process even though Pope
Benedict XIV said that Bellarmine deserved the honors of canonization.
It was not until the time of Benedict XV on May 13, 1920, that Bellarmine was beatified. He was canonized in 1930.
The Sources
The best source of the life of Bellarmine in English is that of Father
James Brodrick, S.J., The Life and Work of Blessed Robert Francis
Cardinal Bellarmine, S.J., 1542-1621. London: Burns Oates and Washbourne, 1928. 2 Vols. At the end of Volume I, pp. 460-481, the Autobiography is published in Latin.
Also helpful in preparing the translation and understanding the text
was the work of John Joseph Ignatius von Dollinger and F. H. Reusch,
Die Selbstbiographie des Cardinals Bellarmin. Bonn: Neusser, 1887.
The book contains the Latin text and a German translation which is
accompanied by copious notes. Dollinger and Reusch favored the Old
Catholic movement and unfortunately their work is, as Brodrick notes,
marred by anti-papal prejudice.2
I have followed the text of Le Bachelet.a It is a critical text and
notes the variations used by Dollinger and Reusch. These variations are
minor; the more significant I have indicated in the footnotes. In the
original text there is no paragraphing. I have followed Le Bachelet's
division and arrangement of paragraphs. I have also introduced subheadings.
The Autobiography is written in the third person. Bellarmine refers
to himself as N., although at times he lapses into the first person.
The Autobiography is valuable because it reveals the mind of a saint.
Critics who like Cardinal Passionei decide a priori how a saint should
write about himself will be disappointed. Those who wish to meet face
to face a man whose sanctity has been approved of by the Church will
find the reading of St. Robert a refreshing change from the exaggerations of over-pious hagiographers.
-
2
Op. cit, I, 9.
3
t Bellarmin avant son Cardinalat 1542-1598. Xavier-Marie Le Bache1e' S.J. Paris, 1911. The Autobiography is contained on pages 442-466.
�The Autobiography
Early Years
N. was born on October 4, 1542. Both his parents were devout people. His mother, whose name was Cynthia, was especially so. She was the sister of pope Marcellus IP. She
became acquainted with the Society through Father Paschase
Broet, one of the first ten [companions of St. Ignatius], who
when sick had come to Montepulciano to take the mineral
waters. 2 She had an extraordinary reverence for him and
sang his praises. Because of him she always admired the
Jesuits and would have liked to have all her five sons enter the
Society. She frequently gave alms to the poor, had the habit of
prayer and contemplation and frequently practiced fasting and
corporal penance. As a result she contracted dropsy and died
a pious and holy death in 1575 at about the age of forty-nine.
She raised her sons to be devout. The first three, of whom N.
was the third, she ordered to go about together and not to associate with the other boys. Each day they had to go to a church
which was near their home. There they prayed before the
Blessed Sacrament. At an early age she accustomed them to go
to confession; to attend mass, to pray, and to other pious practices.
When N. was about five or six years old, he used to give
sermons. He would put on a linen garrp.ent, turn a chair
around and stand on it. Then he would giv.e a sermon on the
Lord's Passion. His mind was not subtile nor sublime, but he
had an aptitude for everything. Consequently he did equally
well in all fields of knowledge. As a boy he began to like
poetry and at times he would spend a large part of the night
in reading Virgil. He came to know the poet so well that when
he wrote hexameters he would not put a single word in them
that was not Virgilian. His first poem was "On Virginity," 3
1 Pope Marcellus II was Marcello Cervini who had been president of
the Council of Trent. He was elected Pope in 1555, and great reform
measures were expected from him, but he died within three weeks.
2 Broet had fallen sick as a result of his missionary work in Italy
and Ireland.
•
3 The poem was on St. Catherine, virgin martyr of Alexandria.
6
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
7
and the first letters of the lines formed the word Virginitas.
When he was sixteen he wrote an ode on the death of Cardinal
de Nobili which was recited in public. 4 At that time he wrote
many poems in Latin and Italian, and, in particular, books
which he did not finish on the obstacles that were opposed to
his entering the Society. These books, written in a Virgilian
style, he not only did not finish, but burned. He was, indeed,
ashamed of writing about such personal matters.
He wrote many poems at Rome, Florence, Mondovi, Paris,
and finally at Ferrara where he was in charge of presenting
a tragi-comedy for the Queen of Spain. When the person who
had to recite the rather long prologue got sick, N. immediately
wrote a shorter prologue in iambic meter which could be
easily memorized. Of these many poems nothing is left but
an ode written in sapphic meter at Florence. Addressed to
Holy Spirit, it begins: "Spiritus celsi dominator axis." 5
Somebody had it printed without the name of the author in an
anthology of poems by famous men. There also survives a
very short hymn on St. Mary Magdalen which was put in the
breviary. 6 The hymn was composed at Frascati and was preferred by Clement VIII to the hymn which Cardinal Antoniano
wrote on the same subject. Both of us composed our hymns
almost ex tempore and as a game. We did not think that they
would be put in the breviary.
To return to the time before his entrance into the Society.
If memory serves, N. was fifteen when he delivered a sermon
or exhortation on Holy Thursday before the principal confraternity of the city. 7 Normally the prior gave the talk. The
Fathers of the Society supplied the matter, but the words, the
work of memory, and the gestures were his. On account of
this sermon the prior compelled him to speak often before the
confraternity with only a short time to prepare. During this
period of his life he easily learned to sing and to play various
4
The de Nobili family was prominent in Montepulciano, Robert's
birthplace. Robert de Nobili became a cardinal at the age of twelve and
died at seventeen. He was related to Robert de Nobili, S.J., the Indian
missionary.
5
Dollinger and Reusch have astris for axis. Op. cit., 26.
6
Pater superni luminis on July 21.
1
The Confraternity of St. Stephen.
�8
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
musical instruments and also to repair hunting nets so quickly
that they seemed never to have been broken.
Entrance into the Society of Jesus
At sixteen he was about to go to Padua for higher studies.
He had already received permission from Cosimo, Duke of
Florence, to study outside Pisa. Then he decided to leave the
world and apply for the Society. This is the way it happened.
One day he began to think seriously how he could attain true
peace of soul. As he was meditating at length on the various
honors to which he could aspire, he began to consider seriously
the transitory value of earthly possessions, even of possessions
of the highest value. From that time on, he conceived a great
aversion for them. He decided, therefore, to seek a religious
order in which there was no danger of being promoted to
ecclesiastical dignities. When at length he perceived that no
order was freer in this respect than the Society, he decided
that he must certainly enter it. He quietly took his decision to
Father Alfonso Scariglia, at that time his teacher, who, he
knew, had a great liking for him, and asked him as one good
friend of another to tell me how he liked life in the Society.
Was he content in his vocation? Was there any hidden evil or
danger that was not immediately apparent? N. was exceedingly afraid that after he entered the Society he might regret
it. The good Father told him that he wa.s very happy in his
vocation and supremely content in his wa~ of life. Meanwhile
the news came of the vocation to the Society of Riccardo
Cervini, N.'s cousin, a vocation which seems to have come at
exactly the same time. This strengthened him greatly in his
vocation. They wrote letters to each other and then asked
Father Laynez, who at that time was Vicar General, that they
be admitted into the Society. But because Father Laynez desired them to enter in the good graces of their parents, a year
passed. Then their parents obtained permission from Father
Laynez, who had become General, that their sons remain still
another year with them to test their vocations. Father General
gave the permission and said this would count as a year of novitiate for the two cousins.
So, each of them spent some time at his own home, and some
time together in the country district of II Vivo. They ex-
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
perienced no opposition on the part of their parents. During
that time they frequented the sacraments and studied the humanities. Each day after dinner, there was an academy. Signor
Alessandro, Riccardo's father, taught a section of Virgil's
Georgics. Riccardo, himself, explained the Greek text of Aristotle's Poetics. His brother Erennio, who afterwards died as
prothonotary and referendary of both Signaturas, taught
Demosthenes' De Corona, while N. expounded Cicero's Pro
Milone. Beside this they taught catechism in the church, and
gave sermons to the country folk, but not very often. When the
year was over, with their parents' permission, they came to
Rome. There, on the vigil of St. Matthews 1560, they were
admitted into the Society. After the ten days of the first probation which they spent as guests in their rooms, they were admitted to community life. They served a week in the kitchen
and another in the refectory. With this they finished their
novitiate 9 and were sent to the Roman College. On the feast
of the Circumcision they renewed with the other scholastics
the vows they had made of their own accord on the day of their
entrance.
N. remained in the Roman College for three years. While
there he studied logic and philosophy under Father Peter
Parra. He was sick the whole three years. During his first
year he suffered from extreme fatigue; in that year and the
next he had severe headaches; in this third year it was thought
that he was tubercular. Still he was first to defend the theses
in the monthly repetitions, and at the end of the course he
defended the whole of philosophy. In addition to this, when
ten or twelve of the class were to be made master of arts, he
alone was chosen from among them to expound the tract De
anima and he defended it without a presiding professor. The
professors, one or more, I can't remember which, offered their
objections. The day before his defense he was sent with several
companions to the villa. The purpose was to distract his
mind from hard study so that his weak health might not be
further compromised ..
8
September 20.
The power of the General to abridge the time of the novitiate was
suspended by the Fifth General Congregation in 1594.
9
�to
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
At Florence
In 1563 he was sent to Florence to teach humanities. There
the change of air and the care of an exceptionally good doctor
brought about a change for the better in his health. He taught
the boys in the school as well as he could and introduced
some questions from philosophy to gain a little prestige for
himself. During the summer he taught astronomy and the
treatise on the fixed stars. He gave two Latin sermons in the
cathedral and wrote on the more important feast days some
poems which were displayed at the entrance to the church.
When winter was over, he began to preach on Sundays and on
feast days after vespers. His superior wished him to do so
even though he was only twenty-two years old, an unbearded
youth, without sacred orders, without even the first tonsure.
During his first sermon some pious woman spent the whole
time on her knees praying. When she was asked why she had
done this, she replied that, when she saw such a young fellow
in the pulpit, she was afraid that he might lose his nerve
and disgrace the Society. N. preached then, however, with
greater confidence than he did later as an old man, for he was
sure of his memory. At home, too, the superior desired him to
give exhortations to the Brothers.
During the autumn that N. was at Florence, he traveled
with Father Mark to Camaldoli, Vallombrosa and La Verna.10
On the journey he preached in the villages and towns while
Father Mark heard confessions. At Camaldoli they were received most graciously by the Padre Maggiore (as they call
their General) and he entertained them for three days. On
the third day he ordered N. to give a sermon practically without preparation to the priests of the place. He did so reluctantly, but those venerable Fathers listened attentively.
Afterwards, though N. was but a young man, they wished
to kiss his hand. He would not permit it. He remained but
thirteen months at Florence. From there he was sent to
Mondovi. One of the brethren accompanied him to the sea
a little beyond Lucca. Alone he sailed to Genoa, thence to
Savona, and finally traveling by land he came to Mondovi.
On this journey he bore great trials of body and soul. In one
10 La Verna is the place where St. Francis of Asissi received the stigmata. It is also called Alverna.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARM!NE
il
hotel the landlady said that he was her son-in-law who had
run off a long time before. In another place somebody said
that N. had stolen his wallet during the night. But God was
with him in his innocence. He firmly resolved, however, that
if he ever had charge of a house of Ours, he would never send
out the Fathers or Brothers, especially the younger ones, by
themselves even if the cost was very great.
In the College of Mondovi he found that the list of lectures
for the year had been made public. He was assigned to teach
Demosthenes and Cicero and some other subjects. He know
practically no Greek beyond the alphabet. Accordingly he told
his class that he wanted to begin with the fundamentals. He
would teach them grammar first and then go on to Demosthenes. By dint of intense application, he learned each day the
matter he was to teach to others. His efforts were so successful
that in a short time he was able to teach !socrates and then
other authors. In the summer he taught the Somnium Scipionis,
treating many philosophical ana astronomical problems. Many
professors of the University who were there at the time came
to hear him. Against his will, in fact almost forced by superiors, he gave sermons at Pentecost in the cathedral on three
successive days. Though he was certainly unworthy of the
praise, the superior wrote to the Fathers in Rome that never
had man spoken as this man. 11 He continued to preach almost
every Sunday during the three years that he remained there.
He also preached during Advent and at Christmas.
He happened, moreover, to read the sermons of Cornelius
Musso, Bishop of Bitonto, and he began to imitate him and to
write his sermons out completely. This meant, of course, that
great efforts were required to recite them exactly. One Christmas after vespers he gave a carefully worked out sermon, the
memorizing of which had taken several days. Then the canons
of the church informed him that another sermon would have
to be given early the next morning. He almost despaired of
giving the sermon because he did not have even an hour to commit it to memory. But it was God's good pleasure that he
preached more effectively, more fluently and more sincerely
than ever before. The canons said: "Before, you gave the
sermons; today an angel from heaven preached." From that
-
11
John 7, 46.
�AUTOBIOGRAPHY
time on he decided to omit all flowery expressions and to write
only a Latin outline of his vernacular sermons. He kept to this
practice, writing only his Latin sermons out in full.
Occupations at Mondovi
In the College of Mondovi N. was more or less jack of all
trades. He taught in the school, read at table, gave sermons in
the church, delivered exhortations to the Brothers. He accompanied the priests on call, did the porter's work while he
was at meals. At times he even got the community up in the
morning. When Father Adorno, the Provincial, heard him
speaking, he said -that it was not good for N. to put off his
theological studie-s· so long. So he ordered him to travel to
Padua for theology so that after finishing the course he might
devote himself exclusively to preaching. Before he left Mondovi something humorous happened. He accompanied Father
Rector on a visit to the Dominicans. The Dominican Prior offered the Rector a drink. When the Rector declined, the Prior
replied, "At any rate this little brother will be glad of a drink."
He referred to N., but did not know his name. The next day
the Prior came to the door while N. was taking the porter's
place. He asked for the preacher. N. answered that the
preacher could not come, but he would surely tell him whatever His Paternity ordered. "No," said the Prior, "I can't tell
you what I want to say. Take me to the preacher or call him to
me." "I have already told you," N. said, "that the preacher cannot come to you." He insisted and N. was forced to tell him that
he was the person he was seeking and that he could not come
because he was already there. The Prior recalled his derisive
remark of the previous day and was embarrassed. He asked
pardon quite humbly and requested that on Christmas before
the sermon he should read a papal bull which contained indulgences that would be given to those who contributed alms
to defray the expenses of a projected Dominican general
chapter. N. promised that he would do so and kept his word.
In 1567 N. went to Padua to begin his theological studies.
At that time the Scholastics had two professors. One taught
at home. This was Father Charles Faraone of Sicily and his
text was the Pars Prima of St. Thomas. The other, Friar
Ambrose Barbaciari, a Dominican, taught the tract De Legibus
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
13
from the Prima Secundae publicly in the University. But because our Scholastics, N. among them, noticed that Friar
Ambrose taught nothing except what is found in Dominic
Soto in the first book of De justitia et jure, they quickly left
him. While Father Charles was teaching praedestinatio ex
praevisis operibus, N. put in his notes the doctrine of St. Augustine on praedestinatio gratuita. Scarcely two months of
theology had gone by when N. was forced to speak in the college church, first before dinner, then after dinner. During
carnival time he went to Venice and on Thursday of carnival
week he gave a sermon to an audience of many nobles. They
listened attentively as he discoursed against the dances and
other excesses of these holidays. When he had finished, many
noble senators wished to kiss his hand.
In May Father Provincial took N. to Genoa, when the
provincial congregation was held, to defend certain propositions and to preach. For two days in the cathedral, he defended
propositions taken from Aristotle's Rhetoric, Logic, Physics,
Metaphysics, Mathematics and from all parts of the Summa
of St. Thomas. When during the dispute he had a difference
of opinion with Father Charles Faraone, the presiding official,
Father Provincial, ordered Father Charles to be silent and to
allow N. to speak for himself. After vespers on Sunday he
also gave a sermon to a very large audience. He took practically the whole sermon from the discourse of St. Basil on the
words of St. Paul, "Attende tibi." 12 He knew, indeed, that
there were not many there who would recognize the theft from
St. Basil.
At the end of the year Father General ordered him to Louvain to preach in Latin. He was also to finish his course in
theology there. Because, however, at Padua he had begun an
explanation of the Psalm Qui habitat 13 from the pulpit and
had an eager audience, the Fathers of Padua did not wish to
let him go. They told Father General that there was danger
that N. could not bear the winter cold of the North and that
that was also the doctor's opinion. But N. wrote to Father
General that he was ready to go wherever obedience ordered
him but had not gone because His Paternity had not com-
-
12
13
I Tim. 4, 16: Take heed to thyself.
Psalm 90.
�14
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
manded him to go but commanded his immediate superior
to send him. Father General waited for six months. During
that time N. attended the lectures of Father John Ricasoli
who was teaching some questions from Pars Tertia of St.
Thomas. On feast days he continued giving lectures in the
church on the Psalm Qui habitat, and he gave exhortations to
the Brothers on Friday.
To Louvain
In the spring of 1569,14 Father General wrote to N. to go to
Milan. There he would join Father James, a Fleming, and go
to Louvain. Since the journey was rumored to be extremely
perilous because the soldiers of the Duke of Zweibriicken were
crossing from Germany into France by the route that we would
take, N. made a visit to the Blessed Sacrament and with his
whole heart offered his life to God and also whatever it pleased
Him should befall him during this journey. Then, filled with
sincere confidence, he went alone to Milan where he was joined
by Father James and by Doctor William Allen, who afterwards was a cardinal. With them and two other Englishmen
and an Irishman he traveled to Louvain. When he entered the
College he said, "I was sent by Father General to remain for
two years. I ~shall, however, remain for seven years." What
spirit prompted him to say that, he does not know. It seemed
to be something that just came to mind.
He began preaching in Latin on the feast of St. James, the
ApostleY Since it seemed untoward that"he was not yet in
holy orders and could not wear the stole, as all preachers
there were accustomed to do, the Fathers at Louvain wrote
to Father General on the matter. He had been putting
off N.'s ordination so that he would not be forced to make
the profession of the three vows according to the decree
of Pius V. 16 He wrote N., however, to make the profession
of the three vows and so receive orders. Later he could pro14 Bellarmine writes here, "Apparente anno 1569" and elsewhere, "Nella
primavera del 1569." Probably the style of the year was different from
ours.
1s July 25.
1 6 In 1568 St. Pius V decreed that religious men must take their
solemn vows before being ordained. The Jesuits were exempted from the
law by Gregory XIII.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMIN:E
15
nounce the four vows. Because there was no bishop at Louvain
or in the neighborhood, N. had to travel to Liege where on the
ember days after Ash Wednesday he received the first tonsure,
minor orders and the subdiaconate. From there he went to
Ghent where he received the diaconate from Cornelius Jansenius on the Saturday before Passion Sunday/ 7 and the
priesthood on Holy Saturday. On Low Sunday 1570 at Louvain he sang his First Solemn Mass with deacon and subdeacon.
The same year at the beginning of October he was asked by
the Fathers to teach scholastic theology. He consented although he had studied only some of the Pars Prima and Pars
Tertia of St. Thomas. Putting his trust in God, however, he
taught the whole of the Pars Prima for two years, then part
of the Prima Secundae for a year, the Secunda Secundae for
two years, and the beginning of the Pars Tertia the year after
that. And so he preached the first six years and the seventh
year he ceased to preach because of poor health. He taught the
last six years. The first year therefore he only preached; the
last year he only taught; the five intervening years he both
preached and taught. During this time he also gave domestic
exhortations and heard confessions. N. was the first to open the
school of theology at Louvain. Up to that time the University
had not permitted Ours to teach publicly. Moreover Michael
Baius, in other respects an outstanding professor, was teaching opinions which seemed to lean towards the erroneous
novelties of the Lutherans and were condemned by Pius V in
1570. Since N. noticed that there were many who favored
these ideas, he began to refute them, not as opinions of Dr.
Michael Baius, but as those of ancient or modern heretics.
Learning Hebrew
At that time N. thought that a knowledge of Hebrew would
be extremely useful for understanding the Scripture and applied hhnself to learning the language. From a master of the
language he learned the alphabet and some of the fundamentals
of grammar and then composed a Hebrew grammar of his own,
using an easier method than the rabbis usually applied and
17
Uncle of Cornelius Jansenius, father of Jansenism, who was bishop
of Ypres.
�AUTOBIOGRAPHY
16
in a short time learned the Hebrew language, at least, as much
as is needed by a theologian. He also started an academy in
which with some of his companions he kept up the study of
Hebrew and Greek. To show that his grammar was easier than
others, he promised one of his students in theology who had absolutely no knowledge of Hebrew that, if he would study under
his direction for eight days, N. would give him enough Hebrew
so that with the aid of a dictionary he could understand Hebrew books on his own. And this he really did to show that
the statement of St. Jerome about Blesilla that she had learned
Hebrew within the space of a few, not months, but days, was
not false.
In 1572 on the octave of the feast of SS. Peter and Paul18
N. made the profe.ssion of the four vows. During that year
many cities revolted against Philip II of Spain. When William
of Orange came with a large army towards Louvain, practically all the religious departed. The city could not be easily
defended, and the heretical Calvinists, of whom William's
army was full, were particularly savage towards religious.
Because the enemy advanced with greater rapidity than expected, the rector of the College ordered all to change their
clothes and gut their hair so that the tonsure might not appear. He divided the little money that was in the College among
them and sent them two by two to save themselves as best
they could from the imminent peril. So for many days N.
travelled on foot with a companion towards Artois. It was
a weary time and filled with danger. In- time he came to the
city of Douay where, having avoided the war, he found a deadly
plague raging. But from all these dangers God delivered them.
Once as night was coming on, N. was so tired that he could
not possibly go further. And though it was extremely perilous,
he had to stop by the road. But, lo and behold, a coach filled
with people came hurrying along at top speed. They themselves
were fleeing from the face of the enemy. They drew nearer and
the coachman realized that N. could advance no further. He
stopped the coach and most graciously accepted him as a passenger. His companion, who was stronger, ran ahead on foot
until the outskirts of the city were reached. The coachman
was a fine man, a good Catholic, and said that he formerly
1s
The octave occurred on July 6.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
17
heard mass every day, but now, to spite the heretics, he tried
to hear two masses daily and to help persecuted priests as best
he could. For that reason, he said, he had gladly given him
passage in his coach, for he had heard from his companion
that N. was a priest, although wearing lay garb.
At the end of the autumn the Duke of Alba with the great
army he had assembled put William of Orange to flight andrecovered the lost cities in Hainaut and Brabant. SoN. returned
to Louvain to his former tasks of preaching and teaching.
How numerous his hearers were can be concluded from this
that when the sermon was finished and the hearers departed
through different doors, two or three streets were filled with
them. The citizens wondered whence so many people came.
There were said to be several thousand in the audience. The
College was some distance from the Church of St. Michael
where he preached and as he was on the way there once N.
was joined by an important gentleman who did not recognize
him as the preacher because of his small stature. In the pulpit
he seemed taller because he stood on a stool. And so word had
gotten around that a tall young man had come from Italy to
preach in Latin. Now this gentleman began to ask N. whether
he knew the preacher, where he was from, and where he had
studied. At the same time he praised him beyond the bounds of
truth. When N. answered in such a way as not to let on who
he was, the gentlemen said, "You're walking along too slowly.
You'll pardon me if I hurry ahead to get a place." N. answered,
"Do as you please, for I am sure that my place will not be
taken."
About the effectiveness of the sermons, I can say only this,
that as a result of a sermon given on All Souls day many
people were moved to go to confession. Again in the case of a
sermon given on the Sunday within the Octave of Corpus
Christi, many were strengthened in their faith in the real
presence of the Lord's body in the Eucharist, or even converted
from error, as I was informed by people worthy of belief.
Many other compliments were paid and as a result the Fathers
of Louvain would not consent to his going when N. was earnestly claimed by Cardinal Borromeo/ 9 who is now called St.
-
19
St. Charles wanted Bellarmine to help staff a new Jesuit college
he had founded at Milan.
�18
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Charles-and this although Father General had promised.
The same was true when the Parisians sought him. But in
1576, when he was so ill that in the judgment of doctors he
could not long survive, they wrote to Father General that they
could not any longer without scruples of conscience keep him
from a change of climate. The General wrote that they should
send him immediately to Rome. This they did.
Return to Italy
When N. came down from Aosta and began to breathe the
air of Italy, it was remarkable how great a change he felt in
his body. His strength seemed to return, and he recovered
from the various .ills which afflicted him. His strength of body
was such when he reached Rome that after a month or two,
at his superiors' bidding he started to teach controversial
theology in the Roman College. He had this assignment for·
eleven years. He also gave exhortations in the College and
heard the confessions of the community. In 1584, if I remember
rightly, N. began to publish books. First he published his
Hebrew grammar. Then came three books De translatione
imperii Romani contra Illyricum. Then the first volume of
the Controversies, which afterwards was divided into two
volumes because of its length, was published. After that came
volume two, which subsequently became the third. At the
same time some smaller works were published, which are
among the Opuscula.
- .
In 1589, when Cardinal Cajetan was sent to France because
of the very serious political troubles in that Kingdom, N. was
sent along with him by pope Sixtus V. In France N.'s name had
begun to become famous because of his published Controver·
sies. Many people wanted to see him, and they visited him
frequently. On the journey His Eminence asked N. how long
he thought the pope would live. He answered that the Pope
would die that very year and repeated that opinion often at
Paris when the cardinal claimed that the Pope would certainly
live longer. When the cardinal with his entourage was at
Dijon in Burgundy and was thinking of leaving to go to Paris,
it was rumored that at a certain crossroads the Seigneur de
Tavannes lay in ambush with a thousand knights. He in·
tended to capture the cardinal, kill some of his party. and
�ST. ROBERT BELLARl\IINE
19
take others prisoner. But then another rumor arose that the
whole tale was false and its purpose was to stop the journey
of the cardinal. So since the cardinal could not get at the truth
by human means, he celebrated mass when they were all ready
to set out. Then he secretly put in the chalice two slips of
paper. On one was written .Go; on the other Do not go. He
commended the matter to God, then drew one of the papers.
It was the paper that said Do not go. Shortly afterwards he
found out that the rumor about the ambush was true.
Besieged in Paris
At Paris we remained from January 20 until the beginning
of September. During all that time we did practically nothing,
but we suffered a great deal. On the twelfth of March the Duke
of Mayenne fought a battle with King Henry of Navarre and
the king won. Fear and trembling fell upon us. But the king
did not wish to destroy and plunder such an important city as
Paris. He preferred to take it by siege, rather than to break
in by force. So he circled it with siege works. We were all
without food and lived a miserable existence. A broth made
from dog meat, cooked in a pot, sold for a high price. The
ambassador of the king of Spain gave us a great gift when
he presented us with a piece of his horse which he had killed
for food. The only work N. did at Paris was to write a letter
in the name of the cardinal to the French bishops urging them
to avoid a schism. It was said that they intended to summon
a national synod and in it create a patriarch independent of
the Apostolic See. This was stopped.
It is a marvel how it got into the besieged city, but in September a letter was brought to the cardinal from Rome. There
were varying opinions as to what was in the letter before the
cardinal opened it. Almost everyone believed it portended evil
because Sixtus was hostile to the cardinal and his secretary.
He was even against Bellarmine himself because he found
a statement in his books which denied that the Pope was directly master of the whole world. Then N. said that the letter
contained notice of the pope Sixtus V's death. Everyone
laughed at this because there had been no rumor about the
pope's being sick. But N.'s statement turned out to be true and
everyone was amazed.
�20
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
On his return to Rome, N. became very seriously sick
at Meaux because in that city a deadly dysentery was ·
rampant, and those who contracted the disease avoided
death with difficulty. N. began to suffer from the dysentery
on the first night. In addition he had a very high fever, and
was able to eat nothing, nor to rest. The cardinal stopped a
whole day and took counsel with his advisers to find out what
to do with N. Finally God inspired the cardinal with a good
plan of action. N. would not be left there but would be taken
with the cardinal by hook or by crook. The cardinal had his
litter made ready and had N. placed in it. It was God's good
pleasure that as N. left the city, he soon began to feel better.
Within a week, ~pile journeying lying down or sitting in the
litter, he completely recovered. On this journey he passed
through Basel but was not recognized. When people heard
afterwards that N. had been there, it is said that many were
disappointed because they had not been able to see him.
Whether they wished to do him harm or to honor him, is uncertain. He reached Rome on the eleventh of November.
The Sixtine Bible
In 1591 Gregory XIV was pondering over what should be
done with the Bible published by Sixtus V in which very many
changes had been wrongly introduced. Some important men
believed that the edition should be publicly banned. But in the
pope's presence N. showed that the edition should not be
banned, but that it should be corrected to save the good name
of Sixtus, and that the corrected edition should be published.
This could be accomplished if the obnoxious changes were removed as quickly as possible and the Bible issued under the
name of Sixtus. A preface should be added in which it was
stated that because of haste some errors on the part of the
typesetters and others had crept in. So N. returned pope
Sixtus good for evil. Sixtus, because of that statement about
the pope's direct power over the whole world, had put his
Controversies on the Index until the statement was corrected. 20
When he diec;I, however, the Sacred Congregation of Rites im20 The Index entry: "Roberti Bellarmini Disputationes de Controversiis Christianae fidei adversus huius temporis haereticos. Nisi prius ;
ex superioribus regulis recognitae fuerint."
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
21
mediately ordered N.'s name deleted from the Index. Gregory
liked N.'s idea and ordered a congregation formed to correct
the Sixtine Bible quickly and to conform it to the ordinary
Bibles, especially to the one published by Louvain. The business of revision was transacted at Zagarolo in the home of
Cardinal Marcantonio Colonna. The cardinal himself was
present as was the English Cardinal Allen and the Master
of the Sacred Palace, N., and three or four others. After the
deaths of Gregory and Innocent, Clement VIII published the
revised Bible under the name of Sixtus V with a preface which
N. himself composed.
In the autumn of 1591 N. went to Frascati to write the third
volume of the Controversies. He finished the work in a few
months and dedicated it to Clement VIII. In 1592 N. was made
rector of the Roman College. To set the community an example
of religious simplicity, he took some valuable desks from the
rector's room and ordered them put in the sacristy to keep
linens and other sacred objects. He also had paintings, called
quadri, taken out and all other things that were not necessary.
He wanted only what the rest of the community had. He did
not finish his three years of office but was sent to Naples as
provincial. 21 In that office he tried to instruct others by word
and example and he visited the province twice.
He did not complete three years as provincial. On the death
of Cardinal Toledo, indeed, he was recalled to Rome by pope
Clement VIII in January, 1597. The pope wanted him to come
to the papal palace to live. But he got permission through
Cardinal Aldobrandini to live in the Penitentiary instead.2 2
At the same time he was made consultor to the Holy Office.
At that time the pope also began to send him petitions for marriage dispensations and some other such work. He, however,
went rarely to the papal palace and only if it was most necessary. Concerning Clement himself there is an astonishing
incident. In the first years of his pontificate there were many
who surmised that he would die soon as his three predecessors
had. N. said to Silvio Antoniano, "Clement will live for twelve
Years and twelve months," and repeated this often. During the
I-
21
!
I
I
In 1594.
The Jesuits were in charge of hearing confessions at St. Peter's.
The confessors lived in a house called the Penitenzieria.
22
�22
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
last year he said frequently to his friends that the pope would
die that year. He was neither an astrologer nor a prophet,
but he spoke casually. At that time at the request of Cardinal
Tarugi he wrote a brief catechism and another more elaborate
one, both of which were subsequently printed and are in use in
many places.
In 1598 the pope went to Ferrara and took N. with him who
not only had the work of consultor to the Holy Office, but was
also examiner of future bishops. He also dealt with the pope
on Society business which had been entrusted to him by the
Father General. Although N. did not live 23 in the College of
the Society, the Pope nevertheless sent twenty-five scudi to the
College every week.on his account.
Created Cardinal
In 1599 on the Wednesday of the Lenten ember days 24 the
Pope created N. cardinal. It was so unexpected that he could
not possibly have foreseen it. But, because many people had
suspected that it would happen, Father General two months
previously had asked the pope through his Maestro di Camera
whether he would grant permission for N. to be made rector
of the Penitentiary. With the Pope's approval he became
Rector of the Penitentiary. But the pope did this to conceal
his real intention. Similarly some six months previously some
friends said to the pope that N. was worthy of the Cardinalate.
"Yes," the Pope answered, "he is indeed -worthy but he is a
Jesuit," thus giving a hint that he did not intend to elevate
him. Afterwards in a consistory the pope declared him cardinal
along with twelve others. Cardinal Aldobrandini at once sent
Marquis Sannesio to tell him he had been made a cardinal
and to order him solemnly in His Holiness' name not to leave
the house for any reason. Then N. called together all the
Fathers of the Penitentiary and asked their advice on his
course of action. Father John Baptist Costa, the eldest, said
that this was not a time for consultation, since he was already
a cardinal, having been declared one in a consistory. There
was no hope that the pope would accept any excuse, especially
23 Dollinger and Reusch read non degeret where Le Bachelet reads
degeret.
24 March 3.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
23
when he had expressly ordered him not to leave the house.
The others agreed. Then N. sent Father Minister to Cardinal
Aldobrandini to tell him that N. wanted to go to the pope to
present his reasons for not being able to accept this dignity,
but he did not dare to leave the house because of the prohibition given by him in the pope's name. Cardinal Aldobrandini
answered that he could not allow N. to go to the pope, unless
he should be summoned. The Pope did not wish to hear his
reasons, but ordered him under obedience to accept this dignity. When he was called upon to accept the red hat, he tried
to present his excuses, but the pope at once interrupted,
saying, "In virtue of holy obedience and under the pain of
mortal sin, I order you to accept the dignity of the cardinalate."
Life as Cardinal
As cardinal he decided not to change his manner of life with
regard to the plainness of his table, his prayer, meditation,
daily mass, and all other laws or customs of the Society.
Further, he resolved not to build up a fortune nor to enrich
his relatives, but to give to churches and to the poor whatever
remained of his revenues. Finally, he would not seek further
revenues from the pope nor accept the gifts of heads of state.
He kept all these resolutions .
. In 1602, since the see of Capua was vacant, the pope gave it
to N. The pope himself consecrated him on the second Sunday
after Easter, the one on which the gospel Ego sum bonus pastor
is read. Two days later the pope gave him the archiepiscopal
pallium. On the following day he left the papal palace and shut
himself up in the Roman College for four days to escape
visitors. On Friday he gave a sermon to the community. Soon
afterwards he left to take up residence in his see. Many, the
pope himself among them, were surprised at this hurried exit
from Rome. As a rule officials of the curia can only with
difficulty be separated from it. Another Cardinal who was
consecrated with N. to be archbishop of Bari put off his departure until the end of October.
N. arrived at his see of Capua on May 1. Shortly after his
solemn entrance and after singing a solemn high Mass, he
ascended the pulpit on the feast of the Ascension and began
Preaching. During the first year he spent several thousand
�24
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
gold pieces on the renovation of the cathedral and the bishop's
palace. He had a list made of poor families and sent a fixed
sum of money to them each month. He assigned monthly contributions to various charities. This was in addition to what
was distributed every day at his door and in addition to extraordinary alms. During the three years that he resided at
Capua he visited the whole diocese three times. He held three
diocesan synods and one provincial council; the last one had
been held eighteen years previously. There was a custom of
having no sermon in the cathedral except on the four Sundays
of Advent and during Lent. He began to preach also at Christmas and on almost every Sunday of the year. He preached
not only in the city, but also in the country during the time
of his visitations. Of course, he could not be both in the city
and the country at the same time. Therefore, when he was in
the city, he sent two Jesuits to take care of the country districts
and gave them ten gold pieces a month so they would be no
burden to the farmers. When he visited the villages, the
Fathers remained in the city, preaching and hearing confessions.
While he was in one of the larger country villages, he wrote
an explanation of the creed in Italian and had it printed so
that parish priests who did not know how to preach might
read the explanation of an article after the gospel, especially
if it fitted in with a particular feast day. He absolutely banned
the custom by which the canons and the~p!].rish priests had to
give the archibishop a rather expensive gift on his anniversary.
He did this as well to spare poor canons and poor priests as to
bring it about that the rich among them should gain greater
merit by giving to the poor rather than to the archbishop who
did not need it. He often meditated on and preached to others
of the words of Isaias, "Beatus vir qui excutit manus ab omni
munere." 25 He attended the divine office with the canons on
feast days-for the archbishop of Capua was also a canon and
received rather substantial revenue for it-not only for mass
and vespers, but also for matins and lauds. On feria! days he
was present at least at the morning office. He did this to keep
his canons af their duty and to train them to sing the psalms
slowly and solemnly. It was also his purpose by this practice to
25
Isaias 33, 15: Blessed is he that shaketh his hands from all bribes.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMIN:E!
25
obtain alms which he gave entirely to the poor. He used to
say that these were the only alms that could properly be called
his, for he earned them by his own labor. All other alms came
from the church, not from him.
From the very beginning he predicted that he would spend
only three years as head of that church. With great diligence
he got together the names of his predecessors from St. Priscus,
a disciple of St. Peter the Apostle, up to his own time. He
placed the names of all his predecessors in a catalogue. Of
his immediate predecessor he wrote: "Caesar Costa ruled for
thirty years." Below this entry he added: "N. ruled for three
years." And that is exactly the way it turned out. After three
years Clement VIII died, and his successor, Paul V, was unwilling to allow N. to return to Capua. So he was forced to
give up the church. Moreover he read the lives of saintly
bishops which he had collected from Surius. He felt that this
kind of reading was very beneficial. He was loved by his people
and he loved his people. The government officials never caused
him any inconvenience because they looked upon him as a
servant of God.
Conclaves
In the conclave that elected Leo XI, and again in the one
that elected Paul V, he remained as much as possible in his
cell, or he would walk in a deserted spot, saying his Rosary
or reading a book; privately in his prayers he said to the
Lord, "Mitte quem missurus es,'' 26 and "From the papacy
deliver me, 0 Lord." In the second conclave he came close to
being elected pope. When a very influential gentleman promised his good offices, he begged him to desist. He did not even
thank him and told him, "If becoming pope depended on my
stooping over to pick up a straw from the ground, I would
not do it." He bore no ill will towards those who opposed his
candidacy, nor was he disturbed by it. He gave his judgment
of the papacy as a most onerous and most perilous task. In
the time of Paul V he spent some money on the renovation
of his title church. 27 Likewise he gave a perpetual revenue
(of fifty scudi) to the Society's college at Montepulciano.
-
26
27
Exodus 4, 13: Send whom thou wilt send.
A few words are missing in the text here.
�2~
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
He wished to resign an abbey at Capua with its revenue of
more than a thousand scudi to the college of Capua, but the
pope refused to allow it. He brought it about, however, that
the church, house, and gardens of the abbey were turned over
to the college. At that time he published a commentary on the
psalms,2 8 two books (three in the Italian edition) against the
theologians at Venice, 29 likewise a book of apologetics against
the king of England, 30 a book refuting William Barclay, 31 a
book refuting Roger Widdrington, 32 and a book on the ecclesiastical writers which included a chronology. 33
He was a member of many congregations of cardinals,
namely, the Holy Office, the Index, Sacred Rites, the Consistory, the Sacred-}?enitentiary, Propaganda Fidei, The Congregation for Germany and Hungary. He was Protector of
the Celestine Order, of the Convent of St. Martha, and the
German College. In the absence of Cardinal Aldobrandini he
was vice-protector of the Oratory of St. Jerome and the
Convertitae 34 He has now reached his seventy-first year and,
every year, preferably in September, he goes on retreat, and
gives his time to prayer and silence, putting aside all other
occupations so that he may wipe off as best he can the dust
that clings to him from his various occupations, and that he
may prepare to render God an account of his stewardship.
Pray for him.
N. wrote this at the request of a friend and fellow Jesuit in
June, 1613. Of his virtues he said nothm$ for he does not
know whether he truly possesses any; and of his faults he has
said nothing, for they are not the sort of thing to be put in
print, and may they be found to be blotted out of the book of
God on the day of judgment. Amen.
28fu Omnes Psalmos Explanatio.
29 Venice was at this time in rebellion against Papal jurisdiction.
Bellarmine's works were in the form of replies to Giovanni Marsilio and
Paolo Sarpi.
30 The king was James I. Bellarmine's book was titled, Apologia
Roberti Bellarmini, S.R.E. Cardinalis, pro responsione sua ad Librum
Jacobi, Magnae Britanniae Regis.
3 1 De Potestate summi Pontificis in rebus temporalibus.
32 Called simply Examen.
33 De scriptoribus ecclesiasticis liber unus.
34 A group of penitent women who, under religious supervision, were
trying to reform their lives.
�ST. ROB:ERT BELLARMINE
21
Additional N otes35
N. is convinced that it was very profitable for him in his
studies to have been forced to teach subjects he had not
mastered. Another gift of God which helped greatly was the
ease with which he could grasp and explain all subjects. For
he was forced to teach Greek literature, the principles of
rhetoric, and scholastic theology. While still a very young
man, he had to preach in churches and give exhortations to
the Brothers. He was forced to learn Greek and Hebrew, to
read almost all the Fathers, and historians, and many scholastic doctors, and the Councils or a summary of them, as well as
almost the whole corpus of canon law. Although he lived in
various colleges where there was no one to consult, he did not
have much difficulty in understanding what he read.
He was sent to Naples to edit the works of Father Salmeron.36 He remained in the city about five months from May
to October. In that time he read through the huge volumes
written by that Father. Daily he brought to the Father's attention errors which he found arising from incorrect citation
of authors, spurious tales, novel opinions, wrongly interpreted
scriptural passages, and from fallacious philosophical or theological doctrines. Although the Father, when he first heard
the corrections, was angry and tried to defend his work, nevertheless on the next day, when his good temper was restored, he
would correct his mistakes. In my opinion this revision of
his work was a great profit for him.
During a controversy in Belgium between Father Leonard
Lessius and the faculty of Louvain, he worked very hard to
reconcile Cardinal MadruzzP 7 with the theologians of the
Society. He wrote a short work for him in which he proved
that the doctrine of the Society agreed with that of former
Louvain professors, Tapper, Tiletanus, and others, and that
the present professors of Louvain did not explain the doctrine
of our theologians properly. 38
-
35
The addition here is the result of Father Vitelleschi's request for
further information. (Dollinger and Reusch, op. cit., p. 1.)
36 Bellarmine went to Naples in 1579. The works of Father Salmeron
Were commentaries on the New Testament.
37
Cardinal prefect of the Inquisition.
38 This is the beginning of the controversy on grace explained more
�AtJTOBIOGRAPliY
Molinism
On the book of Molina, Concordia, 39 N. was the first to warn
Father General, before any controversy arose on the matter,
that there were many statements in the book that were suspect,
pointing out the passages in writing. Father General sent them
to Spain, and a new edition of Father Molina was published
in which he endeavored to soften his assertions and said that
he was speaking for the sake of argument and not apodictically.
When afterwards a controversy arose he was ordered by pope
Clement to state his opinion on the censure made by the
Dominicans Fathers. He wrote a simple work in which he
showed what was·the point at issue in the whole controversy
and that the opinion of the Dominicans was more dangerous
than that of Father Molina. At the beginning the pope was
extraordinarily pleased with the work. N. also wrote two
other short works to answer the objections and charges of the
adversaries. These did not displease the pope. When, after N.
had become a Cardinal, he was at Frascati in the company of
the pope and the conversation turned on the subject, the pontiff
called the position of the Society "our position," that is, his
and the Society's. Later, however, he changed his mind completely. While N. was in Rome he would not allow the matter
to be debated openly, for fear N. would be present. But after
N.'s departure he wanted it debated befo.re the cardinals of
the Holy Office. N., himself, often warned ·the pope to take care
lest he be deceived, and not to think that he could arrive at
a solution of such an intricate problem by his own study, since
he was not a theologian. N. openly predicted that His Holiness
would not define the matter. When the Pope answered that he
intended to define it, N. responded. "Your Holiness will not
define it.'' He made the same prediction to Cardinal del Monte
who afterwards reminded N., himself, of this prediction.
He had a disagreement with Cardinal Baronius in one of
congregations concerned with the reform of the breviary. 40
The point under discussion was whether the martydrom of St.
Andrew was r~ally written by the priests of Achaia. Baronius
fully in the next paragraph.
39 Published in 1588.
4° In 1592.
�ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE
denied it, but, when he heard N.'s opinion and reasons, he said
publicly that he had lost the argument and that he preferred
N.'s opinion to his own.U
Beatification of Ignatius Loyola
N. did much for the beatification of Blessed Ignatius. He
was the first who brought to Cardinal Gesualdo, the Prefect
of the Congregation of Rites, a memorial of the general congregation in which he himself had taken part and so the cause
of canonization was introduced. After this he gave the first exhortation in the church of the Domus Professa in praise of
Blessed Ignatius. Cardinal Baronius was present as N. addressed the community. When the exhortation was over, Cardinal Baronius asked for a picture of Blessed Igantius and
climbed a ladder in order to put it over the crypt of our Blessed
Father. From that day the tomb began to be honored and much
visited. Afterwards, when the time seemed propitious to seek
beatification, N. advised Father General of the fact. Father
General took great care that the Father Procurator get ready
with all speed all that was required. Very quickly the affair was
brought to a successful close. If this had not been done at that
time, and if N. had not pressed all the Cardinals of the congregation and had not developed his opinion at length God
knows when the beatification would have been obtained. 42
In company with Cardinal d' Ascoli and Cardinal Pamfili he
informed Pope Paul V that Aloysius Gonzaga merited beatification. Before this time, when the body of Aloysius was about
to be buried, N. brought it about that Father General's permission was asked to have the body placed in a wooden coffin
and separated from the other bodies. This was so the body
could be recognized if Aloysius was someday canonized. 43
Afterwards N. was a witness for the process of his canonization, and with the other cardinals of the congregation he
dispatched the remissorial letters. 44 While the process of
-
41
It is now certain that Baronius was right and Bellarmine wrong
on this point.
42
Ignatius was beatified in 1609.
43
During 1588-1591, while Bellarmine was spiritual father of the
Roman College, he directed St. Aloysius .
44
• These authorize bishops to start by Apostolic authority the inquiry
With regard to the reputation for sanctity and miracles of the person
to be canonized.
�30
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
beatification was going on, N. was first to testify to the innocence, austerity of life, and miracles of Aloysius. He concluded that saints are called saints either because of their
innocence, or because they had done penance. Therefore,
Blessed Aloysius could, like St. John the Baptist, be beatified
under both titles. All the cardinals accepted this opinion.
A decree was issued which the supreme pontiff did not confirm. Why he did not, N. does not know.
Chaplain at Tagaste and the
Kasserine Pass
L. B. Kines, S.J.
In May of 1941 I received word from my superiors that I
was to make application to become a chaplain in the armed
services of the United States. My first try ended in failure
when the Navy Department, because of my faulty vision,
turned me down. I was then advised to apply to the Army. The
necessary formalities were accomplished by September 5th.
I was sworn into active service with a se.rial number reading
- "
0-425972.
The first assignment was with the Quartermaster Corps at
Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Further posts included Fort
Myer, Virginia, Fort Eustis, Virginia and, finally, Fort Bragg,
North Carolina. Here I was assigned to the artillery induction
center consisting of thirteen battalions of inductees. My transfer to the 39th Infantry, 9th Division was quite by accident.
The Catholic chaplain was rejected for overseas duty because
he did not pass the physical examination. I reported to the
commanding officer, Col. B. F. Caffey, Jr., U.S.A., in early
May. Until we left Fort Bragg for overseas three months
were taken ':J.P by amphibious maneuvers with the Marine
Corps at Cherry Point, North Carolina, and with the Navy
off Solomons Island, Maryland. In early September 1942 we
were alerted for duty abroad and after a few days in the
�IN NORTH AFRICA
31
staging area at Fort Dix, New Jersey, we arrived at Hoboken,
New Jersey.
The following pages are taken from the diary I kept while
overseas and for the most part are taken directly as written
at the time of the events.
September 25th, 1942. Climbed aboard the Leedstown, formerly the Santa Lucia of the Grace Line at approximately
8:30 P.M., somewhere along the Atlantic seaboard (actually
Hoboken). The proverbial sardine can, or a New York subway
during rush hours, looked like the open spaces of the Texas
Panhandle compared to the Leedstown as we pushed and elbowed our way across deck, down the ladders to what were
in the plush civilian days called Staterooms A Deck. Fifteen
officers were assigned to this cubicle and after we just about
had settled ourselves a foghorn-voiced billeting officer shouted:
"All right, gentlemen, double up, there are about 200 more
officers still to be bunked." No umpire at Ebbets Field, who
called Babe Herman out for going to second base already occupied, ever received the hoots and catcalls administered to this
unlucky chap-but to no avail-double up we did. How?
Don't ask please!
September 26th, 1942. Our first day at sea. There was a
tense air of expectancy among the soldiers and under the most
trying circumstances they behaved well. Since with 3,000
aboard it was possible to feed each man only twice a day, the
meals began at 4 A.M. and lasted till 11 P.M.-the chow line
being like Stonewall Jackson's foot cavalry, always. on the
move. The weather was mild and foggy. The convoy now
forming outside the Narrows looks majestic, consisting of
battleships, cruisers, destroyers and subs. The questions getting the $64,000 answers varied deck by deck, v.g., A deck says
Martinique, B deck Australia, C deck Norway, and as you
hit bottom deck it could be anywhere. But each and all knew
we were sailing away from Main Street, Fifth A venue, Boylston Street, Charles Street and Broad Street for a long time and
that some would not be coming back. Already, perhaps, some
unknown Western Union operator was typing out the bleak
and sombre message beginning "We regret to inform you."
The even more important question than where was why. We
�32
CHAPLAIN
Americans are by temperament naturally restless and impatient and even if we knew where we were going it seemed
that they ought to have told us why.
I found the partial answer from a G.I. at El Guettar-but that
was a long way off.
Sept. 27th, 1942. The first Mass aboard ship was said in the
Grand Ballroom about 11 :40 A.M. and attended by about 350
men, most of whom received Holy Communion after a general
absolution. Never in my life have I felt so happy with the
troops. One could perceive from the deep sincerity of their
devotion and demeanor that though frightened by what may
lie ahead the majority realized each in his own way that the
time had come to -stop playing games, for very shortly the
stark hand of battle would separate the men from the boys.
Maybe it was my imagination, but the :Majesty of God Eternal
seemed portrayed in the blue ocean reflecting the azure sky,
while a deadly enemy lurked beneath those peaceful waters
bent on stopping our crusade. Certainly the moment had
done something to the rollicking, carefree G.I.'s. Probably
not a one of them could have given five solid reasons why we
were going where, but the offering of the Eternal Sacrifice
was a solid link to a common past, and a pledge of continuity
between that past and the problematic future. Could it be that
we were returning to the lands of our ancestors there to bring
to other men of the same blood, tongue. and religion those
priceless intangibles we take for granted?-A mess table served for the altar. The ageless words of the
:Mass were mingled with hushed orders "not to burn the bacon,
take it easy with the beans." Here within the same walls men
were waiting for heavenly and earthly bread. I did not have to
urge attendance, the problem was finding space. And what
a congregation! Many, many strange faces looked up to receive the Eucharistic Lord. Faces I had never seen in the
chapel at Fort Bragg. Was this a sudden revival of faith?
Probably more like the fear of the Lord which is the beginning
of wisdom. There was a new emphasis in the M emorare recited after Mass. "Never was it known that anyone who fled
to thy protection was left unaided." And whatever was lacking
in harmony in the rendition of "Holy God we praise Thy name"
was supplied by intensity.
�IN NORTH AFRICA
33
It is so easy to sit in the state room and write this entry.
Maybe nobody was any different than when we embarked. But
who knows? It surely seemed different to me.
Sept. 30th, 1942. First submarine scare, off Newfoundland.
The day was cold and cloudy and the Atlantic had changed her
Alice blue gown for a dull, drab, dreary shroud of gray. Universal confusion at the first notice that our lives are in danger.
The gnawing pangs of fear were most evident because of a
little note via the loud-speaker to go fully clothed overboard,
and even then the life span in the icy Atlantic might be less
than ten minutes. Orders were stuttered rather than barked.
And then, as would happen a thousand times, the American
sense of humor came to the fore. Later on, it would be a
stumbling block to the English and utter chaos to the Germans. From nowhere came a voice loudly insisting "Take it
easy boys! I'll take it straight with a little soda and no ice!"
Again: "Has anyone an extra bar of soap? I'm saving mine
for the Eskimos." We never found out whether it was really
a submarine or an iceberg.
Oct. 4th, 1942. Mass at 11:30 A.M. Attendance over four
hundred with one hundred twenty-five receiving Holy Communion. This Holy Sacrifice was given an extra touch when
one of the colored lads from an engineer battalion sang Schubert's "Ave Maria." Everyone was deeply moved both by his
cultured voice and the pathos he put into this lovely aria.
When we landed in Belfast these Negro troops were the first
to disembark and the North Irish thought that they were
Indians.
A further note was that they were the victims of the old army
snafu-situation normal, all fouled up. Somebody in WashIngton had typed their orders to read "Ireland" when actually it
should have read "New Ireland." And so they were reloaded on the
same transport and headed for the Far East. Here I might as well
add that the old struggle between North and South would erupt
regularly. All one had to do was to call into question the generalship of Robert E. Lee or U. S. Grant and the debate was on. It
seemed so strange since neither the leader of the Blue or Gray hosts
of long ago could answer the roll call!
~ame
. During the passage across the North Atlantic we were subJected to various alerts. One in particular caused a near panic.
�34
CHAPLAIN
Off Iceland the wireless flashed the alert signal and there was
a call to general quarters. The open decks were crowded and
the icy blasts chilled us to the marrow. There was reason to
fear that the battleship Tirpitz, the pride of Hitler's navy, had
broken the blockade in Norway and was on the loose ac·
companied by the Scheer and a covey of destroyers. And so
we stood literally frozen to the spot for hours on end. I recited
the rosary over and over again and many a strange intonation
went into the refrain "now and at the hour of our deat~
Amen." It turned out to be a false alarm. It seems some
British patrol planes (Lancasters) had mistaken an ice floe
for the German Navy.
Oct. 6th, 1942. At long last this morning we sighted Ian~
the northern tip of the Emerald Isle and-believe it or noteven the water was green! We followed the coast all day and
docked in the Belfast Estuary about 5:00 P.M.
Oct. 7th, 1942. Troops began debarking at 10 A.M. with the
minimum amount of fuss. As our battalion came down the
gang-plank, a tall quiet unassuming general received our
salutes and he looked mighty pleased as we marched by amid
the applause (slightly broguish) of the Irish dockhands. It
was General Mark Clark, later Commander of the Fifth Army
during the Italian Campaign. The dock area in Belfast brought
home to us for the first time the stark reality that war is a
grim game. Block after block of wareho~ses, dwellings, places
of business, were either leveled or stared at us with gaping
eyes through empty windows. Children tagged along, doing
their best to keep in step, all of them giving with their tinY
hands the V for victory sign. They looked a bit worse for the
wear and tear of blackouts, short rations and bombing raids.
At the King's railway station some local canteen unit supplied
us with the inevitable cup of tea and very tasty sandwiches.
We entrained for Templepatrick, a legendary burial place
of St. Patrick, now mostly in ruins. The ride through the
peaceful green countryside was really a tonic. Lush fields of
emerald green in which were feeding large herds of cattle and
sheep, broken at intervals by sleepy villages at whose stations
crowds had gathered to welcome us. In our battalion were
many descendants of the Scotch-Irish ancestry from Tennessee,
�IN NORTH AFRICA
35
Kentucky, and North Carolina, whose forebears had left these
very hills and dales to find a new home in a new land. Our
unit under the command of Major Ferrar Griggs of Scottish
ancestry was billeted at Lochinvar, the home of the Adair
Clan. We were housed in Nissen huts throughout the castle
grounds.
Oct. 10th, 1942. The Lord of Adair had a reception at the
castle for the officers of the battalion. It was quite formal with
a receiving line, introductions and all the hauteur of the old
world. Both host and hostess, Lady Adair, were most gracious
and his Lordship reminded me that when I said Mass in one
of the huts for our troops and those, as he put it, "in service
of the lord's household," it was to his best knowledge the first
time the Mass had been said there since the days of Elizabeth
I. The reception passed off without incident, and I climaxed
the visit with a trip to the local church, the floor of which
was paved with the tombstones of crusaders and among the
tattered rags adorning the walls was a flag which Lord Adair
told me had been flown at Agincourt. We also talked of Valley
Forge!
Three incidents in Belfast were entered in the diary as being
somewhat unusual. Belfast was our first experience of a city
totally blacked out. One evening just at dusk while waiting for
a bus to carry me to King's Station, I was accosted by a big
burly Irishman who literally lifted me off my feet, and without
so much as an introduction said, "You damned Yankee go
home. We don't want the likes of you around here helping the
bloody English." The pedestrians in the vicinity did nothing to
relieve the situation and to say I was frightened is the understatement of a lifetime. He finally put me down and after
drawing out the rosary from my pocket, I convinced him I
was a Catholic and a priest. A swift change took place in
both his attitude and voice and he kissed my hands and asked
for my blessing, which was only too gladly given; with it he
~mrried into the darkness. Later I talked with the parish priest
In Antrim and gathered from his shrewd remarks that the
Irish Republican Army was very active in the North and
Was quick to use the presence of the American troops to embarrass the British authorities.
�36
CHAPLAIN
Oct. 12th, 1942. Doctor Kohlmoos of California, our battalion surgeon and I found great difficulty in locating a restau.
rant. The city was on short rations and the presence of so
many thousand American soldiers made dining a difficult
project. Lines were formed at all the eating places in the
downtown sections of Belfast. In front of the Grand Hotel I
spotted a priest and, as he greeted us with a hearty laugh, I
figured our troubles were over. He invited us to his rectory,
but we declined knowing that two hungry G.I.'s would put
quite a strain on his larder. He then directed us to the Ulster
Sport Club, but I failed to hear the word "sport." Following
what we thought were the good Father's directions, we arrived
in front of a brownstone building much like the ones around
Mt. Vernon Place in Baltimore. Our ringing of the door bell
summoned what looked like a character out of Punch-quite,
quite British. On explaining the purpose of our visit, stressing
the food angle, we were coldly informed that "this is no beanery." A friendlier voice from within the hallway however, bade
us enter and soon over a Scotch and soda we were being regaled
with a salty trip through the Empire-"You know, old chap,
Hongkong, Burma and all that sort of rot." Our host wanted
to know to what branch of the service we were attached and
when he fm.ind out that he was entertaining a priest, and a
Jesuit! he nearly fainted. We were informed that we were
within the precincts of the Ulstermen's Club, the boys who
wear the Orange, not the Princeton brand,.."and we beat a hasty
retreat much like their forebears at Bunker Hill.
We finally found the Ulster Sport Club-a most delightful
establishment totally Catholic and even more totally, if that
is possible, Irish. Where it came from we will never know,
but Doc and I were treated to a steak dinner with all the
trimmings. For music we were entertained by a lad of twelve
with the voice of a thrush who ran the gamut of Irish folk
songs as he heartily partook of the meal with us, absolutely
refusing to take any money. He made his living by singing in
the local pubs after having been orphaned and left homeless
through a bombing raid. For a backdrop to this quaint setting
we had the cli~k of billard balls, the crash of tenpins mingled
with some harmonies of the barbershop quartette variety.
We topped off this gala day by attending the local opera
�IN NORTH AFRICA
37
house to see the Belfast players in a farce called "Sweet Aloes."
At times we felt like laughter when the rest of the audience
was wrapped in solemn silence. The play was a biting satire
on Americans of the Park A venue variety, done rather cleverly.
But we are still wondering what finally stirred the audience
to laughter when we ourselves sat solemn as owls. One can
only suppose that English and Americans will never find a common medium when it comes to humor.
The parish priest in Antrim took me on a tour of the many
interesting spots around the local countryside. One was a hill
not far from the Adair estate where local tradition says the
Apostle of Ireland had a colloquy with the Druids. The Irish
climb the hill on their knees to a small chapel dedicated to
Saint Patrick which crowns its eminence. Some stones lying
about are said to have been the altars of the Druids. Just
outside of Antrim we visited the ruins of a medieval abbey
which had been destroyed during the Cromwellian period. In
Antrim itself the local church of the presbytery was pockmarked with rifle and cannon shots fired during an uprising
in, I believe, 1795.
Oct. 15th, 1942. We shipped out of Belfast and crossed the
Irish Sea anchoring in Loch Fynne, Scotland. The town was
Inveraray, ancestral home of the Campbell Clan after whom
the lilting Scottish song "The Campbells are Coming" was
named. The castle crowning a sizeable hill is the home of
the Duke of Argyll, the premier duke of the Scots. We anchored in the harbor, and the ship would house us during the
maneuvers. To an already crowded vessel were added willynilly three hundred fifty of Lord Louis Mountbatten's commandos, plus more than a handful of sundry Royal Air Force
personnel. During the lineup for mess the first morning after
anchoring a British commando sergeant, not knowing the
American way of life, betook himself to the head of the line.
But he suddenly found himself in a sitting position at the bottom of the stairs amid a chorus of "Sarge, the end of this line
begins on E deck." However, the British noncoms quickly
caught on and before long a spirit of camaraderie was evident
among the enlisted men. It took somewhat longer for the same
to appear among the officers, due, I believe, to the caste consciousness of the English officers.
�38
CHAPLAIN
Oct. 19th, 1942. Our regiment had a twenty mile hike this
evening out of Inveraray toward Loch Lomond. As we came
off the landing barges a rather unobtrusive officer stood watching the operation. One of our lieutenants called his platoon to
attention and reported his presence. Then the lieutenant
stood at ease. Suddenly the unassuming officer barked: "Lieutenant, were you not told not to identify yourself or your unit
in this operation?" "Yes, Sir," came the reply from the hapless lieutenant now sharply snapped to attention. "Well, have
you forgotten your orders so soon? To help you remember
them in the future you will consider yourself confined to
quarters on shipboard for seven days." The voice was that of
General Eisenhower. We saw him again at Souk-Ahras and
near lVIateur, and felt then that here was a leader who would
not fail. There was about him none of the professional hauteur,
but something of a sterner quality, a marked earnestness as of
intense concentration upon a grave and solemn purpose. Reviewing the troops he gave the impression that each and every
G.I. was as important to him as if he were his own son, yet
he clearly and sharply meant to imply that his army would be
a disciplined one. And in later conversation with him he voiced
his view that when we finally met the enemy it would not be
enough to be "a rabble in arms."
Oct. 21st, 1942. Even war can have its humorous side. Today
we practiced a landing operation with the opposition furnished
by a regiment of the Black Watch. Wliatever affection the
heather and the gloaming had instilled in us was lost that night
on the black highlands in a damp chilliness that defied description or insulation. I had on long underwear, woolen uniform, a
field jacket, an Army greatcoat over which I had dropped a
poncho-and felt much like an Eskimo wearing Bermuda
shorts. The Battalion Headquarters Company, plus the attached medics established their command post on a hilltop
which, it seemed, might substitute for the North Pole. About
midnight Lieutenant lVIilstine of the Fifteenth Engineers and
myself-just to keep from freezing alive-decided to take a
walk through -the heather. We chanced upon a country lane.
After about a half hour the inky blackness was pierced by two
blue headlights of a staff car. We commanded it to halt and,
according to the instructions we had received prior to Opera·
�IN NORTH AFRICA
39
tion Black Watch, sternly informed the occupants to get out.
A stream of burrs punctuated with remarks concerning the
studipity of Americans in general and of these two in particular got them nowhere. We then pronounced them under arrest
(the Black Watch were acting as Germans for the operation)
and at this point all of Scotland went up in smoke. For the
prisoner was none other than the Colonel of the Black Watch
and an umpire of the operation to boot. Luckily for Milstine
and myself the Colonel saw the humor of it and we quickly
escaped to the medics' lean-to.
During our week at Inveraray we had a guided tour through
the castle of Argyll, on which occasion some of the boys,
hungry for souvenirs, made off with crusaders' shields and
the gate knocker much to our Colonel's chagrin. Next we
headed for Glasgow. Here the convoy began to take shape
and with it the flood of rumors. Where to now? Norway?
Normandy? Malta? Nobody even so much as mentioned French
North Africa.
Oct. 28th, 1942. Left the Glasgow anchorage yesterday. Very
seasick. Ocean rough. Weather cold and very foggy.
The news of our destination was made public today-Algiers, French North Africa: key objective for the 39th Combat
Team, the airport at Maison Blanche; for the 3rd Battalion,
the beach near Ain Taya, by land to the town, Jean Bart and
Fort de l'Eau and then to the airport. Other landings to take
place at Oran and Casablanca. We are supposed to slam the
back door on Rommel.
Nov. 1st, 1942. All Saints. Mass in the mess hall packed to
the doors. All received Holy Communion. Today I had a rather
lively encounter with a Church of England chaplain. I had
informed Chaplain .Cunningham of the British Commandos
that he was expected to conduct the general Protestant service
following my Mass. Quite frankly he informed me that he
was a Catholic adhering to the branch theory, i.e., Roman,
Greek and Anglican, and that the only service he would perform would be Holy Mass in the wardroom. No proofs from
Trent, Denzinger or Leo XIII could move him to comply and
forced me to appeal to the civil arm, namely the Captain of the
Leedstown, a Scot Catholic named Cooke, who quietly but
�40
CHAPLAIN
firmly apprised the irate Englishman that Americans thought
him to be a Protestant and asked that this time at least he
would act like one. He did on one condition: that I preach
the sermon. So the ceremony was conducted by an Anglican,
the sermon was preached by a Jesuit and the music was supplied by the Baptists. 0 temporal 0 mores!
Nov. 6th, 1942. Passed Gibraltar at midnight. Opposite on
the African side of the Mediterranean was Tangier all aglow.
At daybreak we moved into column formation and stayed
within sight of the Spanish coast as we headed north. The
German radio, most probably broadcasting from Sicily, had
us headed toward Marseilles. The weather was mild and the
sea as smooth and as green as the top of a billiard table. I
celebrated Mass at 2 P.M. with over three hundred receiving
Holy Communion. After supper we assembled in Major Griggs'
stateroom, and I blessed the colors which would be carried
ashore by the companies of the battalion. After this we all
knelt and prayed that the Lord God of hosts would vouchsafe
to bless our endeavour to make men free.
Nov. 7th, 1942. Today we had our first taste of the oncoming
maelstrom . .:[ust as a plane flying very low and blinking its
lights in friendly fashion passed over us on the Leedstown, the
leadship in the convoy, and the Thomas Stone carrying the 2nd
Battalion of the Combat Team, there was a devastating explosion, disabling the Stone, forcing it out of j;he convoy line, protected now by a pair of destroyers. It was afterwards learned
that the Stone was hit by a torpedo from a U-boat, not by a
bomb from the plane. This caused a change of plans, and in addition to earlier assignments, we were given the task of the 2nd
Battalion, namely a frontal assault on Maison Carree, a town
a few miles east of Algiers overlooking the bay. No further
action during the day with the German radio blaring that
"Most probably the American convoy was headed for Malta
or Alexandria, Egypt, to reinforce Montgomery's Eighth
Army."
Passed the city of Algiers about 7:30 P.M., the sparkling
lights of the city gleaming like some fairyland vista over the
waters of the Mediterranean. At midnight we doubled back
toward the city and rendezvoused opposite Ain Taya. Orders
�IN NORTH AFRICA
were now given to begin the landings. The Higgins boats were
lowered, and the soldiers began Operation Torch. Algiers was
suddenly blacked out and the coastal batteries using searchlights began pounding the convoy. As we stood on A deck of the
Leedstown awaiting our turn to enter the landing craft, I
could not believe that these coastal guns would not send us to
the bottom. Whether or not the French were merely making
a token resistance, I do not know, but few, if any of the ships,
were hit by the shelling. The disembarking was carried out
with little or no confusion, the major difficulty was that the
sea was running heavy, causing our frail craft to bob and
weave like corks on the swells. Dr. Kohlmoos, his medics and
myself were assigned to a boat in the second wave, headed
for "Beach Blue." The others were designated "Red" and
"Green."
After what seemed an endless merry-go-round, the flare signalling the approach went aloft and we headed toward the
shore. However, the pilot who was making his first try, completely lost his sense of direction and we found ourselves
far beyond the convoy headed for France! A short blast on the
foghorn of a destroyer corrected our mistake and we finally
joined the group and landed safely in a pea-soup fog, which
was a blessing as we would have been an excellent target for
any enemy force hidden behind the sand dunes. We were informed later that this was the first fog to enshroud this coastline in almost five years. Perhaps it was some kind of smoke
screen. In the meantime the French coastal batteries were now
directing their fire to the beaches but did little harm. Actually,
the landing was quite anticlimactic. The beach, some one
hundred yards wide, was of gray sand fringed with tall grass
and rising into a series of dunes. From the ship off shore came
voices speaking in French urging the natives and French not
to resist the landing, because we were coming to free them
from the Nazis; we really were just paying our debt to Lafayette and the boys who did us a good turn at Yorktown. During
lulls, the stirring and martial Marseillaise was played. But
Africa seemed to be peacefully unaware of the whole thing.
The only sign of life was an old Arab with his dog silently
slipping through the waving grass like a gray ghost, stealthily
suspicious but unafraid. The Arabs are a remarkable people
�CHAPLAIN
who seem to speak with their eyes rather than their tongues.
Time and time again during treks to and fro across North
Africa we thought we could read their thoughts: "Look,
another group of invaders much like the Romans, Vandals,
French, English. Now this new breed of men from the West!
They come and go. We stay and so does the land."
Once the fog lifted we were treated to a glorious day
under a cobalt sky and with refreshing offshore breezes. ·We
were laden down with field packs totalling without a rifle over
fifty pounds. Later in the day the Leedstown was sunk by
enemy action, most probably by a lurking submarine which
had gotten through the naval security screen. Just to make
sure an Italian bomber finished her off with a direct hit
amidships.
Merrily we swung along the coastal road in route step,
actually along the edges of the road with about five yards between each GI. Our first contact with the French came in the
village of Jean Bart. It was just 7:55A.M. and the bell of the
local church was ringing for Mass. Some terrified women
and children were huddled along the church walls wondering,
I suppose, whether the sacred edifice would be destroyed by
our naval gunfire which was beating a grisly tattoo in answer
to the French coastal batteries.
The local cure met me at the church door and greeted me, assuring me that he and his people had waited with impatience
for the arrival of the Americans. Latin-' yvas the common
tongue between us, and he laughed most heartily over what
he termed the disguises of the Jesuits. He went in to begin the
Mass followed by the waiting women, children, and a goodly
number of our soldiers. A few yards beyond the town we were
greeted by some small arms fire from a small detachment of
French-African troops who quickly fled up the the road as the
GI's answered. Out on Cap Matifou the British Commandos
under a Major Trevor and some American personnel under a
Captain Martin of St. Louis, Mo., were finding the going quite
rough and had to call for more naval fire to silence the French
batteries. By this time a crowd had gathered in the square
before the city· hall of Jean Bart, and for the first time we
heard the cry for food which would follow us across Africa.
To the delight of the crowd our boys unloaded precious items
�IN NORTH AFRICA
43
from their packs and so we took Jean Bart with Luckies,
Hershey bars and a few bullets. C'est laguerre!
We arrived at Fort de l'Eau at about 11 :45 A.M. and here
we met our first real opposition, the Senegalese, who were
guarding the approach to Maison Carree. Here we suffered
our first casualties. The French contingent even included
a squadron of Chasseurs d' Afrique! They were quickly
driven back into a quasi-fort which stood on a hill, and
before long the white flag was raised. I suppose this
was another token affair pour l'honneur de la republique.
As soon as the firing ceased, the Arabs poured out into the
streets ready to sell rugs, scarfs and jewelry to the astonished
Gl's. In an effort to establish some kind of order amid this
Arabic chaos, I asked my clerk, the one and only Camillo
Morelli, better known as the Paesano, to straighten things out.
With the efficiency of a New York cop handling traffic at 42nd
Street and Fifth Avenue, he fell to the task, hiring an Arab
town crier to inform the fellahin of the blackout, security
risks and such minutiae. His sternness and vocal authority
would have done credit to a dictator, and later we were told
that he had lavishly sprinkled the official announcements with
commercials. On toward evening our medics brought in seven
wounded Senegalese including one sergeant who must have
taken a full burst of machine gun fire, as I counted twelve
bullet wounds. These soldiers, magnificent specimens, were
to do good work for us later in Tunisia on scouting patrols.
The Germans had a mortal terror of their bayonets which
measured over twenty-five inches in length, had three edges
and came down to a needle point. The last casualty was a
French captain shot down needlessly by a cyclist. He was
carried into the local doctor's office, and the parish priest arrived just in time to give him the Last Sacraments. The cure
was visibly shaken as the wounded officer was from Fort de
l'Eau. He died the next day.
Nov. 9th, 1942. My first military funerals were of Privates
Stone and Blair in the little Catholic Cemetery on the edge of
town. The French insisted on digging the graves and there,
against the west wall we laid these men to rest, wrapped in
blue Navy blankets and shrouded in the American flag. A rifle
squad fired the volley and the bugler sounded taps for the first
�CHAPLAIN
time in the balmy and clear African air. I read the Protestant
burial service, the bodies were lowered, and Martin, Schulek
and Morelli filled up the graves.
The day, however, ended on a somewhat festive note.
Morelli, who would become famous in the battalion for finding
a good place to sleep, the nearest water supply, the one shelter
from rain, and above all, the best place to find food, quietly
confided that some people named Scotto, who had come from
the Island of Ischia off Naples, were to be our hosts. From
this island came Morelli's folks and after the introductions in
the grand manner, he, the doctor and myself sat down to a
meal a la Ischia! The salad had more than a faint aroma of
garlic, the meats and vegetables were swimming in olive oil,
while the dessert was some kind of bread pudding, most probably a gourmet's delight. After days of spam and powdered
eggs, I thought I was feasting. Needless to add, the wines were
excellent. However, our feasting was suddenly and ruthlessly
interrupted by a German bombing mission which hit savagely
at the dock area of Algiers. One of those black eagles, badly
damaged made a run for the beach just beyond Fort de l'Eau
and passed over Scotto's balcony less than one hundred feet
above us. ILwas blazing and crashed just beyond the French
barracks. I stood transfixed at what seemed to be the great
joy of Signor Scotto shouting, "A bas les Boches !"
Nov. 10th, 1942. Left Fort de l'Eau and.moved into Maison
Carree. The huge French fort had not foimally surrendered;
just learned that the formalities will be carried out later in
the day. The conference was attended by Admiral Darlan,
General Ryder and our Colonel Caffey. Visited the monastery
of the White Fathers with Dr. Brian Gallagher, a graduate of
Fordham. Most graciously received by Bishop Joseph Birraux,
superior general of the order and by a Father Lechrani from
Fall River, Mass. They all were very happy to receive us.
Gave them their first American tobacco in years. The occasion
was saddened when the radio announced that the Germans
had taken over unoccupied France. There was a profound
silence and quie_tly tears began streaming down their weatherbeaten faces. This was, as one of the Father's said, the final
shame of France.
Spent the night (lOth to 11th) at the monastery and said
�IN NORTH AFRICA
45
Mass the following morning in the Bishop's private chapel.
Today the battalion moved from Maison Carree to a filthy
Arab town, just in case the Germans would try to land paratroops east of Maison Blanche, the airport.
Nov. 17th, 1942. Battalion moved over to Maison Blanche.
It was my sister's birthday, so I said Mass for her in the
church of a little village just outside the airport. Some British,
American and French soldiers attended along with a handful of
natives.
At this point of the diary I had entered a few notes on the
French priests whom I met from Algiers to Tunis and back to Oran,
observing that all of them were splendid and did all in their limited
power to welcome us as friends. Many were born on the continent,
had served in World 'Var I, and a few were graduates of Jesuit
schools. Two stand out in both the diary and memory. The first was
the cure in the village of Souk-Ahras, the home town of Saint
Augustine. A fine old gentleman, he loved France as only a French•
man can and became my boon companion. He had a merry twinkle
in his sky blue eyes and was bewildered at the esvrit de joie of the
American GI and even more so at his faithful attendance at Mass.
This was true all across North Africa and a constant source of
wonder not only to the local cures but also to our own Protestant
chaplains, to say nothing of their English counterparts. The other
priest with whom I had most pleasant contacts while in the hospital
at Sidi-Bel-Abbes, the home of the French foreign legion, was much
of the same mould as the Pere from Tagaste with the added touch
that his name was Richelieu. He really went all out for the Americans when the officers of the Legion, with the colonel leading,
marched into the ten o'clock Mass-I said the Mass while he preached
the sermon-about the only think I caught was a refrain to the
effect that, the Americans are magnifique and have shown my people
that men and soldiers do attend Mass on Sunday. Voila!
Dec. 6th, 1942. Two Masses today in very picturesque parish
church. At the second Mass the school children sang a variety
of French hymns and gazed in awe at the church packed by
the American soldiers. The cure was a gracious host and recounted in broken English, mixed with barbaric (to my unaccustomed ears) Latin, his experiences with the Americans
in World War I. As we were leaving on the morrow, I took up
a collection among the troops for the church. It amounted to
over seventeen thousand Francs (the rate of exchange then
Was two francs to the penny) and the Pere told us. "After
this terrible war is over, we shall erect a statue in our church
�46
CHAPLAIN
to the Blessed Mother in memory of the brave and generous
Americans." And this would be the memory that we left behind, of a sort of ami international, much stronger than the
sealing wax that binds nations by treaties, concordats and so
forth. Long after the names of the presidents, premiers and
ambassadors are mere footnotes for some graduate student
to unearth, the story of the good will expressed by the American GI will be passed from father to son giving, we hope, the
real meaning to all this sacrifice of men and money.
Dec. 7th, 1942. At last we joined the famous club of the
forty and eight (40 hommes ou 8 chevaux). Entrained at Algiers to join up with the British Army somewhere in the East.
The ride took four days over the Atlas Mountains on a train
that brought back memories of the trip from Baltimore to
Blue Ridge Summit via the Western Maryland. The weather
was rainy and cold, and we were perfectly miserable in the
dilapidated freight cars. In what might euphemistically be
called a compartment (it was merely one end of the car with
a blanket drawn across) Dr. Kohlmoos and myself shared
quarters. In the next space was a lieutenant who was forever
calling for Sergeant Revoir. Just why we never found out.
When the sergeant did not answer, the lieutenant's refrain
was, "Well, that beats me! Where can he be?" But the lieutenant had one quality we all lacked: he could sleep anywhere,
any time.
Dec. 9th, 1942. On a siding our attempt·at making the best
of a poor situation by forced merriment vanished and suddenly
we became a solemn and sober group. The real ugliness of war
peered out of the windows of a hospital train headed to the
rear. Sightless eyes stared emptily into ours, burned faces and
bodies wrapped in smelly yellow bandages, jolted us into what
was ahead. These were our soldiers mostly from the 1st
Armored Division who had borne the initial assault of the
Germanic legions. No one spoke. No one trusted himself to
speak. Words would have sounded meaningless, artificial, and
superficial. Finally we pulled out into the night.
Dec. 10th, 1942. Arrived at Souk-Ahras, market place of the
Arabs and home town of Saint Augustine, formerly called
Tagaste. Rain was sweeping across the mountains and since
�IN NORTH AFRICA
47
the town sits like a saddle, it bore the full brunt of the tempest.
Rain would become a boring friend before we left, always
with us and so unwanted. The soldiers were billeted in school
buildings after spending the first night in the mud on the
local race course-an episode Morelli has never forgiven me.
He already (we had only been there an hour !) had made contacts to billet with a local family. Quarters were found for
the officers in what was called the Hotel d'Orient.
Dec. 11th, 1942. It was with great joy that I said Mass in
the basilica of Augustine. He has always been a favorite of
mine. The church had suffered from the air raids as this town
was a rail junction. Its windows were broken and the streets
around were filled with rubble. The sacred edifice itself had
escaped serious damage and retained a certain peace and
serenity within its walls. After Mass met the cure who entertained me with the local traditions about Augustine. The basilica stands over the ruins of the church of his times and just
across the town in fairly good shape are the ruins of the
Roman military town, whose most prominent feature is a
pagan temple dominating what must have been the forum.
An olive tree on a slope along the road which dips into the
valley is called the tree of Augustine, legend having it,
that the Doctor Gratiae studied there. Both in the parish
house and in the basement of the church are a collection of
Augustiniana. Walking down to the mess after my talk with
the cure, my imagination ran rampant and I thrilled at the
thought that here across this plaza and on these pavements
the sandled feet of the great saint had clattered running
errands for St. Monica or hurrying to school.
Already Morelli had made the necessary contacts and his
cherubic face beamed with joy supreme as he announced,
"Padre, the town is filled with Paesani!" And until we left
Souk-Ahras he lived like the proverbial caid never letting Dr.
Kohlmoos, Dr. Stinson or myself visit his haunts. Our mess
which was on the ground floor of the hotel became a stopover
for visitors to the front. Among others were Generals Eisenhower, Patton, Ryder, Caffey, Captain Randolph Churchill, a
Colonel who we were told was one of the few English soldiers
who had been awarded the Victoria Cross twice. One English
captain we will never forget although his name escaped my
�48
CHAPLAIN
hungry pen. He appeared late one evening shouting loudly
after a character named Chick. He entered our room and it
took all the eloquence of Kohlmoos, Stinson and myself to convince this doughty trooper that his Chick was not hiding in the
knapsacks, blankets or rations. He then made for the door
but insisted that if and when we ran across Chick would we
be so kind as to give him a box, which he produced. We readily
agreed. The next morning while making the rounds of the
British field hospital I gave the mysterious box to an officer
on duty who later informed us that the box contained a perfect
set of false teeth. We never did find out whether they caught
up with Chick.
The rail junction at Souk-Ahras was under constant bombardment by the German Luftwaffe, and like all humans we
fell quickly into a routine. The Germans must have been on
a time schedule or following some attack pattern. The raids
were of the morning-afternoon variety. I spent the intervals
visiting the British and French hospitals, the companies of
the battalion stationed at Biskra and other near-by places.
Dr. Kohlmoos, Lt. Bill Bolin along with Sergeant Osmun and
myself visited the ruins at Madaura, some twenty-five kilometers south~_ast of Tagaste where St. Augustine had attended
school. The place has been excavated by the French government and the remains of a once thriving college town were in
evidence: the buildings which surrounded the forum, a theatre
that must have seated upwards of ten thousand, the streets of
the carpenters, goldsmiths, lawyers and armorers. As usual,
Arabs scrambled out of the ruins offering for sale both Roman
and Greek coins. On the arch at the entrance to the theatre
I could decipher the name Cassius and I wondered if it might
be the same of whom Shakespeare wrote that he had "a lean
and hungry look." Among the deserted ruins sheep grazed
peacefully and stiff-legged goats were totally unaware that
they were standing upon centuries of antiquity and tradition.
They stared glassy-eyed at us whose civilization was built upon
these very stones. Among the grave markers I spotted a few
with the familiar R.I.P., the alpha and omega, or the sign of
the fish.
Later on in January Lieutenant-Colonel John Peter Grimmer, the battalion commander known to his troops as "Pete the
�IN NORTH AFRICA
49
Ripper" and the fifth Grimmer to hold the officer rank in the
U. S. Army from the days of the Revolution, decided that I
should have my fill of St. Augustine. Accordingly, we took off
in a jeep for a trip of over sixty kilometers to Bone, the
Hippo of Augustine. The town was now a staging and depot
area and was under constant German aerial attacks. The
basilica, a massive group of buildings, surmounts the hill overlooking the city. At the rectory we were enthusiastically entertained by an Augustinian Father who had studied at Villanova, Pennsylvania. But the contrast in our interests on this,
a certainly momentous occasion, provided us with considerable
amusement. While I was anxious to learn everything about the
city of Augustine, the good Father peppered me with questions about Villanova, Pa., and that city's current events: the
number of students, the football team, etc.
Standing on the brow of the hill, he pointed out the various
sites where the great doctor of the Church had labored. We
went down into the town, past road blocks and quantities of
war materials, into what was the ancient section of the city.
Almost all was in ruins from both ancient and modern warfare.
There is no trace of Augustine's cathedral, the area being now
owned by a local winery whose owner had refused to permit
excavation. The only real link with the Augustinian age is the
ruin of the local Roman theatre or circus close by the church
site. It was of mammo:h proportions and the seats and stage
were still useable even at this late date, a British show company having given a performance only a few days before.
Augustine referred to this theatre with the remark that his
sermons were often disturbed by the ribald shouts from it.
The Roman ruins left me with a sense of sadness, the vision
of a powerful empire turned to bitter dust; but the ruins which
had been a church or shrine were still alive, still spoke of the
eternity of Christianity of which St. Augustine was such a
peerless exponent.
Jan. 3rd, 1943. It was my sad duty today, to bury Private
Aaron Rosenblatt, Company D, 18th Infantry in the Catholic
cemetery in Souk-Ahras. He had been mortally wounded in
action near-by. He was from Philadelphia and of the Hebrew
faith. He was laid to rest with full military honors. The bugler
and the six riflemen were of his religion. At the moment I
�50
CHAPLAIN
was about to begin the reading of the Hebrew ritual, an
English corporal presented himself and asked to be allowed the
privilege of conducting the service since he was a Cantor
in a London synagogue. It seemed but the natural thing to
accord the corporal this privilege, and the body was lowered
into the raw earth, witnessed by a large part of the French
population of the village. This burial might have had almost
international complications involving finally our Charge
d'Affaires in Algiers, Mr. Robert Murphy. It involved me
with the local cure and town officials because the burial took
place in consecrated ground. We had some tense moments in·
volving local customs with a touch of Canon Law. However,
eventually things were smoothed out.
My relations with Mr. Murphy were cordial. He wrote under date
of November 27, 1959: "Your reference to the North African land·
ings brings back many souvenirs and especially that of your par·
ticipation in them."
Feb. 15th, 1943. A casual announcement over BBC informed
us, who had settled down to garrison life at Souk-Ahras, that
Field Marshal Rommel's Afrika Corps had broken through the
thinly held lines near Feriana and with two Panzer divisions
(21st and 24th) seemed headed northwest toward the passes
leading to Constantine. At 2:00 A.M. we were roused from
sleep, and Grimmer announced that we would proceed toward
what by this time looked like a major German break-through.
We hurriedly packed the jeep with the ne~essary gear, leaving
behind in Souk-Ahras all impedimenta under the careful super·
vision of Corporal Myer Kantor of Poughkeepsie, New York.
The four of us who made the trip would become inseparable
companions during the next few weeks, Dr. Kohlmoos, Bill
Nesbihal from Jersey City, Morelli and I. The trek over the
Atlas Mountains was made in a biting wind which chilled us
to the marrow. We could not keep the windshield upright; it
had to be closed over the motor and covered with canvas, a
defense precaution to prevent scouting planes from picking
up any reflections. Smoking was prohibited as well as fires
for heating the C rations.
Morning found us in the outskirts of El Kef, a massive
fortress-like town sitting astride the main highway leading
to Sbiba. This had been one of the last Arab strongholds to
�IN NORTH AFRICA
51
fall in the empire building of the French in the last century.
Suddenly the towns took on Greek sounding names; perhaps
they had been such during the days of Grecian greatness!
Early in the afternoon we received our first taste of gunplay
from a German strafing party of two Messerschmidt 109's near
the Roman ruins of Sbiba. They were flying at tree-top level
at about three hundred miles per hour. Dr. Kohlmoos and myself were lucky in finding a ditch of some depth as the deathspewing machines roared by. But three French officers were
not quick enough and were killed. Then as a dessert to this
nerve-shattering routine we were given front-row center
seats as a huge tank battle evolved in the desert in front of
the town.
Sundown comes quickly at Sbiba which is on the fringe of
the desert, and with sundown comes bitter coldness. Nobody
seemed to have a clear picture of what we were doing there
or where we should bivouac for the night. Two battalions of
the 18th Infantry of the 1st Division had also arrived by this
time and were in the same state of indecision. One old sergeant
was taking no chances with his platoon. He in a jiffy had the
GI's bedded down while he personally took charge of the sentry
posts. He wore a coonskin hat, had a rifle with the longest
barrel I have ever seen mounted with a telescopic lens, as he
put it, "just in case." Grimmer has not yet returned from the
briefing being held somewhere in the rear, and Major Ramsey,
battalion executive officer, being told that a cactus patch was
just ahead which might give some protection against this
fierce wind said, "Well, let's go. Pete can find us in the morning." When the order got back to the medics' set-up, another
one was given. But, taking the first order as the true one, Kohlmoos, Morelli and myself began our night march in what we
believed was the wake of the battalion. We finally reached a
cactus patch a few hundred yards ahead. Beyond was an Arab
farm house with the usual chorus of dogs baying at the moon.
Not a sign of the battalion-just three lost men, cold, hungry
and scared. We rolled up in blankets and never did get to sleep.
About 4 A.M. the battalion arrived. Grimmer had returned
with the news that we were moving over into Kasserine Pass.
Before inserting the diary entries of the American retreat out
of the Kasserine Pass, perhaps a word of caution will be in order.
�52
CHAPLAIN
Being an eyewitness of a chaotic withdrawal has this great disadvantage: only a small segment of the entire picture can be given.
Some years ago I tried to acquire what was the official report on our
battalion on the battle, but the matter was marked "Classified."
I suppose like Gettysburg, this episode will be debated long after
the survivors have answered the last roll call.
Feb. 19th, 1943. Arrived in a field near Kasserine Pass in
a torrential downpour, bitter cold, stopped behind some Roman
ruins whose walls seem to be about six feet thick; absolutely
desolate and hideous looking country. Artillery shells ( German 88's) began falling in the morning. No plane coverage,
ceiling almost zero. Much American equipment around. The
19th Battalion of Engineers are up in the mouth of the Pass.
A horse-drawn French battery of 75's quickly destroyed.
Now 9 A.M. The battalion will split up and move forward
about 4 P.M. I Company on the right, K Company on the left
with Lin reserve. M Company, the heavy weapons unit, will
be in support behind I and K. Soldiers very slow in digging
the fox holes. Everyone so cold and hungry and fearful of what
is ahead. Our senses seem numbed. Rain stopped about 1
P.M. More soldiers digging now. Visited all the companies,
gave general absolution to the Catholic men and blessings
to the others. The Pass is about 3 miles wide. Grimmer set up
his command post behind L Company, while Dr. Kohlmoos put
up his medic station in a wadi (gully) a few yards behind
the command post. Laiche with his anti.tank Company also
here. Just found out that the 1st B'!ittalion of the 16th
Infantry is over in our left, commanded by Lt.-Col. Stark.
Raining again. Boy, it's really cold!
Feb. 20th, 1943. Warned by a courier that the Germans are
on the move, have already ( 5 :30 A.M.) overrun the forward
positions. Our men are falling back. Small arms fire clearly
audible. At 6 A.M. the 88's begin their orchestration. Grimmer
moved the CP three times this morning before noon. We are
now out on the flat located in a huge wadi which is running
deep with the rain of the past two days. At 11:45 A.M. Cap·
tain Luther Gambill received warning that the German tanks
had broken tlirough our lines and that I Company under Cap·
tain Robert Cobb, classmate of Bing Crosby, was in danger
of being ambushed. We are now ready to press the panic
�IN NORTH AFRICA
53
button. No transportation, communications very poor. We
started across the plain toward the Pass leading to Tebessa.
Kohlmoos parked the ambulance at the crossroads at the
Tebessa road and a valley road running east and west. Now
6:30 P.M., still raining. Lt. John Dyroff, the motor officer,
doing a swell job with the few jeeps left. Troops begin to assemble around the ambulances. Most had thrown away their
equipment and were very downhearted. The first meal of the
day consisted of some luckily found C rations, one can for
three men. Luck still with us-a captain of the 7th Field
Artillery passing by gave us three boxes of K rations. Water
very low. Just found out my good friends Sgts. Tansey, Aiello
and Farrano were killed. Tansey was the last soldier I had
shouted adieu to, as his company moved up the Pass. I Company coming in, the soldiers are singing the praises of their
captain who got them out of a tight squeeze with only one
man wounded. At 9:30 P.M., we numbered about three hundred fifty. Everybody mad and crying-to quote one GI,
"Padre, I never thought those Krauts would see my back."
10 P.M. began retreat, Dr. Stinson leading the march. At
1:00 A.M. it was clearing again. Dr. Kohlmoos, Morelli and
myself still at the ambulance. Machine guns down the road
about five hundred yards. Must be German. The tracer bullets are white, (writing this inside the ambulance). Machine
gun fire closer, hiding in the ditch alongside of the road. It's
the Germans all right, a Volkswagen full of them. They stop
about fifty feet away, go down to the stream and fill their
canteens. Then one more burst at the ambulance and they are
off. Deo gratias. 2 :30 A.M. All clear now, more troops straggling in from K and L companies.
Feb. 20th, 1943. No Mass possible although it is Sunday.
Picture far from encouraging. We are huddled in the Pass, I
Company moving back on the Tebessa Road to protect the flank.
The boys look pretty weary, but morale has been restored.
Americans just don't like to take a beating even if the opposition is the varsity. Most of the remarks indicate that if and
When we get a return game the score will be different. Valley
roads under heavy shellfire. The Germans are using our jeeps
~nd half-tracks. Rainy and cold. Already our armored stuff
18
moving up from Thala in great quantities. Spent the re-
�54
CHAPLAIN
mainder of the day just waiting. Rosary recited in each company area. Just heard BBC, "The situation in Kasserine area
critical but confused. There is no doubt that this is a major
push by the Afrika Corps."
Feb. 21st, 1943. Another full day of waiting. Battalion
strength up over 500. Grimmer gone off to get reserves.
Feb. 22nd, 1943. Dr. Kohlmoos moved the aid station further
up the North Pass near a railroad culvert. Still raining. Good
news: Dr. Kohlmoos promoted to Captain. Mail, heavy gunfire
all day.
Feb. 23rd, 1943. Command post back in the center of the
North Pass. All of our heavy stuff is out in front, giving the
Germans a real pounding. Rumor has it that Rommel's
armored units were stopped cold before Thala by the 9th
Division artillery.
Feb. 24th, 1943. Germans are retreating; we are moving
toward the village of Kasserine. Captain Vaughan arrived
with piles of mail.
Feb. 27th, 1943. Grimmer and myself visited headquarters.
A pleasant chat with General Robinette. He praised the work
of the soldiers but was quite frank in expressing the fact that
we had taken a licking.
Feb. 28th, 1943. Bivouacked near Tebel3sa. Joe Mason of
Florida, the Red Cross representative drove in with a truck
load of supplies, the most valuable items being soap, razor
blades and cigarettes. We are to rejoin the 9th Division. Met
General M. S. Eddy (9th Div. Commander) and General
Theodore Roosevelt near Tebessa. They greeted Grimmer
warmly. Again no Mass possible. Have gotten word through
to Algiers to rush up the Mass kit. Visited all companies for
the rosary.
March 3rd, 1943. Grimmer replaced by Lt. Col. John Kiely.
March 5th, 1943. At long last the Mass kit arrived from
Father John Ford, a British one at that. Visited Tebessa:
very well preserved Roman buildings, triumphal arch of Carcalla, temple of Juno, Christian church dedicated to St. Fulgentius. Had a pleasant chat with the local cure. This was the
�IN NORTH AFRICA
55
last large Roman town on the skirt of the Sahara and heavily
fortified and garrisoned. Nearly everybody at Mass this evening; fifty went to Holy Communion.
This ends the saga of the Kasserine Pass. Like any defeat
or retreat nobody wants to discuss it. To forget it seems the
best thing, but for the record I would like to add my small
praise to the work performed by the medics. They, of course,
considered their bravery simply in the line of duty, but that
cliche does not do them justice. And of the group, the work of
Leland Osmun, Keith Miller, Slick Thomenson and Frank
Schaffer really merits more than just a passing bow. Personally, I had lost some good friends and did not have the
honor of laying their remains to rest. When we finally entered
the village, the Germans had performed the task. The graves
were neatly spaced, clearly marked and even had flowers on
them. R.I.P.
March 15th, 1943. Changed over to the First Battalion along
with the medics. A bit of a shock since the 3rd Battalion with
its large quota of Catholic men would have only Sunday Mass.
The good-byes were quiet, sincere and not without a slight
catch in the throat. War always seems to bring out men's
better selves, especially when the pressure is on.
March 27th, 1943. The whole regiment (39th) moved into
the Gafsa area. By this time General Montgomery was exerting great pressure on the Mareth line to the south and east.
Our operation was aimed at the area around Sfax and Gabes
thus producing a pincer movement. But it never quite worked
out that way. The Germans retired toward Tunis. Rommel
was recalled and his place was taken by Von Arnim. As we
rode through Gafsa, it was only a shell of itself, a ghost town.
The little Catholic church on the Gabes road was a sorry relic
of war, its empty windows staring blindly into the hot sun;
its altar destroyed and the surrounding buildings pock-marked
with holes. Its steeple was still erect, surmounted by the
Cross which against the setting sun seemed like a huge sundial
marking time against eternity. People would come back, rebuild the sacred edifice and the priest would begin the Introibo
ad altare Dei, clothed in vestments from a British Mass kit donated by an American chaplain.
�56
CHAPLAIN
March 28th, 1943. Arose at 2:45A.M. A bit of hot C rations
at 4:00A.M. The 47th Infantry was at the head of the column.
We took off at 6:00 A.M. Crawled up the west side of the
mountain barrier while below lay the frightful looking Arab
town called El Guettar. At 2:45 P.M. the German artillery
barrage caught up with us. Shells are bursting all around.
Let's get out of here! Made a run for it with Kohlmoos,
Morelli and Nesbihal toward the Battalion CP. The bursts
are becoming thicker. Down in the ditch it is difficult to write.
Suddenly the crescendo dies away and I can hear somebody
shouting, "Medics out here, hurry." We found Anderson of
headquarters company badly wounded. Dr. Kohlmoos was hit
by the next burst in the left ankle. There is a jeep afire just
at the base of the hill. Took Dr. Kohlmoos and Anderson back
to the 47th Regiment medics. The Germans are still firing at
10:30 P.M.
It was about at this point that I asked the $64,000 question,
"Was all this worth-while? Did it have to be so far away
from home?" I guess the best answer came from a GI of
Italian descent who wrapped up the whole package with this
remark: "Really I don't know, Father, but I'd rather be fighting here than ~on Main Street."
As noted before and confirmed by many German prisoners,
the quality of the American soldier that baffled friend and foe
alike was their sense of humor, the ability ~o laugh and then
die. During a lull at El Guettar I had the som}?er duty of taking
six bodies back to Gafsa for burial in the American cemetery.
That sacred rite having been duly completed, Morelli and I
were stopped at a road block about five miles from our battle
position. Nearby was a Negro battery of Long Toms, whose
specific job was to pepper the German supply lines. After
walking over to the batteries position, safely hidden behind
a sizeable hill, and after introductions to the officers who were
very proud of their unit, we stood by as casual observers, but
the ritual followed was strictly formal. As the shells were
being loaded into the guns, the top sergeant, who was addressed as Uncle Moe, imparted his blessing in the form of a
kiss per shell. Just a split second before the lieutenant gave
the signal to fire, with the full cadence of a Negro spiritual
came the words, "Mistah Rommel, heah we come!" Some
�IN NORTH AFRICA
57
fourteen seconds later, as the thud resounded across the valley,
the second line of the chorus joyously burst forth, "Mistah
Rommel, count yo' men!"
April 4th, 1943. The Germans had kept up a lively artillery
barrage all day. The colonel in command of the 39th Infantry
sent for me and insisted that, if it was at all feasible, I should
say Mass. As he put it, "Padre, we need all the help we can
get upstairs. Disperse the men and let the good Lord take care
from here on in." I borrowed a medical chest from Doctor
Raia of New York City and there in the African twilight
with the strangest melody that ever accompanied the Holy
Sacrifice I offered the unending oblation "at the going down
thereof." All during the service the armies exchanged heavy
artillery fire. About two hundred fifty were in attendance
scattered along the hillside with whatever cover was available
and all went to Holy Communion in a manner that might be
called on the double, each soldier hurrying from his sheltered
position and back again. I was very happy when I could literally say "Go, the Mass is finished."
One thing that never became a routine was death with its
awful stench. And it seemed much closer and more clammy
when it took a friend. On April 2nd it struck blindly and
carried away in its black maw a real hero, one Keith Miller
from Rochester, New York. He was hit in the back by a
sniper while attending one of our wounded. As I annointed
him, he repeated the Pater and the Ave. His own mother could
not have been more gentle than those medics, Martin, Osmun,
and Schulski. "Am I on my way out, Father?" Now how does
one answer that question? I didn't even try. Miller was the
medic who had gone into a mine field and brought out the
wounded men with great unconcern for his own life. He died
on the way to Gafsa and lies at eternal rest among the white
crosses there. R.I.P.
Our regiment's work at El Guettar was finished on April
8th. I said a Requiem Mass on the wind-swept edge of the
Sahara Desert. All around was strewn the wreckage of Rommel's once powerful Afrika Corps which was now being readied
for the final assaults by Montgomery and Bradley, the latter
having replaced Patton.
�58
CHAPLAIN
Just a note on the strange things that Americans do when
they go to war. After we had returned to the bivouac area near
Tebessa bringing us plenty of rest and clean clothes, the
meandering Joe Mason of the Red Cross showed up. In his
caravan were boxes filled with Coca-Cola. One of the line companies sold the cokes at twenty-five dollars per bottle. The
money was sent to the widows of the men of the company who
had been killed.
The finale was played out in Northern Tunisia from roughly
April 23rd to May 13th. We circled the British Eighth Army
and along with the two other regiments (60th and 47th), we
were in the push through the Sedjanane Valley. This involved
a forced march from the area round El Guettar to La Calle
on the Mediterranean. The French would be in at this final
collapse of Hitler's legions, namely the 19th French Corps
under General LeClerc. The curtain descended swiftly and our
regiment played its part nobly. The terrain was mountainous
and difficult to fight in. I managed to say Mass daily in one
battalion area or another. The outstanding fact was that the
American forces had now made the varsity. The desperate
effort of Germany to reinforce her armies came to naught.
Coordination~and cooperation were much more in evidence
and we made far fewer mistakes than at the Kasserine. But
when the German prisoners began to say that the Americans
were as good as anything they had faced an!f when we realized
that these men had fought the Russians and.the 8th Army, we
began to believe that at long last we had arrived.
After the African campaign ended, we returned to Algiers.
Then by train went to Oran into a training area. Just before
we took off for Sicily the 39th Regiment was picked as a prize
American unit to parade before King George VI of England.
We trained the French foreign legion at Sidi-Bel-Abbes and
began to prepare ourselves for the invasion of Sicily. This operation would be under the command of General George S.
Patton.
�Father Gustave Joseph Dumas
Joseph E. O'Neill, S.J.
There are some people who seem to go through life without
ever impinging upon the consciousness of others. Asked to
evaluate or even to describe their characters, we should be
hard put to say anything very positive. They neither anger
nor provoke, shock nor startle, repel nor attract. They exist.
We admire their virtue and concede their intelligence, but we
do not gladly choose their company, seek their opinions, or
value their remarks. As individuals they seem to have no
sharp edges, no interesting facets of personality, no challenging attitudes of mind. In a word, they are estimable but boring.
Father Dumas was not one of these. If he was anything
at all, he was unique, a positive and challenging personality
who, knowing his own quality and that of his neighbor, did
not hesitate to act upon his knowledge with energy and prudence. To many he was reserved and aloof; to a few who
really knew him he was admirable, a man of sensitive temperament, active disposition, and truly generous nature. It
should prove interesting and profitable to review, however
briefly and inadequately, the record of his life.
There was little or no excitement at the Dumas menage in
Flushing, Long Island, to note the arrival on June 11, 1898, of
the newest member of this typically American family. The
mother had been born Margaret Harkins, and her grandparents had come from County Meath. The father was Alexandre Dumas, son of Fran<;ois and Josephine Cartier-Dumas,
who were from Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, on the outskirts of
Bordeaux. Comment about Father Dumas began early. When
his French grandmother, visiting the new baby for the first
time, uttered the somewhat restrained praise, "He is a nice
baby," his mother realistically replied, "Thank you very much,
but I have never seen a baby more homely. However, when
he grows up he can have a mustache to cover his big mouth
and long trousers to cover his big feet. So we need not be
discouraged!"
59
�66
FATHER DUMAS
Although there was a Catholic church in Flushing at the
time, there was no Catholic school. So young Gustave obtained his early education at Public School No. 22 in the Murray Hill section of Flushing, and then at the Flushing High
School until May of his second year at which time he left to
work for the New York Life Insurance Company at 346 Broadway. He was almost fourteen years old and he worked six
days a week for thirty dollars a month, lunch included. Three
years later, when he left the company to return to school, he
was assistant cashier of the Park Row Branch and was earning sixty-five dollars a month, a clear indication of the characteristic he was to manifest all his life, the ability to succeed in
practical matters and particularly in those of an administrative nature.
Although he had never met a Jesuit, he was set upon becoming one and his principal reason, apart from the desire of
serving God as a priest and a religious, seems to have been
the conviction that, since the Jesuit training was the longest
one, it must certainly be the best, and if you are going to do
something worth-while you should do it in the best way possible. Through the kind offices of the well known Father
Daniel J. Quinn, S.J., his confessor for several years, a scholarship was granted him by Father Rockwell, then the rector at
Brooklyn Prep, and young Gustave was abl~ to begin his high
school again in the fall of 1916. It was a bit of a task, for he
had to make up the second year matter in Greek in addition
to the regular classes as well as work at the lunch counter
during the morning recreation period and at lunch time. But
they were happy days; he knew what he wanted, and he took
the necessary steps.
Under the guidance and counsel of Father Quinn young
Dumas made application on May 13, 1918 to enter the Society.
Owing to the fact that the new Code of Canon Law was to go
into effect on May 19th, he entered St. Andrew's on Saturday,
May 18th. It was a hectic departure. Father Raphael O'Connell, his teacher, was almost as surprised as the boys in the
class. Although the Jesuit-to-be attempted to make a quiet
departure, the excited members of the class rushed out, lifted
him up, and carried him back to the classroom where they in-
�FATHER DUMAS
61
sisted that he pronounce, not a sentimental farewell, but a
Whitmanesque and American "So Long."
The days passed quickly, and the young novice, who had
become manuductor during his second year, was the sole novice
to pronounce his vows on May 18, 1920. After two years of
juniorate and only two weeks at Woodstock, word came that
Mr. Dumas was to make his philosophy in Montreal at the College de l'Immaculee Conception. This was a wonderfully new
and exciting experience, and he found the Canadian Jesuits as
interesting as their menus, their practice of wearing the habit
abroad, and their delightful villas at Nominingue and Lac des
Ecorces. There was also the fact that in addition to the
ordinary course of philosophy he was permitted to attend the
University of Montreal from which he obtained the degree of
bachelor of literature.
The first assignment for regency was the task of teaching
fourth year high at St. Peter's Prep in Jersey City. The
writer, who was a member of the class, can testify to the remarkable success of the young regent. He was liked and admired, and we considered ourselves fortunate to have been able
to benefit from his hard work, his zeal, and his enthusiasm.
He had the happy ability to preach without being preachy, to
direct in the way of the Lord without seeming to. I have never
known a better teacher. He was an excellent disciplinarian
and the entire class, quick to recognize the fact, wisely restrained its collective exuberance. All in all, it was a happy
time for Mr. Dumas, and, since his teaching load called for
no afternoon classes during the second semester, he began
work on a doctorate at the Woolworth Building division of
Fordham University. Father Connell, who was prefect general
of studies at the time, had assured him that he would remain
at St. Peter's for the three years of regency and that he would
be able to complete a great part of the required doctorate
studies. But this did not happen; instead, and to his surprise,
he was assigned to Georgetown University in June of 1926 .
. The work at Georgetown, like the atmosphere, was entirely
different from that of St. Peter's High School. The first year
there he taught Freshman Latin and Sophomore Greek, the
second year he continued with Freshman Latin, but instead of
Greek was assigned a Junior and Senior elective in English.
�62
FATHER DUMAS
Since it was not yet the day of specialization, the young
scholastic found himself in charge of the Mimes and Mummers
dramatic society, a prefect at meals, and in charge of morning
and evening study hall.
At the end of regency he was sent to St. Louis for summer
school courses in French and on August 28, 1928 sailed for
France, a theologian-to-be at the scholasticate of Fourviere
in Lyons.
It was a delight to be in the land to which he felt such strong
ties and to this pleasure was added the fillip of mystery when
at the end of his first year of theology he received a telegram
from Father Edmund Walsh, whom he had known at Georgetown, telling him he was to come to Rome to help make out
his reports on the modus vivendi arrangement which Father
Walsh had just completed in Mexico. This somewhat exciting
assignment received the solid weight of authority upon the
receipt of a telegram from Very Reverend Father General
approving the plan and clarifying Father Walsh's first telegram which had read rather simply and peremptorily: "Make
first train to Rome and advise time of arrival." The work
proved to be as interesting as the expectation, and filled with
satisfyingly secret material nowadays referred to as very
"hush hush. 11 After it was finished Mr. Dumas accompanied
Father Walsh to Barcelona and San Sebastian and then to
Paris. Upon Father Walsh's departure Mr. Dumas then went
to Milltown Park in Dublin for the rest of the summer holiday.
European Years
This section was contributed through the kindness of Reverend William
E. Fitzgerald, S.J., of the New England Province.
Father Dumas was starting his second year of theology at
Fourviere when a new group of three Americans arrived to
begin theology. From the very first day it would be hard to
imagine anyone who could have been more considerate, kind
and generous in helping them become settled in their new surroundings. He had a gift for anticipating one's needs. He
knew the most efficient way of rendering the circumstances
agreeable and he was prompt to share his knowledge, whether
that concerned the most opportune descent of six flights of
stairs to the garage-cellar to take a shower on anyone of three
�FATHER DUMAS
63
afternoons a week when hot water was provided, the appearance of the latest volumes in theology, or where to find, on occasion, nutu superiorum, the closest thing to a dish of American ice cream or cup of chocolate. He was as industrious as the
proverbial bee, always going at top speed. He had ideas for
holidays; he was amusing at recreation; he kept the small
group of Americans welded together for the happy years that
he was with them. While he would feign embarrassment if he
were not au courant of the latest developments, he was just as
alert to seize every oportunity for spiritual ministry. A visit
to the dentist's office became the occasion of bringing back to
the Sacraments a promising young oral surgeon, who had lost
his way quite seriously. The renewal of his passport brought
him into contact with a young man who sought him out constantly thereafter for guidance and, in turn, channeled to him
many other Americans from the official circles for counsel and
religious help. His former students at Georgetown and his
other friends in America often had someone to stop to see him,
because they knew that he would know what best to do. And
he always seemed to arrive at a happy solution.
One of the severest trials Father had to face was the news
of the illness and death of his mother, while he was still in
theology. He was tenderly and intensely devoted to her. He
had hoped that she might even travel to France for his ordination, but all his hopes were suddenly crushed. By a strange
mishap, due probably to the fact that cablegrams reached him
not infrequently, the actual blow came when he least expected
it. He had walked into class one morning and found there, on
the bane, in front of him, a cablegram. He opened it: it was
the news of his mother's death. He must have been caught
breathless. But without wincing, he folded the cablegram, put
it away, and sat through the class. The beadle, of course, was
chagrined when he learned of his mistake in distributing the
mail. And the saintly old Rector, the Pere Henri Riondel, was
profoundly sympathetic. But Father Dumas calmly accepted
this lonely sacrifice which God had asked of him with a profound faith and sturdy strength of character.
No one can say that Father Dumas was not alert to the
opportunities of circumstance. It happened that, as late as
1930, some of the French war veterans were enjoying the
�64
FATHER DUMAS
privilege of advanced ordination to the priesthood at the end
of second year of theology. Father Dumas was quick to realize
that his own experience in the preparatory services of the
armed forces of the U.S.A. might qualify him for the same
privilege. And so it was that he was ordained at the end of
the second year of theology, and to complete the opportunities,
received permission to be ordained at Milltown Park, Dublin.
His ordination took place on July 31, 1930. From that time on,
he was ever the alert priest to assist, to counsel and to save any
and all who came within his quick vision and needed his help as
a priest. But he still had much work to be done in theology.
While he always seemed so spontaneous, almost prime-sautier,
in his ideas and actions, he had to an unusual degree the sense
and habit of organizing his time for work and recreation in a
very regular and consistent manner. And he was a hard
worker. In the theologate at Fourviere there were three established times for rising in the morning: four-thirty-five for the
ordinary community; five-twenty for those who had sick leave;
and four o'clock for the hardy intellectuals, who had special
permission to gain the extra time before class for study.
Father Dumas never esteemed himself an intellectual, although
he had better than ordinary ability in several lines, but he was
practical and hardy enough to take advantage of the earliest
hour of rising. The rest of his day went off regularly on a
neatly ordered schedule, except for great suppleness in allowing for any charitable service he could render to fellow
Americans or, in fact, to anyone else.
-·
Pere Joseph N eyrand of the Lyons Province had been a
Scripture scholar of great promise, but had suffered a stroke
and loss of speech. Strangely enough, his memory of English
came back rather quickly, but he could not read. He loved
English mystery stories and Father Dumas used to read to
him faithfully every morning after the second class. Once in a
while, the old man would come up to the top floor to tell him
that he would not be in his room the following day, but reallY
to have a little visit. Father Dumas always had some new
and amusing stories for him. And before he left the house,
Father Dumas. made sure that there was someone to keep up
the good practice. That was typical.
The year following theology, 1932-1933, he went to tertian-
'
\
�FATHER DUMAS
65
ship at Saint Acheul, Amiens. He had been attracted there by
the reputation of the instructor of tertians, Pere Louis Poullier, and had probably asked for the appointment. He was
not one to talk about his own spiritual life. Companions of
his own time would have to surmise most of their knowledge
of it from the way he worked at it. After tertianship he was
always the Jesuit priest, whether at study, in a social gathering, or in a recreational group: he was vivacious according to
his temperament, knowing, judicious, always charitable and
never missing an opportunity to gather in a soul who needed
help.
He had become acquainted with someone at the American
College at Louvain, and was invited there to give the retreat
to the seminarians. He went over to England for the Lenten
ministries during tertianship and left a lasting memory with
the pastor and younger priests at the parish in Wimbledon.
The years at Paris, 1933-1936, were in the same pattern of
organization, except on a more mature and wider field. The
work at the University of Paris resolved itself almost immediately to a matter of individual initiative, method and
programming. The University, from an American student's
point of view was a colossal pot pourri of professors, courses
and students, out of which, on one's own initiative, one was
expected to disengage enough to sustain himself throughout
one of the most gruelling public examinations that a doctoral
candidate has to face anywhere in the world. It did not take
Father Dumas long to size up the situation, and, here, I think,
he demonstrated perhaps his most salient ability, that of
making judicious decisions.
It is not detracting in the least from Father Dumas's intellectual attainments to say that he was hardly cut out to be a
research scholar, but it is a distinct tribute to his good judgment that he recognized clearly his own proper ability for the
purpose he had in view. He very wisely found a professor to
~is choice and he did not allow himself to be directed or cajoled
Into a field of speculative controversies from which he might
never extricate himself. He decided to work up an historical
survey study of the Journal de Trevoux, the distinguished
Predecessor of the Etudes. He had available one of the three
complete sets of the Journal known to be extant; the subject
�66
FATHER DUMAS
was eminently agreeable to the authorities at the University;
and Father Dumas had the free run of an unchartered field to
set his own limits and to determine his own organization of
the matter. As events proved, he did this to the satisfaction
of everyone concerned.
His method of working was something to observe. At Paris,
he shared a small apartment on the Boulevard St. Germain,
not far from the parent community of Rue de Grenelle, with
the elderly and distinguished Pere Pierre d' Armailhacq, who
was, or had been, chaplain for the royal Bourbon family. He
quickly ingratiated himself with the Father by his savoir faire,
his gentle thoughtfulness and consideration. At the same time,
he pitched into the library labor necessary for his thesis. He
worked quickly and gave the impression of seizing what he
was reading almost intuitively. He was impatient of slow
reasoning or labored explanations, but it must be said to the
credit of his intellectual ability that he achieved a surprising
depth of perception and understanding in his work. While
he might not have been fitted for the long haul of research
work, he still had a remarkable flair for searching out obscure
trails of literary allusions, persons and places related to the
almost one hundred years of the Journal. Anyone who has
had anything to do with the fonctionnaires and bureaux of the
small towns of France will greatly appreciate the difficulties to
be overcome in work of that kind. Father Dumas could not
remain riveted to a desk. He would put i~ a good day's work
with that rapid concentrated effort of his,-and then as abruptly
give himself a quick brush-up, put on his hat and be off to some
appointment or other, from which he would return after dinner
in the evening to sit down at the typewriter and complete the
work he had planned for that day. It was in this way that he
gave himself three months for the final organization of the
material and composition of his thesis for the University. And
he did it on schedule.
He lost no time in making a wide circle of friends among
the Americans and the cosmopolitan personnel of the embassY
social milieu in Paris, yet he was quick to single out of these
gatherings the one person whom he could help in a priestly
way. It was not surprising, when the international colonY
was planning the annual Thanksgiving services to be held at
�FATHER DUlUAS
67
the Madeleine Church, that Madame J usserand, the widow of
the famous ambassador of France to the United States, should
ask Father Dumas to celebrate the Mass and to preach the
sermon.
But Father Dumas was at his best when he was hustling
about preparing something special and surprising for Ours.
At Thanksgiving, one year, he had a group of American
province men on hand and he organized a feast. It was a
memorable occasion. Perhaps, this was all a sort of student
trial run on his part for the later and much more serious work
of university scholarship and administration, and of being
Father Minister for seven years to perhaps the largest community in the Society of Jesus.
Fordham Years
In 1936, after having been abroad for eight years, Father
Dumas returned to take up the not unexpected post of assistant
professor of Romance languages, and, in 1937, to become chairman of the department of modern languages at the university
which was to be his home until his death in 1958. In 1937
Father Robert I. Gannon, who was then President of the University, asked him to act as chairman of the important committee which was to submit a report on tenure, rank and
salary, the first such report in the history of Fordham. This
report, a splendid one, became the basis of an agreement with
the faculty and was duly signed by the president in August,
1937.
Another momentous step in the history of Fordham was
the transfer of the graduate school from the Woolworth Building in downtown New York to the newest and finest building
on the campus, Keating Hall. Father Dumas was made dean
of the rapidly expanding graduate school, succeeding the Reverend Lawrence A. Walsh, who had so successfully effected
the transfer. During his busy and fruitful years as dean, from
1938 to 1951, Father Dumas manifested a fine talent for administration of the sort that does not neglect the heart in
favor of the head. Moreover, he was a hard worker, with an
admirable attention to detail and a satisfying ability to carry
off public appearances in the grand manner. New professors
were added to the Faculty, men and women who are still out-
�68
FATHER DUl\IAS
standing in their respective fields: Dr. Nicholas F. Timasheff, I
1
Dr. Dietrich von Hildebrand, Dr. Charles C. Tansill, Dr. Anne
1
Anastasi, Dr. Oscar Halecki, and others. In 1939 the graduate
school sponsored its first summer school abroad when part '
of Fordham was transplanted to Grenoble, France. And
Thought, the Quarterly of Fordham University, benefited from
Father Dumas' wise decision to devote the whole time of one
professor solely to editorial work. There were other benefits
for Fordham, too, for instance, the Medieval Collections of the
Library in whose favor he stimulated interest. He did not
entirely neglect scholarship and he was in fact, a contributor to
Thought, the Dictionary of Literary and Dramatic Criticism,
and the Catholic Historical Review, as well as a member of
various educational and learned societies.
But undoubtedly the principal contribution which Father
Dumas made to Fordham by way of academic activity was
his magnificent performance as director of the centenary celebration in 1941, "the best thing of its kind the Jesuits have
ever put on in this country," as the Father Robert I. Gannon,
S.J., wrote in a letter to the author of this obituary. For an
entire year the campus was the setting for a steady flow of
activity, spiritual, academic and social. Beginning with September of 1940, no month went by without its academic notice
of Fordham's one hundredth year. The programs of the lectures, papers, discussions, and gatherings were impressive,
indeed, down to the final three days i.n September of 1941
during which dignitaries of Church, state, and the world of
education were gathered together for a magnificent and memorable tribute to Fordham, past and present. The Holy Father
was represented by the Apostolic Delegate, the president of
the United States by the vice president, Henry Wallace, and
there were present the Archbishop of New York, the governor
of New York, the lieutenant governor, the secretary of state,
the mayor of New York, eighteen archibishops and bishops,
92 college and university presidents, and "174 scholars (who)
read and discussed original and important papers on everY·
thing from labor law to tectonophysics and Jordanus of
Saxonia." (From the President's Report, 1941).
During all the years which Father Dumas spent at Ford·
ham he was closely associated with Marymount College. He
�FATHER DUJ\IAS
69
had first met Mother Butler in Paris in 1935. A personal
friendship began which deepened through the years, during
which he often sought her advice and she, in turn, confided her
problems to him. While in Paris he had found time to conduct
an annual triduum for the American students of Marymount
who were studying in Paris, as well as for the Catholic nurses
of the American Hospital, many of whom were in dire need of
counsel in their professional ethics.
Upon his return in 1936 Father Dumas was among the
guests attending the ceremony formally opening Butler Hall,
an important event in the annals of Marymount. It was important for Father Dumas too, for it enabled him to take up
and continue his close friendship with Mother Butler, and,
after her death, with the religious of the Sacred Heart of
Mary at Marymount in Tarrytown and New York City and
the high schools and parochial schools of the metropolitan
area.
Father Dumas thoroughly appreciated Mother Butler's holiness and esteemed her Christlike charm, certain that she always brought him closer to God. On the day that Mother Butler
died Father Dumas was at Marymount within the house of her
death. Although his grief was apparent, he offered priestly
consolation and calmly assisted with the funeral arrangements.
His most recent letters to her were found in her desk where
they still remain.
Between 1936 and his death in 1958 Father Dumas was a
familiar visitor at Marymount. Several times he preached on
founders' day, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The
holy hours, which he conducted in preparation for the First
Friday devotions, were usually given to the students in March;
and on each November 13th, the feast of St. Stanislaus Kostka,
patron of the novitiate, he would say Mass at the novitiate
and later in the day give a conference on some virtue of the
Jesuit novice's life. Copies of the conference were regularly
sent to the young religious in all houses of the North American
Province.
It was a sad day in 1957 when news reached Marymount that
Father Dumas had suffered his first heart attack. There were
~any Prayers for him, and there was a partial recovery.
ather returned to Marymount for short visits, his last on
�70
FATHER DUMAS
May 26th, 1958. It was evident that he was overjoyed to be
back. He had a long talk with Reverend Mother General and,
smiling and happy, he viewed the May Day procession and
ceremonies. Two days later he was dead.
For seven years Father Dumas served as Minister of the
Fordham community. Although the new post entailed the loss
of the academic prestige usually accorded the dean of a graduate school, he did not waste time or energy in vain and unbecoming regrets, but proceeded to the new job with exemplary dispatch. He was a good minister, practical, efficient,
generous, and he was understanding of the special problems of
the sick. I doubt very much that anyone at Fordham was ever
refused any reasonable request while Father Dumas was
minister. What was not always noticed by all was the fact
that he took unusual pains in the ordering of the meals, aiming
at quality, variety, and, at times, even the exotic.
It is true that in the opinion of some Father Dumas isolated
himself behind a wall of reserve, a sure sign of an unfriendly
and frigid personality. But they were in error. The fact is
that, although he did draw a line around himself beyond which
not even his closest friends were allowed to go, this was in
reality a guard, a preservative, which he felt to be necessary,
of an important an intimate area of his personality. One lives
the religious life according to objective principles and the light
in which God allows one to see and understand them. It did
not greatly perturb him that some fouhd his mode of procedure disconcerting and irritating. He continued to live as
he felt his religious life should be lived. It is certain, however,
that he attempted to do too much too soon after his initial
heart attack, and it was surely an error to take up the duties
of the minister before he was required to and before he had
fully recovered. But Father Dumas was not the sort of person
to whom you could easily offer advice. With formidable determination he continued active, alert, and interested until his
sudden and final attack.
It is here, at the most decisive moment of a man's life, that
Father Dumas proved to the hilt the point that I have been
trying to make. In the face of the terrifying reality of imminent death he remained calm and composed, not through
stoicism or pride, but simply because he believed that death,
�FATHER DUMAS
71
like life, was a thing to be planned for with intelligence, assented to with courage, and performed with as much dignity
and self-possession as God in His mercy would allow.
I should like to mention one more fact. Father Dumas was
the least sentimental of human beings. Consequently, he was
not likely to welcome any manifestation of a personal and
emotional kind in his regard. Nevertheless, I think it right to
make one now for what it may be worth. I have said that when
Father Dumas was a first year regent I was a senior in his
class at St. Peter's Prep. I liked and admired him. He had
a manly piety, he was a stimulating teacher, and he was leading
with verve and evident happiness a genuinely useful and dedicated life. It seemed to me that this was an excellent thing
and that I would like to lead just such a life. But in the
casual and inexplicable fashion of youth I neglected to tell
him that I was entering the Society after graduation, and in
later years I never once mentioned to him the fact that his
example had so strongly influenced me in my decision to become a priest and a Jesuit. I am sure he will not mind if I
mention it now, in grateful remembrance, as a tribute of
friendship and my amende honorable.
Father Laurence Kenny
John j. Keefe, S.J.
Two Fathers at the University, learning that Father Kenny
was seriously ill, drove to Mount St. Rose Hospital the night
of the feast of Holy Innocents to visit him. They found him
weak but cheerful. Knowing his lifelong dread of dying without the ministration of a priest, they said the prayers for the
dying, gave him absolution and the final blessing. He smiled
his appreciation and tried to raise his enfeebled fingers folded
over his crucifix to give his blessing to the visitors. A few
~inutes later he said his Nunc Dimittis and quietly went to his
rich reward.
Within an hour the news of the death of the well-known
priest was broadcast and his picture was shown on television.
�72
FATHER KENNY
The Associated Press released the news and newspapers in different cities printed the story of the death of the oldest Jesuit
in the United States. The New York Times gave the obituary
notice preferential space in its death columns.
With the death of Father Kenny an era ended in the Missouri Province. He was the final link with the twelve Jesuit
founders of the province--he knew Father Verrydt the last of
the twelve, who died in Cincinnati in 1883, the year Father
Kenny entered Florissant. He was the last Missourian to study
philosophy and theology at Woodstock between 1887 and 1899,
among the first group to live in the newly opened theologate in
St. Louis, the second Jesuit to be ordained in the college church,
and the last of the group to die.
Father Kenny did not enjoy good health-he was bothered
with a weak heart and chronic bronchitis. This prevented
him from taking part in games as a scholastic. The haunting
fear of a sudden death kept him close to his room as a priest.
For many years he slept with his door open to call for help in
the night. He would not leave the university except with a
priest companion.
In spite of this drawback he spent fifty-seven years in the
classroom, a reco_rd in the province, and seventy-five years
in the Society. He lived two months beyond his ninety-fourth
birthday.
Because of poor health, he interrupted his study of philosophy at Woodstock for two months, then taught six years in
four academies and had a year of rest before theology. He was
sent to Missoula, Montana, for his first year of theology, then
to Woodstock for the second year, and to the newly opened
theologate in St. Louis for the third year.
He cherished fond recollections of the friendships he formed
at Woodstock and he would frequently mention the names of
Villiger, O'Rourke and Wynne. He was deeply impressed by
the innate courtesy of the Neapolitan Fathers who taught in
the scholasticate there.
After tertianship at Florissant, he returned to spend the
next fifty-seven years in St. Louis, except for a six-year interruption in Detroit.
His early assignments were varied. He taught in the Academy, was moderator of the Junior sodality, the first registrar,
�FATHER KENNY
73
the first publicity director, and the consultant of eleven presidents.
He expanded the publicity department by forming a writer's
club among the scholastics. Whenever he discovered a newspaper item pertaining to the univeristy, he would make and distribute copies to the members of the club, who, in turn, would
expand the clipping into a story. These stories were, then,
distributed to Catholic papers to serve as fillers. Some of
them found their way to the columns of America. He cultivated the friendship of newspapermen by telephoning information regarding the university. They discovered he was an
authority on Catholic subjects. He delighted to tell how he
once scooped the mighty Post-Dispatch. He was listening to
the radio broadcast from Rome of the election of the pope.
The name of the newly elected Pope had just been announced
when his telephone rang. The caller, a reporter from the Post
Dispatch, asked if Father Kenny thought the Jesuit Cardinal
Boetto had a chance of being elected pope. With quiet reserve,
Father Kenny answered that the Pope was elected, was Cardinal Pacelli and had taken the name of Pius XII. He enjoyed
the excitement as the reporter shouted the news across the
room.
As the university grew, Father Kenny was advanced to the
college and appointed professor of history, moderator of the
Senior sodality and of the debating society. He thus came in
contact with hundreds of students, taught many of their sons
and even some grandsons. Among others he taught three
mayors and three generals. Outside the classroom, he came
in contact with many more. They would come to him for
counsel on personal problems, perhaps for confession, or just
for a chat. Out-of-town visitors would come to renew friendship with the genial priest.
Saturday morning a line of diocesan clergy would form outside his room for confession. Each night he would hear confessions of the community; no matter how unwell he might
feel, he would remain at his prie-dieu till the De profundis bell
sounded. In the morning the altar boys would come from the
sacristy to confess to this gentle priest. He himself made a
practice of daily confession for many years.
Two instances will show the lasting influence he exerted on
�74
FATHER KENNY
his students. One of them during his four years at medical
school visited Father Kenny each Saturday for confession.
Another, an editor, sent him the daily paper for forty years,
even during the six years he was absent from the city.
Blessed with a splendid memory for names, events and places,
Father Kenny specialized in the history of the United States
since the Civil War. He referred to his classes as "American
history taught by an eyewitness." Because of the wide range
of his knowledge, he was consulted by many writers, the late
Father Garraghan among them. He had a way of inspiring
students in the graduate department to undertake difficult assignments. He was ready to lend his help by showing how
source material might be used. More than one book resulted
from this encouragement.
He was among the early contributors to America. He wrote
articles for the Woodstock Letters and other Catholic magazines. He was alert to point out inaccuracies that might crop
out in books and articles.
As he approached his ninetieth birthday, he retired reluctantly from the classroom, but not to a well-deserved leisure.
He turned his unusual energy into other channels and used
his typewriter for his growing correspondence. He was
meticulous in typing lengthy answers to greetings at Christmas
and other seasons.
The last year, spent in a hospital, following his active life,
was the difficult year. His devotion to prayer, especially to his
rosary, won him grace to accept the trial with equanimity.
This spirit made him a favorite with the hospital attendants
who were always glad to serve him. Even in the hospital he
did not remain idle. He was eager to discuss the activities of
the university with visitors. He watched the television of the
university basketball games and the football games of Our
Lady's boys, as he called the Notre Dame squad. He waxed
enthusiastic over the splendid showing of the Catholic grade
schools in the weekly spelling matches.
He welcomed visitors, fellow Jesuits and laymen and heartened them by his unfailing spirit of cheerfulness. Then, quietly
one night in late December, there came the last Visitor Whom
he welcomed with a smile on his lips and a song in his hearthis King and Master whom he had served long and well.
�FATHER KENNY
75
Death Comes to Father Kenny
America's oldest Jesuit, Father Laurence J. Kenny, born Oct. 12, 1864;
entered the Society of Jesus, July 21, 1883; died Dec. 28, 1958.
(Reprinted from The Jesuit Bulletin)
Sometimes saints "stick out," studded with burrs and spines of virtue.
Father Laurence J. Kenny, S.J., who died last December 28, aged 94, was
not such a man. His irresistible likeableness, stemming from vital,
gracious charity, almost made one forget that everything about him that
was good was Christian.
And those like myself who only knew him as an old man (his golden
jubilee as a Jesuit was past, and he had just turned seventy when I met
him) might be inclined to say that he had grown old gracefully except
that his treasure of benign memories and host of friends from earlier
years made it clear that he had been living gracefully for a long time.
Through more than a half century he taught at St. Louis University,
sharing with innumerable students his devoted interest in the American
Catholic heritage and heartening them with his encouragement. Hundreds of history teachers derived a good measure of their inspiration
from his classes, and more than one substantial volume began as a research project under his direction. Perhaps the most impressive of these
is the monumental genealogy of the Mudd family, researched for years
by Father Kenny and completed by Dr. Richard D. Mudd, of Saginaw,
Mich. Father Kenny's portrait as the frontispiece and Dr. Mudd's dedication of the volume to him eloquently testify to his contribution.
But Father Kenny's greatest distinction· is not in the world of
scholarship or the academic life. It is in the love he gave and received;
he was, almost literally, everybody's friend. He coveted love. He
prefaced a letter of criticism to a newspaper with these words: "In the
Book of Proverbs, ix, 8, we read: 'Rebuke not a scorner, lest he hate thee.
Rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.' I covet your love. Here is my
rebuke.''
When he was an old man past ninety, time-worn and weary, as
Margaret Bourke-White's lined and shadowed portrait testifies, when he
might have been content to fondle "the memory of abundant blessings
previously acquired," he remained as vitally interested in his friends,
the fortunes of St. Louis University, the well-being of the American
Church as he had always been. God's greater glory and the welfare of
His Church were the objectives that unified and buttressed all his manifold interests. Anything whatever that in Father Kenny's eyes contributed to those objectives was important and estimable; virtually
nothing else interested him. To all these things-people, events, institutions-he gave his devoted support and interest with the inconspicuous
fidelity of a man whose eye is single.
FRANCIS J. CORLEY, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
TEILHARD DE CHARDIN ON EVOLUTION
The Phenomenon of Man. By Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J. Translated by Bernard Wall. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1959, Pp.
318. $5.00.
Father Teilhard's Le Phenomene Humain was published shortly after
his death in 1955. This English edition comes at the time of renewed
discussion on evolution occasioned by the Darwin centennial. Wall's
translation, which is well done, is prefaced by a highly commendatory
introduction by Sir Julian Huxley. However, Huxley's statement that
evolution has no room for the supernatural will hardly induce Catholics
to embrace T.'s ideas without reservation.
Certainly the supernatural presents a problem to T.'s remarkable
synthesis of all reality based on the postulate of universal evolution,
panpsychism and pan-noism. T. himself does not formally reject the
supernatural. He insists that he is treating of man solely as a phenomenon, on the level of scientific observation. T.'s aim is to see, not to
explain, to establish an experimental chain of succession in nature, not
a union of ontological causality. He even claims that his theory postulates
a transcendent deity and is most congenial to the supernatural.
Briefly, T.'s picture of the world is one of geogenesis, biogenesis,
psychogenesis, hominisation, personalisation and finally of the genesis
of a future super-consciousness. More briefly, he sees a grand orthogenesis of everything towards a higher degree of immanent spontaneity.
Evolution in every form is primarily psychical transformation. Yet T.
insists that within this continuity there is also a discontinuity. There is
nothing, he feels, to prevent the thinker who adopts a spiritual explanation, for reasons of a higher order, from maintaining, under the phenomenal veil of a revolutionary transformation, whatever creative operation or special intervention he likes.
T.'s view of the world is predicated on what he calls the laws of complexification and interiorisation. Elemental matter strives to organize
itself into more complex forms both in its exterior structure and also
within, in its psychic face. Material synthesis or complexity and spiritual
perfection or conscious centreity are but two aspects of the same
phenomenon. In man, for the first time, instinct perceived itself in its
own mirror. Self-consciousness was born. The indefinite development of
the person is effected by the greater unification of mankind through love.
T., however, sees no reason why some sort of primordial fall is not
reconcilable with his view.
Scholastic philosophers and theologians will rebel. Though T. insists
that he is not concerned with the ontological, it is difficult to accept
his synthesis as a purely experimental one. The Scholastic ideas of
matter and form and of fixed essences seem to be challenged. T.'s bow of
76
I
I
�BOOK REVIEWS
77
deference towards the supernatural will seem quite unfriendly to the
inner orientation of his theory. Particularly hard to embrace will be his
picture of the origin of man in a state quite different from what Catholic
doctrine teaches of the state of original justice and Adam's preternatural
gifts.
A lot of evolution would have to go on among Scholastics before T.'s
universal evolution would be accepted as a new synthesis. T.'s views may
prove to be the catalyst.
EDWARD J. SPONGA, S.J.
A THEOLOGY OF ST. JOSEPH
Saint Joseph and Daily Christian Living. By Francis L. Filas, S.J. New
York: The Macmillan Company, 1959. Pp. vii-182. $3.95.
Francis L. Filas, S.J., needs no introduction. His other books on St.
Joseph and the parables and his writings on the Fatima Devotion are
well known. In his latest book, the author treats of the incidents in St.
Joseph's life and reflections flowing from them. They are based not on
legends or pious fancy but on dogma and ascetical theology. He discusses the unique vocation of Joseph as the husband of Mary and "father"
of the God-Man, the Saint's father, the tradition and the source of the
old grandfather Joseph legend and his blooming staff, the true marriage
to Mary and the spiritual fatherhood of Jesus, his trial at Mary's
pregnancy, the birth of Jesus, the Magi and exile, his hidden life and
death. The reflections are as carefully written as the theology: our faith,
the goodness of marriage and of virginity, scrupulosity and guilt, emotional maturity, confidence in God, zeal, fear of death, the spirit of
cheerfulness and gratitude.
Chapter XI is a collection of the major papal statements on St. Joseph,
with a commentary on their historical context and explanations of the
text pointing up emphases and inferences. Chapter XII deals with the
theology of St. Joseph, so-called "Josephology," in a systematic study of
the doctrinal claims concerning the Saint. In discussing the possible
prerogatives of Joseph, namely, his immaculate conception, his sinlessness
and his assumption, the author examines each on its own merits with
the history, dogma and authentic documentation for each claim. The
author denies Joseph's immaculate conception, but defends his sinlessness
and his bodily assumption into heaven.
The author's exegesis of Matthew and Luke is scholarly but not
weighed down by scholarship, and the reflections flow naturally from the
Joseph-events. The book is a fine illustration of scholarship, insight, devotion, and a deep knowledge of theology. Its value and merits could not
rest on a surer foundation.
JOSEPH B. NEVILLE, S.J.
JUNGMANN ON CATECHETICS
Handing on the Faith. By Josef Andreas Jungmann, S.J. Translated
by A. N. Fuerst. New York: Herder and Herder, 1959. Pp. XIV445. $6.50.
To call this translation and adaptation of Father Josef Jungmann's
book (German publication 1953) one of the basic works in our American
�7S
BOOK REVIEWS
catechetical movement would be understatement. It should prove for some
time to come the unique classic in English on the different phases of the
catechetical problem. Nevertheless, Handing on the Faith does not claim
to be the last word on catechetics, nor in this fast-moving field can it
always be considered the most advanced word. Under its impetus, however, we can hope in America for a renewed vitality in facing a critical
problem of Catholic education. Our gratitude is due to Monsignor
Anthony Fuerst for presenting J .'s classic in English dress with a
certain amount of helpful adaptation.
In J.'s opening chapter a necessary perspective is gained by contacting
the purest currents of kerygmatic catechesis in the early days of the
Church and then watching their ebb and flow in history, through the
impoverishing era of post-Reformation polemics down to our own day.
The reader breaks out of the limited catechetical vision so prevalent
today to realize with J;; «Jt is not sufficient that the content of faith be
precisely presented in ..full detail; it must be imparted so that it appears in all its forcefulness as a synthesis and is appreciated as a
"message" (a kerygma) in all its beauty and in all its supernatural
sublimity."
The remaining seven chapters of the book fit into the framework
outlined by J. in his introduction: "We shall turn our attention to the
individual factors of catechesis: those who present it, the catechists; those
who receive it, the catechumens; and its purpose: the effective transfer
of the catechetical subject matter by the catechist to the catechumen.''
In Chapter II J. is much concerned to give priest, religious, and layman
a sense of high calling in their catechetical mission while in Chapter III
he assembles within thirteen thought-provoking pages (pp. 79-91) a
number of psychological insights into the child-mind as it has been
newly discovered in our century. J.'s development here is necessarily
brief, particularly on adolescence, but he makes us aware of the impact
of religious psychology upon catechetics. Chapter IV is pivotal in the
book, for at the outset it endeavors to pinpoint the unique nature of the
catechetical task. For an uninitiated American audience this section
(pp. 92-97) could be more fully developed and perhaps more clearly
expressed. J. here differentiates the ideal of religious education to
Catholic living from ordinary instruction imparting mere knowledge.
The chapter then continues with a breakdown of the catechetical content materials: scripture, liturgy, systematic doctrine, all of which are
necessary for effectively "handing on the Faith.'' He opts for concurrent rather than successive treatment, with Christ as the central
focus of the synthesis, thus motivating the will as well as informing the
mind. Chapter VI moves into the area of general methodology and is
rich with pedagogical insight, while Chapter VII handles more specialized
questions (visual aids, moral sense, training in prayer). Chapter VIII
approaches problems at various age-levels (First Communion, Confirmation, high schools): Some of the latter materials, particularly the section
on training in chastity, could be still further adapted to our American
scene. The appendices fill out our understanding of catechetical tra-
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79
ditions with the history of the kerygma and kerygmatic theology.
The index of persons and subjects is excellent, as is the wealth of
references from J.'s German edition, which are supplemented by added
English titles. One last note: If readers lacking competent direction
should find the book dense and difficult, it should be borne in mind that
its complexity mirrors the catechetical task which we in America have
so long oversimplified.
VINCENT M. NovAK, S.J.
HISTORY AND DOCTRINE OF THE PRIESTHOOD
What Is A Priest? By Joseph Lecuyer, C.S.Sp. Translated by Lancelot
C. Sheppard. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1959. Pp. 126. $2.95.
This book is a translation of the twenty-third volume of the projected
150 volumes in The Twentieth Century Encyclopedia Of Catholicism,
edited in France by H. Daniel-Rops. The essay exhibits the sound
scholarship which the editor promises in his advertising blurbs. Fr.
Lecuyer constructs most of the treatise from original sources. His seven
main divisions are: The Apostles, The Bishops As Their Successors, The
Priesthood, The Diaconate, Lower Orders, Celibacy and The Priesthood
Of The Faithful. Within each division the subject receives a genetic
historical treatment by the method of weaving into the text most of
the important source material.
The detailed examination and explanation of the subdiaconate and
minor orders deserves special attention and commendation. Probably the
most interesting section are the twenty-six pages devoted to The Priesthood Of The Faithful. The author distinguishes carefully and accurately
between the errors of the Reformers on this subject and the traditional
Catholic position. Much of the Catholic viewpoint is derived from Pope
Pius XU's encyclical, Mediator Dei. But the author also traces this belief
throughout the Old Testament, the first Epistle of Peter, the letters of
Paul, and the gospel, epistles and Apocalypse of John, and shows its
doctrinal pertinence to the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation.
While this is the most stimulating part of the essay, the other sections
are as accurate and interesting.
The translator deserves praise for his effort; the little book reads quite
easily. Some minor negative comments might be made. On p. 71 the
Council of Benevento which influenced Hugh of St. Victor's thought on
the subdiaconate took place in 1091, not 1901; this is obviously a
printer's error. Also it is better style to refer to a Papal encyclical by
its first two Latin words; thus we should read Mediator Dei for Mediator
on pp. 121 and 122. But these are small errors in an otherwise excellent
synthetic presentation of the doctrine on the Catholic priesthood.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
MEN, WOMEN, MARRIAGE
And God Made Man and Woman. By Lucius F. Cervantes, S.J. Chicago:
Henry Regnery Company, 1959. Pp. xi-275. $4.00.
The purpose of the author is to correct three types of sexual ignorance:
(1) the ignorance of those parents who are unable or unwilling to give
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proper sex instruction to their children; (2) the ignorance of those who
follow an academic "sexual outlet" theory according to which not only
extra-marital but even homosexual sex contacts are part of the normal
pattern of human conduct; (3) the ignorance of those who seek to deny
or deemphasize the physical, emotional, psychological, and religious differences between man and woman, and present a monosexual interpretation of them that has far-reaching and disastrous consequences for
husband and wife, their children, and society itself.
The first part of the book deals with characteristic qualities of the
sexes, and with their physical, emotional, psychological, and religious
differences. These five chapters are a coldly objective and scientific
mashalling of facts to prove how many, how varied, and how characteristic are the differences between man and woman on these four levels.
Throughout this part there is an insistence on the biocultural or biosocial
basis of these differences, that offers a biological foundation and incentive
for the distinctive mode- of thinking, feeling, and acting of the two sexes
without necessarily determining them in one particular direction. The
author proves conclusively that results have always been pernicious for
those who acted according to the tenets of the cultural or environmental
school. This section is not a mere mechanical array of boring details.
Apart from the fact that the data are interesting in themselves, they
are presented in a language that is happily free from the sociological
jargon that makes one skip page after page in so many works of this type.
Of greater importance are the last three chapters that explain the
consequences of the facts already provided. First, the consequences on
the interpersonal level provide a great variety of sound practical suggestions that wilf give married couples an understanding of their differences and thus help them adjust to a mutual harmonious relationship
with themselves and with their children. Priests, educators, and counsellors will find this section of great value.
In considering the consequences of the difference of the sexes on the
institutional level, the author uses his facts to prove that science demands
monogamy as the institutionalized family pattern that alone can rear
properly the children that are the fruit of their sexual differences. The
results of many research projects are offered to show the different rate
and level of advance in the physical, emotional, and psychological spheres
when children are brought up in an institution, when the help of
"Pharaoh's daughter" is called upon, when foster parents are provided
outside an institution, and when the child is brought up surrounded
with the loving care that only a mother and father can provide. This
chapter provides a generous array of facts to buttress our arguments for
the perpetuity of the marriage bond and against divorce and remarriage.
The final chapter explains and evolves the notion of the essential
complementarity of the sexes. The mystery of love is seen in this, that
two people, each an Independent and equal person, must seek each other
for their fulfillment, for the realization of the higher nonselfish motivations of physical, emotional, intellectual, and supernatural love.
�BOOK REVIEWS
81
Father Cervantes has given us a work of convincing, gracious, and
scholarly distinction.
JoSEPH DUHAMEL, S.J.
CHURCH LAW ON l\IARRIAGE
Nullity of Marriage. By F. J. Sheed. New York: Sheed and Ward,
1959. Pp. xi-132. $3.00.
One of the most difficult of pastoral tasks is translating the law of the
Code into language intelligible to the average Catholic. Although we
may thoroughly understand the intricacies of a marriage case, it is quite
another thing to explain it to someone with no background in canon law.
This book is directly concerned with the law of the Code which deals
with the invalidity of marriage. The author first discusses the nature of
marriage as found in the Code and then distinguishes between divorce and
nullity. After listing the grounds of nullity under the following four
headings: a) what was agreed to was not marriage; b) the parties were
not free to marry; c) the parties did not consent; d) there was a defect
of form; he discusses each in detail. The author gives a simple explanation of the law with a large number of illustrative cases. Of special interest is the comparison made throughout with the comparable law of
England and New York State. The too frequent use of parenthetic
expressions is the one drawback in a book otherwise well-done.
DANIEL J. O'BRIEN, S.J.
THEOLOGY OF THE EXERCISES
All 1\ly Liberty: Theology of the Spiritual Exercises. By John A. Rardon,
S.J. Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1959. Pp. xxii-207. $3.75.
Father Hardon, author of the well-known ''The Protestant Churches
of America," first gives a commentary on the key meditations of the
Exercises: Foundation, Sin, Kingdom, Two Standards, Three Classes,
Three Modes of Humility, the Election, Contemplation for Obtaining
Divine Love. The second part of the book is devoted to the Examens,
Prayer, the Mysteries of the Life of Christ, Rules for Discernment of
Spirits and Rules for Thinking with the Church. Two appendices, one
giving the text of the meditations already commented on, the other
giving Pius XI's Apostolic Constitution of July 22, 1922, and an index,
complete the book.
In his commentary H. quotes particularly from St. Thomas, Suarez,
Roothaan, Monumenta lgnatiana, as well as from St. Augustine, St.
Francis de Sales and St. Alphonsus Ligouri. The commentary is 'Uniformly instructive and solid. He emphasizes the apostolate in explaining
the Kingdom, Two Standards and Three Modes, and shows the role of
reparatory love in the Third Mode. Particularly full are his explanations
of the value of abiding sorrow for sin, temptations, merit, the need of
holiness in apostolic workers, the place of the Cross in the apostolate,
love of God, desolation and consolation. In treating of the last subjects
it might perhaps have been useful to refer to de Guibert's emphasis on
studying the finality or effects of impulses rather than their origin.
For one who has studied philosophy and theology H. will be readily
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understood. For others the abstract and sometimes technical language
may be somewhat difficult, and they may desire a greater use of Scripture.
Ours will certainly find H. a welcome addition to the historic commentators, and be stimulated to further study of the Exercises.
WILLIAM GLEASON, S.J.
IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY
l\Ii Ser y mi Destino. By L. M. Estibalez, S.J. Bilboa: El Mensajero del
Corazon de Jesus, 1958. Pp. 312.
Espiritu de San Ignacio de Loyola. By Ignacio lparraguirre, S.J. Bilbao: El Mensajero del Corazon de Jesus, 1958. Pp. 206.
The collection 'Espiritualidad Ignaciana' presents us with its two first
volumes, both directed towards better understanding of the inexhaustible
lgnatian vein.
Father L. M. Estibalez, divides his book into two parts. In the first
part, entitled My Being,~~e undertakes the difficult task of summarizing
the different psychosomatic elements which integrate our complex human
personality. Due to the variety of viewpoints which Father Estibalez
takes into consideration, his synthesis results in a rather static encyclopedia of notions and concepts. Undoubtedly, however, it is to Father
Estibalez's credit that he has brought to the consideration of directors
of retreats some aspects of human psychology which are intimately
connected with the spiritual life and from which the directors cannot
prescind, since their task is to bring about the salvation of men rather
than the salvation of mere disincarnated souls. In the second part of
his book, under the title of My Destiny, Father Estibalez, in an enlightening development of the Principle and Foundation of the Spiritual Exercises, brings up some questions over which men of all times have pondered.
Father Ignacio Iparraguirre, well-known for his profound researches,
has written an excellent study on the spirituality of St. Ignatius as seen
in thousands of letters written by the Saint in the course of his life.
Father lparraguirre's study has, as one of its values, the direction of
our attention to those letters in which the Saint has left the indelible
mark of realism and spontaneity, which until the present time have
scarcely been considered and studied. Father lparraguirre's book offers
us aspects of that inexhaustible font which is Ignatian spirituality. St.
Ignatius' attitude towards suffering, his ardent love of truth, his deep
realism, his identification of love and service of Jesus Christ with that
of the Church, are some of the facets reviewed with an intelligent and
loving understanding.
FRANCISCO P. NADAL, S.J.
RELIGION AND PSYCHIATRY
Love or Constraint? By Abbe Marc Oraison, D.D., M.D. Translated
by Una Morrissy. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1959. Pp. 172.
$3.75.
The French edition of this work was published during the past year.
We can be grateful for this translation since Abbe Oraison is not a new
figure in the running dialogue over the interaction of religion and psy-
�BOOK REVIEWS
83
chiatry. In his dual role of priest and psychiatrist, Oraison discusses
a question of vital interest to those concerned with the religious and
spiritual formation of youth.
With great skill and competence, Oraison interweaves two major
themes into the structure of this work. He presents an account of the
complex development of the personality of the child. His orientation is
psychoanalytic and the best part of the presentation evolves around the
Oedipal relations and the effects they have on the child's developing
emotional life. The other predominant theme involves the specifically
Christian motif of religion, morality and spiritual values. These extremely difficult questions are discussed with rare perception. The book
thus provides a competent and popular re-assertion of a badly needed
emphasis.
Such a recommendation in matters so crucial should not be proposed
without certain reservations. Two observations might be made which
bear on Abbe Oraison's presentation: (1) The book is a popularized
discussion. We must remember that the psychoanalytic framework in
which the analysis is elaborated is structured out of pathological data.
It is very likely legitimate to infer from such data that all or most of
normal human behavior is at least in part unconsciously motivated.
But there is always danger, even among professionals and a fortiori
among non-professionals, to project the pathological elements of the data
into the conception of normal personality. The non-professional may
succumb to this temptation and interpret some the Abbe's remarks
in this light. (2) The Abbe's manner of presentation can leave the impression that his title "Love or Constraint" is intended as an "either/or,"
that religious education is a matter of either the mature love which engenders a true love of God, or the erection of taboos and undesirable
motives which terminate in neurotic (or at least unconscious) fears
which are directed toward God as a punishing or threatening fatherfigure. We may wonder whether this is really the available choice. Would
we not prefer to say that it is the proper interaction of mature love
and disciplinary constraint which permits the personality to develop
its best religious potentialities? We can hardly fail to admit with Oraison
that love and permissiveness are too often neglected elements in the
educative process. But we must also recognize that the Christian life
of virtue is a life of discipline and denial. Perhaps the title of this
book should have been "Love and Constraint." It is the and that makes
all the difference. Christian morality cannot be raised on a substructure
of the Freudian ethic.
W. W. MEISSNER, S.J.
RELIGION IN THE STATE UNIVERSITY
Religion and the State University. Edited by Erich A. Walter. Ann
Arbor: Univ. of Michigan Press, 1958. Pp. vi-321. $6.50.
In virtue of the much misunderstood first amendment, the order of
public law which we call the state has decreed that it should be indifferent to the cause of religion, and hence the much quoted principle
"separation of Church and state," has been extended by U. S. higher
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BOOK. REVIEWS
education to read "separation of Church and state university, as well."
But whereas the state as a body politic cannot champion religion, the
state university, educating human persons in a free society and responsible for more than one half of our nation's higher education, cannot
ignore religion. Universities are committed to students and many students are committed to religion; more specifically, they are Protestants,
Catholics and Jews who believe in God. Religion can never be irrelevant
to the process of cultivating the mind and elevating the spirit which
we call higher education. How reconcile this dilemma?
The present collection of essays is an attempt to discuss the dilemma.
In a cooperative effort, twenty prominent American educators and
churchmen speak to students in these state universities and to all those
associated with them: parents, churchmen, teachers, guidance counselors,
and college administrators.
The editor has divided, the essays in terms of what state universities
have done, should do, and are doing to meet the problem of religion
in higher education. In the Setting, a representative of each faith discusses the making of our pluralistic society. Father J. C. Murray, S.J.,
presents the Catholic view, Will Herberg the Jewish view and R. Bainton
the Protestant view. P. G. Kauper of the University of Michigan writes
an interesting legal history of the separation principle in U. S. law.
In the second section, Religion and University Education, T. M. Greene
discusses the role of religion as a truly humanizing, necessary part of
a liberal education, while G. Shuster of Hunter College pleads for
religious instruction at the same high level of intellectual quality that
the student receives in professional studies. "How else," he asks, "can
the professional student rise above religious rusticity?" In the concluding section entitled The Community-Campus Life, various authors discuss campus religious centers, interreligious programs (e.g., Religious
Emphasis Week) and specific religious problems that face the average
student and his counselor.
There are some passages that will distress Catholic readers: the
charge of dogmatism, the apparent antinomy of academic freedom and
self-evident principles, the dichotomy of the truth of revelation and the
truth of experience. These misunderstandings are themselves eloquent
arguments for the necessity of religious education and mutual understanding. At first reading the book may appear to be nothing but a welter of
complexities and confusions emanating from a situation fraught with
insurmountable difficulties for churchmen and educators alike, but it is
only from the starting point of an awareness of the problems that we
can possibly reach the goal of solution.
JAMES A. O'DONNELL, S.J.
THE AMERICAN PARISH
The Living Parish. By Leo R. Ward, C.S.C. Notre Dame: Fides Publishers Association, 1959. Pp. xvi-191. $3.95.
The publications of Notre Dame's Fides press have provided one of
the more helpful contributions to Catholic life in our generation. A
worthy addition to their line is this series of reports on living parishes by
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85
a veteran and very knowledgeable observer of apostolic movements and
developments. Now that the Catholic world is showing some signs of
reawakening to the vital, we might almost say essential, role of the parish
in the life of the Church today, we are on the lookout for illustrations of
successful know-how in realizing parochial potentialities. Father Ward's
reports make us grateful beneficiaries in this respect.
Ten lively chapters recount his own personal observations in a dozen
or more parishes in almost as many dioceses around the United States.
Each parish was chosen because of its distinctive and exemplary achievements, and each clearly merits the designation, "living parish." Two
of them exemplify extraordinary organization of the laity in extensive
and varied parochial administration, thus freeing the priests for peculiarly priestly work; another spells out the growth of vibrant community life among a people united around the altar of God; another
shows the gains won by the Young Christian Workers; others the remarkably effective and efficient administration of laity-involved released
time religious instruction; others the apostolic victory of racal integration; another is almost literally all things-material and spiritual-to
its predominantly poor membership; another realizes almost the very
ideal of liturgy, the community of worship; another typifies the rich
communal closeness of the relatively few but still numerous pockets of
Catholic rural America; and another the linked possibilities of credit
union and communion table.
Even when we discount the glitter of a certain amount of more or
less evident gold-plating, we have to be impressed with the pioneering and
rationally conceived achievements of these parishes. Parochial apostles,
clerical and lay, will find Father Ward's pages fertile with tested ideas
and techniques. Incidentally, his brief introductory chapter offers a
particularly fine stroke of socio-historical analysis of the Church in
America-its sources, new developments and remaining problems.
My strictures on The Living Parish are but two. First, it tells of
living parishes, many different ones with different degrees of vitality,
yet none is explicitly presented as involved in the social apostolate and
community reform. Obviously this must be part of the parish's leavening
presence in a neighborhood. Second, Father Ward seems to be unduly
infected with a kind of hyper-optimism, for his parishes are incomparably superior to most of the other 17,000 parishes in the country,
and our battle with secularism, necessarily to be fought on the parish
level, is still not notably a winning endeavor.
,
One may hope with some optimism that this heartily recommended book
will help some of the lagging parishes to move into the footsteps of the
trail blazers reported in its pages.
JosEPH B. SCHUYLER, S.J.
OUR LADY APPEARS
Catherine Laboure and the Modern Apparitions of Our Lady. By
Abbe Omer Englebert. Translated by Alastair Guinan. New
York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1959. Pp. 243. $3.95.
The life of Catherine Laboure, the historical background of the
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devotion of the Miraculous Medal, and the resultant miracles and
conversions, fittingly comprise the first part of the book. A whole chapter is devoted to the fascinating conversion-story of Alphonse Ratisbonne, dandy and atheist, who became Pere Marie-Alphonse, the beggarpriest. The second part is devoted to a summary account of the
subsequent apparitions of Our Lady at La Salette, Lourdes, Pontmaine,
Pellevoisin, Fatima, Beauraing, and Banneux. In the third part, the
Abbe Englebert treats of the significance of these apparitions; how
together they form one integral message and how these apparitions
prove Our Lady as bound to the great human family as was Jehovah
to the people chosen of old.
One cannot but feel grateful to the Abbe Englebert for this charming
story of the "Saint of Silence" and the message of Rue du Bac. Both
story and message are deftly told and the translation is not remiss.
Sodality moderator~
be doubly grateful.
ALFREDO G. PARPAN, S.J.
will
RETREATS AND RETREAT MASTERS
How to Give a Retreat. By Ignatius lparraguirre, S.J. Translated by
Angelo Benedetti, S.J. Bombay: St. Xavier's High School. 1959.
Pp. 188.
Retreat Notes For Religious. By Edward Leen, C.S.Sp. New York:
P. J. Kenedy & Sons. 1959. Pp. xi-142. $3.50.
Father Iparraguirre explains his purpose in the preface of his little
book, showing that it is intended primarily for those who are interested
in the mechanics of giving a retreat to laymen. It is detailed throughout
with regard to the lessons to be drawn, the mechanical (if that word may
be used) aspects to be used in achieving the results desired. Taking a
five day retreat as his model, he carefully outlines each step of the way,
yet he manages to leave a great deal to the retreat master, so that his
scheme is by no means inflexible. Some of the suggestions, such as the one
for hearing the retreatants' confessions in the individual's room, and
the idea of constant visits by the retreat master, have great merit, as
one ponders them over more carefully. The young retreat master can
gain some excellent advice from these pages, and the veteran will be
helped by examining the suggestions in the light of his own practice.
Retreat house directors could also benefit by some of the suggestions, although the idea of a full five days for retreat seems to be unlikely of
fulfillment in America for some time to come. Father Iparraguirre's ideas
have the delightful combination of solidity and freshness, and I would
heartily recommend the book to veteran and prospective retreat masters.
Father Leen's book, evidently a transcript of the notes of his last
retre:>.t to a community of nuns, preparing for mission work, contains a
great deal of the solid spirituality that is found in his other works.
The conferences show an attempt to lead the hearers (and the readers)
in a persistently progressive way to follow along the way of Christ.
Nor is Father Leen content with theory alone, but constantly goes from
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87
the virtue to the practice. This book is primarily for religious, but there
is no doubt that pious lay men and women who have begun the practice
of mental prayer, or who have been in the habit of making annual retreats thoughtfully and prayerfully, could derive great benefit from
the conferences.
In a biographical note at the beginning of the book, Father R. F.
Walker gives a brief picture of the author. It is an inspiring delineation
of a man who gave of himself unsparingly for Christ, and shows that
this book, as well as Father Leen's other excellent works, were written
from the deep spirituality of the man.
WILLIAM F. GRAHAM, S.J.
A NON-CATHOLIC LOOK AT CATHOLICS
American Catholics, A Protestant-Jewish View. By Stringfellow Barr,
Robert McAfee Brown, Arthur Cohen, Rabbi Arthur Gilbert, Martin
Marty and Allyn Robinson. With an afterword by Gustave Weigel,
S.J. Ed. Philip Scharper. New York: Sheed & Ward. 1959.
Pp. 235. $3.75.
It is very popular in American circles to speak of the image of a
person or event, or even of a corporation or country. The image is a
complexus of the general and particular impressions that arise spontaneously when confronted by the object in question. The subjective
response may grow out of inadequate knowledge and false appearances
but it is nonetheless very real and cannot be discarded in any cavalier
fashion. It does little good to question the objective accuracy of the
prevalent image by recourse to objective values. If one's enemy possesses
a distorted image, you may wonder about his sincerity and honesty, but if
a friend possesses an inadequate image, there is usually some foundation
in fact. It is inevitable that false impressions will be created because
of the failure to give full, true and consistent witness to the reality in
question.
Six friends have written about the image of the Catholic Church in
America as it appears to non-Catholics. There are many fears and
suspicions about the Church which provoke searching questions. We
cannot ignore the questions because they have been prompted by what
some of us have said and by what some of us have done. We can benefit
from the candid and frank appraisal of our friends by thoughtful reflection on the issues that have been raised. Too often the light of the
Catholic witness is tinted and tainted by misrepresentation and unnecessary allegiances. If the Church is rejected for what she truly is,
we can have hope in the mystery of grace. But if the Church is repudiated because of false identifications and inaccurate displays of Catholic
claims then the fault lies within our immediate family and calls for more
faithful witness to the Church as she really is.
The issues discussed in this book are both religious and cultural.
Robert McAfee Brown and Arthur Cohen analyze theological questions
which divide Protestants, Catholics and Jews. No facile solutions are
offered, but an earnest plea is made for an exchange of ideas, for greater
clarification of the conflicting positions and for more sympathetic under-
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BOOK REVIEWS
standing of the other's theological conviction. This call for dialogue
among Catholics and non-Catholics would involve professional theologians
and educated laymen. The writers claim that many Catholics fear that
they will make implicit concessions through such participation and thus
have prevented the healthy communication so necessary for proper
understanding.
Most of the other issues raised by the contributors are on the cultural
level. Martin Marty speaks of the question of authority as the one real
issue dividing us. Rabbi Arthur Gilbert is alarmed by the problem of
Catholic power and the fear of imposing sectarian Christianity on
Jewish children. Brown highlights the Protestant fear of the 'monolithic
structure image' of the Catholic in which the transference of dogmatic
certitudes to areas of the situational and circumstantial injects the
suspicion of unrealistic intrusions into politics and cultural affairs.
,
The American problem of pluralism is touched by all the writers.
Allyn Robinson sees exchange and dialogue as essential to the healthy
airing of differences in ··a pluralistic society. He describes Catholic aloofness and complacency in areas of common interest. Moreover, he offers
ground rules for dialogue which no Catholic could reject. To quote a
few: "We are not assuming that one religion is as good as another.
\Ve recognize our disagreements to begin with." Or, "We come together
as religious persons, and not as faiths."
Stringfellow Barr and Robert McAfee Brown underscore the lack
of self-criticism among Catholics. The wide areas of freedom are not
known by most non-Catholics. The prevalent image is one of a party line
in most matters. Yet the difficulty of knowing who represents the
Church as spokesman is indicated by several of the contributors.
Very practical issues are raised about Church and State, federal
aid to parochial schools, and other sociological and political items. We
recommend a perusal of the book for a fair understanding of the problems indicated and the context within which they are discussed. Its
chief value is in the honesty of each essayist. Brown and Barr show
a deep understanding of Catholic positions. Robinson, Marty and Gilbert
give emphasis to the sociological reality of the Church on the American
scene. Cohen and Brown, and in part Marty, indicate doctrinal differen::es
with frank perspicacity. As a result, there is ample material for reflection on what others have to say of us.
CARROLL J. BOURG, S.J.
CONFLICTING VIEWS ON RELIGION'S ROLE
Religion In America: Original Essays on Religion in a Free Society.
Edited by John Cogley. New York: Meridian Books, Inc., 1958.
Pp. 288. $1.45.
Eleven outstanding representative thinkers of Protestantism, Catholicism, Judaism, and various shades of unbelief have contributed these
essays based on talks given last year at a seminar on Religion in a Free
Society. In order that such a dialogue be fruitful, its participants, as
Father J. Courtney Murray notes in the first essay, must agree on "a
structure of basic knowledge, an order of elementary affirmations that
�BOOK RiWIEWS
89
reflect realities inherent in the order of existence." Precisely in these
fundamental presuppositions lie the real differences among the contributors. So while ostensibly the discussion concerns tangible problems
of education, censorship, the roles and relationship of Church and State,
each participant sees the issues in terms of his own view of truth. Is
truth an absolute "given" in the order of existence to which I actively
submit, or do I dominate and evolve it by mutual discussion and trial?
This question of fundamental orientation is ultimately not a matter
of demonstration, but of personal option before God. So where Wilbur
Katz sees that government support of religion is sometimes the only
way not to unduly favor'secularism, Leo Pfeiffer sees this same support
as "the vestiges of the extreme intervention into religious affairs by
the Continental Congress"; where Will Herberg sees the private schools
as "thoroughly public" in the service they render, Reinhold Niebuhr
sees them as a dangerous deviation from the American "principle of the
common school". While Father Walter Ong affirms that democratic
dialogue can only begin when each one is fully himself as an individual
person, James Nichols contends that the private schools' refusal to submit their commitments to the ultimate critique of public discussion is
a withdrawal from democratic dialogue. One could also contrast Father
Weigel's plea that the Church will best help the State by being completely herself, and Paul Tillich's time-worn fear about a "foreign"
Church organizing voters by playing on their "guilt feeling about taboos,"
or Abraham Heschel's prophetic cry for a renewed sensitivity regarding
right and wrong, with Stringfellow Barr's concern that the voter however immature be not protected in any way from what is morally harmful
to him. Even though these conflicting views should not be contrasted in
such a clear-cut way; yet, this very contrast serves to point up the
book's main attraction: a rare insight into the profound and startlingly
passionate differences which the surface civility of our pluralistic society
manages to disguise.
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
HISTORY OF MODERN PHILOSOPHY
History of Philosophy, Vol. II. By Johannes Hirschberger. Translated
by Rt. Rev. Anthony Fuerst. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. viii752. $9.50.
This volume is divided into modern European, contemporary and
American philosophy. The first part closes with Hegel; contemporary
thought includes materialism, phenomenalism, phenomenology, and
existentialism. The thirty-one chapters indicate the author's evaluation:
they range from a two page chapter on nee-positivism to sixty-six pages
on Kant's idealism alone. Part three, "American Philosophical Thought
and the Western Tradition," by Professor Gallagher of Villanova University, is a welcome addition to the original since such a concise presentation is not readily available. Dr. Hirschberger is not as thorough
with non-German modern philosophers; he dispatches W. James with
the comment, "if we compare him (James) with Friedrich Lange, we
can discover no original thoughts in his works."
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BOOK REVrEWS
The author's fundamental attitude is that no viewpoint should be
fixed; divergent theories mutually correct one another; the mind must
be open to the philosophical spirit. We find here a certain Heideggerian
Offenstiindigkeit but in this case the dialectical development is a
moment within an absolute truth. He holds strongly to continuity:
Spanish Scholasticism furnished many roots of modern philosophy,
Descartes is linked to Cusanus and Suarez and hence the great systems
from Descartes to Hegel are rooted also in the past. Moreover,
Nietzsche called Kant a disguised Scholastic, and existentialism, which
supposedly goes against everything, has Pascal as its forerunner.
Kant and German idealism is part of the great metaphysical, Platonic
tradition and this idealism's contribution must not be lost to Catholic
thought. "Perhaps a remedy is not required (for idealism), merely
a more correct interpretation. In this work we have tried to show
how it should be interpreted." In German existentialism, it has experienced a revival; :It·· is the same force conditioned by time. Opponents of existentialism see nothing but an intellectual fad; however,
contemporary man has a much greater understanding than his predecessors of the role of history in life and the importance of the
individual and of the evolutionary processes. Blondel's philosophy
"could be a monitor in the solution of the problems which the philosophy
of life and the philosophy of existence frequently pose."
This second volume seems superior to the first in its ability to see
through complex systems. The work makes one pause and evaluate the
roots and tendencies of our own times. More than forty pages of
indices are an aid to the problematical study of thought for which
this book is an 'excellent guide.
RoBERT H. CousiNEAU, S.J.
THE METAPHYSICS OF PLATO
An Approach to the Metaphysics of Plato through the Parrnenides. By
William F. Lynch, S.J. Washington, D. C.: Georgetown University Press, 1959. Pp. xiii-255. $6.00.
This is not an easy book to read. But for those willing to follow
carefully its argumentation it will prove richly rewarding in its insights into both the general metaphysics of Plato and the single
dialogue Parmenides.
The concluding chapter presents a summary of Platonic metaphysics
gleaned from the Parmenides. Participation emerges clearly as Plato's
central doctrine and is defined as "that status of an entity according
to which its reality is preserved without adding anything whatsoever
to the being which is its source" (p. 250). This concept can be fruitfully applied in six key areas: in the organic interplay between the
good and the ideas, in the structural composition of each idea, in the
order of definition, in the internal reality of the sensible, in the relationship of the sensible order with the ideas, and in the philosophic nature
of the number series.
These are conclusions drawn from the main portion of the book,
which is a detailed investigation of the eight hypotheses of the
�BOOK REVIEWS
9i
Parmenides. Father Lynch's main thesis is: "There is a positive effort
on the part of every hypothesis to build up all the wide-ranging elements of a total metaphysics of all unity and all being" (p. 18). This
is a thoroughgoing metaphysical approach, opposed, in various ways,
to anti-Eleatic, Neoplatonic, Hegelian, and logical approaches. It is
an approach also opposed to the metaphysical position of Cornford,
who denies that the first hypothesis is positive in meaning.
Briefly, Father Lynch analyzes the eight hypotheses as follows: the
first is completely affirmative and states that any one in any order
contains a principle of complete unity and indivisibility; the second
studies a one as a composition of parts; the third presents the theory
of unification, viz., the self-identity, limit, and precise relation to the
other parts of everything in the many comes from the one; the fourth
considers the indeterminate, and concludes that in every entity there
is only one principle of unity from which even the multiple aspects
proceed; the fifth inserts relative non-being into the heart of being
and makes multiplicity possible; the sixth asserts that nothing can
be predicated of nothing; the seventh parries the nonphilosophical mind
which does not acknowledge an indivisible principle in every entity
and yet tries to hold on to definite multiplicity and parts; the eighth
concludes that the one is so much the source of the being of the many
that without it the many could not be in any way.
The final five pages contain a good selected bibliography. Each
chapter is preceded by a fine summary which helps distinguish the one
central idea from the many considerations discussed. It is regrettable
that the book has no index, but perhaps this will be remedied in a
revised edition.
Possibly the most balanced evaluation of the book is that of Professor Whitney Oates: "It is obvious that not every scholar will be
persuaded by Father Lynch's carefully articulated argument. On the
other hand, I do not think that any scholar will examine the Parmenides
in quite the same way after he has studied carefully this new commentary."
RICHARD E. DOYLE, S.J.
MEDITATIONS IN JOY
Joy in the Faith: Meditations. By Auguste Valensin, S.J. Translated
by Alastair Guinan. New York: Desclee Co., 1959. Pp. 435. $4.00.
Translated from the posthumous French edition of 1954, we are assured that while, "in order to present these meditations in a way which
will make them most useful to English and American readers, it has
been deemed necessary at times to take some slight liberties in the translation," no substantial modifications have been introduced into the expression of the author's thought. During the years 1937, 1938 and 1939
Valensin kept a spiritual journal, and, without thought of publication,
and as occasion offered and time permitted, he jotted down some two
hundred entries pertaining to his prayer-life. The subjects vary from
day to day, conformably to the inspiration of a special occasion or in
harmony with the cycle of the liturgical year.
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BOOK REVIEWS
This is simple, confiding, joyous prayer, normally leading back to the
loving contemplation of God his father, and splendidly exemplifying the
nature, facility and fruitfulness of affective mental prayer. Apart from
logical sequence, and seldom exceeding two pages of clear, large type,
these abstracts range over a vast variety of topics. Apparently the
author was a prayerful religious who lived intimately \vith God and
had schooled himself in the supernatural art of talking out his heart to
Him in the most direct and simple language. The general approach is
that of a child with the most understanding and loving Father, and his
faith in the love of the Father is the soul of his prayer. For such as
live a life of faith, a few minutes daily devoted to the reflective perusal
of his work will beget similar results, and teach them how to pray, to
converse lovingly and trustfully with the omnipotent God who is all
understanding, mercy, power and love.
DANIEL J. M. CALLAHAN, S.J.
:ASIA AND CHRISTIANITY
Asia Looks at Western Christianity. By Thomas Ohm, O.S.B. Translated Irene Marinoff. New York. Herder and Herder. 1959. Pp.
xvii-252. $4.75.
With the disappearance of colonialism from Asia the miSsiOnary
forces of the Church confront a new situation wherein the missions can
not honestly be represented by Asians as just another phase of colonial
exploitation and domination. However, the past is so very much with us
that Christianity is still judged merely as a product of the west. Since
in the cultures of most Asians religion is identified with total living, in
the minds of th~se people everything in the west must be identified with
Christianity. To meet the new situation we should understand the prevailing attitudes about us.
The author has brought together the judgments on Christianity by
Japanese, Chinese and Indian. According to the author's design our
religion includes Catholicism and Protestantism, since these divisions
do not enter into the Asians' appraisal. The indictment is quite universal
among the intellectuals cited, and Christian missionaries are quoted
on the relative failure of our evangelization. It would be unwise to
cancel out the accusations with the observation that these people just
do not understand the religion of the west. Some of the judgments are
valid. The justified condemnations may be ascribed to the fact that we
have not sufficiently revealed a sensitivity to the local scene with its
legitimate social and religious expressions. Other judgments have to be
rejected because they are contrary to essential elements in Christianity
and have as their premiss the assumption of the complete adequacy of
Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism and Shintoism. Then there are the
familiar condemnations of the west; materialism, individualism, activism,
hedonism, intellectualism. These things are supposed to be completely
foreign to the Asian spirit of intuitionism, a profound sense of the
Absolute, transcendence of this world, the contemplative emphasis, the
primacy of the family, clan or caste. Some aspects of Christianity are
approved, especially the social, charitable and educational works.
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
It should be most helpful for the missionary to know what people
think about Christianity. The author's evaluations of Asian judgments
are honest and balanced. Just how closely the thinking recorded in this
book represents the attitudes of the immense masses is uncertain. The
worth of the book is in what the title announces-what Asians think
about us.
EDWARD L. MURPHY, S.J.
PUBLIC RELATIONS FOR THE CHURCH
A Handbook of Church Public Relations. By Ralph Stoody. New York:
Abingdon Press, 1959. Pp. 256. $4.00.
Active in the World Council of Churches and general secretary of the
Commission on Public Relations and Methodist Information, Dr. Stoody
has written a manual that will be valuable for Catholic Pastors, teachers,
and administrators. Though his handbook is Protestant in tenor, it is
easy to see how relevant are his remarks for priests and religious engaged in the active ministry. The external activity of the Church is a
Public Relations "natural." The Church's unity, organization, and
spiritual riches can all be fully exploited if we follow a few simple
principles. The problems are: how to find and recognize and make news;
how to write news (simply, factually, briskly) ; how to deal with editors
and reporters (as competent, trustworthy professionals, no-nonsense men
with deadlines); how to make news (it's often there just waiting to be
organized). Dr. Stoody answers these problems with examples and
suggestions. Schools, colleges and universities, seminaries, retreat houses
and parishes with a keen sense of PR will find their apostolate working
more smoothly and fruitfully. Anniversaries, Founder's Clubs, Founder's
Day, Sunday Sermons, lectures, the Laetare Medal, Papal honors, imaginative promotions of all kinds are examples of Church-orientated PR.
Dr. Stoody does not advocate any gimmicks or false sensationalism.
He urges us simply to recognize that PR is the effective presentation of
the Church to the public. If priests and religious in a given institution
are aware of the purpose and function of PR they will contribute almost
unconsciously to that presentation.
Chapters on radio and TV techniques point up facts that every priest
must know before using these media. Even though few priests and
religious appear on radio and TV programs, this advice can be translated to other forms of communication.
Dr. Stoody's remarks have a wide range of applications. His advice
merits careful attention.
T. A. O'CONNOR, S.J.
POETS AND SAINTS ON DEATH
Death: A Book of Preparation and Consolation. By Barry Ulanov.
New York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. xviii-292. $5.00.
Thornton Wilder once said, in Our Town, that it is only the poets and
the saints who really realize life while they are living it. Fittingly
enough, it is first of all to the poets and saints that Professor U!anov
turns in his search for the world's wisdom about death, for only those
who realize the value of life can appreciate the true meaning of death.
�94
BOOK REVIEWS
These brief selections from poets, saints and theologians on the general
theme of death are arranged according to their subject matter, and
placed under such headings as "Heaven," "Hell," "The Immortality of
the Soul," "Be Ye Always Ready," and "Let Not Your Heart Be
Troubled." The selection, as one would expect from English professor
Ulanov, is tasteful and judicious, and forms a rich brocade of Christian
thought on the theme of death. Besides the Sacred Scriptures, there are
one hundred and thirty-two authors represented in the volume, ranging
from St. Cyprian and St. Cyril of Jerusalem to modern theologians
Guardini and de Lubac, from Cynewulf and Venerable Bede to T. S.
Eliot and Dylan Thomas.
One hesitates to play favorites, but Francois Villon's "Prayer of the
Old \Voman," C. Day Lewis' "Overtures to Death," and a marvelous bit
of Dr. Johnson on Catholic belief in purgatory, are alone worth the
price of admission. And, of course, there are the magnificent lines from
Henry IV, Part II: "By'my troth, I care not; a man can die but once; we
owe God a death: I'If ne'er bear a base mind: an't be my destiny, so;
an't be not, so: no man's too good to serve 's prince; and let it go which
way it will, he that dies this year is quit for the next."
This is indeed a rich and varied treasure. An aid to reflective thought
and prayer, it would also (more pragmatically) be immensely valuable
as a source book for preachers and retreat directors.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
SYMBOLISM AND RELIGIOUS ART
Symbolism in Liturgical Art. By LeRoy H. Appelton and Stephen
Bridges. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1959. Pp. vi-120.
$3.50.
A symbol "throws together" two things: the graphic shape of the
symbol itself and an idea which the symbol suggests. This suggestion
is not, as it is in the case of a sign, sensible, but is an intellectual suggestion requiring previous knowledge of the symbol. Thus an alpha and
omega or a fish will be to a Christian merely decorative devices unless
he has been taught their true and profound meaning.
Since there is no osmotic process by which this knowledge can be
acquired, the value of this little book, Symbolism in Liturgical Art,
becomes obvious. Each of us has glimpsed the frightful lack of information and surplus of mis-information about the origin and meaning of
even the ordinary liturgical symbols. Consider too that artists and
architects are every year making greater use of symbols: compare the
book design of the Religion Essentials Series by Father Austin G.
Schmidt, S.J., with the older high school religion text, Religion: Doctrine
and Practice, by Father Francis B. Cassilly, S.J. Think also of any recently designed church interior. Yet these symbols are of no religious
value unless they are understood by Christians. So it is incumbent upon
us to knead into out' religion courses the teaching of liturgical symbolism.
This book is well-suited as a reference book in a parish, high school or
college library. It should be in both the student and faculty library, but
�BOOK REVIEWS
95
especially the latter, so that it may more easily be consulted in the
preparation of religion classes. Although the book is designedly popular,
its scholarship is accurate. For example, it well describes the different
nuances of thirteen different designs of the cross: Byzantine, Greek,
Jerusalem, Latin, Papal, etc. All together, the book lists 134 symbols.
Each symbol is line-drawn in red and is accompanied by a paragraph
or page-long explanation of its history and meaning. The book concludes
with an annotated bibliography and an index.
DANIEL J. MuLHAUSER, S.J.
ANNIVERSARY VOLUI\'IE
The Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (Tenth Anniversary Commemorative Volume). Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, 1959.
This commemorative volume pays eloquent tribute to the modern
Gothic church that graces the campus of Boston College. A brief history
of the parish, entrusted to the Jesuits of the College in 1926, prefaces a
series of strikingly beautiful sketches by Jack Frost. The sketches, often
surprisingly detailed, and the accompanying commentary offer a truly
artistic description of the Church's interior and exterior elegance. Father
Thomas M. Herlihy the pastor, his Jesuit assistants and the parishioners
of Saint Ignatius can take pride both in the beauty of their church and
in this exquisite volume that commemorates the tenth anniversary of
the dedication.
ALFRED E. MoRRIS, S.J.
REFLECTIONS ON BOOKS AND CULTURE
In All Conscience: Reflections on Books and Culture. By Harold C.
Gardiner, S.J. New York: Hanover House, 1959. Pp. 288. $3.95.
To anyone who has followed the criticism of Father Harold Gardiner
in the pages of America in recent years, it will come as no surprise that
this new volume, a selection of his critical articles, is a book of no small
merit. Father Gardiner, who is in his twentieth year as literary edtor of
America, has edited here approximately one-fourth of his America
writings.
Sound as his articles were in their original context, seen now together
for the first time they manifest something more, a remarkable unity of
approach. Basically, this approach to literature is that sketched out in
more detail in Father Gardiner's Norms for the Novel. As he expresses
it, his criticism has always intended to be "a continuing comment on our
American culture as it is mirrored in and influenced by literature and
other communications media." His is a ''moral" criticism, in the best
sense of that much-abused term.
It is interesting to realize, in re-reading these America essays, how
remarkably well Father Gardiner's original evaluations of controversial
books have stood the test of time and further criticism. He was, for example, one of the first to evaluate adequately such books as Evelyn
Waugh's Brideshead Revisited, H. F. M. Prescott's The Man on a Donkey,
and Alan Paton's minor masterpiece Cry, the Beloved Country; he was
one of the few Catholic critics to take a firm stand in favor ·of such
�96
BOOK REVIEWS
controversial religious novels as A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, The End of
the Affair and The Nun's Story.
Such critical evaluations, together with essays on problem areas in
modern culture, several articles on the Catholic viewpoint on censorship,
and a handful of fine creative pieces on the spirit of Christmas, form
the nucleus of this volume. There are few aspects of modern literature
and culture upon which Father Gardiner has not thought and written,
and most of them are reflected here "in all conscience."
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
AMONG OUR REVIEWERS
Father Daniel J. M. Callahan (New York Province) is Professor Emeritus of Dogmatic Theology at Woodstock.
Father Joseph Duhamel (New York Province) is Professor of Moral
Theology at Woodstock.
Father William Gleason (New York Province), now Rector of Bellarmine College, Plattsburgh, was Master of Novices at St. Andrew-onHudson for thirteen years.
Father William F. Graham (Maryland Province) is Spiritual Father of
the theologians at Woodstock.
Father Edward L. Murphy (New England Province) is on the editorial
staff of Jesuit Missions.
Father Vincent M. Novak (New York Province), who is conducting a
course in Catechetics at Woodstock, recently completed his catechetical studies at the Lumen Vitae school in Belgium.
Father Joseph B. Schuyler (New York Province) is Professor of Sociology at Loyola Seminary.
Father Edward J. Sponga (Maryland Province), Rector of Woodstock,
holds a doctorate in philosophy and is a specialist in modern philosophical thought.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIX, No. 2
APRIL, 1960
CONTENTS, APRIL 1960
.JESUIT PATROLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP ------------------------------------Walter J. Burghardt
99
CHAPLAIN AND VICTORY IN THE PACIFIC ---------------------------- 108
Samuel Hill Ray
THE EXERCISES FOR INDIVIDUALS AND GROUPS------------ 127
G. A. Hugh
ALERTNESS TO ATTITUDES ----------------------------------------------------------- 149
David M. Knight
GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF JESUITS, 1959 ---------------------- 157
William J. Mehok
FATHER ARTHUR P. McCAFFRAY ----------------------------------------------- 165
Francis X. Curran
FATHER HUGH J. McLAUGHLIN ------------------------------------------------- 169
John J. Killeen
FATHER JOHN J. COLLIGAN------------------------------------------------------------- 174
E. A. Ryan, S.J.
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS -------·--·--··-----·-------··-----------·--·---- 177
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Walter J. Burghardt (New York Province) is professor of
patrology at Woodstock.
Father Samuel Hill Ray (New Orleans Province) is professor at St.
John's High School, Shreveport, Louisiana.
Father G. A. Hugh (Irish Province) is the nom-de-plume of a foreign
missionary.
1\lr. David l\1. Knigp.t (New Orleans Province) is studying theology at
Fourviere.
Father William J. l\lehok (Wisconsin Province) is statistician of the
Society.
Father Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is professor of history at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak.
Father John J. Killeen (New York Province) is procurator at Canisius
College.
Father E. A. Ryan (New York Province) is professor of church history at Woodstock.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�Jesuit Patrologists At Heythrop
Walter J. Burghardt, S.J.
On Monday evening, September 21, 1959, about 550 scholars
from the Old World and the New converged on Oxford. The
occasion was the quadrennial International Conference on
Patristic Studies. As in 1951 and 1955, the center of activity
was historic Christ Church, the college founded by Wolsey in
1525; once again the moving spirit was the Anglican canon,
F. L. Cross, famed editor of The Oxford Dictionary of the
Christian Church. For almost a week Christ Church and University College, St. Aldate's Street and High Street, were a
babel of tongues and a medley of costumes. Distinguished
authorities on the early Church-men and women, Catholic
and non-Catholic, cleric and lay-rubbed elbo·ws at table, balanced unfamiliar teacups at intermission, exchanged ideas
in crowded corridors. Andresen and Armstrong, Amand de
Mendieta and Ortiz de Urbina, Bieler and Boyer, Capelle and
Crouzel, Grillmeier and R. M. Grant, Henry and Hadot, Marrou and DaniE'ilou, Christine Mohrmann and Beryl Smalley,
Schneemelcher and Spanneut, Trypanis and Treu, Van Unnik
and Ivanka, Florovsky, Jouassard, MoHand, Pellegrino,
Quispel, Richard, Rousseau-these and a host of others packed
into four days 17 major addresses, 44 papers with open discussion, 26 reports on patristic projects, and 213 twentyminute communications.
For the vast majority of the delegates, Saturday morning,
September 26, meant separation and a scattering to the far
reaches of the British Isles, to Scandinavia and the Continent,
to Canada and the States, to Athens, Istanbul, Tunis, Ghana,
and Sierra Leone. But the Jesuits at the Conference had been
graciously invited by Father David Hoy, Rector of Heythrop
College, to repeat a 1955 experience and spend the weekend of
September 26-28 in leisurely discussion at the house of philosophy and theology for the English Province of the Society of
Jesus. And so, that Saturday morning at 9:30, a score of the
Jesuits who had attended the third Oxford Conference took
an ali-day coach tour, with Heythrop for ultimate destination.
99
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PATROLOGISTS
Guide by predilection and acclamation was Pere Edouard des
Places, with beret and guide book, a Gallic glint in his eyes,
and an unerring gravitation towards the historic and artistic.
Coach Tour
Starting from Campion Hall at Oxford and heading west,
we passed Witney, of blanket fame, on our left and made our
first stop at N orthleach, a typical upland Cotswold village in
gray-gold oolite stone, with coaching inns, village green, and
market cross. Here we inspected the church, fourteenthcentury Perpendicular style, of a type known as a "wool
church" due to its construction on a lavish scale at the time
of the wool prosp~rity with Flanders. Riding slowly through
the long, wide streets of Cheltenham, famed watering place of
the eighteenth century, we reached our second goal, Gloucester, capital city of the shire, with roots in Roman times.
Our interest here was Gloucester Cathedral, known as the
home of English Perpendicular: the typically English exterior,
in which the long line of the nave is made to play against the
soaring height of the tower; the rich vaulting of the nave and
choir; the extraordinary east window with its medieval glass
and the coats of arms of families that fought at Crecy; the
cloisters, with delicate fan tracery begun in 1351 and remarkably preserved.
At this point we turned north to Tewkesbury, an old town
on the Avon near its confluence with the Severn. To lessen
admiratio populi, the multilingual group, so varied in the cut
of its jib, broke up into smaller bands for lunch. Then we
took time to admire the near-perfect specimen of Norman
architecture afforded by the abbey church, which dates from
1123. Because some of the brethren could not resist the charming spectacle of a wedding in an English country town, we
left Tewkesbury a bit late.
Still headed north, we passed on our right Bredon Hill,
eternalized in A Shropshi1·e Lad ("Here of a Sunday morning/
My love and I would lie"), and on our left the Malvern Hills,
immortalized in Piers Plowman ("On a May morning on a
Malvern hillside"), to pause an hour at Worcester. Here we
found once more a Norman cathedral with Gothic additions.
We took in the choir and Lady Chapel, both remarkable for
�HEYTHROP
101
the clustered pillars of the Early English period in a dark
native marble; the tombs of St. Wulstan, St. Oswald, and King
John; the chapter house, the cathedral close and gateway.
Regrettably, we had no time for the library with its Caxton
and other priceless books.
Worcester was crowded for a neighboring race-meeting as
we left on our last and longest lap, much of it through Shakespeare country. Motoring leisurely through Stratford, we
could pick out the bard's birthplace, the grammar school he attended, his parish church, and the modern Memorial Theatre.
Another eight miles and we reached the renowned medieval
town of Warwick, prettily set on the banks of the Avon. Our
visit was focused on one object: the Rubens painting of St.
Ignatius in Warwick Castle. To reach it we had to pass
through the domestic portion of the castle, rich in the heirlooms of the Earl of Warwick, who still resides there. In the
cedar drawing room, pride of place is given to the Rubens,
whose radiance and freshness of treatment elicited from us
gasps of pleasurable surprise; for the conventional pose and
the heavy red vestments which are otherwise cliches of iconography share in the life of the fairly youthful face. Unaware
of the nature of his group, the Warwick guide pointed to a
companion painting of Machiavelli and remarked humorously
on the strange company Ignatius was keeping, then paid handsome tribute to the throngs of devout visitors who had made
the same pilgrimage during the Ignatian Year.
At this point nothing remained but a quiet thirty-five miles
southward along the North Cotswold ridge, till we reached
Heythrop at about 7 :30 p.m. The day was too far spent for
more than a late supper, Benediction in honor of the Jesuit
Martyrs of North America, and an informal reception by the
faculty that gave joy to our hearts.
.
List of Scholars
Sunday, the 27th, was a day of work. That morning twentyeight Jesuits gathered in the faculty recreation room for the
second Heythrop Conference on Patristic Studies. The make-up
of the group was quite striking. From France came Jean
Danielou, perhaps the most productive patristic scholar on
the Continent; Claude Mondesert, the secretary and organizing
�102
PATROLOGISTS
force of Sources chretiennes, with two of his staff, L. Doutreleau and J. Perichon; M. Aubineau, of the scholasticate at
Chantilly; F. Graffin, editor of Patrologia orientalis and professor of Syriac at the Institut catholique de Paris; Henri
Crouzel, professor at the Institut catholique de Toulouse and
author of the splendid Theologie de l'image de Dieu chez
Origene; J. Kirchmeyer, attached to the Dictionnaire de
spiritualite; and M. J. Rouet de Journel, best known for his
Enchiridion patristicum but more significant for his decades
of research into the Church's diplomatic relations with Russia.
Belgium contributed Roger Leys, author of L' Image de Dieu
chez saint G1·egoire de Nysse; Georges Dejaifve, director of
the Museum Lessianum; the liturgiologist J. Vanneste; and E.
de Strycker, of the Jesuit theologate in Lou vain. Germany
gave Aloys Grillmeier, distinguished coeditor of the threevolume Das Konzil von Chalkedon. Austria sent Hans P.
Meyer, successor to Jungmann in the chair of liturgy at Innsbruck. From Rome came Bernhard Schultze, professor of
Byzantine-Slav theology at the Ponti:ficio Istituto Orientale;
Edouard des Places, of the Ponti:ficio Istituto Biblico, tireless
investigator of Plato in the patristic tradition; and J. Bentivegna of Civilta cattolica, whose primary interest is Irenaeus.
England was represented by Anthony Doyle, Master of
Campion Hall at Oxford, and :five members of the theological
faculty at Heythrop: Maurice Bevenot, the Cyprian scholar;
John Bligh, lecturer in Scripture; Bruno Brinkman, prefect
of studies; Francis Courtney, professor of dogmatic theology;
and Bernard Leeming, whose recent work on sacramental theology has been so widely acclaimed. Canada was served by
G. Daoust, currently studying at Innsbruck. Three Americans
were on hand: John F. Long, from the Ponti:ficio Collegio
Russo in Rome, a student of Oriental Church history; John
G. Milhaven, engaged in doctoral studies at Munich; and the
present writer, professor of patristic theology at Woodstock
and managing editor of Theological Studies.
For various reasons, a number of Jesuit scholars who were
present at the Oxford Conference could not make their way to
Heythrop, and.' their absence was felt. Among others, we
missed Charles Boyer, Thomas Corbishley, Joseph H. Crehan,
Paul Henry, Engelbert Kirschbaum, Antoine Lauras, Herbert
�HEYTHROP
103
A. Musurillo, Ignacio Ortiz de Urbina, Andre Rayez, Joseph
P. Smith, Pierre Smulders, and Anthony A. Stephenson.
I
!
I
I
I
Morning Session
The morning session had for chairman Pere Danielou-his
face so expressive, head and hands rarely at rest, eyes coming
alive with discovery, a scholar in love with his labor. The
languages used were French and English. Two aspects of
Jesuit patristic scholarship were discussed. The first was
factual: what are we doing? The second was constructive:
what can we do? The factual phase comprised reports on the
patristic productivity of the Society in various countries.
The present writer summarized Jesuit activity in the United
States, concentrating on five facets: the Ancient Christian
Writers series which he edits with Johannes Quasten; the
Patristic Academy of America which he founded in 1959 with
three other Jesuits of the New York Province: John J. Canavan, Robert E. McNally, and Herbert A. Musurillo; Father
Musurillo's contributions, especially on Methodius; the projected Institute of Patristic Studies at Xavier University in
Cincinnati; and the deep immersion of promising students in
patristic scholarship at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak, New
York.
Radiating, as always, a lovable serenity, Aloys Grillmeier
outlined, with warmth and lucidity, Jesuit productivity in
Germany and Austria. Here names and projects are impressive: Otto Faller, with his edition of Ambrose for the Vienna
corpus; Jungmann's researches into the history of the liturgy,
with the welcome news that Hans Meyer will carry the work
forward; Karl Rahner, ranging from Hermas' doctrine on
penance to periodic editions of Denzinger and Neuner-Roos;
Hugo Rahner, moving so competently through the mystery
religions, the history of Church and state, the problem of
Mary and the Church, and the patristic background of the
Spiritual Exercises; the Schmaus-Geiselmann-Grillmeier history of dogma, which may be completed by 1962; several young
men preparing for Oriental studies; the revised Lexikon filr
Theologie und Kirche, with its articles on patristic subjects,
many of them authored by Jesuits; even a projected German
edition of Sources chretiennes.
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PATROLOGISTS
The French contribution was sketched by Claude Mondesert,
solid and knowledgeable editor and scholar, with an assist
from quiet, competent Franc;ois Graffin. From the sheer catalogue that fell so trippingly from their tongues, it was evident
that Jesuit patristics in· France is rich in achievement and
promise. They spoke of Sources chretiennes, the Dictionnaire
de spiritualite, and Patrologia orientalis; of productions and
projects by men like Danielou and Doutreleau, Henry and
Aubineau, Paramelle and Perichon, Crouzel and Guy, and the
late-lamented Maries (not to mention the research of Graffin
and Mondesert themselves) ; of plans for a French translation
of the complete works of Philo, to be rounded out by a Philo
lexicon of philosophical and religious vocabulary; of growing
collaboration within the Society (e.g., Le Mans, Lyons, Chantilly, Toulouse, and Paris) and with university circles (e.g.,
the Sorbonne and the Ecole des hautes etudes in Paris) and
other religious orders (e.g., Solesmes) ; of the high interest of
young Jesuits, mostly stimulated by their professors.
The Roman situation, sketched in quick strokes by Pere
des Places, stressed encouraging factors in three pontifical
institutions: the Gregorian, with its Orbe and a number of
dissertations on Greek Fathers; the Biblical, with J. P. Smith
and des Places himself; and the Oriental, with Hausherr and
Ortiz de Urbina. In drawing the Belgian picture, Roger Leys
was perhaps unduly apologetic. He felt that relatively little
had been accomplished since 1955, though he could point to
the precious work of the Bollandists and to individuals like
de Strycker and Vanneste. On the English scene, Maurice
Bevenot could allude to Anthony Stephenson's research on the
Catecheses of Cyril of Jerusalem, the Catholic Dictionary of
Theology in preparation under Joseph Crehan, and his own
work on Cyprian. Brief remarks on the state of patristic affairs in Canada and Holland brought this phase of the morning
meeting to a close.
The constructive phase of the morning session centered
around the question: what can we do? Better still, what ought
we to do? There was general agreement that Catholic patristics has reacheq a critical point-for several reasons. First,
the Oriental and Byzantine tradition has taken on fresh
meaning in the ecumenical context of the forthcoming council.
�HEYTHROP
105
Second, modern discoveries (e.g., the Dead Sea Scrolls and
the Gnostic finds at Chenoboskion) have posed some delicate
problems with reference to early Christianity. Third, and perhaps most importantly, the Fathers of the Church have become
respectable in university circles. A mixed blessing; for there
is danger that the field may be pre-empted by nontheologians,
that philology may cease to be a handmaid, that the theological
thought of the Fathers may be misprized or misunderstood,
disregarded or shunted to the background. It is highly important that Catholic patrologists, by their competence and
their contributions, by their skillful wedding of theology and
philology, of philosophy and history, be in a position to carry
on dialogue with the university. If they are not, Catholic
patristic scholarship may find itself in the same plight that
plagued Catholic biblical scholarship at the turn of the century: we shall be behind the times, isolated from the community of scholarship, without influence on contemporary
research. We shall end up talking to ourselves.
The immediate response of the conferees-admittedly a
partial response-concerned practical plans for collaboration
among Jesuit scholars. Here three proposals met with general approval. The first was that we work towards a lexicon
of significant theological words in patristic literature. Lively
discussion of the possibilities and problems inherent in the
idea made a preliminary step advisable: the publication in
the newly founded Heythrop Journal of a list of 300 key theological terms. This list, to be produced by Father Leeming,
will be subject to revision on the basis of the suggestions and
criticisms of Jesuit patrologists. When the final list has been
drawn up, with its divisions and subdivisions, then plans can
be formulated for the lexicographical research involved and
the methods of collaboration to be employed.
The second proposal repeated a 1955 project which had
miscarried from faulty administration and organization: a
substantial volume covering rather exhaustively the patristic
notion of tradition. It will be a co-operative effort, combining
the historical research of perhaps twenty patrologists, and
concluded by three chapters of synthesis and theological appraisal. The editorial organization of this project has been
confided to the present writer. It is expected that the book
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PATROLOGISTS
will be published completely and simultaneously in at least
four languages: French, German, English, and Spanish.
As a third measure of practical collaboration, the Jesuit
Patristic Conference was voted a more permanent, less precarious existence, with Father Brinkman as secretary. In the
concrete, this means that (1) Heythrop will be a center and
sort of clearinghouse for Jesuit patristic collaboration; (2) a
newsletter will issue periodically from Heythrop with information on projects, lVISS, editions, etc.; and (3) superiors
permitting, Jesuit patrologists will try to meet again at Heythrop in 1961.
Finally, two other needs were briefly noted: greater specialization in Oriental languages and a reaffirmation of the primacy of content in· our patristic research.
Afternoon Session
The afternoon session could count only fifteen Jesuits present, since a number had obligations to meet elsewhere in
England or on the Continent. With Father Brinkman and
the present writer as cochairmen, the task of this session was
a critical appraisal of the Oxford Conference. We reviewed
in order the seventeen major addresses and the so-called
master themes-::_eleven groups which met simultaneously each
of four afternoons to exchange information on eleven subjects
of wide contemporary interest: (1) Greek Patristic Editions
and Texts, (2) The Text and Criticism of the Bible, (3)
Biblical Theology, (4) The Gnostic Manuscripts from NagHammadi, ( 5) St. Augustine: Theology, ( 6) St. Augustine:
Historical Problems, (7) Trinitarian Theology, (8) The
Fathers and Philosophy, (9) Liturgy, (10) Hagiography,
and (11) The Fathers and Christian Spirituality.
This essay in group criticism was highly valuable. For
one thing, it compensated to some extent for the inability of
any individual to attend more than a fraction of the Oxford
sessions. For another, the different interests represented by
the Heythrop conferees, as well as their collective competence,
made it possible to summarize, analyze, evaluate, and at times
supplement the Oxford sessions in uncommonly instructive
fashion.
The comments of the Jesuits at Heythrop on individual
�HEY'fHROP
107
performances at Oxford are hardly in place in Woodstock
Letters. Three observations, however, of a more general, overall character were significant enough to be reproduced here.
In the first place, a strong undercurrent at Oxford, reflected
at Heythrop, was critical of the programming of the Conference. Many felt that fewer papers, on problems at once
precise and more significant, with more time for discussion,
would be widely welcome. The conscientious participant absorbed a mental and physical drubbing, without proportionate
profit. Second, several of the Jesuits were quite sensitive
even at the Conference to what Danh~lou has called "the university objection," the widespread conviction that the theologian, be he ever so competent in patristics, comes to the
Fathers with preconceived ideas and interprets the Fathers
in harmony with these prejudices. Third, on the ecumenical
level, little encouragement was to be derived from the Oxford
Conference. There was a gratifying cordiality on the part of
many non-Catholics; embarrassing incidents were few and
momentary; some Anglicans were interested in the Orthodox
reaction to Rome and the council to come. But that was all.
It is not likely that a weekend at Heythrop will revolutionize the Society's efforts in patrology. And yet, it can scarcely
fail to be fruitful; for it has stimulated self-criticism, removed
some temptations to complacency, suggested more effective
productivity through collaboration, and rekindled in us as a.
group the vision of the Fathers, in whose eyes the search for
God's truth is a search for God Himself.
�Chaplain and Victory in the Pacific
Samuel Hill Ray, S.J.
Commissioning and Shakedown
The commissioning of a ship is a thrill. Riveting, painting
and hammering days are over. You have watched your future
home take shape. You know with a secret hope that your
safety is tied up with hers. Plans for the big day are progressing. Finally the ship is under her own steam and after a run
out into the harbor she comes alongside the dock and the crew
moves aboard. We are actually living in U.S.S. Hamlin,
built in the Todd Spip Yards in Tacoma, Washington.
On June 26th, 1944, at 1400 the program of commissioning
begins. Guests are seated above the seaplane deck and all
hands assemble on the seaplane deck itself. Captain McQuigan
of the Todd Shipyards turns the ship over to Captain G. A.
McLean of Hamlin, with a speech from each. Then the chaplain blesses the ship with a prayer.
The hectic days that followed are not to be forgotten. I
had no idea what a shakedown cruise would be like. I was
bewildered by the process as we went up and down Puget
Sound within a limited area. Next came the loading of ammunition and supplies. Then down the coast, rough at the
start, calmer as we advanced, but very rough as we approached
the harbor of San Francisco. Finally, the thrill of steaming
under the Golden Gate Bridge. A week of loading more supplies kept us in the busy harbor. Sailing to San Pedro, we
tied up alongside an old tanker that was moored to the dock.
One night there was great excitement when an old man fell
thirty feet down an open hatch on the tanker into black darkness, and finally with one leg broken crawled up the ladder,
called for help and fainted.
U.S.S. Hamlin, AV-15, a seaplane tender, was to care for
PBM's whose work was reconnaissance and rescue. We sailed
from San Pedro, California, to Hawaii, Eniwetok, Saipan,
Tinian, Guam, Ulithi, Iwo, Kerama Retto, Okinawa, and,
finally, into Tok'yo Bay for the occupation of Japan and the
108
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109
signing of the peace treaty-an eighteen months cruise. I
will pick out the more interesting happenings, especially those
that did not appear in the newspapers.
Saipan
Let us begin with Saipan. We arrived just after it had
been secured and all organized resistance had ceased. There
was still some scattered fighting in the hills. The first morning we took aboard the crew of a seaplane to which some
Japanese swam out for a surprise attack. The plane, in the
scuffle, had sunk. The Japanese went down with it.
On September 14, 1944, I visited the three concentration
camps on the island. In the first there were the native islanders, the Chamorros, a clean, intelligent, moral people. All
Chamorros in the Pacific are Catholic. They accepted the
faith at once when the missionaries came out three hundred
years ago. I saw an oil painting of the venerable Jesuit who
was the first to evangelize these people. It had been saved
and placed over the door of the ruined house in which Father
Jose Tardio, S.J., and a Brother were living in the ruined
village of Charan Kanoa. They were acting as liaison officers
between the natives and the Americans.
There were six Spanish Sisters there also. The army had
put up two tents for them in the camp and given them
sufficient privacy and good food. When the Americans approached Saipan, there was some danger of the Japanese
killing the Sisters. So they, seven in number, fled to the hills
where they lived for two weeks under a tree. A shell from an
American ship had killed one of them. The others were weakened by exposure and lack of nourishment. One of the
Sisters, then sick in her cot, told me of the kind treatment
given her by an army nurse from Louisiana, named Daigle.
Later at the hospital I met Miss Birdie Daigle, an old friend
from Opelousas, Louisiana. I acted as extraordinary confessor to the Sisters, the first they had had in many years. We
had to use Spanish as the Sisters were mostly from South
America.
The second camp was for Koreans. They are less clean
and less intelligent, but cheerful and ready workers. They
had erected a modest Buddhist shrine and the Buddhist priest
�110
CHAPLAIN
watched over it. The third and last camp was for the
Japanese.
Only once did I visit Tinian. I went to the big B-29
base, climbed into a plane, flew across the channel, and
seven minutes later stepped out on Tinian. I met an old friend
there and came back with the commandant of the island as he
returned in his launch through Saipan harbor.
We were not without our share of typhoons during this
period. One unforgettable sight after the blow was to see
an LST hung up on a coral reef with the waves breaking over
it. Her stern anchor broke and she was washed up on the
reef. The crew jumped to safety, save one who was caught in
a big wave and dro\vned. Another aftereffect of the typhoon
was the heavy drift· carrying two bloated and bloodstained
bodies.
Ulithi
About 1300 on October 12, 1944, we arrived in the harbor
of Ulithi. Here we were to drop anchor and rest for over
two months amidst typhoons, the gathering of the fleet for
the attack on the Philippines, visits to the natives, and swimming on Mogmog Island. The 88th Seabees did a real job in
making Mogmog a recreation center for the fleet. Our first
approach to the island had to be on rubber rafts. The coral
heads and shallow water made it too dangerous for small
boats. Mogmog had about forty huts, a chapel with an altar,
the grave of a priest, and the grave of the chief's daughter who
had been killed when we came into the atoll. One of the shells
we lobbed onto the island had killed her and another had injured the chief, her father, who was taken to an American
ship and given medical aid. This had embittered him against
us but kindness gradually softened his wrath. Here on October 19, our first Japanese prisoner was brought aboard and
detained for a few days. On October 22 I said Mass on
Mogmog in a thatched hut. In spite of my best efforts one of
the million flies got into the chalice after the consecration.
The hut was built without nails. Twine, made of coconut
fibre, bound the timber together.
The natives of Ulithi had been gathered on one island,
Fassarai. There were about three hundred of them. They had
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chiefs and a chief of chiefs. They were all Chamorros and
Catholic. On November 7, 1944, when a typhoon had run us
down the harbor to their island, Captain McLean, Commander
Cronu and I went in to visit them. I blessed them and they
made the sign of the cross. I could not speak their language but
by signs they understood I was a priest. I gave them medals
and rosaries which they hung around their necks with great
pride. The men wear a sort of loincloth, the women a little
skirt and the children up to two years of age wear nothing.
About all I could see in the line of food was coconuts. In
peace time they also have fish. I saw a few chickens and no
gardens. Drinking water was rain water which was channeled into some can or jar as it ran down the side of a tree.
At Ulithi we had our first funeral. We buried Francis Bauer
who had drowned off a nearby island while on a liberty party.
We gave him military honors with a Requiem Mass, and we
buried him on Azor Island where there already were twenty
graves. Near the shore on Azor this little cemetery had been
cleared by Commodore Kessing and kept in good shape. As
taps sounded out over the \Vaters tears came to our eyes. At
Ulithi I also had the pleasure of meeting my nephew, whose
ship, U.S.S. Altamaha, an escort carrier, moved in near mine.
Here we also felt the fascinating terror of the sight of a burning tanker. Scuttlebutt had it that two Japanese submarines
had sneaked into the harbor and hit this tanker. She lay two
and a half miles away and flames rose 100 feet high, and the
smoke a mile high.
On November 29th with Father Norton who had been assigned as chaplain to care for the natives, I visited Fassarai.
After Father had said a nuptial Mass for three couples I said
my Mass which started at about 1400. A woman led, from
memory, all prayers and hymns, and the people joined in
with great devotion. When I had finished Mass the congregation rose and sang in Latin the Christmas hymn, Adeste
Fideles. When Father Norton said Mass two weeks previously
it was the first Mass the people had had in seven years. The
missionary who used to come up from Yap had died and the
Japanese would not allow any other priest to enter the atoll.
The Jesuits had a school below on Yap as well as on Ponape
and Truk and the two almost naked altar boys of about
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CHAPLAIN
thirteen answered in perfect Latin throughout the Mass.
These people are a marvelous proof of the power of the rosary
to preserve the faith. For seven years they were without
Mass and of the Sacraments, they had only baptism and matrimony. But daily they would gather and recite the rosary in
common.
Our rest at anchor was broken at times when we went
outside the harbor to practice firing. We were proud of the
accuracy of our gun crew, and especially of our gunnery
officer. I recall how Mr. Massey, "Guns" for short, used to
laugh and tell how he wanted permission to knock down the
stack of the sugar mill on Saipan. It towered over the ruins
and had been riddled by hundreds of bullets. He wanted to
send a shell right down from the top and blow it to smithers.
My greatest thrill in the harbor of Ulithi was the first Midnight Mass aboard. At 11 :45 we began singing Christmas
carols. Then I preached for the benefit of all. Most of the
ship's company, both Protestant and Catholic, was present,
about 525. At the second Mass I distributed 253 Communions.
Just at the stroke of midnight, while I was vesting, the bugler,
atop the highest deck blew the old Christmas hymn "Silent
Night." It etched out over the clear, warm, starlit sky and
sea and air. Many an eye grew dim with tears thinking of
home and of God.
Saipan Revisited
"•
Back in Saipan I resumed saying Mass on ships previously
visited. There was U.S.S. Fulton where my old and dear
friend Reverend Dr. Black was chaplain; he, in turn, resumed
Protestant services for the boys of my ship. There were also
Spark and Whippet, my favorite tankers.
Again I visited Charan Kanoa, the ruined village and concentration camps. We found that the Chamorros were living
in the ruined houses that had been previously occupied by the
workers of the Japanese sugar mill. Father Tardio now told
me more of his story. On Dec. 12th, 1941, the Japs started
repressing his activities. The Sisters were not as free as
formerly to come and go among the people. We learned, too,
that the people had recently chosen a mayor from among
themselves with five commissioners. These officials have been
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installed with due ceremonies by the American general. The
new mayor, a devout Catholic, spoke seven languages. He
spoke to me in good English. Because of his knowledge of
languages the Japanese had kept him in house arrest for two
years before the American occupation.
On February 1, 1945, the crew from a visiting submarine
came to the Hamlin to offer a Mass of thanksgiving for an
extraordinary escape from the Japanese. The following week
I went aboard another submarine to say Mass before they
set out on their first mission. In the narrow passage where
I said Mass I could not help but think of "Praise the Lord and
Pass the Ammunition," for I could have reached out and
touched four torpedoes.
On February 8th I had a chilling scare. I had gone over
to U.S.S. Cape Newenham to say Mass which was scheduled
for 1600. So I went before noon to leave my Mass kit on the
ship and then proceed to the recreation park for a swim.
Aboard Nwwenham I met Tom Kenedy, the son of the publisher
P. J. Kenedy, and he persuaded me to take lunch first. Then
he would go with me and we would return together in time
for Mass. We had our swim and were returning afoot when
we spied N ewenham sailing out from the docks. "There goes
my ship," Kenedy exclaimed, "She was not due to sail till
tomorrow morning. I am the navigator and I should know."
"Yes," I answered, "There goes my Mass kit. It is the only
one I have and I should know that too." We hitched a ride
to the port director's office and were told at first that she was
sailing for San Francisco. Our hearts sank. Later we learned
to our relief that she was moving to a berth in the outer
harbor and would not sail before morning. We hastened to
my ship for further transportation and I said Mass aboard
Newenham at the scheduled hour but with a reduced attendance.
We touched at Guam for a couple of days. A tour of the
island showed us the ruined cathedral in the ruined city of
Agafia. The government by now had constructed dwellings
for the natives. They consisted of thatched roof and board
siding. From the educational service here I was able to get a
few text books for my Spanish class on Hamlin.
�114
CHAPLAIN
lwo Jima
Here was our real view of thundering, bloody warfare. The
sight that greeted our eyes on that morning of February was
horrible. High winds had kept many of the ships from dropping anchor. As we moved about we could see the fierce attack of the Americans and the stubborn resistance of the
Japanese. Constant bombardment during seventeen days and
nights was nerve-racking. On the first morning, as "Chips,"
the chief carpenter warrant officer, and I stood out on deck
watching the show, bullets began to sing and spatter in the
water closer and closer. At the sight we melted into the nearest hatch. On the second day casualties began to pour aboard.
Five thousand marines were killed on this island, with twenty
thousand casualties. It is claimed that twenty thousand J apanese were killed here. Their caves throughout the island were
a powerful defense. But the flame-throwers played havoc with
the men in the caves.
The marines have been criticized for the great price in life
paid for this island five miles long and two miles wide. But
Iwo had to be taken. The 1200 mile trip of the B-29 from
Saipan to T<]kyo and back was a little too far even for the
powerful bombers. So many of the B-29's had dropped into
the water on the return trip that some of the pilots refused
to go up. We needed an auxiliary base for the return trip from
Tokyo. As we lay off the shore under Mt .. S~ribachi we buried
over the side of the seaplane deck, William E. Hoffman,
marine staff sergeant from Chicago. On Friday, February 22,
1945 at 1035 the American flag went up on the top of Mt.
Suribachi. The word on the air to all present brought us out
on deck to look up at it.
On Tuesday the 27th a press plane arrived, anchored at one
of our buoys, took on fuel, copy and photos, and then flew off.
Here we had all the terror of warfare: the sight of the flamethrowers, dead Japanese floating by, wounded marines, covered with black volcanic dust and blood, coming aboard for
treatment, the roar of firing from all types of ships, the swish
of star shells at night, exploding ammunition dumps, shrapnel
splashing around the ship, one of our own PBM's sinking near
the shore in the shadow of Mt. Suribachi, a four inch shell
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crashing into our own stack and wounding four of our men
but refusing to explode. Only three days later did we know
that it was a shell that had hit us. It cut a large hole in the
stack, rolled over on the catwalk and was discovered in a
routine inspection three days later. It was dented in the nose
but all there. It was American, not Japanese. The gunnery
officer noted the number of the shell and heaved it gently over
the side. We breathed a prayer of thanks. What might have
been! This must have given rise to the report in Saipan that
Hamlin had been hit and all hands lost. We leave Iwo Jima
on March 8th and touch Saipan and Guam for brief stays.
Kerama Retto
Eventually we arrived at Kerama Retto, naval repair base in
the East China Sea, seventeen miles west of Okinawa where
we were to stay three months. Our two AV's and four AVP's
arrived in convoy. Evidently we had surprised the Japanese,
for they left us alone and free from suicide scares for about
six days. We found three hundred suicide boats hidden in
deep receding caves. Some Americans tried to start these
boats and were killed when they exploded. They had been
set as booby traps. They were rudely constructed, about seventeen feet long with a torpedo forward and TNT aft. The
engines which had no reserve gear, were of American make.
These little ships were to rush out and dash into one of our
fighting ships to cripple it. The odds would be in the favor
of the Japanese whenever they struck.
We also had our share of kamikaze attacks. We were indignant when the press reported that these suicide planes
were not a threat. When we saw our crippled ships and all
the dead soldiers and sailors, we knew they were a serious
menace. When I arrived at Kerama Retto there were fortyfive graves on the island of Zamami. When I left three months
later there were 805, mostly victims of suicide planes. On
Holy Thursday, March 29, 1945, I buried Joseph A. Mariano,
of Brooklyn, a soldier of the 77th Division. He had stepped
on a booby trap on Zamami, was carried to Chandeleur, but
died aboard of wounds received. As we went to the island we
had to transfer the body from the motor launch to an LCVP,
and finally to an amphibious truck that rolled up on the land
�116
CHAPLAIN
and to the cemetery. We were impressed with the native
tombs that lined the shore. Later, on closer inspection we
found that these tombs were dug into the hills and were
about twenty feet square inside. The outside was covered
with brick or granite, and over the grave ran a sort of fanshaped cement cover that must have been constructed against
erosion. A walled garden lay in front of the tomb. Vases and
dishes were placed before these tombs and the natives would
bring food and flowers and place them in these receptacles
so that the returning spirits might enjoy them. We learned
later that the natives buried their dead in the earth for three
years and at the end of that time when the flesh had decayed
they dug up the bones and placed them in ornate urns of
varying sizes which were placed in the tombs I have just described.
The invasion of Okinawa, seventeen miles east of us began
on Easter Sunday, April 1st. On the afternoon of Easter I
heard the confessions of the 77th on the beach. The house in
which I heard these confessions was a one story structure
with walls of polished wood and partitions of paper. The
red tile roof bore its protecting deity in the form of a stone
dog. It was~a prefabricated home brought in from Formosa
or Japan proper. It was surrounded by shrubbery and a stone
wall about four feet in height. The front wall, however, was
of woven bamboo. The kitchen in the back room had an open
hearth which gave the house its smell of.stale smoke. In the
side yard was the open toilet and stone stalls for the animals.
Lice filled the sleeping mats that were about two inches thick.
Lantana, castor bean and mulberry grew abundantly about
the house. A cylindrical well and a cylindrical baking oven
stood near the house. These were of stone and cement. The
village of Ana nearby was picturesque with its shaded alleys
and bamboo trees, banyan, pawpaw and small palms.
Kamikaze Attacks
With the advance of April the kamikaze attacks increased.
Sometimes twenty-five raiders came through our area at a
time and the threat kept the men up for twenty-four hours at
a stretch. We realized that the Japanese must be desperate
when they resorted to these attacks. One suicide plane pilot
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bailed out and dropped into the ocean. He said he had lived too
long in the United States to want to commit suicide. In April
when I said Mass on an altar which had been erected in the
Zamami cemetery there were 280 graves. Of these, forty
were army boys, and the rest navy with truck loads of bodies
being brought in every day-a ghastly spectacle. I blessed all
the graves and prayed for the dead. I said Mass on the destroyer Leutze which had been badly hit. Three men were
trapped below. One was killed and three were missing. The
crew was in a highly nervous state. U.S.S. Purdy had taken a
torpedo that had killed fifteen and injured hventy-seven.
Sixty-one men were present for Mass and fifty-eight received Communion. Today I met Father Vincent Nels, a
Precious Blood priest from Chicago. He was on Pinckney
which was hit by a suicide plane and put out of commission.
Like the other chaplains, I served the small craft as much as
possible. For instance on April 23rd at 1545 LCS 21 came
alongside. I rode out in a small boat to meet her and climbed
aboard. Ensign Riley and Lieutenant Childs received me. I
heard confessions and said Mass for seven and gave five
communions. Often there would be Mass for a group of destroyers that were tied together. I said Mass on Oceanus, a
repair ship, for its crew and the crews of the ships alongside,
Wilson, Bryant and Rodman.
Meeting old friends was always a joy as when Father Joe
Maring, chaplain of U.S.S. Norton Sound pulled into the harbor just aft of my ship. Trips to the beach were interesting.
One day I carried a bundle of cheap jewelry with me and
asked Colonel Doyle if I could have the fun of giving it to the
natives. He was delighted and suggested I take some to a
native girl in the tent hospital. I found the doctor and we
went together to visit her. She was of a wealthy family but
had lost her home and relatives and would not cooperate.
She had not smiled the whole time she had been in the hospital. So we stood by her cot and showed her some of our
trinkets and jewels. She turned her head away. The doctor
tried to put a blue necklace around her neck. She brushed it
aside. Then we suggested that the other women in the hospital
look at the jewels and pin some on her and on themselves.
Soon her curiosity got the better of her and she began to
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admire the colors. Finally she smiled. Later the doctor told
me it was the turning point and that from that moment she
was amenable to treatment.
Long Watches
In Kerama Retto we suffered the weariness of long watches
at general quarters. The kamikazes were after us constantly.
My ship was not struck, thank God, but ten ships near by were
hit and seriously crippled when not burned and sunk. The
first prisoners we took aboard were two naked Japs who waved
to a passing boat in the harbor, surrendered, and were brought
aboard our ship. We took them to a stockade that was erected
on Zamami.
On the morning of May 6th I was scheduled to say Mass on
my ship at nine o'clock and then go across to the next ship,
St. George, for Mass at ten-thirty. It was two minutes to nine.
I was fully vested and ready to start when general quarters
sounded. All rushed to battle stations. When I got out on deck
I could see St. George burning. A suicide plane had sneaked
in on her, killing three and injuring twenty-nine. My Mass
on Hamlin was delayed until ten o'clock and only at six-thirty
in the evening was I able to say Mass on St. George.
May 11th -was a field day. In the area we downed one
hundred and ten planes that day. One destroyer shot down
twenty-three while receiving two suicide planes and three
torpedoes. It was abandoned but recove:r:ed later. We began
to see by these desperate efforts of the Japanese that they
were getting weak.
May 17th was a day of spiritual work when I went over to
destroyer England. The crew had not had a chance to go to
confession for four months. I sat on a stool in a little room
and the boys filed in, greasy, shirtless, bearded, timid, many
not knowing their act of contrition. Two men made their
first confession and communion. They had been prepared by
a Catholic officer aboard. Alongside was U.S.S. Hadley that
had taken three suicide planes and one torpedo. Twenty-nine
of her men had been killed and fifty-two wounded. I heard the
confessions of the men of these ships starting at 9 :30 in the
morning and finishing at 1 :45, with half an hour for lunch.
One morning I set out in foul weather gear for Mass on
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Tokashiki, the longest island of the group. An LCM took us
across the harbor around the end of the island into the open
sea, then into a smaller harbor of a Japanese village where
the scenery was pretty but weird. A detachment of the 77th
was there. I jumped off the boat to a broken seawall; then
waded to shore. I heard confessions in one tent and said Mass
in another. It rained all day. Here I met a Lieutenant O'Connell who has three brothers priests. News came while I was
there that this group was to be transferred to the front lines
on Okinawa. This was a gloomy prospect which all took with
a show of cheerfulness. A unit of colored troops was to take
their place. When the colored troops arrived that afternoon
it was the first time that the Koreans who were working for
the American army had ever seen black men. They asked
the Americans to explain who they were. An interpreter tried
to make it clear. As I left the island a native carried me
piggy back and another carried my Mass kit. The latter proceeded to hoist the kit up to what appeared to be a ledge
above his head and then let it drop ten feet onto the engine
below, breaking some of the contents. The one carrying me
treated me more intelligently.
Search for a Grave
One afternoon a message reached the ship that a Marcus
Felten Taylor had been picked up out of the water by a small
craft that came alongside distressed Pinckney, and that he had
died aboard. I went over to Zamami in the pouring rain that
afternoon to locate his grave. I found two Taylors, but not
the one I sought. I returned to the ship to verify the message
and discovered that there had been some confusion in marking
his grave. I returned to the cemetery to find Marcus, Felten
Taylor. I corrected the name on the cross to read Taylor,
Marcus Felton. He had been struck by an exploding bullet
during a raid over our ship. As he was in a state of shock,
he had to be transferred to Pinckney, a hospital ship, that was
due to take him back to his wife and children in New York.
Pinckney was hit the second night he was aboard and he was
a victim. The purse and message of sympathy sent to his
bereaved wife from the men aboard Hamlin were characteristic of the great heart of the American boys.
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One afternoon as I was coming back across the harbor from
saying Mass on LST 999, I spied Shubrick, DD 639. She was
terribly damaged. I recalled that twelve days previously
Lieutenant Noonan had asked me to say Mass aboard her.
He had to return to her first and find out her shipping orders.
I awaited his call. Soon came a message: "Sorry, cannot complete arrangements. See you next time." This was the next
time. I hastened soon thereafter to lend moral aid to the
frightened crew. The men from Shubrick and Butler kept me
busy with confessions for three hours.
My trip to say lVIass at Geruma on June 18th was rather
hazardous since our LCVP had to pass between two islands
that were lined with Japanese machine gun nests. After Mass
there I crossed the harbor to say Mass on the lower end of
Tokashiki. Here was a group that one evening spotted a Japanese plane heading for the senior ship in the harbor. They
sent word that an enemy plane was coming in. The reply
came that it was a friendly plane. Then the senior ship was
hit. The boys called over and said, "How did your friends
treat you?"
June 21st was a tragic day. U.S.S. Whiting at 6:15 P.M.
was struck by a suicide plane. It scorched her side but made
no penetration. Five men were injured. None killed. Also at
the same time Curtis was badly damaged by a Jap plane.
There were sixty-one casualties-forty-one dead, including
the Catholic chaplain and the senior medical officer. When the
bodies were buried on the second day the stench was indescribable. The men \Vho attended to the burial of our boys
deserve great thanks for their work. On the 25th we offered
a special Mass for all these men. Present were four Catholic
chaplains, three Protestant chaplains, and the officers and
enlisted men of both the army and the navy.
The only time I really was seasick was one afternoon when
Lieutenant Quinn invited me out to a YMS to say Mass. After
a forty-five minute ride in stormy weather we reached this
small craft. I went into the small, hot and rolling wheelhouse.
Six men who had not had a chance for over four years to receive the Sacraments, were waiting to go to confession. After
hearing them and preparing the altar I felt it coming on. I
struggled through, determined to complete the Mass and give
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communion to these men. Drops of cold sweat stood out on
my brow. I concluded Mass and then made for the open.
Okinawa
On July 14th we left Kerama Retto and rolled into Chimu
Wan, the bay east of Okinawa, at three o'clock the same day.
Here we lost one of our PBM's that sank just off our fantail.
Here, too, we had to dodge another typhoon by putting out to
sea till it passed by. My first visit to Okinawa revealed some
interesting items. There were 350 chaplains on the island.
Six hundred jeeps had disappeared during a short period
in a system in which anybody's jeep belonged to everybody.
When General Buckner was killed, Father Redmond got to
his body and prepared it for burial. Near where the bloody
and horrible battle of Shuri had been fought, there was a
ruined church with a steeple and a cross and a Japanese gun
mount by the side of the road. The very rocks were blackened
with smoke and ripped asunder; strewn about the fields were
broken Japanese and American tanks.
One Saturday afternoon was another tragic day. Lieutenant
Turner who sat next me at table had gone out on his PBM
that afternoon and due to a heavy load he porpoised three
times at the take-off and then went down. Only three of the
crew of twelve came out alive, an explosion wrecking the ship
below the surface. The last body was found six days later
thirty miles away and was identified only by the name on the
belt. · I buried all these men in the cemetery on Okinawa.
Each time we went to the cemetery it was practically a day's
journey in a truck or ambulance, so far were we up the island
from the cemetery.
The feast of St. Ignatius was celebrated with Chief Askew
and Father Joe Maring, S.J., chaplain of Norton Sound, and
in visiting Father Cahill and Father Fleming at Kin, the
marine airfield on the nearby beach.
On Friday, August 10, 1945, in the evening, the news broke
that Japan had made peace offerings under the condition that
the Emperor be retained and his sovereignty continue. Firing
from the beach brought our ship to general quarters. Yet no
enemy was in the territory. We finally learned that the men
on the beach were so jubilant they fired any ammunition they
I
l
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could lay hands on. In the indiscriminate firing, seven of our
men in various areas had already been killed, and the senior
officer present had to issue orders to all hands to cease firing.
August 15th, the feast of the Assumption, ended the war
that broke out on the feast of the Immaculate Conception.
My Mass, the twentieth anniversary of my ordination to the
priesthood, was offered in thanksgiving for the end of the war.
We set out for Tokyo that afternoon. In the evening, a group
of the men gave me a· surprise party in the library. The next
morning we awoke to find ourselves back in Chumi Wan,
Okinawa, to drop Norton Sound and pick up Cumberland
Sound. We set out again, Tokyo-bound, late in the morning.
On the 18th at about 0645 we passed off the starboard beam
the extraordinary rock known as Sofu Gan, or Lot's Wife.
It is a black rock rising 326 ft. high like a statue out of water,
more than twenty fathoms deep. My story of the rock on the
P A system brought many from their bunks to see it. In the
late evening we met parts of the 3rd Fleet. For the next ten
days we circled and circled 300 miles off the coast of Japan.
On the fifth night of this exasperating but necessary waiting
there was some compensation in a brilliant moonlit night
with four hospital ships all aglow, and the thought that it was
no longer a bomber's moon. There would be no kamikazes tonight. On the 28th we awoke to see the Izzu Islands off Japan.
There looms the mainland and Fujiyama rises majestically
ahead of us. We are near Honshu, the main' island of Japan.
0 Shima, the active volcano island, is ori. our port side. Its
top is covered with grey volcanic dust. We sail into Sagami
Wan and drop anchor at about 1100. The shore line is rocky,
broken by bathing beaches. Hills rise slowly to mountains and
Fuji is out on the horizon before us. We spend hours searching the shoreline with our binoculars. The American might
of ships is gathering in the harbor. On the night of the 28th,
lights for the first time in months appear on our bow and
stern. Fear of attack is gone. On the 30th we sail out of
Sagami Wan and into Tokyo Bay. To port lies the naval base
of Yokosuka, where the marines are landing. The air is hazy
and the water muddy. Yokohama lies ahead and Tokyo is
barely visible beyond.
On Sunday, September 2nd the peace pact was signed on
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U.S.S. Missouri which lay astern of our ship. On the 3rd I
visited U.S.S. I ow a and then moved in to the beach. On the
way I went aboard Japanese battleship Nagato. It was the last
of their battlewagons and was badly damaged. I landed on
Japanese soil for the first time as Chief Davis of Iowa went
with me to find Father Charles A. Robinson, S.J., of U.S.S.
Missouri. We went to the marine hospital at the Yokosuka
naval base and also to headquarters. On the beach I met Chaplain Mannion, Chaplain Hentheim and Dr. Gilmore. Coming
back I stopped to see Chaplain Hardie La Cour who was on
U.S.S. Piedmont tied at the dock. On the trip out, I passed the
Japanese submarines that were being salvaged. They had a
cruising radius of 25,000 miles and carried a hangar for two
planes. We saw midget submarines that were rusting on the
beach. When we saw the run-down condition of a first class
naval base such as Yokosuka was supposed to be, we realized
that the Japanese had been fighting a long time on nerve. The
shore line of Honshu was lined with a series of caves dug out
for defense in case the American troops attempted to land.
Had we landed, we would have eventually overpowered them,
but we would have lost thousands. Thank God the war ended
when it did. The atomic bomb was not the cause of the end
of the war but the occasion.
Cardinal Spellman
On September 5th, Wednesday, I motored into Tokyo. With
me were Father Charles Robinson of Missouri, Father PaulL.
O'Connor, S.J., of Missouri, Father La Cour of Piedmont and
Warrant Officer Pat Young of my ship. On September 12th,
Dr. Roach and I visited Yokohama and Tokyo. I met Archbishop Spellman of New York and Father O'Connell, a Josephite who had been on retreat with me at Grand Coteau, saw the
British consulate, International Red Cross, and the American
consulate in Yokohama, and then the frightful ruins of Tokyo.
It was said that Tokyo was eighty percent destroyed and
Yokohama about the same. Yokohama had a population of
eight hundred thousand and Tokyo six million.
On Saturday the 15th, Archbishop Spellman said Mass at
1000 aboard South Dakota in Yokosuka harbor. In the skipper's gig, four officers, four enlisted men, and I met the arch-
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bishop at Piedmont landing promptly at 0930. He had the
captain's quarters aboard South Dakota and was due to dine
at noon with Admiral Halsey. At 1000 promptly the archbishop began the Mass with about a thousand present and
afterwards shook hands with all comers. His memory for
names was phenomenal!
On Tuesday, September 18th, a typhoon struck us at about
0600. By night all was calm and Fujiyama was even more
beautiful backed by the Japanese sun and the pink clouds. On
Thursday the 20th I went by boat to Yokohama, fifteen miles
distant, carrying sugar, soap and candy for the Jesuits in
Tokyo. In Yokoha~a near the dock I boarded a trolley for
the railroad station and took the train to Tokyo. This was a
bit venturesome since I did not know the way and just asked
as I went along. At Tokyo I got off and began asking for
Yotsuya. Finally, after contradictory directions, a Japanese
took me downstairs and up to another platform whence trains
departed for Yotsuya. As I rode along on this electric train,
the only American in the car, and surrounded by a crowd of
Japanese, it suddenly occurred to me that they could slit my
throat and throw me into a ditch. But we had been assured
that the J apa!lese would not harm us under the present conditions. I got off at the seventh stop, Yotsuya, went up the
stairs and walked two blocks to Sophia, the Jesuit university.
I met the Fathers there and had many questions to ask. As I
sat down to coffee, I helped myself to a portion of sugar that
was produced in a small jar. The coffee tasted very bitter.
"This is rather coarse sugar," I remarked. "Yes," he answered, "but it is American sugar." Skeptically I tasted a
pinch of the sugar and found it was Epsom salts given me, of
course by mistake. As I started out on an evening walk with
Father Joseph Roggendorf, we met Archbishop Spellman in an
auto, accompanied by Father William Nern and Colonel Snyder, and with a young Japanese guide. We dismissed the guide
and conducted the party to the Yokokuna Shrine. "This,"
said Father Roggendorf, "should have been bombed out first
for it was the center of fanatical propaganda." The suicide
pilots were told that their spirits would be enshrined here
forever. A short drive brought us to the college of the Religious of the Sacred Heart. We found it a scene of sad de-
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struction. All the buildings had been destroyed except the.
chapel and that was damaged. We saw a light in this building
and, stepping over scattered debris, made our way to it. We
found one religious only, a native Japanese, Mother Monica.
She was living there with a servant girl. She told us that the
rest of the nuns had been obliged to go to Omura, thirty miles
north of the city, but were expected to return in a few days.
The Archbishop left a message for them, including a special
blessing from the Holy Father and also a cash donation.
Japanese Fare
The next day began with Mass in the domestic chapel at
the altar of the Japanese Martyrs at 0600. For breakfast I
had coffee with no sugar, black bread with a trace of butter.
At noon it was potato soup, fresh tomatoes, potted ham,
coffee (no sugar) and for dessert a piece of brown bread covered with a sauce of cream and sugar. Returning to the ship
that evening with Commander McKeel and Commander Connor, we took Father Roggendorf back for an overnight stay
on our ship. He ate dinner with the captain that night and saw
steak, white bread, butter, and ice cream for the first time in
years. The men on the ship plied him with questions about
Japan and the Japanese.
On September 26th I visited Yokohama to see the Sacred
Heart Church which was built in stone after the devastating
earthquake of 1923. Here I met a young native secular priest
and native seminarian. The seminarian had no shoes. I visited
at the hospital the Missionary Sisters of St. Francis. They
had a twenty-five bed hospital in the international settlement
and when the war broke out they were interned in the yacht
club. They slept a few nights on the concrete floor of the
club. When the Mother Superior protested, they were given
cots and after three weeks allowed to go to the country to
live. We found them very courageous women. When they
came back to their hospital, they found it in wretched condition. Even the electric fixtures had been pulled from the
walls. From the roof of the hospital I could see the charred
ruins of the convent and school of the Sisters of Notre Dame
of Namur. The flames from the valley had caught and burned
their buildings. We could see also the convent of the Sisters
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CHAPLAIN
of the Precious Blood. I was afterwards to meet two of these
Sisters in New Orleans. Nearby I could see the British
embassy and the home of the president of Standard Oil. Later
I visited the school of the Marist Brothers of Dayton, Ohio.
On the 27th with Mr. Young, Mr. Dougherty and Dr. Roach,
I visited the Waragayas, an industrialist family in Kamakura.
Father Roggendorf had arranged the meeting. It was a typical Japanese home. We drank tea in the garden. As we ate
under the arbor I used chopsticks to the best of my ability.
The dinner consisted of squash, tomatoes, beets, stems of
sweet potatoes, greens, lettuce, rice a hi Japanese, and, of
course, tea. A present of American food made up for the
family's loss. We alsg met Mr. Morimura, a wealthy Japanese
chinaware manufacturer with a store on Fifth Avenue in New
York, and his wife; also a Mrs. Yano, who had travelled the
Occident and the Orient; a Mrs. A bee who had lived in Boston;
and two little girls, Rosy Aido and Marian Yuki as well as
our hosts, Mr. and Mrs. Waragaya. After dinner we visited
the great Buddha and the Goddess of Mercy. This Buddha is
considered a masterpiece of Japanese art. The village, untouched by the destruction of war, has about 250 shrines in it.
It is very picturesque. From Mrs. Yano I learned how the
Japanese looked on us. She said that the common people were
delighted because it gave them hope of liberation from the
oppressive militarists; the industrialists were content because
they felt that General MacArthur would give them a square
deal; the militarists hate us.
On returning to my ship on October 1st, Father Leonard
Goode, chaplain of New Jersey came along and spent some
time hearing confessions aboard the ship. The Jesuit, Father
Jose Herreros, also accompanied us. He and I tried to arrange
for the return to Saipan of Father Hygino Berganza who was
the superior of the Jesuit Mission of Carolines and the Marianas, and had been for the past ten years. He had come to
Tokyo six years previously and had been told to wait awhile
before returning. This while had lasted six years. The outcome was that the navy would permit him to return to Saipan
for only one month and after that, because· he was not an
American, he was to be put out of the mission in which he
had labored for twenty-five years. It was similar to the policy
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in regard to Guam where nearly all the people are Catholic.
When a chaplain was appointed to supervise the education of
the children, they appointed a Baptist. When it was pointed
out that the position should be held by a Catholic, the protest
was ignored.
On Thanksgiving Day, 1945, I learned that my relief,
Father Edward M. Tulley, was on the beach awaiting transportation to the ship. On Friday at five P.M. I was aboard
the U.S.S. Muliphen a navy cargo ship. It pulled out the next
morning. We made the great circle in fifteen days through
rough seas and high winds that blew off the ice fields of
Alaska. I was determined to be home by Christmas, reached
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on December 19th, 1945, and said
Mass at midnight at home on Christmas.
The Exercises for Individuals
and for Groups
G. A. Hugh, S.J.
In what follows we have very definitely no notion of attacking group retreats as such. We merely wish to examine the
historical question: did they begin during the lifetime of St.
Ignatius.
There is an initial difficulty about vocabulary in all this discussion. The name "group retreat" is clear; and if one person
makes a retreat privately this could be called a "private retreat." What if there is no retreat at all, only the exercises
given according to the eighteenth or nineteenth annotation?
Shall we call them "private exercises?" It would seem to be
the best name. "Individual exercises" as a name might be
misleading, since it seems to put the "individuality" not in
the person but in the exercises themselves.
Today unquestionably group retreats are the thing. Have
they not even been recommended as preferable to private ones
by Pope St. Pius X (Haerent animo)? How we should like
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to be able to call such retreats "Ignatian exercises" and to
justify this by showing that St. Ignatius himself not merely
approved of them as a kind of mission, but recognized them
as his exercises! Do not try to console us by saying that St.
Ignatius did approve of group retreats and even wrote a
circular letter recommending them! When I first read this,
in one of Pere Brou's books on the Exercises, I was amazed;
because in the whole of the Exercises, and the whole of the
Directory, there is no allusion to a group. The Exercises and
the Directory obviously envisage individual exercitants all
the time. If St. Ignatius encouraged grouping for retreats,
how does it happen that this has left no trace in the Directory
published forty-thr~e years after the Saint's death?
If we were looking. for a directory for retreats at the present
day we should expect a word or two, if not about mass psychology, at least about how to handle an audience, various
types of audience. And we should be most grateful for specimen timetables, outlines of talks and conferences, or even
fully printed lectures. Not a word of all this in our Directory!
Instead, it tells us to meditate on what we are going to say, if
possible! Other suggestions in the Directory seem to be quite
off the mark, ?S for example when we are told it would be a
good idea for the instructor to go to the exercitant's house
to give the points, though it would be better for the exercitant
to retire to a country house or monastery where he would be
more secluded.
A Legend
In the whole book we cannot find one word which presupposes a group retreat with points given to the group in
common, rather than what we may call "private exercises."
Even where it speaks of the Exercises given to religious and
to Jesuits, where you might expect the group idea, you will
not find a trace of it. In fact in the famous Chapter X, No. 6,
it is obvious that each member of the community is getting
points by himself. For if any one is in need of more "purgation" he will have to be kept longer in the First Week: impossible in a community retreat. The Directory seems never
to have heard of group retreats. The Exercises given to the
members of a community individually cannot be called a group
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retreat, and there is no other reference to anything approaching the nature of a group that we can find. Yet the idea that
St. Ignatius knew and approved of group retreats is to be
found not only in Pere Brou, but also in Our Colloquium, in an
American life of Father Lainez, and probably in other books.
It almost looks as if we had the rare privilege of looking on at
the birth and growth of a spiritual legend. For it is only a
legend; and Pere Brou's assertion, which I think is the original one, has arisen from two misunderstandings, one of a
letter, the other of an episode.
The letter is that written in 1554 to Father Leernus and
sent round later as a circular to the \vhole Society. We print it
in an appendix. In it there is no hint of grouping any exercitants but only of giving the simpler Exercises to more and
more. Even women should be given them, but they ought to
come to the church for them. The implication is that the men
receive them at home or perhaps in rooms in a Jesuit house.
There were no retreat houses. Does this look like groups?
Why must the women come to church? Was it because they
were in larger groups? No, but rather because they were not!
Now for the episode. It has dazzled Pere Brou by its brilliance and we can easily forgive him for misinterpreting it.
In 1540 Blessed Peter Faber and Father Lainez gave the Exercises to many people in Parma and almost all in the city made
them; whence it would be natural to conclude with Pere
Brou that here we have to do with group retreats. How could
two men give the exercises individually to the population of
a city in the space of a year or two? Yet they did give them
only to individuals; and the whole city made them!
Read the accounts by Orlandini and Polanco, and the letters
of Faber and Lainez themselves (in Appendix) and you will
see how. Some significant points follow:
Polanco: "They began to give the Spiritual Exercises to certain
men and chosen women and these began to give them to others. This
went so far that at one and the same time there were a hundred
making the Exercises, and with extraordinary fruit."
Orlandini: "As each worked diligently at these Exercises, he was
easily able to persuade others to make them; and not only that, but,
immediately becoming a master in the art, he gave them."
Lainez: "The Exercises grow from day to day. Many of those
who have made them give them to others, one to ten, another to
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GROUP
fourteen. And as soon as one nestful is finished another begins, so
that we see our children and our children's children to the third
and fourth generation."
Was it not wonderful? How many of our exercitants today
give the Exercises to others?
Where we might most readily have expected group retreats
would be in monasteries and convents. But read the account
of how the Exercises were given in one such community in
Parma. It was a big community, eighty nuns, relaxed, not
grossly immoral, but with no poverty, no common life, each
nun living like a lady of the world. Father Lainez was invited
to give some lectuJes, for which he was famous. Then the
convent tailor, of all" people, suggested to one of the nuns that
she should ask for the Exercises. He had been given them
himself by a Jesuit novice, Don Paulo. A lady who had also
made them supported his testimony and before long the nun
began the Exercises with Father Lainez. Soon there were
fourteen more. Did these fourteen receive the Exercises all
together in the chapel, with Father Lainez giving them lectures on the said Exercises? I do not think so. Fifteen or
twenty minutes to each nun, I should imagine. And not from
Lainez. After the first talk, the work was turned over to the
novice, Don Paulo. More and more nuns kept coming (a proof
that the fourteen did not exercise as a group). The older
ones held off longer. And the result of the Exercises? You
can read it in a letter of Lainez:
·
"I could not describe the fruit they have won, in knowledge and
tears and change of life. All these nuns want to live in common
and deprive themselves of all their little treasures. Such a one wants
to give her wardrobe to the infirmary, another her coffer to the
sacristy. They do not want to gossip as formerly. They are most
content with the religious state and most obedient to all. They
have settled their quarrels and are all set on conquering their will
and their temptations, and on continuing the prayer and the fasts
and disciplines of the Rule. And finally they seem to themselves
to be in Paradise; and with good reason, as it seems to me."
Similarly with the monks of a neighbouring city, Piacenza,
who asked for the Exercises. Had this occurred in our time
one would have gone to their monastery and they would all
have made the retreat as a community. Not so then. Blessed
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Peter Faber invited them to come to Parma and make the
Exercises. They came, two by two.
Similarly, to digress from this Parma episode, with the
monks of Tendillas in Spain. They were very relaxed, poor
men, and wanted to pull themselves together. They had heard
of the almost miraculous power of the Exercises. And did they
invite any Father to come and give them? No, they chose one
of their number as a guinea pig, sent him to the nearest town
where there was a Jesuit. This monk, a character, made the
Exercises, and came back such a changed man that they all
wanted to imitate him. And so each went off to do the Exercises in turn. Of the further history of that monastery and
how the Provincial scattered these monks over Spain to infect
the other monasteries with their holiness, all this you can
read about in Orlandini or in Diertins.
It is a commonplace in our day that, "Of course we do
far more work nowadays with our group retreats. Those
individual retreats could reach only a few." The Parma exercises should make us pause and wonder.
Blessed Peter Faber is credited with helping to arrest the
Reformation in Germany, and it was by means of private retreats, or rather by private Exercises without retreat, since
very often his exercitants began to preach while still making
them.
How did the early directors produce such astonishing results? Nowadays we do not expect our exercitants to go and
give Exercises to others. Much less should we expect them to
be so successful that their exercitants should exercise others,
and so on "to the fourth generation." How do you explain it?
The towering personality of Faber and Lainez? A very special outpouring of divine grace? The simplicity of the Exercises they gave, those of the eighteenth Annotation, easy to
learn, easy for learners to teach to others?
Maybe all three causes were operative; but notice the last
one, and read Blessed Peter Faber's letters again. What were
the Exercises which he gave up and down the Rhineland?
Usually "those light Exercises," at most the First Week;
hardly ever more, even with priests and learned men from
whom he expected great fruit. He did not have time to give
more, except to a very few like St. Peter Canisius, being
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always on the move. And it was these simpler Exercises that
aroused such enthusiasm. It was they that helped stop the
Reformation!
Number
Giving the Exercises individually, how many exercitants
would you take at a time? Blessed Peter Faber mentions that
he had three at one time, giving them an hour each. Soon
after St. Ignatius' time there is great praise for Father Landini, who is giving the Exercises to as many as fourteen or
fifteen while doing the work of the mission. About 1590 when
a draft of the Directory was being passed round for comment
and suggestions, ~one Father asked how many exercitants
would it be prudent to take on at once. Would four or five
be a maximum, if one already had his hands full as a teacher
or minister, for example? (Ser. 2a 1080) Obviously there is
no question of group retreats yet.
What clinches the matter, it seems to us, is the correspondence between Father Aquaviva and a German novice master
in 1584. The novice master, Father Crusius, has stumbled on
the bright idea of giving the Exercises to three or four novices
together. We have done this three times already, he informs
Aquaviva, and with the happiest results. They reap the fruit
of mutual edification in following the order of time of the
Exercises. They are more emboldened to speak out about the
fruit of the meditation than if each one ·had to render an
account by himself to the novice master. The Germans especially are very shy when alone with the director. When they
hear others talk out concerning spiritual things, they are not
so shy. Also they meditate better when they know they will
have to speak about it before others.
·Rather astonishing. We should have thought quite the
reverse. Whatever about freedom of speech in the privacy
of a tete-a-tete with the director, we hardly expect personal
revelations in public in our modern group retreats. We should
be surprised to hear the voice of someone from the chapel
telling us about the success or failure of his meditation. Yet,
after all, our "leadership courses" are rather like Father
Crusius' retreats, and so are the Chinese Communists' "little
groups". The reason perhaps was that the points in those
�EXERCISES
i33
days were not the big thing in the retreat that they are now.
The Exercises were more interviews than points. And so if
you made the retreat collective it was the interview that
became public. But this is a digression.
Father Crusius goes on to say it is easier for the director
to put his heart into the work, if he has an audience of more
than one. What is the custom in Rome? And in any case may
he, Father Crusius, give the exercises in common, if not always, at least sometimes, if several enter the noviceship together; so that he may give the exercises to two, three, four,
five or even six together? "The Provincial is not for the idea
because he regards it as new and bothersome. Whether it is
new or not I do not know. At least some Fathers have done
it. In the meantime I will obey the Provincial and only give
the exercises individually."
Aquaviva frowned on the innovation. He answered that it
was impossible, not only because it was against the common
usage but because different people needed different Exercises.
Putting a number through the same Exercises would be ruinous. Also the idea of several reporting on their meditations
in public would lead to their dealing only in generalities, without coming down to personal difficulties. If there were not
enough directors to go round without grouping the novices,
then the only remedy was to shorten the time given to each.
"That is what we do in Rome."
Father Crusius did not consider himself beaten yet. He
returned to the charge; but Aqua viva was adamant. The
seventeenth annotation must be taken seriously. The director
must be au courant with the agitations of the exercitant's soul
and vary the Exercises accordingly. Impossible in a group.
So the group idea was crushed for that century.
Incidentally we may make two remarks which go to show
how long it was before collective retreats won the day. In
the middle of the eighteenth century Benedict XIV, recommending religious to make the Exercises, urges them to go
to Jesuit houses for that purpose. Obviously he did not have
in mind the migration of whole communities. If the community were to go on retreat as a body, their own house would
be quite suitable. As late as last century in the rules of the
Jesuit novice master there was no suggestion of collective
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retreats, but rather the contrary. In those rules individual
novices seem to begin and interrupt and end their Long Retreat without any reference to their fellow novices.
Decline of the Private Exercises
St. Ignatius was not long dead before the Exercises began
to fall off. The printed book remained and there were zealous
men eager to give the Exercises well. But the swing of the
first years was gone. St. Charles Borromeo owed a tremendous
lot to the Exercises and there must have been many of the
great personalities of the time who were powerfully influenced by them, men like Valignani, Aquaviva and many others,
but we do not fin<! kuch astonishing results as in the days of
Faber, Lainez, Villanova, Salmeron, Strada and that generation. In 1700 Diertins compiled a history of the Exercises
from Orlandini and one or two others. It has remained a
classic. It is full of one marvel after another. But it stops
short significantly at the death of St. Ignatius. Subsequent
editors have tried to continue it and they have got together
some indications of useful work done, but nothing very exciting. Their sequel makes very poor reading after the blazing
pages of Orlandini. The history of the exercises up to St.
Ignatius' death is amazing, exciting, mysterious, miraculous;
after St. Ignatius' death as a rule it is humdrum.
Already before the end of the century the common disappointment is voiced by Father Fabius d(l. Fabiis, S.J. "The
memory of our holy Father is still fresh", lie complains, "and
yet there is hardly one among us who knows the art of giving
the Exercises perfectly." Father Miron, a contemporary of
the Saint and one of the most prominent figures in the Order,
is equally emphatic. Father La Palma similarly, after 1600.
St. Ignatius was a hero, as Dr. Maranon says, in the sense
of a godlike man, straining to transcend our human limitations, such a dynamic personality as made the ancient Greeks
think of a man who had a god for father or mother. No obstacle could stop him. He was the man beside whom Francis
Xavier and the other companions seemed like children. God
had given so many gifts to this one man, Ignatius: hardness
and tenderness, mystic vision and uncommon shrewdness, an
apostolic spirit and an amazing power of introspection-the
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list would never end. Is it any wonder that succeeding directors fall far below his standards?
The Directories of this period subsequent to St. Ignatius
are very interesting compared with St. Ignatius' own. There
is a subtle change of tone in them, a change from the fresh,
direct, confident and uncompromising directions of St. Ignatius to a timid, diffident, uncertain, groping attitude. Give the
man the Fundamentum and let him think about it for a couple
of days, says St. Ignatius. And do not disturb him. Let him
find things for himself. But the Directories later come along
and give anxious directions. If the man is getting bored ...
if he has not enough to think about ... And quite rightly I
might say! Yes, I am as timid as those Directories. I am not
cast in the heroic mould of St. Ignatius!
Similarly with the particular examination of conscience.
St. Ignatius gives the method without a shadow. of doubt
about its practicality. Father Gagliardi, one of the best commentators in the following years, comes along and remarks
how our holy Father has a habit of mixing up essentials with
non-essentials: the lines and dots are not essential to the
particular examination: be afraid of them therefore. No
doubt Gagliardi was confirmed in his view by experience. And
he may be right; but it seems to me that it does not matter
what you take up; if you are diffident about it, your distrust
will be confirmed by experience.
The tumble down from the serene confidence of St. Ignatius
was beginning in the saint's own lifetime. With his characteristic deference to the opinions of others, he let them put in
their sage provisos. For instance he allowed them to add
meditations on death, judgment, etc. if the exercitant did not
find contrition with the First Week meditations. Men had not
the same confidence in the efficacy of the Exercises. They were
like unskilful artists. A good artist produces his effect with
one or two bold lines. A poor artist uses a hundred lines and
produces no effect. The permission to add on meditations "if
the Exercises were not enough" became a rule for most directors, not a permission. The Exercises never were enough.
Another little indication of timidity, very small but enough
to show the change of mentality, is the addition of the word
"about". In the time marked for reflection, for example, St.
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Ignatius just says "for a quarter of an hour." The Vulgate
edition says "for about a quarter". In this as in many other
ways the Vulgate is inferior in vigor to St. Ignatius' text.
Bernhard Duhr has written a big Geschichte of the Society
in Germany, a splendid work. He speaks of the Exercises at
some length. In the very beginning Blessed Peter Faber produced marvellous fruit by their means, and his exercitants in
turn did likewise. He attributed the good done in Germany
more to private Exercises than to any other form of apostolate. But turn to later volumes. The Exercises continue to
be given, but with what success? "Nicht bedeutend," is Duhr's
comment. "Insignificant."
Group Retreats Begin
Around the middle of the seventeenth century, at Vannes
in Brittany a house was given for retreat work. Pere Huby
started giving private retreats with great success. The work
began to gro~v beyond his power to cope with it. People
dropped in any day and every day for an eight-day, or longer,
retreat and were served as they came.
Then an idea began to take shape in Pere Ruby's mind.
Why not fix. a day for beginning each retreat and give the
Exercises in common to all who began on that day? It seems
so obvious to us, but it was revolutionary then.
So the priests in all the parishes around were informed of
the new arrangement. Anyone who wanted to do a retreat
must come on the first or third Tuesday of the month. The
Tuesday came and, without any further arrangement, from a
hundred to two hundred fifty exercitants would turn up. One
never knew beforehand how many, but it did not go lower
than a hundred nor higher than two hundred and fifty.
Such an arrangement seems fantastic to us. How did they
manage the catering? It was done by laymen who supplied
meals at fixed prices, the Jesuits merely exercising control,
and escaping both financial worry and suspicion. No money
seems to have been asked or given for lodging or upkeep.
All classes came together. Priests came with their parishioners. This had the double advantage that the priests were
edified by their parishioners and that the parishioners overcame their shyness more easily when they had a priest to
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bring them along. Rich and poor made the retreat together.
In any one retreat you might have fifty priests, fifty civil
servants and professional men, seventy or eighty agricultural
laborers, and so on. Pere Huby remarks that things which
you might be afraid to say to one category for fear of offending them, the very things they needed most, you could say
without fear of offence to such a mixed audience and let those
who needed apply them to themselves.
All these people received the material comfort and food they
were accustomed to. The hotel people supplied better meals
to the rich and charged more, simpler meals to the poor and
charged less. Some of the laborers even had their meals
brought in by their family. Such are the proprieties of life
in Europe even to this day. And silence did not suffer. Similarly there were private rooms for some, while on the top
floor there was a row of mattresses, one touching the other,
for laborers.
On the Tuesday evening the idea and method of the retreat
were explained. Then all adjourned to the chapel for a conference. A beautiful translucent picture of the Agony was
placed over the altar illuminated by lights shining through
it from behind. Each day of the retreat a different picture
was thus used. The rest of the chapel was in complete darkness.
The exercitants rose at five and there were five conferences
every day lasting about an hour each. The first three quarters
of an hour were given in a hall. Then they passed into the
chapel kissing a crucifix which was on the way and the director led a fervent colloquy.
Priests and other educated people were free to stay in their
rooms or come to the conferences as they chose; and they always chose the latter. There were four Jesuits for private
interviews and in addition some of the exercitant priests
were asked to hear confessions, without interfering with their
own retreat.
Pere Huby proposed a definite objective for his retreats:
that all should go out of them into a new world, a world all
bathed as it were in the golden light of God's love. After eight
days they did go away delighted and spread such a good report
that more and more came.
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Pere Ruby's example was soon imitated in other parts of
France and retreat houses sprang up in many localities. Some
of them served only sixty or eighty retreatants at a time.
Also Pere Ruby's astonishing method of mixing all classes
in the retreat frightened some of the directors and they organized group retreats as we have them now. To this Pere
Ruby would never agree. In theory, he said, they seemed right,
but in practice his system worked better. One lady, who had
founded an order of nuns expressly for retreats, tried to explain that laborers and gentry spoke different languages in
her part of Brittany. But Pere Ruby was adamant. The two
systems went on side by side with great success. Blessed
Julian Maunoir wa.i? the most notable of those who gave retreats to one class at a time. He would assemble 500 laborers
in the open in a retired place. They would bring their own
food, eight days' rations. The additions of the Exercises were
explained to them at the beginning. The regular conferences
were given. They slept where they could. Silence was rigorous all the time, even when they went off for the night. These
retreats with a difference were a tremendous success. Blessed
Julian had a band of priests to help in the heavy work of
direction and.confessions.
In Italy before the end of the century the French lead had
been followed. Padre Ettori had his own system, rather
theatrical for our taste. Chapel shuttered and in darkness;
only the crucifix is illuminated. Padre Ettori appears with a
halter around his neck, utters the prophetic words: "We have
given years to the world, let us give days to God"; words
which are repeated at the beginning of each exercise. You may
say it does not sound quite Ignatian. Well, perhaps not. But
too much emotion is not so bad as too little and there is tremendous insistence on emotion in the Exercises.
It is nearly a century before we read of the movement
spreading to Germany. When it did start in 1751 it took a
homely German form. The whole village went on retreat, led
by the lady of the manor. It was not just a mission, mind you.
The people came up to the church the first morning, had the
ten additions explained to them, all about silence and penance
and seriousness. They went through the exercises and kept
silence in their own homes which for that week became like
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139
so many little monasteries. The fruit of the retreat was evident in the glad hearts and the singing of hymns during work
in the fields all over the countryside. The Society was suppressed not very long after. We hear no more of such retreats. Perhaps it was only that one village could have done
such a thing anyway.
And the question comes up again: which is better, the group
retreats or the private exercises? It is like the question about
instructing converts, is it better to take them singly or
in groups? Impossible to judge from experience. It tells both
ways.
Could it be that the spirit of individualism was at its peak in
the time of St. Ignatius, that it began to decline immediately
after, and has reached its lowest point now? To put it another
way, could it be that our sense of solidarity, the knowledge
that Catholics are all one body in Christ, that mankind is one
family descended from Adam, is now more vivid and living
than formerly? If this is so, more than one consequence would
follow. Not only are we justified in attending almost exclusively to group retreats, but also in giving more prominence
to the Rules for Thinking with the Church and stressing such
topics as the Mystical Body, and the Mass. In doing so are
we straying beyond the limits of the Ignatian exercises?
Consult La Palma. He would seem to approve wholeheartedly
of giving whatever you see to be suitable. This, he would say,
is what I call giving the Exercises of St. Ignatius.
Conclusion of this Discussion
From all that we have written and from the ideas which
I am sure have burgeoned in your mind as you read, what
emerges? We should say :
First, that private exercises need not be onerous. See, you
need not prepare forty minute talks: you need not rack your
brains to adapt the Kingdom or Hell to a congregation; you
need not spend more than half an hour in a whole day with
an exercitant. True, you are less stimulated by an audience
of one than by one of a hundred. But it is not you who
need to be lively, it is he. You have only to "narrate faithfully," and help the exercitant "with care and charity and
prayer." And the fruit may be great.
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Second, in group retreats a ten minute interview may be
worth more than anything else. In fact Padre La Palma
would seem to say that it is this one short tete-a-tete which
really is "the Exercises," if it is skilfully done.
Third, that if you come across a vocation in the course of
such an interview you could invite the person back for private
Exercises. It is for such that the Kingdom is meant.
DOCUMENTS
The Parma Exercises
Polanco's Account.
The same year (153.9) towards Autumn Fathers James Lainez and
Peter Faber were seltt to Parma with the Cardinal of Sant' Angelo.
First they gained authority with the more important and learned people
by lectures on sacred subjects and excited a thirst for sermons. Then
the sermons followed and they stirred men and women of all classes
in a marvellous way and set them on fire for a reformation of life.
Then the Fathers collected the harvest by hearing confessions on the
days, and even during the nights, before feasts. The Spiritual Exercises
also began to be given to certain men and chosen women, and those
who had exercised themselves began to propose them to others. This
went so far that at one and the same time there were a hundred doing
the Exercises, l!nd with singular fruit. Besides many parish priests and
other priests who were communicating the spiritual instruction they had
received to others, not a few young men of the greatest promise were
called to the way of life of the Society by the Lord. Among them was
Father Jerome Domenech a canon of Valencia, then a young fellow.
As he was passing through Parma he happened. to meet the Fathers
in the hotel and he was induced to do the Exercises. He decided to
enter the Society, and began to help very many others immediately by
means of the same Exercises. There was also Father Paul Achilles, already a priest, who began to work strenuously as a confessor and
a giver of the Exercises.
J. de Polanco, Vita lgnati Loiolae et Rerum Societatis Iesu, I (Madrid,
1894), 82.
1.
Orlandini's Account.
(Among those who promoted frequent Communion was) Julia Zerbini.
In her own room where she was confined to her bed by continual diseases and sicknesses, she discovered the sweetness of the Ignatian
Exercises. She began imparting these Exercises to the ladies who came
frequently to visit her ...
Meditations were proposed as Exercises to many men and even to
women with good results. As each one worked at these Exercises diligently he was easily able to persuade others to make them, and not alone
2.
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that, but becoming a master himself gave the Exercises immediately.
This went so far that at one and the same time a hundred people and
more are said to have been making the Exercises. As a matter of fact
even parish priests and other priests, from pupils suddenly becoming
masters, began to reform the people's ways according to the rules of the
Exercises.
'
N. Orlandini, Historia Societatis Iesu, Prima Pars (Rome, 1614), 59 f.
Letter of Lainez of June 2, 1540.
The Exercises grow from day to day. Many of those who have made
them give them to others, one to ten, another to fourteen. And as soon
as one nestful is completed another begins, so we see our children and
our children's children up to the third and fourth generation. And altogether there is such a change in the life and customs of all, that it is
something to praise God for. And some persons from among them who
have been called by Our Lord have died with such fortitude and gaiety,
and calling upon Jesus, that it is enough to edify anyone. And those
who are sick have a patience far other than they were accustomed to
have in their other sicknesses. And this much about seculars.
Apart from that Our Lord has opened a new field for work in the
monasteries of nuns. Because a monastery of the Order of St. Benedict,
the richest of this land, sent to ask me to preach to them once, and I
went and preached to them six times, to them alone in the presence of
their chaplain, and always of things pertaining to the religious state
and in the midst of this two people went to inform them about the
Exercises and ask them to make them, namely a cousin of the abbess, a
lady in the world, and the second a tailor of the monastery, to whom
Don Paulo had given the Exercises. And Our Lord moved them in such
a way that at the last sermon one of them said she wanted to speak to
me, and there come after her as many as fourteen and say they want
the Exercises. And I without more ado give them one exercise and
arrange for Don Paulo to give them to them. And so it was done. Already seven have made their general confession to me, and others will
·follow, every day its own, because they are subjects of the Bishop,
and the vicar gave me leave for it and the abbess also gave them leave.
I could not describe the fruit they have won in knowledge and tears and
change of life. All these nuns want to live in common, to deprive themselves of all their little treasures. One wants to give her wardrobe to
the infirmary, another her coffer to the sacristy. They do not want to
gossip; they do not want costly litters as formerly. They are most content with the religious state, most obedient in all; they have settled
their quarrels, they are all set on conquering their wills and their
temptations, and on continuing the prayer, fasts and disciplines of the
rule. And finally they seem to themselves to be in paradise, and with
good reason as it seems to me. They have had very great contradiction to
bear both from the confessor, an ex-friar, and from the older nuns.
Thank God the abbess has always been on our side and the vicar not
against us. At present even the confessor hides his opposition and
3.
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the others keep quiet. Even the most contrary are now almost for
beginning. So in that monastery we hope for great fruit.
In another monastery I have given two sermons and Don Jerome gave
the Exercises to their confessor and the confessor is now giving them
to the majority of the nuns, and they have begun their confessions with
sufficient fruit.
Two other priests who had made the Exercises set out at that time
through some villages and heard the confessions, it is said, of more
than two hundred people in two days, and they do the same every feast
day here with similar fruit.
Don Jerome left a Spaniard in the Exercises; he is perservering
in them; he has not made his mind up yet except that he says he will
do what I tell him and that if he did not feel so fainthearted he would
follow us, if we accepted him.
~
Piacenza
Letter of Lainez of September 16, 1540.
About the Exercises: we have begun with four or five priests. Would
that they were either hot or cold! Other secular people have made their
general confessions with some part of the Exercises.
2. Letter of Lainez of November 18, 1540.
Many important people have promised me that they will make the
Exercises and two Canons have begun, one of the cathedral and another
of another principal church. Besides there are other good priests among
whom there is one who has his mind completely made up to go with
us to Rome.
1.
Letter of Lainez of December 2, 1540.
Many priests have been impelled to make the Exercises. More than
twelve began . . . and two of them are determined to leave the world
in poverty, etc .... Others of the most important people both priests and
seculars have promised me they will make the Exercises. The only thing
lacking is time and strength.
Lainii Monumenta, I (Madrid, 1912), 4 ff.
3.
Faber on Parma
Letter of December 4, 1539. (About a young canon, probably Jerome
Domenech, who is making the Exercises, wishes to join the Society, is
opposed by his uncle.)
1. We thought the Canon should have left for Montepulciano last
Saturday. But as we received your letter last Thursday in which you
said that the uncle was already on the road, we did not dare to let him
go lest he meet him. We hid him fearing some constraining command
should come to him. So the uncle did not find him here, at which he was
very vexed with me. But we exhort him to make the Exercises, promising
him a sight of his nephew on this condition, and waiting to see whatever might win his good graces.
He sopke to the Cardinal in presence of Master Lainez, saying it
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143
seemed to him his cousin could not be in our company with a good
conscience. . . . The Cardinal replied in so very Christian a manner
and conformable to all perfection that Master Lainez had no need
to reply.
Of the Exercises also the said uncle spoke, but wholly in good part,
saying even that they were good and holy, and that he knew persons of
great quality who approved of them. And here he named Cardinal
Contarini, saying that he had made them; so that all those complaints
of his have ended by giving more information to the Cardinal, so far
from doing any harm. Finally the uncle said he did not want to take
him away from here if he was content to remain, but at least he wanted
to see him and speak to him about some things. And so the Cardinal
asked Master Lainez that we should bring him here to speak to his
uncle.
So I went off this morning to a place ten miles from here where the
Canon had gone and he was in the house of a gentleman there. This
gentleman is determined also along with two of his best friends to
make the Exercises if I or any of us want to go there. So that this
exile of the Canon has brought about a chance of great fruit. However
I only slept there one night. And as we arrived here we found that the
uncle had set off for Pavia to visit a lady who he said he had heard
was a saint. We expect him back in four days. May it please the Lord
to make him return with more of a mind for the Exercises, although he
said already he could not make them here and that perhaps he would
make them in Rome. Here we look to your practical ability and spirit of
negotiation. He is determined to leave the world; that is, his business;
and retire somewhere to serve God. We shall see what will happen when
he returns from that lady: and if she is not sufficient we will show him
another here in Parma, who has not eaten a thing of this world since
the fifth of July except the Blessed Sacrament. She is quite young,
married and well off, and she has already made a great part of the
Exercises, which are given to her by the one who exercised himself
separately, who is her confessor ... Master Francis brother, please ask
Inigo for me to give the Exercises to Esbrando himself.
2. Letter of March 21, 1540, to Ignatius de Loyola. Compendium by Fr.
Polanco.
We are well and working in the Lord's vineyard as much as we can
and more than we can, on account of the harvest being great, as the
fruit goes on growing both in preaching and in confessions and communions. I have two of the principal gentlemen of the country in the
Exercises. In the practice of frequent communion there are two noble
ladies, one of them being the countess of Mirandola, who communicate
every Sunday, with many other ladies of the city; and the majority
of them have made the Exercises and have got great good out of them.
All parts of the country have been much stirred. We found that last
Sunday many went to communion; that everything has been much reformed.
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Letter of March 25, 1540, to Pietro Codacio and Francis Xavier.
Now at the end of Lent most of the preachers have begun to warn the
people against frequent communion, but without any result, because it
seems the more they talk the less they are heeded.
About the Exercises now we cannot speak in detail, because there
are so many who are giving the Exercises, that we do not know the
number. Everyone wants to make them, men and women. As soon as a
priest has been exercised, he gives them to others, etc.
3.
Letter of September 1, 1540, to Ignatius and Codacio.
Indeed, some parish priests are giving the Exercises to their subjects.
We taught the commandments in the very beginning when we came to
Parma; and since then they have been spread so much by way of exercitants, men and women, by means (also) of the schoolmasters among
whom are some who have even given the first Exercises to many of
their pupils who w~~e fit for them. Similarly there are some ladies
who have made it their duty to go from house to house and teach girls
and other women who are not free to go out, and always before anything else they give them the Ten Commandments and the seven deadly
sins, and then what is necessary for the general confession. Fruit:
already in Parma a person is considered nothing if he does not go to
confession at least once a month.
About priests, the number and quality of those brought back to a good
life by the Exercises, all of whom go on persevering, some (just) not
turning back, others bringing forth fruit with others from day to
day. All this the Canon (Jerome Domenech) will tell you, because I
could not write it.
The sermons also have done another great part of the good, beyond
what we can know, and not alone our sermons, those of the two of us,
because there are three others who have made .the Exercises and have
preached through the whole country; in such a- way that ten or twelve
of the principal places have been stirred to all good. I will not repeat
the good which has been accomplished in Sissa without any trouble,
where Don Orlando is, who does nothing but preach, give the Exercises,
hear confessions and teach boys: it happened one feast day he preached
in three and four places.
4.
1.
Faber's Exercises in Germany
Letter from Worms, December 27, 1540, to St. Ignatius.
With a dean of this city I have arranged to begin the Exercises tomorrow. He has been vicar general of this place for a long time and
also inquisitor, At present not wanting to hold office any longer, on
account of not seeing how he can exercise the pastoral office among
sheep which are so fond of the wolves that they do not feel the deadly
bites and are already dead; especially as the Lutheran doctrine is being
openly preached etc. . . .
�EXERCISES
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2. Letter from Worms, January 1, 1541.
In the other letter I have written to you about the dean, who is in
place of the bishop here in Worms, although he has now dropped the
duty for a time, on account of not seeing how he can cope with it, and
who is making the Exercises; and this evening he told me that two
others want to make them if I can give them. Also the blind Doctor
(Robert Wauchop, Bishop of Armagh) today told another dean of the
cathedral church that he should make them also and he promised very
willingly.
3. Letter from Worms, January 10, 1541.
My exercitant, the dean of St. Martin, is going on doing better from
day to day, not being able to keep from exhorting others, many whom
he knows, to make the Exercises. Yesterday as I went to see him he
told me he had preached a sermon to many men of this city, who happened to be congregated in a certain place, and asked him to do so,
among them being some Lutherans, who heard him with good profit,
and one of the chief of them promised him he would go to confession
and return to the doctrine of Holy Mother Church, according to what
his forbears did. This past year he has converted more than forty, and
he has now more hope to draw many, I do not say of the heresiarchs,
but of the city people, among whom there is one who has been out of
the church twenty years.
4. Letter from Speyer, January 25, 1541.
With the departure of so many from Worms I do not know if there is
anyone so sincerely discontented as that dean of mine of St. Martin.
He had already finished the first week of the Exercises, all except the
general confession, which I think he will have made since with the blind
Doctor, who is there still. It is something to praise God Our Lord for,
the fruit that good dean produced, even in moving others who were
as hard as stones, so that many even in this city (Speyer) who had
heard of our way of acting through his letters now desire to make the
Exercises.
5. Letter from January 27, 1541. List of people who want to make
the Exercises, including Dr. Cochlaeus.
The emperor's gout has delayed us a bit. I, seeing that delay, have
begun to give the Exercises to the vicar general of this place; we shall
be able to finish the examens at least.
6. Letter from Speyer, February 5, 1541.
Eleven days ago I began to give the Exercises to the vicar general
of the bishop ... He has made all the Exercises of the First Week. He
has got more good out of the First Week than I can say; so much that
he was tempted to go off with me. He is very learned and has been
twenty years in this office. He is very sorry that I have to go away like
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GROUP
the other dean, of Worms, who had also made the Exercises of the
First Week.
Many gentlemen of importance have offered themselves of their own
accord and partly through the Doctor (Ortiz), offered themselves I
mean to make their confession to me and to give me some hours . . .
The Doctor is conquering himself greatly here in visiting certain
persons, inciting them to confession and to do the Exercises. I have
explained the idea of the Exercises to so many people of importance now
that the business is well advanced.
7. Letter from Regensburg, February 25, 1541.
Yesterday I began to give the Exercises to a gentleman of the court,
a doctor in canon law and a very important person. This morning I
began with the ambassador of Portugal for a similar conversation, he
desiring it of his own accord and asking me to begin on Monday explaining things to him for ""an hour or two. There are many others, and more
than I can comply with, who desire my conversation, knowing for what
effect (for the Exercises). Dr. Cochlaeus, who is here on the part of the
King of the Romans and of whom I wrote from Speyer how we had
begun with him, has not arrived yet; I do not want to miss him. Another also, an abbot, asked me in Speyer to begin conversations for
the Exercises. But none of these want the Exercises according to the
the first and principal method (Twentieth Addition). All are content
to give me, over and above the time of explaining the points, an hour
and a half.
This is an {iiteresting comment on the Nineteenth Addition, viz., that
the hour and a half is exclusive of the time of the interview.
The Doctor has to speak this morning to the Duke of Savoy openly
to ask him to make the Exercises, there being no doubt that he will.
But do not talk about these persons in Rome as they might be indignant.
8. Letter from Rcgensburg, March 12, 1541.
With my prince, the Duke of Savoy, I am in very intimate conversation, having arranged to visit him very often ..• The ambassador of
Portugal occupies an hour of my time every day, and another hour
is taken up by a gentleman of his Majesty's chapel, who is called Don
Sanchez de Castillo. This morning I began to give another hour to Dr.
Cochlaeus, who is one of the German Catholics sent to represent the
King of the Romans. He wanted to begin in Worms but did not have
time.
9. Letter from Regensburg, March, 1541.
With an abbot I am going through the Exercises about the general
confession with the greatest satisfaction to him and to me. They call
him Abbot Felice Morone. He is a person of great qualities. But I do
not want this talked about for fear of trouble.
�EXERCISES
147
10. Letter from Regensburg, April 5, 1541.
The confessions prevent me from keeping more than three in the
Exercises of the third order. (Faber divides the Exercises into three
orders, the best being for him the full exercises, and he calls this sometimes the first sometimes the third order. The three orders would be:
the full exercises according to the Nineteenth or Twentieth Addition;
the First Week; the examens and first method of prayer.)
11. Letter from Regensburg, April 20, 1541.
I am so much burdened with confessions, which I cannot refuse, that
I have had to leave my exercitants, and I have not been able to accept
many others who wanted to begin. Dr Cochlaeus, Don Sancho de Castillo
and the Abbot Morone, by name and by many other titles Felix, these
three I say I have had to leave, although I put none of them in the
rigorous elections of the Exercises of the first order. They remain
in their states of life with great desires of serving God Our Lord, both
in themselves and others . . .
Dr. Cochlaeus is now going among some Germans in order that they
may make the Exercises. With the prelates of Germany also he speaks
of spiritual things; although he does not get much good out of some
of them, because they think the particular good of some is of no importance.
12. Letter from Regensburg, May 3, 1541.
Dr. Cochlaeus has given me another German, a licentiate in theology,
representative of the Bishop of Strassburg. He is a person of great
ability for spiritual things in spite of his great learning. I have another
also, nephew of the last king of Granada, a secular, who told me yesterday that he was very determined to take and try all the Additions
to see if he can find tears in his exercise which he does without fail
in the morning. Cochlaeus began two days ago to give the Exercises to
a German bishop, the Bishop of Meissen ... and Don Sancho de Castillo
also has another secular in the Exercises.
13. Letter from Regensburg, May 28, 1541.
All these Spanish gentlemen are ready to make the Exercises: I do
not mean the Exercises of the first rank but all the rest. Dr. Cochlaeus
has already brought his exercitant, the Bishop of Meissen, as far as the
general confession, which he is making today; he is extremely satisfied
with this first part of the Exercises. The Irish Doctor also (El Dr.
Escoto) has brought his three up to the general confession; that is to
say the Bishop of Speyer, a doctor and an abbot.
Don Sancho de Castillo, my first-born in the Exercises in this court
has taken a pair of Spanish gentlemen; however he cannot get them
into shape as he would like in order to go forward, and it is because they
do not feel themselves so honored with him, he being a novice.
Abbot Felice has made a notable reformation. So they have even
Written to Rome about him, saying he has turned to be a Theatine . . .
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GROUP
That German licentiate after having taken the foundations of the general examination fell sick, and he is still sick. To the ambassador of
Portugal and similarly to the son of the Duke of Medinaceli I have given
the general examen and no more because there is no possibility of more
in this place.
These letters are in Fabri llfonumenta (Madrid, 1914).
Letter of St. Ignatius to Fr. Leemus
1. Letter of February 3, 1554, later sent as circular, June 18, 1554.
About the Spiritual Exercises Our Father has commissioned me to
say there should be a record in every group of what you thought right
to adopt with men and also women. (But let the women come to the
church to make the Exercises). He means the Exercises of the First
Week, leaving them some method of praying according to their
capacity. And this is not meant to be with any restriction of persons,
provided they take a few hours in the day for that effect. In this way
the utility of the Exercises can be extended to many, up to the General
Confession and some method of prayer as has been said.
And Our Father says that every week he wants you to write if anything is being done about the Exercises, that is how many are getting
them or how much they are moved to make them, as also of the number
of the scholars. To give the Exercises in full to many is not necessary.
They should be given only to persons who are very capable, as to some
who would be fit for the Society or other persons of importance. To
such they woufd be an extraordinary help, and your time would be well
spent in them.
And let Your Reverence not wonder that Our Father recommends the
Exercises with such insistence, because among. the means which the
Society uses this one is very proper to it, and by. it God Our Lord has
been greatly served in innumerable souls. And the greater part of the
good subjects today in the Society have been led to it by their means.
So it seems to enlarge it with more good subjects this is the best way.
And for married people and other seculars or religious persons also
the Exercises are very useful, especially the First Week. And that is
all about that.
This letter is in llfonumenta lgnatiana VI, 281.
�Alertness To Attitudes
David M. Knight, S.J.
The difference between the popular and technical meanings
of scandal has been so often pointed out that an article on
this subject may seem superfluous. But I believe that a lack
of reflection on this distinction causes one of the great problems of the religious and non-religious life in our day: the
dearth of people who truly and thoughtfully conform to the
ideal of Christianity or of their religious institute, and the
corresponding multiplication of restless people for whom conformity to anything is a suffocation.
Shock and Scandal
We constantly hear that to be scandalized and to be shocked
are not synonymous. But the saying, "A good religious is
never scandalized," has practically come to mean, "A good
religious is never shocked." The first time a newly professed
religious encounters someone violating a rule without any apparent chagrin, he is liable to be asked with a certain condescension, "Does this scandalize you?" The implication is
that, if it does, he is not really mature in the religious life.
And in the literal sense of scandal, this implication would be
justified. But in the sense really intended, being shocked or
surprised is taken as a sign of immaturity and weakness. To
be scandalized means to suffer spiritual harm whereas to be
shocked simply implies that one is disappointed in the unexpected action of another. In this sense a good religious is
never scandalized but may well be surprised.
Now the point is that those who are shocked by the violation
of a rule are seldom scandalized by it; while those who more
or less take these violations for granted are quite often, in
fact, though they would hate to admit it, being scandalized.
To be shocked may indicate a certain lack of experience with
the fallen state of man, but it also testifies to a clearly envisioned ideaL To see someone who professes that ideal acting
against it without apparent regret appears illogical and puzzling-and this very lack of comprehension is also evidence
149
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ALERTNESS
that he who does not understand is. accustomed to acting according to principles; if he accepts an ideal, he lives by it to
the best of his strength; any other attitude is to him unintelligible.
On the other hand, he who accepts it as more or less normal
that a religious should except some rules from his habitual
observance (After all, superiors do not always understand
the situation, and little things generally do not touch the
essence of the vows.) is quite posibly able to accept this either
because his ideals never were high (He never really engaged
himself to follow the religious life in its fulness.) or because
he has lowered them upon coming into an environment where a
more broad-mindeq, interpretation seems the order of the day.
In the latter case, though his pulse has never once doubled
its beat through shock or surprise, he has been, in the literal
sense, scandalized. Such a person quite possibly lived by his
rules in the novitiate because no lower concept of obedience
was presented to him; those who violated the rules did so only
occasionally, on impulse, through weakness, and usually gave
evidence that they considered these violations abnormal; the
goal of perfect observance was not questioned in itself. But
when this same person finds himself in an environment where
perfect observance is rarer and the machinery of public insistance less omnipresent, he tends to take his cue from what he
sees around him. Practically speaking, the level of observance
in the house where he finds himself will determine the level of
his ideal. Such a person is not shocked; he is scandalized.
Explicity Accepted
And to a certain extent, it is precisely because he is not
shocked that he is scandalized: to the extent that is, that his
imperturbability is based, not on a preparedness for the
mediocrity of man, but simply on a lack of explicitly accepted
ideals. It is this lack of explicitness in the adoption, and retention, of ideals that is at the root of the scandal that leads
to mediocrity. The really mediocre man (who is such in ideal,
and not merely in practice, to leave room outside the definition
for those who are weak but striving,) is ordinarily such
because his ideals are determined from without, by what he
sees around him, rather than from within, by his own reflec-
�ATTITUDES
151
tion on and deliberate election of the full way of life proposed
in his institute. Thus the mediocre man is precisely the man
who is not l~nner-directed. His objective level of perfection
may be high-think, for example, of a mediocre member of a
strict religious order-but it is not on the level of the institute,
which remains in part exterior to him, for he has never made
its ideals his own.
Occasionally such a man may pass for a nonconformistbecause he dispenses himself from the observance of the community and does so in the name of individuality. If he is really
choosing his own spiritual path, then we can admit he is
inner-directed. His fault is to refuse all direction, even that
of the institute he has made his own. But more often it is not
the individual who is nonconformist, but rather a group of
conformists who have scandalized each other into a common
modus vivendi contrary to that prescribed by the rules. Independents are seldom included.
At this point two lines of reflection are open to us: the first
on the value of conformity; the second on the need for nonconformity.
Value of Conformity
Conformity has the ring of a bad word nowadays, precisely
because it seems opposed to the ideal of inner freedom, inner
direction, proper to a free and adult human being. No one
wants to be a pawn, even of the holy rule, and one whose life
seems to have been stamped in the same press as a thousand
copies of a rule book risks the appearance of a pawn; he moves
at another's voice, written or oral.
What such a view overlooks is the fact that conformity to
any religious institute cannot possibly be a dead thing, a
robot-like laisser aller for life in the direction the novice
master pointed one. Spiritual writers compare the state of
perfection to a swim upstream. Now this struggle is on the
intellectual level as well as on the voluntary. No one can foresee in the novitiate all the implications of the religious life;
year after year new situations, new problems, new temptations
present themselves, and all of these require reflection, interpretation, and choice. To follow the rule throughout an active
life is roughly equivalent to following a charted course around
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ALERTNESS
the world in an airplane with no more instruments than a map
and a compass: it is possible only at the cost of continual calculation and correction. To pitch the map out the window
may seem at the time a liberating action, but in effect it is a
renouncement of the original course and of the labor and
responsibilities of navigation. It is the failure to retain one's
inner freedom and direction in the face of continuing difficulties.
In the religious life the difficulty consists largely in maintaining alertness to attitudes. An attitude is something that
ordinarily lies unrecognized at the base of a judgment or
choice; its influence is not overt. We judge because of our
attitudes, but we .s~ldom explicitly refer to them in judging.
Thus attitudes are 'equivalent to a headstart in a given direction; they enable us to skip the first few steps in the process
of making a judgment or choice. This is both their strength
and their danger. For attitudes are not always good; and,
what is worse, they are not always recognized. In our day,
perhaps more than before, if the existentialist reaction is any
index, the pressures tending to change man into a groupdirected automation are multiplied: communications media
and the org~nizations using them to impose surreptiously
specific attitudes are but one example; more dangerous is the
influence of daily conversation-itself the product of unrecognized attitudes. The point is that a religious, like the rest of
the world, unconsciously tends to form.:attitudes that are
based on no rational choice, but simply reflect the level of
opinion around him. The falsity of these opinions, where it
exists, is not so much in what is said in the course of their expression, but in what is not said. Criticism of superiors, for
example, based on perfectly true observations but without
any reference to the supernatural aspects of providence or
obedience, can make a religious sour and rebellious without
the need of one false word. A sufficient amount of pleasantry
can sap the importance of serious subjects; and so on. The
difficulty here is that most men, even fervent religious, seldom
refer explicitly to supernatural principles in the course of a
light conversation; hence the danger that our daily converse
will present us with pictures that are true in what they present, but misleading because of what they do not present.
�ATTITUDES
153
If we are not alert, these pictures will tend to form our atti-
tudes. And if the attitudes themselves are not noticed, the
result is a gradual naturalization of our judgments and the
loss of a supernatural outlook. Where these influences are
recognized as influences, intellectually questioned, and faced in
the interior of one's own soul, their danger is no greater than
that of a cross-wind in navigation. Where they are consciously matched against one's accepted ideal they will probably not scandalize. But if that ideal is in itself hazy, and the
religious is not intellectually alert enough to check the attitudes that form in his soul, they can stifle the interior life and
the inner freedom that is its fruit.
Value of Nonconformity
Hence the value of nonconformity. True conformity to the
spirit of one's religious institute almost demands a certain
spirit of nonconformity with regard to the attitudes and
practices that surround one. Nonconformity here means neutrality rather than opposition. Perhaps the spirit intended
would be better described as a sense of personal responsibility
towards Our Lord. This can be carried to extremes, of course,
and we should never forget that the community's interpretation of a law, or of an ideal, is a recognized guide, particularly
for younger religious. But we should also not forget that the
community's true interpretation is not always visible in the
opinions lightly expressed in public. A religious may have
many interior doubts about a course of action he accepts without question in group conversation, just as a superior may,
for various reasons, permit many things in the community
which he recognizes as undesirable. And likewise, as noted
above, it is not rare for a religious to dissimulate a motive
that is lofty or even heroic, and give the impression that he is
following a natural inclination when he does something that
goes beyond common practice. Whether this latter tendency
is good or bad does not concern us here; the point is that it is
often misleading and can lower the ideals of one who accepts
statements at their face value. Therefore a religious should
be alert not to think as the group appears to think without first
weighing this conformity.
There is another type of conformity which is less often
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ALERTNESS
questioned because at first glance it seems to be a virtue. This
is conformity to the practices allowed by superiors themselves.
There is a tendency to classify under the general heading of
obedience or common life both that which the superior commands and that which he permits. Sometimes a religious
feels guilty if he does not make use of a superior's generosity
in matters of recreation, etc. If such a religious lacks sufficient
appreciation of the value of community gatherings, community
charity, etc., one may rightly object. But let us assume that
this value is fully appreciated in the individual's judgment and
in his interpretation of the superior's will. Often the tendency
is to make the guarantees of obedience cover permissions as
well. The implicit r~asoning process is: "A religious can never
incur spiritual harm by obeying; but the superior permits this;
therefore I cannot incur spiritual harm by accepting it." The
fallacy is obvious when one adverts to the argument: to permit
is not to command, but to leave free-and responsible. A permission withdraws any obstacles which the institute may
place against an action, but it does not neutralize the bad
effects that may follow from the action itself. God is not
bound to give a man any extraordinary graces to protect him
from his own_ imprudence. He uses the concession by his own
choice. In most cases there is not even question of a positive
desire of the superior that every individual use the concession.
In any case the superior's judgment is not infallible (Higher
superiors are constantly correcting the .."decision of lower
superiors to obviate the harm that might follow from them.)
and if a subject must refuse to obey even a command because
there is evident sin in it, a fortiori he must more frequently
refuse to make use of a permission because of its negative
results on his spiritual life. Nothing can excuse the subject
from his responsibility to reflect and to choose. Unfortunately,
·many religious tend to blur the distinction between commands
and permissions, and simply renounce any duty to think about
what is permitted.
Minimal Life
The result is a general migration towards the mediocre;
and for obvious reasons: a superior must consider the weak
as well as the strong; he must pitch his decisions to the general
�ATTITUDES
155
level of the community; and, mistrustful of his own judgment,
he often inclines towards leniency. Furthermore, a concession
once made is very hard to withdraw. The result is that concessions tend to accumulate and the minimal life that one can
legitimately lead in the community becomes less and less
austere. The effect of this on the average of austerity in the
house, if fortunately not automatic, is nevertheless normal
enough to give pause.
For example, consider two areas which overlap considerably: poverty and entertainment. How many religious could
face a person called poor in current American speech and
claim the same description for themselves? In terms of personal ownership, independent use of things, and even of money
spent, wholesale prices and common facilities helping to cut
costs, the title is undoubtedly justified. But in terms of the
material things a religious enjoys, a large number would not
have the nerve to make the claim. The fact is that in many religious communities the poverty of the individual is practically
that of a child in a moderately well-to-do family: he must ask
for what he wants, but he will usually get what he asks for.
He has no personal experience of privation. This statement
is too involved to be adequately treated here, but for those
who have felt that their standard of living does not allow them
to say they are poor in the ordinary man's meaning of the
term-in the sense, for example, that the domestics who work
for their community are poor-it serves to pose the question:
can a religious accept all that is commonly available in his
community without sacrificing the ideal of his religious profession? The superior may well provide heat in the winter,
fans in the summer, clothes adapted to various kinds of
weather, transportation that is convenient, meals that are
tasty, working conditions that are comfortable and vacation
opportunities-and this according to the needs and resources
of the community. The superior can hardly do anything else:
his community is made up of some people who suffer extremely
from cold or heat, some who have delicate stomachs, some who
are inclined to nervous tension, some whose work demands
certain conveniences, etc. But it is a rare religious who combines in his own person all the various needs which the
superior must allow for in the community. If an individual
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ALERTNESS
makes use of what is available only according to his real needs,
his personal life may be in the actual sense poor even though
he has at his disposal an ensemble of temporal things no truly
poor person has access to; and this because the poor, too, can
generally supply their particular needs-at the cost of sacrifice in other particulars. I submit that most religious would
find their needs diminishing if they had to make real sacrifices
in order to supply them. But if a religious simply takes what
is available, without deliberately and individually planning
for himself within the community a life deprived of many
things that might truly be considered needs, one wonders about
his ideal. In a certain and sufficiently qualified sense, one
might almost say ~he has been scandalized by his own misunderstanding of what permissions imply of personal responsibility. Complacent in the fact that he is following common
life, asking for no exceptions, and taking no more than what
is made available for all, he might cease to aim at the ideal of
religious poverty. He takes his standard of living from his
environment, without exercising individual choice; and his
poverty is mediocre. In many cases the ordinary man would
not recognize it as poverty at all. This does not, of course,
touch the Old. Testament beatitude: Beatus vir qui post aurum
non abiit, the essential glory of all religious in this matter.
Entertainment
The same process might be applied to entertainment. Without developing this theme, we might question whether the reasons that determine a superior's regulation on radio, television,
movies, pictorial magazines, etc., are valid in the same degree
for every member of the community. If not, then each member
has the responsibility of determining how much use of these
facilities is compatible with the perfection Christ, through
his institute, demands of him. To do simply what the community does may be to renounce the perfection to which he is
called. The fact that a superior permits certain entertainment in the community does not mean he believes the full
limit of his permission is compatible with the ideals of the
institute for every particular member. For example, the
recommendation to use creatures insofar as they help, and to
abstain from them insofar as they hinder one in view of the
�A'ITITUDES
157
end one desires, may well require different responses from
different members of the community-and this merely to be
faithful to the spirit of the institute. To relegate such choices
to the domain of purely personal devotion or supererogatory
mortification, as if all permissions were de facto according to
the spirit of the Institute for everyone, may well amount to
refusing the ordinary perfection to which one is called. It is
certainly not the meaning of common life.
Common life, prescinding from its technical meaning with
regard to poverty consists in living together under obedience,
according to the directions of the institute. It does not mean
abandoning reflection whenever the superior, through permissions, allows a certain amount of self-determination. To
canonize common life in the sense of following the community
even where the community is left free to follow its own choices
is to give up the ideal of inner-direction. It can render one less
open to the inspirations of grace, less apt to penetrate deeply
or to follow perfectly the ideals of the institute, and its final
result may well be mediocrity.
Geographic Distribution of Jesuits
1959
William J. Mehok, S.J.
The explanation of this geographic tabulation of members
of the Society of Jesus is basically the same as that found in
previous surveys. (Woodstock Letters, Vol. 88, No. 3, July
1959, p. 293; Memorabilia Societatis I esu, Vol. X, Fasc. VII,
Martio 1958, p. 171; Vol. X, Fasc. XDI, Maio 1959, p. 315)
This account, therefore, will not repeat what is found there
but will add a few new observations.
Regarding Table 1, our attention had been called to an error
in listing the number of Jesuits living in the Soviet part of
Germany, and a correction has been made this year. Likewise,
Alaska was declared a State during this period and is now included under the United States. Barbados no longer belongs
�158
DISTRIBUTION
to the territory of the mission of British Guiana, but Burma
was opened as a new Jesuit mission. Column 6 gives the total
number of Jesuits from another province, and column 5 tells
how many of these are not applied to the province in whose
territory they dwell. As is seen from the row marked "Place
Unknown," there is still a discrepancy of twenty between
"Ex aliis provinciis" and "Extra provinciam." The reason for
the difference is that persons, even if they live outside the
territory of their own provinces, need not necessarily live in
the territory of another province or at least be included in
this latter's catalogue.
Table 2 brings out certain interesting relationships. Considerations of spae~. necessitated joining Oceania to Asia and
Group II and "Dispersi" to Europe. The discrepancy of fourteen Jesuits between "Prospectus Societatis Iesu Universae,
Ineunte Anno 1959" and row "A. Adscripti" is explainable by
the fact that this survey is of necessity based on province
catalogues, whereas eight provinces give figures that conflict with the "Prospectus." The equation which holds in the
first part of this table (and which should be verifiable in
every province catalogue) is: A + B = C = D + E.
The sum of "Applicati" and "Non-Applicati" in Table 2 is
equal to "B. Ex Aliis Provinciis." (E.g. 2,326 + 4,981 = 7,307)
Mutatis mutandis, "Degentes" and "Novices" are subdivisions
of row "E. Degentes" at the beginning of the table.
Rows F to I of Table 2 need some explanation, and this
can best be given by exemplifying them by column "6. Total".
In the most recent catalogues representing the entire Society,
the total number of rectors and superiors listed in the section
"Ordo Regiminis Superiorum" is given in row F as 1,167.
It would be convenient did this represent an unduplicated list
of immediate superiors such that every Jesuit were subject
to one and only one of them. For several (even legitimate)
reasons there are duplications. Furthermore, certain provinces fail to list some superiors who should appear there.
Hence, a correction must be supplied by adding row "G. Omissions" and subtracting row "H. Duplications" to get such an
unduplicated list of 1,154 most immediate superiors. (1,167
+ 25 - 38 = 1,154) It is to be emphasized that certain duplications are required by the catalogues, as in the case of the
�DISTRIBUTION
159
rector-president-religious superior type of control. In such
cases the chief ranking officer is considered as representing
the one community.
Of these 1,154 immediate superiors, 843 have charge of at
least one school (either belonging to the Society or not) and
311 do not have control of any school. The last line is a quick
index of the relative size of Jesuit communities. Thus, the
average Jesuit rector (superior) has about 30 (29.7) members
in his community including himself.
Table 3 is given because in any survey based on province
catalogues the question arises: "What is meant by Ineunte
Anno 195-?" The rows tell us when the province catalogues
were printed and the columns tell us when at least five copies
were received in Rome. Briefly, the average printing date is
November 17, 1958 for I.A. 1959, and the average delivery
date is December 19, 1958. These averages are not very helpful because a survey cannot be completed until the last catalogue is received sometime in August.
The larger provinces print their catalogues early, so that reports on one-half the Society's membership were in Rome by
December 11, 1958 and two-thirds by February 23, 1959.
Sufficient time has elapsed to check up on a formula for predicting the number of Jesuit priests. (Memorabilia Societatis
Iesu, Vol. X, Fasc. VI, Ianuario 1958, p. 146) The discrepancy
between the actual and expected number this year is 64.
(18,043 - 17,979 = 64) A test applicable to such comparisons
tells us that this large a discrepancy can, in repeated applications, occur between 30% and 50% of the time. This fact
makes a difference of 64 by no means a rare occurrence. It is
easily explainable by normal chance fluctuation, and the
formula is therefore still valid.
This is not the place to go into a detailed account of Jesuit
education, but a few words on the overall change this year
against last are in place. This year twenty-eight more rectors
than last are in control of schools; and the total enrollment
in all schools administered by Jesuits is about 900,000.
The percentage increase for several educational phenomena
in 1959 over 1958 is given in Table 4. Since the Vice Province
of Madagascar has included in this year's catalogue a large
number of schools which formerly existed, but were not re-.
�160
DISTRIBUTION
ported, separate columns are given to cover both contingencies.
The column excluding Madagascar is more characteristic of
what can be expected from year to year. These facts are
immediately evident: reported school enrollment is increasing
faster than the number of Jesuits, and the method of reporting
schools is still in a state of flux.
Table 1. Geographic distribution of 34,279 members of the Society of
Jesus, and of 7,307 Jesuits living in the territory of Provinces not
their own. Year beginning 1959.
COUNTRY
and
CONTINENT
JESUITS LIVING IN COUNTRY
ScholBroth' Priests
astics
ers
TOTAL
1
ENTIRE SOCIETY_ 18,043
34
Algeria ------------Belgian Congo _______ _
193
Cameroons ____________ _
6
31
Egypt ----------------------Ethiopia ______________ _
16
Fr. Equat. Afr. ________ _
32
Madagascar _________ _
185
Mauritius ____________ _
5
9
Morocco --------------Mozambique _-:_________ _
17
Reunion _______________ _
3
Rhodesia-North
57
Rhodesia-South ______ _
72
Ruanda-Urundi ______ _
14
Un. of So. Afr. _________ _
17
AFRICA (15) _______ _
691
British Honduras ___ _
29
Canada ________________ _
664
Costa Rica ______________ _
3
79
Cuba ------------------------Dominican Rep. _______ _
34
El Salvador ____________ _
36
Guatemala ______________ _
15
10
Haiti ------------------------Honduras, Rep. _______ _
13
70
Jamaica ---------------------
2
3
4
10,464
5,772
1
75
1
34,279
37
330
11
40
2
62
4
2
3
4
34
0
1
3
0
8
8
2
0
133
6
301
0
52
4
19
3
0
0
9
7
3
10
73
1
1
10
1
15
21
0
3
222
2
161
0
81
12
19
5
4
0
4
22
46
292
6
11
30
4
80
101
16
20
1,046
37
1,126
3
212
50
74
23
14
13
83
FROM
ANOTHER
PROVINCE:
Not Applied
TOTAL
5
6
4,981
0
8
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
0
11
0
60
0
19
0
5
0
0
0
0
7,307
1
81
1
9
1
12
55
2
1
0
1
27
16
9
0
216
14
90
1
41
14
23
8
0
3
3
1) Priests, 2) Scholastics, 3) Coadjutor Brothers living in country indicated.
4) Total number bf Jesuits living in country indicated.
5) Number of Jesuits living in this country who are members ("adscripti") of a
province other than that in whose territory they are, and who are NOT applied to the
province in which they live.
6) Total number of Jesuits living in the country indicated who are in the territory
of a province to which they are not ascribed.
�161
DISTRIBUTION
COUNTRY
1
2
3
4
Mexico ----------------Nicaragua -----------Panama ------------------Puerto Rico ------------United States.. -------AMERICA, N. (15)_
Argentina ---------------Bolivia -----------------Brazil ------------------British Guiana _________
Chile ---------------------Colombia --------------Ecuador --------------Paraguay --------------Peru -----------------------Uruguay --------------Venezuela --------------AMERICA, s. (11)Burma ---------------------Ceylon ---------------------China-Mainland -----China-Taiwan ---------Hong Kong -------------India --------------------Indonesia ----------------Iraq -------------------Israel -----------------------Japan -----------------------Korea-South -----------Lebanon -------------------Macau --------------------Nepal ---------------------Philippines --------------Portuguese India ----Portuguese Timor ____
Singapore8 --------------Syria -----------------------Thailand ----------------Vietnam ---------------------ASIA (21) --------------Austria ---------------------Belgium ---------------------Denmark -------·------------
258
21
12
17
4,149
5,410
173
39
497
47
120
244
95
21
53
43
85
1,417
5
70
94
143
59
1,136
147
31
2
188
7
90
11
10
280
25
4
7
10
6
9
2,334
274
. 747
26
275
7
5
6
2,845
3,532
168
25
320
1
73
308
151
7
56
26
30
1,165
3
8
0
13
5
759
73
12
0
124
2
10
1
5
200
5
0
0
1
0
0
1,221
128
435
2
120
16
6
2
645
1,077
66
30
328
1
56
132
48
11
44
16
63
795
0
13
42
22
1
358
33
1
3
29
2
26
4
0
49
5
0
0
0
0
1
589
75
116
4
653
44
23
25
7,639
10,019
407
94
1,145
49
249
684
294
39
153
85
178
3,377
8
91
136
178
65
2,253
253
44
5
341
11
126
16
15
529
35
4
7
11
6
10
4,144
477
1,298
32
5
121
0
0
0
1,450
1,655
49
4
136
0
31
58
66
0
5
2
2
353
0
2
0
0
0
521
0
0
5
14
0
6
0
0
12
0
0
0
0
0
0
560
141
128
1
6
143
18
6
5
1,812
2,181
69
11
257
0
57
66
74
5
13
18
41
611
0
16
0
45
7
861
53
2
5
203
1
36
1
7
158
4
0
2
0
1
1
1,403
183
160
6
A Includes Alaska.
B Includes 2 priests living In Federation of Malaya but attached to the Singapore
community.
�162
DISTRIBUTION
COUNTRY
France --------------------Germany-Eastc -------Germany-W estn -----Greece --------------------Ireland, Rep. of ______
Italy, Trieste ----------Luxembourg ------------Malta, Gozo --------Monaco -----------------Netherlands ----------Poland ------------------Portugal -------------------'
Spain --------------------Sweden ----------------Switzerland --------Turkey-Europe -------Un. King.-England____
u. K.-Wales _____________
U. K.-Scotland ________
Yugoslavia -------------EUROPE (23) ------Australia ------------------New Zealand -----------Pacific Islands ________
OCEANIA (3) ------"Dispersa" --------------------
2
1,301
57
583
19
283
1,404
5
31
3
348
274
125
1,524
12
95
2
388
39
35
106
7,681
164
6
24
194
161
GROUP I ( 88) E ------ 17,888
Territory of province (v.p.):
Bohemia (1955) -----76
Romenica (1957) ---9
Slovakia (Approx.) __
67
Place Unknown ________
3
357
0
354
0
172
354
0
44
0
193
189
115
1,555
0
5
0
204
0
1
67
4,175
114
0
4
118
14
10,358
4
3
5
6
163
1,821
62
5
198
1,135
22
3
63
518
626
2,384
5
0
40
115
4
1
92
633
138
601
111
351
1,005
4,084
14
2
20
120
3
1
661
69
13
52
42
6
74
247
2,825 14,681
25
303
6
0
10
38
35
347
93
268
0
16
69
0
594
0
8
2
69
14
0
0
2,399
3
0
0
3
0
5,636 ·33,882
4,981
7,307
-
352
3
244
0
34
723
0
481
5
278
0
35
763
1
3
1
1
19
86
1
725
1
19
3
83
15
0
1
2,869
13
0
13
26
1
53
3
49
1
52
8
60
16
181
20
176
20
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
155
106
136
397
0
0
GRAND TOTAL ______ 18,043
10,464
5,772
34,279
4,981
7,307
GROUP IF ________________
C
Includes Soviet zone of Berlin.
D
Includes West Berlin.
<?Rf?UP I: . All fii~ure~ as given in province catalogues I.A. 1959 except Viceprovmcia Peruv1ana wh1ch IS marked "Anno 1958" although published June 1, 1958.
E
F GROUP II: Fi<:rures given here lack certainty. 1) They are not based on province
catalogu~s I .. A. 1?59. 2) Jes.uits of the three provinces (viceprovinces) are assumed to
be workmg. m. their own tern tory except 61 (47 Priests, 3 Scholastics and 11 Brothers)
who are d1stnbuted throughout GROUP I.
�163
DISTRIBUTION
Table 2. Geographic distribution of 34,279 members of the Society of
Jesus according to different classifications. Year beginning 1959.
Africa
AmericaNorth
South
4,125
1,429
5,554
1,063
4,491
15,717
2,870
18,587
3,241
15,346
34,279
7,307
41,586
7,307
34,279
258
462
354
50
866
354
16
101
471
1,504
486
336
2,326
566
971
118
1,655
54
276
23
353
163
347
53
563
1,108
1,135
156
2,399
1,894
2,736
351
4,981
5,410
3,532
1,077
10,019
1,417
1,165
795
3,377
2,528
1,339
624
4,491
7,997
4,295
3,054
15,346
18,043
10,464
5,772
34,279
754
90
844
276
9
14
233
83
256
65
321
198
7
758
181
2,015
440
2,455
1,167
25
38
1,154
3
Adscripti -----------Ex Aliis Prov. _____ _
Numerantur ______ _
Extra Prov. _________ _
Degentes ____________ _
900
216
1,116
70
1,046
10,277
2,181
12,458
2,439
10,019
3,260
611
3,871
494
3,377
B. Applicati:
Ba. Priests --------------Bb. Scholastics ________ _
Be. Brothers ------------Ba-c Total _______________ _
117
61
27
396
41
89
175
14
69
205
-s26
3
7
1
11
E. Degentes
Ea. Priests _______________ _
691
Eb. Scholastics _______ _
133
Ec. Brothers ___________ _
222
Ea-c Total _______________ _ 1,046
B. Non-Applicati
Bd. Priests _____________ _
Be. Scholastics ______ _
Bf. Brothers _____________ _
Bd-f Total _________________ _
E. Novices
Ebl. Scholastic
Eel. Brother _____________ _
Ebl-cl Total -------------F. Ordo Regiminis ___ _
G. Omissions _____________ _
H. Duplications _______ _
I. Institutions ____________
I. Institutions
Ia. Educational -------lb. Non-EducationaL
Ia-b Total -----------------E/1 SJ's per Inst. ___ _
14
21
35
72
3
8
----m
59
8
67
15.6
Europe,
TOTAL
2
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Asia,
Oceania
Etc.•
5
1
CLASS
316
138
1
5
4
4
201
211
60
271
37.0
• Etc.: Includes "Dispersi" and "GROUP II."
108
26
134
25.2
185
16
201
22.3
9
939
483
5
7
·-ru
280
201
481
31.9
~
843
311
1,154
29.7
�164
DISTRIBUTION
Table 3. Comparison of dates of printing and delivery of 73 province
(viceprovince, independent mission) catalogues. Year beginning 1959.
1958
DELIVERED
PRINTED
1958:
May-June
July-August ____
Sept.-Oct.
Nov.-Dec.
Sept.
Oct.
1
Nov.
Dec.
2
1959
March
April
4
May
June
5
July
Aug.
6
7
TOTAL
1
3
1
1
10
2
24
29
14
12
2
5
15
1959:
Jan.-Feb.
March-April ___ _
May-June
July-Aug.
TOTAL
Jan.
Feb.
3
1
1
1
11
32
17.
4
1
1
1
6
7
2
1
6
3
73
5
N. B. By date of printing is meant the date printed in the back pages of province
catalo~ues as such. By delivery date is meant that on which at least 5 copies of the
catalog-ue were received in the General's Curia in Rome. All catalogues listed here are
marked ulneunte Anno 1959•• except one which was printed in June and received in
December.
Table 4. Percentage increase for entire Society of Jesus in 1959 over
1958 for selected characteristics pertaining "to Jesuit personnel and
schools administered by Jesuits.
PERCENTAGE INCREASE FOR:
MADAGASCAR
Excluded
Included
1
2
Total number of Jesuits -----------------------------------------
0.8%
0.8%
Number of educational institutions.. ---------------------
3.3%
3.4%
Number of schoolsn --------------------·----·---------·----------------
3.4%
23.8%
Total enrollment ------------------------------------------------------
3.4%
11.6o/o
A
I.e. rectors and superiors who have under their charge at least one school.
Integral units of an institution distinguishable principally by level and type of
instruction offered, ownership, and category of students enrolled.
B
�Father Arthur P. McCaffray
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
So often and so well had Father McCaffray made and
preached the Spiritual Exercises, and so thoroughly and undeviatingly had he carried out the principles of those Exercises in his life, that he seemed to be a living embodiment of
the spirit of St. Ignatius. The frequent sight of his small,
spare figure kneeling bolt-upright before the Blessed Sacrament suggested a soldier, rigid at attention before his King,
"prompt and diligent to accomplish His most holy will." His
life bears witness that to every request of His Divine Master
his answer was a quick and whole-hearted "Yes."
Born in the city of Brooklyn to Jane Peck and Arthur
S. McCaffray, on July 4, 1876, the hundredth anniversary of
the Declaration of Independence, in his later years he would
fondly recall that he was a centennial baby. The opening of
the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 made p0ssible and comparatively
rapid the trip by horse-car from Brooklyn Heights to Union
Square, and the McCaffrays enrolled their young son in the
College of St. Francis Xavier on 16th Street. Chartered as
a university, Xavier had the majority of its 500 students in
what we would now call its elementary school and its high
school. Young Arthur passed through those divisions and
had completed his freshman year in the college when he left
Xavier to answer the call of his Master.
On August 14, 1893 he entered the novitiate at Frederick
in Maryland. Completing his Juniorate in 1897, he transferred to Woodstock College for his years of philosophy. With
the new century he began his regency, then ordinarily a period
of five years of teaching in several institutions. His first two
years he spent at his beloved Xavier, teaching high school
Latin and German. In his next two years at St. Joseph's High
School in Philadelphia, he added mathematics to the subjects
he taught, and in his final year he taught the same subjects
to the freshmen of St. Joseph's College.
In 1905 Mr. McCaffray returned to Woodstock for his
theological studies. There he was ordained priest on July
165
�166
FATHER lUcCAFFRAY
30, 1908 by James Cardinal Gibbons, Archibishop of Baltimore. On the completion of his fourth year of theology in
1909, the young priest returned to the classroom as professor
of rhetoric at Boston College. In the summer of 1911 he entered St. Andrew-on-Hudson to begin his tertianship. His
stay at the novitiate probably was much longer than he had
anticipated, for after his tertianship he remained there for
four years, during which on February 2, 1913 he made the
profession of four vows, as teacher of the rhetoricians.
In 1916 Fr. McCaffray returned to his old college, but now
with a new name and in a new location. For Xavier College
had, some years before, been transferred across the East River
to Crown Heights' and renamed Brooklyn College. But the
transplanted school failed to strike deep roots and during the
First World War suffered a drought of students. During his
two years as instructor of freshmen, Fr. McCaffray saw his
Alma Mater wither and die. While the college closed in 1918,
Fr. McCaffray remained another year as prefect of studies of
the Brooklyn Preparatory School. In 1919 he moved to New
England to take up the post of prefect of studies at Boston
College.
He did not long tarry in the Athens of America, for the
English-speaking Jesuits of Canada had appealed to the
Maryland-New York Province for an experienced spiritual
director to train their young aspirants. In 1920 Father McCaffray assumed the office of master of novices at St. Stanislaus Novitiate at Guelph, Ontario. The decade known as the
Roaring Twenties he spent quietly instilling in the hearts of his
novices the principles of the Exercises which had moulded his
whole life. His former novices obviously remembered him
with respect and affection, for when in New York City in
recent years they invariably sought out their old master.
In 1929 Father McCaffray returned to his own province
as pastor of St. Alphonsus Church and procurator of Woodstock College. But he was more interested in guiding souls
than in keeping books and within a year he transferred to the
novitiate at Wernersville as spiritual father of the Juniors.
He was then in his middle fifties, a time of life when some
men will admit at least the approach of middle age and few
will consider a new career. But Father McCaffray, with the
�FATHER McCAFFRA Y
167
body of a young man and a spirit to match, hoped to fulfill a
long felt desire to work on the foreign missions. And he
wanted the hardest post at the disposal of his provinciala mission among pagans in the bush of Mindinao. No doubt
with some trepidation the provincial granted him his request.
In 1932 he sailed joyfully for the Philippines. A year was
granted him to learn Visayan, and he spent it among the pitiful
patients of the Cebu leper colony. Yet Anno Domini had
taken its toll and his assaults on the difficult Oriental language were repulsed.
In his new country, since he could not preach to the Filipinos
in their native tongue, he turned once more to the work of
spiritual direction in which he had been so successful in the
United States and Canada. In 1933-1934 he filled the offices of
spiritual father, librarian and instructor in history to the
Juniors in Novaliches. A wider field was opened to his talents
when he transferred as spiritual father to the Ateneo de
Manila. There he filled his days and his years hearing confessions, giving conferences, preaching sermons and directing
retreats for Ours, for congregations of religious and for the
laity.
As he was completing his first decade of years in the Philippines, the shadows of war lengthened over the archipelago
and shadows, too, darkened the eyes of Father McCaffray. In
his first vows, he had offered his King his body and his soul.
That athletic body, a good instrument in Our Lord's service,
he had kept in splendid shape. Indeed in his middle sixties he
still played a vigorous game of tennis. And it was during
a tennis match that he first noticed that his eyes were failing.
Shortly after the occupation of the Philippines by the
Japanese armed forces, superiors judged it advisable to open
a temporary theologate in the islands. Consequently in 1942
the College of St. Robert Bellarmine was created, and Father
McCaffray assumed the post of its spiritual director. The
theologians were several times compelled to shift quarters
within Manila, and Father McCaffray moved with his scholastics. In 1943 the theologians finally joined the American
Jesuits confined under house arrest at the Ateneo de Manila.
There Father McCaffray celebrated his golden jubilee in the
Society. His thanksgiving to God cannot but have had sombre
�168
FATHER 1\lcCAFFRAY
overtones for both patriotic and personal reasons. His eyesight had continued to fail. Cataracts were successfully removed from both eyes, only to be replaced by the more dread
glaucoma. Father's vision faded into almost total darkness.
Towards the end of 1944, with his fellow American Jesuits at
the Ateneo, this blind septuagenarian was interned by the
Japanese in the prison camp at Los Bafios. Released by the
American army at the end of February 1945, Father McCaffray returned to the United States.
Back home, he took up residence at 16th Street, where he
was to remain for over ten years. Never once in those years
did he complain about his blindness. Indeed only with extreme
rarity did he so mrich as mention it, and then only in passing.
He still had a str~dhg body and a clear mind to devote to the
service of his King. With the permission granted by the
Papal Nuncio in the Philippines, he could still say Mass, and
he said it daily. He could still pray, and at any hour of the
day and most of the hours of the night, he could be found before the Blessed Sacrament. At times he could be seen drooping with fatigue; but invariably he pulled himself erect and
once more directed his sightless eyes towards the tabernacle.
He could still preach, and in the years noon-day Mass was
offered daily in the church Father McCaffray would be
guided to the pulpit as the priest approached the altar, and
he would preach till the Sanctus bell told him to stop. He
could still hear confessions, and the other confessors could
guide him to and from his box. He could· still counsel souls,
and he could find his own way to the parlors. Indeed he
travelled up and down the stairs in the residence at a pace that
left many a much younger man behind, puffing and apprehensive. He could still give conferences and retreats, and he went
forth to give them. Nor would he accept the services of a
socius. His last retreat was given in New Orleans, where he
had found his way without a travelling companion. Since
there he had fallen and broken his arm, his retreat work came
to an end. He could still, however, counsel souls far from
New York City, and he did by means of letters.
He obviously feared being a burden on anyone. The only
service he would daily request was that some passer-by outside
his door would come in and read him his points for the next
�FATHER McCAFFRAY
169
day's meditation. He had to allow his neighbors at meals to
assist him. At breakfast on fast days, this consisted in giving
him a slice of dry bread and a cup of black coffee. It was
affecting on entering his room to see his few shreds of clothing
washed and hanging on a line he had rigged up, and the blind
old man fumbling repairing the holes in his ancient sox.
His King had yet another cross to offer to Father McCaffray. As his eightieth birthday approached, increasingly
he had to be prompted during his Mass by the priest who assisted him. Increasingly he stopped, confused and lost, on the
corridors and stairs he had travelled so swiftly and confidently.
In the spring of 1956, Father McCaffray was brought to
the infirmary at Shrub Oak. His body too had begun to show
the passage of time. For several years he still came to recreation and joined in the conversation of the fathers. He took his
daily walk on the arm of one of the devoted brothers infirmarian or of the scholastics who vied to assist him. In the
summer of 1958 he was present in the sanctuary and closely
followed the Solemn High Mass which celebrated his double
and rare jubilee-his sixty-fifth year as a Jesuit and his
fiftieth year as a priest. Thereafter his physical deterioration
was rapid. In the last few months of his life, he had only
flashes of lucidity and his worn-out body was confined to bed.
Throughout his life, Father McCaffray had said "Yes" to
whatever his Lord had asked of him,-his years of hard
service, his eyes, his mind. In his last weeks, this habit of a
lifetime perdured. Whenever anyone spoke to him, his only
answer was "Yes." On this note of affirmation and acceptance
he passed, on February 15, 1959, to his well-earned reward.
Father Hugh J. McLaughlin
John J. Killeen, S.J.
Hugh J. McLaughlin was born December 9, 1888 in Erie,
Pennsylvania, the son of Hugh and Mary Collins McLaughlin.
Orphaned at an early age, he was reared by his grandmother
who resided in Buffalo, and who saw to it that her grandson,
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FATHER McLAUGHLIN
in addition to the ordinary schooling, was given the opportunity to take lessons on the piano and the organ. As a young
student at Canisius High School he would occasionally accompany one of the Fathers on Sundays to a rural parish in Kenmore or Williamsville, over which the Jesuits at Canisius had
temporary charge, to act as sacristan and to play the organ
at the parochial Mass. In the Society he frequently played
the organ at benediction in the various communities in which
he lived.
Upon completion of high school studies, Hugh McLaughlin
entered the Novitiate of St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie,
August 13, 1909. There and at Woodstock he completed the
usual training of tbe Jesuit scholastic. Four years of regency
were spent at Regis"High School, New York, where he taught
the subjects frequently assigned to the class teachers at that
time, Latin, Greek, English and mathematics. One group of
boys he taught for two years, moving up with them from third
to fourth year. This prolonged association with the same
group gave him the opportunity to know his boys well and
provided the basis for many lifelong friendships which he
greatly cherished.
For theologjcal studies Mr. McLaughlin returned to Woodstock in 1920. He was ordained to the priesthood at Georgetown University June 23, 1923 by Archbishop Curley of Baltimore. His first assignment as priest was to Brooklyn Prep
where he taught fourth high and was shtdent counselor for
two years. The work of student counselor seemed to be what
he liked best, as he so frequently spoke of it in later years.
Often he called on the Scholastics to help him promote many
little schemes to incite enthusiasm for spiritual activities
among the boys. He was never bashful about soliciting the
aid of the younger members of the community in carrying
out his projects, as those who were Scholastics at Brooklyn
Prep during that period will attest. For his part, Father McLaughlin readily acknowledged the generous help he received
from them and was lavish in his praise of his Scholastic assistants.
Tertianship at Tullamore, Ireland, followed and then five
years as teacher and student counselor at the Ateneo de
Manila in the Philippines. In 1932 he was recalled to the
�FATHER 1\lcLAUGHLIN
171
Province and assigned to teach Greek literature and evidences
of religion at Canisius College, Buffalo. The classroom continued to be his field of labor for the next eight years; teaching literature, especially poetry, was a task which he found
very congenial. At times he took to composing verse and he
could always be counted on for a poetical contribution to the
program whenever one of his elder brethren was celebrating
a jubilee.
In the autumn of 1940 Father McLaughlin was unexpectedly
transferred to a different kind of work. The community at St.
Francis Xavier's, 16th Street, was without a Father Minister
and he was chosen to fill the vacancy. The sudden change was
somewhat of a shock not only to Father McLaughlin, but also
to at least one of his friends. Years later, when he met this
friend again in Buffalo, she expressed delighted surprise and
explained: "Why you know, Father, when you went away from
Buffalo I heard that you even left the Church and became a
minister!" The material details which consume so much time
and effort of the minister of a large community constituted a
world unexplored to one who had spent many years in the
company of the muses on Parnassus. It is to Father McLaughlin's credit that he took the jolt in stride, in a spirit of true,
supernatural obedience, and applied himself energetically to
the duties of his new office. He was gracious in his hospitality
to the many visitors constantly knocking at the doors of 16th
Street. It was here also that he found occasion to exercise
his flare for decorating. For Christmas and other festal occasions he was always well ahead in his plans for decorating
the refectory and recreation rooms-plans which were conceived on a rather lavish scale. For their execution he leaned
heavily, as was his custom, on the younger members of the
community. At times the Scholastics must have wished that
they had a Father Minister whose decorative tastes leaned a
little more toward the side of simplicity.
One of his accomplishments which Father McLaughin
looked back upon with special pleasure took place during 1945
while he was minister at 16th Street. At the end of World
War II a plea came from Rome for food and household supplies
for the Jesuits in Rome and other centers of Europe who had
been impoverished by the ravages of war. Father McLaughlin.
�172
FATHER 1\lcLAUGHLIN
took this not only as an appeal; he took it as a challenge.
For he was an indefatigable and unblushing beggar when it
came to helping those in distress. Uninhibited by any timorousness, he made the rounds of one big wholesale house after
another in the byways and lanes of the textile district of lower
Manhattan, always insisting on interviewing the top official
of each place that he visited. Some of these were so taken
by surprise at this unaccustomed visitor, with his still more
unaccustomed request, that they doled out donations of materials almost before they had a chance to realize what they
were doing. It was with a great deal of pride that Father
McLaughlin consigned literally tons of supplies to his needy
brethren in Europ~,' and of course the shipping was also done
gratis.
··
In December 1945 Father McLaughlin was named Superior
of St. Ignatius House of Studies, Inisfade, where he remained
four years in charge of that residence. In December 1949, he
was assigned to St. Michael's, Buffalo, as operarius. The annual status of 1950 brought him an assignment to the province
retreat band, a work which seemed to appeal to him deeply
and to which he devoted himself with great energy and zeal
for the ensuing six years. He continued in residence at St.
Michael's for-another year until the demolition of the old rectory and the Canisius High School buildings forced him to seek
quarters at St. Ann's. From 1953 to 1956 Father McLaughlin's home station was at Canisius College where he had
formerly spent eight years as a member of the teaching staff.
A heavy retreat schedule, however, kept him almost constantly
on the move so that his sojourns with the Canisius community
were neither frequent nor prolonged. During the winter of
1956 Father McLaughlin was giving a retreat in a convent
in New Jersey when he was taken ill quite suddenly and had
to return to Canisius while a substitute was called to finish the
retreat. Immediately on his arrival he was examined by a
doctor and taken to Kenmore Mercy Hospital. At first it was
thought he might have suffered a slight stroke since he lost
partial control of his left leg and dragged it somewhat when
he walked. Tests, however, showed there had been no stroke
but the exact cause of Father's trouble could not be determined. The ensuing months brought consultation with several
�FATHER l\lcLAUGHLIN
173
specialists both in Buffalo and elsewhere; no remedy that was
tried produced favorable results. It finally became apparent
that he was a victim of muscular dystrophy which affected the
muscles of the left leg. Slowly his condition deteriorated and
he was forced to wear a metal brace. Clearly his days of travel
in retreat work were at an end. Frequently Father McLaughlin said that the thing he dreaded most was to be reduced to
a condition where he could no longer work; he wanted to
keep busy in some useful occupation. No doubt it was for this
purpose that in the autumn of 1956 he was assigned once
more as an operarius at St. Michael's where he occupied a
room on the first floor of the newly finished rectory, close to
the domestic chapel for his daily Mass and only a short distance from his confessional in the church. There he continued
to work as best he could for several months but the leg muscles
continued to waste away and eventually he had to give up his
parlor and confessional work completely.
In the spring of 1957, Father McLaughlin was moved to the
infirmary of Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak, where the care
he needed was devotedly provided. Resigned to the fact that
he could no longer take part in the active apostolate, he settled
contentedly among his brethren in his new environment.
No one suspected how short this last phase of his life would
be. On the morning of August 3rd the Brother Infirmarian
noticed that quite a change had come over Father McLaughlin
and notified Father Rector, who went to the infirmary to investigate. Father McLaughlin seemed convinced that he was
merely having a weak spell which would soon pass, and so he
was left undisturbed in his room. A few hours later the
Brother Infirmarian detected a still more marked change in
Father's condition and again informed Father Rector who
immediately summoned the house doctor from Peekskill. The
doctor confirmed Brother Infirmarian's suspicions and
ordered an ambulance to take Father McLaughlin to St. Agnes
Hospital in White Plains. Meanwhile the last rites had been
administered. Strangely enough it was not muscular dystrophy but a heart attack which wrought such a sudden change in
Father's condition. He expired just as the ambulance reached
the hospital in White Plains. Three days later several relatives
from Erie,. Pennsylvania, and friends from Buffalo and New
�174
FATHER l\lcLAUGHLIN
York City attended the funeral Mass in the chapel of Loyola
Seminary. Burial was at St. Andrew where young Hugh McLaughlin had begun his religious life just forty-eight years
before.
Father John J. Colligan
E. A. Ryan, S.J.
John Colligan was a native of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and
made his secondary·studies at St. Thomas College in that city.
In 1899 he enrolled at Holy Cross College, Worcester, Massachusetts, graduating with an A.B. degree in 1903. After
theological studies at St. Bernard's seminary, Rochester, N.Y.,
he was ordained by Bishop Michael J. Hoban on June 30, 1906.
Father Colligan remained in the Scranton diocese for nine
years. He was curate of Father Patrick J. Colligan at Sacred
Heart Church in Plains, Pennsylvania, for a year and of
Father John Costello at the Church of the Annunciation in
Williamsport,~ Pennsylvania, for three years. In 1910 he was
appointed to begin an Italian mission in Wyoming, Pennsylvania, where Father Patrick Quinnan, who also became a
Jesuit later on, was pastor of St. Cecilia~s Church. In the
1911 Catholic Directory the Wyoming address is replaced by
that of West Pittston and Father Colligan is listed as pastor
of the Church of the Immaculate Conception. He had organized a national parish in West Pittston.
When Father Colligan announced to his parishioners in
1915 that he was entering the Jesuit Order, one of them, Mr.
X, an Italian by birth, did all he could to prevent it. He appealed to the Bishop who had, of course, already given his consent. Mr. X, thereupon, went to Washington and lodged a
protest with the Apostolic Delegate. He even persuaded Archbishop Falconio to intervene. But the intervention came too
late. Father Colligan had entered the Novitiate of St. Andrewon-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, New York, on September 18, 1915.
It is interesting to learn that Mr. X and his family remained
Father Colligan's devoted and lifelong friends.
�FATHER COLLIGAN
175
Father Colligan was initiated into the Jesuit life by Father
George Pettit who was then completing his tenure as master
of novices. During the second year of his noviceship Father
Colligan taught second year high at Boston College High
School, Boston, Massachusetts. He then spent five years at
Woodstock College, Maryland, reviewing philosophy and theology, passing his Ad gradum examination in 1922.
For nearly thirty years Father Colligan taught various
philosophical branches at Holy Cross College, Fordham University, Georgetown University, and St. Joseph's College. During this period he published a brief text of the cosmology
course. He was also, for two years, Father Minister at St.
Andrew-on-Hudson where all were impressed by his kindness.
During his latter years as a Jesuit, spiritual direction occupied Father Colligan increasingly. He was spiritual father
of Ours at St. Joseph's College High School, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, and at Georgetown University. At Woodstock
he was assistant spiritual father of the theologians for three
years during which time he gave the community exhortations.
During the last year of his life he was spiritual director of the
theological students at the seminary of Mt. St. Mary's Emmitsburg, Maryland. For years also he was a much appreciated
retreat master and guide in many communities of religious
women.
As a spiritual counsellor, Father Colligan was kind and brief.
His advice was clear and to the point. He usually did not take
the initiative in the dialogue, leaving that to his client. Confronted with a real problem, however, he showed a wealth of
wisdom and patience. His exhortations at Woodstock were
spiritual and practical, distinguished more for feeling and
humor than for reasoning or theoretical developments.
All who knew Father Colligan well considered him a true
religious and a deeply spiritual man. When absorbed in
prayer, a not infrequent phenomenon, he seemed at times immersed in spiritual light. Naturally inclined to silence, he
cultivated hiddenness and humility and was, without a trace
of scrupulousity, a man of exceptional purity of conscience.
Many considered him saintly.
Father Colligan left behind notes of sermons, conferences
and retreats. They had a penetratingly spiritual quality and
�176
FATHER COLLIGAN
revealed a disciplined and methodical mind. The date and
place of presentation was carefully marked in almost all instances, the division of topics, precise, orderly, logical, must
have made for simple and easy presentation. These notes
showed that Father Colligan read spiritual books very extensively. He apparently digested everything he read with a view
of improving his guidance of others. His deep personal piety
is clearly reflected in the choice of material. That all this
preparation penetrated his own thought and conduct is an
obvious conclusion and one attested, as we have seen, by his
intimates.
The extent of Father Colligan's apostolic activity is revealed in the wide distribution of his notes. They cover
novenas, retreats, sermons, conferences given to Ours, to
priests, and especially to communities of religious women,
over a very extensive territory.
Like so many notes of this kind, Father Colligan's proved,
for the most part, too sketchy for publication. They required
the development which an accomplished public speaker easily
gives. Even those that were more developed would have acquired their effectiveness from the voice, demeanor, and personal touch of the preacher or retreat master who gave them.
Father Colligan died at Mercy Hospital, Baltimore, on September 11, 1959, after a short illness. He was buried at
Woodstock.
_.
�Books of Interest to Ours
SUFFICIENT REASON UNDER FIRE
The Principle of Sufficient Reason in Some Scholastic Systems, 1750-1900.
By John Edwin Gurr, S.J. Milwaukee: Marquette University Press,
1959. Pp. 196. $6.00.
Ever since Gilson's challenging article, "Les principes et les causes,"
in the Revue thomiste for 1952, it has been an open secret that the principle of sufficient reason, long accepted as the second great pillar of
modern Scholastic philosophy after the principle of contradiction, has
been undergoing searching critical reassessment by contemporary
Thomists. The principle never functioned formally and explicitly in
the systems of any of the great Scholastics. It appeared first in Scholastic textbooks of philosophy around 1750, under the openly admitted
_ influence of Leibniz and Wolff, and has been consecrated in our time
as a primary bastion of traditional Thomism by the works of GarrigouLagrange. Yet the vigor with which it has been affirmed has been
matched only by the elusiveness and ambiguity of its meaning (or
rather its spectrum of meanings) and the difficulty of pinning down
its metaphysical and epistemological roots. Garrigou-Lagrange's own
"classic" attempt to justify it by reduction to the principle of contradiction has finally been identified by the present author (for the
first time in print, to my knowledge, though known for some years in
the trade) as an uncomfortably close adaptation of the reduction of
reality to thought found in Africanus Spir, a late nineteenth-century
German proponent of rationalistic idealism.
The present volume, the fruit of a Ph.D. thesis at St. Louis University, is a welcome and valuable first piece of spade-work in laying
bare the historical background of this key principle in modern Scholastic
teaching as reflected in the standard manuals from 1750 to 1900. The
author has done an immense amount of work in tracing down and
combing through several hundred musty but still strangely fascinating
(and at times not a little disturbing) old textbooks that did so much
to mold the modern Scholastic tradition before the results of the contemporary rediscovery of St. Thomas himself began to make themselves
felt at the textbook level.
The conclusions of the author's all too brief exploratory survey of the
field are concentrated in the final chapter. They may be summed up as
follows. Although the Scholastic writers who used the principle repudiated the context of Leibnizian rationalism and quasi-determinism
out of which it was born, it has always retained overtones of a rationalistic cast of mind oriented toward the primacy of essence, abstract
conceptual analysis, and deductive reasoning from concepts over the
order of concrete existence and the method of discovery of principles by
induction from experience. In fact, the more pronounced the bent
177
�178
BOOK REVIEWS
towards rationalism and essentialism, the author claims, the more central and honored has been the role of the principle and the earlier its
occurrence in the system, in imitation of Wolff's own practice. Secondly,
the principle has always retained a characteristic vagueness, ambiguity,
and neutrality in its meaning which has permitted it to take on the
coloring of whatever system it functions within, whether idealist or
realist, essentialist or existentialist. As a result, it is impossible to
assign any definite and fixed meaning to it outside of its use by a given
author, and even there it is not always easy-surely a serious weakness
in a supposedly self-evident first principle.
Though a valuable ground-breaking contribution, the author's own
work suffers from the inevitable weakness of its excessive brevity in
touching on so many writers in only 150 pages of evidence. Thus the
rather sweeping general indictments put down in the conclusion are
not always adequq_tely substantiated by the meagre evidence made
available to the read.er in the text, though they may well be by the
author's own wider reading in his material.
W. NORRIS CLARKE, S.J.
SEQUEL TO "I'LL DIE LAUGHING"
Smile at Your Own Risk! By Joseph T. McGloin, S.J. Milwaukee:
Bruce Publishing Co., 1959. Pp. 147. $2.95.
The subject of Father McGloin's latest is life within the typical
Jesuit High School, with examples supplied, courtesy of Regis High,
Denver. Once again, his light literary touch and Mr. Don Baumgart's
delightfully disrespectful sketches make for an entertaining volume.
Lest one WQnder why the author of "I'll Die Laughing" now counsels
you to «Smile at Your Own Risk," Father McGloin hastens to explain
that the later title is a more universal way of expressing the old advice
of "Don't smile till Christmas." After introductory chapters sketching
Jesuit origins, ideals and training, individual chapters treat the manner,
motive and matter of Jesuit high school teachiii.g, the schools' teachers
and those taught, with excursions into the subjects of extracurriculars
and discipline.
Who will like reading this book? Certainly alumni, older and younger,
will enjoy reliving 'the good old days', and our present students will
see our efforts to educate them in a fresh light-though you, their
teacher, will have to suffer the disadvantage of their being cognizant
now of more of the trade secrets. We Jesuits, being a peculiar breed,
will probably read the book with a critical eye, and thus note the lack
of finely drawn precisions here and there. We might wish for example,
that the motive of love behind obedience were more stressed, and the
relation between prayer and activity (rather than their opposition) more
closely drawn. But the author, knowing us well, has his answer for
such a one: "I would suggest that, instead of blowing his top, he write
his own book." If this sage and zealous advice is followed, the amateur
author will face some high hurdles, e.g.: explaining the subject of vocation as simply and as profoundly as do pages twenty-one and twentytwo; being as humorous and as perceptive in describing incidents and
�BOOK REVIEWS
179
familiar institutions.
This humorous review of American Jesuit high schools should gain a
full circle of readers. Perhaps its appeal would be even wider if it
were more obviously catholic and contemporary. Thus the lie would
be given to any false impressions that Jesuits and their high schools
consider themselves totally unique in these days of heroic and booming
Catholic educational efforts, or that they are so satisfied with the past
as not to be rethinking their traditions in the light of the critical present
and ominous future.
JAMES A. O'BRIEN, S.J.
ANCIENT PHILOSOPHY
A History of Ancient Philosophy. By Ignatius Brady, O.F.M. Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1959. Pp. 261. $5.00.
This undergraduate textbook, the first of a three volume set, is devoted
to a survey of ancient philosophy with an emphasis on the history of
metaphysics in the Greek tradition. The main sections cover Greek
thought, later Hellenistic developments, and the Oriental Scholasticism
of the Arabian and Jewish heirs of Plato and Aristotle. This latter section carries the history of Greek thought well beyond ancient times into
the medieval period, a departure from the usual order of treatment.
In this respect the work is more than a history of ancient philosophy.
Still, it enables Father Brady to trace the subsequent influence of Plato
and Aristotle in philosophical circles outside the Christian tradition.
(The second volume of the series will be devoted to Christian philosophy.)
The picture is completed with a few short, but highly important sections,
covering philosophy's "pre-history" among Hebrew, Egyptian, Indian,
and Chinese religious thinkers. These sections are necessarily brief but
provide some much needed corrective dimensions to the usual picture
of the origin of Greek philosophy, although this reviewer would have
wished for a more extensive treatment of the relationship between religious and philosophical thought. There is likewise a general introduction which covers the why, what and how of the history of philosophy.
There are three serviceable appendices and a select bibliography.
The textbook, granting the inevitable brevity and schematic treatment proper to a work of this kind, is both thoughtful and scholarly.
Father Brady quite rightly tries to avoid the impression that he is
simply recording a long series of diverse, often contradictory answers to
the main philosophical questions. He is aware of the need of showing
organic development and unity. Whether such a development can be
as easily communicated to undergraduates is, of course, another question. As elsewhere, a difficult balance must be struck between factual
information and principled, universalized understanding. For this any
textbook needs the animated, intelligent handling of an experienced
teacher, as does any tool.
The book's biggest drawback, however, is a very practical consideration. Inasmuch as this textbook is but the first of a three volume set, one
can foresee a total financial outlay of some $15. It is rather difficult to
believe that this consideration will not play a large, even perhaps disproportionate, part in deciding for or against using Father Brady's
�180
BOOK REVIEWS
text. Those whose decision it will be may well weigh whether Father
Brady's treatment is that far superior to, say, Thonnard's one volume
precis, as to warrant the additional expense. Expense aside, however,
the book deserves recommendation as a complete and thoroughly competent history of ancient philosophy which is sure to find use as a reference work in any college library.
HARRY R. BURNS, S.J.
ST. THOMAS ON PRUDENCE
Prudence. By Josef Pieper. New York: Pantheon Books, 1959. Pp.
95. $2.75.
Those who are acquainted with Josef Pieper's previous works on the
virtues of justice, fortitude and temperance will know what to expect
from these four essays on the virtue of prudence. They are not a detailed
Scholastic analysis of prudence but rather a series of meditations on
the text of St. Thomas. The first of these essays locates prudence in the
hierarchy of virtues, and will perhaps be of little use unless one consults
the many references given to the text of St. Thomas. A second essay
sketches the "integral parts" of prudence, in order to expose the preeminently intellectual character of the prudential judgment. Pieper
then distinguishes prudence from casuistry and shows that casuistry,
while necessary for the confessor, nevertheless presents a serious
danger to the development of prudence. The last essay discusses the relationship of prudence to the other moral virtues and to the theological
virtue of charity. ~
Pieper's essays are deceptively brief. Just as they were meditatively
written, so they must be read reflectively. A first quick reading may
well leave the reader with the feelings of the Scholastics at Coimbra,
who were satisfied as to the necessity of obedience~but still asked how
it might be acquired. Pieper seems to presume that his reader is aware
of the whole Thomistic analysis of the interplay of intellect and will in
practical reason and in freedom, and for this reason the book does not
seem to be good introductory reading on the virtue of prudence. As
advanced reading, however, these four essays will be especially valuable
as a supplement to courses in ethics and in guidance. The prudential
judgment is a key element in Thomistic ethics, and is perhaps also an
important point of contact between Thomism and contemporary existentialism. Those who have their doubts, and especially those who have
judged Thomistic ethics from manuals written with only a reverential
nod to the Pt·ima Secundae and the Secunda Secundae will perhaps be
surprised to find Pieper accurately describing prudence as "situation
conscience." So too, those who see in Thomistic ethics only a collection
of conclusions deduced from an objective natural law may not expect to
find that "the immediate criterion for concrete ethical action is solely
the imperative of prudence in the person who has the decision to make.
This standard cannot be abstractly construed or even calculated in advance; abstractly here means: outside the particular situation."
Pieper's book alone will not provide a full analysis of the virtue of
prudence. But if he awakens us to problems which we have tended to
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overlook and opens the way to a reconsideration of the significance of
prudence, then this book will be well worth the careful reading which
it requires.
JoHN W. HEALEY, S.J.
CHARITY IN MORAL THEOLOGY
The Primacy of Charity in Moral Theology. By Gerard Gilleman, S.J.
Translated by William F. Ryan, S.J., and Andre Vachon, S.J. Westminster: The Newman Press, 1959. Pp. xxxviii-420. $5.50.
This marks the first appearance in English of the remarkable work
of Pere Gilleman. The book has reached its second edition in French, of
which this is the translation, and its first in Spanish. It has won the
acclaim of scholars at each new appearance.
Originally it was a doctoral dissertation completed in 1947 with
Fathers G. de Broglie and Rene Carpentier of the Society as its mentors.
The first published edition came out in 1952, to be soll out within a
year. Revision for the second edition was undertaken by Father Carpentier with the approval of the author, who had since taken up his missionary labors in Kurseong.
The grand theme of the work is not new. It is "the first and greatest
commandment" of the Master himself, "the greatest of these is charity"
of Paul, the love theme so central to Augustine, the caritas forma
virtutum omnium of Aquinas. The orchestration of the theme, however,
is decidedly the author's own. What he has done is to synthesize within
the Thomistic metaphysical scheme the data of reason and revelation on
love.
The doctrine is basically the appetite-union-ecstasy theory of Saint
Thomas, brought together into a unified whole such as Aquinas himself
did not achieve. But the author has enriched his presentation-and this
is his major contribution-with the concepts of the person, intersubjectivity and mediation from modern philosophies. All of this, impregnated
with the data from Holy Scripture, the teachings of the magisterium,
the theological treatises on the Incarnation and the Trinity, makes
natural love blossom into love-charity.
The reader should not, then, expect to find here either the ready source
of sermon material, the moral theology of the confessional or even a
mere positive theology of charity. This is speculative theology at its
best. Indeed, the author's declared purpose is to make moral theology
conscious of its soul and animating force, to establish it more solidly on
its theological underpinnings.
Father Gilleman does not, however, remain in the depths of metaphysics or the heights of supernatural mystery. In Part III, roughly the
second half of the work, he reaches the practical level. (The reader
who has not the time to work his way through the first half will be
amply rewarded with just this portion.) Here he sketches an outline of
a charity-centered moral theology. The outline is not complete, nor is it
intended to be. He gives new life to the fundamental Christian attitudes of filial piety, penance, fraternal charity and mortification by
bathing them in the penetrating light of love. The doctrines of justice
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and chastity achieve wondrous meaning when impregnated with charity.
This major contribution to theology cannot be ignored. It should be
read by those who teach in seminary or college and by all who are
interested in philosophy and theology. We can find here, too, the basic
principles of a charity-oriented asceticism.
There are a few faults that might be corrected in the next edition.
There is an occasional poor choice of words in the translation, though as
a whole it faithfully reproduces the original. More important, use of
the more recent findings in scripture studies would enhance the frequent citing of texts from Holy Writ. For example "entole" is still
interpreted as a "commandment" of love. Though the older work of
Nygren, Agape and Eros, is cited, the works of Spicq and Kittel do not
seem to have been use4,. If it will not lengthen the book unduly, a
chapter on the biblical theology of love would put us still more in the
author's debt.
Perhaps what is rather needed is a separate biblical theological study
supplementing Gilleman's excellent treatise and synthesizing the scriptural teaching with what he has given us. Whether his philosophical
construct is adequate to convey the rich message unearthed by recent
scriptural scholarship remains to be seen.
Can a seminary course in moral be worked out according to the
broad outline of a charity-centered moral sketched by the author?
· Time will tell. A textbook will have to be composed. It must retain the
ideal of charity animating the whole of moral theology without sacrificing the precision of casuistry required for the confessional. The text
must then be tried in the fire of the classroom. The effort should be made.
ROBERT
H. SPRINGER, S.J.
GLOOM AND HOPE IN MODERN LITERATURE
Modern Gloom and Christian Hope. By Hilda Graef. Chicago: Regnery, 1959. Pp. viii-143. $3.50.
There are countless books that tell us what we want to hear, and we
applaud their brilliance and perception; there are other books which are
harder in the swallowing, because they dare to disagree with us. Miss
Graef's book belongs to the latter class. She thinks positively and in
straight lines, with the result that one is constantly forced either to
quarrel with her or to qualify her apodicticism. But with this caveat
in mind, her new book is a learned and immensely thought-provoking
study.
Mode1·n Gloom and Christian Hope is basically a lusty attack on
despair as an attitude in contemporary literature. The chief objects of
Miss Graef's invective are Sartre, Camus and Anouilh; Simone de
Beauvoir and Franc;oise Sagan; England's "angry young men" John
Osborne and Colin Wilson; Marcel, Mauriac and Graham Greene. Her
firm grasp of modern philosophical thought is evident in her treatment
of the existential background of so much of modern French writing,
with its roots in the "Angst" of Kierkegaard. Against this background,
her scathing attack on France's atheistic "prophets of gloom" has real
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183
cogency. But Miss Graef is even more deeply disturbed by the attitude
of gloom she finds in Catholic writers. Her study of Mauriac's "Jansenism" is particularly incisive. Less successful, however, is her treatment of Greene; much of his basic intent seems to have escaped her. It
is here that a tendency to literalmindedness becomes particularly distressing, especially her habit of assuming that the words of a particular
character necessarily represent the attitude of the author. Her assumption, for example, that the whiskey-priest in The Power and the Glory
speaks for Greene himself vitiates much of her insight into that fundamentally hopeful masterpiece.
On the side of Christian hope, Miss Graef selects only two authors,
Paul Claude! and T. S. Eliot, but her treatment of them is remarkably
convincing. Her discussion of Eliot's journey from the waste land of
despair to the promised land of hope is itself worth the price of admission.
One further precision must be made. In her discussion of themes and
attitudes in modern literature, Miss Graef insists that "this criticism of
the contemporary literary scene from the Catholic point of view implies no literary judgments. Several of the authors discussed in this
study are excellent writers-but the artistic merit of their work does
not enter into this discussion. Our point of view is solely that of the
Christian, for whom hope is one of the theological virtues and despair a
sin, and the writers treated in this book are viewed almost exclusively
from this angle." This seems rather wide of the mark. To limit the
function of literary criticism to imagery, semantics and style is an
emasculation of the very notion of criticism. Criticism of attitudes
and ideas is, as more and more modern critics are beginning to realize,
an integral part of the complete literary judgment.
Whether she cares to admit it or not, Miss Graef is doing literary
criticism, and very good criticism at that.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
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THOUGHTS ON EDITH STEIN
Edith Stein: Thoughts on Her Life and Times. By Henry Bordeaux.
Translated by Donald and !della Gallagher. Milwaukee: Bruce
Publishing Co., 1959. Pp. ix-87. $3.50.
As is more aptly indicated by the original French title: La vie
pathetique d'Edith Stein-Meditations, this unique tribute of Henry
Bordeaux to Edith Stein is a series of meditative reflections upon her
life. The author first became interested in this German convert from
Judaism ab~ut ten years ago when he learned of her connection with the
Carmelites. As a youth he had frequented the Carmelite monastery of
Paris where his uncle was prior, and later visited the monks' clandestine
retreat when the anti-religious laws went into effect.
Even though this work is not a formal biography, the author uses
the framework of Edith Stein's life. Before entering Carmel she had
been a promising student of the great philosopher, Edmund Husser!,
and later his most trusted assistant. During her formative years at
Gottingen she studied under Adolf Reinach and Max Scheler, but it was
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Husser! who freed her from the Kantianism of earlier years and introduced her to phenomenology. A chance reading of the autobiography of
St. Teresa eventually led to her conversion to Catholicism, so distressing
to her orthodox Jewish family. Within the Church she was introduced
to St. Thomas Aquinas and worked at a synthesis of his thought and
that of modern phenomenology. But these are only the bare facts which
Bordeaux mediates on, and which he elaborates with perception and
sensitivity in an anecdotal setting made up of accounts of those who
knew Edith Stein, and of experiences drawn from the author's own life
and of such great contemporaries as Henri Bergson, Gabriele d' Annunzio, Paul Bourget and Maurice Barres. Further, he reflects on her
love for her family, her _love for her people and the whole world, and
finally, on the way of humility and silence in Carmel, preceding her
martyr's death. It is in ~Edith Stein's death in a gas-chamber at Auschwitz in 1942 that the Frenchman, Henry Bordeaux, sees her role in
Catholic Germany as, " . . . the redemptress of the Hitler regime and
. . . the symbol of all the victims of wars and revolutions in our time
which in the midst of technical progress retrogresses toward barbarism!"
The translators have not only provided a very readable text, but have
also added a select bibliography of the works of Edith Stein as well as
books and articles written about her.
HENRY J. BERTELS, S.J.
HISTORY OF THE WEST
History of Western Civilization. Vol. I. By Thomas Neill, Daniel MeGarry and Clarence Hohl. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. xii-607.
$6.75.
In no field is the struggle of the publishers more intense than that of
textbooks. Bruce now sends History of Western Civi{ization to do battle
for the honors among the freshman world history__ texts. This first
volume covers the period from Adam to the Renaissance.
No textbook will please all teachers. This book is no exception. Many
will find in its orderly treatment of the subject matter, its clarity of
style and its fullness of development the exact qualities that they desire.
Others will object to the book's lack of force and interest in style, its
stress on facts rather than interpretation, its inclusion of much matter
simply because it traditionally finds a place in textbooks, rather than
because of the subject's intrinsic importance. Still, both groups would
agree on the value of some of the physical aspects of the book. Double
columns on each page make for easy reading. The short bibliographical
essays at the end of each chapter will create interest in further reading
of the best in current historical literature. There are good maps, a fine
index, and clear divisions of subject matter.
The distinctive feature of this text is its strong Catholic viewpoint.
This characteristic will make the book an active partner for the teacher
in his attempts to instill a Christian outlook towards history. The difficulties created when a teacher has to constantly refute his textbook
can only be realized by those who have faced this situation. Yet, one
might wonder whether this positive Catholic spirit has not led the au-
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185
thors to overstate their case at times. Thus, in their treatment of evolution, the belief of the ancients in immortality, the historicity of the
Gospels, the actions of the medieval church, etc., their purpose seems to
be more apologetic than historical.
This textbook stands in contrast to the type of text typified by Hales,
Baldwin, and Cole's History of Europe. History of Western Civilization
stresses fact and details, as the other emphasizes summaries and interpretations. The freshman college teacher, for whom such a book as History
of Europe is too interpretative, too jejune in facts, too lacking in fundamentals, will find in this text the book that will fulfill his requirements.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN MARYLAND
Their Rights and Liberties: The Beginnings of Religious and Political
Freedom in Maryland. By Thomas O'Brien Hanley, S.J. Westminster: The Newman Press, 1959. Pp. xv-141. $2.75.
While much emphasis has been placed on Maryland's famous toleration act of 1649, little attention has been given to a major event in
the development of religious liberty in the colony-the Maryland ordinance of 1639. In this slender volume, introduced by Senator Eugene
McCarthy of Minnesota, Father Hanley skilfully analyzes the impact
of political and religious events in England during the century preceding Maryland's settlement, focussing his attention on the emergence
of a pluralistic society and its immediate effect on church-state relations,
and in turn, the liberties of Englishmen, especially those of the Catholic
subjects of the crown. He concludes that the Maryland ordinance of
1639, a culminating event in the century-old struggle for freedom among
Englishmen, was fundamentally more important for the development of
liberty in the colony than the Toleration Act of 1649.
The author opens his study with a presentation of the political theory
of Thomas More, which spelled out for Englishmen of the sixteenth
century the sage distinctions between the "two powers" propounded by
Pope Gelasius I in the fifth century. More saw that religious freedom
was embedded in the very rights of Englishmen and that these rights
in turn had roots in the nature of man and the eternity of law itself.
From an analysis of More's Utopia Father Hanley traces the juristsaint's opposition to absolutism and the relationship of his thought to
the rise of a church-state view which established the autonomy and
rights of each. More became a symbol for the English Catholic minority,
and Father Hanley observes a continuity and constructive development
of Catholic political thought stretching from More through William
Cardinal Allen to the Calverts of Maryland. As a consequence, those
who would pursue the church-state considerations in the new world, applied principles that had matured during the one hundred years of
anguish in the mother country following More's death in 1535 (a printing error on p. 33 lists his death as 1635; and 1688 on p. 37 should
read 1588).
The charter granted to Lord Baltimore planted the seed of freedom
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in Maryland, and the colonists were quick to seize the opportunity to
extend their freedom beyond the intention of the proprietor and king.
The assembly's victory in the ordinance of 1639 was a basis for further
religious and political agitation, for it clearly distinguished the two
sovereignties, church and state.
The author has deviated from a more general thesis on the foundation of religious liberty in the colony, but he is on firmer ground than
many of those who would confine themselves to the charter and the
toleration act. The turbulent events in sixteenth and seventeenthcentury England becloud the stream of conscious Catholic political
development, and the author's continuity from More to Calvert at times
seems forced. Religious and political expediency played a prominent
role in political developlT\ent, as '~itnessed by the Catholic reaction that
marked the reign of Mary Tudor, and was repeated over a century
later under James II. Nevertheless, the author presents a sound conclusion, and students are indebted to him for his reconsideration of the
importance of the toleration act of 1649 in the light of the ordinance
of 1639.
FRANCIS G. McMANAMIN, S.J.
SPAIN AND THE PHILIPPINES
The Hispanization of the Philippines: Spanish Aims and Filipino Responses, 1565-1700. By John Leddy Phelan. Wisconsin: University
of Wisconsin Press, 1959. Pp. xiv-218.
This book reminds one of a similar recent book (on Japan) by Ruth
Benedict. They are similar in that both authors wrote about a people
whom they did not study in their native habitat. But both works suffer
not a bit from this local non-association. In fact their objectivity seems
enhanced. And this especially in Dr. Phelan's study of .Philippine history.
A section at the end of the work attests to the .Unenviable research
that must have gone to the unearthing of the data given in the book.
Mr. Phelan used no little spade work and had he gone to the Philippines
he would have literally used a spade in order to sort the documents in
Manila's forgotten archives. Such is the pitiful condition of early
historical documents. Dr. Phelan topped this pioneering work with a
sane interpretation of his data, unaccompanied by the usual animus of
some "historians" when examining the deeds and misdeeds of friars in
early Philippine history. He has this to say on a subject that has been
aired again and again in our day for all to see: "Although abuses among
all the [religious] orders cannot be glossed over, neither should they be
exaggerated. The majority of the religious apparently performed their
duties conscientiously. The spectacular vices of the minority ought not
to obscure the dramatic virtues of the majority." (pp. 38-9)
An interesting chapter that can bear further study by social anthropologists is the "Philippinization of Spanish Catholicism." This is a
process still going on even to our day. Our ancestors proved "themselves
remarkably selective in stressing and de-emphasizing certain features of
Spanish Catholicism." (p. 72) We believe that their descendants are
equally adept. On page 127, Dr. Phelan makes an interesting observa-
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18'7
tion about what is known in the Hispanic world as caciquism. Cacique
tradition is some gobernadorcillos indulging in graft and favoritism.
"Now the sphere of peculation has reached out to include the whole
nation." If we are to believe what we read in today's Manila newspapers,
this national contagion must be true. Does it have its roots in our history?
The question is prudently left unanswered.
Summing up, we can say that a reading of this book helps one to
appreciate the Filipino character more, that it is a Malay character
that has been influenced in a peculiar way for the past four centuries by
an Occidental culture. It throws more light on that oft-repeated phrase,
the only Christian nation in the East. The conclusions that the author
draws are not necessarily profound but certainly fundamental. Such
basic knowledge will make a Filipino understand himself better and help
explain to our visitor (or a foreign aid expert) the culture that he will
meet among Filipinos. One such conclusion is that "Catholicism provided
the cement of social unity" (p. 159) among a people living in seven
thousand islands and who communicate their thought in eight major
languages and many minor dialects.
Josi AQUINO, S.J.
RELIGIOUS ORDERS AND THEIR FOUNDERS
Warriors of God: The Great Religious Orders and Their Founders. By
Walter Nigg. Edited and Translated by Mary Ilford. New York:
Alfred A. Knopf, 1959. Pp. vii-353-xvi.
In these eleven studies of great figures in the monastic tradition
Walter Nigg seeks to fathom the mystery at the heart of monastic
existence. He is convinced that "monasticism is too deeply rooted in
the human heart ever to disappear completely," a conviction which he
bases on monasticism's place in Buddhism, in Orthodoxy, even in
Protestant thought, and above all in Catholicism where alone the orders
have "continued to receive the care and the encouragement they require."
In the light of monasticism's tendency to appear at historic junctures
under fresh forms embodying the specific answer to the specific crisis
of an age, the contemporary ferment of interest in monastic life is
doubly significant. It is this question of the significance of monasticism
for our age which has led Nigg to make his study. He is convinced that
we must grasp the reality of monasticism anew, for it will be from
"a new, transfigured monasticism" that will come the solution of the
crisis of our century, a century whose hideous symbol is "the man armed
with a machine gun, stumping off over endless ruins."
In dealing with his eleven founders-Anthony, Pachomius, Basil, Augustine, Benedict, Bruno, Bernard, Francis, Dominic, Teresa, and (the
non-monastic) Ignatius of Loyola-Nigg has overcome the inclination
to produce, as Delehaye once put it, a "hieratic image where everything
is idealized." Instinctively one feels that each of his eleven once really
saw the same light of day we see.
However, Nigg's central interest in each portrait is a religious oneto recapture the religious insight which was the key to the particular
saint's life and to his work of monastic creation. In many cases Nigg
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finds this key insight tied to some personal experience of a mystical or
miraculous character in the saint's life. For the reader who is still in
the process of extricating himself from a hagiographic point of view
which tends to substitute overt prodigy for inward triumph of grace,
Nigg's apparently uncritical enthusiasm for the miraculous will at first
sight be quite disappointing. Actually, Nigg proves himself quite conversant with the findings of critical hagiography. If at times he seems to
throw these findings to the wind, it is largely in order to avail himself
of the true function of the legendary in the lives of the saints, which is
nothing other than to be the expression of, not the substitute for, the
inner unwitnessed triumph of grace.
As a Protestant, Nigg·is aware of the danger of succumbing to the
sectarian spirit in his approach to monasticism and its founders. The
success with which he has avoided this particular pitfall is perhaps
best illustrated in his treatment of the orders-particularly his treatment of the schisms within the Franciscan brotherhood after the passing
of Francis, his treatment of the Dominicans and the Inquisition, and of
the Jesuits and moral theology.
One question which suggests itself at several points in the course of
a book like Nigg's is the question of the relation between founder and
foundation. More specifically, to what extent does a religious foundation really share, as insight, the powerful and highly personal realization which informed and energized the life and work of the founder?
Even if the foundation does share the insight at the outset of its
history, to what extent and by what process can the insight be transmitted to successive generations? And, finally, is the process of transmission quite as automatic and assured a thing as sometimes seems to
be the presumption?
JA_¥~s McCANN, S.J.
ST. PHILIP BENIZI
A Florentine Portrait: St. Philip Benizi (1233-1285). By D. B. Wyndham Lewis. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. 137. $3.00.
St. Philip Benizi was fifth General of the Order of Servites of Mary.
Born in the city of Florence, Philip was the contemporary of Dante.
He took a degree in medicine in the University of Padua and became, at
the age of twenty-one, a full-fledged doctor. In the following year he
entered the newly founded Order of the Servites of Mary. He intended
to spend his life as a lay brother of the order, but superiors insisted
that he become a priest. He was appointed socius to the general of the
order and, on the latter's death, was by unanimous consent elected his
successor. At the death of Pope Clement IV, Philip narrowly avoided
becoming Pope. Gregory X was elected in Philip's stead. Much of the
Saint's life was spent in fighting for the survival of his order, which
was due for extinction under a decree of the pontiffs regulating the
founding of new religious orders. That the Servites exist to this day
is due in no small measure to Philip's efforts.
Since Mr. Lewis is an expert in the history of the later Middle Ages,
he has no difficulty in bringing to life Philip and his times. The author's
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knowledge is used to
which is of necessity
very readable book on
the passage of years
has become relatively
189
flesh out the life of St. Philip, the material for
scanty and frequently legendary. The result is a
a great Saint of the Church who, merely through
and not through lack of vitality or significance,
little known.
GERARD F. GIBLIN, S.J.
JESUITS AND INDIAN HISTORY
Jesuit Letters and Indian History. By John Correia-Afonso, S.J. Bombay: Indian Historical Research Institute, 1955. Pp. xxxix-193.
$2.00.
Even Unto The Indies. By John Correia-Afonso, S.J. Bombay: Messenger of the Sacred Heart, 1956.
Pp. 101. Rs. 1/12.
The first of these volumes, a revision of the author's doctoral dissertation, has received high praise in the Indian press and scholarly journals
for its sober clarity and critical analysis of a wealth of material heretofore greatly neglected. Its purpose is to gauge the value of the Jesuit
Letters From India ( 1542-1773) for the historiography of India, to
give a general idea of their natur-e and range, to indicate the historical
works in which they have been used, and to point out the scope for their
further utilization. That the author has thoroughly succeeded in his
purpose with a pleasant and instructive narrative, based on an extensive
bibliography, stamps his work as an important step forward toward
the eventual publication of a comprehensive history of the Church in
India.
The second, an attractive pocket-size monograph, offers little, in its
first part, to those familiar with the vocation of Ignatius and the
Society's early years. But its second part is an enlightening thumbnail sketch of the first missionary activity in India, with such rewarding nuggets as Xavier's request for those men who did not have the
talent for letters or preaching in Europe, versus Father Nicholas Lancilotti's plea for the learned and virtuous; the fact of St. Paul's of Goa
being the first college of the Society meant exclusively for externs; and
the first publication from an Indian press: philosophical theses to be
defended in a public disputation. Those interested in Jesuit activity in
India will find that this brief and lively survey may whet their appetite
for the more substantial satisfaction offered in the first volume.
JAMES N. GELSON, S.J.
THE PRIESTHOOD IN FRANCE
My Father's Business. By Abbe Michonneau. Translated by Edmund
Gilpin. New York: Herder and Herder, Inc., 1959. Pp. 155. $2.95.
The accent is French, but the language is universal, for though the
Abbe is as French as Frenchmen go, the subject on which he writes is the
universal priesthood of Christ. Perhaps it is because of this universality
that the reader can easily forget that the Abbe is writing about a
particular segment of that priesthood, the French clergy, and the parish
clergy to be more exact, and finds his observations on them pertinent to
his own cultural milieu. For the business of saving souls is essentially
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the same the world over. The Abbe ranges masterfully through practically every aspect of a parish priest's life, from sermons and studies
to art forms in his church, from politics and class distinctions to the
teaching of catechism to children; but central to his thought is the
all too often forgotten truth that the parish does not consist of the priest
first and foremost, but of priest and people-the community as a whole.
The priest will work for the individual, lead him as high as he can go
up the ladder of sanctity, but it is through the community that the
leavening process of religion can take full effect on all of society.
This was true of Apostolic times, it is still true of ours. Hence the
Abbe does not hesitate to describe the parish priest as "one who wakes
up community consciousness, and builds communities." Evidently, to
do just that, the priest~must know his people-by no means an easy
job. The cleavage that has come about between clergy and laity in
France stems primarily, it seems, from this lack of mutual understanding (the burden is as much the laity's too). It is in his analysis of the
French situation that the Abbe Michonneau will be most helpful to
priests in other parts of the world: what has happened in France can
very well happen here or elsewhere; in fact seems to be happening
today in many parts of the world where the respective roles of priest
and laity have been lost sight of or simply misunderstood in the constantly changing conditions of modern living. The parish priest's life
is not at all a sinecure nor a drab existence, for that matter, and only
with a proper understanding of what it truly is on the part of the faithful-and of priests themselves-can we hope for a more effective priesthood.
Credit is due to Edmund Gilpin for a most readl\ble English translation, also to Father Henry, O.P., for the scholarly chapter on the
history of the priestly ministry from its beginnings to the present.
Without the latter's contribution, many of the Abbe's forceful observations would lose much of their pertinence for our times.
FRANCISCO F. CLAVER, S.J.
CARDINAL LERCARO OF BOLOGNA
1\ly Door Is Always Open. By Georges Huber. Translated by Thomas
Finlay. Notre Dame: Fides Publishers Association, 1959. Pp.
xiv-158. $3.50.
Georges Huber has within the hundred and fifty odd pages of this
remarkable little book given us a marvelous insight into the life of a
pastor of souls whom Pius XII called "the perfect bishop." Not only has
the author painted a vivid picture of the Archbishop of "red" Bologna,
Giacomo Cardinal Lercaro, but what is more important, he has done
this largely by letting the Cardinal speak for himself. The author has
performed the exacting task of editing the Cardinal's speeches and talks,
and has ended up by giving us an inspiring and extremely readable
sampling of his thought on subjects that range from international order
and politics to liturgy and sacred art. The book in its English translation moves along smoothly; only the profundity and richness of the
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191
Cardinal's own thought makes the reader pause to assimilate before
going on.
The author, in his introduction, gives us a resume of the Cardinal's life
up to the year 1952 when he was still Archbishop of Ravenna. The
book itself is the story of all that has happened since the June of that
same year when he was transferred to the See of Bologna by Pope
Pius XII.
"My Door Is Always Open" tells of what the Church is doing today
in the heart of Italy's "red belt" to win back a mass of de-Christianized
people for whom Communism offers a tempting, if only a temporary,
solution to their poverty, and for whose needs the Church had not sufficiently proved its genuine solicitude. These are people who are not
interested in theoretical encyclicals; these are people who want bread
and clothes and a roof over their heads. The working classes lost to
the Church and now hostile to her message are nevertheless learning the
Good News of Jesus Christ in a way that is unmistakably clear. They
are reading it in the life and deeds of their Archbishop who is sharing
their life of poverty; who is personally involved in their welfare and
who has translated the social teaching of the Church into action at great
personal cost to himself, but with a humility so genuine that he is unconscious of it. He has demonstrated the Church's concern for the poor
by his welfare bureau, by the personal interest in and charity to the
dozen or so poor boys with whom he shares his house and table, by his
housing project for poor newlyweds and in a thousand other ways
which this book reveals. Nor are the Cardinal's measures to alleviate
the material and spiritual needs of his people merely stop-gap ones.
His program of reeducation and his apostolate to the intellectuals give
his work the permanence it needs. His liturgical apostolate of which
we have already heard so much is not something that is confined to the
sacristy; its value is to be measured by the charity and thirst for
social justice it has created in his priests and flock.
We have all indulged in the pious imagining of how Christ Himself
would act were He to wear the red robes of a bishop in our difficult
times. When the reader closes this book, he will find that this scholarly,
humble, and poor bishop of Bologna, living the pure evangelical life of
the Gospel, but fighting the enemies of God with twentieth century
methods, comes as close to the ideal as any man can. So inspiring is
this life of Cardinal Lercaro that long after the reader has put this
book aside, he will find himself agreeing with the priest who said:
"Just to think of him makes me a better man."
PAUL L. CIOFFI, S.J.
COMMUNIST PERSUASION
The Communist Persuasion. By Eleutherius Winance, O.S.B. Translated by· Emeric A. Lawrence, O.S.B. New York: P. J. Kenedy,
1959. Pp. xii-239. $3.95.
Sometimes a book appears which forces readers to reconsider their
system of value judgments on some particularly significant issue. This
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is such a book. The work gives a new, well analyzed view of the modern
Communist technique of "brainwashing."
The author, Father Eleutherius Winance, O.S.B., is eminently qualified to make such a study. After his ordination to the priesthood and
the reception of the doctorate degree from Louvain, Father began his
fourteen years of mission work in China. His labors were terminated
by the arrival of the Red Chinese troops in 1950. This Benedictine
underwent "brainwashing" sessions of four hours duration three times
each week during a period of eighteen months. By training and personal experience the author qualifies to analyze authoritatively the
subject of "brainwashing."
The book views the Communist technique as a genuine attempt at
"conversion" in the religious sense of the word. Such known religious
methods as the explanation of doctrine, moral and ascetical exhortation
and the examination of conscience are used by the Communists to bring
a person to abjure his previous loyalties and make a full commitment of
himself to this new doctrine. To Father Winance the usual equation of
"brainwashing" with the simple Pavlovian "stimulus-response" psychology is a gross simplification. The Communists use depth psychology
and idealism to bring about a change of mind. This is the message of
the first part of the book; it is also the best part of the work.
The second and third sections of the book are more autobiographical
than analytic. The second part deals with the author's "trial" and expulsion from China; the third part concludes the work with some prudent
observations on the present sufferings of the Chinese Catholics. This
latter section is very moving and offers an excellent framework for
judgment of those Chinese Catholics who have apostatized; the extremely trying conditions under which the Chinese.-"Catholics live are
presented in forceful and sympathetic terms. This book is well worth
reading to find out both Communist techniques and the Catholic answer
to their persecution.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
THE MYSTICAL BODY
The Mystical Body and Its Head. By Robert Hugh Benson. New York:
Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. 92. $0.75.
In his 1943 encyclical, Mystici Corporis Christi, the late Pope Pius
XII wrote: "If we would define and describe this true Church of Jesus
Christ-which is the One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Roman Church,
we shall find no expression more noble, more sublime or more divine
than the phrase which calls it 'the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ.' This
title is derived from and is, as it were, the fair flower of the repeated
teaching of Sacred Scripture and the Holy Fathers:"
In this abridged edition of Msgr. Benson's Christ in the Church, a collection of religious essays published in 1911, the publishers admirably
achieve the intent of their series of Canterbury Books. The doctrine of
the Catholic Church as the Mystical Body of Christ is here treated more
completely than is possible in a pamphlet and more succinctly than
in the original work and given the psychological (and economical) lure
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193
of the paperbacks. What is more important of course is the fact that a
dogmatic doctrine is rendered unusually intelligible and doubly appealing by Msgr. Benson's facile and even lyrical (cf. pp. 18-19) exposition
and development of the traditional Catholic belief that "just as Jesus
Christ lived His natural life on earth two thousand years ago in a
Body drawn from Mary, so He lives His Mystical Life today in a Body
drawn from the human race in general-called the Catholic Churchand that her words are His, her actions His, her life His (with certain
restrictions and exceptions), as surely as were the words, actions, and
life recorded in the Gospels."
This abridgement should be an invaluable aid to the religion teacher
in getting across the basic doctrine of the Mystici Corp01·is. He should
note, however, that Msgr. Benson was not writing a book about the
whole doctrine of the Mystical Body. His concern was with the Church
here upon earth: the Church Militant.
If the reviewer were to find a flaw in Msgr. Benson's work, perhaps it
would be pertinent to certain observations expressed apropos the Hidden
Life of the Catholic Church and an appraisal of Eastern religions (cf.
chapter 4). What is implied, if not explicitly stated, is that Christianity
is a Western religion; and an obvious historical fact is ignored, a fact
which missionaries have been at pains to stress these past two decades
in Eastern mission lands. Christianity, though assuredly Western in
expansion and development these past centuries, is Eastern in origin
and therefore not alien to the East. Along with Buddhism, Confucianism,
and Mohammedanism (recognized by Msgr. Benson as "the great nonChristian world-religions"), Christianity is also of the East. The recognition and insistence on this fact is no mere missionary stratagem to
counter the raw nationalistic sensibilities in the East.
Reading this abridged edition should be an incentive to look up the
unabridged work. The effort will be well rewarded.
ALFREDO G. PARPAN, S.J.
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THE CHURCH AND SUBURBIA
The Church and the Suburbs. By Andrew M. Greeley. New York:
Sheed & Ward, 1959. Pp. 206. $3.50.
Father Greeley, drawing on his own observations of the exodus of
Catholics from the city of Chicago to the mushrooming suburbs to the
north, west and south of the city has presented a study of the problems
which face the Church in this and similar situations throughout the
United States. It is surprising that this is the first book length treatment
of the subject, since the suburban movement is not a phenomenon of
the last few years alone. Acute as is the problem this is not the first
time in the United States that a large surge of younger people to the
periphery of metropolitan centers has strained the Church's resources
and presented problems of parish growth and adjustment. After the
First World War the older metropolitan areas of the East experienced
the rush to subu~bia. Yet no study was made of the problems then encountered by the Church, and more or less successfully met. Father
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Greeley has, then, performed in this era a service for the Church.
This book is not a highly scientific sociological study. It is a series
of connected essays by a talented and zealous suburban curate who is
very much aware that the Church is facing a challenge when it moves
to suburbia. That challenge is not outlined in any hackneyed and superficial way. The suburbanite is not pictured as a neurotic status seeker
trying to roast a more expensive rib of beef over a larger barbecue pit
than his neighbor. Father Greeley is concerned with more than superficialities. His thought carries him deep into suburban cultural values,
ascetical ideals, and consumer confusion. How does one teach spiritual
detachment to a group of Catholics increasingly concerned with material comfort? His comments on the role of the liturgy in this spiritual
mission are both balanc~.d and intelligent.
If the book suffers from any defect, it is that it adheres somewhat uncritically and too closely to the theses of other scholars with more professionally sociological interests. Yet it must be borne in mind that
Fr. Greeley is not attempting a definitive study. His purpose is to provoke discussion of the problems of the suburban parish. If the book
succeeds in this, it has well served its purpose. Jesuits will find the book
especially interesting, since on both the high school and college level
they will more and more be called to educate and motivate the Catholic
children of suburbia.
GEORGE L. KRIEGER, S.J.
RELIGIOUS TRAINING IN THE FAMILY
Together Toward God-Religfous Training in the Family. By Pierre
Ranwez, S.J., Jacques and Marie-Louise Defossa, and Jules GerardLibois. Translated by Paul Barrett, O.F.M. Cap. Westminster,
Maryland: The Newman Press. Pp. xvi-260. • $4.75.
Cardinal Suhard once wrote "the Church know~ ·how to give up"namely, to give up out-moded and worn-out ways of achieving her ends.
The current urging of lay participation in the growing liturgical movement, the emphasis on lay responsibility in a democratic and demographically requisite milieu, the relaxation of the Eucharistic fasting
laws, all suggest the Church's constant self-appraisal and readiness to
adapt to changing society within the framework of her divine constitution. One of the most intensive efforts of the Church to modernize
her apostolate aims at vitalizing the intelligent faith and worship of
her children. Away with mere sheep-like attendance at mumbled rituals,
mysterious only because not explained and learned. Let Christ's members understand the acts and prayers of His Body: the structure of
the Holy Sacrifice, the prayers of the baptismal ceremony and of unction's
strengthening. Both Mystici Corporis and Mediator Dei, as well as the
Sacred Congregation of Rites' Instruction of September 1958, illustrate
the Church's direction. In a still small but growing swell, the laity is
following it.
The book under review, written by four experienced Belgian leaders
in the family apostolate and religious teaching, spells out in clearest
detail a program of religious training and practice in the family from
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195
boyhood to late teens. Of course it centers around appreciating, preparing for and receiving the several sacraments, the imparting of religious knowledge and attitudes, the formation of the Christian character, and the use of scriptural and liturgy-based prayer and readings.
Perhaps the most arresting feature of the program is the proposed series
of home and/or church con-liturgical celebrations immediately preceding
and following the several sacraments.
Relatively few Americans will have the desire and initiative to implement this program in their own homes and parishes, and fewer still will
want, understandably enough, to use it all. But the number that will
profit from it is growing. This volume provides both a practical ideal
to be considered and a detailed blueprint to be followed, although with
many modifications, in the American home. The pre-first confession ceremony, centered around the rich baptismal rite which the youngsters did
not previously understand; and the pre-wedding ceremony, with its triple
theme of departure (Abraham leaving for his new home), love (Christ
and His Bride), and fecundity (Abraham again, the mustard seed, et al.)
are especially impressive.
Priests seeking kerygmatic fruit in social prayer will find it here; so
will the spiritually thirsting laity. A good bibliography and summary
outline enhance the book's utility.
JOSEPH B. ScHUYLER, S.J.
NEW LIGHT ON COUNSELLING
Counselling the Catholic. By George Hagm~ier, C.S.P. and Robert Gleason, S.J. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. xiv-301. $4.50.
Fathers Hagmaier and Gleason have made available to priests and
seminarians an extremely valuable text of fundamental counselling concepts and techniques. Treating matter which is complex and difficult,
they have managed a clear and easily intelligible presentation of the
best that dynamic psychology and moral theology have to offer to the
priest-counsellor. The book is divided into two sections. The first treats
of the psychological perspectives of counselling and is written by Father
Hagmaier. In his approach he frankly follows the dynamic school of
psychology, which he describes briefly but adequately in his first chapter.
Succeeding chapters treat the role of the priest as listener, the psychic
roots of the most common failings encountered in the confessional, and
the more acute problems of masturbation, homosexuality, alcoholism
and scrupulosity. Father Hagmaier also discusses the priest's role in
referring the mentally ill to the psychiatrist and his continued assistance
during and after treatment. An appendix describing briefly the chief
mental illnesses gives valuable aid in this regard. This first section of
the book closes with a chapter on the use of available community resources and agencies to help those in need. A second appendix provides
an extensive list of such referral facilities available to the priest and
his parishioners.
Father Gleason, in part two of the book, treats the moral perspectives
of counselling. He presents the latest developments in moral theology
on subjective imputability as applied to the questions of masturbation,
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homosexuality and alcoholism. The final chapter contains a brief historical survey of the development of Catholic thought with respect to
psychiatry and a discussion of the role of priest and psychiatrist as collaborators for the spiritual benefit of the patient.
The authors have succeeded admirably in the goal they set for themselves, which was "not so much to answer questions or solve difficulties
as to build attitudes about the problem-solving process itself." The real
value of the book they have themselves succinctly expressed in the statement of their objectives. "A deeper insight into the unconscious motivations behind much of human behavior; a conviction that most human
conflicts are far more complex than they appear; a recognition that the
same problem in two .people can have wholly dissimilar causes, and
therefore quite different solutions; a reluctance to jump quickly to
"diagnostic" conclusions about the reasons and remedies for behavior
difficulties; a readiness to listen more and say less in counselling relationships; the clear recognition that many specific human problems require
specific information and training to be solved; an informed readiness
to refer professional problems to professional experts; a deeper grasp
of the relationships and distinctions between emotional and religious,
psychological and supernatural influences, and the ways by which both
the priest counsellor and his parishioner can take them into accountthese are some of the longitudinal objectives the authors see as important
in the training -of tod:!y's young priests." These goals have been
eminently realized in their honest, forthright and balanced treatment
of admittedly involved questions. No claim is made to have all the
answers. In fact, this is precisely the mentality from which the authors
wish to disassociate themselves. This book is a much needed tonic for
priests inclined to resolving pastoral problems by ·liaving immediate recourse to the universal and objectively valid laws of morality, which
are simply imposed upon the individual. The pronounced stress upon
the psychological state of the penitent helps to correct this distortion
and results in a much more honest and realistic approach to problems
which are always tmique and personal, and therefore to be treated with
circumspection and reverence. Displacing the emphasis from hasty recourse to obligations and guilt, and even to exclusively supernatural
means to resolve personal problems, and relocating it in the area of
long-range psychological rehabilitation is a giant step forward in the
effort to give effective spiritual assistance to Catholics.
The division of the book into two parts, one psychological and one
moral, was due no doubt to the desire to maintain clear distinctions
between these two .fields throughout the discussion. Unfortunately, it
results in considerable repetition and somewhat annoying references
back and forth to other parts of the text. The theological section also
suffers from a presentation which is somewhat lifeless. These difficulties
might have been avoided by a greater degree of collaboration on the
part of the authors aimed at a completely unified presentation of the
matter, especially in the chapters on masturbation, homosexuality and
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197
alcoholism. Despite this difficulty, Fathers Hagmaier and Gleason have
made available a work which is of great value to the non-specialist.
It is recommended reading for all priests and seminarians.
FELIX F. CARDEGN A, S.J.
TEACHING THE CATECHISM
Teaching the Catholic Catechism, Volume II: The Church and the Sacraments. By Josef Goldbrunner. Translated by Bernard Adkins.
New York: Herder and Herder, 1959. Pp. 111. Paperbound, $1.65.
This second volume of the English translation of Father Goldbrunner's
handbook for teaching the Catholic Catechism shares the structure, arrangement, and all the evident virtues of volume one, reviewed recently
in these pages. These will not be repeated here. It might be noted that
this handbook series does not attempt to exhaust the riches of the catechism's content or the variety of possible approaches. Rae1er each lesson
plan is constructed around the one central teaching of each chapter.
Hence in its simplicity and selectivity this handbook stands in contrast
to the plethora of examples, suggestions and applications found in a
work like Alfred Barth's Katechetisches Handbuch for the Catholic
Catechism compiled for the diocese of Rottenburg. Each has its advantage. And it is Father Goldbrunner's series which is available in
English.
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
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CATHOLIC HIGHER EDUCATION
The Catholic Dimension in Higher Education. By Justus George Lawler.
With an introduction by Leo R. Ward, C.S.C. Westminster: The
Newman Press, 1959. Pp. 302. $3.95.
The author of this book has done Catholic educators a good service
in attempting to delineate a satisfactory plan of education for the
Catholic school. It would be unrealistic to expect every Catholic educator to agree with all the details of his analysis of the sources of the
present status of confusion on the aims of Catholic education, or the
positive plan which he proposes in the last chapters of his book, but every
chapter does give the Catholic educator food for serious thought.
In his opening chapter, he emphasizes the need of educational theory
yet deplores the inordinate preoccupation among educators with methods
of organization and programs of studies to the neglect of the salient fact
that the teacher is more important than the program. He further deplores the fact that the educational theory of the Catholic heritage has
been too closely related to medieval thought. This has been the fault
of the medievalists, or rather nco-medievalists, who limit Christian
Culture to the medieval era. If they are historians, they trace the
development of Christian Culture to this era. If they are structuralists,
they make metaphysics the alpha and the omega of all educational
thought, and Ratio rather than Intellectus becomes the key word in the
Catholic program of education. Some may challenge this analysis of
the manner and spirit in which Catholic programs of education are
organized, but the author makes out a persuasive case for it.
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BOOK REVIEWS
In the second chapter of the book, where the author discusses the
sources of what he terms defects in Catholic higher education in America,
considerable emphasis is put on misconceptions of the spiritual life.
Here, he is talking of those religious and clerics who have borne the brunt
of American Catholic education. Their spiri~ual training was received
either from the manuals of religious Congregations whose origin is
traced back to the Seventeenth Century French School or from the
manuals of perfection of the counter-Reformation era. These manuals
stressed moral discipline and spiritual perfection to such a degree that
the minds of these religious teachers gave intellectual cultivation a very
secondary place in the education of youth. The reasoning seems persuasive. However, it is, well to remember that his examples can be
matched with perhaps as many examples of religious trained under the
same rule who had a re'iil devotion to scientific and liberal training in
the schools they administered. The reasoning is more facile than convincing.
This second chapter quite naturally leads the author to discuss in
the following chapter the role of the layman in education on the collegiate and university levels. The author defends the complementary
role of the layman and the religious and cleric in Catholic higher education. Though there have been those who opposed this cooperation, there
is very little reason, if any, on their side. It is a most natural and
exemplary team in any Catholic college or university.
In the fourth and fifth chapters, the author outlines more positively
what he considers the ideal of a Catholic program of education. In the
fourth chapter, "Doing the Truth," he gives credit to what the Scholastic
Synthesis of the Middle Ages has done for Catholic scholarship, but insists that the approach is too rationalistic and too narrow in its scope.
Truth is not confined to one method of teaching or ohe mode of thought.
He favors the contemplative rather than the discursive approach to truth,
and gives a fine analysis of his point of view. The Catholic heritage, in
his opinion, is too rich to have it circumscribed by the limitations of
the Scholastic Synthesis. Moreover, the pragmatic in education must not
be encouraged either by early specialization or by job-planning the curriculum. The Catholic heritage is an integral humanism, and this should
be encouraged. The theory has much in its favor. The reviewer, however, would like to mention that this theory may run into two difficulties.
Education is now becoming of excessive length as far as the formal
program of schooling is concerned. If the author's theory could be accomplished in a solid six years' program, or a special Honors program, of
secondary and college training, it would undoubtedly have a favorable
audience. If it is to take longer, it may not have such a favorable
audience.
In the final chapter, "The Mission of Catholic Scholarship," the
author makes a sound differentiation between the aim of teaching on
the secondary level and on the college level. On the former level, the
mission is primarily a moral mission. It is the period of adolescence
where moral direction, religious discipline and emotional guidance are
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199
of uppermost value. Here, the layman is subordinate to the religious
teacher. On the latter level, the mission is primarily an intellectual
misison. The proper end is the contemplation of truth for its own sake.
On this level, the layman and the religious or cleric are complementary
in their efforts and both must be consecrated to their efforts.
The reviewer would like to repeat that this book deserves a wide circulation among Catholic educators.
JoSEPH C. GLOSE, S.J.
SCIENCE EDUCATION
The Challenge of Science Education. Edited by JosephS. Roucek. New
York: Philosophical Library, 1959. Pp. 491. $10.00.
Dr. Roucek has done a valuable service in organizing this postSputnik symposium in the broad area of science education. The symposium consists of thirty-one essays, most of which were S;:Jecially written
for this volume. Although it does not pretend to cover all aspects of
science education in America, it does give a broad survey, with considerable detail in some areas. The first sections deal with some fundamental
areas: science and scientism, national welfare and science education,
the history of science education, religion and scientific education, the
present status of science in general education programs.
The next three sections are devoted to elementary, secondary, college
and university education. In the section on elementary education Dr.
Hanor A. Webb offers a well developed presentation of nine basic objectives in elementary science education, which could also be read with
profit by the high school teacher. This is followed by a brief essay on
mathematics. The section on secondary education begins with a discussion
of three basic problems in science education, followed by essays on the
teaching of mathematics and of physics and on teachers' colleges. The
section on college and university education considers a number of selected
areas: engineering, industrial education, mathematics, biology, medicine,
physics, chemistry, zoology, conservation, and social science education.
The following section, "Auxiliary Aspects," considers the relation of
mathematical skills to the training of scientists, the activities of the
State and Federal Governments in science education, the history and
role of America's learned societies, science in adult education, scientists
and engineers for the Armed Forces, and science in fiction and belleslettres. This last essay is an excellent summary of an interesting area
too often neglected both by scientists and by humanists. The final section
of the book, "Comparative Aspects," begins with a brief address by Dr.
James R. Killian, Jr., on "Problems of Science Teaching in the United
States," followed by two detailed and up-to-date accounts of science
education in Great Britain and in the U.S.S.R. The concluding essay is
by Werner Heisenberg, "Classical Education, Science, and the 'Vest."
As is obvious, the scope of this collection is very wide. There is little
repetition since the different authors keep strictly to their own areas
without wandering afield. Unfortunately, the brief general titles of the
individual essays often do not indicate their precise nature. One of
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the most valuable features of this collection is the selected and annotated
bibliography after most of the articles. Thus this book can serve as a
very useful introduction to further study of many aspects of science
education.
ALAN McCARTHY, S.J.
A CATHOLIC VIEW OF EDUCATION
Catholic Viewpoint on Education. By Neil G. McCluskey, S.J. Garden
City: Hanover House, 1959. Pp. 192. $3.50.
Father Neil McCluskey, Education Editor of America, joins the impressive list of Jesuits who have contributed to the Catholic Viewpoint
Series. In eight very balanced chapters Father McCluskey traces the
development of both public and Catholic education in the United States,
with particular stress on the gradual secularization of the public school.
This historical background introduces a treatment of the philosophy of
private education, its role in a pluralistic society, the issue of governmental support of private education, and the state of the question for
the future.
The dominant characteristic of the book is balance. Current attitudes
are linked with their historical sources. The philosophical clarity of the
parental right in education is balanced with the political complexities
which make the urging of that right a question of prudence as well as
of justice. A discussion of the recent court decisions in this area points
up some of the ambiguities involved in current debate on the ChurchState issue.
Two omissions from the treatment of Catholic education trouble this
reader. There is no mention of Catholic education on the college and
university levels and there is little real appraisal of either the content
or quality of Catholic education. Within the context of the book's general
emphasis on the problems of private education in·a~pluralistic society,
the first omission is perhaps the more inexplicable of the two. Catholic
elementary and secondary schools constitute 89% of the non-public education at those levels. Catholic colleges and universities represent only
20% of non-public higher education. The significant difference between
these figures does much to explain the significant difference between
the pattern of government cooperation with each of these levels of education. A full picture of federal aid to education would have to be
based on a study of all levels of Catholic education.
Since the question of religion in education and of aid to education will
continue to be a live issue in the United States, Father McCluskey's
very balanced and well-reasoned book is a valuable contribution for
both Catholics and non-Catholics who are concerned with and about
American education.
JOHN M. CULKIN, S.J.
MEANS AND ENDS IN EDUCATION
Schools And The Means of Education. By Willis D. Nutting. Notre
Dame, Indiana: Fides, 1959. Pp. 126. $3.95.
The italicized word and in the title of the book points up the author's
purpose in writing this welcome addition to the growing list of works
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I
by Catholics on contemporary American education. Each of the means
of education, N. tells us, must be recognized and assigned its proper
place in the educational system. Too long have we equated education
with the school, neglecting in the process, the role of the home, the
neighborhood, athletics, work, leisure and religion as necessary means
in the formation of the mature, educated man. Many of the difficulties
which our youth and their elders experience today are the result of
expecting the school to carry out a task it was never meant to perform:
the total education of the student of today and the man of tomorrow.
The threat to society posed by Communism from without and moral
decadence from within have caused us to question what was formerly
an article of faith: that the necessary, the sufficient and indeed, the only
requisite in preparing youth for life in society was to send them to
school.
That we have asked too much of our schools is clear. N. helps us to
see that the school is by nature an artificial society and that far from
preparing students for life, it often isolates them in a dream world
of euphoric abstraction whose foundations are rudely shattered with the
first shock of real life encounter.
Dr. Nutting-Iowa-born, Oxford-trained, convert and professor at
Notre Dame-is not afraid to lash out at some of the sacred cows: the
athletic programs with their mania for success at any cost; compulsory
attendance laws which keep students in schools when they have neither
aptitude nor desire to be there; the amoral, a religious public school which
fills the mind with facts but turns over to society an overgrown child
bereft of moral values because it has none to offer.
But one should not think N. is just another iconoclast. He has positive
suggestions, too. He proposes leisure as a prerequisite for learning and
culture. He advocates adult education: a re-education in solid truths
built upon an already existing basis of concern for the "public philosophy." We must have philosophy and theology courses in college;
guided study of the liberal arts on the high school level; discipline and
even logic on the grade school level.
The book is obviously the product of considerable reflection, and an
eminent example of the straight thinking for which N. pleads so frequently and so well. The chapter on education in the home is a gem.
Even the chapter on athletics-which he calls Holy War and which
serves as a stinging condemnation of over-emphasis on sports-is a
challenge. The best feature of the work which would recommend it to all
concerned with the educational process is that it offers a good starting
point for discussion. N. outlines the state of the question, defines the
ideal, the present difficulties and some positive suggestions; all in such
a way as to invite further inquiry, meditation and action.
JAMES
A.
O'DONNELL, S.J.
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SPIRITUALITY AND MENTAL HEALTH
Hammer And Fire. .Toward Divine Happiness and Mental Health.
By M. Raphael Simon, O.C.S.O., M.D. New York: Kenedy, 1959.
Pp. xii-258. $3.95.
Since few contemporary approaches to spirituality are enhanced by the
valuable contributions of modern psychology, this volume may be considered as somewhat of a pioneer venture. It does not pretend to be an
erudite study on the relation of Religion to Mental Health. Rather, it is
a psychologically sound treatment of the fundamentals of Christian
spirituality, the way of life that leads to true self-realization.
The author is especially qualified as a guide in matters spiritual.
A convert from Judaism,· a physician active in Psychiatry before becoming a Cistercian, Fat}J.er Simon possesses a wealth of experience
that includes previous assignments as Novice Master and director of
retreats for both clergy and laity. Although he intends this book
primarily for laymen, it is his hope that it will also prove valuable to
priests and religious as well.
Father Simon's treatment of the spiritual life follows the general
outline of Saint Thomas in the Second Part of the Summa. The teaching of other traditional masters of spirituality is incorporated into the
author's plan for a well-balanced Christian life in today's world. A
selected bibliography is added for those who wish further instruction.
What distinguishes this book are the author's psychological observations on the value- of prayer, the Sacraments, etc. in integrating and
perfecting the human personality. The author wisely insists, however,
that the spiritual life is to be lived for a value that transcends the
mental health of the Christian. Although the prudent pursuit of
Christian Perfection does increase a person's psychological resources and
his mental health, it is no substitute for psychotherapy, when this is
called for. The book does not treat of neuroses and other special
obstacles to spiritual and mental well-being. Another volume is planned
which will consider these problems in detail.
This relatively brief treatment of the spiritual life necessarily precludes a thorough consideration of some important elements. Condensation makes the book vague and sketchy in places. Those already experienced in the life of the Spirit will find the freshness of Father
Simon's approach sometimes marred by the jargon of spiritual writers.
The beginner, while finding much of value in these pages, will occasionally be confused by the technical terminology of scholasticism.
Despite these defects, the book is worthwhile as a contemporary "Introduction to the Devout Life."
ALFRED E. MORRIS, S.J.
QUESTIONS ON THE GOSPELS
200 Gospel Questions and Inquiries. By Bernard Basset, S.J. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. xiv-240. $3.50.
A random reading of the questions that Father Basset asks on the
Gospel texts he has chosen for discussion in his book might well bring
forth a not too favorable judgment on the work as a whole. But the ques-
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tions were never meant to be just read. They must be asked and answered
in the context of prayer and the individual's present need, and then only
do they have value. Father brings to his inquiries the practical wisdom
of nine years of testing with Sodality and YCW groups-high recommendation indeed to the Sodality moderator in search of ideas that work.
Over two hundred incidents in our Lord's life a~e presented for consideration by a few simple questions grouped under the triple YCW
mode of meeting a problem: See, Judge, Act (the memory-intellect-will
form of prayer of traditional asceticism). To these questions the biblical
scholar and the high school boy will give divergent answers; yet, as the
author points out, though the scholar may come up with a learned
answer, the boy with a less learned one, the latter can often come just
as close to the Gospel truth in the straightforward simplicity of his
answers. \Vhat matters is not the wrongness or the rightness of one's
answers but the effort to pray, the personal seeking of the hidden meaning that the questions aim to bring out. The book will be of immense
value for discussions and private meditations on the life of Christ. In
the introductory chapter the author briefly outlines a working method
for discussion groups which should be most welcome to the Sodality
moderator.
FRANCISCO F. CLAVER, S.J.
MEDITATIONS BY MONSIGNOR KNOX
Lightning Meditations. By Ronald Knox. New York: Sheed and Ward,
1959. Pp. 164. $3.00.
In 1951, six years before his death, Monsignor Knox published his
Stimuli, a choice collection of seventy-one sermons he had contributed
to the Sunday edition of the London Times. Lightning Meditations is a
posthumous publication of a later collection offered with the same intent
as the first: to present a moment's thought to the busy reader, which
would not only chide but also comfort. Father Philip Caraman, S.J., who
arranged the present volume on roughly the same pattern Monsignor
Knox followed in the Stimuli has thoughtfully added an occasional footnote where there was need for a date or reference to a text. Otherwise
we have the assurance that not a word in this collection of some
seventy-eight sermons has been altered.
What is now entitled as a set of meditations covers a wide variety of
matter, historical, liturgical, biblical, dogmatic and moral. In no single
instance, it is safe to venture, will the reader ever find Monsignor Knox
unwise or unwitty. There is always the pointed lesson, familiar, to be
sure, but somehow given a fresh and telling barb. Moreover there is an
over-all lesson the book offers, more basic than the specific thought for a
day drawn from the consideration on a particular feast, a saint or one
of the virtues. In the mind of the reviewer, it is this: Monsignor Knox
would remind men to glimpse the supernatural behind the contemporary
scene, let us say, of a king's death or an armistice celebration, and to
realize that for all the helter-skelter of daily living, man's striving for
sanctity is still and should be the business of first moment.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Incidentally, this volume should provide a stimulating and provocative
stand-by for a variety of sermon potential. A final comment: the choice
of title and jacket design are most apt indeed.
ALFREDO G. PARPAN, S.J.
SPIRITUAL EXERCISES
Exercices Spirituels. By Prosper Monier, S.J. Lyons and Paris: Vitte,
1959. Pp. xviii-548. 3200 Francs (approx. $6.50).
A veteran Southern Province retreat master has a meditation in which
he brings home to priests and religious that the real life of prayer of a
saint begins with the realization that God is Personal, not a thing, not
a force, not an idea, but a Person-a Trinity of Divine Persons. A
veteran Lyons Province~;etreat master has given us in his Exercices
Spirituels an entire retreat imbued with the intense realization of the
"Personal-ness" of God; and Ignatius-like, he pursues us relentlessly
with the appeal for the truly personal response to the call of Him Who
has first loved us.
Retreat-givers and retreat-makers know that every "giving" of the
Exercises is an adaptation; the only question is how good is the adaptation. Father Prosper Monier has avoided veering into story-telling
or "revising the Exercises"; this emasculates. But he has as well
steered clear of the other extreme of merely reciting the text; this
paralyses. What he has done has been to steep himself in Ignatius, and
then observe the contemporary scene very closely. The end-result is inspiring, is captivating, is charming, but-rara avis!-it is keenly to
the point, it truly touches the real world in which we live in midtwentieth century.
Septuagenarian Father Monier has let none of the-turbulent currents
of our time roll by him unnoticed. He has not let -the insights of contemporary studies in scripture and theology pass by unused. He has a
grasp of the manifold movements in politics, literature, economics and
psychology that are molding the souls of his retreatants, and he is not
timid about making them serve the aim of the Exercises. In the pages
of quotations which he inserts after groups of meditations, he shakes
us from our routine and sloth with incisive lines from such diverse
spirits as Mauriac and Hitler, Barth and Lenin, Peguy and Nietsche.
Of course, the great saints are there as well.
Thinking with the Church, or rather living with the Church, Father
Monier smoothly leads his retreatants to an appreciation of the visible
Church and her worship. He is to be credited also with a masterful infusion of social consciousness. In his hands the Exercises become a
"most effective means for promoting this social-mindedness," in accordance with the direction of Very Reverend Father General in his letter
on the Social Apostolate (Woodstock Edition, pp. 16-17).
The framework of his book is simply that of the Spiritual Exercises.
"The style is very close to the spoken word." (Its simplicity should make
it not inaccessible to those who are a little weak in French.) The format
is often schematic, outlinish, halting to let the reader's mind run on.
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205
Thus the book is not made to be read through, but to be "used."
These Exercices Spirituels were first printed in 1932 for private use.
Completely revised, the book was later published from Notre-Dame du
Chatelard, Francheville; 3000 copies were printed. The publishing house
of Emmanuel Vitte, Lyons and Paris, reprinted and distributed the
Chatelard edition in 1956. This new edition by Vitte, 1959, adds "The
Discernment of Spirits" and an index of authors quoted.
We American readers will on occasion feel that some of Father
Monier's preoccupations are not ours. However, before turning the
page too quickly, we would do well to ask ourselves whether perhaps
they should not be ours.
CHARLES E. O'NEILL, S.J.
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SPIRITUAL EXERCISES AND THE SACRAMENTS
Liturgical Retreat. By Roy J. Howard, S.J. New York: Sheed and
Ward, 1959. Pp. xii-145. $3.00.
For one grown long familiar with the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius this book will bring fresh insights. Father Howard fuses two
dynamic forces, the retreat and liturgy, bringing them to bear upon the
need for an annual rededication to Christ. The retreat is a period of action now with Christ and of reaction later for Christ. The goal of the
book is to establish the Christian more firmly and consciously in his
Christ-like way of life. Through a refiexion on the sacraments, Baptism,
Confirmation and Holy Eucharist, the retreatant discovers that they
are, besides channels of grace, patterns for living out the Christ-life.
The lesson of Baptism is renunciation, a free choice of Death to this
world to be baptized with the Baptism with which He was baptized.
Baptism in a solemn way faces us toward the Kingdom; stands us in the
world with a dignity and a charge. Our task is to link this world with
God, its Creator. By coming to grips with nature we fulfill ourselves,
and so lead the world back to God. Out of the inevitable struggle between
pride and humility, between the desire for the best of two worlds, concupiscence induced our first parents to direct things away from the
Creator. It took the life and death of Christ to teach death to self,
renunciation of Satan and his pomps. Sorrow and an admission of
sinfulness condition our entry into and possession of the Kingdom.
With our descent into the baptismal waters we entered the place of
death and shared in Christ's revivifying death. Rising from Baptism
and living in a new kind of atmosphere, indelibly sealed as His, we are
charged with a missionary function to cooperate with the Redemption.
Our strength and pattern is now Confirmation. Through the twofold grace of this sacrament each one freely cries out, "I want to be
what I now am, a member of Christ's kingdom." Then, as the exuberant
witness for Christ with a mission to the poor, oppressed, little people of
the world, he leans down to raise one of Christ's own up to salvation,
just as He stretched His hand to win each one of us. Strength for
this daily mission in Christ comes from the Mass. Through the reception of the Holy Eucharist the members of the body of Christ are
more closely united one to another and to their head. Out of the
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BOOK REVIEWS
Eucharist grows the Church. The intrinsic action of God in us molds
us into the Eucharistic Man. In becoming what we are we enter the
world like Christ as one transforming. Henceforth we eat and drink at
the table of God; we are like the King. This is the meaning of human
life; its realization is in the Eucharist. ·The Liturgical Retreat will stir
the reader to a keener awareness of his rebirth in Christ, guide him
with a pattern to live in Christ, fortify him for the role of missioner
for Christ.
WILLIAM J. McCURDY, S.J.
MEDITATIONS ON THE ROSARY
Silent Bedes: Practical Meditations for the Mysteries of the Rosary.
By S. G. A. Luff. London: Longmans, 1959. Pp. xi-93. $2.25.
"Saying the Rosary" -is not quite the same as "telling our beads."
Anyone, with slight effort, can master the vocal part; it is the silent
bede (prayer, in Middle English) that dodges the untrained mind. In
these reflections, the Welsh lay author relates the spiritual kernel of
each mystery to daily life. The meditations are meant to be "practical
but not earthy, spiritual but neither trite nor overly-sweet . . . offered
by way of cheer to any plain man." The plain man envisioned is not
so plain! To an American, some vocabulary and allusions will be unfamiliar. The spiritual kernel, however, he will not miss. As an aid to
prayer and a practical form of spiritual reading the volume seems somewhat sophisticated for the ordinary person and too jejune for the
liturgically-minded Catholic. Yet, for the growing number of praying
commuters of either class, this selection of Longmans' "Inner Life
Series" is especially suited; it is small enough for purse or pocket
(except in price!), well printed, and without the traditional appearance of a prayer-book. The short meditations (on!i four to six pages
apiece) "reveal anew the meaning which the Gosper has for our lives
here and now in our own homes with our friends and families and in
everyday events."
An appendix contains a brief summary of "The Historical Evolution
of the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary."
ERWIN G. BECK, S.J.
TALKS ON THE HOLY SPIRIT
We and the Holy Spirit: Talks to Laymen. By Leonce de Grandmaison,
S.J. Translated by Angeline Bouchard. Chicago: Fides, 1959. Pp.
viii-223. $1.75.
The title of this paperback reprint is misleading. It is not a book
about devotion to the Holy Spirit, nor precisely the role of the Holy
Spirit in the life of the layman. It is rather a collection of conferences,
delivered between 1912 and 1927 to a lay institute the author founded
and directed, which discuss the ascetical ideals and principles that
should guide their apostolate. And though arranged under five headings, the sudden shift of focus and repititions within the chapters
suggest a compilation from many talks over the 15 year period.
Throughout the collection, the well balanced spirituality of Father
de Grandmaison is evident. He insists that docility to the Holy Spirit be
�BOOK REVIEWS
207
tested by generous obedience to legitimate authority; that a life given
over to apostolic labor be purified by an ever deepening detachment of
heart from all self-interest; and that the laymen's desire for a personal
configuration into Christ can only be achieved by developing a habit
of virtual prayer in his everyday life. The chapters on docility to
God and prayer as the source of apostolic life are particularly well
done. Jesuits looking for reading material to give to laymen during
or outside retreat time can confidently recommend this work.
PAUL 0STERLE, S.J.
AMONG OUR REVIEWERS
Father Felix F. Cardegna (Maryland Province) is Professor of Moral
Theology at Woodstock.
Father W. Norris Clarke (New York Province) is Professor of Philosophy
at Fordham University.
Father Joseph C. Glose (New York Province) is Director of Higher
Education for the New York Province.
Father Charles E. O'Neill (New Orleans Province) is studying at the
Society's Istituto Storico in Rome.
Father Joseph B. Schuyler (New York Province) is Professor of Sociology at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak.
Father Robert H. Springer (Maryland Province) is Professor of Ethics
at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak.
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PRACTICAL DEVOTION
I am well aware that it is the common practice of all Ours daily to
recite some prayers in honor of the Sacred Heart, and on the first Friday of the month to give public expression of heartfelt sorrow for the
insults offered to God in the Holy Eucharist. Indeed, there is hardly
any one amongst us, I think, who is not in the habit of practising such
and similar observances to the most Sacred Heart. Yet, it is highly
important and essential that whilst performing these devotional exercises according to custom, we do so not rote, but with a mind and heart
wholly consecrated unto Jesus, and ever on the alert to fulfil His wishes
and desires in instituting this devotion. Considering the wickedness
of the times and the gigantic efforts of the perverse to further the
cause of Satan, we must needs daily arouse ourselves to promote more
vigorously among ourselves and others the good cause of God and
the honor of Jesus Christ.
Moreover, all of us, and especially the priests, who recite the divine
office and celebrate Mass daily, should every day perform both these
holy actions with the intention with which Christ when on earth offered
praise to His Father. It is our custom to form this intention explicitly
at the beginning of the canonical hours. And even though we may not
give utterance to it in words before the adorable Sacrific, we must be
supposed to do so -at least in our hearts. And do we not, in the words
of this prayer, distinctly propose to ourselves the Heart of Jesus as
the exemplar of all the affections with which we should be penetrated
in the divine mysteries? Let us strive, then, to d_ischarge these two
principal duties of the priesthood with a fervor that renders glory to
Christ our Lord, in reparation for the many outr~ges daily heaped
upon Him. And while offering up the august Sacrifice of the Altar, let
us do so with a lively faith, an earnest piety and an intense love, to
make amends for the neglect, contempt and contumely of ungrateful
men. In fine, mindful of the obligations of our calling, let our hearts
ever burn with zeal in ministering to our neighbor. Such results will
be effected by our devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
FATHER JOHN PHILIP ROOTHAAN
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIX, No. 3
JULY, 1960
CONTENTS, JULY 1960
TECHNICAL TRAINING FOR BROTHERS___________________ 211
Francis J. Tierney
ST. IGNATIUS AND THE COURTIER TYPE________________ 231
Lowrie J. Daly
LETTER FROM HONG KONG --------------------------------------------------- 240
John O'Meara
LITURGICAL SPIRIT OF THE EXERCISES________________
Joseph Gelineau
2:41
EARLY YEARS OF FATHER LAURENCE KELLY____
Donald Smythe
2.61
FATHER JOHN J. SMITH_________________________________________________ 2'77
John H. Collins
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PRAYER ESPECIALLY FOR JESUITS________________________
Jerome Nadal
2:85
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS___________________________________
2~95
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Francis J. Tierney (New York Province) is director of coadjutor brothers' vocations in his Province.
Father Lowrie J. Daly (Wisconsin Province) is director of microfilm
projects and editor of Manuscripta at St. Louis University.
Father Joseph Gelineau is a French Jesuit of the Paris Province.
Father John 0'1\leara (lr!;Sh Province) is master of novices at Hong Kong.
Father Paul L. Cioffi (Maryland Province) and Father Edwin J. Sanders (Maryland Province) have just completed their theological studies
at Woodstock.
l\lr. Donald Smythe (Detroit Province) is a graduate student in history
at Georgetown University.
Father John H. Collins (New England Province) is spiritual father at
Pomfret.
Father Louis Schillebeeckx (Vice Province of Calcutta) is instructor of
tertians at Sitagarha, Hazaribagh, India.
..· ...
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For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollar• Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�Technical Training for Coadjutor
Brothers in Jesuit Legislation
Francis j. Tierney, S.J.
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The coadjutor brother's vocation is a call to a special and a
holy way of life within the Society of Jesus. That it is a holy
way is seen from the great number of saints and blesseds the
brothers have given to the order, four saints-including two
of the New York martyrs who barely attain true membership
in the Society-and twenty-three blesseds. That it is also a
call to a special way of life and of work can be deduced from
the basic documents that define the scope and nature of the
brothers' life in the Society. The papal brief that first allowed the young Society to have brothers, Exponi Nobis of
Pope Paul III, dated 1546, states that the first Jesuits had
declared that they needed helpers in spiritual matters and
also "in temporal things and ... domestic offices." 1 Exposcit
Debitum, the bull of Julius III of 1550, confirms the Society's
right to have "lay coadjutors to help them [the members of
the order] in temporal and domestic offices." 2 Later on, the
Constitutions of the Society of Jesus declare that the coadjutor brothers "are admitted to care for temporal or exterior
things." 3
The Examen Generale, one of the oldest official documents
of the Jesuit order, has expressed the distinct scope of the
coadjutor brother's vocation ever since the first Spanish text,
dated about 1546, which states that the temporal coadjutors,
"with letters or without them, can help in the necessary external matters." 4 The Examen, in all its versions, goes on to
state that it is "more proper" of the temporal coadjutors to
aid the Society in temporal things "in all low and humble
1
Monumenta lgnatiana, Series III, vol. I, Rome, 1934. p. 171.
2Jbid., p. 375.
s Constitutiones, Pars I, Cap. ~I, n. 2.
Monum.lgnat., Ser. III, vol. II, Rome, 1936, p. 97.
4
211
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TRAINING OF BROTHERS
services that may be demanded of them." 5 The basic reason
why the Society of Jesus has brothers is stated in its Constitutions, namely that brothers are admitted to membership
in order to give priests and seminarians an unimpeded opportunity to labor in their own proper type of work. 6
The second Spanish text of the Examen Generale, dated
around 1550, is the first one to add in Chapter VI, which is
the examination to be given to candidates for the brothers,
the important clause within parentheses that states that the
brothers "can be occupied in greater things according to the
talent that God our Lord may have given them." 7
The third Spanish- text of this document, dated in its complete form around 1556-the year Ignatius died-, in the
same Chapter VI and in the section later known as number
6, is the first text to add the idea that the Jesuit brother
"ought not to strive for more knowledge than he had when
he entered." 8 This text restricting any increase of knowledge
for the coadjutor brothers passed over into the approved
Latin version of the Examen and has been the source of many
problems in the brothers' vocation within the Society of Jesus,
especially in the modern times of widespread education.
Humble Service
From the brief, the bull, and the words of .the Examen it is
plain to see that the brothers' vocation within the Society of
Jesus is a call to a special way of low and humble service, of
temporal and domestic work, and, in this temporal work,
because of the clause in parentheses in the Examen that opens
the way to "greater things," also a call to its own type of
greatness in this temporal sphere. Those who have worked
with Jesuit brother candidates know that this separate vocation to a religious life of service, a life approved by the
Church, is realized in many men, even highly educated men,
who desire to become religious in this special way and who,
while holding the priestly vocation in complete reverence,
have no thought. at all of accepting the divine gift of the
priesthood, the honor that "no man takes ... to himself." 9
Ibid., p. 98-9
Constitutiones, Pars I, Cap. II, n. 2A.
7 Manum. lgnat., Ser. III, vol. II, p. 98.
5
6
s Ibid., p. 103.
a Hebrews 6:4.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
213
Those Jesuits who work with brother vocations also come
to realize that "low and humble services," listed as "more
proper" to the brothers, can also be "proper" to the priests
and scholastics, even if usually within their own sphere of
spiritual work. They, too, make the great meditations of the
Exercises and are called upon to live by the eleventh, twelfth
and thirteenth rules of the Summary, rules that require great
self-abnegation. Service that is "low and humble" does not,
then, adequately differentiate the brother from the priest.
The men who accept this special call to the brothers' way
of life become religious in the complete, technical sense of
the term. That is, they are men who have been called by
God to serve Him in this special way and as a result of their
own individual gift of vocation. They are sacred, consecrated
completely to God by their vows in the great act of love that
hems in its lowest actions with the lofty restraints of these
three vows. Theirs is a call to the religious state, a state that
they share with the priests and seminarians of the Jesuit
order and with all other religious. It is a call that comes as
a very special gift of God to enable them to draw close to
Him and to help in the great work of saving souls. The
brothers' call is an ancient one, that of the monks of the
desert and of the early monastic orders. It is a complete
vocation of infinite value, not an incomplete, half-way call.
Apart from the sublime gift of the priesthood, of which no
man is worthy, God has no greater gift to give to men than
this call to the religious life.
The spiritual training of the brothers in the Society of
Jesus, always heavily stressed and rapidly expanding in these
days of more personal attention to the brothers and of the
establishment of brothers' tertianships, cannot be considered
in this article.
Since they are true religious, Jesuit brothers are completely
members of the Jesuit order, sharing with the priests and
scholastics its aims, its problems, its rewards. They are to
be regarded "as brothers and co-workers in the Lord, sons
of the same Society." They are to be esteemed "with due
love and reverence." 10 Brothen always have a reverence and
esteem for priests and those who will be priests yet they are
10
S.I. Constituti01ies et Epitome Instituti, Rome, 1949, no. 170, p. 373.
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TRAINING OF BROTHERS
not servants of the priests and scholastics of whom they take
care in very many ways. Very Reverend Father General, in
his 1948 letter to superiors "On the Procurement and Training of Brothers," clearly states this point in the words: "The
brothers are not assigned to serve the fathers, but the Society,
in exactly the same way that the fathers serve the Society." 11
Priests, scholastics and brothers are not distinguished from
one another as masters and servants; they are all of them,
rather, servants of God, of the Church and of the Society of
Jesus.
Jesuit brothers are members of the mystical body of Christ
within the special section of that body that bears the name
of "the Society of Jesus." Of its very nature, the concept
of the mystical body demands that the members be different,
not that all be identical, but it also demands that all the members be joined together in the unity and coordination of the
working of the one only Body. Father General, in the section of the 1948 letter just cited, goes on to add: "In the early
days of the Society, after the fathers had taken their turns
at porter and cook, thereby suffering loss of time and harm
to their priestly work, St. Ignatius wisely gave some thought
to a 'division of ministries;' yet there was to remain one body,
in which everyone would not be the eye nor the hand nor the
foot, but each member indispensable for the good of the whole.
Someone may say that the hand is more useful than the foot;
but is not this introducing an arbitrary hierarchy of human
values ?" 12
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The special vocation of the Jesuit brother should fit the
changing needs of the Society and of the times. Father Ledochowski recognized this need for adaptation when, in his 1936
letter to the provincials of the American Assistancy "On Increasing the Number of Coadjutor Brothers," he wrote of the
brothers that in Jesuit colleges "they could be secretaries to
the different administrators and superiors, registrars in
schools and universities, librarians, treasurers, bookkeepers,
or fulfill a thousand and one other offices." 13 The same gen11
12
Acta Romana XI, 1949, p. 524.
Ibid.
13
Ibid. VII, 1936, p. 590.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
215
eral need for adaptation to modern conditions had previously
been recognized and acted upon by the Twenty-Sixth General
Congregation of the Society in 1915,14 which called for a
revision of Jesuit Rules to fit modern customs; and by the
Twenty-Seventh General Congregation which helped the
brothers specifically by eliminating from the rule book the
old fourteenth common rule.ts
The brothers could not be expected to live in such a way
as to be out of joint with their own period of history or with
the men with whom they dwelt. "Heroic virtue," writes the
present Very Reverend Father General, "is for the few and
always will be." 16 He also writes: "It is all right to ask for
performance above the ordinary sometimes, but not every
day." 11 In their way of life, Jesuit brothers must have the
opportunity for worthwhile service of Christ as well as for
constant sacrifice in the following of the lowly, mortified, suffering Christ of the Two Standards and the Kingdom. In the
past in the Society of Jesus brothers have always had the
opportunity for both the lowly following of the crucified
Christ and for outstanding performance in His service, especially if they came to the order with a trade or skill, or were
granted permission by superiors to prepare themselves. With
the innovations now in effect, it can be expected that they will
distinguish themselves still more in the future.
Brothers have always had the opportunity for outstanding
service in following Christ in the Society of Jesus. The
clause within parentheses in Chapter 6, number 3 of the
Examen Generale opened the road for Jesuit brothers to do
great things for Christ from the beginning of the order. From
the start, brothers have had the chance to "be occupied in
greater things according to the talent that God our Lord may
have given them."
There are names of well-known brothers to prove this point
of the proper utilization of their great natural abilities.
Brothers like Carnell after whom the flower, the camellia, was
named by Linnaeus, Pozzo, greatest of Jesuit artists, Segers,
Ibid., 1916, p. 34.
Decreta Congregationis Generalis XXVII, p. 242 ss.
1s Acta Romana XI, 1949, p. 522.
11 Ibid., p. 516.
14
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TRAINING OF BROTHERS
also an artist and friend of Rubens, Castiglione, who spent
half a century as an artist in the court of China, are known
to many Jesuits. There are other brothers also, and many
of them, who are still not known and who could easily serve
as subjects some day for another book on brothers like Better
A DayY For example, the Brothers Tristano in St. Ignatius'
own time, brothers in the flesh and coadjutor brothers in the
Society, certainly made use of this opportunity of being "occupied in greater things." Lawrence, the younger of the
brothers and the first admitted to the order-in the year 1552
-was an outstanding builder in the early days of the Society
in Italy. Of him, Ignatius says that if no other profit were
reaped from the college at Ferrara he would not be dissatisfied because of the edification that brother gave everyone "no
less by his good example than by his skill." 19 A scholarly
book has recently been written about John, the older of the
brothers, who was both architect and master builder and who
supervised construction of Jesuit churches and colleges
throughout Italy and Sicily in the period of the first great
expansion of the Society. 20 St. Ignatius resorted to fasting
to gain this brother for the Society. 21 Brother John Tristano
is credited with the establishment of Jesuit churches in their
own distinctive style of architecture.
Brother Luis d' Almeida lived most of his Jesuit life as a
coadjutor brother, and the last two yearS'· of it as a Jesuit
priest. He entered the order in Japan in 1556, the year of
Ignatius' death and four years after Xavier died. He was
a young Portuguese merchant, almost a millionaire by our
standards and, for his time, highly skilled in medicine. In
1557 he established Japan's first free hospital and a medical
school, in which he taught the Japanese Western medicine. 22
With God's grace he also made and, in that time of great
scarcity of priests, baptized many converts.
Brother Henry Foley was an English brother, a convert,
J. R. Leary, S.J., Better A Day, Macmillan, 1951, 341 pp.
Monumenta Historica S.l., Chronicon, vol. II, pp. 491-92.
20 Pietro Pirri, S.J., Giovanni Tristano e i Primordi della Architettura
Gesuitica, Roma, Institutum Historicum S.I., 1955.
21 Manum. [gnat., Ser. I, vol. X, p. 47.
22 Bro. J. Dewender, S.J., "Brother Luis de Almeida, S.J. (1525-1583),"
The Brother, N. Y. Province Brothers' Newsletter, Oct. 1959, pp. 15-18.
1s
19
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
217
who entered the Society in 1851 and composed the first life
of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez in English, a work that was published in London in 1873. During a long career as socius to
the provincial, he also composed the monumental Records of
the English Province of the Society of Jesus. This work is
made up of eight volumes and contains almost 7,500 pages
filled with facts and records of the labors and sufferings of
English Jesuits in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. 23
Brother Etienne Martellange also figures largely in a recent
scholarly publication, Father P. Moisy's Les Eglises des
Jesuites de l'Ancienne Assistance de France. 24 He has also
been the subject of an article in Archivurn Historicurn, S./.2 5
Brother Martellange, who entered the order at Avignon in
1590, was a member of a family of artists. He himself has
often been called a great Jesuit architect.
Jesuit Ships
And there are always available for mention the eminent
brothers of the great Jesuit mission in Brazil! For almost
two hundred years Jesuit ships sailed off the coast of Brazil
and deep into the Amazon and its tributaries. The provincial
of that extensive land was one Jesuit superior who was "at
sea," literally and very often. To meet the needs of a tremendous mission that stretched along the whole vast coast
from southern Brazil to far north of the Amazon and far up
the gigantic rivers, Jesuit brothers built and sailed a small
fleet of ships. Several of the colleges possessed ships to bring
in supplies and to provide for the other Jesuit establishments
of the region. The provincial had a ship, known as "the
frigate of the provincial," which was literally his headquarters in the annual visitation of his subjects. The brothers
built these ships in their own shipyards and eight brothers,
usually listed as socii to the provincial, sailed the provincial's
frigate for almost two centuries. One brother, Francisco
Dias, piloted the frigate from 1581 to 1618 when, because he
23 Bro. J. Dewender, S.J., "Brother Henry Foley, S.J. (1811-1891) ,"
The Brother, Aug. 1959, pp. 14-16.
24 Published by Institutum Historicum S.I., Rome, 1958.
2s P. Moisy, S.J., "Portrait de Martellange," AHSI 21, 1952, pp.
282-299.
�218
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
was in his eighties, he retired to the college at Rio and had
charge of the carpenters and woodcarvers. He died in 1633
at the age of 94. He never suffered shipwreck in all his years
at sea.
Brother Manuel Pires, who entered the Society at the age
of 34 in 1659, sailed the provincial's ship for some 30 years.
He is listed as the greatest of the Jesuit pilots in Brazil, and
he was considered very holy. His life was written and an
investigation of his virtues begun.
Pirates captured the frigate of the provincial three times,
once English pirates,- once Dutch and once French. Since the
frigate was considered a royal ship it flew its own pennant
and banner, the IRS of the Society on a white background.
The last of the line, the "Frigate of St. Joseph and of St.
Francis Xavier," was used to carry Jesuits into exile and
imprisonment in Portugal in the persecution under Pombal. 26
Apart from the great successes, there have also been problems of a legislative nature in the vocation of the Jesuit
brothers, problems that have shown themselves openly in
the modern social environment and problems that have arisen
from ancient Jesuit rules and regulations. These problems
have by now been removed as far as Jesuit regulations are
concerned, a fact that Jesuit priests, scholastics and brothers
should know in order that they may help bring to increasing
actuation the broader areas of knowledge ainl of action permitted, and even expected of, the present-day brothers.
Brothers were always able to perform great works for the
Society of Jesus because well-trained men-men such as Louis
de la Croix, missionary in Paraguay, who came to the novitiate in 1623 at the age of 21 with a master's degree in
Philosophy, 27 and Miguel Marcos, who is to be found sailing
into exile on the Spanish galleon San Carlos Borromeo in
1769 and who had had three years of philosophy and four
26 Serafim Leite, S.J., Historia da Companhia de Jesus no Brasil, vol.
VII, book III, ch. II, pp. 249-60. Serafim Leite, S.J., "Francisco Dias,
Jesuita Portugues, Architecto e Piloto no Brasil (1538-1633)," Broteria
51, Lisbon, 1950, pp. 258-265.
27 P. Delattre, S.J. and E. Lamalle, S.J., "Jesuites Wallons, Flamands,
Fran~ais, Missionnaires au Paraguay, 1608-1767," Archivum Historicum
S.I. XVI, 1947, pp. 152-53.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
219
years of medical studies in Spain to gain his M.D. 28-have
always entered the order as temporal coadjutors. Without
an established policy of systematic technical training within
the order for the brothers, however, it would be hard to provide a steady stream of brothers to take up responsible tasks
such as those proposed by Father Ledochowski and already
mentioned above as suitable occupations for brothers in the
modern Jesuit colleges. The legal hindrances that blocked
off such a policy of systematic preparation in the past, and
which have in recent years been eliminated, will now be
listed.
III
The first and greatest hindrance to the purely human and
technical development of the Jesuit brothers-at least because of the interpretation formerly placed upon it-was the
cause within Chapter VI, number 6 of the Examen, which in
the Latin translation along with the subsequent clause, reads:
"nee etiam [coadjutor temporalis], si in suo eodem [statu] maneat,
plus litterarum addiscere quam sciebat cum est ingressus, curet;
sed perseverare magna cum humilitate debet, in omnibus Creatori
ac Domino suo iuxta primam suam vocationem inserviendo, ac
sollicite in abnegationis sui ipsius profectum et verarum virtutum
studium incumbendo."29
The second of the obstacles to adequate technical preparation of Jesuit brothers was the old fourteenth of the common
rules, now no longer in the rule book of the Society. This rule
read:
"Nemo eorum qui ad domestica ministeria admittuntur, aut legere
discat aut scribere, aut si aliquid scit plus litterarum addiscat;
nee quisquam eum doceat, sine praepositi generalis facultate; sed
satis ei erit sancta cum simplicitate et humilitate Christo Domino
servire."ao
The introduction of the 1910 edition of the Regulae Societatis
states of the common rules that some were taken from the
Constitutions of the Society and that "almost all the rest" are
2s E. J. Burrus, S.J., '"A Diary of Exiled Philippine Jesuits," AHSI
XX, 1951, pp. 269-99.
29 S.l. Constitutiones et Epitome Instituti, Rome 1949, p. 64.
ao Regulae Societatis lesu, Bruxelles, 1910, p. 17.
�220
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
rightly to be held as established and approved by our holy
Father Ignatius "at least as far as pertains to substance." 31
These rules first appeared in print in 1560, after the death
of St. Ignatius, and they were revised in 1567. In 1580, in
Father Mercurian's time, another revision of the Common
Rules was made and a new edition published. The 1910 introduction says that in this 1580 edition, published long after
St. Ignatius died, "the common rules are found in almost
the present form" 32-that is, in the form in which they existed
until the edition of 1932. It may well be that a study of the
history of the individual common rules has already been
made. If so, it would be interesting to see to what extent, if
at all, this prohibition against brothers' learning to read or
write goes back to Ignatius' time, and just how this fourteenth of the common rules developed.
The third difficulty against adequate technical preparation
for the brothers was contained in the wording of the old
tenth of the rules for coadjutor brothers, rules that were
first composed in 1610. This rule read:
"Librum nullum neque retinere, neque Iegere, cuiuscumque generis,
iis licebit, sine Superioris Iicentia, cuius erit iudicium eos illis
assignare, qui magis ad ipsorum spiritualem fructum expendire
videbuntur."3 3
It would seem that, to follow this rule, no b.ooks of any kind
were to be allowed to the brothers except ·those that specifically advanced their spiritual life. This rule was very much
changed and improved upon in the 1932 edition of the Jesuit
rules, but the clause of the Examen, "neque ... plus litterarum
addiscant quam sciebant in ingressu," transferred from the
suppressed fourteenth Common Rule, now finds a place within
the new regulation, the fifteenth of the 1932 rules for coadjutor brothers : 34
"Librum nullum vel folia periodica nulla cuiuscumque generis legent
vel retinebunt sine superioris licentia, cuius erit eos assignare quos
ad spiritualem fructum vel ad officium melius obeundum iis
expedire iudicaverit. Neque sine provincialis facultate plus litterarum addiscant quam sciebant in ingressu; sed sa tis habeant sancta
cum simplicitate et humilitate Christo Domino servire."3~
31 Ibid., pp. ix, x.
32Ibid., p. xi.
33 Ibid., p. 50.
34 Regulae Societatis Iesu, Rome, 1932, p. 66.
Loc. cit.
35
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
221
This rule includes periodicals within the reading matter for
which brothers need permission, but it adds the reading of
professional or trade publications to the type of book for
which the superior may give permission. The permission
for further studies by the brothers is, in this new rule, to
be granted by the provincial, a stipulation that is more
liberal by far than the older permission needed from Father
General in the ancient common rule just to teach a brother
to read or write. All things considered, the new fifteenth
rule of the brothers is a very great improvement over the
old fourteenth common rule, yet in itself it does not give the
appearance of urging provincials habitually to grant the permission to the brothers that would enable them to take professional and technical courses.
IV
All these legislative difficulties against an increase of knowledge by the brothers have been eliminated in the course of
recent years, and the way has been opened to them to take
systematic courses within their technical training in the
Jesuit order.
The old fourteenth of the common rules, which forbade
brothers to learn to read or write, was eliminated from the
number of the rules of the Society by the Twenty-Seventh
General Congregation, held in 1923. Decree 11 of the
Twenty-Sixth General Congregation, which met in 1915 in
the midst of war, had called for a revision of the "Instructions, ordinations of the Generals, the rules, as well as the
decrees and canons of the General Congregations." 36 The
reasons for this revision had been clearly stated in the
eleventh decree itself, to wit: "in order that our laws might
be better adapted to modern and easier usage and that a full
reconciling of our law with present day pontifical law might
be made more evident." 37 When, in the revised text of the
common rules as published by the Twenty-Seventh General
Congregation in 1923, the old fourteenth rule is simply
omitted, it is easy to understand that the Congregation's
reason for dropping it was that here, too, they wished "to
36
Acta Romana, 1916, pp. 33-4.
a1 Loc. cit., p. 34.
�222
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
adapt whatever seemed obsolete to the changed conditions of
our times." 38 No matter how the reason might be stated, the
fourteenth rule definitely ceased to be part of the Society's
law through the action of the competent authority of the
Twenty-Seventh General Congregation.
The Twenty-Seventh General Congregation itself revised
the text of the rules of the Summary and of the common
rules, but it left the changing of the other rules of the Society to the authority of Very Reverend Father General. 39
This action left the revision of the rules for the temporal
coadjutors in the hands of Father General and, when the
new text of the SoCiety's rules was published in 1932, the
new fifteenth of the brothers' rules contained the improvements already mentioned, to wit, that with the permission of
their superior brothers could now read publications that were
helpful to their trade, and that the provincials could now
grant the permission for their brother-subjects to study. Yet
the great weight of the clause in Chapter VI, number 6 of
the Examen, which was inserted in this new rule, could still
be felt and could make it appear to those more conservatively
inclined that Jesuit brothers should still not rightfully desire
"to learn more letters" than they knew when they entered
the Order. So matters stood until the Thirtieth General Congregation in 1957. At that time, through the process of legal
interpretation of the text, the old common ·interpretation of
this clause which had historically posed the greatest obstacle
to a consistent program of technical preparation for the
brothers was itself blotted out.
Interpretation
Legal interpretation of the Examen belongs only to a General Congregation in the Society of Jesus because of that
document's great authority and its equal rank with the Jesuit
Constitutions. 40 The process of interpretation of this par3 8 Very Rev. Fr. G~n. Wlodimir Ledochowski, S.J., Letter "The Promulgation of the decrees of the Twenty-seventh General Congregation,"
ibid., p. 58.
39 Decreta Gong. Gen. XXVII, Decretum Historicum 9, p. 13.
4° A. Arregui, S.J., Annotationes ad Epitomen Instituti S.I., Rome,
1934, p. 17, p. 30.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
223
ticular clause began, however, in an apparently incidental
section of the letter of Father General Janssens dated October
30, 1948 and entitled "On the procurement and training of
Brothers." This particular paragraph, contained in a section
of the letter encouraging the foundation of preparatory
schools for prospective candidates for the brothers, reads:
"Please do not let anyone object that this sort of instruction of
youth is not in conformity with the spirit of our Institute. The
Institute does not intend that our brothers be illiterate and uneducated men. It merely states, in order that the way to human
ambition be more securely blocked, that the brothers for their part
should be satisfied with the learning which they had at the time of
their entrance, and that it is for superiors only, in this case the
provincial, to decide whether they should learn more." 41
The Thirtieth General Congregation later on makes this
paragraph its own. The Thirtieth General Congregation,
held in 1957, considering what it could do to enable the
brothers to have better spiritual and technical formation in
modern times, authoritatively settled the legal meaning of
the troublesome text in the following words of its Decretum
Historicum 13, number 2:
"Referring to the place in the Exam en Chapter 6, number 6: 'nee
. . . plus litterarum addiscere, quam sciebat cum est ingressus,
curet,' the Congregation confirmed with its own authority the words
of our Father in the letter of October 30, 1948 to Superiors of the
Society . . ."42
There follow immediately the words of Father Janssens just
above cited. Obviously, the General Congregation is here
acting upon the right given it alone to interpret authentically
"the Constitutions and the laws passed by a General Congregation."43 Such an official interpretation made by a
competent public authority is known as an "authentic" interpretation and it thereafter has the same force as the law
itself.H
The authoritative meaning of the clause of Chapter VI,
number 6, has been settled, then, not as meaning that brothers
are not to study but only as meaning that the decision on
Acta Romana XI, 1947, pp. 521-2.
Ibid. XIII, 1958, p. 310.
43 Epitome lnstituti, Romae, 1949, n. 16, p. 308.
44 Codex Juris Canonici, Can. 17, #2.
41
42
�224
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
their studying is to be left in the hands of their fathers
provincial. The next important step-that of making sure
that the brothers who now clearly have the right to study
will also be able to put this right to use in their own sphere
of temporal work-is taken toward the end of the decisive
instruction "On the training of our coadjutor Brothers,"
issued by Father General Janssens in 1958. Father General writes:
"Now that the Thirtieth General Congregation has by its authoritative in~erpretation (decree 13, no. 2) explained the text of the
Examen (chapter 6; number 6)-a text that gave rise to so many
problems-it is left.~ superiors prudently to decide who among the
temporal coadjutors should be trained and in what trades over and
above the training they had when they entered the Society and to
decide how this training is to be received. In this, as in everything,
our final norm must be 'the greater glory of God' and His more
perfect service according to the circumstances and needs of our
times." 45
It is not only some few Jesuit brothers who are now to
receive adequate courses in their technical training. Very
Reverend Father General wrote the above words after he
had already stated in this same instruction several important
principles pertaining to the brothers, to wit: "All things
being equal, the better educated will be the better religious ;" 46
and "Once more, all things being equal, ths more perfect the
natural and 'technical' or 'professional' d~velopment of the
religious, the better the religious." 47 Father General wrote
the above words after he had already decreed that, "all contrary so-called 'tradition' being put aside," those who have
the talent are to be trained from their postulancy by skilled
brothers or laymen in some trade, at the same time still preparing themselves for the customary domestic tasks. 48 Father
General wrote them after he had prescribed a minimum twoyear juniorate period of religious and technical training for
the brothers, to be given them immediately after they had
taken their first vows, and after he had stated that:
"the natural training or 'culture' [of the brothers] must also be
perfected. According to the official interpretation of our law as
given by the Thirtieth General Congregation (decree 13, no. 2),
45
46
Acta Romana XIII, 1959, pp. 448-9.
Ibid., p. 440.
47
4s
Ibid., pp. 442-3.
Ibid., p. 442.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
225
let Superiors without any scruple see to it that our junior brothers
be given the same secular training as is given to the outstanding
laboring men in the same locality. In fact, if these young men have
the talent, let them advance in this training as far as the greater
good of the Society and its works demand." 4 9
f
Juniorate
On the spiritual side, during this brothers' juniorate, Father
General writes, "their knowledge of christian doctrine is to
be widened and deepened, and, according to their capacity
and needs, also their knowledge of Holy Scripture, liturgy,
ecclesiastical history." 50
In his Instruction Father General also expresses his desire
that Jesuit brothers obtain valid certificates during this juniorate, testifying to their technical knowledge. He wishes
them to attend "good Catholic trade schools" to gain this
knowledge, or, if this cannot be done, they are to be trained
by "a skilled and experienced brother, (hardly ever by one
who is self-educated)" or by "a skilled lay teacher." Future
infirmarians, says this instruction, are to be trained "in
schools of nursing which can grant them a diploma." In
other words, Very Reverend Father General not only wants
the Society of Jesus to know that the brothers can, from now
on in, be highly trained in their assigned tasks but he also
decrees that they will be highly trained as a body and that
they will go to schools. 51 It is always taken for granted that
the Brothers will also be adequately trained in their traditional domestic tasks.
Very Reverend Father General sets a very clear deadline
on compliance with the decisions about the brothers contained
within this 1958 instruction. He concludes the instruction
with a very brief paragraph that states:
I
"This instruction and the innovations herein contained, especially
the extended training period for the coadjutor brothers after their
first vows and their period of probation before last vows, are to be
put into practice as soon as possible. They must be universally in
effect at least by the beginning of 1959." 5 2
The great obedience of the Society to the technical training
aspects of this instruction can be seen from Brother Gerard
49
50
Ibid., p. 443.
Ibid.
5t
52
Ibid., p. 444.
Ibid., p. 449.
�226
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
Schade's schematic report in The Brother, the New York
Province Brothers' newsletter, on the brother juniorates now
functioning in many Jesuit provinces, a report that in itself
would make a good foundation for another article on the
progress of the Jesuit brothers of today. 53
The Thirtieth General Congregation, to make one last comment in concluding this section, also decreed that a new revision of the rules for temporal coadjutors be turned over to
Very Reverend Father General for accomplishment, along
with the power to suspend, insofar as necessary, any opposing
decree of past general congregations. The thirteenth decree
of the Thirtieth Gen-eral Congregation, which rightly begins
with the words: "The General Congregation was singularly
solicitous for our coadjutor brothers," contains the following
statement:
"Very many of the postulata requested the Congregation to revise
the rules of the temporal coadjutors, and specifically that it remove
the prohibition in Rule 15, 'of learning more letters than they knew
when they entered.' "54
Despite the new authentic interpretation of the meaning of
this phrase, if it still has any weight from tradition to prevent
Brothers from studying, the Thirtieth General Congregation
wants it removed, at least from the rules.
v
..- -·
In the closing days of November 1959, shortly after the
above paragraphs were written, the new text of the revised
rules for the coadjutor brothers reached the American provincials. The new brothers' rules are based heavily on the
ideas of the religious life as such and the Mystical Body, and,
in this thought of the Mystical Body, reiterate in the twentysecond rule the attitude of reverence and respect due to the
sacramental character of the priesthood and to the office in
the Mystical Body that this character imposes on those who
bear it. The new rules naturally also follow through on the
demands of the T.hirtieth General Congregation and the 1958
instruction of Very Reverend Father General in the matters
of technical and cultural training of the Jesuit brothers.
53
54
Cf. The Brother, Aug. 1959, pp. 8-12.
Acta Romana XIII, 1958, p. 309.
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
227
Insofar as the new rules deal with these types of training,
they will be considered briefly here.
The ninth of the new brothers' rules admonishes the brothers earnestly to "endeavor to obtain the greatest possible
benefit from the completion of their personal training, both
from the weekly instructions in which the Catholic faith,
Holy Scriptures, the sacred liturgy, ascetical principles, the
history of the Church and of the Society, and similar matters
are explained to them, and also from their daily spiritual
reading in which they will devote themselves to the same
subjects ... This programme will ensure that they receive
considerable help along the road to perfection, and that they
are able to converse with the externs they have to meet, and
answer their more usual difficulties."
The fourteenth of the new rules, after stressing the importance of the traditional household duties of the Jesuit
brothers, adds :
"In addition, those whom superiors have selected to learn some
particular trade or craft, should so perfect themselves in it to the
best of their ability that, by always setting as their goal the greater
glory of God, Our Creator and Lord, they will be as good as, or
better than, competent lay-workers, and give as much edification to
others by their professional skill as by the example of their life."
To point out the concern of the new rules with the cultural
training of the brothers, it is best to quote the complete text
of the fifteenth rule:
"Moreover, since the Society's greater good and their own require
it, all should be keen to secure that level of culture and general
education, even in what concerns non-religious subjects, which is
shared by the majority of their contemporaries and is in keeping
with their particular state of life; above all, they should learn to
speak and write their own language correctly."
The new sixteenth rule once again expands the normal reading matter available to Jesuit brothers, and it eliminates all
mention of the clause from Chapter VI, number 6 of the
Examen, so often mentioned above. The text of the rule
follows:
"They [the brothers] shall make use only of those books, periodicals
and newspapers which are available to them in their community
library or recreation ·room, or for which permission is granted in
individual cases by the spiritual father or the superior, either to
�228
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
complete their spiritual development or general education, or to
meet the requirements of their trade or office. They should also
be on their guard against wasting time in reading what deals with
worthless or quite trivial topics."
The seventeenth rule points out that the free time available
to the brothers may be used by them "in completing the training which their vocation requires, according to the directions
of their superior."
The eighteenth rule tells the brothers to "be ready, out of
love for the Society and their brethren, to instruct other
brothers without reserve in their own particular trade or
craft."
The new twenty-third rule also deals with an important
type of instruction to be given to Jesuit brothers. It reads in
part:
"For their dealings with externs, the coadjutor brothers also, in
accordance with the requirements of their condition and office,
should receive suitable instruction in the social significance of the
Gospel and be filled with its spirit; and they should likewise learn
to put it into practice in their life."
The twenty-fifth and last of the new rules cites the thought
of St. Ignatius contained within Part X, number 3 of the
Jesuit Constitutions to remind the brothers that virtue, which
unites the human instrument to God, must a!ways be their
first concern. After this spiritual foundation .has been well
established, then the preservation and growth of the whole
Society can be expected to draw additional strength from the
"natural means by which the instrument of God Our Lord is
adapted to the needs of the neighbor." These means are, of
course, to be used solely for the service of God and with the
trust of the individual properly placed in God rather than in
his human skills.
These new brothers' rules then, which will soon be in the
hands of Jesuit brothers and available to all the members of
the order, guarantee that consistent and adequate consideration will be given to the demands of the new ideas on the
technical training of Jesuit brothers.
VI
The way, then, is completely open today for obtaining the
proper technical training of Jesuit brothers and their greatest
�TRAINING OF BROTHERS
229
possible natural usefulness "for the glory of God and the good
of souls." Brothers may still come to the Society "sine litteris," and they will be most welcome if they have the native
intelligence needed to grasp the nature and the requirements
of the religious life and if they sincerely desire to serve God.
They can enter the order now at a young age and without a
trade, and learn that trade within the Society. Sentences
within Very Reverend Father General's 1948 letter on the
brothers and his 1958 instruction, advising Jesuits to look for
brother-candidates within their schools, take on very deep
significance. 55 More than ever before, brothers can enter
the Order "cum litteris," and know that all their talents will
be used, subject to obedience and the needs of the Order, for
God's greater glory.
Of course it is always God who gives the growth, yet Paul
must still plant and Apollos water. The work of gaining
vocations for the Society is a task that belongs to all its members, priests, scholastics and brothers. It is, in fact, a work
that cannot successfully be completed unless very many
Jesuits, in their own way and within their own assigned tasks,
stay alert for chances to encourage good men to consider
joining the Society as priests or brothers. Now that ancient
obstacles to the Jesuit brothers' vocation have been eliminated,
it is more easy to perceive the true worth of the religious
vocation of the brothers, a vocation that has given the Society so many of its saints and blesseds. New candidates for
the brothers can more easily be sought for now, as Father
General says, "in our schools of humane studies," . . . "a
most bountiful source" that "has been too much neglected." 56
Now that much time, thought and action have been spent
effectively on the task of bringing the holy way of life of the
Jesuit brothers more into accord with the needs and circumstances of the present times, the number of brothers within
the order has shown a rapid increase. Very Reverend Father
General wrote in his 1948 letter 51 that, in 1947 there were
5,188 Brothers in the order, 11~ fewer than there had been
Ibid. XI, 1948, p. 520; XIII, 1959, p. 439.
Ibid., p. 439.
51 Very Rev. Fr. Gen. John .B. Janssens, S.J., Letter "On the procurem~nt and training of brothers," 1948, ibid., XI, p. 512.
55
M
�230
TRAINING OF BROTHERS
ten years before; now, at the beginning of 1959, the Brothers
are 5,769 in number, 58 an increase of 581 in 12 years. It is
good to see the numbers increasing. There is much work for
the brothers to do in the Society and in Christ's great Church
where, as Pope Pius XII quotes in his encyclical on the Mystical Body, " 'The head cannot say to the feet: I have no need
of you,' " and where, stating his own thoughts, he continues,
" ... marvelous though it appear: Christ requires His members."59 Christ needs many men to serve Him in the special
way of the brothers, to reverence all priests, and to help
Jesuit priests and scholastics to perform their vital works for
the salvation of souls.-··
58
Supplementum Catalogorum S.l. 1960, Romae, p. 8.
59 Pope Pius XII, Encyclical Letter, The Mystical Body of Christ,
America Press, p. 24.
�St. Ignatius of Loyola and the
Courtier Type
Lowrie J. Daly, S.J.
In the May of 1521 the capital of Navarre, Pamplona, was
facing a crisis. The kingdom of Navarre had been seized by
wily King Ferdinand of Aragon in 1512, after it had played
the part of a buffer state between France and Spain and had
long been coveted by the sovereigns of both countries. But
at the death of Ferdinand in 1516, there was considerable
unrest and some open rebellion in the kingdom of Castile
against the rule of Charles V, who was busy at the time with
problems in Germany. During the next few years it became
evident that the French king would aid the former king of
Navarre in his attempt to retrieve his former kingdom. At
the same time the officials of Navarre warned Charles V not
to withdraw troops from the frontier even in the face of the
unrest in Castile. But things in Castile looked a lot blacker
than a possible French invasion out on the frontier and the
withdrawal of troops continued.
Thus it happened that in the May of 1521 when the French
troops, 12,000 infantry, 600 horses and 29 guns, came bounding through the passes at Roncevaux, Pamplona was in no
shape for strong defense. It is true that there was a citadel
with provisions, pikes, cannon and powder, but the town
fathers were in favor of immediate surrender to the French.
In vain, a young knight, Inigo of Loyola, in the service of
the royal viceroy of Navarre, pleaded for action and strong
resistance. The town fathers paid him no heed and made
their own peace with the approaching French, who were
accompanied by the claimant to the former kingdom of
Navarre. Nevertheless Inigo of Loyola, loyal to his oath,
refused to surrender the citadel although the town itself was
already garrisoned by the French and the defenders of the
citadel were hopelessly outnumbered. The assault on the
citadel, coming on Pentecost Tuesday, lasted some six hours
with the French bombarding the fortress with their cannon
231
�232
THE COURTIER
and preparing their scaling ladders. Suddenly the picture
changed. As Ignatius in his Autobiography, tells us, speaking of himself in the third person, "After the assault had
been going on for some time, a cannon ball struck him in the
leg, crushing its bones, and because it passed between his
legs it also seriously wounded the other." 1 Ignatius fell and
with him fell the citadel.
Fame and Glory
Up to the time of his misfortune, Ignatius had been liiigo
of Loyola, a nobleman.. and courtier seeking fame and glory,
and "the credit of a great name upon earth," as the world had
taught him. He was but a mediocre Catholic and his life had
not been free from serious sin, as Polanco and Nadal, both
close friends of Ignatius testify. 2 Now, however, in the long
and very painful recovery from his battle experience, liiigo
was to become Ignatius, the courtier of the world was to turn
into the follower of Christ, the King.
During the years when Ignatius was strenuously pursuing
his ideals of knightly fame and glory, another lover of these
same ideals, had been carefully writing a manual of instructions which would summarize the formative principles of the
perfect knight and courtier. When Baldesar .Castiglione finished his volume, The Book of the Courtier, lie- may not have
realized that he had written a Renaissance best-seller. But
that is what he had done. The Italian original, written partly
at Rome and partly at Urbino, between the years 1508 and
1516, was first printed by the famous Aldine Press at Venice
in the April of 1528. Since that date some one hundred and
forty editions have been published and the original has been
translated into Spanish (1534), French (1537), English
(1561), Latin (1561), and German (1566). Obviously The
Book of the Courtier was widely read and highly influential.
Whether or not, Ignatius of Loyola ever found time to read
it, is another ques~ion. But what is evident is that Castigli1St. Ignatius' Own Story, trans. by by William Young, S.J. (Chicago:
Henry Regnery Co., 1956), chap. 1, no. 1, p. 7.
2 Cf. Paul Dudon, S.J., St. Ignatius of Loyola, trans. W. J. Young, S.J.
(Milwaukee: Bruce, 1949), pp. 37-38
�THE COURTIER
one's teaching is clearly and interestingly opposed to some of
the key ideas and central maxims of Ignatius.
A recent work by John S. White has briefly but clearly
analyzed the emphasis which Castiglione places upon such
ideals as "universal favour", honor, fame, and in general what
Ignatius would term "worldly glory". 3 According to White,
the type of individualism which Castiglione has canonized is
the "aesthetic individualism," where the "energetic activism
is sublimated into a passive aesthetic individualism." 4 He
points out that the tyrant is above the society he dominates,
the anarchist is outside the one he fights, while this "aesthetic
individualist" asserts himself inside or within society, and
uses society "like a resonance box," all the while sounding off
himself. In this analysis, the courtier needs society in the
same way "a work of art requires a beholder" or "the drama,
an audience".
Just as Castiglione had definite ideas as to what went into
the making of the "perfect courtier," so Ignatius had exact
ideas as to what went into the making of a perfect follower
of Christ. Perhaps the simplest procedure is to contrast the
words of Castiglione with those of lgnatius. 5 As a matter
of fact, the book of Castiglione crystallizes the ideals and
objectives of the "perfect courtier," as they were current in
his day, which was also the day of St. Ignatius. Like Machiavelli's Prince, Castiglione's work too was a synthesis of the
actual thought of the time. His statements were the opinions
and attitudes of the average nobleman bent upon a successful
career. Certainly their sentiments would be familiar and
well known to Ignatius, the converted knight, who said of
himself that "up to his twenty-sixth year he was a man given
over to the vanities of the world, and took a special delight
in the exercise of arms, with a great and vain desire of wining glory." 6
3 John S White, Renaissance Cavalier
(New York: Philosophical
Library, 1959).
4 Ibid., p. 7.
5 The passages from Castiglione are cited from Opdycke's translation.
Count Baldesar Castiglione, The Book of the Courtier, trans. Leonard
Eckstein Opdycke (New York: Scribner's Sons, 1903). Italics added.
6 Autobiography, ed. cit., p. 7.
�234
THE COURTIER
Reputation and Honor
First of all, it is clear that the good opinion of men ("universal favor") and honor are the great objectives of the
courtier. In other words, the courtier seeks a good reputation and honor. It has been said that reputation is the good
opinion other people have of a man because of his virtue or
worth, and that honor is the external expression of this
opmwn. The Book of the Courtier is informal discussion of
the idea of a perfect 'courtier, and Castiglione had various
highborn personages give their opinions, with Count Ludovico
da Canossa playing the leading role. Distinguishing his statements about the matter of praising oneself, Count Ludovico
da Canossa, the main speaker, remarks as follows.
If you heard what I said, it was impudent and indiscriminate selfpraise that I censured ... I say, however, that he, who in praising
himself runs into no error and incurs no annoyance or envy at the
hands of those that hear him, is a very discreet man indeed and
merits praise from others in addition to that which he bestows upon
himself . . . But to my way of thinking, the whole art consists in
saying things fn such a way that they shall not seem to be said
to that end, but let fall so naturally that it was impossible not to
say them, and while seeming always to avoid self-praise, yet to
achieve it ..• (l/18, p. 27).
In the other parts of the discussion, the matter of appearing
rather than being is emphasized several times.
Next I say that of bodily exercises there are some that are almost
never practised except in public,-such as jousts, tourneys, stickthrowing, and all the rest that have to do with arms. Hence when
our Courtier has to take part in these, he must first contrive to be
so well equipped in point of horses, weapons and dress, that he
lacks nothing. And if he does not feel himself well provided with
everything, let him on no account engage, for if he fails to do well,
the excuse cannot be made that these things are not his business.
Then he must carefully consider in whose presence he is seen and
of what sort the company is .. (II/9, p. 85).
Hence the Courtier ought to take great care to make a good impression at the start, imd to consider how mischievous and fatal a thing
it is to do otherwise. (II/36, p. 113).
. . . Therefore if our Courtier excels in anything besides arms, I
would have him get profit and esteem from it in fine fashion; and
I would have him so discreet and sensible as to be able with skill
/
1
(·
1
!
1
�THE COURTIER
235
and address to attract men to see and hear that wherein he thinks
he excels, always appearing not to do it from ostentation, but by
chance and at others' request rather than by his own wish. And in
everything he has to do or say, let him if possible come ready and
prepared, yet appearing to act impromptu throughout. (II/38,
p. 116).
So too, even in speaking of arms, our Courtier will have regard to
the profession of those with whom he converses, and will govern
himself accordingly,-speaking in one way with men and in another
way with women. And if he wishes to touch on something that is
to his credit, he will do so covertly, as if by chance in passing, and
with the discretion and caution that Count Ludovico expounded to
us yesterday. (11/8, p. 84).
The reason for this careful safeguarding of appearance is
to achieve the good opinion of all and honor. For instance,
even should the courtier become involved in a quarrel, appearances must be watched.
Nor should he be too ready to fight except when honour demands it;
for besides the great danger that the uncertainty of fate entails,
he who rushes into such affairs recklessly and without urgent cause,
merits the severest censure even though he be successful. But when
he finds himself so far engaged that he cannot withdraw without
reproach, he ought to be most deliberate, both in the preliminaries
to the duel and in the duel itself, and always show readiness and
daring. (I/21, p. 30).
And this applies even to the practice of arms and to the jousts
and tournaments.
'I
I
~
I
Even in time of peace weapons are often used in various exercises,
and gentleman appear in public shows before the people and ladies
and great lords. For this reason I would have our Courtier a
perfect horseman in every kind of seat; and besides understanding
horses and what pertains to riding, I would have him use all possible
care and diligence to lift himself a little beyond the rest in everything, so that he may be ever recognized as eminent above all others.
And as we read of Alcibiades that he surpassed all the nations with
whom he lived, each in their particular province, so I would have
this Courtier of ours excel all others, and each in that which is
most their profession. And as it is the especial pride of the Italians
to ride well with the rein, to govern wild horses with consummate
skill, and to play at tilting and jousting,-in these things let him
be among the best of the Italians. In tourneys and in the arts of
defense and attack, let him shine among the best in France. In
stick-throwing, bull-fighting, and in casting spears and darts, let
him excel among the Spaniards. But above everything he should
temper all his movements with a certain good judgment and grace,
�THE COURTIER
236
if he wishes to merit that universal favour, which is so greatly
prized. (1!21, p. 30).
But it must be noted that ostentation is to be avoided as
well as any evident sign of affectation, not because this is
basically unbefitting the perfect courtier but because it gives
the show away.
But having before now often considered whence this grace springs,
laying aside those men who have it by nature, I find one universal
rule concerning it, which seems to me worth more in this matter
than any other in all things human that are done or said: and that
is to avoid affectation to the uttermost and as it were a very sharp
and dangerous rock; .and, to use possibly a new word, to practice
in everything a certain nonchalance that shall conceal design and
show that what is done and said is done without effort and almost
without thought . . . Accordingly we may affirm that to be true
art which does not appear to be art; nor to anything must we
give greater care than to conceal art, for if it is discovered, it
quite destroys our credit and brings us into small esteem. (I/26,
p. 35).
Spreading One's Fame
Furthermore, t>hould the courtier be forced to travel to a
new place where the local Who's Who does not have his reputation well described, he is to follow this advice.
Therefore I would have our Courtier set off his worth as best he can,
with cleverness and skill, and whenever he has_to go where he is
strange and unknown, let him take care that good opinion of him
precedes him, and see to it that men there shall know of his being
highly rated in other places, among other lords, ladies and gentlemen; for that fame which seems to spring from many judgments,
begets a kind of firm belief in a man's worth, which, in minds thus
disposed and prepared, is then easily maintained and increased by
his conduct ... (II/32, p. 110).
The reason for all this emphasis upon appearances, upon
the first impression, upon what the world thinks of one, is
due to the belief that, if the world thinks well of one, honor
is achieved. And honor is the goal of the courtier.
(Lord Gaspar replies) As for me I have known few men excellent
in anything whatever, who do not praise themselves; and it seems
to me that this may well be permitted them; for when anyone who
feels himself to be of worth, sees that he is not known to the ignorant
by his works, he is offended that his worth should lie buried, and
needs must in some way hold it up to view, in order that he may
I
�THE COURTIER
237
not be cheated of the fame that is the true reward of worthy effort.
(I/18, p. 27).
(Messer Federico) ... Yet among our rules we may also lay it down
that when our Courtier finds himself in a skirmish or action or
battle, or in other such affairs, he ought to arrange discreetly to
withdraw from the crowd, and to perform those glorious and brave
deeds that he has to do, with as little company as he can, and
in sight of all the noblest and respected men in the army, and
especially in the presence and (if it is possible) before the very
eyes of his king or of the prince whom he serves; for in truth it
is very proper to make the most of one's good deeds. And I think
that just as it is wrong to seek false and unmerited renown, so it
is wrong also to defraud one's self of the honour that is one's due,
and not to seek that praise which alone is the true reward of worthy
effort. (II/8, p. 83f).
And I remember having in my time known some men who were
very stupid in this regard, although valiant, and who put their lives
as much in danger to capture a flock of sheep, as to be the first
to scale the walls of a beleaguered town; which our Courtier will
not do if he bears in mind the motive that leads him into war, which
shall be honour only. (II/8, p. 84).
In his book the Spiritual Exercises, which he used for any
and all whom he thought would profit by it and whom he could
persuade to use it, St. Ignatius makes clear his attitude
toward fame and honor. He does this at key points, in two
of the great meditations, those of the Kingdom of Christ and
the Two Standards. In both Ignatius has the exercitant
steel himself against the desire for fame and the longing for
worldly glory. 7
... Those who will want to be more devoted and signalise themselves
in all service of their King Eternal and universal Lord, not only
will offer their persons to the labor, but even, acting against their
own sensuality and against their carnal and worldly love, will make
offerings of greater value and importance, saying, . . . 'I want and
desire ... to imitate Thee in bearing all injuries and all abuse .. .'
(Meditation on Kingdom, Third Point, p. 57).
I
'
t
I
I
The third, to consider the discourse
them (his followers, the evil spirits),
out nets and chains; that they have
for riches-as he is accustomed to do
which he (Satan) makes to
and how he tells them to cast
first to tempt with a longing
in most cases-that men may
7 Passages cited are from Father Mullan's translation.
The Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius of. Loyola, trans. from the Autograph by Fr.
Elder Mullan, S.J. (New York: Kenedy & Sons, 1914). Italics added.
�238
THE COURTIER
more easily come to vain honor of the world and then to vast
pride . . . (The Two Standards, Third Point, p. 74).
It should be remembered too, that in the first part of his
Spiritual Exercises, in the section called the Foundation, Ignatius warns the exercitant that he should not choose anything
except in so far as it is in accord with God's will. Among
the examples given are honors and riches.
First this is necessary to make ourselves indifferent to all created
things in all that is allowed to the choice of our free will and is not
prohibited to it; so that, on our part, we want no health rather than
sickness, riches rather.. than poverty, honor rather than dishonor.
(Principle and Found:~tion, p. 21).
lgnatian Ideal
To aid the Jesuit in his knowledge and attainment of the
ideals and objectives which St. Ignatius had set forth in his
Constitutions, a summary of some of the chief passages was
compiled and edited as early as 1560 by Father Lainez, the
second General of the Society, a more complete edition by
the fourth General, Father Mercurian in 1580, and a revision
of this "Summary" by the 27th General Congregation in 1923.
Composed of passages selected from the Constitutions and
General Examen of St. Ignatius, the "Summary of the Constitutions," as it is called, is to be read and meditated upon
by the members of the order. In the follg:\ving passages,
taken from the General Examen and incorporated into the
Summary, Ignatius makes clear the attitude he wishes his
followers to have toward fame and worldly honor.
For as worldly men who follow the things of the world, love and
with great diligence seek honors, reputation and the credit of a
great name upon earth, as the world teaches them, so those who
are advancing in spirit and seriously follow Christ our Lord, love
and earnestly desire things which are altogether the contrary; that
is, to be clothed with the same garment and with the livery of their
Lord for His love and reverence; insomuch that if it could be
without offense of the divine Majesty and without sin on the part of
their neighbor, they would wish to suffer reproaches, slanders and
injuries, and to be treated and accounted as fools (without at the
same time giving any occasion for it), because they desire to imitate
and resemble in some sort their Creator and Lord Jesus Christ, and
to be clothed with His garments and livery, since He clothed Himself
with the same for our greater spiritual good, and gave us an
example that, in all things, as far as by the assistance of God's
�THE COURTIER
239
grace we can, we may seek to imitate and follow Him, seeing He is
the true way that leads men to life.
The passages quoted from the writings of St. Ignatius will
be familiar to many because the founders of later religious
congregations have so often utilized the spirit and at times
the actual wording. Furthermore, those who have made a
retreat according to the Spiritual Exercises will immediately
recognize the meaning and importance of the saint's advice.
It is interesting, however, to realize that Ignatius was writing
with something very definite in mind and against a strongly
popular and almost prevalent philosophy of reputation and
honor. We must admit, too, that Castiglione's book merely
makes explicit and unblushingly clear the ideals and motives
of the "worldly minded," who by no means are restricted to
those living in the world. In our present day, there seems to
be no such clear exposition of the worldly ideals as Castiglione
penned for his generation. But unfortunately even without
a modern manual for the perfect courtier, the world is still
doing too good a job of teaching.
i
1
r
~i
'
�Letter from Hong Kong
John O'Meara, S.J.
I had an interesting piece of history in my hands a few
days ago. Quite a few of the priests who were trained in the
Regional Seminary here when I was in charge are now in gaol
and the worst off are..those who have been banished to desert
parts of the NW and NE of China. An old lady showed me
two letters from her nephew who is one of those priests and
who is now in Tsinghai in a labour corrective camp. That
would be much the same as if you were transported to the
north of Canada and set to make roads and build dams without
very much protection against the weather, except that you
would have Sahara conditions in the summer. He wrote to
say that he had been transported there because his ideas were
incorrect and -that a benevolent government would change
these ideas and make him a useful servant of the people ; the
work was light, his health was good and he had everything
he wanted. Then followed a long list of _foods, medicines,
clothes which he would like to have. Obviously all adjectives
in his letters were to be given a contrary sense. Another
letter acknowledged the receipt of all these and asked for
more.
He is only one of half-a-dozen personally known to me in
that area; I know of others in other areas. One died recently,
a very strong, hardy man. It is no harm to remember these
things when our Catholic papers, relying with great innocence,
or laziness, on Communist sources, all too readily seize on anything which may tell to the discredit of the Chinese clergy.
Ninety-nine per cent of those whom I know are heroically
faithful-and I know a great number.
May 16, 1960
240
�The Liturgical Spirit of the Exercises
Joseph Gelineau, S.J.
The very association of these two expressions: "liturgical
life" and "spiritual exercises" may seem provocative. Are
these not two different ways of going to God? Do we not
find here two views of the spiritual life apparently opposed
to each other? It is very common, as a matter of fact, to
distinguish and even to oppose the prayer of the Church to
the prayer of the individual, objective to subjective piety,
theocentric to anthropocentric cult (!), traditional to modern
devotion, etc. 1
But anyone who is not able to overcome these apparent
contradictions will end up reducing the liturgy to a "ritualTranslated by Paul L. Cioffi, S.J., and Edwin J. Sanders, S.J.
'
r
1 How remote those controversies raised in 1913-1914 seem today!
The
modern liturgical revival, putting such stress on the pastoral aspect of
the liturgy, has done away with the unreal opposition between individual
asceticism and liturgical piety. Nevertheless, we here mention some of
the more important publications on the subject.
Dom Festugiere, O.S.B., "La litur;::ie cntholique. Esquisse d'une synthese
suivie de quelques developpements." Revue de Philosophie, (1913)
pp. 692-896. (Especially pp. 726-731, dealing with the Jesuits and
the liturgy.)
- - - , "La liturgie catholique. Donnees fondamentales et verites a
retablir." Revue Thomiste, (1914) pp. 39-64; 143-178; 274-312.
Ferdinand Cavallera, S.J., Ascetisme et liturgie. Paris: Beauchesne,
1914.
Louis Peeters, S.J ., Spiritualite ignatienne et piete liturgique. Tournai:
Casterman, 1914.
Rene Compaing, S.J., "Liturgie et Exercices spirituels." Etudes, (1914)
pp. 433-460.
The following articles are less polemical and closer to the subject
matter we are dealing with here.
M. Nicolau, S.J., La Liturgia en la espiritualidad contemporanea."
Manresa, (1943) pp. 19-33.
- , "Liturgia y Ejercicious." Manresa, (1948) pp. 233-274.
Ellard, S.J., G. and A., "The Laymen's Retreat and the Liturgy." Woodstock Letters 81 (1952) 13-23.
Schumacher, S.J., J. N., "lgnatian Spirituality and the Liturgy." Woodstock Letters 87 (1958) 14-35, esp. pp. 18-24.
241
�242
EXERCISES AND LITURGY
ism" and personal piety to a "subjectivism." Man cannot effectively draw near to God without making at one and the same
time, both a personal effort proceeding from a will under the
influence of grace, and one put forth in and with the Church
of Christ, through Whom all grace comes to us. · The union
of the man of faith with the death and resurrection of Christ
cannot be completely accomplished in just one of these two
aspects of the redemptive mystery, but only in the total salvific
process.
This is why, in trying to show how the Exercises are impregnated with the spirit of the liturgy, our purpose is not
to recall that St. Ignatius loved and relished the liturgy and
that he nourished his own interior life on it. A good biography would furnish sufficient proof of this. Furthermore, his
devotion to the liturgy is particularly significant when we
reflect on the era in which he lived. In his day, the liturgy
was least studied, least understood in terms of its own intrinsic
mystery, and least creative of new forms. On the contrary,
it was battered on all sides by the rationalistic and individualistic spirit of the Renaissance and by the anti-ritualism and
anti-sacramentalism of the Reformation.
We do not have to remind ourselves that St. Ignatius supposes in his retreatant a true liturgical life. He takes it for
granted that anyone who is making a retreat will go each
day to Mass 2 and Vespers (20), as he hims~lf used to do at
Manresa. Nor need we insist, by starting with the "Rules
for Thinking with the Church," on his esteem for the liturgical
life which so many exact notations reveal there: frequent
reception of the sacraments, frequent assistance at Mass;
chants, psalmody, long prayers in or out of church, the Divine
Office; relics, pilgrimages, indulgences, the use of votive candles in church, the ornamentation of places of worship, the
cult to images, etc.
All this, to be sure, is indicative of a mentality far removed
from a purely intellectual or disembodied piety, or from an
individualism cut. off from the social mystery of liturgical
worship. But we must go deeper than that. If we really do
not want to reduce the Exercises arbitrarily to the interpre2 Mass was usually sung wherever there was a Chapter, a convent, or
a monastery. The time for Mass was later in the morning.
�EXERCISES AND LITURGY
tation that a spirituality too independent of the liturgical life
has been able to give them, we must show that the Exercises
derive the best of their substance from the same source that
the Church does in her worship. The same spirit animates
them and, if the necessary differences are well noted and the
analogies between the two kept in mind, we can say that it
is by a similar expression of the mystery and by an analogous
approach on the part of each that this spirit is attained.
Two main points will engage our attention here: (1) In
the Exercises as in the liturgy, the salvation of the individual
can be achieved only by an entry into the total "economy" of
the Redemption and into the history of the People of God.
(2) This entrance into the Paschal Mystery of Christ is the
entrance of the whole man completely bound to a Church
which is both visible and invisible, the prolongation of the
Word Incarnate. It is an entrance which is always initiated
by a visible sign and which terminates in union with the
mystery.
Entrance into the History of Salvation
By the Sacrament of Baptism the man converted to Christ
is brought into direct contact with the death and resurrection
of the Savior Who dominates and recapitulates within Himself
all of human history. The believer is now born into a new
life, but continues, during his mortal existence, to belong to
a world which evolves in time. Therefore, the Church sets
before him, through her sacraments and liturgy, a schooling
in the sanctification of time which permits him to associate
himself ever more intimately with the historical mysteries
of our Redeemer made present here and now.
The work of deliverance effected by God in favor of men
is history. This history was prefigured and begun in the
chosen people of Israel. It was brought to perfect fulfillment
in Christ who was born, died and rose again. In the time
elapsing between the Savior's resurrection and His parousia,
the Church lives out this history of salvation. Not that she
is the instrument of a new revelation, but she dispenses, at
each moment of her visible development, the content of this
"economy of salvation" and she renders present at each moment of time the "last days" of the Christ.
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Such a rendering present of the mystery of salvation can
only be ritualistic. That is to say, we are constantly entering
into the Passover Mystery, accomplished once and for all by
the Savior, every time we unite ourselves to the commemoration of the great events of His work of salvation, prefigured
in Israel and realized in the Word Incarnate. Further, because Christ is living in His Church, each mystery which we
celebate becomes for the faithful a contemporary reality.
Hodie Christus natus est; Christus surrexit hodie: today
Christ is born; today He rises from the dead.
In order to permit ·us to enter more intimately into each
mystery of the history of salvation, like the Exodus or the
Babylonian captivity, the birth or death of the Savior,although these mysteries are all simultaneously present in
their reality in each sacrament-the Church has us celebrate
them successively. She has employed for this purpose the
framework of the solar year. This is the longest of cosmic
cycles, one which naturally and spontaneously s~gnifies for
man the process of dying and being reborn.
Around the winter solstice, when the days begin to grow
longer, and the spring moon, when a new life bursts forth
in nature, the Church arranges her liturgical life. Its purpose
is to unfold, between the preparation of _Advent and the
eschatology of the last Sunday after Pentetost, the whole
sacred history of humanity and all the sacred events of the life
of Christ.
As the faithful each year anew pass through the great
stages of God's salvific acts in His people and in His Son,
they will constantly enter more deeply with the whole Church
into the history of salvation. They hear, note by note, that
vast and perfect symphony, whose composition in praise of
the Father was completed on the first Easter Sunday, but
which has not yet been played through. Each Christian, the
day he was baptized, was assigned his unique part in the
rendition of this· symphony, so that he might contribute at
just the right moment willed by the Father, his own distinctive note. From his baptism on he has continually entered
into the mystery of Christ's birth; he has continually died,
risen and ascended to Heaven with Christ and has received
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245
His Spirit, in symbol and in truth, that is to say, sacramentally.
The Same Road
r
1
Just as the Church invites her faithful to a continual transformation into Christ over the course of a whole year, so
St. Ignatius proposes that his retreatant make an exceptional
effort at transformation, but within the limited time of thirty
days or even less. The extraordinary goal of salvation which
we hope to attain through the Exercises cannot be reached by
any other road than that which the Church herself takes:
we must actually enter into the historical mysteries of our
deliverance. Now the spiritual journey which the Exercises
set before us is the same journey proposed to us in God's
salvific plan. What is experienced in the liturgy over a yearly
cycle, will be experienced by the retreatant in a more intensive
manner in the course of several days.
The Church herself has given us in the Easter Vigil an
example of how this spiritual journey can be made in an even
shorter but more striking way. The catechumen, having
arrived at the final stage of his preparation, goes forth to
receive his sacramental initiation. In a last vigil service he
hears the great moments in the history of salvation recalled,
from the creation of the world to the words of Ezechiel who
prophesies the resurrection of the People of God. Then, by
the three Sacraments of initiation: Baptism, Confirmation,
and the Eucharist, he is united during one holy night to all
the mysteries of the Savior: he dies to sin, comes to life in
God, receives the Spirit, and enters into the Communion of
Saints.
If at a later time he finds that he has forgotten that which
his Christian initiation has committed him to and if he wants
to re-experience more fully his Passover with Christ, he certainly has for that purpose the yearly liturgy. But the framework of an ever imperfect parish life as well as one's social,
professional and family obligations may not afford the best
conditions for making this journey of faith. Thus, he needs
to withdraw himself from the world in order to make the
Spiritual Exercises. And through these Exercises St. Ignatius
will propose to him a re~entrance into the history of salvation.
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Like the catechumen assisting at the readings which run
through the Pascal Vigil, like the cleric reading the Divine
Office from Septuagesima on, the retreatant right from the
start of the Exercises puts himself face to face with creation
and its Creator. "Man is created to praise, reverence and
serve God ... and all other things on the fact of the earth
are created for man" (23). Such is the Principle and Foundation. It has the same optimistic theological vision, the same
human, cosmic religious insight which illuminates the beginnings of history as presented in the first pages of the Scriptures. The liturgy itself has this same insight for it always
starts with created things, looking upon them as good in
themselves and capable of leading us to God.
But man in his historical context is a sinner. The whole
economy of salvation is dominated by the fact that once sin
had entered into the world, God's first creation was doomed
to death. No conversion to God is possible if man does not
recognize himself as a sinner, separated from God, the object
of His wrath and His curse, and subject to death. Sacred
history cannot be fulfilled unless man heeds that prophetic
echo which resounds from Moses to Jesus and to our own
day: "Repent."
The first stage of the Exercises is devoted to this task of
repentance. I pass from the contemplation ·of the first sin
to that of my own sins. I see what havoc-sin has wrought
in the world beginning with Adam's Original Sin down to
the death of the Son of God upon the Cross-that death which
was the consequence of sin and which revealed its full meaning. In a moment of salutary humility I take upon myself
the whole history of humanity in revolt, and my whole sinful
past. Conscious of my own inherent helplessness and the condemnation I deserve, I am now prepared to cry out to God as
Savior.
Mystical Assimilation
And the Savior·appears in the second stage of the Exercises:
"My will is to conquer the whole world and all my enemies, and
thus to enter into the glory of my Father" (95). I have but to
follow Him, to enlist under His standard, to share in His work.
The pattern of His life will become the pattern of my own-
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247
"that by following me in suffering, he may follow me in
glory." And it is in the course of three "weeks" which go
from the Incarnation, through Christ's death and Resurrection
to His Ascension, that there is achieved in the retreatant a
mystical assimilation to all the states of the Word Incarnate,
or rather to all the decisive events in the unique, holy and
efficacious history of humanity.
I enter that history a sinner and I leave it justified; I come
to it dead and I find in it life. Till now a man of the flesh,
I go forth a man of the spirit; and my humanity is divinized
through the grace of Christ. In all this I am experiencing
nothing else but the economy of salvation as contained in the
sacramentalliturgy. 3
The Church has various mysteria and sacramenta; she has
many sacred symbols, sacramental rites and liturgical feasts,
but in making use of them all, she has only one purpose:
that of putting us into contact with the "reality" of the
mystery of Christ. Though this union with the mystery takes
place by degrees and invisibly, it also comes about in an
extraordinary way under the guise of concrete events. On
3 It is understandable why the Exercises close with the mystery of
the Ascension while the Church's liturgical year continues on, after
paschal time, into the season of Pentecost. The Ascension is, at the
present moment the term of the personal work of Christ. The new
creation, brought to life on Easter, has been taken up with Him into
heaven, where it is beside the Father in its spiritual and redeemed
existence. The man who enters into the mystery of Christ to be united
to it, finds in this new creation the aim of the work of salvation, the
goal of mankind's sacred history, and the purpose of his own individual
history.
With Pentecost, all the mysteries of Jesus pass over into the Church
through the coming of the Holy Spirit. There, they are lived in
"symbol" and reality until the parousia. When the "symbols" are done
away with, the era of the Church will be over, and the mystery of the
Ascension will be accomplished in its full reality. Only then will it
manifest the complete work of Christ. The exercitant is making his
retreat today, in the era of the Church and in the Spirit. No wonder,
then, that the Exercises do not expressly mention the mysteries of the
Church or of Pentecost, and that there is no need for another meditation
between the "Ascension" and the "A:i Amorem." As a matter of fact,
the Church is everywhere throughout the Exercises, because they are
made in her and through her. The same can be said of the Holy Spirit,
who is accomplishing within the retreatant the mysteries of the Savior.
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certain occasions, when our will is more disposed to receive
the grace of a particular mystery or sacrament, God enters
into our life more fully. This is especially true in the case
of a baptism after a conversion, of a marriage, of an ordination; it is true in the case of a grievous suffering or a great
joy, and of other extraordinary graces which have urged us
on to make a sacrifice or a more total and more whole-hearted
dedication.
The same thing occurs in the course of the Exercises.
While the sequence of the mysteries of Christ's life is being
unfolded before us in ·contemplation, there is being brought
about here as in one'S.. liturgical life, a gradual transformation. But St. Ignatius is hoping for a salutary event, and
he induces it. It is the self-dedicating act of a freedom
liberated from all enslavement, and totally surrendered to
Him. He calls it "the election." It is present like the essence,
the hidden reality made known and signified by all the various exercises. This basic decision to pass over to the Father
with Christ demands a complete re-evaluation of self and a
complete personal oblation. In other words, it calls for mystical death and resurrection with the Savior.
Thus the liturgy and the Exercises both proceed in a similar
way in order to reach the same objective. The "four weeks"
of the Exercises, like the seasons of the liturgical year, are
four sacred moments which, in the mystery--of the Church's
re-living of the Passover of her Head, make us contemporaneous sharers in the salvific deeds of Christ.
Access to the Mystery through its Signs
God's first creation, through sin had become an object of
His wrath and marked for death. In His salvific plan, however, God did not will the destruction of this creation in order
to put a second and new one in its place, as He had done in
the ambiguous incident of the Flood. Rather, He willed to
bring to perfection the work He had started in Noah whom
He rescued from a world-wide corruption and appointed the
father of a new race. Instead of destroying His work, He
saves it.
It is then in creation that He reveals Himself, and through
it that He effects His plan of grace. His first appearance was
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249
concealed within a worldly-minded people to whom He entrusted His promise. He revealed Himself in Jesus of N azareth, Mary's Son, the Word made flesh. There is for us no
other means of access to the mystery save the humanity of
Jesus. Christ, the revelation of the Father, prefigured in the
people from whom He came, perfect in body and in soul, lives
on in the Church, which is both visible and invisible.
For this reason, the liturgy repeatedly presents the mystery
of God not only to the rational part of man, to his intellect
alone, but to the whole man-a soul-vivified body and a bodyencompassed soul. God's love is known to us only through
the attesting presence of visible signs. The past signs of His
love are recorded in Holy Scripture; today these signs are
to be found in the life of the Church.
In like manner, grace is ordinarily conferred through "sacraments." These sacraments, theology tells us, produce grace
only in so far as they are sensible "signs." For a man who
is drowning, water is the cause of death. But water is also
the cause of life because there is no life without water. For
these reasons, the baptismal bath is an efficacious sign of
death and resurrection. In short, it is only through sensible
signs that the Church expresses herself in her worship. And
it is only because the liturgy expresses in a visible manner a
hidden reality, that it involves mystery.
If this is the law governing the Church's public worship,
one might be tempted to think that private prayer and the
mystical life of the individual do not fall under this law, as
if the soul were capable of union with God without the mediation of signs. Nothing could be more wrong! To want to
get away from the sensible leads to rationalistic mysticism
and to illuminism. 4 It is the whole and entire man who
4 Even for the mystic who is advancing along the road of abnegation
and who seems to reject all signs, the dark night itself and the way of
negation are the "signs" through which he enters into union with God.
God is present and reveals Himself in the sign of His absence. Face to
face vision is reserved for the next life. The true Catholic mystic never
rejects the mediation of the humanity of Christ and of sensible creatures.
But he purifies it as much as he can in order to make its effectiveness
more certain. This desire to get away from dependence on sensible
things has a counterpart in the sacraments of the Christian dispensation. They are the simplest signs, and at the same time, are the only
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stands before God and God does not communicate Himself to
the individual in a way different from the manner in which
He communicates Himself to His Spouse, the Church.
It is striking to note that he who, at times, is portrayed as
the father of an a-liturgical, rational, and voluntaristic spirituality, here again is in accord with the tradition of the
Church. In an age when humanism was putting the stress
on rational values, in an age when theology was with difficulty shaking itself free of nominalism, when that dichotomy
between the conscious and the subconscious in man was already beginning to appear,-a division which has become
one of the banes of ~modern western pseudo-humanism,-St.
Ignatius insists that a man in full possession of his sensible
and intellectual faculties be handed over to the workings of
grace and that under the enlightenment of the Spirit, there
should spring forth within that man an act of complete
freedom.
In the Egyptian captivity and in the deliverance of the
Exodus, in the Babylonian exile and the return to Jerusalem,
God had His people "act out" those great prophetic themes
which were to be used for their instruction. Jesus Himself
taught about His Kingdom through concrete images and comparisons. He manifested His divine acts to the visible gaze
of men, from His Birth to His Ascension. Likewise the
Church has us celebrate Easter and the Lard's Supper. In
just the same way, the Exercises propose to the retreatant
a series of "contemplations" which will be for him the signs
of the grace he at the present moment awaits from God or
which God wills to communicate to him.
Spiritual Education
St. Ignatius draws his contemplations from the Scriptures,
and in his own way he does refashion traditional themes to
attain more surely his goal of spiritually educating the will
essential ones found in the entire liturgy. A piece of bread; a drop of
water! The splendor surrounding these basic signs is only to help us,
men of little faith, to realize the holiness of the mystery. A soul,
advancing towards a simple union with God, of its own accord reduces
its means of expression, just as the artist who has mastered his art
perfectly purifies his technique. For both of them, the least is richest
in meaning.
�EXERCISES AND LITURGY
25i
(as in the Kingdom, the Two Standards, and the Three Classes
of Men), nevertheless the retreatant is always aware that
Ignatius has put him into contact with the great thrust of
the Christian revelation which starts with the first creation,
and leads to the new creation in Christ. He is drawn into
the sacramental transforming process of the liturgical actan act which begins with a sign in order to lead to the reality
of the mystery; he is led through a death to the flesh unto a
rebirth in the Spirit.
Further, in his various spiritual exercises, St. Ignatius will
neglect no part of man which might prove to be an instrument of grace. If the whole man must die to sin and, whole
and entire come to life in God, then it is the whole man who
must enter into this paschal action.
From the very outset, all the faculties of the soul are encouraged to take part in the dialogue between man and God
and are handed over to the Spirit: the intellect, the will, the
memory. We ought not to see here a mere scholastic splitting up of mental faculties, made with a view to teaching
meditation as if it were merely a human system of reflection.
This division proceeds from a desire to enlist all the forces
of our soul in the service of the Gospel and to throw open to
grace all our vital powers. Ignatius wants us to see and to
love all things in God, and God in all things. He wants us
to discover the likeness of Himself which God has implanted
in the innermost depths of our human nature and within
every creature. In this way Ignatius directs our attention
to the divinization that is taking place in us and in the entire
universe through us.
From the very beginning of prayer, by means of the "composition of place," the imagination will be focused on the
mystery to be contemplated. Is this just to keep the imagination from wandering, and to keep it from being an obstacle
to prayer? Certainly all this, but more than a mere psychological discipline is involved. When the Church holds up
before our eyes the Cross on Good Friday, or the paschal
candle at the Easter Vigil, she is not employing a pious stratagem; she sees in their use a means of grace. In adoring
the Cross, in singing before the paschal candle, and in incensing it, we are united with Christ's death and resurrection.
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For the man who has not seen with his own eyes nor
touched with his own hands the Word of Life, for the man
who cannot now do this ritually in the Church, the imagination will supply one of the sacred signs which are so vitally
needed to penetrate the mystery.
What St. Ignatius, the heir of a long tradition, calls the
"interior senses," which are rooted in the innermost depths
of our being, deeper even than intellect and will, will also be
put to use. This takes place in what he calls "the application
of the senses," that most affective and silent form of contemplation.
·
All liturgical piety~ involves an application of the senses.
It is not through the object in so far as it is material that
the soul is united to God. Neither through the wheat of the
bread, nor by sitting side by side at the sacred banquet, nor
by the candle or its flame, nor by the beauty of the chant is
this union brought about. Rather, it is through what these
objects communicate to us of the Word made flesh. His Spirit
is operative and calls to us in the nourishing aspect of the
bread, in the fraternal intimacy of the supper, in the candle's
radiating light and in its readiness to allow itself to be consumed. It is in this way that the man renewed in Christ
lives and expresses himself in truth and in holiness.
And, to go even further, our nerves, our muscles, and our
bones should be employed in performing acts of adoration,
praise, and supplication. St. Ignatius is ever interested in
the bodily actions at the start of prayer, in our attitude during
it, and in the bodily behavior throughout the entire retreat.
Are these, for him, merely the consequences of an interior
respect, or an external manifestation of recollection? That,
and much more.
The Subconscious
It is relatively easy to enlist the conscious powers in the
service of the Gospel. Faith and good will suffice for this,
and it can be supposed in the case of all those who seek God
sincerely. But how much more difficult it is to subject to
the Holy Spirit the depths of our being! And yet, can we
claim a total surrender to grace or an act of complete freedom,
if we neglect the hidden realm of our impulses, instincts, self-
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253
centredness, repressions, and desires? Which one of us, when
he says, "Lord, I love you with all my heart," can boast of
being sincere, knowing that although he "wills" it, nevertheless, a whole part of him still refuses to assent?
Thus, we must allow grace to reach even our subconscious.
And this, not merely to tame the beast in us, but also to enable the spirit to dominate the flesh, for, to live a new and
Christian life, we also need a sense of God. In this regard,
there can be no substitute for external acts of the body, just
as there can be no substitute for what has been designated
as a necessary and efficacious sign of grace. Thus we readily
see the importance of genuflections, prostrations, joined and
upraised hands, which only those scorn who do not practice
them.
From this, there also follows the great value of vocal
prayer, as such-that is, the repetition of a simple formula.
Here, words are no longer used to communicate concepts.
These are no longer the internal words of one who meditates
and who speaks to himself of the things of God. It is no
longer dialogue with God on the level of the intellect alone.
It has become the very expression of the being itself. There
is a similarity here with the words of a lover who repeats
again and again, "I love you," not to tell his beloved anything
new, but in order to communicate his being to his loved one.
For St. Ignatius, vocal prayer is the great way of obtaining spiritual relish. His faithful interpreter, Nadal often
said that it is the prayer proper to the Jesuit. Vocal prayer,
as presented here, is particularly valuable to the man of action. In it, he has always at his disposal a method of prayer
that is refreshing and stimulating. In it, he finds a prayer
as simple as he desires, yet capable of uniting him to God
in whatever degree the divine bounty wishes to bestow.
Finally, the "third method of prayer" calls for the use of
rhythmic breathing, so dear to the spiritual tradition of the
Greeks. 5 Too often the Western Church has made little of
5 Here we cite the famous "Prayer of Jesus," a means of sanctification
for many monks over several centuries. This practice consisted in
repeating indefinitely "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on us." This
prayer was said again and again until it penetrated the depths of the
heart and totally permeated both soul and body.
Confer: la Priere de Jesus by "Un moine de l'eglise d'Orient" (Cheve-
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this way of prayer, not realizingits unique and indispensable
ability to give the will mastery over the depths of a lawless
and rebellious spirit. Since breathing is the only necessary
and vital function which can, at will, be conscious or unconscious, it is the only function which permits us to work on
our subconscious, so that we might open it up to grace.
Those who benefit from the choral recitation of the liturgical
office reap the fruits of peace, unity, and easy access to contemplation from chanting, in alternate verses, the psalms,
into which rhythm has been introduced by means of the words
and regularly spaced breathings. 6
The liturgy speaks 1o the whole man, through sacraments
togne, 1951) ; Irenikon, (1947), nos. 3 and 4; Dieu Vivant, n. 8; Christus,
n. 2, pp. 137-138.
s It should be pointed out that the centuries-old techniques of yoga
(breathing, posture, repetition of words, etc.) are found quite substantially in the Exercises. St. Ignatius rediscovered them and employed them instinctively, partly because he was heir to the Christian
ascetical and mystical tradition and partly through personal experience.
Yoga, as we are thinking of it here, is a purely human means for the
spiritual conquest o;f oneself and of the world. It is a natural way of
acting whose aim is the unification of the personality. We do not speak
of it as a philosophy, as a natural mystique, or as a religion. Of itself,
yoga, as a spiritual means to world mastery, is as far removed from
religion as is science. Everything depends on how it i~ used. Employed
out of a desire for personal power, yoga can lead ro ~akirism, just as
science, aimed at the physical conquest of the universe, when misused,
can lead to a scientific positivism. But prayer does not aim at conquest;
its aim is docility. Put into the service of grace, the same techniques
can aid the advancement of the Kingdom of God. Yoga, in the natural
order, resembles man's sacramental actions. The holy bath and the
sacred supper are found in pagan religions. While remaining fruitless,
they disclose an expectation. Sacramenta sacramentorum, the Fathers
call them-the types of the sacraments. Through the power of Christ
they have become Baptism and the Eucharist. In a similar manner,
yoga, of itself, has nothing supernatural about it; but, in the service
of the grace of Christ, it can help the spiritually renewed man to live
a fuller life. These treasures of wisdom lay forgotten for a long time,
and for all practical purposes were abandoned. Our age seems to be
looking for them again-vaguely, to be sure--in its attempt to allay
the disintegration afflicting modern man. So often the victim of a
civilization becoming more and more technical, over which he has not
full control, and which breaks down the powers of his soul instead of
setting them free, man realizes that he cannot obtain from the material
world what has its origin only in the spirit.
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255
and rites, in order to "evangelize" his soul by means of his
body, and in order to give to the new man, risen in Christ,
all the faculties he needs for his supernatural life. These
anticipate the powers he will enjoy at the resurrection of the
body. Likewise, the intent of the Exercises is that the free
act, which it will have the exercitant elicit, proceed not only
from a clear intellect and a strong will, but that it be an act
which brings into being an entirely Christian way of life.
This aim brings us to a consideration of one of the most
noteworthy links which can be made between the Exercises
and the liturgy. In order to lead us right into the heart of
the mystery, both have chosen to make use of homely external
directions. The liturgical books, which contain the wisdom of
the Church, lead us by means of rubrics. And the little
"guide-book" of the Exercises, wherein is found the wisdom
of the masters of the spiritual life, directs us by means of the
annotations and notes.
In the liturgy, bodily actions and postures are prescribed in
great detail. There is legislation on the sequence of external
ritual actions. Prayers to be recited have canonically fixed
forms. These are the conditions upon which a man becomes
a child of God in baptism, and according to which Christ's
Sacrifice will be celebrated by the Christian community, for
these are the very actions of the Church and of Christ Himself. Now here, in any of these rubrics, do we find theological,
moral, or symbolic reasons given for them. They are but
successive phases of an "action" over which the Mystical
Body presides, and which becomes totally sacred and sanctifying.
A Journey
In the Exercises, we find a first, second, and third prelude;
the second and third note modified; a first, second, and third
point; instructions to darken the room or to let in light; the
recitation of a Pater or an Ave called for. But there is advanced no theory of the various stages of the spiritual life.
No theological justication is made, either for the rules prescribed, or for the structure of the whole. The Exercises are
a journey. Follow the right road, and you will find your
way and reach your destination. Those rules for the discern-
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ment of spirits, which contain the warning not to swerve from
one's course when at a crossroads are right to the point here.
The examination of conscience, meditation, contemplation,
vocal and mental prayer, and the other spiritual exercises
have as their only end to render us docile to the Spirit and
to dispose us for His transforming activity. Confronted with
the mysteries of Christ's life, a humble heart, in which the
Holy Spirit is at work, will fathom what God demands. Under
the influence of grace, a new world will open up for the man
who takes the postures indicated, follows the directions, and
keeps the assigned order of meditations. All these directives
have been devised afid tested by those Christians who have
made this journey to Christ before us.
Who has ever enjoyed a panoramic view without having
first scaled the mountain? No one will say that the mountain
is in any way responsible for the beautiful scenery below.
However, one after the other, long and tedious and tiring
paths must be climbed if you are to enjoy from the peak the
view of the surrounding country. Without a bow, who can
bring to life the beautiful music contained in the score lying
next to the violin? Yet music is a different thing entirely
from the horse-hair and cat-gut which make up the bow.
It is under similar conditions that a man, possessing as he
does a body, must enter the Kingdom of God. "He who does
the truth comes to the light" (John 3: 21).~- -One must do in
order to understand. This is the whole pedagogy of the
Church in her sacraments and liturgy. It is also the pedagogy
of Ignatius, master of the spiritual life.
Conclusion: Practical Suggestions
So that the Spiritual Exercises, as a whole or in any of its
parts, might be filled anew with the spirit of the liturgy, it
seems apparent that, throughout the retreat, we should make
the liturgy itself the point of departure, and closely tie in the
private prayer of the retreatant with the liturgical prayer
of the Church.
The essential moment of the retreatant's day is the Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass. The Mass is not a supplementary
meditation but the act by which the retreatant's personal
religious journey becomes one with the Church's pilgrimage.
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257
Through it, he can be united to the Father in the Passover
of Christ. If the exercitant is the only one attending a
priest's private Mass, he should join himself to the liturgy
of the day. If many are together, they should recognize in
their very assembly the Church in miniature. The celebration
of the Mass ought to approximate as closely as possible what
the liturgy demands from a Christian community fully engaged in the mystery.
The readings, the singing, the responses, the postures, the
very oneness, all give direction to the individual exercises of
the rest of the day, and help us to realize them in the two
senses of the word: of understanding them and of achieving
them. Here again, it is not enough to be intellectually convinced. It is a question of "doing." In man, nothing divine
is accomplished apart from the sacrifice of Christ. It is at
Mass that there is expressed and effected the spiritual sacrifice of the entire retreat day.
Those who have the obligation of the Office are still more
closely associated with the prayer of the Church. What is
to be thought of a priests' retreat in which each priest recites
his Office privately? Certainly the praise and petition of the
Spouse of Christ in psalmody will be more heart-felt if given
expression in choir. Will not choral psalmody bring to the
desired goal the praise and supplication expressed by the individual in his private meditation?
Everyone should see the need to broaden our private prayer
and strengthen it, at least by reciting in common the great
public hours of Lauds and Vespers. Regarding the other
hours, it is true that Prime and Compline are more along the
order of private prayer; however, Terce and None could be
said before the conferences, and Sext before the midday meal.
Far from being harmful to private prayer, this prayer in
common will enlarge its scope.
Assistance at Vespers is twice mentioned in the Exercises
(20, 72) as very naturally fitting into the retreatant's daily
order. Mass in the morning and Vespers in the afternoon
seem to St. Ignatius the normal liturgical setting for the
retreat day. Thus, if in the place where the Exercises are
made a group of clerics chant Vespers, it would seem quite
proper for the layman to join them. If only laymen are
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EXERCISES AND LITURGY
present, and it is judged that the Vespers of the Roman
liturgy, in their more monastic form, are not suited for the
purposes of the laity, would there not be room at the end of
the day to arrange for a service which would reap similar
fruits?
This celebration would take its inspiration from the vigil
service, which represents in the liturgical tradition of the
Church, the type of Office more adapted to the community of
the faithful. As we know, this service is made up of three
elements: a scriptural reading; the singing of a meditative
psalm (or canticle); prayer by the faithful first, and then by
the celebrant. It follbws a schema which re-presents in a
"gospel" form the very history of salvation. And it can be
conducted with such little effort that it is within the reach
of all. 7
The advantages of such a venture have already been recognized by those who have tried it. In the first place, a service
based on the liturgy brings the retreat day to a wonderful
conclusion. What each retreatant has meditated upon and
lived throughout the day in silence and solitude is now going
to be celebrated- and re-lived in the Church. "Where two or
three are gathered together in my Name, I am in the midst
of them" (Matthew 18: 20).
Realization
When each one hears again, as coming from the very mouth
of God Himself addressing His people, a page of Scripture
upon which he has meditated all day; when he formulates his
prayer of praise and petition in the very words of an inspired
psalm; when he does this, not alone, but with and for all those
who are present and who represent the holy and beloved
7 For those who wish to learn more about this type of liturgical
service, the following writings are recommended:
Jungmann, S.J., Josef A., Liturgical Worship. A monk of St. John's
Abbey, Collegeville, Minn., translator. New York: Frederick Pustet
Co., 1941.
"Les elements fondamentaux de la celebration de careme," Maison-Dieu,
n. 20.
For a practical plan, consult the introduction to:
Montons a Jerusalem. Pour les celebrations de careme. Neuilly:
Centre de Pastorale Liturgique.
�EXERCISES AND LITURGY
259
Church of God; when the prayer, on the lips of the celebrant,
is taken up through Christ Himself, our Royal Priest, and
rises to the Father, then there will be effected a new realization of the mystery and a deeper penetration into the work of
Christ, our Savior.
Moreover, since it is expressed and rooted more deeply in
the individual and the community, this prayer takes on a
new dimension. Like the application of the senses which
St. Ignatius prefers to use to end the series of exercises of
a retreat day, it offers a type of prayer more contemplative
and relaxing, entirely suited to confer a very particular spiritual relish which could, not be experienced in any other way.
Besides, for certain simple folk and for those retreatants
who find lengthy reflection and meditation rather difficult, this
type of prayer affords considerable help. Although at times
we hesitate to increase the hours of private meditation out
of fear of prolonged effort or of failure, this manner of praying might be a very effective pedagogy.
It has been pointed out that, with our modern tendency to
prolong the day on into the evening, the end of the day is a
particularly propitious time for fervent prayer. There might
be some hesitancy in placing here another hour of meditation.
However, a liturgical service would allow one to reap the
grace proper to this evening hour.
Finally, a retreat which aims at the forming of a real Christian must give him a taste for the prayer of the Church. It
ought to teach him how to nourish his interior life in what
tomorrow will be its normal framework, the liturgical life of
his parish.
Within the setting of the Spiritual Exercises, a retreatant
can discover in a special way and experience in a privileged
manner the prayer of the Church. This discovery and experience will accompany him as he goes forth from the retreat
to take part in all the sacraments and ceremonies of the
Church. 8
8 Here is how an evening service during the First Week could be conducted. Begin with a psalm of supplication (Psalm 129) or a canticle
of similar nature. Then, a lector, wearing an alb, would read from the
pulpit a passage from Holy. Scripture; for example, the account of the
sin of David (II Samuel 11). There follows the singing of a meditative
�260
EXERCISES AND LITURGY
psalm, like Psalm 50, with its response: Have mercy, 0 Lord, for we
have sinned. This is the psalm that tradition links to the passage just
read. Another lector would read one of the parables of mercy from St.
Luke, like the Prodigal Son. The congregation stands for this. Then,
a hymn would follow. This can be a brief responsary or a canticle.
Afterwards, all kneel for prayer. First of all, there are intercessory
prayers for different intentions, all in keeping with the mystery of
penance. The petitions would be announced out loud. "For the sins
of thy people--," and all would respond, "pardon us, 0 Lord!" In
certain instances, the members of the congregation could be asked to
formulate their own intentions. This prayer would continue during a
period of silence, and be brought to a conclusion by a prayer of the
celebrant, improvised or borrowed from the liturgy. Or the Our Father
could be used. The whol~ service would close with the singing of a
biblical canticle (the Magnificat or the Nunc Dimittis), or an anthem
to Our Lady.
�The Early Years of
Father Laurence Kelly
Donald Smythe, S.J.
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In his splendid book, Beyond East and West, Dr. John C.
H. Wu says of the relations between the cloister and the
world: "To my mind, the cloisters are the hothouses for raising and cultivating the flowers of spirituality. But the hothouse exists for the garden, not the garden for the hothouse." 1
This idea of the religious life as also apostolic, as existing for
the sanctification of the world, simply re-echoes the teaching
of the Society that the Jesuit vocation is not only "the salvation and perfection of our own souls," but also "the salvation
and perfection of our neighbor." 2 From time to time various
men have arisen who showed themselves particularly aware
of the apostolic nature of their Jesuit vocation, and who have
taken to heart the injunction of St. Ignatius to his followers,
"But above all I would wish that you should be animated by
the pure love of Jesus Christ ... and of the salvation of the
souls that he has redeemed." 3 One such was Fr. Laurence
J. Kelly, S.J.
Laurence Joseph Kelly was born in Philadelphia in 1870,
the sixth in a family of twelve, of Irish immigrant parents.
He entered the Society at seventeen, had his studies at Fredrick and Woodstock, and his regency at Loyola College, Baltimore. After tertianship at Poughkeepsie, he served as rural
pastor in southern Maryland for eleven years. In 1917 he
became master of novices and rector at Yonkers, New York,
and in 1922 provincial of the Maryland-New York Province,
a post he held until 1928. Then he served as spiritual father
at St. Andrews, rector of Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., and spiritual father at Woodstock. The last part
1John C. H. Wu, Beyond East and West (New York: Sheed and Ward,
1951)' p. 354.
2 Summary of the Constitutions (Roehampton: Manresa, 1926), p. 2.
3 Letters and Instructions of St. Ignatius, trans. D. F. O'Leary, Vol. I
(St. Louis: B. Herder, 1914), p. 97.
261
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FATHER KELLY
of his life was spent as assistant pastor at Holy Trinity
Church, Washington, D.C. He died in 1955, age eighty-five,
at the Georgetown University Hospital. 4
After Fr. Kelly's death an examination of his possessions
revealed a large collection of notebooks, diaries, sermon notes,
letters, and other papers. Most of these concern his early
life, before he was forty. This article is based on those
papers. It is not an obituary in the usual sense, but a spiritual portrait of Laurence Kelly during the first half of his
life, i.e., during his course of studies and his early career as
a Maryland pastor. ~Jt attempts to illustrate two aspects of
his career: (1) his great preparation for the apostolate, (2)
his persistence in that apostolate despite difficulties.
Laurence Kelly's preparation for the apostolate was twofold: interior and exterior. The interior consisted in an
extraordinary practice of the ordinary religious life and the
virtues connected with it: love of our Lord, the Blessed Virgin,
the religious vocation, obedience, humility, self-abnegation.
The exterior consisted in an extensive system of notes for
sermon, conference and retreat work.
Interior Preparation
Laurence Kelly's interior preparation for the apostolate began with the cornerstone: love of Christ, es·pecially Christ in
the Eucharist. "There is one thought that cheers the priest
through the most difficult and ungrateful work on the most
lonely and abandoned missions," he once said. "It is the assurance of Christ's continual presence" and the abiding heavensent power of the priest "to bring the Blessed Sacrament into
the midst of the lowliest, loneliest little chapel by the miraculous words of consecration." 5 This made him speak of the
priest as "sacerdos omnipotens." "No difficulty, no repugnance, no enmity, no task but he can bring with him to the
4 Philadelphia Record, June 29, 1922; also the program card for Fr.
Kelly's Golden Jubilee celebration at Georgetown University, June 14,
1953.
5 Sketch Book I, February, 1905, p. 46.
All references to Fr. Kelly's
notebooks, diaries, and other unpublished material in this paper, are
from sources located in the archives of Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. All are unpublished.
�FATHER KELLY
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altar and in the power of Jesus Christ become the master and
victor.'' 6
These were not idle words for Laurence Kelly. The Eucharist was his delight. Being near the Eucharist brought
him joy. One has only to read through his journal, written
while a country pastor in southern Maryland, to see the happiness that was Kelly's as he carried the Blessed Sacrament
with him from country parish to country parish or slept in
the same room at night with his Sacramental Lord. "This
was the feast of Corpus Christi and I spent a part of the day
with our Blessed Lord reclining on my sinful breast," is one
entry/ "I spent the night in the priest's room over the
sacristy, alone but not so lonely," is another. 8 Still others
said: "Another happy night with our Lord in my room with
me.'' 9 "Another day of grace and blessing, for I had my
Blessed Lord with me from 8:00 A.M. to 5 P.M.'' 10
Devotion to the Eucharistic Christ went hand in hand with
devotion to His Mother. Laurence Kelly's devotion to the
Blessed Virgin Mary was tender, affectionate, childlike. When
he was fourteen years old he made his Sodality vow, choosing
Mary as his Mother, Queen, and Advocate, and he meant it
when he said "Receive me . . . as thy devoted servant forever.''11 While yet a Junior at Frederick he began a notebook
on the Blessed Virgin: quotations from St. Bernard's sermons
on her, quotations on her virtues, her rosary, her apparitions.12 He made novenas to her before undertaking assignments,13 and attributed whatever success he later attained to
Loose sheet in Sketchbook II, February 16, 1906.
Notes by the Way, June 2, 1904.
s Ibid., May 14, 1905.
9 Ibid., June 9, 1904.
10 Ibid., June 21, 1904. Concerning the priest's joy in distributing
Holy Communion, Kelly wrote, "To take my treasure again into my
poor hands and to hold the ciborium against my heart-and then give
Him in Communion to his friends, His disciples and apostles! Oh, this
is indeed a feast of love!" Loose note in front of Notes by the Way,
March 19, 1904.
11 Sylva Rerum, May 24, 1884, p. 69.
12 Sylva, Sermons on the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Saints, 1892,
6
7
passim.
13
Notes by the Way, December 1, 1894.
�264
FATHER KELLY
Mary. 14 In her hands was his preparation for the priesthood, 15 and he firmly believed that she was responsible for
his recovery from a dangerous illness which almost took his
life. 16 She was for him his "sweet Mother," and his writings
are filled with references to "her ever-present care," her
"motherly tenderness." 11
How filial was Laurence's devotion to the Blessed Virgin,
how childlike, may be gathered from his desire to renew his
vows at her altar during renovation time. He entered in his
journal for the feast of the Immaculate Conception: "As I
awaited my turn this morning I secretly yearned to get Our
Lady's altar, my usual·good fortune. Sure enough, when the
time came, a place was made for me there and my happiness
was complete. What a good Mother !" 18
Love of Jesus. Love of Mary. There was a third lovelove of the Society of Jesus. In May of 1887 ("It was Mary's
month, perhaps more than a coincidence," he later wrote) 19
Laurence received a letter from the provincial accepting him
into the Society of Jesus. That letter was found in his papers
after his death, sixty-eight years later. That he would
treasure it so long, through all the vicissitudes of travel from
house to house and through all the "housecleanings" that a
Jesuit periodically makes of all the miscellany he has accumulated, is a measure of his pride to be numbered among the
Company of Jesus.
~ ·
Laurence Kelly loved the Society in a simple, practical way.
He was not one of those who "loves the Society," but never
speaks to the Jesuits with whom he lives. He realized that
the Society does not exist except in its individual flesh-andblood members, with all their virtues and all their deficiencies.
The word "dear" had a way of creeping in before the word
"brethren" in the privacy of his notes. Villa, for Laurence,
was not just a time of personal relaxation and unbending,
Ibid., November 28, 1894 and May 31, 1895.
Strip note in front part of Notes by the Way, February 1, 1904.
1s Notes by the Way, September 9, 1900.
11 Ibid., l\iay 31, 1895.
18 Notes by the Way, December 8, 1900.
Kelly had the reputation of
being remarkably composed and unemotional, which gives his statement
added meaning.
10 An eight page sketch written by Fr. Kelly in 1954, p. 5.
14
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�FATHER KELLY
265
but a time to make his fellow Jesuits happy, "a time of golden
opportunities-so many to be helped and made happy, so
many chances to check the warmth of our tempers and look
on the worse as that which we but deserve." 2 ° Family spirit
was more than just a word with Laurence, shown in big as
well as little ways, down to verses composed in Latin in honor
of someone's vow day or jubilee or birthday. 21 Once when he
was in a sanatorium, he commented, "Everything about here
is beautiful and peaceful enough, but it isn't home!" An hour
later two Jesuits came to visit him. "We went out under the
trees for an hour, and I was at home again. They left at 8:30
and I was alone and in the dark." 22
Ideal
Because he loved the Society, he had an exalted concept of
what a Jesuit should be and do. A Jesuit "should be like a
battleship-armored and armed, alert, active, quick and terrible to avenge or defend the cause of God." He had no patience for tepidity in a Jesuit. "Let us not be like worn out
hulks," he admonished, who in time of danger are more a
menace than a defense to their adopted cause. 23
There would be little danger of this if a Jesuit were exercised in the great virtue of the Society-obedience. Kelly had
been taught that the essence of sanctity was union with the
will of God, and the lesson "took". A note in Kelly's journals
relating an inconvenience or a cross, will as often as not be followed by a quick "Since it is His will, why be troubled ... ?" 24
After his ordination he formulated his personal conviction
of the relationship between happiness and obedience for the
Jesuit. "Would you then be happy ... ? Let then your will
be ever one with that of your superior; not in reluctant nor
stubborn submission, but in loving conformity and harmony
with all he wills and, as far as is possible, in all that he
Notes by the Way, June 28, 1894.
Not all his verse attempts were successful. After two stanzas of
a Latin poem, he wrote once, "Alienos castigavi versus!" Sylva Rerum,
May, 1904, p. 142.
22 Notes by the Way, October 31, 1900.
23
Strip note in front of Notes by the Way, February, 1904.
24 Notes by the Way, February 2, 1900.
20
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FATHER KELLY
thinks." He appealed to a simple, practical test as proof.
Who were the happy, who the unhappy religious he had
known? What were his own happiest days in the Society?
"Surely," he answered, "the days when you were 'on good
terms' with those whom God had placed over you." 25
Obedience, of course, is impossible for the proud man, and
Laurence, like all others, had to fight the very human tendency
to self-esteem. Once when he was a Philosopher four Redemptorists from nearby II chester visited Woodstock, and
when they had left he reflected on their behavior and his
own. "They, feeling :themselves, for some reason or other,
less holy and learned than we, were modest, lowly, deferential,
and remarkably candid in all they said and did. I, thinking
with less reason that we Jesuits were superior, was reserved
and formal; my attentions were all studied as if I had a reputation to sustain and my language was most guarded for fear
of saying anything reprehensible." 26 There was no doubt, he
commented, whose conduct was more pleasing to God. Three
weeks later Laurence and some others had occasion to repay
the visit to Ilchester. Laurence noted in his journal afterwards, "I triel to be more open and ingenuous than at their
first visit to Woodstock." 27
Once during an examination in front of the class, with the
rector and four other oral examiners presidipg, Laurence was
given a syllogism he could not solve. The rector finally called
time and Kelly took his seat. "I took my seat not exultant,
but glad that I could offer some little humiliation to our Lord
as the fruit of the examen." Laurence, like St. Ignatius,
realized that humility comes only with humiliations, and that
"such humiliations well taken are more pleasing in our Lord's
sight than a brilliant showing which ends in self-complacency." The motive for his action he penned at the end of
Notebook entitled "S.D.", August 24, 1903.
Notes by the Way, September 15, 1892.
27 Ibid., October 6, 1892.
The above is a fair sample of the kind of
thing Kelly put in his journals: an analysis of what was going on in
his soul as well as in the world around. He would read over what he
had written from time to time, would see later how God had led him
by the hand, and, sometimes too, how self-love had deceived him. More
than once a section in the journals was crossed out later, with a terse
indictment written in the margin: "Vanitas!" Ibid., May 31, 1895.
2s
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�FATHER KELLY
261
the incident: "May He thus make of me a fit instrument to
promote His own greater glory." 28
Obedience to God's will was not always easy. God and his
superiors often tried him. Poor health has a way of wearing
a person down and poor health was life long with Laurence.
He was thirty years old and had just completed five years of
regency, when an illness struck which made it impossible to
return to theology on time. After two months of hospitalization and treatment (which apparently did nothing), Laurence
felt a quite human discouragement. "I prayed in my sadness
to be free at last. Here I was so out of place, away from my
brethren, away from all I loved most dearly, in the midst of
strangers in a strange land." But he quickly added, "God's
will triumphed, however, and I resigned myself." 29
It was that way over and over. When his brother died as
a young Jesuit, when he was assigned to teach physics after
preparing himself in the classics, when his tertianship was
put off, when he was called on to console the sick and dyingit was always Thy will be done. 30
Steps to the Altar
A jotting on New Year's Day thanked God for the favors
of the past year, among them "crosses and sufferings," which
he called God's "choicest favors . . . since by them he conforms us to the likeness of His Divine Son." 31 Trials, said
Kelly, were like steps to the altar, if only we look on them
as such, "with our faces towards Jesus in the Tabernacle." 32
A motive for accepting crosses was reparation, which for
Laurence was a "sacred and solemn" duty to make up to the
wounded Heart of Jesus. 33 "The crown on Christ's brow was
set there by his enemies," he was to say. "That around His
heart was turned by His friends." 34 A duty rested on all the
Notes by the Way, November 19, 1892.
Notes by the Way, October 31, 1900.
30 Letter from W. Coleman Nevils, S.J. to Kelly, dated Frederick,
Maryland, January 1, 1900; Notes by the Way, August 1, 1895, July 23,
1904, and June 29, 1904.
31 Notes by the Way, January 1, 1895.
32 Loose sheet in Sketchbook II, February 17, 1906.
33 Ultima Probatio Diary, January 21, 1906.
34 Loose sheet, undated, in Sketchbook II.
28
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FATHER KELLY
redeemed to do what they could to assuage the sufferings of
Jesus. It is too late to prevent the crucifixion, true; but we
may, as did Joseph and Nicodemus and the others, draw near
after the awful sacrifice "and withdraw the nails"-take Him
from the cross and embalm the Sacred Wounds in our hearts
and memory. 35
All this, of course, is easier said than done. But Laurence
meant what he said about carrying the cross, and God took
him at his word. Laurence's life abounded in trials; one instance may suffice as asample.
During Kelly's sefond year of philosophy his eyesight
began to fail. At least several times within six months he
experienced partial transient blindness, and the doctor who
examined him said his eyes were "almost verging on the desperate."36 Kelly was bewildered, torn, he said, between a
desire to continue his studies successfully and a desire to
immolate himself and his sight as an offering to God. The
condition of his eyes seemed to turn his life upside down.
Reflecting on three to four months of persistent trouble,
Laurence confided to his journal: "Never perhaps have I
tasted the sorro\v of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane as
I have just now. Perhaps much more still remains to suffer.
Well, I have gotten at least so far as to desire with St. Ignatius never to be without some cross, some part of the Master's
livery. . . . Poor human heart so full of seifishness! When
will you be purified, crystalized by the pure love of God !" 31
On Christmas day of that year Kelly noted that "some little
trials from without gave me a chance to offer a fitting present
to the Man of Sorrows, who, to make us glad, was 'acquainted
with suffering from His youth.' " 38 Later he was to quote
Milton's "Sonnet on His Blindness," adding after the last
line: "They also serve who only stand and wait"-"To bear
the mild, sweet, yoke of Christ-that is our only duty, our
highest dignity, our greatest glory.'' 39
Eventually Laurence's eyes improved and he was able to
35
Ultima Probatio Diary, January 21, 1906.
36 Notes by the Way, July 7, 1893.
31 Ibid., October 27, 1893.
38
39
Ibid., December 25, 1893.
Notes by the Way, February 2, 1900.
�FATHER KELLY
269
resume his studies. Other crosses, to be sure, came to replace
the ones that were removed, and Kelly offered these too to
Christ, his Lord. Looking back over second year philosophy,
he reminisced: "Another year gone! What fruit? Some
little suffering, some little labor for the Master's Love-0
Dearest Rabboni, how glad shall I be that the Lamp of my
life has been burnt out For Thee !" 40
Laurence Kelly was human, of course, and did not always
live up to the ideals he set for himself. He was not above
worrying about God's judgment on his life; he knew how
fickle was the human will, how thin the veil between it and
sin; however near even a good religious can be to deserting
his vocation. He could shrink from the labor and responsibility of uncongenial employments. He knew his weakness,
but he knew also the remedy for that weakness: reliance on
God, His grace and His love. "I must not conceive of the
Lord as a cruel tyrannical task master," he told himself, "but
as one who knows how to sympathize and allow for shortcomings. Therefore the true spirit is one of absolute dependence on God, united with a candid confession of my own
feebleness, unworthiness, nothingness." 41
The result of this dependence was confidence and strength.
God's power became his. Consider the saints, what God's
power had made of them-of St. Peter, of St. Paul. "Why
not of me?" asked Kelly, convinced that he was called by his
vocation to great personal holiness, with a duty also to lead
as many others as possible to that holiness. 42
Once as a scholastic on a holiday boat trip down the Potomac River, Kelly and the other vacationers encountered a
violent storm. There was a terrific wind and pelting rain; a
down-river gale kicked up whitecaps around the little launch
on which Kelly and the others gritted their teeth and held on
for life. When the storm was at its height and the prayer
"A fulgure et tempestate, libera nos, Domine" was on Kelly's
lips, there was in his heart "the greatest calm." "I felt sure,"
he said, "that God who causes the storm to rise, and who
allays its fury again at His own good pleasure, would not
4 0 Ibid., June 19, 1894.
This is a quotation from a poem of Father
Joseph Shea (1831-1881).
4 1 Loose sheet in Sketchbook II, February 18, 1906.
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FATHER KELLY
forget His own, on whom so much hope for the salvation of
souls was placed." 43 That comment is important as revealing
Kelly's practical conviction of God's abiding presence and love
for him. He and his brethren were "God's own," and God
would preserve them to do His work, "The salvation of souls."
Such was Laurence Kelly's interior preparation for the
apostolate. But he prepared for it also in an exterior manner
-in a methodical, business-like compilation of an amazing
amount of notes.
Exterior Preparation
From his earliesf 'days in the Society Kelly, on his own
initiative, began to collect material for sermons, retreats, and
conferences and to assemble them in notebooks. In one notebook, for example, he observed that boys are like high explosives. "If handled with care, they finish by moving the
world; awkwardly handled, they wreck the workshop." 44
Health is like a child-"spoilt by too much care." 45 Spiritual
progress, he suggested, "should not be likened to a business
trip, profitless until a certain distance is travelled; but to a
health tour, in ~which every mile counts." 46
In another notebook Laurence began to outline and paraphrase the good sermons he heard. He listed the occasion,
preacher, text, exordium, transitions, develo,Pment, and peroration. An embryo sermon on Easter ran: r'The sweetest day
of the year is Christmas; the saddest day, Good Friday; the
gladdest and most glorious, Easter. The first appeals to our
faith; the second evokes our charity; the third firms our hope.
Develop these thoughts." 47
Sometimes the material in Kelly's notebooks would be
against the Church, in which case he would leave a blank
space until he found a refutation. At other times he would
add a comment of his own. After quoting Emerson: "Jesus
Ibid., February 23, 1906.
Notes by the Way, July 18, 1893. Kelly was to say later, "There is
no softer pillow than confidence in God." Scintillae Lucis, notes made
during a retreat between 1911 and 1915.
44 Theological Notebook, 1900-1904, p. 25.
45 Gleanings from Many Fields, August 30, 1893, between pp. 2-4.
46 Theological Notebook, 1900-1904, p. 26.
4 7 Omnium Gatherum, I, p. 37 and p. 5.
42
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�FATHER KELLY
271
would absorb the race, but Tom Paine or the coarsest blasphemer helps humanity by resisting this exuberance of
power," Kelly wrote, "\Vith such a man, no quarter." 4 "
Several of Kelly's notebooks concerned retreat material.
He always took extensive notes in the retreats he made,4 9 including the preludes and colloquies, and even down to the
refectory reading. That Laurence had his own future apostolate as a retreat master in mind in taking these notes appears from his marginal notations: "Mention striking cases
... Develop this . . . A very severe point . . . This was a hot
point." 50 A retreat made during theology included a section,
"Notes on Director," in which Laurence commented on the
Director's enunciation, use of pleasantries, concern for the
retreatants' health, etc. 51 The length and extensiveness of
such retreat notes, amounting, for example, to sixty-two
closely written pages even after fifteen years of making annual retreats, at a time when most Jesuits, both then and
now, have long since ceased to write things down during the
annual retreat, shows the particular care Laurence Kelly took
to prepare himself for retreat work.
All through his studies Laurence built on his note collection,
and added to it in later life. Notebook followed notebook:
"Ascetica and Mystica," "Excerpts from Spiritual Books,"
"Phases of Thought," "Theology, Philosophy and Science,"
"Notes Chiefly Literary," "Catechetical," "Sermons on the
Blessed Virgin Mary and the Saints," "Consolationes Mortis
Appropinquantis," "Notes," "Notes Historical," "Notes by
the Way," "References," "Omnium Gatherum," "Gleanings
from Many Fields," "Elocution," "Conferences and Sermons,"
"Sylva Sacra Orationis," and others. In all they total twentyseven notebooks of material. When one considers that these
notebooks were entirely of his own initiative, representing his
Phases of Thought, p. 27.
A retreat in last year regency ran fifty-five pages, and a retreat
in second year theology, sixty-two.
50 Retreat notes for 1902; notes on death and on "Contemplatio ad
amorem."
51 1902 Retreat, "Notes on Director," located two pages after the
"Ad Amorem" notes at the end. Interestingly enough, the retreat master that year "held [that] the particular exam should never be made on
virtues!"
48
49
�272
FATHER KELLY
own private reading and research over and above the prescribed class notes, and that this private file of retreat, sermon
and conference material accumulated during his course of
training amounted to a little under one thousand closelywritten, indexed, and cross-referenced pages, you have some
idea of the care exercised by Laurence Kelly for his future
apostolate.
The Apostolate
That apostolate began in March, 1906, when Laurence was
sent to Gonzaga irr ..Washington, D.C. His apostolate was
twofold: an apostolate of suffering and an apostolate of work
-and the two intermingled and combined. Almost as soon as
Fr. Kelly was appointed, things seemed to go wrong physically. His health, never good, became wretched. The story
of his first years in the ministry is the story of Fr. Kelly
fighting to keep his head above water physically, while at
the same time doing an often incredible amount of exterior
work, considering the misery he was in. He had prepared
for the apostolate long and well. What follows shows how
well.
During the second week of March, 1906, Fr. Kelly began to
notice sharp, muscular pains in his upper. body, making it
difficult to turn his head. This was accompanied by headaches, heaving of the stomach, heart flutters, constipation,
nausea, and neuritis. He was put under doctor's care, placed
·on a special diet, forbidden to say late Masses, and exempted
from Matins and Lauds. This same week, however, on at
least three different occasions, in addition to other duties, he
put in some five hours in the confessional, despite the fact
that confessional work was beginning to cause a strain. Most
of his work, in fact, seemed to be on the days when he was
suffering acute distress. This is a sample of what is to come:
bad health, becoming increasingly worse, coupled with considerable work for souls. 5 2
Fr. Kelly's health declined during the rest of March. Walking left him weak, sleep came with difficulty, even writing a
letter brought on a strain. But he kept at work. When he
s2
Diary for 1906: March 10, 12, 14, 15, 17.
�FATHER KELLY
273
was unable to stand the strain of writing, he spent his time
on sick calls and recruiting men for a week-end retreat. On
March 22, though he confessed to feeling weak, he heard
confessions from 4:45 P.M. to 9:00 P.M., then went out on a
sick call at midnight. Returning after 1 :00 A.M., he lay
sleepless, then had heart pains about 2:00 A.M. Yet he was
up on time for his Mass the next morning at 6:00A.M., hearing confessions afterwards, and, after a slight rest, working
the rest of the day. 53
In April Laurence's health took a drastic plunge. He reported himself "nervous and sleeping very lightly." Even
reading the Office brought on headaches, and when the Office
was commuted to saying the seven psalms, these too caused
pain. "Helpless on account of headaches," says his journal.
"Feeling mixed up after restless night. Stomach. Headaches." The aching now extended to his left arm and the
left side of his head. The doctor diagnosed the case as
sclerosis of the arteries, advising little or no reading and a
trip to the country. During this time Fr. Kelly carried on
as best he could his apostolic work. On April 7, for instance,
a day when he specifically mentions feeling very weak and
suffering from headaches, he spent six and one-half hours
in the confessional, heard over one hundred confessions, and
reconciled eight people with the Church, one of whom had
been away for sixteen years. 54
By May things were becoming critical; the doctor prescribed a complete rest. Fr. Kelly's diary is punctuated with
short items, written almost in despair: "One of my worst
days in a long time ... Heart thumping. Head and nerves
going high." "The waiting in confessional brought on the
old aching in head and left arm." "After a half hour's walking
the heart gave great trouble." "Took a long rest and felt
worse after it." 55
Finally on May 13, Fr. Kelly had an interview with the
provincial, who suggested he try Poughkeepsie for a week
of complete rest. If things got any worse, the provincial
was doubtful of his ability to continue. 56
53
H
1906 Diary: March 22, 24, 25, 26, 30.
Ibid., April 4, 7, 9, 17, 23, 25, 28, 30.
55
56
Ibid., May 1, 2, 4, 8, 10, 11.
1906 Diary: May 13.
�274
FATHER KELLY
Here was a situation that called on all Laurence Kelly's
years of training to conform himself to God's will. A man
who loved the Society as he did, who had prepared himself
spiritually and intellectually for the apostolate for all these
years, and for what? To be reduced to a helpless bundle of
nerves, unable to write, to read, to pray. But "God's Holy
Will be done" he had written two weeks before, and he did
what he could despite the pain. The day before he saw the
provincial he sat in the confessional until he had heard 166
confessions, the big~est total ever recorded in Fr. Kelly's
notes. 5 7
Improved Health
Help came near the end of May. A new doctor, who disagreed almost entirely with the old, felt Fr. Kelly could be
cured by an operation. Accordingly he underwent surgery
on June 2, 1906. The operation was not entirely successful.
In general Laurence felt stronger and better, but the beadaches and pains in the left side still recurred. "Don't sleep
well ... almost nausea ... bad headache ... no better ...
a pretty bad day" are entries in his journal for July, and he
ended the month by making a triduum to St. Ignatius "for
health and strength." 58 At times there w~s a tendency to
depression, but Laurence fought it off, adding "Deo Gratias"
characteristically after the victory. 59 The Society's rule about
considering sickness a gift no less than health bore practical
result in Fr. Kelly, who wrote during these dark days: "What
friend like Jesus. Do we remember Him as He remembers
us? Are we present to Him as He is to us ?" 60 He did what
he could in the apostolate while he suffered, especially bear57 Ibid., April 29 and May 12.
Fr. Kelly's distress was somewhat
relieved by a pleasant day at Woodstock in the middle of May. Although
he had a violent headache on the way out "and nearly went up into
air," he enjoyed the day talking with old friends and cheering a ball
game between the Giants (Theologians) and the Midgets (Philosophers).
"Charity! Charity!" he commented. "What consolations to be back on
that scene of so many combats and so many mercies granted me by God
and His Blessed Mother!" Ibid., May 18-19.
ss[bid., May 26, July 20-30 passim.
59 1906 Diary: June 7.
6o Ibid., July, seven pages from end.
�FATHER KELLY
275
ing confessions. From March through June, 1906, a four
month period of constant and vexatious pain, frustration, and,
at times, total helplessness, Fr. Kelly heard no less than 2,415
confessions. 61
In the summer of 1906 Fr. Kelly was appointed pastor in
rural Maryland. 62 Here it was the same story all over: pain
and work, a considerable amount of both. It is not just that
Fr. Kelly suffered that strikes the reader of his diary. Nor
that he was such a worker. It is the both of them combined,
the continuous work despite the pain, that cannot but impress
one with the heroic character of the man. Fr. Kelly would
just not be beaten; he would not stay down. There were
souls to be saved, a field white for the harvest, and he intended to gather in the sheaves while there was breath in
his body. 63
No matter how he felt, Fr. Kelly threw himself into his life
as a country pastor. The record of his activities, as seen in
his journal, illustrates the varied life of a country pastor
serving his people. If there is no choir, he himself becomes
the choir. He travels fifty-four miles in one day. He visits
a home to break up an adulterous union. His breakfast is
sometimes at 12:30 P.M.; his dinner, at 1:30 P.M. He hears
sixty-two confessions and notes "some big fish caught." He
confides he is "pretty tired," but adds significantly in another
place, "Yet more, 0 Lord, yet more." 64
He loved his people and was interested in their welfare,
material as well as spiritual. The youngsters he-tells to pray
"real hard" for rain during a long drought. 65 The misery
and poverty of some of his parishioners appall him; a church
61
Ibid., next to last page.
He was appointed first to the Messenger of the Sacred Heart, a
position he had held for one year between his theology and tertianship,
but the doctor vetoed the assignment. He served as rural pastor in
Maryland for eleven years.
63
For two samples of the combination of work and pain, cf. Fr.
Kelly's Diary: October 8-14, 1906, and January 6-13, 1907.
64
Diary: December 6, 1906; November 10, September 24, and November 11, 1906; February 10, June 5, and June 2, 1907; Notes by the Way,July 20, 1904.
65
Notes by the Way, July 7, 1904.
62
�276
FATHER KELLY
festival is a "grand success" if it returns $72.00-gross !66
Years before, as a scholastic, he had expressed his conviction
that the surest sign of God's favor to a religious society was
its zeal in preaching the gospel to the poor. 67 He preached
it for eleven years.
Besides preaching, he worked extensively in the confessional. He was averaging 135 confessions a Sunday during
his first months in southern Maryland, when his health was
still quite erratic. He must have been a good confessor. The
sensual man merits .pity, he maintained, and it should be
forthcoming from priests as it was from Christ. "How tender
should be the heart of Christ's ministers toward the wayward
and erring-after God's own Heart ... " 68
Fr. Kelly's ordination retreat notes on hearing confessions
are interesting in the light of his future work in that regard.
Do we love the Lord Jesus, he asks? Then we should feed
his lambs and sheep, and this by hearing confessions "constantly and patiently. For though poetic at first, it comes soon
to be downright hard work and drudgery." 69 How true that
was, Fr. Kelly ~arne fast to learn. As a rural pastor he heard
over 5,000 confessions a year. 70 But his motivation had been
determined years before and it held fast despite the drudgery.
It was Jesus, love of Jesus, giving joy to Jesus. "If I can find
a few of His lost sheep," he wrote as a theologian, "and bring
them home to Him to the joy of His heart, I shall have found
heaven." 11
Fr. Kelly was to remain as a country pastor for eleven
years. Then he was to be master of novices, provincial, spiritual father, rector, and pastor again. The nature of the work is
not so important. What is important is the apostolic fervor
which Fr. Kelly brought to each, his desire to influence others,
Ibid., May 19 and May 25, 1904.
Ibid., November 15, 1893.
6 8 Diary for December 31, 1907; loose sheet in front of Notes by the
Way, March 22, [1904?].
69 1903 Retreat Notes, eighth day, contemplation on the meeting on
the shore.
7° Diary: February 28 and December 31, 1907.
71 1894 Retreat, last page of booklet, coming immediately after the
"Contemplatio."
66
67
�FATHER KELLY
277
within the Society and without, to serve the King he had
vowed in the flower of his life to follow.
One wishes Fr. Kelly had been as communicative about his
spiritual life in his later years as he was in his earlier, when
he was a young scholastic and a young priest. But enough has
been suggested, it is hoped, to illustrate what was mentioned
at the outset of this sketch: that Laurence Kelly took great
pains to prepare for his Jesuit apostolate and that his apostolate, as revealed in his papers as a Maryland pastor, was a
remarkable combination of pain and labor, of "stick-to-itiveness," of carrying on despite formidable obstacles.
Fr. Laurence Kelly died in 1955 and is buried at Georgetown University. On his grave stone there is nothing but
the simple statistics of his life and death. But in his heart
when he died there must have been etched the words of a
prayer which he formulated over fifty years before, a paraphrase of the "Anima Christi." "Permit me not to be separated from Thee," he begged. "In the hour of my death-a
death like thine own-call me; lovingly bid me to come unto
Thee, that with thy saints, my dear mother, my father Ignatius and my brethren of the Society I may love and praise
Thee, In saecula saeculorum. Amen." 72
Father John J. Smith
John H. Collins, S.J.
A year before his death the subject of this notice wrote:
"I was born into this world on December 10, 1889 and on the
same day was born into the Kingdom not of this world; born and
baptized on the same identical day. While the parish priest of St.
Mary's, Taunton, Massachusetts, was recording the event in the
church register, the recording angel was entering same in the book
of life. God grant that the name may still be there when the summons comes from the hid battlements of eternity!"
After years of suffering heroically borne the summons came
to Father John J. Smith at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Boston on
December 21, 1958.
72
Notes by the Way, September 15, 1900.
�278
FATHER SMITH
Boyhood days in the nineties and the early twentieth century knew little of the enervating excitement of these latter
days. A better-than-average student, John Smith passed his
early years under the strong hand of an Irish father who
was a strict disciplinarian yet withal a lover of the arts and
of sound education. He saw to it that the boy underwent
courses in voice culture and the violin and attained a marked
proficiency in both. Baseball and tennis as a member of his
high school teams made for a sound body housing his alert
and healthy mind. In, the autumn of 1907, his high school
days ended, John Smith entered Holy Cross College, where
in addition to high scholastic attainments he was in his
senior year manager of baseball. After graduation in 1911,
he entered St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore, to study for the
priesthood.
His first year in the seminary became a year of election.
True, the priesthood was his chief goal and his decision had
entailed a certain amount of sacrifice. At college the spirit
of self-sacrifice manifested by his Jesuit professors had impressed him deeply, so deeply that during this first year at
the seminary the thought of total surrender kept recurring
to his generous soul. In the following summer, much to his
father's surprise, he announced that he was going to become
a Jesuit. He entered the novitiate at St. Anurew-on-Hudson
on October 12, 1912.
From the outset the impression he made on his fellow
novices was that of a man well-poised. This poise they judged
to be the fruit of his experience of the world. After all, he
was a graduate of Holy Cross and he had been a seminarian.
When, however, they watched him, like themselves, tried by
the monotonous and often petty drudgeries of novice life, they
began to realize that the source of his serenity, his calm urbanity, his peace of soul derived not from exterior influences,
but from inner resources.
As manuductor. of the novices in his second year he wore
authority easily and without change of character. While his
regularity and sense of duty were exemplary, his sense of
humor and his versatility, his partiality to games in season
and his gift of song rounded the whole man. Candid and
straightforward in his opinions, whether he agreed or dis-
�FATHER SMITH
279
agreed, one always knew exactly where he stood. If he disagreed, he did so with a quiet and forthright humility, but
one knew, too, that no tinge of human respect would induce
him to water down a principle or rationalize an application.
The impression made on his fellow novices deepened during
the subsequent years of study and teaching, when, in a sense,
their experience caught up. He was one with them in work
and in recreation, but he seemed to possess a quality which
lifted him above the irritations and frustrations that made
for low spirits and unhealthy criticism. Finally they began
to understand what that quality was. It was a wonderful
sense of proportion. John Smith concentrated on the great
values of life, on the transcendent truths of our faith and on
the unique privileges of our vocation. In the course of his
philosophical studies at Woodstock he was a scholastic of
great equanimity. He seemed to slip into the background
without either causing or participating in the trying dramas
of community life.
Four years of regency, at Boston College High School from
1918 to 1920 and at Holy Cross from 1920 to 1922, marked
him as an efficient teacher who exercised a real influence over
his students. In charge of athletics at Boston College High
School, he combined understanding with a sense of fair play
and competitive spirit. There was never the least trouble,
even with the temperamental and vain. As professor of
rhetoric at Holy Cross he assisted in the editing of The Purple
and was moderator of the musical clubs. Throughout he
manifested extraordinary balance.
Back at Woodstock for theology in 1922, the now mature
and experienced scholastic continued his careful observance
of the routine duties of his religious life with a fidelity that
was neither spectacular nor obtrusive. Noticeable was his
spirit of self-denial, as when, for instance, he gave the better
part to others by volunteering to serve at table or by surrendering his chance to participate in games. Clearly he
possessed the habit of mortification but, nevertheless, enjoyed
the good things of life with a deliberately measured control.
He talked well, not, perhaps, because he possessed any natural
conversational gifts, but because he had trained himself to
this as a duty. His charity was unfailing. Possessing a
�280
FATHER SMITH
pleasing tenor voice, he was one of the mainstays of the choir
and glee club and a leader in the singing that followed the
picnic dinner on Thursdays at the Forks or Cascades. Many
an ordinandus preparing to sing his First Solemn Mass owed
much to his patient training. The orchestra, too, employed
his talent with the violin. Foremost, naturally, was his
devotion to the study of the queen of the sciences and his
serious preparation for the great dignity of priesthood. He
was ordained in Dahlgren Chapel, Georgetown, June 28, 1925.
The status of 1926,brought him back to Holy Cross for a
period of two years during which he taught Latin and religion
in the rhetoric class... For one of these years he was again
moderator of the musical clubs, and for the other moderator
of athletics. After a year of tertianship at St. Beuno's, North
Wales, he returned to his Alma Mater as prefect of studies;
Students of those days remember him as a man of iron will
and inflexible purpose. Instead of trying himself to solve
their problems, he allowed them to solve them themselves.
Although they stood in awe of him, they respected and admired him.
From 1931 until 1942, when the beginning of a protracted
illness forced him to enter a hospital, Father Smith was master of novices at the old Shadowbrook. The impression he
made on the members of the faculty during._those years was
of a man dedicated by hourly performance to the principles
of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. St. Ignatius in his
meditation on the Two Standards opens to us the vista of
the virtues : "the first, poverty against riches; the second,
contumely or contempt against worldly honors; the third,
humility against pride, and from these steps, let them induce
to all other virtues." Father Smith strove for all the virtues. He sought them with the regularity of a reliable clock,
as he sought the pilgrim heights with skill and fearlessness.
At times, perhaps, he was too exacting in dealing with
others. Often he seemed to challenge situations too directly.
He imposed upon himself rigid rules. He would, for instance,
rewrite a long letter, if he discovered one error, saying that
it was a practice of St. Ignatius. These and other shortcomings fade swiftly before the luminous virtues of a strong man,
of a friend, a companion and a sufferer.
�I
FATHER SMITH
281
Father Smith was solidly and thoroughly an lgnatian Jesuit.
If ever a man followed the principle of agere contra, which
he constantly taught, it was he. His force and discipline of
will which reflected themselves in his self-control stand out
as the distinguishing features of his spiritual life. They
were to a great extent the source of his nobility as a gentleman, his outstanding patience in his later suffering, his inspiration to the novices who came under his direction, and
at the same time of a certain awe in which the latter held
him. He was one of the most deliberate of men. It seemed
that whatever he did was consciously and conscientiously
planned.
Neither of these two qualities, great force of will and deliberation, derived from anything but a profound sense of
duty which his intense love of God inspired. He accepted
from God his vocation and his work in the Society as gifts
carrying with them obligations. With profound appreciation
of what God had done for him, he undertook to fulfill the role
appointed him, and he labored to create in his novices a real
sense of the high vocation that was theirs.
The novices trained by Father Smith enjoyed the direction
of a novice master of a sterling manhood which became more
and more spiritually refined as the years passed. When he
changed his mind, he did so not from weakness or simple compromise but from prayerful conviction. His friendship was
warm, for all its reserve, genuine for all that it was unemotional and premeditated.
To his novices Father Smith was a man of soldierly bearing
and deportment. His straight posture made him seem taller
than he was. His step was springy. He was alert and vigorous. His voice singing a High Mass was resonant as it was
true. His whole appearance was striking.
He gave evidence of extreme prudence. A man of strong
emotions kept rigidly under control, he curbed whatever
impulsiveness he felt in order to make sure that enlightened
reason guided his decisions. He would not risk doing an
injustice on poor evidence. His charity was worthy of his
noble bearing. He was never petty or temperamental, never
in the least sarcastic. . His own integrity was so profound
that he appeared to see only the best in those with whom he
�282
FATHER SMITH
dealt, putting the best construction on whatever he observed.
His charity manifested itself noticeably in his concern for the
sick, whom he visited regularly, always with a word of cheery
assurance.
In his treatment of his novices, he suited his formation to
the individual. Those whom he felt were capable he did his
best to mold in the pattern he had set for himself as a Jesuit
according to St. Ignatius. With some he adopted the manner
of a business man, with a directness of answer to little problems, an informality .and dispatch that bordered on abruptness. In such case~ ,his knowledge of the individual made
such an approach suitable. Those who felt that their problems were of a serious nature found him somewhat difficult
of approach. At times his external manner and his suppression of emotion gave little hint of sympathy. In such
instances he seemed to lack understanding of human weaknesses, although in the presence of weakness he was kind.
His long pause before reaching a solution seemed to render _
him as uncomfortable as it was distressing to the troubled
novice. Some found his solutions too simple, as if he did not
grasp what to them was far more complex than he made
them out to be. Failure to satisfy or the suspicion that a
novice was not at ease with him saddened him, but failed to
break through his self-control.
~ _
Former novices who lived with him as priests in later life
were pleasantly surprised to see his human qualities unfold.
They witnessed his jovial manner at recreation and observed
that he was interested in the sports columns of the newspapers. They would then recall that as their novice master
he had a good sense of humor. He would laugh when the
joke was on him. More than once in his conferences he would
allude humorously to his baldness, one occasion going so far
as to say: "I once thought of adding to the Litanies: A capite
nudo, libera nos Domine." They remembered his warm and
enthusiastic participation in the May Day celebration, his
joining in their games and in their work on Shadowbrook's
roads and gardens. And they wondered if they had appreciated their novice master fully.
Certain it was that to all his novices Father Smith was
the embodiment of a Jesuit. He left no doubt that St. lgna-
�FATHER Sl.\llTil
283
tius was his model. His success as novice master was, perhaps, due more to his example of total integrity and singleness of purpose than to profundity of spiritual doctrine. His
instructions were theologically sound, derived from the best
ascetical thinkers and writers. His appeal was always that
of the Spiritual Exercises. He insisted that our Lord Himself
formed the spiritual man. For him the interior life was the
most important; from it force should flow to the exterior.
He never pretended to knowledge that he did not have. He
would correct errors of speech and composition made by
novices, yet if he thought that a point touched on a matter
in which the novice had some special knowledge, he would
defer to the novice. He never wasted a word in trying to
impress with his ability or travels.
He had a deep love for the Society and endeavored to instil
that love into all its young members. If he left the house,
it was on the Society's business or for his retreat. He was
a Christian gentleman who believed that the proprieties are
an integral part of community life. To him anything that
smacked of niggardliness or uncouthness was intolerable. He
could be eloquent on the great dignity of the priesthood and
the infinite value of the Mass. When he spoke of our Lord's
Passion or of our Lady, control of emotion demanded a
strong effort.
For some time before the end of his tenure as master of
novices Father Smith was suffering from a bothersome skin
disorder that proved a purgatory for the rest of his life.
The winter of 1939-40 was especially hard on him. On the
doctor's recommendation of complete rest in a warmer climate, he sailed for Jamaica in January, 1940, and remained
there for three months. His stay on the island brought considerable relief. He enjoyed the companionship and observed
the fruitful work of his brother-Jesuits in Kingston and several of the bush missions.
Not long after his return his trouble reappeared. In 1942
he entered St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Boston. For a time his
condition was so grave that his doctor recommended that he
be given the last sacraments. He received them in perfect
acceptance of God's will. After some months in which he
�284
FATHER Sl\liTH
responded well to treatment and convalesced rapidly he was
appointed Socius to the Father Provincial.
As in his former assignments, Father Smith carried on
the duties of Socius in an exact and for himself an exacting
manner. A series of hospitalizations in Boston and Washington and protracted stays in the Georgetown and Weston
infirmaries impeded much of his work and tried his indomitable spirit but he maintained his equanimity.
In the hope that relief from the detailed business of the
Socius' office might produce good results in health, he was
appointed in May 19~. superior of Keyser Island. Although
his affliction continued with varying improvement and recession, he created a helpful atmosphere in Keyser's small community and showed himself always the gracious gentleman
and religious that he was. During his two years' stay at
Keyser Island doctors at a New York Hospital sought a cure
of his ailment without success. However, by the end of two
years he had recovered sufficiently to take on new duties, this
time as rector of the tertianship at Pomfret. Here his trouble
continued, becoming even worse.
Finally in February, 1949, he was relieved of office and
sent to Weston College, where he remained until his death in
December, 1958. His unwavering acceptance of God's will
during the periods of excruciating suffering-was heroic. In
the course of his first years at Weston, he was able to give
short retreats and conferences. Soon, however, he began
to suffer exhausting muscular debility. The slightest walk
was fatiguing. Twice he was hospitalized without relief.
In 1957 the strong heart that had upheld Father Smith
through almost twenty years of pain began to weaken. Late
in 1958 he entered St. Elizabeth's Hospital for the last time.
To those who visited him there he never complained. Always
he was more concerned with his visitor's welfare than with
his own condition. Doctors, nurses, visitors can never forget
his strength of mi:Q.d and heart, his patience and his abandonment to God's will in his regard. On December 21, 1958 he
passed away peacefully. He has, on his departure to God,
bequeathed to the New England Province a rich legacy of
manly virtues tried in the surest of all crucibles.
�On Prayer
Especially for Those of the Society
Father Jerome Nadal
1. The Society practises prayer and applies herself to it
by the grace of Jesus Christ; it teaches it first of all through
the Spiritual Exercises, to which God Our Lord has visibly
given such efficacy for the greater glory and praise of His
divine Majesty.
2. The Exercises are spiritually efficient in Our Lord proportionately to the following dispositions: humility and absence of curiosity, a faith which trusts that Our Lord will
help us through them, the desire of the health and perfection
of our soul, application and faithfulness, finally, the desire of
the glory and praise of Jesus Christ.
3. It is of the greatest importance in Our Lord for the success of the Spiritual Exercises and of all prayer, to give oneself generously to Our Lord and to surrender to God all our
powers and activities, in one word: the whole man. Without
forgetting to work on our part with the grace of God in the
acquisition of all virtue and perfection, one must always hope,
desire intensely and ask God that He may realize in us and
in all men what is for His greater glory and praise.
4. Prayer can be made much easier by another way: by
the exercise of the will and the heart rather than of the intellect. As much as one must avoid in prayer the seeking of
greater knowledge out of curiosity, so much so one should be
desirous to progress in the love of all what concerns God's
greater service. In that way, we should draw some fruit
from all prayer and for our mind practical light relating to
the exercise of the virtues and spirit of Jesus Christ.
5. By going through the Exercises, the soul possesses with
the grace of Jesus Christ, principles of prayer for the three
ways of which the contemplatives speak, viz.: by the first
MHSI, Nadal IV, 672-81. Translated by Father L. Schillebeeckx.
285
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NADAL ON PRAYER
week it is initiated in the purgative way; by the second and
third in the illuminative way, which is contemplation in the
proper meaning of the word. Though the unitive way should
not be excluded from these (second and third) weeks, this
third way is proper to the fourth week in the exercise of the
love of God.
6. With the help of the Lord, each one draws from the
Exercise a very special grace to obtain the knowledge and
relish of his vocation. The soul finds then a particular peace
and union with God in'·spiritual obedience and in following
the particular way by \vhich it has to go to God.
7. The principle and end of prayer must be, as far as possible, fervent charity towards God and zeal for all souls, with
a keen desire of their salvation and perfection, both of oneself and of all others.
8. The feelings and affections in prayer, which draw us
without necessity to recollection and solitude, do not seem to
be the proper prayer of the Society, but rather those feelings
which urge us to the labors of our vocation and of our ministries, especially to perfect obedience, according to our Institute.
9. From this follows that the prayer proper:to the Society
extends itself to the exercise of vocal prayer and to all the
exercises of our ministries. In the measure in which one
attains this with the grace of Jesus Christ, the enlightenment
of the mind, the good affections of the will and union with
God will persevere; they accompany and guide all our actions,
so that we find God in all things: "Et reliquiae cogitationis
diem festum agant Domino" Ps. 75, 11.
10. Our prayer should be such that it increases and guides
the spiritual relish in our activities by permeating them and
giving them strength in the Lord; and our activities should
increase our strength and joy in prayer. In this way, Martha
and Mary being united and helping each other, we do not only
embrace one part of the Christian life, the better part, viz.,
contemplation, but laying aside anxiety and trouble "circa
plurima," Mary helps Martha and is united to her in the Lord.
11. In general, there are different parts in prayer, namely:
�NADAL ON PRAYER
287
a) Prayer as an elevation of the mind or contemplation. One
obtains it by meditation in Our Lord. It should have as principle and purpose charity and love of God, and must bear fruit
in the will and in the affections, and should not be pure
speculation.
12. b) There is also thanksgiving to God Our Lord. This
part of prayer must be habitual. It consists of a true knowledge of all benefits, general and particular, received from God
by us and by all men and a grateful love for God Our Lord
and in Him for the instruments of His grace. It consists also
of the sincere sentiment of being unworthy of such gifts, of
the praise of God's goodness and benevolence, of the very
humble and prompt offering to serve God Our Lord, not only
on account of His benefits but on account of Himself for His
greater glory and praise.
13. c) Besides that there is petition, which has a double
form: one, the purest, consists in asking that God's will may
be done, or that everything may be done for His greater glory
and praise; the other consists in asking for all other things
necessary or useful for that end, which should always be mentioned with them. This (part of) prayer should be most
habitually made by us, for it is very necessary and has many
promises of God attached to it. Let all be careful not to
abandon for the sake of consolations or elevations of mind,
this part of prayer so necessary, so useful and so efficacious.
Let us always ask from God Our Lord all that is useful and
necessary for His greater service. In order that we all may
acquit ourselves better of this part of prayer, we should conform our petitions to the seven petitions of the Our Father.
14. d) Together with this prayer of petition, there should
be the prayer of supplication. In order that our prayer may
be heard and accepted, we should appeal in that prayer to the
divine, heavenly power, begging God Our Lord first of all by
His mercy and infinite goodness and by what He is, then by
the merits of Jesus Christ Our Lord, on account of the sanctity of His whole life, death and actions; taking also as intercessors the merits of Christ and prayers and merits of Our
Lady, of all the angels and saints of the whole militant Church
with humble acknowledgment of our own defects.
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NADAL ON PRAYER
15. After the Spiritual Exercises, one is guided, one perseveres and progresses in prayer by constancy in prayer and
the activities of one's vocation; in practicular, one exercises
oneself daily in the purgative way by the daily examination
of conscience, by the practice of abnegation and mortification, by the desire to undergo injuries and sufferings for
Christ, by obedience not only of the execution and the will,
but also of the understanding. This way includes also sacramental confession, the ordinary meditations in the spirit of
the First Week as those, on death, the last judgment, the mysteries of God's plans and of what He permits, the misery of
sin, vanity of the world;· etc.
16. One exercises oneself daily iri the illuminative and
unitive way by the ordinary meditations (for which one fixes
a determined time) , by saying the office of Our Lady or the
Rosary, and by all other mental prayers during Mass and
Communion, according to custom. In one word: in all exercises one should find peace, tranquillity and devotion. All
these exercises should aim at fervent charity, zeal for souls
(that they should not perish) and in all one should find God
Our Lord and discover one's personal way of prayer.
17. As regards the subjects about which we can pray, each
one will easily find this in the course of time."with the grace
of God, according to the progress he will ha;e ·made through
the Spiritual Exercises. For each one may rest assured that
God Our Lord will grant this grace in His goodness, in the
measure in which one will have prepared oneself with the
grace of the Lord for such a high exercise.
18. Our state of prayer is a state of the spiritual life in
Christ; since Christ is eternal light and infinite goodness.
He should be known and loved above everything and all the
rest in Him. And so, let our life and understanding rise
above and be detached from lower things, since we neither
live nor operate in a human way but in a heavenly and divine
way. Let us feel. and know in all things the divine power
and goodness, and let us love and serve Him. We should
never be curious and presumptuous about elevations of spirit
and speculations by wanting to understand more than grace
gives us to understand, according to St. Paul: "Sapiamus ad
�NADAL ON PRAYER
289
sobrietatem" and "Nolimus altum sapere, sed timeamus"
(Rom. 12, 3; 11, 20) ; and according to the words of the wise
man: "Scrutator Majestatis opprimetur a gloria" (Prov. 25,
27). Let us apply ourselves in all humility to meditation and
let us discern the grace which is offered to us by Our Lord in
meditation and prayer. Let us also co-operate with this grace
with suavity of spirit and modesty in the Lord, for He habitually grants His great gifts to one who loves and serves
Him with a pure and humble heart.
19. The following subjects can be matter for meditation,
from which by the favor of Our Lord will originate the grace
of contemplation, (viz., the illumination of the mind) and of
union of our will with God in a pure and sincere love. 1
20. Prayer is a gift of God Our Lord, it is a way of living
according to the spirit, a mystical way of understanding
spiritual and divine realities and of finding God in all things
and actions. Each one receives some share of grace and cooperates with it to some measure in all humility, simplicity,
purity of heart, faith and trust in God Our Lord, becoming
wholly enfiamed with fervent charity and zeal to procure the
honor and glory of God through the salvation of souls. According to this share of grace and according to the measure
of his co-operation, each one will easily find matter for meditation and prayer in the Lord.
21. The following help for the success in prayer: firmness
clearness, purity and simplicity in our vocation and a right
intention united to God in Jesus Christ. Often to seek God
in all things, loving Him in all creatures and all creatures in
Him, doing away as much as possible with the love of all
creatures to place it in their creator. To have a very great
faith, trust and charity in Our Lord for the spirit and the
institutions of the Society, with a total renunciation of one's
judgment. To put off one's own spirit even if good, and to
put on the spirit of the Society; to have and to practise perfect obedience.
22. It is necessary to put aside all curiosity and ambition
with regard to extraordinary things and mystical elevations
1
Subjects for meditation are given in M.H.S.J. Nadal IV, pp. 576-78.
�290
NADAL ON PRAYER
of the soul, for it is a door wide open to many illusions.
Prayer can be very authentic without relish or spiritual
feelings. It is good to note regularly one's progress in prayer.
Do not be in a hurry in prayer, but when you feel the grace
of God Our Lord, you should rest in it until the soul has had
its fill in the Lord. Relish and spiritual feelings are a help,
but must be used as a means and not as ends; seek especially
a cordial love for God. Let us leave all things to His infinite
goodness and being, and try to work on our part with His
goodness and grace.
23. The main spiritual sentiments flow from the three
theological virtues: from the conviction of faith will arise
hearing, from the penetration of the truth of faith, sight;
from hope, taste; from the union of charity, touch; and from
the satisfaction it gives comes relish. These feelings (sentiments) are means to obtain greater graces which Jesus Christ
gives to His friends, graces well known to those who possess
them.
24. It is to be11oted that all sentiments felt during prayerjoy, tears, illuminations etc., relish, knowledge, deep insights
(lights)-must be explained to the superior and the spiritual
father. Let us have in all this perfect obedience and submission, not only towards the Catholic Churcli and the Society,
but also towards our immediate superiors. Explain these
sentiments according to the usual way of the Church and its
Doctors, without singularity. If one finds it impossible to
explain either in general or in particular, one should tell what
inclinations such sentiments produce in the will.
25. It is also very useful to meditate, consider and feel that
we follow Jesus Christ who is always carrying his cross in
the militant Church. The same Jesus Christ to whom the
Eternal Father has given us as servants to follow Him with
our cross, without desiring anything of the world but what
He desired and chose, viz., poverty, injuries, troubles, sufferings until death, accomplishing in our turn the same mission
for which God had sent Him into the world: to save souls and
to lead them to perfection by integral obedience and perfect
practice of the virtues. But our cross is very sweet because
�NADAL ON PRAYER
291
it has already the splendor and glory of Jesus Christ's victory
over death through His Resurrection and Ascension.
26. It will be good for us to exercise ourselves to feel with
devotion that Jesus Christ is within us the way, because we
share His sufferings and imitate Him; that He is the truth,
because we contemplate in Him clear, simple and pure truths;
that He is life, because we are united to Him in charity which
extends itself to the neighbor.
27. There are two ways of prayer; first: simple and humble
meditation on natural and supernatural things, e.g. the Incarnation of Christ, His humanity, the sacraments, all infused
graces. In these things one should consider peacefully God's
power, therefore their truth in God.
The second way of prayer consists in this, that if grace
urges us to it, we come, through an illumination from on
high, to consider and contemplate God in all things of this
world or to seek quietly with the help of that light more
strength in God's power, by realising higher and more enlightening truths. There is also a third way of prayer which
is still higher, that is when God gives us a very high grace
and light by which we contemplate the supreme truths in a
synthetic view, known to those who realise those truths.
Through this illumination one contemplates and sees everything in the Lord, etc. In any case tension of the mind has
to be avoided.
28. It is a special favor if in meditation we seek God in
the "negation" of all creatures and of all labor of our imagination or intellect. One should adore God in that "obscurity"
of "total negation" and adore Him "in fide ecclesiae sanctae
catholicae".
29. It is evident that the facility and simplicity of contemplation come from love, as (in the case) of one whose
father is absent, when he hears news from him, he likes to
ponder about it, he finds in it relish and different kinds of
affections according to his love and the nature of the news.
A contemplative and one given to prayer should act likewise.
30. Consider that active and contemplative life should go
together. The time of probation, so exacting, brings active
�292
NADAL ON PRAYER
life to a certain perfection, and brings contemplative life to
dominate, guide and govern the active life with peace and
light in the Lord. In this way one comes to the superior
active life,-which supposes action and contemplation-such
an active life has the power to impress this action and contemplation according to what is more conducive to God's
greater service. In one word: the action of charity united to
God is perfect action. 2
31. Our prayer will be better if we exercise ourselves often
to trust in God, so great and good, in the merits of Jesus
Christ, in the efficacJ""and example of His actions, in the merits
of Our Lady, of all the angels and saints, in the theological
virtues, in the vows and spirit of the Society in Jesus Christ.
32. It is profitable for some and it can be so for all, to say
to Our Lord simply and humbly: "Lord I am like a beast, I do
not know how to pray, show me Lord how to pray".
33. It would be useful to have in all houses and colleges of
the Society, meetings of the community in which strictly
spiritual matters and not literary or philosophical subjects
are treated. The superior will propose a subject on which
all would give their opinion; each one will be asked to speak
about spiritual things.
34. We should carefully observe and put- into practice all
that has been said in order to have perfect prayer and obtain
its gifts. We should purify our hearts and consciences first
of all of all grave faults; then we should take care, loyally
and with attention, against all venial faults and imperfections;
further, we must make efforts in the Lord to uproot all bad
habits and inclinations which are the remains of our past.
sins; finally, to progress towards better virtues and a better
observance, proper to our way of life, offering always some
good work to God Our Lord, to His Saints and Angels in order
to obtain this gift of prayer, not ceasing to ask it also during
prayer itself.
2 For Nadal, active life in probation is the exercise of abnegation and
mortification and of the virtues which prepare for active life. Superior
active life is the ministry of Jesuits. Cf. Nicolau: Jeronimo Nadal, pp.
332-333.
�NADAL ON PRAYER
293
35. All those who enter the Society having their own devotion and way of praying different from that of the Society,
should relinquish it, and take instead the way of praying and
devotion proper to the Society with the intense desire to
acquire it and to imbue themselves with it. They must exercise themselves in the ministries of the Society and read with
attention as well as meditate with devotion and relish in all
humility the writings of Father Master Ignatius. This
should make them feel a new spirit, a devotion proper to
the Society, in all things a certain suavity, strength, facility,
liberty, interior spirit, devotion and peace, doing all actions
always in the spirit of the Society which they will also relish.
Let no one be discouraged if he does not feel touched by such
feelings or spirit; let him try to make progress, desiring sincerely such a spirit. Let him progress and be perfect in
obedience, in faith and confidence in the spirit of the Society
in Jesus Christ. Let him do wholeheartedly the work obedience will give him, and, no doubt, in course of time, according
to the good pleasure of His Divine Majesty, the grace which
he desires will be given to him.
36. It is known by experience that whosoever follows his
own spirit in the Society, even if it be good, and does not
submit himself to the one of the Society, will gradually come
in his obstinacy to lead a completely different way of life.
The longer he goes his own way, the more difficult it will be
to come back; serious differences of opinion on spiritual things
as well as gradual loss of the spirit of the Society may follow.
37. We must have a very special devotion to the Exercises
as our spiritual guide. By them our Father Ignatius reached
to very high contemplation and prayer, and God has accomplished great things through them.
38. All should think and feel that the Divine Providence and
Goodness will favor the Society and make it progress as He
has deigned to do from the beginning. On our part, the principle of progress will be charity inspired by God Our Lord.
We should possess this charity with fervor and manifest it
towards all; this will help us admirably in all the activities of
the Society whether in (the house) or outside.
39. A question already mentioned, but of which it is neces-
�294
NADAL ON PRAYER
sary to be convinced: that all should have in Our Lord much
devotion, faith, confidence, in all humility and abnegation,
in the manner of praying and acting in the Society. This is
explained to us in the Spiritual Exercises, the Constitutions
and the rules, the customs and traditions, the observances and
the practices. All, in one and the same spirit, should join a
fervent and universal charity to an ardent zeal for the neighbor in all the ministries of the Society. God Our Lord will
be with them and will give them great graces and consolations
in His Divine service. ·,
40. Each one should make efforts to extend the prayer and
contemplation of the Society to the ministries he performs
and which are all spiritual: preaching, explaining Scripture,
teaching catechism, administering the Blessed Sacrament, and
being occupied in other good works. In these ministries we
should find God in peace, in a tranquil effort of the interior
man, in light, joy and contentment, in the fervor of charity
for God. In this way we should seek the same in all other
activities, even exterior.
�Books of Interest to Ours
SOURCES OF THEOLOGY
Sacraments and Forgiveness. Edited with commentary by Paul F.
Palmer, S.J. Sources of Christian Theology II. Westminster, Md.:
Newman, 1960. $6.00.
At the close of the last century, H. C. Lea published his monumental
three-volume history of auricular confession and indulgences. Although
the inaccuracies and bias of Lea's work were pointed out by both
European and American Catholic scholars (including Woodstock's
Father Patrick Casey) the work of Lea has remained by default the
standard American classic on these controverted topics. Serious students of penance, unction and indulgences, then, will certainly welcome
Father Palmer's documented study. Copious texts are drawn from the
New Testament, the ante-Nicene and post-Nicene Fathers, the decisions
of local synods and early ecumenical councils, liturgical books and penitential handbooks of the East and West, the more systematic treatises of
the scholastic doctors, the definitive statements of later ecumenical
councils and, finally, the more recent pronouncements of the Holy See.
To point up the areas of agreement and disagreement among Christians
today, generous excerpts are included from the writings of the early
Reformers and from the confessional statements of Lutheran, Anglican,
Calvinist and Eastern Orthodox Churches.
The mere enumeration of the source material will indicate that the
topical documentation goes far beyond the content and format of a
Denzinger, Rouet de Journel or even the selective compilation of Bettenson. A future edition might possibly include an elaboration of metanoia
in Old Testament, and it would certainly want to take note of Father
William Le Saint's recent work on Tertullian. Yet as it now stands,
Sacraments and Forgiveness is easily the best collection of texts one
will find on these topics. The translations are good and, where checked
by this reviewer, wholly accurate, with ambiguous words or phrases
parenthesized in their original.
But this is more than a compilation of texts topically arranged and
attractively printed. Each section as well as many of the important
documents are introduced by a brief commentary, and Father Palmer
has also included a rather lengthy section in which he summarizes and
appraises, once again according to topic, the documentary evidence of
the whole work. Against the background of a general survey of the
discipline of penance for the first twelve centuries, several problems are
considered: unforgiveable sins, the recidivist, private penance, the sacramentality of penance and its necessity. This latter section is concluded with a concise historical survey of the sacrament of anointing
the sick and the practice of granting indulgences.
This valuable volume will please the professional theologian, teacher295
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BOOK REVIEWS
and student alike, and no one interested in penance, unction and indulgences can much afford to be without it. One hopes that the third
volume in this series of documented studies will soon follow.
TERRENCE TOLAND, S.J.
A HUl\IANISl\1 OF WORK
Work and Education. The Role of Technical Culture in Some Distinctive Theories of Humanism. By John lV. Donohue, S.J. "Jesuit
Studies #10." Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1959. Pp. xi-238.
$4.00.
All men must spend perhaps most of their waking hours in physical
or mental work. Hence a ,sound outlook on work is manifestly important for the individual aud society alike. In this readable book-which
the Loyola Press has made a thing of beauty-Father Donohue competently unfolds the problem of work and gives much aid toward
forming the sound outlook. However, as he points out, an individual
is little likely to see the true values of work unless his education from
the primary grades through college continually induces him to appraise
them rightly. If an educational theory omits treatment of the problem
of work it cannot be complete, sound, or satisfying to modern men.
This book gives many prudent suggestions, free from irritating extremism, as to how education can guide the students into doing work
(including some craftsmanship) and humanizing it by speculative
thinking.
The effectiveness of the presentation has been enhanced by the wise
use of the historical approach. This carries conviction, because it enables the reader to see how the central problem has gradually grown
to its present importance. There still is much disagreement about the
abstract definition of education and whether it aims'to form the intellect or the person. But if we look at the thing itself in history, we
see one function (pointed out by Jaeger in his Paideia) about which
thinkers as disparate as Plato, Marx, Dewey, and Babbitt will agree.
Education has been a process by which the adults in a society transmit
to the younger generation their total way of living and of working to
secure the necessities of life. An educational theory cannot properly
interpret the life for which it prepares the young unless it also adequately interprets work with its place in both life and education.
Prior to the nineteenth century neither philosophers nor educational
theorists gave much direct attention to work. In Plato and Aristotle
it was little more than something which the freemen left over for the
slaves. But the advance of modern technology and the industrial revoh.:tion have led theorists to grapple with the problem. The materialistic l'.larx made labor the master value which will bring men the produce
and happiness they need in the classless society which will exist after
the revolution has obliterated the abuses of the capitalistic system.
Dewey regarded work as a laboratory for insights into the intellectual
foundations, methods, and values of work for enriching the environment
for all. For Babbitt, Hutchins, and Adler, one chief value of work is
�BOOK REVIEWS
291
its power to purchase leisure; and a chief task of liberal education is
to prepare people for leisure and concomitant intellectual pursuits.
Each of these philosophies has pointed out hitherto overlooked values
of work, and yet remains incomplete. Christian thinkers can readily
absorb these values into the Christian synthesis. Further, by re-examining what is implicit in the sources of their educational traditions
they can point out values greater still. God placed man on earth that
he might work or develop it, and Christian man can use work wisely as
a means to his supernaturalized goals. Work should perfect the craftsman, his society, and his world or environment. It is the collaboration
of man as a free instrument in God's continuing function of creation
and redemption. Hence, to be adequate, Christian educational theory
too must explicitly envisage a total life with its rhythm of labor and
leisure, action and contemplation, both made significant by the Christian outlook.
Father Donohue's fine study, it seems to this reviewer, has special
importance for Jesuit educational theory. Jesuit education in the liberal arts, as revealed in the writings and practice of Ignatius, has not
been merely the formation of the Christian man-period. Rather, it
has been his formation for his improving the religious, social, and cultural life of his era. Consequently as Jesuit educators re-examine the
rich sources of their traditions for the purpose of adapting Jesuit
education to modern needs, they too should take sufficient account of
man's work to gain the means of leading a life truly human in his
environment. This is especially true of Jesuit educators in missionary
lands, lest they should merely copy the letter of the past rather than
its motivating spirit. By such procedure they might give too much
prominence to means which were excellent for past centuries in Europe
but not equally apt for modern Asia or Africa. They might find
themselves training the students, not for effective work in leavening
their environment, but rather for discontented idleness. This would be
sure to arise if the graduates should find themselves living in a culture
which does not offer sufficient opportunities for the type of work or
living for which they had been prepared in school. We can scarcely
risk this in the present world-struggle between Christianity and Communism.
GEORGE E. GANSS, S.J.
SISTER FORMATION
The Juniorate in Sister Formation. Edited by Sister Ritamary, C.H.M.
New York: Fordham University Press, 1960. Pp. xx-129. $3.50.
Monsignor Frederick Hochwalt, Executive Secretary of the National
Catholic Educational Association, has called Sister formation "the
most significant movement in Catholic education today." It is undoubtedly also one of the most important current movements in Catholic
spirituality. Sister formation is basically a response on the part of
the Sisters to the realization that their apostolate demands a long and
careful spiritual formation· and a complete intellectual and professional
training which will prepare them for a rich personal life and for effec-
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BOOK REVIEWS
tive social and educational leadership.
This book is the fourth volume in a series which sums up the annual
regional meetings of the Sister formation conferences. The first three
volumes were The Mind of the Church in the Formation of Sisters,
Spiritual and Intellectual Elements in the Formation of Sisters, and
Planning for the Formation of Sisters. Cardinal Larraona, Secretary
of the Sacred Congregation of Religious, has written the Foreword to
the volume and Father Elio Gambari, S.M.M., of the same Sacred Congregation has written the lead-off essay on "The Juniorate in the Mind
and Directives of the Holy See". As of now this is the most complete and
authoritative document on the place of the juniorate in Sister formation.
It recognizes problems arising from diverse circumstances without at
the same time diluting th~ essential demands and high standards desired
by the Holy See.
··
The next three chapters develop the ideas of Father Gambari by
summarizing the regional conferences under the three-fold rubric of
administration, spiritual formation, and intellectual formation. Again
the same concern for excellence is joined to a respect for the diversity
which characterizes the sisterhoods in this country. The general conclusion of the studies indicates that there should be a period of several
years of training following the novitiate during which a spiritual
maturation and intellectual formation should prepare the sister for
her apostolate. Most plans are based on a five-year program including
the postulancy and novitiate. The amount of matter which they plan
to cover in this time is somewhat staggering to one all too used to the
"lingering-out sweet skill" of the clerical course of studies, but at the
same time their program manifests the muscularity and pointedness
proper to those working on a tight schedule.
At this point, the reviewer cannot resist a touch af paraenesis. There
are 165,000 sisters in the United States, as compared with 52,600 priests.
In the field of education a scanning of the top line of the Catholic
Directory reveals that our teaching force consists of 4,506 brothers,
11,349 priests and scholastics, 43,745 lay teachers, and 96,516 Sisters.
The image of "'the good Sisters" which we often share with the newspaper photographers is changing and the Church in America will be
stronger for it. The Society has made great contributions to the progress of Sister formation, but there is still much to be done at every
level.
There is room for application and extension of the ideas of Sister
formation in much of our retreat, conference, and educational work.
The four volumes of the Fordham Sister Formation series provide a
very complete background and introduction to the movement. The
Institute of Sisters' Spirituality has also published a fine series through
the University of Notre Dame Press. The Sister Formation Bulletin is
loaded with material, and the early issues are now available in a bound
volume from Marycrest College, Davenport, Iowa. Buy some of these
books to offset the subtle heresy of The Nun's Story.
JOHN M. CULKIN, S.J.
�BOOI{ REVIEWS
299
JESUITS IN THE COUNTIES
The Jesuit Missions of St. Mary's County, Maryland. By Edwin Beitzell.
(May be purchased from the author through Woodstock Letters.)
At the conclusion of the first Provincial Council of Baltimore, in 1829,
the Archbishop and Bishops addressed a letter to Pope Pius VIII in
which they expressed their satisfaction at the progress of the Catholic
Church in the United States. They recalled that 200 years had not yet
elapsed since the seed of Catholicism was planted "in a remote and
obscure corner of Maryland" by a few Catholic missionaries and laymen
who had been exiled from their native land. It is this field, in which
was sown in America the seed of Catholicism among English-speaking
people, that is the subject of Mr. Beitzell's study.
The author does not delay on the English backgrounds but immediately
focusses the attention of the reader on the initial settlement in Maryland under the direction of Lord Baltimore. From this focal point Mr.
Beitzell traces in short, quick strokes the long history of the Jesuit
missions down to our time. Famous Jesuit names like White, Carroll,
Kelly and LaFarge, in company with the names of devoted laymen like
Brent, Mattingly and Neale, pass quickly in review. Some, of course,
occupy the stage for longer periods than others, but all without exception receive at least an introduction.
Seven main chapters, in chronological sequence dating from 1634 to
1958, and subdivided by many subject headings, comprise the format of
this book. In each chapter the author has studied the foundation and
development of each parish and mission in the background of some
secular and secular-religious history of the respective eras. Such important topics as the proprietors' conflicts with the missionaries in the
early decades are recounted, as is a discussion of Maryland's infamous
penal age. Interesting events from Revolutionary War days, the War
of 1812, and the Civil War attract the attention of the reader, but the
author's principal objective is to picture the growth and progress of
the Church in St. Mary's County through the 325 years of its existence.
Mr. Beitzell has resurrected from obscurity a plethora of facts and
fascinating anecdotes, but he has not molded them into a balanced narrative. The very nature of the study-individual parishes and missions
-militates against a unified presentation. The author has, furthermore,
not discriminated carefully between material suited for the main body
of the text and that which of its nature should be relegated to a footnote.
As a consequence the narrative suffers.
This is an invaluable historical reference work, since the author has
amassed enormous amounts of material through the course of many
years and at the cost of much labor.
FRANCIS G. McMANAMIN, S.J.
MONASTIC LIFE
Approach to Monasticism. By Dam Hubert van Zeller, O.S.B. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1960. Pp. viii-182. $3.00.
This small book was written to acquaint those who are interested with
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the monastic life, that of the Benedictines in particular. Like several
other of Dom Hubert's books it is called an "approach" and that is all
it is intended to be. It is not meant to give an exhaustive treatment
of monasticism.
The author is well aware that the religious life does not solve all
spiritual problems by the mere fact of profession. He writes: "It is
a common fallacy, and one of the spiritual dangers of our age, to
imagine that by drifting along on the current in which we find ourselves we can always be sure of doing the will of God." Initiative is
necessary.
Monks are warned that the enemy is not always outside the monastery but "possibly a more dangerous enemy comes from within, from
a want of right emphasis." This lack of balance generally assumes
the form of taking on wdrk foreign to the purpose of the order.
Laziness is generally not the chief danger for the monk in the modern
world. "It is a mistake to imagine that the main obstacle to monastic
perfection is lack of effort; more often it is over-effort which is misapplied." Monks were not founded to teach and preach but to pray
and work. Their work may be physical or mental, preferably both.
Liturgy is one of the chief duties of the monastic life. St. Benedict
wished nothing to take precedence over the liturgy in his monasteries.
This does not mean exaggerated formality but active union with Christ.
"In liturgical matters, as in so many others, it is nearly always the
meticulous and th!! forced that is the obstacle to true development. If
the liturgy means worship, the ideal must be evenness, tranquillity,
strength."
Dom Hubert does not waste time with any of the invidious comparisons between liturgical and methodical prayer so common in some quarters today. He seems to realize that the liturgy is-the most methodical
form of prayer in the Church and that it is meant to be so. The problem
is to keep it prayer and avoid formalism.
The most serious threat to monastic worship today is the tendency
to engage in external activities that crowd out the time that should
be reserved for prayer. Material or intellectual output becomes the
enemy of personal and corporate sanctification. "Even where there is
no desire to seek consolation in statistics there is often a purely natural
desire to seek consolation in work itself. It becomes a drug, an escape."
Spiritual tranquillizers are not what the Church needs today, much
less escape from the spiritual reality of one's religious vocation.
EDMUND J. STUMPF, S.J.
, ST. IGNATIUS' LETTERS
Saint Ignatius Loyola: Letters to Women. By Hugo Rahner, S.J. New
York: Herder and Herder. 1960. Pp. xxiii-565. $11.50.
It is difficult to avoid superlatives regarding this book. One can not
make an adequate judgment of St. Ignatius without studying these
letters in their context. Jesuits who have to deal with deans of women
in universities or with a Mrs. Zebedee in a high school mothers' club
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will learn wisdom here. Superiors and their staffs of fund-raisers can
profit greatly by the vivid experiences of St. Ignatius with his noble
and ignoble benefactresses.
We are surely correct in thinking of St. Ignatius as a man's saint,
as he was that above all else, but it would be a mistake to ignore his
correspondence with women. Out of over 6000 extant letters only 89 were
written to women and only 50 letters from them have survived. This
small but significant segment of his correspondence has not hitherto
been assembled in its entirety. Now we have these 139 letters edited
with over 500 pages of general and particular introductions, copious
notes and revealing annotations, by an expert on lgnatian spirituality.
The significanc~ of these letters may be gathered from Father Rahner's statement that St. Ignatius "never wrote a line for its own sake,
and could be induced to break his habitual silence only by a question that
needed to be answered, by a soul in distress, by the claims of friendship, and by an infinitely patient charity." lgnatian discretion is
evident in every letter as they were all revised and recopied several
times before being sent. This meticulous care did not result in artificiality but rather in clarity and force. "Everything in these letters
is irradiated with the mellow kindness of a mature spirit, giving friendship without talking over much about it."
In spite of the almost exaggerated discretion of St. Ignatius his
letters did not always prevent embarrassing indiscretions on the part
of the ladies to whom he wrote. Such incidents were generally concerned with requests for favors from the Holy See through St. Ignatius.
His benefactresses wished him to use his influence in return for the
substantial contributions they had made to needy colleges of the Society.
It required all his ingenuity to extricate himself from these situations
without giving offense. This was a most difficult task but he generally
managed to succeed.
The most persistent problem St. Ignatius had to face was the request
for female affiliation with the Society. In this he was defeated in only
two remarkable cases out of several dozen urgent requests. After long
hesitation and against his own better judgment he was ordered by
Pope Paul III to receive the religious vows of one of his earliest benefactresses, Isabel Roser and two companions. This situation prevailed
from Christmas in 1545 until October, 1546 when Paul III finally
agreed that there were to be no female Jesuits. The letters on this
case are priceless.
In view of this remarkable incident, it is surprising that less than ten
years later St. Ignatius was again forced to receive a female applicant
for the Society. This time it was the daughter of the Emperor Charles
V, the Infanta Juana, one of the Society's greatest benefactresses during St. Ignatius' last days. She was permitted to take the vows of the
scholastics privately, as Ignatius could not refuse the request of this
generous lady. Juana became a rather unusual subject in that she
was able to persuade the General not to recall Francis Borgia and the
provincial Antonio Araoz from Spain. She then asked to have both
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placed under holy obedience to her. We are not told if St. Ignatius
granted this latter favor.
These are just a few of the interesting matters treated in this collection of letters. No other source gives us such a clear insight into
the character of St. Ignatius as this correspondence with his spiritual
daughters.
EDMUND J. STUMPF, S.J.
URBAN SOCIOLOGY
Cities in Crisis-The Christian Response. By Dennis Clark. New York:
Sheed and Ward, 1960. Pp. x-177. $3.50.
Offered "as an effort to encourage a fuller inquiry into the religious
implications of urbanism,',' this book is intended as a survey of some
of the major problems oi Christian religious life in the modern urban
environment. Mr. Clark,'. devoted Catholic citizen and experienced specialist in Philadelphia's housing and racial problems, delineates the
usual composite of urban ills with unusually dedicated vigor, and places
it at the service of the Catholic apostolate's need to understand itself.
His penetrating insights accompany occasional disclaimers of extremism
or one-sided viewing, but he too simplistically subjects the populous
city to blame for what the city itself is not necessarily responsible.
Celebrating parish 1\lasses in the German tertianship city of Munster
i.W., the priest visitor soon becomes used to the burghers' proficiency
in the dialog Mass. Moving through the countryside of parts of France,
Bavaria and Austria, he is unavoidably impressed with the religious
apathy of many rural folk. If he was city born and bred, of parents
who were themselves products of American cities, he could never possibly have experienced the disorganizing trauma of being uprooted from
warm rural soil and transplanted into the harsh unwelcome sidewalks
of the city; actually native to the latter, his home .. was there, he inherited his socialization and lVeltanschauung there, whether integrative
or not, whether directed by truth or not, whether religiously orientated
or not. I offer these quite realistic vignettes as cautions to the unwary
reader of this frequently rhetorical diagnosis of urban ills which would
seem to preclude liturgy, integrity and personal fulfillment in an urban
milieu.
It is not the city itself, but the sensate or otherwise erroneous values
and ideological confusions of the pluralist society inhabiting the city
which are at fault. Hence the city is not cause, but occasion and circumstance, of apostolic crisis and challenge. With this qualification
we can call Mr. Clark's book a valuable accounting of the Church's
problem in city-dominated America. Above all it is a clarion call to
Christians to do some fresh planning of their apostolate and mature
appraising of the ·urban circumstances within which it has to be
exercised.
The city is seen in its depersonalized masses, constant shifting, and
amorphous exposure to mob appeal; in its dehumanizing influence on
mass man, its interference with and preemption of family concerns; its
role in protestant and Catholic experience. Prescinding from the point
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303
of urban causation, we can profit from the author's sharply focused
view of deficiencies in the American Catholic parish community-liturgical dormancy, whether in Mass, confessional or baptistry; primacy
of monetary concern for physical expansion, emptiness in preaching,
aimlessness of parish societies, and so on.
Solutions are called for, but not spelled out, except for a fairly general housing program. The laity again receives an exhortation to do
their part. Little indication is given of that "order" whose "restoration" is sought.
Cities in Crisis will provoke thought, and maybe even some action.
Its references and bibliography are excellent. Perhaps the author's next
effort will help his readers with more concrete proposals. He has now
provided an adequate framework.
JosEPH B. SCHUYLER, S.J.
MINORITY CATHOLICISl\1
The Church and the Nations. Edited by Adrian Hastings. London:
Sheed and Ward, 1960. Pp. xxii-238. $4.75.
When the vote of the recent Wisconsin presidential primary had finally
been totaled up, the political commentators agreed on only one poi'nt.
There is a Catholic question in this election year; the Church is an
influential minority in America, although still a minority. It is with
this latter aspect, "minority Catholicism", that the Church and the
Nations deals. Sixteen qualified writers here present essays in religious
sociology concerning the Catholic Church in their native lands, lands
in which it holds a minority position.
In this book, the American reader will become aware of sharing common problems with some of his fellow Catholics throughout the world.
In England, for example, there is the failure to influence the higher
intellectual levels, dissatisfaction with Catholic newspaper policies,
'101 <Jo patriotism' among Catholics, and a sort of ghetto belligerency.
The Australian Church presents a picture well known to us of concentration of membership in the lower and middle classes and a stress
on the social aspects of the Church's teaching.
The complete strangeness of the difficulties of Catholics in other countries makes intriguing reading: Norway, where 5000 Catholics living
amid 3,500,000 fellow country men suffer from the problem of "psychological alienism"; Japan, where the development of the language
through the centuries has created a non-metaphysical mind which renders conversions extraordinarily difficult; Egypt, where conversions to
the Roman rite are actually weakening the Church by making it more
alien to the culture of the country; and the Lele tribe of the Congo, where
Christianity in one generation has revolutionarily revised their society
based on polygamy and superstition.
The essay on the Church in the United States written by Philip
Scharper presents ideas that are well known to readers of Commonweal.
It is the liberal Catholic viewpoint of the Church in our country. This
contribution seems to be weakened by an over emphasis on what will,
or should, happen, rather than presenting the state of the Church as
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it is. Also, the introductory essay by the editor seems somewhat out
of context with the rest of the book. It is an able, violent attack on
the idea of union between Church and State. The rest of the book does
take up this point at times, but much more stress is placed on the
aspects of cultural conflict.
On the whole, this book presents a fascinating and inspirational firsthand account of the Church as a militant minority throughout the
world. It will open new fields of interest and knowledge to the intelligent Catholic reader.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
CATHOLIC ECUl\IENISl\1
Protestant Hopes and The Catholic Responsibility. By George Tavard,
A.A. Notre Dame: F.ldes Publishers, 1960. Pp. 63. $.75.
Two lectures delivered by Father Tavard to the Archdiocese of Chicago's adult education centers are here printed as a discussion club
text. Part I deals with the Protestant ecumenical movement as centered
in the World Council of Churches, the concrete Protestant attempt to
solve the paradox of the unity they have in Christ and the diversity of
their manifestation of that unity.
This Council has examined and discarded four solutions to the problem of unity: mere fellowship, absorption of all Churches by one Church,
the development of the World Council itself into a super-Church, a
purely eschatological and future unity. In rejecting these pitfalls the
Council has chosen~"the solution of faith." "In the darkness that knows
neither the day nor the hour, it believes itself called of God to promote
concern with and anxiety about Christian unity." (p. 23)
Since Catholics alone experience the full unity of the Church, they
have, says Father Tavard, the moral obligation to work for the attainment of complete unity. The second section of tne.· booklet discusses
this Cathoiic responsibility, a responsibility which lies in two fields.
First, our behavior toward non-Catholic Christians should avoid hostility, indifference, overzealousness and false irenicism. Rather, we
should try to understand their beliefs, not to condemn them. Secondly,
we should witness in our personal lives to the fulness of the Catholic
intellectual and liturgical life.
Father Tavard's plea for understanding and charity is characteristically well made. The discussion questions and the bibliography are
helpful additions. Even as a discussion club text, however, the booklet
is inadequate. Since it is so brief, too many important points have not
been clarified or mentioned, with the result that a false impression
both of the World Council and the Church can be created. For example, there is no m(lntion of the dogmatic reasons which prevent the
Church from membership in the World Council and which must govern
any ecumenical dialogue. On the other hand, the author fails to point
out the extreme vagueness of the "solution of faith" adopted by the
Council or the enormous differences within the Protestant communion
itself, which differences make solution by "fellowship" more than a
possibility.
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Even in an appeal for charity, doctrinal differences should not be
played down. "Let us all strive to outdistance others in love and
humility, and we will discover that we are doctrinally much nearer than
we thought." (p. 51)
Father Tavard sees the replacing of the Chair of Unity Octave by
the Week of Universal Prayer for Christian Unity and Pope John's
recent invitation to the Protestant world to search for unity as advances
in the Ecumenical :Movement. Unless the reader is reminded, however,
that these changes are merely changes in expression, he can be left
with the impression that the Protestant disagrees not with our doctrines
but with our expression of them. Yet the Catholic must pray for only
one kind of unity, no matter what the Week is called, and Pope John
means by unity exactly what Pope Pius XI meant in ":Mortalium Animos."
A true picture of the Church and the World Council then must deal
with both charitable expression and doctrine; so must a discussion, howsoever brief, of Protestant hopes and Catholic responsibility.
EUGENE J. AHERN, S.J.
LITURGY AND CONTEMPLATION
Liturgy and Contemplation. By Jacques and Raissa Maritain. Translated by Joseph W. Evans. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1960,
Pp. 96. $2.95.
The substance of this book first appeared in the quarterly, Spiritual
Life. The authors propose to aid the liturgical movement in America
by warning us against certain opinions originating in Europe which
could hurt the liturgical movement. These injurious ideas seem to be
reduced to the notion that mere external participation in the liturgy is
sufficient and interior contemplation is unnecessary or reserved to a
few souls. If this is all the authors have to say one could hardly
quarrel with them, though the need of such a warning might be questioned. However, this reviewer has a feeling that the book goes further. Its general format is "'There are certain values in the liturgy,
but .•. " The main idea that comes through is that the liturgy is
neither the only nor an indispensable way towards contemplation.
As long as the stricture of the authors is against pseudo-liturgy,
mere external participation, one must certainly agree with them. But
it is not always too clear that this is all that is being inveighed against.
There is an impression created that the authors have not really caught
the significance of the Liturgical Movement as it exists here today.
Despite their quotations from Mediator Dei one has the feeling that
the authors never quite escape from the notion that the liturgy is
merely the sum of external rites. That it is in reality "the public
worship which Christ, as Head of the Church, renders to the Father
as well as the worship which the community of the faithful renders to
its Founder, and through Him to the Heavenly Father," as Pius XII
wrote in Mediator Dei, never seems to come alive in the authors' treatment. Nor Is the pastoral value of the liturgy given any play. In fact
the whole tone of. the book does not ring in ·accord with such words as
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those of Pope St. Pius X, "The primary and indispensable source of
the true Christian Spirit is active participation in the sacred mysteries
and in the public solemn prayer of the Church".
For those who think that the liturgy is nothing but, or essentially
only, external rites this book will be a corrective.
EDWARD J. SPONGA, S.J.
A MISSIONARY CONSPECTUS
Sinews of Love. Edited by Thomas J. M. Burke, S.J. New York City:
New American Library, 1959. Pp. 160. $1.95.
Making use of over 170 varied and highly appealing pictures and
equally compelling explanatory excerpts from such pertinent papal
encyclicals as Benedict XV's Maximum Illud, Pius XI's Rerum Ecclesiae,
and Pius XII's Evangelii Praecones and Fidei Donum, Father Burke
has produced an extremely enlightening and timely picture-book on the
missionary endeavor of the Church in a laudably mission-conscious age.
The pictorial contents are divided into six parts, each of them prefaced
by an explanatory essay: 1) The Missionary Character and Purpose of
the Church; 2) Christianity is Supranational, Adaptable to Various
Cultures; 3) The Missionary: His Role, Training, Sanctity; 4) Charitable and Social Work of Missionaries; 5) Educational and Technical
Assistance; 6) Establishment of the Church: The Role, Importance, and
Training of Local Clergy. All are well-written, but the first, second
and sixth essays merit extra attention. The pictures of the last section, in the reviewer's opinion, are what truly "lay bare the inner
heart and hope" of every missionary: the formation of a native clergy
in every mission land.
Such a book as this should be found and made easily available in
the reading rooms of our residences and schools. It will.surely be much
thumbed and browsed over and in this easy way the message of the
Vicar of Christ made so much the more urgent and articulate: "The
missionary spirit and the Catholic spirit . . . are one and the same
thing . . . a Christian is not truly faithful and devoted to the Church
if he is not equally attached and devoted to her universality, desiring
that she take root and flourish in all parts of the earth" (Fidei Donum).
Ours, moreover, should find this picture-book more than usually interesting. It does comprise, after all, quite an arresting kaleidoscope
of Jesuit missionary activity in every sector of the globe where Jesuits
of the ten American Provinces are hard at work. Some, perhaps, may
share the reviewer's plaint: would that captions had been used more
liberally and consistently. There's more than meets the eye in pictures,
and this an apt phrase or two can help bring out.
ALFREDO G. PARPAN, S.J.
.
DIVINE PRESENCE
The Presence of God. By Jean Danielou, S.J. Translated by Walter
Roberts. Baltimore: Helicon Press, 1960. Pp. 60. $1.95.
Tracing the symbol of the temple through the stages of its scriptural
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development, Danh~lou outlines in brief but richly suggestive style .the
different ways in which God has dwelt with His people. The religious
sensitivity and theological insight characteristic of the author are in
evidence throughout.
Most primitive is the cosmic temple of the visible world. In the
original innocence of creation the world mirrors the presence of its
creator. Awe and even charity are due to the created universe because
it is the house of God. Such is the earliest religious experience of man.
The sacred character of creation was recognized in the formal worship
of man.
The mission of Moses to establish the tabernacle in the form of the
material temple marks a new stage in the progression of God's presence
among men. Animistic polytheism had resulted from a distortion of
the meaning of the cosmic temple. The Mosaic temple counteracts this
by centralizing worship in a definite sanctuary and by emphasizing
the complete otherness of God's holiness.
When the divine entered into human flesh in the Incarnation, God
came to dwell among his people in a radically new way. The temple of
Christ supplants the Mosaic temple. The glory of God is most strikingly present in the risen Christ, the temple rebuilt after three days.
The final and conclusive temple is the total Christ, whose head is in
heaven but whose members are still making their earthly pilgrimage.
To build this new temple to completion is the work of charity. This
Christian community of the Church is a fulfilment of both cosmic and
Mosaic temple; it is a new cre::ttion of which the first was only the
preparation and image. Throu~h the Mr.ss and the liturgical year the
Church resumes the worship of the cosmos and the history of God's
dialogue with His people.
Within the temple of the Church is found that mysterious inner
temple of the mystics, where the Word of God is being continually
reborn. Ultimately, of course, the Christian life is one of waiting for
the definitive moment when the souls awakens to the presence of God
in the heavenly temple of his destiny.
JOSEPH A. O'HARE, S.J.
EASTERN ECU.l\IENISM
The Quest for Church Unity. By Matthew Spinka. New York: Macmillan Co., 1960. Pp. 85. $2.50.
During his forty years in ecumenical activity Matthew Spinka has
worked in the tradition of John Amos Comenius and Bishop Zizendorf
to advance the well-known position that the most effective way in
which the ecumenical quest may be furthered is to proceed by way of
maximal community and minimal doctrinal concensus. In this book
Dr. Spinka repeats this plea for more Life and Work and less Faith and
Order. To prove the cogency of his view the author shows that doctrinal consensus is impossible so long as each church tenaciously holds
on to the belief that it exclusively is the true Church of Christ. Spinka
holds the view that up until now the World Council of Churches has
not been too effective in fostering the ecumenical movement, since its
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directors cannot come to a positive agreement either on the concrete
goal which the Council seeks or on the nature of the means to be
employed to achieve it. Those in the Council who advocate maximal
doctrinal concensus have failed to move the Roman Catholics or Eastern
Orthodox. In Spinka's opinion the Protestant Churches should now
realize that the energies of the World Council of Churches should be
spent in fostering unity among Protestants. It is pure illusion to hope
that the Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox will become Protestants,
hence the position of the doctrinal maximalists who seek to hold the
door open for them is unrealistic and creates the danger of conversion
to Catholicism.
Dr. Spinka states on page two that he intends to treat his subject
sympathetically, fairly a:{ld without prejudice; but likewise soberly,
reasonably, critically and with a clear awareness of its highly valuable
as well as its illusory implications. Yet in treating of the Catholic
Church the same old chestnuts are brought out for display. Spinka misinterprets the doctrine of "extra Ecclesiam nulla salus" and readies an
arsenal of false charges against Catholic doctrine. Among these charges
are: Christ no longer rules the Church but the Church rules in his stead;
papal powers are overweening pretensions; the Vatican Council drastically changed the nature of the Church; the Assumption of the Virgin
was "quite an assumption"; the Catholic Church erroneously renders
"Theotokos" as "Mother of God;" the Immaculate Conception became
more popular by "'the alleged appearance of Mary as the Immaculate
Conception to the subnormal Bernadette at Lourdes" and on and on in
the same tone through cutting remarks about the Inquisition, the pious
practices of the faithful and the liturgical movement.
Stylistically the book is poor and its scholarship leaves much to be
desired. The work deals with a fast-moving field, ~et it contains no
references later than 1957. In explaining the Catholic concept of the
Church no mention is made of the encyclical "Mystici Corporis," and
in dealing with the ecumenical councils of the Church both Ephesus
and Florence are passed over without a word. Moreover in this delicate
area of the history of dogma no critical apparatus is used to support
some most unusual and subjective statements. The argument which
the author uses on page 32 concerning the Vincentian canon is contradicted on page 59 where the admission is made of "creedal development." In short, this book is unworthy of the intellectual attainments
and reputation of this scholar who is its author.
HERBERT J. RYAN, S.J.
THE NATURE OF FAITH
I Believe: The Personal Structure of Faith. By Jean Mouroux. Translated by Michael Turner. New York: Sheed & Ward, 1959. Pp.
109. $2.75.
This little book, little in size, but not in scope and insight, sets out to
analyze the personal structure of faith. In it, the author, Jean Mouroux,
who also wrote The Christian Experience and The Meaning of Man,
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adopts the viewpoint of Scripture and the Fathers, as he says, to present faith as a concrete whole. Faith is man's response to the call of
God. It is a personal act resulting from the intimate encounter between God and this or that individual man. It is a simple act, for it is
man's entire commitment of his whole being as a unity to God, yet on
analysis complex, for it involves all of man's faculties and powers. It
is obscure as the response of the finite creature to the infinite creator,
most certain because it is a personal meeting between God and man.
Relying chiefly on Thomas Aquinas and Augustine for his considerations on the sources of faith (God and His testimony in Christ) and
man's response to God, the Abbe Mouroux then examines well but quite
briefly the starting point of faith, its transmission and, with the aid
of John of the Cross, its summit on the mystical plane. Finally he
outlines its ecclesiastical aspects, for faith depends on the Word of God
transmitted by the Church.
For once at least, it would seem a book lives up to the advertising
blurb on its jacket. The book is "sound, vital and practical, enlightening
and stimulating."
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
RAHNER ON FREE SPEECH
Free Speech in the Church. By Karl Rahner, S.J. New York: Sheed
& Ward, 1959. Pp. 112. $2.75.
Father Rahner takes his cue about free speech in the Church from
an address of Pope Pius XII in 1950 in which the Pontiff declares the
existence of public opinion in the Church to be an expression and
proof of its vitality and growth. This essay of Rahner's is concerned
with the concept of public opinion or free speech in the Church, its
scope and limitations. Public opinion represents the views and aspirations of members of the Church which find expression outside the leadership of the hierarchy, and as such, it is the manifestation of the
actual situation of the Church in the world which comes from the
people living in it. Its area of activity is the Church in its relationship
with the social context of the world, and the difficulties and struggles
involved in adapting herself to every age. In many cases it is the sole
means for the hierarchy to discover what is going on among the members of the Church, and this is its justification. The author further
notes that in this area the Church authorities have no gift of infallibility, however much they may be helped and supported by the Holy
Spirit. f'.ince Father Rahner's remarks are more concerned with the
layman's right to free speech within the Church, it is obvious that this
cannot include the unchanging deposit of faith and the Church's divinely
ordained constitution.
The drawbacks to all of this are obvious. There is always the danger
of tactless criticism, lacking in respect of Church ordinances and customs, and the danger of scandal to those who do not understand the
situation. Members must be brought up in the proper spirit of criticism,
which involves a responsible. spirit of obedience, and the proper use of
their right to express opinions. They must learn to unite the inevitable
�310
BOOK REVIEWS
detachment of a critical public attitude with a genuine and inspired
love of the Church. It is the layman's duty to educate himself in the
religious and theological matters to a decent level so that he may take
his place of responsibility in the Church. Father Rahner does not deny
the conflicts that can arise out of this situation in the future. But he
feels that there is no need to exaggerate them, because patience and
forbearance on both sides can smooth out the difficulties. What is most
important is to have the Catholic grow in the spirit of responsibility
for the Church and the life of the Church.
In this short essay the author is ranging about in unexplored territory, and therefore he contents himself with posing the question of
free speech and suggesting, areas of further inquiry, rather than providing definitive answers. _In an age where the theology of the layman
has taken on such importance and the lay apostolate is more prominent
than at :my other time in the \fhurch, Father Rahner's essay is a fine
basic introduction to the spirit in which these activities should be
engaged in. We can join him in his closing plea for good will in receiving these ideas which, as he admits himself, need a more profound
thinking out.
The second se~tion of this book is given over to an essay entitled, "The
Prospect for Christianity", which further reveals Father Rahner's
breadth of vision concerning the Church in the modern world. It is an
essay on Christian hope and a message of consolation for those who are
distressed as they look out upon a world which seems to have forgotten
that Christ came down to save all men.
HENRY J. BERTELS, S.J.
CONFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Confession: Meaning and Practice. By The Com.~unity of SaintSeverin. Translated by A. V. Littledale. Chicago: Fides Publishers Association, 1959. Pp. 128. $3.25.
This is a small book, modest in appearance, but rich and valuable in
its contents. Its aims are simple: to bring out the meaning of the
Sacrament of Penance; to initiate the reader into a proper use of the
Sacrament, explaining various difficulties; and with a view to fostering
this understanding and right use, and the devotion of individual and
community, to provide a collection of texts from Scripture and from
more modern authors, which illuminate the question of Penance. Although it leaves out of consideration all the theological and historical
aspects and controversies that surround this subject, it is by no means
a mere catechism study of the meaning and practice of confession.
A cursory run-down of the table of contents will reveal a number of
insights into such basic aspects of confession as: the meaning of repentance, sin and its relation to Christ, awareness of sin, the sense of
community in sin, the meaning of penance in Scripture, satisfaction.
On the practical side, one finds valuable information on the ritual of
confession and its development, direction of conscience, and, what the
reviewer considers is its distinctive feature, the examination of con-
�BOOK REVIEWS
311
science. This section is not the ordinary catalogue of sins which can
be found elsewhere, but a questionnaire which aims at drawing attention
to various matters considered especially important in the Church today,
and, therefore, to the conscience of modern man: e.g., how much interest
do I take in modern problems? Is my attitude to nationalism in line
with the teachings of the Gospel as the Church interprets it for us
today? Concerning marriage: do I consider my partner as a kind of
idol to be pampered and a means to self-indulgence or as representing
the love of God with all that it demands?
The meaning of penance in Scripture is another excellent section,
which brings out the notion clearly that penance is not just a matter
of privation and mortification but a movement of return and of love,
beautifully and symbolically depicted as the marriage chamber to which
an unfaithful spouse returns: a return to a love which was despised,
neglected, betrayed; being a movement of return and of love, it must
necessarily involve an uprooting, and love, as we know, is infinitely
more demanding than anything else.
The only noticeable flaw in the book is its too literal translation of
the French original, which accounts for the long, unwieldy sentences
which can only be intelligible after a second or third reading. But this
does not hinder the reader from getting a deeper and a more appreciative understanding of this neglected sacrament. Priests, religious, and
lay people alike should welcome this book as a valuable addition to the
literature on the subject of confession.
NICASIO CRUZ, S.J.
STUDY OF THE PASSION
The Last Hours of Jesus. By Ralph Gorman, C.P. New York. Sheed
and Ward. 1960. Pp. v-277. $3.95.
This book is a well-written, popular account of the Passion and death
of Christ. It is quite evident throughout that the author draws from a
background of study and research. His treatment of the subject is a
happy blending of scholarship and easy writing that makes the book a
welcome addition to the literature of the Passion.
In the Prologue, which covers the first four chapters, Father Gorman
sets the stage by indicating the source of the conflict between Christ
and his adversaries, the Sadducees and the Pharisees. A chapter on
Judas Iscariot, with a reasonably conjectured hypothesis to explain his
defection, is followed by a description of the Last Supper that gives
the reader new insights into the already familiar details.
The body of the book naturally deals with the Passion itself, and
while it follows along in chronological fashion, the persons who played
important roles are singled out in such fashion that they take on a new
emphasis. The familiar themes of the Way of the Cross, the Seven
Last Words, and the place of Calvary itself serve the author as fitting
chapter headings around which he reconstructs the story skillfully and
in a scholarly fashion.
Almost in the nature of an epilogue, Father Gorman devotes a chapter to the prodigies that occu~red after the death of Christ, and closes
�312
BOOK REVIEWS
his work with a quiet, factual account of the burial of Christ.
The great merit of the book is its rather obvious combination of good
popular writing and scholarship. Because of this it deserves to take
its place in the literature of the Passion. It is a rewarding experience
to read this book especially around the time of the Week in which the
Passion and Death of Christ are commemorated.
WILLIAM F. GRAHAM, S.J.
APPARITIONS OF OUR LADY
Apparitions of Our Lady: Their Place in the Life of the Church.
By Louis Lochet. Translated by John Dingle. New York: Herder
and Herder Inc., 1960.. Pp. ix-127. $2.95.
To the non-Catholic, devotion to l\Iary, especially of the type which
has grown up around the apparitions of the 19th and 20th centuries is
strange and new; it seems out of tune with the spirit of the Gospels
and in his confusion and impatience he bands these forms of devotion
as "mariolatry." To the Catholic who has found in the liturgy the
means of arriving at the very heart of the Christian mystery, the forms
of piety which have sprung up around the apparitions seem to be preoccupied with very peripheral aspects of the revelation. A certain
overemphasis and exaggeration of the importance of the apparitions
has understandably alienated him from their true meaning. To many
a reflective Catholic, Lourdes and Fatima with their pilgrimages, hymns
and processions, all seem so remote from the real work of the Church.
These are the seriOus objections to which Father Lochet devotes his
attention and which he will answer to the satisfaction of the reader.
In this short but extremely rich study, the author brings a fresh approach to the question of Marian devotion by considering it--especially
in the forms which have developed around the appa,xitions-against a
structurally coherent picture of the whole revelation. ·He shows that
these apparitions and the cult that surrounds them, when stripped of
their exaggerations, breathe the pure and simple air of the Gospel; that
they are concerned not with peripheral aspects of Christianity but with
the essential message of the Bible and the liturgy: the proclamation of
the Paschal mystery. For this reason they are closely related to the
work and mission of the Church herself.
"The aim of this book," writes the author, "is to encourage an appreciation of the important fact that the worship given to the Blessed
Virgin at the places where she has appeared and through the different
pilgrimages, far from inducing Christian piety to consider her apart
from the rest of the Christian mysteries, should help us to grasp more
completely her providential part in Christ's mystery. . . ."
Against the background of the Paschal mystery, Father Lochet has
examined in some detail the various aspects of the devotions which surround the apparitions. He considers the message addressed to the
world by Our Lady, the miracles, the conversions, the cult and the pilgrimages, all in a Biblical and liturgical' idiom which will be understood
and appreciated by non-Catholic and Catholic as well.
�BOOK REVIEWS
Father Lochet expresses the hope that Christian study of Mary will
do more and more to rediscover her links with Christ's mystery and
with that of the Church. He suggests that the devotion of Catholics
to Our Lady and even the many artistic expressions of Marian piety
should be inspired by this same deep sense of the mystery of Mary in
its link with the mystery of the Church, and should be purified by a
return to the biblical and liturgical sources.
Father Lochet writes not as a historian nor even as a theologian out
to establish a doctrine of apparitions in strict conformity with Scripture and tradition, but as one of the faithful who accepts the apparitions of the 19th and 20th centuries as stages in the development of
the Church. This book is an eloquent appeal for these apparitions
which have already entered into the life of the Church to be incorporated
now into her thought-into Marian theology and theology in general.
In this remarkable little book, the author indicates the lines along which
such a study should and must proceed. He succeeds admirably in showing that to despise the inestimable rewards of devotion to Our Lady is
to miss the full dimensions of the Christian mystery.
PAULL. CIOFFI, S.J.
OLD TESTAMENT MEDITATIONS
Meditations on the Old Testament: The Narratives. By Gaston Brillet,
C.Or. Translated by Kathryn Sullivan, R.S.C.J.
New York:
Desclee Company, 1959. Pp. 239. $3.50.
The Narratives is the first of a four-volume work on "'Meditations on
the Old Testament." The other volumes, soon to be published, are on
the Psalms, the Prophets and the Wisdom Literature.
There is a five-fold division to each meditation. The narrative account is taken from the Confraternity Edition of the Holy Bible. After
a short commentary, highlighting pertinent ideas and details, we are
told to adore; to speak to God; and in a longer, meditative commentary,
the deeper, spiritual significance of each narrative is proposed. New
Testament texts and modern examples are used in this fifth section to
focus the different attitudes and convictions drawn from the Old Testament pericopes.
The Narratives, principally taken from Genesis, Exodus, the Historical Books and the Books of Maccabees, are combined with their type
and fulfillment in the New Testament. Thus, the author writes of the
relationship of revelation of God's Name in Exodus with Jesus and
Father; God's presence in the ark and the Temple with the Christian
tabernacle and the Mass; the Sinai covenant with the New Covenant.
Especially well done are the delineations of Abraham, Moses, David,
the Maccabees and the social-religious milieux in which they lived.
The explicitations of the major biblical themes are also worthy of note.
Father Brillet has not written a heavy, deeply scholarly book on the
Old Testament. Calling on his own experience, wisdom, and familiarity
with the Bible, he has offered thoughts and affections for our own
prayer and daily lives. Mother Sullivan's translation is accurate and
�314
BOOK REVIEWS
reads very easily. Because of all these factors, the neophyte and the
biblical student, the religious as well as the lay person, will find much
profit in the author's reflection on God's Book. Athough predigested
meditation books have definite limitations, still Meditations on the Old
Testament forces one to reevaluate this judgment.
JOSEPH B. NEVILLE, S.J.
BAROQUE BIOGRAPHY
The Lives of Angel de Joyeuse and Benet Canfield. By Jacques Brousse.
Edited from Robert Rookwood's translation of 1623 by T. A. Birrell.
New York: Sheed and Ward: 1959. Pp. xxxi-183. $4.50.
Henri de Joyeuse, in religion Father Angel de Joyeuse, born in
France of a staunchly Catholic family loyal to the throne and capable
of military or civil command, educated at the College of Navarre, Paris,
at sixteen commander of a troop of light horse, married at eighteen,
governor of Anjou, Touraine, Maine and Perche, did not take easily
to the life of courtier, soldier or governor. After his wife's death in
1587 he entered the Capuchins in Paris and was ordained priest four
years later. On the demise of his father and brother, the people of
Toulouse, now deprived of their leaders, turned instinctively for help
to the survivors of the family. First they demanded that Cardinal
Fran~ois should assume the marshalate and lieutenantship, and when
he demurred, they insisted that Father A. should take the reins.
A commission of theologians and lawyers having decided that he
should be withdrawn from his community and accept the governership
of Languedoc, he reluctantly submitted, on condition that Rome would
approve. After considerable delay, Clement VIII sanctioned the proposal, regularized A.'s position, later widened the terms of exclaustration to cover the governorship and administration _'of any province,
after which Henry IV appointed A. governor of Lang;edoc and Marshal
of France. Father A. was never dispensed from his vow of chastity nor
strictly secularized; he was merely exclaustrated to meet a particular
and unique situation. As soon as the emergency ceased and a measure
of peace was restored, he returned joyfully in 1599 to the Paris Convent
of Saint Honore. Subsequently he disappeared from the political arena,
filled various offices in his religious order, was zealous and active
throughout France, widely known as a preacher and much sought after
as a spiritual director, and well in the current of the mystical revival
of the period.
Father Benet, in the world William Fitch of Canfield, England, born
in 1562 of a Protestant background, studied law in London, soon grew
dissatisfied with his worldly atmosphere. In his Autobiography he
tells the story of his .religious crisis, precipitated by the perusal of a
Protestant adaptation of Father Parson's "The First Book of Christian
Exercise Appertayning to Resolution" (Rouen, 1582). Received into
the church in 1585, admitted to the Capuchins in Paris and professed
in 1588, he studied philosophy and theology in Venice, and in 1592 we
find him back at Orleans as master of novices. Returning to England
�BOOK REVIEWS
315
seven years later, almost immediately he was arrested, imprisoned,
probably in the Tower, and banished to France in 1603. Precise details
of his ensuing life are scarce. His last years saw the publication of
his two works: Le Chevalier Chrestien and the Rule of Perfection. The
latter ran through more than fifty editions, covering all the principal
European languages, but at the time of the Quietist Controversy it was
placed on the Index, where it still remains under its French title.
B. died in Paris in 1610.
Both of these biographies suffer considerably from the common failings of baroque biography. Edification comes before information, and
sighs and tears and pious ejaculations occur with rather monotonous
regularity. The Life of Father Angel suffers particularly in this
respect. Though Brousse may be excused for omitting the historical
setting, since the readers of his time scarcely needed to be reminded
of the Wars of the League, he overlooked important biographical data,
glossed over awkward details and substituted lengthy extracts from
A.'s unpublished sermons. The Life of Benet will be found more satisfactory by the modern reader, for it has the advantage of comprising
the account of his conversion and many clarifying details. While
reproducing Rookwood's translation of 1623, Mr. Birrell very judiciously
has included in his splendid Introduction, a summary of the background
of the Wars of the League and of the establishment of the Capuchins
in France and their cordial relations with Henri III and Henri IV.
D. J. M. CALLAHAN, S.J.
1
A WRITING HANDBOOK
For Writing English. By Charles W. Mulligan, S.J., and Michael P.
Kammer, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1960. Pp. xvii595. $5.00.
Resoundingly sub-titled "A handbook, a reference book, for college
students, teachers, writers, editors, secretaries-as well as for all those
who cherish accuracy in English," the new volume of Fathers Mulligan
and Kammer is a substantial handbook of the mechanics of English
usage. A revision of the Writing Handbook that forms part of the
"Writing" series now used in many Jesuit high schools, this new book
has been adapted to the needs of older students, as well as writers,
editors, and so forth.
The new handbook includes a full summary of English grammar and
syntax; rules for such mechanical procedures as capitalization, punctuation, and the use of abbreviations; a treatment of sentence diagraming; an approach to the structure of sentences, paragraphs, and
more extended compositions. The only substantial changes from the
original Writing Handbook, as Father Mulligan points out in his Preface,
are in the treatment of Exposition. This section is expanded to meet
the needs of college students, who will have much to do with library
reference, footnotes and bibliographies. The examples and sample
forms given in this section are detailed and helpful.
The revision has all the merits of the original: clarity, consistency,
�316
BOOK REVIEWS
excellent examples, ease of reference. The index, a fine and detailed one,
is one of the best features of the book. For Writing English should find
a ready welcome among the wide audience at which it is aimed.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
CATALOGUE OF LATIN 1\IANUSCRIPTS
Latin Manuscript Books before 1600: A List of the Printed Catalogues
and Unpublished Inventories of Extant Collections. By Paul Oskar
Kristeller. New edition, revised. New York: Fordham University
Press, 1960. Pp. xxii-234. $4.50.
An adequate history of the theological, philosophical, and scientific
literature of the Middle Ages and Renaissance can be based only on an
accurate and extensive study of the unpublished manuscripts preserved
in our libraries. Lists of-incipits, inventories of authors, commentaries,
quaestiones, translations, a·~d early editions are all necessary if further
study is to be fruitful. When information on the general importance
and content of the various manuscript collections proved essential for
the project of 'Medieval and Renaissance Latin Translations and Commentaries', which is sponsored by the Union Academique Internationale
and several other learned societies, Professor Kristeller developed this
annotated bibliography as a guide to the extant collections. The first
edition appeared in Traditio, 6(1949), and 9(1952) in separate parts
covering respectively printed catalogues and unpublished, handwritten
inventories. In this new edition, a considerable amount of information
has been added concerning previously unreported collections, especially
in Eastern Europe, so that the book is more than twice the size of the
original articles. The lists are divided into three sections: General
Works on Manuscripts and Libraries; Catalogues for Libraries in Several Cities; Catalogues of Individual Libraries, arranged alphabetically
by cities. In the final section the printed catalogues ·and unpublished
inventories have been merged, so that reference is made much easier.
This bibliography will be indispensable, not only to the historian of
the Middle Ages and Renaissance, but also to the student of classical
and patristic literature.
C. H. LOHR, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
317
AMONG OUR REVIEWERS
Father Daniel J. M. Callahan (New York Province) is professor emeritus of dogmatic theology at Woodstock.
Father George E. Ganss (Wisconsin Province), Chairman of the department of classics at Marquette University, is the author of St.
Ignatius' Idea of a Jesuit University.
Father William F. Graham (Maryland Province) is spiritual father of
Theologians at Woodstock.
Father Joseph B. Schuyler (New York Province), professor of Sociology at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak, is the author of the recent
Northern Parish (Loyola University Press, 1960), soon to be reviewed in these pages.
Father Edward J. Sponga (Maryland Province) is the rector of Woodstock College.
Father Edmund J. Stumpf (Wisconsin Province) is professor of ethics
and psychology at Creighton University, and is student counselor
in the Dental School there.
Father Terrence Toland (Maryland Province) is professor of dogmatic
theology and prefect of studies at Woodstock College.
�The Autobiography of St. Robert Bellarmine
Translated into English with an Introduction
By Gerard Giblin, S.J.
25 cents a copy; reduction on large orders.
Suitable for sale in churches and schools.
How To Make a Retreat
By Ignatius lparraguirre, S.J.
$1 a copy
The Spiritual Journal of St. Ignatius Loyola
Translated with an introduction
By William J. Young, S.J.
$1.10 a copy; 10 copies for $10
Address:
WOODSTOCK LEITERS
Woodstock College
Woodstock, Maryland
���WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIX, No.4
NOVEMBER, 1960
CONTENTS, NOVEMBER 1960
JESUITS AS CHAPLAINS IN THE ARMED FORCES
1917-1960
INTR 0 DUCTI 0 N ---------------------------------------------------------- 3:25
LIST OF CHAPLAINS ------------------------------------------- 3:39
SERVICE BIOGRAPHIES ------------------------------------------------------· 347
World War I -------------------------------------------------------- 3·48
World War II -------------------------------------------------------------- 3\57
Korean War ---------------------------------------------------- 4:27
Post-Korean Service --------------------------------------------------- 4:35
AWARDS AND CITATIONS --------------------------------------- 4:39
STATISTICS AND APPENDICES ------------------------------ 4\67
A CKN 0 WLEDG EMENTS ---------------------------------------------- 4178
...
ABBREVIATIONS--,--------·-··----·----·-----···---·--·-----·---·--·---·---------------482 .
�CONTRIBUTOR
Mr. Gerard F. Giblin (New York Province) is studying theology at
Woodstock.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, Apri11 July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�In Memoriam
Edward L. Bartley
Agustin S. Consunji
Walter J. Felix
Juan E. Gaerlan
Carl W. Hausmann
Alfred W. Johnson
Hugh F. Kennedy
Martin J. O'Gara
Curtis J. Sharp
Priests of the Society of Jesus
who died in the service of Christ
and of their Country.
��JESUITS AS CHAPLAINS IN THE ARMED FORCES
1917-1960
Gerard F. Giblin, S.J.
I believe that Our Lord will be very well served and Your Excellency much consoled if you would send some good religious along
with this expedition, men who will be true servants of God and
who will seek the salvation of souls. By prayer and good example,
by preaching and hearing confessions, by nursing the sick and
helping the rlying, these men will do a tremendous amount of
good. They will tc<>ch tho soldiers proper motives for fighting,
keep them from quarreling among themselves and will call them
to task for blasphemies and gambling. J<'mauy, I know that tbe
soldiers will profit from this, for by their peace of mind and confidence in God they will better fulfill their duties in war.1
)
I
~
f
\
\
In the above passage James Laynez, first military chaplain
and second General of the Society of Jesus, outlined the nature
of the work that the Jesuit chaplain was expected to fulfill
in his day. Though four hundred years have passed and
methods of war have changed considerably, the description
is still valid. It is the task of the Jesuit as chaplain, as it is
the task of every Jesuit in any field of endeavor, to bring
God to men.
When Fathers Richard R. Rankin and Gerald C. Treacy
(both MdNY) accepted their commissions as First Lieutenants on 20 August 1917, they became the first Jesuits to be
commissioned in World War I. But they were not the first
Jesuits to serve as chaplains with the Army. As far back as
the war with Mexico, Father John McElroy served as a chaplain to General Zachary Taylor's forces. Father Anthony
Rey, S.J., Father McElroy's companion to Mexico, was killed
by guerilla forces. In the office of the Army Chief of Chaplains at the Pentagon his name is listed on a bronze plaque as
the sole chaplain fatality of the Mexican War. In subsequent
1 Translation of Laynez' letter (Monumenta Lainii, IV, 452-455), is
by Joseph H. Fichter, S.J. (James Laynez, Jesuit. St. Louis: Herder,
1944, p. 277.)
325
�JESUIT CHAPLAINS
326
conflicts, the Civil War and the Spanish-American War,
Jesuits also served as chaplains.
In World War I thirty-nine Jesuits received chaplain commissions. For some the period of service was extremely short,
several months at most. One priest, William F. Foley (Mo),
served for a period of eleven days.
The Army life in which the chaplains found themselves involved followed the routine of Army life everywhere. There
was training:
Camp Zachary Taylor
Louisville, Ky.
May 11, 1918.
The life is rough but enjoyahlo. Thoro are 02 chaplains in the
school. Twenty-one are priests. Order of time: Rise, 5:00; Mass,
5:30; physical "'""""rclses, 6:15; breakfast, 6:30; drill, 7:30-8:30;
barracks' inspection, 8:50; International Law, Army Regulations,
Military Law and French, 9:00-12:00; dinner, 12:30; equitation,
1:30-2:30; first aid, 3:00-4:00; sermons, 4:00-5:00; supper, 5:30;
conference, 6:30-7:30; study, 8:00-10:00; taps, 10:30. A very busy
day.
Tuus in Xto,
H. A. Dalton, S.J .2
and confusion:
306 Labor Battalion
AEF, France
June ).6, 1918.
Dear Father Provincial,
.. I find myself here in a little Quartermaster's Camp in charge
of some 150 southern negroes, none of whom are Catholic, and a
handful of very agreeable officers, but non-Catholic. It is a sad
mistake to place our priests in such positions when thousands are
needing us vitally up nearer the front and in the hospitals.s
and fighting:
I remember actually witnessing in that cellar a soldier getting
shell-shocked. He was seated at a field telephone a few feet away
from me. An unusually loud explosion occurred. There was at
the same instant a flash from wires short-circuiting in front of
him-and he began to yell and dance like a maniac. With difficulty we put .him on a cot, two or three holding him down by
sheer force. On the theory that religion is the deepest thing in
human consciousness I shouted in his ear that I was a Catholic
WL, 47 (243).
s Letter of Father Richard A. O'Brien. WL, 47 (283).
2
�IN ARMED SERVICES
priest. I commanded him to shut up.
words he became perfectly still. 4
327
Each time I repeated these
Their main duty as priests was to administer the sacraments, and this they did under the most trying conditions.
It made no difference what uniform their penitent wore:
A wounded and a dead man could be found everywhere. German,
American, French and Algerian-all were visited by me. The
regimental surgeon of the 18th, a good pal of mine, protested when
I assisted the German.
"Father, let him alone."
I smiled and answered. "If I do, Major, I'll meet him in hell
along with you.''s
On 11 November 1918 the conditions of war changed
abruptly to those of peace, and chaplains found themselves in
charge of troops at leisure:
Now that the winter is past and the flowers have appeared in Germany, all the soldiers agree that life is livable in such a beautiful
country. Poets have not lied when they celebrated in song the
charms of fields and hills, woods and valleys, castled crag and
winding waters, which make the varied beauty of the land. Picnics
on the Rhine are delightful pastimes.a
Fathers Provincial needed men too badly to leave them to
such idyllic pleasures. By the end of 1919, with one exception, all Jesuits on active duty were recalled to their provinces. When Father Louis Falley (Mo) was relieved of duty
on 5 July 1920, all Jesuits had returned to civilian status.
Of the thirty-nine Jesuits who served on active duty, seventeen had been in the AEF.1
Many priests had obtained commissions in the Officers' Reserve Corps. Five years after the war 159 Catholic priests
held commissions in this component. Of this number the
following were Jesuits :8
J
I
(
4 "Souvenirs of a Chaplain, 1918-1919", Eugene T. Kenedy.
WL, 73
(48).
5 "From Soissons to Coblenz", Terence King.
WL, 48 (197).
a Ibid., 49 ( 332).
1 These were G. M. Bailey, C. F. Connor, W. J. Corboy, L. A. Falley,
W. T. Kane, E. T. Kenedy, T. King, D. J. Lynch, H. P. Milet, J. I.
Moakley, J. A. Morning, J. T. Mortell, R. A. O'Brien, R. R. Rankin,
C. M. Ryan, W. M. Stinson, H. P. White.
8 United States Catholic Chaplains in the World War.
George J.
Waring. Pp. 338 ff.
�JESUIT CHAPLAINS
328
Name
Bailey, George M.
Bracken, Edward J.
Dalton, Hugh A. _
Delihant, Thomas J.
Fleuren, Henry R. ________ _
Fox, George G. ___ _
Hendrix, William F. _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Jessup, Michael __ _
King, Terence _______ _
Rankin, Richard R. --------------Tallmadge, Archibald J. _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Walsh, Henry L. - - - - - , - - - - - - - - -
Prov
Rank
Cal
Mo
Md-NY
Md-NY
NO
Cal
Mo
Md-NY
NO
Md-NY
Mo
Cal
1st Lt
1st Lt
Captain
1s~ Lt
1st Lt
1st Lt
1st Lt
1st Lt
1st Lt
Captain
1st Lt
1st Lt
In 1939 the numlier of Jesuits in the Officers' Reserve
Corps, which by this time numbered 212 priests, was thirteen.9 Six were veterans of the World War; only five of the
thirteen were to see service in World War II.
Name
Prov
Bailey, George M. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Ore
Bracken, Edward J. ----------------- Chi
Clancy, John L. -------------------- NE
NE
Dugan, John J. ------------------King, Terence ----"'------------------ NO
Libertini, Robert M. ------------------------- NO
McDonnell, Christopher J. ---------------- Ore
Mulhern, Patrick J. -------------------------- Chi
Murphy, George M. -------------------------- NE
Rankin, Richard R. ------------------------------- Md-NY'"'
Schwitalla, Alphonse M. ---------------------------- Mo
Treacy, Gerald C. --------------------------------- Md-NY
Walsh, Henry L. ---------------------------- Cal
Rank
Major
Captain
1st Lt
1st Lt
Captain
1st Lt
1st Lt
Captain
1st Lt
Captain
Major
Captain
Captain
Two of the above Fathers, John L. Clancy and John J.
Dugan, were called to duty with the Civilian Conservation
Corps in 1937. In addition to the priests enumerated above,
several other Jesuits held commissions with National and
State Guard units.
In 1940 a total of seven Jesuits were called to active duty
with the Army (5 NE and 2 Md-NY) and two with the Navy
(1 NE and 1 Md-1~Y). The following year twenty-six Jesuits
had gone into service, with all provinces represented except
California and Oregon.
9
The Official Catholic Directory, 1939, pp. 621 ff.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
329
In this period, though there was no officially recognized
shooting, the threat of war hung in the air. Father Herbert
P. McNally (NY) made a trip with a naval convoy to Iceland.
The escort was rigged for combat. A submarine had attacked
U.S.S. Greer and destroyers sniffed the seas beside Father
McNally's transport. On his arrival:
Had my first naval funeral last week. One of the Navy planes had
crashed with twelve on board, all killed. Three of them were Catholics, and we had the solemn high mass in the cathedral in Reykjavik.'0
When war broke out Father John J. Dugan was serving a
tour in the Philippines. Five American and five Filipino
Jesuits joined him in the Army. 11 They sustained their men
bravely before the surrender:
In spite of great fatigue, the lack of food and loss of sleep due to
the incidents of the campaign, Lieutenant O'Keefe made repeated
visits to the front line, crossing terrain that was swept by hostile
artillery and mortar fire and frequently exposed himself to fire
from enemy snipers to minister to the spiritual and physical needs
of the tro0ps.12
and afterwards :
While en route from Davao to Manila (aboard a Japanese prison
ship), he gave freely of his meager rations of water and rice to the
sick and dying, and continued throughout his captivity to obtain
medicine and comfort items, which enhanced in large measure the
morale and welfare of" his fellow prisoners. 13
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Together with their fellow soldiers Jesuits took the melancholy roads to Bilibid, Cabanatuan and Capas. In the stretch
of country between Bataan and Capas lies the body of Father
Juan E. Gaerlan (NY), a victim of the Death March.
In prison camp they suffered privation. The staple of their
diet was sandshark and salmon:
It was frequently necessary to place the fish on shelter halves exposed to the sun or to put it in the ovens and dry it as much as
possible in order to kill the vermin with which it was infested. 14
10 WL, 71 (144).
11 Fathers P. M. Carasig, A. F. Cervini, P. M. Dimaano, I. X. Edralin,
J. E. Gaerlan, C. W. Hausmann, H. F. Kennedy, E. J. O'Keefe, P.
Ortiz (all NY) ; and T. A. Shanahan (NE).
12 Citation of Father Eugene J. O'Keefe for Silver Star.
13 Citation of Father Hugh F. Kennedy for Bronze Star.
14 Testimony of Father Hugh F. Kennedy before an Army notary, 11
�330
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Despite their sufferings the chaplains never forgot their
primary duties. And in the time of trial the men responded
magnificently. At Cabanatuan in Christmas of 1942 there
was a solemn mass :
A solemn high midnight mass such as I never expect to see againsaid in the open under a great moon in the presence of almost
every man in our part of the camp (8000) and many of our
captors. 15
They were to spend two Christmases more in captivity, and
then with unexpected abruptness their ordeal ended. At
Cabanatuan 7 January 1945 the Japanese commander said,
"Now you are free Americans. You are no longer the responsibility of the Japanese government. We will leave you rations for thirty days and you will be safe if you stay within
the barbed wire. If you go out, you will be shot." 16 But
Colonel Mucci and his Sixth Rangers made a sudden raid to
liberate the prisoners. It was the guards instead who were
shot.
The ordeal had worn them down physically but it had not
broken their spirit. "Did they find anything wrong with
you?" Father O'Keefe asked Father Hugh Kennedy as he
left the room where the doctor had examined him.
"Yes, a little dandruff." (The medical report actually read:
"During this period of time Chaplain Kennedy suffered from
amebic and other forms of dysentery, malaria, severe malnutrition, beriberi and scurvy." It added severe vascular
damage to the left foot as a result of poliomyelitis.)
Much had happened in the years the Philippine Jesuits had
spent in captivity. Their fellow Jesuits had suffered through
battles on all parts of the globe.
A chronology of the war could be written following the
exploits of Jesuits in World War II. Jesuits in Manila saw
the first bombs fall, and a Jesuit in the uniform of a lieutenant, United States Navy, w.as the first American into Tokyo
at the end of the war.
Father L. Berk~ley Kines (Md) sailed with the first inAugust 1948.
15 From Chapter XII of Life Under the Japs, told by Father Dugan
to Willard de Lue of the Boston Globe.
16 Father Eugene J. O'Keefe, questionnaire.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
331
vasion expedition of American forces in the European theater,
November 1942. He landed at Algiers in North Africa, endured the debacle of the Kasserine Pass, and was wounded at
El Guettar. Recovering from his wound, he joined American
forces in the invasion of Sicily. As the Higgins boats closed
on the shores of Sicily, U.S.S. Philadelphia pounded the
beaches. Aboard was its chaplain, Father Daniel J. Burke
(NY).
Italy saw some of the most savage fighting of the war as
American forces clawed their way over the peak of one ridge
of the Apennines only to find that the enemy had withdrawn
and that the succeeding ridge was as tenaciously held. Father
Raymond F. Copeland (Cal) was a chaplain of the 45th
"Thunderbird" Division as it fought its way toward Monte
Cassino. He was beginning the first few weeks of his five
hundred days in -combat.
Father Thomas B. Cannon (NY) went to Italy with the
lOth Mountain Division. Two of the division chaplains were
killed and a third was lost as a casualty during the first few
weeks of combat. Father Cannon had to carry on as best he
could for a time afterwards.
Father James A. Gilmore (Ore) went ashore on Normandy
shortly after the invasion. General Hospital 50 of which he
was the chaplain received a citation for being the first general
hospital in combat. When a batch of German prisoners was
brought in, Father Gilmore was surprised to hear them give
the servers' responses in perfect Latin as he said mass for
them.
As American forces raced across France, vivid pictures
flashed into the eye to haunt the memory:
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St. Lo in ruins, not a stone upon a stone, and walking through
that scene of desolation five French nuns saying the rosary-three
burned out tanks at a turn in the road with fresh flowers placed
on them lovingly and in remembrance-the FFI marching five
fearful prisoners through a crowd. 1 7
and humorous scenes as a leaven for fearful memories:
Around a home-made stove muddy cannoneers are warming hands
that are red and cracked from the cold and frost-and all eyes are
on the frying pan. With that generosity peculiar to men who have
1rcombat Experiences and Nota::ons, Joseph F. Hogan (Chi).
�332
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
little, you are offered a leg of nicely browned chicken. "Say you're
doing pretty well on rations, we had corned beef today." "Well
you see, Padre, a flock of Heinie chickens attacked our gun positions last night and there was nothing to do but defend ourselves.
Have another piece."1s
When in December 1944 the enemy counterattacked, many
Americans became casualties. Among the missing was Father
Paul W. Cavanaugh (Chi).· After his inexperienced regiment
walked into an ambush, Father Cavanaugh became a prisoner
and spent the remainder of the war in prison camps. On 2
May 1945 American forces liberated him. Father Cavanaugh
was the only American ..Jesuit captured in the European
phase of the war.
After the setback of the Ardennes the Americans again resumed the offensive. Father Gerald J. Cuddy (NY) with his
346th Regiment, 87th Division, had entered combat in the
Saar in December 1944. They crossed back into Belgium for
the Battle of the Bulge; then across the Moselle at Coblenz,
across the Rhine at Boppard, on through Germany to Falkenstein on the Czechoslovakian border by VE day May 1945.
During this time his regiment lost two-thirds of its men as
casualties.
On 3 May 1945 Father William V. Cummings (Md) became the last Jesuit combat casualty of the war. Walking
into a minefield to aid a wounded man, a mine eiploded killing Father Cummings' doctor companion and wounding
Father Cummings. He was hospitalized for three months.
In the Pacific theater the war was just as deadly. Father
Stephen J. Meany (NY) participated in the landings in the
Gilberts. Enemy machine gun fire wounded him four times
as he tried to aid a disabled soldier.
Father Edmund F. Burke (Mo) won the Silver Star on a
Pacific Island:
Completely disregarding his own personal safety, he administered
spiritual aid to the wounded and dying and assisted in their evacuation. When in the medical aid station during times when it was
under small-arms fire, Chaplain Burke was observed shielding
wounded men with his own body. 19
1s Ibid.
1 9 Citation of Father Edmund F. Burke for Silver Star.
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�IN ARMED SERVICES
333
In October 1944 the American fleet rendezvoused off Surigao Strait to fight at night the first phase of the climactic
naval battle of the war. Three Jesuits were in three battleships that all but annihilated the enemy's fleet, Father William J. Kenealy (NE) in California, Father Francis J. McVeigh (Md) in Maryland and Father Jerome J. Sullivan
(Cal) in Pennsylvania.
February 1945 saw the terrible assault on Iwo Jima.
Shortly after the American flag had been raised on Suribachi,
Father Charles F. Suver (Ore) elevated the host on the same
mountain. Around his altar knelt battle-weary veterans of
the Fifth Marine Division, their rifles at ready against a
sudden incursion of the enemy.
Since the invasion at Lingayen Gulf the Navy had been
subjected to kamikaze attacks. Off Okinawa these reached
their height. As the sanctus bell rang for the mass of Father
Lawrence R. McHugh (Md) aboard the carrier U.S.S. Bataan,
a lookout spotted a suicide plane that had come in low to
avoid radar and the combat air patrol. "He's going into a
climb," came the voice from the loudspeaker. Then, "He's
diving." Father McHugh continued with the words of consecration. As he raised the chalice, there was an explosion.
The plane had hit the sea alongside. In the commissioning
ceremony Father McHugh had dedicated Bataan to Our Lady.
The ship got through the war unscathed.
But not all ships were so fortunate as Bataan. Father
Samuel H. Ray and Father Joseph Maring (both NO) met
on the island of Okinawa in the sad task of burying the dead
from damaged ships. Off Kobe, Japan, U.S.S. Franklin was
hit by a bomb. 770 men died and Father Joseph T. O'Callahan (NE) because of his heroism became the first chaplain
since the Civil War to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
The guns at last fell silent. U.S.S. Missouri nosed her way
cautiously into Tokyo Bay, ready for a fight, but found that
the war was truly over. Aboard the battleship were two
Jesuits, Father Charles A. Robinson (Mo) and Father Paul
L. O'Connor (Chi), the former's relief. Because he knew the
language, Father Robinson was sent ashore to negotiate the
release of allied prisoners. After the exchange was done,
he took a jeep and drove to Sophia University, Tokyo, to
�334
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
greet fellow Jesuits, some of whom he had not seen for nineteen years. 20
The war was over. Though unusual experiences have been
recounted, it is not at all fair to estimate the work of Jesuit
chaplains merely by these incidents. Along with acts of
heroism, statistics such as the following are significant:
More than 100 converts (Robert E. McMahon, Cal)
Thirty-five converts (George A. King, NE)
Anointed 800 men (Thomas B. Cannon, NY)
Conducted twenty-one missions for men (Cornelius J. O'Mara,
Cal) 21
Again and again the- following phrase occurs in questionnaires answered on their war service, "No heroics, just plain
hard work."
At the close of the war there was a total of 243 Jesuits in
uniform (181 Army, 60 Navy, 2 Merchant Marine). A rapid
demobilization began. By the end of 1946 only twenty-eight
Jesuits remained in service.
In the succeeding years the number of Jesuit chaplains
declined still furtper. In 1949 only fourteen were on active
duty. In that year the chaplains corps of the Air Force was
formed and three World War II Army veterans accepted commissions. During the interim between the Second World War
and the Korean War, though several Jesuits we'l'e recalled, no
~ -·
new commissions were tendered.
It seemed that, following the pattern of World War I, all
Jesuits would soon be returned to civilian status. But then
the Communists crossed the 38th parallel. The following year
thirty-three Jesuits were on duty. By 1953, fifty-two were
in service. In the period between June 1950 and July 1954,
due to a rotation policy that rapidly shifted personnel in the
combat zone, twenty-one Jesuits had seen service in Korea. 22
20 The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States Navy, Clifford
M. Drury. II, 270.
21 Questionnaires answered by priests mentioned.
22 These were J. A. Bain, G. J. Barras, J. L. Barry, J. P. Brown, G. S.
Chehayl, T. J. Clarkson, E. B. Clements, G. A. Haggerty, J. L. Hurld,
0. D. Kehrlein, J. J. Kennedy, A. J. Kilp, W. R. Messner, J. M. Mollner,
J. J. Morrisson, E. C. Mulligan, D. B. O'Gara, E. B. Rehkopf, V. T.
Reynolds, V. B. Ryan, J. L. Teufel.
I
�IN ARMED SERVICES
335
Again there was bravery:
On 13 October, while a battalion was engaged in a firing mission
against the enemy, it was subjected to an intensive enemy artillery
shelling. With complete disregard for his personal safety, Chaplain Mollner entered the impact area and made a personal tour
from howitzer to howitzer, comforting the wounded and encouraging the personnel manning their weapons. Ignoring a request to
return to the rear areas, Chaplain Mollner remained in the dangerously exposed area to administer medical treatment to the
wounded and the last rites to the dying. 2 a
and the sacrifice involved in the fulfillment of more prosaic
duties:
Chaplain Teufel provided an inexhaustible source of strength to
the members of the command. In both teaching and personal
example, he constantly evidenced an exceptionally high degree of
intelligence and devoutness. In addition to providing counsel and
guidance and ministering to the spiritual needs of the individuals
within the group, Chaplain Teufel willingly and cheerfully volunteered his services to mobile surgical hospitals and to adjacent
United States and Korean units.24
When they departed their officers missed them :
Dear General \V estmoreland,
I am losing to Japan one of the finest Catholic chaplains I have
ever known. One whom the men love for his constantly being in
their bunkers on the line in the thick of it. He is well overdue
but has stayed on just because he is a good solid soldier chaplain. 25
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With the termination of the Korean War, Jesuit chaplains
again returned to civilian occupations. Between 1954 and
1960 the number of chaplains on duty dropped from fortyseven to twenty-two. Although eleven Jesuits were newly
commissioned during this time, thirty-six left the services.
Though the firing had stopped, there were still hazards in
the chaplain's life:
There were two casualties-both by drowning. It is a terrible
thing to think about-drowning in this forgotten land (Korea).
In spite of all the precautions which the military provides and in
spite of the constant warning about the dangers resultant from
these flash floods. One of the units was so cut off that I was unable to get to them for mass on Sunday-although I did hear some
23 Citation of Father Joseph M. Mollner (Mo-Wis) for Bronze Star.
24 Citation of Father John L. Teufel (Ore) for Bronze Star.
25 The chaplain in question is Father Oliver duF. Kehrlein (Cal).
�336
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
helicopters up during the morning. I felt it would be risking the
neck of a chopper pilot to have him go up in the rain and fog.
If it had been just a case of taking a chance myself, I wouldn't
have hesitated for a moment, but I felt the occasion did not justify
me in asking for a chopper.2s
Retreat work flourished in the services. Father John D.
St. John (NE) was decorated for giving a large number of
missions between 1949 and 1955:
In carrying out these preaching missions, Chaplain St. John and
his co-missioner conducted 218 missions, 1203 evening services,
2624 masses and administered 64,462 Holy Communions. It is
estimated that 387,784. Air Force personnel and their dependents of
the Catholic faith took part in these mission activities. 27
Father John R. Bradstreet (Cal) had charge of a retreat
house in Japan where between January 1956 and March 1957
he gave sixty-one retreats to more than 3,000 men. One
can detect the influence of St. Ignatius down four hundred
years in Circular Number Sixteen issued by Headquarters,
United States Army Europe, 17 May 1954, establishing Religious Retreat Houses:
Definitions (for the purpose of this circular)
Religious Retreat: A period of withdrawal from ordinary occupations for the purpose of prayer, meditation on religious truths, and
serious consideration of the individual's spiritual state.
During this time the Services suffered (lip.d still suffer)
from a lack of Catholic chaplains:
(I work) twelve to sixteen hour days. Doing the work of two or
three men ever since entrance in the Army due to a shortage of
Army priests. We are about seventy-five priests under allotted
strength since I've been in the Army.
In the present year (1960) twenty-two Jesuits are in the
Armed Forces, eighteen in the Army, one in the Navy, and
three in the Air Force. They represent six provinces: New
York (9) ; New England (6) ; Maryland (3) ; Oregon (2);
California (1) ; Wisconsin (1).
Many chaplain~ after being separated from the Services
26 Letter of Father John P. Brown (Md).
27 Citation of John D. St. John for Air Force Commendation. Ribbon.
After receiving this decoration Father St. John continued his work in
this sphere until 1957, giving a total of 345 missions.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
337
kept up reserve functions. Their progress as reservists can
be gauged from promotions mentioned in their service biographies which occur after being relieved of active duty. They
also rendered the Armed Forces valuable services. Father
James L. Harley (Md) contributed several chapters to the
present Army field manual, The Chaplain (Fl\'I 16-5), explaining the function and duties of the Army chaplain. Father
Michael I. English (Chi) returned as a "civilian consultant"
to give retreats in Japan and Korea (Sep-Oct, 1956), and in
Germany (June, 1958).
One final group of priests should be mentioned in any history of chaplains. Their individual histories are not included in this work both because detailed information is
lacking and because their inclusion would raise the volume
to encyclopedic size. These are the auxiliary chaplains.
In World War I the Knights of Columbus supported a
group of auxiliary chaplains. These priests served at military bases in the United States and at least three of the
Jesuits among them served with the AEF. In addition to the
K of C chaplains other auxiliary chaplains helped to fill the
need for priests.
In World War II and beyond auxiliary chaplains have been
indispensible in helping the regular chaplain to do his work.
Father John W. Maddigan (l\'Io) served as a full time chaplain
in civilian status at Camp Joseph T. Robinson, Arkansas· (17
March 1945 to 17 Mar 1946):
I had full military cooperation, including the exclusive use of the
post chapel, T/5 chaplain's assistant, my own jeep, army board and
lodging, even medical care. The courtesy and cooperation of the
military authorities was almost embarrassing on the side of generosity.2s
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The work of the auxiliary chaplain was not limited to the
United States. In missionary areas Jesuits aided Army and
Navy chaplains when the troops were passing through. During World War II three Chicago Jesuits in India were assigned as full-time military chaplains: John M. Cosgrove,
James A. Creane, and Charles D. McAleese.
Such a sketch as this introduction is completely inadequate
to describe the activities of 324 Jesuits over a period of forty28 Questionnaire of Father Maddigan.
�338
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
three years. The most it can hope to do is to point out the
main areas of their activities, places where they toiled, shed
tears and sometimes blood in their labors for Christ.
It is well in ending the introduction to bring into focus the
entire purpose of the Jesuit as chaplain. He wears the uniform of his country; at times the insignia of high rank, the
colored ribbons of combat decorations and the shoulder
patches of famous divisions. But all these of themselves are
nothing if one quality is lacking.
This one quality is perhaps best brought out in an anecdote
of unconscious tribu~. that his men paid to one chaplain.
The chaplain was Father Emil J. Kapaun, a diocesan priest
of Wichita. Decorated by the Army with the Distinguished
Service Cross, the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star;
honored posthumously by his bishop who dedicated a school
in his memory and entrusted it to the Society of Jesus, the
finest tribute was paid to him by his fellow prisoners of war
in Korea:
The man who saved many of us from death was Father Emil
Kapaun-by far the greatest man I ever met. He came close to
saintliness and, as time went by, a strange transformation occurred
in his appearance: he began to look like Christ. His features
became more and more ascetic because of emaciation and his long,
straggly hair and beard actually changed to reddish-brown. The
resemblance was not the product of any one~·~an's imagination.
'Father, if you don't look the spittin' image _-_, a new POW
would begin, and then stop when the chaplain turned away in
embarrassment.29
It is this that every Jesuit hopes to be-the image of Christ.
29 Major David Forrest MacGhee in Readers Digest for April 1954,
quoting from Collier's.
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�Jesuits Who Have Served as Commissioned Chaplains
in the Armed Forces: 1917-1960.
Name
Agnew, William M. ____ _
Allen, Paul L. - - - - - Anderson, Edward P. ___ _
Babb, William H. ______________ _
Bailey, George M. -----------Bain, John A. ----------------Barnett, James R. _____ _
Barras, Gabriel J. -----------Barrett, Alfred J. _________ _
Barry, John L. -------------Bartley, Edward L. _______ _
Beckwith, Albert A. _______ _
Bischofberger, George _________ _
Boggins, Joseph P. ___________ _
Boland, Carroll M. -------------Boland, Joseph E. __________ _
Bonn, John L. ----------Bowdern, William S.
Boylan, Bernard R. _________ _
Boyle, Terence J. ______________ _
Bracken, Edward J. ___________ _
Bradstreet, John R. -------------Brennan, Thomas A. __________ _
Brock, Laurence M. ____________ _
Brown, John P. ____________ _
Bryant, Robert T. _____________ _
Bryant, Thomas J. __________ _
Burke, Daniel J. ___________ _
Burke, Edmund F. _________ _
Burns, Leo J. -----------Buschmann, J. Peter _______ _
Byrne, John F. -----------------Byrne, Thomas J. -------------Campbell, Daniel V. ___________ _
(2nd tour)
Cannon, Thomas B. -------------Carasig, Pablo M. _______________ _
Carey, Daniel J. ------------------
Prov
Ore
Chi
NO
Cal
Cal
NY
NO
NY
NE
NY
NY
Mo
Chi
Mo
Mo
NE
Mo
NE
MdNY
Mo
Cal
NE
NE
Md
NO
Chi
NY
Mo
Mo
Chi
Chi
NY
Mo
NY
NY
NY
Period*
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWI
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
WWII
WWI
Kor.
WWII
WWII, Kor.
WWII
WWII, Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWI
WWII, Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
Army
AF
Army
Army(P)**
Army
Mo
Branch
Navy
Army
Army
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
& P-K
& P-K
& P-K
& P-K
*WWI-period from 1917-1920; WWII-period from 1940 to 1950;
Kor.-27 Jun 1950 to 27 Jul 1954; P-K-Post Korean, after 27 Jul
1954.
** (P)-Philippine Army attached to U.S. Army.
339
�340
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Name
Carr, Edwin F. -----------Carroll, Anthony G. ____ _
Carroll, James D. ____ _
Cavanaugh, Paul W. _ _ _
Cervini, Andrew F. _ _ _
Chchayl, George S. --------Clancy, John L. --------Clark, Charles D. ____ _
Clark, Joseph .M. _____ _
Clarkson, Theodore J. __
Clements, Ernest B.
Cobman, Jeremiah F. ___i_
Connor, Charles F. _ __:,_:_
Connors, J. Bryan _______ _
Consunji, Agustin S. __ _
Copeland, Raymond F. __
Corbett, James M. ________ _
Corboy, William J. ______ _
Corrigan, Maurice F. __ _
Cotter, John A. __________ _
Courtney, Edward W. ____ _
Crimmins, Harry B. _____ _
Cronin, Robert J. ----------Crowley, Wilfred H. -----Cuddy, Gerald J. --------------Cummings, William V. _____ _
Cunniff, John H. ---------------Cunningham, Francis A. ___ _
Cunningham, Thomas ________ _
(2nd Tour)
Curran, Francis N. ________ _
Curran, Joseph P. --------Dalton, Hugh A. -----------Daly, Peter J. --------------------Day, Francis T. ----------Deasy, James J. _______________ _
Delihant, Thomas J. ________ _
Devlin, Eugene J. ______________ _
Devlin, John F. ------------Diehl, John J. -----------Dieter, Earl L. ---------Dietz, Francis T. ____.___ _ _
Dimaano, Pedro M. _________ _
Dinand, Augustine A. _______ _
Dolan, James F. ----------------Dolan, James J. ----------------Doody, Michael J. -------------
Prov
Cal
NE
NO
Chi
NY
Chi
NE
Mo
Cal
NY
Md
NE
MdNY
NE
NY
Cal
Cal
Mo
Ore
MdNY
Mo
Mo
Chi
Cal
NY
Md
Md
NY
Ore
NY
NE
MdNY
NY
NY
Cal
l'ildNY
NY
NE
NY
Mo
Chi
NY
Cal
NY
NE
NE
Branch
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
?
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army (P)
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Period
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor.
Kor.
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
.}VWII
WWII
Kor.
P-K
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
P-K
WWII
WWII
& Kor.
& Kor.
& Kor.
& Kor.
& Kor.
�341
IN ARMED SERVICES
Name
Prov
Dossogne, Victor J. ____ NO
Downey, Morgan A. _ _ Md
Doyle, Leo A. _ _ _ _ _ Mo
Duffy, Edward P. ____ MdNY
Duffy, William J. _ _ _ _ NE
Dugan, John J. - - - - - - NE
Dunne, Edward J. ____ NY
Duross, Thomas A.
NY
Branch
Army
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Period
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII & Kor.
WWII
WWII
Eckmann, Lawrence J. __
Edralin, Isaias X. ____
Egan, Stephen T. _ _ _ _
Egan, Thomas F. _ _ _ _
English, Michael I. _ _ _
Evett, Lester J. _______
Ewing, Thomas D. ____
Chi
NY
Mo
NY
Chi
Chi
Chi
Navy
Army (P)
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
WWII
WWII
WWII
P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
FaHey, Louis A.
Farrelly, Peter T. _ _ _
Fay, Thomas A.-----Fay, Thomas P. ------Felix, Walter J. _____
Fernan, John J. _____
Finnegan, Bernard J. ____
Flaherty, Maurice G. _ _
Fleuren, Henry R. _____
Flynn, Francis l\1. - - - - Foley, John P. - - - - - - Foley, William F. ____
Fox, George G. -------Fraser, Burton J.
Fullam, Raymond B. _____
Mo
NE
NE
NE
NO
NY
NE
Ore
NO
Chi
NE
Mo
Cal
Mo-Wis
NY
Army
Army
Mer Mar
Army-AF
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
WWI
P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWI
WWII, Kor. & P-K
P-K
Gaerlan, Juan E . - - - - Gaffney, John C. ------------Gallagher, Frederick A. ____
Garvey, Leo J. -------------Gaynor, Hugh A. - - - - - Geary, James F. ----------Geis, Louis J. ------------Gerhard, John J. ---------Giambastiani, John F. ______
Gilmore, James A. ------Goodenow, Robert C. -----Goss, Edward F. - - - - - (2nd tour)
Grady, Richard F. ----------Graisy, John J. -----------
NY
Cal
NE
NO
MdNY
NE
Ore
NY
Cal
Ore
Chi
NO
Army (P)
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
WWII
WWII
WWII
W\VII
WWI
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor.
WWII
P-K
Md
Ore
~.:::;a
�342
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Name
Greif, Harold J. ______________
Gt;erin, James B. ________
Prov
Branch
Ore
Army
Mo-Wis Army
Haggerty, Gerard A. ________ _
(2nd tour)
Haggerty, James E. _______
Haller, Joseph S. ____________
Halloran, John J. ___________
H?nley, William A. ______
Harley, James L. ______________
Harty, William J. ------------·,
Hausmann, Ca~l ,V. -----~
Heavey, William J. ____________ ··
Hennessey, Thomas P. ______
Higgins, James J. ______________
Hochhnus, Raphael H. ______
Hogan, Joseph F. -------------liolland, John E. _______________
H mld, J olm L. -------------Russ, Harry L. -------------Ireland, Raymond J. ___________
NY
NY
:Mo
Mo
Cal
l\Id
NO
NY
l\Io
NE
NY
:i'llo
Chi
Md
NE
NE
Mo
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII & Kor.
WWII
WWII & Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
Navy
WWII
Jessup, Michael -----~---------Johnson, Alfred W. ______
r.IdNY
Cal
Army
Army
WWI
WWII
Kane, William T. -----~--------Kavanagh, Cyril R. ______
Keane, Joseph T. ---------Kearns, A. Bernard _________
Kehrlein, Oliver duF. ______
Kelleher, John J. ________________
Kelly, James J. ---------Kelly, James J. ----------------(2nd tour)
Kelly, Patrick G. -------------Kenealy, William J. ________ _
Kenedy, Eugene T. ----------Kennedy, Hugh F. _______________ _
Kennedy, James J. ____________ _
Kennedy, Walter E. ___________ _
Kilp, Alfred J. _________________ _
Kines, L. Berkeley ---.-------King, George A. --------------King, Terence ---------------------Kirshbaum, Irving J. ________ _
Kleber, Jerome J. -------------Klocke, John H. ----------------Kmieck, George A. -----------
Mo
Cal
Cal
NO
Cal
NE
Cal
Chi
Army
Navy
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Army
AF
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
WWI
WWII
Kor.
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII, Kor. & P-K
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII & Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Mo
NE
MdNY
NY
NY
NE
Cal
Md
NE
NO
NY
NY
NY
Chi
Army
AF
Period
WWII
Kor. & P-K
I
I
I
�343
IN ARMED SERVICES
Name
Laboon, John F.--------Laherty, John J. ______ _
Lanahan, John B. _____ _
Lane, Joseph A. ________ _
Lang, E. Cecil ----------------LaPlante, Oscar J. ___________ _
LeGault, Eugene B. ______ _
Leonard, William J. _________ _
Lewis, Thomas X. ________ _
Libertini, Robert M. _______ _
Long, John J. - - - - - - (2nd tour)
Lynch, Cornelius E. ____ _
Lynch, Daniel J. --------------(2nd tour)
Lynch, Joseph P. --------------Lynch, Laurence J. ____ _
Lyons, John F. --------------MacDonald, Francis J. _____
MacLeod, Harry C. ____________
Maginnis, Edward D. _________
Maher, Thomas F. ______________
Malloy, Joseph W. ______________
Manhard, Edward P. _________
Maring, Joseph ----------------Martin, James A. ___________
McCall, Thomas D. ________
McCauley, Leo P. _____________
McDonald, Donald S. _____
McDonnell, Charles A. ________
McEvoy, William H. __________
McGinnis, James S. _____________
McGratty, Arthur R. _______
McGrorey, Raymond I. ________
McGuigan, James T. ____________
McGuire, Francis S. ____________
McHugh, Lawrence R. _______
McKeon, Richard M. __________
McLaughlin, James D. _______
McMahon, Robert E. _________
McManus, Edwin G. ----------McManus, Neil P. -----------McNally, Herbert P. ----------McNamara, Daniel B.________
McNulty, Hugh J. -----------McPhelin, Michael F. __________
Cal
MdNY
NE
NY
Chi
NE
Branch
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Period
P-K
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
NE
NE
Cal
NO
NO
Mo
NO
Md
NY
NE
Ore
Mo
Mo
Chi
NY
Cal
Ore
NY
Md
NY
NE
Cal
NY
Mo
NY
Mo
MdNY
NY
Navy
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Navy
Navy
Army
AF
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
P-K
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWI
WWII
Prov
Md
Cal
Md
Chi
NO
Chi
Ore
NE
NY
NO
NE
�344
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Period
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWI
WWI
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
Kor.
WWII & Kor.
WWI
Kor. & P-K
WWI
WWII
P-K
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Md
Branch
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Army
l\lerMar
&Navy
Army
NY
l\Id
Army
Navy
WWII
WWII
O'Brien, Francis X. ________ NY
O'Brien, Joseph E. - - - - - NY
O'Brien, Richard A. _________ MdNY
O'Brien, Vincent deP. -------- NE
O'Callaghan, Louis T. ________ Ore
O'Callahan, Joseph T. ________ NE
O'Connor, Daniel F. X. _____ NE
O'Connor, Paul L. ------- Chi
O'Gara, Donald B. ------------- Cal
O'Gara, Martin J. _____________ NY
O'Keefe, Eugene J. ____________ NY
O'Keefe, Leo P. ------------- NE
0'1\Iara, Cornelius J. --------- Cal
O'Mara, Joseph R. ------------- NY
O'Neill, Charles A. ------------- NY
O'Neill, Ralph M. ------------ NY
Orford, James F. ----------- Mo
Ortiz, Pacifico --------------- NY
Army
Army
Army
Mer Mar
Navy
Navy
Navy
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army (P)
W.WII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII & Kor.
WWII
WWII
WWII
Parsons, Robert A. ----------
Army
WWII
Name
McVeigh, Francis J. _____
l\leany, Stephen J. -----Messner, William R. ___
Milet, Henry P. --------l\loakley, James I. _______
Mollner, Joseph M. ____
:Montero, Agathonico F. __
Mooney, Raymond L. -----Moore, Francis A. ________
Morgan, Carl H . - - - - Morning, John A.-------l\Iorrisson, John J. ----Mortell, John T. --------·
l\Iotherway, Aloysius T. ____
Muldoon, Thomas J.
l\Iulhern, Patrick J. -----Mulligan, Edwin c. --------l\Iuntsch, Albert J. _________
Murphy, Francis J. __________
l\Iurphy, George L. _________
Murphy, George l\1. ___________
:Murphy, Paul J. ------------
Prov
Md
NY
NY
Mo
MdNY
Mo-Wis
NY
Chi
Cal
NE
MdNY
NY
Mo
Mo
NY
Chi
NY
Mo
NE
Chi
NE
NE
Murray, John B.
---------------
North, Arthur A. -------------Nuttall, William I. -------------
Md
WWII
wwii
I
I
�345
IN ARMED SERVICES
---~Prov
Name
Edward J. _ _ _ Cal
Pettid,
Power, Daniel E . - - - - Md
Branch
Period
Army
Army
Kor.
WWII
Quinn, Gerald A. _ _ _ _
NY
Army
WWII
Rankin, Richard R. --~Ray, Samuel H. _____
Ray, Theodore A. _____
Reagen, John D. ______
Reardon, Charles J. ___
Regalado, Alejo G. ______
Rehkopf, Edward B. ___
Reilly, Francis B. _______
Reynolds, Robert F. ___
Reynolds, Vincent T. _____
Robinson, Charles A. ___
Roche, Val J. ---------Roddy, Charles M. ____
Rooney, Richard L. ____
Ryan, Charles M. -----Ryan, Daniel F. ________
Ryan, J. Clement ______
Ryan, Vincent B. ____
MdNY
NO
NO
NY
NE
NY
Md
NY
MdNY
NY
Mo
Mo
NE
NE
Mo
NE
Mo
NY
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
Army
WWI
WWII
WWII
P-K
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWI
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
Kor.
St. John, John D. ____________
(2nd tour)
Schenk, Ralph H. ---------Schuetz, Charles E. ____
Seaver, George ,V. _______
Shanahan, James J. ______
Shanahan, Joseph P. _______
Shanahan, Thomas A. _______
Sharp, Curtis J. -------Shea, John L. ------Shea, Richard G. -----------(2nd tour)
Sheridan, Robert E. __________
Smith, Aloysius M. ____
Smith, Thomas N. -------Stinson, William M. _______
Stockman, Harold V. ___
Stretch, Edward M. ____
Sullivan, Charles E. _______
Sullivan, Francis V. _________
Sullivan, Jerome J. _________
Sullivan, Philip V. ----------Suver, Charles F.------
NE
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Navy
Navy
Army
Navy
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWI
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
Mo
Mo
Ore
NY
NE
NE
Ore
NY
NE
NE
Mo
Md
MdNY
NE
Cal
Chi
NE
Cal
Md
Ore
-::•.:.!
�346
t
I
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Name
Prov
Tainter, James M. _ _ _ Mo
Talbott, Raymond L. ___ Ore
(2nd tour)
Tallmadge, Archibald J. __ Mo
Tallmadge, Robert F. ____ Mo
Teufel, John L. _____ Ore
Tierney, Francis J. ____ NY
Toomey, William J. _________ Chi
Torralba, Luis F. _____ NY
Treacy, Gerald C. ____ MdNY
Tynan, John W. ------,- NY
Branch
Army
Army
AF
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Period
WWII
WWII
Kor.
WWI
WWI
Kor. & P-K
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
Verceles, Pedro P. -----"'~Vifquain, Victor L. ____
NY
Mo
Army
Army
WWII
WWII
\Valet, Robert E.
Wallenhorst, George A. __
Walsh, Henry L. ________
Walsh, Lincoln J. ____
Walsh, Philip X. ------Walter, William J. ______
Ward, Thomas P. ----Warth, George L.
Weber, John A. _
White, Henry P. - - - - Whitford, Clarence F. __
NO
Chi
Cal
NY
NY
NY
NY
Chi
Chi
MdNY
Mo
Army
Army
Army
Army
Navy
Army
Navy
Army
Army
Army
Navy
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
WWII
WWII
WWII, Kor. & P-K
WWII
WWII
WWI
WWII
Zimmerman, Frederick L. __
Mo
Army
WWII
~-
I
�A NOTE ON SERVICE BIOGRAPHIES
An effort has been made to achieve uniformity in the following service
biographies. Where it has been available, the following information
has been included:
1. Chaplain's name and province to which he belonged during his
period of service.
2. The first paragraph indicates date of birth, entrance into the
Society, ordination. If there has been a change of province subsequent
to service, this is indicated. The results of the New York-Buffalo
Province division which occurred in June 1960 are not included.
3. The second paragraph contains information on the first tour of
duty in the following sequence:
a. Date of Commission (or appointment which precedes date of
commission) and branch. Unless othenvise noted, all initial
Army commissions are as First Lieutenant.
b. Serial number. These were first issued to officers subsequent to
World War I.
c. Date of appointment to various ranks. The earliest date a certain rank was held is indicated. Thus, if a chaplain was appointed Major in the Reserve in 1947 and a Major in the
National Guard in 1949, the date of the 1947 appointment is
given. In general, with the frequent exception of National
Guard ranks, no distinction is made as to component in which
the rank is held.
d. Date and place of assignments. These are indicated as follows:
i. an inclusive date (e.g., 3 Jan 1944 to 17 Feb 1945).
ii. a single date (e.g., 3 Jan 1944) which indicates usually the
date that a chaplain was assigned to a particular command.
iii. a year date (e.g., 1944; or 1944 to 1946) which indicates
either that the bulk of the year was spent in the assignment, or the year in which he was transferred to the assignment.
e. Date of release from service:
i. reverted to inactive status: i.e., the date after terminal
leave that the chaplain left the service.
ii. relieved of active duty: i.e., date before terminal leave began. The term "Discharged" was ordinary World War I
usage and has no pejorative connotation.
4. An additional paragraph covers a second tour of duty if the
chaplain was recalled.
5. Awards.
6. Date of death.
Information has been added where available. If, for example, reserve
duty is indicated for one chaplain, this does not deny that another
chaplain may also have performed reserve duty.
347
�WORLD WAR I
Sources:
1. United States Catholic Chaplains in the World War, George J.
Waring.
2. Woodstock Letters. 49, 262-3. Service records of all Missouri
Province chaplains.
3. The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States Navy, Clifford
M. Drury. Volume III.
4. Records in the archives of the Office of Chief of Chaplains, United
States Army.
Anderson, Edward P. (Missouri)
Born: 9 May 1873. EnJered Society: 5 Sep 1893. Ordained: 26 Jun
1907.
..
Commissioned in the Army 29 Aug 1918 at Newport News, Va.
Served as chaplain aboard the transport Kursk on which he made two
trips to Brest during the war, and at Debarkation Hospital 5, New York
City. Discharged at Hoboken, N.J., on 17 Mar 1919 as First Lieutenant.
Died 17 Mar 1945 at Cincinnati, Ohio, as a member of the Chicago
Province.
Bailey, George Monballiu (California)
Born: 19 Feb 1878. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1897. Ordained: 26 Jul
1912. Present Province: Oregon.
Entered the Army on 1 Jun 1918 at Camp Zachary Taylor, Ky., and
served at Montfaucon Sector, Camp Meucon, Paris, Gondrecourt, Rimaucourt, Antwerp and Spartanburg. He was in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive and St. Mihiel Defensive with the 3rd Battalion of the 315th
Infantry. Discharged as First Lieutenant at Camp~·Lewis, Wash., 15
Oct 1919.
Boyle, Terence J. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 29 Mar 1874. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1895. Ordained: 30
Jul 1910.
Entered the Army at Governors Island in 1918 and was assigned to
the Base Hospital at Camp Merritt, N.J. (Oct 1918 to Dec 1918) and
later to transport service aboard the U.S.S. Frederick. Returned to
Camp Merritt, N.J., (Mar 1919 to Sep 1919). Commissioned as chaplain with the rank of Captain in the Officers' Reserve Corps, 30th Infantry, 1919.
Died 28 Nov 1952 at New York City, as a member of the New York
Province.
Bracken, Edward J. (Missouri)
Born: 2 Aug 1881. Entered Society: 31 Aug 1901.
Jun 1916.
348
Ordained: 28
�IN ARMED SERVICES
349
Entered the A1my at Cincinnati, Ohio, 14 Aug 1918, and was assigned to Headquarters, Detention Camp 1, 164th Depot Brigade, Camp
Funston, Kan. (Sep 1918 to Nov HJ18). Discharged with the rank of
First Lieutenant, 2 Dec 1918. Commissioned in the Officers' Reserve
Corps and assigned to the 308th Engineers, 83rd Division, as regimental
chaplain.
Died 14 Jul 1955 at Cleveland, Ohio, as a member of the Detroit
Province.
Connor, Charles F. (:Maryland-New York)
Born: 8 Feb 1881. Entered Society: 18 Sep 1900. Ordained: 28 Jun
1915.
Commissioned 30 Mar 1918. Served in the AEF with the 306th Field
Signal Corps, 324th Infantry, Headquarters 81st Division, Headquarters
Army of Occupation and 26th Infantry. In action at St. Die Sector,
Meuse-Argonne. Discharged 27 Sep 1919, Camp Dix, N.J.
Died 15 Dec 1956 at Poughkeepsie, N.Y., as a member of the New
York Province.
Corboy, William. J. (Missouri)
Born: 12 Aug 1878. Entered Society: 11 Aug 1897. Ordained: 27
Jun 1912.
Entered the Army 12 Feb 1918 at Camp Funston, Kan. Served at
Camp Funston and Fortress Monroe in the United States. Overseas
he served in Camp de Souge and St. Mihiel, France, and in the Coblenz
area, Germany. He was in the engagements at St. Mihiel and the Argonne. He was discharged 5 Jun 1919 at Camp Dodge, Ia., with the
rank of First Lieutenant.
Died 10 Apr 1951 at Omaha, Neb., as a member of the Chicago Province.
Cotter, John A. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 9 Apr 1874~ Entered Society: 14 Aug 18!)3. Ordained: 20 Jun
1909.
Entered the Army 24 Jul 1918 and served at Camp Humphreys, Va.
and Fort McHenry, Md. Discharged with the rank of First Lieutenant
at Fort McHenry 21 Jan 1!)1!).
Died 18 Jul 1050 at Brooklyn as a member of the New York Province.
Dalton, Hugh A. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 1 Sep 1879. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1899. Ordained: 28 Jun
1915.
Entered the Army in New York 6 Apr 1918. Sent to Chaplains'
Training School, Camp Zachary Taylor, Ky. Assigned to Army Transport Service duty at Hoboken, N.J., and made trips on the U.S.S. Siboney, Kroonland and George Washington. Discharged at Hoboken,
N.J., with the rank of First Lieutenant 1 Apr 1919. Commissioned as
�350
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
First Lieutenant in the Officers' Reserve Corps 29 Aug 1919.
Died 14 Nov 1950 at Wernersville, Pa., as a member of the Maryland
Province.
Delihant, Thomas J. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 18 May 1878. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1897. Ordained: Jun
1912.
To Army training school 23 Aug 1918. Commissioned as First Lieutenant 26 Sep 1918. Discharged Camp Lee, Va., 25 Aug 1919. Appointed First Lieutenant in the Officers' Reserve Corps 20 Oct 1919.
Died 28 Feb 1949 at Reading, Pa., as a member of the Maryland
Province.
Dinand, Augustine A. (Caliiornia)
Born: 23 Aug 1872. Entered Society: 16 Aug 1894. Ordained: 26
May 1907.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant 17 Oct 1918. Served at Camp
Lewis, Wash., until10 May 1919.
Died 4 Aug 1939 at Weston, Mass., as a member of the Oregon Province.
Duffy, Edward P. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 26 May 1881. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1899. Ordained: 28
Jun 1914.
Commissioned in -the Navy as Lieutenant (j.g.) 6 Apr 1918. To the
rank of Lieutenant 23 Sep 1919. Assignment: Brooklyn Navy Yard
and receiving station, Bay Ridge, N.Y. (16 Apr 1918 to 18 Sep 1919).
Resigned 20 Sep 1919.
Died 1 Apr 1952 at New York City as a member.-qf the New York
Province.
Falley, Louis A. (Missouri)
Born: 29 Nov 1872. Entered Society: 26 Jul 1892. Ordained: 26 Jun
1907.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army 18 Sep 1918. Overseas
from Nov 1918 to Jun 1919. Served in the Toul Sector with the 64th
Infantry; at Base Hospital 113, Savenay, France; and with the 7th
Division at Camp Funston, Kan. Discharged 5 Jul 1920 at Camp Funston, Kan.
Died 3 Oct 1943 at West Baden, Ill., as a member of the Chicago
Province.
Fleuren, Henry R. (New Orleans)
Born: 18 May 1873. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1892. Ordained: 28
Jun 1906.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 8 Nov 1918. Served
at Camp Stewart, Va., and in the Transport Service. Discharged 7
�IN ARMED SERVICES
351
Oct 1919 at Camp Pike, Ark.
Died 29 Jul1938 at El Paso, Texas.
Foley, William F. (Missouri)
Born: 4 Nov 1878. Entered Society: 5 Nov 1901. Ordained: 28 Jun
1916. Present Province: Detroit.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army 15 Nov 1918 and discharged 26 Nov 1918 at Camp Taylor, Ky.
Fox, George G. (California)
Born: 28 Apr 1878. Entered Society: 7 Dec 1898. Ordained: 27 Jul
1913.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 10 Aug 1918. Served
at Fort Worden, Fort Casey, Fort Flagler (all in the state of Washington). Discharged 7 Jan 1919.
Died 12 Jun 1943 at Santa Barbara, Cal.
Gaynor, Hugh A. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 28 Jul 1873. Entered Society: 3 Aug 1897. Ordained: 30 Jul
1910.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 1 Aug 1918. Served
at Camp Gordon, Ga., Camp McClellan, Ala., and Camp Bowie, Tex.
Discharged 28 Feb 1919 at Camp Bowie.
Died 26 Nov 1939.
Jessup, Michael (Maryland-New York)
Born: 29 Sep 1873. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1894. Ordained: 31
Jul 1910.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 20 Jul 1918. Served
with the 155th Depot Brigade at Camp Lee, Va., until discharge 6 Jan
1919. Commissioned in the Officers' Reserve Corps as 1st Lieutenant,
304th Field Artillery, 77th Division.
Died 24 Feb 1933 at New York.
Kane, William T. (Missouri)
Born: 20 Oct 1880. Entered Society: 26 Jul 1898. Ordained: 26
Jun 1913.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 11 Jan 1918. Served
with the 110th Ammunition Train of the 35th Division, AEF. Overseas
from 19 May 1918 to 20 Apr 1919. Engagements: Vosges Sector; St.
l'.Hhiel Offensive; Meuse-Argonne Offensive; Sommedieue Sector. Cited
during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Discharged 22 May 1919 at Camp
Funston, Kan.
Died 29 Dec 1946 at Chicago as a member of the Chicago Province.
Kenedy, Eugene T. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 10 Feb 1880. Entered Society: 14 Jan 1899.
Ordained: 28
�352
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Jun 1914. Present Province: New York.
Commissioned in the Army 28 Feb 1918. Served at Blois, France,
(1 Apr 1918 to 15 l\lay 1918); with the Rainbow Division (16 May 1918
to 3 May 1919). Was in action in the Lorraine Sector ( 16 May 1918
to 10 Jun 1918); Champagne Sector (4 July 1918 to 20 July 1918);
Chateau-Thierry (20 Jul 1918 to 2 Aug 1918) ; St. Mihiel (10 Sep 1918
to 30 Sep 1918) ; Argonne (10 Oct 1918 to 11 Nov 1918). Discharged
3 l\lay 1919 at Fort Devens, Mass.
King, Terence (New Orleans)
Born: 9 Apr 1881. Entered Society: 25 Jan 1899. Ordained: 2 Aug
1914.
Commissioned in the Arr~y 19 Apr 1918. Served with the 18th Infantry, 1st Division. In actibn at the Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, and Argonne (two phases). Discharged 13 Sep 1919 at Camp Gordon as First
Lieutenant. Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Officers' Reserve
Corps 17 Feb 1920.
Laherty, John J. (California)
Born: 23 Mar 1879. Entered Society: 9 Jun 1894. Ordained: 30 Apr
1910.
Commissioned in the Navy as Lieutenant (j.g.) 9 Aug 1918. Served
on Receiving Ship, Puget Sound Navy Yard (9 Aug 1918 to 30 Jun
1919). Discharged -at San Francisco 1 Jul 1919.
Died at San Jose 30 Mar 1957.
Lynch, Daniel J. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 1 Jan 1879. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1900.~-'<Jrdained: 28 Jun
1916.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 16 Apr 1918. Stationed at Blois and Tours with the 310th Infantry, 78th Division.
Brigaded with the British near Arras. In action at the St. Mihiel
Offensive at Thiaucourt, and Liney Sector at St. Juvin in MeuseArgonne Offensive. Cited by General Pershing in a letter dated 11 Nov
1919 for conspicuous and meritorious service at Bois des Loges. Discharged 29 May 1919 at Camp Lee, Va.
To the rank of Captain 31 Dec 1924; to Major (National Guard) 20
Jul 1935; to Lieutenant Colonel (National Guard) 15 May 1936. Recalled to the Army 16 Jan 1941. Serial number: 0208785. Assignment:
assistant chaplain 26th Division at Camp Edwards, Mass. and Fort
Devens, Mass. (16 Jan 1941 to 19 Feb 1942). Honorably discharged
7 May 1942 for physical disability resulting from heart attack. Appointed Brigadier General, Massachusetts Organized Militia, 16 Dec
1946.
A ward: Purple Heart.
Died 13 Nov 1952 at Boston as a member of the New England Province.
�-
Father Richard R. Rankin (Md-NY) was one of the first two Jesuits
commissioned for service in World War I.
��IN ARMED SERVICES
353
McDonnell, Charles A. (Missouri)
Born: 31 Mar 1875. Entered Society: 14 Sep 1892. Ordained: 28
Jun 1907.
Commissioned in the Army 27 Sep 1918. Stationed at Camp Bowie,
Tex., and Fort Sam Houston, Tex. Discharged 16 Jun 1919 at Fort
Sam Houston as First Lieutenant.
Died 10 May 1957 at Florissant.
McNulty, Hugh J. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 22 Jan 1877. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1895. Ordained: 30 Jul
1910.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 19 Aug 1918. Discharged 21 Feb 1919.
Died at Brooklyn 19 Jan 1947 as a member of the New York Province.
l\lilet, Henry P. (Missouri)
Born: 13 Feb 1875. Entered Society: 25 Jul 1893. Ordained: 26
Aug 1908. Present Province: Chicago.
Commissioned in the Army 31 Jul 1918. Served with 333rd Infantry,
84th Division, at St. Astier (Dordogne), France and with the 132nd
Infantry, 33rd Division, at Vieville, France, and Consdorf, Luxemburg.
Overseas from Sep 1918 to May 1919. Discharged as First Lieutenant
at Camp Sherman, Ohio, 31 May 1919.
Moakley, James I. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 30 Aug 1870. Entered ~ociety: 14 Aug 1890. Ordained: 28
Jun 1904.
Commissioned 16 Sep 1918. Served with the 112th Machine Gun
Battalion, 29th Division, in France, and with the 5th Marines, 2nd
Division, Coblenz, Germany. Discharged at Camp Dix, N.J., as First
Lieutenant 25 Aug 1919.
Died 3 Nov 1945 at Poughkeepsie as a member of the New York Province.
Morning, John A. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 22 May 1882. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1900. Ordained: 28
Jun 1916.
Entered the Army 29 Jul 1918. Served at Camp Wheeler, Ga., and
at Bassens, Gironde, France. Discharged 21 Jul 1919 at Camp Dix,
N.J., as First Lieutenant.
Died 8 Dec 1946 at Philadelphia as a member of the Maryland Province.
Mortell, John T. (Missouri)
Born: 18 Aug 1878. Entered Society: 26 Jul 1896. Ordained: 1911.
Commissioned in the Army 4 Dec 1917. Served at Camp Gordon,
Ga., and in the AEF. In action in the Toul Sector Defensive, at the
�354
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Meuse-Argonne, and at St. Mihiel. Assigned to the 307th Engineers,
82nd Division. Discharged at Fort Sheridan, Ill., as First Lieutenant
31 May 1919.
Died 25 May 1940 at Chicago as a member of the Chicago Province.
O'Brien, Richard A. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 15 Aug 1880. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1897. Ordained: 28 Jun
1912.
Commissioned 13 Apr 1918. Served in France and Germany. In action at the Meuse-Argonne. Discharged as First Lieutenant at Camp
Dix, N.J., 10 Jul1919.
Died 5 Dec 1933 at Manila.
'
Rankin, Richard R. (M~ryland-New York)
Born: 26 Jan 1881. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1899. Ordained: 27
Jun 1914.
Appointed to the Army 20 Aug 1917. Called to active duty 18 Sep
1917. Served at Syracuse, N.Y. and Camp Greene, N.C. With the AEF
to France 10 May 1918. In action at the Defensive Section of Meaux,
Aisne-JI.Iarne, St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne. Promoted to the rank
of Captain 7 Apr 1919. Resigned Regular Army commission 1 Sep
1919. Appointed to the Officers' Reserve Corps 4 Apr 1921 with serial
number 0133739. To Inactive Reserve 28 Jan 1941.
Awards: Silver Star; Croix de Guerre.
Died at Georgetown 19 Aug 1949 as a member of the New York
Province.
Reynolds, Robert F. (Maryland-New York)
-Born: 19 Dec 1871. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1892. Ordained: 27
Jun 1907.
Commissioned 21 Oct 1918. Served at General Hospital 11, Cape May,
N.J. until his discharge as First Lieutenant 10 Jull919.
Died 10 Dec 1941 at Poughkeepsie.
Ryan, Charles .l\1. (Missouri)
Born: 29 Mar 1881. Entered Society: 25 Jul1898. Ordained: 26 Jun
1913.
Commissioned 27 Aug 1917. Served at Camp Douglas, Wis., Camp
Greene, N.C., and Plattsburg, N.Y. Overseas from 23 May 1918 to 20
Jul 1919. In the AEF with the 16th Field Artillery, 4th Division. In
action at the Aisne-Marne Offensive, St. Mihiel Offensive, and MeuseArgonne Offensive~ both phases. Wounded in the knee by machine gun
fire at San Thibaud, Vesle River, 6 Aug 1918. Spent three days in
the hospital as the result of an enemy gas attack. Discharged 21 Oct
1919 at Camp Zachary Taylor, Ky., as First Lieutenant.
Died 13 Feb 1941 at Cleveland as a member of Chicago Province.
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
355
Schuetz, Charles E. (Missouri)
Born: 5 Sep 1875. Entered Society: 12 Aug 1896. Ordained: 30 Jun
1910.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 16 Oct 1918. Served
at Camp Grant, Ill., and Fort Sheridan, Ill. Discharged 1 Apr 1919 at
Fort Sheridan.
Died 21 May 1946 at St. Louis.
Stinson, William l\1. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 20 Aug 1876. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1894. Ordained: 30
Jul 1910.
Commissioned in the Army 15 Aug 1918. Served in the AEF. In
action at the battle of the Argonne, 22 Oct 1918 to 11 Nov 1918. Discharged 16 Jun 1919 at Fort Dix, N.J., as First Lieutenant.
Died 21 Mar 1935 at Chestnut Hill as a member of New England
Province.
Tallmadge, Archibald J. (Missouri)
Born: 23 Jan 1872. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1894. Ordained: 28 Aug
1908.
Commissioned 23 Jul 1918. Assigned to Marine Training Station,
Parris Island; transferred to Camp Spartanburg, S.C., and in December
to Camp Joseph E. Johnston, Fla. Discharged as First Lieutenant 14
Mar 1919. Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Officers' Reserve
Corps.
Died 3 Nov 1945 at St. Louis.
Tallmadge, Robert F. (Missouri)
Born: 4 May 1881. Entered Society: 26 July 1901. Ordained: 28
Jun 1916. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Commissioned in the Army 16 Sep 1918. Served at Base Hospital
Camp Lee, Va., until his discharge as First Lieutenant 31 Mar 1919.
Treacy, Gerald C. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 26 Jan 1883. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1898. Ordained: 28
Jun 1914. Present Province: New York.
Commissioned in the Army 20 Aug 1917. Served with the 39th Infantry at Syracuse, N.Y., Camp Greene, N.C., Camp Mills, N.Y., and
Mineola, N.Y. Resigned 3 Jul 1918 for reasons of health.
Walsh, Henry L. (California)
Born: 21 Nov 1879. Entered Society: 11 Jun 1895. Ordained: 27 Jun
1912.
Commissioned in the Army 16 Apr 1918. Served at Fort MacArthur,
Cal., until his discharge as First Lieutenant 12 Dec 1918.
Died 13 May 1956.
�356
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
White, Henry P. (Maryland-New York)
Born: 31 Jan 1882. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1897. Ordained: 29
Jun 1913.
Commissioned in the Army 28 Sep 1918. Served at Camp Zachary
Taylor, Ky.; in France with the 127th Infantry, 32nd Division; and in
Germany at Herschbach and Selters. In action at the Meuse-Argonne.
Discharged at Camp Lee, Va., as First Lieutenant 3 May 1919.
Died 29 Aug 1933 at Washington.
�WORLD WAR II
Sources:
1. Questionnaires sent to individual Jesuits. Infonnation on deceased
Jesuits was sought from the archives of the Provinces to which
they belonged.
2. Records in the Offices of the Chiefs of Chaplains United States
Army, Navy and Air Force.
3. The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States Navy. Volumes III, IV & V.
Allen, PaulL. (Chicago)
Born: 29 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 31 Aug 1925. Ordained: 23
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 20 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550536. To
the rank of Captain 16 Mar 1945; to Major 28 Dec 1945. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (30 Apr 1944); 174th Infantry, Camp Chaffee, Ark.; Tinsukia, Assam, India; Karachi, India; Calcutta, India.
Reverted to inactive status 24 Jun 1946.
Babb, William H. (New Orleans)
Born: 3 Dec 1904. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1922. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 22 Sep 1941. Serial
number: 116082. To Lieutenant 1 Oct 1942; to Lieutenant Commander
17 Oct 1944. Assignments: 11th Naval District (30 Oct 1941 to 24 Jun
1942); U.S.S. Colorado (battleship) (29 Jun 1942 to 10 Dec 1943);
Naval Training Station, Newport (10 Jan 1944 to 25 Aug 1944); Marine Air Station, Eagle Mountain Lake, Tex. (4 Sep 1944 to 23 Mar
1945); Marine Fleet Air Wing, Miramar (4 Apr 1945 to 23 May 1945);
Marine· Air Wing #3 (8 June 1945 until relief). Reverted to inactive
status 15 Feb 1946. Resigned from Naval Reserve 24 Aug 1950.
Barnett, James R. (New York)
Born: 2 Mar 1905. Entered Society: 22 Feb 1925. Ordained: 20 J un
1937.
Appointed to the Army 9 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0442027. To
the rank of Captain.2 Apr 1943; to Major 24 Mar 1946. Assignments:
Chaplain School (12 Jul 1942); Camp Wheeler, Ga. and Camp Maxey,
Tex.; New Caledonia, New Hebrides, Philippines and Japan. Served in
the United States with the 102nd Division; overseas with 27th Station
Hospital, 25th Evacuation Hospital and 168th Evacuation Hospital.
Reverted to inactive status 3 Jul 1946.
357
.II
�358
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Barras, Gabriel J. (New Orleans)
Born: 12 Jun 1901. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1916. Ordained: 23
Jun 1929.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 11 Sep 1942. Serial number: 209325. To Lieutenant Commander 10 Jul 1945; to Commander 1
Jan. 1951. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (19 Oct 1942 to
25 Dec 1942); Navy Hospital, Oakland, Cal. (Dec 1942 to Aug 1943);
District Coast Guard Headquarters, Ketchikan, Alaska (Sep 1943 to
~ep 1944); Naval Air Station, Ottumwa, Ia. (Oct 1944 to Jul 1945);
U.S.S. Starlight (personnel transport ship) (Jul 1945 until relieved
of duty). Reverted to inactive status 13 Jan 1946.
Recalled to active duty 15 Aug 1950. Assignments: U.S. Marines,
Camp Pendleton, Oceanside1• Cal. (Aug 1950 to Apr 1951) ; U.S.S. Oriskany (carrier) in Mediterranean and at Brooklyn Navy Yard (Apr
1952 to Jun 1952), and on West Coast and in Pacific and Korean Waters
(Jun 1952 to Jun 1953); Marine Air Station, El Toro, Cal. (Jun 1953
to Oct 1956); 1st Marine Air Wing, Japan (Oct 1956 to Nov 1957);
Naval Hospital, San Diego, Cal. (Jan 1958 to Oct 1959). Reverted to
inactive status 22 Oct 1959.
Barrett, Alfred J. (New York)
Born: 26 Jun 1906. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1924. Ordained: 20 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the ~Army 16 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0496452. To
the rank of Captain 21 Aug 1943; to Major 22 Feb 1946. Assignments:
8th Service Command, Camp Wallace, Tex. (21 Sep 1942 to 11 Jan
1944); Harvard Chaplain School (1 Jan 1943 to 30 Jan 1943); 94th
General Hospital, Camp Barkeley, Tex. (11 Jan 194{.-to 12 Feb 1944);
94th General Hospital, England (Feb 1944 to Dec 1945); Mourmelon
Garrison Area, France (Dec 1945). Reverted to inactive status 22 Apr
1946.
Died 9 Nov 1955.
Barry, John L. (New England)
Born: 13 Jan 1911. Entered Society: 9 Nov 1928. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 11 May 1945. Serial
Number: 0931664. To the rank of Captain 31 March 1953. Assignment: Fort Jackson, S.C. (1945 to 1946).
Recalled to active duty Aug 1951. Assignments: Fort Leonard Wood,
Mo. (Aug 1951 to Dec 1951); Camp Gifu, Japan (Mar 1952 to May
1952); 11th Evacuation Hospital, Korea (May 1952 to Sep 1952) ; 7th
Division Artillery (Sep 1952 to Aug 1953); Fort Lee, Va. (Sep 1953 to
May 1955); Berlin, Germany (May 1955 to Feb 1958); Goppingen, Germany (Feb 1958 to Apr 1959); Headquarters, 5th USA, Chicago (May
1959 to present). Still on active duty.
A wards: Bronze Star; Purple Heart.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
359
Bartley, Edward L. (New York)
Born: 18 Feb 1910. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1928. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 5 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0543012. To the
rank of Captain 8 Jun 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School
(10 Feb 1944) ; New Orleans Port of Eni'barkation (20 Mar 1944) ;
Station Hospital, New Orleans Port of Embarkation (28 Feb 1945).
Died of cancer at New Orleans while still in service with the Army
26 Oct 1945.
Beckwith, Albert A. (New York)
Born: 11 Aug 1909. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1927. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 13 Jun 1942. Serial number: 0478276. To
the rank of Captain 15 1\Iar 1943; to Major 22 Jan 1947. Assignments:
Station Hospital, Camp Pickett, Va. (10 Jul 1942); Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1943 to 30 Jan 1943); 346 Station Hospital, Valley Forge
General Hospital, Phoenixville, Pa. (early 1943); 157th Station Hospital, Valley Forge General Hospital, in Phoenixville (14 Sep 1943),
in Liverpool, England (1 Aug 1944), at Camp Sibert, Ala. (28 Aug
1945); 1449 SCU, Fort Bragg, N.C. (22 Sep 1945); Welch Hospital,
Daytona Beach, Fla. (2 Apr 1946); 473rd Quartermaster Group, Pacific
(17 Sep 1946); 1st Replacement Depot, Korea (24 Dec 1946). Reverted to inactive status 23 Mar 1947.
·
Bischofberger, George (Missouri)
Born: 14 Mar 1909. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1928. Ordained: 18
Jun 1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g) in the Navy 10 May 1944. Serial
number: 398873. To Lieutenant 1 Jan 1946; to Lieutenant Commander
1 Apr 1952. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (3 Jul
1944 to 27 Aug 1944); U.S.S. Menard (attack transport, APA 201) on
which he served in the Pacific area during amphibious operations and
on transport duty (31 Oct 1944 to 15 Mar 1946); Great Lakes, Ill.,
Separation Center (Apr 1946 to 29 Jun 1946). Reverted to inactive
status 2 Aug 1946.
Boggins, Joseph P. (Chicago)
Born: 13 Feb 1905. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1923. Ordained: 24 Jun
1936. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 13 Sep 1941. Serial number: 0427410. To
the rank of Captain 23 Sep 1942. Assignments: Daniel Field, Augusta,
Ga. (Sep 1941); 22nd A.B. Group, Brisbane, Australia (22 Jul 1942);
45th Anti-Submarine Group, Townsville, Australia (26 Apr 1943);
45th Anti-Submarine Group, Port Moresby, New Guinea (20 May
1943); 480th Service Squadron, Oro Bay, New Guinea (30 Oct 1943);
Headquarters, Advanced Echelon, 5th Air Force, Brisbane, Australia
�360
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
(28 Feb 1944); Army Air Force Station #1 (11 Aug 1944); 5th Service Command, Camp Atterbury, Ind. (13 Oct 1944); 3505th Air Force
Base Unit, Scott Field, Ill. (27 Nov 1944) ; Fort Devens, Mass. (13
May 1945); returned to 3505th Air Force Base Unit, Scott Field, Ill.
(end of 1945). Reverted to inactive status 7 Jan 1946.
Boland, Carroll .M. (Missouri)
Born: 4 Apr 1903. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1924. Ordained: 21
Jun 1936.
Appointed to the Army 29 Sep 1941. Serial number: 0428318. To
the rank of Captain 5_ Feb 1943. Assignments: General Hospital,
Charleston, S.C.; Camp 'Blanding, Fla.; Casablanca, French Morocco
for fifteen months; witn'"the 5th Army in Italy. In the United States
and overseas with 6th General Hospital (Harvard General) ; also
served overseas with 32nd Station Hospital on detached service for a
short period of time. Father Boland was the only Catholic chaplain
the 6th General Hospital had in its service history. Reverted to inactive status 9 Feb 1946.
Boland, Joseph E. (Missouri)
Born: 10 Apr 1905. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1925. Ordained: 24
Jun 1937.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 10 Feb 1943. Serial
number: 254893. To Lieutenant 1 Jun 1944. Assignments: Chaplain
School (8 Mar 1943 to 9 1\Iay 1943); Naval Construction Training Center, Camp Peary, Va. (15 May 1943 to 28 Dec 1943); U.S.S. General
R. lV. Butner (troop ship APA 113) in the Pacific· area (30 Dec 1943
to 25 Jun 1945); Naval Air Station, Quonset Point,.- R.I. (31 Jul 1945
until relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive status 2 Apr 1946. Appointed Lieutenant Commander in the Naval Reserve. Resigned from
the Naval Reserve 1 Sep 1955.
Bonn, John L. (New Orleans)
Born: 23 Oct 1906. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1923. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 7 Apr 1943. Serial
number: 307221. To Lieutenant 1 Jan 1945. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (13 Sep 1943 to 7 Nov 1943); Naval Training
Station, Great Lakes, Ill. (19 Nov 1943 to 22 Jan 1944); Naval Air Station, Ottumwa, Ia. (27 Jan 1944 to 21 Oct 1944); 13th Naval District
(Northwest coast of U.S.) (2 Jan 1945 until relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive status 31 Oct 1945. Retired from the Naval Reserve
1 Jan 1954.
Bowdern, William S. (Missouri)
Born: 13 Feb 1897. Entered Society: 25 Jul 1914.
1928.
Ordained: 27 Jun
�I
Fat~er Charles F. Suver (Ore) distributing Holy Communion on Mount Suribachi,
lwo Jima, on 23 FeQruary 1945, less than one hour after the raising of the flag
by American Marines. (U.S. Marine Corps photo)
�-·
�I
IN ARMED SERVICES
361
Appointed to the Army 14 Jul 1942. Serial number: 0483705. To
the rank of Captain 29 Nov 1943; to Major 6 May 1946. Assignments
in the United States: Fort George Meade, Md.; Fort Hancock, N.J.
Assignments overseas: Newfoundland, India, Luzon. Served with the
following units overseas: 3rd Infantry Regiment; Headquarters IndiaBurma Theater; 686th Clearing Company; 607th Clearing Company;
85th Station Hospital. Reverted to inactive status 6 May 1946.
Boylan, Bernard R. (New England)
Born: 5 May 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1924. Ordained: 21
Jun 1936.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 6 Mar 1943. Serial
number: 262652. To Lieutenant 1 J un 1944. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (18 Apr 1943 to 6 Jun 1943); Naval Hospital, New River, N.C. (18 Jun 1943 to 7 Apr 1944); with Commander,
7th Fleet, Australia (Apr 1944 to 14 Jun 1945); 88th Naval Construction Battalion, New Guinea (14 Jun 1945 to 8 Oct 1945); Naval Air Base
#3964, Philippines (8 Oct 1945 to 14 Dec 1945). Reverted to inactive
status 28 Mar 1946. Appointed Lieutenant Commander in the Naval
Reserve. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 9 Feb 1951.
Award: Navy and Marine Corps Medal.
Bradstreet, John R. (California)
Born: 4 Aug 1903. Entered Society: 6 Aug 1924. Ordained: 21 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the Army 20 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0516341. To
the rank of Captain 15 Jan 1944; to Major 21 Jan 1947; to Lieutenant
Colonel 15 Mar 1954. Assignments: Assistant Post Chaplain, Camp
White, Ore. (6 Apr 1943 to 15 Jan 1944); 83rd General Hospital, England and France (15 Jan 1944 to 20 Jun 1945); 71st Regiment, 44th
Division, France and Camp Chaffee, Ark. (20 Jun 1945 to 1 Sep 1945);
Anti-aircraft Battalion, Oahu, Hawaii (Nov 1945 to 19 Jul 1946). Reverted to inactive status 16 Oct 1946.
Recalled to active service 15 Oct 1950. Assignments: Amphibious
Brigade, Fort MacArthur, Cal. (Oct 1950 to May 1951); Amphibious
Brigade, Fort Worden, Wash. (May 1951 to Oct 1951); Mercy Hospital,
Okinawa (Nov 1951 to Mar 1952) ; 29th Infantry Regiment, Okinawa
(Mar 1952 to 8 Dec 1952); 29th Topograph Battalion, Philippines
(8 Dec 1952 to 10 Dec 1953); Chaplain, Army Mental Hospital, Tokyo
(12 Dec 1953 to 30 Mar 1954); Army Security Agency, Tokyo (1 Apr
1954 to Dec 1954); 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga. (Dec
1954 to May 1955); Headquarters IX Corps, Sendai, Japan (6 Jun
1955 to 8 Jan 1956); Kapaun Retreat House, Oiso, Japan (13 Jan 1956
to 1 Apr 1957) ; 24th Infantry Division, Korea ( 4 Apr 1957 to 1 Sep
1957) ; Fort Monmouth, N.J. (15 Oct 1957 to 1 Dec 1958). Relieved of
active duty 1 Dec 1958.
�362
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Brennan, Thomas A. (New England)
Born: 27 Dec 1895. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1915. Ordained: 20
Jun 1928.
Appointed to the Army 4 Apr 1945. Serial number: 0931744. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort Devens, Mass. (11 May 1945 to 22
Jun 1945); Fort Mason, San Francisco, Cal. (22 Jun 1945 to· 7 Jul
1945); Camp Stoneman, Cal. (7 Jul 1945 to 14 Jul 1945); Fort Ord,
Cal. (14 Jul 1945 to 17 Apr 1946). Reverted to inactive status 17 May
1946. At present Captain in the Officers' Reserve Corps.
Brock, Laurence l\1. (New England)
Born: 30 May 1903. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1923. Ordained: 21
Jun 1935.
Appointed to the Army 16 Jan 1941. Serial number: 0403400. To
the rank of Major (182nd Infantry, Mass. N.G.) 15 Nov 1947; to Lieutenant Colonel 12 Apr 1958. Assignments: 182nd Infantry Regiment,
26th Division, Camp Edwards, Mass. (1941); 182nd Regiment, 26th
Division, Southwest Pacific Area (1942 to 1944) ; Fort Devens, Mass.
(20 Jul1944); 1448th SCU, Camp Blanding, Fla. (13 Nov 1944); 1400th
SCU, Headquarters, 4th Service Command, Atlanta, Ga. (29 Jul 1945).
Relieved of active duty 15 May 1946.
A ward: Legion of Merit.
Brown, John P. (1\Ia;yland)
Born: 19 Jul1907. Entered Society: 11 Feb 1928. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 8 Apr 1944. Serial number: .0549464. To the
rank of Captain 26 Apr 1945; to Major 31 Dec 1946.; to Lieutenant
Colonel 7 Jul 1951. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (30 Apr
1944); 13th Tank Destroyer Group, Fort Jackson, S. C. (6 Jun 1944);
372nd Station Hospital and 30th Station Hospital, India (1 Nov 1944);
475th Infantry Regiment, Myitkyina, Burma and Kunming, China (19
Feb 1945) ; U.S. Forces, China Theater (17 Sep 1945) ; 3rd Armored
Division, Fort Knox, Ky. (31 Aug 1947); U.S. Forces in Germany and
Austria (23 Jun 1949); Camp Kilmer, N.J. (11 Aug 1951); 47th Infantry Division, Camp Rucker, Ala. (10 Sep 1952); 2151 ASU, Aberdeen, Md. (23 Jul 1953); Camp Stoneman, Cal. (8 Feb 1954); 8202 AU,
Korea Military Advisory Group, Korea (27 May 1954) ; 7th Infantry
Division, Korea (22 Apr 1955); 4050 SU TAC, Fort Sill, Okla. (3 Oct
1955). Relieved of active duty 31 Jan 1957.
Award: Bronze Star.
Bryant, Robert T. (New Orleans)
Born: 9 Dec 1891. Entered Society: 11 Aug 1906. Ordained: 24
Jun 1922.
Appointed to the Army 6 Sep 1943. Serial number: 0533622. To the
rank of Captain 18 Jul 1945. Assignments: 6th Service Command, Fort
�IN ARMED SERVICES
363
Custer, Mich. (21 Sep 1943), and Fort Sheridan, Ill. (19 Oct 1943) ;
Harvard Chaplain School (Mar 1944); 7th Service Command Rehabilitation Center, Camp Phillips, Kan. (24 Mar 1944) and Jefferson Barracks, Mo. (31 Aug 1944); Finschhafen, New Guinea (30 Apr 1945);
1325th Service Command Unit, Separation Center, Indiantown Gap,
Pa. (26 Oct 1945). Reverted to inactive status 28 Aug 1946.
Bryant, Thomas J. (Chicago)
Born: 11 Nov 1904. Entered Society: 26 Jan 1928. Ordained: 23
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 19 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0532218. To
the rank of Captain 16 Dec 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (25 Sep 1943); 93rd General Hospital at Fort Meade, Md. (4
Nov 1943) and England (28 Feb 1944); !58th General Hospital, England (22 Jun 1945); Bremen, Germany (30 Sep 1945). Reverted to
inactive status 8 May 1946.
Burke, Daniel J. (New York)
Born: 3 Mar 1902. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1920. Ordained: 22 Jun
1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 10 Jan 1942. Serial number:
126139. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Mar 1943; to Commander 5 Nov
1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (2 Feb 1942 to 5
Mar 1942); U.S.S. Philadelphia (light cruiser) from 10 Jun 1942 to 2
Jan 1945 during which time he participated in the landings in North
Africa, Sicily, Anzio, Salerno and Southern France; Naval Training
Center, Miami, Fla. (26 Jan 1945 to Jan 1946); Receiving Station, Brooklyn, N.Y. (30 Jan 1946 to 19 Jun 1946). Reverted to inactive status
8 Sep 1946. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 3 Nov 1953.
Burke, Edmund F. (Missouri)
Born: 6 Jan 1907. Entered Society: 8 Aug 1925. Ordained: 22 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 3 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0530401. To the
rank of Captain 4 Apr 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School
(18 Aug 1943); 2nd Armored Group at Camp Cooke, Cal. (2 Oct 1943)
and Fort Ord, Cal. (Nov 1943) ; 322nd Infantry Regiment, 81st Division, Camp Beale, Cal. (31 May 1944), Hawaii and Central Pacific
(1944 and 1945); Headquarters, 15th Replacement Depot, Japan (26
Jan 1946); 1772nd Service Unit, Separation Center, Jefferson Barracks, Mo. (18 Apr 1946). Reverted to inactive status 24 Jun 1946.
Award: Silver Star.
Burns, Leo J. (Missouri)
Born: 7 Oct 1904. Entered Society: 31 Jan 1924. Ordained: 24 Jun
1936. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 12 May 1 ')42. Serial number: 0471008. To
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
the rank of Captain 4 Nov 1943; to Major 31 Jan 1946. Assignments
in the United States: Fitzsimons General Hospital, Denver, Colo.;
478th Port Battalion, Camp Plauche, New Orleans, La. Assignments
overseas: Headquarters 295th Infantry Regiment, Camp Tortugero,
Puerto Rico; Port Chaplain, Honolulu, Hawaii; Headquarters, Army
Port and Service Command, Pacific Islands. Reverted to inactive status
30 Mar 1947.
Buschmann, J. Peter (Chicago)
Born: 4 Jun 1907. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1927. Ordained: 31 Jul
1940.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 1 Apr 1945. Serial
number: 446159. To :Lieutenant 1 Jul 1954. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg (7 May 1945 to 30 Jun 1945); Naval Training
and Distribution Center, Camp Peary, Williamsburg, Va. (5 Jul 1945
to 18 Jan 1946); U.S.S. Hope (hospital ship) (1 Feb 1946 to 29 Apr
1946); Naval Hospital, San Leandro, Cal. (6 May 1946 to 7 Aug
1946). Reverted to inactive status 26 Aug 1946..
Byrne, John F. (Chicago)
Born: 4 Jul 1897. Entered Society: 25 Sep 1922. Ordained: 25 Jun
1933.
Appointed to tl!e Army 14 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0442932. To
the rank of Captain 5 Jun 1943; to Major 1 Feb 1945. Assignments:
58th Infantry Regiment, Ft. Lewis, Wash. (1942); 58th Infantry Regiment, Ft. Greely, Alaska (1943); Anchorage, Alaska (1944); Miami
Beach, Fla. (1945); Fort Sheridan, III. (1945 to 1946). Reverted to
inactive status 16 Jul 1946.
-·
Died of cancer 20 Jul1957.
Campbell, Daniel V. (Missouri)
Born: 31 Jul 1909. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1927. Ordained: 26 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 12 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0525143. To
the rank of Captain 29 May 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (14 Jul 1943); service with various units of the Air Transport
Command. Reverted to inactive status 11 Jun 1946.
Appointed to the Air Force with the rank of Major 20 Oct 1950.
Serial number: A0525143. Assignments: Kirtland Air Force Base, New
Mexico (Oct 1950 to Dec 1952); 51st Bomber Wing, Pacific Area (from
Jan 1953). Relieved of active duty 30 Aug 1955.
Cannon, Thomas B. (New York)
Born: 28 Feb 1905. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1921. Ordained: 24 Jun
1934. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 11 May 1944. Serial number: 0552314. To the
rank of Captain 27 Feb 1945; to Major 1 Oct 1953. Assignments in U.S.:
�IN ARMED SERVICES
365
Harvard Chaplain School (8 Jun 1944); Camp Hulen, Tex.; Camp
Beauregard, La.; Camp Polk, La.; Camp Carson, Colo.; Camp Swift,
Tex.; Fort Lewis, Wash. Overseas service with the lOth Mountain
Division in Italy and on the Italian-Jugoslav Border. Reverted to inactive status 13 May 1946.
Awards: Bronze Star Medal; Army Commendation Ribbon.
Carasig, Pablo 1\1. (New York)
Born: 5 Dec 1892. Entered Society: 8 Nov 1910. Ordained: 28 Jun
1925. Present Province: Argentina.
Commissioned in the Philippine Army and inducted into the United
States Forces in the Far East 29 Sep 1941. Serial number: 028487.
Joined guerilla forces 15 Aug 1944. Returned to military control 15
Sep 1945 and shortly after released from active duty with the rank of
Major.
Carey, Daniel J. (New York)
Born: 19 Oct 1909. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1927. Ordained: 23
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 27 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0551217. To
the rank of Captain 14 Apr 1945; to Major 3 Mar 1947. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (8 Jun 1944); Camp Haan, Cal.; 87th Infantry Division, Columbia, S.C.; Fort Riley, Kan.; Camp McCoy, Wis.;
417th Infantry Regiment, 76th Division in Belgium, Luxemburg and
Rhineland Campaigns; occupation duties with 16th Infantry. Regiment,
1st Infantry Division at Bamberg and Landshut, Germany. Reverted
to inactive status 24 Sep 1946.
Carr, Edwin F. (California)
Born: 28 Mar 1907. Entered Society: 22 Sep 1927. Ordained: 27
Jun 1940.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 19 Mar 1943. Serial
number: 262542. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Sep 1948; to Commander
1 Jul 1954. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (26 Apr
1943 to 21 Jun 1943); Naval Training Station, Great Lakes, Ill. (3 Jul
1943 to 8 Dec 1943); Amphibious Training Base, Tunisia (26 Jan 1944
to 26 Feb 1944) ; Amphibious Training Base, Bizerte (26 Feb 1944 to
8 Aug 1944); Naval Base Hospital #9, Oran, Algeria (10 Aug 1944 to
5 Oct 1944); Naval Detachment, Naples (10 Oct 1944 to 8 Nov 1944);
Naval Air Station, Port Lyautey, French Morocco (10 Nov 1944 to 5
Jun 1945); Naval Station, Seattle, Wash. (24 Jul 1945 to Nov 1945);
U.S.S. Mobile (cruiser) (Nov 1945 to 21 Mar 1946); Naval Hospital,
Camp Lejeune, N.C. (29 Mar 1946 until relieved). Reverted to inactive status 30 Jul1946.
Recalled to active duty 18 Aug 1950. Assignments: U.S.S. Rochester
(cruiser) (Sep 1950 to Jul 1952); Marine Corps School, Quantico, Va.
(Jul 1952 to Dec 1952). Reverted to inactive status Dec 1952.
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Carroll, Anthony G. (New England)
Born: 9 Aug 1906. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1922. Ordained: 23
Jun 1935.
Appointed to Army 12 Jan 1940. Serial number: 0386674. To the
rank of Captain 24 Apr 1942; to Major 12 May 1945. Assignments:
from 1942 to 1945 served with Army Air Force Units in Australia, New
Guinea, Philippines and Japan. Served in the United States and overseas with 102nd Coast Artillery. Overseas with the following units:
380th Bombardment Group; 8th Fighter Group; 5th Fighter Command. Reverted to inactive status 9 Nov 1946.
Carroll, James D. (New Orleans)
Born: 30 Apr 1905. E,ntered Society: 5 Sep 1923. Ordained: 24 Jun
1937.
..
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 23 Apr 1944. Serial number: 381302. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (5 Jun
1944 to 30 Jul 1944); Naval Hospital, Sampson, N.Y. (10 Aug 1944 to
28 Jul 1945); Naval Air Base, Personnel Department, San Bruno, Cal.
(10 Aug 1945 to 22 Oct 1945); U.S.S. Riverside (auxiliary passengerattack APA 102) (14 Nov 1945 to 8 Apr 1946); 1st Naval District (29
Apr 1946 to 1 Aug 1946). Reverted to inactive status 5 Sep 1946.
Cavanaugh, Paul W. (Chicago)
Born: 6 Jul 190L Entered Society: 1 Sep 1921. Ordained: 22 Jun
1934. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 17 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550270. To
the rank of Captain 24 Nov 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944); 106th Infantry Division, Camp Atterbury, Ind.
(Jun 1944 to Oct 1944); 106th Infantry Division, "Scotland, England,
Belgium, Germany; captured by German troops during the Battle of the
Bulge, 19 Dec 1944, and imprisoned at Stalag IXB, Bad Orb, and Oflag
XIIIB, Hammelburg; liberated 2 May 1945; hospitalized as a result of
leg injury at Percy Jones General Hospital, Battle Creek, Mich. (July
1945 to Aug 1946). Reverted to inactive status 29 Oct 1946.
Cervini, Andrew F. (New York)
Born: 13 Feb 1903. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1920. Ordained: 25 Jun
1933. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 15 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0935454. To
the rank of Captain 4 Mar 1946. Assignments: 73rd Infantry, Philippine Army (Mar 1942); prisoner of war at Iligan, Cagayan, Impalutao, Davao and Santo Tomas (1942 to 1945); Bushnell General Hospital, Brigham City, Utah (30 Sep 1945); 1258 SU, Willowbrook, N.Y.
(8 May 1946). Reverted to inactive status 26 Oct 1946.
A ward: Purple Heart.
Chehayl, George S. (Chicago)
Born: 29 Jan 1911. Entered Society: 31 Aug 1928.
Ordained: 18
I
·
I
'
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
367
Jun 1941. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 5 May 1945. Serial number: 0932132. To
the rank of Captain 24 Aug 1946; to Major 3 Aug 1951. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Fort Devens, Mass. (13 May 1945); 24th Division
Artillery, Philippines and Japan (1945 to 1948); Fort Knox, Ky. (9
Mar 1948). Reverted to inactive status 1 Nov 1948.
Recalled 4 Sep 1950. Assignments: Fort Sheridan, Ill.; 434th Engineer Construction Battalion, Camp Carson, Colo.; to Korea with
434th Construction Battalion (1950) ; transferred to 24th Division
Artillery shortly after arrival in Korea (1951); Fort Campbell, Ky.
(1952); Combat Command "'A", 2nd Armored Division, Germany (Dec
1952 to Aug 1954). Relieved of active duty 11 Aug 1954.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Clancy, John L. (New England)
Born: 25 Oct 1903. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1922. Ordained: 20 Jun
1934.
Commissioned in the Army as First Lieutenant 28 Dec 1937. Serial
number: 0361159. To the rank of Captain 20 Jun 1942; to Major 27
Sep 1945. Assignments: Chaplain, Civilian Conservation Corps; Fort
Edwards, Mass., with 68th Coast Artillery, 26th Division Special
Troops, 181st Infantry Regiment; Eastern Defense Command; Cushing
General Hospital, Framingham, Mass; Panamarim Field, Natal, Brazil;
served also with units of the Air Transport Command. Reverted to
inactive status 15 May 1946.
Clark, Charles D. (Missouri)
Born: 23 Dec 1901. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1919. Ordained: 22 Jun
1932.
Appointed to the Army 31 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0553090. To
the rank of Captain 1 Sep 1944; to Major 20 Feb 1947. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (24 Sep 1943) ; Sault Sainte Marie, Mich.;
Camp Edwards, Mass.; Suffolk Co. Air Base, Long Island, N.Y.; Camp
Davis, N.C.; Camp Haan, Cal.; Camp Howze, Tex.; Camp Bowie, Tex.;
Beaumont General Hospital, El Paso, Tex. Reverted to inactive status
31 Dec 1946.
Clark, Joseph M. (California)
Born: 10 Jun 1900. Entered Society: 27 Sep 1919. Ordained: 20 Jun
1932.
Appointed to the Army 31 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0445800. To
the rank of Captain 31 Oct 1942. Assignments: activated at Fort
Lewis, Wash. (6 Apr 1942); graduated IX Army Corps Officers' School,
Fort Lewis, Wash. (1 May 1942); Fort Ord, Cal. (May to Jul 1942);
Camp Kilmer, N.J. (Aug 1942); Camp Pickett, Va. (Sep to Oct 1942);
Casablanca, Morocco (Dec 1942 to Jul 1943) ; Sicily (Jun 1943 to May
1944) ; 35th Field Hospital, Italy (May 1944 to Oct 1945) ; separated
�368
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
from Army at Fort MacArthur, Cal. (8 Mar 1946).
charge from Reserve Commission 15 Apr 1949.
Honorable dis-
Coleman, Jeremiah F. (New England)
Born: 16 Jun 1911. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1928. Ordained: 22 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 6 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549368. To
the rank of Captain 4 Apr 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944) ; Headquarters, 3rd Air Force, Tampa, Fla. (16
May 1944); 335 AAF BU Dale Mabry Field, Fla. (15 Jun 1944); 354
AAF BU, Rapid City Air Base, S.D. (9 Nov 1945). Reverted to inactive status 14 Apr 1946.
Recalled 15 Jun 1951. Assignments: Camp Kilmer, N.J. (1951); Germany (1952). Returned··to Camp Kilmer and relieved of active duty
28 Oct 1952.
Connors, J. Bryan (New England)
Born: 15 Mar 1898. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1918. Ordained: 16
Jun 1931.
Appointed to the Army 27 Sep 1944. Serial number: 0927185. To
the rank of Captain 18 Sep 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort
Devens, Mass. (7 Oct 1944); Keesler Field, Biloxi, Miss. (1944 to
1946). Reverted to inactive status 20 May 1946.
Consunji, Agustin S. (New York)
Born: 5 May 1891. Entered Society: 20 Jul 1911. Ordained: 28 Jun
1925.
It is not certain whether Father Consunji was actually a chaplain
for American, Filipino army or guerilla forces. -"He was accused of
giving aid to the guerillas and taken prisoner at !ligan in 1943. He
was brought to Fort Santiago in Manila (Japanese prison during the
war). There he was cruelly tortured by the Japanese, who tried and
sentenced him to death. He was killed 12 Oct 1943.
Copeland, Raymond F. (California)
Born: 23 Aug 1899. Entered Society: 5 Sep 1920. Ordained: 22 Jun
1934.
Appointed to the Army 11 Feb 1942. Serial number: 0437860. To
the rank of Captain 12 Sep 1942; to Major 16 Apr 1945; to Lieutenant
Colonel 10 Jun 1948; to Colonel 1 Apr 1959. Assignments: Desert
Training Center with General Patton's Desert Corps, near Indio, Cal.
(1942); 45th (Thurderbird) Division during Naples-Foggia (Cassino)
campaign (1943) ; 45th Division, Anzio campaign, and 17th Field Artillery in Rome-Arno and Southern France campaigns (1944); 44th
Infantry Division, Rhineland and Central Europe (1944 and 1945);
returned to the United States with the 44th Division to Camp Chaffee,
Ark., and relieved of active duty (end of 1945). Reverted to inactive
�IN ARMED SERVICES
369
status 16 Feb 1946. Division Chaplain, 49th Division, California National Guard (1948 to 1952) ; State Chaplain, California National
Guard (1953 to present).
Corbett, James M. (California)
Born: 23 Jan 1905. Entered Society: 15 July 1921. Ordained: 22
Jun 1934.
Appointed to the Army 25 Jul 1944. Serial number: 0557812. To
the rank of Captain 6 J ul 1945; to Major 10 Mar 1951. Assignments:
Chaplains School, Fort Devens, Mass. (24 Aug 1944); 8th Service Command (4 Oct 1944); Philippines (1945). Reverted to inactive status 9
May 1946.
Recalled in 1951. Assignments: Fort Huachuca, Ariz. (16 May
1951); San Luis Obispo, Cal. (5 Dec 1951); United States Army, Germany (16 May 1952). Relieved of active duty 20 May 1953.
Corrigan, Maurice F. (Oregon)
Born: 10 Jul 1904. Entered Society: 6 Jan 1928. Ordained: 27 Jun
1940.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 9 Feb 1944. Serial number: 361268. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Jun 1946. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (27 Mar 1944 to 21 May 1944);
Naval Training Station, Newport, R.I. (1 Jun 1944 to 3 Jan 1945);
Acorn #49, Saipan (17 Jari 1945 to 2 Jun 1945); Naval Air Base
#958, Saipan (2 Jun 1945 to 10 Oct 1945); Naval Base, Peleliu (4 Oct
1945 to 1 Dec 1945); Island Command #3252, Peleliu (2 Dec 1945 until
relieved). Reverted to inactive status 23 Jul 1946.
Recalled in Aug 1950. Assignments: Naval Training Center, San
Diego, Cal. (Aug 1950 to Dec 1950); Naval Hospital, Portsmouth, Va.
(Dec 1950 to Jul 1952); Milit::try Sea Transportation Service, Pacific
(Sep 1952 until relieved). Reverted to inactive status Jan 1954.
Courtney, Edward W. (Missouri)
Born: 4 Sep 1902. Entered Society: 8 Aug 1920. Ordained: 25 J un
1933.
Appointed to the Army 23 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0444466. To
the rank of Captain 24 Dec 1942; to Major 30 Oct 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel 7 Apr 1952. Assignments: Vallejo, Cal. (1942); Harvard Chaplain School (30 Nov 1942); 21lth Coast Artillery (AA), Valejo, Cal.
(1943); 211th AAA, San Francisco, Cal (1944); 122 AAA, Inglewood,
Cal. (1944); Alaska (1944 and early 1945); Camp Shelby, Miss (1945);
Fort Bliss, Tex. (1945); 7th Service Command, Jefferson Barracks, Mo.
(1945 and 1946). Relieved of active duty 3 March 1946. Has held
Reserve Commission with the following units: Division Chaplain 84th
Infantry Division (Milwaukee); 329th Quartermaster Battalion (St.
Louis). At present in Reserve with 325th General Hospital (Kansas
City),
�370
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Crimmins, Henry B. (Missouri)
Born: 5 Apr 1893. Entered Society: 4 Dec 1915. Ordained: 16 Jun
1926. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Anny 24 Nov 1942. Serial number: 0505322. To
the rank of Captain 15 Feb 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1943); Women's Auxiliary Army Corps Training Center, Des Moines, Iowa; Fitzsimons General Hospital, Denver, Colo.;
Army Hospital, Longview, Tex.; 70th General Hospital at Oran, Algeria, and Pistoia, Italy; !40th General Hospital, Naples, Italy; Headquarters, Caserta, Italy. Attended General Anton Dostler, condemned
for ordering the summary execution of fifteen American soldiers who
were dropped behind the German lines for demolition task, during imprisonment and execution.- Reverted to inactive status 7 Apr 1946.
Died 13 Jun 1960.
··
Cronin, Robert J. (Chicago)
Born: 17 Nov 1903. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1923. Ordained: 24
J un 1936. Present Province: Detroit.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 25 Aug 1943. Serial number: 308345. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (27 Sep 1943 to 21 Nov 1943);
Naval Hospital, Oakland (5 Dec 1943 to 31 Mar 1945); with Commander, South Pacific Forces (Apr 1945 until relieved). Reverted to
inactive status 10 Oct 1946.
Crowley, Wilfred H. (California)
Born: 8 Nov 1907. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1925. Ordained: 15 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 24 Feb 1942. Serial number! 0439314. To the
rank of Captain 1 Jul 1944. Assignments: Fort Ord, Cal. (1 month);
Central Pacific Area (Molokai, Maui, Oahu) for twenty-two months
with the 27th Infantry Division; Camp Chaffee, Ark. (May 1944 to
Dec 1944); in Jan 1945 to ETO with the 16th Armored Division which
participated in battles in France, Germany and Czechoslovakia. Reverted to inactive status 5 Dec 1945.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Cuddy, Gerald J. (New York)
Born: 8 l\Iar 1908. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 22
Jun 1941.
Appointed to the Army 5 Jun 1944. Serial number: 0554086. To
the rank of Captain 16 l\'Iay 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (11 Jun 1944j; Fort Jackson, S.C., with 346th Regiment, 87th
Infantry Division (Aug 1944); with 346th Regiment in 3rd Army
through France, Germany to the Czechoslovakian border (Oct 1944 to
May 1945); on return from overseas was Post Chaplain, Fort Bragg,
N.C. (until Sep 1946). Reverted to inactive status 2 Sep 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
371
Cummings, William V. (Maryland)
Born: 14 Aug 1907. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1925. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 5 May 1944. Serial number: 0551805. To
the rank of C:1ptain 11 Jan 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (8 Jun 1944 to 15 Jul 1!J44); Camp Howze, Tex. (15 Jul 1944
to 22 Sep 1944); Europe (10 Oct 1944 to 10 Jul 1945); Camp Pickett
General Hospital, Va. (10 Jul 1945 to 12 Oct 1945); Indiantown Gap,
Pa. (12 Oct 1945 to 27 Feb 19-16). Father Cummings was wounded in
action near Innsbruck, Austria, 3 r.'lay 1945. Reverted to inactive
status 27 Feb 1946.
Awards: Silver Star; Purple Heart.
Cunniff, John H. (Maryland)
Born: 20 Feb 1910. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 22
Jun 1941.
Appointed to the Army 12 Feb 1944. Serial number: 0545391. To
the rank of Captain 16 Apr 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (22 Mar 1944) ; 1152nd Engineer Combat Group, Camp Howze,
Tex.; l146th Engineer Combat Group, Camp Swift, Tex.; 1146th Engineer Combat Group, England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany;
Headquarters, 626th Medical Clearing Company, after surrender; Headquarters, 78th Division Artillery, during Berlin occupation. Reverted
to inactive status 11 Jul1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Cunningham, Francis A. (New York)
Born: 16 Oct 1908. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1925. Ordained: 19
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 13 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0489595. To
the rank of Captain Jan 19L!.G. Assignn:ents: Chaplain School, Fort
Harvard Chaplain School (30 Nov 1!.J42); Reception Center, Fort
Custer, Mich.; Station Hospital, Camp McCoy, Wis.; 156th General
Hospital, Foxley, near Hereford, England. Reverted to inactive status
27 Jul1946.
Cunningham, Thomas (Oregon)
Born: 24 Feb 1906. Entered Society: 4 l\1ar 1924. Ordained: 12
Aug 1934.
Appointed to the Army 11 Jan 1945. Serial number: 0929942. To
the rank of Captain Jan 1946. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort
Devens, Mass. (Jan 1945); with Air Force units in Alaska and Japan
(1945 and 1946); separated from the service at Fort Lewis, Wash. 11
Oct 1946.
Recalled to the Air Force with the rank of Captain in 1950. Serial
number: A0929942. Served in Alaska with 5005th Hospital Group
until released from active duty 29 Jul 1952. To the rank of Major in
reserve 30 Jun 1957,
�372
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Awards: Air Medal; Air Force Commendation Medal.
Father Cunningham died 3 Sep 1959.
Curran, Joseph P. (New England)
Born: 5 Jan 1910. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1929. Ordained: 22 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 19 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550495. To
the rank of Captain 25 Jun 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944); Venice, Fla. (12 Jun 1944 to Nov 1945); Stuttgart, Ark. (Nov 1945 to Dec 1945); Brooks Field, San Antonio, Tex.
(Dec 1945 to Jan 1946); Biggs Field, El Paso, Tex (Jan 1946 to Feb
1946); l'.Iitchell Field, N.Y. (Feb 1946 to Apr 1946). Reverted to
inactive status 23 May 194_6.
Daly, Peter J. (New York)
Born: 8 Jul 1909. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 22 Jun
1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 22 Jan 1944. Serial
number: 352429. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Apr 1953; to Commander 12 Apr 1959. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg,
Va. (28 Feb 1944 to 23 Apr 1944); Naval Hospital and Air Station,
New Orleans (5 May 1944 to 29 Jun 1945); U.S.S. Nevada (battleship)
(20 Aug 1945 until relieved). Reverted to inactive status 18 Jun
1946.
Died 23 Jul 1960 at Pisa, Italy, while on temporary reserve duty with
the Navy.
Day, Francis T. (New York)
Born: 9 Dec 1904. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1924. -O-rdained: 21 Jun
1936.
Appointed to the Army 17 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0490417. To
the rank of Captain 24 Nov 1943. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (5 Sep 1942); 2nd Army, Memphis, Tenn. (3 Oct 1942); General Hospital, Solomons (21 Apr 1943); Division Artillery, America!
Division, Solomons (1 Sep 1943) ; America! Division, Solomons (31 Mar
1944). Reverted to inactive status 18 Mar 1946.
Deasy, James J. (California)
Born: 25 May 1907. Entered Society: 2 Aug 1926. Ordained: 16
Jun 1939.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 4 Oct 1943. Serial
number: 324614. To Lieutenant 1 Mar 1945. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (8 Nov 1943 to 2 Jan 1944); Receiving Ship,
Pier #92, New York (12 Jan 1944 to 17 Apr 1944); 13th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, Cal., Camp Tarawa in
Hawaii, and in invasion of Iwo Jima (5 May 1944 to 31 Jul 1945); 9th
Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion (1 Aug 1945 to 24 Sep 1945); 6th
�IN ARMED SERVICES
373
Marine Division on Guam and in Northern China (25 Sep 1945 to 5
Nov 1945); 1st Battalion, 29th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division
in Northern China (5 Nov 1945 to 25 Jan 1946). Contracted jaundice
while on duty in Manchuria and was evacuated to the United States.
Reverted to inactive status while stationed at Naval Hospital, Corona,
Cal., 30 Jul 1946. Holds rank of Lieutenant Commander in Naval
Reserve.
Devlin, John F. (New England)
Born: 25 Nov 1905. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1927. Ordained: 19
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 24 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550793. To
the rank of Captain 18 May 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 May 1944); Richmond Army Air Base, Virginia; Camp
Springs Army Air Base, Washington, D.C.; Bradley Field, Windsor
Locks, Conn.; Westover Army Air Base, Chicopee, Mass.; Seymour
Johnson Army Air Base, Goldsboro, N.C.; Charleston Army Air Base,
S.C.; Chatham Field, Savannah, Ga.; Myrtle Beach Army Air Base,
S.C.; Shaw Field, Sumter, S.C. Reverted to inactive status 19 May
1946.
Diehl, John J. (New York)
Born: 15 Mar 1898. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1917. Ordained: 22 Jun
1931.
Appointed to the Army 28 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0498326. To
the rank of Captain 21 Jan 1944; to Major 13 Apr 1946. Assignments:
4th Service Command, Fort Jackson, S.C. (1942 and 1943); Harvard
Chaplain School (3 Jan 1943); Fort McClellan, Ala. (1944); 221st
General Hospital, France (1945); returned to United States (12 Sep
1945); 1458 SU, Fort Jackson, S.C. (1946). Reverted to inactive
status 5 Jul 1946.
Dieter, Earl L. (Missouri)
Born: 13 J ul 1903. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1925. Ordained: 24 J un
1937. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 20 Dec 1943. Serial number: 0542506. To
the rank of Captain 14 Nov 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (29 Dec 1943); 394th Air Squadron and 122 AAF BU, Camp
Springs Field, Washington, D.C. (11 Feb 1944); 64 AAF BU, Andrews
Field, Washington, D.C. (30 Apr 1945). Reverted to inactive status
10 Feb 1946.
Dietz, Francis T. (Chicago)
Born: 20 Apr 1901. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1921. Ordained: 22 Jun
1934. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 19 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0491021. To
the rank of Captain 13 Nov 1943; terminal leave promotion to Major.
�374
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (27 Sep 1942) ; Fort Leonard
Wood, l\!o.; San Luis Obispo, Cal.; €3rd Infantry Regiment, 6th Division, New Guinea, Philippines, Korea. Reverted to inactive status 9
Mar 1946.
Awards: Bronze Star; oak leaf cluster to Bronze Star.
Dimaano, Pedro l\1. (New York)
Born: 29 Jun 1898. Entered Society: 12 Nov 1915. Ordained: 20
Jun 1928. Present Province: Philippines.
Served in the Philippine military service (U.S. Army) as First
Lieutenant from 18 Nov l!l41 to 11 Aug 1945. Serial number: 027832.
Was Regimental Chaplain of II Regiment (Philippine Constabulary) at
Cubao and Bataan, and,.. while a prisoner of war after the Death March,
at Capas, Tarlac.
··
Dolan, James J. (New England)
Born: 25 Apr 1903. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1920. Ordained: 22
Jun 1933.
Appointed to the Army 21 Dec l!l40. Serial number: 0402252. To
the rank of Captain 1 Feb 1943; Major 30 Jan 1946. Assignments:
63rd Coast Artillery, Fort Bliss, Tex. (1941); Fort Lewis, Wash.
(1941); Hawaii (10 Dec 1941 to 30 Nov 1942); Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Nov 1942); 63rd Coast Artillery, Seattle, Wash. (Feb
1943 to Feb 1944) ; 13th Replacement Depot, Hawaii (28 Mar 1944);
751st AAA, Guam and Saipan 28 Jul 1944 to end 1945). Reverted to
inactive status 30 May 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Died: 5 Mar 1952.
Doody, l\Iichael J. (New England)
Born: 25 l\Iar 1898. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1918. Ordained: 20
Jun 1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 3 Mar 1!l42. Serial number: 139093. To Lieutenant Commander 10 Jul 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (6 Apr l!l42 to 30 IVIay l!l42); Naval
Hospital, Aiea Heights, Hawaii (21 Jun 1942 to 10 Jan 1944); Naval
Air Station, Glynco, Brunswick, Ga. (10 Feb 1944 to 23 Nov 1944);
U.S.S. Richmond (cruiser) (19 Dec 1944 to 27 Nov l!l45); Personnel
Separation Center, Great Lakes, Ill. (12 Dec 1945 to 22 Apr 1946).
Reverted to inactive status 19 Jul 1946. Resigned from Naval Reserve
20 Jan 1954.
Dossogne, Victor J. (New Orleans-applicatus ex provincia Belgicae Meridionalis)
Born: 27 Aug l!lOO. Entered Society: 17 Nov 1919. Ordained: 24
Aug 1931.
Appointed to the Army 29 Nov 1943. Serial number: 0541797. To
�IN ARMED SERVICES
375
the rank of Captain 9 Sep 1944; to Major 18 Nov 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel 17 Mar 1954. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (26 Dec
1943); with Headquarters, 90th Infantry Division Artillery in France,
Luxemburg and Germany (1944); with 359th Infantry Regiment,
123rd Evacuation Hospital, and 1106th Engineer Group in Germany
and Czechoslovakia (1945); 88th Division, Italy (1946 to 1947); Headquarters, European Command and 7810 Service Command Unit, Germany
(1948); various service units, Germany (1949 to 1953) ; Fort Sill,
Okla. (1954 to 1957). Released from active duty 30 Nov 1957.
Downey, Morgan A. (Maryland)
Born: 24 Jun 1897. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1914. Ordained: 23
Jun 1927.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 25 Mar 1943. Serial number: 276650. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (26 Apr 1943 to 21 Jun 1943);
Marine Barracks, Camp Lejeune, N.C. (1 Jul 1943 to 17 Apr 1944);
U.S.S. Mount Olympus (30 Apr 1944 until relieved). Reverted to inactive status 28 Feb 1946. Retired from the Naval Reserve 1 Nov
1953.
Doyle, Leo A. (Missouri)
Born: 11 Apr 1895. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1920. Ordained: 25 Jun
1931.
Appointed to the Army 17 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0525686. To
the rank of Captain 16 Jan 1945; to Major 21 Jan 1947. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (25 Sep 1943); Camp Chaplain Assistant,
Camp Miles Standish, Mass.; Chaplain, 102nd General Hospital, England; 74th General Hospital, France; Veterans' Hospital, Battle Creek,
Mich. Father Doyle also served in World War I from 23 Feb 1918
to 27 Sep 1919 as Master Engineer, Railroad Transportation Corps,
United States Army; fifteen months of this service was with the AEF
in France. Reverted to inactive status 20 Sep 1946.
Duffy, William J. (New England)
Born: 1 Jan 1902. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1918. Ordained: 16
Jun 1931.
Appointed to the Army 25 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0544422. To
the rank of Captain 10 Oct 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (10 Feb 1944) ; Stark General Hospital, Charleston, S.C.; Finney General Hospital, Thomasville, Ga.; 755th Anti-Aircraft Gun Battalion, Hawaii; Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. Reverted to inactive
status 22 Oct 1946.
Dugan, John J. (New England)
Born: 26 Jun 1897. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1915.
Jun 1928.
Ordained: 20
�JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Appointed to the Army 28 Aug 1936. Serial number: 0348200. To
the rank of Captain 6 Feb 1941; to Major 18 Feb 1945; to Lieutenant
Colonel (Massachusetts National Guard) 11 May 1946; separated from
the Mass. National Guard as Colonel Jun 1953; separated from the
Army Reserve as Lieutenant Colonel 25 May 1954. Assignments: Chaplain USAR, CCC, Vt. (Nov 1937 to Jun 1940); Fort Riley, Kan. (Jun
1940 to Sep 1941); to Philippines (Oct 1941); to Bilibid Prison, Manila
(20 Jun 1942); to Cabanatuan, Luzon, Prison Camp #1 (3 July 1942);
to Cabu, Luzon, Prison Camp #3 (10 Jul 1942); to Cabanatuan, Luzon,
Prison Camp #1 (1 Nov 1942); liberated by 6th Ranger Battalion (30
Jan 1945); arrived in San Francisco (8 Mar 1945); Chaplain, Cushing
General Hospital, Framingham, Mass. (May 1945). Relieved of active
duty 25 Aug 1946.
'
Recalled 21 Jun 1948. -Assignments: Randolph Field, Tex. (Jun
1948); Oliver General Hospital, Augusta, Ga. (Sep 1949) ; Fort Custer,
Mich. (Feb 1950); Camp Crawford, Hokkaido, Japan (Oct 1950); Guam
(Feb 1951); Manila (Feb 1952); Camp Stewart, Hinesville, Ga. (Feb
1953). Relieved of active duty J un 1953.
A wards: Bronze Star; Army Commendation Ribbon.
Dunne, Edward J. (New York)
Born: 12 Sep 1909. Entered Society: 2 Feb 1928. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 18 Jun 1942. Serial number: 0479493. To
the rank of Captain 3 Jun 1943; to Major 20 Feb 1946. Assignments:
11th Training Regiment, Camp Robinson, Ark. (Jul 1942 to Dec 1942);
11th Airborne Division, Camp McKall, N.C. (Jan 1943 to Dec 1943);
Camp Polk, La. (Jan 1944 to May 1944); New Guinea, Philippines and
Japan (Jun 1944 to Sep 1945); 158th Regimental Comifat Team, Japan
( Sep 1945 to Dec 1945). Reverted to inactive status 10 May 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Duross, Thomas A. (New York)
Born: 19 Apr 1903. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1924. Ordained: 23
Jun 1935.
Appointed to the Army 19 Jul 1941. Serial number: 0423536. To
the rank of Captain 16 Jun 1942. Assignments: 1st Cavalry Division,
Fort Bliss, Tex. (27 Aug 1941); to North Africa with the Army Air
Force (24 Nov 1942); with Air Transport Command at Bases in North
Africa and India (Dec 1943 to May 1944); 36th Street Airport, Miami
(4 Jun 1944); Morrison Field, West Palm Beach, as Base Chaplain (8
Sep 1944 until released)._· Reverted to inactive status 2 Mar 1946 with
the rank of Major.
Eckmann, Lawrence J. (Chicago)
Born: 10 Feb 1903. Entered Society: 9 Aug 1924. Ordained: 24 Jun
1937.
·
l
~~
�IN ARMED SERVICES
377
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 28 May 1945. Serial number: 446727. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (2 Jul
1945 to 25 Aug 1945); on Okinawa with 79th Construction Battalion,
28th Construction Battalion and with Naval Air Station, Yonabaru
(13 Nov 1945 until relieved). Reverted to inactive status 7 Jul 1946.
Resigned from the Naval Reserve 23 Jan 1951.
Edralin, Isaias X. (New York)
Born: 5 Jul 1895. Ordained: 21 Dec 1918. Entered Society: 4 Sep
1933. Present Province: Philippines.
Commissioned First Lieutenant with United States Forces in the
Far East 23 Mar 1942. Serial number: 024460. Assigned as Division
Chaplain to 2nd Division, Northern Mindinao. Stationed in Malaybalay,
Bukidnon; Cagayan, Misamis Oriental; Dansalan, Lanao. Surrendered
under Major General Sharp and was a prisoner of war until his release
15 Feb 1945.
Egan, Stephen T. (Missouri)
Born: 1 Sep 1895. Entered Society: 4 Sep 1916. Ordained: 26 Jun
1929. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 3 Mar 1944. Serial number: 0546787. To
the rank of Captain 19 Jul 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (22 Mar 1944); Barnes General Hospital, Vancouver, Wash.
(Apr 1944); 314th General Hospital, Fort Lewis, Wash. (Jan 1945),
Camp Roberts, Cal. (Mar 1945) and Camp Stoneman, Cal. (Apr 1945);
314th General Hospital, Manila (25 Apr 1945); Supply Chaplain,
American Forces Western Pacific, Manila (31 Aug 1945); returned to
United States (24 Nov 1945); separated from the Army at Jefferson
Barracks, Mo. Reverted to inactive status 5 Jan 1946.
English, Michael I. (Chicago)
Born: 1 Feb 1907. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1924. Ordained: 24 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the Army 4 Jun 1941. Serial number: 0420028. To
the rank of Captain 16 Jan 1944; to Major 11 Apr 1946. Assignments:
Chanute Field, Ill. (1941); Headquarters, Division Artillery, 34th Infantry Division, North Ireland and North Africa (1942 and 1943);
94th Evacuation Hospital, Italy (1944) ; 2nd Parachute Training Battalion, Fort Benning, Ga. (1945); Post Chaplain, Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.
(1945) ; Instructor, Chaplain School, Fort Oglethorpe, Ga. (until May
1946). Reverted to inactive status 12 Sep 1946.
Evett, Lester J. (Chicago)
Born: 29 Jul1907. Entered Society: 30 Aug 1925. Ordained: 23 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 1 Jul 1943. Serial number: 0526878. To the
rank of Captain 31 Jul 1944; to :.:ajor 22 Aug 1946. Assignments:
�378
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Fort McClellan, Ala. (1 Jul 1943); Harvard Chaplain School (23 Dec
1943); Office of the Chief of Chaplains, Washington, D.C. (1944);
Rhineland Campaign (1945); Occupation Forces, Berlin (1946). Overseas with the following units: 227th General Hospital; !78th General
Hospital; 279th Station Hospital. In the European Theater from 29
Jan 1945 to 7 Aug 1946. Summary of military occupations: at Chief
of Chaplains-recommending chaplains for all units in ground forces;
Berlin-responsible for coverage of all units by chaplains of all denominations in Berlin District Headquarters. Reverted to inactive
status 18 Oct 1946.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Ewing, Thomas D. (Chicago)
Born: 25 Nov 1894. :E"ntered Society: 2 Sep 1915. Ordained: 27
Jun 1928. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 2 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0493495. To the
rank of Captain 12 Oct 1943. Assignments: Newport News and Camp
Patrick Henry, Va.; Fort Mason, San Francisco, Cal.; Camp Stoneman,
Cal. Father Ewing had eleven months of transport duty which included two Atlantic and four Pacific crossings. Reverted to inactive
status 11 Sep 1947.
Fay, Thomas A. (New England)
Born: 15 Jan 1892. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1911. Ordained: 28 Jun
1925.
Commissioned in the United States Merchant Marine 15 Dec 1942.
Taught in Officers' Schools on Hoffman Island, N.Y., Gallups Island,
Boston, and at Alameda, Cal. Reached rank of Lieutenant Commander.
Released from duty Nov 1945.
Fay, Thomas P. (New England)
Born: 29 Aug 1905. Entered Society: 14 Sep 1931. Ordained: 22
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 12 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549900. To
the rank of Captain 16 May 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944); in U.S. with 6lst Ordnance Group; in U.S.
and Europe with 1151 Engineer Combat Group and 3230 Engineer
Service Battalion. Reverted to inactive status 11 Aug 1946.
Recalled 5 Aug 1948 and served with Air Force units for over a year
during which time he was in Germany for period of the Berlin Air
Lift. Reverted to inactive status 3 Nov 1949.
Award: Bene Merenti (Papal Decoration).
Felix, Walter J. (New Orleans)
Born: 30 Oct 1904. Entered Society: 27 Nov 1925. Ordained: 17 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 20 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0491251. As-
�lN ARMED SERVICES
379
signments: 29th Infantry Regiment at Ft. Benning, Ga., and Fort
Jackson, S.C.
Father Felix died at Camp Miles Standish, Mass. 5 Aug 1943.
Fernan, John J. (New York)
Born: 1 Mar 1908. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 18 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0543793. To
the rank of Captain 9 Jan 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (10 Feb 1944); with Western Flying Training Units for two
years in Arizona, California and New Mexico; 12th Tactical Air Force,
Fritzlar, Germany (10 months). Reverted to inacitve status 30 Sep
1946.
Finnegan, Bernard J. (New England)
Born: 9 Jan 1906. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1929. Ordained: 22 Jun
1940.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 18 Jan 1945. Serial number: 445079. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Aug 1951; to Commander
1 Jul 1956. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (26 Feb
1945 to 21 Apr 1945); Naval Hospital, Shoemaker, Cal. (Apr 1945 to
Jun 1945); U.S.S. Bottineau (attack troop transport) (Jun 1945 to Dec
1945). Reverted to inactive status 21 Mar 1946.
Recalled Oct 1950. Assignments: Naval Training Station, Newport,
R.I. (Oct 1950 to Apr 1953); Assistant Fleet Chaplain, Commander,
Service Force, Atlantic, Norfolk, Va. (Apr 1953 to Feb 1955); National
Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md. (Feb 1955 to Aug 1955); Naval
Hospital, Newport, R.I. (Aug 1955 to 1957). Relieved of active duty
in 1957.
Flaherty, Maurice G. (Oregon)
Born: 25 Jul 1894. Entered Society: 22 Mar 1919. Ordained: 26
Jul 1933.
Appointed to the Army 29 Jun 1942. Serial number: 0481358. To
the rank of Captain 17 Apr 1943; to Major 17 May 1944; to Lieutenant
Colonel 27 Apr 1946. Assignments: 359th Army Base Headquarters,
Alamogordo, N.M. (1942 and 1943); Italy (1944); Austria (1945);
Camp Herbert Taryton, Le Havre, France ( 1946). Overseas with the
following units: Headquarters 55th Bombardment Wing; 305th Bombardment Wing; 49th Bombardment Wing; Headquarters, 42nd Infantry
Division. Reverted to inactive status 21 Aug 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Died 11 Jun 1953 at Spokane, Wash.
Flynn, Francis M. (Chicago)
Born: 5 Nov 1907. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1926.
1939.
Ordained: 21 Jun
�380
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Appointed to the Army 24 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550794. To
the rank of Captain 26 Mar 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 May 1944); Hill Field, Ogden, Utah; aviation engineers at
Giebelstadt, Germany. Reverted to inactive status 20 Oct 1946.
Foley, John P. (New England)
Born: 6 Jun 1904. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1923. Ordained: 21 Jun
1936.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 22 Feb 1942. Serial
number: 133964. To Lieutenant 1 Mar 1943; to Lieutenant Commander
3 Oct 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (20 Apr 1942
to 12 Jun 1942); U.S.S. George Clymer (attack transport) (25 Jun
1942 to 15 Mar 1944); National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Md.
(30 May 1944 to 15 Jan 1945); U.S.S. Vella Gulf (escort carrier) (27
Jan 1945 to 10 Nov 1945). Reverted to inactive status 14 Jan 1946.
Resigned from the Naval Reserve 6 Apr 1946.
Fraser, Burton J. (Missouri-Wisconsin)
Born: 25 Sep 1899. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1920. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Appointed to the Army 20 May 1941. Serial number: 0418276. To
the rank of Captain 20 Dec 1943; to Major 17 Jun 1955. Assignments:
Fort Custer, Mich., and Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind. (1942); North
Africa and Italy (1943 to 1945); 7th Service Command, Omaha, Neb.,
and Camp Carson, Colo. (1946). Reverted to inactive status 17 Jul
1946.
Recalled Nov 1953. Assignments: Denver, Colo. (1953); Puerto
Rico and Panama (1954 to 1957); Fort Carson, Colo. J1957 to 1959).
Relieved of active duty 30 Sep 1959.
- Gaerlan, Juan E. (New York)
Born: 24 Jul 1899. Entered Society: 5 Jan 1917. Ordained: 22 Jun
1931.
Appointed as military chaplain in the Philippine Army in Jan 1942
at Manila. Killed by Japanese military on Death March from Bataan
to Capas, Tarlac, 10 ( ?) Apr 1942.
Gaffney, John C. (California)
Born: 29 May 1901. Entered Society: 23 Aug 1923. Ordained: 19
Jun 1936.
Appointed to the Army 3 Jul 1943. Serial number: 0527133. To
the rank of Captain 16 Aug 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (12 Jul 1943); Romulus Air Base, Wayne Co., Mich.; Morrison
Field, Palm Beach, Fla.; Accra, Kano Maidugery, El Genina, El Fascher, Central Africa; Khartum (Egypt), Aden (Arabia), Salala and
Maiseia Isle (Persian Gulf) ; Presque Isle, Me.; Chico, Cal.; Orlando
Base, Fla. Service was with the Air Transport Command. Overseas
service lasted one year. Reverted to inactive status 20 Mar 1946.
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
381
Gallagher, Frederick A. (New England)
Born: 5 Aug 1898. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1917. Ordained: 18 Jun
1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 11 Mar 1942. Serial number: 136485. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Mar 1944; to Commander
5 Nov 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (20 Apr
1942 to 12 Jun 1942); Marine Barracks, Parris Island, S.C. (15 Jun
1942 to 7 Oct 1942); U.S.S. Tryon (armed hospital evacuation ship)
(7 Oct 1942 to 11 Mar 1943); Fleet Marine Force, 1st Marine Amphibious Corps (11 Mar 1943 to 1 Aug 1944); Naval Hospital, St.
Albans, N.Y. (11 Sep 1944 to 2 May 1946). Reverted to inactive
status 16 Jul 1946. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 20 Oct 1953.
Garvey, Leo J. (New Orleans)
Born: 13 Dec 1899. Entered Society: 23 Jan 1919. Ordained: 20 Jun
1934.
Appointed to the Army 12 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0525199. To
the rank of Captain 27 Apr 1944; to Major 24 Apr 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (14 Jul 1943); McClosky General Hospital,
Temple, Tex. (14 Aug 1943); 297th General Hospital, Beaumont, Cal.,
and Stourport, England (1 Oct 1943 to Jun 1945); Fort Devens Separation Center, Fort Devens, Mass. (25 Dec 1945 to 8 Jul 1946). Reverted to inactive status 8 Jul1946.
Geary, James F. (New England)
Born: 21 May 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1925. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 13 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549986. To
the rank of Captain 1 Oct 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944); Infantry Training Battalion, Camp Croft,
Spartanburg, S.C.; Indiantown Gap, Pa.; Camp Kilmer, N.J.; replacement depots, England, Belgium, Germany and France; 115th Station
Hospital at Plaistow Downs, England, Metz, France and Augsburg,
Germany. Reverted to inactive status 27 Jan 1946.
Geis, Louis J. (Oregon)
Born: 11 Jul 1909. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1926. Ordained: 16 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 23 Oct 1943. Serial number: 0538157. To
the rank of Captain 1 Jun 1945. Assignments in the United States:
Camp Santa Anita, Cal. (8 Nov 1943 to 28 Apr 1944); Camp Kohler,
Sacramento, Cal. (28 Apr 1944 to 11 Sep 1944). Overseas (Europe):
173rd General Hospital (Nov 1944); 156th Infantry Regiment (30 Jun
1945) ; 194th General Hospital (31 Jan 1946) ; Camp Philip Morris,
Le Havre, France (1946). Reverted to inactive status 9 Nov 1946.
�382
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Giambastiani, John F. (California)
Born: 9 Aug 1902. Entered Society: 19 Jul 1923. Ordained: 25 Jul
1936.
Appointed to the Army 5 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0515067. To
the rank of Captain 11 Apr 1944; to Major 7 Apr 1946; Lieutenant
Colonel (National Guard) 14 Feb 1947. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (8 Apr 1943); Camp Barkeley, Tex.; Puerto Rico; Panama;
Hawaii. Relieved of acth·e duty 7 Apr 1946.
Gilmore, James A. (Oregon)
Born: 14 Nov 1893. Entered Society: 29 Aug 1911. Ordained: 25
Aug 1925.
Appointed to the Army~. March 1943. Serial number: 0514992. To
the rank of Captain 5 Jan 1944; to Major 19 Aug 1946. Assignments:
7th Service Command General Hospital, Camp Carson, Colo. (19 Mar
1943); Harvard Chaplain School (18 Jul 1943); Oulton Park, Chester,
England, and District Chaplain, 27th District, Nitts Hill Area, Glasgow,
Scotland (1943 and 1944); detached service with various units in Normandy (shortly after D-Day, 1944); 50th General Hospital in Normandy, Netherlands, Germany (1944 and 1945). Reverted to inactive
status 25 Feb 1946.
Goodenow, Robert C. (Chicago)
Born: 30 Dec 190&. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1927. Ordained: 23 Jun
1938. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 3 Jun 1941. Serial number: 0419968. To
the rank of Captain 19 Dec 1942; to Major 1 Aug 1944. Assignments:
Madison Barracks, N.Y. (1941); Fort Devens, Mass,· (1942); Camp
Kilmer, N.J. (1942); Harvard Chaplain School (3 OCt 1942); England
(3 Jan 1943 to 15 Jul1944); France (Jul1944 to 21 Nov 1945). Served
overseas with the following units: 12th Evacuation Hospital and 19th
Replacement Depot. Relieved of active duty 16 Dec 1945.
Goss, Edward F. (New Orleans)
Born: 16 May 1909. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1927. Ordained: 26
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 19 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550475. To
the rank of Captain 9 Jul 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (29 Apr 1944); Pope Field, N.C. (May 1944 to Dec 1944); Baer
Field, Fort Wayne, Ind. (Jan 1945 to Dec 1945); Warrensburg, Mo. (Jan
1946 to Mar 1946). Reverted to inactive status 25 Apr 1946.
Recalled to Air Fore~ October 1950. Serial number: A0550475. Sent
to Chaplain School, Carlisle Barracks, Pa. Hill AFB, Ogden, Utah
(from Dec 1950 until Apr 1952). Relieved of active duty Apr 1952.
Grady, Richard F. (Maryland)
Born: 27 Jul 1905. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1924.
1935.
Ordained: 23 Jun
�IN ARMED SERVICES
383
Appointed to the Army 26 Dec 1942. Serial number: 0508977. To
the rank of Captain 1 Jan 1944; to Major 25 Sep 1945; to Lieutenant
Colonel 20 Feb 1953. Assignments: 106th Infantry in the United
States; Headquarters, London (Central Base) (5 Aug 1943 to 26 Aug
1944); Headquarters, Paris (Seine Section) (26 Aug 1944 to 26 Apr
1946); Headquarters, Frankfurt (European Theater) (26 Apr 1946
to Dec 1946). Reverted to inactive status 17 Dec 1946.
Awards: Bronze Star; Army Commendation Ribbon; Croix de Guerre;
Medaille de la Reconnaissance.
Greif, Harold J. (Oregon)
Born: 18 Feb 1900. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1928. Ordained: 27 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 4 Apr 1942. Serial number: 0447612. To the
rank of Captain 9 Apr 1943. Assignments: Fort Warren, Wyo. (1942);
Harvard Chaplain School (30 Nov 1942); 31st General Hospital, Camp
Carson, Colo. (1943); 31st General Hospital, New Hebrides (1943 to
1945) and Philippine Islands (1945). Reverted to inactive status 25 Jun
1946.
Haggerty, Gerard A. (New York)
Born: 25 Aug 1910. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1930. Ordained: 21
Aug 1942.
Appointed to the Army 16 Aug 1944. Serial number: 0558667. To
the rank of Captain 28 May 1945; to Major 23 Jun 1947. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Fort Devens (17 Aug 1944) ; Saipan (1944) ; Okinawa
and Philippines (1945); France and Germany (1946-1947). Reverted
to inactive status 1 May 1947.
Recalled 27 Jul 1948. Transferred to Air Force 1 Jul 1949. Serial
number: A0558667. Assignments: 59th Air Depot Wing, England
(1948-1950); Sampson Air Base, Geneva, New York (1951); 58th
Fighter-Bomber Wing, Taegu, Korea (1952-1953); 4700 Air Base
Group, Stewart Air Force Base, Newburgh, N.Y. (1954-1956); Headquarters, Southern Air Materiel Command, Casablanca, North Africa
(1957); Headquarters, Air Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson Air
Fo!'ce Base, Dayton, Ohio (1958). Relieved of active duty 9 Mar 1958.
Appointed Lieutenant Colonel, Air Force Reserve.
Haggerty, James E. (New York)
Born: 2 Jan 1903. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1921. Ordained: 24 Jun
1934. Present Province: Philippines.
Headquarters Chaplain of Major General William F. Sharp, Commanding General of the Southern Philippines (Jan 1942 to 13 May
1942). After surrender of American forces in the Philippines, reverted
to civilian status. From May 1942 to Feb 1945 served as chaplain to
recognized guerilla forces under Colonel Wendell W. Fertig which operated chiefly in Bukidnon, Misamis Oriental, Misamis Occidental, Lanao
�384
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
and Zamboanga (all in 1\Iindinao, P.I.). About Apr 1945 appointed
military vicar for all U.S. Armed forces from Borneo to Okinawa, "and
as far north as our armed forces advance."
Award: Bronze Star.
Haller, Joseph S. (Missouri)
Born: 19 1\Iay 1904. Entered Society: 7 Aug 1922. Ordained: 23
Jun 1935. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 24 Sep 1943. Serial number: 324367. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Dec 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (22 Nov 1943 to 16 Jan 1944);
Naval Training and Distribution Center, Camp Peary, Williamsburg,
Va. (20 Jan 1944 to 5 Jan 1945); U.S.S. Bushnell (submarine tender,
AS-15) (11 Feb 1945 u~til relieved). Reverted to inactive status 14
Apr 1946. Honorably discharged from the Naval Reserve 1 May 1954.
Halloran, John J. (Missouri)
Born: 19 May 1907. Entered Society: 30 Jan 1925. Ordained: 24
Jun 1937. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 6 Feb 1945. Serial number: 0930844. To the
rank of Captain 26 Nov 1945. Assignments: Fort Devens Chaplain
School (17 Mar 1945); Camp Robinson, Ark (early 1945); Hospital
ship in Pacific (June to December 1945); Indiantown Gap, Pa. (early
1946); Fort Lee, Va. (Apr to Nov 1946). Reverted to inactive status
26 Dec 1946.
Recalled 2 Jan 1951. Served at Camp Atterbury, Ind. (Jan 1951 to
Feb 1953). Relieved of active duty 22 Feb 1953.
Hanley, William. A. (California)
Born: 1 Nov 1906. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1925. Ordained: 15 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 18 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0516241. To
the rank of Captain 28 Jun 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (8 Apr 1943); Jefferson Barracks, Mo. (1943); Sioux Falls,
S.D. (1944); Lake Charles, La. (1945); Sioux Falls, S.D. (1945); Raton
Field, Fla. (1945); Keesler Field, Biloxi, Miss. (1946). Relieved of
active duty 21 May 1946.
Harley, James L. (Maryland)
Born: 26 Aug 1903. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1920. Ordained: 25 Jun
1933.
Appointed to the Army 8 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549461. To
the rank of Captain 1 Mar 1945; to Major 1 Oct 1953. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (30 Apr 1944 to 7 Jun 1944); Regimental
Chaplain, 201st Infantry Regiment, Camp Carson, Colo. (June to Sep
1944), at Fort Jackson, S.C. (Sep 1944 to Feb 1945), and Camp
Rucker, Ala. (Mar 1945) ; Indiantown Gap, Pa. (Apr 1945); Camp
�IN ARMED SERVICES
385
Anza, Cal.; Replacement Depot #3, Kanchrapara, India (15 Jun to 6
Jul 1945); Battalion Chaplain, 199th Ordnance Battalion, Makum,
Assam, India (8 Jul 1945 to 16 March 1946); Camp Stoneman, Cal.;
Fort Dix, N.J. Reverted to inactive status 1 Jun 1946.
Recalled to active duty 28 Oct 1950. Assignments: Chaplain School,
Carlisle Barracks, Pa. (28 Oct 1950 to 15 Mar 1951) ; Chaplain School,
Fort Slocum, N.Y. (15 Jlilar 1951 to 27 Mar 1952). As a member of
the faculty of Chaplain Schools Father Harley's duties included being
spiritual director of student Catholic priests, assistant director of
Extension Dept., and instructor in military subjects. Reverted to
inactive status 27 Mar 1952. Participated in Army Reserve programs
from 1946 to 1950, and from 1952 to 1959. 31 Jan 1959 transferred to
Retired Reserve.
Harty, William J. (New Orleans)
Born: 6 May 1897. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1915. Ordained: 20
Jun 1928.
Appointed to the Army 29 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0498477. To
the rank of Captain 14 Jun 1943; to Major 26 Nov 1946. Assignments:
9th Service Command, Camp Callan, Cal. (14 Oct 1942) ; Chaplain
School Harvard (4 Feb 1943); 82nd General Hospital, Baxter General
Hospital, Spok:me, Wash. (1943); in England with Hospital Units
(1944); Camp Shelby, Miss., Dallas, Tex., nnd Camp Clairborne, La.
(1945). Reverted to inactive status 2 Mar 1946.
Died 19 Oct 1955.
Hausmann, Carl W. (New York)
Born: 26 Apr 1898. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1918. Ordained: 22 Jun
1931.
Appointed to the Army 16 Apr 1942. Serial number: 0890458. Captured by the Japanese Army during the fall of the Philippines and
imprisoned in Davao Military Prison and Bilibid Military Prison,
Manila. From Manila he was placed on board a prison ship to be
sent to Japan. Died en route near Formosa 20 Jan 1945.
Award: Purple Heart.
Heavey, William J. (Missouri)
Born: 20 Jul 1900. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1925. Ordained: 24 Jun
1936. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 25 Jul 1942. Serial number: 0486024. To
the rank of Captain 14 Jun 1943; to Major 5 Mar 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (8 Mar 1943); Barnes General Hospital,
Vancouver, Wash.; Baxter General Hospital, Spokane, ·wash.; Camp
Beale, Cal.; various station hospitals throughout Wales, Scotland and
England; Hospital Area, Verdun, France; Station Hospital, Bremerhaven, Germany. Reverted to inactive status 31 May 1946.
�386
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Hennessey, Thomas P. (New England)
Born: 30 Nov 1908. Entered Society: 30 J ul 1926. Ordained: 17
Jun 1939.
Appointed to the Army 6 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0530788. To
the rank of Captain 16 Oct 1944; to Major 1 Aug 1947; to Lieutenant
Colonel 13 May 1956. Assignments: 7th Service Command, Fort Riley,
Kan. (1943 to 1944); Chaplain School (3 Jan 1944); to France with
11th Regiment, 5th Infantry Division (13 Jun 1944); Fort Campbell,
Ky. (23 Jul 1945); Walter Reed Hospital, Washington, D.C. (1946 to
1947); Fort Ruger, Hawaii (1947 to 1948). Separated from service
in 1948.
·
Recalled to Army 1951. Assignments: Fort McClellan, Ala. (1951
to 1953); Eielson Air Base, Fairbanks, Alaska (1953 to 1955); 505th
Missile Battalion, Fort Tilden, N.Y. (1955 to 1958); Metz and Orleans,
France (1958 to 1960). Still on active duty.
Award: Bronze Star.
Higgins, James J. (New York)
Born: 14 May 1903. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1921. Ordained: 24
Jun 1934.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 27 Mar 1943. Serial number: 272424. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (26 Apr 1943 to 21 Jun 1943);
Naval Air Station, Norfolk, Va. (2 Jul 1943 to 13 Jan 1944); 14th
Naval District, Hawaii (26 Jan 1944 to 20 Mar 1944); Receiving Station #128, Hawaii (20 Mar 1944 to 22 Jun 1944); Naval Hospital,
Aeia Heights, Hawaii (22 Jun 1944 to 16 Jan 1945); Naval Air Station, Maui, Hawaii (17 Jan 1945 to 21 Oct 1945); Amphibious Training Base, Little Creek, Va. ( 12 Dec 1945 until relieved). Reverted to
inactive status 26 Jun 1946. Released from Naval Reserve 1 Sep 1955.
Hochhaus, Raphael H. (Missouri)
Born: 24 Oct 1908. Entered Society: 8 Aug 1927. Ordained: 26 Jun
1940. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 3 Jun 1944. Serial number: 0553966. To
the rank of Captain 1 May 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (6 Jun 1944); 99th Infantry Division, Camp Maxey, Tex.
(1944) ; to England with 393rd Infantry Regiment (1944) ; with 313th
Infantry Regiment and 315th Infantry Regiment, Germany (1945);
Division Artillery, 1st Division (Oct 1945). Relieved of active duty
21 Feb 1946.
A ward: Bronze Sta1;~
Hogan, Joseph F. (Chicago)
Born: 31 Jan 1910. Entered ~odety: 1 Sep 1927. Ordained: 26 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 11 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0531249. To
�IN ARl'.IED SERVICES
387
the rank of Captain 28 Apr 1944; to Major 16 Dec 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel 17 Feb 1955. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (25 Sep
1943); Camp Rucker, Ala. (1944); with 3rd Army in Northern France,
Rhineland, Central Europe campaigns (1944 to 1945); on way to
Pacific when war ended there; returned to Ft. Lee, Va. ( 1945 to 1946).
Reverted to inactive status 9 Oct 1946.
Awards: Bronze Star; Army Commendation Ribbon.
Holland, John E. (f.Iaryland)
Born: 4 Dec 1905. Entered Society: 18 Sep 1927. Ordained: 21
Jun 1939.
Appointed to the Army 24 Apr 1944. Serial number: 05G0786. To
the rank of Captain 2 Jun liH5. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 May 1944); Amarillo Army Air Field, Tex. (Jun 1944 to Sep
1945); lOGO AAF BU, Greensboro, N.C. (Sep 194S to Dec 1945); Headquarters IX AFSC, Chaplains Section, Europe, and Chaplain's Office,
Ansbach Air Depot, Germany (Dec 1945 to Aug 1946). Reverted to
inactive status 21 Sep 1946.
D:ed 28 Aug 1£57.
Huss, Harry L. (New Orleans)
Born: 23 May 1903. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1026. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 28 Dec 1942. Serial number: 0509085. To
the rank of Captain 15 Jul 19H; to Major 19 Sep 1945. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (3 Feb 1943); 52nd Coast Artillery, Fort
Eustis, Va. (3 Mar 1943), and Fort Hancock, N.J. (1 Apr 1943) ; 181st
Infantry, Fort Devens, Mass. (Nov 19-±3). Assignments overseas (1944
and 1945): Western Base Section, Chester, England; Channel Base
Section, Lille, France; Chan or Base Section, Brussels, Belgium. Reverted to inactive status 5 Jun 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Ireland, Raymond J. (Missouri)
Born: 3 Jul 1902. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1922. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 28 Aug 1943. Serial number: 318281. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Nov 1945; to Commander
1 J ul 1954. Assignments: Bureau of Personnel ( 29 Oct 1943 to 13
Nov 1943); Naval Operating Base, Bermuda (31 Dec 1943 to 15 Jan
1945) ; U.S. Naval Training Center, Great Lakes, Ill. (1 Mar 1945 to
6 Jul 1945); U.S.S. Washington (battleship) (23 July 1945 to 25 Feb
1946). Reverted to inactive status 16 Mar 1946.
Johilson, Alfred W. (California)
Born: 9 Feb 1902. Entered Society: 20 Sep
1936.
192~.
Ordained: 19 Jun
�388
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Appointed to the Army 13 Oct 1942. Serial number: 0500178. Sworn
in at Fort MacArthur 21 Oct 1942. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (2 Nov 1942); Camp Hulen, Texas; Camp Cooke, Cal.; Port of
Embarkation, Richmond.
On 18 Oct 1943 Fdher Johnson contracted infantile paralysis. Taken
to Letterman Hospital, San Francisco, he died there 20 Oct 1943.
Kavanagh, Cyril R. (California)
Born: 19 Feb 1899. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1915. Ordained: 28
Jul 1929.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 25 Jun 1942. Serial number: 153312. To Lieutepant Commander 17 Oct 1944; to Commander
1 Jul 1950. Assignments·: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (17 Aug 1942
to 16 Oct 1942); Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Fla. (31 Oct 1942 to
8 Mar 1943); Naval Air Station, Moffett Field, Cal. (17 Mar 1943 to
23 Jun 1943); Acorn #12 (25 Jun 1943 to 3 Mar 1944); 87th Naval Construction Base, Solomon Islands (Mar 1944 to 7 Nov 1944) ; 12th
Naval District, West Coast of U.S. (Dec 1944 to 27 Feb 1945); with
Commander, 7th Fleet (Mar 1945 to 15 Jun 1945); Naval Barracks
#3002 (Jun 19,15 llntil relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive status
15 Dec 1945.
Kearns, A. Bernard (New Orleans)
Born: 9 1\Iay 1910. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 7 Jun
1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 24 Jun 1944. Serial
number: 40143·1. To Lieutenant 1 Feb 1946. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (17 Jul 1944 to 10 Sep~-1-944); Naval Hospital, Corona, Cal. (24 Sep 1944 to 22 Jul 1945); with Admiral Commanding Amphibious Forces, Pacific (22 Jul 1945 to 21 Aug 1945);
Staging Center #1'28, near Pearl Harbor (25 Aug 1945 to 23 Oct
1945); Amphibious Base #128, Waipio, T.H. (23 Oct 1945 to 4 Jan
1946); Officers Pool, Commo.nder Service Forces, Pacific (15 Jan 1946
to 7 Feb 1946); U.S.S. Piedmont (destroyer tender), based at Tokyo
(13 Feb 1946 to 19 Mar 1946); U.S.S. Delta (auxiliary repair ship,
AR-9), based at Shanghai (Mar 1946 until relieved of active duty).
Reverted to inactive status 7 Aug 1946. Released from Naval Reserve
15 Oct 1954.
Kelleher, John J. (New England)
Born: 18 Sep 1908. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 22
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 19 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550493. To
the rank of Captain 21 Feb 1945; to Major 12 Apr 1948; to Lieutenant
Colonel 10 May 1955. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (30 Apr
1944) ; Camp Atterbury, Ind., and Crile General Hospital, Cleveland,
Ohio (1944); Hawaii (1944 to 1945); Governors Island, N.Y. and Fort
�IN ARMED SERVICES
389
Dix, N.J. (1946); Fort Monmouth, N.J., and New Mexico (1947); Fort
Sam Houston, Tex. (1948); Okinawa (1949); Camp Gordon, Ga.
(1950); U.S. Army, Europe (1951 to 1953); Camp Kilmer, N.J. (1954);
Camp Dix, N.J. (1955 to 1957); U.S. Forces, Caribbean (1957 to 1958);
Nike Base, Coventry, R.I. (1958); Headquarters, 11th Artillery Group,
Rehoboth, Mass. (1959 to 1960); Headquarters, 11th Engineer Group,
Schwetzingen, Germany (Apr 1960 to present). On active duty with
the rank of Major.
Kelly, James J. (California)
Born: 19 Mar 1900. Entered Society: 16 Jul 1918. Ordained: 25
Jun 1931.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 19 May 1943. Serial number: 289629. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (21 Jun 1943 to 15 Aug 1943);
Naval Training Station, Bainbridge (25 Aug 1943 to 5 Feb 1944);
Coast Guard, Long Island (15 Feb 1944 to 8 Mar 1944); U.S.S. Nevada
(battleship) (9 Mar 1944 to 28 Aug 1945) during which time he saw
service on D-Day at Normandy, in Southern France Invasion, at Iwo
Jima, Okinawa, and East China Sea; Naval Air Station, San Diego
(6 Nov 1945 to 13 Feb 1946); Personnel Separation Center, Terminal
Island, San Pedro (14 Feb 1946 to 20 Jul 1946). Reverted to inactive
status 17 Aug 1946.
Kelly, James J. (Chicago)
Born: 24 Dec 1906. Entered Society: 27 Sep 1930. Ordained: 31 Jul
1940.
Appointed to the Army 15 Sep 1943. Serial number: 0534562. To
the rank of Captain 1 Dec 1944; to Major 17 Mar 194 7. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (21 Sep 1943); Newport Air Base, Newport,
Ark. (1944); Cochran Air Base, Macon, Ga. (1944); Buckingham Air
Base, Fort Myers, Fla. (1945); 44th Air Depot, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany (1946). Reverted to inactive status 3 Nov 1946.
Recalled to the Air Force 5 Feb 1952. Serial number: A0534562.
Assignments: Dow AFB, Bangor, Me. (1952); England AFB, Alexandria, La. (1952) ; 1603 Air Transport ·wing, Wheelus AFB, Tripoli,
Libya (Dec 1952 to Jun 1954); 7th Engineer Aviation Brigade, Frankfurt, Germany (Jun 1954 to Sep 1955); 323rd Fighter Bomber Wing,
Bunker Hill, Ind. (1956); Warren Air Base, Cheyenne, Wyo. (1957 to
1958) ; Luke Air Base, Glendale, Ariz. (1959). Relieved of active duty
with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel 31 Dec 1959.
Kelly, Patrick G. (Missouri)
Born: 18 Apr 1898. Entered Society: 29 Aug 1919. Ordained: 22
Jun 1932. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 2 Apr 1943. Serial number: 0517 442. To
the rank of Captain 1 Dec 1943; to Major 18 Feb 1946. Assignments:
�390
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Army General Hospital, Augusta, Ga. (1943); with 56th General Hospital in Fort Jackson, S.C., Camp Shanks, N.Y., Fort Devens, Mass.,
and England (1943); with 5Gth General Hospital in campaigns in
Normandy, Northern France, Arder:nes, Rhineland (1944 to 1945);
transferred to 16th r.Iajor Port, Fr:m:e (from Oct 1945) ; lGth Major
Port, France (1%6). Father Kelly also saw service in World War I
as an enlisted r.:an. Reverted to inactiYe status 9 May 1946.
Kenealy, William J. (New England)
Born: 30 Jul 1904. Entered Societ~-: 14 Aug 1922. Ordained: 20
Jun 1934.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 2 Jan 1943. Serial number: 246575. To Lieut~nant Commander 3 Oct Hl45. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolli:; Va. (22 Feb 1943 to 25 Apr 1943); PreFlight School, St. Mary's College, Cal. (12 May 1943 to 15 Sep 1943);
U.S.S. California (eattleship) (26 Sep 1943 until relieved from duty)
during which time he saw service in the invasions of Guam, Saipan,
Tinian, Palau Islands, Leyte Gulf, Lingayan Gulf, and Okinawa; participated in the sea battle of Surigao Strait. Reverted to inactive
status 6 Feb 1946. Retired from the Naval Reserve 1 Nov 1953.
Kennedy, Hugh F. (New York)
Born: 14 Jan 1£08. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1926. Ordained: 20 J un
1937.
Appointed 1st Lieutenant late 1941 in l\findinao. Serial number:
0890457. To the rank of Captain 18 Feb 19!J.5; to r.Iajor 6 Mar 1946;
to Lieutenant Colonel 7 Jul 1951. Assigned as chaplain of the 101st
Division, Philippine Army in January 1942 and served as such until
10 M;:,y 19-12 when the division was ordered to sur~'e~der. Imprisoned
by the J apancse Army at Davao l\Iilitary Prison, at Bilibid in Manila
and in Cabanatuan. Rescued by American Rangers early 1945, he
returned to the United States for six months (stationed at \Yalter Reed
Hospital, D.C., and Letterman Hospital). Further assignments: with
11th Airborne Division, Japan (19-16); in Philippines with Graves
Registration unit (1947); Sandia Base, Albuquerque, N.l\1. (1948 to
1952); Charlain for Western Area Command, Kaiserslautern, and at
an Air Fol'Ce Hospital, Frankfurt, Germany ( 1952 to 1953).
A wo.rds: Legion of Merit; Bronze Star; Purple Heart; oak leaf cluster ta Purple Heart; Army Commendation Ribbon.
Died while O!l active duty with the Army 3 Aug 1955.
Kennedy, Walter E. (New England)
Born: 20 Nov 1!)10. Entered Sodety: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 22
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 27 Apr 1914. Serial number: 0551228. To
the rank of Captain 16 Feb 1!).15. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 May 1944); Fort Leonard Wood, l'.lo., as Chaplain for En-
�IN ARMED SERVICES
391
gineers; Camp Barkeley, Texas; 189th General Hospital, Lison, France;
189th General Hospital and 333rd Engineers, Mourmelon-le-Grand,
France; Asst. Base Section Chaplain, Reims, France; Base Section
Chaplain, Bad Nauheim, Germany, Continental Base. Reverted to inactive status 4 May 1946 with the rank of Major.
Kilp, Alfred J. (California)
Born: 2 Apr 1908. Entered Society: 2 Aug 1928. Ordained: 7 J un
1941.
Appointed to the Army 20 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550555. To
the rank of Captain 16 Jan 1946; to Major 25 Apr 1950; to Lieutenant
Colonel 13 Sep 1954. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (3 Jun
1944); 13th Armored Division, Camp Bowie, Tex.; 20th Tank Destroyer
Group and lOOth Evacuation Hospital, Europe. Reverted to inactive
status 14 Oct 1946. Joined Army Reserve (14 Oct 1946); joined California National Guard, 40th Infantry Division (27 Feb 1948).
Recalled 1 Sep 1950. Assignments: 40th Infantry Division, Camp
Cooke, Cal.; 40th Infantry Division, Japan (Apr 1951) ; 40th Infantry
Division, Korea (Jan 1952). Reverted to inactive status 14 Jul 1952.
At present Division Chaplain, 40th Division, California National Guard.
Award: Bronze Star; Army Commendation Ribbon.
Kines, L. Berkeley (Maryland)
Born: 13 Dec 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1923. Ordained: 21
Jun 1936.
Appointed to the Army 21 Aug 1941. Serial number: 0425972. To
the rank of Captain 4 May 1944. Assignments in the United States:
Fort Jackson, S.C.; Fort Myer, Va.; Fort Eustis, Va.; Fort Bragg,
N.C.; Fort Dix, N.J.; Camp Cooke, Cal.; Camp Adair, Ore.; Pine Camp,
N.Y.; Lake Placid, N.Y.; Camp Kilmer, N.J. Assignments overseas:
Antrim, No1th Ireland; Inveraray, Scotland; Tunis, Algiers, Oran in
North Africa; Gela, Sicily. Wounded in action at El Guettar, North
Africa, 31 Mar 1943. Served overseas with 39th Infantry Regiment,
9th Division. Reverted to inactive status 15 Mar 1946 with rank of
Major.
Award: Purple Heart.
King, George A. (New England)
Born: 23 Oct 1907. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1925. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 26 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0492181. To
the rank of Captain 1 Feb 1944; to Major 6 Apr 1945. Assignments:
48th Evacuation Hospital, Tennessee Maneuvers (Aug to Oct 1942) ;
Chaplain School, Fort Devens, Mass. (30 Nov 1942); Ledo Road, Assam
through Burma (March 1943); Base Chaplain, Chabua, India, serving
also units of Air Service Command and lOth Air Force (Nov 1943 to
Nov 1944); Headquarters, ADMAC, American New Delhi Command
(Nov 1944 to Sep 1945). Reverted to inactive status 4 Feb 1946.
�392
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Kirshbaum, Irving J. (New York)
Born: 12 Aug 1907. Entered Society: 12 Nov 1927. Ordained: 23
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 11 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0524982. To
the rank of Captain 1 Jul 1944; to Major 26 Mar 1947. Served at
Camp McCain, 1\Iiss., and Kennedy General Hospital, Memphis, Tenn.
(1943). European Theater of Operations with the following units
(1944) : 48th General Hospital; 16th Replacement Depot; 708th Railway Group; with 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment (30 Sep 1944 to
end of Dec 1944). Stationed at various Army hospitals in New York,
New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts (1945 to 1950). Retired
with the rank of Major, A.U.S., 30 Apr 1950.
Award: Purple Heart.~ ..
Kleber, Jerome J. (New York)
Born: 29 Jul 1909. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 17 Jul 1945. Serial number: 0933231. To
the rank of Captain 9 Jun 1947. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort
Oglethorpe, Ga.; Port of Embarkation, Hampton Roads, Va.; Port of
Embarkation, Brooklyn, N.Y.; on transport ships which returned
prisoners of war and brought back American soldiers to the United
States. Reverted to inactive status 30 Jul 1947.
Klocke, John H. (New York)
Born: 3 Sep 1899. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1917. Ordained: 23 Jun
1930.
Appointed to the Army 10 Dec 1942. Serial null}her: 0507205. To
the rank of Captain 20 1\Iay 1944. Assignments: Fort" Hood, Tex. (Jan
1943 to Dec 1943); Harvard Chaplain School (8 Apr 1943); Post Headquarters Catholic Chaplain, Fort Bliss, El Paso, Tex. (26 Dec 1943 to
8 Feb 1944); Bruns General Hospital, Santa Fe, N.M. (10 Feb 1944
till inactive). Reverted to inactive status 4 May 1946.
Kmieck, George A. (Chicago)
Born: 26 Oct 1904. Entered Society: 20 Sep 1923. Ordained: 24
J un 1936. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 1 Sep 1943. Serial number: 0533154. To
the rank of Captain 1 Sep 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (25 Sep 1943); Army Air Base, Cottersmore, England; with
anti-aircraft units of the 4th Armored Division in Normandy, Holland
and Germany; 30th ~nfantry Division Artillery; detached service with
evacuation hospitals; until Aug 1945 on occupational duties throughout Germany. Reverted to inactive status 11 Jan 1946.
Lanahan, John B. (Maryland)
Born: 7 Aug 1906. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1925.
1938.
Ordained: 19 Jun
�IN ARMED SERVICES
393
Appointed to the Army 13 Apr 1944. Serial Number: 0549990. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (30 Apr 1944); Santa Clara, Cal.
and Merced, Cal. (1944); Pecos, Tex., Douglas, Ariz., and Lubbock, Tex.
(1945); Tyndall Field, Panama City, Fla. (1946). Served with Army
Air Force units. Reverted to inactive status 28 Apr 1946.
Lane, Joseph A. (Chicago)
Born: 16 Mar 1899. Entered Society: 8 Oct 1918. Ordained: 25 Jun
1931.
Appointed to the Army 22 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550699. To
the rank of Captain 9 Jul 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944); Assistant Post Chaplain, Indiantown Gap, Pa.
(1944); Natal, Belem, Recife in Brazil (Jan 1945 to May 1946). Reverted to inactive status 20 Jul 1946.
Lang, E. Cecil (New Orleans)
Born: 27 Jul 1909. Entered Society: 20 Sep 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 30 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0498459. To
the rank of Captain 30 Apr 1943; to Major 26 Jun 1946. Assignments:
Camp Croft, Spartanburg, S.C. (14 Oct 1942); Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1943 to 30 Jan 1943); returned to Camp Croft; Mediterranean Theater of Operations (Po Valley Campaign) with combat
units of Fifth Army; occupation duties along Jugoslav border with
88th Division. Reverted to inactive status 15 Sep 1946.
LaPlante, Oscar J. (Chicago)
Born: 22 Nov 1896. Entered Society: 12 Aug 1917. Ordained: 25
Jun 1930. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 15 Jul 1943. Serial number: 0528353. To
the rank of Captain 25 Aug 1945. Assignments: Camp Crowder, Mo.
(1943); Harvard Chaplain School (3 Jan 1944 to 9 Feb 1944); 7th
Service Command, Camp Crowder (1944 to 1945); Luzon and Manila
(1945); Mayo General Hospital, Galesburg, Ill. (1946). Reverted to
inactive status 24 May 1946.
LeGault, Eugene B. (Oregon)
Born: 29 Feb 1904. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1924. Ordained: 19 Jun
1936.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 7 Jul 1942. Serial number:
175757. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (17 Aug 1942 to
16 Oct 1942) ; Naval Training Station, Sampson (29 Oct 1942 to 25
Oct 1943); U.S.S. General W. A. Mann (30 Oct 1943 to 27 Jun 1944).
Resigned from the Navy 10 Jul1944.
Leonard, William J. (New England)
Born: 10 Apr 1908. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1925.
Jun 1937.
Ordained: 20
�394
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Appointed to the Army 24 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0544318. To
the rank of Captain 26 Jun 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (10 Feb 1944); 86th Infantry Division, Camp Livingston, Alexandria, La.; 9th Ordnance Battalion, Finschhafen, New Guinea and
l\Iangaldan, Luzon; Headquarters Base X, Manila. Reverted to inactive
status 28 Jul1946.
Lewis, Thomas X. (New York)
Born: 11 1\Iar 1910. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1930. Ordained: 24
Jun 1943.
Appointed to the Army ·17 Jul 1945. Serial number: 0933228. To
the rank of Captain 14 Feb 1947. Assignments: Camp Kilmer, N.J.,
and Fort Oglethorpe, Ga ... (1945); Fort Buchanan, San Juan, Puerto
Rico (1946 to 1947). Reverted to inactive status 2 Aug 1947. Reserve
Officer and Auxiliary Chaplain, Palau, Caroline Islands (1948 to 1952).
Regimental Chaplain, 101st Armored Cavalry, New York. National
Guard ( 1953 to 1956).
Libertini, Robert l\L (New Orleans)
Born: 8 Jun 1885. Entered Society: 26 Sep 1904. Ordained: 28
Jun 1914.
Appointed as First Lieutenant in the Officers' Reserve Corps 10 Jul
1928. Serial number: 0254595. Summer Camps at Fort Bliss, Fort
Russell and Camp Bullis. To the rank of Captain 20 Oct 1942; to
Major 13 Feb 1945. Assignments during World War II: Harvard
Chaplain School (5 Mar 1943 to 3 Apr 1943); Hoff General Hospital,
Santa Barbara, Cal. (Feb 1942 to Mar 1946). Re{;erted to inactive
status 19 Mar 1946.
Long, John J. (New England)
Born: 20 Feb 1904. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1920. Ordained: 22
Jun 1933.
Appointed to the Army 31 Jul 1942. Serial number: 0487098. To
the rank of Captain 19 Mar 1943; to Major 25 Oct 1943; to Lieutenant
Colonel 19 Jul 1946. Assignments: Mitchell Field, Long Island (1942
to 1944); 5th Air Force, Southwest Pacific, Philippines and Japan
(1944 to 1946). Reverted to inactive status 27 Oct 1946.
Recalled to the Army 22 Jul 1947. Assignments: 28th Bombardment
Wing, Rapid City, S.D. (1947 to 1948); Antilles Air Division, Puerto
Rico (1948 to 1949); ·caribbean Air Command, Panama, Canal Zone
(1949 to 1951); Lackland Air Force Base, Tex. (1951 to 1953); Headquarters, 5th Air Division, French Morocco (1953 to· 1954); Loring
Air Force Base, Me. (1954 to 1956). In Aug 1949 Father Long was
transferred to the Air Force; serial number: A0487098. Reverted to
inactive status 1 May 1956.
~·
�IN ARMED SERVICES
3D5
Lynch, Cornelius E. (California)
Born: 25 May 1904. Entered Society: 31 Aug 1921. Ordained: 21
Jun 1935.
Appointed to the Army 7 Aug 19-14. Serial number: 0558196. To
the rank of Captain 26 Nov 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort
Devens, Mass. (24 Aug 1944); Camp Joseph T. Robinson, Little Rock,
Ark. (4 Oct 1944 to 5 Mar 1945); Base G, Headquarters Company,
Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea (19 May 1945 to 23 Aug 1945); Kobe
Base, Japan (2 Sep 1945 to 17 Oct 1945); Fort MacArthur, Los Angeles (19 Nov 1945 to 31 Mar 1946). Reverted to inactive status 31
Regimental Chaplain, 101st Armored Cavalry, New York National
Mar 1946. Chaplain to 1st Brigade, California National Guard Reserve,
Dec 1950 to July 1957 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Lynch, Daniel J. (New England)
See Father Lynch's record in World \Var I.
Lynch, Joseph P. (New York)
Born: 15 Apr 1906. Entered Society: 20 Sep 1925. Ordained: 19
Jun 1938.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 20 l\lay 1942. Serial number: 155996. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Mar 1944; to Commander
5 Nov 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (25 May
1942 to 17 Jul 1942); U.S.S. Relief (hospital ship) (6 Aug 1942 to 10
May 1944) during which time he saw service in New Caledonia, New
Zealand, Hawaii, Ellice Islands, Tarawa; Naval Hospital, Brooklyn
(30 Jun 1944 to 16 Jul 1945); U.S.S. Bexar (attack transport) (9 Oct
1945 to 30 Jan 1946); Naval Training Center, Shoemaker, Cal. (1 Feb
1946 to 3 Jun 1946); Naval Air Station, Moffett Field, Cal. (3 Jun
1946 to 19 Aug 1946). Reverted to inactive status 4 Oct 1946. Reserve duty: Marine School, Quantico, Va. (Jun to Sep in years 1953 to
1957); Great Lakes, Ill. (Jun to Sep 1958); Camp Lejeune, N.C. (Jun
to Sep 1959).
Lynch, Laurence J. (Chicago)
Born: 24 Aug 1898. Entered Society: 12 Aug 1917. Ordained: 25
Jun 1930.
Appointed to the Army 29 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0492884. To
the rank of Captain 19 Apr 1943; to Major 10 Dec 19·1G. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (1 Oct 1942); 378th Air Base Squadron,
Houlton, 1\le. (31 Oct 1942) ; Air Transport Command, Presque Isle,
Me. (1 Oct 1943); Newfoundland (8 May 1944 to Jul 1946). Reverted
to inactive status 30 Sep 1946.
Lyons, John F. (New England)
Born: 22 Oct 1904. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1926.
Jun 1939.
Ordained: 17
�396
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Appointed to the Anny 24 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0544278. To
the rank of Captain 16 Aug 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (11 Feb 1944) ; Mason General Hospital, Brentwood, L.I. (1944);
34th General Hospital, Atlantic City, N.J., and France (1944) ; 48th
General Hospital, France (1944); 305th Bombardment Group, France
(1945); 305th and 306th Bombardment Group, France (1946); 414th
Air Service Group, France (1946). Reverted to inactive status 17 Feb
1947.
MacDonald, Francis J. (New England)
Born: 29 Mar 1897. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1917. Ordained: 18
Jun 1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 11 Sep 1942. Serial number: 207850. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (5 Oct 1942 to 29 Nov 1942); Mobile
Hospital #7 (12 Mar 1943 to 22 May 1944); Naval Training Center,
Bainbridge (13 Jul 1944 to 2 Mar 1945); U.S.S. Tutuila (15 Apr 1945
to Oct 1945). Reverted to inactive status 31 lllar 1946. Released from
Naval Reserve 15 Oct 1954.
MacLeod, Harry C. (New England)
Born: 23 Aug 1900. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1917. Ordained: 18
Jun 1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 21 Aug 1942. Serial number: 200219. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (21 Sep 1942 to 13 Nov. 1942); Amphibious Training Base, Solomons, Md. (23 Nov 1942 ~o 3 Aug 1943);
Commander Naval Base, FOLD (6 Oct 1943 to 20 Mar 1944); Landing Craft Repair Base #2 (8 Apr 1944 to Jan 1945); ·Naval Hospital,
Fort Eustis, Va. (22 Apr 1945 until relieved of active duty). Reverted
to inactive status 1 Dec 1946.
Maginnis, Edward D. (California)
Born: 29 Sep 1895. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1914. Ordained: 29 Jun
1929.
Appointed to the Army 22 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0516499. To
the rank of Captain 8 Jan 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (23 Aug 1943); Harmon General Hospital, Longview, Tex. (Apr
1943 to Dec 1944); 349th General Hospital, Nadzab, New Guinea (Dec
1944 to May 1945) ; 349th General Hospital, Clark Field, P.I. (May
1945 to Oct 1945). Reverted to inactive status 1 Jun 1946.
Maher, Thomas F. (New Orleans)
Born: 11 Jul 19.00. Entered Society: 27 Aug 1918. Ordained: 31
Jul 1931.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 2 Sep 1943. Serial number: 323699. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Nov 1945. Assignments:
�IN ARMED SERVICES
397
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (25 Oct 1943 to 19 Dec 1943);
District Coast Guard Office, 3rd Naval District, N.Y.C. (30 Dec 1943
to 5 Oct 1944); U.S.S. General lV. H. Gordon (transport) (5 Oct 1944
to Jul 1945); Naval Training Center, Sampson, N.Y. (21 Aug 1945 to
5 Sep 1945); Naval Hospital, Charleston, S.C. (11 Sep 1945 to Aug
1947). Reverted to inactive status Aug 1947.
Malloy, Joseph W. (New Orleans)
Born: 17 May 1907. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1924. Ordained: 22
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 26 Aug 1941. Serial number: 0426170. To
the rank of Captain 21 Aug 1942. Assignments: 2nd Cavalry Division,
Fort Riley, Kan. (1942); 9th Armored Division (1942); Chaplain
School Harvard (1 Nov 1942); 52nd Armored Regiment at Camp
Young, Cal., and Camp Polk, La. (1943); 9th Armored Division, Camp
Polk, La. (1944); 179th Field Artillery Group, France (1944) ; 179th
Field Artillery Group, Germany (1945); 40th Field Artillery Group,
Germany (1945). Relieved of active duty 22 Dec 1945.
Manhard, Edward P. (Missouri)
Born: 5 Jan 1898. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1919. Ordained: 22 Jun
1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 28 Oct 1942. Serial number: 223730. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945; to Commander 1
Jul 1951. Assignments: Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (14 Dec 1942
to 7 Feb 1943); 59th Naval Construction Battalion, Hilo, Hawaii (12
Feb 1943 to 24 Feb 1944) ; 6th Defense Battalion, Fleet Marine Force
(15 Mar 1944 to Jan 1945), based on Midway; Naval Air Training
Base, Corpus Christi, Tex. (10 l'.'l:ar 1945 to 25 Sep 1945); Personnel
Separation Center, New Orleans, La. (30 Sep 1945 until relieved).
Reverted to inactive status 4 Feb 1946. Participated actively in naval
reserve program, serving for nine summers in the following appointments: U.S. Naval Hospital, Great Lakes, Ill. (two summers); U.S.
Naval Amphibious Base, Little Creek, Va. (three summers); U.S.S.
Des Moines (CA-134), European Midshipman Cruise; U.S.S. Sierra
(AD-18), Norfolk, Va.; U.S.S. Canberra (CAG-2), Midshipman South
American cruise; U.S.N.S. General Rose (TAP-126) Mediterranean
cruise. Retired from Naval Reserve 1 Feb 1960.
Maring, Joseph (New Orleans)
Born: 13 May 1898. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1916. Ordained: 27
Aug 1929.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 21 Sep 1943. Serial number: 323340. To Lie'.ltenant Commander 1 Nov 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (11 Oct 1943 to 5 Dec 1943); Naval
Construction Training Center, Camp Peary, Va. (11 Dec 1943 to 9 Nov
1944); U.S.S. Norton Sound (seaplane tender) (23 Nov 1944 until
�398
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
relieved) during which time he saw service at Kerama Retto and Chimu
Bay, Okinawa, while Japanese kamikaze attacks were at their height.
Reverted to inactive status 13 Apr 1946. Retired from the Naval Reserve 1 Jun 1954.
Martin, James A. (:\Iaryland)
Born: 30 Aug 190~. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1921. Ordained: 24
Jun 1934.
Appointed to the Army 29 Nov 1941. Serial number: 0431601. To
the rank of Captain 14 Nov 1942; to ?<Iajor 17 l\Iar 1947. Assignments
in the United States: Charlotte Army Air Base; Waycross, Ga.; Fort
Dix, N.J. Overseas: with l~th Air Force in Africa, Egypt, Pantelleria,
Sicily, Italy and France. Reverted to inactive status 5 Mar 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
McCauley, Leo P. (New England)
Born: 8 l\fay 1904. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1922. Ordained: 20
Jun 1934.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 31 Aug 1943. Serial number: 317540. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (11 Oct 1943 to 5 Dec 1943);
Naval Construction Training Center, Camp Peary, "Williamsburg, Va.
(11 Dec 1943 to ll.. Apr l~H4); USN Advanced Base, Dartmouth,
Devon, England (1\lay 1944 to August 1944); Naval Advanced Base,
Fowey, Cornwall, England (Aug 1944 to Oct 1944) ; Port Chaplain, Le
Havre, France (Oct 1944 to Jul 19-15); Port Hueneme, Cal. (12 Aug
1945 to :Mar 19"16). Re\·erted to inactive status 12 Mar 1946.
McDonald, Donald S. (Oregon)
Born: 27 Aug 1906. Entered Society: 31 Dec 1928. Ordained: Jun
1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 3 Aug 1944. Serial number: 425310. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (6 Nov
1944 to 31 Dec 1944); Naval Operating Base, Key \Vest, Fla. (13 Jan
1945 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive status 12 Nov
1945.
McEvoy, William H. (Missouri)
Born: 6 Jul 1904. Entered Society: 31 Aug 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Arr(ly 22 May 1944. Serial number: 0552968. To
the rank of Captain 2.3 Aug 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (7 Jun 1944); Fort Sheridan, Ill., and Fort Custer, Mich.
(1944); Europe (1945 and 1946). Served overseas with the following
units: 16th General Hospital; 173rd General Hospital; 6815 Military
Police Training School; I 21st General Hospital. Reverted to inactive
status 14 Feb 1947.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
399
McGinnis, James S. (Chicago)
Born: 5 Feb 1901. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1920. Ordained: 25 Jun
1933.
Appointed to the Army 16 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0443417. To
the rank of Captain 22 Nov 1943; to Major 23 Jan 1947. Assignments:
Fort Riley, Kan., and Fort McDowell, Cal. (1942); overseas in Solomon
Islands and New Hebrides (1942 to 1944); Camp Croft, S.C. (11 Mar
1945); Ft. Devens Chaplain School, Mass. (May 1945). Overseas with
121st Medical Battalion and 9th Station Hospital. Reverted to inactive
status 3 Mar 1946.
Awards: Bronze Star; oak leaf cluster to Bronze Star.
Died 4 May 1949.
McGratty, Arthur R. (New York)
Born: 8 Dec 1909. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1930. Ordained: 22 Jun
1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 1 Jan 1944. Serial
number: 344440. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va.
(31 Jan 1944 to 26 Mar 1944); U.S. Coast Guard Station, St. Augustine, Fla. (7 Apr 1944 to 28 Oct 1944); 8th Regiment, 2nd Marine
Division (28 Oct 1944 until relieved from duty), during which time he
participated in the occupation of Saipan and the invasion of Okinawa
and was finally stationed in Kumamoto, Kyushu, Japan. Reverted to
inactive status 10 Jun 1946. Resigned from Naval Reserve 28 Mar
1949.
McGrorey, Raymond I. (California)
Born: 1 Oct 1903. Entered Society: 18 Jul 1924. Ordained: 19 Jun
1936.
Appointed to the Army 8 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0494963. To
the rank of Captain 18 Dec 1943. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (8 Mar 1943); Fort Worden, Wash., Harbor Defense Command
(Sep 1942 to Jan 1943); Fort Scott, Cal., Harbor Defense (Feb 1943
to Aug 1943); Constantine, North Africa (Sep 1943 to Jan 1944);
Caserta, Italy (Jan 1944 to Jun 1944); Rome (Jun 1944 to Jun 1945).
All overseas duty was as Chaplain of the 73rd Station Hospital. Reverted to inactive status 18 Apr 1946.
McGuigan, James T. (Oregon)
Born: 22 Jul 1904. Entered Society: 17 Jul 1923. Ordained: 19 Jun
1936.
Appointed to the Army 21 Mar Hl42. Serial number: 0444355. To
the rank of Captain 6 Jan 1943; to Major 19 Apr 1944. Assignments:
Fort Ord, Cal. (1942); Anchorage and Nome, Alaska (1942 to 1943);
Army Air Field, Rome, N.Y. (1943); Chaplain School (Jan 1944 to Feb
1944); Army Air Field, Rome, N.Y. (1944); St. Petersburg, Fla.
(1944); Albuquerque, N.M. (1944); St. Petersburg, Fla., and Santa
Ana, Cal. (1945). Reverted to inactive status 21 Feb 1946.
�400
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
1\lcGuire, Francis S. (New York)
Born: 3 Jul 1907. Ordained: 18 Mar 1934. Entered Society: 20 Sep
1935.
Appointed to the Army 13 Feb 1942. Serial number: 0438293. To
the rank of Captain 6 Aug 1943; to Major 7 Mar 1946. Assignments:
Bolling Field, \Vashington, D.C. (1942); COth Troop Carrier Group,
England (1942); 60th Troop Carrier Group, North Africa and Italy
(1943 to 1945); 1\liami, Fla., and Santa Ana, Cal. (1945). Reverted
to inactive status 18 Jun 1946.
McHugh, Lawrence R. (Maryland)
Born: 11 Apr 1907. ~.tered Society: 14 Aug 1927. Ordained: 21
Jun 1939.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 11 Nov 1942. Serial
number: 216564. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Jan 1946. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (30 Nov 1942 to 23 Jan 1943); Naval
Air Station, Cecile Field, Fla. (5 Feb 194.3 to 11 Oct 1943); U.S.S.
Bataan (aircraft carrier) (16 Oct 1943 to 10 Jun 1945) during which
time he participated in the campaign in the Central Pacific and his
ship was subjected to kamikaze attacks; Naval Hospital, San Diego (2
Aug 1945 to 17 Oct 1945); U.S.S. Bairoko (escort carrier) (17 Oct
1945 to 1 llray 1946). Reverted to inactive status 12 Jun 1946. Retired from Naval Reserve 1 Dec 1954.
McKeon, Richard Ill. (New York)
Born: 9 May 1897. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1920. Ordained: 23 Jun
1930.
Appointed to the Army 21 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0525892. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School (7 Nov 1943); Stark General
Hospital, Charleston, S.C.; 154th General Hospital, Macon, Ga.; Fort
Benning, Ga.; 154.th General Hospital, Swindon, England. Father
McKeon was Second Lieutenant of Infantry in World War I, serving
as training officer at Allegheny College, Meadville, Pa. Reverted to
inactive status with the rank of Captain 29 Dec 1945.
McLaughlin, James D. (New England)
Born: 11 Nov 1901. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1917. Ordained: 18
Jun 1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 6 Nov 1943. Serial number: 335812. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Jan 1946. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (3 Jan 1944 to 27 Feb 1944); Naval
Hospital, San Diego (12 Mar 1944 to 7 Jul 1944) ; 2nd Naval Construction Brigade (13 Jul 1944 to 2 Dec 1944); 121st Naval Construction
Base (2 Dec 1944 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive
status 31 July 1946. Released from the Naval Reserve 15 Oct 1954.
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
401
1\lcl\lahon, Robert E. (California)
Born: 29 Jan 1907. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1927. Ordained: 25
May 1940.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 12 1\Iay 1944. Serial
number: 394560. To Lieutenant 1 Feb 1946. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (3 Jul 1944 to 27 Aug 1944); 9th Marine
Air Wing, Fleet Marine Force (7 Sep 1944 to 27 Jun 1945); Marine
Fleet Air, West (27 Jun 1945 to 16 Jul 1945); Air, Fleet Marine Force,
Pacific (16 Jul 1945 to 20 Aug 1945); Marine Aircraft Group #61,
Cherry Point, N.C. (30 Aug 1945 to 9 Nov 1945); 4th Marine Air
Wing, Mindinao, P.I. (9 Nov 1945 to 4 Jan 1946); Navy Service Center
#926, Guam (9 Jan 1946 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to
inactive status 15 Jul 1946. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 6 Apr
1951.
McManus, Edwin G. (New York)
Born: 12 Nov 1908. Entered Society: 30 J ul 1928. Ordained: 23
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 6 Nov 1943. Serial number: 0539651. To
the rank of Captain 1 Feb 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School ( 4 Feb 1944) ; Thayer General Hospital, Nashville, Tenn.; 129th
General Hospital, ETO; Camp Sibert, Gadsden, Ala. Reverted to
inactive status 20 Apr 1946.
McManus, Neil P. (Missouri)
Born: 13 May 1902. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1922. Ordained: 23
Jun 1935. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 17 Jun 1943. Serial number: 0525692. To
the rank of Captain 11 Sep 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (14 Jul 1943); Walter Reed Hospital, Washington, D.C. (1943);
Camp Howze, Texas (1944); Camp Ashburn (1944); Fort Benjamin
Harrison, Ind. (1945); Wakeman General Hospital, Ind. (1946). Reverted to inactive status 25 Aug 1946 with the rank of Major.
McNally, Herbert P. (New York)
Born: 2 Jul 1897. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1915. Ordained: 20 Jun
1928.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 4 Mar 1941. Serial number: 105447. To Lieutenant Commander 14 Nov 1942; to Commander
1 Jan 1944; to Captain 1 Jul 1952. Assignments: Naval Operating
Base, Norfolk (Jun 1941 to Aug 1941); 1st Marine Brigade, Iceland
(Sep 1941 to Feb 1942) ; Naval Operating Base, Iceland, Field Air
Base (Feb 1942 to May 1942); Receiving Station, New York (Jul 1942
to May 1943); Naval Air Station, Alameda, Cal. (May 1943 to Jul
1943); U.S.S. Arthur Middleton (attack transport) (Aug 1943 to May
1945) during which time he participated in assaults on Tarawa, Eniwetok, Kwajalein, Saipan, Leyte, and Lingayen Gulf; Naval Training and
�402
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Distribution Center, Treasure Island, Cal. (Jun 1945 to Sep 1945);
Naval Training and Distribution Center, Shoemaker, Cal. (Sep 1945
to May 1946). Reverted to inactive status 23 May 1946.
Recalled 30 Jun 1948. Assignments: Naval Training Center, San
Diego (Jun 1948 to Sep 1949); Assistant Fleet Chaplain with Commander, Service Forces Atlantic (Sep 1949 to Jun 1950); Chaplain,
Commander, Amphibious Forces Atlantic (Jun 1950 to Nov 1950);
Green Cove Springs, Fla. (Dec 1950 to May 1952); Naval Hospital,
St. Albans, Long Island (Jun 195~ to Apr 1954); Naval Air Station,
Jacksonville, Fla. (Apr 1954 to Jun 1956); Naval Hospital, Corona,
Cal. (Jun 1956 to Oct 1957); Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton, Cal.
(Oct 1957 to Feb 1958) 1 Reverted to inactive status Feb 1958.
McNamara, Daniel B. (Missouri)
Born: 6 Jul 1895. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1920. Ordained: 25 Jun
1931. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 2 Feb 1944. Serial number: 0544883. To
the rank of Captain 1 Jan 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (12 Feb 1944); Fort McClellan, Ala. (1944); to Englund with
106th General Hospital (1944); England (1945); Camp Sibert, Ala.,
Fort Sheridan, Ill., and Camp Grant, Ill. (1945). Relieved of active
duty at Fort Sheridan 4 May 1946.
McPhelin, Michael F. (New York)
Born: 16 May 1911. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1929. Ordained: 22
Jun 1941. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 6 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0543081. To the
rank of Captain 9 Dec 1944; to Major 21 Aug--1-946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (10 Feb 1944) ; Monterey, Cal., and Camp
Cooke, Cal. (1944) ; 275th Infantry Regiment, 70th Infantry Division,
at Camp Adair, Ore., at Fort Leonard ·wood, Mo., and in France
(1944); 275th Infantry Regiment, France (1945); 23rd Corps Artillery, Germany (1945); 30th Infantry Regiment, Germany (1946);
Division Artillery, 3rd Infantry Division (1946). Reverted to inactive
status 20 Oct 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
McVeigh, Francis J. (Maryland)
Born: 26 Jul 1898. Entered Society: 4 Sep 1918. Ordained: 22 Jun
1931.
Commissioned as.'Lieutenant in the Navy 25 Mar 1943. Serial number: 272516. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Jul 1953. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (26 Apr 1943 to 21 Jun 1943);
Naval Training Station, Bronx (3 Jul 1943 to 12 Jun 1944); U.S.S.
Maryland (battleship) (12 Jul 1944 until relieved of active duty).
During his service aboard Maryland, Father McVeigh pitrticipated in
the landings in the Palau Islands, the invasion of Leyte, the Battle of
�IN ARMED SERVICES
403
Surigao Strait, and the invasion of Okinawa. Twice while Father
McVeigh was aboard Maryland was hit by kamikazes (on Nov 29 1944
in Leyte Gulf and 7 Apr 1945 at Okinawa). Reverted to inactive status
14 Jun 1946.
Father McVeigh died 2 Mar 1959 at Baltimore.
Meany, Stephen J. (New York)
Born: 18 Feb 1904. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1925. Ordained: 21
Jun 1936.
Appointed to the Army 15 Oct 1940. Serial number: 0405935. To
the rank of Captain 1 Dec 1942; to Major 21 Jan 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel 29 Apr 1958. Assignments: Fort McClellan, Ala.; Riverside,
Cal.; Hawaii; Gilbert Islands; Asheville, N.C. Father Meany was
wounded by enemy machine gun fire during invasion of Gilbert Islands,
20 Nov 1943. Reverted to inactive status 21 Feb 1946.
Awards: Silver Star; Purple Heart; New York State Conspicuous
Service Medal.
Mollner, Joseph 1\1. (Missouri-Wisconsin)
Born: 25 Feb 1907. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1928. Ordained: 18
Jun 1941.
Appointed to the Army 25 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550992. To
the rank of Captain 16 Aug 1945; to Major 15 Jan 1952. Assignments:
1119 SCU, POW Camp, Houlton, Me. (1944); 114th AA Battalion and
POW' Camps (1945); Transportation Corps, New Orleans, La. (1945);
Fort Leavenworth, Kan. ( 1946). Reverted to inactive status 30 Dec
1946.
Recdled to Army 25 Nov 1950. Assignments: 5011 Army Service
Unit and United States Army Hospital, Camp McCoy, Wis. (1950) ;
Headquarters, 7th Infantry Division and 7th Infantry Division Artillery, Korea (1951 to 1952) ; Post Chaplain, Fort Leavenworth, Kan.
(1952 to 1954) ; 71st Division, Alaska (1954 to 1956) ; 4th Infantry
Division, Fort Lewis, Wash. (1956 to 1960). At present on a tour of
duty in Germany.
Awards: Bronze Star with "V"; oak leaf cluster to Bronze Star;
Army Commendation Ribbon.
Montero, Agathonico F. (New York)
Born: 10 Aug 1908. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1930. Ordained: 17 Jun
1942. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 14 Aug 1944. Serial number: 0558565. To
the rank of Captain 25 Sep 1945. Assignments in the United States:
Fort Devens, Mass.; Fort Huachuca, Ariz.; Camp Ogden, Utah; Fort
Lewis, Wash.; Fort Jackson, S.C.; Fort Ord, Cal. Assignments overseas: 311th General Hospital, Manila; Headquarters, Sub-base R,
Batangas, P.I.; 3rd Military Police, Paranaque, Manila; 12th Division,
Philippine Scouts, Camp O'Donnell, Angeles, Pampanga, P.I. Reverted
�404
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
to inactive status 31 Dec 1946 with the rank of Major. Separated from
the Army while in the Philippines.
Mooney, Raymond L. (Chicago)
Born: 4 Mar 1910. Entered Society: 30 Aug 1927. Ordained: 26
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 11 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549722. To
the rank of Captain 22 May 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (29 Apr 1944); Headquarters, Training Command, Fort Worth,
Tex., and Aviation Cadet Training Center, San Antonio, Tex. (1944);
Fort Worth, Tex. (1945); Kearns Air Force Base, Utah, 5th Air Force
and 2nd Airdrome Squadron on occupation duty in Japan (1946).
Reverted to inactive status 13 Sep 1946.
Died 17 Jul 1954.
Morgan, Carl H. (New England)
Born: 24 Mar 1908. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1926. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 1 Feb 1945. Serial number: 0930671. To
the rank of Captain 27 Sep 1950. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort
Devens, Mass. (Feb 1945); Fort Wadsworth, South Island (Aug 1946
to May 1947); 11th Airborne, Sapporo, Japan (May 1947 to Jan 1948);
Osaka Army Hospital (Jan 1948 to Nov 1949); 82nd Airborne, Fayetteville (Nov 1949 to Jul 1950); 8069 Replacement Depot, Sasebo (Jul
1950 to Dec 1950); Headquarters, Kobe Base (Dec 1950 to Oct 1951);
279th General Hospital, Sakai (Oct 1951 to Dec 1952) ; 8022 A.U.,
Kumamoto (Dec 1952); Fort Lee, Va. (1953 to 1954). Reverted to inactive status 30 Nov 1954.
__ •
1\lotherway, Aloysius T. (Missouri)
Born: 8 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 8 Aug 1925. Ordained: 22 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 27 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0927182. To
the rank of Captain 8 Apr 1946. Assignments: Fort Devens, Mass.,
and Fletcher General Hospital, Cambridge, Ohio (1944); 8th Service
Command, Dallas, Tex. (1945) ; Harmon General Hospital, Longview,
Tex. (1945); Camp Hood, Tex. (1945 to 1946); Camp Fannin, Tex.
(1946). Reverted to inactive status 1 May 1946.
Mulhern, Patrick J. (Chicago)
Born: 2 Feb 1886. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1907. Ordained: 26 Jun
1921.
Commissioned Captain in the Army Officers' Reserve Corps 27 May
1925. Serial number: 0219679. To the rank of Major 29 Nov 1939;
to Lieutenant Colonel 24 Dec 1945. Called to active duty 2 Jan 1941.
Assigned to Fort Custer, Mich. and Percy Jones General Hospital,
Mich. (1941 to 1945). Reverted to inactive status 27 Mar 1946.
Died 26 Apr 1956.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
405
Mulligan, Edwin C. (New York)
Born: 19 Oct 1903. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1921. Ordained: 25 Jun
1933.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 14 Apr 1943. Serial number: 279581. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945; to Commander
1 Jan 1953. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (10 May
1943 to 4 Jul 1943); with Acorn 13 (Naval aviation, construction, ordnance, repair base) and 47th Naval Construction Battalion on Guadalcanal, Bougainville, and New Caledonia (Jul 1943 to Apr 1945); Naval
Training Center, Bainbridge (Jul 1945 to Aug 1945); Personnel Separation Center, Navy Yard, Puget Sound (30 Aug until relieved of
duty). Reverted to inactive status 29 Jan 1946.
Recalled Aug 1950. Assignments: Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Fla.
(Aug 1950 to May 1952) ; 1st Marine Air Wing, Korea (Jun 1952 to
Jul 1953); 2nd Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, N.C. (Jul 1953 to Jun
1954); U.S.S. Intrepid (carrier), 6th Fleet, Mediterranean (Jun 1954
to Aug 1955); Naval Hospital, Bainbridge, Md. (1955 to 1956); Great
Lakes Naval Training Center (1957). Reverted to inactive status 28
Feb 1958.
Awards: Navy Commendation Medal; Letter of Commendation.
Muntsch, Albert J. (Missouri)
Born: 13 Mar 1906. Entered Society: 20 Sep 1923. Ordained: 24
Jun 1935.
Commissioned in the Navy as Lieutenant (j.g.) 16 Jul 1943. Serial
number: 302391. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va.
(16 Aug 1943 to 10 Oct 1943); Naval Training Center, Miami (22 Oct
1943 until relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive status 25 Oct 1944.
Murphy, Francis J. (New England)
Born: 15 J ul 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1924. Ordered: 21
Jun 1936.
Appointed to the Army 27 Mar 1945. Serial number: 0931658. To
the rank of Captain 24 Dec 1945. Assignments: Fort Devens Chaplain
School (11 May 1945) ; 33rd Infantry Division, Philippines (1945) ;
123rd Infantry Regiment, Kobe, Japan (1945); Japan (1946); 38th
Regimental Combat Team, Camp Carson, Colo. (1947). Relieved of
active duty 16 Jul 1947. Recalled for a short time and again relieved
4 May 1948.
Murphy, George L. (Chicago)
Born: 30 Mar 1901. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1921. Ordained: 22 Jun
1934. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 24 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0491761. To
the rank of Captain 4 Nov 1943; to Major 16 Mar 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel (Ohio· Air National Guard with serial number: A0491761) 1
Nov 1951; to Colonel (Ohio Air National Guard) 2 Dec 1956. Assign-
�406
JESUIT CHAPLAIN'S
ments: Harvard Chaplain School (7 Sep 1942); 119th Infantry Regiment, 30th Division, Camp Blanding, Fla. (3 Oct 1942 to 16 Feb 1943);
Chaplain, Port of Embarkation, New Orleans, La. (16 Feb 1943 to 5
Apr 1943); Base Chaplain, Henry Barracks, Cayey, Puerto Rico, and
Base Chaplain, Losey Field, Ponce, Puerto Rico (30 Apr 1943 to 8 Mar
1946). Reverted to inactive status 6 June 1946. At present assigned
on reserve status to Headquarters, Ohio Air National Guard, Fort
Hayes, Columbus, Ohio.
Murphy, George l\1. (New England)
Born: 13 Oct 1899. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1917. Ordained: 18
Jun 1930.
'
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army Reserve 26 Aug 1938.
Resigned 28 Aug 1940. Commissioned First Lieutenant in Massachusetts National Guard 13 Aug 1940. Ordered into active service 16
Sep 1940. Serial number: 0371536. To the rank of Captain 28 May
1942; to l\Iajor 31 Jul 1945. Assignments: 24lst Coast Artillery, Fort
Andrews, Mass. (26 Sep 1940 to 9 Mar 1942); 50th Coast Artillery,
Camp Pendleton, Va. (4 Mar 1942 to 3 Apr 1942); Headquarters,
Headquarters Battery and 3rd Battalion, 50th Coast Artillery, and
20th Coast Artillery, Galveston (3 Apr 1942 to 4 Jun 1942) ; 50th Coast
Artillery, Camp Pendleton, Va. (4 Jun 1942 to 5 Aug 1942); Harvard
Chaplain School {5 Aug 1942 to 17 Sep 1942); Camp Pendleton, Va.
(17 Sep 1942 to 10 Dec 1942); Chaplain, Harbor Defences, Key West,
Fla. (10 Dec 1942 to 13 May 1943) ; 50th Coast Artillery Regiment,
Montauk Point, N.Y. (13 May 1943 to 20 Sep 1943); Fort McKinley,
Casco Bay, Me. (20 Sep 1943 to 14 Dec 1943) ; Camp Hero, Montauk
Point, N.Y. (14 Dec 1943 to 14 Jan 1944); Headquarters, 16th Cavalry,
Framingham, Mass. (17 Jan 1944 to 18 May 1944); 2nd Coast Artillery,
Fort Story, Va. (18 May 1944 to 15 Jun 1944); Harbor Defences,
Chesapeake Bay (15 Jun 1944 to 25 Sep 1944); Woodrow Wilson General Hospital,· Staunton, Va. (25 Sep 1944 to 29 Dec 1944); Valley
Forge General Hospital, Phoenixville, Pa. (29 Dec 1944 to 31 Jan
1946). Reverted to inactive status 18 Jun 1946.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Murphy, Paul J. (New England)
Born: 18 Nov 1908. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1926. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Originally appointed as chaplain in the U.S. Maritime Service Feb
1943. Served at Offi.cers' School, Alameda, Cal., until May 1944. Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 7 Jun 1944. Serial number:
394865. To Lieutenant 1 Feb 1946. Assignments: Chaplain School,
Williamsburg, Va. (3 Jul 1944 to 27 Aug 1944); Naval Hospital, Great
Lakes, Ill. (8 Sep 1944 to 12 Mar 1945); Bogue Field, N.C. (18 Mar
1945 to 22 Aug 1945) ; U.S.S. General Meigs (transport) (22 Aug
1945 to li:Iar 1946); Naval Hospital, Newport, R.I. (16 Mar 1946 until
�IN ARMED SERVICES
relieved). Reverted to inactive status 14 J ul 1946.
Naval Reserve 13 Oct 1953.
407
Resigned from the
Murray, John B. (Maryland)
Born: 4 Apr 1900. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1921. Ordained: 24
Jun 1934.
Appointed to the Army 4 Jan 1943. Serial number: 0509696. To
the rank of Captain 20 Dec 1943; to Major 17 Apr 1947. Assignments:
7th Service Command, O'Reilly General Hospital (7 Jan 1943); Harvard Chaplain School (9 May 1943) ; Camp Gruber, Okla. (1943);
North Africa and Italy (1943 to 1945). Served with 1108th Engineer
Combat Group in U.S. and overseas; overseas with 235th Engineer Battalion, 109th Combat Engineer Battalion, Headquarters 209 AAA. Reverted to inactive status 12 Feb 1946.
North, Arthur A. (New York)
Born: 6 Oct 1907. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1927. Ordained: 20 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the Army 31 Jan 1942. Serial number: 0436817. To
the rank of Captain 22 Dec 1942; to Major 20 Dec 1944; to Lieutenant
Colonel 10 Mar 1947. Assignments: Army Air Base, Drew Field, Fla.
(1942); Australia, New Guinea and Philippines (1942 to 1945). Served
overseas with the following units: 565th Signal Battalion; 808th Engineer Aviation Battalion; 172nd Station Hospital; 42nd General Hospital. Reverted to inactive status 14 Mar 1946.
Nuttall, William I. (Maryland)
Born: 11 Dec 1910. Entered Society: 17 Sep 1928. Ordained: 22
Jun 1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 20 Feb 1945. Serial
number: 445445. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va.
(26 Mar 1945 to 19 May 1945); Naval Hospital, Treasure Island, Cal.
(1 Jun 1945 to 11 Dec 1945); U.S.S. Auburn (27 Dec 1945 to release
from active duty). Reverted to inactive status 2 Sep 1946. Resigned
from Naval Reserve 7 Feb 1951.
O'Brien, Francis X. (New York)
Born: 18 Sep 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1924. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 28 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0445619. To
the rank of Captain 2 Jul 1943; to Major 8 May 1947; to Lieutenant
Colonel 23 Jun 1955. Assignments: Post Chaplain, Fort Ethan Allen,
Vt. (14 Apr 1942 to 12 Oct 1942) ; 550th Airborne Battalion, Panama
Canal Department (17 Nov 1942 to 25 Apr 1943) ; Howard Field,
Panama (25 Apr 1943 to 8 May 1944); Chaplain to all air units based
in the countries of Central America, Headquarters at Guatemala City
Air Base (9 May 1944 to 30 May 1945) ; Rio Hato Air Base, Panama
�408
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
(1 Jun 1945 to 4 Dec 1945); Army Air Base, Galapagos Islands (Dec
1945 to Jan 1946); Chaplain, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton,
Ohio (22 Feb 1946 to 25 Mar 1947). Reverted to inactive status 25
Mar 1947.
O'Brien, Joseph E. (New York)
Born: 11 Nov 1909. Entered Society: 30 Jul1927. Ordained: 23 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 7 Apr 1943. Serial number: 0517938. To
the rank of Captain 22 Jan 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (22 Aug 1943 to 28 Sep 1943); Camp Van Dorn, Centreville,
Miss.; Camp Barkeley, T~x;; with !80th General Hospital in Normandy,
France, in Sissonne, France and in Frankfurt, Germany; Verdun, Ordnance Battalion; 438th AAA Battalion, Nancy, France. Reverted to
inactive status 6 May 1946.
O'Brien, Vincent deP. (New England)
Born: 23 Aug 1907. Entered Society: 30 Jul1925. Ordained: 20 Jun
1937.
Served with the United States Maritime Service from Feb 1945 to
Dec 1945.
O'Callaghan, Louis "'I'. (Oregon)
Born: 11 Jul 1906. Entered Society: 20 Jul 1924. Ordained: 21 Jun
1937.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 15 Nov 1943. Serial
number: 335390. To Lieutenant 1 Apr 19J5. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (~0 Dec 1943 to 13 Feb i94"4); Coast Guard
Training Station, St. Augustine, Fla. (25 Feb 1944 to 20 Mar 1944);
Naval Operating Base, Key \Vest, Fla. (28 May 1944 to 17 May 1945);
Naval Forces, Azores (27 May 1945 to 14 Dec 1945); U.S.S. Bennington (carrier) based in Hawaii (29 Jan 1946 to 3 Jun 1946). Reverted
to inactive status 11 Jul 1946. Resigned from Naval Reserve 15 Oct
1954.
O'Callahan, Joseph T. (New England)
Born: 14 May 1905. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1922. Ordained: 20 Jun
1934.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 7 Aug 1940. Serial
number: 87280. To Lieutenant 2 Jan 1942; to Lieutenant Commander
1 Jul 1943; to Commander 20 Jul 1945. Assignments: Naval Air Station, Pensa~ola (23 Nov 1940 to 20 Apr 1942); U.S.S. Ranger (carrier)
(31 May 1942 to May 1944) during which time the carrier served in
North Atlantic waters and in the invasion of North Africa; Naval Air
Station, Alameda (May 1944 to Dec 1944); Naval Air Station, Hawaii
(23 Dec 1944 to 2 Mar 1945); U.S.S. Franklin (2 Mar 1945 to 8 Apr
1946) during which time the carrier was hit by enemy bombs in waters
�1N ARMED SERVICES
409
off the coast of Japan, 19 1\:Iar 1945; Bureau of Personnel (Apr 1945
until relieved of active duty). Acted as official escort chaplain for the
body of Manuel Quezon (first president of the Philippine Islands) from
Washington, D.C., to Manila, P.I. Reverted to inactive status 12 Nov
1946. Retired from the Naval Reserve 1 Nov 1953.
Awards: Medal of Honor; Purple Heart.
O'Connor, Daniel F. X. (New England)
Born: 12 Oct 1900. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1918. Ordained: 16
Jun 1931.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 18 May 1942. Serial number: 169209. To Lieutenant Commander 17 Oct 1944. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Norfolk, Va. (6 Jul 1942 to 28 Aug 1942); Naval
Hospital, Corona, Cal. (10 Sep 1942 to 10 Sep 1943); 14th Naval District, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (18 Sep 1943 to 10 Jan 1944); Naval
Operating Base, Midway Island (10 Jan 1944 to 10 Oct 1944); Iroquois
Point, Oahu, Hawaii (13 Oct 1944 to 2 Jun 1945); Navy Base, Port
Hueneme, Cal. (6 Jul1945 to 18 Sep 1945); Naval Training Center, San
Diego (23 Sep 1945 to Apr 1946). Reverted to inactive status 26 May
1946. Resigned from Naval Reserve 18 Feb 1957.
Died 12 Sep 1958 at Boston.
O'Connor, PaulL. (Chicago)
Born: 10 Aug 1909. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1929. Ordained: 18 Jun
1941.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 19 May 1944. Serial
number: 400212. To Lieutenant 1 Feb 1946; to Lieutenant Commander
1 Jan 1954. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (17
Jul 1944 to 10 Sep 1944); Naval Construction Training Center (Seabees), Quoddy Village, Me. (22 Sep 1944 to 30 Jun 1945); U.S.S.
Missouri (battleship) (Jul 1945 until relieved of active duty). Aboard
U.S.S. Missouri at time of Japanese surrender ceremony. Reverted to
inactive status 16 Jun 1946.
l
I
O'Gara, Martin J. (New York)
Born: 2 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1926. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 4 May 1943. Serial number: 0520710. To
the rank of Captain 26 Jun 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (11 Jun 1943) ; Headquarters, Elgin Field, Fla. (10 Jul 1943
to 31 Jul 1944); 553rd AAF BU, Romulus Army Air Field, Romulus,
Mich. (31 Jul 1944 to 24 May 1945); 556th AAF BU, Long Beach,
Cal. (24 May 1945 to 20 Sep 1945); Karachi, India (24 Sep 1945 to 7
Oct 1945); 1304th AAF BU, Air Transport Command, Barrackpur,
India (end of 1945).
Father O'Gara was killed in the crash of a C-54 Skymaster enroute
from Calcutta. The plane crashed into the sea off Amalfi, Italy, 1 Jun
1946.
.
�410
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
O'Keefe, Eugene J. (New York)
Born: 19 May 1903. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1925. Ordained: 20 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the Army Apr 1942. Serial number: 0890439. To the
rank of Captain 18 Feb 1945. Assigned initially to 61st Division Field
Artillery, United States Army Forces in the Far East. Was a prisoner
of war from 10 May 1942 to 30 Jan 1945. Prison camps: Malaybalay,
Bukidnon; Davao Penal Colony; San Pedro, Cebu; Bilibid Prison,
Manila; Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija; Furikawa Plantation, Davao. On
return to the United States stationed at Carlisle Barracks, Pa. Reverted to inactive status with the rank of Major 5 Oct 1947.
Awards: Silver Star; Purple Heart.
O'Keefe, Leo P. (New England)
Born: 10 Apr 1908. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1929. Ordained: 17
Jun 1939.
Appointed to the Army 29 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0544766. To
the rank of Captain 25 Jan 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (14 Mar 1944) ; Randolph Field, Texas (1944 to 1946). Reverted
to inactive status 22 Apr 1946.
0'1\lara, Cornelius J. (California)
Born: 11 Nov 1907_. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1925. Ordained: 15 Jun
1938.
Appointed to the Army 31 Jan 1942. Serial number: 0436737. To
the rank of Captain 16 J ul 1943; to Major 10 Jan 1946. Assignments:
Chaplain School (3 Oct 1942) ; 90th Infantry Division (Artillery),
Camp Barkeley, Tex. (1942) ; 14 months service overseas spent in staging areas in England (1943-1944); France and Germany with 1302nd
Combat Engineers and 90th Infantry Division for fifteen months (1944
and 1945). Reverted to inactive status 7 Apr 1946.
0'1\lara, Joseph R. (New York)
Born: 10 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 31 Oct 1925. Ordained: 19
Jun 1938.
Appointed to the Army 20 Dec 1943. Serial number: 0542517. To
the rank of Captain 24 Apr 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1944); 2525 AAF BU, Liberal, Kan. (25 Feb 1944);
2539 AAF BU, Foster Field, Tex. (6 Oct 1945); 2533 AAF BU, Goodfellow, Tex. (28 Nov 1945) ; Halloran General Hospital, N.Y. (21 Aug
1946); Fort Dix, N.J. '(6 Nov 1946). Reverted to inactive status 15
Mar 1947.
•
O'Neill, Charles A. (New York)
Born: 20 Dec 1900. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1918. Ordained: 21
Jun 1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 23 Nov 1940. Serial num-
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
411
ber: 99029. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Oct 1942; to Commander 1
Jan 1944; to Captain 1 Jul 1954. Assignments: Navy Yard, Norfolk
(4 Feb 1941 to 22 Dec 1941); U.S.S. President Hayes (attack transport) in Solomon Islands operations (24 Dec 1941 to 21 Jul 1943);
Receiving Station, Shoemaker, Cal. (4 Sep 1943 to Dec 1944); U.S.S.
Lake Champlain (carrier) (Dec 1944 to 10 Apr 1946); U.S.S. Franklin
D. Roosevelt (carrier) (Apr 1946 to Apr 1947); Marine Corps Barracks, Parris Island (Apr 1947 to May 1950) ; District Chaplain
San Juan, Puerto Rico (May 1950 to Jul 1952); Marine Corps Air
Station, El Toro, Cal. (Aug 1952 until relieved of duty). Reverted to
inactive st::ttus 15 Jun 1953. Commanding Officer, Third Naval District, Naval Chaplain Reserve (1955). Member of Selection Board,
Washington, D.C., 1955, 1957, 1959.
O'Neill, Ralph M. (New York)
Born: 15 Apr 1909. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 23
Jun 1940.
Appointed to the Army 24 Jun 1942. Serial number: 0480649. To
the rank of Captain 8 Feb 1943; to Major 21 Mar 1946. Assignments:
1st Sea Search Attack Group, Langley Field, Va. (1942); Harvard
Chaplain School (3 Feb 1943); 35th Service Group, Australia (Jun
1943 to Dec 1943); with the 310th Bombardment Wing, Charters
Towers, Queensland, Australia and Hollandia, New Guinea (1944);
310th Bombardment Wing, Morotai Islands, Dutch East Indies (1944);
310th Bombardment Wing, Leyte, Mindoro, and Clark Field, Luzon
(1944 and 1945); 310th Bombardment Wing, Atawi, Japan (1946).
Reverted to inactive status 11 Jul 1946.
Died 3 May 1960 at Manila as a member of the Philippine Province.
Orford, James F. (Missouri)
Born: 26 Dec 1901. Entered Society: 7 Aug 1919. Ordained: 31 Aug
1932.
Appointed to the Army 2 Feb 1944. Serial number: 0544884. To
the rank of Captain 1 Jan 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (11 Feb 1944); San Antonio, Texas, Victoria, Texas, and Midland, Texas, with Air Force units. Reverted to inactive status 9 Apr
1946.
Ortiz, Pacifico (New York)
Born: 25 Sep 1913. Ordained: 19 Mar 1937. Entered Society: 30 May
1937. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Philippine Army 12 Dec 1941. Personal chaplain to
the president of the Philippines, Manuel L. Quezon, both in the Philippines and abroad; gave spiritual ministrations to the president, his
family, members of his cabinet, the presidential guards; acted as contact with catholic hierarchy. From Jan 1945 to Jun 1945 was acting
Chief of Chaplains, Philippine Ar:v:y, at Philippine Army Headquar-
J
�412
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
ters in Manila; thereafter was Assistant Chief of Chaplains.
from active duty 15 Aug 1945 with the rank of Major.
Released
Parsons, Robert A. (Maryland)
Born: 23 Feb 1892. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1909. Ordained: 28
Jun 1923.
Appointed to the Army 2 Dec 1943. Serial number: 0541969. To
the rank of Captain 18 Dec 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (2 Jan 1944 to 9 Feb 1944); Hospital Chaplain, Camp Blanding,
Fla. (Feb 1944 to Dec 1944); 8th Replacement Depot, Montopoli (on
the Arno between Florence and Leghorn) (Jan 1945 to Sep 1945);
Camp Lee, Va. (Sep 1945 to'Apr 1946). Reverted to inactive status
8 Jun 1946.
Power, Daniel E. (Maryland)
Born: 20 Nov 1904. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1922. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Appointed to the Army 17 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0516181. To
the rank of Captain 7 Oct 1944; to Major 12 Aug 19.46. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (8 Apr 1943); Fort Washington, Md. (1943
to 1944); 3rd Service Command, Fort Belvoir, Va. (18 Aug 1944);
in Pacific with 133rd General Hospital, 360th General Hospital and
31st General Hospital (1945 to 1946). Reverted to inactive status 21
Jul 1946.
Quinn, Gerald A. (New York)
Born: 13 Dec 1903. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1922.• Ordained: 23
Jun 1935.
- ·
Appointed to the Army 31 Mar 1943. Serial number: 0517310. To
the rank of Captain 26 Jan 1944; to Major 6 Dec 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (8 May 1943); 104th Infantry Division, Camp
Adair, Ore., and Camp Carson, Colo.; with 104th Division in action
at Antwerp and in the Siegfried Line, through Germany to link up
with Russians. Reverted to inactive status 29 Apr 1946.
Awards: Silver Star; Bronze Star.
Ray, Samuel H. (New Orleans)
Born: 11 Jan 1894. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1910. Ordained: 15
Aug 1925.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 22 Apr 1943. Serial number: 280989. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945; to Commander 1
Apr 1953. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (24 May
1943 to 18 Jul 1943); Naval Training Station, Great Lakes (30 Jul
1943 to 25 Apr 1944); U.S.S. Hamlin (seaplane tender) (6 May 1944
until relieved of duty) during attacks of suicide planes off Okinawa.
Reverted to inactive status 9 Feb 1946. Past National Chaplain to the
American Veterans of World Wars (Amvets). Presently National Chap-
�IN ARMED SERVICES
413
lain of the Naval Reserve Association and reserve chaplain for Naval
Training Center, Shreveport, La.
Ray, Theodore A. (New Orleans)
Born: 22 Jun 1898. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1914. Ordained: Jun
1927.
Appointed to the Army 3 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0530441. To the
rank of Captain 7 Dec 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain School
(1 Oct 1943); Indiantown Gap, Pa. (1943); New Orleans, La., Charleston, S.C., and Newport News, Va. (1944); Charleston, S.C., and Camp
Knight, Oakland, Cal. ( 1945); Hawaii ( 1946). Served aboard Army
hospital ships ( 1944 to 1945) from home ports previously mentioned.
Reverted to inactive status 9 May 1946.
Died 26 Feb 1954.
Reardon, Charles J. (New England)
Born: 2 May 1907. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1927. Ordained: 17 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 29 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0551384. To
the rank of Captain 1 May 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (8 Jun 1944); Camp Gordon, Augusta, Ga. (15 Jul 1944); Fort
Jackson, S.C. (20 Sep 1944); Englund, France, Holland and Germany
(Oct 1944 to May 1945); 15th General Hospital, Belgium (28 Jul 1945).
Served in the United States and overseas with 1147th Engineer Combat
Group. Reverted to inactive status 22 Sep 1946.
Regalado, Alejo G. (New York)
Born: 17 Jul 1907. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1930. Ordained: 18
Jun 1941.
Appointed to the Army 16 Jul 1943. Serial number: 0528450. To
the rank of Captain 19 May 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (18 Aug 1943) ; 377th Regiment, 95th Infantry Division, Camp
Coxcomb, Cal. (1943); 377th Infantry Regiment, Indiantown Gap, Pa.
(1944) ; 2nd Filipino Battalion, Camp Cooke, Cal., San Luis Obispo,
Cal., and New Guinea (1944); 2nd Filipino Battalion, Manila (1945);
Philippines (1946). Reverted to inactive status 15 Oct 1946.
Died of leukemia, Singian Clinic, Manila, 21 Feb 1955.
Reilly, Francis B. (New York)
Born: 21 Ju11904. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1922. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Appointed to the Army 11 Feb 1943. Serial number: 0513042. To
the rank of Captain 10 Jan 1944; to Major 17 Feb 1947. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (9 May 1943); Fort George Meade, Md.
(1943); Algeria (1943); Italy (1944 to 1946). Served overseas 12th
General Hospital. Reverted to inactive status 15 Oct 1946.
�414
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Robinson, Charles A. (Missouri)
Born: 17 Apr 1896. Entered Society: 20 Jul 1912. Ordained: 29
Jun 1922.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 13 Sep 1943. Serial number: 318507. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Nov 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (11 Oct 1943 to 5 Dec 1943); Naval
Hospital, Aiea Heights, Hawaii (7 Jan Hl44 to 14 Nov 1944); Naval
Air Station, Ford Island, Pearl Harbor (14 Nov 1944 to 6 Feb 1945);
U.S.S . .Missouri (battleship) (9 Feb 1945 to 19 Oct 1945); Naval Training and Distribution Center, Camp Peary (26 Nov 1945 until relieved
of duty). Father Robinson was aboard the U.S.S. Missouri at the time
of the signing of the surrender with Japan. Because of his fluency in
the Japanese language, he.. was landed in the first boat to go ashore
before the surrender to rele~se prisoners of war. Reverted to inactive
status 12 Feb 1946. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 1 May 1954.
Roche, Val J. (Missouri)
Born: 14 Feb 1897. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1921. Ordained: 25
Jun 1933. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 25 Jun 1942. Serial number: 0480698. To
the rank of Captain 25 Oct 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (9 May 1943); 216th General Hospital, Camp Forrest, Tenn.;
Ellington Field, Houston, Texas; Aviation Cadet Center, San Antonio,
Texas; Maxwell Fieid, Montgomery, Ala.; Turner Field, Albany, Ga.
Reverted to inactive status 18 Apr 1946.
Roddy, Charles l\1. (New England)
Born: 26 Sep 1888. Entered Society: 7 May 1910. 13r:dained: 26 Jun
1923.
Appointed to the Army 2 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0530276. To
the rank of Captain 28 Jul 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 Oct 1943); Fort George Meade, Md. (1943); Carlisle Barracks, Pa., and Camp Lee, Va. (1944); hospital ship chaplain (1945).
Reverted to inactive status 18 Mar 1946.
Rooney, Richard L. (New England)
Born: 21 Oct 1903. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1923. Ordained: 23
Jun 1935.
Appointed to the Army 13 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0549988. To
the rank of Captain 21 Apr 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (30 Apr 1944);, Army Air Force Base, Biggs Field, El Paso,
Texas. Reverted to inactive status 28 Feb 1946.
Ryan, Daniel F. (New England)
Born: 30 Jul1888. Entered Society: 13 Aug 1905. Ordained: 29 Jun
1920.
Appointed to the Army 29 May 1943. Serial number: 0523595. To
�IN ARMED SERVICES
415
the rank of Captain 28 Jul 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (4 Nov 1943); Woodrow Wilson General Hospital, Staunton,
Va.; Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, Pa. Reverted to inactive
status 20 May 1946.
Ryan, J. Clement (Missouri)
Born: 25 Feb 1905. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1925. Ordained: 22
Jun 1938. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 23 May 1942. Serial number: 0473915. To
the rank of Captain 20 Feb 1943; to Major 9 Jan 1946; to Lieutenant
Colonel 1 Oct 1953. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort Benjamin
Harrison, Ind. (6 Jun 1942 to 10 Jul 1942); Chaplain, 83rd Infantry
Division (14 Jul 1942 to 29 Jul 1942); Supervisor of Instruction, Harvard Chaplain School (6 Aug 1942 to 16 Jan 1945); 51st General Hospital, New Guinea (25 Mar 1945 to 5 Nov 1945); 4th General Hospital,
Manila (6 Nov 1945 to 17 Feb 1946). Reverted to inactive status 20
May 1946.
St. John, John D. (New England)
Born: 9 Feb 1908. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1925. Ordained: 20 Jun
1937.
Appointed to the Army 6 Apr 1942. Serial number: 0447906. To
the rank of Captain 7 Dec 1942; to Major 17 Aug 1944; to Lieutenant
Colonel 7 Jun 1946. Assignments: 324th Air Service Group, Orlando,
Fla. (22 Apr 1942 to 21 Aug 1942); 324th Air Service Group, Lakeland, Fla. (22 Aug 1942 to 26 Dec 1942) ; 324th Air Service Group,
Algeria, Tunisia (Jan 1943 to Dec 1943); 324th Air Service Group,
Foggia, Italy (Dec 1943 to May 1944) ; 304th Bombardment Wing,
Cerignola, Italy (May 1944 to Sep 1944); Headquarters, 15th Air
Force, Bari, Italy (Sep 1944 to May 1945); 304th Bombardment Wing,
Cerignola, Italy (May 1945 to Sep 1945). Reverted to inactive status
7 Feb 1946.
Appointed to the Air Force Jan 1949. Serial number: A0447906.
To the rank of Colonel 17 Dec 1956. Assignments: Office of the Air
Force Chief of Chaplains to organize and conduct missions for Air
Force personnel ( 5 Jan 1949 to 1 J un 1957) ; Staff Chaplain, 9th Air
Force, Tactical Air Command (25 Jun 1957 to 31 Dec 1959); Headquarters, 30th Air Division, Truax Field, Madison, Wis. (1 Jan 1960
to present).
Awards: Bronze Star, Air Force Commendation Medal; Air Force
Commendation Ribbon.
Schenl,, Ralph H. (Missouri)
Born: 12 Sep 1910. Entered Society: 8 Aug 1927. Ordained: 26 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 8 May 1944. Serial number: 0552017. To
the rank of Captain 1 Feb 1945; to Major 30 Dec 1946. Assignments:
�416
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Harvard Chaplain School (6 Jun 1944); Fort Jackson, S.C.; Europe
with 1148th Combat Engineers, 4th Armored Division. Reverted to
inactive status 2 Sep 1946.
Recalled with the rank of Captain in Aug 1953. Assignments: 8th
Infantry Division, Fort Jackson, S.C. (1953); 75th Regiment, Okinawa
(1954); Camp Zama, Japan (1955); returned to U.S. 14 Jun 1956.
Relieved of active duty 22 Jun 1956.
Shanahan, James J. (New York)
Born: 27 Aug 1907. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1926. Ordained: 21
Jun 1939.
Appointed to the Army 17 •Dec 1943. Serial number: 0542425. To
the rank of Captain 9 Jan .. 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (2 Jan 1944); La Junta Army Air Base, Colo.; Shaw Army
Air Base, Shaw Field, Sumter, S.C. Served with Western Flying
Training Command; 1st Air Force; 2nd Air Force. Reverted to inactive status 20 Apr 1946.
Shanahan, Joseph P. (New England)
Born: 7 l\lar 1908. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1925. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 20 Jan 1944. Serial
number: 340588. To Lieutenant 1 Jul 1945. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, ~Va. (28 Feb 1944 to 23 Apr l!l44); Naval Air
Station, San Diego (9 May 1944 to Jul 1945); 3rd Marine Air Wing
(19 Jul 1945 to 22 Sep 1945); Naval Air Station #28 (22 Sep 1945
until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive status 19 Apr
1946. Released from Naval Reserve 15 Oct 1954.
-Shanahan, Thomas A. (New England)
Born: 23 Jun 1895. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1916. Ordained: 22 Jun
1929.
Appointed to the Army 2 1\iar 1942 with the rank of Captain. Serial
number: 0888031. To the rank of Major 5 J ul 1943; to Lieutenant
Colonel 15 Jan 1946. Assignments: 35th A.B. Group, Charters Towers,
North Queensland, Australia (2 Mar 1942 to 2 Jun 1942); Headquarters, USA SOS SWPA, Deputy Chaplain, Sydney and Brisbane, Australia (5 Jun 1942 to 18 Sep 1944); Headquarters, Base K, Tacloban,
Leyte, Philippines (19 Sep 1944 to 31 Dec 1944) ; Headquarters, Base M,
San Fabian, Luzon (1 Jan 1945 to 8 Mar 1945); Letterman General
and Lovell General Hospitals (30 May 1945 to 20 Sep 1945); Redistribution Center, Fort Oglethorpe, Ga. (Sep 1945 to Nov 1945); Fort
George Meade Separation Center, Md. (Nov 1945 to Jan 1946); relief
work in Philippines (Feb 1946 to Mar 1946). Reverted to inactive
status 8 May 1946. Prior to his appointment to the Army, Father
Shanahan had been appointed as Red Cross Chaplain, Manila (9 Dec
1941); and was chaplain on the S.S. Mactan which evacuated wounded
�Father John D. St.John (NE), senior Jesuit chaplain on. duty
with the Armed Services. (U.S. Air Force photo)
�-
.:
�IN ARMED SERVICES
417
personnel from Manila to Sydney, Australia (1 Jan 1942 to 28 Jan
1942).
Award: Bronze Star.
Sharp, Curtis J. (Oregon)
Born: 25 Dec 1893. Entered Society: 15 Jul 1912. Ordained: 14 Jun
1926.
Appointed to the Army 24 Aug 1942. Serial number: 0491887. Assignment: 50th General Hospital, Camp Carson, Colo.
Father Sharp died following surgery 20 Jan 1943 at Camp Carson.
Shea, John L. (New York)
Born: 9 Apr 1903. Entered Society: 2 Feb 1921. Ordained: 24 Jun
1934.
Appointed to the Army 13 Jan 1944. Serial number: 0543594. To
the rank of Captain 20 Mar 1945. Appointments: Harvard Chaplain
School (10 Feb 1944); Camp Kilmer, N.J.; Fort Hamilton, N.Y.;
60,000 miles at sea in the Mediterranean and South Pacific; six trips
between Philippines and West Coast with wounded in hospital ship.
Reverted to inactive status 7 Sep 1946.
Shea, Richard G. (New England)
Born: 28 Sep 1902. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1922. Ordained: 20
Jun 1934.
Appointed to the Army 15 Dec 1!)42. Serial number: 0507901. To
the rank of Captain 20 Nov 1943. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1943); Camp Pahick Henry, Hampton Roads Port of
Embarkation, Va. (1943 to Aug 1944); Infantry Replacement Center,
Camp Blanding, Fla. (Aug 1944 to Oct 1944); with 9th Air Force in
France, Belgium, Germany (Oct 1944 to Sep 1945); Shaw Air Force
Base, Sumter, S.C. (Oct 19<15 to Dec 1945). Reverted to inactive
status 19 Feb 1946.
Appointed to the Air Force Reserve 1 Jul 1949. Serial number:
A0507901. Called to active duty J un 1951. Assignments: Castle Air
Force Base, Cal. (Jun 1951 to Mar 1952) ; 3918th Air Base Group,
RAF Station, Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire, England (Mar 1952 to Apr
1955); Lackland Air Force Base, Tex. (May 1955 to Jun 1956). Relieved of active duty Jun 1956 with the rank of Major.
Sheridan, Robert E. (New England)
Born: 7 Jun 1897. Entered Society: 15 Aug 1915. Ordained: 20
Jun 1928.
Appointed to the Army 11 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0442204. To
the rank of Captain 5 Oct 1942; to Major 9 Dec 1946. Assignments:
Port of Embarkation, Charleston, S.C. (23 Mar 1942) ; from Feb 1944 to
Feb 1946, thirteen months of hospital ship duty aboard Acadia (in
Atlantic) and Chateau-Thierry (in Pacific), logging 95,000 miles at
�418
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
sea. Reverted to inactive status 21 May 1946.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Smith, Aloysius l\1. (Missouri)
Born: 23 Sep 1901. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1919. Ordained: 20 Jun
1933.
Appointed to the Army 5 May 1943. Serial number: 0520791. To
the rank of Captain 29 Jan 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (11 Jun 1943); 331st Medical Regiment, Camp McCain, Miss.
(1943); Camp Forrest, Tenn. (1943 to 1944); New Orleans Port of
Embarkation (1944) ; 4th Service Command, Camp Stewart, Ga. (1944);
456th SCU, Camp Gordon, Ga. (1944 to 1946). Reverted to inactive
status 14 May 1946.
Father Smith drowned in mission of Yoro, Republic of Honduras,
13 Jun 1950.
Smith, Thomas N. (Maryland)
Born: 5 Mar 1906. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1925. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 11 Sep 1942. Serial number: 0495683. To
the rank of Captain 8 Sep 1943; to the rank of Major 27 Dec 1945.
Assignments: Camp Walters, Mineral Wells, Tex. (3 months); with
the 76th Station Hospital at Camp Livingston, La. ( 1 month), Camp
Stoneman, Cal. (2 months), Honolulu (7 months), Kaneohe, T.H. (7
months), Koko Head, T.H. (5 months), Dulo2', Leyte (5 months), Telegrafo, Leyte (6 months), Sendai, Honshu, Japan (3 months); Georgetown University Veterans Guidance Center ( 4 months). Reverted to
inactive status 13 Apr 1946.
-Award: Bronze Star.
Stockman, Harold V. (New England)
Born: 3 Jun 1898. Entered Society: 16 Sep 1917. Ordained: 18 Jun
1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 24 Aug 1943. Serial number: 316882. To Lieutenant Commander 1 Nov 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (11 Oct 1943 to 5 Dec 1943); Navy
Yard, Norfolk (15 Dec 1943 to 21 Jun 1944); with naval units in
Mediterranean Theater of Operations (24 Jun 1944 to 25 Jul 1945);
chaplain, Portsmouth Naval Prison (~ep 1945 to Jul 1947); Naval Air
Station, Green Cove Springs, Fla. (Aug 1947 until relieved of active
duty). Reverted to inactive status and retired from Naval Reserve 1
Jun 1948.
Stretch, Edward l\1. (California)
Born: 20 Sep 1905. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1925. Ordained: 15
Jun 1938.
Aprointed to the Army 1 Apr 1942. Serial number: 0446107. To
�IN ARMED SERVICES
419
the rank of Captain 11 Mar 1943; to Major 24 Dec 1944. Assignments:
Camp Callan, Cal. (15 Apr 1942); Advanced Base A, Darwin, Australia (23 June 1942); 118th General Hospital, Sydney, Australia (30
Sep 1943); Base G, Hollandia, New Guinea (1 Apr 1944); General Headquarters, SOS, Finschhafen, New Guinea (5 Jul 1944); Chaplain,
Brooke Convalescent Hospital, Fort Sam Houston, Tex. (May 1945).
Reverted to inactive status 3 Feb 1946.
Sullivan, Charles E. (Chicago)
Born: 16 Jul 1903. Entered Society: 7 Jan 1927. Ordained: 23 Jun
1938. Present Province: Detroit. ,
Appointed to the Army 17 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550271. To
the rank of Captain 1 Mar 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School Harvard (30 Apr 1944); Tullahoma, Tenn. (until Nov 1944); 331st Medical
Group, Germany (Dec 1944 to Sep 1945). Reverted to inactive status
23 Feb 1946.
Sullivan, Francis V. (New England)
Born: 10 Apr 1898. Entered Society: 23 Jan 1919. Ordained: 18
Jun 1930.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 13 Mar 1942. Serial number: 139079. To Lieutenant Commander 13 Dec 1943; to Commander
5 Nov 1945. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort Schuyler, N.Y. (1
May 1942 to 12 Jun 1942) ; Naval Operating Base and Chaplains'
Training School, Norfolk, Va. (20 Jun 1942 to 31 Jul 1942); 3rd
Marines, Samoa (1 Aug 1942 to 3 Mar 1943); Dean Chaplains School,
William and Mary College, Va. (28 May 1943 to 13 Aug 1944); Senior
Chaplain, European Theater, London (3 Sep 1944 to 9 Aug 1945);
Personnel Separation Center, Terminal Island (Sep 1945 until relieved
of active duty). Reverted to inactive status 14 Mar 1946. Retired
from Naval Reserve Jan 1956.
Sullivan, Jerome J. (California)
Born: 7 Sep 1906. Entered Society: 8 Sep 1921. Ordained: 24 Jun
1934.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 10 Feb 1942. Serial
number: 128589. To Lieutenant 1 Oct 1942; to Lieutenant Commander
17 Oct 1944; to Commander 1 Jul 1950. Assignments: 12th Naval
District, Cal. (5 Mar 1942 to 27 Apr 1943); U.S.S. Pennsylvania (battleship) (29 May 1943 to 22 Jan 1945); 12th Naval District, Cal. (4
Apr 1945 to 8 Mar 1946). Reverted to inactive status 11 May 1946.
Recalled July 1950. Assignments: U.S.S. Helena (cruiser) (Sep 1950
to Nov 1951); U.S.S. Iowa (battleship) (Nov 1951 to Dec 1952); Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego (Dec 1952 to Aug 1954) ; Naval
Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (Aug 1954 until relieved of active
duty). Reverted to inactive status 31 Oct 1956.
Award: Commendation Ribbon with pendant.
�420
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Sullivan, Philip V. (Maryland)
Born: 10 Jul 1907. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 17 Apr 1945. Serial
number: 0931873. To the rank of Captain 13 Dec 1946; to Major 3
Dec 1953. Assignments: Chaplains School, Fort Devens, Mass. (10 May
1945); Foster General Hospital, Jackson, Miss. (Jun 1945); 7th Infantry Regiment, Fort McClellan, Ala. (Dec 1946); Japan with 12th
Cavalry, Tokyo General Hospital, Headquarters First Corps, Kyoto,
and Yokohama Command (1947 to 1950); Germany at Heidelberg Post,
Rhine Military Post and Augsburg Military Post (1951 to 1953) ; Camp
Stewart, Ga. (1954); Atlanta General Depot, Georgia (1954); Command and General Staff- 'School, Fort Leavenworth, Kan. (1954);
Instructor, Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (1955 to 1959) ; Fort
Ord, Cal. (1960). Still on active duty.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Suver, Charles F. (Oregon)
Born: 7 Sep 1906. Entered Society: 20 Jul 1924. Ordained: 21 Jun
1937.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 10 Aug 1943. Serial
number: 307450. To Lieutenant 1 Jan 1945. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Williamsburg, Va. (27 Sep 1943 to 21 Nov 1943); Marine Barracks, Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Cal. (23 Dec 1943 to Sep 1944);
5th Marine Division at Camp Tarawa, Hawaii, in the invasion of Iwo
Jima, and occupation duty, Sasebo, Japan (Sep 1944 to Feb 1946).
Reverted to inactive status 1 Apr 1946. Released from the Naval Reserve 15 Oct 1954.
-Tainter, James M. (Missouri)
Born: 20 Oct 1904. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1922. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Appointed to the Army 5 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0441486. To
the rank of Captain 15 Jan 1943; to Major 17 Feb 1944. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (9 May 1943); !31st Infantry Regiment, Fort
Brady, Sault Sainte Marie, Mich. (1942); Seymour Johnson Field,
Goldsboro, N.C. (1943 to 1944); Mitchell Field, Long Island, N.Y.
(1944). Reverted to inactive status 21 Sep 1944.
Talbott, Raymond L. (Oregon)
Born: 10 Oct 1909. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1927. Ordained: 27 Jun
1940.
Appointed to the Army 26 Mar 1942. Serial number: 0445183. To
the rank of Captain 15 Dec 1944. Assignments: Station Chaplain, Fort
Rosecrans, Cal. (11 Apr 1942) ; 104th Infantry Division, Camp Adair,
Ore. (12 Aug 1942 to 6 Nov 1942); Chaplain School, Fort Benjamin
Harrison, Ind. (30 Nov 1942); 44th Infantry Division, Fort Lewis,
�IN ARMED SERVICES
421
Wash. (21 Feb 1943). Overseas with the following units in France
and Germany (1944-1945); 113th AAA Group; 546th AAA Battalion,
740th AAA Battalion, 18th AAA Group; 1585th QM Truck Co.; 96th
Evacuation Hospital; 440th AAA Battalion. Reverted to inactive
status 4 Mar 1946.
Called to active duty with the Air Force 13 Sep 1950. Serial number:
A0445183. Assignments: Chaplain School, Carlisle Barracks, Pa.;
Fairchild Air Force Base, Spokane, Wash.; Ladd Air Force Base, Fairbanks, Alaska; Elmendorf Air Force Base, Anchorage, Alaska. Relieved of active duty 5 Mar 1953.
Tierney, Francis J. (New York)
Born: 21 Aug 1912. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1930. Ordained: 21
Jun 1942.
Appointed to the Army 24 Jul 1945. Serial number: 0933313. To
the rank of Captain 14 Feb 1947; to Major 19 Oct 1956. Assignments:
Chaplain School Fort Oglethorpe, Ga. (24 Aug 1945); Coastal Defense,
Newfoundland Base Command (Dec 1945 to Jan 1946); 65th Infantry
Regiment, Puerto Rico (May 1946 to May 1947). Reverted to inactive
status 1 Aug 1947.
·
Recalled in Sep 1950. Assignments: 320th General Hospital, Fort
Lewis, Wash. (Sep 1950 to Jun 1951); Infantry Training Center,
Hawaii (Jun 1951 to Aug 1954); Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.
(1954); with Army Chaplain Board (1955); 34th Infantry Regiment,
24th Division, Korea (Feb 1956 to May 1957); Post Chaplain, Presidio
of San Francisco (May 1957 to 31 Aug 1957). Relieved of active
duty Aug 1957.
Toomey, William J. (Chicago)
Born: 5 Jun 1900. Entered Society: 2 Sep 1919. Ordained: 22 Jun
1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 15 Jun 1945. Serial number: 469449. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (30
Jul 1945 to 22 Sep 1945); National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda,
Md. (2 Oct 1945 to 16 Jan 1946); U.S.S. Saint Louis (cruiser) (Jan
1946 to Feb 1946) ; Fleet Marine Force, Pacific (Feb 1946 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive status 11 Sep 1946. Resigned from the Naval Reserve 8 Feb 1951.
Torralba, Luis F. (New York)
Born: 21 Jun 1912. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1929. Ordained: 18 Jun
1941. Present Province: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 9 Oct 1942. Serial number: 0499682. To
the rank of Captain 12 May 1943; to Major 5 Jun 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (8 Mar 1943); with 2nd Filipino Infantry
Regiment for sixteen months in the United States at Camp San Luis
Obispo, Cal., Camp Cooke, Cal., Camp Beale, Cal., Fort Ord, Cal., Camp
�422
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Stoneman, Cal.; hospital chaplain, Regional Hospital, Camp Swift, Tex.;
232nd Hospital Ship; First Reconnaissance Battalion, Hollandia, New
Guinea; lOOth Highway Transport Service, Camp Murphy, Manila; 6th
Replacement Depot, Camp Dao, Angeles, Pampanga, Philippines. Separated from the Army at Fort Dix, N.J. Reverted to inactive status
18 Aug 1946.
Tynan, John W. (New York)
Born: 21 Oct 1895. Entered Society: 14 Sep 1919. Ordained: 21 Jun
1932.
Appointed to the Army 28 Apr 1943. Serial number: 0519966. To
the rank of Captain 4 Jan l944; to Major 10 Oct 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School l18 Jul 1943); 9th Service Command, Camp
Cooke, Lompac, Cal. (1943 and 1944); England and France with 115th
Station Hospital and 235th Ordnance Battalion (Jun 1944 to Sep 1945);
235th Ordnance Battalion, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Md. (17 Sep
1945 until relief). Reverted to inactive status 2 Feb 1946. Held the
rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the New York State Guard.
Died 22 Mar 1960.
Verceles, Pedro P. (New York)
Born: 14 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 16 Jul 1928. Ordained: 18 Jun
1941. Present Provi:qee: Philippines.
Appointed to the Army 16 Jul 1943. Serial number: 0528356. To
the rank of Captain 1 Aug 1944; to Major 21 Sep 1946. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (18 Aug 1943); Chaplain of 1st Filipino Regiment at Camp Beale, Cal., New Guinea, and Leyte-Samar, Philippines;
11th General Hospital, Manila; Concor Battalion, C~as, Tarlac, P.I.
Relieved of active duty 21 Sep 1946.
Vifquain, Victor L. (Missouri)
Born: 16 Nov 1900. Entered Society: 25 Sep 1925. Ordained: 17 Jun
1942.
Appointed to the Army 29 Oct 1943. Serial number: 0538900. To
the rank of Captain 16 Dec 1944. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (1 Jan 1944 to 11 Feb 1944); 55th General Hospital, Great
Malvern, England (until 21 Jun 1945); 55th General Hospital, Mourmelon, France; 217th General Hospital, Arion, Belgium; to Paris with
365th Station Hospital (Nov 1945) ; returned to United States 22 Feb
1946. Reverted to inactive status 3 May 1946.
Walet, Robert E. (New Orleans)
Born: 15 Nov 1910. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928. Ordained: 18
Jun 1941.
Appointed to the Army 21 Apr 1944. Serial number: 0550571. To
the rank of Captain 1 Mar 1945. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (5 Jun 1944); 63rd Infantry Division, Camp Van Dorn, Miss.
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
423
(15 Jul 1944); 63rd Infantry Division, 7th Army, in France, AlsaceLorraine, and Germany (Nov 1944 to May 1945); Army of Occupation
(Jun 1945 to Aug 1946). Reverted to inactive status 5 Oct 1946.
Award: Bronze Star.
Wallenhorst, George A. (Chicago)
Born: 14 Feb 1909. Entered Society: 2 Feb 1927. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939.
Appointed to the Army 11 Aug 1943. Serial number: 0531061. To
the rank of Captain 25 Jul 1944; to Major 17 Jan 1947. Assignments:
Harvard Chaplain School (21 Sep 1943); Greenville Field, Miss. (Nov
1943 to Mar 1945); 15th Air Force, Italy (Apr 1945 to May 1945); Natal,
Brazil; Air Transport Command Bases, India (Aug 1945 to Feb 1946).
Reverted to inactive status 16 Jun 1946.
Walsh, Lincoln J. (New York)
Born: 23 Nov 1903. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1924. Ordained: 20
Jun 1937.
Appointed to the Army 13 May 1942. Serial number: 0471680. To
the rank of Captain 1 Dec 1944. Assignments: Fort Meade, Md.;
Europe from Jun 1942 to Oct 1945 with 53rd Medical Battalion (Oct
1942 to Sep 1943) and 346 Engineer General Service Regiment (Sep
1943 to Oct 1945). Served in Northern Ireland, England, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. Reverted to inactive status 21 Jan 1946.
Walsh, Philip X. (New York)
Born: 22 Oct 1900. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1918. Ordained: 21
Jun 1932.
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 22 Apr 1943. Serial number: 281721. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (24 May 1943 to 18 Jul 1943);
Naval Air Technical Training Center, Chicago, Ill. (30 Jul 1943 to
17 Jul 1944); with Navy forces in the Solomon Islands and New
Hebrides (12 Dec 1944 to Dec 1945); U.S.S. Franklin (carrier) (14 Feb
1946 until relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive status 4 Aug 1946.
Released from the Naval Reserve 15 Oct 1954.
Walter, William J. (New York)
Born: 20 Feb 1906. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1923. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935.
Appointed to the Army 15 Oct 1940. Serial number: 0406122. To
the rank of Major 3 Jan 1945; to Lieutenant Colonel 2 Nov 1946. Assignments: Hawaii, New Guinea, Philippines, Ryukyu Islands (1942 to
1946); Fort Dix, N.J. (1946); 7th Army, Augusta, Ga. (1946); Fort
Bragg, N.C. (1946). Served overseas with the following units: 102nd
Engineers, 27th Division; 152nd Engineers, 27th Division; 24th Division
Artillery; Headquarters, 24th Infantry Division. Reverted to inactive
status 1 Jan 1947.
�424
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Ward, Thomas P. (New York)
Born: 14 Apr 1906. Entered Society: 9 Nov 1925. Ordained: 19 Jun
1938.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 1 May 1943. Serial
number: 286250. To Lieutenant 1 Aug 194,1; to Lieutenant Commander
15 Jul 1951. Assignments: Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (24
May 1943 to 18 Jul 1943); Naval Air Station, Norfolk (Jul 1943 to Jun
1944); Advanced Amphibious Base, Southhampton, England (Jun 1944
to Feb 1945); with Commander, Naval Forces Europe (Feb 1945 to
Apr 1945); Navy Air Facility #804 (Apr 1945 to Jul 1945); Training
Center, Hoquiam, Wash. (Sep 1945 to Nov 1945); Navy Station, Seattle,
Wash. (Nov 1945 until reUeved of duty). Reverted to inactive status
23 Aug 1946.
~
Recalled 1 Sep 1950. Assignments: U.S.S. Coral Sea (carrier) (Sep
1950 to Apr 1952) ; Coast Guard Training Station, Groton, Conn. (Apr
1952 to Mar 1954) ; Military Sea Transportation Service, Atlantic (May
1954 to Feb 1955) ; U .S.S. Boxer (carrier) in Pacific (Mar 1955 to Apr
1956); Naval Auxiliary Air Station, Cabaniss Field, Tex. (May 1956
until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive status 30 Jun 1957.
Warth, George L. (Chicago)
Born: 17 Jul 1896. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1917. Ordained: 26 Jun
1929. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 9 Jul 1942. Serial number: 0482843. To
the rank of Captain 4 Aug 1943. Assignments: Harvard Chaplain
School (3 Jan 1943); Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.; with the 108th General
Hospital (Loyola University, Chicago, Hospital Corps) in La Guarde
Hospital, New Orleans, in Sudbury, England, and in -Clinchy, France;
Reims; Callas; hospital chaplain, Aix au Provence; Chaplain's Headquarters, Marseille. At Marseille, Father Warth was in charge of
captured chaplains among the German war prisoners (36 priests and
30 Protestant ministers). Returned to United States 25 Feb 1946.
Reverted to inactive status 27 Apr 1946.
Weber, John A. (Chicago)
Born: 3 Jul 1902. Entered Society: 29 Apr 1925. Ordained: 23 Jun
1935. Present Province: Detroit.
Appointed to the Army 26 Mar 1945. Serial number: 0931649. To
the rank of Captain 10 Apr 1947. Assignments: Fort Devens Chaplain
School (20 May 1945);, 3rd Service Command, Baltimore, Md. (1945);
Indiantown Gap, Pa. {1945 to 1946); 88th Infantry Division, Italy
(1946). Reverted to inactive status 12 May 1947.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon.
Whitford, Clarence F. (Missouri)
Born: 12 Dec 1899. Entered Society: 28 Aug 1918.
Jun 1931.
Ordained: 25
�IN ARMED SERVICES
425
Commissioned as Lieutenant in the Navy 14 Jun 1943. Serial number: 296539. To Lieutenant Commander 3 Oct 1945. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Williamsburg, Va. (19 Jul 1943 to 12 Sep 1943); Marine Barracks, Parris Island, S.C. (Sep 1943 to 19 Jun 1944); U.S.S.
Anthedon (29 Jun 1944 until relieved of duty). Reverted to inactive
status 14 Mar 1946.
Died 1 Oct 1954 at Marquette University as the result of an accidental fall.
Zimmerman, Frederick L. (Missouri)
Born: 28 Apr 1907. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1926. Ordained: 21 Jun
1939. Present Province: Wisconsin.
Appointed to the Army 31 Jul 1944. Serial number: 0557946. To
the rank of Captain 13 Jul 1945. Assignments: Fort Devens Chaplain
School (27 Aug 1944); 5th Service Command, Camp Atterbury (1944);
Philippines (1945 to 1946); Oahu, T.H. (1946). Overseas with 339th
Engineer Battalion and 138th Replacement Battalion. Relieved of active duty 3 Oct 1946.
�-·
�KOREAN WAR
Sources:
1. Questionnaires sent to individual Jesuits.
2. Records in the Offices of the Chiefs of Chaplains, United States
Army, Navy and Air Force.
3. The History of the Clwplain Corps, United States Navy. Volumes
IV&V.
The following World War II veterans served also in the Korean War.
Their service biographies will be found in the World War II Section.
Barras, G. J.
Hennessey, T. P.
Barry, J. L.
Kelleher, J. J.
Bradstreet, J. R.
Kelly, J. J.
Brown, J.P.
Kennedy, H. F.
Campbell, D. V.
Kilp, A. J.
Carr, E. F .
Long, J. J.
Chehayl, G. S.
McNally, H. P.
Coleman, J . F.
Mollner, J. M.
Corbett, J. M.
Morgan, C. H.
Mulligan, E. C.
Corrigan, M. F.
Cunningham, T.
O'Neill, C. A.
Dossogne, V. J.
St. John, J. D.
Dugan, J. J.
Schenk, R. H.
Finnegan, B. J.
Shea, R. G.
Fraser, B. J.
Sullivan, J. J.
Goss, E. F.
Sullivan, P. V.
Haggerty, G. A.
Talbott, R. L.
Halloran, J. J.
Tierney, F. J .
Harley, J. L.
Ward, T. P.
The following went on duty between 27 Jun 1950 and 27 July 1954 (the
date when Korea ceased officially to be a combat zone). Their records
are contained in the following section.
Agnew, W. M.
Bain, J. A.
Byrne, T. J.
Clarkson, T. J.
Clements, E. B.
Gerhard, J. J.
Guerin, J. B.
Hurld, J. L.
Keane, J . T.
Kehrlein, 0. duF.
Kennedy, J. J.
Messner, W. R.
Moore, F. A.
Morrisson, J. J.
O'Gara, D. B.
Pettid, E. J.
Rehkopf, E. B.
Reynolds, V. T.
Ryan, V. B.
Seaver, G. W.
Teufel, J. L.
427
�428
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Agnew, William l\1. (Oregon)
Born: 26 Jul1916. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1934. Ordained: 16 Jun
1947.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 5 Oct 1953. Serial
number: 558406. Assignments: Naval Station, Newport, R.I. (Oct
1953 to Jan 1954); U.S. Naval Hospital, San Diego, Cal. (Jan 1954 to
Jun 1954); Naval Air Station, Agafia, Guam, Marianas (Jun 1954 to
Jun 1955); 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, Cal. (Jun 1955 to
Oct 1955). Revert~d to inactive status 30 Oct 1955.
Bain, John A. (California)
Born: 13 Jun 1915. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1933. Ordained: Jun
1946.
Appointed to the Army 24 Jul 1951. Serial number: 0997292. To
the rank of Captain 31 May 1953. Assignments: Fort Ord, Cal. (1951
to 1952) ; Korea (1952 to 1953) ; Camp Stoneman, Cal. (1953) ; Letterman Army Hospital, San Francisco, Cal. (1954). Relieved of active
duty 31 Jul1954.
Award: Bronze Star.
Byrne, Thomas J. (New York)
Born: 28 Nov 1915. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1936. Ordained: 19 Jun
1948.
Commissioned as Rirst Lieutenant in the Army 8 Sep 1951. Serial
number: 0997723. To the rank of Captain 17 Sep 1954. Assignments:
Camp McCoy, Wis. (1951 to 1952); with U.S. Forces in Austria (1952 to
1955); 5th Armored Division, Camp Chaffee, Ark. (1955). While on
duty in Austria, Father Bryne served with the following units: 2nd
Battalion of the 350th Infantry Regiment, 59th Recotwaissance Company, and 518th Engineer Company at St. Johann i Pongau; 70th
Engineer Battalion, Mountain Climbing and Ski Schools, Saalfelden;
Ammunition Dump, Lofer; Medical Companies, Zell; Glacier School,
Grossglockner. Relieved of active duty 31 Jan 1956.
Clarkson, Theodore J. (New York)
Born: 18 Jun 1913. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1931. Ordained: 18 Jun
1944.
Appointed to the Army 8 Aug 1951. Serial number: 0997560. Assignments: Camp Polk, La. (Oct 1951 to Jun 1952); Korean Military
Advisory Group (Taegu) Korea (Aug 1952 to Oct 1952); 3rd Division,
Korea (Oct 1952 to Nov 1952); Fort Sill, Okla. (Dec 1952 to Jul 1953);
Fort Richardson, Alaska with 867th AAA A W Battalion (Sep 1953 to
13 Aug 1954). Released from active duty 23 Aug 1954 at Fort Lewis,
Wash.
Clements, Ernest B. (Maryland)
Born: 25 Dec 1908. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1928.
Jun 1941.
Ordained: 22
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
429
Commissioned in the National Guard 1 Dec 1949. Commissioned in
the Army 24 Feb 1950. Serial number: 0984969. To the rank of Captain 15 Nov 1951. Assignments: Fort Custer, Mich., with 163 Military
Police (District of Columbia National Guard) (1950-1951); Headquarters, 8th U.S. Army, Seoul, Korea (1951-1952). Reverted to inactive
status 1 Aug 1952.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant.
Gerhard, John J. (New York)
Born: 31 Aug 1917. Entered Society: 14 Sep 1936. Ordained: 19 Jun 1949.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Air Force 28 Oct 1953.
Serial number: A02255906. To the rank of Captain 21 Oct 1957.
Assignments: Chaplain School, 3721 Training Squadron, Lackland Air
Force Base, Tex. (1 Nov 1953 to 31 Jan 1954); 3500 Pilot Training
Wing, Air Training Command, Reese Air Force Base, Tex. (1 Feb 1954
to 30 Nov 1954); Northern Air Materiel Area, Burtonwood Air Force
Base, Lancaster, England ( 1 Dec 1954 to 1 Mar 1955); Central Air
Materiel Area, Chateauroux, France (2 Mar 1955 to release from duty).
Released from active duty 10 Jul 1957.
Guerin, James B. (Missouri-Wisconsb)
Born: 23 Mar 1912. Entered Society: 1 Sep 1930. Ordained: 22 Jun
1943.
Commissioned in the Army 17 Sep 1953. Serial number: 02270823.
To the rank of Captain 17 Sep 1957. Assignments in the U.S.: Chaplain School, Fort Slccum, N.Y. (Oct 1953 to Nov 1953); Hospital Chaplain, Fort Carson, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Jan 1954 to June 1954).
In Japan with the following units (Jun 1954 to Oct 1956) : 5th Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division; Artillery, 1st Cavalry Division; 8205th AU,
Army Forces Far East. Separated from the service at Oakland Army
Terminal, Oakland, Cal., 31 Oct 1956. Reserve Chaplain for 452nd Hospital Unit (Marquette University).
Hurld, John L. (New England)
Born: 28 Aug 1912. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1930. Ordained: 13
Jun 1942.
Commissioned in the Army with the rank of Captain 9 Feb 1952.
Serial number: 0999473. Assignments: 26th Infantry Division (National Guard) (Feb 1952 to Aug 1952) ; Headquarters, Fort Huachuca,
Arizona (1952); UN POW Command, Korea (1953); 1st Cavalry Division, Japan (1954); 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Knox,
Ky. (1955); 29th AAA Battalion, Fairford, England (1956); Headquarters, Darmstadt Post, Germany (1957 to 1959); Headquarters,
USA GAR, Fort Gordon, Ga. (1960). Still on active duty.
�430
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Keane, Joseph T. (California)
Born: 2 Aug 1916. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1934. Ordained: 16 Jun
1947.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 13 Jul 1951. Serial
number: 484376. To Lieutenant 1 Apr 1955. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Newport, R.I. (3 Dec 1951 to 24 Jan 1952); Marine Corps Recruiting Depot (7 Feb 1952 to Nov 1952); U.S.S. Tarawa (carrier)
(Nov 1952 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to inactive status
12 Nov 1953.
Kehrlein, Oliver duFresne (California)
Born: 24 May 1909. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1929. Ordained: 7 Jun
1941.
~
Commissioned in the Army with the rank of Captain 3 Mar 1949.
Serial number: 0975104. To the rank of Major 29 Sep 1952. Assignments: 160th Infantry Regiment, 40th Division, Camp Cooke, Cal.
(1950); 160th Infantry Regiment, 40th Division, Japan and Korea
(1951); 224th Infantry Regiment, 40th Division, Korea (1952); Headquarters, 24th Infantry Division, Japan and Korea (1953); Madigan
Army Hospital, Tacoma, Wash. (1954). Relieved of active duty 30
May 1954.
Recalled to active duty 8 Sep 1957. Assignments: Post Chaplain,
Fort Huachuca, Ariz. (1957 to 1958); Joint Task Force Seven, Eniwetok
Atomic Proving Grounds, Marshall Islands (1959); Post Chaplain,
Fort MacArthur, San Pedro, Cal. (1960). Still on active duty.
Awards: Bronze Star; Purple Heart; Army Commendation Ribbon;
oak leaf cluster to Commendation Ribbon.
--
Kennedy, James J. (New York)
Born: 20 Feb 1918. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1934. Ordained: 22
Jun 1947.
Commissioned in the Army as First Lieutenant 15 Sep 1953. Serial
number: 02270799. To the rank of Captain 15 Sep 1956. Assignments:
47th Infantry Division, Camp Rucker, Ala. (1953); 62nd Engineer Battalion, 8th U.S. Army, Korea (1954) ; Army Security Agency Headquarters, Tokyo, Japan (1955); 710th Tank Battalion, Fort Stewart,
Ga. (1956) ; 5th General U.S. Army Hospital, Stuttgart, Germany
(1957); Port Chaplain, U.S. Army Port of Embarkation, Bremerhaven,
Germany (1958). Relieved of active duty 31 May 1958.
Messner, William R. (New York)
Born: 30 Jan 1916. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1937. Ordained: 18 Jun
1950.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army 10 Nov 1952. Serial
number: 02267310. To the rank of Captain 20 Sep 1956. Assignments:
Fort Chaffee, Ark. with 5th Armored Division (1952); 25th Infantry
Division, Korea (1953 to Jul 1954) (while in Korea, Father Messner
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
i
i
�IN ARMED SERVICES
431
pronounced his final vows 15 Aug 1953 at Munsan-Ni); Fort Eustis,
Va. (1954); Fort George Meade, Md. (until Jun 1955); 3rd Annored
Cavalry Regiment, Germany (1955); Nuremberg, Germany (until Feb
1958); Fort George Meade, Md. (1958); Aberdeen Proving Ground,
Md. (1959 to 1960).
Award: Bronze Star.
Moore, Francis A. (California)
Born: 25 Dec 1916. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1934. Ordained: 16
Jun 1947.
Commissioned as Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy 12 Sep 1951. Serial
number: 402492. To Lieutenant 1 Apr 1955. Assignments: Chaplain
School, Newport, R.I. (10 July 1952 to 10 Sep 1952); 3rd Marine Division at Camp Pendleton (Sep 1952 to Jan 1953), MCAS, Kaneohe,
Hawaii (Feb 1953 to Jun 1953), Camp Pendleton (Jul 1953 to Aug
1953), Camp Fuji, Japan (Sep 1953 to Apr 1954); Naval Hospital,
Corona, Cal. (May 1954 until relieved of active duty). Reverted to
inactive status 9 Jul1954.
Morrisson, John J. (New York)
Born: 9 Aug 1912. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1930. Ordained: 24 Jun
1943.
Commissioned as Captain in the New York National Guard 15 May
1947. Serial number: 0949667. To the rank of Major 2 Mar 1955.
Called to active duty with the Army in 1951. Assignments: Army
Security Agency, Fort Devens, Mass (1951); 2nd Division, Korea (19521953); Turkey, Joint American Military Mission for Aid to Turkey
(1954-1955); Engineer Training Center, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.
(1956-1957). Relieved of active duty 30 May 1957.
A ward: Bronze Star.
O'Gara, Donald B. (California)
Born: 21 Aug 1913. Entered Society: 2 Aug 1931. Ordained: 17
Jun 1944.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army 22 Aug 1951. Serial
number: 09977 42. To the rank of Captain 17 Sep 1954. Assignments:
6th Army Headquarters, Fort Ord, Cal. (1951); 19th Regiment, 24th
Division, Sendai, Japan (1952); 19th Regiment, 24th Division, Hachinohe, Japan (1953); 19th Regiment, 24th Division, Yangu Valley, Korea
(1954); 6th Army, Barstow, Cal. (1954). Reverted to inactive status
17 Sep 1954.
Pettid, Edward J. (California)
Born: 5 Nov 1914. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1934. Ordained: 16
Jun 1947.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Army 31 Aug 1951. Serial
number: 0997804. Assignments: Camp Irwin, Cal. (1951); 4th Infan-
�432
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
try Regiment, Ladd AFB, Fairbanks, Alaska (1952 to 1953); Madigan
Army Hospital, Tacoma, Wash. (1954). Relieved of active duty 14
Sep 195,1.
Rehkopf, Edward B. (Maryland)
Born: 21 Mar 1912. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1937. Ordained: 20
Jun 1948.
Appointed to the Army with the rank of Captain 1 Dec 1952. Serial
number: 02267127. To the rank of Major 13 Oct 1959. Assignments:
Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. (1 Dec 1952 to 1 Mar 1953); 7th Division, Korea (15 Apr 1953 to 13 Jul 1954); Rehabilitation Center,
Kaufbeuren, Germany (1954 to 1955); 1st Armored Division, Fort Polk,
La. (1956 to 1958); Antilles Cpmmand, USARCARIB, San Juan, Puerto
Rico (1959 to 1960). At present on active duty with the rank of
Captain.
Award: Bronze Star.
Reynolds, Vincent T. (New York)
Born: 22 Apr 1916. Entered Society: 1 Feb 1933. Ordained: 17
Jun 1945.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 7 Oct 1953. Serial
number: 02271065. To the rank of Captain 6 Oct 1957. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (13 Oct 1953 to 23 Nov 1953);
Headquarters, 37th Division, Camp Polk, La. (Nov 1953 to Dec 1953);
Headquarters, 2nd Division Artillery, Korea (Mar 1954 to Nov 1954) ;
304th Signal Battalion, Korea (Nov 1954 to Jun 1955); Fort Carson,
Colo. (Jun 1955 to Sep 1956); 8th Infantry Division, U.S. Army
Forces, Europe (Sep 1956 to Nov 1958); Headquarters,..-Bad Tolz Station, U.S. Army Forces, Europe (Nov 1958 to Jan 1960)-; 11th Artillery Group, Rehoboth, Mass. (Feb 1960 to present). Still on active
duty.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon with Pendant.
Ryan, Vincent B. (New York)
Born: 5 Nov 1914. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1932. Ordained: 16 Jun
1945.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 7 Sep 1951. Serial
number: 0997892. To the rank of Captain 13 Sep 1955. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (Nov 1951 to Dec 1951); U.S.
Army Hospital, Fort Bragg, N.C. (Jan 1952 to May 1952); Far East
Chemical School, Camp Gifu, Japan (May 1952 to Feb 1953); 24th
Division Artillery, Camp'Younghans, Korea (Feb 1953 to Jun 1953);
U.S. Army Hospital, Sendai, Japan (Jun 1953 to Jul 1953); Medical
Battalion, 24th Division, Korea (Jul 1953 to Aug 1953); 21st Infantry
Regiment, Koje Island (Aug 1953 to Jun 1954); Fort Dix, N.J. (Jun
1954 to Sep 1954). Relieved of active duty 1 Sep 1954.
Award: Army Commendation Ribbon with Pendant.
�Father Das:~iel V. Campbell (Mol on the wing of a jet fighter, shaking hands
with Captain F. W. Salze, USAF, on!! of his airborne parishioners.
�-·
�IN ARMED SERVICES
433
Seaver, George W. (Oregon)
Born: 27 Aug 1917. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1935. Ordained: 12
Jun 1948.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant, USAR, 19 Nov 1952. Serial number
0998741. Called to active duty 19 Jul 1953. To the rank of Captain
30 Dec 1955. Assignments: Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (19
Jul1953 to 8 Sep 1953); 6021 AU, Fort Lewis, Wash. (8 Sep 1953 to 28
Dec 1953); 304th Signal Battalion, Far East Command (28 Dec 1953
to 7 Sep 1954}; Headquarters Battery, 21st AAA A W Battalion, Far
East Command (7 Sep 1954 to 28 Nov 1955); Fort Lewis, Wash. (28
Nov 1955 to 18 Jun 1957); Headquarters, 27th AAA Battalion, United
States Army, Europe (18 Jun 1957 to Mar 1958) ; USA, Northern
Area, Heidelberg, Germany (1 Apr 1958 to present). Still on active
duty. ·
Teufel, John L. (Oregon)
Born: 9 Aug 1907. Entered Society: 3 Jan 1933. Ordained: 17 Jun
1944.
Appointed to the rank of Captain, Washington National Guard 18 Jul
1951. Serial number: 0997709. Called to active duty 19 Jan 1953.
Assignments: 123rd Infantry Regiment, 44th Division, Fort Lewis,
Wash. (until 25 Sep 1953); 36th Engineer Combat Group, Korea (Sep
1953 to Feb 1955); 5th AAA Group, Camp Hanford, Washington (Feb
1955 until relieved of active duty). Relieved of active duty 10 Jan
1956.
Award: Bronze Star.
�-·
�POST-KOREAN SERVICE
Sources:
1. Questionnaires to individual Jesuits.
2. Records in the Offices of Chiefs of Chaplains United States Army,
Navy and Air Force.
The following priests served during this period but had previous service
in either World War II and the Korean War, or in the Korean War
alone. Their biographies will be found in the section indicated in the
parentheses after their names.
Agnew, W. M. (Kor.)
Barry, J. L. (WWII)
Barras, G. J. (WWII)
Bradstreet, J. R. (WWII)
Brown, J.P. (WWII)
Byrne, T. J. (Kor.)
Campbell, D. V. (WWII)
Dossogne, V. J. (WWII)
Finnegan, B. J. (WWII)
Fraser, B. J. (WWII)
Gerhard, J. J. (Kor.)
Guerin, J. B. (Kor.)
Haggerty, G. A. (WWII)
Hennessey, T. P. (WWII)
Hurld, J. L. (Kor.)
Kehrlein, 0. duF. (Kor.)
Kelleher, J. J. (WWII)
Kelly, J. J. (WWII)
Kennedy, H. F. (WWII)
Kennedy, J. J. (Kor.)
Long, J. J. (WWII)
McNally, H. P. (WWII)
Messner, W. R. (Kor.)
Mollner, J. M. (WWII)
Morrisson, J. J. (Kor.)
Mulligan, E. C. (WWII)
Rehkopf, E. B. (Kor.)
Reynolds, V. T. (Kor.)
St. John, J. D. (WWII)
Schenk, R. H. (W\VII)
Seaver, G. W. (Kor.)
Shea, R. G. (WWII)
Sullivan, J. J. (WWII)
Sullivan, P. V. (WWII)
Teufel, J. L. (Kor.)
Tierney, F. J. (WWII)
Ward, T. P. (\V\VII)
The following went on active duty for the first time between 27 Jul
1954 (the date that combat officially ceased in Korea) and 1 Jan 1960.
Curran, F. N.
Devlin, E. J.
Dolan, J. F.
Egan, T. F.
Farrelly, P. T.
Fullam, R. B.
Graisy, J. J.
Laboon, J. F.
McCall, T. D.
Muldoon, T. J.
Reagen, J. D.
Curran, Francis N. (New York)
Born: 14 Aug 1915. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1939. Ordained: 16 Jun 1951.
Appointed First Lieutenant in the Army 20 Jan 1955. Serial num435
�436
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
her: 02274878. To the rank of Captain 18 Dec 1958. Assignments:
Yuma Test Station, Yuma, Arizona (1955) ; Grant Heights, Tokyo,
Japan (1956); Camp Otsu, Kyoto, Japan, and U.S. Army Hospital,
Camp Zama, Japan (1957) ; 1st Guided Missile Brigade, Fort Bliss,
Tex. (1958 and 1959); Combat Command "C", 3rd Armored Division,
Germany (1960). Still on active duty.
Devlin, Eugene J. (New York)
Burn: 29 Dec 1920. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1938. Ordained: 17
Jun 1951.
Cummissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 12 Nov 1954. Serial
number: 02274678. Assignments: 2101st SU, Fort George Meade, Md.
(15 Dec 1954 to Sep 1955) ;·chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (8 Apr
1955 to 22 Jun 1955); 319th Station Hospital, Landes de Bussac,
France (Sep 1955 to Nov 1955); 7727th AU, Krailsheim, Germany
(Nov 1955 to Nov 1956); Nuremberg, Germany (Nov 1956 to Aug
1957) ; U.S. Army Garrison, Grafenwohr, Germany (Aug 1957 to Sep
1957). Relieved of active duty 15 Sep 1957.
Dolan, James F. (New York)
Born: 17 Jan 1920. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1938. Ordained: 16 Jun
1951.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 19 Sep 1957. Serial
number: 02291928. Assignments: Fort Polk, La. (1 Oct 1957 to 20
May 1958); (from Jan 1958 to Mar 1958 attended Basic Course, Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y.); 1st Battle Group, 8th Cavalry, 1st
Cavalry Division, Korea (5 Jul 1958 to 20 Jul 1959); The Student Brigade, United States Infantry School, Fort Benning, G~· (20 Aug 1959 to
present). Still on active duty.
Award: Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant.
Egan, Thomas F. (New York)
Born: 10 Dec 1920. Entered Society: 30 Jul 1941. Ordained: 21 Jun
1953.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 23 Sep 1958. Called
to active duty 1 Oct 1958. Serial number: 02296484. Assignments:
1st Medium Tank Battalion, 66th Armored Regiment, 2nd Armored
Division, Fort Hood, Tex. (Oct 1958 to Dec 1959); Student, USA Chaplain School, Fort Slocum, N.Y. (Jan 1960 to Mar 1960); chaplain to
Regimental Headquarters, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Straubing,
Lower Bavaria, Germany, serving 1st Battalion (Straubing), 2nd Battalion (Pindar Kaserne, Landshut), and 3rd Battalion (Fort Skelly,
Regensburg) (Apr 1960 to present). Still on active duty.
Farrelly, Peter T. (New England)
Born: 25 Jun 1919. Entered Society: 30 Jun 1941.
Jun 1953.
Ordained: 20
�IN ARMED SERVICES
437
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Army 3 Apr 1957. Serial
number: 02288095. Assignments: Post Catholic Chaplain, Fort Lee,
Va. (1957); 34th General Hospital, Orleans, France (Mar 1958 to Aug
1958) ; Catholic Chaplain, Headquarters, Base Section, USA Communications Zone (Poitiers) Vienne, France (with additional duties: 60th
Station Hospital, and USA Engineer Depot, Touraine; Saumur Signal
Depot, Maine et Loire; Ingrandes Quartermaster Depot, Vienne;
11th Transportation Terminal Command, Saint Nazaire, Loire Maritime, France) (Aug 1958 to Dec 1958); USA Hospital and USA General Depot, Chinon, Indre et Loire, USA General Depot, Saumur, Maine
et Loire, France (1959 to 1960). Still on active duty.
Fullam, Raymond B. (New York)
Born: 17 Oct 1918. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1938. Ordained: 16
Jun 1951.
Commissioned as Captain in the Army 7 Jan 1959. Serial number:
02297352. Assignments: Fort Sam Houston, Tex. (1959); Seine Area
Command, France (1960). Still on active duty.
Graisy, John J. (Oregon)
Born: 9 Sep 1922. Entered Society: 7 Sep 1940. Ordained: 20 Jun
1953.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Washington National Guard
23 Apr 1957. Serial number: 02289539. To the rank of Captain 23
Apr 1958. Assignment: 1st Battle Group, 161st Infantry, 41st Infantry
Division. Called to active duty with the Army 12 Oct 1959. Assignment: h t Battle Group, 8th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division, Fort
Lewis, Wash. ~till on <>otive dutv.
Laboon, John F. (Maryland)
Born: 11 Apr 1921. Entered Society: 31 Oct 1946. Ordained: 17
Jun 1956.
Service prior to entering the Society: first commissioned 9 J un 1943;
rose to the rank of Lieutenant. _Serial number: 282805. Assignments:
U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md. (17 Jun 1940 to 6 Jun 1943);
Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, Fla. (Jun 1943 to Sep 1943); Submarine School, New London, Conn. (Sep 1943 to Dec 1943); U.S.S.
Peto (submarine), based at Pearl Harbor, operating in Western Pacific
(Dec 1943 to Jun 1946); Commanding Officer, U.S.S. LSM 253 (Jun
1946 to Sep 1946). Relieved of active duty Sep 1946.
Appointed as reserve chaplain with the rank of Lieutenant (j.g.) 17
J ul 1955; to Lieutenant 1 Dec 1957. Called to active duty Sep 1958.
Assignments: Chaplain School, Newport, R.I. (Sep 1958 to Nov 1958);
Naval Air Training Center, Patuxent River, Md. (Nov 1958 to Mar
1959); Staff, Commander Submarines Atlantic, New London, Conn.,
with additional duty of Chaplain, Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine
Squadron 14 (Mar 1959 to present).
Award: Silver Star.
�438
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
McCall, Thomas D. (New York)
Born: 30 Sep 1922. Entered Society: 30 Jul1939. Ordained: 21 Jun
1952.
Commissioned as First Lieutenant in the Air Force 10 Sep 1957.
Serial number: A03060359. Called to active duty 7 Nov 1957. Assignments: Chaplain School, Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Tex.
(13 Nov 1957 to 10 Jan 1958); Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio,
Tex. (Jan 1958 to May 1959); Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Marianas Islands (Jun 1959 to present). Still on active duty.
Muldoon, Thomas J. (New York)
Born: 3 Nov 1919. Entered Society: 14 Aug 1937. Ordained: 18
Jun 1950.
Commissioned First Lieutenant in the Air Force 8 Oct 1956. Serial
number: A03059757. Called to active duty 22 Oct 1956. Assignments:
Chaplain School, Lackland Air Force Base, Tex. (Oct 1956 to Dec
1956); Donaldson Air Force Base, S.C., with 63rd Troop Carrier Wing
(1957); 6122nd and 6123rd Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
K-6, Pyong-Taek, Korea (1958); 9th Combat Support Group, Strategic
Air Command, Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho ( 1959 to 1960).
Still on active duty.
Reagen, John D. (Ne"l York)
Born: 20 Aug 1917. Entered Society: 21 Sep 1937. Ordained: 18
Jun 1950.
Commls:sioned as First Lieutenant in the New York National Guard
23 Jun 1955. Serial number: 02289285. To the rank of captain 9
May l~OT. A:;:;IgmueuL: lOTUI I~egtmental Combat 'I:e!!ffi, New York
National Guard. Called to active duty 8 J ul 1958. Assignments: 41st
Field Artillery, Fort Sill, Okla. (1958-1959) ; Port of Whittier, Alaska
(1960). Still on active duty.
�AWARDS AND CITATIONS RECEIVED BY JESUITS
The following list of awards and citations is compiled from
questionnaires and the records of the Offices of Chief of
Chaplains for the various services. Due to the work of Chaplain Drury, the Navy record is fairly complete. Since all but
two of the priests who served with the Air Force answered
questionnaires, the record for that service is reasonably complete. With the Army record there are gaps. Army regulations did not require that a copy of a citation be filed with
the Office of Chief of Chaplains, though, as a result of a
request sent out, many chaplains did so file a copy. Therefore, no detailed list itemizing all the decorations of the
13,000 chaplains who have served with the Army has as yet
been compiled. It is estimated that the list of Army citations
awarded to Jesuits is about 80o/o complete.
In the following list of awards the citation or general
orders conferring the decoration is appended. Where these
are not available, then a precis of the citation is given, if
possible. The precis is printed in parentheses. If none of
these is available then the title of the decoration alone is
listed.
Awards that have not been verified have not been included.
Thus, Father Juan Gaerlan would be entitled to the Purple
Heart for his death at the hands of the enemy, but no such
award is listed in available Army records. Father Charles
M. Ryan would also be entitled to the same award, but evidently did not make application for it. Father Daniel J.
Lynch is mentioned in WL (48, 285) as having received the
Croix de Guerre. The Army files have no record of such an
award. It may not have been reported, or it may have been
a unit citation which entitled him to wear the fourragere.
Campaign ribbons, battle stars and unit citations have not
been included because it proved impossible to make any adequate catalogue of them.
439
�JESUIT CHAPLAINS
440
LIST OF AWARDS AND CITATIONS1
Award/
Decoration:
A warded for:
Gallantry and
intrepidity at
the risk of life
above and beyond
call of duty
Extra<lrdinary
Distinguished
heroisni"in miliService Cross
tary operations
(Navy Cross)
Exceptionally
Distinguished
meritorious service
Service Medal
in a duty of great
responsibility
Exceptionally
Legion of Merit
meritorious service
in the performance
of outstanding
:services
Gallantry in
Silver Star
action
Distinguished
Heroism in aerial
flight
Flying Cross
Heroism not
Soldier's Medal
(Navy and Marine involving combat
Corps 1\Iedal)
Bronze Star
Heroic/meritorious service/
achievement
Air lV[edal
Meritorious service
in air flight
Commendation
Meritorious
Medals, Ribbons,
achievement not
Letters
in military
operations
Purple Heart
Wounds received
in action
Foreign awards
Total decorations received by Jesuits
Medal of Honor
Rank of
award
for
valor
Rank of
award
for
Jesuit
service recipients
1
1
2
0
1
0
2
2
8
3
4
5
-·
,3
0
1
36
1
6
7
4
5
G
26
13
4
92
1 Adapted from The Medal of Honor of the United States
Army, p.
468. Equivalent Navy awards are listed in parentheses.
�Fathe.r John P. Brown (Md) receiving the Bronze Star for services
rendered in the China-Burma-India Theater during World War II.
�-·
�lN ARMED SERVICES
441
Bain, John A. (California)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) John A. Bain, 0997292, Chaplains Corps, United
States Army. Chaplain Bain, Group Chaplain of the 37th Engineer
Group (Combat), is cited for meritorious service in connection with
military operations against an armed enemy in Korea during the period
25 Jun 1952 to 29 October 1953. In every aspect of his noteworthy
service, Chaplain Bain's untiring efforts and unflagging devotion to his
principles and duties made a distinct and favorable impression upon
all members of the command. In addition to providing counsel and
guidance to personnel within the Group, Chaplain Bain unhesitatingly
gave of his time to adjacent units and hospitals. The disposition of
units within the Group was such that Chaplain Bain was required to
travel extensively, and unfailingly accomplished his mission despite
long and arduous hours. His outstanding performance of duty constantly elicited words of praise and commendation from those he so
faithfully served; his patience, compassion and understanding brought
comfort and peace of mind to many troubled individuals. The true
worth of Chaplain Bain's services during this period was inestimable.
Particularly deserving of recognition is the manner in which, by precept,
he encouraged others to aspire to similar heights of achievement. His
infinite capacity for resolving moral problems earned for him the deep
and abiding respect and admiration of all those who came under his
influence. Morale within the command was maintained at a high level
which contributed immeasurably to the operational efficiency of all units.
The meritorious service rendered by Chaplain Bain throughout this
period reflects great credit on himself and the military service. Entered
the Federal service from California.
Barry, John L. (New England)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (First Lieutenant) John L. Barry, 0931664, Chaplains,
United States Army, a member of Headquarters, 7th Infantry Division
Artillery, distinguished himself by meritorious achievement on 20 October
1952. While an intense attack was being launched against the enemy,
Chaplain Barry, against the protests of the commanding officer, moved
into the thick of the battle, administering aid, both spiritual and medical, to the friendly casualities and encouraging the fighting men. The
integrity, the sincere devotion to God and country, and the deep personal regard for the welfare of the men with whom he served, made
Chaplain Barry an inspiring figure and an ennobling influence on all
with whom he came in contact. The meritorious achievement of Chaplain Barry reflects great credit on himself and the military service.
Purple Heart:
(Received the Purple Heart for wounds sustained in action 17 Oct
1952 near Kumhwa, North Korea, while on service with the 48th Artillery.)
�442
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Boylan, Bernard R. (New England)
Navy and l\larine Corps l\ledal:
For heroic conduct during rescue operations in Finschhafen Harbor
on August 23, 1944. With the gasoline laden S.S. John C. Calhoun
enveloped in flames following an explosion in the hold, Lieutenant
Boylan leaped from an adjoining vessel to go to the aid of several
casualties on the stricken ship. Aware of the imminent danger of
additional explosions, he assisted in removing men to safety; searched
the debris for other wounded; and refused to leave the scene until all
casualties had been cared for. His initiative and courage throughout
reflect the highest credit upon .Lieutenant Boylan and the United States
Naval Service.
·
Brock, Laurence l\1. (New England)
Legion of l\lerit:
Laurence M. Brock, 0403400, Captain, Chaplain Corps, United
States Army, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance
of outstanding services in the South Pacific Area, during the period
of February 1942 to September 1943. As Chaplain of a regiment
bivouacked in an area of over fifty miles at an advanced base, Captain
Brock travelled to his men under the most adverse conditions to carry
out his own duties and those of Special Service Officer prior to the
time that the Table of -organization provided an officer for that duty.
This presented Captain Brock with the problem of extending his normal
work to include such arrangements as the operation and upkeep of
motion picture apparatus, and the organization and direction of amateur
theatricals. The cumulative effect of his good work waS clearly evidenced by the high morale of the regiment upon its entry into active
combat. In his unceasing efforts to carry the word of God to troops
fighting in perilous forward areas Captain Brock disdained all hazards
and expended his every effort. The altruistic, courageous quality of
his superlative work was best illustrated at Christmas time, 1942, when
he traversed from foxhole to foxhole under hostile sniper fire to receive
confessions and thus administer religious solace to men.
Brown, John P. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
Captain John P. Brown, Chaplain Corps, Army of the United States,
is awarded the Bronze Star Medal, for meritorious service between 16
February and 1 December 1945. During this ten month period, Chaplain Brown journeyed from Burma to Kunming, China, with the 475th
Infantry of the Mars Task Force. Later assigned to the Chinese Combat Command at Chingshien, Chaplain Brown, with unflagging energy,
enthusiasm and devotion to duty, despite hazardous flying weather,
heavy rains and dangerous roads, journeyed by foot, jeep and plane
more than ten thousand miles holding religious services for isolated
units of the Burma Road Engineers, Signal and 'Hospital Groups, Air
�IN ARMED SERVICES
443
Force Squadrons, American Liaison Teams and elements of the Chinese
Combat Command. Chaplain Brown's constant efforts to render spiritual and consultative assistance, under combat conditions in Changyi,
Anshun, Kweiyang, Mahshaomgping, Tuyun, Tushan, Nantan, Hochi,
!shan and Luichow was an inspiration to both officers and men. Chaplain Brown was also the first Army Chaplain to arrive in Shanghai
with the vanguard of Americans, and assisted in making arrangements
for religious services shortly after the surrender of the Japanese. His
constantly meritorious performance of duty reflects great credit on
him and the Armed Forces of the United States.
Burke, Edmund F. (Missouri)
Silver Star:
For gallantry in action on 24 September 1944. When the forward
elements of his regiment were under enemy mortar, machine gun, and
rifle fire, Chaplain Burke repeatedly accompanied litter-bearer teams forward. Completely disregarding his own personal safety, he adminisistered spiritual aid to the wounded and dying and assisted in their
evacuation. When in the medical aid station during times when it was
under small-arms fire, Chaplain Burke was observed shielding wounded
men with his own body. These actions of Chaplain Burke's were an
inspiration to all who observed them and were a major factor in maintaining the excellent morale of the forward elements of his regiment.
Cannon, Thomas B. (New York)
Bronze Star:
Thomas B. Cannon, 0552314, Captain, Corps of Chaplains, United
States Army. For meritorious service in support of combat operations
during the period 16 February 1945 to 10 March 1945, in the Apennine
Mountains, Italy. In offering spiritual guidance to fighting men, Chaplain Cannon distinguished himself by his untiring efforts, requiring
long hours of duty over many successive days, to reach and serve .men
of his faith in five organizations scattered over widely spread areas.
Devotedly attached to his God-given work, Chaplain Cannon traveled
extensively from rear areas to front line positions, over icy mountain
roads and trails often subject to enemy artillery fire. In addition to
his individual attention to the soldiers, he spent much time and personal
effort in composing well-worded and sincere letters of condolence to
families and relatives of casualties. His consistent visits to hospitals
have been deeply appreciated and his ever ready willingness to hear
and investigate suggestions for the comfort and morale of men of all
faiths in the organization is truly religious guidance of a high order.
His warmth of personality and spiritual radiance has been a guiding
light in a period of darkness, and is duly in keeping with the loftiest
traditions of the United States Army. Entered the military service
from New York, New York.
Army Commendation Ribbon
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Cervini, Andrew F. (New York)
Purple Heart:
Andrew F. Cervini, Chaplain, 73rd Infantry Regiment, 81st Infantry
Division, for shell fragment wounds of both feet received while in direct
contact with the enemy in Manila, Philippine Islands, 17 February 1945.
Chehayl, GeorgeS. (Chicago)
Army Commendation Ribbon:
SUBJECT: Award of the Army Commendation Ribbon
TO: First Lieutenant George S. Chehayl, 0932132, Chaplain Headquarters 24th Division Artillery, APO 24.
1. I wish to commend.you for your outstanding performance of duty
as Division Artillery Roman Catholic Chaplain from 10 December 1945
to 22 August 1946. You exercised exceptional initiative and ingenuity
in setting up chapels promptly in all unit areas after each move;
at Matsuyama, then Komatsujima and Tokushima; again at Himeji
and Kakogawa, and finally in the present areas on Kyushu. You
diligently held services regularly in spite of interrupting moves and
lack of facilities. Your moral and spiritual guidance to your men is
something for which you can be justifiably proud. You have shared
their individual problems; I am sure that they have respected your
advice. Your frequent presence on the drill field as well as in the
chapel has convinced them of your sincere interest in their welfare.
Although one battalion during the period 23 January to 10 June 1946
was at Komatsujima, Shikoku, while the balance of the Division Artillery
was on Honshu, you regularly conducted religious services in all units
notwithstanding their wide separation, requiring arduous journeys by
whatever transportation weather permitted. It ill"". a· pleasure to acknowledge such outstanding service and devotion to duty.
2. For your meritorious service from 10 December 1945 to 22 August
1946 you are hereby authorized to wear the Army Commendation Ribbon by direction of the Secretary of War.
J. A.
LESTER
Major General, U.S. Army
Commanding
Clements, Ernest B. (Maryland)
Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant:
Chaplain (Captain) Ernest B. Clements, 0984969, Chaplains, United
States Army. Chaplain Clements, a member of the Chaplain Section,
Headquarters Eighth· United States Army, Korea, is cited for meritorious service during the period 8 September 1951 to 2 July 1952. As
Assistant Chaplain at the Advance Headquarters of Eighth United
States Army, Korea, Chaplain Clements planned and coordinated all
Catholic religious services for the entire Seoul area for that period
and, in addition, acted as liaison for the Chaplain Section to Protestant
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445
chaplains in the Seoul area. He labored tirelessly under all weather
conditions, traveling to the many units in the larger Seoul area to
conduct services, counsel personnel, and provide religious supplies and
literature. In so doing, he brought encouragement to personnel of these
units, thus contributing greatly to the spiritual and moral welfare of
the command. The meritorious service rendered by Chaplain Clements
throughout this period reflects gre'at credit on himself and the military
service.
Crowley, Wilfred H. (California)
Army Commendation Ribbon:
For meritorious service during the period 13 August 1914 to 4 February 1945, as Chaplain, Combat Command B, 16th Armored Division.
During this period, by his attention to duty, spiritual help, and guidance, he materially assisted in preparing the Division for maneuvers,
overseas shipment and combat.
Cuddy, Gerald J. (New York)
Bronze Star
Cummings, William V. (Maryland)
Silver Star:
Chaplain (Captain) William V. Cummings, 0551805, Corps of Chaplains, Headquarters 409th Infantry Regiment. For gallantry in action
from 26 November 1944 to 3 May 1945. Throughout the operations in
France, Germany and Austria, Chaplain Cummings remained with the
advance aid station of the First Battalion, 409th Infantry, comforting
the wounded and aiding the Battalion Surgeon. On one occasion when
a man was seriously wounded by a mine, he accompanied the Surgeon
into the mine field. Although a detonated mine wounded him and mortally wounded the Battalion Surgeon, Chaplain Cummings, despite his
own painful injury, administered aid and comforted the man. His
unselfish actions materially contributed to the high morale within the
battalion. Residence: Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
Purple Heart:
(For wounds sustained in action 3 May 1945 near Innsbruck, Austria, while on service with the 409th Infantry Regiment.)
Cunniff, John H. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Johri H. Cunniff, 0545391, (then First Lieutenant
and Captain), Chaplain Corps, while serving with the Army of the
United States, distinguished himself by meritorious service in connection with military operations not involving participation in aerial flight,
against an enemy of the United States during the period 2 October
1944 to 8 May 1945. Chaplain Cunniff, functioning as Catholic Chaplain, Headquarters, l146th Engineer Combat Group, contributed im-
�446
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
measurably to the successful completion of the missions of his
organization by his intelligence, tact, and self-sacrifice. The h:tiative,
devotion to duty and thorough knowledge of his job displayed by Chaplain Cunniff reflect great credit upon himself and is in keeping with the
highest traditions of the military service.
Cunningham, Thomas (Oregon)
Air l\1 edal:
(Father Cunningham was awarded the Air Medal for his rescue
work with the Army Air Force in the Alaska Theater at the end of
Ylorld War II. He made nine parachute jumps, one of them to save
the crew of a Russian air~lane.)
Air Force Commendation 1\ledal:
(Father Cunningham was awarded the Commendation Medal for participation in ''Operation Alpha" in the Arctic Ocean in the period from
23 Sep 1958 to 7 Nov 1958.)
Dietz, Francis T. (Chicago)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Francis T. Dietz 0491021, Chaplain Corps, United
States Army. For heroic achievement in connection with military
operations against the enemy on Lone Tree Hill, near Maffin Bay, New
Guinea, on 27, 28, and 29 June 1944. He displayed great courage and
devotion to duty in administering to the spiritual needs of the wounded
and the dying'. Under exposure to enemy rifle fire his presence contributed greatly to the morale of the officers and men of this battalion.
Oak Leaf Cluster to Bronze Star:
Captain (Chaplain) Francis T. Dietz 0491021, Corps of Chaplains,
United States Army. For heroic achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy near Rosario, Luzon, Philippine
Islands, from 10 January 1945 to 7 February 1945. While the infantry
battalion to which Chaplain Dietz was attached was engaged in an
assault, Chaplain Dietz was constantly with the foremost combat elements and refused to go to the rear area to rest until the assault was
completed. Under heavy enemy sniper and mortar fire, he administered
the last rites to the dying and bolstered the morale of badly wounded
soldiers. His presence there under the most trying of combat conditions
was a great morale factor to the men, and his unflinching attention to
duty under intense enemy fire inspired all those with whom he serves.
Dolan, James F. (New York)
Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant:
The Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant is awarded to Chaplain First Lieutenant James F. Dolan, 02291928, United States Army,
for exceptionally meritorious service in Korea during the period 11 July
1958 to 20 June 1959, as Chaplain of the 1st Battle Group, 8th Cavalry,
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1st Cavalry Division and concurrently as Chaplain for all units located
between the Imjin River and demilitarized zone. Despite extreme difficulties 'df distance, terrain and weather, he visited all units regularly
according to his own rigid and critical schedule, exceeding normal
expectations and requirements. His calm, determined and logical approach to problems of individuals and groups provided positive and
practical solutions and gave major assistance to commanders in maintaining a high state of morale and esprit. Chaplain Dolan's personal
magnetism and unswerving but gracious leadership were reflected in
the extremely high level of morality among the troops he served so
well. His perseverance and industry contributed to a large degree to
completion and beautification of the battle group chapel as the finest
in the division, despite acute shortages of personnel and material. By
his personal example as a man of God and as a soldier, Chaplain Dolan
has inspired all who have been fortunate to know him. His extraordinary qualifications reflect the highest credit upon himself, the "First
Team" and the military service.
Dolan, James J. (New England)
Bronze Star:
James J. Dolan (Captain), 0402252, Chaplains Corps, has been
awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service and exceptional
service in connection with military operations against the enemy on
Saipan, Marianas Islands, during the period 21 July 1944 to 2 September
1945.
Dugan, John J. (New England)
Bronze Star:
(Awarded Bronze Star by General Order 113, Headquarters, War Department, 4 Dec 1945.)
Army Commendation Ribbon
Dunne, Edward J. (New York)
Bronze Star:
Captain Edward J. Dunne, 0479493, Chaplain Corps (Parachutist)
United States Army. In connection with military operations against
the enemy on Leyte, Philippine Islands, from 25 November 1944 to 31
December 1944.
Edralin, Isaias X. (New York)
Silver Star:
For gallantry in action while Chaplain of the 102nd Division (P.A.)
in the provinces of Oriental Misamis and Bukidnon, Mindinao, Philippine Islands, from May 2 to May 10, 1942. During this period, disregarding personal danger, Chaplain Edralin visited units in the forward
areas while under fire, and by cheerful demeanor, friendly counsel and
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
courageous manner did much to maintain morale within the different
units of the division. For this gallant conduct, Chaplain Edralin is
awarded the Silver Star.
Evett, Lester J. (Chicago)
Army Commendation Ribbon
Fay, Thomas P. (New England)
Bene 1\Ierenti:
PIUS XII PONTIFEX MAXIMUS
Numisma Decernere Ac Dilargiri Dignatus Est
Rev. P. Thomas P. Fay, S.J.
Virtutis Laude Benemerenti
Eidem Facultatem F"""aeiens Seipsum Hoc Ornamento Decorandi
Ex Aedibus Vaticanis, Die 30 Aprilis 1947
While serving as Chaplain with the Armed Forces of the United
States of America in the European Theatre during two years, from
July 1944 to July 1946, and particularly during the period from May
1945 to July 1946, as Chaplain attached to Western Base Headquarters,
France, Thomas Patrick Fay, of the Society of Jesus, rendered signal
service over and above the line of duty in administration of duties, not
only to the American personnel in his charge, but also to the needy
population of the war torn countries and in particular to the numerous
clergy of all faiths.. among the prisoners of war held by the victorious
American armies in various encampments in France and Belgium.
Father Fay arranged and provided for spiritual retreats for Catholic
priests and for Lutheran ministers among the prisoners of war and
showed a devotion to his fellow men which richly deserves the recognition of the award of the medal "Bene Merenti". Faih€r Fay's services
in this regard were unique and invaluable: the more so as they are
evidence of a charity that is truly Christian and transcending motives
merely human.
Flaherty, Maurice G. (Oregon)
Bronze Star:
(Awarded Bronze Star for services performed in Italy from 6 Apr
1944 to 29 May 1945 while with Headquarters, 55th Bombardment
Wing.)
Grady, Richard F. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
8 May 1945.
Chaplain (Captain)' Richard F. Grady (Army Serial No. 0508977),
United States Army, for meritorious service in connection with military
operations, as Chaplain, Central Base Section and Seine Base Section,
Communications Zone, European Theater of Operations, from August
1943 to May 1945. Chaplain Grady succeeded in meeting the obligations
�IN ARl\IED SERVICES
449
and responsibilities of his office in an outstanding manner. During the
V-bomb attacks on England, his devotion to duty contributed materially
to the morale of the troops and his seemingly endless energy in the
ministration of the demands placed upon him reflect great credit upon
himself and the armed forces of the United States. Entered military
service from Pennsylvania.
Army Commendation Ribbon:
6 August 1946.
Chaplain Richard F. Grady (Major) 0508977, for oustanding meritorious service in connection with military operations, as Deputy Base
Section Chaplain, Seine Base Section, and Western Base Section, and
as Chief of Personnel and Assignments Division, Office of Theater
Chaplain, USFET, from 8 May 1945 to 15 July 1946. Chaplain Grady's
fine spirit and initiative served as an inspiration to the entire personnel. The services of Chaplain Grady have contributed immeasurably
to the accomplishment of the work of the Chaplains' Corps of the European Theater. Entered military service from Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Croix de Guerre:
25 octobre 1945.
Le Ministre de la Guerre A. Diethelm cite a l'ordre de la Division,
le Capitaine Richard Grady, Hq. Seine Section, pour services exceptionnels rendus au cours des operations de Ia liberation de la France.
Cette citation comporte !'attribution de la Croix de Guerre avec etoile
d'argent.
Fait a Paris, le 25 octobre 1945
Signe: Diethelm
Medaille de Ia Reconnaissance:
29 septembre 1945.
Le General de Gaulle, President du Gouvernement Provisoire de Ia
Republique Fran~aise, decrete: Est decore de la Medaille de Ia Reconnaissance Fran~aise, Le Capitaine R. F. Grady, 0508977, Seine, pour
services exceptionnels de Guerre rendus au cours des operations de Ia
liberation de la France.
Paris, le 29 septembre 1945
Contresigne:
Signe: De Gaulle
Le General d'Armee Juin.
Haggerty, James E. (New York)
Bronze Star:
Reverend J. E. Haggerty, S.J., American civilian, performed extremely
beneficial services as a volunteer chaplain with the Visayan-Mindinao
Force, Philippine Islands, from 3 April to 10 May 1942. During this
critical period, he zealously ministered to the religious needs of the
fighting troops, lending courage and inspiration by his constant presence in the danger areas. His sincerity of purpose and disregard for
his own safety contributed materially to the conduct of the operations
on the island.
(signed) Harry Truman
�450
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Hausmann, Carl W. (New York)
Purple Heart:
(Awarded the Purple Heart because he died as a result of enemy
action.)
Hennessey, Thomas P. (New England)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain Thomas P. Hennessey, (Captain) 0530788, Corps of Chaplains, has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal for distinctive heroism
in connection with military operations against the enemy during the
period 22 to 23 March 1945 near Geinsheim, Germany. When assault
troops crossed the Rhin~ River, Chaplain Hennessey volunteered to
accompany the attached ~ccllective company. An hour and a half enemy
artillery barrage was launched into the area occupied by the collective
station, and Chaplain Hennessey exposed himself constantly to supervise the removal of wounded men. His outstanding devotion to his selfappointed mission was a great inspiration to the wounded and the men
working with him and reflects great credit upon himself and the military service.
Hochhaus, Raphael H. (Missouri)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (First Lieutenant) Raphael H. Hochhaus, 0553966, for
meritorious service in connection with military operations against the
enemy from 16 December 1944 to 31 December 1944, in Belgium. Entered military service from Missouri.
--
Hogan, Joseph F. (Chicago)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Joseph F. Hogan, 0531249, for heroic service in
connection with military operations against the enemy in France on 2
October 1944. The Group air strip near Gorze was under heavy and
continuous German artillery fire which was destroying much equipment
and injuring personnel. Chaplain Hogan, learning of the serious conditions at the air strip, volunteered to assist in any way possible and
then, with disregard for his own safety, began walking toward the
bombarded site. He observed a wounded soldier lying helplessly in an
open area exposed to the bursting shells. Ignoring the shelling and
conscious only of the fact that injured men needed attention, Chaplain
Hogan remained at the site of the casualty, gave spiritual comfort, and
then helped evacuate· him to safety. Again he walked about the area
searching for other casualties and it was not until he had satisfied
himself that there were no others that he sought safety himself. Chaplain Hogan's courage and unstinting devotion to the welfare of his
fellow man and his duty reflect the highe~t credit upon himself and the
Army of the United States. Entered military service from Illinois.
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451
Army Commendation Ribbon:
For outstanding performance of duty as Chaplain of the Second
Training Group from 10 November 1945 to 11 Apr 1946. As Chaplain
of this vital part of Camp Lee, Captain Hogan, by patience, wisdom, and
experience has rendered a valuable service to those who have had their
training at this camp. Through his loyalty, cooperation and wise counsel he has made an outstanding contribution to the personnel of this
Group. His services have aided in no small degree to the maintenance
of the high state of morale of Camp Lee.
Huss, Harry L. (New England)
Bronze Star:
Major (Chaplain) Harry L. Russ (then Captain), (Army Serial No.
0509085), Army of the United States, for meritorious service in connection with military operations, as District Chaplain, Western District,
United Kingdom Base; Deputy Chaplain, Channel Base Section; Deputy
Chaplain, Chanor Base Section, Communications Zone, European
Theater of Operations, from 16 September 1944 to 8 May 1945. Despite
the ever increasing difficulties with regard to the readjustment of
Chaplains, Chaplain Huss executed quick and sure judgment in the
redeployment program. His zeal and energy in covering small and
isolated units who were without a Chaplain and his meticulous attention, guaranteeing burial services of American personnel, gained the
respect and high regard of all with whom he came in contact. His
understanding of human nature enabled him to solve many delicate
problems requiring a knowledge of the civilian statute~?, army regulations and individual's emotions. The outstanding services rendered by
Chaplain Russ reflect great credit upon himself and the armed forces
of the United States. Entered military service from Massachusetts.
Kehrlein, Oliver duF. (California)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Major) Oliver Kehrlein, 0975104, Chaplain, United States
Army, 224th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division, distinguished
himself by meritorious service in Korea during the period 21 January
1952 to 21 January 1953. Chaplain Kehrlein conscientiously and with
untiring devotion administered spiritually to the men of his command.
Regardless of the obstacles involved, Chaplain Kehrlein faithfully provided comfort and guidance to all with whom he served, many times
exposing himself to enemy fire to visit men and hold services on the
main line of resistance. One time, Chaplain Kehrlein was wounded
while serving the troops under enemy fire, but completely disregarding
his painful wound he continued on his vital mission. Chaplain Kehrlein's presence at aid stations during action with the enemy immeasurably increased the morale of the friendly casualties, his calmness and
sincerity serving as an inspiration to all. Chaplain Kehrlein's untiring
devotion to duty, professional and sympathetic nature, and deep regard
�452
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
for his fellow man, reflect great credit upon himself and the United
States Army. Entered the Federal service from California.
Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant:
Chaplain (Captain) Oliver D. Kehrlein, 0975104, Chaplains, United
States Army, 160th Infantry Regiment, 40th Infantry Division, distinguished hiE:self by meritorious service in Korea during the period
11 January to 1 May 1932. Chaplain Kehrlein, with utter disregard for
his personal safety, untiringly visited all troops of his regiment, including repeated trips to outpost positions in advance of the main line of
resistance. Though often subjected to enemy fire, Chaplain Kehrlein's
courageous determination inspired men of all faiths and contributed
materially to the high morale of the regiment. Chaplain Kehrlein's
keen interest in the men facilitated their spiritual transition into
combat-experienced soldi;t!:l. Chaplain Kehrlein's high moral standards,
sincerity and integrity aided the men with whom he contacted in all
ways, thereby reflecting great credit upon himself and the United States
Army. Entered the Federal service from California.
Commendation Ribbon with l\letal Pendant (First Oak Leaf Cluster):
1\Iajor Kehrlein, as the Assistant Division Chaplain, accompanied the
Advance Headquarters of the Division during the movement from Japan
to Korea. Upon arrival at destination, and under extremely difficult
conditions he conscientiously and with untiring devotion administered
spiritually to men of the command and coordinated religious activities
in the forward elements of the Division. Regardless of the many
obstacles involved he faithfully provided comfort and guidance to all
whom he sen'ed. The untiring devotion, sympathetic nature and deep
regard for his fellow man displayed by Major Kehrlein, reflects great
credit upon himself and the Chaplains Corps United States Army.
~·
Purple Heart:
(Awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received 9 Jun 1952 near
Kumhwa, Korea, while on duty with the 22-1th Infantry Regiment, 40th
Infantry Division.)
Kennedy, Hugh F. (New York)
Legion of 1\lerit:
Chaplain (Captain) Hugh F. Kennedy performed exceptionally meritorious services while assigned as Chaplain of the 101st Division,
Philippine Army, on Mindanao, during the period January to May 1942.
By visiting the front line troops under fire on his own initiative, by the
zeal, energy and enthusiasm which he displayed to troops in contact
with the enemy, in hospitals and rear areas, Chaplain Kennedy exerted
a tremendous influence on the morale of the troops that added materially to the effectiveness of the Division.
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Hugh Francis Kennedy rendered meritorious
services on a Japanese transport and at Cabanatuan, Philippine Islands,
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453
from November 1942 to June 1945. While enroute from Davao to
Manila he gave freely of his meager rations of water and rice to the
sick and dying, and continued throughout his captivity to obtain medicines and comfort items, which enhanced in large measure, the morale
and welfare of his fellow prisoners. His characteristic selfless leadership reflects credit upon himself and the military service.
Army Commendation Ribbon:
Subject: Commendation.
Thru: Chief of Chaplains.
To: Captain (Chaplain) Hugh F. Kennedy, 08904.57,
1. Since the time of your return to the United States as a liberated
prisoner of war of the Japanese Government in March 1945 until your
departure at your request in December 1!H5 to serve with the occupation
forces in Japan, your voluntary services to the Casualty Branch of this
office have been of great value.
2. Upon your anival as a patient at Walter Reed General Hospital
you immediately offered your services to the Casualty Branch and you
assisted in clarifying the status of many personnel who were being
carried on the \Var Department records as missing in action since 7
May 1942. The constant and invaluable assistance rendered this office
while you were on temporary duty during the period September to
December 1945 at Letterman General Hospital, necessitating as it did,
many extra hours of daty each night contributed materially to the
final solution of several of our casualty cases. You visited throughout
the United States at your own expense and actually while on sick leave,
to comfoTt the bereaved families of many of your deceased comrades
and to deliver to the families last messages entrusted to your care.
3. The acts cited above, contributing as they did to the efficient and
humane functioning of the Adjutant General's Office and to the morale
of the families of deceased military personnel, bespeak the superior
manner in which you have performed both your priestly and military
duties. These acts are worthy of high commendation and you are
hereby authorized to wear the Lrmy Commendation Ribbon by direction
of the Secretary of War.
EDWARD F. WrTSELL
Major General
Acting the Adjutant General
Purple Heart and Oak Leaf Cluster to Purple Heart:
For wounds received in action, January or February 1943 and 6 Jun
1944 in the Pacific Area.
Kilp, Alfred J. (California)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Major) Alfred J. Kilp, 0550555, Chaplains, United States
Army, 40th Infantry Division, distinguished himself by meritorious
serdce in Korea during the period 22 January to 29 May 1952. Chaplain Kilp, Assistant Division Cha:'lain and Division Rear Area Chap-
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
lain, tirelessly perfonned his morale and spiritual building duties in
an exemplary manner. Chaplain Kilp, in addition to conducting religious services for troops of Division Rear, conducted services for neighboring troops of the Church on area. Chaplain Kilp further carried
on an active and effective program of character guidance and troop
orientation for the large number of replacements reporting for duty
with the 40th Infantry Division. By his devotion to duty and high
standards of morality and spirituality, Chaplain Kilp has been of
inestimable value in shaping the attitudes of those around him, thereby
reflecting great credit upon himself and the United States Army.
Entered the Federal service from California.
Army Commendation Ribbon:
For meritorious service during the period 29 October 1945 to 1 May
1946 while serving as Chaplain of the 78th Infantry Division Special
Troops he distinguished himself by outstanding performance of duty.
The inspiration and resourcefulness displayed in addition to his untiring energy and loyal devotion to duty reflect great credit upon himself
and the military service.
Kines, L. Berkeley (Maryland)
Purple Heart:
For wounds received in action at El Guettar, North Africa, 31 Mar
1943.
Kirshbaum, Irving J. (New York)
Purple Heart:
(For wounds received while serving with the 505,th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17 Oct 1944.)
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Laboon, John F. (Maryland)
Silver Star:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while attached to the U.S.S.
Peto during the Tenth War Patrol of that vessel in action against
enemy forces in the Japanese Empire Area from July 14 to August 30,
1945. With his ship subjected to accurate shelling following a hazardous run through shallow, mined waters only four miles from a hostile
shore, Lieutenant (then Lieutenant, junior grade) Laboon dived into
the water before the submarine had come to a full stop and, pulling a
drowning Allied pilot aboard, allowed the ship to retire quickly from
the danger area. His courage and devotion to duty reflect the highest
credit upon Lieutenan~ Laboon and the United States Naval Service.
Lynch, Daniel J. (New England)
Purple Heart:
His work comforting the dying and burying the dead in front of the
Bois des Loges in October 1918 involved much night work, exhausting
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455
mentally and physically, under fire of all kinds. Chaplain Lynch on
more than one occasion appeared at dawn at Brigade Headquarters
almost in a state of collapse from an all night of arduous, dangerous
and nerve-wracking hours. He thought not of himself, only of others,
his duty to his country and his God.
(The original citation was submitted by Mark L. Hershey, Commanding General, 155th Infantry Brigade, recommending Father Lynch for
the Distinguished Service Medal. The award was not granted, but on
5 Dec 1932 the Purple Heart was awarded in lieu of the original decoration. Now restricted as a decoration for wounds or death in battle,
the Purple Heart was originally instituted by George Washington.
When it was reinstituted in 1932 it was awarded as a decoration "for
military merit.")
Martin, James A. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
For meritorious service in connection with combat operations in the
Mediterranean Theater of Operations from 8 February 1944 to 30
April 1944. As Chaplain, working on the Anzio Beachhead under
almost constant enemy fire, Chaplain Martin, by his inspiring personal
example, greatly contributed to the morale and efficiency among Air
Force troops there. Courageously making nightly trips to dugouts and
foxholes, giving encouragement and moral strength to these men
despite the extreme danger of movement in the heavily-shelled zone,
accompanying mechanics and others to their work and bolstering their
morale under fire, he completely disregarded personal danger to minister to the men in his charge. On one occasion, he was among the first
to find a dugout which had been covered by the results of shellfire,
and he directed the recovery of three men buried within. His daily
services, comforts he untiringly procured and distributed and his
steadying presence markedly influenced the efficiency of the service
work performed at the beachhead. His outstanding devotion to duty
reflects great credit upon himself and the Military Service of the
United States.
McGinnis, James S. (Chicago)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) James S. McGinnis, 0443417, for meritorious
service in direct support of combat operations on Bougainville, Solomon
Islands. During the period 8 March 1944 to 27 March 1944, Chaplain
McGinnis, unmindful of his own safety during sporadic enemy artillery
shelling on a medical battalion hospital, comforted and consoled the
wounded patients, and by his calm, courageous attitude and repeated
presence was an inspiration to the afflicted.
Oak Leaf Cluster to Bronze Star:
Chaplain (First Lieutenant) James S. McGinnis, 0443417, for meritorious services at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, from 10 to 18 Janu-
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
ary 1943. He was always present to offer spiritual comfort and encouragement, visiting front-line foxholes in the face of enemy air raids
and heavy sniper fire.
1\lcPhelin, Michael F. (New York)
Bronze Star:
(Awarded Bronze Star by General Order 91, Headquarters 70th Infantry Division, 9 Aug 1945.)
1\leany, Stephen J. (New York)
Silver Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Stephen J. Meany, Corps of Chaplains, United
States Army. For gallantry in action at Makin Atoll, Gilbert Islands,
20 November 1943. When a soldier fell wounded in a clearing raked
by hostile machine gun and rifle fire, and lay helpless on open ground
only twenty yards from the enemy position, Chaplain Meany, without
hesitancy and with complete disregard for his own safety, went to his
aid. In the act of administering first aid to the wounded man he was
severely wounded four times by enemy machine gun fire. The heroic
example of this officer was an inspiration to all ranks.
Purple Heart:
(Wounded in the elbow, chest and shoulder by machine gun fire during the invasion of the Gilbert Islands 20 Nov 1943.)
Messner, William R. (New York)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (First Lieutenant) William R. Messner, 02267310, United
States Army. Chaplain Messner, a member of ffiadquarters, 25th
Division Artillery, is cited for meritorious service in connection with
military operations against an armed enemy in Korea during the period
18 May 1953 to 21 July 1954. Throughout this period of exemplary
service, Chaplain Messner served with distinction as Division Artillery
Chaplain. During the period of combat operations he continually
visited advanced positions under fire and brought the comfort of his
religion to the battle-weary artillery soldiers. His gentle practice of
sincere religious principles in the face of all hazards and adversities
served as an inspiration to all with whom he came in contact. As
Division Artillery Staff Chaplain during the post armistice period,
Chaplain Messner displayed a remarkable understanding of the aims
and potentialities of the Character Guidance Program and, through his
efforts, the command achieved outstanding results in this field. He
organized and conducteu many charitable enterprises to aid the destitute Korean people and in one such charitable endeavor led by Chaplain
Messner over $8000.00 worth of medical and surgical equipment was
purchased and presented to the charitable hospitals of Seoul. The
meritorious service rendered by Chaplain Messner reflects great credit
�-
Fathe? John F. Laboon (Md), a graduate of the United Stales Naval
Academy, returned to service as a chaplain in 1958. (U.S. Navy photo)
�-·
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41J l
upon himself and his unit and is in keeping with the highest traditions
of the United States Army. Entered the Federal service from New
York.
l\Iollner, Joseph M. (Missouri-Wisconsin}
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) Joseph M. l\Iollner, 0550992, Chaplains Corps,
Army of the United States, a member of Headquarters, 7th Infantry
Division Artillery, distinguished himself by heroic achievement near
Chup'a-ri, Korea. On 13 October 1951, while a battalion was engaged
in firing missions against the enemy, it was subjected to an intensive
enemy m·tillery shelling. With complete disregard for his personal
safety, Chaplain Mollner entered the impact area and made a personal
tour from howitzer to howitzer, comforting the wounded and encouraging the personnel manning their weapons. Ignoring a request to
return to the rear areas, Chaplain 1\Iollner remained in the dangerously
exposed area to administer medical treatment to the wounded and the
last rites to the dying. By his great personal example in completely
ignoring the danger of the exploding shells to be with the :men, Chaplain Mollner inspired the personnel and instilled in them a sense of
spiritual security which encouraged them to maintain their positions
and successfully complete the mission. The heroic action displayed by
Chaplain Mollner reflects great credit on himself and the military
service. Entered the Federal service from the State of Minnesota.
Oak Leaf Cluster to Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Major) Joseph M. Mollner, 0550992, United States Army,
a member of Headquarters, 7th Infantry Division Artillery, distinguished himself by meritorious service during the period 10 August 1951
to 9 May 1952. During this per·iod, Chaplain Mollner performed his
duties as a Chaplain in an exemplary manner. He traveled over hazardous terrain under all kinds of weather conditions, often subjected to
enemy artillery, mortar, and sniper fire, to administer to the spiritual
needs of the men. His sincere interest in the welfare of the men, his
force of character, and outstanding courage, set an example to all those
with whom he came in contact. His continued services were a superior
contribution to the high morals and spiritual development of the command. The meritoriot:s service of Chaplain Mollner reflects great
credit on himself and the milit:uy service. Entered the Federal service
from Minnesota.
Army Commendation Ribbon:
The .f.rmy Commendation Ribbon is awarded to you for your meritorious service as Chaplain while assigned to the War Department Personnel Center, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Morrisson, John J. (New York)
Bronze Star:
Captain John J. Morrisson, 094£ ':7, Chaplains, United States Army,
�458
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 38th Infantry Regiment,
2nd Infantry Division, distinguished himself by meritorious service from
30 June 1952 to 14 August 1953. During that period, Captain Morrisson was Assistant Division Chaplain, Assistant Regimental Chaplain
and Regimental Chaplain and performed his duties in a superior manner. Providing spiritual and mental comfort along with holding religious services constantly, his presence was felt and deeply appreciated
by the men of the unit. His inspiring services enabled the men to
better perform their military tasks, and his incomparable ability to
raise the spirits and bolster the morale of the men were an outstanding
contribution to his unit. The services rendered by Captain Morrisson
reflect great credit upon himself and the military service.
Mulligan, Edwin C. (New York)
Letter of Commendation:
For meritorious performance of duty as a Chaplain attached to an
air base operations unit on Bougainville, British Solomon Islands, from
November 22, 1943 to April 10, 1944. While stationed at the Torokina
perimeter, Lieutenant Mulligan was subject to numerous heavy Japanese bombing attacks and artillery bombardment. On many occasions,
he left the comparative safety of his fox hole to aid men who had been
injured by the enemy action. His courage and unselfish devotion to duty
were an inspiration to all hands and were in keeping with the highest
traditions of the United States Naval Service.
Letter of Commendation:
For meritorious service in the line of his professi~1l, while serving
with the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing in Korea from 14 June 1952 to 27
June 1953. Serving as Catholic Chaplain for a Marine Aircraft Group
from 14 June 1952 to 22 April 1953 and from 23 April 1953 to 27 June
1953 as Catholic Chaplain for the Wing, Commander Mulligan provided inspirational guidance in ministering to the spiritual needs of
men in the forward area. He was instrumental in achieving the establishment of a special Catholic orphanage nursery for destitute infants
at Pohang, Korea. He enhanced good will for United Nations forces
through his ceaseless endeavors to aid needy civilians and by maintaining liaison with the Korean Catholic Bishop of the TaegU Diocese.
Commander Mulligan labored untiringly to effectively distribute food
and clothing donations to Korean civilians. He was responsible for the
inspirational appearance of His Eminence Francis Cardinal Spellman
before Wing personnel on 31 December 1952. Dedicated to the humanitarian principles embodied in the precepts of his faith, Commander
Mulligan's activities resulted directly in greater comfort and welfare
for hundreds of helpless Korean families and orphans and enhanced the
morale and efficiency of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. His zealous
loyalty and cooperative spirit throughout reflected great credit upon
�lN ARMED SERVICES
459
himself and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United
States Naval Service.
V. E. MEGEE
Major General
U.S. Marine Corps.
Murphy, George l\1. (New England)
Army Commendation Ribbon:
For meritorious and outstanding service as Chaplain at Valley Forge
General Hospital, Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, from December 1944 to
1 February 1946. Chaplain Murphy filled the spiritual needs of the
patients and no call on his services ever went unanswered. Above and
beyond his normal duties he has won the friendship of patients and
staff alike by his sympathetic understanding of their problems and
his congenial personality which was reflected in his daily tasks. Chaplain Murphy exemplified the finest attributes of his profession and
his contribution to the service reflects great credit upon the Chaplain
Corps and the Military Service.
O'Callahan, Joseph T. (New England)
Medal of Honor:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepity at the risk of his life above
and beyond the call of dui;y while serving as chaplain on board the
U.S.S. Franklin when that vessel was attacked by enemy Japanese aircraft during offensive operations near Kobe, Japan, on 19 March 1945.
A valiant and forceful leader, calmly braving the perilous barriers of
flame and twisted metal to aid his men and his ship, Lieutenant Commander O'Callahan groped his way through smoke-filled corridors to
the flight deck and into the midst of violently exploding bombs, shells,
rockets and other armament. With the ship rocked by incessant explosions, with debris and fragments raining down and fires raging in
ever increasing fury, comforting and encouraging men of all faiths,
he organized and led fire-fighting crews into the blazing inferno on
the flight deck; he directed the jettisoning of live ammunition and the
flooding of the magazine; he manned a hose to cool hot, armed bombs
rolling dangerously on the listing deck, continuing his efforts despite
searing, suffocating smoke which forced men to fall back gasping and
imperiled others who replaced them. Serving with courage, fortitude
and deep spiritual strength, Lieutenant Commander O'Callahan inspired
the gallant officers and men of the Franklin to fight heroically and with
profound faith in the face of almost certain death and return their
stricken ship to port.
Purple Heart:
(Wounded by an explosion aboard U.S.S. Franklin 19 Mar 1945.)
O'Keefe, Eugene J. (New York)
Silver Star:
For gallantry in action while c~::-.plain of the 61st Field Artillery
�460
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
(P.A.) (employed as infantry) near Nangka, Bukidnon, Mindinao,
Philippine Islands, May 4-9, 1942. In spite of great fatigue, the lack
of food and loss of sleep due to the incidents of the campaign, Lieutenant O'Keefe made repeated visits to the front line, crossing terrain
that was swept by hostile artillery and mortar fire, and frequently exposed himself to fire from enemy snipers to minister to the spiritual
and physical needs of the troops. His disregard of danger and his
cheerful coolness under fire were an inspiration to all. For this service
Lieutenant O'Keefe is awarded the Silver Star.
Purple Heart:
(Received the decoration of the Purple Heart for a wound on the
head received from a J apanes,e bayonet while he was a prisoner of war.)
Quinn, Gerald A. (New York)"
Silver Star:
Captain Gerald A. Quinn (Army Serial Number 0517310), Chaplain,
United States Army, for gallantry in action in Holland on 26 October
1944. The battalion to which Chaplain Quinn was assigned, while in the
process of advancing in the early morning of 26 October 1944, was
pinned down by enemy machine gun fire and subjected to severe enemy
artillery and mortar fire throughout the day until evening. During
this period of time, Chaplain Quinn constantly exposed himself to
enemy fire while moving about the field of battle comforting the
wounded. In one instance, in order to reach a wounded man lying in
a ditch by a main road, it was necessary for the Chaplain to move
across an open field that was being raked by automatic fire from the
enemy. After reaching the wounded man he returned under the same
enemy fire and led litter bearers in the evacuation of the wounded man.
The entire trip was exhausting and nerve-wracking but was performed
in absolute coolness and determination of purpose. In the same field
he administered to the dead while the battle was still raging about
him. He showed concern for, and carefully evacuated the enemy dead
and wounded as well. His prompt and courageous action aided in the
quick evacuation and treatment of wounded men, and reflects great
credit to himself and to the military service. Entered military service
from Maryland.
Bronze Star:
Captain Gerald A. Quinn (Army Serial Number 0517310), Corps of
Chaplains, Headquarters, 415th Infantry, United States Army, is
awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service in connection
with military operations in Belgium, Holland, and Germany from 24
October 1944 to 8 May 1945. During this period of combat, Captain
Quinn showed a magnificent example of courage, devotion to duty, and
self-denial. His never-ending concern for the moral and spiritual
welfare of the men of his regiment was his consistent goal. His help
to the morale of the regiment can not be measured, so vast are the
untold aids he gave. Totally without regard for his personal safety, he
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461
braved enemy fire on numerous occasions to aid and relieve men wounded
in battle. One of the many instances of his heroism was performed
while the regiment was attacking a fortified area. With utter disregard
for his own safety and with the thought of the men lying unattended
foremost in his mind, he led and directed the evacuation of the men
for a period of thirty-six hours, during which time Captain Quinn was
almost continuously displaying his heroism and untold devotion to his
men, reflecting distinct credit upon himself and the Corps of Chaplains.
Entered military service from Towson, Maryland.
Rankin, Richard R. (New York)
Silver Star:
Richard R. Rankin, Senior Chaplain, 4th Division, Courchamps,
France, July 18-20, 1918. In directing the burial of the dead in action
near Courchamps and Hautevesnes, France, from July 18th to 20th,
1918, he was continuously on the field under fire, directing the burial
of the dead. At great risk to himself he personally directed search parties in the recovery of the dead in the immediate vicinity of the front
lines, and in doing so he demonstrated an extreme devotion to duty and
a splendid example of bravery.
Croix de Guerre:
Chaplain of an Infantry Division and then of an Army Corps, he
rendered very great services by his happy influence upon the morale of
the troops and by the example of his courage under fire.
The Marshal of France
Commander of the French Armies of the East
PETAIN
Rehkopf, Edward B. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
Captain Edward B. Rehkopf, 02267127, Chaplains, United States
Army, a member of Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 49th Field
Artillery Battalion, distinguished himself by meritorious service during
the period 27 November 1953 to 30 June 1954. During this period,
Captain Rehkopf performed his duties as a Battalion Chaplain in an
outstanding manner. Captain Rehkopf participated in all activities
of the battalion, including all field problems, to provide religious services and spiritual comfort for all the personnel in the battalion. Captain Rehkopf, in addition to his duties in his own battalion, served
the other battalions in the 7th Infantry Division Artillery, bringing the
word of God and giving spiritual aid and comfort to all. The integrity,
the sincere devotion to God and country, and the deep personal regard
for the welfare of the men with whom he served, made Captain Rehkopf
an inspiring figure and an ennobling influence on all with whom he
came in contact. The meritorious service of Captain Rehkopf reflects
great credit on himself and the military service. Entered the Federal
service from Maryland.
�462
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Reynolds, Vincent T. (New York)
Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant:
Chaplain (Captain) Vincent T. Reynolds, 02271065, Chaplain Corps,
United States Army, distinguished himself by exceptional meritorious
service during the period 25 September 1956 to 31 October 1958, while
serving as the Catholic Chaplain, First Battle Group, 5th Infantry, 8th
Infantry Division. During this period, Chaplain Reynolds approached
his duties in a resolute and determined manner. The devotion to duty
and spiritual guidance rendered by Chaplain Reynolds gained him the
highest respect and admiration of all military personnel and their dependents. He consistently showed that moral and spiritual values are
an integral part of militaryJife. At all times, Chaplain Reynolds displayed a deep personal concern for the individual soldier. Because of
his pleasant manner and ~itthusiastic approach to all his activities,
Chaplain Reynolds gained much favor among the German Clergy of
the area and thus became a genuine asset to the unit in GermanAmerican relations. His interest in these functions resulted in his
being sought by local clergy to take an active part in the events of the
civilian parishes. The meritorious service rendered by Chaplain
Reynolds during this period reflects great credit upon himself and the
military service.
Ryan, Vincent B. (New York)
Commendation Ribbon with .Metal Pendant:
Chaplain (First Lieutenant) Vincent B. Ryan, 0997892, Chaplains
Corps, United States Army, Headquarters and Headquarters Company,
21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, is cited for meritorious
service during the period 17 August 1953 to 12 May ljS4, in Korea, as
Assistant Regimental Chaplain. Chaplain Ryan displayed keen insight,
initiative and devotion to duty in the performance of his duties. He
was at all times a source of cheer and wisdom, and in a particularly
trying and uncertain period of 'time, he did much to maintain a high
level of morale within the Regiment. The oustanding services rendered
by Chaplain Ryan during this period reflects great credit upon himself
and the military service. Entered the Federal Service from New York.
St. John, John D. (New England)
Bronze Star:
Lieutenant Colonel John D. St. John performed meritorious service
from April 1944 to May 1945 as Chaplain, 304th Bomb Wing, and later
as Assistant Chaplain, 15th Air Force. He exhibited a high degree of
initiative, tact and forethought to insure spiritual and moral facilities
for the entire personnel under his ministration. He displayed exceptional executive ability and resourcefulness in reorganizing and putting
into effect an entirely new Chaplain's policy for the 15th Air Force,
whereby all members of his faith received guidance and consolence
despite a shortage of Chaplains.
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463
Air Force Commendation Medal:
Chaplain (Colonel) John D. St. John distinguished himself by meritorious service as Staff Chaplain, Ninth Air Force, Shaw Air Force
Base, South Carolina, from 25 June 1957 to 1 November 1959. During
this period of unprecedented operational activity and frequent overseas
deployment by units of this command, Chaplain St. John's dynamic
personality and tireless efforts were an inspiration to the commanders
and unit chaplains charged with maintaining the morale and spiritual
welfare of Ninth Air Force personnel. In addition Headquarters United
States Air Force has accepted a plan conceived by Chaplain St. John
for sending selected members of the USAF Chaplain Corps to civilian
institutions of learning to receive specialized training. Designed to
enhance the professional qualifications and prestige of Air Force chaplains, this program will yield far reaching benefits throughout the Air
Force. Chaplain St. John's initiative, devotion to du~y, and unflagging
concern for the welfare of others have reflected great credit upon himself, Ninth Air Force and Tactical Air Command.
Air Force Commendation Ribbon:
Chaplain (Lieutenant Colonel) John D. St. John distinguished himself by meritorious service as a member of the USAF Catholic preaching
mission team, Office of the Chief of Air Force Chaplains, Headquarters
USAF, during the period 12 May 1949 to 19 July 1955. During this
period Chaplain St. John traveled 238,082 air miles, which included
1228:58 hours of flying time, to condud Catholic preaching missions
within every oversea Air Force Command. In carrying out these
preaching missions, Chaplain St. John and his co-missioner conducted
218 missions, 1,203 evening services, 2,624 Masses and administered
64,462 Holy Communions. It is estimated that 387,784 Air Force personnel and their dependents of the Catholic faith took part in these
mission activities. Through his efforts as a member of the Catholic
preaching mission team, Chaplain St. John has brought spiritual benefits and enlightment to personnel of the Catholic faith and in turn
advanced the program of the Air Force Chaplains Six-Point Program
in developing the spiritual well being and morale of Air Force Catholic
personnel. In accomplishing his duties in such an outstanding manner,
Chaplain St. John has reflected great credit upon himself and the United
States Air Force.
Shanahan, Thomas A. (New England)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Major) Thomas A. Shanahan (0888031), Chaplain Corps,
United States Army. For meritorious achievement in Luzon, Philippine
Islands, from 13 January 1945 to 15 March 1945, in connection with
military operations against the enemy. Because of his former residence
in the Philippines and his intimate knowledge of their people, Chaplain
Shanahan voluntarily accompanied the advance echelon of a major base
headquarters to Luzon. Immediately on arrival he organized relief and
�464
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
rehabilitation measures for the local populace and ministered to battle
casualties in forward-area hos!libls with complete disregard for his
own safety. Among the first Americans to enter l\Ianila, he immediately began obtaining food, shelter, and medical care for upward of
10,000 sick, injFred, f'nd homeless refugees, and for 70 nuns suffering
from illness and malnutrition. While the enemy was shelling the University of Santo Tomus, he stood by continually to administer clerical
rites to the wounded and dying and de\·oted himself unstintingly to the
aid of civilian internees. His efforts materially assisted in the organization of Santo Tomas for conversion into a major hospital unit. By
his intrepid courage, inspiring spiritual guidance, and substantial material aid to a needy and suffering people, Chaplain Shanahan upheld
the higl;est st:mdanls of humanity and the priesthood and rendered
substantial aid in the prOI"€J care of the sick and wounded.
Sheridan, Robert E. (Ne·.v England)
Army Commendation Ribbon:
His untiring efforts, cheerfulness, pleasing personality and complete
devotion to duty displayed from 10 l\Iay 1945 to 21 February 1946 gave
comfort and confidence to the patients aboard the Hospital Ship Chateau
Thierry. A high state of morale was also achieved throughout the
voyage.
Smith, Thomas N. (Maryland)
Bronze Star:
Captain ThoEJas N. Smith, 0,195683, Corps of Chaplains, United States
Army. For meritorious achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy on Le::~-1:e, Philippine Islands,jrom 23 October
1944 to 28 February 19-:l5.
Sullivan, Jerome J. (California)
Commendation Ribbon with Pendant:
(Father Sullivan was awarded the Navy Commendation .Ribbon with
Combat "'V" by order of Admiral Cooke, Commander of U. S. Naval
Forces, Western Pacific, for his services aboard the battleship U.S.S.
Pennsylvania from l\Iay 1943 to January 1945. During this time he
participated in the following amphibious combat operations and naval
battles: Kislw, Makin, Kwajalein, Eniwetok, Saipan, Guam, Peleliu,
Angaur, Leyte, Luzon and the Battle of Surigao Strait. Father SulIiv::m was cited for his "superior ability and leadership" by which he
"contributed materially to the combat efficiency" of his ship.)
Sullivan, Philip V. (l\Iaryland)
Commendation Ribbon with Metal Pendant:
Chaplain (Major) Philip V. Sullivan, 0931873, United States Army
Reserve, is cited for outstanding services as Instructor in the Profes-
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�IN ARr.IED SERVICES
465
sional Subjects Branch of the United States Army Chaplain School at
Fort Slocum, New York, for the period from 20 January 1955 to 31
July 1958. Chaplain Sullivan, by his exemplary devotion to his teaching responsibility, by his consuming interest in the philosophical concepts underlyin;;- governmental systems, and by his deep analytical
ability and voluminous reading in the area of political ph!losophy, h::ts
made an outstanding contribution to the academic proficiency of the
Chaplain School. \Vith his wealth of knowledge and his professional
bearing, he has been eminently successful in communicating to his students a deep interest in the "Foundations of American Democracy".
Cognizant of contcmpor::-.ry thought and thorough in preparation, Chaplain Sullivan has been consistently and outstandingly effective in his
platform presentations.
In addition to his demanding responsibilities as an Instructor, he
was given the ::--ssignment of commiting to writing his comprehensive
knowledge of the "Foundations of the American Democracy". Months of
painstaldng research, writing and editing resulted in the production
of an outstanding volume, initially approved as a school text, which
will be of great value to student chaplabs as a complete, concise, and
well documented source of information on the roots of our national
polity.
Chaplain Sullivan's scholarly attainments and dedication to his
teaching responsibilities, his pleasing personality, coupled with his
ability to work closely and harmoniously with his confreres, have contributed in a high degree to the academic stature of the Chaplain
School, and have brought great credit upon himself, the Chaplain
School, and the United States An!ly.
PATRICK J. RYAN
Chaplain (Major General)
Chief of Chaplains
Teufel, John L. (Oregon)
Bronze Star:
Chaplain (Captain) John L. Teufel, 0997709, Chaplains United States
Army. Chaplain Teufel, Catholic Chaplain of Headquarters, 36th Engineer Group (Combat), is cited for meritorious service in connection
with military operations against an anned enemy in Korea during the
period 14 October 1953 to 27 July 1954. In this capacity Chaplain
Teufel provided an inexhaustible source of spiritual strength for all
members of the command. In both teaching and personal example, he
constantly evidenced an exceptionally high degree of intelligence and
devoutness. In addition to providing counsel and guidance and ministering to the spiritual needs of individuals within the Group, Chaplain
Teufel willingly and cheerfully volunteered his services to Mobile Surgical Hospitals and to adjacent United States and Korean units. Despite the rigors of terrain, weather and long and arduous hours of
travel, he faithfully visited all units of the Group which were widely
dispersed throughout the Corps f:'e:tor. His infinite capacity for re-
�466
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
solving moral problems, keen intellect, forthright attitude and innate
righteousness earned the deep and abiding friendship and respect of
all those who come under his benign influence. His patience, compassion
and understanding brought comfort and peace of mind to many distraught individuals and provided an inexhaustible source of spiritual
strength. His noteworthy efforts increased the morals within the command to a previously unparalleled level and enhanced the operational
efficiency of his unit. The meritorious service rendered by Chaplain
Teufel throughout this period reflects great credit on himself and the
military service. Entered the Federal service from Oregon.
Walet, Robert E. (New Orl~ans)
Bronze Star:
(Awarded Bronze Star ··by General Order 465 on 3 Aug 1945 for
services rendered from 22 Dec 1944 to 30 Apr 1945 while with 255th
Infantry Regiment, 63rd Division.)
Weber, John A. (Chicago)
Army Commendation Ribbon:
Awarded ASF Citation for the Army Commendation Ribbon, ASF
Hq 3rd Sv Com., Baltimore, Md., dated 6 Jun 46, SPHPO 201, for
exceptionally meritorious and outstanding service as Chaplain, Area 9,
Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, Pennsylvania, for the period 1
July 1945 to 1 March 1946. By his sincerity of purpose, deep and
kind understanding of personal problems, Chaplain Weber successfully
solved the problems, both spiritual and material, of officers and enlisted
men to the complete and entire satisfaction of air concerned. His
spirit of fairness, sound judgment and zealous devOtion to duty were
an inspiration all during this period to those with whom he came in
contact. His soldierly courtesy and cordialty, understanding and sympathetic handling of cadre and especially of separatees upon their last
contact with the service was of inestimable value and reflect the utmost
credit upon himself, his organization and the Third Service Command.
�CHAPLAIN STATISTICS AND APPENDICES
Senior Jesuit Chaplains
Army:
Brigadier Geneml: D. J. Lynch (Mass. Organized Militia)
Colonel: R. F. Copeland (Cal. N.G.); J. J. Dugan (Mass. N.G.)
Lieutenant Colonel: J. R. Bradstreet; L. M. Brock (Mass. N.G.); J.
P. Brown; E. W. Courtney; V. J. Dossogne; M. G. Flaherty; J. F.
Giambastiani (N.G.); R. F. Grady; T. P. Hennessey; J. F. Hogan;
J. J. Kelleher; H. F. Kennedy; A. J. Kilp (Cal. N.G.); C. E. Lynch
(Cal. N.G.); S. J. Meany; P. J. Mulhern; A. A. North; F. X.
O'Brien; J. C. Ryan; T. A. Shanahan; J. W. Tynan (N.Y. State
Guard); W. J. Walter.
Navy:
Captain: H. P. McNally; C. A. O'Neill.
Commander: G. J. Barras; D. J. Burke; E. F. Carr; P. J. Daly; B.
J. Finnegan; F. A. Gallagher; R. J. Ireland; C. R. Kavanagh;
J. P. Lynch; E. P. Manhard; E. C. Mulligan; J. T. O'Callahan;
S. H. Ray; F. V. Sullivan; J. J. Sullivan.
Air Foree:
Colonel: G. L. Murphy (Ohio A.N.G.); J.D. St. John.
Lieutenant Colonel: G. A. Haggerty; J. J. Kelly; J. J. Long.
Jesuit Casualties
World War I:
Wounded in action:
Ryan, Charles McD. (Mo). Wounded in the knee by machine gun
fire at San Thibaud, Vesle River, 6 Aug 1918. Spent three days
in hospital as the result of an enemy gas attack.
World War II:
Killed by the enemy:
Consunji, Agustin S. (NY). Executed by Japanese military for giving aid to guerilla forces 12 Oct 1943.
Gaerlan, Juan E. (NY). Killed by Japanese soldiers on Death
March from Bataan to Capas, Tarlac, 10(?) Apr 1942.
Killed in the line of duty:
O'Gara, Martin J. (NY). Killed in the crash of an Army C-54 off
Almalfi, Italy, 1 Jun 1946.
Died while prisoner of war:
Hausmann, Carl W. (NY). Died on board a prison ship while en
route to Japan, 20 Jan 1945.
467
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JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Died in service :
Bartley, Edward L. (NY). Died of cancer at New Orleans while
on service with the Army, 26 Oct 1945.
Felix, Walter J. (NO). Died at Camp Miles Standish 5 Aug 1943.
Johnson, Alfred W. (Cal). Died of infantile paralysis at Letterman Hospital, San Francisco, 20 Oct 1943.
Sharp, Curtis J. (Ore). Died at Camp Carson, Colorado, following
surgery, 20 Jan 1943.
Wounded:
Cervini, Andrew F. (NY). Wounded in both feet by an artillery
shell, Manila, 17 Feb 1945.
Cummings, William V:-.(Md). Wounded in the explosion of a land
mine near Innsbruck, Austria, 3 l\Iay 1945. (Cf. Father Cummings' citation for Silver Star.)
Kennedy, Hugh F. (NY). Father Kennedy's citation for Purple
Heart and oak leaf cluster reads: "For wounds received in action,
January or February 1943 and 6 Jun 1944." At least the second
citation was awarded for a beating administered by a Japanese
guard. Father Kennedy testified before an Army notary on 11
Aug 1948: "I was cuffed and beaten and kicked on the morning
of 6 Jun 1944."
Kines, L. Berkeley (1\Id). Wounded in action at El Guettar, North
Africa, 31 Ma; 1943.
Kirshbaum, Irving J. (NY). Wounded while on duty with 50 5th
Parachute Infantry Regiment, 17 Oct 1944.
Meany, Stephen J. (NY). Wounded in the elbow, t:hest and shoulder by machine gun fire during the invasioif ·of the Gilbert
Islands, 20 Nov 1943. Hospitalized for five months. (Cf. Father
Meany's citation for the Silver Star.)
O'Callahan, Joseph T. (NE). "Wounded sometime during morning of 19 March 1945 aboard the U.S.S. Franklin, while dragging
bodies of unconscious men out of fires on flight deck after one of
the violent explosions. Another explosion followed very shortly,
and a bomb fragment or part of an airplane engine or some such
ugly companion flew up between my legs and very nearly split me
in twain. But a miss is as good as a mile-or almost, and I suffered no more than a bad gash along the inside of my left leg."
(Drury, op. cit., II, 201, quoted from a story by Quentin Reynolds
for Collier's.)
O'Keefe, Eugene J .. (NY). Wounded by a blow on the head from
a Japanese bayonet while a prisoner of war.
Prisoner of war:
Cavanaugh, Paul W. (Chi). Captured during the Battle of the
Bulge, 19 Dec 1944. Imprisoned at Stalag IXB, Bad Orb, and
�IN ARMED SERVICES
469
later at Oflag XIIIB, Hammelburg. Liberated by American
forces 2 May 1945.
Cervini, Andrew F. (NY). Imprisoned by Japanese at Iligan,
Cagayan, Impalutao and Santo Tomas.
Dimaano, Pedro M. (NY). Captured at Bataan and imprisoned at
Capas, Tarlac.
Dugan, John J. (NE). To Bilibid Prison, Manila (20 Jun 1942);
to Cabanatuan, Luzon, Prison Camp #1 (3 Jul 1942); to Cabu,
Luzon, Prison Camp #3 (10 Jul 1942); to Cabanatuan, Luzon,
Prison Camp #1 (1 Nov 1942). Liberated by 6th Ranger Battalion ( 30 Jan 1945).
Edralin, Isaias X. (NY). Surrendered with American Forces in
Mindinao and was a prisoner until released 15 Feb 1945.
Hausmann, Carl W. (NY). Imprisoned in Davao Military Prison
and Bilibid Military Prison, Manila. Died as a prisoner.
Kennedy, Hugh F. (NY). Imprisoned at Davao Military Prison,
Bilibid Military Prison and Cabanatuan. Rescued by American
Rangers Jan 1945.
O'Keefe, Eugene J. (NY). Imprisoned by the Japanese in the following places: Malaybalay; Davao Penal Colony; San Pedro,
Cebu; Bilibid Prison, Manila; Cabanatuan; Furikawa Plantation,
Davao.
Korean War:
Wounded:
Barry, John L. (NE). Wounded near Kumhwa, North Korea, 17
Oct 1952, while on duty with the 48th Field Artillery.
Kehrlein, Oliver duF. (Cal). Wounded by artillery fire 9 Jun 1952
on the reverse slope of Sniper's Ridge near Kumhwa, Korea.
Father Kehrlein was at the Command Post, 2nd Battalion, 224th
Infantry Regiment. He was about to begin Mass when a shell
hit wounding eighteen of his congregation. A fragment struck
Father Kehrlein above the left eye.
Post-Korean:
Died in service:
Kennedy, Hugh F. (NY). Died of a heart attack while on active
duty, Frankfurt, Germany, 3 Aug 1955.
�470
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Chaplains according to Provinces, Service Periods and Branches
(The numbers in parentheses indicate the number who have served in
a previous period. Thus 35 (1) under New England, Army, World War
II, indicates a total of 36 New England Jesuits, one of whom saw
service in World War I.)
Army
Navy
Mer
Mar
AF
Total
World War I:
California ________
MarylandNew York ______
Missouri __________
New Orleans _____
4
1
5
18
13
2 ··
1
19
13
2
37
2
39
World War II:
California __________ _
Chicago _______________ _
Maryland _________ _
Missouri ____________ _
New England _____ _
New Or leans ________ _
New York _____________ Oregon ----------------
15
26
14
29
34(1)
11
52**
8
189(1)
6
5
4
8
17
7
10
5
21
31
18
37
53(1)
18
62
13
3*
3*
62
• 253 (1) =254
Korean War:
California _______________ _
4(3)
Chicago ----------------Maryland ____________ _
Missouri ________________ _
New England _______ _
New Orleans _______ _
New York _____________ _
(1)
2(2)
(1)
2(3)
2(3)
1(3)
1(6)
(1)
(1)
(4)
(1)
(1)
(3)
(1)
7 (2)
2
1(1)
1(1)
(2)
17(19)
Oregon ------------------
6(5)
(2)
3(9)
1(9)
1(4)
1(10)
(3)
8(7)
3(3)
21(37)= 58
Post-Korean:
California --------------Chicago (Detroit) __
Maryland _______________ _
Missouri
(Vlisconsin)
New England
(3)
(1)
(3)
(4)
1(4)
1
(3)
(1)
1(3)
(1)
(1)
(3)
(5)
1(8)
�IN ARMED SERVICES
New Orleans _____
New York --------Oregon ---------------
(1)
6(7)
1(2)
(1)
(3)
(1)
471
2 (2)
(2)
8(12)
1(3)
1(6)
2(7)
8(24)
11(37)= 48
Total ------------- 251
3*** 324
68
3*
*includes one priest (Fr. Paul J. Murphy) who served both in Merchant Marine and Navy.
**includes five priests who were chaplains in the Philippine Army
and one whose affiliation is unknown (Father Agustin Consunji).
***actually 13 Jesuits have served in the Air Force, but since 10 of
these had already served in the Army, they are counted under the
Army total to avoid duplication.
Jesuits on Active Duty: World War I
Maryland-New York Missouri New Orleans Total
1917
2
4
2
1918
5
19
39
13
2
1919
4
18
35
11
2
1920
1
1
With the exception of Father Duffy and Father Laherty who served
with the Navy from 1918 to 1919, all Jesuits numbered above served
with the Army.
California
Cal
1940 _______________
1941________________
1942________________
1943 ________________
1944 _______________
1945_______________
1946 ________________
7
12
14
14
13
194 7---------------1948________________
1949---------------1950________________
1951________________
1952 ______________
1953 ______________
19 54________________
19 55 _______________
1956 ______________
1957--------------1958_____________
1959 _______________
1960___________
3
6
6
6
5
1
1
2
2
1
1
Jesuits on Duty with the Army
Chi Md M:o NE NO NY Ore Wis
5
2
2
1
6
4
2
7
10
14
5
27
5
11
4
18
16
9
38
7
7
19
24
13
28
29
47
6
10
10
49
26
14
28
34
7
43
25
14
28
33
10
7
3
2
2
6
1
10
1
2
1
7
3
2
4
1
2
1
4
1
4
1
3
1
1
4
2
1
6
6
1
4
2
1
1
7
7
2
1
1
9
3
5
6
1
1
2
3
4
5
9
3
2
1
1
3
4
9
2
3
1
4
1
8
3
2
1
1
9
3
5
2
1
2
5
7
2
2
2
5
7
1
2
5
7
2
Total
7
22
83
126
171
182
173
24
14
9
17
27
29
33
30
24
23
23
19
19
18
�472
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Jesuits on Duty with the Navy
Cal
1940 ______________
194 !___________________
1942 ________________
1943 ________________
1944________________
1945 ___________________
1946 ____________________
Chi
1\Id
2
5
6
6
5
1
2
5
5
1
3
3
4
4
194 7--------------------1948 __________________
1949-----------------19 50---------------------19 51 _______________________
19 52 ---------------------19 53---------------------1954 ---------------------1955 ______________________
19 56 -------------------195 7------------------19 58----------------------19 59----------------------19 60 -----------------------
2
4
4
3
2
1
1
1
1
1
1\Io
NE NO NY Ore
1
1
1
1
2
8
1
1
2
4
3
7 14
5
8
8
16
5
7 10
10
4
7
17
7
7
16
10
3
7
1
1
1
1
2
2
1
4
1
1
1
4
1
1
1
1
4
1
1
1
2
4
2
1
1
4
1
1
4
1
1
1
1
3
1
3
1
2
1
1
Total
2
4
19
46
57
60
57
3
3
2
9
11
11
11
10
8
7
5
4
2
1
Jesuits on Duty with the U.S. Maritime Service
In \Vorld War II, three Jesuits, all New England Province, saw service with the U.S. Maritime Service. Father Thoma~- A. Fay served
from 1942 to 1945; Father Paul J. Murphy, 1943-1944; Father Vincent
de Paul O'Brien, 1945.
Jesuits on Duty with the Air Force
Cal
1949---------------------1950--------------------1951 ______________________
19 52 _______________________
1953 ________________________
1954________________________
1955 ________________________
1956----------------------19 57-----------------------1958 _______________________
1959---------------------19 GO-----------------------
Chi
Md
Mo
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
I
1
1
1
NE NO
2
2
1
3
1
3
1
3
3
3
3
1
1
1
1
NY Ore
1
1
2
2
1
1
2
2
1
2
2
3
4
3
2
2
Total
3
7
8
9
8
7
7
7
6
5
4
3
�IN ARl\lED SERVICES
473
Yearly Totals of Jesuits on Active Duty, All Branches
Cal
1940____________
1941____________
1942______________
1943_____________
1944______________
1945 _______________
19 46 _______________
9
17
20
20
18
194 7-------------1948________________
19"19_______________
1950________________
19 5!_____________
19 52 ______________
1953 ______________
1954 ________________
1955 ________________
1956 _______________
1957 _______________
195 8 _______________
1959 ______________
1960 ________________
5
10
10
9
7
2
2
2
2
1
1
Chi
Md
4
11
19
26
31
30
3
1
2
5
10
16
18
18
2
2
2
4
4
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
1
1
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1\lo
NE NO NY Ore Wis
6
3
8
2
8
2
11
23
7
31
6
14
10
26
32
46
36
46
17
57
11
59
35
53
17
11
35
49
53
10
17
8
2
11
2
8
1
5
6
1
5
2
7
3
8
3
3
10
3
11
4
12
3
11
3
4
2
15
6
5
10
2
15
5
9
4
8
2
15
3
2
3
14
3
1
2
3
8
2
8
16
2
1
12
6
1
2
1
6
1
9
2
2
6
9
2
1
Total
9
26
103
174
229
244
230
28
17
14
33
46
49
52
47
39
37
35
28
25
22
�474
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Bibliography
General:
Drury, Clifford l'r!. The History of the Chaplain Corps, United States
Navy. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1948-1957.
5 Vols.
Honeywell, Roy J. _Chaplains of the United States Army. Washington: Office of the Chief of Chaplains, 1958.
Waring, George J. United States Catholic Chaplains in the World
War. New York: Ordinariate Army and Navy Chaplains, 1924.
The Medal of Honor of the United States Army. Washington: U.S.
Government Printing Office, ~1948.
Medal of Honor, 1861-1949. ~The Navy. n.d.
Books on individual Jesuit chaplains:
Jenkins, Burris. Father Meany and the Fighting 69th. New York:
Frederick Fell, 1944.
Haggerty, J. Edward. Guerilla Padre in Mindinao. New York: Longmans, Green, 1946.
O'Callahan, Joseph T. I Was Chaplain on the Franklin. New York:
Macmillan, 1956.
Articles in Woodstock Letters:
Bailey, George l'rl.
Letters written from France. 48, 106-109 (1919).
Barrett, Alfred J.
Obituary. 87, 63-80 (1958).
Cannon, Thomas B.
"From a Chaplain in Italy." 74, 132-133 (1945).
Carr, Edwin F.
Experiences in North Africa. 74, 54 ( 1945).
Carroll, Anthony G.
Poem in memory of Darwin's dead. 71, 345 (1942).
Clements, Ernest B.
"Overseas Orders." 81, 62-64 (1952).
"Operation: Routine." 81, 258-263 (1952).
Connor, Charles F.
Letters from Army camps in South Carolina. 47, 243-245 (1918).
Letter from Camp Sevier, South Carolina. 47, 383-384 (1918).
Obituary. 88, 67-76 (1959).
•
Copeland, Raymond F.
At Lourdes. 74, 54 (1945).
Dalton, Hugh A.
Letter from Camp Zachary Taylor. 47, 243 (1918).
Delihant, Thomas J.
Obituary. 78, 351-354 (1949).
�IN ARMED SERVICES
475
Dinand, Augustine A.
Letter from Camp Lewis. 47, 383 (1918).
Downey, Morgan A.
At Leyte. 74,21-22 (1945).
Dugan, John J.
"Cabanatuan Prison Camp." 74, 154-157 (1945).
Felix, Walter J.
Obituary. 72, 337-340 (1943).
Haggerty, J. Edward
Experiences in Philippines during World War II. 74, 162-164
(1945).
Hausmann, Carl W.
"He Kept Silence in Seven Languages." 75, 325-355 (1946).
Kenedy, Eugene T.
Letters from France. 47, 245-247 (1918).
Letter from Germany. 48, 116-117 (1919).
"Souvenirs of a Chaplain 1918-1919." 72, 291-305 (1943); 73, 2959 (1944).
Kines, L. Berkeley
"Chaplain at Tagaste and the Kasserine Pass." 89, 30-58 (1960).
King, Terence
Letters to his Father Provincial. 47, 422-428 (1918).
"From Soissons to Coblenz." 48, 191-209 (1919) ; 48, 349-361
(1919) ; 49, 186-199 (1920) ; 49, 312-323 (1920); 50, 22-24 (1921).
Lynch, Daniel J.
Letters from France. 47,247 (1918).
Letter from France. 47, 384 (1918).
Letter from France. 48, 285-288 (1919).
Martin, James A.
"A Chaplain's Year Overseas." 73, 81-90 (1944).
"Letter from a Jesuit Air Force Chaplain." 73, 224-228 (1944).
McGinnis, James S.
Obituary. 79, 273-275 (1950).
McHugh, Lawrence R.
"Hong Kong to Pearl Harbor." 75, 57-60 (1946).
McNally, Herbert P.
"Letters from a Jesuit Chaplain." 71, 127-150 (1942).
Meany, Stephen J.
"Soldiers' Christmas Eve." 72, 34-37 (1943).
Mortell, John T.
Letter from Camp Gordon. 47, 382 (1918).
O'Brien, Richard A.
Letter from France. 47, 384-385 (1918).
O'Connor, PaulL.
"Letters from Tokyo." 74, 323-326 ( 1945).
Ray, Samuel H.
"Chaplain and Victory in the P~~::ic." 89, 108-127 (1960).
�476
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Robinson, Charles A.
Letter from Tokyo. 74, 328 (1945).
Shanahan, Thomas A.
MacArthur Honors Jesuit. 72, 91-93 (1943).
Stinson, William M.
Letters concerning Father Stinson as Chaplain. 47, 144-145 (1918).
Letter from France. 48, 269-270 (1919).
Treacy, Gerald C.
Letter from Camp Green, N.C. 47, 62-66 (1918).
Anonymous
"Twelve Days in the Holland Battle" 74, 22-29 (1945).
Appendix I: Father Q'Callahan and the Medal of Honor
Father Joseph T. O'Callahan is frequently cited as being the
only chaplain of the Armed Forces to receive the Medal· of
Honor.' Three awards, however, have been made to Army
chaplains for services rendered during the Civil War. The
following are the recipients and the citations accompanying
their awards:
Whitehead, John l\1.
Rank and Organization: Chaplain, 15th Indiana Infantry. Place
and date: At Stone River, Tenn., 31 Dec 1862. Entered service at:
Westville, Ind. Birth: - - . Date of issue: 4 Apr 1898. Citation:
'Vent to the front during a desperate contest and unaided carried
to the rear several wounded and helpless soldiers. 2 •
Hall, Francis B.
Rank and Organization: Chaplain, 16th New York Infantry.
Place and date: At Salem Heights, Va., 3 May 1863. Entered
service at: - - . Birth: - - . Date of issue: 16 Feb 1897. Citation: Voluntarily exposed himself to a heavy fire during the thickest
of the fight and carried wounded men to the rear for treatment and
attendance. 3
Haney, Milton L.
Rank and Organization: Chaplain, 55th Illinois Infantry. Place
and date: Atlanta, Ga., 22 Jul 1864. Entered service at: - - .
Birth: Ohio. Date of issue: 3 Nov 1896. Citation: Voluntarily
carried a musket in the ranks of his regiment and rendered heroic
service in retaking the Federal works which had been captured by
the enemy. 4
Drury, op. cit., III, 208.
2 The Medal of Honor of the U.S. Army. P. 122.
3 Ibid., p. 126.
4 Ibid., p. 165.
1
I
I
l
.\
�477
IN ARMED SERVICES
It should be noted that there was no other decoration for
bravery during the Civil War. During that conflict and in
the thirty-five year period following it, 1527 Medals of Honor
were awarded (1200 Army; 310 Navy; 17 Marine Corps) for
service rendered during the Civil War. In World War II 429
Medals of Honor were awarded (292 Army; 57 Navy; 79
Marine Corps; 1 Coast Guard).
Father J. B. DeValles is cited in Monsignor Waring's book
as having received the Congressional Medal just before his
death. 5 Whatever the nature of this medal, it was not the
Medal of Honor, for Father DeValles' name does not appear
on any list of recipients.
Appendix II: Death of Father Martin J. O'Gara, S.J.
Headquarters, Army Air Forces
Washington
August 14, 1946
Reverend James P. Sweeney, S.J.
501 East Fordham Road
New York, N.Y.
Dear Father Sweeney:I am writing you with reference to Chaplain Martin J. O'Gara, who
was reported by the Adjutant General as having been killed on 1 June
1946.
Information has been received indicating that Chaplain O'Gara was a
passenger of a C-54 (Skymaster) transport plane which departed from
Payne Field, Cairo, Egypt on a personnel transport mission to Rome,
Italy, on 1 June 1946. The report reveals that during this mission a
fire developed in the pilot's compartment and three fire extinguishers
were used in an attempt to extinguish the flames. The plane was flying
on automatic pilot when this occurred and within a short period of time
the crew was forced to withdraw from the cabin owing to the smoke,
fumes and gases created by the use of the extinguishers. Soon after the
crew was forced to leave the cockpit, the plane stalled and went into a
flat spin. Four of the crew and four of the passengers successfully
parachuted from the aircraft before it crashed into the Bay of Salerno,
Italy.
The eight survivors were picked up by Navy boats a few minutes
later and seven bodies were found in the vicinity of the crash. At the
5
Op. cit., p. 321.
�478
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
time this report was dispatched from the theater, the bodies of the
remaining occupants of the plane had not been recovered.
It is believed that the pilot had the aircraft trimmed for level flight
on the automatic pilot and that when the smoke and fumes forced the
crew from the cockpit, the shift of weight to the tail section caused the
plane to nose up and subsequently stall. This is believed to be the
reason for all personnel not being able to leave the plane prior to the
crash as all were equipped with parachutes.
The wreckage of Chaplain O'Gara's aircraft has been· located on a
ledge approximately 840 feet below the surface of the Mediterranean
Sea. Funds have been made available for an attempt to raise the
aircraft, provided that such an operation proves feasible and will not
jeopardize the lives of the salvage crew.
Should the remains be recovered, of those who were aboard the aircraft when it crashed, they will be interred initially in an established
United States Military Cemetery nearby. The Quartermaster General in
his capacity as Chief, American Graves Registration Service, will communicate directly with you regarding possible future repatriation of
the remains of Chaplain O'Gara.
Believing you may wish to communicate with the families of the
others who were in the plane with Chaplain O'Gara, I am enclosing a
list of these men and the names and addresses of those listed as their
emergency addresses.
May I assure you that the personnel of the Army Air Forces share
the sorrow caused by tlre untimely passing of Chaplain O'Gara.
Sincerely yours,
(Signed) LEON W. JOHNSON
Brigadier General, U.S. Army
Deputy, AC/M:l-1
Acknowledgments
This history of Jesuit chaplains began at the suggestion of
Rev. L. Berkeley Kines, S.J., of St. Joseph's College, Philadelphia. Father Kines had just completed his biography of
Father McElroy, the first Jesuit Army chaplain (WL 87, 335398), and was doing research on Jesuit chaplains of the Civil
War. Noting the lack of material, he suggested to Rev.
Edwhrd A. Ryan, S.J.,. Editor of Woodstock Letters, that a
history of Jesuit chaplains in World War II be written before
the passage of time made material concerning them scarce.
Father Ryan asked the present writer to undertake the project and supported it in all its stages of preparation.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
479
Father Kines drew up the initial list of chaplains. A questionnaire was sent out at first to all Jesuits who had served
in World War II from the provinces of Maryland, New York
and New England. The response was gratifying and offers
of help and valuable suggestions came from all sides. The
project was then extended to all provinces of the American
Assistancy. Gradually it grew in scope. Monsignor Waring's book on Catholic chaplains of World War I insured that
there would be enough material for that period. Many
Jesuits who served in World War II were recalled for the
Korean conflict and material on this period was collected as
a by-product. All who served in the Korean War were then
included. Since the addition of a dozen biographies from
the post-Korean period would give a complete picture of
Jesuit chaplain activities from 1917 to 1960, these too were
included.
It was clear from the beginning of the project that despite
the favorable response to the questionnaire further sources
of information were needed: there was incomplete information on deceased members of the Society who had served as
chaplains; a certain percentage of former chaplains would
undoubtedly not respond to the questionnaire; the questionnaire itself had flaws that were not revealed until the time
came to write the biographies of the chaplains.
To gather this additional information the Office of the Military Ordinariate was contacted. Most Reverend William R.
Arnold, D.D., Delegate of the Military Vicar, and Rt. Rev.
Msgr. Joseph F. Marbach, Chancellor, gave me permission
to go through their files of former chaplains. Very Rev.
Msgr. Joseph W. Hartman was kind enough to assist me in
this task.
Then, in turn, the Offices of the Chief of Chaplains of the
various services were approached.
Office of the Chief of Chaplains, United States Army. My
especial gratitude is due to Rt. Rev. Msgr. William J. Moran
(Brigadier General, Deputy Chief of Chaplains, USA).
Since Army chaplains comprise about 80% of those dealt
with in this history, it is evident that without the Army's
cooperation this work would lack a great deal of the detailed
information it now possesses. Mr. J. Paul Slayton, of the
�480
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
Personnel and Ecclesiastical Relations Section, patiently
· answered my questions, deciphered handwritten records and
decoded APO numbers for me. Mr. Louis George, of the
Historical Section, supplied me with citations and information on chaplains of World War I.
Office of the Chief of Chaplains, United States Air Force.
The trail of the chaplains led naturally from Army to Air
Force for a number of them had transferred in 1949 when a
chaplains' section for the new Air Force was set up. Rt. Rev.
Msgr. Terence P. Finnegan (Major General, Chief of Chaplains, USAF) gave me permission to use Air Force files. Rev.
Martin B. Molloy (Chaplain, Lieutenant Colonel, USAF)
very kindly helped me to find my way through these records.
Office of the Chief of Chaplains, United States Navy. Rt.
Rev. Msgr. George A. Rosso (Rear Admiral, Chief of Chaplains, USN) allowed me access to Navy records that were not
already in Chaplain Drury's work. Rev. W. W. Parkinson
(Commander, Department of Ecclesiastical Relations, USN)
supplied me with the five volumes of Drury's work and fulfilled all my requests for additional information.
There were still some gaps that needed filling. Rev. Bernard M. Lochboehler, S.J. undertook the collection of information on Jesuits who had served as chaplains in the Philippine
Army and published his findings in The Philippine Clipper
for February, 1960. Rev. Santiago C. Espeleta;· Lt. Col.,
Deputy Chief of Chaplains, Armed Forces of the Philippines,
supplied additional information on the same subject.
Since the Office of the Chief of Chaplains, United States
Army, did not have copies of all citations won by chaplains,
application was made to the Office of the Adjutant General.
This branch, under the direction of Major General R. V. Lee,
generously supplied a good number of the missing citations.
Once all the material was gathered, individual biographies
were composed and sent out to the chaplain concerned for
correction. These emendations were then incorporated into
a final draft.
.
During the gathering of information a running correspondence was carried on with the Curias of the various provinces. The following priests very kindly answered my queries:
Thomas A. Brophy (Md), James D. Carroll (NO), Charls A.
�IN ARMED SERVICES
481
Chapman (Ore), John W. Christian (Chi), Timothy A. Curtin (NY), D. Ross Druhan (NO), John F. Foley (NE), Louis
J. Hanlon (Wis), John R. Kelly (Wis), Andrew F. Maginnis
(Cal), John J. Monahan (Ore), William J. Walsh (Md); and
Brothers Russell J. Heyl (Md) and Joseph H. Ramspacher
(Md).
I would like to thank the Fathers who answered questionnaires and gave me encouragement on this project. The
following Jesuit priests by providing additional information
over and above the questionnaires were especially helpful:
John P. Brown (Md), Thomas B. Cannon (Phil), Paul W.
Cavanaugh (Det), Morgan A. Downey (Md), John J. Dugan
(NE), Stephen T. Egan (Wis), Thomas P. Fay (NE), James
L. Harley (Md), Joseph F. Hogan (Chi), Thomas F. Maher
(NO), Joseph Maring (NO), Arthur R. McGratty (NY),
Samuel H. Ray (NO), James J. Shanahan (NY), Charles F.
Suver (Ore), and Joseph J. Walter (NY).
Of my fellow scholastics at Woodstock, I would like to
thank the following: Thomas J. Bradley (l\'Id), Edward J.
Hanrahan (NE), and Michael A. Lorenzo (Md) for photography; George C. McCauley (NY) for photocopy work; J.
Patrick Cotter (NY) for mimeographing letters; Joseph E.
Cooney (Md) for checking tables of statistics. Also, Theodore J. Rynes (Wis), of St. Mary's, Kansas, for photographs.
In checking over sources for this history I found a good
number of errors. While doing my best to correct these, I
have doubtless introduced others of my own. Though much
effort has been used to eliminate them, they are perhaps
inevitable in a work of this nature.
The questionnaires and other data collected for this work
have been sorted and filed in the archives of Woodstock College for those who may wish to make further use of them.
COPIES OF THIS ISSUE IN BOOK FORM will be available at $2.50
Imprimi Potest, Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur have been obtained.
Order from: WOODSTOCK LETTERS
Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland
�482
JESUIT CHAPLAINS
List of abbreviations appearing in this work:
AA (A)-Anti-aircraft (artillery)
(A)AF-(Army) Air Force
AEF-American Expeditionary Force
AFB-Air Force Base
A.N.G.-Air National Guard
ASU-Army Service Unit
AU-Army Unit
BU-Barracks Unit
Cal-California Province
CCC--Civilian Conservation Corps
Chi-Chicago Province
Det-Detroit Province
ETO-European Theater of Operations
Kor-Korean (War)
:Md-Maryland Province
Md-NY-:Maryland-New-York Province
MerMar-Merchant Marine
Mo-Missouri Province
NE-New England Province
N.G.-National Guard
NO-New Orleans Province
NY-New York Province
Ore-Oregon Province
Phil-Philippine Province
P-K-Post-Korean service
POW-Prison of War
SC--Service Command
SCU-Service Command Unit
SU-Service Unit
USA-United States Army
USAF-United States Air Force
USAR-United States Army Reserve
USN-United States Navy
\Vis-Wisconsin Province
WL-Woodstock Letters
��
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 89 (1960)
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1960 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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1960
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PDF Text
Text
A.M. U. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND MISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF JESUS
VOL. LXXXVIII
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1959
FOR CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
�-·
�INDEX TO VOLUME 88
ARTICLES
Bellarmine's De Controversiis at Woodstock ----------------Contribution to Patristic Scholarship in the Old Society -------------Dean's Report -------------------------------------------------Examination of Conscience -------------------------------------Father Terence Connolly's Golden Jubilee ------------------------Foundation and First Administration of The Maryland Province ____
Geographical Distribution of Jesuits ---------------------------------Georgetown University Observatory ----------------------------------How Ignatian is the Sodality? -----------------------------------------lgnatian Discretion -------------------------------------The Latest Founder -----------------------------------------------A Look at Catholicism in Nigeria -------------------------------The Milford Novitiate -----------------------------------------Missionary Catechetics in New France-----------------------New Directions in the Social Apostolate ------------------------Ninetieth Anniversary ---------------------------------------The Society and the Liturgical Movement --------------------------------Temporal Coadjutor Assignments -------------------------------Third Degree of Humility -----------------------------------------------Trial of German Jesuits -----------------------------------------Vatican Manuscripts on Microfilm ---------------------------------------Virtue Surpassing Mediocrity -----------------------------------------
153
139
339
24
10
376
293
353
247
131
2
230
211
37
115
343
238
300
366
165
222
17
OBITUARIES
Brother Michael S. Broderick ------------------------------------------------------------Father Facundo Carbajal ----------------------------------------------Father Charles F. Connor ---~-----------------------------------------------------Brother Joseph-Marie Dietrich ----------------------------------------------------Father Thomas Caryl Hughes ----------------------------------------Father Leo Martin --------------------------------------------------------;ather Daniel M. O'Connell -----------------------------------------------Bather John Joseph O'Rourke --------------------------------------------rother George Sandheinrich -----------------------------------------------------
185
57
67
189
60
277
407
415
172
CONTRIBUTORS
1MY, E. PAUL, Obituary of Father Charles F. Connor ------------------- 67
BUSLANDER, JOSEPH, Jubilee Song (Poem) ------------------------------- 10
CURKE ' JAMES L ., A L oo k a t ca th oI" .
ICism In N"
.
Igena_________________________ _ 230
.
CIOFFI, PAUL L., The Society and the Liturgical Movement __________________ 238
CURRAN, FRANCIS X., Obituary of Brother Joseph-Marie Dietrich ___ 189
CUSlfiNG, RICHARD JAMES CARDINAL, The Latest Founder -----------9
Usanw, RICHARD JAMES CARDINAL, Tribute to Father Terence ConDA nolly --------------------------------------------------------------- 11
LY,
.
DAVI LoWRIE J ., V a t"
Ican Manuscnp t s on M" fil m ----------------------- 222
1cro
8• THURSTON, Ninetieth Anniversary -------------------------------------- 343
�FARRELL, ALLAN P., Obituary of Father Daniel M. O'ConnelL______ 408
FITZPATRICK, J. P., New Directions in the Social Apostolate ------- 115
GAUDIN, HAROLD, Obituary of Father Facundo Carbajal ------- 67
HAGEMANN, EDWARD, lgnatian Discretion
131
HARRIS, RoBERT M., Missionary Catechetics in New France - - - 37
HAUGHEY, JoHN C., How lgnatian is the Sodality?
247
HOWARD, R. J., Examination of Conscience----------- 24
HYDE, LEO B., Temporal Coadjutor Assignments - - - - - - - - - 300
JUDGE, ROBERT K., Foundation and First Administration of the
Maryland Province
376
KELLY, HuGH, Virtue Surpassing Mediocrity - - - - - - - - - - - 17
KoLKMEYER, EMERAN J., Obituary of Brother George Sandheinrich_ 172
LABUHN, ALFRED J., The Milford Novitiate
211
LoFY, CARL A., The Third Degree of Humility - - - - - - - - - - - 366
MATTHEWS, CHARLES J ., Obituary of Brother Michael S. Broderick_ 185
McGUIRE, MARTIN R. P., Contributions to Patristic Scholarship in
the Old Society
139
McHUGH, MICHAEL, Obituary of Father Leo Martin ----------- 277
MEHOK, WILLIAM J., Geographical Distribution of Jesuits _____ 293
QUINN, FRANCIS X., Georgetown University Observatory _ _ _ _ 353
ROBINSON, T. A., Bellarmine's De Controversiis at Woodstock __ 153
SAMPSON, WILLIAM P., The Society and the Liturgical Movement_ 238
SANDERS, JosEPH P. (tr.), Obituary of Father John Joseph
O'Rourke ------------------------------------ 415
ToLAND, TERRENCE, Dean's Report --------------------------- 339
WALSH, LAURENCE A., Obituary of Father Thomas Caryl Hughes _ 60
BOOK REVIEWS
ABRAMS, M. H., ed., Literature and Belief (J. Robert Barth) ________ 329
AIGRAIN, CANON RENE, and ENGLEBERT, ABBE OMER, Prophecy Fulfilled (Eulalio Baltazar) ------------------------------------------------- 202
ALEGRE, FRANCisco JAVIER, S.J., Historia de la Provincia de la Corn·
pania de JesUs de Nueva Espana, Tomo II, Libros · 4-6 (1597·
1639) (Francisco de P. Nadal) ------------------------- 206
BANGERT, WILLIAM V., To the Other Towns: A Life of Blessed Peter
Favre, First Companion of St. Ignatius (Herman J. Muller) - 307
BANNON, JOHN FRANCIS, S.J. and DUNNE, PETER MASTEN, S.J.,
Latin America: An Historical Survey (James G. McCann) __ 309
BERRIGAN, DANIEL, S.J., The Bride: Essays in the Church (Avery
Dulles) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 431
BousCAREN, T. L., S.J. and J. I. O'CONNOR, S.J., Canon Law Digest:
Vol. IV. (William J. Bosch) ------------------------------------------- 86
BOUYER, LoUis, C.O., The Meaning of Sacred Scriptures (William J.
Bosch) ----------------------------------------------------------- 205
BOUYER, LOUIS, C.O., Newman: His Life and Spirituality. (HarrY
R. Burns) ---------~-------------------------------------------------------------- 9~
BOUYER, LOUIS, The Roman Socrates (Gerard F. Giblin) ----------- 1°
BURTON, KATHERINE, Witness of the Light (Edmund G. Ryan) --- 94
1
CAMPBELL, RALPH, S.J., Alive in Christ (Royden B. Davis) ·--- 31
�CHARLIER, DOM CELESTIN, The Christian Approach to the Bible
(Harry R. Burns)
-- 100
CLANCY, HERBERT J., S.J., The Presidential Election of 1880 (William J. Bosch)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 108
CLARK, MARY T., R.S.C.J., Augustine: Philosopher of Freedom
(Edward V. Stevens) ---------------------------- 317
CoLLINS, JOHN H., S.J., One in Christ (E. A. Ryan) - - - - - - - - 77
CONANT, JAMES B., The American High School Today (Eugene M.
Feeney) -------------------------------------- 319
CONNELL, WILLIAM A., S.J., The Adolescent Boy (Edward M. Pickett) ------------------------------------------- 199
CONSIDINE, JOHN J., New Horizons in Latin America (Renato
Rasche) ------------------------------------ 203
CiumsEN, JOSEPH, S.J., Religious Men and Women in Church Law
[Rev. Ed. by A. C. Ellis, S.J.] (William J. Bosch) --------- 86
CRONIN, JoHN F., S.S., Social Principles and Economic Life (Carl
J. Hemmer) --------------------------------------- 435
CRONIN, VINCENT, A Pearl to India (Cecil H. Chamberlain) _____________ 419
DACHAUER, ALBAN J., S.J., The Sacred Heart: A Commentary on
Haurietis Aquas (Reynaldo P. Lorredo) ---------------------------- 445
DANIEL-RoPS, HENRI, What is the Bible? (Vincent T. O'Keefe) ____ 84
DAWSON, CHRISTOPHER, The Movement of World Revolution (Jesus
M. Montemayor) ------------------------------------------------------ 333
DE LA BEDOYERE, MICHAEL, The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward
Pope (William P. Sampson) ------------------------------- 96
DE LA CosTA, HORACIO, S.J., Recent Oriental History (J. S.
Arcilla) --------------------------------------------------------------- 335
DESPLANQUES, F., S.J., Christ at Every Crossroad (Francisco F.
Claver) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 446
DISSENT MAGAZINE, Voices of Dissent, A Collection of Articles from
Dissent Magazine (Edward J. Lavin) --------------------------------- 324
DOHEN, DOROTHY, Journey to Bethlehem (Royden B. Davis) ---------- 332
DOWNEY, FAIRFAX, The Guns of Gettysburg (William J. Bosch) 93
DUNN, WILLIAM, What Happened to Religious Education? (James
P · Cotter) ------------------------------------------------------------------- 321
DURKIN, JOSEPH T., S.J., General Sherman's Son (Henry W.
F Casper) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 420
ILAs, FRANCIS L., S.J., The Parables of Jesus (William F.
F Graham) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 445
LEISCHMANN, HILDEBRAND, O.S.B., ed., The Divine Office (Joseph
F G. Murray) --------------------------------------------------------------------- 444
ORO, JOHN C., S.J. and GERALD KELLY, S.J., Contemporary Moral
Theology, Volume I: Questions in Fundamental Moral Theology
F (R. H. Springer) -------------------------------------------------------- 78
REF:DMAN, RONALD, et al., Family Planning, Sterility, and PopulaG tion Growth (Alan McCarthy) ------------------------------------------------ 437
ANNON, EDWARD, S.J., The Honor of Being a Man: The World of
G Andre Malraux (Renato Rasche) --------·------------------------------------- 77
EANEY, DENNIS, O.S.A., Christians in a Changing World {James
A. O'Donnell) --------------------------------------,--------------------------------------- 436
�GIESE, VINCENT J., Training for Leadership (James A. O'Brien) -- 320
GLEASON, RoBERT W., S.J., The World to Come (Thomas E. Clarke)_ 83
GOERRES, InA F., The Hidden Face (Gerard F. Giblin) - - - - - - - 326
GOLDBRUNNER, JosEF, Teaching the Catholic Catechism, Volume I:
God and Our Redemption (Edward V. Stevens) - - - - - - - - 430
GRAY, WooD, et al., Historian's Handbook: A Key to the Study and
Writing of History (William J. Bosch) ----------------- 325
GUARDINI, ROMANO, Prayers From Theology (Joseph B. Neville) __ 321
HALECKI, OscAR, From Florence to Brest (1439-1596) (Jose S.
Arcilla) ------------------------------------------------------ 424
HASKELL, FRANK ARETAS, The Battle of Gettysburg (William J.
Bosch) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 93
HASTINGS, CECIL, et al., Pattern of Scripture (Robert J. Keck) __ 322
HATCH, WALDEN, and WALSHE, SEAMUS, Crown of Glory: The Life
of Pope Pius XII (John,J. Rohr) ------------------------330
HESBURGH, THEODORE M., C.S.C., Patterns for Educational Growth
(Erwin G. Beck) _____
··--------------------------- 332
HIGGINS, THOMAS J., S.J., Man as Man (Robert H. Springer) - - 194
HILL, EDMUND (transl.), Nine Sermons of Saint Augustine on the
Psalms (Robert T. Rush) ------------------------------------------ 316
HIRSCHBERGER, JoHANNES, History of Philosophy, vol. I (Robert H.
Cousineau) ------------------------------------------------------- 331
HoFINGER, JOHANNES, S.J., et al., Worship: The Life of the Missions
(Erwin G. Beck) -------------------------------------------------- 204
HULME, WILLIAM E., God, Sex and Youth (Robert H. Springer) - 312
JOHNSON, EDGAR N., An Introduction to the History of the Western
Tradition (William J. Bosch) --------------------------------------- 318
JoLY, EuGENE, What is Faith? (Robert J. Keck) ___________ 84
JUNGMANN, JosEF A., S.J., Public Worship: A Survey (Paul L.
Cioffi) -------------------------------------------98
KAISER, EDWIN G., C.P.P.S., Sacred Doctrine: An Introduction to
Theology (Joseph L. Roche) ---------------------------------"'·-r-------- 97
KARRER, OTTO, Neues Testament, iibersetzt und erkliirt (Joseph A.
Fitzmyer) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 433
KEELER, SISTER JEROME, O.S.B., ed., Handbook of Catholic Adult
Education (John M. Culkin) ------------------------------------------------- 322
KELLY, GEORGE A., The Catholic Marriage Manual (Joseph B.
Neville) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 438
KILLGALLON, REV. JAMES and REV. GERARD WEBER, Life in Christ:
2
Instructions In the Catholic Faith (Joseph G. Murray) ----- 11
KNOX, RoNALD, and Cox, RONALD, The Gospel Story (Robert J.
197
Keck) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------KNox, RoNALD, and Cox, RoNALD, C.M., It is Paul Who Writes ,
43•
(Robert J. Keck) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5
3
LAFARGE, JOHN A., S.J., An American Amen (J. Robert Barth) - 3
LATOURETTE, KENNETH SCOTT, The Nineteenth Century in Europe:
23
Background and the Roman Catholic Phase (William J. Bosch) 3
LAZZARI~!: ANDREA, Pope John XXIII: A Life of the New Pope
331
(WIlham T. Jones) ----------------------------------------------------------------
�LEWIS, C. S., Reflections on the Psalms (Robert F. McDonald) ---LINDEN, JAMES V., S.J., The Catholic Church Invites You (Paul
Osterle) -----------------------------------------------------------LIPPERT, PETER, s_J,, The Jesuits, a Self-Portrait (William J.
Young) --------------------------------------LOMBARDI, RICHARD, S.J., Towards a New World (John A. Dotterweich) -----------------------LucEY, WILLIAM LEO, S.J., History: Method and Interpretation
(William J. Bosch) ---------------------------LYNCH, WILLIAM F., The Image Industries: A Constructive Analysis
of Films and Television (Carroll J. Bourg) ---------------MAGSAM, CHARLES, M.M., The Inner Life of Worship (George R.
Graziano) ----------------------------___
MASCALL, E. L., The Recovery of Unity (Daniel F. X. Meenan) __
McCARTHY, J. P., S.J., Heaven (Joseph A. Galdon) -------------------McNALLY, RoBERT E., S.J., The Bible in the Early Middle Ages
(C. H. Lohr) ---------------------------------------------------------MERTON, THOMAS, The Secular Journal of Thomas Merton (Gerard
F. Giblin) ---------------------------------------------MORSE J. MITCHELL, The Sympathetic Alien: James Joyce and
Catholicism (Joseph A. Galdon) ------------------------------------MURCHLAND, BERNARD, C.S.C., ed., God Speaks (William P.
Sampson) -------------------------------------------------------------------------MURPHY, EDWARD L., S.J., Teach Ye All Nations: The Principles of
Catholic Missionary Work (A. Hennelly) ----------------------------MURPHY, JOHN F., The Virtues on Parade (Arthur S. O'Brien) ____
NEAL, EMILY GARDINER, God Can Heal You Now (William F.
Graham) ------------------------------------------------------------NICHOLS, RoY F., Religion and American Democracy (William M.
N King) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------OONAN, JOHN T., Jr., The Scholastic Analysis of Usury (C. A.
, Frankenhoff) -------------------------------------------------------------0 BRIEN, F. WILLIAM, S.J., Justice Reed and the First Amendment:
the Religion Clauses (Thomas M. Quinn) _________________________________
O'BRIEN, KEVIN J., C.SS.R., The Proximate Aim of Education: A
Study of the Proper and Immediate End of Education (Erwin
Beck) -------------------------------------------------------------------------
110
442
306
334
192
310
208
325
310
433
195
111'
422
432
90
329
194
439
102
438
?.
0 ffictal Guide to Catholic Educational Institutions in the United 87
States (Erwin G. Beck) ------------------------------------------------------------------ 435
0
, NG, WALTER J., S.J., American Catholic Crossroads (Daniel F. X.
0
Meenan)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 426
NG, WALTER J., S.J.,
Ramus, Method, and the Decay of Dialogue
-----------------------------------------------------------0 (William T. Noon)
NG, WALTER, J., S.J., R-;;mus and Talon Inventory (William T.
0'R Noon) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------PA AHILLY, ALFRED, Gospel Meditations (Edwin J. Sanders) --------T~H, JOSEPH, C.SS.R., Our Lady in the Gospels (Charles P.
osteUo) ------------------------------------------------------------------
302
302
196
198
�PERRIN, J. M., O.P., The Fundamentals of Catholic Action (James
A. O'Brien) ______
320
PoAGE, GODFREY, C.P., and TREACY, JOHN P., Ph.D., Parents' Role in
Vocations (Edmund G. Ryan) -------------------------------- 323
PoTTER, VIRGINIA BoscH, Fellowships in the Arts and Sciences,
1959-1960 (John J. Rohr)
200
PoULIOT, LEON, S.J., Le Premier Retraitant du Canada: Joseph
Chihouatenhua, Huron (Andrew A. Connolly) - - - - - - - - 200
POWER, EDWARD A., A History of Catholic Higher Education in the
81
United States (Allan Farrell) _____
PRESCOTT, H. F . .M., Once to Sinai (Joseph A. Galdon) - - - - - 85
RAHNER, KARL, S.J., Happiness Through Prayer (John J. McNeill)_ 95
REITH, HERMAN, C.S.C., The Metaphysics of St. Thomas Aquinas
(Joseph L. Roche) -.------------------- ---------.106
REYNOLDS, E. E., Three Qardinals (Edmund G. Ryan) - - - - - - - - 103
RICCIOTTI, . GIUSEPPE, The''Age of Martyrs, Christianity from Diocletian to Constantine (James G . .McCann) _________________________ 423
SAALFELD, LAWRENCE J., Guidance and Counseling for Catholic
Schools (Francis C. Pfeiffer) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3 1 3
St. John's University Studies, Theological Series I, Mariological Institute Lectures (Charles P. Costello) _____________ ______ 432
SCHUSCHNIGG, KURT VON, International Law: An Introduction to the
Law of Peace (William J. Bosch) ___________
_________ 441
SCOTT, JOHN M., S.J., Wonderland (Joseph A. Galdon) _____ 196 !
SHALLOE, FRANCIS J., S.J., Apostleship of Prayer for High School
·
Students (Francis J . .Miles) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 90
SIEVERS, HARRY J., S.J., Benjamin Harrison, Hoosier Statesman
(Charles H. Metzger) ------------------------------------------------ --- 421
SLOYAN, GERARD S., ed., A Catholic Catechism, American Edition
(Edward V. Stevens) ___
_______________
___________________..,;_ _________ _____ 429
_____
SLOYAN, GERARD S., ed., Shaping the Christian Messtige: Essays in
·
Religious Instruction (John W. Donahue) _______
____________ 427
SMITH, VINCENT E., The General Science of Nature (James C.
gg
Carter) ---------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - STAUDINGER, JOSEF, S.J., Holiness of the Priesthood: Meditations
8
and Readings for Priests (Paul Osterle) ---------------------------- 19
SnERLI, JosEF, S.J., et al., Heart of the Saviour (A Symposium on
07
Devotion to the Sacred Heart) (Francisco F. Claver) -------- 2
79
SULLIVAN, KEVIN, Joyce Among the Jesuits (Joseph A. Slattery) -TERRUWE, A. A. A., M.D., Psychopathic Personality and Neurosis
109
(William W. Meissner) ------------------------------------------------------------ 46
THOMSON, PAUL VAN K., Why I am a Catholic (George R. Graziano)~
TRESE, LEO J., The Faith Explain ed (Francis J. Miles) _
________ ____ __
_
UNESCO, edited by, Humanism and Education in the East and
442
West (Anthony B. Olaguer) -------------------------------- - - - azt
VANN, GERALD, O.P., The Paradise Tree (Daniel F. X. Meenan) VAN ~TEENBERGHEN, FER~AND, ed., Psychology, Morality and Educa·
311
tton (Robert H. Sprmger) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
�VAWTER, BRUCE, C.M., The Bible in the Church (Richard E. Doyle) 328
WARD, BARBARA, Five Ideas that Change the World (William J.
Bosch) ---------------------------------------- 440
. WARNER, LANGDON, The Enduring Art of Japan (George R. Graziano)
___ 92
WEIGEL, GUSTAVE, S.J., Faith and Understanding in America (John
A. Rardon) ------------------------------------------- 425
WEIKL, LUDWIG, S.J., "Stir Up the Fire" (Reynaldo P. Lorredo) - 308
WEISER, FRANCIS X., S.J., Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs (George R. Graziano) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 104
WELLER, PHILIP T., S.T.D., (trans!.), Selected Easter Sermon of
Saint Augustine (Robert T. Rush) ______
_
__ 316
WIKENHAUSER, ALFRED, New Testament Introduction (Vincent T.
O'Keefe) ______
193
WIIDER, AMOS R., Theology and Modern Literature (J. Robert
Barth) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 105
YOUNG, WILLIAM J., S.J., (trans!.), Finding God in All Things:
Essays in Ignatian Spirituality, Selected from Christus (Arthur
Morgan) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 0 1
YouNG, WILLIAM J., ed., Letters of St. Ignatius of Loyola (Edmund
J. Stumpf) ------------------------------------------------- 418
ZUNDEL, MAURICE, In Search of the Unknown God (Edmund G.
Ryan) ------------------------------------------------------------------ 430
A Catholic Catechism [Herder and Herder] (Edward V. Stevens)_ 111
Marriage. A Fides Pictureback (Erwin G. Beck) ------------------- 107
Vocation Booklets, The Jesuits; Behind the S.J. Curtain; The Man
in the Jesuit Mask (James A. O'Brien) _________________________________ 443
GENERAL INDEX
ARTICLES
Acies Ordinata 248
Acta Conciliorum Oecumenicorum 146 151
Act~ Romana on the liturgy 238 ff. '
Actton Populaire 119
Airy, Sir George 353
Albareda, Abbot Anselm 222
Algue, Joseph 360 ff.
Allen, Paul L. 221
Alter, Archbishop Karl J. 219
America 119
Amy, E. Paul 67
And With The Morn 408
Apologia Pro Vita Sua 408
Aquaviva, Claude 143, 269 ff.
Araldo, Father 258
Archer, P. 361
Atlas Stellarum Variabilium 359
�Auctarium Ducaenum 141
Augustinus of Jansenius 145 ff.
Auslander, Joseph 10
Avery, Henry 345, 349
Baldwin, Francis G. 214
Baluze, Stephen 146, 150
Barbelin, Felix 384
Barber, Father 377
Baronius 143, 144
Barrett, Timothy 345
Barzaeus, Father 259
Batey, Jesse 401 ff.
Bauer, John 220
Beschter, Father 385
Bibliotheca veterum Patrum 141
Bigard Major Seminary- 231
Bigelow, Professor 359
Bini, Severinus 148
Bishop, Walter Warner 225
Bis Saeculari 268, 272
Blakely, Paul L. 408
Bolland, Father 140
Bollandists 139 ff.
Bollanus, Dominic 148
Borromeo, Cardinal Frederick 148
Boston College Library 13 ff.
Bourdaloue 8
Brand, M. E. 223
Breen, Aloysius A. 214
Breviarium of Nicephorus 144
Brockman, Hubert H. 215 ff.
Broderick, Michael S. 185
Brodrick, James 154, 257
Broet, Paschase 256
Brendel, Bishop 279 ff.
Brou, Alexander 27
Burke, James L. 230
Burke, Joseph A. 183
Byrns, John 181
Calveras, Father 28
Cana Movement 121
Can till on, Joseph 128
Carafa, Cardinal Antonio 148
Carbajal, Bernard 57
Carbajal, Facundo .G. 57 ff.
Carbajal, Joseph 58 ff.
Carroll, Archbishop 401 ff.
Carroll, Dr. Gerald 187
Carroll, Bishop John P. 279 ff.
..·
....·
�Catechetics in Missions of New France 37 ff.
Chamard, Father 59
Chronicon 238, 245
Cioffi, Paul L. 238
Codex Encyclius 147
Colombiere College 220 ff.
Corney, Father 117
Concilia Galliae 149
Conciliengeschichte 152
Connelly, Father Terence 10 ff.
Connor, Charles F. 67 ff.
Cossart, G. 149 ff.
Coster, Francis 269 ff.
Councils of England 149
Crabbe, Peter 147 ff.
Crawford, Dr. Finla 339
Criminale, Anthony 255
Crown Heights School 117
Cullen, William 345
Curley, James 353 ff.
Curley, Archbishop Michael J. 61
Curran, Francis X. 189
Cushing, Richard James Cardinal 3 ff., 11 ff.
Daly, Lowrie J. 222 ff.
D'Aste, Jerome 281
Davis, Thurston 343
De Cruce 142
De Emendatione Temporum 144
de Guibert, Joseph 30
De La Eigne 141
Delaney, John 120 ff.
Delchard, Antoine 24, 33 ff.
Delehaye, Father 140
de Montalto, Felix (Sixtus V) 256
de Neckere, Bishop 384
de Valera, Eamon 10
DeVico, Father 355 ff.
Dietrich, Joseph-Marie 189 ff.
Dindorf, W. 144
D!onysius The Areopagite 144
Discretion, Ignatian 131
Dobson, Philip 117
Dockery, Robert 187
Dogmata Theologica 144
Domenech, Father 259
Donnelly, J. P. 222
Dopfner, Cardinal Julius 165
Dosch, Delmar 218
Dublin, Thomas 220
�Dubuisson, Father 383, 395 ff.
Dudon, Paul 134 ff., 262
du Due, Fronto 140
Dunshie, Margaret 57
Dupin, L. E. 145
Dzierozynski, Father 377, 386
Eagle Bay Estate 64 ff.
Eccleston, Archbishop 403 ff.
Ehrbar, Carl 217
Ehrle, Cardinal Franz 226
Eicher, Michael 216 ff.
Eisenhower, Dwight David 10
England, Bishop John 388
Epitome, Rule 440 18
Erhard, Joseph 175
-~
Examen 24 ff.
Faber, Blessed Peter 135, 252 ff., 275
Fargis, George A. 359 ff.
Farrell, Allan P. 407
Favorite Newman Sermons 408
Feeney, Leonard 351
Fevre, Justin 158
Finn, Monsignor 237
Fisher, Father 65
Fisher, Henry P. 388
Fitzpatrick, Joseph P. 115
Flynn, Joseph 218Foley, Father 235
Forbes, Bishop 57
Fortier, Matthew 61
Foyaca, Father 129
..:
Frater, Robert 166 ff.
Frederick Novitiate 383 ff.
Freel, Edward T. 223
Frings, Cardinal 171
Frisbee, Father 345
Gagliardi, Father 32
Gallota, Dom 151
Galtier 145
Gannon, Robert I. 65
Garnier, Jean 145
Garnier, Julian 143, 145 ff.
Gatch, Philip 211
Gaudin, Harold 57
Gelin, Nicholas 218 .
General Congregation: 9th 17, 27th (1923) 240, 28th 119, 30th (195S)
247
General, Very Reverend Father 36, 191, 238 ff., 248
Georgetown University 379 ff.
..-
�Georgetown University Observatory 353 ft.
Gibbons, Cardinal 345
Gipprick, J. L. 361
Glennon, Cardinal 285
Grabmann, M. 145
Graham, Dom Aelred 131
Gretser, Jakob 142
Grivel, Father 393
Gould, Benjamin 361
Hageman, John 211
Hagemann, Edward 131
Hagen, John G. 358 ff.
Haggeney, Francis 218
Hardouin, Jean 144, 146 ff.
Harris, Robert M. 37
Hart, Luke E. 223
Harzheim 150
Haughey, John C. 247
Haverman, Father 392
Heard, Brother 385
Heart To Heart 408
Hedrick, John 361 ff.
Heerey, Archbishop Charles 230 ff.
Hefele 152
Henry, Professor 359
Henschen, Father 140
Hermes, Father 165
Herzog, Charles 345
Heyden, Francis 363 ff.
Hoffman, John 215
Roll, K. 144
Howard, Roy J. 24
Huet 146
Hughes, Thomas Caryl 60 ff.
Hurley, Archbishop 57
Hurons, Work Among 42 ff.
Hurter 155 ff.
Hyde, Leo B. 300
The Idea of a University 408
Indians, Characteristics of 39 ff.
lnformationes et N otitiae 117
Institute of Social Order 121 ff.
Institute of Social Studies 123
lnstructio Pro Assistentia Americae 412
Iparraguirre, Ignacio 32
Irwin, William Taylor 213
1· S. 0. Bulletin 119 ff.
Jaeger, W. 141
Jenkins, Thomas M. 353
�The iesuit Relations and Allied Documents 38
The Jesuits: A Self-Portrait 253
Jesuits. God and Matter 167
John, Monsignor 231
John XXIII, Pope 171
Johnson, Henry 394, 401 ff.
Jordan, John 230
Judge, Robert K. 376
Julian of Eclanum 145
Keashen, Joseph 187
Kehres, John 221
Kemper, Francis P. 218
Kenney, Peter 376 ff.
Kenrick, Bishop 389
Kiefer, Joseph 218
Kindly Light 408
King, Richard K. 64
Klaus, Georg 167
Knights of Columbus Vatican Film Library 222 ff.
Koch, H. 144
Kolkmeyer, Emeran J. 172
Krabinger 144
Krim, George 176
Kugler, John 211 ff.
Kugler, Mathias 211
Kuppens, Francis 281
Krukowski, Father 389
Labbe, Philip 146 ff.
Labuhn, Alfred J. 211
LaFarge, John 7
Lallemant, Louis 33 ff., 136
Lawton, Monsignor 230
Le Bachelet, Xavier-Marie 157 ff.
Leclerq 152
Ledochowski, Father General 116, 119 ff., 293 f.
Leunis, John 248 ff.
Libellus Fidei 145
Liber Diurnus Romanorum Pontificum 145
Liber Pontificalis 147
Linn, Henry 218
Lippert, Peter 253
Liturgical Movement, The Society And The 238
Loaisa, Garcia 148
Lofy, Carl A. 366
Loomis, Professor 353
Lord, Daniel 122 ff.
The Love of God 131
Loyola Retreat House 219
Mabillon 146
�Mahoney, Bernard 281
Mallon, Father 416
Malloy, Archbishop 411
Mansi 150
Manual of The Apostleship of Prayer 244
Manuscripta 228 f.
Martin, Leo 277 ff.
Martin, Thomas L. 278
Maryland Province, Foundation and Administration 376 ff.
Mary Osmonde, Sister 236
Matthew, Archbishop David 236
Matthews, Charles A. 185
Maurists 139 f.
McElroy, John 382
McGuire, Martin R. P. 139
McHugh, Michael 277
McMenamy, Francis X. 214
McNally, Paul A. 362 ff.
McSherry, William 376 ff.
Mediator Dei 243 f.
Mehok, William J. 293
Memoriale of Blessed Peter Faber 135
Menzel, Father 166 ff.
Mercati, Cardinal 222
Mercator, Marius 146
Merlin, Jacques 147
Migne 141
Milford Novitiate 211 ff.
Missions, Jesuit 37 ff.
Mitchell, William 216 ff.
Montfaucon 141, 151
Moore, Thomas J. 218
Miildner, Father 166 f.
Mullan, Elder 281
Mulledy, Thomas 387, 381 ff., 400 ff.
Murphy, Gerard 128
Murphy, Robert 221
Murray, Dom Gregory 341
Mystici Corporis 244
Nadal, Jerome 257 ff.
Nancarrow, John 211
National Institute of Social Order 116
Naughton, James 222
Neale, Bishop Leonard 401
}{eenan, John 215
~:~~n, John Henry 28, 408
11
' cohm, Dominic 148
}{iceron 154
}{igeria, Catholicism in 230
.I
�O'Brien, John A. 238
O'Callaghan, Jeremiah J. 216
O'Ceallaigh, Sean 10
O'Connell, C. J. 407
O'Connell, Daniel M. 407 ff.
O'Connell, Ellen C. 410
O'Hern, Francis 216
O'Mailia, Miles J. 61
O'Malley, Francis 183
Omnipotentis Dei 248, 277
Ordinatio de Minervali 381
O'Rourke, John Joseph 415
Orr, Louise 213
Palladino, Father 281
Papebroch, Father 140, 143
Papini, Giovanni 138
Patristic Scholarship in the Society of Jesus 139
Patrologia Graeca 141
·
Patterson, Jim 64
Patterson, Joseph M. 64
Patterson, Laurence K. 115, 118
Patterson, Mrs. 64
Petau, Denys (Dionysius Petavius) 142, 144 f.
Petavius See: Petau, Denys
Phillips, Edward C. 362
Pickering, Edward 358
Piet, Father 289
Pius XI, Pope 116
Pius XII 272
Pius XII Memorial Library 229
Pontificial Biblical Institute 415 ff.
Poullier, Father 286
Power, Edward J. 413
Power, Josephine 278
Power, Sarah 281
Power, Tom C. 278
Present Position of Catholics in England 408
Prima Primaria 251, 263 ff., 276 ff. 251
Przywara, Eric 132
Quentin, Dom 149 ff.
Quilty, Father 65
Rahner, Hugo 134, 249
Ratio Studiorum Superiorum (1941) (1954) 232, 243
Reilly, Dr. 292
Reinert, Paul C. 222 f.
Reinsch, Gustave 175
Relatio Itineris 378
Researches in Electrical Rheometry 356
Reuter, Father 166 ff.
~-
�Reviiie, Father 59
Ribadeneira, Pedro 135
Rigge, W. F. 360
Roche, Andrew 216
Rooney, Edward B. 230, 237
Roothaan, Father General John Philip 36, 377 ff.
Rosweyde, Father 140
Roubik, Joseph 218
Roziere 146
Sacchini, Father 251, 268
Sacred Heart Novitiate, Milford, Ohio 211 ff.
St. Anthony 133
St. Basil The Great 141
St. Bernard 133
St. Francis Borgia 27
St. Francis Xavier 28, 32
St. Gregory of Nyssa 141
St. Ignatius on Examen 24 ff., on Discretion 131 ff., Relation to Sodality
247 ff.
St. John Chrysostom 140 ff.
St. John's Literary Institute 382 ff.
St. Pius X. 238, 280
St. Robert Bellarmine, De Controversiis 153 ff.
St. Thomas 133
Sampson, William P. 238
Sandheinrich, George 172 ff.
Savile 141
Scaliger 144
Schmidt, Walter 215
Schmidt, William J. 219
Schmitt, Denis E. 220 ff.
Schwackenberg, Francis 215, 219
Schwartz, E. 146
Secchi, Angelo 355 ff.
Second Provincial Council of Baltimore (1833) 388 ff.
Sestini, Benedict 355 ff.
Shanahan, Bishop 237
Sheehan, Pat 231
Sickel 146
Sierp, Walter 132
S~rmond, Jacques 142, 149
Sixtus V, Pope 256
Smith, Father 117
Social Apostolate 115 ff
Social Order 123
.
Sodality, The 247 ff.
~ohon, F. 362
Sommervogel, Father 140
Pelman, Henry 149
i
�Spiritual Book Associates 410 ff.
Spiritual Exercises and The Sodality, The 272 ff.
Spiritual Journal of St. Ignatius 29
Steffen, Edward 174
Stierli, Josef 248, 269, 272
Stiglmayr, Father 144
Stonestreet, Charles 353
Strohaver, George 345
Sturzo, Don Luigi 349
Sullivan, Leo D. 219 ff.
Summers, Walter 345
Surius, Lawrence 147 ff.
Talbot, Francis X. 410
Taylor, Archbishop Leo 234 ff.
Temporal Coadjutors, Assignments of 300 ff.
Third Degree of Humiljty 366 ff.
Third Provincial Council' of Baltimore 389
Thirolf, William 216
Thomas, John 128
Thompson, Francis 14 ff.
Thornton, Father 282
Tierney, Richard Henry 344
Toland, Terrence 339
Townsend, Edward B. 212
Van Rossum, Theodore 17 4
Vatican Film Library 222 ff.
Vatican Library 223 ff.
Vespre, Father 394, 403
Villaret, Emile 258 ff.
Waldschmidt, Chris 211
Walker, Ara F. 221
Walsh, Laurence A. 6~
~·
Wernert, Bernard 221
West, John 212
West, Rebecca 212
White, Andrew 378
White, Bishop 280
Whitefield, Archbishop 387, 402
Widera, Francis 215
Wilkins 150
Wilson, Francis 219
Woods, Father 289
Work of the Bollandists Through Three Centuries 140, 152
Xavier Labor School 117, 120
Young, Aloysius 386
Young, William J. '218
Zeij, James 241
Zosimus, Pope 145
Zwinge, Father 394
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVIII, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1959
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY 1959
THE LATEST FOUNDER ------------------------------------------------------------- 2
Cardinal Cushing
FATHER TERENCE CONNOLLY'S GOLDEN JUBILEE----------------- 10
Jubilee Chant ------------------------------------------------------------- 10
Joseph Auslander
Cardinal Cushing's Tribute ----------------------------------------------- 11
VIRTUE SURPASSING MEDIOCRITY -------------------------------------------- 17
Hugh Kelly
EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE ------------------------------------------------:_______ 24
R. J. Howard
MISSIONARY CATECHETICS IN NEW FRANCE ------------------------------ 37
Robert M. Harris
FATHER FACUNDO CARBAJAL ____________________________________________________ :____ 57
Harold Gaudin
FATHER THOMAS CARYL HUGHES ------------------------------------------------ 60
Laurence A. Walsh
FATHER CHARLES F. CONNOR------------------------------------------------------------ 67
E. Paul Amy
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS ---------------------------------------------------------- 77
�CONTRIBUTORS
Richard James Cardinal Cushing is Archbishop of Boston.
Mr. Joseph Auslander, American poet, is author of Cyclops' Eye and
The Unconquerables.
Father Hugh Kelly (Irish Province) is Instructor of Tertians at Rath·
farnham.
Father Roy J. Howard (New Orleans Province) is doing postgraduate
work in philosophy at· .the University of Louvain.
Mr. Robert M. Harris, deacon of the Diocese of Brooklyn, is looking
forward to ordination to the priesthood at an early date.
Father Harold Gaudin (New Orleans Province) is Pastor of the Gesu,
Miami, Florida.
Father Laurence A. Walsh (New York Province) is Provost of Ford·
ham University.
Father E. Paul Amy (New York Province) is a member of the Mission
Band with headquarters at St. Francis Xavier's, New York City.
-· .
·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock.
Maryland, under the Aet of March 3, 1879.
Suboeription: Five Dollars Yearlf
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�The Latest . Founder
St. Paul hesitated to call himself an apostle because he
became one after the Ascension of the Lord. He contented
himself with being called "the least of the apostles, not worthy
to be called an apostle," because of the time lag between his
calling and that of the others.
With such exalted example to rebuke me, I certainly hardly
dare accept, without great reserve, the title of a "Founder"
of the Society of Jesus at this late date in the history of the
Society. It is now four full centuries since St. Ignatius and his
little company founded the Society, and much holy water has
passed over the fonts since then! If Paul was embarrassed to
be called an apostle even within the lifetime of the original
Twelve, I need not feign unworthiness to be called a "Founder"
four centuries after the work of the Jesuits got underway.
Perhaps I can meet the situation by paraphrasing St. Paul and
insisting that while I am "the latest and the least of the
Founders, not worthy to be called a Founder," nonetheless,
"by the grace of the Society I am what I am," and I rejoice to
have even this tardy tie with a work of religion so great with
glory for God as is that of the Society of Jesus.
Even the honorary title of a Founder impels one to reflect
on what he would have done if he had been around when the
work began, and it impels me to imagine what would be my
thoughts these four hundred years later if I were the real
Founder of the Society, St. Ignatius. What things would I say
to You if I were really the Founder? If, by throwback in history, I could re-capture the days when the work was beginning,
what same objectives would I seek? What means to these
Would I still choose? What things would I now change?
-
Address by Richard James Cardinal Cushing at the ceremony in
;hich His Eminence was declared a founder in the New England
rovince of the Society of Jesus, Boston College High School, November
l 6, 1958.
·3
�4
LATEST FOUNDER
The dominant thought that I have, as I try to imagine my.
self by privilege in the place of Founder that belongs by right
only and forever to St. Ignatius, is that I'd do it all again. The
world is still very like that which Ignatius knew. Certainly
human nature and the ways of God's grace remain unchanging
and unchanged. The formulae by which Ignatius sought to
win the world for Christ and in accordance with which the
Society has labored these four centuries are still valid; it
would be difficult to find in them anything calling for substantial revision, impossible to find elsewhere anything more
consistent with constant human need or abiding divine purpose
as God gives us to understand either.
Vows and Needs
Indeed, if I might exercise the role of a real Founder, setting
the objectives of the Society and selecting the means of their
attainment as did St. Ignatius, I would probably urge a more
widespread application and acceptance in our day of the
principal things St. Ignatius emphasized to his Society in his
day. Take, for example, the basic vows of the religious life of
the Jesuit, vows usually thought of as being so narrowly identi·
fied with the Society as to be its characteristics. I would seek
to persuade our generation that, far from being esoteric or in
any way highly special, the vows of the Jesuit correspond to
the common spiritual needs of individuals and of all society,
and include the spiritual forces needed for the service of the
Church in our day not only by the select few, but by the
universal company of her children.
The vow of poverty takes on special formalities, special
sanctions and special merit in the religious life; but it is
concerned with values and motives essential to the Christian
spirit as such. If I were starting the Society of Jesus all over
again, I would, of course, seek to develop an elite with a
special insight into the necessity of religious poverty; but I
would strive to make them, in turn, the preachers of the spirit
of poverty to all their contemporaries in the life of the
Church. It was not to religious alone, but to all His people
that Christ addressed the words which are the ultimate inspira·
tion of the vow of poverty: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for
theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven!
�LATEST FOUNDER
5
Poverty of spirit could not be more needed than it is in
our day. It is difficult to determine which of two alternatives
constitutes the greater temptation to us, excess of riches or
excess of need. Both conditions find us lacking in that spirit
of poverty which would be adequate to our spiritual protection
against the temptations of either riches or destitution. In an
acquisitive society, such as ours indubitably is, the estimation
of all life's values from the angle of acquisition and possession,
is fatal to the spiritual health of a people, whether they are
privileged or unprivileged, successful or economic failures,
materially rich or materially poor. They are bankrupt unless
they have the poverty of spirit which is concerned not with
whether we possess things or not, but whether we depend upon
them or not, for our peace of mind, for our resignation to the
will of God.
Poverty for All
Such spiritual independence, such poverty of spirit, whether
we have much or little, is not for one class alone and certainly
not for one section of the Church alone. All Christians must
have it, as all Christians must have whatever else is needed
to possess the Kingdom of Heaven. In the spirit of poverty lies
the key to the difference between spiritual slavery and spiritual
freedom, and all Christians are called to spiritual freedom,
the freedom of the sons of God. It is not difficult in our day
to be either rich or poor; details of life, completely beyond our
individual control, can project us suddenly into wealth or suddenly into bankruptcy. Cycles of industry, changes of government, the fortunes of war, new inventions or old stupidities
make millions into princes one day and public charges the next.
It is easy, relatively easy, to be rich or poor in our civilization.
. But what is difficult, and what is necessary to the Christian,
Is to be able to accept either, the responsibilities of riches or
the privations of poverty, in the religious spirit which is the
substance of the vow of poverty. This is not merely the differ:~ce ~etween sanctity and sin, whether the avaricious sin of
b e rich or the angry sin of the poor; it is also the difference
etween sanity and nervous breakdown in a generation where
Peace of mind has come to depend so greatly on accomplishments and possessions.
�6
LATEST FOUNDER
Hence, were I a real Founder, I would urge you not only to
make and to keep the vow of poverty, as Ignatius urged his
company to do, but I would ask that the exemplification and
elucidation of the evangelical spirit of poverty be a major
part of your contribution to the social teaching and spiritual
direction of our generation.
Like things might be said about the vow of chastity. This
vow, too, has special obligations, sanctions and merit in the
formality by which it binds the religious. But at the heart of
its content is an evangelical spirit which cannot possibly be
limited to religious or even to a spiritual elite within the
Church or the world. ThEi spirit of chastity must carry order,
meaning, direction, consolation and peace not only to the
virginal living in the world, but also to spouses. Christians do
not number those who take vows of chastity and are, therefore, chaste, and those who have no such vows and, therefore,
may live without restraint. All are called to lives of chastity
within the different states of life, the married state, that of
youth and maidenhood, widowhood, the priestly state and
the state of lay celibacy. It was to all Christians, all His followers, not to the religious alone, that Christ said: Blessed
are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.
Spirit of Chastity
Were I a real Founder of the Society in our day, I would bid
its members to take full advantage of all the -spiritual tech·
niques and stratagems by which St. Ignatius sought to make
the vow of chastity so radiant a jewel in the crown of the
Society. But I would warn you against· any suggestion that
there is something esoteric, again, or highly initiate about the
spirit of chastity. Such a suggestion is only too readily ac·
cepted by a generation surrounded on every side by the
sensual spirit of the world; What is needed, and what the real
Founder of the Society would urge in our day, is the widest,
boldest, most outspoken and most universal possible preaching
of that spirit of chastity, which religious vows dramatize,
but which is indispensable to the preservation of every Jove
worthy of the name. ·
And above all, if I were starting the work and teaching of
the Society of Jesus all over again, I would urge that the Ies-
�LATEST. FOUNDER
7
sons of obedience, so stressed by St. Ignatius, be inculcated
in maximum degree in the life of every Christian, not as the
exclusive glory of the disciplined few. The Society of Jesus
has rightly been proud of its history of sublime obedience;
the late Holy Father could offer no prayer more solicitous for
the Society than the prayer he offered that its religious
obedience would remain for all times its hallmark and its
protection. But, once again, it seems to me that more of the
spirit of obedience, dramatized by the religious vow, should
be made the universal, common patrimony of the Christian
formation of persons and people. Spiritual obedience is the
tool by which meekness and humility are fashioned. Meekness
is spiritual power; humility is freedom from illusion and the
madness of self-conceit. These are not the privileged treasures
of the religious; they are the indispensable requirements of
sanctity and sanity for all the children of men, certainly for
all the children of God. It was not to religious alone, but to all
His followers that Jesus said: Learn of Me, for I am meek and
humble of heart and you shall find health for your souls!
Wherefore, again I say: Keep not to yourselves the ideals
and objectives of your mighty vows, but make it your business to preach these to all our generation as the true source of
the spiritual energies it so sorely needs and so vainly seeks
elsewhere.
False Obedience
Be not deceived by those who say that obedience has no
attraction for our generation. True, the concept of obedience is
not easily popularized in our day. As Father LaFarge remarks,
people do not crowd by the thousands to offer bouquets to or
shake hands with a man who has performed an act of obedience. True, individuals get into the headlines, the scenarios and
the history books more often by performing acts of disobedience and defiance than by performing acts of obedience. But
this does not mean that those who aspire to teach spiritual
obedience and the dignity of religious obedience are not needed
and will not be successful in our generation. The past two
generations have seen, to our dismay, how readily hundreds
of millions of our contemporaries are caught up, enthusiastically and effectively, in false mysticism involving absolute
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LATEST FOUNDER
obedience. The despotism of Hitler was based on a cult of
obedience. So was that of the Fascists in all the various forms
that that cult of obedience has taken in the Mediterranean
world and in Latin America. Mankind has never seen a cult of
obedience so disciplined, so arbitrary or so effective as that by
which Communism, national and international, has established
its control over the minds and wills of millions. Only Satan
can be the source of the fallacy, so widespread among the devout, that the modern world will accept anything but the
concept of obedience. The fact is that no generation has rendered obedience so unquestioning and so complete as that
which lines up the serfs of, the Kremlin for their Red Square
parades, or which queues--up the citizens of democracy in the
lines whicb wait for London buses, or which form to file income tax returns in America.
The further fact is that religious obedience, obedience in
the spirit and pattern of Jesus Christ, need only be properly
preached and attractively exemplified to come as a needed
source of strength and, indeed, a welcome relief to a generation
disenchanted with false obedience to men with no ultimate
right to ask an allegiance to which Christ alone has full and
proper title-the religious obedience of which Christ Himself
gave the perfect example and which the Society of Jesus has
made the prime source of its strength. That spirit of obedience
should be more widely inculcated and its graces should be more
generously shared.
~· ·.
Finally, were I a real Founder of the Society and called upon
to say today what I would do if the work were starting again,
I would urge that the Society of Jesus seek to communicate
to its students and all to whom it preaches or teaches in any
way, something of the Jesuit understanding of how the divine
whole is greater than any human part-and the Jesuit capacity for elasticity in meeting the changing needs of the
unchanging Church.
Purposes of God
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On the first point l would strive to inspire every Catholic
man and woman, every Christian boy and girl, with the
salutary doctrine expressed by Bourdaloue in these words by
which he summed up an essential Ignatian concept: "When
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Courtesy The Boston Globe
RICHARD JAMES CARDINAL CUSHING
Archbishop of Boston
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you work for yourselves, since you yourselves are small, everything is small which you do; but when you concern yourselves
for God, everything that you do has in it something of His
divinity and infinite worth." This is a lesson also badly needed
in our times; only the recognition of a relationship to the plan
and the purposes of God can possibly give significance to the
otherwise isolated, uninspiring, scattered things that men are
called to do.
In pleading for the spread throughout all the family of
believers of the Jesuit spirit of elasticity in meeting the
changing needs of the unchanging Church, I would point out,
with special gratitude in this sesquicentennial year of the
Church in New England, how this characteristic gift of the
Society of Jesus has contributed to the history of the Faith
in our parts. I would recall the historic circumstances and the
personal decisions which brought John Carroll and his fellow
Jesuit students to America in times seemingly so dark, yet
actually bright with the promise of God. I would recall the
strange providence that worked through the personal decisions
and family histories of the men like the Fenwicks and particularly the Jesuit who became Boston's second bishop. I would
recall how these men, so to say, swung with the times, keeping
the old objectives constantly clear, but choosing in every generation their means and instruments in the light of the new
circumstances. And I would urge, above all, that the special
spirit which disposes the Jesuits to place their men at the disposition of the Holy Father for work wherever in the world
they may be needed, become a characteristic spirit of us all in
the changing, revolutionary but providential times. Instead of
treating this special relationship to the Holy Father as a
Privileged disposition of an elite few, I would try to make it
the attitude of mind and heart of every Catholic student leaving college, every priest being ordained, every baptized person
eager to play a part in the modern missionary life of the
Church and conquest of the world for Christ.
In a word, if I were a real Founder of the Society, if I were
St. Ignatius looking back across 400 years, I would do it all
again-the same things, only more; with the same spirit, but
that same spirit shared with millions and spread to all it
could reach-to the greater glory of God!
�Golden Jubilee Of Father
Terence Connolly, S. J.
Jubilee Song
For fifty fervent years your warm heart round
Two filial devotions have been bound:
A selfless consecration to our Lord,
A love of him who fled the Heavenly Hound.
If only he who fled Him, if but he
Could chant for us your>Golden Jubilee,
Gregorian syllables would celebrate
Our Lady's-and your soul's-Nativity.
Accept this feeble effort of my own,
This heartfelt, if unworthy, orison:
You have no need of song who in your soul
Hear Heaven itself declare, "Well done! Well done!"
Joseph Auslander
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Editor's Note
Fifty years in the service of God and of souls do not pass unnoticed
in heaven or on earth. On the occasion of his Golden Jubilee in the
Society, September 8, 1958, Father Terence Connolly received the pray·
ers and good wishes of his fellow Jesuits and of his maey lriends. Among
congratulations from many quarters was a cablegram from Sean
O'Ceallaigh, President of Ireland: "Please accept my warm congratula·
tions on the happy occasion of your jubilee." Eamon de Valera, Pri!lle
Minister of the same country, recalled: "We remember with gratitude
your long devotion to Irish culture and pray that you may be spared
many years to continue your labors as a priest and as a scholar."
In his own country, too, the beloved librarian of Boston College
was not overlooked. President Eisenhower wrote:
"As a teacher for half a century, you have given much to the
minds and hearts of your students. As a scholar of first rank, you
have contributed to the literary treasures of our Nation. It is a
privilege to send you my personal congratulations and best wishes.''
The following tribute to Father Connolly, Jesuit scholar and priest
of God, was delivered at the Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving by the
Archbishop of Boston, now Richard James Cardinal Cushing.
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�Cardinal Cushing's Tribute
The vocation of a Jesuit priest has followed traditionally
in the pathways of scholarship, enlightened by prayer and
safeguarded by a regime of religious discipline. From the
earliest days of his association with the Society, the young
Jesuit receives the formation of the classics. He is encouraged
to read widely and discriminatingly the works of the great
masters of antiquity. He is taught to measure the value of the
literary productions of his own day by their conformity with
standards set in the past by those whose names have survived
the relentless sifting of literary criticism.
The Jesuit's early studies in the humanities are followed by
long years of philosophy and theology, during which he discovers the principles which afford explanation of the nature,
origin and destiny of the universe, and raises the eyes of
natural reason to vistas of truth laid open by divine revelation. The Jesuit is thus in a position to become a scholar in
the truest sense of the word. He is not merely one who has a
mastery of detail or who can win the respect of the learned
world by his erudition and his sense of literary perfection. He
brings the particular field in which he claims competence into
proper relation with the ultimate goals of scholarship; he
avoids the senseless exaggerations of those who make learning
itself the supreme value of human existence. He can bring
the fruits of his study from the ivory towers of scholarly research into the dreary plains of every day life. He can communicate to the souls of ordinary men the love of truth which
has become the guiding rule of his own life. He can inspire
in those who gather around his professor's chair a zeal for
scholarly perfection which will move them towards the ideals
of true Christian humanism.
No field of scholarly pursuit is alien to the interests of the
hell-trained Jesuit. At whatever level he carries on his work,
. e endeavors to bring about a successful integration of the
Ideals of education with the existing needs of those who· are
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to be educated. Thus we find in the true Jesuit scholar one
who can be a scientist without making science itself his
philosophy of life, one who can be proficient in the arts without
divorcing art from its necessary relation with religious and
moral truths, one who can master the bewildering details of
economics and sociology without forgetting that these subjects
deal with the periphery of human activity and require to be
brought under the saving control of philosophical and theological wisdom.
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Scholar and Priest
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We pay honor today tQ. a scholar and priest of the Society
of Jesus who has attained world-wide eminence in his chosen
field while remaining both a zealous priest and an exemplary
religious. Father Terence Connolly has never deviated from
the direction in which his steps were turned fifty years ago
when he placed himself under the standard of the militant
and indomitable Ignatius of Loyola. His career has brought
him into unusual relations with scholars of all faiths and all
varieties of national culture. He has won the respect and
esteem not only of.. those who can understand and sympathize
with his own ideals of scholarship, but also of those with
whom his association has been casual and passing rather than
deeply personal.
Terence Connolly was born in the nearby town of North
Attleboro and received his early education in the public schools
of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Fifty years ago this month, as
a young man of twenty, he entered the Society of Jesus. His
training as a Jesuit followed the pattern which moulds the man
into the disciplined subject of his superiors and the cultured
gentleman into the soldier of Christ. His natural inclination
towards literary pursuits was evident from the very begin·
ning, but it was kept in due subordination to the exacting demands of the novitiate and the broadening influences of Jesuit
community life.
For many years, both as a scholastic and as a priest, Father
Connolly was professor of English at Fordham and George·
town Universities. In 1924 he came to Boston College to begin
the long term of distinguished service in the department of
English which has continued up to the present time. He was
�FATHER CONNOLLY
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one of the early members of the Faculty of the Graduate
School of Boston College, in which he served for almost twenty
years as head of the department of English. Those who have
attended his classes and carried on special studies under his
direction can bear witness to Father Connolly's competence
in his chosen field and to his warm and personal friendship
for all who gave themselves seriously to the work which he was
able to help them to accomplish. During these long years of
dedicated scholarly activity, Father Connolly developed the
particular interests which have inspired the work which he
continues to be associated with at Boston College.
Many of us are old enough to remember the limited facilities
of the library around which the students of Boston College
carried on their studies during the early years of the new
foundation at University Heights. As we compare the small
room in the Tower Building, so difficult of access and so lacking in equipment, with the magnificent edifice in which hundreds of students toil ceaselessly at the present time, we may
pause today to pay tribute to our honored jubilarian for the
part which he has played in making Boston College Library
so serviceable and so richly endowed.
Library
Father Connolly has grown old and weary in his efforts as
Librarian of Boston College to raise the library to a stature
worthy of the great university to which the modest college of
yesterday has grown. Anyone who has worked in a library
knows the disappointments and frustrations, the endless struggles against material limitations, the painstaking search for
necessary and useful tools of research that are involved in the
building up of a library from a miscellaneous collection of
unwanted and superfluous shelf-fillers to a well-stocked and
accurately catalogued center for discriminating and productive
r~search. Under Father Connolly's intelligent and untiring
direction, the library of Boston College has rendered invaluable service not only to the undergraduates, who find in it
~bundant materials for collateral reading, but more particuarly to the graduate students for whose specialized require~ents an efficiently functioning research center is so inIspensable. The test of a good library is the extent to which
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FATHER CONNOLLY
its facilities are ·sought by visiting scholars whose needs can.~
not be satisfied in other institutions. If Boston College Library
is meeting this test with ever-increasing success, it is because
Father Connolly and his associates have labored so strenuously and with such great personal sacrifice to meet the demands of the modern intellectual world. ·
Father Connolly's greatest single achievement as Librarian
of Boston College has been to bring to the library, and subsequently to expand, the extraordinary collection of original
documents connected with the literary career of Francis
Thompson. Only one who had learned to love Thompson and
to discern beyond the tragic circumstances in which he lived
and died the soul of a poet and the deeply buried yearnings
of a saint could have dedicated himself to the long years of
labor which the compiling of the Thompson Collection has
involved. The theologian in Father Connolly quickly grasped
the resemblance between the plaintive and exquisitely phrased
yearnings of Thompson and the bold and brilliant revelations
of a great mystic like St. Bernard. Thus Father Connolly bas
made a major contribution to the rescue of Francis Thompson
from the oblivion into which he could easily have fallen, and
to his proper evaluation as one of the great figures in the
history of Christian spirituality.
Inspiration
It has been my privilege to have known Father Connolly as
a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston over the past quarter of
a century. I have seen him in action not only in the scholarlY
setting of his position as professor and librarian at Boston
College but as a willing and loyal subject of his superiors in the
broader areas of labor which fall to the lot of the pastor of
souls. Father Connolly's influence over his associates has been
exerted not only on their literary pursuits, but on the more
significant and more eternally valuable yearnings of their
spiritual life. Those who have been drawn to him because he
was a man of learning have remained to admire in him the
man of God in whose priestly and religious life they might
find guidance and inspiration in their own yearnings to folloW
the impulses of God's grace.
�FATHER CONNOLLY
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· Like anyone else who has undertaken great projects in
God's name, Father Connolly has experienced the struggle
which must ensue when personal preferences come into conflict with established policies and with the demands of the
common good. Let it be said to his credit that he has .never
wavered in his loyalty to the Church, to his religious community and to the great College with which he has been so
closely identified. He has sought the crown of justice rather
than the fleeting rewards of personal glorification. Always
modest and unassuming, his greatest joy has been to work
quietly and helpfully with those who have shared in his
literary interests.
Simple Priest
Father Connolly's editions of Francis Thompson's works
are well known, as is his edition of the mystical poetry of
Coventry Patmore. His studies on Chaucer and on the literary
figures of the Elizabethan Period are of recognized value.
Yet, he disdains the fame of an author and thinks of himself
rather as the plodding professor, striving to make available
to others the fruit of his own study. Perhaps he might prefer
even to be known as a simple priest, living day by day in the
shadow of his Master. It is as a priest and a religious that we
salute him today.
The qualities that brighten his priesthood are so obvious
that they will be immediately recognized by those who have
known him casually or constantly. Intellectually honest, he
hounded the truth in every work he adopted, in every duty to
Which he was assigned. Eager to diffuse the Christlike approach to all things with which God endowed him, he became
a father and friend to many a confrere. Young Jesuits, now
old in the service of their Society, can look back to the difficulties of their early ministry and recall the kindness, encouragement, and protective guidance they received from him
W~om they affectionately called "Terry." He is allergic to
Pain wherever he finds it. Friendship to him meant service to
~~hers. Love to him meant loyalty to others. He is incapable of
Isloyalty to anyone or anything he loves-from his fellow
llian to his country and his God, from the bards and saints of
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FATHER CONNOLLY
Ireland to the minstrels of the Kingdom of God throughout
the world.
A line from Francis Thompson reaches the core of his
Christlike charity:"All can feel the God that smites
But, oh, how few the God that loves."
He never measures his love of God in extent or in fullness.
It is his calling card to the rich and the poor-the beggar and
the thief. With the simplicity of a child, he could accept and
enjoy the hospitality of the elite and preside in a kitchen of
poverty in such a way that his humble hosts felt that he was
the guest of royalty. To tlie strong, he presented the needs of
the weak; to the wealthy, their obligations to the poor. In
the suffering and the sorrowful, he saw Christ and, like a Good
Samaritan, he served them. His secret efforts in their behalf
are known to few, because, after the manner of the saints,
his charities were done in the night and the early morning.
At six in the morning he has climbed four flights of stairs in
a tenement block of the South End of Boston to offer the Holy
Mass for three little nuns whose vocation is to live and work
in the hovels and tfie workshops of the poor.
May he continue to edify his associates by his religiously
inspired devotion to his work and his Christlike dedication
to his priesthood. His wisdom is glorious and will never fade
away; his charity is Christlike and shall endure "forever. We
salute him with affection and congratulations and prayerful
mementos on this blessed occasion of his Golden Jubilee.
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�Virtue Surpassing Mediocrity
Hugh Kelly, S.J.
The Ninth General Congregation which met in 1649 and
elected Father Piccolomini as General in succession to Father
Carrafa, was asked to fix a standard of virtue by which to
judge those considered worthy of solemn profession or final
vows. The standard for learning had already been fixed by the
Seventh Congregation in 1615. It was then reasonable to demand that there should be laid down a definite criterium by
which to judge virtue also. But the question was not an easy
one. Intellectual qualifications are fairly measurable; and
may be estimated by examinations or by written work. But
what weight or measure or yardstick is there for virtue?
Virtue is such a comprehensive and subtle thing to judge.
It includes numerous elements, many of which are very elusive.
What special aspects should be singled out? What order or
precedence should there be among them? How could one estimate with any precision, for example, humility or a spirit of
prayer, or charity, or familiarity with Christ? What can one
know with any exactness of the inner life of another? And
is it not the interior life that is really being judged?
To enable the reader of these pages to get an idea of the
peculiar difficulty of this task, I suggest that he stop reading
for a minute and ask himself how he would set about establishing a standard or rule of the virtue of another that would
satisfy two conditions: first that it should be practical and
then that it should be true. A good many ideas will present
themselves at once in a disordered way: prayer, mortification,
devotion, obedience, and so on. But he will find it difficult to
isolate a small number that can be arranged in a pattern and
he will find it still more difficult to make them sufficiently
definite to be applied so as to give an estimate that is just and
representative.
The commission for spiritual matters appointed by the Con~egation to consider the question, drew up a list of three
Indications which they considered as adequate to furnish the
required criterium. The standard they proposed was approved
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MEASURE OF VIRTUE
by the Congregation and generally accepted; it was reapproved
by the Twenty-Seventh Congregation, left unchanged by the
present, by the Thirtieth, and has its definite place in the
Epitome as No. 440. It states that all who are to be advanced to
final vows are required to surpass mediocrity in virtue and that
the following must be considered as such: 1. those who regu.
larly and for the most part, in ordinary matters, act according
to the demands of virtue (secundum exigentiam virtutis) and
give the hope that they will act in the same way in more
difficult circumstances should such occur; 2. those who avoid
small defects conscientiously (religiose) but who, if at times
they slip into them, willingly and humbly accept reprimands
and penances, and correct their faults; 3. those who in the
daily exercise of virtues give satisfaction to both superiors
and those of the house (domesticis).
A person reading such a list for the first time might easily
find it disappointing. It seems to set a rather poor standard.
There is nothing about prayer or interior life, nothing even
about obedience or zeal for souls or the desire of perfection.
It would be granted at once that the standard is practical, that
it fulfils one of the required conditions. But does it fulfill the
other and the more important one, that it be adequate and
just? Does it not seem to ask too little for the occasion? We
shall consider this objection later; for the moment we shall
make an analysis of the three signs; and the.'analysis will
perhaps answer the objection.
The first sign demands that a person act in ordinarY
circumstances secundum exigentiam virtutis, according to the
demands of virtue. There is no question of any one specific
virtue; rather there is an appeal to a general and fairly definite
standard of behaviour, to act like a virtuous person, like one
who has had a religious training. The ordinary events of life,
from day to day, present occasions for a display of solid,
genuine virtue. Those little accidents, demands, events, mis·
takes, misunderstandings, which are a part of the daily round
of a religious life, in what spirit do I meet them? Is it as a
virtuous, trained religious, as one who is self-controlled, ob·
servant, mortified, considerate, charitable, unselfish? Or is it
as a purely natural man, as a worldling, as one who is resentful, impatient, undisciplined, or one who is vain, touchY·
�MEASURE OF VffiTUE
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frivolous? The standard appealed to is sufficiently definite and
clear. How would a virtuous religious act in these circumstances? What would one except to find in a religious coming
to the end of a long period of training?
"But there is question only of ordinary, easy things, which
could not reveal any deep, solid virtue. Surely true virtue needs
something more strenuous for its testing." The objection is
obvious but is really not serious. The more formidable difficulties do not often occur; if they are a necessary standard for
judgment one might have to wait for years or for a lifetime
to come up against them, so as to be able to make an estimate
by them. A heavy cross, a painful trial, in the shape of public
disgrace or signal failure, severe physical or moral suffering,
a religious persecution, a grave accusation-these things do
not occur in many lives and if the judgment of virtue depended on them, then in most cases, it simply could not be
made. But still such serious circumstances are not left quite out
of the reckoning. The practice of virtue in easier conditions is
a preparation for the meeting worthily of more serious trials;
the power and habit of virtuous action is all the time being
strengthened. Hence the test adds that should more exacting
trials present themselves, there is a good prospect that a
man who has been virtuous in ordinary conditions will meet
them in the same manner.
Under this first test we can discern, only very imperfectly
disguised, one of the fundamental principles of St. Ignatius,
the control of inordinate affections, the acquired indifference
to all created things demanded in the Foundation. In his
spiritual system it is the necessary preliminary to a true election of a state of life and still more so for the carrying out of
the decision made in the election.
The second sign, the avoidance of small faults, is more
revealing of the interior life. It is simply taken for granted
that the trained religious will avoid greater faults. There is
here not a matter precisely of venial sin, but of faults or imPerfections. The person being judged will avoid such faults
religiose, conscientiously; will not make little of being greedy
or impatient or bad tempered, or selfish or bitter in judgment
or angry. Such an attitude springs from a great purity of
conscience, a practical realization that such faults are ob-
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MEASURE OF VIRTUE
stacles to union with God and to the intimacy of prayer; that
the perfection of charity depends largely on keeping the soul
free from them. This does not imply that such faults will never
be committed; it is inevitable that there should be some even
in a very perfect life. But when such faults are committed the
criterium will come into play in a new role; it will reveal a still
greater virtue, the humble acceptance of reprimand and the
sincere effort to amend.
Here again the standard is clear and easily applied. But it
should be noted that this second mark goes deeper than the
first; it reveals a more interior and spiritual formation of
soul. It reveals a purity>of heart, an appreciation of the in·
terior life, a sense of spiritual values, that mark a tested,
systematic, spirituality. It will show something even rarer
and more valuable, the humility to take reprimands and to
benefit by them; and there is scarcely any more searching test
for solid virtue than this.
The third sign, to give satisfaction in the daily exercise of
virtues, is a more exterior and comprehensive test. It has to
deal with the exterior :~;eligious life in general; it is the evident
sign of the man who lives as he should; who is regular, efficient,
dependable, observant; whom superiors and companions, the
most competent judges, take to be a solidly good religious. He
is a man who by his unconscious, almost unintentional, regu·
larity does much to maintain the general level of religious observance. When in the seventh part of the Constitutions St.
Ignatius comes to enumerate the means the Society employs
for the salvation of souls, he assigns the first place to such
regularity, to the bonum exemplum totius honestatis ac vir·
tutis christianae. The reason is that such a sign does not reveal
merely the exterior; it is indicative of a man who has a deep
appreciation of the value of the religious life, who realizes
practically his obligation to cooperate with God's grace, who
sees that such observance links up his life with "the sovereign
wisdom and goodness of God" which works out the divine in·
tentions throughout the world, strongly and sweetly.
We may return no~ to the objection made that the tests men·
tioned, while clear and easily applied, were still not such as
would measure or manifest a virtue that is solid and deep.
The brief analysis given of their meaning show that they go
�MEASURE OF VIRTUE
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deeper than would at first sight appear. They manifest a state
of virtue which is the result of systematic and intelligent
training, and which consequently is solid and interior. That
control of affection and passion which will enable a man to act
in a virtuous way in the ordinary round of life, can be the
result only of a long and enlightened training. A man is not so
by nature and disposition but by effort and grace. He has by
practice incased himself in virtue and made it habitual.
That such a virtue is not merely an external thing but has its
roots in something very spiritual and interior is judged from
the second sign, the attitude to faults and imperfections. A
sensibility, a delicacy to faults even when they are not venial
sins, can come only from a great purity of soul, a constant
effort to cleanse the heart from all the desires and affections
which dull the vision and the voice of God. "Blessed are the
clean of heart for they shall see God." What is perhaps the
most beautiful of the beatitudes is the mark of a truly interior
soul, of one who tries to see God everywhere. What has been
said will, I think, justify the wisdom of the Ninth Congregation.
We may assert confidently that where these three signs are
discovered we have a virtue which is solid and something above
mediocrity, and which may be considered as marking the end
of a period of religious training. The other virtues that seemed
to be left out of count, prayer, familiarity with Christ, zeal for
souls, the spirit of sacrifice, desire of God's glory, these and
others which might have presented themselves to our mind,
are not really omitted; they are just around the corner; they
are implicitly included, partly as the cause of the virtues mentioned and partly as the result.
It will be admitted at once that this method of estimating
a measure of virtue is entirely true to the spirit of St. Ignatius,
~ho urged his followers to aim at acquiring "true and solid
VIrtues." It would be instructive to have the signs by which
other religious Orders, the Benedictines, Franciscans or
Dominicans, judge the suitability of their subjects for final
P;ofession. We may take it that the signs would not be prec~sely those mentioned here. The difference in the spirit and
aim of other Orders would result in a different set of tests.
There would perhaps be more emphasis laid on the qualities
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MEASURE OF VIRTUE
which make for liturgical prayer, for recollection and the
virtues which foster monastic and contemplative life in general. It is entirely characteristic of St. Ignatius, and in complete conformity with his spirit, that he would desire that those
who had reached the end of their period of formation, those
whom he considered worthy of their final and definite position
in the Society, should be men who had full control of their
affections, and had reached a considerable measure of purity
of soul. Such men, he considered, had taken their training
satisfactorily and were calculated to make a success of their
vocation: ..
That measure of virtue which can be considered as surpassing mediocrity is the qualification for final profession. The
finished religious has now been set on the path on which he is
to advance. The beyond-mediocrity with which he begins this
final stage is a beginning now and not an achievement; it is a
direction which is to be maintained. He has been taught his art
and now he will live it on his own account; he will perfect it
by practice and carry it forward. He is expected to advance,
to aim at increasing the excess over mediocrity. His path is not
a dead level; it should mount steadily.
What are we to say about the three tests in this new stage?
Have they completely fulfilled tlleir function and have they
no further use? They gave admittance to this new stage; must
they be left at the door as one enters? They were hitherto a
tool in the hands of others; can they be manipulated by the
religious himself now that his progress is chiefly dependent
on himself? The answer must be that these tests have their
utility, and even their necessity, for this new stage, but they
will now be wielded by the religious himself. He has in them
an excellent means of judging if he is advancing in virtue,
going in the right direction, and continuing true to his vocation. Now more than ever before, the enemy to be guarded
against is mediocrity, which by no means has been surpassed
once and for all by the admission to final profession.
In the Oxford dictionary "mediocre" is defined as "of
middling quality, indifferent, neither good nor bad." The
definition brings one sharply into awareness of the meanness
of the thing which under its sonorous Latin name does not
seem too bad. The vocation to the Society springs from the
�MEASURE OF VIRTUE
23
Regnum Christi and is the response to Christ's call of those
"qui magis affici volent et insignes se exhibere in omni servitio
sui regis aeterni et Domini universalis." A response of middling quality, neither good nor bad, is a poor expression of
such a love and enthusiasm for Christ and His Kingdom. It
would scarcely be a worthy response of "judgment and reason."
But it is not easy to live up to the level of the high moment
in the Regnum, and still less to advance on it; hence the resolution will tend to sag, so that what began as beyond-mediocrity
will soon come to decline imperceptibly. It is good then to have
at hand a measure that will record the level of love and generosity required by those who have risen to the best that the
Regnum offered. The test of the Epitome 440, which has been
analysed, is an excellent and practical pocket rule. The difficult
spiritual exercise of the daily examen, which perhaps more
than any other regular exercise suffers from monotony, can be
varied and made more effective by the occasional application
of this test to the period under review. For the annual retreat
a detailed application of this test will give a very good indication of the direction and progress of the spiritual life.
Of course, with years and experience the test would be applied in a more searching or interior way. More emphasis
would come to be laid on the disposition of the heart than on
exterior observance. But it is capable of such a finer use. When
in the Constitutions St. Ignatius urges his sons curent vero
semper in via divini servitii progressum facere he points to a
road that rises regularly, to an effort to increase the excess
beyond mediocrity which marked entry to it. The test which
has been considered here must be regarded as a potent means
to that end; it is at once a measure and an incentive to the
Progress to be made in the endless region beyond mediocrity.
I have not considered it necessary to state that the test described here is not an assessment of a Jesuit's complete
spiritual equipment, but a qualifying test of his virtue. It was
not meant to give an inventory of all the qualities expected of
a Jesuit vocation, but only to manifest that disposition of soul
-the result of spiritual training-on which the rest of the
constituents depend for their stability and fruitfulness.
�Examination of Conscience:
Prayerful Election in Everyday Terms
R. J. Howard, S.J.
The examination of conscience is sometimes made the object
of criticism by those who look upon the asceticallife from the
outside and sometimes becomes a source of vague discouragement among those who practice it. We do not have to look
far for the cause. Contemporary studies in psychology have
led us to distrust the individual's capacity to evaluate his own
motives. We are led to believe that not much light can really
come from introspection. And what is worse, we are told, not
merely that introspection is an illusory tool, but also that it is
a dangerous one, capable of wounding him who holds it in his
hand-that way, we hear, lies madness. When in addition to
this'\Ve recall that the examen, or something superficially like
it, was an habitual practice of certain Pythagorean Stoics and
even of men like Ben Franklin, we cannot help asking ourselves
what this practice can have in common with growth in the
true love of God, which must, affer all, be a growth in a forgetfulness of self. We feel the need to understand the examen
better.
Father Antoine Delchard, S.J., tertian instructor at Saint
Martin near Rheims, recently published. in Christus a study
of the examen. 1 The present article would like, while echoing
a number of Father Delchard's points, to bring forward some
elements from the life and thought of St. Ignatius as aids in
understanding the examen. After all, St. Ignatius appears to
have had most to do with the fixing of this practice as a regular
feature of the ascetical life, more probably by his example
than by any direct influence. Perhaps his example can help
us now to appreciate his legacy better.
1
Antoine Delchard, S.J. "L'election dans la vie quotidienne," Christus,
4 (April, 1957), pp. 206-219.
24
�EXAMEN
25
The classic statement of the examination of conscience
occurs in nos. 24-43 of the Exercises. Nos. 24-31 explain the
particular examen; nos. 32-42 give a detailed method for
making the general examen. No. 43 lists the five points which
have now been incorporated into the customs of many religious families. These paragraphs constitute the final methodical form which St. Ignatius gave the examination of conscience. This classic form has, however, a history. In addition
to that it has a context from which it was never meant to be
separated. A study of both these factors will prove valuable
in our attempt to find out what the examen means.
In the first place, we discover that St. Ignatius does not
give the word examen only to one clearly defined practice,
but to a good half-dozen varied practices scattered over different times and designed for different needs. The common thread
running through them all is reflection, the reflection of a
Basque gentleman grown serious for a moment and pondering
in great calm the situation at hand. But this Ignatian reflection has three characteristics: it is prayerful; it is prayerful in
a special way; it is a way which has particular relation to all
the other occupations of one's religious vocation. These qualities of lgnatian reflection will serve as the division of this
article.
The Examen Is A Prayer
St. Ignatius did not, of course, discover the examination of
conscience. It had long existed in the Church in connection
with the Sacrament of Penance. It was in this sacramental
context that Ignatius first had experience with the practice
and it is still in that context that he gives it its final statement
in the Exercises-"to aid us to improve our confessions"
(n. 32).
There would be nothing remarkable in this except for the
fact that Ignatius placed a singular stress upon the frequent
reception of the sacrament of penance. It was a notable innovation in his day. His contemporaries practically never confessed as often as three times a year, more commonly only
once. A prolonged and detailed examination of conscience preceded such confessions, the penitent often taking copious notes.
We find Ignatius himself twice making such an extended
�26
EXAM EN
preparation for confession-at Montserrat, in the very early
period of his conversion, and again in 1541, in Rome, after
his election to the generalate of the newly approved Company.
But these were for him clearly exceptional events. His own
regular practice, and the practice which he urged upon his
followers, upon those who made the Exercises, and upon
those with whom he kept in touch by letter, was confession
once a week. His insistence here exactly parallels his promotion of frequent communion, and the conditions were pretty
much the · same: the guidance of an experienced spiritual
father. (Without this guidance Ignatius counseled confession
once a month.) There was, however, this difference in his
urging the reception of these two sacraments: frequent communion had once been the rule in the Church, and Ignatius
was consciously returning to it ;2 frequent confession, however, had never been customary in anything like the same
degree. This was a really new insistence, more novel probably
than Ignatius himself realized. It deserves to be classified with
those periodic discoveries of the liturgical wealth of the
Church, which have such an important and fruitful bearing on
the piety of future ages.
Thus, the examination of conscience assumes importance because, in Ignatius' eyes, the sacrament of penance assumes a
new and important role in the asc-~tical life. Not only that, the
examen has reference to holy communion as well. It was a
characteristically Ignatian thing (which we will try to ex2 In a letter to the citizens of Azpeitia, September, 1540, Ignatius
writes, "I beg that rules be made and some kind of confraternity formed,
so that each member may go to confession and communion once in each
month, but voluntarily, and not under penalty of sin in case he fail.
For without any doubt I am persuaded and am sure that if you carry
out this project you will derive incalculable spiritual advantage. It
used to be the custom for all, men and women alike, to receive the
Blessed Sacrament every day from the time they had reached a fitting
age. Let it then be our business, for the love and spirit of such a Lord
as ours, .and to the great benefit of our souls, to revive and refresh in
some measure the saintly customs of our fathers; and if we cannot do
all, at least let us do something, confessing and communicating, as I
said, once a month. And he that should desire to do more will, without
any doubt, be acting in conformity with the mind of our Creator and
Lord." Letters and Instructions of St. Ignatius Loyola(l), D. F.
O'Leary trans., (St. Louis: B. Herder Co., 1914), pp. 46-47.
�EXAM EN
2'1
plain in the second part of this article) that Ignatius should
advise an examination of conscience as the first of those means
which create the dispositions of soul desired for the reception
of the Eucharist. This was the advice Ignatius gave to Francis
Borgia in the letter he wrote answering the duke's questions
about frequent communion. 3
The examination of conscience, therefore, first appears in
the life and thought of St. Ignatius in the context of the sacramental life of the Church. It retains that connection ever after.
It takes on a new prominence in its relationship to the sacrament of penance and begins to assume a new significance as a
preparation for holy communion. It is genuinely a part, though
a personal and interior part, of liturgical prayer. This is the
first way in which the examen manifests its character as
prayer: it opens the heart to receive God as He comes to us
in the sacraments.
First Method of Prayer
The really notable Ignatian touch, however, is in this, that he
gave the examination of conscience a life, so to speak, of its
own. In the first place, he made it in itself a method of prayer.
It is the first of those three methods which St. Ignatius describes in nn. 238-258 of the Exercises. It is a mixture of
reflection upon the state of one's soul, of meditation, and of
vocal prayer. It is an easy form of prayer, consisting simply
of considering in turn the commandments or capital sins, in
making on each one a short examination of conscience, in
asking pardon each time and saying an Our Father.
Father Brou thinks that this method of prayer was an early
practice of St. Ignatius himself and that instruction in it, along
with an explanation of the commandments, almost certainly
formed part of the spiritual guidance he gave to any who would
listen in the university centers of Alcala, Salamanca, and
Paris.4 Even without the documents indicating as much, we
-
3
Carta 16, Obras Completas de San Ignacio de Loyola, edicion manual
(Madrid: Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos, 1952), pp. 683-684. The index of this volume is a magnificent guide (over one hundred pages in
length) to the study of Ignatian spirituality in the writings of its
founder.
4
Alexandre Brou, S.J., Saint Ignace, maitre d'oraison (Paris: ~ditions
Spes, 1925), p. 214.
�28
EX AMEN
could realize that this would be the case. The first method of
prayer is well adapted to those who are not used to praying.
Father Calveras assures us that in earlier days the learning
of this method of prayer by laymen was considered one of the
chief purposes of the retreat which they made. St. Ignatius'
secretary, Father Polanco, notes that this method is especially
valuable for those trying to make certain that their good
resolutions will be put into practice. We are told that St.
Francis Xavier taught it to his converts, with the express
purpose of bolstering their perseverance.
But this- 'method of prayer has a special appeal for all, because it so readily serves as a bridge to a further stage in
prayer. With the substitution of one's rules, the beatitudes,
theological virtues, or the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost for
the commandments and capital sins, one enters upon the path
that leads somewhat away from the interests of the first week
to the challenges of the second and third and even to the close
union with God of the fourth.
When we turn to the 'classic' form of the examination of
conscience, we find that it differs somewhat from the 'first
method'; however it is just as much a prayer. It is a thanksgiving, a eucharistia; it is, perhaps above all, a petition for
the grace to see our sins and to detest them. The second point
reads, "to ask for grace to know n;y· sins and to rid myself of
them" (n. 43).
After all, unless the examination of conscience be itself a
prayer, it is empty of meaning. Knowledge of sins is a grace
and must be prayed for. Contrition is a grace and must be
prayed for. One might, outside of grace, draw up extensive
catalogues of moral failures and store up moving phrases to
tell them with, but if some glimmering of the holiness of God
does not illumine the subject's view, then all he sees is his mistake--he does not see his sin. His efforts are empty rhetoric
and his penance worthless. Only grace reveals sin. Only prayer
is the vehicle of grace. "The Catholic saints alone confess sin,"
wrote Cardinal Newman, "because the Catholic saints alone
see God."
In summary, then, of the first point: We see that the Ignatian examen has its origin in the sacramental life of the
Church and never strays very far from that source where
�EX AMEN
29
God comes in pre-eminent fashion to man. But the examination of conscience has a wider usage than that merely of prelude to the reception of the sacraments. It is itself an act of
prayer, a peculiarly personal moment of union with God,
seeking for a special need a special light. It becomes, therefore,
a type of prayer. This is the subject to be considered in the
second point.
The Examen Is A Prayer of a Special Type
St. Ignatius has many methods of prayer (he was not merely
a model but also a student of the spiritual life)- meditation,
vocal prayer, contemplation, application of the senses-and
the most important of all to his way of thinking is the one
called examination of conscience. The reason lies in the fact
that this prayer has primarily to do with choice. To understand this point we must realize that the examen is one, as
it were, concentrated instance of a spirit that penetrates the
whole of the apostolic life. It is a sort of main statement of
a theme constantly echoed in a variety of other patterns. That
theme is reflection. Illustrations from the life of St. Ignatius
can best explain what is meant.
St. Ignatius was one who had the habit of pausing to think
about what he was about to do, or about what he had just accomplished. In his Spiritual Journal under the date of Tuesday, February 19 (1544), we find the entry:
Last night, on getting into bed, thoughts of reverence for the
Mass I would celebrate (today) and how (I would celebrate it);
this morning, on awakening, entering into examination of conscience
and prayer, great flow of tears streaming down my face; intense
devotion in very great degree, many lights and spiritual remembrances concerning the Holy Trinity. 5
This practice became established. It forms a regular part of
the particular examen, the recall on awakening of one's resolutions and intentions. It precedes each meditation as an act of
recall of the presence of God; it follows each meditation,
especially during time of retreat, as a review of the hour spent
in prayer.
The Ignatian reflection runs like a leitmotiv through the
exercises of the first week: "What have I done for Christ?
-
3
"Diario Espiritual," Obras, p. 292.
�30
EXAM EN
What am I doing for Christ? What ought I to do for Christ?"
(n. 53). These meditations are not explicitly concerned with
an immediate preparation for confession-not even the second
meditation on personal sin; some other time is to be given over
to that. This reflection is meant to impress upon us the fact
that these things are sins and that they are mine.
Attitude
This attitude of reflection was, from another point of view, a
fundamental point in the training Ignatius gave his men.
If a problem arose in the house at Rome and the minister
was pressing for a solution, Ignatius was nevertheless unhurried about it; he prayed, he consulted, and often enough he
would say at the end of the day, "Let us sleep over it." It was
the way he steered the first steps of the young Order and the
way he penned its Constitutions. It was the way he thought
every superior must govern his community. In fact, he considered the examination of conscience and this habit of reflection more important for superiors than for anyone else. This
is no doubt one of the main reasons for Ignatius' own increased
attention to the practice of the examination of conscience during the period of his generalate, which was also the period of
his most favored mystical union with God.
The manifestation of conscienie-·and the mutual manifestation of defects, two of the fundamentals in the spirit of the
Society of Jesus, have a close connection with the examination of conscience. We know that Ignatius and his first companions often made a sort of examen in common. The practice
continued even after the establishment of the house in Rome.
And Ignatius was not averse to stopping one of the community in the corridors to ask whether the day showed any
improvement in the matter mentioned in common the night
before. Or Ignatius might simply stop one of the fathers to
ask how many times he had examined his conscience that day.
Father de Guibert tells us of one occasion when the father
so que'stioned replied, probably with a touch of pride, for the
day was yet young, "Seven times." "So few," said Ignatius
and turned away. 6
6 Joseph de Guibert, S.J., La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus
(Rome: Institutum Historicum S.J., 1953), p. 50.
�EXAM EN
31
We have one of the clearest examples of this Ignatian spirit
of prayerful reflection in the letter of instructions which he
gave to the fathers being sent to the Council of Trent-a letter
which is not only typically Ignatian but also warmly redolent
of those early charismatic days when the law of charity bound
in close friendship and unity of purpose the first members of
the Society. One passage deserves quoting at length; it has the
superscription, "For our own greater help"; Ignatius writes
in the first person plural, as though he were there at Trent
with them:
We will take an hour at night to commune all together on what
has been done during the day, and on what it is proposed to do on
the day following.
With regard to past or future matters we will decide by votes
or in some other way.
On one night let one ask all the others to correct him in whatever matter they think fit; and let the one thus corrected not make
any answer, unless he is asked to give an account of the matter in
which he has been corrected.
On another night let a second do the same; and so on for the
rest; so as to help one another on to greater charity, and to greater
good influence in all things.
In the morning we will renew our resolutions; our examinations
we will make twice a day.
This order is to be begun five days after our arrival in Trent.
Amen.7
This passage contains both elements of the Ignatian examination of conscience: the general spirit and theme of reflection, and the more formal examen to be practiced twice a
day. This last is the aspect most familiar to us; it includes
the general and particular examens. Perhaps this is the place
to say a word about these more refined instances of Ignatian
reflection.
The general examen is a prayer and the type of prayer that
seeks to uncover an habitual fault or to focus on an habitual
need. The particular examen is not a prayer but rather a methodologys; it grows out of the discovery of an habitual fault or
need and attaches itself to it. Unless the particular examen
have this relationship to something habitual, it will lose its
7
8
Letters and Instructions of St. Ignatius Loyola, pp. 81-82.
Brou, op. cit., p. 211.
�32
EX AMEN
contact with reality and become an empty ritual, with no
clear object to give it character and application.
Practice
It seems quite certain that St. Ignatius continued the prac.
tice of the particular examen right up to his last days. We
even know one of the subjects-impatience. Ignatius grew
impatient, sometimes with God, for deferring His graces and
lights, and often with man. Noise bothered him particularly
and apparently there was a fair amount of it within and
around the house in Rome. It is a comfort for those whose days
are punctuated by the sound of call-bells to learn that Ignatius
was once so disturbed by the racket coming from a neighboring
room that he debated leaving the house altogether and renting
quarters in a quieter part of town.
St. Francis Xavier has left us an echo of the feeling in
those days about the particular examen. On sending him to
Ormuz, he wrote to Father Barzaeus, "Twice a day, or at least
once, make your particular examens. Be careful never to aband6n them. Always be more attentive to your own conscience
than to that of another. How can one who is not adequate to
himself be so for another ?" 9
Even so, we must not lose sight of the caution given by
Father Iparraguirre, that the paragraphs in the book of the
Exercises explaining the particular examen (as, indeed, all
other paragraphs) are meant primarily for the director of the
retreat and then, tempered by the director's prudence, for the
retreatant himself. Father Iparraguirre quotes in this connection a passage from Father Gagliardi: "The particular examen
on various defects is of the utmost importance for all, but
the method of marking lines may prove useless and even harmful in the case of scrupulous people and others not blessed
with good memory and imagination. Let these practice the
examen in a way that better helps them." 10
It Js not, therefore, impossible that the particular examen
receive special modification in the case of some people.
:J~
Cited in de Guibert, op. cit., p. 179.
Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J., A Key to the Study of the Spiritual
Exercises, Trans. J. Chianese, S.J., (Rome: Institutum Historicum S.J.,
1955)' p. 45.
9
1o
�EX AMEN
33
However, the lesson of Ignatius and the early Jesuits is rather
this: whoever makes his general examen well and attentively
will not lack good subjects for the particular examen; to such
a person the question as to whether the particular examen is
straining a point will never really occur.
After this parenthesis on the general and particular examen,
we return to the main argument, that the examen is a special
type of prayer. The review of Ignatius' habits-from the moment when he gets out of bed to the time when he goes back
"to sleep over it"-shows that an attitude of reflection permeates each waking hour. In his opinion it is not enough for the
religious simply to perform the tasks set before him. Father
Lallernant puts it this way: "My superiors, my rules, the duties
of my state, may indeed direct me in regard to the exterior,
and indicate to me what God desires me to do at such a time
and in such a place; but they cannot teach me the way in which
God wills that I should do it." 11 This way the religious must
find for himself, in prayerful reflection. And this reflection is
intensified during the 'active' portions of one's day. The
apostolic nature of the examen is then most in evidence.
And what does it mean, then? Is this reflection a totaling
of one's faults or virtues, as some people count their stamps
and butterflies? Is it a sly profiting by experience so as not
to be caught out in the job coming up? Father Delchard gives
the answer when he explains to us that the examen is not
a means of turning us into little Stoics, narrowly occupied
with giving a particular cast to our personality; the examen
is a constant return to the central question of our existence:
Is God more and more the master of our lives?
This question must be put in realistic terms. St. Augustine
Writes somewhere, "Let no man say he is not in the world, he
is in the world." Man is rooted in this world and in matter. He
shapes his destiny by decisions thrust upon him in material
terms and in those of time and space. He cannot in any case
~void corning to grips with the world and St. Ignatius, for one,
Is glad of it. "The Christian life is not designed merely to
interpret the world," writes Father Delchard, "but to transform it into Jesus Christ. However, no one can transform
-
11
Spiritual Doctrine, Fifth. Prine., cb.II, art. 1.
�EXAM EN
34
anything unless he begins by asking himself who he is and
what are the conditions in which he works." 12
Man goes to God through matter, and, conversely, God
comes to man in the mediation of space and of time-in terms
of the health we have, the talents at our disposal, the place
where we live, the people next to us, the task given us. All
these are the threads whose arrangement and interlacing will
form the fabric of the Kingdom. In making the examination of
conscience we seek not so much our faults, our virtues, ourselves,
those passing occasions when Christ came near to
us and We did not even notice Him, or perhaps noticed Him
but remained indifferent, or perhaps went beyond indifference
to offense. To make the examination of conscience is to search
for Christ making contact with our lives and then to ask
ourselves, "Is God more and more the master of my lifethis life I am living now, the only life I have?." Thus, the
examen is a reflection upon the choices we have made when
Christ came near us. That is the type of prayer it is.
as
Relation Of The Examen To Our Day
The examination of conscience has as its purpose the disposition of soul which is purity of heart. Father Lallemant,
for whom this is a favorite thgine, says purity of heart consists "in having nothing (in the· soul) which is, in however
small a degree, opposed to God and the operation of His
grace." 13 It means paring away venial sins, checking if notremoving the disordered tendencies of our personalities, becoming more and more attentive to the inspirations of the Holy
Spirit. Purity of heart is, therefore, a state of sensitivity to
God's grace. For St. Ignatius, as for Father Lallemant after
him, the examination of conscience is the best means to attain
it. The examen turns out to be, then, a daily exercise in the
discernment of spirits:
By watching over our interior we gradually acquire a great
knowledge of ourselves, and attain at last to the direction of the
Holy Spirit; and at times God brings before us in an instant the
state of our past life, just as we shall see it at judgment. lie
makes us see all our sins, all our past youth; at other times He
12
13
Art. cit., p. 213.
Spiritual Doctrine, Third Prine., ch. I, art. 1.
�EXAM EN
35
discloses to us the whole economy of the government of the universe; and this produces in the soul a perfect subjection to God.H
It is hardly necessary to say how essential is this reflection
for those in the apostolic life, where, say what we will and in
spite of our best intentions, we build up ourselves and our own
personalities in our jobs and acquire many faults which we do
not see and shall never see till the hour of our death-"unless
we exercise ourselves in observing the movements of our interior, wherein the devil and nature play strange parts, while
we are wholly absorbed in the hurry and excitement of exterior occupations." 15
But, though the best means to purity of heart and indispensable in all stages of the spiritual life, the examination
of conscience is not for St. Ignatius the highest or the final
form of prayer. This discernment is the preparation and prelude for the distinctive element in Ignatian spirituality, finding God in all things.
A certain Portuguese father still in his studies once asked
Ignatius by letter what were the chief subjects which he
should choose for his meditation. In somewhat elliptical fashion, the saint answered from the standpoint of the examination of conscience, telling him that he should examine his
conscience upon two things especially: the manner of making
his prayer and the frequent offering of his studies to God. 16
In this we have an example of how St. Ignatius considers the
examen the reflective part of that day which is played out in
those two moments of our vocation, prayer and activity. A
discernment of spirits is exercised with regard to both of
them: has God been there in our prayer and work, or is it ourselves we were seeking? The examen aims at putting us back
on the track which leads to seeing God in all things, by giving
us a sensitivity to His presence both in prayer and in activity. It does not surprise us then that Father Delchard
calls the examen a sort of daily retreat, where we try to
advance in realistic manner from the consideration of our
sins, past the crossroads of election and choice, to the con-
-
14
Ibid., Fifth Prine., ch. III, art. 1, 2.
lbid., Fifth Prine., ch. III, art. 1, 1.
16
Carta 64, Obras, p. 790.
15
�36
EXAM EN
templation for obtaining Divine Love. This last is the sum
of the spiritual life and the special grace of the apostolic
vocation as St. Ignatius has formulated it.H
For one who has caught the authentic meaning of the examen,
it is hard to see how any true Christian can renounce it. To avoid
this practice because it appears to enclose the soul in a sort of
straight-jacket would be to strike at the very heart of the spiritual
life, both interior and apostolic. It is in the context of the examen, as we have tried to define it, that all our daily decisions are
to be taken. In the final analysis, the examen is only one way of
putti~g under a new light that spirituality which joins together
prayer and activity. The man who comes with God's grace to the
disposition of purity of heart learns the truth of our Lord's statement, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." 18
17 See Thomas H. Clancy, S.J., "The Proper Grace of the Jesuit Vocation According to Jerome Nadal," Woodstock Letters, 86 (April, 1957).
1s Delchard, art. cit., pp. 218-219.
* * *
THE ANTIDOTE
By humble prayer "through Christ our Lord," massed together as
members of His Mystical Body, we shall withstand the blasphemies of
modern atheism and we shall atone t_t'> God for them. Prayer shall obtain the conversion of sinners who ·have wandered afar; prayer shall
fire us for the battles yet to be faced by each of us; prayer shall win
us the strength to carry our cross with a ready and loving heart; prayer,
especially during the Holy Sacrifice of the Altar, shall gain us that
apostolic love, which the apostle St. Paul describes in his first Epistle
to the Corinthians as the clearest proof of the divine mission of the
Church and the prime adornment of the Spouse of Christ-"By this
shall all men know that you are My disciples" (John 13, 35).
VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
THE OPEN HEART
Trusting in the assistance of the Holy Spirit and in the invitation
of our Lord Himself, enter that sacred side which, as St. Augustine
observes, was not merely pierced or wounded, but as the Evangelist
states opened on the Cross. Enter this shrine of the Godhead. Enter
this infinitely rich mine of virtues and graces, and by contemplation and
meditation delving the precious treasure therein hidden, draw forth
what is necessary for your own salvation and perfection, and for that
of your fellow men.
FATHER JOHN PHILIP ROOTHAAN
�Missionary Catechetics In New France
Robert M. Harris
Introduction
The universal saving command of Jesus Christ about thirtythree A.D. was "teach all nations" (Matt. 28, 19), embrace the
entire world in one religious flock. From that time, the known
world expanded from three to five continents. As quickly as
new colonies were born the Catholic Church was ready to grow
with them since in every new land the seeds of the Faith were
nourished by the blood of her missionary martyrs. Sixteen
centuries after Christ uttered those words New France, the
latest colony, heard the ring of His command when two members of the Society of Jesus landed on the shores of Port
Royal, June 12, 1611. These two priests began perhaps the
most difficult missionary endeavor ever undertaken by the
Church up to that time. It was another execution of the same
order, "teach all nations." And for the next two hundred
years, over three hundred members of the Company of Jesus
advanced His gospel through the treacherous pagan wilderness of present day Eastern Canada and Northeastern United
States.
Many excellent volumes have treated the biographies of
these soldiers of Christ and the history of individual missionary outposts. This paper will endeavor to present only
the catechetical methods developed by the Jesuits in New
France. Since there is no remarkable difference in the religious education program at any village or of any missionary,
the dissertation will discuss the topic as a single program
spanning the two centuries in which the Society of Jesus
labored in that area.
Each missionary or local superior was required to send
to the superior at Quebec annual reports, which included a
complete status of the mission with much geographical, historical, ethnological, philological and sociological data. The
37
�38
MISSION CATECHETICS
superior in turn collected, edited and summarized these reports, then forwarded them to the provincial in France. Besides their great value in our day as exact contemporary
records of the missionaries, they also had particular value
in those times; for they were printed and distributed in order
to arouse interest and material support for the American
missions. Two hundred and thirty-eight of these documents,
including letters to friends and superiors, journals, memoirs
and scientific information are bound in the seventy-three
volume work, The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents. 1 The
unique advantage of this edition is that an English translation
appears opposite each page of the original Latin, French and
Italian texts. Maps and facsimiles together with additional
bibliographies, valuable data on all documents and two volumes
of exhaustive indices are part of this work.
This paper is divided into three sections. The first deals
with a characterization of the Jesuit living in Europe and the
Indian surviving in his primeval environment. Emphasis is
placed first upon the contrast between the two, then upon the
Jesuit's struggle when he arrived in America and attempted
to adapt himself to the other's environment. Scott's biography
of Isaac Jogues was very helpful in the preparation of this
description. 2 The second section~- concerns itself with the extrinsic difficulties of a catechetical program, and the third
section demonstrates the Jesuit techniques, which solved the
intrinsic difficulties in the presentation of the subject matter.
Throughout the thesis modern educational terms have been
shunned, so that the reader will not place the Jesuit system
in the framework of twentieth century methodology, nor even
interpret it in the light of present-day educational methods.
The two systems can be correctly understood when considered
historically, not when viewed as contemporary systems.
It is difficult to appreciate the true impact of the Jesuit
catechetical system, unless one realizes the contrast between
the cultured missionaries from the finest universities of
1 The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, 1610-1791, ed. Reuben
Gold Thwaites (Cleveland: Burrows Brothers, 1896-1901). Hereafter
cited as Relations.
2 Martin Scott, S.J., Isaac Jogues, Missioner and Martyr (New York:
P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1927). Hereafter cited as Scott, Isaac Jogues.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
39
Europe, especially France, and the crude, illiterate savages
who inhabited the territory of New France. Hence, it is suitable first to outline the distinctive features of the Indian.
Noted Traits of the Indian. Two notable characteristics of
the red man, which will aid in a better understanding of this
study, were his capacity for enduring pain impassively and
his moral turpitude. For a prisoner to wince under the fiendish
torture of his captors was to bring disgrace upon himself,
family and tribe. If he suffered without complaint, it was the
mark of a true brave. But unfortunately it usually led to the
tearing out of his heart, which was fed to the young braves
among his captors that they might acquire the same persevering strength. If the victim writhed under pain, he was left
to the women and children for torture. A sad fate in any case !1
One can imagine how stoically the Jesuits had to bear their
hardships, if they were to gain the respect of these pagans.
"The savages were also without any sense of shame. Their
manner of life, lived in common without any privacy, destroyed
all sense of modesty and purity. Every sort of obscenity and
impurity was indulged in openly and without loss of reputation of either sex." 2 Trial marriages were common; divorce
was obtained by the wish of the husband. The only principle
of morality was the desirability or undesirability of the thing
in question. Perhaps it is more correct to say these aborigines
were rather amoral than immoral.
Religion Among the Savages. There was no system of religion, nor any care for it. 3 For the savages all material nature
had life and intelligence. Trees, rivers, birds, winds, beasts, all
of nature embodied spirits, which understood their language
and could help or harm them. Whenever an Indian drowned,
it was the river-spirit seeking revenge for some neglect or
offense. Should the hunt be unsuccessful, the red man could
be certain that the spirit of the deer, beaver or bear was
offended. 4 For whatever evil befell him even to the extent of
personal sickness some spirit unfavorable to him was the
cause. In this latter case, the medicine-man's task was to cure
1
2
·Scott, Isaac Jogues, p. 2.
Ibid., p. 7.
a Relations I, 286.
4
Scott, Isaac Jogues, p. 4.
�40
MISSION CATECHETICS
the sick not by herb prescriptions or medications, but by
orgiastic remedies.
Each Indian worshipped his manitou, which was a personal
deity found in some animal or object. He carried a symbol of
his manitou on his person to serve as a protector against other
spirits. The oki or manitou manifested its desires through
dreams, often interpreted by a sorcerer. 5 Blind obedience was
given to the feelings of the manitou, even if it meant the sacrifice of life itself. He dared not offend his one protector, regardless.of its ferocious, inhuman commands.
Native Education. One can find no trace of any type of
formal schooling. Each family taught its children the necessities of self-preservation: how to acquire food and provide
for covering and shelter. Their religious superstitions and customs were learned in the same way. The astonishment of these
poor unlearned creatures was overwhelming as they encountered the missionary's systematized methods, not only in
catechetics, but also in farming, building and trading.
Tribal Divisions. Many similarities and constant interrelations made it very difficult to distinguish tribes. Their manners, habits and appearances .were the same. They constantly
migrated, intermarried, consolidated or affiliated, even formed
polyglot villages of renegades from many tribes. Only on
philological grounds does one find definite distinction. "In
a general way we n1ay :say that between the Atlantic and the
Rockies, Hudson Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, there were
four Indian languages in vogue, with great varieties of local
dialect." 6 One missionary states there were over fifty dialects
or languages to master. 7
"The Algonkins were the most numerous holding the greater
portion of the country from ... Kentucky northward to Hudson Bay and the Atlantic westward to the Mississippi . . .
These savages were intensely warlike, depended for subsistence chiefly on hunting and fishing, lived in rude wigwams
covered with bark, skins, or matted reeds, practised agriculture in a crude fashion and were less stable in their habita5
6
Relations VIII, 261-263; LIV, 67-73; LVII, 275.
Relations I, 10.
7 Ibid. IV, 179.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
41
tions than the Southern Indians ... The Algonkins at no time
numbered over 90,000 souls and possibly not over 50,000." 8
In the heart of this Algonkin land was planted the ethnic
group of five tribes called the Iroquois, often at war with
each other. The Iroquois, the most daring, most intelligent
and crafty of the North American Indians, still in the savage
hunter state, were the terror of every tribe east of the Mississippi. The population of the group was 17,000 maximum,
dwelling in palisaded villages south and east of lakes Erie and
Ontario.9
"The Southern Indians occupied the country between the
Tennessee river and the Gulf, the Appalachian ranges and the
Mississippi. Of milder disposition than their Northern cousins,
these five nations were rather in a barbarous than in a savage
state ... and numbered not more than 50,000 persons." 10 The
mission to these Indians, known as the Louisiana Mission,
has little part in the Relations.
"The Dakotah or Sioux family occupied for the most part
the country beyond the Mississippi. They were ... a fierce
high-strung people, genuine nomads and war appears to have
been their chief occupation." 11
These divisions did not attempt to distinguish tribes or nations of tribes within their boundaries. Within these limits
the missionaries set up various missions to administer to the
needs of every native band which could be contacted within a
reasonable distance of the mission.
Jesuit Missions. The Jesuit Fathers conducted six principal
missions with many smaller ones. The location of the mission
depended on the needs of the Indian; if he moved, the mission
moved. The Abenaki mission covered Maine and Acadia. Although the Abenakis were a rugged tribe and took semiannual hunting and fishing journeys, yet they were mild mannered and listened to the doctrines of the Jesuits. 12 The lower
St. Lawrence region, called the Montagnois Mission, was administered from Tadoussac. The intemperance induced by the
fur trade, small pox and Iroquois raids almost caused de-
-
8
Ibid. I, 10.
Relations I, 10-11.
10
Ibid. I, 12.
9
11
12
Ibid.
Relations I, 13.
�42
MISSION CATECHETICS
sertion of the missionsP Yet some were taught to read and
write so well that a legacy of native education has endured to
the present day. 14 The Quebec-Montreal missions provided an
asylum for nomads, wanderers and escapees from Iroquois
terror. The needs of the Indians beyond Lake Huron to Lake
Superior and along the banks of the Mississippi in the Illinois
territories were provided for by the Ottawa mission.H Great
success in the Iroquois mission was never possible, because
"here as elsewhere the vices and superstitions of the tribesmen were deep-rooted and they had not reached a culture
where the'' spiritual doctrines of Christianity appealed
strongly." 16
The most successful mission was among the Hurons, between Lake Simcoe and Georgian Bay of Lake Huron, numbering about 16,000 souls when the French arrived. Although
sedentary and agricultural, these semi-naked savages were
keen traders and often made short hunting and fishing expeditions to acquire stores for the winter. Constantly the
object of Iroquois prey and of the frenzies of their own medicine men, they soon looked upon the Church and its missioners
as the cause of their misfortunes. This almost led to the blotting out of the entire mission. Only a hundred converts, mostly
sick infants and aged persons who died soon after Baptism,
could be counted after the first tliree years of unremitting
toilY
A letter from a learned, spiritual, cultured and dedicated
missionary to those contemplating the American missions,
demonstrates the contrast between the life of the native
Indian and the stranger who dwelt with him.
The dwelling of the missioner is a miserable hut . . . (which) is
so fashioned that those inside cannot stand erect or lie down at full
length. By day one must remain sitting or kneeling. By night
.•. curled up. While sleeping the feet are towards the fire, in
the center of the hut, and the head is at the outer edge, with the
result that while the feet are almost roasting the head is chilled
by contact with the cold ground or the snow . . . But the most
dreadful thing of all is the smoke. It is so dense in the hut that
it frequently causes blindness . . . (sometimes) someone leads the
1s
Ibid. I, 15-16.
a Ibid. I, 17.
u Ibid. I, 33.
1s
11
Ibid. I, 30-31.
Relations I, 33.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
43
missioner in traveling when he is thus afflicted. Next . . is the
small martyrdom suffered from fleas, lice and vermin.
The food is very coarse and frequently insufficient. Its manner of serving deprives one for a long time of all desire of food.
They eat out of a common dish, usually dirty. The dogs eat from
the same dish, and usually serve as the dish-washer by licking it.
For napkins either one's hair or else a dog's back serves the purpose ... There is so much filth about their cabins and in them that
it breeds disease. They attribute it (disease) to the presence of
the missioner which imperils his life, as at any moment a savage
may sink a tomahawk into his skull . . .
What the missioner finds a great hardship is the utter lack of
privacy. He can scarcely ever be alone, either for devotions or for
necessary rest and the needs of nature. And although he longs
for occasional privacy one of his most dreadful sufferings is isolation . . . surrounded by those whose ideas are as far apart from
his as the two poles ... His knowledge of their language, at least
for a long time is rudimentary which prevents him from conversation. When he does get command of the language ... it is almost
impossible to convey any but concrete notions to them.
Moreover he is obliged constantly to be witness of vice which
he is powerless to prevent. Lying, stealing and lust are as common to these savages as walking. They do not know what shame
is.ls
Prospectus Of The Catechetical Program
Between the illiterate, incoherent American Indian and the
educated, cultured European Jesuit, the differencs were enormous, almost overwhelming. Nevertheless both were children
of God. The sons of St. Ignatius of Loyola realized the spiritual
needs of their red brothers and commenced to inculcate in
them the sublime truths of the Catholic faith. But the task of
scheduling catechetical instructions and presenting a suitable
program, was not without great difficulty.
Place. In a clearing in the dense woods during a hunt, around
the warm camp fire on a chilly evening, in the council ring
before the tribal chieftains, wherever possible, the Jesuit
fathers instructed the red men. Indian life, its society and
customs did not provide convenient opportunities for imparting the word of God. Hence the missionary had to be alert and
always prepared to teach whenever the savages had time
for him and permitted him to speak his doctrine.
-
18
Scott, Isaac Jogues, pp. 8-10.
�44
MISSION CATECHETICS
Formal classes took place either in the village chape},l
when some liturgical function was connected with it, or in the
missionaries' cabin/ when the Indians were gathered together
solely for class, or simply when convenience suggested it. 3
During the cold winter months, for example, a warm cabin
was preferred to a cold chapel. Sometimes in a larger village,
where the cabin had three or four rooms, one would be set off
for a chapel. Often in a smaller village no chapel would be
built for years. For the former European professors, these enclosures ~~rein great contrast to the blackboards and desks in
the classooms of their universities.
Schedule. To picture an annual scholastic schedule for instructions would be misleading. From season to season, the
missionary had to rearrange his class schedule. It must be
remembered that the Indian had to draw his subsistence from
nature. His life was a daily risk against the elements which
held his livelihood. When he was not struggling with nature
for his needs, he was protecting himself against its deadly
forces. He had to be nimble, taking quick advantage of his
opportunities, and resourceful, diligently providing for his
future. When a school of fish or a forest herd was sighted,
this was the village's first and only interest. Success or failure
in these endeavors meant feast or famine.
It is not surprising then to read of the missionaries complaining that the men were forever hunting, that the children
played about everywhere. 4 The spring, summer and autumn
served as a preparation for the harsh winter. Trips to the
French forts for trade were another cause for complaint.
Only a few missionaries remark that the pleasant summer
afternoons were a perfect setting for religious instructions. 5
During the winter, the Indians stayed close to the village, except when hunger forced them to become nomads. In such
dreadful circumstances, the priests had to separate and live
in the .various places where the savages might pass during
their search for food. 6
Relations XXXV, 101; LIII, 261; LXV, 83.
Relations X, 19.
a Ibid. XVI, 245; XXXV, 101; LV, 145; LXIV, 229; LXV, 83.
4 Relations LXIV, 229.
5 Ibid. LXV, 83.
s Ibid.
1
2
�MISSION CATECHETICS
45
Because of these occupational interruptions, it was generally found that the best time for class on weekdays, was
early in the morning after Mass 7 and in the evenings about
sunset, 9 since the Indian's day was ordered around the sun.
These classes took place several times a week. 10 Sundays were
occupied for the most part with Mass and confessions, 11 with
Vespers in the afternoon. If class was held on Sunday it took
place after Vespers12 and what was learned during the past
week was reviewed. 13
It is very difficult to estimate the length of a class. The
Relations are almost without reference concerning the duration of an individual instruction, except that one missionary
reports that his noonday class lasted for two hours. But this
is not to be accepted as the norm, 14 since the duration completely depended upon the type of program employed.
Attendance. No complaint can be found expressing poor attendance at classes, in fact several Jesuits record that their
classes were crowded. 15 The tenor of the extant reports implies that only small numbers took instructions, but that whole
tribes flocked to hear these new preachers. It is certain that
special classes were held for children,t 6 catechumens,t 7 neophytes,t8 and at times for the influential people19 of the village.
From a few references describing how the youngsters would
attempt by chanting to stop their elders from arguing foolishly
in class, it appears that the children were not excluded from
adult sessions. 20 The Relations state nothing further concerning attendance.
Methods of Assembly. A unique system occasionally employed was to shout throughout the village, "To heaven, to
heaven," or "Fire, fire ever burning hell fire." 21 More fre-
7
Ibid. XXXV, 101.
Hibid. XV, 165.
Ibid. XIV, 219.
1 5 Ibid. XXXV, 101; LV, 145.
9
Ibid. LUI, 203; LXV, 83.
16Ibid. X, 19.
10
Ibid. LXV, 83.
11 Ibid. XV, 165; LV, 145.
11
Ibid.
1s Ibid. XVI, 245.
12
Relations XVI, 245.
19Ibid. XVI, 247.
13
Ibid. X, 21.
2o Relations VIII, 143; LVI, 135.
21
,
Ibid. LIII, 260, "au ciel, au ciel." "au feu, au feu d'enfer qui ne
8 esteint jamais."
8
�MISSION CATECHETICS
46
quently, a bell was rung from the chapel or missionary lodge. 22
At other times one of the Fathers would walk through the village ringing it. 23 At times the French colonists or the friendly
Indian chiefs would summon the savages. 24
An important aspect of the religious instruction program,
which might be termed a remote preparation of assembly, was
the missionary's visitations to the cabins of the Indians.
These visits, which often occupied the greater part of the
priest's day, 25 aroused an interest for the faith among these
pagans~ He sought to comfort the sick and to show kindness
to the efderly. He would play with the children and interest
himself in the adults' occupations. He also used these occasions
to calm the belligerent, to encourage the timid, to tutor the
catechumen or to provide advanced instruction for the convert.27 These friendly informal visits which afforded influential
personal contact greatly helped attendance at religion classes.
The Fathers acclaimed this method as the finest way to foster
and strengthen the Faith, among the Indians. 28
26
-Presentation. The presentation of the catechetical class remains to be mentioned. Although no absolute plan for all the
instructions can be outlined the following norm can be given
as a general program :
~ .
1.) Class commenced with the usual prayers: the Our
Father, the Hail Mary, the Doxology and the Creed in the
native tongue. 29
2.) An invocation to the Holy Spirit followed. 30 When these
prayers were the subject matter of the day's lesson, they were
recited and then chanted as a preparation for the instructions.31
22Ibid. LV, 145.
23Ibid. XVI, 245.
24 Ibid. VIII, 143.
25 Ibid. XV, 165; XXXV, 101; LV, 147; LXV, 83.
26 Ibid. LX, 265.
27 Relations VIII, 145; X, 19; XVI, 243-249; LV, 145; LX, 265; LXV,
83.
2s Ibid. LX, 265.
29 Ibid. VIII, 143; XI, 223; XIV, 219; XV, 123; XVI, 247.
3o Ibid. XI, 223; XVI, 247.
31 Ibid. XI, 223; XV, 123.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
47
3.) Then the actual lesson was presented. Throughout this
part of the class, variety and the appeal to as many senses
as possible were sought for, in order to make the content of
the instruction more impressive upon the savage.
4.) The class would conclude with a prayer 32 or the singing
of hymns 33 depending upon the opening.
5.) Afterwards the Indians were treated sometimes to a
light snack, which always proved popular. 34
Subject Matter. The catechetical content of the instructions
was about the same as it is today. Special emphasis was
placed upon the immortality of the soul 35 and the four last
things. 36 Singular stress on hell fire was accomplished by vivid
descriptions and frightening pictures. For example, the mis. sionaries stationed at a Huron village knew how the savages
feared the tortures of the Iroquois. Taking advantage of this
fear, the priests would show vivid pictures of Hurons being
burned and tortured by the Iroquois in hell. The Fathers then
would state how easy are the Iroquois' tortures in this world
which last only for a short time, but how terrible the tortures
of hell which continue forever. 37
The Jesuits also treated the standard prayers, 38 the articles
of the Creed, 39 creation and the chosen people,40 the Old41 and
New 42 Testaments, the Trinity,4 3 the Incarnation, 44 Jesus
Christ,4 5 the Commandments of God and the Church, mortal
and venial sin, conscience, the Sacraments, grace, the theological virtues, the sacramentals, indulgences,4 6 the Blessed Virgin
Mary and the rosary.H Ascetical doctrines, like the value of
suffering and the sanctification of the day's labors, were ex32
Relations XI, 223; XIV, 219; XV, 123.
Ibid. XIV, 219; XVI, 247; XLII, 129.
34
Ibid. XI, 223.
as Ibid. VIII, 145; XII, 31.
36
Ibid. I, 289; VIII, 145; XI, 89, 107; XII, 75; XIV, 9; XV, 117;
XXIII, 119; L, 299; LII, 123, 177; LIII, 149, 207, 263; LV, 201; LVI,
135; LX, 265; LXII, 135; LXIII, 67, 231.
37
Relations XV, 117; LXII, 135. as Ibid. XI, 223.
39
Ibid.
4o Ibid. XI, 157; LV, 139.
41
Ibid. XVI, 245.
42 Ibid. LXIV, 227.
43
Ibid. XI, 129.
44 Ibid.
45
Ibid. XI, 157; XII, 251; LV, 139; LXII, 173; LXIII, 231.
46
Ibid. LIII, 207.
41 Ibid. LXIII, 231.
33
�MISSION CATECHETICS
48
plained.48 These patient, persevering instructors left no part
of the catechism untouched, in spite of all the problems involved in promoting and conducting religious instruction.
Catechetical Techniques
The Jesuit, product and producer of the finest halls of
knowledge, and the Indian, prisoner and slave of nature's
fierce forests, met in a crude shelter to speak about a common
Father. How to communicate the words of life? What could
be the bridge for grace? What expression could be the medium
between them? How could the priest explain in understandable
terms the teachings of the Faith to tribes, who lacked the
learning of elementary school children in Europe, who had
not advanced to an ordered society? The difficulties mounted
when all methods of teaching religion known to the missionary
presupposed a European atmosphere. Handicapped by limited
resources and the few aids sent over by the French schools, the
priest had to develop his own techniques according to the
mentality of the Indian. The following methods were used by
the missionaries, to unfold the truths of Catholicism to the
savages.
The Jesuits adhered to the axiom that knowledge comes
through the senses. If they hopE}d to be successful in their
endeavor, they had to discover antl use the most impressive
means possible. The more senses approached and the more
ways of approaching them in the attainment of their goal,
the more beneficial would be the results. The eye should be
shown in simple terms the profound meaning of Christianity.
Song, which delights the ear, should sound the mysteries of
the Faith. The intellect needed challenging with natural
science and dialectical argument to rid the primitives of rationalization and superstition. In order to appeal to the whole
man, hands and feet ought to be given over to religious games.
The desire for reward and recognition should be satisfied when
the Indian merited it. When one hears new truths from his
own, is he not influenced more than when he hears them
from a stranger?-thus a need for native catechists. Success
or failure depended upon the priest's ability to utilize suitable
methods in his teaching program.
4s
Ibid. XXXV, 101.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
49
Pictures. The savage could neither read nor write. His
language was undeveloped and extended only to concrete expressions. Paper or parchment as such was unknown to him.
He used animal skins only to make suitable coverings for his
body. The bark of trees was for the most part the raw material for canoes. There was scarcely anything for him to
write or draw upon. Crude symbols scratched upon a rock,
marked upon a piece of animal skin or tree bark were rare,
and yet, they were his only form of written expression. So
it was that the missioners introduced pictures and paintingsa primitive sort of visual aid. The Indian could hardly believe
his eyes, when he first gazed hypnotically at these reproductions of people and scenes from life. His reaction to this entirely new medium was one of total amazement and worshipping reverence. 1 Soon it became evident to the instructors that
a picture was the most infiuentiaV and therefore, the most
effective way to catechize. It made the red man see with his
own eyes what the instructors told him with their voices. 3 And
the greater impression these representations made on the
Indian, the more valuable they were to the Jesuit catechist.
The missionary only had to explain the picture, emphasizing
the doctrine taught, and the Indian's lively imagination carried
on from there. This explanation served as the first half of the
instruction. 4 It was of great value also in that it became the
occasion of many questions, 5 and it impressed the heart with
devotion and the memory with doctrine. 6 Is it any wonder
then that these portrayals were in great demand? The arrival
of new pictures kept the missionaries explaining them from
morning to night.r Although never expressed as such, it is
correct to say that the missionary's motto was: when in doubt
or when all else fails, show them a picture. They were used
upon entering new villages when language was a barrier. 8
A drawing of a savage being tortured by his enemy in hell always opened deaf ears to hear the word of God and inspired
the savage with salutary ideas. 9 Once a Jesuit was anxious to
1
Relations XLIII, 309; L, 299; LV, 201; LXIII, 67.
Ibid. LXIII, 67.
s Ibid. LXII, 95.
4
5 Ibid. XVII, 103; XLIII, 309.
Ibid. XI, 89.
6
7 Ibid. XIV, 97; XLIII, 309.
Ibid. XLII, 129.
8
9 Jbid. LX, 265,
Relations LVI, 117,
2
�50
MISSION CATECHETICS
baptize an Iroquois prisoner before his torturous execution.
The savage remained unmoved toward the faith until he was
shown a picture of Our Lord which aroused his interest. He
was converted before death. 10 So important was this method
of teaching for the Jesuit that it is mentioned almost three
times as often as any other. 11
Although there are no specific dimensions to quote, some pictures were life size. 12 The pictures were usually placed in the
chapel ;13 sometimes they were laid on the altar. 14 The Indians
had recourse to them on huntsY They hung them up in their
lodges and prayed before themY There are no references to
the small pocket-size types used frequently today.
At times paintings17 and pencil sketches,1 8 more often en·
gravings' 9 and etchings in black and white, seldom colored, 20
were employed for the religious education program. When
available, the plates in books were explained. Very often,
drawn sketches on a particular theme were made into picturebooks. These books were given to the savages to carry with
them for the purpose of self instruction. 21
Some of the pictures, which the missionaries used in their
instructions, were: Christ,2 2 the Blessed Virgin, 23 creation/'
death, the souls in Purgatory/~ Hell 26 with Indians burning
therein,2 7 the General Judgment,2 8 picture-stories of the Old
and New Testaments, 29 scenes from the Gospels, 30 the Passion
of Our Lord, 31 symbols of the seven capital sins, 32 the sacraments,33 the ceremonies at Mass, 34 and the rosary. 85
10 Ibid. XVII, 103.
Ibid. 32 references to pictures; 12 to song.
12Ibid. XV, 17.
13Ibid. XLIII, 309; L, 299; LXIII, 127.
14 Ibid. LXIII, 127.
1s Ibid. XXV, 163; XXVI, 131.
1 6 Ibid. XXV, 163; XXVI, 131; XXXVII, 189.
1 7 Relations LXIII, 231.
1sibid. LXII, 173.
19 Ibid. LXIV, 229; LXVII, 323.
2o Ibid. LXII, 173.
21 Ibid. LXIII, 231.
22 Ibid. XV, 17; XVII, 103; LV, 145-147.
23Ibid. XV, 17; LIX, 189.
24Ibid. LXII, 173.
25 Ibid. LXIII, 127.
26Ibid. LII, 119-123; LXII, 135.
27 Ibid. LXIII, 67.
2sibid. LV, 201; LVI, 135.
29 Relations LXII, 173; LXV, 83. ao Ibid. LXII, 173.
31 Ibid. LXIII, 231.
32Ibid.
33 Ibid.
34 Ibid. LXII, 173.
35 Ibid. LXIII, 231.
11
�MISSION CATECHETICS
51
Song. Anothermethod developed to teach the Indian Catholicism was the use of songs and hymns. Melodies, simple and
in the vernacular, 36 were composed to help the Indians, especially the children, 37 remember prayers and doctrine. The Our
Father, 38 the Hail Mary, 39 the Creed/ 0 and other prayers, 41
as well as the Commandments of God were put into verseY
These sacred motets,4 3 spiritual canticles, 44 and mournful songs
about hell 45 were taught by the missionary who chanted a
couplet at a time and then had the members of his class repeat
it. 46 On occasion, a fiute 47 or a violin 48 accompanied these
rhymes. Always anxious to sing, the Indians continually
sought new rhymes and thus their interest in class was
sustained. 49 After they learned a new song, they inquired
about its content, which provided another opportunity to explain doctrine.
The adults chanted these melodies as they went about their
daily tasks 50 and the children were forever singing them
throughout the village. 51 But this technique achieved its
greatest value when the Indians integrated these songs with
their festivals and dances. 52 Unfortunately the missionaries
do not record this music nor give us any sample of verse in
the native tongue. The following is the only example given
in the Relations to demonstrate what these songs were like:
Jesus, may I see you in heaven, may I never be damned. Keep
me from anger, from evil speaking and from drunkenness. Save
me from the evil spirit.sa
36
Ibid. VIII, 143-145; XI, 223; XIV, 219; XVI, 247; XLII, 129; L,
299.
37
88
Ibid. VIII, 143-145.
Ibid. VIII, 143-145; XI, 223; XIV, 219; XVI, 247; XLII, 129; L,
299.
39
Ibid. XI, 223; XVI, 247; L, 299.
Ibid. XIV, 219; XVI, 247.
u Ibid. XVI, 247.
42
Relations XIV, 219; XVI, 247. 43 Ibid. XLII, 129.
44
Ibid. LV, 145-147.
45 Ibid. LXIII, 67.
46
47 Ibid. LV, 145-147.
Ibid. VIII, 143-145.
48
Ibid. XLII, 129.
49 Ibid. LV, 145-147.
50
Ibid. LVI, 133.
51 Ibid. LIII, 273.
52
Ibid. LXI, 121.
f•W ~·'
53
Relations LXII, 42. "Jesus que je vous voie dans le Ciel que je ne
sois Jamais damne, empechez moy de me facher, de medire et de
rn'enYVrer. Eloignez de moy le malin esprit."
40
�52
MISSION CATECHETICS
Games. Although religious recreation books are a product
of a much later date, two games are recorded in the Relations.
The first was played in the classroom. Emblems depicting the
seven sacraments, the three theological virtues, the Commandments of God and of the Church, marks of horror for the
principal mortal and even venial sins, are placed on a board.
Also original sin and its effects, the four last things of man,
the fear of God, indulgences, all the works of mercy, grace,
conscience, freedom, all that a Christian must know are
symbolized by these emblems. The game is called "Point to
Point" and is played by explaining the emblems. The Indians
enjoyed it immensely.H
The second game is taught in class and played outside.
Like St. Francis Xavier in the East Indies, the missionaries
have the little children hunt for idols, witchcraft drums and
little manitous concealed by the savages. The youngsters are
told to shatter them. All these instruments of superstition are
proven to be so ridiculous by this action that the adults do
not dare to use them. ~ 5
Natural Science. The introduction of natural scientific truths
as a preparation for supernatural truth was a powerful means
of converting the Indian. When' jhe red man offered as argument his superstitious naturalistic ideas concerning life after
death, he was forced to the ridiculous. For example, the
native believed that the earth was flat and that at death his
soul went to the end of the earth which was at the setting sun.
There he built a cabin and dwelt in it for all eternity. How
foolish the savage looked when the missionary rhetorically
questioned why the earth was not flooded by the tide of the
ocean, if the earth was entirely flat, and why no one had
ever encountered the place. 56
Various phenomena of nature were used to dispose the
Indian to accept the supernatural truths of faith. 57 One time
an ingenious missionary planned to speak about hell fire.
He began by igniting some sulphur, which appeared to the
savage like plain soil burning. He then stated that those who
did not believe in hell fire because of a lack of wood should
54
56
Ibid. LIII, 207.
Ibid, XII, 29-31.
55
57
Relations XXIX, 201.
Ibid. XI, 157-159.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
53
listen very carefully. 58 These curious facts of nature showed
then the fallacies in their philosophy of life and provided a
method for making them very attentive in class. 59
Dialectics. The Jesuits frequently were interrupted in their
instructions with objections and questions. The anxious
audience did not wish to hear more until the objection was
answered. When the instructor realized that these debates
and dialogues made the Indian more attentive, they encouraged them. The red man respected good disputation and
honored the men who won. Not much time elapsed before
the tribe's estimation of these priests was greatly increased.60
For variation, the instructors, when possible, had the French
children question each other in class. 61 Often a neophyte was
placed in the audience who asked questions and argued against
the answers of the teacher. 62 In advanced programs, converts
and catechumens conducted the discussions and instructed
their neighbors. This third method proved highly effective
because the red man more readily accepted the mysteries of
Catholicism when they were taught to him by one of his own. 63
The reasonableness of the Faith did not go unmentioned in
these villages. Fine logical discourses showed that such principles as the Commandments of God, His Justice, and the laws
of His Church64 were not without a natural ethical foundation.65 It was demonstrated to the savage that revelation
provided the supernatural answers to the unsolved problems
of natural theology. Idolatry became idiotic when the Indian,
Who had a mind and a language, was asked to explain why he
Prayed to a beaver, who did not have a mind and could not
speak.66
Simple though he was, the red man was cunning. Often he
tested the missionary by asking him questions about other
tribes to see if the "black robe" spoke the truth. The alert
Father seized such opportunities and asked the Indian why
he did not believe the supernatural, when he found the priest
-
58
Ibid I, 289.
su Relations VII, 93-95.
Ibid. VIII, 143-145; XI 223; XIV, 219; XVI, 247; XLII, 129.
61
Ibid. VIII, 143-145.
62 Ibid. XV, 123.
63 Relations XV, 123; XLIX, 69. 64 Ibid. XXXIX, 147.
65
66 Ibid. LII, 183.
Ibid. XII, 149.
60
�54
MISSION CATECifETICS
speaking the truth about natural things, 67 One dared never
fail in any respect if he was to keep honor in the village.
Pauline Style. The strange and novel always attracts. History is not without record that after a time novelty becomes
commonplace, is taken for granted. The missionaries, too, discovered this fact and at one village decided to shock the people
out of their complacency. It must be remembered that besides
the true-'Faith, these priests gave the people the means to
agriculfural, economic, medical and social improvements. How
they surprised the tribe when they announced their departure!
Following St. Paul's example with the Corinthians, these
missionaries related how they suffered and sacrificed themselves for the people; yet no one took heed of what they
preached. 68 So now it was time to shake the dust of the village
from their moccasins. The ruse was a success. The entire
village immediately consented to abolish polygamy in order to
keep the missionaries. 69
Gifts. An attractive way of encouraging the savages, especially the children, to learn doctrine was to reward those who
did well in class. Such things as little beads of porcelain, 70
brass rings, strings of colored glass, 11 hatchets, compasses and
spheres 72 were kept before the pupil's eyes as a daily incentive
to learn. Since the parents were anxious to have their
youngsters come home with prizes, some took private instruction in order to be able to teach their children more about the
faith. 13
It was the custom of the people to offer food and presents
whenever they were introduced to one another. A person was
rude who did not provide at least a small feast for his guest.
Often the missionary was forced to feed such guests from his
meager supplies in order to have them continue coming to
instructions. 74
Use of Concrete Objects. The less left to the pupil's imagination, the better the instruction. Frequently the instructor made
sr Ibid. VII, 187-189.
Ibid. LII, 207.
11 Ibid. LIII, 251.
73 Relations VIII, 143-145.
s9
Relations XXXIX, 147.
Ibid. VIII, 143-145.
72 Ibid. LV, 139.
14 Ibid. XI, 203; XII, 249.
68
10
�MISSION CATECHETICS
55
use of various objects to explain the subject matter. Once a
missionary held two pieces of paper before his class. One
was white with some doctrines of the Church written on it.
The other was soiled with the sins inscribed. During his
presentation the latter was burned in the fire while the former
was kept neatly aside. Easy application was made to the lesson
at hand. 7G
Another time the rope by which the savages led their captives to the fires represented the cruel chains of sin by which
the devil drags them to hell. A map of the world signified that
God made all things. A little mirror which seemed to hold so
much on its small surface symbolized God's knowledge of all
things. A string of glass which is a token of friendship
demonstrated God's liberal mercy. A round collar indicated
that there is one God.16
The Jesuits left no stone unturned in their efforts to convert the Indians. Pictures, songs, games, dialectics, gifts, anything that might win another soul for Christ was employed.
The development of these catechetical techniques was one of
the countless examples of the Jesuits' fervor to satisfy the
thirst for souls of their Master, Jesus Christ. When these
efforts did not bear fruit, the Jesuits offered their own
martyred blood.
Conclusion
Such were the difficulties and methods of the religious education program conducted by the missionaries of the Society of
Jesus in the northern part of the New World. In their letters
and reports, the subject of religious instructions was often
interwoven with many other important matters; catechetics
Was rarely treated as a distinct subject. One wonders what
interesting and impressive ways of teaching the word of Christ
were left unmentioned.
There were many factors contributing to the success which
the Jesuits enjoyed in their attempt to christianize New
France. One was the benevolent attitude of the mother country toward the Indians. France cherished these pagan souls
TG
16
Ibid. XLII, 105-107.
Relations LUI, 263.
�MISSION CATECHETICS
56
in America, while Spain subdued them and England ignored
them. Another was the good influence that the French colonists
had upon the Indians. The savages greatly admired the total
aversion of the French to all kinds of sensuality. The red men
were convinced that the French did not deceive them in matters of religion. Still another reason for success was the trust
which the missionaries placed in God despite their many
struggles and many threats of death. 1
But the most important factor was the ingenious catechetical
methods of the Jesuits. Through these techniques the Indians
were drawn to the Faith. Through these techniques the supernatural truths of Catholicism were clearly explained; the
unity and reasonableness of Catholic doctrine was convincingly
demonstrated. Through such methods the pagans were led
to reject their fear of the many manitous and to embrace the
love of one Supreme Being.
Despite the genius of the Jesuits, the attempt to establish
lasting Catholic communities among these peoples was a dismal failure. The fierce wars and the unstable lives of the
Indians could not be subordinated to the tenets of Christianity. The Iroquois nations hated the French because of an
earlier conflict with Champlain and constantly staged bitter
and bloody raids upon their neighbors friendly to the French.
Iroquois' tomahawks and guns were the ruin of the missionaries' hopes. 2
France forced to turn its interests to civil and continental
matters soon lost interest in the New World. The French
and Indian War of 1763 was a victory for the English and
a critical wound for Christianity among the savages. The
fatal blow was the suppression of the Society of Jesus in 1773.
By the end of the eighteenth century all the activity of this
missionary endeavor ceased.
t
2
Relations XV, 121.
Ibid. LXIII, 273-279.
��FATHER FACUNDO G. CARBAJAL
�Father Facundo G. Carbajal, S. J.
1879-1957
Harold Gaudin, S.J.
On the morning of December 4, 1957, Father Carbajal was
late for his mass-a thing that never happened before. When
no response came from his signal bell, those who sought him
looked knowingly at each other. It had happened as Dr. Farrington said it would. When found lying in his bed, wearing his
glasses, with his room light on and a bottle of heart medicine
in his hand, he had been dead about five hours. The doctor
surmised that when another heart attack had come in the night
he had spent his last strength in rising to put on his light and
to get his medicine. Thus passed a good priest, a faithful friend
of unfortunates, a kind and untiring confessor.
His solemn high requiem mass coram episcopo was celebrated on the First Friday of December with Gesu Church
filled with the faithful, some of whom were sobbing in their
grief. The Office for the Dead had been recited earlier by
Jesuit confreres of Florida helped by a large number of diocesan priests. A friend of long years, Monsignor Barry,
preached the eulogy. Archbishop Hurley gave the last blessing.
The Mass was chanted by the boys' choir of Curley High
School.
Facundo G. Carbajal was born in New Orleans on November 27, 1879, son of Bernard Gonzalez Carbajal and Margaret
Dunshie. He worked as a Western Union telegraph operator
from 1894 to 1903 and then in his father's real estate business
before he entered the Society of Jesus at Macon, Georgia, on
October 30, 1904. He made his philosophy at Woodstock College and his theology at Montreal where he was ordained by
Bishop Forbes on May 17, 1918. After his tertianship at St.
Andrew-on-Hudson he spent all his priestly career in the
parishes except for one year of teaching at Jesuit High in
Tampa, and another four years in Jesuit High of New Orleans.
From 1931 to 1934 he was pastor of the Immaculate Conception Church in New Orleans.
57
�FATHER CARBAJAL
Father Carbajal was a kindly man known to the reprobates
and alcoholics of Miami for the material help and fatherly
admonitions he always gave them. He was a zealous man
always eager for extra services and disappointed when not
given the two late Masses on Sundays. He was a charitable
man ready to interpret well the motives of others, and a
patient man capable of sitting for hours without a minute's
respite in his confessional around which flocked young and
old, saint.and sinner. Once on the eve of Holy Thursday, 1956
he remained in his confessional from four until nine-thirty
and thought nothing of it.
However, if there be one quality more than another which
should be singled out in Father Facundo it is his tirelessness
in promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart. Due to his efforts
there hangs in more than five thousand homes a beautiful
picture of the Sacred Heart on which is written "Don't Be
Discouraged"-a theme characteristic of all his sermons. This
picture together with a prayer to the "Great" Sacred Heart
written in his early priesthood was promoted by him wherever
he went. The prayer was always a popular part of his Friday
night Holy Hour, for years the best attended service at Gesu,
to which old timers constantly ?eturned and to which visiting
tourists found their way. Through them his picture and
prayer were carried to all parts of the United States and
rarely does a week pass without the arrival of one or more
letters requesting extra copies.
A priest so devoted to the Sacred Heart inevitably would
possess great power over hardened sinners. So it was with
Father Carbajal, to whom from the whole area around there
came a husband or a wife, a mother or father seeking his help
to call back to the fold a loved one who had strayed. Rarely did
he meet defeat in his extraordinary sympathy and kindly
approach.
In the providence of God, undoubtedly through the goodness
of Father Carbajal's "Great" Sacred Heart, he was well prepared for his sudden death. He had just returned from Grand
Coteau where he had made his annual retreat and had a last
visit with his cherished brother in the Society, Father Joseph
Carbajal, now in the infirmary of the novitiate.
�FATHER CARBAJAL
69
Of his retreat and visit he spoke in the refectory the night
before he died. He told again the story of his vocation; how
on his way to New York for a vacation he had stopped at our
novitiate in Macon to visit his brother. On that visit, Joseph
persuaded him to make a retreat to decide his vocation then
and there. The result-as expected by Joseph-that Facundo
never left the novitiate.
For this Father Facundo was most grateful to God, as
he reminisced that last night before he died. He spoke also
with great sentiment of his more recent visit with his brother
at Grand Coteau where he had taken the occasion to visit
the graves of old friends and teachers. He recalled in particular Fathers Chamard and Reville-his Juniorate professors
whom he esteemed highly. Expressing and repeating the
thought that we must all be ready to die, he recalled the
names of others whose graves he saw in the cemetery to
which, unknown to us at the time, he himself would be carried
within a few days. The very last words of his conversation
that night was an expression of profound thanks to God for
his vocation to the priesthood and for the many graces he had
received through the Society.
There was always strong loyalty in the Carbajal family.
It disturbed Father Facundo very much that in spite of
money given by the Carbajal family for a memorial of their
father and mother, the designated memorial had been effaced
in the destruction of the old Jesuit Church on Baronne Street.
Whatever resentment had been felt by Father Facundo was removed entirely when the family was memorialized through the
new library of Jesuit High of New Orleans.
He never tired of speaking about his family, and without
the least boast of false pride, a thing foreign to him, he
rejoiced in his descent (through his mother's family) from
St. Thomas More. It was right that he should recall such a
holy ancestor, and it is right that we remember his joy in
doing so; in him also there shone the fine qualities for which
his sainted ancestor is known.
* * *
�Father Thomas Caryl Hughes
1893 -1957
Laurence A. Walsh, S.J.
'
Thomas.. Caryl Hughes was born in Yonkers, New York, on
October 27, 1893. There is an unusual tie between the odd
middle name and the place of birth, which I mention since
Father Hughes was always called Caryl by his sisters and
brothers. Caryl was the name of a real estate developer in
Yonkers who offered one hundred dollars to the first boy born
on property purchased from him, provided the boy was given
the name Caryl. The parents of Father Hughes purchased a
lot, built a house thereon ; Thomas was the first boy born on
Mr._ Caryl's property. Hence the middle name of Father
Hughes.
After graduating from Xavier High School in New York
City, Thomas worked for a full year before entering the
novitiate at St. Andrew-on-Hud~on, August 14, 1914. He was
one of the oldest of a very young group of nineteen postulants,
thirteen of whom with three of their four "angels" survive
him in the three provinces of the Eastern Seaboard and their
missions. Thomas Hughes completed his novitiate and juniorate at St. Andrew-on-Hudson and his three years of philosophical studies at Woodstock, Maryland. He began and completed his regency at Loyola High School in Baltimore, Maryland at a time when the years of regency were being reduced
from five to four to three years. Thomas was fortunate to be
one of those in his year to have only three years of regency,
1921 to 1924. Hence he began his theological studies at Woodstock;Maryland in the fall of 1924. These years were uneventful, except that he suffered more than one false angina attack
in his latter years of theology. These were due, it was discovered, to a tar-product he had taken as medicine. Later
throughout his prolonged sieges of illness, Father was always
most cautious and insisted with doctors and nurses that he
60
�FATHER THOMAS CARYL HUGHES
��FATHER HUGHES
61
could not take any tar-product medicine. At the end of the
third year of theology on June 27, 1927, he was ordained to the
priesthood in the Woodstock Chapel by Archbishop Michael
J. Curley, said his First Mass the following day at Woodstock,
and his First Solemn Mass shortly after in the Visitation
Convent in Riverdale, New York City.
After theology Father returned to Baltimore but this time
to Loyola College where in the following two years he taught
Freshmen and Sophomore classes in Latin, English and religion. For tertianship Father was sent to St. Bueno's, Wales,
evidently a pleasant experience in many respects, since his
father and an uncle, still living as a parish priest there, were
born in England; yet it had its serious drawbacks. Father
found the climate at St. Bueno's difficult and due to continued
illness spent part of the year of tertianship at the novitiate
in Roehampton, England.
Manhattan Division
In the summer of 1931 he came to Fordham as an assistant
to Father Miles J. O'Mailia, who at the time was the dean of
four schools in the Woolworth Building: the Graduate School,
Teachers College, Fordham College (Manhattan Division) and
the School of Business. Father Hughes' work was confined
to the latter two schools and on the status of 1932 he was
appointed the dean of these two schools.
In the summer of 1933, Father Hughes accompanied Father
Matthew Fortier on a two week vacation in Canada. On his
return to Fordham he was bothered by an infected cyst back
of his right ear. He did not consider the infection serious.
He visited the doctor on his way to his office and after the cyst
was lanced continued on his way to the Woolworth Building.
In the early hours of the following morning, Father Hughes
awakened because the wound was bleeding rather freely. Our
infirmarian and an interne from Fordham Hospital were not
successful in stopping the flow of blood and Father was
brought to a hospital where a nurse succeeded with the help of
a pressure bandage. This was the beginning of a long ordeal.
For close to three years Father was under the care of skin
and X-ray specialists as well as surgeons. There were long
stays in hospitals during one of which there was the added
�62
FATHER HUGHES
danger from an erysipeloid condition. From the infected cyst
behind the ear a deep-seated infection settled in Father's neck
and would not heal. After major surgery the wound finally
closed on the last day of the novena of grace, March 12, 1936.
Father Hughes always attributed his recovery to the intercession of St. Francis Xavier.
On the status of 1936, Father Hughes, now fully recovered,
was appqinted assistant dean (for Freshmen) of Fordham
College .on the campus. For the following fourteen years he
remained. in this position until the summer of 1950, when he
was appointed minister of Campion House, the residence of
the America staff. He served in this position for almost seven
and a half years. In June 1957 a diabetic condition was discovered but careful medical attention had mastered this illness.
Just a few days before his rather sudden death, Father complained of indigestion and then of neuritis pains in his arms,
neck and chest, but did not think the doctor should be called.
Wpen finally summoned, the doctor discovered Father had
a serious coronary occlusion, so serious that he could not be
moved to a hospital. One day later, on the morning of December 17, 1957, while Extreme Unction was being administered, Father Hughes breath~O out his gentle soul to God.
Allowing for the years of his ·illness Father Hughes spent
nineteen devoted, strenuous years at Fordham. He did much to
expand what was started as a two year pre-law program into
the four year Fordham College (Manhattan Division). The
same holds true for the four year day and evening sessions
of the School of Business. Through Father Hughes' organizational ability and his persistent hard work, these schools were
for the first time completely independent of other schools in
the university, having their own registrar, clerical staff and
office. Father would leave the campus before eight in the morning,to be in his office in the Woolworth Building before classes
started at nine. He would return to the campus at 7:00 P.M.
for second table dinner. This he did until serious illness incapacitated him for three full years. Superiors then assigned
him to work on the campus.
Father was one of the first assistant deans assigned to our
colleges to take care of the Freshman year. He set about this
work with the same devotedness, organizing power and sub-
�FATHER HUGHES
68
mission to humdrum detail. Within a year he took care of all
admissions to the college, Freshman class and faculty schedules, examinations, marks and dismissals. Always neat in his
personal appearance and in all his work-his office desk and
the desk of his living room were always cleared at the end of
the day-Father insisted that his Freshmen not be admitted
to class unless properly dressed. Not only did he closely
supervise all academic activities but he showed the same interest in all extracurricular activities of his Freshmen. He
started many clubs just for the Freshmen-the one-act play
contest, debating society, oratorical contest, the St. Valentine's
Day dance, and regularly closed each school year with the
Parents' Day. On a Sunday late in May the parents of the
Freshmen were invited to the campus. With very careful planning Father would parade before these parents not only the
facilities of the campus but most of the academic and extracurricular activities of the College. Toward the end of the
afternoon, the Freshman class president would present the
Freshman class gift to the University. There are a number
of attractive bronze plaques and fountains on the campus
today, fruits of Father Hughes' efforts to train his neophytes
in generous loyalty to their Alma Mater, but the most attractive Freshman gift of these years is the row of trees running from the steps of the Gymnasium on the south side of
the road to Keating Hall. Though somewhat fearful of his
health, Father devoted his entire time with no conflicting
interests but with fatherly effort to see to it that all these
classes of Freshmen received special attention and were
given the best start in college Fordham could give to them.
Ordered Life
Attributable to his English ancestry was a definite tenacity
of purpose and objective that showed through all Father
Hughes' life as a Jesuit, his work at Fordham and Campion
House, his relations with his former students, his office staff
and his friends in the Society. His life as a Jesuit was most
orderly, from early morning rising to prompt retiring at the
appointed time. He was at his office early each day, throughout
the day, and regularly on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
There was a set time for reading the Office and he regularly
�64
FATHER HUGHES
anticipated the reading of Matins and Lauds. During his last
retreat, made just a few months before his death, he wrote
out an order of time for his retreat in typical detail and I do
not doubt that he followed this schedule as faithfully as he
had written it. In his work as a dean, he could face a problem
of many complicated details, work long hours disentangling it,
putting order into chaos, and persevering year in and year out.
This same .tenacity of purpose was evident in the friendships
he had made with students at Loyola High School and College
in Baltim~re, who visited him during theology at nearby
Woodstock and later in distant Fordham. Most of those who
worked in his office were very devoted to him as he was to all
their interests and needs. He was exacting, generous, and
thoughtful and those who knew him well were his devoted
friends.
One of the notable fruits of Father Hughes' persistent care
in dealing with students, parents and friends was most beneficial to Fordham University. It was in great part through
his efforts that the Patterson estate of about one hundred
acres, Eagle Bay, at Ossining, was left to Fordham University
in the will of Joseph M. Patterson, owner of the New York
Daily News. Mr. Patterson had fo~med a club in Ossining for
boys of the age of his son Jim, and employed a young man to
supervise their scout work, games and socials. The boys' attractive quarters were a playroom with a special temporary
dance floor surface, bicycles, showers, etc. off the main floor
of the estate garage. Mr. Patterson was particularly interested
in a Catholic boy of the club and arranged through Father
Hughes for him to attend Fordham College on a scholarship
he provided. In the following year, September 1941, his
nephew Richard K. King, of Chicago, entered Fordham College. In the war-time program Richard completed Sophomore
year by April 1943 and then entered the Army. Within a feW
months he died in a camp epidemic in Louisiana. At his
funeral in Chicago, his aunt, Mrs. Patterson, told his parents
that if she survived her husband, she would give Eagle Bay to
Fordham as a memorial to Dick. Mrs. Patterson planned never
to mention her desire to Mr. Patterson, yet one night at dinner
shortly thereafter, she was asked if she would continue to live
at Eagle Bay after his death. Mrs. Patterson gave a negative
�FATHER HUGHES
65
answer and then told her husband of her plans. To her surprise he approved and immediately wanted to call Father
Gannon, then President of the University. He did write to
Father Hughes in late April 1944, asking if Eagle Bay would
be of any use to Fordham University. A week later in answer
to Father's prompt favorable reply he wrote again to Father
Hughes, inviting the superiors at Fordham to visit Eagle Bay.
On May 6th, Father Gannon, Father Fisher, Father Hughes
and Father Quilty visited the Pattersons. Mrs. Patterson
wrote to Father Hughes and told him that a few nights after
the visit her husband said to her "This is all Dick. We would
not have thought of Fordham except for Dick." Within a few
months all legal matters were settled whereby Eagle Bay was
given to Fordham University in the will of Mr. Patterson.
Mr. Patterson died on May 26, 1948. Despite Mr. Patterson's
comment on the hidden influence of his nephew in this bequest,
there is no doubt that it was the gently tenacious care of
Father Hughes in meeting the initial requests of the Patterson
family and his faithfulness in keeping Fordham in their
thoughts through correspondence that was responsible for
this and other benefactions from the Patterson family.
The same tenacity of purpose was evident in his concern
for cleanliness and neatness not only in his own person and in
that of all his Freshman students but also in his room, office
and the altar at which he said Mass as well as the classrooms
his students used. He was responsible in great part for equipping the six old classrooms with new slate blackboards and
new chairs some years prior to the reconstruction of Dealy
Hall.
Tribute
We are indebted to the Superior and to the Spiritual Father
of Campion House for the following tribute to Father Hughes,
given at an exhortation shortly after his death.
"We in the Campion House Community cherish the memory
of our departed brother, Father Hughes. As minister of the
house he gave his best to our service for the seven years he
Was here. Now that he is gone, we realize better what we have
lost. He gave himself to us with a wholehearted devotion and
his care of the good of the house was genuinely appreciated.
�66
FATHER HUGHES
Though the community is small, the job of housekeeping is no
easy task. One of Father Tom's particular specialties was that
of cleanliness; and in view of the continual accumulation of
New York City soot and dust, with constant traffic in and
out our doors, he achieved a kind of miracle in this respect.
In this he was aided by his great skill, patience and perse.
verance in the training of the domestic help of the house. No
detail of their work was too small for his attention, while his
unfailing·. considerateness won their affection and respect.
During the days his body remained with us as a loving charge,
before being taken to St. Andrew, we were touched by the
way our domestics went out of their way to pay him honor.
"Central in Father Hughes' heart was his love of the chapel,
and all he could add to the beauty and dignity of the Mass
and other functions. He was constantly seeing to the vestments, and was as lavish as circumstances would allow. The
tiny patch of garden, if you can call it that, twenty-five by
seventy-five feet, behind the house, gave him his daily physical
exercise, and he carried on an unceasing campaign to make
grass and flowers and bushes grow where man and nature
alike opposed. Yet he succeeded, as far as any success was
possible in this labor of love, an·Q. created something that we
were proud to show to visitors. All of us were continually
edified by the reverence and devotion he always showed in the
celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and every function of public prayer.
"A sufferer himself, without complaining, he was deeply
sympathetic to the ills and troubles of others."
What was so aptly said in closing by the Spiritual Father
of the last seven years of Father Hughes' life at Campion
House, I would apply as a final tribute to his more than fortythree years in the Society, "Those years of his presence with
us were years of a Jesuit's fine witnessing to our Lord and
his vocation. May we retain his memory and may he rest in
peace."
* * *
�Father Charles F. Connor
1881 -1956
E. Paul Amy, S.J.
"At St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., Father
Charles F. Connor died piously in the Lord on December 15,
1956, at 3:45 a.m." Thus was announced to the New York
Providence the passing of the patriarch of its Mission Band.
He who had always desired to die in the harness succumbed
to death only after eighteen months of lingering illness. His
activity as a missionary ended abruptly when he underwent
surgery at St. Vincent's Hospital in New York in the spring
of 1955. For weeks after surgery he lay sometimes alert yet
more often comatose. Previously he had resided at St. Francis
Xavier's in New York but now it was decided, and readily
he acceded to the decision, that he would be better off at St.
Andrew's where he could be given the convalescent care of
which he had need. His sojourn at the Jesuit Novitiate began
in July 1955.
Two months later he was considered physically capable of
withstanding the completion of the surgery initiated at St.
Vincent's and so he was hospitalized at St. Francis' in Poughkeepsie. After this operation he was plagued, as often he had
been before, by extremely high blood pressure. He hovered
near death. Again he received Extreme Unction. Perhaps it
was his indomitable will to return to active work on the Mission Band that effected a modicum of recovery. He was able
to leave the hospital and return to the novitiate infirmary.
In Father Connor there was a wonderful combination of
firmness, some called it hardness, and consideration for others.
In his sickness he wished to cause as little trouble as possible
to those who took care of him. It was difficult for him to
~ccept the situation as permitted by God. His sickness brought
Into clear relief a characteristic of his life, his complete submissiveness to the demands of obedience. Of him the Brother
67
�68
FATHER CONNOR
Infirmarian could say after his death that he always did
what he was told; that he never complained of his condition or
the treatments he had to undergo; that he never questioned
what was done or to be done to or for him; in short, that he
was all compliance with doctors and infirmarians.
As time went on, arterial sclerosis hampered his memory
and rational faculties and early in 1956 Superiors adjudged
him incapable of offering Mass validly. Perhaps this deprivation was~his greatest trial; the thought of it worked on him
subconsciously so that he attempted to do what he never
would have done were he of sound mind. One morning in
February of 1956 he was found prostrate at the foot of the
sacristy stairs of the domestic chapel. It could but be surmised that he had left his infirmary room in the early hours of
the morning with the thought of saying Mass. When found
he was unconscious. Diagnosis disclosed that he had suffered a
brain concussion. In and out of consciousness, he was irrational
for- seventy-two hours, and thereafter was a semi-invalid
until June. From June to December he was a complete invalid.
During those six months when so debilitated in body, he suffered much from mental anguish. He received the Eucharist
for the last time about six weeks before his death as thereafter his physical disability made communion impossible. In
his comatose condition he never adverted to his deprivation.
Death, ultimately caused by heart disease, brought blessed
relief to Father Connor whose active life had been climaxed
by such helpless inactivity.
Early Years
The more than three quarters of a century which measured
Father Connor's life span began in 1881. He was born on
February 8 of that year in the family home at Second Avenue
and 'J'wentieth Street in New York City. He was baptized
shortly thereafter in the Church of the Epiphany. The third
child in the family,-there was an older brother Joseph, and
an older sister Mary-he was deprived before his second
birthday of the loving care of his mother who died on Decem·
ber 15, 1882. It is interesting to note that Father Connor's
death also occurred on December 15. Some six years later
Father Connor's father remarried, his second wife being the
�FATHER CONNOR
69
sister of the first Mrs. Connor. Of this union a child was born
who through the years would be Father Connor's devoted
sister Agnes. But hardly had he gained a second mother when
she passed away two short years after her marriage. His
schooling in these early years was at St. Anne's parochial
school on East Twelfth Street. When he was ten and a half
years old he transferred from St. Anne's to St. Francis
Xavier School.
The roster of what later came to be known as Xavier
Grammar School lists him as a pupil during the school year of
1891-1892. At the end of that year he won a prize for spelling
and stood third in his class. The next year, in what today
would be eighth grade, he ranked sixth in his class. In the
first year of the three year high school course he gained an
honorable mention in religion and the following year won the
prize in the same subject. Continuing his high school and
college education at St. Francis Xavier, he established no
further records of scholastic achievement, but he did win the
gold medal for elocution in his third year of college and was
graduated on June 25, 1900, with a bachelor of arts degree.
Father Connor's thoughts had veered between the stage and
the altar. His decision was finally made in favor of the priesthood. This decision was something of a disappointment to his
father who was most desirous that Charles become a lawyer.
He was convinced that with his influence and his son's ability
the latter could be a judge in no time. Charles entered the
novitiate of the Maryland-New York Providence of the Society
of Jesus at Frederick, Maryland, on September 18, 1900.
Nothing eventful is recorded of his novitiate days, though he
was one of the novices who made the trek from the old
Frederick novitiate to the new novitiate of St. Andrew-onHudson early in 1902. Concluding his novitiate with the taking
of his first vows in the Society of Jesus, he spent two years in
the juniorate at St. Andrew's. Thereafter three years were
spent at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland, studying
Philosophy. Though a college graduate, his courses of studies
in the juniorate and philosophate were in no way abbreviated.
In the interim between the study of philosophy and theology
he spent three years teaching in the high school of Holy Cross
College, Worcester, Mass., and a fourth year teaching college
�70
FATHER CONNOR
Freshmen at Holy Cross. A fifth year of teaching was spent
at his Alma Mater where we find the alumnus a professor of
Freshmen, 1911-1912.
Returning to Woodstock College in 1912 for theology he
was ordained on June 28, 1915. After his fourth year of
theology he returned to Holy Cross College for one year during
which he taught philosophy and religion to the junior class.
In September of 1917 Father Connor began his tertianship.
The Urtited States had become involved in the World War I
and we find his tertianship abbreviated when commissioned
chaplain with the rank of first lieutenant as of March 30, 1918.
The certificate of his discharge on September 27, 1919, is very
cryptic. It states that he was honorably discharged with the
same rank with which he had been commissioned. His military
record is listed as follows: "Battles, engagements, skirmishes:
Meuse-Argonne, November 9-11, 1918; Saint-Die Sector,
September 22-0ctober 18, 1918." While the war was in progress he was attached first to a field signal battalion and an
infantry battalion, and later to headquarters of the 81st Division. After the Armistice he was assigned to the headquarters of an infantry battaliqn of the Army of Occupation.
--
Philippine Interlude
Returned to civilian life Father Connor became prefect of
studies for one year in both college and high school at St.
Joseph's in Philadelphia. The next year he had added to his
duties the office of prefect of discipline. When the call came
in 1921 for volunteers for the Philippines, recently assigned to
the Maryland-New York Province, Father Connor offered his
services. He was one of the group detailed to the Philippines
that same year and on arrival in Manila was given the post
of prefect of studies and discipline at the Ateneo de Manila.
Anyone knowing him might expect conflict when it came to
changing from Spanish to American methods at the Ateneo.
"Don't change things too precipitously" was the order wisely
given by higher superiors. Under Spanish procedure a boY
at the Ateneo would gain an AB degree after a total of six
years of high school and college studies. Under Spanish procedure the closest supervision was exercised over the students
inside and outside the college so that even when going for a
�FATHER CONNOR
71
walk the students, college seniors included, were regimented
under the watchful eyes of prefects. In general, change was
desired even by the Filipinos themselves. But how complete a
change? How soon was such change in the course of studies
and in discipline to be effected? In this matter conflict came
partly from outside the community, from parents, and partly
from inside the community. Father Connor, strong and forceful man that he was, did not seem to be the man the situation
demanded. Few were surprised when he returned to the States
after only one year at the Ateneo.
The following year found him at Xavier High School in
New York where he taught for the first term and in the
second term was prefect of discipline. Transferred for a year
to St. Joseph's in Philadelphia, he was again prefect of studies
and discipline in both college and high school. He then returned to Xavier in the capacity of prefect of discipline and
continued in that office for three years. Xavier, then as now,
was a military school and Father Connor as prefect made
much of military discipline among the students. For infraction of school rules, his was not an uncommon practice to demand a student's court martial with fellow students acting
as advocates and judges of the delinquent. Speaking of Father
Connor during those days, a student now a priest in the
Province says, "Father Connor was absolutely just; that is
why every Xavier man admired him. Our class admired him,
especially for his reverence in Church. He taught every cadet
the meaning of the Real Presence; any cadet talking in
Church or slouching in a pew paid the full penalty. Parents
respected him because he was all for the advancement of
their boys. He differed with many parents but later these
came to see his wisdom. The military personnel truly admired
him; several were non-Catholics and one, I believe, he led into
the Church. He never missed a visit to the home or a line of
condolence to one who had lost a loved one." Such commendation of Father Connor has come from many a former Xavier
student and through the years would come from many another
of the laity, from religious, priests, and members of the
hierarchy. In 1927 he embarked on what was to prove to be
his real life's work through nearly thirty years until failing
health would incapacitate him completely.
�72
FATHER CONNOR
From 1927 to 1935 Father Connor was resident at St.
Joseph's Church, Willing's Alley, Philadelphia, as a member
of the Mission Band of the Maryland-New York Province.
When the Maryland Vice Province was established with
its own Mission Band he was transferred to St. Ignatius
Church, New York, still a member of the Mission Band but
now its head in the New York Province. After five years as
director.of the Mission Band he yielded that position to another
and continuing as a member took up residence at the Church
of the Nativity, New York, where he resided for ten years.
In 1950 he moved to Xavier High School where he continued
in residence as the patriarch of the Band and perhaps its
busiest and most active member until the spring of 1955.
Preacher
To itemize the extent of his travels and of his preachings is
to give but a hint of the man, the priest that he was, and of his
character. During thirty years he gave more than 450 retreats, ranging in length from three to thirty days. Comprised in this number were retreats to priests in more than
twenty-five different dioceses .and congregations from the
Atlantic seaboard to California·, -from Newfoundland to Carolina. Seminarians, too, in their studies and on the verge of
ordination in ten different dioceses and religious congregations
made the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius under his direction. East and west, north and south, throughout the United
States, he gave retreats to more than fifty different orders
and congregations of religious, and to the laity on all levelsto students in high schools and colleges, to business and professional men and women. During nearly thirty years on the
Mission Band he preached more than 275 weeks of parish missions in addition to countless novenas, Tre Ore sermons,
tridua and occasional sermons. He was a speaker much in
demand at communion breakfasts and in the forty active
years of his priesthood he heard more than a quarter of a million confessions.
It is no exaggeration to say that he was a preacher constantly sought after. Not uncommonly while giving a priests'
retreat he would be booked by pastors far in advance to preach
novenas, missions, tridua and occasional sermons in their
�-
FATHER CHARLES F. CONNOR
�--
�FATHER CONNOR
I
73
churches. His daily mail brought constant requests from
clergy, religious and laity, both men and women, for his services. And that it was he and not some substitute whom they
wanted is exemplified by a letter from a pastor: "If the old
adage-'a good thing is worth waiting for' -be true, then I
think that the same kind of philosophy should go double when
personality rather than materiality constitutes the object of
expectancy. Therefore, while I am sorry that you will not be
with us this year, I shall be pleased if you will endeavor to
book St. Mary's parish for next year. But please don't forget
this: the novena is to be conducted by. Father Connor; the
first name of said Father Connor must be Charles; this same
Charles must be more widely and affectionately known as
Chuck. I hope the identification is complete."
Even as he was much in demand, so too was he well accepted
by his various audiences. A bishop wrote to him, "May I ask
you to accept as an inadequate expression of our profound
gratitude for your tireless and extremely zealous efforts expended on behalf of our clergy the enclosed gift? Personally
I am more than regretful that my duties at this time would
not permit me to join with the clergy of the diocese in making
my retreat. I am certain that I have missed something very
profitable and impressive. I am sure that you already know
that you have made a deep and, I hope, lasting impression on
our priests generally." And by a diocesan priest these words
of praise were written, "I wish to thank you for the splendid
retreat you gave us last week. I enjoyed it and came back
encouraged and enthused." In the course of a parish mission
Preached at Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kingston, Jamaica,
Father Connor received a letter from a gentleman which
read, "Although an Anglican, I have attended two of the
Mission meetings at Holy Trinity Cathedral now being held by
You. I thought you might perhaps like to know how much I
appreciated your straightforwardness and sincere addresses.
What I really wish to convey to you is, that despite the spiteful
mouthings in the local press of a certain leader of a synthetic
religion, there are quite a number of Protestants here who
bless you for the help your meetings have been to them, and
heartily wish you Godspeed in your noble work."
To give the impression that he had only followers and ad-
�74
FATHER CONNOR
mirers would be to paint a very false picture of Father Connor.
Indeed he did have his critics and they were many. Straightforward and outspoken as he was, he did antagonize and
alienate at times. He pulled no punches, especially in retreats
to priests. Some judged him too outspoken; exposing some of
his listeners to undue criticism. Occasionally so conflicting
were the reactions to his preaching that he was not asked to
return. There were those who thought that he sought to move
his audie.~ces more by fear than by love. As a pastor once
remarked, "He scared me so much that I went to confession,
but it was the worst retreat I ever made."
Director
In the face of such criticisms one often wondered how he
could be in such demand by religious women. He seemed so
much the military man, so much for men only that it would be
impossible for him to be tolerant of women. Yet the fact remains that he directed many a girl and woman to find her
place as a spouse of Christ. Far and wide he constantly gave
exhortations in convents; during retreats and at home it was
common for him to give long hours to spiritual guidance; his
correspondence was voluminous"ilo that even in his last months
at St. Andrew-on-Hudson he had a heavy daily mail, mostly
from nuns and Sisters to whom he had given spiritual direction through the years. Whether he was the object of admiration or criticism, all must admit that he practiced what he
preached; that he tried to exemplify in himself what he advocated in others. The vows of religion meant everything to
him. It was most edifying in him that he never accepted an
invitation to preach without seeking permission from his
superior. Poverty was to him as a strong wall! Never did he
doff his clerical garb, and though he was most sympathetic
of a~other's weaknesses and failings, he always observed the
utmost reserve. It could be said of him that he was intolerant
of sin but most tolerant of the sinner. If, however, he detected
what he judged to be bad will in the sinner, then unquestionably he appeared intolerant of the sinner too. His strictness
with himself, his firmness with others, especially on matters
of principle, did at times give the impression of hardness in
Father Connor.
�FATHER CONNOR
I
71i
One might gather from the recital of Father Connor's
travels and preachings that he was a man of iron constitution.
His was a strong physical constitution, but stronger still was
his indomitable will. At one time he was .hospitalized and
diagnosed as having pernicious anemia. No cause was found
for the anemia and his physical weakness and debility seemed
to indicate that his active life was on the wane, if not over.
But he willed with God's help to regain his health! He cooperated most faithfully with the doctors in their efforts to
help him until internal bleedings were found to be the cause of
his anemia. Obeying doctor's orders, and with the will to be
back in the harness, it was not too long before he was out
of the hospital and back in the pulpit. It was at this time, too,
on recommendation of the doctor that he gave up smoking.
He had been a rather heavy smoker but for approximately
twenty years he never smoked again nor could he be cajoled
into smoking. At another time his index finger became
seriously infected and again he was hospitalized. So critical
was the infection that amputation seemed imperative. But he
willed not to be deprived of the privilege of offering the Holy
Sacrifice! Lancings and scrapings of the bone were endured
heroically; the finger was saved, though thereafter the second
joint of his right index finger remained rigid.
It was during approximately the last ten years of his life
that he suffered from high blood pressure. But he willed not
to let it bother him. In fact, his will to rise above physical
weakness, to master what might be his spiritual deficiency,
brought out at times what was an imprudent disregard for the
concern he should have had for his advancing years. On one
occasion he concluded a preaching assignment at a distance
of less than a mile from Xavier where he lived. He had two
rather heavy bags. As no taxi was immediately available, he
decided to walk the distance. Shortly after arrival, he collapsed and fell into a coma; death seemed inevitable. Taken
to the hospital he recovered and was soon back on the job
with the old determination. Later, a matter of weeks before he
Was to celebrate his Golden Jubilee in the Society of Jesus,
he came so close to a paralytic stroke that the doctor marvelled
that he had not succumbed. Hospitalized, he again recovered
and sang a High Mass on the appointed day of Jubilee.
�76
FATHER CONNOR
Thereafter declining health was obvious and more obvious
still was the submissiveness, the obedience that characterized
his whole life. Superiors decided that he could continue to
work and preach, but would not be assigned to give any parish
missions. Furthermore, before each retreat, he had to check
with his doctor to be cleared as to his physical ability to
undertake the assignment. Never did he complain of the
restriction of his activities; he was always faithful to the
physical examination and cheerful in accepting the doctor's
decision. Increasing poor health curtailed his activity even
more; it was pitiable to see him as he shuffled along. Blood
pressure was taking its toll not only on his mobility but also
on his mind.
Since Father Connor had such vast experience in dealing
with young and old, laity, priests and religious, for so many
years, some have asked why he was not provident enough to
bequeath to other generations the benefit of forty fruitful,
priestly years? Why did he not commit to writing for others
what he had given by spoken word while he lived? The simple
fact is that Father Connor did write a book which he submitted to superiors for publication. His style was considered
unsuitable for readers. He V\"i-ote as he spoke. As a speaker,
his whole personality captivated the senses. His writing, however, was devoid of the effectiveness of the speaker. He tried
to alter and correct the defects pointed out to him, but so
much was he the preacher, and not the writer, that his book
never saw publication. But what a legacy he has left for those
who heard him! It lives in the memory of a religious priest
who was strong and considerate; tenacious of principle but
understanding of human weakness; intolerant of wrong doing
in others and demanding of himself, one who measured up to
the highest priestly standards.
* * *
�Books of Interest to Ours
MODERN FRENCH PHILOSOPHER
The Honor of Being a Man: The World of Andre Malraux. By Edward
Gannon, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1957. Pp. x +
245. $4.00.
Father Gannon gives us in this study a clear and well-documented
outline of Malraux's world as it is revealed in his writings. That this
is a major achievement is obvious to anyone who has studied this
French philosopher, an existentialist in the line of Sartre.
In four sections the basic intuitions of Malraux are investigated:
the plight of modern man, the "anti-destiny" of action, the discovery
of man, and the honor of being a man. The last part of the book is
given over to Father Gannon's own reflections and conclusions. The
chief criticism of the philosopher's thought is his "·negativeness."
The evolution of Malraux's thought has reached a point where it
will either fan out farther and farther over the world of artistic
creativity, and, as Father Gannon fears, become repetitious, or it will
revitalize itself by facing a fundamental question concerning its viewpoint of man. One cannot resist asking this question of Malraux:
If the bourgeois "values" were l'assouvissement, and hence firmly to be
repudiated because selfish satisfaction never elicits anything noble in
man, what precisely has Malraux to offer instead? Is not infatuation
with man, even though it be with man in his moments of admitted
greatness in art, also a straight road to a satanic form of l'assouvissement that is not the sensuality of the bourgeois but the pride of the
equally self-adoring humanist?
This book contains a valuable list of Malraux's writings, as well
as an enumeration of the many essays and articles devoted to him.
The reader will find in this work an objective key to evaluating one of
the strongest intellectual influences of our day, for this is a lucid
account that actually captures the profundity of Malraux's ideas. It is
a vital contribution to the understanding of contemporary French
1
ph"l osophy.
RENATO HASCHE, S.J.
LIVING IN CHRIST
One in Christ. By John H. Collins, S.J. Jamaica Plains, Boston-30:
St. Paul's Editions, 1958. Pp. 212.
The author observes that the Epistles of our Sunday Masses for the
most part expound and shed light on the union between Christ and the
members of his mystical body. In this book, which will be widely read,
he gives Ignatian meditations on the Sunday Epistles with emphasis on
the deeper meaning of living in Christ. Laymen and laywomen who
Use this volume will be helped in imitating the holiness, charity and
'
I
77
�78
BOOK REVIEWS
self-sacrifice of their Redeemer. Religious who turn to it for matter
for their Sunday prayer will be glad that all rigidity is taken from the
fixed form by sense lines that invite to reflection and prayer. The
priest, who peruses these pages in search for material for his Sunday
sermons, will have in them a mix that can readily be turned into
homiletic cake. He will find the First Preludes, which not only situate
the Epistles but summarize their meaning, of exceptional value. Even
the Scripture expert who examines the book, which despite its thoughtline structure·reads easily, will be surprised, perhaps, to note that the
treatment is .by no means arbitrary but always in accord with the best
exegesis. Admittedly the New Testament Epistles are difficult to understand. Admittedly too Father Collins has not produced an exegetical
work. But a thorough knowledge of the background and content of the
Epistles is everywhere in evidence. The volume is recommended to all.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
EXCELLENT STUDIES IN l\IORAL THEOLOGY
Contemporary l\loral Theology, Volume 1: Questions in Fundamental
Moral Theology. By John C. Ford, S.J., and Gerald Kelly, S.J.
Westminster: The Newman Press, 1958. Pp. vii-368. $4.50.
Je'"Suits are familiar with the "Notes on l\loral Theology" by Fr.
Ford and Fr. Kelly which have appeared over the years in the pages
of Theological Studies. Here these two theologians collaborate to put
the "Notes" and their other writing in permanent form. This projected series of volumes is not, howev~ •. a mere compilation of their
previous surveys and articles. The first volume contains much that
they had not previously published. Questions that they have already
treated in print are here threshed out anew.
Judiciously they have selected the major themes from the host of
topics they have treated in their past twenty-five productive years.
This selectivity enables them to consider comprehensively what could
be covered only cursorily in their annual surveys of moral. At the
same time the value of the survey has not been sacrificed. They cite
widely, and fairly, the views of the better known contributors to periodicals and authors of books. (There are 142 entries in the bibliography.) The footnotes are rich in reference to further sources.
The subjects they have chosen to handle are the following: the
magisterium and moral theology, the interpretation of papal teaching,
the present renovation of moral, situation ethics, occasions of sin,
psychology and moral, alcoholism. Under these headings a wide variety
of topics, both speculative and practical, are marshaled. Some speculative problems treated are: charity as the basis of morality, how moral
should be taught, evaluative cognition, freedom of the will and psychic
impediments. Practical topics covered are masturbation, steady dating and others too numerous to mention.
Giant advances have been made by psychology in the past half century. This has given rise to the baffling problems of the influence of
�BOOK REVIEWS
79
unconscious motivation on human acts, the imputability of the acts of
the emotionally or mentally disturbed personality, the responsibility of
the disturbed criminal, mental deficiency and valid marriage consent.
The authors render us a distinct service in that they evaluate the data
of psychology and apply it to these vexing problem areas of moral and
law.
They admit the motivating influence on our activity of many factors of which we are unaware. Yet, they conclude, "Normal men and
women per se have sufficient freedom in the concrete circumstances
of daily life to merit great praise or great blame before God" (p. 200).
After weighing at length the factors of mental-emotional deficiency and
deep-rooted habit, they inform us that we must often tone down our
judgments of human responsibility: "We should judge much more
leniently than we have in the past a great many individual cases of
human conduct and frailty" (p. 257).
Particularly interesting are the three chapters on the criticisms of,
and new approaches to, moral theology. Here they admit with scholarly
detachment certain deficiencies of moral: "A great deal of the criticism
of the seminary course is justifiable" (p. 97). At the same time they
point out brilliantly the dangers into which some of the Catholic critics
and renovators have fallen. For instance, insistence on the primacy of
charity has blurred the distinction between counsel and obligation,
resulting in moral rigorism. Laudatory impatience with legalism bas
veered over into impatience with law, much like that of situation ethics.
Fr. Ford and Fr. Kelly are to be congratulated in that they welcome what is of permanent value in the current criticisms. They thus
make a distinct contribution to the renovation of moral. Though they
do not attempt a new syllabus for a seminary course, they do suggest
the direction it should follow and where the emphases should be placed.
A few other features of the book in brief. It is adapted to the
American scene (see the pages on dancing and steady dating). The
opinions expressed throughout the book are those of both authors, not
just of one. The print is eminently readable and the price is right.
This is an indispensable reference work for those who are teaching
moral and ethics. It should also be read by all who have not been
able to keep abreast of moral since their seminary days.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
AITITUDE
Joyce among the Jesuits. By Kevin Sullivan. New York: Columbia
University, 1958. Pp. 259. $5.00.
Ever since Herbert Gorman, some seventeen years ago, published
his life of James Joyce with the swaggering subtitle "a definitive biography," scholars have been busy filling in the gaps and filing away the
excrescences in his roughcast story. The present work is a rewriting
of those parts of Gorman's first and second chapters which deal with
Joyce's formal education, all of which was picked up "among the
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Jesuits" at Clongowes Wood, at Belvedere and at University College.
Doctor Sullivan's thesis is that the Jesuits whom Joyce encountered in
real life were, with a single exception, quite different from their
fictional representatives in A Portrait of the Artist, not as Gorman
carelessly assumed, "the people with whom he came in contact . . .
under their own names and aspects or slightly disguised."
In an article-length review (America, October 25, 1958) Father
W. T. Noon, S.J. paid a just tribute to the factual accuracy of this
book, and. to the skill with which Doctor Sullivan has reconstructed
the curric~lum, the staffs, the teaching methods and some of the
atmosphe'i-~ of Irish Jesuit schools toward the close of the last century.
At the same time he took exception to several minor points of interpretation. The present reviewer endorses Father Noon on both counts.
As a piece of historical research upon an admittedly small, but genuinely
interestingly facet of Joyce's biography, Doctor Sullivan's work is beyond cavil. His ventures into interpretation are not so happy. Besides
the ideas which Father Noon challenges there are a few others which
ought to be mentioned in a review destined for Jesuit readers.
First, a genuine conception of the function of our temporal coadjutors, a conception made official and, it is to be hoped, final by the
Thirtieth Congregation, makes nonsense of Doctor Sullivan's notion
that they constitute an underprivileged proletariat. Again, it is simply
rash to assert that any Jesuit alumnus will testify that the sixth common rule for professors in lower classes is "more honored in the breach
than in the observance." A questionnaire addressed to thirty alumni
the other day indicated that only tine of them thought that the rule
("nullum ad religionem nostram videatur allicere") was poorly obeyed.
Whether the rule applies to student counsellors is extremely doubtful,
and whether Joyce, legally or not, was subjected to the enticements
spread before young Daedalus is, in spite of Doctor Sullivan's contrary
assumption, even more doubtful.
A glance at Father Noon's review of Stanislaus Joyce's memoirs in
America (March 8, 1958) should make that much clear.
Another conjecture of Doctor Sullivan's is not so much stated as
left as an impression by the reading of his fourth and fifth chapters.
It is that the Jesuit "caretakers" of University College had a negligible
influence on the young people in their classes and sodality, who received their real education by contact with one another. This is of
course the clear implication of Stephen Hero, but Doctor Sullivan has
protested against reading that book as autobiography. The records
show that Joyce sat under Fathers Darlington, O'Neil and Browne,
winning honors under the last. Now there are still, all around NeW
York City, alumni who remember Fordham or Xavier when they were
little colleges something like University College in Dublin, when the
list of prescribed texts was far shorter than it is at present, when the
professors were not equipped for scholarly research and published
little. These alumni will testify whether or not old-fashioned rhetoric,
�BOOK REVIEWS
81
mathematics and logic made an impact on their minds, when these subjects were delivered through lucid, virile and richly human teaching.
Conjecture for conjecture, I will say that the teaching at University
College made the same impact on minds worthy to receive it, virile
and richly human minds. Joyce's admirers may glory in his being an
exception.
A final word needs to be said about the tone and attitude in which
this book was written. Was it on Morningside Heights, one wonders,
that a former Jesuit learned to be patronizing and bantering in speaking of our Society and the dogmas of our Faith? I will not further
specify this question, but I will recommend all retreat masters to consult Joyce among the Jesuits if they wish to exemplify the kind of
language St. Ignatius set his face against when he wrote his Rules for
Thinking with the Church. Father Noon, intending nothing but kindness, says that Joyce would like this book. It is to be feared that he
would like best what is least admirable and least civilized in it. Doctor
Sullivan assures us, "on se moque de ce qu'on aime." Affectionate
mockery, if such was intended, was never more completely misexpressed.
JOSEPH A. SLATTERY, S.J.
I
AMERICAN CATHOLIC COLLEGES
A History of Catholic Higher Education in the United States. By
Edward J. Power. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958. Pp. 383. $7.00.
Dr. Power notes in his Preface that three other authors have published partial histories of Catholic higher education in the United
States. It will be evident to anyone who is acquainted with these previous attempts that Power's study not only is broader and more complete but more scholarly. The nearly fifteen pages of bibliography attest to his painstaking search for prime sources. In numerous instances he is thus able to describe Catholic college beginnings, purposes, curriculums, and developments from prospectuses, catalogues,
and other announcements issued in the long ago by the colleges themselves.
No less painstaking was his investigation of the founding date and
early history of the 268 Catholic colleges for men established between
1786 and 1956. This valuable research is recorded in three appendixes,
arranged both chronologically and by States. A fourth appendix lists
by States the Catholic colleges for women existing in 1955. Many a
lesson for would-be college founders may be read in the author's
sketches of foundations begun but soon abandoned. Only twelve of
the forty-two colleges for men founded between 1786 and 1849 are
still in existence, while only seventy-two of the 226 colleges founded
~fter 1849 are in operation today. The number founded in our century
Is seventy-four. Of these, twenty-seven have survived. Thus of the
total of 268 Catholic men's colleges founded between 1786 and 1956,
only eighty-four were permanent.
In a brief review of so large a book it must suffice to give the
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titles of the nine chapters and then offer some general comments. Be·
ginning with a background chapter on "The Heritage of Higher Educa·
tion and Its American Foundations," the author takes us to "The American Scene and the Founding of Catholic Colleges." He then deals
successively with "The Development of Curriculum and Method,"
'"The Faculty of Catholic Colleges," "Student Life and Activities in
the Catholic Colleges," and "Evolution of Administration and Development of Facilities." He devotes Chapter VII to "Catholic Higher
Education for Women in the United States," and in his last two chapters
treats of' Catholic universities and Catholic professional schools.
Since a history of Catholic higher education must deal with be·
ginnings, Dr. Power discusses the several different norms employed
by historians of education to arrive at the date of origin. His own
choice is "the year when a plan is advanced for the founding of a col·
lege." Another norm, which the present reviewer prefers, is the year
in which classes were begun. But there can be no serious quarrel
with the author's choice inasmuch as he holds to it consistently.
Some criticism is bound to arise (and has already been voiced)
over the author's characterization of the aims of early American col·
leges, non-Catholic as well as Catholic. Power maintains-against
Samuel E. Morison, the historian of Harvard, and a number of Catholic
authors-that the direct and dominant aims were not intellectual but
rather preparation for seminary studies, missionary activities, and
moral development. "Liberal culture," he says, "was out of place.
No one wanted it, if, as a matter of. fact, anyone had any idea what it
was." It seems to this reviewer tliat on the first point Power is cor·
rect. There was no tradition of liberal culture in most parts of the
United States when the early colleges were founded. Nor were the
people ready for it or capable of profiting from it. Vocations, training
centers for the priesthood, and pioneer missionary endeavor were
needed by the Church above all else. The early years of Georgetown
were made doubly difficult largely because priest faculty members were
taken from the classrooms and assigned to missionary work. The re·
curring discussion was whether a seminary should be established at
Georgetown or elsewhere. But at all odds the seminary had to be estab·
lished even though Georgetown might suffer severely thereby.
On the second question posed by Power-whether the early Cath·
olic colleges had any idea of what intellectual culture was-it seems
that.'he here overstates his thesis. It would be exceedingly difficult to
prove that European-trained Jesuits, for instance, had no clear idea
and no attachment to cultivation of the mind by means of higher educa·
tion. The tradition of Jesuit training from Ignatius' day down to our
own has emphasized intellectual development at every stage. That the
Georgetown and St. Louis Jesuits did not put the intellectual aim first
and foremost was without doubt owing to the exigencies of American
life rather than to any lack of belief in its value or any vagueness as
to its meaning.
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83
These few comments can do no more than suggest that the author
was not afraid to take strong positions on many significant phases in
the development of Catholic higher education in our country. Not
everyone will agree that he establishes all of his positions; but whether
he does or not his book gains immensely in interest and value precisely
because it attempts to analyze, interpret, and judge. The author's
style is first-rate, and so is the publisher's book-making.
ALLAN FARRELL, S.J.
AFTER DEATH
The World to Come. By Robert W. Gleason, S.J.
& Ward, 1958. Pp. 172. $3.00.
I
New York: Sheed
This slim but stimulating volume on the last things has few serious
rivals in English (Romano Guardini's The Last Things is the only one
that comes to mind). It possesses three notable characteristics:
First, the Biblical data regarding sin, death and the afterlife is
given fluent and well ordered treatment, and provides a secure base for
theological reflection. Dogmatic definitions are, for the most part,
presupposed, and this, we feel, is quite acceptable in a book of essays
intended for the educated general reader. Holy Scripture, by its
graphic images and metaphors, and the fact that it is more immediately
the word of God, has for the lay reader an appeal not to be found in
the more formal utterances of Popes and Councils. One minor regret
may be here registered. The author (or editor) has inserted only a
few Scriptural references, and so has left the reader to shift for himself
in quenching a thirst which the book is so well calculated to arouse.
Secondly, the theological meditations show a fine balance of
doctrina solida and openness to current attempts to enrich eschatology
with fresh speculations. One example: While aware of the limitations
and even of certain exaggerations in the "final option" theory, Father
Gleason is willing to entertain it as preferable hypothesis to " . . . the
PUerile concept of final perseverance which seems to present God as
engaged in a whimsical game in which he calls the soul to enter eternity
through a passage beset with ambushes" (p. 72).
There are a few places, it is true, where one aspect of a mystery
may seem too exclusively stressed. The chapter on hell admirably
shows that it is a case of the sinner getting what he wants. "Hell has
been called 'the risk of God.' We should not think of it as God's
vengeance upon the unrepentant souls who desert Him, for hell is much
more their creation than His.'' (p. 116) In context such statements
as these are true (though the notion of a divine risk needs careful
scrutiny). But does not the doctrine (both Biblical and Catholic) of
?ivine election and the efficacious power of divine grace suggest that,
If God is not vindictive in the afterlife, neither is He in the present
life helpless to cope with the malice of His creatures? However,
Father Gleason did not set out to write a treatise on the whole of
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dogma; within the confines of eschatology, there is excellent equilibrium
in his teaching.
The third feature is the most distinctive, and stems from the fact
that, prior to his doctoral studies in theology (Gregorian University),
the author received his Ph.D. at Fordham under Dietrich von Hildebrand. The philosophy of the person and of personal values contributes
some penetrating theologoumena to this volume.
The style is excellent throughout. Several footnotes for each
chapter refer the reader to a selection of the best recent literature on
eschatology. Besides the usual topics, two initial chapters (which, with
the chapter on death, are probably the best in the book) deal with
"Life, Law and Love" and "Sin."
THOMAS E. CLARKE, S.J.
l\lODERN VIEWPOINT ON THE BIBLE
What Is The Bible? By Henri Daniel-Rops. Translated by J. R.
Foster. New York: Hawthorn, 1958. Pp. 128. $2.95.
This is the first volume of The Twentieth Century Encyclopedia of
Catholicism under the direction of Daniel-Rops to be translated into
English. In the original series it is volume sixty and the first of
fourteen volumes in the section dealing with the Word of God.
_ Intended for the intelligent reader, it is a fine introduction to the
nature of the book we know as the Bible and provides a good look at
many of the questions so insistently and urgently posed today. The
topics treated include the process of formation of the Bible from oral
tradition to the written text, the formation of the O.T. and N.T. canons,
the notion of biblical inspiration, the literary forms, history and the
Bible, the geographical and cultural milieux from which the Bible came,
the Bible as the manifestation of God who acts, miracles, the senses of
Scripture, the Bible as the book of man and the book of God.
Obviously, this work is not a complete, definitive treatment of these
questions, but a rich introductory work meant to lead on to further
reading and study. This is not the book that will provide all the answers to the modern outlook on Scripture, but it is one of the best things
in English to aid in the fundamental point of knowing what questions
we should ask of the Bible and what are pointless and absurd questions.
A select bibliography of material in English is included. Some feW
cases of nodding, e.g. ascribing to the Council of Trent what is from
the Vatican Council (p. 63), do not mar the over-all excellence and
VINCENT T. O'KEEFE, S.J.
value.
IN SEARCH OF GOD
What is Faith? By Eugene Joly. Translated by Dom Illtyd Trethowan.
New York: Hawthorn Books, 1958. Pp. 144. $2.95.
What is Faith? as its companion volume reviewed immediatelY
above, is another work in Daniel-Rops' Dictionary of CatholicismThis is not the reference work on the "Act of Faith" one would expect
to find in an Encyclopedia. Father Joly is familiar with French Uni·
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85
versity students and seems to write with the purpose of instructing and
inspiring this modern intellectual class. Of the nine books he suggests
for further reading, the oldest bears the publishing date of 1947.
Despite this fact, he blends tradition in a scholarly fashion with
important trends of contemporary theology (e.g., existence and cogency
of miracles; biblical criticism). The vocabulary is often "existential"
(our "engagement," "encounter" with God); but these terms are made
clear even to those unfamiliar with such categories.
The theme of the book is expressed in the conclusion by the words
of St. John; "We have believed in love" (1 Jo. 4, 16). To believe is
to love, love which involves oneself entirely with God and with the
neighbor for His sake. The focus of the life of faith is Jesus Christ.
His Resurrection, as described in the Gospels, is the basis of our faith.
It is exclusively through His Body, the Church, that we actually believe in Him and love Him. This centrality of Christ is not an automatic result of Baptism even in the normal practicing Catholic. In a
true chronological life of faith, between the ages of 18-25, there is
normally an awakening followed by a conscious commitment of one's
spiritual and temporal life to Christ.
Joly interprets many other interesting aspects of faith. He makes
it clear that the initiative in offering the gift of faith always remains
with God. He treats of atheism and traces the process which led
Augustine to say; "Crede ut intelligas."
This book is excellent for any educated layman, Catholic, or nonCatholic "in search of God." Religious teachers will find it a valuable
aid in explaining the life of faith in attractive, modern English. The
Catholic Book Club is to be highly commended for offering this book
and What is the Bible? to its members in September.
ROBERT J. KECK, S.J.
l
FIFTEENTH CENTURY TOURIST
Once to Sinai. By H. F. M. Prescott. New York: The Macmillan
Company, 1958. Pp. 310. $5.00.
In this latest volume, which is the continuation of the pilgrimage
of Friar Felix Fabri which she began in her earlier work, Friar Felix
at Large, Miss Prescott has continued the happy combination of scholarship and readability that has made her books so successful. The footnotes, bibliography, maps and numerous details of the present volume
are testimony to the diligence with which the author has followed
Friar Felix through the Latin text of his own diary, as well as through
contemporary accounts and sources. Yet the magic of her style somehow dissolves the historical barriers between us and the good Friar who
loved to climb hills and towers just to see what was on the other side,
until he becomes strikingly real and present to us. One does not have
~ read beyond the first sentence of the book to discover the author's
m:riguing style: "Three times, so Chaucer declared, had his imagined
W of Bath been to Jerusalem, and by this statement at once gave
Ife
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his contemporaries the horse-power of that remarkable woman." Or
there is Miss Prescott's description at the end of Chapter IV of the
view from the top of Gebel Katerina, that gradually broadens out into
a charmingly perceptive picture of the 15th century and its pilgrims.
These are only two examples, but their like can be quoted from almost
every page of this fascinating book.
The volume recounts Friar Felix's pilgrimage from Jerusalem to
Mount Sinai, Cairo, Alexandria, Venice and finally back to Ulm, where
the Superior- obligingly declares a week of holidays in the Dominican
monastery to celebrate the return of their wandering pilgrim brother,
and give him an opportunity to spin his tales of strange places and
strange people without disrupting the monastic silence. The account
has a peculiar attraction for those who look to the Near East as the
cradle of their religious tradition. Some readers may balk at the
author's frequent digressions, descriptions and historical asides, but
these are really the best parts of the book, and lift it above the level
of the ordinary pilgrim's tale that crops up even in the newspapers and
magazines of today. It is a tribute to Miss Prescott's talent that her
digressions enrich without distracting from the main lines of the
wandering Friar's story.
The Catholic Book Club is to be commended for continuing to make
books such as this available to the reading public. The volume is
deeply Catholic, yet not mawkishly so. It speaks eloquently of the
Catholic Faith that was so profoundly a part of the daily life of the
15th century. Miss Prescott, by her scholarship and her facile pen, and
the Catholic Book Club, by the foresig-ht and good taste of its editors,
have done Catholic literary circles a great service by sponsoring such a
JOSEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
volume.
UP-TO-DATE CHURCH LAW
Religious Men and Women in Church Law. By Joseph Creusen, S.J.
Revised and edited by Adam C. Ellis, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce,
1958. Pp. 380. $6.50.
Canon Law Digest: Vol. IV, By T. L. Bouscaren, S.J. and J. I. O'Connor, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958. Pp. 529. $7.50.
Religious Men and Women in Church Law is a new edition of the
well-known treatment of the religious life from the viewpoint of the
Canonist. The method of presentation established in the previous editions has been maintained and the order of the Code (Bk. 2, Part 2) has
been followed. Thus, in the first of the three parts the author considers
general ideas of the religious life, the erection and suppression of religious bodies, government both "temporal" and spiritual, and finally the
administration of temporal goods. Part two studies the questions of
admission and profession along with the obligations and privileges of
religious. The concluding section covers separation from the institute.
Among the major changes in this edition are the bringing up-to-date
of the references to articles and opinions in the body of the work, and
I
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87
the reVIsiOn of the doctrinal bibliography. A new appendix gives a
summary of the nature of Secular Institutes which, although they are
not directly governed by the Code's laws for religious, are nevertheless
an ecclesiastically approved state of perfection. The seven topics of
the appendix now also include Sedes Sapientiae, the decree of the
Sacred Congregation concerning religious and military service and
finally, the directive regarding the use of radio and television.
Although this book is primarily intended for members of lay
orders and congregations, it should provide those of Ours who have
anything to do with the spiritual direction of religious with the necessary scientific background to do their task more effectively and more
in accordance with the mind of the Church.
The fourth volume of the Canon Law Digest covers the period from
1953 to 1957. In line with the plan of the former books in this series,
this edition includes all of the important documents dealing with the
code of canon law that have been issued in the Acta Apostolicae Sedis
and other sources. All documents have been translated into English.
The format of the book arranges the documents according to the
numerical order of the canons of the code to which they principally
pertain. A system of cross-references makes readily available those
documents which are concerned with matter treated in a number of
canons. An addition that makes these volumes especially useful is
that at the end of this book there is both a chronological and a general
index that covers the documents contained in all four volumes of the
Digest.
This efficiently arranged source book is essential for all those who
desire the latest authoritative interpretations and explanations of the
code. The books of this series have certainly achieved their purpose,
for they have been accepted as standard tools of the modern canonist.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
A PHILOSOPHY OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION
The Proximate Aim of Education: A Study of the Proper and Immediate
End of Education. By Kevin J. O'Brien, C.SS.R. Milwaukee:
Bruce, 1958. Pp. x-267. $5.00.
"Most of all we need to do some thinking about the true ends of
education" concluded "The Deeper Problem in Education," an editorial
in Life's recent five-part series "The Crisis of Education." Father
Kevin J. O'Brien, C.SS.R., director of studies at St. Clement's College,
Galong, Australia, has done "some thinking" in his recent book The
Proximate Aim of Education, prepared while studying at the Catholic
University of America, Washington, D. C.
The method of investigation proceeds by a close analysis and development of the truths of Revelation, the principles of scholastic philosophy, the statements of the popes and the reasoning of educators. Chapter II is a lengthy, technical, unoriginal synthesis of finality; notion,
Validity, importance; and a division of "ends." Chapter III reviews
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BOOK REVIEWS
quite briefly the opinions offered by prominent movements and men
about the aim of education: humanistic realists, sense realists, naturalists, developmentalists, ethical culturists, Dewey, Brameld, Bagley, and
Breed.
The particular implications of Christian perfection as the proper
and immediate end for Catholic educational theory, moral formation,
curriculum, teacher, and parents are discussed in Chapter VII which
is the most readable, interesting, and controversial part of the book.
The book raises these questions: In the minds of the popes, is the school
to be essentiidly and immediately concerned with religious formation?
Does emphasis on moral formation cause hindrance to intellectual
formation? Is the failure of American Catholic education to provide
adequate intellectual leadership due to over-emphasis on moral formation?
The general Catholic reader, I fear, will find the book hard going;
the dosage of Latin terminology, at times untranslated, the range and
multitudinous subdivisions in philosophy and theology will make it forbidding. Even the good-willed secular educator will, sorry to say, look
upon much of the presentation as Catholic jargonese, not truth-most
regrettable at a crucial period like ours when a book like The Proximate
Aim of Education could help serious-minded men "do some thinking
about -the true end of education."
ERWIN G. BECK, S.J.
SCHOLASTIC STUDY .OF NATURE
The General Science of Nature. By ~Vincent E. Smith.
Bruce, 1958. Pp. xiii-400. $5.25.
Milwaukee:
The need for a sound philosophy of science is a pressing one. This
book, intended primarily for classroom use, attempts to fulfill that need
by relating the modern physical sciences to Thomistic Aristotelianism.
The author asks the reader to drop preconceived notions of what science
is and to work with Aristotle's definition: "certain knowledge of things
in terms of causes and reasons and principles." The general science
of nature is concerned with mobile being in its most general traits.
Physics, chemistry, and biology deal with specific types of mobile being,
therefore a study of nature should not begin with them. "Material
being should be considered at its universal level before funneling downward to a concern with the various kinds of mobile things." (p. 38)
"Modern.. physics, chemistry, and biology afford more detailed, precise,
and distinct notions of what in a vague and confused way we know already, and that is why, when put in the light of the general science of
nature which they merely continue, physics, chemistry, and biology
can be called special sciences." (p. 166) Sciences are defined by their
objects; they are distinguished according to the degrees of abstraction.
To find the basis of the general science of nature we conduct an
investigation (dialectic) to ferret out its first principles. Our inquiry
leads to the doctrine of hylemorphism.
�BOOK REVIEWS
89
The subject of the science of nature is nature as defined by
Aristotle: the principle of motion and of rest in that to which it belongs
essentially and primarily and not accidentally. "A correct understanding of the principle that art imitates nature enables us to deal with
problems raised by the fabrication of new elements in the mineral world
and new mutants among living things." (p. 142)
Since mathematics studies quantified substance, there can be a
science of mathematics independently of the science of nature. "Unlike pure mathematics, mathematical physics deals with mobile being
even though it uses mathematical principles." (p. 167) The science
of nature proves its conclusions in the light of the four types of causality. Chance, the accidental conjunction of causes, is not, as the advocates of physical indeterminism would make it, a cause. The existence
of final causality disproves mechanism. The human soul is the final
cause of the material universe.
Dr. Smith next treats topics which are common in modern scholastic
cosmology-motion, motion and the infinite, place, time, the kinds of
motion, the continuum. He concludes the book by relating the proof
from motion for the existence of God to the science of mobile being.
In a foot note he documents the precise point in which his treatment
of the proof from motion differs from that of Father Klubertanz.
"Father G. Klubertanz does not believe that a Prime Mover can be shown
to exist in natural science, and he does not believe that such a proof
is necessary as a precondition for metaphysics." (p. 388) Dr. Smith
feels that the Prime Mover is known in the science of mobile being as
a principle of motion.
The author writes in the preface that "in order to simplify presentation, controversies have for the most part been left aside." (p.
viii) It would seem that major controversies which bear directly on the
topics under discussion deserve more consideration. For instance, to
Prove that sciences are differentiated by their material objects and not
by their methods, Dr. Smith argues that experiment is merely a refined
type of experience. (p. 45) This argument, even if valid, omits mention of the construction of theory by the hypothetico-deductive method
With the aid of mathematics. Physical scientists consider the construction of theory to be an essential part of their discipline. Again,
the author treats mathematics as the science of extended being, a view
Which the modern mathematician would not accept. The theory of numbers used in modern mathematics is elaborated without reference to
extension or extended being.
The student of modern science can certainly make use of many of
the concepts and conclusions of Aristotle and St. Thomas to maintain
Proper perspective in his studies. It is difficult to see how the particular organization of concepts and conclusions proposed by Dr. Smith
can add much to such a sense of perspective.
JAMES C. CARTER, S.J.
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THE SACRED HEART IN THE HIGH SCHOOL
Apostleship of Prayer for High School Students. By Francis J. Shalloe,
S.J. New York: Apostleship of Prayer, 1958. Pp. 17.
Everyone in secondary education interested in the Apostleship of
Prayer will welcome this eminently practical pamphlet on the establishment of a vital high school Center of the Apostleship. The product
of an experienced and successful student counselor, the brochure is
packed with ingenious techniques to keep the Apostleship throbbing in
the student's life. The duties of directors and promoters, the practices
of members lue sketched in imaginative, and often novel, detail. From
their Orientation Week in freshman year to their incorporation into
parish Centers after graduation, the students are guided through every
activity of the Apostleship into the depths of dedication to the Sacred
Heart. The concluding pages of the pamphlet contain interesting model
consecrations for various organizations in the school.
Father Shalloe knows the psychology of the high school boy: he
has a profound grasp of the Apostleship of Prayer. There is nothing
available that will better help bring the two together.
FRANCIS J. MILES, S.J.
MISSIONARY HANDBOOK
Teach Ye All Nations: The Principles of Catholic Missionary Work.
By Edward L. Murphy, S.J. New York: Benziger Bros., 1958.
Pp. ix-234. $2.75.
It has justly been remarked that .the average American Catholic's
concept of missionary work is a sketchy and somewhat distorted one,
fostered as it usually is by emotional appeals and by an emphasis on
the physical hardships and poverty involved. Even the pastor gregis,
speaking in the pulpit or classroom, is often hard put to communicate
accurately the answers to some basic questions on the overall aims and
methods of this area of the apostolate. Why are so many of our
priests and sisters sent to foreign lands? What is the primary purpose
of all their work? What approaches are especially pertinent today
and what problems are pressing for solution? In view of this lack of
understanding of an apostolate absolutely essential to the nature of
the Church and to every individual in it who calls himself "Catholic,"
Father Murphy's book has tremendous value and cannot be recommended
too highly. In a concise but eminently readable style, the author, who
holds a.doctorate in the comparatively recent science of missiology, has
synthesized a vast amount of information into the few hundred pages
of this slim volume.
The opening chapters deal with the theological presuppositions
of mission work, with special emphasis on the unique position of the
Church with respect to all mankind, and the manifold relationships that
result from this. A very important chapter then discusses the fundamental aim of all mission work, which is defined as the establishment
of the Church with all that this entails, and which issues in the mis-
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91
sionary's paradoxical ideal of "making himself unnecessary." Another
chapter discusses two ideas which have profound significance for the
Church today. The author recognizes "the remarkable differences in
the expression of Catholicism as one moves from nation to nation," and
has a particularly good analysis of the precise nature and theological
foundation of adaptation. Among the many other areas that receive
summary treatment in the book are modern emphases, especially social
and educational, the structural organization of missions, an historical
sketch of Catholic mission work, an outline study of the religions of
the world, and a study of the mission contribution of the American
Church. Such a convenient mine of information deserves to become
a vademecum for missionaries everywhere, and a best-seller on the reading-list of every Catholic.
A. HENNELLY, S.J.
NEWMAN SYNTHESIS
Newman: His Life and Spirituality. By Louis Bouyer, C.O. Translated by J. Lewis May. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1958.
Pp. xiii-391. $7.50.
While there is perhaps no rigid law that demands that it be so,
some biographies at least seem to follow a pattern. There is the first
rash of biographical sketches, written by friends and acquaintances,
which make up in intimacy what they lack in depth and perspective.
At some distance from these preliminary sketches appear the sober
and scholarly studies in which the man is apt to be lost in his supposed
significance. But if the biographical subject is fortunate enough, the
circle is completed and the best features of the earlier attempts are
synthesized in a study where both the man and his permanent value
are clearly delineated. Such a biography might be entitled-and in
Newman's case happily is-Newman: His Life and Spirituality by
Louis Bouyer.
As one might expect from Bouyer, there is no detached study. His
SYmpathetic understanding of Newman is unmistakenly evidenced on
every page, particularly when dealing with Newman's famous, albeit
disturbing, complaints. And it is with rather undisguised relish that
Bouyer takes out after the villains of the piece: those in Newman's own
life time, like Manning who dangled a bishopric in partibus before
Newman "as a means of binding him to his triumphal chariot" and who
so garbled (wilfully?) Newman's reply to Leo XIII that acceptance of
the red hat reached Rome as a refusal; and Msgr. Talbot, the Papal
Chamberlain, to whose mind "Dr. Newman is the most dangerous man
in England." Equally stern treatment is accorded the villains among
Newman's editors and biographers: Anne Mozley ("the great culprit"),
Whose scissoring of Newman's letters is the source of more than one
misunderstanding; and Abbe Bremond, whose "incurable frivolity" and
at times "wholly imaginary solutions" led him to depict Newman as
"L'isole volontaire"-which amounts to a rather thorough-going misUnderstanding of Newman.
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These more personal interjections of Bouyer, however much one
may wish to moderate them, add color and contrast to his portrait.
Newman is seen for what he was: a brilliant and sensitive man, whose
periods of pitiless self-analysis-("! believe myself at heart to be nearly
hollow-i.e., with little love, little self-denial")-hardly seem consonant
with his desire for the active life, to be a missioner, for instance, among
the heathen. For, paradoxically, he was the man of action who had
perforce to achieve that "rare union of the contemplative mind and the
heroic soul.'~ He was the man who feared to love too well; who
sought holiness rather than peace; who felt that to be at ease was to
be unsafe. -Newman had his wish, if wish it was. His life, particularly as a Catholic, was a succession of disappointments, of betrayals,
of suspicions and accusations-a constant, painful round in wnbris et
imaginibus that only death's approach was to lighten.
Bouyer has presented all this, and more, in this exceptional study
of Newman. No one can read it and not know Newman better, and
almost (one feels) for the first time really. And it is gratifying
also to report that Bouyer, whose experiences with translators have
been, more often than not, very disappointing, has this time been wonderfully and stylistically served by J. Lewis May. The translation,
even apart from all other inherent values, is a sheer pleasure to read.
HARRY R. BURNS, S.J.
WITH AN ORIENTJ\L BRUSH
The Enduring Art of Japan. By Langilan Warner. New York: Grove
Press, 1952. Pp. 113, 92 half tone plates. $1.95.
It isn't strange that the French Impressionists found something
new and exciting in their discovery of Japanese art 90 years ago.
Reacting toward the sombre tones of their predecessors, they saw in
the Japanese works a reflection of their own sensitive and brightspirited appreciation of nature. This was an expression of the world
they loved that could move them to inspiration. And so it happened
that traces of the oriental technique were mixed with paint on western
canvas.
We know that something oriental was borrowed, but Van Gogh's
"The Sower" or "La Mousme," and Manet's "Boating" are not Sesshu;
are not Korin, or even Hiroshige, or Hokusai. The West had learned
that a few bold strokes from a Japanese brush could create a world of
life and motion, of color and expansive dimension. This was enough
only to create admiration and wonder; adaptation, but not understanding.
To become intimate with the expression of Japan's cultural development was left for a later day. There was need for someone to go
beyond the techniques of Japanese art to interpret the inner movements
of its mind and heart. Before it would be possible for us to enter the
museum of oriental treasures, the customs and character of a people
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93
had to reveal themselves; for these, along with her religion, are the
soul of Japan in art.
Now, all this has been done in a paperback book by Langdon Warner.
Two sections of the book are outstanding: treatment of the influence of Zen Buddhism upon the Ashikaga (or Muromachi) period,
and the chapter on folk art. Our only regret is that the book could
not have been enlarged to include some indications of the more radical
trends of modern Japanese art.
GEORGE R. GRAZIANO, S.J.
GETTYSBURG 95 YEARS AGO
The Guns at Gettysburg. By Fairfax Downey. New York: David
McKay, Inc., 1958. Pp. 290. $5.00.
The Battle of Gettysburg. By Frank Aretas Haskell. Edited by Bruce
Catton. Cambridge, Mass.: Houghton Miffiin, 1957. Pp. 169. $3.50.
One of the most fertile and intriguing topics for American novelists
and historians during the past decade has been the Civil War. Now
that the centenary of that conflict is fast approaching we may certainly
expect an even greater outpouring of literature on this subject. Some
authors, getting a head-start on the field, have provided us with studies
to commemorate the ninety-fifth anniversary of Gettysburg. Although
Downey and Haskell differ greatly in their precise subject matter and
in their treatment both offer excellent additions to our Civil vVar
literature.
Downey's Guns of Gettysburg is a monograph on the role of the
artillery in this famous engagement where this arm won its rank as
the "King of Battles." The book is divided into chapters according
to the days of the battle (July 1-3, 1863) and subdivided into specific
areas of combat. This order, and the fact that the author concentrates
his attention on the one weapon he is concerned with, give clarity to a
subject which by its nature can be very confusing. Maps of the battle
and the illustration of the different types of ordnance make the author's
text meaningful, as well as giving necessary information for an intelligent understanding of other books on this war. Some of the matter found in the appendices will be of interest only to the professional
historian, as the listing of the guns now on the battlefield and the
catalogue of the different divisions of the artillery on both sides, but
the actual reports of both the Union and the Confederate generals in
charge of the artillery to their commanding officers are of great interest.
The main conclusion that Downey draws from his investigation of
the sources is that the role of General Henry Hunt, commander of
the Union artillery in this Northern victory, has been greatly underestimated by historians in the past.
An added point of recommendation for this book is that the author
Presents his scholarship and exacting research in a fine literary style,
which makes his subject of interest not only to the professional historian
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but also to all those who have a gentleman's interest in the war between
the states.
The Battle of Gettysburg, although of a very different nature, is
also excellent Civil War History. Frank Aretas Haskell, who served
on the staff of the divisional commander of the Second Corps which
held the "bloody triangle"-the precise target of Pickett's charge-was
a northern hero of this battle. He based his story on his own personal
experience and on the results of his diligent inquiry among the participants in the struggle. For the modern reader the author's style
may be at'times too classical, his attitude slightly egotistical, but for
actual reproduction of the experience of combat Haskell has few equals.
The mortal conflict comes alive with all of its dangers and thrills, all
of its hopes and fears. The excellence of this account both for its
dramatic presentation as well as for its general accuracy has been
attested to in the past by its constant employment in Civil War histories. The publishing of this primary source at the present time is a
welcome occurrence, for the dust-cover is not exaggerating when it
states: "The author was later to be kiiled at that other terrible battle,
Cold Harbor, but he left behind him a piece of true literature which
hurries a reader's pulse a hundred years after the smoke of Gettysburg
has subsided."
"Bruce Catton's introduction and editing add greatly to the value
of this short book, which should be read by all those who have any
interest in American history or American literature, as well as by
those who are merely seeking a grippi!lg story of action, for as Catton
indicates in his introduction: "In the _.long run, this book is for the
general reader rather than the specialist. It offers an understanding
and an emotional experience that can be had from few other Civil
War books. It is very, very much worth reading."
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
POPE OF OUR TIMES
Witness Of The Light. By Katherine Burton. New York: Longmans,
Green and Co., 1958. Pp. vii-248. $4.00.
Some twentieth century Catholics sigh for the Golden Age of the
thirteenth century. In one sense their impossible wish has come true.
No Pope in the past 700 years has commanded the international audience that the late Pius XII enjoyed. What Pope of the 1200's could
make his voice heard throughout the entire world? Yet Pius XII,
through radio, TV and printed letters spoke to Australia as clearly as
to Rome. People listened. What the Popes of the Middle Ages tried
to accomplish in a small area of the world through their temporal
power, Eugenio Pacelli achieved throughout the world in the twentieth
century. Men looked to the Pope for moral leadership in the Space Age.
Witness Of The Light by Katherine Burton catches the spirit of
Pius XII. The very apt title summarizes the man. His programs for
social action, economic reform and principles of international conduct
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95
mirror his faith in the Christian message. Christ is the Light of the
world; His vicar, the Pope, must obey Christ's command to teach all
nations. The war years and their aftermath, as this biography demonstrates, have catapulted the Papacy into international politics. The
words and deeds of Pope Pius XII made him the spokesman for all
men.
The only negative vote on this biography concerns the last few
chapters. The author has proved her case that Pius XII was the
Pope of Peace. But it is injudicious to try and paint a picture of the
Pope as a pacifist. The concluding chapters frequently quote the Pope
on the morality of war or of the use of atomic or hydrogen weapons.
Undoubtedly moved by a true sense of reverence for her subject, the
author has omitted many of the fine precisions that Pius XII made on
the occasion of these statements concerning modern warfare. The
case for Pope Pius XII's claim to be a man of peace does not need buttressing by any claim, very difficult to prove, that the Pope embraced
the illusory tenets of pacifism. Yet this is a minor flaw. The overall
judgment on this biography is that the book is worthy of its subject.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
RAHNER ON PRAYER
Happiness Through Prayer. By Karl Rahner, S.J. Translated from
the German. Westminster: Newman Press, 1958. Pp. 109. $1.50.
The extraordinary value of this book on prayer lies in F,ather
Rahner's deep insight into dogma and his power to relate the most
profound mysteries of faith to the practical science of asceticism. He
has also made expert use of his personal mastery of the technique of
phenomenological analysis developed in modern philosophy. As a result his reflections on prayer have a psychological profundity which
vibrates in harmony with the deepest intellectual preoccupations of
our day.
Undoubtedly some of the best philosophical work of our age is
being done in the field of the philosophy of subjectivity under the influence of modern psychological preoccupations, and centering in the
analysis of the subjective dynamism of the person. From this viewpoint
such perennial questions as freedom, commitment, and the conditions
of authentic love and existence are receiving a new and profoundly
enlightening treatment. Obviously such investigations have a vital
significance for the ascetical writers who deal with precisely these same
areas in the context of grace and supernatural charity. To my knowledge this is the first work on prayer in English which brings the light
shed by these psychological analyses to bear in a practical way on the
Psychological foundations and conditions of authentic Christian prayer.
The result is a unique contribution not only in the field of ascetical
Writing but also to the field of phenomenological analysis itself. For
once phenomenological analysis is undertaken in the full context of
revelation and grace and without any artificial prescinding from the
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realities of supernatural life, many of its most fundamental insights
undergo a profound transformation. A good example of this transformation is contained in the opening conference "Thou Wilt Open My
Heart." Here we see existential despair revealed in its true light
as a hypocritical guise which, aping the posture of true humility, transforms it into a satanic refusal of grace. The statement "my existence
has no meaning," is true for the Christian only when he will add in
Father Hahner's words, "except as a manifestation of Thy Power and
Glory through my weakness and nothingness."
As the conferences develop, each central condition necessary for
authentic ·prayer is investigated and its psychological counterpart
analyzed:·· humility and despair, the relation of the unconscious to the
doctrine of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, love as a response in
faith to a gift of love freely given, the relation of action and prayer
in our daily life, the relation of the prayer of petition to the prayer of
submission, the question of sincerity in the prayer of dedication, the
authentic nature of guilt in the prayer for forgiveness, and, finally, the
role of fidelity in the prayer of decision, which reaches its climax in
the prayer of death itself.
It should be obvious from the outline above that this work is no
"tranquilizer," as one might be led to suspect from the infelicitous
title chosen for the English translation, "Happiness Through Prayer."
Literally translated, the original German title read, "Concerning the
Need and the Blessing of Prayer," The French translation of this same
work, which appeared nearly ten years ago, was entitled "The Prayer
of the Modern Man." Each title seems to reflect the reaction of a
"national" character to the challenge "of this book.
JoHN J. McNEILL, S.J.
RENAISSANCE STRUGGLE
The Meddlesome Friar and the Wayward Pope. By Michael de Ia
Bedoyere. Garden City: Hanover House, 1958. Pp. 256. $4.00.
This is not an historical study. Rather this recent selection of the
Catholic Book Club is an attempt to tell the oft-told tale by vividly
portraying the personalities of the protagonists, Savanarola and Alex·
ander VI. This gives the author the opportunity to inject frequent
comments, so that the story never quite speaks for itself. Perhaps this
is in the nature of any book written on this subject, since the viewpoint
of the author will largely determine his picture of the story.
In the introduction, de la Bedoyere briefly analyses his sources,
revealing that he will use as a foundation for the treatment of Savana·
rola a work by an English Jesuit of the turn of the century, Father
Herbert Lucas. His conclusion was a strong indictment of the friar
and our author feels that nothing written since has shaken this thesis.
For a picture of Alexander VI, the life by Orestes Ferrara was most
useful, though the author feels it is too favorable to the Pope.
The book is well outlined, getting off to a swift start with two
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97
dramatic scenes that actually occur near the end of the struggle. Then
a swift resume fills in the background and when play resumes there
is but the grand finale to reenact. All the action is portrayed with
the author's usual brilliance of style, including a fine use of concrete
details that lend the sense of reality to what is in itself a fantastic tale.
He criticises Brion for excusing Alexander's immorality on the
grounds that it was no worse than others. This is neither historically
nor morally well-founded, de la Bedoyere feels. He himself describes
the Pope as a man who could never keep his eyes off beautiful women,
a man unable to change from a luxury and worldliness of living since
he had always been self-indulgent. He feels that Savonarola rightly
saw in Alexander's life an "object of horror" (which comes very close
to the judgement of Philip Hughes). Yet he feels it is safe to say
that "apart from the facts that he lived an 'unmarried' married life
and had a number of children, . . . (and) that he certainly too much
loved good society, especially feminine, and that he was, and supremely
loved being, a great and wealthy temporal prince, Rodrigo Borgia
might have been papabile in any age."
WILLIAM P. SAMPSON, S.J.
THEOLOGY FOR THE MODERN MAN
Sacred Doctrine. An Introduction To Theology. By Edwin G. Kaiser,
C.P.P.S. Westminster: Newman Press, 1958. Pp. xii-344. $4.50.
This work is a well planned, up-to-date, comprehensive introduction
to the study of theology. Written as a text for summer courses in
theology, the book breaks down into three main divisions: the nature
and concept of theology, the sources of theology, and theological method.
To introduce a subject as vast as present-day theology is a task of
selecting, ordering and integrating. In this the author has succeeded
admirably, refusing to be immersed in the tangle of innumerable theological disputes which surround the subject matter of almost every
chapter of the book. Rather, Father Kaiser has wisely chosen to limit
the broad lines of his introduction to one approach to Catholic theology,
that of St. Thomas. After some introductory chapters outlining the
Thomistic conception of theology as a science and as wisdom, the key
notions of the supernatural order, of divine Revelation, and of Faith,
are taken up successively in excellent expository fashion.
In the major section of the book, Father Kaiser discusses the four
traditional sources of theology: Scripture, the ordinary and extraordinary magisterium of the Church, the Fathers of the Church, and the
theologians. Of particular interest is the extended chapter on Sacred
Scripture, entitled "The Written Word." This is perhaps the outstanding chapter in the book, both because of its depth and because it
incorporates the latest significant contributions in Catholic scriptural
study. A clear exposition of the Church's position on Scripture is
Presented, based principally on the encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu,
and including the letter of the Biblical Commission to Cardinal Suhard,
so important for understanding the current attitude of that Commission.
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The nature and extent of inspiration are carefully explained; revelation
is distinguished from inspiration. Scriptural inerrancy and the various
senses of Scripture are carefully delineated, and the dominant concept
of the bible as the Church's book, to be authentically interpreted by
the Church alone, is clearly underscored.
Outside of scriptural inspiration and inerrancy, perhaps no part of
Catholic dogma is so misunderstood as infallibility. Through three
chapters Father Kaiser competently explains the nature, necessity for,
and extent of, the Church's infallibility in its three forms: the ordinary
magisterium, the Councils, and the Roman Pontiff. By linking all
three, the central note of infallibility as a property "belonging to the
Church" is emphasized. A discussion of the authority of theologians
follows, which naturally leads into a summary history of the great
theologians and theological schools from the medieval period down to
the present day. Particularly valuable for the orientation of the budding theologian is the equivalent of a Who's Who of theologians which
the author provides in a running commentary on the contemporary
theological scene.
In taking up theological method, Father Kaiser begins with a discussion of the meaning and development of dogma. The thorny question of just how dogma evolves is understandably left untouched beyond
the obvious "explicitation of the implicit." But the concept of tradition
expressed elsewhere (p. 133) as embracing both Scripture (inspired
Tradition) and unwritten tradition (uninspired Tradition) is invaluable
for the novice theologian. The importance and significant contribution
of modern scientific historical method in the evolution of dogma as
well as in scriptural studies, modern apologetics and ecclesiology, is
pointed up by the author, while at the same time a clear distinction is
made between the total theological method and scientific, historical
method alone.
This introduction succeeds at once in sketching the broad lines of
the Catholic theological structure, and in stimulating an awareness and
an appreciation for the tremendous riches contained within that struc·
ture.
JOSEPH L. ROCHE, S.J ·
BASIC LITURGICAL STUDY
Public Worship: A Survey. By Josef A. Jungmann, S.J. Translated
by Clifford Howeii, S.J Collegeville, Minnesota, The Liturgical
.'Press, 1957. Pp. vii-249. $3.50.
In Public Worship Father Jungmann opens up to his reader the
precious contents which lie behind so many rich but rigid prayer forms;
forms, which appear to this age as something alien and lifeless since
their original meaning has become so obscure.
The work of reform begun by the Holy See, in addition to the
wealth of liturgical scholarship, especiaily since the turn of the century,
has contributed to creating an atmosphere of healthy criticism. Yet
without a knowledge and appreciation of the long tradition whkh links
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99
the liturgy in its present fonn to that of the past, there is the danger
that those who criticize the present situation will be guided by capricious
intuitions, antiquarian prejudices or the desire for novelty.
From the vast storehouse of his knowledge, Father Jungmann gives
us in less that 250 pages a well balanced presentation of the history
of our western liturgy and even more important, points out at every
turn the subtle laws and principles which have silently been at work
fashioning it. Thus, the author supplies us with a norm by which we
can constructively criticize our present situation and one which will
give direction to further discussion of refonn.
Public Worship is not a magic crystal ball in which we can directly
perceive the "liturgy of the future." It does not explicitly deal with
reform; rather it contains the stuff out of which reform will come.
The book represents the most important elements of the lectures
delivered to the author's theological students during the past thirty
years. The chapter on the Mass is a marvelous summary of the
author's monumental work: Missarum Solemnia, and the reader will
inunediately recognize in chapters one and four the substance of his
earlier work: Liturgical Worship (Pustet, 1941).
Father Jungmann has the wonderful ability of selecting apt details; he can summarize without letting his survey become a fleshless
skeleton. His details unify without distracting and they never cease
to provide new insights for his reader, even for one well versed in
liturgical lore; and yet he never overwhelms the novice. Father Clifford
Howell has done a superb job of translating the book into flowing
English in a way which never gives a hint that it was not originally
Written in English. In addition the book is well indexed. It is
neatly divided into nine chapters covering: basic concepts on the nature
of liturgy, a general history of Christian worship, the making of
~iturgical laws, structural elements of the liturgy, the house of God and
Its furnishings, the Sacraments, the Mass, the Divine Office and the
Church's year.
Priests will find much in his chapter on the Divine Office to enrich
their own recitation of it. The author makes the interesting observation that the Office, which originally began as a private prayer and
t?en took on a communal character, is now in our time once more carned on, for the most part, as a prayer said in private, "and this is to
some extent a return to primitive practice."
The curious observation was once made that the liturgy, which
:as m~ant to be an interpreter of the Mystery of Christ, is itself now
adly m need of interpretation. A book like Public Worship (which
c~uld well serve as a textbook to an introductory course on liturgy for
~ erics and laymen alike), will make the rites of the Mass and the
acraments intelligible again. Armed with a knowledge of the history
of these rites and the principles at work in forming them, priests will
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be better equipped to voice a healthy criticism of those elements in our
worship which do not well interpret the Mystery they are supposed to.
PAUL L. CIOFFI, S.J.
NOT THE AUTHOR BUT THE TRANSLATION
The Christian Approach to the Bible. By Dom Celestin Charlier.
Translated by Hubert J. Richards and Brendan Peters. Westminister: The Newman Press, 1958. Pp. 298. $4.00.
The ~·utstanding merit of Dom Charlier's book is its willingness to
come to grips with the problem that modern scientific (i.e., literary and
historical) exegesis has raised for those who desire (as indeed they
should) a Christian reading of the Bible, and particularly of the Old
Testament. The broad outlines of his carefully balanced and nuanced
solution will surely meet with general acceptance by Catholic scholars,
even though details or concrete applications perhaps may not. Dom
Charlier is always profound and suggestive, and his work deserves
thoughtful and discriminating perusal.
All the more, then, must one deplore the rather poor translation.
For example, Charlier writes:
_ Rien ne serait plus sterile que d'aborder la Bible avec la tour
d'esprit geometrique et sec qui caracterise la demarche scientifique
propre aux sciences de la matiere. Cet abus de la raison abstraite
n'a que trop devitalise l'exegese et la theologie, a la suite de la
philosophie.
And the translation:
• ·
The Bible cannot be treated dispassionately, like a problem from
Euclid. This kind of approach has already robbed exegesis and
theology of their vitality, and killed philosophy altogether (p. 273).
A comparison of the two passages will reveal the general quality of the
translation: its tendency on the one hand to abbreviate and, on the
other, to put sentiments into Charlier's mouth which (perhaps in themselves true enough) are not expressly his own. Thus, when Charlier,
speaking of scriptural accommodations and without condemnation,
mentions texts "sortis de leur contexte et projetes sur un plan qui n'a
avec le sens naturel aucun contact organique," he is interpreted as say·
ing: "wrenching texts from their context and applying them arbitrarily
to things entirely foreign to their true meaning" (p. 264).
But it would be misleading to imply that criticism of the transla·
tion is based on its style alone. Style might be a matter of taste or
debatable opinion. Unfortunately, the disservice done to Dom Charlier
is far more serious. He is made to say "that the Bible is tied to the
liturgy in the same way as it is tied to the Fathers of the Church"
(p. 253), whereas Charlier writes simply of "les rapports de la Bible
avec la liturgie." That one must bring to any Christian reading of
the Bible "le meilleur de soi-meme sounds rather strange when it is
translated: "In our reading of the Bible one must be able to say: •·This
�BOOK REVIEWS
is the best of me." (p. 248).
101
The carefully nuanced statesent: "A ce
sens absolu, l'erreur est toute affirmation qui n'est pas conforme a la
en
verite
soi, indeperuJamment de sa perception relative par l'homme,"
becomes' obscure and misleading as: "Absolutely, error is the affirmation
of something which does not conform to reality as it exists, independent
of perception" (p. 216). Even the simple question and answer: "Qui
doit lire la Bible? La masse repond: 'Les savants'" somehow or other
is read as: "Who should read the Bible? Most people will say:
'Nobody'" (p. 27) ! The effect of love which "elargit en retour jusqu'a
l'injini les horizons de !'intelligence devant les perspectives du V erbe"
does not become transparently clear as: "Filled with the great surging
of the Spirit's love, it throws open to the mind the whole realm of the
Word's affinity" (p. 251).
More serious still, however, are the inaccuracies that are introduced.
It is true enough for Charlier to say that faith becomes "hardie aussi
et audacieuse, car elle [foil n'a jamais peur d'etre mise en echec." But
it sounds rather rash to speak, not of faith as Charlier does, but of the
man of faith "who becomes at the same time bold and daring, because
he is not afraid of being found in the wrong" (p. 250). "Pas de vraie
foi sans charite ni de charite sans foi" has a different, questionable ring
to it when it is rendered: "True faith requires charity, as true charity
requires faith" (p. 250). Intelligence and will, mind and heart, faith
and charity-all are united and mutually enrich one another. But it
is meaningless to say: "First of all they [including, one takes it, faith
and charity] must die" (p. 251), especially when Charlier is clearly
speaking only of the mortification of intellect and will. Charlier is indeed suggestive when he speaks of the Bible as the verbal body of
Christ, the Eucharist as His carnal body, and the Church as his
mystical and social body. But he says nothing so inexact as: "All these
incarnations of the Son of God are made one reality in the liturgy"
(p. 253), but rather that "[L'Esprit] y unijie par son animation centrale
les formes hierarchisees du corps total ou s'incarne le Fils de Dieu."
And the purpose is not to "unite the Christian, whole and
Christ,'' but "pour le [Christ] livrer a celui qui croit."
C?arlier say: "As we share his [Christ's] divine life only
his flesh ... " (p. 265), but simply and sensu aiente: "sa vie
entire, to
Nor does
by eating
divine est
communiquee par la manducation de sa chair."
Perhaps, then, it is no surprise that in two instances at least the
translators go directly counter to Charlier's express will and try to
~addle him with the very meaning he excludes: "Je ne dis pas identite"
ecomes "not to say identity" (p. 259) and "je ne dis pas: une signification" .be~omes "almost a new meamng". ~P· :61) .. The whole trend of
.
C
harher s thought demands these exphcit disclaimers, and he -apparently put them in deliberately. And yet they are ignored.
The Preface characterizes the translation as "scholarly, lively, and
:xtremely readable." But the ultimate judgment, harsh perhaps but
rue, must be that Charlier's book has not received the translation it
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BOOK REVIEWS
deserves, nor American and English readers the type of translation
they can profitably, even at times safely, use.
HARRY R. BURNS, S.J.
JESUITS IN THE MARKET PLACE
The Scholastic Analysis of Usury. By John T. Noonan, Jr. Cambridge,
Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1957. Pp. 432. $9.00.
In spite of the forbidding title, the Jesuit will find Doctor Noonan's
historical analysis of usury theory well worth investigating. Without
being theological or economic or legal, this book presents the history of
an idea which has played a significant role in the development of each
of these areas.
The vigorous reaction of a fledgling religious order to contemporary
economic problems will be of interest to the historian. Early theologians
of the Society of Jesus, especially Louis Molina, Leonard Less ius, and
John de Lugo, are seen gracefully wearing the mantle of economic
authorities. Molina, for example, was frequently consulted by judges
and merchants on the ethics of loans, business investments and insur·
ance, and he was well in advance of his times in his advocacy of the
doctrine of "lucrum cessans" as justifying the payment of interest on
business loans.
On the other hand the Jesuit Provincial, Peter Canisius, was almost
expelled from Bavaria by Duke William for refusing to grant absolu·
tion to those who took five per cent interest on simple loans. In this
connection, the position taken by th"e General Congregation of the
Society of Jesus meeting in 1581 is ""re-cognized as "a milestone in the
history of usury theory" and was partially responsible for later attacks on Jesuits as lax in their economic morals.
Moral theologians may well gain fresh insights into the cautious
development of the Church's doctrine on usury and the tortuous route
(via the triple contract and "lucrum cessans") through which interest
gained recognition as the legitimate price of money loans. The descrip·
tions of the doctrinal struggle between moral theologians who based
their conclusions on an a priori analysis of traditional usury doctrine
and those theologians who exercised their principles in the light of
contemporary economic developments, (e.g. commercial credit, maritime
insurance) are particularly relevant.
The economist, too, has something to learn from the development
of usury theory. Not only does it offer stimulating clues to the mean·
ing of money in economic life, but, as Joseph A. Schumpeter sa\\'
clearly, it initiates modern interest theory.
Doctor Noonan, a PhD in scholastic philosophy from Catholic
University and former editor of the Harvard Law Review, has produced
a concise history of thought in a specialized area. Usury theory, ho'W·
ever, has too many dimensions to be readily digestible. The reader will
be better satisfied if he comes prepared with a particular problem.
CHARLES
A.
FRANKENHOFF,
S.J.
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103
INTRODUCTION TO PHILIP NERI
The Roman Socrates. By Louis Bouyer. Translated by Michael Day.
Westminster: Newman, 1958. Pp. 87. $1.50.
The Roman Socrates of the title is St. Philip Neri (one of Philip's
pupils wrote Platonic dialogues with Philip rather than Socrates as the
speaker) who conducted his Oratory in Rome. The Oratory-an improvised, spontaneous prayer meeting-brought about reform in many
dissolute lives and made holy men holier.
St. Philip was a good friend of the Society of Jesus. While he was
still a layman, he directed many vocations to the Jesuits. St. Ignatius
gently reproved him as being like the bell of a church, tolling for others
to come, yet remaining outside himself. Later on in Philip's life, when
he received Holy Orders at the relatively advanced age of thirty-six,
he still admired the Society. The letters of St. Francis Xavier, who
had been a friend of Philip when he was in Rome, raised a desire in
him to follow Francis to India as a missioner. He gained twenty companions; and it was only the advice of a confessor, who told him that
"Philip's Indies were to be in Rome", that kept him from following
Francis straightway.
This little book is a good introduction to the life of St. Philipless ponderous than Ponnelle and Bordet's standard work. It contains
anecdotes of Philip's pranks and sanctity. It describes the beginnings
of the Oratory, the group of men who gathered about Philip, the congregation that was to number the great Cardinals Baronius and Newman among its members.
GERARD F. GIBLIN, S.J.
GIANTS OF THE ENGLISH CHURCH
Three Cardinals. By E. E. Reynolds. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons,
1958. Pp. ix-278. $5.50.
The history of the Catholic Church in England during the nineteenth century is the story of three men. They are Cardinals Wiseman, Newman and Manning. These men transformed the Catholic
Church in England from its 1800-1830 status as an object of antiquarian's interest into the dynamic religious, social and educational
force of the 1890's.
The author admirably combines biographical details with excellent
insights into the motives and reactions of the three men. The hero
who emerges from the pages of this book is Newman. His keen intellectual vision that makes his thought so catholic and so contemporary, his
patient forbearance-perhaps we should say "sanctity"-in the face of
whispered charges of heresy win the reader's admiration. The villain
of the work is Monsignor George Talbot. His calumnious attacks on
Newman and the other Oxford converts, from his privileged position
in Rome as confidant of Pius IX, make sad reading. It is difficult to
explain why such a person was the trusted agent for both Wiseman
and Manning on all important dealings of the English Church with the
Roman Curia.
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BOOK REVIEV;S
'Viseman's optimism, his desire to welcome the new converts, to
take the Church out of the "English catacombs," to reestablish the
hierarchy are all portrayed in good fashion. However, the author
does not fail to point out Wiseman's greatest defects, his procrastination and his inability to cope with the execution Of his many brilliantly
conceived enterprises. Manning also receives a sympathetic treatment.
His puzzling distrust of Newman and his impatience with men who
questioned the conclusions of his hasty generalizations, receive detailed
examination. The author does not fail to show Manning's great work
in the field of the social apostolate.
The only minor flaw in the work is some lack of documentation.
For a JesUit, three incidents in Newman's life would be well worth
delving into. On pages 103-104 the author mentions Newman's reasons for not entering the Jesuits, and also his opinions on Jesuit edu·
cation. Later, on page 208, Newman's orthodoxy is defended by "the
Jesuit Perrone." None of these statements is documented; such documentation would interest Jesuits greatly.
Perhaps the title is a bit misleading. Actually the book gives more
than its dust-jacket advertises. The author has included excellent
studies of the works of Pius IX, Archbishops Ullathorne and Errington, William Ward, Cardinal Barnabo, Father Ambrose St. John, William
Glad&_tone, John Keble and Edward Pusey. True it is that all of these
men are etched against the background of the three giants who dominated the English scene. But these men and their contribution to the
restoration of the Catholic Church in England also receive excellent
treatment.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
LITURGY AND FOLKLORE
Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs. By Francis X. Weiser, S.J.
New York: Harcourt, Brace & Company, 1958. Pp. 366. $4.95.
Those who are familiar with Father Weiser's interesting style and
charming folk tales well know what to expect from his latest volume.
His previous three books-The Christmas Book, The Easter Book, The
Holyday Book-were all received with a delightful interest. Some
have found in these books a pleasant way of entering into a deeper
appreciation of the liturgical seasons of the year; some have found
material to dramatize and enhance a lecture or sermon. What more,
then, shall we say of the present volume? There is little new in this
book. Aside from a re-arrangement of material, an occasional abridgment, sCattered amplification, the omission of illustration, this handbook boasts of some fifty-odd additional pages of text. Its richest
endowment is the convenience of consulting in a single volume what
has already appeared in its three predecessors. There is, also, fuller
reference citation for the scholar.
When consulting Father Weiser's section on individual Saints, few
people will grieve over the omission of Sts. Vitus and Sebastian
(previously included in The H olyday Book). Some, perhaps, will miss
�BOOK REVIEWS
105
his treatment of Sts. Michael, Barbara, Andrew, and Catherine. But
the present reviewer will find it hard to forgive the author for his
deletion of the heroic figure of St. George.
GEORGE R. GRAZIANO, S.J.
THEOLOGY AND LITERATURE
Theology and Modern Literature. By Amos N. Wilder. Cambridge:
Harvard University Press, 1958. Pp. 145. $3.00.
It is perhaps by this time a truism to point out that the concept
of separation of Church and State has had much to do with a longstanding separation between religion and the arts, but Professor Wilder,
of the Harvard Divinity School, makes the point with force and understanding. Originally the William Belden Noble Lectures for 1956,
these chapters have retained, happily, the verve and immediacy of the
lecture form.
Professor Wilder discusses at length the breach that has existed
between Christianity and the arts, and then proposes, first from the side
of literature and then from the side of the Church (that is, Protestant
Christianity), evidence of a new rapport that has been growing up between them during the past generation or two.
The most significant literature of our day, Wilder points out, deals
with moral and metaphysical themes, and has frequently turned for
its symbolism to the religious patterns of the past. Indeed he feels
that "the deeper moral and spiritual issues of man today are often more
powerfully canvassed by such writers than by theologians themselves."
He turns for his examples to Eliot, Auden, Claude!, Fry, Joyce, Gide,
Robert Lowell, Robert Penn Warren, as well as to the "long line of
modern agnostics or rebels, from Blake and Shelley, Whitman and Melville, to D. H. Lawrence, Kafka, Yeats." Such writers are for him
"a kind of lay order in Christendom, engaged in tasks which the official
Church has not yet fully encountered or assumed."
The Church, for its part, has become }nore aware of the modern
arts. A central chapter speaks of the basic and inescapable relationship that exists between the religious and the aesthetic orders of experience, emphasizing the fact that literary symbols are not mere decorative additions but rather the bearers of meaning and truth, and therefore of primary importance in both the religious and literary spheres.
A fine chapter on the role of the Cross in Christianity and in literature, with particular reference to Robinson Jeffers' Dear Judas, shows
that "the agony of Christ is related to the law of suffering which runs
through the whole story of life, human and sub-human." The the?logian must make it clear, however, that "there is no proper foothold
In the Christian story for man's persistent or recurrent morbidity . . .
the Cross of Christ should be a fountain of health and not of morbidity."
!he important thing in the Passion, he feels, as in all the Gospels,
18 the divine transaction, "the revelation mediated-the operation of
God in the event."
�ioo
BOOK RE!VIEWS
A further, and more striking example, of the tangency between
religion and literature, Professor Wilder finds in a study of William
Faulkner. He sees in F'aulkner "a disclosure in dramatic terms of attenuated Christian society," in which the basic values of Christianity
have been lost, leaving behind only the empty forms of religion, a
vestigial code of morality. In Faulkner's novels of the breakdown of
an inherited order, the decline and fall of the Compson and Sartoris
families, the rise of the sub-human Snopeses-all representative of a
larger cultural fatality-there is evident, as an "ultimate sounding
board," a definite moral order, without which there could be neither
revelation~ rior spiritual torment. There is religious affirmation even
in Faulkner's most sweeping negation.
In all Wilder's excellent and wide-ranging discussion, there is only
one major area in which Catholics will find themselves pulled up short.
That is his treatment of the Catholic view of literature and art. He
does well in accepting Maritain as the Catholic spokesman in aesthetic
theory, and his references are to the point. But the basic and irrecon·
cilable difference between the Protestant and Catholic views soon becomes apparent. Catholic writers labor under a grave handicap, Wilder
feels, because they are tied to "a very special metaphysic, a radical
dualism between nature and the supernatural," and that the definition
of the relation of grace to nature "disparages any 'secular' art, in the
good sense of that term." On the other hand, "the Protestant approach
to art, as we see it, is not bound to any one type of metaphysics."
Thus, inevitably, Wilder disparages Mauriac, Greene, Bernanos and
Claude!, as writers who "stack the cards in favor of revelation;" the
Catholic writers he accepts are the" ·renegades: Peguy, Gide, Joyce,
Cocteau. It seems odd that so honest and perceptive a thinker as
Professor Wilder would have us buy dogmatic freedom at the expense
of what we believe to be true.
Despite this Protestant-Catholic rift, the book stands firm. For the
theologian, and especially for the critic and teacher of literature, there
is much of value in Wilder's eloquent and highly literate statement.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
ST. THOMAS ON BEING
The Metaphysics of St. Thomas Aquinas. By Herman Reith, C.S.C.
Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958. Pp. xvii-403. $5.50.
This new textbook in Thomistic metaphysics by Father Reith, head
of the· philosophy department of Notre Dame, concentrates on presenting the authentic metaphysics of St. Thomas himself. Consequently,
numerous, often lengthy direct quotations from various works of St.
Thomas have been incorporated into the text; and the order of the book
follows that found in Thomas' Commentary on the Metaphysics of
Aristotle. In addition, the entire second half of the work, comprising
almost two hundred pages, is devoted to selections from St. Thomas on
the various topics of each chapter. Thus, the stress throughout is to
�BOOK REVIEWS
10'7
present to the reader the original content, order, and explanation of
Thomas himself on metaphysics.
This method may be the practical solution to the problem of getting
students of Thomistic philosophy into some direct contact with Thomas.
So often they never get past the commentators. Yet, the solution also
has its draw-backs: any selection from an author like Thomas is bound
to depend to a certain extent upon the individual taste of the editor.
While this normally is not a major obstacle, in the interpretation of a
disputed subject such as analogy in Thomas, the selection of passages
becomes the determining factor. Moreover, it may be questioned by
some whether a group of direct translations from various works of
Thomas will actually bring the modern student any closer to the mind
of St. Thomas. The English translations of an article from the
Summa Theologiae or of a chapter from the Summa Contra Gentiles,
enumerating all the objections first and then the solutions, may well
offer a psychological block to the less interested student (especially
when contrasted with the flowing modern commentary in the text of the
book) and be inadequate for the more interested and advanced undergraduate.
The text of the book is well done; the major points of St. Thomas'
metaphysics are covered; and little time is spent on the less important,
much disputed elements. Its usefulness to the budding metaphysician
would be enhanced by a select up-to-date bibliography of modern
works on Thomistic philosophy; and, perhaps, the text itself could
include some mention of the various leading Thomistic philosophers
and their attempts to put Thomistic philosophy in the forefront of the
20th century philosophical scene.
JosEPH L. ROCHE, S.J.
MARRIAGE IN A PICTUREBACK
Marriage. A Fides Pictureback. Chicago: Fides Publishers Association, 1958. Pp. 64. $0.50.
Marriage, the first in the new Pictureback series of Fides, is, for
the most part, a third reissue in a handier, reduced size (3%" x 814")
of the well-received larger (974" x 12"; 874" x 814") Rotogravure
booklets of 1951. This high class pamphlet with its crisp printing,
twenty-seven photographs and seven reproductions of the works of
Giotto, Picasso, et al., will attract the modern laity; eleven highly readable and instructive chapters will hold their interest. Discussion
questions for eight chapters and a Fides bibliography are also included.
Scattered throughout the text, too, are nineteen inspiring "fillers":
Christ Exalts the Role of Woman, The Wedding Ring, Marriage and
Virginity, The Role of the Father, Beyond the Home, etc.
Young Christian men and women soon to be married will discover
the vast horizons God's plan for marriage opens. Those already married will be helped to experience fully the profound mystery of their
common life together.
ERWIN G. BECK, S.J.
�lOS
BOOK REVIEWS
STRUGGLE FOR THE PRESIDENCY
The Presidential Election of 1880. By Herbert J. Clancy, S.J.
Loyola University Press, 1958. Pp. 294, $4.00.
Chicago:
This monograph in the Jesuit Studies series offers us a clear and
detailed account of the election of 1880, a contest that won for Garfield
his brief occupancy of the White House. In a carefully worked out
presentation Fr. Clancy considers first the general political develop.
ment from the period of the Civil War up to this election, noting the
growing dominance of the Republican party, the rising demand for
Civil service~ reform, and the regeneration of the Democratic strength
in the Soutn. The author then treats in order the struggle for the
nomination in both of the parties, the national conventions, and finally
the campaign waged by both the Republicans and Democ~ats for the
presidency. He indicates the decisive importance of the Republican
change in strategy, from their attempt to identify the Democratic
party with Southern interests and the Civil War (the "bloody shirt"
issue), to a stress on the tariff question and the establishment of the
idea that their party was the businessman's friend.
This is one of the closest and most interesting of the minor elections in American history. Both candidates were "dark horses," relatively. unheard of on the national political scene before the conventions.
Winfield Scott Hancock, the Democratic candidate, had never held an
elective office. His unexpected chance for the presidency resulted from
the surprising psychological effects of the nominating speech of Daniel
Dougherty of Pennsylvania. Garfield had become Senator from Ohio
in 1868 and was mainly known for~· his involvement in the Credit
Mobilier scandal. Garfield's success at the convention resulted from
his oratorical ability, and political manipulations, which were handled
in a most professional way.
In this study we are taken into the world of the "smoke-filled"
rooms where political ambitions were created and shattered, onto the
floor of the convention where the seizing of the opportune moment
meant fame rather than obscurity, and onto the battle field of the New
York Democratic contest where the giants, Tilden and John Kelly,
struggled for mastery. This latter conflict resulted in Hancock's
downfall and gave Garfield the presidency. Kelly failed to give solid
support to the Democratic effort in this key state which all the politicians
knew would determine the election, thus giving the Republicans the
deciding' electoral votes.
Although some historians might question the author's rather overly
sympathetic attitude towards Garfield, and judge that not enough
credit is given to the admirable qualities in the character of Hancock,
all would agree that this study shows a diligent investigation of the
sources, especially of the personal papers of the politicians of that day.
The result is a clear and accurate picture of the election of 1880.
WILLIAM
J. BosCH, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
\
109
PSYCHOLOGY FOR THE PRIEST
Psychopathic Personality and Neurosis. By A. A. A. Terruwe, M.D.
Translated by Conrad W. Baars, M.D. and edited by Jordan
Aumann, O.P. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1958. Pp. 172,
$3.50.
This translation of Dr. Terruwe's Psychopathic en Neurose is the
first of her works to be made available to English readers. The work
is explicitly directed to the confessor and spiritual director. It fills a
gap in the psychological literature available to those who have the care
of souls, by providing an account of psychopathic and neurotic personality types which is adapted to their needs and concerns.
Accordingly, the book is divided into two sections. The first section deals with psychopathic personalities, and divides them into several
generally accepted categories: hysterical psychopaths, pathological
liars, amoral psychopaths, hypomanic psychopaths, sexual psychopaths,
and a selection of fringe types. In all of these discussions, the clinical
profiles and case histories reveal the sure touch of a competent psychiatric practitioner. The insights into the dynamics of these pathological
entities, the occasional judgments on the function of the priest and on
his conduct in relating to these cases are exceptionally good.
The second section deals with neurotic types. A classification is
given into hysterical, obsessive-compulsive, fear and energy types, in
addition to a fear neurosis which is camouflaged by energy. The energy
neurosis is presented as a newly determined neurotic type, but one cannot help but remark the similarity, if not equivalence, to Horney's
power neurosis.
At several points, an attempt is made to express psychological
dynamics in terms of Thomistic sense appetites. Neurosis and its
.
Primary process of repression are described in terms of a conflict between the concupiscible appetite and the irascible appetite ("utility appetite") (p. 95). We can hardly doubt that the sense appetites are
intimately involved in these psychological mechanisms, but a correct
account of abnormal dynamics in terms of these faculties of the soul
must respect their proper function. It is the concupiscible appetites
that have the bonum utile for object and not the irascible appetites.
Fortunately such philosophic inaccuracies do not interfere with the
real pastoral value of many of these analyses.
Two words of caution should be urged. The first is that the reader
must keep it in mind that the treatment here is psychopathological.
The cases analyzed here are abnormal, and the symptoms and characteristics developed in these pages should not be projected on to
merely deviant patterns of normal behavior. This temptation is always
to be reckoned with.
The second word of caution is a more theoretical one. There is a
tendency in this work to fuse the psychological with the philosophical.
There is an uncritical quickness to treat St. Thomas' formulations as
scientific psychology, and conversely, to read Freud as if he had written
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BOOK REVIEWS
a philosophy of human nature. Such a confusion, which rests on the
continuity of experiential data, ignores the formal, methodological character of the respective analyses and can do no better than distort both.
Granted this basic distortion, the author is forced to her conclusion that
"the theory of pan-sexualism can never be accepted by a Christian ..."
But if Freudian psychology is met precisely on the level of scientific
theory, where it should and can be re-assessed, we can recognize it for
what it is and not confuse it with the diverse and independent levels
of religious commitment and philosophic intuition.
WILLIAM W. MEISSNER, S.J.
PATH THROUGH THE PSALMS
Reflections on the Psalms. C. S. Lewis. New York: Harcourt, Brace &
Co., 1958. Pp. 151. $3.50.
The author begins his little book with an apology that he lays no
claim to being an authority on the Psalms. His purpose in presenting his
public with the book at all is the hope that he may have something to
offer non-scholars which learned men in a field quite often miss themselves, or at least are often at a loss to explain to others. The author
has succeeded in doing two things, both very admirably and clearly.
First ..of all, without adopting a defensive tone, he has written an able
defense of the Psalms which enables us to see and value their deeper
spiritual significance without being frightened off by the obvious crudities and difficulties that we meet in them. Secondly, by placing our
present-day ethics up against the strength and weakness of the older
Hebrew morality, the author has reveaied to us some of our own wellconcealed Pharisaical practices.
The book is divided into three parts. There are three chapters
explaining some of the harsher and more difficult themes running
through the Psalms. Then chapters five through nine deal with themes
of which Mr. Lewis is especially fond, as can be seen from the way in
which he introduces this section: "Now let us stint all this, and speak of
mirth." The third part, chapters ten to twelve, deals with the question
of second meanings both in general and in the Psalms, what the author
calls at times a spiritual or allegorical sense and what some Catholic
scholars would call analogously the sensus plenior. There are two short
appendices containing the text (Coverdale's translation) of some of the
author's favorite Psalms and an index of the Psalms cited in the text.
In the first part of his book Mr. Lewis takes up the difficulties
presented to the modern reader by these three themes: judgments, cursing, and death. While today we fear judgments, it may come as a
surprise to us that the ancient Psalmist looked forward to them as a
chance to vindicate himself for his good life. This outlook, if carried
too far, can make for a proud man. Yet it protected the Jew in an
area in which we are more vulnerable. Too often we pass over the
shabby nature of our day-to-day treatment of people, provided we fulfill
the main duties of life. So, too, with the vivid and outrageous curses we
�BOOK REVIEWS
111
come across in the Psalms: "When he is dead may his orphans be
beggars," etc. We may all too easily be shocked at the Psalmist for his
cold-bloodedness, yet we should feel uneasy at our own inability to feel
indignation in the face of sin and great moral evil.
These few remarks will have to suffice for the purposes of a review.
They are not enough to express the joy this reviewer found in reading
the book.
RoBERT F. McDONALD, S.J.
CATECHISM FOR THE YOUNG
A Catholic Catechism. New York: Herder & Herder, Inc., 1958. Pp. xvi448. $2.00.
This translation of the Katholischer Katechisms der Bistiimer
Deutschlands, hailed by Father Hofinger as "the first catechism fully
to take into consideration all the kerygmatic requirements of the modern
catechetical movement," represents two decades of cooperative research,
trial, and revision by Germany's leading catechists and theologians.
In selection and emphasis as well as in presentation of material, the
German Catechism gives the lie to the image which the word "catechism"
usually conjures up for the American Catholic. For example, the
content is proposed, not as a summary of "what a Catholic must believe,"
but as the "Good News of the Kingdom of God." It OJ.!ens, not with an
enumeration of our duties, but with an announcement of God's gift to
us. Typically, the very first sentence reads: "It is our great good
fortune that we are Christians."
Once such a tone is set at the beginning of each lesson, the body of
the lesson is devoted to a simple and heavily Scriptural exposition followed by considerations or thought questions. Only then are the main
ideas pinpointed for memory in two or three brief questions and
answers. Thus, it is the questions and answers which serve the exposition, and not the other way around. Finally, the content of each
lesson inspires various concluding sections, now in the form of practical
suggestions and problems and now by relevant quotations or liturgical
applications.
As its compilers readily admit, this catechism represents in many
Ways a compromise with tradition. Undoubtedly more advantageous
than not is the retention of the traditional lists of the commandments
and sacraments. Not as happy, perhaps, is the compromise in the
overall order. The kerygmatic renewal has sought to present the Good
News in a framework of love; teaching first God's gift to us (Creed &
Sacraments); then, secondly, our return of love (Prayer & Commandments). This emphasis is not as clear as it could be in the German
Catechism's compromise order: God & Redemption-Church & Sacraments-Commandments-Last Things. Though this book is a catechism
:ather than a reader, a summary rather than a source, and though it
IS explicitly intended for the sixth to eighth grade group, Jesuit preachers and teachers on all levels might be helped in their presentation of
~he Good News by the orientations and approaches of this catechetical
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
andmark.
�112
BOOK REVIEWS
..• AND OLD
Life In Christ: Instructions In The Catholic Faith. By Rev. James Killgallon and Rev. Gerard Weber. Life in Christ, Chicago, Ill.
1958. Pp. 286. Paper, $1.00.
A restoration of the Bible and the liturgy to their proper place,
greater emphasis on the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ, the
social implications of Catholicism, a positive approach to morality:
these are some of the expressions that come to mind when one thinks
of the kerygmatic revival in modern catechetics. Though Life in
Christ do~s not represent the perfect realization of these ideals, it does
indeed represent a milestone in catechetical literature available for use
in the instruction of adult converts.
Those familiar with the widely praised Katholischer Katechismus
will recognize a similarity in the general order of subject matter: God,
our Father; creation; natural and supernatural life; the preparation
for the Redeemer; Christ as teacher, high priest, king; the Church, the
Mystical Body; the sacraments; prayer; the commandments; the
Parousia. The pattern used in each lesson is also somewhat the same:
an introductory passage from Scripture, a brief preview of the lesson,
questions and answers, a concluding section with reflections on daily
lif_e and the Church's liturgy. Although questions and answers make
up the greater part of the text, these will be seen as intended more for
explanation than for memorization.
Apologetics is, for the most part, wisely avoided. Nevertheless,
there is an evident need for care in qualifying the authors' answers
to questions about "proofs" for the divinity, the Resurrection, the
primacy, infallibility. Worthy of special note for convert instructors
is the handling of such topics as Our Lady, the Mass, Scripture, evolution, the Protestant revolt, marriage, and sex. Each section is rounded
off by a short but splendid bibliography, with a more extensive one at
the end of the book.
Life in Christ will not be a substitute for careful instruction and
explanation by directors of convert classes and other adult study
groups. It will, however, be a most valuable tool in their task of
spreading the "Good News."
JOSEPH G. MURRAY, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVIII, No. 2
APRIL, 1969
CONTENTS FOR APRIL, 1959
NEW DIRECTIONS IN THE SOCIAL APOSTOLATE ---------------- 115
J. P. Fitzpatrick
IGNATIAN DISCRETION -------------------------------------------------------- 131
Edward Hagemann
CONTRIBUTIONS TO PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP IN THE OLD
SOCIETY ------------------------------------------------- 139
Martin R. P. McGuire
BELLARMINE'S DE CONTROVERSIIS AT WOODSTOCK -------- 153
T. A. Robinson
TRIAL OF GERMAN JESUITS ----------------------------------------------------- 165
BROTHER GEORGE SANDHEINRICH ------------------------------------------ 172
Emeran J. Kolkmeyer
BROTHER MICHAEL S. BRODERICK ----------------------------------- 185
Charles J. Matthews
BROTHER JOSEPH-MARIE DIETRICH --------------------------- 189
Francis X. Curran
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS ------------------------------ 192
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Joseph P. Fitzpatrick (New York Province) is professor of
sociology at Fordham.
'
Father ~ward Hagemann (California Province) is spiritual father at
Alma:·
Dr. Martin R. P. McGuire is professor at Catholic University, Washing·
ton, D. C.
Father Thomas A. Robinson (New York Province) is finishing his
. ·: theological studies at Woodstock.
Father Emeran J. Kolkmeyer died at Buffalo, N. Y., on August 18, 1958.
Father Charles J. Matthews (New York Province) is professor of
philosophy at Fordham.
Father Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is professor of history
at Shrub Oak.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the poat office at Woodstock.
Maryland. under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�New Directions In The Social Apostolate
Joseph P. Fitzpatrick, S.J.
I
Twenty-four years ago, when, as a first year philosopher
I sat where you are sitting, and listened to Father Laurence
Patterson report on the meeting that inaugurated the social
apostolate among the Jesuits of the United States, it never
entered my dreams to think that, twenty-four years later, I
would be present in the same hall, explaining to the younger
Jesuits of today why that social apostolate had been deficient;
and what new directions it may have to take today in order
to be more effective. Times have changed, indeed; and the
interests of theologians have changed with them. In those
days, we were inclined to neglect the reading of theology or
philosophy in order to follow the sit-down strikes of the CIO;
today, I believe you are more inclined to set aside reports about
the teamsters and longshoremen in order to follow the latest
developments in theology. In many ways this is a healthy
development, and one for which your faculty deserves congratulations. It may also reflect, however, that lack of enthusiasm for the social apostolate which is characteristic of
the present day, and which is rooted in a number of uncertainties which I will try to discuss this evening.
It is indeed a strange shift in the affairs of men: twenty-four
years ago, in the depths of the depression, when hunger was
a common thing on our city streets; when resources were
limited and experience slight, men had a confident optimism
about the social apostolate and social reform; whereas today,
at the height of a prosperous era, when resources are relatively
abundant and experiences rich, men are hesitant, doubtful and
reluctant. In fact, I think you could describe the history of
the social apostolate in terms of three well-defined periods.
First, the age of optimism, 1934-43. This was the age of the
labor schools. Secondly, the age of misdirected effort, 1943-48.
-
*An address given at Woodstock College, December 14, 1958.
115
�116
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
This was the age of the National Institute of Social Order.
Finally, days of doubt, 1948 to the present, days when the
dimensions of our world have been twisted and stretched by
extraordinary events, and we have not quite determined how
the social apostolate should be related to a changing world
of which we know so little. It is my firm conviction, however,
that uncertainty need not breed discouragement; that hesitation, if it means the intelligent reorganization of our efforts,
may well be the prelude to great achievements rather than a
sign of failure.
The crisis of our times had been defined for us in general
terms by Pope Pius XI as "the social question." The social
question and the social apostolate in those days were focussed
predominantly on the menace of communism, and on the need
to fight communism by eliminating the social injustices which
breed communism. The Holy Father located this second problem, as you may know, in the need to reorganize the social
~conomy; to return to society an economic and business system
that had some principle of direction, some instruments of
guidance and would serve the common welfare instead of having the common welfare constantly upset in tragic ways for
the sake of the business succe§S of a small group of individuals.
Looking back on this, we are- somewhat surprised that the
social question should have been defined in such limited terms.
Age of Optimism
The special letter of Father General Ledochowski, to the
American Assistancy and Canada which insisted on the beginning of the social apostolate, is dated April 5, 1934. The
letter was a fighting demand that all Jesuits in the world
co-ordinate their forces in the struggle against atheistic com·
munism. "I am well aware," the letter reads, "that ·Ours have
n<it waited until now to realize the menace of communism,
and I am pleased to know that individual Jesuits are at this
very time battling against it in different provinces. But it
seems to me that the hour has come when these isolated efforts
must become general, and when the Society as a united whole
must concentrate its activity upon this momentous struggle.
To start the campaign, I am sending my first appeal to the
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
117
provincials of the United States and Canada, inviting them to
organize a plan of concerted action against communism as it
exists in your countries." 1 It is evident that the primary concern was communism-and the primary remedy was together
with moral reform, the correction of the social injustices that
led to communism. Social injustices were defined predominantly in economic terms.
The response to Father General's letter came in the form of
a meeting, held in Chicago in July, 1934, at which a program
was drafted for the establishment of a Christian social order. 2
This was an excellent statement of general principles. It was
accompanied by the publication of a bulletin of information,
called lnformationes et Notitiae, and the announcement that
evening schools for adults were to be started to teach people
the menace of communism, and the principles of social order
as taught by the Church. A hurried check over the early literature will indicate how much concerned our Fathers were at
that time with the problem of communism. Two schools were
started in what was then the Maryland-New York Province,
one at Xavier in New York; the other at Saint Joseph's High
School in Philadelphia. These were interesting experiments in
adult education. They did not succeed very well in achieving
the purpose of preparing a vigilant defense against communism. But their great significance was the fact that they
developed into labor schools of a few years later when
Father Smith and Father Dobson (then Mr. Dobson) hit upon
the really effective formula of a school intended only for
Workingmen and union members. The Crown Heights School
for Catholic Workingmen was founded at Brooklyn Prep in
the winter of 1937-38; and the Xavier School of Social Sciences
became the Xavier Labor School in September of 1938. A few
Years later, Father Corney was to convert the Philadelphia
school into an Institute of Employer-Employe Relations.
This was the period that I have called the age of optimism.
We had the conviction that we knew what social evils were.
1
The English translation of the letter appears in lnformationes et
Notitiae, Vol. I, No. 4 (June 1935), p. iv.
2
•
An Integrated Program of Social Order, was a pamphlet contain~ng a statement of the program, and was published by The Queen's Work,
1n 1935.
�118
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
We could see them, in the exploitation of workingmen; in the
lack of social responsibility in business; in the menace of
communsm. The social apostolate, therefore, was a well-defined
task. We were to teach people what communism was; teach
workingmen how to organize and manage their unions; teach
employers the Catholic principles of social justice. The solution of the problems was being worked out dramatically all
around us:; The CIO came into its own when Lewis lead his
followers out of the AFL convention of 1935. The auto workers
were organized in the sit-down strikes of 1936. The Wagner
act was declared constitutional in 1937. Minimum wage legislation was passed; and social security. The Spanish civil war
broke out in July of 1936. Lenin had said clearly that, "The
torch of Europe would burn at both ends." Moscow and Madrid
were to be the two poles of the relentless axis of communism.
Every hour of the conflict became for us a symbol; first of the
failure to correct the social abuses that had led to the conflict;
secondly of the struggle of embattled Christians against the
communist menace. We felt, as we manifested our interests in
the social apostolate, that we were part of a dynamic movement that was doing things and getting somewhere. We were
convinced that social justice wa~fin the making.
The significance of those days would not be brought out
completely without a word about Father Laurence K. Patterson, a man of great knowledge and greater enthusiasms, who
singlehanded was responsible for inspiring almost a generation of young Jesuits, the men who were active in those early
days of the social apostolate. He read the Daily Worker and
the New Masses as faithfully as he read the breviary. And
every morning found him looking for someone to whom he
could disclose the latest deceits of the communists, or the
latest triumphs of Catholics in the social field. He fought every
battle of the Spanish civil war and lived through every minute
of communist meetings. He made us aware that there was a
real world in travail outside the Woodstock gates, and he
prepared dozens of young Jesuits to try to cope with it.
Mercifully, God took him before the outbreak of the Second
World War. It would have killed him to see the world again
in conflict. The World War, indeed, put a sudden end to
optimism, not only in the social apostolate, but in most other
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
119
areas of life as well. Before World War II, however, an incident occurred which had begun to deflate the optimism of
American Jesuits in the social apostolate.
Twenty-Eighth General Congregation
In 1938, the Twenty-Eighth General Congregation of the
Society met in Rome, and the delegates passed a number of
decrees relating in a decisive manner to the responsibilities of
Jesuits in the social apostolate. These are historic decrees
and every Jesuit who is interested in the social apostolate
should be familiar with them. The statement of the social
apostolate in these decrees is remarkably broad, but also remarkably insistent on the urgency of the social apostolate as
a task very consonant with our traditions. The English translation of the decrees was published in the I.S.O. Bulletin,
Vol. I, No. 2 (Dec. 1943), pp. 1-3. The action of the Congregation was communicated to American provincials in a letter
from Father General Ledochowski in January, 1939. This is
an important letter, and I take the liberty to quote extensively
from it.3
-
Our Society, keeping before its eyes its own proper end as it is
found in the very Formula of the Institute, issued in the last General Congregation various important decrees concerning the conversion of modern society to Christ.
I have been giving considerable thought these days to the execution of these decrees in your Assistancy and have studied information which has come to me from various trustworthy sources. As
a result, I am quite convinced that you can do nothing more consonant with the mind of the Congregation for the good of the
Church and the Society than to establish, despite all difficulties, by
common effort and expense, a house similar to the Parisian one
which is popularly called Action Populaire, making, of course, the
necessary modifications. A splendid description of this undertaking
is found in your publication America for the seventh of January.
It is my wish that you establish this social center, which more
probably should be located in the city of New York, during the
coming summer; for the danger against which you must act is
pressing and the necessity of this ministry is very great. Further,
the struggle against communism, which has now grown somewhat
3
The English translation appeared in the I.S.O. Bulletin, Vol. III, No.
8 (Oct. 1945), p. 24. The original may be found in Acta Romana, Vol.
IX, fasc. 3 ( 1939), pp. 435-6. Italics mine.
�120
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
lax among you, can be directed from this headquarters with greater
profit and less effort.
Some may say that neither money nor men are at hand for such
an undertaking. I indeed have no fear as to the question of money;
for besides the fact that we must humbly place great confidence in
Divine Providence, I am certain that the money will be available.
First of all, a modest beginning should be made and without extensive equipment: a house should be rented at a low price; indeed the
Fathers themselves who are assigned to this work will soon have
sufficient money for their expenses from their own proper ministry,
and the_work will scarcely be under way, when laymen also will
help. Finally, among your various colleges there are many which
will undoubtedly give financial aid to this undertaking which is to
be considered as an insurance against the greater evils which
threaten you all.
As to the question of men, let each one of you sincerely consider
before the Lord which Father-and he should be an excellent onehe is prepared to assign to this work and let him report his name
to me. I indeed have always placed great value on your educational
ministries, and for my humble part I have done all that I could to
advance them; however, there is danger in your Assistancy lest the
education of youth should come to be almost your only ministry, all
others being somewhat neglected. Now it was the mind of the last
Congregation, in which you took a great share, to advance, now if
never before, the social ministries and works. In these works indeed your Assistancy has not yet made sufficient progress. I am
certain, therefore, that you will und'ertake this new work with your
usual energy and I do not doubt that, through it, you will be able
to render not only to the Church and the Society but also to your
beloved country a great service, greater perhaps than you yourselves now imagine.
I wish, therefore, that as far as possible you report to me without
delay the names of the Fathers, whom you will be able to assign
to this work.
Father Ledochowski was obviously not taking things for
granted, and he let us know very bluntly that he did not think
we were doing a good job. In the fall of 1939, just after the
outbreak of World War II, another one of those extraordinary
men associated with the social apostolate appeared on the
scene. This was Father John Delaney, who returned to New
York after some years in Rome to establish the center of
social action which the General Congregation had insisted
upon. He taught a course in labor ethics at the Xavier Labor
School during the winter 1939-40; in a short time, it had become the most impressive and talked about course of the
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
121
School. He had an unusual power over men. I was director of
the Labor School at the time, and I had asked him to teach
there. At a dinner during the year, he humorously told the
audience that he could boast of being the only Jesuit priest in
the United States who had a Scholastic as his boss. He started
the I.S.O. in the building next to Xavier, 24 West 16th Street,
in September 1940.
Father Delaney was a man who insisted that, before a center
could co-ordinate social activities, the activities first had to
exist. He fostered development of activities on a small scale,
and in local areas whenever possible, hoping eventually to coordinate them into a larger organization. He insisted that his
office was to supply information, inspiration, suggestions, guidance. Some of his sermon outlines and discussion guides are
still memorable. He aimed at making the Mass a living thing
again for workingmen; he worked tirelessly promoting workingmen's retreats; he had a keen sense for the "what-can-I-do"
anxiety, and was a source of imaginative suggestions toward
using all opportunities for advancing the social apostolate.
But, the thing he considered the most important achievement
of his life, yet one in which he has probably been forgotten,
was this: he was the founder of the Cana movement in the
United States. He realized the crucial role of the family in
American society, and saw clearly that an effective social
apostolate was crippled unless it fostered the stability and
the sanctity of family life in the world. In the last issue of his
Bulletin, he describes the beginnings:
The latest experiment we tried, the one day family retreat for
mothers and fathers together, was a thrilling thing. We ran two
of them, have one scheduled for August and two more for September.
We had hoped to be able to tell you about it at length. Say a prayer
that it will still develop and you will be hearing more about it.
It has limitless possibilities and a natural appeal that strikes an
immediate response.
In the little chapel at the Fordham School of Social Service,
he started his Cana conference days which have since become
Probably the greatest influence for the strength of the Catholic
family in the United States.
Slowly, his work advanced until, in 1943, it was decided that
Father Delaney's center was not the kind of center Father
�122
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
General had had in mind. It was too local and too limited.
Therefore, the I.S.O. in New York was discontinued and
Father Daniel Lord was appointed to organize a National
I.S.O. in the summer of 1943.
On July 2, 1943, Father Delaney closed shop. He issued
his final bulletin, and ended his I.S.O. career with the following words:
It w~s fun while it lasted. And it was fun offering service. It
was more fun dealing with the social problems of the day, and trying
to find a practical, feasible, immediate, small and slowly growing
method of meeting these problems It was more than fun, it was
and still is the most vital thing in God's world. It is and must
continue to be the work of the Church in modern society.
He asked to be assigned again to the Philippines where he
had spent his regency. He hoped there to be able to reconstruct
out of the ashes of war and occupation and liberation, a social
order close to the ideals of the Church. He ended a life of
unu:Sual dedication as the chaplain of the students of the University of the Philippines. Some of you must have had the
privilege of knowing him in those last years, and of witnessing
at his funeral what has been described as one of the greatest
demonstrations of reverence Manila has ever seen.
II
In September, 1943, the nation-wide I.S.O. was organized
at a meeting in West Baden, attended by Jesuits from all over
the country. With the founding of the national I.S.O. begins
the second era that I have described as the age of misdirected
effort. I do not mean this to be a term of disrespect. The effort
that went into the national I.S.O. was enormous; the sincerity
and devotion were unusual. But, in its few years of existence,
it became a cumbersome and complicated network of committees within committees; it found itself faced with the problems
of co-ordinating activities which existed only in hope, and coordinating things as disparate as family counselling and international relations; finally it became quickly aware of the need
of scholarly support which was lacking.
I
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
123
If you look at the minutes of the organization meeting, 4
you will see that thirteen content committees were formed;
and eleven channelling committees. Through a co-ordinating
staff under Father Lord in Saint Louis, all the activities were
to become channels of social influence and social activity.
The staff published a monthly exchange of information called
the I.S.O. Bulletin. This was a clearing house for information,
suggestions, letters, exchanges of opinion, etc. In May, 1947,
the I.S.O. Bulletin became Social Order, was changed to a
magazine format, and began to feature brief articles on varied
aspects of the social question and the social apostolate. In
1947, the staff of the I.S.O. inaugurated social order institutes,
namely, a program similar to that of the summer schools of
Catholic Action, in which they would attempt, in the space of
a week of meetings, to teach people the social doctrines of the
Church. The staff encouraged meetings of the various committees, and held an annual convention. This staff, directing
social action, was called the Office of Social Action to distinguish it from the Institute of Social Studies.
Age of Misdirected Effort
The Institute of Social Studies had been started at the same
time as the I.S.O. to train Jesuits and lay people for the social
apostolate, and to assemble at one center a number of outstanding scholars whose research and writing would guide the
activities of the I.S.O. I shall say something about the I.S.S.
later on.
It soon became obvious that even this nation-wide I.S.O.
Was not a center similar to Action Populaire. Despite the excellent channel of communication provided by the Bulletin,
many of the committees showed no significant results; criticism began to be raised that the activities of the Institute of
Social Order gave an impression of oversimplified solutions
to social problems; and a feeling of unrest manifested itself
that, with all its efforts, the I.S.O. was not getting anywhere.
One cannot hold enough praise for the men who made this
effort in the nation-wide I.S.O. They were devoted and gen-
-
4
The minutes of the meeting appear in the I.S.O. Bulletin, Vol. I, No.
1 (Dec. 1943).
�124
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
erous men, and we must never forget that we were all
experimenting, trying to find the really effective manner in
which the social apostolate should be carried on. Certainly, the
inspiring champion of this period was Father Daniel Lord.
After years of brilliant success with the Sodality, he was asked
to give it up and dedicate himself to new and difficult work
with which he was not familiar. He did it with his usual
energy and enthusiasm, and there are not a few who believe
that his w.holehearted effort with the I.S.O. shortened his life.
In 1947 the Fathers provincial requested a special report
on the I.S.O. and an evaluation of its purposes and achievements. A summary of the report will be found in Social Order,
January-February 1948. Its fundamental recommendation was
"that the primary contribution the Society can make, but has
not yet made, to the field of the social apostolate is the necessary study and analysis of social problems, programs of action,
and techniques which must be preliminary to effective action
in the social field" (p. 196). When the provincials received the
report, and when they began to measure the results of the
I.S.O. against its cost in money and manpower, they decided
to introduce some modifications,. to emphasize the center for
study and research and to leave ·responsibility for social action
in the hands of the local provinces. The modifications were
tantamount to the disbanding of the nation-wide I.S.O. as it
had been developed in 1943.
III
Since then, we have been trying to find our way in the third
period that I have called the days of doubt. What has happened? Many things, of most of which you are already aware.
We realized that the problem which we had defined in measurable terms and for which we thought we had solutions, was
actually only one small aspect of a world-wide problem of
unbelievable proportions. Men lost all confidence that they had
an answer; in fact, they began to realize they did not even
know how to define the problem.
World War II did not create this situation; it simply forced
the realization of it sharply upon us. The key to the difficulty
does not lie so much in the fact that we live in the constant
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
125
fear of annihilation by nuclear warfare. The key to the difficulty lies in the fact that most people feel completely helpless
to do much about it. The scope on which things take place
today; the dependence of men on complicated forms of organization in business, government and armed forces; the
dominant role of the specialist in science and in social planning; the enormous quantity of information that one requires
before an intelligent decision is possible even in small matters;
these and a host of other things have generated a feeling of
helplessness, almost of fatalism, in the presence of disasters
which may strike us. The confidence, what I might call the
naive optimism of the thirties, appears childish in the face
of present dangers. It is important to note that the social
question, as we view it now, is not simply the same social
question as we viewed it yesterday, only on a much larger
scale. We have realized that the nature of the question is much
different than we thought it was, and that what we called the
social question in the early thirties is only one facet of dynamic
developments in the world, the direction of which we do not
fully understand.
Days of Doubt
In the first place, the ~truggle against communism is far
more terrible today than it was then, but the nature of the
struggle has changed. In the thirties, we thought of it in terms
of internal revolution, in terms of keeping communists out of
official positions in labor unions, or preventing their infiltration into schools or government or situations of influence; we
also thought of it in terms of something that could be prevented by timely social reform. All these aspects of the struggle are still important, but they are far from adequate. The
great struggle against communism takes place today on the
highest levels of diplomacy and policy between powerful governments, backed up by armed forces of a frightening kind.
All the Christian social principles in the world would probably
be helpless in a smaller nation if the might of communist
Russia moved aggressively against it.
. The second important aspect of the social question today
Is population. It is amazing how little attention was paid to
this in Catholic circles during the thirties, except to warn
�126
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
of the danger of national suicide through the practice of birth
control. I think it is safe to say that most thinking today
about social questions is centered on the fact of enormous
population growth. Demographers tell us that one half of all
the people who have lived are alive today. There are more
people in China today than there are Catholics in the entire
world. Latin America is growing so rapidly and the number
of priests is growing so slowly that, if the trend continues,
by the y~ar 2000, Latin America may be predominantly pagan,
with a few little islands of Catholicism. In about fifty years,
the United States cut the death rate in Puerto Rico from 31
per 1000 per year, to the fantastically low figure of 7 per
1000 per year, and pushed the average span of life from 30
to 68 years. Japan, in an effort to control its population, had
more than a million registered abortions last year; and it is
estimated that twenty per cent of the women in Puerto Rico
have already been sterilized. There are two general reactions to
thLs situation: the reaction of many people outside the Church
is one of panic; they seem to look upon the birth of each new
baby as a universal tragedy. On the other hand, Catholics
often meet this question with naive confidence that the situation will take care of itself. TMre are only three things that
can be done about population: iimit its growth, and this presents us with serious moral problems; develop resources in
order to care for an increasing population, and this presents
us with the problem of economic development; or you can allow
people to migrate from a crowded area to an open area, and
this presents us with the problem of migration. Thus population development has thrown our thinking about the social
question into a new focus.
The third important development has been the rapid urbanization of the world. It is not only the cities of the United
States that have been growing rapidly although about seventy
percent of our population now lives in urban areas. More
important, however, is the rapid urbanization of peoples all
over the earth. This development has compelled us to re-define
the social problem in terms of cultural disorganization rather
than economic disorganization. For the city is not simply a
place where people live, and work, and recreate. The city creates new and difficult relationships among men. It offers a
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
127
way of life of its own. It tends to shatter the customs of rural
people and tribal people and, as they move into it, they meet
conflict, delinquency, and personality breakdown. At a meeting
last spring at Maryknoll of missionaries, mission specialists
and social scientists, this problem of urbanization, with the
social disorganization consequent on it, was singled out as
one of the most serious phenomena that missionaries will have
to cope with everywhere in the world.
Closer to home, urbanization presents us with the problem
of the modern city parish. Neighborhood deterioration, slum
clearance and urban redevelopment, the move to the suburbs,
the rapid intermingling of peoples, all these things have presented the parish with a challenge which we are still trying
to reach.
Fourthly, another factor in the approach to the social question today is our changing attitude toward American technology, organization and business. Very simply, World War
II and the events that followed made us realize that the freedom of the world depended on American technology and industry. It was our superiority in these matters that enabled
us to win the War; it is on our continued superiority in these
things that the security of the free world depends. This has
led to a number of shifts in attitude: first, to a willingness
to overlook some of the real social difficulties associated with
American industry in our satisfaction with its technological
achievements; second, to a gradual commitment of ourselves
to the collective forms of living which are consequent upon
our technology, the commitment to the characteristics of conformity, group action, impersonality which seem to be associated with what we call the white-collar way of life. There are
many other aspects, particularly economic, such as international trade and inflation, which I am overlooking for the
moment but which have likewise contributed to our change
in outlook.
On a more local level, a number of other developments have
occurred which have shifted the direction of the social apostolate. The labor unions are no longer the struggling campaigners they once were in the thirties. Many of them are
big, well-established, sometimes powerful, and, in an embarrassing number of instances, more guilty of injustice than the
�128
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
employers whose injustices they professed to correct. Thus
the enthusiasm that centered around the labor movement in
the thirties has been cooled by the necessity to face the realities of corruption. This is unfortunate because a disturbing
amount of social injustice still exists in employer-employe relations, and an even greater determination and courage is
needed today to cope with it than was needed in the thirties.
Secondly, as justice in employer-employe relations was the
area of ~dramatic developments in the thirties, the area of
dramatic development today is in the field of integration,
interracial relations. If there is any area where the enthusiasm of the thirties is evident, it is here, although, even in
the work for interracial justice, the measure of enthusiasm
that is needed is still wanting.
Role of Jesuits
Finally, probably the area of most effective social action
t;day is in the crucial question of the family. In this regard,
it is helpful to keep in mind the role that Jesuits have played
in the development of this important apostolate. As I mentioned, Father John Delaney started the Cana movement back
in 1943, and it was promoted wonderfully by the Jesuits in
Saint Louis. The family apostolate in the Newark Arch·
diocese would probably not have reached its present level
without the constant help of Father Gerard Murphy and
Father Cantillon; and Father John Thomas is probably the
most respected Catholic scholar in family sociology in the
country.
Where does all this leave us, and what inspiration can it
give to you as you prepare for a life that you hope will be rich
in effective work? It leaves us with the realization that the
social problem is no less a reality today than it was twenty·
four years ago; it is far greater, and our knowledge of it is
clearer than it was. The need for the social apostolate is not
less urgent; it is more urgent. But the orientation has shifted.
First, we have realized that social action is a dangerous or
a futile thing if it is not supported by competent scholarship.
The 1947 report is eloquent on this point. It insists on the
primary need of the training of highly competent scholars, and
�SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
129
it acknowledged that we did not have them in 1947. What we
needed then, and will need more urgently in the future, is a
group of men who can interpret trends, form opinion, guide
policy in questions of the social apostolate. But, men like this
will not be forthcoming until we have in our provinces a kind
of scholarly attitude that we can take for granted, a respect
for scholarly activity, a realization of the importance of research, and a climate that makes men enthusiastic for the
hard discipline of intellectual work. In stressing this, I recall
the important talk of your Father Rector at this year's convocation, warning about the danger of scattering our forces
over wide fields in what may be a subtle desire on our part to
avoid the discipline of intense scholarship in limited areas. 5
It is rather interesting to note that, in advancing the social
apostolate in Latin America, four centers of social research
have been planned and are in formation; and Father Foyaca,
the representative of Father General in developing the social
apostolate in Latin America, looks upon it as his primary task
to send young Latin American Jesuits to higher studies in the
social sciences.
Secondly, the best way to have effective social action on a
large scale is to have effective social action on a small scale
first.
Therefore, in summary, and in reference to your own future,
I would say this :
1. There is an enormous amount of work to be done in every
little corner of every city or country where Jesuits are at work.
You will recognize it if you have that social-mindedness that
our present Father General emphasized so much in his letter
on the social apostolate. There is the primary task of forming
the social attitudes of the boys and young men whom we teach;
~here is the endless work that every generous priest can find
lf he looks around him and if he has the time to devote him~elf to it: the family apostolate, close contact with the poor
ln order to assist and guide them, interracial and inter-group
relations, work with youth. You need never fear that there
Will not be something to do. These are the tasks of the social
-
s Woodstock Letters, 87 (Nov., 1958), pp. 325-331.
�130
SOCIAL APOSTOLATE
apostolate on the local level, the tasks that do not need extensive organization, the tasks that every Jesuit can find all
around him if he has the time to give to them.
2. The larger problem, the coordination of effort on a large
scale may develop out of increasing activity on a small scale.
But large scale or small, social action will be increasingly
effective in so far as it is guided by competent and scholarly
social knowledge.
3. T-herefore, we should pray that God will send us the
scholars we need; and we should strive to develop in ourselves
that social-mindedness that will enable us to be active in many
ways locally, and to be the link between the ideas of the
scholars and the practical action which they suggest and in
which they must express themselves.
I feel, as I conclude, that I have told you nothing definite
that could give you a sense of security; nor have I told you
ap.ything inspiring that could fire your enthusiasm. It would
be unfortunate if we were too distressed about our doubts, or
if we attributed our doubts to our deficiencies. Doubt and
uncertainty are the characteristics of the entire world, and
our own doubt and uncertaintl:.'simply reflect the all-pervading
uncertainty of the times in which we live. The doubt and
hesitation should not be taken as signs that there is little that
we can do, but as signs that the much more to be done will
require greater patience, more painstaking scholarship, and
a greater daring that has its security in an abiding confidence
in God.
Your generation will have a task much more difficult than
my generation had. But I always pray that God will give
you the vision to see what must be done to restore man's social
life to Christ, and that, when you see more clearly what God
wants you to do, He will give you the grace to do it.
�lgnatian Discretion
Edward Hagemann, S.J.
In his book, The Love of God, Dom Aelred Graham referring
to the distinctive virtues of some of the great saints says:
"The virtue most clearly revealed in the life of St. Benedict
was religion, in that of St. Thomas Aquinas faith joined with
wisdom, in St. Ignatius's perhaps supernatural prudence." 1
Now, as discretion, according to St. Thomas, is one of the
virtues included under the virtue of prudence, 2 we can say,
I believe, that supernatural discretion was clearly revealed
in the life of St. Ignatius.
Like father like son. If discretion is clearly revealed in the
life of the founder, we may conclude it should be revealed also
in the lives of his followers. Certainly, a glance through the
Constitutions of the Society shows how highly Ignatius prized
discretion and how important he considered this virtue for his
sons. He wished no one to be admitted to the Society unless
the candidate show promise of becoming a discreet man. 3
Actually, indiscretion in the matter of devotions could well be
an impediment to admission. 4 When novices are exercised in
obedience and poverty this is to be done with discretion. 5
St. Ignatius specifically requires this virtue for the Secretary
of the Society, 6 the Assistants 7 and the General who, in external affairs and in the handling of men, must be a man
full of discretion. 8 Superiors are to exercise discretion in exPosingtheir subjects to the effects of poverty9 and in providing
for what is necessary and useful in common life. 10 In the
apostolic life those who deal with persons of authority must
have this virtue. 11 In general, discretion is to be observed in
1
The Love of God (New York, 1939), p. 154.
2
ln li Sentent., dist. XXXIII, q. II, a. V.
8
Part 1, chap. 2, n. 6.
1, 3, 12.
~ 3, 1, V.
6
9, 6, 9.
7
9,5,2.
9, 2, 6.
3, 1, 25.
10 6, 2, N.
117,2,F.
8
f
9
131
�132
DISCRETION
mental exercises 12 and in corporal penanceY Finally, for all
the formed members of the Society St. Ignatius says that no
fixed rules are necessary in what concerns prayer, study and
penance. They have but the one rule, "discreet charity." 14
Our purpose in this article is to examine what is meant
by Ignatian discretion, i.e., the discretion Ignatius wishes his
sons to have. Discretion, as we have seen, is one of the virtues ranged under the cardinal virtue of prudence. While
pruderice chooses the right means to gain a good end, 1 ~ discretiorr regulates the use of that means. 16 Prudence will keep
us from mistaking means for ends. In discretion we already
have the right means; it is a question now of using it with
the necessary moderation. Discretion pin-points prudence to
the present moment.
In planning a course of action we use the virtue of prudence.
Discretion has a role in carrying out our plans according to
our strength and the circumstances of the moment. This
holds good, of course, for both the natural and supernatural
virtues of prudence and discretion. Natural discretion is
surely not excluded by St. Ignatius when he insists on the
necessity of that virtue. But we may be sure it is super·
natural discretion that is the .tnore highly prized and is what
St. Ignatius had particularly ..-in mind when stressing that
virtue in the Constitutions. Supernatural discretion, then,
will mean co-operating with the grace given hie et nunc. It is
"the supernatural interior disposition which induces the soul
12
3, 2, 4.
13
3, 2, 5.
14 6, 3, 1.
Eric Przywara, S.J., claims that the essence of Ignatian
love is discreet love. Majestas Divina (Augsburg, 1925), p. 75. I remember hearing my tertian instructor, Father Walter Sierp of MUnster
in Westphalia, declare that the distinctive characteristic, the hallmark of
lgnatian asceticism is discreet charity.
1 5 Jn Ill Sentent., dist. XXXIII, q. II, a. III; IIa Ilae, q. XLVII,
a, 7, 8.
16 Some authors interchange prudence and discretion, thus losing precision. Thus "discreta caritas" is translated as "prudent charity" bY
Alexander Brou, S.J., lgnatian Methods of Prayer, Translated by Wil·
liam J. Young, S.J. (Milwaukee, 1949), p. 34, and Louis Peeters, S.J.,
Vers l 'Union Divine par les Exercises deS. Ignace, 2nd. edit. (Louvain,
1931), p. 8. The phrase is not found in the English translation of thiS
latter work, An lgnatian Approach to Divine Union (Milwaukee, 1956)·
�I
DISCRETION
133
to observe the happy medium; not through culpable negligence
to fail to correspond with grace, nor to go to the other extreme
of exaggerated eagerness, presumption and singularity." 11
Too Much or Too Little
Discretion, then, guards against our doing too much or too
little. We often associate it with corporal penance and devotions where discretion will moderate the use of both. In
reality, however, it applies to every virtue. St. Bernard tells
us that:
"discretion puts order into every virtue. And order makes for
moderation and attractiveness and stability, as well ... Discretion,
then, is not so much a virtue as the mistress and guide of virtues,
as well as the one who regulates the affections and teaches right
conduct. Take discretion away and virtue will become vice."l 8
And St. Thomas quoting St. Anthony declares: "Discretion is
the mother and gu~rdian of the virtues and regulates them
all." 19 The reason for this is perhaps, that the perfection of
all moral virtues consists in keeping the golden mean (in
medio stat virtus), in avoiding the extremes of excess and
defect. Discretion keeps every moral virtue at that point.
Discretion, then, means exact correspondence with actual
grace. But this supposes we can recognize grace as such. Not
every seemingly good thought that comes into our minds is
a grace. We must be able to discern between what are inspirations and what are not, before we can give our cooperation
safely. Hence the necessity of a practical knowledge of the
rules for the discernment of spirits. Thus on the one hand
We shall avoid deception and on the other recognize and accept
-
17
Rev. S. M. Giraud, The Spirit of Sacrifice, revised by H. Thurston,
S.J. (New York, 1905), p. 314. See "Discretion," Dictionnaire de
Spiritualite, III, col. 1311-1314; Frederick William Faber, "Discretion,"
~rowth in Holiness (London, 1860), ch. XXVII, pp. 494-499; ch. De
medt, S.J., Notre Vie Surnaturelle, 4th. edit. (2 vols., Brussels, 1922,
1923), II pp. 23-30. St. Bernard states that this complete obedience to
~ac~ is perfection. St. Bernard's Sermons for the Seasons and Principal
esttvals of the Year (3 vols., Westminster, Md., 1950), III, p. 329.
18
St. Bernard on the Love of God. Translated by Rev. Terence L. Connolly, S.J. (New York, 1937), p. 178.
19
S "Discretio ... est genetrix et custos et moderatrix virtutum," In Ill
entent., dist. XXXIII, q. II, a. V.
�134
DISCRETION
the motion of the good spirit, the touch of grace. According to
Father Hugo Rahner, S.J., "In this ability to discern spirits ·
lies concealed that fine interior sureness of mind that we call
discretion." 2 ° From this point of view discretion and discernment mean pretty much the same thing. And, maybe, discretio in the Constitutions could at times be better translated
by "discernment."
To be an. ,~;~-Postle, to live and work in the world amidst its
principles and enticements; more, to have this enemy within
oneself, experiencing movements in one's heart that originate
from the principles of the world, and yet by discretion perceiving, avoiding, and choosing, not through the influence of
this world's subtle snares and motions, but under the influence
of grace what is to the greater glory of God-this is what St.
Ignatius desires of his sons. 21 A modern Jesuit writer, after
stating that discretion for the Jesuit means the ability to
discern God's Will in concrete situations, claims that this is
a special grace given the Society, and only by reason of this
divine guidance can she be in the world without being of the
world. 22
This discretion is illustrated inJhe life of St. Ignatius, for
from early in his conversion he learned to act according to
the discernment of spirits. In his Spiritual J ournal23 we see
how attentive he was to the interior movements of his soul.
After describing the contents of this Journal Father Dudon,
S.J. says:
"From this example, we can glimpse the ordinary life of the
mystic. Of course, his life was directed to action, and an action
singularly powerful. But, even during his prayer, which ought to
clarify and sustain that action, he contemplates and tastes God.
He awaits these divine favors, he calls for them, he discerns them
with certainty, and he makes use of them to test the conclusions
2 o The· Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola (Westminster, Md., 1953),
p. 42.
21 See the strong expressions of Father Roothaan on the necessity of
discretion. Opem Spiritualia Joannis Phil. Roothaan (2 vols., Rome,
1936), I, p. 468.
22 GUnter Soballa, S.J ., "Das Gebet in den Konstitutionen der Gesell·
schaft Jesu," Geist und L eben, 30 (1957), p. 122.
2 3 See "Spiritual Journal of Ignatius Loyola," Woodstock Letters, 87
(July, 1958), pp. 205-264.
�DISCRETION
135
of human reason. The most delicate stirrings of his soul fall under
his scrutiny. And while observing them, how scrupulous he is to
remain entirely under the hand of God, and to come to no decision
but in His light."24
Ribadeneira tells us that St. Ignatius never made any decision
on serious matters without first consulting God. 2 ~ Actually,
it would seem that not only in prayer but at all times he discerned the action of grace within himself. 26
As regards Ignatius's discretion in governing his subjects
Father Dudon states:
"Ignatius of Loyola brought to his task a rare discernment in
his functions as chief. One would say that his gaze penetrated to
the interior of souls and there beheld the hidden springs of their
movements. From this exact knowledge of a man's character, or of
the actual condition of the soul of each, he could judge in his
dealings with them how to combine a firmness and a flexibility that
were unequalled."2r
-
Certainly, part of this discernment was a discernment of
spirits in those with whom he dealt.
St. Ignatius desired that his sons in dealing with others
should exercise discretion,2 8 a discretion that at times becomes
a discernment of spirits. This discernment is precisely what
St. Ignatius desires in a retreat master. 29 We read that Ignatius thought Peter Faber gave the Spiritual Exercises better
than any other of his companions. 30 A glance at Blessed
Peter's Memoriale would seem to indicate that this preeminence was due to his gift of discerning spirits-a gift
very much in evidence in that work. Surely also in the account
of conscience the superior, with his discretion, his knowledge
-
24 Paul Dudon, S.J., St. Ignatius of Loyola. Translated by William J.
Young, S.J. (Milwaukee, 1949), p. 370.
2
~ Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Fontes Narrativi, II, p. 363,
n. 61. See also Scripta de Sto. Ignatio, I, p. 515, n. 16.
26 Fontes Narrativi, II p. 338, n. 31; p. 477, n. 35.
27 Op. cit., p. 335. See also Joseph de Guibert, S.J., "La Formation
Spirituelle de ses Disciples par S. Ignace," La Spiritualite de la ComPagnie de Jesus (Rome, 1953), ch. II, pp. 86-89.
28 See the instructions of St. Ignatius for those working with the
neighbor, M.H.S.J., Epistolae Sti. Ignatii, XII, p. 253.
29 The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, 17th. annotation.
3
°Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 658, n. 226.
�136
DISCRETION
of the movements of nature and grace, can discern these in the
soul of his subject and guide him according to the Will of
God thus manifested. In confessional work also and in giving
spiritual direction the Jesuit will make use of this same supernatural discretion.
Movements of Nature and Grace
This close attention to the movements of grace and nature
in one's o:wn heart, this delicate sensitivity to the slightest
interior touches, means that one is living a life not only according to the virtues but also and much more according to
the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 31 These gifts are permanent qualities or habits by which we perceive or discern actual graces
and become more responsive to these graces. They also enable
us to proceed rapidly in the way of perfection. To advance according to the virtues is like a man rowing a boat-slow and
difficult. To advance according to the gifts is like a man in a
sailing boat running before the wind-easy and fast. Was
St. Ignatius thinking of something like this when he wrote
that the formed members will run in the way of God ?32
The best Jesuit writer on this subject is Father Louis Lallemant.33 He gives us the following illustration. In the exodus
from Egypt God
"gave the Israelites as a guide a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar
of fire by night. They followed the movements of this pillar, and
halted when it halted; they did not go before it, they only followed
it, and never wandered from it."34
31 For the difference between these two ways in the spiritual life see
Jean Grou, S.J., The Spiritual Maxims of Pere Grou, 6th. edit. (London,
1924), Maxim II, "Of Christian Liberty and of the Active and Passive
Way," pp. 13-24; Maxim XXII, "Of the Life of Grace," pp. 214-221.
32 Constitutions, 6, 3, 1.
33 The Spiritual Doctrine of Father Louis Lallement, S.J. (Westmin·
ster, Md., 1946), Fourth Principle, "Of the guidance of the Holy Spirit,
and Docility thereto."
34 Fourth principle, chap. I, a. I, n.2. An interesting question presents
itself. Is this receptivity to actual grace the essence of the Jesuit "con·
templation in action" or finding God in all things- Francis Charmot, S.J.,
says that Father Leonce de Grandmaison's "virtual prayer" is this con·
tinual prayer of a Jesuit. La Doctrine Spirituelle des Hommes d'Action
(Paris, 1938), p. 290, and Father de Grandmaison says that "virtual
prayer consists in being docile to the Holy Spirit." We and the HolY
�DISCRETION
137
The gifts enable us to act thus in respect to the Holy Spirit.
As we advance in the spiritual life the gifts become increasingly operative and are necessary to enable us to live
that life fully. There is no great sanctity without a high degree of development of these gifts. 35 And they are necessary
for a constant, perfect observance of a large part of the
Summary of the Constitutions. 36
All the asceticism of the Society-the agere contra, the continual struggle against self-has as its aim the liberation of
the gifts of the Holy Spirit, 37 which are bound down, as it were,
by venial sin and wilful imperfections. 38 The wholehearted
practice of our Institute, the deepening of the spirit of
Ignatian indifference in our lives, will help those in formation39 to acquire interior freedom and those already formed to
grow in freedom, and, as the years go by, will help them to
become more and more interiorly free to live the life of
grace perceived and rendered easy by the gifts of the Holy
Spirit.
As the direction of the Holy Spirit grows in our lives, so
also does the ideal proposed by St. Ignatius-to be an instrument in the hand of God. 40 Instruments do not act of themselves. They cannot begin or finish a work. The time, the place,
and the task for which they are to be used depends upon the
artist. So too, God uses us as instruments through obedience,
exterior events, and interior impulses, i.e., through the touches
of grace. As regards these latter, through a delicate sensitivity
to them we, as instruments, will respond to the slightest indication of God's Will and act in the way God wills and as long
and as far as He wills.
-
Spirit. Translated by Angeline Bouchard (Chicago, 1953), p. 134.
35
Joseph de Guibert, S.J., The Theology of the Spiritual Life. Translated by Paul Barrett, O.F.M. Cap. (New York, 1953), p. 343, n. 426.
36
Charmot, op. cit., pp. 297, 298. Father Lallemant coming down to a
Practical point claims that the gift of fortitude is necessary to remain
many years teaching in the classroom. Op. cit., fourth princ., ch. V, a. VI.
37
Charmot, op. cit., p. 304.
38
LaUemant, op. cit., fourth princ., ch. III, a. I, § 5; a. III, §§ 1-3.
39 Obedience is the open door for beginners to learn discretion as
Ignatius states in the Epistle on Obedience, n. 11.
4
°Constitutions, 10, 2; 7, 4, 3.
�138
DISCRETION
This constant interior readiness to know and to do God's
Will, this Ignatian discretion, makes our life heroic, 41 one of
complete sacrifice. It is a complete stripping of ourselves to
be united in will with God, a constant "paratus sum,'' a
constant "yes" to God's requests of us. In the Suscipe we hand
over to God our liberty, memory, intellect and entire willeverything to be governed by the Divine Will made clear to us
not only· exteriorly but also interiorly through grace. Seeing
God's Will, we do it. Doing God's Will, we serve Him. Thus we
strike a characteristic note of Jesuit spirituality: the loving
service of God. 42
u "There is no heroism like discretion." Frederick William Faber,
Growth in Holiness (London, 1860), ch. III, p. 49.
42 Joseph de Guibert, S.J., La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus
(Rome, 1953), pp. 33, 39, 41.
* * *
WHITE IS BLACK
The chief weapon of the Reformation was its so-called freedom of
thought: as if every margrave or village cobbler could, by right of
birth, undertake by himself the interpretation of the Scriptures without
referring to the Church which has from the beginning held in trust the
books of revelation and which has the guidance of the very Spirit who
dictated them! St. Ignatius, on the other hand, wrote at the end of the
Spiritual Exercises these very definite words: "We must hold fast to
the following principle: What seems to me white, I will believe to be
black.if the hierarchical Church so defines." These words have raised
the hair of even the least hirsute of Pyrrhonic philosophers, but with
what logical reason it would be hard to say, since scepticism and in
general all agnostic and relativist philosophies begin precisely by sending
broadcast doubts whose name is legion upon the veracity of the senses.
St. Ignatius in a formula that is essentially and deliberately paradoxical
wishes to drive home the necessity of obedience to authority hierarchically constituted.
GIOVANNI PAPINI
�Contributions to Patristic Scholarship in
the Old Society
Martin R. P. McGuire
When we speak of contributions to patristic scholarship by
Catholics in the period from the Protestant Revolt to the
French Revolution, the Maurists and the Bollandists immediately come to mind. 1 And without question these two
groups made a contribution which both in quality and in
quantity not only excites our deep admiration but is still of
fundamental scientific importance. While fully recognizing
the achievements of the Maurists and the Bollandists, we
should not forget, however, that in the period mentioned
Benedictines who were not Maurists, Jesuits who were not
Bollandists, Dominicans, Franciscans, members of other
orders and congregations, diocesan clergy, and laymen, all
made more or less significant contributions to patristic scholarship. In the bitter and widespread religious controversies of
the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries, it was
only natural that Catholics and Protestants, Gallicans and
Jansenists, should eagerly seek support for their respective
Positions in the history and literature of the early Church.
Under the powerful stimulus of this apologetic interest, an
enormous mass of ancient Christian Greek and Latin material came to be edited and to form the subject of learned
commentaries and dissertations. As a glance at their introductions and indices will show, the old editors of patristic
texts were also exclusively concerned with theological rather
than with philological questions.
Given, then, the importance of a knowledge of the history,
organization, and literature of the early Church in an age of
intense religious controversy, it is not surprising to find Jesuits
taking a conspicuous part in patristic scholarship during the
-
1
This paper was read at the meeting of the American Catholic Historical Association held in New York, December, 1940. It has never
been published, and is now submitted in slightly revised form and with
the addition of bibliographical notes.
139
�~-----------
140
--
PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
whole period of the Old Society. Indeed, even apart from
the Bollandists, the Jesuits can point to at least six or eight
patristic scholars in the late sixteenth, seventeenth, and early
eighteenth centuries who deserve to rank with the best of the
Maurists. The Jesuits, in fact, were the leaders in patristic
scholarship in the sixteenth century and in the first half of
the seventeenth. 2 It is only towards the end of the latter
century that the Maurists began to publish the great editions
of the Fathers which have given them a deserved and abiding
fame. The work of the Bollandists is so generally known and
appreciated-and is so charmingly described in Father Delehaye's, The Work of the Bollandists Through Three Centuries
(1615-1915),8 that I do not intend to treat of it here beyond
observing that the names of Rosweyde, Bolland, Henschen, and
Papebroch must be regarded among the most illustrious in
the history of patristic scholarship. My attention will be confined rather to the contributions made by the following members of the Old Society: Fronto du Due, Gretzer, Sirmond,
Petavius, Garnier, Labbe, and Hardouin. To save time and to
avoid monotony, I shall not give biographical or bibliographical details. The biographical data are easily available in the
general Catholic encyclopedias, ~-particularly in the Dictionnaire de Theologie Catholique, and bibliographical matters are
covered exhaustively in the monumental work of Sommervogel.
Fronto du Due
Beginning (as a young man of twenty-five) with the publication of certain opuscula of St. John Chrysostom, Fronto
du Due/ whose talent in the patristic field was early recog2 See 0. Bardenhewer, Geschichte der altkirchlichen Literatur. I (2nd
ed. Freiburg-im-Br., 1913) 10-11. J. De Ghellinck, S.J., Patristique et
moyen ·age. II, Introduction et complements a l'etude de la patristique
(Brussels and Paris, 1947) 15-16.
a Princeton 1923. Translated from the French: A travers trois siecles.
L'oeuvre des Bollandistes 1615-1915 (Brussels, 1920).
4 Born at Bordeaux, 1558; died at Paris, 1624. Vacant-Mangenot,
Dictionnaire de theologie catholique, "Fronton du Due," VIl (1914)
930-933 (by P. Bernard). H. Hurter, S.J., Nomenclator .•• III (3rd ed.
Oeniponte 1907) 799-803. Sommervogel, Bibliotheque de la Compagnie
de Jesus III 233-249. It has recently been established that the first six
�PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
141
nized by his superiors, devoted himself as much as possible to
the editing of Greek patristic texts. His major contributions
were editions of St. Gregory of Nyssa, St. John Chrysostom,
St. Basil the Great, and a number of Greek patristic texts
edited as a supplement, Auctarium Ducaenum, to De La
Eigne's Bibliotheca veterum Patrum. The edition of Gregory
of Nyssa was the first of the Greek text of that author to be
published, and with some minor additions it has remained the
standard text for the greater portion of Gregory's works to
our own generation, when it is being replaced by the masterly
edition of Professor W. Jaeger and his collaborators. His
edition of the works of St. Basil was much more complete
than the Basle edition of 1532. It remained the standard text
for more than a century, when it was replaced by the great
edition of the Maurists. His edition of St. John Chrysostom
was his greatest achievement, however, being far better and
far more complete than all preceding editions of that author.
The contemporary edition of the English scholar Savile from
which Fonto du Due subsequently derived much help, was on
the whole superior, but the Greek text was not accompanied
by a Latin translation and therefore could not be put to general use. The Maurist editor of Chrysostom, Montfaucon,
utilized Fronto du Due and pays a high tribute to the edition
of his predecessor, praising especially the accuracy and elegance of his Latin version.
In connection with the mention of Latin versions here, it
should be observed that the Greek Fathers were being edited
primarily to serve practical religious needs and that the
majority of men who wished to read the Greek Fathers and
to use them could not read them, at least with any facility, in
the Greek original. Indeed, in the whole period falling within
the scope of this paper, Greek authors were frequently published in Latin versions only, and practical considerations of
the same kind led Migne, as late as the middle of the last
century, to publish his Patrologia Graeca in two forms: one
-
volumes of the twelve volume edition of Chrysostom attributed to Fronto
du Due and published by Morel (Paris 1636-1642) were largely a reprint of Commelin's edition of Chrysostom (Heidelburg 1603). See P.
W. Harkins, "The Text Tradition of Chrysostom's Commentary on
John," Theological Studies 19 (1958) 404-412.
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with the Greek text accompanied by a Latin translation; the
other with the Latin translation alone.
Jakob Gretser
Best known as a religious controversialist, Gretser 5 was the
most learned of the early German Jesuits after St. Peter
Canisius, and he made important contributions to patristic
studies.-, His masterpiece, a monumental work De Cruce in
three vplumes, was occasioned by Protestant attacks on the
use of the cross in the Church. Gretser deals with his subject
exhaustively from the historical, archaeological, and liturgical
point of view, including even an account of the Crusades and
an apology for them. Volume II, Graecorum auctorum encomiastica monumenta graeco-latina de S. Cruce, contains a
number of texts which were discovered by the editor and
published here for the first time. Petavius well says of Gretser's De Cruce: Majore nemo hoc copia diligentiaque praestitit,
quam J. Gretserus noster tribus de cruce tomis editis, quorum
in primo, libris quinque, capita omnia controversiae hujus ac
quaestionis exhaurit. 6 The beautiful words of Gretser's own
preface to his first volume ar~ also worth quoting: Si quis
ex me sciscitetur, cur de sacrosancta cruce scripserim et
quidem tam copiose, tam prolixe, possem fortassis non injuria
cum d. Augustino hoc responsum dare: quia de b. crucis mysterio diutius loqui et dulce est et salubre: quid enim dulcius,
quid suavius vel cogitari vel dici potest, quam crucis mysterium, etc. 7
Jacques Sirmond
Universally recognized together with his younger con·
temporary in the Society, Petavius, as among the greatest
scholars of the seventeenth century, Sirmond 8 made a number
5 Born at Markdorf, Baden, 1562; died at Ingolstadt, 1625. DTC,
"Gretzer, Jacques," VI 2 (1914) 1866-1871 (by P. Bernard). Hurter, III
(3rd ed., 1907) 728-736. Sommervogel III 1745-1809.
a Cited in Hurter, op. cit., 732.
7 Ibid. 732.
8 Born at Riom, Puy-de-Dome, 1559; died at Paris, 1651. DTC, "Sir·
mond, Jacques," XIV2 (1941) 2186-2193 (by P. Galtier). Hurter, III
(3rd ed. 1907) 1073-1081. Sommervogel VII 1237-1261, and XI 1910-1911·
�PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
143
of important contributions to patristic scholarship, to say
nothing of his contributions in the early mediaeval and Byzantine fields. All his biographers call attention to the curious
fact that he was already fifty-one before he began publishing
scientific works, at least under his own name. However,
his long sojourn in Rome (1590-1608) as secretary to Father
Aquaviva, General of the Society, had given him ample time
for studying early Christian literature, for visiting and exploring libraries and collections of books and manuscripts,
and for becoming acquainted with some of the leading scholars
of the age, especially Baronius. He actually collaborated with
Baronius on his Annales and was held in the highest esteem
by him. He edited, in whole or in part for the first time, Fulgentius of Ruspe, Avitus of Vienne, Apollinaris Sidonius,
Facundus of Hermiane, Opuscula of Eusebius, Theodoret of
Cyrus, and Praedestinatus. His edition of Theodoret of Cyrus,
with some additions made by his younger fellow Jesuit J.
Garnier, and by the Halle Professors Schulze and Noesselt in
the eighteenth century, still remains our standard text-apart
from the modern critical edition of the Historia ecclesiastica
by Parmentier. His edition of the anonymous fifth century
treatise dealing with heresies, to which he himself gave the
title Praedestinatus, is also the only independent edition of
that work. His edition of Facundus is still our standard text.
Sirmond made equally significant contributions in Church
history and related fields. Thus, apart from his edition of the
capitularies of certain Carolingian kings and of his Concilia
antiquae Galliae (to 1563), he was the discoverer and first
editor of the collection of highly important late Roman imperial constitutiones dealing with ecclesiastical matters. They
form an appendix to the best modern edition of the Codex
Theodosianus and still bear his name. Finally, he was the first
to challenge seriously the tradition that Dionysius the Areopagite9 and Dionysius of Paris were the same person, a view
Which in his time was received with hardly less favor than that
of Papebroch on the origin of the Carmelite order. It may be
recalled in passing that it was a Jesuit of our own days, Father
9
See 0. Bardenhewer, Geschichte der altkirchlichen Literatur IV
(1924), especially 293-296. Stiglmayr and Koch, working quite indePendently, published their findings in the same year (1895)!
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Stiglmayr, who, simultaneously with H. Koch, solved the
problem of the date and sources of the writings ascribed to
Dionysius the Areopagite.
Denys Petau (Dionysius Petavius)
Petavius/ 0 as already stated, was one of the greatest schol- '
ars of the seventeenth century. His chronological studies, for
which he is perhaps most generally known, marked a distinct
advance,'cas he was able to correct some 8,000 errors in Baronius ancfto make numerous corrections in, and additions to,
the De emendatione temporum of Scaliger. His work as an
editor of late Greek texts and as an historian of dogma is,
however, really more important. He edited with Latin translations and notes Themistius, Julian the Apostate, Epiphanius
of Salamis, Synesius of Cyrene, and Nicephorus, Patriarch of
Constantinople. His notes on Themistius, as well as the commentary on that author written towards the end of the same
century by his fellow Jesuit Hardouin (1684), were considered
so-valuable that W. Dindorf reprinted them in his edition of
the Greek text of Themistius published in 1832. His edition
of Epiphanius was not entirely replaced by that of W. Dindorf
in 1859-62, although it is now being completely superseded by
the masterly edition of K. Roll in the Berlin Corpus of
Christian Greek writers. His edition of Synesius has only been
partially replaced by the incomplete edition of Krabinger in
the last century, and it still remains valuable also for the
Latin translation and notes. His edition of the Breviarium
of Nicephorus was not replaced before that of De Boor in 1880.
But it is in the field of the history of dogma that Petavius
made his greatest contribution, although this contribution, for
reasons in part personal, was not recognized or only grudg·
ingly recognized by all but a few scholars in his own and
immediately succeeding generations. An impartial and thor·
ough study of his masterpiece, the Dogmata theologica, to
which he gave more than twenty years of his life but which
he did not complete, shows, however, that Petavius justly
deserves the title of founder of the history of dogma. His
1° Born at Orleans, 1583; died at Paris, 1652. DTC, "Petau, Denys,"
Xlll (1933) 1313-1337 (by P. Galtier). Hurter, III (3rd ed. 1907) 965·
978. Sommervogel VI 588-616.
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145
work, being so largely a pioneer effort, reveals certain shortcomings. Many patristic texts were either not yet published
or were only available in inadequate editions, and therefore it
was practically impossible to exercise an exact control of
patristic thought on vital points. Furthermore, preliminary or
special studies on many phases of dogma were still in their
beginnings. But Petavius' systematic, historical approach was
sound, and was destined to be most useful and effective in
meeting the formidable challenge presented by the brilliant
and learned Augustinus of Jansenius. Grabmann characterizes
Petavius' Dogmata theologica as truly epoch-making, 11 and
Galtier expresses the same view in his excellent article on
Petavius.
The following general estimate of Sirmond and Petavius by
L. E. Dupin at the end of the seventeenth century is worth
quoting: "II (Petavius) ne raissonnoit pas toujours juste,
et n'avait pas tout de sagacite ne de delicatesse que le P.
Sirmond; mais on peut dire avec verite, que ces deux Jesuites
sont des Sc;avans du premier ordre, et qu'ils ont fait tous deux
beaucoupd'honneur non seulement a leur societe, mais encore
a l'Eglise de France." 12
Jean Gamier
Jean Garnier 13 is not to be confused with the Maurist Julian
Garnier, who also worked in the patristic field. He published
the first edition of the Libellus Fidei, which Julian of Eclanum
sent to Pope Zosimus. It was based on a manuscript discovered
at Verona by Sirmond. He prepared a series of studies, still
valuable, on the life and writings of Theodoret of Cyrus to
complete Sirmond's edition of the works of that author, but
Volume V containing his studies was only published after
his death by his fellow Jesuit Hardouin. He also brought out
the first critical edition of the Liber Diurnus Romanorum
-
11
,
M. Grabmann, Geschichte der katholischen Theologie (Freiburglm-Br. 1933) 191.
12
L. E. Dupin, Nouvelle bibliotheque des auteurs ecclesiastiques- (Paris,
1686 ff.) XVII, 210.
13
Born at Paris, 1612; died at Bologna, 1681. DTC, "Garnier, Jean,"
VI1 (1914) 1160-1163 (by P. Bernard). Hurter, IV (3rd ed. 1910)
490-492, and 858. Sommervogel III, 1223-1231.
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PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
Pontijicum, which with some additions by Mabillon remained
the standard text until it was replaced by the modern critical
editions of Roziere in 1869 and Sickel in 1889 respectively.
But the outstanding contribution of Garnier was his edition
of the works of Marius Mercator and his learned notes and
studies on the Pelagian and Nestorian controversies. In spite
of many errors in his views, his notes and studies are still
valuable., His text of Mercator, however, is somewhat inferior to that of Baluze established a few years later, but with
that of Baluze it remained our standard until recent years.
These old texts are now being replaced by the modern critical
text of Mercator in the Acta Conciliorum Oecumenicorum
edited by E. Schwartz.
Philip Labbe and Jean Hardouin
In speaking of Labbe14 and Hardouin, 15 I shall confine myself to their work on ecclesiastical councilsY Their contributions in this field were and remain more important than is generally known even among many scholars. Owing in part, but
not entirely, as we shall see, to Hardouin's bizarre views on
many matters historical and .Philological-he deserved the
rebuke implied in Huet's famo~s--remark: "Il a travaille quarante ansa ruiner sa reputation sans pouvoir en venir a bout"his Acta Conciliorum in particular are not sufficiently ap·
preciated and used. To obtain a clear idea of the nature and
14 Born at Bourges, 1607; died at Paris, 1667. DTC, "Labbe, Philippe,"
VIII 2 (1925) 2386-2387 (by P. Bernard). The article is not adequate.
No reference is given, e.g., to Dom H. Quentin's excellent description
of Labbe's work on the councils-although Bernard was familiar with
this work and cites it in his article on Hardouin. Hurter, IV (3rd ed.
1910) 184-185. Sommervogel IV 1295-1328.
15 Born at Quimper, Brittany, 1646;
died at Paris, 1729. DTC,
"Hardouin, Jean," Vl 2 (1914) 2042-2046 (P. Bernard). Hurter, IV (3rd
ed. 1910) 1198-1206. Sommervogel IV 84-111, and IX 456 ff.
16 The indispensable work on the history of editions of the councils is
Dom Henri Quentin, O.S.B., Jean-Dominique Mansi et les grandes collections conciliaries. Etude d'histoire litteraire (Paris, 1900). It is as
critical as it is accurate and thorough. See also Dom Henri Leclercq,
O.S.B., in Hefele-Leclercq, Histoire des Conciles. I (Paris 1907) 97-110.
He acknowledges his indebtedness to Dom Quentin's study for this part
of his Introduction.
�PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
147
extent of the achievement of Labbe and Hardouin it will be
necessary first to sketch the history of collections of councils
published before their time.
Jacques Merlin, a doctor of the University of Paris, published the first collection of councils at Paris in 1524Y His
material was taken from a twelfth or thirteenth century manuscript still preserved in the Bibliotheque of the Palais Bourbon.
The primary purpose of Merlin, as expressed in his strongly
worded preface, was to arouse the pope, kings, and bishops to
aggressive action against heresy. His work was reprinted
with some minor changes at Cologne, 1530, and at Paris, 1535,
but was replaced by a new collection of councils edited by the
Franciscan, Peter Crabbe, and published at Malines in 1538.
A second, enlarged edition of this work was printed at Cologne
in 1551. Crabbe was the first editor of councils to arrange his
documents chronologically, and before each pontificate he inserted the life of the pope as found in the Liber Pontificalis.
In the margins he indicated variant readings, and before or
after the texts he added historical or critical notes. The subsequent collections of councils followed this general plan of
presentation. Crabbe had a high opinion of his own work, for
he states in his preface that the manuscripts which he used
differed from those of Merlin as the day from night. Without
question his edition, in the quantity of material and in the
quality of the text, marks a great advance. While Merlin's
collection contains fifty-five councils, Crabbe's had at least
one hundred and thirty. The latter edited his documents with
scrupulous care, adding copious variant readings in the
margins of his text in the first edition, and in the text itself,
but in different type, in the second edition. Finally, he did
not hesitate to leave unaltered in his text many passages which
Were difficult or obscure. Correcting away such difficulties or
obscurities was only too common in his age.
In 1567, the Carthusian Lawrence Surius18 published at
Cologne a new collection of councils, which included the Codex
Encyclius, and contained about thirty more councils than the
17
On the collections of Merlin and Crabbe, see Dom Quentin, op. cit.,
7·17.
18
On the collections of Surius, Nicolini, and Bollanus, see ibid., 17-21.
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second edition of Crabbe. Surius, unfortunately, omitted many
variants which Crabbe had given, suppressed or changed to
the same type the variants which this predecessor had printed
in different type in the body of his text, and made arbitrary
changes of his own to simplify difficult passages without indi.
eating that he was taking such liberties with his material.
The collection of councils printed at Venice in 1585 by
Dominic Nicolini with the collaboration of the Dominican,
Dominic Bollanus, need not concern us here-as it was largely
a reprint of Surius-beyond noting that it set the bad example
of incorporating, almost without change, national collections
of councils already edited, however poorly, into the larger
general collections.
Severinus Bini, a doctor of theology and a canon of Cologne,
published the next great collection of councils in 1606, and in
a much enlarged second edition, in 1616.19 Bini's collection
is ultimately based on that of Surius. He added some new
material, chiefly the councils of Spain edited by Garcia Loaisa,
~nd three volumes of papal letters edited by Cardinal Antonio
Carafa. To his second edition he added a careless reprint of
the Roman edition of the general councils, a work which will
be discussed below. Bini's chief personal contribution to his
collection of the councils wa~ large number of long notes,
material for which he drew mostly from Baronius and Bel·
larmine.
a
Roman Edition
A Roman edition of the general councils was published
under Paul V in 1608-1612. 20 Sirmond wrote the preface, but
the edition was not prepared by him, as is sometimes stated.
It had been undertaken by Cardinal Antonio Carafa and was
continued under the direction of Cardinal Frederick Borromeo
and others. The great merit of this edition was that it con·
tained a number of Greek conciliar texts which had not
hitherto been published. With a view to improving language
and style, however, the editors did not scruple to retouch the
ancient Latin versions, sometimes beyond recognition. Fur·
thermore, they gave modern Latin versions of Greek texts
19
2°
On Bini and his edition of the councils, see ibid., 21-24.
On the Roman edition of the general councils, see ibid., 25-26.
�PATRISTIC SCHOLARSHIP
149
which had not been translated in antiquity. While they were
careful enough to indicate their own versions by the use of a
different kind of type, later editors of collections of councils,
Bini, for example, did not, unfortunately, retain the distinctions of type in their reprints of the Roman edition, and the
resulting inaccuracy and confusion is most deplorable. As
Dom Quentin says: "Bini was the first author of these regrettable confusions, and through him they spread into all
subsequent collections of the Councils ... No one had shown
better intentions than this collector ... and yet it is to him
that fell the unhappy privilege of fixing the texts of the councils in the inferior state in which they are still !" 21
The royal Louvre edition of the councils was published in
thirty-seven volumes folio, in 1644. 22 Magnificent from the
view point of the printer's art, it is essentially, however, a reprint of Bini with the addition of Sirmond's three volumes of
the Concilia Galliae, which had appeared in 1629, and of the
first volume of Henry Spelman's Councils of England, published in London ten years later. Sirmond's text was based on
a number of the best manuscripts, and constitutes one of the
most satisfactory parts of the general collections into which it
has been incorporated.
The next collection of councils to be published was that of
P. Labbe, continued after the latter's death by his fellow Jesuit
G. Cossart. 23 It was printed at Paris, 1671-72, in seventeen
folio volumes, and must be considered epoch-making in certain respects. Thus, it contains at least one fourth more material than the Louvre edition mentioned above. On the critical
side Labbe and Cossart relied almost exclusively on Bini, although they became aware of his shortcomings, and they
adopted the peculiar practice of adding word variants taken
from good manuscripts, but of ignoring different readings of
sentences or omissions of entire passages. On the other hand,
they made a distinct contribution on the historical side. In
the first place, they took special pains to list in the proper
chronological place notices of councils mentioned in ecclesias-
21
lbid., 26.
On the Louvre edition, see ibid., 28-29.
.
23
On the collections of Labbe and Cossart, see ibid., 29-33.
22
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tical or civil documents but the acts of which were lost. In
so doing, they did not escape the danger of including under
the heading of councils various kinds of ecclesiastical gather.
ings which were not councils at all; but Harzheim, Wilkins,
and Mansi are much more open to reproach on this score. In
the second place, Labbe and Cossart gave the enormous mass
of material a clear and orderly arrangement, and they fur.
nished their edition with adequate indices, without which
such works are practically unmanageable.
Gallicanism was now destined, in the editing of councils as
in other phases of ecclesiastical life and studies, to exercise its
blighting influence at a time when there was every reason to
hope that a great advance in the editing of conciliar texts was
going to be made.
In 1683 Stephen Baluze published the first volume of a
projected new collection of councils/ 4 but most probably out
of fear that his Gallican ideas might jeopardize his position, he
carried his work no further. It is important, however, because
he called attention to certain early councils which had not
been noted before, and because he went back to the manuscripts and published the most· critical text (which anyone
had hitherto made) of the co~ncils comprised in his first
volume. In his desire to point out the weaknesses of the Roman
edition he encumbered his own work with a mass of useless
variant readings, but his notes are exceptionally good. His
Gallican sympathies are apparent from one end of his work
to the other. The book is dedicated to the Fathers of the
Gallican Church and is ornamented with an engraving which
clearly symbolizes a council in which the bishops, and not the
Pope, are supreme.
Anti-Gallican
In.l685 the Jesuit Hardouin was commissioned by the as·
sembly of the French clergy to prepare a new edition of the
21
councils and was given financial assistance for his work·
It soon was rumored that Hardouin was revealing pronounced
anti-Gallican and pro-papal sympathies in his editing. A letter
On the work of Baluze, see ibid., 33-38.
On the collection of Hardouin and its significance, see ibid., 38-54·
Leclercq, op. cit., 108-110.
24
25
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151
of Montfaucon written in 1699 to Dom Gallota of Monte Cassino indicates that Hardouin was already under suspicion of
the Gallicans and that they were getting ready to attack him.
His edition of the councils was actually printed in 1714-15, the
title page of his first volume ornamented with a vignette depicting St. Peter, and therefore the pope, as the depository
and distributor of all powers in the Church. As Dom Quentin
somewhat humorously remarks: "It should be recognized that
the idea of having the official representatives of Gallicanism
pay the expenses for the most ultramontane of the conciliar
collections was quite worthy of Father Hardouin. Considered
from this point of view, his collection of the councils is even
one of his most extraordinary originalities."
The edition was forbidden to be distributed or sold, and
special commissions were appointed to examine the work
minutely. Every line was studied, the main object being to
discredit Hardouin as completely as possible. While there
was endless discussion of correction and revision, the work,
strangely enough, was finally released to the public in 1725
just as it had been printed ten years before. But the Gallicans
everywhere continued their attacks, with most unfortunate
results for ecclesiastical scholarship.
The plain truth is that Hardouin's edition, in spite of minor
defects, is far superior to all editions of the conciliar texts
before his time. He gave proper prominence to the conciliar
acts themselves by throwing out a mass of old and useless notes
and dissertations, and he constituted his text on the basis of an
examination of good manuscripts, or where manuscripts were
lacking, on the basis of the first printed editions. He was also
able to add some conciliar texts which had not been published.
False papal decretals were retained, but were printed in small
type, and papal letters were given in full only when they had a
direct bearing on some council. If the acts of a council were
known only through fragments, the documents containing the
fragments were printed in their proper place in the main text.
If a council was known by mention only, it was listed in its
Proper place in the chronological index to the volume.
llardouin's Acta Conciliorum are beautifully printed in twelve
folio volumes and are so well arranged and indexed that they
are easy to consult.
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His edition, therefore, should have constituted the point of
departure for further progress in the field. But the Gallicans
had been and were continuing to do their work only too well,
and his name became so generally discredited that Coleti and
Mansi, instead of beginning with him, practically ignored him.
At best they went back to Labbe and Cossart, whose text they
took over and then proceeded to make worse in many respects.
As Dom' Quentin so clearly puts it-and Dom Leclercq, the
translator and reviser of Hefele's Conciliengeschichte is in
complete agreement: "We still suffer today from the sys·
tematic attack made against Hardouin, and by tying us to
Coleti and Mansi, who took Labbe and Cossart, and even Bini,
as their point of departure, the Gallican quarrel is most
probably responsible for stopping progress during nearly two
centuries in one of the most important branches of ecclesiastical science. As a result, in the opinion of all, the text of the
councils, one of the primary sources for history, law and
theology, is still in a more backward state than any other."26
Within the limits of a short paper it has not been possible to
give any more than the barest of outlines of my subject.
Obviously the patristic contributions of each scholar treated
could not be described in detair"nor evaluated properly against
the background of his work in other fields, his education, his
associates, conditions of scholarly endeavor, and the ideas and
ideals of scholarship in his age. But sufficient evidence at least
has been furnished to indicate the significance of the contributions of the Old Society to patristic scholarship in other fields
as well as in hagiography. The contributions of Petavius and
Hardouin have been emphasized not only because of their im·
portance, but because, particularly in the case of Hardouin,
they are not yet generally recognized at their true value. If
the present paper may stimulate some scholar to write a biography of Sirmond, or Petavius, or Hardouin, in the spirit
and style of Delehaye's The Work of the Bollandists, I should
be very happy indeed.
20 Dom Quentin, op. cit., 54 and 182-183. Dom Quentin wrote these
words in 1900. The situation has begun to improve through the publi·
cations of Turner, Schwartz, and others, but so far as a comprehensive,
critical edition of the councils is concerned, we are still largely at 8
beginning stage.
�Bellarmine's De Controversiis
at Woodstock
T. A. Robinson, S.J.
· Woodstock College is noted for its excellent theological library, so there is no need to try to prove the fact. It should
be of considerable interest, however, to probe into the
O'Rourke Library a bit to see somewhat more clearly, perhaps, just why it has its enviable reputation.
This could be done in many ways. For example attention
might be centered upon its aspect of being up-to-date, since
it apparently acquires the latest worthwhile works in theology,
and a goodly number of writings in other fields as well. However this article will confine itself to another important standard any first-rate library must meet: namely, that of having
its roots firmly established in the great literature of the past.
To investigate just how the O'Rourke meets this standard,
an obvious way is to see the treatment it accords St. Robert
Cardinal Bellarmine, (1542-1621). For this Doctor of the
Universal Church is called by the Columbia Encyclopedi(Jr-to
use just one of countless eulogizing sources-"the principal
theologian of the Society of Jesus and of the Catholic Reform,"
and goes on to say :
· .. probably his work has had more influence on Catholic thought
than any modern force except the Council of Trent . . . His . • .
Disputationes de Controversiis • . • gives the most lucid modern
exposition of Catholic doctrine . . .1
It is beyond the scope of this article to investigate how all
the works of the prolific Jesuit in question fare on the shelves
of the pontifical institution founded in 1869 in Baltimore
County, Maryland. Attention will be centered solely upon his
Controversies/ which, as will be shown, has been variously
dated, but certainly first appeared during the last quarter of
1
1936 edition, p. 166.
Disputationes Roberti Bellarmini Politiani Societatis Iesv de Controversiis Christianae Fidei, adversvs hujus temporis Haereticos.
2
153
�154
BELLARMINE
the sixteenth century. Most authorities consider this to be
Bellarmine's masterpiece.
As a matter of fact it is not unusual to find it referred to as
the literary masterpiece of the entire Catholic reply to Prot.
estantism during the first century or so after Trent (15451563). By the time of Niceron, who died in 1738, it had come
off the presses one hundred and twenty times, 3 which means
an average of about one new edition or printing every year
for one"hundred and fifty years. Strangely enough, however,
it has never been translated into English, except for a few,
relatively small portions. With more and more history scholars
and students knowing less and less Latin these days it does
seem a great pity, from the point of view of pure scholarship
and quite aside from any sectarian advantages or disadvantages involved, that Luther and Calvin and other reformers
have no adequate counterpart available in the vast Englishspeaking world. That is to say, Protestants can point to any
number of volumes containing translations of their early
champions into this tongue, but the great and vigorous, pointby-point reply which Bellarmine so scientifically organized still
languishes, from the popular _consumption point of view, in
its original language.
• .Brodrick on Translation
This was understandable in Elizabethan England days,
when Roman Catholic books in the vernacular were prohibited.* Whether or not it is understandable today, there is
no denying that even the great authority on and admirer of
the Jesuit cardinal, James Brodrick, would be, apparently,
against at least a complete translation into the vernacular.
He believes that there is no general public for technical the·
olozy (or at least he so believed in 1928) ; and especially not
~cusae fuere usque ad tempus, quo vixit Niceron ( t1738), centies et
vigesies, et etiam nostra aetate Moguntiae 1842 •.. Romae 1832-42."Nomenclator Literarius Recentioris Theologiae Catholicae (H. Hurter,
S.J., "Edidit Et Commentariis Auxit"), editio altera, Tomus I (Oeni·
ponte: Libraria Academica Wagneriana, 1892), p. 279 (Innsbruck).
4 James Brodrick, S.J., The Life and Work of Blessed Robert Francis
Cardinal Bellarmine, S.J., 1542-1621, 2 vols. (New York: P. J. KenedY
& Sons, 1928), I, p. 144.
�BELLARMINE
155
for sixteenth century theology. As for the professional theologian, he "knows his Bellarmine already." 5
At any rate the matter has relevance here only in making
plain the fact that any investigation of the actual text of The
Controversies as found on the shelves of Woodstock must perforce be restricted almost entirely to the Latin original. In
which connection let it be said at once that the library leaves
little, if anything, to be desired in this case when viewed from
the aspect of its prime function of assisting tyros in the field of
theology. For if one is to judge by Hurter, the principal authority in such matters, there are three editions considered to
be the "meliores," 6 and two of these are in the O'Rourke beyond a shadow of a doubt. There is a theoretical doubt that
could be raised with regard to the third, but so tenuous a one
that only a desire to be scrupulously exact causes its mention
here.
The two about which there is no possible question are the
Paris edition of 16087 and the Prague one of 1721.B Careful
scrutiny shows that the Patapsco River residents have at
their disposal all four of the books composing the Paris issue,
each dated 1608; and all four of the Prague printing, each
dated 1721. The only edition which is not crystal clear is the
Cologne edition, and the fault seems to lie with Hurter;
although fault is too harsh a term under the circumstances.
For Hurter lists not only the Cologne edition of 1619 but
implies there was another edition which was included as part
of an issue of Bellarmine at Cologne in 1617. This issue,
"cum supplemento 1619," was not restricted to the Controversies alone but contained also other works of the Jesuit
theologian, making a total of seven volumes. A careful examination of what the O'Rourke Library has in the way of Bellarmine's works issued from Cologne between 1617 and 1620
5
Ibid., pp. 122-23.
"Meliores editiones censentur parisiensis 1608; coloniensis 1619;
Pragensis cum Ebermanni vindiciis a. 1721. Prodierunt quoque cum aliis
Bellarmini operibus Venetiis 1721; Parisiis 1619; Coloniae 1617 cum
supplemento 1619 v. 7 in f., quae editio plenior est veneta, ... " Hurter,
op. cit., p. 279.
7
Ex Officinis Tri-Adelphorum Bibliopolarum, 1608.
8
Typis Wolffgangi Wickhart, 1721. ·
8
�BELLARMINE
156
makes it clear, however, that although there were two volumes
(the last two) of the Controversies issued in 1619 without any
indication on their title pages that they were part of a larger
set, there is a Tomus I dated 1620 and a Tomus II dated 1619
on each of whose title page the first word is "Operum." All
are from the same publisher. 9
In other words, there is in existence a set of the works of
Bellar]Iiine which includes at least one 1619 volume of the
Controversies. This immediately arouses suspicion that the
1619 issue of the Controversies which Hurter indicates as being
separate from an issue begun in 1617 of the works of Bellarmine is, in reality, not separate, but forms a part of the
larger set. It is of some moment to discover for certain
whether or not this is so, because although Hurter lists the
allegedly separate issue among his "Meliores," he does not
give any rating for the larger edition. But Volume I and
Yolume II of the Woodstock collection are clearly part of a
larger set, and the "meliores" rating obviously cannot be
claimed for them unless it can be shown that the set Hurter
indicates as being separate is, as a matter of actual fact, not
separate but forms part of aja_rger collection.
To prove that there are not two sets, but really one (namely,
the larger set of seven volumes), let it first be said that it is
improbable in view of the slowness of printing in those days
that a publisher would issue in the same year (1619) a large
volume such as Woodstock's Volume II both as part of a set
restricted to the Controversies and also as part of a collection
of Bellarmine's Opera. Even if he did, it seems impossible that
the texts themselves would be anything but identical, except
for the title pages; one of which, of course, would have Operum
on it, the other merely the De Controversiis title.
Secondly, the 1620 volume O'Rourke Library has (Volume
I)· is bound under a single cover with the Volume II dated
1619, and has, like the latter, the word Operum at the top of
its individual title page. Thus it obviously belongs to the same
set, since it is a not uncommon publishing procedure to publish later books of a set before earlier ones. Furthermore,
there is no indication in the Volume I to suggest it might be
u Bernardus
Gualtherus.
�BELLARl\UNE
157
part of another later edition of Bellarmine's Opera. Lastly,
the single book containing the two volumes (one of 1620, the
other of 1619) has, practically at its beginning, a separate,
full title page dated 1620, indicating that the book forms part
of a set of the Omnia Opera of Bellarmine.
Careless Printing?
Thus all evidence seems to point to Hurter having been the
victim of the vagaries of a printing which was careless enough
to omit the word Operum from the title pages of two of the
volumes of the Controversies. Due to this he erroneously believed that there were two different editions of this work issuing from Cologne at about this time. Actually it would appear
that there was only the one referred to by Le Bachelet at the
beginning of his Auctarium Bellarminianum: 10
. . . While the author was still alive and with his approval there
appeared from 1617 to 1620 the edition of Cologne, published by
Bernardus Gualtherus, in seven folio volumes ...
This corresponds exactly with the Woodstock set, a folio one
of which Volumes V, VI, and VII are dated 1617; II, III, and
IV are dated 1619; and Volume I is dated 1620.
Of Le Bachelet the estimate of Brodrick was that "he knew
more than did anybody else in the world" 11 about the Jesuit
cardinal. Hence it is additionally useful to remark that
whereas Le Bachelet supports Hurter by saying that the edition of Paris, 1608, and that of Prague, 1721, were among
the three held in particular esteem, he makes no mention of
any Cologne edition in this connection. Instead he names as
his third top printing the Rome edition of "1832 sq." 12 This
fact, however, does not affect the quality of Woodstock's offer-
-
10
" ••• Du vivant meme de l'auteur et avec son approbation, parut de
1617 a 1620 l'edition de Cologne, sumptibus Bernardi Gualtheri, en sept
volumes in-folio . . ." Xavier-Marie Le Bachelet, S.J. (ed.), Auctarium
Bellarminianum (Supplement aux Oeuvres du Cardinal Bellarmin)
(Paris: Gabriel Beauchesne, 1913), Preface Generale, p. I.
11
Op. cit., I, xiv.
12
See his article, "Bellarmin," in the Dictionnaire de Theologie
Catholique of A. Vacant and E. Mangenot, 15 volumes, 1909-50, Vol.
2• Deuxieme Tirage (Paris: Letouzey Et Ane, Editeurs, 1910), col. 578.
�158
BELLARMINE
ings, since the O'Rourke Library also has this Roman
printing. 13
Justin Fevre, editor of the 1870-74 (Vives) Paris edition of
Bellarmine's Opera Omnia, notes in his preface14 that with
regard to the Controversies themselves the best edition was
formerly the "Triadelphorum" (1608) one of Paris, but that
by the time he was writing, Prague's 1721 issue had superseded it. Thus it can be seen, in summary, that with Le Bachelet not agreeing with Hurter as to the top ranking of the
Cologne edition, and with Fevre differing from both of those
authorities by rating the Prague over that of Paris, the only
edition which appears on all three lists as being the best, or
as being one among equally superior, is the Prague release.
This latter, as has already been noted, is on the shelves of
the Baltimore County institution under discussion, along with
all the others previously mentioned as top-ranking productions.
The fact that Fevre follows Hurter in giving a rating only
to separate editions of the Controversies and not, specifically,
to previous editions which had appeared as parts of Opera
Omnia projects, makes it quite conceivable that Le Bachelet,
too, was only rating the separat~ issues. Thus, unless the
silences are damning ones, there-is no printed authority, apparently, as to the merits of the various releases of the Controversies appearing in larger sets. At least this much could be
said, nevertheless: The Paris Vives set has the most recent15
of all productions of the Controversies, in or out of Opera
Omnia collections. What is more, aside from its specific pointing out that there were (in its estimation) very many errors
in two relatively recent complete editions, and its claim to have
finally put on the market the authentic and complete Bellar1a Ex Typographia Bonarum Artium, 1832 (Vol. 1) and 1836 (Vol. 2);
Ex Tipographia Giundi et Menicanti, 1838 (Vol. 3); Ex Tipographia
Menicanti, 1840 (Vol. 4). This whole edition is the "Editio Prima
Romana."
14 Apud Ludovicum Vives, Editorem, 12 vols., Vol. I, p. XII.
15 The volumes covering the Controversies date from 1870 to 1873.
Thus it might be considered problematical, on the face of it, whether
or not they were of later origin than the second Neapolitan edition
(1872), soon both to be mentioned (infra, footnote 18) and to have its
date discussed.
�BELLARMINE
159
mine,t 6 this set which F?lVre edited has an enormous advantage
in that all references to Scripture give the verse as well as the
chapter. In the sixteenth century it was, doubtless, considered
quite sufficient to cite merely the chapter; probably because
the Bible was more intimately known by theologians.
Opera Omnia
Since there is not available a printed grading of the various
Omnia Opera printings of the Doctor of the Church hailing
from Montepulciano, there exists no sure way of evaluating
what Woodstock possesses of this nature. Suffice it to say,
then, that it has not only the Vives Parisian product but two
other complete collections and one partial one. These latter
are the Cologne collection of 1617-1620 already mentioned, the
Naples one of 1856-62,17 and the following Naples edition
dated 1872Y Of the last mentioned the college on the Patapsco
owns only two volumes (Vols. 2 and 5) of a total of eight, but
this seems to be of no consequence if the impression given by
these two books is correct; for as far as one can judge from a
careful scrutiny they seem to consist in a mere reprinting,
from the same identical plates, of the previous Naples collection.19
-
16
Op. cit., Vol. I, p. XIII. "Duo . . . completae editiones, scilicet:
Romana ab anno 1830 ad annum 1840; et Neapolitana, annis 1859-1860:
· · · mendis dehonestantur plurimis, praesertim Neapolitana . . .
". · . Sic emendatissimus evadet textus et nisi, imbecillitate nostra,
plurima caderent, nobis tandem liceret verum et integrum Bellarminum
vendi tare."
17
Apud Josephum Giuliano, Editorem.
18
C. Pedone Laurie!, Editor.
19 No implication of deceit on the part of the second publisher is being
implied. It is most likely that the 1872 edition, appearing only ten years
after the completion of the previous Naples edition, made it clear both
in its advertising and possibly in an introduction or notice in the first
;olume that it was merely a reprinting. If, that is the case, it was
Indeed a mere reprinting and did not make various changes for the
better.
But there is a danger that the present generation of scholars, some
hundred years after these sets were published, should consider them
separate when they may, in fact, be identical. Therefore it can and
should at least be pointed out (on the basis of books which have actually
been compared at Woodstock) that the pagination, printing, and text of
�160
BELLARMINE
Thus, in view of all that has been mentioned, it is plain that
Woodstock has placed at the disposal of its patrons not just
the Prague edition with its unquestioned excellence but all
those texts of the work in question for which any printed,
authoritative acclaim can be found. As for Opera Omnia sets,
a category in which the members seem not to have received
evaluation from any competent source, at least the College
has purchased a number of them, allowing users to evaluate
them (or themselves. Surely, then, this Jesuit seminary has
gone far beyond the call of duty in meeting the needs of the
majority of those who use its O'Rourke Memorial Library;
namely, undergraduate students of theology.
With regard to those who engage in graduate work and
hence demand opportunities for research, let it be said that
objectively speaking, and without the slightest inference of
adverse criticism, the opportunities, while very fine, are not
all they could be, ideally speaking. This allegation of a cer·
t~in deficiency, coupled though it is with the admission that
available research facilities with respect to the Controversies
may well be and probably are the best possible when viewed
against existing circumstances of time, place, and resources,
calls for a precise explanation_·
First it should be emphatic;Ily noted that not the slightest
deviation from the library's enviable high general standard is
to be discerned in quantity and chronological spacing. Concerning the quantity, there are eleven different editions represented by complete sets, of one of which editions six extra volumes are on hand; there is another set printed in eight volumes
of which Woodstock has two volumes; and finally there are the
two volumes of a set of which only two volumes were ever
printed.
the 1872 release's Volume 2 and Volume 5 are identical (except for title
pages) with their counterparts in the edition of 1856-62, as far as can
be determined by checking several pages in each of the four books.
What is more, the words "Bellarmini Vol. IV. P. II" found consistently
on the bottom of the 1872 edition's Volume 5 do not accord with that
edition's numbering of volumes, but agree perfectly with the previous
edition's numbering.
If the 1872 is a mere reprinting, there is no question of an Opera
Omnia rivaling the claims of the Paris Vives edition already mentioned.
(supra, footnotes 15 and 16).
�BELLARMINE
161
Spacing
Chronological spacing, too, of the editions is impressive. Although Bellarmine's polemical masterpiece appeared only in
the last quarter of the sixteenth century, there stand on the
shelves of the seminary two editions printed during that
quarter. These are the Ingolstadt collection20 of three volumes
dated, respectively, 1588, 1590 (these two being second editions), and 1593 (a first edition volume) ; and the set of nine,
small-sized tomes issued at the same city from 1587 to 1593 21less bulky reprints of the first folio edition.
As for the remaining centuries, the seventeenth is represented by four editions (Paris, 1608 ;22 Cologne, 1615 ;23
Cologne, 1617-20 ;24 Cologne, 162825 ) ; the eighteenth by two
(Milan, 1721; 26 Prague, 172P7 ) ; and the nineteenth by five
(Rome, 1832-40 ;28 Mayence, 1842-43 ;29 Naples, 1856-62 ;30
Naples, 1872 ;31 Paris, 1870-74 32 ) . There have been no printings of the entire Controversies in the twentieth century.
It may seem from this survey by centuries that there is a
weak spot in the eighteenth century. This weakness is more
apparent than real. First of all, Woodstock students have
easy access to the 1721 Venice edition 33 belonging to the Peabody Institute Library in nearby Baltimore. Secondly, through
the courtesy of that library the Jesuit institution has procured eleven photostats from this edition. These photos in-
20
Ex Officina Typographica Davidis Sartorii.
Ex Typographia Davidis Sartorii.
22
Ex Officinis Tri-Adelphorum Bibliopolarum.
23
Sumptibus Joannis Gymnici, et Anthony Hierat.
24
Sumptibus Bernardi Gualtheri, (Opera Omnia).
25
Apud Ioannem Gymnicum, sub Monocerote.
26
Ex Typographia Haeredum Dominici Bellagattae.
27
Typis Wolfgangi Wickhart.
28
Vid. supra, footnote 13.
29
Sumptibus Kirchhemii.
30
Apud Josephum Giuliano, (Opera Omnia).
31
C. Pedone Laurie!, (Opera Omnia).
32
Apud Ludovicum Vives, (Opera Omnia).
33
Apud J. Malachinum. This publisher (or the editor, J. Maffei) was
1
P eased with the success of this edition of the De Controversiis in four
~olumes. Thus there were added three more volumes, the last appearing
~ 1728, to form an Opera Omnia. Volumes 6 and 7 were published by
· Zane and C. Zane respectively.
21
�162
BELLARMINE
elude duplications of seven pages containing lists of corrections and additions to the 1599 Venice edition, made by
Bellarmine himself.
Eleven pages may seem a rather minute addition to eighteenth-century productions of the Controversies, but of these
the seven pages of changes, at least, make up in significance
what they lack in number. For of all the editions previously
mentioned in this article, only the nineteenth century ones
avail themselves of this corrective and additive labor on the
part of the Jesuit cardinal. Thus, surprisingly enough, even
three of the four editions which, as already seen, the experts
have given top ratings-namely: the Prague, 1721; the Paris,
1608; and the Cologne, 1617-20-do not embody these changes
in any way. 34
It would seem, therefore, that before the nineteenth century
there was widespread ignorance about these changes; an ignorance from which has sprung the real danger of today's
scholars using pre-nineteenth century editions of the De
Controversiis without the realization that they lack many alterations introduced by St. Robert himself. A case in point
might be the scholars at Johns :f!opkins University, an institution in whose library this work of Bellarmine is represented
solely by the edition of Milan, 1721; a set, of course, which
is minus the revisions under discussion. Assuming that the
research scholars there are aware that their edition is thus
deficient, there is still no way for them to use their Milan
set without being thus handicapped, judging from their librarY
catalogue.
Lest the same state of things exist at Woodstock for those
who wish to use pre-nineteenth century editions which are
otherwise adequate, there is being prepared a key to accompany
the photostats on the shelves in the Bellarmine section. This
key will make it possible to apply each addition and correction
on the photostats to any edition whatsoever of the Controver·
sies. Thus by its acquisition of this eighteenth century material
the O'Rourke has not only made its chronological spacing more
34 Even the fourth edition similarly honored, that of Rome, 1832-40,
does not forewarn its reader at the outset that its Tomus III has these
changes of Bellarmine merely put inconspicuously in the rear in list
form, whereas the other three volumes embody them in the actual text.
�BELLARl\IINE
163
even, but will alert scholars to the pitfalls present (since the
photostats will have, accompanying them on the shelves, a
suitable explanation of why such photos are there) ; and the
O'Rourke will furthermore, in the form of the key, present
scholars with the means of avoiding the pitfalls.
Photostats
Especially with the addition of the photostats from the
eighteenth century Venice edition, then, the campus on the
Patapsco can hardly be considered other than very strong in
its chronological spacing of De Controvermis editions. It is
clear, too, from what was previously said that Woodstock
College gives a splendid account of itself with regard to the
number of editions present. Wherein, then, can its collection
be said to be weak in research potentiality?
The weakness, such as it is, lies in the absence of original,
or first editions; or photographic reproductions of the same.
For example, helpful as it is to have, in the form of photostats taken of lists made in the eighteenth century, those corrections and additions that Bellarmine made in the sixteenth
or early seventeenth century, the zealous and conscientious
spcialist would like to be able to see either the original changes
themselves, or photos of the same. He would similarly much
prefer to view the actual letter the Cardinal wrote to the
Rector of the Roman College in 1608 (evidently about those
same changes), even though he be appreciative that the college
in Baltimore County provides a photo of an eighteenth century
reproduction of that letter. 35
Then there is the desirability of an actual first edition of the
De Controversiis; for the dispute, referred to previously, over
the date of this edition may be said to be fairly settled at
33
This reproduction appears as page 447 of Tomus I of the Venice,
1721, edition of the De Controversiis. (Cf. supra, p. 12.) As placed in
this edition, it indicates that Bellarmine did indeed make the corrections
and additions the publishers put in list form at or towards the end of
each of the four volumes. Further substantiation is accorded by Sommer;ogel, who makes specific that the edition the cardinal corrected was the
S99 one. (Carlos Sommervogel, S.J., Bibliotheque de la Compagnie De
Jesus, Premiere Partie: Bibliographie, Tome 1 (Paris: Alphonse Picard,
18 90), col. 1161).
�164
BELLARMINE
1586-93, with lngolstadt as the place of issuance. The
O'Rourke, as noted already, has only Tomus III of this edition.
Other works which, since they embody revisions of, or
additions to, the De Controversiis by the author, would be
especially valuable in the original or on film are as follows:
the 1596 Venice edition ;36 the 1599 Venice edition37 (even if
the particular 1599 Venice set Bellarmine himself corrected
were not available) ; De Exemptione Clericorum (Paris,
1599) tDe lndttlgentiis et Ju,bilaeo Libri Duo (Cologne, 1599);
Recognitio Librorum Omnium and Correctorium Errorum
(both printed in Paris, 160738 ) .
Nevertheless while attention should be drawn to what appear to be lacunae in Woodstock's offerings, it would be most
unfair to present them out of proper context. For the National
Union Catalogue of the Library of Congress in Washington,
D. C., covering a thousand leading libraries in the United '
States and Canada, notes the existence of only one complete
fi-rst edition of The Controversies in that vast North American
expanse; namely, the one owned by the Catholic University
of America. 39 Similarly, of all the works mentioned in this
article as embodying or refet.:ring to revisions or additions
made by Bellarmine, only tw6· are found in their original
form: the 1599 Venice edition of the De Controversiis, of
which one each is possessed by the University of Detroit and
the Boston Public Library; and the De Indulgentiis et Jubi·
laeo, one of which graces the shelves of both the Catholic
University of America and the Union Theological Seminary in
New York.
The context is made even clearer by noting that the leading
library, the Enoch Pratt, of a great city, Baltimore, does not
possess a single edition of The Controversies; 40 and that the
Apud Minimam Societatem.
Apud Minimam Societatem.
38 The Correctorium Errorum, at least, was published Apud Gul. Fac·
ciotum. It is not clear whether or not the Recognitio was originally published under the same cover as the Correctorium.
39 Davidis Sartorii.
40 This library does, however, graciously refer the inquirer, by means
of its catalogue, to the Peabody Institute Library situated near it. As
already noted, the latter institution has a 1721 Venice edition.
as
37
�BELLARMINE
165
huge Library of Congress itself, in Washington, D. C., is in
the same situation. Let not, therefore, the absence from the
O'Rourke of expensive and perhaps unobtainable first editions
and originals, or of costly and inconvenient films of the same,
be allowed to detract from the only possible main conclusion
that can be drawn from the brief investigation this article
has made. That conclusion, of course, is that Woodstock College richly deserves the reputation it has of possessing an
excellent theological library.
Trial of German Jesuits
In the course of 1958 the government of the Soviet Occupation Zone in Germany demonstrated its hostility to Christianity
in several anti-religious measures: on February 12, the
minister for the people's education Lange issued a decree
aimed at bringing all religious instruction under state control.
On February 15, the press bureau of the Soviet Zone prohibited
the publication of the lenten pastoral of Berlin's Bishop-now
Cardinal- Julius Dopfner. On April 30 the St. Joseph's
Children's Home in Stralsund, run by Catholic Sisters, was
forcibly closed after a slander campaign; thirty minutes after
Publication of the decree of closure a bus appeared at the
front door to transfer the children to a state institution. In
late June Father Hermes, pastor of Bad Kosen, was sentenced to prison for having warned Catholic parents not to
allow their children to take part in the communist JugendWeihe-a ceremony intended to replace confirmation. East
German Catholics who returned from West Berlin to the
Russian Zone after having taken part in the great annual
''C atholic Day" in August were subjected to the sharpest inspection-searching of their persons, police interrogations
and other indignities. On December 12 in Potsdam eleven
Catholic laymen were given prison and jail sentences of up
�166
GERMAN TRIAL
to five years for having made a retreat in West Berlin, during
which they allegedly engaged in "espionage under the cloak
of piety."
A further link in the chain of measures against religion,
Christianity, and the Catholic Church was the persecution
of four priests of the Society of Jesus. On July 22, 1958,
Father Robert Frater was arrested in East Berlin, where he
was active as a retreat director. In the days immediately
following three other priests, Fathers Menzel, Miildner, and '
Rueter, were arrested in East Berlin without warrant when
they appeared at the retreat house. For months it was impossible to discover what the four priests were charged with.
After the date of the trial had been repeatedly put off, the an·
nouncement of the date came suddenly and only shortly before
the trial. It was impossible to get defense lawyers from West
Germany, and, of course, no East German lawyer would have
b~en able to expose the undercurrents of the trial. The two
defending lawyers from the Soviet Zone were not allowed to
see the bulky list of accusations until two days before the
trial. The trial took place from December 18 to 20 in the
most out-of-the-way court available, at Frankfurt-on-the-Oder
on the eastern border of the Soviet Zone. The representatives
of the bishops and the relatives of the prisoners, with one
exception, were denied admission. No news correspondents
from the West were present. The "public" present at the trial
was hand-picked by the government police.
When the news of the time and place of the trial became
known in Western Germany, it produced a strong reaction in
all quarters. Numerous letters and telegrams of protest poured
into Frankfurt. For example, an organization of former
members of the German resistance movement wired: "Our
organization, whose members were bitterly persecuted under
the Nazis, protest against the manner in which the trial
against the Jesuits is being handled. We appeal to the rights
of man, for which we have fought and suffered." It is well
known that the dictators of the Soviet Zone, who are anxious
to keep up the appearances of justice and democracy, are verY
sensitive to such reactions. Actually the protests were not
without their effect.
�GERl\IAN TRIAL
167
Nevertheless, as was to be expected, the Fathers were found
guilty on December 20 and were given the full sentences demanded by the state. For "political crimes," especially espionage, Father Frater was condemned to four years and four
months of hard labor, Father Menzel to three years and four
months in prison, Father Mtildner to fifteen months in prison,
Father Rueter to seventeen months. The best account of the
background of the trial and charges against the Fathers is
given in the following article from the Petrusblatt, Berlin's
diocesan newspaper, published in West Berlin. The article
appeared on January 11 of this year.
"The spectators' benches in the courtroom of Frankfurt-onthe-Oder in East Germany were filled with 'delegates' from
the various industries. Apparently the trial was intended to
serve as an object lesson in politics for them. One wonders
if they came to out-of-the-way Frankfurt at their own expense.
Communist Propaganda Refuted
"'The entire history of the Jesuit order is a single proof
of its role as an intriguing, subtle champion of a fanatically
reactionary church, a body that will unscrupulously use any
means to attain its ends.' This statement stands on the first
page of the book Jesuits, God, and Matter, by the East German
ideologist, Georg Klaus. In recent years East German propaganda has steadily driven the point home. The spectators at
Frankfurt had every reason to look forward to the sensational
disclosure of a group of archconspirators and of their deceptions and crimes. There was no sensation. A conspiracy
against the state was not even mentioned in the trial. There
Was no trace of a plot. There was no confirmation whatever
of the accusations hurled at the Jesuits by communist propaganda. Anyone with a remnant of impartiality left in him
could see that the four men on the prisoners' bench were no
more than conscientious, hard-working priests. That is the
first and probably the most important fact proved by the trial
at Frankfurt. In this article we will mention some especially
noteworthy details of the trial.
"The four priests of the Society of Jesus were accused of
a number of crimes: espionage, inciting persons to flee to the
�168
GERMAN TRIAL
West, political agitation, smuggling money and goods into
East Germany. The court showed much more interest in some
of these charges than in others. The alleged violations against
the regulations governing the import and export of money
remained in the background, and the sentences here were rela·
tively small. The same is true for the charges of illegally bringing motor, bikes from the West. But even here observers could
see the d~.sregard for the facts which characterized the whole
procedure; the prosecution was compelled to scrape up petty
charges from every imaginable quarter in order even to
bring the Jesuits to trial. Father Menzel had brought the
motorbikes into East Germany quite openly, since at that
time the government was doing nothing to hinder such importation. Father Menzel was found guilty of violating a law
that was on the books at the time of his 'deed,' but was not
enforced by the authorities, at least as regards motor bikes.
And in this case it is also important that Father Menzel's
action did not harm anyone in East Germany, but simply made
the apostolate easier for a few priests who now no longer
have to make their wearying ro~nds on foot.
"Now we come to the points· upon which the prosecution
centered its attack. What did the court consider as 'political
agitation?' Father Menzel kept a diary, in which he occa·
sionally gave vent to his feelings. The prosecution could offer
no proof that he had ever done the same in the presence of
others. They simply assumed that he had! Further evidence
against him and Father Rueter was the fact that they had
single copies of western periodicals in their possession. Espe·
cially grave was the possession of single copies of Catholic
Missions and the Petrusblatt. In this matter the decision of
the court at Frankfurt contradicted a decision of the East
German Supreme Court, which has hitherto ruled that pos·
session of single copies of western periodicals does not consti·
tute a crime. Father Rueter had had only a few issues of the
Petrusblatt, and that for a short time only; for this crime
alone he was given eight months in prison! Is this brutal
sentence to serve as a lesson for other priests? Does the East
German government want to cut off the priests in the Soviet
Zone from all contact with the world-wide Church?
�GERMAN TRIAL
169
"Of even greater weight was the charge of inciting East
German citizens to flee to the West. What were the charges
made against the Jesuit Fathers? In one case it was a letter
of recommendation which Father Rueter had sent as far back
as 1950 to a man who had just fled from the newly established
East German Republic, and who wanted Father Rueter to
vouch for him to his new pastor in West Germany. Even if
writing such a letter can, by some stretch of the imagination,
be made to fall under the category of inciting persons to flee
to the West, the fact remains that there was at that time no
law against such an action. Nevertheless Father Rueter was
sentenced to ten months in prison for this action.
"Father Menzel had been spiritual adviser to a young student who was thinking of becoming a priest and of entering
the Society of Jesus. He had spoken to the young man with
great reserve, since 'recruiting' in any form is frowned upon
by his Order. He explained that the East German Jesuits had
their novitiate in West Germany, and that the Order did not
want young men to come out of the Eastern sector illegally,
since, if in the course of the novitiate they should discover
that they had no vocation, they would be unable to return to
the East. The young man did not leave East Germany and
is still there today. He was called as a witness at Frankfurt,
and confirmed Father Menzel's statement in every detail.
However, the court decided that the affair proved Father
Menzel guilty of inciting persons to flee to the West!
Witnesses for the Prosecution
"Now we come to the principal case of the trial, or, more accurately, what was intended to be the principal case. Of what
Was Father Frater accused? Here again the charge is mainly
that of inciting persons to leave East Germany. Father Frater
had been for many years spiritual adviser to a married couple.
The husband's family had already suffered much under the
Nazis. Now the couple was put under pressure, because one
of their four children faced the decision whether or not to
take part in the Communist Jugendweihe. The couple was arrested in an attempt to leave East Berlin. Although theirs
Was a simple case of attempting to flee the East Zone, they
�170
GERMAN TRIAL
had not received their sentence at the time of the Jesuit's
trial; they were not sentenced until shortly after they had
appeared in Frankfurt as the chief witnesses for the state!
The husband had to support himself on a cane as he came into
the courtroom, was unable to remain standing while giving
his testimony, during the course of which he several times
broke into tears. All in all he gave the impression of being
a completely broken man. A single statement in this man's
testimony .. constituted the total evidence for the charge of
espionage against Father Frater. Even the man's wife, who
was also brought out of prison to testify, did not confirm her
husband'~ testimony in this decisive point. The husband even
stated that Father Frater had commended him for having
categorically refused to take part in any espionage activities.
The court dismissed this as hypocrisy on Father Frater's part.
During the trial Father Frater repeatedly and energetically
stated that he had never had anything whatever to do with
espionage. The testimony of the husband and wife actually
proved no more than that Father Frater had wanted to help
the couple to avoid delay in getting official recognition as
refugees in Western Germany. Everything else in the charge
of espionage is sheer invention. .- -·
Severity of the Court
"The harshness of the court comes to light in the fact that it
set itself up as competent to decide whether a man in Father
Frater's condition (He had suffered severe brain injuries during the war.) could not occasionally, in a moment of exhaustion or strong emotion, let slip a statement over which he did
not have full control. The court rejected a request for a
thorough psychiatric examination of Father Frater. On medical and humanitarian grounds alone one can ask whether it is
just to base a charge against such a severely injured man
upon single words he might have let fall-quite aside from
the question as to whether he actually did utter them.
Slander Against the Confessional
"The East German newspaper Neues Deutschland in its ac·
count of the trial accused Father Frater of having abused
his functions as confessor. During the trial the prosecution
�GERl\IAN TRIAL
171
asked the married couple the following leading question: 'If
your confessor had told you not to leave the East German Republic, would you have stayed?' The witnesses answered
'Yes.' The court interpreted this as damaging evidence against
the defendant, apparently because the answer was supposed
to show what great authority Father Frater exercised over
the witnesses. The question was, of course, only hypothetical,
but Father Frater was unable to make any comment on it
without incurring suspicion of speaking of matters confided
to him under the seal of confession. The confession question
was thus unnecessarily dragged into the trial and so into the
newspaper propaganda. The incredible charges made in the
Neues Deutschland are in any case entirely groundless.
"The case of the condemned Jesuits is not yet closed. The
defendants have entered an appeal. The German public and
the Catholic world await the release of these unjustly imprisoned priests.''
Since the trial was a flagrant violation of justice, even according to the letter of Soviet Zone laws, the case has been appealed. If the justice ministry allows the appeal to go through,
the hearing should take place in the first part of February.
It is to be hoped that the West German press, which covered
the trial in Frankfurt in great detail, will keep alive public
interest in the fate of the four Fathers, and lead in protesting
vigorously against the Nazi-style tactics of the East German
government.
Cardinal Frings of Cologne has ordered special services in
his diocese on January 20 and 21 to ask God's help for the
persecuted priests of the Church in the Soviet Zone. All
Catholics, especially their fellow-Jesuits, are asked to join in
praying for the four Fathers. In the words of our Holy Father,
Pope John XXIII, in his Christmas message: "We must remain alert in the night which grows ever darker around us.
We must be able to uncover the wiles of God's enemies before
they become our enemies. And we must make ourselves ready
for every possible defense of Christian principles, which are
and always have been the support of true Justice."
�Brother George Sandheinrich
1869-1956
Emeran J. Kolkmeyer, S.J.*
George Sandheinrich was born into a family of farmers in
the vicinity of Delbrueck in Westphalia on April17, 1869. His
father's name was Frank, his mother's Anna. At the time the
population of Delbrueck was considerably less than the present
figure of some 2500. The light of day in this region of Catholic
Germany shone upon a population whose faith was proclaimed by the number and beauty of the churches dedicated
to Our Lord, the Blessed Mother and to the Saints. These
shrines testified to the vigorous faith of sturdy forefathers
who had beaten off the religious rebels of the sixteenth century and retained their cherished religion.
Breathing the air of this Catholic land, George grew up
with four brothers and two sisters, well-grounded in piety and
strong in the faith. The family exercises of piety were morning and evening prayers, graces at meals, and pilgrimages to
near, and not so near, shrines.-· There were also public religious functions such as the annual blessing of the fields and
the Corpus Christi and Rogation Days processions. The
cycles of religious practice, public and private, were as
familiar as the changing round of farm labor.
In such an atmosphere the family conversation included
stories of the history of the region and particularly of the
city of Paderborn, nine miles from Delbrueck. The children
learned that there, a thousand years before, Charlemagne had
established a bishopric. It was the story of the growth of a
center of trade, industry, culture and the arts, of the building
of the famous town hall, the Romanesque cathedral and the
old Jesuit Church-all practically wiped out by the bombings
of World War II. World Wars were not thought of in George's
early days as he gathered the eggs, ploughed the fields, reaped
the harvest and helped to prepare the fruits of the summer's
* Father
Kolkmeyer died at Buffalo on August 18, 1958.
172
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
173
labor for storage-the quality of his efforts measured only
by the strength of the child and the youth.
Other stories too were related at the family board or in
the neighborhood gatherings. These came from friends and
relatives who had made the venturesome journey to the land
of opportunity across the Atlantic. Letters from America told
of the fertility of the virgin soil and compared it with the
starved ground in the Old World. Did they turn the thoughts
of an eighteen year old farm boy from his few hectares to
the endless acres of the great plains in the New World? His
dreams certainly ranged across the Rhine, the ocean, the
Hudson and the Mississippi. No doubt the letters mentioned
the rigorous winters, the hot summers, the lonely plains, with,
perhaps, hints of still savage Indians. How all the good items
enticed and the difficult challenged the boy we do not know,
but the time came when he saw there was no future for him
in Delbrueck, no prospect for happiness on the little farm.
With but seven or eight years of schooling, the developed
strength of the farm boy, with the courage of his faith and
the certainty of God's guiding providence, he set out from
the land of his birth.
Motives
What the motives for his emigration were-hardships at
home, the glamor of the new world, perhaps even escape from
military service-we do not know. There is no record, and no
one among the now living seems to have heard him tell. Nor
can we find out anything about his route over the land and
the sea, or of his first sight of the new world. The long voyage
over the ocean, the long train ride through the land of his
adoption must have been thrilling experiences. We do not
find mention of them in the recollections of those who knew
him. Evidently he spoke little of his early years.
Only of this we are sure: the journey was made in the year
1888, the month of October marking either the beginning or
the end of travel. It seems to have been the end, for the uncertain account implies that George was at his Aunt's home in
St. James, Minnesota, at the age of "nineteen and a half years."
We gather that h.is new home was not in the village of St.
James but on the farm of his relatives. Now he shared in the
�174
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
farm labor of the new world with his aunt's family and
gradually learned something of the local geography. Sundays
and holy days brought a trip to Mass at the parish church in
St. James. Later, George attended the church of the Jesuits
at Mankato, forty miles from St. James. He must have done
the forty miles often for his acquaintance with the Fathers
at Mankato ripened into a desire to remain with them and
we find qeorge Sandheinrich leaving the farm and entering
the service of the Fathers.
He used to recall in later years the long hours and hard
labor on the farm but we cannot imagine that his move to
Mankato was motivated by a promise of easy work and short
hours. This does not fit the character of the future Brother
Sandheinrich. In harmony with that character, known so
well for sixty-three years in the Society of Jesus; would be
the presumption that a restless soul was slowly finding its
true home. If we are permitted to project backward the lines
of .a character, we might say that it was the attraction of the
atmosphere of a religious house and the ready accessibility of
a church where he could speak with Our Lord whenever he
wished. Presumptions aside, it was the Holy Ghost leading
him to his vocation.
_· _
Entrance
The interval between his arrival at the Jesuit house in Mankato and his admission to the novitiate is as obscure as his
earlier years. There is some evidence George Sandheinrich
was at the college of St. Ignatius in Cleveland, Ohio, during
this time. A guess would be that he had applied for admission
to the Society and had been sent from the tiny community
at Mankato to the larger one at St. Ignatius where his suitability as a subject could be the better observed. At any rate
he was accepted by the Superior of the Buffalo Mission of the
German Province, Father Theodore van Rossum. From Cleveland he journeyed across four states to enter the novitiate at
Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, and there, under Father Edward Steffen as novice master, began a longer journey to
holiness along the road that had been mapped by St. Ignatius.
George Sandheinrich joined the Prairie du Chien novices on
April 4, 1891, thirteen days before his twenty-second birth-
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
175
day. Henceforth he was Brother Sandheinrich. Now he was
at home. A fellow novice, Father Gustave Reinsch, describes
his as admirable from the start: ready, obedient, cheerful and
prayerful. The catalogues for the two years of his novitiate
show that he was an assistant cook and helped with the general duties of the house, and in his second year was assistant
buyer.
To Buffalo
On April10, 1893 Brother George Sandheinrich pronounced
the first vows of the Society of Jesus. Almost immediately he
was sent to Buffalo to join the community at 651 Washington
Street. As a Coadjutor Brother, he was to assist the Fathers
in a boarding school with both college and high school departments and in St. Michael's parish. This was to be his
home, the scene of his labors for the next forty-five years.
For the first nine of these years he was in charge of the
dining rooms of the community and of the students. Next
he became a baker, two years as assistant and two more with
full responsibility for providing all the bread, rolls and pastry
for all under the Canisius roof. Near the end of his second
Year as baker the Buffalo Mission of the German Province
was dissolved, its eastern section being assigned to the
Maryland-New York Province. Under the new jurisdiction
it was· determined that Canisius would no longer house its
students. As a consequence the major demands on the bakeshop were eliminated and Brother was assigned to building
maintenance. In 1910, he became the master of the front door
and entered his combination office and living room where he
Was to remain for twenty-eight years.
Perhaps it was during these twenty-eight years that
Brother's gentle kindliness became best known and admired.
He met very many more people. But during the previous
seventeen years, he had also been much admired and loved.
Students, Brothers, Scholastics and priests held him in deep
affection. For this we have the written word of one who lived
with him in his bakeshop days. Brother Joseph Erhard recalled that, "Brother Sandheinrich always gave a good example. He was one to be imitated; he was never excited, al-
�176
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
ways with a smile," and he did not hesitate to add, "He is
another saint in heaven."
One sometimes wonders whether it was not his spirit of
obedience, his calm obedience that is back of the words,
"never excited." It could be that it was the way in which
he carried out his duties. While he was assistant to Brother
Haug in the bakeshop, a heavy snow covered Buffalo. It
accumula~ed on the roof and in the gutters of the building.
Brother~ was asked to undertake its removal, and he went
about the. job as if it were his daily work. His mind was always on what he was told to do. It was a present duty. For
him it was an application of the dictum learned in that
novitiate from the Exercises: Age quod agis. In this instance
he was imitated not by a fellow Brother in the spirit of his
vocation, but by a young student in the spirit of adventure.
The boy followed the route along the roof opened by Brother.
His journey above the street met with far less than approbation from the prefects. As for Brother, his smile proved his
understanding both of the spirit of the boy and of the attitude
of the prefects.
Sharing in tlie· Kingdom
In his later years when he spoke of the long hours and the
hard work on the farm, Brother Sandy never referred to the
long hours and the hard work of the bakeshop or the boiler
room, or on the roof of the college. These did not weary: he
was sharing in the Kingdom, laboring in the company of his
Leader. Brother's unconcern with the results of a duty performed was shown in one of those minor and not infrequent
incidents in the life of the guardian of the door, the intermediary between the public and the community. Father Rector
George Krim had agreed to the request of a Sister to hear her
confession at a certain time. When the hour arrived the
Sister went to the church and sent her companion to the rectory to inform the porter that the penitent was in the church.
Whether Father Rector had actually been out or whether
Brother was following instructions to have the Father on dutY
take care of such cases is not clear. But Brother replied to the
young religious, "Father Rector is not in." Even on her in·
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
177
sistence that Father Rector had accepted the request and had
made the appointment Brother still gently repeated, "But
Father Rector is not in." At that moment, from her position,
the Sister saw Father Rector appear at the entrance to
Brother's office. Both she and the Brother heard Father
Rector announcing his presence, "Father Rector is in,
Brother." Since Father Rector had taken over, Brother was
no longer involved. He moved to his desk and took up his
interrupted work. There was not the least sign of confusion.
Mention of the desk and the information window suggests
a brief description of Brother's cell. It was a fairly large room
with the high ceilings of old buildings. Entrance was from
the cloister through a door in the east wall. The west wall
faced the street and was pierced by two large windows that
were glazed in translucent, not transparent, glass. The south
wall was nearly covered with wooden cabinets containing all
sorts of supplies. The north wall held nearly all Brother's
workaday world. Halfway along this wall was the desk. Next
to it was the little window looking out into the vestibule.
Through this, Brother could see the outside door of the house
to his left and the cloister door to his right. He could open
the narrow center section of the window to transact business
with the visitor.
At tnis little window Brother met the world with modesty,
sympathy, courtesy and kindness. The clergy and the bishop
were received with reverence; the poor were brought to the
attention of the moderator of the St. Vincent de Paul Society;
the worried of conscience were provided with a confessor or
a counselor; the merchant from the nearby market was given
coins from the church collections in exchange for paper
money; at times the police inquired there about unsocial
visitors. From this little window even complainers went away
less unhappy.
The Desk
The desk was Brother Sandy's workshop. It was the oldfashioned bookkeeper's desk at which he would stand as he
Wrote down Mass intentions, payments of pew rent, tuition
and such alms as he was permitted to give. At this desk he
counted and wrapped the collections from the Sunday Masses,
�178
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
the novenas and other services as they ·were brought over
from St. Michael's Church. From the desk's petty cash drawer
he would, in the earlier days, give the five cent carfare to the
Brothers, Scholastics and Fathers as they left for the Villa
on Thursday. Later, when there was no more villa, and transportation costs had gone up, the largess was increased to
twenty-five cents. On this desk was the telephone that demanded. frequent attention. Lest time be wasted, Brother also
kept op' this desk thimble, needle and thread for mending
garmenfs and vestments. Between calls, records, mending and
incidental duties, Brother would resume his interrupted rosary.
The beads dangled from his fingers as he reached for the
insistent telephone, or unlatched the little window, or pressed
the button to signal a call for one of the Fathers.
Under the desk and concealed by it was the bed in which
Brother took his rest at night. This bed was a shallow wooden
box equipped with a mattress and the necessary coverings.
As a kind of drawer it slid neatly and completely out of sight
in the morning. From it little time was lost in answering the
door or the telephone at any hour whatever. Brother was ever
kind and prompt in his courteous responses to the call for
a priest to administer to the .Sick, in giving information to
pedestrians, and even in ans;,ering thoughtless people who
called in the middle of the night for unimportant information.
In this room there was no convenient spot for a daytime rest.
None was needed because there were no free moments.
Brother knew no eight-hour day, no forty-hour week.
Such living could well build up tension in a man. In Brother
Sandy it did not. Many people came to know him well; none
ever found him sharp, querulous, impatient or complaining in
all the twenty-eight years he was the buffer between the community and the world as it came to 651 Washington Street.
The long hours and the ever-changing theme of his work never
made him less careful in his records or in his counting. The
merchants did not have to check the change he gave them. So
accurate were his money accounts that only once during the
eleven year tenure of one Father Treasurer did they fail to
balance, and that by a small amount.
Brother was not only helpful to the limit of his ability and
training, he applied himself to becoming still more helpful.
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
179
His sleeping arrangement was only one example. Another
was his study of the city map. Visitors to the community, newcomers and sometimes callers at his little window, would ask
Brother about places in the city and how to reach them. When
he realized how frequent these queries were, he went to work
on the city map and the city directory. He learned streets, car
lines, means of transportation. An enthusiastic admirer insisted that Brother knew not only more about the city than
any member of the community but even more than delivery
men and mail carriers. Brother also became quite ready with
information on stores and the location of various kinds of
merchandise. With him this practice did not turn into a hobby.
Certainly he needed no such knowledge for himself. He rarely
left the house, rarely even accompanied the teaching community on its weekly trip to the Villa.
New Home
But in June 1938, Brother Sandy did make a one-way trip
to the site of the old villa. He was in his seventieth year and
no longer able to bear up under the constant pressure which
the porter had to sustain at the door of Canisius High School
and St. Michael's Rectory. Father Provincial assigned him to
the college community where there would be less demand on
his physical strength. It was a vast change for Brother Sandy
but a pleasant one. His environment was so different: from
the noisy, dusty swirl of the downtown business and market
area to a quiet residential section. Nearby, practically adjacent, were a park, a cemetery, the extensive grounds of a
Catholic academy and of two Catholic hospitals. Stretches of
lawn and beautiful trees presented themselves to eyes that
Were more accustomed to the dull masonry of the city. His
~ew home was not, of course, entirely unknown to him. DurIng those long years downtown he had, on occasion, visited the
college. In fact he had lived through its development. When
Brother came to Buffalo the place was a farm, with a brick
residence and a barn. He used to recall the villa days of past
Years and the campaign to raise funds for the erection of the
first section of the present college building.
The change, nevertheless, was external and had little effect
on Brother's life which remained essentially what it had been.
�180
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
Changes of place and occupation are by no means uncommon
in the Society and are accepted willingly, but so smoothly and
quietly did Brother enter his new home and new duties that
it seemed he had experienced no change whatever. He was
completely at home from the first hour, content and happy.
He never expressed a sense of loss, never seemed to miss the
bustling activity of downtown Buffalo. Now he lived in the
midst of his brethren next to the community chapel. Less busy
with e~ternals and externs, he felt himself a more intimate
member .. of the household and as such he was affectionately
accepted.
He was put in charge of the community chapel, the temporary students' chapel and the several private chapels of
the house. He supervised the wine cellar. He faithfully rang
the community bells. His devotion to the details of his every
charge was remarked by all. Chapels, altars, vestments, linens
were always in order; bells rang on the minute without fail.
Even in his last active days, when he was feeble and tired
e~sily, he would remain up to ring the last bell. It was said
of him with justice that he was as regular as a clock. Indeed,
in a sense, he was the clock of the community. He helped to
settle the problem of bells when the new residence was being
planned. A program clock w;s -·suggested which would take
care of every summons to every exercise. When this was mentioned to Brother, his comment was definite, "It is not necessary."
Because there was no sacristy workroom Brother kept manY
items of equipment in his own room. This was not the result
of habits formed in his years of living in a house within a
house as he did at St. Michael's. It was lack of space that
necessitated the early erection of a new residence. Brother
solved the problem by keeping candles, candlesticks, vases and
sometimes flowers in his room. It was a large room and could
easily accommodate these materials, but it was never cluttered
with Brother's personal effects. Of these he had a bare minimum. Toward the end of 1949, Loyola Hall, the new residence,
was ready for occupancy. Brother supervised the transfer of
all the chapel equipment except that needed in the small
students' chapel. He was now in his eightieth year but still
faithful in all his work. So well did he plan and execute the
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
181
moving that there was no break in the regular Mass schedule
either in the community chapel or in any of the private chapels.
Brother's new room was smaller than the one he left but
it was practically empty. The chapel utensils were in places
provided in the building design. His closet was almost bare,
on the desk were a few books and a crucifix. The books were
all solidly spiritual: the Scriptures, lives of the saints and
meditation books, some in his native tongue. The one concession to comfort was a hospital-type bed, and this was
really a health requirement. Brother was afflicted with asthma.
As he advanced in age it grew steadily more severe until he
could not sleep in a horizontal position. By this time the other
usual weaknesses of age were clearly evident. Simple colds
were dangerous in his condition and several times he was taken
to the hospital with pneumonia. A number of times these illnesses were of sufficient gravity to justify the administration
of Extreme Unction.
Cheerful Acceptance
In 1955 Brother John Byrns was sent to Canisius and took
over some of Brother Sandy's tasks. It was not long before
Brother's waning strength required a total transfer of all work
from his shoulders. He accepted the relief with perfect equanimity although it imposed unaccustomed inactivity and
presaged the end of life. He regretted the former and welcomed the latter. His successor was amazed at the cheerfulness
with which he relinquished his keys. But it was not a great
sacrifice for Brother Sandy. Nothing was really his. Besides,
he evaluated the state of his health and the measure of his
strength with full objectivity-and consoled himself with the
thought that he would have more time to pray. All his life he
had turned to spiritual things when obedience or charity did
not demand physical work-to spiritual reading, the rosary,
or to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. And now, without
any obligation of physical labor he would have more time for
these exercises of piety. Sometime before his final decline,
difficult breathing forced Brother to leave his bed in the
very early morning hours. Long before he was to ring the
rising bell he would go to the chapel. There he would check
the Preparations for Mass and spend hours in meditation until
�182
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
it was time to summon the community to begin its daily
routine.
Twice during the last few years of his life a complication
of maladies brought Brother so low that he felt certain he
was about to die. Doctors and nurses were of like mind. He
was quite ready and prayed that he might die on a feast of
Our Lady. In one instance his prayer was that he would die
on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception; in the second his
severe Inness came in the summer and he begged to go to his
divine Master on the feast of the Assumption of Our Lady.
That he survived these illnesses was in no way due to any
fight he made to live. Life on earth had no attraction for him;
he yearned only to be with God. When his prayers for death
were not granted his frequent comment was, "It is not easy
to die." These words were in no way a complaint about his
illness, his weakness, or the discomfort and pain he was enduring. It was rather the simple way in which he was estimating the difficulty of a task. It recalled his remarks about
the long hours and hard work of the farm. Now it was the
endurance required to rid oneself of mortality to put on immortality.
__ .
Brother recovered the second time enough to be brought
back from the hospital. The doctor had thought that he would
be as well cared for, and be in happier surroundings, among
his own for his last days on earth and suggested a transfer to
the infirmary at the novitiate. It was a pleasant change for
Brother. Arrangements were made for a brief farewell to the
community he had served so well and so long. The occasion
was a happy one. His gentle smile was proof. It was also
a happy occasion for the community as was attested by the
heartiness with which he was greeted.
On his last evening at home Brother Sandy was brought to
the community dinner. Father Provincial was in the city and
came to preside at this manifestation of the affection. At the
end of the dinner Father Provincial voiced the community's
appreciation of Brother's career in Buffalo and, for his own
part, assured him of the best of care at St. Andrew. Father
Rector echoed the sentiments of gratitude and bade official
Godspeed.
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
183
It was Brother Sandy's evening. He was grateful for the
kind words of Father Provincial and Father Rector, for the
solicitude of Father Minister, for the evident joy of the community at this reunion-the evidence of regret at the parting
being suppressed. Brother could not make a public reply.
He was a very tired and sick man. His appreciation was in
his look, the bright glance and the little smile that lighted
his countenance. He was not looking back. It was left for
others to recall similar occasions when Brother had been
honored: the celebration of his golden jubilee in 1941 when
the day began with a solemn Mass of thanksgiving in St.
Michael's Church and Father Francis O'Malley preached a
glowing sermon; or the celebration of his diamond jubilee in
1951 when the bishop of the diocese, Most Reverend Joseph
A. Burke, presided at the community dinner and spoke of the
affection in the hearts of all who knew Brother, especially of
those who had gathered about him that day from all the local
houses of the Society. After the farewell Father Minister took
Brother Sandy to St. Andrew. No preparation was needed on
Brother's part. He had nothing to leave, nothing to arrange,
nothing to carry with him.
Regular and Unobtrusive
In the practice of virtue, Brother Sandy was so regular and
unobtrusive that he aroused no comment. To notice him
kneeling in the chapel between duties would have been like
giving attention to the furnishings. One would have been
shocked to meet him without his look of peace, friendliness
and interest in his eyes. To have him answer a request with
a refusal or an excuse would have been upsetting. No priest
arriving for Mass at a late hour ever found him other than
instantly ready to prepare for, and then happy to minister,
during the Holy Sacrifice.
In one who was as methodical as Brother Sandy the unusual
might have been expected to stimulate, sometimes at least, an
indication of annoyance or impatience. In him it never did.
lie made the unusual part of his routine. During his last term
as sacristan ·the Bishop granted permission at times to offer
the Holy Sacrifice in the homes of relatives or friends who
Were unable to attend Mass. No Mass kit was available. It
�18!
BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
was up to Brother to assemble everything necessary. The evening before a box would be ready, complete to the last pin;
the next morning it would be presented to the Father with
a hopeful word that all was included and a prayer that the
sick person would soon be well. The gratitude of the Father
would ever be answered with Brother's "It was no trouble,
Father." Thus it was with every request. The extraordinary
he turned into the ordinary, when it was for others. It was
no troqple, even when the request was not entirely reasonable.
Brother had a wise understanding of men and of their
weaknesses. He was a shrewd and kindly judge of character.
That he was never heard to be critical does not reflect on his
honesty. Instant excuse was ready while he listened sympathetically to the complainer or victim, who found decisions
hard to accept. While Brother Sandy would not join in the
complaint, his smile and the twinkle in his eye would acknowledge the untoward or unpleasant fact. His was a joyful
soul. He thoroughly enjoyed an amusing story and his appreciation was expressed by quiet, gentle laughter. The foibles
of men he could find diverting if never indictable. Reprehension was not part of his jurisdiction and so not a matter
of his concern. Brother Sa~dy was always charitable in
speech ; no one seems to remember him speaking an unkind
word.
All Virtues
Lest these statements might rest on the judgment of one
man, others were asked to give their opinions. Taken together the answers read like tlie list of virtues proposed by
the Society for attainment by the Coadjutor Brothers: diligence in prayer and other spiritual exercises, contentment with
the lot of Martha, simple and complete obedience, careful
poverty, peace of soul, readiness to serve, joy in the hidden
life. Brother Sandy gave constant edification and none left
converse with him without a lighter heart. The outstanding
characteristic of his life was probably this peaceful evenness.
Modest and reticent, humble to the point of selflessness, he
moved effortlessly through the common duties of a good re·
ligious. One Father stated: "What struck me most was his
perfect devotion to his assigned tasks through the days and
�BROTHER SANDHEINRICH
185
months and years." One Father Minister remarked: "He was
very much down to earth, had good practical common sense,
was most generous with God and his fellow men and a model
of common life." Another Father Minister, a bit worried about
Brother's quiet manner of life, inquired if he were not lonely.
The answer was a simple, "No, Father, I am never lonely."
On September 29, 1956, he reached the infirmary at St.
Andrew and immediately assured everyone that he was happy
to be there: that he much preferred it to hospitals. Here he
was among his own. Father Rector wrote, "He spent his days
as those who knew of his holiness would have expected. In
his unique way he often expressed his yearning to be with his
Divine Master, in patient longing and Christian hope."
Six weeks after his arrival, the infirmarian found Brother
Sandheinrich one morning unconscious in his bed and called
a priest to anoint him. Brother Sandy never regained consciousness. The struggle to go to Our Lord continued in the
frail body for three days until at last his holy soul fled the
confining world. The end came on November 8, 1956.
The general opinion was that the Society on earth had lost
a saint. One Father remarked, "Brother Sandy may never be
canonized but it is certain that he was exceptionally dear to
God." Another said, "It is up to the Church, not to us, to
proclaim that a person was a saint. Still all who knew Brother
Sandheinrich well are convinced that, if the thorough examination which is prescribed were made in his case, his virtues
Would be pronounced heroic." A Brother who had worked with
him said, "It was like living with St. Peter, St. Paul and St.
Alphonsus." May he rest in peace.
Brother Michael S. Broderick
1901-1955
Charles A. Matthews, S.J.
On the feast of St. John the Apostle, 1901, Michael Stephen
Broderick was born in Clonoon, County Galway, Ireland. For
twenty-three years he remained a member of a modest and
humble household. The limited financial resources of a small
�186
BROTHER BRODERICK
farm did not permit much formal education for either Michael
or his older sister who had lost their mother when they were
very young. Like many of their Irish contemporaries, they
probably advanced no higher than grade school.
Like many of his countrymen, too, Michael emigrated to
the new world where Irishmen hoped to find security and
success. He said farewell to his father and sister on Holy
Thursday; 1924, and three days later, on Easter Sunday,
embarke"d· for America. He settled in Canada but after two
years came to reside with cousins in New York City. "In the
sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread" was verified of the
immigrant who worked as a laborer in the metropolis. While
convalescing after surgery, Michael thought and prayed. The
Mother of God and his own mother were powerful intercessors
and the young Irishman accepted the invitation to dedicate
his life and talents to God as a religious. Michael made application and was admitted as a postulant in September 1927 at
St.~Andrew-on-Hudson.
Another Alphonsus
If St. Ignatius had in mind an Alphonsus as his blueprint
of a lay brother, Alphonsus would for twenty-seven years
look upon his own replica in Brother Broderick who vowed his
earthly life to work and prayer as a Coadjutor Brother in the
Society of Jesus on St. Patrick's day in 1930. Using standards
academic, norms professional and the criteria of the business
world, one would scarcely have predicted much above mediocrity in human accomplishment for him. The providence of
God, however, abundantly rewarded even in earthly achievement the efforts of Brother Broderick. For he devoted his life
exclusively to work and prayer and that in the most literal
sens~.
During his noviceship Brother learned the art of baking.
One month after his first vows, he became the pioneer baker
at the new novitiate of St. Isaac J ogues at Wernersville. For
five years he worked tirelessly while training younger Brothers
to take his place. In June, 1930, he was transferred to Fordham University. For the next twenty years, apart from his
annual retreat, two lengthy sojourns in a hospital, and a visit
�BROTHER BRODERICK
187
to the Paterson, New Jersey, cathedral when his cousin was
ordained to the priesthood, Brother Broderick was never away
from the campus. To work and pray with and for his brother
Jesuits, for the university students, the lay faculty and the
other employees, was Brother's entire life. He never wished
or intended that his external labor in the care of others should
be a substitute for his own prayer or for fidelity to community
exercises. His labor and prayer, as was right, complemented
one another. For five years as director of kitchens and sacristan of the chapels, he fulfilled his offices in accordance with
the wishes of his superiors.
The status of 1935 assigned Brother Broderick to the post
of infirmarian at Fordham. Here he was a worthy successor
to other devoted infirmarians like Brother Robert Dockery and
Brother Joseph Keashen. After his appointment to this new
type of work, Brother's life was passed in the rooms of sick
Jesuits and students or in the Alumni Chapel adjoining the
infirmary. To this must be added many hours of diligent application and persevering effort to qualify as a nurse and to be
ready to substitute for a medical doctor in case of necessity.
By training Brother Mike, as he was reverently called by the
university students, was not a nurse and still less a doctor of
medicine. But he applied himself to textbooks and learned
much from Dr. Gerald Carroll, who was the university physician for twenty-five years till his death in 1954. Dr. Carroll
visited the infirmary once each weekday, usually in the evening. He remained for an hour if there was need and, when
time permitted, chatted with Brother Broderick about the
health of this or that patient and of the remedies for his ailments. The native shrewdness of Brother Mike, as well as
Prayerful diligence, enabled him to enter into the mind of
the physician. He soon became an excellent infirmarian and
ministered carefully to the sick according to the directions
he received.
Dr. Carroll's ministrations lasted an hour but it was the
duty and privilege of the Brother to take care of the sick
throughout the remainder of the day and night. This he did
With the devotion of a mother. A patient could summon
Brother Broderick at any time. There were no office hours
�188
BROTHER BRODERICK
for him. And this was true through the days, the weeks, the
months and the years.
Brother Broderick had personal experience of illness also.
The writer knows that as early as 1942, he was quite sure
that he himself had cancer. He was later to undergo two
surgical operations that prolonged his life but never completely alleviated an almost paralyzing pain. Brother Broderick
did not use sedatives for himself. It was his wont to step
into the chapel, where, kneeling and clasping his crucifix, he
asked strength from Our Lord to be courageous. Strengthened,
he left the chapel and went to his patients. Few realized that
the infirmarian was a sicker man that most of his charges for
he always had a ready smile and a charming chuckle.
Shrub Oak
In April 1955, Father Provincial asked Brother Broderick
to take charge of the infirmary of the new Loyola Seminary
at Shrub Oak. There was need of an experienced man of deep
faith and limitless charity who would be an inspiration to the
younger members of the new community. Brother immediately
manifested his readiness to_.d.o so, although his heart was
unquestionably with the sick at Fordham. Two days after
the publication of the status in June 1955, Brother Broderick
left Fordham. Little did anyone suspect at the time that he
would be one of the first patients in the infirmary at Loyola
Seminary.
For five months Brother took care of the philosophers,
Brothers and Fathers at Shrub Oak, manifesting the same
interest and devotion he had at Fordham. Loss of weight
and appetite, however, soon made it clear that the heroic
infirmarian was failing fast. Surgery in a Peekskill hospital
revealed that the end was near. I visited him in the hospital
on· December 22nd and was welcomed with a cheerful smile.
While he clasped his crucifix tightly, Brother told how grateful
he was for the privilege of suffering and how he prayed for
strength not to waver. He died piously in the Lord on his
fifty-fourth birthday, the feast of St. John the Apostle, 1955.
May his generous and courageous soul rest in peace.
�Brother Joseph- Marie Dietrich
1885-1958
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
"You have to suffer a lot, until your suffering becomes
sweet." Apparently Brother Dietrich had reached the point
where suffering for his Lord had become sweet, for these
words, the infirmarian reports, were often on his lips as his
long and painful illness drew towards its end. Until in his
last months his increasing disability compelled him to resort
to the support of canes, Brother Dietrich gave no sign of surrender to weakness. His small, spare figure with its military
bearing (he had served in two armies) and its rather dour
countenance hiding a sense of humor could be seen going
quietly through the corridors and efficiently about the tasks
assigned. Finally confined to his bed, he asked only for
enough health to return to his work.
Joseph-Marie Dietrich, one of the six children of George
and Teresa Ulrich Dietrich, was born in Bilwisheim, Alsace,
on November 22, 1885. The language of his family was German and during his early years Alsace was part of the German
Empire. While living in Strasbourg, he was called up to serve
his time, from 1905 to 1907, in the Imperial German Army.
In 1910 young Dietrich emigrated to the United States, where
he supported himself at his trade as butcher in and near New
York City. One of his places of employment was the military
academy at West Point. Possibly this renewal of contact with
the military inspired him to join the Regular Army of the
United States. He enlisted in San Francisco in November
1914 and was immediately assigned to the Hawaiian Department. There in April 1916 he exercised the option then in use
in the army to purchase his discharge.
Thereafter the future Brother returned to the New York
area and there, save for a visit to his family in Strasbourg
189
�190
BROTHER DIETRICH
in the early 1920's, he carried on his trade as butcher in
various hotels and other establishments for a period of fifteen
years. Obviously he was concerned about spiritual things,
for he joined the Society of St. Therese of the Church of Our
Lady of Mount Carmel, and was a member of the Nocturnal
Adoration Society of the Church of St. Jean Baptiste. When
in 1930 he moved to Washington, he enrolled as a member of
the Confraternity of the Holy Sepulcher.
In 1931, he returned to Alsace, now a part of France, to visit
his familY.. There he applied for admission into the Province
of Champagne, and entered the novitiate at Florennes, Belgium, on July 1, 1932. He carried out his duties to the complete satisfaction of his master of novices. Yet understandably
Brother Dietrich had a difficult time. He was in his late
forties and had spent over twenty years away from his native
land. Consequently he found difficulties not only with the local
customs but with the French language. Therefore with the
approval and praise of his Father Provincial he applied for
transfer to the Province of Maryland-New York. In April
1934 Brother Dietrich once more crossed the Atlantic to
the shores of America. He joined the community of St.
Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeeps~e, and there he pronounced
his first vows on July 31, 1934. -· ...
Almost fifty years old when he finished his noviceship,
Brother Dietrich spent another quarter-century in devoted
service of the Society. The Brothers who knew him best and
longest remarked on his capacity for hard work. They also
commented on his quiet humor and the rigid self-control which
enabled him to master a naturally quick temper.
After three years in the kitchen and clothes room at St.
Andrew, Brother Dietrich transferred in 1937 to Georgetown
University where until 1942 he acted as sacristan. In the
same year he once more returned to the kitchen, this time
at the Tertianship in Auriesville, where he pronounced his
last vows on August 15, 1942. From 1948 to 1953 he was
sacristan at Inisfada. In 1953 he joined, as cook, the small
community at Shrub Oak, where the present philosophate
was under construction. When the new community was constituted in the summer of 1955 Brother Dietrich remained as
a member of the staff.
�BROTHER DIETRICH
191
In the late summer of 1957 the first signs of the generalized
cancer of the bone which was to end his life manifested themselves. Though he had to struggle about with the aid of two
canes, Brother continued his work. At the end of November
he entered St. Agnes Hospital, White Plains, where a series
of tests indicated that his disease was terminal. Returning
to the Seminary in mid-December, Brother observed common
life as best he could, though he attended community exercises
only in a wheel-chair. Early in January this proved too much,
and Brother was compelled to take to his bed in the infirmary.
During his last months he continued to be a source of edification to all who visited him. Though his disease was very
painful-on doctor's orders his last weeks were spent under
sedation-he never complained but manifested a perfect resignation to the will of God. On April 8, 1958, this good and
worthy servant entered into the joy of his Lord.
* • *
ALL THINGS TO ALL
By imitation of the charity of our Lord we shall in a most striking
manner pay due respect to His meek and humble Heart that preached
the gospel to the poor, pardoned sinners, cured the sick, wept over his
fatherland and had compassion on the multitude. And just as His love
encompassed not only a few but every one of the children of God, no
matter how wretched or depraved, so must our charity embrace the
Whole human race. We must search out those who have strayed, teach
those who sit in darkness, inspire the faithful, and thus become all
things to all men that all men may be saved.
VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
�Books of Interest to Ours
THE HISTORIAN'S CRAFT
History: l\lethod and Interpretation. By William Leo Lucey, S.J. Chi·
cago: Loyola University Press, 1958. Pp. xi-113. $2.50.
Although this second edition of Father Lucey's introduction to historical method is substantially the same as that of 1948, a number of
paragraphs have been added, explanatory footnotes have been expanded,
and the suggestions for further reading that follow each chapter have
been enlarged and brought up to date.
This bRok contains a brief but adequate study of all the major aspects
of historiography. After establishing a fundamental understanding of
his subject in the introductory chapters dealing with the social sciences
in general and the meaning and value of history, Father Lucey discusses
general historical methodology and use of sources. The work of evaluating material is taken up by his treatment of internal and external criticism. The study concludes by bringing the attention of the students to
two aspects often undervalued-the need for effective presentation of
the material discovered by research, and an awareness of the different
philosophies or theories that influence the writing of history. The latter
topic is especially well done through a brief, clear survey and criticism
of the theories that have most influenced the writing of American history.
A careful comparison of this revised edition with its original will
show the welcome addition of paragraphs on the Darwinian attempt
to make history an exact science, the epistemological proofs for the
possibility of valid historical knowle.dge, a warning on the subjective ele·
ment in the evaluation of sources~ and an additional plea for style in
historical writing.
The chief value of this work is that it presents its subject matter,
so essential for the student, in an eminently readable and interesting
manner with numerous examples to illustrate the rules and principles of
historical methodology which the author wishes to convey. This con·
cretization of the problems inherent in historical research will greatly
aid both in the reading of history and in the student's own efforts at
writing historical papers. The author's consideration of sources under
the aspect of witnesses to past facts gives good insight into the nature
of the raw materials of historical research.
This book may well be a vade mecum of the undergraduate student as
its predecessor, Father Garraghan's Guide to Historical Method, is of
the .graduate student. It is only on comparison of the two books that
one realizes how well they complement each other. Both cover the same
matter and in exactly the same order; Father Garraghan's book being
a treatment on a more detailed and technical level. Father Lucey's il·
lustrations and examples are mainly taken from American history since
the undergraduate will find the literature and sources more accessible;
192
�BOOK REVIEWS
193
Father Garraghan deals more with European history on the supposition
that graduate students should possess the tools necessary for the understanding and use of material in this field. With these two excellent
books, both teachers and students in Catholic colleges now have at their
disposal excellent guides in the difficult field of historical method.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
INDISPENSABLE
New Testament Introduction. By Alfred Wikenhauser. Translated by
Joseph Cunningham. New York: Herder & Herder, 1958. Pp.
xix-580. $7.00.
Many hearts will be gladdened by this translation of the revised
and enlarged German edition (1956) of this work by an eminent Freiburg exegete. Aiming at acquainting theological students, teachers of
religion and those engaged in pastoral work with all the most important
problems of an introduction to the NT, W. presents a scientific investigation of the circumstances in which each book of the NT was composed
(author, destination, time and place of composition, occasion and purpose, literary form, sources and integrity), how these books came to be
collected (history of the Canon), and the transmission of the text of
these books both in the original and in the versions (history of the text).
The problems are investigated by historical methods in so far as the
source material permits. Obviously there can be no conflict between the
teaching of the Church and definite results of research. There can
be conflicts between the results of Catholic biblical scholarship and
some commonly accepted interpretations. W. takes care to defend the
solutions which he puts forward, while giving adequate notice to other
views and the arguments which support them. In some cases only a
greater or lesser degree of probability can be attained, for the books
themselves often give no clear information about their composition, and
reliable ancient testimony is often wanting. Then, too, it is not always
easy to reconcile the testimony of early writers with the internal evidence. Where it is not possible to make a categorical statement about
certain problems, the pros and cons are enumerated so that a faithful
Picture of the state of scholarship on the particular point is presented.
Due proportion is maintained in spending more time on the content
and form of the books than on the question of authorship. W.'s position
~n the P_ossibility of dating the Gospels of Matthew and Mark after
0 A.D. Is delicately put, and his position on the author of Hebrews is
carefully stated. The Synoptic Problem and Form Criticism receive a
good treatment.
Of great value are the bibliographies for each section. They are
U~-to-date, critical and include pertinent decisions of the Biblical Com~llission. The translation, which is excellent, has performed a real service
~n moving the additions at the end of the 1956 German edition into the
ext itself. This work is highly recommended to all of Ours.
VINCENT T. O'KEEFE, S.J.
�194
BOOK REVIEWS
MODERN ETHICS
Man As Man. By Thomas J. Higgins, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958.
Pp. xiii-585. $4.50.
Father Higgins, author and for many years professor of ethics at
Loyola College, Baltimore, has made an extensive revision of his ethics
text, first published in 1949. Perhaps the most noteworthy feature of
this revised edition is that it is very much au courant. Proof of this
is had by perusing the copious index. It contains such up-to-date topics
as: situational ethics, truth drugs, organic transplantation, atomic
weapons.. ·supranational authority, and the international community. In
addition, 'the perennial ethical problems which beset man in his quest
for the good have been recast and supplemented by further footnotes of
current vintage.
The bibliographies at the end of chapters have been completely redone and are more extensive than in the original edition. In greater
part they consist of articles and books published from 1950 to 1958.
The entries are well chosen. The format is handsome and the print more
arresting than in the first edition.
Man As Man belongs to the class of ethical works designed to prepare
the college student for the moral decisions of life. The balance of
principle and casuistry is nicely done. Accent is on the positive. For
example, the virtues are stressed. Charity, justice, prudence, fidelity,
etc., are assigned their rightful place in moral living.
This treatment of the virtues would be further enhanced were charity
presented as informing the other virtues, as working hand in hand with
justice. The reading lists might inc"lude references to the literature on
the moral data of Holy Scripture.
Soundness of doctrine and clarity of thought recommend this book
as a text or reference work for ethics courses. Our libraries will want
to acquire it to replace the now obsolete first edition.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
SPIRITUAL HEALING
God Can Heal You Now. By Emily Gardiner Neal. Englewood Cliffs:
Prentice-Hall Inc., 1958. Pp. ix-213. $3.50.
This book is a sequel to an earlier work on the same subject. Evidently
an investigation of spiritual healing, undertaken in a skeptical frame of
mind, led to a firm belief in the presence of Christ's power in the healin.g
ministry of the Christian Church. The present volume is an enthusiastiC
attempt on the part of Mrs. White to show spiritual healing as an
essential ministry of the Church. According to the statement on the
jacket, the book is a documented account of spiritual healing, but one
searches in vain for the documentation. Countless examples are prof·
fered, but in most instances they are cases that have been recounted
to the author by a third party. Scientific documentation, in the sense
that the words are used at Lourdes, simply is nonexistent in the book.
�BOOK REVIEWS
195
Fewer cases with careful medical records would be duller reading perhaps, but a far more cogent argument for the author's claims.
Due no doubt to the author's eagerness and personal feeling, there is
a certain breathless vagueness at times. She speaks of sacramental
healing but seems to be unsure of the constituent elements of a sacrament. Holy Unction, for example, seemingly specifically suited for
healing, is listed as a lesser sacrament, not quite as effective as Baptism
or Holy Communion. At other times Mrs. White seems to imply that
the very act of laying on of hands has definite sacramental value. The
part played by faith in the whole process is quite confusing. In some
instances it is apparently conceived of as a necessity, while in other
cases, the healing brings on the faith.
The whole emphasis is on bodily healing, although, on occasion, it
is emphasized that the spirit is healed before the bodily healing occurs.
There seems to be an avoidance of cases where bodily health was not
achieved. The reactions of those who went in faith to be healed bodily
without success are never mentioned.
If one accepts the author's position, this would be a very readable
book. If, however, one seeks to be objective, it is a confusing book. The
very number of cases recorded makes one wonder if the author does
not strive to cover a weak argument with a deluge of cases that are,
however, capable of other explanations in many instances.
The book ends with a list of spiritual healers who sincerely seem
to be attempting a healing ministry. Their comments are the words
of dedicated people, honestly attempting to alleviate suffering. A
scientific elimination of natural causes would, however, be a much more
valid and convincing argument for their efforts.
WILLIAM F. GRAHAM, S.J.
ON THE ROAD TO GETHSEMANE
The Secular Journal of Thomas Merton. By Thomas Merton. New
York: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1959. Pp. 270. $3.75.
The Journal deals with the period of Merton's life from 1939 to 1941,
from the time after his conversion to the time prior to his entrance into
Gethsemane. It covers his stay in New York and Cuba, at St. Bonaventure and a retreat at the Trappist abbey which he was later to enter.
The Journal has its faults. It talks of things that were yesterday oc~urrences and problems but which have lost their interest today. Hitler,
Isolationism and other pre-World War II attitudes have an archaic ring
about them now. Also to make a point the young writer will sometimes
sacrifice accuracy to cleverness. But, to be fair to Merton, he himself
notes the shortcomings in his introduction and has refrained from
changing them because they do reflect his state of mind at the time.
There are qualities which far outweigh the faults. Merton had a re~~rkably deep spiritual insight for one so young in the ways of ret:gJous experience. He sings sincerely the praises of poverty, abnegaJon and imitation of Christ. He also shows flashes of humor in his
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question-answer dialogues with himself. Interesting, too, are his literary
reflections. He enjoys the imagery of Dylan Thomas and the competent
writing of Joyce. He finds Mann tedious. At least that is one fault of
which Merton himself cannot be accused. In all his writings, this one
included, he is never dull.
GERARD F. GIBLIN, S.J.
VIGNETTES
Gospel l'tleditations. By Alfred O'Rahilly. Baltimore: Helicon Press,
Inc., 1958. Pp. xv-286. $4.00.
Alfred·O'Rahilly, known to Jesuits because of his biography of Father
Doyle, presents this book as an expression of gratitude. Ordained at the
age of s~venty-one, after forty years of service to both Church and
state, Father O'Rahilly dedicates this work to his ordaining prelate, the
Archbishop of Dublin. It is a worthy tribute of thanks and must be
highly recommended to priests, religious, and laity; the layman will find
it of particular value. The approach is always fresh; the language,
clear and original; the thought, sensible and practical. There are one
hundred meditations on the life of Christ. Each presents a vignette
from a gospel scene. The picture is drawn with master strokes, and each
individual meditation contains much matter for reflection. Very concrete and human are the people portrayed, and the figure of Christ Our
Lord is presented in a way calculated to lead to love and imitation.
This is not just another stodgy "point book." It will help to make mental
prayer what it should be--a visit with a Person, God, who has "pitched
His tent amongst us."
EDWIN J. SANDERS, S.J.
THE WORLD--AROUND US
Wonderland. By John M. Scott, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press,
1958. Pp. ix-197. $3.50.
On at least two counts, Wonderland is a particularly appropriate title
for Father Scott's little book. The title obviously refers to the wonder·
ful world around us, the world ·of magic in the sky, windlift, Brother
Sun, and galloping light beams. But Wonderland is just as apt a descrip·
tion of the world of the imagination that Father Scott opens up to his
readers. For the book is a sustained piece of imaginative writing that
does credit to the author's own acute perception, fresh outlook on life,
and feeling for the things about him.
The book is obviously written for younger readers. It is easy to
imagine that Father Scott had a group of high school students in mind
as he wrote. His theme is that the world around us is God's gift to us,
and the miracles of daily living are but pale reflections of the God who
is their creator. Each chapter brings the reader back to God who made
all this wonderful world possible. The final chapter, which is one of
the best in the book, sums up and repeats the theme of each of the
chapters, "Like merchantmen upon the high seas, we look up over the
clouds. Our vision opens into the lofty heavens, it speeds across the
galaxies marking the far-flung outposts of space, and focusses on the
great, white throne of God and upon Him who sits thereon."
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197
Father Scott writes vividly, and his use of poetry is particularly
effective. To balance and supplement the imaginative writing, there are
excellent black and white photographs illustrating the text. Perceptive
readers will find a hundred different uses for this little volume. On al:.
most every page there are passages that can be used in English composition classes for imitation, for exercises in imaginative writing, and
for oral reading. It is a fine reference book for elementary science
courses in the grade school. Religion teachers will find it helpful for its
inspirational examples of God's creation, providence, and love. It will
be a useful volume for the retreat master, especially when giving retreats to younger groups. The examples are easily adaptable to the
Foundation, the Kingdom, and the Ad Amorem. Father Scott's Wonderland is a profitable investment for all high school teachers and for those
engaged in work that brings them into contact with younger people.
JOSEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
SIMPLIFIED
The Gospel Story. By Ronald Knox and Ronald Cox. New York: Sheed
& Ward, 1958. Pp. xiii-437. $4.50.
In this book, the famous Knox translation of the four Gospel accounts
is harmonized into a single, continuous story. Father Cox, a Scripture
Professor in the seminary for New Zealand, has composed a commentary
on the Gospel text. On the left-hand pages of the book, the harmonization is arranged into chapters and paragraphs. On the right-hand
pages, Cox comments on each paragraph. The book was originally
prepared as a text for Gospel discussion in the New Zealand Catholic
Youth Movement, and has been reprinted five times.
Cox wishes to encourage people to read the Gospel and to make them
rnore aware of the real life of the historical Christ. Therefore, he arranges the Gospel events in a certain logical sequence of his own, in
order to show a unity of direction in Christ's life which is frequently
rnissed. To intensify the atmosphere of reality, he avoids almost all
disputes, selecting times and places for various pericopes in accordance
With the interpretation of Pere Lagrange. These selections are not
considered solutions for debated points, but rather an unimportant
background against which he wants the reader to meet Christ Himself.
With this in mind, he rapidly describes the Mount of Transfiguration,
~llows us to hear a few Aramaic words, gives a calendar date to the
ln~titution of the Eucharist (Thursday, April 6, 30 A.D., 7:30 P.M.).
His explanations are sometimes inadequate, due to lack of sufficient
space. At times they are rather confusing (e.g., "Bind and loose refer
~ Peter's work of incarcerating and releasing prisoners."). Nevertheless,
18
comments are helpful in the lessons they draw from some of the
Pericopes, and in the air of historical reality they create.
However, for the purposes of study clubs and schools, such an ap~roach tends to give a false impression to those who are professedly tryIng to learn about Christ and the nature of the Gospel. This same mis-
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conception is fostered by the continuous narrative form of the Gospel
text. Although this form enhances the smoothness and intelligibility of
the original Knox translation, it reinforces the misconception that we
have in the Gospels a scientifically accurate historical account of Christ's
life. Yet the New Testament is not a mere chronology, but a salvation
message written by believers for believers. It is the Church's own book,
written by Herself. Our study groups deserve to enjoy the fruit of this
more profound attitude toward the Gospels.
ROBERT J. KEcK, S.J.
MARIAN SCHOLAR
Our Laily in the Gospels. By Joseph Patsch, C.SS.R. Translated by
Rev. Basil Wrighton. Westminster: Newman Press, 1958. Pp.
233. $4.50.
Father Patsch lived in the Holy Land for twenty years. This fact,
coupled with a scholar's knowledge of the Bible, history and archaeology,
has contributed to a valuable book on our Lady. At the outset P. warns
the reader against the danger of reliance on the apocrypha concerning
Mary's life. The book is free from exaggerated statements and senti·
mentalism. As one reads through the chapters, however, one feels
that it is somewhat of a tour de force. Without a doubt P.'s scholarship
l!tands out clearly and offers many insights into the historical back·
ground of the times. Nevertheless, when this knowledge is framed in
the few references to our Lady in the Gospels, one wonders whether
any contribution is made to an awareness of our Lady's presence in
Christian life. The two things never seem to fuse. The significance
of om· Lady's role in the Gospels rr; little enhanced by relating facts true
of the times but merely conjectural with regard to any individual. The
last two chapters present some material which fills in the background
to the lately defined doctrine of the Assumption.
CHARLES P. COSTELLO, S.J.
THE PRIEST AND THE EXERCISES
Holiness of the Priesthood: Meditations and Readings for Priests. BY
Josef Staudinger, S.J. Westminster: Newman Press, 1957. Pp.
546. $4.75.
The life of perfection lived by Christ, King and High Priest, is the ai!ll
of every priestly life. The various commitments he has freely assurned
and the demands and problems that accompany them find their meaning
only in relation to Christ's priestly life. This is the ideal that Father
Staudinger offers the priest-retreatant in these meditations and con·
ference-readings.
Following the division of the Spiritual Exercises, but avoiding a strict
point by point presentation, the author plays upon this central theme
skillfully and clearly. Content to suggest and highlight key dogmas on
the priesthood rather than meditate for the priest, he encourages per·
sonal reflection. He carefully separates possible applications from the
meditation matter itself. There is little preaching or false idealisrn to
�BOOK REVIEWS
199
mar this treatment, for there is an evident respect for the dignity of his
fellow priests and for their own awareness of the meaning of the
priesthood.
Two features are worthy of note. One is the author's familiar knowledge of Scripture. His use of passages from both the Old and New
Testament (which can serve as compositions of place or which can
fill out the Scriptural dimension of the Exercises themselves) are refreshing and thought-provoking. Brief references are also made to
the Fathers, and examples are drawn from the lives of the saints. The
other feature is the solid dogmatic and moral foundation for his material. Since every priest shares in the sacramental priesthood of Christ,
sorrow for deliberate infidelity to grace, the practice of the virtues, the
necessity for perfect service necessarily follow. Jesuit priests are sure
to find helpful matter here in making their own private annual retreats.
PAUL 0STERLE, S.J.
KEY TO THE ADOLESCENT BOY
The Adolescent Boy. By William A. Connell, S.J. Edited by J. Barry
McGannon, S.J. Chicago: Fides Publishing Association, 1958. Pp.
175. $2.95.
The late Father Connell, an extraordinary Jesuit teacher and director
of youth, left behind a collection of perceptive insights concerning
adolescent boys and how to train them. This knowledge, which was
originally formulated in talks to the Mothers' Guild and Fathers' Club
of Marquette University High School, has been edited and adapted into
hook form by Father J. Barry McGannon, S.J.
The Adolescent Boy is intended primarily to be a guide for mothers
and fathers of normal boys of our modern world, yet it will also be
very informative for teachers and guides of high school boys. A penetrating understanding of the adolescent mind and will, amassed from
thirty-three years of practical experience, pervades every page. Unencumbered by scientific jargon and a statistical approach, Father
Connell presents the key to success in forming the adolescent-sympa~hetic understanding-in a warm and informal manner. One discouragIng aspect for the reader may be that few will be able to match Father
Connell's tireless patience, even though intellectually they assent to his
Principle that: "There is not a boy in the world who won't recognize
and be won by sincere, persevering tolerance, and gentleness. He cannot resist it because his whole being calls for it ... He is always looking
for a world that shows understanding."
b Although the unusual design and format make this an eye-catching
o?k, one wonders if these features match the seriousness of the content.
8till one must grant that the cartoons, which are scattered throughout
the book, are cleverly executed.
The Adolescent Boy is highly recommended to all who come in con~~ct With boys. Teachers and parents of students who attend Jesuit
Igh schools will find this book particularly profitable.
EDWARD M. PICKETT, S.J.
�2CO
BOOK REVIEWS
AID TO COUNSELING
Fellowships in the Arts and Sciences, 1959-1960. By Virginia Bosch
Potter. Madison: University of Wisconsin, 1958. Pp. vii-195.
$3.00.
Here, in one handy volume, is given full information concerning more
than 7500 fellowships awarded annually by various public and private
agencies to students starting or engaged in undergraduate or postgraduate studies. More than 5000 of these fellowships are available
for studyo leading to the doctorate, along with stipends granted to the
student ·r.anging from $1,000 to $3,000 per year. The first edition came
out in 1957, and the present edition differs from it but little. A new
edition is promised each year.
The information on each fellowship includes such headings as the
following: address of the director ( s) ; purpose of the fellowship; fields
of study in which it is obtainable; qualifications and requirements;
period the award covers; stipend allowed; other allowances (tuition,
grants to the college, family allowances); type of application (letter,
questionnaire, interview) ; time schedule including deadline for application, date of notification etc.; the number of awards granted by this
particular foundation. The listings are divided into pre-doctoral awards,
post-doctoral awards, senior and faculty awards, and overseas awards.
The fields include humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, and a
general category which places no restriction on the field of study. Besides
the chapters in which information is given, there is a chapter entitled
"Counseling the Fellowship Applicant" which contains valuable hints
on the qualities that directors look for in applicants and those modes of
action that are to be avoided.
The book is to be very highly recommended to all of Ours who are in
any way connected with placement services in our colleges and to those
professors who have contact with our students in their senior year. All
will agree that we have an obligation to our graduates to make known
to them the almost countless opportunities for further study.
JOHN J. ROHR, S.J.
LAY MISSIONARY
Le Premier Retraitant du Canada: Joseph Chihouatenhua, Huron. By
Leon Pouliot, S.J. Montreal: Les :Editions Bellarmin, 1958. Pp.
93. $1.00.
Th~ Jesuit of today will find many points of interest in this book
about the mission activity of his confreres in early America. When one
subtracts the somewhat bulky appendix of documents, the text com·
prises only fifty-six pages; it can be read at one sitting. This Indian
is perhaps the greatest fruit of Jesuit labors among the Hurons and
stands as a symbol of Jesuit missionary activity. Converted by the
living Christian charity of the apostle, St. John de Brebeuf, this Huron,
baptized Joseph, became himself an apostle. Missionaries will be in·
�BOOK REVIEWS
201
terested in the light that this book sheds on the apostolic problems of
the time. Stress had been put on the education of the young, since the
elders were considered too enmeshed in their ancestral prejudices and
disorderly habits ever to be admitted to Baptism while still in health.
The results of the school for Huron boys which was established at
Quebec were, however, not too happy. This, coupled with the conversion
of Joseph and his family, caused a shift in mission tactics and more
stress was placed on the conversion of the heads of families and the
chiefs of clans.
Christian philosophers will see in the case of Joseph the connaturality
between the natural law and revealed law. His was the anima naturaliter
Christiana, the fertile soil ready for the Gospel seed. His life can be
a lesson to us today. One does not have to be a lettered and cultured
man to live an integral Christian life. The best evidence for his sanctity
is perhaps the fact that the missionaries considered him saint. After he
died-the victim of an Iroquois tomahawk-Father Lalemant salves
his disappointment at the loss of such a valuable lay apostle with the
thought, "The saints have more power in heaven than here below."
Since the chief obstacle to the Faith in Huronia was the charge that
the missionaries were sorcerers who brought disease to the Hurons, some
mention should have been made of the persuasive theory of Leo-Paul
Derosiers as to the source of the disease. In actual fact the missionaries
were the unwitting source of the malady. They carried along with them
microbes to which they had become immune but to which the Indians
had built up little resistance. However, this is but a slight oversight in
a study whose main object was to portray the sanctity of a Christian
Indian and his efforts to spread the Faith among his own people.
ANDREW A. CONNOLLY, S.J.
THE IGNATIAN WAY
Finding God In All Things: Essays in lgnatian Spirituality, Selected
from Christus. Translated by William J. Young, S.J. Chicago:
Henry Regnery Co., 1958. Pp. ix-276. $4.50.
The articles presented in this book were selected from the first twelve
numbers of Christus, a review published by the Fathers of our French
Provinces. They are arranged in five parts: God, His Glory, Love, and
Service; Christ and His Mother; the Problem of Prayer and Action; the
Discernment of Spirits; Characteristic Ignatian Virtues.
The manuscripts of the Constitutions of the Society show that St.
Ignatius corrected his preliminary view of the importance of the studies
of the Scholastics. Whereas he originally considered their activity "a
true prayer and one more acceptable" than formal prayer, later he signified by a marginal notation that he judged it "much more acceptable."
Here is an image of Ignatius' own growth: how he turned from the
many hours of prayer each day at Manresa to prayerful activity as a
means of obtaining union with God. As far back as his trip to
Jerusalem, Ignatius had chosen God as his companion throughout the
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BOOK REVIEWS
day, "expecting help from Him when he was hungry, and if he fell, he
would look to Him for help in getting up." Then at La Storta his
services were formally accepted by Christ. The problem of prayer and
action receives consideration in three excellent articles. As quite commonly agreed, Ignatian prayer is not a storehouse upon which the
person draws during his apostolic day, or as the day upon which the
night of activity quickly settles. In the rhythm of life, an apostle's
awakening, work, and sleep are not of a half-person, but of the entire
man. According to Father Nadal, each community receives the special
grace of its' founder. The grace of the Society enables its men to enter
a continuous cycle of prayer and action: their diligent work for Christ
aids their prayer, their humble prayer aids their work. For Ignatius
there was no dividing a man's life: the awakening of the person to life
meant the resumption of his life in Christ. Similar instances of intellectual depth can be found in the other divisions of this book.
Father Young continues to put us in his debt by his diligent translations of the best Ignatian literature. Through his translation of these
various essays from Christus the English reader can enjoy the latest
thoughts of outstanding European scholars on Ignatian spirituality.
ARTHUR MORGAN, S.J.
UNITY OF THE BIBLE
Prophecy Fulfilled. By Canon Rene Aigrain and Abbe Omer Englebert.
Translated by Lancelot C. Sheppard. New York: David McKay
Co., 1958. Pp. xii-27 4. $3.95.
This book must be understood in ilte context of the reaction to the
exaggerated emphasis on scientific exegesis, which in turn is a reaction
to the allegorical interpretation of some of the Fathers. It belongs to
the increasing number of books today that emphasize the spiritual unity
of the Bible as against the all too one-sided study of its human origins.
While approving of biblical study along scientific lines, the authors insist that this should not be to the detriment of the more important
spiritual sense which was the preoccupation of the Fathers. While
making allowances for their exaggerations, we must, if we are to listen
to this book, endeavor to recapture their spirit. The book shows the
continuity between the Old Testament and the New: how the former is
a preparation for the latter; how under the dynamic concept of the
Covenant, the Bible is seen as an organic whole. In the second half
of the book the authors treat in separate chapters of the nature of
God, the person of the Messias, the universal character of revealed
religion, the future life, the moral law, and the manner of worshipping
God. These factors are then shown to constitute the main points of the
Church's doctrine. Here a wrong impression could be given the general
reader that the Bible is nothing but a book containing a body of doctrine
rather than as a record of the encounter between Yahweh and His people.
The merit of the book is the happy choice of the biblical category of the
Covenant as the key concept for rightly understanding Old Testament
�BOOK REVIEWS
203
history. The authors however, could have exploited this concept better
if they pointed out that the Christian community is actually the fulfillment of the old Covenant.
The general reader will find the book an excellent introduction to
the Bible. Students of the Bible will find that books like this fill the
gap which is the result of a separate treatment of the Old and the
New Testaments.
EULALIO BALTAZAR,
LANDS TO THE SOUTH
New Horizons in Latin America. By John J. Considine. New York:
Dodd, Mead & Company, 1958. Pp. xvi-379. $5.00.
During the last year several political events turned the attention
of the American people towards Latin America. The general hostility
shown in those events was due partly to economic conditions, but mainly
to misunderstanding. This state of affairs also has religious implications. To promote a better understanding between the Catholics of
the two Americas, Father John J. Considine offers us an interesting
book on Latin American religious and missionary fields. It is divided
into five large sections: Brazil, the Colossus; Lands of the South;
World of the Andes; The Rise of Protestantism; Vignettes of Middle
America. The last part of the book is given over to Catholic statistics.
The general style of the book is narrative. It gives us a vivid and
entertaining view of the different countries and evidently has a missionary purpose. It lays no claim to originality or completeness. The
main sources of information are the Maryknoll priests who are working
in difficult areas on the continent. Due to this source of information, the
book is mainly concerned with social apostolate and economic conditions.
Throughout the book a friendly and benevolent attitude is maintained
and a praiseworthy open-mindedness as well. We may safely say that
no one below the border will find "North American prejudices" in this
book. It is written with objectivity, although it reveals the rather sad
standard of living among the indios or the rotos.
One question that could be raised is: to what extent is this picture
true? The single events and facts brought up in the book certainly correspond to reality. But in a book that proposes to give new horizons of
South America, it is the overall view that counts, that is to say, the general impression the reader obtains from the book. When a portrait is
Produced, it is the soul of a country or continent that must be exPressed. In this respect the book is less satisfying. Can I, as a Latin
American, recognize in it the true face of my fatherland? I could
hardly say so. Individual facts are there in abundance but, nonetheless,
the deep personality of the country does not manifest itself. .
One cannot but appreciate the great interest the author manifests in
the missionary fields of Latin America; but when a foreigner examines
this continent, no matter how friendly he may be, he will ordinarily
ob~ain a distorted idea. Latin America must be viewed not only in the
thmgs by which it differs from other countries, but in its specific
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BOOK REVIEWS
traits, which are the results of lasting cultural elaboration. It is in
the perspective of his historical and spiritual evolution that a country
must be approached if one is to grasp the essential traits of its soul.
Once this is achieved the desired mutual understanding offers no problem.
RENATO HASCHE, S.J.
l\IASS IN THE l\IISSIONS
Worship: The Life of the Missions. By Johannes Hofinger, S.J. et al.
Translated by Mary P. Ryan. Notre Dame: University of Notre
Dame Pr~~s, 1958. Pp. x-342. $4.75.
Neither pan-liturgists nor historical archaists but pastors of souls
exiled from China, the contributors to the fourth volume of Notre Dame's
Liturgical Studies hold that, "in order to carry out our missionary task
today we need above all a worship that is fully developed from the
missionary point of view" (p. 34). In the judgment of these members
of the Institute of Mission Apologetics, Philippines, an adapted, intelligible liturgy can be, without subordinating its primary role, a catechesis
forming those present into an apostolic community whose vitality will
profoundly affect their unbelieving neighbors. Such a pastorally effective
form of Mass celebration may not be liturgically ideal; yet it is for such
a renewal that the authors make their realistic plea.
That the restorations desired can be effectively made even while
observing existing rubrics is shown by a sample community Mass. To
provide adequate but varied instruction in Christian doctrine, a fouryear cycle of scripture readings is propased. Properly observed feasts
and socially administered sacraments (Baptism, Marriage, and Extreme
Unction) can, likewise, be suitable occasions for imparting instruction.
As aids to liturgical piety, the importance, qualities, and functions of
native music and art are carefully analysed. For popular prayer the
Christological psalms, not the comminatory and others explicable only
by historical, geographical, or theological knowledge, are shown to be
exceptionally apt. To maintain the spiritual life of the young community, so frequently without a resident priest, the possible value of
trained, permanent deacons for the missions is prudently considered.
Individual suggestions may not find favor (the advisability of extrasacramental confession in the case of adult catechumens, for instance);
the book's approach, however, is sound without being final.
The desire for greater use of the vernacular never becomes a demand
for "Mass without Latin." The modification of present rites is in the
interest of clarity and simplicity: "The Christian mysteries must explain
themselves and reach our peoples' hearts" (p. 74). Lastly, insistence
on a more flexible conformity in place of rigid, lifeless, world-wide uniformity is requested to take advantage of the prayer gestures natural
to each people. Such an apostolic program, however, must begin in the
local seminaries by integrating liturgical training with the entire
clerical formation.
These desiderata are by no means pleas for self-determination. Roman
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205
ecclesiastical authorities heed the attitude of ordinaries. Priests, then,
must use the concessions already granted, plan for the future, and make
their requests known to superiors. To help us appreciate this pressing
duty and lofty privilege, Worship: The Life of the Missions was written.
Love for the Church and the extension of God's Kingdom prompts the
discussion throughout.
ERWIN G. BECK, S.J.
THEMES FROM THE TESTAMENTS
The Meaning of Sacred Scriptures. By Rev. Louis Bouyer, C.O. Translated by Mary Perkins Ryan. Notre Dame: University of Notre
Dame Press, 1958. Pp. xi-258. $3.75.
This fifth volume in the Liturgical Studies series consists of twentyfour lectures delivered by Father Bouyer, professor of the Catholic
University of Paris, during the summer session at Notre Dame in 1956.
The expressed purpose of the author is to illuminate significant themes
and characteristics of the New and Old Testaments in order to show the
richness of meaning latent in divine revelation, not to produce a formal
commentary.
The most important parts of Father Bouyer's book are the first and the
last chapters: "The Word of God in Israel" and "The Psalms and the
Church." In the former the author indicates the relation of Scripture
to tradition, insisting on the Bible as tradition's essential element, its
nucleus, and, on the other hand, maintaining that tradition is the Bible's
"proper atmosphere, its living environment, its native light." The
uniqueness of the Bible among all writings claiming to be the word of
God is shown by stressing the fact that the other literature reveals
nothing of consequence concerning the future of man or the personality
of God. It is the latter feature--the revelation of the nature of Godthat is the concern of most of the chapters in this book. The author
shows how God used certain writers of the Old Testament in order to
reveal His different qualities or aspects: Amos to proclaim His justice;
Osee to show that He was a merciful God; Isaias to remind men of His
Holiness; and finally, Jeremias to stress that He was a God who demanded an interior religion, a metamorphosis of the heart. Along with
these ideas of the individual prophets, there is a discussion of most of
the general themes that constantly appear in the Old Testament: Cloud,
Ark, Presence, Wisdom, as well as the two prime ones: Covenant and
Word. In all of these, the author affirms the modern scriptural stand
that the Old Testament is a preparation for the New, not so much
through isolated prophetic texts as through the development of correct
attitudes towards God and religion.
The author considers only a few themes in the New Testament, such
as the concept of mystery in St. Paul, the phrase "Son of Man," and
the Johannine ideas of light and life. The heart of the book is in the
last chapter where the author concludes by giving his basic ideas on
Scripture. He explains that revelation does not mean that new ideas
Were constantly added, nor that the ideas once given became more and
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more complex, but rather that it is "the deepening of truths, very simple
and very rich, which were given from the beginning and make up the
unity of the divine Word."
A disconcerting factor noted in this book is that, in a field progressing
with the rapidity of scriptural studies today, we find only one reference
to a book published after 1950 and less than a dozen from the decade
before these lectures were given. Little or no attention is given to the
knowledge acquired from the Dead Sea scrolls, a fact that is especially
remarkable when we consider that the author does treat of the themes
of light an"d life in the writings of St. John. Moreover, the author's
efforts to ~show the uniqueness of Scripture in relation to Greek re·
ligious literature may appear to some as a little out-of-date and an
attempt to fight a battle already finished. On the other hand, Father
Bouyer does offer us a new, deep insight into the meaning of Scripture.
His revelation of the underlying unities in the great books of the Old
Testament will certainly provide a key to greater intelligibility in read·
ing these portions. This book will go far to deepen the reader's ap·
preciation of the psalms used in the breviary.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
JESUIT MISSIONARIES IN NEW SPAIN
Historia de Ia Provincia de Ia Compaii.ia de Jesus de Nueva Espana, Torno
II, Libros 4-6 (1597-1639). By Francisco Javier Alegre, S.J., New
edition by Ernest J. Burrus, S.J. and Felix Zubillaga, S.J. Rome:
Institutum Historicum S.J., 1958 .• Pp. xxxii-747. $6.00.
Father Ernest Burrus, S.J., and F!ither Felix Zubillaga, S.J., both of
the historical institute of the Society of Jesus in Rome, continuing their
remarkable work on the history of the Jesuit missions in New Spain,
present the second volume of a newly edited "History of the Society
of Jesus in the Province of New Spain." This work, written in 1766
by Father Francisco Javier Alegre, a Mexican humanist, is considered
by historians to be one of the best in this particular field. It would have
appeared in 1767 had not the Jesuits been expelled from Mexico. It was
not till 1842 that Father Alegre's work finally saw publication.
The first of the present volumes, reviewed in our April 1957 issue,
dealt with the pioneer work of the first Spanish Jesuits in New Spain:
erecting churches, sodalities of Our Lady, schools and missions for the
pagan Indians. The present volume embraces what can be called the
perioq of consolidation, as well as the difficult period of expansion
towards the Yucatan peninsula, Central America, and even present
day Colombia. Once more we must point out the fine critical spirit
shown by Father Alegre in the composition of his manuscript at a
time when historical criticism was far from flourishing. In addition,
we find his colorful accounts of the successes, labors, and glorious
martyrdoms of many Jesuits very appealing.
To the manuscript of 1842 the present editors have added many ex·
planatory notes and biographical data on some Jesuits who are not
�BOOK REVIEWS
207
well known. They have included critical interpretations of the historical
facts presented by the author. All this has been made possible by
scholarly research in archives and collections of manuscripts. The introduction, the appendix of unpublished documents and extensive bibliography make this new edition important for the history of the Church
and of the Society of Jesus in the evangelization of the New World.
FRANCISCO DE P. NADAL, S.J.
THE THEOLOGY OF THE SACRED HEART
Heart of the Saviour (A Symposium on Devotion to the Sacred Heart).
By Josef Stierli, S.J. et al. Translated by Paul Andrews, S.J. New
York: Herder and Herder, 1958. Pp. ix-268. $3.75.
Ever since the extension of the feast of the Sacred Heart to the whole
Church a century ago, the spread of the devotion to the Sacred Heart
has been nothing short of miraculous. Still in spite of or perhaps more
correctly because of its wide appeal, a great many of the difficulties that
were proposed by its most rabid opponents prior to 1856 are still being
aired today in certain quarters of the Church universal. It is still a
veritable rock of scandal to the inquiring piety of some of the laity as
well as to the more critical thinking of a number of Church scholarsBible exegetes, moralists, dogmatists, liturgists, historians-all of whom
find some flaw or other to criticize in the theory and practice of the
devotion. And these criticisms are quite understandable when one keeps
in mind the unpalatable external accretions that have become attached to
the devotion in the course of the years.
These criticisms, ranging all the way from outright ridicule to serious
charges of unsound theology, cannot, must not be easily shrugged off.
It is partly to answer these criticisms, partly in the very answering to
give the orthodox theological basis of the devotion that the present
book was put together by Father Stierli in collaboration with three other
Jesuits-Father Richard Gutzwiller and the two brothers Rahner, Hugo
and Karl. There are nine essays in all (originally given as conferences at
a students' congress in Bad Schonbrunn, Switzerland, in 1951); their
arrangement is quite simple. The opening chapter is a frank, forceful
setting forth of the criticisms, large and small, that have been leveled
at the devotion by its critics. This is followed by four chapters, more
or less historical in character, which cover practically all of history
from Biblical times through the Patristic and the Medieval ages to our
modern era. The last four chapters attempt a deeper examination of
~he dogmatic principles involved in the devotion and of its proper place
In the total picture of divine Revelation and Church liturgy.
The continuity and flow of the work as a whole is truly remarkable,
much more so when one considers the diverse authorship of the essays
~hat go to make it up. Credit for this is due to the skillful editing of
ather Stierli, and, in the English version, to the easy style of Father
Andrew's translation. The latter has gone beyond the German text by
appending Pius XII's Haurietis Aquas at the end of the nine essays where
�208
BOOK REVIEWS
it fits in most admirably. The editor in his preface states what the book
modestly aims to be: a fragmentary contribution towards filling the
lacuna of a comprehensive theological exposition of the devotion. One
wonders whether its contribution is merely fragmentary, or whether,
with its publication, there still exists such a lacuna to be filled. At any
rate, Heart of the Saviour will be a notable addition to the rather
meagre literature on Sacred Heart theology in English.
FRANCISCO F. CLAVER,
S.J.
LITURGY AND LIFE
The Inner Life of Worship. By Charles Magsam, M.M. St. Meinrad:
Grail Publications, 1958. Pp. 323. $4.50.
As the author's imaginative thinking fixes the liturgy into the harmony
of Christian living, a thoughtful perspective takes shape in the reader.
Subtly, Father Magsam weaves his theme. Liturgy is not external rites
and ceremonies. It is worship; it is the total Christian response. It is
the expression of Christ's people of all that leaps out from reason into
the center of Christian mystery, coloring all with the spectrum of
Christ's new creation. These are totally Catholic thoughts, and why
ha._ve we not expressed them before?
The relationships of worship to prayer life, to a full personality, to
the Mystical Body of Christ, to the Mass, to the Sacraments, are
thoughtfully worked out. When Father sketches the course of liturgical
history, he shows that the organic grpwth of worship is dependent upon
the dogmatic health of an age. Somewhat timidly, he hints that our age
is ready for the strength of Catholic manhood.
In his treatment of the sacramentals, our Maryknoll liturgist dis·
covers the beauty of little things in the light of Christian awareness.
Then, he raises the problem of father leadership, and its intimate con·
nection with the harmonious development of Catholic family life, par·
ticularly through worship.
These are many good insights and reflections for a single book.
There is more. Chapter thirteen, "With Voice and Hands," deals with
art. It describes the Christian sensitivity that should see and make
beauty in all things. Somewhat irritating is the dogmatic assurance
with which certain evaluations are advanced. It is not sufficient to
possess a philosophy of art; great controversy can arise out of an ap·
plication of philosophical principles. Again, with wonder, we watch
Fatlier construct the ideal Christian artist, a technical giant and saint
of God; the treatment of more ordinary artists is left for someone else
to discuss.
The price of the book seems high when we consider only its material
advantages. A number of typographical errors contrast sharply with
the author's exhortations in the thirteenth chapter. On the other hand,
for the provocative thought content, the reader gets a bargain.
GEORGE
R.
GRAZIANO,
S.J.
�--WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVIII, No. 3
JULY, 1959
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1959
THE MILFORD NOVITIATE --------------------------------------------------------------· 211
Alfred J. Labuhn
VATICAN MANUSCRIPTS ON MICROFILM -------------------------------- 222
Lowrie J. Daly
A LOOK AT CATHOLICISM IN NIGERIA-----------------------------------·------- 230
James L. Burke
THE SOCIETY AND THE LITURGICAL MOVEMENT -------------------238
Paul L. Cioffi
William P. Sampson
HOW IGNATIAN IS THE SODALITY? --------------------------------------------- 247
John C. Haughey
FATHER LEO MARTIN----------------------------------------------------------..:..---------·-----· 2.77
Michael McHugh
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF JESUITS ------------------------------- 293
William J. Mehok
TEMPORAL COADJUTOR ASSIGNMENTS ----------------·-----·--------------- 300
Leo B. Hyde
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS-----·-----·-·------------------------------·--------- 302
�CONTRIBUTORS
1\lr. Alfred Labuhn (Chicago Province) is studying philosophy at West
Baden.
Father Lowrie J. Daly (Wisconsin Province) is director of microfilm
projects and editor of Manuscripta at St. Louis University.
Father James L. Burke (New England Province) is prefect general of
colleg!s' and universities in his province.
Father Paul L. Cioffi (:Maryland Province) and Father William P. Samp·
son (New York Province) are Fourth Year Fathers at Woodstock.
1\lr. John C. Haughey (:Maryland Province) is studying theology at
Woodstock.
Mr. Leo B. Hyde (California Province) is studying theology at Alma.
Father Michael McHugh (Oregon Province) teaches at Seattle Pre·
~para tory School.
Father William J. l\Iehok (Wisconsin Province) is assistant secretary of
the Society in charge of statistics .•
-
.
Father William T. Noon (New York Province) is professor of English
literature at Canisius College.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1. 1942. at the post office at Woodatoek•
Maryland. under the Act of March 3. 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�The Milford Novitiate
Albert J. Labuhn, S.J.
An historic river in Ohio winds through territory which
was part of the underground railroad during the Civil War.
Eight miles before it empties into the Ohio, the Little Miami
passes a small town, rushes toward a tall Gothic tower, then
suddenly makes a sharp right turn, and flows below property
now owned by the Society of Jesus. The town is Milford,
Ohio; the tower surmounts Sacred Heart Novitiate of the
Chicago Province; and the property is called Ripples.
Early Milford
In May, 1788, John Nancarrow, a Dutch burgomaster,
surveyed and laid claim to land east of Cincinnati, Ohio,
and in later years increased his acreage by profits on the
grain market. But speculation finally ruined him, forcing
him to sell his entire 230 acres in 1802 to Philip Gatch, for
$920. 1 By January, 1806, John Hageman had acquired ownership of sixty-four of these acres for his grain and flour
mills, giving the name Hageman's Mills to the area. 2
About the time Nancarrow sold his land to Philip Gatch,
Mathias Kugler, an immigrant from Baden, Germany, came
to Chris Waldschmidt's mills at Little Germany which is
now Camp Dennison. A few years later he married Waldschmidt's daughter. After the birth of two sons, John and
Mathias Jr., Mathias Kugler succeeded to his father-in-law's
business, and merged with Hageman. Their interests soon
grew to include gristmills, sawmills, papermills, a distillery,
and a general store. Kugler's eldest son John acquired the
entire enterprise about 1830, and moved to Hageman's Mills. 3
-
1
Arthur P. Bancroft, A History of Clermont County (Batavia,
Ohio, 1880), p. 460.
2 lbid.
3
Robert L. Black, The Little Miami Railroad (Cincinnati, n.d.),
p. 19.
211
�MILFORD
212
Originally it had been necessary for customers to ford the
river; hence, the little town was called Milford. Later, a
toll bridge was built; but in protest against the exorbitant
rates charged him John Kugler brought in stone to build his
own bridge. Alarmed at the prospect of losing their best
customer, owners of the toll bridge reduced Kugler's rates.
Accordingly, he used the stone to build an inn, a stable, and
several '~arehouses still standing in Milford. After his
marriage to Rebecca West, he converted the inn to a home,
making
trip to Paris to obtain fancy chandeliers.4 His
mills had brought trade and settlers to Milford, and by 1836
the town was incorporated. 5 In 1840, the Little Miami Railroad was completed from Cincinnati to Milford, John Kugler
providing the site for the Cincinnati depot. And on Decem·
ber 14, 1841, the Governor Morrow, a twelve-ton, fourwheeled, ten-foot locomotive, with two coaches and a freight
car, made the trip from Cincinnati to Milford in an hour
and a half. 6
John Kugler died intestate in 1868, and all of his property,
valued at over half a million dollars, went to his wife Rebecca.
A year later his widow married Edward B. Townsend.
When she died without issue in 18.71, the property and money
was divided between Townsend and her brother John West.T
A portion of this inheritance was Kugler's Woods, at that
time Milford's favorite picnic grounds. It was here that a
narrow gauge railroad, a division of the present Norfolk
and Western, which passes south of the Novitiate, was then
laying its track. It bridged the East Fork River, came across
what is now the Juniors' athletic field, ran directly in front
of the shrine of St. Ignatius, and proceeded over the front
lawn to Newtonville. But just after the track had been laid
the company went bankrupt; and as a result the line was
never.' opened to passenger trains.
a·
4 Information gleaned from a souvenir sketch of Milcroft Inn, Mil·
ford, Ohio, a restaurant which was converted from Kugler's original inn.
5
Arthur P. Bancroft, Gazetteer and Directory of Clermont CountY
(Batavia, Ohio, 1882), p. 49.
6 Black, p. 33.
7 Will of Rebecca West on file (1871) in Probate Court, Clermont
County Courthouse, Batavia, Ohio.
�1\:IILFORD
213
The property also served as an entertainment center about
this time. Baseball had found its way into American life.
A field just inside the front gate of the novitiate became
a baseball diamond. It was the home of the Milford nine,
which was good enough to win the Silver Ball, symbol of the
amateur championship of Ohio, and also regularly played
the Cincinnati Redlegs' second team, sometimes defeating
them. 8 Wheelwrights, carriage makers, tinsmiths, and millers were among Milford's 732 people in 1880. 9 Within
the next fifteen years Milford would become noted for the
elegant country homes of merchants and businessmen of
Cincinnati.
Irwin Estate
The marriage of one of these Cincinnati businessmen,
William Taylor Irwin, of the Irwin-Bahlmann Brokerage,
to Louise Orr, daughter of a Cincinnati surgeon, brought yet
another country home to Milford. Living in the city during
the winter, the Irwins decided to buy a country place for
the summer months. May, 1895, saw the purchase of Kugler's Woods, comprising eighty-eight acres, from the Townsend-West Estate by William T. Irwin. He promptly dropped
the name Kugler's Woods and called the property Ripples,
having noticed that the current of the Little Miami flowing
swiftly over its boulder rock bed produced numberless ripples.
Workers hired for a dollar a day hauled rock from the river
for the new house. The rocks were spread out, the best
being selected for the house, while the remaining ones were
used for the barns and greenhouse. Irwin furnished the
homestead, which had something of the hunting lodge about
it, with carved tables, silver chandeliers, oaken bedsteads,
and costly settees.
By September, the home was finished.. In the ensuing
Years the Irwins had the pleasure of entertaining frequently,
for their large mansion could provide as many as twentythree persons with overnight accommodations. Carriages
-
8
Information received in a conversation with the Laudeman family,
.
neighbors of the novitiate.
9
Bancroft, Gazetteer and Directory, p. 10.
•
�MILFORD
214
carrying Tafts, Procters, and members of other noted families often rolled up to the twin-lamped door. 10
Other buildings on a lower level of the property were a
milkhouse with windmill overhead, and an icehouse. In
1905, a swimming pool was dug on the site of Kugler's
maple sugar refinery. But the main attraction was the
pavilion.,built in 1915. The Irwins had twin boys who died
in infancy, a daughter, Janet, who died when she was
twelve, ~nd the youngest, Anna Louise, for whom they built
the pavilion. It made the perfect setting for her debut and
dances, for it had a dance floor sixty-two by thirty-three
feet. Anna Louise's dinner-dances sometimes attracted as
many as four hundred guests and Francis G. Baldwin was
generally her escort. Anna Louise married Baldwin, and
after World War I, she no longer used the Milford homestead.
On her mother's death in 1922, she became sole heir to the
house and property. 11
Missouri Province Expands
In 1925, the hundred year old Missouri Province numbered
1217 Jesuits, an increase of fifty-nine over the previous year.
There were one hundred and seven Scholastic novices and
thirteen novice Brothers under the care of one master of
novices at St. Stanislaus Novitiate, Florissant, Missouri.11
One man could train such a large number only with difficulty,
and the overcrowded conditions called for another house of
probation. Accordingly, Very Reverend Father Francis :X.
McMenamy decided to purchase property for a new novitiate.
Because of the Province Procurator's poor health at the
time, Father Aloysius A. Breen was appointed to assemble
information concerning the relative merits of several propos~d locations. Of them he wrote:
I was given a list of possible sites, eight of them, among which
were Interlaken, Indiana, Milan, Indiana, Ottawa, Illinois, Fort
Thomas, Kentucky, and a villa in Wisconsin. I visited each of
Information received in a conversation with the Craver family,
residents of Milford.
11 Will of Mary Louise Irwin on file (1922) in Probate Court, CJer·
mont County Courthouse, Batavia, Ohio.
1 2 Missouri Province Catalogue, 1925.
1
- --0
�MILFORD
215
them and wrote a rather lengthy description of each one of them
in particular.13
In the meantime Mr. Walter Schmidt, Cincinnati realtor
and close friend of the Jesuits, was also asked to negotiate
for the purchase of a site. Of his efforts he wrote:
In early 1925, Father Hubert H. Brockman, then President of
St. Xavier College, saw me and told me of the prospective division
of the Province. He stated that he thought Cincinnati would be
the logical place for a Novitiate. He asked me to search for a
suitable site, outside Cincinnati but reasonably close to it. After
inspecting and rejecting many properties, as they did not meet
the specifications, I finally found one which offered reasonable
privacy and also proximity to Cincinnati. 14
After the approval of Jesuit superiors Mr. Schmidt secured
the land. A deed, dated June 3, 1925, transferred certain
property from Anna Louise Irwin Baldwin to St. Xavier
College, for the sum of $94,000. It was Ripples, Milford,
Ohio .IS
By this time, oaks, elms, firs, pines, maples, walnuts, and
cedars beautified the estate while bushes and picturesque
shrubs abounded. During the summer, the Leibold-Farren
Building Company added a temporary two story frame building, 150 by 36 feet. It was large enough for sleeping
quarters, chapel, study hall, library, and classroom for fifty
novices.
Jesuits Arrive
On the morning of August 17, 1925, the doors of the
new novitiate were opened by Father John Neenan and
Brother Francis Schwackenberg. They had come a few
days early to unpack dishes, furniture, and bedding, in
preparation for the arrival of the community. 16 Brother
John Hoffman came a day later, along with Brother Francis
Wid era.
-
13
Excerpt from a letter of Father Breen to the writer, March 1,
'
14
Excerpt from a letter of Mr. Schmidt to the writer, March 19,
1957.
15
Deed Book of Clermont County, 1925, County Recorder's Office,
Clermont County Courthouse, Batavia, Ohio.
16
Superior's Diary, August 17, 1925.
1957.
�MILFORD
216
On the morning of the twentieth, at 9 A.M., a train pulled
out of Union Station, St. Louis, carrying two Jesuit priests
and a group of novices. 11 That same night, Father Hubert
Brockman, Brother William Thirolf, and a number of Cincinnati businessmen motored through a heavy downpour
of rain to the Baltimore and Ohio station, to meet the St.
Louis train. At 9 :30 P.M., the novice master, Father William
Mitchell,, his socius, Father Francis O'Hern, twenty-seven
Scholasttc novices and one novice Brother, sat down to the
first community dinner in the erstwhile dance hall. At
eleven o'clock the community retired, the Fathers and Brothers sleeping in the rock mansion. 18
"Next morning the heavens were clear," reported one of
the novices, "and we found ourselves located in a park surpassing in beauty anything we had anticipated." 19 For two
strenuous weeks the novices worked to prepare the grounds
and buildings for the arrival of fourteen postulants who
entered on September 2. 20 Then all settled down to regular
novitiate life, but the advent of ten more novices from
Florissant and the sudden death of novice Andrew Roche,
broke the routine.
Making a Start
October 2 witnessed the blessing of the house, chapel, and
statues, and that same night twenty-one novices began the
first Long Retreat at Ripples. The feast of All Saints, thirty
days later, found the Missouri Province with a daughter,
the Ohio Vice-Province, under Reverend Father Jeremiah
J. O'Callaghan. 21 Plans for the new permanent novitiate
were designed, revised, and sent to Rome for approval. The
sixth Jesuit novitiate in the United States had made its start.
Shortly after New Year's Day, 1926, while Ripples was
expe:t:iencing a very severe winter, Father Michael Eicher
arrived as first Spiritual Father of the community. 22 During
Novice Diary, August 20, 1925.
Ibid.
1n Ibid., August 21, 1925.
2o Superior's Diary, September 2, 1925.
u Ibid., November 21, 1925.
:2 Ibid., January 7, 1926.
17
1S
���MILFORD
217
the next few months various local items made news in the
novitiate-the first burse of eight thousand dollars was contributed to the house, a water softener was installed, some
Guernseys were bought, and Brother Carl Ehrbar came from
Florissant to take care of the chickens and gardens.
In spring, the novices built a shrine to the Blessed Virgin,
placing in it the statue of Our Lady which had remained
unburned in the 1882 fire in St. Xavier's Church, Cincinnati.
On the first Sunday in May, the community began a custom,
observed each year thereafter, of consecrating itself to Mary
at the shrine. 23 Other firsts at this time were the donation
of a Chevrolet automobile, a provincial visitation, and a visit
by the American Assistant.
Then, on August 3, the Leibold-Farrell Building Company
began excavations for the permanent building. 24 Due to the
fact that a Juniorate had not yet been established, twentyfour pioneer novices had to leave Ripples for Florissant after
pronouncing their vows. During the early months of 1927, the
novices watched the structural skeleton arise. Then the
building was bricked, stoned, and plastered. At once, scrubbing and window washing became a daily manualia task for
the novices. 25
Permanent Novitiate
The new three-story building was opened for visitors'
inspection on August seventh. 26 One week later, all furniture
from the chapel, dormitories, and refectory had been moved
into the red-brick building. The happy day had arrived
about two years after the first supper at Ripples. On August
13, 1927, the community sat down to supper in the new
house, which became a home with the celebration of Mass
the next morning in the chapel. 27
Several weeks went by and then an exchange sent six
more men to Florissant for Juniorate studies, and brought
thirteen Juniors and nine second-year novices ·from Floris-
-
23
Ibid., May 2, 1926.
Ibid., August 3, 1926.
25
Novice Diary, July 25, 1927.
26
Superior's Diary, August 7, 1927.
27
Ibid., August 13, 1927.
24
�MILFORD
218
sant. 28 Early September welcomed another group of novices,
including five from the Maryland-New York Province.
More Jesuits came to fill administrative posts. Father
Francis P. Kemper, Rector of St. Stanislaus Novitiate when
the move was made in 1925, became master of novices,
replacing the ailing Father Mitchell. 29 Father Francis Haggeney took up the duties of Spiritual Father in place of
Father Eicher. The juniorate faculty of Father William J.
Young,~Dean, Father Joseph Roubik, and Mr. Henry Linn,
professors, immediately began Greek, Latin, and English
courses for the Scholastics. The community numbered one
hundred. 30
Two Retreat Houses
About the same time that the Jesuit novices arrived at
Milford in 1925, Elet Hall on the St. Xavier College campus
was the scene of a number of laymen's retreats organized
by- Father Joseph Kiefer. In 1931, these retreats were transferred to Milford's rock house and barracks, as the novices
had termed the then unoccupied buildings. Father Thomas
J. Moore was appointed full-time retreat director. In 1946
when Father Nicholas Gelin sUcceeded Father Joseph Flynn
as retreat director, 1500 men were making retreats annually
in the original novitiate buildings. Under the title of Men
of Milford, these retreatants began the erection of their own
modern retreat house at the southern end of the novitiate
property. A fifty-five room, one-level Spanish Mission type
retreat house was opened on November 11, 1949. With a
thirteen room expansion in 1954, over 3500 men are noW
able to make an annual retreat under the present direction of
Father Delmar Dosch.
Yet the Irwin rock house and the novitiate barracks were
to see still another use. In June, 1955, permission was received from Rome to equip them as a high school and college
retreat house. During that summer and fall the two buildings were completely renovated by Jesuit brothers with a neW
coat of paint, running water in every room, tile floors, and
Ibid., August 30, 1927.
Ibid., September 3, 1927.
30 Ibid., August 19, 1927.
2s
29
�MILFORD
219
a simply decorated chapel. On December 2, 1955, the Loyola
Retreat House for Youth, under its founder and first director,
Father Gelin, opened its doors to a group of pre-medical
students from St. Xavier University, Cincinnati. Father
Francis Wilson, present director, lists more than 1300 yearly
retreatants from the colleges and high schools in the Cincinnati area.
Thirty Years Later
The Ohio Vice-Province became the Chicago Province on
August 15, 1928. At that time it totaled 588 Jesuits. With
steady increase of vocations it grew to number 1110 in 1954
and was divided into two separate administrative units on
the feast of the Sacred Heart, June 25, 1954. One section
comprised the states of Michigan and Ohio, with the exception
of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, and was called the OhioMichigan Region, having the status of a Vice-Province under
the care of Very Reverend Father Leo D. Sullivan. The
remaining area retained the name of the Chicago Province
with Very Reverend William J. Schmidt as provincial. At
this time both provinces entered a novitiate construction
phase.
When the permanent novitiate building at Milford was
erected in 1927, adequate funds were lacking with which to
construct a suitable community chapel. Eventually, however,
it became imperative to provide more spacious accommodations. April, 1955, witnessed the submission of blueprints
for a new chapel at Milford. It would be built as a middle
wing to the existing building, and its main floor would be
the community chapel; also included in it would be seven
basement chapels, a sacristy, three classrooms and a typing
room.
During the summer months, Brother Schwackenberg with
the help of a half-dozen novices began to clear the quadrangle
behind the building. The statue of St. Joseph was removed
and five large evergreens transplanted. In the fall bids were
opened for the chapel construction. During the Ignatian
Year, 1956, work progressed steadily, and the first Mass
Was offered on March 10, 1957. Dedication by His Excellency,
Karl J. Alter, Archbishop of Cincinnati, followed on May 21.
�220
MILFORD
The main altar, the only one on the main floor, is made of
green and tan marble, with blocks of grey Indiana limestone
providing the background wall. Liturgical symbols in basrelief adorn the limestone blocks. Immediately in front of
this wall suspended from a tester, hangs a large crucifix
whose corpus is more than lifesize. The corpus is executed
in a restful, afterdeath attitude.
Beaiitiful stained glass windows feature the lgnatian
Spiritual Exercises. The east and west walls, also of the
Indiana limestone, are each broken by eight high lancet
windows a yard wide. These windows begin at approximately nine feet from the floor and mount to the ceiling.
Each window has seven panels, the lowest of which is
inscribed with a quotation from the Exercises. Beneath this
main section of glass, at eye-level, is an individual "keypanel" which portrays a meditation from the Exercises. The
order of the Exercises proceeds from the Gospel side, front
to rear, and Epistle side, rear to front. Total construction
costs for the chapel amounted to almost $600,000. At last
Milford had adequate facilities in which to train her novices.
Colornbiere College
Just as the labor of beginning a novitiate had taken place
thirty years before, so too the new Detroit Province, erected
in the Ohio-Michigan Region on August 15, 1955, now began
the same complex task. Three hundred and thirty-four acres
of land near Clarkston, Michigan, thirty miles northwest of
Detroit were acquired. On the feast of the Sacred Heart,
June 28, 1957, Reverend Father Leo Sullivan blessed the
ground and dedicated the future novitiate to Blessed Claude
de la Colombiere. The following months were spent in grad·
ing and excavating the site. By dint of hard work and
despite frequent rains which delayed progress, many sections
of the foundation were poured before winter arrived in fuJI
force.
On October 16, 1957, Father Denis E. Schmitt, with
Brothers John Bauer and Thomas Dublin, arrived to check
and supervise construction. They brought with them tem·
porary residences in the form of two trailers. One housed
�MILFORD
221
the chapel, sacristy, and living quarters of the Father; the
other, provided a kitchen, dining room, and living quarters
for the Brothers. The next morning, October 17, feast of
St. Margaret Mary, Father Schmitt said the first Mass on
the property. Then events quickened their pace. The building rose from the ground and spread. On December 8, 1958,
Father Ara F. Walker was appointed first Rector of Colombiere. In January, 1959, a building four stories high, but
due to the uneven terrain, built on five levels, was in final
stages prior to the arrival of its first novices. Erected at a
cost of five million dollars, the building is situated on a
rather considerable elevation, and will provide its residents
with a magnificent view to the north and west.
In the early morning hours of February 5, 1959, novice
master Father Bernard Wernert, and his Socius, Father John
Kehres, along with the Detroit Province novices, boarded a
chartered Greyhound bus at Milford Novitiate. Later that
same afternoon the bus entered Oakland County, Michigan,
and with almost 300 miles to its credit, turned off U. S.
Highway No. 10 onto a private drive. Colombiere College
was a fact.
Tribute to Ripples
Reverend Father Paul L. Allen, Milford's seventh rector,
and one of the first novices to enter in 1925, now heads a
community of 225. Father Robert Murphy, novice master,
has the sixty novices of the Chicago Province under his
care. Recent benefactions have furnished the Novitiate with
a modern twenty-five thousand volume library, an up-to-date
speech studio, and an assembly hall. The present community,
entering the thirty-fifth year of Jesuit life at Ripples looks
back upon the heritage of the past and realizes that a significant contribution has been made here to God's greater glory.
�Vatican Manuscripts on Microfilm
Lowrie j. Daly, S.J.
In writing about the Knights of Columbus Vatican Film
Library at Saint Louis University it is necessary to give
some }?rief survey of the project's development even though
sever~!' previous articles have detailed its history. 1
In March of 1950 the project first began to take shape with
the proposal by Father L. Daly to Father Paul C. Reinert,
president of Saint Louis University, and to Father J. P.
Donnelly, director of the university libraries, of a project for
filming sections of the Vatican manuscript collections. One
idea behind the proposal was to preserve the documents by
means of making a film copy of them. Another was to make
the manuscripts more easily available to American scholars.
During the following months negotiations were carried
~n with Vatican officials, during which Father James Naughton, the first American Jesuit to be appointed secretary of
the Society of Jesus, was of great help. Furthermore, the
enthusiastic cooperation of Abbot Anselm Albareda, prefect
of the Vatican Library, and -of the late Cardinal Mercati,
was of the utmost importance in presenting the proposals to
Pius XII, who generously gave the unique permission. A
few days before Christmas in 1950, the official answer of the
Holy See was received. Saint Louis University was ernpowered to begin the filming and to become the sole depository of these Vatican research treasures on film. Shortly
afterwards Father Donnelly and Father Daly went to Vatican
-Cf. for example, L. J. Daly and E. R. Vollmar, "The Knights of
Columbus Vatican Microfilm Library at Saint Louis University," The
Library Quarterly, XXVIII (July, 1958), 165-171; Thomas P. Neill,
"Ah Adventure in Scholarship," Books on Trial, XV (March, 1957),
299, 342-343; Thomas B. Sherman, "The Vatican Film Library," Satur·
day Review, Vol. XL (May 11, 1957); James V. Jones, "St. Louis Uni·
versity Libraries," Catholic Library World, XXIX (1957), 29-35; L. J,
Daly, "The Vatican Library: Mirror of History," Columbia, July, 1953;
"A Medieval Monk Meets Microfilm," ibid., November, 1953.
1
--
222
�VATICANA
223
City. After a short stay, the former returned to St. Louis,
while the latter remained in Rome to begin preparations
for the selection of materials and the importation of necessary
equipment.
Meanwhile Father Reinert was seeking additional financial
aid so that the fullest use could be made of the permission.
When the plan was made known to the Supreme Council of
the Knights of Columbus and its possibilities had been
explained and evaluated by Luke E. Hart, present Supreme
Knight, the Knights of Columbus organization began a series
of grants-in-aid which ultimately totaled some $340,000 and
made possible the very extensive microfilming project. It
is quite significant in the light of the many recent discussions
about the interest of American Catholics in scholarship that
this important project for the preservation of so many
records of our civilization and for the advancement of American scholarship was made actual by a national Catholic
organization.
Large scale filming was begun in the fall of 1951 and
equipment of various types was added until the group of
some fifteen Vatican technicians were using eight large
Eastman microfilm cameras (7 D's and 1 C), two large automatic developers, and a printer to accomplish the filming
of over eleven million pages of handwritten materials. Of
great help in giving technical advice, securing equipment,
and stabilizing methods were Edward T. Freel (then head
of the microfilm division of Remington Rand) and M. E.
Brand of Graphic Microfilm, New York. The film used
throughout was 35 mm. for the original negative and the
two positive copies; one of the positive copies is now used
at the Vatican Library.
Divisions of Vatican Library and Archives
The printed books and the manuscripts of the Vatican
system may be considered under three different divisions.
First of all, there is the huge collection of Vatican archival
materials which makes up the famous Vatican Archives.
These collections are composed of the "state papers" of the
Vatican both as a civil and as an ecclesiastical government,
�224
VATICANA
l
and their thousands of volumes fill the long rooms of the
present Vatican archive building. Next, one can consider
the printed books of the Vatican Library. Among the more
than 700,000 volumes are thousands of rare volumes which·
make the collection extremely valuable to the research scholar.
Finally, there is the Vatican manuscript section which is
composed of thousands of volumes of handwritten books
and documents. The basic unit division is a "codex," which
is a bound volume of handwritten materials. Sometimes a
codex may contain only one work; at other times a codex
may include three or four books, or fifteen or twenty booklets
or treatises. Sometimes a codex is a letter book, containing
hundreds of interesting letters.
It was with this last division, the Vatican manuscript section, that the project under discussion was concerned. The
ample budget made it possible to make a very generous
selection of materials, and this selection was made from the
Latin, Greek and Western modern language divisions. The
principle of selection followed was that of filming everything
considered to be of research importance to scholars in the
Western Hemisphere. A codex was always photographed
in its entirety, even though not" all the materials in it were of
equal importance. In the long run, this method saved time
and prevented confusion. A further procedure was the page
by page check of the film copy against the original codex so
that a perfect film copy was obtained.
The manuscripts of the various collections included books
and treatises from many different fields of study, and so it
was necessary to consult with many scholars both in Europe
and America. The end result of the project was the filming
of some 30,400 codices containing over eleven million pages
of handwritten materials.
Various Indexes to the Vatican Manuscripts
It must be recognized at the outset that there is no complete
index to the Vatican manuscripts. A further difficulty lies
in the fact, mentioned before, that codices often contain
several books or treatises, whose only relation is that of
being between the same covers. Or again, there may be a
�VATICAN A
225
group of codices which contain several hundred, or perhaps
several thousand, letters, but there may be only a partial
index within each volume. When it is remembered that
some eleven million pages of materials are on film, the
problem of indexes can be readily grasped.
In our experience the most accessible guide has been the
dictionary card catalogue which contains about two hundred
and forty thousand cards. It indexes some seven thousand
codices chosen from various collections. The card catalogue
is the result of a project initiated by the American librarian,
William Warner Bishop, and carried on by means of grants
from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Unfortunately, the project had to be discontinued before
completion. A photostatic copy in card form of this catalogue
is available for consultation at the Vatican Film Library.
The card catalogue contains one main entry card for each
title, while the subject and added entry cards contain about
the same information as the main card. The amount of
information on the different cards depends on such factors
as the state of the text, whether edited or not, or its completeness in the copy catalogue. The filing system becomes much
clearer to the American user if he spends some time consulting the book, Norme per l'indice alfabetico dei manoscritti, which explains the system and its principles. 2
A second type of guide to the multitudinous materials is
the collection of official catalogues. These catalogues sometimes overlap the card catalogue, but in other instances they
Provide the only complete information on a specific codex.
The official catalogues are issued in printed volumes; each
volume, written in Latin, lists and carefully describes a
certain number of codices from a specific collection. Some
of the collections have official catalogues for all their volumes,
While others are indexed only in part in this way, and some
not at all. For instance, the codices Burghesiani, a closed
collection, are completely indexed, but the codices Vaticani
Iatini, an open collection (still receiving accessions), has
-
B' .2 N orme per l'indice alfabetico dei manoscritti, ( Citta del Vaticano:
lbhoteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1938.)
�226
VATICANA
no official catalogue for many thousands of its volumes. 3
The third set of guides for the researcher is to be found
in the handwritten inventories. These volumes, about three
hundred in number and sometimes several centuries old, are
the only source of index information for a very large percentage of the Vatican manuscripts. Until recently they
were accessible only at the Vatican Library itself. Now,
however, there is a film copy available for consultation at
the Fjlm Library. These handwritten inventories are not
free from error, but on the whole they are monuments of
learning and at times are the only type of index which the
researcher has available. Only handwritten inventories exist,
for instance, for the ten thousand codices of the famed
Barberini collection.
Those who use the Film Library are given a mimeographed
list of the various indexes available for consultation, and
the researcher can check off the different indexes as he
consults them in pursuit of some author or other. On the
average it seems to take about ten to twelve hours of consultation to check through the various indexes for a single
author. If the author has mlj..ny works or is quite popular,
the task may take considerably ~longer.
Examples of Research Possibilities
It is difficult to make clear the enormous research possibilities in a collection of handwritten materials as vast as
that of the Vatican Library. Perhaps one method might be
to take a group of codices from some single collection, such
as the Borghese collection, and briefly note their contents.
The Borghese Collection contains 390 codices and it was
Cardinal Franz Ehrle, S.J., who discovered that this collection
was in large part a remnant of the old papal library at
Avignon. It had been brought to the Borghese palace in
3 Cf. the following articles: Charles J. Ermatinger, "Catalogues
in the Knights of Columbus Vatican Film Library at Saint Louis Uni·
versity," Manuscripta, I (1957), 5-21; 89-101; P. 0. Kristeller, "Latin
Manuscript Books before 1600: A Bibliography of the Printed Catalogues of Extant Collections," Traditio, VI (1948), 227-317; "· • •
Part II. A tentative List of Unpublished Inventories of ImperfectlY
Catalogued Extant Collections," ibid., IX (1953), 393-418.
�VATICANA
227
Rome during the pontificate of Paul V (1605-1621), and
Leo XIII bought it, together with some archival materials,
in 1891. In 1952 the Vatican Library published the printed
official catalogue of this collection.4
Some collections are rich in certain areas, and the Borghese
collection from its very nature is composed largely of twelfth,
thirteenth and fourteenth century materials, generally dealing with philosophy, canon law, and theology. For instance
within the first hundred codices, some examples of theological materials are the following: a thirteenth or fourteenth
century partial copy of Henry of Ghent's Summa (17); a
fourteenth century copy of the Summa of the Carmelite
friar, Gerard of Bologna (27) ; codex 29, a miscellany, which
contains several different theological writings of John Wyclif,
Robert Grosseteste, William Ockham, and William of Auvergne; and codex 36, which is a fourteenth century copy of
some theological writings of Duns Scotus, Thomas of Wylton,
and Henry of Ghent. There are several manuscripts of
philosophical writings; for instance, codex 37, a fourteenth
century manuscript of many Aristotelian treatises; codex 56,
containing some treatises of Aristotle together with commentaries and notes of various writers on these treatises;
while codex 57 is a thirteenth century copy of Averrhoes'
commentary on the Nicomachean Ethics of Aristotle, and
bound with it is a twelfth century anonymous commentary
on Cicero's De Inventione.
There are several interesting collections of sermons; a
thirteenth or fourteenth century copy of sermons for feast
days and holy days throughout the year by the Dominican,
John of the Bible, in codices 23 and 24; a fourteenth century
copy of the sermons of the Franciscan, Bertrand de Turre
(31), and a fourteenth century copy of the sermons of Pierre
Roger, afterwards Pope Clement VI (1342-1352), in codex 41.
Even in this rather specialized collection there are books
relating to branches of knowledge other than philosophy
and theology. For example, there are several manuscripts
-
4
Codices Burghesiani Bibliothecae Vaticanae. Recensuit Anneliese
Maier. Vol. 170 of "Studi e Testi." (Citta del Vaticano: Biblioteca
Apostolica Vaticana, 1952.)
�228
VATICANA
dealing with ciyil law and a large number with canon law.
Codex 64 is a fourteenth century copy of Witelon's Perspectiva, while codex 86 contains a group of medical treatises
in manuscripts from the twelfth to the fourteenth centuries.
To show the variety of materials involved as one moves
from one collection to another, some reference might be
made to the V aticani latini collection. In the codices Vat.
lat. 10400 to 10410, we find quite a different type of research
materiaL Codex 10401 is an eighteenth century Theatre
historique, a kind of world history book with names, dates,
and events of various monarchies and empires. This codex
was a presentation copy for Louis XIV. Codices 10404 and
10405 are two eleventh century copies of the Vulgate, while
10406 is a collection of letters of Innocent X (1644-1655)
regarding the various legations of Scipio d'Elci. Codex
10408 is a miscellany of some forty-one different items of
great variety; for instance, a letter of Father John Everard
Nithard to the Queen of Spain dated October 25, 1668, f. 372;
a description of the religious situation in Germany during
the time of Emperor Rudolph, f. 586; some matters referring
to the conclave in which Innocent XI was elected, and so on. A
single codex, if it is a misce-llany such as this codex Vat.
lat. 10408 often offers many items of interest to the historian.
Manuscripta
To facilitate research and to offer the scholar an avenue
of publication devoted especially to manuscript study, the
Saint Louis University Library began publication of the
journal, Manuscripta, in February of 1957. Issued three
times a year, the periodical publishes scholarly articles of
a general nature but directed to the aid of those actively
engaged in teaching or research in the humanities and
history, including the history of science. For instance, the
first issue contained an article on "Research Aids: NoteTaking Systems," explaining the adaptation of the modern
punch-card system to manuscript research.
A more specialized purpose of the periodical is the publi·
cation of articles based on research and study of the manuscripts in the various collections of the Knights of
�VATICANA
229
Columbus Vatican Film Library at Saint Louis University.
Such articles attempt to aid researchers, teachers, and directors of theses by making available to them information about
and descriptions of these manuscripts, their use, indexes,
contents, etc. A practical example of this has been the
listing, in each issue during the past two years, of the Vatican
codices (identified by collection and number) which are ready
for consultation at the Library. By means of these lists,
a scholar in any library or university, which has Manuscripta
on file, can easily check whether this or that codex is available
without going to the trouble of writing directly for such
information.
The response to Manuscripta has been surprisingly enthusiastic. It now has a good coverage of universities and
research centers in America and a growing list of European
ones. We could most certainly use more subscriptions,
however!
The completion of the new Pius XII Memorial Library at
Saint Louis University will make possible the study of manuscripts under ideal conditions. Completely air-conditioned,
the new library, equivalently a six story building, has a
series of rooms on the first floor for the study of the Vatican
films. The building itself is built to house one million volumes
and provide seating for a maximum of 1700 students. It
is hoped that these study conditions will increase the already
growing number of users of the tens of thousands of manuscripts, and that American scholars will avail themselves
more and more of the riches of one of the world's greatest
manuscript collections. In this way the wishes of Pius XII
"that these priceless treasures, the wealth of centuries of
scholarship and learning" may find a "fitting home in a
new and ample university library which will thus become
a center for scholars throughout your vast land," 5 will have
been fulfilled.
-
5
u~
Letter of Pius XII to Very Rev. Paul C. Reinert, S.J., Jan. 2,
.
�A Look At Catholicism in Nigeria
James L. Burke, S.J.
Editor's Note
On arriving at Rome on January 17, 1956 after a four month's
visit to Baghdad College in connection with the then projected Al-Hikma
University, Father Burke was assigned by Very Reverend Father
General>to a three or four weeks' visit to Nigeria, West Africa. In
May, 1955, Archbishop Charles Heerey, C.S.Sp., and his educational
assistant, Father John Jordan, C.S.Sp., had visited Father General to
inquire in the name of the hierarchy of Nigeria about the possibility
of an American Jesuit university somewhere in Nigeria, preferably in
its eastern region. As a result of later conferences in New York with
Father Edward B. Rooney, S.J., it was recommended that an American
Jesuit should visit Nigeria, view its educational structure, and learn
more of the projected university and of its curricula and of a proposed
affiliation with an American Jesuit university.
After receiving inoculations and after obtaining both a British
clearance and a Nigerian visa, Father Burke left Rome on the evening
of February 8, 1956. The following is a brief account of this visit
which was given over the Vatican Radio on March 19, 1956.
The 1956 visit of Queen Eli.z"abeth sharpened public interest
in Nigeria. Shortly after the Queen's arrival, I had the
opportunity to spend more than three weeks there getting
a look at what the Church is doing in education. Because
most of the approximately two million Catholics are found
in the lower part of that country, my visit centered on the
two parts known as Eastern and Western Nigeria. Twice
I stopped briefly in the northern city of Kano. At the airport
on my arrival, on February 9, 1956, I was greeted by Monsignor Lawton, an American Dominican who is prefect apos·
tolic at Sokoto in the extreme northeast. He is a graduate
of ·Boston College where I was long stationed as a teacher.
My initial air journey within Nigeria brought me froi!l
Kano via J os to Enugu-places which were not even names
to me when I had arrived in Rome in mid-January. Enugu
is the seat of government of Eastern Nigeria. It is a coal·
town, rapidly increasing in population. Its inhabitants come
from predominantly rural sections of Eastern Nigeria. For
230
�NIGERIA
231
a few days I stayed with the Irish Holy Ghost Fathers at
Bigard Major Seminary, where approximately sixty-five seminarians were studying philosophy and theology. With the
recent addition of more junior seminaries, where five years
of secondary school work is done, there will soon be a larger
number of major seminarians. Only two, I believe, of the
1955-6 group were due to be ordained that year. Most were
in the early years of training. This major seminary at
Enugu trains the candidates of the archdiocese of Onitsha
and its suffragan sees. In addition to this major seminary
in the east, there is also one in the west for the archdiocese
of Lagos and its suffragan sees. This rather large number
of native seminarians shows the strength of the Church in
Nigeria.
White Cassock
During my visit at Enugu, I was asked to give a talk to
the seminarians. Because I was in Nigeria to learn about
its school structure, which is British in pattern if not yet in
quality, I explained the corresponding school structure of
the United States. I was repaid by rapt attention at the
time, and, by having my picture taken later by one of the
seminarians. I looked forward to seeing it, if only to see
how I appear in one of the white cassocks which a native
tailor made for me. The limitations of my travelling bag
Prevented making off with one of these white cassocks. But
the picture, which might have been a memorial, never came.
On my first evening in Enugu, I had my evening mealcalled "chop"-with Monsignor John, a gifted native priest,
Who is Archbishop Heerey's vicar-general. He had recently
been named a monsignor, and also awarded one of the
Queen's honors. Since my departure, he has been named
Auxiliary Bishop of Onitsha. One of his assistants, too, is
a native priest; and another is Father Pat Sheehan, local
supervisor of schools, who has remarkable influence in the
area.
Enugu, being a growing town, has several primary schools,
as Well as one of the twenty Catholic secondary schools.
These schools are commonly known as colleges, and the one
at Enugu is the College of the Immaculate Conception, popu-
�232
NIGERIA
larly termed C. I. C. This school, as another at Orlu and one
in the British Cameroons, is staffed by Marist Brothers
from Ireland. Indeed so many of the Catholic missionaries
in Nigeria are from Ireland, that Prince Philip remarked that
there seems to be an Irish, rather than a British, problem
in Nigeria. These Marist Brothers are about to annex to
their o_rder what had been an autonomous group of native
Niger~a'n Brothers. A Brother who is to serve as novice
master'"arriv€d in Enugu a few days after my arrival. Like
my journey to Nigeria, his, too, had been held up by the
requirements for a visa, and for the necessity of an inoculation against yellow fever.
From Enugu, I travelled north with Archbishop Heerey.
This journey may illustrate some of the frustrations of
mission life in Nigeria. Well in advance of his trip, the
Archbishop sent a letter to a pastor near Nsucca informing
him when he would be there to confirm. But the letter ha~
not reached him when the Archbishop arrived, so there was
no confirmation. Moreover, the trip from Enugu to Nsucca
is not an easy one. I was amazed to see how much red soil
had gathered in my hair on this trip. But rural Nsucca has
its consolations, too. In addition to an elementary school,
it has a hospital with a nun doctor on the staff, and a teachers'
training school for boys. Perhaps I ·should add that the
common practice for girls to marry at the age of fourteen
or fifteen renders secondary schools for girls much less
common. Nsucca has one serious drawback as an educational
center. It has a shortage of water which, at present, tends
to put out of the question the use of an otherwise desirable
site for the Eastern Nigeria university.
N succa stands out in my mind because I said SundaY
Ma,.ss there, and became acquainted with the method of
preaching to a congregation, most of whom understand onlY
Ibo. Although English is the language in which education is
imparted, most of the elders have had little or none of it.
Hence, the following device: the priest gives one or two
sentences in English; then an interpreter translates the
message for the people. This method is not calculated to
make for fiery oratory, but it does encourage direct and
�NIGERIA
simple religious instruction. At the Communion time, there
were some ten to twelve rows of communicants. After Mass
is over, the congregation stays for a long period. On this
particular Sunday, they heard in Ibo the Lenten pastoral
of their Archbishop. Then in their gaily colored Sunday
clothes, they walk to the bush areas where they live. A few
well-to-do people may ride bicycles or tandems. The only
auto passengers were some Europeans.
Early in the ensuing week, I met Father John Jordan, who
serves as a special educational officer for the hierarchy of
Nigeria. He was my guide in my journeys through the east.
As we drove over miles of roads, we constantly passed Catholic elementary schools, training colleges for teachers, and
minor seminaries. It is through a chain of elementary schools,
which usually serve both as church and school, that Catholicism has spread. The training of elementary teachers might
not appear up to advanced standards, but it is improving
and has made it possible to have auxiliary teachers to the
priests, Sisters and Brothers, who, though numerous, could
not cope with the numbers of children, ready and eager for
education.
I
Towns and Villages
On Ash Wednesday we began a five day journey from
Onitsha to Calabar and back through towns and villages, most
of whose names are still a mystery to me. But I remember
Orlo, Owerri, Ihiala, Aha, Ikot Ipene, Abak, Orion and Calabar. Along the roads there were always crowds trudging in
one direction or the other in single file. They carried goods
of many varieties to and from markets, or they were out
for water. Some of the well-to-do had bicycles, and rented
rides on them. There were often trucks on the road, carrying
religious signs. Children along the roads waved to us, calling
out "Father" or "White Man." Some knowing children recognized the make of Father Jordan's car, and called to one
another "Chevrolet", pronouncing the final "t."
In the Calabar area, the missions and schools are conducted
by the St. Patrick Fathers, an organization formed to make
more effective the volunteer mission work of Irish priests
from Maynooth. While stopping at St. Patrick's College in
�234
NIGERIA
Calabar, where I studied the advanced certificate course in
science, we experienced a Nigerian tornado ; fierce gusts of
wind, heavy rain, and all but constant thunder and flashes
of lightning for an hour and a half. I had been told that
February was part of the dry season. It seems, however,
that the dry season often has a rainy interlude. The rain
brings out flying ants, which dance fiercely around the lights.
Strange as it may seem to us, these large ants are considered
quite a 4~licacy in food by the Nigerians.
The roads, the storms, the heat and humidity encountered
on this Onitsha-Calabar trip and return made me succumb
for a few days to tropical illness and fever. To ward off
fever, the missionaries usually take each day a few pills of
paladrin or a similar remedy. Even this precaution did not
save me. I was fortunate that a medical missionary doctor
was passing through Onitsha, and that there was a nun
nurse nearby who proved a great help. This particular nun,
Sister Cyprian, is most energetic and a precious source of
inspiration to her Nigerian patients.
On her advice, I made my trip to the west by plane. I
would not want to over-recommend these planes and the
grass strips on which they land·as a remedy for nervousness.
To connect with a plane for Lagos at Port Harcourt, I had
to travel by road about two hundred and twenty miles. We
took off at the end of another tropical downpour. A group
of English and American Holy Child nuns, one of whom had
been a pupil of mine in Boston, made the flight with me.
Due to this connection, I got a lift from the Lagos Airport
to the residence of Archbishop Taylor. Originally I had
been scheduled to spend that day elsewhere, but telegrams
in Nigeria, are not always delivered as promptly as one
might like. Lagos, however, proved a pleasant interlude. I
was .entertained by a Socony official, who also had been a
pupil of mine twenty-two years ago at Holy Cross College
in Worcester, Mass. In the summer of 1955, he had heard
that an American Jesuit was to make an educational tour
of Nigeria, but he had not pictured his former corridor pre·
feet and religion teacher as the one. He drove me to the
Dominican Mission and the schools of Lagos and took me
on Sunday to the company villa on the Gulf of Guinea. Arch·
�NIGERIA
235
bishop Taylor had me driven to the University of Ibadan.
There Father Foley of the Society of African Missions explained the facilities of the University and briefed me on its
educational system. Father Foley, is a member of the chemistry department and serves as chaplain to the sixty or so
Catholic students. The University, located outside an ancient
and overcrowded Mohammedan city, has a number of excellent buildings. Striking, indeed, is the library with reference
rooms, stacks, study carrels and well equipped with books
and periodicals. And all this since 1948.
Ibos and Yorubas
Recently a large Catholic church was erected on the
campus. It was dedicated on Low Sunday, 1956. Here I
said the students' Mass, which was well attended and at which
there were about twenty-five communions. These students
look forward to the eventual establishment of a Catholic
university where courses in Catholic philosophy will serve
to give direction and depth to secular learning. I had a
two hour discussion period with over thirty of them. I was
struck by the fact that in this group the rivalry between
Ibos of the East and Yorubas of the West was not as evident
as I had been led to expect. If there is one thing that can
be said about the Nigerian students, boys especially, it is
that they are grinds at study. They are keenly interested
in British and U. S. systems of education and are surprised
to learn that U. S. universities do not have the same methods
of affiliation with foreign universities, as does, for instance,
London University. They envisage a Catholic university in
Nigeria which might be affiliated with Fordham University
in New York City, take Fordham-supervised examinations
and receive Fordham degrees.
From Ibadan I returned to Lagos through Abeakuta where
the Catholic hospital was suffering from an acute shortage
of water. There I met a volunteer German Catholic doctor,
one of several who donate their services to the medical missions of Nigeria. He showed me an attractive mission calendar, with scenes from Nigeria and other parts of West
Africa, designed to stimulate mission interest among Germans. These volunteer doctors and the nun nurses are badly
�236
NIGERIA
overworked in addition to having to cope with water shortages, humid heat, and insects of many varieties. But it is
through such people that the Nigerian mission flourishes.
On my last days in Nigeria, I visited the College of Arts,
Science and Technology at Enugu, which is limiting itself to
the two year preparation for the advanced educational certificate, the normal requirement for university entrance. It
is a simple institution in comparison with Ibadan. In Enugu
I met the minister of education for Eastern Nigeria along
with his British and Nigerian assistants. The Nigerian, who
has a fine command of English, is a former teacher in the
Catholic school system. Much of our talk revolved about the
recently announced university for Eastern Nigeria, which
had unrealized hopes to open modestly in the fall of 1956,
and for which $15,000,000 had been allocated. While a
Westerner might believe that there is need for a more thorough primary and secondary school foundation for university
work, the people themselves are convinced that the best
products of their secondary schools should have university
training-and preferably at home. A few hours after this
interview in the office of education, I was off by plane from
Enugu through Maikurdi and -Jos to Kano, where I quickly
obtained passage in a plane to Rome, due to the kindness
of a Dutch Catholic official of the Royal Dutch Airlines.
In an article in the London Tablet on the Church in Nigeria, Archbishop David Matthew, former Apostolic Delegate
to West Africa, singled out for high praise four of those
with whom I had met in my brief visit: Archbishop Charles
Heerey of Onitsha, Archbishop Leo Taylor of Lagos, Father
John Jordan and Sister Mary Osmonde, religious superior
of the Holy Child nuns. He also praised the training of
native priests and urged the strengthening of religion in
the villages and among men. He had concluded by writing:
"Nigeria is emerging as a modern state, dominated by city life
and city politics. The movements of population are essentially the
same as those in Europe during the Industrial Revolution. As in
Europe, we must strengthen the Christian life of the village, 50
that the links may be remembered when young men are caught up
in the great cities. With this and with a priesthood of their own,
the self-reliant Catholics of Nigeria can look forward in confidence
to their future."
I
�NIGERIA
237
And it may be said in conclusion that Nigerian Catholics
have a great source of inspiration in the late Bishop Shanahan of Onitsha, whose remains were recently interred in
the Cathedral there. He it was who, initially almost singlehanded, took a leaf from the book of Protestant missioners,
and began the establishment of the Catholic elementary
school system rather than the erection of churches as mission
centers. The mission structure could be a church on Sundays,
but during the week it was a school. If one studies the
Catholic population figures particularly for the Onitsha and
Owerri areas where Bishop Shanahan worked, one can see
how effective a weapon for conversion he found these schools,
and the teacher-training schools which were their necessary
concomitant. Bishop Shanahan surely was an inspiring as
well as a wise churchman. His great pioneer efforts, which
effected training of priest teachers and supervisors, brought
great numbers of volunteer priests from Maynooth, and from
several religious orders of priests, nuns and Brothers into
Nigeria, and set a pattern for fruitful conversions. His
mission-school work needs to be continued and consolidated,
and, someday, crowned by a separate Catholic university
or a Catholic university center at lbadan.
Conclusion
After my return to Rome on March 3, a report was prepared for Very Reverend Father General, and discussions
held with him and with Very Reverend Father Assistant.
Later in the United States, a special investigation was made
by Father Rooney and the writer concerning the affiliation
of an unchartered Jesuit university in Nigeria with some
American Jesuit university. There were consultations and
correspondence with regional accrediting authorities, with
state departments of education and with lawyers. A further
report on this matter of affiliation was prepared for Very
Reverend Father General who, the following September,
declined the offer in the form in which it was extended.
Nigeria is to become independent in 1960. Since the
visit, a new diocese has been formed from the Owerri diocese
~ith its see at Omahuia, a stronghold of Seventh Day AdvenIsts. Monsigoor Finn, Prefect-Apostolic of Ibadan, has been
�238
NIGERIA
consecrated as Bishop of lbadan. The American Marianists
have assumed control of St. Patrick's College at Asaba. A
new educational survey in Nigeria may be made during the
summer of 1959 by Father John A. O'Brien of Notre Dame.
The Society and the Liturgical Movement
Paul L. Cioffi, S.J.
William P. Sampson, S.J.
HEN Father General, after the last General Congregation, urged that "Ours, from the very beginning of
the religious life and throughout its course, should be
imbued with a fuller understanding and appreciation of the
Sacred Liturgy," it may have appeared to some that he was
breaking sharply with a longstanding Jesuit tradition. 1 Actu·
ally the attitude of the Society towards the liturgical revival
has been the topic of much discussion, some of it extremely
confused. To help throw some light on the subject ever'/
statement that is in any way pertinent has been drawn
from the Acta Romana.
In the first part of this study the more significant findings
will be presented without any attempt to relate them. Favor·
able and unfavorable will be quoted side by side. The evalua·
tion of these findings will be the aim of the second part.
W
The Data
Let us, then, look at the record. The liturgical movement could be dated from Pius X's Motu Proprio
of 1903; the Acta Romana begin with 1906. The first item
of any pertinence occurs in the Chronicon for 1914. 2 The
A. 1906-1929.
1
- --"De Praecipuis Laboribus Congregationis Generalis XXX: Ad
Universam Societatem" (21 Nov. 1957), Acta Romana Societatis Jesu
XIII, 241.
2 "Chronicon 1914" (31 Mar. 1914), AR I, VI, 71.
1
�LITURGY
239
General permits certain scholasticates in France to have sung
Masses on major feasts provided it be not too often nor
too tiring and time consuming.
The next reference occurs in a letter of 1916 to the Provincial of Castile. 3 In treating of the norms for our social
apostolate the General recalls the fact that Saint Ignatius
not only discouraged secular business for Ours but even
rejected certain religious ministries such as Choir and sung
services on the grounds that they would lessen our freedom
to choose that which serves God's greater glory.
It is in 1922 that the first specific attempt is made by the
General to formulate the attitude of the Society to the growing movement. In a letter to certain provincials on "The
More Accurate Observance of the Liturgy" 4 Father Ledochowski repeats the reasoning of Ignatius that liturgical
observance must not hinder our freedom. He urges that Ours
be very careful in following the rubrics and in order to
achieve the "interior devotion" and "the external manner so
becoming as to edify the assistants" he feels that an "understanding" of the ceremonies must be imparted to the Scholastics and our students. This "understanding" embraces
both the knowledge of the ceremonies and their meaning.
In the same letter he commends the use of the liturgical
casus and urges that the Brothers be given an appreciation
of the sacred ceremonies and of the feasts of the Church. 5
The students should have conferences on the feasts and ceremonies and a good explanation of the Mass. They should
follow the sacred rites with suitable booklets and for special
o~casions such as Holy Week they should be so instructed,
elther verbally or by books, that they may really cherish
and love the rites. 6
In a response given on February 3, 1923, the General forbids
-
3
"Principia et Normae Quaedam de Operibus Socialibus" (25 Dec.
1916), AR II, 207.
4
"De Sacra Liturgia Pro Nostrae Vitae Ratione Accurate Peragenda: Ad Quosdam Praepositos Provinciales" (9 Jun. 1922), AR III,
~ 7 5. (Translated in the Selected Writings of Father Ledochowski
Chicago, 1945), pp. 636-638.)
5
Ibid., 475.
6
Ibid., 475.
�240
LITURGY
any common devotions for Ours, unless they be most infrequent
on the grounds that they do not fit the peculiar spirit and end
of our Institute. 7
In the decrees of the 27th General Congregation (1923)
the rejection of Choir is considered to be of the substance
of the Institute. 8 That same Congregation, repeating the
Epitome, forbids the singing of Masses in our churches unless
they further our end and effect the edification of our
neighbor. 9
When -certain provincials requested the permission to have
Solemn Masses in the scholasticates, the General with the
unanimous consent of the Assistants gave the permission. 10
It was restricted to six times a year (excluding Holy Week)
and even then on the condition that the time and effort
involved be carefully limited lest our more important works
suffer. The reason for the permission was not the personal
piety of Ours but rather that Ours might familiarize themselves with the ceremonies as the Church was urging all of
her priests to do.
B. 1930-1934. In 1930, in a letter on the relationship
that should exist between the ~odality and Catholic Action,
written to all the Italian provincials, Father General called
for an enlightened and intelligent participation in the liturgy
of the Church by every Sodalist.11 He urged that rather
extensive liturgical instruction be given and that the liturgy
be used as a source for their piety. He even mentions that
· greater attention to liturgical chant was needed.
A year later in one of his Responses,' 2 the General commends active assistance at Mass for students. They should be
"Responsa, 38" (3 Feb. 1923), AR III, 609.
"Collectio Decretorum Congregationum Generalium Societatis Jesu
a Congregatione Generali XXVII Approbata," AR IV, 33.
9']bid., 105.
10 "Responsa" (19 Mar. 1924), AR V, 140.
11 "De Mutuis inter Congregationes Marianas et Actionem Catholicam in Italia Relationibus atque de Iisdem Congregationibus Marianis
Impensius Fovendis: Ad Praepositos Provinciarum Italiae" (18 Oct.
1930), AR VI, 669-670. (Translated in the Selected Writings of Father
Ledochowski, pp. 804-813.)
12 "Responsa" (5 Mar. 1931), AR VI, 952.
7
8
�LITURGY
241
instructed in the part the faithful play in offering it. This
is to be done through the use of missals composed for the
laity. The aim is to see that the students take a greater part
in the liturgical life of the Church for their own benefit.
In 1932, in a letter to the Italian provincials, Father Ledochowski gave his fullest treatment of the relationship of the
Society to the liturgical revival.' 3 The occasion was a problem on the use of the dialog Mass but in the course of the
letter the General ranges over the whole field of liturgical
revival. For our externs he urges our priests gradually
to introduce forms of active participation in conformity with
the wishes of the Holy See even to the point of introducing
liturgical chant. The danger, he feels, is not that Ours will
exaggerate but that we will tend not to go far enough. In
this same letter he points out that:
... according to the proper spirit of our vocation, we are bound
to further with all earnestness even the least desires of the
Apostolic See; we cannot remain indifferent to this movement, but
we must most heartily cooperate and with all the means at our
disposal.
He discourages non-liturgical devotions taking place during Mass and calls on our preachers to use liturgical themes
in their sermons. To the end of fostering the liturgical life
he suggests the use of manuals and booklets. Finally he
concludes:
Therefore to enable Ours to promote the liturgical spirit with
greater earnestness among the people it is necessary that they
themselves be profoundly formed in that spirit, something which
is perfectly consonant with our ancient traditions.
In 1933, the Director-General of the Apostleship of Prayer,
James Zeij, S.J., wrote a letter to all the members, calling
for books written on the method of assisting at Mass, participating intimately in it, and thereby following the liturgy
more closely. 14 This the General approved in a letter to the
Whole Society issued at the same timeY
-
13 "De Spiritu Sacrae Liturgiae in Nostris Templis et Operibus in
Italia Impensius Promovendo: Ad Praepositos Provinciarum Italiae"
(8 Dec. 1952), AR VII, 227. (Translated in the Selected Writings of
Father Ledochowski, pp. 638-642.)
14
"Litterae Directoris Generalis Delegati Apostolatus Orationis:
Ad Secretarios Nationales, Editores Nuntiorum, Moderatores Diocesa-
�242
LITURGY
A year later in a letter to the whole Society, Father Ledochowski urges that Scholastics and Brothers assist at Mass
in accordance with the spirit of the sacred liturgy.16 In the
same letter, he recommends as useful a series of conferences
on the Breviary and the Psalms to be given to those who
are to be ordained. 17 A last passing reference is made to
choosing matter for meditation in conformity with the liturgical cycle in accord with the spirit of the Church. 18
C. 1935-1958. In the Ratio Studiorum Superiorum promulgated in 1941 a course in liturgy is set up for our theologates.19 The emphasis in the course is to be placed on the
sources and the history of the liturgy.
In 1946, in a letter to the whole Society on the interior
life, Father Janssens dismisses any fear that Ours may have
concerning the use of Scripture and liturgical texts as a
source of prayer. 20
·In 1948, again writing to the whole Society, 21 the General
expresses his displeasure at some who have substituted liturgical meditations for the Ignatian Exercises. Not denying
the value of such prayer, he affirms that their intention is
not the same as the purpose behind the Exercises and should
not therefore be used in their place.
Later that same year, he urges all provincials 22 to make
nos, Directores locales et Promotores Apostolatus Orationis" (25 Maii
1933), AR VII, 449-452.
15
"De Impensius Fovenda Pietate Christifidelium erga Sacro·
sanctum Missae Sacrificium: Ad Omnes Provinciarum Praepositos" (25
Maii 1933), AR VII, 447-448.
16 "Epistola ad Universam Societatem de Cotidianis Pietatis
Exercitiis Rite Peragendis: Ad Universam Societatem" (2 Jul. 1934),
AR VII, 827. (Translated in the Selected Writings of Father Ledo·
chowski, pp. 393-423.)
P Ibid., 835.
1s Ibid., 841.
19 "Ratio Studiorum Superiorum Societatis Jesu" (31 Jul. 1941),
AR X, 226.
20
"Epistola ad Universam Societatem de Vita Interiori Fovenda"
(27 Dec. 1946), AR XI, 171-174.
21
"De Exercitiis Spiritualibus: Ad Universam Societatem" (Z
Jul. 1948), AR XI, 475.
22
"Ad Urgendam Exsecutionem Litterarum R. P. Ledochowski de
�LITURGY
243
sure the Brothers are instructed in the doctrines of the
Mystical Body, grace, the sacraments and the liturgy. He
asks that wherever feasible, the Brothers should receive Holy
Communion within the Mass in accord with the mind of the
Church.
In the beginning of 1949, Father Janssens wrote to all
provincials on the exercises to be made by postulants at the
close of their postulancy. After three days of first-week
meditations they are to be given five more days on subjects
such as the sacramental life. 23
In 1950, Father Janssens wrote a letter to all provincials
on the Oriental branch of the Society. 24 In it he answered
the question, "Is not the Institute opposed to the cultivation
of the liturgy?" He pointed out how Saint Ignatius preferred
the apostolic works of preaching, teaching Christian doctrine,
hearing confessions and administering the sacraments; yet,
he permitted the singing of Vespers if it would attract the
people to our churches. Later the Society even became
famous for the excellence of the liturgy in its parishes.
Then, the General sets up various norms: for our parishes,
the ordinary diocesan norms; for our colleges and high
schools, the initiation of our students into active participation
(which is in no way foreign to the true spirit of the Society) ;
for our communities, abstention from Choir. 2 ~
In 1952, in an instruction on the Apostleship of Prayer,2 6
the General stated that the Apostleship should cooperate in
general with the liturgical revival. The men engaged are
told to follow the norms contained in Mediator Dei.
In the new Ratio promulgated in 1954, the liturgy course
is again treated. 27 The purpose of the course is the explana-
~us Coadjutoribus Societati Comparandis Riteque Instituendis:
Ad Superiores Societatis" (30 Oct. 1948), AR XI, 517-518.
23
"De Modo Peragendi Exercitia Spiritualia Exeunte Postulatu:
Ad Omnes Provinciarum Praepositos" (9 Jan. 1949), AR XI, 666.
24
"Epistola et Ordinatio de Ramo Orientali Societatis J esu: Ad
Omnes Provinciarum Praepositos" (25 Dec. 1950), AR XI, 887-901.
2
~ Ibid., 891-893.
26
"Instructio de Apostolatu Orationis in Cura Pastorali Adhibendo"
(3 Dec. 1952), AR XII, 274-275.
27
"Ratio Studiorum Superiorum Societatis Jesu" (31 Jul. 1954),
AR XII, 587.
�LITURGY
244
tion of the origins and history of the liturgy, the meaning of
those rites and formulas
. . . by which the public worship of the Church, perpetually
offered to God the Father by Christ, the High Priest and Head of
the Church, is regulated and which takes in the Mass, the sacra·
ments and sacramentals and the Divine Office. 28
The liturgy course is also to treat of the method by which
the faithful participate in the divine worship. One of the
effects o( such a course should be the fostering of solid piety
in the Scholastics.
Later, in the section on "Preparing for Future Ministries,"
the Ratio prescribes that Superiors make sure that there are
men coming along who can instruct the faithful in Gregorian
chant and even polyphonic singing. 29
Later in 1954, in an Instruction on Buildings, 30 the General
stated that there should be only one altar in the main chapel
of our new scholasticates, in order that Ours might follow
those parts of the Mass which should be said aloud, answer
to dialog Masses and on certain days sing Missae cantatae
in accord with the approved customs of some provinces.
In 1955, the General commended to all, especially Scholastics and Tertians, the Manual" of the Apostleship of Prayer
which stressed familiarity with the principles contained in
Mystici Corporis and Mediator Dei. 31
Finally, in January 1956,32 when a schedule of topics was
drawn up to be used as a basis for discussion at a Congress
for Tertian Instructors to be held in March of that year,
the seventh topic was the question: Should a more elaborate
pastoral formation be added to those purposes of the Third
Probation that are enumerated in the Epitome?
Before a report on the Congress was published, the Sacred
Congregation of Religious called for a year of Pastoral
"/bid., 605.
Ibid., 631.
30 "Instructio de Ratione Aedificiorum Societatis Jesu"
(6 Nov.
1954), AR XII, 679.
31 "Nuntiatur
et Commendatur Liber 'Manualis' Apostolatus
Orationis: Ad Omnes Superiores Majores" (1 Jul. 1955) AR XII, 796.
32 "Argumenta
in Congressu Instructorum Terti~e Probationis
Tractanda" (1 Jan. 1956), AR XIII, 54.
28
29
�LITURGY
245
Instruction for Priests. 33 In view of these developments,
the General in a letter to all superiors in May 195734 urged
that the liturgical instruction called for in the Ratio 35 be put
into effect, stating that it would be a disastrous error to
presume a priori that our traditional theological formation
could not be improved.
In the Instruction 36 which accompanied this letter the
General called for liturgical practice in accordance with the
mind of the Magisterium. Those of Ours who feel that since
we do not have Choir nor solemn ceremonies for the use of
Ours, we can let liturgical matters be handled by others, he
classed as mistaken. He stated that our duties to parish
life, to our students and to priests being formed by us demand
our being able to direct them along these lines. He noted
that we are very deficient in this matter in certain regions. 37
Evaluation of Data
The question arises, "Is there any intelligible trend that
can be seen, or is one policy set forth and restated without
change over the years?"
A. 1906-1929. A basic principle was established in the
very first item, the Chronicon for 1914: liturgical observance
must be limited by the time and energy we must expend
elsewhere; our freedom and mobility must not be compromised. Even sung Masses are allowed if this balance is
preserved. This principle was to be repeated constantly in
subsequent declarations.
-
33
Constitutio Apostolica 'Sedes Sapientiae' eique Adnexa 'Statuta
Generalia' de Religiosa, Clericali, Apostolica lnstitutione in Statibus
Acquirendae Perfectionis Clericis Impertienda (Sacra Congregatio de
Religiosis, 1957), p. 74.
34
"Monita Quaedam de Tertia Probatione et Instructio de Anno
Institutionis Pastoralis: Ad Omnes Superiores Majores" (31 Maii
1957), AR XIII, 210-211.
85
"Ratio Studiorum Superiorum Societatis Jesu" (31 Jul. 1954),
AR XII, 605-606, 631.
36
"Instructio de Anno Institutionis Pastoralis Secundum 'Statuta'
S. Congregationis de Religiosis Decreto 7 Julii 1956 Promulgata" (31
Maii 1957), AR XIII, 215-219.
37
Ibid., 217.
�246
LITURGY
The rising problem is explicitly dealt with in 1922 and
Ours are urged for the first time in the Acta to impart an
understanding of the ceremonies. To enable us to help others
properly we must ourselves understand the ceremonies. Thus
the motive behind our liturgical work is explicitated: the
value it has in helping others, not our personal piety.
1930-1934. From 1930 to 1934, five documents appeared.
The liturgical outlook is urged on all, first on Sodalists, then
on all e~terns under our care, and finally on all of Ours. To
take part in the liturgical reform of our externs, we must
have first been formed in that spirit ourselves.
Thus the instilling of the ideas of the liturgical movement
for the first time is considered part of our formation. And
for the first time the General insists that the spirit of our
Institute is not alien to the spirit of the liturgical movement.
The principle of balance between liturgy and mobility so
frequent before 1929 is not mentioned in these documents.
concrete changes, however, are made and there is as yet
no implementation of a newly introduced principle: we must
be profoundly formed in the liturgical spirit, a spirit that is
in harmony with Society tradip~n.
B.
No
1935-1958. After the principle of harmony had been
established in the period 1930-1934, the years up to the present consist in manifold attempts to apply that principle to
our life by the use of liturgical themes for meditation,
through the use of dialog Masses, through familiarity with
the liturgical encyclicals, even by the sung Mass in our
scholasticates. Gradually changes are made, new methods
are tried. 38
The idea of balance between mobility and liturgical observance is no longer in the foreground. The Church wants the
people to participate actively and the Society cannot ignore
the Church's need. Anything so basic to our neighbor's need
C.
38
- -- In the course of the study many more references were discovered
and catalogued than were actually used here. Those that merely re·
peated in a less significant way, or contained relatively unimportant
matter were not included in the footnotes. They involve, for example,
such items as permissions given for solemn ceremonies on major anni·
versaries, the use of the liturgical casus and the like.
�LITURGY
247
cannot be opposed to the spirit of the Society. There must
be a more fundamental harmony between the two spirits.
The motive for liturgical observance for Ours remains
the help of our neighbor. To help him effectively, however,
we ourselves must become liturgical minded. The liturgical
outlook, then, must become a part of the ordinary Jesuit's
outlook.
Conclusion
The liturgical movement of modern times developed slowly
over the years. Not every experiment proved fruitful; everything had to be tested first. The Society's reaction developed
slowly also. As the Papal attitude clarified, the Society
became more deeply involved but it was only over many years
that all the implications of the new outlook could have their
full effect.
The General's remarks on the liturgical formation of Ours
in 1958 when he summarized the work of the 30th General
Congregation, need have surprised no one since he says little
more than what is contained in the documents of 1930-1934.
But, whereas then it was a mere abstract principle, today it
is a concrete force having its effect on us daily, forcing us
to choose new means, adapt our approach, broaden our perspectives and test untried solutions.
In brief, the problem of the relationship between the
Society and the work of liturgical reform has been settled;
the problem that remains is one of discovering where in our
training and our ministry it is to be implemented.
How lgnatian is the Sodality?
John C. Haughey, S.j.
Introduction
As Jesuits, most of us are aware of the basic facts surrounding Sodality beginnings within the Society of Jesus.
Given a few minutes of research, we could find the important
facts. Juridically considered, the Sodality of Our Lady
�248
SODALITY ORIGINS
l
came into being in the year 1584 by virtue of the papal bull,
Omnipotentis Dei, which sanctioned a group that had been
functioning at the Roman College for some twenty years.
The profile of the group's spirituality had been shaped by
a young Jesuit, John Leunis, in the year 1563.
Is this the whole story of Sodality beginnings in the
Society of Jesus? Do these facts give us the complete picture? If so, this was a startlingly simple beginning for a
movemel}t' that was to snowball into a powerful force in the
work of religious regeneration that was the Counter-Reformation.1 Just how Ignatian are these Sodalities of Our
Lady?
Many stressed an interdependence between the Sodality
and the Society. Our present Very Reverend Father General
sees the Sodality as "an imitation, according to the circumstances of life in the world, of the main precepts that give
vigor to our customary spiritual life in the Society." 2 If we
haye here merely a Leunis creation, this statement would
scarcely make sense. The Editor of Acies Ordinata examined
this relationship at some length and concluded that, "The
end as well as the spirit of the Sodality is, therefore, that of
the Society, and was inspired bJ:-'tt." 3 Both of these opinions
seem to speak not merely of an intimate historical nexus
between the two organizations, but of a basic harmony
between them.
Father Josef Stierli, S.J., in an important monograph on
this subject, states: "Just as the Society of Jesus is the.
spirit of the Exercises in the form of an organized religious
order, so, too, the sodalities of Our Lady are its parallel in
the form of the incarnation of the Exercises in a religious,
apostolic lay society." 4 This bold assertion would have us
1 Stierli, Josef, S.J., "Devotion to Mary in the Sodality," Woodstock
Letters, LXXXII (1953), p. 24.
2 Janssens, Very Rev. Fr. John Baptist, "A Letter to the whole
Society on the occasion of the Canonization of Saint John De Britto and
Saint Bernadino Realino Concerning Our Ministries," (Woodstock College Press, 1948), p. 16 ..
3 Byrne, Cornelius, S.J. Editor, "The Sodality and the Society,"
Acies Ordinata, V, Nos. 3-4 (1929), p. 12.
4 Stierli, op. cit., p. 23.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
249
trace the Sodality back to the cave at Manresa. Father
Hugo Rahner, S.J., seems to support such a retracing since
he says, "All apostolic forces at work in the nascent Society
of Jesus can be explained by the Spiritual Exercises." 5
These citations point to an intimate relationship between
the two religious associations that could be profitably reviewed. But even the most superficial glance back into
Sodality beginnings will reveal much of the mind of the early
Society on the problem of the layman's role in the Church,
and, consequently, in our ministries. The concept of the lay
apostolate was not a category alien to the first Jesuits, nor
to Ignatius himself.
In addition, such a study will force us to review our ideas
on the Society's manner of effecting the reform of the Church.
Not to include the Sodality would be shortsighted since some
hold that it was the most effective Jesuit device for bringing
souls back into the Church. 6 Such a claim would seem exaggerated for an organization which we have come to look
upon as a youth movement. This paper will attempt an
exposition of the beginnings of the Sodality of Our Lady in
the Society.
We will begin by considering the situation at the Roman
College immediately before the institution of the Sodality.
We will then revert to the year of the Society's canonical
birth, 1540, and study the lay groups formed by Jesuits during the lifetime of Ignatius. We shall find that these groups
have a structure strikingly similar to the organization begun
at the Roman College in 1563. After considering the implications in the data on these groups, we shall be able to form
a clear picture of the contribution Leunis made to the movement. This will lead to the study of the Marian dimension
of the Sodality and the significance of this feature in the
organization. In each of the sections we hope to uncover
gradually an answer to the question, "How Ignatian are the
sodalities of Our Lady?"
In this section of our study we wish merely to indicate
-
5
Rahner, Hugo, S.J., "True Source of the Sodality Spirit" (The
Queen's Work, 1956), p. 4.
6
Stierli, art. cit., p. 23.
�250
SODALITY ORIGINS
some of the significant developments at the Roman College
prior to 1563 which presaged and, in part, determined the
institution of the student way of life known as the Sodality.
As in all the young Society's undertakings, Ignatius provided
the blueprint. He instructed the rectors of the schools that,
"great diligence is to be taken that the students make
progress in letters and in piety." 7 He urged the teachers,
"both in their lectures when the occasion is offered, and
outside.. of them too, to inspire these students to the love and
service of God.'' 8
We can trace the Roman College's reduction of these prin·
ciples to act in the years 1560-63, when energies were being
loosened, and channeled and patterns for living a holy life
as a student were being given the young. A letter from the
Roman College dated December 1561 informs us that it had
become customary for teachers to detain their students after
class and to assemble them on feast days to chant the Psalms
or.. to sing the litanies. The purpose was to teach the youngsters how to sanctify feast days. 9 During the following year,
1562, more organization was introduced into these spontaneous displays of devotion. What was before not clearly
voluntary became strictly voluntary. Classes joined with
other classes. These get-togethers also included a disputation
on the matter covered in class, thus producing a closer corelation of the ends of piety and proficiency in study proposed
by St. lgnatius. 10 Those, who would conceive of the program
introduced in 1563 by Leunis as something like spontaneous
generation, would do well to reflect on the fact that the
Fathers at the Roman College had founded or revived as early
as 1561 several other pious associations by giving them fixed
rules.U Although these were adult groups, the fact that
spiritual rules were being given the laity by the Jesuits at
i Farrell, Allan P., S.J., The Jesuit Code of Liberal Education
(Milwaukee: Bruce Pub. Co., 1938) p. 73.
8 Ganss, George E., S.J., St. Ignatius' Idea of a Jesuit UniversitY
(Milwaukee: Marquette Univ. Press, 1954) p. 66.
9 Wicki, J., S.J., Le Pere Jean Leunis S.J., (Rome: Inst. Hist. g.J.,
1951)' p. 37.
10 Wicki, op. cit., p. 38.
11 Loc. cit.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
251
the Roman College makes the step now to be taken more
intelligible.
When it is a matter of an ascetical ideal, we never find a
lawgiver bringing abruptly into existence a way of life, precisely outlined, strictly delineated. Given the fervor of the
Roman College, therefore, merely one step more was required
to establish a stable ascetical program for student sanctification. This step which was accomplished by the newly
ordained John Leunis, is not, therefore, the giant stride of
a creative genius, but rather the prudent move of a spiritual
director who sees the need to regulate growth and channel
spontaneity. Rules assume the unleashing of energies and,
as such, "belong to the future, guiding and controlling the
energies of the body." 12
We are in a position to see why it was that the one who
launched the Sodality at the Roman College was unknown
for many years after his monumental contribution. So inevitable was the move, so usual was the program that accounts
of the activities of the youth group never mention his name.
Investigation by Father Sacchini, sixty years later, revealed
him as responsible for the organization.
Profiles of Society's First Lay Apostolate Groups
John Leunis taught in the lowest classes at the Roman
College from 1560 till early in 1564, when he left for Perugia,
never to return. There is reason to believe that he was not
ordained until 1562.13 Professed in 1583 he died one year
later, sixteen days before the canonical erection of the Roman
College Sodality as the Prima Primaria or prototype of all
future Marian congregations.H
His 1563 plan for the spiritual formation of the College's
·
students is as follows:
Jesuit as director; student prefect.
Interior Life Program: Weekly Confession;15 Monthly Communion ;16 Daily Mass; Rosary or Office of Our Lady; Daily Medi12
S
Mullan, Elder, S.J., History of the Prima Primaria Sodality,
(
t. Louis: The Queen's Work, 1917), p. 46.
13 Wicki, op. cit., p. 35.
14
Mullan, op. cit., p. 39.
15 Mullan, op. cit., pp. 43-49.
16
The frequency with which Communion was advocated by this and
-
�252
SODALITY ORIGINS
tation and points of Meditation; Examination of Conscience.
Apostolic Program: Visiting the sick and the poor; Veneration
of relics in Rome's churches.
Meetings: Mental Prayer made together daily; Sunday exhortation followed by Vespers.
Title: (in 1564) "under the special protection of Our Lady."
Personnel: approximately seventy students, ranging in age from
nine to sixteen.
Purpose: Progress in Piety and Progress in Study.
Is therJ any historical precedent for this type of group
in the eadier years of the Society of Jesus? Is it sui generis
or does it reflect a pattern already in use prior to 1563?
In at least three of the Society's colleges in the years prior
to this, a similar program had been drawn up. The years
1557 and 1558 saw the outlines of these religious organizations for student sanctification take a fixed form at Syracuse,17 Genoa and Perugia. 18 We also have evidence of the
existence of other groups of the kind in the years after the
death of Ignatius in 1556 and before the organization of
the Roman College Sodality. But for the purposes of brevity
and in order to arrive at some answer to the question raised
by our title, we think it best to .consider only those groups
which existed within the lifetime of Ignatius and, even of
them, to study only those providing the best documentation.
The Society of Jesus was born, canonically, in the year
1540. By this time, its members were already scattered in
many parts of the world. Blessed Peter Faber was in Parma,
Italy. His eighteen month sojourn in this spiritual wasteland
was to result in nothing short of a reawakening of the entire
city to the practice of its faithY Ignatius was of the opinion
other Jesuit groups, as Villaret mentions, speaks volumes for the devotion of the group. Villaret, Emile, S.J., Les Congregations Mariales,
(Paris: Beauchesne, 1947) p. 25. The frequency advocated for the
sodalists did not differ from that which Ignatius had prescribed for
the student body.
17 Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu, "Les Premieres Origines
Des Congregations Mariales" by Emile Villaret, S.J., January 1937, P·
36. Henceforth we shall refer to this article merely as Archiv.
18 Wicki, op. cit., p. 40, footnote 17, gives a good summary of two
student groups conducted by Jesuits which preceded the Leunis group.
19 Bangert, William V., S.J., To the Other Towns, (Westminster:
The Newman Press, 1959) p. 73.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
253
that Faber was without an equal in giving the Spiritual
Exercises and this judgment is confirmed by his work at
Parma. His apostolate there was that of giving the Spiritual
Exercises to all who presented themselves. Deftly employing
the principle of adaptation of the Exercises to suit the exercitant, he gave them constantly to the spiritually hungry citizens. To those who had been capable of receiving the full
impact of the meditations of Manresa, Faber provided an
outline of daily spiritual activities to be performed in the
post-retreat context. These duties were, in effect, a living
out of the vision of perfection glimpsed with brief intensity
during the retreat. Faber provided a way of life that included the examination of conscience, Mass and meditation. 20
Now the fruit of the Exercises is essentially an apostolic
spirituality. Those who made retreats under Blessed Peter
Faber were not content with personal spiritual improvement
but felt that the care they would have for the soul of their
neighbor should rival that which they had of themselves. 21
At this point in our development of Faber's Parma activities, a few insights of the late Father Peter Lippert in his
The Jesuits: A Self-Portrait, will be of much assistance to
us in understanding the results of this apostolate of the
Spiritual Exercises. Lippert observes that "the birth which
takes place in the Exercises is a personal and entirely individual affair, the experience of Damascus." 22 Nevertheless,
he continues, this individual transformation produces elan
for joining with other individuals whose minds and wills
have been seized by the same vision. "Indeed the whole
build-up of this spiritual attitude brings and moulds likeminded souls together. The spirit of the Exercises was
linked with the notion of organization" (p. 52).
When, therefore, we learn that a number of those who had
listened to Faber, formed an organization that was an object
of admiration sixty years later, it comes as no surprise. The
significance of what really happened at Parma has long been
-
20
Ibid., pp. 104-5.
Villaret, op. cit., p. 25.
22
Lippert, Peter, S.J., The Jesuits: A Self-Portrait, (New York:
Herder and Herder, 1958) p. 52.
21
�254
SODALITY ORIGINS
obscured because of an insistence on the part of Sodality and
Society historians that Faber really founded the congregation
of the Holy Name of Jesus. He did not; rather, because
of him the group came into being. The organization did
not get under way until he had left the city. 23 The reason
for the mistake is a misinterpretation of the inscription
over the oratory of the Congregation in Parma which names
Blessed Peter Faber as the founder of the congregation and
the year 'of its inception as 1540.24
But what actually happened was that Faber's spiritual
direction produced, when it was known that he was to leave
Parma, a series of suggestions entitled "A Directive and
Aid for the Preservation of a Truly Christian and Spiritual
Life." 25 This document reads like a copy of the Sodality
Rules. It was according to this outline, transmitted to indi·
viduals who had made the Exercises, that the group was
fashioned.
J'he Parma plan for spiritual formation of the laity:
Jesuit Director.2s
Interior Life Program: Weekly Confession; Weekly Communion;
Daily Meditation; Examination of Conscience; Night and Morning
Prayers; Daily Mass and freque.Jit Spiritual Communion.
Apostolic Program: The teaching of Christian doctrine to the
young; Acts of charity towards the poor; "Every good work with
assiduity."
Meetings: Weekly.
Title: Congregation of the Holy Name Jesus.
Personnel: adults; men of distinction.
Purpose of the group: 1. Sanctification of self; 2. Sanctification
of neighbor.
--23-Tacchi-Venturi, Pietro, S.J., Storia della Compagnia di Gesu in
Italia, (Rome: Edizioni "La Civilta Cattolica, 1950), II I 253-55.
24 Villaret, op. cit., p. 25. The inscription reads: "Oratorium sub
Titulo-Sancti Joannis Baptistae Decollati-Congregationis-Sanctis·
simi Nominis Jesu-a Patre Petro Fabro-Sancti Ignatii LoyolaeSocietatis Jesu Fundatoris-Filio Primogenito Erectae-Ad Majorem
Dei Gloriam et Animarum Salutem-Anno 1540." The only waY to
reconcile this inscription with the facts given by Tacchi-Venturi is ~
see this as the tribute of the Parma Sodality to its moving force an
real source, Faber.
25 Boero, Guiseppe, S.J., The Life of Blessed Peter Faber, S}.,
(London: Burns and Oates, 1873), pp. 28 ff'.
2s Villaret op. cit., 25-6; Boero, op. cit., 25-40.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
255
This pre-Leunis sodality was a seed-bed of vocations. It
furnished the Society with many of its first generation of
Jesuits among whom was Father Anthony Criminale, the
first martyr of the new Order.
But more to the point in this study is the important
parallel which the beginnings of this group has with the
beginnings of the Society. Neither organization lies at the
end of a syllogism. Neither the Society of Jesus nor the
little congregation of the Holy Name of Jesus came into
existence because it was argued to eloquently by a founder.
In both cases, the taproot which brought about the bloom
was the Spiritual Exercises.
Saint Ignatius never established a third order and, yet,
the next group which we will consider in our study was
begun by Saint Ignatius in Rome. 27 Our information on
the activities of this group is slight but sufficient to give
some idea of the mind of the Saint on the Sodality concept.
Ignatius began to preach constantly on the subject of charity
in the fall of 1547 at the Church of Our Lady of the Way.
As a practical application, he would mention the giving of
alms to the deserving poor. 28 His sermons were so effective
and the alms which poured in so abundant that it would
have stifled his freedom in the writing of the Society's Constitutions to have undertaken their distribution. Consequently, Ignatius chose twelve of the most devout men in
the parish and asked them to take over the task of dispensing
these gifts which from that time on were unceasing. 29 This
apostolic group was formed to fulfill a definite need. Unlike
Faber's congregation which entered the apostolate as a
result of intense basic training in the interior life, this
company was fashioned by the apostolate and then given
the spiritual training commensurate with the work of zeal
Undertaken.
Roman Profile :
-
27
Director: Jesuit Father.so
Interior Life Program: Unknown. at
Apostolic Program: The distribution of alms to Rome's poor.
Villaret, op. cit., 23-4.
Archiv. pp. 41-2.
29
Loc. cit.
28
30
Villaret, op. cit., p. 24.
s1
Loc. cit.
�256
SODALITY ORIGINS
Meetings: Twice a week.
Title: probably did not have one.
Personnel: Twelve men.
Purpose of the group: self-sanctification and the assistance of
their neighbor.
The destiny of this group is interesting. Requiring a
broader base of operations because of the rapid growth of
the group, they affiliated with a non-Jesuit Church where
a certain' Friar Felix de Montalto took a great interest in
them. With the approval of Ignatius he became director
of the group which was now known as the "Company of
the Holy Apostles". This Friar was to become Pope Sixtus V, extending in 1587 many powers to the Prima Primaria
by the bull Romanum decet. 32
Two years before this group was formed, another Jesuit
priest, Father Paschase Broet, was at work in Faenza. The
main concern of his ministry was the alarming poverty of
the population. Saddened by his own lack of ability to cope
with the situation, he undertook the formation of a group
of men who could effect a change in their condition. 33 He
sought so to train them that they could improve not only
the temporal but also the spiritual plight of these underprivileged masses. Although F~ther Broet mentioned in
his letter to St. Ignatius that he had given these men rules
to sanctify their lives, 34 he does not say just what these rules
were. More is furnished us on the apostolic dimension of
this "Company of Charity" since its members visited the
sick poor and exhorted them to frequent confession and
Communion in addition to procuring medicine for their maladies. The composition of the group is tersely noted as "men
of repute." 35
St. Ignatius formed the early Jesuits in varying degrees
of immediacy. John Leunis had no direct contact with
Ignatius since the founder of the Society died forty-four
32 Mullan, Elder, S.J., The Sodality Studied in the Documents,
(New York: Kenedy and Sons, 1912) p. 16.
33 Villaret op. cit., p. 26.
34 Prat, Jean Marie, S.J., Memoires ••. Du Pere Broet (Le Puy:
J-M Freydier, 1885) p. 79.
35 Loc. cit.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
257
days after the young Belgian's entrance into the Order.
Jerome Nadal, on the other hand, was so united to the spirit
and the mind of Ignatius as to be designated his second self.
Brodrick assures us that Nadal "once he surrendered to
Ignatius, became Ignatian through and through, a second
self by whom the Saint, fast-bound in Rome, could send his
spirit on the widest travels." 36 "None of Ignatius' first
companions who had been with him so many years understood Ignatius as well as this eleventh hour recruit." 37 His
response in this area of early Jesuit activity concerns us in
our attempt to learn how Ignatian this type of apostolate is.
Does he furnish any evidence that would allow us to conclude
to his approval or disapproval?
Nadal was responsible for the formation of no fewer than
four such groups, two in Trapani, one in Messina and one
in Paula. ss They were all formed before the year 1551 and
have sufficient similarity to allow of a single profile. It was
customary for Nadal, at this time, to travel extensively in
his promulgation of the Constitutions and he is responsible,
therefore, for the institution of a way of life for the companies of zealous laity rather than for any prolonged direction
of such an organization.
Nadal Profile:
-
All founded by Nadal and directed by Jesuits after his departure.
Interior Life Program: Morning Meditation ; 39 Night Examination of Conscience; Frequent Communion and Confession.
Apostolic Program: Calabria: we only know of duty to constantly promote frequentation of Sacraments.40 Messina: erected
an infirmary in a debtors prison, cared for the imprisoned; begged
alms for poor.41 Trapani: one group maintained a house for young
girls whose children were illegimate or who were separated from
their husbands; the other had the obligation of performing a corporal or spiritual work of mercy each Sunday and holy day of
obligation.•2
36
Brodrick, James, S.J., The Origin of the Jesuits, (New York:
Longmans, Green and Co., 1940) p. 206.
37
Loc. cit.
38
Mullan History of Prima Primaria, pp. 23-4.
39
For the Nadal outline, Archiv. 37-39; Villaret op. cit., 26-7; Mullan op. cit., 23-4.
40
Archiv. 39.
41 Loc. cit.
4 2 Ibid. 37.
�258
SODALITY ORIGINS
Meetings: Every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation.
Title: At Paula and Trapani, no mention of a title. At Messina:
Polanco has a footnote to the effect that the Messina confraternity
was most probably under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.4a
Personnel: Calabria: a small number of leading figures. Messina: sixty aristocrats. Trapani: groups of gentlemen, e.g., the
viceroy.«
Purpos~: Sanctification of self and neighbor.
Villaret; ·commenting on the Polanco gloss, says that "ici
comme pour d'autres institutions importantes de la Compagnie, Nadal semble avoir joue un role de premier plan,
immediatement apres S. Ignace." 45
We will consider only one more such group. This one
was begun in the city of Naples in the years 1553 and 1554.
It soon had a female counterpart which was equally zealous.
The fervour of life of both groups was so noticeable that they
were compared to the communities of faithful of the primitive Church.4 6
Naples Profile:
Founder and Director of women's group: a Jesuit. 47
Founder and Director of men's group: Father Araldo, S.J.
Interior Life Program: For wonien: Confession and Communion
at least monthly; Daily Examination of Conscience; Daily Spiritual Reading (St. Bernard); Rejection of vanities.4s For men:
General Confession before entrance and group reception of Communion on feasts; Confession and Communion every fortnight.
Apostolic Program: Teaching of Christian Doctrine; the men
publicly, the women in their own homes;49 Women visited hospital
for incurable; Exhorted all to frequent the sacraments. 5 o Men:
reconciliation of enemies; fostered vocations to the religious life;
cared for sick in the hospitals; constantly exhorted faithful to frequent the Sacraments.n
Meetings: Sundays and feast days.
43
M_onumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Epistolae P. Hieronyrni
Nadal, Tome I, p. 68.
44 Archiv. p. 38.
46 Villaret op. cit., p. 29.
45 Archiv. p. 39.
47 Mullan op. cit., p. 24.
48
For the entire Naples outline, A rchiv. pp. 33-5; Mullan op. cit.,
24-5; Villaret op. cit., 29-30.
49 Archiv. p. 34.
50 Loc. cit.
5 1 Ibid.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
259
Title: Women: (unknown). Men: "Society for venerating the
Blessed Sacrament."
Personnel: Women: adults "some of common, some of noble and
some of regal blood."~2 Men: adults numbering about fifty, some
of whom were doctors, some priests, all professional people. 53
Purpose: Sanctification of members and neighbor.
In the interests of brevity, we have considered only those
groups which were functioning during the lifetime of Ignatius. Our expose of even this period is by no means complete
since Domenech and Lainez in Palermo, 54 Father Barzaeus
in India, 55 and other Jesuits in Padua, Venice, Ferrara, Florence and Siena had undertaken the formation of like societies.
Nor, as we have seen, were these sodalities absent from the
school scene. 56
What was Ignatius' reaction to this kind of activity?
Villaret summarizes his responses as follows:
As long as he lived, St. Ignatius followed very closely the progress in number and merit of these relief troops which doubled and
amplified enormously the activity of his sons. He was kept informed; he was consulted. He approved, praised, and gave advice
even on points of detail.57
Significance of the Data
The amount of detail which we have been able to uncover
on these groups has been meagre in comparison with other
more publicized activities of the Society in its early years.
Indeed, since the evidence exists only in shreds and patches,
many historians of the Society have been able to overlook
completely this dimension of the activities of the first wave
of Jesuits. The reasons for the lack of documentation are
not a reflection of the quality of the groups but rather indicate that the first Jesuits did not look on their endeavors
as forerunners of a movement.
-
52
Monumenta Historica Soc. Jesu Epistolae Patris Salmeronis,
Tome II, p. 829.
53
Archiv. p. 38.
5
i Villaret op. cit., pp. 27-8.
55
Mullan, op. cit., p. 24.
56
Wicki, op. cit., p. 40, footnote 17.
51
Translation is from the Abridged History of the Sodalities of
Our Lady by Villaret, translation by William Young, S.J. (St. Louis:
The Queen's Work, 1957) p. 19.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
260
The task of interpreting the significance of these activities
remains. Embedded in the facts we shall see much that
will clarify our notion of the nature of the Sodality of Our
Lady. Although, as an organization it has grown away from
the Society and been absorbed by the Church, still it is our
concern since it arises out of our own earliest history.
The most striking constant to be glimpsed in the groups
is that they did not come together because of any peculiar
devotion, "'Or to receive a spiritual refresher course, but rather
they presented a clear pattern for living an intensely Christian life. The way of life was individual and yet communal.
Incentive was derived from regular group meetings at which
corporate acts of devotion and the director's sermon were
the ordinary fare. It was commonplace to make frequent
use of the sacraments as the major means of attaining sanctification. As Father Villaret remarks, the very frequency
with which the Sacraments were received speaks volumes for
the spiritual intensity of the groups since the age was notably
remiss in this respect. 58
We also see the ever present factor of selectivity in the
personnel. This was assured by .the rigor of the prescribed
duties, but also seems to have been due, in many cases, to
the selection of aristocratic members. In any case, strict
selectivity was an inevitable consequence of the lofty ideals
given the sodalists. Of note, too, is the fact that women
were not excluded initially from these organizations.
Another constant which is evident in the data is that there
were no youth sodalities during the life of Ignatius. In fact,
adult education of a specific nature-non-academic and ascetical-seems to have been the initial thrust of the early
Jesuits.
Another feature worthy of note is the conception of the
apostolate that we find in these early groups. The apostolic
task seems to be considered as something over and above
one's occupations. He is an apostle who generously involves
himself in the extracurricular. The apost<;>late is a supererogatory task undertaken out of love for Christ. This con·
58
Villaret, op. cit., p. 25.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
261
fined the work pretty much to the corporal and spiritual
works of mercy.
But Ignatius' norm for the Jesuit choice of apostolate
seems to look beyond the individual to a penetration of the
social mass. He felt that "the good is more divine in proportion to its being more universal." 59 Although it would be
anachronistic to look to these first sodalities for modern
nuances in the notion of a social apostolate, nevertheless, it
was part of Ignatius' thinking to look to the social potential
of any undertaking of his followers.
The modern Sodality envisions the apostolate as primarily
"in and through the professions." That less enlightened day
saw it as apart from and added to one's occupation. In this
connection, it is worth noting that one of the major reasons
for the Society's immersion in the education of youth was
that the Jesuit trained student might be a leaven in society. 60
In our school apostolate we were exploiting the social potential of our students. Mutatis mutandis, could the penetration
of the' Eccietyi of the Ei:xtHnth CEnt my hive l:EEn l.'Ccnr r liElEd
more effectively if these early lay apostolate groups had exploited their social potential?
The most obvious conclusion that one can draw from our
brief study is the fact that the 1563 sodality of Father John
Leunis was not the product of spontaneous generation. It
did not fall meteor-like upon the Roman scene. For, prior
to its conception, conditions at the Roman College were developing in such a way that a permanent organization was
inevitable. Likewise, the Roman College sodality was prefigured by many adult and youth groups; consequently, its
entrance on the scene was not dramatic. It had, rather, to
step out on a stage already crowded with groups playing
similar roles.
A school-level sodality is merely one form therefore, which
this concept can assume; there are many other forms which
this instrument for lay sanctification can and did take. It
Would, consequently, be as erroneous to deny its school
applicability as to identify it with the young. It is not a
-
59
60
Ganss, op. cit., p. 42.
Ibid. p. 18.
�262
SODALITY ORIGINS
l
youth movement and is as protean as the walks of life.
Although the Sodality in its present day outlines has a certain
fixity, yet it lacks the rigidity that would make it more
suitable for one age rather than another, for one sex rather
than the other, or for one profession rather than another.
Upon reflection, another striking feature presents itself.
At no time in these years of growth was the formation of
these apostolic groups of laity the assignment of the individual J e§uit, but invariably an addition of his own choosing.
It is of major significance that so many of the first Jesuits,
those trained personally by Ignatius, conceived of such a
group as the better way of advancing the Kingdom. In
fact, it was so common a response of the early Society to
the Apostolic environment as to be almost a reflex action.
Father Dudon, S.J., informs us that one of the concerns
of the pre-Society followers of Ignatius was: "When we
are no longer here, who will continue the good begun by
us ?!' 61 Could they anchor the many works they had undertaken in a permanence which would insure an enduring
effect? The answer to this question, of course, was the
Society. The answer to this question for the individual Jesuit
seems to have been, in many cases, the training of a lay elite
whose interior life was intensified to a degree which would
inexorably lead them to work for the sanctification of others.
Certainly it is beyond dispute that two men vitally attuned
to the same difficult purpose will make the possibility of its
attainment more proximate than would be the case if only
one man proposed the goal for himself. But an entire group
provided a solution to the problem of the inadequacy of the
individual Jesuit to cope with an enormous field of labor.
The problem which then confronted him was how to train
these relief troops. The question, obviously, is an historical
one..'How did they train the lay elite? We have seen the
programs devised in the years before our massive assault on
society by way of the school apostolate. In these solutions
there is a surprising uniformity. It was only natural that
each director sought inspiration from his own spiritual train·
61 Dudon, St. Ignatius of Loyola (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co.,
1949), p. 255.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
263
ing in moulding the program best suited for the circumstances. Since independent situations gave rise to uniform
solutions, the reason for the uniformity will not be found in
any one of the groups themselves but only in the basic pattern
of spirituality which had formed the directors of each of
these sodalities. But the bond of unity of the early Society,
the source of its tremendous energies, was the spirituality
of Saint Ignatius. Ignatius had achieved an interpretation
of Christianity that transformed men.
Drawn by the vision the Spiritual Exercises afforded, these
early Jesuits had nothing to give to the world but these tremendous truths. They taught them formally, in retreats,
and informally, in preaching and in their ministries. Ultimately "all apostolic force at work in the nascent Society of
Jesus can be explained by the Spiritual Exercises." 62 Although
we cannot trace the beginnings of every one of the early
sodalities to an Ignatian Retreat, it would be naive to consider
their existence as independent of the Spiritual Exercises. 63
The imprint of Jesuit spirituality was clear in every one
of these organizations. When the information available is seen
in proper perspective we can attribute originality only to Ignatius. The Sodality, like the Society, was born in the cave at
Manresa. If originality must be ascribed to Ignatius, credit
must be given to his first sons whose brilliant adaptation
of the Ignatian way of spirituality unlocked for the laity
its treasures.
Significant Historical Circumstances
If the Sodality way of life is not more suited to youth
than to the adult, how can we explain its astounding proliferation on the school scene rather than on the adult level?
Why did it 'take' at the Roman College? Why is the Roman
College Sodality the Prima Primaria or sole head of all
canonically erected Sodality groups? Ready answers to
these questions can be found in a brief resume of the circumstances accompanying the formation of the Roman College
-
62
Rahner, op. cit., p. 4.
D. J. Hassel, "The Sodalist and the Spiritual Exercises," Woodstock Letters 86 ( 1957), 195-239.
63
�264
SODALITY ORIGINS
l
group. First of all, it was in Rome, at the Roman College.
Secondly, the Society's major concern at this moment of her
history was the education of youth. Finally, the most promising candidates of .the Jesuit Order were sent to the Roman
College for their intellectual formation. 64 None of these factors is without major significance.
The factor of Rome is self-explanatory. What was done
in Rome was under the eye of the hierarchy more directly
than what was done, e.g., in Siena. We know that many
Cardinahl"visited the Roman College and they were assuredly
not indifferent to the various dimensions of school life seen
at the College. 65 Nor was Ignatius indifferent to what the
Cardinals witnessed at the institution. He made it clear
that one of his aims in founding that particular school was
"to excite in visiting prelates and princes a desire to have
similar schools in the regions which they govern." 66
Besides its geographically strategic position, the Roman
College, in the mind of Ignatius and the other Jesuits, was
to be the model school of the Society. The need for a model
Jesuit school is evident from these few facts about the rapidity of school growth in the Society:
In 1546 the first secular student~ are admitted into a Jesuit Col·
lege.
In 1548 the Society opens its "first fully constituted classical col·
lege."67
In 1556 the Society is conducting no fewer than thirty-five Col·
leges which admit Jesuit students.
In 1586 the Order is conducting one hundred and sixty-two Col·
leges.6s
Although founded only a few years before his death, "the
project Ignatius had most at heart was that of making the
Roman College the center and model of the Society's educational work." 69 It was to be the best not only because of its
situation in the capital of Christendom, but also for the
"ornament its celebrity will be to the Apostolic See." 70 In
addition, Ignatius was anxious for its superiority because
64 Farrell, op. cit., p. 70.
65 Mullan, op. cit., p. 40.
66 Farrell, op. cit., p. 70.
67 Ibid., p. 25.
Loc. cit.
Ibid., p. 69.
ro Ibid., p. 70.
68
69
�-SODALITY ORIGINS
265
it was to "form the younger Jesuits in the scholastic traditions of the Order so that afterwards the methods and
organization which they had observed in practice at the
Roman College would through them become operative in the
other colleges." 11
Add to these facts, one more and the picture of the coming
primacy of Leunis' Sodality becomes intelligible. In 1563
· there were no fewer than two hundred and eighteen Jesuits
studying at, or teaching in, the Roman College. 72 This institution was the matrix, consequently, of the future schools
of the Society. What was done at the Roman College was
the criterion of educational worth. When there was fashioned in this institution an ideal Ignatian instrument, its
multiplication was a certainty. Such was the case with the
Sodality. It was a perfect reflection of the mind of the early
Society applied to the school context. Since the majority
of young Jesuits studying at Rome were to conduct schools
in the far corners of the earth, this instrument was to be,
within· a few short years, as extensive as the Society's educational apostolate.
Leunis' Contribution
Lest we seem completely to evacuate the role played by
the young Belgian Jesuit in the formation of the Prima
Primaria, we will attempt a clearer explanation of his significance than the few facts given above afford. No list of
circumstances, however numerous and significant, will explain
away the substance of an event. It would be irrelevant and
unprofitable to try to discover what Leunis' knowledge of
the previous Jesuit Sodalities was-irrelevant, because it
neither adds to nor subtracts from the splendor of his formula; unprofitable because it is impossible to know with
certainty what he knew of the other groups. 73 We will
Prescind from a consideration of this.
Approaching the subject of his precise contribution nega-
-
71
Ibid., p. 70.
Ibid., p. 68.
73
Authors differ on this question, and give little proof for their
statements. Some insist that Leunis was fully aware of the structures
of Practically all the groups in the early Society.
72
�266
SODALITY ORIGINS
tively, we must know what he did not do so that we may see
the more clearly what he did. The finis of his group was
not unique since it was one with that of the school itself.
"He (Ignatius) regarded education as a means of attaining
the end of his Society, the salvation and perfection of the
students."a And in his rules for rectors he insisted that
"great diligence be taken that the students make progress
in letters and in piety." 75 These quotations alongside the
explicit ~iim of the Sodality, "progress in piety and in
studies";76 convince us that his contribution does not lie in
this direction.
Nor, as we have already seen, is he the first to have formulated a spiritual program for the students of a Jesuit schoolY
Negative, too, is his contribution to the means that must be
taken to arrive at the goal of sanctification, i.e., frequent
reception of the Sacraments. Not only are these common in
the life of any zealous Christian, but were explicitly prescribed for the student body as a whole. Ignatius informed
the Rector of the Roman College :
To advise the students that the custom of the College prescribes
monthly confession, attendance at daily Mass, at sermons on Sundays and holy days, and at the ~:rplanation of the catechism. 78
A good example of the response to the Jesuit aim of piety
and scholarship is provided by the College of Messina.
The Jesuits at Messina gave themselves wholeheartedly to the
achievement of this twofold object (letters and piety), which was
also the very basis of their own religious profession. Hence, they
saw to it that the pupils attended daily Mass, had the cathechism
explained to them on certain days, and made a monthly confession.
According to Polanco, they also made a daily examination of conscience and listened to a sermon on Sunday,79
Nor can we attribute to Leunis the intensification of the
spiritual life which we noted at the Roman College prior
to 15_63. Ascetical rules always presuppose devotion; theY
do not generate it.
In brief, then, when we attempt to comprehend Leunis'
precise contribution, we will find it in neither his choice of
14 Ganss, op. cit., 185.
75 Farrell, op. cit., p. 73.
76 Loc. cit.
11 Cf. footnote 56.
1s Farrell, op. cit., p. 73.
10
Ibid., pp. 39-40.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
267
goal nor in the means for the attainment of that goal. Nor is
he alone responsible for the development of the fervor of
the students; he and the other Jesuit teachers had fostered
the spiritual growth which the Sodality intensified. Nor
was he the first Jesuit to formulate a program of spirituality
for devout students.
Positively considered, however, he was the first to form
and organize a sodality at the Roman College. Herein lies
his importance: at the Society's model school he was the
one who adapted the spirituality of the Society to the students
and imposed upon those accepting this way of life an organization.
That the rules which he laid down do not reflect his own
spirituality, except in as much as it mirrors that of the
founder of the Order, is testified to by the fact that in the
many formulations of the Sodality, the substance remains
unchanged. The rules of 1564 were added to and refined
by those of 1574; those of 1910 were substantially the same
as those of 1587. This accord is also evident in the new
Apostolic Constitutions of 1948.80
It must be admitted that the departure of Leunis a few months
after the foundation of his little group at Rome, caused no disturbance at all. He was remembered occasionally as the first
founder, but that was all. The Sodality did not suffer because of
his removal as frequently happens with works that are too strictly
personal.s1
It would never have become the head of all future sodalities
if its form did not reflect the mind of Ignatius, for the turnover of directors was great in the early years. 82 Any tribute
to Leunis is, therefore, a tribute to his conformity to the
spirituality of the Society of Jesus, and to the mind of Ignatius. Organizational features were not overlooked by Leunis.
He allowed for the election of a student prefect and had
twelve division heads. 83 Exactly what the functions of these
divisions were, we do not know.
It may be validly contended that sodalities, after all, are
-
80
Mullan, op. cit., p. 50.
81 From the Abridged History of Sod. by Villaret, p. 27.
8 2 Mullan, passim 51-71.
83
Ibid., p. 82.
�268
SODALITY ORIGINS
sodalities of Our Lady and that there has been no mention
of her in this review of Sodality beginnings. This is an
important point. Leunis is responsible for making the
Roman College sodality Marian. For this contribution he
deserves the accolade of the centuries. But even here an
undiscerning acceptance of his Marian contribution to the
Sodality may mislead him who seeks to know the nature of
the Sodality.
·· The Growth of the Marian Dimension
We have seen the distorted notions that a too simple picture of Sodality beginnings can give rise to. Oversimplification of Our Lady's place in the Sodality organization can,
likewise, deprive us of precious clarity. Although devotion
to her is not the essence of the Sodality way of life, the
fact is that the Marian characteristic is an essential feature
of the Bis Saeculari Sodality. 84 Nor has the Marian dimension ever been absent from the organization once it was
intr-oduced in 1564.
If Leunis had contributed only this
element to the movement, he would have justly deserved the
name of a founder.
What precisely was the place glyen Our Lady in his Roman
College group? We have two sources that we can go to for
an answer to this question. The early historian of the
Society, Father Sacchini informs us, "quae coepta superiore
anno Sodalitas discentium erat, ea Beatissimae Virginis subjecta hoc anno tutelae est." 85 In addition to this testimony,
we also have a letter written the year after the organization
began and a month after Leunis' departure. The writer
speaks of the recently born organization, describes the duty
of all to recite daily the Office of the Blessed Virgin, or the
Rosary, and adds that the students "earn (the Sodality) Beatissimae Virginis tutelae commendarent." 86
I submit that this word tutela is of major importance in
arriving at a clear idea of what Leunis gave to the Roman
~Bis Saeculari Apostolic Constitution on Sodalities of Our Lady,
(St. Louis: The Queen's Work, 1957) p. 16.
85 Sacchini, F., S.J., Historiae Societatis Jesu Pars Secunda (Antwerp: Ex Officina Filiorum Martini, 1620) p. 307.
86 Wicki, op. cit., p. 39 note ~15.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
269
College group. For in its fullness the concept is unilateral
meaning guardianship. 87 This is, as we shall see, imperfect
compared to the concept which more perfectly expresses the
sodalist's relationship with the Mother of God, that of
Patroness.
It would seem, therefore, that John Leunis gave the necessary direction to the Marian ingredient without fully exploit..:
ing the riches which were to be discovered later. Indeed,
Leunis' concept of Our Lady's place in the Sodality does not
deny any of the vital relationships to a patroness, it merely
leaves them undefined and implicit.
As Father Stierli's monograph clearly shows, the emergence of the concept of patroness is not the work of one
moment or of one man. Its evolution is due, principally,
perhaps, to two other founders of the Sodality as we know
it today, Father Francis Coster, S.J., and the Father General
Claude Aquaviva.
Whether or not Jerome Nadal who was prefect of studies
at the Roman College from 1557-59 and rector there from
1564-66, was instrumental in giving the Marian impetus
to the group or exploiting its potential, is something that
We will never know. If Polanco's intimation is correct, it
is quite possible that he influenced developments in the years
immediately after Leunis' departure. 88 Since we are now on
the thin ice of conjecture, we will prescind from the question
of his possible contribution and move on to the surer ground
of Aquaviva's role in the formation of the Sodality movement.
From the year 1564 till the year 1571 there was a rapid
succession of moderators of the student group. In the latter
Year there arrived at the College a Jesuit Scholastic, Claude
Aquaviva, future General of the Society of Jesus. He was
given the direction of the group and for the next three years,
?Y reason of his wisdom and organizational ability, it flourIshed. Although illness caused his removal after three
Years the period "was long enough for him to stamp the
Sodality with clear characteristics, and to impress on sodali-
-
81
Latin-English Lexicon, Ed. E. A. Andrews, (New York: Harper
and Brothers, 1850) p. 1580-1.
88
Farrell, op. cit., p. 76.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
270
ties yet to come, a direction at once supple and exact." 89
What Leunis left in outline became, in the hands of Aquaviva,
mature statutes, mirroring ten years of experience in their
formulation. 90
These rules of 1574 begin with the significant assertion,
"The Blessed Virgin is the first patroness of this society." 91
This was the first time that the word patroness was used
to describe the relation of a sodalist to Our Lady.
Ten :v._ears later, in 1584, the canonical erection of the
Roman College sodality as the primary sodality to which
all other sodalities were to be affiliated, took place. What
is of moment is that the general of the Society of Jesus at
this time was Claude Aquaviva. The arrival of the Sodality
at this stage of development is due to its erstwhile director,
for it was his efforts which brought about papal ratification. 92
In 1587 Aquaviva formulated the Sodality rules in a final
act. The first sentence reads, "Essendo Ia Beatissima Vergine Madre di Dio, Maria, principale A vvocata e Pad rona di
questa Congregazione...."n This expression of Our Lady's
role has not changed in all the intervening years. The modern
Apostolic Constitution of 1948 states that Our Lady "is the
principal patroness of the Sod~l_ity". 94 It is, therefore, to
Aquaviva that we must look for the best expression of the
relationship that exists between the Sodalist and Our Lady.
Since the word 'patron' is of importance, it is necessary
to spend some few moments in discovering its meaning. The
work has been done by Stierli. What follows is merely a
paraphrase of his findings. 95 Initially a legal concept, it came
into frequent usage in the Middle Ages. Free knights entered
the service of men eminent for position or wealth. The knight
Villaret, op. cit., p. 27.
For the Aquaviva rules cf. Mullan, op. cit., pp. 63-8.
9t Stierli, op. cit., p. 38.
92"Claude Aquaviva, from the time of his election as General,
looked upon the idea of canonical status with an eye that was more than
favorable. He had a lively wish for its accomplishment. Motives
were not lacking, and at the proper moment, he laid the matter before
the Sovereign Pontiff." Taken from the Abridged Villaret, p. 31.
93 Mullan op. cit., p. 24.
9 ' Also in the 1957 Version of the Common Rules, Rule ~40.
9G Stierli, op. cit., pp. 41-2.
s9
9°
�SODALITY ORIGINS
271
became the client and the lord the patron. A legal act sealed
a surrender whereby the client pledged himself to a lifelong
service-retaining, however, his previous social standing
of landholder-and the patron bound himself to avenge the
wrongs perpetrated against his client, servant and friend.
Enriched by legal overtones, the concept entered into usage
in the world of religion. Its use in the description of a sodalist's manner of devotion to Mary is obvious. For it expresses
a mutual relationship. She protects; he serves. He defends
her from attack. She, in turn, defends him from what would
do him harm. In its deepest expression, his devotion becomes
a consecration and "consecration is the act whereby we
initiate patronage." 96 Patronage means a contract, therefore, with the notes of service, protection and defense added
as dimensions of the bond of the knight-lady relationship.
But John Leunis did not offer his students of the Roman
College a form of consecration. And when we follow him
down the paths he traveled after his departure, strewn as
they are with many sodalities, we find no mention of consecration. Their devotion to Our Lady is still, it would seem,
the unilateral one expressed by tutela; not the bilateral consecration of self to Our Lady, as patroness.
It is not difficult to imagine why the idea of consecration
did not originate in Italy at all but rather in Northern Europe. The introduction of this feature of the Sodality was
the work of Father Francis Coster, sometimes referred to as
the cofounder of the movement because of the important
results obtained by him. 97 The Protestant Reformation of
his day created a situation calling for singularly valiant
service. The need of an enlistment bordering on the military
Was less acutely felt in Italy than it was in the North where
one who expressed a devotion for, or made a defense of,
Our Lady was often openly hostile to his milieu.
In virtue of the contributions of both Coster and Aquaviva,
~e can see the evolution of the role of Our Lady in the sodalities of Our Lady. It must be added here that the conception
of Our Lady as model-to-be-imitated is never absent from the
-
96
97
lbid., p. 39.
Villaret, op. cit., 59.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
272
l
very first moment of the group's inception. Since this is
a mode of devotion common to every Catholic, it has not
been considered in this analysis. It is, likewise, not adequately distinct from the mode expressed by patroness. The
latter, however, has been singled out here for the light which
a study of it affords.
As the role of Our Lady as patroness came into clear relief,
there emerged a striking similarity to the role Our Lady
played in' the life of Ignatius. "The knightly service of
love, as seen in the Sodality, has its model as well as its
spiritual and historical background in the founder of the
Society of J esus." 98
Instances of this type are numerous in the life of the Ignatius. But the most fruitful example of the patroness dimension in the devotion of Ignatius to Our Lady is found in
the night-long vigil before her altar at Montserrat at which
he offered himself to her. His consecration is symbolized
by the offering of his sword. By this act he signifies his
desire to abandon his quest for fame and to fight only for
her and with the weapons she supplies. 99 "Here was foreshadowed in its present form all future consecration to Mary
in the sodalities of Our Lady." 1oo.· .:
The post-Pamplona but pre-Manresa Ignatius performs this
act of consecration. A very rewarding parallel awaits one
who compares this act of Ignatius with the consecration to
Our Lady detailed by our late Holy Father in Bis Saeculari.
Pius Xll's description of the Sodalist's consecration, intentionally or not, is an exact reflection of that of fervent layman, Ignatius of Loyola, on the vigil of the Annunciation,
1522.
But the parallel is more than historical. As Father Stierli
has pointed out there is also a spiritual corelation between
the service required of a sodalist and the service Ignatius
required of himself and his followers in behalf of Christ and
His Mother. Now the compendium of lgnatian spiritualitY
is the Spiritual Exercises. We are, therefore, again led back
Stierli, op. cit., p. 27.
Dudon, op. cit., pp. 55-6.
1oo Stierli, op. cit., p. 29.
9s
99
�r-=
I
SODALITY ORIGINS
273
to the Spiritual Exercises to see if, from that vantage point,
we can gain any knowledge of the nature of the sodalities
of Our Lady.
Is there any similarity between the role of Our Lady in
the Exercises and her role in the Sodality? The harmony
between the two has been briefly and acutely handled in
Hugo Rahner's "True Source of the Sodality Spirit." Here
we will excise only bits of his study in an attempt to see
the relationship between the Exercises and Our Lady's position in the Sodality.
Our Lady of the Exercises has a double role to play. In
the first, she is the humble woman of the Gospels remaining
in the background. 101 In this role, she is a model whose
virtues are to be imitated-the virtues of resignation, humility and conformity to God's will. But in her second role, she
emerges with queenly bearing at every critical stage in the
Exercises to point out the road. In this connection, Rahner
refers to her as Our Lady of the Election. 102 The triple colloquy is, of course, the technique which is used at every point
which requires a decision. It is, likewise, the dogmatic foundation from which Ignatian devotion to Our Lady stems
and, as such, is part of the plan of spiritual development
of Ignatius' ascetical system. 103 "From the place which the
Mother of Jesus occupies in the lgnatian view of the history
of Salvation, we come to realize that the dedication which
the sodalist · makes of his life is, in reality, his reception
under the Standard of Christ." 104
It is in this second role of Our Lady in the Exercises that
we recognize the harmony between the lgnatian conception
of the spiritual life and that of the sodalities of Our Lady.
In brief:
-
Dogmatic considerations present us with the full richness of
patronage. In his consecration, the sodalist achieves in his own
fashion what the Eternal Son achieved with reference to His
Heavenly Father. He surrenders himself completely in loving
faith and trust to the mystery of the motherhood of Mary. Just
as the divine Logos, in order to become man, entered into Mary
in every way possible and she protected Him, so, too, the sodalist,
101
102
Rahner, op. cit., p. 26.
Loc. cit.
1oa
1o4
Stierli, op. cit., p. 30.
Rahner, op. cit., p. 32.
�274
SODALITY ORIGINS
by the consecration of his life enters into Mary that in her and
through her he may arrive at the full stature of Christ and may
by participation in the grace of Mary's maternity cooperate in
the work of redemption.1os
It seems, therefore, that the clearer the role of Our Lady
in the Sodality becomes, the closer it gets to a reflection of
her role in the life of Ignatius and in his Spiritual Exercises.
Leunis, Coster and Aquaviva, almost in spite of themselves,
contribute essential dimensions which, when combined, become th()roughly Ignatian. Paradoxically, the more remote
Ignatius becomes in time, the more authentically Ignatian is
the lay counterpart of the Society which he founded.
Leunis assures the Marian direction and develops it to the
level of the protectress. Coster adds the martial overtones
with his contribution of consecration to Our Lady. Aquaviva
aptly expresses her position in the Sodalities with 'patroness'. 106 When all elements are joined there is a clear reflection of Ignatius.
If, after seeing this close relationship between Ignatian
thought and Sodality practice, one should conclude that the
Sodality can only be accurately understood and conducted
by Jesuits, he would be wrong... Such a conclusion would
not be consistent with the minds of the popes in the last
two hundred years, nor the present facts.
If, however, after reflecting on this relationship between
the Sodality and the Spiritual Exercises, one concluded to
the necessity of fusing the two, he would be correct. To
call that organization a Sodality which is ignorant of the
Spiritual Exercises-directly through the annual retreat;
indirectly through the daily spiritual exercises-is to be
guilty, ascetically and historically, of a misnomer.
The brief conclusion of this section, then, would be that
we a?"ain see Leunis' greatness as deriving, not from his
10s Stierli, op cit., p. 43.
106 Here we are dealing with historical fact and not with an assess·
ment of the worth of such a concept in our own times. There are those
who feel that the concept of patron leans too heavily on chivalry and
feudalism to have modern application. The point that we wish to under·
line here, however, is that it perfectly represented the vital contributions
of the first few decades of Sodality history.
�SODALITY ORIGINS
275
originality, but rather from his instinctively Ignatian response to the apostolic challenges with which he was confronted.
Summary
To be content with the few facts usually given on the
subject of Sodality beginnings is to do a disservice to both
the Sodality and the Society. For by a study of the period
we can learn much of the mind of the early Society on the
subject of the Jesuit's role in the lay apostolate. In addition,
such a study provides a clearer picture of the feasibility of
Sodality work and its apostolic potential, as seen by the
earliest Jesuits.
By confining ourselves at the outset to the Roman College,
we saw the three years prior to the formulation of rules in
1563 as years of increasing Jesuit alertness to lay spiritual
direction both for youth and adults. Devout students received
more and more guidance; adult groups were formed and
given a set pattern for living Christian lives intensely. Many
of the teaching Jesuits presided over regularly scheduled
meetings and communal devotions. A fixed plan for student
sanctification was bound to emerge. When, therefore, the
formulation of rules was made by Leunis, it was not a sudden
creation but an intelligent stabilizing of already existing
practices, an apt adaptation of Jesuit spirituality for students
manifesting a desire of the magis.
Nor was the idea novel for it had its counterparts in the
earliest history of the Society; in a sense, it seems to have
been born with the Society. Peter Faber, in 1540, worked
for the permanent and universal good and he alone was the
reason why a group of the most influential and generous of
his exercitants developed into an organization which had
the same aims as the Society and a very similar spiritual
Program. Nor was he alone in this regard for Ignatius himself, as well as Nadal, Broet, Lainez, Domenech, Palmio and
others began similar groups.
When the Roman College sodality and all these other groups
are compared, they manifest a consistently uniform pattern.
Some of the constant features are: a complete pattern for
living a full Christian life, not a devotion; the major means
�-276
SODALITY ORIGINS
of sanctification are the Sacraments, spiritual duties and
apostolic activity; the group features include fixed meetings
and communal devotions; absence of youth groups until after
the death of Ignatius; and absence of social overtones in
choice of apostolate.
Some of the implications in the data provided by these
groups are of moment. It was never a case of an assignment
to Sodality work that initiated such groups, but they were
always a~r.esponse to the challenge of a ministry to which the
individual was assigned; a response so common as to be
almost a reflex of Ignatian training. The conditions which
produced the first sodalities were similar to those which
gave birth to the Society of Jesus. The congruence in the
profiles of these early groups seems to require a cause independent of them-the Spiritual Exercises. Originality must
be ascribed ultimately to Ignatius only; perspicacity in adaptation to Leunis and the others. The school sodality is merely
one -form which this Jesuit instrument of lay formation can
assume; historically, the professional sodality is as justifiable
as the youth group.
We saw the historical circum1)tances which prepared for
the papal erection of the Roman ·college sodality as Prima
Prima ria. In brief these would be: the fact of Rome; the
position of the Roman College in the mind of the early
Society; the immersion of the Society in the education of
youth; the number of Jesuits in training at the College; and
the moderator who became Father General Aquaviva.
We lined up Leunis' contribution, at first negatively, by
denying that he was the first Jesuit to have formulated a
fixed program of student sanctification; by rejecting the
uniqueness of the group's purpose and methods. He alone
was not responsible for the fervor we find at the College.
But positively, he was the first Jesuit at the Roman College
to have adapted for student usage a program of intense
Catholicity. This was not the result of merely personal
devotion, but rather an accurate reflexion of the mind of
Ignatius.
That the concept of Sodality is Ignatian can best be seen
by a study of the role of Our Lady in the Sodality as well as in
�SODALITY ORIGINS
277
the Exercises. The invaluable Marian direction comes from
Leunis. Two essential contributions towards a refinement
of the concept are provided by Coster and Aquaviva. When
the insights of the three Jesuits are joined there emerges
an authentically Ignatian dimension in the Sodality pattern
of spirituality.
We have, in short, attempted a brief answer to the question
"How Ignatian is the Sodality?" Our study has been successful only if it clarifies the setting in which the Sodality
of Our Lady was born. Distance has not aided clarity. In
the first two hundred years subsequent to Omnipotentis Dei,
there were two thousand five hundred affiliations with the
Prima Primaria. In any two year period since the first
World War a number of affiliations in excess of 2,500 can
be counted. 107 Expansion, however, may have produced distortion together with anemia and indifference. Although
Jesuits conduct only four per cent of today's sodalities, it
would seem that each of our sodalities could assume the commanding position once enjoyed by the group at the Roman
College, and become a clearinghouse of the best ideas and
techniques in Sodality organization. Is the past merely prologue to the Society's role in the future lay apostolate?
107
Stierli, op. cit., p. 19.
Father Leo Martin
1888-1958
Michael McHugh, S.J.
Every man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God
and so to save his soul. But a priest is made for more. Every
Priest is ordained to give glory to God by helping other men
to holiness and happiness in the service of God. And some
Priests are called to a still more specialized apostolate. These
are destined to find their fulfillment in helping other priests
to seek personal holiness and zeal for souls.
�278
FATHER MARTIN
This special vocation within a vocation-to be a priest
for priests, a Jesuit's Jesuit-was the lifework of Father
Leo Martin. The years of his priesthood were spent as a
scholasticate teacher and Tertian Instructor in the Oregon
Province. Many hundreds, helped by him during thirty
years, have the memory of a man who by his example and
exhortation made them better priests and better Jesuits. How
God prepared and used Leo Martin to stir up the grace of
ordination in God's priests is the story of his life.
Leo Martin's father was Thomas L. Martin who had come
from New Brunswick, Canada to Helena, Montana, in 1879.
There he met and married Josephine Power, who had come
West from Dubuque, Iowa. Helena was the year-old state
capital of Montana when Leo was born in 1888. His father
was a businessman in the city, head of the volunteer fire
department, director and tenor in the choir of the parish
church, which was the cathedral of the Helena diocese. Leo's
mother was the sister of Tom C. Power, the first U. S. Senator
from~ Montana.
Such political and cultural connections had their influence
on Leo's character. He remained a staunch Republican all
his life. In the Al Smith presiq:ential campaign, Leo was
adamant against the Democratic~ candidate, and was sharp
in his invective against fellow faculty men who wanted to
confuse politics and religion. Leo's invective, of course, was
always tempered by the deep sense of gentlemanliness and
politeness that was stamped on him by the social surroundings of his boyhood.
Part of the cultural training of the future tertian instructor was the attendance at dancing classes every SaturdaY
afternoon during the winter. Leo went because he was sent.
A friend of his in those days recalls him standing shyly as
a solitary wallflower until told by the teacher to pick a
partner. Then with shoulders sagging, Leo would make his
reluctant way across the room and obediently ask some girl
to dance. The shyness was something he never lost and
the obedience was a quality developed to perfection.
Leo's early education was remarkable in this that he
who became a great Jesuit teacher and a discerning director
of nuns never had, before entering, Sisters or Jesuits for
�FATHER MARTIN
279
teachers. He was educated at Hawthorne Grade School
and Helena High School. His grades at graduation in 1905
were representative enough: A in history and mathematics,
B in English, Latin, and physics, with a C in freehand
drawing.
In later life, decisions would always present difficulties for
Leo Martin but the big decision about his college education
was made less difficult because of the death of Bishop Brondel
in 1903. His successor to the See of Helena was Bishop
John P. Carroll who came from Dubuque, Iowa, where he
had been President of Loras College, called at that time St.
Joseph College. Bishop Carroll spoke to Leo about going to
Loras and perhaps preparing for the priesthood in the
Helena Diocese. Leo liked the suggestion. His mother had
died some months earlier in the year, his father did not want
to keep up the family mansion, and there were relatives in
Dubuque who could help him get adjusted. So Leo went
away to Loras College to study to be a diocesan priest.
Loras College
The four years Leo spent there were quiet and substantial.
He took no part in sports, and was far too timid to try out
for debating or dramatics. His only contribution outside
of class was to do some writing for the school paper. His
really significant activity, however, was ascetical. It was
admittedly an amateur's asceticism, clumsy and excessive.
Classmates at Loras remember Leo Martin living during Lent
on bread and coffee, a feat that cost him twenty pounds and
gained him some practical experience in the problems of
penance. Years later, Leo gave this advice to spiritual directors: "In general be easy on the young lest their freshness,
spontaneity and exuberance be crushed and they become
feeble and dependent. I wouldn't say this hasn't happened
to me from my own mistaken self-direction."
But that was the mature reflection of later years. As a
Young man, Leo was a long way from such prudent discretion. During the summer vacations in Helena, he set up
and followed a daily schedule of prayer and penance. Such
ascetical ambitions were something of an embarrassment to
his father. Had Leo's mother been living, she quite likely
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FATHER MARTIN
would have been able to understand the strange gropings
toward grace in her son. But Mr. Martin found it hard to
appreciate and accept the behavior of his only child.
One summer a cousin stopped in Helena for a visit. After
dinner Leo's father suggested they all go out to see the show
that had just opened in town. Leo asked to be excused and
went to his room. His father followed and found Leo kneeling at his desk. He did not want to attend the picture.
Father insisted and Leo obeyed. During the movie, however,
Leo kept. .Jlis eyes closed and lips moving in prayer until a
hard jab in the ribs from his father's elbow put a stop to
the ascetical demonstration.
Bishop Carroll was more ready to recognize the real
worth beneath such stubborn piety. When Leo graduated
from Loras in 1909, he was told by his Bishop that he could go
to any theologate he wished and complete his studies for
ordination. Leo chose the North American College in Rome.
In those days, the seminarians of the North American
College attended classes at the Urban College of Propaganda.
They lived in a community at the house on Humility Street
about a mile away. Leo grew fond of the tours through Rome
with the other students. The community life at North American College was helping him overcome some of his native
shyness. Leo's dancing teacher of Helena days might doubt
that it happened, but Bishop White of Spokane used to recall
the time when Leo Martin entertained the other students
at recreation by demonstrating the latest steps in American
dancing, Montana style. And Bishop White would add that
he should know since he was Leo's partner.
Another happy memory of those Roman years was the
private audience Leo had with St. Pius X in May of 1911.
The Pope gave the seminarian a souvenir medal of himself
that Leo treasured all his life and had pinned to his pillow at
death.·
Despite such rays of grace, there were doubts disturbing
his peace of soul during these days. Leo began to hesitate
about going on to ordination for the Helena diocese. He
wondered if he belonged in a religious order ; he was partie·
ularly interested in the Society of Jesus.
Leo had, of course, heard of the Jesuits in Helena. The
�FATHER LEO MARTIN
�-·
�FATHER MARTIN
281
history of Montana is filled with the Fathers and Brothers
of the Society. Twenty years before Leo was born, the
Jesuits Father Francis Kuppens and Father Jerome D'Aste
had started the Helena parish. When Bishop Brondel came
to organize the Diocese of Helena in 1884, he took that church
as his Cathedral but asked the Jesuits to stay on in residence
until diocesan priests could be supplied. The last of these
assistants to leave Helena was Father Palladino who departed
in 1893. But Leo was only five years old at the time so his
Helena contacts with the Jesuits could not have had much
influence on his vocation.
Decisive Retreat
A decisive grace came during the first retreat he made at
North American College in 1909. The retreat master was
Father Elder Mullan, S.J. The effect made on Leo Martin
by this retreat can best be seen by reading his own estimate
written some fifteen years later in a notebook he kept during
his private annual retreat:
Oct. 12, 1924-Started Retreat this P.M. Wish I had Fr. Mullan's notes. Oct. 15-De Regno Christi. Just about fifteen years
since I made this meditation the first time. Then I was frightened
at the price demanded. In spite of that I have been admitted to
the Society. Mystery of predilection. No reserves now please God.
Others who made that retreat in 1909 were certainly more generous with God.
It is characteristic of Leo Martin that he debated about
this call of Christ during two full years. Sudden decisions
never did become a part of his make-up. His spiritual director was Father Bernard Mahoney (later Bishop of Sioux
Falls, South Dakota) who told Leo to decide what God wanted
and then do it. Meanwhile, Leo was losing sleep and weight
from worry. He asked permission to drop out of the seminary for awhile. The Rector agreed that it was better to
go back to the States and make up his mind about his
Vocation.
Bishop Carroll was kind to the worried seminarian and
gave him time to make up his mind. Leo did not go back
to Rome in the Fall of 1911, but lived in Helena at the home
of his mother's sister, doing his best to turn Aunt Sarah
�282
FATHER MARTIN
Power's house into a private seminary. He wore black
clothes, attended Mass daily, and set up a schedule of prayer
and penance for himself. Seeking light and grace, he was
imprudent in fasting and so continued to lose weight. He
also caused himself a stomach disorder that gave him trouble
for much of his later life.
Mr. Martin was understandably annoyed and disturbed
at his son's activity and consequent poor health. He thought
a change ·of scenery would be good therapy and so he took
Leo with-him to Los Angeles for a winter of rest and relaxation. While in California, Leo stopped to visit the Jesuit
Novitiate at Los Gatos and to talk to Father Thornton, the
novice master. He decided then to apply for admission to
the Society and was accepted as a postulant on September 3,
1912. The response to the call of the Kingdom finally brought
Leo the peace of soul he wanted. There were no more doubts
about his desire to be a priest and a Jesuit.
Brother Martin went through the usual trials of a Jesuit
novitiate and endured the tensions that a twenty-four year
old experiences among the teenage novices. He soon acquired
a reputation for sincerity and generosity of character that
made him loved during his forty-six years in the Society.
And he also acquired a reputatioii for absent-mindedness, forgetfulness and impracticality that made him laughed at, or
laughed with, in the Jesuit communities he graced with his
presen~e during those years.
Father Martin eventually thought that he had overcome
forgetfulness, but he really never did. One of his Tertians
came to him once and confessed being too absent-minded and
impractical. Father Martin tried to console him by telling
him that he too had once been absent-minded but he had con·
quered the failing. That was what he thought but he never
did come completely down out of the clouds. The adult
Father Martin of Port Townsend had his quirks: gazing off
into space at the Orate Fratres, bursting out of private
absorption in prayer to give the wrong response at Litanies,
holding a forkful of food while wandering far afield in his
breakfast reflection. As a novice serving community Mass,
Brother Martin got interested in the Latin of the Missal
while changing the book at the Gospel. Feeling his waY
�FATHER MARTIN
283
slowly down the steps with his feet, he stopped at the foot
of the altar completely absorbed in the text, then realizing
that Father Master was waiting, he hurried up to the Gospel
side with the book, only to find that he had forgotten to
bring the bookstand. Years later Father Martin was serving
one of the Tertians at the main altar. After mass he carried
the cruets to the sacristy for a refill, put them down, picked up
the gallon jug of wine and carried it out to the sanctuary.
There he stood wondering what was wrong and what to do.
When Brother Sacristan brought out the filled cruets and
took the jug, Father Leo shuffled sheepishly to a pew.
Absent-Minded
Father Martin and a group of his Tertians were once waiting to catch the ferry boat from Port Townsend to Seattle
when he realized he had forgotten something. He asked the
dock attendant if he might use a phone to call Father
Minister. The man pointed to a phone on the wall and told
him that it was old style and he would have to ring twice
for the operator. Father Martin took the phone, pushed
twice on a button marked Fire Alarm and waited for an
answer. The boat coming into dock heard the alarm, reversed
engines and headed away from shore. People poured out
of their, cars. The workman came running to pull Father
Leo away from the fire bell which he was ringing again,
still wondering why nobody answered the phone. When
teased about the incident, Father Martin replied, "Things
like this keep you humble; I mean, make you humble".
Brother Martin at Los Gatos was certainly not the type
to be a Villa cook, but he was definitely the type to want to
take his share of the work. He would volunteer to help
carry the food to the Villa for the picnic lunch. Then along
the way, while making examen, Leo would absent-mindedly
tip his box or basket and, while he went on in blissful prayer,
the sandwiches or silverware would slip out of the box and
fall along the way.
·
Even Father Leo's habit of slitting open old envelopes and
Using the inside for notes dated back to Novitiate days. But
despite such superficial oddities, the solid spiritual formation
of Leo Martin went on and he pronounced his vows on Sep-
�284
FATHER MARTIN
tember 3, 1914. Because of his age and previous education,
he had only one year of Juniorate and then went to Spokane
for philosophy in 1915. He studied at the "Sheds" of Gonzaga for a half year and then went to Mt. St. Michael's above
Hillyard when it was opened in 1916.
Leo Martin put many years of his pre-Jesuit and Jesuit
life into the study of philosophy. And philosophy put a great
deal into Leo's makeup. He was quite willing to admit many
faults of a nonphilosophical nature, such as shyness, laziness,
impracticality, and general lack of backbone. But he never
accused himself of an absence of mental ability or the lack
of backbone to defend a known truth. His shyness and
timidity and lack of decision gave way when face to face
with what he knew to be true. In some philosophical battle,
he was once taunted as being "a wishy-washy Thomist."
Leo's reply was, "I'm not wishy-washy in that sense." He
meant it honestly and humbly. He was quite willing to admit
that he was wishy-washy about some practical affairs. But
in matters that mattered, he knew and we knew that he made
decisions and he had convictions. Another time in an argument on theology Leo was holding firmly to his position
when his opponent shouted, "W4o do you think you are, the
pope?" The shy Leo got red in~ the face, his mouth screwed
up in embarrassment at the comparison, he looked at his
shoes and sheepishly mumbled, "No, not quite," but held doggedly to what he considered the truth.
At the end of the philosophy course, Leo was sent back
to Los Gatos to spend two years of regency teaching Greek
to the Juniors. In 1919, he was called home to Helena for
the funeral of his father who had died suddenly at the Mayo
Brothers Clinic in Rochester following an emergency operation. Mr. Martin had remarried after Leo's entrance into
the Society. Neither father nor son seems to have been
fully sympathetic with the moves of the other. Sometime
after his father's death, Leo wrote these reflections on a
retreat meditation:
Tender memories of home. Great grace. Father understands
now. His sacrifices were worthwhile for him at least. He wants
me now to hold nothing back from Our Lord.
Because of a privilege allowing early ordination to Scho-
�FATHER MARTIN
285
Jastics whose studies had been delayed by the war, Leo
Martin received Holy Orders after his first year of theology,
on June 26, 1921, from Cardinal Glennon in St. Louis. Father
Martin made a list of some special intentions for his First
Mass. At the top were his mother and father. Next was
Bishop Carroll who had first interested him in the priesthood
and wrote to congratulate Leo on his ordination and First
Mass, "I regret very much that both these great events are
not to take place in Helena, but we shall be with you in
spirit."
Roman Biennium
The years after ordination Father Martin spent in Europe.
His three remaining years of Theology were done at Valkenburg, after which he was sent to Rome for a biennium. His
return to Rome after fourteen years was a greatly appreciated grace. Soon after his arrival, he paid a visit to the
North American College on Humility Street. In the chapel
he relived that memorable retreat under Father Mullan when
the Kingdom of Christ meditation had made such an impression. One of the workmen remembered him and the recognition after fourteen years touched his always affectionate
heart. He was invited to join the faculty in the Rector's
private parlor after dinner. Leo fully appreciated the honor
contained in such an invitation.
Father Martin was now thirty-six years old and found that
the grind of studies did not get easier with age. His diary
records headaches, nervousness, and dogged persistence. Here
are some scattered sentences culled from his comments to
himself:
I'm going to get Greek yet. Do a Latin sentence every day.
I'm working like a horse. Stop the extensive and start the intensive. Get a pet topic and set it aside for study on Sunday. I'm
getting to be a slave to a plan, my agenda needs a pruning knife.
Have I too many irons in the fire? Desultory reading today. Brace
up and spruce up. A reading carousal today. Read Zane Grey's
Wandered in The Wastelands. Villa was a Iiore and had headache.
Newspapers wrought havoc this morning. I'm getting about fifty
Percent out of my time. My program is too much. How can I relax? How about one Thursday a month entirely off? Read Saturday Evening Post today.
And the last days of his biennium were probably the
�286
FATHER MARTIN
worst. His final examination was an ordeal Leo never
forgot. He was tired and nervous. It was a two hour examination and the first was not too bad but the second was poor.
Leo lacked aggressiveness, was diffident in the defense of
his thesis on St. Augustine, and finally fainted before the
finish. The examiners judged that since his arguments were
weak and presented in so halting a manner, his teaching
could not be approved. He failed. He wrote in the diary
a few days later, "It seemed more than I could bear at the
time but f asked help and now it seems less bad."
There was something to be gained from the failure. Father
Leo was learning that his shyness and timidity were not
virtues. And he drew up the following bits of counsel on
how to take an oral exam. "Don't wait till you are catechised. Talk. Spout forth wisdom till you are stopped,
motu proprio, as soon as you get a chance. Provoke difficulties of which you know the answer."
Father Martin then left Rome to make his tertianship at
Florennes in Belgium. During and after the Long Retreat
he gave the matter careful consideration and decided he had
an obligation to ask for a second examination. Father
Poullier, the Tertian Instructor:'"' agreed and Leo wrote to
Father General. His petition was allowed. Leo went back
to Rome during the final month of tertianship, took the exam
again and passed it. He then returned to the Province
and found that the 1928 status assigned him to teach
cosmology at Mt. St. Michael's.
The move from the student side to the teacher side of the
desk did not have immediately happy results. His thesis
at the Gregorian, "Was St. Augustine a Molinist?" did not
qualify Leo Martin to teach cosmology. The diffidence and
shyness that marked and marred his student days made his
first teaching years at the Mount difficult. During the twelve
years· he taught cosmology, however, he became a great
teacher. In fact some call Leo Martin the greatest teacher
Mt. St. Michael's has ever had.
Proficient though he became, he did not do it by followi~g
the formula for success which he had written after hiS
failure at the Gregorian. "Spout forth wisdom till you are
stopped," may have been his counsel to others but it just
�FATHER MARTIN
287
was not his way. His own teaching technique was to pose
a problem and make the student think about it. He was a
thinker himself and wanted to develop thinkers. The mere
glib word and the shallow answer never pleased him. He
seemed to grade his students on their questions more than
their answers.
One never knew how long the cosmology lecture would
last. If Father Martin finished his prepared matter before
the end of class, he would dismiss the delighted Scholastics.
Frequently too, he would forget to bring a reference book
to class with him. Telling the students to wait, he would
go to his room to get it. There he might get absorbed in
the book and forget about the class.
Leo's approach to poverty was also distinctive. When he
was at tertianship, a local Belgian tailor measured him for
a suit at a bargain price. When the suit was delivered, it
was found to be an abominable fit and cheap cloth. His
immediate reaction was anger. His fellow Tertians remember his fuming about the "Fifteen dollar suit and a fifteen
dollar fit". But he insisted on bringing the suit to the States
and wearing it out to get his money's worth. Finally a
cousin wrote to him one Christmas from Helena :
Are you still of the same opinion about the suit as you are about
the overcoat or must I come to Spokane to talk you into it? I wish
you would not be so obstinate. The suit you brought home from
Europe seemed shabby to me and not up to the dignity of a priest,
gentleman, and professor. Consider that you contribute to our
happiness, and piety, by letting us fuss over you.
His scrupulosity of a sort shows up also in the following
incident. He was about to board a city bus in Spokane with
another Jesuit when he realized that the only fare he had
Was a Seattle bus token. He felt he could not use a Seattle
token in a Spokane bus. His companion said, "Give me that
token. I can use it in Seattle next week. I'll pay your way
now". Father Martin agreed. The bus came and both got
in. Two metallic pieces jingled in the fare box. After riding
in silence for a half mile, Father Martin asked, "Father,
did You use that Seattle token to pay my fare?" "Yes." "I
thought you would. I don't believe I could have done that,
Father, but I thought you would."
�288
FATHER MARTIN
During Father Martin's last six years at the Mount, he
was the Father Rector of the community. There is a story
told about him that shows how his sense of propriety and
his sense of humor made decisions difficult. Some Scholastics
came for permission to put on a play. It was an original
production and Father Martin asked to hear the plot. As
the Scholastics described the comedy situation and acted out
a bit of the dialogue, he laughed and asked to hear more.
When they had finished their preview and Father Rector
had done wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes, he
solemnly said, "I think your play is lacking in proper decorum. I can not give you permission."
Tertian Instructor
In 1939, at the end of his term as Rector at the Mount,
Father Martin was made Tertian Instructor at Port Townsend. He was happy in the appointment because all his
life Leo had dreamed of being able to help priests. Yet he
was quite conscious of the responsibilities of the position.
And he was, as always, acutely conscious of his own limitations. He must have had sharp memories of the many poor
starts he had already made-the painful years of deciding
his vocation, the failure in his examination at the Gregorian,
the compaints he occasioned during his first years of teaching
at the Mount. At the close of his first year as Tertian
Instructor, he wrote to the Father Provincial, "I hope I get
another chance next year."
Father Martin got another chance every year for the final
nineteen years of his life. The some six hundred Tertians
who were trained by him during that time are the best
judges of how much he meant to their spiritual formation.
Certainly we may be safe in saying that six hundred priests
are better men and better Jesuits because of their contact
with'him.
What made the contact so rewarding was due in large
part to the fact that Leo Martin was one of the rare men
who both understood human nature and were able to make
allowances for it. He was eminently able to have compassion
on the misinformed and the erring because he realized that
he himself was beset with human weaknesses. ' His laboratorY
�FATHER MARTIN
289
for the study of human nature, indeed, was first of all himself.
He checked and analyzed his own failings and tried to find
the correct manner of improvement. His colloquies with
himself in his spiritual notebook are significant. Here are
some scattered samplings:
I should determine so to make the last two days of my retreat as
if I were just beginning, as if I had hitherto done nothing.
My uneasiness and eagerness about mail must be stopped.
Another fault. I promise too much. I must count the cost before promising hereafter.
I'm told I take too much. The Agere Contra for me would be in
asserting myself more.
I'm too shy. Must get about a bit more. Got the light my shyness was really a defect of character.
Mediocrity is hard to get out of but I'm going to do it with
God's help.
Understanding human nature is one thing and making
the proper allowances for it is another. Leo Martin once
wrote, "Between the two extremes of the certainly good
and the certainly bad, much is uncertain. We must try to
find out what is good and what is from fallen nature, and
how far good and how far bad. Take counsel. It may be
necessary to tolerate the bad for the sake of some element
good for the individual-or to tolerate the repression of
something good for the sake of getting rid of something
especially bad for the individual. Because they fail to realize
this, very few spiritual fathers become eminent, a gift to
be wished for and prayed for."
Leo Martin wanted men to be themselves and to let their
human nature grow under the action of grace. He had
learned that the hard way and was conscious of what he
called "My big Los Gatos mistake: I tried to be Father Piet
and Father Woods at the same time. Better to be Leo Martin
and use Father Piet's advice and Father Woods' advice." He
enjoyed individualists. He seemed glad to have sincere radicals in the community. He loved the little foibles of human
nature. He loved the latest bits of news about the Province
and Welcomed the Tertians when they came back from supply
calls to make their report and tell what they had heard.
Kindness was an habitual concern. He tried so to arrange
supply calls that his Tertians could be close to home, relatives
�290
FATHER MARTIN
and friends on holiday occasions. He would, in a motherly
way, caution the Tertians to cover up warmly during the
midnight meditations lest they catch cold. He would weep
without shame on hearing of a hurt or injustice suffered by
someone. The key to understanding his cultivation of the
virtue of kindness is found in the fact that Leo himself
suffered so intensely from real or imagined offences. He was
easily hurt by a harsh word ; he dreaded the loneliness and
misunderstanding that can so often be a part of community
living. ·These random comments of his show the makeup of
Leo Martin:
Feast of St. Leo: Many visitors. It may be all form but it
touches.
My happiness should not depend on the smiles of Fathers and
Superiors.
The Society of Jesus is not a club where members can be black·
balled for getting on the nerves of others.
A couple of letters from relatives with soft soap explanations
~ that don't explain. Christmas greetings dated December 27th. I'm
not wanted, or rather negatively, I'm not loved in the family. If
the same thing happens to me in the Society, I'll have to keep in
the state of grace and accomplish something. Try to love God
more. I'm still making my happiness the standard.
Leo's kindness came easily be-cause he realized how much
unkindness hurt in his own case. But the universal charity,
which was probably his most outstanding virtue, did not
come easily at all. It was won by many a hard battle. The
charge of St. Paul to Timothy, to "be instant in season and
out of season, reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and
teaching," was a lifelong challenge to Father Martin. Because he disciplined himself to temper the expression of his
anger most people who knew him did not know that he was
inclined to impatience with people. Yet naturally he did
not like certain types.
Small people with provincial pride and cocksureness, peo·
ple without depth or sincerity of character, people who lacked
real refinement, what he called "the correspondence course
variety." Such people were hard for him to live with. Most
likely, though, they never knew it, for Father Martin ex·
pressed his anger mainly to himself in his diary. He names
no names but we know from these scattered notations that
�FATHER MARTIN
291
charity was a virtue Leo worked at in season and out of
season:
X came along and monopolized the conversation as usual, constantly causing cross currents in the conversation. Will he ever learn?
I needn't love him for what he hasn't got.
Y is continually irritating me by assumption of superiority and
constantly correcting. Probably something amiss in me to let these
things worry me but I'm going to take him to task for his officiousness as soon as I can do so conveniently.
Z is something of an old woman. Hard to resolve to get on with
him.
Some men have a distorted sense of values. They tear everything
to pieces, lack delicacy, tact, refinement. Some expression of regret
certainly due me. Can I call this to his attention in such a way as
will make an impression?
Certain considerations of courtesy due even to an inferior which
are repeatedly violated by Fathers in dealing with Scholastics.
Seems to me it takes real courage to keep straight when one
knows the crookedness even in places where one's idealism would
not think it was.
A spiritual alms today from X about treading on other people's
toes. The pot calling the kettle black!
It is difficult to compress a man's life into a few pages
and more difficult to summarize his teaching. But if any
compressed statement of what Leo Martin tried to impress
on his Tertians is possible, it is that they should not expect
more from their priesthood than Christ got from His. Such
was his capsule version of the priestly vocation. He drove
the lesson home year after year in the Long Retreat points
and conferences. What success his insistent teaching had
was not due especially to his eloquence or ability as a speaker.
Father Martin had little oratorical ability, his Long Retreat
points were short and his conferences were solid but seldom
electrifying. Leo's impact came from the fact that he lived
What he taught. He had schooled himself to look for no
more from his own priestly vocation than Christ got.
He was content therefore patiently to put in the long
Years of training, directing and guiding, without recognition
or publicity, without apparent success and often enough
Without much in the way of thanks. He kept at his prayer
and study, he worked at the universal charity and affable
gentlemanliness for which he was known, he patiently suf-
�292
FATHER .MARTIN
fered his own faults and foibles of character for which he
was laughed at and loved. Long years of contemplation of
the life of Christ taught Father Martin what to expect.
He expected no less in death. As Christ's priesthood had
meant the painful agony of humiliation and desolation and
suffering on the Cross so Father Martin was willing to
accept the crosses connected with his own painful death. He
spent the final four months of his life in a hospital suffering
from cancer of the prostate gland. He endured shame and
embarras·sment from the care of the nurses, humiliation from
his lack of physical control, and his good nature and charity
were imposed on by tactless visitors. When the physical or
emotional pain was intense, he would be brief and abrupt.
When relief came, there came also the memory of his irritable
feeling and with simple humility, he would scrupulously beg
pardon of doctors and nurses.
The human in Leo was with him to the end. He was eager
for news of the Province and Society, glad to get letters but
worried about not being able to answer them. He was disappointed when he realized he had to give up his work. This
news depressed him until Dr. Reilly, his physician and close
friend, scolded him and remind_e'd him to live the prayer for
generosity of St. Ignatius, to give, fight, labor, and ask no
reward save that of knowing he was doing God's will. Simply, Father Leo thanked Dr. Reilly and asked forgiveness
for his failure and begged prayers that grace would make him
strong.
A few days before Leo died one of the priests at his bedside
asked if he was still able to pray. Father said he could still
pray and that he was asking that God's will be done. He
went on to admit that he had wanted to beg that
God would take him soon because of the pain, but was now
grateful that he had not given into that temptation and made
the mistake of selfishly praying against God's wiser Providence. In life and in death Father Leo Martin kept at his
specialized vocation of teaching Jesuit priests to be like Jesus
Christ.
�Geographic Distribution of Jesuits
1958
William J. Mehok, S.J.
This article has a long history. About ten years ago, fund
raising organizations for American Jesuit institutions came
in search of factual data on the whereabouts of all members
of the Society of Jesus. In rapid succession, the author of
a book, two authors of articles for nationally circulated magazines and the supervisor of a survey on the Church in Latin
America followed in search of similar information. If this
information is of such interest to non-Jesuits, a fortiori it
must be of similar or greater interest to members of the
Order.
By way of orientation, it is best to present a synoptic view
of the personnel of the entire Society bridging the gap
between Jesuits as ascribed to the various provinces and as
living in different parts of the world. This is done in Table 1.
In Table 2 we shall subdivide this last row into the different
countries in which Jesuits live. These will be further subdivided according to their grade in the Society (priest,
Scholastic or Brother) and, if they live outside their own
provinces, according to whether the territory in which they
live is in the same country as their own or not.
Unless otherwise specified, province catalogues for the
Year beginning 1958 are the source of data here given. The
Phrase "Ineunte anno 1958" is itself misleading since the
publication dates range from August 1957 to June 1958.
Also, there is a slight difference between the "Prospectus
Societatis Iesu Universae Ineunte Anno 1958" and the information which, in some cases, was later printed in province
catalogues.
Jesuits belonging to the Province of Bohemia and the ViceProvinces of Romania and Slovakia require special treatment.
We can only estimate how many there are from the antiquated figures given in the above-mentioned "Prospectus"
and make further assumptions about their geographic
distribution.
293
�294
DISTRIBUTION
Much futile speculation can be saved if one convinces
himself that "Ex aliis provinciis" and "Extra provinciam
degentes" (or their equivalents) do not represent a complete
disjunction. There is a third possibility, namely, outside one's
own province but not in the territory, or at least jurisdiction,
of another province. This is another way of saying that
there are parts of the earth that have not been officially
assigned to the Society. This explanation partly accounts
for the 67 Jesuits in row B 2 of Table 1 who would be
considere-d "Ex aliis provinciis" if the above terms were
strictly corelative.
In come cases the reason for the discrepancy is the fact
that province catalogues do not come out simultaneously
and hence the same person can be reported as living in one
country according to one province catalogue and in another
country by a later catalogue of another province. This time
factor probably explains the imbalance in number of Scholastics.
F-urthermore, there are Jesuits living in an alien province
but not considered under its jurisdiction. "Capellani militares" are a good example, although there are others in
Jesuits "extra domos," "in via ad-'-_-" and "de bello nondum
reduces".
Whenever these or similar doubtful cases came to my
attention they were solved on this principle. A Jesuit is
assumed to live in the country housing the headquarters of
his own province unless 1) he is in a house of his own
province in some other country or unless 2) he is listed in
another province catalogue as living in a country of its territory. If this principle could be rigidly applied, then the
sum of those living outside their provinces would equal the
sum of "ex aliis provinciis" for all the provinces of the
Society.
The reason why columns 5 and 6 of Table 2 are given as
they are is that the new instructions concerning "applicati"
and "non-applicati" had not yet been put into practice bY
all the provinces and that information could not be given.
It is hoped that such information will be forthcoming in
future years. Column 5 gives the number of Jesuits living
in a country who belong to another province, which other
�DISTRIBUTION
295
province has territory in the same country. For example,
the exchange of men among the ten United States provinces
would come under this heading. Column 6 gives the number
of Jesuits in another province as well as country. Thus, for
example, any non-English Province Jesuit living in England
would come under this colmn since there is only one province
with territory in that country.
The subtotal of Table 2 designated as "Group I" should
present no difficulty. It represents the actual count of
Jesuits living in the territories of 76 provinces (viceprovinces, independent missions and regions) which embrace 90
countries. "Group II" accounts for the remaining 458 members of the Society. Here we are confronted with a two-fold
uncertainty. First, we are not sure of the exact number
since the data concerning some of these are for the years
1954, 1955 and 1957. Certainly there have been changes since
then. Secondly, assuming that this is a correct figure, we
have further assumed that members of the Slavic Assistancy
listed here live in the territories of their own Provinces
except for the 62 who are listed in Group I.
By way of summary, we might call attention to a few of
the more significant details of the tables. About 22% of
all Jesuits live outside the territory of their own provinces.
As nearly as can be determined, 7% of these are applied to
another province and 15% are not. Viewed differently,
about 11% live in another province and country and 11%
live in another province but the same country as their own.
The following countries have over one thousand Jesuit
residents: United States (7,406), Spain ( 4,054), Italy
(2,395), India (2,157), France (1,878), Belgium (1,304),
Canada (1,153), Brazil (1,114) and Western Germany
(1,011). Combined, these account for a total of 22,472 Jesuits
While the other 80 or more countries account for the remaining 33% of all Jesuits.
Statistical surveys are never a substitute for thought. A
number of cautions have been given to curb the uncritical.
To the hypercritical the author can only offer Hobson's
choice, this or nothing. To those who object that the figures
given here are almost two years old, we can only say that
not even the 1959 number of Jesuits is available, to say noth-
�296
DISTRIBUTION
ing of their geographic distribution. Although the absolute
number of Jesuits may change from year to year, their relative proportions and positions do not change very much, especially in countries where the absolute numbers are large.
Table 1. Distribution of 34,014 Jesuits according to grade and migratory status. Year beginning 1958.
MIGRATO~Y
A.
STATUS
"Socii adscripti"
Priests
1
Scholas tics
2
Coadjutors
3
TOTAL
4
17,679
10,594
5,741
34,014
3,570
16
21,265
3,586
17,679
3,586
1,398
1,878
294
16
3,207
39
13,840
3,246
10,594
3,246
366
2,780
61
39
721
12
6,474
733
5,741
733
344
304
73
12
7,498
67
41,579
7,565
34,014
7,565
2,108
4,962
428
67
B. "Ex aliis provinciis"
1.In other province
2. Not in other province
c. "Numerantur"
D. "Extra provinciam"
E. "Degentes"
B. "Ex aliis provinciis"
a:" "Applicati"
b. "Non-applicati"
c. Probably "applicati"
d. Probably "non-applicati"
A. "Socii adscripti": Unduplicated number of Jesuits according
to province catalogues 1958 as explained in text.
B. "Ex ali is provinciis": 1) Jesuits known to be living outside
the territory of their own provinces and in the territory of another
province. 2) Jesuits who are known to be outside the territory of their
own provinces but are not reported as living in the territory of another
province.
C.
"Numerantur": Sum of A
+
B and D
+
E.
D. "Extra provinciam": Jesuits known to be outside the territorY
of their own provinces.
E., "Degentes": Jesuits living somewhere on earth, either in territory 'assigned to the Society or some other territory.
B. "Ex ali is provinciis": a) Those certainly designated as
"applicati" by province catalogues. b) Those certainly designated as
"non-applicati." c) Province catalogue data insufficient to assert that
these Jesuits are certainly "applicati," but it can be assumed that
nearly all are. d) It is reasonably assumed that these Jesuits are not
applied to another province.
�DISTRIBUTION
Table 2.
297
Geographic distribution of 34,014 members of the Society of
Jesus, and of 7,565 Jesuits living outside the territory of their
own provinces. Year beginning 1958.
COUNTRY
and
CONTINENT
FROM ANJESUITS LIVING IN COUNTRY OTHER PROVINCE but
Brothers
TOTAL
Same 1 Diff.
Priests
Scholas tics
1
2
3
4
5
17,679
10,594
5,741
34,014
3,834
3,731
Algeria
35
Belgian Congo
196
Cameroons
3
Egypt
30
Ethiopia
15
Fr. Equat. Afr.
28
Madagascar
185
Mauritius
5
Morocco
8
Mozambique
16
Reunion
3
Rhodesia-North
56
Rhodesia-South
73
Ruanda-U rundi
12
Un. ·of So. Afr.
17
AFRICA (15)
682
Alaska
35
Barbados
4
British Honduras
28
Costa Rica
661
Canada
3
Cuba
83
Dominican Rep.
35
El Salvador
33
Guatemala
18
Haiti
9
Honduras, R. of
12
Jamaica
69
Mexico
263
Nicaragua
20
Panama
11
Puerto Rico
13
United States
3,993
2
66
2
3
6
3
38
0
1
2
0
10
6
3
0
142
2
0
5
336
0
51
5
22
3
1
0
8
274
7
.6
6
2,799
1
38
333
6
40
24
38
295
6
10
29
4
81
99
15
20
1,038
45
4
35
1,153
3
198
56
81
28
13
12
80
650
43
24
22
7,406
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
11
0
0
0
11
0
0
0
21
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
143
0
0
0
1,472
0
22
1
8
2
6
79
2
0
0
1
11
14
0
0
146
4
0
14
72
2
28
15
16
10
0
2
3
17
18
4
6
317
ENTIRE SOC.
71
1
7
3
7
72
1
1
11
1
15
20
0
3
214
8
0
2
156
0
64
16
26
7
3
0
3
113
16
7
3
614
Country
I
6
�DISTRIBUTION
298
COUNTRY
1
5,290
AMERICA, N.
(17)
152
Argentina
43
Bolivia
469
Brazil
44
British Guiana
114
Chile
264
Colombia
87
Ecuad<;>r
21
Paraguay
58
Peru
Uruguay
53
76
Venezuela
1,363
AMERICA, s.
(11)
62
Ceylon
94
China-Mainland
134
China-Taiwan
59
Hong Kong
1,094
India
145
Indonesia
29
Iraq
2
Israel
177
Japan
6
Korea-South
88
Lebanon
10
Macau
2
Malay, Fed. of
8
Nepal
289
Philippines
27
Portuguese India
1
Portuguese Timor
8
Singapore
10
Syria
6
Thailand
5
Vietnam
2,256
ASIA (21)
259
Austria
744
Belgium
18
Denmark
1,332
France
136
Germany-East
501
Germany-West,
Saar
16
Greece
2
3
3,525
1,038
9,853
1,636
528
153
27
318
2
72
316
153
9
51
23
34
1,158
66
29
327
0
51
137
46
10
46
20
68
800
371
99
1,114
46
237
699
286
40
155
96
178
3,321
1
0
206
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
207
56
5
36
0
55
79
67
6
8
14
34
360
13
42
21
2
340
29
2
3
28
1
27
4
0
1
49
5
0
0
0
0
1
568
81
125
5
165
38
164
82
136
172
65
2,157
245
44
5
333
7
122
15
2
12
552
32
8
10
6
6
4,012
464
1,304
26
1,878
194
1,011
3
0
0
0
535
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
538
0
64
0
298
4
137
22
0
7
0
17
4
723
71
13
0
128.
o·-'
7
1
0
3
214
0
0
0
0
0
0
1,188
124
435
3
381
20
346
2
4
4
5
1
6
11
136
172
14
323
51
2
5
206
1
33
7
2
4
238
2
1
3
0
6
6
1,223
166
97
5
193
3
141
0
�DISTRIBUTION
COUNTRY
1
274
Ireland
1,367
Italy, Trieste
Luxembourg
5
29
Malta, Gozo
Monaco
3
Netherlands
342
Poland
273
Portugal
124
Spain
1,485
Sweden
12
Switzerland
90
Turkey-Europe
2
Un. King.-Eng.
393
U. K.-Wales
33
U. K.-Scotland
32
Yugoslavia
104
EUROPE (23)
7,574
Australia
157
New Zealand
5
Pacific Islands
24
OCEANIA (3)
186
Dispersi
159
GROUP I (90)* (17,510)
Territory of
Prov. (V.P.):
Bohemia (1955)
74
Romenica (1957)
9
Slovakia (1954)
70
Place unknown
16
GROUP II**
(169)
GRAND TOTAL 17,679
2
186
393
1
44
0
197
202
112
1,556
0
8
0
217
0
0
58
4,285
124
0
4
128
19
(10,445)
53
3
54
39
(149)
10,594
3
299
4
5
6
525
65
2,395
635
6
0
113
40
4
1
631
92
605
130
349
113
4,054
1,013
2
14
117
19
1
3
675
65
46
13
38
6
235
73
14,709
2,850
306
25
5
0
12
40
351
37
272
94
(5,601) (33,556)
0
279
0
0
0
0
96
0
564
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1,442
0
0
0
0
0
(3,834)
37
467
1
1
0
15
7
1
143
1
18
3
66
10
1
1
1,377
17
0
12
29
1
(3,664)
179
20
192
67
(458)
34,014
0
0
0
0
(0)
3,834
0
0
0
67
(67)
3,731
52
8
68
12
(140)
5,741
1) Priests living in the country indicated.
2) Scholastics living in the country indicated.
3> Coadjutor Brothers living in the country indicated.
4> Total number of Jesuits living in the country indicated.
5> Total number of Jesuits from another province of the Society but
the same country living in the country indicated.
6) Total number of Jesuits from another province of the Society as well
as from another country living in the country indicated .
•
GROUP I: All figures as given in province catalogues I. A. 1958
except some data in columns 5 and 6. For lack of more accurate in-
�300
DISTRIBUTION
formation, all Jesuits under the China Visitor are assumed to be
applied to the area in which they are working and also come from
a different country.
**
GROUP II: Figures given here lack certainty. 1) They are not
based on province catalogues I. A. 1958. 2) Jesuits are assumed to be
working in the territory of the three provinces (viceprovinces) men·
tioned except 62 socii of these provinces listed in GROUP I.
Temporal Coadjutor Assignments
Leo B. Hyde, S.J.
The figures below, based on the Province Catalogues of
the American Assistancy for 1959, show the variety of work
being done by our American Temporal Coadjutors. The
survey deals with 579 Brothers, of whom 550 are stationed
in the United States and 29 are in the Foreign Missions and
Alaska. Not included in this· survey are the 53 Brother
Novices listed in the Catalogues.
u.s.
Archivist - - - - ·
Architect
Athletic Equipment
Bakers - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Prefect of Boarders - - - - - - - - - - - - Assistant Prefect of Discipline _ _ __
Bookbinders - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Buyers
Carpenters
Master of Ceremonies
Supervisors of Clothes Rooms
Directors of Building Construction and Repair _
Cooks ____
Supervisors of Student Cooperatives ------Supervisors of Dining Rooms, Kitchens,
and Storerooms
Supervisors of Farms
F.M.
Total
1
1
1
3
11
3
11
2
2
1
5
5
61
37
5
6
2
41
1
6
56
32
1
52
16
39
6
66
12
6
2
1
57
22
6
68
12
�301
BROTHERS
Supervisor of Fish Cannery -------------Garagemen ---------------------Gardeners
Supervisors of Buildings and Grounds ------Supervisors of Heating Systems -----------Infirmarians -------------------------Instructors in Agriculture -----------------Instructors in Baking ------------------------Instructor in Music ----------------------------Instructor in Radio - - - - - - - - - - - - - Instructors in Various Technical Subjects _____
Supervisors of Laundries - - - - - - - - - - - Assisting Librarians -------------------Mailmen - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Supervisors of Mechanical and Electrical
Maintenance ----------------------Metal Workers - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Engineer of Mission Boat -----------------Orant Pro Societate -------------------------------Painters _______
Business Manager of Periodical Press --------Poultrymen --------------------------Printers -----------------------House Treasurers - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Assisting House Treasurers ---------------Assisting Province Treasurers --------------------Custodian of Radio Station -------------------Receptionists ----------------------------Office Manager of Retreat House - - - - - - - Sacristans -----------------------------Sanctuary Society Moderators -------------Secretaries --------------------------------------Assisting Seminary Guild Directors --------------Shoe Repairmen ----------------------------_
Brothers Socius to Provincials
Stonemasons ---------------------Tailors
Supervis ____f S · ------h--S-t-t-;-------___
or o
e1smograp
a 10n --------------~.omoter of Brothers' Vocations ---------------S lnemen _______
_________
Upervisors of Workmen --------------Assisting Writers ----------------------At
•t•
..
W the n·
1spos1 10n of F a th er M1mst er --------Batch Repairmen - - - - - - - - - - - - - To:vs' Club Moderator -------------------otal Number of Various Assignments -----Total Number within these assignments ____
21
37
27
54
47
4
2
1
1
1
4
2
3
1
22
38
31
56
50
12
4
2
1
1
12
15
13
13
15
13
13
1
1
49
7
6
1
1
55
8
1
11
11
10
10
2
3
4
2
3
4
1
24
9
38
2
4
9
1
1
1
39
6
1
104
1
98
11
21
4
7
7
2
19
3
28
11
2
23
4
7
7
2
1
19
1
1
9
1
9
14
1
15
3
17
3
20
3
1
1
1
1
55
924
25
68
60
992
�Books of Interest to Ours
RA.l\USl\1 AND ITS INFLUENCE
Ramus, Method, and the Decay of Dialogue. By Walter J. Ong, S.J.
Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1958. Pp.
x-408. $10.00.
Ramus and Talon Inventory. By Walter J. Ong, S.J. Cambridge,
Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1958. Pp. 588. $10.00.
The Harvard University Press has published within the year three
impressively learned, readable Jesuit studies in the humanism of the
Renaissance. In The Praise of Pleasure, Father Edward Surtz has
provided an admirable elucidation of Saint Thomas More's enigmatic
classic, Utopia; in The Scholastic Curriculum at Early Seventeenth
Century Cambridge, Father William T. Costello has made available
the results of his authoritative inquiry into the Scholastic strands
woven inextricably into Renaissance and post-Renaissance university
learning; and, now, Father Walter J. Ong gives us his erudite history
of the complex origins, internal developments, and all-pervasive aftereffects within Western thought of the methodological movement which
scholars today (for example, Perry Miller, Miss Rosemond Tuve) are
j!,lst recently beginning again properly to detect and to identify as
Ramism. Each of these three books notably manifests the personal
vitality and originality in thought of its own priest-author; taken
together, they reflect cheerfully, hopefully on the excellences of insight
and of outlook, the resources of significant dialogue, which are
characteristic living notes of the '"Society's best traditions in Catholic
scholarship, our own rich cultural inheritance from the past. Needless
to add, in the light of their distinguished Harvard Press sponsorship,
all three works carry on at a high intellectual level the collaborative
inquiry into the history of ideas for which literary studies at Harvard
University have for a long time been renowned.
Father Ong's work on Peter Ramus, Pierre de la Ramee (1515-1572),
the enormously influential French logician (and/or dialectician) and
educator, is divided into four exactly, richly documented "Books:"
the first outlines the issues of Ramism in intellectual tradition, and
reviews, in particular, the biographical vectors in Ramus' career, hoW,
for example, he came to be so fierce an anti-Aristotelian, out of syJll·
pathy as well with Italian humanism, and why, so far as one can tell
at this distance, he abandoned his Catholic religion late in life some
time after the death of his closest associate, the Catholic priest, Omer
Talon, and, finally, how he lost his own life in the terrible Saint
Bartholomew's Day Massacre at Paris in 1572-in the days before
men of all parties had come to see clearly that the only way to fight
an idea is by another idea, and not by the fire or the sword.
Father Ong's second "Book," in a sense his most revolutionarY and
302
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303
crucially important one, reviews the ancient classical and medieval
backgrounds of Ramism, and argues convincingly that the Ramist
"rigged terminology," its "cult of dichotomies," its "corpuscular epistemology" or "quantitative bias"-in a word, its abstractionism-arise
from the failure of the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth century
Scholastic logicians to discover and develop a sufficiently flexible
system of language control which might have enabled them to deal
effectively with the Aristotelian logic of probabilities as well as with
the new calculus of propositions which should have come in in their
own times. Thus, long before Ramus (or Descartes, or Kant, and
long indeed before the days of "symbolic" or mathematical logic),
the intellectuals were disposed to accept the abstract reflections of
reality in the structures of their own minds as the only intellectually
permissible account of reality which the human mind could find. Here
Father Ong's account of Arts Scholasticism corrects many long-standing
misapprehensions: this scholasticism, the predominant one by far at
the universities, was little influenced, it now seems clear, by the major
theologians, who went quite separate ways from the arts faculty and
who often enough taught at religious houses of study altogether outside
of the university milieu. It was for the most part a philosophy for
teenagers, for whom explicit and fixed picture-diagrams and the
monologue of the teacher seemed pedagogically better-suited than did
the fluid give-and-take of conversational dialogue. In the more freewheeling open world of aural and oral discourse, one arrives less
conveniently on schedule at the already agreed-upon pigeon-holes into
which the teenager and, later, the Ramist came to imagine that all
knowledge as a commodity must be sooner or later stored away. The
role of two of Ramus' predecessors, Peter of Spain (Petrus Juliani)
and Rudolphus Agricola, is examined by Father Ong in some detail.
He speculates that Peter of Spain's Summulae logicales may well have
been the seed-bed for the Ockhamist errors (avant la lettre) which, as
Pope John XXI, Peter himself later on condemned. Peter of Spain's
Commentary on Aristotle's De Anima is, Father Ong tells us, "a
curiously unmetaphysical metaphysics." The Paris faculty of arts,
even in its Golden Age, had been far more interested in physics than
in metaphysics. In 1274, on the occasion of the death of Saint Thomas
Aquinas, they had promptly requested permission of the Dominican
general chapter at Lyons to see his notes on How to Put Up Aqueducts
and How to Make Mechanical Devices for Military Operations; they
showed not the slightest interest in seeing his unfinished Summa
theologiae. Father Ong includes Father Suarez and Cardinal Bellarllline among later thinkers who were unhappily influenced by the
scientism of Agricola's place-logic (topoi or loci), that which "helped
lllake them . . . different from Saint Thomas Aquinas."
Father Ong opens his third "Book," on Ramism, with an examination
of the Ramist dialectic, and he closes it with an examination of the
Ramist rhetoric. He notes several times that Ramus conceived of the
enthymeme (in the sense of Boethius) as a "truncated syllogism,"
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rather than in the sense of Aristotle as a syllogism which moves from
at least one probable premise to a probable conclusion. The Ramist
mental cartography was unable to place probabilities or ambiguities
within its mathematical coordinates without an unwanted blurring
or impairment of the systematic efficiency with which it wished to
plot all human thought. Probabilities are not the only realities which
vanished on the Ramist map of the mind. The Ramist world is a
silent one in which all aural resonance has been stilled. The "plain
style"-the plainer, the better-becomes the standard idiom of discourse. , Poetry is no longer conceived of as a third dimensional reality
which jntersects the world of dialectics; though the Ramist begins
by allowing it a second, traditional dimension in the world of rhetoric,
this methodological simplification ends by conceiving of poetry as
little more than visual imagery, or, finally, as just "the art of versifying well." The sound-sense of poetry makes little sense in a world
from which sound has been banished, and in which intellectual
discourse ever approaches closer to a schematic shorthand as its ideal.
In his short (and final) fourth "Book," Father Ong wonderfully
traces with telling economy of detail the widespread diffusion of
Ramism, to Germany (especially), then to England, and in time to
New England. F1ather Ong discusses the presence of Ramism in the
works of such different personalities as Sir Philip Sidney, Gabriel
Harvey, John Milton, Richard Mather, John Wesley, and William
Temple. He notes significantly elsewhere that Edward Taylor, the
only early New England poet of consequence, was "the least Ramist
of all New England writers." In our own twentieth century spa·
tialized universe of thought, one !tom which we have nearly succeeded
in banishing the sound of human voices, we are,. argues Father Ong,
as yet making our silent, insulated way over a largely non-rhetorical,
non-poetical terrain, depersonalized and instrumentalized, where the
climate, chilly still for the most of us, is one that Ramist winds blow in.
Readers of Father Ong will find in this clearly definitive study a
most carefully argued foundation for his innumerable learned articles
and essays in literary theory and criticism, in the evaluation of our
culture, and in the history of ideas. These articles have been appearing
with astonishing frequency in our most highly respected scholarly
journals here and abroad: this reviewer thinks here in particular of
two recent essays, (1) "A Dialectic of Aural and Objective Corela·
tives," which appeared in the April, 1958 Essays in Criticism (pub·
lished from England), and (2) "Voice as a Summons to Belief," which
appeared in the 1957 volume of English Institute Essays, Literature
and Belief (published by the Columbia University Press). The present
work is handsomely enriched with nearly a score of fascinating illustra·
tions (for all that they are not oral), which are carefully described
at the outset so that none of their intricate import need be lost.
A second volume, Ramus and Talon Inventory, has been sirnulta·
neously published by the Harvard University Press; this inventorY
of the hundreds upon hundreds of separate printings of books by
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305
Ramus and his associate reveals as nothing else might-with patience
infinite and with thoroughness-the enormous international impact
of Ramism.
Some of Father Ong's readers will certainly wish to enter into
dialogue with him on some of the argumentation and implications
of this, his most sustained and ambitious work. It is not altogether
clear to this reviewer, for example, why Father Ong tends to regard
the written word as necessarily inferior to the word that is spoken,
nor why he should regard the advent of printing as having put an
end so effectively to the best traditions of learned dialogue and of
vitally reasoned spoken discourse. The superiority of the spoken
to the written word has, of course, been long ago argued by Plato,
in the PhaedrwJ, and elsewhere, but for reasons to which Father
Ong himself nowhere adverts. It is easy enough, too, to think of
the slavish kind of excessive bookish addiction against which Father
Ong is reacting. But unless Plato's dialogues had been committed
to writing, and thus in written form preserved, would not most of
the wisdom we call Platonic and Socratic have centuries ago vanished
like voices into the air? Is not the human experience of our greatest
artists still available to us precisely because they controlled or interpreted certain areas and moments of it by the written form of their
speech? For example, in Marcel Proust's The Guermantes Way, the
sweet, sad voice of his grandmother in Paris which Marcel hears on
the telephone at Donciere has become a meaningful "presentation"
of the artist simply because the narrator explores the voice-experience
in written language, so as to enable readers of printed books to
re.create the experience, and thus to interpret its meaning for Marcel
as well as for themselves. Certainly for scholars there are obvious
senses in which the advent of printing has enabled them as never
before to enter into many complex dialogues which without written
and printed books could never conceivably have come to pass. Father
Ong would clearly not deny this development, but his book seems
waywardly unwilling at times to admit it.
Finally, some teachers might be understandably inclined to question
F1ather Ong's emphases on the fact that all efforts at the systematic
ordering of knowledge are inevitably limited articulations of reality
and, as such invariably short of the truth. The total manifold of
reality is, of course, ultimately recalcitrant to any perfect scheme or
system either of classification or of presentation. The "schematic
fallacy," as Father John D. Boyd, another Harvard graduate, has
a:gued (in a privately circulated monograph) is a powerful shortc~rcuiting of thought and an insurmountable obstacle to the imaginative, personalist discovery of the real. But all human knowledge, it
would seem, progresses by tentative hypotheses of one sort or another,
Written or oral. Though we should certainly be disinclined today to
accept the ready-made categories of Ramist thought, nevertheless all
of us, including Father Ong, would need to keep silent, in voice as
wen as in the gestures of writing, if we were unwilling at least pro-
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visionally to make use of some scheme or structure of ideas, some
agreed-upon method of inquiry coherent enough to sustain our voice
during a period of some duration, to direct our language in a meaningful additative way. As Father Ong himself grants, man's non.
systematic possession of truth has its own disadvantages: it is confused.
One is even inclined to wonder at times if Father Ong's own vast
attention to etymologies, to the original root-meanings of words, is
sufficiently consistent with the natural tendency of words to accommodate themselves to the changing situations of continuing colloquy, and
to the new'meanings which develop within spoken or written discourse.
But thl:!se reservations are all of decidedly minor import. They
are meant in no way to qualify the truly extraordinary achievement
of Father Ong, who in the most gracious, lighthearted manner offers
himself here as our most reliable guide through the Tibet-like intellectual mazes, difficult, precarious, and oddly exhilarating of the rarified
Ramist way. On one page of his book, Father Ong tells us in praise
of the Dialectical Invention of Agricola, that it "rang true in the way
neo-Latinism at its best could ring true, as a dialogue carried on
with a past sensed as still living in the present." His own classic
in English rings true exactly in the same high, rewarding sense.
WILLIAM T. NooN, S.J.
THE SOCIETY'S SPIRIT
The Jesuits, A Self-Portrait. By Peter Lippert, S.J. Translated by
John Murray. New York: Herder and Herder, 1958. Pp. 131. $2.25.
This is a small book in size and l=l,Ummary in treatment, but Father
Lippert succeeds in giving us a portrait that is in excellent focus.
There are thirteen short chapters which could well be read at a
single sitting, but there is nothing hasty or superficial in Father
Lippert's treatment of a very broad and complicated subject. The
writing is very compact, and the informed reader will think that
there is enough matter in each chapter for expansion into a volume.
In general, this Self-Portrait can be described as a very urbane
correction of the exaggerations and false emphases which have turned
so many attempted portraits into caricatures. Principles that can
easily be misunderstood are put back into their original context, and
practices which have a tendency to frighten are presented as theY
are carried out in actual Jesuit life, with the result that exaggerations
and distortions are corrected and the general picture restored to its
proper- focus. The principle of fraternal correction, for example,
cannot be understood unless it is examined in the context of fraternal
charity which prevails in the living body. There is no need of enforcing
obedience when it is given willingly and cheerfully in a wholehearted
desire to signalize oneself in the service of the great Commander of
the Society, Who is Christ. Obedience, therefore, does not make the
Jesuit a robot in the hands of Superiors nor does the fourth vow of
the professed constitute them a sort of ~retorian papal guard, or in
Francis Thompson's infelicitous phrase, "Janizaries of the pope.''
�BOOK REVIEWS
307
Uniformity of training, far from depriving indivduals of all personality, really serves to preserve and accentuate it, while the mutual
regard they are taught to have for each other from the novitiate on,
emphasizes one's personality while serving to make association smoother
and pleasanter.
Father Lippert is not unaware of the baffling personality of St.
Ignatius, and calls the readers' attention to the fact that the Jesuits
are less Ignatian than the Friars Minor are Franciscan or the Order
of Preachers Dominican, in the sense that Ignatius communicated less
of his personality to his Order than did Benedict and Francis and
Dominic. Never were they called Ignatians or Loyolans.
One might read this slight volume at a sitting, but one will come
back to another and another reading if one wishes to assimilate its
condensed matter.
There is a Preface by Father Martindale. The translation by Father
John Murray has a stately flow. We notice a slight topographical
misprint on page 44 where the river Llobregat is mentioned instead
of the Cardoner as the scene of St. Ignatius' great enlightenment
during his stay at Manresa. The type and printing are excellent.
WILLIAM J. YOUNG, S.J.
IGNATIUS' NEGLECTED COMPANION
To the Other Towns: A Life of Blessed Peter Favre First Companion
of St. Ignatius. By William V. Bangert, S.J. Westminster, Maryland: Newman Press, 1959. Pp. xi-331. $4.50.
After reading what was probably a copy of Blessed Peter Favre's
Memorial, the great St. Francis de Sales remarked: "I like to think
that the Society is determined to do no less for the honor of this
first companion of its founder than it has done for the others." Unfortunately, as the author of this most recent biography of Favre points
out, the breath-taking episodes of such greats as Loyola, Xavier,
Borgia, Campion and others only served to overshadow the gentle
deeds of the most lovable of Ignatius' early companions. Through
this first American biography of Favre, Father William Bangert will
do much to dispel the clouds of obscurity that have so long hung
over Blessed Peter.
The book begins with a short account of Peter's boyhood in the
heart of Savoy. There follow two chapters summarizing the gathering
of the companions of Ignatius at Paris and the early history of the
group in Italy. With chapter four we begin what might be termed
Peter's own proper story. And it should be added here that the story
is Well told. A faithful record is given of Favre's travels "to the
other towns" of Continental Europe from Germany to Portugal.
Throughout, the author very nicely intersperses selections from Favre's
spiritual writings-his Memorial and his letters-which give us an
excellent insight into the workings of grace in the remarkable soul
of this holy man.
Quite apart from its spiritual worth this biography has a great
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deal of interest for the historian. It pictures a man who lived arid
travelled in a Europe reeling under the very first impact of the
Protestant Revolt. It was to be Favre's task to help in the spiritual
revival of Northern Italy, an area not at all immune to the attacks
of Protestantism, weakened as it was by the cancer of radical humanism.
In Germany Peter was to combat the enemy in his own stronghold.
And if it was Peter Canisius who received the ultimate credit of being
the second Apostle of Germany, it was Peter Favre who not only
started him on his way, but did the spade work for him in such centers
as Regensburg, Mainz, Cologne, and elsewhere. The same could be
said about.. Favre's stay in the Netherlands-at Louvain to be specific.
This life of Blessed Peter Favre is not a definitive biography. It
was not meant to be, as the author himself points out in his preface.
For the uninitiate the book may be a bit provoking at times because
of a habit of throwing in Latin, French and Spanish words and even
phrases when they might well have been put into English. :Moreover
some readers may feel that the historical innuendoes are too numerous.
But these are trivialities. Father Bangert is to be commended for a
task well done. We can only hope with him that this volume may
incite other scholars to further research in so neglected a field.
HERMAN J. MULLER, S.J.
MEDITATIONS ON THE PRIESTHOOD
"Stir Up the Fire". By Ludwig Weikl, S.J. Translated by Isabel and
Florence McHugh. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. xvii-233. $4.50.
In seventy-nine considerations de~·loped according to the Ignatian
method of mulling over a truth of faith, Father Weikl, the spiritual
director of the seminary at Regensburg, Germany, analyzes the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Leaning heavily on Scripture texts by assiduously
drawing out their relevance to the priesthood in a special sense, Father
W eikl carries his analysis through the five parts of his book: the
essential character of the Sacred Priesthood, its mission, its equipment,
its blessings and its relationship to the Most Holy Trinity. His aim is
to guide the priest-readers towards a deeper understanding of the
bedrock of their priestly being-that they may see the gift of the
grace of ordination and use it as it is meant to be used. Solidly based
on theological and dogmatic principles, these considerations will satisfy
the need of many a priest who would rather have this type of meditative reading on the priesthood than the commonplace exhortatorY
books <m the same matter.
Though expressly written for priests, this book has significance, too,
for all seminarians who will soon receive the same great gift of the
Sacred Priesthood. Reflections from this book will give them an
insight into the full import of the mystery of the priesthood, making
them fully appreciate all the gifts of ordination and stirring their
hearts with Pentecostal ardor.
The suggested readings at the end of each consideration are excellent.
The first four parts of the book are proportionately well-developed.
�BOOK REVIEWS
309
However, the reviewer feels that the last part (on the relationship
of the priesthood to the Most Holy Trinity) merits a fuller development.
REYNALDO P. 'LORREDO, S.J.
LANDS TO THE SOUTH
Latin America: An Historical Survey. By John Francis Bannon, S.J.
and Peter Masten Dunne, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958, revised
edition. Pp. x-625. $7.50.
When the first edition of this survey appeared in 1947 there was
still some reason to hope that Americans would not forget the lesson
which World War II had taught them on the importance of Latin
America. But, as events in the ensuing eleven years-Mr. Nixon's
recent and unceremonious reception in South America is a conspicuous
instance-show, the lesson has largely gone unheeded, although it
is more sorely in need of learning today than ever before.
The present edition of this survey, assuredly timely in its appearance,
ranges through the three great eras of Latin American history:
colonial, revolutionary, and national. In the English-speaking world,
long indoctrinated in the anti-Spanish bias of Whig history, the
scholarly writings of revisionist historians have not as yet had
appreciable effect on popular presentations. The result is that the
colonial period of Latin American history is still a sensitive topic,
a fact which is reflected in Father Bannon's chapters on this period.
On the one hand, he seems reluctant to allow the sins of Spaniards
in the New World to stand without exculpating qualifications. Conversely, practically every statement to the credit of Spain has the
ring not so much of factual statement as of protestation by one, who,
though speaking the truth, expects to be challenged or disbelieved as
a matter of course. Despite the climate in which the discussion must
be carried on, Father Bannon's chapters on the colonial era are
capably done. Wisely a good deal of attention is accorded the Old
World background from which the colonial civilization of Latin America
absorbed so much of its character and many of its forms.
The chapters on the national era have undergone the most extensive
revision. The section opens with survey chapters on the general
situation in Latin America at the outset of the national era, and on
the relations between Church and State at this time. The section
closes with a good survey of the role the U. S. has played in Latin
America from the time of the Monroe Doctrine, and a brief attempt to
discern the direction our Latin neighbors will take in the coming
decades. The major part of the section consists of single chapters
devoted to each of the major nations and areas, carrying the story
forward from the achievement of independence up to the present day.
Of course, within the limits of a single chapter not all the precisions
a native son might like to see can be made, while in the attempt to
~resent such a great mass of information a few factual slips are
Inevitable.
The student of history as well as the general reader should find
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in this survey a satisfactory introduction to the immense field of
Latin American history. For further work there are reading suggestions at the end of each chapter, for the most part to English-language
works. The squat and clumsy format of the first edition has been
replaced by a more readable page in double columns. And while
the maps are, in general, adequate, the lack of any attempt at pictorial
JAMES G. McCANN, S.J.
documentation is regretted.
ETERNAL HAPPINESS
Heaven. By J. P. McCarthy, S.J. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons,
1958 .. \ Pp. 143. $3.00.
Father-McCarthy was obviously performing a labor of love when
he gathered together all the pertinent texts from scripture on the
subject of heaven, and wove them together into a harmonious unity
that is at once theologically sound and highly readable. This is
primarily a book for meditation or meditative reading, and the use
of scripture in this regard is particularly effective. Part I dscusses
the road to heaven-heaven as our destiny, our hope, and the reward
of merit. Part II treats of heaven itself in some of its more profound
theological aspects-the beatific vision, the resurrection of the body.
There is a fine chapter in the second part on the incidental joys of
heaven that emphasizes an element of eternal happiness that is all
to; often overlooked.
Father McCarthy is a great admirer of St. Thomas More. He
confesses that this little volume is much in debt to St. Thomas' Dialogue
of Comfort Against Tribulation. Unlike Father Gleason's profoundly
theological chapter on Heaven in Thi World to Come, Father McCarthy
is primarily concerned with providing fruit for profitable meditation
rather than plumbing the depths of the theological implications involved
in the subject of heaven. It must be remembered that throughout
the volume, the author is using scripture as a preacher, and more
often than not, the texts are used in an accommodated sense. While
Father McCarthy has not neglected the theology involved, he seems
to have been mainly concerned with providing a book of fruitful medi·
tations for the priest, religious and layman, as well as a handbook
for the preacher faced with the prospect of preaching on the joys of
heaven.
JosEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
BETWEEN FANTASY AND REALITY
The Image Industries: A Constructive Analysis of Films and Television.
By William F. Lynch, S.J. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. PP·
159. $3.50.
The vast technological civilization of the United States has at its
disposal mass-media of communication which are producing cultural
changes and patterns of questionable value. Social responsibility for
the popular forms of culture has been shirked by the groups imme·
diately involved in the productions of film and television. Father
Lynch sees the absolute need for the artists, the. creative theologians,
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311
the trained critics and the universities to assume the crucial role
demanded by the situation. The issues involved center around the
failure of the media to differentiate between fantasy and reality;
the weakening and flattening out of the area of feeling and sensibility
in the public consciousness; the curtailment of freedom of imagination
by the purveyors of the techniques for the fixation of the imagination;
and the 'magnificent imagination' as seen in the spectacular proje~tion
of the dream which loses contact with the true lines of our human
reality.
Father Lynch diagnoses these diseases of fantasy, flatness, fixation
and magnificence in the mass-media culture by many examples drawn
from film and television productions of recent years. Economic factors
lie behind many of the decisions and choices for production, and they
exert an inhibiting influence on the free pursuit of the artist. This
is substantiated by the fact of the desertion of the television industry
by many promising young writers, discouraged by so many rejections
on economic grounds. Of particular interest will be the author's
discussion of freedom and the imagination.
In the latter section of the book, Father Lynch gives a portrayal
of American humanism which has become inhuman. The symptoms
of its malaise lie in the disintegration of the spirit of regionalism,
the collapse of tragedy and comedy, and the breakdown of craftsmanship. Admittedly these are provisional labels but the cursory
investigation points to problems calling for serious consideration.
The final plea of the book is to the artist and the creative theologian.
Repeatedly the insistence is beyond the immediately moral and the
reahn of censorship. ~utual respect for the competence of the other
must prompt the artist and the theologian to meet on the level of
freedom and the real in their consideration of the human person.
The author's thesis is convincingly argued, although many details
are not equally suasive. The challenge is terrifying.
CARROLL J. BouRG, S.J.
~EDITATIONS FOR YOUTH
Alive in Christ. By Ralph Campbell, S.J. Westminster: Newman
Press, 1959. Pp. 344. $3.75.
Father Campbell, in this book of meditations for young people of
high school-college age, has followed out the pattern of the liturgical
Year. Thus the one making the meditations progresses and grows in
union with the mind of the church as each year she relives the life
of Christ in her liturgy. The book then has four parts. The first
Part covers Advent and the Christmas season, wherein Christ's early
life and the life of his mother are central themes. The second part for
Lent follows closely the opening meditations of the lgnatian Spiritual
Exercises, stressing generosity on the part of the one meditating
and bolstering this generosity by the example of Christ in his passion.
The third section holds before the meditator's eyes the victorious
Christ and the joys of heaven. The last part deals with incorporation
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into and growth within the Mystical Body of Christ. So the year
comes to an end with renewed emphasis on the action of the Holy
Spirit in one's daily life and on the role that must be played by
everyone in action towards his fellow men.
This series of meditations has been a long time in preparation.
Many of them, in less polished form, have already been tried and
tested by Father Campbell in his work with Gonzaga High School
students during his years as sodality moderator. As a result the style
is clear, simple, realistic. Illustrative examples have been drawn
from the everyday life of the youthful men and women for whom the
book is intended. Stress is placed on practical apostolic endeavors
suitable ~to them. Other praiseworthy features of this collection of
meditations are the use of extensive quotations from the New Testament and from papal encyclicals, a short paragraph layout which
makes the book attractive and less forbidding than some books aimed
at the same age group, and two short introductory sections which
introduce the beginner to the method of meditation and to some basic
terms used in regard to the supernatural life.
Not everyone will like every meditation, but then that is always
the case with a book of this kind. To some, the scene proposed for
the imagination of the meditator may occasionally seem rather difficult
to grasp. To others, a colloquy here and there may seem stilted in
language. All in all, however, the book is well suited for those to
whom it is directed. It should be of immense help to sodality moderators, Catholic youth leaders, Legion of Mary directors and members
of their groups as well as to all yopth, unaffiliated with such groups,
who seek to learn to approach God~tQ.rough mental prayer.
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
COUNSELING THE ADOLESCENT
God, Sex and Youth. By William E. Hulme. New York: Prentice-Hall,
1959. Pp. 179. $2.95.
This book is one of a growing body of literature of which priests
must take note. We are the privileged ministers of the Sacrament
of Penance which is beyond all compare. But there is in its very
transcendence a perennial deficiency-supernaturalism.
(The fault
is, of course, in our dispensing, not in Christ's providing.) Glorying
in our spiritual power as priests we tend to neglect the natural means
at our disposal. Grace, however, does not spurn the natural but
demands it. And the more sound the natural component, the more
perfect the supernatural composite. Grace does not somehow transmute
nature in man. For all his divine dignity man remains man, in need
of, and responding to, natural helps and motivations.
The deficiency is compounded in that the Sacrament, as actuallY
administered, is severely confined in time and space. The priest as
physician must administer a treatment in three minutes' time to a
patient painfully on his knees and cornered in a box. How strange
a place of consultation for the spiritually ill! . The very exigencies
�BOOK REVIEWS
313
of the situation have meant that we all but abandon the healer to
play the judge. Yet the trained counselor or therapist will spend
an hour a week with one individual in the relaxed atmosphere of a
well-appointed office. The Protestant minister, deprived of the Sacrament, has had to capitalize on the potentialities of the natural. He
gives abundantly of his time and advice to souls in need.
In many instances, at least, the minister exercises the art and
science of pastoral direction with more signal success than the Catholic
priest. In fact from the evidence at hand one wonders whether the
Protestant clergy as a whole is not better trained and more proficient
than their Catholic counterpart in counseling and pastoral psychology.
If this book is any indication, they are.
Dr. Hulme is professor of pastoral theology and pastoral counseling
at Wartburg Theological Seminary (Lutheran), Dubuque. His book
shows wide experience in counseling young people. His whole manner
invites confidence without alienating the sensitive adolescent. Though
this volume does not give theory, it evinces professional knowledge
of counseling and psychology. The nondirective technique, for instance,
is used in the frequent interviews recorded in the book.
The principal areas explored are: the meaning of marriage and sex,
proper procedures in dating, the treatment of masturbation and homosexuality, the problems of married couples and parent-child conflicts.
These questions are handled with reverence. Prayer is insisted on.
Sex is oriented toward procreation and the Creator.
As is to be expected, however, errant behavior is not as severely
judged as by Catholic moralists. Masturbation is sinful if it is a
regular practice. Certain deviations are simply arrested sexual development. For that matter sexual problems sometimes respond to a
purely psychological approach, where the moral proves ineffective. At
any rate such errors in the book are only occasional obiter dicta. Hence
it is not prohibited reading for Catholic. They do mean, however,
that it should not be put into the hands of young people, for whom
the book was written.
This reviewer strongly suggests that Ours who have not studied
through a work of this kind, the practice and art of counseling adolescents-professionally-begin with this one. It is high time we
take problem cases out of the box to the parlor and use the techniques
of scientific counseling, a natural means which surely the Holy Spirit
does not want us to ignore. It is past the time when spiritual directors
of our own should have some training in psychology.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
BLUEPRINT FOR COUNSELORS
Guidance and Counseling for Catholic Schools. By Lawrence J. Saalfeld,
Chicago: Loyola, 1958. Pp. 264. $4.50.
This is a welcome addition to the existing titles on this subject.
Many ideas garnered from it can well be used by Catholics and nonCatholics alike, but for the Catholic school it is a must in order that
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our counselors and principals, educated in a general course on the
matter, may fully orientate their thinking along Catholic lines and
integrate sound Catholic principles into their program.
Chapters one to eleven deal with organization, integration, and
operation of the many phases of Christian guidance and counseling.
Chapter twelve offers many specimen forms and materials adaptable
to meet the needs of a Catholic school. ·
The author calls to mind a very fundamental principle for a guidance program in a Catholic school: attention must be brought to the
needs of, the individual in soul and body, and we ought not to sacrifice
this iQ an attempt to educate the masses. All that we have learned
in our regular courses must be used, but we must add our traditional
sources of strength: spiritual depth, the workings of grace, and knowledge of the ways of the devil. Thus, Christian education will be
assured and perfected.
In the organization of guidance services a thoroughly Catholic
character and approach must be used because it deals with matters
related to the sanctification and salvation of souls. That this may
be accomplished, our guidance personnel should have not only teaching
experience and educational training, but also religious experience. To
this end the basic qualification for a Catholic guidance worker is
the possession of the gift of Counsel, which comes from an abiding
presence of the Holy Spirit.
We must note that counseling in any area must be done with the
best Christian growth in mind. And we must not lose sight of our
responsibility of preserving and developing vocations to the priesthood
and the religious life. We must'' use the workings of grace and the
Holy Spirit. On a natural basis alone the results of counseling will
be uncertain, limited, and often faulty in the light of Christian objec·
tives. To achieve good Christian citizenship, the spiritual works of
mercy are necessary, for true happiness on earth flows from unselfish
service for the bodies and souls of others.
An important part of the book is the chapter on vocational guidance.
It recalls that Pius XI in his encyclical on the Christian education
of youth defined education as the preparation of what one must do
and be here below in order to attain the sublime end for which he
was created. We must not only look forward to contentment on the
basis of what is most lucrative. We, as Catholics, must realize that
our ultimate goal is to serve and glorify God in our life's activities
and to save our soul. The first question by a Catholic counselor :must
be 'whether God has called the student to the priesthood or the religious
life. However, no matter what is chosen, the works of mercy should
be incorporated into the choosing.
Chapter twelve gives many useful forms and materials for Catholic
school guidance. It is ready-made for many phases of the guidance
program and easily adaptable to one's own needs. The author has
done a remarkable service for Catholic schools by providing a workable
plan or blueprint for Catholic counselors.
FRANCIS C. PFEIFFER, S.J•
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315
PSYCHOLOGY FOR PRIESTS
Psychology, Morality and Education. Edited by Fernand Van Steen-berghen. Translated by Ruth Mary Bethell. Springfield, Illinois:
Templegate, 1958. Pp. ix-128.
This is the English version of Psychologie et Pastorale, a collection
of the better papers delivered at a clerical congress in Liege. The
theme of the discussions is the contribution of modern psychology to
the personal life and social work of the priest and religious. Examined
in detail are the need and value of psychology for the education of
the priest, the fruitful exercise of the pastoral ministry, for the
teacher in the classroom, the director of vocations and for the promotion of the life of prayer.
Of the six contributors to this symposium the best known is Canon
Joseph Nuttin, psychologist and author esteemed by his psychological
confreres. Speaking here of our seminary training in psychology,
he rightly complains that philosophical psychology has left us with
too rational a concept of man. This lack of focus needs correcting
by a knowledge of the part the emotions and infra-conscious impulses
Play in human behavior. Experimental psychology, still retained as
a seminary course, has contributed pitifully little to our knowledge
of man. Study of the psychology of religion and of social psychology,
particularly human relations, is a grave need.
The Canon points out the inadequacy of "reading a book" to supply
the deficiency in our training. The only solution is the presence of a
Psychologist on the staff of every major seminary. His role should
be not only to teach courses but to do research on the problems of
psychology which have a bearing on pastoral ministries. But the
scope of Canon Nuttin's remarks is broader than this. His paper is
a survey in brief of trends in contemporary psychology. Particularly
rewarding is his evaluation of the contributions and deficiencies of depth
Psychology.
In the second paper Canon Widart reflects on the nature and extent
of psychological freedom. He finds the solution of the antinomy of
freedom versus determinism, not by denying either component, but
by diminishing the antinomy itself. We have made too distinct a
cleavage between the voluntary and nonvoluntary factors in human
activity. In reality both integrate a single psychological process. The
~ctivity is initiated by the determinants (hormones, instincts, habits, the
Infra-conscious, intellect) but terminates in a conscious and selective
acceptance or rejection by the will. This active receptivity is the
essence of freedom. Since the wiii is not creative, it requires these
determinisms of its very nature.
"Psychology and Vocation" tries to find a norm for determining the
Presence of the internal call to the priestly and religious state. We can
no longer look to piety as a distinctive sign. With our awareness today
of the depth of .conjugal spirituality, we must seek a more refined
norm. The author finds the answer in the different ways used to
achieve the end common to both the religious and married states. Some
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experience "the active presence, the living love of God perceived, taking
possession and gradually predominating" (p. 113); others "need to
find some human support in life to encourage them to do the good of
which they are capable" (p. 110). The author goes too far, however,
in separating the internal and external calls. The Holy Spirit in his
internal summons surely respects and promotes those qualities which
the Church demands in those to whom she extends the external call.
The interior invitation is to assume priestly existence not in vacuo,
but in a way of life determined by the Church. The two calls are
complementary.
Other :Qapers in the book delineate the difference between neurotic
and true guilt, and evaluate the data of psychology for the pedagogue.
"Psychology and Prayer" has little to offer the reader.
Despite occasional lapses the translation is well done. The language
is nontechnical. Jesuits will profit from reading this book. True, so
short a work cannot fill the gaps in our psychological equipment; at
least it will make us aware of the lacunae and suggest what we can
do about it.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
SAINT AUGUSTINE AS PREACHER
Nine Sermons of Saint Augustine on the Psalms. Translated by Ed~mund Hill. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1959. Pp. xi-177.
$3.50.
Seleeted Easter Sermons of Saint Augustine. Translated by Philip T.
Weller, S.T.D. St. Louis: B. Herder Book Co., 1959. Pp. vii-329.
$4.95~
All have some acquaintance with Silint Augustine as a great philoso·
pher and theologian. His Confessions have a place among the world's
great literature. It is, however, to quite a different Augustine: Augustine, the pastor of souls, that we are introduced in these two books of
his sermons, among the first to appear in English.
Father Hill, an English Dominican, is a convert and a graduate of
Oxford where he first became interested in Saint Augustine. In his
introduction he sketches the religious and social background against
which the bishop of Hippo preached. The various heresies of the
time are described briefly. Augustine frequently refers to them in his
sermons, especially to the Donatists whom he vigorously attacks, sometimes at great length. The section on Augustine's method of inter·
preting Scripture is particularly helpful, since we must understa~d
his principles-so different from our own-if we are to apprecia~ .h1~
sermons. We must accept the fact that Augustine was no b1bhca
scholar even for his own times. On the other hand, however, we must
remember that like the other Fathers he had a firm grasp on the
totality of revelation which he brought to his interpretation of a
passage. For this reason, as Father Hill rightly points out, we must
give him respectful attention.
Each sermon or group of sermons (they all concern Psalms 18-Sl)
ia P""<lod by a Uanalation of tho Paolm a<<<><ding to tho toxt ....,.,.
I
j.
�BOOK REVIEWS
317
tine used. . The translation is free and colloquial, sometimes strikingly
so. The reader will find anachronistic references, e.g., to the X-ray,
the microscope, the Stock Exchange. The author gives an apology
for his colloquialisms on the basis of Augustine's conversational style.
Contractions are the rule and many of the expressions are most felicitous. I think that Saint Augustine comes out quite well in the
process. Some, however, may balk at such renditions as "this heavenly
huckster" (negotiator coelestis), "Got it'?" (Tenetis hoc), etc. Yet,
the sermons make pleasant reading and can give a new dimension to
the Psalms of the breviary.
Father Weller's book contains thirty of Saint Augustine's Easter
sermons. They are chosen from different periods of Augustine's life
and cover the liturgical period from the Easter Vigil to the Second
Sunday after Easter. Two sermons on the Creed and one on the Lord's
Prayer delivered to the candidates for baptism at Easter round out the
collection.
The introduction is the author's doctoral dissertation submitted to
Catholic University and explains the Easter Vigil as it existed in Africa
at Augustine's time. The fact that we have recently witnessed the
restoration of the ancient vigil gives special importance to this introduction and indeed to the whole work. It is interesting to note that
for Augustine the Christian Pasch was considered as a sacramental
re-enactment of the whole work of redemption rather than a mere
commemoration of the resurrection alone. Father Weller's description
of the catechumenate and his scholarly reconstruction of the Easter
Vigil in Africa are most enlightening.
For many of the sermons the author has gone outside of Migne. His
translation is more stately than F1ather Hill's but no less effective.
What stands out above all in the sermons is Augustine's concern that
the people understand what they have done or are to do in the liturgy.
While the sermons are rich in dogmatic content, they are never "heavy"
but direct and full of fervor.
The whole work is very well documented. There are almost one
hundred pages of notes and an adequate index. It may be recommended
to all of Ours both as a great help for their own understanding of
the Easter liturgy and as a rich source of ideas for sermons and
conferences.
ROBERT T. RusH, S.J.
INTUITION INTO LIBERTY
Augustine: Philosopher of Freedom. By Mary T. Clark, R.S.C.J. New
York: Desclee Company, 1959. Pp. 273. $4.50.
Freedom can mean freedom to choose. Augustine does not ignore
this liberty of choice, freedom from necessitation. But the key Augustinian insight is into liberty of self-fulfillment, freedom for perfect
response to God's loving initiative. Mother Clark has traced this
Augustinian notion of freedom from its obscure foundation in the
Pagan Greek philosophers, especially Plotinus, through the writings
of Augustine himself, down to its development by Anselm and Thomas,
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BOOK REVIEWS
and its proclamation to the modern world by Maurice Blonde!. An
interesting chapter on the twentieth century notion of freedom sketches
the contemporary pertinence of the Augustinian insight. By contrast,
Sartre's atheistic existentialism is justly proposed as a symbol of modern man's tendency to seek freedom without God. But one might
seriously question whether the author should without considerable
qualification write off the contribution of the existentialist school in
general as "a travesty of freedom" or as "freedom for the sake of
revolution."
There is abundant and suggestive documentation from Augustine's
works. ~This book should find welcome as a compact and clear presentation of a""fundamental intuition into liberty, an intuition today all too
frequently lost sight of even by the Christian world which inherited it.
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
THE INTOLERANCE OF THE TOLERANT
An Introduction to the History of the Western Tradition. By Edgar N.
Johnson. Boston: Ginn, 1959. Pp. Vol. I, x-822; Vol. II, viii-799.
$8.00 each.
Many of the best features that have resulted from the strong competition in the field of modern textbooks have been incorporated into
these two volumes. The sixty-four reproductions of outstanding art
masterpieces of the western tradition, many of them in color, are the
equal of anything to be found in the most expensive art books. The
maps are of a particularly eye-catching modern design. The distinctive
notes of this text are its attempt at interpreting Western civilization
in terms of the conflict between r;o points of view, humanism and
asceticism, and its emphasis on the cultural aspects of the Western
tradition. It expertly brings the student into contact with the great
men and ideas of the past through the quoting of relatively long
passages of great literature and through detailed condensations of
prose and poetry classics. The style achieves clarity without sacri·
tieing readability. It is unfortunate that these excellent qualities onlY
result in making this book more lethal.
Explicitly, Professor Johnson proclaims that he is attempting to
be tolerant, humanistic, and impartial. Implicitly, to anyone for wholll
religion is not a mere consoling emotion, the author's attitude is secu·
laristic, rationalistic, and naturalistic. Almost every charge made
throughout history against the Church's doctrine and morals will be
foun~ in the two volumes of this textbook. The supernatural and anY
life after death is implicitly denied, religion in general is a "natural
means to calm uneasy souls." "Jesus and his followers were sirnp~e
folk looking for some religious escape from the miseries of ~bel~
environment." The sacrament of penance is a "periodic emotJo~a
purge" in which one confesses to the priest, "the medieval man's psyc~Ja·
trist." The Trinity was the first step in Catholic polytheism whJC~
was soon followed by the "development of mariolatry, or the cult 0d
the Virgin Mary, the Christian Magna Mater . · .." The Church "ha
�BOOK REVIEWS
319
tolerated the growth of a quasi-polytheistic cult in its sanction of the
adoration of the Virgin and the saints." "It is no exaggeration to
say that the cults of the innumerable saints constituted the popular
religion of the Middle Ages (and of course of Romance countries
today)." Monasticism provides "a retreat for those whom the world has
no place . . ." and " . . . for those who are lonely or grief-stricken, it
became, as it was to remain, a means of escape from the prison-house
of reality." The early Protestant Churches do not fare much better
at the Professor's hands for they too are condemned for their harshness
and intolerance.
The real evil of this book is not so much these dogmatic assertions
of incorrect ideas concerning the Church and religion. Much more
deadly are the clever half-truths and implicit attitudes created by
reporting as the whole objective truth an exclusively anti-religious or
secular point of view. Unfortunately, because of this text's other
excellent merits mentioned above, many students will trust its interpretation and will be led into an attitude of hostility and disdain for
the Church and religion. Since religion has played so important a
part in our past, the distortion found in these volumes will preclude
its readers from ever arriving at a true understanding of the western
tradition.
WILLIAM J. BOSCH, S.J.
ONE SOLUTION TO A PROBLEM
The American High School Today. By James B. Conant. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1959. Pp. 140. $1.00.
Every community through its high school system should achieve a
threefold objective: provide a general education for all the pupils as
future citizens of a democracy, provide elective programs for the
majority to develop skills immediately marketable upon graduation,
and educate adequately college-bound students capable of handling
advanced academic subjects, particularly foreign languages and
mathematics.
Few communities, however, except those of large Eastern cities
in which there are "specialized" schools, achieve this goal. Why not?
Roughly seventy-five per cent of the nation's public high schools graduate less than one-hundred students annually. For a school of this
size to offer a sufficiently diversified curriculum would require an
exorbitant monetary outlay. Needless to say, communities seldom, if
ever, make this outlay. Instead, the small schools in these communities
require all students, regardless of ability or interest, to take an
academic program. Two injustices follow: the vocationally oriented,
though constituting a majority of the student body, are obliged to
study courses which at best only the top quarter of their class can
grasp; and secondly, the academically talented are never fully exploited
because the tone of instruction is inevitably lowered to accommodate
the less gifted.
President Conant would eliminate such schools and establish in their
Place centrally located "comprehensive" schools. These would be schools
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in which under one roof and under the same management a rich, diversified curriculum would be offered satisfying the needs of all the youth
in a given community. Moreover, if such a plan were adopted, the
total number of high schools on a nationwide basis would be reduced
from about twenty-one thousand to approximately nine thousand. As
a result the teacher-shortage would be alleviated and other professional
personnel would be able to make more effective use of their talents over
a wider area.
This is a practical report based on a survey made of one-hundred
and three public schools in twenty-two states. It deals with facts and
the rec?.mmendations, though drastic, seem wise.
EUGENE M. FEENEY, S.J.
TWO FOR CATHOLIC ACTION
The Fundamentals of Catholic Action. By J. M. Perrin, O.P. Tran·
slated by Fergus Murphy. Chicago: Fides, 1959. Pp. xvi-74. $1.25.
Training for Leadership. By Vincent J. Giese. Chicago: Fides, 1959.
Pp. 159. $2.95.
These two books complement each other. The first writer offers a
solid blueprint for action; the latter pauses in the midst of activity to
reflect briefly on the way he has come. Father Perrin's is a valuable
little paperback, addressed to all those who have undertaken action for
the kingdom of God. It is a booklet to be pondered slowly and often. In
short, thought-provoking chapters the author first determines certain
characteristics of fruitful human activity; next he sketches the noble
virtues of the Catholic man of a-ction; finally, he concisely and com·
pellingly reveals the unifying harmony which can and should exist
between spirituality and activity.
One caution: in subsequent reprintings, the publishers would do
well to attend to the translation. In many places the sentence structure
and punctuation should be checked, and unfortunate turns of expression
changed.
Mr. Giese's book, with its photos, attractive cover, pleasing format
and style, makes a better appearance, but it lacks the depth of Father
Perrin's analysis and thus suffers by comparison. It is a more indue·
tive work, based on years of experience in a Chicago parish, helping
young people enter parish life. The formational value of activity is
stressed, perhaps overly so. For the author seems to undervalue the
stern asceticism of personal improvement and of the long-range view.
bf special interest to Jesuits will be the chapter on the role of the
school in apostolic formation.
Speaking from valuable experience
gained as chairman of a workshop on this subject at the Second World
Congress of the Lay Apostolate, Mr. Giese points out some provocative
lines of inquiry, questions which religious educators should be asking
themselves these days. There is also a helpful last chapter, an examina·
tion of conscience for chaplains of Catholic Action groups.
·JAMEs
A. o'BRIEN, s.J.
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321
INTEGRATION OF STUDY AND PRAYER
Prayers From Theology. By Romano Guardini. Translated by Richard
Newnham. Freiburg: Herder and Herder, 1959. Pp. 62. $1.50.
Msgr. Romano Guardini needs no introduction. His writings for
the German Catholic Youth Movement have established him as a writer
of challenging spirituality. Faith and the Modern llfan, Lord, The
End of the Modern World are well known. His new book is a collection
of prayers he and his theological students used to recite after his lectures on different tracts of theology. Concepts on the mystery of grace,
original sin, the Redemption, the Trinity, the fullness of eternity, are
recast from the thesis format into affective meditations on the theological data.
Clarity of concepts and penetrating insights are evident throughout
this slender volume. The title of Msgr. Guardini's new book was well
chosen. Studying God in the Trinity, Incarnation and the Church is
not, necessarily, formal prayer. Something else is needed. This book
could well be another step towards the integration of the study life
with the prayer life.
JOSEPH B. NEVILLE, S.J.
GOD IN THE SCHOOLS
What Happened to Religious Education? By William Dunn. Baltimore:
The Johns Hopkins Press, 1958. Pp. xv-346. $5.00.
Western political tradition, the inheritance of the United States, does
not make much sense once severed from its religious origins. Yet a
determined effort has been made, in recent years, not only to sever the
nation from its religious past but actually to deny that religion ever had
a role to play in our national life.
"Absolute wall of separation," "exclusion of religion from the public
school curriculum"-these slogans of today are read into the thoughts
and actions of the Founding Fathers. Present opinion becomes past
history and we are told that our national existence had its origin in
~nd depends upon a divorce of public life from religion. And yet there
Is the fact: it was with religious convicitions about the nature of man
and of the world, about man's destiny and the way he should live that the
People of America conceived this new nation.
Father Dunn's valuable book is built around a judicious selection of the
?Pinions of the founders of the public school system on the role of religion
In education. From these opinions and the de facto situation in the early
~chools, he concludes that there was an almost universal tradition
In the first seventy-five years of our national history that religion
belonged in education. If this be true, then what happened to religious
education? It is the author's thesis that religious teaching in public
s~h~ols was impaled upon the horns of a dilemma: "In holding two con\>ichons, namely that religion belonged in public education and that ins(truction in sectarian doctrines could not remain in the curriculum . . .
they) created for themselves a dilemma, in the attempt to resolve
~hich they eliminated both religion and sectarianism. Such seems not
have been their intent, but such was the result of their actions."
JAMES P. COTTER, S.J.
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ESSAYS ON THE BIBLE
Pattern of Scripture. By Cecil Hastings, Vincent Rochford and Alex.
ander Jones. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. 96. $.75.
This book consists of three essays on the difficulties and rewards
of reading the Bible. The first and shortest essay treats the real
problem that reading the Bible bores and even frightens many Catholics.
The author responds to the problem rather vaguely and, it seems,
na'ively. She tells the reader to relax with the Bible and not to be
"subconsciously thinking of the Old (Testament) as, more than any.
thing else, a storehouse of difficulties." It also appears to be an
oversimplification to say, "if once we glimpse the vision of God's great
plan, working its way through historical events, as recorded in the
Scriptures, then our problems of boredom should be more than half
overcome."
The second essay speaks of the unity of the Bible. God's plan of
salvation is the theme, and it is traced from Abraham, through the
history of Israel, and on to its culmination in the establishment of
the Church. Such a brief, panoramic description tends to be superficial,
but it is nonetheless a very fruitful point of view for a reader to have.
The third essay is a good discussion of Our Lady and her place in
the Old and New Testament. The author prudently restricts himself
t7> a few texts and shows how much more meaning can be found when
the texts are read under the guidance of the Church, and with the
light of research and scholarship.
ROBERT J. KECK, S.J.
ADULT EDUCATION
Handbook of Catholic Adult Eciueation. Edited by Sister Jerome
Keeler, O.S.B. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. 95. $1.35.
"Handbook" is perhaps too definitive a label for this ninety-five
page paperbound collection of twenty essays on aspects of the Catholic
role in adult education. As an introduction, however, to this sprawling
and fast-growing field, this volume describes some of the programs
which have been developed under Catholic auspices and attempts to
formulate lines for future planning. The book is divided into three
sections: areas of interest, institutional resources, and common problems. It also includes a list of existing Catholic programs and a
selected bibliography.
Sister Jerome Keeler, who has been one of the pioneers in this
field, highlights her introductory essay with a sentence which might
well serve as a topic sentence for future Catholic endeavor: "Consider·
ing the limited resources of most of our Catholic institutions in
matters of buildings, finance, and faculty, it might be well to concen·
trate on courses which only we as Catholics can offer, instead of
trying to give those which others can give as well or far better than
we-the vocational and recreational courses, or even more serioUS
courses in industry, business, carpentry, photography, and the lI.ke."
Future writings on the topic should include a program for the use
and evaluation of television, radio and the motion picture; suggestions
�BOOK REVIEWS
323
for cooperating with existing agencies; a more clearly defined series
of objectives; and a continued warning against the bootless frenzy
to duplicate non-Catholic educational programs.
JOHN l\1. CULKIN, S.J.
PARENTS AND VOCATIONS
Parents' Role In Vocations. By Godfrey Poage, C.P. and John P.
Treacy, Ph.D. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. vii-132. $2.95.
In vocational literature there are many important works to help
guidance counsellors in assisting young people to choose a vocation.
Books and pamphlets aimed at helping the young people directly are
also available. Few volumes have ever appeared to aid the God-given
vocational counselors, the parents. This book certainly makes up
for that lack in this crucial field.
The work is a cooperative effort. Father Poage is well known for
the high level of his writings on vocation promoting. Doctor Treacy
offers a vocation guidance course for teachers at our own Marquette
University. Both combine to present a significant contribution to
the field. No phase of the parents' role is omitted. The reader progresses from the concept of the Catholic home through the different
forms of guidance needed at the pre-school, elementary and high
school levels. The presentation combines good practical wisdom with
much psychological insight. The most important section, Chapter IX
"Deciding A Vocation", is excellent psychology. Both supernatural
and natural motives blend to present an excellent idea of what the
call to serve God really is, and how a parent can decide whether
his child has such a call.
The book deals primarily with fostering religious and priestly vocations. Jesuits can profitably employ the work to examine whether
We encroach on the parents' rights in this field, and how the parents
can be brought to realize and practice their obligations in aiding their
children to choose a state of life. The "Parents' Self-Rating Scale"
(pp. 127-130) could be offered to parents of students in Jesuit schools
to see whether they are carrying out fully their duty to prepare their
sons in an intelligent fashion to choose a state of life.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
THE CHURCH IN A REVOLUTIONARY AGE
The Nineteenth Century in Europe: Background and the Roman Catholic
Phase. By Kenneth Scott Latourette. Harper: New York, 1958.
Pp. xiv-498. $6.00.
Professor Latourette, well-known for his seven volume History of the
Expansion of Christianity, initiates with this book another extensive
Project-a five volume, comprehensive study of the history of Christianity from 1815 to the present day. In the first half of this volume
the author briefly outlines Christianity's development from its foundation to the eighteenth century and then provides a detailed treatment
of the political, economic and religious aspects of the period immediately
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preceding the century under discussion. The second half is a comprehensive survey of Catholicism during this age of revolution (18151914). The author considers all major aspects: the papacy, the history
of religious orders, congregations, and societies, devotional life, developments in theology, dogma and the other intellectual fields, and ends
with the history of the Church in each of the major countries of
Europe and in mission fields. An exceptionally fine bibliography
completes his study.
Professor Latourette expressly declares his active Protestant background in the introduction, yet he never allows his personal convictions
to influence his scholarly objectivity. In fact, his care for Catholic sensibilities
patent, but happily this does not lead to any distortion,
but rather to a balanced interpretation. The author has had all of
the sections dealing with the Church read by Monsignor John Tracy
Ellis before publication; standard Catholic authors such as Pastor,
Pourrat, Lefton, Hughes are constantly cited; Catholic encyclopedias
in English, French, German, and Italian are used; doctorate theses
from the Catholic University and articles from the Catholic Historical
Review are employed. The treatment of the Society of Jeus is very
favorable. The author relies on Father Campbell's work which, if
it is not the most modern or most scholarly history of the Society, is
adequate for a survey of this tyne.
Here is a volume that deserves to be placed on all bibliographies
for modern history courses, and one that should be read by all who
wish to become acquainted with the historical background absolutely
necessary for an intelligent understanding of the Church in our day.
-·.:
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
is
SEARCH ON THE LEFT
Voices of Dissent, A Collection of Articles from Dissent Magazine.
New York: Grove Press, 1959. Pp. 384. $3.75 cloth, $1.95 paper.
This book contains a series of articles collected from Dissent, a
magazine devoted to democratic socialism. It is divided into five
sections; Socialism and Political Ideas, Life and Politics in America,
World Politics, Politics and Psychoanalysis, and Man and His World
Today. As in most collections of this kind the quality of the work
is uneven. It ranges from a few rather strident intramural squabbles
with the traitor liberals to some good penetrating analyses. EspeciallY
impressive are the articles by Asoka Mehta on the democratic industrial·
izat_ion of Asia and a tragic soul-searching by Ignazio Silone.
The last four sections of the book, which are discussions of individual
social problems, are clear enough in intent. The first section, however,
which is a kind of a group search for self-identification, presents a
problem. The older socialists are in the position of the husband who
wants to argue but whose wife agrees with all his arguments. TheY
are rebels without a cause. The younger socialists have had to redefine
their position. The question is, "What does it now mean to be a
socialist?" What does he fight for and against? They fight against
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325
any of the uncriticised orthodoxies which contribute to social injustice.
In any case, the important thing is to remain critical, not to let go
unexamined any of the institutions that tend to harden the arteries
of a democratic society. They are no longer so interested in the
image of the perfect society but rather in correcting the injustices
of society as it develops. Here arise two problems. One is that
injustice is a maladjusted relationship among men and to understand
it, one must have a theory or an image of what man is. The socialists
do not offer any definition in this book. The second problem is one
of identification. All men are interested in the problems of injustice.
Does this make them socialists? What is the particular aspect of
their critical investigation of society that enables them to restrict
to themselves the title of socialist? It may be only a problem of
words, but after all, words are not just words.
EDWARD J. LAVIN, S.J.
INTRODUCTION TO HISTORY
Historian's Handbook: A Key to the Study and Writing of History.
By Wood Gray and Others. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1959. Pp.
vi-58. $1.00.
This manual of historical methodology provides an introduction to
the science for the college freshman, a guide for the advanced student,
and a convenient reference manual for the practicing historian. All
of the necessary topics are treated: the nature of history, the choice
of a subject, pursuit of evidence, criticism, construction of the paper,
and communication. The distinctive note of this handbook is its
Practical nature; one-third of the book is devoted to a bibliography of
the basic source books for obtaining historical information, and another
third is concerned with the mechanical details of the actual writing
of the term paper. The authors have allotted only two pages to a
discussion of the involved subject of evaluation of sources and the
establishment of their objectivity. Because of this jejuneness, they
fail to warn their readers of the different philosophical viewpoints,
especially those of the deterministic schools based on economic, geographic, and/or racial theories, that can, and have, prejudiced much
of the historical research and writing in the past.
This handbook is noteworthy for its compact and comprehensive
Presentation of the information essential in order to write profitable
and correct historical studies. The publishers are especially to be
commended for their attractive format and reasonable price.
WILLIAM J. BOSCH, S.J.
ANGLICAN VIEW OF REUNION
The Recovery of Unity. By E. L. Mascall. New York: Longmans,
Green, 1958. Pp. xiii-242. $5.75.
Since E. L. Mascall is an Anglo-Catholic, it is to be expected that
~n the present book, in so far as his argument is Catholic, much of
It Will be unacceptable to the Protestants; and in so far as it is Anglo-
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Catholic, a not insignificant part of his thought will be completely
unacceptable to the Roman mind.
His interest in the present work is to emphasize the necessity of
a theological approach to ecumenical discussions rather than a continued discussion based on expediency. His claim seems valid that
the search for union on the basis of common denominator can only
mean union on the basis of the least member of that union.
Mascall's search for a theological approach is in the spirit of Father
Bouyer's The Spirit and Forms of Protestantism of which he makes
abundant use. Dogmatic union among Protestants and Catholics can
only be achieved by going behind the Protestant controversy of the
16th century and re-examining the presuppositions of that controversy
in terms of the philosophy of nominalism and the . inheritance of the
decadence of late medieval theology and worship. The resolution of
the Papal question can only be achieved by going behind the conversion
of the Roman Empire, to rediscover the essential function of episcopacy
and the essence of the primacy of Peter.
It is the impression of the reviewer, however, that the central question in any approach to discussion with the Roman Church, lies in
the field of ecclesiology and the nature and extent of authority.
Unhappily, the author presupposes a position on the possibility of
error and sin in the Church of Christ which must be abhorrent to
the~Roman Catholic. Only by first resolving the nature and authority
of the Church on earth can the question of Episcopacy and of the
Primacy of Peter be resolved.
The publication of the book is especially timely in view of the
anticipated ecumenical council announced by the present pontiff, as
it puts in clear relief the precise quistions which are most in need of
renewed affirmation and clarification for the benefit of the Anglican
communion. If this is achieved, the book will have served a most
useful purpose.
DANIEL F. X. MEENAN, S.J.
MODERN SANCTITY
The Hidden Face. By Ida F. Goerres. New York: Pantheon, 1959.
Pp. 428. $4.95.
The Hidden Face is a translation of Das Senfkorn von Lisieux, a
life of St. Therese of the Child Jesus. This life of St. Therese is one
of the most comprehensive to appear to date, combining many of the
best facets of previous biographies and adding its own material. It
has the narrative strength of John Beever's Storm of Glory, the
spiritual acumen of Urs von Balthasar's Therese of Lisieux, and the
critical insight of Robo's Two Portraits of St. Therese of Lisieux. It
is an excellent biography and it will be many years before it is replaced.
Frau Goerres is perhaps best when she attempts to fix Therese in
the milieu of late nineteenth century France by indicating the factors,
religious and social, that framed Therese's character on the natural
level. Her relationships with her family, the influence of her parents
and sisters, are carefully traced. The author does well in debunking
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327
many of the legends that have grown up about Therese. These have
put her Story of a Soul on a par with the Gospels and have made the
little way a discovery uniquely Therese's, independent of all forms of
piety that had hitherto been practiced in the Church. On the latter
point, one has only to read the works of St. Francis de Sales and
Pere de Caussade to see that conformity to the will of God down to
the smallest detail of life has always formed the solid foundation
of Christian piety. What Therese did was to give it a newer emphasis.
Frau Goerres tries deliberately to bring Therese down from the
pedestal on which overly pious individuals have placed her. She
emphasizes the early faults of character, the lapses of taste, the
narrowness of outlook the saint showed. She makes Therese human
to show the remarkable quality of the final sanctity that the young
Carmelite nun achieved.
St. Therese was called by Pius X, the greatest saint of modern
times. Frau Goerres echoes that judgment. "The modern times" part
of that statement is underlined by the fact that it was only in February of the present year that Mother Genevieve of the Holy Face
(Celine), the last of the Martin sisters who did so much to promote
their sister's cause, died in the Carmel of Lisieux.
GERARD F. GIBLIN, S.J.
SYMBOLS FOR LIVING
The Paradise Tree. By Gerald Vann, O.P. New York: Sheed and
Ward, 1959. Pp. 320. $4.00.
Father Vann attempts in this book to situate the Christian revelation and life within the context of universal symbols, and, at the same
time, to point to the realities underlying properly Christian elements
of symbol. To do this, he subjects to cursory analysis the life of
Christ, the commandments and the Sacraments, and at much greater
length in the second part of his book, the Mass, attempting to point
out the symbolic meaning of these for the "pattern of Christian
living."
In so doing, Father Vann seems to confine his interest to emphasizing
almost exclusively what the medieval scripturist would call the moral
significance of symbol. Because of his insistence on this peripheral
Value of the rich symbols of Christianity, his book can easily be called
a moral exhortation rather than an exposition of meaning. He dwells
at great length, for example, in treating of the consecration of the
Mass on its symbolic value for showing the necessity of conformity to
the Will of God. Communion, on the other hand, provides an opportunity
for insisting on the sacredness of the human body.
. Perhaps the unity of the book would have been somewhat enhanced,
~f the author had kept a particular audience more clearly in mind ,
In its composition. Father Vann directs his remarks to such disparate
groups as religious superiors, lay people, and church architects. His
style is too popular to be of interest to the expert, and yet too obscure
to be appreciated by the popular reader, e.g., by making undeveloped
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BOOK REVIEWS
reference to the Babylonian deities Marduk and Tiamat; to the ancient
practice of orienting church buildings, etc. Against the position he
takes in Chapter One, that modern man has been losing his sense of
symbol, Father Vann seems to presume in his reader so vital an
awareness of what may be called universal myth-elements that he
can build from these to a deeper understanding of Christian myth:
e.g., in his repeated reference to the "puer aeternus."
Finally, Father Vann allows association to travel unchecked, whither
it will, so that unity of emphasis is lost. Take, for example, his
analysis of the one word ''rationabilis", in the "Hanc Igitur" of the
Mass ( p. 183). In the course of this we are led from the meaning
ascribed to the word, through the idea of sacrificial fire, elements of
"fire-worship" in Christianity, Sinaitic theophanies as fire, Moses,
law and its opposition to legalism,-all in the scope of a few pages.
In short, then, it strikes this reader that the very nature and
breadth of the problem at hand are too vast to be adequately resolved in
any single volume.
DANIEL F. X. MEENAN, S.J.
THE CHURCH'S BOOK
The Bible in the Church. By Bruce Vawter, C.M. New York: Sheed
and Ward, 1959. Pp. 95. $.75.
This readable popularization by the author of A Path through
Grnesis is designed to sketch the history of the Bible in the Church
and the claim that it is the Church's book. The first chapter shows
that neither ignorance of nor indifference to the Bible are marks of
true Catholicity, despite prevalent contrary impressions. The Church
is not adverse, for example, to ver.ftacular translations, but rather to
private interpretations incorporated under the guise of faithful
· translations.
In his second chapter, Vawter discusses the varying viewpoints on
a rule of faith. For the Protestant this rule is the Bible; for the
Catholic it is the Bible and tradition. Historically this has led to
different emphases in the two camps. For Protestantism the perspi·
cuity and sufficiency of the Bible became all important. For Catholicism
there was first the question of determining the canon, then the myriad
difficulties of keeping scriptural statements and traditional doctrine
in balance. The Church has never pretended to be subject to the
Bible. Rather she has insisted that she wrote the New Testament
and defined the limits of the Old. Therefore she is the Bible's custodian
and interpreter. And hence living tradition assumes a paramount
place in any consideration of a rule of faith.
The third and final chapter is devoted to a consideration of the
role of the Bible in the Church. To understand this role, the notions
of inspiration, revelation, exegesis, and tradition must be proper~Y
understood. Vawter does a fine job defining each of these terms m
non-technical language for the lay reader and in showing their mutual
interplay and opposition.
RICHARD E. DoYLE, s.J.
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329
PRACTICAL VIRTUES
The Virtues on Parade. By John F. Murphy. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959.
Pp. 144. $2.95.
This book, a collection of short articles that first appeared in the
archdiocesan newspaper of Milwaukee, considers the most practical
virtues for the modern American Catholic. The author follows closely
the order and divisions suggested by St. Thomas Aquinas in the
Secunda Secundae. The entire thirty-nine essays can be grouped
roughly around the three theological and four cardinal moral virtues,
with the majority clustered around the two eminently practical ones
of justice and temperance.
The audience envisioned by Father Murphy is that of average Catholic laymen who are more interested in learning how to practice a
certain virtue than in discovering precisely what it is or how it fits
into the scheme of things. By using such imaginative sub-titles as:
How to Play God, How to Avoid Being Avoided, and How to Avoid
the Rising Cost of Blood Pressure, F·ather Murphy succeeds in winning
the attention of his readers. Since the author presumes that his
readers will not have much time for quiet thought, he has assumed
the task of getting his ideas across quickly, and, if possible, with
a twist that will cause them to be remembered.
Since the author's ideas are freshly presented and carefully applied
to our American scene, this book might well provide ample material
for a number of Sunday sermons.
ARTHUR S. O'BRIEN, S.J.
POETRY AND HUMAN EXPERIENCE
Literature and Belief: English Institute Essays, 1957. Edited by M.
H. Abrams. New York: Columbia University Press, 1958. Pp.
184. $3.75.
There has been so little agreement in recent years on the foundations of aesthetic theory, that this selection of essays from the 1957
Columbia English Institute comes as a pleasant surprise. It is heartening to find men of the critical stature of 1\'[. H. Abrams, Douglas Bush,
Cleanth Brooks, Father Walter Ong, and Nathan Scott, basically in
such agreement on the much vexed problem of the relationship between
literature and belief.
The common denominator that soon becomes apparent is the position
that, since literature is a specifically human activity, the poet's beliefs
are a constitutive element of his poetry, and are thus an important
object of the critic's attention. This is clearly an important and
rnuch-needed corrective for the excesses of the "poem-as-organism"
Wing of the New Criticism. The common ground is that the work
of literature is indeed to be apprehended for its inherent values, but
~hat in so far as it represents human beings and human experiences,
It also involves "assumptions and beliefs and sympathies with which
a. large measure of concurrence is indispensable for the reading of
1
lterature as literature."
1
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Professor Abrams maintains, like the others, that poetry is essentially cognitive, and insists that the poet "cannot evade his responsibility
to the beliefs and prepossessions of our common experience, common
sense, and common moral consciousness." Professor Brooks speaks
of literature as "experience seen in the perspective of human values."
Father Ong, in his incisive essay on "Voice as Summons for Belief,"
stresses the communicative role of the implicit understructures of
values, norms and beliefs which control any literary work. Professor
Scott considers the same elements as they operate in the creative
process; appealing to l\1aritain's Creative Intuition in Art and Poetry,
he shows how the '"vision" of the world expressed in the poet's work
is constituted by "his most fundamental beliefs about what is radically
significa'i:tt." Professor Bush's essay, though following the same general lines, is less satisfactory. In his effort to define an "ethical
humanity" common to all literature, he finds it necessary to censure
any commitment that is more definitive than his own least common
denominator; thus he scores Dante, Crashaw and Hopkins for their
too specifically Christian beliefs.
If these essays are symptomatic of a current trend in criticism, they
are important as an indication that criticism has taken a giant step
forward toward a realization of the role of belief and value in the
critical endeavor.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
EXCELLENT LIFE OF PIUS
Crown of Glory: The Life of Pope Pius XII. By Walden Hatch and
Seamus Walshe. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1958. Illus. Pp.
272. $4.95.
This is a revised and enlarged m~morial edition of the life of Pope
Pius XII which was first published..- in March, 1957. It is certainly
an attractive volume, and the style in which it is written makes it
easy, one might even say exciting, reading. There are many photo·
graphs, which illustrate the whole span of the Pope's life. Sketches
before each chapter reflect the scene depicted in the chapter.
In essence, the book is a simple, straightforward life of the late
Pontiff, but it is by no means a mere catalogue of the dates, times
and places in which he appeared. Rather, it is the story of the man
himself, of his struggles, joys and sorrows. The reader glimpses his
great desire for the priesthood, his struggle with ill health and the
joy that his ordination brought him; then the reader is introduced :0
the Pope's intense desire for world peace, his struggle to preserve It,
and the sorrow that was his when his efforts came to nought.
The only adverse charge that can be made about the book is that
it insinuates that Pius XII is a saint and that his canonization is
inevitable. This is something that every Catholic should pray and
hope for, but it is not to be assumed at this early date. This is but
a minor flaw in a book that is exceptional for its readability. The
style seldom drags and at times the reader is conscious of the fact
that his reading has taken on a sense of anticipation that is seldo!ll
experienced outside the best of fiction.
JOHN J. RoHR,
sJ.
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331
NOW REIGNING
Pope John XXIII: A Life of the New Pope. By Andrea Lazzarini.
Translated by Michael Hatwell. New York: Herder and Herder,
1959. Pp. 145. 25 photographs. $3.25.
This little biography, one of the first published about our new
Pontiff, has already appeared in three different foreign language editions, and three more are being prepared. The author has been literary
editor of L'Osservatore Romano for the past thirty years and is, consequently, well versed in Vatican affairs. The term "biography",
however, must be loosely applied to his work since, in so short a space,
he cannot hope to encompass the events, atmosphere, and personal
response of seventy-seven crowded years.
The reader's attention often seems equally divided between text
and notes. Roughly speaking, the text covers the procession of posts
assigned to Angelo Joseph Roncalli, while the notes constitute an
attempt at background. Of the two, perhaps the more significant area
for the definitive biographer of the future lies in the material covered
in the notes. To mention only a few possible spheres of study: there
is the effect of Bergamo and its dynamic Bishop, Giacomo RadiniTedeschi upon the life of the young priest; there is the turbulence of
the Church-State problem in late nineteenth-century Italy; and there
is the work of almost twenty years among the eastern European Catholics in Bulgaria, Turkey, and Greece. Add to these eight more years
as the Apostolic Nuncio to post-war France and another five spent
as Patriarch of Venice, and we can understand the compression required
to relate the whole in less than 150 pages. On the whole, however,
the author has succeeded in his task, and his short sketch presents
Perhaps as clear an outline as we can hope for at this time.
WILLIAM T. JONES, S.J.
PHILOSOPHY THROUGH THE AGES
History of Philosophy, Vol. I. By Johannes Hirschberger. Translated
by Rt. Rev. Anthony Fuerst. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1958. Pp. ix-516.
$8.00.
The author considers history of philosophy as a progressive reflection
towards an objective systematic solution of philosophical problems
and therefore, he presents in this book not a mere outline of history
hut a philosophical endeavor. The presentation is flowing, stimulating,
and the format is exceptionally clear. The material of each key philosoPher (from Thales to Nicholas of Cusa) is divided into his life, works,
~~it~ons, English translations, bibliography and his thought. The
lbhography of the original German (1949) has been brought up to
date and now includes many English titles. The two indices are
re:narkable. Some 25 important modern philosophers are indexed in
!hls volume of ancient and medieval thought. The volume aims at
college undergraduate but the synthetic presentation should also
stl!nulate the professional philosopher.
h:
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The author's unifying outlook is the Platonic current. In developing
this, he sometimes oversimplifies; however, in these instances he is
often most provocative. Instances of his Platonic "unity" are: Form
plays the same role for Aristotle as it does for Plato; "'To develop
metaphysics as Aristotle understood it means simply to Platonize";
St. Thomas "does not actually accord sense perception any more
importance than does Plato". We can appreciate how even Thomistic
metaphysics must be understood and judged in the light of Platonic
motives. He traces the Platonic element all the way to Cusanus. The
latter's coincidentia oppositorum is a "Platonic dialectic" that forms a
continuum of the Middle Ages and modern times, of German rationalism and · Christian philosophy. With such a closing, the author
prepares the reader for the second volume.
ROBERT H. COUSINEAU, S. J.
THE ROLE OF THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
Patterns for Educational Growth. By Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C.
Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 1958. Pp.
xv-71. $2.25.
Today men are once again demanding that schools fulfill their
essential functions. As President of Notre Dame, Father Hesburgh
has at the beginning of each academic year related the role of a
Catholic university to contemporary educational problems and oppor·
tunities. The first six of these inspiring short sermons constitute the
present book.
"Wisdom and Education" reaffirms Christian wisdom, not mere
learning, as the purpose and goal of ,university education. The kind
of activism demanded by an incarnatio11al approach to human progress
is outlined in "A Theology of History and Education." Excellen~e
and the zealous effort to obtain it form "The Mission of a Catholic
University." The value of ideas in the battle for men's minds is
beautifully set forth in "Education in a World of Social Change."
"The Divine Element in Education" looks to the layman as bridgebuilder between the divorced worlds of the temporal and the spiritual.
The needless schism between scientific and divine truth is the burden
of "Education in a World of Science."
Positive, optimistic, confident-these short addresses spring not 50
much from enthusiasm as from the conviction that education is "a
common task of uncommon importance" to which a Catholic university
can make an unique contribution.
ERWIN G. BECK, SJ.
SPIRITUALITY FOR THE LAITY
Journey to Bethlehem. By Dorothy Do hen. Chicago: Fides Publishers,
1958. Pp. 96. $2.50.
Dorothy Dohen, one time editor of Integrity magazine and auth~
of Vocation to Love, has in this slim volume assembled seven sh? h
essays on phases of the spiritual life for the layman. They begin Wltf
thoughts on the preparing of one's soul for Christ by the practice 0
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333
penance, continue with suggestions for the use and value of silence
and suffering, point up the place of hope and prudence in the Christian
life and come to an end in the last two essays with very practical,
balanced comments on the exercise of charity in group activity and
on the not so easy 'little way' of St. Therese.
In the course of the essays, Miss Dohen calls the layman to a life
of heroism in imitating Christ, not the heroism of the cloister and
the monk, but that which is suitable precisely for the layman in his
daily living. The examples she offers to illustrate and embody the
principles of which she writes are apt and to the point. Her style is
simple with a certain insistence on the basic and the fundamental
which makes the book excellent for quiet meditative reading. She
never seeks to answer what is often unanswerable, for example, the
question of suffering. She does much more by indicating the relationship between each act of daily living and the more perfect following
of Christ.
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
THE HISTORICAL KEY
The Movement of World Revolution. By Christopher Dawson. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. 179. $3.00.
To understand secularism, communism, and nationalism, forces that
divide the world today, Professor Dawson suggests a return to the
study of European history.
The movement of world revolution started in Europe with the Reformation, the reaction against Renaissance humanism, giving rise to
two societies: the humanist Baroque, with its kings and beggars, and
the austere Calvinist Protestant, with its egalitarian core of traders
and shopkeepers. Rationalism paved the way for greater change in
the thought-life of Europe, until the French Revolution finally triggered
the movement toward secularization that we know today. Religion
has become a private affair, and the intellectual community of culture
has almost completely become secularized. Oscillation from one form
of absolutism to another created divisive revolutionary movements
of which Marxian communism and Afro-Asian nationalism-both
Western in origin and orientation-are today's threatening swells.
Afro-Asian nationalism has fed on the missionary expansion of
:Vestern Christendom and the spread of Western ideologies. Though
Inspired by Western political ideas and technological achievements,
Afro-Asian nationalism is anti-Western. The wounds inflicted by
Western colonial exploitation take some time to heal.
In the face of today's crisis, what force can save twentieth-century
~an? Christianity, Professor Dawson answers, which transcends race,
time, and place. Just as in the past Christianity gave Europe the basic
strength and unity that still undergird it despite countless revolutions
and two World Wars, so now Christianity offers itself as the only
transcending force and basis of East-West unity. Christianity, however, must not be confused with Western culture or technology.
To the Christian alive to the problems raised by secularism, Marxian
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BOOK REVIEWS
communism, and nationalism, this book is timely. To men who seek
the key to the understanding of world history, this book is timeless,«must" reading to those who have not abdicated their right to think.
JESUS M. MONTEMAYOR, S.J.
CHRISTIAN RENEWAL
Towards A New World. By Richard Lombardi, S.J. Translated and
condensed from the Italian. New York: Philosophical Library Publishers, 1958. Pp. xvi-276. $6.00.
It might be well for the reader to begin with the last chapter of this
work. There it is stated that, while the accomplishment of the plan
for a return to Christian values outlined in the second part of the book
may sound like a dream, details of the plan need not necessarily be put
into practice in the order indicated. The individual or the group may
start reorganization at any level: that of the family, the profession, the
parish, the diocese, the nation, and from there gradually influence the
levels above and below. By reading the last chapter first, the reader
will see the value of individual ideas in the plan, and not get the idea that
Father Lombardi's scheme requires a special charism for every institu·
tion.
The great value of the book lies in its spirit of optimism and faith.
The first step toward a new world is spreading the belief that our pres·
ent problems can be solved by a return to Jesus. And the history of our
times bespeaks a need for Christian renewal. The author describes the
age of achievement as an age of great despair and destruction due to the
wrong use of our achievements. It is an age humiliated, uncertain of
itself, purposeless. Two solutions to the problem of our age have failed
thus far to respond to man's spiritual need: extreme individualism and
·extreme collectivism. History again looks to Christ for the balance be·
tween freedom and solidarity.
Father Lombardi stresses that the carrying out of the proposed plan
will entail a struggle against the evils at work in society. This idea
of the Two Standards recurs throughout the plan he outlines for the
New World (Part II). And the imagery of the spiritual conflict lends
itself to the theme of the book: an assembling of the forces that work
together for good.
The members of the hierarchy, the clergy, religious superiors, and
laymen in charge of influential institutions in Christian Society, might
well have different ideas than the author as to the feasibility and method
of organization. And the external reorganization of group activity under
the ~ingle heading of Catholic Action may be less of a need in the
United States than elsewhere. But simplification and pooling of re·
sources are part of reorganization too. The author's suggestions on
methods of self-evaluation are excellent.
Father Lombardi makes his strongest calls for reorganization at ~
higher level, and for pooling of resources and talents, in the field. 0
propaganda: radio, television, and every type of Catholic publicatiOn·
All will not accept the order and the emphasis of Father Lombardi's plan·
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335
But all will gain a great appreciation of the spirit of charity and
humility and cooperation required for the task that historical events
impose upon Christian society. And every reader of "Towards A New
World" will be inspired by the breadth of vision, the lack of pettiness
and absorption in narrow personal interests, the call to generosity and
dedication that underlie the theme of the Italian Jesuit's message.
JOHN A. DOTTERWEICH, S.J.
STUDY IN CONFIDENCE
An American Amen. By John A. LaFarge, S.J. New York: Farrar,
Straus and Cudahy, 1958. Pp. 254. $3.75.
Father LaFarge's new book, a companion volume to his autobiographical account The Manner Is Ordinary, is a moving reflection upon
his long and fruitful life as an American, a priest, and an intellectual.
His explanation of the title is a thrilling statement of the basic attitude
of hope that he brings to these three interrelated levels of his life:
"Though a priest is relatively but a small person, quite lost as he paces
a bridge of thought between time and eternity, the years have taught
him he may glimpse depths of the voluminous river that flows beneath it
all. My life philosophy, touching on questions such as the ultimate
meaning of life, the authenticity of human liberty, or man's hope for
unity and peace, is one of confidence, expressed in the word Amen:
confidence in my country, in my holy faith, in my fellow-man."
Father LaFarge's reflections on society, the family, history and government, are probing and perceptive; his approach to the race question is,
as always, incisive and profoundly realistic. But it is in his meditations on the nature of his priesthood and the role of the priest in the
modern world that his words have, for the Jesuit and priest reader,
their deepest meaning. "The priest says Amen . . . not to the sentiments nor even to the prayers of a single individual, but to the Church,
With which he holds a continual dialogue . . . He does not just say
Amen; he is Amen: his life, his total commitment, is a response to the
Creator's own commitment in his regard."
This is an important book, and a book that is ripe with the wisdom
of years. For priests, for Catholics, indeed for all Americans, it is a
source of light on the decisive importance of Christian values for our
modern America. It brings to the modern world and its problems the
spiritual insight of a man of great mind and heart, who has seen and
fully lived the priest's dedication to the work of Christ.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
FAR EAST TODAY
Recent Oriental History. By Horacio de la Costa, S.J. Manila: Ginn
and Company, 1958. Pp. 60. $0.75.
Father de la Costa has written a brief but excellent survey of the
complex and seemingly unprecedented situation in the Far East, rather
euphemistically styled in some quarters as "The Far Eastern Resurgence." Intended to supplement Steiger-Beyer-Benitz's A History of
�336
BOOK REVIEWS
the Orient, the present brochure covers the history of India and the
Southeast Asian countries from the middle of the nineteenth century to
the present. Together, the two form a complete history of the Orient
from the earliest times to the Space Age.
One of the best qualities of the present work is the clear and masterly
analysis of the events that led to the present tension in the Far East.
Unhesitatingly and surely, the author's vibrant narrative brings the
reader face to face with the various factors and circumstances that, un.
appreciated at the time of their occurrence, now explain why in their efforts for "freedom and a fair chance to achieve a reasonable amount
of security and stability for themselves as independent nations . . .
the experience of colonial rule has left among Asians a strong residue
of hatred. and fear of Western imperialism."
For example, although by the "second decade of the twentieth century considerable material and social progress had been achieved under
the guidance of Western powers," and conditions in India and Southeast
Asia had eased somewhat in "the form of technical development, efficient
administration and social welfare," still it was true that "their economic
resources were being exploited mainly for the benefit of their respective
mother countries."
As Father de la Costa writes, "There is much to be said for the view
that the communist threat in Asia cannot be effectively met except by
close cooperation with the anti-communist powers of the West .. ·
Thus, the principal and most urgent task of those who, both in the
West and the East, have the best interests of Asia at heart, is that of
making possible a system of collective security against communist attack
or subversion which would at the same time give effective assurance to
former colonial countries that the:{ will not again be subjected to im. perialist domination, whether economic or political."
J. S. ARCILLA, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVIII, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1959
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER 1959
DEAN'S REPORT ----------------------------------------------------------- 339
Terrence Toland
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY --------------------------------------------------------------- 343
Thurston Davis
THE GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY OBSERVATORY -------------------- 353
Francis X. Quinn
THE THIRD DEGREE OF HUMILITY ------------------------------------------------ 366
Carl A. Lofy
FIRST YEARS OF THE MARYLAND PROVINCE ---------------------------- 376
Robert K. Judge
FATHER DANIEL M. O'CONNELL-------------------------------------------------------- 407
Allan P. Farrell
FATHER JOHN O'ROURKE --------------------------------------------------------------- 415
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS ----------------------------------------------------- 418
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Terrence Toland (Maryland Province) is prefect of studies and
professor of dogmatic theology at Woodstock.
Father Thurston Davis (New York Province) is editor-in-chief of
America.
Mr. Francis~·X. Quinn (Maryland Province) teaches at Georgetown
Preparatory School.
Mr. Carl A. Lofy (Wisconsin Province) is studying theology at Inns·
bruck.
Mr. Robert K. Judge (Maryland Province) is assistant to the dean of
men at Georgetown University.
Father Allan P. Farrell (Detroit Province) is dean of the graduate
school at Detroit University.
Mr. Joseph P. Sanders (Maryland Pruv~nce) is studying theology at
Woodstock.
For Jesuit Use Only
Publish~d four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodatock.
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�Dean's Report
Terrence Toland, S.J.
This year's Dean's report on our present academic situation adopts a double viewpoint: a look through the window,
and a look in the mirror. Ninety-year old Woodstock is much
too young to indulge in any lazy complacency with recognized
achievements ; but Woodstock is also much too old, too seasoned and wise, not to realize that a valid self-inventory
includes both what others see when they look at her and what
she herself sees when she scrutinizes her own activities, ideals,
motivation, and dedication.
Through the Window
People are noticing and talking. I am sure we have all
had quite enough about the Middle States' evaluation of 1958;
but only last week a college dean passed on to me a recent
comment of Dr. Finla Crawford, the chairman of the visiting
team: Woodstock remains a highpoint in Dr. Crawford's
wide experience with Middle States. And he was particularly
impressed, he told this dean, by the scholarship of the faculty.
The evident endurance of this impression would seem to
justify redusting the feather on last year's cap.
A quick survey indicates a wider representation from both
faculty and student body in the matter of publication, and
in papers delivered last year at various conventions. What
is noteworthy is this wider representation. Not only is the
name Woodstock better known but it is connected with more
and more members of our academic community.
Spontaneous remarks give evidence that our work at Woodstock today is being more associated in the minds of our
alumni with the work-indeed with all the various worksof both Provinces. Since this is why we exist, it is good
that others recognize such a relevance and continuity in what
busies us here. There is less of the "four lost years" sort
-
Given at Woodstock College Convocation, September 9, 1959.
339
�340
DEAN'S REPORT
of thing, and of the charge that modern man's problems are
given at Woodstock the attention appropriate to a perpetualcare cemetery; there are more comments about our caring,
about Woodstock's looking out as well as in. And about
Woodstock's going out, too: for talks in Jesuit communities;
for regular courses given and taken, in other colleges; for
full-scale participation in the recent Maryland Province College Theology Institute at Georgetown; for attendance on the
part of both faculty and students at various meetings, congresses, ·conventions. Others have noticed this with approval,
with gratitude; it has encouraged a mutual respect, a healthy
pooling of ideas, a recognized community of interests-in
short, it has led to a better realization that this is all of a
piece, that Woodstock figures concretely and in detail in the
life and activity of the Provinces it feeds. And we in turn
have benefited immeasurably by a reciprocal inflow of talent,
interest, and stimulus from the Jesuits who return to Woodstock for visits, lectures, and summer seminars.
Still looking through the window, some observers raise a
question or two. Is there, they ask, a growing tendency for
the current Woodstock product to make with the ready answer about the "new-look" in theology; not, it would seem,
without a certain touch of condescension? And is there a
bit of a self-conscious "Look, Mom, no hands!" in Woodstock's
forward-looking stance of 1959? Finally, some wonder, do
these wide and lively interests assure increased responsibility
to first-things-first, namely, to the habit of study, to a serious
dedication to theology, operative outside the panic period of
annual repetitions? This report attempts no analysis, a pol·
ogy, nor even a possible explanation, but only a sampling of
favorable and unfavorable comments by those who look at
us from the other side of the mile path.
In the Mirror
Looking in the mirror, looking at ourselves, we note, for
example: some 4280 volumes added to our library holdings
last year with an average of 2100 items loaned out per
month; some sixteen members of the faculty and student bodY
delivering papers at national and regional conventions; forty
degrees in theology conferred last year by Woodstock (twentY·
�DEAN'S REPORT
341
two licentiates and eighteen bachelor degrees) ; seven academic degrees received from other institutions (two doctorates and five master's degrees) ; the applause after the spring
disputation which was as deserved as spontaneous; the results
of the high school student questionnaire and the impressive
vocation booklet; the ecclesiology bibliography, the translations of theological articles; Theological Studies, Woodstock
Papers, Woodstock Letters, the Theologian; the annual Mariological Society award; a certain improvement in examination
performance; the foreign student tours; the commendable
efforts to improve the weekly circle format; the gratifying
results of the summer program-the formal courses, the
reading, the language program, the seminars. To judge from
observation and from the detailed reports given me by the
directors and the theologians in charge, the summer seminars
this year were vastly improved in their purposefulness, genuine profit, and downright hard work. In the revamping of
the cycle, so far so good. My fingers were crossed in bringing
in Dom Gregory Murray 1 but they have since been confidently
uncrossed. Loading the summer for the incoming first-year
men was done under the magic rubric of "experiment." We'll
think more about it, but it seems to be a good move.
Looking more deeply, we notice certain undertows in the
academic stream. There is a tension between the faith which
should control our theological task, and the yearning for a
free inspection of all truth; a tension, that is, between a methodological skepticism which aims to probe the plausibility and
assimilate the reality of the system of values on which we rest
our case and a pseudo-sophisticated doubt. For if it is a distinct disservice to forget that in revelation and in the living
magisterium we have the first principles of theology as a
science, it is naive to forget that we started to learn and live
these principles from the first days of grammar school.
Other tensions smack more of confusion. Lines of opposition, for instance, are sometimes drawn between the penetration of truth in its own climate of birth and development,
and the communication of the good news in the streets of
-
1
Dom Gregory Murray, O.S.B., of Downside Abbey, England, gave a
summer course in the liturgy during August 1959.
�342
DEAN'S REPORT
the marketplace. Or one can pine for the satisfaction-even
thrill-of the theological experience without calculating the
painstaking, personal work necessarily demanded to condition
self for such an experience. Or decide that what is labeled
"traditional" is an embarrassing piece of family baggage.
Or one can use the canard technique on such things as "manual
theology," "categories," "term and proof memory," "Denziger
theology," and relegate the ugly beasts to a theological Gehenna. But a pertinent question to be faced, with hardheaded
wisdom· and shrewd reckoning of fact, is whether or not it
is fair-to condemn something for not being more than it is:
to criticize a tool because it is not the finished piece of art,
to complain that a capsule is not a first class feast.
Valid or less than valid, these tensions are with us. No
commentary except this: we should not fear these conflicts,
nor resent them; nor attempt to resolve them by one-sided
dissolution-pretending will not make them disappear. If
they involve growing pains, at least we can say this much:
however painful, they point to growth and vitality.
Next Year
A quick look at the coming year unearths no bag of tricks.
This least of servants continues·to be humbly awed and privileged to be associated with Woodstock's staff and student body.
We hope for further profit from outside cooperation in catechetics and one of our regular seminars; in a rather tightly
dictated curriculum, we welcome the admittedly small feature
of a disciplina specialis elective; with a view to an intelligent
priestly sympathy, an on-the-scene institute in psychiatry is
being explored; the further implementation of our program
to modify the second-third year cycle in both content and
approach has promising possibilities. In brief, we hope that
faculty and student body will continue, along with their dedication to the job at hand, to share with the administration
theil: welcome suggestions, insights, and criticisms.
Ninety years old, Alma Matm· Woodstock is rather much
concerned with her task of theologizing for its own sake, and
with the pertinence of this preoccupation to the problems of
the world we live in, as well as to the personal, enriched
fulfilment of the individual. However coincidentally, it seems
�DEAN'S REPORT
343
striking that in the same year as Woodstock's first schola
brevis, a somewhat older Holy Mother Church convened the
Vatican Council which managed to describe this same concern
for an understanding of faith that is enriching and relevant.
We read in the fourth chapter of the dogmatic constitution,
De Fide Catholica:
Ac ratio quidem, fide illustrata, cum sedulo, pie et sobrie quaerit,
aliquam Deo dante mysteriorum intelligentiam eamque fructuosissimam assequitur tum ex eorum, quae naturaliter cognoscit, analogia,
tum e mysteriorum ipsorum nexu inter se et cum fine hominis
ultimo.
Our roots are in the timeless Church; our youth is up to us.
Ninetieth Anniversary
Thurston Davis, S.J.
Just forty years ago, on the day of Schola Brevis in 1919,
Woodstock was once again, for a little spell, breathing easy.
School began that year in a welcome lull between her big
bouts with Spanish influenza. Only a few months before,
that frightful thing had stopped classes, called off disputations, and interrupted meetings of the Ratio Academy. It
had brought nursing Sisters into these monastic corridors
and filled the chapel with more than usually prayerful philosophers and theologians. Forty years ago today, the first
attack of that strange plague was over; the second, even more
terrifying, was to come with the onset of winter.
Election day, 1919, was approaching. Some little while
before, Father Provincial had expressed the wish that the
old Province custom of not voting be rescinded. All were
given permission to exercise their franchise. And none too
soon. For that November a reputedly anti-Catholic Republican
Was running for the Maryland governorship against a wellknown Democrat named Ritchie.
-
Given at Woodstock College Convocation, September 9, 1959.
�344
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
Come election day, off went Woodstock to the polls-in
limousines thoughtfully furnished by the Democratic party.
The house diaries record how, all day long between classes,
Woodstock's light brigade of 153 Democratic voters rode back
and forth to Harrisonville. It was a great day for the party
of the poor. When night fell and the votes were counted,
Ritchie won the contest by exactly 154 votes-Woodstock's
153 plus one, doubtless his own. From that day on, Ritchie
was in, voting was in, and-needless to say-Woodstock was
in! They used to tell the story in my time here that that
very 'fall we got the concrete road that runs down to the
bridge from the front gate. Be that as it may, I like to
think that on that election day of 1919, the College, so lovingly built by the Fathers of Naples fifty years before,
moved into the full sunlight of realization of its responsibilities to the City of Man-the moiling, toiling world of
modern times, for whose salvation and redemption all the
cornbread was baked, all the dogmatic notes memorized, and
all the young minds honed razor-sharp with subdistinctions.
Looking back from this vantage point of 1959 to far-off 1919,
Woodstock's golden anniversary year, it is surprising to
note how, in some respects, little has changed. Just the week
before the Woodstock Democrats made their safari to Harrisonville to elect Governor Ritchie, America's lead editorial,
written by its editor, Richard Henry Tierney, a former
Woodstock professor, put it right on the line-a line somewhat
different from that of the future "labor" priests, who were
then still Novices or Juniors :
What American labor needs most just at present is candid
criticism. What it needs least are some of its present "leaders,"
who propose the theory that 107 million Americans must bow to
the will of three million who are affiliated with the American
Federation of Labor.
Just to prove that things don't really change too radically,
here are a few more items from that same issue of America
(Nov. 1, 1919):
In Chicago the teamsters are striking. . . . In New York,
longshoremen declared themselves on "vacation." . . . Drug
in 3,700 pharmacies are striking for an eight-hour day, a
shop and a thirty-five per cent increase in wages. . . . The
22,000
clerks
closed
strike
�NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
345
of the pressmen continues, and it has not been possible for the
central office of the Apostleship of Prayer to send out its leaflets
for November or the November issue of the Messenger. In the
meantime, the great national steel strike drags into its sixth week,
and the dark menace of a coal strike, that would prove a national
calamity, rises above the horizon to absorb the universal attention.
When classes began in 1919, Khrushchev was not coming,
but the mammoth celebration of Woodstock's fiftieth birthday
was. It came in mid-November. Cardinal Gibbons ("in all
his red ribbons") rode out from Baltimore. The thirty-six
pieces of the Woodstock Orchestra broke into the overture
to Ai:da. Father Charles Herzog nobly defended immense
theses from De Christo. During the festivities, Father Timothy Barrett crowned the fifty years, not with fifty, butcharacteristically, as though his memory had failed himwith sixty alcaics, into which he wove the limpid names of
Woodstock's great: bedecking his Latin lines with the names
of Maldonado, Paresce, Mazzella, Pantanella, and Sabettiyes, and the inevitable linea longa nigra and the famed Woodstock Walking Club, too. For no one can ever recount
Woodstock history without mention of Father Frisbee and
his famous nineteenth-century marching and chowder society. Here is how Father Barrett set Father Frisbee and the
W.W.C. to meter:
Historiam alta mente colentibus
Clamosa prostat turba scholastica,
W oodstockienses A mbulantes,
lmpavido duce Patre Frisbee .
. Then, since Woodstock has always kept one foot forward
Into the future, on that same day and in this very hall, Messrs.
William Cullen, George Strohaver, Walter Summers, and
Henry A very, theologians of bygone 1919, read four long
Papers to prove that "The Modern Electronic Theory of SubAtomic Structure is Logically Consonant with the Principles
of Scholastic Philosophy." Volume 49 of the Woodstock Letters tells how, beginning at the drowsy hour of 3:00 P.M.,
IIis Eminence and the other distinguished guests listened,
doubtless with delight, while for two hours-with Father
Sestini's stars looking down from the ceiling-the room rang
�346
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
with talk of mass and energy, beta particles, free electrons,
positive and negative charges, helium, lithium, beryllium, and
the relation of mass to ether. In refuting one phase of the
theory of relativity, one of the speakers averred: "We hold
to ether as to a matter of faith." How much of the ether
escaped into the audience that long afternoon we shall never
know. But, at any rate, when the academy broke up and
the Cardinal drove back to Baltimore, Woodstock had celebrated its fiftieth anniversary by proving that it was girded
to confroiit the oncoming atomic and hydrogen age-the age
in which-your lives as Jesuits would someday be lived. Woodstock's ninety-year past-some of it glorious, all of it happy
-is all prologue. It is prologue to you and your lives in a
Society which, as ever before, stays eternally young, untiringly ready to measure up to the challenges of new times and
fresh apostolic perspectives.
The Hydrogen Age
What does it mean to be an apostle to the hydrogen age?
Obviously, ours is not a totally different era from those
that preceded it. Superficially, many of the same old debates
and struggles are going on that went on before. The deeper
currents of mankind's course from the cultural headwaters
of primitive life to the great-·wide sea of the fullness of
Christ flow too deep in the stream of history for forty-or
even ninety-years profoundly to have changed their direction. But if these are undisturbed, surely we must concede
that the face of the waters has been mightily moved.
Historians tell us that if we had wanted to live relatively
quiet lives in the modern period, it behooved us to be born
early enough in the nineteenth century to have spent our
working days between 1870 and 1914. From that later date
onward, things have been increasingly in turmoil. Today,
as the inheritors of the troubles of World Wars I and II, we
are caught in the viselike embrace of a protracted cold war,
whose origins are already shrouded in history and whose
end is not in sight. Increasingly, men talk of survival as the
one possible and feasible objective on the horizon. With
cliches that somehow, paradoxically, anesthetize us against
the realities that confront our generation, we describe our
�NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
347
contemporary plight in terms of "the last chance," "buying
time," "brinkmanship" and "confrontations at the summit."
There is no need to review here the drift of the past few
years. Though we may know these events but roughly, who
is unaware of what has been happening in Eastern Europe,
in the Middle East, in Southeast Asia, in Africa-and what
now appears to be taking shape in the Caribbean and throughout all Latin America? Each of these areas, and every sector
within them, has its own story to tell.
Everywhere, one who would swim in the tides of today
and tomorrow must breast the waves of catastrophic change
effected by the quite understandable struggle of the poor of
the world to share in the wealth, health, and opportunities
of the rich. You and I shall not live to see the end of this
revolution, which in fact has only begun. Our days must be
lived out amidst the innumerable present and future crises
of which it is the prolific mother. Restive new nations, pushing frantically toward human and liberal standards of life;
mushrooming and hungry populations; vexing problems of
how to distribute the world's actual and potential food supply;
the so-called colonial question; the world-wide dilemmas of
racial justice; the prevention of nuclear war; the harnessing
of technology; the control of space; the unending quest for
a secure basis on which to construct some kind of unity for
a divided world-these are but a few of the major questions
that loom on the horizon of your present and future apostolate
as Jesuits.
One senses everywhere an ominous uneasiness. There is
a kind of global gossip abroad in the world that things are
not going well, and that the sacrifices and strenuous efforts
that would be needed to set them right again are too onerous
for ordinary folk like us to bear.
These quakings of the earth are felt even here in our
sturdy and prosperous United States of America. Though
Preoccupied by our gadgets, though insulated by our affluence
frorn the ills of the rest of the world, we have of late been
shocked into the realization that the world is in ferment and
turmoil and that we have been called to be its leaders in such
an hour of universal unrest.
Since the whole earth has felt these tremors, we find that
�348
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
our own house, even in this moment of our destiny, is not
in order. True, we live in the midst of plenty. Each year
our gross national product zooms higher. Wage averagesand prices, too--spiral upward annually. To stave off recession or depression, we are told that we must learn to consume
and consume. So, we discard our cars before they are old.
We fill our homes with accessories. We pad ourselves with
comforts that are the product of an economy astronomically
higher than those of the tormented and struggling lands to
which we·grudgingly dole out a pittance in what we call "foreign aid." Rich as we are, however, we know all too well
that here, too--here in the United States-something is profoundly wrong.
In a dark mood, one might liken the course of our American society through the twentieth century to the glamorous
and well-advertised "champagne" flight of a giant aircraft.
We fly high and untroubled above the swarming problems
of less fortunate nations. Our motors hum in perfect coordination. Padded armchairs snap back at the touch of a
finger. Svelte hostesses smilingly serve us piping hot suppers.
Quietly and confidently, over the public address system, the
flight captain announces that our plane, thanks to a strong
tail wind, will touch down twelvB_ minutes ahead of schedule
at our anticipated destination. Yet all the time our great
ship, ineluctably guided by its high-precision instrument~,
is flying a collision course with an obstacle which, though lt
looms bigger and ever bigger on our radarscope, we seem
powerless to avoid.
If the entire earth is in upheaval, obviously these turbulent
stirrings of the human race must shake and menace the inner
lives of every single man and woman. Too often today, for
many, the reaction to the world's disturbed state is a sort
of unconscious and indefinable despair, small in its beginnings,
but later, big, strong and clinging, like a runaway weed.
Seem-ingly insignificant attitudes, minor concessions and con·
formities, microscopic withdrawals of our moral forces along
the taut lines where each battles to hold his interior castle-;
these initially small defeats can burgeon finally into a thicke
of spiritual defection and ultimate total capitulation.
Arthur Seaton is the name of the unsavory hero of Satur·
I
I
I
�NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
349
day Night and Sunday Morning, a strange new type of proletarian novel that has come recently out of England. Seaton
says: "Everyone in the world is caught somehow, one way
or another." Again: "Me, I couldn't care less if the world
did blow up tomorrow so long as I am blown up with it."
There is a multitude of Arthur Seatons around these daysthe growing crowds of those who "couldn't care less."
Quick Action
Such, in stark lines, is the inner and outer shape of the
world that you, as priests, are ordained to serve and save.
Your priestly years stretch before you, inviting and challenging your best and highest efforts. They will pass quickly.
As I remarked earlier on, four theologians stood here forty
years ago explaining sub-atomic physics to Cardinal Gibbons.
Three of them were dead before I came to theology twenty
years ago. Only one venerable veteran of that quartet remains-Father Avery, in the infirmary of Shrub Oak. Therefore, if I may say it in a quite different context from the one
in which it was first uttered, "What you would do, do quickly."
These are the sometimes boring, but necessary and fruitful,
years of preparation. Preparation for what? First, and
above all always, for a holy and dedicated priesthood. Wherever we go, whatever we do, in the long and sometimes lonely
Years after Woodstock, we are nothing if we are not good
Priests. And Jesuit priests.
So much is expected of us. Prayerfulness, discipline, firmness of purpose, balance of judgment, readiness to understand,
strength with suppleness, selfless dedication, breadth of symPathy, an uncompromising flexibility, intolerance of what is
shoddy, impatience with the second-best, love for the poor,
Patience with the stupid-all these qualities must distinguish
!he Jesuit. And besides, he must be genuinely competent,
Intellectually alert and open, profoundly humble and truthful,
and unremittingly charged with the forces of an interior life.
Just exactly a year ago, in Rome, I had the privilege of a
long interview with the stalwart little priest who founded
the Christian Democratic movement in Italy. He was Don
Luigi Sturzo, and he died at the age of 87 just a month ago
Yesterday (Aug. 8, 1959). As we parted, he said: "The
�350
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
Society of Jesus must find a new role to play in the modern
world." I do not know and cannot say what role he would
have assigned us, for there was no time, unfortunately, to
ask him. But I do say that each one of us must help our
dear Society to find the new corporate part or parts that the
age demands us to play.
To make this discovery, to help one another in doing so,
we must know-each as best he can-the temper of the
modern mind. Prudently, as occasion offers, we must confront it-,;with honesty, sympathy, and understanding. We
have not been ordained for the nineteenth or the sixteenth
centuries.
To achieve an understanding of the modern mind does not
mean to neglect the traditional disciplines. Rather, it seems
to me, one must engage himself, with much greater energy
even than people did in the past, in the work of mastering
them. Philosophy, theology, history, philology and textual
criticism, mathematics and the physical sciences-there are
no. short cuts down any of these paths. But, as you know
perfectly well, there are various ways of approaching them.
They can be studied in a timeless and a selfish solitude. On
the other hand, the inevitable loneliness of the scholar can
also-and should-be peopled JVith an immense and heartening company. Here at Woodstock that company comprises
the vision of those minds, young and old, to whom you will
come as teacher. What are their problems ?-the dilemmas
they wrestle with and try to resolve? the peculiar anxieties
and tensions of their time'! How does one formulate-and
each of us must do it-a specific pastoral theology that will
meet the needs of real people of this century, working out
their salvation in the precarious milieu of a pluralistic society?
There are dozens of things one could say on this point.
Only a few words must suffice. For one thing, respect and
ap~reciate the laity. Work with them. Find roles .for the~
to play. Give them scope wherever you meet them-m retrea
houses, colleges, univ-ersities, missions, parishes, everywhere.
If you do, you will be acting in the best tradition of the
Society. Secondly, and likewise in the tradition of our
Society, value-and act as though you value-freedom over
coercion. This is a hard lesson for a priest to learn. More-
�NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
351
over, it will help, on a thousand occasions, to recall the principle expressed in the Presupposition to the Exercises, namely,
that we should strive to be more ready to put a good construction on our neighbor's proposition than to condemn it.
Fourthly and finally, be positive. The clerical mind can be
so dreadfully repressive and negative. Study, think, act, judge
-and later rule-predominantly and wherever possible, in
affirmations.
Then, too, be scholarly. I am sure you understand me when
I use the word "scholar." There are many, many rooms,
from attic to basement, in the house of learning. Not all of
us are called to the blue gown and pure Wissenschaft. None
of us, however, can escape the demands of genuine intellectual
competence.
All of a Piece
There is no 'fine line running through the Society to divide
those who need to be proficient from those who need not be
so. Whether you spend your days in a Tokyo parish or in
the Vatican Observatory, in a university chemistry lab at
Fordham, or in a second-year high classroom in Philadelphia,
Manila, or Rochester, it is, in the last analysis, quite the
same. Our labor for Christ in the Society is all of a piece.
The battles of the Society for the minds of men are fought
and won not only in graduate school seminars, at B. C. or
Georgetown, but also, and sometimes more triumphantly, in
Guayaquil and Osorno, on the playing fields of Blakefield,
the concrete campus of Xavier, or under a mango tree in
Puerto Rico. Our common Jesuit enterprise goes well only
when all of us share fully and joyfully in it, and when all
bring to each dovetailing phase of it the same dedicated
competence.
Finally, a word about creativity. We are priests or soon
shall be. Many of the normal and everyday outlets and exPressions of the creative life would seem to be denied us. We
do not found families and watch our childr:m and children's
children grow. Forty years ago, passing the stones in the
Woodstock graveyard, dear Father Leonard Feeney read
there on the granite slabs "names that are cancelled in a
Inighty stroke of love." Our names may be cancelled, but
�352
NINETIETH ANNIVERSARY
not our creative urge. Keep that in mind. And do not fail
to create. Create a great school, a thriving parish, a good
book, a splendid sodality, a top-notch department of physics
or modern languages.
The obedience of the Society is perfected by the initiatives
of the subject. True, our obedience demands that we submit
and be ruled sicut cadaver. But, according to the mind of
St. Ignatius, there should be a lot of life left in that selfless
and supple corpse. And the old man's staff is not supposed
to gather cobwebs in a corner; it is meant to get the old
gentleman across the street and up the stairs. Recall the
letter on obedience. There is no room there for dolor, molestia, tarditas, lassitudo, obmurmurationes, aliaque vitia non
sane levia. Our obedience is a positive and creative thing.
It is characterized, as you can review for yourselves in the
twelfth section of the letter, not only by humilitas and simplicitas, but by perseverantia, promptitas, alacritas, diligentia, celeritas, exsequendi studium, and-what we all need
lots of-fortitudo in rebus arduis.
Over the old chapel in the cemetery we read: Societas Jesu
quos genuit eorum caros cineres caelo reddendos sollicite heic
fovet. Soon enough, as it does for all, death will call us home
from the ardors of this hour of action, and the instant evening
of life will disperse the heat· of the day. On some future
Woodstock anniversary, we too shall be gone, and the mortal
part of us will be among the cari cineres of our dear Company.
Just now, however, we are in via, and we have like Robert
Frost and his old horse, "miles to go" before we sleep. We
journey together as Jesuits. Where is the road? Does it
begin somewhere over the hill yonder later on? No. You
are on it today, this day of Schola Brevis, for Woodstock is
not off somewhere at the end of a detour. In fact, Woodstock
is one of the best and straightest stretches on the whole
turnpike. There will be curves and hilly country farther on
where you can check your brakes. This is a good spot for
testing your accelerator.
�The Georgetown University Observatory
Francis X. Quinn, S.J.
In 1832, Sir George Airy, Astronomer Royal of England,
mentioned that he was unaware of a single observatory within
the limits of this country. Whether it was due to a sense
of injured pride or, as Professor Loomis of New York University pointed out, aroused interest in astronomy resulting
from the reappearance of Halley's Comet in 1835, the years
1836 to 1843 witnessed in this country a sudden awakening
to the science of astronomy and the construction of many
astronomical observatories.
One of the oldest of the observatories in this country is
the Georgetown observatory established in 1842-43. The
naval observatory situated close to the Georgetown observatory was founded shortly after this time. The oldest observatory in this country, that of Williams College, preceded
Georgetown's by only seven years. The Georgetown observatory was established at a time when Georgetown College,
with which it was associated, was struggling for existence.
To erect any building, especially one destined to house an
astronomical observatory, calls for a considerable amount of
money. The College itself was in no position to help, and
Were it not for the generous donations of devoted friends,
the task would have been impossible. Father Thomas M.
Jenkins, S.J., gave his own patrimony for the new building
and induced his family to assist him in furnishing the observatory with some of its best instruments. Father Charles
Stonestreet, S.J., also gave to the observatory some money
left to him by his mother. The project received neither national nor state aid. The building was erected and equipped
by members of the Society of Jesus and their relatives.
The man responsible for the Georgetown observatory was,
however, Father James Curley, S.J., who was destined to
be its director for almost fifty years. Born in Ireland on
October 25, 1796, Curley became a Jesuit at the age of thirty
on September 29, 1827. Two years prior to his ordination
he came to Georgetown as professor of natural philosophy,
353
�354
GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
as physics was then termed. When he was ordained to the
priesthood, he added to his teaching schedule classes in chemistry. From that time, he spent twenty-two years teaching
chemistry, twenty-six years teaching physics as well as occasionally filling the position of professor of botany. Added
to this schedule was his service for almost half a century as
professor of astronomy.
It was Father Curley who selected the site for the new
observatory. It \vas an excellent choice-a hill some one
hundred; and fifty feet above the Potomac. His selection
was considerably better than that chosen for the naval observatory where mist from the river hampered observation and
malaria attacked the health of the observers. The fact that
Father Curley determined to place the Georgetown observatory on ground that was both high and dry eliminated such
interference. He drew up the plans for the building, superintended its construction and gave full instructions for the
purchase of instruments.
Difficulties
The present building, a landmark on the Potomac, was
begun in 1843. It was built and fitted with granite piers
for the instruments at the cost of $8000, and was then
equipped with $18,000 wortli -of astronomical equipment
which at that time was second to none. The purchase was
by no means an easy task. In 1842, there were no manufacturers in America of such equipment. This necessitated
travel abroad, and there was no way of being certain how
soon the new instruments would be available for use. The
years of waiting for a five-inch equatorial telescope experi·
enced by Father Curley-a period of seven years, 1842-49
-prove this inconvenience.
By the spring of 1844, the observatory was ready to
receive its first instrument, and Father Curley immediately
set to work calculating the exact latitude and longitude of
the ~ew building. Astronomy at that time was considerablY
different in its method of research than it is today. The
instruments required to achieve precision had not as yet
been designed. Despite this lack, Father Curley determined
the latitude and longitude of the Georgetown observatorY
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
355
with remarkable exactness, and these determinations became
those accepted for the city of Washington, D. C. The method
which he employed was that of moon calculations observed
both at Georgetown and at Greenwich. When the Atlantic
Cable was laid some years later and signals interchanged
between America and England, Father Curley's estimate was
discovered to be correct within three-tenths of a second.
A monument to Father Curley's diligence as a scientist is
his three volume daily weather record from January 1, 1835
until March 1, 1889, one month before his death. For the
first fifteen years, entries were made fifteen times daily.
These were later reduced to two entries a day, the first daily
recording being at five o'clock in the morning.
The revolution of 1848 in Rome exiled many Jesuit scientists who had already established a reputation for themselves.
Three of these, Father DeVico, S.J., Father Secchi, S.J., and
Father Sestini, S.J., came to Georgetown.
Father DeVi co was a man of many talents Not only was
he a scientist whose merit was recognized in his appointment
as director of the observatory of the Roman College, but
he was a gifted musician as well, whose compositions attracted
considerable notice. While at the observatory of the Roman
College, Father DeVico discovered six comets and for his
discovery was awarded a gold medal by the King of Denmark.
This medal is still at Georgetown.
Remaining in this country but a short time, Father DeVi co
went to London, presumably to attend to the purchase of
new equipment for the observatory. While in London, he
contracted a "strong illness of the chest" and died there,
November 15, 1848, at the age of forty-three.
Father Angelo Secchi
There is some evidence to indicate that while at Georgetown Father DeVico was appointed director of its observatory. This appointment, however, is uncertain and his stay
in this country was certainly too short to provide him with
an opportunity for astronomical work Such an appointment,
however, would certainly have relieved Father Curley of a
~ingularly heavy burden which as we noted above, he carried
In addition to his teaching assignments at Georgetown Col-
�356
GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
lege. At any rate, Father Curley continued as the observatory's director and, in 1854, became a member of the National
Association for the Advancement of Science.
Father Angelo Secchi, S.J., destined to assume charge of
the observatory of the Roman College, commenced his study
of astronomy at the Georgetown observatory and also taught
physics at the college. His stay in this country lasted scarcely
a year, but it was, nonetheless, a year of outstanding accomplishment. While teaching physics, he made original researche!'). in the field of electricity and constructed much of
the delicate apparatus himself. As a result of this work,
he wrote a treatise entitled Researches in Electrical Rheometry which was subsequently published in 1852 in the Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge. He also designed and
constructed seismographs for the study of earthquakes as
well as a meteorograph for the recording of weather data.
After his appointment as director of the Roman College
observatory in the early 1850's, Father Secchi began his researches in physical astronomy for which he became so well
known and for which he is sometimes called the father of
modern astronomy. It was while he was director of this
observatory that he remarked that he regretted not having
made himself more familiar-·with the instruments of the
Georgetown observatory, and that had he a copy of Father
Curley's book on the transit instrument he would have been
spared two years of labor and study. Father Secchi was one
of those unusually talented men who, in whatever field their
enthusiasm may take them, make new and original observations. Beyond a doubt he was one of the greatest astronomers
of the last century.
Before the revolution of 1848, Father Benedict Sestini,
S.J., had been Father DeVico's assistant at the Roman College observatory. While at Rome, Father Sestini had begun
to study the color of the stars and, under the direction of
Father DeVico, published a record of his observations. Upon
his arrival at Georgetown, he again directed his attention
to this subject. Although the telescope which he used was
small, his method was fundamentally the same as that bY
which modern astronomers study space reddening due to
clouds of dust in interstellar space. The manuscript of hiS
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
357
observations in which he concluded that there was no difference in the color of the stars observed at Rome and at Georgetown is still preserved in the observatory's library.
From September 20th to November 6th of 1850, Father
Sestini made a most remarkable study of the sun's surface.
During this time he was able to observe it almost every day
and watch the change in the sun spots. He was also a
skilled draftsman and this talent he employed by sketching
the day by day changes on the sun's surface. These drawings
were later lithographed and published by the Naval Observatory. These same drawings are still of valuable assistance
to the modern astronomer as a study of the motion of sun
spots across the face of the sun, and they show the outlines
of the smaller spots more clearly, perhaps, than do modern
astronomical photographs.
In 1852, the first Annals of the observatory, a quarto volume of two hundred and fifteen pages containing a description
of the observatory, was published and distributed. It was
through this book that the observatory found a place in the
list of observatories of the Nautical Almanac. This resulted
in the reception of domestic and foreign observations published annually, and over the years this accumulation of annals
has grown into a valuable library.
With the completion of Father Curley's treatise on the transit instrument and Father Sestini's work on the color of
stars and the observation of sun spots, the research activity
of the observatory slackened for more than twenty years.
The task of making routine observations and preparing them
for publication, in addition to a heavy teaching schedule at
the College, consumed more time than the overworked director
had to spare. It was, moreover, Father Curley's explicit
intention in establishing the observatory that it should be
an institution for students. In fact, the publication of the
Annals in 1852 was even intended in part to serve as a textbook, listing in detail the manner of manipulating the instruments. But as Father Curley was advanced in years and
became less able to accomplish the active work for which
he was noted, new constructions were undertaken by the
College which made it next to impossible to supply the necessary funds for maintenance.
�358
GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
Father John Hagen
In the autumn of 1888, the year before Father Curley's
death, Father John G. Hagen, S.J., was appointed the second
director of the Georgetown observatory. Although he was
an Austrian by birth, Father Hagen spent a number of years
in this country and was familiar with its language. At the
universities of Bonn and Munster he had undertaken special
studies in higher mathematics and astronomy and had even
been director of a small observatory for a number of years.
With the advent of its centennial celebration in 1889, new
life was·instilled into everything associated with the College.
The College itself had long since developed into a University,
and it was Father Hagen's plan to raise the observatory
from the status of an institution for instruction to one where
original research might be accomplished in keeping with university work.
His first job, however, was to renovate the building and
to attend to necessary repairs. This project kept masons,
carpenters, and painters busy for more than three months,
wliile instrument makers and electricians were occupied
restoring and improving the instruments. Even a few new
instruments, such as a chronograph, were purchased and a
system of communication insta_lled between Georgetown and
the Naval Observatory. ContriDutions essential for the success of this undertaking were slow at the start, but within a
few years, donations amounted to $20,000. This made possible the purchase of a new equatorial telescope with a twelveinch aperture to replace the first equatorial telescope with a
five-inch aperture. It also made possible the erection of a
dome on the observatory's grounds to house the old equatorial
telescope where it is now the guide telescope for the five-inch
Ross camera mounted beside it. Thus the five-inch equatorial telescope purchased with so much difficulty by Father
Curl~y has served the observatory for more than a hundred
years.
While the purchase of the new telescope was in progress,
Father Hagen consulted with other astronomers about a neW
and suitable research project. In 1888, Professor Edward
Pickering of Harvard suggested the observation of variable
stars. Father Hagen started on this work at once, and his
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
359
memorable set of volumes of hand-drawn charts and magnitude scales of variable stars became one of the major achievements of his life. This work, begun in 1890, is known as the
Atlas stellarum variabilium. The study of variable stars is
still an important field; for many important discoveries,
which tell us what we know about the dimensions and structure of the universe, are based on the properties of these
variable stars. Father Hagen's Atlas is still a valuable reference work for the astronomer.
An able mathematician, Father Hagen addressed an audience of about two thousand members of the Society of Scientists and Mathematicians at their Congress at Frankfort-onthe-Main in 1897. In this address he made known his proposal
of publishing the then little known works of the great mathematician Euler. As far as can be determined, this monumental task was never finished by Father Hagen. It required
not only unending hours of study but also constant appeals
to American friends to take care of the cost of printing which
at that time was estimated to be almost $40,000. He did manage, however, to publish a three volume synopsis of higher
mathematics.
Father Hagen's rapid improvements encouraged the University to increase the observatory's staff of observers. In
1890, Father George A. Fargis, S.J., was appointed assistant
to Father Hagen. This made it possible for Father Hagen
to undertake new fields of work and led eventually to the
observatory's attainment of the honor of being the first to
Prove the feasibility of photographic transits.
At the time when Father Sestini was making his drawings
of sun spots, Professor Henry of the Smithsonian was urging
him to attempt photographing them. Photography plays an
important role in observations in as much as visual observations are subject to the impressions of the observer. The
visual observation, consequently, suffers from what is called
the "personal equation." Father Fargis now devoted his research efforts to develop an instrument for making photographic observations of the transits of stars.
Some years prior to his appointment as member of the
United States Weather Bureau and while engaged at the
Harvard observatory, Professor Bigelow had attempted to
�360
GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
solve this problem Father Fargis applied his skill as an observer and photographer to this task in 1889. Thus the
further development of this project devolved entirely upon
the Georgetown observatory, and it was Father Fargis who
first realized what had been sought for so long a time, the
invention of the photochronograph-an instrument which
recorded the first successful observations of star transits
photographically-and the elimination of the "personal equation." While it is true that this type of instrument is no
longer- employed for this purpose, it is basically, nonetheless,
the photographic zenith telescope by which the only really
accurate determinations of time are made in this country.
Father Rigge
During the years before 1900, Father W. F. Rigge, S.J.,
who had begun his work at the observatory in 1873 made his
important studies of solar eclipses. His little volume on
graphic methods of predicting eclipses and occultations is a
welcome handbook for the astronomer who works in this field.
~ In 1893, the photochronograph was built and housed in a
building connected with the observatory. Experiments with
this instrument had not been completed when a study of the
constancy of the earth's axis of rotation was undertaken.
Before this time it had been~· supposed constant, but now it
was suspected of slight alterations. Such variations are so
small that it needs the most refined observation to discover
them. Previous methods had necessitated observation correc·
tion of the instrument level by means of the spirit level. To
eliminate this correction, Father Hagen floated his telescope
in a basin of mercury and used photography to record perma·
nently the observations. This was known as the floating
zenith telescope.
Encouraged by the success of this device, Father Joseph
Algue, S.J., who came from Barcelona in 1891 to study at
the. observatory, invented another based on the principle of
reflection. First successful observations were made with this
reflecting zenith telescope in April 1893. The instrument was
later taken to Spain and eventually shipped to Manila where
Father Algue was appointed director of the Manila observa·
tory. Here Father Algue became known as the world's best
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
36i
authority on tropical cyclones and typhoons in the Far East.
He later donated the instrument to the United States Navy.
Although Father Hagen had eliminated the spirit level by
the invention of the floating zenith telescope, it was thought
necessary to test the visual and photographic determinations
of latitude on more equal terms. This resulted in the construction of the photographic zenith telescope at the Georgetown observatory-a zenith telescope with a photo-chronograph replacing the eyepiece.
In March of 1893, a new twelve-inch equatorial telescope
was installed at the observatory. From the beginning of
Father Hagen's administration, the work of renovation, the
construction of the photochronograph and of three new latitude instruments, and now of the twelve inch equatorial was
accomplished more efficiently and at less expense in this
country than they could have been done abroad. The lenses
of the twelve-inch telescope gave complete satisfaction. During a series of experiments the positions of a score of double
stars, the inclination of Saturn's ring, the satellites of Jupiter and its equatorial belts were all successfully photographed.
In 1906, Father Hagen was transferred to the Vatican
observatory and was succeeded at the Georgetown observatory
by Father John Hedrick, S.J. Before becoming a Jesuit,
Father Hedrick had studied astronomy in Argentina's Cordoba University under Professor Benjamin Gould. Gould
was, without a doubt, one of the most energetic astronomers
of his day. In his fifteen years at Cordoba University, he
published fifteen quarto volumes listing the positions of 73,000
stars, all determined from photographic observations.
As director of the Georgetown observatory, Father Hedrick
spent most of his time continuing the observations with the
Photochronograph. His publications, nine in all, are scattered
throughout the astronomical journals both at home and
abroad. In 1914 he left the observatory.
When Father Hedrick left Georgetown the observatory was
Placed under the direction of Father P. Archer, S.J., who
devoted most of his efforts to teaching astronomy. In 1923,
:Father J. L. Gipprick, S.J., was made director of the observatory, but his regular work as head of the physics department
�362
GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
kept him too busy to do more than keep the instruments clean
and ready for use.
Each new director had been faced with two serious problems: (1) the preparation for publication of a huge amount
of observational material-a task which in itself would require
years; and (2) since visual work was becoming a thing of
the past, the purchase of newer instruments was imperative
to replace older equipment.
..
Father Paul McNally
In 1925, Father Edward C. Phillips, S.J., was appointed
director, and Father Paul A. McNally, S.J., was made his
assistant. Father McNally at the time was studying new
methods of astronomical research at the Lick observatory of
the University of California and was an honorary fellow of
that institution, the first to hold that honor. In 1928, while
in the midst of his studies, he was called to Georgetown to
assume the role of director of the observatory. Father Phillips had been appointed provincial of the Jesuits of the Maryland-New York province, and from that time his scientific
career was sacrificed to the duties of an administrator. Father
F. Sohon, S.J., was made Father McNally's assistant.
Father McNally continued: work observing the variable
stars and the occultations of st~rs by the moon. Along with
this work, he began a systematic program for their photographic observation, and over the years these observations
have accumulated to form a photographic plate libary which
today consists of a few thousand plates. He also ordered two
new photographic cameras for the observatory as soon as
funds were available, and the mounting of the original fiveinch equatorial telescope he had rebuilt so that it could be
used for the cameras.
In 1932, Father McNally headed an expedition to Fryeburg,
Maine, to observe there a total solar eclipse. His equipment
was small due to limited funds. On the morning of the eclipse,
the all-Jesuit team rehearsed their actions until each motion
became automatic. They were rewarded by procuring a pic·
ture considered among the best ever taken of a solar eclipse.
This photograph brought the Georgetown observatory back
into the notice of other observatories throughout the world
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
363
and won the Silver Award at the Chicago World Fair. It
was also exhibited by the Royal Photographic Society of
London.
As director of the Georgetown observatory, Father McNally
undertook three more expeditions to observe solar eclipses.
First, in 1936, he went to Kustanai, Siberia, in Russia with
the assistance of the National Geographic Society. The following year, in conjunction with both the National Geographic
Society and the United States Navy, the expedition was to
Canton Island in the South Pacific Ocean. Three years later
in 1940, he journeyed to Patos in Brazil along with the National Geographic Society and the National Bureau of Standards.
While observing the 1940 eclipse in Brazil, Father McNally
became interested in making more precise observations of
the contact time of the total phase of the eclipse in order to
compute corrections to the relative positions of sun, moon,
and observer. If made, such observations would provide a
check on our knowledge of the motions of the earth and moon
in their respective orbits. They could also be used for the
measurement of long arcs between points on the earth's
surface.
With the advent of the war in 1941, Father McNally devoted much time to liaison work between the University
authorities and the government. Unless a military program
could be established at Georgetown College, there would be
no students. Under such circumstances,' a large institution
Without sufficient endowments would have been impoverished
in an effort to sustain itself. By the end of the war, Father
McNally had become completely immersed in the project of
building a new medical center.
The next to take over the post of director of the observatory
Was Father Francis Heyden, S.J. Destined for the astronomical observatory in Manila, Father Heyden had completed his
studies at Harvard in 1945. But in January of that same
Year during the struggle for the city, the Manila observatory
Was completely destroyed and Father Heyden remained at
the Georgetown observatory. The following year, the first
!traduate student applied for admission to the Georgetown
observatory and before the year was completed, enrollment
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
increased to three. As time went on, more students came to the
observatory in the hope of working for their degree in astronomy. This was due in part to the government's increased
interest in this science.
Before the commencement of the war, work had been
started in conjunction with the Bureau of Standards on spectral studies of the sun. This work, interrupted by the war,
was resumed by Father Heyden in 1949. The observatory
possesses today one of the finest large dispersion spectographs
for work on the sun.
China and Africa
In May of 1948, the Georgetown observatory took part in
observing the solar eclipse from an observation site in China,
and in 1952, with the assistance of the United States Air
Force, six sites, designed and constructed at the Georgetown
observatory, spanned the distance from Africa to Saudi
Arabia.
~ The success of the expedition of 1952 opened the door to
other and more ambitious projects for the observatory. In
June of 1954, and December of 1955, the Georgetown observatory undertook two new solar eclipse expeditions in conjunction with the United States A!r Force. The purpose of these
expeditions was not so much a large scale survey of the
entire earth as it was to test and evaluate the methods proposed for accomplishing such a task. In achieving success
with any one of these methods, difficulties in attainment of
precision had to be met. On both of these ventures, the e:xpe·
rience obtained in previous expeditions was of considerable
value. Certain problems have yet to be solved before the
expedition's goal can be said to have been satisfactorilY
attained. These difficulties involve accurate knowledge of
the sun's and moon's position with respect to the earth a~
well as exact information as to the radius of the earth an
its distance from the moon, the contour of the moon at the
moment of each contact, and the value of T-the difference
between ephemeris and universal time.
A recent listing of the observatory's research projects
(August 1, 1958) demonstrates the scope of its activity·
These projects are:
�GEORGETOWN OBSERVATORY
365
(1) Contracts with the Air Force Cambridge research
center for the reduction of solar eclipse observations into
data useful for geodetic measurements on the surface of the
earth.
(2) Contract with the Air Force Cambridge research center
for the development and testing of equipment for the observation of artificial satellites; the training of personnel for field
observations and the reduction of the observations at
Georgetown.
{3) National Science Foundation grant for the study of
titanium and the faint lines in the solar spectrum.
{4) Contract with the United States Army map service
for the measurement and reduction of positions of three
hundred stars in the field of Orion for fundamental star positions.
{5) Contract with the United States Army engineers for
study of the atmospheres of planets for evidence of water
vapor or its equivalent.
{6) National Science Foundation grant for derivation of
corrections to the photographic positions of stars in the
astrographic catalogue.
{7) National Science Foundation grant for collaboration
With the University of California for the measurement of
spectrum plates taken in the California physics department
(Still pending).
(8) Consultation contract with the Air Force for geodesy.
(9) Special research project for testing the fit of spheroids.
For more than a century now, the Georgetown observatory
has forged its path through the realm of science, contributing
generously to our better comprehension of the universe.
Members of its staff, and especially its directors, have been
lllen of intellectual eminence and dynamism. Today it
llle.asures up to the accomplishments of its honored past,
guided by its director, Father Francis Heyden, S.J., with as
~~ady and as strong a hand as those of its early directors.
b lth such a record and with such a director and staff, it may
~ confidently assumed that the Georgetown observatory
Will continue in its great and historic tradition.
�The Third Degree of Humility
Carl A. Lofy, S.J.
Because the importance of the third degree of humility is
realized by every Jesuit, a new discussion of the subject demands no apology. The present treatment of it limits itself
to one specific aspect, the aspect of suffering. The consideration of the three degrees of humility, as found in the text
of the E~~rcises, mentions explicitly only the choice of poverty
and contempt with Christ poor and contemned, yet there is
no one of us who has not heard, more or less frequently, the
words "and suffering with Christ suffering" added by retreat
masters and commentators. Indeed, the addition has become
so traditional that we seldom question its validity, even
though there are very definite reasons for so doing. The
most obvious of these is that Saint Ignatius, a man most
careful in his choice of words, did not explicitly use them.
Secondly, to ask of the exercitant the love that chooses any
and all forms of suffering is by no means the same thing
as to ask of him the love that chooses poverty and contempt.
This paper, therefore, focuses on this addition of the words
"and suffering with Christ SlJffering" to the words of the
third degree of humility, and seeks to answer the question
whether or not the text of the Spiritual Exercises 1 justifies
such an addition.
A study of the reasons for the addition will help to clarify
the question. They are basically the following. Inasmuch
as choosing poverty and contempt does involve choosing a
form of suffering, it is easy to generalize it into the choice
of suffering in general. Secondly, the only motive explicitly
mentioned in the third degree for choosing poverty and contempt is the desire to imitate the poor and contemned Christ.
Hence it is easy to go further and to ask the exercitant to
choose whatever Christ chose, even suffering.
Three different desires can therefore be distinguished.
~complete historical analysis of this question would not be out
of order, but it would take us far beyond the scope of this paper.
366
�THIRD DEGREE
367
1) The desire for poverty and contempt, 2) the desire for
suffering, and 3) the desire for whatever Christ chose. These
three are not, of course, mutually exclusive. The second
virtually contains the first, and the third virtually contains
the first two. But according to the actual words of the
Spiritual Exercises, the third degree of humility involves
only the first, the desire for poverty and contempt, and this
does not virtually contain the last two. May a retreat master,
when presenting the third degree to the exercitants, generalize
what is given in the text so as to include within the ~hird
degree the desire for suffering or for whatever Christ chose?
It is important to note that we are not asking whether or
not the retreat master may or even should call his exercitants to the desire for suffering elsewhere in the Exercises.
Nor are we questioning the worth of the desire to suffer
with Christ. Indeed, it is one of the most glorious threads
in the fabric of Christianity, for the Master Himself made
the willingness to take up the cross after Him the necessary
prerequisite of those who would be His disciples. The glory
of His Church and the astonishment of His enemies is that
that challenge has been accepted through the years, not with
reluctance, but with joy and confidence. Saint Ignatius himself insisted that all the prison-chains in the world were not
sufficient to satisfy his desire of suffering for Christ. There
can be no question, therefore, about the sanctity of the desire
to suffer with Christ and to choose whatever He chose. What
is questioned in this paper is only whether or not the text
of the Spiritual Exercises justifies these desires being included
by retreat masters in their presentation of the third degree
of humility.
Proper Context
The answer must be sought in the consideration of the
three degrees of humility as it is found in its proper context
Within the Second Week, and not simply in isolation from
the rest of the Exercises. For it was clear~y not intended to
be an isolated consideration, as can be seen from the note
ill!mediately preceding it:
"Before anyone enters on the Elections, that he may be well
affected towards the true teaching of Christ our Lord, it will be
�368
THIRD DEGREE
very profitable to consider and notice the three following degrees of
humility, considering them from time to time during the whole day,
and in like manner to make the colloquies in accordance with
what will be said below."2
This consideration, therefore, is to be made before one
enters the election and is to be kept in mind throughout the
day of election. From this appears the connection between
this consideration, the election, and the Two Standards,
which St. Ignatius meant to be an introduction to the election.3
More than this, the purpose of the consideration on the three
degrees .. of humility is, according to the text quoted above,
that the exercitant "may be well affected towards the true
teaching of Christ our Lord." These words clearly recall
the Two Standards, where we consider "the intention of
Christ our Lord," 4 and how He sends His disciples "through·
out the whole world diffusing His sacred doctrine through
all states and conditions of persons." 5 Finally, the colloquies
suggested in the three degrees are simply a repetition of the
colloquies of the Two Standards. From all this it is clear that
the three degrees play an integral part within the Second
Week, having a close connection with the Two Standards
and with the election. It is in this context that we must study
the third degree of humility..
Definite realizations, therefore, are presupposed in the
exercitant before he ever comes to consider the three degrees
of humility. The basic presupposition, of course, is that the
Kingdom contemplation has aroused in him the desire to
signalize himself in Christ's service. But how is he to sig·
nalize himself? He must imitate Christ. But this, however
true it might be, is too general for Saint Ignatius. Christ
has many facets to His personality and there is much in
Him to imitate. The exercitant must specify, direct, and
channel his desire to imitate Christ if he is to have any hopes
of success. But where precisely is his imitation of Christ
to. begin? This is the question which the Two Standards
2 Text of the Spiritual Exercises. Westminster: Newman Bookshop,
1943, p. 52.
3 See note immediately preceding the meditation on the Two Standards.
4
Ibid.
5
From second point of second part of Two Standards.
�THIRD DEGREE
369
answer for him. Satan's strategy against him is very specific: to bring him to pride, because from pride he can bring
him to all the other vices. And what means will Satan use
to bring him to pride? Riches and honors. Riches and
honors to pride and all the vices: this is the strategy of Satan
against most men, a strategy that is centered in one particular vice, pride.
Christ's pattern is equally specific and precise. Its center
is humility. Humility is not chosen at random. It is the
key to the other virtues, the door to progress. 6 The immediate, specific task of the exercitant, therefore, is humility.
And humility is best achieved through poverty, insults, reproaches, and contempt. The greater his willingness to serve
Christ through a life of the virtues, the greater must be his
willingness (and even desire) to bear these necessary means
to humility.
These are the realizations presupposed in the exercitant
before he comes to consider the third degree of humility.
When he does, it is clear that poverty and humiliations are
being asked of .him because, as means to humility and thus
to all virtues, they constitute an integral part of Christ's
strategy. Choosing poverty and humiliations will involve
the choice of a form of suffering, but they are presented,
not under the aspect of suffering, but in relation to further
Progress in the service of Christ. If this is not true, then
all the work of the Two Standards has gone for nought. 7
--
6 There is a basic presupposition underlying the entire Two Standards
meditation, namely, that the imitation of Christ consists in the life of
the virtues. It is a supposition in full accord with the traditional
definition of the illuminative life as "the following of Christ by the
Positive exercise of Christian virtues." (Tanquerey, The Spiritual Life.
Tournai: Desclee & Co., 1930, p. 454). That humility is the key to
the other virtues is also not original with Saint Ignatius. It is a
common principle of Christian asceticism that "God resists the proud
and gives grace to the humble." ( I Peter: v, 5). Thus Tanquerey
calls humility "the key that lays open the riches of grace," and "the
foundation of all the virtues," since "without it there is no solid virtue,
and · .. with it all other virtues grow in depth and perfection." Op. cit.,
p, 531.
7
It might be objected at this point that suffering itself is a form of
humiliation and as such a means to humility. It certainly may be so
�370
THIRD DEGREE
The actual consideration of the three degrees of humility,
therefore, is meant to summarize and to test the realizations
of the Kingdom and Two Standards and thus to prepare the
exercitant for the election. As a test, it asks the exercitant
how much he really wants to help in spreading Christ's kingdom, and how much he really wants humility, the basis of
all virtues. Hence the name: three degrees of humility. Is
he content with the humility by which he "submits and humbles himself" 8 to the point of not committing mortal sin,
or of being indifferent to created things so as not to deliberate
aboutllommitting venial sin? Or does he genuinely and sin-.
cerely want to "conquer the whole world (for Christ) and
to subdue His enemies," even to the point of choosing a
course of action involving difficult means when an alternative
course involving riches and honors would be equally for God's
glory?
This is the test, and Saint Ignatius is aware that only the
personal inspiration of Christ's example can lead the exercitant to so strong a determination. Hence, presupposing it
known from the Two Standards that poverty and humiliations are being dealt with as the means to humility, he immediately reminds the exercitant by the Kingdom and Nativity
contemplations that Christ has chosen poverty and contempt
before him. This he does b{ the words: "poverty and con·
tempt with Christ poor and contemned." But then, to recall
the Two Standards and the entire strategy there explained,
he adds: "rather than riches and honors." Seen in this way,
the third degree summarizes, while it tests, the realizations
of the Second Week, and therefore "should be kept in mind
the entire day of election."
considered. But Saint Ignatius is speaking here of the humiliations
which are directly opposed to worldly honors. In the Kingdom he
speaks only of insults and reproaches, in the Nativity contemplation
of insults and affronts, in the Two Standards of reproaches and c~nd
tenliJt, in the second degree of humility of "dishonor," and in the th!t
degree of contempt and being esteemed as useless and foolish. None
of these terms suggest suffering in general.
1
8 These words of Saint Ignatius, used explicitly in describing the first
degree of humility and implied in the next two, leave little doubt tha
he meant these three degrees to be exactly what he called them, degrees
of humility, and not (say) of love, perfection, or obedience.
�THIRD DEGREE
371
From all that has been said, it is clear that Saint Ignatius
mentions poverty and humiliations in the third degree of
humility, and not (say) chastity, obedience, or suffering in
general, because the former are the most effective means to
humility, the basis of all the other virtues. It should be
equally clear that he is dealing with poverty and humiliations, not insofar as they involve suffering, but insofar as
they constitute the means to further progress, so that even
if they did not involve suffering they would still be an integral
part of the Second Week.
If, however, the third degree is considered alone, apart
from its context in the Second Week and without reference
to the Two Standards, it is no longer clear that poverty and
humiliations are being considered precisely as the means
to humility. They appear to be only facets in the imitation
of Christ chosen at random, for no intrinsic reason. Hence,
one reading the consideration out of its context would feel
free to add to these two, any other facets of Christ's personality that he chooses. And since, as we saw earlier, poverty
and contempt do involve suffering, it is the facet of suffering
that is most often added to the third degree of humility.
Such an addition completely ignores the pattern of life
Proposed by Christ in the Two Standards, ignores the fact
that poverty and humiliations are being dealt with only as
means to humility and that the important point of the third
degree of humility is not that it involves suffering but is
the means to the most fundamental of all virtues. The addition of the words, "and suffering with Christ suffering,"
involves much more, therefore, than a mere addition of words.
It entails an arbitrary switch in Ignatius's view of the lifepattern of Christ. The purpose of the consideration was to
make the exercitant "well affected towards the true teaching
of Christ" as studied in the Two Standards. But now, without
having had explained to him how suffering fits into Christ's
Plan, he is suddenly asked for something for which he has
not been prepared, something which has little to do with the
strategy already studied. The double insight that poverty
and humiliations lead to humility and humility to all the
other virtues is passed over, and suffering, not humility,
becomes the center of his attention. This distraction from
�372
THIRD DEGREE
humility at the very moment of election is a worse evil than
the general confusion the exercitant suffers at this sudden
and unexplained shift of plan.
Not Justified
The answer to our original question, therefore, stands
inescapably before us. Regardless of the value and sanctity
of the desire to suffer with Christ and to choose whatever
Christ our Lord chose, these generalizations in the presentation of the third degree of humility are not justified by the
text o1· the Spiritual Exercises. Rather, they disrupt the
entire psychological development of the Second Week and
take the exercitant's attention away from the central point
of Christ's plan: humility.
We said earlier that it was beyond the scope of this paper
to discuss whether or not the desire for suffering may or
should be included elsewhere in the course of the retreat.
The following observations, however, can be made. The
Third Week is a better time to introduce it, since there the
exercitant is studying Christ precisely inHis life of suffering.
Secondly, if the desire for suffering is asked of the exercitant,
the place of suffering in the plan of Christ should be explained
to him as clearly as possible, j_ust as the place of poverty and
humiliations as the means t<l humility was explained to
him in the Two Standards. 9 Finally, if for some reason the
9 It has been said by some that no reason can be given for the desire
to suffer with Christ beyond the desire to imitate Christ, that there
is an element of the inexplicable and suprarational in this desire. Such
people appeal to the words of Saint Augustine: "Give me a lover and
he will understand." That there is an inexplicable element is cer·
tainly true. It lies first of all in the desiring, in the eagerness to
embrace. Such generosity is inexplicable except in terms of love. But
what we desire, and the reason we desire it and not something else
(v.g. patience, celibacy, etc.) need not be inexplicable. To have 8
rational reason for directing our desire to imitate Christ precisely to
the. area of suffering by no means detracts from the love that inspires
us to imitate Him. Nevertheless it is true that some lovers of Christ
could wish to suffer only because Christ suffered, without concerning
themselves about any further reasoning. Yet even this desire involves
a judgment of confidence in the goodness of Christ's character. Con·
sequently the desire to suffer with Christ could be termed inexplicable,
inasmuch as one might not be concerned about the reason Christ bad
�THIRD DEGREE
373
desire for suffering is included in the presentation of the
third degree of humility, then it is very important that it
be included also in the oblation of the Kingdom and in the
pattern of the Two Standards as well. In this way the exercitant will have been sufficiently prepared, both in terms of
inspiration and information. Even when this is done, it
should be fully realized that, unless suffering is dealt with
precisely as means to humility, humility is being de-emphasized and that there is no longer question of three degrees
of humility, since the desire to imitate Christ has now been
channelled to something other than humility and the means
to it.
It remains only to consider three possible objections to
the interpretation of the third degree of humility advanced
in this paper. The first of these arises from the words which
precede the oblation of the Kingdom contemplation. Here
Saint Ignatius encourages the exercitant to act against "his
sensuality, worldly and carnal love" by making the oblation.
In the oblation, however, he mentions only poverty and humiliations. It would seem, however, that because of the
words, "sensuality and carnal love," the addition of suffering
and penance would be justified.
Now admittedly, we do normally regard bodily penance and
suffering as the remedies against sensuality and carnal love,
and it strikes us at first as strange that only poverty and
humiliations are mentioned in the oblation. The explanation
is to be found· in the fact that Saint Ignatius is already anticipating the Two Standards and the role of poverty and
humiliations in the plan of Christ as there explained. His
meaning for the words, "sensuality, worldly and carnal love,"
therefore, must be broader than our meaning for these
terms, and the same as that found in the note at the end of
the meditation on the Three Classes of Men, where he exPlicitly speaks of the choice of actual poverty as an act
"against the flesh."
The second objection arises from the twelfth rule of the
Summary, where we are told that continual mortification
-
in choosing suffering. Nevertheless, it is explicable in the sense that
We do know He had a good reason and we are in no way prevented
from legitimately seeking to discover what that reason was.
�374
THIRD DEGREE
and abnegation are the means to the third degree of humility
as it is expressed in the eleventh rule. Since continual
mortification seems to be a means to the desire for suffering
rather than to the desire for poverty and contempt, it would
follow that the third degree of humility may and should be
generalized to include the desire for suffering.
In answering this objection, we should recall that the
eleventh rule contains two parts, the first general, the second
particular. The general element is "to abhor wholly and not
in par{"\vhat the world loves and embraces and to desire
with our whole strength whatsoever Christ our Lord loved
and embraced." In this general willingness to choose whatever Christ chose is already virtually contained the desire
to choose suffering, since suffering is certainly one of the
things Christ chose. But just as the general readiness to
imitate Christ was channelled and directed in the Two Standards to humility and the means to it, so the desire in the
eleventh rule to choose whatever Christ our Lord loved is
channelled and directed to "reproaches, false testimony, injuries, and being treated and accounted as fools." The continual mortification of the twelfth rule, which is expressly
stated to be the means to the "degree of perfection" mentioned in the eleventh, must therefore, also have a general
and a particular element. It-- must involve, not only the
general mortification of our desire for whatever the world
loves, but also (and especially) the particular mortification
of our desire for riches, worldly honors, and a great name
among men. This is clear from the letter of Polanco in
which he states that Saint Ignatius esteemed those mortifica·
tions which touched honors and self-esteem more than those
that caused suffering to the flesh, such as fasting and hair
shirts. 10
Twelfth Rule
continual mortification of the twelfth rule, taken gen·
erally, is the means, therefore, to the development of the
desire to embrace whatever Christ loved and embraced, and
the particular mortification of our desire for worldly honors
and esteem is the means to developing the desire to embrace
~he
1o MHSJ, Epist., lgn., III, p. 501.
�THIRD DEGREE
375
the contempt that Christ embraced and so to come to
humility. The eleventh and twelfth rules do not therefore
exclude the desire for suffering, but they do emphasize again
the means to humility, and it is precisely in this emphasis
that they can be equated with the third degree of humility.
The final objection is that we customarily think of the third
degree of humility as the source of our crucifixion to the
world. The third degree of humility, however, seems to have
little to do with crucifixion to the world unless it includes
the notion of suffering in general.
It is certainly true that the third degree of humility is one
of the chief characteristics of the Society of Jesus and also
that it has much to do with our crucifixion to the world. So
characteristic is it that it is at the basis of the vow of the
professed not to desire any office within or outside the
Society. What is the reason for our binding ourselves under
vow not to desire honors? Is it not that we are men of the
third degree of humility? Is it not that we have learned in
the Two Standards the real danger to pride lurking in honors?
Only obedience, the manifestation of God's will so evident
that we would sin not to obey, can assure us that God's
glory demands our acceptance of these honors, so much do
we desire their opposites. The third degree of humility, as
understood in this paper, constitutes a very essential part,
if not the entirety, of our crucifixion to the world because
it strikes at what men of the world especially love: riches
and honors.
In conclusion, let it be said that we have not attempted
in this paper to de-emphasize the value and the necessity of
the desire to suffer with Christ. That desire is one of God's
most precious graces and deserving of the deepest efforts
and prayers of each of us. Our purpose was not negative
but positive: to restore to humility the place it deserves in
the third degree of humility and in the service of Christ.
�Foundation and First Administration
of the Maryland Province
Robert K. Judge, S.J.
Part I: Background
Introduction
From the year 1634, when the Jesuits first landed on the
shores ..of Saint Clement's Island until 1833, when the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus was founded, America
had been mission territory for the Order. Suppression, which
lasted in America from 1773 until 1805, checked nearly all
corporate labor of the missionaries, who assumed their duties
as diocesan priests. 1 After 1814, when the Society was re·
stored throughout the world, the need for a regional administration became increasingly evident. The mission already
had its novitiate, its college and missions whose problems
were of such a nature as to demand the attention of a superior, subordinate only to the General, with authority to make
decisions of some importance as he should see fit. It was
in large part due to the for.esight and interest of Father
Peter Kenney, Visitor to tlie-· American missions in 1830,
that the decision to grant province status to the Maryland
mission came about. 2
Preparations: 1832-1833
A formal request on the part of Father Kenney to grant
province status to the American mission is dated August 28,
1832, 3 following the election of Father William McSherrY
1 Their only official relationship was the Corporation of Roman
Catholic Clergymen of Maryland, a property-holding body designed to
preserve the lands formerly belonging to the Society until the Order
sh<:>uld be restored.
l
2 John 1\:I. Daley, S.J., Georgetown University: Origin and EarY
Years. (Washington: Georgetown Univ. Press, 1957) p. 279.
3 Kenney to Roothaan, Aug. 28, 1832, VIII
(Missio Marylandiae:
1831-1833), Archivum Romanum Societatis lesu ( ARSI).
376
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
311
as first procurator on August 14, 1832.4 Because of his new
appointment Father McSherry sailed from New York to
Rome on September 10 with Fathers Barber and Mulledy5 to
report to Father General and receive the necessary instructions for the new province. That it was by no means certain
how much territory would be included is evident from a
letter of McSherry's shortly after his arrival in Rome. Of
one thing he was certain: Missouri would remain a separate
mission. 6
Finally, on June 4, 1833 Kenney wrote to Dzierozynski and
his consultors that the Maryland mission had been elevated
to the dignity of a province, with Father McSherry as its
Provincial, and on July 8, 1833 the Georgetown community
was assembled in the ascetory for the official pronouncement. 7
It must have been with great pride that this community listened to the decree of erection of Father General John Roothaan.
-
4
Since the mission of the United States of America has sufficiently
increased, and since nothing more desirous is sought than the
creation of a legitimate province of the Society, and, indeed, since
the mission possesses a suitable number of members, Georgetown
College as well, and its own novitiate, and includes also many
other residences-this is why, having thought it over for a long
while, and having commended the matter to God many times in
my prayers, and having often discussed the matter with the
Fathers Assistant, it seemed best to decree, as we do now, that
the above named mission, as it was subject to this one Superior
up to now, shall have a place in the rank of provinces under the
title of the Province of Maryland with all the faculties and privileges of the other provinces and especially the provinces across the
sea in accordance with the Constitutions of the Society and the
decrees of the general congregations.
Enacted at Rome, Feast of the Purification, Feb. 2, 1833.s
Index Procuratorum, Acta Provincialium Congregationum: 18321896. Maryland Province Archives (MPA).
5
Kenney to Roothaan, Sept. 8, 1832. VIII, ARSI.
6
McSherry to ?, Nov. 9, 1832. Correspondence 1830's, Woodstock
College Archives (WCA).
1
House Diary, July 8, 1833. Georgetown University Archives (GUA),
86. Cited by Daley, op. cit., pp. 274-275.
8
IX (Epistolae Generales at Miscellaneae: 1833-1837), ARSI.
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
378
Physical State of the Province in 1833
At the time of the Province's foundation its area included
the whole of Maryland, with missions to the north, extending
into York, Adams and Berks Counties of Pennsylvania, and
to the southwest as far as Alexandria, Virginia. The Province could boast of a full college at Georgetown, another as
yet incomplete at Frederick (It remained incomplete.) a
novitiate at White Marsh, and residences at St. Thomas',
Newtown, St. Inigoes, Bohemia, St. Joseph on the Eastern
Shore, and St. Mary's in Alexandria, while in Pennsylvania
there were residences at Conewago, Goshenhoppen, Paradise,
Philadelphia and Lancaster, although the last mentioned as
well as Bohemia were administered by secular priests because
of the scarcity of Jesuits. 9 By July 8, 1833, the day on which
Father McSherry was read in as Provincial, there were 78
members in the Province: 34 priests, 17 scholastics and 27
coadjutor brothers. 10 These 78 members were variously
employed in our twelve churches and residences (including
eight farms), over 22 missions, one university, one college,
one school, one novitiate and one scholasticate. The growth
of the Province, then, since the Society's restoration, had
been indeed encouraging, as was attested by Father General.
William McSherry, S.J.
The man upon whom was placed the burden of office was
a native American, the son of Anne and Richard McSherry,
whose estate bore the name of "Retirement." William, the
third son of this Irish planter, was born on July 19, 1799 at
the estate six miles from Charleston, now in West Virginia.
On November 6, 1813 he entered Georgetown College, but
on the 6th of February, 1815 took his place among the novices
of the Society, who were then at Georgetown. After being
sent to Rome to pursue his philosophical and theological
studies his historical interests prompted an exploration of
the ·Society's archives. To him American history owes the
discovery of Father Andrew White's Relatio Itineris, narrating the voyage of the Ark and Dove, the fullest account we
9
Province Catalogue for 1833. MPA.
to Ibid.
�MARYLAND PlWVINCE
379
have of the settlement of Maryland. These, together with
many early reports of missionaries, McSherry copied for the
benefit of scholars. Of no little importance also are the
manuscripts in the language of the Maryland Indians which
he came upon-the only documents we have in the dialect of
these tribes. 11
After ordination at Rome, probably in 1825 or 1826/2
McSherry was appointed minister of the medical and literary
colleges at the Institute of Turin, whose rector was Father
Roothaan. In 1827 he is listed as residing at Rome, probably
preparing to become Socius to Father Kenney, which he
became in 1828. A year later he was at Georgetown as professor of humanities, and in 1830 he became the minister
for the College, and procurator and house consultor as well
the following year. In 1832 he added his former task of
professor to these other offices, before being recalled to Rome
later that yearY Upon his return to Rome he was admitted
to the number of the solemnly professed by his old friend
and rector, John Roothaan.H
McSherry was, therefore, one of the first American Jesuits
to complete the traditional course of training, and as such,
was fully acquainted with the Society's institute and techniques of operation. But he had also the invaluable firsthand
experience with the mission's difficulties. By nature a very
amiable and kind person, he was only thirty-four years old
when he became Provincial.
Part II: Educational Efforts
Georgetown
Georgetown University, with thirty-three members of
the Society in residence, and, therefore, constituting nearly
11
John Gilmary Shea, History of Georgetown College (New York:
P. F. Collier, 1891) pp. 118-122.
12
Because the set of Roman Catalogues is incomplete, we are unable
to determine the year of McSherry's ordination. He was probably in
"hort course," since he is listed in 1824 among the auditores Theologiae
s
~oralis. Edward I. Devitt, S.J., "History of the Maryland-New York
rovince," ch. VIII, Woodstock Letters, LXII (1933), 310-313.
13
Province Catalogue, 1827-1832. MPA.
14
Ibid.
�380
.MARYLAND PROVINCE
half of the Province, was the great charge of the Jesuits in
Maryland. 15 Then in its forty-second year/ 6 the University
had an encouraging enrollment: 183 scholars, 172 of whom
were boarders, eleven semi-boarders-altogether an increase
of twenty-two over the preceding year.U
Academically, the University seemed to be proving its
worth. The honor recently conferred upon the mission was
followed shortly by another to Georgetown, when the Sacred
Congregation De Propaganda Fide, by decree of March 30,
1833, conferred upon the College the power to grant degrees
in philosophy and theologyY
The financial status of Georgetown at this time, however,
was far from happy. Kenney, writing to McSherry in Rome,
in February, 1833, to acquaint him with the state of affairs
in Maryland, was elated over the fact that Georgetown's
"trustees are without limit empowered to receive, manage
all the property, real or personal belonging to the College;
so that they can now receive donations, if they can get them,
to any amount in money or lands." 19 But the fact is that
the trustees had little opportunity to exercise their privileges
in financial matters. It is true that a grant of $25,000 in
city lots was made that year by the Federal Government,
but the deed for the property was not executed until Febru·
ary 20, 1837. 20
,
Until 1833, Georgetown, in accordance with the Society's
custom forbidding acceptance of stipends or tuition fees,
had been obliged to rely solely upon the charity of friends
for its sustenance. Numerous requests for a dispensation to
accept tuition fees from students, according to the American
custom, effected no satisfactory reply from Rome. 21 But with
Province Catalogue for 1833. MPA.
Although founded in 1789, the first students were not received
until 1791. Daley, op. cit., p. 279.
17 Mulledy to Roothaan, Oct. 28, 1833. ARSI; Daley, loc. cit. Accord·
ing to Grivel's account of July 9, 1833 Georgetown had 160 pupils for
the academic year 1832-1833. Devitt, op. cit., 348.
1s Daley, op. cit., p. 275.
19 Kenney to McSherry, Feb. 14, 1833.
IX, ARSI.
20 Daley, op. cit., p. 280.
2 1 It is interesting to note that the requests for a dispensation .ha~
first come from outside the Society, namely, from Bishop Rosati 0
15
16
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
381
the arrival of McSherry from Rome as the first Provincial
came Father General Roothaan's Ordinatio de Minervali, containing the conditions under which the long-sought concession
to the American Jesuits was to be applied. It was dated
February 1, 1833 the day before the Province had been
erected. 22 It can be judged just how necessary was this
concession from a letter of Father Mulledy, the Rector, to
the General, in October of the same year, where he stated
that poverty was hindering the missionaries and the College
especially. 23 In 1835 the College was $30,000 in debt24 and
in 1837 we find McSherry writing to the General of his
having received a plea from Georgetown's procurator for
$20,000, if the College was to be sustained. 25 Perhaps a significant drop in enrollment, from 172 boarders in 1833 to
130 boarders in 1835 could partially explain the dearth of
funds in 1835. 26
Disciplinary problems in 1833 were of great concern to
Georgetown's administrators, as is evidenced in letters of
the period. In acquainting Father McSherry with the problems of the College, Kenney describes the discipline:
. . . in general, I fear the pupils are not so good or so well
contented as they have been for the last few years. . . . But
I dread that much must arise from the very grown youths, who
have so long had their fling in the world. 2 7
With regard to the "great rebellion" of November, 1833 28
we find the Provincial explaining to his Superior that the
uprising among the students has been quelled, and twenty
more students dismissed. 29 Such occurrences as this, however,
-
St. Louis, who was desirous of having a flourishing university in his
diocese. Gilbert J. Garraghan, S.J., The Jesuits of the Middle United
States (New York: America Press, 1938) I, 305 ff.
22
Letter Book: Generals to Maryland Superiors: 1804-1838, WCA.
23
Mulledy to Roothaan, Oct. 28, 1833. IX, ARSI.
24
Vespre's Memoirs of the 1st Provincial Congregation, 1835. July
3, 1835. IX, ARSI. In the same part of this memoir Vespre is clearly
enraged at the mismanagement of Georgetown's funds.
25
McSherry to Roothaan, Nov. 12, 1837. IX, ARSI.
26
G. Fenwick to Roothaan, Jan. 30, 1835. IX, ARSI.
27
Kenney to McSherry, Feb. 14, 1833. IX, ARSI.
28
For a full account of the affair of, cf. Daley, op. cit., pp. 285-287.
29
McSherry to Roothaan, Dec. 31, 1833. IX, ARSI.
�382
MARYLAND PROVINCE
seem in retrospect an inevitable factor in the growth of so
venerable an establishment as Georgetown.
Frederick
Although Georgetown was Maryland's greatest undertaking,
the other educational endeavors of the Province cannot be
overlooked. Saint John's Literary Institute in Frederick,
Maryland seems to have escaped, during its brief existence,
the memorable difficulties that beset Georgetown. Founded
in 1828 ·:by Father John McElroy, it "became the rival of
Georgetown, and remained so until 1853, when it received
a check by the expulsion of a large number of students at
one time." 30 St. John's procurator appears to have experienced few of the headaches that tormented his fellow procurator in Washington, although state opposition toward financial aid was perhaps as strong. We note in Kemiey's previously mentioned letter to McSherry in 1833:
McElroy has actually obtained an Act of Assembly, giving him
$400 per annum for his school. It met great opposition in the
~ Senate, but passed with a clause that the governor should appoint
visitors to report to the Assembly every year the affairs of the
institution and the number gratuitously educated. The bigots
wanted to oblige him to teach ten boys without any pay for every
hundred dollars which the state would give him. He is only
obliged to teach one for every li~ridred dollars.31
It is doubtful whether the concession of the General to accept
tuition fees was applied at Frederick, since we find in a history of St. John's Church that "the College was in a measure
2
a free school, as many students were educated gratuitously.m
Furthermore, in the records of the First Provincial Congregation it is explicitly stated that about 100 youths, who
must have comprised nearly the entire student body-if the
figures for 1832-1833 are accurate-were educated gratuitously.33
That the College enjoyed some success in its education is
30 "St. John's Church and Residence, Frederick, Md."
Woodstock
Letters, V (1876), 108.
31 Kenney to McSherry, Feb. 14, 1833.
IX, ARSI. The decree of the
senate granting the annuity is dated Jan. 17, 1833.
32 Woodstock Letters, loc. cit.
33 1st Postulatum, Act. Prov. Cong.: 1832-1896. MPA.
�I
...
MARYLAND PROVINCE
383
affirmed in the same article, where we read that "St. John's
has given many vocations to the Society, and to the legal and
medical professions some of the most distinguished names
in this city and state. 34
At the Provincial Congregation of 1835 it was proposed
that a gymnasium or secondary school be erected at the
Collegium Inchoatum at Frederick. In approving the measure
the General insisted that it be conducted as a "Latin school." 35
The General's wishes were fulfilled.
Novitiate
In the 1835 Congregation it was proposed that the Novitiate be moved to Frederick, not only for economic reasons,
but for the scholarly benefits to be obtained from residing at
a college, as well as the catechetical and missionary opportunities at Frederick. 36 The Novitiate, moreover, according to
McSherry, was in debt as much as $20,000. 37 Since the lands
at White Marsh were not producing, it was suggested that
Frederick would be a much better location in every way. Frederick was definitely determined upon, and by April, 1834 a
house had been bought there for $6,000. 38 Shortly thereafter
the novices with their superiors moved from White Marsh
to their new home. A letter from the General in 1836 indicates that the number of novices during these years continued
to increase steadily from thirteen in 1833. 39
The Scholasticate remained at Georgetown throughout McSherry's administration. In 1836 the General granted permission for the Scholastics to attend classes with the extern
students, but insisted that their residence be kept separate
from the students' quarters. 40
One last project is recorded in Kenney's letter of 1833,
where he mentions that Dubuisson's "poor school" at Phila34
Woodstock Letters, loc. cit.
1st Postulatum, loc. cit.
36
3rd Postulatum, loc. cit.
37
McSherry to Roothaan, Dec. 31, 1833. IX, ARSI. Only a quarter
of the lands, amounting to c. 2000 acres were under cultivation. Ibid.
38
Vespre to Roothaan, Apr. 5, 1834. IX, ARSI.
39
Roothaan to McSherry, Apr. 14, 1836. Early letters of Generals,
WCA.
40
Ibid.
35
�384
MARYLAND PROVINCE
delphia has been granted a sum of money, but not the power
to award degrees. 41 This school, about which we have so
little information, would seem to be the inspiration for St.
Joseph's College, founded in 1851 by Father Felix Barbelin.
Since the Jesuits had not returned to St. Joseph's Church
until 1833, after an absence of thirty-three years, due to lack
of missionaries, 42 this school was doubtless in an embryonic
stage.
At various times proposals were made by the hierarchy
of the United States to the Jesuits either to staff completely
or to supply administrators for Catholic colleges. Bishop De
Neckere, for instance, very eagerly sought the assistance of
the Maryland Jesuits in erecting a college in his diocese of
Louisiana. 43 When the Provincial declined, the bishop appealed to the Missouri Jesuits, by whose efforts St. Charles
College at Grand Coteau was founded. Again, as early as
1837 the Archbishop of Baltimore had petitioned the Maryland Jesuits to undertake the administration of Mount St.
Mary's College, Emmitsburg, 44 and to furnish both faculty
and administration for St. Mary's College, founded by the
Sulpicians at Baltimore. The seminary attached was to
remain in the hands of the Sulpicians. 45
The Society did not hastily reject these offers, since the
advantages to be had from a college in such a large and flourishing city as Baltimore were indeed numerous. Nevertheless, the Province at this time was straining to the breaking
point because of the small number of members. 46 Already
the seminary at Washington had been abandoned, for lack
of funds and professors, and opportunities were being sought
to sell the property. 47
Kenney to McSherry, Feb. 14, 1833. IX, ARSI.
Devitt, op. cit., ch. X, LXIII W.L., 226.
43 Kenney to McSherry, ibid.
44 Gabaria to Roothaan, July 25, 1837.
IX, ARSI.
45 McSherry to Roothaan, Oct. 12, 1837.
IX, ARSI.
46 ibid.
In passing, the College of St. Louis, which became an
Academia Magna, in December, 1832 with the rank of University, ought
to be mentioned, although it belonged entirely to the Missouri Jesuits,
who had received their start from the Marylanders, and who were sti!l
receiving generous aid from them.
47 Vespre's Memoir of the Provincial Congregation, 1835.
IX, ARSI.
41
42
�~IARYLAND
PROVINCE
385
Part III: Missionary Labors
Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia
The country missions in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia were staffed by missionarii excurrentes from the residences of the Province. There were at least twenty such
missions, the most extensive of which were in Pennsylvania.
To White Marsh was attached the mission of Boone's Chapel
at Annapolis; to St. Thomas' Manor the missions of Charles
and Prince George Counties: Newport, Cornwallisneck, Pomphret, Nangemoyia, and Cobbneck; to Newtown, in the northern part of St. Mary's County the missions of Sacred Heart
at La Plata, Lady's Chapel, St. Joseph, St. Aloysius at Leonardtown, and St. John; to St. Inigoes near the southern tip
of Maryland the mission of St. Nicholas; to St. Joseph's on
the Eastern Shore the mission at Denton.
In Pennsylvania, to the priest at Conewago was assigned
the missions of Gettysburg, Littlestown, and "the mountains,"
including the territory around Emmitsburg, Maryland (Washington County) ; to Goshenhoppen the missions of Reading,
Lebanon, Massillon, Pottsville and several others. A resident
pastor was stationed at St. Mary's Church in Alexandria,
Virginia, as well as at Paradise, Pennsylvania, where Father
Beschter was operarius, and at St. Joseph's Church in Philadelphia. Later a former mission, St. Mary's, in the city was
entrusted to the Society. Secular priests operated our
churches at Bohemia in Cecil County, Maryland,-though
Brother Heard was in charge of the farm-and at St. Mary's
in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. 48
Several reports to the General during these years indicate
that these missions were effecting much fruit. Father Dzierozynski, the Master of Novices at Frederick, in 1836 emphasized this fact several times in correspondence with Father
Roothaan,4 9 each time attributing much of the success to the
1
-
The subject of the Washington Seminary was the 7th article in this
lllemoir. The money derived from the sale was to go toward building
another seminary somewhere in Washington. Gonzaga College replaced
it in 1848.
48
Province Catalogue for 1833. MPA.
49
Dzierozynski to Roothaan, Feb. 29, 1836; Aug. 10, 1836. IX, ARSI.
�386
MARYLAND PROVINCE
capabilities of McSherry. The Provincial's Socius, Aloysius
Young, had written from St. Thomas' Manor early in 1834
that these missions, in fact, the Province in general, were in
good condition. 50
Father McSherry, with the weight of the Province on his
shoulders, was not so optimistic as his brothers in Christ about
the state of affairs. In August, 1835, he wrote Father Root.
haan that for the good of the Province either some of the rural
missions would have to be discontinued, or some of the
Province's property, that is, the farms on which the larger
residences were located,-and which, incidentally, largely
supported the Novitiate and the Georgetown Communitywould have to be forsaken. 51
The urgency of this appeal can be appreciated after reading the eighth postulatum of the 1835 Congregation, which
requested that (1) the number of missions be lessened; (2)
that they be disposed of little by little in order that colleges
might be opened in the larger cities, such as Richmond, Philadelphia and New York; (3) that some of the farms in MaryUmd be sold, and in turn land be bought where colleges
seemed possible; ( 4) that the Fathers assigned to the missions proposed for disposal should be reassigned to travel
about, preaching missions (in ·the popular sense) and giving
the Exercises.
-·
The reasons advanced for these petitions were the folloW·
ing: that it was almost impossible to progress if the missions
and outlying parishes be retained; that the establishment and
maintenance of colleges was a work more important for
the Church in the United States; and, finally, that, since
there seemed no little danger of a dissolution in the union
of the States, it would be most necessary that the Society
have houses scattered about, so that ours, when ejected fro!ll
one territory might have places of refuge. 52
The General's reply to this request of 1835 was that the
gravity of the proposal required more time for deliberation.~~
--
wrote
Young to Roothaan, Jan. 30, 1834. IX, ARSI. He a1so
that the Provincial was clearly satisfying all.
51 McSherry to Roothaan, Aug. 30, 1835.
IX, ARSI.
52 1st Prov. Cong., Acta Prov. Cong.: 1832-1896. MPA.
.n
sa]bid. The same reply was given to proposal no. 7, in connec!IO
5o
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
387
Another proposal was made for the maintenance of a
single house, which would serve as headquarters for this
mission band, with its own superior whom these missionaries
would visit at least twice a year. No reply was made to this
postulatum. 54
On numerous occasions McSherry begged for missionaries
from Europe, who would be willing and able to work among
the various nationalities, for the most part among the German farmers of Pennsylvania. So overworked were our missionaries, and so hindered were they by material needs, that
the Archbishop of Baltimore in 1837 took occasion to suggest
that the Society concentrate its efforts principally on education, at the same time urging the acceptance of St. Mary's
College in Baltimore. 55 Archbishop Whitfield pointed out to
the Provincial
... According to our present system a great portion of the time
of the different missionaries was necessarily taken up with temporal
concerns, to obtain a meagre support for themselves and their
slaves. sa
McSherry was in agreement with him on the point last mentioned, but was unwilling to be influenced by the Archbishop
in disposing of missions and in educational endeavors, principally because he thought that the prelate's motives were
governed by economic interests. 57
The great zeal of the Society for the foreign missions expressed itself in the interest shown toward the new Liberian
with disposal of unprofitable property, that a lot (referred to as
hortulum), in Washington, adjacent to St. Patrick's Church, and to the
abandoned Seminary, apparently, should be sold. St. Patrick's had
originally been promised to the Society by the Archbishop, but in view
of the fact that the Church would clearly never be given to the Society,
and since the lot of itself was too small for worthwhile development,
the land was entirely useless. The records of the 1st Congregation
do not mention the Seminary explicitly, although Vespre, in his Memoir,
mentions only the Seminary as the subject of the 7th proposal.
54 Ibid.
55
McSherry to Roothaan, Mar. 13, 18S7. IX, ARSI.
56
Ibid.
57
The Archbishops of Baltimore eagerly looked for the annual Pension
Paid them by the Maryland Jesuits since the time of Archbishop Carroll.
This question will be treated in Part VI.
�388
MARYLAND PROVINCE
mission for Negroes. In the Second Provincial Council of
Bdtimore, which met in 1833, after numerous attempts on
the part of Bishop John England of Charleston to provide
for the freed Negroes deported to Liberia, it was proposed
that this mission be entrusted to the Jesuits. 5 8 On November
7 of the same year McSherry informed the General of the
transactions of the Council, 59 but he must have realized
from the beginning that such a mission would be all but
impossible for the Province with so many home missions
and so~ few members. Perhaps he was hoping that some
Fathers"could be sent from Europe. In the end the mission
had to be refused by the Society. Father Fisher, in his article
on the Liberian mission comments, "the infant Church could
hardly be expected to send even one missionary to Liberia
where in 1842 the Catholics numbered only eighteen." 60
Another project which might have proved extremely fruitful
for Catholicism was an Indian mission in Michigan, offered
to the Maryland Jesuits about the same time, and declined
fQ_r apparently the same reason that the Liberian mission
had been declined. 61
Part IV: Difficulties_:~oncerning Property
Church Property
The Maryland Province during these years possessed manY
parishes from which, generally speaking, sufficient funds were
obtained for the maintenance of the priests attached as well
as for the church buildings themselves. A question arose in
the Second Provincial Council of Baltimore as to whether
the churches built and served by Regulars were to be con·
sidered their own property or that of the local ordinary.
If the question should be decided in favor of the Regulars,
58
'Henry P. Fisher, "The Catholic Church in Liberia," Records o/
the America Catholic Historical Society, XL, 1929), 265.
59
McSherry to Roothaan, Nov. 7, 1833. IX, ARSI.
so Fisher, op. cit., 263.
61
McSherry to Roothaan, ibid. This mission in Michigan is included
under the title of «Foreign Mission Proposals" because of the nature
of the apostolate.
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
389
the collections from the faithful would be theirs to dispose
of without the intervention of the bishops. Moreover, the
bishops would not have it in their power to appoint priests
whenever vacancies occurred, since control of these churches
would depend entirely upon higher superiors of the religious
orders. Fear, evinced by the Jesuits over the prospect of a
decision favorable to the bishops, concerned churches owned
by the Society and operated by secular priests. The question,
however, was dropped by the Council of 1833. McSherry,
who had attended, wrote the General that all the bishops
seemed to favor the Regulars, and many, in fact, petitioned
the Regulars to work in their dioceses. 62 In 1837 the question again arose at the Third Provincial Council in Baltimore,
but no decision was arrived at by the hierarchy because, as
McSherry wrote, "They have not clergymen to attend even
their own missions." 63 An example of the desperate need
of secular priests may be seen in the case of the division of
the Philadelphia diocese into two sees, proposed by Bishop
Kenrick. In the proposal the bishop decided to place St.
Mary's Church under the care of the Society because, he said,
the Jesuits had once claimed the church as their property.
McSherry emphatically denied any such claim; nevertheless,
the care of the church was imposed upon the Society, 64 and
Father Krukowski was sent to labor among its Germanspeaking parishioners until his death in October of the same
Year.
Farm Property
The proceeds from the farms in Maryland and Pennsylvania had caused some disturbance for many years. The
lands were not producing in proportion to their extent, which
between the years 1824 and 1830 had totaled about 16,580
acres. 65 St. Inigoes, for example, with 3,000 acres, in 1830
-
62
McSherry to Roothaan, Nov. 7, 1833. IX, ARSI.
McSherry to Roothaan, May 13, 1837. IX, ARSI.
64
lbid.
65
According to a list of Fr. Dzierozynski's, then Mission Superior.
Total and individual number of acres on each farm cited by Thomas
Hughes, S.J., History of the Society of Jesus in North America (London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1908), Documents, I, Part I, pp. 379-380.
63
�390
MARYLAND PROVINCE
produced an income of $500; Newtown, with 750 acres, no
income from 1826 through 1830, after an income of $300
for 1825; St. Thomas', with 1000 acres, $240 in 1827, then
nothing from 1828 through 1830; White Marsh, with 2,000
acres, $480 in 1829, then nothing from 1830 through 1839;
Goshenhoppen, with 780 acres, $200 in 1830.66 Between 1824
and 1830 about 2,140 acres throughout the Province were
sold, the largest plot amounting to 1160 acres in Anne Arundel
County. 67 Therefore, by 1830, according to Dzierozynski's
list, the total acreage amounted to 14,440.
In 1887 McSherry wrote the General that farms in Maryland68 totaled 13,500 acres, whose average value he would estimate at not more than $12 per acre, and perhaps, he adds, on a
closer estimate, they would be less valuable. 69 This estimate of
McSherry's puts the value of the farms at $162,000. If he was
relying on his own knowledge of temporalities, of which he
admitted himself a poor judge, there is a great possibility of
error. No explicit information concerning the value of each
farm was in his possession when this letter of 1837 was
written. In his own words:
I have not been able as yet to give the information with respect
to our real property. It will be necessary to inquire from each
place what would be the probable value, and it will require an
intelligent, active person or persons to obtain a good price for our
lands, which are generally poor:7o_.
That the income was far below normal is indicated in the
same letter, when McSherry thanked the General for the
sum granted the Province through the Association de Lyon,
adding that it was "a great temporary relief." 71
In 1835 the question of selling the slaves and farms had
come before the Provincial Congregation. The second postulatum, as it was presented to the General, was somewhat
modified, in that it requested permission to sell all the slaves
Ibid., pp. 380-381.
Ibid., p. 379.
68 Whether he means the State or Province of Maryland is uncertain;
since this is a report on the Province's property the latter would see:rn
more probable.
69 McSherry to Roothaan, Aug. 6, 1837. IX, ARSI.
10 Loc. cit.
11 Ibid.
ss
67
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
391
to Catholic masters and to change completely the mode of
administration of the farms. The reason given for the complete revision on the farms was that a great utility could
be derived from the lands if they were under the care of
expert farmers. 72 It was suggested that the plantations be
divided up into five or six farms, as had apparently been
done at St. Inigoes. 73 Roothaan's immediate reply was to
the first part of the postulate, concerning the slaves, which
was a matter he thought required further deliberation. 74 It
was evident, however, by 1837 that the General was desirous
of the sale of the farms, since McSherry indicates that he
was awaiting a favorable opportunity for the sales, both of
slaves and lands. 75
Financial difficulties of the American banks in 1837 delayed
any opportunity for sales. McSherry wrote that
... The sale cannot be so urgent at the present time, when the
whole country is embarrassed beyond description in the currency.
All the banks in New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore have refused to pay specie, and even some of the banks of this place
[Georgetown]. We will be prevented on account of this from disposing of our servants. We could not at the present time obtain one
tenth part of what we could have obtained last year for them.1a
Then he remarks about the serious financial condition the
farms have caused:
-
72
My time at present is wholly taken up in endeavoring to collect
what little I can to support the Noviceship. I have not had in
hand more than $50 for one month, and have received only $250
from the farms since Father Vespre left. . . . I am not much
versed in temporal affairs and have no one to consult in whose
judgement I can have confidence. St. Inigoes, with 90 slaves
and 3000 acres of land has not yet paid the entire tax of 1835. 77
Provincial Congregation, 1835, Act. Prov. Cong.: 1832-1896. MPA.
Vespre's Memoir of the Provincial Congregation, 1835. IX, ARSI.
There were also some opposed to the reformation of the lands, who
Wished all the farms sold in order that the Province could concentrate
its efforts on the erection of colleges. Grivel to Landes, Oct. 24, 1835.
IX, ARSI.
74
Prov. Cong., 1835, Act. Prov. Cong.: 1832-1896. MPA.
75
McSherry to Roothaan, May 13, 1837. IX, ARSI.
76
Ibid.
77
Presumably a land tax. These farms were considered secular property, not church property, since the days of Lord Baltimore, when
73
�392
l\IARYLAND PROVINCE
White Marsh, with 100 slaves, and perhaps more than 3000 acres
of land, is in debt, and unable to pay any tax and barely able to
support the slaves on it. Bohemia, Newtown and St. Thomas' are
the only places from which anything was given last year, and what
was given was far less than such places should be capable of giving.
Had I a procurator who could aid me in the management of tern·
porals I would at least not be despondent, and might sustain myself.7s
Father Haverman wrote in December, 1837, accounting for
his administration of the lands at Newtown. With the aid
of fifteen, or twenty slaves the farm had given $400 in the
past two ..years to Father Provincial, after years of hardly
yielding anything. He comments on the fact that some procurators of the Province are not sufficiently acquainted with
their duties, having no rules of procedure. He insists that
there are mauy facts of such a nature, which ought to be
corrected, but of 'vhich Father Provincial has no knowledge/ 9
The farms were not sold, except for occasional transactions,
but have continued through the years to operate, albeit on a
less elaborate scale. The slaves who had worked them, however, presented such varied and complex problems that they
were finally sold in 1838. The problem of the farms cannot
be properly understood apart from the slave question, but for
the sake of order, this latter question will be approached
separately.
Part V: The Slave Question
The Problem
Quite apart from the moral issue of slavery, the Jesuits in
Maryland had realized for some time that slave labor was
not the most advantageous means of working a farm. The
slaves were unskilled and deprived of any personal interest
in the farms they worked. Often enough, a Negro, after
being,bought at a general sale, would find himself separated
clerics were not recognized as owners of property. One advantage w~s
that they could be sold also as secular property, free from all ecclesiastical restrictions.
1s
Loc. cit.
79
Haverman to Roothaan, Dec. 13, 1837. IX, ARSI.
�MARYLAND PiWVINCE
393
from his family, with little hope of reunion. In general,
the treatment of the Maryland Jesuits' slaves was more considerate than customary, and records show that the Fathers
inconvenienced themselves to keep families together and to
look after the spiritual needs of their servants. Nevertheless,
owing to the poor state of the farms and the constant demand
upon them as sources of revenue, it seemed expedient that
the slaves be sold, and skilled farmers be hired to operate
the lands. If, on the other hand, the lands were to be solda proposition which many were inclined to favor-the slaves
would surely have to go.
The slave trade had been a thriving enterprise and one from
which the Jesuits of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth
centuries, unfortunately, cannot be excluded. Before 1832
most of the sales had been transacted to pay off debts which
occurred from time to time throughout the Province. But
in 1832 all the slaves but one at Bohemia were sold, according
to a letter of Father Kenney. 80 Such an en masse disposal
of the slaves, although it proved to be very beneficial at
Bohemia, was an extraordinary venture for the Jesuits. Father
Grivel, the master of novices at White Marsh, had written
to the General in January, 1831, asserting that the Negroes
could not be sold without, at the same time, abandoning the
cultivation of the crops, because of the near impossibility
of finding farmers. Grivel offered as the reason for this.
difficulty the fact that there were very few free men who were
not either proprietors themselves, or of easy access to some
proprietorship. 81 This would be a strong argument at the
Congregation of 1835 against the sale.
Since 1831, when Grivel reported a total of 400 slaves, 82
the number had been gradually depleted. The sale at Bohemia has already been recorded. In 1835, before the meet80 Letter of Oct., 1832, cited by Joseph Zwinge, S.J., "Jesuit Farms in
Maryland: The Negro Slaves," Woodstock Letters, XLI (1912), 277.
The number sold was about 10.
81 Grivel to Roothaan, Jan. 26, 1831.
VIII, ARSI.
82 Ibid.
The Abbe Marechal stated in his 23 Propositions against
th~ Maryland Jesuits, Jan. 15, 1826, that the Jesuits possessed 500
"African men" in their servitude. Cited by Hughes, op. cit. I, part I,
Documents, p. 544.
�394
MARYLAND PROVINCE
ing of the Provincial Congregation in July, about sixteen
slaves were sold from St. Thomas', the Provincial's residence,
bringing a total income of $6,100. Shortly afterwards
eleven slaves were sold for $7,182 from St. Inigoes to former
governor of Louisiana, Henry Johnson, while a few minor
sales were made to neighbors. 83 These sales, which probably
involved the best of the slaves, must have impressed the
Provincial as a very opportune method of securing badly
needed funds. Nor was McSherry alone in this opinion. In
1836 Dubuisson gave the total number of slaves as 300. 84
Father z,vinge recorded 272 Negroes in the final sale in
1838, 85 ari"d it is certain that there were some few slaves
remaining on the various farms after 1838, because of
sickness or old age or some such reasons.
Reasons For and Against the Sale
The second postulatum at the Congregation of 1835 was
easily the most important as well as the most controverted
question. It has been seen already how important was the
second part of this postulatum, concerning the farms. The
reasons proposed for the first part, namely, that all the
slaves be sold to Catholic masters, were as follows: (1) the
Fathers involved were annoyed by the innumerable distractions and found it impossible to..·~ulfill their spiritual duties;
(2) the same Fathers were exposed to the danger of spiritual
shipwreck; (3) the greatest gain to be derived from the
slaves was the price of their sale; ( 4) a great profit could
be made from the lands if they were in the care of experienced
farmers. 86
Father Vespre, the province procurator, in his memoir
of the Congregation, noted the following comments made
on the proposal: to sell the slaves would be the same as to
sell their souls to the devil of heresy and unbelief; if the
government should free the slaves, it would grant an indemnity to the proprietors, as was done in England; if the
83 Zwinge, op. cit., pp. 280-281.
McSherry gave Fr. Carberry $1,500
to pay his debts at St. Inigoes, and put the balance into the Area.
84 1836 Memoriale of Dubuisson re the sale of slaves.
IX, ARSI.
85 Zwinge, op. cit., p. 282.
86 Congregation of 1835, Act. Prov. Cong.: 1832-1896, MPA.
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
395
slaves should revolt, they could not remain on our lands;
it would be a scandal to Catholics and Protestants alike to
see priests selling their Negroes. 87
The reply to the second postulatum has already been
stated: it required more deliberation. Roothaan was struck
by the seriousness of the case, and was determined to protect
the spiritual welfare of the slaves. In a letter to McSherry
in 1836 he cautioned "pereant potius omnia emolumenta
temporalia, quam ut per nos animae pereant!" 88
There was a lapse of a whole year before the General considered the deliberation sufficient. Sometime in 1836 Father
Dubuisson, formerly the Socius under Kenney, drew up a
memorial of the reasons advanced for and against the sale
of the slaves. It is very thorough and much of it deserves
to be set down here, since it was this document which most
probably influenced the General in his final decision on the
question.
The document begins by recalling that all the slaves at
Bohemia had been sold. There remain now the Negroes
on the farms of Maryland, which total about 300. Two
wealthy and distinguished men from Louisiana, one Catholic,
the other Protestant, have applied to buy all the slaves. They
have promised to transport them to Louisiana where they
will have full exercise of their religion. The question is,
now, whether it is expedient to sell these 300 slaves. The
following pages then sum up and criticize the reasons
proposed.
The first reason proposed for the sale of the slaves was
the first advanced before the Congregation, namely, the
hazard to the spiritual life of the Fathers and the obstacle
to tranquillity of soul; our Fathers tend to adopt the habits
of farmers and masters, which are directly opposed to the
rnanner of humble missionaries.
On this point Father Dubuisson comments that some dangers to the spiritual life also abound in the city parishes. In
advancing the other side of the question, he contends that
the spiritual difficulties must really be attributed to the system
-
Vespre's Memoir of the Congregation, 1835. IX, ARSI.
Roothaan to McSherry, Jan. 15, 1836. Letter Book: Generals to
Maryland Superiors, 1804-1838, WCA.
87
88
I
I
L
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
of administration as it now exists. On the farms, as elsewhere, those who wish to meditate can do so. Besides, he
adds, the Fathers who have expressed fear of such dangers
have not, for the most part, been administrators, but have
rather been in charge of missions or congregations-not
plantations-for a short while.
With remarkable frankness Dubuisson sets down what he
considers the great sources of the spiritual ills: (1) the
independent spirit of the American nation; (2) the condition of the country and the people, which, on the one hand,
causes great progress in industry, commerce, politics, etc.,
while on the other it forces us to yield to the prejudices of
the people. We cannot live secluded; regular lives, as in
Europe. (3) The spiritual poison spread among our young
men by certain Fathers from Europe (England and Ireland,
especially) of brilliant talent, but of such conduct as to give
the impression of habitual infraction of the rules with an
absence of all appearances of piety and of self-restraint. 89
The spiritual dangers alleged by some have obviously annoyed Father Dubuisson more than anything else. He continues with reasons for the sale. At Bohemia, where the
slaves have been disposed of, the farms are producing. On
the other hand, this success is due largely to the wise administration of a Brother. The civil state of the neighborhoods
in which there are slaves becomes every· day more critical.
There is danger of revolt on the farms. Where there is disorder the masters are obliged to punish the slaves, but such
action is not suitable for priests. The slaves, Dubuisson insists, above all should not be freed, since more dangers than
ever would beset them. Moreover, owing to financial straits
we are forced to sell some from time to time. 90
There follows a brief account of the temporal needs of the
Province and the advantages to be gained by the sale: farm
revenue is insufficient to meet the expenses of the Province;
the debt of the College, because of recent construction work
ther~, has been considerable; the Government donation of
$25,000 to Georgetown 91 has not yet been realized and perhaps
89
90
91
1836 Memoriale of Dubuisson re the sale of slaves.
Ibid.
Referred to supra.
IX, ARSI.
�l
MARYLAND PROVINCE
397
will not be for some time; we cannot take anything for the
Scholasticate at Georgetown without fear of forcing the N ovitiate to beg for its necessities; the four largest farms (White
Marsh, St. Thomas', Newtown, St. Inigoes) have so far
produced little for the Province. Finally, once the slaves are
sold, only a small tract around each residence would be cultivated, since farmers would be allowed to work the rest of
the lands.
The reasons proposed against the sale are more numerous,
since Dubuisson was himself convinced of its error. Our
farms, he states, according to the present situation, afford
an asylum for aged Fathers and those unfamiliar with the
English language, as well as those who, because of defective
education or of bad temperament, do not belong in the colleges.
The Negroes, moreover, have a strong repugnance to being
sold and transported down South. Is it not a cruel thought
to force them to leave their old masters? It would always
be necessary to retain a certain number, because of the aged
and infirm, and the husbands and wives married in Maryland.
Of no little importance is the fact that the philanthropists are daring us to throw the first stone, wishing to embarrass us as we sell our slaves, while they grant them liberty.
The whole affair could be of incalculable scandal to the
Church and to the Jesuits in particular.
Finally, it is to be feared that the great sum of money
involved would not be properly accredited by the banks, especially now, when the country is in the throes of such
turbulence. 92
The end result was that those in favor of the sale were
victorious by a vote of six to four. 93 Roothaan's decision,
however, was as yet unknown. Perhaps a note from McSherry may have been of some influence, in which he said,
"If the Negroes are retained, all the profits from the farms
will be required for their sustenance, and neither the Novitiate nor the Scholasticate can exist." 94 Finally, on October
-
92
Dubuisson, loc. cit.
In favor were McSherry, Mulledy, Gabaria, Ryder, Fenwick and
Yespre; opposed were Dzierozynski, Grivel, Dubuisson and Young. Ibid.
M MoShmy to Roothoan, Aug. 30, 1836.
XI, ARSI.
93
�398
MARYLAND PROVINCE
27, 1836 the General approved the sale, but only upon the following conditions:
~
1. That the slaves have the free exercise of the Catholic religion
and the opportunity of practicing it. Therefore,
a. They are not to be sold except to proprietors of plantations
so that the purchasers may not separate them indiscriminately
and sell them.
b. It must be stipulated in the sale that the Negroes have the
advantage of practicing their religion, and the assistance of a
priest.
~: Husbands and wives must never be separated, nor children
from their parents, quantum fieri potest.
d. If a servant, male or female, have wife or husband on
another plantation, they are to be brought together, otherwise
they are by no means to be sold into a distant place.
e. Those who cannot be sold or transported on account of old
age or incurable diseases must be provided for as justice and
charity demand.
2. That the money received from the sale be in no way spent
in making purchases, nor in paying of debts, but it must be invested as capital which fructifies. The best way would perhaps
be ground rents in the cities especially of Pennsylvania and New
York-but in this you shall have to ask counsel both from Ours
and externs.
Of everything that is done in this matter your Rev. will inform
me, as upon it depends the sw;sistence of the Province, namely,
for the Novitiate and Scholasticate. Therefore, act with consideration and consultation and prayer, in order that the business may
proceed for the good of the Province and the Glory of God. 9 ~
Father Vespre, the Province procurator, drew up, after
Father General's approval of the sale, a list of twenty safeguards to be observed in the transactions. The first eight
are concerned with the spiritual and temporal welfare of
the slaves, the remainder with the manner in which the
money received is to be used. 96 Since the list is, in general,
an explicitation of the General's requirements, only those
points which have not previously been stated will be treated.
A .public sale is recommended, for which advertisements
are to be posted.
95 Roothaan to McSherry, Oct. 27, 1836.
Letter Book: Generals to
Maryland Superiors, 1804-1838, WCA. Translation taken from Zwinge,
op. cit., pp. 281-282.
96 Vespre's note re the sale of slaves, 1837.
IX, ARSI.
�l\IARYLAND PROVINCE
399
Since slaves must be sold where there is ample opportunity
for the practice of their religion, Louisiana would seem an
ideal locality, since it now has many churches and priests.
Those slaves who have become accustomed to fulfill their
religious obligations need not be sold only to Catholics,
although Father Provincial should have the final word in
this matter.
The ground rents, in which the money is to be invested,
are to be bought only in the larger cities, and with care to
avoid any place where there is a possibility of industry developing around the property. Ground rents are to be bought
in accordance with the sale price. Months for the investments
should be carefully chosen so that the greatest advantages
will accrue.
If Father McSherry should consider some investments
other than ground rents more advantageous, let him act accordingly, after consultation. Execution of this license for
the sale is to be limited to the Provincial alone. If Father
McSherry should die, no one else, unless appointed, is to
usurp this permission. 97
Part IV: The Sale
The actual sale did not take place until 1838. 98 McSherry,
who had throughout 1837 consistently requested the General
to remove him from office because his ill health would not
permit him to bear competently the heavy burdens of the
Province, became Rector of Georgetown in December, 1837,
exchanging offices with Father Thomas Mulledy. Mulledy,
it will be remembered, had been in favor of the sale at the
1835 Congregation, and almost immediately began the disagreeable task by selling a boy from St. Thomas' for $450
9
Vespre, loc. cit.
Since the sale was planned during McSherry's administration,
and its fulfillment largely due to his efforts, and because it would seem
rather pointless to discontinue the narration of the event at its climax,
the sale in 1838, during Father Mulledy's a:iministration will be recorded here. For the same reasons the account of the payment of the
Archbishop's pension in Part VI will be extended beyond the years of
McSherry's administration.
7
98
�400
MARYLAND PROVINCE
on May 4, 1838.99 Shortly afterwards Henry Johnson, mentioned above in connection with the sales of 1835, and Jesse
Batey/ 00 both of whom owned large plantations in Louisiana,
arrived at St. Mary's to inspect the Negroes there. A list
had been prepared on each of the estates, giving the names,
ages, and relationships of each Negro, whether or not married
couples were living together or were separated by reason
of their slavery. 101 There were 272 slaves altogether, most
of whom were sold. 102
On June, 12, 1838, Mulledy wrote to McElroy,
I aJil. .. now so busily engaged in trading off our Negroes that I
know not when I shall be in Frederick . . • I find it difficult to
dispose of our servants to persons in a Catholic neighborhood! have now a fine opportunity if we agree upon prices. Purchasers
wish to price each individual servant, giving high prices for the
young and stout, and diminishing for the elder and children. One
yesterday presented his prices for men, young, say 20 years, $800,
ditto women $650-and so on diminishing something for every one
above 25 and under 18. I told him I wished an average priceHe made out one by adding his different prices together-which
amounted to $345 per head. I told him he must make his average
~come to $400 at least-before I would even deign to consider his
proposition. Tell me what you think of $400 for young and oldleaving out all of 60 years and above for separate agreementand counting all under one year with the mother as one. Father
McSherry thinks it a fair price~let me know what you thing of
it. I would be willing to take $45o.ioa
On June 19, 1838 the agreement was signed between
Father Mulledy and Batey and Johnson, by which Mulledy
sold 272 Negroes to them and agreed to deliver 51 of them
as soon as practicable, the rest between the 15th of October
and the 15th of November, with their beds, clothes, and
other belongings. 104
99 Zwinge, op. cit., p. 282.
100 Zwinge refers to him as Dr. Beatty here, but only the name of
Jesse Batey is mentioned in connection with Henry Johnson hereafter.
101 As has been said before special effort was made by the Fathers to
preserve the integrity of families.
102 The aged ahd incurably sick remained, in accordance with Fr.
General's conditions. Several, dreading the trip to Louisiana, ran away,
but only one or two ran far enough to get away. Zwinge, Zoe. cit.
1oa Ibid., pp. 282-283.
1o4 Ibid., p. 283.
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
401
Batey and Johnson agreed to pay $115,000 for them, namely,
$25,000 on delivery of the first 51, and the remaining $90,000
in ten years at the rate of 65'o interest per annum, paying
each year $18,000, beginning the annual payments five years
after the last delivery of the Negroes. The purchasers also
agreed to place the Negroes on their plantations, and to
mortgage both the plantations and the Negroes in order to
secure payment of their notes. 105
Contrary to Father General's order that the money should
be invested and remain as a fund, part of it was loaned to
Georgetown University, and $8,000 applied to the extinction
of the Archbishop's pension. Father Zwinge notes in connection with the application of the funds:
In the following July (1839), the Provincial took a trip to Europe,
and was stationed at Nice to look after the spiritual welfare of
English tourists. It has often been said that he was sent there,
because he sold our slaves without permission, but that is not so,
as we have seen. There are many reasons why a man may be
sent to another place, and very often we can only guess.1oa
Part VI: The Archbishop's Pension
History of the Case
Not least of the burdens placed upon the Jesuits of the
Maryland Province was the pension demanded by the Archbishop of Baltimore. Its history can be traced back to Archbishop Carroll's administration, when the former Jesuits,
banded together in the landholding body entitled the Corporation of Roman Catholic Clergymen of Maryland, pro' vided spontaneously for Carroll. This pension was renewed
annually, even after the universal restoration of the Society
of Jesus in 1814, perhaps because Carroll's successor, Leonard
Neale, had also been a Jesuit. A custom arose, therefore,
of granting a fixed sum every year to the Archbishop of
Baltimore. In 1829 the pension amounted to $800 per
annum.1o1
l
-
105
Zwinge, loc. cit.
lbid., p. 285.
107
Hughes, op. cit., I, part II, Documents, p. 1118.
106
aaawc
�402
MARYLAND PROVINCE
It can be easily understood what a burden these annuities
became as the Province's responsibilities became heavier,
while the Area grew no larger. Relations between the Arch.
diocese and the Society were in no wise bettered by the insistence with which the claims were made. During the five
years, 1829-1834, for example, Wiseman, the Archbishop's
agent, came every quarter to collect $200 from the Procurator
of the Jesuits in Rome, for the use of his patron in America.
In October, 1834, Archbishop Whitfield died, and with the
accession of Eccleston to the See the problem became more
acute. 19 ~·
A Solution Sought
The Italian Province was understandably annoyed. Father
Roothaan, in 1835, wrote to a Cardinal that it was only on
the hope of being reimbursed from America that the burden
was made to rest on the Society in Italy. But no reimbursement had taken place; nor could it, since the American
Jesuits had always need of assistance. 109 He continued,
Would His Eminence think fit to see His Holiness and inquire,
whether things are to proceed as before, or whether there is some
room for a variation? Baltimore is no longer in the condition in
which it was, when of their own accord ex-Jesuit missionaries
provided with an annual allowance the first prelate, their ex-Jesuit
confrere; and the Society, "\\!hether in America or in Rome, is
indeed very different from what it was, having increased so much
in membership and corresponding burdens. So that, if only from
a motive of equity, there would seem to be some room for a modi·
fication in this Baltimore business.uo
In the Memorandum which follows, Roothaan is more
explicit:
..• There has been a total change of circumstances since Carroll's
time, when the ex-Jesuits, having no special burdens, provide_d
spontaneously for him, their confrere. Now subjects have multlf
plied, there is a Novitiate and a Scholasticate, and the number 0
, religious amounts to a hundred.
•
They have large farms; but hardly the fourth part is cultivated
for want of capital. The produce is in great part consumed by the
ever-increasing number of slaves, who, by reason of conscientioUS
Hughes, loc. cit.
Ibid.
uo Ibid., p. 1119.
10s
109
�l
MARYLAND PROVINCE
403
obligations to them, cannot be sold, and cannot be set at liberty,
because of the great dangers to soul and body which they would
incur, if set free.
Meanwhile schools and churches are ever being erected, in proportion with the extension of Catholicity, which was originally
planted there by the Society in 1633 and thereafter. And the
Fathers have constant need of the financial help which is supplied
from Europe, whether by the General or by other benefactors.111
Nothing came of this plea.
The General, in a letter to McSherry, insisted that the
Society in Rome be freed of the trouble:
... The one thing I desire is that this business be settled between
you, by mutual consent and with satisfaction; and that the Society
here in Rome have nothing more to do with it.u2
For a while there was some improvement of relationships
between the Archbishop and the Society. On January 28,
1837 McSherry wrote to Vespre in Rome that Eccleston had
said nothing about the pension since the preceding Spring,
and apparently did not wish to speak about it. "He had
said then to me: if he were certain that the property possessed
by us were not given for the missions, he would not make
any further demands." 113 McSherry assured him that St.
Inigoes, St. Thomas', Newtown, Bohemia and St. Joseph
were not given for that purpose.l1 4
Several months later McSherry reported to the General
that the Archbishop had spoken to him recently about the
Pension. The Provincial had replied that he could not pay
in money; he was thinking of offering a tract of land, perhaps more than 1000 acres in extent, about twenty miles
distant from Baltimore. But the Archbishop seemed to
intimate that land would be of very little use to him. A
short while afterwards, Eccleston had made a number of
friendly observations and suggestions: that the Jesuits should
sell all their landed property and slaves, and devote the proceeds to purposes of education; take over St. Mary's in
Baltimore, though the Archbishop was not authorized to
111
Hughes, loc. cit.
Roothaan to McSherry, July 7, 1835.
113
Hughes, op. cit., p. 1120.
112
'"Ibid,
Ibid., pp. 1119-1120.
�404
MARYLAND PROVINCE
make any bargains for them ; that according to the Province's
present system the missionaries' time is taken up with too
many temporal concerns. 115
In June, 1837 Eccleston accepted an adjustment of $8,000
proposed by McSherry. 116 McSherry, however, was not yet
prepared to make the necessary transactions. 117
In January, 1838 Eccleston reminded the new Provincial
of the arrangement left suspended by McSherry. He refused
the land offered, and was insistent on the $8,000.11 8 A week
later the Archbishop complained that he had received nothing
for three-·years, and that according to the General's letter
to McSherry119 he had expected at least something. He then
made two propositions: (1) that the payment of the said
arrears be made, as well as a reconsideration of the case in
Rome, whither he was now going; (2) the extinction of the
whole question for evermore, on the payment of $9,000. He
rejected offers of any farms.
Father Mulledy, after meeting with the Consultors, agreed
to pay Eccleston $9,000, though he should have to sell a
part of White Marsh. Before the arrival of an answer on
April 3, 1838, in which the General said with indifference
that he had no objections against the proposal, Mulledy wrote
again that the Archbishop had reverted to his former demand
of $8,000. At least twice after tbis the General insisted: Get
a good acquittance! But before either of these admonitions
reached him, the Provincial had closed the affair. On August
9 Mulledy wrote the General that for 49 slaves already delivered to ex-Governor Johnson of Louisiana, now United
States Senator, "I received $25,000; of these I gave $8,000
to the Archbishop of Baltimore, and received from him a full
acquittance of the duty of paying anything to him or his
successors for ever, unto everlasting." 120
11s McSherry to Roothaan, Mar. 13, 1837.
IX, ARSI. Also cited in
Hughes, loc. cit.
us Eccleston to McSherry, Jun. 19, 1837. Hughes, op. cit., p. 1123.
117 McSherry to Eccleston, Jun. 29, 1837.
Ibid., p. 1124.
11s Eccleston to Mulledy, Jan. 24, 1838. Ibid.
119 of July 7, 1835.
120 Eccleston to Mulledy, July 9, 1838.
Hughes, op. cit., p. 1125·
Mulledy to Roothaan, Aug. 9, 1838. Ibid., p. 1122.
�MARYLAND PROVINCE
405
Roothaan had insisted that the papers be sent to Rome.
None came. He, therefore, wrote Vespre on the same subject,
to which Vespre replied with a slashing, yet incomplete,
criticism of the whole transaction, which had left matters
very much as they had been, so that future claimants might
begin all over again. 121
Part VII: Conclusion
It has been seen how the Maryland Mission was elevated
to the status of a Province, and how it weathered the storms
of the first years. In October, 1837 as has been seen, Fathers
McSherry and Mulledy exchanged positions, the former becoming Rector of Georgetown and the latter Provincial. The
presidency of Georgetown University was by no means a
sinecure for a man who had repeatedly requested removal
from his former office because of ill health. 122
In 1833 the Province had grown from a total of five members to 78; by 1835 the total was 98, and by 1840 the number
had reached 106: 37 Fathers, 26 Scholastics, 43 Brothers. 123
By the termination of William McSherry's administration
an important chapter in the history of the American Society
was closed. A permanent establishment in America had
been made. The four years from 1833 to 1837 were not distinguished with success and progress. In fact, the year of
the Province's foundation held far more promise, it would
seem, than did 1837. But then it should be realized that
the difficulties which occurred between those years might
Well have spelled disaster and total ruination of the Society's
efforts in that area, had the Maryland Mission continued to
-
121 lbid.
The sum total received by the last three prelates (Marechal,
Whitfield, Eccleston) amounted to c. $13,800, with interest. Prior to
this the Society had contributed over $64,980, since 1789; therefore,
the sum total was over $80,000. Ibid., pp. 1130-1131.
122 McSherry remained President of Georgetown until shortly before
his death on Dec. 18, 1839. Shea, op. cit., p. 121.
123 Leo S. Simpson, S.J., "Catalogue Growth of the Provinces of the
American Assistancy," Woodstock Letters, LXXVI (1947), 311. The
1835 figure was taken from the letter of Roothnan to a Cardinal in 1835,
cited on p. 46. Catalogues from 1834 to 1840 are unavailable.
�406
1\IARYLAND PROVINCE
be guided by Rome's remote direction, without the foresight
and on-the-spot judgements of an immediate Superior.
The difficulties from which practically every disorder in
the Province arose were of an economic nature. This explains
the difference between the Society's way of life in America
and in Europe. Now this difference, it should be noted, was
accidental, and, therefore, not essential to the Jesuit way
of life. It was the task of the first administrators to recognize this fact and to govern the Province accordingly. Native
Americans appeared to be those most capable of achieving
this reconciliation, and it seems, from the facts recorded
here, that the achievement was realized.
The Novitiate, with its ever-increasing number of candidates, was giving the American Church men trained to face
the problems, both spiritual and material, which were peculiar to their country. Moreover, an impetus was given to
Catholic educational interests, so that colleges were founded
in all the larger cities of the Province during the next two
decades. Finally, to a tradition built upon Christian zeal
and courage there was added the American virtue of diplomacy, so essential to the Church in the United States.
�Father Daniel M. O'Connell
Allan P. Farrell, S.J.
Father O'Connell had all but completed his seventy-third
year when he died at West Baden College on July 29, 1958.
The facts of his life-fifty-five years of which were spent
in the Society-may be briefly summarized. He was born
in Louisville, Kentucky, on August 27, 1885, the son of David
and Jennie (Byrne) O'Connell. His mother died when he
was still a young boy. As a result he spent some of his early
years with his uncle, the Very Rev. C. J. O'Connell, Dean of
St. Joseph's Cathedral, Bardstown, Kentucky, and finished
his elementary schooling there in the academy taught by
the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, Kentucky. He likewise
began his high school studies in Bardstown, but at the suggestion of his priest uncle his father sent him to St. Mary's,
Kansas, where he completed both his high school and college
training. Father O'Connell always loved St. Mary's and
spoke of it with nostalgia. His oft-repeated "when I was a
boy at St. Mary's" was full of sincere sentiment.
After his graduation from St. Mary's in 1903, he entered
the Society at Florissant, Missouri. He studied philosophy
at St. Louis University, 1907-1910, returned to St. Mary's
for five years as teacher and prefect, was back at St. Louis
University, 1915-1919, for theology and ordination, and
taught philosophy for a year at Campion College, Prairie du
Chien, Wisconsin, before making his tertianship at Parma,
Ohio, 1920-1921. Following tertianship he was assigned to
Xavier University, Cincinnati, where he spent nine years,
three as an instructor in philosophy and six as dean of the
college. Somewhere in the period as dean, he began graduate studies in English literature at Fordham University and
Was awarded the doctorate in 1930. In that same year he
became province prefect of studies for the Chicago Province.
From this office Father General Ledochowski appointed him,
on August 15, 1934, the first national secretary of education
for the American Assistancy. He completed a three-year
407
�408
FATHER O'CONNELL
term as national secretary and was then successively minister
of Campion House, New York, for five years, librarian at the
University of Detroit. for seven years and then community
confessor until continuing ill health forced his retirement to
West Baden College.
During the nine years he spent at Xavier University,
Father O'Connell edited for the Loyola University Press,
Chicago, Cardinal Newman's noted works: The Present Posi. tion of Catholics in England, 1925 (Foreword by Father
James J.-Daly, S.J.), The Idea of a University, 1927 (ForeVi'ord by. __ Brother Leo), and Apologia Pro Vita Sua, 1930
(Foreword by Hilaire Belloc). His purpose, to introduce
Newman to Catholic college students, was realized on at
least a modest scale. Bruce of Milwaukee published his
Favorite Newman Sermons in 1932. In 1938 the first of his
three Cardinal Newman prayer books, Heart to Heart, came
from the America Press, and was followed by a second,
Kindly Light, in 1940. The third prayer book, And With the
Morn, was published in 1947 by the St. Anthony Guild Press
of ..Paterson, New Jersey. The college editions of Newman
were eventually taken over and distributed by the America
Press. They are now out of print. Father O'Connell did
not collect reviews of his publications, but one enthusiastically \velcomed the edition of T-,J,e Idea of a University for
the very sound reason that it not only reprinted the integral
text of the nine discourses, "instead of mere selections, as
commonly happens," but added a number of Newman's occasional lectures and essays on university subjects, "which often
illumine and elucidate the thought of The Idea."
High School Teaching
In addition to compiling and editing these seven books,
Father O'Connell contributed nearly a hundred articles to
America between 1921 and 1943. His earliest papers dealt
with political and social issues, probably owing to the inspiration of his friend, Father Paul L. Blakely. But by this time
he became dean at Xavier University his interest had shifted
to education, and between 1924 and 1934 America printed
some forty-five of his pedagogical essays, chiefly on colle~e
and university teaching and administration. One of hiS
�FATHER O'CONNELL
409
America articles, "For Novice High School Teachers," in the
issue of August 12, 1933, was afterwards reprinted in leaflet
form and widely circulated. Although Father O'Connell maintained that there was nothing original or magical about his
twelve points for young teachers, so many principals and
superintendents of Catholic schools wrote for packs of "this
distilled pedagogical wisdom" (as one expressed it), that
in the few jottings he made in his last days he asked that
in any obituary notice of him mention be made, salva humilitate, of the leaflet. A few excerpts may justify his wish.
1. You cannot teach without discipline. Have it from the first
moment. Orderly, interesting, firm teaching will help more than
tirades or threats. Plan beforehand your immediate system. Keep
discipline yourself. Sending a student to the principal should be
a last resort. Never strike a student. It's against state laws,
and shows a humiliating lack of being like Christ. Be slow with
sarcasm or "wisecracking," it may ruin your reputation. "Don't
smile before Christmas" contains a precious grain of truth in its
hyperbole. Popularity not built on respect for the teacher is a
delusion. Classes are uncanny in sensing an "easy" teacher. Ultimately the test is leading the student to the higher things of
mind and soul. He will never forget this.
3. Give the student every chance to reason for himself. Your
office is to stimulate and guide, to make him do the mental work,
even the mechanical work. Let the student do the writing on the
board. It's a public appearance for him. Develop self-expression,
not in yourself but in the student. Twenty out of every thirty
minutes should be student expression. Try to compress your selfexpression to the ten minutes. Show him how to read aloud, talk
aloud; make him do .both, even to teaching ... Expressing himself
aloud is almost the criterion of his education ... The best elocution
is in the regular class periods, when the student is required to
read out loud and express himself out loud as a young gentleman,
composed of a rational spirit and an awkward body. This can be
done in every class, even mathematics. This is real, progressive
education for the student.
4. An education-wide drive for good English should be begun
at least in first year high classes of every subject taught, foreign
language, history, mathematics, religion . . . Arouse interest in
the library and in the reading and study of prescribed English
books, especially the classics, even using the ballyhoo of modern
advertising-"Such books are read now or never."
10. You will have many opportunities to practice the self-denial
you profess; v.g., follow the syllabus and cooperate with your
�410
FATHER O'CONNELL
principal and fellow teachers. If you never volunteer and are not
asked to lend a helping hand, there's something wrong in your
academic, perhaps spiritual, Denmark. Be polite to students even
when they do not know the answer . . . Be prompt, as an example
of obedience, though you break a leg or two in the effort. Correct
exercises; prepare your lessons; help a slow student outside of
class; guide the quick.
11. Be friendly to, and by all means interested in, the student,
but by no means familiar. Beware of favoritism, or nagging an
individual. Even the class leaders should be cut down, when wrong,
just as anybody else. There is nothing students resent more than
the appearance of favoritism. And keep your hands to yourself,
don't- .~'paw" pupils. Show appreciation. Youth and maturity,
even roughnecks, need that, but it is not a sentimental leaning
toward anyone. Classes respect strictness, even severity, when
it goes on a straight line.
They hate softness, which is
a crooked and dangerous line. However, consult your principal or
spiritual father before you flunk a whole class, or do a like unusual
deed! Poor teaching may be the trouble. Always ask advice.
It's cold water on ire.
Spiritual Books Associates
When Father O'Connell was appointed minister of Campion
House, New York, in 1938, Father Francis X. Talbot asked
him to become editorial secretary of the Spiritual Book Associates. Father Talbot had founded this "book club of the
soul" in 1934, but other obligati~ns kept him from devoting
the time necessary for its successful development. In 1938
the membership stood at less than 700 and the club was losing
money. Father O'Connell proved to be exactly the man to
carry on Father Talbot's new type of book club. He brought
to his editorial duties wide experience as editor and writer,
and, as a publisher once remarked, "he had the keenest mind
I have ever known in assaying a book, and he not only quickly
grasped a book's content, but had a fine sense of style in
regard to format, jacket, and other important publishing
details." Certainly, the Spiritual Book Associates became his
absorbing interest for the next eighteen years. During most
of these years he had the invaluable aid of his sister, Ellen
C. O'Connell, who managed the office operations of the Associates. She has generously supplied the facts and commen·
tary that make possible this condensed story of the S.B.A.
and Father O'Connell's part in it.
�l
FATHER O'CONNELL
411
Originally ten books a year were offered to members for
$18.00. Even with liberal discounts from publishers and the
maintenance of a minimum office staff, it was found impossible under this arrangement to make ends meet. Father
O'Connell decided that it would be better psychology to reduce
the number of books than to raise the price of membership.
So the number was decreased to nine, then, as the cost of
books soared, to eight and finally, in 1955, to seven. Not more
than five members wrote in to question the reduced number
of books, and all five retained their membership. Membership
in 1943 was 900. It gradually climbed, especially after
World War II, to a peak of 2,300; but the number of members
was a consistent 2,100 to 2,200. The only advertising attempted was to send out letters addressed to particular groups
-chiefly to the hierarchy, the clergy, and religious-together
with a leaflet describing the need and profit of spiritual reading, the purpose and operation of the Associates, and endorsements of the Holy Father and the hierarchy. Generally, too,
the leaflet, "For Novice Teachers," was enclosed. A special
request was made to clerical and religious members to send
lists of prospective lay subscribers. By this means lay membership grew appreciably over the years. One of the more
remarkable facts of the S.B.A., which Father O'Connell often
commented on, was that subscribers invariably enclosed the
membership fee of $18.00 and never returned a book or requested a substitute. Subscribers often sent more than the
stipulated membership fee. An incident involving the late
Archbishop Malloy of Brooklyn illustrates the generous interest and encouragement of the hierarchy. In September
of 1956 the Bishop had forgotten to renew his membership.
A little later he was sent a letter, thanking him for his
interest and kindness through the years. He immediately
wrote to apologize for neglecting his renewal and enclosed
a check for $500.00
During the war years Father O'Connell undertook to send
gratis to the chaplains and men of the armed forces the
spiritual books selected for the S.B.A. To help support this
apostolate he appended to statements mailed to new and
renewal members this appeal:
�412
FATHER O'CONNELL.
Our latest apostolate: our books ( 5,000) to our chaplains and
Catholic men in our armed forces. Help us to save their Catholic
morale. They and their zealous chaplains are most grateful. There
are thousands of our Catholic youths in military service. Help
us help them. Yoar widow's mite of $1 or more will go a long way.
Response to this appeal was extremely generous. Review
copies of good books were sent along with the monthly selections of the S.B.A. Letters of gratitude from the chaplains,
and not infrequently from the men, more than repaid the
labor of 'Yrapping and tying the thousands of books dispatched t<?. camps in this country and overseas.
National Secretary
Father O'Connell will perhaps be best remembered by the
majority of American Jesuits as the first national secretary
of education for the American Assistancy. His appointment
to this office coincided with Father General Ledochowski's
promulgation of the epoch-making Instructio pro Assistentia Americae, August 15, 1934. At the same time Father
General conferred on Father O'Connell the authority of
commissary, with special powers in educational matters to
ensure that the provisions of the Instructio were carried into
effect. Father General underscored three problems which
he considered to be of primary ~ncern : the efficient development of graduate schools, the preparation of teachers by advanced studies leading to the master's and doctor's degrees,
and sound relations with accrediting associations.
On looking back, it is astonishing how much Father O'Connell accomplished in the brief space of three years. In the
very first year there was a notable increase in the number
of Jesuits sent to begin graduate studies. But Father O'Con·
nell immediately recognized a major obstacle to the pursuit
of higher degrees-the fact that many Jesuit juniorates and
scholasticates lacked authority to grant undergraduate degrees and the personnel to prepare scholastics for future
graduate work. The steps he took to remove this obstacl.e
are described in a notice of Father O'Connell in the Jesmt
Educational Quarterly after his death (XXI: 263, March
1959) :
As a means of preparing scholastics for higher degrees, Father
�L
FATHER O'CONNELL
413
O'Connell joined the houses of study, in provinces where this had not
been done, to the neighboring university. When the students
completed a course of studies, they received their degree from a
Jesuit university. Father O'Connell saw clearly that our houses
of study were more than seminaries, that they had additional and
higher objectives than could be found in any diocesan seminary,
and accordingly he integrated the juniorates, philosophates, and
theologates with our universities so that the former could share a
university status and acquire a university atmosphere.
Norms
In the meantime Father O'Connell established a committee on graduate studies which under his direction elaborated
a series of norms to guide graduate schools in undertaking
both master's and doctor's programs. A first section of the
committee's final report was entitled "Factors to be taken
into account in approving or forbidding graduate work."
Then followed the norms for guidance in appraising graduate
work. The norms were five in number: (1) a graduate
faculty adequate in training and numbers for the work
undertaken; (2) effective organization under a graduate
dean; (3) adequate library; ( 4) research facilities proportionate to the offerings; (5) degree requirements in accord
with good university practice. The full statement was completed at the Louisville meeting of the committee, 1937, and
approved by Father O'Connell. This first J.E.A. report on
graduate studies anticipated in detail many of the provisions
included in the much later statement of a new commission
on graduate schools. An historian of Catholic higher education, Dr. Edward J. Power, characterized the earlier report
as epoch-making. "These norms," he said, "recognized every
issue facing Catholic colleges in their efforts to realize excellence in undergraduate and graduate programs. They are
the first general statements on the subject of graduate school
standards for Catholic colleges in the country." Dr. Power
received permission to reprint the 1937 document in its entirety (cf. A History of Catholic Higher Education in the
United States. Bruce, 1958, Appendix E, pp. 354-358).
The notice in the Jesuit Educational Quarterly, referred to
above, sums up Father O'Connell's accomplishments as national secretary of education:
�414
FATHER O'CONNELL
An indication of the efficient manner in which Father O'Connell
undertook the solution of the primary problems entrusted to him
by the General may be seen in the fact that his solutions, though
they may have seemed novel at the time, have long since become
commonplace procedure.
Traits
One who knew Father O'Connell well has said that his
characteristic traits were gentleness and charity. He was
almost shy and casual in his contacts with people. He avoided
the limelight as much as possible. It would be wrong to conclude, however, that he lacked drive and determination in
achieving the objectives which were set for him or which
he himself thought were necessary and wise. One can measure his spiritual stature with fair accuracy by adverting to
three happenings in his life. One was the early and abrupt
termination of his work as national secretary of education,
which he must have felt keenly. Yet he never complained
about it or criticized the decision of Father General. Another
was his role as confessor. During his twelve or more years
at the University of Detroit after 1943 practically the entire
community chose him as confessor; and he was always available and invariably kind and understanding. Lastly, he
bore with heroic patience and cheerfulness not only many
years of failing eyesight but also-· the long and painful illness
that led to his death.
Father O'Connell accomplished much for the Society and
the Church in his fifty-five Jesuit years, as editor, writer,
teacher, and administrator. Some will say that his greatest
achievement was in giving the Jesuit Educational Association
"the impetus it needed." Without denying this, one maY
nevertheless believe that the labor most congenial to his
character was the editing of Cardinal Newman and the choosing of good spiritual reading, over a period of eighteen years,
for the Spiritual Book Associates.
�Father John Joseph O'Rourke, S.J.
On March 27, 1958, at Saint Vincent's Hospital, New York
City, died Father John J. O'Rourke, an outstanding man of
towering spirit, who for twenty-nine years zealously served
the Pontifical Biblical Institute and for six years was its
rector.
Born in New York on June 16, 1875, he entered the Society
of Jesus on September 20, 1895, after having finished his
classical studies at Fordham University. During the years
1898 to 1901 he studied philosophy at Saint Mary's Hall,
Stonyhurst, England; and from 1901 to 1903 the Classics
at Oxford. He then taught humanities at Saint Andrew-onHudson, Poughkeepsie, New York, from 1903 to 1907. At
Saint Louis and at Woodstock he studied theology from 1907
to 1911, and was ordained in 1910 by John Cardinal Gibbons,
Archbishop of Baltimore. Then he spent the next two years
teaching humanities and sacred eloquence at Woodstock.
In 1913 he was called to Rome to teach Biblical Greek and
Papyrology at the Biblical Institute which had been founded
a few years before. The whole time he was. in Rome he
taught Greek and for nine years (1916-1918; 1921-1926) he
was also professor of exegesis of the New Testament. As
rector from 1924 to 1930 he effectively promoted the progress
of the Institute, among many other things by the addition
of eight new professors and by including the Egyptian, Sanscrit, Persian, Armenian and Georgia11 languages in the
curriculum.
Father O'Rourke must, moreover, be called the founder
of the house of the Institute in Jerusalem. From the very
beginning of the Institute the plan was that it should have
a subsidiary house in Palestine. Because of World War I
this could not be carried into effect; and even afterwards
due to difficulties and various considerations it was put off
for a number of years. When, however, Father O'Rourke
Translated by Joseph P. Sanders, S.J., from Verbum Domini 36
(1958) 240-243. Cf. Biblica 39 (1958) 397-399.
415
�416
FATHER O'ROURKE
became rector, he vigorously undertook the project. In 1924
he bought land in Jerusalem more suitable than that which
the Institute already owned there, and he provided for all
that would be needed. In the same year the cornerstone
was laid by the Latin Patriarch; while in 1927 the house
was finished and received the first students of the Institute.
But almost at once Father O'Rourke had to struggle to maintain the new house, for in that same year of 1927 an earthquake struck Palestine. It left unharmed the house of the
Institute wpich had been solidly built; but among other buildings, even the house of the British governor of Palestine was
destroyed. ·· In his search for another dwelling the house
of the Institute so pleased him that he wished to rent it. The
crisis reached such a point that there was little hope of retaining the house; and, once rented the prospect of recovering
it would be dim indeed. Father O'Rourke, however, took
a polite but firm stand and avoided what seemed inevitable.
The Holy Father, Pius XI, said to him, "We are very grateful
to you because you have saved our house."
In_ 1928 Father O'Rourke obtained from the Holy See for
the Biblical Institute the power of awarding the doctorate
in Holy Scripture. Many difficulties blocked the way, but
through the :nelp of the Supreme Pontiff all were overcome.
Father O'Rourke himself told haw. much fairness, good will
and confidence the Supreme Pontiff had shown in this affair
to the Institute. The last great work undertaken by Father
O'Rourke in his capacity as rector concerned the advance of
Biblical knowledge. After Father Mallon had examined the
site of Teleilat Gassul in the Jordan Valley and had recognized its archaeological importance, Father O'Rourke decided
that the Institute should excavate it. He so effectively prepared what was needed for this project that in 1930 the
archaeological work began. The things which were found
there did not disappoint the hopes entertained. A new culture was revealed, hitherto completely unknown.
Finally, we must not pass over that great charity of Father
O'Rourke in helping the poor with gifts he received; nor
should we forget that filial devotion which prompted him to
pay the costs of erecting an altar in Saint Ignatius' rooms in
Rome.
�FATHER O'ROURKE
417
In the year 1930 Father O'Rourke completed his term as
rector but he continued to teach Greek in the Institute. After
journeying to Palestine, he also taught Biblical Geography
in the years 1932, 1934, and 1936. In 1937 he returned to
the United States, where until 1941 he was assistant to the
director of special studies, and for one year was vice-rector
in the house of studies at Inisfada, Long Island, New York.
From 1941 to 1944 he taught Greek and Papyrology at Fordham University; and from 1944 to 1946 was spiritual father
at Campion House.
But Father O'Rourke's heart was in Rome; there he desired
to return, and eventually he did. During the school year of
1946-1947 he taught Greek Papyrology at the Biblical Institute. In 1947 he was sent to Jerusalem as superior of the
house which he had founded. During his first month as rector
the relations between the Jews and the Arabs became embittered, fighting broke out, and shells struck the house of the
Institute. The lives of the Fathers were imperiled. Once a
bomb exploded on the spot where Father O'Rourke had been
but a few minutes before. That difficult year did not break
the rector's spirit. On the contrary, once peace had been
concluded,· he courageously defended the house against the
greed of those desiring to occupy it; and in the end he was
able to save it. That he was not carried off by serious illness
in the month of March, 1949, seemed miraculous. Although
he regained his health in a short time, he now considered
himself unequal to the job of being superior and desired to
return to the United States.
In 1949-1950 at Campion House, and from 1950 until 1958
at Inisfada, he was either spiritual fa.ther or assistant to the
librarian, doing as much as his advanced age permitted. Ever
mindful of the Biblical Institute, he desired to remain attached
to it. In the month of December, 1957, during a weak spell,
he had a bad fall and spent some time in the hospital. On
his recovery, he returned to Inisfada, but in February, 1959,
he had another fall, and had to be taken again to the hospital.
During much suffering he remained gracious, pleasant and
edifying, until he gave back his generous soul to God, whom
he had so long served. May he rest in peace.
�Books of Interest to Ours
LETTERS OF ST. IGNATIUS
Letters of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Selected and Translated by William
J. Young, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1959. Pp. xiii450. $6.00.
Jesuits have been accused of basing their interpretation of lgnatian
spirituality too exclusively on the text of the Spiritual Exercises and
the letter on obedience. Pere de Guibert and other more recent interpreters of lgnatian thought have stressed the fact that account
must be taken of St. Ignatius' reactions to concrete situations as manifested in his life and through his letters. Only then can an adequate
and authentic interpretation of lgnatian spirituality be attempted.
The two hundred and twenty-eight letters selected by Father Young
and translated into English enable us to understand St. Ignatius the
contemplative in action. Practically every letter contains something
that throws light on the practical application of the Exercises to the
affairs of Jesuit life. All the letters show us how St. Ignatius found
God in all things because He is really there. No effort is required to
see the connection between theory and practice in this very busy life.
The earlier letters to friends and relatives reveal the beginnings of
the zeal and spiritual insight gained at Montserrat and Manresa.
Throughout his life St. Ignatius kept up a prolific correspondence with
externs in all walks of life and maintained an amazing interest in,
and knowledge of, their affairs. Men and women, commoners and nobles,
priests, bishops and cardinals, all received letters of congratulation,
consolation, petition and gratitude.
It is in his letters to Jesuits, howev~r, that St. Ignatius reveals most
clearly his own spirit and the spirit he expected to find in his companions. Even when his expectations were disappointed, he showed
by his sympathy and understanding that he was able to inspire even
the fainthearted with renewed zeal for the greater glory of God. His
letters to the more zealous were tempered with that supernatural
prudence which led them to the practice of discreet charity toward
God and neighbor.
It is interesting to note the vast difference in treatment of such
firebrands as Bobadilla and Rodrigues, who received such extreme
patience and forebearance from St. Ignatius, and the severe manner
in which he dealt with such faithful servants as Nadal and Lainez.
In each case he knew his man and how to get the desired results. Per·
haps St. Ignatius would not have used such graphic examples in the
letter on obedience if it were not for the extreme provocation caused
by Rodrigues in Portugal. In any case he would surely be surprised
that anyone should take his similes too literally. His letters to protect
his sons from bishoprics show that St. Ignatius was more like a pogo
418
I
I
�BOOK REVIEWS
419
stick than an old man's staff when he was convinced the glory of God
was at stake. He sprang toward the will of God and carried others
with him.
Many of the later letters were written by Polanco but given final
approval by Ignatius. They all bear the unmistakable mark of their
real author. Father Young has performed a great service by selecting
these important letters from over six thousand extant. This was a
labor of love that he hoped would be published five years ago. His
zeal in getting the task accomplished deserves our thanks. Perhaps
not since St. Ignatius' time has there been such persistent and highlymotivated twisting of the spiritual arm to produce results for the
greater glory of God.
EDMUND J. STUMPF, S.J.
JESUITS IN INDIA
A Pearl to India. By Vincent Cronin. New York: E. P. Dutton Co.,
1959. $4.50.
This is a popular life of Father Robert DeNobili, S.J., into which
has gone much research. Many unpublished manuscripts from the
archives of the Society both in Rome and in India were used, as also the
unpublished life of DeNobili, generously given to Cronin by a history
scholar who spent his life in the Madurai mission and knew every mile
of it so well, Father Augustin Sauliere, S.J. This reviewer has also
experienced the generosity of Father Sauliere, who took him step by
step over the proofs for the tradition of St. Thomas the Apostle's work
in Malabar and the Tamiland until this skeptical newcomer was convinced of its truth. It is very encouraging to meet a generous-hearted
scholar.
As Ricci in China, so De Nobili in India was a firm believer in
adaptation, not only of many externals of ritual Christianity but also
in its manner of thought. In studying Hindu philosophy, DeNobili
saw that there was much in it good and true, which could form a basis
for Indian Christian thought. In a famous prosecution case brought
against DeNobili by a Brahman opponent, DeNobili's guru or teacher,
now became his follower, defended DeNobili and won the case, by
showing that the Christian doctrines as taught by DeNobili were all
in ancient Hindu writings.
As soon as DeNobili got into the mission-field, he realized that the
lack of upper-caste converts was partly due to a very bad choice of
Tamil words for describing the Christian religion and the means used
to effect conversion were enough to set any high-minded Hindu strongly
. against it. A thorough knowledge of Tamil, the local language, and
of Sanscrit, the classical language of their religious books, was essential,
and DeNobili set to these at once while awaiting the permission of his
Superior to live as a sannyasi or Indian holy scholar.
Fortunately DeNobili had an open-minded Provincial, Alberto Laerzio,
and an encouraging ordinary, Archbishop Ros of Cranganore, in whose
territory lay Madurai, the seat of Robert's best endeavors. But the
�420
BOOK REVIEWS
consultors were typical consultors, mistaking the overcaution of age
for prudence.
This reviewer believes that both of Cronin's books, that on Ricci and
this on DeNobili might well be made "prescribed reading" for all Novices
and Juniors, for an excellent view of the catholicity of the Church,
as well as of the difficulties religious pioneers experience. But a
prudent and holy patience wins out in the long run.
DeNobili's success in Sanscrit, Tamil, and Telegu literature would
also bring home to prospective missionaries the real necessity of
mastering the local languages, both classical and vernacular. Missionaries. differ. Some roam far and wide, opening up new territory and
working on 'a broad scale. Others are home-bodies and work their own
little baili\vick more intensively. Robert's weak health and demanding
studies and his success in his little ashram at Madurai made him remain much at home, yet during his fifty-one years in the missions he
covered a great deal of ground in South India and Ceylon. He needed
the deep spirituality he had to keep zealous in the face of continual
opposition, not only from the Hindus and government authorities and
secular ecclesiastics, but from his Jesuit brethren, and sometimes from
traitors among his converts. From his landing in Goa in 1605 until
his death at Mylapore (Madras) in 1656 he lived a hard life; always in
poor health yet full of zeal and patience. In the face of such brutal and
often ignorant opposition, most men would have given up and submitted
to in easier and more traditional life. But DeNobili was made of
sterner stuff, held out, and was fully justified; yet in the end he saw
his work failing because of political conditions and the weakness of
purpose of his successors. It is inte,resting to speculate on how indigenous and widespread the faith in..India would have become if Rome
had accepted his suggestion that Sansc;it replace Latin for the Church
in India.
CECIL H. CHAMBERLAIN, S.J.
SHERMAN'S JESUIT SON
General Sherman's Son. By Joseph T. Durkin, S.J. New York: Farrar,
Straus and Cudahy, 1959. Pp. lx-276. $4.50.
Father Durkin's very readable biography of the older of Gener)ll
Sherman's two sons who lived to maturity will be of interest to students
of the life of one of America's eminent military heroes; to students
of that larger field of history of the war between the states and the
subsequent periods of reconstruction and reconciliation; and in a special
way to that smaller group of Jesuit readers who from time to time
have l).eard probably garbled versions of one or more episodes relating
to the life of Thomas Sherman.
After taking degrees at Georgetown and Yale, he grievously wound~d
his father, who retained a somewhat anticlerical bias to the end, by hiS
decision to become a Jesuit. Later he went on at the turn of the
century to become one of America's foremost pulpit orators, and then
suffered a mental collapse which for almost twenty years was the
�BOOK REVIEWS
421
occasion of his living outside Jesuit community life. In language that
is at once warm and sympathetic, and which has caught some of the
color and mood of the episodes of this life story without sacrificing
any of the objective directness of the historian, the author has traced
the vagaries of his subject. As a result he has succeeded in clarifying
what have come to be distorted versions of so many incidents connected
with the life of this good but unfortunate priest. The best instance
of this concerns Father Sherman's connection with the visit of West
Point cadets to Georgia in 1906, to traverse on horseback for purposes
of military instruction the route of General Sherman's march to the
sea. Father Durkin has nicely set aright the inaccuracies which have
snowballed in many a Jesuit recreation room, with his factual account
of the invitation of President Theodore Roosevelt to the priest at a
White House dinner to accompany the coming cavalry excursion. After
unexpected nationwide repercussions Roosevelt cozily ran for cover
and unwittingly left Father Sherman to appear in a false light. His
only mistake was to have accepted the president's invitation.
Over a period of years, the priest was the victim of emotional and
mental disturbances which after 1908 progressively worsened. Understandable concern of his superiors for the first symptoms of his malady
were exaggerated into a lack of sympathy for and eventually a hostility
toward his work, which at one time made Father Sherman possibly
the foremost verbal exponent of Catholic doctrine and morality and
their most effective interpreter to Protestant .America.· Eventually
vehement outbursts of temper, persistent demands for dimissorial letters,
and renewed threats of prosecution on the part of the ailing priest
finally brought from Rome a simulated dismissal from the Society in
the form of permission to live indefinitely outside its houses. His
mental incompetence made it impossible for the Society to relieve itself
of responsibility for his upkeep. Together with the Sherman family
the Missouri Province continued to support Father Sherman as best
it could until his death.
Years of living at Santa Barbara were followed by hospitalization
during the last year and a half at De Paul Sanitarium, New Orleans,
where a few hours before he died, April 29, 1933, he asked to renew
his solemn vows, and did so before three of his Jesuit confreres. In
the words of the Missouri provincial written to the family on the
occasion, Father Sherman never ceased to be a Jesuit. The story of
this man is told by the author from unpublished documents and numerous interviews with contemporaries of Father Sherman, and can therefore be read with complete confidence in its historicity.
HENRY W. CASPER, S.J.
HARRISON THE STATESMAN
Benjamin Harrison, Hoosier Statesman. By Harry J. Sievers, S.J. New
York: University Publishers, 1959. Pp. xxxi, 502. $6.00.
This second volume of the projected trilogy on Benjamin Harrison
covers the period of his life from the end of the Civil War to his
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departure from Indianapolis to be inaugurated as the twenty-third
president of the United States. In its pages we follow his rise from
relative obscurity to national recognition. Absorbed in the legal profession as a means of supporting his family, Harrison's early ventures
on the sea of politics were hesitant and halfhearted. By 1876, however,
he had attained such a reputation in the courts that, because of circumstances, the Republican nomination for the governorship of Indiana
was quite literally forced upon him. Though defeated, he was brought
to the attention of the country, and while there were setbacks, he
began a steady climb in Indiana politics which culminated in his being
sent to the national Congress.
Harrison's' activities in Congress are narrated in detail. At heart a
radical cortstitutionalist and a tariff protectionist, he stood out also
as a persistent advocate of admission of South Dakota as a state;
likewise he played an active part in Republican national conventions,
and in the campaigns of Garfield in 1880 and Blaine in 1884. Denied
re-election as senator in 1887 by a Democratic Indiana legislature, he
gave himself wholeheartedly to his law practice, but such was his power
in Indiana politics that the Chicago convention of 1888 nominated him
for president. In the campaign his cautious "front porch" strategy,
to avoid mishaps such as had befallen Blaine in 1884, paid off in his
election, but it must be admitted that he profited by the West-Murchison
incident, in which he had no part whatsoever.
Th1s is unquestionably the best and most exhaustive life of Benjamin
Harrison, for his religious life, his family life, his professional and
political life are all considered and statements are invariably supported
by citations from authorities. Though it is evident that the author is
enthusiastic for his subject he is not QJind to the man's limitations and
defects. Here and there criticism might perhaps have been more
severe, but at no time is undue partisanship indulged. But most assuredly a man who intended to prey on the bass in Lake Michigan,
would not make Sault Sainte-Marie his headquarters (p. 99); such
procedure might be suited to Paul Bunyan, but it would be an extreme
handicap for Benjamin Harrison.
CHARLES H. METZGER, S.J.
JOYCE AND THE CHURCH
The Sympathetic Alien: James Joyce and Catholicism. By J. Mitchell
Morse. New York: New York University Press, 1959. Pp. xi-169.
$4.00.
Professor Morse's thesis is that James Joyce's youthful Catholicism
and religious training engendered a necessary conflict between Catholicism aild art in his later works. Morse feels that this conflict was
an essential theme in Joyce, and he traces the effect of Augustine, John
Scotus Erigena, Ockham and Ignatius Loyola in the later writings of
Joyce, especially on Joyce's theories of art, his views on the relation of
the sexes, and his social attitudes. The purpose of this book, as Morse
himself phrases it, "is to introduce . . . certain ideas developed by the
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423
church fathers and the scholastic philosophers and to indicate the
use Joyce made of them."
Although there might conceivably be certain advantages in having an
outsider and an impartial observer examine Joyce's relations to Catholicism, this book, unfortunately, does not offer any of those advantages.
Mr. Morse is too attached to his preconceived notions to offer a fair
and valid examination of the relationship between Joyce and Catholicism. This failing was clearly pointed out when Chapter VI, "Jesuit
Bark and Bitter Bite: Ignatius Loyola," first appeared in PMLA. In
the preface, Mr. Morse mentions Rev. Walter J. Ong, S.J. and Rev.
William T. Noon, S.J., who "pointed out some stupid errors" in this
chapter. Though the more glaring stupidities have been corrected, the
book remains a particularly biased view both of Catholicism and of
Joyce.
Mr. Morse is addicted to making remarks in passing without offering
any proof. On the very first page, he says that "James Joyce belongs
to the brave though rather tenuous tradition of Catholic thinkers who
have stood for the individual as against the authorities" and says that
this movement of revolt prepared the way intellectually for Protestantism and democracy. In Chapters two, four and six, Professor Morse
gives utterance to some strange ideas on the Catholic notion of sin.
He states that from Tertullian onward, "the belief that secular knowledge is not only unprofitable but wicked has been an unbroken strand
in Christian thought." In Chapter VII, he comments that Aquinas's
Summa Theologica is "built in air like the pleasure dome of the delighted
Coleridge. . . ." Striking much closer to home, Morse seems to be
completely out of sympathy with Ignatius and the Jesuits. His strange
notions of Jesuit obedience have been pointed out elsewhere. He nonchalantly mentions the Jesuit theory that the end justifies the means,
and he still speaks of Jesuit obedience as "moral passivity" and "disavowal of personal responsibility" which destroys all academic freedom
in Jesuit schools. He talks disparagingly . of the Jesuit brand of
"Thomistic Catholicism." And, finally, he seems to be entirely misled
about the historical circumstances surrounding the suppression of the
Society.
Although there are passages in the book that do have a certain value,
particularly for the fresh insights that Professor Morse brings to the
Problem of Joyce and Catholicism, the value of the total work is more
than vitiated by his all too frequent lapses into prejudice, narrow bias
and unscholarly assertions.
JOSEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
AGE OF MARTYRS
The Age of Martyrs, Christianity from Diocletian to Constantine. By
Giuseppe Ricciotti. Translated by Rev. Anthony Bull, C.R.L.
Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. viii-305. $4.95.
The author has taken as the title for this, his latest book, a traditional
designation for the period of the great persecutions, beginning with
that of Diocletian in 302/3 A.D. and ending with the disappearance of
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BOOK REVIEWS
Licinius from the imperial scene c. 324 A.D. He begins with a survey
of the fortunes of the Empire and of Christianity from the accession
of Diocletian in 284 A.D. down to 310 A.D., the year in which Constantine's star had definitely risen, and sees in the political and economic
problems which plagued Diocletian's Empire not just the background
but a partial explanation of the last great persecutions. His book, he
tells us, is not meant to be a critical history, but he does profess to
respect the findings of critic:>J historians. The claims of criticism
receive part:cu!::tr :1tt~ntion at the outset of the long chapter on "The
Great Persecut!on," where Ricciotti as::;esses the relative value of the
vario'.ls ~:mrces extant on the period. Particularly worthy of note is
his summary of the factors which affect the historical value of the
various ::ct'1. ::u:d pas3'ons of the martyrs. He restricts himself to the
bett2r ;:wthcnticated of these acts and passions, and the best pages
in the book are those where the~e documents are allowed to speak for
themselves and for the shining faith of those often obscure lovers of
the Lord Jesus whom they celebrate.
The fi;1al third of the book deals neither with martyrs nor with persecut:ons, but w:th the reign of Constantine and with the disruption of
the peace of the Church by Donatism and Arianism. The chapter on
t:-te Donatist schism and the Arian heresy outlines the origins of these
two r,wvements, and their history down to the death of Constantine,
in the chronicler's plodding fashion. Ricciotti does bring himself to
criticize Constantine for meddling in strictly theological and ecclesiastical concerns, but beneath it all seems to run the conviction that Constantine was essentially "an idealist."
For style, The Age of Martyrs is a rather unattractive piece of
writing, and a worse than unattractive piece of translating. The
awk\vard images in which Ricciotti ;xpresses himself are in no way
helped by the English of the translation, which is consistently literal
and in many places inept. The Age of Martyrs is an undistinguished
treatment of a classic moment in history. But until we are given a
more satisfying popular re-creation of the Age of the Martyrs, this
work will serve the purpose by default.
JAMES G. McCANN, S.J.
AN ORTHODOX RETURN TO ROME
From Florence to Brest (1430-1596). By Oscar Haleeki. Rome: Sacrum
Poloniae JI.Iillenium, 1958. Distributed by Fordham University
Press. Pp. 444.
On July G, 1439, the Decree of Union between the Greek and the
Latin churches was solemnly proclaimed in both Latin and Greek in
the cathedral of Florence. Unfortunately, this union did not last long.
Joseph, patriarch of Constantinople, did not live to see the end of the
council; h!s successor, Metrophanes, also well disposed to the union,
died shortly after, in 1443. Meantime, enemies to the union were
active. Only in 1452 was Cardinal Isidore, exiled metropolitan of
Kiev and legate of Pope Nicholas V, able to promulgate the Florentine
�BOOK REVIEWS
425
decrees in the church of St. Sophia. But in May, 1453, Constantinople
fell, and the sultan appointed an anti-Latin as Patriarch, Gennadius.
In 1472, in a schismatic synod at Constantinople, the decrees of Florence
were formally repudiated.
Various factors contributed to the dissolution of this union-social,
political, psychological, theological. But, after 1596, through the union
of Poland and Lithuania by the marriage of their sovereigns, things
looked better. The Polish royalty was Catholic and the trend was to
look to the West. Ruthenian leaders began to notice the progress and
the vitality of the Latin church in Poland, compared to the miserable
state of their own churches. Russian sources point to this sorry condition. Add to this the revitalising influence of the Jesuits in Poland.
No wonder that honest Orthodox leaders became convinced that only
a return to Roman obedience could better things. This, amid great
difficulties, was achieved on October 19, 1596, during the Synod of
Brest. Here finally and formally was ratified the union with Rome
which had been agreed upon 157 · years ago in the Council of Florence,
although within a smaller territory. Thanks to the initiative of the
Ruthenian hierarchy and the spontaneous support of the metropolitans,
Brest was a more lasting and more successful union than its predecessor.
But, as the author points out, it was the absence of this support that
had been mainly the cause of the failure of Florence a century and a
half before.
·
Professor Halecki, a historian of many accomplishments, needs no
introduction. His present volume is the fifth of the series Sacrum
Poloniae Millenium, which is being edited to commemorate the approaching anniversary of Poland's conversion in 966 A.D. The events between
Florence and Brest are detailed clearly and minutely. This is the
first book of its kind in English to discuss at great length the exceedingly complex problems of Orthodox and Latin christianity. It is
timely, written as it is on the eve of another ecumenical council, one
purpose of which is to inquire into the possibilities of union among
all Christian peoples.
JosE: S. ARCILLA, S.J.
CATHOLIC-PROTESTANT RELATIONS
Faith and Understanding in America. By Gustave Weigel, S.J. New
York: Macmillan, 1959. Pp. 170. $3.75.
This is a collection of nine essays on the general theme of faith
and world order in current American society. They give a panoramic
view of the problems which face Catholic leadership in the United
States, and underscore the opportunities for the Christian apostolate
in dealing with a high-minded, but often confused, Protestant religious
culture.
Two strong impressions made on the reader are the scope of Father
Weigel's familiarity with the Protestant scene and his generous sympathy with the vagaries of the non-Catholic mind. Typical of the first
is something more than ready quotation from a wide range of present-
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BOOK REVIEWS
day Protestant thinkers: Barth, Bultmann, Nixon, Craig, Pittenger,
Tillich, Brunner, Horton and a dozen others. In fact there are not
many long quotations. But the way these men are cited and fitted into
the mosaic of contemporary thought suggests that Father Weigel has
read these men through and made himself more than superficially
acquainted with their basic principles.
The element of sympathy with Protestant struggles for Christian
unity and search for the truth is perhaps the most valuable feature
of the book. And if the author succeeds in transmitting something of
this spirit to those who read him, his purpose will have been eminently
achieved.
The best chapter is the last one, on "Ecumenism and the Catholic."
Rightly poiJlting out that the World Council of Churches is not the
formal place ""for a Catholic-Protestant encounter, Father Weigel suggests small group meetings of persons competent in theology which
can produce a climate where ultimate reunion will germinate. But
more than something possible, it is even urgent, "for we must come
together lest many a soul, cut off from a strong Christian unity, grow
slack and listless and thus become a ready prey to naturalism or
worse." The realism of this approach may be gauged from the success
along these lines in Europe, especially in Germany. Meanwhile American Catholics, clergy and laity, must be alerted through books like
the present one to the needs of the Protestant world and, what is less
obvious, to its desire for a share in the Christian solidarity that we
enjoy.
JoHN A. RARDON, S.J.
A VIEW OF AMERICAN CATHOLICISM
American Catholic Crossroads. By Walter J. Ong, S.J. New York:
Macmillan, 1959. Pp. xii-160. $3:5if.
If there is a central theme running through this modest volume of
six essays, it would seem to be an emphasis on the implications of the
Incarnation for Catholics, especially at the present time--for this central point of history has bound us ineluctably to the quest for human
progress, in the acceptance and embrace of the material universe in
which we live.
Our faith, as the first essay insists, is historical. Hence the Christian
interest in history-not the pagan, cyclic, futile history of classicism,
but the progressive sense of history such as stems from our modern
awareness of evolution. This demands our acceptance of the fact of
a pluralism that has always existed, but has only become acutely
present to our consciousness in modern times with the shrinking of
barriers. • This pluralism offers us an opportunity of dialogue and
personal inter-presence, and through this, a perfective communication
between various traditions-such as Father Hecker sought to bring
into America, following his model, St. Paul, who was a Jew among
Greeks.
A further manifestation of the continuing necessity of this dialogue
�BOOK REVIEWS
427
is the coexistence of secular and revealed knowledge, which presents
both an opportunity and a challenge: an opportunity for expanding our
knowledge of God and His revelation, and a challenge to meet the field
of natural knowledge on its own terms without false fears and hesitancy.
Hence the question of the role of real Catholic scholarship must arise,
the answer to which can best be examined in terms of our own American
colleges and universities. We have, in a unique way, committed ourselves to this field, and so in honesty and integrity we must work at
our commitment. Granted that this is a task eminently suited to the
Catholic conviction, what of the role of priests and religious in such
work? Totally dedicated to her, the Church has committed them to
this work. This is their vocation, to which all other tasks are subordinate. In proportion to the depth and integrity of their commitment
to this work will they bear witness to Christ.
Such, then, is the tenor of the essays in this volume. The reader
will perhaps disagree with some or much of what Father Ong has to
say. But he will profit by thinking these problems through with the
author. The chapters on pluralism and on the Catholic universities
are particularly rewarding.
DANIEL F. X. MEENAN, S.J.
ON TEACHING RELIGION
Shaping the Christian Message: Essays in Religious Instruction. Edited
by Gerard S. Sloyan. New York: Macmillan, 1958. Pp. xi, 327.
Nearly a generation ago the late Father William J. McGucken, S.J.
was sufficiently impressed by what he called "the renascence of religion teaching," to institute a course on it for the philosophers at
St. Louis. Materials were plentiful, since considerable re-examination
of formal religion teaching at the various school levels had been occupying European and American educators since World War I. The past
few decades have only heightened this concern, for despite solid advances most workers in the field are far from satisfied. Religious
instruction has, to begin with, certain special problems, as several
contributors to the volume here under review observe. For the teacher
of religion aims not merely to enlarge understanding but to nourish
commitment, and if he is heavy-handed he may antagonize his students.
Moreover, a school's religion classes exist in an ambiguous situation,
since they are verbally awarded a primacy of honor but actually get
quite a limited amount of class time. In any event, all curricula, secular
and religious, need tc be kept under surveillance and periodically
reconstructed, and the more rapid and tumultuous the changes in the
general culture, the more imperatively this need is felt. It is true that
Christian catechists will in any age transmit substantially the same
message, but the development of theological scholarship as well as
the demands of the historic moment will influence both their own grasp
of that message and the way they draw out its virtualities, just as the
findings of psychology and the other behavioral sciences ought to make
their pedagogical technique richer and more effective.
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BOOK REVIEWS
An American leader in this whole movement was Monsignor William
H. Russell, a priest of Dubuque who taught for years at Catholic
University. The Reverend Gerard S. Sloyan, present head of the department of religious education at the University, has edited this
collection of essays as a memorial to Monsignor Russell. All the essays
are worthwhile, and taken together they communicate the flavor of this
modern era of study and experimentation. Each of the thirteen contributors is a priest, which naturally means some limitation in viewpoint, since none of the Sisters, teaching Brothers or parents who have
written on the issues are heard from. The writers represent five
countries-the United States, Austria, Great Britain, France and
Belgium-and• six of them are Jesuits. The studies themselves are
distributed into three sections. The first discusses phases in the history
of religious education. Father Sloyan traces briefly catechetical procedures from patristic to medieval times, and Father Josef A. Jungmann, S.J., carries the story down to the close of the Middle Ages.
This is followed by two specialized articles, one on religious education
in England from 1559 to 1778 and one on the catechetical method of
Saint Sulpice. A concluding essay by Father Pierre Ranwez, S.J.,
sums up "General Tendencies in Contemporary Catechetics." The
second group treats of more theoretical problems, and includes two
interesting and complementary papers on college religion by Father
Gustave Weigel, S.J., and Father John A. Rardon, S.J. The final
section- has four discussions of practical considerations, including one
by Canon F. H. Drinkwater, for forty years an international figure in
catechetics and a writer whose brilliant insight is served by a winning
style.
A volume of this sort is not supposed. ;tQ provide a systematic survey
of every problem in the area of religious education, nor of all suggestions made towards its solution. One does not find here, for instance,
much treatment of secondary school religious instruction nor much
account of American contributions. But one does carry away a knowledge of some broad agreements among contemporary catechetical specialists: their emphasis on Biblical resources, and the place of the liturgy;
their insistence on the necessity of developing both objectives and a
pedagogy suited to their hearers, as well as a vocabulary which will be
exact without being incomprehensibly technical; their concern to rediscover the psychological astuteness that was possessed by those great
patristic figures who taught long before the post-Reformation catechisms
formalized and multiplied questions and answers; and their appreciation
of the fact that the task of the religion teacher, unlike the task of the
geometry·teacher, is not fulfilled when the students simply control the
materials at the intellectual level. A book which does this must recom~
mend itself to Jesuits, who, among other purposes, were established,
according to Julius III, "ad puerorum ac rudium in christianismo
institutionem."
JOHN w. DONAHUE, S.J.
1
I
l
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429
CATECHISM AND COMMENTARY
A Catholic Catechism, American Edition. Adapted by Rev. Gerard S.
Sloyan. New York: Herder & Herder, 1959. Pp. xiii-428. Paperbound, $1.25.
Teaching the Catholic Catechism, Volume 1: God and Our Redemption.
By Josef Goldbrunner. New York: Herder & Herder, 1959. Pp.
108. Paperbound, $1.65.
The British edition of the Catechism, which has already been translated into a dozen languages, was reviewed recently in these pages.
We will not sing again the praises which this book has so justly received, but here merely mention the advantages specific to the new
American edition, which is in most respects identical with the British.
Compact printing, paper cover, and the elimination of illustrations has
brought the price down to a manageable $1.25. The Bible used is the
translation by the American Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, replacing the Douai and Knox versions which copyright obstacles had
necessitated in the first edition. A fine appendix has been added,
listing in their Biblical order all the Bible references made in the
book. The text has been very slightly revised to adapt it to the American milieu, in discussing Protestant sects, marriage laws, etc.; and,
of course, "motor cars" become "automobiles."
The first volume of a teacher's handbook is a most welcome guide
to the presentation, both visually and orally, of the Catechism. The
handbook outlines for each lesson the aim, the psychological preparation, the method of presentation and discussion, and finally the application to daily life. Corresponding to each lesson plan, a blackboard
diagram is sketched, both to assist the explanation and to serve as a
summary of the lesson. All in all, an excellent Catechism has been
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
made even better.
COMMENTARY FOR THE BALTIMORE CATECHISM
The Faith Explained. By Leo J. Trese. Chicago: Fides, 1959. Pp.
xii-564. $5.95.
The bestseller author of Vessel of Clay, Many Are One and other
popular, spiritual works, presents in this volume thirty-nine crisp,
clear essays that serve as a commentary on the thirty-eight chapters
of the Baltimore Catechism, Number 3. Following the lesson plan of
the catechism, which is divided into three parts, Creed, Commandments,
and Sacraments and Prayer, Father Trese surveys the whole content
of Catholic doctrine. Undertaken at the request of the Confraternity
of Christian Doctrine, which wanted discussion club texts on the Baltimore Number 3 for its adult discussion club programs, The Faith
Explained was originally published in six booklets under the general
title of This We Believe. Fides has brought these essays together into
one volume-without the discussion aids-for the general Catholic reading public.
Father Trese is his lucid, often witty and always thought-provoking
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BOOK REVIEWS
self in The Faith Explained. The book is down~to-earth and eminently
readable, which is much more than one can say for the Baltimore
Number 3. Essentially, the book is an adult version of the catechism.
One will not blush or apologize for handing it to the adult candidate
for the Baltimore Number 3. Those engaged in convert work or seeking a popular, home reference volume, provided they are sold on or
committed to the Baltimore Number 3, will say a prayer of gratitude
for Father Trese's invaluable service.
Objections to the order, emphasis, moral applications and so forth of
The Faith Explained should be referred to the Baltimore Number 3 and
not to Father Trese. He has written a commentary, not a new catechism. He deserves a lusty cheer for putting a charming and eloquent
tongue in a her.etofore inarticulate defender of the Faith.
Jesuit high school teachers may well find Father Trese's book a
valuable companion to Cassilly's Religion: Doctrine and Practice. Cassilly's order and emphasis closely parallel that of the Baltimore Number
3. Father Trese's examples, illustrations and down-to-earth style may
help to vitalize some of those dull religion periods.
FRANCIS J. MILES, S.J.
CATECHISM FOR ADULTS
In Search of the Unknown God. By Maurice Zundel. Translated by
Margaret Clark. New York: Herder & Herder, 1959. Pp. 195.
$3.50.
This little book is billed as an adult catechism. Perhaps that term
could lead to confusion. Actually the work is a synthesis of Catholic
belief expressed in contemporary language .and thought patterns. While
the dogmas do not receive extensive treatment, there is enough exposition to set a perceptive reader on a search for fuller explanations.
This distinctly modern little treatise could serve either as an introduction to theology or a review of the field for those used to theological
speculation. The presentation of the notions of person, love, the "ego,"
I-Thou, consciousness, presence, symbolism, etc., shows how the author
has incorporated contemporary philosophical insights into his theological thinking. The appearance of the newer theological problems
such as the human "ego" in Christ, the final option theory, indulgences
as "sympathetic communication," etc., introduce the reader to modern
theological thought.
The author should not share the blame for the most unfortunate
feature in this book. The use of numbered questions and answers in
no way furthers the purpose of the work. Perhaps this was the editor's
way of livlng up to the promise of presenting an adult catechism. But
just as the "cowl does not make the monk," so the addition of numbered
questions and answers does not make a catechism. The explanations
are not catechetical in the sense of ready religious formulas; the insights are too brilliant and personal to bear such a verbal tag. This
work is a theological synthesis of depth.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
ESSAYS IN THE CHURCH
The Bride: Essays in the Church. By Daniel Berrigan, S.J.
York: Macmillan, 1959. Pp. 142. $3.50.
431
New
The title of this book may mislead some readers. It is not in the
ordinary sense a volume of essays about the Church, but rather a series
of meditations on various spiritual themes written within the Church.
The Church, moreover, is here envisaged solely in its communal, as
opposed to institutional, aspects; thus there is no reference to papacy
or episcopate, magisterium or jurisdiction.
The fourteen chapters of this book deal with a broad range of topics,
including suffering, prayer, sacrifice, the Kingdom, the saints, etc.
Each of these topics is handled with imagination and modernity. The
book derives its unity from its constant attention to the historical and
corporate dimensions of man's redemption. In stressing the fact that
the life of grace has its full meaning only within the historically existing Mystical Body, the author provides the kind of theologically founded
piety that our generation seems to need.
There are, however, two limitations which will restrict the value of
this work. For one thing, the range of topics is too vast for the length
of the book. Nearly every chapter should be expanded into a volume
in order that the ideas, here compactly sketched, might be presented
in a full, leisurely fashion, with due preparation, emphasis, examples,
and supporting evidence. The lack of such development sometimes gives
the reader the feeling that he is reading a set of notes.
Secondly, the style is, at least for this reader, rather tiresome. The
sentences are too involved; the language vague and figurative. Synonyms are piled up in a manner which may make for rhythm or suggestive power, but which detracts from clarity. Father Berrigan writes
telegraphically: there are some sentences without principal verbs,
an inordinate number of inversions, a plethora of colons and semicolons.
All of this makes for difficult reading. One longs for a precise definition or a concrete fact, if only as relief from the strain of navigating
through a mist of metaphors.
Notwithstanding these limitations, the book may be recommended
for those who wish to take it meditatively, one chapter at a time. It
will doubtless assist the more theologically inclined seminarian or priest
at his prie-dieu. The chapter on Person, for example, powerfully
indicates how the Catholic theology of the Trinity and the Mystical
Body can contribute to a discovery of the social aspects of personality.
The chapter on Prayer splendidly describes what one might call the
theandric qualities of the Christian's prayer. A few quotations will
illustrate the kind of insight which Father Berriga~ provides in abundance. "If God were man, He would be a man of prayer . . . All the
life of the three Persons of the Trinity is a pr.1yer; if one understands
the act of love, total knowledge of another, sharing of gifts" ( p. 78).
"In proportion as one's prayer is joined in spirit to the prayer of Christ,
it will share in the absolute assurance of being heard. There is finally
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BOOK REVIEWS
one prayer from which the Father cannot turn: that His Son be
glorified in His Mystical Body" (p. 84).
AVERY DULLES, S.J.
ESSAYS ON MARIO LOGY
St. John's University Studies, Theological Series 1. Mariological
Institute Lectures. New York: St. John's University Press, 1959.
Pp. 88.
This booklet contains five lectures given at St. John's in honor of the
Lourdes Centenary, and it also inaugurates a promising series of
"Studies." The intention of this first volume is stated as being· an
effort to help. university students recognize practically the beauties of
systematic Ma,riology. This aim is accomplished, and for that reason
this work worlld be a profitable addition to any college theology course.
Competent theologians here treat the basic titles of Mary. All the
presentations are interesting and readable, marked by a thoroughness
which detracts in no way from the clarity. The addresses on the
Immaculate Conception, the Assumption and the Universal Queenship
are the best. The last mentioned is one of the finest treatments that
has appeared in English.
Our Holy Father, Pope John XXIII, in a recent address for the close
of the Lourdes' Jubilee, remarked: "Like Pius XII, we desire an upsurge
of Marian piety, because this piety leads souls more quickly to Jesus
Christ,_ our Savior." Such a contribution as this is of value toward
building up Marian piety among the faithful.
CHARLES P. COSTELLO, S.J.
ESSAYS ON SCRIPTURE
God Speaks. Translated and edited by.: Bernard Mttrchland, CB.C.
South Bend, Ind.: Fides, 1959. Pp. 250. $3.95.
This is the first volume in a series called "Themes of Theology." The
aim of the series is to further a more intelligible theology. The stress,
the editors feel, must be placed on a deeper reading of the revelation
which will then flower forth in an adaptation to modern life.
In this volume Father Murchland has translated and adapted Elements
de Spiritualite, a group of essays by French priests. The book, aimed
at a general audience, is an attempt to capture the historical quality
of the revelation. After a few general chapters on the nature of
religion and revelation and the meaning of inspiration, the original
plan of creation and its subsequent disruption are discussed. Then the
notion of the people of God is developed in its Old Testament background. The emphasis is not on details but on the general sweep of
action. The concluding third of the book is an introduction to the
New Testament. Emphasis is placed on the personal approach to
reading the word of God. We are urged to read the Gospel to achieve
contact with God.
The work is not intended as a contribution to scientific theology.
Rather it is aimed at helping gather the full advantage that can be
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433
had from our theological knowledge. The emphasis is on insight. There
is a generous sprinkling of apt and provoking quotations. Nothing
new is said, but the book provides an excellent review of the best ideas
being offered today on what to look for in the Bible.
WILLIAM P. SAMPSON, S.J.
A GERMAN NEW TESTAMENT
Neues Testament, iibersetzt und erkllirt. Von Otto Karrer. Munich:
Verlag Ars Sacra, 1959. Imitation leather binding, 11.80 DM;
Morocco, 38 DM.
Karrer's translation of the New Testament into modern German has
become a standard work in German Catholic circles. Its first edition
appeared in 1950, and the second in 1953; within a short time after
issue both were out of print. The third edition, which is now available, is a newly reworked text. The translation was undertaken by
Karrer in order to provide a readable German New Testament for
simple and educated folk alike. Karrer is not ex professo a Scripture
scholar-in this respect he is the German Knox-but he sought and
used the advice of many experts. No little praise has been heaped on
former editions of this translation by well-known exegetes (e.g., Gachter,
Meinertz, Kuss). It is not, however, merely a translation, for many
notes fill up the bottom of the pages, more abundantly for the epistles
than for the gospels. There are also short introductions to the various
books. In all, it is an attempt to make the NT understandable to
modern German Catholics who would not be inclined to look up exegetical commentaries. Though of the same type of New Testament as the
Bible de Jerusalem, it cannot be compared with the latter for thoroughness nor scholarliness. Indeed, at times some of the notes represent an
exegesis of bygone decades. But there is no doubt that the Karrer
translation, beautifully printed on thin paper in the attractive format
characteristic of the Ars Sacra tradition, is a welcome addition to the
growing number of modern translations of the New Testament. For
Americans who like to read their Scriptures occasionally in a foreign
language we can only say, "Tolle, lege!"
JOSEPH A. FITZMYER, S.J.
ON MEDIEVAL SCRIPTURE STUDIES
The Bible in the Early Middle Ages. By Robert E. McNally, S.J. Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1959. Pp. v-121. $1.50.
Critical scholarship has largely neglected the extensive biblical literature of the medieval period, especially the beginnings of that literature
in the years from 650-1000. And yet the value of a survey of biblical
interpretation as a mirror reflecting the life of the Church can scarcely
be overestimated. What an age finds in the Bible is a sure measure
of its own depth and insight. It is the foundation stone of theology,
and the source from which spring the ascetical ideals, liturgical art,
and intellectual life of any period. Father McNally's study, the fourth
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434
in the series Woodstock Papers, is therefore welcome as a presentation
of the early medieval Bible commentaries.
The book is divided into two parts. The first deals with the various
aspects of Bible study: Bibliotheca and Scriptorium, the Latin Vulgate,
the Apocrypha, exegesis and knowledge of the Greek and Latin Fathers,
the senses of Scripture, especially allegory, and the use of the Bible
in theology. The first part concludes with an outline of research problems. This is perhaps the most important part of the book, because,
as has often been observed, the greatest present need in the history of
medieval thought is for the publication of texts. Only when a considerable portion of the existing masses of source material has been
made avaiiable in reliable texts will more general studies, such as
histories
dogma, become profitable.
The second part of the book lists Bible commentaries for the period
650-1000 according to the book commented on. These lists, which include bibliography, are valuable as suyplementing Stegmiiller's Repertorium biblicum medii aevi, and as a help to future editors who may
want to know for purposes of source analysis what commentaries have
been written on a given book. A more extensive general bibliography
would have been very helpful; perhaps Father McNally will supply this
in some future work. Summing-up: useful for the scholar, provocative
for the student.
C. H. LOHR, S.J.
of
A PAULINE COMMENTARY
It Is Paul Who Writes. By Ronald Knox and Ronald Cox, C.M. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1959. Pp. 487. $4.50.
Father Cox, following the format .of his previous work, The Gospel
Story, now presents the Knox transiat1on of the Acts and the Pauline
Epistles, with his own commentary alongside the Scripture text.
In the introduction, Father Cox gives the sources of his commentarY:
Knox, A New Testament Commentary; Nelson, A Catholic Commentary
on Holy Scripture; Prat, The Theology of St. Paul; Holzner, Paul of
Tarsus. In general, these sources are not considered authoritative
today, although much of Frat's exegesis is still valuable. Consequently,
the reader should not expect to find in this book the results of recent
Pauline scholarship.
The format requires that the commentary be the same physical length
as the passage being discussed. Obviously, this demands a compromise
between what could be explained and what there is room to explain.
This causes some lack of clarity and allows some important observations
to go.' unmentioned.
Finally, a remark is in place concerning the Knox translation. With·
out detracting a bit from the immense work of Msgr. Knox, it should
be admitted that today we have better English translations. The KleistLilly translation of 1954, for example, was given a warm welcome by
both scholars and laymen. "Kleist-Lilly is easily the best existing
translation in English by Catholics . . . (It) is consistently superior
�BOOK REVIEWS
435
to Knox in the Gospels, superior (but less consistently) to Knox in the
other books" (John L. McKenzie, S.J., CEQ 16 (1954), p. 492). Another
scholar remarked pertinently, "Teachers of Scripture will find .•. that
the New Version (Kleist-Lilly) is often as good as a commentary"
(James A. Brennan, IER 83 (1955), p. 200).
ROBERT J. KECK, S.J.
GUIDE TO CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
The Official Guide to Catholic Educational Institutions in the United
States. New York: Catholic Institutional Directory Co., 1959.
Pp. 462. $2.95.
A ready reference for the professional counselor as well as a helpful
tool for pastor, parent, educator and student, the Guide includes clear,
concise accounts of Catholic universities, colleges and secondary boarding schools in the United States and Puerto Rico. The first listing
of each institution contains information relevant to the entire school:
date of foundation, corporation or religious order in charge, location,
general accreditation and recognition, semester system followed, services and facilities. Listings in later sections contain only data specific
to the programs described (junior, undergraduate, graduate, professional). Educational activities not generally available, e.g., African
language, delinquency, etc., have also been reported.
For aspirants to the priestly or religious life, the Guide presents the
programs and facilities available in dioceses, religious communities and
secular institutes for the training of members-the first such guidance
tool ever published. The sections "How to Finance a Catholic College
Education" and "College Scholarship Survey" show that cost need
not deter any qualified and interested student from pursuing his higher
education in a Catholic institution. At present an estimated twelve
per cent of such monetary aid remains untapped each year. Orderly
arranged, cross-referenced and indexed, the Guide will help place more
Catholics in schools best for themselves-a distinct service to both
students and schools in this country.
ERWIN G. BECK, S.J.
CATHOLIC SOCIAL PRINCIPLES
Social Principles and Economic Life. By John F. Cronin, S.S., Ph.D.
Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Co., 1959. Pp. xxiv-436. $6.50.
This well-written volume is a major revision of Catholic Social
Principles, published in 1950. Taking the same objective-to explain
Catholic social principles in the light of American economic life-the
author has brought his discussion up to date while cutting it by about
a third. This is a rare combination of improvements!
Father Cronin divides his book into three main parts. The first,
"The Christian Social Order," is a basic discussion of Catholic social
Philosophy. It includes two chapters on conflicting "isms," with
Catholic critiques, as well as a good summary chapter on "The Ideal
Social Order." Parts Two and Three have different titles but form
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BOOK REVIEWS
an application of principles to problem areas. In his exposition of
"The Rights and Duties of Capital," "The Living Wage and Full
Employment," and "International Political and Economic Life"-to
name but a few of these problems-the author reveals to the reader
the complexities of these topics; he is no misty-eyed reformer in his
application of principles. The brevity of his treatment of many controversial subjects, furthermore, is supplemented by useful reading
suggestions at the end of each chapter.
The final chapter of Part Three is really a concluding chapter for
the book, reviewing the goals and the means whereby principles can
be translated into action. Besides an extensive list of papal and other
authoritative :teferences, as well as an index to the same, lengthy
annotated reading lists are appended. For the most part, the selections
are both apropos and up to date. Here and there, one can quarrel over
omissions or inclusions; it is surprising that the monthly Work receives
no mention.
Father Cronin's prudence in prescribing remedies in his earlier
Catholic Social Principles becomes apparent in the present volume;
after nearly a decade, the bulk of his original observations still stand.
Social Principles and Economic Life not only supplies Catholic teachers
with an excellent textbook, but also affords to the general reader a
glimpse of the penetrating and finely balanced judgement of the man
who has- been Assistant Director of the Department of Social Action,
National Catholic Welfare Conference, for the past thirteen years.
CARL J. HEMMER, S.J.
PROBLEMS IN CATHOLIC" SOCIOLOGY
Christians in a Changing World. By Dennis Geaney, O.S.A. Chicago:
Fides, 1959. Pp. ix-180. $3.95.
A frequent lecturer on sociological problems, Father Geaney's book
grew out of a series of lectures delivered to priests and seminarians
attending a social action institute held at Catholic University. With
this in mind, what might at first seem to be a superficial study becomes
more intelligible. Father Geaney is acquainted with the work of "top
sociologists like the Jesuit Fathers Fitzpatrick, Thomas and Fichter"
and if he fails to treat his subject with the same depth, it is because
he feels his audience needs to be shocked into involvement. By reciting
a litany of changes taking place in institutions, patterns of work and
recreation, trends in thought and taste, he hopes to rouse us from "the
unholy inertia that has made us the subjects rather than the agents
of change.t'
Father Geaney points up accidental changes that have taken place
in the Church and, following Congar, spends a great deal of time
delineating the place which the layman has assumed and must continue
to assume in fulfilling the Church's mission. The author has an interesting chapter on the gradual evolution of our city parishes; another
on what he calls the "fragmented family," in which both parents are
�BOOK REVIEWS
437
forced to work; and after an all too brief look at teenagers in flux,
he concludes with some remarks on the lay person's spiritual life,
whose growth and adaptation are made necessary by the shifting
conditions of contemporary society. The final chapter is entitled "The
Priesthood Amidst Change."
While Father Geaney does not offer much that is new to the sociologist,
the book may prove timely and provocative for the parish priest-especially one whose seminary training did not offer him the benefits
of a course in parochial sociology. The books may help members of
the Christian Family Movement, Young Christian Students, the Sodality,
etc., to see how their efforts fit into the larger framework of the
Church's attempt to adapt herself to the needs of the modern world.
One slight error: on page 84 the impression is given that Father E.
Dowling, S.J ., was the founder of the Cana Conference, when in fact
the honor belongs to the late Father John Delaney, S.J.
JAMES A. O'DONNELL, S.J.
BIRTH CONTROL AND POPULATION GROWTH
Family Planning, Sterility, and Population Growth. By Ronald Freedman, Pascal K. Whelpton, and Arthur A. Campbell. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1959. Pp. xi-515. $9.50.
This valuable report by a team of capable and experienced demographers is based on interviews with 2,713 married women under forty,
who constitute a representative national sample of the major social,
religious, and economic strata found in America today. On the basis
of these interviews a detailed description is given of the number of
children American couples of differing backgrounds want and expect,
their attitude toward family limitation, and the various methods they
use to regulate conception. The authors then show the importance of
these individual decisions and actions in determining the size and
composition of our national population. Making use of the new data
collected for this report they attempt to give a more accurate and
detailed prediction of population growth in the United States during
the next forty years.
The methods used in this study are fully described, and, together
with most of the technical details, are to be found in a series of
appendices. Thus the bulk of the book can be read easily without any
special scientific preparation. The inclusion of about fifty-five brief
case-histories adds another dimension to this highly statistical work.
Many of the chapters have useful summaries at the end, and the last
chapter gives in six pages a brief overview of the entire study. A
glossary of terms and a detailed index complete the volume.
A number of points in this report will have special interest for the
moral theologian and the pastor of souls: e.g., the changes that have
taken place even in the past twenty years in the general attitude toward
family planning and its practice in the United States; the general
consensus of opinion now favoring the two to four child family; the
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BOOK REVIEWS
attitude and conduct of Catholics in the matter of family planning,
the various methods used by them, and the correlation of these practices
with church attendance, length of married life, fecundity, level of education, income, etc.; the situation prevailing in mixed marriages. Some
of the findings are surprising, but even when not so, this report gives
us a quantitative view in place of vague and uncertain generalities.
Finally, the authors deserve commendation for having by their
objectivity and courtesy avoided giving offense to the Catholic reader.
Likewise their presentation of the attitude of the Catholic Church
regarding control of family size (pp. 415 ff.) is accurate and based
on authoritative .sources (provided in large part by Father William J.
Gibbons, S.J.)·. ~ '
ALAN McCARTHY, S.J.
ON CATHOLIC 1\IARRIAGE
The Catholic Marriage 1\lanual. By George A. K elly. New York:
Random House, 1958. Pp. ix-240. $4.95.
Father George Kelly, director of the Family Life Bureau of the
Archdiocese of New York, in his latest book, has combined the apologetic,
dogmatic and moral theology of marriage with the latest findings of
marriage counseling and the social sciences. Written for the educated
Catholic, in readable, nontechnical language, Father Kelly discusses
the theology of the marriage vocation, the dignity of Catholic parents,
the mira!_!le of birth and the basic psychology of man and woman; in
order to understand better their roles in fostering mutual love. A
comprehensive treatment of the Catholic attitude towards sex, parenthood, children, love and rhythm, as well as a fine presentation of the
Catholic case against birth control, abortion, divorce, mixed marriages,
make this book a valuable tool for priests,Jl~d Catholic married couples.
An appendix includes family prayers and the instructions said at the
nuptial Mass, and a bibliography for further readings. Dr. Bernard
Pisani, of St. Vincent's Hospital in New York, treats of the physical
and psychological aspects of love-making and the marital act and
the moral theology connected with them.
Writing a book such as this, which offers so much information on
the marriage situation, requires a great deal of research, and painstaking accuracy to avoid misunderst a nding and confusion. In this,
Father Kelly has succeeded well. The Catholic Marriage Manual can
well serve as an authoritative reference book for the many confessional
problems and a source book for the non-Catholic seeking the Catholic
stand on marriage difficulties and the arguments for our position. If
for no other reason than for these, Father Kelly has done a fine service.
•
JosEPH B. NEVILLE, s.J.
RELIGION AND THE CONSTITUTION
Justice Reed and the First Amendment: the Religion Clauses. By
F. William O'Brien, S.J. Georgetown Press, 1958. Pp. vii-264. $5.00.
Some books, like the fences of Robert Frost, demand that the reader
reflect on what they are fencing in and what they are fencing out.
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BOOK REVIEWS
439
Justice Reed and the First Amendment: the Religion Clauses belongs
to this category of books. Father O'Brien has not attempted a general
survey of the Federal Constitutional law in the field of religious activities. Nor has he attempted the more limited objective of structuring
the current operation of the Religion Clauses. His subject is much
more limited. The general area of Father O'Brien's recent book is that
of the Religion Clauses of the Federal Constitution as applied to state
governmental activity in virtue of the Fourteenth Amendment. The
author has limited himself to the period of nineteen years stretching
from 1938 to 1957, and to the activity of a single judge, Stanley Forman
Reed.
The author is not concerned with the general jurisprudential currents
then operative within the Court, nor is he concerned with the actual
position of the Court in the religion cases except in so far as they
are reflected in the judicial positions and ratiocinations of Justice Reed.
When one reflects on the fact that Reed was frequently unable to convince a majority of the Court of the wisdom or rectitude of his approach
and was, in consequence, forced into the position of a dissenter, one
perceives the limited scope of the book.
Father O'Brien approaches his subject as a political scientist. His
chief concern is with the principles the court enunciated and their
implications, limitations, and contradictions. The book is directed to
the "interested observer of America's highest tribunal and to every
student of constitutional law." The actual development of the book
is patterned after the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment. Part
One is devoted to Justice Reed's interpretation of the provision regarding the "free exercise" of religion; Part Two to Reed's interpretation of the Constitutional interdict on the "establishment" of a religion.
A third and final part is concerned with the author's attempt to
'·Identify the basic values in Reed's constitutional world which may have
furnished the general premises on which he grounded his legal decisions."
To participate intelligently in Father O'Brien's discussion and evaluation of Justice Reed's various opinions, the reader is well advised to
reread the actual court opinions in the religious cases, either as a
Preface to the book or as a supplement to the cases as they arise in
the text. The cases are few in number and are readily available in
any constitutional law casebook.
THOMAS M. QUINN, S.J.
RELIGION AND DEMOCRACY
Religion and American Democracy. By Roy F. Nichols. Baton Rouge:
Louisiana State Univ. Press, 1959. Pp. 108. $2.50.
The author of this book is a Pulitzer Prize historian and dean of the
graduate school of arts and sciences of the university of Pennsylvania.
The book is the published form of two lectures delivered at the Rice
·
Institute in Houston.
Although the title and foreword promise to deliver more than 25,000
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BOOK REVIEWS
words are able to carry, the work is an interesting and quite readable
survey of some important currents of the American politico-religious
stream. The first essay, "The Democracy of American Religion," gets
off to a rather stereotyped start, by placing the origins of American
society in the Reformation seen from a quite Protestant point of view,
e.g., "The priesthood was keeping God from men" (p. 5). The author
sketches the development of church and state relations in England
and colonial America, quoting many colonial documents, and mentions
Maryland's toleration act. He traces eighteenth century religious ideas
and their influence on the Declaration of Independence, and notes that
the Consti~ution refers to religion only to outlaw a religious test for
office.
He is also careful to note the vital role of the Catholic Church in
Spanish territories now part of the U.S.
The second essay, "The Religion of American Democracy" seems to
imply that faith and belief are chiefly useful to foster democracy. Re·
ligion was free, yet it strongly influenced American life. The author
gives a generous sampling of hortatory religious writings of the nineteenth century. He quickly surveys religious expressions in public life
up to President Eisenhower, and concludes with reflections on the continuing need of faith and fear if democracy is to be kept alive.
WILLIAM M. KING, S.J.
IDEAS THAT CHANGE THE WORLD
Five Ideas that Change the World. By Barbara Ward. New York:
Norton, 1959. Pp. 188. $3.75.
If the Germans have a genius for exhaustive studies on restricted
topics, the English seem to excell ii{ general surveys that derive their
value from the power to reveal new relations and novel insights into
well-known facts. Two recent examples of this talent are Christopher
Dawson's Movements of Wo1·ld Revolution, (reviewed in Woodstock
Letters, July 1959, p. 333), and Barbara Ward's Five Ideas that Change
the World. Both of these small books are of exceptional value.
Barbara Ward's book is composed of five lectures delivered at the
University of Ghana in 1957. The first treats of the national state, the
"nodal point of all our problems." After briefly surveying the factors
that have given rise to nationalism, the beneficial and injurious effects
of this political entity are presented. On the credit side, nationalism
appears to be the "normal personality for human groups" and secondly,
it is able to mobilize great efforts for communal tasks. The drawback~
enu!l)'erated are the oppression of minorities and the restriction
loyalties. The other four lectures on industrialism, colonialism, com·
munism, and internationalism point out the interaction each of these
has had with the political power of nationalism.
.
The value of this interpretation arises from Barbara Ward's amazJng
power of synthesis. She illustrates her ideas by examples drawn
from the first historical records to today's headlines. Especially note-
°
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441
worthy is her knowledge of past oriental history and the present
situation in the Far East. Again, her grasp of economic forces at
work in the modern world brings clarity to many complex questions.
The result is a plethora of thought-provoking ideas: the possibility
that national states are evolving towards extinction in larger political
federations, that Russia might successfully absorb the lands it has
annexed in South Asia but not those in eastern Europe, that Communism's chief appeal is not its ideology but its "ability to carry
backward countries rapidly through the tremendous crisis of modernization," the paradox that imperial colonialism can be a mighty force
for native freedom, and that communism reflects a state of "mental
alienation" from the actual economic world of such magnitude that
its leaders would be put in a mental institution in any other part of
the world. Some of her opinions will meet with violent opposition.
Americans in general might question her views that the cause of world
peace would be furthered by the withdrawal of United States troops
from Europe and that the American-sponsored military alliances in
the Far East are a blunder.
Few current books on world affairs contain a more penetrating
analysis of the fundamental influences at work in our world; few will
provide more matter for enlightened thought and discussion.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
PEACE THROUGH INTERNATIONAL LAW
International Law: An Introduction to the Law of Peace. By Kurt von
Schuschnigg. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1959. Pp. xv-512. $6.95.
The basic desire of modern man is peace. Although many practical
means are offered for the attainment of this goal, there is one that
must play an ever increasing role if any lasting progress is to be
achieved. This is international law. It alone can provide mankind
with the mature attitude necessary for survival. It is to this important
subject that Professor von Schuschnigg wishes to introduce us.
The first of the five sections into which this book is divided deals
with basic considerations-the nature, historical development, sources
and subjects of this law, and the relationship between national and
international law. The other parts consider the role of this body of
law in regard to the state and then the individuals of the state; the
creation, application, and enforcement of international law; and finally,
international organizations. Those laws which govern the conducting
of war have been excluded, as they constitute a special study in themselves. Within the chapters a set pattern is followed. Definitions
and principles are listed and explained and then legal cases illustrating
these are studied. The fact that the author choses not only famous
historical examples but also contemporary applications gives a sense of
immediacy and vitality to his topic that should create interest on the
Part of the student. Each chapter ends with a short summary of the
matter discussed.
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Although the primary aim of the author is to supply a textbook, the
scholarly footnotes and the up-to-date bibliography make this an ex·
cellent introduction to a further study of the subject. Some authorities
might disagree with the author's favorable attitude toward the Nuremberg trials and with his optimism concerning the United Nations
organization, but all will agree that this work will provide a stimulat..
ing and scholarly introduction to the complicated field of interna·
tiona! law.
WILLIAM J. BOSCH, S.J.
EDUCATION AND WORLD UNITY
Humanism and Education in the East and West. Edited by UNESCO.
Paris, 1957. Distributed by Columbia University Press. Pp. 224.
$2.75'.
In D;cember of 1951, a select group of specialists met at New Delhi.
They had come from America, Europe, the Near and Far East to
discuss the subject: "The concept of man and the philosophy of educa·
tion in East and West." They sought to further UNESCO's efforts
toward world peace and understanding. An account of this meeting
is given in this book. The points that constantly occurred were "the
accepted contrast between East and West and the danger of over·
stressing this contrast; the debt, spiritual, philosophical and scientific
owed through the centuries by East to West and West to East; the
recent predominance of science in the West, and the advantages and
disadvantages which might accrue to the East from the scientific out·
look and in particular the results, good or bad, for education that might
be expected from a new emphasis on the scientific as opposed to the
spiritual."
The meeting listed twelve conclusions and ended with a number of
specific suggestions. Among these ..W.ere the desirability of contact between East and West by means of conferences on philosophy, science,
art and education; that the classics-literary, philosophical and ethical
-of the East should be better known in the West, and therefore
UNESCO should provide for their publication; that the teaching of
history should be re-orientated away from a nationalistic outlook, and
that the teaching of science should be more closely associated with
the teaching of philosophy. Although the reader may disagree with
some of the conclusions and recommendations of the meeting, he will
find in this book new insight into the Eastern mind and a definite
plan for intercommunication between East and West.
ANTHONY B. 0LAGUER,
S.J.
INVITATION TO UNITY
The Catholic Church Invites You. By James V. Linden, S.J. St. Louis:
Herder, 1959. Pp. ix-118. $2.50.
The "you" in the title are all our non-Catholic brothers and sisters
whom the author urges "to again become members of the one Church
Christ established ..." He begs them to examine without prejudice the
�BOOK REVIEWS
443
Church's claim to be the one, true Church founded by Christ; and then,
to follow their conscience. In the first section on unity as a mark of
the true Church, the author stresses that the oneness of sacrifice,
priesthood and altar in the Old Law prefigured the oneness of the
Church Christ founded on Peter, and today present in the Catholic
Church alone. In the following two sections Jews and all the sects
of Protestantism are invited to return. A brief roll call of well known
personalities, living and dead, who have returned to the one true fold
is added. In a final section the immovable foundation stones of the
Church's inner unity are laid bare: the divinity of Christ, authority
and personal responsibility, a sense of sin, the sacramental system.
These preserve and ensure the doctrine as Christ taught it. Father
Linden writes clearly and with obvious sincerity.
PAUL 0STERLE, S.J.
VOCATION BOOKLETS
The Jesuits. Baltimore, 1959, 48 pp.
Behind the S.J. Curtain. Vocational Bureau, De Nobili College, Poona,
India, 1958, 63 pp. 15 cents.
The Man in the Jesuit Mask. Poona, 83 pp. 20 cents.
On February 2, 1957, a group of New York theologians at Woodstock
presented a comprehensive and well-considered report on factors which
were influencing Jesuit vocations in our New York Province schools
(c. JEQ, June, 1958 pp. 42-53). One practical recommendation called
for up-to-date vocational literature. Reverend Father Provincial took
the group at its word and the present booklet is the happy result of
its efforts.
We have here an excellent printing job, with clear pictures and a
coverage which is exceptionally complete. The first part of the booklet
deals in forward-looking fashion with the present-day work of the
Province: education, science and scholarship, communications, parishes
and retreats, special assignments and missions; the second half treats
of the stages of the course which prepare a man for participation in
these works. This division thus avoids one pitfall of vocational literature and movies: preoccupation with the course of studies.
Among the pictures there are some which have enjoyed national
circulation and others aptly posed for the booklet. They are knit
together by a text which is factually objective and complete, with
special reference to the works of the New York Province. A short
bibliography of books on the Society and its members for young men
of high school and college age, and a series of questions and answers
on requirements for entrance, are appended. In short, this booklet
could well serve as a model for other Provinces which feel a similar
need for fresh vocation material.
There are two highly acceptable additions to our vocational literature from the philosophate-theologate at Poona, India. The "man
behind the curtain" is a novice, the "man in the mask" a junior. The
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author's purpose is to present "not high explanations about the ideals,
aims, ambitions of the Jesuit Order, but the ordinary, trifling details
which are so matter-of-fact for a Jesuit, and often so unusual for an
outsider." He succeeds admirably: for a Jesuit these booklets and their
sketches summon up memories of his first years in the Society; for
a young man, the presentation should have the effect of helping him
appreciate the "ideals, aims, ambitions of the Jesuit Order."
To an American audience the booklet on the noviceship will not
appeal as much as the other because it mentions several local customs
and contains more intentionally pious impressions of a novice younger
than our own would be. With the cartooned cover of "The Man in
the Jesuit Mask," however, any Jesuit will feel quite at home.
JAMES A. O'BRIEN, S.J.
THE DIVINE OFFICE IN ENGLISH
The Divine Office. Edited by Hildebrand Fleischmann, O.S.B. Adapted
and translated by Edward E. Malone, O.S.B. New York: Herder
and Herder, 1959.
Pp. xxxi-661.
$5.25 (leatherette), $6.00
(leather).
The appearance on the American scene of three new abbreviated
vernacular breviaries within the last year or so is not without significance. It is a sign that the Church's own official prayerbook is
being returned to and welcomed by her children-lay and religiousin a form that is both intelligible and practical.
The present adaptation from the German, the last of the European
short breviaries to appear in English, resembles our own American
original closely enough to suggest a comparison with it. Like A Short
Breviary (Liturgical Press) simplifications take the following form:
(1) the major hours have three Psahrisf the minor hours one Psalm;
(2) Matins has one nocturne with one lesson; ~3) hymns have been
shortened to usually three or four stanzas; ( 4) the number of sait1ts'
feasts has been reduced with a corresponding emphasis un seasonal
offices. On a fifth score it resembles at least the unabridged edition
of A Short Breviary by providing additional Psalms (bringing the
total to 129) and readings for a longer office or for an alternate cycle
in the regular office.
So much for similarities. Three features suggest themselves as
improvements over the American breviary: ( 1) the added Psalms and
readings are integrated into the office itself rather than appended in
supplements; (2) all of the hours in the longer office are lengthened
proportionately, not merely Matins; (3) a larger selection of common
offices P.i:ovides for a fuller celebration of the sanctoral cycle. On the
other hand the complete Psalter and the greater selection of Scripture
readings offered by the unabridged American version will appeal to
many.
No one of the four short breviaries can be labeled "the best," since
each has advantages not found in the others. Price variation is also
important, especially when consideration is being given to adoption
J
�BOOK REVIEWS
445
by a religious community. This reviewer's own preference lies with
The Little Brevia1·y (Newman), an adaptation from the Dutch, which
is more faithful than any other to the structure of the Breviarium
romanum.
JOSEPH G. MURRAY, S.J.
A STUDY OF THE SACRED HEART DEVOTION
The Sacred Heart: A Commentary on Haurietis Aqua&. By Alban J.
Dachauer, S.J. Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Company, 1959.
Pp. 209. S4.25.
Father Dachauer, helped by his long and varied experience in connection with the Sacred Heart devotion, attempts to give a simple
and clear commentary on Haurietis Aquas, in order "to help the reader
better understand the significance of the Holy Father's message, and
to appreciate the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus."
A handy index at the back of the book and an English translation of
the encyclical Haurietis Aquas with numbered paragraphs and the
author's own headings, plus a neat outline of the encyclical, make this
book a good and convenient tool for study clubs and religion classes
on the secondary level. The nineteen chapters are easy reading. One
is struck by the beautiful insight of Father Dachauer into the threefold love of the Heart of Christ. His volume does give the general
reader a little more of the scriptural, traditional, theological, ascetical
and historical background of this most important document on the
Sacred Heart.
REYNALDO P. LORREDO, S.J.
THE PARABLES OF JESUS
The Parables of Jesus. By Francis L. Filas, S.J. New York: Macmillan, 1959. Pp. x-172. $3.75.
Father Filas has made a welcome addition to his growing list of
informative spiritual books. His approach to the parables of Christ
is at once factual and devotional. The avowed purpose of the book
is to set forth in a brief form the various interpretations of the parables,
so that any interested Christian might search out their meanings.
To effect this, the author first explains the nature of parables, describes
the meaning of the term "Kingdom of Heaven," and then inserts a
brief chapter on Christ's reason for using this device. Each parable
is then studied, not in word-by-word detail, but with a concise explanation, or, where there are many interpretations, these are listed briefly
but with all essential details. His exposition of the parables that
have been for a long time shrugged off as unintelligible, is clear and
satisfactory. Thus, in one of the most misunderstood parables, that
known usually as the Parable of the Unjust Steward, which the author
entitles the Shrewd Manager, there is an orderly exploration of all
the solutions proposed. His own choice is given simply and briefly.
There is never an editorial attempt to force the reader to accept the
author's conclusions. Rather there is a clarity of explanation that
is indicative of a happy combination of piety and patient research.
There is an epilogue entitled The Light of the World in ~hich the
�446
BOOK REVIEWS
author explains Matthew 6:12 in, a parabolic sense. The sentence,
"Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against
us" is explained as a parable of charity, and as a summary of the
central theme of Christ's doctrine of the law of love of God and man.
This latter idea is briefly summarized and set forth as an ideal for
our imitation.
Written to help study clubs and discussion groups, this book would
be a valuable asset to the library of any priest. The Sunday morning
preacher will find it a great help in preparing a lucid explanation of
difficult parables. Nor is this the limit of its usefulness. The layman
who follows the Mass with the Missal will find that a quick reading the
night b~!lre guarantees a deeper insight.
WILLIAM
F.
GRAHAM,
S.J.
REFLECTION OF A CONVERT
Why I Am A Catholic. By Paul van K. Thomson. New York: Thomas
Nelson & Sons, 1959. Pp. 204. $2.75.
Born in the flesh forty or more years ago, the author came to life in
the mystical body only at the start of this past decade. Still, this is
not a "convert book"; it does not tell of stumbling through broken
paths of darkness into the warm light of faith. The book's title is
not Why I Became A Catholic, but Why I Am A Catholic. What we
find in these pages, then, are the reflections of a man appreciating the
truths of his faith. If you are the type who reserves an eye of suspicion
for the Catholic convert, under the apprehension that such people
rarely receive more than a caricature of the faith, be forewarned,
Mr. Thomson writes about his faith with warmth and depth. The
book is ideally suited to the intellige.nt layman, Catholic and otherwise,
who wishes a deeper appreciation of the Church. Stress is placed on
ideas that prospective converts would find difficult, such as papal
infallibility, the role of the Bible, confession, the Real Presence, etc.
In a treatment so extensive, bound together in a scant 204 pages, we
marvel at the author's rich comprehension.
GEORGE
R.
GRAZIANO,
S.J.
POINTS FOR MEDITATION
Christ at Every Crossroad. By F. Desplanques, S.J. Translated by
G. R. Serve. Westminster, Maryland: Newman Press, 1959. Pp.
vii-125. $2.75.
If the proof of the pie is in the eating, then that of Father Desplan·
ques' book is in the reading, or better, in the meditating. For it is 8
meaitation book. But just as in the case of pies, tastes will differ,
so will they most assuredly regarding this little volume. To some the
book will read like a collection of sentimental effusions-a conclusion
not hard to come by if the reader is allergic to an abundance of
exclamation marks. To others it might well be the beginning of loftY
flights into the realm of contemplation. To most, however, its contents
will be 'simply prayerful thoughts, more or less stimulating to active
�BOOK REVIEWS
447
thinking on one's own. Most of the meditations were originally meant
for Catholic workers but have been extended in the editing to a much
more general audience. For this reason, efforts are made to bring
in commonplace objects of day to day living, and the reader often
finds himself praying with the author in generalities that somehow
can be most intimate and personal.
For the purposes of the author the title of the book is well chosen.
Briefly, the underlying theme of the various meditations may be stated
thus: there is nothing more pedestrian, nothing more utilitarian thaft
streets and crossroads, yet Christ is there in the thick of the traffic
making all things good and beautiful and holy; He is in the office, the
factory, the classroom; no place, no job, no station in life howsoever
common or trivial but can be sublimated by His presence. A truism
in the spiritual life, this, and no one will quarrel with it. But whether
the meditations will help the reader to a deeper awareness of its truth,
or will lead him to strive to make it a really potent force in his life,
is entirely a personal matter-food for thought, like food for the body,
can have varying degrees of digestibility and palatability.
FRANCISCO F. CLAVER, S.J.
* * *
AMONG OUR REVIEWERS
Father Henry W. Casper (Wisconsin Province), who teaches History at
Creighton University, has done research on the Sherman papers in
the Province Archives.
Father Cecil H. Chamberlin (Patna Vice-Province), now on the staff of
Jesuit Missions, spent many years as a missionary in India.
Father John W. Donohue (New York Province) is a professor of Education in the School of Education of Fordham University.
Father Avery Dulles (New York Province) will complete his studies in
Dogmatic Theology at the Gregorian University during the coming
year.
Father Joseph A. Fitzmyer (Maryland Province) is professor of Sacred
Scripture at Woodstock.
Father William F. Graham (Maryland Province) is Spiritual Father
of the theologians at Woodstock.
Father John A. Hardon (Detroit Province), professor of Fundamental
Theology at West Baden, is the author of The Protestant Churches
of America. His new book All My Liberty, a study of the theology
of the Spiritual Exercises, will be reviewed in the next issue of
Woodstock Letters.
Father Charles H. Metzger (Detroit Province) has taught History at
West Baden since its opening in 1933.
Father Edmund J. Stumpf (Wisconsin Province) is Spiritual Father of
the dental school at Creighton University.
�...
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Spiritual Journal
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Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
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In this singular document we have a fuller
introduction to the soul of St. Ignatius and
the profoundest aspect of his spirituality.
It brings the interior life of the Saint into
focus, separating it from the external aspects
which, glorious and full of merit as they are,
cast shadows which prevent our contemplating ti-e life in its full light. ~Here we enter
the most hidden precinct of Ignatius' soul.
Now translated into English in its entirety
for the first time.
Price: $1.10 a copy
Order from:
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Woodstock Letters
Woodstock College
Woodstock, Maryland
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Woodstock Letters
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Jesuit Archives & Research Center
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 88 (1959)
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1959 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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BX3701 .W66
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lat
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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1959
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Text
A.M. D. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND MISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF JESUS
VOL. LXXXVII
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1958
FOR CIRCULATION AMONG OtJRS ONLY
�P., ,.
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--
�INDEX TO VOLUlUE LXXXVII
ARTICLES
Auriesville Retreat Statistics ------------------------ ------------------------------------------ 174
49
Bibliography of Contemplation in Action
Biblio-graphy to Aid Vocations ------------------------ __ -------------------------- -------- 268
Ignatian Spirituality and the Liturgy __________________ ------------------------ ______ 14
Lincoln in a Cassock ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------...oyola Hall, Le Moyne College ---------------------------------------------------------------Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak ------------------------------------------------------------------Predicting Number of Jesuit Priests ------------------------------------------------------The Quest for God ---'-------------------------------------------------------------------------------Saint Ignatius and the Mystical Body ---------------------------------------------------Schola Brevis Convocation 1958 ------------------------------------------------- ______________
Short Life of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez ____________________ -----------------------------Spiritual Journal of Ignatius Loyola _______________ ------------------------------------
335
331
36
43
99
107
323
3
195
OBITUARIES
Ayd, Joseph J.
165
Barrett, Alfred --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 63
Boyton, Neil ------------------------------------------------------------------- _________ --------------------- 53
Cody, Alexander J. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 115
Deppermann, Charles E. ------------------------------------------ ____ ________________ ________________ 123
Dincher, Frederick N. --------------------------------------------------------------- ________________ 171
Lej ay, Pierre ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 334
Millar, Moorhouse I.X. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 135
CONTRIBUTORS
BARLOW, RAUL M., Translator, Short Life of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez
3
BURNS, HARRY R., Saint Ignatius and the Mystical Body -------------------- 107
CARIOLA, PATRICIO F., Translator, The Quest for God -------------------------- 99
CURRAN, FRANCIS X., Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak ------------------------------ 36
FIEKERS, BERNARD A., Obituary of Father Pierre Lejay ______________________ 334
GALLAGHER, CHARLES A., Bibliography to Aid Vocations ------------------HARTNETT, ROBERT C., Obituary of Father Moorhouse I.X. Millar ---HASSEL, DAVID J., Bibliography of Contemplation in Action ______________
HENNESSEY, JAMES J., Obituary of Father Charles E. Deppermann __
HIGGINS, THOMAS J., Obituary of Father Joseph J. Ayd -------------------
268
135
49
123
165
�HOEFNER, CHARLES E. F., Obituary of Father Neil Boyton ------HURTADO, ALBERTO, The Quest for God ----------------------------------JULIAN, MIGUEL, Short Life of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez ---------------KINES, LOUIS BERKELEY, Lincoln in a Cassock: Life of Father John
McElroy ----------------------------------------------------------------------------LYNCH, JOHN W., Loyola Hall, Le Moyne College ---------------------------McFADDEN, EDWIN A., Obituary of Father Alexander J. Cody ________
MEHOK, WILLIAM J., Predicting Number of Jesuit Priests ------------O'NEILL, JOSEPH E., Obituary of Father Alfred Barrett ----------------RENz, FRANCIS J., Obituary of Father Frederick N. Dincher -----------RYAN, EDMUND G., Bibliography to Aid Vocations ------------------------------SCHUMACHER, JOHN N., lgnatian Spirituality and the Liturgy ------SPONGA, EDWARD J., Schola Brevis Convocation 1958 ---------------------------TOLAND, TERRENCE J., Schola Brevis Convocation 1958 ---------------------YoUNG, WILLIAM J., Translator, Spiritual Journal of Ignatius Loyola
53
99
3
335
331
115
43
63
171
268
14
325
323
195
BOOK REVIEWS
ADAM, KARL, The Christ of Faith (Joseph L. Roche)
ATTWATER, DONALD, Martyrs: From St. Stephen to John Tung
(Joseph A. Ca poferri) -------------------------------------------------------------BACHHUBER, ANDREW H., Introduction to Logic (Alfred Hennelly)
BECKER, KURT, I Met a Traveller (J. Robert Barth) ------------------------BENSON, ROBERT HUGH, By What Authority (Joseph A. Galdon) ---BENSON, ROBERT HUGH, Oddfish! (Joseph A. Galdon) ----------------------BERTINI, G. M., ed., Bibliografia del P. Miguel Batllori, S.J. (Francisco de P. Nadal) --------------------------------------------------------------------------BISKUPEK, ALOYSIUS, Conferences on the Religious Li£1 _(Paul
Oster le) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------~---------BOWDEN, C. H., Short Dictionary of Catholicism (William J. Bosch)
BURKE, THOMAS J. M., ed., Beyond All Horizons: Jesuits and the
Missions (John F. Curran) ------------------------------------------------~--------CALLAN, LOUISE, Philippine Duchesne: Frontier Missionary of the
Sacred Heart (E. A. Ryan) ------------------------------------------------------------CARAMAN, PHILIP, Priest of the Plague: Henry Morse, S.J. (Royden
B. Davis) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------CAROL, JUNIPER B., Mariology, Volume II (John F. X. Sweeney) ____
CARY-ELWES, COLUMBA, China and the Cross: A Survey of Missionary History (John R. Willis) ----------------------------------------------------CLAUDEL, PAUL, The Essence of the Bible, Tr. by Wade Baskin
(John S. Nelson) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------COLEBURT, RUSSELL, An Introduction to Western Philosophy (John
W. Healey) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
178
177
181
411
185
185
191
403
412
82
190
86
83
91
409
182
�CONGAR, YVEs M. J., Lay People in the Church, Tr. by Donald Attwater (Emmanuel V. Non)
93
CONNOLLY, F. G., Science Versus Philosophy (William J. Schmitt) 184
CoNWELL, JosEPH, Contemplation in Action: A Study in Ignatian
Prayer (Gerard Bell) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- 90
DALEY, JOHN M., Georgetown University: Origin and Early Y ears
(James N. Gelson)
----------------- ----- 188
DANIELOU, JEAN, The Bible and the L iturgy (Joseph B. Doty) ------ 89
D'ARCY, MARTIN C., Communism and Christianity (Edward V.
Stevens) - --- - - - - - - - -------------- -------------------- --- 408
FERGUSON, CHARLES W., Naked to Mine Enemies (William Sampson) 405
FILAS, FRANCIS L., Manual of St. Joseph Prayers (John F. X.
Sweeney) ----- ------------------------------------- ------------------ 82
Fox, ADAM, Plato and the Christians (Thomas D. Guerin) - ------- 87
FULLER, EDMUND, The Christian Idea of Education (Leo H. Larkin) 180
GENSE, J. H., and CONTI, A., In th e Days of Gonzalo Garcia (15371597) (Robert Rush) - - - -- -------------------------------------------- 405
GILMONT, J. F., and DAMAN, P., Bibliographie Ignatienne (18941957) (Royden B. Davis) - - - - - - - - - -------------- 408
GUARDINI, ROMANO, Prayer in Practice, Tr. by Prince Leopold of
Loewenstein-Wertheim (Arthur S. O'Brien) ----------------- 179
GUARDINI, ROMANO, The Rosary of Our Lady, Tr. by H. Von
Schuecking (Edward Stevens) ------------------------------ 88
HAWKINS, D. J. B., Crucial Problems of Modern Philosophy (John
W. Healey) -------------- ------------ ------------- -- -------------- 404
KAruu:R, OTTo, M eister Ekehart Sp eaks, Tr. by Elizabeth Strakosch
(Edward Stevens) ---------------------------------------------------- 88
KERNS, JOSEPH E., Portrait of a Champion (William J. Schmitt) 84
KNox, RoNALD, Tr., A u tobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux (J.
Harding Fisher) ------ --- -- ------------------------------------------ 399
KOLESNIK, WALTER B., M ental Discipline in Modern Ed1
tcation
(John W. Donohue) ------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 399
LETURIA, PEIDRO DE, Estudios Ignacianos, Revised by Ignacio Ipparaguirre, S.J. (E. A. Ryan) ------------------------------------- 318
LEURET, FRANCOIS and BoN, HENRI, Modern Miraculous Cures, Tr.
by Rev. John C. Barry and A. T. Macqueen, M.D. (John S.
Nelson) _
________
_______ ..:______________
______
______
_________ __ 93
___
LEWIS, WYNDHAM D. B., Doctor Rabelais (Joseph A. Capoferri)
LUCEY, WILLIAM L., The Record of an American Priest: Michael
Earle, S.J., 1873-1937 (Richard P. Noonan) -----------------MARITAIN, JACQUES, On the Philosophy of History, Edited by Joseph
W. Evans (Edmund G. Ryan) -------------------------------------------MASCALL, E. L., Christian Theology and Natural Science (James C.
Carter) - - - - -- --------------- --- - ----------------------------------
86
414
186
94
�McDoNNELL, TIMOTHY L., The Wagner Ho:~sing .tlct: A Case Study
of the Legislative Process (Thomas M; Quinn) -----------------McGOEY, JOHN H., Fathering-Forth (Paul Osterle) -------------------------McLAUGHLIN, P. J., The Church and Modern Science (Daniel J.
O'Brien) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------MEADOWS, DENIS, A Popular History of the Jesuits (Charles A.
Gallagher) ___________ -------------------------------------------- --------------------------------MERTON, THOMAS, Thoughts in Solitude (Gerard F. Giblin) ______________
MoRTO::-<, H. V., A Traveller in Rome (Harry R. Burns) ____________________
189
415
192
402
410
318
O'MALLEY, l\IcMAHON, CAHILL, and ARMBRUSTER, Challenge (Thomas
C. Hennessy) _______________ ----------------------------------------- ------------------------ 319
PARROT, ANDRE, Baby;on and the Old Testament, Tr. by B. E. Hooke
(J. D. Shenkel) __ ______
_ _________________________________________________________ 413
PARROT, ANDRE, Samaria and the Capital of the Kingdom of Israel,
Tr. by S. H. Hooke (J. D:. Shenkel) -------------------------------413
PEIRCE, FRANCIS X., Ponder Slowly (J. Harding Fisher) ____________________ 176
PFAU, RALPH and HIRSCHBERG, AL, Prodigal Shepherd (Robert H.
Springer) ______________________________ --------------------------------------------------------------PIEPER, JosEF, Happiness and Contemplation (Robert F. McDonald)
PIRONE, FRANK J., Science and the Love of God (James C. Carter)
PRUE:.\'!MER, DOMINIC M., Handbook of Moral Theology, Tr. by Gerald
W. Shelton (Robert H. Springer) --------------------------------------------------RAYMOND, M., You (Thomas H. Connolly) -------------------------------------------RICCIOTTI, GIUSEPPE, The Acts of the Apostles: Text and Commenta1-y, Tr. by Laurence E. Byrne (Edwin D. Sanders) _________________
SCHNUERER, GUSTAV, Chttrch and Cultm·e in the Middle Ages I, Tr.
by George J. Undreiner (William P. Sampson) ---------------------------SCHOENBERG, WILFRED P., Jesuit Mission Presses in the Pacific
Northwest: A History and Bibliography of Imprints (1876__ ___________________ ____________ _______________
1899) (William J. Bosch)
SCHURHAMMER, GEORG, F1·anz Xaver: se·in Leben und seine Zeit
(E. A. Ryan) -------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------SHEED, F. J., Theology for Beginners (Robert E. Butler) __________________
STURZ, EDWARD L., The Praise of Wisdom (Royden B. Davis) __________
TRESE, LEO J., More Than jlfany Sparrows (William J. Bosch) ________
VALENSIN, HUBY, and DURAND, The Word of Salvation, Tr. by John
J. Heenan (E. A. Ryan) ---------------------------------------------------------------VANN, GERALD and MEAGHER, P. K., The Temptations of Christ
(Thomas H. Connolly) ________ _
_______________ -------------------------------------------VAN ZELLER, HUBERT, Approach to Penance (Arthur S. O'Brien) ____
WHALEN, WILLIA:.-,: J., Separated Brethren (Gustave Weigel) _________
WILLIAMS, MARGARET, The Sacred Heart in the Life of the Church
(E. A. Ryan) ------ ---------------- ------------------"--------------- -----------------------------WILLIAMSON, CLAUDE, ed., Letters from the Saints (Alfred E. Morris) --------------- ------------------ ----------------------.----------------------------------------------- __
401
414
93
177
320
317
95
92
176
180
182
413
85
403
401
399
81
40 7
�WILLIAMSON, HUGH Ross, The Beginning of the English Reformation (Edmund G. Ryan) -------------------------------------------WUELLNER, BERNARD, A Christian Philosophy of Life (John J. MeN eill) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ZARNECKI, GEORGE, English Romanesquc Lead Sculpture (William
Sampson) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------World Crisis and the Catholic (John Phelan) ----------------------------------------
GENERAL INDEX
Algue, Jose 125
Archinto, Filippo 221
Armstrong, General Frank 368
Asnaf Sagad I (alias Claudius), Ignatius' letter to 107
Atwood, John 357
Autobiography of St. Ignatius 195
Ayd, Joseph J. 165 ff.
Baguio, Manila Observatory at 132
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 353
Barlow, R. M. 3
Barrett, Alfred J. 63 ff.
Bartoli, Father 196
Baumgarten, P. M. 224
Baxter, Roger 343
Bellarmine's
Apologia 151
De Summo Pontifice 151
Borgia, St. Francis 31, 215, 223, 230, 257-8
Boston College 392
Boy Scouts 54
Boyton, Neil 53 ff.
Brown, Paul, schol. 169
Brzozowski, Father General 341
Buchanan, President James 371
Buckner, Simon Bolivar 387
Bull, George 159
Burns, Harry R. 107
Canisius, St. Peter 32, 111
Cariola, Patricio 99
Carpi, Cardinal 221
Carre, Alexandre 139
Carroll, Charles 346, 353
183
187
186
406
�Catholic Tradition in American Democracy 153
Chaplains, U. S. Army, during Mexican War 370, 391
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal 355
Codina, Father 197, 227
Codure, John 265
Cody, Alexander J. 115 ff.
Compendium of Meteorology 128
Constitutions and Revenues of Sacristies 220, 267
Contemplation in Action, lgnatian 49
Convent of the Sisters of Mercy 337
Coronas, Father 127
Costanzo, Joseph 160
Council of Baltimore
Fourth Provincial 359
Sixth Provincial 371
Crawford, Finla 323
Cullen, Dr. 359
Cupis, Cardinal Giandomenico 199, 221
Curley, Mr. 366
Curran, Francis X. 36
da Camara, Gonzalves 196, 238, 261, 262
de Guibert, Father 197, 247
de la Torre, Juan Jose 164, 196, 398
Deppermann, Charles E. 123 ff.
Derujinsky, Gleb 39
de Toledo, Cardinal Juan Alvarez 228
Dincher, Frederick N. 171 ff.
Divine Office, A Brief Introduction to 167
Dred Scott Decision 347 ff.
Dunigan, David R. 336
Dzierozynski, Francis 358, 395
England, Bishop John 359
Faber, Blessed Peter 26-7
Fair, Rev. Bartholomew 361, 396
Feder, Alfred 196
Fenwick, Bishop Benedict 395
Fiekers, B. A. 334
Finotti, Father 343
Fitzpatrick, Bishop John 359, 392
Fitzpatrick, Joseph 160
Flaget, Bishop Benedict 359
�Frasca, William R. 155, 158-61
Frederick Free School 362 ff.
Frederick, Md. 346 ff.
Frusius, Father 263
Gallagher, Charles A. 268
Gallwey, Peter 35, 62
Garraghan, Gilbert J. 336, 352
Gavin, M. 35
Gelineau, Father 34
Georgetown in the Life of Father McElroy 337 passim
Gibbons, James Cardinal 141
Gleeson, Richard 118
Gracias, Valerian Cardinal 37
Grassi, John 343-5
Grewen, Robert F. 333
Guggenberger, Father 144
Hartnett, R. C. 135
Hassel, David J. 49
Hennessey, James J. 123
Higgins, Thomas J. 165
A History of Boston College 336
Hoefner, C. E. F. 53
Holy Trinity Church, Washington, D. C. 337, 345, 362
Howard, George, Governor of Md. 353
Hughes, Bishop John 371, 373
Hurtado, Alberto 99
lgnatian Contemplation in Action, Bibliography 49 ff.
lgnatian Spirituality and Liturgy 14 ff.
Ignatius and the Mystical Body 107 ff.
Ignatus, St. 106, 114, 134, 164, 398; Spiritual Journal 195; Autobiography 195; Spiritual Exercises 195; tears 205 passim;
visions 205, 239 passim; tocamientos 228; loquela 247 passim;
poverty, election on 265
lparraguirre, Ignacio 197
Iturbide, Madame 348
Jordan, Aloysius 339, 361, 396
Julian, Miguel 3
Kearney, Col. Stephen W. 372
Kelly, James F., tribute to Fr. Cody 122
Kelly, Mr., schol. 366
Kemper, Aloysius 204
Kendrick, Bishop 372
�Kennally, Most Rev. Vincent I. 37
Kenney, Father, Visitor 352
Kilroy, James J. 344
Kines, Louis Berkeley 335
Kiselewski, Joseph, sculptor (Shrub Oak)
Kohlmann, Anthony 340
38
Kreis, Henry 39
Lafayette, General 348
Lancicius, Father 196
Larrafiaga, Victoriano 197, 216, 227, 230, 247, 248
La Storta, Ignatius' vision at 220
Laurence, John K. 170
Laynez, Diego 200
LeBuffe, Francis P. 155
Ledochowski, Father General 33-4
Lejay, Pierre 334
Le Moyne College 331 ff.
Lilly, Father 369
Lionnet, Andre 45
Liturgy and Ignatian Spirituality 14 ff.
Loyola Hall 331 ff.
Loyola Seminary, Shrub ~ak 36 ff.
Loyola: The Soldier Saint (Movie) 74-5
Lynch, Rev. John W. 331
Maas, Anthony J. 144, 170
Madison, Dolly P. 382
Maldarelli, Oronzio 39
Maleve, Father 346-7
Manila Observatory 126
Marcy, William 389
Secretary of War under Polk 370
Letter to Father McElroy 374
Letter to General Zachary Taylor 375
Matamoras, Mexico 336, 376-81, 383, 386, 390
McClusky, Father 124
McDonough, Father 397
McElroy, Anthony 356 ff.
McElroy, John
Life of 335-98
Chaplain in Mexican War 368
Founder of Boston College 392
--
�Mcintyre, James Francis Cardinal 37
McLintock, Rear Admiral Gordon 323
McLoughlin, Patrick 339
Meade, George Gordon 387
Mehok, William J. 43
1\Iencken, Henry L.
on Father Ayd 165
Mexican War, Chaplains 368 ff.
Middle States Evaluating Committee 323-4
Millar, Moorhouse I.X. 135
The State and The Church 146
Mobberly, Brother 342
Molyneux, Robert 339
Mount St. Mary's College 349
lVlulledy, Samuel 368
Mulledy, Thomas 379
Murphy, John 155
Mystical Body, St. Ignatius and the 107 ff.
Nadal, Jerome 27-31, 111, 260
Neale, Charles 346
Neale, Francis 342
Neale, Archbishop Leonard 343-5
Nelson, Judge A. 368
Newport, Peter 120
North, Alfred 160
O'Neill, Joseph E. 63
O'Rourke, John H. 144
Our Lady and St. Alphonsus Rodriguez 8
Our Lady of the Way, Church of 212, 224
Papini, Giovanni
Perinde ac cadaver 106
Kindness 114
Most completely Catholic 134
Patterson, Laurence Kent 159
Patterson, Robert 387
Peters, Father 366
Pettit, George A. 144
Polk, President James 370, 372-3, 376
Poverty, St. Ignatius' Election on 204, 265
Priest Retreat Statistics at Auriesville (1939-1957)
Priests, Predicting number of Jesuit 43 ff.
Purcell, Bishop John Baptist 359
174
�Pyne, John X. 154
Quest for God, The 99 ff.
Reiselman, Brother Henry 345
Reiss, Mary D. (Mrs.) 37
Rejadell, Sister Teresa 230, 248
Renz, Francis 171
Rey, Anthony 370, 374, 375, 377-80, 390, 392, 396
Ribadeneira, Pedro 196, 262
Ricci, Bartholomew 32
Rockwell, Joseph, Provincial 125
Rosati, Bishop 336, 360
Ryan, Edmund G. 268
Ryan, Msgr. John A. 146
Ryder, James 361
Sacred Heart Retreat House, Retreat Statistics (1939-1957)
St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, Life of 3 ff.
St.
St.
St.
St.
St.
174
Francis Xavier 110
George's Island 358
Inigoes Manor, British Raid on 341
John's Church 336, 346, 360
John's Institute 365 ff.
St. Joseph's (Old St. Joseph's) 361 ff.
St. Mary's Church, Boston 392
St. Thomas Manor 346
St. Vincent's Church, Baltimore 351
Schaeffer, Mr. 364
Schley, Admiral Winfield Scott 368
Schmitz, Carl 40
Schola Brevis Convocation of Woodstock College, The 1958 323
Schumacher, John N. 14
Schweitzer, Father 144
Scott, General Winfield 384, 392
Scully, Most Rev. William A. 37, 153
Sherman, General William T. 361
Shrub Oak, Loyola Seminary 36 ff.
Sisters of Charity 357-8, 363, 365
Slavery, Views on 342
Spellman, Francis Cardinal 36
Spiritual Exercises and the Liturgy, The
18 ff.
�Spiritual Journal of St. Ignatius, The 195 ff.
Sponga, Edward J. 325
Steinbacher, Nicholas 171
Stonestreet, Charles 339
Suarez:
De Legibus 151
Defensio Fidei 151
Suquia, Dr. A. 202
Taney, Roger Brooke 347
Tate, Allen 69
Taylor, General Zachary 336, 370, 375, 380, 382-3, 391-2
Tocamientos 228
Trinitarian Mysticism of St. Ignatius 201
Toland, Terrence J. 323
Trivett, William 74
Vanucci, D. Francisco, Almoner of Paul III 209
Verhaegen, Peter, Visitor and Provincial 368, 373-4, 389-90
Viset, John 196
Visitation Convent 345, 356; nuns of 365
Vocations, Bibliography to Aid 268
Walsh, Gerald Groveland 157
Walsh, William 58, 72
Woodstock College:
Schola Brevis Convocation, 1958 323
Crawford, Finla, on 323
McLintock, Rear Admiral Gordon, on 323
Middle States Evaluating Committee on 323
Young, William J. 195
Zapico, Dionisius 197
Zema, Demetrius 159
Zi-Ka-Wei Observatory 334.
��WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVII, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1958
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1958
A SHORT LIFE OF ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ____________ 3
Miguel Julian, S.J.
IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY AND THE LITURGY _________________ 14
John N. Schumacher, S.J.
LOYOLA SEMINARY, SHRUB OAK______________________________ 36
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
PREDICTING NUMBER OF JESUIT PRIESTS __________________________ 43
William J. Mehok, S.J.
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF CONTEMPLATION IN ACTION _______________ 49
David J. Hassel, S.J.
FATHER NEIL BOYTON----------------------------------------------------------- 53
C. E. F. Hoefner, S.J.
FATHER ALFRED BARRETT________________________________________ 63
Joseph E. O'Neill
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS·--------------------·--------------------------- 81
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father R. l\1. Barlow (Philippine Vice Province) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock.
Father John N. Schumacher (Philippine Vice Province) is a Fourth
Year Father at Woodstock.
Father Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is professor of
history at Shrub Oak.
Father William J. 1\lehok (Wisconsin Province) is assistant secretary of the Society in charge of statistics.
Father David J. Hassel (Chicago Province) is studying at St. Louis
University.
Father Charles E. F. Hoefner (New York Province). is assistant
director of the Jesuit Seminary 1\lission Bureau.
Father Joseph E. O'Neill (New York Province), professor of English literature at Fordham, is Editor of Thought.
-·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at W oodotock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�A Brief Life of
Saint Alphonsus Rodriguez
Miguel Julian, S.J.
Translator's Preface
What is presented here as a brief life of St. Alphonsus is in
fact a circular letter of biographical nature. It was composed
shortly after the Saint's death by Father Miguel Julian, S.J.,
the rector of the Jesuit college on the island of Majorca, where
Alphonsus had lived his Jesuit life. Although the letter was
destined only for the houses of the Society in Spain, the editor
of the Acta Sanctorum tells us that it served as the nucleus
around which most of the subsequent lives of the Saint were
written. This is understandable, since it was written by an
eyewitness. Originally composed in Spanish, it was translated
into Latin and included in tome thirteen of the Acta Sanctorum for October. This tome was published in 1883 and it is
from this Latin version of the letter that the present translation was made. 1
R. M. BARLOW, S.J.
Death: October 31, 1617
There came a day on which it pleased God, Our Lord, to
reward our good Brother Alphonsus Rodriguez for his holy
toil; it was fifteen minutes past midnight on the thirty-first
of October, the day on which he died. A man eighty-seven
years of age, he had spent forty-seven of them in the Society
and thirty-two of them as a formed temporal coadjutor.
Born in Segovia, Alphonsus later journeyed to Valencia
where he studied rhetoric. 2 During this period of study his
1 Every attempt was made to unearth the Spanish original of this
letter, but without success. We can, however, presume that the Bollandist's translation is faithful to the original. This presumption is
warranted by the fact that the editors of the Acta have expressly stated
that the document is of great value, since it is the first source of information about Alphonsus' life.
2
It seems that Father Julian does not intend to give here a detailed
historical account of the Saint's early life, but merely a short introduction to his life as a Brother on Majorca.
3
�4
ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
modest and holy life was an inspiration to all who knew him.
It was at this time too that he was miraculously called to life
in the Society of Jesus. He asked to become a temporal coadjutor and it was in this capacity that he was sent to the college
at Majorca the very year of his reception.
Foreseeing that the life of Alphonsus will undoubtedly become the subject of a definitive biography, I will simply touch
upon some of the high points and leave to his biographer the
narration of the other details.
Humility and Mortification
On the very first day he .. served God in the Society, Alphonsus resolved to dedicate himself to Christ and in order
to fulfill this dedication he begged his Divine Master to put
him to the proof by suffering and unremitting toil. His practice of the virtues was so noteworthy that in their exercise he
was in the judgment of all an incomparable model. Yet with
sincere humility he looked upon himself as the greatest sinner
in the world. Although he knew from a divine revelation that
he would enjoy eternal life without passing through purgatory, he frequently shed tears at the thought of his faults. It
was •vith bitter sorrow that he endured honors, ever wondering why men should wish to deal with such a poor wretch,
for so he considered himself.
He engaged in intense interior and exterior mo~tification,
seeking out what was physically most unpleasant. When he
found unappetizing food on his plate, he would eat it in haste
for fear that someone, discovering the fact, might give him
something better. Other bodily penances, such as the chain,
the discipline and fasting, were part of his customary practice.
Even during the last year of his life, when he was seriously
ill, Alphonsus begged me for permission to abstain from all
food on fast days. In addition he told me that he was still
accustomed to using the discipline three times a week. His,
too, was a life of fervent prayer and it was not unusual for
him to spend in prayer the whole day and several hours of the
night. Even in the midst of his simple work he prayed continually, observing the strictest modesty, so that he might not.
even for a moment, be distracted from God's presence.
�ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
5
The obedience Alphonsus practised was so outstanding that
it would be difficult to find its equal in our age. Once, one of
his superiors wanted to test his obedience and commanded him
to go to the Indies. Alphonsus obeyed immediately and would
actually have set out on the journey, had not the porter prevented his leaving. Later I asked him why he did so, since he
had no food and did not know if he could find a ship. His reply
was characteristic. "I would have set out on my journey," he
said, "with perfect trust in God, because my superior stands
in the place of God; God would have provided the necessary
supplies and the ship; if He did not, I would have waded out
into the sea, relying on holy obedience to sustain me." On
another occasion it was noticed that Alphonsus made a practice of opening and closing a certain door every time he went
through-which was very frequently. An inquiry revealed that
he did this because his superior had once asked him, "Why
do you not close that door?"
I had a similar experience of his obedience. One day after
my journey from Spain, I arrived in Majorca. 3 I had long
wished to see and listen to Alphonsus, so I spent an hour or
more talking with him about spiritual things, since they were
the customary subject of all his conversations. He was suffering from a rather severe fever at the time and I asked
him whether it was accompanied by a headache. He replied
that it was. "Then, dear Brother," I said, "you should be
silent." So exactly did he follow this suggestion that he did
not say a single word all through the night, not even to the
infirmarian, who kept asking him how he felt. This complete
silence continued into the next day, although the infirmarian
assured him that it would not be a fault to talk, seeing that
his recovery was a matter of importance. But Alphonsus replied that he could not speak, so long as Father Rector was
unwilling. So I was summoned and Alphonsus said, "If it
meets with your approval, Father, when the doctor or the
infirmarian ask about my health, I will answer them." When I
questioned him about his hesitation to do so before, he said,
8 In this passage the author seems to refer to his first meeting with
Alphonsus. This meeting most probably occurred after his arrival at the
college in Palma on Majorca to take up his duties as Rector.
�6
ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
"Reverend Fatlier, yesterday, you told me not to speak any
more."
Zeal for Souls
Insofar as his duties permitted, Alphonsus showed an ardent
zeal for souls. During his thirty years as porter at the college,
he inspired in others a tremendous respect for the Society and
was a source of edification to all. Through his holy conversations, his modest demeanor, and his inspiring example (more
persuasive than any sermon) he performed marvelous work
in encouraging those he met to refurbish their virtues and to
live lives of holiness and piety. Furthermore, his boundless
zeal prompted him to offer unceasing prayer to God for the
conversion of men in all parts of the world. He even offered
himself as a victim to suffer forever the pains of hell, so that
Christ might claim as His own the soul of some poor sinner,
a Moor, or a Jew. To show Alphonsus how much this zeal
pleased Him, God allowed the elderly brother to see in a vision
all men and women on the face of the earth. Then God declared that Alphonsus had by his zeal merited no less a reward
than if he had brought this entire multitude to Christ.
Alphonsus' modesty was flawless, nor did anyone ever find
him wanting in this virtue. He used to work with downcast
eyes, looking only a short distance ahead without gazing to
either side. For forty years he never allowed himself to notice
any woman, although after serving daily Mass in the church,
he offered a glass of water to those who had re~ived Holy
Communion. Similarly, his strict observance of the rule of
silence prompted him never to waste time in idle conversation
in the college or with externs who had business with him. His
greatest pleasure was to talk about God, but when the conversation veered off towards secular topics, Brother Alphonsus
appeared to drop off into a deep sleep. So pious was this spiritual conversation of his, that many holy men, beset with
doubts, used to manifest their state of soul to him and ask his
advice.
From his intimate union with God Alphonsus acquired a
profound knowledge of theological matters. Furthermore, he
left several excellent manuscripts on the virtues, which easily
surpass the treatises of scholars on the same subject. It was
this knowledge of divine things that brought governors,
�ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
7
bishops, court counsellors, noblemen and civil magistrates to
consult him; as a matter of fact many would never undertake
important business affairs without first seeking Alphonsus'
advice. Thus it was that by simple, sincere conversation Alphonsus encouraged everyone and after listening to him they
would put aside all doubts about the course of action to be
adopted, because they knew that those who followed his advice
never met with failure.
Zeal for Perfection
Alphonsus gave remarkable example in the practice of
religious poverty. He was happy when he could experience its
effects and disappointed when the worst things in the house
were not given to him. If, for example, he chanced to find a
pin, he would not use it without first obtaining permission.
To endure inconvenience because of poor clothes, lodging or
food was a source of joy to him. A constant guard of his senses
enabled Alphonsus to imitate angelic purity and to obtain that
cleanness of both body and mind required by our saintly
founder, Ignatius. Alphonsus never fixed his gaze upon anyone
and once after he happened involuntarily to glance at 'a carriage that was passing by, he wept bitterly.
· To sum up his virtues, I would say that his life was more
that of an angel than of a man. During recent years I was on
familiar terms with him and I have discussed him with
Fathers who have known him for twenty, thirty or forty years.
They, like myself, were ever unable to detect any fault in his
manner of acting or even any desire of what was less good.
All agreed that his actions could not have been more perfect.
Never did he weaken in his resolve to lead a life of perfection
for the glory of God, although he suffered violent attacks from
the world and the devil. These words: "The Greater Glory of
God," he kept ever on his lips and in his heart. Such was his
fidelity to the observance of his rules that he would have
chosen to be torn to pieces rather than transgress any one of
them. Nothing was closer to his heart than common life and
for this reason he was sorrowful when in his declining years
illness forced him to take his meals in the infirmary and to eat
more delicate food.
Alphonsus took great pains to conceal his virtue from
others, but unsuccessfully. His fame was as well known to the
�8
ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
people as to the Jesuits. Many of the latter traveled from
Spain to Majorca for no other reason than to visit him. Nor
was it unusual to see authorities of both Church and State
coming to our college to see him, if only for a moment. These
visitors stood in admiration when they observed the care with
which Alphonsus performed his duties as porter: cheerfully
answering the questions of visitors, earnestly trying to fulfill
the wishes of everybody and looking for those members of
the community whom visitors wanted to see.
In the midst of his work Alphonsus developed so burning a
love for God, that without divine help he would have died of
its intensity. We know this fact from the manifestations of
conscience which he, like alJ 'Jesuits, made to his superiors
twice a year according to rule. Furthermore, Alphonsus committed his manifestation to writing at the command of his
spiritual father, so that his interior life might be better understood. Often the angels and the saints came to visit him or he
was caught up to heaven to converse with them. He had chosen
twenty-four of these heavenly visitors and had assigned to
each of them one hour of the day when he would pray to
them and seek their protection. Even when he was asleep, he
would awake to perform this duty at the beginning of each
hour. One day as a reward for his loyal service God transported Alphonsus in spirit to heaven. There he gazed upon all
the saints, learned their names and their meritorious deeds,
just as though he had lived his whole life in their mi§st.
Alphonsus' great love for Our Lady began in his eariy childhood, and Mary in her turn heaped favors on him. One day
when he was engaged in loving prayer to her, in the very
excess of his love he said, "I love you, my Queen, more than I
love myself. I love you, my Mother, more than you love me."
This prayer, it seems, was not altogether pleasing to Our
Blessed Lady, because she appeared to him and said, "Such is
not the case, Alphonsus. I love you more than you love me."
This serves to indicate on what intimate terms Alphonsus lived
with Christ and His Mother. He was their friend and had
them as familiars. Often they favored the good Brother with
their bodily presence and once even entered his heart.
Alphonsus in his turn spoke of them with such love that he
influenced others to entertain a similar devotion. He was al-
�ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
9
ways interested in persuading people to put aside personal
considerations and become, as he put it, slaves to the love of
Jesus and Mary. Still by way of motivation he would add the
thought that such powerful patrons as Jesus and Mary would
certainly be mindful of their devotee's bodily and spiritual
advantage.
For more than forty years it was Alphonsus' daily practice
to recite the Office of Our Lady's Immaculate Conception,
since he was particularly interested in that mystery. Our Lady
herself had told him once that this custom was most acceptable. So he would urge all he met to begin it. One day he told
me and other members of the community who were there that
one of Christ's reasons for instituting the Society of Jesus
was that Jesuits might propagate the devotion to the Immaculate Conception and defend the doctrine from all attacks.
These words he spoke with greater conviction than anyone
had ever observed in him before, and he said that the idea
was not his own, but had been revealed to him by God. In the
same spirit he so often recited Our Lady's rosary, that after
his death someone noticed his fingers thickly calloused from
his constant telling of the beads.
I will omit mention of his other glorious deeds and the other
graces bestowed upon him, since they will find ample treatment in the good Brother's biography, a book which, I predict,
will be among the best lives of saints. Indeed, if I were to try
to tell you all about Alphonsus, I would be exceeding the customary length of a letter and still would not do justice to his
outstanding cooperation with the many graces bestowed on
him. With this in mind, I will abbreviate my narrative of his
final illness and death.
From the day of his arrival at this college-forty-seven
years ago-Alphonsus was put to the test by Christ in every
way, nor would he have wanted it differently. Accordingly
Christ allowed him to endure several years of excruciating torture from the devil and at the same time to suffer from serious
illness. But it was during the last few years before his happy
death that he became seriously sick. The year he died his whole
body was racked by sharp pains. Besides his habitually poor
health and the bodily infirmity of old age, he suffered so much
from gall stones that he had to spend a whole year in bed
�10
ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
and the last three months lying motionless on his side. Yet he
kept his mind full of spiritual thoughts and begged God not to
mitigate or take away his pains, but to increase them and add
some new suffering. It was his lifelong custom to speak about
suffering with great joy and to contend that no man was happier than he whom God visited with many ills, providing, of
course, he bore them patiently. The reason he alleged was that
in this life there are no more glorious gifts than those which
God, the Father, had bestowed so liberally upon His only
Son. If jealousy were possible among the angels and saints,
he said, they would most certainly be jealous of the man who
had much to suffer. In brief, then, Alphonsus spoke of nothing
with more joy than of suffering. And you may be sure that
what he praised in words, he actually experienced. Indeed, his
patience rivaled that of Job.
While Alphonsus was ill we used to hear two complaints:
first, that we ought not take such good care of him, since he
ought to be forgotten like a dead dog; secondly, that he was
not permitted to continue his fasts or discipline himself with
voluntary penance. For my part, I tried to induce him to take
some choice dishes and some sweets, but he would always have
this answer ready, "Please believe me, Reverend Father, this
fine food is just a source of pain to me; pain itself is my tastiest food." Yet when he was asked how he felt, he always replied, "I am well, thanks to the goodness of God."
.
When he was alone in the midst of this terrible suffering,
Alphonsus enjoyed deep peace of soul. Joyfully he conversed
with his Mother and Father, Mary and Jesus, speaking to them
in words full of love and; repeating the prayers Our Lord had
taught him, he would pray, "Jesus and Mary, my dearest loved
ones, for love of you I want to suffer and die. I am yours,
every part of me; I belong to myself no longer." Yet later
when he could scarcely speak and the infirmarian asked hini
what afflicted him so, he replied, "My great love of self."
A few days before his happy death, when he was suffering
from a high fever and was losing ground rapidly, he seemed
·close to death. Yet he found strength to repeat again and
again, "More, Lord, more!" When the time came, Alphonsus
received Viaticum with the same piety that had marked his
reception of Holy Communion at least three times a week for
�ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
11
many years. Never did he cease to accept his sufferings patiently or to beg more severe ones from God.
All through his life Alphonsus had manifested great reverence for the priests of the community and even in his last illness he continued to do so. Proximity to death and the weakness of his arms did not prevent him from trying to remove
his cap, whenever a priest came to visit him.
During the afternoon of Saturday, October 28th, Alphonsus
was filled with joy at the approach of death. God had kept His
promises; Alphonsus was in an ecstasy of happiness such as
he had experienced more than once during the last year and he
remained in it for the three remaining days of his life. In the
past,. ill health had given his face a pallor which it kept even
when he was feeling well. Now, from the beginning of this
ecstasy his face was suffused with a beauteous glow and
shone like the face of an angel. This was the visible effect of
the love which burned in his heart. Frequently, too, he would
exclaim, "Most Sweet Jesus" or "0 Dearest Mother!" Near
midnight of the 30th many factors indicated that Alphonsus
was at the point of death. The Fathers and Brothers of the
college gathered around his bed. Then at the mention of the
name of Jesus, when the crucifix was placed before his face,
Alphonsus opened his eyes, which had been closed for three
days. They were alight with a happiness rarely seen in him
before, even when he was well. Looking at the image of Christ
crucified, he kissed the sacred feet and said in a strong, clear
voice, "0 my J esusl" Then he gave up his soul to God. It was
the vigil of All Saints Day, just after midnight.
Once God had promised Alphonsus that he would be held
in great esteem on Majorca. It was now after the good
Brother's death that we realized how God was to fulfill this
promise. Indeed, on the very morning that the tidings of his
death reached the public, the people showed their great affection for him. The whole populace of the city thronged about
the college intent upon venerating his holy body and kissing
his hands and feet. Among them were the Viceroy with all
his counsellors, the Canons of the Cathedral, numerous religious and many noblemen. By afternoon our college chapel was
packed; so we carried his body over into the church and placed
it in a position of honor. Even there the crowd became so
�12
ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
dense that we could scarcely make a path through it. Then,
members of the religious orders arrived to chant the Office
of the Dead : Dominicans, Mercedarians, Franciscans, Carmelites, Augustinians, Trinitarians and Minims, each order with
its respective superior or provincial. A short while later the
whole Cathedral Chapter, accompanied by all the parish
priests of the city, came in grand procession carrying the
crucifix.
It was unbelievable how many people tried to remove the
rosary from his holy hands or cut off pieces of his garments
and how many of the sick struggled to touch his body. In order
to allow the people to gz:atify their piety five or six of our
Fathers assisted by two Dominicans worked to keep order.
Yet even so, all the people were not able to satisfy their
devotion. It was undoubtedly a source of great glory to God
when those who were caught in the press of the crowd and
could not approach, began to toss rosaries and medals from
every side that they might touch the body.
In the presence of the Viceroy, the Chapter and the civil
magistrates we said the Office of the Dead according to the
Society's custom. Then as evening drew on, one of our Fathers
preached a sermoiLfrom the church pulpit for a quarter of an
hour. He spoke of the high lights of the good Brother's life
and in closing invited the people to come back on the following
Friday. It is interesting to note that during the sermon and
the Office not a soul in the presence of the body covered his
head or spoke a word. By this time the Church ·was filled to
overflowing with the largest crowd we had even seen in it;
and yet the ceremonies were conducted amid profound silence.
One might even have believed that the whole church was
empty, so quiet did everyone remain.
When the time came to bury the body, we found that the
only feasible course was to place it in the church vault and
we had a great deal of trouble doing even that. We succeeded
in sending the people home on the pretext that they could attend the dear Brother's funeral at a later date. Finally at ten
o'clock at night we conducted a private burial service, because
we knew that at any other time we would never be able to do
so. The good Brother's face and hands, I noticed, remained as
supple as if he were alive.
�ST. ALPHONSUS RODRIGUEZ
13
Because of Alphonsus' holy life and death and the divine
revelations vouchsafed to him, we are morally certain, as certain as one can be in this life, that he has entered heaven without passing through the pains of purgatory and that he now
occupies the throne of glory promised to the humble man.
Nevertheless, in fulfillment of my office as Rector, I ask your
Reverence to have the usual suffrages of the Society offered
in your college for the happy repose of his soul. In addition
I beg you to pray for all of us here in Majorca, that we may
imitate the model of sanctity which God has given us in the
good Brother, Alphonsus Rodriguez. May God protect your
Reverence.
After I finished this letter, a large delegation of the most
influential men of the Island came to request that we hold a
solemn funeral service on Friday, November 3rd. This we did
and on the occasion a panegyric was preached from the church
pulpit. Even before dawn on that memorable Friday an immense crowd arrived and our church, although it is a large
one, could accommodate only a fourth of the gathering. For
the second time the Viceroy and other noblemen came and the
Bishop himself was kept away only by serious illness. Many
of the Brother's dear friends placed lighted candles about the
coffin. After the solemn Office, the panegyric I have mentioned
was preached, and the people were at a loss what to admire
most: Alphonsus' virtues, the divine favors he had received,
or his efficacious intercession with God and His Blessed
1\Iother.
Even as I write, I am constantly being besieged by the laity
and by churchmen, by Brothers and Sisters of all the religious
orders, all begging for some relic of the good Brother. His
coffin in the small vault near the Blessed Virgin's altar is
always surrounded by the faithful and rumor has it that many
miracles have already taken place there. When we have time
to investigate them further, I will write your Reverence about
our findings. 4
4
There is no record of a later letter from Fr. Julian to the houses of
the Society in Spain concerning the miracles performed at the tomb.
That miracles were performed through Alphonsus' intercession is abundantly attested to, and the absence of a later letter about these early
miracles does not controvert that testimony.
�Ignatian Spirituality and the Liturgy
John N. Schumacher, S.J.
Often enough in the past, efforts have been made to underline a supposed opposition between the objective piety of the
liturgy and the subjective or individualistic piety, typified by
Ignatian and Jesuit spirituality. 1 Pius XII gave a definitive
answer to such attempts with his authoritative statements in
Mediator Dei on the complementary nature of the two elements of Christian spirituality. "Both merge harmoniously in
the single spirit which animates them, 'Christ is all in all.'
Both tend to the same objective: until Christ be formed in
us." 2 Though this question is now settled, there remains, even
in the minds of many Jesuits, a feeling that though there may
be no opposition, Ignatian and liturgical spirituality are two
distinct forms, and that the work of the Society in the Church
is to promote Ignatian spirituality, while the liturgy belongs
to others. It will be the attempt of this paper, therefore, to see
what place the liturgy has in the plan of Ignatius. This will be
done by investigating three sources: the personal spirituality
of Ignatius himself, the Spiritual Exercises, and the Society,
both in her Constitutions and in her early sons, the men immediately formed by St. Ignatius.
All his life Ignatius had great devotion to the liturgical
offices of the Church with all their solemnity. Nadal, who knew
so much of the early life and of the spirit of Ignatius, speaking
of the period at Manresa, once said: "He was present at the
canonical hours, assisting at Mass, vespers, compline, and the
1 Cf. M. Festugiere, O.S.B., La liturgic catholique (Maredsous, 1913).
This book, first appearing as an article in the Revue de Philosophic 22
( 1913) 692-886, qualified lgnatian spirituality as individualistic and incompatible with true liturgical piety. It had, however, the good effect of
arousing many Jesuits to an investigation of the liturgical element in
Ignatian piety, and the ensuing polemic (1914-1916) produced several of
the studies referred to in this paper, though their polemical intent led
some of them to certain exaggerations.
2 Mediator Dei, no. 37. Cf. also nn. 28-36 for the development of this
point. (The numbering used in this paper for references to this encyclical will be that of the America Press edition.)
14
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
15
sermon; our Father always had this spirit of the Church." 3
Likewise during the period when he was living with the Dominicans there, he used to rise each night to assist at Matins, 4
for, though not knowing a word of Latin, his love for psalmody
was so great that "he received much comfort." 5 And he declared in later life that if he happened to enter a church
when the divine Office was being chanted, he seemed to be
totally transported out of himself. 6 And another time he told
Ribadeneira, "If I had followed my own likings and inclination, I would have had choir and chant in the Society; but I
did not do so, because God our Lord has given me to understand that it is not His will." 7 That these were not idle words
was shown by the fact that even in the private recitation of
the Office, such were his tears and consolations that he was
losing his health, and the Fathers were obliged to obtain for
him a dispensation from the Pope. 8 As Father Ellard remarks,
speaking of the reply of Bellarmine to early charges that
Ignatius had no esteem for the Office because he did not establish choir for the Society, "No charge is so thoroughly refuted
in fewer words than in these of St. Robert Bellarmine: 'If
Father Ignatius had gone through the Office with his lips only
and not with his heart, it would not have been necessary to
forbid him to read it, lest the abundance of his tears destroy
his eyesight.' " 9
With regard to the sacraments of Penance and the Holy
Eucharist, it is well known how much importance Ignatius
a Ms. Archiv. S.J. Roman., Instit. 98, fol. 219 v., quoted by Miguel
Nicolau, S.J., "Liturgia y Ejercicios," Manresa 20 (Julio-Diciembre
1948) 252.
4 Paul Dudon, S.J., St. Ignatius of Loyola (Milwaukee, 1949). Translated by William J. Young, S.J., p. 59.
5 Acta Patris Ignatii, no. 20; Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu
[MHSI] Scripta de S. Ignatia, 2, vol. I, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 391.
6 Memoriale Patris Ludovici Gonzalez de Camara [Memoriale L. Gonzalez], no. 177; MHSI, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 636.
7 Dicta et facta S. Ignatii a P. Ribadeneira collecta, no. 10; MHSI,
Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 418.
8
Pltiticas Espirituales del P. Jeronimo Nadal, S.I., en Coimbra (1561).
Miguel Nicolau, S.J., ed. (Granada, 1945), p. 71. [Phiticas en Coimbra]
9
Gerald Ellard, S.J., "St. Ignatius Loyola and Public Worship,"
Thought 19 (1944) p. 664, quoting from Bellarmini Exhortationes Domesticae (Brussels, 1899), p. 21.
�16
JESUITS AND LITURGY
placed on their frequent reception, and how much his followers
were responsible for the restoration of this practice. Pope
Benedict XIV declared: "It is indeed to Ignatius and to the
Society he founded that the Church owes the spread of the
practice of frequent Confession and Communion." 10 And
Dudon remarks that the one notable point in Ignatius' Rules
of Thinking with the Church which is to be found neither in
the decrees of the Council of Sens, held in 1528 while Ignatius
was there in Paris, nor in the writings of Clichtove, a Sorbonne professor largely responsible for the Council's decrees,
is that recommending frequent Communion. 11 Such an esteem
for the frequent reception of the sacraments, despite the unfavorable attitude and even opposition it aroused in many
circles, certainly indicateS·something of the place of the liturgy
in the mind of Ignatius.
But it was the Mass which formed the center of Ignatius'
spiritual life. So great were the consolations that he experienced in celebrating the Holy Sacrifice that Father Gonc;alves
da Camara relates that at some periods he was unable to say
Mass oftener than on Sundays and feast days, so physically
exhausted did it leave him. 12 When he did say Mass, he prepared carefully the afternoon before, reading through the
Mass in the Missal several times. 13 In every decision or danger
that faced the Society after its foundation, it was the Mass he
relied on to give light or to ward off the danger. When it was
question of obtaining papal approval for the· Society, he
ordered 3000 Masses to be said by his small group of companions ;14 when writing the Constitutions, each important
decision was accompanied by several days of offering the Holy ·
Sacrifice to seek God's willY In the Constitutions themselves,
it is the Mass he assigns as the most important means which
10 Benedict XIV, De servorum Dei beatificatione et beatorum canonizatione, 3, 28; Opera Omnia 3 (Venezia, 1767) 140. Quoted by John Hardon, S.J. "Historical Antecedents of St. Pius X's Decree on Frequent
Communion," Theological Studies 16 (1955) 498.
u Dudon, St. Ignatius, pp. 457-462.
12 Memoriale L. Gonzalez, no. 194; MHSI, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 643.
1a Ibid., p. 644.
1 4 Epistola Patris Laynez de P. Ignatio, no. 52; MHSI, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 131.
1s Acta P. Ignatii, no. 101; MHSI, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 507.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
17
the General has at his command for the government and preservation of the Society.16
Nadal, in the course of his visitation of the province of Portugal, told the community of Coimbra,
Let each one strive to profit much from the Mass, for very great
profit can be drawn, as our Father understood. It was for this
reason he refrained from giving more time to prayer, seeing that
whoever had a little knowledge and love of God could be helped
very much by the Mass.H
That such was the case in his own spiritual life is most clearly
shown in the pages of the spiritual diary of Ignatius, covering
thirteen months in 1544-1545_'8 In it Ignatius records the consolations, tears, illuminations, and visions, received chiefly
during the Holy Sacrifice day by day. Father de Guibert, in
his analysis of this diary has pointed out in detail the centrality of the Mass in the personal spirituality of Ignatius.
It is the Mass of each day which manifestly forms the center of the
graces noted for that day: awaking and rising in view of celebrating, the prayer and interior preparation for the Holy Sacrifice, the
preparation of the altar and of the vestments he will wear, the
beginning of the Mass and its different parts, the thanksgivingthese are the moments to which are attached the immense majority
of the favors noted. Even those received in the course of the day
appear almost always as the prolongation or a complement of those
of the morning.19
Another recent study of the place of the Mass in the personal spirituality of St. Ignatius, after tracing the place of the
Mass in the environment of Ignatius' life from Loyola as a
child to Venice in 1537, analyzes this diary, and comes to this
conclusion:
I would say that Iiiigo de Loyola had succeeded by then in giving
to his spiritual life that perfect unity which characterizes the saints,
simplifying it in the Mass. There he found everything; in it was
sustained the whole personal and unmistakable system of his own
spirituality.2o
Constitutiones Societatis Jesu, IX, 6.
Platicas en Coimbra, p. 202.
18 Ephemeris Sancti Patris lgnatii; MHSI, Constitutiones Societatis
Jesu, vol. 1, Monumenta Constitutionum Praevia, pp. 86-158.
19
Joseph de Guibert, S.J., "Mystique Ignatienne," Revue d'Ascetique
et de Mystique 19 (1938) 117-118.
20 Angel Suquia Goicoechea, La Santa Misa en la espiritualidad de
16
17
�18
JESUITS AND LITURGY
As the author points out, 21 the study of this spiritual diary
seems to be the real answer to those who would accuse Ignatius
of being anti-liturgical, for it is not enough merely to show
that Ignatius made use of the liturgy, but that as "the public
supplication of the illustrious Spouse of Jesus Christ and thus
superior in excellence to private prayers," 22 it was given its
due place in the personal spirituality of the saint. That this is
true seems clear from a study of the precious document.
Moreover, Father Iparraguirre, in his introduction to a
recent Spanish edition, has noted the importance of this for an
appreciation of the place of the liturgy in the daily life of a
Jesuit.
In this document is reflected the practical way in which St. Ignatius was adapting the foundation of the Exercises to real concrete
life. He applies the principles and norms of the immortal little book,
not in a limited time set aside for retreat, and within the frame of
meditations made at this time, but in the midst of the occupations
of his ordinaTy life. On these very days he was taking care of his
current business, making visits, writing letters, directing the government of the Society.23
Even so brief a conspectus of the nature of this diary suffices to show the aptness of Father Ellard's suggestion that
here we have the reason why it is that in the Church's iconography Ignatius is generally represented as the priest vested
for Mass, and why the Secret of his Mass reads: "0 Lord God,
may the gracious prayers of St. Ignatius so aid us, that these
most holy Mysteries, in which Thou hast placed--the fountainhead of all our holiness, may sanctify us in truth." 2 ~
The Spiritual Exercises
On the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius and their vast
influence over the past four centuries many have laid the
blame for the liturgical decadence from which only the present
century has brought a reawakening. It cannot be denied that
the Exercises can be given in such a way as to lead a soul away
San Ignacio de Loyola (Madrid, 1950) p. 158.
21Jbid., p. 187.
22 Mediator Dei, no. 37.
23 Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J., ed., Obra11 completas de San Ignacio de
Loyola (Madrid: BAC, 1952), p. 279.
24 Ellard, op. cit., p. 670.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
19
from the love for the Church's prayer, or at least not to bring
him closer. But the question is here of the Exercises as they
are in themselves, as they came from St. Ignatius; what relation i8 there between the Exercises and the liturgy?
It should first be noted that to speak of the asceticism of the
liturgy is a misnomer. A method of asceticism can be impregnated with the spirit of the liturgy and make great use of the
liturgy, but the liturgy by itself is not supposed to be a method
of asceticism. As Pius XII says,
Very truly, the sacraments and the Sacrifice of the altar, being
Christ's own actions, must be held to be capable in themselves of
conveying and dispensing grace from the Divine Head to the members of the Mystical Body. But if they are to produce their proper
effect, it is absolutely necessary that our hearts be properly disposed
to receive them.2s
And he goes on to specify that this disposition is fostered
through meditation and the exercise of the ascetical life, and
particularly the Spiritual Exercises. 26
From the opening of the Exercises, it is clear that Ignatius
presupposes that they will be accompanied by the liturgy. In
the twentieth annotation, he speaks of the necessity of complete withdrawal as far as possible from all else, and suggests
that the exercitant "choose another house or room in order to
live there in as great privacy as possible, so that he will be free
to go to Mass and Vespers without any fear that his acquaintances will cause any difficulty." 27
In similar manner, it is with reference to Mass and Vespers
that the daily time order is arranged. 28 That in the mind of
Ignatius this was not merely a convenient way of designating
the time seems clear from the Directory written by Father
Vitoria, containing the instructions given him by St. Ignatius
himself on the method of giving the Exercises. He says in
speaking of the place, "It is much better, if it be possible, that
he make them outside the house in a place which is secluded,
but where he may conveniently hear Mass and Vespers, or at
2s Mediator Dei, no. 31.
2s Ibid., nn. 31-35 and 189.
21 Spiritual Exercises, no. 20. Italics supplied. The numbers are those
of the critical edition of the MHSI, and the translation is that of Louis
J. Puhl, S.J., (Westminster, 1951).
28
Ibid., no. 72.
�20
JESUITS AND LITURGY
least Mass." 29 The Directory of Polanco repeats the same instruction, though it leaves the assistance at Vespers up to the
inclination of the exercitant. 30 The same prescription is found
in the Directory of Father Hoffaeus, from this same period,31
who also recommends that in the case of the uninstructed
[rudes], an explanation of the mysteries of the Mass and its
ceremonies is to be given each day before Mass, so that they
may apply this during the following Masses which they will
hear. 32
The attitude of Ignatius to the liturgy is again made clear
in his Rules for Thinking with the Church, "The documents
with which Ignatius arms the exercitant to send him off to
his ordinary life, offer the norm and standard for the conscious reaffirmation and renewed evaluation of the liturgical
acts." 33 Such, for example, are the second, recommending frequent Confession and Communion ;34 the third, "We ought to
praise the frequent hearing of Mass, the singing of hymns,
psalmody, and long prayers, whether in the church or outside;
likewise, the hours arranged at fixed times for the whole
Divine Office, for every kind of prayer, and for the canonical
hours." 35 Father Brou, commenting on these rules, aptly remarks, "the insertion of these lines in a manual of spirituality,
where they seem to be quite uncalled for, gives them a characteristic meaning. They inform us that in the thought of St.
Ignatius a devotion that did not give its proper place to the
official and public worship of the Church would not be entirely
Catholic." 36
-·
The first and thirteenth rules give us this spirit more explicitly, showing how truly Ignatius was a loyal son of the
Church: "We must put aside all judgment of our own, and
2 9 Directorium Patri Vitoria dictatum, no. 4; 1\fHSI, Exercitia Spiritualia Sancti Ignatii de Loyola et eorum Directoria 2, vol. 2, Directoria
Exercitiorum Spiritualium [Directoria], p. 92.
30 Directorium P. Joannis Alfonsi Polanco, MHSI, Directoria, p. 285.
31 Instructiones, Magistro Exercitantium a P. Hoffaeo Traditae, no. 72;
MHSI, Directoria, p. 231.
32 Ibid., no. 66, pp. 230-231.
3 3 Miguel Nicolau, S.J., "Liturgia y Ejercicios," p. 243.
34 Spiritual Exercises, no. 354.
35 Ibid., no. 355.
36
Alexandre Brou, S.J., The Ignatian Way to God. Trans. William
Young, S.J. (Milwaukee, 1952), p. 109.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
21
keep the mind ever ready to obey in all things the true Spouse
of Jesus Christ, our holy Mother, the hierarchical Church." 37
"For I must be convinced that in Christ our Lord, the Bridegroom, and in His spouse the Church, only one Spirit holds
sway, which governs and rules for the salvation of souls." 38
A man of such an attitude could never fail to appreciate the
full value of the prayer of the Church, which is the prayer
of Christ, whose Spirit she has.
All this shows that the Ignatian Exercises are by no means
cut off from, or opposed to, the liturgical worship of the
Church, and how uninformed is such a statement as that of
Romano Guardini that "the liturgy has no place in the Spiritual Exercises." 39 But something more is necessary, for it is
quite possible to perform acts of liturgical worship, and even
esteem it as the prayer of the Church, and yet be a stranger
to the full spirit of the liturgy. The Exercises, however, rightly
understood, "draw the best of their substance from the same
source as the Church does in her worship; the same spirit animates them both, and with due respect for the necessary differences and analogies, it is by a similar expression of the
mystery, and a completely analogous route that we arrive at
this spirit." 40 Let us trace some of these features in the
liturgy and the Exercises.
In Mediator Dei, Pius XII points out how the Church presents to us the life of Christ as an example for us to imitate,41
and in calling to mind His mysteries, she strives to make all
believers take their part in them, so that the divine Head
of the Mystical Body may live in all the members with the fullness of His holiness. 42 And the liturgical year requires a serious effort and constant practice to imitate His mysteries, to
enter willingly upon His path of sorrow and thus finally share
His glory and eternal happiness. 43 Is not this the very end that
Spiritual Exercises, no. 353.
Ibid., no. 365.
89 Romano Guardini, The Spirit of the Liturgy. Trans. by Ada Lane.
(New York, 1931), p. 95.
40
Joseph Gelineau, S.J., "L'esprit liturgique des Exercises," Christus
10 (avril1956), 226.
41 Mediator Dei, no. 153.
42 Ibid., no. 152.
43
Ibid., no. 161.
8T
38
�22
JESUITS AND LITURGY
St. Ignatius has in mind, proposing the Public Life, the Passion, and the Glorious Life of Our Lord to the exercitant,
asking for an intimate knowledge of Our Lord, who has become man for me, that I may love Him more and follow Him
more closely ?44 Or in the Kingdom, where the Eternal King
invites the exercitant to join Him so that as he has had a
share in the toil with Him, afterwards he may share in the
victory with Him ?45
But, continues Mediator Dei,
The liturgical year is not a cold and lifeless representation of the
events of the past, or a simple and bare record of a former age.
It is rather Christ Himself who is ever living in His Church. Here
He continues that journey of immense mercy which He lovingly
began in His mortal life; going about doing good, with the design
of bringing men to know His mysteries, and in a way live by them. 46
This, too, is true of the Exercises. As Father Danielou has
put it,
These mysteries .of Christ are not only past realities, they are continuing in the present. The Christ of St. Ignatius is not the Christ
of the Protestants, who is only the Christ of the Gospels, towards
whom memory likes to turn to draw some edifying lessons. It is the
Risen Christ, living now, continuing to accomplish His work until
the Parousia. The Christ of the Kingdom is the Christ of glory,
spreading the Kingdom of the Father over the entire human race.
But where is the Christ of glory actually working now? In the
Church.4 7
Another characteristic of the prayer of the liturgy is that
it is directed chiefly, though not exclusively, to the Father
through the Son, the mediator between God and man. Christ,
as our High Priest, offers the prayers of His Mystical Body,
united to Him as its Head, to His Father. Likewise Our Lady,
as Mother of Christ, the Son of God, is always honored next
to God in the liturgy. In Mass and Office, it is through her
intercession, before that of all the saints, that we pray to God
through the Son.
Quite in accord with this liturgical prayer is that of St.
Spiritual Exercises, no. 104.
Ibid., no. 93.
46 Mediator Dei, no. 165.
44
H
47
Jean Danielou, S.J., "La vision ignatienne du monde et de l'homme,"
Revue d'asc6tique et de mystique 65 (1950) 8.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
23
Ignatius. It is significant that whenever there is question of a
grace which is especially to be sought for-the horror of sin
and of the world in the meditation on personal sin, the embracing of Christ's poverty and hu.miliations in the meditations on
the Two Standards, the Three Classes of Men, and the Three
Modes of Humility, as well as all during the period of the election/8-the colloquies are always to be the Triple Colloquythrough Mary to her Son, and through the Son to His Father.
This same recurrence to the mediatorship of Our Lord, and,
under Him, of His Blessed Mother, comes out continually in
the spiritual diary of St. Ignatius. He records, for example,
that "during the Mass, as well as before and after it, he saw
the Mother and the Son propitious to intercede with the
Father ;" 49 another day after Mass, he presents his decision
not to have fixed revenues to the Father through Our Lady and
her Son, precisely as in the Triple Colloquy of the Exercises. 50
At another time, during his Mass he perceived Jesus seeming
to join him more closely to the Blessed Trinity. 51 From these
typical examples it would seem that on this point also the
spiritual diary of Ignatius offers us a commentary on the
Exercises, showing how the prayer of the Triple Colloquy
becomes part of the daily prayer of the Saint.
In spite of these marked similarities in method and spirit, it
does remain true that there are differences between the Exercises and the liturgy, as would be expected. In the presentation
of Christ's mysteries in the liturgy we have a leisurely progression through the year; in the Exercises, mystery follows
mystery in close succession. But, as Father Bominghaus points
out, in this the Exercises "gather together the rays of the life
of Jesus and place the soul under this strong light." 52 This concentration will make these mysteries part of the life of the
man, and impress them deeply into his soul. Then he can lovingly follow them through the course of the liturgical year,
not just passing along in the sentiment of the feast, but deepening ever more the meaning he has seen in these mysteries
48
Spiritual Exercises, nn. 147, 148, 156, 159, 168.
Ephemeris Sancti Patris lgnatii, p. 87.
50
Ibid., p. 88.
H Ibid., pp. 112-113.
52
Ernst Bominghaus, S.J., Die Aszese der Ignatianischen Exerzitien
(Freiburg im Breisgau, 1927) p. 90.
49
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JESUITS AND LITURGY
for his own life during the Exercises.~ 3 Here again, rather than
being opposed to the liturgical life, the Exercises must complement it and impregnate it with greater vigor, as the Pope
points out so clearly in Mediator Dei. 5 4 But it is a mutual complementing, for the man who has nourished his piety on the
mysteries of Christ in the liturgical cycle will likewise bring
greater unction to his contemplation of them in the retreat.
Again, the liturgy tends more immediately to the worship
and glorification of God, while the Exercises, without admitting in any way the shallow and basically false distinction
of theocentrism against anthropocentrism, do tend more proximately to an end of personal fruit for the soul. But this fruit
or grace is only desired for the soul in order that it may fulfil
the end given it by its Creator, "to praise, reverence, and serve
God our Lord," 55 and whatever else each contemplation or
meditation seeks, the preparatory prayer always directs it
ultimately to the "service and praise of His Divine Majesty." 56
Here again the distinction made above must be repeated: the
liturgy is not a system of asceticism, while the Exercises are
at least the main lines of such a system; both liturgy and
Exercises must have their place, and each must complement
the other.
The Society and the Liturgy
If such was the liturgical spirit of Ignatius as shown in his
own life and in his Exercises, there should have been a reflection of the same spirit in the spirituality of the early Jesuits,
the men formed in the spiritual life by the hand of Ignatius
himself. That such was the case is abundantly clear from the
testimony of the writings we have from some of them.
But there is an objection to be considered first, the answer
to which will help to clarify what is to follow. Did not Ignatius,
in spite of his love for the liturgy, exclude it from the spirituality of his Society? If the liturgy is properly understood, the
answer to be given is no. It is not the liturgy, the public
prayer of the Church, which Ignatius gave up, but only its
solemnity. Father Cavallera has brought out the distinction
Ibid., pp. 90-91.
Mediator Dei, nn. 178-180.
5~ Spiritual Exercises, no. 23.
56 Ibid., no. 46, and passim.
53
H
�JESUITS AND LITUlWY
25
clearly: "By its very nature the liturgy is celebrated in the
name of the Church, and therefore, even when it consists in a
low Mass or private recitation of the Office, it remains public
prayer, said in the name of the Church and for the Church, in
union with all those everywhere who on the same day fulfil
the same duty, solemnly or not." 57 This has been confirmed by
Mediator Dei, speaking of the Mass, which "of its very nature
has always and everywhere the character of a public and
social act, inasmuch as he who offers it acts in the name of
Christ and of the faithful." 58
Moreover, it is not even completely true that Ignatius excluded all solemnity in the liturgy as performed by his sons.
Despite his own love for the psalmody of the Church, he did
not wish the obligation of choir in the Society, because it
seemed to him to be clearly God's will that his sons should
glorify God in other ways, by their apostolic labor. At the
same time, in the Constitutions, Ignatius made provision for
Vespers to be chanted in Jesuit churches whenever it was
helpful for the people, and provided as well for Tenebrae during Holy Week. 59 Also, among the traditions mentioned by
Nadal as stemming from St. Ignatius' time, though without
the force of rule for the whole Society, was the custom of
chanting Matins on the vigil of Christmas. 60 Thus, in as much
as it was only in the interests of the greater glory of God and
the more universal good that Ignatius sacrificed the solemn
liturgy, it was in no way contrary to his mind to make use
of it when the good of souls required it. An outstanding example of the application of this principle is recalled by Father
Astrain in the Paraguay Reductions, where great use was
made of sacred music, not only in the Solemn Masses on Sundays and feast days, but even in the daily Mass of the faithful.61 With these facts in mind, it will be more evident why the
liturgy played so important a role in the spirituality of many
of the men formed by Ignatius and those who succeeded him.
57
Ferdinand Cavallera, S.J., Ascetisme et Liturgie (Paris, 1914), pp.
51-52.
58
Mediator Dei, no. 165.
59
Constitutiones Societatis Jesu, VI, c. 3, B.
60 MHSI, Epistolae P. Hieronymi Nadal [Epist. Nadal], IV, p. 621.
61 Antonio Astrain, S.J., "San Ignacio de Loyola y la Iiturgia," Raz6n
Y Fe 44 (1916), 41-44.
�26
JESUITS AND LITURGY
Blessed Peter Faber
The importance of Faber for judging Ignatian spirituality
is clear from the fact that he was the first of the early Jesuits
to come under the influence of Ignatius, and to be formed to
the spirituality of the Exercises. He it was, moreover, under
whose charge Ignatius placed the little group of followers
when he left Paris/ 2 and it was through Faber that the first
additions came to the nascent Company in the persons of Le
Jay, Broet, and Codure. Moreover, when Ignatius spoke of the
ability of various Fathers in giving the Exercises, it was to
Faber that he assigned the first place.63
To judge of Faber's liturgical spirit, nothing more is necessary than to glance through the pages of his spiritual diary,
the Memoriale. Even such a detail as the method of dating
the M emoriale shows how his prayer depended on the liturgical cycle of the Church, since he dated it by the occurring
feast, just as Ignatius did in his own spiritual diary. The sentiments and lights he records from day to day show how his
private prayer chiefly nourished itself on the feast of the day.
One example can suffice:
On the feast of the virgin, blessed Scholastica, I celebrated her
Mass for myself. In it I noted and felt that it was very necessary
and fitting that I should, on like feasts of the holy virgins, seek
graces which conduce to my own perfection. For these holy virgins
with great zeal strove to build in themselves a temple in the Holy
Spirit, and wished to become vessels of holiness to please their
Spouse Jesus Christ, to whom they had vowed themselv:e·s. Such souls
as these greatly desire that all of us should be adorned in ourselves,
and that, free from the blemishes which displease the divine eyes,
we should please our God in all holiness and justice. Therefore, these
virgins are solicitous for us when we ask such graces through their
intercession.64
He had great esteem for the solemn liturgy of the Church,
and when he participated in such worship, found everything
uniting him to God. One striking example of this is the following:
At the first vespers of the Assumption, I found much devotion
while I was in the church of Our Lady of Spires. Such was it that
62 E'[fistola Patris Laynez de P. I gnatio, no. 31; MHSI, Fontes Narrativi, I, p. 105.
63 Memoriale L. Gonzalez, no. 226; MHSI, Fontes Narativi, I, p. 658.
64 Memoriale Petri Fabri, no. 246; MHSI, Fabri Monumenta, p. 615.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
21
all the ceremonies, the candles, the organs, the singing, the honor
paid to the relics and ornaments, all these things gave a devotion
such that I cannot express. In that spirit, I blessed him who had
set up and lighted the candles and arranged them, and him who had
left the revenues to make that possible; likewise the organs and the
organist and the founders; likewise all the ornaments for the divine
worship which I saw; likewise the chanters, and the chants of the
boys' choir; likewise the reliquaries, and those who sought out the
relics, or on finding them, adorned them. In short, I say that with
that spirit I esteemed more the least of these and similar works done
with simplicity and with a Catholic faith, than a thousand degrees
of that idle faith which those men so exalt who do not hold proper
sentiments toward the hierarchic Church. 65
In the midst of his travels over half of Europe, and his
tremendous apostolic labors, Faber found his strength and inspiration in his Mass and Office. The M emoriale is filled with
accounts of the illuminations which came to him from God
during the Holy Sacrifice, of the devotion which he experienced in it, of how he applied it for every kind of intention,
especially for the needs of the universal Church. He recounts
also his efforts to preserve himself from distractions in the
Mass and in his recitation of the Divine Office, efforts which
are very significant of the value he placed on these prayers of
the Church. For the Office he was careful to prepare himself,
and from it frequently drew the nourishment for his prayer
throughout the day. In the distractions in which he found himself from the many pressing apostolic works he was engaged
in, he recalled to himself that
While a good attention to the divine words lasts, the Lord is busy
with your other works and cares; and therefore you ought not permit
yourself to be distracted to any other .works, however pious they may
be, lest you prevent God from Himself being attentive and solicitous
for them.Gs
Such an attitude, together with the continual and varied efforts, evident from the Memoriale, to make his recitation of
the Office more fervent, show sufficiently the high place that
the prayer of the Church occupied in the life of Faber.
Jerome Nadal
The importance of Jerome Nadal for knowing the true spirit
65
66
Ibid., no. 87; pp. 536-537.
Ibid., no. 180; pp. 583-584.
�28
JESUITS AND LITURGY
of St. Ignatius has been underlined by no one better than by
Polanco, in a letter to Father Diego Miron, Provincial of Portugal, in 1553, announcing Nadal's coming visit to Portugal.
He has a deep knowledge of our Father Ignatius, because he has
dealt with him much, and it seems that he understands his spirit,
and has penetrated into the Institute of the Society more deeply than
any other I know and is of those who have most clearly shown themselves to be true sons of the Society.s7
-
The liturgical spirit of Nadal was in no way inferior to that
of Faber, and inasmuch as he was charged by Ignatius with
the task of promulgating the Constitutions, he has left in his
exhortations and letters much more of the theoretical basis of
this spirit and its place in.. ~he spirituality of the Society. In
1561 at Alcala, he spoke of prayer at some length, and how in
the Society it should be made according to the Exercises. He
then continued:
There is another thing which gives me particular devotion, namely,
that you watch the feasts which the Church is celebrating, and the
mysteries which they represent, and try to meditate on them. The
Church is now celebrating the birth of Christ our Lord; meditate
on this mystery and you will find in it special grace and consolation and profit. I say the same of the feasts of the saints, of the
Apostles, etc., because in these times God concurs in a special way.aB
The reason behind this preference for the liturgical cycle of
the Church in one's own private prayer he sets down in his
own spiritual diary:
-·
One must follow the devotions of the Church in her offices, for the
spirit is felt more deeply when the whole Church devotes herself to
that spirit, and the blessed exult in it. Other things being equal, a
saint is heard more readily on his feast.s9
So much did Nadal esteem this concordance of one's private
prayer with the order of the liturgy that he composed a book,
which, however, was only published some years after his
death, containing meditations on the Gospels of all the Sundays of the year, and the ferias of Lent, with a picture accompanying each to serve as the composition of place. 70 According
s1 MHSI, Epist. Nadal, I, p. 766.
cs Miguel Nicolau, S.J., Jeronimo, Nadal, S.I. (Madrid, 1949), p. 522,
no. 31.
69 Orat. Observ. MHSI, Epist. Nadal, IV, p. 691.
10 Hieronymus Natalis, S.I., Adnotationes et Meditationes in Evangelia
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
29
to the author of the dedication of the work to Clement VIII,
Father Santiago Jimenez, the idea had originally been suggested to Nadal by Ignatius himself. 11
To the community of the college of Coimbra, Nadal enlarged
on this idea of private prayer being dependent on the liturgy,
showing the special need of this in the Society.
Public prayer is principally that of the Mass, which has its great
virtue from the holy Sacrament and Sacrifice. Private prayer is that
which each one makes in his room; and in order that this may go
well, it should always take its authority and order from the public
prayer, so that it may draw its force from this latter. This is
especially important for us who do not have public prayer in common, since we do not have choir. In place of choir, each has his
room, making his prayer there by the command of obedience, all
of us united in it when the bell for prayer sounds at definite times.
And this is true for the whole Society, and it is its common and
public prayer, when not made individually.72
The passage has been quoted previously73 where Nadal declared that the reason why St. Ignatius had not given more
place to prayer in the rules of the Society was that he realized
that the Mass could supply for much prayer in any man who
had "a little knowledge and love of God.'' That it had that
effect with Nadal himself is clear from his spiritual diary
where he records so many lights and consolations from his
Mass, as well as from the recitation of the Divine Office. His
great esteem for these two sources of his spiritual life can
best be illustrated by a few extracts from his diary, particularly the following one, which lays down the foundation of
his liturgical spirit.
Great attention, devotion, and faith must be placed in the sacraments, the Sacrifice of the Mass, and the sacramentals. For in all
these things, the fruit for the spirit is greater, and the effect more
certain. Thus the prayer made in the Mass is more to be esteemed
than one made by a priest elsewhere; that of the layman said while
hearing Mass, more than one said elsewhere; more esteem should
quae in sacrosancto Missae sacrificio toto anno leguntur (1594-1595).
The edition consulted for this paper was the "editio ultima," (Antverpiae, 1607).
11 /bid., p. 2*.
72 Platicas en Coimbra, pp. 189-190.
73
Supra, p. 18.
�30
JESUITS AND LITURGY
be given to the prayer recited in the canonical hours, more to the
prayer said in the Church, etc.u
Again treating of how to pray well to the community of
Coimbra, he declares the necessity of giving oneself to God,
but it is through the Mass that this is to be accomplished.
The second thing which will be profitable for prayer is to give
one's heart to God our Lord. And this each can do very easily and
at a very fitting time, that is, at the Mass, in that unbloody sacrifice
wherein is represented the bloody oblation of the Cross, one can
and should give and sacrifice to God his heart, that He may possess
it; let Him strengthen it and govern it, let Him afflict or console it,
as He may wish. Thus you will confirm your oblation with the
exalted prayer of the Mass, and offer to the eternal Father yourself
and your will together with.the oblation of His most holy Son. And
in this you will renew the vows which you have made to the Lord,
and repeat them once more, and beg help to cooperate with the grace
which is communicated to you in them, and to follow the Institute
with all you have promised-all this each one can do with a simple
act of confirmation.7s
In these lines practically the whole Jesuit life is summed up in
the offering each one is to make of himself daily at the Masscertainly a liturgically centered spirituality. And again, as we
have seen previously, the doctrine which he was teaching to
others was paralleled in his own life, as the following passage
from his spiritual diary shows.
Strive to realize what prayer is, and what sacrifice, and how the
two are to be joined. For the Holy Spirit will help you in prayer,
and will make petition on your behalf; while Christ will offer sacrifice for you. For if we do not offer our sacrifices in the power of
Christ, we offer nothing. Only His sacrifice was of itself pleasing to
God, and through His, all others. 76
In similar fashion his diary manifests his devotion to the
Divine Office. "Seek in the Psalter delight of soul and spiritual
profit. These the Lord will give you, as well as the grace that
you may not only not find it troublesome to read the canonical
hours so frequently, but you may eagerly desire to find time to
pray." 77 And in another place:
74 Archiv. S.J. Roman, Opp: NN. 30 (Orat. observ.) p. 273, cited in
Nicolau, "Liturgia y Ejercicios," p. 265.
75 Plciticas en Coimbra, p. 200.
76 Orat. observ., MHSI, Epist. Nadal, IV, p. 688.
11 Archiv. S.J. Roman., Opp: NN. 30 (Orat, observ.) p. 402, cited in
Nicolau, "Liturgia y Ejercicios," p. 266.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
31
In reading the canonical hours, above all the Psalms, put on the
person of Christ; that is, Christ Himself, so that in Him you may
ask, suffer, be powerful; as if He Himself should speak in you, and
you in Him, in the Holy Spirit. Put on the person of the Church,
or of another, as the occasion demands.7s
Other Early Jesuits
Though the cryptic nature of Borgia's spiritual diary 79 does
not give us much knowledge of the exact place liturgical prayer
had in his personal spiritual life, it does not seem to have been
as prominent as in the life of the men studied thus far. However, he composed two books of meditations, one on the Gospels
of the Sundays, ferial days, and principal feasts of the year,
the other on the Gospels of the feasts of the saints 79 ". The idea
behind these meditations is precisely that expressed by Nadal
in his exhortation at Alcala in 1561, quoted above. 8 ° For in
his prologue he expresses clearly the liturgical spirit of union
with the prayer of the Church which should rule private
prayer:
With regard to the matter of the meditation, this is not left to
the choice of the one meditating, but for his greater security, let him
take those which the Roman Church, the Spouse of Christ, has
chosen, according to the Gospels which she has proposed for Sundays
and other feasts, because, as a true and prudent mother, she has
known how to choose the food which is most fitting for her children.st
And further on, in explaining the petition for the particular
grace to be sought from each meditation, he speaks thus:
What is to be asked for is the same as what the Roman Church
asks for on the Sundays and feast days; because she knows better
Orat. observ., MHSI, Epist. Nadal, IV, p. 696.
MHSI, Sanctus Franciscus Borgia V, Diarium, pp. 729-887.
79
" El Evangelio meditado. ll:leditaciones para todas las dominicas y
ferias del ano y para las principales festividades. Federico Cerv6s, S.J.,
ed. Madrid, 1912; and ll:leditaciones de San Francisco de Borja sobre los
Evangelios de las fiestas de los santos. Jose March, S.J., ed. Barcelona,
1925. There is an older Latin edition of the first work: ll:leditationes in
praecipua Evangelia pro diebus Dominicis et Feriis totius anni & quibusdam ex principalioribus Festis, quae occurrunt in primo tractatu, in
Sancti Francisci Borgiae Opera Omnia, Liber 6. ( Bruxellis, 1675). It is
not clear, however, whether or not this edition is the first publication of
this work, or whether it had been published in the lifetime of Borgia.
The Latin edition will be the one referred to in this paper.
80
Supra, p. 29.
81
Sancti Francisci Borgiae Opera Omnia, p. 229, no. 2.
78
79
�32
JESUITS AND LITURGY
what is proper for us to ask, since she asks for it with the Spirit
of the Lord, who pleads for us with unutterable groanings. 82
The practice of seeking liturgical inspiration for meditation
has continued in the Society, though it is true that the liturgical spirit has not always been as explicit as in the meditations
of Nadal and Borgia, and undoubtedly the liturgical year has
merely formed a convenient framework for many such books
of meditations. St. Peter Canisius, who had known the work
of Nadal, 83 published a similar two volume work in 15911593.84 Father Luis de la Puente, in his life of Father Baltasar
Alvarez, speaking of the fact that God commonly illuminates
those in the higher states of prayer with lights concerning the
various feasts of Christ and the saints on the feast days themselves, affirms that this is a sign of how pleasing to God such
a conformity of one's mental prayer to the spirit of the Church
is.8s
A study of the spiritual notes and books in the Roman
archives of the Society by Father Iparraguirre 86 has shown a
pronounced liturgical tendency in the prayer of many Novices
and Scholastics of the Roman College in the last half of the
16th century. For example, in his meditations on the life of
Christ, Father Bartholomew Ricci, Master of Novices at this
period for some years, counsels his readers to do what he does
in his ordinary meditation: take the matter for meditation
according to the liturgical cycle of the Church. 87 Other examples, both from works of those in charge of the spiritu_al training of the young men, and from the spiritual notes of the
82
Ibid., p. 230, no. 14.
83 l'tfHSI, Epist. Nadal, III, p. 749.
84 Notae in evangelicas lectiones, quae per tatum annum dominicis
diebus in ecclesia catholica recitantur. Opus ad pie meditandum et ad
precandum Deum accommodatum et nunc primum editum; and Notae in
evangelicas lectiones quae per tatum annum festis sanctorum diebus in
ecclesia catholica recitantur. Opus ad pie meditandum ac simul ad precandum Deum accommodatum et nunc primum in lucem editum. Cited in
Nicolau, "Liturgia y Ejercicios," pp. 269-270, nn. 118 and 119.
8 5 Vida del P. Baltasar Alvarez, c. 42, edic. La Torre, Madrid, 1880, pp.
458-459. Cited in Nicolau, "Liturgia y Ejercicios," p. 270.
86 Ignacio Iparraguirre, S:J., "Para la historia de la oraci6n en el
Colegio Romano durante la segunda mitad del siglo XVI," Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu, 15 (1946) 77-126.
87 Ibid., p. 109.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
33
young Jesuits themselves, are also pointed out by Father
Iparraguirre. Though the evidence by no means shows a universal liturgical spirit, there seems to have been a very
marked tendency in this direction.S 8
Conclusions
What conclusions are to be drawn from the facts presented
in this paper as to the place of the liturgy in Ignatian spirituality? First of all, there is the obvious, but negative, conclusion, that there is no incompatibility between true Ignatian
spirituality and profound liturgical piety. But our conclusions
can go much further. St. Ignatius not only deeply loved the
liturgy, but, at least in his later years when his personal
spirituality had fully matured, centered his entire spiritual life
around the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The men who most
closely followed St. Ignatius, and who, by his own testimony,
had penetrated most deeply into the spirit of the Exercises
and of the Society-Faber and Nadal-were men of profound
liturgical spirit. A love and esteem for the liturgy, then, and a
penetration of one's private prayer with the spirit of the liturgy, can be said to be proper to the spirituality of the Society.
If it has not always been so in our time, this is simply another
instance in which a study of our earliest traditions can bring
us closer to the mind and spirit of our Father and the Society
he founded, as studies of recent years on the Exercises have
done.
Likewise in our apostolate there is place for increased use
of the liturgy, according to the mind of the Church. As far
back as 1922, in a letter on the use of the sacred liturgy according to the way of life in the Society, Father Ledochowski had
written on the necessity of explaining to our students the
meaning of the ceremonies of the Mass and other liturgical
functions, so as to give them a love of the Church's liturgy. 89
In 1932 a letter to the Italian provinces emphasized the need
of promoting in our churches a greater participation of the
people in the liturgy, especially in the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass. 90 The people should be instructed in the meaning of the
88
Ibid., p. 125.
"De sacra liturgia pro nostrae vitae ratione accurate peragenda,"
Acta Romana 3 (1922) 476.
90
"De spiritu sacrae liturgiae in nostris templis et operibus in Italia
89
�34
JESUITS AND LITURGY
Mass/ 1 and given the opportunity to participate by means of
dialogue Masses 92 or Mass sung by the whole congregation. 93
All this, Father Ledochowski declares, is most proper to us,
for when the Church is today especially emphasizing such participation, "We in accordance with the proper spirit of our
Institute should cooperate wholeheartedly by every means at
our disposal." 94 The same point was made more recently by
our present Father General, while recalling the profound love
and esteem of the liturgy inculcated by our Father Ignatius.
Though the letter concerns the Jesuits of the Oriental rites,
the statement is made of the Society as a whole. "It is our
task to serve the Church, and, in accordance with the mind of
the Church, to inculcate the. love and practice of the sacred
liturgy." 95
There is no doubt that there have always been some Jesuits
active in promoting an esteem of the liturgy, under the limitations which being men of their own times imposed on them. 96
But something more is required today, especially in the integration of the liturgy with the giving of the Spiritual Exercises. In an article in Woodstock Letters a few years back97
Fathers Gerald and Augustine Ellard made many excellent
suggestions as to how'the Mass each morning during a retreat
can and should be integrated into the work of the retreat.
Likewise in his article referred to earlier in these pages,
Father Gelineau has offered further practical suggestions on
how the retreat may be permeated with the liturgy, for, as
he says, "A retreat which is to form a true Christian should
also give him the sense of the prayer of the Church; it should
impensius promovendo," Acta Romana 7 (1932) 227.
n Ibid., p. 228.
92 Ibid., pp. 228-229.
9s Ibid., p. 229.
94 Ibid., p. 227.
05 "Epistola et ordinatio de 'Ramo Orientali' Societatis Jesu," Acta
Romana 11 (1950) 892. On the whole question, cf. pp. 891-893.
96
Cf. Brou, The Ignatian Way to God, pp. 137-138; Cavallera, Ascetisme et Liturgie, pp. 93-104; Karl Richstatter, S.J., "Das innere Erlebnis
der Exerzitien," Der Geist der Ignatianischen Exerzitien, (Freiburg im
Breisgau, 1925) ed. Paul Strater, S.J., p. 201, n. 15.
9 7 Augustine Ellard, S.J., and Gerald Ellard, S.J., "The Laymen's
Retreat and the Liturgy," Woodstock Letters 81 (1952) 13-23.
�JESUITS AND LITURGY
35
teach him to nourish his interior life on that which will be
tomorrow its normal exercise: the parish liturgical life." 98
These and other means for stimulating a love of the liturgy
are profoundly in accord with the spirit of St. Ignatius, as is
clear from the evidence presented. If they were not always explicitly pointed out by Ignatius himself, it is because in a true
and vital spirituality, just as in dogma, there must be a development and explicitation, flowing from, yet remaining true
to, the original basic principles.
98
Gelineau, "L'esprit liturgique des Exercises," p. 240.
Impressions
You must not wonder that the impressions made by a meditation do
not seem to last. Some of them do not last, but some do. Some do not,
because Our Lord wishes to keep us near Him throughout the day, and
if by working for one hour we could get bread for the whole day, we
should not go back to Him often. Moreover, some impressions He does
not wish always to last. Whether we like it or not, there will be a succession of clouds and sunshine to keep us humble.
PETER GALLWEY
Father Gallwey as Novice Master
Father Gallwey found in possession at the novitiate a system, sound
indeed and solid, but a little inelastic and timorous, fearful of departures
from precedent, more careful, perhaps, to curb or suppress what is
faulty in human nature than to bring out and reinforce what is good.
He set himself at once to introduce what he believed to be the main
principle of progress in the spiritual life, that of making experiments.
You never know what you can do till you try. It is not what you do in
common with others that helps you most, though of course you must not
neglect common duties; it is what you do beyond,-what is of your own
initiative, extra prayer or mortification or work of any kind-which
really counts. Sanctification is the business of the individual, and
cannot be managed in companies under a drillmaster, however useful
and necessary drill may be in itself. Consequently, the thoughts that
one beats out for oneself in meditation, one's own private practices in
devotion and self-denial, are to be prized most highly. There is a minimum of regularity and observance to be required of all but beyond it
there are endless varieties of proficiency to which the individual may
aspire. Father Gallwey used to say that the difference in holiness
between the average religious and the good layman was not greater than
that between the religious themselves.
M. GAVIN
�Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
On May 4, 1957, the last unit of the new Loyola Seminary
was solemnly blessed. It can be said that the idea of the new
philosophate is as old as the province in which it is situated.
When the Maryland-New York Province was divided in 1943,
the northern section, although it began its independent existence as one of the largest provinces in the Society, had no
house of studies. Nor was it possible to build during the war
years or the years immediately following.
Yet planning for the new seminary was begun. Scores of
possible sites within the boundaries of the New York Province
were inspected and in 1946 title was acquired to a 338 acre
tract of land in the high, rolling hills of northern Westchester.
The site of the new seminary overlooks the Taconic State
Parkway which gives easy access to New York City, less than
forty miles away, and is about seven miles from the Peekskill
railway station on the bank of the Hudson River. In 1949 a
building committee was created and it set to work on the plans
of the future edifice. Early in 1951 the Jesuit Seminary Building Fund was established. It reached its goal of $5,000,000
by the beginning of 1954.
The architects chosen were the firm of Voorhees, Walker,
Smith and Smith of New York City. Over a perioa. of years
the building committee and the architects discussed plans so
numerous that they were lettered from "A" to "P." As the
plans matured, they were submitted to the whole province for
inspection, criticism, and suggestions. Finally the form of the
building was decided on, and the architects set to work to
draw up the blueprints and the specifications. These were
ready for submission to prospective bidders in August 1953.
When the bids were in, the contract was awarded to the
George A. Fuller Company of New York City.
A year before, in September 1952, the formal breaking of
the ground was marked by ceremonies. In the presence of invited guests, Francis Cardinal Spellman of New York turned
the first shovel of earth. Actual construction began in October
36
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�SHRUB OAK
37
1953 and continued for almost two years. After work had been
in progress a year, the ceremony of placing the cornerstone
was held, graced by the presence of James Francis Cardinal
Mcintyre, Archbishop of Los Angeles.
By the summer of 1955, although work on parts of the building was to continue for another six months, the huge edifice
was habitable. "Open House" was held August 28-30 and again
September 10-11, when well over 10,000 friends of the Society
inspected the building. On September 13, 1955, the main body
of the community arrived from Bellarmine College, Plattsburgh. It may be said that that date marks the formal beginning of Loyola Seminary.
On October 8, 1955, Cardinal Spellman formally dedicated
the new seminary in the presence of Valerian Cardinal Gracias
of Bombay, Most Rev. William A. Scully, Bishop of Albany,
many prelates, priests, and 4,000 guests.
Work on the library, the last unit of the seminary, was
started in the spring of 1956 and completed a year later. In the
presence of the donor, Mrs. Mary D. Reiss and her family, the
Most Rev. Vincent I. Kennally, S.J., Vicar Apostolic of the
Caroline and Marshall Islands blessed the new building, which
the next day was inspected by 2',500 friends and benefactors
of the Society.
The Building
The new seminary is one of the most imposing buildings in
Northern Westchester. Constructed atop a hill reaching 670
feet above sea level, the cross above its tower reaches almost
150 feet from the ground. From this commanding position,
the view of the countryside for miles around is unobstructed.
Indeed from the top of the tower can be discerned the Empire
State Building in the heart of Manhattan. As one approaches
the main entrance court up the long curving driveway from
Stoney Street, the adjective that springs to mind is "massive."
For the building, covering six acres of land, is nothing less
than huge.
It is of brick, Colonial rose in color, offset by Indiana limestone trim. The central section of the building is a hollow
rectangle, enclosing a garth 150 by 87 feet. From this section
stretch out four wings. Two, extending diagonally to the southeast and southwest, contain the living quarters of the Scholas-
�38
SHRUB OAK
tics; at the end of the southeast wing is attached the classroom
building. The food services are housed in the wing projecting
to the west. The library thrusts forth from the center of the
northern fa"ade.
The Entrance
The main entrance is through a two story limestone arch
at the eastern end of the north fa"ade of the central section.
Decorated by a carved representation of the seal of the Society, the entrance is enhanced by fourteen pierced limestone
panels depicting incidents in the lives of Jesuit saints. The
sculptor was Joseph Kiselewski. The events commemorated are
as follows:
1. St. Ignatius commissioning St. Francis Xavier to the
Indies.
2. Xavier dying at Sancian.
3. St. Peter Canisius preaching in Germany.
4. St. Peter Claver baptizing the slaves at Cartagena.
5. St. Aloysius Gonzaga assisting the plague-stricken.
6. St. Isaac J ogues with the Indians at Auriesville.
7. St. John Francis Regis preaching in France.
8. St. John Berchmans instructing altar boys.
9. St. Stanislaus Kostka being received by Claude Acquaviva.
10. St. Francis Borgia, Duke of Gandia, being received by
Ignatius.
11. St. Alphonsus Rodriguez and St. Peter Claver at
Majorca.
12. St. Andrew Bobola martyred by the Cossacks.
13. St. Robert Bellarmine confuting the divine right of
kings.
14. The Japanese martyrs, Saints Paul Miki, John de Goto,
James Kisai.
In the entrance lobby is a wide marble tablet extending
from floor to ceiling and bearing the names of donors of
memorial gifts to the seminary. To the east of the lobby is a
large parlor, to the west are seven rooms devoted to the
speech department, six of which double as parlors, and the
seventh contains the electronic equipment of the department.
West of these are the guests' dining rooms and a large recrea-
I
I
���SHRUB OAK
39
tion room for the Scholastics. In the basement of this section
of the building is the auditorium, with a seating capacity of
360, a large stage, and a fully equipped motion-picture projection room.
The Chapel
Situated on the second floor directly above the entrance
lobby is the Mater Christi Chapel, separated from the sanctuary of the main chapel by an ornamental metal grill through
which guests may observe services. The altar of the Mater
Christi Chapel is placed at its north end before a fabric dossal; made of teak wood, its base bears a carved panel of the
Madonna by Gleb Derujinsky. East and west of this chapel
are fifteen small chapels for private Masses.
The domestic chapel of St. Ignatius is fittingly the finest
portion of the building, It measures 112 feet in length, 47 feet
in width, and is 42 feet in height. The interior is marked by
simplicity, depending for effect on the materials used. An
acoustical study resulted in the adoption of splayed walls, perforated piers (the perforations taking the form of crosses behind which acoustical blankets are placed), brick patterns on
the rear wall of the choir loft at the west end of the chapel,
and a wood ceiling with alternating coffers.
The piers between the windows on both the north and south
walls of the chapel, the side walls of the sanctuary and the
rear wall of the choir loft are of reddish-brown Norman size
bricks. The deep splayed reveals of the tall, narrow windows
are lined with Madre Cream Alabama marble, as are the side
walls of the choir loft. Two lofty white marble piers flank the
tremendous reredos of gold mosaic of the sanctuary at the east
end of the chapel. On these piers, above the doors leading to
the sacristy, are eight-foot statues of the Sacred Heart and
of Our Lady. These statues are carved of the same marble
as the piers so that they become part of the piers and seem to
emerge from them. The statues are the work of Henry Kreis.
In the center of the reredos and high above the altar is
placed the crucifix with a corpus eight feet high. This corpus,
the work of Oronzio Maldarelli, is of bronze covered with gold
and silver leaf and mounted on a twelve foot ebony cross.
While the floor of the nave is of rubbed bluestone, that of the
sanctuary is of Madre Cream marble, as is the predella, upon
.,
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�40
SHRUB OAK
which rests the altar. The table-type altar is composed of a
twelve-foot mensa of one block of Italian verde marble, six
inches thick and weighing 3,000 pounds, resting on three rectangular stipes. The tabernacle and the candlesticks are of
silver with gold embellishments. High above the altar is suspended a carved wood tester, bearing on its underside the
seal of the Society.
Along the sides of the chapel, set alternately over the six
side doors below the windo·ws and the brick piers between the
windows, are the Stations of the Cross, executed in white
marble by Donald Delue and measuring thirty-two inches
square. At the four corners of the nave are white marble
panels reaching from the floor ·to the sills of the windows. At
the top of these panels are bas reliefs while below are engraved inscriptions from the writings of St. Ignatius. The
reliefs, carved by Carl Schmitz, represent St. Ignatius
wounded at the siege of Pampeluna, writing the Spiritual
Exenises at Manresa, taking the vows at Montmartre with his
first companions, and receiving papal approval of the Society
from Pope Paul III.
The ten tall windows, twenty-seven feet nine inches high,
are glazed with slightly varying shades of umber-colored cathedral glass. Further illumination comes from ten especially
designed lighting fixtures, finished in gold and silver. The
chapel is equipped with an electronic organ and is wired for
loudspeakers. The sacristy is provided with cabinets and cases
for the vestments and appurtenances needed for the..a\tar.
The West and North Wings
From the exterior, it will be noted that immediately west
of the chapel rises the massive tower. Below this tower is the
narthex, the large lobby on the second floor, the center of the
traffic of the seminary. The narthex is immediately before
the main doors of the chapel. Ambulatories to the east and
south give access to the living quarters of the community. The
narthex serves as the lobby of the library, and also to the
dining room immediately to the west.
The refectory, designed to serve a community of three hundred, is a large room-100 by 60 feet, 27 feet high. The north
and south walls are lined with tall narrow windows, each
twenty feet high, between wood encased piers. The refectory
l
j
i
I
I
�SHRUB OAK
41
ceiling is composed of a series of square recessed coffers containing lighting panels, loudspeakers for the sound system,
ventilation diffusers, and acoustical panels. West of the refectory are the kitchens, pantry, and bakery, all provided with
the most modern equipment. Below are storerooms, refrigerators, the service entrance and receiving platform, and a large
clothes room; in the basement is the boiler room, equipped
with three large, modern boilers and emergency electric generators. A freight elevator in the kitchen wings serves all
floors.
From the narthex one enters the second or main floor of
the Mary D. Reiss Library. This building, measuring 83 by 57
feet, contains 21,729 feet of floor space. It has the usual library
offices, a room for archives, a microfilm room, a rare book
room, a book vault. Almost three miles of shelving-about 20,000 feet-can accommodate, it is estimated, about 150,000
volumes. The top floor is devoted exclusively to book stacks,
and two more tiers of stacks are located in the first floor,
which has a height of sixteen feet. Notable is the reading and
reference room on the main floor, beautifully panelled in light
wood and illumined by five huge windows, with seats for one
hundred students.
Living Quarters
The open court or garth is enclosed by the chapel on the
north, a Scholastics' living section on the east, the faculty
wing on the south, and common rooms on the west. An open
loggia, roofed against inclement weather, encircles the garth,
and many-windowed ambulatories, eight feet wide, give access
to all sections of the building.
The west wing of the central section contains a large music
room, the Brothers' recreation room, the Fathers' recreation
room, a faculty library, a large suite for the Cardinal, and
several faculty rooms. While this, and the facing east wing,
are three stories high, the faculty wing to the south, with its
five stories, is the highest section of the living quarters. It
will be noted that the living quarters are placed for the maximum of quiet and undisturbed study. In the faculty wing are
four two room suites for officials of the house, and twenty-four
single rooms, measuring sixteen by eighteen feet, with large
walk-in closets. The fifth floor is devoted exclusively to the in-
·.·
.,•
..;
.,
'
·I
;
'
'
~
�42
SHRUB OAK
firmary, with nine bedrooms for the sick with semi-private
baths, two infirmarians' rooms, two chapels, dentist's, doctor's, and infirmarian's offices, a dietary kitchen and two
solaria. A hospital-type elevator extends up to the infirmary
from the basement floor.
The two Scholastics' wings are set off diagonally from the
southeast and southwest corners of the central section to provide a maximum of light, privacy, and an unimpeded view of
the beautiful countryside. Each of these huge wings, four
stories high and 251 feet long, contains, besides stairways,
bath and service rooms, 124 living rooms, 31 to a floor. Each
room, twelve by fourteen feet and equipped with running hot
and cold water, contains bed, wdrdrobe, chest of drawers, desk,
bookcase, a typewriting table ~a:nd two chairs. The ceilings of
the rooms, eight feet six inches high, as well as the ceilings
of the corridors, seven feet wide, are covered with acoustical
tile, and the partitions and floors are designed to minimize
the transmission of noise.
The classroom building, 85 by 79 feet, and two stories high,
is located at the end of the eastern wing. It contains three
large lecture rooms, each capable of holding a hundred students comfortably, two smaller classrooms, a theatre-type
physics lecture room, and two physics laboratories.
The tower which dominates the entire structure rises 127
feet from the ground; from its roof projects the gilded cross,
21 feet in the stem and with a cross arm of eight feet;The top
floor of the tower constitutes an observation deck; and the
tower ·itself contains the chimney for the boiler room, two
30,000 gallon water tanks supplied with booster pumps, and
the ventilating machinery for the chapel and auditorium.
The new Loyola Seminary is an enduring memorial to the
generosity of our friends and benefactors, and to the wisdom
and planning of our Fathers.
�'I
.·II
Predicting Number of Jesuit Priests
I
r'
William J. 1\'lehok, S.J.
A problem which constantly confronts higher superiors and
is of concern to all is that of future manpower and personnel.
Should the province undertake new ministries and expand
existing ones or should it relinquish or curtail existing ones?
How many Jesuits can a rector or prefect of studies expect to
have at some future date?
It is evident that many principles which govern the growth
and decline of a natural group, such as the human race, can
be applied analogously to an artificial group such as the
Society. If demographers knew the present size of the human
race, they could predict its future size by adding the number
of births and subtracting the estimated number of deaths as
computed from the current death rate. When it comes to estimating the future size of a particular country they must contend with other factors, namely adding the number of immigrants, subtracting the number of emigrants and also trying
to foresee possible divisions or changes in territorial boundaries. The analogous concepts, in so far as they pertain to the
Society, are entrance and death, departure or dismissal for
the whole Society, and immigration and emigration among
provinces and change or division of province territories. This
is the direct method and presupposes accurate data regarding
all the factors which enter into the growth and decline of the
group in question. Such information is often not had, or if
available, is not trustworthy.
Fortunately, we have at our disposal a method which
achieves the same end and for which accurate data are found
in province catalogues. It is an indirect approach and is based
first on a provable close and stable relationship between
known contemporary conditions and as yet unknown future
conditions, and secondly, on an application of this relationship
to solve our specific problem. Technically these two concepts
are designated by the names "coefficient of correlation" and
43
·'
·'
'•
�44
PROPHECY
"regression equation", which latter is better described as a
prediction equation.
Common sense tells us that there is some relationship between the number of Scholastics at an early date and the
number of priests at a later date, but it does not tell us how
stable this relationship is in view of factors which may change
with time and locality. For the sake of clarity, let us first
confine ourselves to the entire Society and transmit for the
present territorial, that is provincial, differences.
Experience with such studies has shown that proportions
and ratios yield more accurate results than do absolute numbers. Thus it was found that the proportionate increase or
decrease in number of priesj;s during the last twelve years
paralleled almost perfectly tlle proportion of Scholastics to
priests in corresponding years twelve years earlier. Algebraically this is expressed: (Priests at a late date minus
Priests at an early date) divided by (Priests at an early
date) correlated with (Scholastics at an early date divided
by Priests at an early date) by a coefficient of .98, where
1.00 is perfect correlation as found, for example, in events
governed by physical laws. This does not mean identity since
it is obvious that not all Scholastics persevered and that
priests died, but these events occurred with remarkable uniformity from year to year. The prediction formula takes
these factors into account and when it was applied to the
Scholastics between 1934 and 1945 and checked against the
actual number of priests between 1946 and 1957 -inclusive,
the net difference between formula estimated number of
priests and the actual number of priests over the twelve year
period was only seventy-one priests fewer when derived by
formula. Some years this difference was higher than this,
others, it was lower; some years the formula underestimated
actual number of priests, others it overestimated it. Over a
period of years these differences cancelled out and in no
single year did the difference even reach 1% of the population measured.
The next step is to assume that, if this relationship has
been so stable in the past, it will continue to be so in the
future. On this assumption the predicted number of priests
of the whole Society for the present year and 11 future
�PROPHECY
45
years was estimated as follows:
1957-17,1801
1958-17,487
1959-17,979
1960-18,371
1961-18,757
1962-19,074
1963-19,330
1964-19,678
1965-20,037
1966-20,387
1967-20,701
1968-21,011
The fact that the formula underestimated actual number of
priests in 1957 by 112 may simply mean that some of the
theologians were older and hence ordained before the end of
a twelve year period. If the formula continues to underestimate the actual number of priests for the next three or four
years, we might suspect a trend indicating that proportionately more Scholastics are ordained or that priests are
living longer.
Thus far we have confined ourselves to the Society as a
whole and the relationship between number of Scholastics
and priests over a period of time. From here on we shall
introduce regional differences, that is variation among
provinces and also migration from one province to another.
It should be pointed out that all that follows is the work of
Father Andre Lionnet of the Province of Lyons; for that
matter, the basic idea underlying what has preceded is also
his.
When we apply a prediction formula to an individual
province, space factors enter: differences in entering age,
length of training, perseverance, longevity and migration
among the provinces. Father Lionnet's formula takes these
factors into consideration partly by being based on provinces
rather than on the whole Society and partly by introducing
a second variable, a'\statistically computed estimate of the
number of years of formation before Scholastics are or-
=
1 FORMULA I: Y
.472X -.054; where,
Y
(Pr57 - Pr45) I Pr45]
(Pr57 - 13,700) I 13,700]: The
estimated proportionate increase in number of priests of an early date
(1945) at a date twelve years later (1957) .
.472
Constant.
X= [Sch45 I Pr45] = [8,934 I 13,700] = .652
-.054 = Constant.
Therefore: Y = [.472 x .652 -.054] = [.308 -.054] = .254
13,700 X .254 = 3,480: Numerical increase in number of priests in 1957
over 1945.
13,700 + 3,480
17,180: Estimated number of priests in 1957. Actual
number is 17,292. Difference -112.
Otherwise: 13,700 X 1.254 = 17,180.
=[
=
=
=[
.!
':
''
·'
,I
.,
�PROPHECY
46
dained. Owing to the greater variation among the provinces
of the above factors, the correlation coefficient is lower, .80 as
against .98, but still very high for such applications.
The Table gives some of the premises and results of this
formula when applied to the number of Scholastics in 1956
to predict the number of priests in 1968. Column 1 gives the
statistical number of years of formulation, information which
is necessary to apply the formula to any other year. Column
2 gives the proportionate rate of increase and is interesting
for comparative purposes. Finally, column 3 gives the estimated number of priests in 1968 by assistancies and provinces.
The difference between the two estimates for 1968 of 236
priests is explainable in part-by the different years on which
the formulas were based, but mostly by the fact that the
second formula cannot compensate for apparent leakage
arising from the erection of new provinces, whereas the first,
working in a closed system, can.
To demonstrate the steps involved, let us take the province
of Argentina which has not been divided during the years
1943 to 1955. 2 Formula II gives us an estimate of 197 priests
whereas the actual figure was 195. Since, in the past, formula
and reality have differed by as much as 3%, proportionate
increases were rounded to the nearest 5%.
It is to be remembered that both formulas are empirical
and project into the future what has happened with regularity in the past. If, over a period of years, they. show a
tendency to underestimate or overestimate the actual numFORMULA II: Y = .595Xt X X. -.142; where,
Pr43) I Pr43]
(Pr55 - 149) I 149]: The estimated
proportionate increase in number of priests of an early date (1943)
at a date twelve years later (1955) .
Constant.
.595
X1
[12.0 I Years of formation (from column 1, Table 1)]
[12.0 I 22.1]
.543
X.
[Sch43 I Pr43]
[214 I 149]
1.436 -.142
Constant.
Therefore: Y
(.595 X .543) X 1.436 - .142]
(.323 X 1.436)
- .142]
[.464 - .142] = .322
149 X .322 = 48: Numericalincrease in number of priests in 1955 over
1943.
149 + 48
197: Estimated number of priests in 1955. Actual number
was 195. Difference +2.
Otherwise: 149 X 1.322
197.
2
Y
= [(Pr55 =
=
=
=
=[
=
=
=[
=
=
=
=
=
=[
�,,
:'1
·,,
'
PROPHECY
47
ber of priests, this means that "past" conditions are slowly
changing and the formulas should be revised. Some such
changes are to be expected owing to the abnormal conditions
following World War II, but only the actual event will prove
the extent and direction that this influence will have on the
formulas. They should, however, prove more exact than
mere guesses or even estimates based on average annual increment.
TABLE
Prediction of number of Priests in Provinces and Assistancies of the
Society of Jesus in 1968 based on number of Scholastics in 1956.
Years of
Formationl
SOCIETAS IESU ----------------------------
Increase
1956-19682
Priests
1968 3
12.0
.23
20,775"
11.7
12.8
10.6
14.6
11.0
12.8
.00
.20
.05
.15
.15
.15
222
104
266
185
289
300
1,371
202
355
191
239
129
90
599
PROVINCE OR ASSISTANCY
Romana ----------------------------------------Mangalorensisb -----------------------------N eopolitana -------------------------------Sicula ----------------------------------------Taurinensis -----------------------------------Veneto-Mediolanensis -----------------------ITALIAE
.11
---------------------------------
Austriae -----------------------------------------Germaniae lnferioris ---------------------Germaniae Orientalis -------------------Germaniae Superioris --------------------Helvetica ----------------------------------------Ia ponica --------------------------------------------Neerlandica -----------------------------
(26.6)•
(12.7)
(17.4)
(15.6)
(15.6)
(12.7)
12.0
-.10
.05
.05
.25
.00
.15
.20
1
Statistical number of years of formation for scholastics before ordination.
2
Proportionate increase in number of priests 1968 relative to number
of priests in 1956 as predicted from number of scholastics in 1956. Provinces rounded to nearest .05.
3
Predicted number of priests in 1968. All estimates based on formula
and subtotals and total need not check by addition.
• Includes Slavic Assistancy, Hungary, Lettonia and Estonia, Lithuania
and Belgaum although no subtotals given for these.
b Names of Provinces and Independent Vice Provinces given as used in
1956.
. • All figures in parentheses given tentatively owing to abnormal conditiOns following World War II.
�PROPHECY
48
PROVINCE OR ASSISTANCY
Years of
Formation1
GERMANIAE ------------------
Campaniae ------------------Franciae --------------------Lugdunensis ---------------------------Madurensis ----------------------------Tolosana ----------------------------
15.1
13.6
11.4
14.1
14.1
GALLIAE ____________________________ _
Baetica ---------------------------Castellanae Occidentalis __________ _
Castellanae Orientalis -------------Legionensis _____________________ _:_,
Lusitana --------------------~
Tarraconensis --------------------Toletana ---------------------------
16.2
13.4
13.4
13.4
14.5
13.4
14.1
HISPANIAE -----------------------
Angliae ------------------------------Australiae ---------------------------------Belgicae Meridionalis --------------------Belgicae Septentrionalis ________________ _
Canadae Inferioris --------------------------Canadae Superioris ----------------------------Hiberniae ----------------------------------------Melitensis -----------------------------------------ANGLIAE
-----------------------------------------
Ca liforni ae ---------------------------------------Chicagiensis ------------------------------------0 etroi tensis ------------------------------------Mary landiae ---------------------------------Missouriana --------------------------------------N eo-Aurelianensis -------------------------N eo-Eboracensis -----------------------------Novae Angliae -------------------------------Oregoniensis -----------------------------------Wisconsinensis ----------------------------------AMERICAE
13.2
10.3
11.2
12.2
9.8
9.1
10.7
13.2
9.4
10.7
10.7
10.3
10.9
11.5
10.3
8.7
11.1
10.9
-----------------------------------
Aequatoriana -------------------------------------Antillensis -----------------------------------------Argentinensis --------------------------------Brasiliae Centralis -----------------------------Brasiliae Meridionalis --------------------Brasiliae Septentrionalis ----------------Chilensis -------------------------------------------Colombiana ---------------------------------------Mexicana --------------------------------------------AMERICAE LATINAE --------------------------
16.2
13.4
22.1
16.7
15.3
25.0
16.7
14.9
13.3
Increase
Priests
1956-19682
(.10)
-.05
.00
.05
.25
.00
.02
.40
.50
.35
.30
.20
.40
.50
.39
.05·
.40
.15
.15
.20
.30
.20
.70
.18
.40
.30
.30
.45
.25
.25
.35
.25
.35
.35
.33
.35
.40
.15
.25
.15
.00
.15
.40
.40
.27
-·
1968 3
2,111
516
519
513
292
264
2,090
280
468
547
458
235
701
370
3,091
592
228
721
718
568
300
415
78
3,628
574
499
335
- 580
459
384
1,143
831
455
448
5,728
130
175
226
126
247
75
121
311
388
1,794
�Bibliography On lgnatian Contemplation
In Action
David J. Hassel, S.J.
The problem of praying always amid the constant press
of work is a perennial one and a nagging one. Some think
it to be the most basic of all the ascetical problems facing the
apostolic Christian. This seems to be particularly true in
action-loving America. Certainly retreat masters and confessors have often enough heard the chorus: "But I never
seem to think of God at all when working."
The solution to this problem, as proposed by St. Ignatius
through his close companion Nadal, is contemplation in action
or, in Nadal's phrasing, in actione contemplativus. Ever since
the end of World War II when non-Jesuit Europeans discovered Nadal in the works of Miguel Nicolau, S.J., there has
been a steadily mounting interest in this doctrine. A few of
these men have authored articles and books which, in their
enthusiasm for the apostolate, appear to deprecate formal
prayer. Some Jesuits have tried to correct this tendency
with careful articles on the subject. As a result a literature
has suddenly sprung up concerning this theme and has furnished needed clarification and instruction which, by the
way, has been found to be very much in accord with midtwentieth-century spirituality.
The following bibliography is not exhaustive by any means.
However, its articles and books will give a solid and fairly
broad understanding of contemplation in action. They have
been listed in two divisions: the historical for the factual
basis and the psychological for "the feel" of contemplation in
action. The order of listing is made according to the sequence which seems most logical for an orderly study of the
problem.
HISTORICAL
Emerich, Coreth, S.J., "Contemplative in Action," Theology Digest, 3,
(Winter, 1955) 37-45, analyzes the terms "contemplation" and "action"
as to their relational meaning for intellectual leaders from Plato to
49
,'!
�50
CONTEMPLATION IN ACTION
Suarez. It is claimed that Ignatius Loyola was the first to explain the
complete Christian concept of contemplation: contemplation is directly
ordained to action which, in turn, both sanctifies the agent and engenders
further contemplation in him.
B. O'Brien, S.J., "Spirituality and the Active Life: I. The Mysticism
of Martha," Month, 177, (March-April, 1941) 140-149, attacks the idea
that the active life is a hindrance to perfection and shows the inadequacy of even St. Thomas Aquinas' explanation of the relationship between action and contemplation.
Thomas Clancy, S.J., "The Proper Grace of the Jesuit Vocation According to Jerome Nadal," Woodstock Letters, 86, (April, 1957) 107-118,
considers the meaning of the phrase, in actione contemplativus, as understood by its coiner, Nadal, who gave as Ignatius' paraphrase of this
term: the man who finds God in alf things. For Nadal, contemplation in
action is a participation in the sp~ial grace of Ignatius to which every
Jesuit has a right through his grace of vocation to the Society of Jesus.
Miguel Nicolau, S.J., Jeronimo Nadal, Obras Et Doctrinas Espirituales,
Madrid, 1949, is the essential book on Nadal by his re-discoverer. During
the past ten years all authors on contemplation in action refer to him.
Jean Danielou, S.J., "The Ignatian Vision of the Universe and Man,"
Crosscurrents, 4, (Fall, 1954) 357-366, translated from the Revue
d'Ascetique et Mystique, 26, (1950) 5-17, states that for Ignatius, history is essentially sacred, Christocentric, dramatic in conflict; it leads
to contemplation of the grandeur of God's ways and to the stripping of
self in order to do the will of God in these magnalia Dei; meanwhile
contemplation and work interact on and in each other.
Michel Olphe-Galliard, S.J., "La Vie Apostolique et l'Oraison," Revue
d' Ascetique et Mystique, 25, (1949) 408-426, follows Nicolau, gives
full bibliography.
Joseph Conwell, S.J., Contemplation In Action, Boone A;·enue Book
Store, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington, 1957, proves Nadal's
fidelity as a mirror of Ignatius' mind; finds contemplation in action is a
grace proper to the Society of Jesus not in an exclusive sense but in the
sense that it is manifested in Jesuits in a manner peculiar to the
Society's spirit and vocation; sees its fountainhead as contemplation of
the Trinity which produces works of militant charity; both contemplation and action are subordinated to union with God; they interact and
blend into each other to produce ever greater union; contemplation in
action is not a recollection which is unaware of the world, but such an
absorption in God that one is vividly aware of people, seeing each as
marked with Christ's blood and "the Trinitarian intent to redeem."
Jerome Nadal, Monumenta Historica Epistulae Patris Hieronymi
Nadal, 4, Matriti, Rome, 1905, 651-652, the "rediscovered" pages from
which stem the present studies of contemplation in action.
Joseph de Guibert, S.J ., La Spiritualite De La Compagnie De Jesus,
Rome, 1953, esp. 579-599, puts contemplation in action into the total
�CONTEMPLATION IN ACTION
51
context of Jesuit spirituality. Yet reviews of this book scored the inadequacy of its treatment of contemplation in action.
George Burns, S.J., "Contemplation in Action," Letters and Notices,
61, (Autumn, 1954) 50-64. "Active work is intended and calculated to
deepen the life of prayer" as Nadal, Peter Faber, Suarez, Gagliardi,
Teresa of Avila declared in word and proved in deed. Prayer is heightened by priestly duties of administering (carrying) sacraments, Mass,
preaching, counseling, poverty and chastity. Each of the Ignatian Exercises are traced as directors of prayer toward and into work.
Gonzales de Camara, S.J., St. Ignatius' Own Story, transl. by William
J. Young, Henry Regnery, 1956; Ignatius of Loyola, Constitutions,
editio critica of the Monumenta, Rome, 1934, I Doc. Praevia, CXV-CXX,
86-158, Ignatius' diary. These furnish living historical account of Ignatius' own contemplation in action.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
B. O'Brien, S.J., "Spirituality and the Active Life: II. Prayer and
Work," Month, 177, (May-June, 1941) 237-247, shows that not only can
the active life lead to true prayer, love, and close union, but it can be
these in so far as it is completely united to the will of God.
Karel Truhlar, S.J., "La Decouverte de Dieu chez S. Ignace pendant
les Dernieres Annees de sa Vie," Revue d'Ascetique et Mystique, 24,
(1948) 313-337, asserts that "to find God" meant for Ignatius the mystic
presence of God, i.e., to be united with God mystically-the final seemingly permanent state of Ignatius' soul in the last years of his life.
Leonce de Grandmaison, S.J., We and The Holy Spirit, Fides, 1953,
esp. 96-124, calls contemplation in action "virtual prayer" which "consists in giving conscious preference to apostolic interests over selfish concerns, to God's plans over human plans." This passage is considered by
some as the best psychological account of contemplation in action. Confer
the Revue d' Ascetique et Mystique (for the French text from which
the above section is taken), 10, (1929), 225-258.
Madeleine Danielou, "La Priere Selon Le Pere de Grandmaison,"
Christus, 6, (April, 1955) 228-237, claims that the virtual prayer of
Leonce de Grandmaison is distinguished from that of Ignatius by its
lesser mysticism, clarity, and consolation, and by its greater plebianism,
psychological analysis, and sorrowful tinge of desolation and confusion.
Louis Verny, S.J., "In Actione Contemplativus," Revue d'Ascetique et
Mystique, 26, (1950) 60-78, takes Grandmaison's virtual prayer and
shows its presence in the Society's Constitutions. He sees its basis as pure
intention and recollection; its causes as daily prayer, fidelity to grace,
and abnegation; its stages as ascetical progress leading up to the mystical expansiveness of joy. In its essence it is a deepening of those gifts
of the Holy Ghost called fortitude, counsel, and piety. In other words
it is a more common mysticism.
Augustine Klaas, S.J., "Current Spiritual Writing," Review For Religious, 10 (May, 1951) 149-158, gives translation of the famed Nadal
�52
CONTEl\IPLATION IN ACTION
passage and a condensation of Verny's article mentioned immediately
above.
Louis Peeters, S.J., An lgnatian Approach to Divine Union, transl. by
Hillard L. Brozowski, S.J., Bruce, 1956, esp. 67-94. In exculpating the
Ignatian Exercises and the Jesuits from the charge of anti-mysticism,
this work appears to equate contemplation in action with the first stages
of mysticism and indicates both the rich mystical literature written by
Jesuits and the full mystical life lived by not a few of them.
Maurice Giuliani, S.J., "Trouver Dieu en Toutes Choses," Christus, 6,
(April, 1955) 172-19,1 (condensed in Theology Digest, "Finding God in
All Things," 4, (Spring, 1956) 93-96). Since prayer and work done
according to God's Will are basically the aspects of a single thing: love,
Ignatius was sure that work had prayer at its core. This type of prayer
was better than long hours of formal prayer because it demanded greater
abnegation of self, extended one'.s love, became devotion, which latter is
"finding God in all things." Further, it led more easily and surely to
absolute docility to the Holy Ghost's direction towards the Trinity. Thus
there is develo:r:ed an interior attitude of joy in following the flow of
God's Will seen in all creatures and situations. All this is based on a
faithful and solid formal prayer and on continual abnegation.
Arthur Little, S.J., "The Problem of 'The Contemplation for Obtaining
Love,'" The Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 73, (Jan., 1950), 13-25. In determining to what type of love we are raised by Ignatius' Contemplatio ad
Amorem, the author gives an existentialist explanation of the contemplative factor in contemplation in action: a vivid awareness of God's
hand touching me in daily affairs.
Peter Milward, S.J., "A View of the Contemplatio ad Amorem,"
Letters and Notices, 61, (Autumn, 1954) 64-70. Following Ronald Knox's
observation that St. Paul emphasizes the interior Christ, the author
shows that the Contemplatio ad Amorem aims through God's gifts to lead
the contemplator into the interior Christ, the majestic divinity. There
one experiences the warm knowledge of the interior person more than
his external mannerisms in spee::h and action. This is a mystical love,
the highest mysticism of the Jesuit vocation.
Paul de Jaegher, S.J., "Towards Continual Prayer," Review For Religious, 11, (Sept., 1952) 231-241, gives a description of mystic prayer
which befits contemplation in action: "The chairs, the very walls of the
room speak as eloquently of God as the flowers of the garden and the
stars of the sky; the soul thus comes to be entirely plunged in love of
God; the soul has, as it were, an experimental and direct knowledge of
God in herself somewhat as she experiences in herself the feelings of
sorrow, the sensations of heat and cold; uninterruptedly she contemplates
at least in an indistinct and general way; on the other hand, the inferior
faculties, the discursive intellect, imagination, memory, and various
senses are engaged without hindrance in their ordinary occupations."
Jean Danielou, S.J., Advent, New York, Sheed & Ward, 1951, in particular 175-181. The prophet not only bears witness to history as understood by the Holy Ghost but also is the instrument of its accomplishment.
��FATHER NEIL BOYTON
I
I,
�Father Neil Boyton
C. E. F. Hoefner, S.J.
It was the year 1884. The Pampona and State of Maine
were salvaging the remnants of their collision off Florida.
The City of Columbus had been wrecked off the coast of
Massachusetts. Ulysses S. Grant, caught in the panic of New
York City, was bankrupt and financially ruined. Only the year
before, Brooklyn Bridge had been opened with a disaster that
trampled twelve people to death. The following year witnessed the first electric railway in Baltimore. These times
saw their successes and failures; they were part of the great
Victorian era of showmanship and exaggeration. But 1884
that helped to usher in the carefree spirit of the "gay
nineties" also made this biography a reality.
Captain Paul Boyton had caught the spirit of the age. His
months of action in the Franco-Prussian War, his experience
as a Peruvian Navy Captain only whetted his taste for adventure. Fitting himself into a pneumatic rubber suit of his
own invention, he crossed the English Channel. He had just
begun his round of theatrical feats. To this soldier of fortune, the recreation and pleasure seekers of the coming century would owe a debt of gratitude. For the pleasure of
the countless young of heart, who year after year frequent
Coney Island, he was destined to ply his ingenuity and invent
the Shoot-The-Chute.
All these things naturally made the Captain's life one of
extraordinary experience. But of major importance in this
year of 1884 was the fact that he was to become the father
of the first of five boys-Neil. And Neil, the eldest, would
set the example for all, for in the designs of God, this first
boy would dedicate his life to a service of complete renunciation in the Society of Jesus.
From his earliest years, the spirit of adventure of this first
son pleased the proud father. Neil's younger life had much
of the flare and color of his father's restless spirit. We find
him a student at Xavier in New York City during the years
1901 to 1904; the following year at St. Louis University and
at Holy Cross from 1905 to 1908 where he received his
53
�54
FATHER BOYTON
Bachelor of Arts. As a boy he attended the Preparatory
School of Notre Dame University before entering Xavier.
All during Neil's early years, his father was exploiting
the rubber suit which had placed him in the public eye during
the year 1884. Captain Boyton conducted water festivals,
sea carnivals, regattas and amusement shows throughout the
East and as far west as Chicago. On one of his many trips
to Europe in the capacity of entertainer and showman he
took young Neil, where in Earls Court, London, a bombastic
Victorian exhibition in water prowess was staged. Neil
never forgot the enchantment of those days and spoke of
them as part of the many incidents which rounded· out his
education and brought him unwittingly closer to the life he
finally embraced. Perhaps the fanfare of the Victorian Age
and the exaggerations of these glamorous spectacles made him
desire the more the opposite--the life of a priest in the Society of Jesus. Neil undoubtedly was the favored son, for I
have been told by one. of his brothers that Neil, more often
than any of the other boys, accompanied his father whenever
he could with the sanction of school authorities.
In many ways, Father Neil showed this spirit of adventure,
but of course to a very restrained degree. In camp with
his Boy Scouts, on hikes and in his simplest undertakings,
those who knew him well could detect the latent instincts
of his father. Who knows but what as a Jesuit that same
desire for new and undiscovered lands and peoples, now
spiritualized and supernaturalized in religion, led him to the
land of spices. One of many experiences in his missionary
life in India he loved to relate around the camp fire during
the summers with the Boy Scouts. In this incident one
could almost see Paul, his father, talking. For Neil, the
young Jesuit, escaped death only by a hair's breath when
a cobra darted at him from a thicket during mountain
climbing on an Indian holiday. Only the hard crown of the
helmet worn by our missionaries saved his life. It was
against the crown of this hat that the serpent released all
its poison. Father Neil,- as he put it, by an urging involuntary, as though it had been directed from some unseen force,
charged head downwards, unaware of death that lurked in
the tropical foliage.
�FATHER BOYTON
55
Perhaps this love of adventure and the desire for the new
and extraordinary was given full expression in his insatiable
desire to write. These promptings easily can be detected in
the twenty-three books he wrote for the American boy. In
this avocation, the zealous young Jesuit, truly a chip off the
old block, found a fertile field for all his dreams and fantasies.
The Horatio Alger instinct which was only another name
for the disposition Neil inherited from his father and which
disappears usually during the last of the adolescent period
stayed with the priest and Jesuit all his life. Evidently this
boylike mentality is not something to thrill the American
boy alone, for many of Father Boyton's books are translated
into the languages of Europe.
Nor were all Father Boyton's qualities reflections of the
paternal line. Margaret Connolly his mother, an alumna of
the schools of the Religious of the Sacred Heart, left her
indelible impression on her young son. In him one saw all
her tenderness, compassion, simplicity and sympathy. Her
influence was constant, for she filled out a span of well-nigh
four score and ten, and one could easily perceive in the son
an affection, understanding and kindness that could only have
been the legacies of his mother.
My first recollection of Father Boyton was back in 1929,
when I was teaching at Regis. One morning early in September, having finished his breakfast, Father began filling a
bag with apples, oranges and bananas. Father Nevin, the
Minister, smiled casually as he looked in that direction. Evidently, this was a ritual, I thought. In the teachers' room
that morning as we began leaving for the third period after
the collation, I saw Father Boyton emptying the cookie
dishes. Smilingly he looked at me, guessed my bewilderment
and merely said, "My prizes for today."
Father Boyton thoroughly believed that serene life with
no struggle involved becomes a bore to a boy. He was convinced that being in a contest is the most exciting state in a
boy's life, and success for a boy consists in winning something through his own efforts. Consequently, Father Boyto~'s classroom was constantly alive with games; the prizes
bemg anything from lollypops to the fruit from the refectory
table or the cookies from the teachers' room. His efficiency in
�56
FATHER BOYTON
conducting classroom games was eminent for not only did
the boys find every minute of his class entertaining, but unconsciously they were learning with zest what others had to
labor over at the expense of fatigue, boredom and possible
sanctions, all of which are not consonant with a boy's idea of
study.
Lollypops and chewing gum were not a crown to be won
for intellectual prowess alone. Father Boyton's friends were
liable to this luxury at any time, whether it was during his
daily jaunt through the neighborhood, his passing through
the sacristy in the morning on his way to a convent to say
Mass, or with the fortunate group that was selected to accompany him to the New Yofk Athletic Club for the weekly
swim.
In the classroom, the camp, the athletic field, the pulpit, the
pool, the gymnasium, the hike, he was the same. No special
moods matched the environment. The same expression of
inward calm and of peace with the world marked his routine
of work and relaxation, his hours of quiet and his moments
of companionship. His whole countenance and demeanor was
one of invitation. Boys always sensed it and they were never
disappointed. When one saw Father Boyton with a group
of boys, whether on the street, in the church or in the classroom, one felt that this congenial face was meant to help,
guide and befriend the boy. One was convinced that this
personality, even as the years began to take their-toll, was
where it belonged when it was spending itself for the American boy. One had a satisfaction and conviction that here
and now through this tireless man the Church was exercising one of her most important apostolates-and that with
the utmost success.
Throughout Father Boyton's life, one could count on one's
fingers the days he failed to make his morning visit, his
meditation, his examination of conscience. These were all
in a contract he had made, and like the pledge of his word in
his dealings with men and boys, he never failed. The visit
to the chapel before retiring was part of his routine of life.
He never missed it even though the hour was late, and that
was seldom.
He enjoyed most saying his daily Mass at a convent. The
�FATHER BOYTON
57
walk, as he said, pepped him up for the day. He preferred
not to have the Sister answer the Latin from the front bench,
so he formed a little group of boys to whom he taught Latin
and the method of serving Mass. These boys were rewarded
on Christmas with a little party after Midnight Mass to which
he looked forward as much as they. When the Sisters at
one of the convents began the practice of the dialogue Mass
he found the change exceedingly difficult, as he often men~
tioned. Yet after his death when I phoned the Sister to ask
if he ever made objection to the practice of the congrega~
tional responses, she said: "Never." She did observe, how~
ever, that from the time the dialogue Mass was instituted
Father always used a card for the Latin prayers at the be~
ginning of the Mass.
His benign face clouded only when the name of a select,
non-sectarian private school was mentioned. No one exas~
perated him more than Catholics who sent their children to
these institutions. He contended that from them came forth
candidates for mixed marriages, bad marriages, divorces, loss
of faith, loss of soul, homes well on the way to the modern neurosis. He called them breeders of lukewarm Catholicism, with a
roster of students made up chiefly of children from homes of
religious indifferentism. Though he loathed the mention of
such schools, he was most gentle, attentive and faithful to the
little classes of catechism he ran for children from them. He
called these children his "cut flowers with no spiritual roots."
Perhaps it was his hatred of compromise that made him dis~
like so intensely the nonsectarian schools which he termed
Protestant schools. Protestantism to him was compromise,
he hated its errors but was most gentle with those who were
its victims. Even to call him Father Boynton, with two
"n's" always merited a snub. A repetition of this mistake
was rewarded with the retort; "My name is 'Boyton,' not
'Boynton.' Boynton is Protestant." Perhaps Father Boyton's
experience as a missionary in India made him touchy on the
point, for he was convinced that proselytizing was one of the
inevitable marks of Protestantism, and he might have cried
"Wolf" without sufficient cause. However, it was amusing to
watch him bristle when some unwary brother-Jesuit made
the all too common mistake.
''I
''
·~;
I~
·'j
�58
FATHER BOYTON
After the death of Father William Walsh, the founder and
promoter of the devotion to the Boy Saviour, Father Boyton
asked for the, little carved wooden statue of the Boy Christ.
From that time forward, he never wrote a sentence without
this statue either in his lap or clasped close to his breast.
Nor did he conceal the fact, for when one entered his room
during his time of writing, one always found two at the
desk, Father Boyton and his little statue, his inspiration, he
would tell the visitor.
Although Father Boyton was a member of the MarylandNew York Province for thirty years before New York became independent, most ~of his religious life centered around
84th Street. For short periods he taught in Philadelphia and
Garrett Park, but was at no time assigned to that part of
the Province which now forms the New England Province.
It was at 84th Street that he was stricken with his final
illness which was to last for six months, four months in St.
Vincent's Hospital and the remaining months at Loyola
Seminary where he died February 1, 1956 at the age of
seventy-two. Of his many qualities, a quotation from St.
James best sums up the most outstanding and describes the
pattern of his life: "One who does not offend in speech is a
perfect man able to bridle the whole body also." These
words portray the secret of Father Boyton's .extraordinary
attitude of mind. I can think of no Jesuit-·who was less
concerned about the personal habits, the private avocations
and foibles of his brother Jesuits. He used to say that what
he was supposed to know would quickly be relayed through
the numberless lines of information in the community; and
the things that were not meant for public consumption were
none of his concern. Nor was he interested in gossip or
hearsay. He was a rock of loyalty to his superiors. What he
disliked he either bore in silence or reported through the
proper channels, but it stopped there, never to be discussed
again. He would have no part in criticism, either of his
superiors or fellow. Jesuits. One could perceive a hurt he
had experienced when the subject was mentioned. He merely
assumed a puzzled look; there was a strange smile, a slight
twitch of the lips and at times a waving gesture of his right
�FATHER BOYTON
59
hand. The subject was for him closed and his listener realized
it should be dropped.
On one occasion, I asked him how he became so successful
in the art of "Minding my own business," as he used to put it.
The only answer he gave was: "I keep myself busy." No one
could gainsay that. He never wasted a moment. In summer,
spare time was given to Boy Scout Camp and weekly excursions to Coney Island. Here he showed his adeptness as
disciplinarian. Forty boys usually comprised the party. They
were scheduled to leave 86th Street and Lexington Avenue
at 11 :00 A.M. By 11 :01 they had disappeared into the subway, and the luckless wight who came two minutes late,
might catch up as best he could. Father began with a complete list of the boys. Heads were counted and names checked
off several times en route; then small games and comic books
kept everybody busy on the subway trains. Each boy remained in his seat ; there was no moving around, let alone
romping. Other passengers marveled that there were not
three or four trouble-makers in such a large group. They
did not know that the real trouble-makers were discovered
and discarded on previous occasions, and that potential
trouble-makers had been required to make an "Emily Post
deposit" before starting, that is, a quarter deposit which
would be returned only at the end of a day of good conduct.
So the rascals were likely to be the best behaved.
He had two solutions for small boys with endless questions.
One was to give whatever answer came into his head, and
refuse further comment. The other was to promise to answer
any and all questions at five cents each, and to adhere strictly
to this decision. The questions generally ceased.
Free passes were furnished at Steeplechase Park. First,
all went into the pool, and after that came Father's snackbar-cookies, spam, and jars of jam from his knapsack.
These were dispensed on a bench near the ferris wheel.
Youngsters were then turned loose in Steeplechase-each
with a full book of rides. Father Boyton disappeared to say
his Office in a reserved compartment of the ferris wheel
where he rode round and round far above the din of the playground and city.
It had been announced that anybody who could find him
�GO
FATHER BOYTON
at five o'clock would get a quarter, so that the entire group
appeared close to five o'clock. At the appointed hour, probably six o'clock, all met at the giant slide for ten minutes of
uninterrupted free rides. There was a final check before
heading home on the return trip. Games came out again on
the subway and the remains of the snackbar were disposed
of at one end of the car. The boys came singly from various
parts of the car so that there were never more than two on
their feet at the same time. Again the passengers were
fascinated by this unbelievable juvenile orderliness.
But no human system is perfect. On one of his last trips,
when everyone knew of Father's precarious health, one boy
failed to appear for the hotnecoming trip. The older boys
could not find him and the managers of Steeplechase were of
no help, so the long trip back to Yorkville began. Late
that evening, still without any dinner, Father Boyton hurried
to the boy's home where he was not found. Unknown to
Father, the Steeplechase management had drained the pool
at the end of the evening in fear of discovering an accident.
But the ten-year-old finally returned home about 11:30. Just
before the rendezvous he had been given three books of rides
by a kindly lady, and so had stayed on to enjoy himself.
Needless to say, this was his last visit in Father Boyton's
care. The same remarkable order was preserved on hikes and
picnics along the route to the Boy Scout Camp above the
~ ·
Palisades.
Winter he would say came all too quickly and brought with
it a schedule always crowded with activity. In addition to
the varied round of duties already mentioned in these pages,
there were trips to the zoo with a retinue of small boys, days
at the circus where he always had the pick of the best seats
through family influence. There was also an afternoon every
week devoted to the children's ward at Lenox Hill Hospital,
cheering up the youngsters with stories, games and talking
sign language to the boys confined to oxygen tents.
Father Boyton was the man of the year among his Scouts,
and yet with all this hero worship there was a strange and
noticeable change as the boy passed into the later teenage
period. One noticed that contact with Father became less
and less until there was a complete rupture. It was almost
�FATHER BOYTON
61
like that phenomenon in the world of nature when the parent
divorces itself completely from its young. The break became
so apparent in practically every case, that my curiosity forced
me to trespass upon sanctuaries. One day as we watched
the boys in the Loyola yard and I felt the matter might be
discussed without offense, I began cautiously bringing the
subject around to my query. Before I had realized, it was
answered, and with sincere and candid humility. Looking
from the window at the little fellows playing, and then
noticing the older boys in the upper part of the basketball
court, he pointed to them and he said: "When once they get
to that age, I don't fit in. I can handle them through the
normal scouting age, but after that some one else must take
over." If ever one accepted his own limitations it was he.
He knew well his influence over the small boy and he exploited it to the full. He knew where his influence ended
and he accepted it: no false pride, no pretense could persuade
him to attempt expanding his efforts. The honesty that was
always evident in his religious life, his intellectual life, school
life and dealings with others came again to the foreground. A
better word for it would be humility.
One of his few activities not connected with boys, was
Father's annual retreat to high school girls. As he prepared
for this each year, he asked his Boy Scouts whether they
had any moral lessons which they felt should be taught their
sisters. He would then pass these on to the girls at the
retreat, saying that they were not his, but came from their
brothers.
After Father Boyton's death, his book about the Circus in
Madison Square Garden was sent off to a youngster in
Indonesia, to whom he had promised a copy. The parents
reported of his great delight on receiving it, and his remark
after finishing it: "I feel just as if I were there."
In summary, Gilbert Chesterton has contended that it is
in the Christ of Nazareth alone that we find the real lover of
children. There in the portrayal of the Good Shepherd, we
find Him holding locked close to His Heart the tiniest of His
flock. Nearly two thousand years have passed, but it is only
on occasion that the world really feels the mystical charm of
the child. Chesterton contends that these rare occasions have
'~
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FATHER BOYTON
been put to pen by still fewer authors who have tried to
portray to the world their reactions to the romance and
regret of childhood. Peter Pan, he says, and the Child's
Garden of Verse were discoveries made long before James
M. Barrie and Robert Louis Stevenson made childhood live in
books. It was the Nazarene who proved to the world that the
bud could be more beautiful than the flower, that Peter Pan
does not belong to the world of Pan but to the world of Peter.
And with these words we feel we have summed up the most
important and dominating fact of Father Boyton's life, his
delight in being in the company of the American boy. Surely
he who had sacrificed a career in the world of his father,
Captain Paul Boyton, for one..with the Master, never forgot
the lessons he learned from the dominating lady in his life,
Margaret Connolly, his mother. These lessons brought to the
foreground all the more the charm of the Nazarene and the
little ones whom He welcomed. Walking in these sacred
footsteps, Father Boyton put into practice the lesson preached
to the world of nearly two thousand years ago, that the
bud really is more beautiful than the flower and that Peter
Pan belongs not to the world of Pan but to the world of
Peter and his successors.
-·
Love and Innocence
What you say, that love is pain, pleases me much. Pain proves that
love is genuine. Love on earth must no doubt be a foretaste of the
hunger and thirst of Purgatory. Pray often that the children may die
rather than ever lose innocence. You are not wrong. For though God,
in His infinite mercy, can mend the torn robe with jewels, He would die
to prevent one mortal sin. Read the fourth chapter of Wisdom on
innocence, verses 7 to 17.
I cannot conceive that killing an affection would promote love of God.
Sensual affection is, I think, a great impediment, but I see in mothers
and wives and friends an affection which helps wonderfully to love for
God. It would be strange indeed if God, who creates nature and grace,
should make one antagonistic to the other. St. Paul speaks of the want
of affection as one of the worst curses of the latter days (2 Tim. 3, 1 ff.).
Nature ought not to be crushed except when it is vitiated by sin and
inordinate. I wish I were ten times more affectionate. St. Paul is wonderfully affectionate.
PETER GALLWEY
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FATHER ALFRED BARRETT
�Father Alfred
J. Barrett
Joseph E. O'Neill, S.J.
Father Alfred J. Barrett was the sort of man whom an
impartial observer would unhesitatingly declare born for
glory or disaster. In a strictly theological sense every man
is born for either of these final and irrevocable ends, but in a
special and more limited sense it could be said that Father
Barrett was born for success or for failure, for the fulfilling
of the dreams of a high romance or for the disappointing
realization of talents recognized but undeveloped and, therefore, wasted. He was a man for whom half way measures
seemed impossible; whatever he did he did with all his energy,
with complete generosity of heart, and with something of the
grand gesture of the true romantic. Yet all the time he
lived the life of the Jesuit under obedience for whom the
grand gesture for its own sake, or glory and renown for
their own sakes, can only be folly, delusion and loss. He
was a man with a flair for many things: he could sketch, he
could paint, he could act; he was a successful teacher, speaker,
journalist, editor, poet, playwright, and administrator. He
could have developed any one of these talents to lead a highly
successful and colorful life in the world, or he could have
played with one or other of them and been a typical Bohemian,
talented but sterile, or he could have led the life he did-a
faithful follower of Christ, part romantic, part realist, and
totally dedicated to the ideals to which he had been called
by his Captain-King. He was a true Jesuit, individualistic
yet obedient, enthusiastically interested in the arts -yet intensely concerned with spiritual realities, and he was one of
the most unselfish people I have ever known.
Father Barrett was born on August 26, 1906, in Flushing,
New York. His mother, of French lineage, had been born in
Greenwich Village, and was an artist in her own right. His
father, of Irish descent, was, at the time he married, a young
Ohio banker who later became one of the best known laymen
in New York, President of the Guardian Trust Company,
Chairman of the New York City Public Service Commission
63
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FATHER BARRETT
and Chairman of the New York State Public Service CommiSSion. From his mother, apparently, he derived his love
of the artistic and of all things French, from his father the
ability to see a thing clearly, think it through logically, and
stay with it to the final achievement. For, contrary to popular impression, Father Barrett was no dreamy-eyed evade
from reality but an extremely accurate observer of human
nature who happened to possess unusually strong staying
po,ver in whatever it was his duty to accomplish.
It was a remarkable family and certainly one highly
blessed by God, for Father Barrett was the first of nine children, six of whom were to enter the religious life; three
daughters became Sisters of "St. Joseph in Brooklyn, one became Sister Teresa of Jesus, a Carmelite, and one son became
a Dominican, the Rev. Paul Aquinas. The grace lavished
upon this Catholic family was recognized even in this life
and when she was seventy-eight years old Father Barrett had
the joy of seeing his mother receive from the Holy Father the
Pro Ecclesia et Pontijice medal at the hands of His Eminence,
Francis Cardinal Spellman.
Naturally, Father Barrett was to receive a Catholic education. He attended Xavier Grammar School with success, and
at the commencement exercises and public elocution contest,
the latter a vanishing if not completely invisible art, he was
chosen to recite the Gettysburg Address, an early m4J,nifestation of one of his many talents. From Xavier Grammar
School to Xavier High School was an easy transition and
there too he gave proof of his varied abilities. In his third
year he played Petruchio, suitor to Katherina in The Taming
of the Shrew, and the next year he performed as Macbeth.
On Prize Night, June 16, 1924, he was in the senior division
of the elocution contest with a stirring entry called "Hell
Gate of Soissons," and two nights later at the sixty-seventh
annual commencement of Xaxier High School Father Barrett added his voice to the many that had preceded him by
delivering the valedictory in the college auditorium. There
was no question but that Father Barrett had ability and
that he was not afraid to use it.
But there was another side to his character and another
bent to his gifts-a love of things military, perhaps the in-
�FATHER BARRETT
65
heritance of his French blood, perhaps the result of his romantic temperament. Whatever it was, he made a good
soldier and an even better leader, for he was chosen Cadet
Colonel of the Xavier Cadet Regiment in his senior year.
As such, he commanded the review of the regiment held in the
9th Coast Defense Armory in January of 1924, and another
in the spring on the campus of Fordham University. During
this latter exhibition of military maneuvers, tendered to
Brigadier General Hugh A. Drum, U.S.A., he also commanded
the exhibition drill by the Citizens' Military Training Camp
Club.
For a high school student the honor of being Cadet Colonel
is no small thing, but more important by far is the way
he handles himself and the cadets under his command. In
the year book of his graduating class there appears under the
picture of the handsome young man who was Alfred Barrett
the following quote from Byron: "Well had he learned to
curb the crowd !"-a slightly ironical tribute, no doubt, to his
functioning as Cadet Colonel of the Regiment. On one occasion, at least, he made memorable Xavier history. Upon
returning to school after a bout of sickness he had taken up
his duties as Cadet Colonel. Evidently well liked, his appearance before the regiment had been greeted with loud
and enthusiastic cheers. Acknowledging his thanks Father
Barrett then proceded with relentless determination to the
performance of one of his duties, and calmly read the jug
list for the day. No amnesty, and a truly military curbing of
the crowd!
The pattern of his character was to be revealed many times
and more than once Father Barrett managed to combine two
of his loves-the literary and the military. During high
school there had been a summer period of training for the
cadets. As a member of Battery A he was at Madison Barracks, N.Y., in 1923 with the other cadets of the Field Artillery Citizens' Military Training Camp. While there he helped
to produce a booklet, The M'ltzzlebursts, and for it he wrote
an essay, "As the Caissons Go Rolling Along;" it is easily
the most interesting and the most informative of the pieces
written for the booklet. Again, Father Barrett was always
able to use his own experiences as material for literature and
�66
FATHER BARRETT
it is not at all surprising to find this training camp period
utilized as the basis for a poem "Caissons and Pieces,"
juvenile but lively verses which were published in the school
magazine, The Xavier. He was also made one of the assistant
editors of the Year Book and for it he wrote an amusing
Class Poem. The write-up under his name and picture is
perfect evidence of his ability and the list of his activities is
a formidable one. At the end appears the destination of the
young man who, among all his other qualifications, was voted
the best actor of the graduating class, neither dramatic
school, nor college, nor the Army, nor the Bohemian world
of art and travel, but simply:, St. Andrew-on-Hudson.
Nevertheless, Father Barrett was destined to be a poet and
a soldier, and other things besides; but first he was to be
enrolled in the Society of Jesus. He was accepted and entered
the Novitiate on July 30, 1924. There he led the quiet, intense, prayerful life of a Jesuit Novice, and there, at St.
Andrew-on-Hudson, after taking his vows at the usual time,
he passed two stimulating and highly satisfying years in the
Juniorate. His love of poetry and his increasing skill in the
art were gradually becoming evident. But the two years of
Juniorate flowed imperceptibly into the three years of
Philosophy at Woodstock and the young man who had manifested so much ability in the field of creative waiting was
sent out to teach English literature at Canisius. College in
Buffalo. This was a happy and fruitful period; he wli~ young,
vigorous, and interested in all he was doing. He became
moderator of the Canisius Quarterly and moderator of the
Year Book for 1932. However, a new and more spiritual
duty claimed his enthusiastic energies. Although not yet a
priest he was appointed moderator of the Western New York
Student Sodality Conference, an important post, since this
particular Student Sodality Conference included thirty-five
school and college groups. It was the sort of work he loved
and for which he was excellently fitted, for Father Barrett
was always attracted to youth and youth to him, and the
result was the silent working of grace of the Holy Spirit in
many a young man and woman who learned to live a fuller
life of grace because of him.
After his teaching period Mr. Barrett was sent to Wood-
�FATHER BARRETT
67
1
stock for theology to emerge four years later as Father
Barrett, his entry into the eternal order of Melchisedech
dating temporally from 1937. They had been four quiet
years except for the exciting fact that the numerous poems he
had been writing for magazines like America and The Commonweal were now being collected and were soon to be published. At the very beginning of his Tertianship in October
of 1938 there appeared a slim volume in a cool green cover
bearing the title in letters of gold Mint by Night. With the
appearance of this little book, forty-seven lyric poems, the
collection of a decade's work, Father Barrett became a
publicly known poet. It was a smashing success, and rightly
so.
The tributes came pouring in and they must have warmed
the heart of the young poet. Who would not be pleased and
excited to know that the thoughts and emotions of youth
passed in the company of Christ, and now presented in verse
to the eyes of a world that might be repelled or merely indifferent, were being received with almost universal delight?
From his fellow Jesuits, some of them former teachers, came
words of praise and encouragement. Father George Johnson, whom many Jesuits remember with affectionate admiration as a critic of severest mettle, wrote his congratulations
and added the satisfying comment: "It is the best first volume I have seen." Father Francis P. Donnelly, Father
Daniel A. Lord, Father Robert I. Gannon, Father Thomas
Chetwood and others all offered homage and encouragement.
Especially pleasing were the tributes from the diocesan
clergy, for instance, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Fulton Sheen, at that
time associated with Catholic University, who wrote in a
letter: "The spirituality and simplicity of your work is most
striking. May God give you many more years to sing his
beauties and cheer our hearts."
The professional critics were equally gratifying. Clifford
J. Laube wrote in Spirit: "This book establishes Father Barrett as one of the most gifted poets of America." John
Kenneth Merton, writing in The Commonweal, found his
work "delicate, reticent, genuinely moving." Daniel Sargent,
writing in America, called the poem, "The Candle," "flawless"
and added: "Yet I rate this flawless poem as only third-
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FATHER BARRETT
best." The Cardinal Hayes Literature Committee for
N.C.W.C. Features spoke of "maturity combined with intellectual power, poetic sense and fine craftsmanship." The
Sign noted "a delightful and humble familiarity with the soul
of the Church." The Catholic Light found "a sure and
reverent touch aided by an economy of expression." The
Far East spoke of "a delicate but sure art, disciplined sincerity of feeling, beauty and freshness of imagery and a careful technique."
From across the seas came equal praise. The London
Catholic Herald thought the poems "Direct, everydayish, and
absolutely unrefracted." The Month found in them "rich
evidence of that mystical apprehension of beauty-visible
and invisible-so inalienably a part of the true poetic equipment." The Irish Monthly declared "His virtue is in the
striking vividness of perception and image, his deficiency on
the side of rhythm and consideration." The Advocate of
Melbourne, Australia, stated "There is a precision and
economy of phrase in all the writings in this little book, with
its strong lean towards epigram." Egerton Clarke in The
Clergy Review of England, declared, "Here is a Jesuit poet
with a Dominican mind. Father Barrett's poems are of a
high order, clear, lapidary and imaginative." Alfred Noyes
paid him the compliment of writing for permission to include
three poems in an anthology he was editing for Lippincott:
The Golden Book of Catholic Poetry.
• .
Especially satisfying was the reception afforded Mint by
Night at the hands of critics who were also poets-surely
the tribute most desired by any young creative artist. Father
Leonard Feeney spoke in America of "a serenity of phrase
that is almost liturgical, but with a surety of insight that is
unfailing." Sister Madeleva, still the foremost Catholic
poetess, wrote to him that "The aromatic delicacy of the title
pervades the book. I have found charm and beauty where I
have looked and read through it. I know, from other works
of yours, that this is sustained." Eileen Duggan declared in
the New Zealand Tablet: "Father Barrett is that gracious
thing, a follower of the gai sgavoir, a troubadour of God,
but his very sense of dedication makes him court austerity
of line."
�FATHER BARRETT
69
There were other tributes too that made pleasurable reading for all those who had long thought Father Barrett a
genuine and moving poet. Francis X. Connolly wrote in
The Catholic World: "Father Barrett is militantly mystical
and, like the spiritual writers to whom he is akin, luminous
and direct in his approach to real things." Katherine Bregy
sent him a letter in which she declared: "You have some
reason to know how much I have loved some of your work:
now, having more of it, I love it much more. What delights
me most, I think, is the way you combine directness and
daring of imagination with directness and music and simplicity of means." Helen C. White also wrote him and said,
"It is a charming book in every way, and it contains some
really beautiful verse." William Thomas Walsh declared in
a letter: "Your poems have power and originality-most
excellent music."
What is one to say, however, nearly two decades later?
How has Father Barrett's poetry stood the test of time?
Obviously, it has stood rather well when a contemporary
critic of such formidable stature as Allen Tate could write
to him in a letter as late as August 24, 1951: "What I admire is the economy and precision throughout. To my way
of thinking the finest poem in the book is 'Hands of a Priest.' "
Very likely this was the first time Mr. Tate had encountered
Father Barrett's poetry since the latter's reputation had
been largely among Catholic readers and Mr. Tate was a
recent convert at the time.
Although this is scarcely the place to make a final judgment
upon the poetry of Father Barrett, nor I the one to assume
the right to do so, doubtless some evaluation is not entirely
out of order. It seems to me, then, that Father Barrett was
not a great poet nor did he write any truly great poem. He
was a highly talented poet of minor accomplishments whose
gifts lay in directness, precision and economy of phrase,
exactly as Allen Tate has noted. He wrote in a style that
is not at present the accepted one. There is little or nothing
of the obscure, the symbolic, and the irregular, so dear to
writers and readers of mid-century verse. Consequently he
is not likely to be mentioned very much at present nor in the
immediate future. But when regular rhyme, disciplined
...
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FATHER BARRETT
rhythm, and recognizable melody come into favor once again,
he will be spoken of with more and more approval. Meanwhile, he should not be neglected or forgotten for, although
he has written some faulty poems, he has also written some
that are excellent. He was never really intense or highly
imaginative, but he was clear, vivid, sensuous, not ashamed
of emotion, and he could be humorous, ironic and admirably
epigrammatic. Believing that the Holy Spirit was the true
muse of poetry, he tried to write with light and fire. If the
light was never very searching and the fire never burned
with the white heat of immortal verse, he nevertheless
fashioned some few poems that. are worthy of inclusion in any
anthology. Asked to name...~hem I should unhesitatingly
reply "Saint Thomas More to Margaret" because it perfectly
catches the "feel" of the Saint, "Saint Francis De Sales"
because it is an excellent fusion of the sensuous and the
gnomic, "Bearing Viaticum" because it is a successful example of the hardest of all poetry to write-religious poetry
that springs out of the felt reality of remembered experience,
and "Loss of Faith" because it is a happy presentation of
genuine religious thought and emotion. It seems certain to
me that he was at his best when gnomic and concentrated,
and when the unified image and idea welled up from the
depths of true religious thought and habitual modes of
action.
But there was something more important in -store for
Father Barrett than the writing of poetry and the acclaim
which so happily resulted. There was his Father's business
to be done, the carrying out of the plan of Christ, the spreading of the Kingdom of God. So it happened that immediately after Tertianship, which was spent at Poughkeepsie
during 1938 and 1939, Father Barrett was assigned to Kohlmann Hall as assistant director of the Apostleship of Prayer,
as associate national director of the League of the Sacred
Heart, and as associate editor of the Messenger of the Sacred
Heart. In 1940 he also became head of the Art and Poetry
Department where his job was arranging frontispieces, illustrations, and layouts in the field of art. From 1939 to 1942
he labored faithfully and well, with zeal, imagination and
enthusiasm. To quote from a short obituary which appeared
�FATHER BARRETT
71
in the Messenger: "During his years here, he transformed
the appearance of the Messenger. He was an artist himself,
as well as a Master of Arts, and knew how to use art in the
service of the spiritual purpose of the Apostleship of Prayer.
The issues, especially of the year 1942 are a memorial of a
distinguished editor who was alive to the great advances
being made by the American press and to the necessity of
making the Catholic press worthy of a distinguished place
among American publications."
But the war years were upon us, and Father Barrett, who
had been serving as national chaplain of the Catholic Poetry
Society of America from 1940 to 1945 turned naturally and
inevitably to the life and vocation of an Army chaplain.
Volunteering on March 12, 1942 he was sworn in as a First
Lieutenant on September 18. Three days later he left for
Camp Wallace, near Galveston, Texas. He was then ordered
to report to chaplain school at Harvard University and after
finishing there returned to Camp Wallace to his post of chaplain of the 35th Anti-Aircraft Coast Artillery Battalion.
Father Barrett was one of two Catholic and eight Protestant
chaplains in this camp and he was the 101st Jesuit chaplain
in the armed forces of the United States.
During this time his thoughts must have gone back occasionally to memories of school days and the Field Artillery
at Madison Barracks nearly one World War ago. But there
was not much time for nostalgic reminiscing for the caissons
were rolling again and now he had a more ambitious goalactive service on the field of battle. For the moment, however, his duty was the unglamorous, routine, but spiritually
vital task of caring for the men under his charge. He
worked hard and enthusiastically, a fact amply testified to in
the lively, informative, and affectionate letters he sent home
to his mother. He was extremely zealous 'and very happy
in his work as chaplain; there were Masses, sermons, confessions, converts, and inevitably, writing. For, in the midst
of it all he found the time to author two newspaper columns,
a "Chaplain's Chat Column" and another called "Take It
or Leave It." His work received the surest of all signs of
success-he was given more of it. In May of 1943 he was
made chaplain of six battalions, the thirtieth to the thirty-
�72
FATHER BARRETT
fifth, totaling about six thousand men. Three months later he
was promoted to Captain. Then in October some five hundred
German prisoners of war were sent to Camp Wallace and
his letters to his mother reveal the interest, humor, and zeal
with which he went to work on the Catholics among them.
It was not all smooth going and he encountered more than
one frustrating obstacle, particularly in the shape of a certain Protestant officer at the camp. Yet he did not allow
himself to become discouraged, another manifestation of that
hard core of stubborn persistence which never yielded whenever he felt he had a worthy goal to attain. Along with his
sensitivity to the beautiful in., all its visible forms he was
manly to the core in the WaY.. the saints have been manly.
The slogan for the artillery was one that appealed to him
and it furnishes a pithy description of Father Barrett in all
that he did, Pro Virili Parte. Translated, "To the utmost
of our ability," I think it a true description of the hardworking chaplain who made converts in spite of continuous
and irritating difficulties and who was ever vigilant and even
aggressive against every manifestation of Protestant religious indifferentism in the armed forces. He was a man of
great energy and, in fact, was one of the least idle people I
have known. One of his published pamphlets, the story of
St. Stanislaus Kostka, bears the title A Short Life in the
Saddle. It was what he would have chosen for himself if he
had been given the choice. There is a letter to his~-~other
on her sixty-fifth birthday in which he wrote: "I have no
ambitions to reach sixty-five, but only because I haven't got
your resistance or perseverance, and I don't want to be retired
like Father Willy Walsh of Monroe, now ninety, to St.
Andrew-on-Hudson." But Father Barrett was too modest;
actually, he had his mother's resistance and perseverance.
and he never lost either quality. He had long wanted to go
overseas. Unfortunately, owing to myopic astigmatism, he
had been placed on limited service, but he was finally taken
off. To his delight he was soon on his way overseas where
. he was assigned to be chaplain of the hospital of Mourmelon
in France. He was eager and excited and with secret hopes
of service on the battlefield itself.
Always the artist, he had kept in pencil and in water color,
�FATHER BARRETT
73
several sketchbooks, one from "Texas to England, Feb.March 1944," another while in England and a third while in
France. They are clever, realistic, and done with swift, impressionistic strokes like most of his painting. Doubtless he
intended to make use of these on-the-spot impressions for,
while at Camp Wallace in Texas, he had been asked by the
publishing firm of Bruce in Milwaukee to write a war book.
His idea was that it would be a kind of combination of prose,
poetry, and drawings, and as he wrote to his mother, "G. I.
Padre would be a probable title." But it was never done.
There was other and more important work to do during the
two years he spent overseas before the invasion of France.
As chaplain of the Ninety-fourth General Hospital he worked
near Chalons-sur-Marne and Rheims with German prisoners
and American personnel. At the war's end he became chaplain of American troops at the Sorbonne and the University
of Paris, as well as at the Beaux Arts, and the Academie
Dramatique du Vieux Colombier-the famous "Old Dove"
theatre-where he also studied. The good that was done
cannot be recounted here nor should it be. It was done, and
the many who were helped know best how well God made use
of His servant and His priest. For the rest, he was recognized as a successful chaplain and in 1946 he was promoted
to the rank of Major. In the same year he was granted his
honorable discharge from the armed forces.
There was to be nearly a decade more of life on this side of
eternity, and all these years were to be spent at Fordham
University. They were busy and fruitful ones, and they
knew recognition, disappointment, and spiritual progress.
From 1946 to 1948 he taught English literature in the College.
From 1948 to 1951 he was director of the School of Journalism. From 1951 to 1952 he was chairman of the Department
of Communication Arts. The next year 1952-1953 saw him
teaching religion in the School of Business and during the
years 1953 to 1955 he was student counsellor in the School
of Business at the downtown evening session. For the year
1955-1956 he was given the assignment of conducting retreats
and it was also to be a year in which he was to be free to
write and to lecture.
·
During the period of his chairmanship of the Department
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FATHER BARRETT
of Communication Arts he had also been director of the Professional Writing Institute and teacher of creative writing.
Wisely he had engaged men and women like Neil MacNeil
of the New York Times, Meyer Berger, also of the New York
Times, David Marshall, Charles Felten and others, and during one summer for the Summer Institute he had procured
specialists like Herschel Brikell, Katherine Bregy, John Daly,
Bob Considine, Margaret Webster, Gretta Palmer, Gilbert
Seldes, Agnes De Mille, J o Mielziner.
It is significant that many of these people are artists and
writers connected with the theater. For it was toward the
drama that Father Barrett's -interest had been turning. He
was, in fact, for a period ·during these years, director of
dramatics, and also author, director, and producer of plays.
In addition to the lyric gift he had the dramatic flair as well,
the instinctive sense for the appeal of the stage, and he was
intimately concerned with and largely responsible for one of
the most exciting periods of theater activity in the history of
Fordham University.
Shakespeare, Dryden, Gogol, Gheon, the plays of these and
other more modern writers were put on, and always with
success. Of his own creations, or more exactly, of those
with which he was connected, one of the most interesting and
personally satisfying was his contribution to a moving picture: Loyolar-The Soldier Saint. A professiona~ job by
professional men and women it had originally been-·produced
in Spain, filmed at Montserrat, Manresa, Loyola, Barcelona,
and originally spoken in Spanish. Father Barrett was asked
to prepare the American version. This he did, editing the
English lines to suit the action. He worked six months on
it, then had it spoken by American actors. The Woodstock
College Choir of fifty voices under the direction of Max Tak
and Rev. William Trivett, S.J., provided the musical background and Father Barrett himself was the commentator
who also spoke the prologue and the epilogue. The result
was a stirring re-creation of the life of St. Ignatius. Complete with fanfare, publicity, and all the excitement of opening night, the premiere took place at the Holiday Theatre on
Broadway, April 24, 1952. It was well received, Kate
Cameron in the Daily News called it "an impressive film
�FATHER BARRETT
115
biography" and gave it a three star rating. Arthur Mulligan,
also of the Daily News, wrote that it was "A majestic and
emotional portrayal" and Frank Quinn in the Daily Mirror
spoke of "remarkable technical achievement," adding "this
is one of the finest films of its kind I have seen." Variety,
the publication of the entertainment field, reported: "In many
respects the picture is one of the best productions dealing
with a religious subject to be released in the U.S. Much
credit for this goes to the Rev. Alfred Barrett, Jesuit priest,
who is chairman of the Department of Communication Arts at
Fordham University." The film company was Jewish, the
actors were Spanish, the voices were American, and the technical adviser was a Jesuit, the whole added up to something
unusual for Broadway and for motion pictures.
More or less simultaneously with his work on Loyola: The
Soldier Saint, Father Barrett had been writing and producing
an original play Once Upon A Midnight, A Lyrical Drama on
Edgar Allan Poe. It was a highly artistic and successful
defense of Poe based upon facts. But the facts were told in
an unusual and even unique combination of drama, operetta,
and the ballet. Some of the scenes were played against a
stark white screen and the magnified and at times distorted
shadows created a weird and effective symbolism, particularly appropriate to the mind and art of Poe. Concentrating
on his character and stressing his inherent nobility as opposed to the heartlessness of some of his foes it was genuinely
moving in its dramatic presentation of the tragedy of Edgar
Allan Poe. It was well received by those capable of judging.
Martin Starr, for instance, a professional critic broadcasting
over WINS on May 6, 1952, said: "It was a serious, profoundly impressive, and highly entertaining presentation; not
merely scholastic theatre, it is impressive creativeness, brilliant make-believe."
But there was another and greater Figure that interested
Father Barrett and about this Person he had meditated all
his religious life. One of the plans he had long been pondering
was the idea of a Passion Play for our times. Actually, he
had done more than ponder. Over the course of some twenty
years he had thought it out and when the right moment
offered he was ready to put it down on paper. The oppor-
�76
FATHER BARRETT
tunity came while lecturing on religion and acting as student
counsellor in the evening session of the downtown School of
Business. In a rather short time he wrote, directed, and
produced a Passion Play "0 My People!" which was unique,
imaginative, and spiritually satisfying. It was financially
successful too. Over $3,000 profit the first year went to the
Jesuit Missions and the same thing happened in 1956 and
in 1957.
"0 My People!" is the drama of Gethsemane; it has unusual
effects and exciting techniques involving acting, commentary
and discussion, choreography, music, lights and color. The
setting is the Garden of Gethsemane and the action takes
place in the mind of Christ. The scenes are not in chronological order but as they might have occurred to the human mind
of Christ, and they range back and forth in history from the
events of Christ's own life to the martyrdom in the twentieth
century of that other Christ, Father Pro, of the Society of
Jesus. There are two actors simultaneously representing
Christ, one in the Garden and one in the various scenes from
His life which are dramatized by a cast of fifty students. The
audience follows sympathetically from the moment when
Christ, together with Peter, James and John, makes His
entrance from the rear of the auditorium and proceeds to the
stage as the Garden of Gethsemane, to the solemn and impressive ending when the Son of God allows Himself to be
led from the Garden in the company of the soldiers.:~nd the
mob. There is no applause and the spectators, moved by art
and devotion, leave the hall in respectful silence after the
dramatic departure of the Christ.
It is true that the work has its faults but it is as moving
and impressive a Passion Play as one is likely to see. In the
words of the official Jesuit censor: "This is a remarkable
piece of dramatic writing. From the viewpoint of technique
it is excellent in its dramatic effectiveness as well as its adaptation to the modern methods of stage productions. To me
the dramatic power of the play was deeply moving. The
· theme is handled with professional skill and with originality
in some degree, and perhaps more than I realize. The script
is magnificent. The author weaves the classic simplicity,
power and beauty of the Old and New Testament into his
�FATHER BARRETT
77
lines with artistry, and his own language in prose and poetry
maintains the same virtues. The author is certainly to be
commended for this manuscript. It is one of the finest pieces
of religious drama I have read and it may well be the best."
The praise is deserved. Others have thought so too, for soon
after its presentation, on October 9, 1955 to be exact, sixty
thousand people watched a modified version at the Polo
Grounds and, to quote the New York Times, "were enthralled." It was a splendid pageant, a moving Stations of
the Cross, in which the original cast took part and one
thousand high school girls represented the crowd in J erusalem.
During the course of the play it became obvious to those
who worked with him that Father Barrett was not well. He
would often lapse into a semi-blackout condition and on coming out of it would insist on going on with the rehearsal.
This was typical. Very few people knew that he was losing
the sight of one eye owing to a cataract; yet he did not let
this impairment or any other illness stop him from working.
He intended to continue until he could do so no longer, and
this, of course, is exactly what happened. The desire to
labor for the glory of God, in addition to his habitual charity,
brought about his early death. During his last year of life
he was writing, preaching, lecturing, and giving retreats.
But he was also saying "yes" to all requests made to him by
Jesuits and others. As long as it was connected with his work
as a Jesuit Father Barrett could not refuse a request for help.
So it happened that he agreed to give a day of recollection to
the priests of the Diocese of Paterson in Morristown, N. J.
It was his last act of generosity. A heart attack struck him
down in the company of a fellow Jesuit as he was returning
to New York. He was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Paterson and he died there soon after admittance on November
9th, 1955.
It should be apparent from all that has been said that
Father Barrett was a worker, that he took quite literally the
injunction to spread the Kingdom of God because the fields
were white for the harvest. While at Fordham he was at
various times teacher, preacher, lecturer, retreat master, administrator, poet, playwright, director, producer, and editor.
�78
FATHER BARRETT
At various times, too, he was in charge of the Ram and the
Monthly, worked with Fordham's radio station WFUV-FM,
organised the graduate MFA degree in the Department of
Communication Arts, directed the national headquarters of
the Catholic Press Association for two years, was editor of the
Catholic Press Association trade publication, The Catholic
Journalist, and served as executive secretary of the Catholic
Press Association for the year 1949-1950. In February 1950
he flew to Rome as head of a party of twenty-eight delegates
to the Fourth International Congress of the Catholic Press.
He was a member of the Catholic Classical Association, the
American-Irish Historical Asso~iation, the Poetry Society of
America, and, as we have seen, he was national chaplain of
the Catholic Poetry Society of ·America from 1940-1945. In
addition, he was much in demand as guest speaker at Communion breakfasts, study clubs, conferences and other such
gatherings of a spiritual and an academic nature.
He was a contributor to Jesuit Missions magazine; in fact
the first cover of Jesuit Missions was designed and drawn by
him, and the feature "Afield with American Jesuits" was his
idea. He wrote for numerous other magazines and, although
no scholar in the strict sense of the word, he was a splendidly
facile writer, with a style that was invariably clear, vivid,
and moving. In addition to Mint by Night he had planned
another book of poetry to be called Our Lady of the Weather,
and he was contemplating a book on the Jesuits, or tather, a
collection of essays on various Jesuits. It was to have included those he had already published in pamphlet form:
Captain of His Soul, on Francis Cullinan, a fellow Jesuit
scholastic who had died at Woodstock, A Short Life in the
Saddle, on Saint Stanislaus Kostka, The White Plume, on
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Citizen of Two Worlds, an article he
had written after the death of Father Daniel Lord and which
had appeared in The Catholic World, and two projected
essays, A Christian Secularist, which was to have been on
Father Gerald Walsh, S.J., the author, scholar, and editor of
. Thought, and finally, The Man Who Saved the Jesuits, which
was to have been on Saint Joseph Pignatelli. He had in mind
also a novel, but he seems to have left nothing more than the
title: Men Crucified: A Tale of the Jesuit Suppression. So
�FATHER BARRETT
79
this story is still untold; perhaps some young follower of
Saint Ignatius will one day give it body and form.
Even though his sight was beginning to fail he read continually and was always on the lookout for new ideas, inspiration, and stimulation. He was always abreast of the times
and did not hesitate to speak out with authority. A single
review he wrote, a scathing denunciation of Ross Lockridge's
Raintree County, brought enthusiastic responses in the form
of approving letters and telegrams from over the entire
country.
He attracted people not merely because he was personable
and even handsome, but because he really liked people, because he was friendly, honest, and a man of good will. He
was unreserved, almost to the point of naivete, but he was
highly intelligent, he was a good judge of character, and he
possessed a healthy and unfailing sense of humor. He was
confident because he knew that he had certain abilities; but
he was truly humble. A superficial observer might have
judged him vain of his literary and artistic talents but it
was not so; he accepted and even asked for criticism and he
made use of it whenever it seemed to be worthwhile. He was
trusting but he had a priest's knowledge of sin, of the world,
and of people. He was individualistic yet he led the Jesuit's
life faithfully and well. His students, and many others with
whom he came in contact, were extremely devoted to him. A
fellow Jesuit has written: "The cast of '0 My People!' became
attached to him in a very remarkable way as a priest and as a
friend, and it is certain that the Gospel story that they told
with his guidance affected their lives very deeply. When the
play was being produced for the second season as a memorial
to the deceased author, Andrew Romeo, the Christus, on a
TV program featuring the cast of the play gave a moving
eulogy of Father Barrett stating how his association with
Father Barrett was a decisive experience of his life."
Although he was a romantic in the finest sense of the word,
with a love for the ideal in whatever place and in whatever
time it may be found, he was also a realist, as every Christian
must necessarily be, and he never sought the selfish isolation
of an ivory tower or an ivied college hall. He believed in
Prayer and action, this world and the next, the human and
'I
�80
FATHER BARRETT
the divine. So he was never deceived, never a futile dreamer,
never a refugee from life. Without flinching he bore the
assaults of reality upon body and spirit, and he bore them
with a smile, although at times a somewhat wry one. But
he never chose to disguise his hurt with a mask of indifference
or to hide his sensitivity under a protective layer of bitterness. Although his talents seemed to destine him to renown
in any one of several fields of artistic effort he felt that
this was not the Will of God and so he never for one moment
allowed adulation, work, disappointment, or ill health to
crowd him from the path he had knowingly and willingly
chosen as a young man: To Jesus through Mary. Holding
the world well lost if Christ-were gained he kept his belief
to the end, and he died in it, happily.
It seems to me quite fitting to close this memorial of Father
Barrett with something he himself wrote and which expresses exactly what he believed and what I am trying to say.
It is a very short poem of two stanzas bearing the title
Loss of Faith:
The life of grace and glory is the same.
The life of grace is, by another name,
Heaven on earth, and death is but a change
In range-And nothing strange!
There is between our dreaming and our seeing
One pulsing continuity of being.
Ah, when the life of glory we achieve
Why grieve?
We only lose our having to believe!
Why grieve, indeed? As to that, Father Barrett now knows
the answer better than we. But we can be sure that his
death is no cause for grief but for joy, since it was, like his
life, all for the greater glory of God.
I
!
�Books of Interest to Ours
MANUAL FOR JESUITS
The Sacred Heart in the Life of the Church. By Margaret Williams,
R.S.C.J. Sheed and Ward, New York, 1957. Pp. viii + 248.
Mother Williams calls her book an anthology of passages from the
writings of those whose lives have made the Devotion to the Sacred
Heart what it is today. Many of the passages are short but in the case
of the principal architects of the Devotion they are quite long because
the significant lines appear in context. The passages are, indeed, accompanied by a running commentary to put them in proper perspective.
But they are meant to deliver their message themselves. Often they do so
easily; at other times deeper consideration is required. In either case
the book leads to meditation; not that it is a meditation book. It is
more: it is a handbook for those who desire to practice intelligently the
great Devotion.
Such a work is timely. The Devotion to the Sacred Heart has passed
its trial by fire and has been triumphantly approved by the Church
despite stern opposition. The question now is whether it can pass the
trial of success. The fires and fervors of the seventeenth and nineteenth
centuries must not be allowed to die down. Our Holy Father in his
recent Encyclical, Haurietis Aquas, seeks to ward off this danger. After
mentioning some depreciative views of the Devotion, he urges all
Catholics to study diligently its solid foundations. Mother Williams
offers the means of doing so in relatively brief compass.
Jesuits will find in this book a useful complement to Father Jerome
Aixala's His Heart and His Society which assembles Jesuit texts on the
Devotion. Mother Williams has collected the finest pages written by all
lovers of the Heart of Jesus, many Jesuits among them, from New
Testament times to our own. And she has added not a few from her
own pen. Chapter Two is probably the best example of her own contribution but there are many others.
The running commentary is also an achievement. To follow an idea
across the millennia requires sureness of judgment and breadth of learning. Mother Williams has succeeded in making the Christian centuries
give up their most intimate secret. All will not accept some of her
insights and there are errors in detail. But the sweep of her vast
conception is sound and compelling. We have here a manual for Jesuits
Who want to carry out their Institute's injunction to practice and
propagate devotion to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.
E. A.
81
RYAN,
S.J.
�82
BOOK REVIEWS
INFORMATIVE AND INSPIRING
Beyond All Horizons: Jesuits and the Missions. Edited by Thomas
J. M. Burke, S.J. Garden City: Hanover House, 1957. Pp. 288.
$3.75.
On the jacket there appears a statement of the book's scope:
"Thirteen well-known Catholics paint a vivid picture of Jesuit missionary activity over four centuries." The book, then, is a collection
of essays describing what has been done and what is being done by
the Society in the apostolate of the foreign missions. There is no
attempt made at presenting a theory of Jesuit missionary activity, nor
is there any attempt to develop a theology of the missions. This may
prove a disappointment to some, but all who accept the book for what
it claims to be, will find it both informative and inspiring.
The first half of the book is concerned with past efforts and past
achievements. In the first three e:S!lilYS there is presented an over-all
picture of the Jesuit missions during the first century and a half of the
Society's existence. Two aspects of Jesuit missionary activity are then
selected for special consideration: social work and education. As an
example of the former, Father Weigel presents a clear and interesting
account of the origins and growth of the Jesuit Reductions in South
America, while the work of education is given admirable treatment by
Mr. George Shuster. This first part of the book concludes with a very
moving description of the sufferings endured by Jesuits, among others,
during the terrible persecutions of 17th century Japan.
The second half of the book begins with a panoramic view of the
work being done today by 'Jesuit missionaries throughout the world.
This is followed by accounts of the social and educational work Ours
have undertaken, as well as an account of the heroism displayed by our
men in the face of Communist persecution in China. Also included in
this part is a series of sketches of the work being done by "typical"
Jesuit missionaries of the present day. Finally, this section c1o:-~es with
a consideration of "Problems of Tomorrow."
Some sections of the book are more readable than others, but the
entire book will be read with both pleasure and profit by anyone, Jesuit
or extern, who is interested in Jesuit missionary activity and wishes to
know more about it. The book might well be recommended to young
men in our schools, for while they are familiar with our role as educators, they know relatively little about this other equally characteristic
work of the Society.
JOHN F. CURRAN, S.J.
Manual of St. Joseph Prayers, compiled and translated by Francis L.
Filas, S.J., is a fifty-page booklet containing practically all the indulgenced, and a good selection of the non-indulgenced, prayers to
St. Joseph. A short introduction explains devotion to St. Joseph and
gives its theological basis. It retails for ten cents. (J. S. Paluch
Co., 1800 W. Winnemac, Chicago 40, Illinois.)
I
l
�BOOK REVIEWS
83
THOROUGH AND BALANCED SYNTHESIS
Mariology, Volume II. Edited by Juniper B. Carol, O.F.M. Milwaukee:
Bruce Publishing Co., 1957. Pp. xii-606. $9.50.
For anyone whose formal study of the theology of the Mother of God
dates back anything like ten years or more, no better compendium of
present-day Catholic thought in this important field of knowledge is at
hand than this second volume of the trilogy planned and directed by the
indefatigable Father Carol, the founder and first president of the
Mariological Society of America. Twelve Catholic theologians, all but
one of them Americans, have contributed to this thorough and balanced
exposition of contemporary Mariology. Four of the authors are American Jesuits, one of whom, the tireless Cyril Vollert of St. Mary's, Kansas,
has authored no less than three important chapters.
The detailed and lucidly scholarly study, by Walter Burghardt, S.J.,
on Mary in Eastern Patristic Thought, taken with its companion piece
on the Western Patristic tradition on our Lady, which appeared in
the previous volume of this set, provides a succinct but masterly survey
of the thought of the early Church on Mary's gifts and her mission
in the Christian economy of salvation. The rest of this second volume
presents in some thirteen chapters an ordered survey of the recent almost
startling development of the Catholic understanding of the Mother of
God and her providential role in the world.
Father Vollert's two leading articles on the scientific structure of
Mariology and on the fundamental principle of this theological study of
Mary set the stage for the succeeding chapters which examine the many
supernatural privileges which make Mary unique among God's creatures.
In his essay on the predestination of our Blessed Lady, Father John F.
Bonnefoy, O.F.M., presents a most interesting defense of "the priority
of Mary's predestination as understood by the Scotistic School", making
the point, among others, that many of those who have opposed the
Scotistic position were not aware of the fact that "this doctrine had been
adopted by the ordinary Magisterium". The chapter, by Father Gerald
Van Ackeren, S.J., on the divine motherhood of Mary develops most
persuasively the thesis that "Mary's dignity as Mother of God consists
formally in a created assimilation to the Eternal Father", with all the
profound implications of this analogy. In the course of a basically historical survey of Mary's perpetual virginity, Father Philip J. Donnelly,
S.J. discusses the many theological problems that arise from this doctrine
of our faith. Some of the other chapters cover the question of the
Blessed Virgin's fullness of grace, her gifts of knowledge in the natural
and supernatural orders, her spiritual motherhood, her death and assumption into heaven and her role as Dispensatrix of all graces and as
Queen of Heaven. Father Carol himself writes on our Lady's Coredemption; his contribution of close to fifty pages not only synthesizes his monumental De Coredemptione Beatae Virginis Mariae, published in 1950, but
surveys as well the notable progress in Catholic thought on this very
contemporary subject since that time. The volume concludes with a
�84
BOOK REVIEWS
scholarly analysis of one of the more recent developments in Marian
theology, the analogy between Mary and the Church. This study is at
once thorough and sound; it threads its way with sober good sense
through the very extensive literature on this fascinating conception,
skillfully separating the chaff from the wheat that gives healthy
theological vitality to this parallelism.
As Father Vollert remarks, repeated pronouncements by the Holy
See in our days and the consequent intensively renewed study by theologians have opened up vast areas of knowledge about the Mother of
God. That knowledge is surely becoming clearer, more profound, more
significant. But in a true sense this remarkable growth is but a beginning: serious problems remain to be pondered; important questions
still cry for complete answers. It is a tribute not only to the editor
of this volume, but to the maturing science of theology among American
Catholics, that so profoundly §atisfying a synthesis of contemporary
Catholic Mariology should appear in our country from the pens of our
competent scholars.
JoHN F. X. SWEENEY, S.J.
DIRECTED AT YOUTH
Portrait Of A Champion. By Joseph E. Kerns, S.J. Westminster,
Maryland: The Newman Press, 1957. Pp. xii-278. $3.50.
At bst we have a picture of St. Stanley Kostka stripped of the
sugar coating. Combining a very detailed knowledge of the customs,
history and topography familiar to the Saint with a lively story:telling
ability, Father Kerns helps us understand and love where before we
could only admire and wonder. Although the book presents a rather
penetrating analysis of this eighteen-year old saint, it is very easy to
read. Perhaps the main reason for this is that the reader views the
life and times of Kostka as he saw them. You are not loo}dng at him,
not viewing what he did; you are looking with him at the·'Yorld of his
time; you are acting with him. You see through his eyes and feel with
his emotions, and in this way you understand why he did what he did.
Many will be left with the feeling that they would be happy to have
this warm and understanding young man as a close friend.
The story is a balanced account of Stanley as a young boy, as a
student in Vienna and as a Jesuit novice (in an appendix the author
amply defends his use of "Stanley"). Many fictional details are added,
but they are all plausible and based on reliable source material. The
result is a truly living portrait. Those who are familiar with older
accounts will find certain traditional details missing. They are victims
of a scholarly examination of the evidence. We are left with a biography
that is as realistic and human as it is spiritual.
The author is quite explicit in directing this work at the youth of
modern America. He is quite successful in this. The story of the boy
and most especially the story of his school days should be very attractive
and compelling for that audience. In addition, the more mature will
find a very interesting account of those days of Trent, Luther, St. Peter
�BOOK REVIEWS
85
Canisius, and Suleiman the Magnificent. These details are skillfully
woven into the story and make not only scholarly but delightful reading.
Those who know only a distorted and forbidding picture of the Saint
will find the book quite refreshing and certainly will feel more inclined
to pray to him. The one reservation of this reader is with regard to
the description of the journey to Rome. Although it begins with much
suspense and interest, perhaps it is carried too long. Yet others may
find that the author's fine style overrides this difficulty.
WILLIAM J. SCHMITT, S.J.
PERFECT BALANCE
The Word of Salvation. Translation and Expanation of the Gospel
according to St. Luke by Albert Valensin, S. J., and Joseph Huby,
S. J., and the Gospel according to St. John by Alfred Durand, S. J.
Translated into English by John J. Heenan, S. J. Milwaukee, Bruce,
1958. Pp. XX + 990. $14.
The Gospels will be read till the end of time and consequently they
always have to be explained. To each generation as it rises, the word
of salvation must be given. In order that the Gospel message may be
understood, it should be presented in a language familiar to the readers
and should be accompanied by those explanations which are necessary if
the riches of the narrative are to be made available.
It was with these needs in mind that Fathers Huby, Valensin and
Durand undertook to write commentaries on the Gospels of Luke and
John. Their pages are not scientific exegesis although they could
never have been written save by masters of scientific exegesis. An
expert reading them will realize at once that the writers are outstanding
biblical scholars.
This beautifully printed, clearly arranged and competently indexed
volume does not contain facile popularization for the multitude. It is
directed to educated people, especially to those priests-and their number
is legion-who are so taken up by the ministry that they cannot devote
long hours to study. Here they will find the results of generations of
research and pious meditation as well as fully adequate answers to
recurring doubts and difficulties.
The volume is full of information and yet is characterized by perfect
balance. What requires explanation is explained, whatever smacks of
the meticulous and the boring is passed over. The writers have no axes
to grind. In difficulties they are guided by Catholic tradition while
availing themselves of modern advances in history, geography and
philology.
In the case of the Gospels here presented, as in that of the two previously published, the object aimed at has been fully reached. We have
historical and exegetical commentaries which are at once prudent and
enlightened, traditional and modern. The tone is serene and immediately wins the reader's confidence. In addition the authors have not
hesitated to borrow ideas which match their plan.
�86
BOOK REVIEWS
The introduction to St. Luke, which is written in part by Father
Joseph Bonsirven, S. J., is relatively short, much shorter than that to
St. John. The reason is of course that the Johannine problems are much
thornier. Father Durand treats them in a masterful fashion and in
this instance, both in the introduction and text, Father John J. Heenan,
who is known as an outstanding scholar and translator does an especially
competent piece of work. Indeed it may be stated that there is not
a more faithful or more idiomatic translat!on of the Gospel of St. John
in English than the one he gives. It is probable that the same could be
said of the translations of the other Gospels. The publishers would be
well advised if they printed the Gospel text separately.
E. A. RYAN, S. J.
OU.'I,'.STANDING
Doctor Rabelais. By D. B. Wyndham Lewis. New York: Sheed and
Ward, 1957. Pp. 274. $4.00.
This is really an outstanding book on a difficult subject. Mr. Lewis
has treated in scholarly fashion and with plenty of down-to-earth common sense and level-headed judgment a very complex issue. As Mr.
Lewis points out, Rabelais will probably always be a controversial topic.
When you consider his coarseness of language, and his preoccupation
with the comic in man's bodily functions, you begin to wonder why and
in what circumstances such literature was written. When you add
that is was written by a priest, the mystery increases. Without doubt
Rabelais was learned and clever, but the thought-content of his works
is negligible,-the main inspiration appears to be an insight into the
comic side of the tragedy involved in human existence. If Rabelais is
read carefully, one cannot but help realize that despite tl}e coarseness
of language and the cruel laughter, there is nothing in his. works that
is really corruptive. Rabelais was not unlike his fictitious character,
Friar John, "who had little about him of the monk but his habit." He
manifested his pent-up feelings by roaring against monkish hypocrisy
and rigid monastic regimen with high-spirited violence. Much of
Rabelais' fantastic imagination was probably inspired by that Septembral Brew about which he waxes eloquent. His spiritual nerve centers
were quite atrophied; but he remained basically Catholic; he never
denied any doctrine of the faith.
JosEPH A. CAPOFERRI, S.J.
SEVENTEENTH CENTURY ENGLAND
Priest of The Plague: Henry Morse, S.J. By Philip Caraman. New
York: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1957. Pp. xi-201. $3.75.
One charm of good biography is the opportunity afforded the reader
to insert himself into a time and place other than his own. Once there,
in strange surroundings, he meets men and women of varied outlook and
�BOOK REVIEWS
87
character-good, bad and indifferent. Such an opportunity is afforded
by Father Caraman's biography of Henry Morse. Here the reader meets
a rather ordinary man called to heroic heights in the midst of the
uncertainty which Catholics experienced in seventeenth century England. Born seven years after the destruction of the Spanish Armada,
Morse was reared a Protestant. It was not until after he had studied
law and sojourned on the continent that he entered the Catholic Church
and later the seminary. Already a priest in 1624, he was admitted into
the Society of Jesus. After he had been imprisoned and exiled, Henry
Morse returned to England in 1633 and worked unsparingly among the
plague-stricken poor of London. Yet second exile and another return
to England occurred before he was arrested for the last time. He was
hung, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn in 1645.
If in the course of this biography the figure of Henry Morse is occasionally submerged in the wealth of background material, it is perhaps
due to the fact that his life is not as well documented as one would
wish. But there are compensations for the reader: tales of monsters
in English woods, scenes in the crowded pest-ridden prison, even a
glimpse of coal mining, and the unforgettable vividness of London in
the grip of the plague in 1636. When Henry Morse does dominate the
scene, this ordinary priest assumes the role of a hero. The reader sees
him before the court cleverly and correctly answering questions about
his priesthood. He sees him laboring among the poor and finally he
follows him every step of the way to his glory at Tyburn. Father
Caraman who has previously translated the autobiographies of John
Gerard and William Weston, two Elizabethan Jesuits, has added to
these accomplishments in presenting to the reader a carefully documented portrait of Henry Morse, S.J., priest of the plague.
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
PARALLELISMS
l
'
Plato and the Christians. By Adam Fox. New York: Philosophical
Library, 1957. Pp. 205. $6.00.
Dean Fox attempts in this book to correlate some teachings of Plato
with selected passages from the Sripture, both Old and New. His
express audience is the "Generality of Christians." The work is based
on an unexpressed assumption that an occasional change of setting is a
good thing. Christian truths taken from their usual context and placed
over against Pia tonic dicta of similar tenor are given a new look. A
case in point is the juxtaposition of the Matthean, "Do good to them that
hate you," and the familiar elenchus from the Republic which treats
of the activities proper to the just man. The brevity and incisiveness
of Matthew is brought out, while the logic and cogency of Plato's argument fills in the background of Matthew. Not all the correlations are
as fortunate as the one cited above. Of which fact the author was
aware, as he states in his preface. But this does not detract from the
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worth of the book, which might be put to good use by some pulpit orators,
since most collegians are exposed to Plato at one time or another. There
are copious indexes.
THOMAS D. GUERIN, S.J.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
The Rosary of Our Lady. By Romano Guardini. Translated by H.
Von Schuecking. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1955. Pp. 98.
$2.50.
This short work is divided into two parts. In the first part of the
book, the author justifies the Rosary as a form of prayer to meet the
needs of man today. In the second part, he offers short reflections on
each of the fifteen mysteries of the rosary. This part of the book is on
the same level as another work by this same author, The Lord. The style
throughout is simple and clear, the ideas fresh and challenging.
STIMULATING SAMPLE
Meister Eckehart Speaks. Edited by Otto Karrer. Translated by
Elizabeth Strakosch. New York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp.
72. $2.50.
Fourteenth century Europe, time of war and black plague, Great
Schism and Inquisition, saw by way of reaction the birth of Dominican
Rhenish mysticism. The reputation of this movement's leader, Meister
Eckehart, reflects the disturbance of his time. He is glorified as inimitable master of souls and inspirer of his distinguished followers, John
Tauler, theorist of Gennan mysticism, and Blessed Henry Suso, his
affective counterpart; but on him and his school also has fallen the discredit of the pantheistic and quietistic tendencies of the Beghards and the
Beguines with their influence on seventeen of Eckehart's propositions
which two years after his death were condemned as hereti"cal by Pope
John XXII.
- .
The present volume offers in English a brief anthology of the great
Dominican's teaching too often known only from the body of condemned
propositions. Even more interesting is the extended introduction. Here
the editor, Otto Karrer, in summary form carries forward the work,
begun by Father Denifle, O.P., in the last century. By restoring to true
perspective the history of Eckehart and his school, he attempts to remove
the stigma still attached to Eckehart's teaching. This book is an excerpt
from a complete study of Eckehart's system in German by the same
Otto Karrer. Thus, presupposing the documentation from the larger
volume, the introduction to this book sketches in crisp graphic narration
(a credit to the translator) some of the irregularities which enshroud
the trial and condemnation of Eckehart. Hence one who would fairly
evaluate Eckehart must weigh the part played in his condemnation by:
the eagerness of the heterodox Beghards to canonize their teaching by
relating it to Eckehart, the hostility toward the Dominicans of the
Archbishop of Cologne, who first investigated the orthodoxy of Eckehart,
�BOOK REVIEWS
89
his assigning a Franciscan commission in the heat of the Scotist controversy to reopen the investigation after Eckehart had been proved
innocent, the spying role played by two Dominicans seeking personal
revenge, the distortion of the very condemned statements which will not
bear comparison with Eckehart's original works.
Due perhaps to their contested orthodoxy in the fever of fourteenth
century religious feeling, few thoroughly authenticated works have
come down to us. Final judgement on the representative value of the
orthodox and inspiring extracts in this book and on the degree of distortion in the condemned propositions must be made in the light of the
documentation in the larger work of Karrer. But this English excerpt
is a stimulating sample and should serve at least to question an overhasty dismissal of Eckehart's teaching as an interesting and vital, but
nevertheless unfortunate, aberration.
EDWARD STEVENS, S.J.
RICH CONTRIBUTION
The Bible and the Liturgy. By Jean Danielou, S.J., Notre Dame,
Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1956. Pp. x-372 (Liturgical Studies III)
Among the manifestations of the Church's vitality in our time, the
Liturgical Mo'\"ement is one of the most widespread and promising. The
University of Notre Dame has lent its vigor to the movement by initiating a series of Liturgical Studies, of which the present volume is the
third to appear. Father Danielou's book (originally Bible et Liturgie,
Du Cerf, 1951) is a rich contribution to the series and makes us eager
for the appearance of the other volumes now in preparation.
Father Danielou has set himself to examine the sacraments, and
Christian worship generally, from the specific viewpoint of ritual symbolism. The illumination of the Church's rites which we find here is
calculated to enliven the liturgical life of the faithful and deepen their
grasp of the divine economy. This is not antiquarianism, but fruitful
scholarship. The investigation of liturgical symbolism is carried out
in the light of biblical and Patristic typology. The sacraments appear
as "the continuation of the great works wrought by God in the Old
Testament and the New, and the prefiguration of Eschatology" (p. 222).
In various episodes of Israelitic history, the Fathers and New Testament
authors saw prefigurations of Christian realities; and these interpretations are not arbitrary, but founded on an already existing Old Testament typology. "The New Testament and the Fathers did not need to
invent a typology which was already in existence, but only to show in a
more precise way how this typology had been fulfilled" (p. 337).
Father Danielou applies this method to the symbolic rites of Baptism,
Confirmation and the Eucharist, as well as to the Christian observance
of the Sabbath, Easter, the Ascension and Pentecost. By way of specific
illustration, we may note the following. The water of Baptism is seen
to have a double significance. It is a principle of destruction, annihilating the sinful world; and at the same time a principle of creation,
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effecting the birth of a new creature. This symbolism is rooted first of
all in the Genesis creation narrative. The primitive waters heralded the
first creation, and what is more significant, the prophets announced that
God would undertake a new creation at the end of time. In turn, the
New Testament shows that this new creation has already been accomplished in Christ and is continued in Baptism. Again, the narrative of
the Deluge describes a world filled with sin, God's destruction of that
world, and the preservation of one just man to be the principle of a
new creation. The parallel between this event and Baptism is indicated
in the First Epistle of St. Peter (3: 18-21) and was further developed
by Patristic tradition. Likewise, the Crossing of the Red Sea, already
seen by Isaias as an eschatological type, was imitated by later Judaism
in its use of a baptism, along with circumcision, to initiate proselytes.
Christian tradition, in turn, conceived the Crossing of the Red Sea as
a type which is realized in thg baptismal rite of the crossing of the
baptismal pool.
The Bible and the Liturgy will certainly be a help to the clergy in
their efforts to teach the faithful the meaning of liturgical symbolism
and to lead them, by way of that symbolism, to a greater awareness of
the mystery of God and His plan of salvation. It will contribute to
Sacramental Theology. It will be of interest to all theologians as an
essay in the use of the spiritual sense of Scripture.
JosEPH B. DoTY, S.J.
NADAL ON PRAYER
Contemplation In Action: A Study in Ignatian Prayer. By Joseph Con·
well, S.J. Spokane: Gonzaga University, 1957. Pp. v-123. $2.50.
The author discusses the contemporary question of whether or not the
Society, unique in so many ways in Church history posses~es a prayer
proper to itself, and if so, what is its characteristic no~e? Father
Jerome Nadal is chosen as the authoritative witness. It was the teaching of Nadal that "our Society has a special grace of prayer not common to all religious institutes." To discover what that special grace is,
Father Conwell follows in his study the same method employed by Nadal.
According to the latter there are three ways of discovering graces proper
to the Society: through a study of the life of Saint Ignatius, from an
analysis of the meditations in the Spiritual Exercises on the Kingdom
of Christ and the Two Standards, and from an examination of the end
of the Institute, especially as seen in the Bulls and Constitutions.
In Ignatius Nadal saw God placing "for us a living example of our
way of life." And so, he adds, "I must desire and beg from God the
Father Ignatius' way of praying and only that way." And Ignatius'
prayer according to Nadal was definitely Trinity-orientated, with the
Saint's outstanding gift that of "finding God in all things:" that is, of
being a "contemplative in action" (simul in actione contemplativus). It
is this last phrase, Father Conwell maintains, which sums up Ignatian
prayer and, as Nadal explains it, expresses the ideal of every Jesuit and
�BOOK REVlEWS
91
embodies in briefest form what he intends by prayer proper to the
Society of Jesus.
In the Exercises Nadal sees Ignatian prayer as apostolic with somewhat martial overtones; it is prayer that is a preparation for and part
in a fight under the banner of Christ. The Constitutions confirm that
"in apostolic work lies the perfection of a Jesuit; here is the peculiar
grace of the Society." Perfection in prayer is not so much the goal then
as is perfection in the apostolate.
It is hard to find anything to criticize in this valuable book. Its
method is scholarly, its content solid, thought-provoking and practical.
The contemporary works of Jesuit scholars are consulted, accepted,
modified, or challenged, and all in little over a hundred pages. The
author does not attempt to answer all the problems nor will everyone
perhaps agree with all of his conclusions. His contribution is outstanding, however, to those interested in formulating more clearly the foundations for a theology of Ignatian prayer; it holds in germ the satisfying
solution to the prayer-needs of lay people as well as religious. We
recommend it to all without reserve.
GERARD BELL, S.J.
CHRISTIANITY IN CHINA
China and the Cross, a Survey of Missionary History. By Columba
Cary-Elwes, O.S.B. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957. Pp.
xii-323. $3.95.
If a quarter of the world is Chinese, then it becomes evident that
taking Christ to the Chinese is one of the most important, if not the most
important, task for the Church in the missionary field. With these
significant words, Dom Columba Carry-Elwes, of the Order of Saint
Benedict begins his lively story of the ups and downs of Christianity
in China. Making short shrift of the legend that the Faith was first
introduced by Saint Thomas the Apostle, the author shows that it was
Nestorian Christianity of the Seventh century which first gained a foothold in the Walled Kingdom. A translation of the Nestorian monument
taken from Fr. Semedo's History of China makes even the appendix
fascinating reading.
It was the followers of Saint Francis who first introduced the Christianity of Western Europe. John of Montecorvino is the great figure
here, and during the Middle Ages the Cross had some success, but
eventually the Franciscan mission, for a variety of reasons, ultimately
failed. Obstacles to the Franciscan venture proved overwhelming, and
by the sixteenth century, "all that remained was the tinkling of a
sacring bell."
The "Jesuit Age" was far more successful. Spearheaded by Saint
Francis Xavier, the Jesuit missions made good progress under such
capable leaders as Fr. Matteo Ricci, Fr. Alexander Valignano, Fr. Adam
Schall and Fr. Ferdinand Verbiest. Inspired by Xavier's technique in
Japan, Ricci concentrated on the Mandarins with the conviction that
if the Emperor could be persuaded to adopt Christianity, the rest of the
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BOOK REVIEWS
country would soon follow. This apostolate might well have succeeded
if the controversy over the Chinese Rites had not made it virtually impossible for a patriotic Chinese to embrace the Faith. The death knell
to the Chinese mission came with the suppression of the Society in
1773, for although their place at the Emperor's palace was taken by the
Lazarists, these barely managed to maintain a foothold until the beginning of the nineteenth century. In the next century, missions,
Catholic and Protestant, flourished. This promise of a new day was
unfortunately cut short by the Communist triumph in 1949.
China and the Cross makes lively reading. The author has a splendid
grasp of his subject, and compresses a wealth of material into a small
compass. The historical treatment is objective and impartial; the
author does justice to the Protestant missions of the nineteenth century,
while at the same time assessing with accuracy, we feel, their long
range effectiveness. If the book' has any defect, it is its brevity. We
might have hoped for a longer \vurk which would develop this wealth of
material in more detail. While some may feel that the personal touches
at the end of the book might better have been omitted, China and the
Cross, nevertheless, is a scholarly and readable account of a great
nation which will yet be won, through the suffering of the Cross, for
Jesus Christ and His Church.
JOHN R. WILLIS, S.J.
INDIAN MISSIONARY PRESSES
Jesuit Mission Presses in the Pacific Northwest: A History and Bibliography of Imprints-(1876-1899). Bu Wilfred P. Schoenberg, S.J.
Portland: Champoeg Press, 1957. Pp. 76.
Wilfred P. Schoenberg, S.J., director of the Oregon Province Archives,
has produced in this small monograph a history of the two early printing
presses of the Society in the Northwest. These Jesuit i>resses were
not the first in this area-that honor going to the Lapwai press at the
Henry 'Harmon Spalding Mission-but "their output and general usefulness was considerably greater, and from the linguistic point of view,
vastly more important." Because of their need for exactness in terminology and their scholarly linguistic background, the Catholic missionaries produced Indian grammars and dictionaries that were much more
complete, and usually more exact, than those done by the other early
presses. The treatment of the Jesuit presses is divided into a general
evaluation of early Jesuit printing in the Pacific Northwest; a short
individual history of the press at the St. Ignatius Mission and of the
one situated at Sacred Heart Mission and finally, a complete bibliography
or catalogue of the works printed at each. A good number of title pages
are reproduced to indicate the quality and type of work done on these
presses. Father Schoenberg has given us a scholarly treatment that
will be of interest to specialists in the history of printing in North
America and to students of the Society's work for the Indians of the
Oregon region.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
SUPERFICIAL
Science and the Love of God. By Frank J. Pirone. New York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp. xi-233. $4.25.
Dr. Pirone attempts to give a unified theory of the physical, biological,
and political sciences. He feels that he has proven that it is impossible to
cure cancer and that it is morally wrong for a Catholic psychiatrist to
accept any of the tenets of Freudian psychiatry. The book contains so
many superficial theories, gross misconceptions, and patent errorsetymological, philosophical, theological, and scientific-that it is useless
to anyone who might be attracted by its title.
JAMES c. CARTER, S.J.
PIONEERING EFFORT
Lay People in the Church. By Yves M. J. Congar, O.P. Translated
by Donald Attwater. Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1957.
Pp. xxxvi-447. $6.75.
In the widespread contemporary endeavor to give utterance to a
theology of the laity the credit for an extraordinary pioneering effort
must go to Pere Congar; for with this work he has marked out heretofore largely uncharted territory. He has quite successfully constructed
the major outlines for this theology but he insists that "there can be
only one sound and sufficient theology of the laity, and that is a 'total
ecclesiology'," a work he has promised for a later day. The diffuseness,
repetitions and loose organization evident in certain parts of the book
confirm the author's claim that this work is "no more than a first essay,
simply 'signposts'." It purports to survey the field. After a preliminary
study of the notion of layman, the author delves into the analysis of
the total reality of the Church with its institutional and communal
aspects. This is followed by a study of the respective relationships of
the Church and the world to the Kingdom which is the final term of
both. In the second part of the book Congar considers the meaning of
the sacerdotal, kingly and prophetical functions of the layman to which
are added two studies of the laity's role in the communal life of the
Church and the Church's apostolic function. All this is rounded off
by a scintillating study on the spirituality of the laity.
EMMANUEL V. NoN, S.J.
MEDICINE LOOKS AT MIRACLES
Modern Miraculous Cures. By Dr. Frant;ois Leuret and Dr. Henri Bon.
Translated by A. T. Macqueen, M.D., and Rev. John C. Barry,
D.C.L. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Cudahy, 1957. Pp. xviii
+215. $3.50.
This book, written by two doctors, one of whom (Leuret) was formerly
President of the Medical Bureau and Bureau of Scientific Studies of
Lourdes, deals with modern miracles from the scientific point of view.
The most valuable part of the book presents and analyzes modern case
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BOOK REVIEWS
histories. Most but not all are from U>urdes. Only a doctor can pass
judgment on these detailed reports, but to a layman they are impressive.
If the authors' scientific ability merits any authority, then the reader
is left with no doubt that what the Church declares as miraculous (and
much that the Church refrains from so declaring) cannot be explained
by· nature even when working at optimum conditions. Interesting but
less certain are the conjectures in the last chapter as to what was happening physically at the moment when God was working the cures.
In addition to case analyses, there are several documentary chapters
of interest. The policies and workings of the Lourdes Medical Bureau
are explained in rich and honest detail. So much attention is given,
however, to the scientific detail and its relation to known physical laws
that the impossibility of cure by natural means becomes the most important note of a miracle. This can obscure the essentially religious
nature of the event. The authors and translators surely deserve our
praise for this useful and scholarly work. The facts recorded speak
loudly to any who care to listen.
JoHN S. NELSON, S.J.
SCIENCE l\IEETS THEOLOGY
Christian Theology and Nat ural Science. By E. L. Mascall. London:
Longmans, Green, and Co., 1956. Pp. xxi-238.
The Bampton Lecture Series is presented annually at Oxford "to confirm and establish the Christian faith, and to confute all heretics and
schismatics." The chapters of this book comprise the 1956 series. Dr.
Mascall proposes to discuss only "some of the relations between Christian theology and natural science." It is his purpose not to improvise
"knock-down answers to awkward questions," but to point out those
areas in which fruitful dialogue between theologian and scientist is
possible. He has no sympathy with the mentality that conceives the two
disciplines as in necessary conflict. "I am sorry to disapppint anyone
who may be looking forward either to a spectacular rout of--the devils
of science (falsely so called) by the angels of orthodox theology or, on the
other hand, to a sensational capitulation of the forces of superstition
and reaction to the spirit of enlightenment and progress."
Examples, such as the wave-particle problem, illustrate the fact that
the natural sciences have learned to live with seeming contradictions
within their own borders. Past conflicts between theology and science
have been caused more by attitudes than by any real clash. If anything,
current physical theories are more congenial to the teachings of theology
than their predecessors. Apparent conflicts will always be with us; but
they are superficial at best, because the contacts between science and
theology are in fact very loose and neither study has reached a definitively final formulation. Dr. Mascall next turns to a deeper analysis of
the causes of these apparent conflicts by considering the nature of
scientific theory. A survey of the history of physical theory shows that
up to the last century scientists tended toward a progressively more
literal interpretation of their theories. Recent contributions to the
�BOOK REVIEWS
95
philosophy of science represent a complete overhaul of the concept of
a scientific theory. "The maps or models which science uses, whether
constructed out of physical images or purely mathematical concepts, are
no more than deductive systems whose function is to coordinate and to
predict empirical observations." The abandonment of the literalist view
of scientific theory has brought it about that the theologian need no
longer consider science a menace. On the contrary, it is Christian
theology that has provided the environment required for the very
existence of the positive sciences. The doctrine of creation implies that
the work of God is ordered but contingent. Because the universe is
ordered man approaches it knowing that he will find regularity. Because it is contingent he knows that this regularity is to be found by
experiment rather than by aprioristic deduction.
The author, an Anglican theologian, has prepared himself remarkably
well for the task of writing this book. He is thoroughly familiar with
Catholic theology and Thomist philosophy. His training in mathematics
gives him a sympathy with the viewpoint of the positive scientist which
it would be otherwise difficult to achieve. His principal contribution to
the problems he has chosen to discuss is that he has, with great accuracy
and understanding, juxtaposed the concepts and doctrines of both sides.
In addition, he has made telling observations regarding the philosophical
positivism of many scientists. He has given us a book which should be
read by anyone interested in the relations between science and theology.
It is unfortunate that there are blemishes from the Catholic point of
view. The author writes, for example, that the condemnation of polygenism in "Humani Generis" was unnecessary.
JAMES c. CARTER, S.J.
SATISFYING AND READABLE
Church and Culture in the Middle Ages I. By Gustav Schnurer. Translated by George J. Undreiner. Paterson, New Jersey: St. Anthony
Guild Press, 1956. Pp. 592. $7.50.
Almost fifty years of scholarship reaches its fruition in this comprehensive treatment of the beginnings of the mediaeval Church. As the
translator mentions in the Preface, the work has already come out in
French and Dutch editions. The third German edition which is here
translated, appeared in 1936.
The central theme and guiding principle put forth by the author is
that the Roman Empire had to be destroyed in order to allow a new
Christian culture to unfold itself in the West. The corrupt ancient
society that still survived the first barbarian assaults inevitably tended
to produce a general decline of morality. If the Church were to be used
as a basis for a new culture, this decadence must first be swept aside.
He first applies this principle to the final or Christian period of the
Roman Empire. Even as the new religion strengthened society (for
example, by the contributions of Ambrose and Augustine), the rotting
social fabric itself continued to disintegrate, finally demoralizing the new
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BOOK REVIEWS
Christians themselves. When the Christian Romans in Gaul convert the
Franks, there is a momentary respite in the downward process; but,
built as it is on the decaying foundation of the older Roman social order,
the Empire slips and finally falls. The public disorder of the late
Merovingian period is the effect of the weaknesses of the Roman social
order.
It is in Ireland and England especially, where the old society did not
reach or was destroyed by the invaders, that the Church first meets the
barbarian in his primitive virtue, unspoiled by Roman ways. Here, there
is a great flowering of religion and culture, a sudden but healthy growth
that eventually pours out onto the continent to win it again. When
Boniface leaves England, the old society in Frankland is giving way
before new forces. He and his fellow workers come on the scene as the
new social order is beginning to. form. There results the Carolingian
revival with which this first volume ends.
His chapters on the Merovin!rlan church, the Irish monks and the
Anglo-Saxon period are especially interesting and afford a superb comprehensive view without losing the details that lend vividness. In general the flowing style makes the work exceedingly readable. The
Byzantine Empire is for Schnurer the sad result of the continuation of
the old social structure. The weaknesses of the old society prevented
in the East a complete recuperation and for this reason the far less
gifted West took the leadership in cultural revival.
As a whole, the picture of the Byzantine Empire given by Schnurermainly in passing references-is darker than the reality. This slight
distortion coupled with a few minor details that could be called into
question (for example, Peter's presence in Rome as prime foundation for
the Primacy; assuming as certain that Patrick was at Lerins; and, that
Columban jumped over his mother's prostrate body when she attempted
to stop him from leaving) were foreseen in the author's foreword.
There he stresses his realisation of the magnitude of his ta;;k_ and while
conceding that later and more detailed studies will reveal imperfections,
he feels it worthwhile that in his declining years he undertake a summary of his work, thus leaving a basis on which others may build. That
he has laid a worthwhile and satisfying foundation, none could deny.
WILLIAM P. SAMPSON, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVII, No. 2
APRIL, 1958
CONTENTS FOR APRIL 1958
THE QUEST FOR GOD.----------------------------------------------------- 99
Alberto Hurtado, S.J.
SAINT IGNATIUS AND THE MYSTICAL BODY___________________ 107
Harry R. Burns, S.J.
FATHER ALEXANDER J. CODY--------------------------------------- 115
Edwin A. McFadden, S.J.
FATHER CHARLES E. DEPPERMANN ___________________________________ 123
James J. Hennessey
FATHER MOORHOUSE I. X. MILLAR___________________________ 135
R. C. Hartnett, S.J.
FATHER JOSEPH J. AYD-------------------------------------------- 165
Thomas J. Higgins, S.J.
FATHER FREDERICK N. DIN CHER__________________________________________ 171
Francis Renz, S.J.
AURIESVILLE RETREAT STATISTICS---------------·----------------------- 174
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS---------------------------------- 176
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Alberto Hurtado (Province of Chile) died in 1952.
Mr. Patricio Cariola (Province of Chile) is a theologian at Woodstock.
Mr. Harry R. Burns (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock.
Father Edwin A. McFadden (California Province) is operarius at St.
Ignatius Church in San Francisco.
Father James J. Hennessey (Philippine Province) is director of Manila
Observatory, Mirador, Baguio City, and superior of the community
there.
Father Robert C. Hartnett (Chicago Province) is Dean of the College
of Arts and Sciences at Loyola University, Chicago.
Father Thomas J. Higgins (Maryland Province) is professor of ethics at
Loyola College in Baltimore.
Father Francis J. Renz (Maryland Province) is professor of philosophy
at St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-elus matter December 1,
Maryland, under the Aet of March 3, 1879.
1~2.
at the post offlee at W oodotoek,
Suboeriptlon: Fin Dollan Yearl1
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�The Quest for God
Alberto Hurtado, S.J.
Translator's Introduction
Father Alberto Hurtado, S.J., (1901-1952), was well aware when he
wrote it that this article would be his last. It contains his testament,
his insight into the problem of modern man. The solution he offers is
really his own experience of God. A modern Xavier, he grappled during
the sixteen years of his ministry with the major problems of the Church
in his native Chile: vocations, youth guidance, education, social work.
"Christ's Home", one of his projects, sheltered 164,467 indigents in 1951.
Father Hurtado was a vital personality with a keen understanding
of human miseries. His closeness to God enabled him to prescribe a
divine remedy. Of few men could it be more truly said that he found
God by giving himself to men. He used to greet his clients with a gay,
searching unforgettable smile and with the expression used by peons
when addressing the sons of their landlord: "How are you, Patroncito?"
"What can I do for you, Patroncito?" For Alberto Hurtado waifs and
outcasts were really the dearly beloved children of his Landlord. And
to them Father Hurtado was Patron. Steps have been taken which will,
it is hoped, lead eventually to his beatification. Woodstock Letters
[82 (1953), 367-373] carries a longer account of this extraordinary man.
This article appeared in Mensaje (Santiago de Chile) for September,
1952.
PATRICIO CARIOLA
La Busqueda de Dios
Ours are tragic times. This generation has known two
horrible World Wars and is facing an even more frightful
conflict; a conflict so cruel that even those guilty of promoting
it are aghast at the thought of the ruins it will cause.
Our century is best described in apocalyptic writings. The
Twenty-Fifth Hour, Darkness at Noon, Bodies and Souls, considered the greatest novels of recent years, witness to a world,
fretted to folly. 1
1
C. V. Gheorghiu, The Twenty-Fifth Hour (New York, 1950); A.
Koestler, Darkness at Noon (New York, 1941); M. van der Meersch,
Bodies and Souls (New York, 1948).
99
�100
QUEST FOR GOD
Insanity, indeed, is the patrimony of our age. I have visited
a hospital which housed nineteen thousand insane people!
Many others, who have lost all inner balance, wander about
our streets. Great numbers, while not insane, feel restless,
baffled, dejected and profoundly alone in this vast but overpopulated world! Neither nature nor their fellowmen mean
anything to them, have any word of consolation for their
spirits. Why? Because God is absent from our century.
Many descriptions of our times can be given: age of the
machine, of relativism, of comfort. We might best characterize it, however, as a society from which God is absent.
This unconcern about God is not localized in any one country
but is a universal fact. God. is absent as the result of a concerted campaign. He has been forced out of the heart of life.
Society has taken its stand on this rejection of God even
though His absence causes its death.
Books could be written on the forms of contemporary
atheism. We have only to glance at the billboards along our
streets, at the headlines of our newspapers, at the publicity
accorded certain films and novels, at the suggestive pictures
and photographs in our magazines. But we must reflect at
leisure and at length if we are to realize what this absence of
God means and feel it in our bones. Leon Bloy wrote, "The
Creator is absent from the city, from the farm, from law,
from art, from manners and customs. Indeed He is absent
from religion, in the sense that even those who -W_ant to be
His intimate friends disregard His presence."
Awareness of man has supplanted awareness of God. In
the early centuries assaults on religion had dogma as their
storm center: Trinitarian and Christological heresies flourished. During early modern times, Protestantism assailed the
principles on which the Church is based. The nineteenth
century attacked the divinity of Christ. But a more radical
denial was reserved for our century : the denial of God and
the substitution of man in His place. As in antiquity, the sin
of today is idolatry but today man himself is the idol.
Modern Maladjustment
Our age idolizes money, health, pleasure, comfort: whatever
is advantageous to man. And when we think of God it is only
�QUEST FOR GOD
101
to make of Him an instrument for the service of man. We
even demand an accounting of Him, we judge His acts, we
complain when He does not satisfy our whims.
We are not interested in God for His own sake. We have
turned our backs on praise and adoration. We have little time
for divine worship. Many think that prayer is a pursuit fitalthough even here there are dissenting voices-for monks and
nuns. At any rate work and pleasure are alone suitable for
men of the world. Our science is centered on man who appears
so majestic in our eyes. Religion, even for many who respect
its name and assign it a place in the hierarchy of values, means
not worship and unselfish service of the Creator but something
that leads to human peace and progress.
Efficiency, production and utility are the yardsticks of our
value judgments. Little understood is unselfish generosity
which looks for no temporal gain. Even less appreciated are
the value of self-sacrifice and the salutary effects of failureof failure on the merely human plane such as the failure of
the Cross. The reason is simple: in an industrial age like ours
everything is weighed, counted and measured. Our minds
are influenced by avarice and advertising. How could we fail
to extend these criteria to the spiritual realm? Supernatural
realities, like confession and Holy Communion, have given
way to natural remedies, to purely human wisdom, to hygiene
and self-assurance. All this gives indisputable testimony to
the weakness of our awareness of God.
Many go on speaking of God. They cannot, after all, forget
what, as little children, they learned from their mothers. They
are accustomed to the sound of the word "God", as one in daily
use; but the word is all there is to it, a more or less meaningless sound. The word is void of all reality-of any reality, at
all events, which could be compared in grandeur and awful
majesty, in sublimity and overpowering fascination to the
reality: God.
Modern Man's Ideal
Many do not deny God. They mention His name. They
invoke His aid, but never have they realized His greatness nor
suspected the joy that can be found in Him. For them God is
something inoffensive, something not to worry too much about.
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QUEST FOR GOD
God's existence has never loomed up before them, across their
very path, gigantic and inaccessible as a mountain. God stays
on the horizon like a volcano ; near enough to be seen, and yet
far enough away not to be feared. Often God is nothing but
a mental refuge: anything that defies understanding in the
world or in our lives is attributed to God. "God permitted it."
"God willed it so." Sometimes God is looked on as a friendly
neighbor to whom we can go for help in a moment of stress
and strain. When there is no other way out, we pray; that is
to say, we ask this good-natured Neighbor to lend us a hand.
But we shall be ready to slight Him once things have returned
to normal. Such people nave never attained to the true
presence, the shattering proximity of God.
Men often lack time to think about Him. We have so many
other demands on our time. We must eat, drink, work and
amuse ourselves. We have to rise above all this before we can
think quietly about God. And so the required leisure fails,
always fails us.
Since we live in such an atmosphere, even we Christians are
saturated with materialism, with practical materialism. We
confess God with our lips but our lives are lived more and
more apart from Him. The caravan of complications arising
from home, business and social life absorbs all our. attention.
Our lives become daily more and more pagan. In-lhem there
is no prayer, no reflection on eternal truth, no time to practice
charity or defend justice. Are not the lives of many of us
completely devoid of substance? Do not we, who believe in
God, read the same books, see the same shows, pass the same
judgments on life and its vicissitudes, on divorce and birth
control, as the atheists? Whatever is genuinely Christian:
conscience, faith, self-sacrifice, zeal-we ignore, or, perhaps,
even censure. They seem so superfluous. Most people lead a
completely natural life as if death were its final term. How
many baptized weep at the grave as those who have no hope!
The appalling bitterness of contemporary man, his pessimism, his loneliness, his neuroses which frequently lead to
insanity, are they not the result of a world that has lost God?
St. Augustine expressed it perfectly, "Thou hast made us for
�QUEST FOR GOD
103
Thyself and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee." Also
that poet who wrote :2
Si me aparto, mi Dios, de tu lado,
inquieto y turbado,
camino al azar.
Y no es mucho que gima, Dios mio,
tambien gime el rio
buscando la mar.
In the terrible tragedies Darkness at Noon and The Plague,
you will seek in vain for a ray of hope because God is completely absent from their pages. 3 In the profound darkness
described by Gheorghiu in The Twenty-Fifth Hour, the only
rays of light come from those who, like Father Kaluga, know
how to find God. Sartre's brutal pessimism and Nietsche's
crazed anguish are the echo of their cry: God is dead. Their
works, the most devastating ever written, are the poison that
corrodes the contemporary soul. They deprive it at once of
human dignity, of confidence in the fatherhood of God and of
all happiness.
Longing for God
Fortunately the human soul cannot live without God. It
turns to Him as spontaneously as the sunflower turns to the
sun-and that even in actions which are objectively disordered. In the hunger and thirst for justice which consumes
so many souls, in the desire for greatness, in the spirit of
universal charity, this craving for God is latent. The Catholic
Church from its very origin, nay more, even in its precursor,
the Chosen People, has never failed to assert clearly and boldly
its belief in God. For confessing His name many died during
Old Testament times. Because of His fidelity to the message
of His Father, Jesus laid down His life. In imitation of Him
millions of martyrs have .done the like because they confessed
God, One and Triune, whose Son dwelt amongst us. Beginning
with Stephen and those who as burning torches illumined the
gardens of Nero down to those who are dying today in Russia,
2
If my God I leave Thy side, I Restless and afraid, I Aimlessly I
go. I Nor is it strange that I moan, my God, I Since the river moans,
I Seeking the sea.
3
A. Camus, The Plague (New York, 1948).
�104
QUEST FOR GOD
Czechoslovakia and Jugoslavia or died yesterday in Japan,
Spain and Mexico-all shed their blood for Him. Others have
not been asked to make this supreme sacrifice but have done
something equivalent in their daily lives. Such are religious
who consecrate their lives to prayer. In the United States
there are thirteen Trappist monasteries where only silent
work is done in order that the monks may not lose sight of the
presence of God. There are even religious, like those founded
by Father Voillaume, who join to their lives as factory workers a truly contemplative life.
There are college students too-l have met them in France,
England, Spain and Belgium'.!.._who manifest a serious interest
in prayer and for whom study is a means of praising their
Creator.
There are workmen like those who belong to the J eunesse
Ouvriere Catholique, now more than a million in number, and
peasants for whom prayer seems connatural. And with them
are ranged savants like Carrell and Lecompte de Nouey, men
who take pride in their faith. Writers, too, like Claude!,
Gabriela Mistral, Papini, Graham Greene, and so many others.
In the midst of this disintegrating world there are chosen
groups of elect souls who seek God with all their might and
whose highest aspiration is to do His will.
Even movements outside the Church, like that initiated in
India by Mahatma Gandhi, like Geneva's Moral Re-Armament
and the Oxford Group of Frank Buchman, have--given first
place to the idea of God.
Serenity of Soul
When men have found Him, their lives are built on solid
rock and their spirits repose in the Divine Fatherhood as a
child in the arms of its mother.
Depth and beauty of life are products of knowing how lovable God is, how many favors He bestows on us, and how
mighty is His arm.
When the soul has found God it realizes that nothing is
truly great save God alone. Compared with Him, all else sinks
into insignificance. Whatever is not concerned with Him, is
of no importance. The really important and lasting decisions
are those which are rooted in Him.
�QUEST FOR GOD
105
There is also a heartache for God, an indescribable and
immeasurable pain that tortures the soul with awful longing.
There is fear of God: the fear of casting a shadow on the
image of the Beloved, fear arising from offering so little to
Him to whom we owe all.
Finding God is like loving for the first time. You run, you
fly, you are carried away. All doubts float to the surface and
the depths of life become a kingdom of peace. The realization
of being alive and of God's love for us pervades the core of life.
Surrender for the man who rests in God means forgetfulness
of self. Whatever his situation may be, whether God answers
his prayers or not, are not matters of great or little import.
There is but one important fact: God is present and God is
God. In the hushed contemplation of this truth, his heart is at
rest.
This trust is a product of generous and humble love. If God
takes something away, even painfully, it is God who does so
and this realization satisfies the soul, makes it happy and
lights all its lamps. This love is not a sentimental love but a
simple unassuming love which takes it for granted that it is
understood. Such it is because it cannot be other.
In the soul of this Prodigal joy and sorrow co-exist. God is
at one and the same time his peace and his unrest. He rests
in Him without at the same time being able to remain quiet.
He has to learn to rest in action, to make anxiety a friend.
Daily God confronts him as a challenge, as obligation, as
happiness very near but not yet possessed.
The soul fears God but not with a senseless fear like that
of a dog which expects at every moment a blow of the lash.
Where the spirit reigns, terror cannot enter. Everything is
clear, luminous, benign. We are not God's slaves but thanks
to His predilection we are His sons. Filial fear of God does
not consist in dread of punishment nor does it arise from insufficient knowledge of Him but from His very nearness. He
who finds God feels that he has been sought by God, pursued
by Him, and in Him he rests as in a vast, warm ocean. Before
him looms a goal in comparison with which mountain ranges
are but grains of sand. The quest of God is possible only in
this life and this life has meaning only in terms of this quest.
God is always and everywhere present but we can never find
�106
QUEST FOR GOD
Him. We hear Him in the thunder of the surf, and yet He is
silent. At each moment He comes to meet us and yet we cannot seize Him. But the day will come when the quest will cease
and the final meeting take place. When we find God, we find
and obtain possession of all that is good in this world.
Conclusion
In our lives God is what the moon is for the ocean: the
cause of flood tide and ebb tide. All our earthly peregrinations
are in response to His divine challenge; a challenge which at
times carries us to the heights and at others plunges us to the
depths. This challenge of God, which the soul perceives, is a
call to all that may rightly be called great in this life, to those
realities which give human existence a meaning, which make
life really living.
And this challenge of God, which contains the blueprint of
a holy and healthy life, is nothing else than music floating
down from the eternal hills, sweet but clear, thunderous but
harmonious. The day will come when we shall see that God is
the song who cradled our existence. Dear Lord make us
worthy to hear Thy call and follow faithfully.
PERIN DE AC CADAVER
"To give up one's will," wrote St. Ignatius, "is more meritorious than
to raise the dead." These words seem blasphemous to Lutheran sanctimoniousness which even today, by way of the French Revolution and
its countless Saturnalian offshoots, dims that apology for an intellect
which is the property of the semi-brutes of the day; yet the words are
fraught with significance since one's own will generally means egoism,
self-love, pride and the quintessence of treason against God. The famous
phrase, perinde ac cadaver [just as a dead man], is but a striking figure,
such as genius is wont to employ, that shows how the proud, fleshly
Adam in us has to die that the spirit may live unto a higher life, desiring
and ready to labor for union with the Source of all life. Yet notice what
happens! Epictetus speaks of man as a wraith that is dragged behind
a corpse, and all the wits and wiseacres and the philosophers who lack
both love and wisdom beam with approval. If a saint talks about corpses,
this same anthropocephalous herd stands aghast and whinnies in dismay.
GIOVANNI PAPINI
�St. Ignatius and the Mystical Body
Harry R. Burns, S.J.
fUGO de Loyola is primarily a man of the Church. Yet it
is no easy task to sketch the full extent of the Ignatian
conception of the Church. For the references to the
Church in the better known Ignatian writings are for the most
part passing references which indicate much or little, depending on how one interprets them.1 There is, however, one letter
of Ignatius, once famous but now mostly forgotten, in which
he treats specifically of the nature of the Church. This is the
letter to Asnaf Sagad I, alias Claudius, Emperor of Ethiopia
-the fabled Prester John of mediaeval lore. 2
Though long and often confused negotiations had been in
progress since 1520, Ignatius' interest in the Prester John
business did not begin until 1546. But his interest, once
aroused, persisted undiminished until his death. In 1555 when
all arrangements had been made for a papal delegation, 3
Ignatius addressed a personal letter to Claudius which is in
effect a little treatise De Unitate Ecclesiae, filled with charity,
humility and zeal for souls. 4
I
1
The Rules for Thinking with the Church, of course, do provide some
principles of an ecclesiology, especially the 1st and 13th rules. But they
are, unfortunately, too often interpreted within the confined context of
a badly understood Ignatian "blind obedience." Nevertheless, the attitudes they try to inculcate do imply an understanding of the basic nature
of the Church. Cf. Pedro Leturia, S.J., "Sentido verdadero en la Iglesia
militante," Gregorianum 23 (1942), pp. 137-168.
2
The letter, in two redactions, appears in the MHSJ, Monumenta
lgnatiana (prima series), VIII, pp. 460-476. A translation of the first
and shorter redaction appears in Woodstock Letters (Nov. 1956), along
with an introductory note by Gustave Weigel, S.J. The citations in this
note, however, are from the second, believed by some to be the definitive
one. A translation can be found in Genelli's Saint Ignatius Loyola, pp.
311-316 in the Benziger 1889 edition.
3
Twelve men had been asked for-a Patriarch, coadjutor and ten
priests. Ignatius sent thirteen so that the delegation would resemble
Christ and the twelve Apostles. For a brief history of the, mission, see
James Brodrick's Progress of the Jesuits, pp. 236-267.
4
In his private instructions to Juan Nuiiez, the Patriarch, Ignatius
107
�108
MYSTICAL BODY
Since the purpose of the letter, as of the mission itself, was
the reunion of the Monophysite Church of Ethiopia with
Rome, it is not surprising that Ignatius, citing Scripture and
conciliar teaching, emphasizes the unity of the Church and the
primacy of jurisdiction possessed by the Roman See, "the
mother and mistress of all the Churches in the world." What
is unexpected is his reference to the Church as the Mystical
Body.
The Evidence
In the course of the letter there are three such references
to the Mystical Body. The first expresses the idea of life in
graphic terms, and even stronger Spanish:
It is not without reason that the father and grandfather of your
Majesty would not recognize the authority of the Patriarch of
Alexandria [Gabriel VII] who, like a rotten and lopped-off member
of the mystical body of the Church [como miembro cortado y pudrido
del cuerpo mistico de la iglesia], has neither received nor can receive life or vigor from this sacred body. For being a schismatic and
separated from the Holy Apostolic See, which is the Head of the
whole Church, he cannot lawfully communicate the life of grace nor
the office of pastor.s
The second reference stresses the need of the one true Church
for salvation. 6 For, Ignatius argues, as there was "but one ark
of Noah in which men could find safety," and one tabernacle of
Moses, one temple of Solomon, so too the Church is_'One:
All [these figures are] a clear and precise image of-t£:e unity of
the Church, outside of which there is nothing that is good, nothing
that can live. For whosoever is not united to and incorporated in
this mystical body [unido y incorporado con este cuerpo mistico]
insisted that the mission go "about its business con dolcezza, taking care
to do no violence to those souls habituated by long custom to another way
of living." Brodrick (op. cit., p. 250) notes that con dolcezza is almost
an lgnatian slogan. In view of the later controversy over the Chinese
Rites, it is interesting to see Ignatius' sense of missionary adaptation.
Cf. also the "Appendix de rebus Aethiopicis" in the Mon. lgn. VIII, pp.
701-704.
s The adjective "mistico" is omitted from the first two texts in the
shorter version but the meaning is otherwise the same.
a Ignatius is even more explicit in his instructions to Nunez: "y
ubiendo buena commodidad y mucha disposici6n en el, le hagan capaz
como no ay esperanza de salvarse fuera de la iglesia cat6lica romana .
• • •" (Mon. lgn., VIII, p. 682).
�MYSTICAL BODY
109
cannot receive from Jesus Christ, its Head, the strength and grace
necessary to obtain everlasting happiness.
The final reference to the Mystical Body adds the suggestion
at least of the infallibility guaranteed to the Church by the
Holy Spirit:
If it be, as it surely is, a special and most precious grace to be
united to the mystical body of the Catholic Church [estar unidos
con el cuerpo mistico de la iglesia cat6lica], which is animated and
governed by the Holy Spirit and this same Spirit, according to the
testimony of St. Paul and the Evangelist St. John, teaches and suggests to the Church all truth.7
A Question
At this point the question might be asked: how did Ignatius
become acquainted with the doctrine of the Mystical Body?
Obviously and in the first place, from his reading of St. Paul.
But one ought not to forget that the vision at the Cardoner
River "turned the Manresan pilgrim 'into a man with a new
intellect'." 8 Or as Nadal later put it: "God gave him [Ignatius] a most profound insight into, and feeling for, the
mysteries of our Holy Faith and the Catholic Church.'' 9 Nor
should it be forgotten that Ignatius was a Master of Arts/ 0
7 Ignatius tells Nufiez that he is to get Claudius to realize one basic
truth: "que en las cosas que tocan a la fe y costumbres no puede errer
este seda [i.e., Rome] quando va diffiniendo judicialmente" (Mon. Ign.,
VIII, p. 683). It was this point that interested Thyrsus Gonzalez, the
thirteenth General of the Society. He refers to Ignatius' letter as support for his thesis: "Ostenditur Romanum Pontificem, etiam extra
Concilium Generale et non expectato consensu Ecclesiae, esse infallibilem controversiarum fidei judicem" (Adversus Haereticos, p. 184).
Cf. also his De lnfallibilitate Romani Pontificis, disp. IX, lect. IX, sec.
III. This latter work, published with the permission of Blessed Innocent
XI, was later suppressed by Alexander VIII for fear of offending
Gallican interests in France. Cf. note 26 infra.
8
Hugo Rahner, S.J., The Spirituality of St. Ignatius, p. 49. The
phrase "como si fuesse otro ombre y tuviesse otro intellecto que tenia
antes" appears in the margin of the original and, Brodrick says, in
Nadal's hand. MHSJ, Scripta de S. lgnatio, I, p. 55, and Brodrick, St.
Ignatius Loyola: Pilgrim Years, p. 108.
9
Quoted by Rahner, op. cit., p. 53.
10
Ignatius' diploma from Paris reads in part: "delectus noster, discretus magister Ignatius de Loyola . . . in artibus magister . . . examinibus rigorosis . . . laudabiliter et honorifice adeptus est." MHSJ,
Scripta de S. lgnatio, II, p. 1.
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MYSTICAL BODY
and a student of theology until ill health interrupted his
studies at Paris. 11 It is a facet of the Saint that is often overlooked, lost in the splendor of his better genius along other
lines. But however one may wish to assess the facts of
Ignatius' education, it is not unlikely that he would have met
with the doctrine of the Mystical Body. Not only did the text
books-the Sentences of Peter Lombard and the Summa
Theologiae-treat the question, but every commentary of value
had perforce to treat of it too. 12 The doctrine, at least in the
basic sense of Christ as Head pouring life into the organism
of the Church, never passed out of the theological traditionP
The Early Jesuits
Not only was the doctrine··of the Mystical Body part of the
theological current in Ignatius' own lifetime; its influence was
also felt within Ignatius' immediate circle of fellow Jesuits. 14
There is a suggestion of the doctrine in Xavier, who writes to
Ignatius from India:
It is my hope that by means of you, God will teach me how I must
proceed . . . I trust in Christ our Lord that by the merits of Holy
Church, whose living members you are, He will give His grace to
even such a broken reed as I to plant His faith among the Gentiles.1 5
u
"per unum annum ciim dimidio in eadem nostra facultate studuit"
(Ibid., p. 2). Nadal in his spirited defence of Ignatius speaks as follows:
At vero sine litteris (Ignatius) fuit. . • . Jam enim inde postquam
devotionem animi per exercitia illa concepit, totus propendere incepit
ac ferri ad proximorum salutem procurandum; simul... ut hoc commodius ac liberius faceret, incredibili studio in litteris· incumbere
coepit in Hispania, deinde in celeberrima orbis christiani academia
parisiensi, primum artes liberales, tum theologiam multos annos
audivit summa animi contentione ac constantia singulari, exercitio
et fructu. Post consummata studia, congessit delibationes illas exercitiorum primas, addidit multa, digessit omnia, dedit examinanda
et judicanda sedi apostolicae. Quid nunc dicis? Quid colligis quod
litteras nescivit, bone Pater? [The addressee of the Apology] Non
potuit latine scribere? Potuit, sed noluit, ut simplici sermone.•.•
[The end is obliterated]. Cf. MHSJ, Epist. Nadal, IV, p. 826.
12 The classical loci are the thirteenth distinction in the Third Book of
the Sentences and the eighth question of the Tertia Pars.
1a Emile Mersch, S.J., The Whole Christ, Part III, chap. VI to IX.
u For the influence of the doctrine of the Mystical Body at Trent, cf.
DB n. 809 and 875.
15 James Brodrick, S.J., Saint Francis Xavier, p. 129. The letter recalls
the "cuius vivum membrum est" used at Trent (DB n. 842).
�MYSTICAL BODY
111
And if Xavier's acquaintance with the Mystical Body appears
at best problematical, there is no doubt of its presence in Peter
Canisius:
Lord, I ask Thy help, and I beg Thee to sustain me, not only by the
merits of Christ, Who is our Head and the Holy of Holies, but also
by the merits of His most noble members and of His whole Body,
which is the Church.16
More explicit still are the writings of Jerome Nadal, that
embodiment of Ignatius' spirit:
Even today our great Captain carries His cross in His Mystical
Body which is the Church. He suffers in her. He is persecuted in
her . • . Adimpleo ea quae desunt passionum Christi. These are
the merits of His cross which give efficacy to our ministries.H
While the strong Pauline emphasis hardly occasions any
surprise in Nadal, for whom the phrase "in Christ" is a watchword, the real significance of the passage lies in the fact that
it is an exhortation given to the Jesuit community at Alcala,
based on the key meditation of the Kingdom of Christ. Thus,
if Pauline, it is no less Ignatian.
Significance
What significance do these references to the Mystical Body
have in Ignatius' conception of the Church? While the main
purpose of this note is merely to call attention to their presence in Ignatian writings, it may prove helpful to suggest a
few lines of thought without pretending to give anything like
a definitive answer.
Certainly the doctrine of the Mystical Body enables one to
see greater depth of meaning in what might otherwise appear
to be chance phrases in other Ignatian writings. For example,
when Ignatius tells the scholastics at Coimbra to remember
that their neighbors are "an image of the most Holy Trinity
. . . living temples of the Holy Spirit . . . members of Jesus
16 Cited by Mersch, op: cit., p. 528.
Cf. Miguel Nicolau, S.J., Jeronimo Nadal, p. 500. "Ex his colligimus
Societatis nostrae fundamentum esse Jesum Christum crucifixum, ut sicut
ipse . . . quotidie maximas patitur afllictiones et cruces in Corpore suo
mystico quod est Ecclesia. (Ibid., p. 496).
11
�112
MYSTICAL BODY
Christ." 18 Nor is it difficult to see a reference to the Mystical
Body in Ignatius' letter to the whole Society ordering prayers
and Masses as Canisius had requested:
That charity, by which we should love the whole body of the Church
in its Head (en su cabeza), Jesus Christ, demands that the remedy
be applied in the first place to that part of the body where the
disease is more serious and dangerous. So it seems to us that our
Society, according to the measure of its strength, should strive with
particular love to help Germany, England, and the northern countries infected with heresy.19
The biological metaphor is unmistakable: the Church is a
living organism, Christ is its Head, the infection of heresy
is to be cured by the medicine of prayers and Masses.
These indications are not, of course, conclusive. But they
do suggest that Ignatius' conception of the Church had far
wider dimensions than his more frequent use of the phrasesmore often misunderstood than not-"Church militant" and
"hierarchical Church" might otherwise indicate. Indeed, set
within the context of the Mystical Body, even these two
notions gain in depth and lose the juridicism and extrinsicism
that so easily gravitate about them. 20
Conclusion
Nonetheless, it would still be a violation of the evidence to
give a disproportionate place to the Mystical Body in Ignatius'
18 "como una imagen de la Santisima Trinidad . . . templos vivos del
Espiritu Santo . . . miembros de Jesucristo" (Obras Completas de S.
Ignacio, BAC, p. 725). Cf. the Ad Amorem of the Exe"f-cises n. 235:
"reflect how God dwells in creatures . . . So he dwells in me . . . and
makes a living temple of me, besides having created me in the likeness
and image of the Divine Majesty."
19 Obras Completas, BAC, p. 847. The Spanish "cabeza" causes little
difficulty in English where it is simply translated as "head." The French
translators (Bouix, Pinard, and MoUat), all read "en su cabeza" as "en
son chef", which could be an interpretation as well as a translation. Cf.
below, note 24.
2o Further evidence of the flexibility of Ignatius' mind can be seen
in his letter to King John III of Portugal. The naming of two coadjutors
for the papal mission had been opposed as a novelty but Ignatius maintained "that the novelty in canon law can be admitted in so novel a case."
He went on to say that "if a commissary is appointed now, when it is
not necessary, the precedent will be established in case it should become
necessary to name one at some future date." Genelli (op. cit.) has the
letter, pp. 309-310.
�MYSTICAL BODY
113
thinking. Yet, if it is not a dominating theme, it should not
on that account be overlooked. If nothing else, the fact that
Ignatius knew about the Mystical Body, can shed new light on
other better known elements of his "ecclesiology," for example,
the conception of the Church as the Spouse of Christ and the
importance of the role of the Spirit in the Church. The idea of
the Mystical Body unites these two elements as Ignatius himself did. "For I must be convinced that in Christ our Lord, the
Bridegroom, and in His Spouse the Church, only one Spirit
holds sway, which governs and rules for the salvation of
souls." 21 It is on this unity, which now in the light of the
Mystical Body one can term the mystical unity of Christ and
His Church, that Ignatius builds his notion of obedience. That
is why every election must be made "within our Holy Mother,
the hierarchical Church." 22 Disobedience in consequence is a
departure a gremio Sanctae Matris Ecclesiae,2 3 so that one
becomes "a rotten and lopped off member of the Mystical
Body."
In like manner, the conception of the Church as the Mystical
Body provides yet another key to Ignatius' appreciation of the
profound unity between Christ and His Church,2 4 a realization
that necessarily joined loyal service of Christ with equally
loyal service of the Church in the person of the Pope. 25 History
Exercises, n. 365, Cf. also n. 353.
Ibid., n. 170 and 177.
23 The phrase is from the Examen c. II, 1.
24 This is not to deny that, even without the Mystical Body, the realization of this profound unity is still present in Ignatius' thinking. Thus,
on this point, Father Donatien MoUat, the eminent biblical scholar, concludes that even when Ignatius speaks of the Church as a body he wishes
to designate "a social organism of which Christ is the Leader [chef],
rather than an organism of which He is the Head [tete]." Cf. "Le
Christ dans I'experience de S. Ignace," Christus (1954), pp. 38-39. When
the texts used in this note were brought to his attention, he expressed
great interest in them but still believed his conclusion expressed the
"characteristic mind" of Ignatius. However, as he noted in his article
and in his helpful letter to this writer, this relationship between Christ
and the Church in "terms of seigniory" should be understood "sans
juridicisme." Nor does he wish to exclude a possible evolution in
Ignatius' thought whereby the social aspect is deepened and complemented by the notion of the Mystical Body.
25
Cf. Pedro Leturia, S.J., "Aux Sources de la 'Romanite' de la Compagnie de Jesus," Christus (1954), pp. 81 ff.
21
22
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MYSTICAL BODY
gives abundant testimony to the fact; the Mystical Body gives
an added reason for it.
Mystical Body, Spouse of Christ, Holy Mother, Church militant and hierarchical-the Church is all of these to Ignatius.
Any synthesis must include them all, as it must include as well
a consideration of the virtues that fuse them all into a unity:
faith, love, service, obedience, even poverty. The task is not
a simple one; for one must at length approximate that "synthetic view" which Ignatius himself possessed and which saw
the Church, neither in isolation nor according to only some
of her dimensions, but as situated within the whole framework
of salvation. 26
26 Since this paper was composed, another reference to the Mystical
Body has been found in the letters of Laynez. Cf. MHSJ, Lainii Manumenta, V, p. 579. The letter runs as follows:
Fra li dogni, il primo articulo, che denuono trattare et con maggior
dilligenza, e del primato di santo Pietro et delli succesori suoi, et
della necessita della unione con un capo a quelli che son membra del
corpo mistico de X. N. S.; perche, stabilito questo fundamento,
facilmente il resto si potra edificar sopra quello nelli cuori loro.
Aside from the mention of the Mystical Body, the text is interesting
because it is, approximately, what Ignatius says to Nunez (part of
which is quoted in note 7). After telling Nunez to get Claudius to
realize one basic truth that the Holy See cannot err in faith and morals,
he adds: "despues en lo demas se dexeran mas facilmente persuadir."
-·
KINDNESS
The part that kindness and good works had in the life of St. Ignatius
is unknown to most people, but it is not the least part of his life and
perhaps it is the one that would most endear him to them. From the
time of his withdrawal to Manresa he gave himself up to the care of
bodily ills in the hospitals and to the care of souls in streets, hovels,
ships, and all places frequented of men. He lived on alms, but always
gave away to the poor the greater part of what he had begged for
himself. At times, when he was alone and in strange lands, he gave
away the very clothes on his back, and once he even undertook a long
and wearisome journey on foot to go to the assistance of a companion
who had robbed him of what little money he had managed to scrape
together for his studies.
GIOVANNI PAPINI
�Father Alexander
J. Cody
Edwin A. McFadden, S.J.
Father Cody died in St. Mary's Hospital shortly after the
Angelus had ceased ringing at noon on January the twentyfourth. He had been ill for several years, but in intervals between frequent visits to the hospital, despite a loss of weight
that reduced him almost to a skeleton and, incidentally, made
more than a few people add many years to his age, he had
struggled to the parlors for consultation, to the church for
confessions and, to his great happiness, practically daily to the
altar to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Never will the
writer forget the plaintive tones in which Father Cody, several weeks before his death relayed the news "They tell me
that I won't be able to say Mass anymore."
The only child of Thomas and Anna Lipsett Cody, Father
Cody was born in Auburn, California on the feast of the
Transfiguration of our Lord, August the sixth, 1886. He was
baptized Alexander Thomas Cody, but later as a young Jesuit,
out of devotion to St. Joseph, he substituted Joseph for
Thomas and thereafter always signed himself Alexander J.
Just when the family moved to Sacramento is not known, but
Alec or Allie, as he was known to his relatives, always spoke
of the Capital as his home city and there received his early
education from the Christian Brothers for whom he ever held
a deep affection.
In August 1900 Alec entered Santa Clara College as a
boarder. At first, perhaps influenced by the example of his
father, who for many years was advertising manager of the
Sacramento Bee, he planned a business career and so was enrolled in the commercial course. In those days, he was a subdued, rather quiet lad, who took no prominent part in school
activities or athletics, though he was tall for his age. Losing
his mother when very young and sensitive by nature, he had
not quite adjusted himself to the coming of a second mother
into the home and, consequently, was given to considerable
·
brooding.
Sometime in 1902, probably in the school retreat which in
115
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FATHER CODY
those days was held during the last three days of Holy Week,
his thoughts turned towards the priesthood and specifically
towards the life of a priest in the Society of Jesus. After that,
the retiring youth seemed to find himself. He transferred to
the classical course and soon became a leader among the teenagers in the second Division. Presently he was elected prefect
of the Holy Angels' Sodality, and then president of the Junior
Dramatic Society, better known as the J.D.S.-a debating
society that only rarely essayed dramatics; he was a prominent member of the "Saints"-the St. John Berchmans Sanctuary Society, and was appointed head of the first table in the
dining room, a post that corresponded to today's student body
president. As a thespian, he. played the lead as king in "King
Robert of Sicily," and, in lighter moments, filled the role of a
madman, thoroughly deceiving and somewhat terrifying many
of the new students during their initiation into boarding
school life. Alec had hoped to enter the Novitiate of the Sacred
Heart in July 1903, but due to parental opposition which
forced him to leave college, his entry date was not until the
eve of the Annunciation, March 24, 1904.
For two years Brother Cody followed the usual routine of
a Jesuit novice's life-and was admitted to his first vows on
March 25, 1906. He remained at Los Gatos for three more
years and during this time, devoted to the study of the humanities, he displayed an unusual talent for English literature
and public speaking, two fields in which he was later to become
distinguished.
·
Three years of teaching at Gonzaga College, Spokane, followed the juniorate and during the celebration of the silver
jubilee of the college's founding, Mr. Cody wrote and very
successfully directed the production of the jubilee play, no
mean achievement for a young scholastic. Of it the October,
1912 issue of "Gonzaga" said:
The great event of the second day was the presentation of the silver jubilee play at the Auditorium Theatre. It seemed that for an
occasion like this no ordinary play would be appropriate; something
unique, something all Gonzaga's own should be had. With this
thought in view, Mr. Alexander J. Cody, S.J., devoted his spare time
during the year to the production of a play which would surpass
anything seen at Gonzaga. The result of his earnest labor was a
five act drama, "Vincentius," or "Under the Shadow of the Cross."
�FATHER CODY
117
Then came Philosophy, and Gonzaga awarded him an A.B.
degree in 1915. From 1915 to 1917 he taught at St. Vincent's
College, now Loyola University, Los Angeles.
Finally thirteen years after his entrance into the Society,
Mr. Cody formally began his theological studies at St. Louis
University in September 1917_. It is doubtful whether dogmatic theology as such appealed very strongly to the young
theologian, though he did well in his studies and was ordained
by the Most Rev. John J. Glennon, D.D., Archbishop of St.
Louis and later Cardinal, on June 20, 1920. He offered his
First Mass the next day on the feast of St. Aloysius, Patron
of Youth. A mere coincidence! Perhaps, but maybe the day
foreshadowed the many years Father Cody was to devote to
the guidance of youth.
Another year of theology, a year of tertianship at Cleveland,
and then Father Cody was assigned to teach the juniors at Los
Gatos, where on the feast of the Purification, February 2,
1924, he pronounced his final vows.
Meanwhile a new development had started at the University
of Santa Clara,-the high school department was to be separated from the university. The change began in September,
1924 and was not completed until the same month in 1926
when the high school was moved to the former site of the
College of the Pacific in San Jose, where it was known as the
University of Santa Clara High School and later as Bellarmine
College Preparatory. During this difficult period of transition
Father Cody was principal and prefect of studies, his tenure
of office ending in 1927.
In the summer of that year Father Cody received word that
he was to teach English literature at the University of San
Francisco. For the next thirty years he was to labor for the
people of "The City" and especially for their youth. He taught
his beloved Shakespeare and Robert Browning for many years
and his classes were never dull, for, wherever possible, he used
his histrionic talents with telling effect by acting the parts of
the characters under study. Moreover, he never omitted an
opportunity if a moral could be drawn from the text. He was
in the classroom to teach literature, it is true, and he did that
superlatively well, but that was only a means to an end, the
eternal salvation of his pupils.
�118
FATHER CODY
In the catalogue of the California Province for 1927, among
other duties that of Scriptor is assigned to Father Cody.
There is no doubt that he had written for publication before
this, for he had long been given to poetical effusions, but during this and the following year he substituted for Father
Richard Gleeson, S.J. whose life he was later on to write, but
who was then editor of the St. Ignatius Church Calendar, in
editing an occasional issue of that monthly. It was not until
1929, however, that as Father Cody expressed it in the 1947
February Calendar, "the full insignia of the editor-in-chief's
office were in my possession; a pair of large shears, a jar of
paste and a sheaf of antiqu~· dust-covered Jesuit parish calendars sent as exchanges from many parts of the United States.
Here was to be a happy hunting ground, since poaching was a
long acknowledged privilege in church calendar editing." But
Father Cody soon did away with these sources of supply and
"this burning of one's bridges" as he called it "has certain
advantages for a calendar editor. It makes him attentive and
alert. It quickly sharpens the editorial sense for appropriate
items. I began to read, and to hear, and to see, in relation to
the calendar. Everything became contributory-car ads, the
daily newspapers, all sorts of books and magazines, even
chance, as well as set, conversations. I was constantly gathering and shaping material, brushing the past with .the present,
burnishing the old and polishing the new." Under the title
"This Editing Business" Father Cody showed what he tried
to do and did. One point struck me as significant. He had
something about our Lady in every issue. All in all, he set a
high and complete ideal for the editor of a Catholic parish
monthly.
Father Cody used the Calendar not only as a sort of trial
horse for many of his own writings that afterwards appeared
in pamphlet form, but also encouraged many of his pupils and
proteges, especially sodalists of St. Ignatius High School, to
submit articles for publication. It was but one of his many
ways of encouraging and guiding youth. Of course, many of
Father's own poems appeared in national Catholic magazines;
in fact, one of his was the medal winner in the Fourth Marian
Poetry Contest sponsored by the Queen's Work in 1925. The
�FATHER CODY
119
University of Santa Clara conferred the honorary degree of
Doctor of Letters on him in 1931.
It is difficult to imagine a son of St. Ignatius who is not personally devoted to our blessed Lady, but Father Cody was
more than merely devoted, he was outstanding in his devotion
to her. Besides sounding Mary's praises in poetry and prose,
he was most zealous in promoting her devotion among others,
especially through the Sodality. The work of the various sections and committees was encouraged. The young sodalists
were shown ways not only of sanctifying themselves but also
of helping others through practice of the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. He wrote and directed short plays, produced by the high school sodalists. At one time the price of
admission would be an article of clothing, not necessarily new,
but clean and in good condition; on other occasions, it would
be a package of groceries, a can of corn or a pound of sugar,
or again some tobacco. Many a poor boy, especially in the
days of the depression was called into Father's office-he
became chaplain or spiritual father of St. Ignatius High
School in 1934-to be given a pair of shoes, an overcoat or
even an entire outfit, but always secretly so that the recipient's
pride was never hurt. The groceries or other foodstuff Father
would personally distribute mainly, though not exclusively, to
the families of needy students, doing this through the help of
members of the Gentlemen's Sodality of St. Ignatius Church.
The pleasant duty of distributing the tobacco was reserved for
the sodalists themselves: a short program would be arranged
by Father Cody, which the sodalists-would present before the
old men residents of the Home of the Little Sisters of the
Poor on Lake Street. Then the boys themselves would pass
among the men, giving out the tobacco. Thus the young were
shown not only the duty of practicing charity but made to
realize the joy that such a practice brings.
The chaplain of a Catholic high school, whatever be his
title, must like Christ try to be "All things to all men." Father
Cody realized this responsibility fully and gave himself without reserve to every type of student. Nothing aroused his
priestly zeal nor touched his compassionate heart more than
meeting a boy in distress from difficulties in the classroom
or in the home. He was gentle, understanding and sympa-
�120
FATHER CODY
thetic, but he became quite aroused if he thought that a boy
was being dealt justice not tempered by mercy. Towards the
laggard, however, who after several conferences manifested
no willingness to be helped, he showed only limited patience;
towards the slow, but earnest worker, his encouragement and
sympathy were boundless; his understanding of the errant,
who had run afoul of school regulations through boyish
thoughtlessness or recklessness, was deep and practical.
Aspirants to the priesthood however, were the special objects of Father Cody's devotedness. Never one to outstrip the
leading of Divine Providence, nevertheless he did his best
to prepare their souls for the extraordinary favors God usually
bestows upon those who are called to the priestly state. He
first of all insisted emphatically upon the practice of the
natural virtues, afterwards he showed how a strong personal
devotion to our Lord and our Lady might be cultivated, never
failing to stress the fact that the way to the priesthood and the
way of the cross are one. Before the candidate, moreover, was
ever kept the fact of his freedom of choice, for our Lord had
said to the young man in the Gospel, "If thou wilt be perfect,
go sell what thou hast etc."
During all the years of his priesthood, but especially while
he was chaplain at St. Ignatius High School from 1934 to 1950
and for a longer time confessor in St. Ignatius Church, many
young people of both sexes came to Father Cody for· vocational
guidance. The majority of these became Jesuits, though
Father never hesitated to direct to other orders or to the
diocesan clergy those he thought better suited for such lives.
The contacts between Father Cody and his young consultants
developed, in most cases, into strong bonds that lasted through
the years. Not only did one of them, Father Peter Newport,
S.J., hold his hand at death but many of them wrote letters to
Father on the occasion of his golden jubilee revealing the
depth of their love for him.
The Sisters, too, wrote to and about Father Cody. This
note from a Sister of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was received shortly after his death. "Please will you let me know
how Father Cody is? . . . He has been a real friend down the
years."
In the University of San Francisco Community, among the
�FATHER CODY
121
younger priests there are many of Father Cody's "boys" and
they were most devoted to him, especially in his declining
years. And how he appreciated their visits! And he looked
forward to those visits not only because he loved these priests,
but because they always tried to bring him news and, especially in his latter years, perhaps, because he was so much alone,
he positively craved for news, not about the outside world, but
about the Society and particularly about his own California
Province. His visitors were sure to be asked: "Any scoops?
Haven't you any scoops?" Nothing was too trivial, the least
detail interested him. Even on his deathbed he revealed this
desire for news, though often what was news to the visitor was
already old to Father. And often it was difficult to say how
he came by his information. Within the week of his death,
Father gave one of his "boys" a deep, though unexpected
chuckle. Said "boy" was about to convey news of an impending change on the U.S.F. faculty-when Father Cody feebly
said, "Did you hear that Father So-and-So is going to be
changed?"
And so we have practically completed the account of Father
Cody's life and yet how much has been left untold; that he was
gifted with the ability to imitate the calls of numerous birds,
his ardent devotion to St. John Bosco whose statue stood on
his desk, the good he accomplished as moderator of the Jesuit
Mothers, and who could possibly imagine, let alone compute,
what was done during his almost thirty years as confessor in
St. Ignatius Church, or in the many retreats he conducted for
Sisters, Brothers and Priests not only on the Pacific Coast but
in other parts of the country as well?
Father Cody, in all truth, can be said to have tried constantly to be an Alter Christus, going about doing good. Not
that he was entirely without blemish, but his blemishes were
the excesses of his virtues. He was a perfectionist with a
passionate love of the Society of Jesus. Anything, consequently, that he thought was done by a fellow Jesuit in a slipshod or careless fashion, or any infringement of the Society's
customs irked him and sometimes evoked private criticism.
His sensivity in such matters was accentuated in part no doubt
by his artistic temperament. Occasionally, too, Father forgot
that even the perfect father has to discipline as well as to
�122
FATHER CODY
love, or rather that perfect love is often best shown by disciplining. For himself he could take the bitter with the sweet
-not that I ever knew him to be singled out for discipliningbut he really fretted if he thought that a superior lacked
fatherliness towards any of his subjects.
Father Cody was anointed on the morning of December 31.
It was my privilege to be present on that occasion after having
heard his confession and received in turn what I feel sure was
Father's last absolution. After that he was able, save for a
few days, to receive Holy Communion daily, the last time on
the day before his death. Those last weeks were, I think, generally speaking, periods of distress rather than of pain, though
there were times when he ;vas encompassed by fears, fears
not of a moral nature but fear brought on by physical exhaustion when he would imagine that he was falling or was uncertain as to where he actually was. Then he would wonder aloud
about our Lady's letting him down. After such an expression
a gesture would follow immediately-an arm uplifted towards
heaven-and the exclamation "I must reach towards Eternal
Love."
Tribute by Mr. James F. Kelly:
The people, young and old, helped by Father Cody over the
years number thousands. Despite the very busy life of a Jesuit
professor and confessor, he always found time to assist those
who were in need, laboring under some difficulty ..0~ touched
by tragedy.
During the black days of the depression, Father Cody stood
between many a family and actual hunger. Once he felt sure
that help was needed, he acted. There were no coldblooded
questions and no red tape. Also, it seemed that no matter how
much he gave away in food and clothing, someone always came
along and replenished the supply at the crucial moment.
But all this activity finally took its toll. His robust health
broken, he became, physically, a mere shell of his former self.
However, his indomitable spirit remained to the end. He
literally burned himself out in the service of others. Greater
love than this no man has. I write these words primarily that
those helped by Father Cody over the years will pause and
think back and will remember him in their prayers. I, for one,
(San Francisco Chronicle, 2-6-57)
intend never to forget him.
I
'
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
�Father Charles E. Deppermann
James J. Hennessey, S.J.
In November 1954 at Tokyo, Japan, UNESCO promoted a
symposium on tropical cyclones. The foreword to the published proceedings of this symposium states: "It was probably the first time in the history of study of tropical storms
that so many world authorities on this subject have been able
to meet and discuss the results of their observations and research."1 Heading the list of consultants from various quarters of the globe was Reverend Charles E. Deppermann, S.J.
As Father Deppermann was asked to present his paper, the
chairman, amid applause, introduced him in this manner: "To
introduce Father Deppermann to this audience is like introducing President Eisenhower to the American people." 2 The
name of Father Deppermann is familiar to all those who have
read in the scientific literature of typhoons.
The second son of the late Charles Edward Deppermann
and Elizabeth Drexler Deppermann was born in Manhattan,
New York on March 30, 1889. He was given the name of his
father and used the designation Junior. For primary and
secondary schooling he attended the New York public schools.
Diligent and scholarly, he was always among the best in his
class in academic excellence. Later while attending a graduation at a Jesuit high school he was highly gratified by the
number of awards given for scholastic excellence. This was
in marked contrast with his experience in the public schools
where honor awards fell more on the athletes than on the
scholars. In high school he took part in dramatics not without the tyro's stagefright.
During his days at the old High School of Commerce,
Charles manifested a remarkable ability in mathematics.
Doctor Arthur Schultze was then producing his mathematics
texts for high schools. The author has acknowledged his
indebtedness to "Mr. Charles E. Deppermann for the careful
1
Proceedings of the Unesco Symposium on Typhoons No~ember 1954,
The Japanese National Commission for Unesco.
2
Reported in newspapers.
123
�124
FATHER DEPPERMANN
reading of the proofs and for verifying the results of the
examples." Besides, the answer books to two textbooks are
the first published works under the name of Charles Deppermann.3 Since these carry a copyright for 1905 Mr. Deppermann was just sixteen at the time of his participation in this
scholarly activity. As a high school boy he was paid to
tutor a lad a little older than himself. The tutored lad
passed all the examinations except the one in mathematicsMr. Deppermann's favorite subject. However, the friendship made here lasted for many years.
After graduation from DeWitt Clinton High School he was
employed as a typist and stepographer in a law firm. During
these working years he visited Father McCluskey weekly at
Xavier, Sixteenth Street, for Latin instruction and for confession. Father McCluskey profoundly influenced him and
helped him with his vocation to the Society. When there was
question of delaying his entrance into the Society Father
McCluskey said, "If you do not take that boy now, you will
get a ghost." He was working so diligently that his health
was being affected.
On August 13th, 1910, Charles Deppermann left New
York to enter the Novitiate at St. Andrew-on-Hudson. Though
he was little older than the majority of his fellow novices he
was happy to be with young men possessing his aspirations.
He developed the trait of fidelity and regularity in· spiritual
duties, a characteristic so evident in his priestly liie.-" During
the two years of Juniorate he enthusiastically applied himself
to classical studies with a high degree of achievement. This
accounts for his lasting fondness for the Classics though his
life's work called him to another kind of discipline. During
the first World War from 1914 to 1917 Mr. Deppermann gave
himself wholeheartedly to philosophical studies at Woodstock.
His special genius must have been in evidence at this time,
for he was chosen for advanced special studies.
Because Charles had done so well in mathematics at high
school-much beyond the line of class requirements-he was
offered at Woodstock an exemption from the mathematics
sa. Arthur Schultze, Ph.D. Graphic Algebra, p. v. Macmillan, New
York, 1907. b. Answers to Schultze's Elementary Algebra and Answers
to Schultze's Advanced Algebra. Macmillan Company, New York.
�FATHER DEPPERMANN
125
courses then being presented. However, an oral preliminary
examination was in order. Mr. Deppermann expected his
ability at original solutions or proofs would be put to the
test. It was in them that he had excelled in high school.
Though confident of the outcome of this test he was amazed
at the first question of the famous Father John Brosnan:
"What is a lune ?" Many a more experienced mathematician
might have felt inadequate to give a precise answer to such
a direct and pointed question. At any rate the exemption
was a fact. It was about this time that one of his brother
Jesuits remarked that he would one day be the successor of
Father Algue, the Director of the Manila Observatory. This
remark was remembered all his life.
After his philosophical studies the question arose about
further scientific studies. He was assigned to go at once to a
graduate school but Father Provincial, Joseph Rockwell,
countermanded this appointment. Mr. Deppermann moved over
to the other side of the house to begin theology. Such acceleration at a time when most Jesuits were spending up to five
years on Regency was decidedly unusual. It was one of the
regrets of his life-accepted with entire resignation-that he
never had Regency and never taught at any time. He felt that
he had missed something important in the training for Jesuit
life.
On the feast of St. Peter and Paul, June 29, 1920, Cardinal Gibbons ordained his last group of Jesuits at Georgetown.
Father Deppermann was the youngest Jesuit in the year so
he was the last priest publicly ordained by the Cardinal who
so profoundly influenced the Church in America. Possessing
a happy blend of scholarliness and piety he, to no one's surprise, did very well in theology.
Having completed his tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudson
with Father Maas as Instructor, Father Deppermann was
ready to devote the next three years at Johns Hopkins University to his studies in science leading to the doctorate in
Physics. He might have completed his doctorate work in two
years if his first research project had not met with a setback.
The second subject, some studies of the Stark effect, was a
success under Dr. Pfund. A not-insignificant help for his
doctoral thesis was his facility with the German language at
�126
FATHER DEPPERMANN
a time when German was so necessary in scientific matters.
His thesis was published in the Astrophysical Journal for
January 1926. An interesting point, in view of his life's
work, is seen in the frequency with which he quotes Japanese
scientists in this his first research paper. In later years he
used to speak with affection and respect for his Hopkins professors: Ames, Pfund, Anderson, Murnaghan, and R. W.
Wood.
At Hopkins Father Deppermann felt he had an advantage
over his fellow classmates. During the Jesuit course of
studies he had done some of the course work such as vector
analysis required at Hopkins. That implies that he maintained his interest in mathematical and scientific subjects
while at Woodstock. He attributed his success in his oral
doctorate examination to the long years of experience in oral
examinations in the Society. He thus gave credit to the
course of Jesuit studies for his success, though no small part
was also due to natural talents given him by God. Having
obtained his doctorate in physics at Hopkins, more immediate
preparation for Manila was needed. He thus spent the year
1925-26 at the University of California and Lick Observatory
studying astronomy. _
Father Deppermann, now ready for the work in the Manila
Observatory, arrived in the Philippines.4 He immediately
became chief of the Astronomical Department. A program of
world longitude tests was on in 1926. Using a .radio technique, Father made a new determination of the longitude of
the Manila Observatory. The precision of his results was
extremely gratifying. In January 1927 he followed up the
longitude computation with a similar determination of the
latitude. Having fixed the position of the Observatory,
Father set out to improve the time service. As a result of
the installation of new equipment and of the modification of
some of the old he obtained an accuracy for the time signals
of less than one-tenth of a second error. The United States
Hydrographic Office of the Navy raised the Manila time signals to the First Order rating, a tribute to his ability.
In the meantime Father was carrying on research in other
lines. In 1927 he began studies in atmospheric electricity.
4
W. C. Repetti, S.J., The Manila Observatory, p. 50 ff.
�FATHER DEPPERl\IANN
127
Tests on the nineteen inch Merz refractor telescope were reported in another paper. 5 The total solar eclipse of 1929
gave him his first and only opportunity to visit the Southern
Philippines. Though he was in charge of the Manila expedition at Sogod, Cebu, several famous atronomers from Bergedorf Observatory of Hamburg, Germany cooperated in this
venture. Eclipse results are always a gamble. Unfortunately
a special compound lens ordered from Germany did not
arrive in time for preliminary testing. After the eclipse
Father learned that the internationally renowned optical
instrument manufacturers had sent out the compound lens
with some parts reversed. This defect together with haze
produced by the slight cooling of the atmosphere with the
onset of the eclipse prevented adequate photographic results.
However, he did obtain good results in another characteristic,
the atmospheric potential gradient during the solar eclipse.
Even the ionosphere interested him at this early date and he
published an article on the heights of the Heaviside layer.
Thunderstorms create problems in atmospheric electricity and
these were explored by Father Deppermann. Besides his
daytime activities, Father used the night sky to record
variable stars. Two lists of these, the first of thirteen pages
and the second of twenty-one pages, were published before
1931. Such diversified activities in so many fields might be
charged with superficiality except that he did produce substantial and solid articles in each of these categories.
Towards the end of 1931 Father Deppermann was put in
charge of the department of meteorology due to the ill health
and age of Father Coronas. To measure up to his own high
standards of performance he desired some direct preparation
for meteorological work. On January 2, 1932, Father left
Manila for Washington to familiarize himself with the
Weather Bureau there. However, he was not content with
the practices then being used and so he proceeded to Norway
to the Geophysical Institute in Bergen and the Meteorological Office in Oslo. At this time Jesuits were forbidden entry
into Norway, but this technicality did not impede his entry
or the accomplishment of his mission. He studied the theories
proposed by the Norwegians, especially Bjerknes and Pet5
List of Publications of the Manila Observatory.
�128
FATHER DEPPERl\IANN
terssen, and noted the way they put them into observational
practice. In the short period of ten months he had acquired
the requisite knowledge. Back in Manila just before Christmas 1932, Father Deppermann became assistant director of
the Weather Bureau and continued as chief of the Meteorological Division until succeeded in the latter post by Father
Doucette in 1934.
As assistant director, Father Deppermann now made
meteorology his chief and nearly exclusive research study.
As a result, the most scientifically productive period of his
life followed with his application of the Norwegian ideas of
frontology and air-mass to the Philippine areas. Particular
emphasis was placed on the .qrigin, development and paths of
typhoons. This work was no mere transplantation of ideas
from one locality to another. It opened up a new approach.
It is significant that the year 1933 marks a turning point
in scientific tropical meteorology from the climatological to
the air-mass method. 6 The history of meteorology will always
list Father Deppermann as a leading protagonist in this
change. To confirm this prediction one has but to consult
two authoritative sources, the first, Compendium of Meteorology and the second, Meteorological Abstracts and Bibliography. The first work is a vast tome of many chapters.
Each chapter is written by the author whom the committee
of the American Meteorological Society considered a world
authority on the subject. Incidentally Father Deppermann
himself, after the war, was asked to write one of the chapters but war casualties of various kinds prevented his accepting. The second work, a monthly report, has abstracted
and presented his papers as a permanent feature in the reference literature of tropical cyclone theory.
In the Compendium of Meteorology Father Deppermann is
named about forty times. Besides, his data and theories are
necessarily discussed in the description of weather conditions
in the tropics. There is space here only for a few brief
illustrative quotations.
"Probably the most systematic
analysis and compilation of the characteristics of tropical
cyclones were those of Deppermann for the Philippine area,"
Compedium of Meteorology, American Meteorological Society, Boston,
Mass., 1951, pp. 859-868.
s
I
l
I
�FATHER DEPPERl\IANN
129
says Gordon E. Dunn of the U. S. Weather Bureau. 7 And
again, the same author goes out of his way to make mention
of Father Deppermann alone. "Tropical meteorology is
deeply in dept to Father Deppermann for his painstaking
assembly and analysis of typhoon characteristics in the Philippine area.'' 8 In another chapter Herbert Riehl after many
references to the work of Father Deppermann says, "Deppermann is one of the few writers who has made a detailed
effort to calculate radical and tangential velocity components."
"Apart from Deppermann, writers have contented themselves
with application of simple hydrodynamics." 9
Japanese meteorologists have been lavish in their praise of
the contributions of Father Deppermann. This is not a case
of mere characteristic politeness. At least ten of his articles
-some of them could be classified as books-have been
translated into Japanese. Translation of a scientific work of
limited circulation is a definite proof of worth. When Dr.
Kazuo Ogasahara published his Kishogahu Tsuron (Handbook of Meteorology) he acknowledged his great indebtedness
to Father Deppermann. "On the completion of my new book,
I should like to express my sincerest gratitude in the name
of science to Father Deppermann to whom I owed many
guidances and helps directly and indirectly in my present
work. Dr. Deppermann, the famous scholar-priest, has
shown a profound understanding for the Bergen School. The
Father has bestowed many suggestions and advices on me in
my long studies and is regarded as my great benefactor in
my researches of the South Seas meteorology." 10 Both Dr.
Arakawa and Dr. Wadati have been pleased to praise Father
Deppermann.
In other countries the common people of the future may
not know of Father Deppermann. This will not be the case
in Japan. The year before his death he was invited to write
an introduction for a textbook to be used by all school children. Father Deppermann very graciously complied with this
7
L.c., p. 887.
L.c., p. 900.
9
L.c., p. 906.
1
°Kazuo Ogasahara and Kishogaku Tsuron, Handbook of Meteorology,
Tokyo, Japan.
8
�130
FATHER DEPPERMANN
request for he had a special reason among others. The school
children of Japan from scores of schools had saved their
pennies to make a contribution to his restoration of the
Observatory.
The Royal Australian Air Force needed Father Deppermann's papers during the war. They had them reproduced
at Melbourne in 1943. Their Air Force meteorologists evidently realized the value of those original research papers
in their training program.
Dr. I. R. Tannehill, the U. S. Weather Bureau scientist
who spent many years studying typhoons and hurricanes, has
titled one of his recent b9oks, "The Hurricane Hunters."
Each chapter is headed bY,. an apt quotation from a distinguished writer: Shakespeare, Tennyson, F. D. R., Euripides
and others equally well known. The Chapter on typhoons
is headed by a quotation from Deppermann. In that same
chapter the author explicitly states, "Father Charles Deppermann, S.J., formerly of the Philippine Weather Bureau, did
as much as any man to help people prepare for these catastrophes."11
"By their fruits you shall know them." It is clear from
the foregoing that the nine year period of Father Deppermann's life beginning in 1933 was in a special way devoted to
what Father General calls "the works of the Society which
are of prime importance and of the greatest necessity in our
own day, scientific work properly so called, be it in the sacred
sciences, or in those secular sciences which th; traditional
practice of the Church and of the Society has not regarded as
alien to our calling. For it is of great importance that facts
newly investigated or discovered should not be proposed to the
world only by men who, though perhaps not hostile or indifferent to the Faith, yet do not possess the philosophical and
theological training necessary to put them in the right light
and judge of them correctly." 12
The progressive series of studies made during those years
was culminating in a peak when the war brought its havoc to
11 Ivan Ray Tannehill, The Hurricane Hunters. Dodd, Mead & Company, New York, 1956, pp. 167 f.
12 Letter of Very Reverend John Baptist Janssens, General of the
Society of Jesus, to the whole Society, De Ministeriis, Section II.
r
�FATHER DEPPERMANN
131
the Philippines. One of his finest papers, though printed
and published, was totally lost. How often we have heard
him say that the work of that paper could not be repeated
for the original documents were lost. Not wanting that
important paper to fall into enemy hands, five copies of it
were given to friends for safekeeping. Yet reports show that
each was destroyed. The loss of that paper-representing
so much study, work and talent--was a serious blow to Father
Deppermann.
With the invasion of a foreign army, with the operations
of the Weather Bureau restricted, with the effective curtailment of the activities of alien Jesuits in the Weather Bureau,
little hope remained of serious scientific work according to the
usual established procedures. The invading Japanese did
bring their scientists with them. These outstanding men of
Japan were honored by the opportunity of speaking with the
scientist they admired so much. Though he was an enemy
alien, they sought ways of honoring him in the midst of their
regrets for the war conditions. He was escorted as the
guest of a Japanese General to sukiyaki at the Manila Hotel.
They further tendered him an invitation to Japan to work
along with them on weather problems. Father Deppermann
declined the offer, giving his asthma as an excuse for plane
travel.
He was interned in a Jesuit House, the Aten eo on Padre
Faura, with very few opportunities to leave the property.
But his friends could visit him for consultation and spiritual
advice. In July 1944 all of the enemy alien Jesuits at the
Ateneo were taken to the Los Banos concentration camp. In
the camp he was the official bell-ringer since he was able to
determine the time quite accurately by watching an image
of the sun. February 23, 1945 was the day of liberation of
the starved internees of the concentration camp. In March
1945 Father Deppermann was one of the first freed men to
be flown back to the States, Washington, D. C. The urgency
of his flight was the need for his presence at a conference
in the Pentagon Building on the meteorology of the Pacific.
After a short stay in the States making plans for the
restoration of the Observatory and its work he returned to
Manila. From March 1946 to March 1947 he was engaged
�132
FATHER DEPPERl\IANN
in a repetition of his cloud project. All his pre-War cloud
pictures taken each day for a year had been destroyed. Now
he made a new collection of some five thousand pictures to
illustrate the types of clouds found in Manila during all
kinds of weather. However, the signs of the times showed
that the Jesuits would not resume their work in the Philippine
Weather Bureau. Nothing daunted, he went into the summer
heat of St. Louis to take up the study of seismology. This
was perhaps the only field of pre-War research of the Observatory in which he had not published. With meteorology out
of consideration lest there be competition with the government
agencies and with very meagre funds on hand, this seemed to
him to be the best way to make a start in the restoration. He
went through with his studies at the age of fifty-eight, but the
time in the concentration camp and the strenuous activity at
St. Louis University proved much too much for his physical
strength. On his return to Manila with the seismic instruments, he suffered a collapse which called a halt to most of his
activities for more than a year. His planning continued and
eventuated in the establishment at Baguio of the seismic
and the ionospheric divisions. The contract for a coelostat
and spectrograph was signed in 1955, so that the division of
solar physics would complete the main categories of research
in the restored Observatory. It was a profound conviction
of Father Deppermann that the instruments which were at
the disposal of Jesuits should be the best.
-·.
In this account much has been said about Father Deppermann as the scientist and little about him as a shepherd of
souls. That is because his principal preoccupation according
to his Jesuit vocation was in his science. In this was his
satisfaction; in this he admirably exemplified the admonition
of Father General:
Let Ours to whom the Lord has given talent for it have very much
at heart this pursuit of the highest self-abnegation, of the greatest
toil and of very little consolation which is scientific study. And let
them not be drawn away from it by the illusion that they can serve
God better by work that seems to be more immediately priestly and
apostolic. The man who'lays the foundation of a building does work
which is not less but more useful than is his who puts the finishing
touches to it. In as much as a good is more divine the more universal it is, scientific work, by which the foundations are laid for
�FATHER DEPPERMANN
133
the immediate apostolate, the future rather than the present good
of souls is provided for, and assistance is given to men more eminent
in learning and influence, is often far superior to other forms of
apostolic labor.1a
To neglect mention of his direct work for souls, however,
would be a misrepresentation of his life. From 1928 on he
was the weekly confessor for the student body of a large
school. Out of this work developed the many religious
vocations which, under God, are attributed to him. As a
director of souls and a guide to vocations he was remarkable
not only for the numbers who applied to the religious life
but more for those who persevered in it. Not every good
person was directed to the religious state. His advice was
blended with unction and solid faith. He carefully and at
length studied his proteges before helping them with their
decisions. His ministrations were not limited to those who
were outwardly pious. A professional body-builder was
among his best friends: a high government official attributed
his return to Catholic practice to Father Deppermann. The
poor and the rich, the unfortunate and the more prosperous,
anyone with a problem, received priestly sympathy and advice
from him. He preferred the risk of being deceived by the
insincere rather than failing to be generous to one who might
be in need. Having suffered greatly from asthma and other
ailments during most of his life he had a special sympathy for
the sick. In all things he was a priest of God.
In his lifetime Father Deppermann had a wide variety of
interests. Even his scientific investigations covered a vast
range of subjects. But apart from the professional approach
to science he had the heart of the amateur for many other
things. Art and collections of masterpieces of painting,
music and poetry were real interests not of a dilettante but
of one who warmly appreciated them. His interest and
knowledge of medicine and medical practice; his study of bees
and of beetles, of dogs and spiders; his analysis of the microscopic elements in the air, all were pursued with the ardor of
an enthusiast.
Despite these many interests which were evident to all who
met him he has been misunderstood by some. His single
13
L.c., p. 9.
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FATHER DEPPERl\IANN
purposed devotion has been viewed as a lack of expansiveness.
If that is the case, there is need for more men of one-track
minds, men who have the cause of Christ at heart; men who
pursue the arduous tasks for the spread of Christ's kingdom.
Such criticism could come only from those who do not appreciate that a truly big man can have limitations and minor
blemishes for the preservation of his humility.
In learned gatherings Charles Deppermann was known as a
savant. Sometimes he was addressed as Doctor Deppermann
but as for himself he was and wanted to be Father Deppermann of the Society of Jesus. His religious life was one
of exactness and always directly under obedience. He did
not hesitate to take the least things to his superiors for their
approval. His devotion to the Mother of God was evident
to all who visited his community. During the Marian Year
he accumulated a vast display of Madonnas; the collection of
albums and Marian books became a hobby with him; his
Marian garden with each flower given its restored name in
honor of the Blessed Mother was his special effort to honor
Mary; his chapel with the picture of Our Lady of the Sacred
Heart over the altar was the fulfillment of a promise to his
Mother ; the spreading of devotion to the Queen, under the
title of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, was a manifestation
of his love and devotion. This priest of God was Mary's
child.
The scientist and priest, Father Deppermann,-· completed
his pilgrimage in this valley of tears on May 8th, 1957. He
died peacefully and calmly waiting for the coming of His
Lord and Master. Conscious and aware right up to the end,
he was assisted by the two priests who were the companions
of his later years in the Observatory. He was laid to rest
at Sacred Heart Novitiate in a tomb next to Father Selga,
his predecessor as the Manila Observatory director.
MOST COMPLETELY CATHOLIC
St. Ignatius by his own character and by the mission he chose is
in a certain sense the most completely Catholic of the saints. The
enemies of Catholicism, those distant in spirit from Rome and-a greater
number-the less fervent among Catholics are too far from him to
understand him fully; that is, to love him.
GIOVANNI PAPINI
I
,
��'
I
FATHER MOORHOUSE I.X. MILLAR
�Father Moorhouse I. X. Millar
R. C. Hartnett, S.J.
Rev. Moorhouse I. X. Millar, S.J., who died at Union Hospital near Fordham University on November 14, 1956, enjoyed
advantages of travel and study in Europe before his entrance
into the Society which were almost unique in the American
Assistancy. 1 Both on account of its own intrinsic interest and
the influence it had on his development as Jesuit priest and
scholar, Father Millar's pre-Jesuit career calls for fuller
recording than is usual in obituary notices.
Family Background
Moorhouse Millar was born on March 7, 1886 in Mobile,
Alabama. His father, Stocks Millar, after graduating from
St. Andrews University in Scotland, his native country, had
emigrated to Wyoming, where his mother, sight unseen, had
purchased a tract of land. Stocks Millar used it as a ranch to
2
1 The writer is deeply indebted to Father Millar's sister Muriel (Mrs.
Louis V. Greer) of Spring Hill, Mobile, Alabama, for a thirteen page
manuscript she provided on her brother's family background and preJesuit life. This remarkable document corrected certain inaccuracies and
filled in many lacunae in the rough draft sent her. For the rest, the
chief sources used are: a) this writer's many conversations with Father
Millar at Fordham, from September, 1941 to February, 1946, while
working for a doctorate in Political Science under his direction; b) notes
taken about Father Millar's life during one such conversation, on
June 4, 1945; c) the schema of his life supplied by the New York Provincial's office; d) his lectures and writings; and e) several friends and
colleagues of Father Millar, who were asked to check this manuscript for
accuracy. His closest Jesuit friend, the late Rev. Francis LeBuffe, S.J.,
had preceded him heavenwards by several years.
2
He took "Ignatius Xavier" as his Christian names when he became
a Catholic in Tours, France, at the age of ten. For many years, however,
he used "F. X." as his initials. Why? Because, as he once told the
writer, friends suggested that in signing book reviews as "M. I. X.
Millar" he was exposing himself to the charge of being mixed up. Many
Jesuits closely associated with Father Millar always referred to him as
'"Mixie," though not usually to his face. He seldom used first names
himself. On occasion he even identified himself by this nickname, so he
obviously did not mind it.
135
�136
FATHER MILLAR
raise horses, mainly for the U. S. Cavalry, and English polo
ponies.
Moorhouse's mother, nee Margaret Richards, was as American as anyone could be. Born in Weathersfield, Vermont and
graduated from Bradford Academy, she was, through her
mother (nee Harriet Jarvis), her maternal grandmother (nee
Ann Bailey Bartlett) and her maternal great-grandmother
(nee Peggy White), a sixth-generation lineal descendant of
Peregrine White, the baby boy born on the Mayflower while
she lay in Cape Cod Bay, November 20, 1620.
Mrs. Millar's maternal grandfather was William Jarvis
(1770-1859). A descendant of Captain Nathaniel Jarvis, who
had emigrated to Boston frdin Wales in 1668, William Jarvis
achieved his niche in American history by his success as a seatrader and his record as U. S. Consul and Charge d'Affaires
at Lisbon from 1802 to 1811. Appointed by President Thomas
Jefferson, he managed, when Napoleon moved into Portugal
in 1808, to buy 3,500 Spanish Merino sheep for export to the
United States. This breed had been jealously guarded by the
Spanish Government against exporters. Jefferson highly commended Mr. Jarvis for his resourcefulness. 3
Stocks Millar mef Margaret Richards when the latter
visited her two brothers (DeForest and Bartlett), who had
set up as ranchers in the West and become great friends of
Stocks Millar. Only after a good deal of formal correspondence between the young couple out West and the Rfchards and
Millars in the East and in Scotland were they allowed to announce their formal engagement and a year later, in 1884, to
be married-at Jarvis Richards' Congregationalist Church in
Spearfish, a little town nestled in the Black Hills of South
Dakota. Jarvis' father, Moorhouse's maternal grandfather,
had also been a Congregationalist minister.
The reason that Moorhouse was not born on his parents'
3 See The Dictionary of American Biography, IX (1929) 624-5, s.v.
Father Millar used to mention that he was also a descendant of Dr.
Josiah Bartlett, a signer of the Declaration of Independence (see DAB,
II, 9-11). Exactly from whom Ann Bailey Bartlett, Consul Jarvis' wife,
was directly descended this writer has not learned. If from Josiah, then
Father Millar had the distinction of being a direct descendant of both a
signer of the Declaration and of the Mayflower Compact of November 11,
1620-through William White, Peregrine's father.
�FATHER MILLAR
137
ranch, "Moorcroft," in Wyoming, was that his Grandmother
Richards had agreed to accompany her son Jarvis, the Congregationalist minister, to Heidelberg, where he would pursue
his theological studies. She refused to go pending her young
daughter's first childbirth, however, until Stocks Millar and
his wife agreed to spend the winter of 1885-1886 in Mobile,
Alabama, where the expectant mother could be under the care
of a Dr. Crampton, an outstanding physician Mrs. Richards
had met on her visits to Alabama. When, many decades later,
Father Millar was allowed to spend seven summers between
1948 and 1955 (1949 omitted) at Spring Hill College, part of
his joy derived from visiting his birthplace. (The rest of it
came from teaching the Scholastics of New Orleans Province
philosophate and relaxing with his sister, Mrs. Greer, her
daughter, Mrs. Cameron, and her husband, and their three
daughters.)
The other Millar children were Margaret, born in Wisconsin in 1887, who died at the age of four; Muriel (Mrs. Greer),
born in 1889 at "Moorcroft" in Wyoming, and Ronald, born in
1890, who died in St. Ignatius Parish, Chicago, in 1946.4
Mr. Millar was stricken with influenza at "Moorcroft"
and succumbed to its virulence in March, 1890. Bartlett
Richards had arrived just in time, according to Mrs. Greer,
"to assure his young brother-in-law and dearest friend that
he would take under his care his young wife and three children
and the baby yet unborn. This pledge Bartlett Richards
kept." 5
Soon after the death of Stocks Millar, Mrs. J. DeForest
Richards, Moorhouse's grandmother, after returning from
Europe, decided to take residence in Chadron, Nebraska, no
doubt to be closer to her two rancher sons. The third son,
Jarvis, having given up the ministry as a result of his un4
The present writer spent a very interesting evening with Ronald one
summer during the last war. He was a person of very high intellectual
calibre, with a definite and traditional educational philosophy. He was
at the time equivalently Editor of Compton's Encyclopedia. .
~ Though Mrs. Greer's manuscript is vague on the subject of finances,
and even recounts that not long after the death of her spouse, Moorhouse's widowed mother felt compelled to embark upon an ill-fated
kindergarten project in Denver, Mr. Richards must have amply supplemented whatever funds Stocks Millar's estate had left his family.
�138
FATHER MILLAR
settling studies at Heidelberg, went into business with his
brother Bartlett at Chadron. Mrs. Richards had purchased
a house large enough for herself, her two bachelor sonsBartlett and J arvis 6-and the Millars. So Bartlett brought
the young widow, her three children, servants, various pets
(including Moorhouse's "small pony and very large dog") and
transportable personal effects to Chadron, where Stocks
Millar's body was also brought for burial.
Tragedy followed upon the heels of tragedy for the young
widow. Shortly after Ronald was born, in August, 1890, baby
Margaret's health became very delicate. Mrs. Millar decided
to take her, along with Mq_orhouse, to Hot Springs, South
Dakota to build up the little girl's strength. En route Moorhouse contracted scarlet fever. As a precaution, Margaret
was sent back to Chadron, where she, too, developed symptoms
of the deadly disease and, in fact, soon died in her grandmother's home. Moorhouse and his mother had to stay quite
some time at Hot Springs before he recovered sufficiently to
be brought home. Even then a muscular weakness seemed
to have partially paralyzed his legs. 1\Irs. Millar, on the advice
of physicians, took the boy to San Diego, California, where she
had to force him to walk and later to cycle to restore the full
use of his legs.
"After their return to the family in Chadron," writes Mrs.
Greer, "Moorhouse rode his pony, took part in coyote and
rabbit hunts and developed into a strong and heaithy lad."
Mrs. Richards engaged a Swiss governess to teach the children
French. Mrs. Millar taught Moorhouse mathematics and
grammar and read aloud to all the children to help stimulate
their minds.
Schooling in France and Germany (1894-1901)
It was in the Spring of 1894, according to Mrs. Greer, that
Mrs. Millar took her trio to Europe to visit Grandmother
Millar and the Scotch relatives at Kedlock, the Millar homestead, near Cupar, in Fifeshire. The Scotch Millars seemed
to have been firm believers in the adage that "idleness is the
6 The oldest son, J. DeForest, Jr., had settled with his wife and two
children at Douglas, Wyoming. Mrs. Greer writes: "He was later elected
Governor of Wyoming, served two terms, died in office." He was, of
course, Moorhouse's uncle.
�FATHER MILLAR
139
devil's workshop" and promptly taught their little American
relatives to keep busy all the time, whether in picnicking,
romping on the moors or in useful occupations. "The Scotch
relatives seemed to live out of doors . . . Moorhouse, eight
years old, was taught to make fish nets with a sort of shuttle."
In the Fall of 1894, Mrs. Millar took her children directly
to Tours, France, where before long she installed them in "a
charming little house with a lovely garden." The choice of
Tours had been made on the advice of Bartlett Richards,
Moorhouse's uncle, who, though not a Catholic, had advised
his sister to send the boys to a Jesuit college. The Jesuits
of the College de Saint-Gregoire in Tours, in turn, advised
her to send Muriel to the convent of Les Dames de SainteUrsule. Ronald was only four years old at the time, but the
Jesuits at Saint-Gregoire found him possessed of a remarkable
memory and able to learn French and even Latin without any
notable effort.
Ronald's infancy proved to be the loom on which Divine
Providence wove its design for the Millar family, above all
Moorhouse. For the youngster was full of energy and mischief. His truancy occasioned constant visits by Pere Alexandre Carre, S.J., prefect of discipline of the College, to Mrs.
Millar. She had long been looking for a firm doctrinal foundation for her religious faith. Disillusioned by the concluding
sermon of a well-known Episcopalian minister whose series
she had attended in New York before embarking for Scotland,
she found in Pere Carre the answer to her search.
Moorhouse's French Jesuit schooling, let us notice, contributed notably to his physical, as well as to his intellectual,
social and religious development. For both he and Ronald
received lessons in fencing, to which his sister attributed the
erect posture which always characterized his mien.
The Millars spent the summer of 1896 in Berlin, again at
Uncle Bartlett's suggestion. Moorhouse was old enough to
be taken on cruises in his uncle's yacht up and down the Elbe,
as far as Hamburg. Father Millar later recalled the aversion
for German militarism he developed as a boy of ten when,
seated in the box of the U. S. Ambassador behind Kaiser
Wilhelm II and Kaiserin Augusta Victoria, he watched a review of the German Imperial Troops near Potsdam. He felt
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FATHER MILLAR
a revulsion at the vehement cheering by 100,000 Germans of
perhaps as many soldiers as the United States was soon to
field in the Spanish-American War.
The same summer Mrs. Millar revealed to her brother
Bartlett her intention of becoming a Catholic. Upon his return to the United States, he undertook the mission of preparing Mrs. Richards and her family for this somewhat unpleasant turn of events. Distasteful as it was, Mrs. Richards
never let slip a word of criticism.
The actual conversion took place in the Fall of 1896, through
the good offices of Pere Carre. Moorhouse was thus ten years
of age when the Millars wer.e received into the Church at the
Convent of the Cenacle in Tours. By this time Mrs. Millar
had taken an apartment with Les Augustines, an order of
nuns who operated an exclusive pension, or family hotel. She
seems to have been constitutionally incapable of doing things
by halves.
For the winter of 1897-1898, with the approval of Moorhouse's prefect of studies at Saint-Gregoire, Mrs. Millar took
him to Paris with the two-fold purpose of spending a few
months in the center- of French culture and, oddly enough,
learning his native tongue from his mother. For Moorhouse
had somehow fallen in arrears in English spelling, grammar
and speech. His mother prepared him for the examinations
in English he took upon his return to Tours.
_ ·•
The next summer (1898) the Millars spent on the coast of
Brittany, at Saint-Briac. They visited Mont-Saint-Michel
and became well-acquainted with the coasts of Brittany and
Normandy.
The following summer (1899) Mrs. Millar decided to take
her little family to Germany-first to Hanover and then to
Hildesheim, which had fewer foreigners and proved a better
inducement to learn German. She enrolled the boys in a German gymnasium, where a priest regularly instructed the
Catholic students, and Muriel in a Catholic school taught by
lay teachers. The family summered the next year in the Hartz
Mountains and Mrs. Millar took Moorhouse to Dresden and
Oberammergau.
After two years of German schooling for her children, Mrs.
Millar, in 1901, decided to bring their European sojourn to
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a close, but not until she had taken them back to Tours so the
three children could visit the chateaux country of the Loire
and Moorhouse, as the oldest, the cathedral of Chartres.
It would have been a remarkable achievement for a mature
father to have arranged so wisely for the European schooling
and travel of his children. For a young widow to have accomplished all this can only mean that Mrs. Millar was a
woman of unusual qualities. It is easy to see where Father
Millar learned his high ideals and his singleness of purpose in
pursuing them. The most beautiful thing about the story of
Moorhouse's European stay, of course, was that Our Lord put
the copestone on it by bringing the entire family into the
Church.
The trophies the future Jesuit scholar brought with him
from his seven years abroad were a healthy, disciplined
physique, an excellent command of French and a fairly good
knowledge of German, which he was later to improve, the
precision and alertness of a French-trained mind, the social
experience of having lived for five years in France, two in
Germany and having summered in Scotland and Ireland, and,
above all the Catholic Faith.
The Millars returned to the United States by way of England and Ireland. With the three children of Moorhouse's
uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. William Davies, who lived at
Sligo, County Sligo, in Ireland, the Millar children went swimming every day in the coldest water they had ever experienced,
off the rocky cliffs of Sligo. "None of the Millar family,"
writes Mrs. Greer, "ever forgot the beauty of Ireland. Nowhere in the world is the grass so green, nor a truer hospitality." It was the late summer of 1901 when they headed
from Southampton for home.
Loyola Prep and Cowboy Summers (1901-1903)
Immediately upon her return Mrs. Millar gave proof of her
staunch Catholicism. Since His Eminence, James Cardinal
Gibbons, was the leading prelate of the Catholic Church in
America and an untiring advocate of Catholic schools, she
regarded Baltimore as the Catholic religious capital of the
United States. So after visiting Grandmother Richards, who
had come to New York to meet her daughter and grandchildren, and after seeing other relatives in the vicinity, Mrs.
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Millar took her little brood to Baltimore. She rented a house
on Bolton Street and enrolled Moorhouse, then fifteen, and
Ronald, then only eleven, at Loyola High School and Muriel,
just a year Moorhouse's junior, at the Visitation Academy.
"Mrs. Millar and her children," recalls Mrs. Greer, "were
fortunate enough to become friends of Cardinal Gibbons. One
could never forget the quality of his voice and diction, nor the
charm of his gentle courtesy. We went frequently to call
upon him. When Governor Richards of Wyoming came to
visit Mrs. Millar and Mrs. J. DeForest Richards Sr. [his sister
and mother] in Baltimore, Cardinal Gibbons came out to call
upon Governor Richards arid, of course, Governor Richards
called upon the Cardinal before leaving Baltimore."
The summers of 1902 and 1903 Moorhouse spent on the
Richards and Comstock ranch in Nebraska, called "The
Spade." This writer must confess that he was ·always amused
by Father "Mixie's" devotion to westerns, in the belief that
his relish in identifying himself with cowboys was purely
vicarious. After all, he was only eight years old when he left
the ranch country for Europe.
Mrs. Greer, however, has fortunately dispelled this illusion.
"The Spade," she attests, was at that time one of the largest
cattle ranches in the country. Its foreman, Jeff DeFrance,
was a disciplinarian to the point of harshness, tolerating nothing but skilled hands in his outfit. He eliminated the inefficient applicant by assigning to him the meanest ·cow pony
to break in and the hardest ranch work to do. Moorhouse, she
writes, passed muster because he was "born to the saddle" and
had, just for the fun of it, practised the art of roping from
childhood. Moreover, his training in fencing at Tours and in
German gymnastics at Hildesheim had strengthened his young,
wiry frame. According to his sister, "he was not afraid of
hard work, whether it was pitching tents, roping calves and
throwing them for branding, or working with the roundup, or
helping the camp cook build his fires." This information shows
that Father Millar's youthful experiences as a cowboy were
as real as could be.
This testimony stands in striking contrast with the impression Father Millar's colleagues had of his impracticality.
What probably happened was that his total and uninterrupted
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143
absorption in intellectual pursuits over a long span of years
caused his interest in doing things with his hands to atrophy.
It can also be said that in getting done the things he considered
most worth while doing, such as laying hold of books or
magazines before most other people had even heard of their
being published, he was something of a genius.
The story of how Moorhouse decided to become a Jesuit is
quite interesting. His uncle, Bartlett Richards, who had been
like a father to the Millar children (in keeping with his deathbed promise to his brother-in-law), had begun in 1902 sounding out young Moorhouse about his career. The young lad
revealed that he was attracted to a life at sea. In the summer
of 1903, accordingly, Uncle Bartlett broke the glad news to
his nephew on Spade Ranch that Governor Warren of
Wyoming, Governor J. DeForest Richard's successor, had
awarded him an appointment to Annapolis.
During his last year at Loyola High School, however, Moorhouse had visited Calvert Street on a holiday and strolled
around the yard with a Scholastic, to whom he revealed his
plans for a seafaring life. The Scholastic launched into an
inspiring account of how Ignatius of Loyola, after having his
heart set on a military career in the service of Ferdinand
and Isabella, began to realize, while recovering from a wound
suffered in battle, how much more noble it would be to dedicate
his life to waging the battle of Christ against sin and ignorance and error.
Young Moorhouse, apparently seeing no point in waiting,
decided to become a Jesuit. Hence the next summer in Nebraska he met his Uncle Bartlett's proud announcement of
an appointment to Annapolis with the news of his decision to
enter the Society of Jesus. It was a hard blow for a nonCatholic uncle, who had lavished every care a father could
have bestowed upon Moorhouse, to bear. He even offered
him a trip around the world to think it over. But Moorhouse
had made up his mind, and his relatives accepted his decision.
His widowed mother was losing her eldest son, but she took
the loss bravely.
En route to St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, New
York, after visiting his relatives in the West, the young man
again called on Cardinal Gibbons, who gave him his blessing
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FATHER MILLAR
with the remark: "If I had known, my boy, I would have
tempted you to become one of my priests."
When the doors of St. Andrew closed behind him, on September 6, 1903, Grandmother Richards, who had never uttered
a word of criticism, promptly rewrote her will. It reduced
Moorhouse's share to one dollar and provided that, should
either Muriel or Ronald take it upon themselves to go and do
likewise, they too would inherit the same amount.
Years of Jesuit Formation
The widely-traveled young Moorhouse left the world behind
him on September 6, 1903 when he entered the Jesuit novitiate
of St. Andrew-on-Hudson aj;'Poughkeepsie. Father John H.
O'Rourke was Master of Novices but was succeeded in April
1904 by Father George A. Pettit.
After the conventional two years of probation, he pronounced his first vows on September 8, 1905. For some reason, perhaps because of his somewhat broken-up schooling
abroad, he was given three instead of two years to study
Latin, Greek and English Literatures in the Juniorate before
proceeding to Woodstock for Philosophy. Philosophy completed, in 1911 he took the plunge into what must have proved,
for a young man with so little experience of American schools,
the churning waters of his regency.
This began at Holy Cross, where he taught Greek, German
and mathematics. This experimentum lasted one year, 19111912, after which Mr. Millar found himself s\vitched to
Canisius College in Buffalo, a change he never had reason to
regret.
For at Canisius, along with two more years teaching German, which could hardly have done him any harm, he was
assigned to teach history, which became the springboard of
his scholarly career. He followed in the footsteps of Father
Guggenberger, author of the imposing History of the Christian Era, and more immediately, Father Schweitzer, Father
Guggenberger's successor in history at Canisius. These two
learned German Jesuits had established a tradition of genuine
historical scholarship in Buffalo. As a bonus, the young
Scholastic, himself equipped with great facility in French and
a sufficient ability in German, found to hand a very respectable
college library, amply supplied with German and other Euro-
(
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pean historical works. In later life Father Millar recalled
that he had been the first Scholastic ever assigned to Canisius
College in its then new location at Main and Jefferson Streets.
In his second year there, however, Mr. Millar's health broke
down. As a result he was given, for those days, a light teaching load of eleven hours a week. To this was added the chore
of librarian, with permission to acquire whatever books might
be needed. He made a virtue of his weakened health by devoting himself to the reading of history and even working
out a philosophy of history, based on Newman's Grammar of
Assent as his directive idea.
What he undoubtedly meant in recalling this development
was that he studied history to diagnose mankind's groping
efforts to discover truth, especially in the practical order, and
to pursue the good, through human experience. One of his
germinal ideas was that "the dynamic of human history is
man's appetite for the good." The four years of the young
scholar's teaching experience at Canisius College became,
through the accident of poor health and his own intellectual
resourcefulness, the equivalent of a firm grounding in the
graduate study of Western history. It was on this foundation, for which his early schooling had groomed him by putting
him in possession of the language-tools, that he later built
the superstructure of his scholarship, first in constitutionalism, and then, through thirty-three years of study, teaching
and writing, in political philosophy.
This brings us to his four years of theology, also at Woodstock, in the years 1916-1920. He had already begun to do
a little writing in his final year of regency. America published
two articles by him in early 1916: "Non-Catholic historians
and the Middle Ages" [14 (Jan. 16, 1916) 329-330] and "The
medieval achievement" [14 (April 1, 1916) 23-28]. He published four similar articles in 1917, five in 1918 and, two in
1919, a total of eleven during his four years of theology.
Five of them appeared in The Catholic World, and hence were
of greater length. The rest appeared in America. He was
ordained at Georgetown University on June 28, 1919, by his
old friend James Cardinal Gibbons.
The present writer recalls Father Millar's saying that when
he had packed up and was leaving Woodstock College by the
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FATHER MILLAR
long road leading to the gate, he looked back upon the stately
edifice and remarked to himself: "Well, I have acquired a
framework of Christian learning. Now I must fill it in." At
a juncture when many Jesuits are tempted to feel that they
have had ·about enough of the life of learning, Father Millar
took the resolution to use what he had learned as no more
than a groundwork upon which he would have to erect his
own structure of knowledge in his chosen field. To his dying
day, as a result, he was searching for the fuller truth, ever
seeing much more when he reread classics in political thought,
such as John Locke's Second Treatise On Civil Government,
for example, than when h~ had read them before. His capacity for continual intelle·ctual growth and his appetite for
it were among his most unusual qualities.
After leaving Woodstock, instead of being sent directly to
tertianship, he was assigned to Fordham College to teach
history for one year, 1920-1921. From all accounts, including
his own, teaching undergraduates was not his cup of tea.
Tertianship, which he made at St. Andrew under Father
Anthony Maas, may indeed have had its compensations after
this year at Fordham.
His Three Essays in The State and the Church (1922)
This writer cannot recall for sure the exact circumstances
under which Father Millar composed his three comprehensive
and pioneering historical essays for the volume in· which he
cooperated with the late Msgr. John A. Ryan, The State and
the Church (New York: Macmillan, 1922). If memory serves,
he had been assigned to Fordham in 1920-21 mainly for the
purpose of writing those essays, but did not get them done in
the time allotted and wrote them at Fordham, under considerable pressure, the summer after his tertianship, that of 1922.
The scope of the young Jesuit scholar's learning at the age
of thirty-four, as attested by these three essays, as well as the
power of his historical analysis in the field of political principle and constitutionalism, is simply amazing. How much
of these he had acquired before 1920 and how much he acquired within the next two years under the pressure of this
formidable writing assignment one cannot say/ The mass of
7
It is hardly likely that he would have made the remark he did when
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147
learning he possessed and the power he showed of marshaling
it into a piece of well-substantiated historical argumentation
far surpassed in maturity even the best of doctoral dissertations. In these essays a finished young Jesuit scholar made
his first notable appearance upon the stage of American
Catholic intellectual life.
Perhaps the best way to give some idea of the sweep of these
essays in a short space is to list the seventy-seven authors
Father Millar cited or quoted, often at considerable length and
usually with very exact references to their own writings, in
the forty-five pages of his first essay, entitled "The History
and Development of the Democratic Theory of Government in
the Christian Tradition." 8
In the order of their occurrence but classified into categories, Father Millar cited the following Roman Writers:
Cicero, Ulpian, Gaius; Early Christian Writers: St. Augustine
(pluries), St. Paul, St. Ambrose, St. John Chrysostom, Lactantius; Medieval Writers: Ratherius of Verona, Dante, the
Forum Judicum of the Spanish Visigoths, John of Salisbury,
the Fragmentum Pragense, Ivo of Chartres, St. Thomas
(pluries), Frederick Barbarossa, and the author of The
Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman; French Writers:
Guizot, Michael de L'Hospital, Fenelon, Julien Havet's
Melanges, Philippe de Comines, Jean Bodin, Philippe Pot,
Charles Jourdain, G. Picot, Frizon's Vie du Cardinal Bellarmin, Victor de Chalembert and Paul Janet; English and Scotch
Writers: Lord Acton, John Lingard, Sir Thomas Eliot,
Richard Hooker, Shakespeare, Edmund Burke (pluries and at
length), Viscount Bryce, S. H. Butcher, A. F. Pollard, Claude
-
l eaving Woodstock-that he had acquired merely the framework of the
system of thought he hoped to develop, and would still have to fill it inif he had already amassed as much learning as these essays indicate he
had when he composed them. Moreover, would the works he cited, including out-of-the-way reviews, have been available there? The likelihood
is that he did an immense amount of reading and research at Fordham
from June, 1920 to September, 1921 and during the summer of 1922.
8
Ibid., pp. 99-144. When this volume was re-published by Macmillan
in 1940 as a textbook under the title of Catholic Principles of Politics, it
was decided to replace Father Millar's essays with simpler material by
Rev. Francis Boland, C.S.C., then Chairman of the Department of
Political Science, the University of Notre Dame. The first edition with
the Millar essays has therefore, unfortunately, long been out of print.
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FATHER MILLAR
E. H. Williamson, A. J. Carlyle, Pollock and Maitland, William
Lecky, James I, G. P. Gooch, Sir Edward Coke, John Millar,
Alexander Brown, John Selden, Cudworth, John Milton, Alexander Pope, John Dryden, Sir Thomas Browne, Sir Robert
Filmer, Algernon Sidney, John Locke, Sir James MacKintosh,
Josiah Tucker and James Stuart Mill; Modern European Writers: Gierke, Cardinal Bellarmine, Francis Suarez, Vattel and
Grotius; American Writers: John Quincy Adams, Francis
Lieber, George Washington, W. A. Dunning, C. H. Mcilwain,
James Wilson, John Winthrop and James Madison.
Notice that Father Millar cited only one German scholar,
Gierke's Political Theorie""s· of the Middle Ages, and that in
Maitland's English translation. The reason for this is perhaps twofold. First, although he told the present writer
that when he taught at Canisius as a Scholastic he still read
German fluently, he added that he had later become alienated
from German thought and had let his knowledge of the language rust. Secondly, his center of interest was his own
country as the legatee of "The History and Development of the
Democratic Theory ·of Government in Christian Tradition,"
and his whole thesis was that America had inherited its
Christian political principles by way of the Old Whig tradition
in Great Britain. Since the Continent, in his view, had rejected that Christian tradition from the time o:f the Renaissance and the Reformation, the modern European authors he
drew on, apart from the later scholastics, were nearly all
French writers, chiefly historians who provided grist for his
mill.
What, precisely, was Father Millar's thesis in these groundbreaking essays? First let us state clearly what it was not.
He was not in the main trying to prove that the political
principles of the Founding Fathers of this nation had been
derived immediately and directly from Bellarmine and Suarez.
This question was of subsidiary interest to the emerging
young scholar. The thesis he was attempting to establish, on
historical grounds, and the reasons why he set about disentangling it from the overgrowth of opposing theories, can
best be stated in his own terms, taken from his second essay
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149
in The State and the Church, entitled "Modern 'Practical
Liberty' and Common Sense" : 9
. . . More recently, however, public opinion has been gradually
awakening to the fact that the American Constitution was in
reality "a reaffirmation of principles already American by
hereditary usage or long-established custom." 10
. . . the all important question of the principles upon which it
[the Constitution] was formed has been sadly misinterpreted
in the past, and at present has come to be almost wholly overlooked.11
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Where, then, should we look for the true sources of the
political principles of the Founding Fathers? After showing
how closely the political principles of such Founders as James
Wilson and James Madison paralleled those of Scottish "Common Sense" philosophers, Father Millar, after admitting the
difficulty of tracing their direct influence on Alexander Hamilton, wrote:
But even if the facts adduced proved nothing with regard to
Hamilton's acquaintance with Scottish common sense philosophy, there was another source of fairly consistent thought,
knowledge of which he certainly did share with Madison and
Wilson, and which by itself will fully explain the evident fact
that in all his [Hamilton's] wide and varied reading of European Authorities on government, law and political science, he
shows a discernment which cannot be accounted for otherwise
than by his being in possession of a definite philosophy of his
own. This source of thought was no other than the traditionally
Whig theory of government, which, as we have seen in the
previous chapter, was formulated mainly on the basis of scholastic principles and set forth, as occasion demanded, against
adverse theories and erroneous views in order that the Medieval
tradition of liberty embodied in English law and constitutional
forms might be preserved and developed.1 2
The reader cannot begin to grasp what Father Millar was
driving at unless he carefully ponders those two rather overladen sentences. He was not trying to direct the attention of
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Ibid., pp. 145-165. The "Common Sense" in the title refers to the
Scottish "Common Sense" school of philosophy. The "Modern 'Practical
Liberty'!' refers to the attempt to explain the political principles of the
Founding Fathers on purely pragmatic or utilitarian grounds.
10 Ibid., p. 149, quoting C. E. Stevens, Sources of the Constitution of
the United States, p. 53.
11 Ibid., p. 151.
12
Ibid., pp. 160-161.
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FATHER MILLAR
his readers to any one literary source of the political principles
incarnated in the Declaration of Independence and the Federal
Constitution.
His contention was that both grew out of a living tradition,
developed the way Newman in his Essay on the Development of
Christian Doctrine explains the evolution of Catholic doctrine
from the implicit to the explicit, "as occasion demanded." It
is no accident that Father Millar's first essay of these three in
The State and the Church opens with a very long footnote
quoting verbatim St. Vincent of Lerins' famous passage in his
Commonitorium in which that Father of the Church showed
how Catholic doctrine could grow, without any intrinsic
change in it. 13 This very' same passage in Vincent was the
starting point of Newmari;s theory.
Statesmen with as much practical experience as the Founding Fathers-in the colonies before 1776 and in both their
respective State Governments and in the Continental Congress from 1776 to 1787-and with as much legal, constitutional and historical learning as they possessed do not have
to resort to their libraries to discover the political principles
upon which they mean to proceed in forming a new government. Nobody today, for example, tries to discover a purely
literary source for -the political principles embodied in the
Charter of the United Nations. Such instruments of government are hammered out by practitioners in the art of government bringing into play and adapting, "as the .occasion demands," the political principles connatural to -tfiem in the
political tradition in which they are reared.
Father Millar was, of course, intensely interested in the
closely connected question of whence the Old Whigs derived
their political principles. How did such Christian principles
as Father Millar focused on ever get into the stream of the
living Whig tradition? One has only to mention Henry of
Bracton, Sir John Fortescue and Richard Hooker to give the
beginning of an answer, for all three were in the main stream
of the Christian medieval tradition. 14 It is, however, with
13 Ibid., p. 99, emphasis added.
Father Millar himself noted that he
was applying to the evolution of natural-law political principles the
principle of legitimate and necessary development which St. Vincent
applied to matters of Faith.
14 Bracton in his De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliae preceded St.
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later writers, more closely connected with the thought of the
Founding Fathers, that Father Millar was engaged.
The question usually boils down to the alleged influence of
Bellarmine and Suarez on the Declaration of Independence
and the Constitution. Father Millar, let us remind ourselves,
regarded this as a subsidiary question, even though he made
it the subject of several later articlesY His views on American indebtedness to the two great Jesuit political philosophers
can be briefly stated.
Bellarmine's political principles, of course, became a controversial issue in England because of his passage at arms
with James I. Even before that Hooker had taken notice of
Bellarmine's treatise De Laicis sive Saecularibus, part of his
De Controversiis. When James I tried to refute Bellarmine's
doctrine of the sovereignty of the people, the Cardinal defended his doctrine in his Apologia. 16 Regardless of how
widely Bellarmine's works were known and read, the fact remains that in his De Summo Pontifice he seems to have been
the first writer to show how, on the principle of popular sovereignty, the otherwise ineluctable question of the division of
sovereignty could be managed. 11 As for Suarez, his elaboration of the doctrine of consent of the governed as the moral
basis of political authority in his Defensio Fidei Catholicae
and his De Legibus seems to have been the most complete of
any political philosopher.18 There is a good deal of evidence
showing that such Jesuit writers were, in fact, rather well
known. For example, in John Selden's Table Talk, which
deals with the question of popular sovereignty, Father Millar
quotes this passage :
-
Most men's learning is but History dully taken up. If I quote
Thomas Aquinas for some tenet, and believe it, because the
Schoolmen say so, that is but History. Few men make themselves masters of the things they say or write. The Jesuits and
the Lawyers of France, and the Low Countrymen, have engrossed all learning. The rest of the world make nothing but
Homilies.19
T homas; Fortescue and Hooker, of course, explicitly rely on him.
15 See note 26, infra.
16
The State and the Church, pp. 113-118.
17
Ibid., pp. 118, 120.
18
Ibid., p. 118.
t 9 Ibid., p. 130.
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FATHER MILLAR
If an Englishman who has himself been labeled "the first
Whig" knew enough about Jesuit writers to make this observation, the relative paucity of direct references to such
authors as Bellarmine and Suarez, when quoting them was
about as popular as quoting Mao Tse-tung in defense of one's
position would be in America today, seems like inadequate
ground for denying that their writings were read in England. 20
When we come to America, the evidence of their direct
influence is, if anything, even more circumstantial. Father
Millar, for example, called attention to the observation of
Gaillard Hunt, then Librarian of Congress, that the passage
in Filmer's Patriarcha summarizing Bellarmine's doctrine of
popular sovereignty for tlro. purpose of refuting it was a more
complete epitome of the consent-doctrine than could be found
in any other book in Jefferson's library. 21 Because of the
parallelism between the political principles of Bellarmine and
Suarez and those of James Wilson, James Madison, Alexander
Hamilton and, at least in the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson,
because, too, of there being a copy of Bellarmine's works in the
Princeton College Library, where Madison spent a year reading theology, and because Madison explicitly included Bellarmine among the writers whose works Jefferson should see that
his new University of Virginia acquired for its library, Father
Millar makes plain his belief that our Founding Fathers had
direct contact with the writings of Bellarmine, .almost certainly, and Suarez, very probably. 22
•
It is a pity that he laid as much stress as he did on this
ancillary phase of his main thesis. It tended to distract those
Catholics (not a few), who seem to have been more interested
in the apologetic value of Father Millar's writings than in
20 Other English writers explicitly referred to Bellarmine and Suarez,
of course, e.g., Algernon Sidney in his Discourses Concerning Government has seven references to Bellarmine and two to Suarez (ibid., p.
135). Sidney was finding fault with Sir Robert Filmer, who in his
Patriarcha had accurately summarized Bellarmine and taken issue with
him on popular sovereignty. He said he had not examined all Bellarmine's works, as if they were readily available if he had had a mind to.
Sir Thomas Browne also refers to Suarez and Bellarmine in his Religio
Medici (ibid., p. 133).
21 Ibid., pp. 175-177.
22 Ibid., pp. 161-165.
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their substance. Certainly in later life he said privately that
he had never meant to give the impression that any direct
and immediate influence of Bellarmine and Suarez upon the
Founding Fathers was historically provable. A re-reading of
his three essays in The State and the Church, however, shows
at once why readers gained the impression they did, despite
the much greater importance he clearly attached to his main
thesis, namely, that the political philosophy of the Founding
Fathers had come down to them from the mainstream of the
Christian tradition through the agency of the Scottish Common Sense School of Philosophy and especially through that of
the Old Whigs in E.ngland, of whom Burke was the culmination.23
The reason for stressing the high calibre and originality of
these three essays of Fr. Millar in The Church and the State
is that, in this writer's opinion, they set the high water mark
of his lifetime as a scholar. It is very doubtful that in the
thirty-four ensuing years he ever equaled his first splash in
1922.
Strangely enough, the most comprehensive expression of
Father Millar's historico-political philosophy appeared over
two decades later in a booklet, Catholic Traditions in American Democracy, formally authored by two college students in
secular institutions in New York, Courtland Smith, Jr. and
Virginia Ryan, published in 1945 by the New York Province
Federation of Newman Clubs, under the inspiration of then
Rt. Rev. Msgr. William A. Scully, now Bishop of Albany. Not
only do the young authors acknowledge their indebtedness to
Father Millar, but the contents are, so to speak, pure "Millar."
Anyone studying the evolution of his political thought would
have to regard this booklet as its latest and best expression.
The present writer can attest that Father Millar regarded
Catholic Traditions in American Democracy as equivalently
composed by himself, since he supplied all the materials.
His next move is interesting. According to his own telling,
23 Father Millar regarded Alexander Hamilton as comparable to Burke
in political wisdom. He described Hamilton as "one who' as a political
thinker was second only to Burke, if not his peer . . ." (ibid., p. 163).
Lord Acton, in a book which Father Millar laid hold of many years later,
shared this view of Hamilton's genius (see As Lord Acton Says, ed.
Lalley, Newport, R. 1.: Remington Ward, 1942, p. 210).
�154
FATHER MILLAR
he was assigned to Georgetown University after tertianship
because Superiors expected him to make his mark in diplomatic circles at the nation's Capital. His background would
seem to have fitted him for such a role. His temperament,
however, was allergic to what he regarded as rather meaningless social functions. Hence he reacted negatively to his assignment to Georgetown.
Providence intervened in his favor. Father John X. Pyne,
then Regent of Fordham Law School, impressed by Father
Millar's writings on constitutionalism, asked him whether he
would like to teach constitutional law at the Fordham School
of Law. Father Millar did not feel up to such an assignment.
Instead of declining, howev.er, he replied that he was very
much interested-not really in teaching constitutional law
(it may be added), but in returning to Fordham, where he
felt he could pursue his studies with less distraction. To get
enough constitutional law to teach it, he immediately enrolled
in the course at Georgetown's School of Law. Father Millar
also pronounced his last vows while at Georgetown, on February 2, 1923.
Return to Fordham: Graduate Courses, 1924-1929
The arrangement by which he was to return to Fordham to
teach Constitutional Law was carried into effect in the summer of 1923. This experience, which lasted through four
years, put the finishing touches on the young Jesuit's preparation for what was later to become his specialty, ihe field of
political philosophy. He seems previously to have acquired
a considerable knowledge of British Constitutional History
as a field of special concentration in his study of history, and
some acquaintance with Roman Law. What he still needed
was firsthand knowledge of the leading cases in American
Constitutional History. That he should have acquired this
knowledge through teaching Constitutional Law in a law
school was particularly fortunate. He himself admitted that
the one thing he was not sure of when he began teaching
constitutional cases was the precise points of law involved in
each case. These he learned by quizzing his law students, who
were trained in their other courses to pinpoint points of law.
One reason why Father Millar loved teaching, indeed, was
precisely this openmindedness and intellectual curiosity which
�FATHER MILLAR
155
made classroom instruction, for him, a two-way learning
process.
Fordham was just beginning to set up its graduate program
about the time Father Millar returned there in 1923. He
began teaching various courses at the graduate level in 1924,
within the existing departments of history, philosophy and
sociology. According to Professor William R. Frasca, who
was a student of Father Millar's in the Woolworth Building,
later joined his staff and finally succeeded him as Chairman,
"it was during this period that he gave some of his best
courses; for example, in 1924 he taught 'Scholastic Philosophy
of State and Government' and also 'History and Philosophy of
the American Constitution'." The latter course he continued
to teach until the end; the former he dropped when the
Graduate School moved to Rose Hill in 1938.
During this period, 1924-1929, before his own department
was established, Father Millar's close associates were Father
Francis P. LeBuffe, S.J. Father John Murphy, S.J., and Dr.
Morris Deshel. Father LeBuffe, indeed, as this writer knows
from close association with Father Millar, was perhaps his
dearest friend. Oddly enough, however, in later years, although the two Jesuits were both in New York City, living
in different houses, they practically never saw each other,
without any diminution of their fraternal affection.
Father Millar used to speak of a course he offered on the
history of liberty. This was, apparently, a very comprehensive course, beginning as far back as available historical
records allowed. It was a course which Father Millar was
peculiarly qualified to put together, for he had focused his
attention, ever since his immersion in Western history at
Canisius, on the role of Christianity and the Catholic Church
as the protagonist of human liberty. He was enough of a
convert to react strongly against the common assumption of
historians that the flame of human liberty had been ignited
by the Protestant Reformers. It must have been at this time,
too, that he rounded out his reading in the Church Fathers,
seeking in them the fairly easily found passages in which they
dealt with man's social nature and the areas of liberty and
subjection to authority involved in citizenship.
Incidentally, Father Millar's notes for his lectures for this
�156
FATHER MILLAR
course on the History of Liberty, together with his notes for
the lectures on his course on the History and Philosophy of the
American Constitution, probably comprised about the only
class notes he used. His method of learning was to depend
on his phenomenal memory to retain what he had read. He
developed the habit of also retaining in his room the books he
read and considered important. His ability to open them at
the exact passage to which he wanted to refer bordered on the
preternatural. He liked to incorporate substantial passages
from writers in his own articles.
This writer dropped into his room one evening to tell him
about a report he had heard from German refugees during
World War II (a report later proved false) attributing a certain opinion to Karl Adam, the German Catholic theologian.
Father Millar immediately replied: "It could be true. He says
something like that in his Christ and the Western World."
Whereupon, he walked over to his groaning bookshelves,
picked out Adam's Christ and the Western World, blew off
the dust, and opened it at the precise passage he had in mind.
His local memory for where a passage appeared on a page in
a book was elephantine. There was never any show about
this routine: he went through it as casually as a person might
turn on the faucet of his wash-basin to get a drink of cold
water.
He made characteristic light pencilled checks alongside of
passages in a book which he wanted to rememb~r. It was
like a V but with a slight tail at the end of the right-hand line.
He did not multiply these light marks, so that, if the Fordham
Library has not erased them from the hundreds of books he
used, someone could put together a very choice anthology in
the field of political thought and constitutionalism by excerpting these passages.
From 1933 to 1941 Father Millar is listed as "Director et
Lector Philosophiae Politicae in Schola Graduatorum" at
Fordham. This means that by 1933 a department had been
set up and that his work was restricted to political philosophy,
as a discipline distinct from both history and philosophy.
Scholarly Publications
One of the providential phases of Father Millar's return
to Fordham in 1923 was that it occasioned his close relation
�FATHER MILLAR
157
to Thought, the scholarly quarterly founded in 1926 by America Press, with the Rev. Wilfrid Parsons, S.J., then Editor-inChief of America, doubling as Editor of Thought. Father
Millar, who had meanwhile written several more articles for
America, was a natural selection as Associate Editor of
Thought for what was first called sociology and later political
philosophy and the social sciences. It goes without saying
that, for a by now mature university scholar, a learned
quarterly was a much more appropriate medium of publication than a weekly journal of opinion. The pages of Thought,
while restricting his audience, gave him enough elbow room
to expound his political philosophy in a systematic way. Much
later, when Fordham University became the publisher of
Thought, Father Millar was much pleased by having his suggestion adopted that the late Rev. Gerald Groveland Walsh,
S.J., be appointed Editor.
In 1928 the Fordham University Press collected Father
Millar's earlier articles, which had originally appeared in
America and The Catholic World, and published seventeen of
them under the title of Unpopular Essays in the Philosophy of
History, with a foreword by his collaborator on The State and
the Church, Rev. John A. Ryan. His maiden article in
Thought, "Scholastic Philosophy and American Political
Theory" (1 [June, 1926] 112-132) was the first of a total of
twenty-four articles he wrote for that journal, the last, on
"American Federalism and European Peace," appearing thirteen years before he died, in the December, 1943 issue.
His other writings consisted of six essays contributed to
various symposia,2 4 two introductions to dissertations of his
24
"The Significance of St. Augustine's Criticism of Cicero's Definition
of the State," in Philosophia Perennis, edited by F. J. von Rintelen.
Regensburg: Josef Habbel, 1930. Vol. I, pp. 101-9. The publication of
this essay pleased Father Millar very much, because it meant that he
had attained international standing.
"The French Theory of the Institution, Suarez, and the American
Constitution," in Transactions of the American Catholic Philosophical
Association (1931). Washington, D. C.: The Catholic University Press,
1932, pp. 165-181.
"Aquinas and the Missing Link in the Philosophy of History," in
Catholic Philosophy of History, ed. Peter Guilday. New York: P. J.
Kenedy, 1936, pp. 85-109.
"Labor and the Common Good," in Labor Law, an Instrument of
�158
FATHER MILLAR
Fordham graduate students, published by Fordham University
Press/ 5 one article in Studies, the Irish Jesuit Quarterly, on
"Bellarmine and the American Constitution," 26 one in The
Commonweal,2 1 and three in The Modern Schoolman. 28 He
also, of course, wrote quite a few book reviews, though from
the time the present writer got to know Fr. Millar (1941)
until his death he kept taking books to review for Thought
but never, if memory serves, wrote the reviews.
New Department: A Dream Come True, 1929-1953
According to Dr. Frasca, to whom the present writer is
indebted for having checked into the history of Father Millar's
teaching career at Fordham, the integrated Department of
Political Philosophy and the Social Sciences was created in
Fordham's Graduate School in 1929, with Father Millar as
Social Peace and Progress. New York: Fordham University Press,
1940.
"The Impact of American Civilization on European Culture," in
Bulletin of the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences, New York, 2 (Oct.,
1943) 51-55.
"Egalitarianism vs. Constitutional Democracy," in A Symposium on
Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America (Burke Society Series,
No. 1, ed. Wm. J. Schlaerth, S.J.). New York: Fordham University
Press, 1945, pp. 35-37.
25 Madden, Marie R., Political Theory and Law in Medieval Spain.
New York: Fordham University Press, 1930, pp. ix-xiii.
•
Murphy, Kathleen E., (tr.) De Laicis or the Treatise on...Cjvil Govern·
ment by Robert Bellarmine. New York: Fordham University Press,
pp. 5-18.
26 19 (Sept., 1930) 361-375.
In the opening paragraph of this article,
published eight years after The State and the Church, Father Millar
stated very clearly his position on the influence of Bellarmine on the
Founding Fathers: "In what follows there will be no attempt to prove
that the Framers of the American Constitution were directly indebted
to Bellarmine through his writings. Personally, I am of the strong
opinion that they were; but as any reason for thinking so would have
to be based upon the fact of the convergence of probabilities both
numerous and varied, it would be quite impossible to establish any such
point to the satisfaction of others in the short space of a single article"
(p. 361). That is the kind of statement on which he would have bestowed
·great care. The key phrase, of course, is "convergence of probabilities.''
21 ''Do Politics Make Sense?" 21 (Feb. 1, 1935) 387.
2s "Philosophy without Man," 8 (May, 1931); "The Natural Law and
the Bill of Rights," 14 (Jan., 1937) 32-35; "Modern Legal Theory and
Scholasticism," 17 (Nov., 1939) 5-8.
�FATHER MILLAR
159
Chairman. The idea of integrating the social sciences of
politics (or law and government, as it was called at Fordham),
economics and sociology under the directive discipline of
political (including social) philosophy was a tribute to Father
Millar's genius. The innovation was far in advance of many
similar combinations of disciplines, responding to the "felt
needs" of advancing scholarship when confronted with the
necessity of dealing with phenomena overrunning the confines
of individual departments, which have characterized the curricular developments of American institutions of higher learning, especially since World War II. Father Millar once mentioned that Professor Robert M. Maciver of Columbia remarked upon the impossibility of establishing such an integration at a university like Columbia because of the lack of
coherence of the relevant disciplines at such an institution.
The history of the Department of Political Philosophy and
the Social Sciences at Fordham breaks down naturally into
two major periods. During the first period (1929-1938) it
attained substantially the form it has had ever since, except
that it later acquired more permanent teaching personnel and
that individual disciplines, perhaps sociology notably, grew
stronger in their own right. In this period, still in the Woolworth Building, Father Millar's closest associates within his
department were Dr. Louis Potts (d. 1939), Dr. Marie Madden
and Dr. Boyd Carpenter. Father Millar, then at the peak of
his career as a teacher, also enjoyed very close and stimulating
association during this period with three outstanding Jesuit
colleagues whose deaths were all, humanly speaking, untimely:
Father George Bull, the philosopher, and Fathers Lawrence
Kent Patterson and Demetrius Zema, historians.
Apart from his writing, which was prolific at this time,
Dr. Frasca recalls that Father Millar "taught a great many
courses, as many as six a term, during some of these years. I
believe that one year I had him in six different courses each
week." Dr. Frasca's comment is worth quoting in full text:
This was the period in which he began to develop his courses
on the history of political philosophy which, incidentally; during
those early years he gave in four different parts. This is the
period in wP,ich I think he made a great contribution in the way
of advanced thinking in the social sciences. Don't forget, this
was almost thirty years ago and I am sure that you would be
�160
FATHER 1\IILLAR
quite amazed if you saw the course offerings that were given by
the department as early as 1929 and 1930.
This testimony is very valuable because Dr. Frasca is almost
the only one whose connection with the department has been
continuous enough since this formative period to evaluate the
extent to which the young department blossomed under Father
Millar's chairmanship before the Graduate School moved to
Rose Hill to be housed in the grandeur of the new Keating
Hall.
The second period of the department's history, from 1938
to Father Millar's retirement as Chairman in 1953, is more
familiar to the present wr~ter. Several of the present outstanding instructional staff joined the department early in this
period. Dr. Friedrich Baerwald, social economist, was the
first. Dr. Charles J. Walsh, another economist, transferred
from the School of Business downtown. Dr. Frasca, who had
taken his Law degree at Fordham and later completed his
doctoral work in Law and Government in the department,
joined the staff. Dr. Mario Einaudi, now Chairman of the
Department of Political Science at Cornell University and
son of the then President of Italy, and Dr. N. S. Timasheff,
eminent sociologist who had lectured at Harvard, were added
just before World War II. Colonel Waring taught one course
in Economics. The department has been strengthened since
World War II by the addition of Fathers Arthur florth, S.J.,
in Political Science, Joseph Fitzpatrick, S.J., in Sociology and
Joseph Costanzo, S.J., in Political Philosophy, Jurisprudence
and English Constitutional History, as well as by the addition
of lay faculty. Fathers North and Costanzo both studied in
the department.
These more recent developments, however, carry us beyond
the period of Father Millar's active supervision of his brainchild. For when the department set up its very successful
area programs in 1943 to train personnel for the U. S. Army,
Father Millar inevitably began to withdraw. As far as the
present writer is concerned, it was a fortunate happenstance
because it made his chairman and director much more available for private, informal conferences. Although the number
of graduate students dwindled on account of the war, there
were six or eight Jesuits taking their degrees in the depart-
�FATHER MILLAR
161
ment at that time. The staff, however, was somewhat depleted, notably by the temporary loss of Dr. Walsh, who
worked for the Import-Export Bank in Washington. 29
From what the present writer saw of the department during World War II, it was clear that Father Millar had the
knack of molding his faculty into a smooth, friendly, and
flexible unity. He achieved this elusive result principally by
showing great discrimination in selecting personnel and then
letting his talent for scholarly companionship and intellectual
leadership play upon his colleagues in a wholly natural and
quiet, but continuously effective, way.
Although he did not officially become Chairman Emeritus
until 1953, Father Millar had really turned the running of the
department over to Dr. Frasca, as secretary of the department,
somewhat earlier. In 1951 the scope of the department was
extended to include undergraduate instruction in Fordham
College, and anthropology was added to the social sciences
included.
Father Millar continued to do a little teaching. His health,
however, had been deteriorating. He took to retiring shortly
after the evening meal. This writer, then Editor-in-Chief of
America, had an informal agreement with his old master that
if he happened to be on the Fordham Campus in the evening,
he was simply to knock at Father Millar's door, enter and
switch on the light. He would immediately awaken and,
within seconds, plunge into a spirited discussion of anything
from Senator McCarthy to "The Glorious Revolution" of 1688,
sans teeth but with his intellectual acumen unimpaired.
He suffered a mild heart attack, but seemed to recover after
a stay in Union Hospital nearby. His strength was visibly
waning, however, so that the sad news of his passing on
November 14, 1956, at the age of seventy, was not wholly
Unexpected. He was buried at St. Andrew.
His Principal Contributions
Perhaps the most important contribution Fathel" Millar
~ade to Catholic scholarship was the example he gave by
his undeviating and devoted dedication to the life of Christian
learning and to Catholic university education at the graduate
-
29
Dr. Einaudi left Fordham for Cornell in 1945.
�FATHER MILLAR
162
level. He was, as has been said elsewhere, 30 like a human
sponge: his knowledge and love of Christian learning exuded
from his every pore. Whenever you met him, even for a few
moments
. . . you felt, perhaps for the first time in your life, that you
had finally tuned in on what you had so often seen described,
in lifeless print, as "the Great Christian tradition." Plato,
Aristotle, Cicero, the New Testament, Lactantius, Augustine,
Hincmar of Rheims, Thomas Aquinas began to warm you as
living souls, helping you to make your way through labyrinths
of ideas about the meaning of man, of his life on earth, of his
creation by, and his tortuous journeying back to, his Maker,
God our Lord.s1
<
He incarnated, one could say, the "unsearchable riches" of
Christ as they have come down to us through the resplendent
spectrum of the saints and sages of Christian culture.
At the same time, he marshaled his historical learning,
especially in the field of constitutionalism, and his lifetime of
studious reading, of analysis and synthesis, in the field of
political philosophy and brought it all to bear upon the American constitutional and political system. For he was, despite
his European schooling, his years of study of British constitutional history and his steeping in French philosophy and
political theory, above all else an American Jesuit scholar.
His roots, on his mother's side, were entrenched farther back
into American history than almost any American_Jesuit one
can name. It irked him, for example, to hear a fellow-Jesuit
refer to the American people as "they." He was justifiably
proud of his Scotch ancestry-the Scotch have an inbred talent
for political theory-but he seldom mentioned it. In fact, he
seldom mentioned his ancestry at all.
He belonged to America and was not even tempted to think
that the medieval background of the Declaration of Independence, for example, made Catholicism more "American." What
interested him was showing that true "Americanism" had
Catholic roots and that we had better purge current brands of
later accretions in order to bring them in line with Christian
standards of truth and goodness. In retrospect it seems
-soHartnett, Robert C., S.J., "Moorhouse I. X. Millar, S.J., 1886-1956"
Thought 31 (Winter, 1956-1957) 485-6.
81
Ibid.
�FATHER MILLAR
163
strange, in fact, that a person so little traveled in the United
States during his adult life should have been so much in love
with America.
Perhaps his other most important contribution was that of
enlarging the perspectives of those who studied under him,
worked with him or read his writings. You never raised a
question with him without his opening it up far beyond the
dimensions in which you had considered it. This largeness
of view was connatural to him; it was his style, and was
perfectly effortless and without ostentation. No man of learning ever wore his learning more simply, more gracefully. To
know him was to learn what the term "liberal" in the phase
"liberal education" really means, the encompassing of truth
in its true dimensions, freed from the narrowness within
which most of us keep grinding out our monotonous round of
opinions. And he relished conversation about the things that
mattered to him. Time was no consideration, especially when
he found a younger Jesuit in whom he saw promise of carrying on the good cause to which he had dedicated his whole life.
One cannot bring this memoir to a close without mentioning Father Millar's profound attachment to the writings and
political thought of Edmund Burke. Burke, to him, was the
greatest political writer in English and perhaps, for modern
times, the greatest in all history, with Alexander Hamilton
as his only close competitor. Through his colleague, Ross
J. S. Hoffman, Father Millar certainly contributed to the
recent revival of interest in Burke. 32 As for Thomas Jefferson,
the only thought that reconciled him to the fortune being
expended on the publication of everything Jefferson wrote
was the reflection: "Well, if they publish everything he wrote,
it will show what a fool he really was." 33
-
32
Hoffman, Ross J. S., and Levack, Paul (ed.), Selected Writings and
Speeches of Edmund Burke on Reform, Revolution and War. (New
York, Simon Shuster, 1949). Father Millar himself, of course, wrote a
good deal about Burke in Thought and elsewhere.
33
Fr. Millar's aversion to Jefferson had its humorous side. Several
Years before he died, in opening his Christmas mail, he found himself
~eering at the image of Jefferson framed in a Christmas card. At first
e thought it was a practical joke, until he found that the image was on
a ten-dollar bill, a setting which quickly reconciled him to the visage
of the Sage of Monticello.
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FATHER MILLAR
A comprehensive study of Father Millar's political philosophy will no doubt form the subject of graduate research.
It formed a consistent system, was based on reading as extensive and analytical as anyone could crowd into one lifetime
and was, to some extent, continually developing. The one
regret his friends may have is that so few, relatively, especially among his own Jesuit brethren, had the opportunity to
specialize under him in the field in which he must unquestionably have been without peer in the English-speaking world,
that of Christian political philosophy studied in the light of
Western historical experienc~ and ratio practica. One can
only ardently hope that suitable means are taken soon, before
the flavor of his inspiration has a chance to die out at Fordham, to make sure that the tradition he built up reaches its
full fruition on Rose Hill. 34
MIt is a great pity that, in an electronic age, no sound-recorder was
used to preserve Father Millar's impressive account, on the occasion of
his Golden Jubilee at Fordham, celebrated October 11, 1953, of exactly
what he had been trying to accomplish throughout his lifetime of
Christian scholarship on Rose Hill. Perhaps because the story was
already familiar to him, the present writer confesses that, impressed as
he was at the time, he never could recall just how Father Milnar put
together his story. One reason for this difficulty of recall is that our
subject's style of thinking and writing was organic rather than what
might be called architectural. His thought grew from a unicellular form,
so to speak, into a full organism. It is much easier to recall:expressions
of thought which are built up of discrete parts. In this,- too, Father
Millar might be said to have resembled Newman in the workings of his
mind.
* • *
St. Ignatius
Quiet and simple, but not slovenly; most humble, without any meanness of spirit; noble and generous, grave and courteous, superior to all
that is earthly, despising what is perishable, his gaze always fixed on
what will remain forever unchanged, guiding himself in all things,
great and small, by the most perfect standards; master of all his feelings, even in their very first movements, and therefore showing externally and continuously that imperturbable peace in the midst of
which his soul steadily shaped its course to the eternal shores.
In the marvellous array of Christian virtues which always shone
forth in him, one notes especially a prudence more than human, and a
love of God and of his neighbor for God which consumed his heart with
seraphic and sweet fires.
JUAN Josi DE LA TORRE
���Father Joseph J. Ayd
Thomas J. Higgins, S.J.
If we are right in saying that the apostolate of the Society
of Jesus consists in pursuing the spiritual, and at times the
corporal, works of mercy upon an intellectual and far-reaching
level, then Father Joseph Ayd was an outstanding example
of how zealously and successfully that apostolate can be cultivated. He was interested exclusively in the works of the
apostolate which fell to his lot and, like a genuine scholar, he
was always reading, studying, writing, or speaking in public
about these things. Having the amazing energy of so many
small men he was blessed with a full and busy life-all the
opportunity of fulfilling one's interests that one could wish
for. At the height of his powers he simultaneously held three
positions: he was professor of sociology at Loyola College,
professor of psychology to the nurses at Seton Institute, and
chaplain of the Maryland State Penitentiary, Baltimore.
Henry L. Mencken said of him : "No more useful man ever
lived in Baltimore." Like the man in Homer who dwelt by
the roadside he was the friend of all man. He was forever
giving of himself without stint to help all he could. His phone
was always ringing: somebody was forever wanting something of him. He never refused a request: his response was
cordial, prompt, and efficient. He wished, above all, to help
those unfortunates upon whom, in his opinion, the hand of the
law had descended with too much rigor. God alone knows
the hours, days, and even months he spent trying to get commutations of the death sentence. Once a trio of circus hands,
Passing through Baltimore, were picked up in a police dragnet,
falsely accused and convicted of rape, and sentenced to hang.
Father Ayd moved heaven and earth to get justice done but
no court would ever admit that a mistake had been made.
Eventually, however, the sentence was commuted and after
five Years the men got free. They vowed they would never
165
�166
FATHER AYD
pass through Baltimore again. I talked with an ex-convict
who came into the parlor of St. Ignatius, Baltimore, to. view
the remains of him who in need had been his friend: sixteen
years before Father Ayd had secured his release from the
death house. The most notorious of Father Ayd's "boys" was
Jack Hart, famous in song and story for his thrilling escapes
from the Maryland Penitentiary. Father always had a good
word for Jack and stoutly denied he was a man of violence.
Father Ayd knew everybody in Baltimore: judges, lawyers,
politicians, police, business and professional men. And every-·
body knew him. I remember on one occasion riding downtown
with him in a trolley car. The motorman, the conductor, and
half the people in the car said, "Hello, Father Ayd." After we
alighted near Courthouse Square it took us half an hour to
walk a single block so many were the people who stopped to
talk to him.
Father Ayd was born in Baltimore in 1881 of the late Doctor
John and Elizabeth Kircher Ayd. Doctor John was of a type
that has now ceased to be, the neighborhood doctor who was
both druggist and physician. Young Joseph Ayd was most
fortunate-to his dying day he asserted his mother was a
real saint. From the Brothers at St. James' Parochial School
he learned his lessons well, especially his German. For when
I first came to the Loyola community German was the unofficial language of the dining room but Father Ayd could
always hold his own with such facile Deutschspieler"§ as Father
Fremgen and Father Hacker. While he was attending high
school at Gonzaga in Washington and Loyola in Baltimore
he displayed no mean talent at sandlot baseball. Despite a
puny frame he was a curveball pitcher of note. Like all the
men of that generation he was a genuine baseball fan and
rooted for the Yankees right down to the end. He left Loyola
College at the end of his junior year to enter St. Mary's Seminary, Paca Street. Although the Archdiocese of Baltimore
offered him the opportunity of completing his theological
studies in Rome, he joined the Society at Poughkeepsie in
1904. He left Poughkeepsie in 1907 for two years of philosophy at Woodstock. He had an old fashioned five-year regency
which he spent at St. Peter's, Jersey City, and Holy Cross
from 1909 to 1914. He was ordained at Woodstock by Cardi-
�FATHER AYD
167
nal Gibbons in 1917 and spent two years before his tertianship
at the old Loyola on Calvert Street. Here he worked as
operarius, college professor, and prison chaplain. Here began
his interest in penology and the exercise of a characteristically
Jesuit ministry which was to make his name known far and
wide and bring hope and comfort to thousands of unfortunates. After tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudson he taught
college courses at Loyola, Fordham, Georgetown and St.
Joseph's College until he returned to Loyola in 1927 as Dean
of Studies. He taught at Loyola from 1928 to 1946 when serious ill health compelled him to quit the classroom.
Father Ayd was a scholarly teacher with broad interests
and yet with the researcher's keen sense for sources and
accuracy. As a student of theology he wrote A Brief Introduction to the Divine Office, a most useful little book which
has recently been revised in accordance with the latest changes
in the breviary. His most important writing was An Introductory Manual to Psychology which was reprinted three times.
He wrote also a Summary of Sociology. Among his pamphlets
are "Crime in· the Community," "Ministering to the Mind
Diseased," "The Psychology of Probation," and "Practical
Aspects of Parole." He was a constant contributor to the
Baltimore Sun which has a heavy file of his articles and letters
dealing with such topics as criminal types, capital punishment,
crime and the feeble-minded, probation and parole as well as
child labor, prohibition, evolution and vivisection. At the time
of his death he was writing a book on criminology.
Father Ayd was a most popular and stimulating teacher.
From his personal experiences, he made his subject matter
live. E.very upper-division student in Loyola elected his course
in sociology. His fund of anecdote was inexhaustible. His
viewpoint was ever kindly, humane and humorous. He was a
great blessing to the community because he kept pouring out
his stories. He took a great deal of joshing from the brethren
because some of these stories were as old as Joe Miller and
some were pure corn. But he was undaunted and kept telling
them right to the end. If he was ever depressed-and he had
his trials and crosses-he kept it a strict secret. He was not
above a wholesome well-engineered practical joke. Once,
acting as toastmaster of the senior banquet, he introduced as
�168
FATHER AYD
principal speaker a certain Brother Julian, a sedate looking
gentleman in clerical garb. Without any introductory palaver
Brother Julian immediately launched into a scathing tirade
against the Society. Saying that he was speaking from the
viewpoint of a Christian Brother, he proceeded to take Jesuit
education in America apart. He cast such derision on the
Ratio Studiorum that the boys got restive and resentful. Then
without warning he reversed his collar and let his audience
see that he was a professional entertainer with a bagful of
tricks. Everybody was taken in.
It was in his work as prison chaplain that Father Ayd's
wit, understanding, and great heart had fullest scope. Informal and personal in his a:pproach, he dealt with the men as
individuals and met them on a man-to-man basis. He had a
deep conviction that no man is a born criminal. He knew what
is in man and yet he gave everyone-even the slickest-a
square deal. Without regard to color, race or creed he gave
himself steadfastly to the spiritual and temporal welfare of
his charges. He provided them with a monthly entertainment.
He wrote their letters at times. He got their wives jobs and
themselves jobs when they got out. He solved their personal
problems which sometimes included the prevention of murder.
It is no small thing to preach for well-nigh thirty consecutive
years within the walls of a prison and have one's words
accepted. He never bored the boys nor held out to them
impossible ideals. He pitched his sermon exactly- _right for
them; indeed, I have seen the boys hang upon his words. I
have seen him on a blazing summer Sunday come home from
saying one Mass in the penitentiary and one in the jailutterly exhausted.
His most difficult chore was attendance upon the men in the
death house. A firm though reluctant believer in capital
punishment, he was never able to shake off the horror and
nausea which executions usually produced in him. Often he
walked to the gallows with some unfortunate but he never
got used to it. Every occasion took something out of him.
Sometimes he had two or three executions in one night and
then he would be no good for a week. At times he would ask
one of his colleagues to come and assist him, chiefly in the grim
task of calming the men in the death house who were not
�FATHER AYD
169
posted for execution that night. These poor devils died many
times before they stood upon the gallows' trap door.
Father Ayd had more than his fair share of ill health. So
the day came in 1956 when, at the age of 74, he had to resign
the chaplaincy of the prison into younger hands. It was just
when the position was receiving proper recognition. Father
Ayd had built it up from nothing. He began as a volunteer.
In 1923 when some bigots tried to have the office abolished he
saved it. It was his drive and efficiency which brought home
the importance of the position to the state authorities.
Father Ayd eventually became the spiritual father of the
community. This was the time when on account of the fire of
1955 we were living a kind of hugger-mugger life in the
Charleston Hall Apartments. We squeezed into the tiny recreation room to listen to Father Ayd's conferences. To these he
devoted the same diligence he had given to every other assignment. In them he showed the same scholarship, the same humanity, the same humor, the same appreciation of the deep
things of God.
When he was brought to Mercy Hospital in October of 1957
he had a presentment that he would not come back. He underwent and survived a disagreeable surgical operation. Although he had been a lifelong smoker, during his convalescence
he resolved to give up smoking but he had only a week for the
practice of his resolution. Less than a day after he was discharged from Mercy Hospital he died at St. Ignatius Rectory
on December 3, 1957, the feast of St. Francis Xavier whose
ministration to the poor and imprisoned he had so faithfully
imitated.
The real flavor of Father Ayd is caught from an anecdote
he has left in a journal. The story is about Mr. Paul Brown,
S.J., a fellow Baltimorean who died in the influenza epidemic
of 1918. "I visited Paul Brown's grave today," writes Father,
"and said a short prayer for him and then prayed for his and
my darling mother. Paul, in a way, was a truly extraordinary
Young man, good-natured, sensible and a willing worker. Just
~efor.e dying, he told the Father at his bedside: 'Tell Father
rovmcial that he is not losing a Suarez in me.' For that
remark, I gave Paul three Masses instead of two.''
�170
FATHER AYD
Father Ayd had a keen critical mind along with a deep sense
of dependence on God and an affectionate heart. His dependence on God was manifest in a deeply submissive spirit and
filial reliance on the divine assistance. "To think," he writes,
"that all the majestic grandeur achieved by the Greek and
Roman imagination, intellect and skill could not save a single
soul or pardon a single venial sin." These natural and supernatural qualities made him a shrewd observer of the human
scene and produced in him a wisdom that was patient and
sympathetic. "Judge not and you shall not be judged" was
not merely an inspired saying to which he gave intellectual
adherence but a rule of daily life. I am quite sure that God
raises up some men to be special champions of .the poor and
I am equally sure God gave Father Ayd a big heart and a wise
understanding of the ways of men precisely that he might
befriend the down-and-out. Three times in his journal he
speaks of his dedication to the welfare of the poor. Here is
a significant passage: "To my mind, Father Maas [his tertian
instructor] is a prophet in Israel. To hear him speak of
God's poor, and how they are the chosen of God, and how we
should deal with them, is to hear something worth-while. Have
I been at fault in thi~ matter? A great many Jesuits are certainly at fault in their dealing with God's poor and insignificant. Father Maas has the right doctrine and, to my way of
thinking, the true spirit of the Society and St. Ignatius .
.Come what may, I'll follow him." And follow him he did.
God alone knows how often a poor unfortunate bowea his head
and prayed, "God bless Father Ayd."
* * *
Humble Perfume Canonized
Perfume tells in a low voice how gentle are His ways
Whose tears fall in a cool shower lest the rose's lips be dry.
But there is a shout of fire when a lightning rent displays
A thread of His garment caught beneath the sky.
For Our Lord God is a strong God and His thoughts are mighty things
And the light that is burning the sun to death was fashioned
in His hand.
His breath is the wind that·lifts the seas. His voice in the tempest rings.
And in His throne room great archangels stand.
Reproduced from the Letters of 1920 at the request of
JOHN K. LAURENCE, S.J.
�,,'
Father Frederick N. Dincher
Francis Renz, S.J.
In early May of 1952 Father Dincher went out after the
day's classes for some air and upon his return home remarked
in his quiet way that that was the last bit of exercise he
would probably ever take. A few days later the pain of the
cancer he carried within him incapacitated him and he was
taken to Misericordia Hospital in Philadelphia. Throughout
the long summer he slowly wasted away. His patience and
cheerfulness endeared him to those who cared for him in the
hospital. Finally death came quietly on September 22nd. He
died at the age of thirty-eight, his ambitions and his dreams
far from realized, but with a mind in full agreement with
God's way for him.
Father Dincher was born in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on
February 16th, 1914, the youngest of a family of nine. His
parents were of German lineage and blessed by God with a
solid piety and the capacity for hard work both of which Fred
absorbed from the atmosphere of his home. From the time
when he was old enough to be of assistance to the summer of
his departure for the novitiate, he helped in the provision
store operated by his father and brothers. He often spoke
afterwards of his experience in dealing with human nature
while his conduct showed that he had profited by it. At the
local Catholic High School he led his class.
The desire to be a Jesuit was one of long standing. In the
days of the old Society a Jesuit relative, Father Nicholas
Steinbacher, had evangelized the Susquehanna Valley, but
whether Fred was aware of his existence before he entered
the novitiate at Wernersville in September, 1932, is not clear.
By nature he was diffident and retiring and he was awed by
the ability of the boys from the cities who knew all of the
second aorists while he himself knew little Latin and no Greek.
It took a number of years for him to see that a plethora of
171
�172
FATHER DINCHER
words and even ideas was not a sign, much less a measure, of
native intelligence. The main outdoor project on which he
worked during the years of noviceship was the cemetery at
the foot of the hill, where he lies buried today.
After the juniorate he was assigned to the Philippine Mission and he arrived at Novaliches in September of 1936 to
begin philosophy. Three years later he was given the task of
teaching physics at San Jose Seminary in the then new building at Balintawak. Mathematics was his first love in the field
of learning and he worked at it steadily. During one of the
summerschools at the old_ villa at Baguio he finished the problems in the two volumes_of Griffin's Mathematical Analysis.
The war came during the last year of his regency and with
it many harrowing experiences and much suffering for all
who were caught up in it. He was first interned at the Ateneo
de Manila along with the other American Jesuits where they
started the study of theology. Later most were moved to the
prison camp at Los Banos. He had always been healthy and,
although his physique was not rugged, he was able to endure
a great amount of exertion without tiring. At Los Banos he
began to notice that his energy was impaired beyond the extent to be expected from the scarcity and the quality of the
food. He would marvel at the other Scholastics who could
chop wood day after day for the camp stoves on the rations
which left him without energy. Perhaps this was"~n indication
that the disease, which would carry him off in seven or eight
years, was already present.
He was ordained at Woodstock in March of 1946, made
tertianship at Pomfret and was assigned to St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia in June of 1948. Before his last vows in
February of 1950 he had undergone an operation for the
removal of cancerous growths and it was hoped at the time
that the course of the disease had been arrested.
Philosophy and religion were the subjects assigned him.
Those were the days of the great influx of Gl's into the colleges
and he found himself with seventeen hours of class a week
and sections that numbered at times a hundred students. It
was quite a task for one going into a classroom in philosophY
for the first time.
�FATHER DINCHER
173
Father Dincher was an excellent teacher. He had a penetrating mind which enabled him to see things clearly: principles, concepts, persons and situations. His mind drove right
to the core of whatever faced it and Father Dincher could
with grace explain what he saw. In his expositions he was
able to marshal examples and analogies from all phases of
life that helped clarify the matter for the students. Once, just
to see what he could do in the matter, he began to tutor a
student who was failing the course in philosophy. This student
was in the section of another teacher. He had gotten an E for
his first mark. In the semester examination he received an A
from his own teacher.
In the large classes Father Dincher had difficulty keeping
order in the beginning because of his shyness and reticence.
It took him some time to win the students by his personality
and his goodness, but sooner or later they would fall under
his spell. He was an inspiration intellectually and spiritually
to those he taught. His practice was to single out some young
man who did not seem to be too interested in listening and talk
to him until he secured his attention. Then he felt he had the
attention of all. He would recount things like this without any
vanity. It was just his method of operating.
His greatest quality was undoubtedly his deep spirituality.
His keen mind saw very clearly that sanctity was all that mattered in the long run and he was strong enough to pursue that
ideal unswervingly. Every soul he met was a soul to be drawn
closer to God and as such was treated with a courtesy and an
individual consideration and interest that went a long way in
winning friendship of that soul and drawing it closer to God.
In March, 1952, he became aware of the internal cancerous
growth which he knew would be the cause of his death in a few
months. Not much could be done about it, so he continued the
classroom routine as long as he was physically able. He was
taken by death as his influence for good was beginning to
spread and his capacities were approaching their maturity.
�Statistics of Sacred Heart Retreat House, 1939 • 1957
Grand
'39
'40
'41
'42
'43
'44
'45
'46
'47
'48
'49
'50
'51
'52
'53
'54
'55
'56
3
10
10
10
14
17
18
19
22
13
10
6
4
3
2
2
2
1
1
167
Eight Day
Retreatants 18
49
69
58 121 130 173 134 134
69
58
41
30
25
20
24
20
14
8
1,195
9
8
13
15
25
26
25
29
29
29
213
100 111 157 214 307 383 413 472 577 519
22 22 18 19 19 : t28 28 27 30 30 30
3,276
380
Years
Eight Day
Retreats
Five Day
Retreats
5
Five Day
Retreatants _
Total Retreats 3
Total,
Retreatants 18
10
10
10
25
19
17
18
19
'57 Total
'·"'
49
3
69
10
58 146 130 173 134 134 169 169 198 244 332 403 437 492 591 527
14 24 38 56 57 63 64 77 79 113 157 213 220 295 319 332
4,471
2,134
New
Retreatants 18
46
59
44 122
92 119 131 175 190 217 197 272 195
2,339
Dioceses
Represented
12
21
22
Repeaters
Religious
Orders and
Congregations
8
34
92 117
97
71 105
33
39
38
41
40
38
43
46
45
51
56
61
59
120
14
14
14
13
16
12
14
17
23
25
25
23
27
30
60
1
2
3
2
5
5
4
5
5
12
7
12
66
31
I,
2
5
1
1
7
7
13
Retreats made
by
Hierarchy
1
�175
RETREAT STATISTICS
Sacred Heart Retreat for Priests
Auriesville, New York
Report of Priests Retreats for 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957
Years
Number of Eight Day Retreats ________________
Number of Eight Day Retreatants _________
Number of Five Day Retreats ____________
Number of Five Day Retreatants __________
Total Number of Retreats _______________
Total Number of Retreatants ______________
Number of Repeaters __________________________
Number of New Retreatants __________________
Number of Dioceses Represented ____________
Number of Religious Congregations and
Orders -----------------------------------Members of the Hierarchy (Retreatants)
1953 1954 1955 1956 1957
2
1
2
1
1
8
20
24
20
14
29
25
29
29
25
383 413 472 577 519
30
28
27
30
30
403 437 492 591 527
213 220 295 319 332
190 217 197 272 195
45
51
56
61
59
25
5
25
5
23
12
27
7
30
12
Detailed Statistics for 1957
Number of Diocesan Priests __ 448
Bishops ------------Monsignori ---------------Pastors --------------Assistants --------------Professors -----------Chaplains (Armed forces
and V. A.) -------------------
12
42
83
253
32
21
Number of Religious Priests
Superior Generals ----------Provincials -----------Superiors ----------------Assistants ----------Professors ----------Chaplains (Armed forces)_
Number of Cancellations_______
79
2
1
23
38
14
1
56
Addenda
(1) Albany Diocesan Priests' Retreats (five weeks in Lent, 1957)__
320
(2) Total Number of Scheduled Retreats for nineteen years
(1939-1957) ----------------------------------------------------------------
380
Total Number of Scheduled Retreatants for nineteen years
(1939-1957) -------------------------------------------------- 4,4 71
�Books of Interest to
Ours
ACCORDING TO THE SECOND ANNOTATION
Ponder Slowly. Outlined Meditations. By Francis X. Peirce, S.J.
Westminster, Maryland: The Newman Press, 1957. Pp. 323. $3.95.
This is an Ignatian book. St. Ignatius would approve of it, for it is
an application of the Saint's contention that the prayerful thoughts
worked out by the individual are more profitable than the lessons presented to him by another. It is not a detailed treatise on asceticism,
although it points the way to deep knowledge of the principles of
ascetism, because each meditation~ill packed with undeveloped suggestions
for holy thoughts. It has for its author a Jesuit who is an expert in the
spiritual life, who for many years has been professor of Sacred Scripture,
and who in meditation has passed endless hours pondering the riches of
the truths hidden in· the depths of revelation. The book will be very
useful for those who are beginning their religious life, and even more
so for those who have grown old in God's service, of which meditation is
so large a part. It contains outlines for tridua and retreats and also
points for meditation on many of the divine mysteries.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
EXCELLENT SCHOLARSHIP
Franz Xaver; sein Leben und seine Zeit. By Georg Schurhammer, S.J.
Vol. I, Europa, 1506-1541. Freiburg im Breisgau: Herder. Pp. XXX
+742. 48 DM.
~."
This handsome volume is the first in a series on St. Francis Xavier.
Volume II will complete the life. The other volumes will be devoted to
other aspects of Xavier's career and cultus. The whole will be the result
of more than forty years' devotion to the saint. During those decades,
Father Schurhammer has sought to get at the facts by traveling widely,
by reading and judging all printed information and by going through
archives in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Germany and
England.
Some critics have thought that Father Schurhammer sins by excess
of erudition, that St. Francis tends to disappear in an avalanche of facts
and footnotes. This might be true for a reader who does not know the
saint--and we must remember that he is widely known even outside the
Church. Until recently the best English life was by a Protestant lady.
The reader who is familiar with the facts of Xavier's life, as Jesuits certainly are, will find that this work of the finest scholarship opens up the
career of the saint in a marvelous way. Father Schurhammer's pages
176
�177
BOOK REVIEWS
make relatively easy reading and at the end of the long book, one feels
that he knows all that can be known of Francis Xavier's European
career. Incidentally many events in the history of the Society's beginnings are also investigated as never before. All important Jesuit
libraries should have this book which probably will not be translated.
The Herder company is to be congratulated on an excellent printing job.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
AUTHENTIC MARTYROLOGY
Martyrs: From St. Stephen to John Tung. By Donald Attwater. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1957. Pp. xviii-236. $4.00.
This is not a book on what the martyrs were like, for after a brief,
succinct biographical note on each martyr, the author actually gives the
annals of the martyrs, the very records of their inspiring words and
deeds or the most accurate facsimiles available.
These fifty-eight selections are universal in scope, ranging in time
from 34 A.D., with St. Stephen, protomartyr, to 1951 A.D., with John
Tung; in breadth, extending to the very ends of the world, from the
Far East to the West, from North to South. Such a purposeful concatenation helps to illuminate the very core of Christianity, and to bring
home with terrific impact the fact that the age of martyrs, far from
being a thing of the past, is still very much with us.
Mr. Attwater's enlightening notes and clarifications accentuate his
intention to get away from mere pious edifying legends and to go back
to the actual facts themselves through diligent painstaking research. We
should not read this book at one sitting for in these graphic accounts we
find many an inspiring narrative to be pondered slowly and meditated
upon reflectively. These great words and deeds are for inspiration and
they can deepen realization of what it means to be a Christian.
JOSEPH
A.
CAPOFERRI, S.J.
TRANSLATION
Handbook of Moral Theology. By Dominic M. Pruemmer, O.P. Translated by Gerald W. Shelton, S.T.L. Edited for American usage by
John G. Nolan, S.T.D. New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1957. Pp.
496. $4.00.
. The fact that this is the work of Pruemmer, the well-known moralist,
Is commendation sufficient. The accent is on the positive; the order of
th .
e VIrtues rather than of the Commandments is followed. Both trans1ator and editor have remained faithful to the original.
t One disconcerting feature of the modern summary of moral, as conr~st~d with its classical counterpart, is that it is generally short on
f.rinciple, long on casuistry. Principles are merely stated, not estabtished or developed. Such is not the case with the Handbook. The
reatment of the doctrine is remarkably complete for a compendium. It
�178
BOOK REVIEWS
is not the quick-and-ready-answer book. Not a word, for example, of
atomic warfare, race segregation, alcoholism, or of the ordinary means
of preserving one's health.
The translation is smooth and avoids for the most part transliterating
technical moral and canonical terms. In short it is English. It is also
accurate, with this one exception that caught the eye of the reviewer:
parochi of Canon 1245 is rendered "parish priests," a translation which
gives curates a power they do not have! English is retained throughout,
including the sections on chastity.
The adaptation to American usage does not come off so well. First,
it is not complete. Though the Indult granting to pastors the faculty
to confirm is treated, no mention is made of the extension of this faculty
to chaplains of certain institutions in the United States. Second, where
adaptation is made, it is not always accurate. In the section on fast
and abstinence the relative norm of fasting is not even mentioned, much
less explained. It is falsely stated that milk breaks the fast. Partial
abstinence is not clearly set forth.
But these few blemishes can be easily remedied in the second edition.
In the meantime the first edition is well worth having. It is authentic
Pruemmer accurately presented in English.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
COMPREHENSIVE CHRISTOLOGY
The Christ of Faith. By Karl Adam. New York: Pantheon, 1957. Pp.
x-364. $6.oo.
This is a serious attempt by an outstanding modern theologian to present to a lay audience a comprehensive picture of the Christ of our
Catholic Faith. Not only are all the Church's dogmatic truths from the
tract on the Word Incarnate included in this volume, but al'so the ancient
Christological heresies, their modern counterparts, and th; multiple scholastic theories on the various disputed points in Christology. The length
of the book, comprehensive sweep of subject matter, and method of
presentation, all combine to limit that inspirational quality for which
the author's former works are noted. Yet flashes of this characteristic
trait are not infrequent.
The volume is divided into two unequal books, the first treating of
the Person of Christ, the second and much shorter book dealing with
Christ's work, namely, our redemption. The most difficult chapters of
the volume are those devoted to the more technical, theological theories
developed by scholastic theologians through the centuries to shed some
light on the mystery of the hypostatic union. Perhaps the majority
of readers will not agree ,with the position of the author on a number
of these disputed points, since he consistently favors the opinion of the
Scotistic school over the more common Thomistic explanation. In the
brief summary of opinions, there unavoidably arise some statements
which could be misinterpreted. For example, a reader of Thomistic
persuasion might be startled to read: "And so the theological opinion of
�BOOK REVIEWS
179
the existence of sanctitas substantialis in our Lord's humanity is wrong."
(p. 255.) Or in the author's treatment of the liberty enjoyed by Christ,
we read: "What distinguished his freedom from ours was simply the fact
that it was not a libertas contrarietatis." (p. 223) These statements may
be correctly understood in context, but they are hardly liable to be
grasped by even the well-educated layman.
Nevertheless the volume is justly termed a tribute to the work of
the author in the fields of Christology and ecclesiology. It is not easy
reading, but while demanding much, it has much to offer. Perhaps
critical editing in years to come, which might reduce the sections devoted
to "higher criticism" and its refutation, will lighten the burden. Yet
as it stands, The Christ of Faith tells in clear, often inspiring terms,
the essential message of our faith, for as the author himself begins his
work: "Christianity is Christ."
JOSEPH L. RocHE, S.J.
HOW TO PRAY
Prayer in Practice. By Romano Guardini. Translated by Prince Leopold
of Loewenstein-Wertheim. New York: Pantheon Books Inc., 1957.
Pp. 228. $3.50.
The author offers us a long-awaited summary of his reflections on
prayer. In the manner of The Lord, his originality of approach to a
familiar subject captures our attention at once. The first two chapters
treat what is known to all Jesuits as the Additions of the Ignatian
Exercises. Great stress is placed by the author on interior equanimity
of soul as an absolute requisite for meaningful prayer, and he even
states that without this interior harmony prayer is impossible. In this
portion of the book the author delves at great length into the reasons
why man should, even must, pray, giving a psychological justification
for the insistence that all spiritual writers have placed on prayer. The
fourth chapter provides an enlightening treatment of oral (more commonly called 'vocal') prayer. The author combines the attitude of profound reverence for the symbolism of the sacramentals which he portrayed so admirably in his Sacred Signs, with his practical wisdom in
the use of vocal prayer as shown to so many who have appreciated his
book, The Rosary of Our Lady.
Perhaps the most enlightening contributions of this book are found
in the fifth and eighth chapters. Contemplative prayer is described,
and wise norms are outlined to ensure that it will be recognized and
employed as a means, not as an end, towards further union with God.
The brief eighth chapter treats normal trials and difficulties met in
Prayer and here the author proves his mettle by a realistic admission
of the problems and a call for courageous fidelity based on faith and
love. In the final chapter, Monsignor Guardini sketches the outlines
of. an integrated spiritual life, and with characteristic insight he re~mds us that if a man, for the sake of his soul, works more conscien~Iou~ly, struggles against temptation, or is more charitable and foreearmg with others than he would usually be, this affects his prayer.
�180
BOOK REVIEWS
It gives him deeper insights, enlightens his judgment, and increases his
spiritual effectiveness.
ARTHUR S. O'BRIEN, S.J.
LAY THEOLOGY
Theology for Beginners. By F. J. Sheed. New York: Sheed and Ward,
1957. Pp. x-241. $3.00.
For some time the author, whose work in theology was recognized in
1957 by the presentation of a doctorate, honoris causa, by the University
of Lille, has been writing a column called "Theology for the Layman"
for a number of diocesan weeklies. This book is, for the most part,
a collection of the columns. Beginning with a consideration of the importance of a knowledge of theology for laymen, the author briefly
discusses the chief dogmas of the Catholic religion. It is not his purpose to present scriptural or dOgmatic proofs, but rather to get at the
meaning of the various articles of faith and present them in language
the layman can readily understand. This he accomplishes admirably
by the liberal use of analogy, leading the reader skillfully from the better
known to the lesser known. His explanation of mystery, for instance, is
a gem. This unpretentious book will give teachers of religion and
preachers many new insights and ideas for presenting the eternal truths.
For this reason it is regrettable that the book contains no index. This
is compensated for, to some extent, by the table of contents which lists
ROBERT E. BUTLER, S.J.
subdivisions of each chapter.
EDUCATION SYMPOSIUM
The Christian Idea of Education. Edited by Edmund Fuller. New
Haven: Yale University Press, 1957. Pp. xv-265. $4.?0·
This volume is the result of an idea that a seminar on.·the Christian
concept of education " . . . may be.a means of regaining and restating
something of the vision of what general education could be within a
Christ-centered culture." This idea materialized at Kent School, Connecticut, in 1955, and the nine papers and addresses presented there
together with excerpts of the discussions that followed them have found
their way into book form. Every opportunity for the success of the
venture was apparently sought. Representatives of Roman Catholicism,
Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglicanism and Protestantism were present. A
distinguished group of five hundred scholars was headed by S. F. Bayne,
George Florovsky, John Courtney Murray, S.J., William Pollard, and
Massey H. Shepherd, Alan Paton, E. Harris Harbison, Jacques Maritain,
and Reinhold Niebuhr.
The general theme running throughout all the papers was that of
Christianity's educational" contribution to Western culture. The compatibility of Christian education and liberal education was discussed
(Harbison); while historical responses to this perennial problem were
viewed in the person of Origen (Murray) and the period of the Renais·
sance (Pollard). The importance of faith to modern culture and to
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181
different historic cultures presented the problem in a more concrete
manner (Florovsky). The implication of philosophical concepts shed
light on some modern problems of Christian education (Maritain); one
factor, the liturgy or "the Solemn Eucharist," is studied for its role in
the Christian contribution to culture (Shepherd); and one effect of
Christianity is seen in the dignity of the person in the community
(Paton). The dynamic superiority of Western culture with its sense of
the importance of history and its conquest of natural forces is traced to
the two sources of this culture, Hellenism and Hebraism (Niebuhr).
Mr. Fuller has rendered an important service to modern educators. A
reading of these papers will stimulate thoughts on new aspects of an
important subject. With universal education rapidly advancing on the
national and international levels the responsibility of Christian educators to announce their wares from the housetops is preceded only by
their responsibility to know the nature of their product. This book
lays bare some aspects of Christian education.
LEo H. LARKIN, S.J.
PEDAGOGICAL ACHIEVEMENT
Introduction to Logic. Andrew H. Bachhuber, S.J. Appleton-CenturyCrofts: New York, 1957. Pp. ix-332. $3.50.
This new text in Aristotelian and Thomistic logic has already won
acceptance in colleges and universities throughout the United States.
Teachers in this difficult discipline cannot fail to be impressed by Fr.
Bachhuber's achievement in ordering, analyzing and illustrating the
traditional elements of introductory logic. In two respects, especially,
the book departs from previous texts and succeeds in solving troublesome
problems to beginners in the field. Many students are stymied from the
beginning by the mass of what is to them unintelligible metaphysics and
other impedimenta which must be memorized before arriving at the heart
of the matter in logic, namely, inference. In this volume, Fr. Bachhuber
has deftly solved the problem by a clear presentation of the elementary
notions of inference in the very beginning. A second problem which
confronts the student is the unfamiliar abstract nature of the definitions
and rules presented, which he is then expected to apply to concrete
examples. Basing his modus operandi on the mental law that the universal (or principle) is gained through abstraction from the singular
(or example), Fr. Bachhuber has preceded every definition and rule
With a clear and thorough analysis of concrete examples. An apt
selection of diagrams and a wealth of varied exercises after each chapter
serve to reenforce the principles and to make the logical thoughtPattern habitual. Not every teacher will have the time to cover all the
matter, but the various parts of the book are so distributed that a selection of the more important items can be made without sacrifice of
continuity.
Mediate deductive inference-the hard core of logic-is taken up in
Part III, and the abundance of explanations, diagrams, and exercises
contributes to make it the best section of the book. Besides the obvious
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and proven suitability of this book as a text for colleges and universities,
it could be read with profit by the more serious general reader. It might
also prove useful as supplementary reading in seminaries, where the
minor logic course, especially when it is conducted in Latin, has leanings
toward nominalism and memorization.
ALFRED HENNELLY, S.J.
CLEAR AND CAUTIOUS
An Introduction to Western Philosophy. By Russell Coleburt. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1957. Pp. xiv-239. $4.00.
Russell Coleburt tells us in his Introduction that he has attempted to
give the beginner in philosophy "a quick look" at the problems which
have dominated the history of Western philosophy. Within the limits
that he sets for himself the author, has been successful in presenting a
simple but never oversimplified historical study of the major themes
of both scholastic and non-schola;tic philosophy. The book is divided
into four parts covering the problem of the one and the many, the nature
of man, the problem of knowledge and the nature and limitations of
human thought. In the first part Coleburt gives a short history of
Greek metaphysics and a rather brief exposition of the metaphysics of
St. Augustine and the five ways of St. Thomas. In dealing with the
nature of man he begins again with the Greeks and ends with J. S. Mill,
Hegel, and Marx. His third section covers the classical European
theories of knowledge and is supported by extensive quotations from
Descartes, Locke, Berkely, Hume, and Kant. The fourth part of the
book gives a brief introduction to each of the existentialists and an
outline of positivism and logical analysis. Finally, in an appendix Coleburt attempts a more systematic study of the problems of evil and free
will. The appendix is somewhat disappointing after the high quality
of the historical study but contains some good insights on the relation•
ship of philosophy and faith.
JOHN W. HE"iLEY, S.J.
UTOPIA
The Praise of Wisdom. A Commentary on the Religious and Moral
Problems and Backgrounds of St. Thomas More's Utopia. By Edward L. Surtz, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1957. Pp.
xii-402.
The subtitle of Father Surtz's book indicates its nature but not the
richness and depth of the material it offers to the serious reader. For,
conceiving Utopia as essentially a product of the English Renaissance
on the eve of the Reformation, he places its religious and moral attitudes
in the intellectual and social milieu of that period by appealing to the
Renaissance humanists and the ancients whom they worshipped.
A brief example of his method will indicate the value of the work.
At one point he discusses the Utopians' use of mercenary troops. In
seeking More's mind on the subject as a man of his time, Father Surtz
gives first an historical conspectus of the use of such troops in sixteenth
l
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183
century Europe, then cites the opinions of Erasmus, Suarez, Silvester,
Cajetan, Machiavelli and Plato. This is the world familiar to More and
in the light of which the reader should understand what More has said
of Utopian mercenaries.
In other sections of his work, Father Surtz, following the same
method, sheds new light on problems long worrying admirers of Thomas
More, for example, was the ,young More tolerant and the old More intolerant of heresy; did More the Catholic advocate or look with favor
on such Utopian practices as divorce, euthanasia, slavery and the marriage of the clergy. Some of these problems he is able to answer. All
of them receive at least clarification.
Father Surtz's study is not light reading. It is sometimes repetitious
and often conjectural in its conclusions as is to be expected from his
method of procedure. Nevertheless it is a worthy and valuable addition to the series of Jesuit Studies published at Loyola University and
a welcome aid for the student and the intelligent admirer of the wisdom
of Thomas More.
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
EXCELLENT THESIS
The Beginning Of The English Reformation. By Hugh Ross Williamson.
New York: Sheed and Ward, 1957. Pp. 113. $2.50.
This little book shows the clear intellect that led Hugh Ross Williamson from Congregationalism to Anglicanism and finally put him on the
road to Rome. Although his father was a Congregationalist minister,
Williamson took Anglican Orders in 1943. The Anglican Church's
declaration of the validity of the Orders of the Church of South India
prompted him to renounce his ordination and enter the Catholic Church
in 1955.
Basically, Williamson offers an excellent thesis that Protestantism was
imposed on England as a foreign religion manipulated to justify an
economic revolution. He fortifies his thesis with apt citations from
contemporary sources. The reader is led from Henry's rift with Rome
through the reigns of Edward, Mary and Elizabeth and into a short
treatment of the Gunpowder Plot at the inauguration of James' rule.
The class that had enriched themselves by the confiscation of the monastery lands saw the threat inherent in the reintroduction of Catholicism.
They closed ranks to protect their "new wealth". Mary re-established
Catholicism; but, she was not strong enough to declare that the Church
should regain its "stolen" lands. In Elizabeth's reign the "new monied
class" with the help of Cecil created the antipapist legend. The problem
tha~ the legend helped to solve was obvious; the majority of the English
nation was Roman at heart. By a series of "plots against the Queen",
~he ru.lers of England proved to the majority of the nation that a
a.t~ohc could not be a "loyal" subject. The documents cited by
Williamson show that these plots either were originated or discovered
~nd a~etted by the government; each plot led to more extreme, antiathohc, penal legislation. Yet even today English school boys study
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BOOK REVIEWS
these "plots" and "Catholic treason" as the "historical" account of the
Protestant "Reformation" of England according to Williamson.
The title of the book, however, is confusing. The reader reviews much
more than The Beginning Of The English Reformation. At the same
time the English Reformation is viewed through only one line of vision,
the economic. This essay presents the economic interpretation in such
limpid style that the author reads like a Belloc with footnotes. At the
same time the author should not be forced to bear the adverse criticism
arising from the over-pretentious title of his book.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
ONE-SIDED
Science Versus Philosophy. By F. G. Connolly. New York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp. 9_o: $3.75.
In seeking a solution to the' classic Science-Philosophy problem, the
author of this book considers two Thomistic answers: that of Maritain
who holds that Science is a field of knowledge adequately distinct from
Philosophy, and the anti-Maritain answer which denies this distinction.
While professing a middle-ground position, the author agrees with the
more basic tenents of ~laritain. He holds, however, that some of the
empiriological sciences fall within the orbit of the philosophy of nature,
while others belong to the realm of Art.
The book has many deficiencies. Despite its title it says very little
of "science" as this word is commonly understood today; indeed, the
aathor is apparently unfamiliar with modern science. The language
employed is comprehensible only to scholastic philosophers. A more
serious objection, however, can be brought against the whole a priori
approach to the division of knowledge. To say that this empiriological
science pertains to "speculative Science" because it is ordained to prudential action, while that one pertains to "practical or motal Science" because it is ordained to productive action, may be fine in theory; but,
what science can be put exclusively in either category? However valid
in itself and consonant with the teaching of St. Thomas, it would seem
quite unrealistic in our time to propose such things as: "The philosophy
of nature and its associated empiriological sciences should lay bold claim
to the exclusive title of Science." Are not such philosophers kidding
themselves (they fool no one else) when they say that they are the only
true scientists, that mathematicians are "frustrated philosophers who,
having rejected metaphysics, look upon mathematics as the Queen of
the Sciences?" No one will deny the need of a unified synthesis of
knowledge that will provide for the data of Revelation, of philosophy and
of modern science, but the road to such a monumental opus is not made
easier by such an approach as this.
In the last chapter entitled "A Challenge and A Plea", the author
points out the great gulf between scholastic philosophy and other
philosophies in America. He correctly traces the history of this development. The challenge is to effect a rapprochement. Many will agree
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185
that Thomism does have something to say, both in the realm of philosophy and in the ordering of the branches of knowledge. But it will
never be listened to, it will continue to have. no impact on the intelligentsia until it is willing to go in their door, to use their terminology,
to learn new ideas from them; and, above all, to acquire a knowledge of
the science it is so willing to talk about.
WILLIAM J. SCHMITT, S.J.
WORTH READING
By What Authority? By Robert Hugh Benson. Edited with a foreword by Riley Hughes. New Yqrk: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957.
Pp. x-372. $3.50.
Oddsfish! By Robert Hugh Benson. Edited with a foreword by Anne
Freemantle. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957. Pp. ix-371.
$3.50.
Since it was published just one year after l\Isgr. Benson's conversion
to Catholicism, By What Authority? is a very uneven novel and suffers
from too great a preoccupation with apologetics. Yet, for all that, Benson's writing talents are not hidden. Even in the midst of Campion's
defense and death, he paints a picture of beauty and gallantry that is
truly poetic. There is a grandeur in his description of the Easter Mass
at Stanfield, and a genuinely beautiful portrait of the enigmatic Mary
Corbett. There is, throughout the book, the beauty of England where
"autumn creeps over the woods in flame and russet and the air is full
of frost, and the high south downs break the gales from the sea." It
is a beauty, as Riley Hughes points out, that is worth going back half a
century to find.
Oddsfish! is not one of Benson's best novels. This is understandable
if it is remembered that the book, although published in 1914, was written
in 1890, when the author was only nineteen. There are too many
incongruities and loose ends to enable the book to approach the level of
Benson's later novels. The whole theme of a monk who leaves his
monastery on a special secret mission from the Pope to flit among the
royal courts of Europe, the ghostly woman who walks in Dorothy's
chamber, the near condemnation from a "forgotten" paper in a secret
cabinet, the brawling scene in the royal castle, and the Deus ex Machina
death of Dorothy that enables Roger to return to the peace of St. Benet's
monastery near Rome, there to write the memoirs of his youthful
adventures-all these are too far-fetched to be true to life, and the novel
suffers in consequence as a piece of literature. Although there is little
Writing to match Benson's more mature style, the portraits of Charles II
and of James do have some value as a reflection of the author's historical
insight into the period. Anne Freemantle points to the death scene of
Charles II as one of the best passages in the book. But Benson, even
When he is not at his best, is still worth reading; and, the obvious
Parallels between these two novels and the present day make them
doubly valuable.
JosEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
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LEAD FONTS
English Romanesque Lead Sculpture. By George Zarnecki. New York:
Philosophical Library, i957. Pp. 46.
Our appreciation of the ability of the mediaeval metalworkers is
limited by the lack of surviving examples of their art. Most of the
art work done in precious metals was destroyed as the shrines were
pillaged and the new art forms demanded the melted down gold of the
past. Though twenty-six carts of gold and jewels were at Canterbury
alone, an item such as the chalice of Abbot Suger in the National Gallery
has few counterparts in the world today. For this reason the study of
art work in lead is of some help in realizing what must have been the
quality of the work done in the more precious metals. Eighty-one illustrations help make this book a fine introduction to mediaeval lead work.
The opening pages and the running commentary on the photographs offer
enough background knowledge to afford the reader some appreciation
of the workmanship of the mediaeval artist.
WILLIAM SAMPSON, S.J.
DEBATABLE·
On The Philosophy Of History. By Jacques Maritain. Edited by Joseph
W. Evans. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1957. Pp. xi-180.
$3.50.
Philosophies of history-usually employ either a formal or material
treatment of their subject. The material philosophy of history studies
the inductive laws that unify historical data; historical criteriology is
investigated by the formal philosophy of history. Professor Maritain
does not appear to distinguish sharply between these two -approaches.
He attempts to justify the existence of a philosophy of histoi'Y·by supplying answers to most of the objections raised against it. Yet the proofs
offered rebut only the objections posed against a material philosophy
of history. Confusion results from not following only one approach to
the philosophy of history.
Maritain's treatment of historical knowledge will not find wide acceptance. He seems to condemn as "not objective" a scientist who directs
more than a purely intellectual gaze at a problem. Yet progress in
science demands total engagement. Not cold, intellectual aloofness but
the dedicated use of the imagination gathers phenomena into new patterns; these new arrangements are the basis of progress. So also the
dedicated or engaged historian does not merit condemnation in his
approach to historical data; an historical synthesis, which is the product
of a completely abstracted intellect, is neither a human creation nor good
history.
Maritain's material philosophy of history is much more appealing.
Many excellent insights find their way into this section of the book.
Only deep thought could have produced such laws as the law of the
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187
simultaneous, historical existence of forces that attract to both good
and evil or the law of the historical evolution of moral conscience.
Historians can use such formulae to understand better the data which
is the raw material of any historical synthesis. Some readers, however,
will dispute the title of this work. Professor Maritain admittedly borrows many of his postulates from theology. Unfortunately limitations
of space do not permit him to prove that his resulting science remains a
philosophical discipline. The arguments against this claim are the same
proposed against the author's Science and Wisdom (New York: Scribner's, 1940).
The origin of this work was four tape-recorded lectures given in a
seminar at Notre Dame (Indiana). Perhaps many of the statements
received their proper distinctions or proofs in the discussions that followed the lectures. Were that true, then the editor has erred in the
omission of those sections. For the Maritain, whom the editor presented
in this work, is not the precise Thomist whom we have come to expect.
His insights and constructed categories were brilliant; his knowledge of
historiography and the philosophy of history did not reach his accusEDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
tomed, intellectual brilliance.
SYNTHESIS
A Christian Philosophy of Life. By Bernard Wuellner, S.J. Milwaukee:
The Bruce Publishing Company, 1957. Pp. vi-278. $4.25.
Father Wuellner had as his purpose to gather together all the relevant
doctrines from the various scholastic disciplines into a unity centering on
human life, and thus give them a popular and coherent expression. The
book is similar in its objective to the now classic work "The Meaning of
Man" by Father Jean Mouroux, but it is written in a simpler manner
with less of personal insight and from a more academic viewpoint.
Father Wuellner is especially to be commended for breaking away from
the narrow tradition of the textbook compilers by cutting across the
arbitrary classroom divisions of scholasticism in order to give a synthetic
view of its answer to the most central problem of Christian philosophy.
A glance at the twenty chapter headings makes it immediately evident
that the author did not intend to undertake a serious philosophical investigation into any one of the literally hundreds of philosophical problems which he touches upon. No problem is pursued to its metaphysical
or epistemological roots. The result is that the book has a catechetical
tone, appearing more to be a statement of incontrovertible philosophical
verities than a philosophical investigation. The author acknowledges
his failure to take note of rival opinions and theories on the basis that
controversy would confuse. But since the objective of the book is to
relate in a practical way the conclusions of scholastic philosophy to
modern living, one perhaps can regret a failure to highlight these philosophical insights by contrast with modern opposing viewpoints, or to
~u~e~t them by assimilating the positive content of more recent
hrJstian thought such as Maurice Blondel's philosophy of action, or
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BOOK REVIEWS
Gabriel Marcel's philosophy of communion. However the very massiveness of the undertaking practically precluded any considerable amount
of integration of modern thought.
This book will be of special value to the student of Catholic philosophy,
who, after he has finished the analytic work of the various courses, feels
the need of an integrated and synthetic review of the practical implications of philosophy for the fullness of Christian life.
JoHN J. McNEILL, S.J.
INFORMATIVE AND INTERESTING
Georgetown University: Origin and Early Years. By John M. Daley, S.J.
Georgetown University Press, 1957. Pp. xviii-324. $5.
Whoever has visited Georgetown University is at least passingly
acquainted with the statue, just inside the main gate, of Archbishop John
Carroll. Even for the majori.ty of those who feel themselves identified,
in some way or other, with Georgetown, the statue is more than likely
a cold and lifeless symbol of a man who happened to found the College.
Father Daley's history of the origin and early years of the "Alma Mater
of all Catholic colleges in the United States" brings John Carroll, his
clarity of vision and tenacity of purpose, to life with such striking detail
that his statue seems more like flesh and blood, and his heart and soul
still anxious for the good of Georgetown.
The problems of the Catholic Church in America and the suppression
of the Society of Jesus throughout the world made the birth and early
years of Georgetown ·very complex and extremely difficult. From the
November day in 1791 when William Gaston walked through the bustling
tobacco port of Georgetown to become a class of one at the new college,
Georgetown was so fraught with the lack of funds, administrators, and
professors that more than once its closing was debated. Archbishop
Carroll, entrusted with the welfare of the Church in -America, had to
face the suspicions of his former Jesuit brethren when he seemed to act
against the interests of "the object closest to his heart." The early years
are marked with the individual figures of such presidents as the
mischievous, timid man of sound judgment, Father Robert Molyneux;
Father DuBourg, whose French origin brought extreme prejudices
against him from his own consultors; and Bishop Leonard Neale who
ran the College so like a seminary that in 1803 the student body numbered a mere twenty. Not until 1812 and the presidency of Father
John A. Grassi, Georgetown's second founder, did the school clear its
debts, organize its curriculum more efficiently, enlarge its student body,
and begin to fulfill Carroll's dream. When the Charleston schism took
Grassi to Rome in 1817, Georgetown floundered through the reign of
no less than seven prE)sidents until the appointment in 1829 of the
large and jovial Father Thomas Mulledy who once again set the College
on the path of success.
The wealth of interesting detail, including the visits to the College of
Washington and Lafayette, the account of the strict classical curriculum
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189
and rigid disciplinary code, the personal letters of Scholastics and students, the schoolboy pranks and even riots, manifest Father Daley's devotion to thorough and scholarly research. That the story is so readable
praises his talents as a narrator. The reader at times may suspect that
Father Daley protests too much that personal grievances and petty
rivalries were always born of the desire for the common good, and may
sometimes wish that he had not repeated facts and quotations that the
reader had not forgotten. But this is not to say that the author has not
accomplished a remarkably informative and interesting history, which
Monsignor John Tracy Ellis has called "a book that deserves to rank
among the best works produced to date in the history of American
Catholic education."
JAMES N. GELSON, S.J.
FEDERAL LEGISLATION
The Wagner Housing Act, A Case Study of the Legislative Proeess.
By Timothy L. McDonnell, S.J. (Jesuit Studies). Chicago: Loyola
University Press, 1957. Pp. 470.
Father McDonnell's stimulating work deserves a wide reading. Its
value is by no means confined to those professionally interested in public
housing or political science, but it extends to all who seek an understanding of the total political process which terminates in federal social
legislation. The Wagner Housing Act is the author's point of departure,
but his express purpose is to "expose as completely as possible in depth
and extension all the activities that are involved in the making of a law."
The degree to which he has succeeded in satisfying so vast and complex
an objective is truly remarkable.
The Wagner Housing Act was a singularly apt statute for this type
of study. The idea of a national housing program was recent enough
in origin to admit of comprehensive treatment and yet of such a nature
as to generate a strong spectrum of partisans and enemies. Although
the public life of the Act was limited to two political campaigns and
three Congresses, it ran the full gamut of public, legislative, and executive pressures. Compromise was, in consequence, a characteristic note of
the Act's development. Not only were different statutory schemes considered and passed by the various Houses of Congress at different times,
but the infighting politics of the congressional committee system, of floor
debate, and the bicameral conference introduced yet further modifications, often of a basic nature.
At all stages, moreover, the push and pull of competing interests was
evident. Slum clearance advocates jockeyed for position with public
?ousing advocates, and federal public works men with those interested
In fostering local or private construction. Multimillion dollar costs
stimulated the tax conscious and generated a wide variety of financial
plans each with its ardent adherents. The administration of the Act
:vas also a source of friction, with those favoring administration by an
Independent authority in vigorous opposition to those interested in
employing an existing governmental agency. Sectionalism made its
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claims and raised its objections, and at one point patronage considerations assumed a dominant importance. Vigorous pressure groups and
strong personalities such as Roosevelt, Wagner, Morgenthau, Ickes, and
Steagall were involved, and often in conflict and competition. As a
consequence the Wagner Act sharply illustrated the interplay of ideas
and interests which is characteristic of a federal law's evolution and
adoption.
It is to Father McDonnell's credit that he has succeeded in reducing so
complex a manifold to order and unity without sacrificing depth and
precision of detail. The book is a genuine contribution to our understanding of the federal legislative process.
THOMAS M. QuiNN, S.J.
HEROIC VIRTUE
Philippine Duchesne; Frontier·· Missionary of the Sacred Heart. By
Louise Callan, R. S. C. J. Westminster, Maryland: The Newman
Press. Pp. xiii + 805. $8.
That Blessed Philippine Duchesne (1769-1852) would become a lifelong admirer of the Society of Jesus was something not to have been
expected. The Society had been dissolved in France five years before
her birth and suppressed by Clement XIV when she was four. But
events conspired to enhance the reputation of the defunct Society. The
rapid decline of all forms of the religious life in France after the
Jesuits were outlawed tended to convince friends of religion that this
would not have happened had the Society not been crushed. When, a
few years later, the French revolutionists made their fanatical attempt
to destroy Christianity, it became quite clear that the assault on the
Society was really part of an anti-Christian conspiracy. Blessed Philippine as a girl joined the Visitation nuns who were amol}g those who
most regretted the disappearance of the Jesuits. As a Yisitation nun
she was introduced to devotion to St. John Francis Regis -who became
her favorite saint and the one to whose intercession she attributed the
favors God bestowed on her.
During the years when the Society of Jesus was being revived, Blessed
Philippine got to know Father Joseph Varin, Father Louis Barat and
other priests who were destined to be members of the restored Society
in France. Father Varin and Father Barat also took an active part in
the foundation of the Society of the Sacred Heart which Blessed Philippine joined and of which Father Barat's sister, St. Madeleine Sophie,
was the first superior general.
When Blessed Philippine and four companions came to Missouri in 1818
to found their Society in the New World, there were no Jesuits on hand
to console her. In 1823, however, Father Charles Felix Van Quickenborne arrived from Georgetown with a remarkable group of young men
to begin at Florissant the Midwestern epic of the Society. Mother
Duchesne was overjoyed. She even turned the choir cloaks of her nuns
into habits for the destitute Jesuits. To her surprise she found that
Father Van Quickenborne and his Flemish subjects were by no means
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191
as friendly as the French Jesuits had been. Despite her sacrifices in his
behalf she experienced harsh treatment at the hands of Father Van
Quickenborne. But Blessed Philippine was persevering in her affections.
She refused to renounce her loyalty to the Jesuits, in whom she confessed
she was more interested than in her own community. Even the uncompromising Van Quickenborne could not resist such devotion. Soon Blessed
Philippine was able to report that he was calling her nuns his daughters.
The young men under Van Quickenborne became admirers of the holy
woman who had befriended them in days of dire necessity. Father Peter
De Smet spoke of her as one who deserved canonization while still living
and Father Peter Verhaegen, who assisted her on her deathbed, judged
that she had never lost her baptismal innocence, that she was eminent
in all the virtues of the religious life and especially in humility, and that
she died in the odor of sanctity.
Mother Callan, whose Society of the Sacred Heart in North America
is a classic in its field, has produced another notable work in this volume.
Blessed Philippine was an indefatigable letter writer. Mother Callan
has turned many of these letters into pleasing English and made them
into a biography by putting them in their historical setting. Some of
the historical details are interesting. To give one example, Mother
Duchesne related that in 1819 Bishop Du Bourg "had said positively
that we may not admit Negroes or mulattoes to either of our schools,
and he has appointed one day a week for the instruction of the colored
people; otherwise, he says, we should not hold the white children in
school. He told us of an experience he had in the college in Baltimore,
which shows how difficult it is to overcome race-prejudice in this1 country.
He consulted the Archbishop of Baltimore on the matter and was told
that this attitude would have to be maintained as the last safeguard of
morality and manners in this country." The Archbishop in question was
John Carroll.
As hagiography this volume fulfils all and none of the requirements.
None, because no effort is made to analyze the sanctity of Blessed
Philippine; all, because a living saint is graphically portrayed. Blessed
Philippine hid her holiness: not only is the extraordinary almost absent
from the story, but the letters have nothing of the "professional" spiritual person about them. It is true that when writing to young religious,
Blessed Philippine gives us a glimpse of her strong direction in spiritual
matters. In this respect the letters to Mother Gonzague Boilvin are
especially revealing. What is extraordinary in this biography is the
heroic virtue of the subject and that is obvious on almost every page.
Jesuits will do well to study this holy nun, so sincerely devoted to the
Society of Jesus.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bibliografia del P. Miguel Batllori, S.I. Prepared by G. M. Bertini.
Torino: Arcsal, 1957. Pp. 45.
A very brief prologue, written in Italian by G. M. Bertini, introduces
the bibliography of Father Michael Batllori, S.I., President of the
�192
BOOK REVIEWS
"Historical Institute of the Society of Jesus", Director of "Archivum histori cum Societatis Jesu" and Professor at the Roman Gregorian University. Father Batllori's bibliography is presented in homage to him
on the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of his first publication
(1932-1957) and of his recent designation as a member of the Italian
Academy of History.
The bibliography contains fourteen books written by Father Batllori,
five critical editions, 142 articles, conferences and introductions, and
150 reviews of books and articles. All these works, written in Spanish,
Catalan, Italian or German, give evidence of a profound knowledge of
medieval and modern European culture. Father Batllori's research is
not limited to a particular field, but includes the history of Europe, of
the Church, of the Society of Jesus, the history of Catalonia, his own
country, as well as historical, literary, philosophical, philological, artistic
critiques and studies. All this Father Batllori has accomplished through
his patient researches in archives and libraries throughout Europe.
FRANCISCO DE P. NADAL, S.J.
RELIGION LOOKS AT SCIENCE
The Church and Modern Science. By P. J. McLaughlin, D.Sc. New
York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp. 374. $7.50.
The two most talked of subjects in our day seem to be science and
religion. Here we have a book that has as its aim to give us religion's
view of science. The author wisely includes philosophy as a third
party, being biased towara neither of the other two but offering a helpful
hand to each. In Part One he presents some science for the philosopher
and some philosophy for the scientist. The aim always is to help fill the
gap created between scientist and philosopher by the lack of a common
language. After outlining science and philosophy and showing areas
where they touch religion, the author gives, in Part Two, religion's view of
science in the form of addresses delivered by Pope Pius XII to scientific
and other professional groups. Part Three is a list of all of the documents of the pontificate of Pius XII relating to science and technology.
The wide range of subjects that are touched on in the papal addresses
gives some idea of the attitude of the Church toward science. These
addresses deal with moral and other implications of science and the Pope
speaks clearly to a confused world on the urgent problems created by
science and its technological offspring. Because of the circumstances
surrounding these papal discourses a full development of many themes
is impossible. It is here that the author tries to fill the gap for scientist
or philosopher by explaining such themes as relativity, natural law,
freewill, and scientific method. The treatment given these themes is
perforce sketchy and in some places oversimplified. Perhaps the most
valuable part of the book is the excellent appendix listing the papal
documents issued since 1939 that deal with science. This handy list
also gives references to translations of these documents where such
exist.
DANIEL J. O'BRIEN, s.J.
I
I
'
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVII, No. 3
JULY, 1958
CONTENTS FOR JULY 1958
SPIRITUAL JOURNAL OF IGNATIUS LOYOLA ------------------------ 195
Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
Introduction by W. J. Y., S.J. ------------------------------------------ 195
First Part (February 2, 1544 to March 12, 1544) ------------------- 205
Second Part (March 13, 1544 to February 27, 1545) ------------- 239
Election on PovertY------------------------------------------------- 265
BIBLIOGRAPHY TO AID VOCATIONS ___________________________________________ 268
Charles A. Gallagher, S.J.
Edmund G. Ryan, S.J.
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS-------------------------- 317
�CONTRIBUTORS
William J. Young (Chicago Province) is Spiritual Father at West
Baden College.
Charles A. Gallagher (New York Province) is a Fourth Year Father
at Woodstock.
Edmund G. Ryan (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock.
-·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and Noveml:!er.
Entered aa aecond·claao matter December 1, 19,2, at the poet office at Woodotoek.
Subaerlptlon: Fin Dollaro Tearlr
:Maryland, under the Act of March a, 18'19.
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, HARTLAND
�Spiritual Journal Of Ignatius Loyola
February 2, 1544 to February 27, 1545
Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
Introduction
In the Spiritual Journal we have a document which gives us
a fuller introduction to the soul of St. Ignatius. It unrolls an
impressive panorama of the peaks of the sublime mysticism.
If these pages had not been preserved, a profound aspect of
Ignatian spirituality would have remained hidden, and we
should scarcely have guessed the heights to which our Lord
had raised him.
This singular document offers us, besides, another advantage. It brings the interior life of Ignatius into focus, separating it from the external aspects, which, glorious and full
of merit as they are, cast shadows which prevent our contemplating the life in its full light. This perhaps is one of the
deeper reasons why, in spite of the abundance of testimony
which we possess of the holiness of St. Ignatius, it has taken
so long to trace his true profile. The magnificence of the
works he achieved takes one by surprise. His gifts as organizer, as inspired strategist, demand recognition in the study of
his character. In his Autobiography, in which the saint bares
the secrets of his soul and reveals to us the principal graces
which God granted him, among others his visions of the
Trinity and his mystical gifts, he does not light up his interior
with the flashes of the Journal. The great external enterprises of his life, which are narrated, do not allow the mind
to fix its attention directly on the secret life of the saint. Here,
however, we enter into the most hidden precinct of Ignatius'
soul. We discover his most intimate relations with the Most
Holy Trinity, without any external factor overshadowing the
vision of his interior.
195
�196
INTRODUCTION
In order to allow us to contemplate the soul of Ignatius with
the clearest possible vision, God wished to transmit to us
this treasure in its original form. Indeed, it is the only autograph writing of importance left by the saint. Outside of a
very few letters and his deliberations on poverty, everything
else has come down to us in a more or less perfect copy. Even
the best copy of the Exercises, despite its bearing the title of
autograph, is a copy made by a secretary, although used and
even retouched in certain points by Ignatius himself.
The Spiritual Journal comprises two copybooks. The first,
of fourteen folios, contains the account of the forty days, from
February 2nd to March 12th, 1544, which he devoted to the
election of the kind of poverty to be practiced by churches of
the Society. The second embraces his spiritual experiences
from the following day, March 13th, to February 27th, of the
ensuing year, 1545.
St. Ignatius must have written many other fascicles like
these two which providentially have been saved from destruction. There was the "rather large bundle of notes," which he
showed to Father Gonzalves da Camara, from which he read
a few paragraphs, but of which he was unwilling to let him
have "even a little," as Father da Camara desired. It would
be difficult to identify them with the twenty-five folios of our
two copybooks.
The saint's contemporaries knew these precious manuscripts, and made use of them after the death of St. Ignatius.
Father Ribadeneira, in his Life of the Founder of the Society,
copied a few fragments. So did Bartoli and Lancicius. Other
early biographers also speak of this document and transcribe
a few short paragraphs, but they take them from the authors
already mentioned. A priest of the diocese of Leija, John
Viset, translated it into Italian. But in spite of this, the
Journal continued unpublished until the end of the past
century.
The first to publish it was Father Juan Jose de la Torre in
1892. But he published completely only the first book of the
forty days. Of the second, he gave only a few brief fragments.
In 1922, de la Torre's text was published in German translation by Father Alfred Feder, who added a valuable introduc-
�INTRODUCTION
197
tory study and a good number of notes to his excellent translation.
The complete Journal was not published until 1934, when it
was edited by Fater Codina with the help of Father Dionisius
Fernandez Zapico, in the first volume of the Constitutiones in
the Monumenta Historica. This critical and carefully worked
out edition gives us an exact reproduction of the original text.
In the critical apparatus are found a few paragraphs which
were cancelled by St. Ignatius. It also points out various
corrections.
Finally, Father Victoriano Larrafiaga, in the Biblioteca de
Autores Cristianos, published the precious codex in 1947, following in general the lines of the Monumenta edition. In his
text, however, he includes the principal paragraphs deleted by
St. Ignatius, without calling attention to this procedure in the
notes or otherwise. On the other hand, he altogether omits
the short lines, or single words, deleted by St. Ignatius himself on various occasions and not restored by any equivalent
term in the definitive edition. In an ample introduction he
studies the value and significance of the Journal and its character, which is especially mystical, collecting the main conclusions of the fundamental work of Father de Guibert, and
completing it in detail from other sources. In long and
learned notes he clarifies many other points, especially the relations of the Spiritual Journal with other writings of St.
Ignatius, and with those of St. Teresa and St. John of the
Cross.*
The work as a whole illumines, as few others do, the mystical features of the saint, and analyzes with great precision of
detail the main problems connected with Ignatian spirituality.
Merely to enable the reader without further reference to
inform himself of the meaning of the document, and to give
direction to his reading, we are going to synthesize the principal characteristics of the Spiritual Journal, and to suggest
the horizon it offers, especially in the field of mysticism.
* In this Introduction the translator has availed himself of the excellent Edici6n Manual of Father Ignacio Iparraguirre, in the same
Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos. He has leaned so heavily on him, in
fact, that some passages are practically translations.
�198
INTRODUCTION
The Journal and the Asceticism of St. Ignatius
One of the aspects which become more evident is the identity
between the general lines of the asceticism of St. Ignatius
and these mystical elevations. Father de Guibert, in a few
precious and profound lines, has been able to gather the principal points of agreement between the two fields of St.
Ignatius's asceticism and mysticism.
"What is surprising from the very beginning is the complete convergence of the gratuitous favors granted to the
Founder with the master lines of his asceticism; or, more
exactly, since these favors, at least in part, at Manresa, preceded every formulation· of ascetical principles, the fidelity
of the ascetical teaching of Ignatius with the directions received from God in his contemplative life. In the Journal,
as in the Exercises, there stands out the same desire to find
and embrace God's will, to find it first through interior experiences, without in any way renouncing the use of reason enlightened by faith; the same desire of divine confirmation in
the decisions taken; the same devotion to the Most Holy
Trinity, and the same respect for the Divine Majesty; the same
feeling of infinite distance between God and us in the midst of
the most lively effusions of love. In both documents great
importance is given to the mediators; in the first place to
the humanity of Christ, our leader and model, our advocate
with the Father, and after Him, to the Blessed Vir.gin and the
saints, as can be found in the triple colloquies and the great
compositions of place. In both writings there is given also
the same importance, subordinate but beneficient and useful,
to the imagination and the sensitive perception, which do not
appear as an enemy that should be shaken off, but as a real,
though secondary, help over which we must maintain, however, a constant watch. In both instances, we observe that
the same value is given to tears, and that there exists the same
power of attentive and penetrative introspection." 1
There is no purpose in accumulating arguments which are
to be found in the use of the same words, and in many details
of both documents. We prefer to fix the attention on the abso·
lute identity of the substance. In a certain sense, the Journal
1
Revue d'Ascetique et de Mystique, 19:133-34.
�INTRODUCTION
199
is no more than the Exercises in action. Under the immediate
direction of God, Ignatius has made a model election. He
wished, as he himself directs in the Exercises, to offer it to the
Lord, knowing no peace until he receives abundant signs that
it has been favorably accepted. He makes use of the "three
times" pointed out in the Exercises. It would be difficult to
find a more reliable and authentic commentary on this central
part of the Exercises, which the election is, than these mystical
pages of the Spiritual Journal.
No less suggestive is another fundamental aspect of this
document. In it is reflected the practical manner in which St.
Ignatius adapted the essence of the Exercises to the concrete
realities of life. He applies the principles and norms of the
immortal little book, not in a time fixed and dedicated to a
retreat and within the limits of the meditations made at such
a time, but in the midst of the ordinary occupations of his life.
During these very days he was attending to current business,
making visits-in the Journal itself he speaks of the illustrations he had had in the house of Cardinal Cupis-writing
letters, and directing the government of the Society.
Again, we should like to note here still another aspect within
these same limits, that is, the projection of the Exercises to
the terrain of the mystical. In the notes to the corresponding
passages in the Journal, we shall point out how he twice
applies the rule of the third mode of humility to the gift of
tears (May 8th and 9th). Reflections are also given, although
not so explicitly, of the Principle and Foundation, in his
thoughts about respect, reverence and humility in the Journal.
Moreover, a surprising parallel can be observed between the
abhorrence for sin and disorder, in the First Week, and his
eagerness for mystical purification and sentiments of shame
and confusion before the imperceptible miseries which obscured his vision of the Most Holy Trinity. The liveliness of
the Contemplation for Obtaining Love is perceived in his insistent feeling of the action of the Trinity in creatures. In a
word, we conclude with Father de Guibert: "We may say
that the graces granted to Ignatius, wholly gratuitous and
infused as they are, are adapted to the same method already
set up under divine inspiration, or that this method itself is no
�INTRODUCTION
200
more than the echo and the practical translation, for the gen.erality of souls, of similar graces received at Manresa." 2
Reality and Characteristics of the Mysticism of the Journal
"We find ourselves," Father de Guibert finally admits, "in
the presence of a mystical life in the strictest sense of the
word, in the presence of a soul led by God along the ways of
infused contemplation, in the same degree, if not in the same
manner, as a St. Francis of Assisi, or a St. John of the
Cross." 3
And the same author writes in his oft quoted work on
Ignatian mysticism: "While the Exercises, whatever may be
the mystical horizons they· open up and the adaptations of
which they are capable, are in their very text first of all a
book of supernatural asceticism, a method of personal effort
to submit to the action of grace, the Journal places us from the
· beginning on the mystical level in the strictest sense of the
word. The three principal features which theologians agree
in considering the essential characteristics of infused prayer,
here stand revealed on every page: simple and intuitive vision
of divine things, without multiplicity of concepts or discourse;
the presence and action of God experienced in the soul; complete passivity in infused knowledge and love, which are given
and withdrawn by God with sovereign independence of all our
efforts. All the details of the Journal are here fully set forth
in these masterful lines of infused contemplation..2' }
The intimate friends of the saint saw him as we discover
him through the sublime pages of this incomparable memorial.
Two witnesses, who are as good as many, will suffice. Father
Laynez passes on these confidences which the Founder himself had shared with him: "He told me other things concerning visitations which he had relating to the mysteries of the
faith, as on the Eucharist, the Person of the Father especially,
and for a certain time subsequently, I think, concerning the
Person of the Word, and finally concerning the Person of the
Holy Spirit. And I recall that he told me that in these things
he was now rather passive than active, which those who are
2
RAM 19:120.
a La Spiritualit6 de la Compagnie de Jesus, p. 27.
4
RAM 19:134.
�INTRODUCTION
201
given to contemplation, like Sagerus, place in the highest
degree of contemplation." 5
Father Nadal speaks even more explicitly: "Father Ignatius
received from God the singular grace to contemplate freely
all of the Most Holy Trinity, and to repose in this mystery.
For, at times he was seized by the grace of contemplating the
whole Trinity, and impelled towards It. He united himself
with It wholeheartedly, with great feelings of devotion and
spiritual relish. Sometimes he contemplated the Father, sometimes the Son, and sometimes the Holy Spirit. He always
received the grace of this contemplation very frequently, but
in an exceptional way during the last years of his earthly
pilgrimage. He not only experienced this most excellent
manner of prayer-a great privilege-but in all his works,
actions and dealings, he felt, moreover, the presence of God
and the relish for spiritual things, just as though he were in
contemplation, being a contemplative in the thick of action.
He used to explain this by saying that we must seek God in
all things. We were able, to the great admiration of all and
our great comfort, to see this grace and light of the soul
reflected in a certain splendor, so to say, in his face, and in
the clearness and certainty of his actions in Christ, from
something or other of this grace which flowed upon ourselves." 6
The mysticism of St. Ignatius is a mysticism that is preeminently Trinitarian. This note overtops all the others, so
that it catches our attention at the first glance. There is
scarcely a page in which he does not speak, in one way or
another, of the Most Holy Trinity, the center of all his illuminations. How appositely Father Larrafiaga writes: "The
same visions of the Most Holy Trinity which will hold this
deified soul suspended in contemplation, as though the veil
had been withdrawn, will cause to pass before his astonished
eyes the most unfathomable myteries of the Divinity, such as
the Divine Essence, the Three Divine Persons in a unity of
nature and a distinction of persons, the divine processions, the
circuminsession, and so many other mysteries of the life of
the Trinity." 1
-
5
Fontes Narrativi I, 139 f.
Epist. Nadal IV, 651 f.
7
V. Larrafiaga, Obras Completas I, 635.
6
�INTRODUCTION
202
The second typical note of the mysticism of St. Ignatius
rightly observed by all who have studied his spirituality, is
that it is a mysticism essentially eucharistic and liturgical,
centered in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The daily Mass is
the center of all graces. And even those which he receives
during the course of the day always seem to be the prolonga·
tion and complement of those of the morning. 8 Dr. Suquia,
who with great diligence has examined this liturgical aspect,
arrives at this conclusion: "For me, St. Ignatius forms part of
the chorus of those holy priests who, like St. Vincent Ferrer,
St. Vincent de Paul, the holy Cure of Ars, made their daily
Mass the unique center of their whole spirituality." 9 The
mysticism of St. Ignatius .. is, to express it in the words of
Father de Guibert, whom we are so closely following in this
introduction, "a mysticism of service through love, more than
a loving union, with regard to its general orientation, resulting
in a divine action over the human life, total, intellectual and
sensible, rather than a mysticism of introversion . • . What
stands out in his relations with the Divine Persons and with
Jesus Christ is the humble and loving attitude of the servant,
the eagerness to discern the desired service in its least signs;
generosity in the perfect fulfilment, cost what it may, in a
delightful flight of love, but at the same time with a profound
sense of the infinite Majesty of God and of His transcendent
holiness . . . Towards this loving, magnanimous and humble
service all the magnificent infused gifts with which God filled
St. Ignatius are focussed and converge." 10
•
Multiplicity of Mystical Gifts
Father Larrafiaga has gathered into an interesting note the
following list of infused gifts mentioned in the writings of
St. Ignatius: tears, spiritual relish and repose; intense con·
solation; elevation of mind; divine impressions and illumina·
tions; vehemence of faith, hope and charity; spiritual delights
and understandings; spiritual intelligences and visitations; in·
tense movements; visions; interior and exterior locutions;
reverent respect; spiritual replies; touches; reminders; illumi·
s RAM 19:118.
9
A. Suquia, La santa Misa en la espiritualid de San Ignacio, p. 141.
La Spiritualite, pp. 33, 39, 41, 42.
10
�INTRODUCTION
203
nation of the understanding by the divine power; inflammation of love; consolation without preceding cause; swelling
devotion and intense love; interior joy which calls and attracts to heavenly things; quiet and peace of soul in his
Creator and Lord; interior knowledge and divine inspirations.11
We do not think that it would be easy to distinguish and
define the special character of each of these graces. But no one
will doubt the mystical nature of many of them, at least. It
is surprising surely to come upon this flood of graces so intense
and divided into so many channels of such exquisite variety
and perfection.
One of the gifts which attracts greater attention because
of its truly unusual frequence, even when we compare it with
other saints who have enjoyed a similar grace, is the gift of
tears. In this respect Father de Guibert writes: "I do not
know the instance of any saint, man or woman, in whom tears
have played so important a role." 12 According to a count
made by Father de Guibert in the first forty days of the
Journal, St. Ignatius speaks of shedding tears one hundred
and seventy-five times, an average of four times a day. In
the light of these pages, one feels the reality of the words of
Laynez: "So tender are the tears of Ignatius in things eternal
and abstract, that he told me that he ordinarily wept six or
seven times a day." 13
These tears were accompanied on various occasions-as
often as twenty-six, according to the index14 with sobbing. So
violent they are that there were occasions on which they interfered with his speech, and so intense and abundant that the
saint feared for his eyesight.
This extraordinary infused gift of tears was for St. Ignatius
an experience in communication between God and his soul.
He felt himself intimately moved and annihilated before the
might of the Divine greatness. This heavenly "infusion" was
one of the most certain confirmations of the divine acceptance
of his offering. Through them he felt as though by evidence
11
Obras Completas I, 729.
RAM 19:125 f.
13
Fontes Narrativi I, 140.
14
MHSI, Const. I, 429, s. v. singulti.
12
�204
INTRODUCTION
the Divine complacence in his resolution. He felt the infinite
satisfaction of God and the relish with which the Lord accepted and received his oblation. On these occasions the tears
were as the echo of God's voice, the direct guarantee of His
acceptance.
That gentle silver thread of his tears was the overflow
produced by the cataract of special gifts of infused contemplation and other special gifts of an intimate character by means
of which God "communicated Himself by showing His gifts
and spiritual graces," as the saint himself wrote to St. Francis
Borgia.
The translation has h~d' the advantage of a thoroughgoing
revision by Father Aloysius Kemper, S.J. He ought to be
given great credit for his imaginative and scholarly treatment
of several difficult passages.
For the sake of completeness we add St. Ignatius' "Election
on Poverty."
�Spiritual Journal
First Part
February 2, 1544 to :March 12, 1544
Our Lady.1
1. Saturday [February 2nd] .-Deep devotion at :Mass, with
tears and increased confidence in Our Lady, and more inclination to complete poverty then and throughout the day.
2. Sunday [February 3rd].-The same, and more inclination to no revenue then and throughout the day. 2
Our Lady.
3. Monday [February 4th] .-The same, and with other
feelings, and more inclined to no revenue throughout the day,
and by night, a turning to Our Lady with deep affection and
much confidence.
Our Lady.
4. Tuesday [February 5th] .-An abundance of devotion before Mass, during it and after it, tears and eye-pains because
of so many of them. I saw Mother and Son disposed to intercede with the Father, (V) 3 and felt more inclined to perfect
poverty at the time and throughout the day; in the evening I
knew or saw as it were that our Lady was inclined to intercede.
1 The saint is accustomed to put down at the beginning of each day
some indication of the Mass he has celebrated, whether of Our Lady,
or the N arne of Jesus, or of the Holy Ghost, or the Blessed Trinity.
2
The Mass will be that corresponding to the Sunday, as happens on the
17th and 24th.
3
(V) denotes a sign which St. Ignatius made in the text to indicate
that he had had a vision of some kind. It was not used to indicate every
vision, in fact only rarely.
205
�206
ST. IGNATIUS
Our Lady.
5. Wednesday [February 6th].-Devotion before Mass and
during it, not without tears, more inclined to perfect poverty.
Later I thought with sufficient clearness, or change from the
ordinary, that there would be some confusion in having a
partial revenue, and a scandal in having a complete revenue,
and an occasion for making little of the poverty which our
Lord praises so highly.
The Most Holy Trinity.
6. Thursday [February 7th] .-Before Mass with deep devotion and tears, and a notable warmth and devotion all through
the day, being always moved··more to perfect poverty. At the
time of Mass, I thought there was a notable impulse with deep
devotion and interior movement to ask the Father, as I thought
my mediators had interceded for me, and I had some indication of seeing them.
The N arne of Jesus.
7. Friday [February 8th] .-After notable devotion and
tears at prayer, beginning with preparation for Mass, and during it with deep devotion and tears also, holding my tongue
when I could, with the decision for perfect poverty.
Soon after Mass, with devotion and not without tears, going
through the elections for an hour and a half or more and
making an offering of what seemed to be better sqpported by
reason, and by a stronger inclination of will, that is, to have
no revenue, wishing to present this to the Father through the
mediation (medio} and prayers of the Mother and the Son, I
prayed first to her to help me with her Son and the Father, and
then prayed to the Son to help me with His Father in company
with the Mother, I felt within me an impulse to go and betake
myself to the Father, and in doing so my hair stood on end,
with a most remarkable warmth in my whole body. Following on this, tears and the deepest devotion (V}.
Reading this later, and thinking it was good to have written
it out, a fresh devotion came upon me, not without water in
my eyes, (V} and later, recalling these graces I had received,
a fresh devotion.
In the evening, for an hour and a half or more, as I was
going over the elections in the same way, and making the elec-
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
207
tion for perfect poverty and experiencing devotion, I found
myself with a certain elevation of soul and a deep peace,
without the contradictory thought of possessing anything, and
was relieved of the desire of proceeding any further with the
election, as I had thought of doing a few days earlier.
The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin.
8. Saturday [February 9th] .-The preceding night I felt
greatly weakened because of a bad sleep, but the morning
prayer was quiet, with sufficient devotion and a warm spiritual
movement and a tendency to tears.
After getting up, the feeling of weakness left me twice.
Later, in going to Mass, there was devotion in prayer, and
also in getting ready to vest, together with a desire to weep.
During Mass continual devotion and weakness, with different
spiritual movements and a tendency to weep. The same when
Mass was finished, and always with the determination to perfect poverty.
The day was quite peaceful, and, whereas, at its beginning
I thought of keeping on with the election, all desire left me,
as I thought the matter was clear, that is, to keep poverty
perfectly.
At night, I went through the elections with much peace and
devotion, thinking after all that we should have neither partial
nor complete revenue. It was not a matter worthy of further
thought. I looked upon it as finished. With much peace of
mind, I remained firm in the thought of perfect poverty.
Mass of the day.
9. Sunday [February lOth] .-I went through the elections
and made the offering of perfect poverty with great devotion
and not without tears. Likewise earlier, in the customary
Prayer, before, during, and after Mass, with much devotion
and many tears at the thought of perfect poverty. I was at
Peace when the offering was made, having understood very
clearly when thinking about it, and later, certain feelings
about my mediators accompanied by a certain vision (V).
At night, going over the elections between having complete
or partial or no revenue, and making the oblation for perfect
Poverty, I felt a deep devotion, interior peace and quiet of
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ST. IGNATIUS
soul, with a certain feeling of security that it was a good
election.
Of the Holy Spirit.
10. Monday [February 11th] .-In the midst of my ordinary
prayer, with no further thought of the election, offering or
asking God our Lord that the oblation made be accepted by
His Divine Majesty, I felt an abundance of devotion and tears,
and later, making a colloquy with the Holy Spirit before saying His Mass, with the same devotion and tears, I thought I
saw Him, or felt Him, in a dense brightness, or in the color
of a flame of fire. Quite unusual, and with all this, I felt
satisfied with the election J 'made (V).
Later, in order to examine and discuss the election I had
made, I took out the reasons I had written down to examine
them. I prayed to our Lady, and then to the Son and to the
Father, to give me their Spirit to examine and distinguish,
although I was speaking of something already done, and felt
a deep devotion and certain lights with some clearness of view,
I sat down, considering, as it were in general, whether I should
have complete or partial revenue, or nothing at all, and I lost
all desire to see any reasons. At this moment other lights
came to me, namely,- how the Son first sent the Apostles to
preach in poverty, and afterwards, the Holy Spirit, giving
His Spirit and the gift of tongues, confirmed them, and thus
the Father and the Son sending the Holy Spirit; all Three
~· .:
Persons confirmed the mission.
At this point, greater devotion came upon me, and all
desire to consider the matter further left me. With tears and
sobbing, I made the offering of perfect poverty on my knees,
the tears flowing down my face, sobbing as I made the offering, and later I could hardly get up for the sobs and tears of
devotion and the grace I received. At length, however, I got
up, and ev:en then the devotion with the sobbing followed me,
coming upon me because I had made the offering of perfect
poverty, holding it as ratified and valid, etc.
Shortly after this, as I walked and recalled what has taken
place, I felt a fresh interior movement to devotion and tears.
Not much later, as I was going out to say Mass, coming to
the short prayer, I felt intense devotion and tears at realizing
or beholding in a certain manner the Holy Spirit, and the elec-
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tion as something finished, but I was not able to realize or
behold either of the other two Divine Persons.
Later in the chapel, before Mass and during it, there was
much devotion and many tears. Later, great peace and
security of soul, like a tired man taking a good rest, neither
being able to nor caring to seek anything, considering the
matter finished, except to give thanks, [pay some] devotion
to the Father, and say the Mass of the Holy Trinity, as I had
earlier thought of doing on the morrow, Tuesday.
The Trinity.
11. Tuesday [February 12th] .-After awaking and praying, I did not finish giving very fervent thanks to God our
Lord, with lights and tears for so great a favor and so great
a light I had received, which was beyond explanation. After
getting up, the interior warmth and devotion continued. Remembering so great a benefit as I had received, I was moved
to a fresh and increased devotion and tears. And also, while
I went to D. Francisco, was with him and returned later,
without any loss of warmth and intense love. 4
Later, a point presented itself as a temptation5 about daybreak, namely whether there should be some revenue only for
the church. But with great clearness and light and deep devotion, I wanted to close the door to that temptation in much
peace and knowledge and thanksgiving to the Divine Persons,
and also with deep devotion. The occasion for my getting up
from prayer was to see whether I could stop the racket in the
room. 6
Later, on the way to Mass, and during it, there was a feeling
4
This is thought to refer to D. Francisco Vanucci, almoner of Pope
Paul III, a supporter of the charitable and apostolic works of Ignatius.
5
The temptation, that is, as appears clearly from the text, to admit
some revenue for the church.
6
He means that the noise in the room disturbed him, and he went to
see whether he could stop it. At this moment came the thought which
he calls a temptation to admit some revenue for the church. It should
be remembered that the house then occupied by St. Ignatius was about on
;he site :Vhere his body now reposes and was very small and rickety. The
heast nOise could be heard all through it. As an effect of his broken
ealth and his deep feeling for religious silence, the saint was peculiarly
sensitive to noise.
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ST. IGNATIUS
that the warmth within was resisting the wind without. 7 I saw
clearly what was good within and what was bad without. And
so, in the middle of the Mass, with warmth and some devotion,
but no coldness, and some disturbance from those in the room
and those hearing Mass. I finished Mass, examined the matter, and remained seated with interior devotion.
Our Lady.
12. Wednesday [February 13th] .-Conscious of having
been much at fault in leaving the Divine Persons at the time
of thanksgiving on the preceding day,S and wishing to abstain
from saying the Mass of the Trinity, which I had been thinking of saying, I took the· ..Mother and the Son as my intercessors, in the hope of being forgiven and restored to my
former grace, but I refrained from going to the Divine Persons directly for the graces and former gifts. I resolved not
to say their Mass for the whole week, doing penance by thus
absenting myself from Them. This brought me much devotion
and an intense flow of tears, both in the prayer and while
vesting, accompanied by sobbing. I knew the Mother and the
Son would intercede for me, and I felt fully confident that the
Heavenly Father would restore me to my former condition.
Later on, before, during and after Mass, there was an increase of devotion and a great abundance of tears. I saw my
mediators with great confidence regain what I had lost, and in
all these periods, both on Wednesday and Thursday, I held
firm to the offering already made, and found nothing against
it.
The N arne of Jesus.
13. Thursday [February 14th].-In the customary prayer,
I did not see my mediators, but had much devotion, elevation
of mind with a remarkable tranquillity. Later, while preparing to leave the room, I was not without tears and interior
movements.
Later, just before Mass, during it and after it, there was
a great abundance of tears, devotion and heavy sobbing. I
could not attempt to speak without losing the power to do so.
I had many spiritual lights, free access to the Father when
--;sensible images alluding to the disturbance in the next room or hall.
8 To stop the racket. Cf. note 6, supra.
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211
naming Him as He is named in the Mass, together with a
great certainty or hope of regaining what I had lost, understanding that the Son was very disposed to intercede, and beholding the saints in such a way as cannot be written about,
any more than the other things can be explained. There were
no doubts of the first offering as made, etc.
Our Lady in the Temple. Simeon.
14. Friday [February 15th] .-At the first prayer, when
naming the Eternal Father, etc., a sensible interior sweetness
came and lasted, not without a movement to tears, and later
with deep devotion, which became much deeper at the end,
without, however, revealing any mediators or persons.
Later, on going out to say Mass, when beginning the prayer,
I saw a likeness of our Lady, and realized how serious had
been my fault of the other day, not without some interior
movement and tears, thinking that the Blessed Virgin felt
ashamed at asking for me so often after my many failings, so
much so, that our Lady hid herself from me, and I found no
devotion either in her or from on high. After this, as I did
not find our Lady, I sought comfort on high, and there came
upon me a great movement of tears and sobbing with a certain assurance that the Heavenly Father was showing Himself
favorable and kindly, so much so, that He gave a sign that
it would be pleasing to Him to be asked through our Lady,
whom I could not see.
While preparing the altar, and after vesting, and during
the Mass, very intense interior movements, and many and intense tears and sobbing, with frequent loss of speech, and also
after the end of Mass, and for long periods during the Mass,
Preparing and afterwards, the clear view of our Lady, very
Propitious before the Father, to such an extent, that in the
Prayers to the Father, to the Son, and at the consecration, I
could not help feeling and seeing her, as though she were a
Part, or the doorway, of all the grace I felt in my soul. At the
consecration she showed that her flesh was in that of her Son,
with such great light that I cannot write about it. I had no
doubt of the first oblation already made.
The Name of Jesus.
15. Saturday [February 16th] .-In the customary prayer
I did not perceive my mediators; no coolness or tepidity, but
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ST. IGNATIUS
deep devotion, and for periods a wandering of the mind, but
not in things that are wrong, and towards the end a deep
serenity and a certain amount of sweetness.
I got up and dressed, with nothing remarkable either one
way or the other. I wanted to get ready for Mass, but doubted
to whom and how to commend myself first. In this doubt, I
knelt down, and wondering how I should begin, I thought that
the Father would reveal Himself more to me and draw me to
His mercies, feeling that He was more favorable and readier
to grant what I desired (not being able to apply to my mediators). This feeling kept growing, with a great flood of tears
on my cheeks, and the greatest confidence in the Father, as
though He were recalling me from my former exile.
Later, while on my way to Mass, preparing the altar and
vesting, and beginning Mass, everywhere with intense tears
which drew me to the Father, Who set in order the interests
of the Son, while I experienced many remarkable intellectual
lights, which were delightful and very spiritual.
After Mass, while going over the elections for an hour, examining the point and the revenue already given, 9 I thought
them to be snares and obstacles of the enemy. With much
tranquillity and peace, I chose and offered to the Father the
resolution of having nothing for the church. Recalling the
former elections, I felt the same, not without an interior movement and tears.
At night I took out again the papers to examii'ie· them and
consider the election, and having failed 10 in the day, I was
beset by fears to go ahead without delaying the election as
before. Finally, I determined to go on as usual, but was in
some doubt as to where I should begin to commend myself,
feeling a certain shame, or something of the kind, before our
Mother. At last, I examined, first my conscience, covering
the entire day, and asked pardon, etc., and I felt that the
~irando la renta dada, seems to refer to the revenue of the church
of Our Lady of the Way, which by a second bull of Paul III, Sacrosanctae
Romanae Ecclesiae, of 1541, remained applied to the sacristy of the same
church when it came into the hands of the Society.
1o It is certainly the same fault of which he speaks later, when he says
he felt some shame. His first companions call attention to this subtle
perception of the slightest faults, the result of a higher illumination in
the saint.
''
I
l
.
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213
Father was very favorable, so did not apply to my mediators,
but shed a few tears.
Later, I soon very warmly begged Him to give me the grace
to meditate with his Spirit, and to move me with the same.
Before I got up, I thought that I should not examine the elections any more; and with this there came a flood of tears,
and so intense a devotion, sobbings and spiritual gifts, that
for a while I felt moved to make my offering of perfect poverty
for the church, and to examine the matter no more, unless for
the next two days to give thanks and to remake the same
oblation, or make it in better form. This I am doing with
excessive tears, warmth and interior devotion. Later, I did
not think while this lasted, that I could get up, but desired
to remain there with that interior consolation.
A moment later the thought came that during the next two
days I could look over the elections, and as I had not determined on the contrary, I was struck and withdrawn from such
intense devotion, although I wanted to repel the thought.
Finally, I got up, sat down, and placing the matter in an election while examining some spiritual reasons, I began to weep
a little, and thinking it a temptation, I got on my knees and
offered to examine the elections in this matter no more, but
taking the two days, that is until Monday, say Mass to give
thanks and to repeat the offerings.
In this offering and oblation there was again such weeping
and tears in such abundance, and so much sobbing and
spiritual gifts, that after the oblation made to the Father in
the presence of our Lady and the Angels, etc., the same weeping continuing, etc., I felt in me the desire not to get up but
to remain there, in the experience I was so acutely undergoing.
And so to the end, with great satisfaction, the same devotion
and tears continuing, I got up with the determination to honor
the oblation I had made and everything I had offered.
16. Sunday [February 17th] .-In my customary prayer,
without being aware of mediators or any other persons, I
felt, as I ended, considerable pleasure and warmth, and from
the middle of it on, I had great abundance of tears that were
full of warmth and interior delight, without any intellectual
lights, and I considered the matter as settled, as it seemed to
:me to be accepted by God our Lord.
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ST. IGNATIUS
Getting up and turning to the preparation for Mass, I gave
thanks to His Divine Majesty, and offered Him the oblation
made, not without devotion and a movement of tears. There
were plentiful tears on leaving for Mass, preparing the altar,
vesting, and beginning Mass, a very intense feeling during
Mass, with a great abundance of tears and a frequent loss of
speech, especially through the whole of the long epistle from
St. Paul, which begins: libenter sujjertis insipientes (Sexagesima Sunday). I had no intellectual lights, nor did I see
any distinction of Persons, but I felt an intense love, warmth,
and great delight in divine things, and a growing satisfaction
of soul. After finishing Mass, both in the chapel and later
kneeling in my room, I wanted to thank God for such great
graces which I had received, and I lost all desire to make
further offerings concerning the oblation already made (although I always kept making it, and not without devotion),
considering the matter closed. On the other hand, because
of the great devotion I felt, I was drawn to remain there
kneeling in the enjoyment of what I was undergoing.
Later, as I considered whether I should go out or not, I
decided with great peace to go out, and feeling especially
interior movements and tears, although I thought I could
delay over them, I got up still weeping and with great satisfaction of soul left with the resolution of finishing tomorrow
at least before dinner, give thanks, ask for strength, and repeat the oblation already made out of devotion --for the Most
Holy Trinity and say Its Mass.
The Trinity and end. 11
17. Monday [February 18th] .-Last night, shortly before
going to bed, I felt some warmth, devotion, and great confidence in finding the Three Persons, or grace in Them, as I
ended. After retiring I felt a special consolation in thinking
of Them embracing met 2 with interior rejoicing in my soul,
u St. Ignatius here wrote "fin", because he thought he saw so clearlY
what was God's will in his regard that he was thinking of finishing his
election with this Mass of thanksgiving to the Holy Trinity. But as he
did not receive the confirmation he desired in this Mass, he decided to
say another six or more Masses in honor of the Most Holy Trinity.
12 It is not clear whether Ignatius is speaking of embracing himself,
or of an embrace by the Three Persons. He has something to say to St.
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215
and then falling to sleep. In the morning I awoke a little
before daybreak, and later, as a result, came upon a period
of heaviness and aridity in all spiritual things. But I made
the customary prayer without any or very little relish until
about halfway through. The result was a loss of confidence
of finding favor with the Most Holy Trinity, so much so, that
turning again to prayer, I thought I did it with great devotion,
and towards the end with great sweetness and spiritual
delight.
Later, wishing to get up with the thought of postponing my
meal,13 and to take measures, however, that would not embarrass me until I found what I was looking for, I felt fresh
warmth and devotion in tears, and dressed with the thought
of fasting for three days until I found what I was seeking.
The suggestion presented itself that even this thought came
from God, and with it came fresh strength and warmth and
spiritual devotion, both to move me and to an increase of
tears. A moment later, thinking where I should begin, and recalling all the saints, I commended myself to them to ask our
Lady and her Son to intercede for me with the Most Blessed
Trinity, and with much devotion I found myself covered with
tears. This I took as a confirmation of past offerings, meanwhile saying many things, beseeching and placing as intercessors the angels, the holy fathers, the apostles and disciples
and all the saints, and so on, to intercede with our Lady and
her Son, and again asking and begging them with long
colloquies that my final confirmation and my thanks rise
before the throne of the Most Holy Trinity; both at this
moment and later with a great flood of tears, interior movements and sobbing. I thought that the very veins and members of my body made themselves sensibly felt, and I made
the final confirmation to the Most Holy Trinity, in the presence
of the whole heavenly court, giving thanks with great affection, first to the Divine Persons, then to our Lady and to her
Son, then to the angels, the holy fathers, the apostles and
Francis Borgia of God embracing the soul by means of His gifts (Epist.
II, 236). He also speaks of this embrace in the Spiritual Exercises (Fifteenth Annotation, Mon. Jgn. ser. II, 238-40).
13
"dilatar el comer," may contain the thought of fasting, as he was
known to do in similar circumstances, and as he suggests a few lines
further on.
�21G
ST. IGNATIUS
disciples, and to all persons for the help they had given me
in this matter.14
Later, while preparing the altar and vesting, I had a strong
impulse to say: "Eternal Father, confirm me; Eternal Son,
confirm me; Eternal Spirit, confirm me; Holy Trinity, confirm
me; my only God, confirm me!" I said this with great earnestness and with much devotion and tears, very often repeated
and very interiorly felt. Saying once, "Eternal Father, will
You not confirm me?" understanding that He had, and the
same to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
I said Mass without tears, not the entire Mass without them,
but with a certain warm devotion, as it were reddish with
much heavy breathing and deep devotion. But there were
some periods when I did not feel these things in any abundance, some thoughts without any shedding or abundance
of tears, which pained me and robbed me of devotion, and
moved me in some way or other not to be satisfied with the
lack of confirmation in the last Mass of the Trinity.
After Mass, I regained quiet of mind, and comparing my
own dignity with the greatness and wisdom of God, I continued for several hours until the thought came not to bother
about saying more ..1\'lasses, becoming impatient with the
TrinityY I did not want to debate the matter any longer,
feeling finished with the past, although some slight doubt still
remained, which did not deprive me of devotion throughout
the whole day. And yet this devotion was attacked in some
minor points, and I remained fearful of making some mistake.
The Trinity, 1st.
18. Tuesday [February 19th] .-Last night I went to bed
with the thought of examining what I would do in celebrating
~Father Larrafiaga compares this passage with the great compositions of place and the great oblations in the Spiritual Exercises.
1 5 Father Larrafiaga calls this a movement of impatience suggested by
the enemy, when St. Ignatius saw that the final confirmation desired by
him was not given. Two days later, February 20th, he is glad to recognize the passing of the evil spirit. Later still, on March 12th, he refers
to the time when the tempter suggested thoughts against the Divine Persons and his mediators. Twice on February 24th, he asks Jesus to obtain
pardon for him from the Most Holy Trinity, and even in the midst of the
sublimest communications, continues to desire this pardon and reconcili·
ation with the Three Divine Persons.
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217
Mass or how. On awaking in the morning and beginning my
examination of conscience and prayer, with a great and
abundant flood of tears, I felt much devotion with many intellectual lights and spiritual remembrances of the Most Holy
Trinity, which quieted me and delighted me immensely, even
to producing a pressure in my chest, because of the intense
love I felt for the Most Holy Trinity. This gave me confidence,
and I determined to say the Mass of the Most Holy Trinity,
to see what I should do later. I had the same feelings while
vesting, with lights from the Trinity. I got up and made a
short meditation not without tears, and later much devotion
and spiritual confidence to say successively six or more Masses
of the Most Holy Trinity.
On the way to Mass and just before it, I was not without
tears; an abundance of them during it, but very peacefully,
with very many lights and spiritual memories concerning the
Most Holy Trinity which served as a great illumination to my
mind, so much so that I thought I could never learn so much
by hard study, and later, as I examined the matter more
closely, I felt and understood, I thought, more than if I had
studied all my life.
I finished the Mass and spent a short time in vocal prayer:
"Eternal Father, confirm me; Son, confirm me;" with a flood
of tears spreading over my face and a growing determination
to go on with their Masses (thinking of putting some limit to
their number), with much heavy sobbing. I drew very near,
and became assured in an increased love of His Divine
Majesty.
In general, the intellectual lights of the Mass, and those
preceding it, were with regard to choosing the proper orations
of the Mass, when one speaks with God, with the Father or
the Son, etc., or deals with the operations ad extra of the
Divine Persons, or their processions more by feeling and
seeing than by understanding. All these experiences corroborated what I had done and encouraged me to continue.
Today, even as I walked through the city, with much joy of
soul, I represented the Most Holy Trinity to myself, now
when I met with three rational creatures, or three animals, or
again, three other things, and so on.
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ST. IGNATIUS
The Trinity, 2nd.
19. Wednesday [February 20th].-Before beginning my
meditation, I felt a devout eagerness to do so, and, after having begun it, a great devotion that was warm, or light and
sweet, but without any intellectual lights, tending rather to a
feeling of security without terminating in any Divine Person.
Later, I felt confirmed about the past, in recognizing the
evil spirit of the past, namely, the spirit who wished to make
me doubt and caused me to be impatient with the Blessed
Trinity, as I have said in paragraph 17. With this recognition, I felt a fresh interior movement to tears, and so later,
before Mass, and during 4t with an increased quiet and tranquil devotion together with tears, and some lights, feeling and
thinking both before and after, when the desire of going on
left me, particularly later, with that great quiet or satisfaction
of soul, as I thought that I should not go on with the Masses
of the Most Holy Trinity, unless it were in thanksgiving, and
for the completion of the matter but not out of any need of
confirming what had passed.
The Most Holy Trinity, 3rd.
20. Thursday [February 21st] .-In the meditation, I had
on the whole very great and continuous devotion, a warm
brightness and spiritual relish, drawing partly to a certain
elevation. Later, while getting ready in my room, at the
altar and while vesting, I felt a few interior m<>vements and
inclination to tears. In this state I finished Mass and remained in great spiritual repose. In the Mass there were
tears in greater abundance than the day before, and for the
most part with a loss of speech. Once or twice I also felt
spiritual lights, to such an extent that I seemed thus to understand that there was nothing more to learn from the Most
Holy Trinity in this matter. This took place because, as
formerly I sought to find devotion in the Trinity in the prayers
to the Father, I did not want, nor did I prepare myself, either
to search for it or to find it, as it did not seem to me that
consolation or illumination was to come from the Most Holy
Trinity. But in this Mass I recognized, felt or saw, the Lord
knows, that in speaking to the Father, in seeing that He was
a Person of the Most Holy Trinity, I was moved to love the
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219
Trinity all the more that the other Persons were present in
It essentially. I felt the same in the prayer to the Son, and
the same in the prayer to the Holy Spirit, rejoicing in any
One of Them and feeling consolations, attributing it to and rejoicing in the Being of all Three. In untying this knot/ 6 or
something similar the fact seemed so great to me, that I never
got through saying to myself: "Who are you? Where do you
come from? etc. How did you deserve this? or whence did
it come?" and so on.H
The Trinity, 4th.
21. Friday [February 22nd] .-In the customary prayer I
had much assistance on the whole from the warming grace,
partly brilliant, and with much devotion, although for my
part I found it easy a few times to lose the thread of my
thought, in spite of the continual assistance of grace.
Later, while preparing the altar, there were certain movements to tears with a tendency to repeat over and over again
to myself: "I am not worthy of invoking the Name of the
Most Holy Trinity," which thought and multiplication moved
me to greater interior devotion. On vesting, with this and
other considerations, my soul opened wider to tears and
sobbing. Beginning Mass and going on to the Gospel, I said
it with deep devotion and a great assistance from a warming
grace, which later seemed to struggle with some thoughts, as
fire with water.
The Trinity, 5th.
22. Saturday [February 23rd] .-In the customary prayer,
at the beginning, nothing, but from midway to the end, I found
much satisfaction of soul, with some indication of brilliant
clearness.
While preparing the altar, the thought of Jesus occurring to
me, I felt a movement to follow Him, it seemed to me interiorly, since He was the head of the Society, a greater argument to proceed in complete poverty than all the other human
16
The mystery of the circuminsession, or how the other Two Divine
Persons are by the unity of their Essence present in each of the Three.
17
St. Teresa speaks of similar intellectual visions of the Trinity, with
the twofold sense of the knowledge received and her own personal unWorthiness (Autobiography, xxvii).
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ST. IGNATIUS
reasons, although I thought that all the reasons of the past
elections tended towards the same decision. This thought
moved me to devotion and to tears, and to a firmness which,
although I had no tears in the Mass, or Masses, etc., I thought
that this feeling was enough to keep me firm in time of temptation or trial.
I went along with these thoughts and vested while they
increased, and took them as a confirmation, although I received no consolations on this point, and thinking that the
appearance of Jesus was in some way from the Most Holy
Trinity, I recalled the day when the Father placed me with the
Son.18 As I finished vesting with this intention of impressing
on my mind the name of Jesus, and trying to think that a confirmation for the future, a fresh attack of tears and sobbing
came upon me, as I began Mass helped with much grace and
devotion, and with quiet tears for the most part, and even
when I had finished, the great devotion and movement to
tears lasted until I had unvested.
Throughout the Mass, I had various feelings in confirmation
of what I had said, and, as I held the Blessed Sacrament in
my hands, the word came to me with an intense interior movement never to leave Him for all heaven and earth, etc., while
I felt fresh movements of devotion and spiritual joy. For my
part, I added, doing as much as I could, and this last step was
directed to the companions who had given their signatures. 19
Later in the day, as often as I thought of Jesus,-·or remembered Him, I had a certain feeling, or saw with my understanding, with a continuous and confirming devotion.
Of the day.
23. Sunday [February 24th] .-In the usual prayer, from
beginning to end, I had the help of a very interior and gentle
grace, full of warm devotion and very sweet. While preparing
the altar and vesting, I saw a representation of the name of
A delicate allusion to the vision at La Storta.
He is speaking of his determination against having any revenue, as
far as it depended on him. But he would have to submit the election to
the judgment of his companions who, in the first draft of the Constitutions, had decided that the sacristies of our churches, as something distinct from the Society, might have a revenue.
ts
19
I
r
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221
Jesus with much love, confirmation and increased desire to
follow Him, accompanied by tears and sobs.
All through the Mass very great devotion, on the whole,
with many tears, and several times loss of speech, all devotion
and feeling being directed to Jesus. I could not apply myself
to the other Persons, except to the First Person as Father of
such a Son, with spiritual answers, How He is Father, How He
is Son!
Having finished Mass, I had during the prayer that same
feeling towards the Son, and how I would have desired the
confirmation of the Most Holy Trinity, and felt that it was
given to me through Jesus, when He showed Himself to me
and gave me such interior strength and certainty of the confirmation, without any fear of the future. The thought suggested itself to me to beg Jesus to obtain pardon for me from
the Most Holy Trinity. I felt an increased devotion, tears
and sobs, and the hope of obtaining the grace, when I found
myself so vigorous and strengthened concerning the future.
Later, at the fire, 20 there was a fresh representation of
Jesus with great devotion and movement to tears. Later, as
I walked through the street, I had a vivid representation of
Jesus with interior movements and tears. After I had spoken
with [Cardinal] Carpi, and was on the way home, I felt great
devotion. After dinner, especially when I passed through the
door of the Vicar, in the house of the Cardinal of Trani/ 1 I
felt or saw Jesus, had many interior movements and many
tears, begging and praying Jesus to obtain pardon for me
from the Most Holy Trinity, while I felt remaining in me a
great confidence of being heard.
At these times, when I sensed or saw Jesus, I felt so great a
love within me that I thought that nothing could happen in
the future that would separate me from Him, or cause me to
doubt about the graces or confirmation I had received.
20
The expression occurs a number of times between the 24th and 27th
of February and the 5th and 7th of March. The saint appears to have
had a brazier in his room at the time because of the extraordinary cold.
21
Cardinal Giandomenico Cupis, Archbishop of Trani and Dean of the
Sacred College, protector of the house of catechumens, which had been
opened by St. Ignatius. He died in 1553. The Vicar of Rome was
Filippo Archinto (1500-1558) afterwards Bishop of Saluzzo.
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ST. IGNATIUS
St. Matthias.
24. Monday [February 25th] .-The first part of the prayer
was with much devotion, and thereafter a warmth and an
assisting grace, although on my part, and because of some
obstacles I felt on the part of others to hold me back, I neither
asked nor sought confirmation, but desired to be reconciled
with the Three Divine Persons. Later on, vesting for Mass,
not knowing to whom to commend myself, or where to begin,
the thought came to me while Jesus was communicating Himself: "I want to go on," and with that I began the Confiteor
"Confiteor Deo," as Jesus said in the Gospel for the day, "Confiteor tibi," etc.22
However, I began the confession with fresh devotion, and
not without movements to tears, entering on the Mass with
much devotion, warmth and tears, and occasional loss of
speech. I thought that Jesus presented the orations that were
addressed to the Father, or that He was accompanying those
which I was saying to the Father. I felt and saw this in a
way that I cannot explain.
When the Mass was finished I wanted to be reconciled with
the Most Holy Trinity, and I begged this of Jesus, not without
tears and sobbing, assuring myself and not asking or feeling
the need of any confirmation, or of saying Masses for this
purpose, but only to be reconciled.
Of the Trinity, 6th.
~ .
25. Tuesday [February 26th] .-The first prayer was without disturbance, nor did I withdraw from it. There was much
devotion and from the middle on, devotion was much increased, although I felt in it, especially in the first part, some
physical weakness or indisposition.
After dressing and while still in my room preparing with
fresh and interior movements to tears, when I recalled Jesus,
I felt much confidence in Him, and I thought He was ready
to intercede for me; yet I did not seek or ask further confirmation concerning the past, remaining quiet and restful in this
regard. But the thought came to ask and beg Jesus to make
me conformable with the will of the Most Holy Trinity, in the
way He thought best.
-;;-This passage is read in the Mass of St. Matthias (Matthew 11:25).
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Later, while vesting, as this representation of the love and
help of Jesus grew, I began Mass, not without much quiet and
restful devotion and with a slight inclination to tears, thinking
that with even less I would be more satisfied and contented in
allowing myself to be governed by the Divine Majesty, Who
bestows and withdraws His graces as He thinks best. 23 After
this I went to the fire, the contentment growing, with a fresh
interior movement and love for Jesus. I noticed the absence
of that former opposition regarding the Most Holy Trinity,
and thus during the Mass I continued with great devotion towards It.
The beginning of Lent. 24
26. Wednesday [February 27th].-In the customary prayer
I felt quite well, as I usually do, but towards the middle and
then on to the end great devotion, spiritual quiet and sweetness, followed by a continuous devotion which remained. As
I got ready in my room, asking Jesus, not in any way for a
confirmation, but that He do me His best service in the presence of the Most Holy Trinity, etc., and by the most suitable
manner, provided I find myself in His grace.
In this I received some light and strength, and going into the
chapel and praying, I felt or rather saw beyond my natural
strength the Most Holy Trinity and Jesus, presenting me, or
placing me, or simply being the means of union in the midst of
the Most Holy Trinity in order that this intellectual vision be
communicated to me. With this knowledge and sight, I was
deluged with tears and love, directing to Jesus and to the Most
Holy Trinity a respectful worship which was more on the
side of a reverential love than anything else.
Later, I thought of Jesus doing the same duty in thinking
of praying to the Father, thinking and feeling interiorly that
He was doing everything with the Father and the Most Holy
Trinity. I began Mass with many tears, great devotion and
tears continuing all through it. Likewise all of a sudden, I
clearly saw the same vision of the Most Holy Trinity as before,
with an ever increasing love for His Divine Majesty, and several times losing the power of speech.
23
St. Ignatius wrote in this vein to the Duke of Gandia on September
20, 1548. (Epistol. II, 236).
24
Ash Wednesday, which that year fell on February 27th.
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ST. IGNATIUS
The Mass finished, in my prayer and later at the fire, several times I felt great and intense devotion, terminating in
Jesus, and not without special movements to tears later. Even
while writing this, I feel a drawing of my understanding to
behold the Most Holy Trinity, and beholding, although not as
distinctly as formerly, Three Persons; and at the time of Mass,
at the prayer, "Domine J es1t Christe, Fili Dei vivi," etc./ 5 I
thought in spirit that I saw just Jesus, that is, the humanity,
and at this other time I felt it in my soul in another way,
namely, not the humanity alone, but the whole Being of my
God, etc., with a fresh flood of tears and great devotion, etc.
Of the Trinity, 7th.
~
27. Thursday [February 28th].-Through the whole of the
customary prayer, much devotion and grace, warm and helpful, bright and loving. Entering the chapel, fresh devotion,
and as I knelt a revelation or a vision of Jesus at the feet of
the Most Holy Trinity, and with this, movements and tears.
This vision did not last so long, nor was it so clear as that of
Wednesday, although it seems to have taken place in the same
way. Later, at Mass, tears with deep devotion and profitable
thoughts, and some ~also after Mass. 26
Of the Wounds. 27
28. Friday [February 29th] .-In the customary prayer,
from beginning to end very great devotion, which was very
bright, covered my sins and did not allow me to think of them.
Outside the house, in the church/ 8 before Mass, a sight of the
heavenly fatherland,2 9 or of its Lord, after the manner of an
25 It is the beginning of the second of the three prayers said by the
priest just before the communion.
2s This exceptional and delicate representation of the one Mediator
between God and men "at the foot of the Most Holy Trinity," scandalized
P. M. Baumgarten, according to Father Larrafiaga. It was also a source
of scandal to some of the early opponents of the Spiritual Exercises, who
looked with suspicion on the role given to the Son in the Triple Colloquy
of Ignatius. But see St. Paul, 1. Tim. 2: 5-6.
2 7 That is, the Mass of the Five Wounds, which was then celebrated
the first Friday after Ash Wednesday.
2s Apparently, the neighboring church of Our Lady of the Way, a step
or two from the house.
29 Twice this morning this vision of the heavenly country concentrated
in the Trinity passed through his mind. St. Teresa speaks similarly of
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
225
intellectual vision of the Three Persons, and in the Father the
Second and the Third.
At times during the Mass great devotion, but without any
lights or movements to tears. After it was over, a vision
likewise of the fatherland, or of its Lord, indistinctly but
clearly, as frequently happens at other times, sometimes more,
sometimes less, and the whole day with special devotion.
Of the feria. 30
29. Saturday [March 1st] .-In the customary prayer much
help of grace and devotion. Saying Mass away from home
with great peace and devotion, and a few movements to tears
until noon, with much satisfaction of soul, from here on ad
utramque partem.
Of the day.
30. Sunday [March 2nd] .-Much help from grace in the
customary prayer, and much devotion with a certain clearness
mingled with warmth.
Later, going out (of my room) because of the noise, and
also on my return, I was somewhat confused, either struggling
with the thoughts about the noise, or being annoyed to such a
point that even after vesting for Mass, the thought came not
to say it. 31
However, this was overcome, and not wanting to give cause
to the others for talking to anyone, encouraged with the
thought of Christ being tempted, 32 I began Mass with great
devotion, and this continued with a certain great help of grace
and with tears at various times and almost continually, which
I felt from the middle of Mass on. I finished without any lights,
except at the end, at the prayer to the Most Holy Trinity, 33
with a certain movement to devotion and tears, I felt a certain
-
l
a vision of hers of heaven (Life by Herself, c. xxxviii).
30
That is, the Mass for Saturday after Ash Wednesday.
31
He gives us to understand that he left his room to impose silence
on those who by their loud talking or other noise were disturbing the
recollection of the house.
32
He comforts himself with the thought of Christ tempted in the
desert, a delicate recollection of the Gospel of the day, the first Sunday
of Lent Matt. 4:1-11.
33
The prayer Placeat, just before the last blessing.
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ST. IGNATIUS
love which drew me to It, without any remaining bitterness
for what had happened, but much peace and quiet.
Later, during my prayer after Mass, some fresh interior
movements, sobs and tears, all for love of Jesus, telling Him
that I would rather die with Him than live with another, feeling no fear, and receiving a certain confidence and love for the
Most Holy Trinity. I wished to commend myself to It as to
distinct Persons, but not finding what I sought, I felt something in the Father, as though feeling the other Persons in
Him.
At this time, Mass being over, and the Masses of the Most
Holy Trinity being all finished, I thought that I should end this
part at once, or the very first time that I had any divine visitation, thinking that I should not decide the time for finishing,
even if I found the visitation in the end; but then, or when His
Divine Majesty found it better, by bestowing on me such
visitation.
Of the Trinity, 8th.
31. Monday [March 3rd] .-In the customary prayer at four
o'clock, 34 with great devotion, without any movements or disturbances, and with~ some heaviness of the head. I did not
venture to get up for Mass, but went back to sleep.
Getting up later at eight, feeling very dull, but neither ill
nor well, with no one to commend m~self to. Afterwards,
turning rather to Jesus at the preparatory prayer~·in my room,
I felt there a slight movement to devotion, and a desire to
weep, with satisfaction of soul and great confidence in Jesus,
being drawn to hope in the Most Holy Trinity. Entering the
chapel and overwhelmed with a great devotion to the Most
Holy Trinity, with very increased love and intense tears,
without seeing the Persons distinctly, as in the last two days,
but perceiving in one luminous clarity a single Essence, I
was drawn entirely to Its love, and later, while preparing the
altar and vesting, great devotion and tears, grace always
assisting with much satisfaction of soul.
"a las diez horas," which is four o'clock
in the morning. At that time, the first hour of the day was considered
that which followed immediately after sunset, which at this season of
the year in Italy, took place about six p. m.
u St. Ignatius actually says,
!
•
I
!
!
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At the beginning of Mass, because of such great devotion,
I was not able to start, finding it a great difficulty to pronounce
the words, "In nomine patris," etc. Throughout all the Mass
much love and devotion, and a great abundance of tears, and
all the devotion and love was directed to the Most Holy
Trinity, without a knowledge or distinct perception of the
Three Persons, but a simple advertence to or representation
of the Most Holy Trinity. Likewise, for some intervals, I felt
the same, directed to Jesus, as though finding myself in His
shadow, as though He were guide, but without lessening the
grace from the Holy Trinity. Rather, I thought I was more
closely joined to their Divine Majesty. In the prayers to the
Father I was not able to find devotion, nor did I desire to find
it, except for a few times when the other Persons were represented in Him, so that mediately or immediately, everything
turned upon the Most Holy Trinity.
The Mass finished, I unvested, and in the prayer at the altar,
found such intense love, sobbing and tears tending to Jesus
and subsequently pausing in the Most Holy Trinity, with a
certain reverent worship, that I thought that if it were not
for the devotion of the Masses to be said, I was satisfied, and
with this I had every confidence of finding an increased grace,
love and satisfaction in His Divine Majesty.
Of the Trinity, 9th.
32. Tuesday [March 4th].-In the customary prayer much
assistance of grace and devotion; if [you call it] clear, [I
would rather say it was] more lucid, 35 with a suggestion of
warmth, and on my part starting out into sallies of thought.
With that assistance I got up. After dressing, I looked over
the Introit of the Mass, all stirred to devotion and love, terminating in the Most Holy Trinity.
Later, coming to the preparatory prayer for Mass, and not
knowing with whom to begin, I first noticed Jesus, thinking
that He did not allow Himself to be seen or perceived clearly,
but in some manner obscure to the sight. Noticing this, and
thinking that the Most Blessed Trinity allowed Itself to be
Perceived or seen more clearly, I began, and later, thinking
-
35
Father Larrafiaga conjectures with Father Codina that the thought
expressed here by the saint is of having produced in his soul a light
greater than clarity considered in itself.
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ST. IGNATIUS
about it in the presence of His Divine Majesty, a flood of tears
overwhelmed me, with sobbing, and a love so intense that it
seemed to join me most closely to His Love. This was so clear
and sweet that I thought this intense consolation and love to
be outstanding or excellent among all other consolations.
Later, I entered the chapel with fresh devotion and tears,
always ending in the Most Holy Trinity; and also at the altar,
after having vested, I was overcome with a much greater flood
of tears, sobs and most intense love for the Most Holy Trinity.
When I wanted to begin Mass, I felt very great touches and
intense devotion to the Most Holy Trinity.86 After beginning
with great devotion and tears which continued through the
Mass, because of the very notable pain I felt in one eye, because of the weeping, the thought came to me that I would
ruin my eyes by continuing these Masses, and that it would be
better to preserve my eyes, etc. The tears stopped, with the
assistance of much grace, but later during the greater part of
the Mass, the help grew less, and because of the sound of
the talking from the room, etc.
Later on, almost at the end, turning to Jesus, and recovering
something of what was lost, at the prayer, "Placeat tibi,
Sancta Trinitas," etc., ending in His Divine Majesty, a great
and excessive love covered me with intense tears, so that every
time throughout the Mass and before I had special spiritual
consolations, they all terminated in the Most :f!oly Trinity, i
bearing me on and drawing me to Its Love. ~ .
Finishing the Mass and uiwesting, at the prayer at the altar,
there was so much sobbing and such a downpour of tears, all
ending in the love of the Most Holy Trinity, that I thought I
did not want to rise for feeling so much love and so much
spiritual sweetness.
Later, at various times, at the fire, with interior love for
the Trinity and movements to tears, and later in the BurgoS 31
I
"Tocamientos," this word appearing here for the first and last time
in the Journal. Its best explanation and commentary, within the text of
Ignatius, is that page of St. John of the Cross on "the substantial touches
of God in the soul" (Ascent of Mount Carmel, c. ii).
87 The Cardinal Juan Alvarez de Toledo (1488-1557), of the Order of
Preachers, Bishop of Cordoba first, and then Archbishop of Burgos from
1538 to 1550-and consequently in this interval-in which he went to
Santiago, and cardinal from 1538. As Inquisitor General, he examined
86
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I
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I
I
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house, and in the streets until three38 in the afternoon, recalling the Most Holy Trinity with intense love, sometimes
with movements to tears, and all these consolations ending
in the Name and Essence of the Most Holy Trinity. I did not
feel or see clearly distinct Persons, as I did on other occasions,
as I said before. All of these drew me to great security, and
not with the purpose of saying more Masses for greater
reconciliation, but I wanted to fulfill them, 39 hoping to rejoice
in Their Divine Majesty.
Of the Trinity, lOth.
33. Wednesday [March 5th] .-In the customary prayer
much assisting grace from beginning to end, without effort to
seek it, with much lucid devotion and very clear, and with
helping warmth. Even later, while dressing, I thought the
grace, assistance and devotion to the Most Holy Trinity of the
day before was still lasting. Then, as I began the prayer
in preparation for Mass, and sought help to humble me, I began with Jesus. As the Most Holy Trinity presented Itself
to me a little more clearly, and as I turned to Their Divine
Majesty to commend myself, etc., I felt a flood of tears, sobs
and intense love for It, so much so that I thought I did not
want to, or that I could not regard myself or recall the past,
to reconcile myself with the Most Holy Trinity.
Later on, in the chapel, in a sweet and quiet prayer, I
thought as the devotion began to terminate in the Most Holy
Trinity, I brought myself to terminate it elsewhere, as to the
Father, so that I felt in myself a desire to communicate in
various ways, so much so that, as I advanced to the altar, I felt
and said: "Where do you wish to take me, Lord?" And repeating it frequently, my devotion increased with a tendency to
weep.
Later, at the prayer, while vesting with many movements
and tears, I offered myself to be guided and led, etc., He being
above me in these steps, wherever He would take me. After
-
?Y order of Paul III the Spiritual Exercises. He gave a very favorable
JUdgment of them, and was always a friend of St. Ignatius and of the
Society.
38
"Hasta veintiuna hora."
39
That is, he wished to thank the Divine Persons with Masses of
thanksgiving.
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ST. IGNATIUS
vesting, not knowing just where to begin, and after taking
Jesus for guide, and appropriating the orations to each One,
I went on to the third part of the Mass with a great assistance
of grace and warm devotion, and great satisfaction of soul,
without tears, and without, I think, an inordinate desire of
having them, being satisfied with the Lord's will. Turning,
however, to Jesus, I said: "Lord, where I go," "or where," etc.,
"following You, my Lord, I shall never be lost." 40
From here on, I continued the Mass with many tears, courage and spiritual vigor, the greater consolations terminating
in the Most Holy Trinity, and less in Jesus, and much less in
the Father; always, on the one hand, increasing in confidence
regarding reconciliation with the Most Holy Trinity, so that
when Mass was ended, I felt in the oration a tranquillity and
repose. Wishing to examine in some way, I could not, or did
not conform myself to seeing or perceiving any discord or
worry in the past, being like one who rests after weariness,
with his mind at peace, devout and consoled. Later, at the fire
also, and on other occasions, I recall this repose, 41 and at night,
not finding in the prayer of the Father any revelation to fresh
devotion and movements, I terminated everything with the
Most Holy Trinity.
40 St. Teresa speaks in similar vein in the later c~_aP.ters of her
Interior Castle, (Sixth Dwelling, c. vii).
41 Spiritual repose is one of the holiest gifts of prayer, "which is not
in our power to control as we wish, but is a pure gift from Him Who
gives it and can give every blessing," as St. Ignatius writes to St. Francis
Borgia. With the infused gift of tears, spiritual relish and repose, intense consolation, elevation of mind, impressions, divine illuminations,
intensity of faith, hope and charity, spiritual relishes, intense movements,
visions, interior and exterior loquela, reverent respect, spiritual answers,
touches and recollections, noted in the Journal, and the divine "espira·
tiones", noted in his letter of June 1536 to Sister Teresa Rejadell, and
the illumination of the understanding by the divine virtue, and the
inflammation in love, and the consolation without preceding cause, the
growing devotion and intense love, the interior joy which calls and draws
to spiritual things, and the quiet and peace of the soul in its Creator and
Lord, and the interior knowledge and inspirations pointed out in the
Spiritual Exercises, we would have, perhaps, a complete catalogue of the
infused graces of prayer, of which the saint speaks in his writings
( Larraiiaga, p. 729).
I
I
l,
,
I
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I.
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Of the Trinity, 11th.
34. Thursday [March 6th] .-In the customary prayer without any effort to seek devotion, there was much of it, and
further on, a great increase, with much sweetness and light
mingled with color.42 After dressing with some fresh devotion
and summons to it, I ended with the Most Holy Trinity. In
the preparatory prayer, turning more to the Most Holy Trinity
with greater spiritual calm and serenity, I was moved to
greater devotion, and as it were to tears, wishing but not
seeing anything of the past regarding my reconciliation.
In the chapel, much quiet devotion, and on approaching the
altar an increase of certain feelings or fresh movements, as to
tears, and thereafter, while vesting, and, I think in some parts
of those of the past, thoughts and reflections as to what the
Most Blessed Trinity wished to do with me, that is, the path
by which to lead me, and as I reflected on where it might be,
I thought with myself and conjectured that perhaps They
wished to make me content without the consolation of tears,
without being too eager or inordinate about them.
Beginning the Mass with an interior and humble satisfaction, and continuing as far as the Te igitur with great interior
and sweet devotion which came several times with a slight
interior sweetness as though to weep. At the Te igitur, I felt
and saw, not obscurely, but clearly and very clearly the very
Being or Essence of God, under the figure of a sphere, slightly
larger than the appearance of the sun, and from this Essence
the Father seemed to go forth or derive, in such a way that on
saying "Te," that is, "Pater," the Divine Essence was represented to me before the Father, and in this vision, I saw
represented the Being of the Most Holy Trinity without distinction or sight of the other Persons, and with intense devotion to what was represented to me, with many movements
-
42
This tendency to translate the more spiritual realities of the graces
received in prayer by expressions of a sensible order, is, as Pere de
Guibert notes, remarkable. Here it is "clearness mixed with color,"
elsewhere it is "devotion as though red," February 18th. At other times,
heat is joined with light, as on March 8th. This sensation of heat is
especially frequent. In the index to the critical edition, there are as
many as twenty-three instances, and the list is not complete. (Cf. Mon.
lgn., ser. III, tom. I, 425.)
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ST. IGNATIUS
and shedding of tears. Thus I went through the Mass, considering, remembering and again seeing the same, with a great
flood of tears and increase of intense love for the Being of the
Most Holy Trinity, without seeing or distinguishing the Persons, except that they proceed from the Father, as I said.
Finishing Mass with so many tears and spiritual consolations, I could not see anything against my reconciliation, although I became aware with great certainty and beyond all
possibility of doubt, of what I had seen represented. Rather,
as I examined and considered it again, I felt new interior
movements, bearing me wholly to the love of what I had seen,
to the point that I thought I saw more clearly illumined beyond
the heavens what I sought to consider here with the understanding, as I said.
After unvesting, in the prayer at the altar, the same spherical vision presented itself to my sight, and in some way I
saw the Three Divine Persons, in the manner that the First,
that is, the Father on the one hand, the Son on the other, and
the Holy Spirit on the other, proceeded from the Divine Essence, without leaving the outlines of the sphere. With what
I felt and saw there were fresh movements and tears.
Later, reaching the~Basilica of St. Peter, and beginning my
prayer at the "Corpus Domini," the same Divine Being presented Itself to me in the same lucid color, so that I could not
help seeing it. Later as the Mass of Santa Cruz began, I saw
the representation in the same manner, with fres'h interior
movements. Two hours later I came down to the same place
of the Blessed Sacrament, wishing to find again the vision and
seeking it, without success.
Later at night, several times, while I was writing this, I
saw the same representation, with some understanding of the
intellect, although to a great extent it was not so clear or so
distinct, nor of such great size, but like a fairly large spark,
appearing to the understanding, or drawing it to itself, and
showing itself to be the same.
Of the Trinity, 12th.
35. Friday [March 7th] .-I began the customary prayer
with much devotion, and wishing to see something of the past
day, I did not bother about increasing devotion, but looked
higher. From the middle on, very great and continued devo-
l'
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233
tion, with much lucid clarity, warm and sweet, lasting even
beyond the time of the prayer; after the preparatory prayer,
a calm and interior mind, and also in the chapel.
Later, while vesting, there were fresh movements to tears
and to conformation with the Divine Will, praying It to be my
guidance, etc. "Ego sum puer," etc. 43 Beginning Mass with
great devotion and interior reverence, and movements to
tears and to say "Beata sit Sancta Trinitas," 44 and by a new
knowledge, a new and greater devotion and to tears, not by
elevating my attention to the Divine Persons, as far as they
are distinct, nor for distinguishing Them, nor lowering it to
the wording (in the Missal). But the interior consolation
seemed to me to be between its place on high, and the words
of the Missal. Continuing thus with many continuous tears,
I did not think that it gave me leave to gaze higher, but midway; my devotion increased sharply with intense tears, and
keeping and increasing my respect and reverence for the
visions above, a certain confidence came to me, that permission would be given me, or that it would be made known at the
proper time.
At these times I felt these consolations indifferently, as they
terminated now to the Most Holy Trinity, now to the Father,
now to the Son, now to our Lady, now to particular saints with
many tears. Later, I paused at the middle or after the middle
of Mass, that is about the Hanc igitur oblationem, and at times
because of a conflict between consolation and desolation, in not
finding the Sacrament.
As I wished to end the matter, I came to the fire after
finishing Mass, not knowing what to decide for a good space
of time, whether to bring the Masses to an end now, or when
to do so. Later, the thought occurring to me that tomorrow
I should say the Mass of the Most Holy Trinity, to determine
what was to be done, or to end it altogether, many movements
came upon me and tears, and from moment to moment over
some space of time, great movements, sobs and floods of tears,
drawing me entirely to the love of the Most Holy Trinity with
many colloquies. I saw a disposition for greater and greater
43
Jer. 1:6.
"Benedicta sit Sancta Trinitas" are the words with which the Mass
of the Most Holy Trinity begins. St. Ignatius is quoting from memory.
44
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ST. IGNATIUS
enjoyment of these very intense consolations, if I cared to
wait and humble myself. I thought that I should not place a
limit for finishing with it, but where it should be revealed to
me there to place all and bring it to an end, and be glad when
I should find it.
The thought occurred to me : If God were to send me to hell,
two choices were presented to me: the first, the pain I should
suffer there; the second, how His name would be blasphemed
there. As to the first, I was not able to feel or see the pain,
and so it seemed to me that it would be more frightful to hear
His holy Name blasphemed. Later, as I sat down to eat, my
tears ceased, and there lasted all day as in a balance a very
interior and warm devotion.
Of the Trinity, 13th.
36. Saturday [March 8th] .-In the customary prayer, a
great help of grace from beginning to end, although increasing
with a very clear, lucid, warm devotion, to the great satisfaction of my soul. There was a deep contentment in the preparatory prayer and in the chapel. While vesting, I had fresh
movements, lasting to the end, becoming greater, and with
many tears, showin!tme a very great humility not to look even
to the heavens, and the less I wished to look above, and humble
and lower myself, the more I felt the relish and spiritual
consolation.
I began Mass and went through all of it with niuch interior
devotion and spiritual warmth, and not without tears, and
with a continuation of the devotion and a disposition to weep.
In these intervals of time, granting that I did not lift aloft
the eyes of my understanding, in an effort to be content with
everything, nay, even praying that, it being equal glory to
God, I be not visited with tears, it sometimes happened that
my understanding unwittingly went aloft, and I seemed to see
something of the Divine Essence, which on other occasions
when I want it is not within my power.
Of the day.45
37. Sunday [March 9th] .-Customary prayer like the past.
After dressing, in the preparatory prayer, fresh devotion and
45
Mass of the Second Sunday of Lent.
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
235
movement to tears, terminating principally in the Most Holy
Trinity and in Jesus. Entering the chapel, greater movements
and tears, all terminating in the Most Holy Trinity, sometimes
in Jesus, sometimes in all Three Persons together, or nearly
so, in such a way that the termination in Jesus did not lessen
the devotion to the Most Holy Trinity, nor contrariwise, and
this devotion lasted until I vested, sometimes with tears.
Later, in the Mass, with an exterior warmth46 as reason for
devotion and cheerfulness of mind, with a few movements or
inclination to tears, and yet without them, but more satisfied
than having them sometimes in good measure. It seemed to
me that in some way, even without lights, visions and tears,
God our :Lord wanted to show me some way or method of
acting.
The whole day passed with great contentment of soul. At
night I thought that I prepared myself for devotion, terminating in the Most Holy Trinity and Jesus, Which appeared to the
understanding, letting Itself be seen in a certain way. Wishing to apply myself to the Father, the Holy Spirit and our
Lady, I found neither devotion nor any vision, the understanding or vision of the Most Holy Trinity and of Jesus remaining
for some time.
Of the Name of Jesus.
38. Monday [March lOth] .-Great devotion in the customary prayer, especially from the middle of it on. A fresh
devotion before the preparatory prayer, with the thought or
judgment that I ought to live or be like an angel for the
privilege of saying Mass, as gentle tears came into my eyes.
Later, in the chapel and at Mass, with devotion to the same,
and conforming myself to what our Lord ordered, thinking
that His Divine Majesty would provide, taking everything in
good part, etc. In these intervals sometimes I saw in a certain
Way, the Being of the Father, that is, first the Being and then
the Father, the devotion terminating first in the Essence and
then in the Father, and sometimes in another way and without
so much distinction.
-
46
The agreeable warmth of the chapel moved him to devotion and
spiritual rejoicing on a cold morning. He exemplifies the Seventh Addition in the Fourth Week of the Exercises.
�236
ST. IGNATIUS
Of our Lady.
39. Tuesday [March llth].-The whole of the customary
prayer with much devotion, clear, lucid and warm. In the
chapel, at the altar, and afterwards, with tears, directing my
devotion to our Lady, but without seeing her.
Devotion through all the Mass, sometimes with movements
to tears, and later with devotion. In these intervals I often
partly saw the Divine Being, sometimes terminating in the
Father, that is, first the Essence and then the Father.
In the chapel, before Mass, in the way of permission to look
above, because the thought' came to me that looking above
would be a remedy for my o-eing disturbed by low things, and
with this, movements and tears. Later on, trying to look
above, when I saw and when I did not see, I found devotion
and the remedy to help me keep my attention more readily on
what I had to do throughout Mass.
f
[
r
i
I
~
The Holy Spirit.
40. Wednesday [March 12th] .-Great devotion in the customary prayer, and from midway on there was much of it,
clear, lucid and as it were warm. In the chapel, because I
looked down hurriedly, not preparing myself for the Mass,
I returned to the room to prepare myself, and composing myself with tears, I went to the chapel, and later to Mfl.SS, having
great devotion in part of it, sometimes with mev.ements to
tears. On the other hand, often with a struggle, which happened at the end, because I did not find what I was looking for.
In these intervals there was no sign of visions or lights.
Finishing Mass, and afterwards in my room, I found myself
alone and without help of any kind, without power to relish
any of my mediators, or any of the Divine Persons, but so
remote and separated, as if I had never felt anything of
Them, or would never feel anything again. Rather, thoughts
came to me sometimes against Jesus, sometimes against
another/ 7 being so confused with different thoughts, such as
to quit the house and hire a room to get away from the noise,
or to go without eating, or to begin the Masses over again,
47 See the description which St. Ignatius gives of desolation in the
Spiritual Exercises, n. 371.
j
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
237
or to put the altar on a higher floor. 48 Nowhere finding peace,
I had a desire to finish up at a time when my soul was consoled
and completely at rest. Examining, however, whether I
should proceed, I thought that I wanted to look for too many
signs, both in time and in the Masses ended for my satisfaction, the matter being so clear in itself, without seeking certainty in it, but only that stopping it all would be much to my
liking; on the other hand, I thought that if I gave up altogether in such distress, I would not be satisfied later on, etc.
Finally, I thought that since there was no difficulty in the
matter itself, it would be more pleasing to God our Lord to
end it, without waiting or looking for further proof, or saying
more Masses for it. Placing it thus in an election, I felt that
it would be more pleasing to God our Lord to bring it to an
end, and I felt in myself the wish that the Lord would condescend to my desire, that is to finish at a time when I had
a special consolation.
Realizing at once my inclination, and on the other hand, the
will of God our Lord, I began at once to take notice and to
wish to succeed in pleasing God our Lord. With this, the
darkness began to leave me gradually, and the tears to come,
and these increasing, I lost all desire to say more Masses for
this purpose. And when the thought of saying three Masses
of the Holy Trinity in thanksgiving came to me, I thought it
came from the evil spirit, and, deciding that I would say none,
I grew much in divine love, and had such tears and sobs and
strength, kneeling for a long time, and walking about, and
kneeling again, with many different reasonings, and with so
much interior satisfaction. Although so great a consolation
as this (which caused great pain in my eyes) lasted for the
space of an hour, more or less, the tears stopped at last, and,
doubting whether I should finish by night with such a flood,
or now, the flood having stopped, it seemed better to do so now.
To keep on seeking, or to wait for the evening, would still be
~ishing to seek, there being no reason to, and so I proposed
m the presence of God our Lord, and all His court, etc., putting
-
48
The chapel was evidently on a lower floor, with one or more floors
above it. It might have been something of a sounding-box, considering
the small dimensions of the house. This would account for the saint's
"I00k"
mg down hurriedly."
�238
ST. IGNATIUS
an end to this point, not to proceed any further in this matter.
Although in this last proposal, I experienced interior movements, sobbing and tears, even in the time of their great
abundance, I considered everything concluded, with no further
seeking, or Masses, or consolation of any kind, but that this
day would see the end. Finished.49
After the stroke of one, 50 as I sat down to eat, and for a
good space, the tempter did nothing, but he sought to have me
make some sign of hesitating, and answering at once, without
any disturbance, rather as in the event of victory, "Down,
where you belong!" 51 I felt a confirmation with tears and
every security concerning all that had been determined.
A quarter of an hour after this, I awoke to a knowledge or
clear understanding of how during the time the tempter was
suggesting thoughts against the Divine Persons and my mediators, he placed, or wanted to cause some hesitation in the
matter, and, on the other hand, when I felt the consolations
and visions of the Divine Persons and mediators, I had every
firmness and confirmation of the matter and this with a feeling
of spiritual relish, and my eyes filled with tears with great
security of soul.
On saying grace at table, a partial revelation of the Being
of the Father, and likewise of the Being of the Most Holy
Trinity, with a certain spiritual movement to tears, something
which all the day I had not felt or seen, although I looked for
it often. The great consolations of this day did not terminate
distinctly in any Person in particular, but in a general way
in the Giver of graces. 52
49 With this the saint ends his election on the poverty of the churches
of the Society. It is something quite in keeping with lgnatian spirituality, always so rational even in its loftiest heights, this ending of the
forty days in the third time of election, after having so often experienced
the second and even the first, in the midst of the loftiest communications
from God.
50 " • • • dadas decinuevas horas . . ." that is nineteen hours after six
of the preceding evening.
5 1 Words apparently spoken to the tempter, "Vade in locum tuum."
52 Thus a vision of the Trinity closes the first part of the Journal.
It
took place during the thanksgiving after supper. Father da Camara
has preserved a precious memorial of the saint's recollection during the
grace before and after meals (M emoriale, par. 183-84, p. 639).
�Part Second
March 13, 1544 to February 27, 1545
During these four days, I determined to examine nothing concerning the Constitutions.
Of the day.
1. Thursday [March 13th] .-In the Mass I felt a conformity with the Divine Will in not having tears, and as
though this was to relieve me of some labor, or give me rest in
not seeking, or examining whether to have an income, or not
to have it. Later throughout the day contentment and peace
of soul.
Of the Holy Spirit.
2. a. I. d.1 [March 14th] .-Before Mass, all through it and
after it, I had many tears, sometimes directed to the Father,
sometimes to the Son, sometimes, etc., and also to the saints,
but without any vision, except in so far as devotion went, at
intervals, ending now in one and now in another.
During all these times before, during and after Mass, I
was penetrated with the thought of the deep reverence and
respect with which, going to say Mass, I ought to pronounce
the name of God our Lord, etc., and not look for tears, but
for this respect and reverence, to such a degree, that exercising myself often in this respect, in my room before Mass,
and in the chapel, and during Mass, if tears came, I at once
1
Beginning with this 14th of March, the autograph of the saint scatters throughout the margin the following symbols, a. I. d., which refer to
the infused gift of tears. Sometimes the three appear together, sometimes two, sometimes one. A study of the text has led to the conclusion
that the letter l means tears during the Mass; the letter a, tears before
Mass, and the letter d, tears after Mass. The letters serve the saint as
a brief reminder of these graces.
Ignatius sometimes puts periods after these letters, sometimes before,
sometimes before and after, often omits them. Occasionally he uses
dashes. We print them as found in his text.
239
�240
ST. IGNATIUS
repressed them, to turn my mind to the respect, which did
not seem to be anything of my own. This respect presented
itself to me, and always increased my devotion and tears. As
a result, I persuaded myself that this was the way our Lord
wished to show me, as I kept thinking for the past two days
that He wanted to show me something, so that while saying
Mass, I was persuaded that a higher value was placed on this
grace and knowledge for the spiritual advantage of my soul,
than on all those that went before.
Of Our Lady.
3. Saturday [March 15th] .-In a part of the Mass, I felt a
certain interior respect apd reverence. In the greater part,
no possibility of feeling this interior respect and reverence.
Of the day.
4. a. I. Sunday [March 16th].-Many tears before Mass and
throughout it, the devotion and tears terminating now in one
Person, now in another, without any clear or distinct visions.
Making my prayer in my room before Mass, I asked that
respect, reverence and humility be given me, and that consolations or tears be not given, if it were for the equal service of
His Divine Majesty, or that I would enjoy His graces and
consolations purely and unselfishly. And so, from that time
on, all these spiritual consolations came to represent for me
respect, not only in naming or recalling the Divine Persons,
but even in reverence for the altar and other things having to
do with the Sacrifice. I resisted the tears or consolations when
it occurred to me to notice them or desire them, and, so turning my attention first to the respect, the consolations came
later. This was just the contrary to noticing the consolations
before the respect. This I thought to be wrong, which was
a confirmation of what I thought the previous Friday, and
that it was by this way that I was to go directly to the service
of God our Lord, esteeming this more than anything else.
Here I begin to prepare the first examination concerning
missions.
Of Our Lady.
1. a. I. Monday [March 17th].-Tears before Mass, and
many of them during it, to such an extent that several times
I lost the power of speech. This whole consolation terminated,
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
241
now with one Person, now with another Person, in the same
manner and mode as on the preceding day, that is, concerning
the respect and reverence as a confirmation of all the past,
and of having found the way that was to be shown me, which
I think to be the best of all and the one I should always take.
For some intervals before saying Mass, while I was recollecting myself in my room, I found no respect or reverence with any interior grace or relish; rather, I was completely
unable to find it, and yet I desired to have it or find it.
A little after this, in the chapel, I thought that it was God's
will that I make an effort to look for and find it, and even if
I did not find it, I thought the search for it was good. As
there was no possibility of my finding it of myself, the Giver
of all graces provided such an abundance of knowledge, consolation and spiritual relish, as I said, with tears that were so
continuous that I lost the power of speech, so that I thought
that every time I named God, Lord, etc., I was penetrated
through and through with a wonderful and reverential respect
and humility, which cannot be explained.
Of Jesus.
2. a- I. d- Tuesday [March 18th].- In Mass tears, and
not without them before and after, all terminating in respect
and reverence.
Trinity.
3. I. d. Wednesday [March 19th].-In Mass, for the most
part, great abundance of tears, and after it also. During it,
I often lost the power of speech, ending in respect and reverence and many interior sentiments.
Lady.
4. a. I- Thursday [March 20th] .-Not without tears before
Mass and during it, and with different interior movements,
ending in respect.
Of Jesus.
5. a- I- Friday· [March 21st].-Not without some tears
?efore Mass and during it, terminating in respect and some
Interior movements.
Holy Spirit.
6. I. d. Saturday [March 22nd] .-In the Mass, as a rule,
�242
ST. IGNATIUS
many soft tears, and after it also. Before it, some movement
to tears, feeling or seeing the Holy Spirit Himself, all respect
(Vision} .2
Of the day.
7. a. I. Sunday [March 23].-Before Mass and during it,
many and intense tears, all ending in respect.
Trinity.
8. 1 Monday [March 24th] .-In the Mass, tears at different
times, ending in respect.
Lady.
9. a 1 d Tuesday [March 25th].-Tears before Mass and
after it, many during it, with a vision of the Divine Essence,
terminating in the Father, in a circular figure several times,
and all leading to respect (Vision}.
Of Jesus.
10. a- 1 Wednesday [March 26th].-Tears at various
times in Mass, and before it, not without movements to them.
Until the Secret of the Mass I was not only unable to feel
any interior respect, but not even able to find a disposition
for helping me. From this I inferred and understood that I
could do nothing to find respect. From the Secret on, a
spiritual consolation ending in respect.
Holy Spirit.
.. .
11. a. I. Thursday [March 27th] .-Tears before Mass, and
many during it, all terminating in respect, and with a vision
of the Divine Essence in spherical form, as on past occasions
(Vision}.
Trinity.
12. a- I. Friday [March 28th] .-Tears during the Mass
and not without them before it.
Lady.
13. Saturday [March 29th] .-Not with tears or some sign
of them before Mass or during it. But I found in the customary prayer especiai or very especial grace, and in the Mass,
~the Second Part St. Ignatius usually uses the word "Vision" and
not the sign used in Part One. See note 3 of Part One.
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
243
the greater part of it, much sweet devotion. I thought that
it was greater perfection to find interior devotion and love,
as do the angels, without tears, and partly not with less, or
even with more satisfaction than the day past.3
Day.
14. a. 1 d. Sunday [March 30th] .-Many tears before
Mass, in my room, in the chapel during preparation, and great
abundance of them in the Mass, continuing all through it.
After it, many intense tears (Vision).
In this interval of time, I thought that humility, reverence
and respect should not be fearful but loving, and this was so
firmly established in my mind that I said confidently: "Give
me a loving humility, and thus reverence and respect," receiving fresh consolations in these words. I also resisted tears
to turn my attention to this loving humility, etc.
Later in the day, I had much joy in remembering this, and
I thought that I should not stop there, but that the same would
be true later of creatures, that is, loving humility ;4 if it were
not opportune, for the honor of God our Lord, as is said in
today's Gospel, "I will be like to you, a liar." 5 In these intervals, several times I had the vision of the Divine Essence in
circular form, as before. 6
Day.
15. .1 d. Monday [March 31st] .-Tears at Mass and afterwards, terminating in loving reverence, etc. At times I
thought that neither love, nor reverence was in my power.
3
In the last years of his life this grace must have been given him in
its most ideal form. Because of the wearing away of his shattered
strength by this continual sobbing and these tears, the doctor told him to
stop the weeping, which he took as an obedience. The result was a
greater consolation than formerly, and that without the weeping.
4
The saint gives us to understand that this loving humility, which
h~s been so sovereignly given to him, should not be found in his relations
With God only, but must be extended to all creatures, seeing in them
doubtless the image of this same God. (Cf. MHSI, Mon. lgn. ser. III,
tom. II, 342-45).
5
.John 8:55. He recognizes that there can be exceptions, when the
1
~Vl~g humility must be set aside, and the neighbor reprehended for
od s glory, as exemplified in the text quoted.
6
Reference is made to the visions of March 6th and 27th.
�244
ST. IGNATIUS
Day.
16. I. Tuesday [April 1st] .-Many tears at Mass, terminating in loving humility, etc. I thought that to find this in
the Sacrifice it was necessary for me to use it throughout the
day without distraction.
Day.
17. a. I. Wednesday [April 2nd].-There were tears in the
customary prayer, afterwards in my room, in the chapel and
while vesting, and very abundantly at Mass (Vision). At intervals, a vision at different times of the Divine Essence, sometimes terminating in the Father in circular form, with much
intellectual light and interior knowledge.
At times, when the knowledge or the consolations were
greater, I thought I ought to be just as content as when I was
not visited with tears, and to hold it better that our Lord do
what He pleased, console me or not; and for some spaces of
time, when I was not so consoled, I thought that this was such
great perfection that I lost hope, or feared being unable to
reach this grace.
Later, at another time, when much consoled, I thought I
was satisfied, that -is, with thinking it better that I should
not be consoled on the part of God our Lord, because I was
without the visit, or for not disposing myself or helping myself throughout the whole day, or in giving pljlce to some
thoughts that distracted me from His words in--the Sacrifice
and of His Divine Majesty/ and so I thought it would be better
not to be consoled in the time of my faults, and that God our
Lord orders this (Who loves me more than I love myself),
for my greater spiritual benefit, so that it is better for me to
walk straight, not only in the Sacrifice, but throughout the
day, in order to be visited. This corresponds to what dawned
on me the other day 8 about these and similar great and delicate
intellectual lights, for which I have neither memory nor under·
standing competent to explain or declare.
~aking a minute and rigorous examination of the reasons which
explain the absence of the divine consolation in his soul one morning, he
could find no more than these two: he did not practice this loving hu·
mility every moment of the day, and his thoughts strayed once from the
words in the Mass and his dealing with His Divine Majesty.
8 An allusion to what took place Tuesday, April 1st.
1
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
245
Day.
18. Thursday [April 3rd] .-No tears either before Mass or
during it or afterwards. I was more content without them,
and I affectionately felt that God our Lord did this for my
greater good.
Day.
19. a. I. Friday [April 4th].-Tears before Mass, and an
abundance of them during it, with many interior lights and
feelings, and also before Mass. Not finding loving reverence
or respect, I must seek fearful respect by examining my own
faults so as to find that which is loving.
Day.
20. ·a. I. Saturday [April 5th] .-Tears before Mass and
many during it.
21. a. I. d. Sunday [April 6th] .-Tears before Mass and
during it, after the Passion, 9 many and continued, ending with
a conforming of my will to the Divine Will and likewise tears
after Mass.
Day.
22. I Monday [April 7th] .-Many tears for the most part
during the Mass, drawing to conformity with God's will.
Day.
23.
Day.
24.
Day.
25.
26.
27.
Day.
28.
Mass,
9
l Tuesday [April 8th] .-Tears at Mass.
l Wednesday [April9th].-Tears at Mass.
Thursday [April 10th].-No tears.
[April 11th].
[April 12th] .10
I. d. Easter Sunday [April 13th] .-Many tears at
and tears after it.
As Palm Sunday that year, 1544, fell on April 6th, St. Ignatius is
speaking of the Passion read during Mass.
10
d These two days in 1544 were Friday and Saturday of Holy Week,
ays on which no private Masses were celebrated.
�246
ST. IGNATIUS
Day.
29. Monday [April 14th] .-Much interior and exterior
warmth, apparently more supernatural, but no tears.
Day.
30. Tuesday [April 15th] .-No notable consolation or desolation. No tears.
Day.
31. .1 d. Wednesday [April 16th] .-Many tears at Mass,
and tears after it.
Day.
32. a. l. d. Thursday [April17th].-Before and after Mass
tears, and many during it.
Day.
33.
Friday [April 18th] .-Tears at Mass.
Day.
34. a. l. Saturday [April 19th] .-Tears during Mass and
before it.
35. a. l. Sunday: [April 20th] .-Tears at Mass and before
it. Preparing. 11
Lady.
36. a. l. Monday [April 21st] .-Tears at Mass and before
it. Beginning, because I dropped it a few days~·ago.
Saints.
37. a. 1 d. Tuesday [April 22nd] .-Tears before and after
Mass, and during it many and continuous.
38. Wednesday [April 23rd].-No tears. Here they were
put aside.12
11 "Preparar," it is not easy to guess the thought of the saint in this
infinitive. One thinks of the line, "Here I began to prepare and examine
first concerning the missions," a note which precedes the entries for
March 17th. The excessive use of infinitive and gerund forms of the verb
has often been noticed and one scholar has even taken the trouble
(P. Mugica) to count them in the Spiritual Journal. He has found that
verbal forms amount to 1714, and of them 1245, that is, more than 72%
of them are infinitives or gerunds!
12 He is possibly referring to his work on the Constitutions.
I
I
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
247
39. Thursday [April 24th] .-No tears.
St. Mark.
40. .a I. Friday [April25th].-Tears at Mass and before it.
Holy Spirit.
41. Saturday [April26th].-No tears.
Day.
42. .a I. Sunday [April 27th].-Tears during Mass and
before it.
Trinity.
43. .a. I. Monday [April 28th] .-Tears at Mass and before it.
44. I Tuesday [April 29th] .-With tears.
45. I Wednesday [April 30th].-With tears.
46.
Thursday [May 1] .-With tears.
47. Friday [May 2nd].-No tears.
48. I Saturday [May 3rd] .-Tears.
49. I Sunday [May 4th] .-With tears.
50. I Monday [May 5th]. }
51. I Tuesday [May 6th] . Tears, I think.
52. Wednesday [May 7th].,
53. Thursday [May 8th].
No tears, I think.
54. Friday [May 9th].
55. I Saturday [May lOth]. Many tears at Mass.
56. a. I Sunday [May 11th] .-Tears before Mass and during it an abundance of them, and continued, together with the
interior loquela during the Mass. It seems to me that it was
given miraculously, as I had asked for it that same day, because in the whole week, I sometimes found the external
loquela, and sometimes I did not, and the interior less, although last Saturday I was a little more purified.13
13
The meaning of the last phrase is not clear. The subject of the
Verb "hallaba" must be supplied, and it is not clear whether it is the
saint himself, or something indefinite like "business" or "thing." If the
latter the translation would be " ••• although last Saturday the matter
Was clearer."
Father Larrafiaga repeats Pere de Guibert's question as to whether
these graces must be classed in the number of supernatural locutions,
�248
ST. IGNATIUS
In the same way, in all the Masses of the week, although I
was not granted tears, I felt greater peace and contentment
throughout Mass because of the relish of the loquelas, together with the devotion I felt, than at other times when I
shed tears in parts of the Mass. Those of today seemed to be
much, much different from those of former days, as they
came more slowly, more interiorly, gently without noise or
notable movements, coming apparently from within without
my knowing how to explain them. In the interior and exterior
loquela everything moved me to divine love and to the gift of
the loquela divinely bestowed, with so much interior harmony
in the interior loquela that I cannot explain it.
This Sunday before Mass I began to think of taking up the
Constitutions.
Of all the Saints.
57. .1. d. Monday [May 12th].-Many tears at Mass, and
tears after it. All these were like those of the preceding day,
and with so much relish of the interior loquela. It was like
remembering the heavenly loquela or music, which increased
my devotion with tears at the thought that I felt or apprehended it miraculously.
St. Sebastian.
58. .a. 1 d. Tuesday [May 13th].-Tears before and after
Mass, and a great abundance of them during it, and with a
wonderful interior loquela greater than at other ti~es.
Conception of our Lady.
59 . .a. I. Wednesday [May 14th].-Tears before Mass, and
many after it, the same interior loquela following.
Jesus.
60. Thursday [May 15th] .-No tears but with some
internal and external, of which the mystical writers speak from St.
Teresa and St. John of the Cross down to Fathers de Maumigny, Poulain
and Arintero. He answers with all respect to these writers, no; and
reminds us that St. Ignatius had enough of his own experience and the
experience of others, not to be taken by surprise by ordinary supernatural locutions, as we can see from a letter of his to Sister Rejadell
(Epist. I, 105). Father Larrafiaga does not think that it is possible
to place this infused gift of the loquela in any of the divisions of the
Reformer of Carmel. He has a long discussion on the matter, pages
648 and following.
r
'r
l
I
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
249
loquela, and disturbance of whistling, but not so annoying.H
Holy Spirit.
61. a. I Friday [May 16th] .-Tears before Mass, and
many during it, with the loquela.
Trinity.
62'. a. I Saturday [May 17th].-Tears before Mass, and
many and continuous during it, with a wonderful interior
loquela.
Day.
63. Sunday [May 18th] .-No tears, but some loquela. No
bodily strength, or any disturbances.
Litanies.15
64. I. Monday [May 19th] .-Tears and loquela.
All Saints.
65. Tuesday [May 20th] .-No tears or disturbance. Some
loquela.
Lady.
66. Wednesday [May 21st].-No tears and much loquela.
Ascension.
67. .a. I. Thursday [May 22nd] .-Many tears before Mass
in my room and in the chapel. In the greater part of the Mass,
no tears, but much loquela, but I fell into some doubt about
the relish and sweetness of the loquela for fear it might be
from the evil spirit, thus causing the ceasing of the spiritual
consolation of tears. Going on a little further, I thought that
I took too much delight in the tone of the loquela, attending
to the sound, without paying so much attention to the meaning
of the words and of the loquela; and with this many tears,
thinking that I was being taught how to proceed, with the
hope of always finding further instruction as time went on.16
14
He alludes to the disturbance he felt at hearing someone whistling
near his room, but without the annoyance he felt on February 12th.
15
During the triduum preceding the Ascension the Major Litanies
Were recited in the Church. The saint here refers to the Mass "In
Litaniis Maioribus."
16
It is to be noted that St. Ignatius' doubts have as their object not
�250
ST. IGNATIUS
Ascension.
68. I. Friday [May 23rd].-Tears.
Holy Spirit.
69. Saturday [May 24th] .-No tears.
70. a. I. Sunday [May 25] .-Before Mass many tears, in
my room, and tears in the chapel, and at Mass a great abundance of them continuing with wonderful loquelas.
Ascension.
71. I. Monday [May 26th] .-Tears at Mass and interior
loquela.
72. a. I Tuesday [May 27th].-Tears before Mass, many
during it together with an increasing interior loquela.
Ascension.
73. .a I d. Wednesday [May 28th].-Tears before and
after Mass; during it many tears with a wonderful interior
loquela.
Ascension.
74. .a I d. Thursday [May 29th].-Tears before, during,
and after Mass.
~
75. Friday [May 30th] .-No tears.
76. I Saturday [May 31st] .-Tears.
77. I Sunday [June lst].-Tears.
78. Monday [June 2nd].-No tears.
79 . Tuesday [June 3rd] .-No tears.
80. .1. Wednesday [June 4th].-Many and continued tears.
81. Thursday [June 5th].-No tears.
82. Friday [June 6th].-No tears.
83. Saturday [June 7th].-No tears.
Trinity.
84. a. I. Sunday [June 8th] .-Tears in my room and in the
the loquela itself, but its "relish and sweetness," the excessive delight
"in the tone of the loquela, attending to the sound without paying so
much attention to the meaning of the words and of the loquela." It is a
disorder similar to the one already noted concerning the sweetness and
the softness of his tears, and as then, so now, it seems to be teaching the
method of proceeding for the future.
\
I
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
251
chapel before Mass, and many and continued during Mass.
Trinitas.
85. .1. d. Monday [June 9th].-Continued tears during
Mass, and tears after it.
Trinitas.
86 . .1 d. Tuesday [June 10th].-The same.
Trinitas.
87. Wednesday [June llth].-No tears.
Corpus ChristC
88. Thursday
[J~ne
1Zth].-No tears.
Corpus Christi.
89. Friday [June 13th].-No tears.
90. I Saturday [June 14th] .-Tears.
Of the day.
91. Sunday [June 15th] .-No tears.
Corpus Christi.
92. 1 Monday [June 16th] .-Many and continued tears.
Corpus Christi.
93. .a. 1. Tuesday [June 17th].-Tears before Mass in my
room and in the chapel, and during Mass many and continued.
Corpus Christi.
94. 1 Wednesday [June 18th].-Tears.
Corpus Christi.
95. .a. Thursday [June 19th].-Tears before Mass in my
room and in the chapel, but none during the Mass.
Holy Spirit.
96. Friday [June 20th] .-No tears.
Trinity.
97. I Saturday [June 21st] .-Tears.
Of the day.
98. I Sunday [June 22nd] .-Tears.
Trinity.
99. a. 1 Monday [June 23rd].-Many and continued tears
at Mass, and tears before it in my room and in the chapel.
�252
ST. IGNATIUS
Baptist.
100. a 1 Tuesday [June 24th] .-Many tears before Mass
in my room and in the chapel, and during it a great abundance
of continued tears.
Baptist.
101. I. d. Wednesday [June 25th] .-Many and continued
tears during the Mass, and after it.
Baptist.
102. 1 Thursday [June 26th] .-Tears.
103..a. Friday [June 27th].-Tears before Mass, and during it scarcely any.
104. .a. Saturday [June 28th].-Tears before Mass, and
during it scarcely any.
105. .a. Sunday [June 29th].-Tears before Mass, and
none during it.
Trinity.
106. a. 1 d. Monday [June 30th] .-Many tears before, during and after Mass.
Trinity.
107. a. 1 Tuesday [July 1st].-Many tears before and during Mass.
Visitation Our Lady.
108. a. 1 d. Wednesday [July 2nd].-Many ~ars before,
during and after Mass.
Five Wounds.
109. .a. Thursday [July 3rd].-Many tears before Mass in
my room and in the chapel, and none during Mass.
Trinity.
110. a. 1. d. Friday [July 4th].-A great abundance of
tears before Mass in my room and in the chapel, and also
during the Mass, and after it.
111. 1 Saturday [July 5th] .-Tears.
112. Sunday [July ~th].-No tears.
113. Monday [July 7th].-No tears.
114. .a. 1 Tuesday [July 8th] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
r
...
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
253
115. Wednesday [July 9th].-No tears.
116. Thursday [July lOth] .-1 do not know.
117. a. I d. Friday [July llth].-A great abundance of
tears before and during Mass, and after it, endeavoring to
take pleasure only in the Lord Himself.
118. .a. I Saturday [July 12th] .-Great abundance of tears
before and during Mass, remaining in our Lord.
119. Sunday [July 13th] .-No tears.
120. . a. I Monday [July 14th].-Tears at Mass and before it.
121. I Tuesday [July 15th].-Tears.
122. Wednesday [July 16th] .-No tears.
123. Thursday [July 17th].-No tears.
124. I Friday [July 18th] .-Tears.
125. a. I. Saturday [July 19th] .-Before and during Mass
many and continuous tears.
126. a. I. Sunday [July 20th] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
127. Monday [July 21st] .-Scarcely any tears.
128. .a. Tuesday [July 22nd] .-Tears before Mass, but
scarcely any during it.
129. a. 1. d Wednesday [July 23rd].-Great abundance of
tears before and during Mass, and tears after it.
130. .a. Thursday [July 24th].-Many tears before Mass,
and none during it.
131. .a. Friday [July 25th] .-Many tears before Mass, and
none during it.
132. I. d. Saturday [July 26th].-Many tears during Mass
and some after it.
133. a. I. d. Sunday [July 27th] .-Many tears before, during, and after Mass.
134. a. I. Monday [July 28th] .-Great abundance of tears
before and during Mass.
135. a. I. d. Tuesday [July 29th] .-Many tears before, dur~
ing and after Mass.
136. a. Wednesday [July 30th].-Tears before Mass, and
none during it.
�254
ST. IGNATIUS
137. a. 1. d. Thursday [July 31st].-Great abundance of
tears before, during and after Mass.
138. a. Friday [August lst].-Tears before Mass, none
during it.
139. a. I Saturday [August 2nd] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
140. I Sunday [August 3rd] .-Many tears during Mass.
141. a. I Monday [August 4th] .-Tears before Mass, and
during it a great abundance of them continuing, with frequent
loss of speech.
142. a. I. Tuesday [August 5th] .-Many tears before Mass
and several times during it;
143. Wednesday [August 6th].-No tears.
144. a. I. Thursday [August 7th].-Tears before Mass and
none during it.
145. .a. Friday [August 8th] .-Tears before Mass, none
during it.
146. I Saturday [August 9th].-Many tears during Mass.
147. Sunday [August lOth].-! do not recall.
148. a I d Monday [August llth].-Many tears during
Mass, and tears before and after it.
149. a. I Tuesday [August 12th] .-Many tears during
Mass, and tears before it.
~ ·
150. Wednesday [August 13th].-No tears.
151. Thursday [August 14th].-No tears.
152. Friday [August 15th].-No tears.
153. 1 Saturday [August 16th].-Tears at Mass.
154. a. 1 Sunday [August 17th] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
155. Monday [August 18th] .-No tears.
156. 1 Tuesday [August 19th] .-Tears at Mass.
157. a 1 Wednesday [August 20th].-Tears before Mass
and many during it.
158. a. 1. Thursday [August 21st] .-Before Mass, in my
room and out of it, a great abundance of tears, which were
also continuous during Mass.
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
255
159. a. I. Friday [August 22nd] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
160. a. Saturday [August 23rd].-Before Mass many
tears, but none during it.
During this interval I was ill and did not say Mass.
166. .a. I. Friday [August 29th] .-Many tears before and
during Mass.
167. .a I d. Saturday [August 30th] .-Many tears before,
after, and during Mass.
168. .a I d. Sunday [August 31st].-The same, continuous
and very abundant.
169. .a. Monday [September 1st] .-Before Mass many
tears, but none in it.
170. . a I. Tuesday [September 2nd].-Before Mass many
tears, and a few in it.
171 . .l d. Wednesday [September 3rd].-Many tears during the Mass, and some after.
172. . a I d. Thursday [September 4th].-Great abundance
of tears before Mass, after it, and during it.
173. Friday [September 5th].-No tears.
174. a. l. Saturday [September 6th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
175. Sunday [September 7th] .-No tears.
176. a. I Monday [September 8th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
177. I Tuesday [September 9th].-A few tears.
178. .a. I d. Wednesday [September 10th].-Many tears
before, during and after Mass.
179. a. I. d. Thursday [September llth].-Many tears before, during and after Mass.
180. .a I d. Friday [September 12th] .-The same.
181. .a I. Saturday [September 13th] .-Many tears before
and during it.
182. .a I. Sunday [September 14th] .-The same.
183. . a I. Monday [September 15th].-The same.
184. a. I. Tuesday [September 16th] .-The same.
�256
ST. IGNATIUS
185 . .1 d. Wednesday [September 17th].-Many tears at
Mass and after it.
186. .a 1. Thursday [September 18th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
187. .a 1 d. Friday [September 19th] .-Many tears before,
during and after Mass.
188. .a 1. Saturday [September 20th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
189. a Sunday [September 21st] .-Many tears before
Mass.
190. a. Monday [September 22nd] .-Great abundance of
tears before Mass.
191. .a 1. Tuesday [September 23rd] .-Before Mass a
great abundance of tears, and tears several times during it.
192. . d. Wednesday, [September 24th].-Late tears after
Mass.
193. .a. Thursday [September 25th] .-Great abundance of
tears before Mass.
194. a 1 d Friday [September 26th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass, and tears after it.
195. a 1 Saturday [September 27th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
196. a 1 Sunday [September 28th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
•·.
197. a 1 Monday [September 29th] .-Many tears before
and some during Mass.
198. a 1 Tuesday [September 30th] .-Many tears before
and during Mass.
1. a 1 Wednesday, first of October.-Many tears before and
during Mass.
2. a 1 Thursday.-Many tears before and during Mass.
3. a 1. Friday.-Many tears before and during Mass.
4. a. 1. d. Saturday-Before .o. c. y. and in Mass great
abundance of tears, and tears after it. 17
11 From this day the already mentioned signs, a. I. d., are written
with two three and four points above the a, the saint himself calling
attention to this novelty: "Here begin the points, and the omission of
those used heretofore." As we shall see, these points are engaged
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
257
5. a I. d. Sunday.-Before o. c. y. and a great superabundance of tears at Mass, with frequent loss of speech, continuous tears, with fear of losing my sight, and tears following.
6. a I Monday.-Before o. c. y., with a great abundance of
tears at Mass, with fear of losing my sight, and tears later.
7. a I Tuesday.-Before o. c. y., and a great abundance and
continuance of tears in the Mass, together with a feeling of
danger concerning my eyesight.
8. a I d. Wednesday.-Before .o. and during Mass, and
after it with great abundance and continuance of tears,
through all (the day) .18
9. a. Thursday.-An abundance of tears before Masso. c. y.
10. a. 1 Friday.-Many tears before .o., and a few during
Mass.
11. .a 1 d. Saturday.-Tears before .o., during Mass, and
many afterwards.
12. a I. d. t. Sunday.-Tears before .c. y., many during
Mass, and many later.
13. I Monday.-Many tears at Mass.
14. a Tuesday.-Many tears (Before) .c. y.
15. I Wednesday.-Up to the middle of Mass warmth and
with the new signs, o. c. y. which the saint introduces into the text this
very day. We shall omit the dots the Saint used above the a. They can
be found in the Monumenta (Mon. lgn. ser. III, tom. I. pp. 149-158).
The signs o. c. y. are found right within the text. What do they mean?
They refer to the three times of prayer before Mass, 1) accustomed
prayer, customary prayer, or first prayer; 2) the preparatory prayer
for Mass, which has nothing to do with the preparatory prayer of the
meditations, and which was made after the saint had dressed, and was
still in his room; 3) the third was made inside the chapel or the church,
While the altar was being prepared or the saint vesting for Mass. Hence
o signifies the first customary prayer, usually made in bed before
rising.
e signifies the prayer made in the room (chamber)
Y signifies the prayer made in the church or chapel.
St. Ignatius usually spelled the Spanish word for Church, iglesia, with
a "y", i.e., yglesia.
18
"En todo," seems to indicate that the great abundance of continuous
~a:s accompanied the saint throughout the day. Cf. his letter to Borgia,
PtBt. II, 234.
�258
ST. IGNATIUS
a desire for tears ;19 afterwards, as a consequence to the
thought and light that God was protecting me 20 in those
desires, I began to weep and continued to do so through the
Mass.
16. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears before .y., and in it, and later
in abundance.
17. .a 1 d. Friday.-Tears before .c., and in it, and many
afterwards.
18. a. 1. Saturday.-Tears before c. and a few at Mass.
19. a 1. d Sunday.-Before c. y. and many at Mass.
20. a 1 d Monday.-Tears before c. y. at Mass, and a great
abundance of them aftet'it.
21. a 1 d Tuesday.-Tears [before] c. y., a great abundance
and continuance of them in Mass, and some after, with fear
for my eyes. I asked for contentment when tears did not
come, without contrary thoughts, etc.
22. a 1 d Wednesday.-[Before] o. c. y., and a great abundance and continuance of them at Mass, and some afterwards.
23. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears before .o. c. y, and a great
abundance and continuance at Mass, and tears afterwards.
24. .a 1. Friday.-Before o., and many at Mass.
25. a 1 Saturday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a few at Mass.
26. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears before .o. c y., and many at Mass.
27. a 1 Monday.-Tears before .c. y., and m~riy at Mass.
28. . a 1 d Tuesday.-Tears before .y., and many at Mass,
and afterwards.
29 . . a 1 d. Wednesday.-Tears before .o. c. y., many continuous at Mass and after it.
30. a 1 Thursday.-Tears before o c y., a great abundance
and continuance of them at Mass.
31. .a. 1. d. Friday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a great
19 He thus practiced the teaching which four years later he set forth
for St. Francis Borgia. See Epist. II, 235-36.
20 The saint's thought in these lines seems to be the following: "And
after thinking and seeing clearly that God with His divine spirit was
in those desires and longings of Ignatius concerning the infused gift of
tears, taking care that he be not misled, there were fresh tears which
continued through the Mass."
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
259
abundance and continuance of them at Mass, and afterward.
1. a I Saturday, First of November.-Tears .o. c. y., and a
great superabundance and continuance of them at Mass.
2. a I Sunday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a great abundance and continuance of them at Mass.
3. a. I. d. Monday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a great abundance and continuance of them at Mass, and afterwards.
4. a I Tuesday.-Tears before .o. c., and many at Mass.
5. a I Wednesday.-Tears before .c. y., and at Mass.
6. a I d Thursday.-Tears before .o., at Mass, and many
after.
7. a I Friday.-Tears before .o. y, and many and continuous tears at Mass.
8. a I d. Saturday.-Tears before .o. c y., at Mass many and
continued, and some afterwards.
9. a I Sunday.-Tears before .c. y., and many at Mass.
10. aId Monday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a great abundance at Mass and after.
11. a I Tuesday.-Tears [before] o c y., and a great abundance and continuance of them at Mass.
12. a I Wednesday.-Tears [before] .c. y., and some at
Mass.
13. a Thursday.-Tears before o. c
14. a I d. Friday.-Tears before .o. c., and many at Mass,
and after it.
15. a. I. d. Saturday.-Tears before .c. y., and a great
abundance and continuance of them at Mass, and after it.
16. aId Sunday.-Tears before o. c. y., and a great abundance and continuance of them at Mass, and after it.
17. a. I. Monday.-Tears before .o. y., and at Mass a great
abundance and continuance of them. '
18. . a. Tuesday.-Tears before .o.
19. a. I. Wednesday.-Tears before o., and many at Mass.
20. a I d Thursday.-Tears before .c., and many in and
after Mass.
21. a I Friday.-Tears before .o. c y., and at Mass, with loss
of speech.
�260
ST. IGNATIUS
22. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears before .o. c y., many at Mass
and after it.
23. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a superabundance of them at Mass, with frequent loss of speech, and tears
after Mass.
24. a 1 Monday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and many at Mass.
25. 1 d. Tuesday.-Many tears at Mass, and after some.
[26. Wednesday].-! did not say.21
27. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears before .c. y., many at Mass, and
some after it.
28. a 1 d Friday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and an abundance
of them at Mass and afterward.
29. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears before .o. c. y., and a great
abundance of them at Mass and also afterward.
30. a 1 d. Sunday.-Tears before .o. c., at Mass, and late
afterward.
1. a I d Monday, first of December.-Tears before .o. c. y,
and many during Mass, and late afterward.
2. a 1 d Tuesday.:-Tears before .o. y., and a great abundance of them at Mass and also afterward.
3. a Wednesday.-Tears before .o.
4. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears before .o. y, and some at Mass,
and afterward.
-·.
5. a 1 d Friday.-Tears before .o. y, some at Mass, and
after it.
6. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears before .o. c. y, at Mass, and manY
late afterward.
7. a I Sunday.-Tears before .c., and many at Mass.
8. a 1 d. Monday.-[Before] o. c., at Mass a great abundance, and afterward.
9. aId Tuesday.-[Before] .c. y, many at Mass, afterward.
10. a 1 Wednesday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abun·
dance at Mass.
21
That is, Mass. Over and above his continual illness, these verY
divine communications, as Father Nadal notes, had something to do
with his omitting Mass. (Mon.lgn., ser. IV, tom. I, 472).
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
261
11. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance at Mass and late afterwards.
12. a I d Friday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance at Mass, afterward.
13. aId Saturday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance at Mass, afterward.
14. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance at Mass, afterward.
15. a I Monday.-Tears [before] c y., many at Mass.
16. a I Tuesday.-Tears [before] .c y, and at Mass.
17. a I Wednesday.-Tears [before] o c y, and at Mass.
18. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears [before] .c y., many at Mass,
later.
19. a 1 Friday.-Tears [before] .c., a great abundance at
Mass.
20. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears [before] c. y., a great abundance at Mass, afterward.
21. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears [before] c y., many at Mass,
afterwards.
[22. a Monday].-[Before] c.
[23. a Tuesday].-[Before] c
I did not say Mass. 22
24. a [Wednesday].-[Before] c
25. a ll. d Thursday.-[Before] .c. y., tears at Mass; c. y.,
many at Mass; and some in the third, and afterwards tears in
my room.
26. a Friday.-Tears [before] .c. y.
27. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y, a great abundance and continuance at Mass, and afterward.
28. aId Sunday.-Tears [before] c y. Many at Mass, and
afterwards.
l
-
22
The omission of Mass in these days was at the advice of the doctors.
They insisted on his rising later than the community. On rising he
recited the Ave Marias in commutation of the Office, and that finished, he
Went to a chapel adjoining his room to hear Mass. After Mass he remained in prayer for two hours. Father da Camara, who was minister
at the time, said that he often found him there with his face all alight,
"something clearly heavenly and very extraordinary" (Memorial de
Camara, 179, p. 637).
�262
ST. IGNATIUS
29. a 1 d Monday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
30. a 1 d Tuesday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
31. a 1 d Wednesday.-Tears [before] .o. c. y., a great
abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
1. a 1 First of January [1545] Thursday.-Tears (before)
.o. c., and tears at Mass.
In this interval I did not say Mass, and except for one day,
there were tears every day. 23
11. a 1 d Sunday.-T~~h before o c y., a great abundance
at Mass, and later.
··
12. a 1 d Monday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
at Mass, and later.
I did not say Mass. 24
20. a 1 Tuesday.-Tears before o. c y., and a great abundance at Mass.
21. a 1 Wednesday.-Tears before .c y., and tears at Mass.
22. a 1 d. Thursday.-Tears before c y., and a great abundance and continuance at Mass, and afterward.
23. 1 Friday.-A great abundance at Mass.
24. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
at Mass, afterward.
~· .
25. a 1 Sunday.-Tears before .c y., a great abundance at
Mass.
I did not say Mass in this interval. 25
23 This interruption of nine days, and that of seven which follows it,
are the longest interruptions in Mass recorded in the Journal.
2 4 It was during this illness, according to Ribadeneira, that St.
Ignatius ventured to say that it would take him about a quarter of an
hour to resign himself to the destruction of what he held most dear on
earth, the Society.
25 Father da Camara throws some further light on this picture of the
infirmity of St. Ignatius, with regard to his feeling for sacred music:
"Something which helped him very much towards prayer was the music
and singing of sacred things, such as Vespers, Mass, and other services,
and this to such an extent that he himself admitted to me that if be
happened to enter a church where these services were being performed,
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
263
1. aId First of February, Sunday.-Tears before o c y, a
great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
2. a I d Monday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
3. a I d Tuesday.-Tears before .o., a great abundance at
Mass, afterward.
4. aId Wednesday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
at Mass, afterward.
5. aId Thursday.-Tears before .o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
6. aId Friday.-Tears before .o c y, many at Mass, afterward.
7. aId Saturday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
at Mass, afterward.
8. a I d Sunday.-Tears before c y, many at Mass, afterwards.
9. a I d Monday.-Tears before y., many at Mass, afterward.
10. aId Tuesday.-Tears before o c, many at Mass, afterward.
11. a I d Wednesday.-Tears before .o c y, a great abundance at Mass, afterwards.
he was at once to all appearances wholly enraptured. This was not only
a benefit to his soul, but also for his physical health. And so, when it
Was at low ebb, or he was afflicted with great weariness, there was no
better way of getting rid of it, or nothing that gave him greater relief
than to hear one of the brethren sing some piece of devout music. And
What surprised me not a little was that notwithstanding their knowledge
of this, those who attended him never called any of the students of the
German College, where there were many good singers, to offer him this
relief. The most I saw in this particular all the time that I was in
Rome was that they called Father Frusius of the German College, when
Father was down with nausea, to play the clavichord, without any
singing, for even this was a help to him. There was also a very simple
and virtuous coadjutor brother who sang many pious stanzas in the
s~me tone and voice in which the blind intone them, and with such lifehkeness that one would think he had been a beggar all his life. But this
?appened so rarely that in the almost two and a half years that I was
In Rome, it was not done more than five or six times" (Memorial, 177-78,
pp. 636-37).
�264
ST. IGNATIUS
12. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears before o c y, a great abundance
at Mass, late afterward.
13. ad Friday.-Tears before o c y, late afterwards.
14. a 1 Saturday.-Tears [before] .c y., many at Mass.
15. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears [before] c y, at Mass, afterward.
16. a 1 d Monday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
17. a 1 d Tuesday.-Tears [before] c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
18. a 1 d Wednesday of Lent. 26-Tears [before] .o c. y, a
great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
19. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
20. a 1 d Friday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
21. a 1 d Saturday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance at Mass, afterward.
22. a 1 d Sunday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
23. a 1 d Monday.-Tears [before] o c y, at Mass, afterward.
24. a 1 d Tuesday.-Tears [before] o c y, many at Mass,
afterward.
25. a 1 d Wednesday.-Tears [before] o c y, at.*ass, afterward.
26. a 1 d Thursday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance and continuance at Mass, afterward.
27. a 1 d Friday.-Tears [before] o c y, a great abundance
and continuance at Mass, afterward.
2 6 That is, Ash Wednesday, which that year, 1545, fell on FebruarY
18th.
�Election of St. Ignatius with Regard to Poverty
The disadvantages in having no. revenue are the advantages
in having a partial or adequate revenue. 1
1. It seems that the Society will be better maintained if it
has a partial or adequate revenue.
2. If the members have revenues they will avoid annoying
or disedifying others, seeing that for the most part they will
have to be clerics who do the begging.
3. Having a revenue they will avoid temptations to an illordered solicitude in seeking support.
4. The Society will be able to give itself with greater order
and peace of mind to offices and prayers at the appointed times.
5. The time that would be spent in soliciting could be given
to preaching, hearing confessions and other pious works.
6. It seems that the church in this way will be kept cleaner
and better adorned, thus moving to devotion, and offering the
possibility of rebuilding.
7. The members of the Society will thus be able to give
themselves to study and by this means be of greater spiritual
help to the neighbor, and care for their own health.
8. After two of the Society considered the matter, all the
others approved of it. 2
The disadvantages in having a revenue are the advantages
in not having any, namely:
1. With a revenue the members would not be so diligent
in helping the neighbor, nor so ready to go on journeys and
endure adversity. Moreover, they could not so well persuade
-
1
This document, written in 1544 by Ignatius, is found in MHSI,
Const. I, 78-83.
2
St. Ignatius and John Codure began their work on the Constitutions,
March 10, 1541, as Codure describes their work in MHSI, lgn. Const. I,
33-35.
265
�266
SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
the neighbor to true poverty and self-abnegation in all things,
as is seen among the advantages of having no revenue, which
follow:
Advantages and reasons for having no revenue.
1. The Society will have greater spiritual strength and
greater devotion by a closer resemblance to the Son of the
Virgin, our Creator and Lord, Who lived in such great poverty
and hardship.
2. By not looking for a definite income, all worldly greed
will the more readily be put to flight.
3. Because it seems that~the Society is thus united with
greater love to the Church, if there is uniformity among the
members in having nothing and if they look to the poverty of
Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.
4. It will be easier to hope for everything from God our
Lord if we thus withdraw from everything belonging to the
world.
5. There will be greater help in humbling ourselves, and
a greater union with H~m Who humbled Himself more than all.
6. The Society will live in greater disregard of all worldly
consolation.
7. It will live continually in greater hope of God's help and
with greater care in His service.
_:.
8. There will be in general greater edification, seeing that
we seek nothing belonging to the world.
9. We can speak with greater liberty of spirit and greater
effectiveness on all spiritual subjects to the greater profit of
souls.
10. There will be greater help and encouragement to help
souls when alms are received daily.
11. He will better persuade others to embrace true povertY
who observes that which Christ our Lord recommended, when
He said, "If anyone has left father," etc. 8
a "And everyone who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or father
or mother, or wife or children, or lands for my name's sake, shall receive.
a hundredfold, and shall possess life everlasting." (Matthew 19:29,
Mark 10:29)
�SPIRITUAL JOURNAL
267
12. It seems that we shall be more active in helping the
neighbor and readier to go on journeys and endure hardships.
13. Poverty, without any income, is more perfect than
poverty with a partial or adequate income.
14. In choosing this for Himself, Jesus, Lord of us all,
taught it to His apostles and beloved disciples when He sent
them to preach.
15. It was this that all ten 4 of us unanimously chose when
we took the same Jesus Christ our Creator and Lord as our
leader, to go to preach and exhort under His standard, which
is our vocation.
16. According to this understanding of poverty the Bull
was issued at our petition, and after waiting a year for it to
be expedited, while we persevered in the same understanding,
it was confirmed by His Holiness.5
17. It is an attribute of God our Lord to be unchangeable,
and a quality of the enemy to be inconstant and changeable.
4
That is, the first ten Fathers, when they were deliberating on founding the Society in 1539.
5
Neither the first companions nor St. Ignatius himself held that it
would be contrary to the Bull of Paul III, dated September 27, 1540,
for the sacristy to hold revenues. See Const. I, 35, nota 3.
Copies of this article in book form may be obtained
for $1.50 a copy from the Woodstock College Press.
�Bibliography to Aid Vocations
Charles A. Gallagher, S.J.
Edmund G. Ryan, S.J.
Introduction
The old adage Nil volitum nisi praecognitum still has force.
Modern advertising with its emphasis on even unconscious
motivation and knowledge plays too important a part in our
daily life to allow us to abandon the time-honored scholastic
axiom. Few Jesuits, however, ever apply that psychological
principle to the subject of Jesuit vocation. Too often a student
whom his Jesuit teachers styled a fine prospect takes his place
in the lay world with a Jesuit diploma in his hands. Perhaps
had this young man thumbed a book on the Jesuit vocation, a
biography of a saint or great man of the Society or a volume of
Jesuit history, he might now be part of the long black line.
Jesuit priests and scholars and all teachers and directors of
Catholic youth expend many days and evenings in their work.
Caught up in the world of action, few have chance to peruse
books. Yet few would desire to recommend a book to an individual without some knowledge of its contents. We hope this
list will allow a teacher to present a book to a young man with
the comment, "This is for you." In order to form --the judgments that we here pass on, we have consulted reviews in
America, Best Sellers, The CathoUc World, Downside Review,
Jesuit Missions, Messenger of the Sacred Heart, The Month,
New Review, Queen's Work, Thought, Woodstock Letters, and
a dozen other magazines.
What we offer is, then, a select bibliography of books and
pamphlets on the Society of Jesus. The vast subject matter is
narrowed to three general categories. The books and pamphlets herein contained treat only of: Jesuit Saints, Blessed
and great men; Jesuit history; the Jesuit vocation.
Since we offer a select bibliography, only books that appeal
to the youth of today have been included. Likewise our
268
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
269
purpose-to provide a bibliography useful for vocation propaganda-forced us to reject other volumes. The winnowingout process removed over two hundred books and pamphlets
from our compilation.
In the summary review we made of each book and pamphlet
we conformed to the prevailing tendency in Catholic criticism
of praising the effort. The best books, therefore, receive an
"excellent" rating; other recommendations were scaled accordingly. We used the values assigned by original reviewers
unless through teaching experience, we had just reason to
override their evaluation.
Two points were beyond our control. First, to our knowledge, no list exists which catalogues each volume still in print.
By making 1920 as a limit, we tried to heighten the chance
that the book might still be available either on the shelves of
booksellers or, at least, of libraries. Secondly, we attempted
to include every worthwhile book and pamphlet written within
our three categories. Through examination and re-examination we feel that we have approached that goal. Still, it is
too presumptuous to think that every book is mentioned.
May this work help promote vocations to the Society.
* * *
A
Allan, Charles W., Jesuits At The Court Of Peking.
and Walsh, Shanghai, 1935: 300 pp.
Kelly
Treats the Jesuits at Peking; among them are Ricci, de Ursis, Buglio,
Schall, Rho, Verbiest, Kogler and Gaubil. Free from scientific docu~entation; reads easily.
Third and fourth year high and up.
Ambruzzi, S.J., Aloysius, Saints and Blessed of the Society
of Jesus. Good Shepherd Press, Bangalore, 1939: 160 pp.
Short lives of Ours; not too readable.
High school and college.
Ambruzzi, S.J., Aloysius, In Nomine Jesu: Saints and Blessed
of the Society of Jesus. St. Aloysius College, Mangalore,
1934: 72 pp.
Short lives of Ours; not too readable.
High school and college.
�270
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Anderson, Floyd, The Bishop's Boy.
Catholic Treasury Books.
Bruce, 1957: 151 pp.
Adventure story of a young Catholic boy who becomes a courier for
Bishop Carroll. Easy reading.
Grades fifth to eighth.
Anonymous, Brother Francis Garate of the Society of Jesus
1857-1929. A Modern Alfonsus. Jesuit Missions Press,
1942: 58 pp.
Short life of a saintly brother of this century.
High school and college.
Anonymous, Merry In God. Longmans, 1940: 362 pp.
Written by an intimate of, Father William Doyle as a supplement to
O'Rahilly's book and especial~y for younger readers. Much of the matter
is from Father Doyle's diary, notes and letters.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Anonymous, World Missicms of the American Jesuits. Jesuit
Missions Press : 32 pp.
A quick round-the-world look at the mission fields staffed by American
Jesuits. Good photos.
High school and college.
Astrain, S.J., Antonio, A Short Life of St. Ignatius Loyola.
Trans. by Robert Hull, S.J. Burns, Oates, 1928: 116 pp.
Contains a surpriSingly rich and full account of life and character
of Ignatius.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Attwater, Donald, Martyrs: From St. Stephen 'fo John Tung.
Sheed and Ward, 1957: 236 pp.
~ .
Includes North American Martyrs, Pro, Ogilvie, Wright, de Britto
and the Japanese martyrs. Very well done; scholarly and readable.
High school and college.
Attwater, Donald, Saints Westward.
Kenedy, 1953: 130 pp.
Saints of the New World: North American Martyrs, Peter Claver
are included. Simply written and neatly compressed sketches.
High school and college.
B
Baegert, Jakob, Observations in Lower California. Trans. bY
M. M. Brandenburg and Carl L. Baumann. University of
California Press, 1952: 218 pp.
The book has sections on Jesuits in Lower California from 1717-1772.
Fourth year high school and up.
�271
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bannon, S.J., John F., The Mission Frontier in Sonora, 16201687. U. S. Catholic Historical Society, 1955: 160 pp.
Scientific history, well done.
The college student interested in history.
Barrett, S.J., Alfred J., Short Life in the Saddle.
Work, 1930: 31 pp.
Queen's
Readable and interesting life of St. Stanislaus.
High school and college.
Barrett, S.J., Alfred J., White Plume of Aloysius.
Work, 1930: 30 pp.
Queen's
Readable and interesting.
High school and college.
Becker, S.J., Kurt, I Met A Traveller. Farrar, 1958.
The story of the internment in Communist China of Father Thomas
Phillips, S.J. Interesting and readable account of a modern missionary's
ordeal.
High school and college.
Benson, Robert Hugh, By What Authority? Kenedy, 1957:
372 pp.
This is a modernized version of the 1909 novel. Shows the hardships
endured on the English mission during Elizabeth's reign. Easy reading.
High school and college.
Benson, Robert Hugh, Come Rack, Come Rope. Kenedy, 1957:
377 pp.
Historical novel of Elizabethan England and the persecution; well
edited by the translator and editor of the Autobiography of a Hunted
Priest, Father Caraman.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Benson, Robert Hugh, Oddsjish! Kenedy, 1957: 371 pp.
This is a modernized version of the 1924 novel. Setting is the
England of Charles II and the Oates plot; there is excellent delineation
of Jesuit martyrs and their ideals. Very readable.
High school and college.
Bernard, S.J., Edgar J., Saint John Berchmans: Patron Of
Altar Boys. Revista Catolica Press, El Paso, 1940: 68 pp.
Simple recounting of the life of the Jesuit boy saint.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Well written.
Bernard, Henri, Matteo Ricci's Scientific Contribution to
China. Trans. by E. C. Werner. Stechert, 1935: 108 pp.
Describes Ricci's efforts in the sixteenth century to introduce European
methods into scientific thought in China.
More scientifically inclined college students.
�272
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bernard, S.J., Raymond E., Ignatius Loyola: the Saint Who
Understood People. Queen's Work, 1956: 32 pp.
High school and college.
Bernoville, Gaetan de, Jesuits. Trans. and abridged by
Kathleen Balfe. Burns, Oates, 1938: 204 pp.
The author, a member of the French Academy, summarizes the life
of Ignatius; describes the Spiritual Exercises; analyzes the Constitutions, the missions, colleges and influence of the Society.
College.
Biever, S.J., Albert H., Jesuits in New Orleans and the
Mississippi Valley. Hauser Printing Co., New Orleans,
.
1924: 173 pp.
A summary account from f566 when the first Jesuits, sent by Borgia,
arrived. It became a regular mission a century later; reopened in 1835
after restoration of the Society. Scholarly history.
The college student interested in history.
Bischoff, S.J., William, The Jesuits in Old Oregon.
Printers, Ltd., Caldwell, Idaho, 1945: 258 pp.
Caxton
Scholarly and interesting history of a century of missionary activity
carried on by the Jesuits in the Pacific Northwest.
The college student interested in history.
Bodkin, S.J., Mathias, The Port of Tears. The Life of Father
John Sullivan, S.J. Clonmore and Reynolds, Dublin, 1954:
114 pp.
Life of a saintly Irish Jesuit; a convert widely known in Ireland
for his asceticism.
High school and college.
Boesch, Mark, The Cross In The West. Farrar, 1956: 192 PP·
Fathers Kino, De Smet and Ravalli are among the missionaries featured in this history of the pioneers in the West. Easy and interesting
reading.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Bolton, Herbert E., The Padre on Horseback, a Sketch of
Eusebio Francisco Kino, S.J., Apostle to the Pimas. The
Sonora Press, San Francisco, 1932: 90 pp.
Very scholarly. Based on .the introduction to his edition of Kino's
Favores Celestiales published in 1919.
The college student interested in history.
Bolton, Herbert E., Rim of Christendom, a Biography of
Eusebio Francisco Kino. Macmillan, 1936: 644 pp.
Based on diaries and letters of great Jesuit missionary in Northern
�273
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mexico and the Far West. First rate biography of an important Jesuit;
very readable.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Bowen, F.J., Father Constant Lievens. Herder, 1936: 176 pp.
Swift moving, graphic sketch of a Flemish Jesuit missionary whose
mass conversions in India startled the Christian world.
High school and college.
Boxer, Charles R., The Christian Century in Japan, 1549-1650.
University of California, 1951: 535 pp.
Shows work of the Society and the Franciscans.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Giant of God. Jesuit Mission Press, 1930:
38 pp.
Interesting story of Brebeuf-good style.
Grades fifth through tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, In Xavier Lands. Benziger, 1930: 175 pp.
Short stories on the missions-readable.
Grades fifth through tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Mangled Hands.
Benziger, 1926: 192 pp.
Story of martyrdom of Jogues told for young readers by son of Huron
chief who was youngest of this fictionalized band captured with Jogues.
Excellent.
Grades fifth through tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Mississippi's Blackrobe.
192 pp.
Benziger, 1927:
A story of Marquette, full of adventure, heroism and details of Indian
life. Easy reading.
Grades fifth through tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Redrobes. Benziger, 1936: 301 pp.
Story of adventure and heroic saintliness makes up this life of
Brebeuf. Easy reading.
Grades fifth through tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Shepherd Staunch. Jesuit Missions Press,
1933: 29 pp.
Interesting and readable life of Anthony Daniel.
Grades fifth to tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Surgeon And Saint: Rene Goupil. Jesuit
Missions Press, 1931 : 29 pp.
Appealing and attractive story of one of the North American Martyrs.
Grades fifth to tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, White-robed Blackrobe.
Press, 1930: 38 pp.
Jesuit Missions
�274
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
St. Isaac Jogues, his work and martyrdom; a thriller for boys.
Grades fifth to tenth.
Boyton, S.J., Neil, Yankee Xavier. Macmillan, 1937: 137 pp.
The author was a companion in India to Mr. Henry McGlinchey, S.J.
who died in India in 1918; tells of his work as a missionary and as a
scholar in the Society. Easy reading.
Grades fifth to tenth.
Brodrick, S.J., James, Blessed Robert Bellarmine. Kenedy,
1928: 2 Vols., 554 pp. and 552 pp. Reprinted by Longmans,
1950.
Its balance, true perspective, fluid clearness and vitality through every
episode in Bellarmine's life br~ngs the living man before us. Scholarly.
More mature college stud~nt.
Brodrick, S.J., James, Origin of the Jesuits. Longmans, 1941:
263 pp.
Mainly portraits of the first Jesuits, brings out the dark spots as
well as the glory of the Society; the organization and work of the
Society are seen through the men who molded the Society.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Brodrick, S.J ., James, A Procession of Saints. Burns, Oates,
1949: 198 pp.
Includes Blessed Ralph Corby, S.J. Well done.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Brodrick, S.J., James, Progress of the Jesuits.
1947: 344 pp.
Longmans,
Sequel to the Origin; from Ignatius' death to Acquaviva's generalate;
centered around the work of Nadal, Laynez, Borgia,~Canisius, Bellar·
mine, Suarez, etc.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Brodrick, S.J., James, St. Francis Xavier.
548 pp. Image Book, 1957.
Pellegrini, 1952:
Xavier's letters serve as the basis for this life of the saint; verY
readable. The critical aspect of this book might surprise some students·
More mature college students.
Brodrick, S.J., James, St. Ignatius Loyola, The Pilgrim Years
(1491-1538). Farrar, 1956: 372 pp.
Excellent treatment of the working of grace in Ignatius; covers hiS
life through his youth and days at Paris and Rome up to the approval
of the new Order.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Brodrick, S.J., James, St. Peter Canisius, 1521-1597. Sheed
and Ward, 1935: 589 pp.
�275
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Definitive biography of the saint who for years was the leader of the
Counter-Reformation; good style.
The more mature fourth year high school and up.
Brown, Evelyn M., Kateri Tekakwitha, Mohawk Maid.
Farrar, 1958: 192 pp.
This saintly Indian girl lives under the spiritual direction of the
Jesuits who labored on the Mission of the Martyrs in New York and
Canada.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Buehrle, Marie C., Kateri Of The Mohawks.
192 pp.
Bruce, 1954:
Sympathetic and understanding portrait of this saintly girl. Shows
her baptism by Father de Lamberville, S.J. on Easter 1676 and her
flight to the village on the St. Lawrence. Well done.
High school and college.
Burke, S.J., Thomas J. M., Beyond All Horizons. Doubleday,
1957: 288 pp.
Historical essays on Jesuit mission activity. Major emphasis is on
the personalities concerned with these missionary activities. Well done.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Burke-Gaffney, S.J., Michael W., Kepler and the Jesuits.
Bruce, 1944: 138 pp.
Deals with the dispute in which Kepler, Galileo and St. Robert
Bellarmine were involved.
The more scientifically inclined college student.
Burns, S.J., George, Gibbets and Gallows, The. Story of
Edmund Arrowsmith, S.J. Burns, Oates, 1944: 86 pp.
A sturdy, unsentimental piece.
Third and fourth year high school and college.
Burton, Doris, Daring To Live. Regnery, 1955: 176 pp.
This collection of great Catholics includes Fr. Pro.
attractive.
Grades eighth to twelfth.
Burton, Doris, Heroic
London, 1952: 128 pp.
Missionary
Interesting and
Adventures.
Thrilling adventures of Jogues, Claver and others.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Sands,
Easy reading.
Burton, Doris, Saints And Heroes For Boys. Sands, London,
1950: 118 pp.
Includes Xavier; interesting, well written, attractive.
Grades sixth to tenth.
�276
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Burton, Katherine, In No Strange Land: Some American
Catholic Converts. Longmans, 1942: 254 pp.
Includes the story of Father Francis Farmer, S.J. who became a
convert while a Protestant missionary in China-joined the Society
in China and became pastor of the Jesuit Church in Shanghai. Easy
reading.
High school and college.
c
Caraman, S.J., Philip, Henry Morse, S.J., Priest of the Plague.
Farrar, 1957: 201 pp;·
Morse lived 1595-1645 as a Jesuit missionary in England. Shows
his heroic work during the plague of 1636 and his arrest and execution
at Tyburn during the Cromwellian era.
High school and college.
Caraman, S.J., Philip (Editor), Saints and Ourselves.
Kenedy, 1956: 149 pp.
Ten canonized saints, including Claver, plus two Jesuit martyrs (John
Ogilvie and David Lewis) are portrayed clearly and sympathetically
by such authors as pawson, Cronin, etc. Some rather obscure saints
are included. Well done.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Cary-Elwes, Dom Columba, China and the Cross.
1957: 324 pp.
Kenedy,
Good section on the Jesuit attempt to Christianize-·Ohina; makes up
one-quarter of the book and is the best.
Third and fourth year high school and college.
Casanovas, J., Life of St. Alamo Rodriguez.
O'Leary. Herder, 1932: 188 pp.
Short life of the saint.
College students.
Trans. by :M.
Rather heavy.
Cassilly, S.J., Francis B., What Shall I Be? America Press,
1944: 70 pp.
Complete treatment of the subject of what a vocation is-rather stiff
and heavy.
More mature third ~nd fourth year high school and up.
Caughey, John W., California.
Prentice-Hall, 1940: 680 PP·
This is a history of California; sections on the Church and the work
of the Society in colonizing days and today. Very secularistic viewpoint.
College students interested in history.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
277
Charitas, Sister Mary, The Man Who Built the Secret Door.
Bruce, 1945: 130 pp.
Twelve sketches of saints from various walks of life; Ignatius is
included as "The Marathon Winner With The Broken Leg". Piety is
mixed with humor; interesting and inspiring.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Chicago Province, The Jesuit Vocation.
1952: 16 pp.
Chicago Province,
Graphic introduction to the Jesuit priestly vocation; short on text,
excellent on photos and illustrations. Well done.
High school and college.
Clark, S.J., Francis X., The Philippine Missions.
Press, 1945: 48 pp.
America
A study of the apostolate in the Islands from Philip II to Pius XII.
Well done.
High school and college.
Coatsworth, Elizabeth J., Sword of the Wilderness.
millan, 1936: 160 pp.
Mac-
Franciscans, Ursulines, Indians and Jesuits are part of this inspiring
and romantic tale.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Cody, S.J., Alexander, Richard A. Gleeson, S.J.
of San Francisco Press, 1950: 215 pp.
University
Life of an eminently priestly Jesuit who spent sixty-seven years in
the California Province as rector of Santa Clara, provincial, one of the
initiators of the lay retreat movement, etc. Simply told.
High school and college.
Collins, S.J., John H., Most Reverend William A. Rice., S.J.,
1891-1946. Jesuit Mission Association, Boston, 1948: 18 pp.
The story of Bishop Rice, S.J. and his work in the missions.
High school and college.
Collins, Thomas, Martyr In Scotland.
268 pp,
Macmillan, 1955:
Life of John Ogilvie. His torture of being kept awake for eight
days and nights is twentieth century. The writing is rather heavy
hut it is a good biography.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Concannon, H., White Horseman. Herder, 1930: 125 pp.
North American Martyrs; book presenting a challenge.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Conroy, S.J., Joseph P., Arnold Damen, S.J., A Chapter in the
Making of Chicago. Benziger, 1930: 329 pp.
�278
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Excellent life of the zealous, beloved and saintly pastor of Holy
Family parish in Chicago.
High school and college.
Corcoran, C., Blackrobe. Bruce, 1937 : 377 pp.
Father Marquette steps from the pages of this book as a splendid
figure whose warm personality charmed Indian and white alike; adventure story.
High school and college.
Corley, S.J., Francis and Willmes, S.J., Robert, Wings of
Eagles. Bruce, 1941: 206 pp.
Thirty-three separate accounts of lives of Jesuit saints and blessed in
Church calendar; short, well-written and inspiring in many of the
accounts.
High school and college.
Correia-Afonso, S.J., John, Even Unto The Indies. Ignatius
of Loyola and the Indian Missions. Messenger of the
Sacred Heart, Bombay, 1956: 101 pp.
Scholarly, well done.
College students.
Correia-Afonso, S.J., John, Jesuit Letters and Indian History.
St. Xavier College, Bombay, 1955: 193 pp.
Necessary for mission history of India; good propaganda.
book.
More mature college students.
Crehan, S.J., Joseph, Father Thurston.
1952: 235 pp.
Source
Sheed and Ward,
The controversies are heavy but the book is worthwhile.for the more
serious and mature.
~More mature college students.
Croft, Aloysius, Twenty-One Saints.
Aloysius and Ignatius are included.
originally given to C.Y.O. groups.
High school and college.
Bruce, 1937: 151 pp.
Presented in a manly way;
Cronin, Vincent, Wise Man From The West.
300 pp. Image Book.
Dutton, 1955:
Life of Ricci. Vivid story, fine scholarship, clear and strong literarY
style; very well done.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
D
Daley, S.J., John M., Georgetown University: Origin And
Early Years. Georgetown University Press, 1957: 324 PP·
�279
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Covers the years 1791-1841.
ment. Excellent.
College students.
A very competent and scholarly treat-
Daly, S.J., James J., Jesuit In Focus. Bruce, 1940: 212 pp.
A study giving an excellent account of what a Jesuit is and wishes
to be. Excellent.
High school and college.
Daly, S.J., James J., St. John Berchmans.
191 pp.
Kenedy, 1921:
The life is unusually appealing; written with charm and grace.
High school and college.
Davis, S.J., William L., A History of St. Ignatius' Mission,
an Outpost of Catholic Culture on the Montana. Frontier.
Gonzaga University Press, Spokane, 1954: 147 pp.
Story of an old Jesuit mission by a college professor.
College students.
Good style.
Delanglez, S.J., Jean, French Jesuits in Lower Louisiana.
Catholic University Press, 1935: 547 pp.
Scholarly work; translation of many original documents.
Mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Delanglez, S.J., Jean, Frontenac and the Jesuits.
University Press, 1939: 296 pp.
Loyola
Shows work of the Society in the creation of New France; the work
of the missions receives good treatment.
Mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Delanglez, S.J., Jean, Some La Salle Journeys, Institute of
Jesuit History, Chicago, 1938: 103 pp.
The purpose of this work is to interpret Jesuit activities in the
Great Lakes region and in the Mississippi Valley. Scholarly and well
done,
Historically-minded college students.
Delany, S.J., Francis X., A History of the Catholic Church in
Jamaica, B.W.I. Jesuit Missions Press, 1930: 292 pp.
The author has first-hand knowledge of the mission and has treated
the subject very well.
High school and college.
Delehaye, S.J., Hippolyte, St. John Berchmans.
Henry Semple. Benziger, 1921: 190 pp.
Trans. by
Father Delehaye has the erudition and humility of a genuine scholar
combined with a literary touch.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
�280
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Dempsey, Martin, Editor, The Priest Among The Soldiers.
Burns, Oates, 1947: 211 pp.
Chaplains of the British Army during World War II. Four of
eighteen essays are by Jesuits. Very readable. Very well done.
High school and college·.
Derleth, August W., Father Marquette and the Great Rivers.
Farrar, 1955: 188 pp.
This Vision Book is detailed and workmanlike; does not stir the
imagination too much. Style is simple and attractive.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Derleth, August W., St. Ignatius and the Company of Jesus.
Farrar, 1956: 184 pp. ·,
Well integrated, objective m-arshalling of the main facts about the
Jesuit founder. Simple and attractive style.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Desideri, S.J., Ippolito, An Account of Tibet: The Travels of
Desideri, 1712-1729. Trans. and edited by Filippo de
Filippi. Routledge and Sons, Ltd., London, 1937: 475 pp.
Thrilling reading of the journey of a Jesuit missionary of the
eighteenth century.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Devine, E. J., Jesuit Martyrs.
254 pp.
Canadian Messenger, 1925:
In a popular and interesting fashion tells the story of the North
American Martyrs.
High school and college.
Devlin, Christopher, The Life of Robert Southwell, Poet and
Martyr. Farrar, 1956: 367 pp.
Regarded as definitive biography in England; very readable; shows
vocation crisis, Jesuit training, letter to Queen Elizabeth defending
priestly celibacy and has some of his poetry.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
De Wohl, Louis, The Golden Thread.
pp.
Lippincott, 1952: 254
Romantic, adventure story that has St. Ignatius Loyola involved in
its plot.
High school and college.
De Wohl, Louis, Set A'll On Fire. Lippincott, 1953: 280 pp.
Interestingly written; quotes many of Xavier's letters; will sharpen
the appetite of young men for future spiritual reading.
High school and college.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Diamond, S.J., Joseph, God's Ground Crew.
1953: 32 pp.
281
Queen's Work,
Brothers' vocations.
High school and college.
Diamond, S.J., Joseph, Please Don't Call Me Lord.
Work, 1949: 32 pp.
Queen's
For vocations; written by a Scholastic.
High school and college.
Dissard, S.J., J., Father Francis Tarin, S.J. Trans. by
Katherine Henvey. Sheed and Ward, 1928: 134 pp.
Famous Jesuit who worked as a preacher of missions throughout
Spain and died in 1910. Good style.
High school and college.
Donlon, Hugh, Story of Auriesville "Land of Crosses."
Harrigan Press, Worcester, 1932: 176 pp.
Gives the story of the Indians who controlled the Mohawk valley;
of the Jesuits they martyred; of Tekakwitha and the establishment of
the shrine. More pious than interesting.
High school and college.
Donnelly, D., A Gallant Conquistador. Brown, Dublin, 1932:
208 pp.
Life of Rudolph Acquaviva, the first Jesuit martyr.
High school and college.
Donnelly, D., A Prisoner in Japan.
181 pp.
Very well done.
Sheed and Ward, 1928:
Life of Charles Spinola; gripping story.
High school and college.
Donnelly, William P., Up From The Mines: Father Miguel Pro.
St. Anthony Guild, 1941 : 67 pp.
Brief and inspiring tribute to an heroic leader; based on a Spanish
Work.
High school and college.
Dragon, S.J., Antonio, Miguel Augustin Pro of the Society
0 f Jesus, Martyr of Christ the King.
Trans. and edited
by Lawrence Drummond. Messenger Press, Montreal,
1930: 219 pp,
The author was a fellow student of Father Pro in theology. The
style is vivid. It also contains an apologia of the Church in Mexico.
High school and college.
Drolet, S.J., Francis P., The Queen's Warrior: St. John
Berchmans. Queen's Work, 1951: 40 pp.
High school and college.
�2S2
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Dudon, S.J., Paul, Ignatius of Loyola. Trans. by William J.
Young, S.J. Bruce, 1949: 484 pp.
Standard life of Ignatius; gives spirit of the Institute; excellent
translation, alive and moving.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Du Jarric, S.J., Pierre, Akbar and the Jesuit Missions. Trans.
with notes by C. H. Payne. Harper, 1926: 288 pp.
A sixteenth century account of Jesuit missionary efforts in India
chiefly at the court of Akbar.
High school and college.
Dunigan, David, A History of Boston College. Bruce, 1947:
362 pp.
Academic history. Much on.<;;treer of Father McElroy.
College students.
Dunne, S.J., Peter Masten, Andres Perez de Ribas, Pioneer
Blackrobe of the West Coast, Administrator and Historian.
United States Catholic Historical Society, 1951: 175 pp.
Life of a Jesuit missionary in Mexico; college president, provincial of
the Jesuits and world famous for his history, published in 1645. Readable and interesting.
The more historically-minded fourth year high school and up.
Dunne, S.J., Peter ~asten, Black Robes in Lower California.
University of California Press, 1952: 540 pp.
Scholarly and entertaining; skillful representation of Jesuits in
various works and missions among the Indians of Lower California.
The more historically-minded fourth year high school a.nd up.
Dunne, S.J., Peter Masten, Early Jesuit Missicins in Tara·
humara. University of California Press, 1948: 276 pp.
Written as excellent history and the result of personal travel through
the area.
The more historically-minded fourth year high school and up.
Dunne, S.J., Peter Masten, Pioneer Black Robes on the West
Coast. University of California Press, 1940: 286 pp.
Gives clear picture of Jesuits in Lower California and in Mexico; the
author makes excellent use of geography as a background. Very well
written.
The more historically-minded fourth year high school and up.
Dunne, S.J., Peter Masten, Pioneer Jesuits in Northern
Mexico. University' of California Press, 1944: 227 pp.
Gives clear view of time sequence; shows relation to Franciscan work;
explains a revolution .that threatened Spanish control of New Spain.
The more historically-minded fourth year high school and up.
�283
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
E
Ernest, Brother (John D. Ryan), Young Prince Gonzaga.
Josephite Press, Watertown, Wise., 1945: 36 pp.
Colorful life of the saint up to his entrance into the Society.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Ernest, Brother (John D. Ryan), The Boy Who Saw the
World. Dujarie Press, Notre Dame, 1941: 121 pp.
Story of Xavier; both young and old will enjoy the directness and
brevity of .the author's story.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Espinosa, Jose M., Crusaders of the Rio Grande.
of Jesuit History, Chicago, 1942: 410 pp.
Spanish effort to civilize and Christianize New Mexico.
Diego de Vargas. Well done.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Institute
Story of
F
Farnum, Mabel, A Carrack Sailed Away. Propagation of the
Faith, 1938: 393 pp.
A fictionalized account of the missionary career of Francis Xavier.
Easy reading.
High school and college.
Farnum, Mabel, Sacred Scimitar.
Bruce, 1946: 168 pp.
The story of the seventeenth century Jesuit, St. John de Britto; tells
of his unbelievable hardships; exciting and inspiring; easy reading.
High school and college.
Farnum, Mabel, Street of the Half-Moon. Bruce, 1940: 242 pp.
Accurate and thrilling; solidly historical, though colorful and dramatic life of Claver.
High school and college.
Farnum, Mabel, The Wool Merchant of Segovia. Bruce, 1945:
202 pp.
Life of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez.
High school and college.
Easy reading.
Feeney, Leonard, Survival Till Seventeen. Sheed and Ward,
1941: 141 pp.
Excellent story of home life, interests and temperament that led to a
;ocation. Good chapters on the decision to be a Jesuit, the preparation
or entrance, the arrival and first few days at St. Andrew. Interesting
and most readable.
High school and college.
�284
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Feeney, S.J., Thomas, Letters From Likiep.
Associates, 1952: 259 pp.
Jesuit Mission
Caroline and Marshall missions; interesting and unusual customs
and language are explained in a simple and conversational style by
Bishop Feeney. Well done.
High school and college.
Feeney, S.J., Thomas J., Padre of the Press, Recollections of
John J. Monahan, S.J. Jesuit Missions Press, 1931: 161 pp.
Father Monahan was successively: Irish immigrant, grocer's clerk,
college student, dentist, Jesuit priest and missionary in the Philippine
Islands. Heavy.
High school and college.
Ferroli, S.J., Dominicus, 'The Jesuits in Malabar.
Co., National Press, Bangalore, 1951: 622 pp.
King and
Traces the history of the Society in Malabar from 1600-1818.
Scholarly.
More historically-minded college students.
Ferroli, S.J., Dominicus, The Jesuits in Mysore. Xavier Press,
Kozhikode, Bangalore, India, 1955: 238 pp.
History from 1648-1800. Heavy.
The historically-minded in college.
Fichter, S.J., Joseph; James Laynez, Jesuit.
299 pp.
Herder, 1944:
Second general of the Society. Shows him as energetic, learned
leader; shows Jesuits at Trent and planning and executing Counter·
Reformation. Well balanced treatment.
:
More mature third and fourth year high school and up. ·
Fichter, S.J., Joseph, Man of Spain, Francis Suarez.
millan, 1940: 349 pp.
Mac-
Combines accuracy and completeness with readability; good idea of
work of the Society in studies; the subject, Suarez, may not appeal to
youth.
The more mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Fink, Leo G., Old Jesuit Trails in Penn's Forest. Paulist Press,
1933-35: 270 pp.
Relates with biographical sketches part of the story of the earlY
Jesuit missionaries in Pennsylvania.
College students.
Finn, S.J., Francis J., Father Finn, S.J.
236 pp.
Benziger, 1929:
Inspiring story of a great Jesuit; ideal for hints on writing and
�::
i.
285
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
guidance; mentions other Jesuits who are writers; introduction by
Father Lord.
High school and college.
Fitzpatrick, Benedict, Donjon of Demons. Holt, 1930: 306 pp.
A hero's tale based on Jesuit Relations; tells the story of Brebeuf;
some events are fictionalized.
High school and college.
Foley, S.J., Albert, God's Men Of Color.
pp.
Farrar, 1955: 322
·'
The story of colored Catholic priests in the United States, including
Father Patrick Healey, S.J., who was President of Georgetown. Easy
reading.
High school and college.
Foley, S.J., AlbertS., Modern Gala.had. Bruce, 1937: 241 pp.
Very readable and inspiring account of St. John Berchmans; shows
him to have been very manly.
High school and college.
Foley, S.J., Albert S., St. Regis, A Social Crusader.
1941: 268 pp.
Bruce,
Colorful story of seventeenth century Jesuit priest who spent life
defending oppressed workers by combating the evils of the time. Timely
parallels with the twentieth century could be drawn; popular though
difficult style in places.
High school and college.
Ford, S.J., Desmond, Pathfinders Of Christ.
1948: 111 pp.
Burns, Oates,
Collection of ten saints for the adolescent; includes Ignatius and
Jogues. Very well done.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Forrest, M. D., Life of Father Pro.
St. Paul, 1945: 118 pp.
Radio Replies Press,
Well written; used personal contact with Father Pro's brothers and
sisters as well as the documents.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Fox, William S. and Jury, Wilfrid, Saint Ignace Canadian
Altar of Martyrdom. McClelland and Stewart, Toronto,
1949: 158 pp.
Part I by Fox is a history of the mission; it is compressed. Part II
by Jury relates the excavations to uncover the site. Scholarly.
College.
Frossard, Andre, The Salt of the Earth. Trans. by Majorie
Villiers. Kenedy, 1956: 160 pp.
Renews personality of the principal religious orders in a collection
�286
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
of delightful essays; wrong on way Jesuit general is elected and some
other details; humorous and worthwhile.
High school and college.
Fulop-Miller, Rene, The Power And Secret Of The Jesuits.
Trans. by Frank Flint and Dorothy Tait. Viking, New
York, 1930, 523 pp.
This non-Catholic author tries to treat the Society objectively and
show its ideals. We recommend its absorbing, dramatic, journalistic
presentation of the Society's history and ideals.
Mature fourth year high school and college students.
G
Gardiner, S.J., Harold, Edmund Campion, Hero of God's
Underground. Farrar, 1957: 189 pp.
Reads well, moves rapidly.
Grades fifth to tenth.
Garraghan, S.J., Gilbert, Chapters In Frontier History.
Bruce, 1934: 188 pp.
Many Jesuits and their stories in the development of the United
States. Well done.
Historically-minded college student.
Garraghan, S.J., Gilbert, The Jesuits of the Middle United
States. America Press, 1938: 3 vols. 660 pp., 669 pp.,
666 pp.
Excellent treatment of Jesuit work; scholarly.
The more historically-minded in fourth year high school· and up.
Gavin, S.J., Michael, Memoirs of Father Peter Gallway, S.l.
Burns, Oates, 1913: 263 pp.
Biography of one of the best known Jesuits of his time; he was
stationed at Farm St., London, for the last twenty-six years.
High school and college.
Gense, S.J., James H., Feast Days in the Jesuit Calendar.
St. Xavier College, Bombay, 1954: 414 pp.
It is a gold mine of information on all our men who have been raised
to the altars. Well done.
High school and college.
Gense, S.J., James H., St. John Berchmans as Seen by his
Contemporaries. St. Xavier College, Bombay, 1949: 152 PP·
Based on seventeenth century contemporary evidence of his Jesuit
brothers. Good.
High school and college.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
287
Gense, S.J., James H., Spiritual Odyssey of St. Stanislaus
Kostka. St. Xavier College, Bombay, 1951: 268 pp.
Penetrating biography; physical career is frame and portrait is
spiritual; well written.
High school and college.
Gerard, S.J., John, Autobiography of a Hunted Priest. Trans.
by Philip Caraman, S.J. Pellegrini, 1952: 287 pp. Image
Book, 1956.
This is the same book that was published in England under the title,
Autobiography of an Elizabethan Jesuit. Excellent story of a Jesuit in
England from 1588-1606; highly recommended.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Gerard, S.J., John, The Flight of the Falcon. Trans. by Philip
Caraman, S.J.; edited for young readers by Frances M.
McGuire. Longmans, 1955: 188 pp.
Thrilling story of Gerard's escapes from Elizabeth's police; easy
and enjoyable reading.
Grades sixth 'to tenth.
Germing, S.J., Matthew, Shall I Be A Jesuit? Queen's Work,
1948: 24 pp.
Shows the meaning of the religious life, vows, the special work of
the Society and method of election. Good on both vocations, priest
and brother.
High school and college.
Gleeson, Richard A., Dominic Giacobbi, A Noble Corsican.
America Press, 1938: 285 pp.
The biography of a saintly Jesuit written by one who knew him
intimately; presents the attractive personality of one in love with Christ,
souls and with his vocation. Heavy in spots.
High school and college.
Goodier, S.J., Alban, Jesuits.
Macmillan, 1930: 84 pp.
Describes the sixteenth century and Ignatius' relation to it; excellent
treatment of the spirit and ideals of the Society; spirituality and works.
Excellent.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Goodier, S.J., Alban, Saints For Sinners.
1934 : 223 pp.
Sheed and Ward,
Insight into the lives of nine saints who had to fight sin and discouragement; Xavier and La Colombiere are included.
The more mature college students.
Guerreiro, S.J., F., Jahangir And The Jesuits. Trans. by C. H.
Payne. Rob€rt M. McBride, New York, 1930: 287 pp.
Jahangir was a sixteenth century Mongul emperor; Brother Goes, S.J.
..
�288
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
journeyed from Goa to China in search of the Kingdom of Prester John.
College students.
Guitton, Georges, Perfect Friend, The Life of Blessed Claude
de La Colombiere. Trans. by William J. Young, S.J.
Herder, 1956: 440 pp.
Best biography of Blessed Claude. Good translation.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
H
Haggerman, Gerard, Hero of the Gallows.
Notre Dame, 1953; 87 pp.
Dujarie Press,
Story of Bl. Edmund Campion; well done, easy to read.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Haggerty, S.J ., Edward, Guerilla Padre in Mindanao.
mans, 1946: 257 pp.
Long-
Adventure story of Jesuit priest during World War II in the Philippine Islands. Easy reading.
High school and college.
Hamilton, S.J., Raphael, The Story of Marquette University.
Marquette University Press, 1953: 434 pp.
A thoroughly documented history.
College students.
-
Scholarly.
Hanly, Daniel A., Bl. Joseph Pignatelli.
269 pp.
Biography of the second founder of the Society.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Benziger, 1938:
Heavy in spots.
~ -
Harney, S.J., Martin P., Early Portuguese Missions and St.
Francis Xaxier in the Orient. American Press, 1945: 40 pp.
Good study of the missions.
High school and college.
Study outline by Gerald Treacy.
Harney, S.J., Martin P., The Jesuits in History.
Press, 1941: 513 pp.
America
Good informative history of the Society though only three chapters
on the restored Society. Very worthwhile.
The more historical-minded third and fourth year high school and up.
Harvey, R., St. Ignatius. Bruce, 1936: 273 pp.
A non-Catholic gives an accurate, full-length portrait of Ignatius in
the Science and Culture Series.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Heagney, Anne, The Marylanders.
Catholic Treasury Books.
Bruce, 1957: 156 PP·
�289
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Adventure tale for boys of that period of Maryland history when
the Catholics were persecuted. Easy reading.
Grades fifth to eighth.
Hibbert, Eloise T., Jesuit Adventure in China During the
Reign of K'ang Hsi. Dutton, 1941: 298 pp.
Fascinating but uncritical account of the emperor who is the main
figure in the book; much on the Society. Inaccurate as history but as
easy to read as a novel.
High school and college.
Holland, S.J., Robert E., Song of Tekakwitha. Fordham University Press, 1942: 176 pp.
This is a narrative poem. Readable and should have wide appeal.
High school and college.
Hollis, Christopher, St. Ignatius.
287 pp.
Sheed and Ward, 1931:
The interior mystical life of Ignatius is put· in the background by
the author's decision to paint the leader of men and the remaker of
chaotic Europe.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Homan, Helen W., Knights of Christ.
486 pp.
Prentice-Hall, 1957:
Description of the founders and individual spirit of orders.
and the Society are included.
High school and college.
Ignatius
Hopkins, J. G. E., Peter DeSmet. Kenedy, 1957: 192 pp.
Well done life of the great explorer-missionary.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Hubbard, S.J., Bernard R., Cradle Of Storms.
285 pp.
Dodd, 1935:
Book contains science popularly explained; enlivened by personal
experiences and adventures in Alaska and the Aleutians. Easy reading.
High school and college.
Hubbard, S.J., Bernard R., Mush, You Malemutes.
Press, 1932: 179 pp.
America
T Scientific and apostolic account of life in Alaska by the Glacier Priest.
Wo hundred photos.
High school and college.
Hunt, Regina, Bright Banners. Bruce, 1956: 132 pp. Catholic Treasury Book.
~oung page becomes converted to Catholicism after observing the
~Ions and talking to Bl. Claude de Ia Colombiere at the King's court;
eGpage's uncle was imprisoned in the Oates plot. Readable novel.
rades sixth to tenth.
�290
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hurley, S.J., Thomas, Father Michael Browne. Clonmore and
Reynolds, Dublin, 1949: 242 pp.
Rather inadequate because of the lack of material on the subject;
it is the life of a holy, Irish Jesuit, master of novices, confessor and
retreat-giver.
High school and college.
I
Ignatius Loyola, St. Ignatius' Own Story as Told to Luis
Gonzalez de Camara; With a Sampling of His Letters.
Trans. by William J. Young, S.J. Regnery, 1956: 138 pp.
Demanding but worthwhile· for the more advanced students.
College students.
lves, J. Moss, The Ark and the Dove.
435 pp.
Longmans, 1936:
The early story of Maryland as a Catholic colony and the distinctive
contribution towards religious liberty is popularized in this readable
book.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Iyengar, Srinwasa, Gerard Manley Hopkins. The Man and
the Poet. Oxford University Press, 1948: 194 pp.
Very comprehensive, sympathetic and enthusiastic.
College students. ~
J
Jacobsen, S.J., Jerome V., Educational Foundations of the
Jesuits in Sixteenth Century New Spain. ~university of
California Press, 1938: 292 pp.
Book begins with what a Jesuit is by intellectual and spiritual train·
ing-shows Jesuit education as influencing Mexico from 1572-1600.
Readable. Excellent.
High school and college.
Janelle, Pierre, Robert Southwell, the Writer.
Ward, 1934: 336 pp.
Sheed and
Combines the biographical details with a literary study of the prose
and verse of this Jesuit martyr. More interested in Southwell's influence
on English literature than his life.
College students.
Jenkins, Burris, Father Meany And The Fighting Sixty-Ninth.
Fell Press, New York, 1944: 61 pp.
Story of Jesuit chaplain and his men as they took the island of Makin
during World War II; courage under fire.
High school and college.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
291
Judge, S.S., Charles S., American Missionary, William H.
Judge, S.J. Maryknoll, 1912: 306 pp.
The author writes an interesting account of his Jesuit brother who
labored in Alaska from 1890-1899. Easy reading.
High school and college.
Jury, Wilfrid and Jury, Elsie MacLeod, Sainte Marie Among
The Hurons. Oxford University Press, 1954: 128 pp.
Archeological but has sections on the Jesuits; the missions; Jesuits
in Canada.
College students.
K
Kane, William T., For Greater Things. Herder, 1929: 99 pp.
A graphic account of St. Stanislaus' life.
High school and college.
Well done.
Kane, S.J., William T., Memoir of William Stanton, S.J.
Herder, 1927: 262 pp.
Biography of a Jesuit missionary from Missouri whose short life
(1870-1910) was spent after his ordination mainly in Manila and among
the natives of Honduras. Well done.
High school and college.
Kendall, Katherine, Father Steuart.
270 pp.
Burns, Oates, 1950:
A study of the life and teaching of a Jesuit priest; written with
discrimination and sureness of judgement. Well done.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Kennedy, John H., Jesuit and Savage in New France.
University Press, 1950: 206 pp.
Yale
This study of the Catholic missionary effort among the Indians during
the Colonial period won the American Catholic Historical prize for
1950. Scholarly.
College students.
Kenny, S.J., Michael, Catholic Culture In Alabama: Centenary
Story Of Spring Hill College (1830-1930). America Press,
1931: 400 pp.
Gives historical background to foundation of college; its presentation
~~ and expansion by the Jesuits. Interesting in itself and excellent for
!story of Church in the South.
College.
Kenny, S.J., Michael, The Martyrs Of Virginia 1571. Society
of the Propagation of the Faith of the Diocese of Virginia,
1936: 14 pp.
~:ns the story of the eight Jesuit martyrs of Virginia. Easy reading.
lgh school and college.
�292
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kenny, S.J., Michael, Romance Of The Floridas. Bruce, 1934:
395 pp.
History of the Church in Florida in the sixteenth century; part I
treats of the discovery and exploration (1512-1565); part II treats the
life and activities of Pedro Menendez de Aviles, S.J. Good.
High school and college.
Kent, MM., Mark L. and Sister M. Just, The GlorzJ of Christ.
Bruce, 1955; 285 pp.
Stories of two hundred missionaries of past two thousand years;
many unknown but filled with zeal for souls; told in simple, direct and
readable narrative.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Kenton, Edna (Editor), ·Black Gowns and Red Skins: Advmttures and Travels of the Early Jesuit Missionaries in North
America, 1610-1791. Longmans, 1956: 527 pp.
Originally Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, 1610-1791,
Brentano, 1926. Puts the Jesuit Relations into modern idiom. Very
readable.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Kenton, Edna (Editor), Indians Of North America.
court, 1927: 2 vols., 597 pp. and 579 pp.
Har-
Volume I gives Pa).ll Le Jeune's relations of 1632-1649; Volume II
contains Marquette's and Du Poisson's voyages on the Mississippi. As
inspiring today as they were three hundred years ago when they were
the talk of Europe.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Kenton, Edna (Editor) , Jesuits. Letters From Missions
(North America). Vanguard (N.Y.), 1954: 527 pp.
Jesuit Relations and allied documents. The Jesuits speak for them·
selves. Very well done.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Kenton, Edna (Editor), With Hearts Courageous. Harcourt,
1933; 313 pp.
An abridged edition for young readers of her two vol. work Indians
of North America. Based on the Jesuit Relations. Very well done.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Kerns, S.J., Joseph, Portrait of A Champion. Newman, 1957:
273 pp.
Easy to read life of'Stanislaus, not saccharine but alive.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Excellent.
Kidd, Kenneth E., The Excavation of Ste. Marie.
University Press, 1949: 191 pp.
Toronto
�293
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Archeological primarily but includes sections on Jesuits, missions,
Jesuits in Canada.
College students.
Kino, S.J., Eusebio F., Historical Memoir Of Primeria Alta.
Trans., edited and annotated by Herbert E. Bolton. University of California Press, 1948: 2 vols. 379 pp. and 329 pp.
Scholarly work bringing to life Kino and his times.
College students.
Very well done.
Kino, S.J., Eusebio F., Kino Reports to Headquarters. Trans.
by E. Burrus, S.J. Institutum Historicum, Rome, 1954:
135 pp.
Gives a fine addition to our historical knowledge of Kino.
original Spanish with the English translation.
The more historically-inclined in college.
Prints
Kjelgaard, James, The Explorations of Pere Marquette.
Random House, 1951: 181 pp.
Inspiring and adventurous account of Marquette's missionary and
exploratory endeavors; good style; illustrations are excellent.
Grammar school.
Koch, A., A Nobleman of Italy, St. Aloysius Gonzaga. Herder,
1929: 166 pp.
A fairly good biography of the saint. Heavy.
High school and college.
L
LaFarge, S.J., John, An American Amen. Farrar, 1958.
Reflections of the well known Jesuit as an American, a priest and a
leading intellectual. Inspiring reading.
Mature third and fourth year high school and up.
LaFarge, S.J., John, Jesuits in Modern Times.
Press, 1928: 146 pp.
American
Readers obtain a good idea of the Jesuit vocation, the meaning of
the vows, the Jesuit apostolates of the foreign missions, retreats, the
Press and their great zeal for Catholic education.
High school and college.
LaFarge, S.J., John, The Manner Is Ordinary.
1954: 408 pp. Image Books, 1957.
1
Harcourt,
Home life as son of great American artist; years at Harvard and
~ns?ruck; entrance into the Society as a priest; work on the Maryland
nn:::IOns; twenty-five years on America and his social work.
ore mature third and fourth year high school and up.
LaFarge, S.J., John, with photos by Margaret Bourke-White,
A Report on American Jesuits. Farrar, 1956: 237 pp.
�294
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Explains the spirit of the Society and its essential works; the photos
are artistic masterpieces. Excellent.
High school and college.
Lane, Jane (Elaine Kidner Dakers), Thunder on St. Paul's
Day. Newman, 1954: 256 pp.
A novel on the Titus Oates plot; Jesuits play an important and
sympathetic part in the story; a good historical novel.
High school and college.
Lanning, John T., Spanish Missions of Georgia.
of North Carolina Press, 1935: 312 pp.
University
A non-Catholic account of the Spanish missions in Georgia during
the one hundred and fifty years before the arrival of the English and
of the attempts of the Jesuits and Franciscans to civilize and Christianize the Indians.
College students.
Laures, S.J., John, The Catholic Church in Japan. Charles E.
Tuttle Co., Tokyo, 1954: 252 pp.
Father Laures is a professor at the Catholic University of Tokyo.
He treats the history of the Church in Japan from Xavier to the present.
Treats of the Society in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
College.
Laveille, E., Life of Father De Smet, S.J. Trans. by Marian
Lindsay. Kenedy, 1915: 400 pp.
Well documented life of the famed Jesuit explorer, linguist, writer
and missionary. Reads like a novel.
High school and college.
Leary, John P., Better A Day. Macmillan, 1951: 341 pp.
Fifteen stories of Jesuit brothers from Elizabetnan England to
modern-day Alaska. These extraordinary men prove that not all Jesuit
brothers lead prosaic lives. Good adventure stories. Excellent.
High school and college.
Leary, John P., I Lift My Lamp. Newman, 1955: 383 pp.
Sixteen biographies of Jesuits who contributed to American History.
Among others are: Jogues, Andrew White, Marquette, Tierney, James
Shannon, Stack, De Smet, Bapst and Hausmann. Excellent.
High school and college.
Leturia, S.J., Pedro, Inigo de Loyola. Trans. by A. J. Owen,
S.J. Le Moyne Press, 1949: 207 pp.
The professor of Church History at the Gregorian analyzes Ignatius'
conversion. The Saint's life up to his conversion is done thoroughly; the
last chapter compares the chronology of Luther and Ignatius.
College.
Lewis, S.J., Clifford M. and Loomie, S.J., Alfred J., The
�295
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Spanish Jesuits in Virginia 1570-1572. University of North
Carolina Press, 1953: 294 pp.
Scholarly presentation of the Jesuit mission in Virginia that was
wiped out by Indian treachery.
Fourth year high school and college.
Lockwood, Frank C., Story of the Spanish Missions of the
Southwest. Santa Ana, California, 1935: 78 pp.
Complete history of the thirty-two missions originally founded by
Father Kino in Sonora and Arizona as well as an account of the
Franciscan missions. Scholarly.
The more historically-minded in college.
Lockwood, Frank C., With Padre Kino on the Trial.
versity of Arizona Press, 1934: 142 pp.
Uni-
An account by a non-Catholic of the life and labors of the noted
Italian Jesuit missionary in Mexico and our own Southwest. Scholarly.
The more historically-minded in college.
Lomask, Milton, John Carroll, Bishop and Patriot.
1956 : 200 pp.
Farrar,
More fiction than fact; long sections on early Jesuit education and
his training in the Society. The story is adventurous.
Grades fifth to eighth.
Lomask, Milton, St. Isaac and the Indians.
187 pp.
Farrar, 1956:
A reduced and simplified story of Jogues among the Hurons and
Mohawks.
Grades fifth to eighth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., Meet My Greatest Teacher: Claude J.
Perrin, S.J. Queen's Work, 1946: 60 pp.
Story of the Scholastic who taught Father Lord how to write.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., My Mother.
Queen's Work, 1934: 308
pp,
The story of Father Lord's own mother and her influence on his life;
excellent.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., Played By Ear.
Press, 1956: 398 pp.
Loyola University
Excellent autobiography of a saintly Jesuit who devoted his life to
teenagers. This was written as he was dying of cancer; inspiring
Writing.
High school and college.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., The Call Of Christ.
1927: 48 pp.
Queen's Work,
�296
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
A simple, straightforward discussion of religious vocations, lay and
clerical, for men.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., The Jesuit With The Magic Hands.
Queen's Work, 1948: 61 pp.
Biography of Father Louis Egan, one of Father Lord's best friends,
did many illustrations for Queen's Work.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., These Jesuit Brothers of Mine. Queen's
Work, 1953: 30 pp.
On the Brother's vocation in the Society.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., These Terrible Jesuits.
..
1928: 47 pp.
Queen's Work,
Slow start but picks up speed and interest. Vocation pamphlet tells
of his first twenty years as a member of the Society.
Grades ninth to twelfth.
Lord, S.J., Daniel A., What Is A Jesuit? Queen's Work, 1940:
48 pp.
Very good vocation material.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
Luce, Claire Boothe (Editor), Saints For Now.
Ward, 1952: 312 pp.
Sheed and
Twenty biographies ol the saints. Includes Ignatius by John Farrow
and Xavier by Kate O'Brien; the biographies are well done, particularly
Xavier's.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Lunn, Alfred, A Saint In The Slave Trade. Sheed_and Ward,
1935: 256 pp.
A sympathetic and artistic account of Peter Claver. There are
chapters on the meaning of happiness, pain, humanism, pity and
sanctity. Philosophical.
Mature students in four.th year high school and up.
M
Maclagan, Sir Edward, Jesuits and the Great Mogul. Burns,
Oates, 1932: 433 pp.
A scholarly and sympathetic history of the Jesuit mission in Western
India from 1580 when the first Jesuit reached Akbar's court to the
death of the last missionary in 1802.
Fourth year high school and up.
Madaras, S.J., Edward,
Al Baghdadi: Tales Told By The
�297
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Tigris. Jesuit Missions Press, 1940: 400 pp.
Shows both the tension in the Middle East and the battle for souls;
comical in many spots. Excellent.
High school and college.
Marcuse, Ludwig, Soldier Of The Church, The Life of Ignatius
Loyola. Trans. and edited by C. Lazare. Simon and Schuster, 1939: 352 pp.
Jewish author psychoanalyzes Ignatius and his influence on the
Jesuits; very harmful and unsympathetic book.
Not recommended.
Margaret, Helene, Father De Smet.
Farrar, 1940: 371 pp.
Excellent story of the great Apostle of the Indians of the American
Midwest; very pleasant reading.
High school and college.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., African Angelus.
436 pp.
Sheed, 1933:
Episodes and impressions of his trip to the Jesuit missions in Rhodesia.
His usual excellent work.
Mature students in fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., Bernard Vaughan, S.J. Longmans,
1923: 244 pp.
Shows Father Vaughan as a priest who used all his ingenuity in
the service of God for saving souls.
Mature students in fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., In God's Army: Captains Of Christ.
Benziger, 1917: 192 pp.
Borgia, Regis and Claver come alive under this experienced pen.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., In God's Army: Christ's Cadets.
Benziger, 1914: 144 pp.
A study of the salient features in the ascetic growth of the Society's
three boy saints.
Mature fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., In God's Army: Commanders-inChief. Benziger, 1915: 192 pp.
Usual charm of the author is turned to Ignatius and Xavier with
the same pleasing result.
Mature fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., Portuguese Pilgrimage. Sheed and
Ward, 1949: 165 pp.
Not just a travelogue but includes stories of Jesuits in Portugal;
rambling, witty and worthwhile.
Mature fourth year high school and up.
�298
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., Richard Philip Garrold, S.J. Longmans, 1921: 116 pp.
Biography of an English Jesuit convert and World War I chaplain;
writer of children's books and trained historian. Martindale knew him
well. Easy reading.
Mature fourth year high school and up.
Martindale, S.J., Cyril C., Vocation of St. A·loysius. Herder,
1927: 301 pp. Reprinted by Sheed and Ward, 1945.
The exemplar for modern essays on the saints; tl"ies to analyze
Aloysius' motivation. Excellent.
College.
Martindale, S.J., C. C., What Are Saints? Sheed and Ward,
1933: 157 pp.
·,
Radio talks to give the meaning of saints in different lives.
and Claver are included.
Selected students in fourth year high school and up.
Xavier
Marygrove College, A Spiritual Conquest: Paraguay Reductions 1610-1767. Detroit, 1942: 73 pp.
Symposium of twenty-eight essays on the Jesuit ideal of the state
and how it was realized in Paraguay.
College.
Maryland Jesuit, Laborers With Christ.
Seminary Bureau, 1954: 32 pp.
Maryland Province
Readable and graphic introduction to the Brothers' vocation in the
Society. Excellent.
High school and college.
Maryland Jesuit, Training With Christ.
Seminary Bureau, 1954: 32 pp.
Mary;l~nd Province
Covers the course of a Scholastic's formation with many pictures and
enough text to instruct but not to bore. Graphic instruction. Excellent.
High school and college.
Maxwell, J. R.N., Happy Ascetic, Adolph Petit, S.J. Benziger,
1936: 212 pp.
Father Petit spent most of his life in the Belgian Jesuit Tertianship
at Tronchiennes. The cause of his beatification was introduced in 1931.
Mature third and fourth year high school students and up.
Maynard, Theodore, Great Catholics In American HistorY·
Doubleday, 1956: 291 pp.
Human drama of Church in America; twenty-one vivid, biographical .
sketches of the nation's leading Catholics. Includes Marquette, Jogues,
Carroll and De Smet.
High school and college.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
2!J9
Maynard, Theodore, Odyssey Of St. Francis Xaxier.
man, 1950: 364 pp.
New-
Well written, up-to-date biography of Xavier; the human as well
as the sainted Xavier appears.
High school and college.
Maynard, Theodore, Pillars Of The Church. Longmans, 1945:
308 pp.
Xavier is one of twelve; accurate and correct with provocative historical comment.
High school and college.
Maynard, Theodore, St. Ignatius and the Jesuits.
1956: 213 pp.
Kenedy,
Good review of the Society and its works; shows Ignatius' ability to
fight adversity. Easy reading.
High school and college.
McDowell, Franklin, The Champlain Road.
421 pp.
Bruce, 1941:
Historical novel of New France; includes vivid and detailed accounts
of Jesuit martyrs. It won Governor General's literary award for best
Canadian novel of the year.
High school and college.
McGloin, S.J., J. B., Eloquent Indian, Life Of James Bouchard,
S.J. Stamford University Press, 1949: 380 pp.
Story of Delaware Indian who became a Jesuit missionary to the
white population of the Far West in the latter part of the nineteenth
century. Scholarly but readable.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
McGloin, S.J., J., How To Tell A Vocation.
1956: 32 pp.
Queen's Work,
Very good; setting is atmosphere of regular high school social life
of boys.
Grades tenth to twelfth.
McGloin, S.J., J., I'll Die Laughing. Bruce, 1955: 178 pp.
Whole program of studies in the Society is reviewed year by year;
there are serious and light spots. Excellent.
High school and college.
McGrath, Fergal, Father John Sullivan.
285 pp.
Longmans, 1941:
Irish Jesuit, convert son of Lord Chancellor of Ireland, died in 1933;
excellent with the sick. Readable.
High school and college.
McGratty, S.J., Arthur R., I'd Gladly Go Back.
1952: 205 pp.
Newman,
�300
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Irresistible story of boyhood in a fine family. Undercurrent of
seriousness shows what the true Catholic family should be.
High school and college.
McGratty, S.J., Arthur R., The Fire Of Francis Xavier.
Bruce, 1952; 300 pp.
Popular biography; lively narration with frequent flashes of insight
make Xavier better known and admired.
High school and college.
McHugh, S.J., L. Charles, St. Ignatius Loyola. America Press,
1956: 16 pp.
Captures the spirit of the saint and the Society; rhetorical but
readable.
High school and college.
McSweeney, Joseph, Irish-Jesuits among the Mild Batonga.
Irish Messenger, Dublin, 1954: 24 pp.
A good example of the Society in the missions.
High school and college.
McSweeney, Joseph, Irish Jesuits in Northern Rhodesia. Irish
Messenger, Dublin, 1954: 24 pp.
Good account of a mission; good vocational material.
High school and college.
Meadows, Denis, Elizabethan Quintet.
304 pp.
Longmans, 1956:
Contains chapter on "Robert Parsons, The Seditious Jesuit". One
chapter of the book might cause trouble for some adolescents; the
chapter on Parsons is very well done.
More mature third and fourth year and up.
Meadows, Denis, Obedient Men. Appelton, 1954 t3os pp.
Describes his ten years in the Society; he then left. Seems to miss
the spark of the Society and desires to debunk the Jesuits.
Not a book useful in vocation promotion.
Meadows, Denis, A Popular History Of The Jesuits.
millan, 1958: 160 pp.
Mac-
Very general history. Good on spirit of Society, our martyrs, Jesuits
as preachers, teachers and confessors and on the Suppression. OnlY
one paragraph on American Jesuits; detailed on England.
High school and college.
Meadows, Denis, Tudor Underground.
365 pp.
Devin-Adair, 1950:
Novel that includes Campion, Parsons and other Jesuits on the English
mission; Jesuits are the underground who try to win England back
to the Faith.
High school and college.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
301
Melville, Annabelle, John Carroll Of Baltimore.
1957: 338 pp.
Scribner,
Fascinating view of the early years of American Catholicism. The
story of the Jesuit who became the first American bishop is well told.
More mature in third and fourth year high school and up.
Missouri Province, Jesuit Life.
1944: 34 pp.
Review of Jesuit spirit, vocation, different stages in the course,
history and the works and missions of the American Jesuits. Emphasis
is on Jesuit priest; three pages on the brothers. Good.
High school and college.
Monaghan, S.J., Forbes, Under The Red Sun.
(New York), 1946: 279 pp.
McMullen
Inspiring story of the Philippine Islands in World War II; adventure
story; well written.
High school and college.
Monahan, Maude, Boy's Choice. Longmans, 1935: 40 pp.
An attractively prepared sketch of Aloysius.
Grades third to sixth.
Monahan, Maude, On The King's Highway. Longmans, 1927:
58 pp.
Short life of Stanislaus.
Grades third to sixth.
Monro, Margaret T., A Book Of Unlikely Saints. Longmans,
1943: 220 pp.
Aloysius is one of five; delightful, fresh and original approach.
High school and college.
Monserrate, S.J., A., Commentary On His Journey To The
Court Of Akbar. Trans. by J. S. Hoyland. Oxford, 1924:
220 pp.
Commentary written for the Jesuit General in Rome; one of the best
historical authorities on India in the second half of the sixteenth
century. Good translation.
College.
Monsterleet, S.J., Jean, Martyrs In China.
Pakenham. Regnery, 1956: 288 pp.
Trans. by A.
:resent day (1949-53) persecution in China related by a former parish
Priest and university professor in China; inspiring; many episodes on
Jesuits and their loyal, Christian students during the Communist terror.
Third year high school and up.
Moore, John Travers and Staudacher, Rosemarian V., Modern
Crusaders. Farrar, 1957: 192 pp.
Among these stories of modern missionaries is one of Father George
�302
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
McGowan, S.J. and the saving of a reefbound ship in the Marshall
Islands. Easy and interesting reading,
Grades sixth to tenth.
Moreschini, Cesare, Life Of St. Andrew Bobola. Trans. by
L. J. Gallagher, S.J. and J. Donovan. B. Humphries,
Boston, 1939: 254 pp.
Fascinating adventure story of Bobola's life and its influence on the
author.
High school and college.
Morrison, S.J., John A., Mysterious India.
Press, 1941: 47 pp.
Jesuit Missions
Close-up of missionary life in Patna, staffed by American missionaries.
High school and college. ~ .. ·
Morton, Sister Rose Anita, Appreciation Of Robert Southwell.
University of Pennsylvania Press, 1929: 103 pp.
A clear and concise sketch of this English martyr's career, followed
by a critique of Southwell's more important verse and prose.
Mature college students.
Mosley, Daisy H., Blessed Robert Southwell. Sheed and Ward,
1957: 182 pp.
Very good, readable story; many of the episodes may be styled as a
bit fictionalized.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Mullaly, S.J., Charles, The Priest Who Failed And Other
Stories. Apostleship of Prayer, 1936: 168 pp.
Main life is that of Chabanel; sketches of Pro, Lieve11s, etc., are also
included. Pious.
• .
High school and college.
Murphy, S.J., Edward, Beachheads Won For Christ.
Philippine Bureau, 1943: 42 pp.
Jesuit
A study of the motives behind the Catholic mission movement. Clear
and forceful.
High school and college.
Murphy, Edward F., Handclasps With The Holy. Catholic
Literary Guild, St. Nazianz, Wise., 1941: 246 pp.
Twenty-three saints; includes Ignatius, Stanislaus, Aloysius, Claver
and Xavier. Well written, interesting and thought provoking.
High school and college.
Myerscough, S.J., JQhn A., The Martyrs of Durham and the
North East. JohnS. Burns, Glasgow, 1956: 178 pp.
Includes some Jesuit martyrs: Morse, Gerard Corby, Ralph CorbY
and John Duckett. Quotes liberally from historical sources. ScholarlY·
College students.
�303
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
N
Narayan, J. Stephen, Acquaviva and the Great Mogul.
Catholic Book Club, St. Xavier's, Patna, 1945: 233 pp.
Life of Jesuit martyr. Shows contribution of Jesuits to mission
effort in India during the sixteenth century. Very highly rated.
High school and college.
Nash, S.J., Robert, Helping Hanrh3, A Jesuit Talks To A
Prospective Jesuit Brother. Browne and Nolan, Dublin,
1950: 32 pp.
Well done view into the works of the brothers and their great services
to the Society.
High school and college.
Nash, S.J., Robert (Editor), Jesuits.
230 pp.
Gill, Dublin, 1956:
Biographical essays of the more important Jesuit saints and famous
contemporary Jesuits, e.g. Daniel Lord, Rupert Mayer, Beda Chang,
Goodier, Pere Charles. Excellent.
High school and college.
Nash, S.J., Robert, Little Biographies, Part 4.
Press, Dublin, 1951 : 32 pp.
Anthonian
Canisius is one of four. Very well done by an excellent writer.
High school and college.
Nash, S.J., Robert, Saint Of The Displaced, St. Joseph
Pignatelli, S.J. Gill, Dublin, 1955: 43 pp.
Life of Pignatelli; shows how he kept the Society together during the
exiles and the Suppression. Well done and readable.
High school and college.
Nathan, Adele, Seven Brave Companions.
(N.Y.), 1953: 164 pp.
Aladdin Books
Tells the story of how Joliet for the Glory of France and Marquette
for the glory of God joined forces and discovered the Mississippi.
Grades fourth to sixth.
Nevils, S.J., W. Coleman, A Moulder Of Men, John H.
O'Rourke, S.J. Apostleship of Prayer, 1952: 284 pp.
Father O'Rourke was an inspiring Jesuit. The treatment is warm
and sincere; some parts are detailed and not too interesting.
High school and college.
Nevins, MM., Albert, St. Francis Of The Seven Seas. Farrar,
1956, Vision Books: 200 pp.
Attractive book; simply written life of Xavier.
Grades sixth to ninth.
�304
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
New York Province, Jesuit Seminary News, July-August,
1950. Seminary Bureau, 1950: 20 pp.
Description of course by priests in charge of various stages of
Scholastics' formation. Heavy on text and style.
High school and college.
Norman, Mrs. George, God's Jester. Benziger, 1930: 359 pp.
Record of the life and labors of a young Jesuit martyred in Mexico.
Excellent and readable.
High school and college.
North, S.J., R. G., General Who Rebuilt The Jesuits. Bruce,
1944: 292 pp.
The story of Roothaan; primarily historical, yet it is readable. Shows
the Society after the Suppression as it rebuilt its missions, schools, etc.
High school and college.
··
0
O'Brien, Bartholomew, The Hm-oic Aloysius.
83 pp.
Grail, 1954:
Biography of this saint of youth; Aloysius is made to look more manly
than in many other works.
Grades sixth to ninth.
O'Brien, John A., Ametrican Martyrs. Appleton, 1953: 310 pp.
Description of Indian~ life and customs and the French settlements;
historical interest, uses sources.
More mature in third and fourth year high school and up.
O'Callahan, S.J., Joseph T., I was Chaplain On The Franklin.
Macmillan, 1956 : 153 pp.
_:
Classic tale of courage; fascinating and inspiring. The style is
worthy of the material; this Jesuit was the first chaplain to win the
Congressional Medal of Honor.
High school and college.
O'Connor, Edward, Call on Xavier: Saint Francis Xavier and
His Novena. Gill, Dublin, 1952: 73 pp.
Short biography of Xavier and an explanation of the Novena of Grace.
Pious.
High school and college.
O'Connor, S.J., Paul, Eskimo Parish. Bruce, 1947: 134 PP·
First-hand pictures of Eskimo life by a priest who has worked there
for fifteen years. Crisp and humorous.
High school and college;
O'Grady, P. W. and Dunn, Dorothy, Dark was the Wilderness.
Bruce, 1945: 278 pp.
The story of the Jesuit missionaries to the Iroquois is here told
�305
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
thrillingly. After a slow start the novel moves along quickly and tells
quite adequately the heroic tale.
High school and college.
O'Neill, S.J., George, Golden Years On The Paraguay. Burns,
Oates, 1934: 276 pp.
History of the Jesuit missions or Paraguay Reductions (1600-1767).
Excellent history; reads like a novel.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
O'Rahilly, Alfred, Father William Doyle, S.J.: A Spiritual
Study. Longmans, 1936: 613 pp.
One of the great religious biographies of our time; dwells on the
spiritual life of this Irish Jesuit.
Only for the most mature college students.
Oregon Province, Hands Of Christ.
Spokane, 1945: 48 pp.
Mount Saint Michael's,
Brother's vocation; pictorial description of the life and work of the
Jesuit brother.
High school and college.
Owens, Sister M. Lilliana, Carlos M. Pinto, S.J., Apostle Of
El Paso. Revista Catolica Press, El Paso, Texas, 1951:
228 pp.
Some inaccuracies but a good job, interesting.
Readable.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
173 illustrations.
Owens, Sister M. Lilliana, Jesuit Beginnings in New Mexico.
Revista Catolica Press, El Paso, Texas, 1950: 176 pp.
Eminently readable story of pioneer Jesuits from Naples; data for
history of Catholic Church in Southwest. Readable.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
p
Parkman, Francis, Jesuits In North America.
Little, 1883:
460 pp .
. Non-Catholic and old history but still readable; he was favorably
disposed towards the Society. His work is an American classic.
Historically-minded third and fourth year high school and up.
Patterson, Frances T., The Long Shadow. Sheed and Ward,
1956: 288 pp.
Story of Brebeuf's work and martyrdom in New France; mentions
other Jesuit missionaries. Reads easily.
p Grades sixth to tenth.
atterson, Frances T., White Wampum.
304 pp,
Longman, 1934:
�306
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
A successful popularization of the life of the saintly Kateri Tekakwitha. The author combines scholarship and journalistic skill. Very
enjoyable and readable.
High school and college.
Peman, Jose Maria, Saint In A Hurry. Trans. by Hugh
de Blacam. Sands, London, 1935: 146 pp.
Drama. Takes Xavier from Paris and his student days to Rome,
Lisbon, the Indies and Japan. Very well done.
College.
Perrin, S.J., Henri, Priest Workman in Germany. Trans. by
Rosemary Sheed. Sheed, 1948: 230 pp.
Fascinating story of a Jesul.t who volunteers to accompany the French
workers to a slave labor~ 'Camp in Nazi Germany. Inspiring and
adventurous.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Pick, John, Gerard Manley Hopkins.
Oxford, 1942: 169 pp.
Priest and Poet.
Shows that Hopkins the poet and the Jesuit priest can't be dis·
tinguished; uses both the biographical details and his poetry. Uncritical.
College.
Pies, S.J., Otto, The Victory Of Fr. Karl.
Attanasio. Farrar, 1957: 210 pp.
Trans. by S.
Story of how a young, dying deacon is ordained secretly in the Nazi
concentration camp of Dachau; the author was one of ninety-five
Jesuits imprisoned there. Excellent.
High school and college.
•
Plattner, Felix A., Jesuits Go East. Trans. ~by Sudley and
Blobel. Clonmore and Reynolds, Dublin, 1950: 283 pp.
Entertainment blended with instruction. Story of Jesuit missions in
the East from Xavier in 1541 to the death of the last German Jesuit
in 1786.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Pollen, J. H., St. Ignatius Loyola.
Newman), 1951: 192 pp.
Carroll (taken over bY
A brief biography written to commemorate the three hundredth anni·
versary of Ignatius' canonization and republished in 1951. Well done.
High school and college.
Purcell, Mary, Don Francisco, The Story Of St. Francis
Xavier, Newman, 1954: 319 pp.
This novel succeeds in delineating the Saint whose soul was inspired
and directed by Ignatius. Good.
High school and college.
r
�307
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Purcell, Mary, The First Jesuit.
Newman, 1957: 417 pp.
The book captures the spirit of the Society and of Ignatius.
foreword by LaFarge. Excellent book, highly recommended.
High school and college.
Putz, C.S.C., Louis J., The Catholic Church, U.S.A.
Chicago, 1956: 415 pp.
Good
Fides,
Tries to show what we are doing in the U.S. Chapters by LaFarge
on segregation, Ong on the intellectual life, Thomas on marriage and
by other Jesuit and non-Jesuit authors.
Mature college students.
Q
Quirk, S.J., Charles J., Sculptured In Miniature: The Collected Lyrics of Charles J. Quirk, S.J. George Grady Press,
New York, 1956: 55 pp.
His fifty years as a Jesuit are caught in verses like Father Tabb's;
some have sparks of Crashaw in them.
High school and college.
R
Ragueneau, P., Heros of Huronia. Forte Ste. Marie, Canada,
1948: 34 pp.
Stories of the North American Martyrs.
High school and college.
Raymond, Allen, Waterfront Priest. Holt, 1955: 269 pp.
Story of Father Corridan and his efforts to rid the New York waterfront of gangsterism. Excellent.
High school and college.
Reany, William, Champion of the Church, St. Peter Canisius.
Benziger, 1931 : 206 pp .
. A good biography of the scholarly and zealous German Jesuit.
m spots.
High school and college.
Repplier, Agnes, Perc Marquette.
Lags
Doubleday, 1929: 298 pp.
Biography of this missionary to the Indians who with Joliet explored
the headwaters of the Mississippi and died from hardships before he
Was forty. Excellent style.
High school and college.
Reuter, S.J., James B., He Kept Silence In Seven Languages.
Queen's Work, 1947: 31 pp.
d' Inspiring story of the saintly Jesuit, Father Carl Hausmann, who
ied as a prisoner-of-war of the Japanese during World War II.
Excellent.
Grades seventh to twelfth.
�308
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Reville, S.J., John C., Herald Of Christ: Louis Bourdaloue, S.J.
Schwartz, New York, 1922: 196 pp.
Describes the striking features of Bourdaloue and his influence at
the court of Louis XIV.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Reynolds, S.J., Edward D., Jesuits For The Negro. America,
1950: 230 pp.
Traces the Society's work with the negro from the time of Ignatius
until 1946. The style is rather heavy in spots.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Ricci, S.J., Matteo, China .In The Sixteenth Century. Trans.
by L. J. Gallagher, S.J~ ' Random House, 1953: 617 pp.
Ricci's journals 1583-1610. 'Shows his thirty years in China; one of
the greatest missionary documents. Rather heavy in spots; good on
science.
More mature in third and fourth year high school and up.
Richardson, Mary K., Joseph Varin, Soldier.
1954: 154 pp.
Burns, Oates,
Varin was in the French Revolution; was ordained in 1796 in the
Society of the Sacred Heart; joined the Jesuits in 1814 and died in 1850.
Most of the book is his life before his entrance. Reads like a novel.
High school and college.
Rively, S.J., William, The Story Of The Romance. Rinehart,
New York, 1953: 241 pp.
Excellent adventure story of a missionary in action. It narrates the
three month voyage from San Francisco to Truk in =!,.'forty-five foot
boat. Very easy and good reading.
·
High school and college•..
Roberto, Brother (Gerald Muller), I Serve The King. Dujarie
Press, Notre Dame, 1954: 92 pp.
Life of Borgia; very well done; easy reading.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Roberto, Brother (Gerald Muller), The Man Who Limped To
Heaven. Dujarie Press, Notre Dame, 1954: 92 pp.
The life of Ignatius. Easy reading; excellent.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Roberto, Brother (Gerald Muller), The Martyr Laughed.
Dujarie Press, Notre Dame, 1954: 92 pp.
The life and martyrdom of Father Pro. Excellent.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Roberto, Brother (Gerald Muller), With Fire, Sword and
�'.
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
309
Whips: A Story of St. Andrew Bobola.
Dame, 1957: 94 pp.
Dujarie, Notre
Well told story of the heroic Jesuit. Simply and interestingly related.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Robinson, Gertrude, Sachim Bird. Dutton, 1936: 216 pp.
Tale of Jesuits, Indians and an English boy.
Relations.
Grades sixth to ninth.
Taken from the Jesuit
Routh, C.R.M., They Saw It Happen.
220 pp.
Macmillan, 1957:
English history 1485-1688 presented in dramatic style.
play an important part in the book. Very well done.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
The Jesuits
Rowbotham, Arnold, Missionary And Mandarin: The Jesuits
At The Court Of China. University of California Press,
1942: 374 pp.
Non-Catholic paints spiritual and temporal work of the Society in
China in seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Author tries for impartiality but misinterprets Society's ideals in some places.
College.
Royer, Fanchon, Padre Pro. Kenedy, 1954: 248 pp.
The story of a great hero of God; shows his family life, then his
Jesuit life. Well written and documented; maintains fast pace and
interest of a novel.
High school and college.
Ryan, S.J., Thomas F., China Through Catholic Eyes. Catholic Students Mission Crusade, Cincinnati, 1942: 80 pp.
General work that deals with political and religious history. Includes
section on the Jesuit missionaries, especially Ricci. Interesting.
High school and college.
Ryan, S.J., Thomas F., Jesuits Under Fire: Siege Of Hong
Kong. Burns, Oates, 1944: 188 pp.
Story of twenty-seven Jesuits during and after the Japanese attack
on Hong Kong during World War II; shows the discipline, courage and
zeal of the Society. Excellent.
High school and college.
s
Sandberg, Harold W., Black-robed Samson.
75 pp,
Grail, 1952;
Adventurous and stirring story of Father Peter De Smet.
Grades sixth to ninth.
�310
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Sauliere, A., Red Sand: A Life Of John de Britto. De Nobili
Press, Madura, 1947: 497 pp.
A scholarly work built on documents; yet devotional and interesting.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Savage, Alma, Dogsled Apostles.
231 pp.
Sheed and Ward, 1942:
Record of missionary work by Jesuits and secular priests in Alaska.
Journalistic style; easy reading.
High school and college.
Scanlon, Marion S., Trails Of The French Explorers. Naylor,
San Antonio, 1956: 79 pp.
Includes Marquette.
High school and college. )
Schamoni, Wilhelm, The~Face Of The Saints. Trans. by Anne
Freemantie. Sheed and Ward, 1948: 278 pp.
Includes Ignatius, Xavier, Stanislaus, Borgia,
Canisius, Bellarmine, Berchmans and J ogues.
High school and college.
Aloysius,
Schoenberg, S.J., Wilfred, Garlic For Pegesus.
1955: 214 pp.
Regis,
Newman,
This is an adventure story about the saintly Brother Benedict de Goes,
S.J. whose journey over the roof of the world to find the Jesuits in
China proved the possibility of identifying China and Cathay.
Excellent.
~
High school and college.
Schurhammer, George, St. Francis Xavier.
Elbe. Herder, 1928: 321 pp.
Trans. by Frank
A life that draws a good picture of Xavier; it relies on the letters
of Xavier as a source.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Sigismund, C.S.C., Brother, The Lad who Hiked to Heaven.
Dujarie Press, Notre Dame, 1945: 122 pp.
Delightful story about Saint Stanislaus; the author shows his experi·
ence gained through work with youth. Clear and entertaining style.
Excellent.
·
Grades seventh to tenth.
Scott, S.J., Martin, Isaac Jogues.
Kenedy, 1927: 242 pp.
This life story which points out the main lessons in Jogues' life still
affords entertaining reading.
High school and college.
Smith, S.J., Ger~rd (Editor), Jesuit Thinkers Of The
Renaissance. Marquette University Press, 1939: 254 pp.
Essays on Suarez, Dominic Bouhours, Molina, Lessius, Juan de
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
311
Mariana, Bellarmine. Competently and interestingly told.
intellectual apostolate.
More mature third and fourth year high school and up.
Sheed, Frank, Saints Are Not Sad.
441 pp.
Shows
Sheed and Ward, 1949:
Lively sketches of forty saints prove the title.
are included.
High school and college.
Xavier and Ignatius
Sherren, Wilkinson, Blessed Edmund Campion.
Press, England, 1947: 45 pp.
The Organ
No words wasted but good history; works some contemporary documents into the text.
High school and college.
Shiels, William E., Gonzalo de Tapia.
cal Society, 1934: 198 pp.
United States Histori-
Scholarly account of the founder of the first permanent Jesuit mission
in North America.
Historically-minded college students.
Southwell, S.J., Robert, A Humble Supplication to Her
Maiestie. Cambridge University Press, 1953: 80 pp.
This short apology, written in moving and poetic prose has now been
edited from the best manuscripts with a clarifying introduction and
copious notes.
College students.
Spalding, S.J., Henry S., Arrows Of Iron.
230 pp.
Benziger, 1934:
A novel based on life of Maryland colonists after the landing of
Ark and Dove. Main character is young boy; last chapter shows beginning of Catholic persecution.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Spalding, S.J., HenryS., Catholic Colonial Maryland.
1931 : 243 pp.
Bruce,
Shows the coming of the Catholics; their trials in keeping their
religious freedom in this Jesuit mission. The period up to the American
Revolution is covered.
Third and fourth year high school and college.
Steuart, S.J., Robert, Diversity in Holiness. Sheed and Ward,
1937: 221 pp.
Studies of twelve saints who reflect Christ; Ignatius is one of them.
~ttempts to show unity of mystical experience with minimum of
lographical details.
Most mature college students.
�312
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Steuart, S.J., Robert H., March, Kind Comrade.
Ward, 1931: 272 pp.
Sheed and
Excellent story of the work of a Jesuit chaplain in France and
Flanders during World War I. Two years of action serve as the background for the spiritual work of this Jesuit priest and spiritual director.
High school and college.
Summers, Richard A., The Devil's Highway.
299 pp.
Nelson, 1937:
Kino and his explorations are treated through the medium of a fine,
exciting story.
High school and college.
Sweeney, S.J., Francis, Bernadine Realino, Renaissance Man.
Macmillan, 1952: 173 pp.
Fine outline of the saint; hap.dles history with skill and competence.
A vivid and even poetic work.
Mature third and fourth year high school and up.
T
Talbot, S.J., Francis X., Jesuit Education In Philadelphia:
St. Joseph's College 1851-1926. St. Joseph's College, 1927:
146 pp.
History of Jesuit college in Philadelphia written in concise and attractive style. Good.
College.
Talbot, S.J., Francis X., Richard Henry Tierney.
Press, 1930: 200 pp.
America
Vigorous biography of the scholarly and courageous editd~ of America
who made that publication famous in the United States.
High school and college.
Talbot, S.J., Francis X., Saint Among Savages. Harper, 1935:
466 pp.
A complete biography of Jogues; one of the best books of our times.
Readable and most interesting.
High school and college.
Talbot, S.J., Francis X., Saint Among The Hurons.
1949: 351 pp. Image Book, 1956.
Harper,
A factual and readable account about Jesuit missions in North
America; makes Brebeuf live.
High school and college.'
Thompson, Francis, St. Ignatius Loyola. Carroll (taken over
by Newman), 1951: 192 pp.
�313
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
Life of the soldier saint; this is a reprint.
very flowery; difficult reading.
Mature fourth year high school and up.
The author's style is
Tigar, Clement, Edmund Lester, S.J.
115 pp.
Longmans, 1937:
Good narration of the life of Father Lester who was the founder of
the K.B.S. movement. Well done.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Treacy, S.J., Gerald, Red Skin And Blackrobe. Paulist Press,
1945: 32 pp.
Good, inspiring narration of the Canadian Jesuit martyrs.
High school and college.
Treacy, S.J., Gerald, St. Ignatius Loyola, The Soldier Saint.
Paulist Press, 1942: 32 pp.
Good insight into the saint.
High school and college.
Treacy, S.J., Gerald, Stories Of Great Saints For Children.
Paulist Press, 1942: 32 pp.
Alloysius and Stanislaus are two of seven.
Grades third to sixth.
Treacy, S.J., Gerald, Stories Of Great Saints For Children.
Paulist Press, 1942: 32 pp.
Ignatius and Xavier are two of seven.
Grades third to sixth.
Trigault, S.J., Nicholas, The China That Was.
Louis J. Gallagher, S.J. Bruce, 1942: 199 pp.
Trans. by
This is the China that the Jesuits discovered at the close of the
sixteenth century; this book served as an introduction to Ricci's diary.
Good, modern translation.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
v
Van Dyke, Paul, Ignatius Loyola, The Founder of the Jesuits.
Scribner, 1926: 381 pp.
A non-Catholic, scholarly, and sympathetic presentation; relies on
contemporary documents. Readable style.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Venegas, S. J., Miguel, Juan Maria de Salvatierra of the
Company Of Jesus. Trans. and edited by Marguerite E.
Wilbur. Arthur H. Clark, Glendale, California, 1929:
350 pp.
Biography first published at Madrid in 1751; there is an excellent
�314
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
description of conditions in Lower California. The author was a
m1ss10nary also.
Excellent translation and editing according to
Catholic World.
College students.
Von Matt, Leonard, and Rahner, S.J., Hugo, St. Ignatius of
Loyola, A Pictorial Biography. Trans. by John Murray,
S.J. Regnery, 1956: 330 pp.
Full page photos are excellent and take one back to the sixteenth
century; the text by Rahner is excellent.
High school and college.
w
Walsh, S.J., Henry L., Hallowed Were The Gold Dust Trails.
University of Santa Clara Press, 1946: 561 pp.
The story of the pioneer priests of northern California.
work; colorful, even poetic style.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Scholarly
Walsh, James J., American Jesuits. Macmillan, 1934: 336 pp.
A tribute of affection rather than a critical estimate; an historical
and biographical study written to commemorate the three hundredth
anniversary of the landing of the Society in Maryland. Very easy
reading.
High school and college.
Walsh, M. M., James, Tales Of Xavier.
1946: 184 pp.
Sheed and Ward,
Informal sketches of his life; inspiring and vivid details. A popular
life.
High school and college.
.. .
Ward, Justine, William Pardow of the Company of Jesus.
Longmans, 1914: 274 pp.
Biography of an American Jesuit who had great influence in New
York. Simple style; sometimes too sentimental.
High school and college.
Waugh, Evelyn, Edmund Campion.
Image Book, 1956.
Little, 1946: 239 PP·
A superb recreation of Campion and the Society.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Welfle, S.J., Richard A., Blood On The Mountain.
1938: 214 pp.
Benziger,
This is a sequel to Ruined Temple; adventure in the Himalayas;
missionary setting. Well done.
Grades seventh to tenth.
�VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
815
Welfle, S.J., Richard A., Greater Than The Great Mogul.
Catholic Press, Ranchi, India, 1941: 192 pp.
This is the story of Rudolph Acquiviva. Very well done.
Grades sixth to tenth.
Welfle, S.J., Richard A., The Ruined Temple. Benziger, 1935:
248 pp.
Novel about a young boy in India; Father Ryan, a Jesuit missionary,
is an important character. This is a good adventure story.
Grades seventh to tenth.
Wessels, S.J., Cornelius, Early Jesuit Travelers In Central
Asia: 1603-1721. M. Nijhoof, The Hague, 1924: 343 pp.
A scholarly account in English of six separate journeys made by
European Jesuits throughout Asia; includes de Goes, Gruber, d'Orville
and Desideri.
College students.
Weston, S.J., William, An Autobiography from the Jesuit
Underground. Trans. by Philip Caraman, S.J. Farrar,
1955: 259 pp.
The underground is the Jesuit mission to Tudor England; this translated and adapted diary of 1583-1603 "reads like Bernanos" according
to Waugh. Excellent.
More mature fourth year high school and up.
Williams, ,Frederick V., The Martyrs of Nagasaki. Academy
Library Guild, Fresno, California, 1957: 145 pp.
Story of Japan's Catholics from Xavier to present day; shows fierce
persecution of 1597, recovery of 1858 and the work today.
Third and fourth year high school and up.
Williamson, Claude (Editor), Great Catholics.
1940: 456 pp.
Macmillan,
Story of thirty-seven saints and uncanonized. Ignatius, Gerard
M. Hopkins, Suarez are included. Biographies are written by well-known
American and English authors.
High school and college.
Wyllys, R. K., Pioneer Padre. Turner, Dallas, 1935: 230 pp.
Tells story of Kino's missionary career with care and sympathy. There
are some factual errors, particularly in his early life. Heavy in places.
Fourth year high school and up.
Wynne, S.J., John J., Jesuit Martyrs of North America. Jesuit
Missions Press, 1925: 246 pp.
A complete record of the heroic and saintly martyrs.
still readable.
High school and college.
This book is
�316
VOCATION BIBLIOGRAPHY
y
Yeo, Margaret, Greatest Of The Borgias.
374 pp.
Bruce, 1936:
It is the book of a deft research scholar who also can write with
vividness and skill. Exact and readable biography of St. Francis
Borgia.
High school and college.
Yeo, Margaret, These Three Hearts. Bruce, 1940: 339 pp.
Readable and good story of Margaret Mary and Bl. Claude de la
Colombiere; well written and interesting.
High school and college.
Yeo, Margaret, St. Francis Xavier, Apostle Of The East.
Macmillan, 1932: 325 pp; ..
An honest, clear-cut portrait; very easy reading.
High school and college.
�Books of Interest to Ours
ACTS REVISITED
The Acts of the Apostles: Text and Commentary. By Giuseppe Ricciotti.
Translated by Laurence E. Byrne, C.R.L. Milwaukee: The Bruce
Publishing Company, 1958. Pp. xii-420. $8.00.
Canon Ricciotti is no stranger among us. His History of Israel
and especially his Life of Christ and Paul the Apostle have already
made us familiar with his profound knowledge of the beginnings of
Christianity and his power of clear and interesting exposition. The
present volume is most welcome, for we have not had an up-to-date
Catholic commentary on Acts for many years.
Eight introductory chapters discuss the usual questions of text,
author, date of composition, scope, etc. Luke, a competent historian,
is the author of the whole book, which was written a short time before
St. Paul's release from his first Roman captivity. It is clear that he
used written sources, though they cannot be identified in detail.
Superficially, we might be tempted to adopt the hypothesis that the
book was intended to be a legal defense of Paul, a brief as it were,
to be presented to Paul's Roman judges, but a careful reading of the
whole book leads rather to the conclusion that the Acts is the "story
of those things which the other Paraclete said and did." Ricciotti's
explanation of the abrupt termination of the Acts is quite original.
While the narrative of Luke has consistently pointed out the justice
of Rome towards Paul and its tolerance of the new religion, the burning of Rome, soon after the release of Paul, caused a reversal of this
hitherto benevolent policy of the Empire towards Christianity. "What
purpose would now be served in continuing the detailed narrative showing the rectitude of imperial justice in recognizing the innocence of
Paul? That justice had now become supreme injustice." So Luke
added ·to his story a summary of about twenty words which covered
the whole of the two year period of Paul's imprisonment, and published
his book.
The viewpoint of the commentary, which emphasizes the historical
rather than the minutely philological, is always conservative. Though
Ricciotti is a professional exegete of long experience and therefore
fully aware of the "problems" of Acts, his work is .not overburdened
With lengthly excursus and hypotheses. The presentation is clear,
a:tractive and •nearly always adequate but the narrative of the AscenSIOn and its reconciliation with the Third Gospel's treatment of the
same subject deserved a fuller treatment. The text, which is prefixed
to each page, is an English rendering of the author's own Italian
version of the original Greek. Very few blemishes mar an otherwise
;ery excellent translation. Study clubs and college religion classes will
nd the work especially useful.
EDWIN D. SANDERS, S.J.
317
�318
BOOK REVIEWS
IGNATIAN AUTHORITY
Estudios lgnacianos. By Pedro de Leturia, S.J. Revised by P. Ignacio
Iparragttirre, S.J. (Bibliotheca lnstituti S. I., vols. 10 and 11.)
Rome: Institutum Historicum S. I., 1957. Pp. xxxii-475 and
ix-544. $8.
Father Pedro de Leturia made many notable contributions to our
knowledge of St. Ignatius. At the time of his death in 1955 he was
justly regarded as one of the greatest authorities in matters concerning
the saint. His contribution consists of his work of synthesis on the early
years of St. Ignatius [Inigo de Loyola. Translated by Aloysius J.
Owen, S.J. (Syracuse, 1949)] and two score articles and studies. In
the mind of Father Leturia this book and these articles were the preliminaries to a work of synthesis, the much desired scientific life of St.
Ignatius. The great historian~id not live to carry out his undertaking.
Still his researches are of exceptional importance and, thanks in a great
measure to them, the Society will probably have in the not too distant
future a worthy life of its Father and Founder. Father Iparraguirre,
also known as an lgnatian specialist, has done a service to the Society
in making Father Leturia's studies accessible to scholars. Many of
them appeared in more than one form and others were published in
Spanish reviews, not always easy to find. The editor, while respecting
the text of Father Leturia, has added details in the footnotes. It is a
tribute to the author's knowledge of the sources that the little which had
to be added is generally of a bibliographical nature. There is an excellent
index.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
REWARDING TREAT
A Traveller in Rome. By H. V. Morton. New York: p.odd, Mead &
Company, 1957. Pp. x-374 (Illustrated). $6.00.
Travel books form a distinct literary genre that, despite its antiquity,
one either takes to or leaves alone. This review is not directed to the
minority side of that division; for, if literate, graphic and informative
writing about travels in foreign lands does not appeal to certain readers, then no amount of pretended argument will convince them that it
does, or should. But for that more easily satisfied breed this latest book
of H. V. Morton will prove an almost uninterrupted delight. Com·
pounded of about equal parts of fine description and personal experiences, set in the historical background of the various, interlaced Romes
of the Caesars, the Popes, and the hardly lamented Black Shirts, the book
demands little of a reader save the willingness to read on and enjoY
his vicarious visit to the Eternal City. And it is difficult to imagine a
more urbane, well-informed and cultured guide than H. V. Morton. One
is even tempted to see a special significance in the title. In his earlier
.
work Morton described himself, and aptly, as "A Stranger in Spain·"
There was much that he liked in Spain, but much too that he could not
understand. The City of the Seven Hills apparently presented no such
�BOOK REVIEWS
319
problem: Morton's sympathy and interest in Rome and all things Roman
is universal and unreserved. Those who have read his other works
know what to expect and will not be disappointed. Those who have not,
and are willing to do a little armchair travelling, have a most pleasant
and rewarding treat awaiting them. The two end-paper maps and the
illustrations are excellent.
HARRY R. BURNS, S.J.
EXCELLENT PRAYER BOOK
Challenge. By John W. O'Malley, S.J., Edward J. McMahon, S.J.,
Robert E. Cahill, S.J., Carl J. Armbruster, S.J. Chicago: Loyola
University Press, 1958. Pp. 243. $2.50.
This is an excellent prayer book which will be found profitable by
laymen, especially students, and religious. The significance of the
title of the book is that the different kinds of prayer and devotions,
as well in the day-to-day actions of earning a living or of engaging in
an apostolate of spreading the faith, are interpreted as a challenge
from Our Lord Himself, as He asks us to return our love for His love.
Devotions are offered in prayers to the Blessed Trinity, to each of
the Three Persons, Our Lady, to the saints (triumphant and suffering),
as well as prayers for the church militant. Then the book's content is
changed somewhat to prayerful instruction and prayer formulas pertaining to the daily examination of conscience, confession, the Mass,
the liturgical year, prayer, the apostolate, vocation, and our after-life.
The selection of prayers is excellent, and from varied sources, as a
glance at the acknowledgements at the back of the book indicates.
Foremost of the sources, is, of course, the Raccolta. But the most
impressive series of prayers in the book are those which begin each
chapter, wherein Our Lord speaks in verse to the reader: exhorting,
explaining and encouraging. These prayers show how Our Lord puts
the challenge of daily Christ-living; they are also worded in such a
style that the reader is likely to be drawn to make colloquies with
Our Lord, as "a servant to his master, or a friend to a friend."
There is such a wealth of material in the book for prayer that users
of this book will be pleased if a companion volume is prepared with the
content of the second part formally presented as meditations. This
would help even more than the current volume does to alleviate the
shortage of prepared material for the mental prayer of sodalists and
others.
A page is devoted to the need for choosing a spiritual father. Though
~uch has been said and some things have been done by the sodality
1
~ this area, relatively few Catholics seem convinced of the importance
0
a carefully chosen spiritual father, or a regular confessor for that
matter. Reference is made in several instances in the book to one's
:~iritual father. Many who will find Challenge useful, will not grasp
C et~ul.l m~aning of these references. A deliberate campaign to interest
p a ohcs In spiritual direction, and to interest more priests in the
i sycho!ogy and ascetical theology necessary to impart such direction,
3
much needed,
�320
BOOK REVIEWS
In the translation of the Anima Christi, "Blood of Christ, inebriate
me," uses a word in a mystical sense which the ordinary Catholic does
not understand, or is a mistranslation. In any case, Harper's gives as
primary meaning of inebrio, ·"inebriate," but gives the transferred
meaning as "to saturate." The whole idea of the prayer calls for
"saturate me" or "fill all my veins." Again in Bl. Claude's Act of
Confidence, the old translation of Psalm 4 is used: "In peace in the
selfsame ..." and this is neither good English nor in conformity with
the recent Latin text. The prayer would retain its beauty if the
quotations from Psalm 4 were omitted.
This slender volume should be obtained and used by sodalists, and
those seeking to make progress in prayer. Priests should know it and
urge its use by devout parishioners, especially students.
'
THOMAS C. HENNESSY, S.J.
MODERN SANCTITY
You. By Rev. M. Raymond, O.C.S.O. Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing
Co., 1957. Pp. ix-301. $4.50.
On December 22, 1957 Pope Pius XII broadcast his annual Christmas
message to an anxious and despairing world. All the advances in tech·
nology and all the automatic devices of the modern age have failed to
give man that true peace for which he longs. Rather they have made
him a slave to nature, have formed in him a false set of values, and
have reduced the incentives "which previously forced man to develop
his own personal energy." Hope can be restored, our Holy Father tells
us, only by realizing 'that the true dignity of man lies in his being a
son of God Who is the source of all harmony. And union with Christ
is the way to the Father.
You, therefore, could not have been more timely as a complement to
our Holy Father's message. Who are You? Father."Raymond asks.
Writing in popular style, the Trappist leaves no doubt as·to the identity
of You. You are: One Sent by God; One Almighty God Actually Needs;
One Who Knows the Only Answer; and so on, through sixteen chapters.
In a study conducted by psychologists of the University of California
it was discovered that many of the people interviewed were taken aback
and gave only superficial answers when confronted with the intriguing
question: Who are you? Taking as a presupposition that "you are what
your thoughts are," Father Raymond proceeds to fill your mind with
the most penetrating thoughts concerning your relations with each
Person of the Trinity and with your fellow Catholics as members of
Christ's Mystical Body.
That the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius have become part of
Father Raymond is manifest throughout the book. Quotations froJII
many Jesuit authors are also in abundance. Along with these Jesuits
we find many other familiar writers and thinkers like Chesterton, Belloc,
McNabb, and Bloy. And the Cistercian Saint Bernard of Clairvaux ap·
pears frequently. Step by step Father Raymond leads you on to a full
realization of your dignity.
THOMAS H. CONNOLLY, SJ,
�il
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVII, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1958
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER 1958
SCHOLA BREVIS CONVOCATION 1958 ---------------------------------------------- 323
Report of Terrence J. Toland, S.J. -------------------------------------------------- 323
Address of Edward J. Sponga, S.J. ------------------------------------------------- 325
LOYOLA HALL, LE l\IOYNE COLLEGE ------------------------------------------- 331
John W. Lynch
PIERRE LEJ Ay ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 334
Bernard A. Fiekers
LINCOLN IN A CASSOCK --------------------------------------------------------------- 335
Louis Berkeley Kines
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS ----------------------------------------------------- 399
�CONTRIBUTORS
Terrenee J. Toland (Maryland Province) is Prefect of Studies of Woodstock College.
Edward J. Sponga (Maryland Province) is Rector of Woodstock College.
John W. Lynch, priest of 'the Diocese of Syracuse, New York, is
author of A Woman Wrapped In Silence.
Louis Berkeley Kines (Maryland Province) is professor of history
at St. Joseph's College in Philadelphia.
Bernard A. Fiekers (New England Province) is head of the department of chemistry of ~oly Cross College.
--
For Jesuit Use Only
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Entered aa aecond-clasa matter December 1, 19•2. at tbe post office at Woodotock,
Wary land, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
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WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�The 1958 Schola Brevis Convocation
Of Woodstock College
Held on September 9, 1958, in Sestini Hall of the Pontifical Faculty of
Theology of Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland.
I
Report of Reverend Terrence J. Toland, S.J.
As Woodstock begins its ninetieth year, it is my duty to
submit an introductory report, briefly and factually, concerning some elements of our academic situation.
In the Jesuit houses of the Maryland and New York Provinces, as well as in several centers of theology in the United
States, present-day Woodstock is known for its spirit of general content with the management of its community task of
theological formation. It must be immediately pointed out,
however, that this basic content includes the vibrant challenge
of a healthy impatience which seeks for ever-possible improvement.
Praise
Members of the editorial staff of Time Inc. recently referred to Woodstock as an institution of "vital intellectual
churning." To sample from the personal comments of the
Middle States Evaluating Committee which examined Woodstock in 1958, Rear Admiral Gordon McLintock of the United
States Merchant Marine Academy wrote, "The merits of
Woodstock are such that reaffirmation of accreditation was
never an issue." According to the chairman of the visiting
t~am, Dr. Finla Crawford of Syracuse University, the evaluati~n of Woodstock was a highpoint in his experience with the
~Iddle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools.
"h.e official report speaks of Woodstock as a "superior,"
highly competent," institution with "standards and pro~~dures for distinguished work." More significant, perhaps,
an these generic laudatory remarks were two concrete facts
not ed In the committee's report. I refer first of all to Wood·
323
�324
,,
CONVOCATION
stock's universal cooperation in the work of preparing the
document of self-evaluation, and, secondly, to the enthusiastic
seizure of the opportunity for pertinent questions posed by
ourselves and to ourselves concerning the actual and possible
Woodstock.
On the other hand, the doubt is being raised in some quarters
whether or not Woodstock is presently touched in some measure with a certain dilettantism, lacking, that is, sufficient theological focus and depth in both interests and programs. What
is observed here is the existence of this doubt. My report should
also echo the disappointment on the part of some concerning
the overall, general tone- of performance during the examinations of the past scholastic year. Finally, and more summarily,
it must be remembered that in the human situation at Woodstock there are, and always will be, problems which call for
imaginative solutions and responsible improvement.
Changes
Looking ahead, we might detail in cursory fashion just a few
items which were originally the concern of the faculty and
student body, and which subsequently appeared in the report
of the Middle States Evaluating Committee.
1. The desirability of more effective use of the summer
period, apart from the time devoted to certain required
courses, prompted the recent program of planned reading,
workshops, and modern language study. Further analysis, reflection, reports, and discussion will determine our future
policy in these areas.
2. Both faculty and student self-evaluation reports recommended a full-time professor of homiletics. We now have one.
3. The Evaluating Committee's suggestion that profit could
be gained from smaller classes was the principal incentive to
make the present division of fourth year into two sections.
4. The advisability of an earlier correlation between Sacred
Scripture and dogmatic theology led to a change of schedule
we shall inaugurate in second semester of this school year.
Hereafter, Scriptur~ classes will start in the second half of
second year, and, while the total number of class hours will
remain the same as before, the course will be extended over
four, instead of three, semesters. This should make Scripture
�CONVOCATION
325
seminars more feasible and will, in the future, eliminate the
present crowding of the Scripture program. Moreover, with
the arrival of a new professor of Scripture, we have, after
several years, achieved a more complete and stable department.
In general, the entire academic community looks to the
coming year with a conviction of the readiness on the part
of the authorities to hear and honor suggestions, to encourage
initiative, realistically animated by an awareness of the necessity that suggestions emerge from a knowledge of our commitment to Church and Society legislation, as well as-and more
importantly, perhaps-from a sense of responsibility toward
the ideals of the priesthood and its foundation of theological
scholarship within the framework of the Society.
II
Address of Reverend Edward J. Sponga, S.J.
While it is hardly to be expected that a single talk can effect
any major change in one's habitual outlook, there are certain
times in the yearly cycle of events which are suited to, and
require, a more formal and explicit taking or re-taking of position. The beginning of the academic year is one of these
privileged moments.
This morning we solemnized the beginning of this year
with the Mass of the Holy Spirit, wishing to symbolize in this
supreme action of self-oblation in union with Christ our
petition that the wisdom and strength of the Holy Spirit, whom
Christ sent, may be with us as we go through the discipline
of another year of theological study. The eminent fittingness
of this act needs no proof.
In this convocation, I shall attempt to recall to your minds
!he significance of what we are about to take up once again
In. the course of the many years of formation which the Society
Wisely gives its own. True to this aim I shall try to situate
this Year of study in the wider context of the life of a Jesuit,
wh? is a priest or preparing to be one, and in the more restricted context of Woodstock in the year 1958. What we are
and shall be is certainly fashioned to a large degree by the
currents that move in our midst. These currents in our home
�326
CONVOCATION
waters in turn reflect the currents of the wider stream of the
world from which we have come, to which we shall return
and with which, even in our relative isolation here, we cannot
afford to be unconcerned. What are these currents'! Let me
attempt to depict them as I see them at Woodstock.
We are concerned these days with many things. We must
be. There is so much in our modern culture which demands
our acute attention. Somehow we shall have to be at home
with many people and conflicting currents; with the theologian
and the philosopher; with the scientist and the educator; with
social scientist and the laboring man; with the problems and
forces at work in family life and in the individual's total
personality. Furthermore, we feel that at least in one or
other of these areas we· should be prepared to say and do
something significant; something that is in tune with the
concrete reality of the situation. We feel, therefore, in need
at once of a breadth of interest and understanding, and of a
depth of experience and comprehension.
Our Dilemma
It seems to me that here we face a dilemma, at least in appearance, for breadth seems to work against depth and depth
against breadth. We likewise find that for various personal
and social reasons, human impulse tends to resolve this
dilemma by an option for a certain kind of breadth to the
consequent denial of depth. For to know something about
many things caters to a natural sense of curiosity. There
is a certain pleasure and prestige in being able to appear informed on all or many topics; there is a reassuring feeling
that one is ready for anything. There is also the sense that
one is accomplishing much; that he is vital, alive, and that his
life is full. If at times there is an advertence to a lack of
depth, this is quickly forgotten because there is always some
new thing to throw oneself into; and the sense of lack of depth
arises less and less frequently and becomes more and more
fleeting till at length it is no longer experienced as a loss.
There is another form of this breadth mystique. It is more
subtle. The student 'feels the need for concentration in some
field. He gives it time and interest. He reads many things
about it; he talks frequently about it. He uses up much
�CONVOCATION
327
energy surveying the various facets of the area. He comes to
be able to repeat formulae and manipulate terminology with
dexterity. He knows what the latest authorities have said. He
thus acquires a sense of accomplishment, a sense of security.
Here at least, he believes, he knows something; he must be
reckoned with.
But in whatever form it appears, I wonder whether we
are not dealing here with an old error in some of its newer
forms of dress. I wonder whether we are not simply witnessing a modern device for avoiding the toil, the discipline, the
dedication required for any true creation-be it the creation
of the God-image in self or others. While undoubtedly breadth
of interest and understanding are essential for the full human
person-and certainly for the Jesuit priest-the real question
is: is true breadth attained by a proliferation of involvements
in many interests or is it rather achieved as a by-product of
a movement from the opposite direction, that is, from the direction of depth, of discipline, of method.
Summer Activities
During the past summer here at Woodstock we sought to
fulfill what we thought was a need. We sought to afford many
opportunities to put ourselves in some contact with a number
of fields of modern concern, as many as circumstances permitted. While we were aware that the limitation of time
would make for a degree of superficiality, we felt that what
we did had at least the value of bringing to the front of our attention an awareness that we are not studying theology in a
vacuum; that there are real and vital problems facing us as
Jesuit priests, and that there are others struggling with
these problems and solving them with some degree of success.
We felt that if we wanted to come to our theology alive and
~ctive, with personal rather than merely formal questioning,
It was good and necessary to immerse ourselves in and to
wrestle with some of the active problems of our day. We
Were aware also that our concern was not primarily directed
to the objective content of any field of knowledge or technique.
Rather we felt that it was the creation of a sense of need,
an atmosphere of anxiety, a ferment of interest which would
carry over into the more serious work of the study of theology.
�328
CONVOCATION
Did we succeed in our purpose? At this moment I do not
know. Reactions were varied. Some feel that what we did
was valuable. Others judge that the psychology of the enterprise was wrong. The matter will receive more discussion
and analysis. Furthermore, since we were interested to a
large extent in creating attitudes, which are not things easily
measurable, we shall have to watch during the coming academic year to see what fruits we have reaped. Whatever be
our judgment, however, about the future of workshops and
their like, I think that at this point we have been made more
alert than ever to the fact that an experiment in breadth
has made more imperative than ever the need for caution if
we are to reach an understanding of where we stand. An experiment in breadth brings with it a proportionate need to
understand that breadth of interest will be valuable, will avoid
the danger of superficiality and a certain dangerous kind of
merely pragmatic interest in knowledge, only if it is itself
the product of depth.
Love of Truth
We are at the point where we must ask seriously what is the
moving force behind the spirit now present at Woodstock·
Is this interest in many things merely the manifestation of
that type of broadmindedness of which I spoke earlier, which
springs from an impatience with serious, careful, methodic
study? Or is it a broadmindedness that is the overflow of the
love of truth for itself in all its manifestations? Each one
must answer this question for himself as he proceeds with the
study of theology this coming year. Your task now is to
study scientific theology; to study theology in a scholarly way,
in a way which is not primarily dictated by use-value, no
matter how apostolic the use may be, but which is inspired
by the love to know the truth for its own sake. Certainly our
theology has use-value. With it we are to save souls, to advance the welfare of the Church in all areas of modern life.
But this must come as the overflow of one's dedication to the
truth for itself, because the truth is God and God is reality.
Yet when we speak of the love of truth and the love of
theology, let us not think in terms of temperamental or psY·
chological congeniality with study. The genuine love of truth
�CONVOCATION
329
demands self-sacrifice. It demands dedication of life and
energy. It demands hours of painstaking tracking down of
avenues of approach. It does indeed have its own kind of rewards, but we must be careful lest the quick, apparent, and
personally gratifying results we find in techniques render us
unwilling to submit to formal method and hours of personal
research. We must beware lest a so-called breadth lead us
to dismiss formalized knowledge as dead, unreal, antiquated.
The truly active and creative mind comes only as the product
of disciplined pursuit of the truth as men have struggled with
it and reduced the results of their struggle to scientific
formulae.
Any field of objective knowledge dictates its own price.
It imposes its own methodology and there is no other way of
purchasing it. The questions that the minds of the past asked
have effected the slow but genuine break-through to the truth
of which we are the heirs. But their questions must be real
questions to us personally, and they will be such only if we
carefully pursue, as they pursued, the particular facets of
truth that each age opens up to mankind. This means that
we must go to the sources. No one else can do this for us.
The teacher cannot do it. Nor can the textbook.
Struggle
What the teacher and the textbook can do, is to give us the
method, the feel for the methodic of the science. But the
method will not work for us unless we embrace it personally,
unless we submit ourselves to its dictates. This does not mean
passivity or mere unreasoned accumulation of data. It means
that we struggle with the questions to which the formulae of
the past are the answers, that we make them felt questions,
for they are the doors to the truth. It means that we pursue
the historical origins of the questions and answers. If we do
this, then the truth will come to us personally. It will not
come only as an answer to a question "out there," put perhaps
Years ago, but to a question that is now our own. Then as
truth is slowly comprehended it will at the same time suggest
other dimensions, dimensions which will fit our own situation.
It will gradually open up new horizons. It will result in a
breadth of vision and interest that is not mere dilettantism
�330
·"
CONVOCATION
but rather the growth of truth into the good which diffuses
itself. Then we will be alert to all things, not because we
wish to use them for chosen purposes, no matter how altruistic
or apostolic, but because all things will in fact appear to us
as related in the unifying power of truth itself. Even though
the limits of time, energy, and talent render impossible the
pursuit of truth down all its avenues, we shall be open to it
and catch it as readily as circumstances allow. We shall be
delighted when others are able to pursue it where we ourselves
cannot go.
I believe that in some sense we must all aspire to scholarship. I do not see how we- can have any other choice at this
moment. Perhaps we shaU not all become master theologians
but I do not see how we can safely refuse to put our abilities
to the service of such a goal. The study of theology is what
God has put us here for. If we refuse to pursue it in a way
that respects the discipline that it is, the effect will not be
merely that we shall not be theological scholars or that we
shall be deficient in knowledge of the objective content of the
truths of our faith. The effect will be even more destructive.
We shall have undone ourselves in a more radical way. Having refused to submit to the discipline necessary for the attaining of truth in the privileged field of theology, we shall have
rendered ourselves less able to embrace truth in any of its
manifestations. We shall have rendered ourselves more undisciplined as persons. We shall have therefore Ia."i.!l ourselves
open to all the evils to which an undisciplined mind and heart
are subject. We shall more readily be the plaything of the
passing winds of opinion. We shall be more liable to suffer
from the ignorance and malice of others and be in general
creatures of moods and fancies to the detriment of our sanctification and salvation. And we shall have hindered the welfare of the Church and the Society.
Conclusion
These are my reflections standing at the threshold of another year. I have attempted in some degree to see whence
we have come and whither we are going. Since I have been
assessing tendencies and currents, I do not think that there is
anything more that can be said even though the future maY
�CONVOCATION
331
force a shift of opinion. I present these reflections because I
think that we are at a point where some assessment is necessary and because I desire that you also assess our common
effort and your part in it.
If the activity of the past summer has had any helpful result, I believe it is that we have been compelled to look more
closely at ourselves corporately and individually. It may be
that in many instances we shall find that the things we were
quite ready to discard as reactionary and unrealistic are in
fact more deeply rooted in reality than our first evaluation
recognized. This is good, for then what we embrace we shall
embrace more wholeheartedly out of the depth of an experienced conviction. Whatever we do conclude, I hope that
at least we have come to realize more maturely that the work
of theology before us is of profound significance for what we
shall be and what we shall do according to the time, energy
and circumstances which God in his own wisdom will provide
for us in the years to come.
Reprints of this article can be purchased from WOODSTOCK LETTERS,
Woodstock, Maryland, at twenty-five cents per copy or ten copies for
two dollars.
Loyola Hall
Rev. John W. Lynch
A visit to the campus of Le Mayne during the late Summer
of 1958 makes it almost impossible to believe the progress
which the College has made during only eleven brief years.
Looking at these graceful, brick buildings outlined against
the sky at the top of the hill, driving on these quiet curving
roads, walking these spacious lawns an impression of permanency is unavoidable.
To be sure, an atmosphere of youthfulness is here, an air
of expectancy, a feeling that just over a happy future much
more is to come. But Le Moyne is a magnificent and solid
fact. There it is in Central New York, a point of reference,
�332
LOYOLA HALt.
an accepted reality, and, under the August sun, a campus
quietly waiting for the beginning of another school year and
the registration of hundreds of new students.
And yet, only a decade ago Le Moyne Heights was an open
field. There were no roads, no classrooms, no buildings. The
College was not then part of our history; it was merely a
dream, an ambition that might be in Catholic education, a
hope yet to be fulfilled. Le Moyne, which has become a tradition in the Syracuse area, was, eleven years ago, merely
a plan.
Je8uit Faculty
Many factors have coml:iined to build the Le Moyne of 1958.
There is the guidance and counsel of the Bishop of Syracuse,
there is the good-will and the interest of a whole community,
the loyalty of alumni, the generosity of friends and benefactors, the very real devotion of thousands of families whose
sons and daughters seek education in the classic and cultural
forms, the recognition of the College as an asset by industry,
but most of all, and essentially, Le Moyne is what it is because
of the living endowment of a Jesuit faculty. To discover the
secret of a distinguished college, one has only to observe a
black robed priest quietly walking on a campus path with
books under his arm and the love of wisdom in his heart.
This year, as the Jesuit faculty move to classrooms they will
not be commuters from a distant residence on james Street.
They will not have to catch automobiles on a schedule. For the
first time in the College history the faculty now live on campus.
At a far end of the lawns and crowning the hill the new residence building, Loyola Hall, has already been blessed and is
occupied. Thousands of students and alumni and a whole
Diocese are happy that it is so, and we offer to the Jesuit
teachers our good wishes and congratulations in the sense of
giving thanks together. A neighborly housewarming will be
managed by our prayers.
The first room in Loyola Hall that a visitor meets on passing
through the entrance-is the chapel for Le Moyne. Certainly
there are individual rooms for the priests, designated by a
bulletin board in the hall-rooms, not suites, individual rooms,
each with a wash basin, a bed and a shelf for books. Certainly
f
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1
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11
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LOYOLA BALL
333
there is a dining room, a kitchen, a common meeting room.
Certainly there are corridors, and offices within the new
Residence. There is a library here too.
But the focal place, the center, the significant roof, the one
room about which the whole building has been planned is the
chapel. There it is with a blue arch bending over the altar
and with pews and kneeling benches for some seventy-five
men. A Rood, that is, a Crucifix, the figure of Our Lady and
the figure of Saint John, rises over the altar stone and over
the Tabernacle. The Stations of the Cross range round the
walls for meditation and prayer. To describe the faculty
house you would have to mention scholars living in close
proximity to the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Individual Chapels
Other chapels are set into the foundations of the building
beneath the Main Chapel. Fourteen of them branch off from
a central sacristy, and each individual chapel has a door that
may be closed during Mass. The idea is that each priest may
offer his morning Mass in audible tones from the Missal text
while not disturbing the priest offering Mass on an adjacent
altar. Father Grewen admits to a favorite project in the
sacristy; the water used in the Mass will not be lukewarm.
A small refrigerator has been set in the wall and the water
will be fresh. I hesitate and will not make here any reference
to Moses and the rock.
Along the rear wall of the new faculty house a long, elevated
porch stretches, rather like the deck of a ship. Chairs are
lined there, like deck chairs, and the view is superb. From
the top of the hill, and visible on a clear day, is Oneida Lake.
The whole area of Syracuse, past Onondaga Lake and north
toward Oswego, is open to view, which is, once we think of it,
the wide panorama from whence the entire student body
comes. But, should we think of it again, we may reflect that
the Loyola Hall porch discloses the area where a Jesuit priest,
named Le Mayne, walked in loneliness and prayer some three
hundred years ago.
Reprinted from the Syracuse Catholic Sun of August 21, 1958.
�Rev. Pierre Lejay, S. J.
B. A. Fiekers, S.J.
The New York Times for October 12, 1958, carried an Associated Press release and picture on the death of Father
Pierre Lejay, noted Jesuit geophysicist. Father Lejay was
perhaps best known among American Jesuits through his
long association with the Zi-ka-wei Observatory in China
prior to 1939. Father was.. stricken by a heart attack while
returning to France aboard the liner Fiandre from the United
States where he had been engaged in a number of conferences
as President of the French Committee for the International
Geophysical Year. He died in his sixtieth year.
Father Lejay entered the Society of Jesus in 1915 and was
ordained to the priesthood in 1926. He also studied at the
Sorbonne and at the Ecole Superieure d'Electricite. During
his Directorship at Zi-ka-wei Father reported that the American continent was slowly moving westward, while Asia was
fluctuating between east and west. He based his report on
careful measure of longitudes.
In 1945 Father Lejay was named Director of Research of
the French National Center of Scientific Resea~ll. and in
1946, Director of the French Ionospheric Office. A member
of the French Academy, at the time of his death he was also
Director of the International Bureau of Graviometry, President of the Bureau of Longitudes and Vice-President of the
International Council of Scientific Unions, in addition to his
Presidency of the French Committee to IGY. Former offices
held by Father Lejay include his Presidency of the International Scientific Radio Union, of the Society of Radio Electricians, of the French Meteorological Society, of the French
National Center for Gravimetric Studies (1947) and of the
Union of Scientific Radio Electricians (1948). He has published many works on geophysics, gravimetry, astronomy and
the ionosphere. May his soul rest in peace.
334
�Lincoln in a Cassock
Life of Father John McElroy, S.J.,
1782 to 1847
Louis Berkeley Kines, S.J.
Introduction
The members of the Society of Jesus, known as the
"Jesuits," have published for the perusal of their own, in
various Provinces of their Order, a collection of letters which
over the centuries have contained a very intimate history of
their apostolic activities. Such were the Jesuit Relations, a
primary source for scholars who are interested in the evangelization of French Canada; the Letters and Notices for the
work accomplished in the British Commonwealth of Nations,
and for the American Jesuits the Woodstock Letters, published at Woodstock, Maryland. There are in Volumes 1-78
of the Woodstock Letters over fifty-four entries about a
Father John McElroy, S.J., ranging from sketches of one or
two paragraphs to lengthy excerpts from his letters and
diaries.
A priest who ·lived to be over ninety-two years of age, a
Jesuit who held the unique distinction of belonging to the
three grades-Lay Brother, Scholastic, and Spiritual Coadjutor-in his Order, an apostle who gave the first clergy retreats
in such scattered dioceses as St. Louis, New York, and Boston,
an army chaplain at the age of sixty-four in the Mexican War
of 1846-47, the founder of a college when nearing his seventieth year, the confidant of bishops, the kind counsellor of
numerous souls-lay and clerical, such a man deserves that his
fine record of nearly a century should be transcribed both as
an inspiration to his own brethren who are carrying on the
Work he so well began, as well as a model for some future
Young men who will accept the invitation: "Give all to the
Poor and come, follow me."
335
�336
JOHN McELROY
This narrative will follow Father McElroy from his entrance into the Society of Jesus in 1806 through the years
of his ministry at St. John's in Frederick, Maryland from
1822-45, and his eleven months as hospital chaplain with
Taylor's army at Matamoras, Mexico from 1846-47; then take
into account the spirituality of his apostolate which was the
"be all and end all" of his existence. And, finally, a word or
two on "what manner of man" was John McElroy.
Much of Father McElroy's career subsequent to 1847 is
adequately handled in David R. Dunigan's A Histor'lj of Boston College (Milwaukee, 19~7).
Our title is taken from a.. remark of Father Gilbert J. Garraghan: "Like a clerical Abraham Lincoln, devoid of the
learning of the schools, but abounding in force of character,
maturity of judgment and talent for affairs, he scored undoubted success in the cause of religion and of the Church.
Like Lincoln, too, it may be added, he wrote a lucid and vigorous English" (Thought 17 (1942) 634).
The writer is greatly indebted to Father William Repetti,
S.J., the archivist of Georgetown University, Washington,
D. C., who introduced me to the diaries of Father John McElroy, and who was untiring in his efforts to unearth documents; to Father Edward Ryan, S.J. and his worthy assistants
at the Woodstock Archives, Woodstock, Maryland, who unlocked a wealth of further diaries, letters and .p.ertinent information and to Father Peter Rahill, archivist of the Diocese
of Saint Louis, Missouri, for his gracious assistance in having
had correspondence between Bishop Rosati and Father McElroy photostated for my convenience. To all other persons
who were in any way helpful in compiling data for this narrative, I wish to express my most sincere thanks.
�FATHER JOliN McELROY
�,.
�Chapter 1: The Immigrant Lay Brother
I
L
I
The Period from 1782 to 1806
John McElroy was born at Brookeborough, County Fermanagh, Ireland, on May 14, 1782. In the diaries and letters
in his handwriting there are no entries or comments relating
to his first twenty-one years. As his birth place is situated in
what today is called Northern Ireland (Ulster), it may be
assumed that his education was obtained the hard way, and
that the practice of his religion was even harder; for during
those years, just after the close of the American Revolution
(1775-1782), Ireland was a seething cauldron in a "winter of
discontent." Some future historian of McElroy's complete
life may perhaps unearth the early years of this astute Irish
immigrant, but for this story we will go on shipboard at
Londonderry on June 25, 1803, when he sailed for the United
States. The ocean voyage took two months, for he landed
at Baltimore, Maryland, on August 25, 1803.
It seems obvious, both from later entries in his diaries and
comments from Jesuits in years to come, that Father McElroy
was gifted both with a keen business acumen and more than
a passing knowledge of "numbers," while, at the same time,
possessing a fine sense of English composition; all three qualities were to color his career as builder, pastor, and orator.
He obtained a position in Baltimore as clerk in a general store.
The following year, on August 25, 1804, he took up residence
in Georgetown, Maryland, and began again as a clerk in a
store owned and operated by a Mr. Curran. Here he remained
until January 14, 1806. It was during these seventeen months
that there came into John McEloy's life the germ of his future
vocation. The parish church for the Incorporated Georgetown (Maryland Assembly, 1789) was Holy Trinity. (The
original church, which McElroy attended, is now the Convent
of The Sisters of Mercy on the parish grounds.) The eager
Young Irish immigrant, long starved for an opportunity to
Practice his religion openly, became a daily participant at the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, received Holy Communion faithfully once a week and, perhaps to fill the gap of many Sundays
337
�338
JOHN McELROY
in Ireland when attendance was forbidden, stayed on for an
extra Mass for good measure. According to the custom of
the day, the sermon now so familiar to congregations, was
rather an instruction, to be read slowly from the pulpit. It
was these clear and concise explanations of the "way, the
truth and the life," which first caused John McElroy to heed
the call to a higher life and show himself responsive to the
urging of the Master, "I have chosen you, you have not chosen
me." In the McElroy correspondence in the Woodstock College Archives there is a series of these instructions in his own
handwriting, but there is little to be found in his notes of any
inspiration he might have received from them. However, as
we shall dwell on his spiritual diaries later, there is no doubt
that his mode of life was altered, and even before he began
to work at Georgetown College he had instituted in his daily
life the regimen of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises to the extent of daily examination of conscience, spiritual readings
and one hour meditation. 1 The rough emerald from Ireland
was beginning to be fashioned and polished mitil he shone
as a gem among the stalwart Jesuits of his day.
McElroy began working as a layman at Georgetown College on January 14, 1806. Just what his official duties were
the records do not disclose, but within a few months he was
admitted into the Society of Jesus as a lay brother and the
catalogue indicates that he was the buyer for.:the College,
assisted in keeping the books in the Procurator's office, and
gave instructions "in numbers" to the younger boys; and
since he notes that " ... my life did not undergo any great
change ...", we may assume he continued in the work already
begun with the notable exception that now his daily chores
and duties took on the added spiritual motivation and merit
derived from the motto of the Jesuits-A.M.D.G. (Ad Ma·
jorem Dei Gloriam-All for the greater glory of God.) There
is an oral tradition which has been handed down in the MarY·
land Province that the Superior of the College, Father Robert
1 Spiritual Diaries 12. Woodstock College Archives, Woodstock, :Md.
"Reflections and Resolutions-the effects of instructions from spiritual
directions, taken down chiefly as they occurred in Holy Trinity Church
-(noted the foregoing in Georgetown at Mr. Curran's Store), August
1, 1806.''
�JOHN McELROY
339
Molyneux, S.J., 2 was so impressed with the seriousness of this
young man that in a spiritual colloquy he pointed out how
much more gratifying to God and beneficial to his soul it
would be were he to sanctify his daily actions in a religious
state or vocation.
McElroy apparently heeded this suggestion, and on October
10, 1806, he was admitted to the Society of Jesus as lay
brother. His entrance is noted in the Province Catalogue"Novitii Coadjutores (Lay Brothers) Joannes McElroy et
Patritius McLoughlin, a die 10 Octobris 1806, in Districtu
Columbiae, Collegium Georgiopolitanum," and in his own
words in a letter to Father Charles Stonestreet, S.J., written
July 21, 1857:
I entered the Society of Jesus as a Lay Brother, employed as
clerk, procurator, treasurer, assistant cook, prefect (of rooms),
teacher of writing and arithmetic, etc. In these duties was I occupied during the two years of Novitiate, often making my meditations the best I could going to market. . . .3
What was the physical appearance of John McElroy?
Father Aloysius Jordan, for many years a personal friend,
describes him as follows:
A tall, wiry, thin, red-faced man with large features and black
hair. He had a big mouth and spoke with a nasal twang, but slowly
and distinctly.4
The choice souls who receive the divine call to follow the
Master generally have a very small share of this world's goods:
The Lord is not too interested in the amount or size of the
gift. What He measures is the spirit with which both self
and worldly possessions are committed to the cause. John McE.Iroy with that businesslike precision which would mark
his dealings during his days in the Society of Jesus, carefully
~rote down what he was relinquishing, beside himself,
In entering the Jesuit Society. He listed the following:
-
(1) Books-New Doway Testament, Instructions of Youth, But2
Catalogues, Md. Prov., Georgetown Univ. Archives, R. P. Molyneux, S.J. appointed Superior of the Mission on June 1, 1805.
3
9_ . Woodstock Letters, (hereinafter referred to as W. L.), 44 (1915)
10
4
Record of American Catholic Historical Society.
12 '217.
(Philadelphia),
�JOHN McELROY
340
ler's Lives of the Saints (1 Volume), Elevation of the Soul to God
(2 Volumes), Augustine's Confessions, Devotion to Christ, Pious
Guide, Pious Christian, Key of Paradise, Garden of the Soul, Vade
Mecum, Thomas a Kempis, Spiritual Combat, Huby's Spiritual Retreat, Daily Exercises, Hymn Book, The Cross in Its True Light
(lent by Father Francis Neale, N.S.J., who had been pastor at Holy
Trinity).
(2) Sundry articles of wearing apparel not necessary to describe
in particular; also, silver watch chain and seal, looking glass, razorshaving box, Hopkins razor strap, candlestick and snuffers, 2 combs,
tooth brush, pair of scissors, penknife, 2 pairs of beads, Pewter
Crucifix, a few pictures of different Saints, silver case containing
some relics, pair of knee buckles, pocket book.
To the above list of articfes he added:
"I resign my right and telle [sic] to my Superiors, prescribing
for the future never to claim any property to them or anything else.
Nov. 12, 1806
John McElroy
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.1
How many of the above mentioned books young McElroy
brought from Ireland is not known, but a quick glance over
the titles clearly indicates that he had surely given himself a
workable library in matters spiritual, and that the later entries in his Diaries, commenting on how in his formative
years he had spent many hours filling his eager soul with
serious spiritual reading matter, are correct. And the Fathers who received him were doubtless very happy-'to add such
works to the all too scantily stocked library of the new College.
Another observation after reading over the list suggests that
McElroy must have been well grounded in letters before em·
barking for the United States, or else he had used the few
years on these shores to good advantage to supplement his
education.
What impression did the young businessman, turned reli·
gious, make upon one with whom he came in daily contactwho now was an eye witness to his virtues and defects, his
aspirations and inspirations-and who would help shape hiS
destiny? Father Anthony Kohlmann (who later became a
national figure in New York City over the question of "di·
vulging matter heard in the confessional") was, at the tirne
3
W. L. 44 (1915) 14.
�JOHN McELROY
341
of McElroy's admission to the Society, the Socius or Assistant Master of Novices. Father Kohlmann wrote to the Superior in White Russia, Father Brzozowski, on November 25,
1806:
The names of the lay brothers are: John McElroy-aggressive,
but none the less prudent, who gave up a splendid, lucrative position as merchant for the Kingdom of Heaven, and will be of great
benefit to us.s
Here attention should be drawn to the fact that in the
McElroy Diaries the entries are for the most part factual,
and oftentimes lacking in both background and interpretation
on the part of the diarist. Therefore, a certain amount of
monotony is inevitable. Furthermore, the lack of an occasional anecdote, of descriptions of personalities (other than by
name) and of local coloring, make it almost impossible not to
inject a certain amount of hypothesis.
In Volumes 1 and 2 of the Diaries, now in the Georgetown
University Archives, there is practically nothing touching on
the mode of life in the years that Brother McElroy spent in
the grade of coadjutor. While perusing these pages the
thought occurred to me that those years might well have been
entitled "the hidden life," following the Evangelist who summarized the thirty years in the life of Christ, "Having gone
down to Nazareth, He was subject to them." No doubt, with
the positions listed in the catalogue, plus the added necessity
of grounding himself in the daily routine of a religious, such
as, spiritual reading, daily Mass, meditation, examen of conscience, annual retreat-there was little time left for any
Writing other than that contained in his Spiritual Diaries,
which are quite jejune.
British Attack on Washington, August, 1814
The most striking incident during these years occurred in
August of 1814, when Brother McElroy was an eye witness
to the burning of Washington by the British. This event and
the raid on St. Inigoes Manor in Southern Maryland occupy
~ goodly portion of Diary I. Both of these historical vignettes
t ave ~een reviewed previously (v.g., one by the present auhor In the Georgetown Alumni Bulletin of October, 1956)
-
8
Ibid., 35 (1906) 16. This is a translation.
�342
JOHN McELROY
so that it would be superfluous to burden the present story
with a repetition of either. However, for the record, there
is a very interesting collection of letters by a Brother Mobberly, who was the gardener at St. Inigoes Manor, describing
the particulars of this invasion of Jesuit property and the
final outcome; these letters are in the Georgetown University
Archives under the title of "Mobberly Diaries." McElroy
noted that Mobberly's account was copied by the "National
Intelligencer and from thence copied by many other papers
throughout the country." 7
Mtililroy on Slavery
January 29, 1814-This day, also, Isaac ran away from the College.
January 30, 1814-This day Isaac was taken up in Baltimore and
committed to jail. Rev. Fr. Neale [Francis Neale, S.J., 1786-1837]
being there same time, sold him to a man in Hartford County. 8
In these days of integration and racial tensions the above
entry in Volume 1, pages 32-33, may come as a shock to the
casual reader. It is obvious Isaac was a slave, owned by the
Fathers at Georgetown College. Father Neale was Brother
McElroy's Master of Novices, having entered the Jesuit
Society as a secular priest on the very day of McElroy's entrance, October 10, 1806. Father Neale had been the pastor
at Holy Trinity during McElroy's attendanGe there. Just
what effect this traffic in human beings had oh.the man from
Ireland cannot be ascertained, but we know from his diary,
kept while making the trip to Mexico along the water route
of the Mississippi in 1846, that he was pleasantly surprised
by the apparent contentment of the bonded slaves and their
mode of existence.
He has no word of criticism either for the "peculiar institu·
tion" or their masters. And even while pastor of St. John's at
Frederick, Maryland, and of the adjoining mission stations,
although he notes with joy the conversion to the Catholic
Church of slaves and their obvious happiness at being received, he in no wise allows us an insight into his own per·
sonal reactions to slavery.
r Diaries of John McElroy (Georgetown Univ. Archives) 1.
Jbid.
8
�Chapter IT: Priest and Pastor
1817. 1830
Yesterday, (May 31, 1817) the following persons received the Order
of Priesthood in the College (Georgetown) from the hands of the Right
Reverend Archbishop (Leonard) Neale, (Baltimore 1815-1817): Roger
Baxter, S.J., John McElroy, S.J., Franklin and Timothy Ryan, seculars.t
On June 11, 1817, Father McElroy said his first Mass in the
College Chapel. He noted in his Diary I on February 14,
1815, that the Superior, Father John Grassi, S.J., had received
letters from England which enclosed a printed copy of the
Pope's recent Bull for the re-establishment of the Society of
Jesus. 2
Here we come to our first problem, namely: what caused
the Jesuit Superiors in the newly re-established Society in the
United States to advance John McElroy from the status of
Coadjutor to that of Scholastic with the ultimate goal of
ordination to the sacred Priesthood?
There is an oral tradition that another Scholastic, overhearing McElroy instructing the boys in the lower form, was
struck by his method of teaching, and went to Father Grassi,
urging him to use this teacher's qualifications more extensively in the classroom and on the lecture platform. In the
Society these functions are usually reserved to Scholastics
and priests, and it would, therefore, be necessary to remove
McElroy from the phalanx of the Lay Brothers. This could
have been the initial step in the upgrading, but no research
has uncovered any documentation.
Then, there is the testimony of a Fr. Finotti in a letter
about McElroy:
After Fr. Grassi became Superior of Georgetown (August 15
1812) he remarked how well Bro. McElroy conversed and one day
told him to stand up on the porch of the old South Building and
give a sermon ex tempore on a subject named ..• (presumably by
Fr. Grassi) .a
Again:
-
Fr. Grassi was the Superior who perceived the latent powers of
1
Diary, I.
2
Pope Pius VII's recent Bull entitled "Sollicitudo Omnium Ecclesia
rum."
3
W. L., 32 (1902) 205.
343
�JOHN l\lcELROY
344
the Lay Brother John McElroy and raised him to the position of a
Scholastic, applied him to the study of theology and had him ordained in 1815 [1817] ... His wisdom was shown by the subsequent
career of McElroy, an apostolic man, one of the builders of the
Catholic Church in the U. 8.4
And, finally :
Bishop Neale, then residing at the College, (Georgetown) recognized his (McElroy's) abilities, furnished him with the facilities for
study and raised him to the Priesthood. 5
The Catholic Church in the United States in those years
suffered from an appalling lack of priests. The need was urgent, both in the educational and parochial fields, and, undoubtedly, neither superi:or nor Bishop hesitated a moment to
to make full use of an individual like McElroy who had clearly
shown that he was a man of exceptional talents. Fr. James
Kilroy, S.J., of Boston College, who remembered some of the
Fathers at the Novitiate at Frederick, Maryland, who had
lived with Fr. McElroy, commented to the writer (June
1957) :
These Fathers understood from McElroy's contemporaries that
he was an orator par excellence, always prominent for the vibrant
resonance of his voice and the ease with which he could be heard
by the congregations.
Perhaps it was this quality for which he became widely
known later on, combined with the spiritual earnestness with
which he was blessed in the religious life, which moved Fr.
Grassi to take the step and give to the American Church an
outstanding Jesuit priest of the nineteenth century. Then
again, some men are given the extraordinary facility of perceiving greatness in others; Fr. Grassi, as superior of a small
community, was in daily contact with Brother McElroy,
supervising his activities and hearing his semi-annual manifestations of conscience as required by the Jesuit Rules. 6 It
will never be known how in those colloquies McElroy bared
his soul and gave Fr. Grassi the knowledge necessary to reach
this important decision.
I do not believe tl)ere was either any one quality or anY
Ibid., 30 (1900) 103, "Reminiscences of Fr. Grassi, S.J."
s Ibid., 33 ( 1903) 314.
6 Fourth Common Rule, S.J.
4
�JOHN McELROY
345
single incident which persuaded Fr. Grassi in his final decision. Rather, it was a congeries: lack of priests, Fr. Grassi's
keen insight into both the spirituality and talent of his subject, the ability of John McElroy as a teacher and orator,
which caused the Jesuit Superior to advise McElroy to take
this important step.
Scarcely had Fr. McElroy been ordained by Archbishop
Leonard Neale, when he was called upon to witness the latter's death at the Georgetown Visitation Convent on June 17,
1817, as noted in the Diary:
Archbishop Neale is taken suddenly ill. Fr. Grassi administered
the last Sacraments. Fr. McElroy and Brother Henry Reiselman,
Infirmarian, are appointed to sit up with him .... About 10 minutes
past 1 A.M. he departs from life whilst Fr. McElroy was kneeling
at his bed-side reading the departing prayers. Mother Louisa,
Superioress and five Nuns, were present. Fr. McElroy said Mass
in the Nuns' Chapel 7 about 2 o'clock for the repose of his soul. 8
Reminiscing years later, McElroy said that:
Bishop Neale was an admirable director of consciences and possessed, more than anyone else I ever knew, the powers of winning
hearts to himself and God. His life even in his old age was as regular as a Novice's. He arose every morning at 4 A.M., made a visit
to the Blessed Sacrament and his hour of meditation. 9
From his ordination in 1817 until his transfer in 1822 to
St. John's in Frederick, Maryland, Fr. McElroy continued as
a faculty member at Georgetown College. He pronounced
the final vows of a Spiritual Coadjutor on June 11, 1821 in
the College Chapel. His acumen in the business world was
greatly utilized, as we find him during these years listed as
the "Procurator (treasurer) of the Mission," which was to
become the future Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus.
Ris talents as a teacher of mathematics continued to be of
service in both upper and lower forms, while his preaching
capacity was in great demand in the nearby Parish of Holy
Trinity. On September 22, 1822; after 16 years 8 months and
-
7
Chapel of the Visitation Convent, Georgetown, D. C., where Archbishop Neale, S.J., is buried.
8
Diary 1, 62.
9
Journal 3, 90. (Diaries at Woodstock College are called Journals
and will be so designated in subsequent pages.)
�iOHN McELROY
7 days, McElroy left Georgetown to assume his duties as
Pastor of St. Thomas Manor, Calvert County, Maryland, and
the adjoining congregations. Near Port Tobacco, Maryland,
he met the Reverend Fr. Superior, S.J., [Charles Neale] at
which time:
... He informed me that my destination was changed and that I
was to go to Charles Carroll's to live with the family as Chaplainbut he heard of the illness of Father Maleve and desired me to pro·
ceed thither in the interval-Said Mass at 2 A.M. at St. Patrick's,
Washington-Stage at 3 for Frederick, arrived found Fr. Maleve
dangerously ill.1o
The old cliche about "for want of a nail the shoe was lost,
for want of the shoe the hgrse was lost," may be a bit out of
order, but suppose Fr. Meleve had not been ill, and McElroy
had become Chaplain to Charles Carroll of Carrollton, that
doughty Founding Father, then in his eighty-fifth year, might
have found in the Irish Priest-drawn together by their common ancestry and McElroy's characteristic yen for absorbing
all knowledge possible of the new country he had made his
own-a penman for recollections, anecdotes and tales of our
historic struggle for freedom, which could have easily enriched our knowledge of the Signer of the Declaration of
Independence and given us a rich lode of historical treasures.
But divine providence decreed otherwise and we must leave
"what might have been" in the realm of historical fantasies.
Father Maleve died within a few days and on-"October 17,
1822, John McElroy was appointed Pastor of· St. John's
Church, Frederick, Maryland, where he was to remain until
August 27, 1845.
The original site of "Frederick Towne" was laid out in
1745 by Daniel and Patrick Dulaney. It was most probably
named after Frederick Calvert, Sixth Lord Baltimore. Situated in one of the most beautiful and fertile valleys of the
"Free State," the site was quickly seized upon by newly arrived immigrants from the German Palatinate, with a fair
sprinkling of the same race from the City of Philadelphia.
It became known even outside of the Maryland borders, when
in 1775 a band of its citizens arrived in Boston, painted as
Indians, and eager to cooperate against tyranny. The Towne
10
Ibid. Journal 3.
�JOHN McELROY
347
was incorporated by the General Assembly of Maryland in
1817, and when McElroy arrived its population was over
3,600. For pioneers moving West it was on the national
highway, and was generally the first overnight stop out of
Baltimore. 11
St. John's Church (Chapel Alley and 2nd Street), whose
new Pastor was John McElroy, had been begun in 1800, but
the cornerstone was not laid until 1828. McElroy was destined to rebuild the church. The cornerstone of the new edifice
was laid in 1833, and the consecration (the first in the United
States) took place on April 26, 1837.
Connected with the parish church in Frederick there were
many outlying mission stations. In the pages of his Diaries
McElroy lists twelve such, which, during his pastorship of
twenty-three years, he and his fellow Jesuits visited regularly.
Here one may be allowed a bit of fancy and see the tall wiry
priest, a la Lincoln, riding the church circuit rather than the
judicial circuit. The missions were within about a hundred
miles perimeter around Frederick, and from the number of
actual entries in the Diaries I estimate that McElroy rode over
ten thousand miles by horse or carriage, bringing the "good
tidings" to the scattered faithful.
Fr. McElroy found the parish at Frederick in what he described as a "flourishing condition," and he is high in the
praise of the priestly work of his dead predecessor, Fr. Maleve, S.J. He had hardly assumed his new position, when in
the Diary we find the following:
October 22, 1822: Messrs. Taney, Joseph Smith, Jameson and Atwood, the principal men of the congregation, dined with me. I
proposed altering pews so as to accommodate black people and
strangers, the [y] readily agreed.12
Roger Brooke Taney, later Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of the United States, whose name will be forever linked
With the Dred Scott Decision (1857), began a friendship with
McElroy which was to last until the death of Chief Justice
Taney in 1864. The juxtaposition of his name in this entry,
With his approval of pews for the black people, could be called
-
11
12
W. P. A. Guide for Maryland. Cities are listed alphabetically.
Journal a. Woodstock Archives.
�348
JOHN McELROY
an ironic twist, since in his now famous opinion written for
the majority of the Court in the Scott Decision, the Chief
Justice denied that the black man was or could ever be a
citizen of the United States. Evidently he did not draw any
such color line when it was a question of divine worship, for
even though the pews were segregated as was customary
throughout the United States, he must have held to the belief
that these also were God's children and destined to be citizens
of the heavenly kingdom.
Chapter III: Ministry At Frederick
Father McElroy's priestly administrations while Pastor of
St. John's, President of St. John's Academy, and Superior of
the Jesuit Community, covers over 22 years of spiritual and
temporal activities. As already noted, the pages of his
Dmries during this period record his morning Mass, visits
to the sick, instructions to converts, baptisms, marriages, and
funerals. Now and then, a name of national or international
importance flashes across the pages, but, unfortunately, McElroy never commented on the importance of the personages,
or on his own reactions to their visits. General_Lafayette arrived in Frederick on December 29, 1824, and· the Diar?J
states:
General Lafayette arrived in town this evening escorted by a num·
berous military corps and great concourse of citizens-The town
was handsomely illuminated on the occasion •••1
Dec. 30-Paid Gen'l. Lafayette a visit today at his lodgingsMerely passed civilities and retired. 2
January 2, 1825, was a Sunday, and there is complete silence
in the Diary as to whether the Revolutionary hero attended
Mass. Another famous visitor of world-wide reputation was
Madame Iturbide, wife of the deposed Emperor of Mexico.
.
Journal,9. Woodstock Archives.
Ibid. General Lafayette was visiting Frederick as a guest of the
Maryland Agricultural Society, "This Week" Magazine Section, Balti·
more Sunday Sun, 9/29/57.
1
2
�JOHN McELROY
349
Her visit is noted in Journal 5, with the sole comment that
she was "a most gracious lady." Bishops, especially those of
the dioceses of St. Louis, Bardstown, and New Orleans, always stopped for a few days in Frederick, either on their way
to, or returning from a Provincial Council in Baltimore or the
Ad Limina visits to Rome. Even a casual reader of the Diaries and extent correspondence of McElroy in the Woodstock
Archives gains the vivid impression that the "pastores gregis"
of the United States-from Boston to New Orleans-considered John McElroy a friend and confidant well worth the
nurturing.
As noted, the estimated population of Frederick at the
time of McElroy's arrival was approximately 3600 souls.
Taking into account that slaves were common, both in the
rural and urban areas, we may perhaps estimate them in
round numbers of about 300. Some must have been Catholics,
as is seen in the resolution to obtain pews for their use; but
it is safe to assume that the majority were not. Taking into
account that the actual number of white Catholics is not given
in any of the Diaries, and knowing that Frederick Towne had
been largely settled by Protestants of German origin, the
majority of the population must have been Lutheran. However, we know that both the Methodists and the Presbyterians
had prosperous churches in the town; I would estimate the
number of Catholics to have been about 600. This is based
on a statistical entry in Journal 3, which gives the number of
those who made their Easter duties in 1822 as 513. In the
same tabulation, covering an eight-month period, May 1822
to January 1823, the number of confessions listed is 2,524
and Holy Communions 2,295. The First Communion class
numbered 54, those confirmed 185, those baptized 124.
Father McElroy was assisted in the ministry in these early
Years by priests of the Society sent up from Georgetown College, or by those members of the clergy who visited him in
transit. He also obtained occasional assistance from Mount
St. Mary's College at Emmitsburg, Maryland. This College
always held a very special place in McElroy's affection, and
he was practically the spiritual Father to the faculty, generally giving the annual retreat to the students, and often
�aoo
JOHN McELROY
going there when he felt in need of a rest. This is also why
he was able so often to visit his mission stations, knowing the
faithful in Frederick were in good hands.
He had scarcely taken over the pastorship at St. John's
when he turned his attention to what he called "a most pressing need," namely, the making of converts. That his efforts
were abundantly rewarded is evident from the few statistics
found in his writings. Between October 1822 and December
1825 he listed 164 converts, and, as we shall note during his
chaplaincy in the Mexican War, his Diaries are filled with the
conversions of soldiers in the hospital at Matamoras, Mexico.
Still a further note in Jq_:Urnal 20A states, "Suppose in all 8
years [1831] about 280 converts."
Two rather striking entries are worth quoting:
1822-Sally a colored woman about 17, belonging to Mr. Key
[Francis Scott] . . . Baptized her conditionally, heard her confession and gave her Extreme Unction ... Died next day. I buried her
in our ground [St. John's Cemetery] at which about 400 colored
and other persons attended ...
1823-Edward Smith, colored man about 20 years old-called
about noon-The Presbyterian Parson had been with him, but
[Smith] was not satisfied with him-sent for me-l confessed and
baptized him and administered Holy Communion. He died before I
left the house.
The above quotations show deathbed conversiqns, but any
priest who has instructed new members of the-· Church can
readily appreciate the numberless hours required to impart
the dogmas and moral teaching necesary for the reception of
the Sacraments. When one recalls the almost endless journeys
and continual parochial activities of Father McElroy, the
time consumed in giving the instructions, even for the numbers listed, surely merits for his ministry in this field the
accolade of "maker of converts."
High in the category of "firsts" which must be associated
with the name of John McElroy is the establishment of spiritual retreats for parishes. The first mention of such exercises
for St. John's Parish. is in Journal 5 dated April 10, 1827.
This was the Tuesday of Holy Week, and from then on these
became the customary procedure. McElroy believed that
the combining of the sacred liturgy in the most significant
.•
�JOHN MeELROY
351
week of the Catholic year would be an opportune time to instruct the faithful in the solemnity of the services, along with
the making of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola.
The Journal states:
April 10, 1827-This evening commenced the exercises of the retreat
for the congregation-as announced on Sunday. . . . Meditation
morning and evening . . . Spiritual reading twice a day.
April 13,-Mass and instructions-A.M. Reading and examen at
noon. Meditation and Vocal prayers in the evening.
In Journal12, under date of February 14, 1842, we find him
giving the first public retreat in Baltimore City at St. Vincent's Church:
Mass 6 A.M. Points for meditation. Another Mass-Review of
meditation. 10 A.M.-Spiritual lecture. 11 A.M.-Family Instruction. 12 Noon-Angelus. 3 P.M.-Thomas a Kempis, Rosary and
Instruction. Confessions 7 P.M. Second Instruction, Benediction
and night prayers-Finished at 9 P.M.
As to the spiritual results of the last entry he noted "over
800 Communions on Sunday the 20th, church filled to capacity
and the services of eight confessors were required." Surely,
consideration must be given in commenting on his parochial
retreats that our forefathers were stalwart men and women,
attending church for almost fifteen hours with, of course, the
necessary intervals. Nothing in his priestly life gave more
consolation to John McElroy than these retreats, and from
the comments of bishops, secular priests, and his fellow
Jesuits, the oratorical prowess of McElroy, prescinding from
the Divine Grace necessary for all supernatural actions,
played a large part in their success. I have been unable to discover any written sermons in the Archives at Woodstock. He
could well have spoken from notes or from memory, but
judging from his methodical business records and church
accounts, I assume he must have written out his sermons.
Two qualities in the various comments listed stand out to
illustrate both the popularity and depth of his preaching.
Naturally gifted with a superb voice ("booming" is one de?cription of it) McElroy never had any difficulty being heard
~n the largest churches in which he preached. People in those
ays were accustomed to long Sunday sermons, as generally
there were only two parish Masses, which ordinarily were
�I
352
JOHN McELROY
quite sufficient in taking care of the needs of the congregation.
At St. John's there were two Masses-one at eight and one at
ten o'clock. Fr. McElroy more often officiated at the former.
All the novenas-Sacred Heart, Immaculate Conception, Holy
Souls, and the Novena of Grace-were preached year after
year, and he apparently delighted in conducting them for his
flock.
And as his reputation grew he was continually called upon
by other pastors and bishops for what is today termed the
"occasional sermon." On these occasions his magnificent voice
could be heard from "Boston to St. Louis." Characteristically,
Fr. McElroy merely noted his appearances; his power and
effectiveness must be gleaned from the many accounts in the
Woodstock Letters. But it was the second quality of his sermons which left behind the indelible mark of his greatness
and that, briefly, was their content. McElroy was not an intellectual giant, and because of the paucity of his formal
theological training some have concluded that he was deprived
of the Rectorship of Georgetown College in 1845. 3
In his infrequent spare moments he read and studied
approved authors in the theological field of writing and kept
abreast of the current Catholic literature. While his instructions were simple and clear and his sermons lucid, it must not
be assumed that he lacked all literary embellishments. His
letters, written to sundry persons on a multi:r>licity of topics,
are distinguished, as Father Garraghan noted~ by the same
lucidity of style and content for which Abraham Lincoln has
taken his place among the classical English luminaries. Contrary to popular belief, there is very little or no humor in :McElroy. The Diaries totally lack the pun, the quip, the joke,
and his letters did not reveal any flashing wit. This is rather
unique, because contemporary accounts of his conversations
-especially at community recreation among his fellow Jesuits
-point out that he was a sparkling and witty talker. As
3 Journal 16, Woodstock Archives: "June 9, 1845-Father Visitor
[Fr. Kenney] told me' this morning that I am to be Rector of Georgetown College with the 'next scholastic year-Fiat Voluntas Dei." "August
3-I must be at the College on the 20th inst. to assume office of Rector."
"August 28-Received a letter from Father Visitor informing me that
I am not to be Rector of Georgetown College."
�JOHN McELROY
353
in the case of all great orators, Father McElroy improved
with experience and left behind him in the affections of his
hearers the reputation of being "the orator of the day."
Father McElroy was also quite civic minded and participated in the celebrations which marked the advancement of
Frederick Towne. The most notable of these functions occurred on:
December 1st, 1831. On this day by appointment the cars carrying the President and Directors of the Railroad Co. [Baltimore and
Ohio] arrived for the first time in Frederick-their arrival was
greeted by the firing of cannon-ringing of bells, bands of music.
The citizens received the Company, the Governor of Maryland
[George Howard] and a number of invited guests and escorted
them in procession to the Hotel. I walked in the procession, the
only clergyman but did not dine with them-Much good is expected
to grow out of this line [the railroad]-It is the largest in the world
61 miles and in a few weeks it will be completed to Point of Rocks,
Md.4
The railroad was completed,-not as McElroy noted "in a
few weeks,"-but by 1832, for a total distance of 69 miles.
The Sixth Annual Report of the President and Directors
of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company stated that,
... The Board cannot forbear on this occasion to notice the kind
and hospitable reception given them by the people of Frederick. . . .
and Edward Hungerford in his "Baltimore and Ohio Railroad"5 writes:
On 1st December 1831, when the first regular train went rolling
into Frederick to a tremendous reception ... A huge decorated arch
had been erected over the railroad tracks . . . All Frederick was
gaily decorated . . . The chimes of the new Catholic Church were
ringing.
Perhaps Hungerford had the cue as to why Fr. McElroy did
not attend the reception when he stated: " ... A mighty dinner of two hundred covers is served ... consuming four long
-
4
The President and Directors of the railroad who made up the
:rty Were: Philip E. Thomas, President, Charles Carroll, William PatF ~son, Alexander Brown, John Morris, George Hoffman, Alexander
Sridge, Patrick MacCaulay, John McKim, Jr., Evan Elliot and James
wan.
G B. & 0
RR. Archives, Employees Library, Balto., Md. Vol. I, p.
124-125.
•
�JOHN McELROY
354
hours." He would not have relished sitting for four hours
listening to endless toasts and speeches.
Not all of Fr. McElroy's dealings with the citizens of Frederick were on the same jovial plane occasioned by the arrival
of the railroad. His Diary notes reveal that the "ugly head of
religious bigotry" had been reared and that he intended to
"do something about it." 6
April 18, 1830-Lectured this evening, a conference on "Slander,"
in reply to an article in the Lutheran Intelligencer of this town
against the Catholic Church-Read them [the charges] and refuted
them.
April 25-Reviewed the same publication-A great crowd of people. Church could not contain them.
May 3-. . . . Another large crowd. Three-quarters of them I
presume are Protestants. Preached 1 hour 20 minutes. 7
There seems little reason to doubt that McElroy's Irish
heart was profoundly stirred. Born and bred in a land of
persecution and an atmosphere of religious intolerance, this
son of Erin-now a full blown believer in the American way
of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"-must have
sounded the tocsin of alarm against what most probably were
old skeletons taken from the closets by the opponents of the
Church. It was the age of Maria Monk, the Know-Nothings,
and the juicy words "scandal" and "slander" were always
sure of a good audience.
It was also the age when political debates were-the order
of the day, and when religious controversy was an added
ingredient. One need not take too much liberty with the text
to imagine that the "three-quarters of Protestants" were
attracted by both curiosity and McElroy's eloquence. The
statement, "read them and refuted them," certainly summarizes what he thought of the hoary charges, and he was
no doubt satisfied that the refutation would lay to rest their
empty tirades.
In Journal15 under January 19, 1843, there is recorded a
rather ironic incident. An itinerant preacher by the name
of Moffet made his appearance in a Methodist Meeting House
to which he was escorted by a procession of Freemasons. lie
6
r
Journal 7, Woodstock Archives.
Ibid.
�355
JOHN McELROY
had been around Frederick Towne for some weeks, but this
was his big day. McElroy does not mention whether or not
he attacked the Catholic Church. If Moffet followed the customary routine of the day and age, he most certainly didbut McElroy related:
. . . This alarmed the Lutherans and Presbyterians . . . They
sounded the alarm with the ringing of bells and summoned their
people to their own conventicles to secure them from the contamination of the Methodists!
In the late eighteen-twenties and early thirties work was
being pushed for the completion of the Chesapeake and Ohio
Canal, which was to connect Washington with the West.
Actually, the financial panic of 1837 halted the construction
and the operation was carried only as far as Cumberland,
Maryland. 8 By June, 1830, the operation was at Seneca,
Maryland, on the Potomac River, some twenty-five miles West
of Frederick. Since most of the laborers were Irish immigrants, McElroy felt duty-bound to see to their spiritual
necessities. The entries are in Journal 7, and cover the dates
of June 3, 1831 to August 15, 1831. Some excerpts are significant:
June 3, 1831-Went to live at the Canal [Seneca] . . . Heard confessions all day in the woods ... Preached at 7 P.M.
June 4.-Said Mass, about 200 laborers attended. I preached for
them again.
June 18.-To confess the Canallers.
June 19.-Heard confessions all day.
June 25.-Lodged in a shantee [shanty] all night.
Sept. 19.-Made a collection for the distressed Canallers about 90
dollars.
April 22, 1831-I went this day to Monocacy [Md.] to prepare a new
temporary chapel for the Canallers.
Aug. 15, 1831-Called upon by the superintendent of the Railroad
this evening to accompany him to New Market [Va.], where the
Irish and Blacks had a quarrel. Happily I succeeded in making
Peace. President and Directors expressed their gratitude with a
gift of $100.
These are skeleton entries of what must have consumed
~Uch time and energy, as these trips were invariably made
Yhorseback. It is not difficult to picture the happiness of
-
8
'
Billington, Roy A., Western Expansion, p. 337.
�JOHN McELROY
356
the Irish laborers in seeing a priest, one of their very own, so
anxious about their salvation, acting the part of the peacemaker.
Having also to participate in the world of business which
for centuries has been the great burden of the parish priests,
McElroy is shown from the records, both in the Diaries and
his meticulous accounting for the annual revenues at St.
John's, to have been a businessman of no small account.
Pastor during the two national depressions of 1827 and 1837,
with a relatively small rural congregation, he built a new
church, an orphan asylum, · a girls' grammar school, a boys'
academy, a novitiate, and ~the Visitation Convent during his
pastorship, and in 1842, after a tenure of twenty years, he
listed his debts as $12,163.63. McElroy was the recipient of
three substantial sums of money-two left by will, and a
third by what certainly was a unique business deal; for we
find in Journal 6 under date of April 4, 1829:
Miss Elizabeth Dehaulme departed this life this morning at 3th
o'c in the 86th year of her age. R.I.P. She bequeathed by will her
property amounting to about $5000 in bank to Father McElroy for
certain purposes.
There is no itemization of just what the "certain purposes"
were, but since the date corresponds with the expansion of the
girls' school and the beginning of the boys' academy, it can be
assumed that the pious lady's generous benefaction was
quickly utilized.
The second gift by will came from none other than McElroy's brother who died as a Scholastic in the Society of
Jesus at Georgetown in May of 1841.
May 12-Called to Georgetown ... Anthony ill with kidney trouble.
May 17-(Forgot to enter this) Death of my brother . .. 56 years
old, having spent 22 years in America.
May 24-Signed papers as executor to my brother's will. 9
The amount left by Anthony was about $3000. He had arrived in the United States in 1819, and following his older
brother's footsteps ha'd become a businessman in "George
Towne." He entered Georgetown College in 1833 and the
Society of Jesus in 1835. His name appears in Journal 3 un·
9
Journal 10.
�JOHN McELROY
357
der the dates of April 23-28, December 28, 1823, August 5
and 17, 1824, with the only comment "visited by my brother."
I could find no letters between the two brothers in the McElroy correspondence folders in the Woodstock Archives.
Father McElroy stated that he would "use the $3000 to pay
off various debts in Frederick." It may seem strange to read
that one Jesuit was able to leave his money to another, even
his own brother. Anthony McElroy was still in the formative
period of the Order, with simple vows, and property owned
by him was his to dispose of, with the suggestion of his superiors that it be used for the greater glory of God. Since from
the records we do not know of any other relatives of the two
brothers either here or in Ireland, what was more natural than
for Anthony to leave his worldly possessions to his priestbrother John, who was most certainly spending himself and
all his possessions in the tireless spreading of God's kingdom
at Frederick and wherever else his eager footsteps hastened
in the zealous fulfillment of his apostolic duties.
The third benefaction noted in the diaries needs to be quoted
in full:
June 24, 1830. Concluded an arrangement with John L. Atwood
and wife today to this effect: they are to convey all their property
and personal (belongings) valued at $3000 to me-and I oblige
myself to support them during life with Board and Lodging and
pay them $100 per annum, to provide them with clothes etc.-At the
demise of either, the annuity to be $75 per annum-They are to
board and lodge with the Sisters of Charity. Modified the above
so as to leave them possession of their slaves, thus releasing me
from the payment of $100 a year.1o
One could call this business deal unique, and so it was.
First of all, Jesuits are forbidden by their rules to "enter into
any business deal however pious without proper permission
?f superiors . . . because business deals are foreign to our
Institute ... they are to be avoided" (Common Rule No. 39).
There is no mention in the diary of the necessary permission,
but knowing McElroy's constant observance of the letter and
spirit of the Constitutions of his Order, it is surely safe to
assume he had already obtained it before making this entry.
Again, there is little doubt that it was pious. Most probably
--
10
Journal 7.
�358
JOHN McELROY
Mr. and .Mrs. Atwood were an elderly couple who wished to
spend their declining days amid the peace and quiet of the
Convent conducted by the Sisters who were also conducting
McElroy's orphanage and girls' school. The really unique
portion is about the slaves. How many were there? What
would McElroy have done with them? And do the words
"releasing me from the payment of $100 a year" cancel out
the other remark "pay them $100 per annum?" Certainly
there were two or more bonded Negroes. It is doubtful John
McElroy would have given them their freedom simply because
he was a Jesuit, because; Negro slaves were employed by the
Jesuits in Maryland on-.their farms and in their residences.
As to the second point, it seems that the return of the slave
property to the Atwoods released McElroy from the annual
payment of one hundred dollars a year previously agreed
upon . . Even so, it remains a most unique arrangement.
Always the practical businessman, he notes in Jourrwl16
that "many fires (two near the Church) having had the
smell of incendiarism," caused him to have the entire estab·
lishment insured for $31,000, for which he paid the premium
of "$130, and the Sisters (of Charity) $16.80," with this final
observation, "still we rely on the same beneficent Providence
who has preserved us the last 22 years past ... may His name
be blessed-Dec. 21, 1844."
In 1842, from May to September, the Superior of the Vice
Province of Maryland, Francis Dzierozynski, S.J., wishing to
use the keen business sense of Father McElroy sent him on a
trip through the counties of Charles and Saint Mary's in
Southern Maryland. The primary object was to interview the
tenant farmers who were working for the Jesuits, listening
to their complaints and noting their suggestions. On St.
George's Island (St. Mary's County, Md.) he· noted valuable
wood rotting and decided to sell it by the cord per acre. Tbe
trip took him, according to Journal 16, through St. Inigoes
Manor, Newtown, St. Thomas Manor, Piney Point, Cedar
Point, and as far north as Whitemarsh. The Superior also
had in view the idea of making McElroy Procurator, of wh~t
would become in 1845 the Province of Maryland. There 15
no hint as to whether or not the trip was successful.
�JOHN McELROY
359
To close out the account of this business-like priest's activities, no better examples of his dealings with the trades people of his day could be cited than the two entries in J ournat
10.
Jan. 15, 1841-Paid up all my bills, determined in the future to pay
grocer and drygoods bill every month; as also all others-So frequently absent last year that my affairs are somewhat out of order.
Jan. 22, 1841-Have succeeded in paying all my merchant bills of
every kind ... I preferred doing this and paying even a little more
interest than expose the credit of the house .•..
And for the record, as part of the active ministry in the
years at Frederick, notice should be taken of Father McElroy's part in the Fourth Provincial Council held in the metropolitan see of Baltimore in May of 1840. He is listed in
the official records11 as "Reverend Mr. John McElroy, S.J.,
chosen theologian by the Bishop of Cincinnati," (John Baptist Purcell). Both he and the Bishop were lodged at "The
Eutaw House" which Baltimore chroniclers like to recall as
the "last word in hostelries." The Council opened on May
17th and closed on the 24th. Bishop John England of
Charleston, S. C., gave both the opening and closing sermons
of the Council, but the only comment in the Diary is that "it
was very solemn." In 1847 Bishop Benedict Flaget of Louisville, Kentucky, placed in nomination for the coadjutorship
of his diocese Father McElroy, then in his sixty-fifth year.
Writing to his brother-Bishop, John Fitzpatrick of Boston,
Bishop Flaget comments:
I think this Clergyman (McElroy) well qualified for the episcopacy ... Members of the clergy hold him in much veneration since
he once preached to them the spiritual retreat . . . For myself,
personally, he will be the man of all my confidence.t2
Even though_ subsequently Father McElroy was never "raised
to the purple" he certainly must have, during the Council of
1840, made a lasting impression upon the chief pastors of the
flock. Bishop Purcell writing in June 1848 to Dr. Cullen,
Prefect of Propaganda in Rome, noted that "Bishop Flaget
-
11
Councils of Baltimore, 1829-1849, (John Murphy & Co., Balto.
1851) p. 163.
12
McElroy Papers, Woodstock, Md., under "Bishops Correspondence."
�JOHN l\IcELROY
360
expressed a preference for Fr. McElroy" but added that
"Bishop Flaget did not know Father McElroy was in his 60th
year." 13
Chap~er
IV: Builder and Educator
Father McElroy built a new church at St. John's in Frederick, the cornerstone of which was laid in 1833, and the consecration took place in 18il. It was modeled on the Jesuit
Church in Dublin, Ireland;· the latter being dedicated to St.
Francis Xavier. It was the largest edifice dedicated to the
worship of God between Baltimore, Maryland, and Saint
Louis, Missouri. It stands at 116 East Second Street. Within
the past year the present pastor, Father Hogan, completed
the renovation of the facade, but when you have crossed the
threshold, except for the necessary repairs, you are gazing
upon the temple of God as it came from the loving hands of
the priest-builder F:_ather John McElroy. The church remained under the direction of the Jesuits until 1903. The
"WP A" M anJland Guide describes the church as follows:
"St. John's Roman Catholic Church is a cruciform building of
stuccoed masonry ornamented with Quoins and IoiJ.ic pilasters.
It has an open tower somewhat in the style of- Christopher
Wren." 1 The guide book obviously is in error when it notes
that "the cornerstone was laid in 1828." In memory of the
builder there is today in the rear of the church near the
baptistry a large oil painting of Father McElroy.
I secured from the Archives of the Saint Louis Archdiocese
a series of letters written by Father McElroy to the Bishop of
St. Louis, Joseph Rosati, almost the entire contents of which
concern themselves with the building of St. John's Church.
Bishop Rosati had just completed the Cathedral of St. Louis
Papers relating to.' "The Church in America"-Portfolio of the
Irish College Rome 5 Series-quoted in "American Catholic Historical
R ecords," Vol. 8, p. 502.
1 Sir Christopher Wren, 1632-1723, English architect designer of
St. Paul's, London, England.
13
--
�JOHN McELROY
36i
in his episcopal city, and McElroy was more than anxious to
obtain helpful suggestions and minute details so that he could
incorporate them into his own plans for St. John's. (On a
visit to the old Cathedral in December 1956, I quickly saw the
parallelisms between it and Saint John's, especially the width
of the sanctuaries, the lack of pillars, and the balcony arrangement.) Mr. Shannon, master plasterer, was sent by
Bishop Rosati to Frederick to supervise the final touches to
the church.
McElroy took an active part in the construction of another
church. This time it was the building of the third church of
Old Saint Joseph's in Willing's Alley, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; the year was 1837. At the Seminary of St. Charles
Borromeo, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after promising the
archivist, Father Bartholomew Fair, that I would use this
one quotation only, I was lent the very controversial diary of
Father Aloysius Jordan, S.J. It is in manuscript and is entitled "History of Old Saint Joseph's." On page 196 is the
following entry:
... the Venerable Father John McElroy who had just built the
fine church of St. John's in Frederick City was substituted for
Father Ryder 2 in the building of St. Joseph's. He brought Mr. John
Tehan from Frederick to act as architect and somewhat altered
the plans of Mr. John Darrogh. For the better .. ,3
The Orphanage
Perhaps no building enterprise was closer to John McElroy's
heart than the orphanage he built in Frederick. Actually, the
Diary entries reveal but meager details, but knowing the
man's great charity it is safe to assume that this Christlike
~ction was in his mind of prime importance. There is no
Information as to whether he admitted Negro orphans, but
the mores of the day and of the area would certainly have
frowned on this, so I presume the orphans, both male and
female, were white children.
-
2
Father James Ryder, S.J., entered the Society of Jesus in 1815,
Was Rector of Georgetown University in the 1850s and officiated at the
Wedding of General William T. Sherman.
3
T
T?e diary of Rev. P. A. Jordan, S.J., in a bound volume entitled
he H1story of Old Saint Joseph's. Archives St. Charles Borromeo
Seminary, Overbrook, Pa.
�362
iOHN McELROY
In Journal 3,4 under various dates in January of 1827, we
read:
Jan. !.-Suggested a subscription for the increase of orphans at
the school, suggested 6 cents to a dollar according to circumstances
.... After Mass subscriptions amounted to $60-Concluded in consequence to take three more destitute children.
Jan. 7-Put an invitation in the papers 5 to contribute to the support
of our orphan asylum. Solicited the aid of Colonel McPherson for
aid for the orphan asylum, he agreed to furnish me with flour from
his mill for this year.
Jan. 31.-Received during this month for the orphan asylum $18.75
in money, 3 wagon loads and 1 cart load of wood, flour and some
tea, sugar and coffee; acknowledged it in the papers. 6
In 1830 McElroy began ""the building of the orphanage
proper, a building fifty feet by thirty-nine feet, costing approximately $4,000. It was on Chapel Street adjoining the
girls' school. He noted that some of the labor of construction was gratuitous, though he had on hand from the freewill
offerings of both his congregation and of the townspeople over
$2,000.
Nov. 20, 1830-This evenin [sic] at 3 o'clock had the foundation
of the new orphan .asylum prepared-Assembled the scholars of
both (male and female) schools in the Church-! spoke on blessing
and placing the cornerstone, followed by procession . . . All over
by five, a fine day.7
That is the last formal entry about his beloved orphans, but
casual references occur in the other Journals until his departure in 1845 to assume his appointment as Pastor of Holy
Trinity in Washington, D. C.
Frederick Free School
The establishment of a free school for females was, for the
times, one of the most startling of Father McElroy's innova·
tions. In the early nineteenth century America, free schools
-except in the New England States-were a very scarce
• Journal 3, Woodstock Archives.
s The papers then published in Frederick, Md., were:
(a) Frederick Town Herald, founded June 19, 1802 by John P. Tho!DP"
son, and after 1814 called the Public Advertiser.
(b) The Political Examiner founded August 9, 1813, by Samuel Barnes.
e Ibid.
7 Journal 7, Woodstock College Archives.
�JOHN McELROY
363
commodity and almost entirely for the male population. The
members of the fairer sex were to be seen and not heard ; if
they were heard, most of the conversation was supposed to
be centered around sewing, cooking and homemaking and not
about reading, writing and arithmetic. Female academies
or seminaries were in existence across the States, but they
were very exclusive and attended by the well-to-do. This
educational situation is handled in a very scholarly manner by
Carman and Syrett in their two volume work entitled A History of the American People. 8 One clarification must be added
here about the use of the word "free" in the title. Actually,
tuition and other expenses were charged to those who could
afford to pay them. What "free" meant in those days was
that a school was open to all and that those unable to pay
would be given an education as far as the annual revenues
allowed. Since McElroy was to receive State aid to run his
Female Boarding School, I believe he must have used these
amounts plus contributions to carry the burden of nonpaying
pupils.
The formal opening of the school took place on January 3,
1825. The teachers were two Sisters of Charity from St.
Joseph's College at Emmitsburg, Maryland, who had arrived
on December 23, 1824. The Sisters' names were Margaret
and Rosalia. The faculty was increased to seven by the time
of the opening, but no names were given of the five new arrivals. The number of students is listed at forty-three with
the notation "many more are expected." In the local papers
an advertisement listed among the subjects to be taught:
"reading, writing and needle work ... all denominations will
be admitted." By 1826 the number of students had increased
to 160, and the curriculum now included "arithmetic . . .
geography, Old and New Testament reading." 9 In 1841, according to Journal11, the number had risen to 182, including
sixty-one boarders who paid, twenty-one orphans who did
not, and one hundred day scholars most of whom did not pay,
While the course of studies now included history, English and
Greek, botany and natural philosophy.
-
8
Carman and Syrett, A History of the American People, (2 vols.,
New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1954), Vol. I, Chap. X, pp. 253-258.
9
Op. cit., JournalS.
�364
JOHN McELROY
The impact of this novel experiment, though somewhat
slow in registering, caused the Protestant population to react
somewhat unfavorably, for we read in Journal 4:
January 2, 1829-This day a new free school commenced in the
town for females under the auspices of different sects ... They endeavor to withdraw all the [y] can from our school. A few have
left us, say 8 or 10.
A curious citation, evidently from one of the local papers, is
added: "Beware of the She-wolves, they want to kidnap your
children, especially a Mr. Schaeffer." Now this is a puzzler.
Is McElroy quoting some town bigot? Are the good Sisters
the "she-wolves?" And how did "Mr. Schaeffer" come into
the picture? No Jesui(by that name is listed in the Community at Frederick at this time. The rival school certainly
did not sound the death knell for the girls' school, nor were
Protestants unwanted pupils, for we read (Journal11, August
4, 1841) that,
... Various denominations are in attendance, all learn our catechism,
several Protestant boarders received premiums for catechism.
In these days of ours when so much controversy has arisen
on the separation of church and state, the use of public funds
for the welfare of parochial school children, the use of buses
for transportation to and from Catholic schools, etc., Fr. McElroy's entries under various dates in Journal 5. make interesting reading. Herein he discusses the various . . steps taken
in 1826 to obtain funds from the State Legislature at Annapolis to help finance his Free Female School.
Jan. 10. Forwarded to the Legislature of the State (Md.) soliciting a part of the school fund 10 for the support of our school .. ·
to a Mr. Barnes [no doubt a member of the House of Delegates
from Frederick].
Jan. 25-Bill passed by the House ...
Feb. 17-Letter from Mr. Barnes verifying the above . . .
June 13-Waited on the Levy Court.u The Court passed an order
to authorize the President of the Court [Chairman] to draw from
the school fund of Frederick City on the Treasury of Maryland . · ·
10 The school fund was apportioned to the Counties per school pop·
ulation.
11 Committee set up by the Legislature to handle distribution of
appropriated funds.
�JOHN McELROY
365
and when received to pay me one-half of the portion coming to
Frederick for St. John's Female School.
Aug. 3-Levy Court made distribution of the School Fund. Onehalf for female school, I received, the other half for the General Free
School. Several directors of this school proposed placing the whole
fund ($700) in my hands, believing that it is misapplied in giving
it to the other school, where the pupils had made little progress,
however they thought it better not to excite animosity among the
members [of the board of directors] so it was not formally proposed.
Aug. 8-This day received the above donation of $350.17. 12
Evidently the law makers at Annapolis believed McElroy
had initiated a worthwhile public service; there is no mention
of opposition to the enactment of the bill. The title of the
other free school "General" leads me to believe that here is
meant not the denominational school spoken of before, but
what must have been the Frederick Public School. At any
rate, these gentlemen must have thought the monies would
be in safer hands when handled by McElroy, either because
previous funds had been misused, or because McElroy's supervision of the money would lead to greater progress of the
students.
The only remaining comments to be made from the Diaries
-though the rare mention of graduates' names 13 leaves
something to be desired-are, first, that several of the young
ladies went on to college at Emmitsburg and finally entered
the Sisters of Charity; and second, that in 1846 the Sisters of
Charity were replaced by the Visitation Nuns whose school in
Frederick is still flourishing today. The Reverend Mother
there told me (Summer, 1956) that love and gratitude toward
Father McElroy are cherished traditions.
St. John's Institute for Males
When we recall that he had been deprived of a formal education in his native Ireland, and had had little or no classroom
training in the twenty-two months during which he prepared
for the Sacred Priesthood, it is an amazing tribute to John
McElroy's foresight that, busy as he was as Pastor of St.
John's and at least seven surrounding parishes, he was such
-
12
Journal 5, 1826, Woodstock Archives.
13
Two names are given as having entered the Convent at Emmittsb
urg namely, Ann Fitzgerald and June Hull. Journal 5, Sept. 21, 1827.
�366
JOHN 1\lcELROY
a success in the field of education. In addition to the Free
Female School, he erected and conducted what amounted to a
preparatory school and college for boys in Frederick. Indeed
in 1850 St. John's Institute was a worthy rival of the first
foundation of the Jesuits in the United States-Georgetown
University, Washington, D. C. 14
It all began on November 3, 1829-(Journal 6):
This morning at 9 o'clock the scholars intended for the male school
assembled in the new building [now the rectory of St. John's Parish,
Frederick, Md.] with their parents and some visitors-The number
of boys was 42-I read the rules after an introductory discourseThe whole lasted about -an hour-Went to the Church had the
Veni Creator-Returned, boys seemed very orderly.
The cornerstone of the school building had been laid on
August 7, 1828 at seven P.M. It was blessed with appropriate
ceremonies in the presence "of a few citizens." On October
2, 1829 Father McElroy screened the prospective students because, as we shall know from a long address at graduation a
few years later, he stressed the purpose of the school as a
"maker of scholars and not a rest house." The first faculty
consisted of Mr. Curley, S.J., teacher of English, who was the
first Jesuit to pronounce his vows at Frederick (Sept. 28,
1829), Mr. Kelly, S.J., also of the English Department, while
Father Peters, S.J., taught Latin and French, and McElroy
further noted, "he keeps the studies and assists it\ recreation."
The phrase "he keeps the studies" gives the impression that
he was Prefect of Studies and that he supervised the study
hall.
The number of students attending St. John's grew rapidly,
and on November 3, 1830 he noted "in this term 113 boys have
been received, more than two-thirds Protestants." It would
appear from this entry that the uproar caused by the opening
of the girls' school had subsided and that the sturdy burgesses
of Frederick, mostly of German extraction, were willing to
entrust "the future hope of the nation" to the sons of Ignatius
Loyola.
Following the custom of the Jesuit European schools,
Thursday was the weekly holiday, a custom which prevailed
in the Maryland Province up to recent years. Another Jesuit
u Article by Father J. J. Ryan, S.J.
W. L. 30, 231.
�JOHN McELROY
367
custom, gnarled with tradition, was the monthly reading of
marks, for we learn from Journal 6 for November 26, 1829:
... This day is set apart for reading notes of conduct, study, etc.
(the last Tuesday in each month). I read them in the presence of
the Masters and all the scholars. I also read the rules at the same
time.
Now let us take a look at a typical graduation exercise
entered in Journal 7, under the date of July 26, 1831.15
Commencement at 3 o'clock. Cards of invitation had been sent to
the most respectable Gentlemen of the town. [No mention of Ladies!]
They attended very generally with very few exceptions-The audience was very respectable, all seemed delighted and edified at the
performance of the scholars-The exercise lasted four hours--A
good band of music in attendance.
The order of exercises was the usual one: papers read, poems
recited, premiums distributed with the usual interspersal of
musical numbers.
Father McElroy tried to secure from the Maryland Legislature an appropriation for the Institute. He contacted a
lawyer in Baltimore named Mr. Jenkins, a Congressman
named Mr. Thomas and a State Legislator named Mr. Sappington, but it seemed to no avail, as there are no entries of
money paid except to the female school. Most probably the
delegates at Annapolis could not stretch the purse strings
quite that far, and they viewed the Institute as a private
school.
Shortly after the school began boarders were accepted with
the understanding that the prospective pupils would be placed
in good Catholic homes with strict supervision by adults.
From the names of the families listed it would appear that
~ather McElroy placed his young charges among the faithful
In the city, for we find such names as Boone, Brady, Donnelly,
McKeonan and Tehan. There was a common study hall, and
Mass was said daily for the students in the Parish Church.
The Institute was incorporated by the Maryland Legislature
on February 4, 1841. In its peak year of 1850, it numbered
one hundred fifty boarders and eighty day students.
The record shows that the most active and respected or-
-
15
As seems to have been the custom only one month-August-was
given as the annual vacation.
•
�JOHN McELROY
368
ganization was a debating society called the "Tulli-pheboian."
I take this combination Latin and Greek title to be the middle
name of the greatest of the Roman orators-Marcus Tullius
Cicero, but the Greek part is still shrouded in mystery. Letters in the McElroy correspondence repeatedly speak of the
excellent reputation the society enjoyed in Frederick, and
how many times they filled the hall, both with debates in
English on such topics as, "Inquisitive Gentlemen" or "Knowledge-a Source of Happiness," as well as a discussion in
Greek on "The Sycophant Duped," spiced by a Latin trialogue
entitled "Academical Education." The society in 1851 fell
into the disciplinary displeasure of Father Samuel Mulledy
who caused the expulsion of some of the members. In sympathy with their fellows, many other students left, and with the
advent of the Civil War the heyday of McElroy's great dream
was passed. Today the parish high school of St. John's still
retains the name "Institute."
Some of its alumni reached prominence-local and national
-the most famous being Admiral Winfield Scott Schley, the
hero of the battle of Santiago in the Spanish American War,
General Frank Armstrong, Commissioner for Indian Affairs
under President Grover Cleveland, and Judge A. Nelson of
the Maryland Court of Appeals.
Chapter V: Army Chaplain
On June 8, 1845 Father McElroy was informed by the
Reverend Provincial (Peter Verhaegen, S.J.) that he would
be transferred from Frederick. The following day he wrote
his superior, requesting that he be given permission to depart
without the public becoming aware of it, and that his sue·
cessor be given two weeks with him to learn the activities and
affairs of the parish. At that time McElroy entered the fol·
lowing in his diary-:
July 9-Fr. Visitor [Verhaegan had both titles] told me this
morning that I am to be Rector of Georgetown College-Fiat Vol·
untas Dei.
�JOHN l'tlcELROY
369
Aug. 27-Fr. Lilly, S.J. who is to succeed me arrived today from
Conewago.
Aug. 28-Received a letter from Fr. Visitor informing me that
I am not to be Rector of Georgetown College but pastor of Holy
Trinity [Washington, D. C.] . . . give retreats and be consultor
of the Province.l
I see no point in commentinr: on this change of mind by the
Reverend Visitor, S.J. As noted, it has been suggested that
Fr. McElroy was not made Rector because he had not had any
formal schooling other than some cursory tutoring in the
Order. If he was disappointed, his Diaries do not show the
least conflict with the superior's judgment and decision.
Aug. 29-Left Frederick a little after seven A.M. having been
there 23 years and 11 months-Lilly [Father] drove me to Monacacy
[station on the B. & 0. railroad, east of Frederick]-Took leave of
the religious of our house. Left a short valedictory to be read on
Sunday from the pulpit, also a short notice in one of the papers
next Wednesday-bidding them [citizens of Frederick] in this
way adieu.2
In my estimation this entry is one of the most significant
of all that Father McElroy ever wrote. He was at the time
sixty-three years old and was suffering from a hernia affliction. Just a recounting of the miles he had covered, the buildings erected, the long hours of instructions, the administrative
work of two schools, the care of the orphans, and surely the
affectionate regard in which he must have been held by the
Populace of Frederick, certainly warranted a few words as to
his reaction to his transfer. But there are none. He had
learned the lgnatian lesson well-"at the least sign of the
Superior's will, seeing in that the Will of God"-and for him
no comment was necessary.
In any discussion of Father McElroy's chaplaincy during
the Mexican War caution must be exercised over the use of
the word "chaplain." Father McElroy asserts that he "was
the first official Catholic chaplain in the military forces of the
United States," and this is subsequently repeated in articles
appearing in the Woodstock Letters. 3 Two sources clearly
-
1
Journal 16, Woodstock Archives.
2
Ibid.
3
W. L., 78, 144.
�370
JOHN McELROY
indicate that Fr. McElroy was not officially a chaplain in the
Army in the sense that he was a regular commissioned officer
of what today is known as the Chaplains' Branch of the
Armed Services. The first source is the Official Rolls of General Taylor's Army found in the Old Records Section of the
National Archives. A careful perusal failed to find mention of
either Fr. McElroy or Fr. Rey, and the latter, even though
killed with Taylor's Army near Monterey, Mexico, is not
listed among the casualties. This can hardly be an oversight,
as the Army Records are extremely careful in listing those
killed, especially on foreign soil. The second source is the
letter marked "Confidential~" written by William Marcy, Secretary of War, to General-Taylor, which will be quoted below
in full, wherein the Secretary denies that the President has
the powers to appoint chaplains. By a Congressional Act of
July 5, 1838, Congress had the power to appoint clergymen to
"fixed posts for the purpose of tending to the spiritual needs
of the personnel, act as instructors to children residing on the
post, or in places most destitute of instructions-compensation
to vary from $20 to $40 a month-limiting the number to
twenty." There was no provision made for such clergymen
to be assigned to the -Army in the field. We know, of course,
that Catholic Priests had served with the military, both in
the American Revolution and the War of 18124 Rather than
have an endless lis de verbo, I think it is incorre,ct to apply
the title "first official Catholic chaplains" to Fathers McElroy
and Rey and, state instead that the President, using his
powers as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Services for
this particular occasion and for a definite reason, made the
two priests his personal appointments to the Army of Taylor
in the field, with all the rights and privileges of what today
we mean by a "commissioned chaplain." I regard their position to have been much like what today is commonplace
governmental procedure when the President appoints as his
personal representative an ambassador extraordinary to a
specific country for a special mission.
As will be noted below, President Polk had a definite rea4
Ardon Henry, Catholic Military and Naval Chaplains, Catholic
University Press, 1929.
�JOHN McELROY
371
son for wanting Catholic priests attached to General Taylor's
Army; and I was interested to find a series of letters from
Secretary of War, William Marcy, to four Protestant clergymen anxious to offer their services in the same conflict. • The
Secretary, quoting the Congressional Act of 5 July 1838, insists that he is without power to appoint these gentlemen to
chaplaincies, but that if Congress should give him the necessary permission, he will be heedful of their patriotic offer.
One of the Reverend Gentlemen, a Mr. T. M. Leavenworth,
insisted on accompanying the New York Volunteers, and
Marcy wrote to a Colonel Stevenson as follows:
I yield my consent that he [Leavenworth] may be taken out on
board a transport, but I have no authority to allow him any compensation, or to permit his subsistence to be taken from the public
supplies.•
The Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore opened in the
month of May 1846. During its sessions Bishop John Hughes
of New York (1797-1864) was contacted by Secretary of
State, James Buchanan (1791-1868, fifteenth President of
the United States 1857-61,) at the request of President Polk.
Why? The Chief Executive answered this query in his diary
as follows:
Our object was to procure his (Bishop Hughes) aid in disabusing
the minds of the Catholic Priests and people of Mexico in regard to
what they erroneously suppose to be the hostile designs of the
Government and people of the United States upon the religion and
church property of Mexico.7
Polk further elaborated upon this essential item when in a
Private conversation with Bishop Hughes he remarked:
· · · That the false idea has been industriously circulated by interested partisans in Mexico that our object was to overthrow their
religion and rob their churches and that if they [the Mexicans]
believed this, they would make a desperate resistance to our Army
in the present war. Bishop Hughes fully agreed with me . . . that
it Was important to remove such impressions.
-
5
M '. National Archives, Wash., D. C., War Office, Old Records Section,
lhtary Book No. 26, May 1, 1845-0ct. 7, 1846, p. 487. cf. also pp. 159258-464-465.
6
Ibid.
7
b
.The Diary of James K. Polk 1845-1849, edited and annotated
..{; Milo M. Quaife; (Chicago: A. C. McClung Co., 1910), reedited by
1 Nevins (London-New York: Longman Green Co., 1929), pp. 97-98.
en
�372
JOHN McELROY
Another interesting development, quite in line with Polk's
thinking regarding the necessity of having priests with Taylor's Army along the Rio Grande, is a letter from William
Marcy, dated May 29, 1846, to Bishop Kendrick of St. Louis,
asking for a priest to accompany the expedition under Colonel
Stephen W. Kearney, which was to proceed to Santa Fe, New
Mexico. This chaplain
•.. Was to be a man of proper qualifications willing to serve his
country in the proper way . . . but I think proper care should be
taken to prevent the measure from becoming extensively known.8
Since Marcy's letters referred to above, turning down the
application of the Protestant ministers, are dated around the
same time, it seems he was anxious that the assignment of a
priest to Kearney's troops should be kept secret.
How are we to evaluate this action of President Polk?
Historical critics of the occupants of the presidential office
have varied over the years in extolling their accomplishments
to the stars or condemning their most obvious actions as
machinations worthy of Machiavelli. James Polk, the first
really dark horse candidate in our line of Presidents-nick·
named-"Little Jimmie Polk of Duck River," "Accidental
President," and "Jackson's chief cook and bottle washer"has received a very bad press from the chorus of historical
writers on this period. Alfred H. Bill write~·:
It is the little man in the White House whom the-student of those
times finds ever taking the center of the stage . . . Essentially a
small man of petty spite and of abysmal meanness and the basest
ingratitude, he was so unconscious of the real nature of his actions
that he left a record of them in his diary for all the world to read.'
Nevins in reediting Polk's diary 10 calls him a "humorless
pedestrian . . . one not given to trusting his subordinates,"
but notes that much of his so-called duplicity was reallY
timidity which permitted men to deceive themselves, and
Nevins sums it up by saying Polk was what the Yankees of
his day called a "cutie."
8
National Archives, War Dept., Old Records Section, Vol. 8, p. 261.
A. H. Bill, Rehearsal for Conflict, (New York, Alfred A. Knopf
Co., 1947).
1o Op. cit., p. 16.
9
�JOHN McELROY
373
Father McElroy, after returning from Mexico when gathering his impressions on both his mission and the work accomplished, noted that "the object of the President of the United
States in our mission was altogether political." 11 Whatever
may have been President Polk's motives, his actions had the
strong support of Bishop Hughes, who was a personal friend
of the Archbishop of Mexico, and the mere presence of Catholic priests with the invading army most certainly was a
partial answer that the gringos from the north-the "wildeyed horde of American Protestant barbarians,"-were not
coming solely for the utter extinction of the Church and its
property. Taylor's official army reports after he crossed the
Nueces River and began his advance to Matamoras on the
Rio Grande, give clear indications that both the Mexican
military authorities and the people believed the old struggle
over the religious differences had been transplanted from
Europe, i.e., Protestant English-speaking peoples vs. Spanishspeaking Catholics. It was the age-old routine of AngloSaxons vs. the Latins. (If I may add here a personal notewhile serving with the United States Army as chaplain in
World War II, I found a great deal of incredulity in Northern
Ireland among the Catholic population as if we Catholic
priests were accompanying a Protestant army-and the clergy
in North Africa were skeptical about the priest-chaplains in
the Army of the United States.)
James Polk was an expansionist and a firm believer in
"manifest destiny" which in the concrete meant to him the
annexation of Texas and California. He was a shrewd man,
and I can well believe that it was while reading Taylor's
communiques that he determined that the best thing-politically-was the action which sent Fathers McElroy and Rey
with the Army.
After his conference with the President, Bishop Hughes rePaired to Georgetown College where he interviewed Father
Verhaegen, who had been appointed Provincial of the Maryland Province on January 4, 1845.12 The priests already
mentioned were chosen at once, and after dinner the Bishop
-
11
12
W. L. 16, 227.
Catalogue Md. Prov., 1846, p. 5.
�374
JOHN McELROY
returned to the White House to inform the President of the
choice. This was May 20, 1846.
On the following day, May 21, 1846, Secretary Marcy wrote
to Father Verhaegen, 13 asking him to deliver the two unsealed
letters, one to Father John McElroy, the Pastor of Holy
Trinity Church, and the other to Father Anthony Rey, the
Assistant (Socius) to the Rev. Provincial. Marcy informed
the Provincial that if there were any suggestions he wished
to make he would be pleased to receive them and confer with
the President; otherwise, the two priests would receive the
proper communications addressed to the general commanding
the army on the Rio del Norte (Rio Grande) containing the
President's directions in~ regard to their services.
At the risk of what might seem to be padding this narrative, I deem it very necessary to quote in full both of Secretary
Marcy's letters to Father McElroy and to General Taylor.
To the Reverend
John McElroy
Georgetown College
War Department
May 21, 1846
Sir:
The President is desirous to engage two reverend gentlemen
of the Roman Catholic Church to attend the Army of Occupation now on the Rio Grande to officiate as Chaplains etc. In
his opinion their services would be important in many respects
to the public interest particularly in the present condition of
our affairs with Mexico. Having sought information as to
the proper persons to be thus employed his attention has been
directed to you and he has instructed me to address you on
the subject in the hope that you may consider it not incompatible with your clerical duties or your personal feelings to
yield to his request.
It is proper that I should apprise you that the existing laws
do not authorize the President to appoint and commission
chaplains but he has the authority to employ persons to perform such duties as appertain to chaplains. Should you con·
13
Nat. Arch. Old Military Book No. 26, p. 247.
�JOHN McELROY
375
sent as the President hopes you will to visit the Army and
remain some time with it you will be allowed a reasonable
compensation for expenses and services. Your views of what
that ought to be, you will, if you please, suggest to me.
When the law authorized the appointment of chaplains as
it formerly did, the pay and emoluments were about one
thousand or twelve hundred dollars per annum. This amount
would be readily allowed together with the expense of travelling to and from the Army.
I should be pleased to be favored with a reply to this communication at your earliest convenience.
W. L. Marcy
Secretary of War14
{CONFIDENTIAL)
War Department, Washington
May 29, 1846
Comd. General of the Occupation
on the Rio Grande, Texas
Sir:
The President has been informed that much pains have
been taken to alarm the religious prejudices of the Mexicans
against the U. S. He deems it important that their misapprehensions in this respect should be corrected as far as it can
be done and for that purpose has invited the Reverend Gentlemen who will hand you this communication, Mr. McElroy, and
Mr. Rey of the Roman Catholic Church, to attend to the Army
Under your command and to officiate as Chaplains. Although
the President cannot appoint them as Chaplains, yet it is his
Wish that they be received in that character by you and your
officers, be respected as such, and be treated with kindness and
courtesy, that they should be permitted to have intercourse
with the soldiers of the Catholic Faith-to administer to them
religious instruction, to perform divine service for such as
may Wish to attend wherever it can be done without interfer-
-
14
W. L., 15, 200 ff.
�JOHN McELROY
376
ing with their military duties, and to have free access to the
sick and wounded in hospitals or elsewhere.
It is confidently believed that these gentlemen in their
clerical capacity will be useful in removing the false impressions of the Mexicans in relation to the U. S. and in inducing
them to confide in the assurance you have already given that
their religious institutions will be respected, the property of
the Church protected, and their worship undisturbed and in
fine all their religious rights will be in the amplest manner
preserved to them. In fulfilling these objects you are desired
to give these gentlemen such facilities as you may be enabled
to afford and at such tim~es as in your judgments may be most
prudent.
··
You are requested also to cause to be provided for them
such accommodations as will render their abiding with the
Army comfortable to themselves. It is believed that when
Chaplains were allowed by law to the Army they received in
pay and emoluments from about 1000 to 1200 per annum.
This amount will be paid to these gentlemen named in this
letter.
As these gentlemen do not speak Spanish they have been
desired by the President to associate with them another
Clergyman who both understands and speaks it. Such person recommended by them you will receive on the same footing with themselves.
Very respectfully
Your obedient servant
W. L. Marcy/ 5
Secretary of War
A few days after this official communication was sent to
Father McElroy, the newly chosen priests visited the Secre·
tary of War who introduced them to President Polk (Jour?Wl
17) who expressed his "sincere desire that their mission
would be one of peace and that they would carry the olive
branch and not the sword," but above all Polk insisted "that
your mission would be a refutation of the erroneous belief
held in Mexico that the United States was warring against
1s
National Archives, Old Army Records, Vol. 3, p. 261.
�JOHN McELROY
377
their religion." The motive may have appeared political but
this language coming from the Chief Executive impressed
both priests with the seriousness of their undertaking.
The trek to Mexico began June 2, 1846, and the arrival in
Matamoras, Mexico is noted in the entry dated July 6, 1846.
Father McElroy kept a rather minute account of his itinerary
during these weeks which is recorded in the Woodstock Letters 16, 33, ff. Some significant entries regarding slaves and
their conditions may be worth quoting, v.g.:
June 14 ... Stopped to take on wood from a farm with over 200
slaves. They are well treated and comfortably lodged. Their cabins
are neat. They cut wood for river boats at $1.50 a cord. The master
gives them 6272 cents-they earn between $3 to $4 a week. I met
an old Negro woman perhaps a hundred years of age and asked her
if she knew anything about religion. She replied "to be sure-!
know my Jesus made me: me to him, him to me." This seemed to be
all her creed and she repeated it over and over again with great
animation.
June 15-In Mississippi. Everywhere the Negroes seem to be
treated very humanely and their homes are neatly whitewashed and
appear very comfortable.
From Louisville, Kentucky, to New Orleans, Louisiana, the
trip was made by boat and the Mississippi River deeply impressed the Irish immigrant by its length and width. On one
of the famous steam boats he ran across a deckhand from
Roscommon and noted "I gave him some advice." We may
be sure it had to do with making "his duties." McElroy
reached New Orleans on June 18 and put up at the St. Charles
Hotel which he believed with the business man's eye "was the
finest in the United States costing $600,000, leased for
$45,000 per annum and the rooms were rented at $2.50 a day."
The trip across the Gulf of Mexico was exceedingly stormy
and McElroy's companion, Father Rey/ 6 was extremely seasick, so much so "that had the rough seas lasted many days
longer he could not have survived." The last port of call on
American soil was Port Isabel, Texas, where they landed July
2, and where they found fifteen Catholic soldiers, who had
been wounded "chiefly Irish" and one honest-to-goodness son
of Erin who was a Presbyterian "until now but well dis-
-
16
Journal17. June 28, 1846.
�JOHN McELROY
posed, I (McElroy) prepared him and heard his confession
in port." 11 Finally, on July 6, 1846, they arrived at Matamoras which was about sixty miles up the Rio Grande. This
was to be the scene of Father McElroy's apostolate for the
next eleven months.
Father Anthony Rey, S.J.
Here we will leave Father McElroy for a few moments and
add to the narrative some remarks about his fellow chaplain,
Father Anthony Rey, whose letters are to be found in the
Georgetown Archives under "Letters-Rey." The main reason for this interruption is the fact that his name so frequently occurs in the McElroy correspondence both to the
Reverend Provincial at Georgetown and in communications
between the two priests.
Father Anthony Rey was born in Lyons, France on March
19, 1807. He studied in the University of Fribourg. His arrival at Georgetown is entered in the 1840 catalogue as "Professor of Mathematics." In 1843 he served as assistant pastor
of Old St. Joseph's in Philadelphia, and in 1845 he was appointed Socius to the Provincial, Provincial Consultor and
Administrator of Georgetown College. His very fruitful life
came to a tragic close when he was set upon by what are
described in Gen. Taylor's letters to Father McElroy as "banditti" on January 19, 1847, at a place called "Marin" about
~· .:
twenty-five miles from Monterey, Mexico.
Shortly after their arrival at Matamoras Fr. Rey accompanied General Taylor's army for the assault on the northern
stronghold of Monterey. There seems little doubt that the
reason Fr. Rey was chosen rather than Fr. McElroy was their
age-difference, plus the medical fact that the latter had been
suffering from a hernia affliction dating from his last year at
Frederick, which was to become so painful in the ensuing
months that by early 1847 he was unable to mount a horse to
carry him around to the various hospitals in Matamoras. The
text of the letters between Fathers McElroy and Rey have been
published in the Woodstock Letters, and for this record it maY
be noted that Fr. Rey's eyewitness account of the battle of
17
Ibid.
�JOHN McELROY
Monterey, September 21-23, 1846, is superbly written. Between the battle and his death in January, 1847, Fr. Rey was
very anxious for Fr. McElroy to join him for active duty, believing that the hospital work at Matamoras could be suspended for a while because of the urgent need for spiritual
administration to the fighting men who were preparing for
the campaign against Buena Vista. In the last letter of the
series written the day before he was murdered, Fr. Rey explained to Fr. Thomas Mulledy, President of Georgetown,
that "I will start for Carmargo and Matamoras as I am very
anxious to see Fr. McElroy from whom I have been separated
since the 4th of August" (1846) .18 Fr. Rey had learned from
McElroy's letters that because of his physical condition it
was impossible for him to make the long journey, but of even
greater importance to Fr. McElroy (as seen from the Diaries)
was the spiritual care of the sick and wounded which consumed every moment of his days. Did Fr. Rey have a premonition of his untimely and violent death and hence his
anxiety to see his friend and co-worker Fr. McElroy? Just
outside of the Mexican village of Marin the priest and his body
servant-an Irishman-were accosted by the outlaws, one of
whom later was identified as having been the sacristan of the
village church.
After Fr. Rey's death Fr. McElroy received a communication from a certain Caleb Cushing, a Colonel in the Massachusetts Volunteers/ 9 who was with Taylor's Army according to
the official Army Rolls in the National Archives, which read
in part:
It is unfortunately true that Father Rey was murdered in the
neighborhood of Meir [Marin] and it is ascertained he was murdered
by Mexicans because he was an American and a priest. He exhibited
to his murderers abundant proof of his Clerical character-The assassins' political motives were jealousy and resentment-The authors of this infamy are known and will not escape punishment
sooner or later.2o
-
The record further shows that the following day the villagers
18
Georgetown Archives, "Letters-Rey."
Colonel Caleb Cushing, U. S. Commissioner to China in 1843.
Negotiated first treaty.
20
Journal18. April 18, 1847.
19
�880
JOHN McELROY
decently buried Father Rey near the village church and placed
a marker on his grave. Retribution was swift in arriving,
for within a few days the village of Marin was levelled to the
ground by American artillery, mostly-as far as I can gather
from the records-because it was a roadblock on the way to
Santillo and, also, perhaps because it was a hide-out for just
such bandits as took the life of this zealous Jesuit. Father
McElroy also received a letter from General Taylor and other
officers expressing personal and official sympathy upon the
death of Father Rey.
When Taylor's Army entered Matamoras in May of 1846,
the city had a population of 8,000. It presented a sad contrast
to the romantic and adventllrous expectations of the invading
northern "barbarians." Dismal and dilapidated, its air polluted by the stench from the hastily improvised and poorly
cared for hospitals that the retreating Mexicans had crammed
with their wounded after the battles of Palo Alto and Reseca
de la Palma. But within a month it had become transformed
into a typically American town. Grog shops and gambling
houses sprang up overnight, ice was shipped in and mint
juleps became the order of the day. Sutlers followed the army
and merchants swarmed in with stocks of Lowell calicoes. A
newspaper was established called by the awe-inspiring title
of The Republic of the Rio Grande and The People's Friend
and edited by Hugh McLeod, a former West-Pointer-"and
even the great Shakesperian actor Joseph J effe1-son graced
the boards of an American built theater displaying his histrionic talents before a motley array of soldiers, settlers,
gamblers and the rest of the rag-tag and bob-tail." 21
Arriving in early July of 1846, what did McElroy think of
this sordid city? He wrote:
Of this City of Matamoras I can say nothing favorable ... The
buildings are very mean; there is not a respectable house in the
whole place and what I required more than all, no good church, I
might say none at all for about 8 or 10 thousand Catholics . · ·
Since they have thrown off the Spanish Yoke [Revolution of the
early 1820's] not one ..Church has been erected in all Mexico.n
21
22
Bill, op. cit., pp. 119-120.
Journal12A, p. 20.
�JOHN McELROY
381
So much for the physical condition. Now what about his
reaction to the spiritual life of these people? He observed:
The state of religion in Mexico as it fell under my notice is most
deplorable-(But my personal experience is limited.)-Yet, what
I have learned from respectable sources and from what I have
seen a tolerably correct idea may be formed of the whole and my
conclusion is that there is no country in the world more destitute
of the labors of the sacred ministry than Mexico. 23
Even admitting McElroy's limited contacts with the clergy,
which during the time he was there were confined to the local
parish priest, Father Rodriguez, and a few stray visitorsfor there is no record that he ever met a member of the
hierarchy-the record of the time shows that for the rank
and file of the Catholic population he was not far from the
truth.
But John McElroy was too practical to sit and lament about
a situation which, like slavery in the United States, he had
neither caused nor could do anything about. So, embracing
the Ignatian method of using all creatures tantum-quantum,
he used the sacristry of the church for a chapel, simply because it was roofed over, and there daily Mass, instruction
classes and other religious functions were held. When the
weather permitted, he offered Mass amid the walls of what
he called "the unfinished Church." Having taken care of the
Lord's work he now shopped around for living quarters, and
he informs us that he "found one small room with two old
cots (no mattres, [sic] chair or table, much inferior to what
the widow of Serepta had prepared for the Prophet of old)
and the charge was $10 per week per man. 24
Since most of his priestly work would be as a hospital
chaplain he found upon his arrival that General Taylor's
Medical Corps had set up two large tents within the army encampment for those not dangerously ill, whereas within the
town limits a general army hospital was in progress of being
built. Before he left the following year at least five different
buildings in Matamoras were used for the same purpose.
The day following his arrival in Matamoras Father Me-
-
23
24
Ibid., 20.
Ibid., 21.
�382
JOHN McELROY
Elroy, accompanied by a Colonel Whiting, was received by
General Taylor who:
... Received us kindly at the door of his tent seated us on a very
homely and rough bench as he did himself-He tendered us cordially
his services to do for us whatever he could-His tent differed in
nothing from any of the others-no larger-Small bed, a trunk and
a board table to write on ...2s
A rather pleasant surprise met Father McElroy at this first
meeting with Taylor, for attached to his staff were two
former students of his beloved St. John's Institute at Frederick: Lieutenants Lee and Schrader. On July 13 General
Taylor was host at a dipner for the chaplains which is noted
as having been a "very good plain dinner. Afterwards three
kinds of wine and melon. Time 1 P.M." 26
Actually, Father McElroy was not a complete stranger to
Taylor. He had already received the letter quoted above from
Secretary of War Marcy, and I found in the McElroy letters
one of introduction from no less a national figure than Dolly
Madison, which, I believe, is worth quoting in full:
Washington, June 8, 1846-lt is with singular pleasure that I
greet General Taylor with many wishes for the maintenance of his
health, good fortune and that beautiful determination to mercy
which embellishes the patriot's glory with which he has covered
himself.
The respected and good Chaplain McElroy who w111 present these
lines to you has long been known to me as one of _high character
and regarded by all of us as one of a pure spirit and integrity-!
trust you will meet happily.
Your Friend and relative,
D. P. Madison27
As is well known, Zachary Taylor-because of his brilliant
war record in the northern Mexican campaign-became the
successful Whig Candidate in the election of 1848 and the
twelfth President of the United States. He died in office in
1850 and was succeeded by Millard Fillmore. Father :Me·
Elroy would meet Taylor on a few more occasions before the
expedition against .Monterey began, and it is very much
2s Ibid., p. 21.
2s Journal 17, July 13.
27 McElroy Letters, Woodstock Archives Box 11 W5 B.
�JOHN McELROY
383
worthwhile to record his impressions of this shrewd but
simple soldier.
I was surprised at the simplicity of his manner, his frankness in
conversation, the plainness of his dress and surroundings. Such a
man seems intended for a general, not only has he the confidence
of the whole army as their chief, but he acquires it more effectively
by his example--His modesty only equalled by his bravery-while
his affability renders him accessible to all.28
Bill29 calls Taylor "N ovus Vol us" because he maintained slack
discipline and tolerated much drinking and gambling. Lt.
Col. Ethan Allan Hitchcock, commanding officer of the 3d
Infantry, doubted that either Taylor or any high ranking
officer could form a line of battle. Lt. George G. Meade who
would turn back the "gray hosts" at Gettysburg, saw in Taylor
"a plain substantial gentleman." A final comment on this
Grant-like soldier is that while he dressed in a slovenly manner, he pushed his troops with energy. The local newspaper,
the Matamoras Gazette, called him "a hearty looking gentleman ... with keen flashing eyes." He detested martial pomp
and circumstance. "Ben," he would shout, and the servant
appeared with a tin tray bearing two black bottles, shining
tumblers and an earthenware pitcher filled with the water of
the Rio Grande. "Help yourselves, Gentlemen" Zachary's
voice would ring out and none were found slow in obeying
this order.
Most of the apostolic work of Father McElroy at Matamoras was accomplished in the army hospitals. Inevitably,
the toil fell into a certain routine pattern-daily Mass in the
covered shed which served as sacristy, visits to the various
buildings being used as hospitals, and more visits to the local
units around Matamoras-either troops moving up to support
Taylor's army or returning units awaiting discharge. The
Diaries 16 through 20 are, therefore, rather repetitious, except for the change of days, months or year. This sixty-four
Year old apostle was not satisfied with the routine, and interspersed in these daily entries are two subjects worthy of comment. As we have seen from his Georgetown days, McElroy
-
28
29
W. L., 33, 21.
Op. cit., p. 85.
�JOHN l\lcELROY
384
always was a school teacher at heart. Undoubtedly, this
predilection dated from his boyhood days in Ireland, where
he had acquired his learning the hard way, and to this was
added his experience in Frederick. While at Matamoras he
used whatever time he could spare to begin classes for the
children of both the merchants and army personnel. The
curriculum included reading, writing, arithmetic and geography.30
At first these classes were held in the evenings, but by February 1847 the number of pupils had increased and he
switched the hours to eight to ten in the mornings for the
boys, and ten to noon fo~ the girls, noting that "they returned
home reciting the Angelus along with Acts of Faith, Hope,
Love and the Confiteor." For both sexes he included large
doses of catechism and remarked in a letter to Fr. Rey
(1/19/47) that he had "four females under instruction for
Baptism and First Holy Communion." One drummer boy
age sixteen, named James Edgar, he instructed in the elements
and taught him how to serve Mass, only to have the lad hurry
away to General Winfield Scott's expedition then forming at
Tampico, Mexico, in March, 1847.
Looking over the list of students in Journal 20, I found no
Spanish sounding names. Fr. McElroy could not speak Spanish, and there is silence as to whether he ever had any close
contact with the native population of Matamoras outside of
the local padre whom he called "Doctor Rodriquez." He made
no mention as to how many days the school was in operation or
what were the results, but from his records at Georgetown
and Frederick I feel sure that these youngsters never forgot
their teacher.
Another facet of his activities as chaplain, and in some
manner connected with his routine hospital work, was the
making of converts of which he made a specialty. In apprais·
ing this part of his work numbers must not be the criterion
because the total of converts on record is only approximately
thirty-five. Some of these were dying men received into the
Church with the· Sacraments given conditionally; but the
important factor is that most of the converts were Souther·
so
Journal 20, Dec. 12, 1846.
�JOHN McELROY
385
ners between the ages of eighteen to twenty-four, with such
typical southern names as Muse, Huff, Hackett, Taylor, Dickens, Lovee, etc. In one of the few comments interspersed in
these Journals McElroy noted that his very presence among
the soldiers had the effect of a silent sermon, since most of
them were for the first time seeing a Catholic priest, and
hearing about the Catholic Church. Of course, many a Catholic returned to the Sacraments when in extremis. I have
often thought that the tedious but pleasant task of making a
convert is not fully appreciated by most Catholics, who take
their faith and its beauty for granted. Added to the time
element, the physical surroundings under which Fr. McElroy
pursued this act of charity for the love of God were so trying
that I believe this will be the brightest jewel in his chaplain's
crown. To cite a few examples:
Aug. 21, 1846-Three Protestants received into the Church recently.
Mr. Priddy an Englishman, 4th U. S. Regulars. Mr. Smith regular
Army-native of Philadelphia. A youth named John Estes a volunteer age 18 from Ohio-without parents. He was dying and
received the consent of his brother age 19. Also can add two
Kentucky Volunteers, Buchan and Sparks.31
Sept. 21, 1846-. . . Found a man in hospital today named Lowe
from Alabama-extremely ignorant knowing nothing of God or of
our Saviour. Illiterate without education-he had a difficulty
(about receiving baptism) namely, he did not have any money.-He
was received into the Church but died quite suddenly.a2
·
Jan. 24, 1847-Convert Lt. Scannon-Confession and Communion
this morning with great edification-The late movement [Oxford]
in the Church of England induced him to examine-The result was
his embracing the Catholic Faith. The lieutenant left the next day
to join Scott's attack against Vera Cruzas
There is in the McElroy folder of letters at Woodstock a
letter from a Mr. Charles Whalen of Greensboro, Alabama,
thanking Fr. McElroy in the name of the parents of Lt. May
for his kindness to their son on his death bed. May had attended Georgetown College, finished Harvard Law School,
Was thirty years old and married. The boy's father was a
-
31
Journal 20.
Journal 20.
33
Journct.l16.
32
�386
JOHN McELROY
Baptist preacher. In Journal 20, under date of September
26, 1846, we read :
Lt. May dying-perfectly resigned to the will of God • • . Will
baptize him tomorrow; he embraced me as a child and begged me
to pray for him ... -When I returned to the hospital in the morning he was dead.
No doubt such things happen to a great number of priests,
but we can rest assured that Lt. May is an example of the
dogmatic principle of "baptism of desire."
As he had done at Frederick, McElroy kept statistics which
we find here and there in the: Journals regarding the number
of faithful . who received the Sacraments. In Journal 20,
from July to December, 1846, he listed the number of Holy
Communions as 126. Why so few? He partially answered
this himself in an aside written in August, 1846, to the effect
that "men of this class [soldiers] are very much exposed to
temptations and unhappily before they enlist are often addicted to intemperance." 3 '
Now, added to the usual circumstances of camp life, in McElroy's case there was another. This army was in what was
called a Catholic country. Here was a city of eight thousand
without a church in which most of the people were ignorant
and poorly instructed in their .Catholic Faith. That this did
not go unnoticed by McElroy we can see in Journal.17, under
date of August 1, 1846
-·
... Very little attention paid here [Matamoras] to Sunday even by
Catholics, the apparent neglect of religion in all classes is truly
lamentable.
Sept. 15, 1846-The Blessed Sacrament is not kept here in any of
the churches.
Dec. 12, 1846-My Mass and that of Father Rodriquez well attended; it was the national feast day of our Lady of Guadalupe,
but also no one was seen approaching the Altar or confession.
Dec. 25, 1846-No confessions of the natives.as
That Fr. McElroy ever made any impression on the Mexican
population of Matamoras is quite doubtful. It may have been
his lack of Spanish, or the fact that he-in their minds-u
11
W. L., 16, 39.
Journa.l18.
.·. ..
�JOHN McELROY
387
represented the hated gringo from the North, for he wrote to
Fr. Rey in a letter dated December 12, 1846:
... As for understanding the natives by travelling among them I
believe we have done little. They seem to increase daily in their
hostility toward us, I mean the Americans. Our Lord seems to
have other views than the President. 3 6
No further comment seems appropriate to the point raised,
namely, that his priestly work was very much hampered both
by the type of mankind he was dealing with and the locale
wherein he was exercising the ministry.
Yet, Father McElroy was a person who certainly enjoyed
good company. Not all his days at Matamoras were filled
with brooding over his own inability to do more for the glory
of God, or worrying about the sad state of the Church in
Mexico. He visited often among the merchants of the town,
and with three named Hale, Devine, and O'Reilly he became
very friendly. These men with their families were Catholics,
and they were happy to have in their midst an Irish priest
while their children attended his little school. With the officers the good padre also was very much "at home," for they
impressed him as belonging to a group of men of whom he
noted:
I have never met a more gentlemanly body-courteous, affableand the more I cultivated their acquaintance the more I appreciated
their characters-An honor to their profession, they deserve well
of this country.sr
Among the officers listed in his entries Fr. McElroy had the
pleasure of meeting a few whose names would become household words some fifteen years later when the Civil War would
convulse the nation. They were: Robert Patterson, whose
colossal blunder in allowing Joe Johnston to escape from the
Shenandoah Valley in 1861, allowed the Confederate General
~0 arri~e on the field at First Bull Run and turn an apparent
efeat mto a rout of the Union Army; Simon Bolivar Buckner,
Who would surrender to U. S. Grant at Fort Donelson in February of 1862; and, finally, George G. Meade, who would turn
-
36
$T
Box 11 W. Woodstock Arch.
W. L., 31, 20.
�JOHN McELROY
388
back Robert E. Lee's second invasion of the North at Gettys.
burg in July 1863.
The founder of his Order, St. Ignatius Loyola, had played
pool to win influence over a man difficult to persuade; St.
Francis Xavier had played cards on the way to India, both to
while away the time and, much more, to win, because if the
Saint won the others promised to go to confession. So, I
suppose McElroy working the tantum-quantum theory of
spirituality, saw no reason why he should not use food and
drink in the same manner. In Journal18 we find the following entry:
December 4, 1846-A salute was fired this morning from Fort Brown
to compliment General Patterson on his arrival ... now on his way
to Tampico ... Met the General accidentally on the Street: he stopped with Major Abercrombie and addressed me by name ... Visited
him on the 5th; he received me very graciously ...
About 10 days later Fr. McElroy entertained at dinner the
following: General Patterson, Colonels Clarke and Taylor,
Majors Abercrombie and McCall, and Lieutenants Chase and
Williams-all of the regular army. The menu, made up no
doubt by McElroy with special care, consisted of:
Corned Beef and Sauerkraut, Turkey roasted (wild), a pair of
wild ducks roasted, beef tongues boiled, a fine roast of beef, potatoes,
macaroni, rice, pickled onions and cucumbers. Dessert: rice pudding,
custard, oranges, raisins and almonds. Claret ana Madeira wines
concluded with a glass of Irish Whiskey; they ;erilained to 5 o'c.,
apparently well pleased. I have not had more agreeable companY·
Although attended with some expense and trouble, it is more than
repaid I hope by the good produced. These gentlemen only kno'l'l
us by our conversations-They do not attend our churches-TheY
are ignorant of the content of our doctrine-These [dinners] in·
spire confidence and remove prejudice, etc.as
While Father McElroy was in Matamoras news reached the
United States of the devastating effects of the potato famine
in Ireland. His heart was touched as he thought of the agon·
ies of his homeland and losing no time he swung into action.
Soldiers may not be the best or most edifying communicants
the Church possesses, but they are certainly among the most
charitable. At the Masses on March 15, 1847, McElroy took
as Journal
lB.
�JOHN McELROY
389
up a collection for the famine victims totalling $800, which he
forwarded on March 22, through a draft in the care of a Mr.
Hale, one of the local merchants, via New Orleans, to Archbishop McHale of Tuam, Ireland. He enclosed a list of names,
proudly pointing out to his Grace that they were all Irishmen
except a Juan Lopez and his servant, adding with an even
prouder pen:
. . . A majority of the U. S. Regulars are Catholics and this has
been the first appointment of chaplains of their faith •..3 9
and signed the communication "Chaplain John McElroy, S.J.,
U. S. Army." The Irish immigrant turned Jesuit educator,
builder, maker of converts and chaplain, was now returning
a part of his debt to the land of his birth in her hour of dire
need.
After the fall of Monterey in September 1846, there was
much talk of peacemaking in the ensuing months. General
Santa Anna, the Mexican President, seems to have desired
this course of action after he successfully overthrew Paredes
in August 1846. These rumors are noted in the Journals, even
to the point where they were accepted as facts, only to have
them fade away. McElroy must have recalled a letter he had
written to Secretary Marcy on May 23, 1846, before he left
Georgetown for his assignment, which I found among his
letters, and which states in part:
· · · Lastly, if circumstances were to justify it, some time after our
arrival it might make a favorable impression on the Mexicans to
have an interview with some of the officers or Chaplain, under a
fiag of truce; our statement we hope would be accredited that we
are a pacific people and that we wish to cultivate by all honorable
means this relation with them, etc. Of course to the General-inChief must be left the time and manner whose instructions in such
a case would be implicitly carried out.•o
Since Marcy in his official communique to Taylor introducing
the Jesuit Priests never even mentions the letter, it must have
been relegated to the realm of what "might have been."
On May 5, 1848, we read:
-
89
40
Received a letter from Rev. Provincial (Verhaegen) dated April
Journal19.
McElroy Letters-Woodstock Archives Box 11 W 2.
�JOHN MeELROY
390
12, directing me to return to Georgetown as soon as I could make
it convenient-! was sorry to leave having found acquaintance with
many of the officers and a few of the citizens.41
Fr. McElroy had been in Matamoras over ten months, and
both from his own correspondence and that of Fr. Rey (before his death) to the Provincial can be seen that the mission
in its political coloring had been quite a failure. McElroy's
age and physical condition, i.e., his continued suffering from
the hernia complication, must have convinced Father Verhaegen that the recall was A.M.D.G. Fr. McElroy made quick
preparations for leaving., On Sunday, May 9, he celebrated
Mass for the last time P':!blicly, and instructed the congregation on the manner of obtaining the Jubilee Indulgences
granted by his Holiness Pope Pius IX. He wrote that he "had
the great consolation of giving Holy Communion to about
forty persons."
On May 11, he left Matamoras after having said a six
o'clock Mass, breakfasted with a Mr. Kidder, and after having
taken his leave of some "old friends." The quartermaster
furnished him with a carriage for the trip to Brazos (port
of entry on the Gulf of Mexico). His one regret above per·
sonal separation from friends and acquaintances was, in his
own words, "that no priest would be available for the English
Catholics and sick in the hospital."
His return to the States was quite uneventful, and the
Journals repeat an almost verbatim itinerary of his passage
down from Georgetown to Matamoras, only in reverse. He
had his visit with the provincial in Philadelphia on July 19,
1847. There is nothing in his own handwriting to give an
explanation of just why he was recalled, nor is there anY
record of what Father Verhaegen thought about his chaplaincy in Mexico.
But, in retrospect, no better commentary on Father Me·
Elroy and his work as chaplain during his stay at Matamoras
could be made than that expressed in the final letter he received from GeneraJ Taylor, found among the McElroy Let·
ters.u
u
42
Journal iS.
Box 11 W 5 E-Woodstock Archives.
�JOHN McELROY
391
Headquarters Army of Occupation
Camp near Monterey, Mexico
June 1, 1847
My dear Sir:
Although much occupied and particularly with an increased private
correspondence I cannot pass over your letter (May 10, 1847) without
acknowledging my grateful appreciation of your esteem-and permit
me to express my regrets that, though your labors in the sacred office
have been of so much good, you were unable to accomplish one of the
great objects of your mission ••• Re the death of Father Rey: details
have on inquiry come to my knowledge, doubtful in their minute character as to the truth, nevertheless seem to confirm the general belief
of his being wilfully murdered even with the knowledge of his sacred
profession ... Accept for yourself my high esteem and regard •••
Yours most sincerely,
(Signed) Z. TAYLOR, Major General,
U.S. Army
It certainly seems obvious that the words "you were unable
to accomplish," etc. in Taylor's letter can have only one meaning. In the light of Polk's Diary, Marcy's letters, and McElroy's own statement the prime motive of the chaplaincy of
the two Jesuits, as far as the United States was concerned,
was that they were to be ambassadors of good will to the
Mexican hierarchy, clergy and, if possible, the population.
In this the mission was a failure.
In the Woodstock Archives I found a Journal listed as
"12A4" on the flyleaf of which Fr. McElroy made the following entry:
This volume contains a brief history of the Chaplaincy to Mexico
during the war with that country. This book belongs to the
archives of the Province of Maryland and is to be restored to the
Provincial promptly and faithfully by whomever he may lend it to
for a time. (April 15, 1872).
After a lapse of 25 years Fr. McElroy summarized his
observations on this matter under date of April 15, 1872,
Which I think should be included in this record:"
-
1) The object of the President of the United States in our mission was altogether political.
43
W. L., 16, 227 tf.
�392
JOHN McELROY
2) The haste-and the prevalent idea that the war would be
short-prevented Superiors from giving to our missionary duties
such preparation as would make them more useful for the good of
souls and creditable to religion.
3) Both Fr. Rey and myself were without experience or knowledge of military life.
4) Could the wants of the soldiers have been foreseen, four or
five priests would have been necessary, two with Taylor and two
with Scott.
5) Early in the campaign [Taylor against Monterey] over six
hundred [soldiers] died at Conargo--many Catholics, no priests-at
Point Isabel-Brazos, Santiago . . .
6) Soldiers shy in beginning became familiar and confident with
us in the end.
7) It is in such functions (on battlefield or hospital) our religion becomes in their eyes what it always was-a religion based
upon charity having for its divine author the God of Charity. Such
examples from the priesthood dispel at once the calumnies so often
reiterated against us and cause our faith to be viewed in a different
light and in what more glorious cause can life be sacrificed than in
such as I have described?44
Truly, Father John McElroy was a remarkable man. For
upon his return to the Province he caught his second breath
and began life over again with renewed vigor. Now 64 years
old, he spent many years in Boston, and among his achievements there was the acceptance of the pastorship of St.
Mary's Church in the North End from Bishop...-~itzpatrick;
this church had been the scene of protracted turmoil over lay
trusteeism, which it is presumed he brought to a successful
conclusion. While pastor of St. Mary's McElroy once again
reverted to type, and, having acquired property on Harrison
Avenue, he became the founder of Boston College. This
episode in his life is recorded for posterity in the pages of
Father Dunigan's History of Boston College. Our narrative
ends in 1847.
44
Ibid.
�Chapter V: The Man Spiritual
Obviously, no story of the life of John McElroy would be
worth the telling unless his spiritual character were delineated. There is no need here to recount in detail the spiritual discipline that goes into the formation of a son of Loyola.
That Father McElroy was cast in the golden mould of the
Spiritual Exercises, that he was first of all a priest mindful
of his duties and obligations, that he was a dedicated soul
who wanted little of McElroy and all of Christ, need not be
belabored here. From his first Diaries to the end, the desire
of John McElroy was to be the least in the Society of Jesus,
and clearly etched on his every day and year was the motto
of the Jesuits, "For the Greater Honor and Glory of God."
Two of the Diaries are entitled Spiritual, and there is in
them little that surprises. They deal with his early years,
and the curious will look in vain for anything out of the ordinary. They contain entries in the usual chronological order
of reflections and resolutions, of notes on instructions by
spiritual directors, on sermons, pious books, mental prayer,
etc. I believe that the secret of McElroy's long life of fervent
activity for God's glory was, first, that he did well the ordinary
things; and, second, that in recounting what actually were
extraordinary accomplishments for his day and age, it never
occurred to him that he was recording anything extraordinary.
Very few saints, or even the great men of secular history,
ever seemed to have been conscious that they were in any way
exceptional. Yet it is the faithful performance of what the
small man calls the daily humdrum that sets great men apart.
In 1808, in an addendum to his Spiritual Diary I, McElroy
wrote:
I must begin my day with the fervent endeavor to keep myself
in the presence of God till noon . . . I must not interfere in the
offices of the other lay brothers ... Tradesmen must be dealt with
with prudence and modesty ... Finally in all your actions keep a
strict guard over your heart united to God.
As a Jesuit, McElroy knew full well that his mission was
"to be in the world and not of it." How then was he to con393
�394
JOHN McELllOY
duct himself? He had the rules of his Order; then there were
the customs or traditions of his Province; really, not much
was left to chance. From notes written during a retreat prior
to his last vows which he pronounced on February 2, 1821, he
reflected that this is how John McElroy will act:
•.. Treat them [seculars] with charity and mildness and always a
modest exterior . . . No useless conversations .•• No familiarity
with females ... The more reserved you keep yourself the greater
edification you will gain . . . Take care you imbibe no part of the
world . . . To be of service to your neighbor, keep [to] your room
as much as possible.
This last bit of spiritu!:!.i' advice may seem strange to the
uninitiated who believe in 'the ejjusio ad exteriora, but therein
lies the key to the opening of the Kingdom of Heaven by those
who have been chosen to forward the work of salvation. The
religious who would be an instrument for others must first
himself be grounded in the knowledge and strength of things
divine before he can be of any use, and this grounding, McElroy believed, was attained in the quiet of his room.
Although it is very difficult to probe the depths of Father
McElroy's spiritual life from the yellowing pages of his
Diaries because, a~ already noted, these pages reflect but
little of his vivid personality. Perhaps the fire and enthusiasm of the man can best be gleaned from the breadth of
the outward manifestations of his spiritual activities. For
instance, the archdioceses and dioceses in which he gave the
first retreats to the clergy included New York, Boston, Baltimore, St. Louis, Albany, Bardstown (Kentucky), Louisville,
Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Charleston, S. C., Richmond, Char·
lottestown on Prince Edward Island, and Arichot, Nova Scotia.
He also gave parish retreats in many places from St. Louis,
Missouri to Baltimore, Maryland. Nor should we fail to recall the many instances on which Fr. McElroy was chosen
to be what was called "the orator of the occasion." The record, then, makes it clear that this rugged apostle can truly be
called the "spiritual circuit rider," and that his life was aptly
summarized by those·who knew him well as having had great
influence on the formation of both the clergy and the faithful
during the nineteenth century in the United States.
There is in the files a letter of August 1842 from BishoP
�JOHN McELROY
Benedict Fenwick of Boston written to the Rev. Provincial
(Dzierozynski) to be forwarded with his correspondence to
the Jesuit General (Roothaan) at Rome, which reads as
follows:
I cannot express to you in adequate terms my sincere thanks for
the permission given to good Father McElroy to conduct our clergy
retreat--The father was untiring-full of zeal and of the love of
God and the profoundest humility-impressing upon us (the clergy)
a deep sense of our vocation and tremendous responsibilities-He is
truly an apostolic man and an ornament to the Society-May God
give us in this region more like him.l
Letters are extant extolling McElroy from Archbishop Hughes
of New York, and Bishop O'Connor of Pittsburgh, Bishop
Kendrick of Philadelphia, Bishop Purcell of Cincinnati, Bishop
Spalding of St. Louis, etc. A homely touch is noted in
Journal10 under date of November 5, 1841, when he was conducting the priests' retreat at Dunwoodie, N. Y., along the
lines of the Ignatian Exercises, because on this occasion he
also exercised himself in another manner, which he seemed to
enjoy-namely, cooking. He wrote: "I directed the cooking
of the dinner and then proceeded to help serve it." Perhaps
the good Father, with a sort of ironic humor, was going to
make sure the Fathers on retreat would do more than just
taste his culinary artistry. Various articles in the Woodstock
Archives, written by fellow Jesuits, also praise his skill as a
retreat master.
Within recent years there has developed in the three Eastern provinces of the Society of Jesus, namely, New England,
New York, and Maryland, the movement to conduct open retreats in the parishes, generally from Thursday afternoon
to Saturday evening. McElroy began this movement in Frederick as early as 1825, and it continued to be one of his pet
Projects. The number of cities favored by his spiritual influence was as widespread as his travels. Some random
statistics may give an inkling of the success with which God
blessed his labors. In November, 1841, at St. Patrick's
Cathedral in New York City, he had need of "ten confessors
till late at night," and the following morning "over one thou-
-
1
Maryland Provincial Archives J.G.A. Md. 7, VIII.
�JOHN McELROY
sand approached the holy table." In Richmond (May 1847)
with only about, as he put it, "one hundred Catholics in the
city ... the church was crowded and there were about two
hundred communions in a week." In Charleston (February
1845) where Father Rey spoke in French to the congregations,
"over three hundred went to Holy Communion," and there
was a "fine choir." At Pittsburgh in June of 1844, "eight confessors were employed from the first day on ... The last day
necessary to use ten. Holy Communions exceeded 2500."2
As far as the schedule of the lay retreats was concerned,
McElroy followed the timi~g that he had inaugurated at
Frederick. Mass began the. day at 6 A.M., and the day was
filled with meditations, spirftual readings, Rosary, family instructions, a Kempis, reviews of the meditations, while the
evening service closed the day at 9 P.M. Truly a full day in
the life of the parishioners!
This chapter may well be concluded with an appreciation of
Father McElroy, written by Father Aloysius Jordan, S.J.,
whose manuscript diary is now in possession of Fr. Bartholomew Fair of St. Charles Seminary, Overbrook, Pa.
Father McElroy was a man of sterling principles-a man of
great natural cleverness-His sermons were always effective but
by no means rhetorical. Father McElroy three times was offered
a bishopric but managed to escape through Father GeneraLs
Briefly, then, here is the eager worker in the vin·eyard, who
began laboring at the first hour and persevered to the twelfth.
Here is a priest whose sixty years of ministry were filled with
a harvest beyond the telling. No man of God could have done
what John McElroy did unless his being had been filled with
the driving power of a deep spiritual life. He could well exclaim with the man from Tarsus: "By the grace of God I am,
what I am"!
His Death
The final entry in the Province Catalogue for 1877 contains
the following: "Vita functi P. Joannes McElroy ... act. 96,
2
3
Most of this information is in Journal 16.
American Catholic Historical Society (1901); Vol. 12, p. 216.
�JOHN McELROY
397
rei. 71, Tempus: 12 Sept. 1877, Locus: Dom. Prob. Fred. 1
And so, as it must to all men, death came to him. But for
it he was neither unprepared nor particularly taken by surprise; for, be it noted, he was impatient to gaze upon the face
of his divine Master, or, in his own words, "I am afraid the
Dear Lord has forgotten to call me home.'' The last known
letter in manuscript written by John McElroy, June 30, 1877
is preserved in the Woodstock Archives, and shows that his
eyesight was failing. It is written to Father McDonough of
Woodstock College, and since it is almost a last will and
testament, it may not be amiss to close out the mortal life of
McElroy with a sentence from it which could well illuminate
his entire life-"By that adorable name (of Jesus) which
you bear and that sacred habit which you wear, may they be
constant monitors to the grand principles of His whole life
included in our venerable motto, A.M.D.G.'' 2
How could the vivacity and vigor of a man like John McElroy be reduced to the cold print of a page? Is it possible
to encompass within the allotted space the incomparable
grandeur of his vision and of his work for his "dear Lord?"
I would say his was a noble character, rugged and massive
as some Himalayan mountain peak, yet warm and tender as
a sunkissed valley at eventide. His judgments were broad,
comprehensive and understanding. In building the parishes
and schools at Frederick and Boston he was a man slow in
reaching conclusions but swift in their execution. A holy
priest, he used the natural qualities of a clever businessman
according to the tantum-quantum theory of St. Ignatius
Loyola. He was humble, with a humility so perfectly balanced, so evenly developed, that even his own brethren could
easily have had but little knowledge of his greatness. Like
a perfect mozaic in which all the pieces are in perfect harmony
and proportion and nothing is given undue prominence, one
cannot at first glance absorb the vast dimensions of the whole.
No doubt John McElroy had the defects which this flesh is
heir to, but I have failed to discover them. It is probable he
-
1
Prov. Cat. 1877, p. 40. Vita functi. Died-age 96, in religion 71,
on Sept. 12, 1877, at the Novitiate at Frederick.
2
Woodstock Archives, McElroy Correspondence.
�398
JOHN McELROY
was quite impatient, as are most men of this type, with those
endowed with lesser vigor and vision, and who were therefore
unable to understand his motivation. Unquestionably, his
was an ambitious nature tamed by a self-discipline, sterner
than the ordinary mortal can muster. The rigorous demands
he made upon himself inflamed his zeal to accomplish great
things for God's greater honor and glory. I have called him
"Lincoln in a cassock." This should cause no surprise, for
much of the greatness of the Civil War President was due to
his simple and unaffected humility.
And when the end came, to Father McElroy, he could look
back upon a lifetime well- .~pent and on work well done, and
we may fittingly close this long study with the words so
eloquently written in his obituary: "McElroy could look upon
the Church in the United States and say with truth: 'This is
my Diary.' For in education, instruction, conversion and reformation in America he had helped to lay the foundation
upon which others are building; yet, no word of his ever in<licated that he considered himself anything but a simple
priest . . . There was in him a kind of simple dignity and
urave tenderness which spoke the saint ... The world would
call him 'a self-made man,' but the Grace of God made him
what he was-and never was there a nobler piece of workmanship.''
St. Ignatius in his Letters
The letters of St. Ignatius show us a mind sure, vast, profound, comprehensive, fitted for speculation or action. In the management of men
::md affairs, he stands eminent among the foremost the world has known.
His judgment was clear and sure. With vision he read the hearts of
men, and detected accurately the twistings and turnings, the ins and
outs of their minds. He possessed a marvellous discretion in treating
with all characters, classes, and conditions. Mature deliberation, firmness of resolve, skill in counsel, compelling persuasion, vigorous execution, were his. He showed courage in facing difficult undertakings, and
perseverance in carrying them through, constancy in supporting adversity, and resourcefulness in surmounting obstacles. He was ready at
all points, grasped all details, knew when to give way and when to
insist, to yield or hold fast, as circumstances indicated, to show severity
or mildness, condescension or determination, as the case required.
. . .....
JpA~.J.QSE•.DE,J,A.TORRE
�Books of Interest to Ours
DELIGHTFUL READING
Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux. Translated by Ronald Knox.
New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons. Pp. 320. $4.50.
This is a new translation of the autobiography of the Little Flower.
It has the approval of the Carmelites of Lisieux, and is published with
the express desire that it should be the complete and authorized edition
of the life of Sister Therese of the Child Jesus. This new translation is
fortunate in two ways: it has been made from the original text and not
from that prepared for publication by Mother Agnes, the Saint's sister,
which is generaliy known as The Story of a Soul. No effort has been
spared to reproduce the exact words of the Little Flower, ultra-violet
and ultra-red rays being used to achieve perfect accuracy. The second
reason why the volume is fortunate is the fact that so distinguished an
author and one so noted for his wide acquaintance with spiritual principles has been entrusted with its translation. That Monsignor Knox made
it before his death is a guarantee of ali that could be desired. It is as
simple as the Little Flower herself and makes delightful reading.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
AN EXCELLENT JOB
Separated Brethren. By William J. Whalen. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1957.
Pp. xii-284.
The subtitle of the book under consideration is: A survey of nonCatholic Christian denominations in the United States. This is an accurate description of the work. The author with degrees in journalism
from Marquette and Northwestern has done an excelient job within
the limits he himself has set. The book gives Catholics an accurate
and friendly description of the non-Catholic Christian denominations in
our country. It does not deal with particular church-groupings within
the denominations nor are ali the different non-Catholic churches described but those of greater importance are presented with clarity and
readability. In dealing with so vast a subject, there are some mistakes,
but the overali correctness makes this a valuable book for parish-priests
and seminarists. Interestingly enough, the author includes a summary
consideration on Masonry, far more objective than most Catholic
Presentations of the subject.
GUSTAVE WEIGEL, S.J.
EDUCATIONAL COMMON SENSE
Mental Discipline in Modern Education. By Walter B. Kolesnik. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1958. Pp. xi, 231. $3.50.
b :rhis is a book on education with two refreshing differences: it is
rJef and it is substantial. Dr. Kolesnik, who is now on the faculty at
.....
399
�400
BOOK REVIEWS
the University of Detroit, has mastered a wild luxuriance of books,
papers and research reports and manages to summarize and put in order
their conclusions and implications in pages which are somewhat bleak
in manner but admirably clear. The casual reader may not appreciate
how much material has been distilled for him here but he cannot help
but be instructed by the product.
The problem which Dr. Kolesnik discusses is one with special interest
for educators in the conservative tradition. Everyone is aware that
some twentieth century psychologists have rather effectively bombarded
an older academic theory which put as the school's primary goal a sort
of general training of intelligence for general efficiency. Experimental'
studies were supposed to have shown such an aim to be illusory. The
present book is designed to review the evidence on both sides of this
question and to determine what position may reasonably be held today.
The argument proceeds, in pllrt, through clarification of three interrelated but distinct concepts. The widest of these, that of "transfer of
training," means that rather specific skills or habits can be applied to
situations for which they had not been specifically learned. A boy who
tinkered with farm machinery at home may show a special flair as an
experimental physicist because he is handy at constructing apparatus.
As Dr. Kolesnik observes, the possibility of transfer is generally ad·
mitted today and the debates are chiefly concerned with its range, con·
ditions and the extent to which it can or should be exploited.
The second notion is that of "mental discipline" which is defined here
as "the psychological '{jew that man's mental capacities can somehow be
trained to operate more efficiently 'in general,' and the philosophical
conviction that such training constitutes one of the chief purposes of
schooling." When Dr. Kolesnik has completed his survey of the significant research from the era of James, Thorndike and Woodworth down
to the present he concludes that mental discipline in it§-"broadest sense
is still a reasonable educational objective and actually" defended, in
their various ways, by such antipodal philosophies as those of Hutchins
and Dewey. The experimental evidence has, however, damaged one
particularization of this theory. This is the "formal discipline" ap·
proach, with its characteristic accent on effort to the disparagement of
interest and on form to the neglect of content. Its advocates have
argued that such studies as Latin, Greek and mathematics are intel·
lectual gymnastics peculiarly effective for the enlargement of certain
basic intellectual powers-of observation, for example, or logical thought,
or retention-which may afterwards be profitably applied to all situa·
tions. Kolesnik quotes one nineteenth century theorist who remarked
confidently that "the immediate practical value of a subject and its
disciplinary value are usually in an inverse ratio to each other."
But this lucid book suggests that the truth of the matter lies somewhere between outright rejection of general intellectual training and
the inflated claims made for formal discipline. These informative
chapters should, therefore, find interested readers among Jesuit teachers.
JOHN W. DONOHUE, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
401
ALCOHOL AND A PRIEST
Prodigal Shepherd. By Father Ralph Pfau and Al Hirshberg. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1958. Pp. 250. $3.95.
Here is a book of the literary genre of Lillian Roth's I'll Cry Tomorrow, autobiography of the ex-alcoholic. In it are portrayed all the
symptoms, the blackouts, the compulsive drinking, the rationalizations,
characteristic of alcoholism. These are presented not in cold theory
but in the mind and body of a priest.
There are, however, no drinking bouts ending in theological drunkenness, no need of the helping hand to steer one home, no slumping in besotted satiety to the sidewalk. Indeed there need not be in the true
alcoholic. There are weeks and sometimes months in which not one drop
is imbibed. In fact for Father Pfau there is just one sure sign of oncoming alcoholism:
My experience . . . is that the only static factor is the element of
increase. If a person who has been drinking at least three years
(a shorter period cannot give a conclusive result), finds that he is
drinking increasingly more alcohol increasingly more often, he is
probably on the road to alcoholism (p. 249).
This and similar facts and theories set down are based on the author's
own experience and on personal conversations with some ten thousand
alcoholics. There is no denying his right to speak with authority.
Nevertheless the story of Father Pfau's disease and recovery is in
some respects atypical. It is not the clear picture of pure alcoholism
but is blurred by the presence of a neurosis, which the author candidly
admits. The dramatic breakdowns followed by therapy in institutions
are to be explained chiefly, it would seem, by this emotional abnormality.
The book is a controversial one. When a popular magazine printed it
in shortened form previous to publication, it occasioned an outcry.
~hould a priest make a public confession? People are still largely
Ignorant that alcoholism is a disease, not necessarily a sinful habit.
To Weigh the scandal and assess the undoubted good is no easy task.
The difficulty would have been obviated had the author observed the
anonymity which, for good reasons, is the policy of Alcoholics
Anonymous .
. Be that as it may, there is every reason to believe that the book will
rve great strength and encouragement to priests and others who suffer
rom this dread plague. The general audience will find it interesting
and instructive reading.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
POSITIVE PENANCE
Approach to Penance. By Dom Hubert Van Zeller, O.S.B. New York:
Sheed & Ward, 1958. Pp. 104. $2.50.
h The subject of this group of essays is something that all Christians
ave thought about. The image which first appears in connection with
rnance is one of an emaciated, disheveled medieval monk. We know
hat this is not accurate, yet the true concept of penance-its purpose,
�402
BOOK REVIEWS
method and effect-is so difficult to achieve that the majority of us
relegate the investigation to some never-to-arrive date in the future.
Dom Van Zeller, a Benedictine of wide and thoughtful experience as
a retreat master, superior and writer, offers a brief and precise analysis
of the problem and concludes with a definite, practicable solution. After
stating in the opening chapter that "the end of penance is God, not
more penance," the author proceeds to show that penance is by nature
positive, not negative, i.e., it leads to a clearly defined goal. He shows us
how much penance to use and points out the area in our lives where
it can easily be performed.
The primary value of this book seems to be its adaptation of a very
necessary concomitant of the spiritual life to our current life and
situation. In his chapter on the practice of penance, the author offers
a very useful and safe method'of introducing penance-as much as we
wish-into our lives. He suggests passive penance, which is voluntary
submission to the reverses and contradictions of each day, which come
as a result of temperament, contact with others, state in life, age, health
and surrounding circumstances. In this use of penance, obscure yet
heroic, lies our sanctification or at least a sure step in the right direction.
In his closing chapters, Dom Van Zeller indicates the measure of
penance to be used, some proofs that it is leading us to God-instead
of merely inflating our spiritual self-and a final section about the
insertion of penance as a part, at least but only a part, of our total
spiritual life. The book does not provide particular solutions to particular problems, but surely it is a stride in the direction of adapting
what in many cases i; a lost practice to fit the present world which
the Christian of today must strive to sanctify.
ARTHUR s. O'BRIEN' S.J.
PANORAMIC VIEW
A Popular History Of The Jesuits. By Denis Meadows. New York:
Macmillan, 1958. Pp. x-160. $3.50.
This book presents a fine panoramic view of the history of the
Society of Jesus. The fact that Mr. Meadows was able to hit the
high spots of 400 years of Jesuit history and at the same time rather
ably sketch the spirit of the Society is a tribute to his skill as a writer
and historian. The author's approach is one of sincere friendship, an
honest tribute of affection. This is not to imply that the subject is
treated sentimentally or uncritically. The most serious objection is
that a treatment of the American Assistancy is almost completelY
omitted. This would be more understandable had the book been published on the other side of the Atlantic. More stress could have been
laid on the Society's part in the development of the American segment
of the present day Church.
A few factual errors are scattered throughout the book. These in
no way detract from the fact that, as a whole, the book is accurate•
The examples mentioned below include the more serious of these errors:
�BOOK REVIEWS
403
Stanislaus studied under Peter Canisius; Father General Anderledy
brought Jesuit scholasticism into line with the authentic tradition of
Aquinas; by the end of the seventeenth century the Red Indian tribes
had been virtually completely Christianized by the Jesuits.
The author's style runs smoothly and easily. The book can be read
without effort. Our students should get a great deal from this book.
It is a fine introduction to the Society and should serve to whet their
appetites for further and deeper reading in the Society's history and
hagiography. It is hoped that Mr. Meadows continues to write about
the Society. We need more books by an author of his ability in history
and with his literary skill.
CHARLES A. GALLAGHER, S.J.
CALL TO PERFECTION
Conferences on the Religious Life. By Rev. Aloysius Biskupek, S.V.D.
Milwaukee: Bruce, 1957. Pp. iv-204. $3.50.
This collection of thirty-five conferences recalls the high ideals that
should motivate every sincere religious. In well-ordered chapters the
goal of self-sanctification and the salvation of others recurs as a dominant theme; but the reader is soon conscious of another unintentional
minor theme playing along with it: that of an experienced spiritual
director speaking about his favorite subject. While treating the
important danger areas in living out the rules in a particular institute,
the author is careful to note where obligation yields to the call for a
higher degree of perfection. Young religious will find many of these
chapters inspiring spiritual reading, and often sharp reminders.
PAUL 0STERLE, S.J.
SATAN
The Temptations of Christ. By Gerald Vann, O.P. and P.K. Meagher,
O.P. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1957. Pp. 127. $2.75.
To claim that the devil does not exist is to play right into the devil's
hands. To blame one's failings solely on one's own unruly passions
or on some Freudian childhood trauma is to concede victory to the cunning of Satan. For it has been Satan's most brilliant triumph to
capitalize on the materialism prevailing today and cast a doubt upon
the minds of many concerning his own existence. This accomplished,
he is relatively free to operate as he will. Though it may be difficult
to attribute the sins of any one individual to the direct assault of
Satan, the overall picture of fallen humanity still gives evidence of
an organizing power of evil. If we refuse to recognize this power,
We obviously cannot choose the proper mode of defense.
After treating of the nature of Christ's temptations in the desert, the
dramatis personae, and the comparison between Christ's temptations
and ours, the book takes up each temptation, interprets it, and makes
a~plications. Christ related His temptations and His victory that we·
~lght profit. Christ was driven by the Spirit into the desert immeJately after his baptism. So we, at the height of spiritual exaltation,
�404
BOOK REVIEWS
should prepare for the attacks of Satan. And it is in these trials that
we come to know something of the mystery which we are. The
temptations of Christ are the temptations of Israel in the desert and
of all humanity: .the desire for material goods, misuse of power, dis·
trust of God's goodness, the perils of the pinnacle, presumption and
vain glory. His conquest should be our conquest.
It is somewhat disconcerting to find in a book obviously intended for
a wide reading public Latin phrases with no translations. The authors
have written a very readable and scholarly book. They point out that
the episode of Christ's temptations is a rich source for meditation.
Many will profit by mulling over the ideas which their book so admir·
ably expresses.
THOMAS H. CONNOLLY, S.J.
MODERN EPISTEMOLOGY
Crucial Problems of Modern Philosophy. By D. J. B. Hawkins. New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1957. Pp. 150. $3.00.
Despite the universality of its title, Crucial Problems of 111oder71
Philosophy is limited almost exclusively to problems of epistemology.
Dr. Hawkins is convinced that Descartes asked a legitimate question
when he began his search for the irreductible data with which
philosophy begins. He is equally convinced that Descartes, and with
him all of modern philosophy, has so narrowly limited the initial experi·
ence of perception that it has been impossible to find a satisfactory
answer to the epistemological questions that have impeded philosophical
progress for over three hundred years.
In his attempt to answer these questions, Dr. Hawkins begins with a
survey which traces the theory of "representative ideas" from its
beginnings in Descartes and the British empiricists qown to the heroic
but inadequate efforts of Kant to save something ..of. knowledge froJil
the debris left by Burne. Next he describes the mod~rn epistemologies
of Russell, Moore, Wittgenstein and the logical positivists. Finally, in
a closing section he outlines a program for reconstruction in philosophY
through the "enlargement of empiricism," i.e., through a reconsideration
of the full experience of the embodied, actively knowing self.
The principal merit of Dr. Hawkins' book is not originality or depth
of insight. We might even say that one of his principal concerns is
to restore our sense of the obvious. On the other hand, Dr. Hawkins
would never suggest that we escape from the difficulty of philosophical
problems through recourse to untutored common sense. He is too aware
of the nature of philosophical problems to suggest banal answers to
serious questions. And it is this quality of seriousness about philosop~Y
that makes his book most valuable. Not everyone will agree with hiS
phenomenological analyses, but no one will question his philosophical
integrity. As an example of how traditional philosophy must attempt
to meet questions which have arisen outside the tradition, CruCial
Problems· of Modern Philosophy is recommended to all who are con·
c7rned with the problems of epistemology.
JOHN W. HEALEY, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
405
CARDINAL WOLSEY
Naked To Mine Enemies. By Charles W. Ferguson. Boston: Little,
Brown and Co., 1958. Pp. 543. $6.00.
To communicate the personality behind the historical figure is one
of the challenges which every good biographer must meet. Entertainment is at a minimum when one verifiable fact after another is strung
together and called biography. To avoid this almanac style the person
must be seen, and to be seen there must be well-chosen detail. ·where
are these details to come from? From the subject's diary if the
biographer is lucky; from his personal letters more usually.
When Charles Ferguson turned to write this life of Wolsey, he was
confronted with a man who had been an enigma for centuries. What
was the driving force behind him? What were his real feelings as he
passed through the dramatic events of the day? What explained the
strange and inconsistent elements in his behaviour? Only if Wolsey's
diary were to turn up, could we get a more intimate and living picture
of the cardinal than we have in this work.
Diplomatic letters and papers, household reports, a smattering of
eyewitness accounts, these are the sources used. By a masterful selection of details Ferguson has painted a vivid picture, and here lies the
excellence of the book. For example, Wolsey doesn't just 'go to court'
in such a way that the imagination of the reader leaps from his episcopal residence to the palace. No, his going is cast on the screen for you
to see in all its detail. You are never allowed to forget that human
beings like ourselves actually lived the event. The enfleshing of the
cardinal helps to support the interpretations that the author makes concerning the personality of Wolsey.
Wolsey no longer appears an historical freak of his times but a
highly plausible person whose actions are quite as intelligible as those
of men today. The cold exterior which he showed to the world and
which, if alone considered, would distort the true picture, is pierced
and the man who wore the mask is revealed. Even in his brilliant rise
we sympathise with him, for we are shown the compromises that will
e~entually bring him down.
Manifold are the talents of a good
biographer-industry, imagination, judgement, and broad sympathies.
These are displayed to a high degree in this entertaining study. If
~he author experienced as much joy in the writing of the book as he
as caused in the reading, we can happily expect more from the pen
of Charles Ferguson.
WILLIAM SAMPSON, S.J.
READABLE AND BALANCED
In the Days of Gonzalo Garcia (1557-1597). By J. H. Gense, S.J. and
A. Conti, S.J. Bombay: St. Xavier's College, 1957. Pp. vi-296.
$2.00.
Saint Gonzalo Garcia was one of the 26 martyrs of Nagasaki
c~nonized by Pope Pius IX on July 10, 1862. Born in Bassein, a city
0
Portuguese India, of a Portuguese father and an Indian mother, he
.!
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BOOK REVIEWS
was educated by the Jesuits there after the death of his parents. At
his own request he was sent to Japan where he served the Fathers as
catechist for eight years. Disappointed in his desire to become a Jesuit,
he lived as a merchant in Japan and Macao until accepted into the
Franciscans in Manila as a lay brother. His knowledge of Japanese
stood him in good stead, and he was one of four Franciscans sent to
Japan as ambassadors in 1593. In Japan he worked for four more
years before being martyred on February 5, 1597.
Beyond this bare outline little is known about the life of the saint.
Father Gense with the able collaboration of Father Conti, a fellow
missionary to India, has skillfully woven these facts into the background
of the missionary history of the time; hence the title, In the Days of
Gonzalo Garcia, is an apt one. The mission work of the Franciscans
and particularly of the Jesuits in Bassein, Manila and Japan is de·
scribed as it appears from-letters and other documents. The use of
sources is honest, and details from more "pious" Church historians of
an earlier age are, for the most part, judiciously sifted.
It is an interesting and well-written work, scholarly but not heavy,
devotional but not overstocked with pious fictions. Only rarely has the
sparsity of source materials led the authors to engage in doubtful
speculations. The choice of words is at times perhaps a little too
contrived.
It is to be regretted that the authors chose to use parentheses within
the text rather than footnotes to indicate their sources and that there
is no index, though perhaps this was dictated by the needs of economy.
There are also a number of misprints and a few incomplete or erroneous
references. These defects, though minor, are all the more unfortunate
since, in addition to giving us a readable account of the period, the
authors have offered several significant historical judgments where
the sources are notoriously biased by pro-Jesuit or• pro-Franciscan
prejudice. For example, the blame for the condimnation of the
martyrs of Nagasaki is laid solely at the door of the shogun Hideyoshi,
and both Franciscans and Jesuits are absolved of the charges which
they have leveled against one another down to our own times.
Because of the intimate picture it affords of the Society's mission
work of the period, Ours should read this inexpensive and informative
addition to missionary literature.
ROBERT RUSH, S.J.
LAY APOSTOLATE
World Crisis And The Catholic. New York: Sheed & Ward, 1958.
Pp. xiv-231. $3.00.
Critics of Christian Universalism will find no cause to cheer this
unique transnational volume. It is a symposium commemorating the
Second World Congress for the Lay Apostolate. The twenty con·
tributors are prominent laymen distinguished in their secular prof~s·
sions. The essays present personal views of intelligent Cath 0~1 ~s
assessing the role of the Church and the laity in the accelerated criSIS
of our changing civilization.
�BOOK REVIEWS
407
German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer speaks for the Christian
statesman. Author and psychiatrist Karl Stern inspects Group Thinking. CIO-AFL President George Meany analyzes technical progress
and human dignity. Renowned mathematician Francesco Severi enters
a plea for recognition of the Creator amid the scientific discovery of
creation's secrets. Medical psychologist Lopez-lbor discusses modern
medicine's rediscovery of the personal factor in disease. Actress Ann
Blyth weighs the responsibility of the artist toward cultural habits.
The appeal of Christian art is Swiss architect Hermann Baur's theme.
French diplomat Wladimir d'Ormesson underlines the duty of the
Christian to nourish social solidarity.
The chapter on the World Community features: Giorgio la Pira,
dynamic Mayor of Florence; Marga Klompe, Holland's Minister for
Social Welfare; Belgian economist Raymond Scheyven; Kotaro Tanaka,
Chief Justice of Japan's Supreme Court. All ask for intercontinental
unity based on recognition of interdependence, if there is to be international justice, peace and economic development. Philosopher John
Wu, historian Christopher Dawson, Vice-President Myung Chang of
Korea and King Rudahigwa of Ruanda in central Africa see in universal Christianity, purged of superficial western accretions, the true
saving synthesis for the modern world.
In the final chapter Bruce Marshall, Brazil's Gustave Cor~ao and
French sociologist Joseph Folliet remind the layman that he is the
value bearer of the message of Christ to the non-christian world.
Gertrude von le Fort closes with a poetic epilogue. This book cannot
he ignored by those interested in the temporal function of the layman's
apostolic vocation.
JOHN PHELAN, S.J.
AS THE SAINTS WRITE
Letters From The Saints. Compiled by Claude Williamson. New York:
Philosophical Library, 1958. Pp. x-214. $6.00.
Something different in the way of anthology, this selection of letters
from saints and blessed should prove interesting and inspiring to a
variety of readers. Students of hagiography or asceticism will find
exemplified a kaleidoscope of human individuality ordered and unified
by the common factor of selfless love which is Christian sanctity. For
the historically orientated these letters penetrate beneath the someWhat cold facts and figures of early Renaissance and Reformation
Periods to reveal the persons whose natural talents were fashioned
by grace into instruments that etched God's designs on ecclesiastical
a.nd World history. Finally, to the reader in search of satisfying recrea11?n and spiritual stimulation this book offers a rewarding familiarity
~th the cares, hopes, joys and sorrows of many whose heroism exemplies the refreshing selflessness of God-centered living.
S~holars, penitents, ecclesiastics and laymen, religious, both con temP1
atrve and active, such are the authors of this collection. Letters from
such as Thomas More, Teresa of Avila, Xavier and Philip Neri reveal
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BOOK REVIEWS
the attitudes and motivation of these more widely known saints. The
reader will also be introduced to the perhaps less familiar personages
of Angela of Foligno, John Forest, Jean Lestonnac and others. Brief
bibliographical sketches accompany the letters of the individual saints
and blessed, and Father Williamson has added a short list of the
more important sources and collated lives of saints at the end of the book.
Some letters are but fragmentary; only a few continue for more than
two pages. Subject matter is as varied as the personalities and states
of life of the authors. The translations are in general quite readable.
Father Williamson remarks that some of the originals could be classi·
fted as stylistically illiterate, since the saints' preoccupations were not
those of literary excellence. Such artlessness, however, often enhances
the self-revelation of the saint in question.
Obviously, such an anthology will not satisfy the interest of those
particularly devoted to this Qr that saint. Perhaps some will not approve of the compiler's choice of letters, arguing that they fail to reveal
the true spirit of a favorite saint or blessed. The reader, however, will
bear with such shortcomings, born of an anthology's limitations; he will
gratefully reflect that such flaws do not substantially detract from the
enjoyment and inspiration that Father Williamson's labors have made
available to him.
ALFRED E. MORRIS, S.J.
WRITINGS ON IGNATIUS
Bibliographie Ignatienne (1894-1957). By J. F. Gilmont, S.J. and P.
Daman, S.J. Paris-Louvain: Desclee de Brouwer, 1958. Pp.
xxviii-251.
In his preface, Father Hugo Rahner, S.J. points out today's growing
realization of the great value that a better knowledge of Ignatian
spirituality has not only for the Society of Jesus but also for the Church
of the present day. As an instrument for the gaining of ~uch knowledge,
this bibliography is complete and scholarly. Covering th!i period from
1894 to July, 1957, it contains listings of nearly three thousand articles
and books in seven major languages, which have treated of Ignatius the
man, his writings and his spirituality. There is also an index accord·
ing to author and one according to subject matter. The worth of such
a bibliography for the scholar and for the follower of St. Ignatius is
apparent to anyone who examines it.
ROYDEN B. DAVIS, S.J.
SPIRITUAL STRUGGLE
Communism and Christianity. By Martin C. D'Arcy. New York: The
Devin-Adair Co., 1957. Pp. xii-242. $4.00.
Though Christians are increasing in numbers, percentagewise in to·
day's mushrooming population they are decreasing. Vital as is the
Church's missionary activity, there is another force which seems at
times more vital still, the force of Communism with its sense of urgencY
and with the frightening dedication of its apostles. Father D'Arcy's
timely book, with a sure feel for the essential, has drawn the opposing
�BOOK REVIEWS
409
battle lines so as to make clear exactly where the struggle lies. Confusion on this point to a great extent accounts for the failure of
Christianity's rich message effectively to counter the Communist lie.
It is not for its Utopian ideal that Communism is to be condemned, nor
for its zeal, nor even precisely for the ruthlessness of some of its
methods. For Christianity too concerns itself with the working poor,
is zealous, and sometimes zealous in a misguided way. Nor is the conflict between democracy and totalitarianism, or peace and war, or
sincerity and maliciousness; it is between two world views.
A half-truth and a clear-cut future goal are the key to Communism's
appeal. Its theory of predictable materialistic man gives security to the
uncertain poor. Its vision of a future peaceful and prosperous world
fires the imagination. In just these two points the Christian message
should surpass Communism's appeal. For the Christian sees man as
spiritual, free, and even divinized through the Incarnation. And the
goal is not a misty future one that present generations can never see.
The Christian sees an imperishable reward for each single individual,
for each single action.
In a finely nuanced presentation drawn from Communism's founders
and from his own profound grasp of Christianity's contemporary relevance, Father D'Arcy points up the real issues involved. His hope
is that the Christian, with clear insight into his own vision and goal,
will give a single-minded Christian response to Marx's ringing challenge: "Philosophers have explained the world; it is necessary to
change it."
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
CLAUDEL ON SCRIPTURE
The Essence of the Bible. By Paul Claudel. Translated by Wade
Baskin. New York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp. 120. $3.00.
A translation of J'aime la Bible, this volume collects Claudel's final
essays on Scripture. The French title better explains their nature: they
are the poet's personal tribute of praise, gratitude, and enthusiasm for
this book which had nourished the latter half of his long and fruitful
life. These varied essays may be put into two categories: reflex essays
on C!audel's own approach to Scripture, and its direct application to
such topics as the prophetic spirit, Our Lady, and the nature of evil.
Claude! adopts an extreme position in scriptural interpretation; his
overwhelming emphasis is on its spiritual sense. When he affirms, he
offers much rich insight; when he denies and rejects, the result is less
fortunate. An example will clarify: "The Old Testament must be given
back to the Christian people. They must be given back for their own
use their great edifice of the Bible, shorn of all the pseudoscientific
~PParat~s of arbitrary conjectures and frivolous hypotheses that serve
ut to dishearten, to disconcert and to rebuff the faithful; to deafen them
to ~uch an extent that they, surrounded by the ridiculous clatter of
:~ribes incapable of arriving at anything in the least articulate or posiIve, no longer hear the loud voice of the prophets" (p. 29).
.,
i.
�41()
BOOK REVIEWS
This is not to say that Claude! is advocating a fundamentalist, subjective interpretation and use of Scripture. Rather he wants a return
to the patristic and liturgical use of Scripture. Rightly he maintains
that there is a strong unity in the Bible: it is Christ (and that which
is closest to Him-Our Lady and the Church). For Claude!, to read the
Old Testament in terms of Christ is not mere hindsight; it is a case of
final causality that was operative from the very beginning. Somehow
it was present to the sacred writer, at least in spiritu. Granted that this
is an extremely complex problem that has received no definitive resolution, Claude! pushes his point beyond moderation. Though all his
positive affirmations could be independently justified, taken in conjunction with his extreme language against the primacy of the literal sense
they are not in keeping with present Catholic biblical thought.
This volume contains the article from Vie intellectuelle (1949), and
two follow-up letters which w~:re not printed, in which Claudel proposes
his views and attacks, very sharply, those who emphasize the literal
sense, especially when explained with the aid of linguistics, archeology,
comparative religion, etc. His controversy is mainly with Jean Stein·
mann. Writings of A. Gelin and A. M. Dubarle are criticized by name.
Perhaps Claudel's emphasis is a necessary corrective of current biblical
scholarship that not only awes but often confuses the pious faithfuL
But as Dom Charlier remarks in The Christian Approach to the Bible
after telling of the contribution of Claude! and others writing in the
same vein: "All the same, the grave shortcomings of scientific exegesis
do not justify a swing to the other extreme. The over-insistence on
the human aspect of the Bible in the past does not mean that this aspect
can now be neglected. The scientific method has a great contribution
to make, and it cannot be ignored simply because of its inevitable faults.''
The second category of essays in this volume, Claudel's reflections on
the prophetic spirit, Our Lady, and the nature of evil, -that were gen·
erated and nurtured by his reading of Scripture, cannot be summarized
but can only be described. They are distinctly Claudelian: an ap·
parently undirected flow of thoughts and images, one somehow being
born from the other, all together producing an impression or attitude
that is rarely propositional. But they are far from Claude! at his best.
Here and there comes a rewarding flash of his earlier genius, but it is
clouded by too much rhetoric that is needlessly unclear or repetitious.
JOHN S. NELSON, S.J.
TRAPPIST ELOQUENCE
Thoughts in Solitude. By Thomas Merton. New York: Farrar, Straus
and Cudahy, 1958. Pp. 124. $3.00.
Thomas Merton beca~p.e a Trappist in 1942. Although we know much
of his early life from the Seven Storey Mountain, he has preferred that
the exteriors of his life at Gethsemane be relatively unknown. Even
his spiritual journals, he tells us, try to be objective, not just the work·
ing:l of his own soul, but of all souls. He has eloquence, a paradox in a
�BOOK REVIEWS
411
man whose life is dedicated to silence. It is an eloquence that persuades,
that moves a man's mind and heart in search of God.
Merton has had a varied output: autobiography, history, a treatise on
the Eucharist, poetry, biography. Then there are his reflections: Seeds
of Contemplation, No Man is an Island, and finally Thoughts in Solitude.
It is difficult to analyze such a book. Its charm, its value, consists
in the new and revealing manner in which old truths are expressed.
In the book a theme often elaborated by Merton reappears: Man's need
to face reality; the inner urgency in man to see himself and the universe and God in true relationship. "The death by which we enter into
life is not an escape from reality but a complete gift of ourselves which
involves a total commitment to reality. It begins by renouncing the
illusory reality which created things acquire when they are seen only
in their relation to our own selfish interests."
The first part of the book develops "Aspects of the Spiritual Life."
Here he reflects on some of the qualities necessary for a man to live
a life of union with God. Among others there is self-conquest, "the
conquest of ourselves, not by ourselves, but by the Holy Spirit. Selfconquest is really self-surrender." There is a need for man to experience his nothingness. "To love our nothingness we must love ourselves."
The second half of the book reflects on the "Love of Solitude." He
defines a vocation to solitude: "To deliver oneself up, to hand oneself
over, entrust oneself completely to the silence of a wide landscape of
woods and hills, or sea, or desert." This is the special vocation to
solitude, the one to which Merton and his brethren at Gethsemane find
themselves called. But further, "a man becomes a solitary at the
moment when, no matter what may be his external surroundings, he is
suddenly aware of his own inalienable solitude and sees that he will never
be anything but solitary." All mature men, all men developed in God,
insists Merton, must come to that realization.
GERARD F. GIBLIN, S.J.
CHINESE CAPTIVITY
I Met a Traveller. By Kurt Becker, S.J. New York: Farrar, Straus
and Cudahy, 1958. Pp. 208. $3.50.
"This story," writes Father Becker, "whose chief virtue is that it is
a true story, focuses on one man, his lone struggle, and his triumph."
The man is a California Jesuit, Father Tom Phillips; his lone struggle
t~ok place in a Chinese Communist prison cell from 1953-1956. And
his triumph? "After the Communist masters in China had flung the
Weight of their power and authority at one small individual, the man
Was still standing . . . Secret police, informers, jailers, judges, prisons,
endless probing, brutal and determined, could not break the man. He
Proved stronger and tougher than the great monster."
The spirit suffusing I Met a Traveller is, incredibly, one of profound
Peace. In the harrowing time of furious apostolic activity and day-to-
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day terror before his imprisonment; in the summary midnight arrest
in his rectory; even (or perhaps especially) during the three cruel
years in the infamous prison of Loukawei in Shanghai, Father Phillips'
peace of soul and trust in God never fail him. He answers terror with
peace, cruelty with kindness, brutality with the gentleness of Christ.
There are moments in this book that are profoundly moving for the
Jesuit or priest reader, as when one of Father Phillips' parishioners,
in the midnight cold of his solitary Christmas, plays "Puer Natus" on
a Chinese flute beneath the prison walls, at the risk of his life. There is
the moment when, for the first time in almost three years, Father
Phillips brings Christ into his prison cell in a secret Mass. And there
is (for this is a deeply honest book) the brief account of those who
were not heroes, the Jesuits who broke under the "unrelenting pressure"
of the Communists.
Father Becker writes with insight and skill, and his lucid style is a
perfect match for Father 'Phillips' story. He is excellent (albeit
frightening) when he draws conclusions for the reader from Father
Phillips' experiences on the nature of the totalitarian state in China,
or on the vastness and efficiency of the Communist enterprise. For
Father Becker, Father Phillips' story is "a miniature, a reflection of
a far greater struggle which finds the two absolutes, the Church and
the Communists, facing each other across the world." Shelley's poem
Ozymandias ("I met a traveller from an antique land ..."), from which
Father Becker takes his title, is used as a representation of this strug·
gle with Communism and its outcome. Mighty Ozymandias brooded long
over the world, but "in the end, there was an end." As Father Phillips'
triumphed, so will the Church.
For the Jesuit and the Catholic especially, but indeed for all Americans, this book is an important document in the history of the struggle
against Communism.
J. ROBERT BARTH, S.J.
CATHOLIC DICTIONARY
Short Dictionary of Catholicism. By C. H. Bowden. New York: Philo·
sophical Library, 1958. Pp. 158. $2.75.
This book is put forth as a "small guide and introduction to Catholi·
cism." Bowden employs a strict dictionary form, providing one or two
sentence definitions of subjects pertaining to Catholic life and worship.
Under each letter of the alphabet there are about fifty to seventy items.
The definitions provided are adequate for the most part, but frequently
the wording is inept or misleading and some would not satisfy a demanding theologian. Particularly on the subject of miracles and relics
this dictionary states categorically many things that some might question. Thus, the author unqualifiedly informs us that we still have authentic remains of Veronica's Veil, the chains of St. Peter and Christ's
blood. With these qualifications, it is a usable book on the elementarY
level, which may provide the lay Catholic with an aid in his reading
concerning the Church.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, s.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
413
A FATHER'S LOVE
More Than Many Sparrows. By Leo J. Trese. Chicago: Fides Publishers, 1958. Pp. 137. $2.95.
Father Leo Trese has become one of the most popular of modern
spiritual writers because of his literary style and his deft insights into
religious matters. The reader who enjoyed his former books such as
Man Approved and Many Are One will not be disappointed by this
author's latest book, More than Many Sparrows, a selection of essays
from his syndicated column "This We Believe." Prevading all of these
brief studies is a strong positive approach very much in line with
modern kerygmatic principles. The major stress is placed upon the
importance of the individual in God's sight and the need for a personal
consciousness of His love on the part of each soul. The other fundamental virtues-humility, zeal, purity, etc.-are treated in the light of
this love. The author also illustrates the place of these virtues in practical everyday living and their relationship to the totality of Christian
development. While there are many striking psychological insights in
these essays, the reader will find that their main strength lies in the
vivid, concrete, and direct presentation of each topic. These qualities
can be both an inspiration and a model for sermon style and an indication of the proper manner of presenting religious truths forcefully.
WILLIAM J. BoscH, S.J.
BIBLICAL BACKGROUND
Samaria the Capital of the Kingdom of Israel. By Andre Parrot.
Studies in Biblical Archaeology No. 7. Translated by S. H. Hooke.
New York: Philosophical Library, 1958. Pp. 143. $2.75.
Babylon and the Old Testament. By Andre Parrot. Studies in Biblical
Archaeology No. 8. Translated by B. E. Hooke. New York:
Philosophical Library, 1958. Pp. 166. $2.75.
These two monographs on Samaria and Babylon are the latest in a
series of concise studies in biblical archaeology well calculated to meet
with the critical approval of the specialist and the interest of the general reader alike. Andre Parrot, museum curator and director of the
Mari Archaeological Expedition, possesses the technical competence to
guarantee the scientific reliability of his archaeological commentaries on
?ld Testament subjects. To his expert knowledge are joined a balanced
JUdgment and the ability to present in compendious form a mass of
complex data in a way that is both accurate and interesting. The
first chapter of the study on Samaria is devoted to an historical survey
of the kingdom of Israel and its capital city, Samaria, following closely
the data and chronology found in the Books of Kings. A second chapter examines the archaeological findings of the several excavations made
at the site of "Israelite Samaria and supplies valuable corroboration for
many of the details of the biblical narrative. Subsequent chapters retell
the fate of Samaria at the hands of series of foreign conquerors after
the final loss of independence by the northern kingdom. The reader
a
�414
BOOK REVIEWS
is thus provided with the pertinent background material for an adequate understanding of the unique character and importance of Samaria
in New Testament times.
The monograph on Babylon is divided into two sections. The first is
a presentation of the archaeological findings of the several scientific
explorations at the site of ancient Babylon. Detailed consideration is
given to the results of the excavations conducted by Koldewey, for to
these scholars we are chiefly indebted for the information which serves as
tile scientific basis for the various reconstructions that have been made
cf the wonders of ancient Babylon, such as the hanging gardens and
the tower of Babel. The second half of the study treats of the crucial
role of the Neo-Babylonian kingdom in the history of the chosen people.
This discussion well exemplifies the capital importance of the contribut:on which modern archaeological discoveries are making to an understanding of the literal meaning. of the sacred text.
Both of these studies are pr~fusely and attractively illustrated and
their value is enhanced by the addition of chronological and synoptic
t:lbles. The selective and up-to-date bibliographies provide adequate
guidance for the interested reader who wishes to go beyond these excellent introductory studies.
J. D. SHENKEL, S.J.
A GREAT AMERICAN JESUIT
The Record of an American Priest: Michael Earls, S.J., 1873-1937. By
William L. Lucey, S.J. New York: Reprinted from The American
Ecclesiastical Review, 1957. Pp. 41.
Few American Jesuits reached a wider audience than did Father
Hichael Earls during the first three decades of the present century.
He achieved prominence by reason of his extensive writings (novels,
poetry and short stories), his distinguished teaching career at Holy
Cross College and his lecturing and preaching to wige _and varied
audiences. Father Earls was undoubtedly one of the most noted and
universally respected Jesuits in the literary and educational fields from
the turn of the century until his death in 1937. Such a distinguished
career deserves recognition. Father Lucey, in rendering that recognition, has made a significant contribution to Jesuit Americana.
RICHARD P. NOONAN, S.J.
A VOICE FROl\1 THE PAST
Happiness and Contemplation. By Josef Pieper. New York City: Pantheon Books Inc., 1958. Pp. 125. $2.75.
In the fourth chapter of his book the author adverts to works like
Augustine's De Civitate Dei and St. Thomas's Summa to bring out a
point on the nature of h~ppiness. In so doing he makes this remark,
"It is no secret that nowadays we cannot muster up much patience or
inclination for reading of this sort." In saying this of St. Thomas and
St. Augustine I believe that Dr. Pieper has unintentionally passed judgment on his own book. He senses that what St. Thomas and St. Au·
�BOOK REVIEWS
415
gustine had to say and the way in which they said it are somewhat out
of keeping with the mentality and outlook of our times. This is not
to say that their statements are invalid or untrue. It is simply to express an awareness that each age finds it necessary to discover truth
for itself and in its own way. It refuses often to listen to the argument
from authority. Our age seems to feel this necessity to a much greater
degree than some ages in the past.
It is this lack of rapport with his reading public that makes Dr.
Pieper's book difficult to assess. To prove his case, that contemplation
is essentially the activity by which man achieves happiness, it is not
enough simply to state it. The author must make an attempt to state
it in terms and accents familiar to his reading public. The greater the
separation between reader and author, the greater the effort required of
the author to render his reader docilis and benevolens. These may be
considered mere rhetorical necessities, but it must be realized that without them there can be no communication of ideas.
RoBERT F. McDoNALD, S.J.
PREPARATION FOR CRISES
Fathering-forth. By John H. McGoey, S.F.M. Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1958. Pp. viii-188. $3.50.
What changes should be made in seminary training to better prepare
the seminarians to face today's challenges and to achieve "effective
work and a successful apostolate?" This is the question Father McGoey
poses in his first chapter and in the twenty-one chapters that follow he
gives his vigorous answer.
Early in a seminarian's training he must be taught the meaning of
the crises he will face as a priest: difficult pastors, little appreciation
for his ideas and work from his fellow priests, the insistent hunger for
human love, temptations to turn bitter, and many more. These crises
are really mysterious graces which God sends or allows in order to
free him from all ill-ordered attachments. To fail to accept them as
~races would be a terrible tragedy for truly effective work in his priestly
hfe. Once he has grasped the meaning of these crises, he will be disposed
to attack the sources of the disorder, "I" trouble and avarice in its many
forms; and he will counter with supernatural honesty and generosity,
the Practical tests for genuine humility. Much can be done during his
Years of training to develop positive, constructive thinking and a sense
of. responsibility with respect to prayer, work and mortification which
~III carry him through the years of his ministry. For if he is to
t~ad ?is people to a high degree of sanctity, he must soon learn to be
'de kmd of priest fervent Catholics expect him to be. Striving for this
1
eal, he will come to know what kind of priest God expects him to be.
Besides the obvious benefit a priest or seminarian can derive for himse1 in reading these reflections, this book can help to give us a deeper
f
8
~Pathy for the problems and temptations in the everyday life of
Parish p · t
fles s.
PAUL 0STERLE, S.J.
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Spiritual Journal
of
Saint Ignatius
I
Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
In this singular document we have a fuller
introduction to the soul of St. Ignatius and
the profoundest aspect of his spirituality.
It brings the interior life of the Saint into
focus, separating it from the external aspects
which, g!orious and full of merit as they are,
cast shadows which prevent our contemplating the life in its full light. Here we enter
the most hidden precinct of Ignatius' spul.
Now translated into English in its eit.tirety
for the first time.
Price: $1.10 a copy
Order from:
Woodstock Letters
Woodstock College
Woodstock, Maryland
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Woodstock Letters
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Jesuit Archives & Research Center
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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JA-Woodstock
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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2017-2
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99 items
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 87 (1958)
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1958 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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BX3701 .W66
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eng
lat
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JA-Woodstock
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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1958
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PDF Text
Text
A. 1\1 . U. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND MISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF jESUS
VOL. LXXXVI
158.5
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1957
FOJil CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
��INDEX TO VOLUME 86
ARTICLES
A Basic Ignatian Concept ________
_________________________ ___________
___
_______ 291
Four Centuries of Inspiration_______ _______ ____
__
____ ____________________ 17
Ignatius Loyola and the Counter-Reformation ____________________ 240
The Juan Valadez Case ______________________________________ 257
The Proper Grace of the Jesuit Vocation According to Jerome Nadal
Religious Moralism -------------------------- - - - - - - -----Saint Ignatius and Education_
___________________________
___
Saint Ignatius as Man __________________________________________
The Social Consciousness of the Spiritual Exercises ______ _______
__
The Sodalist and the Spiritual Exercises_____________________
_________
Table-Reading during the Retreat _______________________________
Woodstock, Howard County, Maryland _______________________
107
119
3
99
127
195
330
311
OBITUARIES
Delany, Francis X·-------------- - - - - - -- ------------------Dunne, Peter Masten __________________________________________________
Kehoe, John J. __________________________________
Martin, Thomas Ramsay_______
_____ __________________
173
338
163
133
McAnaney, George -------------------------------------Ramaz, Claude ------------------------------- - -- ------------Rello, Francisco J ·-------------:------------------------- -- -- -----Scott, Martin J. ----------------------------------------------Selga, Miguel ----------------------------------- - ----Tallon, William T·----- - ------ --------------------------Thorain, Alphonse -----------------------------------------Walsh, Edmund A·------- ------------------------------- - - --
351
355
260
269
71
267
76
21
CONTRIBUTORS
BEER, LAWRENCE W., Obituary of Brother Alphonse Thorain__________ 76
BoYLE, PATRICK J ., The Social Consciousness of the Spiritual
Exercises ----------------------------------------------------- 127
BYRNE, GEORGE, Four Centuries of Inspiration______________ 17
CLANCY, THOMAS H., The Proper Grace of the Jesuit Vocation
According to Jerome NadaL-------------------------------------- 107
�CURRAN, FRANCIS X., Obituary of Father Martin J. Scott_________ 269
DIRKS, GEORGES, Religious Moralism_________________ 119
DoNOHOE, JOHN W., Saint Ignatius and Education__________
3
FOOTE, GREGORY, Table Reading During the Retreat____________ 330
GALLAGHER, LOUIS J., Obituary of Father Edmund A. Walsh______ 21
HART, VINCENT J., Obituary of Father John J. Kehoe _______________ 163
HASSEL, DAVID J., The Sodalist and the Spiritual Exercises_____ 195
HENNESEY, JAMES J., Woodstock, Howard County, Maryland_________ 311
KENEDY, EuGENE T ., Obituary of Father Francis X. Delaney_________ 173
LAFARGE, JOHN, Saint Ignatius as Man _________________________ 99
LLAMZON, TEODORO, Obituary'of Father Francisco J. Rello ______________ 260
LOEFFLER, JAMES D., The iU:an Valadez Case ____________________ 257
LYNCH, JAMES J., Obituary of Brother Claude Ramaz ____________________ 355
McGLOIN, JOHN B., Obituary of Father Peter M. Dunne ____________ 338
O'NEILL, JOSEPH E., Obituary of Father George McAnaney____________ 351
RAHNER, KARL, A Basic Ignatian Concept _________________________ 291
RUDDICK, JAMES J., Woodstock, Howard County, Maryland ____________ 311
RYAN, EDWARD A., Ignatius Loyola and the Counter-Reformation ____ 240
SCHOENBERG, WILFRID P., Obituary of Father Thomas Ramsay
Martin --------------------------------------------------------------- 133
SOMERVILLE, JAMES 1\f., Obituary of Father William T. Tallon ________ 267
BOOK REVIEWS
ALEGRE, FRANCISCO JAVIER, Historia de la Provincia de.J(r,Compania
de Jesus de Nueva Espana. New edition by Ernest J. Burrus,
S.J. and Felix Zubillaga, S.J., (John N. Schumacher) _____________ 184
America Book of Verse, (J. J. Golden)__________________________________ 94
AUMANN, JORDAN, The Meaning of Christian Perfection, (Edward
V. Stevens)--------------------------------------------------------------- 287
BENSON, ROBERT HUGH, The King's Achievement; Come Rack, Come
Rope, (Joseph A. Galdon) ----------------------------------------------- 286
BIESTEK, FELIX P., The Casework Relationship, (Paul D. Campbell) 381
BISSONNETTE, GEORGES, Moscow Was My Parish, (John J. McDonald) 94
BONN, JOHN L., The Lively Arts of Sister Gervaise, (Oscar A.
Millar) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 282
BoUYER, LOUIS, The Spirit and Forms of Protestantism, (John J.
McDonald) _________ _: ______________________________________________________________________ 191
BRUCKBERGER, RAYMOND L., Toward the Summit, (Edmund G. Ryan) 95
BURGHARDT, WALTER J., The Image of God in Man According to
Cyril of Alexandria, (Herbert Musurillo) _______________________________ 371
CHARDON, LoUis, The Cross of Jesus, (Joseph A. Latella) _______________ 382
DAWSON, CHRISTOPHER, The Dynamics of World History, (Edmund
G. Ryan) -------------------------------------------------------------- 275
�.!
j
DEFERRARI, ROY J., The Sources of Catholic Dogma, (Paul F.
Palmer)_
- - - - - - - - - - - - - 81
DEJAEGHER, PAUL, The Virtue of Love, (Arthur S. O'Brien) ________ 383
DESAUTELS, ALFRED R., Les M emoires de Trevoux et le mouvement
des idees au XVIIIe siecle (1701-1734), (P. Lebeau)------ 183
DRAGON, ANTONIO, El Apostol de Nuestra Senora: Biografia del
Padre Salvador M. Garcidueiias, S.J., (M. J. Casals) _ _ ____ 378
DRUMMOND, WILLIAM F., Social Justice, (John F. Doherty)______
DURAND, ALFRED AND HUBY, JOSEPH, The Word of Salvation. Trans-
89
lation and Explanation of the Gospel according to St. Matthew
and the Gospel according to St. Mark. Translated into English
by John J. Heenan, (E. A. Ryan) _________
________ 179
FERM, VERGILIUS, Encyclopedia of Morals, (Robert H. Springer) __ 182
FILAS, FRANCIS L., Joseph Most Just, (Edward V. Stevens) ____ 187
GARDEIL, H. D., Psychology, (H. R. Burns) ________________ 90
GAUTHIER, ALPHONSE, Heros dans l'ombre, mais heros quand meme,
(P. Lebeau) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ------- 283
GUARDINI, ROMANO, The End of the Modern World, (Edward V.
Stevens)
186
HANDREN, WALTER J., A Little Learning, (Leo H. Larkin)____ 93
HARDON, JOHN A., The Protestant Churches of Ame1-ica, (Gustave
Weigel) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----------- 181
HARTE, THOMAS J., Papal Social Principles, (J. Roche) _____________ 189
HERTLING, LUDWIG, AND KIRSCHBAUM, ENGLEBERT, The Roman Catacombs and Their Martyrs, trans!. by Joseph Costelloe, (John F.
Curran) - - - - - - - - - - - , - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 7 6
HOFINGER, JOHANNES, The Art of Teaching Christian Doctrine,
(Edward V. Stevens) -------------------------------- 377
HOSTIE, RAYMOND, Religion and the Psychology of Jung, (Francis
Schemel)
------------------- - - - - - 280
HYDE, DoUGLAS, One Front Across the World, (Joseph A. Galdon) __ 190
JUNGMANN, J. A., The Eucharistic Prayer, (W. Suchan) ______ 384
KELLY, GERALD, Guidance for Religious, (J. Roche)_________ 87
KING, GEORGE A., Theodore Dwight Woolsey, His Political and Social
Ideas, (Owen E. Finnegan)---- ------- --------------------- 188
KNox, RONALD A., The Window in the Wall, (Thomas H. Connolly) 283
LAFARGE, JOHN, The Catholic Viewpoint on Race Relations, (Frank
C. Bourbon) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 84
LOCHET, Lours, Son of the Church. Translated by Albert J. LaMothe, (John F. Curran) _______________________________ 273
LONERGAN BERNARD J. F., Insight. A Study of Human Understanding, (W. Norris Clarke) _________
_______________
___ 374
MARROU, H. I., A History of Education in Antiquity. Translated
by George Lamb, (L. H. Larkin) ___________
______________ 274
�MARTINDALE, C. C., The Gospel According to St. Mark. With introduction and commentary (Paul Osterle) ___________ 191
McKENZIE, JOHN L., The Two-Edged Sword. An Interpretation of
the Old Testament, (G. S. Glanzman) ________________
79
McWILLIAMS, JoHN A., Progress in Philosophy, (Edward V.
Stevens) ------------------------------------------------ 277
MELO, CARLOS 1\IERCES DE, The Recruitment and Formation of the
Native Clergy in India, (James N. Gelson) ________________ 186
1\IIHANOVICH, CLEMENT S.; MCNAMARA, ROBERT J.; TOME, WILLIAM
N., Glossary of Sociological Terms, (R. Eugene Moran) __________ 281
l\IONSTERLEET, JEAN, Mat·tyr~ in China, (Robert T. Rush) ____________________ 383
l\IURPHY, JOHN L., The il[ass and Liturgical Reform, (Emmanuel
V. Non) --------------~--------------------------------------NEWLAND, MARY REED, The Year and Our Children: Planning the
Family Activities for Christian Feasts and Seasons, (Thomas
H. Connolly) ------------------------------------------------------NEWMAN, JEREMIAH, Co-Responsibility in Industry, (Vitaliano R.
Gorospe) ------------------------------------------------------NEWMAN, JOHN HENRY, Autobiographical Writings, (John J.
Golden) ----------------------------------------------------------------NOON, WILLIAM T., Joyce and Acquinas, (Joseph A. Slattery) _________
NoONAN, JOHN P., General Metaphysics, (H. R. Burns) ________________
274
379
89
285
373
282
O'DONNELL, THOMAS J., Morals in Medicine, (J. Joseph Hofmann) 188
O'NEILL, JAMES M., The Catholic in Secular Education, (Robert A.
McGuire) ------------------------------------------------------------- 92
PFLIEGLER, MICHAEL, Priestly Existence. Translated
Francis P.
Dinneen, (R. M. Barlow) _____________________________ _:______________ 375
bY.
PIEPER, JOSEF, The Silence of St. Thomas, (H. R. Burns) ________________ 284
QUIRK, CHARLES J. Sculptured in Miniature, (Francis Sweeney) ______ 180
ST. IGNATIUS, Le Recit du Pelerin, (P. Lebeau) ____________________________ 279
SCHOFIELD, WILLIAM G., Seek for a Hero, (Robert B. Cullen)____________ 93
SMITH, VINCENT EDWARD, The Elements of Logic, (H. R. Burns) ____ 380
SULLIVAN, A. M., The Three-Dimensional Man, (Frank C. Bourbon) 95
SULLIVAN, DANIEL J., An Introduction to Philosophy, (Joseph L.
Roche) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 278
THONNARD, F. J., A Short History of Philosophy, (H. R. Burns)_____ 91
WEISER, FRANCIS X., The Holyday Book, (W. Schmitt) ________________ 183
WILHELMSEN, FREDERI9K D., Man's Knowledge of Reality: An Introduction to Thomistic Epistemology, (H. R. Burns)_______________ 86
WORMHOUDT, ARTHUR, Hamlet's Mouse Trap, (Joseph A. Galdon) ____ 287
WuELLNER, BERNARD, Summary of Scholastic Principles, (Joseph L.
Roche) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 280
YoUNG, WILLIAM J., St. Ignatius' Own Story, (Kenneth C. Bogart)-- 85
�GENERAL INDEX
Abram, Brother Charles 327
Academy of International Law 62
Alcala, Univ. of 10
Algue, Father Jose 72
Alsop, George 316
American Relief Administration 26 ff.
Answer Wisely 270
Aristotle 120
Ateneo Catechetical Instruction League 261-62
Audigier 356-58
Auriesville, priests retreats at 239
Azpetia 20
Baghdad 48 ff.
Baghdad College 48 ff.
Baghdadi, The 61
Baltimore County 316-17
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 311, 321, 325
Bannon, Father John Francis 343
Barry-Doyle, Rt. Rev. 41
Beausset de, Cardinal 211-12
Beer, Lawrence W. 76
Benedict XIV, Pope, Quo Tibi, 208
Bertoni, Father Gaspard 216
Bigelow School 21
Biondi, Archbishop Pietro Fumasoni 47
Bis Saeculari, Pius XII, 195, 196
Bitter, Father Bruno 55
Bobadilla, Nicholas 248 ff.
Bobola, St. Andrew, relics 28, 36, 39 ff.
Bosch, Bro. August, death of, 143-44
Boston College High School 21 .
Boxer Insurrection 58
Boyle, Patrick J. 127
Boynes, Norbert de 363
Brest-Litovsk, Treaty of 62
Brodrick, James 115
Brooks, Father Peter 157
Brou, Father Alexandre 197
Brouet, Father 198, 199
�Brown, Father, English Jesuit 71
Brown, John Riggs 320, 322, 323
Brown, Captain Samuel 320
Brown, Thomas 317-18
Bunn, Father Edward B. 68
Burnichon, Father Joseph 217
Burrowes, Father 342
Butchevitch, Monsignor 29, 35
Byrne, George 17
Cabrini, Mother, visits Messenger office 359
Calen, Rev. Augustine, O.S.B. 41
Calles 45 ff.
Caluin, John 241 ff.
Canisius High School 166 ff.
Canisius, Peter 247 ff.
Cardoner 103
Carrafa, Father Vincent 201
Carroll, Charles 317, 319
Carthusian 99
Catholic League 202
Catholic Near East~Welfare Association 41 ff.
Catholic Reform 240-256
Catholic Union 41
Cenodoxus, play by Bidermann 208
Chaminade, Father 216
Chicago World's Fair (1892) 22
Christendom 100
Christian Humanism 12
Christian Life, two ways to practice 119 ff.
Christianity in Japan 52-53
Church 100-101
Cicognani, Archbishop Amleto 21, 68
Cieplak, Archbishop 29, 35-36, 39
Clancy, Thomas H. 107
Clement XIV, Pope 216
Cogordon, Father Pontius 199
Collegiate Retreats 21()
Collins, Bishop 75
Collins, General J. Lawton 21
Cologne 99
Commendatissimam, Leo XII 216
Compass of the World 60
--
�Conroy, Father Joseph 229
Constitutions of Society of Jesus 103, 104, 132
Contemplatio ad Amorem 115
Contemplativus in Actione 113, 114
Costanzi, Father Septimus 216
Coster, Father Francis 200, 215
Coudret, Father Louis de 199
Counter-Reformation 240 ff.
Crimea 28 ff.
Croiset, Father 209
Cruchaga, Miguel 47
Culbertson, William S. 60
Culion 262-63
Curley, Archbishop Michael J. 167
Damen, Father Arnold 229-30, 233
D' Arcy Family of Salem Ore. 155, 157
Davidson, Jo 70
Davis, Caleb 320, 322, 323
Davis Henry 323
Davis's Tavern 311, 312, 322
Debussi, Father Louis 218
Delany, Francis X. 103, 173 ff.
Delpuits, Father 216
Destruction of Religion in Russia 37 ff.
Diaz, Archbishop 46
Dirks, Georges 119
Divine Majesty 104
Domenech, Father 198
Donohoe, John W. 3
Dorsey, Vachel 320
Dougherty, Cardinal 42
Doughoregan Manor 317, 319, 320, 328
Drive, Father 225
Dublin, University of 24
Dunne, Father Peter Masten 338 ff.
Eulogized by Dr. Hicks 338
Historian and author 343 ff.
Early, Lieut. Gen. Jubal A. 325-26
Education 3 ff.
Ideas of Ignatius on 3 ff.
Ideas of Luther on 4-5
Pre-eminent importance today 8-9
Edwards, Monsignor 164
�Eisenhower, President Dwight D. 68
Ellicott brothers 319
Erasmus 5, 11
Escobar Military Revolt 46
Evennett, H. 0. 132
Exercises of Prayer 370
Favre, Peter 111, 117, 197-99, 246 ff.
Fall of Russian Empire 61 ff.
Far East Air Forces in Tokyo 57
Farrell, Allan P. 7
Ferdinand I 254-55
Ferracuto, Father 202
Finley, Dr. Robert 60
Fisher, J. Harding 174
Fiter, Father Aloysius Ignatius 224, 233-34
Florence, Sister 231
Florentine Academy 4
Foley, Daniel 119
Foote, Gregory 138
Fourier, Father 204-5
Frederick, Maryland 21, 23
French Revolution 213, 216
Fritchie, Barbara 23
Ganss, George E. 7, 14
Garesche, Father 230-31
Gasparri, Cardinal 25
Gasson, Father Thomas 139
General Examen of Society 110
Geopolitics 57
Georgetown 22
Georgetown School of Foreign Service 25, 59
Georgetown University 21, 23-24, 65-66, 167 ff.
Gerstenfeld, Rabbi Norman 21
Giacobbi, Father
Master of novices at Los Gatos 141
Teacher of philos.ophy 146
Gibbons, Cardinal 148
Gill, H. V. 130
Gilson, Professor Etienne 15
Giraudi, Brother 153
Gleeson, Father Francis 158
Gleeson, Father Richard 146
-·
�Glennon, Archbishop 42
God and tl!yself 270-71
Golder, Dr. 31
Goller, Father, first provincial of California 146
Gon~ales da Camara 10, 108, 113
Gonzaga College 145 ff.
Gonzalez, Father General Thyrsus 209
Goodfellowship 318, 320, 322
Gorman, Peter 322-23
Green, Mr., Cambridge scholar 17
Growth in Jesuit schools 7
Guibert, Father Joseph de 115, 207
Haddington County, Scotland, 133-34
Hague, Frank 272
Hallar, key word in spiritual diary 113
Hanna, Archbishop 42
Hanselman, Father Joseph 148
Harding, President Warren 26
Harris, Rev. Francis Brown 21
Hart, Vincent J. 163
Haskell, Colonel William 26-27, 39, 60
Hassel, Father David 195
Haushofer, Major General Karl 52
Hayes, Cardinal 41, 43
Heart of Christ 106
Herbert, Brig. Gen. James Rawlings 324-325
Hicks, Dr. John Donald 338 ff.
Hiroshima 52
Hoban, Bishop 42
Hogan, Rev. Aloysius, president of Fordham, 167
Hoover, Herbert 22, 26
Hoover, J. Edgar 22
Howard, Colonel John Eager 317, 320
Howard County 324
Ignatian Obedience 291-310
Ignatian Year 99
Immaculate Conception Church 164
Incarnate Word 106
Innsbruck 24, 58
Inquisition 254-55
Institute of Languages and Linguistics 59
Iraq 48 ff.
Iraq American Educational Society 49
Irish in Boston 136
Iron Curtain 106
Ivancovich, Eugene 340
�Jacobson, Father 343
Jackson, Justice 52
Jackson, Stonewall 23
Janssens, Father General John B. 131, 195
Jesuits 17, 99
as soldiers 17
proper grace of Jesuit vocation 107, 109
Johnson, Brig. Gen. Bradley 325
Julius III, Pope 7
Kalckbrunner, Prior Gerard of Cologne 99
Keane, Henry 177
,
Kehoe, Father John 163 'ff.
Kelly, Catherine, mother·of Father T. R. Martin 136
Kempis 75
Kenedy, Eugene T. 173
Kerensky 62
Kingdom of Christ 103
Kingston, Mass. 137
Krasnodar 35
La Farge, John 99
Lainez, James 111, 197-99
Lamennais 213
Lang, Francis, Tlieatrum Solitudinis Aceticae 208
Last Stand, The 62, 64
Last Hurrah, The 101
La Storta 104, 112
Leaflets for Apostleship of Prayer 364
League, Catholic 202
Ledochowski, Father General 195
Lejay, Claude 248 ff.
Leme, Cardinal 195
Lenin 23, 62
Leo XII, Pope 216-17
Les Principes fondamentaux de la vie internationale 60
Leturia, Pedro 7
Leunis, John 199 ff, 203, 215
L'evolution de la Diplomatie aux Etats-Unis 60
Lindworsky, Father 108
Litvinov, Maksim 69 ·
London, University of 24
Lortz, Joseph 204
Loyola School N.Y. 174
Loyola School, Los Angeles, beginnings 146
Luther, Martin 2 ff, 241 ff.
Lynch, James J. 355
McAnaney, Father George 351
--
�McCormick, Rev. Vincent 68, 148
McDonough, Father Vincent 167
McGinley, Laurence, Pres. of Fordham 163
McGloin, John B. 338
McNamara, Bishop 68
MacArthur, General 53-54, 56
Maher, Father Zacheus 141, 148, 203, 343
Malone, Father James 142
Manila Observatory 71 ff.
Manresa 18, 103
Martin, Father Thomas Ramsay 133 ff.
Meagher, Father Thomas 154
Mercurian, Father General 18
Messenger of the Sacred Heart 359 ff.
Meteorology 71 ff.
Mexican Families 257-59
Mexican Constitution (1917) 45
Mexico 43 ff.
Meyer Father Michael 149
Moralizer, portrait of 119 ff.
Morrow, Dwight 47
Moscow 26 ff.
Mossi, Father Louis 216
Mount Alverno 112
Mount St. Michael's 76-77, 152 ff.
Mullan, Father Elder 207, 210, 225, 227
Mystical Body 112
Nadal, Jerome 15, 107, 113, 198
Nagasaki 53
National Sodality Service Center, St. Louis 230, 233, 235, 237
Nicholau, Father 107
Novitiate of Society 110
Nuremberg 53-54
Nuremberg Trials 63 ff.
O'Boyle, Archbishop 68
Obregon 46
O'Connell, Cardinal 41
O'Connor, Edwin 101
O'Hare, Bishop 175
Old Court Road 311, 318, 319, 322, 328
Old Frederick Road 311, 328
O'Neill, Father Joseph E. 351
Oregon Province, establishment of 154
Orenburg 33 ff.
O'Rourke, Father John, 359 f.
�Pacific Science Conference 73
Pageants and Jesuit Spiritual Writing 208, 213, 215
Papal Relief Mission to Russia 25 ff.
Paray-le-Monial 25-26
Pardow, Father Provincial 359
Paris, University of 10
Parthenius, Father (Mazzolari) 220
Pastor, Ludwig von 242
Patuxent 316, 317
Paul III, Pope 246
Paulussen, Father 196
Pavone, Father 206 _
Pettit, Father George. 165
Philippine Women's College 74
Pius VII, Pope 216
Pius X, Pope 223
Pius XI, Pope 25, 28, 41 ff., 48, 107
Pius XII, Pope, Bis Saeculari 195, 196
Pizzardo, Monsignor 25
Plymouth, Mass. 135, 138
Poggio 4
Polanco, Father 107, 113
Political Economy of Total War 60
Portes Gil 46-47
Possevino, Father Anthony 203
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 24, 173
_• .:
President's Advisory Commission on Univ. Milit. Training 58
President's Committee on Religion and Welfare 59
Prima Primaria 199, 207, 209, 211, 216, 217-219, 238
Protestantism, Ignatius and 240-256
Purcell, Nathaniel 154
Quasi-Sodalities of Women 208
Queen's Work 231
Quo Tibi, Benedict XIV 208
Rahner, Father Hugo 238
Rahner, Father Karl 291
Ramaz, Bro. Claude 355 ff.
Ranter's Ridge 317 ff.
Reformation 240 ff.'
Rehabilitation Committee of the Catholic Church 55
Rejadella, Sister Teresa 17, 102
Religious Moralism 119
Rello, Father Francisco 260 ff.
Repetti, William C. 74
Ribadeneira, Father 113
�Ricci, Mateo 55
Rickaby, Father Joseph 34
Riga 27 ff.
Rocky Mt. Mission 76-77, 139 ff.
Rodger Clapp School 21
Rodriguez, Simon 111-112
Rooney, Father Richard 233, 237-38
Roosevelt, President Franklin D. 38-39, 61, 63, 69-70
Roothaan, Father General 220
Ruiz, Archbishop 45 ff.
Russia, 25 ff.
Sacred Heart Novitiate, Los Gatos 140
St. Alphonsus Ligouri, Sodalist 203
St. Bernard of Clairvaux 11, 121
St. Charles Borromeo, Sodalist 203
St. Francis of Assisi 112
St. Francis de Sales, Sodalist 203 ff., 213, 215, 227
St. George's College, Jamaica 174
St. Ignatius 3 ff., 17 ff., 240 ff., 99-100, 101, 107, 109
St. Michel, Cure of 211-212
St. Paul 104, 125
St. Thomas Acquinas and St. Ignatius 14-15
St. Vincent de Paul 227
Samara 26
Sandheinrich, Brother 166
Sauer, Father 153
Schoenberg, William 133
Schultheis, Father Henry 162
Scott, Father Martin 269 ff.
Selga, Father Miguel 71 ff.
Sempe, Father 204-206
Sestini, Father Benedict 359
Sheridan, novitiate at 154 ff.
Ships and National Safety 60
Smith, Captain John, 314-315
Society of Jesus
Suppression of 210, 212-215, 216, 220, 233
Restoration of 216, 220
Society for the Propagation of the Faith 43
Sodality and the Spiritual Exercises 195 ff.
Sofia University 52
Sommer, Father Joseph 234, 235
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius 103, 127 ff.
Stalin 23, 45
Stephens, Honorable Harold M. 22
�Studies in Society 110
Summer School of Catholic Action 231-32, 237
Superiors 292 ff.
Susquehannock Indians 313-16
Sykes Mill 321, 325
Table Reading 330 ff.
Talbot, Father Francis 342
Tallon, Father William 267-68
Tertianship in Society 111 at Los Gatos 149
Theatrum Solitudinis Aceticae, pageant by Francis Lang 208
Third Degree of Humility 115
Thorain, Bros. Alphons,l;) 76 ff.
Tierney, Father Richard 342
Tilly, Commander-in-Chief of Catholic League 202
Tobin, Father William J. 349
Tokyo, University of 54-55
Toronto, Canada 135
Total Empire 63-64
Total Power 52, 57, 63-64
Truchsess, Archbishop, apostate 214
True Christian, picture of 120 ff.
Truhlar, Karel 113
Two Standards 18, 112
Unigenitus Dei Filius (Pius XI) 107
Valadez, Juan 257 ff.
Velasquez de Cuellar, Juan, treasurer of court of.C~stille 3
Villaret, Father Emile 198, 207, 217, 222
Vittene, Father Anthony 216
Vorbrinck, Brother Theodore 327
Wallace, Lew 23
Walsh, Father Edmund A. 21 ff.
Warfield, J. D. 324
Waverly 317, 320
Weninger, Father Francis X. 230, 233
White, Father Andrew 314
Woodcarver of Tyrol, The 60
Woodstock College 311, 312, 327, 147 ff. 165
Woodstock, Howard, County, Maryland 311, 24
Woodstock, Oxfordshire 313
World Sodality Federation 196
Yalta 39
Yemitsu, The Shogun 53
Yokahama 54
Yokosuka Language School 54-55
Yu Pin, Archbishop 18
�WO-ODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVI, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1957
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1957
SAINT IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
John W. Donohue, S.J.
8
FOUR CENTURIES OF INSPIRATION - - - - - ,
George Byrne, S.J.
1'1
FATHER EDMUND A. WALSH - - - - - - - - - - - 21
Louis J. Gallagher, S.J.
FATHER MIGUEL SELGA - - - - - - - - - - - ·
BROTHE~ ALPHONSE THORAIN
Lawrence W. Beer, S.J.
71
~---------------'16
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS - - - - - - - - - - '19
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father- John W~ Donohue (New York Province) is professor· of ·the
philosophy of education at Fordham.
Father George Byrne (Irish Province) is Spiritual· Father~ at Milltown
Park.
Father Louis J. Gallagher (New England Province) is stationed at
Georgetown University.
Mr. Lawrence W. Beer (Oregon Province) is a philosopher at Mount
St. Michael's.
-·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
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·.·
�Saint Ignatius And :Education
JOHN W. DONOHUE, S.J~
No doubt the history Of any age has its own ironies and
paradoxes. The history of the sixteenth century, at any" rate,
fairly glitters with them. This is 'to· be. expected, of course,
for that was a seething period of·transition, a time of shattering change and upheaval, and one could hardly expect it to·
have been also an era of entirely logical and predictable pat- ·
terns. And the subject of St. Ignatius and education might be·
approached by way .of a moment's reflection· on one of those
ironies,. a comparatively minor paradox, but with some relevance for our topic.
About the year 1509 the recently founded university at
Wittenberg acquired a 11ew lecturer on Aristotle, a young
Augustinian monk who in several ways might have seemed
very much a man of the new age and admirably suited to the
temper of this Renaissance school, conceived, as it had been,
in the spirit of the humanistic persuasion. He was sprung
from that middle class whose star was everywhere ascending.
His father had originally been a miner but he came to the
city wh~re he did well enough to plan for .this son a lucrative
career in the law. The boy was trained in. his youth on the
customary diet of grammar, rhetoric. and poetry. His uni,.
versity work had made him aware of the classical spirit
propagandized by the transalpine humanists and those who
kMw Martin Luther in 1509 might reason~bly have supposed
that any energy he chose to direct' towards education would
be deployed 9n behalf of intellectual valJJe~ •. especia}Jy those
of the new learning.
·
.
. .· .
j~st abotit the time this you~ p~ofessor ·wa~ climbing
into the cbair a little blond boy fro:q1 ·the Ba1?que.country was
getting quite a different sort of .edttcation as a page in the ·
palace of· Juan Veiasquez de Cuellar; chief treasurer Qf the
royal court of Castile:. This young aristocrat was drinking.
~n a tradition of chivalry which o'Yed ··as in~c4 to the medieval
Ideal of knighthood as it did to the Renaissance concept ~f
.....
Now
This paper was. one of a series :read at LoYc>la Seminary, Shrub Oak;
New:York, dui:Jng the Ignatian year •. We,plan to .publish others ·of :the
series later.
�IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
the courtier. Instead of poring over Donatus' grammar like
an industrious bourgeois in a dusty schoolroom, this scion of
a proud, provincial nobility capered in the flashing regalia of
a court gentleman and practiced sword play. He liked to
read, to be sure--but vernacular romances, not the forensic
outbursts of Cicero. Aristotle De anima meant nothing to an
admirer of the amorous quests of Amadis de Gaul. The antiquarian enthusiasms ·of the Renaissance scholars would have
seemed quite mad to .. this proud child of the Middle Ages in
whose breast a genuine piety and a lusty taste for adventure
jostled one another. He could not have understood the enthusiasm of a Poggio finding the complete Quintilian buried
amid rubbish in the Abbey of St. Gall nor the raptures of the
Florentine academy burning votive lights before the bust of
Plato. For his part, he dreamed of rescuing fair ladies from
dungeons, not Latin manuscripts and he lit tapers before the
shrines of the saints, not the philosophers. Those who knew
Ifiigo de Loyola in 1509 might, therefore, reasonably have
supposed that any interest he chose to manifest in education
would hardly focus on the problems of Latin schools and
courses of study in literature and philosophy.
But such is the vivacious irony of history-·that both Martin
Luther and St. Ignatius did indeed interest themselves in
education-but with a difference. In his educational projects
the man from the medieval world went forward to meet the
new age while the father of Protestantism often seemed bent
on retreating to a world as much like ancient Judea as possible and to a charismatic concept of education. St. Ignatius
founded universities and wanted them to honor Aristotle
within reason and to adopt the modus et ordo Parisiensis.
Luther, on the contrary, assailed all universities for, as presently ordered, what are they, he demanded, "But, as the book
of Maccabees says, 'schools of Greek fashion and heathenish
manners; full of dissolute living.' " Out with Aristotle, he
insisted. For does not that wretched man teach that the soul
dies With the body and thereby contradict Holy Scripture?
What should be taught then? The Bible. For if, "we hold
the name and title of teachers of the Holy Scriptures, we
should verily be forced to act according to our title, and to
�IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
5
teach the Holy Scriptures and nothing else." 1 But St. Ignatius
would require for the formation of young Jesuibl, besides
Scripture, humane literatures in various tongues; logic,
natural philosophy, moral philosophy, metaphysics, scholastic
and positive theology. The miner's boy became the confidant
of princes and prescribed for peasant children an hour or two
of class a day with the rest of the time to be usefully employed
in domestic duties or in learning a trade. The hidalgo's son
became, in a sense, the schoolmaster of ·Europe who would
provide for the children of the new bourgeoisie a· formidable
academic introduction to eloquence and wisdom.
Foci
All this suggests, then, not merely the paradoxes but the
complexities hedging about any discussion of St. Ignatius and
education. These are, to begin with, two enormous themes.
The reality subsumed under the label "education" is so tjch
and so central an element in the lives of men and their com~
munities as to make the concept almost too comprehensive to
be significant. And our other focus, St. Ignatius himself, is
no less difficult to treat briefly and still adequately. This is a
delicate matter for Jesuits to comment upon; yet we must
at least point out, as unaffectedly as possible, that Ignatius
of Loyola was one of those men through whom God changed
the face of the Church. In this he stands with such saints as
Paul, Augustine and Francis of Assisi. He decisively influenced, for instance, the practices of Christian piety. He
introduced new concepts of the structure and purposes of a
religious institute and, through the Society he established, he
profoundly affected the apostolates of the foreign missions
and education. All this, of course, is quite familiar to you and
-
1 Martin Luther, "To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation
Respecting the Reformation of the Christian Estate," Early Proteatant
Educator•, ed. Frederick Eby (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company,
1981), pp. 35, 40. The contrasts above are admittedly somewhat unnuanced. There is much about Luther that is medieval in spirit just
as there are passages in which he advocates the humanities as a good
Preparation for those who are eventually to study Scripture profoundly.
Nevertheless, so aharp if tendentious an observer as Erasmus maintained that where Lutheranism prevailed, scholarship declined,
�6
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
.h~~-l?e.en
discussed with:authority_and detail by the prec·eding
"Your. series.·
. ·:we p.z:op.ose this evening, in order to make the material
somewhat manageable, to sum up a few refj.ections under two
brpad. categorie& :which are. rather c.onventional but also
sufficiently capacious. T~ase are headings· corresponding,
more or less, to the conventional. distinction between practice
and th~ory.. Let us, in the ~rst place, review what St. Ignatius
did i_n education, what his. personal experience. with fornial
!'C,hooling a:od .its . problems. was like. And secondly, let us
consider St. Ignatius' broad theory of education...;._that is to
say, those aspects of his world-view which have particular
pertinence in this whole matter;
·_spel!~e·rs. in
•
• ,_ 0
,.
'
~-
•,
r:• •
·Practice
Th~ concrete contribution of Ignatius to the actual business
o{educafion ca:q, of .course, be spelled out definitely and succinctly.. Under God he founded the Society of Jesus; organ, ized it with a·prescient and p.ractical wisdom and gave it its
first orientation towards those works of scholarship and
teaching which are the constituents of our educational enterprise and are ·accou~ted by our. present .F~ther General first
among. ou~ ministries. 2 .In all these projects, what distinguished· St. Ignatius, the administrator, was this astonishing
synthesis of a venturesome foresight with prudent realism. In
1556 neither he nor anyone else could have predicted the needs
of 1956..·But St. Ignatius gave. his Company an institute of
reasonable-.,-and for .the time, novel-,-flexibility which left
it free to follow. the developing lines of apostolic necessities.
It was, consequently, open to growth and· inspiration ·in a
way that would have been impossible had the Society. been
rigidly ordered to some predetermined work like ransoming
cap~ives or preaching ~crusades .
.-This Ignatian genius for tranquilly mainta"ining in steady.
balance an absolute sureness regarding basic aims and a careful but in;taginative expe:r+mentalism touching concrete means
2 John·. B~ptist Janssens, S.J., ;,Epistola ad Societateth 'De ·Min~
isteriis Nost;r.is',;, Acta Ramana Societatis Iesu, XI ·(Fasciculus iiiAnno 194~), ;3~5 ~··
�.·
,~.-;
...
>7
.IqNATJUS .. _ANI> EDUCATION
·.
shows up strikingly in the history of our developmen~ into a
: teaching order. 'The detalls"have beeri summarized by Fath.er
· Jraheli, F~ther Leturia and,_ i_nost rec~~tly, by Father Ganss.S
· iri tfie·b·eginnirtg the newly fprmed Society had :Only a general
· deditati'oJ:i· td; teabhing in the widest sense.. By a .series of
·steps it pass'ed 'from' the establishment of houses of study ~x
..Cltisively foryoung J~suits.to the admission of externs.t~ those
'··cJ~ss~.s' and fin~lly tq sch~ols ~nd ynlyers~ties explicitly cre~ted
''f(}r the general humanistic education of lay students.. The
·whole· development ·was . canonically .~auctioned by. the .Bull
?f ·~tiliu{ III, ~~pos'cit · p~bjtum of J\l(Y 21,, 1550 whicP,
'deClared' that the 'SO'ciety exists to defend and .propagate the
faith' by,:air1oni other ·m.eans, public lectiones. . . · ·. ,. . .'.
····.'·:yo~ know t1ie 'astonishing resuits of these decisions.. an~
·how'''this ·~ovei enterprise i~volving a religiou!l. order in·.· the
'tea'clilrig. not of theology only but .of the humanities. and
'riatnhl sciences as well becam~. in .fact, the characteristi~
w'ork of the Society of Jesus.. This is ·the work, .as .'Fath~r
Generlil:has put it, which the Society "has esteemed beyonp
others an'd ·cultivated with the greatest zeal.'14 When Igmi.tius
died' four hundred ,years ago .there were already thirty-fiv~
colleges .established and severi . more on. the' way. :.whe~
Rihadeneira ·died sixty years later th.ere were .. 293. colleges.,
some'thirty.:.eight of them abroad in the Ameri~·as, India .. and
J~pan. 5 'r6day, in our own. co.untry,' th~re are more. than
twentY-sbc· thousand student~JnJqrty-one Jesuit high .schools
and·niore·than one-hundred and three thousand in thirty-four
Jesuit colleges,' universities ~nd .seminaries. We are, to be
sure,. dedi~at~d with·. all ori~ hear-is to' the foreign missiops:
. ·,
{.
I
•.
:
•
,
.ott
•
•
. '•
···.
..
,
•
•
,
.
.
•
.
•
•
..
•
• •••
~·.···
,_. i'These are accounts aviilabl~' in English: . Allan r. F~r;~il, S.J.,
Th'e· Jesuit· C'Oi:le of Liberal Education, (Milw~ukee: The Bruc~ Publishing ·C.ompany, 1938), ·p~ ... 25~152;: George K· Ganss, S'.J.; Saint Ignatius'
Idea of a:)"esu#: University, (Milwaukee: The Marquette University
Press, .1954), pp. 18-4?; Pedro Let'\lrill;l.,.S.J., ."Why the Society of Jesus
Be~ame a ''teaching Order,'~ Jesuit Educational Quarterly, IV (June;.
1941), 31-5.4;: This last is a translation by ·v. J. Yanitelli, S.J .. of the
oti'ginal essay:<o:t'Fiither Leturia hi Gregorianum, XXI, Fa~c, Jif~ .iV.
(1940);. .
.:· ... ·. . .
.
.
. . .
.
• John :-Baptist Janssens, S.J., op. ·cit., p. 319.
Leturia, S.J., op. cit., p. 54.
· 6
.
..... ' ' ..
'
. .
..
�8
IGNA'l'IUS AND EDUCATION
Still, even there much of our effort is spent precisely upon
schools.
·
·
The history of Jesuit schools is, however, another story and
we must go no further with it lest we lose sight of St. lgriatius
himself. This much bas been recalled only to underscore the
enormous insight of our Father in God. St. Ignatius, as we
suggested before, could hardly have known-at least naturally
speaking-the lineaments of that new world towards which
his own transitional age was moving. In the post-Renaissance
centuries two distinctive actualities would appear. In the
West the ideal of some formal schooling for everyone would
become an unquestioned priRciple. At the same time, the control of popular education would largely pass from the church
to the state in the nations of the Atlantic community. On the
North American continent a new republic would come in time
to exemplify both these actualities. Its Catholic citizens would
find themselves living, it is true, in a pluralistic society where
the schools are technically neutral toward religion. But at the
same time these~catholics would be sharers in the econoMic
abundance of the United States and would be prepared tO
support their own schools-if someone were prepared to
duct them. Thus it has happened that the preeminent apostolic
activity in a culture such as ours is probably tllat of education.
At other times and in other places, a people may have transmitted its way of life through vehicles other than the sehciol
Perhaps the Athenians were as effectively initiated into the
Hellenic idea and ethos at the theatre or in the assembly as
in the ratber makeshift classrooms frequented only by a minority. But in America now this task is made to devolve, in
theory at least, upon the school almost alone. This is not to
say that such a situation is wholly desirable but only that it
happens to be the real one. So that if today you want to work
fot• the good of your neighbor there is simply rio better place,
no more senaitive ap.d vital area in twentieth century America
than the school. This is not to pretend that it is an easy place ·
to work. Teaching is now as ever a business of much sweat
and anxieties, having its unique rewards, but fertile also
failures and disillusionment. Neither do we mean that the
school is the only place to work or that other apostolic actiVities ·are not also essential. We simply mean that at pr~nt
con-
in
�IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
the civilization of intelligence and the formation of conscience;
the examination of life's central issues and the acquisition of
intellectual resources to meet them is more than ever the
charge of the school. But since personal fulfillment and ultimate redemption are profoundly conditioned by, or intertwined
with, these processes the work of teaching is now of unparalleled apostolic import.
It was the wisdom of St. Ignatius to have realized, even
though the future was opaque, that education is at any time
a job of considerable significance and to have shrewdly surmised that· it would soon be crucial. Besides having launched
the Society of Jesus upon this apostolate-in which it is proud
to be laboring with so many other religious groups as well
as with such dedicated laymen and laywomen-Ignatius also
left us an example of that spirit of practical zeal which is an
important key to success. There is an inescapable lesson to
be drawn from the contemplation of St. Ignatius at his desk
in Rome, busy with plans, and letters; testing, weighing,
watching and acting. To think that the youth brought up
amidst the Quixotic ambitions of a fading chivalry should
have put aside all the pointless reveries and adventures of a
caballero to work for the world from a little desk-to think
of this is to understand what splendors grace can effect in a
noble nature.
Theory
So much, then for the concrete educational work of St.
Ignatius. Our seeond theme is less easily stated. Did St.
Ignatius entertain some characteristic concept of a Christian
humanism and if so, what was it? We can formulate an
answer, I think, by returning to an earlier point and recalling
for a moment his own education which was, in fact, two edueations: the education of Iiiigo de Loyola and the education
of Master Ignatius. All in all, St. Ignatius was unusually
Well equipped for a world in transition where the sun was
setting on one way of life and rising on another. He knew
both spheres, yet managed to transcend each because he was
larger than his context. He had got himself educated in two
ideologies without being totally committed to either for he
W.a& one of those exceptional men who, while necessarily
�10
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
. . ..
~ :
~-
. ..
~ .
: ·~· .. :.
.....
.
humaniz~d by an actual society, still surmounts this matrix
as a prophet does. .
· ·· ·'· · ·
. In the manor house at Loyola, and later on in "the ·pal~ce
at Arevalo, Iiiigo ,de Loyola acquired accomplishments-Which
were real enough but neither scientific nor scholastic(· ·He
loved music, novels and courtly manners. · He became ·· qually
e
skilled in the Biscayan dances and the tough arts· Of··a soldier.
He knew no theology btit he was formed in· a firm ·loyalty ·to
the Church. We know-that this early education left lasting
traces. The first point of the ·Kingdom .meditatiorr, .· for i1is~ance, is certainly not thinking of any Remiissance · prince.
It is a Louis .IX, not a Cesare .Borgia · or Henry-·Tudor ·that
one must have in mind there.
.
. . ·--: ;~' .
. In all school history there can be few pictul'es at once·· so
odd and so significant ag that which . illustrates the. - tart .of
s
the second education o;f the former defender of Pampeluna.
He has undergone, of course, a spiritual transformation sym:.
bolized in
homely way by the reduct~on and alteration·- of
the resounding Inigo Lopez de Loyola to a plain Ignatius, No--w
in his thirties, he -is wedged into school . benches · with little
Latin declensions. For -eleven
Barcelona boys shrilling .the _
years he applies himself to the standard ·a~demic -r-eginie.
After Barcelona, a sort of hodgepodge at Alcala: . Terminos
de Soto, he told Father Gonzales, y phisica de Alberto, y el
Maestro de las Sententias. 6 . Finally, the orderly curriculum
of Paris: grammar reviewed at Montaigu; the arts at SainteBarbe, amid the humanistic breezes, and theology with. the
Dominicans at the convent of the Rue Saint-Jacques.:. ::But it
is important to notice that this -long ·program. was, ·.-for. st~
Ignatius, strictly- instrumental in character< In.tbe 'memoir
which he dictated to Father Gonzales, speaki~i: ~f liimse~
in the third person, he says: "When ._Ignatius·.unperstood .that.
God did not wish .him to remain at Jerusalem·, , h.e. :beg~ij .to
consider what he ·should do. The plan he approved and . ad~p~ed
a
e The original text of the autobiographical pages di~tat~d 'by
lg.n atius is ·printed in the Monumenta Historica ·Societatis: J~su:· Moitumen~a lgnatiana: Series Quarta, Tomus Primus, (Mad~id, · 1904) ; 'Tiie
lines above are found on page 70. There is an English translati·on::edited
by J. F. X. O'Conor, S.J., The Autobiography of St. Ignatius, . (N- w·
e
York: Benziger Brothers, 1900) but it is unfortunately often inaccurate.
:sL
�I
I
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
.I
11
was tO enter upon·a course.of study in order to be better fitted
'to save souls.'ir · It was no love of learning for its own sake
that inspired him_ an implacable devotion to an end ·which
bi.lt
leami~g might serve. .
.
· Unlike St. Bernard
It ·is this attitude, of course, wh-ch sharply distinguished
i
him from the huin~nii3ts-not oniy .from .a Bembo, . but also
from ·a n Erasmus. Father · Leturia reminds us that Erasmus
th~uglit. lovE:! of iette- ad~issible only si propter Christum,
rs_
btit one cannot Imagine St Ignatius talking_ about love of
letters at all.8 'ori the other hand, his attitude is also quite
unlike .thatof st:Bernard,. In the tenthpart of ·o ur Constitu7
tions ·we are· told t1u1t the men of the Socie.ty are to cultivate
diligently allthose human resources which will mak(! themuseful. - -T heir learning is to be exact and -thorough and they
·
are t6- ' acci~ir~ some eloqu~nce for -effective preaching and
teaching;· And if for certain people this notion of utilitas
seem~
profane the academe, still any demand for studies
and teaching wohld have appeared questionable to St. Bernard.
Monaclii rion est docere, Bernard said more than once, sed
lug ere. And he ~horted the clerics of his day:_ Fugite · de
medid Bcibylonis, fugite et salvate animas vestras. 9 But the
sixteenth c'e ntury was not the twelfth.:_and neither is the
twentieth. Jesuits are accordingly bidden to study the tactics
of the king of Babylo'n and to join battle with him. Besides,
the end 'of their ·soCfety is not only to look to their own salvation, but also to work Hrelessly :for the salvation of qthers.
In terms, then, of this academic profile Ignatius appears
again as a curiously independent figure, formed but not absorbed by each of two -~lifferent cultural traditions. Doubtless
his ability thus to overpass his milieu can be explained on the
psychological level' by the rriatchiess .intensity with which he
grasped a few pivotal supernatural truths and realized them
with unremitting . dev- tion ' in practice. Consequently, to .
o
schematize. .. St. Ignatius' _"philosophy of education" we need
.
.
..: . . .
.
to'
-
~~
The ·Aittobiogr-aphy of. St. Ignatius, r>p. cit., -pp. 80-81. :,
.
- s' t~turia, · Qp. cit_ ·p. -41, n. 58. .
9
··
Quoted by Phi_ippe D!!lhaye, ."L'organisation scolaire au Xlle ·
l
siecle," Tr~ditio, V ( 194 7); 227'-text and n. 14.
... · 1.
!
I
�12
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
only disengage these fundamental certainties and indicate
their relevance for educational theory. Such an approach is
not necessarily artificial for it is not inappropriate to think
of St. Ignatius under the formality of an educational theorist.
He has not bequeathed us, of course, anything like a complete
philosophy of education for there are many speculative questions which he never attacked. But he was greatly interested
in the education of character, in the making of the good man
and in this he shares the fundamental concern of all the
philosophers of education from Plato to Dewey. Every influential pedagogical treatise has been informed by a dominant
moral purpose and was written in the spirit of an ethical zeal
for the nurture of moral men. St. Ignatius would have approved of this inspiration if not of all the programs in which
it issued.
The mind of Ignatius is reflected, of course, in his own documents-in the book of the Exercises, the Autobiography, the
Constitutions and the Letters. One might comb through these
for details which could be sifted into our modern categories.1 ~
It is more important, however, to point out that all these constitute a rich lode from which our educational tradition has
long drawn and which we ourselves continue to mine. Many
problems may arise in a Jesuit school or university today for
which there is no detailed and specific answer in the institute.
Their solution is authentically Ignatian, however, if it represents the concrete application of that total tradition in which
we have been formed. Guidance in these junctures comes from
a man's whole Jesuit background and part of that background
is a central theme in the Ignatian idea of education which we
want to stress here.
Christian Humanism
If we were to isolate the essential facet of humanism it will
surely appear in .giving primacy-even a monopoly~to an
interest in man and this world, whereas Christianity, without
to To suggest but one example: the fourteenth annotation in the
E:eercisea which instructs the retreat director to have a care for the
particular condition and character of the exercitant will be cited as an
instance of respect for individual differences. It is, of course, though
St. Ignatius might have thought it simply basic eommon sense.
�IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
13
forgetting either of these elements, does indeed accent in the
first place an interest in God and the Kingdom of Heaven. The
characteristic problem of Christian humanism becomes, then,
one of harmonizing these two interests in what Pius XII has
called the synthesis of the living person. Now St. Ignatius
did not wish to neglect the humanistic values but he did have
a very definite notion of the part they were to play in that
total harmony. It is quite certain, I think, that for him all of
human culture is to be regarded as fundamentally instrumental, an agency not a term. For him, therefore, education
is a means and not an end. This is true whether education be
thought of as a product or as a process. An individual ought
to want to realize in himself the fruits of an education in
order that he might better serve the Divine Majesty, assist
his fellow men and save his own soul. A teacher should wish
to expedite this process for much the same reasons.
For those familiar with the Exercises and Constitutions
there is really no need to document this thesis. Tantum quantum, instrumentum conjunctum, means, service-you know
how distinctive and constant is St. Ignatius' employment of
these concepts. There is no sound intellectual, aesthetic or
physical value which he would exclude from the ideal education. With this in mind we shall avoid misunderstanding the
saint. When he tells us to find God in all things, we realize
that he is fully aware of the intrinsic values to be found in
creatures. He does not consider them sheer instruments-the
bonum utile and nothing more-but rather intermediate ends.
Neither is his view of education crassly utilitarian. He would
not let Lainez curtail Ribadeneira's Latin studies for the sake
of getting on more quickly to the professional business of
theology, because the intermediate goal itself was not simply
the acquisition of skills but total humanization. But granted
all this, it remains true that he would require every educational value to find its place within a wider context where
ultimately it is not terminal but instrumental.
Now this has some refreshing consequences for education.
It seems to me, for instance, that Father Ganss is quite right
when he argues that St. Ignatius was no blind traditionalist
in the matter of contingent aims and procedures. He wanted
a man's education to outfit him for a life fully and effectively
�14
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
Christian in both its individual and social dimensions. A~d.
he would hardly e:Xpect a twentieth cen.tury school to attempt
this by means of a sixteenth century curriculum: For as Father
Ganss puts it, he had "an instinctive h~rror of being entangled
in rules or traditions of the 'past which had ceased to be effective means to a preserit end, however good they may have been
when first drawn up." 11
· ·
Still, it is possible that viewing education as ultim.ately .
instrumental may leave us with a troublesome question: For .
isn't it true that intellectual and cultural values are inherently .
precious, are good in themselves and not merely as useful
tools for reaching something else? Of course they are, and as .
wenoted above St. Ignatius knew this and nowhere denies jt.
He simply does not address himself to that point for he surveys the terrain from an exceedingiy lofty elevation and. his .
dominant concern is with the final and total picture. ·Had he
adverted to this matter he would surely have agreed that no
man can consume his life in a chemistry laboratory or in
editing texts or~ simply in reading the dull but necessary books.
that every student has to get through unless, besides other
motivations, he is also sustained by an insight into the inherent worth of the intellectual endeavour itself. But if he
is a Christian, he will know too that within· the larger perspective this excellence appears 'as an intermediate good,
having about it the quality both of a goal and a factor. Within
the dimensions of its own order the simple furtherance of
knowledge is the sufficient end of research. But the man is
more than the physicist or historian or artist and his life is
not comprehended by his professional career. In the final
reckoning, the whole realm of scientific or creative work is
ordered as a means to a transcendant and absolute value~
Saint differs from saint and Ignatius warns us anyhow not
to compare them. We might, though, observe that since St.
Thomas Aquinas .was a great scholar as well as a great saint,
he will serve to remind us of the essential goodness in the
quest for truth, while St. Ignatius will keep before us an
equally pertinent principle by reminding us that the search
itself must be a service of the God of truth. Those.. who are
lazy or anti-intellectual will need to meditate on the instruc- .·
11
Ganss, op. cit., pp. 38-39.
�TGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
15
tion of St. Thomas. · Those who have already savored the reof dedicated scholarship need to keep in sight the
in~truction .of :st._ Ignatius. One of . the greatest Christian
sch.oiars
.our day has put it all very well . .In Christianity
and :Phflrisophy,. Professor Gilson observes .that piety · can
never .dispense ,\rith technique.
.
'
.
ward~
of
. •'To serve God by_.science or art, it is necessary to begin by practicing
them as if these disciplines were in themselves their own end; and it
iH difficult to make such an effort without being taken in. So much the
mot<! :difficult ig it when we ·are surrounded by a spontaneous expression
of -naturalism or,: to give it its old name, which is its mime· for all time,
of pa~anism, into_which society ceaselessly tends to fall back because
it has · neve::r; completely left it. It is important, however, to free ourselves !rom· it. . 'It is impossible. to place the intelligence at the service ·
of God without -r~specting integrally the rights of. the intelligence;
otherwise~ it wciulci 'n ot be the. intelligence that is put at :His service;
but still more is it impossible to do so without respecting the rights 6! .
God; :o~herwise, · it.. is no longer at His service that the intelligence
is placed.12
·
.,, ..
Condusion
An,d now, what of ourselves? We, too, live in a day of transition and in many ways a very desperate day it is. In our .
rosier moods we are fond of saying that it is a thne of great
challenges, but there are moments of dreadful perception
when we are apt to think that the challenging forces are only
too numerous and too cataclysmic while our resources are
much too few. You know, of course, that this problem can
only be confronted tranquilly within the precincts illumined
by the austere light of faith. But as we address ourselves to
all these tasks of the hour, let us recall the bracing example
of St. Ignatius. Father Jerome Nadal once jotted down some
personal recollections of Father Ignatius and I should like to
conclude by citing two of theseY Writing of the saint Nadal
said: Numquam rem assumpsit, quam non confecerit-he
never failed to complete any project he took up. Literally
this was q~ite true.- But in a symbolic sense it is not yet true.
-
12
Etienne · Gilson, Christianity and Philosophy, trans. Ralph MacDonald, C.S.B., (New York: Sheed 'and Ward, 1939), pp. 116-117.
13
"Acta Quaedam P.N. Ignatii a P. Natali," Monumenta Historica
Societatis J esu: M onumenta I gnatiana, Series Quar't a, Tom us Primus, .
op. cit:; p. · 471.. •
�16
IGNATIUS AND EDUCATION
Through the Society which he founded St. Ignatius took up
the apostolate of education, but it is not yet finished. The
hour of its consummation is known to God alone. But as the
sons of this great and holy Father it is our present vocation
and privilege to carry the work forward for the space of our
lives, and to do so in the spirit of St. Ignatius.
And what is that spirit? Its great components are well
known to you: the total abnegation, the ideal of serviee, the
all conquering charity. But set beside these another winning
characteristic which was the first that Nadal recalled. For
he remembered that to visit St. Ignatius was a delightful
experience, guaranteed to buoy up the most anxious heart:
Qui in eius cubiculo, said Nadal, laetissimi semper ac riBibundi. Great fissures may have been cracking Christendom
and the Church itself may have seemed in deadly peril from
the apostasy of entire nations. But as St. Ignatius bent
steadily to his labors in his modest office he was so affable, so
merry even, that the contagion was quite irresistible. This
is not the Ignatius of legend-this is the real Ignatius, the
man and the saint. May it be granted us to be worthy sons
of such a father.
FRENCH TRANSLATIONS
A French translation of twelve documents, drawn for the m011t part
from the Monumenta Historica Societatis Ieau and embodying lgnatlan
principles pertinent to contemporary Jesuit needs, has been published bj
Pere Gervais Dumeige of the French Scholasticate at Enghien.
Pere Dumeige also directed the translation into French of Father
Hugo Rahner's "Notes on the Spiritual Exercises" (WOODSTOCx ~.
July, 1956). This translation was of great assistance to the Fathers
who translated the "Notes" into English. Most of their supplementarJ
bibliography was taken from the French version.
�Four Centuries Of Inspiration
GEORGE BYRNE, S.J.
A few years ago, a Cambridge ecclesiastical scholar, Mr.
Green published Eight Studies in Christian Leadership. On
the Catholic side, he considered St. Augustine, St. Francis of
Assisi, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Ignatius Loyola; on the
Protestant side: Calvin, Hooker, Wesley, Temple. Eliminating one or two Protestant prejudices, we find his admiration
for Ignatius' work sincere. Thus he writes: "The bull
-Regimini militantis Ecclesiae-was a landmark in the
history of the Church. It established a religious society which
constituted nothing less than a living embodiment of the
Church militant here on earth. Loyal above all to the vicar
of Christ, the Jesuits were next in duty bound to give complete
and unswerving obedience to the General of the Order. A
successful soldier fights with undeviating obedience to his
superior officer, willing to suffer all the wounds and bitterness
of the campaign, asking only to fulfill his duty, 'for no reward
save that of knowing Thee.' If the Franciscan was the tumbler
of the Lord, the Jesuit was the mercenary of God, dispensed
from the duty of singing the monastic hours in choir, or from
the duty of wearing the monastic garb, graded according to
his spiritual efficiency and true vocation. It may well be
that more than any single man or woman he contributed to
the reformation of the Catholic Church and the reinfusion of
vigour which enabled her to face the future with delimited
numbers but unchastened enthusiasm. Arid this was because
for all his efficiency and moderation, Loyola always had his
mind and soul focused on the greater loyalty which lies beyond
the world. 'We must', he told Sister Teresa Rejadella, 'lift
ourselves up in true faith and hope in the Lord.' This was the
ultimate secret of Loyola's success.'' (Green, From Saint
Augustine to William Temple, pp. 92, 101)
-
An exhortation given at Milltown Park.
�18
IGNATIAN INSPIRATION
The earliest description of the Saint in an official document
is far from suggesting a founder's triumph and his canonization. In an indictment, sent in 1515 to the episcopal court
at Pampeltina; he is characterized "as bold and defiant; he
wears a leather cuirass and is armed with sword and pistol;
he is brutal, vindictive." At the time of his death, he was
said to be "a character whom no passion could taint; a master
of self-discipline whom the . last vestiges of selfishness had
left; a man who lived~ekclusively in the service of God." .How
did this wonderful trari"sformation come about? The evolution
is portrayed, line by line, in the Spiritual Exercises. In his
letter to Father General, for the fourth centenary, His Holiness the Pope says: "If the book of the Spiritual Exercises
was the firstborn of St. Ignatius, the saintly author can equally
well be said to have been the firstborn of those Exercises."
The new birth, with all its consequences, took place in his
hours of contemplation at Manresa, by the banks of the Cardoner. There, Orlandini tells us, he saw the Fabrica Societatis.
The general view took its concrete shape . and expressed
itself in the meditation on Two Standards. Father Mercurian,
fourth general of the Society, heard from the lips of the Saint
that: "In .the . meditation of the Two Standards, God had
placed before his eyes the plan and basis of tiie· Society." And
Ignatius considered the vision of La Storta as the accomplishment of the colloquy of the Two Standards. From this we m~y
draw two .conclusions very important for a deeper conception
of the Society.
..
On the one hand we have a sketch of the Society outlined;
on the other the humble search for the way to be followed.
The search extended over years, probing possibilities, and
forming what has been called the theology of the Magis.
Ignatius has but one will: to help Christ in souls. The rest
is left to the conduct of grace which unfolds little .by little.
We may record our Lord's words to His apostles: "I have
many things to tell you yet but you cannot bear them :riow."
One idea stood out in daylight clearness: it is necessary to
come to the assistance of .souls in the Church militant. . In
the Pope's letter referred to, this point is thus stressed:
"When Ignatius later composed the Constitutions and gave
them to his companions, his intention was not that rigid laws
�IGNATIAN INSPIRATION
19
should replace the living and life-giving law of interior love.''
From the vivid awakening of the supernatural outlook
four great principles dominated Ignatius: they are the heart
of the Spiritual Exerises, and the soul of the Constitutions.
The first is that of militant service: the Kingdom of Christ
and the Standards. The militant service is impossible without
discipline, so "the true and genuine progeny of the Society
should be distinguished by the mark of obedience." , But, and
it is the third principle, the obedience is one of love, brought
home to us by the name of Jesus, one of the substantials of the
Order, never to be sacrificed, without changing its whole
spirit. And the fourth principle is the aim and object of the
Exercises, and of the Company organized to carry it out:
to conquer one's self and regulate one's life by the determination of seeking and finding God's will. The words regulate and
determination stand out. The former knight-errant of an
idealized princess is master of himself instead of the pursuant
of glory in his own interests. The accepted idea of chivalry
was turned upside down: the fixed idea, "What new enterprise
can I attempt and carry through?" Opposed to it is Ignatius'
fixed inspiration: "What is the enterprise to which God wills
that I should address myself?"
St. Ignatius had discarded the office in choir. The conservatives frowned on him. Yet it is hardly an exaggeration to say
that with St. Ignatius, as in St. Ignatius, thought about prayer
reached its high-water mark. Two obstacles to perfect prayer
were removed: undue formalism and unbalanced mysticism.
Devotion concentrated on 'the life of our Lord: seq'llar te quocunque ieris: countless souls were stimulated to the unselfish
and unremitting service of God and man. The whole gamut
of the soul's powers was played upon to harmonize it with
the Master's own prayer: application of senses, sorrowing to
tears with Christ sorrowing, rejoicing in His great joy; reflecting back upon myself, and ending up in the way of the
genuine mystic: a complete answering of love to the love outpoured so that, as the nineteenth rule has it, "we may be daily
more fit to receive in greater abundance. His. graces and spiritual gifts."
What, then, dear Fathers and Brothers, is to be the fruit
in our souls of this fourth centenary celebration? The Pope,
�20
IGNATIAN INSPffiATION
himself a saint by general admission, tells us: "In these
troubled times Holy Mother Church asks the Society for sons
of the Ignatian mold. Under the standard of the Cross may
they stand firm against all the attacks of the princes of the
world of darkness. Loving and ready obedience must be shown
to superiors, especially the Supreme Pontiff. To worldly
desires, love of poverty must be opposed; to empty pleasure a
certain austerity of life and untiring labour; to the discord of
the world, gentle and peace-bringing brotherly love, love for
each other and for lllJ. men."
LETTER TO AZPETIA
I beg you with all my power and affection for the love and reverence
of God our Lord to devote yourselves to the honor, credit and service of
His only-begotten Son, Christ our Lord in that tremendous institution
of the Blessed Sacrament, wherein His Divine Majesty in His divinity
and humanity is as grandly, completely, powerfully and infinitely present, as He is in heaven. In the Confraternity that should be formed, let
there be rules binding each member to go to Confession and Holy Communion once a month, but voluntarily and without .imy obligation under
sin. I have not the slightest doubt that doing and acting thus you will
find inestimable spiritual benefit. In the early Church, all those of the
right age, both men and women, received the Blessed Sacrament every
day. Afterwards, when devotion had grown a little cold, they communicated every eight days. Then, a long time later, charity having much
more diminished, people went to Holy Communion only on the three
great feasts of the year, each being left to his own choice and devotion
to communicate more frequently, every three days, or eight days, or
once a month. At length, owing to our great frailty and infirmity, we
have reached the stage where Communions only once a year are the
custom, and we hardly deserve the name of Christians. Then let it be
our part for the love of such a Master and for the great profit of our
llOU}s to take up again the holy practices of our forefathers, at least in
part if we cannot entirely, by going to Confession and Holy Communion once a month. Should any wish to advance further, he may rest
assured that he will do so in conformity with the will of our Creator
and Lord. I end by begging and entreating you for the love and reverence of God our Lord to give me a share in your devotions, above all in
those of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and you shall always have in
mine, though poor and unworthy, the completest participation.
ST. IGNATIUS LoYOLA
�FATHER EDMUND A. WALSH
�--
�Father Edmund A. Walsh
LOUIS J. GALLAGHER, S.J.
Edmund A. Walsh was born October 10, 1885 in South
Boston, Massachusetts. His parents, John Francis Walsh and
Catherine J. (Noonan) Walsh, were Americans of Irish descent. He received his early education in the Boston public
grade schools, first attending the Bigelow School and afterwards graduating from the Rodger Clapp School in Dorchester. Somewhat in advance of his class, he entered Boston College High School at the age of thirteen. At that time the High
School comprised only a three year course; during his years
there young Walsh ranked high in all his classes, took part in
high school debates and in Shakespearean plays, and for his
second and third years was a member of the High School
track team, and locally known as a good short distance runner.
He was, however, anything but a short distance man. As his
future revealed, he went the full distance and achieved distinction in several different spheres of life in which there was
plenty of competition. On completion of his high school course
he decided to apply for Annapolis and to enter the Navy,
but his mother had something to say about that, and she
needed only to express her wish that he fulfill a higher ambition which he had entertained from the time of his earlier
youth. On August 14, 1902 he entered the Jesuit Novitiate at
Frederick, Maryland, and he was a member of the community
that transferred from Frederick to the new Novitiate at St.
Andrew-on-Hudson in January, 1903.
On October 19, 1952 Father Walsh celebrated his Golden
Jubilee as a Jesuit, at Georgetown University, and the number
of congratulatory letters he received on that occasion affords
us some idea of the diverse and numerous, national and international, projects in which he was involved during his half
century of activty as a Jesuit. On November 15th, 1952, the
Georgetown University Club of Washington held a jubilee
dinner celebration for Father Walsh at the Mayflower Hotel,
at which Archbishop Amleto Cicognani, Apostolic Delegate,
Rev. Francis Brown Harris, Chaplain of the United States
Senate, Rabbi Norman Gerstenfeld, General J. Lawton Collins,
Chief of Staff of the United States Army, and Honorable
�22
FATHER WALSH
Harold M. Stephens, Chief Justice, United States Court of
Appeals for the District of Columbia, offered their felicitations to the J ubilarian. The selection of speakers at this
dinner and the telegrams read by the toastmaster from former
President Hoover, from J. Edgar Hoover, and from various
foreign embassies and consulates, were other indications· of
the many and prominent contacts that Father Walsh had
made during the busy:'course of his active career. A few
excerpts from his reply to the congratulations tendered him
at this dinner will afford a summary sketch of his life.
I·
Sketch of. Life
. "It was my lot," he said, "to be born into the waning years
of the nineteenth century when life and social customs in
Boston were tinged with the roseate hues of a setting sun
condescendingly called the Victorian Age. · The times were
not violent nor hurried nor hard on the nerves. Every past,
I presume, seems~ slower in pace than every present. Distance
and the laws of optics do that to the human eye gazing on·
all receding objects: The horse and buggy, far from being a
reproach, were a symbol of considerable econ!)mic speed, not
to say of affluence, in my boyhood. The nights were illumined,
not by the garish glare of neon tubes, but by the softer glow
of gas jets, kerosense lamps, and Welsbach mantles. They
represented the best available products of that particular
stage of invention, and were far better than the tallow candles
and whale oil lamps that preceded them. In 1892 the great
World's Fair at Chicago and the attendant publicity made
us primary school boys conscious of Christopher Columbus.
We began to understand that America was discovered by an
Italian navigator in the employ of Spain, whereas we previously had imagined that the new world had been created
'
by Puritans from ·down Cape Cod way.
"It '\vas in August, 1902, that I first set foot iii the comfortable and leisurely southern city that housed the then unpro.:.
liferated Federal Government. Georgetown, a half century
ago, was simply West Washington, a tranquil suburb basking
in the sun. It gave small evidence in 1902 of the residential
destiny and the architectural renaissance awaiting it at the
hands of the real estate experts. That first acquaintance with
�23
FATHER WALSH
Washington was in the nature of a pleasant stopover on the
way to a still more characteristically southern community,
Frederick, Maryland, where I was to embark on my ecclesiastical studies in the Society of Jesus. Being displaced New
Englander in what Bostonians would consider the deep South,
I dutifully compared the comparables. Hence, I stood one
day on the bridge close to the house of the redoubtable Barbara Fritchie, and by the magic of memory recalled her verbal
shot heard round the world:
Shoot if you must this old gray head,
But spare your country's flag, she said.
I next staged in my mind's eye a concrete manifestation of
southern chivalry as the rebel commander gave his magnanimous order:
·
Who touches a hair of yon gray head
Dies like ·a dog. March on, he said.
One sceptical Yankee among us suggested that Stonewall
Jackson really held his fire because from where he stood he
could not quite see the whites of her eyes. ·Another, from
Maryland, quietly asked if it might not rather be that he was
economizing ammunition until he caught up with General
Lew Wallace commanding the Yankee troops then in hasty
retreat from Frederick Town.
"It was 1909 when I returned to the rapidly growing National Capital, as a young instructor at Georgetown University, to begin a residence of over thirty-five years in. this
community. There were periods of absence and residence
elsewhere in the ensuing decades-in England, Ireland, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Mexico, Holland,
the Near East, Iraq, Japan and, longest of all, in Soviet Russia
under Lenin, who miraculously escaped liquidation by Mr.
Stalin in one of his purges by conveniently dying in 1924.
Although these absences were frequent and sometimes prolonged, I believe I may truthfully say they were of the body,
not of the spirit. The spires and the clock-tower on Georgetown Heights were rarely absent from my thoughts and never
from my affections. My esteemed colleagues on the Hilltop
understand, I am sure, why Goldsmith's nostalgic lines came
often to my lips:
a
�24
FATHER WALSH
Where'er I roam, whatever realms to see
My heart, untravelled, fondly turns to thee.
I would be dishonest to the facts, and utterly insensible to
the influence of Georgetown University on my adult life if
I were to omit tribute to her place and to her share in whatever of merit you have discovered in the record of my years.
"I thank the disciplined b:.~t patient formation (of character), as exercised by rriy Order, founded as it was by a soldier
over four hundred years ago, which taught me to put first
things first, particularly to regard no man as fit for command
who has not first learned how to obey.
"I thank the venerable educational institution which has
harbored my presence, borne with my faults, encouraged my
projects, and always welcomed me back after frequent sojourns in foreign parts."
Father Walsh took his first vows at Poughkeepsie in 1904,
and after two ye_!lrs of classical studies he went to Woodstock,
Maryland for three years of philosophy. It was his proficiency
in the Greek and Latin classics that prompted his Superiors
to send him to the University of Dublin in 1912 and to the
University of London in 1913 for graduate .studies in Greek
and Latin. Previous to these special studies, and after completing the course of philosophy at Woodstock, he passed two
years of the regency or teaching period at Georgetown University. The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 found
him in the first year of theological studies at Innsbruck, in
Austria, and when the theologate was taken over by the military, he was among the students who were forced to return
to their native countries. In that same year his theological
studies were resumed at Woodstock, where he presented the
Actus Publicus de Deo Elevante et lustificante in 1918, two
years after his ordination to the priesthood. His second contact with Georgetown was his appointment there as Dean in
1918, and from that time until his demise, during a period
of thirty-eight years, his name was in the Georgetown catalogue. During his first year as Dean of Georgetown he was
called into the service of the United States War Department,
as a member of a board of five educators to co-ordinate the
studies in colleges taken over by the Government. This was an
�FATHER WALSII
R.O.T.C. project covering the entire country, and he was
assigned as regional director of colleges in New England.
On his return to Georgetown in the following year, he
immediately set to work planning a new department of education to meet demands in the field of international relations
that would develop as a result of the great upheaval of the
first World War. In this instance, his vision of the part that
Georgetown was to play in the future educational world was
nothing short of worldwide. The immediate result of his
planning and of his experience in the Army was the founding
of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service, in 1919, of
which he was the first director and regent. Two years later,
in 1921, he was in Paray-le-Monial, in France, approaching
the end of the year of tertianship, when he was summoned
to Rome to undertake the first of the great projects that were
to keep him engaged in foreign countries, at varying intervals,
for the next twenty-seven years. This was the beginning of
a series of global expeditions which resulted in his being
named an honorary citizen of five foreign countries. In June
of 1922 he was appointed director of the papal relief mission
to Russia and papal representative in that country. The year
and a half absorbed in this Russian undertaking directly
influenced every major project he conducted during the rest
of his busy life.
Apart from his work as an educator, a lecturer, and an
author, Father Walsh's life may be divided into a series of
international episodes relating to his life as a diplomat.
First Diplomatic Mission
The first of the diplomatic missions entrusted to him during
his varied overseas career was the most difficult and the most
precarious. After a five year period of war and revolution,
of famine and of the red terror, in which "scepter and crown
had tumbled down," the Communist Bolshevik government
was in the first phase of its contemplated domination of the
world. There was a famine in the land. The American relief
administration was endeavoring to assuage it. Under direction of Pope Pius XI, Cardinal Gasparri, the Secretary of
State, and his assistant, Monsignor Pizzardo, were negotiating
with the Bolshevik officials in Rome about sending a Papal
�26
FATHER WALSH
Relief Mission into Russia to assist in feeding their millions
of starving children. The necessary food supplies for such an
undertaking might be purchased from the Roumanian Government or from the American relief administration in Russia.
The direct purchase of food from Roumania would have been
costly, and its distribution over the vast stretches of the Russian famine area by papal agents would have been a cumbersome task requiring a numerous personnel. To affiliate the
papal mission with the· American relief administration, with
the privilege of purchase and distribution of American food
to papal warehouses in outlying districts, was more economical and much less difficult. At that time there were five
other relief organizations affiliated to the American relief
administration in Russia, all of which were headed and operated by Americans. A papal mission to Russia, made up of
men from five different nations, had to be directed by an
American- in order to secure the privileges of affiliation.
In February of 1922 Father Walsh was called from the
Tertianship at Paray-le-Monial, and directed to go into Russia
to make a survey of famine conditions and to arrange with
the director of the American relief administration for ·the
affiliation of a papal relief mission. He arrived in Moscow
on March 23rd and was back in Rome by May 3rd, after having visited the Moscow and Petrograd districts and the more
seriously affected famine area of Samara. Conditions were
more than serious. They had already proved fatal to more
than a million children. The question of affiliation with the
American relief administration required more time and travel
than the Russian survey.
Under President Harding all European relief was in charge
of Mr. Herbert Hoover, at that time Secretary of Commerce.
Colonel William Haskell was directing the American relief
administration in Russia, and negotiations for the affiliation
WE,!re carried on between Moscow, Rome, and Washington.
Father Walsh landed in New York on May 27th, presented
the Pope's letter to President Harding on the 31st, took breakfast with Mr. Hoover on June 1st, and delivered a second
letter directed to him from the Vatican, and the affiliation was
confirmed. Father Walsh and his American assistant were
both made members of the American relief administration.
�27
FATHER WALSH
No objection was made to ' the fact that the other eight mem::.
hers of the mission' were to be Europeans. The two Americans
arrived in Rome on June 28th. In the meantime the other
members of the mission were appointed from Italy, Spain;
Germany, and Czechoslovakia, ·and' arrangements were being
made for their entrance into Russia by way of Constantinople
and Odessa.
·.· .
To Moscow
The director's trip from Rome to Moscow was not without
its attendant difficulties. On the train from Warsaw to Riga
he was informed by an A.R.A. ·agent that Colonel Haskell was
very probably on the outgoing train from Riga, which would
stop at Janiskis to meet the ingoing train at . 2:00 A.M.
Father Walsh had planned on meeting the Colonel at Riga or
in Moscow. The meeting was important, so he decided to find
Colonel Haskell on the other train and to return with him to
Berlin. His assistant went ·on to Riga, in Latvia. It was a
hurried change . . The conductor of the train had collected .all
passports, as was the custom at the time. He very probably
could not distinguish one American passport from another,
and handed Father Walsh the first one he put his hand on.
On the following day Father Walsh's American assistant met
a fellow American to whom the conductor had given Father.
Walsh's passport on his arrival in Riga. On July 19th, after
a six day sojourn in Riga, the assistant received a telegram
from Father Walsh in Berlin, reading: "Proceed to Moscow
with baggag~having passport trouble." He proceeded as
directed and arrived in Moscow with two trunks and three
bags on July 22nd. Father Walsh reached Moscow four
days later, on the 26th, the same day that the eight additional
members of the papal mission to Russia sailed from Bari, in
Italy.
.
Realizing as he did that this particular mission · was beset
with difficulties arising from sources wholly alien to the feeding of starving children, the first duty of the director was to .
get his feeding program underway and operating. He knew
he was facing a spectre of famine that would haunt Russia for
a few years and eventually change its shape into a still more
1
J
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�28
i
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''I
FATHER WALSH
dangerous political and philosophical phantom. The large
sign painted on the Kremlin wall, "Religion, an opiate to the
people," reminded him that apart from feeding hungry children he had another commission, as vital to the Russian people
as relief from physical hunger. He was the sole agent in
Russia at that time of the one government in the world that
was diametrically opposed to the fundamental tenets of the
Marxian doctrine, upon which the Bolsheviks had already
begun to build a Communist government. To feed a quarter
of a million children in a dozen different centers, scattered
hundreds of miles apart, in a country where there were no
highways, and where railroad transportation had virtually
fallen apart, was a task in itself. To conduct such a mission
under the supervision of suspicious and inexperienced government officials who had to report on the movements of every
foreigner in the land was quite another undertaking. The
housing of agents, the transportation of foodstuffs and of
personnel, the opening of feeding kitchens and the distribution of food packages, the hiring of Russian help and the
opening of warehouses, all met with discussion and delay
while little children were dying of hunger: Despite the fact
that the Catholic Archbishop, the Patriarch of the Russian
Church, and a Jewish Rabbi, eighty-two years old and blind,
were in prison in three contiguous cells in Petrograd, and
apart from the fact that the government campaign of spoliation of the churches was in full swing at the time, interest in
church affairs had to be postponed in favor of the hungry
children. And yet, while inaugurating an extensive feeding
program in Moscow and in the Crimea, Father Walsh succeeded in negotiating' with the government to keep open
Catholic churches in Moscow and in Petrograd. It was about
this time also, in August, 1922, that Pope Pius XI offered to
pay in equal weight of gold for the holy vessels confiscated by
the government from Catholic churches in Russia, but there
was no response to his request. The Holy Father had already
made his first petition to the same government for the return
of the relics of Blessed Andrew Bobola, Polish Martyr, which
Bolshevik agents had removed from the Catholic church in
Vitebsk to a medical museum in Moscow, but, here again, not
even the courtesy of a reply was forthcoming.
�l<'ATHER WALSH
On August 2nd Father Walsh left Moscow for Novorosisk,
where the Vatican mission agents were scheduled to land
from Constantinople. Their itinerary, however, had been
changed and they landed at Sevastopol on August 6th. By
August 22nd the director was back in Moscow, having arranged with the local Crimean authorities for the opening of
a feeding kitchen at Eupatoria and for the transfer of the
mission agents to carry on relief work in other parts of Russia.
The long series of letters and documents exchanged between the papal relief office in Moscow and the housing committee of the city of Moscow, relative to a residence in the
city, which the government was to supply on application, is
only one evidence of time lost and of work impeded by dealing
with subordinate officials who worked and lived in utter fear
of their superiors. Negotiations with higher government
officials relative to church affairs in Petrograd were even
more exasperating. The director of the papal mission made
several trips to Petrograd, in an effort to safeguard church
property, to keep open the Catholic churches, and to have
Archbishop Cieplak released from prison. The Archbishop
was in prison when the papal mission arrived in Russia and
he remained there until nine months later, when he was summoned to Moscow for trial and condemned to death, together
with Monsignor Butchevitch. The Monsignor was executed
the very night he was condemned. The Bishop's sentence
was commuted to twenty-one years in prison; and the same
sentence was given to twenty of his priests. During these
nine months there was a continual flow of letters and documents between the Vatican and the mission office.
Difficulties
Only the experience of having attempted such a gigantic
relief task can afford an adequate appreciation of the difficulties encountered in establishing an alien organization in
Russia in 1922. The dis·tances and the weather that defeated
Napoleon are always present in a Russian winter. The national system of railroads had collapsed before the end of
World War I, and since that time not a spike had been driven.
Trains that were still running were whole days late on their
�30
FATHER WALSH
running schedule, and their engines were burning wood due to
a national shortage of coal. There were few inter-city roads
and no military highways, and the railroads were the .only
means of long distance travel and transportation. Automobiles
and auto trucks were a government luxury and the few .that
one saw were left-over American models from the war years,
or were brought in by the American. Relief Administration.
And despite all this, in additionto ·the added delays and interruptions caused by letters and even telegrams arriving from
Rome days and even-weeks after date, the relief work was
begun with incredible dispatch.
.
The general plan was to feed children in open kitchens and
to send out packages to needy families. The food package was
a collection of forty-nine pounds of flour, twenty-five pounds
of rice, ten pounds of sugar, ten pounds of lard, twenty tins
of evaporated milk, and three pounds of tea. Within two
weeks of its arrival in Moscow, the mission had sent out
four hundred and five of these packages, in response to requests sent in before the mission had arrived, by people who
had known of its coming. No distinction of race or religion was
made in package distribution or in the open kitchens. The
operations were further delayed by contradictory orders coming from Rome and from Moscow as to where the work was
to begin. Originally the Spanish and German members of the
mission were destined ·for Rostov and for Krasnodar, btit
when they ·arrived in the Crimea the Russian government
asked to have the entire Papal mission detained there because
of the famine conditions prevailing in that district. According
to their report, there were thirty-five thousand children in
that section threatened by famine. Directions from Rome
were to open kitchens in the Crimea with four men to direct
them, and to send the others to their original destinations.
One can gather some idea of the difficulty in following contradictory orders, from the fact that a telegram sent to the
mission from Rome and dated September 20, 1922 was delivered there in October, 1923. This particular telegram was
sent through the Soviet representative in Rome, who, in turn,
sent it to the Soviet state department in Moscow. Evidently it
did not fit into their plan for papal mission activities.
·
At that time also, there were thousands of orphaned chil-
�I
I
FATHER WALSH
31
dren wandering aimlessly about Moscow and its vicinity in
search of food. Who they were and where they came from,
no one knew. Dr. Golder, of the Jewish relief organization,
then operating in Russia, said that there probably. were four
million children between the ages of seven and fifteen, orphaned by the war, the famine, and the red terror, moving
about Russia in advance of pursuing famine. For the most
part they came into the larger cities riding underneath the
railroad cars. The Government was endeavoring to gather
them into barracks and warehouses and abandoned factories.
When the papal mission agents arrived in Rostov there were
three hundred of these children living in a factory which had
been stripped of its machinery. They were half-clothed, halffed, and ninety per cent of them were suffering from disease.
Nothing but the grace of God, in the form of American food
and American medical supplies, dispensed by the relief missions, prevented the outbreak of a plague in such unsanitary
conditions. By September 25th the director of the Vatican
mission could write to Rome, forwarding an account of the
opening of feeding kitchens in the Crimea, where three
thousand children were being fed once a day, and this was
only the beginning. One month later the Holy Father was
informed that the papal flag was flying freely in Moscow,
Petrograd, Rostov-on-the-Don, Krasnodar, and in various
towns in the Crimea. In other words, the feeding program
was under way and making progress.
Pots and Kettles
Due to a lack of equipment in opening their first kitchen
in Eupatoria, the papal agents had to build stone fireplaces
in the building assigned to them. These fireplaces were
fashioned to hold large soup cauldrons and the cauldrons, in
turn, were made from abandoned harbor mines found on the
sandy coast of western Crimea. As Father Walsh said at the
time, if swords have been beaten into ploughshares, so explosive mines originally intended for the destruction of enemy
ships could be shaped into pots and kettles for use in feeding
hungry children in Catholic kitchens in Bolshevik Russia.
The dozen papal agents were merely the directors of the
1
I
�32
FATHER WALSH
different stations. The detailed work of the entire operation
required a large corps of Russian employees: clerks, typists,
interpreters, translators, warehouse managers and chauffeurs.
All of these were indispensable adjuncts of a nationwide
operation that had to be conducted on businesslike lines involving purchase, shipment, insurance, storage, distribution,
and control of thousands of tons of precious food. This kind
of work required long_ and frequent trips to outlying district
stations, and travel at that time in Russia was no small problem in itself. In a stateroom of what had formerly been known
as a first-class car, one had to supply his own bedding, food,
and lighting. Sleeping bags, a primus stove, a basket of food
from the American commissary, and a large can of insect
powder were the ordinary travelling equipment. In second
and third-class carriages, one carried the same equipment,
but he slept on a board shelf, up or down, fully accoutered
fro~ fur cap to high felt boots, one of four in an open alcove,
and the other three were frequently Soviet soldiers. During
all their travels: which were long and frequent, no mission
agent ever reported a loss on a train. Railroad accidents were
common but not serious. On overnight journeys a train would
sometimes stop in the early evening on the ~dge of a forest
or near a thicket of trees, and the passeng(n•s were handed
axes and told to cut up dead wood for fuel for the night run;
The feeling of insecurity, an ingredient of the Russian atmosphere, was at times enhanced during train travel when one
experienced the very perceptible swaying of a heavily loaded
and slow chugging train over a decadent wooden bridge.
The complicated feeding program, with its three-way correspondence l?etween the Vatican, the mission office and the
Bolshevik government, would have supplied sufficient work
to occupy a well-filled work-a-day program. This, however,
was only part of the activities that were constantly increasing.
In addition to food, a request was made for twenty thousand
pairs of children's shoes, and clothing for as many children
and adults. Fortunately, the vast medical program being
carried on by the American relief administration covered the
districts in which the Papal mission was working. This was
all relief work; bodily and material assistance, and the principal reason for the presence of the Vatican relief mission in
�FATHER WALSH
33
Russia. The extra, more delicate, more difficult, and more
dangerous assignment, entrusted to the director of the mission, was the supervision of the interests of the Catholic
Church, in a country that was openly and avowedly hostile to
its very existence. The great spoliation of the churches..,Russian and Catholic-was still in process. Some churches
were being used for barracks and moving picture houses, and
others were being torn down under pretext of removing
obstructions from public places.
No Compromise
The Russian schismatic churches had already lost over a
hundred million dollars worth of sacred vessels, icons, and
gold and silver ornaments. The Catholic churches, less ornate
in decorations, had lost some hundreds of thousands of dollars
worth of similar objects. Every district that one visited_ in
Russia at that time had stories of Russian schismatic priests
who had been put to death. The great drive on the state
church was coming to an end. The Bolshevik government had
that particular religious element well in hand and under
control. With the Catholic Church there was no question of
control, because with that Church there was no room for
compromise. Here it was question of total eradication, and,
were it not for the presence of the papal mission in ·Russia,
the effort might have ·well have been successful. In the last
analysis, the anti-religious drive fell but little short of its
endeavor.. Apart from Petrograd and Moscow, in each of
which only one Catholic church was left open for worship,
there was no other place in Russia where the government
showed any hesitation in confiscation.
.
The religious controversy was rapidly approaching a crisis,
when in January, 1923 the government asked the Vatican
mission to -take over the famine-stricken district of Orenburg,
beyond the Volga, in the lower Ural country. The American
relief administration had worked there during the preceding
Year, but had to close its relief station and recall its personnel
because of co!ltinued interference by local Russian authorities ..
The salaries of Russian employees at relief centers were paid
by the central government in Moscow. The payroll was made
�34
FATHER WALSH
out at the relief office, and the money to cover it was delivered
to the relief office by the local representatives of the central
government. With this arrangement, and living conditions
being what they were, it is not difficult to understand why
local authorities, following the ideology of their superiors,
would try to control the distribution of food and the handling
of money.
The Amerian relief administration and the Vatican mission
both responded to the c~ll of twenty thousand hungry children
in the Orenburg district without question or condition, but
in doing so the director of the Vatican mission placed himself
in a dubious, if not in a precarious, position. Father Walsh
was a student of Marxian Philosophy, and after half a year
in Russia he was well aware of the fact that with Bolshevik
officials diplomacy and duplicity were synonymous. His later
writings are patent evidence that at that time he knew he was
taking part in the opening chapter of a struggle that eventually would affect every religious profession and every form
of government in the world. For the first time in history the
universal Catholic Church was face to face with a new kind
of civil government, set upon establishing its own universality by the destruction of all other forms c;f government,
and by the reshaping to conformity with its own ideas, of every
phase of human life. Even the phantom of such a regime
called for the elimination of the idea of individual liberty and
of God-given rights. The Russian Church already had been
compromised into subjection. What occasioned the second
flare-up against the Catholic Church in Russia during the
first months of 1923, was probably the fact that it did not'
and would not compromise on its fundamental tenets. Telegrams in code were passing between the Vatican and the mission office in Moscow, and the director was advised to make
every effort, except' a threat to discontinue relief work, in
order to protect the imprisoned Bishop in Petrograd and the
rights of the Church in Russia. Even the deportation of the
Archbishop, reluctant as he was to leave his people, would
have been a gesture of courtesy to the Pope, who at that time
was feeding thousands of Russian children, but courtesy has·
no place where injustice is dominant. That the director did ·
�FATHER WALSH
35
a
everything in his power became evident few months later
when the crisis caine, attended by catastrophe.
·
··.: .:
The American relief administration and the Vatican missioll:
despatched their agents to Orenburg in January, 1923. Within
a few weeks the spectre of famine had vanished, and by the
end of March thirty thousand children and adults were being
fed every day. It was in March also, and during Holy Week,
that the Bolshevik authorities in Moscow, after waiting until
the Orenburg threat of famine was under full control, struck
its lethal blows in the trials and condemnation of archbishop
Cieplak, of Monsignor Butchevitch, and of twenty Catholic
priests.
The relief station at Orenburg, beyond the Volga, in the
southern Ural district, was the last to be opened (January,
1923) and the first to be closed (June, 1923). It was operating
at its peak in April, the season of the floods, when the Ural
River rises and cuts off the hilltop city from the rest of the
world. Thousands of people from the steppes, across the
river, flocked into the city in search of food and shelter until.
the floods receded. The American relief administration and·
the papal relief mission had filled their warehouses in anticipation of the floods, and the refugees were cared for, in addi~
tion to the thousands of children then being fed. At that
time the package distribution center at Krasnodar was supplying food for fifteen hundred families, and the Crimean stations were feeding thirty thousand children. By the middle
of February, the Moscow central office of the papal mission
had despatched clothing to the various relief stations f9r
fifteen thousand children and adults. The number of people
being fed at that time was 90,000, and in June of 1923 the
overall and top figure for the Vatican relief mission was
138,000.
By June of 1923 the Bolshevik government could publish to
the world that famine conditions in Russia were at an end.
The American relief administration had closed most of its
stations and was ready to withdraw. With it no longer
operating, package distribution had to cease because all papal
relief packages were purchased from it.
A request from the government to the papal mission to con-.
tinue its work in the Crimea presented a whole hew series of
�36
FATHER WALSH·
difficulties, which were, however, attended by certain advantages. The diplomatic controversy that followed developed into
a typical Bolshevik paper war. Negotiations were still going
on relative to the release of Archbishop Cieplak and the other·
priests, and the Vatican was anxious to keep a representative
in Russia. Correspondence was piling up on the subject of
Church property, and the question of the restoration of the
relics of Saint Andrew Bobola had already been reopened.
The added difficulties ·connected with relief work in Russia
after the departure O'f the American relief administration
were patently evident. Food supplies would have to be purchased from Roumania, the cost of transportation to the
Crimea would be heavy, and the usual troubles connected
with the housing of agents were certain to be multiplied. The
terms under which the Vatican mission had been operating
with the American relief administration were ideal. The conditions under which the mission would have to operate as a
separate organization, as suggested by the government, were
prohibitive. The~ distribution of food and the hiring of Russian help were to be supervised by Soviet agents. The house
rental for foreign relief workers was exorbitant, and their
homes and offices were at all times to be _open for police
inspection. During all the time that the papal mission was
working· in Russia, the Director was aware of the fact that
the house servants at all the mission centers, and especially
at Moscow, were periodically summoned by the police to give
a detailed report of what was going on in the mission houses.
At one outlying station the two men in charge found out later
that the local police were kept informed of where they went,
with whom they talked, when they retired and when they
got up, when and what they ate and drank, what they were
reading. Fortunately, these two priests, working and dressed
as layinen, were exempted from reading the breviary and
spoke a language which none of their servants understood.
The newly suggested condition of police inspection would mean
all this, pfus the added advantage of entrance without notice
and search without warrant. These same conditions of house
inspection were dictated to the British commercial iniit when
it was first opened in Moscow about a year previous to this
time. In reply, the director of the unit said he would have no
�FATHER WALSH
87
objections provided the same conditions applied to· the Russian
commercial unit then operating in London. There was no
further argument on the subject and no police inspection for
the British. The Vatican was not in a position to make a
similar reply. There were Russian agents living in Rome
at that time but their residence was not within Vatican jurisdiction. When the Turkish Ambassador arrived in. Moscow,
in that same year, his house was exempted from police inspection, but four days after his arrival his Turkish servants discovered dictaphones in his office and in his living room. .He,
himself, told that story to one of the papal relief agents.
If the Russian government had not asked the papal relief
mission to continue its work after the American relief adminstration had departed, the Vatican would probably have made
a request to do so. The Catholic Church was then facing a
crisis in Russia and there was no doubt as to its outcome. It
was a crisis that must eventually terminate in an impasse,
not only for the Catholic Church but for Christianity in general. It was a situation hitherto unheard of; namely, the
total eradication of Christianity and the utter obliteration of
all religion, for the creation of an atheistic world ..
The great Russian state church, which took over the Christian inheritance from Byzantium when Constantinople fell,
was already submerged in the wreckage of the imperial state.
What heretical flotsam was left was now being gathered up
to be built into the new Bolshevik atheistic church, in itself
a contradiction in terms. This red church gesture was just
another compromise with the Russian people. It would take
a generation of atheistic education, perhaps a century of it,
to wholly erase the idea of Holy Russia, which over seven
centuries of state church had burned into the soul of the
nation under the Caesaropapist rule of tyrannical Czars.
Destruction of Religion
Competent historian that he was, and a diplomat or' long
perspective, the director of the papal mission realized that
Rome was facing a situation wholly different in origin and
purpose from any of the series of crises the Church had
weathered in the long course of its turbulent history. The
separation of Byzantium, resulting in the growth of the vari-
�.3.8
FATHER WALSH
OilS branches of the Eastern Church, the defections of the
so-called Reformation that gave rise· to so many Protestant
sects, and even the residence at Avignon, were. dislocations
cau~ing the dismemberment of unity and the increase of
heresy, but the heretics were still believers.
· Atheistic Communism was the first human endeavor to
d,estroy. religion entirely with the purpose of producing an
unbelieving humanity. The threat and the danger of such
a philosophy to mank~_nd in general, and the determination of
its advocates to force it upon the world, were afterwards the
topics of hundreds of lectures given by Father Walsh and
listened to, but never acted upon, by hundreds of statesmen
and politicians. Long before the Soviet satellite countries
were subdued, and far in advance of the Yalta Conference, he
endeavored- to persuade the directors of American foreign
policy that religion was the orily safeguard of morality, and
that morality, in turn, had no substitute as a protection for
national and international industrial and economic society.
Nowhere can we find a better forecast of the relations existing
today between Soviet Russia and the rest of the world than
in his writings. He was one of the first to warn the nations
that the Communist strategy to conquer the. _world would be
introduced by a camouflage of peace, followed by a cold war
of nerves, in order to build up the necessary military strength
for universal conquest. With him this was a logical but a
conditional conclusion-if the world were to hesitate and
compromise and continue to appease a philosophy which was
essentially evil in its conception. His warnings were sounded
long before Russia could boast of a military power ready to
face the rest of the world, and far in advance of the discov~ry
that frightened the world into believing that Russia might
realize her boast in the atom bomb.
The recognition of the Russian government by the United
States was granted, despite the views and the opinion of the
director of the papal mission to Russia, given to President
Roosevelt in the White House, on his personal invitation. It
was on that occasion, and shortly before the official recognition, that the President, after listening to Father Walsh's
objections, remarked: "Leave it to me, Father, I am a good
horse-trader." The disastrous trading took place later on at
�FATHER WALSH
39
Yalta between the President and the man who was the very
embodiment of all that was evil in atheistic Communism.
Yalta was the diplomatic undoing of an enfeebled President,
and his host became the great hero of Communism not only
in Russia but in the rest of the world. Some years later the
name and the fame of Stalin were declared anathema by his
own hirelings, who divided up his power, wiped out his glory,
and presumably rejected his policies, but they never had a
word of criticism for his dealings with the American horsetrader.
A longer sojourn of the papal mission offered little or no
hope of strengthening the tenuous hold of the Catholic Church
in Russia, but there were advantages to be had from a delayed
departure. Father Walsh went to Rome in late June and was
back in Moscow in early July with plans for continuing relief
work. Three whole months of correspondence were to pass
before any work could be done, and more of this letter-writing
was concerned with housing facilities than with feeding
stations. In the meantime, two more major projects were
still under discussion, namely, the surrender of the relics of
Blessed Andrew Bobola, and the release from prison of Archbishop Cieplak and his twenty priests. The decision to continue work in Russia may have had some bearing on the outcome of these two undertakings.
Colonel Haskell and the last of the American relief administration workers left Moscow on July 20th, 1923. Plans
were drawn up for the continuation of relief work by the
papal mission in Moscow and in Rostov. The station in Orenburg had been closed, those at Krasnodar and in the Crimea
were to be liquidated. What food and clothing were left in
the warehouses of the stations, already closed, were handed
over to the local Russian authorities for distribution. The
mission workers had to give up their residence in Moscow in
favor of an incoming ambassador, but no provision was made
for other lodgings. This particular difficulty consumed a whole
month of correspondence with two government bureaus, one
of which had jurisdiction over foreigners living in Moscow,
and the other over housing facilities, neither of them being
certain of just where its jurisdiction began and where it
ended. The mission agents were finally forced to take over a
�40
FATHER WALSH
house vacated by the American relief, until such time as
another one was assigned to them, at a much higher rent than
they had been paying up to date. ·Why they had to pay any
rent at all, considering the work they· were doing, was merely
a mystery of Bolshevik policy.
··
During these busy days Father Walsh had several conferences with Mr. Checherin, the Soviety Secretary of Foreign
Affairs, regarding the relics of Blessed Andrew Bobola. Checheri.n was an old-time ..Czarist diplomat who went over to the
Bolsheviks, hoping that he could do more for his people in a
public office than he could from a prison cell. He was well
educated, mild mannered, ·and soft spoken in half a dozen
European languages-a Bolshevik official who evidently found
it a difficult task to steer a safe course between his conscience
and his atheistic overlords. As one of the original founders of
the Bolshevik regime he succeeded in prolonging his career
until he fell a victim to the Stalin purge of 1937. ·It was
through him, however, and probably on his initiative, that the
body of Blessed Andrew Bobola was given over to the director
of the papal mission and afterwards transported to Rome by
a member of the mission, crossing over the Black Sea from
Odessa to Constantinople on a Russian freig~ter named the
Checherin. The story of that journey, the longest of the several Odysseys made by the body of the Blessed Andrew, is told
in the life of the Saint written by the same Jesuit mission
agent, traveling at that time as a diplomatic courier of the
state department of the Soviet Government.
Progress on the other commission was not so noticeable,
but r2sults were more rapid and more surprising. When the
mission agent, en route to Rome with the relics, arrived in
Constantinople on October 22, 1923, he was informed that
the Archbishop had been released and was then in Warsaw.
The reason for his release has never been divulged; the circumstances attending it were afterwards recounted in detail
by the Archbishop. On further investigation in Constantinople a rumor was heard, though it never could be verified,
that just at that time, October of 1923, the Soviet Government
was negotiating with the British government relative to mutual trading and tariffs, and that through the influence of the
British Labor leader, Mr. McDonald, a clause was inserted
�FATHER WALSH
41
into the trading contract requesting the release of Archbishop
· Cieplak. ·
· : A few days after the arrival of the relics in Rome, a telegram was received at the Vatican asking if the agent who
transferred the relics could return to Moscow and thus enable
the director to go to Rome for consultation. It seemed high
time ·to terminate relief work in Russia, and the telegram
was answered by asking the director to turn the Moscow office
over to the German mission agents, who had come in from
Rostov, and then to come to Rome. The German Fathers
continued to work in Russia for a few months after Father
Walsh's departure. In that short time the demands and restrictions placed upon them by government officials made it
impossible to carry on relief work. Famine conditions were
· at an end. The Papal Relief Mission closed its doors and the
last' of its agents returned to their native lands.
Second Diplomatic Mission
Father Walsh's second overseas diplomatic mission marked
him as an organizer extraordinary. Before 1926 there were
two Catholic organizations operating for the social, educational, religious, and temporal betterment of the area known
as the Near East. The Catholic Near East Welfare Association, founded by the Right Reverend Monsignor Barry-Doyle,
and the Catholic Union, founded by the Reverend Augustine
Calen, O.S.B., had both been making substantial contributions
to a common cause. Their work was efficient, but necessarily
limited because of insufficient financial aid. To remedy this
situation Pius XI decided that these two organizations should
be welded into a larger and a more generously supported mission of relief. The appeal to this end was made to Catholic
America, and on September 15, 1926 the American hierarchy,
at its annual meeting in Washington, D. C., put into operation
a complete plan of action and gave its approval to the extension and support of this work. By papal direction this new
organization retained the name of Catholic Near East Welfare
Association and, by appointment of Pius XI, Father Edmund
Walsh was named as its President. He was to work under a
board of governors, of which Cardinal O'Connell, of Boston,
Was to act as chairman and Cardinal Hayes, of New York, as
�FATtiER WALSH
protector. The other members of the board were Cardinal
Dougherty, Archbishops Glennon and Hanna, and Bishop
Hoban. The purpose of the new organization was to work
for the temporal relief and the religious welfare of the peoples
of Russia, Greece, the Balkans, and Asia Minor.
Perhaps the outstanding example of Father Walsh's genius
for organization is seen in the method he suggested to Rome
for the permanent formation of a relief society for the Near
East, and in the rapidity with which he accomplished results
relative to its financia1 support. His plan of operation was
presented to and accepted by the American hierarchy. In
order to launch the new enterprise financially, his first request
to the bishops assembled in Washington was to petition them
for a definite Sunday on which a collection would be taken
up in every Catholic church in America. The day agreed
upon was January 23, 1927. His second suggestion was aimed
at establishing a permanent income in order to secure the
future growth of operations. That could be done by forming
a society of associates among the laity. His goal in this undertaking was a million members contributing one dollar a year.
As president and director his office was accountable for· all
correspondence, printing, accounting, and re~ording. Within
the four months allotted for the work, this new organization
was completely established in every detail and operating at
full capacity. The chanceries of all the dioceses in the country
were briefed with advance notices, and from them every
church in the United States was notified several weeks previously of the special collection to be taken up, and of the society
of lay associates which Catholics were invited to join. Every
Catholic newspaper and magazine was contacted to publicize
the appeal, and the 23rd of January, 1927 furnished another
striking example of the response of Catholic America to a
papal request. The result of the special collection in American
churches was $1,05l,933.93. The interest of the lay associates
could not be determined until the following year, when their
donations amounted to the surprising figure of one-half of
the sum contributed on the day of the special collection. The
success of this rapid and efficient organization was such that
it merited a special letter from Pope Pius XI, dated October
3, 1928, to the cardinals and bishops of the United States, in
�FATtiER WALSH
which he says in part: "A detailed study of the financial
reports of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and
of the Catholic Near East Association fills us with admiration and gratitude and offers us real and genuine comfort.
We are filled with admiration by reason of the brilliancy
and importance of the success reported; with gratitude for
the co-operation on so vast a scale and with such great
effect, evincing, on the part of so many people of every
class and from every section of your immense country,
such generous and beneficent good will." It was in this
same letter that Pius XI mentioned the Society for the
Propagation of the Faith as the work of works, first and
supreme in its importance because it is the continuing
through the centuries, and in the whole wide world, of the
work of the Divine Founder of the Church Himself and of
His first· Apostles. It may be that at this time His Holiness
already was thinking of incorporating the Catholic Near East
Relief Society into the older and more widespread organization. The new society was well organized and operating
efficiently, and could supply the Propagation with an index
of half a million interested associates. The assurance of continued interest on the part of these associates needed more
than the annual reminder of a single director. It needed the
appeal of the united hierarchy which was forthcoming each
year for the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. Hence
it was that in 1932 Father Walsh retired as director of the
Catholic Near East Welfare Association, and that organization
was taken over by the Society for the Propagation of the
Faith, under the guidance of Cardinal Hayes of New York.
Mexican Mission
Father Walsh was called upon by the Vatican, in 1929, to act
as a special representative in negotiating with the Mexican
government in the church and state conflict of that year, and
after a short visit to the City of Mexico, the presumably
definite impasse was dissolved. This was the third and perhaps the most delicate of his diplomatic missions.
Of prime importance to the foreign diplomat is a knowledge
of the character and of the background of the officials with
whom he will have to deal. Some acquaintance with the Ian-
�44
FATHER WALSH
guage of the country he is about to visit is important, but
interpreters are plentiful and not too expensive. The history
of the country and of its people-of their religious, political,
social, and industrial development-is also necessary; but the
future of all of these is dependent upon the powers that are
making domestic and international decisions, and it is in their
philosophy of life that the visiting diplomat must be most
interested. Father Walsh went into Russia in 1922 primarily
to feed hungry childr.Elp, and, so far as that mission was concerned, there were only minor difficulties to be anticipated in
dealing with the ruling Bolshevik outfit. At that time the socalled iron curtain had already been let down against emigration of the native population, but with a hundred million of
them threatened with starvation it had to be raised for the
entrance of foreign relief missions. The Vatican relief mission
to Russia, under the direction of Father Walsh, fulfilled its
assignment in detail so far as the hungry nation was concerned. It would have been suicidal for the political overlords
to obstruct the organization or the efficiency of the relief workers. The added assignment of protecting what was left of the
Catholic Church and of .its hierarchy in Rt).ssia was quite
another undertaking. With a famine on the.·land, relief was
a vital necessity for the preservation of the country, apart
from its form of government. The preservation of religion
in Russia, which the government had already condemned to
death and crowned with thorns in preparation for crucifixion,
was a hopeless task in the face of opposition that ridiculed
even the idea of placing guards at its tomb to prevent the
hoax of a resurrection to follow. In 1922, close to the bridge
in Moscow, there was a boat that had been sunk by the revolutionists in 1917, leaving part of its bow above water, on
which one could read the name "The Hope of the People."
When the state turned turtle in the revolution, the state
church, the only hope of the Russian people, was also submerged, leaving only its name as historical evidence.
In Mexico it was a different story. Up to somewhat short of
a hundred years before, when the government took over the
schools, Mexico could be called a Catholic country, but neither
in Mexico nor anywhere else was the Catholic Church as such
ever identified with the state. Governments have been over-
�FATHER WALSH
45
whelmed in revolutionary storms, but the Bark of Peter, ev~n
when acting as a convoy to the state in a Catholic country, ·has .
never been submerged. There· was scarcely any . room for .
choice between the barbaric regime of Stalin in Russia and ·
the fanaticism of Calles in Mexico. In both countries the .
dictator governments wrote and altered the constitutions, and.
successive tyrannical governments altered and took exception.·
to the constitution whenever that would favor their political
policies, and this is especially true where religion was concerned. In Russia there was comparatively little organized opposition on the part of the people or of the Schismatic Church
to anti-religious and anticlerical legislation. Both the people
and the Church were at a disadvantage in having no religious
authority outside of Russia to defend their cause. Both the
hierarchy and the people in Mexico had the Vatican as a support. Ninety percent of the people in Mexico were Catholic
when President Calles was carrying on his campaign of
hatred against the Catholic Church, drawing his policy, as
he claimed, from the Quaretaro constitution of 1917. Surrender to Calles on the part of the Catholic hierarchy at that
time would have meant the disappearance of the Catholic
Church in Mexico. Here the people could organize, if not
in armed opposition, at least in protest, and this they did
in forming such societies as the association of Mexican youth.
When Calles as a candidate for office in 1924 asserted that·
he was an enemy of the sacerdotal caste, he saw that with
the backing of the Quaretaro constitution he could go far
toward wiping out the Catholic Church in Mexico, and he
was well aware of the fact that there were various elements
in the Mexican population that would help him in doing so.
During the Calles regime the Mexican government was
operating with the active cooperation of the United States of
America, but the Catholic people of Mexico, who had taken
a stand against Calles, were backed and encouraged by the ·..
Catholic Church in America and in the rest of the world. What · ·
happened in Mexico between 1926 and 1929 is part of the
history of the major persecutions of Church.
Archbishop Ruiz was driven into exile by the Carranza
Government ten years before, and a second time by the Calles.
regime in 1927, but he probably was able to do more for the ··
�FATHE:R WALSH
Church and for his people as an exile in the United States
than he could have done for them had he been permitted to
remain at home. When Calles consented to talk with the Archbishop in 1928 it must have been evident to the dictator that
the churchman had accumulated more than a little prestige
during his exile. The results of this conference were encouraging, but internal trouble in Mexico prevented the immediate
execution of any agreement. Obregon, the president-elect, was
assassinated, and the Escobar military revolt turned the religious as well as the economic and political turmoil into a
veritable chaos. In the meantime, Archbishop Ruiz continued
with his plans. After consultation with the Mexican episcopate he went to Rome and laid before the Pope the results of
his conference with Calles. This attempt at reconciliation
might at least open the door for further negotiations in the
near future.
That the existing Mexican constitution was written to
shackle the Church was evident in the reading. That it could
be changed for political purposes was already proved. That
certain parts of it might be interpreted to mitigate the bondage of external control in which the Church was then existing
in Mexico, was what the Archbishop was l_ooking forward to
in his next conference with the Mexican President.
To assert, as the Constitution did, that the Church could
have no juridical personality in Mexico, meant that there
could be no apostolic delegate nor any other authorized representative through whom the Church could deal with national
authorities. That alone was sufficient to render the entire
dispute a unilateral affair. The difficulty of separate states
adding their own anticlerical laws to the already restricting
federal constitution had also to be considered. If these and
other anticlerical sections of the Constitution could be con·
sidered for interpretation, it was hoped that Church and State
might come to an agreement that would at least establish a
modus vivendi for the church in Mexico. By April of 1929
the Archbishop had arranged for an interview with Portes
Gil, the provisional president. Apart from the Archbishop
himself and Archbishop Diaz, an extraordinary committee
of three was arranged to participate in the negotiations, and
· the choice of these three was made with as much caution as
�FATHER WALSH
discernment. The Apostolic Delegate to the United States,
Archbishop Pietro Fumasoni Biondi, interested the American
Ambassador to Mexico, Dwight Morrow, who suggested overtures for a settlement. Miguel Cruchaga, formerly Chilean
Ambassador to the United States, made the first overtures
to the Vatican for a new conference. It may be that Portes
Gil was influenced in favor of another church-state conference
by the attitude of the Catholics in the Serrano revolt, during
which the Catholic clergy advised their people to remain
loyal to the government.
The third member of the commission was Father Edmund
A. Walsh, who was commissioned to go to Mexico to review
the situation for the Vatican, and, if possible, to tone down the
extremists on both sides. The result of the meetings of Archbishop Ruiz and President Portes Gil would seem to prove
Father Walsh was quite successful in his mission. His brief
stay in Mexico before the first conference, during which he
made a survey of the existing conditions, his knowledge of the
man he had to deal with and of the opposition he had to encounter, as well as his knowledge of the past few years of
Mexican history, were sufficient to induce him to believe that
the most to be hoped for was an agreement that would permit
the Church to resume its activities in Mexico. With that there
would be some hope for the future, dependent upon the character and the attitude of those who would follow the present
incumbent in the office of president.
The public statement made by Portes Gil after his first
meeting with Archbishop Ruiz was encouraging. A modus
vivendi was finally agreed upon and established. The priests,
who were withdrawn from their churches three years before,
and were now widely scattered both in and out of Mexico,
were returned to their parishes and the churches were reopened. The Mexican people were again permitted to practice
their religion in public. The special commission had attained
its end, and it may be taken for granted that each of its members played an essential part in the negotiations that brought
it about. His Mexican experience is another example of Father
Walsh's fast and efficient diplomatic procedure.
More than once Father Walsh's busy life of writing and
lecturing was interrupted by a cablegram that was to de-
�48
FATHER WALSH
termine his activities for the following year or more. The· .
signal success of the Vatican relief mission to Russia in 1922 ·
and 1923, under his direction and for which he received .a ,
special citation of merit from Pope Pius XI, marked him as a ·
diplomat held in reserve for emergencies.
Iraq
For some years previous to 1930 the Catholic hierarchy of .
the different rites in the Middle East had been petitioning the
Vatican to open a Catholic college at Baghdad in Iraq. The
founding of such an institution was an undertaking involving
the solution of numerous and varied problems, some of them ·
involving delicate diplomatic relations. Such questions as
state educational requirements, the nationality of a foreign
school faculty, religious teaching, language, curriculum of
studies, entrance requirements, day scholars and boarders, .
had to be taken into consideration, as well as the important
questions of finance, building, and the selection of a proper
location for such a school.
The General of the Society of Jesus responded to the first··
request of the Vatican and accepted the undertaking with all·
its numerous responsibilities. His first call wa_s to the American provinces of the Society; and four men were selected as
pioneer workers, one from each of four provinces. One does··
not merely walk into a foreign country and open an American·'
school. There was a difficult terrain to be surveyed-the dispositions of the local Catholic bishops of various rites, and of ·
other religious leaders, the social and religious differences ·. ·
of a cosmopolitan public, and the ideas of the political, social, ·
and industrial leaders of the country, all had to be considered. ~·
This task called for an educator and a diplomat, and· it was·.
this involved and delicate commission to which Father Walsh··.
was summoned by an unexpected cablegram that detached · ·
him from his busy routine at Georgetown and sent him off, ..
first to Rome for initial briefing, then to Baghdad as a Vatic~n
agent. He arrived in Baghdad on March 27, 1931 and returned.~·
to Washington, by way of Rome, in May of the same year.
The despatch and the efficiency with which this preliminary
investigation was accomplished are evident from the imme:-.·:•
diate results obtained. The manner and the method in which
�FATHER WALSH
49
the commission was conducted are evident,. in the comment
made upon it, contained in correspondence between the Vatican and the hierarchy of the Middle East at that time. The
project of opening a Jesuit college in Baghdad was received
with enthusiastic interest by such centers as the BabylonianSyrian. episcopate, the apo_stolic delegation of Mesopotamia,
the Chaldean episcopate of Amadia in Iraq, the archiepiscopate
of Mosul, and the sacred oriental congregation. Not a single
objection was registered against it from the so-called Orthodox churches or from the religious leaders of non-Christian
denominations.
On this tour of inspection and inquiry the only major problem left unsolved, and that for a purpose, was the choice of
location for the future school. Father Walsh knew that he
was not to :remain in Baghdad and that the pioneers who
would soon arrive were coming to stay. They would live in
hired lodgings, and perhaps teach in a temporary school
building for weeks and maybe for months. In the meantime,
they could make a topographical study of the city proper and
of its surrounding localities, of their natural features and
transportation facilities. They were the ones who were going
to live there, and they would be. better able to select a location
suited to their present work and to their future projects.
With full assurance that the Society of Jesus could meet
the demands of the Iraq government and the requirements of
the ministry of education of Baghdad, Father Walsh's next
· interest was to form a corporation in America as a protective
agency for the new foundation abroad .. This corporation is
made up of American Jesuit colleges acting as a sort of holding company, to offer both moral support and representation
if such should be necessary. The legal certificate of incorpora... tion of the Iraq American educational society is now in the
files of the recorder of deeds in the District of Columbia, under
date of April 9, 1932. One significant item of exceptional
·foresight in this particular document is that the term for
which the corporation is organized is perpetual.
Another immediate requirement for the security and the
continuation of this educational project was the striking of
an authorized seal, that would indicate the purpose of the
· foundation of the colleg~ ?:nd represent thf} nmt-q?:l. AmE:!ri<:i\n
�50
FATHER WALSH
and Iraqian interests in its existence. To this end, Father
Walsh collected and studied the seals of every Jesuit college
in America, in order to avoid duplication of design and to
work out an original and an appropriate escutcheon. The
result of this labor is the present day seal of the College of
Baghdad and of the corporation under which it continues to
operate.
>Selling America
One important obS'ervation made during his preliminary
survey was the paucity of knowledge of all things American
on the part of the people of Iraq, which also characterized
their religious, political, and· social leaders. Here was an
obstacle that might delay the development of an American
college in those parts, and Father Walsh immediately set
about removing it, or at least reducing it to a harmless hazard.
The means he employed to overcome this difficulty undoubtedly
resulted in the development of closer relations between the
two nations. With the opening of the new school, American
books, magazines, and newspapers would be forthcoming in
time. The radio was not generally known to the common
people at that time, and television was not .as yet in vogue.
The problem required a rapid and an effective solution, and
his first step in this direction was projecting machines and a
collection of eighty-nine reels of films, illustrating every phase
of American life. This film campaign met with immediate
popularity. The people of Baghdad and of its surrounding
vicinity developed a friendly spirit of co-operation and of
admiration for American enterprise that went far toward
building up their enthusiasm for the opening of an American
school in their midst. They were proud of the antiquity of
Baghdad, but were amazed by the size and activity of the
younger Baghdad-on-the-Subway, known as New York. Many
of them had crossed the Syrian desert, but they knew nothing
of a Great Desert in America. Mountains they had seen to their
east and north, but the Rockies, the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone Park were simply beyond their imagination. They had
heard of and had probably seen the cedars of Lebanon, but
they had never dreamed of trees like the giant sequoia trees,
beside which their Lebanon cedars, probably of equal age,
�FATHER WALSH
51
were dwarfed in comparison. They were living· between the
Euphrates and the Tigris, but they could neither spell nor
pronounce the name of the great river that cuts the United
States in two. For some, their ideas of America were being
changed, and for others, newly created. Their eyes were being
opened to another world as they gazed upon American wheat
fields and cotton plantations, the printing of newspapers, and
the production of automobiles and breakfast foods, American
sports and recreation, road building and travel and churchgoing, and a hundred other urban and rural activities, occupations, and diversions. The opening of a new American school
in ancient Baghdad was something to look forward to with
expectant interest.
One unique item relative to the founding of Baghdad
College is that the college paper, The Baghdadi, is older than
the college itself. The first issue of this interesting publication
appeared aboard ship, when the first two of the pioneering
Fathers were en route to Baghdad to open the college, and
it contained the first of the very appropriate and amusing
free-hand illustrations that have characterized every subsequent issue.
The high school department of Baghdad College opened
September 20, 1932 with a faculty of four Jesuit priests. On
that day, of the 350 students who had made application, 103
were registered. Among them there were Chaldean, Syrian,
Armenian, Latin, and Greek Catholics; Russian, Greek, and
Armenian Schismatics; N estorians, Jews, and Moslems. In
1955 there were thirty-six Jesuits on the faculty, three lay
brothers in community, eighteen lay professors, and 720
students in attendance. The location of the college had been
well chosen, and new buildings appeared with the increase of
attendance and with the growth of interest on the part of
American benefactors.
The original survey for the American college in Iraq was
well and accurately drafted, and drawn to a scale which
Father Walsh envisioned as the natural development of an
educational endeavor in the hands of his fellow Jesuits. During the years of its progress he watched its growth from various distant corners of the world, where he was engaged on
�52
FATHER WALSH
other special missions for the Society of Jesus and for the
Church in general.
Nuremberg
The decade that followed his visit to Baghdad was a period
crowded with classroom activities, with writing and with
public lecturing. In 1935, and again in 1939, he was a visiting
lecturer at the Academy of International Law, at The Hague,
in Holland. In 1942 he was appointed consultant and lecturer
of the war departme~t of the United States Army, and in
1945 he returned to Germany as consultant to Justice Jackson,
the United States Chief of Counsel, at the trials of the Nazi
war lords in Nuremberg. During this sojourn in Europe he
spent much time interviewing the Catholic bishops and priests
of Germany and Austria relative to the persecution of religion
during the Hitler regime. It was during this period also that
he had occasion to visit and to question Major General Karl
Haushofer, Hitler's teacher and the outstanding exponent of
Nazi geopolitics. His book, Total Power, published in 1949,
is chiefly based upon his experience in Nuremberg.
Father Walsh's last diplomatic mission took him to the
other side of the world, which he had not as yet visited. From
November, 1947, to April, 1948, he was acting as visitor
general for the reorganization of the Society of Jesus in
Japan, after the second World War.
At that time the Jesuits in Japan were mostly German,
working on a foreign mission attached to the Province of
Lower Germany. During the war, as nationals of an allied
country, they were unmolested and permitted to carry on
their apostolic labors as missionaries in the outlying country
and as educators in the University of Sofia, in Tokyo. American Jesuits in the Philippine Islands, on the contrary, were
put into concentration camps after the conquest of the Islands
by the Japanese,· and were left there until released by the
American troops after the reconquest of the Islands.
From the time of Xavier's entrance into Japan in 1549
until the beginning of the great persecution in 1596, Japan
had become what was known as the flourishing garden of
Christianity. In 1591 there were· a hundred and thirty-four
Jesuits in Japan and three hundred thousand Christian Japa·
�FATHER WALSH
53 .•
nese.. The Church suffered its first blood bath in Japan in
1596-97 and a second and greater one in 1622, both in Nagasaki, the very town that was destroyed by the atom bomb in
1945. The systematic destruction of Christianity began in 1624
under the Shogun Yemitsu, and, forty years later, to all appearances the Catholic Church in Japan was actually defunct .
Over two hundred and thirty years later, in 1858, when Perry .
persuaded Japan to adopt an open door policy, and when in
1859 the French refused all trade with Japan unless the door
was also open to Christian missionaries, the first missionaries
to enter found that some of the Japanese still had retained the
fundamentals of the Catholic faith.inherited from their forebears. In 1884 it was officially decreed that there was no state
religion, and in 1889 the new constitution gave authentic rec:. ·
ognition to religious liberty. In 1908 there were 62,000 Catholic
Japanese, and in 1948, 120,000; and 70,000 of these, living in
Kyushu, were descendants of the old-time Christians.
It is only to be expected that during a world war communications between the superiors of religious orders, residing
in Rome, and their missionaries laboring in countries involved
in the war, should be reduced to a minimum, if not cut off
entirely. During the period of the second World War it could
be taken for granted that the status of the Jesuits in Japan
relative to the government would not be greatly altered, but
their missionary and educational work was undoubtedly interrupted. Its continuance and advancement were dependent
upon the outcome of the universal conflict, and nothing more
promising for its progress could have happened than the
American occupation under General MacArthur. That was
an epoch-making event, bringing a new freedom to the people
and to the spread of Christianity in Japan.
To Japan
With a detailed knowledge of what was happening at the
various Jesuit centers in Japan, the General of the Society
could more easily draw up plans for the future development
of their work. Two of the Jesuit centers, Nagasaki and Hiro- ·
shima, had been wiped out by atomic bombs, and the activities
at the other stations· had been adapted to war conditions. In ·
such circumstances it is not uncommon for the General· of the·.
�54
FATHER WALSH
Society to appoint a man with the title of visitator, or official
visitor, to go to a mission or to a province, or even to a whole
assistancy, to investigate the activities of the Society in that
region and to report to him what changes, legislation, or
regulations would, in his estimation, be beneficial to the welfare of the Society. It was such an appointment as this; in
1947, that sent Father Walsh on his first trip to the Far East.
Traveling by plane, Yia Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, he
arrived in Tokyo on 'November 10, 1947, where he was met
by General MacArthur, whose courteous attention during his
stay in Japan expedited his travel along the full length of
Honshu and north to Hokkaido.
Before his departure, and in anticipation of public lectures
and newspaper conferences, he made an intensive study of
the political, economic, industrial, and religious phases of
post-war Japanese life. The development of the University
at Tokyo and of the High School at Yokahama, and particularly the gro\Yth of the outlying missions, would be intimately
connected with the living conditions of the people and with
the government's efforts for rehabilitation.
Apart from the University of Tokyo, there were at that
time in Japan under Jesuit direction tw.~nty-six stations,
ranging along the full length of the main -is1and of Honshu,
and extending north to Sapporo on the island of Hokkaido.
Operating the Mission Stations there were seventy-one priests,
seven scholastics and nine lay brothers. During his six
months' stay in Japan Father Walsh visited all of these stations, spending a longer time at the larger centers of Tokyo,
Yokahama, Hiroshima, Kobe and Nagasaki. His first public
lecture was given at the Japan industry club, on the future
of Japan, during which he emphasized the necessity of a
proper recognition of moral and spiritual values for the rebuilding of the ,country. The Nippon Times, published in
English, and several of the Japanese papers carried the full
text of his lecture.
One important conclusion drawn from his general survey
was the necessity of attacking the most difficult problem facing all foreign missionaries in Japan; namely, the acquisition
anu the mastery of the Japanese language. His solution to
this problem was the establishment of a native language school
�FATHER WALSH
55
in Yokosuka, which all incoming missionaries not sufficiently
acquainted with the language would be obliged to attend for
two or three years, or until they had acquired sufficient knowledge of the language to teach and to preach in Japanese. This
was really a return to the method of Matteo Ricci who learned
to read, write, and speak Chinese like a mandarin.
Progress
Evidently the work of the Jesuits in Japan was making
considerable progress, despite the disadvantages of post-war·
conditions. Within two years of Father Walsh's visitation
the status of Japan was changed from a mission to a viceprovince, and the General of the Society was calling for .
volunteers for the growing, if not as yet flourishing, garden
of Christianity.
The three great opportunities for the development of Christianity in Japan had their beginnings, first, in the coming
of Xavier in 1549; secondly, with the return of Christian missionaries on the adoption of the Open Door Policy in 1858;
and lastly, with the close of the Second World War and the
establishment of American occupation. The first epoch saw
the Catholic Church grow to nearly half a million Christians,
but this flourishing garden was well nigh eradicated by several centuries of persecution. In the second period the Church
developed to nearly a quarter of a million members, seventy
thousand of whom were descendants of the old-time Christians.
In 1947 there were almost ten thousand Catholics less than
in 1939, just before the war. This loss was due, in part, to the
change in status of the islands of Oshima and Okinawa and
in part to the number lost in the war.
Working in close harmony with all the clergy in Japan was
the rehabilitation committee of the Catholic Church. This
Was a private organization of nine members, lay and clerical,
established by direction of the Hierarchy of Japan, with
Father Bruno Bitter, former president of the University in
Tokyo, as chairman. The purpose of the committee was the
execution of all measures to facilitate the rehabilitation of
institutions of the Catholic Church in Japan, and to direct
or assist essential activities relating to the general rehabilitation. In such issues as foreign missionaries entering or leav-
�56
FATHER WALSH
ing Japan, permission to travel in Japan, health requirements,
the importation of building material and food, this coinmittee ·
operated under the laws and regulations published by the
American High Command, and the Catholic military chaplain
of the district of Tokyo was a member of the Committee.
During his stay in-Japan Father Walsh did much to cement
relations between this committee and the government of
occupation. A unique example of the problem of importation
is recorded in the fact ..that after the Japanese surrender, the
catechism, prayer books, and the Bible were entirely out of
print, and that, at a time when unheard of numbers of people
were asking for instruction. The problem was a supply of
paper which had to be imported from abroad. The petition to
the Stiprenie Command to import sufficient paper to meet the ·
demand for religious books was graciously granted, but it
was soon discovered that evert in America it was extremely
difficult to buy paper for· export to Japan. · Finally, through
the head -of the_Belgian liaison mission, 150 tons of paper
were sent to Japan in six different shipments. ·This paper
was used for the printing of prayer books, catechisms, and
Bibles. In such instances,- the presence of one who is well
known at the foreign embassies in WashingtOn can be duly
appreciated.
Father Walsh's visit to Japan had to do' with only one of the
nine religious orders of men then operating in Japan and during his limited sojourn he contacted every one of the 114
Jesuits in the country. The opening talkof the visitation was
given at the University of Tokyo on November 21, 1947, and
repeated in substance, with local modifications and applica- ·
tions, at all the other houses visited. In February of 1948 at a
three day session, the lOth, 11th; and 12th, he met with all the
superiors, and many other Fathers of long experience in Japan,
to discuss the state. of the Church in Japari, and the particular
educational and missionary tasks of the Jesuits. The papers .
read by several of the Fathers at this meeting were discussed
in open session.
Father Walsh's reputation had preceded him to Japan.
He had known General MacArthur in Washington when the·
General was Chief of Staff, and his frequent lectures at the
War College and at Leavenworth made him known to manY
�FATHER WAi.Sll
5'7
of ·the Army personnel then stationed in Japan. He was
tendered a public reception in Tokyo, at which many of the
prominent Japanese officials and of the high ranking Ameriican Arniy officers were present. At this reception he spoke on
the future of Japan, emphasizing the fundamental needs of a
people who were searching for new spiritual ideals. The full
text of this address was carried by several Japanese papers.
His varying addresses, such as the one he gave to the Far
East Air Forces in Tokyo at the Dai Ichi auditorium, dealt
mainly with geopolitics, a subject on which he was a recognized authority. In his volume Total Power, published in
1948 after his return from Japan, treating mostly of Nazi
geopolitics, he gives a summary account, in an epilogue, of
the collusion of Japan with Nazi Germany just prior to the
attack on Pearl Harbor. He had been present at the Nuremberg trials in Germany in 1945, and he was lecturing on
geopolitics for the three years following. His writings and
his addresses reveal a full knowledge of Japanese as well as
of Nazi and Russian geopolitics, and the fact that he spoke
freely and publicly on geopolitics in Tokyo without a single
disparaging reference to Japan is a tribute to his sagacity as .
a missionary and a diplomat. In the official entrance papers
issued to him by American Army Headquarters his occupation
is listed as missionary.
Ort his return to Rome by plane via Hong Kong and New
Delhi, India,· he addressed Father General's Curia in French
on the status and the outlook of the Society in Japan, made
his official report to Father General, and returned to America
from England on the U. S. liner America, sailing from Southampton on Friday, April 23, 1948. On this particular mission
Father Walsh went around the world.
International Influences
Someone once remarked of Father Walsh that he was internationally minded. The influence on a man's career of the
international happenings that took place during his school
Years might be discerned from a cursory review of his career
in retrospect. The so-called policy of American imperialism is
usually dated from the treaty of Paris in 1898. It was in that
Year that Father Walsh saw Dewey's fleet enter Boston
�FATHER WALSH
Harbor. Later on he thought of joining the Navy, and in after
years he wrote a book on the merchant :marine and was a
faculty member of a merchant marine institute. From that
time on, also, the United States became involved in disputes
with countries in which the most important episodes of Father
Walsh's life were enacted. The Boxer Insurrection and the
breakup of China in 1900 involved England, Germany, Russia,
France, and Japan, in all of which countries he was to operate
later on. One might imagine that international affairs had
the career of a man who was busy
little or no influence
pursuing a course of studies in a religious order. Peace time
altercations between nations are frequently prefatory notices
of future wars; and wars in general, particularly world wars,
are disruptive of every phase of life, not excepting the activities of religious orders. In fact, such interruptions and upheavals frequently have gone far to shape the educational and
missionary plans, not only of individual members but of an
entire order. F~ther Walsh was at his studies in Innsbruck,
in Austria, when World War I broke out, and had to make a
hurried and precarious exit through Italy. Years later he
was to return to Austria and to Germany to be present at the
trials of the Nazi military leaders. It was war_.that interrupted
his studies and started moving him about, and it was war
and the aftermath of war that kept him moving across the
Atlantic again and again in ocean liners, over all of the
United States and Europe and the Near East, by train and by
plane, and finally around the world. When not engaged in
foreign operations, his whole time was taken up teaching,
lecturing, and writing about the interrelations of warring
nations. At the close of the second universal conflict he was
called upon by the government to lecture at the War College
and at various Army centers, as an expert on the theory and
the practice of martial geopolitics. In this same capacity he
completed a lecturing tour on international relations, which
took him to thirty Army camps and officers training schools
covering posts between Fort Riley, Kansas and Fort Ethan
Allen, in Vermont. For several years, also, he was regular
civilian lecturer to the finishing officers classes at the command and general staff school at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas,
and at the judge advocate general's school at the University
on
�FATHER WALstt
1>9
of- Michigan. During 1933 and 1934 he served as director of ,
language and area studies of the armed specialized training
program at Georgetown, and in the post-Second-World-War
period he lectured frequently at the air university, Maxwell
Field, Alabama. In 1945 he became with Professor Chamberlain of Columbia University the co-founder of the institute of world polity, an organization connected with the
Georgetown School of Foreign Service, and devoted to the
discussion and systematic research of questions affecting international relations and the foreign policy of the United
States. He was a member of the President's advisory commission on universal military training, and also a member
of the President's committee on religion and welfare in the
armed forces. In 1935 he was, as mentioned above, lecturing
at the academy of international law at The Hague, in Holland,
to which he returned for a second series of lectures in 1939.
As a recognized authority on Communism in general he gave
more than a thousand lectures, including his widely attended
public lecture courses in Washington.
As founder of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service,
Father Walsh was not only interested in every phase and angle
of its work, but spent the greater part of his very active life
in the actual and practical service for which the school was
educating its student body. The necessity and the demand
for a greater knowledge of foreign languages in America
developed in step with the entanglement of international relations during the period between the two world wars, and it
quickened its pace with the growth of Communism and the
organization of the United Nations. To meet these emergencies the linguistic phase of international contact and of American foreign service was first answered by the Institute of
Languages and Linguistics of Georgetown University, which
was initiated and developed by Father Walsh in 1949.
Reputation
Thus far we have merely enumerated the outstanding accomplishments of a life of ceaseless activity of fifty years in
the Society of Jesus. Father Walsh was nationally and internationally known as an ecclesiastical scholar, as an educator,
historian, lecturer, diplomat, and author. As a writer, his
�60
FATHER WALSll
English style is purely classical, his grammar ever precise,
his· choice of words exact and accurate, and his vocabulary
astoundingly large. His Latin letters also are examples of
precision and of style. He spoke French and German fluently
and corresponded in both languages with equal ease. From
his high school days Father Walsh had an insatiable thirst for
knowledge, and his retentive memory stored up an exceptional
collection of quotation~ from the Latin and Greek classics and
from the plays of Shakespeare, which he continually and very
aptly used in conversa'tion, in his lectures, and in his writings.
After a day spent in Athens with Dr. Robert Finley, a wellknown classical scholar of his time, the Doctor told Colonel
Haskell that he had not begun a single quotation from the
Greek classics which Father Walsh did not terminate. He was a
student of history, and particularly so of comparative political
history, by which his books and lectures are illuminated with
the clarity of stereopticon views.
Father Wals.b's books are accepted as standard works on
the various subjects with which they are concerned, and they
are still being quoted by leading experts in the different fields
they undertake to survey. The story of thirty-four years of
his busy life is traced in detail in his four _classical volumes,
which constitute one of the most reliable sources available of
American foreign relations between the years 1917 and 1951.
Two of his books, written in French, Les principes fondamentaux de la vie internationale and L' evolution de la Diplomatie
aux Etats-Unis, are reprintings of his lectures given at The
Hague. In 1944 he collaborated with a group of epecialists
in preparing a volume entitled Compass of the World, contributing the chapter on geopolitics and international morals,
and he was co-author with William S. Culbertson of Political
Economy of Total War. His four larger works were the
separate results of what might be styled the four major episo·
des of his varying career. His writing kept apace with his
lecturing.
In connection with the overseas department of the School
of Foreign Service he wrote Ships and National Safety in
1934, and in 1935 his one short story, The Woodcarver of
Tyrol, was selected as one of the best Catholic short stories
of the year.
�FATHER WALSH
61
His first large volume, The Fall of the Russian Empire,
marked him as an accurate historian and a keen analyst of
international diplomacy and politics. His sojourn in .Russia
as director of papal relief brought him into every corner of
European Russia and also into intimate contact not only with
the Russian people, but with every phase and department of
the Marxian revolutionary government, at that time in the
process of formation. The study and analysis of what he actually experienced during a year and four months of immediate negotiation with the new masters of the Kremlin
resulted in his being recognized as a standard authority on
Marxian philosophy. During the period that intervened between his return from Russia and the appearance of The
Fall of the Russian Empire he was continually engaged in
public lectures, endeavoring to awaken the American people
in general, and their politicians and educators in particular,
to the true nature and to the imminent danger of Communism.
In connection with this effort, which might be cited as the
fundamental purpose of all his writing and lecturing, in his
latest book published in 1951 he gives us a very enlightening
account of his two conferences with President Franklin D.
Roosevelt, relative to the recognition of Soviet Russia by the
United States of America.
"The Fall of the Russian Empire"
Apart from being perhaps the finest sample of Father
Walsh's literary style, The Fall of the Russian Empire is a
unique historical document which future historians will consult for several reasons. His character analysis of the chief
actors in the revolution of 1917, and in the counterrevolution,
affords us a factual foundation for the historical causes of
the collapse of the Czarist regime in Russia. The revolution
wa~ still rumbling when he arrived in Russia, and he had the
decided advantage of actually contacting some of the leading
characters of the great upheaval, and of interviewing people
who had known the more prominent victims already fallen
prey to its ferocity. His dramatic account of the pathetic
Passing of the imperial family was probably the first authentic
description in English of the woeful tragedy that brought
the Romanov dynasty to its lamentable end. Of this book one
�62
FATHER WALSH
literary critic remarked: "This history reminds us of two
other studies: Gibbon on Rome and Carlyle on the French
Revolution. It is as painstaking, as well-documented, and as
scholarly as the former; as dramatic, lively, and impassioned
as the latter."
The military and political manoeuvering that took place in
Russia before and just subsequent to the signing of the treaty
of Brest Litovsk is still historically obscure. The story of that
brief but very impor.tant period is the very keynote of the
history of the Russian Revolution, which was destined to
affect every country in the world. The story of this period
is nowhere better outlined than in The Fall of the Russian
Empire. Philosopher that he was, the difficult undertaking of
endeavoring to stem a famine set him to reasoning on the
causes that had brought about the terrible plight of a mighty
nation, and his account of the passing of the Russian Empire
was the immediate result of this absorbing study. As an
historical document it will stand as invaluable; as an example
of historical literary style it has few rivals in the English
language.
The second of his four larger books is entitled The Last
Stand. It begins where The Fall of the R-ussian Empire left
off, namely, with the exit of Kerensky and- the entrance of
Lenin. This volume is an interpretation of the first of Russia's
five year plans. In it we have a thorough analysis of the task
of Lenin, and of those who were to succeed to his Marxian
mantle, in fashioning a Communist dictatorship out of the
charred and scattered debris of Russia's imperial regime.
After outlining the origin and scope of the first five year
plan, he explains the working of the plan in· Russia and its
effects on the outside world. His vivid eyewitness account of
the modus operandi of the plan on the religious front is a
trenchant account of the first great onslaught of atheistic
materialism against religion in general and Christianity in
particular. As an historical account of this particular phase
of the plan, this section of the book is penned with force and
accuracy. The author's evidence was firsthand and visual,
and the scenes of religious persecution he describes are strictly
true and fairly related. In the foreword to this book he says:
"The title of this volume The Last Stand should not be mis·
�FATHER WALSH
63
understood as prejudging the issue or forecasting the events.
The final stand of an embattled army does not always mean
catastrophe. A last trench may hold simply because there
is no other, as the French held at the Marne and snatched
victory from the jaws of defeat." The closing chapter of this
volume, on the recognition of Russia by the United States, is
a good preface to the efforts of Father Walsh to delay that
recognition until such time as the United States could negotiate with the people of Russia rather than with their antiAmerican government. His efforts were to no avail, as we see
in the narrative of his two interviews with President Roosevelt
on this particular subject.
"Total Power" and "Total Empire"
Total Power, the first of Father Walsh's books dealing with
geopolitics, is an analysis of the anatomy and of the abuse
of power, as illustrated in the rise and fall of the Nazi movement which terminated in the Nuremberg trials. The author
was present at these trials and had occasion to gather firsthand information relative to Nazi geopolitics from the accused
leaders of the movement. This book affords us an amazing
description of both Nazi and Soviet geopolitics, each set upon
the destruction of the other, and both determined to accomplish the conquest of the entire world. The chapter on humanism and world revolution would alone be sufficient to mark its
author as an erudite historian, a profound philosopher, a delicate analyst of human character, and master of a clear, concise, and classical style. Here, as in his other books, his exact
and frequent reference to the arts and sciences reveals not
only his varied and extensive reading but the talent for
research of an experienced lawyer. It seems that he could
gather together sufficient knowledge of any subject whatsoever to serve the purpose of his brief in preparation. This
book, Total Power, received an award of twenty-five hundred
dollars from the Authors' Fund of New York.
Total Empire, the latest of Father Walsh's books, is a study
of the origin and development of Soviet geopolitical policy.
As an outstanding example of scholarly research, this book
Probably is the best written and the most reliable source of
detailed information in this particular field that has yet
�64
FATHER WALSH
appeared in English. The titles of Father Walsh's last three
books give us no idea of their contents. The Last Stand deals
with the Soviet Five Year Plan; Total Power with ·Nazi
geopolitics; and Total Empire with the policy of Soviet expansion. These three volumes will last as standard works for historical research, and, as such, the matter treated in. them
should, perhaps, have been indicated in the titles by the
appearance of the words Nazi and Soviet on their respective
~~
·covers.
Father Walsh was-in his forty-sixth year in the Society of
Jesus and was sixty-three years old when he returned,from
Japan, his last major commission abroad. The years were
passing rapidly. The days were all too short to accomplish
his designs, and for some years past he had developed the
habit of extending his workday into the early hours of the
approaching dawn. In keeping with his oft repeated remark,
that the correspondence of today is the historical document of
tomorrow, he had accumulated a whole library of magazines,
pamphlets, and~clippings containing material pertinent to his
lectures; of documents, official and unofficial, relative to his
various missions abroad; and of correspondence, personal
and otherwise, from which he evidently intended to fashion
a memoir when the time arrived. The cons"tant demand for
his services and the continual pressure on his person. were
never relaxed and never interrupted for a vacation or a period
of rest. Physically endowed with a strong constitution which
was never subjected to a chronic illness, the accumulation of
responsibilities he had accepted demanded a continual-increase
of both physical and mental energy.
Last Appearance
At the time of his golden jubilee as a Jesuit he was vice
president of Georgetown University, regent of the School of
Foreign Service, ~till teaching, giving public lectures, serving
on half a dozen public commissions, and planning educational
projects for the future. While speaking at the Jesuit com·
munity dinner in honor of his jubilee, he showed evident signs
of lassitude that appeared to be something more than physical
fatigue. For the next two months he continued working on
his long day schedule, to which were added a series of recep·
�FATHER WALSH
tions, leading up to· the jubilee· dinner tendered him .by, :the·
Georgetown University Club of Washington at the Sh~raton: ~
Hotel on November 15, 1952. The printed program of .this s·
dinner contained a curriculum vitae and a .list .of honors con7.,.
ferred on Father ·Walsh, which afford us some idea of t® :·
work he accomplished and of the recognition it received. Con:gratulatory speeches were made at this dinner ·by public
officials representing the various phases of American Ijfe .in
which Father Walsh bad risen to prominence. Shortly afte~..
the opening of his address in reply to the many complimentS· ·
he received, which we quoted above, the rich and resonant
voice for which he had been nationally known as a public· ·
speaker began to weaken and gradually to lose its carrying
power. Several times he paused, pardoned his delay because of .
a cold, and then continued to talk with noticeable effort and
with an evident nervous strain, which increased as the· tone
of his voice was gradually weakening. Nothing but will power·
enabled him to continue. · When be stood up to spe~k he pre- :
sented the usual ease and calm that were characteristic of his .
frequent public appearances. As he continued to talk his dis- ·
tress became more and more evident to his audience, and, ·
when finished speaking, and having sat down, maintaining . ·
his usual reserve during the continued applause, his w'Qole. ·
countenance was literally dripping with perspiration. The.'
Archbishop, seated next to the president of the University;
turned to him and said: "Reverend Father, you have a sick ·
man on your hands." With the reception and the banquet
over, it was decided that Father Walsh should remain ·at the
hotel that night rather than return to the College. This was
the last of a long series of public appearances; a farewell ad- .
dress, though not intended to be, in which he thanked his ·
friends for their interest and cooperation. in his work, and
explained the motives of his multiple activities. But his waS ·
more than an active life. It was a life spent in the exalta~ion ·
of the spiritual motives which energized and intensified a Jo:rig .
and relentless drive on a naturally buoyant nervous system, ..
Which finally succumbed to exhaustion under a burden·of over-·.
work.
,
...
.In that closing address of his public life, Father Walsh ex-·
Pressed his regret for the absences from Georgetown occa-:
�66'
FATHER WALSH
aioned by the numerous calls of superiors to distant lands and
at times for prolonged periods. To Father Walsh Georgetown
was more than a cluster of buildings, more than an outstanding institution of higher education. It was his borne, and t~e •
home of the religious community to which he belonged as· a .
member of the Society in which he had vowed to spend his
life for the greater glory of God. During his long residence at
Georgetown this community was changing with every annual ·
status, and, due to his numerous extramural activities, some
of those who came a~d went never knew him with the familiarity that. develops unheeded behind the sign of cloister. And
yet~ such was his extraordinary memory, that there never was
a time, previous to his long illness, when he did not know every
member of the community of eighty or more, and the work
in ·which each one was engaged. His home coming after a
foreign safari was looked forward to in anticipation of an
interesting travelogue. He was an entertaining conversationalist in any company, an excellent raconteur, and quick at
repartee, which~he frequently illustrated with an apt quotation
from Shakespeare or from the Greek and Latin classics. A
good actor from his high school days, he had developed a
humorous habit of surrounding the narrativ~ of his personal
experience with a dubious aureole of mystery or of secrecy;
which he left for his listeners to fathom. To some who were
unacquainted with it, this left him open to the charge. of being
secretive, esoteric, distant. This cryptical byplay is illustrated·
in the following incident. On one of his visits from Moscow.
to Rome during the period when be was director of the relief
mission, rumor was spread about that he was consecrated
bishop, to return to Moscow as apostolic delegate to Russia.
Shortly after his return to America he was asked very bluntly .
by one of his fellow Jesuits, and in the company of a dozen
others, whether or not he had ever been consecrated a bishop.
The question was·naive and direct, and the answer to it was. a .
look of surprise, a two-handed gesture, and a shrug of the
shoulders. This was followed with a humorous smile, which
the company, still in doubt, were left to interpret. This rumor,
like most of its kind which travel with the speed of a ther:monuclear missile, had a solid basis for its projection. During
the visit to Ro:me, just mentioned, Father Walsh would very
�FATHER WALSH
67'
probably have been consecrated a bishop,· to reside in Russia,
were it not for the fact that on first mention of the idea he
immediately went to the General of the Society of Jesus and
begged him to prevent the occurrence, which the Father· General did, as he himself afterwards affirmed to one of the priests
then engaged on the Vatican relief mission.
The Priest
Among his many Protestant acquaintances Father Walsh
was known as an exemplary churchman. To his Catholic
brethren and listeners he was an energetic priest, whose addresses and lectures were laden with the fundamental doctrine
and morality of the Catholic Church, couched in no uncertain
terms. At his public golden jubilee dinner he was presented
with a framed certificate of appreciation for his frequent
contributions to the spiritual welfare of men in the armed
services. During his stay in Russia, when the men working
on the papal relief mission were forbidden to perform any
religious service in public and were ordered to refrain froni
any form of proselytism, Catholic priests and Russian schismatic bishops and priests frequently came to Father Walsh
for advice and for consolation. In writing, in teaching and in
prea,ching, in founding schools, as he did in Washington and
in Baghdad, on relief work in Russia, in settling church and·
state difficulties in Mexico, or in planning the reorganization
of a Jesuit Province in Japan, the A.M.D.G. of the Society of
Jesus was never absent from his mind as the fundamental
motive of his every endeavor. Even as a patient during his
long siege of illness, and up to the day he died, he still harbored
the hope of returning to the work which he felt he had left
unfinished. But his work was done, and well done. Its effects
are international, as was· his mind; they are centered in
Georgetown, as was his heart; and in his memory they will .
go down through the years, a guerdon in attestation of a life
of unstinted labor in the service of God. He was one of
America's great Jesuits.
··.Father Walsh died a peaceful death on the 31st of October,
1956, and, despite the fact that he had been absent from public
life for four years, the attendance at his funeral Mass was a ,
high tribute to his reputation. The Mass was said by the Very
�FATHER WALSH
Reverend Viricent McC()riniek; S.J., American Assistant to the
General of the Society~- Seated on the altar were the Apostolic
Uelegate, Amleto Cicognani, Archbishop O'Boyle ·of Washington; ·his· :Auxiliary~.: Bishop MeNamara, and Archbishop Yu
Pin,;of .. Nanking, and:present in the church were representatives of the President of the United States, of the Army, the
Navy, the Air Force, the Senate, the House, and of many of the
foreign embassies. President Eisenhower in a letter of condol(mce to ~Father Bun.D.,. the president of Georgetown University. ·said:· "The death of Father Edmund A. Walsh is a
grievous loss to- the Society in which he served so many years,
to ·the· educational and religious life of the United States and
t6the free peoples of the: Western World. For four decades, he
~as:a vigorous arid inspiring champion of freedom for mankind ana independence for -nations. His voice was influential
thrbtighout this country and -in many -lands overseas, because
he spoke with knowledge and conviction and a sympathetic
coricern for all peoples. And, at every call to duty, all his energy of leadership and wisdom of counsel were devoted to the
service of the United States. His University and his Society
_.:_an whO· knew-. him well-mourn his death. But they can
find in his memory ·the deathless inspiration .of a life that
w;a:s'·dedicated to· the advancement of human rights and dignity
ahd spiritual· stature."
..
·_;
..
,.
BEGINNERS
·:·· ;·Bei_inn~rs like to turn their eyes a-way from outward conduct to
th!l- more·.:~iddep._ processes of their own spiritual experiences. If we
allow a/b~gim1er t<(choose his own subject for particular examen of
coliscience, lie will almosf always choose some very delicate and imper•
c~ptible :fanlt;"the-:theatre· of which is almost wholly within, or some
refined form of selflove, whose metamorphoses are ·exceedingly difficult
eit:her. tQ· detect .. or· to• control. . H~ will not choose his temper, or his
to~g\ie~ or his love .of .nice <lishes,. or some unworthy habit which is.
disagreeable· to ·those· around him. Yet this i~ the rule of St. Ignatius;
and:sur'ely no'o:rie \vilr accuse him of not cultivating an interior spirit.
·•
:
,• •
'<;""
~'
........ , ,. ,:,
-c:" ·. "·\ ,.,_,;c·,-·
, .• . . .
.
.
·F." W.
FABER
�:69
. FATHER WALSH
.~; ~
TWO INTERVIEWS
WITH.-~·
....
. D•. R. IN OCTO!!E.R,
.•.. .' ..
'.• .
FIRST_ INTERVU~W·
_:,
.....
.:•
-19~~
,
..;
!-.· . • . . • .,
The President ·had done ·me the courtesy.· of 'inviting''"iile' 'to ·'the
White House on the very day when he announced to· im astoli:i!lhea· prt!ss
that he had just dispatched an invitation to the Soviet Gover.nmerit'to
send a representative to Washington for the purpose of negotiating an
agreement involving diplomatic recognition of the Soviet Union. It was
shortly after four o'clock. The President had ascended from the executive offices to the Oval Room on the second floor of the White House.
He was in an exhilarated mood and reflected in his outer bearing the
thrill he always experienced in letting fall some new bombshell. After
some few preliminaries of courtesy and protocol, we discussed with
complete frankness the nature of the announcement which, at that
moment, was circling the world on the wires of the newspaper agencies.
I shall not here recount the complete substance of that extraordinary
interview. One phrase, however, was particularly revealing. In reply
to certain observations I had made respecting. the difficulty -of negotiating
with the Soviets, he answered with that disarming assuran,ce -so characteristic of his technique in dealing with visitors: .. t',!;.eave . it to ·me,
Father; I am a good horse trader.".
. '!'
..
This first interview terminated with his. request that -I .prepare· two
reports for him, one dealing with· my personal recommendations ·respecting religious liberty in Russia, the second with the personality and background of Maksim Litvinov, the Soviet negotiator then preparing to
leave Moscow for Washington. The latter request was occasioned by my
look of amazement when the President remarked: "Did you have any
dealings with Litvinov? I understand he is a renegade Catholic."
My reply was to the effect that somebody must have been pulling
the presidential leg, as Maksim Livinov was well known to be a Jew
and had passed under several aliases, his family name being Finkelstein.
Mr. Roosevelt tossed his head back, moving it from side to side in one
of his characteristic gestures. Then, with a laugh, he fished into his
pocket, and extricated a crumpled package: "Have a cigarette, Father?"
SE!c<iND INTERVIEW
The two documents were delivered. by .me personally on: October:31,
1933, at twelve o'clock noon, President Roosevelt receiving me·. this. time
in the executive office in the :west·'wing of the White House.~ On enteriBg
the room, I perceived that we were not to be alone. At my :left.·tnWard
the north wall, a man was apparently working on a clay mod~~ of __the
�70
FATHER WALSH
President's head. It was Mr. Jo Davidson, a well-known sculptor, born
in Russia, who at that time and for many years thereafter was an enthusiastic advocate of causes considerably left of center. I imderstarid that
Mr. Davidson's affection for Moscow has cooled considerably in recent
years. But on the date here under discussion, and because of the circumstances of my visit, I found his presence within easy hearing distance
of whatever I might say so curious a coincidence that !.chose an attitude
of extreme reticence. This conference was short,. due to the reservations
·.suddenly imposed on me by the eavesdropper at my elbow...
, .-c
.
·~~
EDMUND A. WALSH ·~;.:
CONTRASTS .
The modern world has ceased to believe wholeheartedly in the· extremes
which Christianity has its mission to present as· contrasts: poverty and
riches, the Cross and comfort, humility and pride, the supernatural and
the natural, Heaven and final perdition. Bloy called this unwillingness
to face eternal facts, to grasp the sword of division, the Esprit Bourgeois,
and he predicted a time when the poor would rise in" wrath against· those
who had taken away from them their one hope in adversity.
·.. ,.
MARTIN D' ARCY ::
• • •
. ·'·
·...
INNER SANCTUARY
In an age of doubt man sows and does not reap; be bas no courage
in his convictions, be is like one beset with scruples who loses his sense
of values and powers of steadfast judgment. The evil of unbelief is
that it must shut its eye to the forms and patterns of truth inscribed
in the. universe, and retire to the inner sanctuary of the. mind, there
to rest in uncertainty, in the presence of a fugitive self and the broken
Idola· of its hopes.
MARTIN D'ARCY· ·
�Father Miguel Selga
Miguel Selga was born on November · 25th, 1879 in
Barcelona, Spain, of Pablo Selga and Francisca Trulb\s Selga.
He received· his preparatory education· in his native city· and
his college education in Zaragoza. He entered the Society ·:of
Jesus on March 30th, 1895.
His superiors, recognizing his aptitude for the natural
. sciences, decided to send Father Selga abroad for special
studies in astronomy and meteorology. In 1911 he went to
Woodstock College, Maryland, to complete the third and
fourth years of theology and to familiarize himself with. English. After tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudsori, he' ·did
··astronomical work in the Harvard observatory at Cambridge,
Massachusetts and Lowell observatory at Flagstaff, Arizona,
1914-1915. He was pursuing his studies in Lick observatory,
California, when he received word to proceed to Manila· to
replace Father Brown in the Jesuit observatory there. Father
Brown, an English Jesuit, had been recalled to his Province
due to the exigencies of World War I.
·
This sudden call to the Philippines resulted in Father Selga's
being placed in the embarrassing position of being a man
without a country. When he was sent to Woodstock for his
last two years of theology, he was instructed to apply for
American citizenship. He, therefore, took out his first papers,
renouncing his Spanish allegiance. At the time of his appoin:tment to the Philippines, he had fulfilled only four of the tlve
·years· of residence in the United States required· before he
could take out second papers and become a citizen. Father
Selga represented this need for another year of residence by
cable but was instructed that because of the urgency he should
leave for Manila at once; and so he did. On various occasions
when he left the Philippines for scientific congresses. he had
no passport but simply a letter from the Governor General
to the effect that he was an honest man and -would· behave
himself: · During the Japanese occupation the Spanish consul
allowed Father Selga's name to be placed on the listot Spahish
nationals, so he was not listed as an enemy alien. <
·
�72
FATHER SELGA
Father Selga was appointed assistant director of the Manila
observatory, and on January 1, 1926, succeeded Father Jose
Algue as dire~tor when the-latter was forced by failing health
to retire and return to Spain. He retained this position until '
· the total destruction of the observatory in the last year of the ·
'' Piicific War ( 1945). During this period the Manila observa. tory functioned, as the meteorological service of the Philippine
' government; of this weather bureau and its net of weather
stations throughout \he Philippines Father Selga was the
·' director.··
·
·
Naturally, most of Father Selga's time had to be given to
administrative duties. He was known as a very efficient administrator,- albeit perforce a little exacting. The budget
·allowance of the weather bureau was rather meager in those
days~ In fact, budget considerations gave Father many an
anxious moment, trying to combine need for new instruments
·.and demand for multitudinous telegrams for sufficient and
,efficient typhoon warnings with budget. Furthermore, much
.·-time b'ad to be given to supervising the publication of ·the
· monthly review and annual report of the bureau, with· their
· voluminous statistics.
In spite of these many duties, which would seem to leave
very little time for aught else, Father Selga ·gained a reputa·
. tion as an outstanding scientist, so well known that he was
more than once publicly honored as such; But besides his
ability as an administrator and scientist, let us stress aspects
· of his work that may not be so well known, his genius for
historical research and ability as a scientific writer. Father
· Selga was rather timid, wrongly so, about his ability to write
in English, so we must turn to Spanish magazines, like Revista
·de la Sociedad Astronomica de Espana y America, and Iberica,
· if we would appreciate· this point. On examination we find
that the number of scientific articles written by him for these
~- magazines reaches the surprising total of well over one
· hundred and fifty.
Due to the ravages of World War II, much of Father Selga's
writings, the patient work of ten years of free time, as also
·the official superintendence of revised statistical data on· al·
most every conceivable element of weather, such as tempera·
ture, humidity, barometriC pressure, rainfall, etc., with 'ac·
�FA'l'llER
S~LGA
· :companying graphs were burned and irrevocably lost; although just ready for publication. The outcome of the ten
.·years of work had been a labor of love-three very valuable
,.eataloglies: a) catalogue of all recorded typhoons in the Phil,jppine region; b) catalogue of all recorded earthquakes in the
.·Philippines; c) catalogue of all astronomical events recorded
in· the Philippines. Each typhoon, quake and astronomical
event was given a printed card, a little larger than a library
-index card, which contained the source of information and
a brief description of. the event. For such information, Father
had scoured all the records of monasteries and convents in
· the Islands. It is fair to say that with the loss of these manuscripts, combined with the probable loss of the original sources
by destruction during the war of monasteries and convents,
posterity has suffered an irreparable loss. We firmly believe
··~hat it was the loss of these statistical compilations, together
with the much greater loss of these catalogues, that did more
.than anything else to break Father's spirit and health and
discouraged him from further work along the same lines. We
might well apply to him the lines in the Merchant of Venice,
describing Antonio's loss: "Enough to wear a royal merchant
·.down, and pluck commiseration for his state from hearts of
stone".
, Father Selga was a member of the Philippine delegation to
· two Pacific science congresses; the second (Sydney, 1923)
and the third (Tokyo, 1926). At Sydney he presented two
papers: "The Determination of Gravity at the Manila Ob' servatory" and "The Determination of Gravity at Mirador
.. Observatory." At Tokyo he presented five: "Astronomical
· and Meteorological Conditions of the Eclipse of the Sun, May
.9, 1929, in the Philippines;" "The Latitude of the Manila
Observatory;" "Investigation of the Upper Air by Means of
: Airplanes;~~ "Atmospheric Electricity and Typhoons;" and
·."The Height of Typhoons." In 1936, he attended the Meteor- ·
ological Congress at Warsaw.
· ·. Father Selga was a member of the following learned socie':ties: The Philippine Scientific Society, the National Research
Council of the Philippines, the Philippine Geological Society,
:the American Astronomical Society, the Astronomical Society
of the Pacific, the Societe Astronomique de France; the So-
j
�.: '14
FATHER SELGA
·ciedad Astr6nomica de Espana; the Societe SCientiftque de
Bruxelles; and the Franklin Society.
In his spare time Father Selga did extensive reading in the
history of the Philippines. Thanks to him and to Father
William C. Repetti, chief of the seismological section of the
observatory, the observatory library gradually acquired an
excellent Philippiniana collection. As member of the Philip. pine historical committee organized by the Philippine Commonwealth government, Father Selga provided the information contained in many of the commemorative plaques affixed
by the committee to historic sites and buildings.
When the Japanese occupation authorities interned the
American Jesuits in 1944, the novitiate and juniorate of the
Philippine Mission were transferred to temporary quarters at
La Ignaciana on Herran Street with Father Selga as vicerector. After the conclusion of World War II he went to Spain
to seek a remedy for the glaucoma which had begun to impair
his sight just before the outbreak of the War and which wartime conditions had aggravated. Some improvement resulted
from an operation, and he returned to the Philippines; but
his general health rapidly began to fail.
.
In the midst of his scientific work in the Manila observatory,
Father Selga found time to devote to the direction of souls.
His quiet apostolate was expended chiefly among the young
men of the University of the Philippines who came to hear
Mass in the chapel of the San Jose Seminary, and the girls
of a school nearby, the Philippine Women's College. His confessional in this public chapel was often crowded before Mass
every morning and on Saturday afternoons. His influence
among the young men and women who came to seek his advice
may be traced to the happy quality he had of combining profound scientific knowledge with a simplicity of approac:tt..
During the Japanese occupation, he acted as master of
novices for a while. Those who were his novices recall that
he looked stern and forbidding in inanner. But he told them,
"If I seem rough to you, it is because I want to make men of
you." Underneath that austere look beat a heart, gentle and
kind.
For more than thirty years, he acted as the spiritual counselor of the Philippine Women's College. From 1919 until
�75
FAfHER SELGA
the outbreak of World War II, he used to teach catechism and
and give lectures there once a week, after his office hours in
the ·observatory. Many girls were converted from Aglipayanism through his influence. Often Father Selga not only converted the student but brought back to the faith the entire
family. He believed that "the person is never to be divorced
from the family" and this principle he applied so effectively
that it led him to take trips to the provinces to meet the
parerits and relatives of the children. This is how his influence spread beyond the observatory. His prodigious memory· for names of a family is legendary. Some time before he
•died, one of these students, now a married woman, came to
him, after he received a degree in science from the Philippine
Women's University, and said to him: "Father, do you re·member me?" It had been many years since he met her.
Father Selga answered: · "Yes, I remember. I married you
·to your husband at four o'clock in the morning! Where's
Bernardino?"
.
\
In 1955 the Philippine Women's University coRferred upon
'him the honorary degree of doctor of science, and in 1956 he
was the recipient of an award from the UNESCO commission
of the Philippines· for bringing honor to his adopted country
by his meritorious achievements in the field of science.
Father Selga died on April23, 1956, at San Jose Seminary,
Quezon City, mourned by his many friends and a grateful
people.
KEMPIS
· · All" down the centuries, men have admired and praised the Imitation.
It has'riot been a classic in the sense of a book that everyone praises
-and very few read, but on the contrary it has been the familiar reading
.C>f, a great many of the chosen spirits among mankind ever since its
appearance. To have been the favorite book of St. Thomas More, Bossuet
.and'Massillon, of Loyola and Bellarmine, of John Wesley, Samuel John_son,_ Lamartine, La Harpe, Michelet, Leibnitz and Villemain is indeed a
distinction. Nor has it appealed only to Christians, for men like· Renan
lind Comte almost in our own time have praised it highly.
·
JAMEs"J. WALSH
�Brother .Alphonse Thorain
1865-1954
LAWRENCE W. BEER, S.J.
··,
The bell tolled, bQoks were shoved aside, and birettas
donned. The long black line of Jesuits passed to the cemetery
at Mt. St. Michael's to bury their brother in Christ, loveable
Brother Alphonse Thorain. The body which had housed his
vigorous soul lay peacefully in the casket, worn out by seventy·
two years of hard labor for the Kingdom of Christ.
The world might laugh if it could hear us lauding the life
of this simple Coadjutor Brother. We might be asked, "What
did he do? What schools and churches did he build? Where
are his converts, his books?" And so on. Then· it would be
our ttirn to laugh, for we could say that his accomplishments
have been swallowed up and assimilated by the members of
his Province. Brother Thorain was a cook. But who knows
the love, the only real measure of value, with. :which he peeled
potatoes, fried meat, and swept the kitchen floor? This we
can only guess from his consistency in kindness and work.
"And who is this? And where does he come ·from 1" This
was Brother's approach to others, and it will be ours in his
regard. Alphonse Thorain was born in 1865 at Orleans,
France, home town of St. Isaac. J ogues. When fourteen be
began working at the nearby Jesuit college. As a result of
this happy contact, the short, husky Alphonse was drawn to
the Society of Jesus two yearslater. It must have been more
than the usual sacrifice for his parents, when their only child
left for the English Novitiate,. never to return to France.
Brother Alphonse worked· first in England as a tailor's
helper (at the home of Gerard Manley Hopkins, the great
·Jesuit poet, incidentally). From there he made the trip to
Jersey Island to cook for the Jesuit scholastics, a couple of
years before crossing the· Atlantic to America. In 1886 be
·moved across the ·uniteq States with the well-known Jeauit
pioneers, .Fathers Cataldo, Monroe and Crimont (future
�BROTHER ALPHONSE THORAIN
�--
-·
�BROTHER THORAIN
77
, Bishop of Alaska) and helped establish the Rocky Mountai~
mission. From then until 1917 when he came to Mt. St. Michael's, Brother Thorain served the Indian and white population around the northwest. His various homes were the· Col:.
ville, De Smet and Umatilla Missions, and finally Spokane
(then known as Spokane Falls). As late as 1953 "Little
Salmon", as the Indians called him, still marked the return
address on his letters ''Spokane Falls".
When asked about his work with the Indians, Brother
Thorain smiled and said, "Indians are good children." On his
sixtieth jubilee he was asked to comment on his life at Mt.
St. Michael's. After a moment of silence, he raised his intense,
half-smiling face: "Tell all the people I like my work. I like
all our houses because I like our communities. I like the
Scholastics."
Love of Flowers
"I like"-these words sum up Brother's childlike outlook
on life. He liked his work, so much so that he began before
five in the morning and continued till late at night. He liked
the people he served. And he liked to pray. His life drew
its meaning principally from these two things, work and
prayer. In back of the kitchen amid onion and potato sacks
Brother had his own private oratory, where he would kneel
during off moments. But he liked to go to God most of all
through flowers and other plant life. This led him to keep up
a small flower garden behind the kitchen, where he would
stand and gratefully gaze at the graceful petals God had
created for him.
Every year on the Coadjutor Brothers' gaudiosa day,
Brother Thorain could be seen slipping away from the house
around mid-morning. This was always a mystery to first year
Scholastics, for all the other Brothers were off somewhere
on a drive. He was off to neighboring greenhouses to look
around at the flowers. Late in the day he would purchase a
flower and come home to tell everyone about the wonderful
kingdom of plants he had seen.
Finding just the right meditation book is quite a problem
for many religious. Not so for Brother Thorain. A seed, a
eat and a blossom were commonly seen arranged on his
�7$
BROTHER THOltAIN
work table. These were his meditation manual, points written:
by God's own hand. In the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius~
this method of prayer is referred to as the Contemplatio a4.:
.
amorem.
.~
Captain of the Kitchen
·.
.
Brother Alphonse had the natural culture and balance-.
which God seems to grant so often to truly simple souls .. In,
his dealings with othe:r,s he was direct, clear-sighted_and confident without losing gentleness and tact. But if one was
working under this captain of the kitchen, he had to do things;
just right. For instance, one had to make. sure there were
not too many dishes on the refectory carts. This recalls the·
amusing sight of the very short Brother Thorain pushing a.
cart down one of the aisles, peering out from under the top
level.
Though he was never what you could call bubblingly sociable, people found his company enjoyable and amusing. When
the Scholastics' parents would come to the Mount for visits,
Brother Thorain's invariable question upon introduction was,
"Do you speak French?"
.
For a long time he had trouble with rheumatism, but only
after more than thirty years of service at Mt. St. Michael's
did it force him to relinquish his command of the kitchen and
turn to less strenuous jobs. Even in his last days Brother
made himself as useful as possible to the community that he·
liked.
·
At the feast in honor of his seventieth anniversary as a
Jesuit, he sat next to Father Provincial. With his tfliicall:f
amusing simplicity, he asked the surprised Father, "And who,
are you; and where do you come from; and what do you do?"·
Two years after this celebration, at the age of eighty-nine,
Alphonse Thorain.'went to heaven, where he is still spreading
the Kingdom of Christ through his silent prayer.
�Books of Interest to Ours
BEST AMERICAN JESUIT WORK ON SCRIPTURE
The Two-Edged Sword. An Interpretation of the Old Testament. By
John L. McKenzie, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1956.
$4.50.
The biblical revival in the Catholic Church, already under way in parts
of Europe in the thirties and given world-wide impetus by the encyclical
letter· Divino Af]lante Spiritu (1943), has resulted in a considerable
amount of scholarly and popular writing by Catholics. In the area of
hGute vulga.risation of the Old Testament, French writers have taken
the lead; besides the incomparable Bible de Jerusalem, they are publishing the series Lectio Divina and Temoins de Dieu, and have produced
many other books and articles. In German and English speaking countries
production has been much slower a~d often much inferior. The Catholic
Commentary from England is a work of very unequal value and by
no means adequately fills the gap for the English speaking world; the
translation of Monsignor Knox, though approved for public and liturgical
reading by the English hierarchy,. does not fulfill the papal directive
to make translations from the original languages and is, besides, far
from approaching the ideal of an Old Testament translation. For
English readers the still incomplete American Confraternity version
will be infinitely superior. The Germans· have fared much better with
their Bonner Bibel and Echter Bibel, and from Switzerland, H. Haag
has produced a :fine Bibel-Lexikon, really a translation and new edition
of the Dutch Bijbelsch Woordenboek (1941).
In the area of synthesis of the religious teaching of the Old Testament,
even the French have not produced anything exactly like the work of
Father McKenzie. The works of A.-M. Dubarle (1946), J. Guitton
(1947), and A. Gelin (1949) are more limited in scope; J. Guillet's
Themes bibliques is selective and cannot be called popular. The present ..
Work differs, too, from C. Charlier's La lecture chretienne de la Bible
which devotes far more space to the pe.ripheral areas of biblical study
and to the practical and esthetic values of the Bible.
Father McKenzie undertakes a spiritual interpretation ·of the Old
Testament and he is at pains to make clear that he does not intend
allegorical or symbolic interpretation such as we find in the Church
Fathers, nor the so-called fuller sense of the Scriptures. His effort is
to get at the religious teaching and meaning of the Old Testament as
Understood by the Israelite readers and writers themselves. While the
book is not an introduction to the Old Testament in the technical sense,
some problems traditionally considered part of introduction, v.g., the
o~igin and history of the Old Testament and its use, the idea of inspira- .
tion, and the question ofthe canon, do form the bulk of the first chapter.
Tha book is not a biblical theology, though it could serve as preparation
�80
BOOK REVIEWS
for a biblical theology which would turn out to be vastly ~tferent from
the work of Heinisch.
A glance at the table of contents gives some idea of the wide range
of material covered: cosmic and htiman origins, the :natiorial··origins
of Israel, the history of Israel (in its religious import), Israelite ..
thought on the themes of hope, wi~dom, evil, after:lff~·, Prayer,
the .·
nature of God. A final chapter discusses the relation betWeen the. Pld
Testament and the New.
The author feels that. his book is just a beginning~ Actually, many
more things could have..Reen treated. By choice the author has not taken
up development of late post-exilic Judaism which, however, has definite
importance for the origins of Christianity. Chapters on the reforming
work of Ezra and Nehemiah, on the Chronicler's interpretation of ·
Israelite .history, and on the late wisdom books would have been welcome. ·
Nevertheless, from the material covered the reader will get an excellent
idea of the religious thought of the golden age of Hebrew and Israelite
·
history.
Though the author has studiously avoided the use of documentation,
his colleagues will be well aware of the scholarship that· is behind the ·.
work. He is quite well known from previous articles in· learned journals :
and has won respect in all quarters. He has made use of the most recent
work of scholarship in all circles and has reflected long and carefully ·
on the conclusions adopted.
·'
The reviewer wishes to acknowledge that he is in complete sympathY
with the author's approach and is, in fact, usually
complete agreement.
with the author's conclusions. But this community--of feeling does not·
mean that the reviewer would agree with every detail of· the author's
interpretation. For example, the reviewer would look oii. the sin in ·the··
garden from a different· viewpoint and would be quite skeptical of
polemical purposes in any of Genesis. This, however, does not mean..
that the author's views should be suspected by Catholics; they have been
in the past and are at present maintained by Continental and American.
scholars. But the author and the reviewer are both· conscious that their
opinions are sheerly points of view.
"
Again, in understanding the phrase, "God reveals himself· in history,"
the reviewer is inclined to think that the author plays down too much
its importance. The reviewer feels that God's nature and demands were
manifested to Israel much more by what He did than by what He said;.
The great acts by.which God rescued Israel from Egypt, chose ·her for.
His own and made a covenant with her, and brought her into the land of
promise were more eloquent than any sermon; in the providence of God,·
Israel knew that the Lord had accomplished them and so was ·not tempted
to attribute them to a deity of the nature of Assur· or Marduk; · We
cannot, of course, neglect the role of God speaking even 'though it: I~
difficult to understand how He did speak to Moses and his' prophets: .
These, however, are points for discussion between the· author an~.
his professional colleagues and do not in the least detract ''from ·the
an4
m
1
�'I
BOOK REVIEWS
J
81-
.I
worth of his book. This is a book that can be read and reread, preferably
with Bible in hand. The style is easy and graceful, sober and concrete;
the reader will feel himself transported into a different world-the
world of the thought, feeling, and expression of the men of the Old
Testament. No Catholic book on the Old Testament in any language
is quite like the present work; it can take a proud place in the literature,
both Catholic and non-Catholic. It is easily the best book on the Bible
ever written by an American Jesuit.
G. s. GLANZMAN, S.J.
·I
NOT GOOD
The Sources of Catholic Dogma. Translated by Roy J. Deferrari from
the Thirtieth Edition of Henry Denzinger's Enchiridion Symbolorum.
B. Herder Book Co., St. Louis, 1957. Pp. xxxiv-653-[67]. $8.50.
Next to the Bible, Denzinger's Enchiridion has been the most important
reference work for the theologian. In recent years the need of a good
translation has become more urgent. Unfortunately, Doctor Deferrari's
translation is not good. This judgement is based on a careful reading of
D.'s translations of the basic creeds of Christendom and the decisions
of the first eighteen ecumenical councils.
The Eastern version of the Apostles' Creed has twelve brief articles.
In this translation there are four inaccuracies. The creed expresses
faith in one God . . . maker and not creator of heaven and earth; in
Jesus Christ .•. through whom and not by whom all things were made;
in the Holy Spirit . . . who spoke in or through, but surely not among
the prophets; in one baptism unto the remission of sins and not in the
dismissal of sins (D 9). The first two inaccuracies occur again in the
~reed-of the first ecumenical council, that of Nicaea (D 54). The second
Inaccuracy is still found in the Nicene-Constantinople creed of the
second ecumenical council, that of Constantinople I (D 86).
Two major dogmatic errors appear in D.'s translation of the famous
second letter of Cyril to Nestorius, which was read and approved at the
third ecumenical Council, that of Ephesus. The Council says that "the
Word, in an ineffable and inconceivable manner, having hypostatically
united to Himself flesh, animated by a rational soul, became Man and
was called the Son of Man" (Dllla). D. translates: " •.. rather (we
say) that the Word uniting with Himself according to person is a body
animated by a rational soul, marvelously and incomprehensibly was
~ade man, and was the Son of man . . .'' In the same excerpt from
fiYril's letter, the Council says: "For it was no ordinary man who was
Wst born of the holy Virgin and upon whom only afterwards did the
f Ord descend .. .'' D. misplaces the adverb proton (primo) with the
~llowing confusion: "For in the first place no common man was born of
e holy Virgin; then the Word thus descended upon him ••. " D.'s
.!
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concluding statement ". . he is said to have endured a generation in
the flesh in order to appropriate the producing of His own body," is
all but unintelligible. The Council concludes: " .•. He is said to have
undergone fleshly birth, claiming as His own the birth of His own flesh."
Finally, the editors of the Enchiridion give a reference to the anathemas
of Cyril which were added to Cyril's letter to Nestorius, as well as a
reference to the anathemas of Nestorius against Cyril. D. speaks of
"Those anathematized who were added to the Epistle," and the "Anathematized of Nestorius. against Cyril."
The translation of the Latin version of the definition of Chalcedon
on the two natures of Christ omits a nusquam with the unfortunate
result that the distinction of natures is denied: "the distinction of
natures removed on account of the union" (D 148).
Canon 7 of the fifth eumenical Council, that of Constantinople II,
omits in translation "as well as in His Manhood" (D 219). The Fathers
of the sixth ecumenical Council, that of Constantinople III, "embrace
with open arms" the suggestion of pope St. Agatho. This is weakly
translated "willingly accept" (D 289). The seventh ecumenical Council,
that of Nicaea II, bears the heading "Definition of the Sacred Images
and Tradition." Since sacred images were not defined, it would have
been better to translate de as concerning. The translation of the defini·
tion is very poor, concluding with the extraordinary observation: "For
the honor of the image passes to the original, and he who shows
reverence to the image, shows reverence to the substance (subsistentiam)
of Him depicted in it" (D 302). We might note that the Council is
speaking here of the images of Christ, of the Bles"sed Virgin and of
the Saints, not only "of Him."
The question of sacred images is taken up again in the eighth
ecumenical Council, that of Constantinople IV. D.'s translation of canon
three is symptomatic of the kind of English one meets with in the
early sections of the present volume: "We adore the sacred images of
our Lord Jesus Christ in like honor with the book of the holy Gospels.
For as through the syllables carried in it, we all attain salvation, so
through the imaginal energies of the colors both all the wise and the
unwise from that which is manifest enjoy usefulness; for the things
which are the sermon in syllables, these things also the writing which
is in colors teaches and commands •. .'' (D 337).
Canon 10 of the First Lateran Council (ec. X) says: "Let no one
impose hands on a bishop for his consecration unless he has been
canonically elected"' (D 363). D. translates: "Let no one unless
canonically elected extend his hand for consecration to the episcopaCY·"
The second Lateran Council (ec. XI) speaks of feigned or insincere
repentance. D. speaks of "false penitence.'' The Council prescribes tha,;
heretics be restrained by the "secular powers (potestates exteras)
(D 367). D. translates "by exterior powers.''
The third Lateran Council, (ec. XI) has but two brief chapters
recorded. In the second chapter (D 401) "in Gasconia, Albigesio et
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83
partibus Tolosanis" is translated "in Gascony, in Albigesium, and in
parts of Tolosa." The fourth Lateran Council (ec. XII) condemns the
error of the Abbot Joachim on the Trinity. There was need throughout··
for a trained theologian to attempt a translation of this difficult section.
D.'s attempt to translate "alius sit Pater, alius Filius, alius Spiritus
Sanctus, non tamen aliud" comes close to Sabellianism: "one is the
Father, another the Son, and another the Holy Spirit, yet they are not .
different" (D 432).
The translation of the excerpts from the thirteenth ecumenical
Council, that of Lyons I, reads badly. The following passage is also
inaccurate. Innocent IV interprets the sin against the Holy Spirit in
Mt. 12:32 as meaning that "some sins are forgiven in the present life,
others only in the world to come" (D 456). D. translates: " . . . by·
this it is granted that certain sins of the present be understood·
which, however, are forgiven in the future life." The profession
of faith of the second Council of Lyons ( ec. XIV) in translation
begins: " . • . we declare (fatemur) that the Holy Spirit proceeds
eternally from the Father and the Son, not as from two beginnings
(principiis), but from one beginning, not from two breathings (spirationibus), but from one breathing" ( D 461). Additional professions of
faith are introduced by Denzinger under the heading [Varia]. This
becomes Variant Readings in D.'s translation. An earlier [Varia],
introducing n. 425, was translated Variations.
The Council of Vienne (ec. XV) is concerned principally with the
errors of Peter John Olivi. As was true in the case of the Abbot
Joachim, the point a~ issue is again delicate and needed a trained
Philosopher as well as a theologian to translate accurately the Church's
decision. The Council insists that the rational or intellectual soul is
truly and of itself the form of the human body. D., missing the point
completely, translates the heading [De anima ut forma corporis] as
[The soul as a form of the body], and in the body of the definition
speaks of the "'substance of the rational or intellective soul" as "truly
and in itself a form of the human body.'' (D 481).
The Council of Constance (ec. XVI) met to condemn the errors of
Wycliffe, Russ and their followers. In the translation of the errors of
Wycliffe we read the following: "It is not established in the Gospel
that Christ arranged (ordinaverit) the Mass" (D 585). "One bringing
alms to the Brothers is excommunicated by that very thing (eo facto)"
(D 600). In a concluding note to this section the editors of the Enchiridion refer the reader to n. 661 where the theological censures
attached to these 45 articles of Wycliffe are found among the questions to
be Put to the Wycliffites and the Hussites. D. translates: "See the
theological censures of these 45 articles to be proposed to the .Wycliffites
and the Hussites, n. 11 (661 below).'' A similar reference on the part
~the editors follows the listing of the errors of John Huss. This time
· translates Interrogationes Wiclejfitis et Hussitis proponendas, but
they are not the Council's questions to be proposed to the Wycliffites and
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the Hussites, but "Questions of Wycliffe and Huss to be proposed."
The Council of Florence (ec. XVII) is important for its defense of
the Filioque. It argues that "since all that the Father has, the Father,
in begetting, has given to His only begotten Son, with the exception of
Fatherhood, the very fact that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Son
the Son Himself has from the Father, by whom He was begotten also
eternally" (D 691). Rearranging the phrasing, and translating quoniam
as that, D. obscures the meaning, and suggests in the concluding
phrase that the Holy Spirit not only proceeds from the Son but was also
eternally begotten of _the Son: "And that all things, which are the
Father's, the Father ffimself has given in begetting His only begotten
Son; without being Father, the Son Himself possesses this from the
Father, that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Son from whom He
was moreover eternally begotten."
Denzinger's Enchiridion gives but one excerpt from the eighteenth
ecumenical Council, that of Lateran V (D 738). Accordingly, the other
topics which are dealt with by Leo X, including the Errors of Martin
Luther, should not bear the page heading Lateran Council V. The single
excerpt defines the oneness of the soul in each individual, its multiplicity
in many bodies, and its immortality. Unfortunately, D. omits the defini·
tion of the soul'.s immortality. The concluding sanction is inaccurately
translated.
In a work of such monumental proportions it would be unjust to apply
too rigorously the addage: Bonum ex integra causa, malum ex quocumque
defectu. Unquestionably, the quality of D.'s translations improves as
the work progresses. However, in a work entitled Th~·Sources of Catholic
Dogma, there are too many defects in the translation of the basic
sources to allow us to call D.'s translation good. For this reason we
cannot recommend the present volume until the sections dealing with
the Apostles' Creed and the first eighteen ecumenical Councils of the
Church have been thoroughly revised or, better, redone.
PAUL F. PALMER, S.J.
OPTIMISM AND PRECISION
The Catholic Viewpoint on Race Relations. By John LaFarge, S.J.
Garden City: Hanover House, 1956. Pp. 190. $2.95.
This is the first of a series of books which will examine crucial
problems facing Catholics in the United States today. If the later
treatises match the excellence and thoroughness of Father LaFarge's
present work, this will be a reference series of real and lasting value
for every thinking Catholic.
The first section of the book outlines the problem of race relations in
general. The nature of segregation and the vicious circle which it entails
are carefully studied. In looking at the history-making decision of the
�BOOK REVIEWS
85
United States Supreme Court, Father LaFarge develops the significant
observation of the Court that many of the intangibles of education in
a free society are denied to the child who is forced to attend a segregated
school. The author then proceeds to study the Catholic record and
Catholic principles affecting this area of human life. He makes mention
of the limited apostolic work among the Negroes, due to the apathy,
lack of support, and hostility of some Catholics. The magnificent work
currently being done by the Catholic interracial councils, colleges and
Negro leaders is pointed out.
The third section of the book deals in a very practical manner with
what the individual can do to help in this field, both as an individual
and as a member of an organization. The opportunities which parents
have to eliminate prejudice in their children are studied, as is the
perennial question of interracial marriage. We are cautioned to seek
information before acting in this area of human relations, as much
well-intentioned action has had disastrous results, due to lack of correct
information. A listing is made of the organizations which can supply
this sorely-needed information and guidance. In this connection, a well
deserved word of praise is given to an organization, the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People, which in recent ,
months has been the victim of numerous unfounded and vicious attacks.
In the final chapters of the work, the meaning of moderation in action
is explained and illustrated. The book finishes with a brief consideration
of the Church's position on interracial marriage, and a study of an
inspiring venture in interracial living, known as the Manhasset Project.
The author treats with optimism and precision an area which too
often in the past has been marked by a defeatist style of thinking. The
most striking impression given by the book is that of real confidence
that a solution will soon be had for the problems discussed. If the reader
did not know otherwise, he would envision the author as a man of some
thirty-five or forty odd years. Father LaFarge certainly shares the
confidence of the younger workers in this field that the solution is near
at hand. May God spare him for many years that he may see the joy
of that day.
FRANK C. BOURBON, S.J.
SECOND TO NONE
St. Ignatius' Own Story. Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
Chicago: Henry Regnery Co., 1956. Pp. xii-138.
In a number of ways the first section of this work is like the book
~f the Spiritual.Exercise. It is, first of all, Ignatius' own story of his
hfe. Secondly, its length comes close to that of the , book of the
E_:I:ercises and its style is as matter-of-fact. And finally, though on a
di!Terent plane from that of the Exercises, its contents also give an
exposition of the roots of everything lgnatian. This translation was
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overdue: it stands now as the first' translation into English of the
autobiography since the turn of the century, and as the first made from
the original Spanish and Italian text. In his rendition Father Young
has rightly preferred to keep close to the simplicity of the original
wherever possible, and so to avoid using his polished prose style.
The second half of this work gives English readers a sampling of
Ignatius' thousands of letters. Father Young has selected some that are
interesting in themselves and important for understanding the spirit of
Ignatius in his advice, government and spiritual counsel. These letters,
with the exception of thxee (nos. 2, 4, 5), are not contained in a previous
. English translation of some of Ignatius' letters (London, 1914). Throughout this book the introductions and footnotes are especially well done:
they fulfill their function of making the essential matter more interesting
. and more intelligible. The printing and format are likewise splendid.
Nothing distracts readers from the lgnatian content. As a whole, of
the books that appeared in English on Ignatius in 1956, this may
well be the least catching for general readers; but for Jesuits (and
mature, interested non-Jesuits) it ranks second to none for its basic
historical content.
KENNETH C. BOGART, S.J.
ORIGINAL AND EFFECTIVE
.Man's Knowledge of Reality: An Introduction to Thomistic Epistemology.
By Frederick D. Wilhelmsen. Englewood ciitrs, N. J.: Prentice·
Hall, Inc. 1956. $4.00.
1\ir. Wilhelmsen's textbook of Thomistic and existential-he would not
take the two as necessarily synonymous-epistemology is a rather radical
departure from the format of most manuals. Indeed the very extent and
depth of his departure from the ordinary course in criteriology, whose
happy demise the author hails, may cause some to look askance and go
no further. But that would be unfortunate.
It is easy enough to total up what could be considered defects in
Wilhelmsen's work. As a text it presupposes courses in both metaphysics
and the philosophy of man, which puts it out of the order of courses in
many of our colleges and universities. Perhaps Wilhelmsen's own Sants
Clara is an exception. Then there is the problem of language. Wilhelill·
sen is a stylist Who uses language in an original and often highlY
effective way. Still the style does at times lead to obscurity through a
certain imprecision or by seeming to bury a point completely. Some
might find certain judgments rather excessively polemical; others, still
more staid, might object (though unwisely) to his willingness to pun.
More seriot;s still are some doctrinal points. One is caught up short
by the universality of the assertion that the "subject is never understood
as such in any judgment (p. 105)." The explanation that follows, while
admittedly argued with great cogency, does not seem to deal with
�BOOK REVIEWS
87
the so-called analytic judgments whose truth, terminis notis, is immediately seen. Still stranger is the conclusion that history, even "in. the
broad, non-technical sense of any information possessed about the past,"
possesses the character of metaphysical certitude (p. 168). There seems
to be a confusion between the necessity of fact-what was cannot not
have been-and the certitude proper to my knowledge of that fact. Likewise there is a failure to distinguish the two distinct but not unrelated
means of contradiction. Hence, it is absurdly easy, but withal a little
unfair, to reduce Occasionalism to a flat contradiction (p. 91). It is
even more difficult to understand how the first truth of realism can be
"Being is" in the light of the thorough-going existential interpretation
that is given both to being and to is. There is at least ambiguity in the
statement, if not existential, redundancy (p. 41 ff.).
Yet it would be misleading to end a review on such a critical note.
For these criticisms are but a way of saying, albeit negatively, that a
very fine book might have been better. And it is a very fine book,
filled with much of positive value, conceived and executed with a real
and always refreshing insight into the basic problems of an epistemology
that is genuinely realistic. The concrete approach to the notion of
representation is superb. The section (chap. 10) on the structure and
meaning of the judgment is excellent though difficult reading, and it is
a real attempt to get beyond the logical conception of judgment as a
process of "·composing and dividing" concepts. Indeed almost every page
is filled with interesting reflections and correlations that give evidence
of a very facile and alert mind. The approach to problems is always
new, so new in fact that the retention of the traditional three· degrees
of certitude seems almost an anomaly. One would like to have seen
Wilhelmsen develop his principles even into this knotty field.
In sum one cannot but recommend the book most highly. It is not
that Wilhelmsen has solved all the problems nor that he has turned out
the perfect text. But any teacher of epistemology could profit by a
serious reading of his attempt to discuss real problems. The theologian
too should find his explanation of the symbolic phantasm most enlightening and suggestive in light of the current interest in the truth value
of myth.
H. R. BURNS, S.J.
EMINENTLY PRACTICAL
Guidance for Religious. By Gerald Kelly, S.J. Westminster: Newman
Press, 1956. Pp. xi-321. $4.50.
The proven value and
excellent articles in the
publication in book form
lor Religious. Although
written over a period of
--'-···.
continued popularity of Father Kelly's many
Review for Religious, has prompted their reby Newman Press under the title of Guidance
the book consists of a collection of articles
years, it has a surprising unity which is well
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established in the introduction by a concise explanation of the nature and·
scope of spiritual direction.
The emotional life of the religious is the subject of the opening chapters, which include Father Kelly's penetrating analysis of emotional
maturity, a high point, to this reviewer's mind, in the whole book.
Today, when there is so much emphasis on psychological testing of
applicants, not only to the religious life, but for almost every professional
vocation as well, the principles and solid applications laid down by
Father Kelly are invaluable. Emphasis is placed on the need for personal
responsibility in thought and action, unselfishness, and on open-mindedness. Thus we are presented with the practical goals to be sought on
one side of the persistent enigma faced by every master of novices; how
to develop emotional maturity while at the same time fostering religious
obedience. One could wish Father Kelly would complement this outstanding analysis of emotional maturity with another study treating specifically of its relationship to obedience in religious life.
Perhaps the most helpful suggestions toward spiritual progress are
found in the chapters devoted to confession. While the value of devotional
confessions is emphasized today by spiritual writers, we are constantly
warned against the dangers of routine. For most, the danger is all too
obvious; the difficulty is what to do about it! Here Father Kelly lays
down four definite rules on how to make good confessions better, explaining them at some length by particular illustrations of confessional
defects in matter of form. A subsequent chapter on contrition also
affords some workable methods to diminish the dulling effects of frequent
confession.
-- -·
Two other exceptional chapters of the book deal with vocational
counseling and the qualities of a good moral guide. If linked with the
first chapter on emotional maturity, they form an excellent source of
reference for anyone engaged in counseling. While giving numerous
practical hints, these chapters nevertheless manage to convey a comprehensive picture of the whole, and a feel for the subject which is
remarkable in such brevity.
The few sections of the book consisting of a moralist's treatment of
the minimum requirements in our duties toward God, suffer greatly in
comparison with the rest of the book. The reader is forcefully reminded
of the numerous appeals in modern times for a more positive approach
to moral theology. Certainly if such an approach would elicit more
chapters in our moral theology text books comparable to Father Kelly's
positive treatises described above, it is a consummation devoutly to be
wished I There is a final chapter on the Catholic attitude toward the race
question which seems out of place since it does not, at least to the
same extent as the other chapters, fall under the unifying scope of
spiritual direction set forth in the introduction.
The book as a whole is an eminently practical work, a handy reference
clarifying ideas and offering concrete solutions to many of the everyday
problems that occur in the pursuit of religious perfection. It sparkles
�BOOK REVIEWS
89
with anecdotes which often explain the matter better than any detailed
explanation ever could.
J. RoCHE, S.J.
WHAT IS SOCIAL JUSTICE?
Social Justice. By William F. Drummond, S.J. Milwaukee: The Bruce
Publishing Company, 1956. Pp. v-132. $2.00.
This little work is a distinct contribution to the study of the much
disputed nature of social justice. Whether or not one accepts Father
Drummond's theory on the nature of social justice, it is impossible to
deny that this work is the fruit of long and careful thought. The first
chapter provides an excellent background for the subsequent discussion
by summarizing the principles necessary for an understanding of social
justice in relation to the human person. The next two chapters analyze
the thought of the two great Encyclicals of Pius XI on the virtue of
social justice and after a brief analysis of St. Thomas's "stewardship
of wealth" concept, which he identifies with the virtue of social justice,
Father Drummond formulates his own definition of social justice as a
distinct virtue, namely, "A virtue which deals with the economic order
of society as distinct from but part of the common good." More concretely, it is the virtue which is concerned with the management of
private property in as much as it is destined to serve the needs of all
men. In the final chapters of his work, the author puts in a plea for a
re-evaluation of the traditional approach of the manuals to the question
of ownership in modern industrial society and concretely indicates lines
along which development is needed. For those who feel that our ethics
and moral courses have yet to accomodate themselves to economic
realities, these few chapters should be encouraging. Yet it may be questioned whether Father Drummond has actually established the theory
into which he fits his study, namely, that social justice is a virtue distinct
from legal justice. Nowhere do the Encyclicals cited use the term social
justice as applying exclusively to the economic order. Nevertheless, the
author's insistence on and his development of the social character of
economic possessions stands apart from the theoretical framework and
is in itself a valuable contribution to the field of Catholic social thought.
It is to be hoped that the rich fields of study suggested by the author
will not remain unexplored by Catholic moralists and social scientists.
JOHN F. DOHERTY, S.J.
LABOR AND MANAGEMENT
CO-Responsibility in Industry. By Jeremiah Newman. Westminster:
The Newman Press, 1955. Pp. xxiii-187. $4.00.
In order to provide one effective means for the development of human
Personality in present day industrial society, Pius XII has, on more than
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one occasion, spoken on the desirability of workers' participation in
management ..Credit must be given to Rev. Jeremiah Newman, professor
of sociology at St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, for putting out a book in
English on the controversial subject of joint management of industry
by owners and workers. From the disparate "management sharipg''
literature that has grown after World War II, Professor Newman has
given us a complete study, first, of the Catholic teaching on co-management, and secondly, of the different co-management legislations and
systems that have been tried in various countries. Professor Newman
has prudently and satisfa~torily shown the feasibility of co-management
without in any way watering down the dangers and difficulties involved
in its introduction. All through the book, he has shown that responsibility is the key to a successful and working co-management program.
The greater part of the book, and by far the more important, is
devoted to study of co-management legislation and systems in Germany,
Belgium, the Netherlands, and of co-management experiments in Britain,
Ireland, and the United States. As a result of this critical study from the
Catholic viewpoint, Professor Newman offers the following suggestions:
1) a system of co-responsibility should not be rushed into unthinkingly
by state legislation, but should be left to the free choice of industries;
2) each industry ~should find for itself the best organization for the
purpose; 3) the introduction of a system of co-responsibility, patterned
on that of Holland, would seem to meet the demands of Pope Pius XII
regarding greater respect for the human element in industry; 4) any
system of co-responsibility will not work unless there be a radical
psychological change on the part of owners and workers alike and unless
the human element in industry be impregnated with the Christian spirit
of social justice tempered by social charity. The papal proposal of joint
management will be realized only when the worker has been taught
responsibility and the owner has been shown that joint-management is
good, profitable business. The book has an appendix containing the
German co-determination law of May 21, 1951, the Belgian law of
September 20, 1948, and the Netherlands law of May 4, 1950.
VITALIANO
R.
GOROSPE,
S.J.
INTRODUCTION TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF
"ST. THOMAS AQUINAS, III
Psychology. By H. D. Gardeil, O.P. Translated by Johm A. Otto. St.
Louis: B. Herder, 1956. Pp. xiii-303.
This introductory text for th~ psychology of St. Thomas, the third
in a series of four, is carefully and skillfully ordered according to the
plan of Aristotle's De Anima and St. Thomas's commentary on it. All
of the key theses of the Thomistic synthesis on man are included. The
whole matrix of thought, then, is that of St. Thomas and his leading'
�BOOK REVIEWS
91
·commentators. So too, unfortunately, are the limits of discussion. This
~is not to say that the truths about man that St. Thomas taught are
not perennially important and necessary. They are. But the complexus
of facts which demand assessment, use or rejection by the Thomist
phj\osopher today is much wider and more detailed. Those teachers,
therefore, who were favorably impressed by the recent texts of Donceel
and Klubertanz, might well find this text book too stringently delimited.
It is not that Father Gardeil is unaware of experimental psychology
or unappreciative of the insights it has given and the problems it has
raised: his introduction shows the contrary to be true. Indeed he is
aware that some might receive a faulty impression of his work because
of his curtailment of empirical data (p. 234). But, perhaps because he
intended to write a philosophical or metaphysical psychology, he has
chosen to treat of modern problems only in passing. Hence, his book may
not have that degree of concreteness that some would look for. However,
Father Gardeil's text can be of great value as a supplement to the class
text. Its clarity and orderly presentation are a great advantage in what
is an exceedingly complex area of investigation. On that score, despite
whatever other reservations might be made, there can be complete
agreement on the fact that the author has written a fine and scholarly
exposition of the traditional teaching of St. Thomas. That is no small
merit and, by way of supplementing and summarizing a more concrete
and inductive approach, it can be a great one.
H. R. BURNS, S.J."
DEVELOPMENT OF PHILOSOPHY
A Short History of Philosophy. By F. J. Thonnard, A.A. Translated
by Edward A. Maziarz, C. PP. S. Tournai: Desciee, 1955. Pp. 1074.
$6.50.
While the value of the history of philosophy as an apt means of
teaching philosophy itself has long been recognized, the attempt to
exploit this mor:e concrete and problematic approach to philosophy has
been hampered by the lack of a good, one volume history of philosophy
in English. That of Turner is surely out of date, while others by nonCatholics (e.g., that of Thilly-Wood) either slight Christian philosophy
or require a degree of discernment that is beyond the abilities of the
undergraduate student. This English translation, therefore, is assured
a happy reception in this country. Brief though it is, it is no mere comPendium of facts whi<;h have been detached from all meaningful con. text. Factual data there is, and in plentitude, especially in the ample
and up-to-date bibliographies. Father Thonnard's purpose, however, goes
, beyond that of an annalist. He desires to give some understanding at
least of the philosophical doctrines of the great men in philosophy. He
adds too in each. case criticisms which are balanced and just. In
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BOOK REVIEWS
general the translation reads well. But on certain points the English does
not clearly and adequately convey the meaning intended. Despite blem·
ishes, however, the translation should fill a long and seriously felt need
in American colleges. It is admirably fitted to do so.
H. R. BURNs, S.J.
A MAJORITY OF ':CATHOLICS IN SECULAR SCHOOLS
The Catholic in Secular··Education. By James M. O'Neill. New York:
Longmans, Green and Co. 1956. Pp. xix-172.
At a time when the building program for new Catholic educational
institutions has reached unprecedented heights, a book on the Catholic
student in secular education could have been a most unwelcome topic.
Yet this book has been favorably received primarily because it judie!·
ously reminds the American Catholic of a fact that can easily be for·
gotten. Professor O'Neill, who is eminently qualified to write about
secular education on the college level, shows that, even with the ex·
panding building program, the majority of Catholic students will con·
tinue to be instructed in secular schools.
Backing this statement with accurate information, the author then
raises his voice in justified protest against his fellow-Catholics' blind
condemnation of the secular institution. Drawing on his own and the
experience of many of his Catholic friends who also teach in seeular
colleges and universities, he describes the dangers a~d yet the generally
improved atmosphere which will face the Catholic student there today.
With so many Catholic students confronting the dilemma of going to
public high schools and secular universities or limiting themselves to a
grammar school education, the author calls for a greater effort on the
part of Catholics to permeate the educational life of the secular institu·
tion. He mentions the need for more Catholic scholars and professors
who can competently represent the faith. They can become not only I
protective force for the Catholic student but also a leaven in the nonCatholic majority. He cites the outstanding work done by NeWillaD
clubs and similar Catholic societies within the college milieu. Catholic
students under the guidance of a zealous chaplain can gain additional
strength in their religious, intellectual and moral convictions.
Even with his re!}trained eulogy of the improved atmosphere of the
secular college, Professor O'Neill admits that there will always be 1
danger to the Catholic student who is weak in his faith. This, indeed,
would be true under any circumstances. Finally, although he does not
state it in explicit terms, the aspiration of every Catholic youth JllUBt
be to receive his undergraduate training in a Catholic college or univer•
sity. There rests the Catholic ideal. For there alone can his faith,
fostered by a religious environment, grow to its fullness in the light
of philosophical and theological truth.
ROBERT A. McGUIRE, S.J•
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
THE CATHOLIC COLLEGE: TEACHER AND STUDENT
A Uttle Learning. By Walter J. Handren, S.J. Westminster: Newman,
1956. Pp. ·xii-215. $3.50.
One of the characteristics of Jesuit education is a special interest in
the student on the part of the teacher. This book is an application of
this principle, for the author is sharing seventeen years of experience
in the classroom, as well as mature scholarship, with the numerous
college men and women who will read him. The book is divided into
three parts. Part one pictures the main environmental factors constituting a Catholic college. Such topics as relations with the faculty, study
habits, extra-curriculars, dancing and parties, the pros and cons of
boarding away from home are candidly treated. Part two presents a
philosophy of education in simple yet clear terms. This is the heart of
the book and its more fruitful and worthwhile matter not only for the
student but also teachers wishing to brush up on practical pedagogical
principles. "Expressing Oneself" and "Aesthetic Development" are
chapters which might prove of particular interest to Ours. The third
part of the book reduces to rule and practical application the principles
of the preceding sections as applied to campus environment. It is thus
a synthesis of the first two sections. The chapter on "Reading" seems
particularly worthy of note. The principles which find development in
this volume and the reservoir of teaching experience that it represents
should recommend this book to Ours as well as to college students.
LEO H. LARKIN' S.J.
THE FREE SPIRIT OF A HERO
Seek For A Hero. B11 William G. Schofield. New York: Kenedy & Sons,
1956. Price: $3.95.
· "Where shall we seek for a hero, and where shall we find a story?"
From these lines found in a poem by John Boyle O'Reilly, comes the title
of this book which is an interesting biography of a great man.
In O'Reilly, the author finds his hero, and in Seek For A Hero we find
a story with warmth and vitality. Tracing the life of O'Reilly from the
time of his early youth until his death in 1890, Schofield brings into
clear focus his courageous, freedom-loving spirit. At the age of twentytwo O'Reilly was captured by the English, sentenced to life imprisonment for being a Fenian spy, and exiled to an Australian prison camp.
Instead of wilting under the inhuman treatment, he grimly searched
for a way to freedom, and after years of suffering, managed an amazing
e~cape and ultimately found his way to America. Here, too, it was imposSible for him to remain deaf to the cries of the oppressed, and as editor
~:The Pilot, Boston newspaper, he championed the cause of the Negro,
e .American Indian, and others who sought to have their rights rec~gnlzed. We must thank the author for this graphic portrayal of an
riah hero,
ROBERT B. CULLEN, S.J.
�94
BOOK REVIEWS
CATHOLIC PRIEST IN MOSCOW
Moscow Was My Parish. By the Reverend Georges Bissonnette, A.A.
New York, McGraw-Hill Company, Inc., 1956. Pp. 272. $3.95.
The first graduate from Fordham's Institute of Contemporary Russian
Studies, the author was well equipped to assume the extraordinary_
duties of American chaplain in Moscow from January, 1953 until his
dramatic and much-publicized expulsion in March, 1955. He learned
much about the Soviet Union during that time, and what he saw, his
reactions to circumstances and his interpretations of events are the
contents of his book. All .. things considered, one closes this book with
a sane sense of hope for Russia, chiefly because of the religious depth
of her people. The Catholic Church in the Soviet Union is barely a
shadow of the complex of dioceses, schools, colleges, monasteries and
newspapers that once existed, but it is still a force, though a small one.
The hierarchy of the dissident Russian Church presents a special problem because of its subservience to the Soviet regime and its willingness
to become the instrument of foreign and domestic policy, but to the
common people religion is still essentially an effort to conform their
conduct to Christ's life on earth.
JoHN J. McDONALD, S.J.
THE BEST IN CATHOLIC VERSE: 193g-1955
The Second America Book of Verse, 1930-1955. New-Yprk: The America
Press, 1955. Pp. 189.
When Father Talbot was appointed Literary Editor of America in
1923, he began to encourage the publication of the best in Catholic
verse and his successors in that office have tried to continue that tradition so ably begun. The first America Book of Verse appeared in 1928
and contained selections of the best poetry, which had appeared in the
magazine since its foundation in 1909. Twenty-seven years later America
publishes its second anthology, selected and arranged with excellent
taste by James Edward Tobin. Of interest to readers of WOODSTOCK
LETTERS is the fact that thirty-four poems are from the pens of seventeen
Jesuits, among whom are Alfred Barrett, John L. Bonn, William Donaghy, Richard Grady, Leonard McCarthy, Francis Sweeney and Daniel
Berrigan.
.'
As Father Gardiner, the present Literary Editor, remarks in his
preface, "The poetry is somehow different". Foremost among the changes
he lists those in technique and diction, and the absence of the language
of poesy. There are obvious signs also that poetry is no longer regarded
as a separate kind of knowledge, a precious technique or an instrument
of propaganda. The deepening maturity of Catholic education, the in- .
creased participation on the part of Catholics in the life of the Church
through the liturgy and increased awareness of doctrines like the Mysti·
�95
BOOK REVIEWS
cal Body, all these account for the growth in maturity of Catholic
poetry in this country. Christian dogma is at the heart of this growth
and the artist in this 1955 collection gives evidence of seeking its aid
not just in regard to subject matter but more -importantly as that
vantage point from which he gains the light necessary for contemplating
all the truths of the created universe. This second America Book of Verse.
will certainly repay the serious attention of the reader.
J. J.
GOLDEN,
S.J.
PERSON· AND COMMUNITY
The Three-Dimensional Man.
By A. M. Sullivan. New Pork: P.
Kenedy. 1956. Pp. lx-298. $4.00.
·
J;
The author in his introduction to his work states that he is an expert
on nothing. The reader will be inclined to disagree vigorously. Mr.
Sullivan has done the job of an expert in his understanding portrayal
of the relation between spiritual values and material progress in science
and business. In· defining the three-dimensional man, the author depicts
a man of personal integrity, community responsibility, and spiritual
awareness. Then he proceeds to explain the physical and moral forces,
which help to form these three qualities. The true three-dimensional
man must be wary in choosing his reading, conscious as he is that what
he reads contributes greatly to what he is. In his analysis of minority
groups and their influence upon a man's thought, two types of minorities
emerge-the dedicated and the selfish. The author cautions against the
labels and slogans which so often manage to lead even thoughtful men
astray. The final chapter is truly a fitting summary of a splendid book,
which offers a very good study of the place which the humanities can
play in the life of an educated American. For the man whose daily activities are wholly concerned with one or other rather limited scientific or
commercial field, this book could be the beginning of a new view of life.
The basic truths of Christian humanism are presented in a delightfully
American tone. Mr. Sullivan tells us that if there need be a moral to
this appraisal of American culture, it might be worded in the question,
"What makes life worth living?" This book is a spiritually alert effort
to answer that tremendous question.
~ANK
C.
BOURBON,
S.J.
FINE SYNTHESIS
Toward the Summit. By Raymond L. Bruckberger, O.P. Translated
by Sister M. Camille, O.S.F. and Alastair Guinan. New York:
Kenedy, 1956. Pp. 160. $2.75.
France and the Dominicans have made considerable contributions to
the Church's spirituality. Father Bruckberger, a Frenchman and a
Dominican, presents a few spiritual insights which afford a solid
�96
BOOK REVIEWS
basis for achieving spiritual progress. In its analysis of the :fundamental
elements of Christian spirituality, Toward tluJ Summit presents a
clear tripartite division. First, God is the object or end of our life;
second, man therefore, should attempt to inculcate unity with God even
on this earth; third, the saints are offered as examples for imitation in
accomplishing that union.
In the first section the author examines the needs presented by man's
consciousness. God alone satisfies man, since the attributes that God
possesses complement the needs or desires found in man. To see such a
solution requires a free gift, faith. True, we. may dispose ourselves by
a rational preparation and'by hearing the announcement of His revealed
message. Ultimately, however, our reaction depends on God's gift· of
grace to the soul.
Contact and union with God is also a desire of man. The second
section deals with the predispositions needed to eft'ect union with God
through prayer. Great stress is placed on the first condition of prayer,
to "place ourselves in the presence of God." As our concern with our own
attachments becomes less, the truth of God becomes clearer. The Our
Father shows us the correct disposition for prayer, the best method of
prayer, the means of moving towards God, the completion of our life,
our summit.
The saints appear united with God; their summit is not hidden by
clouds. They do not appear to us, however, like the legendary heroes
of ancient times, as supermen; saints imitate the heroism of· Christ
which was human. Every human situation is presented to us as capable
of leading men to God, which is proven by the fait--that saints have
come from every state in life. Since each avocation has its patron saint,
men in a similar position can be inspired to follow the example of a
saint who shared this same milieu. Thus the saints by their lives show
the possibility of reaching the summit.
This work is a fine synthesis of the soul's progress towards God.
Its author gives evidence of the wide erudition and the deep, intimate
spiritual life that has appeared in his other writings. As a translation,
the fear is present in the reader that the author's personal insights
sometimes become obscured by transfer to another medium of expression.
The translation of the second and third sections is good, literary
English; the first section presents an attempt to preserve the French
style even at the cost of sacrificing clear, English idiom. The book,
however, still presents much material for meditative thought.
EDMUND
G.
RYAN,
S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVI, No. 2
APRIL, 1957
CONTENTS FOR APRIL, 1957
SAINT IGNATIUS AS MAN - - - - - - - - - - - - 99
John LaFarge, S.J.
THE PROPER GRACE OF THE JESUIT VOCATION ACCORDING
107
TO JEROME NADAL ------------Thomas H. Clancy, S.J.
RELIGIOUS MORALISM---------------------- 119
Georges Dirks, S.J.
THE SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS OF THE SPIRITUAL
EXERCISES ---------------------------------- 127
Patrick J. Boyle, S.J.
FATHER THOMAS RAMSAY MARTIN _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 133
Wilfred P. Schoenberg, S.J.
FATHER JOHN J. KEHOE ----------Vincent J. Hart, S.J.
163
FATHER FRANCIS X. DELANY--------·.,--------- 173
Eugene T. Kenedy, S.J.
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS - · · - - - - - - -
179
�~~~~~~----------------------------------------------------------~
CONTRIBUTORS
Father John LaFarge (New York Province) is an editor of America.
Father Thomas H. Clancy (New Orleans Province) is a Tertian at
Cleveland.
Father Georges Dirks (P,rovince of Southern Belgium) was Master of
Tertians for many YE;.~j.-s at Wepion.
Mr. Patrick J. Boyle (Chicago Province) is completing his philosophical
studies at West Baden.
Father Wilfred P. Schoenberg (Oregon Province) teaches at Spokane.
Father Vincent J. Hart (New York Province) is director of University
development at Fordham.
Father Eugene T. Kenedy is a scriptor at St. Francis Xavier's in New
York City.
-
-·;
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 19•2, at the post office at W oodotoek.
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Suboeription: Five Dollan YearlT
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�Saint Ignatius As Man
JOHN LaF ARGE, S.J.
This Ignatian year is for us Jesuits a year of commemoration and a year of self-examination, in which we ask ourselves
whether we are still faithful to the ideals of our Founder. It
is a search, a renewal in our minds and hearts of Ignatian
spirituality, and during the year 1956 much will be said and
written about this topic. The expression in a way is a bit
misleading. A great religious order does not profess a
spiritual way of life entirely unique and distinct from all
others. It is not something drawn up with precise formulation, sharply defined, like the charter of a juridical institution. Practically every feature of any importance in the
order's spiritual life belongs to the patrimony of the entire
Church. For all it is the same royal road of the Cross, the
same battle of the Spirit against the flesh, the same reliance
upon divine grace and the same goal of ultimate triumph.
Differences are to be found more in the sum total of unwritten
tradition and customary practice; in stress and emphasis.
Nothing, for instance, seems more different outwardly than
the life of a Jesuit compared with, let us say, that of a Carthusian monk. Yet when you talk to a Carthusian, or study
the traditions of the Carthusian order, you are struck by
Profound resemblances to the Jesuit spirit, at points where
You least expect them. It was from the Carthusians of Cologne
that Ignatius' ideas on perfection found an extremely early
response. It was the Carthusian Prior Gerard Kalckbrenner
of Cologne who publicly took up his defense and the monks of
the Cologne Charterhouse dedicated to him one of their own
spiritual publications.
Indeed it is perhaps a general norm of the religious life
everywhere that the more deep and intense the understanding
of any one rule of life, the more readily does one sympathize
With the spirit of others, each in their own sphere.
All this I have said just as a proviso, so you will not expect
~---
This paper was one of a series read at Loyola Seminary, Shrub
0 ak, New York, during the Ignatian Year.
J
,,i
,,
:
.,
�100
IGNATIUS THE l\IAN
me to deliver a neatly formulated picture of Ignatian spirituality. Our subject, Saint Ignatius the Man, as you fully
realize, is a vast topic, about which any number of men,
especially any number of Jesuits, will offer any variety of
interpretations. Just so none of the collection of portraits
which his contemporaries had painted and drawn succeeded
in picturing him definitively. For Ignatius Loyola was a
complex character who reconciled in himself an astonishing
diversity of contrasting and opposing traits. He was ardent
but self-controlled; --comparatively unlearned, yet one of the
three or four mightiest initiators of education in the history
of Christendom. He was impetuous yet infinitely patient;
exacting yet delicately charitable. He was totally detached
and Christlike yet entirely at home in a most un-Christlike
world.
The most I can do is to select some one aspect of his personality and I do so, not as would a deep philosopher of the
spiritual life, but simply as a journalist, as one who has spent
most of his life reading the papers and then trying to figure
out for himself what lies behind the news that is served up
to us day by day. In other words, if I talk of Saint Ignatius
as a man, I ask myself what general traits .do I find in him
which possess a special significance in oar• era ;-or to be
more precise, in view of the situation that religion and the
Church itself occupy in the present world.
Ignatian Dynamism
This is why I selected the extraordinary dynamism of
Ignatius as a point that seems to offer some deeper under·
standing of the man himself, even though it implies conflict.
We do not need to elaborate the notion. We can infer Ignatius'
dynamism most evidently from the vigor of the vast institution he founded: its rapid spread, its extreme versatility and
universality, the.' richness of its appeal to modern man, the
rapidity of its rebirth after suppression, its present flourish·
ing condition, its power in resisting heresy.
There is a special reason in our time for stressing this
dynamic trait. We sense uncomfortably that our faith must
emphasize its dynamic character if it is to meet the challenge
of the contemporary world, if it is to survive. Our faith must
�IGNATIUS THE MAN
101
conquer, or it will be conquered. It must advance or be pushed
back into obscurity. The Christian faith and the Church of
Jesus Christ cannot rely today upon a momentum derived
from ancient impulses. The faith no longer has the support
of a Christian-inspired social structure. It no longer can function as a Gebrauchskatholicismus, on an inherited patrimony
of usage.
Faith today must meet the disrupting elements of the
modern technological revolution, as well as the force of the
ideologies, with their magical command of mass media: the
mass of unflavored gelatine, as Edward O'Connor calls it in
The Last Hurrah. So it is licit for us to ask, humanly speaking, whence Ignatius' dynamism?
We are considering him as man. But when we say man, we
mean a multitude of different aspects, for, as we are constantly reminded, no man is an island. A man is himself,
inviolably himself, yet if we wish to view him concretely, we
must reckon with the influences and sources that enter into
his being. These we may gather around three main aspects,
seeing man, as it were, in a three-dimensional world. Two of
these concern chiefly the natural order; the third, the supernatural.
Native Endowments
Consider Ignatius from the ground up, as it were: in his
origin, in the roots of his being. By origin and by nature he
Was a man of firm, forceful character, as well as one of simple,
unquestioning religious faith. The lines of his nativity and
childhood were drawn in the ancient Basque country, with its
great social stability, large families, industrious habits and
sense of duty and loyalty. Basque faith was militant, and the
Youth of its upper classes were inspired by Spain's religious
chivalry, just as they were by the romanticism that pervaded
the drama and literature of the age. The authority and the
sanctity of the Church were unquestioned. Even though the
lives of many of its representatives were scant credit to it,
still men and women of great holiness and learning were frequent enough to set a young man's sights to higher possibilities.
From his home and from his early influences Ignatius de-
�102
IGNATIUS THE MAN
rived an active, generous, realistic personality, and his early
military training gave him a supreme esteem for couragemoral and physical. His power of decision was innate and
paramount, and reflected in his words written very early in
his career to Sister Teresa Rejadella: "A person who does
not settle things, does not understand, and is no help." ( Quien
no determina, no entiende, no ayuda.)
Allied to his sense of decision was his dominant sense of
finality: the absolute need to know what you are doing and
why you are doing it: to foresee little things and to plan generously for great enterprises; for it was the age of enterprises : some gloriously successful, others miserable failures
because of poor planning or mixed motives. At the same time,
Ignatius showed from the ground up a shrewd native realism,
characteristic of the Basques, the understanding of men and
their ways, the penetrating power of observation that often
goes with races who have had to earn their daily bread under
difficult circumstances. Along with this was a certain broad
humanism. Ignatius respected art and literature; he loved
music and even the dance.
Our own· times sorely need the Ignatiah.:- spirit of determination-not that of stubbornness or rashness, but the determination that comes to a mind that has naturally meditated
on its motives and life's circumstances.
Environmental Factors
If we look at Ignatius in respect to the world around him,
1
his environment in the widest sense, and the influences that
streamed in from it, we can say that he was a child of his
times, as we are of ours. It was a world of ferment, of discovery, it was an erudite "republic of letters": scientific, in
the wider sense .of the world; universalist and international.
The discovery of America opened up a limitless horizon for
spiritual as well as military or commercial enterprise. Ignatius' own relatives, it is said, were deeply interested in these
discoveries, and it is unlikely that Ignatius himself, in his
formative years, would have escaped the influence of the neW
prospects.
With the revealing of new possibilities for the spread of
Christ's Kingdom, came also a realization of the weakness and
�IGNATIUS THE MAN
103
corruption that had crept into the inner sanctuaries of the
Kingdom itself: a sense of the Church's suffering from corruption in high places, as well as of the deep current of
anxiety among spiritual minded men everywhere over the need
of genuine reform. But the currents of reform themselves
were part of the surrounding atmosphere, their errors and
excesses as well as their merits. Ignatius' firm faith, and his
steadfast conviction of God's goodness and mercy, revolted
against the Reformers' exaggerated pessimism. Nowhere is
this more clearly seen than in his masterly treatment of the
problem of guilt and sin. He leads the exercitant step by step
into an understanding first of the origin and nature of sin,
as a world phenomenon, then as a phenomenon in our own
lives. The paths of meditation induce the retreatant gently
but firmly to grasp the real nature of his own guilt--not as a
psychological excitement, but as a chilling fact, in view of
the eternal truths of the Faith. But this very revelation of
personal sin is itself the path to humble prayer for forgiveness; it leads to intimate conversation with the Redeemer, to
the foot of the Cross, and finally to the reconstruction of one's
own life. Quid agam pro Christo?
Undoubtedly Ignatius' emphasis upon certain externals of
the Church, or of Catholic practice, was the response to an
exaggerated inwardness, a distrust of sacramentalism, that
was current at that day.
Primacy of Grace
Finally, lgnatian dynamism is to be seen in the light of the
supreme determinant of his life : what came to him from
above: the work of divine grace. This is a most mysterious
and fascinating study. What we do know stands out in such
vivid clearness. But as to so much that we do not know, we
can only surmise.
Our sources are limited. Besides the Exercises, we must
look to the Constitutions and to more mystical sources. These
last reveal, as it were, two poles in his early experience to
Which all his subsequent spirituality seems to gravitate. One
of these was the vision of Manresa, on the banks of the River
Cardoner, which totally transformed his life. Here we have
the first tremendous element in the dynamism of Ignatius'
�104
IGNATIUS THE MAN:
spiritual life: his insistence upon the total transcendence of
God, as the Source and as the End: the sense of the Divine
Majesty, mentioned in the Constitutions 279 times. The po~er
of this idea, expressed with force and simplicity, is seen in the
power of the Exercises themselves. This idea has penetrated
all modern Catholic spiritual teaching.
The other primary experience was the vision of La Storta,
where he received the. favor of being "placed wi.th" the Son
of God, participating in the work of the Word of God in the
world. Here then is the second element in his power. The
message he brings is not just the message of a great idea, but
the power communicated by those who become identified with
a Divine Person, operating through all history, and in all the
world, always moving toward a vast purpose. Here the power
of Ignatius is like the power of Saint Paul: Mihi vivere
Christus est.
He identified himself with the humility of the Divine Word:
with the Cross, with the pierced heart of the Redeemer. And
it was an active humility. Let us look at this idea more precisely. The most revealing source we know for the work of
grace in Ignatius is, unfortunately, but fragmentary: the
remnant of his spiritual diary. Only this fragment was saved
from the destruction that he had ordered. One feature of this
dairy seems of special significance, with a wide bearing upon
the spiritual warfare of the present time. That which moved
Ignatius immensely, moved him more than anything else, was
the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. At Mass he received his most
intense illuminations, so that after it he spent two hours of
thanksgiving, in spite of his careful husbanding of time.
He reflects this solicitude for the Holy Sacrifice in his careful provision in the Constitutions prescribing daily attendance
at Mass and in the.radical stand he took for frequent reception
of Holy Communion: radical and frequent, that is to say, bY
the customs of those times. Repeatedly he expresses his joy
at what God revealed to him at Mass. There he entered into
the most profound and intimate communication with the Word
of God: there he offered supreme homage to the Father; there
he joined in the victim-offering of the Son, and united himself
with the Heart that embraced all men. There he offered sacri·
fice through the operation of the Holy Spirit. He participated
�IGNATIUS TltE MAN
105
in this Sacrifice as a priest set aside to represent the Church
itself, in its act of supreme worship of the Father. The Mass
was of the Church, in the Church and for the Church, so that,
in the words of Father Karl Rahner, S.J., he was most truly
"a man of the Church."
The Mass as Action
We might also note that Ignatius seems to have found as
the occasion for these great spiritual outpourings not so much
long hours of adoration before the Most Blessed Sacrament,
as his daily celebration of the Holy Eucharist, as an action,
a Sacrifice. I wonder if this is not the reason why this element of lgnatian piety has not been more dwelt upon. Of old,
the typical picture represents Ignatius as a vested priest
offering the Mass. That was the sense of his contemporaries
and of his immediate successors. So it was here, if I may use
a rather crude expression, that his religious faith made its
most overwhelming impact upon him.
May this be not without meaning for us today, since the
reforms in the Liturgy are helping us to grow more conscious
of the power that our Faith exerts through the union of men
with the Holy Sacrifice. In the Mass is both the symbol and
the reality of the Church: its all-embracing universalism, its
ceaseless action for the salvation of souls.
How do we reconcile, someone may ask, this mystical devotion with Ignatius' humanism and dry realism, his much
commented-upon being-at-home in the world. Precisely because through his entering into the intimate life of the
Saviour, he entered into the true philanthropf,a, that love of
man for the good that is in man, as well as the graces that
man can acquire through the Redemption. Our retreats, our
colleges, our parishes, our missions, are built around this living center. The center is there, and is revered; but it must be
more consciously, more reflectively known.
Ignatius, moreover, identifies himself with Jesus Christ
through identifying himself with the Church, the Bride of
Christ. "Believing that there is the same Spirit between Christ
our Lord, the Bridegroom, and the Church, His Bride." He
spoke of the "singular benefit of being united to the Mystical
Body of the Catholic Church, made living and governed by
�106
IGNATIUS THE MAN
the Holy Spirit." He identified himself therefore with the work
of the Holy Spirit in the world, as expressed in the Church.
Hence his identification with the Father's work of creation,
the Son's work of Redemption and with the Spirit's work of
diffusion and sanctification.
-) Conclusion
Ignatian spiritual 'aynamism, functions, like all great
dynamic spiritual movements, by reconciling apparent opposites. It blends into perfect unity and concord two contrasting elements. One of these is the mystery of God's supreme
transcendence: the vast and comprehensive view of the rela:
tionship between the Creator and all His creation. The
other is the mystery of the Heart of Christ, the Incarnate
Word, offering Himself to the Father and laboring for mankind. The guarantee of our own participation in these divine
labors is the test of humility: not for its own sake, not as selfcontained ascetic discipline, but as the condition of joyful
companionship with the King in His campaign, with the work
of the Holy Spirit in the Church.
_ ·.
Hence the churchliness of Ignatius. Today when the Church
is on trial throughout the world: for her very existence, in
the world behind or threatened by the Iron Curtain; for her
principles of justice and charity, as in her stand for these basic
virtues in our communities, North and South, we need to imitate our Founder in His complete identification with the Person of Jesus Christ: with Christ's historical Person, with His
sacramental and sacrificial Person, and finally, with Christ in
the humblest members of His Church. But the avenue to such
identification is an ever deeper identification with the Church
itself: not through sensational or restless activity, but in these
precious years of seedtime and training, through careful
nurturing of the varied gifts God has given to each of us,
through humble study and prayer.
If this Ignatian spirit is really deep planted in our own
hearts, we shall find ourselves fitted, under God's grace, to be
what Father Jerome Nadal said Ignatius wanted himself and
all of us to be-in the words of Saint Paui-coadjutores Dei,
God's willing helpers.
�The Proper Grace of the Jesuit Vocation
According To Jerome Nadal
THOMAS H. CLANCY, S.J.
One of the happiest results of the renewal of Ignatian
studies since the war has been the rediscovery of Jerome
Nadal. According to Polanco/ he it was who knew St. Ignatius better than anyone else and his writings are furnishing
many new insights into the true character and deepest meaning of Ignatian spirituality. 2 In these pages we would like to
examine his idea of the special and particular grace of the
Jesuit vocation.
The Particular Grace of the Religious Vocation
Although, according to Fr. Nicolau, there is nothing basically original in Nadal's thought, he has given an original and
personal touch to some doctrines and this is especially true of
his idea of the particular grace of the religious vocation and
how that grace must be found in the life of the Founder.s
Thus, for Jesuits it is of highest importance to know the
life of St. Ignatius "whom God took as a means to communicate that grace (of vocation) and called as a minister of that
vocation. God set him up as a living example of our way of
life (nuestro modo de procedar) " 4
Two authorities might be cited for the soundness of that
idea. The first is Pius XI who in his Apostolic Letter to
orders of men, Unigenitus Dei Filius, said:
-
1
Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu (referred to hereafter as
MHSI) Monumenta lgnatiana, Epistolae, V, 109.
2
"This way of life is new, difficult to understand and difficult to
Practice." A. Gagliardi, S.J., De Plena Cognitione lnstituti S.J.,
Proemium. Cited by B. O'Brien in the Month May-June, 1941, p. 237.
3
Miguel Nicolau, Jeronimo Nadal, Obras et Doctrinas Espirituales,
Madrid, 1949, p. 464. This is the essential book on Nadal. It is cited
throughout these notes by the name of the author.
4
Cited by Nicolau, p. 149. Note that neither this translation or any
of those which follow make any pretense at being strictly literal.
107
• i
�108
JESUIT VOCATION
And first of all we exhort religious men that each one study the
life of his founder if his wishes to participate fully and know for
certain the grace which flows from his vocation. 5
The second witness is the Jesuit psychologist, Father
Lindworsky:
Anyone entering an ecclesiastical order so as to live according
to a rule approved by the saintly founder of that order, does not
thereby automaticaUy take over the religious aim-form of the
saint, but only such external manifestations of it as are legislated
for. The inspiration that animated the saint and was the most
important thing in his foundation of the order cannot be transmitted
by verbal formularies or an eternal refrain of conventional catchwords. This inspiration must be experienced anew by the novices
and must be applied to each individual; each one must to a certain
degree himself become the founder of the order, grasp the ideal of
the founder and animate himself therewith, and apply it to himself
and his particular conditions. Each individual member is then an
order by himself, with his own aims, and his own particular method
of actualizing that ideal which his order envisages.e
Knowledge of St. Ignatius
'I I
The conviction of Nadal's that Ignatius i§"the exemplar of
the proper grace of the Jesuit vocation enabies us to understand what we would otherwise have to brand as his insatiable
curiosity about the pilgrimage of Inigo. He was one of prime
movers in the attrition campaign waged by the Early Fathers
to get Ignatius to tell his story in full. When finally Ignatius
consented and told it to Gon~ales da Camara he ended the
account with the year 1538 with the words, "Master Nadal
will be able to tell you all the rest." 7
Nadal was a member of that small group of early Jesuits
who were privileged to be formed by Ignatius himself. It
was a great formation if one could stand it. Ribadeneira tells
us, "several times·Ignatius gave him such terrible admonitions
and penances that he wept bitter tears.'' 8
A.A.S. 16, p. 135.
Psychology of Asceticism, p. 19 f.
7 Autobiography, no. 98. W. Young, St. Ignatius' Own Story, 69.
s Cited by De Guibert, Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus, 79 n.
Cf. ibid., 72-82 where De Guibert reviews the stern formation given by
St. Ignatius to those closest to him. Fr. Casanovas compares three of
these privileged souls in the following manner: Laynez was the brains
5
6
�JESUIT VOCATION
109
In his article on the morning meditation9 Father Leturia
recounts how on the very evening of Nadal's return from his
first visitation to Spain there ensued what seems to have been
a rather violent argument betwen Ignatius and Nadal during
which the latter was guilty, as he himself tells us,1° of importunity and irreverence. Result: he got a penance the following day but it was only a few weeks later that he was
named Vicar General of the whole society.U
Nadal's great devotion to St. Ignatius comes out in his
Spiritual diary where we read such hurried and fragmentary
notes as the following:
The pure spirit of Father Ignatius, united in prayer with God,
by which the Society is kept going and by means of which it has
received confirmation from God and every good thing. 1 2
Give me, Oh Lord, the spirit of Father Ignatius, the victory over
the flesh, the world, and the devil; give me his state of contemplation.ta
P. Ignatius quasi osculans animam, et illi se insinuans suaviter
et tranquille.u
The Particular Grace of the Jesuit Vocation
If, then, we take it as demonstrated that the proper and
peculiar grace of the Jesuit vocation is to be found in the
life of St. Ignatius the only question remaining is: where in
the life of Ignatius is this grace to be found? Which of the
many graces he received was the grace to which all the others
were ordered?
To answer this question we must remember the testimony
of Ignatius himself recorded in the last pages of his autobiography: "With him devotion, or a certain ease in finding
-
of Ignatius; Polanco, his right hand; Nadal, his heart. Cited by Nicolau,
3 along with other appreciations of Nadal's role as a collaborator of
Ignatius.
9
Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu, 1934, 63 f.
10
MHSI. Mon. Nadal II, 32.
11
MHSI. Mon. Ign. Epist. VIII, 42-43.
12
MHSI. Mon. Nadal IV, 693.
13
Cited by Nicolau, 412.
14
MHSI. Nadal IV, 720. Part of Nadal's spiritual diary or journal
~as published in Mon. Nadal IV, pp. 643-648, 682-726. Of these selections most were translated into French in Dieu Vivant no. 5 (1946)
39-78.
'i
�110
JESUIT VOCATION
God, was ever on the increase, which devotion he had in
greater abundance at that moment (1555) than in his whole
life and as often as he wanted and at any moment he wanted
he could find God." 1 ~ With Ignatius then as with His Divine
Master the characteristic grace is to be sought in the last days
of his pilgrimage. Not that we should begin there. We should
live again the stages of the Ignatian way to God successively.
,
Novitiate
'
Nadal teaches thaf the novitiate corresponds to the Manresan stage of the Ignatian pilgrimage. There we should give
ourselves over to penance and contemplation and zealous desires for the salvation of souls. 16 Ignatius himself gives an
indication of this in the General Examen when he sets down
as trials of the novitiate experiments which correspond to his
own activity at Manresa and up to the time when he began
to study. Thus novices are to make the Exercises; they are to
live and serve in hospitals; they are to go on pilgrimages
begging their way; and so on to the trial of mean and abject
offices and the teaching of catechism.
ljl
Studies
In the Ignatian vision the man thus tried 'bY fire will be truly
mortified and thus able to pursue his studies, which 'claim the
whole man' with a minimum of formal prayer. Here are the
words of Nadal :
Why is so little time given to the Scholastics for prayer? Because
it is taken for granted that the Scholastics have been tried and
proven to the point that they can study as they ought. And for
them, because they know how sweet it is to pray, the big danger
is not that they will neglect their prayer but rather that they will
give too much time to it to the detriment of their studies. That
is what happened in the case of Ignatius. I think he had to make
a vow to correct himself in this matter.H
Nadal goes on: to say that Ignatius found three obstacles
during his years of study, namely, his poverty, his sickness,
Autobiography, no. 99.
Nicolau, 495.
11 Ibid., 481. On Nadal's part in the settling of the question of the
time allotted to Scholastics for prayer see the masterful article of Fr.
Leturia in Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu, 1934.
lG
16
�JESUIT VOCATION
111
and his prayer and he took care of all three in the Constitutions. Poverty was remedied by the colleges which were the
only endowed houses of the Society. Sickness was prevented
by the fatherly care of superiors for the health of their subjects. The tendency to excess in prayer was checked by the
stated times which were sufficient for one occupied with
studies.18
Tertianship
We might ask to what stage of Ignatius' life tertianship
corresponds. Nadal gives no definite answer. 19 And that is
to be expected since in his day tertianship had not as yet been
fully organized. 20 But if we follow out Nadal's principles we
see that the Jesuit in tertianship is to repeat and relive the
experience of Ignatius in what has been called "the idyll of
1537."21 In January of that year Ignatius was joined in
Venice by his companions who had come down from Paris.
While waiting for a boat that would take them to Palestine
they went to work in the hospitals. Ordained priests in June,
they found that their apostolate among the poor and sick did
not give them enough time to prepare for their first Masses
and so they decided to go into solitude.
"We wanted to live entirely alone, separated from all
(worldly) things," wrote Favre in his Journal. 22 What an excellent definition of tertianship! For several weeks Ignatius
with Favre and Lainez lived in a ruined monastery giving
themselves to penance and contemplation, begging their bread,
venturing out from time to time to engage in the mortifying
and humble ministry of preaching in broken Italian.
Every one of the early band of Jesuits looked back with
fond memories on this period. For Xavier it was the time of
rapid advancement in the ways of prayer. For one of their
number, however, Simon Rodriguez, this year was the occasion of a desire to lead the hermit's life. The recurrence of
-
18
Nicolau, 481.
Aicardo notes that he found nothing in Nadal's instructions on the
tertianship. Comentario a las Constituciones, V, 674.
~ 0 De Guibert says that it was only under Aquaviva that the tertianship became institutionalized. Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus, 225.
21
De Guibert proposes this idea. Ibid. 20 n. 40.
22
Memoriale, no. 17. MHSI, Mon. Fabri, 497.
19
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JESUIT VOCATION
this desire in later years was to cause Ignatius many head~
aches. 23
For Ignatius during these days of solitude all the graces
and consolations he had refused during his years of study
came back. 24 The climax of the whole period of waiting was
the vision of La Storta which plays the same role in the life
of Ignatius as the experiences on Mount Alverno played in
the life of Francis of Assisi. It was God taking full possession
of him and conforming him to Christ on the cross. For Nadal
the significance of th.is vision was to be found in a deep appreciation of the meditations on the Kingdom and the Two
Standards. We are to follow Christ with His Cross and make
up, in our service to the Mystical Body, those things lacking
in Christ's afflictions. 25
The Formed Jesuit
Thus, after ten months of living in the schola affectus,
Ignatius enters Rome and a new chapter of his life begins.
These last nineteen years of Ignatius' pilgrimage may be
considered, continuing the parallel, as the time when he exemplifies what the life of a formed Jesuit should be. During this
time he reached the highest degree of union with God. Laynez,
speaking of the Roman period, says :
_· .
Every day he made progress in virtue. Thus he told me one day,
if I remember correctly, that the grace and devotion which he had
been given at Manresa, which during the time of distractions-i.e.,
during his studies-he used to look back on fondly and call his
primitive church, that grace and devotion, he said, was a small
thing in comparison with the graces he received now (i.e., at
Rome).2 6
For the spiritual progress of Ignatius, then, the Roman
period is of the highest importance. But paradoxically enough
the biographies of Ignatius when they reach this point turn
to the history C?f the Society. Nevertheless, we have two
~e indispensable guide to Ignatius' development during this period
is the series of articles by Hugo Rahner in Zeitschrift fiir Asiese und
Mystik, 1935. Some selections from these articles are translated in the
first number of Christus.
24 Autobiography, no. 95.
25 Nicolau, 352.
26 MHSI. Mon. lgn., Fontes Narrativi I, 140.
�JESUIT VOCATION
113
guides. The first is the fragment of Ignatius' spiritual diary
for the year 1544.27 The second guide is the testimony of
Nadal, Polanco, Gon~ales da Camara and Ribadeneira on those
last years. 28
Concerning the spiritual diary we will pause only to note the
meaning of one key word, hallar, literally, to find. Ignatius
writes:
I was in possession of a great confidence and an absolute love
in the Most Holy Trinity. When I sought then to commend myself
to the Trinity and to each of the persons individually, I did not
find them. (no hallando)29
In another place he writes, "I could not get the Father to
show himself to me." 30 Literally, I could not find from the
Father to show himself to me. (No hallando en la oracion del
Padre discubrirseme).
Truhlar concludes from the study of these and many similar
texts that to find God in the language of St. Ignatius means
to feel the mystic presence of God, to be united with God
mystically. But note that during this period he was not able
"to find God" whenever he wanted.
In Actione Contemplativus
When Nadal, however, writes of the state of Ignatius' soul
ten years later (1554) there is a marked progression. At the
end of his life he was able to find God when he wanted. The
Page on which Nadal describes this great privilege is justly
the most famous he ever wrote and is quoted any time he
27
MHSI. Mon. lgn. Constitutiones I, 86-158. A more accessible edition
~f the diary is that contained in Obras Completas de San Ignacio, ed. I.
t~rr~guirre, S.J., Madrid, 1952, 275 ff. The classic commentary on
~18 diary is contained in the two articles of De Guibert, Revue d'As-
~tiq~e et de Mystique, 1938. These articles were reprinted in book form,
YBttque lgnatienne, Toulouse, 1950.
28
Karel Truhlar, S.J. has gathered together much of this material
on the last years and done a penetrating analysis of Ignatius' state of
:ul towards the end of his life in "La Decouverte de Dieu chez S. Ignace
endant les dernieres annees de sa vie", Revue d'Ascetique et de Mystique, 1948, 313-337.
29
March 2. Obras, p. 304.
80
March 5. Obras, p. 308. See Truhlar art. cit., 315.
,
�114
JESUIT VOCATION
comes up for consideration in the modern literature on Igna.
tian spirituality. 31
We know that our Father Ignatius received from God the special
and extraordinary grace of being able to pray easily to the Holy
Trinity and to refresh his soul in the contemplation of that mystery.
Sometimes he was led by a grace that enabled him to contemplate
the whole Trinity. He was lifted up to it, united to it with his
whole heart and by a poignant sense of devotion and spiritual
delight. Other times~ he would contemplate the Father, then the
Son, then the Holy Ghost. This contemplation was often given to
him, but in a special degree during the last years of his pilgrimage.
Not only did he know this preeminent degree of prayer-in itself
a great privilege-but it allowed him to see God present in all things
and in every action, and it was accompanied by a lively feeling for
supernatural reality: he was a contemplative in the midst of work
(simul in actione contemplativus), or to use his favorite expression:
he was able to find God in all things. This grace which illumined
his soul became known to us by a kind of light which shone forth
from his face and by the radiant trust with which he worked in
Christ. It filled us with a great wonder. Our hearts were much
comforted by "the sight of him, as we were aware that something
of the overflow of this grace poured out upon ourselves. That is
why we believe that this privilege was not only granted to Ignatius
but to the whole Society and that the favor of that kind of prayer
and contemplation is offered to all in the Society and we hold that
it is bound up with the grace of our vocation. And so, let us place
the perfection of our prayer in the contemplation of the Trinity,
extended to the neighbor in the works of our vocation. These works
we much prefer to the sweetness and consolation of prayer.s 2
Let us look at a few stages of that tortured, almost Pauline
page, leaving aside the aspect of the Trinity for the moment.
We start off with the graces Ignatius received in prayer, viz.
to find God in all things or to be a contemplative in action.
This grace we share and to this grace we are called by our
vocations as Jesuits. And this grace is extended to our neigh·
bor when we perform the ministries of the Society with the
result that we pr-efer those ministries to the consolations of
prayer. We have come to the end of our search. Here is the
proper and peculiar grace of the Jesuit vocation.
31 See Nicolau,
Theology Digest,
(1956) 254 ff. is
32 MHSI. Mon.
254: Giuliani in Christus no. 6 (1955), 193; Coreth in
III, 1, (1955), 45. Danielou's article in Christus no. 11
just a commentary on this text.
Nadal IV, 651 f. and Nicolau, 256.
�JESUIT VOCATION
115
lgnatian Contemplation
If Nadal's interpretation is correct we have to do with a
grace and a way of life that is at once an extraordinary gift
of God and a practical guide in the life of an apostle, that is,
one who must sanctify himself by working for the salvation
of his neighbor.
As for Ignatius' right to be considered among the saints
most favored by God in prayer that has been vindicated by
De Guibert and many other spiritual theologians. Brodrick
puts it very aptly:
Put beside St. John of the Cross or St. Theresa or Mother Mary of
the Incarnation, he (Ignatius) seems at first sight like a sparrow
among nightingales, but deeper understanding reveals him as
belonging absolutely to their company.33
A superficial consideration of Ignatian spirituality is always deceiving. The sobriety, almost banality of his recommendations, sometimes veils for the hurried reader a deep
meaning. Pere Brou points out that "St. Ignatius speaks a
language that is very comprehensive, understandable in either
hypothesis, the ascetical or the mystical, but sometimes more
intelligible in the latter than in the former." 34
We see an example of this in the section of the Constitutions
reproduced in the seventeenth rule of the Summary. After
speaking of the necessity of having a right intention, he goes
on in the second part to say, "And in all things let them seek
God, casting off as much as possible all love of creatures." If
we keep in mind the meaning of "finding God in all things"
in the language of St. Ignatius, we discover in this second
Part nothing less than an exhortation to practice the Contemplatio ad amorem in our daily lives just as our Founder did
in the last years of his life. 35
The Heresy of Action?
Some have been loath to preach or practice or even interest
themselves in this summit of Ignatian spirituality because
for them it seems too much like the old my-work-is-my-prayer
--
Origin of the Jesuits; p. 17.
lgnatian Methods of Prayer, p. 61.
35
See Coreth in Theolovy Divest, III, 45.
83
34
�116
JESUIT VOCATION
.....
error. We know that our present Holy Father has warned
against "the heresy of action" on several occasions.88 However, rightly understood the Ignatian ideal as described by
Nadal is the best antidote to this false mysticism. 81 Ignatius
himself in the place cited speaks of purification, "withdrawing
ourselves from all love of creatures". Nor will the contempla·
tive in action conceive that this union with God in his work
dispenses him from formal prayer in all its forms: meditation,
Mass, examens, vocal-prayer, etc. But he will not consider his
meditation as the charging of the spiritual batteries which
run down during the day under pressure of work. No, his
action will be for him a real continuation of prayer. He will
find God, that is, be united with God, in all his actions.38 ,
In an exhortation in Spain Nadal warned, "We should take
great care to follow the counsel of Ignatius and find God in all
things. In this way there is great peace and consolation. But
we ought to seek this grace in the spirit of the Third Degree."19
In other words,- we must find God in trials.
In his spiritual journal Nadal noted the following light
in the third person:
A certain one understood what Father Ignatius used to say about
not straining or pressing ahead in prayer. We""nave to go forward
patiently and finally we will get to the point of being able to find
prayer in anything, and this without depending wholly on our
prayer or the consolations and sentiments of prayer. But he also
realized that no one can get to this state unless he persevere in the
work of interior purfication and gives himself wholeheartedly to
the ministries of the Society and unless he faithfully performs his
spiritual exercises with great humility and sweetness.•o
~us XII warned against "the heresy of action" in his letter to Fr.
De Boynes on the Apostleship of Prayer. See Acta Romana, 1944, 637.
See also Menti Nostrae, Catholic Mind, 1951, p. 50. The fourth part
of the Holy Father's address of Dec. 8, 1950 ( Annus Sacer) is devoted
to this same point. See nos. 19-26 in the various English translations,
e.g. Canon Law Digest III, p. 126 ff. This allocution seems to have ref·
erence to the controversy on the spirituality of the secular priests. In
this connection cf. the spirituality of action proposed by Masure (Parilh
Priest, 181 ff.) and Thils (Nature et Spiritualite du clerge dioceBaitl,
286 ff.). Both these authors profess to be following lgnatian spiritualit1•
3 7 This point was mentioned by Pius XI in Mens Nostra.
3 8 See Giuliani in Christus no. 6 (1955), 182.
ag Nicolau, 480.
4o MHSI. Mon. Nadal IV, 691.
�JESUIT VOCATION
117
Prayer and VVork
Note the constant union of prayer and work, mortification
and work, consolation and work. These texts enable us to
understand why Nadal maintains that in a Jesuit's prayer
zeal for souls is the fruit of every divine visitation. 41 He
goes so far as to say that any kind of prayer that does not
Issue in a desire to help souls, though it might be good in
itself, is dangerous for a member of the Society.42
Don't be a spiritual man full of devotion only when you are
saying Mass or making your meditation. I want you to be spiritual
and full of devotion when you are working and this spiritual force
and grace should shine forth in your work. 48
This is the kind of consolation and grace Blessed Peter
Favre had as we gather from his spiritual diary.44 He tells
us that often he would ask for a grace in prayer only to
receive it later on in his work. On the other hand, work done
with true abnegation and with energy 45 was his best preparation for prayer and it paid off in greater ease in prayer, which
in turn helped him to work better.
Pendulum or Flywheel?
Spiritual writers often seem to consider the life of an
apostle as describing a pendulum-like motion. He swings
back and forth ceaselessly between prayer and action. These
two are taken to be totally separate and in different directions.
But in the Ignatian vision the swinging becomes so powerful
that it describes a complete circle in which each point is at
once prayer and action.46 VVe would say that the contempla~
41
Nicolau, 402.
Nicolau, 320.
u Nicolau, 321.
"Nos. 126 tr. in Memoriale. MHSI. Mon. Fabri, 554 tr.
u Whenever Ignatius or the early companions speak of action or
obedience words like speed, zeal, promptitude, strength, force, energy
always occur. Thus Nadal writes, "Solebat P.N. (Ignatius) dicere:
Non debemus proximum adjuvare frigide et stando. Et hac simplici
loeutione, uti solebat, exprimebat finem Societatis nostrae: currere
niJnirum ferventer ad salutem et perfectionem proximi." Nicolau, 339.
8
' The circle of prayer and action is a favorite of Nadal's. See Hostie's
article in Christus, no. 6 (1955), 195 tr.
62
�118
JESUIT VOCATION
tive in action on the Ignatian model is more like a flywheel
than a pendulum. His prayer gives him great energy and
zeal for his work which in turn prepares him for greater
graces in prayer. The flywheel should be accelerating.
Conclusion
To sum up, then, we see how the man closest to Ignatius
conceived the grace of2 the Jesuit vocation to be a participation in the grace of fgnatius. Among all the graces received
by the founder the principal favor and the one to which all
the rest were ordered is found in the last meditation of
the Exercises and in the last years of St. Ignatius. It is the
grace to find God in all things. By his analysis of this grace
Nadal has shown us how to resolve the old duality of prayer
and action into a synthetic spiritual doctrine where work
aids prayer and prayer aids work until our whole life becomes
a prayer.
Ignatius did not want the members of the Society to find God
only in prayer but in all their actions and he wanted these acts to
become prayer. He liked this method much better than prolonged
meditations,47
It would be belaboring the obvious to point out how neatly
this spirituality fits our needs and the needs of the people
among whom we work.
47 Ribadeneira, MHSI. Mon. Ign. Fontes Narrativi II, 419.
�Religious Moralism
GEORGES DIRKS, S.J.
It is not easy to work out a type of spirituality that is
exactly fitted to our needs. Varied temperaments, personal
experiences in the chance happenings of life by which our
actions are at times too exclusively inspired, our own special
interests-all these expose us to the danger of leaning too
much to the right or too much to the left. Balance is a wondrous thing, and balance we must strive for with all our soul
and strength as long as we live.
Recently, more than ever before, I have come to the realization that there are, even among good Christians, two quite
different ways of conceiving and practicing the Christian life.
These ways are so divergent that from the moment of their
parting they differ greatly in excellence and in the advantages
to which they lead.
The subject merits treatment but we must be careful not
to indulge, merely, in facile and odious comparisons. This
danger is real since the modes of life which we shall attempt
to define do not exist in the pure state in any individual. We
are concerned with two more or less clearly marked attitudes.
As we try to characterize them, we shall inevitably put more
logic and geometry into our concepts than are found in real
life. The reader must take care not to forget this preliminary
warning.
The Moralizer
To orientate ourselves, let us call the first of the attitudes
We have in mind by its name: moralism. It is true that the
-
Translation by Daniel J. Foley, S.J. of the article "Le moralisme
religieux" which appeared in Revue Ascetique et de Mystique 26, (1950),
193-201.
119
�120
MORALISM
"moralizers", 1 being true believers, begin by postulating God.
They know that morality is based on God and that without
Him it would scarcely be acceptable to us. But they waste
no time in divine contemplation. They are more eager to know
how they should live than to acquire knowledge of Him who
gives them life and for whom they live. They consider God
especially, at times even exclusively, as an exacting task·
master. Man must·spend his life trying to fulfill the desires
of this dread Lord-... Created by God, man depends totally on
his Creator. He depends on Him both for his being and in
his acts. In order to obey God, man must mold himself to
docility and cultivate the moral virtues. Fortunately Aristotle
has left us a handy guide to these virtues in four parts:
prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude. It will be par·
ticularly advantageous for man to train and strengthen his
will. He must fulfill the commandments of God, cost what
it may. This obligation ·bears down on him constantly and
this motive .always governs his behaviour. Now, if man
proves to be a faithful servant, his Master will reward him
handsomely; if not, He will punish him for all eternity.
Let us repeat that this description of th~ moralistic Chris·
tian is inadequate and incomplete. In reality, his soul is much
less simple. He, too, believes that God is infinitely good,
infinitely merciful. He repeats this over and over to himself
in order to calm his worries. He, too, knows that the first
and greatest commandment is to love God and he intends
to observe it. Still the affective climate of his soul is com·
pletely conditioned by the ideas mentioned above.
The True Christian
In contrast with the moralistic Christian we find-what
shall we call him? He is sometimes called the mystic Christian
but that is a misuse of words. Let us call him simply the
Christian, the true Christian. For him, too, God is master,
1 The word moraliste has in French a pejorative nuance not found
in the English moralist. Lacking a word which will give the precise
meaning of the French, we shall use moralizer. To avoid the possible
conclusion that we are speaking of specialists in moral theology, which
is not our intention, we shall insert the word in quotation marks.Translator
�MORALISM
121
primordially and ontologically. But the marvel is that this
master desires also to be our Father. It is under this aspect,
principally, that this second kind of Christians considers and
loves God. Our heavenly Father created us in order that we
might participate, by the beatific vision, in the very life of
the Trinity, in divine beatitude. We are loved gratuitously
and infinitely.
To the overwhelming liberalities of God, newly created
man's response was one of pure egoism. Then it was that the
love of God showed its true and almost incredible measure.
"God plunged into the nothingness of His sinful creation in
order to lead it back to Himself." 2 He became man and for
men, who are now his brethren, he atoned and merited. The
Godman who did this bears the name of Jesus Christ. Once
we have realized the bewildering fact of such a love we can
but return love for love. God has willed not only to arouse
this love-response in our hearts, He gives it to us, a supernatural gift, when, in baptism, along with sanctifying grace
He gives us a filial disposition derived from that of the Son.
In the baptized, in this adopted son, not duty but loving gratitude determines all that he thinks and does. As Christ Himself said, "If you love me, keep my commandments" (John
14 :15). The Christian seldom thinks of duty. He loves. He
is quite willing to accept the sacrifices inevitably entailed by
the fulfillment of the commandments of God, even though he
feels the burden. He finds in them, more than in anything
else, the means of showing his love for God. And though he
looks forward to heaven, it is less and less because of the
reward that awaits him there, rather it is because there he
Will know perfectly and possess forever the One he loves.
Non sine praemio diligitur sed absque intuitu praemii (St.
Bernard).
Such a life of love is not achieved immediately by the Christian of whom we are speaking. He applies himself to the task
of realizing it more and more perfectly. It is his great concern. He knows that this life has been given him in order that
he may rise above the littleness of self-centeredness and attain
to the admirable generosity of love. His climb upwards is
~
2
M. de Montcheuil, S.J., Melanges Theologiques, p. 356.
�122
MORALISM
not without halts and even momentary backslidings. The
true Christian has moments of carelessness and weakness.
But at those times he tries his best to revive his dying fervor.
If necessary, he fans it with the fear of hell.
The Way of the Moralizer
Surely we have here two different types of Christian life.
The moralizing Christian is dominated by the thought of
duty. If he knows· that he must, he plods along. If not, he
hardly budges. Often enough the care of satisfying with
exactitude the demands of duty develops a legalistic frame
of mind, along with casuistic worries which end in scruples.
Unfortunately, this is not an unknown experience! Before
each act, the question is, "May I?" or "Must I?" "Is it allowed
or forbidden?" "Is it a counsel or a strict obligation?" Such
Christians have, obviously, made observation of the law the
essence of the Christian life. We do not deny, of course, that
among them there are some remarkable examples of the faith·
ful servant, men of fidelity and even of heroism, who have
forged souls of justice, honesty and energy. Unfortunately,
it is not rare to find these admirable men convinced that to
remain to the end just as upright and s"frong-willed as they
are depends on no one but themselves. Despite the seductions
of greed and passion, they feel self-sufficient. They will admit
that God's grace is a help;· they do not think that it is indis·
pensable. They flatter themselves that characters such as
theirs can withstand anything. One thinks of the prayer of
the Pharisee in the Temple; which was, actually, no prayer
at all. The "moralizers" pray but little and when they do, it
is hardly ever to ask for help from God. Instead they seem
to say, "Everything can be accomplished by will-power." TheY
apparently do not realize that this proposition is authenticallY
Pelagian. It is' true that much is done by the will; it is even
true that nothing is done without it. But our will-power is
utterly incapable of making us saints. God alone makes saints,
because God alone can unite souls to Himself. So it is that
the voluntarists devote the greater part of their attention and
their effort to the cultivation of the moral virtues, particularlY
to training the will.
This training produces at times enviable results. They are,
�MORALISM
123
however, of a purely natural and human order. Christian
perfection is supernatural. The Christian life is lived on a
transcendent plane. The "moralizers" forget this fact and
end up, in some instances, believing that heaven, the possession of God, is for them nothing but a conquest they have
to make. In reality, it is a gift they have to receive. Since
this is the case, their interior life is easily imagined: unceasing preoccupation with self. "Moralizers" are always mor~
or less worried lest they forget this, that or the other thing;
just as they are always worried about avoiding things. Pay
attention to God, to His presence, to His inspirations? Listen
attentively to the Holy Spirit and try to collaborate with
Him? Such ideas seldom enter their heads. They might wish
things were otherwise, but absorbed as they are in numerous
other activities, they have no more time or energy.
Moralism and Prayer
"Moralizers" certainly will never be men of prayer. To
pray is to seek God, to find Him and to talk with Him. They
forget to look for God. They are looking instead for beautiful
and profound ideas. With consequential logic they deduce
from their ideas practical conclusions. They line up rules
of conduct and think out excellent reasons for keeping these
rules-forgetting perhaps the principal and most powerful
motive of all: love of God. They pray little; except, perhaps,
at the beginning of their meditation in order to direct their
attention to God, since that in their opinion is sufficient, and
at the end in the colloquy which may be true prayer. But for
the greater part of the time they are studying exegesis, moral
theology or psychology. They are not looking for God and
so they do not find God. They remain alone. Such prayer is
nearly always tedious, dry, unenthusiastic-in a word, very
difficult. To continue at it for a lifetime, with ideas becoming
more and more banal and trite, calls for a dose of energy
Which is not at all ordinary. Some have it but many do not.
The latter, we fear, will abandon meditation.
It is to be feared as well that this moralism will develop
but little generosity. It can and does produce men of dutya Point we have already conceded. Those who follow the
moralizing approach will do what is necessary. They may
�124
MORALISM
even do more with a view to disciplining themselves and
training their wills. But to do this for God, in order to resemble Christ, the type of Christian living, does not seem
quite reasonable to them. In fact it belongs to a world which
is not the "moralizer's" world. It presupposes another sort
of soul. To do one's duty is to do much; but, from the Christian viewpoint, it is not enough. Love goes far beyond the
demands of duty and Christianity wants to make us live by
love. What we really reproach the "moralizers" with is not
the task of moral education to which they rightly, though at
times overzealously, devote themselves, but rather the fact that
they devote themselves to this task exclusively. What we miss
is what they do not do, what should be added to their program
of training for Christian living. Moralizing is an attitude
which is both incomplete and insufficient. It neglects or omits
the very essence of Christianity, the practice of charity.
"The training of the will is timely. But were we not all baptized in the name of the Most Holy Trinity in order to live
the life of divine sonship by the grace of Christ and in the
Holy Spirit? Something very important is at stake. Too
many souls have suffocated in the prison of religious moralism.
We have worked too hard for twenty years teying to re-learn
from St. Paul, St. John and all the great Christians the true
foundations of Christianity, not to be upset when this freedom
is questioned once again." 3
True Charity
The "moralizers" would certainly find in charity the necessary energy to realize their ideal in life, but charity would
transform them. Instead of a life dominated solely by the
feeling of duty, Our Lord came to arouse and stimulate in
those who wish to· follow Him a life inspired, as His was,
by the love of the Father. Genuine Christian living flourishes
in an atmosphere which is different from that of moralism.
This life is man's response to the marvelous love which God
has for him. The response of a free, intelligent being can be
naught but love. The movement of the human soul to God is
fundamentally something natural: the tHan of a nature made
a P. Doncoeur, S.J., Etudes, June 20, 1923, p. 701.
�MORALISM
125
for God and realizing in a greater or lesser degree that God
alone can fill the void it is. Now baptized man also possesses
supernatural and filial charity which flows into him from the
plenitude of Christ and which the Holy Spirit pours forth in
the souls of believers. We have grace to love God. We must
exploit both this natural tendency and this grace. Nor should
we 4".avil about the word love. We are not thinking here of
sentimentality or a passing infatuation. Love is a serious
thing. To love is to have toward a person-we only love
people-such a profound inclination of the will that we are
ready to do anything for that person. So it is that Christ
loved His Father. So it was that the first Christians loved
Christ. This bond of the first generation of Christians with
Jesus has been compared, with admirable insight, to the love
between affianced couples. The vital intensity, the generosity
in giving, the happiness and flowering of the whole personality,
which nascent love normally produces, are what one observes
in the first disciples. There was feeling in this love certainly.
We have only to remember Peter and John. But there is much
more in love. There is an imperious upsurge of the depths of
being; depths, whose supreme activity is love; and there is a
united effort of the vital forces, especially of the superior
forces, in a giving which decides all of life that remains. And
all this is elevated, sublimated by supernatural grace. By this
grace, derived from Him, Christ comes into us to love His
Father, prolonging in us and multiplying through us the love
He has as God's Son; so much so, indeed, that the Christian
must say with Paul: "It is no longer myself alone; in me it is
Christ who lives, who loves." Obviously in the degree that this
state of soul is realized in him, the Christian passes beyond
the stage of legalistic and casuistic care. He does not have to
worry about whether or not he is fulfilling the minimum required by law or whether he is doing more than is required.
He loves God, he loves Jesus Christ; and consequently he must
do, although he does it freely and with an increasing "naturalness" all that God wants him to do. Ama et fac quod vis, said
Augustine. Love and everything you do will be good. True
love implies the determination never to limit oneself to what
has already been done. He who judges that he had done
enough to prove his love and refuses to do more, when more
�126
1\IORALISM
is possible, merely proves that he does not love. One of the
properties of love is to consider not what has already been
done but what remains to be done for the beloved.
We cannot attain to this degree of fervor right away. What
is true of human love is also true of our love for God. Union
once established must still be perfected. To this end the principal thing is practice. This is done negatively by freeing the
soul of all that would compete with charity or oppose it. It is
precisely here that.the principles of moralism can be applied
effectively. But the love of God, just as any other love, must
be cultivated in a positive manner and by direct means. The
first of these means and the most indispensable, since it is
almost love itself, is to keep steady company with the beloved.
We must increase and deepen our personal contacts with God.
"My God," prayed one who aspired to love, "grant that you
may be a person to me today." Another: "Lord, the first grace
I ask of You is that my relationship with You may be personal." It is' .clear that this is the decisive attitude, the core
of Christianity. Moralism has forgotten this and therein lies
its principal defect. In any case, to be religious is to be in
personal contact with God. Now our relations with God an- ·
swer our most profound aspirations only it"they are personal.
In Christianity these relations must be loving, filial, imitative
of the Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, whose members and
brothers we are by grace. Without some contemplation these
relations with God are impossible. That is the very essence
of prayer, since prayer is nothing more than a conversation
with God. We must go far beyond those all too intellectual
meditations in which at times we do not think of God at ail,
or at least, we think of Him very little.
Epilogue
A moral theologian comments on the above article as
follows:
"1) Excellent on the 'True Christian.' 2) A bit harsh on the
'Moralizer.' After all one who does his duty is loving God:
'If you love me, keep my commandments.' But perhaps this
harshness was inevitable given the viewpoint. 3) Well worth
publishing.''
�The Social Conciousness Of The
Spiritual Exercises
PATRICK J. BOYLE, S.J.
Often in the past the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
have been the target for adverse criticism, and today is no
exception. The question has been raised: Do not the Exercises
foster social isolation, a withdrawal of the individual from
all contact and interaction with his fellowmen? Such a charge
has serious implications. For any social institution which
does not promote social consciousness is considered today
dated and useless. It is our purpose to defend the Exercises
against this charge and to show that they are in complete
agreement with the modern movement of social consciousness.
We do not wish to give a general abstract synthesis of the
Spiritual Exercises nor to form something of a weak correlation between them and social life. It is obvious that the more
one makes himself like to God, the more social conscious he
will become since in his neighbor he will see God. St. John
writes in his First Epistle, "If any man say: I love God, and
hateth his brother; he is a liar" (IV :20).
St. Ignatius in the meditations of the Second Week says
that the object of the Exercises is the perfect imitation of
Christ. He writes, "Here it will be to ask for an intimate
knowledge of Jesus Christ, who has become man for me, that
I may love Him more and follow Him more closely." In other
Words Ignatius wants his retreatants to become other Christs.
Just as Christ was patient, he wants them to be patient; just
as Christ was charitable, he wants them to be charitable; just
as Christ was social, he wants them to be social.
No one would say that Jesus Christ lacked the social graces.
He Was socially well balanced and eminently social-minded.
127
�128
SOCIAL ASPECT
From the beginning of His public life to His death on the cross
Christ had a very definite interest in His fellowman. He dined
with the Pharisees, was present at the marriage feast of
Cana, preached to and fed five thousand people. His entire
doctrine promotes and demands social contact. In no way
can Jesus Christ be classified as a social hermit or as antisocial. It follows, therefore, that, since the Spiritual Exercises
have as their end the,perfect imitation of Christ, they cannot
but promote social ~pnsciousness.
Although such a correlation between the Exercises and
social life is valid, nevertheless it is considered by some to be
too abstract and implicit. For they argue that every instru·
ment of the Church, which perfects an individual, has a like
correlation. We wish to show explicit and concrete examples
of social consciousness in the Spiritual Exercises.
Social Contact
At first glance it would seem that the Exercises do foster
social isolation rather than social contact. This seems obvious
from the way St. Ignatius emphasizes the relationship between the exercitant and his Creator. He has the exercitant
withdraw from the world around him, fo·rget his external
occupations and friends, and concentrate on God. This, hoW·
ever, should not be classified as social isolation. The reason
for such a withdrawal from creatures is to get a better per·
spective of them in relation to the final end. The exercitant
will go back to them, but he will have a different attitude
toward them, a more well-ordered attitude.
From the very first meditation of the Exercises Ignatius
imprints upon the mind of the exercitant that he is a social
being, that there are other creatures, living and non-living,
who inhabit the earth. These other creatures are to help hiiil.
obtain his final end. "The other things on the face of the
earth are created for man to help him in attaining the end
for which he is created." In other words Ignatius says that
these other creatures, living and non-living, have a purpose
in life and that the exercitant is to make use of them. He is
not to withdraw into his own little cosmos, completely isolated
from reality. Man is not to be a hermit. He is to use crea·
tures ; but he must be careful. He is to use them only in so
�SOCIAL ASPECT
129
far as they lead him to God. "Hence, man is to make use of
them in as far as they help him in the attainment of his end,
and he must rid himself of them in as far as they prove a
hindrance to him."
In the Contemplation to attain Divine Love Ignatius gives
creatures a new function. He has the exercitant use creatures
as a ladder or stepping stones to God. He tells him to see
how much God does for him in creatures. "This is to reflect
how God dwells in creatures: in the elements giving them
existence, in the plants giving them life, in the animals conferring upon them sensation, in man bestowing understanding." He also tells the exercitant to see how God labors and
works for him in creatures. "This is to consider how God
labors and works for me in all creatures upon the face of the
' earth, that is, He conducts Himself as one who labors."
From the preceding examples it is evident that creatures
play an important part in the life of an exercitant. The
Exercises do not advocate total abstinence. It is completely
unjustified, therefore, to accuse them of fostering social isolation. Indeed, the opposite is true. The Exercises foster social
contact, a healthy social contact. For the Exercises so teach
the exercitant to value creatures that he avoid exalting them
above their station.
Social Interaction
. Let us now consider another aspect of the Spiritual ExerCises. Granted that the Exercises do foster social contact, in
What way does social interaction between the exercitant and
his fellow social beings take place? We have stated that the
exercitant does have social contact with other creatures, that
he uses them in order to obtain his final end. But is this the
~nly type of interaction? A non-reciprocal interaction? Does
the exercitant have nothing to offer to these other human creaures? The immediate answer is evident. Any one who so
~tri.ves to follow Christ that he become an Alter Christus
h~sires not only his own salvation but also the salvation of
Is neighbor.
GMany examples of Christ's zeal for souls are found in. the
fospels. "Come after me, and I will make you to be fishers
0
men" (Matt., IV :19). "I came not to call the just, but
�130
SOCIAL ASPECT
sinners to penance" (Luke, V :32). "Going therefore, teach
ye all nations: baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Ghost" (Matt., XXVIII:19).
In like manner St. Ignatius pours such desires for the salvation of souls into the mind and heart of the exercitant. In
the Kingdom he explicitly mentions and urges this zeal for
souls. "To all His summons goes forth, and to each one in
particular He addresses the words: 'It is my will to conquer
the whole world and all my enemies, and thus to enter into
the glory of my Father'.',..··If the exercitant, therefore, wishes
to follow Christ, he must be willing to fight for Christ.
How many of the great missionary saints, such as St.
Francis Xavier, St. John de Britto, and others, have been
inspired with zeal for souls by such passages as these:
How the Three Divine Persons look down upon the whole expanse
or circuit of all the earth, filled with human beings. Since they see that
all are going down to Hell, They decree in Their eternity that the Second
Person should become man to save the human race.
This will be to see the different persons: first, those on the face
of the earth, in such great diversity in dress and manner of acting.
Some are white, some black; some at peace and some at war; some
weeping, some laughing; some well, some sick; some coming into the
world and some dying.
•
Here it will be to listen to what the persons on -t'4e face of the
earth say, that is, how they speak to one another, swear and blaspheme,
and so on. I will also hear what the Divine Persons say, that is, 'Let us
work the redemption of the human race'.t
1 H. V. Gill in his book, Jesuit Spirituality (Dublin, 1935, page
39), states that the salvation of one's soul is inseparably bound up
with zeal for the salvation of the souls of others and that this zeal
is a striking feature of Ignatian spirituality: "In the Foundation
Exercise it was stated that 'Man was created to praise, reverence,
and serve God, and by doing this to save his soul'. The salvation
of my own soul must come before everything else, but as the argument
of the Exercises is developed it becomes evident that the salvation
of my own soul is inseparably bound up with zeal for the salvation of
the souls of others. Did I ask for a proof of this, Ignatius would
merely say that this is what Christ did. Directly or indirectly, the
object of the Exercises is to form apostles, whose overwhelming
interest in life is the salvation and perfection of souls. The personal
sanctity at which I am to aim includes as an essential element the sane·
tity of others. This is indeed an altogether striking feature of Ignatian
spirituality. The director of a retreat, in the first place, has in vieW
the salvation and perfection of the exercitant, who in turn, if he haS
�SOCIAL ASPECT
131
Another place where social interaction in the Spiritual
Exercises is encouraged is the Two Standards. There the
Lord of all the world chooses and sends His disciples into the
world to spread His doctrine among all men, no matter what
their state or condition. There He recommends that they
strive to help all.
It is sufficiently evident, therefore, that the Exercises are
not antisocial in tone. I must admit, however, that I have
not explicitly integrated the entire Spiritual Exercises with
social life, nor is such an integration necessary. A retreat is
a time for a man to talk things over with his Creator, so the
main emphasis is rightly on the individual. Such meditations
as the Three Classes of Men, the Three Degrees of Humility,
and others, although they pertain strictly to the individual,
implicitly pertain, nevertheless, to society in so far as they
make the individual a better citizen and member of the community.
Therefore, one can say that every meditation found in the
Exercises can be, either explicitly or implicitly, integrated
with social life. Consequently that opinion which sees the
Exercises as fostering social isolation is completely unfounded.
Very Reverend Father John Baptist Janssens in his letter,
On the Social Apostolate, says: "Hence it follows that the
Spiritual Exercises, conducted for the owners and managers
of industry and also for workingmen, must be reckoned among
the most effective means for promoting this social-mindedness."
-
~asped the full spirit of the Exercises, returns to his normal life with
h'e determination not only to save his own soul, but by every means in
Is Power to help others not only to save their souls but to become
apostles, too."
�CRYSTALLIZATION
It is fascinating to observe how the life-story of Ignatius moves not
only towards the spirituality of the Jesuits but also towards the structure of the Society of Jesus with all its novelties, fascinating to see
his own experiences finding crystallization in the Society's constitution.
Ignatius had made a pilgrimage barefooted to Jerusalem and had tended
the sick in the hospitals; the Jesuit novice, in a novitiate lasting two
years instead of the hitherto customary one, had, so far as was practical,
to serve for a while in public hospitals and make a pilgrimage begging
his way. Ignatius, thougP,. never a great scholar himself, had spent
more than ten years as a university student; in the Society of Jesus,
the novice who perseveres his two years does not immediately become
professed in the Society, but spends a long period, perhaps ten years or
more, as a Scholastic in study or teaching under religious vows and
under a vow to become professed in the Society if and when his superiors
so decide. This completely novel and original provision in the organiza.
tion of a religious order-the insertion of an unspecified period of study
between novitiate and profession-was much criticised at the time. It
was, nevertheless, the foundation of Jesuit efficiency in teaching, catechising, study and controversy. It was with the prestige of masters of
the renowned University of Paris that Ignatius and nine disciplesnone of whom were Italians-descended on Italy; and it was only the
Scholastics best equipped intellectually who were finally admitted as
professed Fathers with solemn vows into the body of the learned Society
which did so much to restore the intellectual prestige of Catholicism.
Again, before the Society was actually formed-·but after the ten
companions had all taken their degrees and been ordained priests, they
had worked for a year or so, two by two, in the cities of North Italy
helping bishops and clergy and putting their practical efficiency to the
test. So the Jesuit Scholastic, after ordination, undergoes for a year
a third period of probation, or tertianship, in which after his years of
study, his spiritual life is refreshed and renewed before his final place
in the Society is fixed for him. One further point in which the historY
of Ignatius is mirrored is the constitution of his Society. In 1534 the
saint and six companions while still at Paris took a solemn vow to work
in poverty and chastity for the glory of God and the good of their neig~
bour, in the Holy Land if possible, but if not, then in immediate obedl·
ence to the pope. It was to the pope that the formed Society of Jesus
ultimately offered it::tEM. So, the professed Fathers who take what is
called the fourth vow do not take a vow that was invented as an after·
thought but one which was involved in the very root of the Society
from the first.
H. 0. EVENNETT
132
�Father Thomas Ramsay Martin
1881-1954
WILFRED SCHOENBERG, S.J.
The Crimean War in the mid-nineteenth century was an
ill wind for many, but hardly so ill that it could blow no
good to the farmers tilling Scotland's County Haddington
just below the Firth of Forth. The War brought a rising
market in wheat and since Haddington produced an abundance
of that commodity, it was unusually prosperous. Its principal
town, also called Haddington, was a royal and parliamentarian
burgh on the banks of the Tyne, seventeen miles east of
Edinburgh and several hundred north of London. Like Edinburgh it was a corn exchange, second only to that tradecenter itself. It also shared Edinburgh's wool and cattle
Prosperity at a time when Shorthorns from Lothian countrysides met little competition from Texas or Australia. To
recommend it to travellers, it boasted of a town hall, with an
elegant tower of one hundred and fifty feet, and many ruins
of castles.
There was another feature, too, a bizarre one if you will,
but also a tempting one for travellers of a certain type, that
is the ancient human remains which could be easily uncovered
in any digging. Exposed as it was, Haddington suffered many
invasions through the centuries, and such great numbers of
humans had been slain there that it was impossible to dig in
any place without finding their bones.
The river Tyne meandered gently past Haddington and
fell into the sea at Tynemouth where a fine variety of trout
lurked in the racy waters and salmon sometimes came to feed.
~?unter to the river in the town itself were two main streets,
lgh and Market, with bridges crossing the river to Nungate
Where John Knox was born in 1505, and where old and ruin133
�134
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
ous houses were turning to dust, though they were still occupied by immigrant Irish laborers. The Irish had come to
share Haddington's war-born prosperity because they, too,
had been in the way of an ill wind.
The Earl of Haddington, lord of the county, resided at
Tynninghame House, a pretentious modern mansion, as dis.
tinguished from castle ruins, on an eight thousand acre estate
not far from the city. About the Earl there is little to be said,
except that he '\vas the second largest landowner in those
parts, that he kept a stable of fine horses, and that he retained
in his service a certain Mr. Charles Martin who was head
gamekeeper for the County. Martin, as time and the Martin
line unravelled, because the great grandfather of an American
Jesuit of some fame.
Mr. Martin's mother was Isabella Ramsay Martin, grand· .
daughter of the MacDonalds, and member of the clan of the
same name. She was a stout Presbyterian, sober and godly
in the best MacDonald tradition, and she passed her godliness
on to her own descendants in the same way she had received
it, without questioning its origin or tainting its purity. Her
husband too, had been head gamekeeper for the Earl, and
her father-in-law before him. Gamekeepii'ig, like Presbyterian
sobriety, was in the Martin blood, though not so deep that
Catholicism or the spirit of adventure could not reappear.
And now Isabella's son Charles was enjoying the familY
legacy, the faith, the home, and not least of all, the Earl's
gamekeeping. It would appear ·that these occupations kept
him busy, particularly the latter, because at the time there
was an excess of wood pigeons, which abounded in flocks
so vast that they threatened Haddington's prosperity.
Appalled perhaps by the irony of a struggle with pigeons,
Charles' own son left the Earl's estate and became attached
to Her Majesty's Revenue Service, Her Majesty being Queen
Victoria. In this capacity, betraying his restlessness, he
travelled the length and breadth of the British Isles. His
lately acquired wife accompanied him, and on one of the manY
journeys, gave birth to a son they called Tom, at West Salton,
not far from the old Martin home. Other children came to
keep Tom company, but not till the little family had sailed
to America to make its home in Massachusetts.
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
135
WanderersIn America the Martins first settled at Quincy, and finding
this unsuitable to their tastes, moved first to Clark's Island,
and then to Plymouth overlooking the stormy and rockbound
coast where the Pilgrims landed. It would be pleasant to
say they stayed there, but they did not. They moved with
monotonous regularity, and the boy Tom grew into young
manhood without taking root. Periods were spent in Boston,
in Toronto, where Mr. Martin apparently had distant relatives, in Brewer, Maine, and elsewhere. Eventually they returned to Plymouth, which is surely a recommendation, if
one is needed, for the salty old seaport which even natives
call quaint.
While they had lived in Toronto, that splendid Tory stronghold, Tom had joined the Military Cadets, and had, by persistent efforts, risen to the rank of captain. When his family
returned to Plymouth, he resigned his captaincy and reenlisted with the Standish Guards, Third Regiment, Fall
River, which was stationed at Plymouth, and served in this
unit as armorer under Colonel Borden. Here he became an
expert in ballistics. When he finally left military life, he
opened a gunsmith business and set himself up nicely by
inventing a marine sight, which was used for many years on
Springfield rifles. From this point on he prospered in a
modest way, and before he was fifty, he had become famous
among riflemen the world over, not only for his skill as a
marksman, but also for his inventive work in which he had
no contemporary equal.
Meanwhile he had taken two irrevocable steps; he had
become a Catholic and he had taken a wife. Turning his
back on John Knox, he was received into the Church by a
Jesuit at Immaculate Conception Church, Boston, and was
confirmed soon afterwards. He took his new religion seriously, defending it, when the occasion arose, with fearless
loyalty, but a shade of the old Calvinism remained. He was
a stern man till the day he died.
For his wife he had taken a Boston girl whose name of
1\elly reveals all there is to know about her, the lineage of
the Kellys in Ireland, and migration when a crisis was reached
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FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
in a tenant's hovel near the barren potato vines. Catherine
Agnes Kelly was Boston Irish, a member of the class which
outlived its tormentors and had its revenge by becoming a
Boston aristocracy. Years later Catherine's son Thomas
Ramsay Martin would speak about the persecutions of the
Boston Irish with an unaccustomed touch of bitterness in his
voice. No doubt Catherine herself bore marks of the injustice
to her people. In any case, her faith was not weaker for the
treatment, but stronger. She was always a devout Catholic
with a warm love for the Mass and the priesthood.
Catherine bore five children, Isabel, Charles, Elizabeth,
Thomas Ramsa'y, and Katherine, the youngest. Her period
of confinement before the birth of Thomas Ramsay was a
particularly painful one and the doctors almost despaired of
saving the child. At one point, when all hope was gone, the
Kelly spirit asserted itself, and the trusting mother turned
to Our Lady. She dedicated her unborn son to the Mother of
God. Her confidence was rewarded for Thomas Ramsay was
safely delivered on the Feast of the Assumption, 1881.
Like his mother he was born in Boston, one aspect of his
heritage which gave him great satisfaction.. He was born
near Dorchester Heights, where the evacuatidh·of the British
took place during the War of Independence; another cause
for satisfaction, not because he was anti-British, but because
he was always history-conscious and deeply moved by what
concerned his country's beginnings.
This new little Tom in the Martin household was not
accepted with calm equanimity as the three earlier Martin
children had been. Mrs. Martin, at least, expected unusual
developments in the boy and the older sisters, too, were led to
believe that Tommy was not ordinary and that probably some
day he would be a priest. It is hard to say what the father
thought, and anyway, he had his guns to distract him. lie
was on hand when the little child, six days old was taken in
a carriage to old St. Peter and Paul's in South Boston, and
there baptized.
When little Tom was still too young to know the difference,
his father purchased a new home in Kingston, not far from
Plymouth. It was an isolated home made remote by a halfmile of wood and orchard on either side, a feature which
�FATHER THOMAS RAMSAY MARTIN
�-·
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
137
delighted the elder Martin as well as his daughter Elizabeth.
But Mrs. Martin disliked this remoteness. Accustomed to the
city and the neighborly Irish, she found the loneliness a penance. What was worse, it was two-and-a-half miles to church,
not a deterrent, she would say, but an added hardship in
getting there, especially in winter when the snow was knee-.
deep.
Here in Kingston little Tommy grew up. He discovered,
sometimes with great wonder, the usual joys and crises of
boyhood. He fished with his father and in the winter time
he skated with his brother Charlie on a pond not far from
his home. Willy-nilly he helped his father in the vegetable
garden and the family orchard, and he went to school in a
New England country schoolhouse: one room, plain, and surmounted by the ominous bell. Tom got to school at times in
pioneer fashion by travelling back and forth with the woodcutters on a logging sled drawn by a yoke of oxen. An
American vignette: chubby-cheeked Thomas Ramsay Martin
perched high on the wood between two solemn woodcutters,
as they are drawn ponderously by oxen through a New England forest. New England was in little Tommy's blood, as
Ireland was in his eyes, and his father's Scotland in his mild
and gentle laughter.
When Tom was seven his mother prepared a little birthday
Party and invited neighbor children to share it. No doubt
there were plenty of goodies on hand-not much is remembered about that-but still vividly remembered is the incident
about the dove. As Tom and his companions were merry at
the table, a pure white dove suddenly appeared and lightly
rested on Tom's shoulder. For a breathless moment, when
no sound was uttered, the dove hovered, then flew away as
it had come. Mrs. Martin, already alert to possible wonders,
made inquiries around the countryside, but found no one
Who kept doves. Nor did she ever find a trace of the little
creature they had seen. Too sensible to jump to conclusions,
she noted the day, Feast of the Assumption, and waited
anxiously for further developments.
When Tom was ten, business made it necessary for his
father to move back to Plymouth. They lived there only about
a Year, but Tom lost no time in getting acquainted with the
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FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
history of the area and in putting this knowledge to profit.
He acted as a guide for tourists. This was much more to his
taste than weeding carrots and he entered into it with boyish
eagerness. He had read and memorized many of the solemn
inscriptions on local tombstones, and with mischievous delight, he led his Boston clients to and fro among the stones,
reciting for them the more eccentric of the epitaphs. Finally
as an added feature, he paused for a long time at Pilgrim
Monument where an Old hearse lay in the last stages of ruin.
The tourists were always sobered by the hearse, more so it
would appear, than by the tombstones. There was also a
museum at Plymouth, Pilgrim Hall, where a model of the
Mayflower was featured, along with other Pilgrim relics.
Here, Tom, with his blue eyes dancing, put on a real show
for visitors. He had an exceptionally good memory and a
wonderful stock of stories and he used them all to give eager
Bostonians their money's worth.
Vocation
The following year the Martins moved to Rockland and
Tom got a paper route. He won the hearts' of everybody,
cranky old ladies as well as sweet young things. The old
folks often talked about him and remarks were passed to his
mother that he was "destined for something special." Indifferent to all this, Tom enjoyed Rockland. In due time, he
entered its high school and enjoyed that, too, particularly his
classes in Latin and Greek, in which he proved to be an outstanding student. When he graduated in 1898, it was announced that he had maintained the highest average in the
history of the school. This seems to have left Tom cold. His
mind was taken up, not with the past, but with the future:
and the future was, a question mark. As far as Tom himself
was concerned, his mind was made up. He had read a Life of
St. Aloysi'lis. This had settled his doubts, if there had ever
been any, and he had announced to his family that he was
going to be a Jesuit, because he wanted "to give his whole life
to God." Furthermore, he added that he wanted to go to the
missions.
The news had pleased his mother, but came as a thunderbolt
to his father who had other plans. Tom's family was an
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
139
unusually affectionate one and his father was determined to
keep it together. He was a strongly religious man, though
somewhat jealous of anything that could break up the family.
This missionary business, then, was all wrong, and if Tom
really wanted to be a priest, he should join the diocesan clergy
and remain near home. Relatives and friends sided in with
the father and did their best to dissuade Tom from his plans.
There were some who urged him to go to Harvard where he
could make a career in the classics, of which he was very
fond. "Become a professor," they said, "and remain in New
England. Surely a good son should respect his father's
wishes." The storm lasted for months. Tom yielded only as
far as taking an entrance examination for Harvard, then he
got a job. Since he felt somewhat obligated to help out with
expenses in the family, he informed his father that he would
work for a time, while remaining at home. After that he
would do what God wanted him to do.
Meanwhile he had got acquainted with Father Thomas
Gasson, S.J., who was the Rector of Boston College. Father
Gasson understood perfectly. He arranged for special evening
classes so that Tom could keep up in the studies, and gave
him every encouragement. Tom took all his troubles to him,
and his sins as well, for he went to confession to him regularly.
In Father Gasson he found the strength and direction he
needed. It was Father Gasson who suggested that Tom apply
for the Rocky Mountain Mission where he could be a missionary and still live within reasonable distance from Boston.
It was also Father Gasson who made the arrangements with
Father De La Motte, Superior of the Rocky Mountain Mission, and placated Tom's relatives, especially his father, who
finally yielded and gave a reluctant approval.
Off for the West
By October, 1902, everything was settled. Tom kissed his
mother good-bye and left by train for the Novitiate at Los
Gatos, California. His trip across the continent was unevent~ul in the adventurous sense, but for Tom, who was extremely
Inquisitive, it was the adventure of a lifetime. He arrived in
San Francisco, on Sunday, November 2nd, and hustled up to
St. Ignatius Church for Mass. He was expected, and break-
�140
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
fasted, and shown the magnificent church and college which
were the pride of San Francisco. Little did Tom realize, as
he explored the vast building and new gymnasium that it
would all be destroyed in less than four years.
After his tour Tom left for the Novitiate. It was a two
hour trip by train down the peninsula to the end of Santa
Clara Valley where Los Gatos guarded a pass in the Santa
Cruz Mountains. A Brother from the Novitiate, in the best
Novitiate buggy, met him at the depot with the curious greeting "How do you do, Brother Martin", and then whisked him
over the tracks m:ld up a narrow winding road along a canyon.
The Brother did-not say much till the road climbed abruptly,
then leveled off in the middle of a grape field. Many of the
grapes, the Brother said, pointing to mouldy clusters on the
vines, had spoiled because the rains were early. Apparently
this was a disaster, and Tom nodded solemnly. He could
see the Novitiate now, a little higher and in bold relief against
vineyards covering the hills directly back of it.
Today Sacred Heart Novitiate is an imposing building,
more or less E.-shaped, and symmetrical to the casual eye.
Its whiteness glistens in the sun and its decor of palm trees
casts dark shadows which from a distance look like a frieze.
Decades have added many wings to the original structure till
its proportions have become most agree~ble.
When Brother Martin first saw it that November day, it
was box-shaped, like a frosted cake of four layers, too high
for its breadth and too ornate for its plain surroundings. It
lay on a shelf halfway up the foothills of the Santa Cruz
Mountains, overlooking the valley, which at that time was
a forest of prune trees stripped bare by autumn winds, The
town of Los Gatos huddled in a ravine below, sheltered by an
unusually high and broad hill which blocked the southern
horizon for the Novitiate and directed one's gaze eastward
across the valley to Mount Hamilton and Lick Observatory.
In 1902 Los Gatos was not a friendly town. Its simple folk,
misguided by .an apostate priest who had become a Protestant
minister, were very bigoted, especially toward Jesuits, and
they peered up at the Novitiate above and muttered dark
things about the priests dwelling there. The few Catholics
in the district were scattered, for the most part, on farms;
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
141
They had a tiny church in the town, where novices taught
catechism on weekends, and performed as general factotums
when occasion demanded it. To these activities the Master of
Novices, Father Giacobbi, solemnly dispatched them, like Our
Lord sending out disciples two by two. Father Giacobbi was
also Rector and on his frail shoulders lay the burden of
stabilizing the finances of the house, which he did by developing and expanding the vineyards.
Novitiate Days
Brother Martin met Father Giacobbi as he alighted from
the buggy. He was welcomed with a fatherly amplexus, and
a barrage of questions about his trip, his state of health and
his readiness to begin religious life. Father Giacobbi's old
world charm and Italian effusiveness warmed him inside. He
liked it. He also liked his new companions who lost no time
in telling him that the Long Retreat, already delayed by the
grape season, would begin in a few days, and that a large
statue of the Sacred Heart was expected any day now. It
was hoped, they said, that it would be set up in front of the
house before the heavy rains came.
It did not take Brother Martin long to get adjusted to
Novitiate life. The house, which at first had appeared to
him to be silent and inscrutable, took on life, and he became
a part of it, and a very jolly part of it at that. There were
fourteen other novices including three lay brothers, and all
but two of the Scholastics were in the first year. Brother
Zacheus Maher, destined to be American Assistant, was in second year. In Tom's own year there were two others who distinguished themselves: Walter Fitzgerald, later Bishop of
Alaska and David McAstocker, noted author.
The Sacred Heart statue, nine feet high, arrived on the
sixth, and work was immediately begun on a base. It was
cautiously moved into place on November 11th and was dedicated two days later, on the Feast of St. Stanislaus; which
Was also the fourth day of the Long Retreat. Since the fourth
day is usually on death or hell, we may presume that the
distraction of the dedication was a welcome one.
The retreat ended that year on December eighth and
Brother Martin learned for the first time what normal novice
�142
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
life was like. With his companions he picked olives on cold
December and January days and laid them in trays; he
gathered ferns; he plucked chickens for first-class feasts; he
taught catechism in the little churches in the valley, and he
hiked in the hills, sometimes as far as Mr. Doody's wee cabin
surrounded by vineyards atop a neighboring mountain. He
also attended Father Master's exhortations. Father Master
was the spiritual furnace in the house, and flames from his
heart penetrated them all.
Villa on Tuesdays was high in the redwoods, a thousand
feet above the estate which subsequently became Alma College, and about five miles from the Novitiate. Healthy novices
walked· it, bUt an old horse-drawn wagon was provided for
fetching victuals and the less vigorous of the brethren. Many
are the stories about that horse and wagon. It was said to be
more dangerous, at least on the downhill trip, than a ride in
a balloon at the Santa Clara county fair.
Besides the villa, there were other diversions to break
the monotony. For instance there were the days when they
picked prunes. And there was the arrival of the famous
Father Rene from Alaska on a soggy March day when rains
threatened to wash roads away. Father Rene had suffered
his own adventures in a gold-rush country and he told of them
with characteristic French elan. Then there was old Father
Nestor's accident when the horse ran away with him. And
there was the brush fire in July when everyone was celebrating America's independence exactly- o·ne hundred and twentyseven years after it began. These were all memorable events,
though not momentous. The latter, too, would come.
On the Feast of St. Stanislaus, 1904, Brother Martin's
Novitiate was officially over and he pronounced his first vows.
A solemn high Mass was sung that day, in honor of the saint.
Brother Martin had already moved to the juniorate, where
Father James Malone was doing his best to teach Latin to
the juniors. There seems to have been a feeling among the
juniors then that Father Malone was too steady a driver,
especially in Latin memory. He himself could recite reams
of Latin,.even in old age, though it must be admitted that his
memory sometimes failed him in other matters. Father Ma·
lone, who was also dean of studies, frowned upon novels,
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
143
even classical ones. He permitted a volume of Thackeray or
Dickens during Majors, but that was the limit. Despite these
exacting ways, the juniors sincerely loved him and took a
great deal away from his classes. He had a halo of a certain
type of culture about him, a kind of holiness that one associates with men who have lived long and lovingly with books.
He was devoted to Greek with a peculiar, almost inspired
affection. Father Malone influenced an entire generation
of Scholastics.
The juniorate, Brother Martin discovered, was not wholly
unlike the noviceship. There were a good many routine
classes, along with events like prune picking, visitors from
Alaska and rebellious horses. Today one reads the diaries
recording them all with a sense of tranquillity, forgetful,
perhaps, of the stern monotony which the novices and juniors
experienced. Monotony was the test then, as it is now, and
the year 1905 at Los Gatos was particularly monotonous.
Earthquake
Different was 1906. That was the year of the great earthquake, when the community was so badly shaken for a period
of six weeks that the year remained in everyone's memory
as most terrifying. It began on Wednesday, April 18th. At
five o'clock in the morning the Novitiate bells jangled as always and Jesuits all over the house scrambled to their feet
for a new day. There was the usual rush to the chapel. At
exactly five fifteen the quake started. The walls swayed, statues in the chapel tottered and fell to the floor with a terrifying crash. A large chimney buckled and a shower of brick
Plunged through the roof to the floor of the kitchen. As the
earth continued to rock, walls groaned. It was like the crack
of doom and there were some who thought it was. Most fled
from the building into the open yard where they were speechless with terror. One junior, Brother August Busch, who was
sick, had to be carried out. He was laid in the cloister and
a Priest was summoned to assist him.
All this happened in a few minutes; then there was a
deathly stillness, that uncertain calm which usually follows
some upheaval in nature. Father Thornton, the new rector,
came to reassure his community. It was all over, he said.
�144
FATHER THOl\IAS .l\IARTIN
He was going to say Mass in the chapel. Everyone should
attend and receive Holy Communion in thanksgiving for his
deliverance.
He started Mass at the main altar, and another priest
started at the side, :while members of the community pulled
themselves together and opened Missals in a vain attempt at
being casual. Most had one eye on loose bricks hanging over
the altar, and uneasy minds speculating where they would
fall. Suddenly the quake started again. After a moment of
hesitation the novices and juniors scurried out, leaving two
behind to serve the Masses, which were finished a little sooner
than usual. -,
This time ~more serious damage was done. The two top
floors were crumbling and the whole building was badly
cracked. It was plainly uninhabitable, so the community
began preparations to live outside. Breakfast was served
in the cloister, and the Rector said that everyone should relax
and take a walk in the hills to calm down. The older juniors
and Brothers, he said, would move what was necessary out
of the house, and all would take to living outdoors, as Jesuits
had often done before, though seldom in such a lovely climate
as California.
All day the shocks continued, while Brother Busch's condition grew steadily worse. Toward evening a report arrived
that a tidal wave had destroyed San F.tancisco, but as darkness
fell, the angry red sky to the north deriied this piece of fiction.
San Francisco was burning. What had happened? How
many of the forty-three Jesuits there were still alive? Los
Gatos Jesuits wished they knew. They went to bed that night
in the cloister, but did not sleep. Birds twittered in the vines
above them, then settled down in silence, and not a sound
disturbed the peace, but the sky in the north told of terrors
and of the need for help for an uncertain number of Jesuits.
Brother Busch died on Friday afternoon. As soon as it
could be arranged, he was buried at Santa Clara. There was
definite news now about San Francisco: it had been destroyed.
A national disaster had been declared and the National Guard
was on duty to prevent greater loss of life. The Jesuits at
Los Gatos could scarcely bring themselves to talk about it.
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
145
St. Ignatius Church was gone and St. Ignatius College-the
work of fifty-five years wiped out in a single day.
On May 4th papers announced that there had been seventythree series of shocks since April 18th. There would be more,
it added. As the tormented earth gradually quieted down,
the Jesuits started repairs. Juniors and novices took bricks
down and cleaned them, and the architect came to tell them
what to do next. He said the upper floors had to be rebuilt
and the rest of the building braced. It could have been a lot
worse. The big loss was Brother Busch, over whose grave was
a headstone and name-which would forever be a reminder
of a departed companion and the terrible days of the earthquake.
To the Northwest
In August, five juniors prepared to leave for teaching
assignments, and Tom Martin was among them. By this
time he had reached his physical prime, though, understandably, he was thinner than usual. Tom was scheduled for Gonzaga College. With Dave McAstocker he took a boat from San
Francisco to Seattle, then crossed the mountains to Spokane
by train. He was assigned to teaching first-year boys, which
meant, then as now, nervous little fourteen-year-olds with
unaccountable tendencies to chatter. Thanks to Father Kennelly, there was good discipline.
With approximately two hundred boarders on the campus,
Tom seldom found life dull, though it must be remembered
that an exciting time then was not our idea of high adventure.
Monotony was broken with exhibition baseball games by
visiting teams and more frequently by debates. Occasionally
the whole school went out to St. Michael's Mission on the
outskirts of Spokane, where the Brother served them coffee
~d crackers, and at least once, they rode by streetcar to
anito Park where everyone was allowed to take a smoke.
Smoking was a rare privilege and one is led to believe that
most boys would have gladly traded their table dessert for
a Week for a cigar.
Tom taught only two years during this period then moved
over to "The Sheds", as it was called, an old college building
across the campus. This was the philosophate of the Rocky
�146
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
Mountain Mission. It was no Louvain, although some of its
faculty would have brightened any campus. Father Giacobbi
was now teaching metaphysics, though not very successfully.
It would appear that he disliked Schiffini, the standard text ·
1
of the era, and that he improvised too much and that he
dictated his lessons. All this was quite distressing to his
scholars and great were the lamentations.
It would be wrong to suppose that Torn was much disturbed
by the excitement about Schiffini. It amused him, but he was
never taken in by clashes of the sort. He rose above them,
keeping the good will of both sides. He helped many of his
companions 'through the course, distinguishing himself for
his kindness as well as for his ability to penetrate subtle
problems. You might say he was a master of the distinction
and a wit besides, so no one should be surprised at his pop·
ularity in a philosophate. As a philosopher Torn lost his
appendix, an operation which in those days was a crucial
test. When they put Torn back together again, they made a
mistake or two, for he was troubled with adhesions the rest
of his life. The seriousness of ·the episode may be deduced
from the fact that he was hospitalized from March 27th till
May 31st. When he returned horne, the Minister wrote in the
diary: "He looks well and is very happy to be among his
brethern again."
During Torn's second year, 1909; the Rocky Mountain and
the California Missions became a Province with the name of
California and with Father Goller of Gonzaga as its first
Provincial. Though this development was known long before,
official letters did not reach Gonzaga till September 8th, the
day of the change, when they were read at table.
In 1911 Torn was sent to Los Angeles, to the Collegiurn
lnchoatum, for another term of regency. He traveled to
Southern California with three other Scholastics by boat from
Seattle. At Los Angeles on July 31st of that year, Father
Richard Gleeson was installed as head of the new school, with
six Jesuits, including Torn, in his community. The new school
was the· successor of a Vincentian foundation that had fallen,
after fifty years, upon difficult days. Loyola was begun, like
a good many of our universities, as a high school, in some
small houses, while a new building was being readied. The
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
147
college department, already projected in 1911, did not materialize for sixteen years, but the high school prospered from
the beginning. Much credit for its development must go to
its Rector, who busied himself gathering funds and making
friends, but the others did their part too. Father Tomkins,
the Minister, was particularly solicitous about the Scholastics
who enjoyed the informality of living in several houses, and
especially the Spanish food provided. Pioneering had its
compensations also.
Woodstock
In 1914, after three years at Loyola, Tom left for Woodstock
and theology. He had been scheduled to go to Innsbruck, but
happily for him, the war interfered. On the way he visited
his family in Boston, an experience never forgotten by any
of them. Tom's sister Elizabeth recalled it in 1954 when
she wrote: "Never in all my life, and it is a long one, have
I heard such deep love and devotion as was in that one word
'Mother' when Tom greeted her after twelve years."
At this time, Tom was a little plump with just a trace of a
double chin to shame him. He parted his bushy hair on the
right, and when he stood talking to someone, he held his hands
behind his back. He wore glasses and behind them his eyes
glowed rather than sparkled, windows of a calm soul, not a
stormy one. Not even his family would say he was handsome,
but there was a warmth and a stability about him that impressed everyone. His sisters, not to mention mother, were
very proud of him and they often told him so. They repeated
What they had heard from certain Jesuits, that he was very
smart and that some day he would be a great man in the
Order..
So Tom arrived at Woodstock, which was a Woodstock of
traditions, mellow and long, and holy as well. There were
the garden walks, lined by shade-trees already venerable with
age. There was the pergola overlooking the river where
Scholastics wistfully watched Baltimore and Ohio trains
disappear beyond the bend. There was Woodstock Church,
solid stone and woodsy-looking, processions, and altar boys,
iheDonovans, the Peaches, and the Murrays. There was the
agoon, where at times you could skate, and the shrine of Our
�148
FATHER THOMAS l\IARTIN
Lady of Lourdes against a hill. There were swimming holes·
and a swinging bridge, and, of course, philosophers, too. And
a good many other Jesuits besides.
In Tom's first year, Woodstock had two hundred and seven
Scholastics and forty-four Brothers and faculty members.
The house was firmly but graciously ruled by Father Hanselman who later became America's Father Assistant. It is
worth noting that there were two other future Fathers Assistant in the community: Father Zacheus Maher and Father
Vincent McCormick. Both were Scholastics.
Woodstock satisfied Tom completely. He liked studies and
Woodstock was richly provided with scholars to teach him.
He relished friendship and Woodstock was crowded with
friends who were very kind to him. With others from the
West, he felt that Woodstockians were particularly hospitable
to Westerners, either because of the long distance from home
or because of the openness and simplicity for which they were
noted. Whatever the case, Tom was delighted by the special
concern shown for him and reciprocated by giving himself
entirely. They called him Ricky Martin, and as Ricky he was
long remembered for his modesty and intelligence, but above
all, for his genuine spirit of brotherliness.
Tom took his share of the academic burdens. In his first
year he defended in De Ecclesia, and listened the same evening
to a paper called "The Surface of the Moon." On other occa·
sions, Tom participated in debates, read papers and so on.
Perhaps his greatest academic conquest was his membership
in Father Drum's acadeJI1y for the study of. Syriac.
Ordination came in due/ course, on June 28, 1917, with
Cardinal Gibbons as ordaining prelate. On the following
Sunday, Father Tom, as his family now called him, sang his
first solemn Mass in St. Leo's Church, Dorchester, Massa·
chusetts. By now his father was happily reconciled to his
status as a Jesuit, and his mother almost swooned in ecstasy.
After the Mass a formal breakfast was provided. Here the
Martin clan gathered, the immediate family and countless
relatives, some of whom had once tried to persuade Tom not
to be a Jesuit. Before them all Tom was fully justified and
the breach of the past was closed forever.
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
149
Return to the West
Tom's last year at Woodstock was an anti-climax. The
day of his Ad Gradum came and passed without notable
incident, and Tom left for Boston for a last visit with his
parents who were then living with his sister Elizabeth. After
· his visit, when he boarded the train for Seattle, his mind was
·filled with forebodings about mother and father. Both were
failing noticeably, and his father, suffering from a badly
infected foot, was almost an invalid. Tom was never to see
either of them again. About a year after Father Tom returned
to the West, his mother died suddenly. The shock was great,
but Tom never let on to his companions, nor did he ask to go
home to bury her. He loved his mother deeply and attributed
to her many special blessings.
Meanwhile he had begun tertianship at Los Gatos. His
instructor was Father Michael Meyer, who had but recently
·assumed the office. It was commonly believed that Father
·Meyer was brusque and perhaps a bit bossy, but these qualities, if real, were balanced by an unfailing kindness, which
showed itself spontaneously, whatever the occasion. He had
never caught on to American ways, an aspect of his personality which amused his Tertians. Many were the Father
Meyer anecdotes circulating Los Gatos and spreading out in
ripples of laughter throughout the Province. Tertianship
for Tom was a series of unending details-he was sub-beadle
-and weekend supply calls, which were integral components
of Father Meyer's training. During these few brief months
Tom had his only experience of ordinary priestly work with
souls. The rest of his life he spent in houses of study, working
exclusively with Ours.
He began this life soon enough, as soon as June scattered
tertians in four directions. Father Tom was assigned to
teach in the Juniorate. On the second of the following February, Father Tom pronounced his final vows at the same
altar where he had pronounced his first. If the Novitiate, with
its vast new wing, had grown in the interim, Father Tom,
too, had grown. He was now in his full spiritual vigor, ready
· for new tasks which were soon placed before him. He was
lnade Rector at Los Gatos.
�150
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
He disclosed this fact to his father in a revealing letter.
July 25, 1921
My dear Father,
Last Friday a telegram summoned me home from San FranCisco
to assume the superiorship of the Novitiate. This appointment·
came from our Reverend Father General at Rome. It's the ·same
position Fr. Gasson held at Boston College-the only difference
being that here we have none but Jesuit students and novices in
our college. You may recall from my last letter that I had a
suspicion of this appointment. It is now a reality. It seems so
strange to be writing this letter from the room into which I was
ushered on ·my first arrival at Los Gatos nearly nineteen years ago.
If anyone.had told me on that day that years hence I myself would
be at the head of this institution, I would have accounted him a
mad man. The purely natural sense of pride I may feel is swallowed
up by a deep sense of my own unworthiness and of the magnitude
and importance of my burden. If in any way I am fit, let me here,
dear father, bear testimony to my dear old father on earth and my
loving and beloved mother in heaven, who were God's instruments
in shaping my career and moulding my character. My sense of
gratitude is far too deep for words. May God reward you in my
stead.
Ever your "Boy out West",
Tom
As Christmas approached, Father Tom wrote again to his
father.
Dec. 17, 1921
Dear Dad,
I am anticipating my Sunday letter as I forsee a very strenuous
day tomorrow. Another reason is that I very much desire that
you get a word of Christmas cheer from your boy out West before
the 25th. Tomorrow or Monday I'll try to get off a few words of
greeting to Charlie and the girls. But this letter to you includes
all who bear the Martin name. May God bless you and keep you
in His holy love and peace! And may we not forget our dear
mother from whom we all learned the finer meanings of Christ's
message. May she, dear heart, rest in eternal peace. And maY
we be found worthy to join her when our day is over. What con·
solation flows into my heart every time I recall her dear face. HoW
much I owe to her. She is still my mother for I feel her maternal
guidance now more than ever before.
Tom
There were reasons for concern about Mr. Martin's health.
His infected foot was very painful now and it was impossible
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
151
for him to get around. Trying her best to console him in his
loneliness, his daughter Elizabeth nursed him and arranged
for the parish priest to bring Holy Communion every First
Friday. Father Tom, eager to carry his share of the cross,
wrote regularly, "Face the Sun".
July 2, 1922
Dear Dad,
Your recent letter was full of delights to me, however I must
correct you on one point, to wit that you are an old man who elm
interest no one. Put that thought out of your mind. It's too sombre,
and does not at all agree with good sane sunshine philosophy. That
you get lonesome is to be expected. Who doesn't at times feel that
way? But try your best to keep your mind filled with memories of
dear ones. Now I'll leave it to you: isn't this a good sensible prescription? And the best of it all is that you do not need to go out
to the druggist to have it compounded. All ingredients are within
easy reach. Now, Dad, mix up a good measure of this wonderful
elixir, and keep the bottle close at hand. Lizzie's great devotion to
you is an unfailing source of consolation and joy. She is truly the
valiant woman of the Scripture, "whose value is above gold and all
material possessions." Give her my love and tell her how proud
I am of her. As for myself I am going out to the summerhouse
with our young men to stay as superior for two weeks. I had hoped
to get them someone else, but I guess they will have to put up with
me again. Now don't .forget my prescription, and think of me
always as
your boy,
Tom
Nov. 28, 1922
My dear Father,
A few hours ago I offered up the holy sacrifice of the Mass for
the repose of my dear mother's soul, and although grief is not
absnnt from my heart today, yet, to be truthful, I feel the sentiment of gratitude to God for having given me such a mother much
more than any sorrow. As I have told you before, sorrow is somewhat selfish. And what gain is there in the thought of loss-how
much better, how much more enobling the thought of what we had
during all these years. Hence my message to my father and brother
and sisters is to renew our gratitude to the good God and to convert
all grief and sorrow into an ever increasing realization of the great
blessing in our lives our mother has been to us all. You will please
tell Charlie and the girls that I remembered them all in my anniversary Mass, but most of all did I pray for you, dear father, that
God may bless you. With my own poor blessing to all,
Tom
�152
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
A few weeks later, Mr. Martin wrote a tender letter.
Beloved son Tom,
Here Thanksgiving has passed with its reunions and feasts and
I trust some thanks to the good Creator who has blessed us all. We
had a very fine day here. Lizzie had an old-fashioned dinner. It
was just like the ones your dear mother used to get up, when as
one family we used to bring smiles to her dear face, by our vigorous
approval of her cooking. God bless her memory and may the Holy
Mass you offered up for the repose of her soul, bring her what you
so lovingly asked for. Like you, memories and thoughts of her
bring to my mind a sense of relief, rather than sorrow, just as if
her face was turned in a loving smile to me. My dear boy, I hope
you understand how much your old father values your dear letters.
They hav.e given me loyal love and strength often when I have
needed it and I have felt the practical faith implied therein, fully
as much as you could desire. Therefore I hope you will understand
that any regret I may have had in past days over your decision
to pass your life as a soldier of God, has been fully compensated
for by my joy at your success and devotion. The Lord knows best, my
dear son, and we all find that He does in all things. Your old dad
is always thinking of you with love in his heart, for the dear son
that never had a cross word for his father, or mother, but always
a kind one and a helping hand. Remember this my boy, when I am
gone, it may soothe your grief and pain.
Lovingly and sincerely,
Your Father
In June, 1924, Mr. Martin died .. Father Tom, sorely disturbed, decided not to attend th·e.- funeral. He had been
required as Rector to inform one of his Juniors that the Provincial had refused a similar permission, so now without
further formalities, he did what he asked others to do. lie
bore his sorrow cheerfully, not even his closest friend kneW
what it cost him.
Mount St. Michael's
On June 11th, 1925, Father Tom was appointed Rector of
Mount St. Michael's in Spokane, succeeding Father Willia~
Benn. No doubt he reflected dolefully on the prospects 0
six mor~ years of responsibility, but moving to the Mount
had its advantages too. He would leave behind the tangled
red tape of the winery in Prohibition days and the serio~
problems of finance because of the cut in income. Not tha
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
153
St. Michael's was a sinecure. It too had problems, in fact
knottier problems than Father Tom dreamed.
A New Englander forever, Father Tom preferred the four
season weather of Spokane to the milder climate of California;
so he looked upon his return to the Northwest as a kind of
home-coming. He was installed on August 4th. The Scholastics, fresh from villa and their annual retreat, were cordial in
their welcome. They told him that the Mount building, new
to Father Tom, was a bit crowded, and that the swimming
pool, lately begun under Father Sauer's direction, had best
be finished before the frost came. Could Father Rector speak
to Father Sauer about speeding things up, perhaps in time
for September swimming? The pool was finished in September, on St. Michael's aay after a Pontifical Mass by Bishop
Schinner. As the water poured in Father Sauer had a crew
busy leveling the fields for baseball and handball, while
Brother Giraudi and his helpers waited to see what dirt they
could salvage for flower gardens.
By the time that everything was settled to the satisfaction
of all, Father Tom began to wish he was back in Los Gatos.
Like other houses of studies, the Mount, for its Rector, was
a succession of disputations, music academies, minor crises
like flu epidemics or brush fires, distinguished visitors and
improvements. Father Tom took them in stride. There was
an amazing amount of activity during his rectorate: unusual
developments like improvements at villa and the building of
the large west wing, not to mention minor works and societies, which flourished with unprecedented success. The philosophers, incorrigible pranksters that they were, had a nickname for their Rector, which referred to his curly hair. They
called him Kinky, which carried with it more affection than
blame. If Father Tom ever knew his nickname, he ignored
it as calmly as he ignored the snakes brought home from
Pot Holes by biology majors.
At the Mount Father Tom developed several trifling idiosyncracies that became legends. One was his habit of forgetting a rubric at Mass when he was on the verge of exploding about something. Sometimes he forgot the Kyrie, or the
Gloria; and when it was noticed, everyone took cover. Invariably after breakfast on such days, a culprit was sum-
�154
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
moned, queried and sentence pronounced with great dispatch.
Father Tom could conduct the whole proceedings in a manner
that left nothing obscure.
The duties of Rector did not keep Father Tom out of the
classroom. He taught Hebrew, which in those stern days was
a required subject for all, like geology and astronomy. No
doubt Father Drum's Syriac course served the Hebrew professor in good stead. Father Tom, expert in teaching languages, developed his own grammar, and most cheerfully
pounded vowel points into reluctant philosophers' heads.
Characteristically, he was happiest when doing so.
During his'term at the Mount, big things were happening
in the Province, which had grown to 800 men and had a
Novitiate with eighty novices. Father Piet, the Provincial,
with the approval of Father General, began preparations for
a new Novitiate in the northern half of the Province and for
a division of the Province itself. Property for the Novitiate
was purchased at Sheridan, Oregon, about sixty miles southwest of Portland, and the California provincial's headquarters
were moved from Portland to San Jose, California, so that
the new Oregon provincial could eventually take over the
old quarters. On Christmas Day, 1930, the Oregon Vice
Province, called The Region of the Rocky Mountains, was
canonically established with Father Walter Fitzgerald as
the first Vice Provincial.
Though a new province was bei:rig·formed, it was hard to
tell which was actually the new one. Historically, the new
Vice Province had founded the California Mission, in 1850.
The Vice Province retained the residence of the Provincial,
and Wfl.S exactly ten men larger at the time of the break.
California retained the name. At any rate, the new Vice
Province acquired Province status in thirteen months, on
February 2, 1932.
Sheridan Novitiate
Six months before this, the Sheridan Novitiate was fonnaiiY
established. Father Tom Meagher, novice master at Los
Gatos, was sent with twelve second-year novices to take posses·
sion of a hurriedly constructed bungalow atop the Oregon
hill. Father Nathaniel Purcell, architect of some ability, was
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
155
summoned to act as temporary superior and to supervise construction of a permanent building. The new Novitiate was
given the name of St. Francis Xavier after the first novitiate
established on the Pacific Coast by Father De Smet, scarcely
forty miles away on the banks of the Willamette.
Work on the new building was begun on April 13, 1932.
Father Meagher turned over a shovelful of reddish clay and
read a number of prayers from the ritual, while novices sang
hy;mns to St. Joseph: "Bleak sands are all round us, no
hope can we see." When they finished, workmen who had been
standing curiously by, reached for their tools, and the projec~
was under way. The first Mass in the new building was
celebrated on the Feast of the Sacred Heart, 1933, in a temporary chapel on the third floor. The same day, the novices
moved in, though the building was little more than a damp,
concrete shell. Finishing, even furnishing, would have to
wait till there was money to pay for them.
Meanwhile devoted friends of the Society, the D' Arcy
family of Salem, Oregon, arranged for the construction of
a chapel wing as a memorial to their mother. This project
led to prolonged litigation between the D' Arcy family and
the contractors and ended Sheridan's building developments
till Father Tom was already twelve months in his grave. As
a consultor of the new Vice Province and Province, Father
Tom knew well what was going on, but he could scarcely have
guessed that he would be Sheridan's first Rector. That fact
was not revealed till November 16, 1932.
Father Tom could hardly console himself, when the news
Was broken to him, with the reflection that very few Jesuits
have the opportunity to become rectors of two different Novitiates. So it will be Sheridan, he thought grimly, recalling
the countless consultations during which the subject of Sheridan's poverty had been weighed. One might just as well be
appointed president of an insolvent bank, as be made Rector
of Sheridan, for there were many debts and few resources.
Father Tom did not make the trip to his new residence till
July, 1933. As he rode through the little town of some fifteen
hundred, named for an Indian fighter of considerable fame in
the -region, he could see the Novitiate building in bold relief
against the western sky. It crowned an eminence, something
�156
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
like a fort, overlooking a highway and small river running
along Yamhill Valley. It appeared to be massive. A large
cross clearly seen for many miles surmounted the concrete
structure which was 369 feet long and four stories high in
the middle section. Like Los Gatos, when he first saw it, it
was box-like and plain, a supermarket without lights.
The road to the building crossed Novitiate hay fields and
Rock Creek bridge, passed a prune-dryer and an assortment
of prune trees, then ascended the hill abruptly at an angle,
coming onto the Novitiate from the rear. It was a picturesque
ride, particularly on a July day. Mountain ridges farther
west, bordering on the Pacific, glowed with the sun along
their crests and deep forests darkened their eastern slopes.
Near at hand, cattle grazed in the shade of old oaks; and the
last quarter-mile between two rows of windswept apple trees
ended suddenly on the summit, where one could look out across
grain fields and orchards far to the east where peaks of the
Cascades were covered with eternal snow. "Most beautiful
view from any Jesuit house in America," one Eastern Jesuit
had said, a lovely place to retire in old age. But Father Tom
was not retiring.
We do not know what he thought that day when he stepped
out of the car that had brought him. We do know he was not
afraid, not even of the poverty. In fact, he often said in later
years, "Poverty is Sheridan's greatest blessing." It took a
brave man to face what he had to face July 13, 1933. As
superior he was responsible to the Society and the Church
for approximately fifty young men with another fifty due in
a matter of two weeks. He had no means to support them
except the few cows, the orchard and about eight hundred
acres of poor soil that turned into gumbo in wet seasons and
in dry, cracked wide open in little cakes like those you see
around sulphur springs. He had no adequate water suppl~,
no furnishings for the house, no books for scholars, no cred;
to borrow on, and it was just five months after the ba t
holiday, One thing he knew for certain; he could not expee
his community to live on the view, which for all its charJIIS•
would not put a single loaf on the table.
Fortunately f?r all. concerned, Sheridan had many frien~
Mothers' clubs m M1ssoula, Spokane and elsewhere hul'l'le
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
to their aid with clothes and furnishings.
157
Father Peter
Brooks of the Missouri Province shipped books. St. Ignatius
Mission sent cattle. Friends in Yakima donated loads of potatoes, carrots and apples. The D'Arcys provided holiday
dinners. Perhaps most touching of all was a truck-load of
groceries gathered at Christmas time by boys of Seattle Prep.
Meanwhile the Jesuits at Sheridan were not idle. The
Brothers were working hard trying to make the most of the
farm, while novices cut firewood in the forests and juniors
stripped forms from the building and made furniture with
the lumber. Father De Smet and his companions on the Willamette had never worked harder and lived more simply than
the pioneers of Sheridan. It was all a gallant gesture, but at
times seemingly inadequate. More than one crisis arose, when
the Rector's faith was sorely tested and there was talk of
sending the novices to their homes. Though each time the
disaster was averted by the arrival of additional help, all
could see clearly how slender was the thread on which the
fate of the house hung.
One can easily understand how, in the circumstances,
Father Tom developed a rather strict view of poverty. It
became a critical issue with him, and he punished offenders
with some rigor. When he saw waste or when someone asked
for an unusual permission, he bristled. Yet he was not a
stingy man. He was simply conscious of his personal poverty
and the community's indigence.
Father Tom's term as Sheridan's first Rector was not all
Worry. He taught Greek which he loved, and he filled boxes
With notes on the authors he explained. He became an aut~ority, though he published nothing. "If things had been
different," he told a junior, "perhaps I'd know some Greek
today. But they made me a superior. There has been no time
for study and I know very little." Greek could interest him
~~intensely that if a junior went to his room anytime during
e day, Father Tom would give a long dissertation on the
:ubject. He taught Greek in Latin, using English only rarely
~explain some difficult construction, and when a junior failed
answer questions in Latin, he snapped, "Male so nat! Proxilllus frater!" We have his grade book for the Greek classes,
a treasure if there ever was one for the painstaking record
�158
FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
it is. Father Tom took his Greek very seriously, much more
so than the juniors did.
In 1937, while Father Provincial Fitzgerald was away,
Father Tom acted as Vice Provincial for some months. He
kept his Greek classes by commuting between Portland and
Sheridan. When, the next year, he was elected to attend the
Procurator's Congregation in Rome, some speculated humorously about his commuting again. But once there was enough
to coax him away: his family in Boston, and Christian as
well as classical Rome where his curiosity would enjoy a
holiday.
He left (or the Congregation amid the lamentations of his
Greek stude.nts, who made a joke out of it. His family welcomed him in Boston. They were especially impressed that
he had' been chosen to go to Rome "on business of the Order",
which apparently for them implied a great and mysterious
undertaking, perhaps an epic like the Jesuit invasion of
Elizabethan England. It is gratifying to see in this awe of
the Martins a deep love and esteem of the Society. Sharing
this with their brother Tom, brought them closer together,
which is often the case with Jesuits and their families. On
his return from Rome, Father Tom stopped in Boston again,
andwith his sisters visited for a last time the historical land·
marks he loved: Paul Revere House, the Old North Church,
Hall of Flags in the State House, ~rid Bunker Hill Monument.
When he bade them good-bye that ·autumn of 1938, he was
sure he would never see them again in this world.
Mellow Years
The following year, Father Tom was replaced as Rector
by Father Francis Gleeson, presently Bishop in Alaska.
Father Tom stayed on as spiritual father and teacher of
Greek. Thus he began· in his fifty-ninth year, what appears
to be the most fruitful period of his life. For the next fifteen
years he was the mellow Father Martin, gentle or stern, ?~t
always himself, forthright, devoted, and delightfully inquJSI·
tive. Whatever else, he was always the center of interest,
whether saying graces before meals one step ahead of the
community, or recreating with the Fathers by simultaneous!~
carrying on conversations, slitting pages of new books an·
�FATHER THOl\IAS l\IARTIN
159
working crossword puzzles. "It's a sin to miss recreation with
him", one Father remarked. "He tones us up for a whole day."
The novices and juniors during this period saw much of
him. Wrapped in a tarnished green-black coat that seemed to
defy all efforts to destroy it, he stepped briskly about, interested in everything that was going on. In one hand he carried
his breviary and at intervals he paced back and forth, saying
his Psalms with relish. When he approached a group he
paused to inquire as to the state of things, what, why, and
who knew how. Then with a smile of satisfaction he was off
again, on the lookout for another project. Projects amused
him immensely, especially highly imaginative projects. One
got the impression sometimes that the wilder the schemes,
the more pleased he was. Perhaps most of his satisfaction in
these sometimes bizarre discoveries derived from his own
relief at no longer being responsible for them.
He loved to argue, though it must be admitted, he seldom
had a chance to do so. His quick analysis invariably ended the
dispute, while novices or juniors leaned on their tools, dumbfounded. An example of this was a discussion about novice
masters and canonization. Just as Father Tom approached
one novice opined that the first step for canonization in the
Society seemed to be to become novice master. Father Tom
objected, "First step is baptism!" Such incisive, pithy comments became legendary. He would say, "Six sentences are
enough for a half-hour talk by the simple stratagem of repetition." When a Novice suggested that some lives of saints
Were overdrawn, he answered, "They are not written in ink
but in syrup."
Despite his wit, his Greek, and his gift for government,
Father Tom's fame really rests on his community exhortations. Looking back, one is inclined to wonder why he was
so Popular as a speaker. He was not a rhetorician like Bishop
Sheen, and he had no great gift of eloquence. In a church
Pulpit he would have been listened to, though probably soon
f?rgotten. But in a Jesuit chapel he belonged. He was affech.ve. He reached the heart by his unobstrusive simplicity and
directness. The time when we were most aware of him as
Father Martin was when he gave his exhortations, and even
then, somehow, we were aware of Father Martin speaking
�160
·FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
rather than of Father Martin. And when we discussed his
remarks the next day, we were seldom conscious of the personality, but only of his message. Yet his remarks were very
personable. It would be a mistake to think they could have
been effective without the warm personality behind them.
When Father Tom was giving exhortations he was more
obviously Christlike than at any other time. Like Our Lord
he spoke about familiar things, the homey trifles we all knew,
plum puddings, bars of soap, prune-picking, Latin endings,
and so on. Nothing was too trivial, nothing without meaning.
And like Our Lord, he used Scripture often and realistically.
He used its power. St. Paul was a great favorite and when
asked why lie· liked St. Paul, he responded immediately: "St.
Paul was a man's man, and a good theologian too."
One phrase of St. Paul especially pleased him and he used
it often. "When I was a child ...." There was a certain childlikeness about Father Tom, particularly when he spoke. There
was a boy's sense of wonder in him, a tremendous preoccupation with the marvels of the created world, which both amused
and inspired. That's the odd part about it: we could laugh at
Father Tom; his foibles were really delightful, but his very
foibles ~inspired us. They revealed a genuine man.
Golden Jubilee
In November, 1952, much agains_t.'his will, he assisted at a
celebration for his golden jubilee. For the occasion, Father
General sent congratulations, the program read, "Happy 121h
Olympiads," and a banquet was spread. After the strawberry
sundaes were consumed, songs were sung and spiritual bouquets were presented. Then there were speeches. Father
Tom accepted all the praise-perhaps suffered is the right
word-then he himself rose to speak. In a moment he adroitly
turned all the praise and attention from himself to the Society.
As he went along, one no longer thought of him; one thought
of the Society, and of thanksgiving to God for St. Ignatius.
What are we ourselves, after all?
Someone said, later, "It was the most eloquent talk I have
ever heard or hope to hear. Time will never dim the impres·
sion he made on us, not so much by what he said, but by what
he was, as he stood there, self-effacing, genuine, magnificently
�FATHER THOMAS MARTIN
161
great in his own littleness." Often in the past, in his triduums,
he had used the expression paupercJtlus, poor little man. Who
was Father Martin? Pauperculus. Fortunate, indeed, to be
a member of the Master's household. When he finished, most
felt like beating their breasts.
And thus, Father Tom aged before our eyes; his hair, still
bushy, turned gray; his step lost a little of its sureness; his
trips around the grounds became less frequent. Always
afflicted by the effects of the appendectomy years before, other
minor ills now befell him. In July, 1953, he developed throat
trouble. He went to Portland to have it cared for, the first
time he had been away from the house for three years. He
seems to have suspected at once what" it was, for in August he
started keeping a medical diary, which he called "Data". His
entry for Sept. 21st says this: "Saw Dr. Bailey who tells me
what it is." It was cancer.
A irim struggle followed. The house diary records it,
step by step :
Oct.
Oct.
Nov.
Nov.
Nov.
Jan.
Feb.
4th. Father Martin returned to Portland for more relief. He
has kept smiling, but when asked, "How is your throat?",
he answers, "Quite inflamed."
29th. Father Martin back here again. His throat and head
sound quite choked; much pain; very cheerful, though.
5th. Father Martin back for treatments in Portland. In great
misery but cheerful. He knows that his cancer is
malignant.
12th. Father Martin back. His breathing and swallowing
difficult.
16th. Father Rector drove Father Martin to the hospital in
Portland. He had not been able to eat or drink without
great pain. Even with pills he slept poorly. Had to
receive a quarter of a small Host from another celebrant.
5th, 1954. Father Martin returned here quite shriveled.
4th. Father Rector annointed Father Martin. He has gone
down from 180 to less than 140 pounds. He is quite
brave in his pain. When the doctor remarked that most
people in his state were terrified and whimpering, he
answered that our religion teaches us to accept pain.
While the diarist was recording the official version, Father
'rom in his "Data" was faithful to his own. As weeks passed,
he Was more concerned with keeping accounts of visitors and
events around him than of treatments. About the hospital he
Was becoming quite a celebrity. A cancer specialist brought
�162
FATHER THOl\IAS MARTIN
young doctors in to examine the peculiarities of his case, and
Father Tom greeted them cordially. On his hospital chart
there was a special notice: "Question the patient closely. He
won't ask for anything."
When the doctor had exhausted all known means to stop the
cancer, he went to tell Father Tom. "I went to his room very
depressed," he said later, "wishing I could think of something
encouraging to say. You know, Father Martin cheered me up.
He laughed and joked about the future." But the future was
not long. Father Rector announced the fact after a visit in
mid-April. ~'Father Tom is sinking fast." Cancer had blinded
one eye anfl'deadened the hearing of one ear. It was closing
his throat. 'Still he did not complain.
In late April, a new Provincial took office, Father Henry
Schultheis. Before his departure for the Provincial's meeting,
he visited Father Tom. "I'm going back to Boston, Father
Martin, for the Provincials' meeting. I will see your sisters."
At the words, Father Tom came out of his comatose condition
and haltingly spoke. "My sisters! Tell them I love them. I
am dying. I may be dead before you see them. Tell them not
to fee} bad. I am ready to go to God. Good-bye, Father. I am
so tired now."
A few days later, on May 8, 1954, he quietly died at 8:40
in the morning. The news reached Sheridan immediately.
When the bell tolled, one of the iuniorate professors paused
in his lecture, led his class in prayer, then resumed class as
before. Father Tom's exit was as unobstrusive. as his life
had been.
Things are different at Sheridan now. More water has
been discovered on the property, within a stone's throw of
the house, bricks have at last clothed the old concrete sheii,
and expansion has provided better dining and living quarters.
Father Tom, were he to see it now, would be astonished. He
would pry and poke into all the new corners, relieved to think
that Sheridan, after twenty-two years, had at last finished
what was begun in his time, a dream realized, a seed burst
into flower. And as he would look into the face of the lovelY
flower, he would still be able to say: "Poverty is Sheridan's
greatest blessing." Despite new buildings, it will always be
that way.
�Father John J. Kehoe
VINCENT J. HART, S.J.
A gentle rain was falling in the graveyard at St. Andrew's
on July 21, 1956, as Father Laurence McGinley, S.J., President
of Fordham University, sprinkled the box containing the body
of the Reverend John J. Kehoe, S.J. One of the priests who
had been Father Kehoe's subject as a member of the mission
band said, with obvious emotion, "Good-bye, Father John,
and thanks for all you did for the members of the mission
band." That expression of gratitude comes as close as any
expression will ever come in paying tribute to a sterling priest
of God whose heart was big enough for everyone, whose generosity was well known to all, whose kindness was something
You took for granted.
For Father Kehoe's greatness was not in oratory, nor in the
classroom nor in his ability at composition nor in understanding abstruse points in theology, philosophy or the sciences,
but in the warmth and effectiveness of his generous personality. His was the rare gift of creating on the spot a feeling
of affection and cordiality. The opportunities he had to meet
People were numerous, due to the nature of his work at
Georgetown and elsewhere. Invariably, one always heard the
same remark, "What a wonderful priest he is."
It was in Father Kehoe's make-up to be perfectly natural.
lie loved people and enjoyed their companionship. People
Were his hobby. He never had any particular interest in
things, What individuals did interested him more than the
thing done. He was primarily a human person, enjoying the
companionship of old and young, by groups or individually,
Possessing the rarest of gifts-that of being able to keep in
c?ntact with hundreds and hundreds of people, creating the
~~~pie impression on each that this individual was his closest
hrJe~d. He always had time for the person he was with. Since
e, likewise, possessed an understanding of the limitations of
163
�164
FATHER JOHN KEHOE
human nature, it was understandable why so many attested
to his charming priestly characteristics.
Boyhood
Father Kehoe was born in New York City on November 24,
1895 and baptized in the Church of the Immaculate Conception
on 14th Street where his father was a trustee of the parish.
His mother died when he was five years of age and he frequently reflected on that early loss, noting that he scarcely
remembered her. He used to comment on it, always at the
proper occasion, in inspiring others with a tender love of
their mothers, while still living.
Father Kehoe's father died in 1908, when Father John was
in his thirteenth year. The great respect he had for his father
was due to his father's devout life. He had gone to the 5
o'clock Mass every morning before reporting to his contrac. tor's office. The entire family, together with all visitors,
Catholic and non-Catholic, recited the family rosary every
evening. This love of the rosary stayed with Father Kehoe
till the end. In his days at Georgetown and at Fordham it
was his custom to go out for an evening walk and say Our
Lady's rosary on the campus.
·
John's lone excursion into delinquency as a child-still the
topic of family hilarity-concerns his stealing of one of his
"father's dump carts and encircling the neighborhood demanding "a..p~nny a ride". He did not get very far, for a knowing
policeman corralled him and took him to the station house,
phoned his father to come and get the stolen cart and his
delinquent son; which his father did. Years later Father
Kehoe would reflect on this incident and say with a jovial
tone in his voice, "Did I get a licking that night!" .
After the death of Father Kehoe's father, Monsignor Edwards who had been stationed in the Immaculate Conception
Church on East 14th Street assumed guardianship over him
and it was Monsignor Edwards' stern task to review with
John his report card and his activities during four years at
Fordham Prep (1910 to 1914). The guardian was not the
kind of man to be fooled. You either did your work or you did
not. Father Kehoe frequently referred to the dreaded monthlY
report card, how he would approach the Monsigrior with fear
�FATHER JOHN KEHOE
165
and trembling to have the report card signed. He was also
assured of a lecture. Guardianship was not a perfunctory
task for Monsignor Edwards. He had a duty to perform in
watching over the young boy and he fulfilled it in masterful
fashion. There was always a reverential awe on John's part
for the worthy. priest.
Jesuit Beginnings
The pattern of his life in the Society followed that of the
Scholastics of his generation. From the time of his entrance
into the Society of Jesus at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on August 14, 1914, till his death on July 18,
1956, he tried to have in his make-up the personal characteristics of kindliness, devotion to duty· and the paternal aspects
of government he noticed in his master of novices, Father
George Pettit, S.J. He looked upon Father Pettit as the ideal
superior and endeavored to model himself in his government
of others along the lines so characteristic of that great man.
·Frequently, did he refer to Father Pettit's treatment of the
novices of his day and to the sense of humor in Father Pettit's
actions or accomplishments. To him, Father Pettit was the
authority and, in later years he felt he could stress a point
the better by using the simple phrase, "As Father Pettit used
to say."
Father Kehoe took his philosophy course at Woodstock
College from 1918 to 1921 and began there to manifest the
great love he had for the Brothers of the Sodety particularly
for Brother John and Brother Charley. Those were the days
of the First. World War and he interested himself in the
garden and considered himself quite an accomplished farmer.
There, also, he developed his own art of cooking, begun in St.
Andrew's as a junior and continued for long years afterwards
whenever the occasion arose. He was always at home on a
picnic, ready to assume the responsibilities of the open fireplace and did a thoroughly masterful job at it, as his contemporaries will attest. On frequent occasions in his priesthood
he went down to the kitchen to get ready a quick dinner for
someone or to help in the preparation of special haustus for
his community.
�166
FATHER JOHN KEHOE
The Scholastics of his generation were to him "a great
crowd", an expression he used on many occasions thereafter
whenever he referred to his associates at Buffalo, Georgetown,
Kohlmann Hall or Fordham. The "crowd" had a good time,
or was tired or needed a break, or was working too hard.
Mr. Kehoe was sent to Canisius High School in Buffalo in
1921 to teach first year High and had three wondrous years
there. One of his responsibilities was the altar boys. In his
capacity as moderator of the Sanctuary Society, he came in
frequent contact with the revered Brother Sandheinrich who
for years thereafter stoutly maintained that, "Mr. Kehoe was
one of the_:ti.nest scholastics I ever saw." A characteristic of
his years then-a quality which never deserted him-was
his ability to get up on time regardless of the hour when he
got to bed. During the hay fever season in his Scholastic days,
and in the years of his early priesthood, he frequently spent
almost the entire night sitting in a chair gasping for breath.
Mr. Kehoe returned to Woodstock in 1924 to begin his
course of theology. He was not one to get a particular relish
from study yet he was most conscientious in doing his theo·
logic~! course, being careful to chat with some of his more
brilliant contemporaries if the matter at hand was not clear
to him. His theological notes were voluminous, carefully
worked out and memorized thoroughly. He could never be
discursive, nor could he read around a point in theology, but
he knew every thesis solidly. While--examinations were a con·
stant burden to him and he became excessively nervous over
them, yet he never went into an examination without prior
assiduous study. He kept his theological notes for almost
twenty-five years, destroyed them with reluctance for their
yellowing pages recalled to him the very fruitful four years
at a place he loved dearly and would return to whenever the
occasion warranted it. Father Kehoe was ordained at Wood·
stock by the Archbishop of Baltimore, Most Reverend Michael
J. Curley on June 23, 1927.
First Years as a Priest
The first years of his priesthood were spent at CanisiuS
College, Buffalo, where he was dean of men and moderator
of athletics. His work on the mission band during tertianshiP
�FATHER JOHN KEHOE
167
(1930-31) had given him an early love for preaching. The
head of the mission band at that time, Father John P. Gallagher, wanted Father Kehoe to become a member of the band,
so successful were his missions during Lent. True to his
nature, Father Kehoe had every sermon written out and memorized-a custom he kept for many many years, for he had
no trust in himself in spontaneous oratory. He liked his
Lenten work and offered himself to Father Gallagher for the
apostolate of preaching. The activity of parish missions appealed to him and the early rising and the late retiring would
never bother him. It was an interest, however, that came in
handy years later when he became secretary for missions and
retreats. Father Kehoe returned to Canisius College in Buffalo after his tertianship in 1931 to begin, as he thought then,
a life's work in that city. He had spent two years prior to tertianship there and returned to where he had acquired a host
of friends and was beginning to be somewhat of an authority
in inter-collegiate athletics.
Actually, it was Father Aloysius Hogan, president of Fordham at the time, who first took note of Father Kehoe's extraordinary ability in getting along with the various elements
that make up the sports world, particularly the reporters, the
coaches and the opposing teams. Father Hogan had drawn
up a detailed analysis of the athletic situation at Fordham
at the time, told the Provincial how easily it could be handled
by Father Kehoe and requested that he be sent to Fordham
in 1932. At that time, Georgetown was faced with a more
difficult athletic situation which demanded urgent attention.
To Father Hogan's dismay, Father Kehoe was assigned to
Georgetown in the summer of 1932. For the next twelve years
Georgetown became the love of his life. He had never been
to a boarding college. It took him several months to convince
himself that he was capable of handling the many situations
that arise in a boarding college. Fortunately for him, Father
Vincent McDonough, who had dominated the discipline at
Georgetown for years, was still there and could, very kindly
and willingly, guide Father Kehoe in his early weeks on the
Hilltop.
liis heart, thereafter, beat for Georgetown. To a great
number of the boys of his time he became Mr. Georgetown
�168
FATHER JOHN KEHOE
and was kindly referred to as Big John or Black Jack. To the
men of Georgetown he never slept, for he would never leave his
office until every student was accounted for and he would
invariably be present to say grace for them at breakfast time.
While he had the happy facility all his life of getting along
on a few hours of sleep, the students of Georgetown took it
for granted that "Big John never sleeps."
Success in Athletics
Not an athlete himself, it was surprising what vast interest
Father Kehoe created in athletics at Georgetown. He was, in
no small w~y, responsible for their re-birth on the Hilltop.
In the days before World War II there were developed at
Georgetown, under his direction, teams in football, basketball
and golf of national reputation. To him intercollegiate athletics, on a proper basis, were part and parcel of college life.
He hated professionalism and hypocrisy. He watched over
the athletes as if they were his own sons. While it was not in
his nature ever to be severe or stern, he could assert his
authority and manifest his displeasure in a way sufficient to
humiliate any prima donna attitude of a star performer. He
learned quickly at Georgetown the generous spirit of the
place and during his twelve years as moderator of athletics,
he gave to any Jesuit at Georgetowl! or elsewhere any number
of tickets requested for any athletic_. event.
The Georgetown boys of his time used to say of him that
nothing ever shocked or surprised Father John, which, in
their manner of speaking, was a high credit to his priestliness. In college parlance a priest who understands the foibles
of college life and has the judiciousness to minimize them is a
superior priest. Such was Big John to the boys of Georgetown.
He became a tradition at the place. If there was a gathering
of alumni anywhere in the United States, Father John got
an invitation and invariably accepted. The Cohonguroton
party following the Georgetown-Fordham or the Georgetown·
NYU football game never began in the eyes of the boys of
Georgetown until Big John entered the room. Then the Jioyas
would gather around him and sing and cheer and Father
Kehoe enjoyed every minute of it. He was universally beloved
�FATHER JOHN J. KEHOE
��FATHER JOHN KEHOE
169
by the Hoyas. Without exaggeration it can be stated that no
Georgetown boy ever said an unkind word to or about Father
Kehoe. The boys knew he worried about them and it was not
an unknown thing that they would on occasions take advantage
of that disposition. He would tell them later on that they had
not fooled him. This was what was said about him, in part,
in the Georgetown Alumni Magazine: "Unlike Father Mac
whose flair for the dramatic was well known to all who attended Georgetown in his time, Father Kehoe possessed a
natural timidity which seemed to overflow into a nervous state
bordering on concern and even worry over the welfare of his
boys. Without exception they hold him high in the treasury
of their memories, as one who at all times understood their
needs, their interests and their problems. It is said that one
of his boys in sheer appreciation of what Father Kehoe had
done for him, financed in later years a four year scholarship
so that some deserving lad might enjoy the advantage of an
education at Georgetown. The death of Father Kehoe comes
as a shock to Georgetown alumni throughout the country.
He was by every measurement a Christian gentleman and
an outstanding Jesuit. A friend of our alumni in the true
sense of the word, it was his warm and understanding nature
which helped to generate much alumni good will over the
Years. As president of the Georgetown Club of New York in
its infancy, I had the priceless experience of discussing with
Father Kehoe a 'number of alumni problems. I found him
eager for constructive suggestion. He always welcomed it,
considering it as he used to say 'the hallmark of a friend, not
an enemy'. For these and other rare characteristics, our
alumni respected and loved him and will miss him keenly,
While praying fervently for the happy repose of his soul."
Father Kehoe was always attentive to the sick. In his early
days in the priesthood at Buffalo he went every morning at
5:30 to say Mass at a hospital close to Canisius College.
IIardly a day passed during his twelve years at Georgetown
that he did not visit Georgetown Hospital at least once a day,
Whenever anyone from Georgetown was there. This attention
to the sick he kept high in his primacy of duty throughout his
entire priesthood, and in particular, as superior at Fordham.
It Was his daily afternoon custom to visit any hospital in the
�170
FATHER JOHN KEHOE
metropolitan area where any member of his community was
a patient. He saw to it that every Jesuit when sick had every.
thing he needed.
New York City
It was to Father Kehoe the end of an era when he was
transferred from Georgetown to 84th Street in New York
City to become director of the mission band. He had been
thirty years a Jesuit and this was his first assignment in New
York City. By all natural standards he disliked his assign.
ment. It took. him away from the hubbub of campus life, from
the multitude of things that kept him busy at Georgetown,
from the ma~y bothers which in his heart he loved. In the be·
ginning he felt like a stranger on Park Avenue. Still he had his
work to do. There were missions to be cared for and retreats
to be assigned. Gradually he became a master in his new office,
began to appreciate more and more the heroic sacrifices of
the Jesuits on the mission band and felt he was doing more
fruitful work for God as an apostle of the typewriter, than as
dean of men. In promoting the efforts of the members of the
band, in satisfying the requests of bishops, priests, superiors
of religious communities and others for retreats and missions,
he became enthusiastic over the work of the members of the
band-though, from his conversation it was obvious he missed
the excitement of a_ college campus--"~e directed the activities
of the mission band from 84th Street for two years and on
January 1, 1946 he was made province secretary for retreats
and missions and brought to Kohlmann Hall. He was made
superior of that community on March 10, 1947 and continued
in that office until his transfer to Fordham as superior of the
community on September 8, 1953.
To the members of the band Father Kehoe represented pa·
ternal government in its finest expression. As one of the!ll
said, "He could never do enough for you." It was a source
of constant concern to him that he was working the members
t>f the band too hard. They, in turn, could not do enough for
him for he was constant in kindness and endeavored to see to
it that each member of the band had everything he needed
for the work at hand. His high point of nervousness was a~·
ways during the novena of grace. He was more than ordJ·
�FATHER JOHN KEHOE
171
narily fearful that something might happen to disturb his
well conceived plans for the carrying out of the work of the
tertians and the members of the band. It was during these
harrowing days that he was envious of those who could take
things more easily and philosophically. Frequently did he comment on the zealous generosity of the men on the mission band.
"They are great Jesuits", he use to say, "I can't do enough
for them." In his heart, he thought he saw fulfilled in them
the ambition he had as a tertian.
The Community of Kohlmann Hall stoutly maintained that
Kohlmann Hall was the finest place in the Province to live in
during Father Kehoe's term of office. He endeared himself to
every member of that community, particularly to the Brothers,
and in a special way to Brother Ramaz. "This is the house of
typewriters", he used to say. "We never get away from the
grind but we have a joyous community."
He brought to the superior's room at Fordham the same
characteristics that endeared him to the boys of Georgetown
and the Jesuit community at Kohlmann Hall. He was always
available, anxious to help in whatever way he could in the
vast work of the University.
For a year prior to his death he complained that he did not
feel well. A thorough examination at St. Vincent's Hospital,
New York City, at Easter-time 1956, did not reveal any abnormal disturbances. It became ovious, however, to the members of his community that he was ill. He began to lose weight
and color. His eyes became sad and his expression forlorn, so
different from his usual jovial countenance. Nervous by nature, he became more and more solicitous about his health. He
Was convinced that something was vitally wrong. He sensed
in the numbness of his hands and legs and in the throbbing
of his heart that his once rugged frame could not carry the
burdens, as was its custom. He decided on June 27th that, "He
could not stand it anymore" and went to St. Vincent's
Hospital.
His end came with startling suddeness even to the nurses,
Sisters and the doctors at St. Vincent's. He had been sitting
With some of the other patients at St. Vincent's after dinner
on July 18th. Sister Philomena had come in with evening
medication. Father Kehoe took his. Sister had scarcely re-
�172
FATHER JOHN KEHOE
turned to her desk when there was a shrill cry from one of the
patients and upon her immediate return to the room Sister
noticed that Father Kehoe had slumped in his chair. It was
6:45p.m. Dr. Brawner was at Father Kehoe's side in a matter
of minutes as was also Father Fitzgerald, Chaplain at St.
Vincent's. Dr. Brawner pronounced Father Kehoe dead at
7:00 p.m. In all probability, Father Kehoe had died in a
matter of moments.
CENTRAL AND SINGULAR
The Society of Jesus has been both central and singular within modern
Catholicism. There are those who have sought to drive a wedge between
Ignatius himself and the later spirit of his followers-to set up an
opposition between lgnatianism and Jesuitry. A living organization
that develops and adapts itself through the course of time to new circumstances must always give rise to the query: how far is the develop·
ment legitimate? The problem is not confined to the Society of Jesus.
Would St. Benedict, would St. Francis, have recognized the legitimate
descent of all the different forms and traditions of the institutes deriving
from them? It is true that within fifty years of St. Ignatius' death his
company had embarked upon tasks involvfug· political, social, perhaps
even ethical implications unforeseen by him. It is true, also, that it
was not until the generalship of Father Acquaviva, the first Italian
general of this international body, who ruled it from 1581 to 1615, that
the wheels of organization and control began properly to operate in
what became the full normal, routine way; and we need, perhaps, to
do some more thinking about the significance of his generalate taken
as a whole. But there is no doubt that the elaborate Constitutions of the
Society were the work of Ignatius himself and that they knit the Socie~
together firmly and permanently, informing its spirit in the wa~ ?n
which he desired, just as his Spiritual Exercises fashioned its spmtuality. There had been achieved in St. Ignatius of Loyola himself an
unique marriage between whole-hearted, unrecking, self-sacrificing re·
ligious enthu'siasm on the one hand and a self-controlled, calculating,
almost worldly-wise prudence on the other. There is, I think, lit~le
in the history of the Jesuits that does not, somehow or other, find 1ts
root in his strong, protean, many-sided personality.
H. 0. EVENNETT
�FATHER FRANCIS X. DELANY
�--
�Father Francis X. Delany
1875-1956
EUGENE T. KENEDY, S.J.
Father Frank Delany died April 24, 1956, after a short
final illness in St. Francis Hospital, Poughkeepsie, N.Y. He
was the third of his fellow novices of 1897 to miss by less than
two years the elusive diamond jubilee in the Society which ·
he would have reached in 1957. He had been hastily removed
to the hospital from the Novitiate only a few days previously,
but had been in failing health for a long time.
In his eighty-first year, strangely like St. Ignatius' "Letter
on Obedience", Father Delany's long life may be said to have
"ended where it began", because he died not far from the
spot on the shore of the lordly Hudson where he first saw the
light of day more than four score years previously. Born
in Newburgh, New York, about fifteen miles below Poughkeepsie, but on the opposite bank, where his father was a
prosperous shipbuilder, he attended St. Patrick's parochial
school and graduated in 1889. It is hard to realize that in that
year Pope Leo XIII was still living in Rome, Bismarck in
Germany, and in England Cardinal Newman as well as
Tennyson and Gladstone.
From parochial school Frank Delany entered Georgetown
Prep in Washington, D.C., having himself taken care of the
correspondence about the arrangements that had to be made.
At the completion of his high school course he spent four
years in Georgetown College and graduated in 1897. A few
months later he was received into the Society at the old
Novitiate in Frederick, Maryland. His unassuming, tactful
kindness to me in helping "to break me in" to the mysteries
of the noviceship when I entered a year and a half later
showed how his spiritual training had already transformed
one of the most popular, though not overpious, students of
Georgetown into an all but ideal religious. He was the manuductor at the time.
173
�174
FATHER FRANCIS DELANY
Later in life I was under him as Superior in Jamacia, as
well as rector of Xavier in New York, where he demonstrated
his ability in governing, coupled with a keen insight into
human nature. This latter gift was shown in other ways as
well, for example, in his success as retreat master to the
Scholastics at Woodstock on more than one occasion.
At the completion of his course in philosophy he was
honored, along with two other Scholastics, Harding Fisher
and Coleman Nevils, by being assigned to inaugurate the new
Loyola School in New York. There he spent the entire period
of his regency as a high school teacher. How carefully the
first faculties w~.re selected, and their calibre, are evidenced
by the fact that of the eight or nine Scholastics who taught
there during Frank's time, four were to become rectors later
of Georgetown, Fordham, Xavier in New York, and Loyola
College in Baltimore. The first headmaster was Father James
P. Fagan who became in later years general prefect of studies
of the old Maryland-New York Province. In Frank's last
year the headmaster was Father Patrick O'Gorman, later Vice
Provincial of the incipient New England Province where
Father Harding Fisher was master of Novices, before he
became rector of Fordham University. Loyola School had
been started to stop the trend among wealthy Catholics toward
such schools as Berkeley, Cutler, Irving Institute, Columbia
Institute, Poly Prep and St. Paul's. Du:ring his five years at
Loyola Frank Delany helped to check the enrollment of Catholics at non-Catholic colleges by persuading most of the graduates to enter the then poorly attended Catholic colleges.
Jamaica
Ordained at Woodstock in 1911 by the famous Cardinal
Gibbons Father Delany began his long forty-five years of
priesthood. He taught at St. George's in J amacia for two
years before he made his tertianship at St. Andrew-onHudson during 1914-1915. He was the prefect of the Tertian
Fathers. At the completion of his tertianship his first assignment was Kingston, Jamaica. After teaching for a year he
was made prefect of studies and discipline at St. George's
College. In 1920 he rose to the position of superior of the
entire mission. This included, in addition to the College, the
�FATHER FRANCIS DELANY
175
magnificent cathedral, the finest building on the Island, the
Catholic hospital, St. Anne's and Holy Rosary parishes in
Kingston, besides a dozen and more parishes with resident
pastors and some chapels with non-resident priests, scattered
in the bush throughout the Island. There were also three
large convents of Sisters to be cared for along with their
pupils and patients.
But his greatest worry, if he were of the worrying kind,
was the decidedly bad financial condition of the entire Mission
in 1920. World War I had just ended and left its scars; times
were hard and the cathedral that had cost about 200,000
pound-dollars was deeply in debt, and many of the people
were desperately poor. Father Delany had to depend to some
extent on gifts from friends at horne, the Propagation of the
Faith, etc., because the Mission was scarcely self-supporting.
The yearly tuition at the then small St. George's College was
the equivalent of but forty dollars in our money. And the
cost of everything for the missioners had risen appreciably.
Bishop Collins, probably the most loved and respected man
on the Island, had just resigned. By popular subscription
from Catholics, Protestants and Jews a purse of about $20,000
was raised for him. Some said that had he not publicly asserted that every shilling of the donation would be turned
over to pay the debt on the cathedral he would have received
much more. They wanted him to keep it for his own use.
Shortly after Father Delany became Superior the entire
debt was liquidated, and the Mission began to slowly develop
into its marvelous growth of today. It happened this way.
Bishop Collins' ambitious plans that had nearly led to bankruptcy proved, paradoxically, a blessing in disguise. The
cathedral and by far the best hospital, government or otherWise, on the Island were built by him at the extremely low
Pre-World War I costs. They could scarcely be replaced for
double the amount he paid. Everything in the way of building
materials skyrocketed in value when peace was restored.
Such is a sort of bird's eye view of conditions in Jamaica
When Father Delany, after five years as teacher and Prefect
of Studies, became superior for five successful years (1920-25)
before returning to the United States. Bishop Collins was
succeeded in 1920 by Bishop O'Hare. The latter sold an
�176
FATHER FRANCIS DELANY
excellent fruit plantation, bought more than a generation
previously by Bishop Gordon for about the equivalent of
$5,000 in American money, to one of the main competing
fruit export companies for a price between $200,0000 and
$300,000. At one stroke all debts were paid off.
Father Delany remained ten years in the tropical heat and
poverty of the Island, experiencing, too, the effects of the
disastrous earthquake that leveled much of Kingston, includ·
ing ·the previous cathedral and parochial school. His next
assignment was as treasurer of his old Alma Mater, Georgetown College,.,where he remained from 1925 to 1927. As a
business man he excelled. During the next six years he was
rector of St. Francis Xavier College in New York and pastor
of the church. He had his financial difficulties there also
because the church, built years before, was deeply in debt
The parochial school had to be supported by the annual bazaar
that lasted a full week. This barely covered school expenses.
We next find Father Delany at St. Peter's in Jersey City as
procurator, director of the Jesuit Seminary Fund and parish
priest from 1933 to 1944. Nearing his golden jubilee, he was
moved j;o Brooklyn.
In the community at Brooklyn Father Delany acted as
librarian and house confessor. To these were added the duties
of moderator of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine and
the Young Ladies' Sodality. In t:Ws way he was active in
parish affairs and endeared himself to the young people. In
1947 he celebrated his fifty years in the Society and shortly
after he suffered a stroke from which he never fully recovered.
In 1955, he was sent to the Novitiate of St. Andrew to end
his days as house confessor.
Despite the multiplicity of his executive duties Father
Delany had his scholarly side. His name appears a number of
times in the Catholic Encyclopedia, under such articles as
Raccolta, John J. Scheffmacher, Gerard Schneemann. The
only history in English of the Church in Jamaica came from
Father Delany's pen in 1930. In clear, readable prose he
traced tlie developments of the Mission, sketched the lives of
many of the priests and brothers, and published many per·
tinent documents. The title of the work is: A History of the
Catholic Church in Jamaica, B.W.I.
�FATHER FRANCIS DELANY
177
In glancing back over his life several things particularly
stand out as admirable. Joined to a winning personality he
possessed what have been aptly called the three social dimensions of understanding, generosity and compassion. And he
was consistent, practicing what the poet compares to a jewel
because of its rarity and value. No one ever heard him complain or criticize in any way the exceptionally wide variety
of duties or occupations assigned him. And everyone likeg
him. He had been teacher, prefect of studies and discipline,
mission superior, treasurer, rector, parish priest.
Cardinal Newman once said of the Society that, it has a
practical and immediate work to do and goes about it in a
practical way. Each Jesuit must be ready, in other words, to
go wherever and whenever the need arises. They must pool
their resources for the common good. So, in humble imitation
of his patron, namesake and model, Francis Xavier, who went
to the East Indies, Frank Delany spent the best years of his
life in the West Indies. In both cases the teamwork of his
Order required it, and what seemed foolishness to some, in
the event, proved wisdom.
* * *
HINTS TO YOUNG TEACHERS
FATHER HENRY KEANE, S.J•
. A .teacher must be a disciplinarian because the first essential in teachIng Is that a teacher must secure a hearing. He must never become
a mere suppliant in a classroom: he must be master. Some people
are born disciplinarians, but most people with common sense can learn
discipline. Remember that the spirit and atmosphere of a school are
all on the side of authority. Start with a new class by being strict and
not lax. If you are lax at first, you will never get any work out of them.
:e quiet, self-restrained, uncommunicative and strict at first. Why?
toecause you cannot take your authority for granted. You cannot trust
. Your strength of will and knowledge of the world. You may be lulled
~nto feeling you have got a grip on a class, because they are quiet and
eferential at first. (But it would do you a great deal of good if you
could overhear them after school discussing you.) You can hardly
~~er?o ~eserve at first, since you must look around and observe both
boe Individual character of each pupil and the feelings of the whole
dy. And while you are taking the measure of the class, be very
certain that the class is making a careful study of you. Be chary of
�178
YOUNG TEACHERS
speech. Of course, answer questions politely, but in a few words. Avoid
conversation. All depends on this. Do not chat with the boys. You
cannot be too cautious of this, since you cannot chat without coming
out of your shell. Puzzle them by your reserve till they say: "We can~
make out our new teacher." Are you to be on the defensive the whole
year, or like a stranger to your class? No. It is just to make their
relations with you simple, confiding and cordial without the least danger
to your authority that at first you must raise your authority above
reach of all assault.
If you are given a class which has got out of hand, remember that
the first month is the most important. Be quiet and firm from the begin· 1
ning. Make up your mind to be hated. "Let them hate provided they
fear." Pile on the work, and insist on it. If a teacher has a strong
desire to be popular, the sooner he suppresses the desire the better for
himself and-for the school. Desire of popularity is a curse. A teacher
should never aim at being an equal with boys. First of all, it cannot be
done, and secondly the boys will eventually despise such a man. The
way to be popular is not to seek it. A teacher will be really popular
only if he is respected. Boys respect people who do not run after them.
They respect people who make them work.
They respect teachers who have a sense of duty and who work hard
themselves, who keep their temper in check, and who are always
polite. Boys know in their heart of hearts that their parents have sent
them to school to work, and boys like being made to work. Boys secretly
like being kept in order; one reason for this is that they can look
forward to and enjoy recreation time all the more.
Be ruthless with the mob, but very kind to the individual.
If you have to scold a boy privately, do not lecture him while he
listens in sullen silence. Make him tal~"by asking him questions.
Never issue ill-considered general rule;. They are often inconvenient
to remember and to carry out; and if you do not carry them out, the
class will notice.
Do not use up all the severest punishments at first. Grade them.
Let punishment fit the crime and the criminal.
Never threaten something definite unless you mean to do it. But a
vague threat is useful at times.
When you are going to have a "row" with a class, be quiet, calm and
firm. Self-restraint always gives an idea of latent power.
After scolding a class, do not carry on school as usual. Give the cl~ss
some private study so that they may reflect on what you have just sauL
Remember that the boys you are now teaching will soon be able to
think about you with the thoughts of men.
We do not praise people enough. Encourage a boy. Never tell hinl
he is no good. Praise him judiciously.
�Books of Interest to Ours
BRILLIANT TRANSLATION
The Word of Salvation. Translation and Explanation of the Gospel
according to St. Matthew by Alfred Durand, S.J., and the Gospel
according to St. Mark by Joseph Ruby, S.J., Translated into
English by John J. Heenan, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1957. Pp. xxviii937. $12.50.
The title of this beautifully printed book indicates the spirit in which
it was written. It was composed by Catholics for Catholics-to aid them ·
in understanding and profiting by the reading of the sacred text of the
Gospels. It does not contain replies to attacks but a simple and tranquil
exposition of the Word of God. There is no dallying over technical
discussions of the text or its interpretation. The point of view is that
of the general reading public and not of specialists.
This does not mean that the writers are not conversant with biblical
research. On the contrary they are well aware not only of the problems
but of the various solutions advanced. Their plan has been to choose
solutions which will be least likely to hinder readers in finding in the
Gospels substantial nourishment for faith and piety. Theological and
mystical considerations have been added when they were of a nature to
aid in the appreciation of the text. The result is a volume which can
be read as an interesting, even captivating, spiritual book.
Each chapter of the Gospels in question is presented in a good translation. The historical context is briefly sketched and a running commentary provided. The interpretation is not verse by verse; rather
sections of chapters are explained as units in a continuous narrative.
Despite the similarities in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, the
Present commentaries are by no means repetitions the one of the other.
Each section, which, if published separately, would form a substantial
;olume, has marked individuality. Father Durand with true competence
aces the difficult task of explaining Matthew. He follows the Vulgate
~•ther closely and aims at presenting the riches of the Gospel text with
ut a modicum of reference to theology and mysticism. Fine examples
of his art are to be found in his explanation of the Kingdom of God
)Pp. 104-106), the faith of Peter (pp. 282-286) and the Resurrection
489-499). The message of Jesus and the contents of the Gospel
0
Matthew are presented with historical awareness and exegetical
Precision.
Father Ruby, for his part, relies more on the Greek text and makes
more use of the writings of the Fathers and commentators. We find
ip.
179
�180
BOOK REVIEWS
references here to Tauler, The Imitation of Christ, Renan, Newman,
Pascal and many others. Fine examples of his penetrating method are
found in the discussion about the brethren of Christ (pp. 596-599) and
on the eschatological discourse (pp. 816-835). Theological considerations
lead the author to the facts of Christian life, not in the way of so-called
practical applications but by a vivid presentation of the principles
which are implicit in the Gospel.
Father Heenan has accomplished the difficult task of translation in
his usual brilliant fashion. The French form has been removed so
skillfully that there is probably not a Gallicism in the book. At the
same time the translator has taken no liberties with the text which is
faithfully reproduced. This book will be especially appreciated by
seminarians, religious and priests. At the same time it will offer profita·
ble reading matter for the multitudes who are eager to ponder the Word
of Salvation': ..
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
POET OF IMAGE
Sculptured in Miniature. The Collected Lyrics of Charles J. Quirk, S.J.
With a Foreword by George N. Shuster. New York: George Grady
Press, 1956.
"If good poetry be worth writing," Quiller-Couch observes, "the attempt-to write it must be worth making: nor does it need a Socratic
dialogue to prove that the more numerous they are who engage in the
attempt the fairer will be the prospect of somebody's succeeding." The
text suggests some reflection. The wonder is not that there are onlY
two Jesuit poets whose reputations epdure in the English-speaking
world, but that, with so few journeymen;- we can claim even Southwell
and Hopkins.
Father Quirk's little book is a gentle reproach to so many others
of Ours whose spring freshets of verse dwindled and died, just as the
handball and tennis of scholasticate days were given up for the role
of spectator and sideline oracle. Here are the best of an unspent stream
of epigrams, quatrains, sonnets, which for more than forty years have
glinted and glowed in the pages of American and foreign magazines, and
have been gathered into six slender books.
Though most at home in the quatrain, (The book is dedicated to
Father Tabb.} Charles Quirk has made a more notable contribution
in the larger poem. He is a poet of image: metrics he carries lightlY,
and he does not always respect the narrow tolerances of the sonnet.
The pict_\ues in the sonnets are his best work:
What lurks behind this topless height of sky,
Blue piled on blue, surging up through the dark,
Stretching beyond the swirling silver spark
or· the last star? What epic pageantry
�BOOK REVIEWS
181
Of creation's genesis must lie
Outspread which little man would now embark
To calculate, encompass, and to mark
By means of this, his telescopic eye!
Here is the best of the quatrains:
The Worm
No longer need to hide your head,
Proud may you say, "Ah, once was He,
God, not compared to beast or man,
But me."
FRANCIS SWEENEY, S.J.
A NEEDED SERVICE
The Protestant Churches of America. By John A. Hardon, S.J. Westminster: The Newman Press, 1956. Pp. xxiv-366. $5.00.
Father Hardon of the West Baden faculty has rendered American
Catholics a needed service. We all need to know at least superficially
the reality of the Protestant churches in our land. They are so many
and so diverse that it is no easy thing to understand the religiosity of
the great numbers of non-Catholics who surround us. There are indeed
excellent handbooks on the churches, e.g., the late F. E. Mayer's The
Religious Bodies of America (St. Louis: Concordia, 1954), Frank S.
Mead's Handbook of Denominations (New York-Nashville: Cokesbury,
1951), and Elmer T. Clark's The Small Sects in America (New YorkNashville: Cokesbury, 1949. 2d ed.) However, Catholics have certain
questions in mind which will not spontaneously present themselves to
non-Catholic investigators. Hence a Catholic's survey of the Protestant
churches was badly needed. We must thank Father Hardon for meeting
this need.
H. has had a good acquaintance with Protestant church-structures for
a number of years. He has worked industriously to find the genuine
Positions of the various churches. He does not consult out-of-date
sources.
There are limitations to the work. This is no criticism of the author,
because a small handbook must be severely limited in many ways. To
ask the writer to do more than he intended to do is an unfair petition.
The virtue of H.'s book is the fact that it gives us so much in so brief
~compass. We should be especially grateful for his indications of the
hturgies used by the Protestant churches, even though such indications
are schematic and jejune.
There are two difficulties involved in the confection of a book like
the one written by H. The first is that no matter what the author may
say about the churches individually and no matter how many sources
�182
BOOK REVIEWS
he relies on, many members of those churches will insist that the
description of their church is neither accurate nor adequate. Confessions, constitutions and books of discipline undergo changes when they
descend to the level of the concrete congregations. The bookish reality
of the church is quite unlike its lived reality.
The second difficulty inherent in H.'s enterprize is the Catholic's attitude to Protestantism. H. obviously wants to be fair and objective. He
tries scrupulously to rely exclusively on the witness of the churches
themselves. But it is so hard for us Catholics to be thoroughly sympa·
thetic with the Protestants and in consequence we unwittingly describe
them with some degree of disdain. H. controls this tendency but by
the nature of things he cannot overcome it entirely.
GUSTAVE WEIGEL, S.J.
BREADTH OF COVERAGE
Encyclopedia of Morals. Edited by Vergilius Ferm. New York: Philosophical Library, Inc., 1956. Pp. x-682. $10.00.
Some fifty contributors, most gracing the chairs of leading colleges
and universities in this country, some scholars reporting firsthand
their anthropological findings from the field, here pool their lore to
present a scholarly source work. Both moral theory and practice are
covered. -The treatment is for the most part historical and anthropolog·
ical.
This is not the typical one-volume encyclopedia, four lines to an entry
and boasting knowledge de omni re morali. It contains approximately
sixty articles of from three to fifteen _pages in length. Breadth of
coverage is commendably sacrificed for thoroughness. Most of the
major religions of mankind are treated, as well as most of the great
moral philosophies from Zoroastrian in antiquity to the theories of
John Dewey today. Though the entries are relatively few, the work is
cross-referenced in detail, so that it is truly an encyclopedia, not just
a collection of essays.
The book is remarkably unbiased from the Catholic viewpoint. A
half dozen Catholic institutions of higher learning are represented in
the roster of contributors. Aquinas, Augustine, the Jesuit theologians,
Alphonsus Liguori speak their piece along with Kant, Hegel and Marx.
The topics handled by non-Catholic scholars aim to, and by and large
succeed in, presenting fairly the Catholic position. Nor are alien "isms"
proposed with polemic ardor or without due criticism. This book maY
be safely placed on the library shelf without worry about it being a
forbidden book.
But it is not the Catholic topics which will particularly interest our
readers, since we have primary sources at hand. Rather it is such
subjects as the epistemology of ethics, current Soviet morality and
�BOOK REVIEWS
183
existentialism that catch the eye. The Encyclopedia is worth consulting,
if for no other reason, to learn the non-Catholic concepts of morality.
The term, as used off the Catholic campus, is quite broad and somewhat
nebulous, though even nebulae are capable of some precision. Thus we
find entries on Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky and Dante, who are supposedly
moral philosophers of note.
Disappointments there are. The article "Moral Philosophy in America" makes no mention of the rise of interest in scholastic moral philosophy in the United States in recent decades. Too much space is devoted
to the morals of primitive peoples.
Summing up: this is good Vergilius Ferm, a useful reference work.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
INTERESTING HISTORY
The Holyday Book. By Francis X Weiser, S.J. New York: Harcourt,
Brace and Company, 1956. Pp. 217. $3.00.
This final volume of Father Weiser's trilogy on Christian feasts concerns the season of Pentecost and a selection of saints' feasts. As the
liturgical movement gains momentum, this lively yet reverent chronicle
of the origin of our religious feasts and customs should inspire a more
fruitful and joyful celebration of the holydays. Besides presenting a
wealth of historical detail in an interesting manner, Father Weiser
makes an important contribution in clearly distinguishing the solid
foundation of our religious practices from superstition. His introductory
discussion of folklore, legend and their relation to pious practices is
excellent and very timely. The reader may well be surprised at how
much false propaganda concerning the so-called pagan origins of many
Christian customs has become common knowledge. Equally surprising is
the historical background of the feast of Thanksgiving-a celebration
Well rooted in Catholic practice even before the Reformation. A brief
reading of the appropriate passages of this book and its companion
books throughout the liturgical year should help introduce the spirit and
meaning of each feast into our own lives and homes.
w. SCHMITT, S.J.
AN EARLY PERIODICAL
Les Memoires de Trevoux et le mouvement des idees au XVIIIe siecle
(1701-1734). By Alfred R. Desautels, S.J. Rome: Institutum Historicum S.J., 1956. Pp. xxvii-256 .
. At a time when periodical publications play such an important part
ill the apostolate of the Society, one cannot fail to read with genuine
�184
BOOK REVIEWS
interest this well-documented study of the first Jesuit experiment in the
field. Founded in 1701 by the Parisian Jesuits, the Mbnoires de TrevoUlJ
(named after the town where they were first printed) undertook the
task of keeping their readers abreast of current literary and scientific
developments, mainly through condensations of books, to which some
comments were occasionally added. Amidst various vicissitudes, the
Memoires appeared regularly until the suppression of the Society by
the Parlement of Paris, in 1762. The present study confines itself to
the first thirty-three years of their existence. A second volume is in
preparation.
Father Desautels analyses successively the positions taken by the
editors towards the philosophical trends of their time (mainly the schools
of Descartes, Malebranche, Locke and Newton), the moral and pedagogi.
cal problems, 'the theological controversies and the question of Christian
apologetics. Numerous quotations, accompanied by a discreet but penetrating commentary, throw much light on the subtle influence exercised
by heterodox trends on a Catholic intelligentsia. They also. betray the
growing helplessness of the clergy's intellectual elite, to which the
Memoires' editors unquestionably belonged, in face of the steady progress
of rationalistic secularism during the eighteenth century.
To the credit of the Memoires, Father Desautels mentions their en·
lightened approach to the problems of exegesis. Their sympathy towards
Richard Simon was, however, denied much of its expression by precise di·
rectives, the rigidity of which left nothing to be desired. External opposi·
tion likewise checked their defense of probabilism and of the liceity of
Chinese rites. Definite shortcomings are also noted: an excessive cult for
ancient simplicity in matters of doctrine, a good deal of corporate
prejudice in literary judgments, a too frequent inability to face the
real issues with competence. In the author's view, this can be explained,
to a certain extent, by the inadequacy· of a formation primarily di·
rected towards the education of youth "in colleges. This should not,
however, obscure the fact that, by and large, the Memoires do offer a
fairly accurate reflection of the state of Catholic thought during the
decades preceding the French Revolution. Against such a background,
some positive aspects are brought into sharper relief. In short, the
author deserves our gratitude and congratulations for making available
to a wide public these echoes of one of the least known, but not the least
instructive, periods of the Society's history.
P. LEBEAU, S.J.
CRITICAL AND READABLE
Historia de la Provincia de la Compafiia de Jesus de Nueva Espafia,
Torno I, Libros 1-3 (Anos 1566-1596). By Francisco Javier Alegre,
S.J. New edition by Ernest J. Burrus, S.J. and Felix Zubillaga, S)·
Rome: Institutum Historicum S.J., 1956. Pp. xxxii-640. $6.00.
�BOOK REVIEWS
185
This volume, another in the series of the Bibliotheca Instituti Historici
S.J., is the first of a four volume work. Fathers Ernest Burrus, S.J., and
Felix Zubillaga, S.J., both of the Institutum Historicum S.J., have continued their valuable work on Jesuit mission history in Mexico and the
Spanish .settlements in the United States, with a new edition of the
history of Jesuit work in New Spain up until shortly before the expulsion
of the Society from Spanish dominions in 1767.
Francisco Javier Alegre, a Mexican Jesuit humanist of the eighteenth
century, was deputed by superiors in 1764 to write a history of the
Province of New Spain which would be in accord with the more critical
historical standards then coming into vogue. By 1766 the first draft
had been completed and work begun on the revision, so that it would
have appeared in 1767, had not the Jesuits been expelled from Mexico.
The manuscript saw publication only in 1842-43.
Since this edition is quite rare, Fathers Burrus and Zubillaga have
prepared the present edition to make available a source very important
for the history of the Society, not only in Mexico, but also in southwestern United States, Florida, the Philippines, and parts of Central
America and the Antilles, all of which at some time belonged to the
Province of New Spain. The history of Alegre has been judged by
historians to be one of the best of its time for this field. He showed
considerable critical spirit for his day in the use of his material, and
displayed a judicious treatment of the miraculous element which plays
so large a part in other religious histories of the period. Moreover, as
Official historian of the Province, he had access to all the archives, and
it is evident that he made good use of his resources, frequently letting
the documents speak for themselves, and thus preserving many precious
ones, which would otherwise have been lost to the modern historian.
Yet in his efforts at critical history the humanist in Alegre is not lost,
and the history is colorful and very readable.
In the present edition the editors have by their ample historical notes
~upplied for the defects due to the unfinished state of Alegre's work,
Indicating his sources, giving brief biographical sketches of the persons
appearing in the history, and, where necessary, correcting or clarifying
~he affirmations of the original..Likewise they have presented much
elpful background in their introduction, and a judicious selection of key
~ocuments in the appendix, as well as an extensive bibliography and a
etailed index of the present volume.
Thus the editors have made available in a far more useful edition,
an important book on Jesuit history, in Spanish America, and indeed,
on the general history of Spanish North America.
JOHN N. SCHUMACHER, S.J.
�18G
BOOK REVIEWS
APOCALYPTIC
The End of the Modern World. By Romano Guardini. Translated by
Joseph Theman and Herbert Burke. New York: Sheed & Ward,
1956. Pp. 133. $2.75.
As Romano Guardini advances toward the culmination of a life of
thought, his works have become ever more apocalyptic in tone, as
evidenced from the title alone of this essay. The uncompromising and
revolutionary sweep of his vision, since it is expressly tentative in
character, is not meant to disturb the critical mind. However, the broad
strokes, ruthlessly painting the unconditional demands of the times to be,
do unsettle the complacent.
Incisively, Guardini outlines mankind's shifting ideals from Classical
times through the Middle Ages to contemporary humanity, each age
presupposing the··norms and ideals of its past. But not so the age of
future man, on the brink of which we stand. While the Middle Ages
synthesized Classical science in the light of Christian revelation, and
while modern man built his culture on the inherited values of the very
revelation he denied, the future man will declare this secularized
Christianity to be sentimentalism. More honest, he will clear such
ambivalence from the air.
What moral and cultural ideals will fill this void? The monstrous
growth of man's power, exercised over nature and other men, will create
a new fundamental norm. Insofar as men can help increase this power,
they will have importance. As individual personalities, they will be mean·
ingless. In-sofar as nature can be formularized and manipulated, it wiii
be intelligible. As mystery and as reflection of transcendence, it will be
without meaning. The Christian will not find a world which presupposes
and compromises his beliefs, but one which judges them hostile because
completely incomprehensible. The lines are cle~rly drawn. The stakes are
as fundamental as existence. The non-Christian ethos and the assent to
the call of God stand in absolute opposition. The challenge: will the
Christian surrender in freedom and through faith to God's unconditional
demands? Guardini's English-speaking followers eagerly await the
translation of his further analysis in his latest essay.
EDWARD
STEVENS, S.J.
v.
COl\IPARABLE TO ANY
The Recruitment and Formation of the Native Clergy in India. B11
Carlos Merces de Melo, S.J. Lisbon: Agenda Geral Do UltraJJiar
1955. P_p. 358.
For those not particularly interested in the trials and conflicts of the
Portuguese Padroado and the early difficulties of the Sacred Congreg;·
tion De Propaganda Fide, there is the disappointment that Fathe: e
1
Melo ended his study with the nineteenth century. However, especial1
�187
BOOK REVIEWS
in his introduction, the author presents a clear and detailed survey of
the roots of many of the problems still confronting the Church in India.
The principles and methods of the early Portuguese missionaries were
inspired by the principle universally accepted in Europe at that time:
Cujus regio, illius religio. In practice, there was no tolerance for the
Hindus and Mohammedans, whereas special privileges were granted to
the new converts. The first effective weapon in breaking down the barrier
between the pagans and the Church was the donning of the saffron
tunic of the local sannyasis by Father Robert de Nobili. But the lack of
knowledge of the vernacular, especially seen in the absence of sermons
in the native tongue and the use of signs in the confessional, greatly
hampered the spiritual growth of the newly baptized. Of 422 apostates
in the years 1650-1653, not a single one had been instructed by the
native clergy. The problems of adaptation and of the vernacular remain
difficult problems today.
In his conclusion, the author states his opinion that India may have
centuries to wait until she passes out of the jurisdiction of the Sacred
Congregation. Without mentioning their relatively small numbers, he
assures us that the Indian clergy can stand comparison with any other
clergy in the world. Thus, by God's own mysterious ways working for
four centuries, with the raising of Archbishop Valerian Gracias to the
ranks of the cardinalate, the Church in India stands on the threshold
of a new era.
JAMES N. GELSON, S.J.
A VOIDING EXTREMES
Joseph Most Just. By Francis L. Filas, S.J.
Pp. ix-141. $3.50.
Milwaukee: Bruce, 1956.
In his latest book, Father Filas, prominent Josephologist, treads the
fine line of theological sureness and solidity, avoiding two extremes
Which are the usual result of Josephine theology's meagre sources. He
~reats without excessive caution such controversial subjects as Joseph's
Immaculate conception, freedom from sin, and assumption into heaven,
but always in the light of the carefully weighed opinions of Church
:octo~s ~n.d theologians. At the same time wild speculation is avoided
/ ~ JUdicious use of the argument from analogy or fittingness. Estab~shJng as the foundation of Josephine theology Joseph's position as
t~sban? of Mary and foster father to Jesus, Father Filas deduces
eolog1cally only the graces, privileges and holiness that this double
vocation strictly demands. Thus in concise and summary form, yet with
~n .unction only true piety could inspire, Father Filas presents the
crlptural and magisterial teaching, the thought of the great theologians
~~d doctors, and the very latest liturgical enactments concerning the
~rch's Universal Patron. It is regrettable, however, that these
vanegated theological and papal pronouncements were incorporated ver-
�188
BOOK REVIEWS
batim and successively into page after page of text. Had their content
been assimilated into .the author's own narration with the direct quota.
tions relegated for the most part to the footnotes, the reader would not
be baffled by the disconcerting unevenness of style and abrupt transitions
which must attend a technique of direct quotations.
EDWARD
V.
STEVENS, S.J.
FLUENT PORTRAYAL
Theodore Dwight Woolsey, His Political and Social Ideas. By George A.
King, S.J. Chicago: Loyola University Press, 1956. Pp. xiv·305.
$4.00.
Theodore Dwight Woolsey (1810-1889), eminent Greek scholar and
earliest American-born theorist and writer in the field of political science,
served his college (Yale) and his country through an half century of
turbulent social and political development. As student, tutor, professor
and later, ninth president at New Haven, Woolsey'!! academic brilliance
joined with a mature, practical judgment proved invaluable in stemming
the tides of human passion during collegiate and international conflicts.
His intervention during the Alabama dispute, immediately following the
Civil War, probably averted another bloody breach in Anglo-American
relations.
Father King sympathetically treats his subject in a fluent, well·
documented portrayal that will interest students and professors alike in
a patriot whose prominence and contribution might otherwise be lost in
the archives of political science research.
--
OWEN
E.
FINNEGAN,
SJ,
COMPLETE AND EXCELLENT
Morals In Medicine. By Thomas J. O'Donnell, S.J.
Newman Press, 1956. Pp. xvii-266. $3.75.
Westminster:
To compose a textbook that will handle the difficult problem of widelY
varied religious and educational student backgrounds is far from sn
easy task, but Father O'Donnell has done just that. Written i~ clos;
collaboration with medical specialists and expert theologians, thiS boo.
has been thoroughly tested in actual practice at the Georgetown UJU·
versity school of medicine and the Georgetown University hospital before
it was submitted to the publishers. It is well for the non-student reathid~r
1
to keep iil mind, as the author mentions in his introduction, that .
book is primarily a textbook to be, developed at length as needed ill
the lecture hall. Otherwise the fund~mental truths and basic princiP1
es
0
of ethics, moral theology and canon law, found in chapters one and ~ '
will seem too highly concentrated and schematic.
�BOOK REVIEWS
189
In substantiating and justifying his conclusions to cases, the author
has made constant recourse to the latest publications both in the medical
and in the moral field. An indication of his'thoroughness is his treatment
of the moral aspects of mutilation (chapter four), especially of the distinction between the use of ordinary and extraordinary means for the
preservation of human life. The author develops the definitions of those
consecrated terms from the treatment of sixteenth century moralists to
twentieth century experts, showing how these notions are to be applied
today. Current problems are presented as they face doctors now and are
solved according to time honored principles adapted to, but not compromised by, the present age. Therapeutic abortion, sterilization, sterility
testing and professional secrecy are just a few of the many thorny problems which are capably handled and explained in the light of Catholic
teaching in this book. Morals in Medicine is not only a clear, complete
and excellent textbook in its field, but it is also a reliable and up-to-date
reference volume. It is well worth the price to any practicing physician
or hospital chaplain.
J. JosEPH HoFMANN, S.J.
ACCURATE SUMMARIES
Papal Social Principles. By Thomas J. Harte, C.Ss.R.
Bruce Publishing Co., 1956. Pp. ix-207. $3.25.
Milwaukee:
This is an age of digests and summaries, as the author well points
out in his introduction. Perhaps no field of scholarship feels more
keenly the pinch of trying to keep up with the literature than the social
sciences. A real service, then, is offered by Father Harte in publishing
this guide to all the major papal social pronouncements from Leo XIII
to our present Holy Father, Pius XII.
The book's purpose is to present neither the text of the papal
statements, nor a commentary on them, but an outline summary of their
contents, with a brief but important note on the historical setting and
special conditions which occasioned the papal pronouncements. Anyone
familiar with papal statements on any given subject, is only too well
aware of the absolute need of understanding their context in order to
correctly evaluate their true meaning.
The papal pronouncements are grouped in eleven rough headings, such
as "Economic Life," the "Family and Education" and "Catholic Action
and the Lay Apostolate." Under economic life Rerum Novarum and
Quadragesimo Anno are introduced, outlined, and given excellent selected
bibliographies, all in the short space of eighteen pages. Thus the
Practical utility of this book is to offer brief, accurate summaries of
What the Popes of the past century have said on social problems.
I' In the introduction, after first explaining the various forms of pubIshed acts of the Holy See and their classification according to content,
the author goes on to discuss the moral authority of the papal social
�190
BOOK REVIEWS
pronouncements. Perhaps some would question certain statements here,
as for example: "the possibility of doubt or debate ceases when the Holy
See has spoken definitively" (p. 10). While this, taken in context, is
undeniable in theory, its practical application in the present subject
matter could well be questioned. In many instances, it would seem the
Popes have issued encyclicals on socio-economic .questions, not only to
restate pertinent principles from the natural law and divine revealed
doctrines, but especially to encourage initiative and discussion among
qualified Catholic scholars as to how these principles could be made
operative in the present day world. The amount of debate constantly
going on among Catholic sociologists and economists would seem to
indicate that there still is a very wide field for discussion and debate,
at least upon the practical implementation of the papal principles.
References are~ supplied after each outlined pronouncement to the
original source in the Acta Apostolicae Sedis, to various English translations, and to standard commentaries where fuller bibliographies are
available. An excellent general, selected bibliography is appended, which
contains the major English works on the social problem and related
matters.
J. RocHE, s.J.
THE WHIRLWIND IN ASIA
One Front Across the World. By Douglas Hyde.
man Press, 1956. Pp. 270. $3.50.
Westminster: New-
The withdrawal of the Western powers from the East has led to
the emergence of the New Asia in which a half dozen nations still grope
for stability in the confusion produced by tlti! ·impact of westernization
on the ancient culture of the East. The confusion has created a power
vacuum in which Communism grapples with Christianity for the soul of
Asia. In a graphic survey of conditions from India to Korea, viewed
first-hand on his recent trip through the Far East, Douglas Hyde indi·
cates the efforts Catholic missionaries are making to fill that vacuum
in Asia. It is a book that may well make Catholics feel proud of the
heroic work being done by the missionaries of the Church in the East.
Douglas Hyde's front line fighters are Irishmen, Germans, Frenchmen
and Americans, but all of them bear the stamp of the Church and all
of them stand on the rock of Peter.
It is to be regretted that Douglas Hyde was content with second-hand
reports from the Philippines, and did not actually visit the one countrY
where the picture is perhaps most consoling. Save for that one defect,
he has done im excellent job of presenting an interesting and highlY
readable account of the Church's battle for Asia. Mr. Hyde has chos.e~
to tell the story of men and people, of Father Philip Crosbie's quJ~d
heroism and of Father McGowan's parish on the edge of the free wor
north of the thirty-eighth parallel, rather than of movements or
�BOOK REVIEWS
191
philosophies. But the conclusions he draws are no less valid than
those of the historians.
The process of creating the proper social order in Asia may well
rival the herculean task of emptying the ocean into a hole in the sand,
but Mr. Hyde's book shows that the missionaries have not been afraid
to begin the task. Sociological revolution is inevitable in Asia. It is
imperative that the missionary and the Church control the revolution or
chaos will revolt in the East as well as in the West. As Addison said
so well, "He who rides in the whirlwind directs the storm."
JOSEPH A. GALDON, S.J.
FOR ALL CATHOLICS
The Gospel According to St. Mark. With an introduction and commentary by C. C. Martindale, S.J. Westminster: Newman Press,
1956. Pp. xxxii-177.
Making use of the more recent yet conservative interpretations of
Catholic scripture scholars, Father Martindale presents here an almost
verse by verse commentary on the second Gospel account. His scholarly
and devout observations and rather frequent recourse to the Greek in
the inspired pericopes shed refreshing light on some of the obscure or
inaccurately translated phrases of the Douay version. In his brief informative introduction he emphasizes the precise nature of the Gospels
and the role of spoken tradition in their formation, the testimony of
tradition to Mark's authorship, and finally gives in general outline
Mark's doctrine. This commentary is the first volume on the individual
evangelists in the well-known Stonyhurst Scripture Manuals for school
use. Yet, classrooms aside, it can serve as a very fine introduction for
all Catholics interested in enriching their appreciation and knowledge
of the New Testament.
PAUL OsTERLE, S.J.
TOWARD UNDERSTANDING
The Spirit and Forms of Protestantism. By Louis Bouyer.
minster: Newman Press, 1956. Pp. xi-234. $3. 75.
West-
The Newman Press has performed a valuable service for the advancement of American Protestant-Catholic understanding in presenting this
translation by A. V. Littledale of Rev. Louis Bouyer's Du Protestantisme
a L'i!:glise. Only a person raised a Protestant who later became a
Lutheran clergyman and spent several years in the ministry before
b:coming a Catholic and a priest of the French Oratory could write
\Vitoth such evident sympathy and understanding. Rather strict adherence
the sentence structure of the original French makes the translation
�192
BOOK REVIEWS
at times a bit clumsy, if not inaccurate, but any discomfort is soon
forgotten in Father Bouyer's analyses.
After a brief introductory message by G. de Broglie, S.J. about the
current need for such a book as this, Father Bouyer thoroughly evaluates
the positive principles of the Reformation. For well over half the book,
with filial insight he discusses Luther and the Sola Gratia and Calvin's
Soli Deo Gloria (a unifying or separating principle?), treating each
doctrine in its proper historical context. In the same section, the effects
of these doctrines on Protestant life and spirituality to the present day
are drawn in detail. Passing on to correlative topics such as the sovereignty of God, justification by faith and personal religion, and the
sovereign authority of the Scriptures-all are treated as positive elements which in themselves could have brought a richness to traditional
Catholic doctrine. But heresy lay in the negative elements of the
Reformation- ·and the inevitable corruption and decay of positive prin·
ciples. To a dismal why the author points to the philosophy of Occam and
the nominalistic air that the Reformers breathed. "If the grace of God
is such, only on condition that it gives nothing real; if man who believes,
by saving faith, is in no way changed from what he was before believing;
if justification by faith has to empty of all supernatural reality the
Church, her sacraments, her dogmas; if God can only be affirmed
by silencing his creature, if he acts only in annihilating it, if his very
Word is doomed to be never really heard-what is condemned is not
man's presumptuous way to God, but God's way of mercy to man" (p.
152). Quite naturally then does the book close with an appealing chapter
on the Catholic Church as necessary to the full flowering of the principles
of the Reformation-the eternal insight that cost him so much. A note
by Father de Broglie on the primacy of the argument from Scripture in
theology is appended.
A thoughtful reading of this work by"priests and seminarians, whose
knowledge of Protestant thought has so often been drawn from the
polemical arguments so characteristic of most theological textbooks, will
be rewarding. A constructive, sympathetic understanding and apprecia·
tion of Protestantism cannot help but bring many non-Catholics to the
realization of the completely unfortunate negations of the same Protes·
tantism. God's grace must do the rest.
JOHN J. McDoNALD, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVI, No.3
JULY, 1957
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1957
THE SODALIST AND THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES _ _ _ _ 195
David J. Hassel, S.J.
IGNATIUS LOYOLA AND THE COUNTER-REFORMATION ___ 240
Edward A. Ryan, S.J.
THE JUAN VALADEZ CASE -------------·----------- 257
James D. Loeffler, S.J.
FATHER FRANCISCO J. RELLO
Teodoro Llamzon, S.J.
------------~--
260
FATHER WILLIAM T. TALLON ---------------------------------- 267
James M. Somerville, S.J.
FATHER MARTIN J. SCOTT------------------------ 269
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
BOOKs OF INTEREST TO OURS - - - -
273
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father David J. Hassel (Chicago Province) has just completed his
tertianship at Cleveland, .
Father Edward A. Ryan (New York Province) is professor of Church
History at Woodstock.
Father James D. Locfficr (New England Province) is a curate at Sacred
Heart Church, El Paso, Texas.
Father Teodoro Llamson (Philippine Vice Province) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock.
Father James l\1. Somcrvi11e (New York Province) is professor of
philosophy at Fordham.
Father ..Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is professor of history
at Shrub Oak.
-·
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 19(2, at the post office at W oodtto<~·
Maryland, onder the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Year 1
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�The Sodalist and The Spiritual Exercises
])avid j. llassel, S.).
That the Popes strongly desire the Sodality to draw its
Marian piety, its spiritual power, and its apostolic zeal from
the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius is evident from their
pronouncements on this subject and from their bestowal of
numerous indulgences on sodalists making the Exercises.
Thus in Bis Saeculari, his apostolic constitution concerning
the genuine Sodality, Pius XII mentions the Spiritual Exercises first among the means which the Sodality is to use to
produce apostles. Again, in a letter to Cardinal Leme of
Brazil, he says, "With special joy we noted that the members
of this Marian army have frequent spiritual retreats and approach each year to the furnace of the Exercises, in which
they forge their spiritual arms." 1
Jesuit Authorities
The Pope is not alone in this desire to have the Sodality
make intensive use of the Spiritual Exercises. There is no
mistaking Father General Ledochowski, S.J., when he says:
I earnestly recommend that, as far as it is possible, the Exercises
be given to our sodalists in the form of closed retreats and over a
space of not less than three full days. Moreover, this school of deep
and solid lgnatian asceticism must not be confined to the time of
the Exercises. It must be the constant base of the entire spiritual
formation of the Sodality, instilling into it a manifest strength
and seriousness.z
If there should be any doubt remaining concerning the interconnection of the Sodality and the Spiritual Exercises,
~ather General Janssens, S.J., would allay it quickly by statIng:
Men clearly enlightened by faith and inflamed with charity will
always be few. Yet by the will of the Vicar of Christ it devolves
Upon our Society to form such men, chiefly by means of the Spiritual
-
1
Letter to Cardinal Leme of Brazil, Acta Romana, Jan. 21, 1942,
10, 306-11.
2
Selected Writings of Fr. Ledochowslci, 1945, 807.
195
�196
SODALITY RETREATS
Exercises and the Sodality of Our Lady. For the Sodality, as I
have indicated elsewhere, is the fruit of the Exercises, and their
most powerful ally.a
Consequently Father Paulussen, S.J., president of the central secretariate of the Sodalities of our Lady and Vice-Director of the new World Sodality Federation, is only restating
the directives of Popes and Jesuit Generals when he states:
"The most encouraging fact of all is that in faithfully follow·
ing out the norms laid down in Bis Saeculari we are returning
to the one and only source of all efficacious and powerful
renovation,. namely to the original inspiration of the Sodalities, the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius." a•'"
Certainly.. the leaders of the Sodality movement see clearly
the intimate connection of the Exercises and the Sodality as
cause and effect. On the theoretical plane there is no quib·
bling. But historically speaking, has the Sodality actually
received its spirit of holiness and apostolic zeal from faithful
use of the Exercises? Does history show the Sodality as the
layman's incarnation of the principles of the Exercises, an
incarnation growing more perfect and powerful through repeate!l use of the Exercises? Let us see whether an answer
to this question can be found in history.
1\lethod of Search
There is only one way of discovering whether or not histor·
ically the Sodality received its spiritual vigor and apostolic
life principally from the Exercises: study the documented
history of the outstanding Sodalities and sodalists of the
past. To do this profitably, however, we must clearly state
what the three or four basic principles of the Exercises are
which we hope to discover in the lives of the sodalists and
their Sodalities. Secondly, we must determine whether or
not the incarnation of Ignatian principles was caused through
retreats and spiritual direction based on the Exercises.
Careful analysis of the Spiritual Exercises would seem to
yield the following four principles to be used as measuring
rods of'sodalists and Sodalities in their Ignatian spirit:
--a-Allocution of Rev. Fr. Gen. Janssens to the International ~f
gress of Promoters of the Sodality of Our Lady, April 15-22, 53·
sBis Emile Villaret, S.J., Petit Abrege d'Histoire, Montreal, 19 '
Introduction by Louis Paulussen, S.J., 19.
10
�SODALITY RETREATS
197
1. A condition for giving a retreat is that the retreatants
be men of good will who are intellectually capable of the
Exercises.
2. The ultimate aim of the Exercises is to help the exercitant
think and act with the hierarchical Church (a definition of
Catholic Action) out of personal loyalty to Christ. Confer
"Rules for Thinking with the Church."
3. The proximate aim is to help the exercitant firmly choose
according to God's Will either his state of life or something
which will perfect him in a previously selected state of life.
4. To achieve these aims, three means are enjoined: a)
faithful following of spiritual direction; b) faithful use of
the sacraments, mental prayer, the examen of conscience; c)
devotedness to the Mother of God.
With these principles in mind, we are ready to consider
the intertwining histories of these two Jesuit apostolic instruments. Their history falls into two broad natural divisions: one runs from the giving of the first group-retreats
and the forming of the first pre-Sodality organizations around
1539 to the suppression of the Society of Jesus in 1773. The
seond division runs from the restoration of the Society in
1814 to the 1950's. Our subject, then, will be treated in two
parts according to a chronological order with occasional considerations of particular trends and aspects.
Part I: 1539-1773
Pre-Sodality Organizations
As early as 1539, Brou tells us\ retreats given to just one
Person were found to be inadequate to meet the needs of the
times. As a result we find Peter Faber and Lainez beginning
to give group retreats, and these according to the diverse
strata of society, e.g., priests, nobles, the bourgeois,· women.
Later on, this same technique of group and strata was emPloyed in giving missions in towns and outlying districts.
Soon these zealous men discovered that the best way to
Preserve the new-found holiness and zeal of the retreatants
--
p .4 Alexandre Brou, S.J., Les Exercices de St. Ignace de Loyola,
arls, 1922, 56.
�198
SODALITY RETREATS
was to form them into permanent groups or clubs. • These
organizations also served the useful purpose of catechizing
the ignorant or feeding and clothing the poor. Ignatius himself founded one such organization in Rome to care for the
poora and by 1540 Peter Faber had already set up another at
Parma. Soon we hear of Broet founding a congregation at
Faenza in 1544; Nadal, one at the birthplace of St. Francis
of Paula and three at Messina in 1549; Lainez and Domenech,
one at Palermo. Then additional lay-organizations appear at
Naples in 1553, at Ferrara and Florence in 1557.7 It would
seem that almost all the first founders of the Society had a
hand in this ~ork.
The unanimity with which these men worked is very striking, and so too, is the structural similarity of the groups they
founded. But even more remarkable is the collective likeness
of these organizations to the first Sodalities. Villaret sketches
this similarity for us as follows:
One already sees in the structure of these first organizations
the principal characteristics which will distinguish all real Sodali·
ties through four centuries of historical existence. Besides devotion to the Holy Virgin, there is the collaboration of the laymen
in the activity of the priest, especially in those ministries in which
the priest cannot or should not work directly. There is a specialized
form of the apostolate in accordance with the age and class of the
people involved. There is influence exll,.rcised on the crowd through
an elite group. There is a formation of this elite to such a fullness
of the personal spiritual life that it spills over into exterior works.
There is that limitless variety of works of devotion, of charity, of
ze::J . Lastly, there is that delicately supple adaption of certain
definite and firm principles to the most diverse and changing
circumstances.s
Some additional characteristics mentioned by Villaret in
the course of describing these pre-Sodality organizations are
the recitation of the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin, frequent Holy Communion and confession, mental prayer, ex·
.amens, care of the poor, nursing the sick and dying, assistance
for convicts and those condemned to death, and instruction
r.
I .
l
~
..
5 Emile Villaret, S.J., "Les Premieres Origines des Congregations
Mariales," A rchi·vurn Historicurn S ocietatis J esu , VI, 1937, 44-45i 24
r. F.mile Villa ret, S.J., Les Congregations ilfariales, Paris, 1947, ' ·
1 Ibid., 2f>-31.
8 /bid., 26.
�SODALITY RETREATS
199
of the ignorant in the faith. 9 But a factor of particular note
is that the vast majority of these groups were produced by
the Spiritual Exercises, often merely the First Week preached
as a mission. This will partially explain their close similarity
to the future Sodality; for both the pre-Sodality organizations
and the Sodality prescribed the living of the main principles
of the Ignatian Exercises which their members had just undergone. These organizations were conceived of as prolongations of the Spiritual Exercises in everyday life.
John Leunis and the Prima Primaria
The pre-Sodality organizations form an important part
of the milieu in which John Leunis founded the first Sodality,
later to be known as the P?'ima Primaria. He had come into
contact with the early confraternities at Parma, Florence, and
Ferrara and with their directors such as John Nicholas de
Notariis, Louis de Coudret, and Pontius Cogordon. It is no
surprise then that Leunis should model his Sodality in the
Roman College along the lines of its predecessors.
Encouraged by his success in gathering an elite corps of
young students for instruction, prayer, and apostolic work,
Leunis decided to stiffen the requirements of the group. This
step was to be the actual founding of the Sodality in 1563.
He gave it some rules for its spiritual life and exterior activity,
an adaption, scaled down fo"i: boys, of those rules which St. Ignatius,
Faber, Broet, Lainez and others had sketched for their men's
organizations: confession, .and communion (frequent for those
tinies), meetings in the tiny college chapel assigned to them, meditation, fraternal exchange of views in which each one recounts
what he has done during the day and what he proposes to do the
following ·day, ·visits to holy places and to the shrines of saints,
care of the poor.1o
All this was, of course, placed under the · protection of the
Blessed Virgin and dedicated to her. However, there seems
to be no direct evidence that this first sodality is the result
of an Ignatian retreat or mission, as its predecessors certainly
were. Nevertheless there is some indication, especially in the
rules and . customs of the congregation, that the boys were
formed at least by the principle of the Exercises if not by
-
l
9
Ibid., 24-36.
Ibid., 44.
10
. ~1
�SODALITY RETREATS
200
the actual Exercises themselves; for not only do the abovementioned activities have a distinctive lgnatian spirit, but
Leunis himself was a strong believer in the efficacy of the
Exercises. Early in his career he made very vigorous representations to superiors a number of times for permission to
make the Exercises in a way which his shortened novitiate
had made impossible.11 Besides, when preparing the ground
for his second Sodality at Paris in 1568, Leunis introduced
the boarding students to the Spiritual Exercises and other
practices which would later be Sodality customs. If Leunis'
first foundation was not the direct fruit of an lgnatian retreat, his s~ond at Paris certainly was.12
Francis Coster and Northern Europe
While Leunis was founding the Sodality in France and
Italy. and meeting many disheartening contradictions, Francis
Coster, almost a cofounder with Leunis, was planting the
Sodality all over Northern Europe and meeting only success.
Here, again, we find the same pattern: confession, commun·
ion, and meditation are emphasized and made frequent; steady
application to study is demanded of student-sodalists; a writ·
ten report of the care given to the poor, ignorant; wanderers,
sinners, and heretics is exacted; good example is so powerful
that professors thank Coster for making discipline and teach·
ing much easier. But what is most surprising, timid souls
complain to Father General that t1iere are too many general
confessions to handle and that there will be too many voca·
tions, so many that the Protestants will protest.13 These last
items indicate the presence of the Spiritual Exercises whose
First Week is geared to the general confession and whose
Second Week throws a spotlight on choosing a state of life.
Yet no direct documentary evidence for this conclusion was
found.
Nobles' Sodalities of Naples, Lyons, Rome
Though the documentary evidence for the close cohesion of
Sodality and Exercises is meager in the first Sodalities, it is
much niore abundant in the Nobles' Sodalities founded just
Joseph Wicki, S.J., LePere Jean Leunis, Rome, 1951, 21 and 54·
Ibid., 51 and 53.
Villaret, Gong. Mar., 62-68 esp. 67 and 68.
1
--112
13
�SODALITY RETREATS
201
a decade later. At Naples in 1582 we find Father Vincent
Carrafa successfully making drastic demands on his sodalists ;
for example, that they care for the incurables and the lowest
criminals. His secret?
As for the interior life, there was nothing Father Carrafa did
not do to keep it intense and generous in the hearts of his Sodalists.
The general communions, adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament,
and above all the Exercises of St. Ignatius which he gave them
each year for eight days, reveal to us the secret of those prodigies
of virtue.u
At Lyons in 1593 following a Lenten mission, the nobles
brought their servants to the church of the Jesuits and had
them formed into a Sodality. But the director of the Servants' Sodality was not satisfied; he wanted a real retreat
for his men. So, both the nobles and the servants made the
retreat at the same time in neighboring places.15
Meanwhile at Rome in the same year the Roman Nobles'
Sodality was framing its candidate-rules in which a pre-admission retreat was recommended. Later in 1609 these rules
were recast but the recommendation of a pre-admission retreat was retained. As for the main body of sodalists, "something of the nature of a retreat seems to have been made during the octave before the feast of the Assumption. Two or
three hours of meditation were given to it by many and a
good number made a general confession." 16 This quasi-retreat is mentioned again in 1663 and 1664. But the Roman
Sodality did not do this regularly each year, for "of regular
retreats every year we do not hear until 1724. After this,
the retreat seems to have been a regular exercise every
Year." 11 The three Nobles' Sodalities just described are, then,
explicitly motivated in their apostolate and interior life by
the lgnatian Exercises-an annual eight day affair in at least
one of them.
Lest a person get the idea that only the nobility and college students were interested in the Sodality, it might be
Well to consider the Sodality of convicts formed in Naples in
-
Sk 6 tHhAugustus Drive, S.J., The Sodality of Our Lady, Historical
c es, New York, 1916, 41.
a Villaret, Gong. Mar., 262-263.
16
Elder Mullan, S.J., The Nobles' Sodality in Rome, St. Louis,
1918
, 127.
17
lbid.
�SODALITY RETREATS
202
1617. It seems that the guards smiled with indulgent irony
when Father Ferracuto and two Scholastics came to the prison
to prepare the prisoners for confession. This infuriated
Father Ferracuto who decided then and there to form a convict Sodality. Having gathered a small select group, he got
them to go to Communion once a month, hear daily Mass,
make meditation, do spiritual reading, take corporal penances,
study catechism in order to teach it to the other prisoners,
patch up quarrels, take part in Wednesday and Saturday processions of penance down the corridors of the prison (What
a triumph over human respect that must have been!), and
take care of new arrivals by washing them, fixing up their
cells, seeing that they got some hot food. Was it successful?
Soon the Sodality of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel was not enough
and under the title of the Annunciation we see a second Sodality
spring up for the better educated convicts who, in addition to the
above-mentioned practices, made the Spiritual Exercises of St.
Ignatius every year and took care of their sick and dying com·
panions.1s
This somewhat strange beginning of the convict Sodalities
cannot distract us from the source of their continued success
-the lgnatian retreat.
The soldier Sodalities are another interesting aspect of
Sodality history. It appears that in the majority of cases
they were the fruit of an lgnatian mission. Since the soldiers
were often transferred from place.- to place, they could not
have a stable director, for the chaplaincy was not an inte·
grated unit of the army as nowadays. The soldier SodalitY
of Zagreb is a typical one, sad to say. A Jesuit describes his
experience this way:
There was much to do at the mission given at Corlovac. There
they set up a Marian Sodality to the great joy of the whole gar·
rison; but it had hardly started when the negligence of the clergy
let the whole thing be whipped away into oblivion like smoke. The
same thing happened at the fort of Cice.1u
And yet out of these discouraging failures great men arose.
For example, Til1y, Commander-in-chief of the Catholic
League· in its titantic struggle with the French-Swedish-North
German combine, was a sodalist who said his rosary everY
1s Villaret, Gong: Mar., 501-502.
Ibid., 257.
19
�SODALITY RETREATS
203
evening (and sometimes through the night before a great
battle) and who kept a perpetual vow of chastity. A man
such as this is not produced by one mission, one Ignatian retreat; he must have made the Exercises a number of times to
have made the Sodality-Spiritual Exercise principles so much
a part of his life.
St. Francis de Sales
What is more astounding than sodalist generals is the large
number of saints who declare themselves products of the
Sodality. Significantly, almost the very same people are
listed as products of the Spiritual Exercises by Father
Zacheus Maher, S.J., in his booklet on the Exercises. 20 Among
these the most illustrious are St. Charles Borremeo, St.
Alphonsus de Ligouri, and St. Francis de Sales, the last two
being Doctors of the Church. Though all three men would
make interesting studies of how the Sodality and the Exercises interact, we will consider here, for want of space, only
St. Francis de Sales.
In 1580 at the age of thirteen he entered the Leunis-founded
Sodality at Paris. Here during his six years of studies he
became assistant prefect and then prefect, being re-elected
again and again. 21 At this time, with the approval of his director, he "prescribed for himself an hour's meditation each
morning, confession and Communion every Sunday and feast
day-frequent Communion then was very rare-the hair shirt
Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday." 22 With this background
it is understandable that when Francis left the College of
Clermont for the University of Padua, he sought out Father
Anthony Possevino,2 3 then director of the University of Padua
Sodality, for his spiritual guide. Most probably Francis attached himself to this Sodality since Rule 12 of the 1587 Sodality Rules made law what was previously custom for
transferring sodalists, namely, the obligation to enter the
Sodality of that place to which they were moving by presenting
-
20
Zacheus Maher, S.J., Under the Seal of the Fisherman, Los
os, 1948, 51-53.
21
Drive, A History of the Sodalities of the Blessed Virgin, Boston,
1885 ' 243.
22
Louis Sempe, S.J., St. Francis de Sales, Milwaukee, 1933, 111.
23
Louise M. Stacpoole-Kenny, St. Francis de Sales, London, 1909,
124-125.
Alt
�SODALITY RETREATS
204
credentials of good standing from the Sodality they had left.
At any rate, it was under the guidance of the Padua Jesuits
and later under the spiritual direction of Father Fourier that
De Sales continued to receive instruction in Ignatian spirituality. He thought so highly of it that each year he made the
Spiritual Exercises for ten days, and he died with the Jesuit
Fourier at his bedside. 24
To appreciate the importance of St. Francis de Sales and
his contribution to the spirituality of the Church, it is good
to recall that at the end of the sixteenth century under the
pressure of the Renaissance and the Protestant Revolt, the
Church had been forced to yield her dominating position over
culture. If great numbers of souls, therefore, were not to
be lost, culture must be won for the Church. But how could
this be done and who would do it? Both these questions were
at least partially answered by St. Francis. The church historian Joseph Lortz tells us :
As time went on the necessity of a voluntary return of culture
to the Church became ever more pressing. Together with many
others St. Francis de Sales deserves special credit in this work.
Its ill_!portance is not yet sufficiently grasped,25
Popularizing Asceticism
What was this important work of St. Francis? The popularization of asceticism, the founding of our modern spirituality for the layman. And what is ihis? Pere Sempe, S.J.,
explains it for us.
And now why does this spirituality of Francis de Sales merit
the name of being modern? He was obliged to free it from mo·
nastic observances and to adapt it to the conditions of the world.
Do not think that this is a small thing. Essentially, the spiritu~l
life is the reign of God in the soul by the submission of our Will
to His; and that is a fact of the most intimate order. But in the
religious state, devotion is bound more or less to a whole system
of observances: effective separation from the world, abstinenc~
and fasting, psalmody by day and by night, vows of poverty, ~
chastity, and of obedience, coarse costume, minute rule. St. FranciS
de Sales taught his disciples that these practices, impossible in the
world, c'ould be replaced for the people of the world by others mor~
simple, which, when combined with the duties of their state, woul
have the most sanctifying effect. Mental prayer would take the
24
25
Sempe, St. Francis de Sales, 111.
Joseph Lortz, History of the Church, Milwaukee, 1938, 425.
�SODALITY RETREATS
205
place of psalmody, and would animate by its fervor the assistance
at daily Mass and at the parish offices. Communion would return,
little by little, to the frequency of the first centuries; the duties
of state accomplished in a Christian manner, and the miseries of
life accepted would supply for the austerities of the cloister; and
spiritual direction for the monastic rule. 26
This was St. Francis' great contribution to the Church; he
brought asceticism out of the cloister and into the modern
market place by adapting monastic life to the layman's needs.
And does not this revolutionary concept of a layman's life
closely resemble Sodality life and rule ?-a strange coincidence
unless Francis got these ideas from the Sodality and the Exercises.
A particularly noteworthy fact is De Sales' emphasis on
the performance of the duties of one's state of life. This is
exactly the emphasis of Ignatius in the Exercises. The Sodality, having its origins principally in college life, also stresses
duties of vocation when its Third Rule (Rules of 1587) states:
"the end of this Sodality is Christian virtue and piety together
with progress in literary studies." Because of its sensitivity
to perfection of state of life, the Sorlality strove for selectivity
among its members and tried whenever possible to group them
in Sodalities according' to life-work, age, and stratum of society. It would seem highly probable, then, that St. Francis'
inventiveness was rather an intelligent borrowing and popularizing of the Spiritual Exercises as he saw them lived in
the Sodality.
Pere Sempe, in endeavoring to crystallize for us the work
of De Sales, supports this view.
-
Of modern asceticism, St. Francis de Sales, was without any
doubt the most exact, the most brilliant, and the most gracious
popularizer. In one word, let us say, he is, and he still remains,
its Doctor. He is not, however, its creator. This method of sanctity was born with the Spiritual Exercises which are anterior to
the Introduction to a Devout Life by at least three quarters of a
century. He himself had lived according to this method with his
instructors, the Jesuits, at Paris and Padua. He assimilated it
then in a reflex manner with Father Fourier, his spiritual director,
under whom each year he made a ten day's retreat.2T
425 _:~~empe,
27
St. Francis de Sales, 109·110, cf. Lortz, Hist. of Ch.,
Ibid., 111.
�SODALITY RETREATS
206
In this single paragraph Pere Sempe has neatly fused together into one influential principle the Sodality and the Exercises when he states that St. Francis had lived according
to the Exercises at Paris and Padua; for this life was the
Sodality. But Pere Sempe is not content with the above
statement; he adds later on:
The Introduction to a Devout Life and the Treatise of the Love
of God can be considered as a commentary on the Spiritual Exercises. I do not think that the author of the Exercises knows, outside of his own order, a disciple more authentic than the author of
the Introduction to a Devout Life and the Treatise of the Love of
God. 28
If it is true ~that through the influence of the Exercises St.
Francis was able to show clearly not only that sanctity was
possible for a layman but also how it was possible, may it
not also be true that the living out of the Exercises by his
Sodality friends helped De Sales very much to see the possibility of lay perfection and the detailed method of accomplishing
it? This would be no small contribution to the Church, for
from it would stem the mighty movement of twentieth century
Catholic Action and modern lay spirituality.
The Sodality retreats thus far mentioned were mainly open
retreats, that is to say, a time of special recollection during
which there is a talk and meditation in the morning and
another set in the evening, while in .between these the Sodal·
ist goes about his usual duties of th~ <lay with greater efforts
at recollection. The weaknesses of such a retreat are evident,
especially when contrasted with the silence, complete detachment from worldly affairs, and power of concentration possible in a closed retreat. Apparently there was· a gradual
realization of this fact. At Naples, for example, early in the
seventeenth century, Father Pavone had so well organized
retreats for groups of clergy and laity, that he even planned
to build a special retreat house just for Bishops. Being the
child of the Exercises, the Sodality took an active part in
this work, and so "other centres were formed, particularlY by
the Sodalities of the Blessed Virgin, henceforth to be prom·
inently associated with the work in many countries." 29
2s
29
Ibid., 46-47.
Charles Plater, S.J., Retreats for the People, London, 1912, 32·
�SODALITY RETREATS
207
It was only natural that this should happen, for Pere de
Guibert tells us that "among the Sodalities the principal instrument of sanctification employed by the Jesuits were retreats, especially the closed retreats given in houses which
were specially, and often exclusively, dedicated to this ministry."30 It is well to note that in this instance Pere de
Guibert is concerned with the period extending from 1615 to
1758.
But such was not the case everywhere. In commenting
upon the Prima Primaria Sodality at Rome, Father Mullan
says, "Though individuals in the Prima Primaria doubtless
made retreats from the earliest days on, there is no mention
of a collective retreat until 1669." 31 The Prima Primaria,
then, would seem to have been far behind a good number of
the other European Sodalities in this matter, especially since
its collective retreat was an open one. Villaret also mentions
this fact concerning the Prima Primaria's 1669 retreat and
generalizes concerning Sodality retreats as follows:
Retreats played an important role in the spiritual life of the
Sodality: monthly retreats (weekly in the Sodalities of the Gesu
at Rome) with preparation for death and recitation or chanting of
the office of the dead; the annual retreat of the Spiritual Exercises
for three days, more often for four or five, and in some cases for
eight. The solitary retreat goes back to the very beginnings, but
the group retreats were introduced progressively, little by little,
everywhere. 32
It is interesting to note that Villaret says nothing here of
closed group retreats though the individual retreats he speaks
of may well have been closed. Could it be that the collective
retreats were not as widespread as Pere Guibert and Father
Plater seem to say, or is it that Villaret simply does not consider them at this point?. It is significant that his book, Congregationes Mariales, is comparatively silent about them.
However, it would be strangely unlike De Guibert and Plater
to generalize the way they do unless they had a fund of facts
to draw upon. Therefore, it can be safely said that the Sodal-
-
R 30 Joseph de Guibert, S.J., La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus,
ome, 1953, 292.
31
Elder Mullan, S.J., The History of the Prima Primaria, St. Louis,
1917' 113.
32
Villarct, Gong. Mar., 369.
�SODALITY RETREATS
208
ity contributed substantially to the closed-retreat movement
and made frequent use of it.
Pageants and Jesuit Spiritual Writing
Some indication of the extent of Sodality influence on the
Spiritual Exercises, and vice versa, is indicated by two interesting developments of the seventeenth century: the pageantdramatization of the Exercises by Sodalities and the writing
of spiritual books expressly for Sodalists.
The pageant is found as early as 1602. They say that
at the end of the presentation of Bidermann's CenockJxus, a
number of the audience asked to begin the Spiritual Exercises
immediately~3'3 But perhaps the most famous of these productions was the Theatrum Solitudinis Aceticae directed by
Francis Lang in 1717. In it, under the form of a series of
scenes enacted by the Sodality of Munich, there appear the
meditations and contemplations of the four weeks of the Ex·
ercises. 34 This was an auspicious opening for the eighteenth
century, as we shall see later, and it symbolizes a keen inter·
est in the Exercises among Sodalists.
However, a clearer indication of this interest is the fact
that during the seventeenth century a notable part of the
spiritual writings published by Jesuits was destined for and
dedicated to the Sodality. 3 ~ This was particularly true of
Germany. There a sizeable numbe:r."of these works, one run·
ning to five volumes, were commentaries on the Exercises-a
certain sign that the Sodality retreat was a thriving thing,
for we are told that "these manuals were, if not exclusively,
at least primarily designed to maintain the piety of Sodal·
ists." 36
Women's Quasi-Sodalities
It was the brief of Benedict XIV Quo Tibi that opened the
Sodality to women in 1751. However, the door was opened
only a crack because the document reserved to the Jesuits the
power to aggregate women's Sodalities and they were known
to favor men's Sodalities. Thus it was that women's Sodal·
ities did not become prominent in numbers until around 1824.
de Guibert, La Spiritualite, 292, footnote.
Ibid., 421.
35 Ibid., 290.
36 Ibid., 329.
33
34
�SODALITY RETREATS
209
However, there are a few such Sodalities antedating 1751 and
so they are called "quasi-Sodalities."
Their origin is interesting. In 1702 Father General
Thyrsus Gonzalez inaugurated simple retreats to married
women in the Caravita oratory. 37 These women, who formed
the aristocracy of Rome, were so impressed that they asked
whether or not their households might not also share in their
good fortune. As a result two confraternities were formed,
one of the nobility and another of their attendants and servants. However, they were definitely not full-fledged Sodalities
since they met but once a month for a day of recollection, had
no organized apostolate or spiritual direction, and were not
aggregated to the Prima Primaria.
But at Marseilles Pere Croiset directed a confraternity of
women that lacked only aggregation to the Prima Primaria
to make it a genuine Sodality, for each day its members made
a morning and evening meditation of a half-hour, heard Mass,
recited the Little Office and the rosary, made a visit to the
Blessed Sacrament, fifteen minutes of spiritual reading and
a particular examination of conscience. Besides monthly days
of recollection, there was an annual eight day retreat of four
exercises per day. Holy Eucharist was received on all
feasts of Our Lord and Our Lady and a general communion
was made on the first Saturday of the month. As for the
apostolate, "they promoted love of the home, avoidance of
useless visits, simplicity in dress (no small sacrifice in the
days when elaborate dress was the fashion), submission to
the divine will in trials, respect and kindness towards their
husbands, the Christian education of their children." 38 In
addition, every Saturday four ladies were appointed to accomPany the Blessed Sacrament to the sick and another eight
Sodalists visited the poor of the city's four hospitals while
;wo others visited the sick poor in each parish. Once a week
our of the ladies visited the women prisoners of the city.
~:re Were an apostolate and a spiritual life the equal of any! lng. hitherto seen, and powering them was the annual
&'nahan retreat of four exercises per day, a stern and delllanding schedule for women who had to run households at
--
:~ Villaret, Gong. Mar., 276-277.
Joseph Sommer, S.J., Marian Catholic Action, St. Louis, 1953, 14.
II
�SODALITY RETREATS
210
the same time. Again, the Spiritual Exercises demonstrate
their efficacy, especially when they are prolonged into every.
day life throughout the year by a way of life embodying their
basic principles.
The Spreading Retreat Movement
It was said previously that the dramatization of the Exercises by Sodalists was a significant fact in the eighteenth
century. This is what was meant: in this century evidence of
the Sodality retreat movement becomes abundant and so do
its fruits even if they are not fully appreciated until the So·
dality has·· been suppressed in France and the Society of
Jesus throughout the world.
In Father Mullan's account of some of these eighteenth
century retreats, note the wide variety of classes represented
and the continuity given by annual retreats.
An eight days retreat was also made by the Gentlemen's Sodality
at Aix in 1697. The Innsbruck Students' Sodality made a three
day retreat each year from 1734 to 1773. In 1739, the larger
Sodality at Linz made its usual retreat in the last days of Lent;
the smaiier at Pentecost. The Louvain Students' Sodality retreats
began in 1739. The Antwerp Sodality, in 17 42, introduced a four
days' retreat, with exercises morning and evening. The Munich
Citizens' Sodality, in the fifties of the eighteenth century had its
retreat every second year at the heginning of Lent. A retreat of
five days was given to the Citizens' and Young Workingmen's
Sodalities of Grenoble in 1750: 1200 attended. The Peasants' Sodality at Avignon had a week's retreat in 1753. After 1760, the
Citizens' Sodality at Linz had its retreat in Advent. 3 9
Once again it is noticeable that the closed retreat is not evi·
dent among the retreats listed, though perhaps one or two of
them may have been closed.
Collegiate Retreats
Yet there was a new movement afoot which, if it was n?t
the closed retreat movement, certainly could lend itself to 1~
This was the collegiate retreat which seems to have foun
great favor by the middle of the eighteenth century. Appar·
·
ently it was a retreat made on the college grounds; now, SIDce
many of these colleges had boarders, it would be a simple steP
Elder Muilan, S.J., The Sodality of Our Lady Studied
Documents, New York, 1912, 135.
J9
. thl
111
�SODALITY RETREATS
211
during vacation periods to house the retreatants in the boarders' quarters, thus eliminating the need for the exercitants
to return home after the day's exercises. This is how Father
Plater describes the movement :
By the middle of the eighteenth century what may be called
collegiate retreats found general favor. The Sodalities of the Blessed
Virgin gave a great impetus to the movement. At Rome the members of the Prima Primaria went through the Spiritual Exercises
every year. So did the Sodalists of the Immaculate Conception,
who were for the most part clerics. At Naples, Milan, Genoa,
Turin, Parma, Bologna, Brescia, and elsewhere we find retreats
established. Nor was the custom confined to Italy. It existed in
the schools and colleges of France, Germany, Austria and other
lands.4o
It would be natural that the Sodalities should give impetus
to this movement since there were Sodalities in all Jesuit colleges and· they would be the first to make collegiate retreats.
If we may judge, however, from later records of Sodality
activity, 41 their interest was not confined merely to making
retreats themselves but were extended to providing retreats
for others. To make the sacrifices involved in such work, it
takes a deep conviction that the Exercises are well worthwhile; to give a "great impetus to the movement" demands
that the Exercises not only be appreciated but have so penetrated the life of the average Sodalist that he thinks in terms
of them and makes them an important part of his apostolate.
Perhaps this explains the marvelous fecundity of the
eighteenth century Sodality.
Parish Sodalities
. Nor by any means was Sodality retreat work restricted
Just to the colleges. An interesting picture is drawn for us
of the average parish Sodality by such diverse personalities
as the Cure of St. Michel at Dijon and Cardinal de Beausset.
The Cure reports in 1761:
In my parish I know no better parishioners than those who are
attached to the Sodalities established by the Reverend Jesuits and
who derive profit from the retreats which the latter give each
Year with special adaptation for artisans. I am so impressed
that very sincerely I would like all the workers in my parish to
--
40 Plater, Retreats, 39-40.
41 Mullan, Sodality in Documents, 160.
�SODALITY RETREATS
212
follow or to be able to follow the example given by those few who
are present for the retreats at Dijon.u
Though the Cure's report reads somewhat like a patent medicine endorsement at the turn of the century, nevertheless it
details well the usual familiar pattern: annual retreats, adaptation to life of retreatants, good example of the few drawing
the multitude closer to Christ. The following picture drawn
by Cardinal de Beausset complements the observations of
the Cure since the Cardinal describes the effects of the exemplary life led ~Y Sodality members.
People Iivini in the leading commercial cities still recall that
never was there more order and tranquillity, more probity in
business matters, fewer bankruptcies, fewer foreclosures than when
the Sodalities existed. Called to the education of the leading
families of the state, the Jesuits extended their apostolate to the
lower classes whom they maintained in a happy life based on the
religious and moral virtues. Such was the useful goal of these
numerous Sodalities which they created in all the cities and which
they were accustomed to tie in with all the professions and all
the social institutions. By means of simple, easy exercises of piety,
by means of instructions fitted to each class yet not doing any
harm to the traditions and duties of society, the Jesuits have
served to maintain in different classes such regularity of morals,
such a sense of order and of subordination, such a wise economy
as preserves the peace and harmony of families and assures the
prosperity of · empires.4s
Despite its distinctly bourgeois caste this statement is a fine
panegyric. The prayer-life of the sodalists, their works, their
spirit, are worth little unless they change their very milieu
in its institutions, social and professional. This, according
to the Cardinal, they did. But they would never have done it,
we can be sure, without the Spiritual Exercises to give them
motivation, occasion for grace, and singleness of purpose.
Suppression of Society and Sodality
But a terrible tragedy was soon to wipe out this magnificent
work. For some inscrutable reason at the seeming height
of their achievement God determined to allow the suppression
of the Society of Jesus throughout the world and the Sodality
in France. To us looking back upon the event almost two
centuries later, God's reasons seem a bit more evident than
u Villaret, Gong. Mar., ·656-556, footnote .
.a Ibid., 213.
�SODALITY RETREATS
213
to those living close to the suppression. Lamennais makes
this sad report which shows what the Sodality meant to
France, the first country to suppress it.
When in 1762 the Sodalities were for the most part destroyed
along with the Jesuits who had formed and directed them with
so much wisdom, in less than eighteen years the capital witnessed
a fifty percent drop in the number of people who fulfilled their
Easter duty. Around the same time and for the same reason we
saw laid aside pious practices, daily visits to the churches, common
prayer in the families-an omen, far too certain, of the annihilation of the faith.H
Would it be too drastic a conclusion to say that, had the Sodality lived on in Paris and in France, the terrible fury of the
French Revolution might have been somewhat abated and its
energies channeled towards a truer liberte, fraternite, and
egalite without the terrible bloodshed and the crazed anticlericalism which actually occurred? But aside from futile
wonderings, it is clear that the Sodality had a powerful and
widespread influence on public life, an influence based on its
interior life fed by the spirit of the Exercises.
If there is one conClusion to be drawn from the first part
of this Sodality-Exercises history sketch, it is this: at the
beginning of every outstanding Sodality, no matter what the
type, one finds almost always the Spiritual Exercises inspiring its growth and strength. This is true from the first preSodality organizations of the Jesuit founding fathers to the
great suppressed Sodalities of France.
A second noteworthy fact is that the basic principles of
the Exercises usually radiate out from the Sodality in the
form of saints such as Francis de Sales who popularized
lgnatian spirituality for the layman, and in the form of
Sodality-sponsored retreat centers and retreat pageants, and
in the form of Sodality-inspired spiritual literature, which
often enough took. the shape of manuals dealing with the
lgnatian Exercises.
A third fact to be considered is this: the basic principles
of the Exercises, as analyzed previously in the introduction
to this study, are seen in the everyday lives of the sodalists.
Let us briefly consider each of the four principles.
-
H
Ibid., 214.
�214
SODALITY, RETREATS
The first principle, reserving the Exercises for willing and
intellectually capable retreatants, is observed in the Sodality
through a careful selection of candidates for its membership,
through the rigorous probation given them, through the constant demand that consecrated sodalists live up entirely to
the Sodality Rule (which embody the Exercises) or leave its
ranks, through the care taken to form Sodalities according to
the diverse vocations of society so that, by the consequent
concentration of thought and effort, the sodalists may be
spurred on to greater perfection in their special profession
or job and thus may become more and more capable of deriving fruiC from the Exercises and of Christianizing their
milieu.
The second principle, thinking and acting in union with
the hierarchy, is seen clearly in the way that the Sodality
cooperated with the Holy See and the bishops to throw back
the Protestant Revolt, starting from that first great encounter
in Cologne against the apostate archbishop Truchsess 45 and
continuing until the suppression of the French Sodalities for
their too evident loyalty to the Roman Pontiff.
The third principle, choosing a state of life or perfecting
a previously chosen state, is seen first in the remarkable
number of clerical vocations nurtured by the Sodality (for
example, at Naples in 1582 30 religious vocations and in 1584
21 more; at Rouen 30 in one year { at Avignon 45 in one
year; at Antwerp in 1612 30, and in 1628 60) .46 This third
principle is again seen in the number of canonized Sodality
saints: 42.47 It is also seen in outstanding sodalist popes,
cardinals, bishops, kings, heads of government, generals,
statesmen, artists, dramatists, and so onY These men not
only found their vocation, but attained some perfection in it
through the Spiritual Exercises as embodied in the Sodality.
The fourth principle, using definite lgnatian means (such
as spiritual direction, frequenting the sacraments, mental
Ibid,; 126; also cf. 125-165.
,
Augustus Drive, S.J., Marie et la Compagnie de Jesus, Ucles,
1895, 279-280; Also cf. de Guibert, La Spiritualite, 291.
St
47 Joseph
Sommer, S.J., Sodality Challen,qe to Teen-Agers~ t'
Louis, 1953, 37; also cf. Drive, Sodality Hist. Sk., 148-151; de GUiber '
La Sph·itualite, 291.
•• Drive, Sodality Hist. Sk., 134-140.
45
46
�SODALITY RETREATS
215
prayer, devotedness to the Mother of God, examens) in working for the Church and in attaining sanctity, has been seen
again and again in the prominent Sodalities and sodalists
mentioned above.
Having seen the Sodality brought to high perfection by the
Spiritual Exercises only to be crippled by the suppression of
the Society of Jesus, we are now prepared to evaluate the
second birth of the Sodality and her gradual growth to today's
stature.
Part II: 1814-1955
Resume of Part I
In the first part of this study, covering the era from 1539
to 1773, the roots of the Sodality were traced from the preSodality organizations through the Leunis-founded Sodalities
of France and Italy and the Francis Caster-Sodalities of
northern Europe, up to the fine Nobles' Sodalities of NaplesRome-Lyons and the Soldier and Servant Sodalities (with
a pause to consider the great Sodality saints such as St.
Francis de Sales) until we came to the great seventeenth and
eighteenth century flowering of the Sodality in its retreat
centers, its pageants of the Spiritual Exercises, its splendid
women's auxiliary organizations, its collegiate retreats, its
production of excellent spiritual books for the layman. Finally came the suppression of the Society of Jesus and the
languishing of the Sodality. Three notable facts were discovered: 1. almost every outstanding Sodality was nourished
on the Spiritual Exercises as a staple diet; 2. the Exercises
radiated out from the Sodality in the form of saints, Sodality
retreat houses, lgnatian pageants, specialized retreat litera!ure; 3. the basic principles of the Exercises were incarnated
Ill the lives of outstanding sodalists and in the achievements
of good Sodalities. With this resume before us, the intriguing
history of the Sodality and the Spiritual Exercises can be
studied in their second era, 1814-1955.
"The Suppression of the Society of Jesus struck a fatal
blow at the Sodalities." 49 And this is just what the enemies
-
49
Ibid., 152.
�216
SODALITY RETREATS
of the Church had hopefully planned. However, Pope Clement XIV, after suppressing the Jesuits, tried his best to preserve the Sodality by means of his brief Commendatissimam
which gave her at least legal life. But this would not be
enough; for, though the Prima Primaria was saved by two
zealous priests, Anthony Vittene and Septimus Costanzi,
"elsewhere, with very few exceptions, the Sodalities, after
having languished for a short while, ended by dying out." 50
Even before the suppression of the Jesuits the Sodality had
been hit hard by the Society's expulsion from Spain, Portugal,
and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and from their colonies
throughout the world. But now with the world-wide suppression of the Society of Jesus the situation looked hopeless.
Although intrepid bishops would place former Jesuits in
charge of the now diocesan Sodalities, the aging Jesuit would
be unable either to find or to train a successor. Another
major difficulty was the average priest's unfamiliarity with
the spirit of the Sodality because of his unfamiliarity with
the Spiritual Exercises as a way of life. On account of the
consequent lack of forceful direction, the apostolate tended
to disappear from Sodality life and with it went spiritual
vigor. Soon a good number of Sodalities became mere
prayer-leagues and their members turned away to more inter·
esting occupations. Although this. decadence might be
gradual, it was still fatal and could lead only to death.
Few Living Sodalities
What has been said is not meant to be taken as an affirma·
tion that there existed no Sodalities of worth during this
period. But the magnificent work of a Delpuits in Paris or
a Chaminade at Bordeaux or a Louis Mossi at Bergamo or a
Gaspard Bertoni at Verona could be wiped out, and often
enough was, by a sudden decree of the civil authorities. The
Sodality needs stability; this it lacked in the European up·
roar caused by the French Revolution and Napoleonic med·
dling. Besides, it needed the unifying influence of the two
agencies \Vhich produced it, the Society of Jesus and the
Spiritual Exercises. This it received in three decisive steps.
In 1814 Pius VII restored the Society throughout the world,
5o
Ibid., 153.
�SODALITY RETREATS
217
in 1824 Leo XII restored the Sodality to its former canonical
status, and in 1825 the same Pontiff gave all necessary faculties to the Prima Primaria to aggregate to itself all other
Sodalities, even those not directed by Jesuits. ·
On looking back to this period, one feels sadness at seeing
how much good work had been destroyed during the Suppression period. Yet the fact that the Sodality issued from
the combat as a Church-wide organization and not merely as
a Jesuit organization may perhaps afford some consolation.
What effect all this had on the Sodality and the· Spiritual
Exercises will be partially seen in the following pages.
The New Sodalities
Villaret describes the changes that had occurred in Catholic
spirituality and, therefore, sodalist spirituality, during the
four decades of the Society's suppression.
This progress [in Sodality spirituality] parallels that in Catholic
spirituality, or to put it more exactly, is joined with it. Such
progress is evident, for example, in personal spiritual direction,
in a use of the sacraments which is more frequent than ever, in
the custom of closed retreats and of monthly recollections.n
The last item in Villaret's enumeration, the custom of closed
retreats, is especially interesting since he speaks of it as
something almost new in Sodality spirituality yet calls it a
custom. The roots of the closed retreat movement have already been found in the retreat centers and collegiate retreats sponsored by the Sodality. It would seem that these
roots had sent up a sturdy trunk with great limbs and luxuriant foliage some of which had weathered the Napoleonic
storms. In his history of the Society of Jesus in France,
Father Burnichon, S.J., describes well the Jesuit part in this
retreat movement as he endeavors to defend his fellow religious from the charge that they minister only to the rich.
-
One often hears it said that the Society of Jesus reserves its
apostolate, or at least its preferences, for the upper classes of
society. An inventory of the Sodalities founded and directed by
her priests in the course of this century furnishes the perfect
refutation of this charge. The Sodalities are one of the instruments
which the Society of Jesus ordinarily uses to strengthen, develop
and perpetuate the work begun in its missions and spiritual retreats.
51
Villaret, Abrege, 248.
�SODALITY RETREATS
218
In every city which has received them the Jesuits have uniformly
put forth every effort to organize Sodalities for the different classes
of people. Now, it is a fact that the majority of the Sodalities are
recruited from those of modest circumstances, even the humblest.n
Since the writer is chronicling the 1814-1830 period, evidently
the Jesuits quickly struck out into the turbulent stream of
events and began setting up their Sodalities as islands of
security. The fact that the Sodalities were being used to
"strengthen, develop, and perpetuate the work begun in missions and spiritual retreats," the fact that these Sodalities
were, in the majority of cases, for those of the lower classes,
and the fa~t' that they were organized according to strata of
society and 'the group's principal interest, all this points to a
Sodality tradition in God-sent continuity with the pre-Sup·
pression Society of Jesus.
A Genuinely lgnatian Sodality
The following account is a good example of the new Soci·
ety's Sodality when it is thoroughly inspired with the Exercises.
As a follow-up of a retreat given in January of 1815, Father
Louis Debussi was eager to establish a Marian Sodality there
(Seminary of Saint-Acheul near Amiens), but a genuine Sodality
run according to true traditions. Here are some samples of the
works that these young students and school boys undertook: visits
to convicts, the sick, and the poor;" care of chapels; conferences
or discussions both doctrinal and- Apologetic; the apostolate of
conversation, first communion preparation of children and adults,
workers and soldiers. In two months' time they brought to con·
fession sixty people who had been away from the. sacraments for
fifteen, twenty, and thirty years. In the hospital, where irreligion
was dominant, out of four hundred sick persons, only one died
in 1823 without the sacraments.Gs
But it would be far from the truth to state that manY of
the new Sodalities were as excellent as that of Saint-Acbeul.
At this time even the Prima Primaria would not be found in
the best of health if its hospital recovery-chart were plotted
according to its use of the annual retreat. Entries such as
these are made by its secretary: 1831, Retreat of Salone
Sodality attended by the Prima Primaria; (next entry) 1837,
32
Joseph Burnichon, S.J., La Compagnie de Jesus en France,
1814-1914, I, xxv-xxvi.
o3
Villaret, Abrege, 210.
�SODALITY RETREATS
219
same as in 1831; 1838, no longer any annual retreat; 1855,
a program for retreat printed; 1862, invitation to retreat
printed; 1865, new rule adopted: retreat for the P1·ima
Primaria begins on Laetare Sunday and goes to Passion
Sunday, it is to be held only afternoons; 1866 and 1871, retreats omitted because of concurrent missions; 1880, council
decided not to revive the retreat which had fallen into desuetude because "it was easy to make a retreat elsewhere and
only a few would come to the Prima Primaria." 54
There is no evidence of a special retreat in the Prima Primaria up to 1915, once the ruling of 1880 went into effect.
Though for not a few Sodalities the above entries might be
a crown of glory, for the Prima Primaria they are certainly
something less than that. Perhaps what was happening in
the Prima Primaria was also happening in other Sodalities
despite the good example of those leading Sodalities who
drew their strength from the Ignatian Exercises. Both types
of Sodalities may well account for the long-awaited re-edition,
in 1855, of the original Rules of 1587. It would pay us to
consider the changes made and compare them with the later
third edition of the Rules in 1910 because in the comparison
we will likely see a reflection in miniature of the whole retreat movement within the Sodality from 1814 to 1910.
The Rules of 1857 and the Exercises
The first official Rules of the Sodality were those of 1587.
Though they do not mention the Spiritual Exercises by name,
they nevertheless contain a good number of the principles
running through the Exercises. For example, obedience in
Will and intellect to the hierarchy is inculcated at least indirectly through insistence on obedience in Sodality matters to
~he officers, the prefect, and the director. Further, perfection
In one's state of life, here student life, is demanded by the
third rule stating that Christian piety and progress in literary
studies form the aim of the Sodality. A definite lgnatian
Way of life is inculcated by Rule 4 urging a personal confessor, Rule 7 urging attendance at daily Mass, Rule 3 frequent Communion, Rule 8 nightly examen and frequent confession, Rule 1 devotedness to the Mother of God, Rule 8
-
54
Mullan, Hist. of Prim. Prmar., 226.
�220
SODALITY RETREATS
mental prayer and the rosary. Rule 9 insures selectivity, a
basic principle of the Exercises, among those to be accepted
by the Sodality as members. Rule 1 permits the making of
local rules so long as they are consonant with the universal
Rules of 1587. It is in these local rules that, as we have seen
previously, there is frequently found a suggestion or stipulation of an annual retreat. As for the apostolate, besides
progress in studies mentioned in Rule 3, the corporal works
of mercy are demanded by Rules 8, 11, 13, and they are to be
subject completely to the Sodality moderator and the superior
of the college--:--again, obedience of will and intellect to the
hierarchy thrcrugh the local superiors. 55
The Rules of 1855 and the Exercises
The Rules of 1587 were used until their new edition appeared in 1855 under the aegis of Father General Roothaan
who took a very active part in their careful editing. 56 (It is
interesting to note that Roothaan, the very cautious editor of
the Exercises, also played an important part in this job of
editing.) Actually the Rules of 1855 were those, almost to
the letter, drawn up by Father Parthenius (Mazzolari) in
1750 but never put into effect because of the disturbed times
and the impending Suppression of the Society of Jesus.
Though the Society came back into existence in 1814 and
received some control of the Sodality-ln 1825, the continuing
political ferment held off any re-edition of the rules until
1855.61 .
A comparison of the Rules of 1587 with those of 1855 shows
only minor changes, usually more detailed explanations of
what had been previously stated in general terms. The one
exception to this is the addition of the extensive Rule 9 concerning the Sodality retreat. The minor changes are principally the following: mention of the Society of Jesus is
dropped from Rules 1 and 4 (because the Sodality is now
Church-wide and not merely under Jesuit directors), greater
emphasis is placed on having and staying with one confessor,
spiritual reading is stressed more, the amount of time to be
u De Congregationibus Marianis Documenta et Leges, editor:
Franciscus Beringer, Styria, 1909, 47-54.
56 Villaret, Abrege, 264.
6 1Jbid.
�SODALITY RETREATS
221
given to mental prayer is raised from non nihil to "at least
fifteen minutes" per day, a special solemnity on the name
day of each Sodality is urged. The very same selectivity is
demanded in 1855 as in 1587. The candidate is to be carefully screened by director and prefect, then presented to a
board of councilors for a vote of acceptance into candidacy,
next handed over to a kind of master of novices for careful
instruction and guidance, and after three months again presented to the councilors for a vote of acceptance or dismissal
or prolongation of candidacy-a rigorous selectivity to be
sure, but a basic tenet of the Exercises. 58
Rule Nine Demanding lgnatian Retreat
The one big change in this first re-edition of the Rules,
then, was the official prescription of the Spiritual Exercises
in an annual retreat: Suum etiam sodalibus quolibet anna a
moderatore praescribatur tempus, quo tempore spiritualibus
S. lgnatii exercitationibus vacent.~ 9 The Rule goes on to say
that the length of the retreat may be three, four, or more days.
Further, the sodalist should recall meditatively at home what
he has heard at the place of retreat. To help him in this
matter, written instructions are to be given to him concerning
the content of the Exercises and the time at which they are
to be made. Therefore, meditations at home are extremely
important. The retreat master is to aim at helping the
sodalists make good confessions. To this end he is to give
them points on frequent use of the sacraments, on the obligations of their present state of life, and on the election concerning a future state of life or a current problem. The order
of the day is to be . strictly followed: spiritual reading on
meditation matter, an examen by the retreat master on frequent use of the sacraments etc., as above, an examen of meditation led by the retreat master, and finally the Mass. The
same order is to be followed in the afternoon.
Thus Rule 9 prescribes an annual retreat which is open.
The biggest stride forward is the stipulation of a retreat, no
Inere suggestion. Not, however, until the next edition of the
Rules in 1910 will the closed retreat be strongly recommended.
---
~8 De. Gong. Mar. Doc., ed. Beringer, 120-129, esp. 129-130.
fi
9
Ibid., 123-124.
�222
SODALITY RETREATS
Consequently, the Sodality Rules themselves mirror the ad.
vance of the Spiritual Exercises to the front of the Sodality
consciousness. But does this indicate that hitherto the Exer.
cises were, comparatively speaking, neglected? Or was it
rather that in the pre-Suppression Sodality they were so
much an essential part of Sodality life that, like the dogma
of the seven sacraments in the early Church, they needed
hardly to be mentioned? The latter conclusion would appear
to be much closer to the truth if the history of the pre-Suppression Sodalities is allowed to speak for itself.
' Rules of 1910 and the Exercises
But the biggest advance in Sodality retreat legislation
occurs in the 1910 re-edition of the Rules where the closed
retreat is highly recommended and the open retreat is speci·
fled as six days in length. Because of this, it would pay us
to take a look at the 1910 Rules while those of 1587 and 1855
are still fresh in the memory. Villaret gives a good estimate
of the latest edition of the Rules as compared with the old.
This time, also, the substance underwent no alteration; the
essential principles, the grand lines of life, direction, spirit, activity,
reni"ained unchanged. Because of circumstances already mentioned,
the newness came from the concrete applications, the extension and
the preciseness of the activities, the introduction of apostolic
techniques, the pointedness of the rules dealing with frequentation
of the sacraments, the use of the -"Spiritual Exercises in closed
retreats, the intellectual and professional formation of the sodalists,
the highly charged and organized work of the apostolate of the
press and others, the fight against the enemies of the Church
and against error and immorality, the mutual relations among
Sodalities. Substantially all this was to be found in the old rules, but
now it was formulated in a more explicit, more precise, less affective perhaps more juridical manner. 6 o
If it is true that the 1910 Rules differ from the previous editions mainly in their explicitness, concreteness, preciseness,
and extensiveness, then it is equally true that these latest
rules show the principles of the Spiritual Exercises more
explicitly, concretely, precisely, and extensively.
Let us 'briefly take under consideration the four main prin·
ciples of the Exercises as enunciated in Part I of this study.
The first principle, selection of only willing and intellectu·
ao Villaret, Abrege, 266-267.
�SODALITY RETREATS
223
ally capable men to act as leaders of the masses, is insured by
Rules 23, 24, 26, 31, which provide for a stringent probation
and for ways of expelling unworthy members.
The second principle, thinking and acting in union with
the hierarchy-the ultimate end of the Exercises, is clearly
stated in Rule 1 where the aim of all sodalists is declared to
be the sanctification of self, the saving and sanctification of
others, and the defence of the Church (notice how the Sodality
has lifted her sights from the student milieu to that of the
world-wide Church), in Rules 2, 15, 16, and 17 where the
Sodality is clearly subject to the Bishops in the slightest detail, in Rules 22, 44, 49, and 50 where prompt obedience to
director and his officers and of officers to the director is
inculcated, and finally in Rule 33 where there is explicit
stress on thinking and acting with the Church (evidently her
Bishops if Rules 15, 16, and 17 are to mean anything).
The third principle of the Exercises, the choosing of a state
of life or the perfecting of a previously chosen vocation-the
proximate end of the Exercises, is exemplified in Rule 1
where sodalists work towards the sanctification of self and
others each in his state of life," in Rules 4 and 29 where
Sodalities are to be organized according to states of life so
that emulation in and concentration on particular state-of-life
ideals may be fostered, and in Rules 14 and 42 where special
study academies and apostolic sections are formed to perfect
the sodalist in his life's work-academies and sections in
which he is under obligation to work if this is at all possible.
The fourth principle, use of definite means (fixed confessor,
frequentation of the sacraments, mental prayer, examens,
devotedness to the Mother of God) as a way of life leading
towards the goals set up in principles two and three above,
is carried out almost exactly as in the previous editions of
the Rules, with the one exception that in Rule 39 daily Communion is urged strongly since Pius X had just a few years
before recommended this practice.
Finally one may call attention to the fact that Rule 9 states
that if the annual retreat cannot be a closed one, then the open
rereat should "last six days, with at least two periods daily,
morning and evening or night, with spiritual reading, medita-
�224
SODALITY RETREATS
tion, conferences, Holy Mass and beads as the principal exercises."61
There has been, therefore, rather striking progress made
in concretizing the principles of the Exercises in the Sodality
Rules. Further the closed retreat has been recommended
strongly; while the open retreat has been extended to at
least six days. It was no wonder, then, that the Rules of 1910
were welcomed warmly by the experienced and the successful
among Sodality directors.
Background for Retreat-Rule of 1910
of social group thinking that the development of a social group's rules mirrors to a great extent its
life. If the rules become not only more detailed but also more
demanding in ideal, then the group's life while becoming more
intricate is also becoming more successful in the attainment
of its objectives. Thus, the more detailed retreat-rule of 1910
with its more demanding ideals of closed retreat or six-day
open retreat reflects for us the inner life of at least the better
Sodalities. Let us glance at the retreat emphasis in some of
these-better Sodalities.
The Sodality of Barcelona under the direction of Father
Fiter began its magnificent work with a retreat which, repeated each year, animated this Sodality's highly organized
apostolate of schools, retreat hou""Se~ and recreation centers.
Because this apostolate will be detailed later, it is sufficient
for now to say that much of the groundwork for not only the
retreat-rule of 1910 but even the whole revision of 1910 was
done by the Spanish Sodalities under the leadership of Barce·
lona. 62 They had discovered in practice the marvelous effects
of the annual Ignatian retreat on sodalists and they felt a
great urge to see these effects spread throughout the world
by means of the Sodality Common Rules.
The Cracow Sodalities were justly famous, also. After
explaining in detail the numerous apostolic works of these
Sodalities, ranging from St. Vincent de Paul activities and
workingmen-lectures to the editing of a Sodality quarterly,
It is
an~axiom
61 Sodality Rules, The Common Rules of 1910, revised ed., St.
Louis, 1943.
a2 Villaret, Abrege, 265-266.
�SODALITY RETREATS
225
Fr. Drive says significantly: "It is unnecessary to add that
they all made their annual retreat." 63
In 1903, a year after the Cracow report, Mullan tells us that
The Beyrouth workingmen made two fifteen day retreats a
year, besides an eight day retreat at Easter, the Director very
justly remarking: "The retreat is the principal nerve of the
work." Similar is the report of the Valencia Children of
Mary. This body has had a week's retreat each of the fifty
years of its existence, with a morning and an afternoon meeting. The account adds: "We can truly say that to this annual
retreat is due the prosperous life of the Sodality." 64
Mullan also lists about fifteen outstanding retreats made at
the turn of the century by Sodalities who seemed very intent
on keeping their retreats annual. 65 Needless to say, most of
these were open retreats.
But the closed retreat was far from neglected as the following report, drawn up by Father Mullan, indicates:
Closed retreats are often made in our days by convent girls
and by lady sodalists, who retire into a convent or other convenient
house for the purpose. Thus the Lemberg Ladies' Sodality inaugurated their Sodality with a retreat made in the Sacred Heart
Convent in 1896. The convent Children of Mary at Wexford,· at
Cork and at Dublin made theirs every year [1900]. An eight day
retreat was annually made in the Strabane Convent [1903, Ireland].
In a similar way, a workingmen's Sodality in France had closed
retreats for its members at a Trappist Monastery. At Stella Viae,
Rome, the Children of Mary made a full closed retreat of six· days,
with 3 meditations and a conference daily, in 1909. Closed retreats
for men sodalists were announced in the Sodalen-Correspondenz
to be held at the retreat house in Feldkirch and to last three and
a half days. That given at Stonyhurst to the Accrington Men's
Sodality gathered 70 retreatants.aa
The same convictions which produced retreats like these were
also the motivating force behind the retreat-rule of ~910 .
. Yet these convictions were not found solely among Sodality
directors. Experienced retreat masters and directors of retreat houses, seeing the need of some organization to insure
the Preservation and increase of the fruits derived from closed
--
Drive, Sodality Hist. Sk., 96.
Mullan, Sodality in Documents, 137.
lbid., 136-137.
66
lbid., 137-138.
63
64
65
�SODALITY RETREATS
226
retreats, turned to the Sodality. Father Charles Plater, S.J.,
an influential apostle of the retreat movement in England
and a careful student of its history, has this to say after
describing a number of European retreat houses:
It has been a matter of general experience that wherever retreats,
however numerous and fervent, have not been followed up by
some· sort of organization for promoting the spiritual life of those
who have made them, their effects had not been lasting. It stands
to reason that the lessons of three days will be forgotten unless
special provision is made for the recalling of them. Hence we are
not surprised to find that in connection with nearly all retreat
houses which have been described, there exist various types of
sodality or'confraternity for the purpose of keeping alive the spirit
g·enerated in the retreat.67
Lest one get the impression that Father Plater is indifferent
as to what organization is used to secure the continuing
efficacy of the retreat he should be allowed to add these remarks to what he has previously said:
Mention has more than once been made of the part played by
the Sodality of Our Lady in promoting the work of retreats in
various countries. Something may here be added on the suitability
of the Sodality as an organization for carrying on the spiritual
work done in a retreat and for giving direction to the apostolic
spirit which a retreat commonly generates. The Sodality, in fact,
succeeds in forming that lay elite which, as experience shows, is
the prerequisite for successful chatitable and social work, no
less than for the maintaining of a nigh standard of spiritual life
in a parish. The Sodality is not, as some imagine, a mere confra·
ternity of prayer for practicing a few simple devotions in common
but rather a school of religious perfection for the laity. It thus
forms a natural complement to the retreat, the influence of which
it perpetuates and directs to every form of apostolic work. 68
In his book, Retreats for the People, Father Plater gives strik·
ing examples which prove his statements. One of these would
be the justly famous Sodalities of Mexico City whose closed
retreats are an old tradition. 60 Perhaps this explains the
heroic actions of the Mexican Sodalists during the persecution
of 1926 when the Sodalities' "Retreat and Missions Section
helped prepare the faithful for confession and communion,
the missions being preached by the Sodalists themselves."'o
67 Plater, Retreats, 230-231.
Ibid. 282-284.
60 Ibid., 163.
70 Sommer, Marian Cath. Act., 31-32.
6s
�SODALITY RETREATS
227
All this was done when death was the reward for such efforts.
Thus we see that the retreat-rule of 1910 was a natural
outgrowth of experimentation; for the need of retreats was
proved not only in the experience of Sodality directors, working from the Sodality back to its source in the Exercises, but
also in the experience of retreat directors working in the
opposite direction from the Exercises towards the Sodality.
Retreats for Others Sponsored by Sodalists
To show how much sodalists appreciate the Spiritual Exercises and their effects, one has only to point to the fact that
sodalists have been active down through the centuries in
securing Ignatian retreats for others. We have already seen
the Nobles' Sodalities obtaining Ignatian missions (and eventually Sodalities) for their servants. We have observed St.
Francis de Sales, and St. Vincent de Paul using the Exercises,
so much esteemed by themselves, to change the lay spirituality
of the Church. At Caen as early as 1699 we find that one of
the chief practices of the men's Sodality was to provide a
Christmas retreat for twenty-five young girls and women who
seemed in particular need of such help. 11 Mullan furnishes a
list of such Sodality-sponsored retreats.
Retreats were given by the Priests Sodality of Naples from
1612 on. The University Students Sodality of Liege provided closed
retreats for men at the retreat house of Xhovemont. The Sodality
of the Instituto Sociale of Turin provided a like favor for university students at a house of retreats (1905). The Chieri Sodality
inaugurated retreats for workingmen (1907). The Roman College
Scaletta gave their personal services in preparing the house and
serving at table for a workingmen's retreat in Rome (1900). The
Men's Sodality of Bucharest got up a men's mission (1896),72
About this same time in Sarrhi, a suburb of Barcelona, a
branch of the Sodality established a retreat-house and set up
a committee to administer it. "In 1910 the house was en~rged and refitted. During the previous three years retreats
ad been given to over seven hundred men. This retreat~o~se is intended exclusively for the use of workingmen." 73
hirty years later at Madrid a Sodality's retreat-promotion
Work Was so successful that the diocese had to take over the
--
~~Drive, Sodality Hist. Sk., 70.
Mullan, Sodality in Documents, 160.
Plater, Retreats, 97-98.
73
�228
SODALITY RETREATS
too rapidly expanding work; during the first three years of
its existence 289 retreats for about 10,000 retreatants were
promoted. 74 And this was not the only Sodality which did
such work in Spain.
Meanwhile in the New World similar events were taking
place. For example, at Pittsburgh the Sodality union managed to sponsor twenty-one parish retreats or triduums in
1933. 75 A far more electrifying event occurred at Sao Paulo,
Brazil from 1927 to the present time. It seems that the preLenten Carnival' there was particularly immoral and attracted large crowds from great distances. The Young Men's
Sodality decided to do something about it. Going among the
revelers, they tried to recruit for a closed retreat. Their
courageous efforts netted 20 retreatants in 1927. They decided to make this an annual retreat and in 1928 70 people
made the Exercises; in 1929 there were 82 retreatants. In
1930 the number dropped to 12, but in 1931 rose again to 130.
In 1938 there were 4104 retreatants. 76 This is only one instance among a number of outstanding achievements in this
field. Besides the sections of the Sodality dedicated to closed
retreats, others are promoting open retreats for compact and '
homogeneous groups such as students, truck drivers, soldiers,
intellectuals, and so on. Still other sections are organizing
great urban retreats for the bishops; f6r example, at Alicante
in 1946 twenty-eight preachers from six Orders gave the
diocesan retreats in one program. 77
It is impossible to explain the willing sacrifices made by
sodalists to spread the influence of the Ignatian Exercises,
unless it is said that their interest springs from a strong conviction that the Ignatian retreat is one of the most worthwhile
things in their lives. A very clear example of this deeply
felt need to radiate the Exercises once they are imbibed is the
recently founded Sodality of Aachen (1953) which "grew out
of the Spiritual Exercises" and whose aim is "to be always
and in every way at the beck and call of the Bishop in the
7 4 Hugo Rahner, S.J., A la Source des Congregations llfariales,
Bruxelles, 1954, Introduction, 11.
75 Sr. Florence, S.L., The Sodality Movement in the United States,
1926-1936, St. Louis, 1939, 109.
10 Villaret, Abrege, 240-241.
77 Ibid., 241.
�SODALITY RETREATS
229
apostolate, but especially in promoting the Spiritual Exer,..
cises for young people." 7 s
lgnatian Retreats and the Early Midwest
Passing over the fine Sodality traditions of other parts of
the United States, we confine our attention here to the Midwest development of Sodality retreats when we consider the
contributions of the United States' Sodalities to the world
retreat movement and search for the effects of the Exercises
in their members.
The first Midwestern Jesuit to use the Sodality as an instrument of sanctification and apostolate was Father Arnold
Damen, S.J., who in 1848 started a Young Men's Sodality
among the alumni of St. Louis University "to keep the old
students of the University together and to preserve their
faith." 79 Soon the organization contained 300 of the best
known Catholics of St. Louis, many of them professional men.
Their enthusiasm not only produced exemplary lives but also
the return to the Church of not a few fallen away Catholics.
The Sodality "grew to be a strong religious force in the city
for fifty years. From it finally, as from a nucleus and model,
grew all the other Sodalities of the city of St. Louis." so But
Father Damen was not satisfied. Perceiving a small group
of especially zealous young sodalists, he invited them one by
one to come together and make a retreat, a closed one, at the
college. Damen himself gave the Exercises. The result:
"Four of them decided to enter the Society of Jesus. And all
of them became permanent influences for good in the Catholic
life of the city." sl Father Conroy, Damen's biographer, goes
on to say that this was apparently the first retreat of its kind
in the West and that from it have come the West's retreat
houses.
But Damen, who from 1857 to 1879 gave the Spiritual
Exercises in 208 missions averaging two weeks in length and
Who made with his companion close to 12,000 converts, was
not satisfied with just one Sodality. He frequently estab-
-
...
7
Acies Ordinata, Rome, vol.
1954 94-95.
Joseph P. Conroy, S.J., Arnold Damen, S.J., New York, 1930, 42.
so Ibid.
SlJbid., 43.
s "Nova Congregatio 'Cooperatorum' ",
lCJCUI,
79
�230
SODALITY RETREATS
lished them at the end of a mission in order to make sure that
parish life would continue on at a high level. 82 Thus he tells
us:
I established there a Sodality of which the Bishop became
spiritual director. It is composed of judges, lawyers, merchants, etc.
These gentlemen, who have been absent from the Sacraments for
ten, fifteen, twenty years, are now faithful in communicating every
month in a body and are seen sweeping the church, to the wonder
and edification of the whole city. 83
Father Francis X. Weninger, S.J., another missionary, was
asked to describe the techniques which had produced extraordinarily successful results. Among the hints he gave was
this one:
The solicitude to be exerted for the continuance of the fruit
of the mission after it is closed, and the practical working of its
effects I have minutely dwelt upon in the Practical Hints. To this
end, the erection of Sodalities for the various classes in the parish
help very efficaciously.s4
Whether he realized it or not, Father Weninger was merely
reiterating the advice and experience of Ignatius and his
companions. He and Damen were also laying the foundation
for a po!entially great Sodality movement.
The U.S. National Sodality Service Center and Retreats
Just above it was said designedly "a potentially great
Sodality movement," for by 1913 thes.e first Sodalities seemed
to have degenerated into mere monthly' communion clubs.
The investigation which Father GarescM made of the existing
Sodalities disclosed "an extremely discouraging condition in the
Sodalities themselves". All the activities of the Sodalists were
confined in most places to attendance at meetings, where some
prayers and the Office of the Blessed Virgin were recited, and to
monthly Communions,85
Father Garesche, as the first national secretary of U. S.
Sodalities, would certainly be in a position to estimate accu·
rately the conditions of 1913 when he spoke. Clearly, there
was no annual Sodality retreat if this was the total activity
of Midwestern Sodalities; and clearly there was no activitY
Ibid., 129.
Ibid., 92-93.
Gilbert Garraghan, S.J., The Jesuits of the Middle United States,
New York, 1938, II, 59.
85 Sommer, Marian Cath. Act., 37.
82
83
84
�SODALITY RETREATS
231
because there was no annual retreat. Gradually, however, the
National Secretariate at St. Louis tried to eliminate this discouraging state of affairs. Sister Florence, historian of the
Sodality movement in the U.S. from 1926 to 1936 tells us that
in addition to the handling of Sodality affiliation and the publishing
of the Sodality magazine, the Queen's Work staff has maintained
a policy of assisting Sodalities whenever possible through personal
visits and correspondence. Each year since 1926 the Jesuit members of the staff have conducted an average of twenty-five retreats
in parishes and schools throughout the country. In the course of
the majority of these retreats the priests met the Sodality officers
and discussed with them their Sodality problems. Thus to the
innumerable advantages of the retreat were adaed definite helps
for the sodalists as a group.ss
So numerous were these retreats that in 1932 a priest was
appointed to the Queen's Work staff solely for this work. 87
Summer Schools of Catholic Action and the Exercises
At Loyola University in 1927 a particularly far-reaching
result of an Ignatian retreat was the formation of the Students' Spiritual Council out of the school's Sodality officers.
This Council called together "the first Student-Sodalist convention to be held in the United States, and it initiated a long
series of such meetings, which have since been held in every
quarter of the country." 88 Often enough for many a Sodalist
these conventions were his first introduction to the Spiritual
Exercises and their principles. The latter were taught in
regular courses labled, for example, "Theology for the Layman." The Exercises were also imbibed indirectly through
motivation talks or through instructional lectures on the
methods of mental prayer, the night examen, the particular
examen (known as the "Character Builder"), and so on.
Since these conventions, later developing into the Summer
Schools of Catholic Action, were staffed principally by Jesuits,
they have done very much toward spreading Ignatian spirituality, which is just another way of saying the principles of
the Exercises. Perhaps this is why the Summer Schools have
attained a measure of success and why slowly but surely the
-
86
87
88
Sr. Florence, Sodality U.S. 1926-1936, 144.
Ibid., 151.
Ibid., 44, also cf. 42-43.
�232
SODALITY RETREATS
Sodality movement in the U. S. A. has begun to gather
momentum.
Growth of Retreat Consciousness
Frequently retreats are directly mentioned in, e.g., the list
of activities sponsored by the Student Spiritual Leadership
Movement of the Sodality, 89 or the list of parish activities,SB
or the discussion at the Men Directors' Convention. 91 One
·such discussion at the National Sodalist Parish Convention
in 1930 is indicative of what was being done by Sodalities in
retreat work.
The general subject for the afternoon was personal holiness.
The subje-ct was opened by a discussion of the importance of
retreats. Mrs. E. P. Voll of St. Louis urged closed retreats, as
did l\Iiss Isabel Fogarty of Springfield, Ill., speaking especially for
the Cenacle retreats. Miss Gallagher pointed out that the Bishop of
Toledo felt the retreat so important that he has turned over
retreat work to the Sodality as their most important diocesan
enterprise. 9 2
To appreciate the effects of this gradual growth in retreat
consciousness among American Sodalists, let us consider some
of the latest developments in retreat work. An example of
this would be the John Carroll University Alumni Sodality.
One of its sodalists, after listing in a report an impressive
number of apostolic and spiritual works, says, "Probably the
most effective activity that resulted in real spiritual growth
of the Sodality was the six day -dosed retreat we held at
Christmastide and which we intend to make an annual affair. 93
Six months later in June of 1953, because of this example,
seventy-five sodalists from Carroll's Student Sodality made
an eight day retreat (closed) on the campus. 94 Meanwhile
at Detroit University in August of 1953, seventy-five more
socialists, inspired by Carroll's Sodalities, made closed retreats
of six days. 95 So impressed were they with the Exercises that
several of the Carroll Sodalists asked to make the long retreat
Ibid., 66.
Ibid., 91.
9t Ibid., 128.
02 Ibid., 116.
!13 Sommer, Mar. Cath. Act., 50.
g53
!14 ".John Carroll University", Chicago Province Chronicle, 1
'
XVIII, no. 1, 6.
1 9
us "University of Detroit", Chi. Prov. Chron., 1953, XVIII, no. • '
s9
oo
�SODALITY RETREATS
233
of thirty days. 96 That this was no passing enthusiasm is
proved by the fact that these same retreats were given in
1954 and 1955 to a larger number of retreatants. 97
Father Richard Rooney, S.J., Director of the National
Sodality Service Center in St. Louis, gives an overall view of
U. S. Sodality retreats when he states:
It is encouraging to learn from reports sent to this office that
the popularity and effectiveness of closed retreats for sodalists
is on the increase. In at least a half dozen Jesuit colleges and
universities, not to mention a number of nursing schools, retreats
of this sort are being conducted yearly in accord with Rule 9 and
Rule 7. They run from three to five to eight days' duration. Of
one thing we at the NSSC are convinced: the renewal of spirit
called for by His Holiness will certainly come to those Sodalities
who drink long and deeply each year at the spring of the Spiritual
Exercises. os
We see, then that though the fine work of Damen and
Weninger had gradually lost its vigor, the staff of the Sodality
Service Center did much to restore life to it. One of the most
efficient instruments used to accomplish this feat was the
Spiritual Exercises. As a result a few of the leading Sodalities are conducting spiritual and apostolic programs worthy
of the great Sodalities of the pre-Suppression Society of Jesus,
the six and eight day closed retreats being proof of this.
The Barcelona Sodality's Retreat Work
In Europe a modern Sodality outstanding for its retreat
work is that of Barcelona. Because of the Suppression of the
Jesuits the ancient Sodality of Barcelona, like so many others
at that time, had simply disappeared. It was revived, however, in 1860 under directors who, in addition to the Sodality,
Were saddled with much other work. Consequently the meetings "were composed more of old men than of youths," 99 and
"the Sodality did no more than hear Mass and chant the Little
Office." 100 This went on until 1886 when Father Aloysius
-
96
Rahner, Source de. Gong. Mar., introduction, 10.
"J h97 "University of Detroit", Chi: Prov. Chron. 1954, XIX, no. 1, 14;
Carroll
XVIII, no. 5, 58;
19 ~ 5,n XIX, no. University," 1954, Univ.", 1955, XIX, "Univ. of Detroit",
6, 86; "Jn. Car.
no. 5, 61.
98
A , "Bits of News", Action Now, Queens Work Press, VIII, no. 7,
Pnl, 1955, 61.
M 99 Ramund Amato, S.J., Aloysius Ignatius Fiter, trans. Elder
u11 an, S.J., St. Louis, 1917, 72.
·
100
Ibid., 73.
�SODALITY RETREATS
234
Ignatius Fiter took charge. His first step was to ask for
complete freedom from other work in order that a genuine
Sodality might be formed. When this generous permission
was received, he speedily set to work. His day-by-day journal reads: "The membership list has been published for the
first time. Also, the Spiritual Exercises have been given.
Finally, everything indicates that the Sodality is going to
have a notable and important development." 101
Though the early Barcelona Sodality retreats do not seem
to have been of the closed type, still they were gradually perfected year by y~ar, e.g., after the first two years the retreat
was reserved for sodalists only, the Sodality candidates received special instructions during the retreat/ 02 and the finest
retreat masters were brought in even from great distances.103
Father Sommer in his Marian Catholic Action, after describing the manifold apostolic works of this Sodality, tells us that
there is an annual retreat to power all this activity. 104 Since
he writes of conditions in the year 1951 as representing a
tradition of long standing, we can safely say that the annual
retreat has been a fixture in the Barcelona Sodality since the
time of Father Fiter.
Now here are the results of this loyalty to the principle
that the lgnatian retreat is the heart of Sodality life: first, an
amazingly variegated and fertile apostolate composed of workers' centers, two catechetical teams, ~ij. evening school for
adult workers, a day school for children, three teams of hospital visitors (one hospital being a leper asylum), a press
apostolate, a municipal center for the poor, two recreation
centers for young workers ; 10 ~ second, a retreat house, staffed
by the Sodality, which in three years has given retreats to 700
working men ;106 third, a religious community of working
men formed out of workingmen sodalists. These religious
wear no habit, but, living in common and taking the usual
three vows, devote three hours per day to prayer in addition
to their usual working hours in the factories and in addition
Ibid., 82.
Ibid.
1os Ibid., 131.
10• Sommer, Marian Cath. Act., 24.
1o5 Villaret, Gong. Mar., 235.
100 Plater, Retreats, 97-98.
101
102
�SODALITY RETREATS
to the hours they consecrate to retreats for
courses on social topics, apologetics and just
work. 107 Such magnificent work forces us to
cause and the cause is the same one found in all
ties: the Ignatian Exercises motivating all.
235
workingmen,
plain school
seek out its
great Sodali-
World-wide Sodality Consciousness of Exercises
It would seem that this conviction of the Sodality's basic
need of the Exercises is taking form in the minds of directors
all over the world. We have seen this happening in the United
States on the college level, in particular at John Carroll and
Detroit Universities, and even on the high school level as at
Loyola Academy in Chicago where a five day closed retreat
was given to 35 upperclass sodalists in the past two years.108
In Spain at Hogar del Obero, sodalists are required to make a
four day closed retreat. At Hogar del Empleado all members
make a four day closed retreat their first year and a six or
eight day one their second year. Officers' Military Academy
of Seville has a four day closed retreat annually. Bilbao
High School Sodality has five full days of closed retreat for
all sodalists over 14 years of age. In Italy the Professional
Men's Sodality of Milan requires all sodalists to make a three
day closed retreat, but some make six and eight day ones.109
Significantly enough when Fr. Joseph Sommer, S.J., of the
U.S.A.'s National Sodality Service Center went to England for
a three month tour of English Sodality organizations, he gave
four three day closed retreats to sodalists amid all his other
Work of conferences and organizational meetings. The English sodalists and their directors wanted this. Such growing
World-wide enthusiasm for the Exercises among sodalists
Points to the fact that they have found the principal source
of their spirituality and apostolate and intend to use it now
to the best of their ability.
-
10 7
108
Sommer, Marian Cath. Act., 27.
"Loyola Academy", Chi. Prov. Chron., 1954, XVIII, no. 4, 42;
19 55, XIX, no. 5, 62 .
109
•
Nicholas Rieman, S.J., "Sodality and Retreat: The Perfect
Pmr", Direction, series of articles beginning in II, no. 2, 1955, Nov.;
author's manuscript was consulted before its publication.
�23G
SODALITY RETREATS
Conclusions
From the historical events we have just witnessed a number
of conclusions should be drawn. First of all, if the supression of the Society of Jesus proved nothing else, it at least·
demonstrated that the Sodality needs the Society of Jesus
and the Exercises just as much as any effect needs its proper
cause in order to exist. The fact that some few Suppressionera Sodalities were successful because of very saintly directors, some of them former Jesuits, does not mean that this
causal relationship is an overstatement of the case. These
Sodalities were the rare exception, not the rule, and their
total power was pitifully weak compared to that of the 2000
Sodalities existing at the Society's suppression. This conclusion that there is an almost inexorable relationship of cause
and effect between the Society and the Spiritual Exercises on
the one hand and the success of the Sodality on the other
throws a fearfully heavy responsibility upon the shoulders of
many a mid-twentieth century Jesuit and not just on the back
of the few Sodality directors.
·
On looking back over Sodality legislation since its founding
a second conclusion stands out: though the Sodality Common
Rules of 1587 showed forth the principles of the Spiritual
Exercises and the Rules of 1855 showed them even more
clearly, it was the Rules of 1910 ttw:t most sharply etched
them for the sodalist. In addition, there was a progression
in the explicit mention of a retreat for sodalists. The Rules
of 1587 allowed local prescriptions to make this demand. The
Rules of 1855 specified an annual open retreat of three or
four days. Those of 1910 stipulated an annual open retreat
of at least six days and suggested a closed one if this was at
all possible.
A third conclusion to be drawn from the era extending from
1773 to 1955 is that the progressive awareness of the Exercises and their principles was not merely induced into the
Sodality by.Roman legislators, but rather arose from the con·
victions ana needs of the sodalists themselves and of their
directors. Apparently the "restored" Jesuits, gazing upon
the sick body of the Sodality, saw only one way of reviving
her: fill her with the life-giving vigor of the Ignatian Exer·
�SODALITY RETREATS
237
cises. This was done at once in Europe through the establishment of Sodalities in every little town and city immediately after the giving of an Ignatian mission, the First Week
of the Exercises. Under this impetus the Sodality, now a
world-wide organization not limited to the Jesuits, began to
grow quickly. Perhaps it grew too quickly, for continuity of
direction is needed if the Sodality is to have a vigorous life
and this direction must be the type derived from the principles of the Exercises.
At any rate, despite the overwhelming handicap of not
having seasoned directors, a number of Sodalities discovered
this principle of their life and became so dedicated to the
annual retreat, often enough closed, that from their enthusiasm
and hard work there came the retreat Rule of 1910 demanding
at least an annual open retreat of six days and suggesting a
closed one. And not only Sodality directors were aware of
the close causal connection between the life of the Sodality
and the Exercises; retreat masters and directors of retreat
houses, working at the other end of this relationship, had
come to the same conclusion and were loyal supporters of the
Sodality. But the best proof for the Sodality's growing appreciation of the power of the Exercises is its arranging of
retreats for others-a work involving thousands of retreatants.
Promotion of the principles of the Exercises in the U.S.A.
through Summer Schools of Catholic Action and retreats
under the aegis of the National Sodality Service Center at
St. Louis, is a good example of how the Exercises have been
traditionally brought to the minds of American Sodalists. A
Proof that the latter have gradually come to esteem the Exercises is seen in the growing interest in closed retreats of five
or six or eight days among college students. But Europe
affords the best example of sodalist-appreciation of the Exercises in its Barcelona Sodality where the annual retreat has
Produced not only an astoundingly rich apostolate but also a
retreat house and a religious community of men dedicated to
spreading the retreat movement and Ignatian principles
among the working classes. And Barcelona is not alone in
this. Father Rooney tells us:
�SODALITY RETREATS
238
Two young Jesuits travelled through Europe last year to make
a study of the Sodalities there. When they got back here and got
together to compare notes they found that there were two common
denominators of the outstandingly genuine organizations they had
come across. The first of these was faithfulness to the annual
retreat, to the annual passage through the Spiritual Exercises of
St. Ignatius, and this for from three to eight days. The second
was the carry-on of these Exercises by daily faithfulness to mental
prayer.uo
Never, since the suppression of the Society of Jesus, has
there been such a flourishing of the Spiritual Exercises among
Sodalities; and, it must be said, never has there been such a
need of thisL' For, granted that the Sodality movement has
never been bigger, it must also be added that "the Sodalities
of our days, so far as many Christians are concerned, evoke
nothing more than the very pale image of a pious prayerleague reserved especially for women." 111 It is true that
there are a number of Sodalities which compare favorably
with the eighteenth-century Sodalities, but they are very few
when contrasted with the vast number affiliated with the
Prima Primaria. It is these few which are the hope of the
Sodality, for as Father Hugo Rahner tells us:
If the Marian Sodalities have kept their importance and their
utility in the Church, it is because in the course of four centuries
of existence and of an almost disquieting numerical expansion they
have made it their constant care to go.back to their life-source, the
Spiritual Exercises of St. lgnatius.ii2.:
Indeed, it is because of the loyalty of these few great modern
Sodalities to their life-principle, the Exercises, that the retreat rule of 1910 was at all possible and that Pius XII could
say in all truth: "In reality, the Rules of the Sodality are
concerned only with expressing in clear formulas, and, so to
speak, with codifying the way of life which she has raised to
honor all through her history and in today's activities. 113
If the modern Sodality is ever to recapture the eighteenthcentury Sodality spirit which made the pre-Suppression Sodalities such potent forces for good within the Church and
"Make Your Retreat", Action Now, VIII, no. 6, March, 1955, 14.
Rahner, Source des Gong. Mar., 19.
112 Ibid., introduction, 5.
11s Ibid., 21, Allocution of Pius XII, Jan. 21, 1945.
110
111
�239
SODALITY RETREATS
the number one target of her enemies, she will have to live
her Rules with a heroism equaling that of the Old Sodality.
But she will never do this unless she understands them deeply
and feels with overwhelming force the need to live them to
the hilt. This understanding and feeling will never come
until the Sodality understands fully and is motivated deeply
by the principles of the Spiritual Exercises. And where are
these principles best learned but in the annual retreat? As
the Belgian Secretariate of the Sodality has said, "After all
this, is it not clear that the very first secret in revitalizing the
Marian Sodality is a return to her life-principle, the authentic
Spiritual Exercises?" 114
m
Ibid., introduction, 12.
SACRED HEART RETREAT HOUSE, AURIESVILLE, NEW YORK
REPORT
OF
PRIESTS' RETREATS FOR 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956
1953
Number of 8 Day Retreats
Number of 8 Day Retreatants
Number of 5 Day Retreats
Number of 5 Day Retreatants
Number of 4 Day Retreats
Number of 4 Day Retreatants
Total Number of Retreats
Total Number of Retreatants
Number of Cancellations
~Umber of Dioceses Represented
umber of Religious Orders and
Congregations
~embers of the Hierarchy (Retreatants)
umber of Repeaters
Number of New Retreatants
1954
1955
1956
2
20
25
383
2
24
25
413
1
20
29
472
28
403
27
437
30
492
45
51
56
1
14
23
488
6
89
30
591
45
61
25
5
213
190
25
5
220
217
23
12
295
197
27
7
319
272
�Ignatius· Loyola and the Counter
Reformation
Edward A. Ryan, S.J.
There is a. saying of Ignatius Loyola which might well
serve as a subtitle for this lecture. Often it is expressed in
the form given it by Archbishop John Ireland of St. Paul,
"We must work as if all depended on us, and pray as if all
depended on God." Actually Ignatius expressed his thought
in the following words, "In matters pertaining to God's holy
service we ·should use every possible good means, but then
put all our confidence in God and not in the means.'' Another
and perhaps clearer form of the same idea in Ignatius' own
words is, "I hold it an error to confide and trust in any means
or in human efforts in themselves alone; and I do not consider
it safe to commit the whole affair to God our Lord without
trying to make use of what He has given me. Indeed it seems
to me in our Lord that I must use both these parts desiring
in all things His greater glory and nothing else.'' We shall
see atJ:he end of our study just how Ignatius' thought should
be applied in the present instance.1
Catholic Reform and Couqter-Reforrnation
My title could be understood irr' various ways. "Ignatius
Loyola" is a constant but "Counter-Reformation" can be
defined in more than one way. For a long period it was
applied to the whole movement of adaptation by which the
Catholic Church of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
endeavored to meet not only the threat of Protestantism but
also the challenges of the Renaissance, of modern science, and
of the problems arising from the geographical discoveries of
Vasco da Gama and Christopher Columbus. It is in fact so
This paper was one of a series read at Loyola Seminary, Shrub Oak,
during the Ignatian Year.
1 W. Elliott, Life of Father Hecker (New York, 1894). On p. XIII
we have Archbishop Ireland's remark. It is not attributed to St. Igna·
tius. For a discussion of this dictum see Woodstock Letters, 71 (1942),
69-72, 195-199.
240
j
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
241
understood in the article in the Catholic Encyclopedia. Gegenreformation, the German equivalent of Counter-Reformation,
is a term created by non-Catholic historians who considered
that the history of the sixteenth century Church was conditioned by the Protestant revolt. They had to admit that the
Church was partially victorious but in their minds it was
a victory of the politically superior papacy over an unpolitical
Lutheranism and a politically isolated Calvinism. In addition
· many historians feel that the Counter-Reformation was
responsible for all that shocks them in modern Catholicism:
hidalgoism or contempt for the poor, rejection of true humanism and modern science, search for effect at the expense
of depth, illusions of grandeur, use of the Church by the state
for its own purposes; not to mention the Inquisition, the
Index of Forbidden Books, the burning of heretics and
witches, the massacres of innocent Protestants, and the shameless treatment of Jews, Moors and Indians. To term Ignatius
a hero of the Counter-Reformation, so understood, would
certainly not be to praise him. 2
Catholic historians reject this conception and brand it a
product of confessional prejudice. For them the renewal of
the Church in the sixteenth century came from inner sources
of religious strength. Protestant Reformation is a misnomer.
The movement should be styled the Protestant Revolt. The
true reform was that of the Catholic Church and it was not
a mere reaction to Luther and Calvin. It did not consist
essentially in the forcing of consciences and in the triumph
of politics over the spirit. Rather it was an independent
religious revival of elemental power, one of the strongest in
the history of the world. As a matter of fact some nonCatholic historians led the way in clearing up the confusion
by their studies on the Catholic Reform. 3 At the present time
most historians have come to admit the justice of the Catholic
claims, at least in part. Research has clearly shown that the
Catholic Reform antedated the Protestant Reformation and
~as much wider in scope. As a result it has been consid~red
either as a return to primitive Christianity or as the appear-
2
1I. Jedin, Katholische Reformation oder Gegenreformation? (Luzern,
1946), 9.
3
Jedin, op. cit., 11 ff.
�242
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
ance of a more modern, more personal form of Catholicism.
From an external viewpoint, history makes it clear that the
Catholic Church which was everywhere losing territory to
Protestantism up to circa 1550 was winning back considerable
portions of the lost ground by the end of the century. Not
only did Protestantism not win all of Europe, it never won
the major part. To this day there are more Catholics than
Protestants in Europe; and that despite the Industrial Revo·
lution which increased the population of the Protestant North
far more than the Catholic South. 4 From historians, Ignatius
and the Jesuits receive a great deal of credit for stopping
and rolling back Protestantism. We, of course, are concerned
only with Ignatius in this paper. The importance and the
durability of the Protestant movement must have been quite
unknown to him. That his sons were destined to engage in a
long and, at times, bitter struggle with the disciples of Luther
and Calvin he could not forsee. That the sects arising in
his day would still be strong four hundred years later would
probably have seemed a fantastic assumption to him.
Ludwig von Pastor, the historian of the modern papacy,
rejected- the term "Counter-Reformation" and won for the
term "Catholic Reform" general acceptance. At the same
time he added and popularized another term "Catholic Res·
toration". For Pastor the inner regeneration of the Church
in the sixteenth century was the Ciitholic Reform, whereas
the reestablishment of the Church in regions where it had
been wiped out or imperiled was the Catholic Restoration.
He puts the turn from Catholic Reform to Catholic Restora·
tion about 1575, a score of years after the death of Loyola.
For Pastor the two movements progress side by side until
about 1625 when for a time the Catholic Restoration domi·
nates. 5 Since the term "Catholic Restoration" is in manY
respects the equivalent of "Counter-Reformation", we see
that Ignatius was, for Pastor, a precursor of the Counter·
Reformation. As a Catholic Reformer he is, on the contrary,
4 Lexikon fur Theologie und Kirche VIII (Freiburg im Breisgau,
1936)' 791.
s H. J edin, op. cit., 16 ff. It will be recalled that the failure of the
Emperor Ferdinand II (1619-1637) to maintain Catholic preponderance
led to the Peace of Westphalia and confessional truce.
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
243
one of the most prominent and, while not among the earliest,
the one whose technique of beginning reform with the individual, marks him out as having given the impulse which led
to the genuine inner renewal of the Church. It is not my
purpose to study Ignatius as a Catholic Reformer in this
essay. I limit myself to Ignatius as a Catholic CounterReformer, i.e., as an opponent of Protestantism. It must be
noted, however, that any effort to separate completely the
two qualities in Ignatius, or in anyone else, would be artificial
and misleading. The reader must expect mention of much
that was positive and interior to Catholicism. Indeed, most
of what Ignatius did to stop Protestantism was positive in
the sense that he worked to bolster up the faith of hesitating
Catholics.
Founded to Combat Protestantism?
At the outset of our study we have to consider the state~
ment often made that Ignatius founded his Order to combat
Protestantism, indeed to wipe it out. If this means that the
Society of Jesus was instituted to safeguard and propagate
the Catholic Church, and as a consequence to defend it against
opposing doctrines, it would be true that the Society was
founded against Protestantism which is obviously a doctrine
opposed to Catholic teaching. But in this sense the charge
is vague. The Society could be said to have been founded to
combat any heterodox views. If, on the contrary, this thesis
is understood in the sense that Ignatius, when he founded
his Order, had Protestantism in mind either solely or in a
specific way, it is certainly false. There is no mention of any!
such purpose in the documents which contain the fundamental
charter of the Order, the bulls of Paul III and Julius III
of September 27, 1540 and July 21, 1550 respectively. In
them it is asserted that the end of the Society is the defense
and propagation of the faith and the progress of souls in
Christian life and doctrine by preaching, teaching, retreats,
catechetical instructions, by hearing confessions and administering the other Sacraments and by charitable works. 6 In
the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus there is no mention
6
Societatis Iesu Constitutiones et Epitome lnstituti (Rome, 1949), 9.
�244
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
of Protestantism when the end of the Society is discussed
or in any other connection. Protestantism is mentioned in
the six or seven thousand letters of Ignatius and in the Vita.
lgnatii Loiolae of Juan Polanco which is based on them. But
rather infrequently. When speaking of the end of his Society
in his letters, Ignatius never mentions Protestantism. 7 When
Ignatius died in 1556 most of his followers were in Italy and
Spain. There were three Italian provinces at that time and
three in Spain. In addition Portugal and France had one
each and there were two overseas in Brazil and India. Germany had two. In his last years accordingly Ignatius was
concerned with Germany and with Protestantism. It cannot
be said, however, that they occupied the principal position
in his solicitude. Of the 1157 letters signed by Ignatius between July 1555 and July 1556, only seventy-four went to
Germany, far less than ten per cent. 8
The Roman Breviary, it is true, states that just as God
raised up other holy men in other crises to oppose heresy, so
He raised up Ignatius to oppose Luther and the other heretics
of the sixteenth century. But the Breviary also lists other
activities of Ignatius. The mention of Luther comes after
it has been recalled that Ignatius sent Xavier and other missionaries to evangelize the heathen. Later on the Breviary
speaks of Ignatius' efforts to advance the religious life among
Catholics. This last is characterizl!a· as the most important
of his endeavors. So if we take the lessons of the Breviary
in their entirety, we find that they do not in any way contradict the facts we have established. 9
Early Contacts with Protestantism
We now turn from these general considerations to the
actual contacts which Ignatius had with heresy. They came
late in life and were for the most part indirect. In the Spain
in which Loyola grew up fidelity to the Catholic f~dth was
taken for granted. For every good Spaniard abandonment
of the Catholic religion was treason, a crime against the
B. Duhr, Jesuiten-Fabeln (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1899), 2 ff.
BStimmen der Zeit 156 (1936), 242.
9 "Sed in primis inter Catholicos instaurare pietatem curae
Lectio ·vi.
7
,•
't"
fUI •
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTIS.l\1
245
state as well as the Church. Having won back their country
from Islam at the cost of much blood, it was natural for
Spaniards to look upon enemies of religion as enemies of the
· established order. They recognized not only the right but
the duty of their sovereigns to defend the faith with the sword.
Moral disorders were not lacking in the peninsula but the
faith was strong and the Inquisition was destined rigidly to
maintain religious unity in the country. The suspicions
aroused in Alcala and Salamanca by the Exercises of Ignatius
show clearly enough what meticulous care was taken to maintain the faith in Spain even before the Protestant peril was
imminent. At the Spanish universities Ignatius was taken
for an alumbrado or an Erasmian rather than a Protestant.
In Paris it would have been easier for Loyola to make
contact with Protestants and Protestantism, had he so desired.
Luther's pamphlets were being circulated in Latin translations. John Calvin was a fellow student at the University.
But as Ignatius bore witness, he never frequented alumbrados,
schismatics or Lutherans. He did not know them. 10 No
doubt he heard how certain sectaries had outraged Catholic
feeling in Paris, while he was there, by smashing a statue
of the Madonna, and by posting at night insulting placards
against the Mass. There is even some reason for thinking
that Xavier frequented circles in which Lutheran ideas were
aired but such gatherings were not for Ignatius, nor for
Francis Xavier once he had come under the influence of
Loyola.u
It was as founder and general of the Society of Jesus that
Ignatius first came into contact with Protestantism, and that
indirectly. This was not long after the time when the Roman
authorities began seriously to occupy themselves with the
novelties which had swept Germany away from its religious
moorings. It is true that Leo X had condemned Luther's
doctrine as early as 1520 and excommunicated him the following year, but both in Rome and Germany many refused to
take the movement seriously, terming it a quarrel among
monks. We should not blame the Roman officials too much.
'!'hey were accustomed to disputes and squabbles. There are
10
11
A. Favre-Dorsaz, Calvin et Loyola (Brussels, 1948), 111 f.
J. Brodrick. St. Francis Xavier (New York, 1952), 32.
�246
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
in the world thousands of storms every day. Not many of
them develop into hurricanes. Rome was inclined to think
that the Protestant crisis would blow over. When, however,
Paul III became pope in 1534 he called the Nuncio Pietro
Paulo Vergerio from Vienna to obtain firsthand information
on the situation in Germany. Vergerio, who was later to go
over to Protestantism, was astonished at the ignorance of
the Roman curia on the matter. His reports induced the careful and farsighted Paul III to take up the struggle in a systematic way. It was Paul III who first orientated the Society
of Jesus, which in 1540 he approved, in the direction of
Germany. ~
The Battle is Joined
The early Jesuits found evidence of Protestant workings
in Italy, France, and even south of the Pyrenees but it was
in Germany that in those days the real battle was being
waged. The greater part of Germany, some say, not without
exaggeration, nine-tenths of the population of the Germanspeaking countries, was lost to the Church. Ignatius was
twenty-six when Luther raised the flag of rebellion (1517).
Four years later came the conversion of Ignatius. But nearly
twenty years were to pass between that event and the arrival
in the person of Peter Faber of the first Jesuit opponent in
Germany of the new teaching. During those decades priests
and religious had abandoned the Church in droves. Many
German princes had taken advantage of the turn of affairs
to confiscate Church property, and German humanists were
rejoicing in what they termed the breaking of slavery's
chains. Isolated priests and religious remained faithful to
the Church. More women than men religious were true to
their principles. But the movement engulfed them. It was
as if the earth had swallowed up the army of monks and
priests who a few years earlier had led the German Church.
In reality they had not been swallowed up. They had become
Lutherans, had married and were busy propagating their
errors. 12 •
At the· beginning of 1540, the Nuncio Giovanni Morone
12 B. Duhr, Geschichte der Jesuiten in den Liindern deutscher Zunue
(Freiburg im Breisgau, 1907), I, 2.
,.
J
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
247
reported that the religious situation worsened hourly, that
the authority of the pope declined visibly and lacked all
support. Germans thought it useless to look to Rome for help.
Yet it was from Rome that assistance was to come. Of old,
Rome had sent the Anglo-Saxon, St. Boniface, to evangelize
the heathen and organize the German Church. In the sixteenth
century too, at the word of the Vicar of Christ, Ignatius
Loyola sent some of the first Jesuits to Germany where they
were to play a notable role in stemming and eventually turning the tide of revolt. "That Germany remained true to the
Universal Church and to her own past," writes a modern
Catholic historian, "was due for the most part to the Society
of Jesus." 13
In the 1540's the Jesuits were but a handful and Ignatius
could have used all his men to advantage in Spain and Italy,
not to mention the foreign missions. But late in 1541 Peter
Faber, at the word of Paul III, accompanied the ambassador
of Charles V to Germany, where at Worms and later at
Regensburg, he began to preach, hear confessions and give
the Spiritual Exercises. Johann Cochlaeus, distinguished
humanist and opponent of Luther, was one of those to make
the Exercises. He rejoiced that "masters of the feelings"
had appeared. 14
Faber had to leave Germany in 1541 but during his absence
he continued to pray for Luther and Melanchthon. Not long
afterwards he was back working in the Rhenish cities. One
April day in 1543, young Peter Kanis, now known as St.
Peter Canisius, Confessor and Doctor of the Church, came
down from Cologne to Mainz to keep a rendevous with Divine
Providence. He made the Exercises under the skilled direction
of Faber and soon entered the Society, the first German Jesuit.
Faber, aided by Canisius and others, continued to labor, particularly at Cologne, which at the time was in grave danger
-
13
K. Eder, Die Geschichte der Kirche im Zeitalter des konfessionellen
Absolutismus (Wien, 1949), 76: "Wenn Deutschland den Zusammenhang
~it der Grosskirche und mit seiner eigenen Vergangenheit wahrte, so
Ist das zum grossten Teil das Verdienst der Gesellschaft J esu."
14
Monumenta Historica Societatis lesu I, Vita lgnatii Loiolae I,
.(Madrid, 1894), 93: "Gaudere se diceret quod magistri circa affectus
Invenirentur."
�218
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
of being lost to the Church. He left Germany in 1544 and
died two years later. As is clear from his celebrated
M emoriale, Faber worked in Germany in a spirit of mildness
and charity. There was nothing of the heresy-hunter about
him. Rather he relied on prayer for the dissidents and on
instructions given in a spirit of love and kindness. He bequeathed this spirit to his disciple, Peter Canisius. Forty
years after Faber's death, Canisius still recalled him as the
model of spiritual workmen, "Not an eloquent preacher, but
very devoted to God and the saints; while he lived, a marvellously efficient fisher of men." 15
Ignatius .s.~nt other eminent men to Germany. Claude
Lejay, like Faber a Savoyard, followed his countryman to
Germany. At Regensburg he found heresy strong, and when
his opponents threatened to throw him into the Danube, he
cheerfully replied that one could go to heaven as easily by
water as by land. Expelled from Regensburg, he travelled to
Ingolstadt, Dillingen, Worms. Sickened at the sight of the
defections from the faith, he was amazed that the countries
remaining Catholic did so little for Germany. After attending the.. Council of Trent, Lejay returned to Germany in 1549
with Canisius and Salmeron to take a post as professor at the
. University of Ingolstadt. A few years later he was engaged
in the foundation of a Jesuit colleg~ at Vienna when death
claimed him. Lejay, who was loved and esteemed by the
Catholic Germans, labored effectively for the faith in GermanY
in an hour of desperate need and he did much to advance the
credit of the Society there. 16
The third of the original group of Jesuits to labor in
Germany was Nicholas Bobadilla. His six years north of
the Alps were a series of mishaps. On one occasion he was
robbed of his very shirt by bandits and on another nearly
killed while performing the duties of an army chaplain. But
he fell into disgrace when he wrote against the Emperor and
was summarily conducted to the frontier and expelled from
the Empire. Bobadilla caused the superiors of the early So1 5 "Non dissertus orator sed erga Deum et sanctos dum viveret devotus
precator et piscator hominum mire fructuosus." 0. Braunsberger, B. p,
Canisii Epistulae et Acta (Freiburg im Breisgau, 19) VIII, 119.
1o Duhr, Geschichte, I, 15 ff.
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
249
ciety more than one heartache. It is doubtful, however, if
anything this able but erratic man did grieved them more
than the reputation which he made for himself in Germany.
The fact that he was a good theologian and preacher did not
balance in Ignatius' mind the lack of judgment and steadiness.
It is true that Bobadilla did not like Germany and could not
feel at home there. His attack on the Interim of 1548 can
be explained and perhaps defended. At any rate it won for
Bobadilla a more expeditious return to his beloved Italy than
he could have foreseen. 17
The first efforts, therefore, made by Ignatius through his
disciples to save Germany consisted in direct exercise of the
sacred ministry. Faber, Lejay, Bobadilla and their helpers
preached, heard confessions and gave the Exercises. By
persuasion they tried to stem the tide of Protestantism. We
find them now here, now there, never long in any one place.
This was the original plan of Ignatius: to go, as circumstances
and obedience determined, from place to place, ever intent
on the interests of Christ and His Church. If the Protestant
Revolt had not come to disrupt religious unity in Europe, this
plan might have been continued. But experience amidst the
actual conditions of the century showed that some kind of
continuous action was necessary at least in Germany. If a
line was to be established and held against Protestantism,
centers had to be formed. According to Lejay and Canisius,
the German bishops and princes saw in colleges and universities the principal means for the preservation of the faith and
the revival of Catholic life. As late as 1546, Ignatius and
most of his early companions were against the establishment
of Jesuit colleges even for the training of young Jesuits. But
Ignatius learned from events in Portugal, Spain and Sicily
as Well as in Germany that the colleges which James Lainez,
one of his ablest 'sons and destined to be his successor as
general, was advocating, were a necessity. The initial steps
taken at Coimbra in Portugal, Gandia in Spain and Messina
in Sicily paved the way for the foundation of colleges in
Germany .1s
·
.
In 1549 Ignatius sent, as we mentioned above, Lejay, Sal-
17
'
I
18
Ibid., 24 ff.
Ibid., 33 ff.
�250
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
meron and Peter Canisius to the University of Ingolstadt
as professors. Their lectures, however, were mainly to empty
benches: they had fourteen pupils of whom only four were
prepared for instruction on university level. Ignatius, disappointed in his desire to have a foundation for a college in
which Jesuits could also be formed had drawn all three out
of Ingolstadt by 1552. He had other work for them to do.
The first Jesuit effort to better the educational situation in
Catholic Germany had resulted in failure. 19
In 1550 Ferdinand I had asked Ignatius for Lejay to found
a college in Vienna. Here success was swift. Lejay arrived
in 1551, to be- followed in 1552 by Canisius and others to the
number of a score or more. By 1554 there were three hundred
students in the College of Vienna and by 1556 four hundred.
One bastion of tbe Counter-Reformation and Catholic Refonn
had been established on German soil. 20
Authentic Spirit
At the other end of the future German Catholic line lay
Cologne, which, as we have mentioned, was within an ace
of falling into the Protestant camp since the Archbishop
Hermann von Wied was known to be seeking an opportunity
to apostatize and go over to Lutheranism. The Prior of the
Carthusians at Cologne, Gerard Kalckbrenner, wrote to Ignatius that the situation was hopeless~hnd that the friends of
Christ should, according to the prophecy of St. Brigid of
Sweden, abandon the West and go to the lands of the heathen.
Although he esteemed Kalckbrenner, Ignatius was not a
defeatist. According to the proverb, it is the first blow that
breaks the vase. To crush the fragments is of little im·
portance. Loyola saw things in a different way. He wanted
to save the pieces. Or rather, perhaps, he recalled that Christ
had prayed ut sint unum (John 17, 11) and that such a prayer
must be answered. Those who jumped overboard from the
bark of Peter did not disrupt the unity of the boat; theY
merely drowned themselves. Ignatius was willing to admit
that every 'effort should be made to help the pagans. He him·
self was doing so through Francis Xavier and his other
1a
2o
Ibid., 63 tf.
Ibid., 46 tf.
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
251
missionary sons. But equal efforts by prayer, word, example
and every available means should be made to help the faltering West. Ignatius was determined to do so even though he
felt himself a worthless instrument of the divine wisdom.
He had many Jesuits and in the German College he had about
fifty men who would soon be ready to go back to their country
to perform some signal service as soldiers of Jesus Christ.
This letter breathes the authentic spirit of the Catholic Reform.21
As his sources of information multiplied, Ignatius saw that
at Cologne it was not enough to hear confessions, visit the
sick, and preach devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He, who
had been so reluctant to undertake the work of running colleges, was now determined to have one at Cologne. To effect
this he was willing to make an exception. Although a suitable
foundation was not forthcoming, he named four Jesuits for
the future college in 1556 and gave them as watchword
"totally to forget themselves." This proved a wise move because Cologne became rapidly the Jesuit capital of Germany.
Men trained at the college staffed many other German foundations. Francis Borgia was to praise its fruitful poverty because, second only to the Roman College, Cologne had furnished teachers and priests who showed themselves capable
workers in the vineyard of the Lord. 22
In 1556 Ignatius again consented to take up the work in
Ingolstadt since the Archduke Albrecht of Bavaria was now
Willing to found and endow a college. In June 1556 Ignatius
despatched eighteen Jesuits to Ingolstadt, the beginning of
Permanent educational work by the Society in Bavaria which
Was to develop into a strong link in the chain of Catholic
defense. So before he died Ignatius had, with the aid of
distinguished subalterns, not only planned but begun to man
a Catholic line which was destined to be held: Cologne in the
Rheinlands, Ingolstadt in Bavaria and Vienna in Austria. As
a subsidiary Prague was also the scene of a foundation in
1556. These colleges were the beginnings of an educational
network which for two centuries was destined to cover Catho-
-
21
•
Monumenta lgnatiana I, VIII, 383 ff, "vilia divinae sapientiae
lnstrumenta."
22
Duhr, op. cit., 34.
�252
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
lie Germany in somewhat the same way that our American
Jesuit· educational setup covers our country today. In this
respect we can say with some truth that the German Assistancy was the American Assistancy of the Old Society. In
Germany the Jesuits were in no wise the only ones who did
valiant service for the cause. Just as in America today there
are many, many outstanding Catholics in all spheres who are
not Jesuits or Jesuit-trained. But the Jesuit spirit seems
to have inspired the Catholic remnant in the Germanies to
heroic efforts that probably would not have otherwise been
made. The Society has no need to play this role in contemporary Amr:~rica where a victorious spirit inspires all. The
effect of the ''early Jesuits in Germany was unique and may
be compared to the action of General Phil Sheridan at Winchester, Virginia, in the Civil War. Sheridan met the Union
Army in disordered flight before the confident Confederates.
Courageously rallying the Union forces, he turned certain
defeat into a glorious victory. The early Jesuits found the
army of the militant Church in Germany yielding ground
everywhere to the Protestant onrush and were able to give .
the fe¥[ defenders the courage to continue their resistance. 23
Ignatius and Canisius
Looked at from a purely human viewpoint, the efforts of
Ignatius Loyola in Germany must 1:1ppear as blessed with a
good fortune beyond the capacities of the man who set them
in motion. It would have seemed quite impossible in 1521
that the uneducated soldier, wounded in an obscure campaign,
should ever be able to take any considerable part in Catholic
resistance to Protestantism even if Protestantism remained
a more or less local phenomenon. When in 1540 the traditional
cult was being abolished in much of Germany, any effective
action on his part might have seemed even more remote-and
that despite the fact that he had in the meantime acquired a
23 H. Hauser and A. Renaudet, Les debuts de l'age moderne (Paris,
1929), p. 267, "Ainsi se reconstituait rapidement, dans l'Eglise romain~,
cette force de resistance qui lui avait etrangement fait defaut. DepU!S
Ia restauration du Saint-Office, les progres des ordres reformes, l'appari·
tion de Ia Compagnie de Jesus, elle n'etait plus desemparee, comme
pendant les annees tragiques du pontificat de Clement VII."
.'
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
253
good education and been ordained to the priesthood. He did
not as yet have a single German disciple. And yet the little
Basque with his absolute reliance on God and his mysticism
of election was able in the sixteen years of life remaining to
him to multiply himself in such a way that, without treading
German soil, his spirit was most active in the contest being
waged for the soul of Germany.
Most important for the future had been the winning of
Peter Canisius for his Society. Peter Faber had brought him
into the lgnatian orbit, it is true, but through the lgnatian
Exercises. In 1547 Loyola called the young theologian to
Rome for personal contact. Canisius was then sent to Sicily
for a year before being summoned to Rome for solemn profession. It was on this occasion, September 4, 1549, that Canisius
had the famous vision of the Sacred Heart of which he wrote,
"Thou, my Saviour, didst invite me and bid me to drink the
waters of salvation from this fountain. Mter I had dared to
approach Thy Heart, all full of sweetness, and to slake my
thirst therein, Thou didst promise me a robe woven of three
folds, peace, love and perseverance, with which to cover my
naked soul, one which would be especially useful in the keeping of my vows. With this garment about me, I grew
confident again that I should lack for nothing and that all
things should turn out to Thy glory." On June 7, 1556
Ignatius made Canisius Provincial of the Upper German
Province. In the years after Ignatius' death, Canisius grew
to such stature that a modern German university professor
has said that he became "the Counter-Reformation in Germany",24
Harsher Attitude?
Having treated of the work of Ignatius as an opponent
of Protestantism in its external aspects, one final problem
remains for consideration: the spirit of Ignatius in combating
heresy. His disciples, Peter Faber and Peter Canisius, were,
as we have seen, in favor of avoiding controversy, or at least
aU ins~lting and contemptuous references to their adversaries.
Faber and Canisius had a deep conviction that God had sent
-
24 The Historical Bulletin, 18, (1940), 55. Professor Heinrich Gunther
of Munich.
�254
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISl\1
them to help the Germans in a spirit of love and forbearance.
At first sight the attitude of Ignatius toward heretics and
unbelievers seems much harsher. In 1542 he had intervened
in favor of John III of Portugal who wished to use the Inquisition to control the Jews of his kingdom; and later on he was
even willing that Jesuits should exceptionally hold the post
of inquisitor in Portugal. In 1542 also he was one of those
who urged Paul III to institute the Roman Inquisition. It
has been asserted, probably with reason, that the intervention
of Ignatius in these instances really did not carry much
weight. Still the fact remains that Loyola was in favor of
the Inquisition.::•
Still more damaging to Ignatius' reputation for tolerance
is a document dating from 1554. In that year, Ferdinand I
of Austria, soon to be Holy Roman Emperor, consulted
Canisius on the choice of means for saving his states for the
Church. Canisius turned to Ignatius who consulted Lainez,
Salmeron and other theologians. The result was an instruction modeled after the repressive methods in use in France
and Spain. It is true that it did not satisfy Ignatius. The
formulae ~he used in sending it were less decisive than usual.
Canisius is not given a formal order-only suggestions which
must be examined with the Rector at Vienna, Father de
Lannoy. Ignatius tells them to deci~e whether to present
the memorial or let it drop. Whether presented or not, it has
survived and is one of Loyola's productions best known to
those who do not like him. 26
After enumerating the positive means usual with him, Ignatius turns to repressive measures. He advises Ferdinand
not only to show himself a Catholic but also the determined
foe of all heresy. Moreover the emperor should deprive those
councilors, magistrates and administrators who are suspect
of heresy of all dignities and of all important offices. In fact
it would be more effective if he deprived some of them of life
or condemned them to loss of property and exile, "aliquos
vita vel bonorum expoliationibus et exilio plectendo." Heretics should be eliminated from the University of Vienna and
25
26
H. G. Sedgwick, Ignatius Loyola (New York, 1923), 359.
0. Braunsberger, I (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1896), 488 ff.
�IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
255
other universities and schools. All heretical books should be
burned or banished. Even books by heretics which treat of
grammar, rhetoric or dialectics should be taboo. Heretics
should not even be mentioned by name. "Preachers of heresy
and heresiarchs and all who are found to be communicating
the pest to others should be severely punished even at times
by the death penalty." Still Ignatius was not in favor of
execution by fire or of instituting the Inquisition in Germany.
Things had gone too far, 'Sed de extremo supplicio et de
Inquisitione ibi constituenda non loquor, quia supra captum
videtur Germaniae ut nunc affecta est."
It is not certain, as we suggested above, that this memorial
was ever presented to Ferdinand. But it is a revealing docuument. Ignatius certainly does not qualify in it as a patron of
tolerance. He counts a little too heavily on police protection for
orthodoxy. He was of his time in this respect. It would, however, be wrong to regard this document as expressing Ignatius'
personal opinion on the manner of treating heretics. When we
think of Luther's inflammatory outbursts, Ignatius' program
is mild in comparison. When we study it and the Defensio
fidei by which Calvin, at the very time Ignatius wrote, was
erecting intolerance into a principle and systematizing the
hatred of Catholicism which Luther had taught, we must
conclude that Ignatius could scarcely have recommended
milder conduct to Ferdinand who seemed the last hope of
Catholicism in Austria since his son and heir, Maximilian,
was openly fraternizing with Lutheran preachers.
When there was question of the Jesuits only, St. Ignatius
was in favor of mildness and charity. He was not one to see
heresy everywhere or to call for extreme penalties. The
heretics were erring brethren in whom he saw first the
brother and only secondarily the error. If in writing to a
ruler who wanted to protect the Church in a desperate situation, Ignatius recommended sterner methods, the temper and
the circumstances of the times go far to explain the seeming
inconsistency. Faber, Lejay and Canisius, his disciples, spoke
and acted with such moderation that none could feel offended.
Nadal the man whom Ignatius trusted perhaps more than
any other summed up the attitude of his master when he said,
"Let no one ever hear from the mouth of a Jesuit a word
�256
IGNATIUS AND PROTESTANTISM
which may be interpreted as offensive and insulting or spoken
with an intention of dishonoring our opponents. We must
be satisfied to present the truths of the faith with the greatest
zeal and constancy, with complete sincerity and perfect love
of the truth and with supreme freedom of spirit in the Lord." 27
Conclusion
To return briefly to the maxims on human effort and confidence in Divine Providence with which we began this essay
-it is probable that Ignatius first came to the conclusioJ!
that all available means should be used to accomplish religious
purposes whefi he was debating the question of undertaking
belated university studies. This occurred in 1523 when he
found the Holy Land barred as a place where he might dwell
as a hermit. He said after\vards he had been taught about
that time that he ought to use all natural means while putting
all his trust in God. Certainly the long years of study by
which he fitted himself to found an Order destined to contain
many learned men are an example of the use of human means.
He acquired as good an education as could have been acquired
at the time: The result was that he reaped abundantly in
Germany-the one field of his endeavors we have studied
here-and even more abundantly elsewhere.
Ignatius' advocacy of the use of re.Qiessive measures against
Protestantism should probably also be catalogued under the
heading of using every available means. In his day both the
contending parties looked upon the use of force as legitimate
and he was a man of the times in this respect. Although
we may regret it, we cannot close our eyes to the fact that
force was effective both for and against the faith in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The Catholic Church
was wiped out, or practically so, in the Protestant jurisdic·
tions; Protestantism suffered the same fate under Catholic
rulers. France, where two creeds were tolerated after the
Edict of Nantes, was one of few exceptions.
.
2 7 Epistolae P. Hieronymi Nadal IV (Madrid, 1905), 228.
When
Bernardino Occhino, the General of the Capuchins, married and went
over to Protestantism, Ignatius instructed Claude Lejay to get in touch
with him and promise that the Society would, as far as lay in its power
guarantee his safety. Favre-Dorsaz, op. cit., p. 356.
�The Juan Valadez Case
James D. Loeffler, S.J.
!
On January 11th of this year more than 17,000,000 viewers
saw enacted on their television screen a somewhat garbled but
basically true account of a "Big Story" brought to pass last
June (1956) in El Paso, Texas. Paralleling in many respects
the campaign undertaken just ten years ago in Miami, Florida,
("Esthonians Rescued," WOODSTOCK LETTERS, February
1M7), the re-uniting of many Mexican families separated by
harsh and inflexible immigration laws occasioned less national
publicity than the dramatic Esthonian affair, but was more
far-reaching in its consequences. Even the thousands of
Hungarians since admitted to this country were enabled to
enter through the application to them of the "parole system"
that had its origin here.
It all started in April, 1956, when a good, qu!et Mexican,
Juan Valadez, the father of seven little girls, came to the
Rectory with one of his daughters and laid a sheaf of papers
on the desk before me. From careful perusing of them, I
learned that a third appeal for the admission of his wife to
this country had been rejected and she was held permanently
excludable. Juan was American-born, though reared in Mexico, and four of his daughters were born here. The three
Youngest were living with his wife in Juarez; the rest were
in school here. He was obliged to be father and mother to
them and pay rent for two room homes on both sides of the
Border. On Sundays all went over to Juarez to visit their
lll.other, but the rest of the week they were forced to live
apart.
The situation was obviously contrary to the public interest
and the welfare of the little girls, so I called the immigration
department and asked for a hearing of the case. The date was
set and the lawyer who had represented Mrs. Valadez was
notified. At the hour appointed, I interviewed the Special
257
�258
.,
.
VALADEZ CASE
Inquiry Officer assigned. He had presided at the previous
hearings and his mind was made up. I was excluded from the
hearing and only the lawyer admitted. But he used a brief
containing the arguments I had prepared. The decision was
negative and the results forwarded to Washington on appeal.
In the meantime, the advent of Mothers' Day provided a
dramatic occasion to publicize the case in the newspapers and
this was followed up by a public attack on the iniquitous law
and the method of enforcement, and by editorials and articles
supporting my stand. The latter were written by reporter
Ralph Lowenstein who won the TV Big Story Award for his
efforts. In-interviews and pictures, it was shown that there
were hundreds of such cases along the Border, and nothing
could be done in their behalf except for an occasional act of
Congress granting relief in particular cases. The files of
local lawyers and of the N.C.W.C. Bureau of Immigration
were crammed with hopeless cases that had piled up over a
period of years. Congressman Francis E. Walters of Pennsylvania, chairman of the House sub-Committee of Immigration, and co-author of the McCarron-Walters Act, was in a
position to stymie all efforts of Congress and the President to
bring about a change in the law. This he continued to do.
Through the publicity given to the Valadez case, the matter
came to the attention of President Eisenhower and to Immigration Director Swing in Washingti:m. When the case came
up for hearing in Washington, all was set for a vigorous
fight: representatives of N.C.W.C. and the local Congressman
were present. But the hearing was never held. In a prece·
dent-breaking decision, it was decided that not only the Vala·
dez case but all similar cases were to be reviewed by the local
immigration director and, where it was in the public interest,
he was empowered to grant an indefinite parole into the
United States of any person hitherto excluded by the immi·
gration laws. The local director had intended to do this per·
sonally in the Valadez case but was deterred by higher au·
thority until authorization was received from Washington.
When the news broke, he was immediately informed by
telephone and summoned me and the reporter to his office.
He signed the parole immediately, and told me to have :Mrs.
Valadez at the International Bridge in one hour with her
�VALADEZ CASE
259
children. Here, after the usual procedure, she was permitted
to return to her home and family after four years of exile.
The children on this side of the border were dismissed from
school early to be present on the occasion.
Juan Valadez, returning from work at five o'clock, was overjoyed to see his wife and family re-united once again in their
own home. Reporters and photographers were on hand to
record the historic event. Mrs. Valadez had cleaned the house
and prepared a Mexican supper. When that was over, all
repaired to Sacred Heart Church here with many tears to
thank that merciful Heart for an answer to their long years
of prayer.
Since then, more than 80 families have enjoyed such reunions in this area alone, and the results have been extended
the entire length of the Border, and even to aliens from overseas. Thus has ended one of the most satisfying and consoling experiences of a lifetime. Local lawyers, overjoyed,
banded together to offer free legal service and advice to any
who might need them, so that never again would it be necessary for a prospective immigrant to appear before an inquiry officer of the Immigration Department without competent counsel and direction. The history-making Valadez case
may figure prominently in future Congressional debates and
revisions of the immigration laws.
God, Who didst sanctify the first fruits of the faith in the vast tracts of
~rth America by the preaching and blood of thy holy martyrs Isaac
~ogues and his companions, grant us this grace: that through their
Intercession the worldwide Christian harvest may daily grow more fruitful; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the l\lass of St. Isaac and Companions, Sept. 26.
�Father Francisco J. Hello
Teodoro Llamzon, S.J.
''
That rare combination, which is the dream of every missionary-the gift of tongues, and the ability to adapt oneself
to local ways-Father Francisco J. Rello, S.J. possessed in a
remarkable degree, when as a young Scholastic, he came to
the Philippine Islands in 1905. Already fluent in Spanish (his
native tongu~), Portuguese, French, German, Italian and English, he began to pick up all the important dialects of the
Islands. Ten years later; he could carry on a conversation in
Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, Bicol, Pampango, Ilongo, Pangasinan, lbanag, Cuyunen, Waray-,Varay, Chavacano and Moro.
He even had smatterings of Chinese, Japanese and Russian,
and when, towards the end of his life, someone asked him how
many languages he knew, he gave the incredible figure of more
than forty!
The-key to a people's heart and mind is the knowledge of
their tongue. Father Rello knew this, and he set about putting
his linguistic talent to good use. It was not unusual to see
him, as a hospital chaplain, trudg~ along from bed to bed,
greeting each patient in the native..·dialect, talk to him about
his children and then proceed to the next bed, beginning an·
over again in an entirely different dialect. The invariable
reaction of the sick man was, "I thought I was the only Moro,
or Pampango in this hospital. That Father talked to me in my
own language, and he speaks it very well, too!" Later, theY
were to find out that he was also a man of God, truly interested in their problems and dedicated to solving them. He was
their father in every sense of the word.
The eldest of a family of four, Francisco J. Rello was born
in Spain, in the Province of Orufia, where his patron saint,
Francis Xavier, the famous missionary, had lived. After fin·
ishing preparatory studies in Tarazona Seminary in Tala
Rosa, he entered the Society of Jesus in Zaragosa, on June 1,
1897. He completed his studies in philosophy at Tortosa, and
260
�FATHER RELLO
261
then sailed to the Philippines in 1905 to teach the classics at
the Ateneo de Manila.
Here began his first contacts with the boys, for whom he had
prayed and whose training in God's ways·, he had carefully
planned: Here began his friendship with those bright-eyed
lads, who were later to grow up leaders of their people. A
prominent intellectual in Manila, who now heads a University,
and who sat in his classes thus writes of him with warm
affection:
Although I was only in my early teens, I remember the good
Father for three outstanding qualities. He was kind, understanding
and fair.
At that age, I was a mischievous boy and my first real personal
contact with Father Rello took place when he made me remain
after class. I expected to be punished severly, but he simply talked
to me in a fatherly manner, then, as punishment, told me to go to
confession and communion.
During the first months, our after-class sessions were quite
frequent, but he never showed anger or impatience. As I look
back to those incidents now, I can say that I learned a lot about
good conduct, studies and religion because of them. I was really
getting special lectures on the subjects from a kind and wise
teacher.
Even after I had reformed, he continued to call me for afterclass sessions during which we would have a good talk. He realized,
perhaps, that I was in my most formative years and that the
counsel which he was imparting to me was producing the results
he expected. I think the bedrock foundation of my character, such
as it is today, was formed then, with Father Rello shaping it with
his wise advice and kind words.
In addition to his qualities of kindness and understanding, he
was fair and certainly knew how to handle boys. This was nowhere
better observed than in his handling of our class rivalries. In those
days, following the Spanish pattern, the members of a class were
automatically divided into two rival intellectual bands. The boarders
were called "Romanos," the non-boarders, "Cartagos." To stimulate
intellectual effort, the brightest boys in each group were given
titles.
In all these question-and-answer bouts, Father Rello was the
ultimate judge of whether an answer was wrong or correct. In
making his decisions, he was always fair, playing no favorites and
inspiring the boys to harder efforts.
It was also during this time that Father Rello, seeing the
crying need of the people for instruction in their faith, organized the Ateneo Catechetical Instruction League. It was
�262
FATHER RELLO
a desperate hour for the Church. In the wake of the Philippine Revolution, there was an exodus of Spanish missionaries
from the Islands, and the handful of Jesuits and native priests
were pitifully unequal to the burden of tending the flock. Besides, the faith was besieged by three powerful adversaries,
seeking to tear away the sheep from the fold-the nationalistic
Church of Aglipay, proselytizers, and Masonic propaganda.
Something had to be done immediately if the people were to
remain firm in their faith.
Father Rello, therefore, thought of bringing some of the
students of the Ateneo to fill in the gap of instructions in the
faith. For lhis work, he interested the sodalists, and brought
them to the slums of Tondo. He saw the ACIL through countless obstacles, and went himself to the various centers. He
had the privilege of seeing this organization celebrate its
golden jubilee, and on this occasion, the school paper, GUIDON,
ran a feature article on its accomplishments. Among the
things mentioned was a glowing tribute to its founder: "As
we look over the past records and present achievements of the
ACIL, we can without the least reservation, tell Father Rello
that he-has done his part and that the ACIL will always function as long as the need for it exists."
After his regency, Father Rello went to the United States ,
for theology. He studied at Woods_tock, Maryland. To this
day, his contemporaries remember hiin, and they brighten up
as one mentions his name. He returned to Spain for his ordination to the priesthood, and remained there for tertianship.
The young priest returned to the Philippines in 1913. Three
years later, he was assigned as chaplain to the lepers of the
sanitarium at Culion Island, and it was here that he began
his lifework. For twenty-three years, he climbed the steep
stairways to the wards on the hillsides of the island in order
to bring the patients the healing graces of his ministry. Here,
he spent the best years of his life, and used all his talents to
bring joy to the patients confined in that lonely hospital.
The Jesuit Fathers have been chaplains at Culion ever since
it was established in 1905 by the American Government.
William Cameron Forbes wrote that, when the call for volun·
teers for this service went forth, every Jesuit priest re·
sponded, including Father Algue, Chief of the Weather Bu·
�FATHER RELLO
263
reau in Manila. However, the Jesuit superior could only
spare two men at the most for this work, and one of the lucky
men in the year 1916 was Father Rello.
Perhaps it was because he realized his great privilege;
perhaps it was just his zeal that drove him to heroic love for
the lepers. In any case, he was totally devoted to them, and
spared no effort to share their sufferings, and ease their trials.
To him, no matter how disagreeable the odor of their sores,
nor how repulsive their wrecked bodies, they were still his
children, and he embraced them all in the charity of his heart.
In vain did the doctors plead with him to be more careful.
He would simply say, "They are my children, and I must treat
them as such. Don't worry about me. I should have contracted leprosy long ago, had I been susceptible to it."
His utter disregard of the ordinary precautions of the hospital convinced the lepers that he was truly one of them. They
warmed up to him easily and quickly. To him they took not
only their personal problems, but also the problems of the
whole colony. He was liked both by the doctors and employees as well as by the lepers themselves.
In 1952, the Philippine Government paid tribute to the good
Father Rello had accomplished among the lepers. After a
dinner party at the Malacafian Palace in Manila, the first lady
of the land decorated him "for his unselfish work and distinguished service to the country." The medal came from
President Quirino, and the old priest accepted it with tears
in his eyes.
Nor did the lepers themselves forget his devotion to them.
Seven years after he left Culion, he visited another leper sanitarium in Tala, Rizal, and when the lepers whom he had
tended at Culion learned that he was in the hospital, they
rushed out to meet him. He wrote to a friend: "Yesterday,
I Went 35 kilometers from Manila to see the lepers who were
With me at Culion and are now at the Central Luzon Sanitarium. They were speechless for joy, when they saw me
again after seven years. I heard their confessions for three
hours in all the dialects."
. In 1941, Father Rello was transfered to Zamboanga, on the
Island of Mindanao. Here, Father worked among the Moros
and was chaplain to the prisoners of San Ramon Penal Colony.
�264
FATHER RELLO
When war broke out, he took to the hills, and did what work
he could among the mountain tribes and refugees who had
fled to the mountains.
After the war, superiors called him up to Manila in 1947,
in order to give him a little rest. But his constant request for
work brought him once more the chaplaincy of a hospital, this
time the Philippine General Hospital, the largest in Manila.
Even old age did not prevent him from walking down the long
corridors to the patients who called for him. In his room, he
kept a little statue of the Baby Jesus, and when he received
a call either _during the day or the night, he would meekly get
up and say, "f'm coming, Baby Jesus!" The call of the patient
was for him the call of the Divine Infant.
This devotion to the Child Jesus brought out a most attrac·
tive quality in Father Rello: simplicity. The patients and
doctors knew that Father was like their own father. He was
truly interested in them. His ready smile and his calm face
made it easy for them to confide their troubles to him. He
was always ready to listen, no matter how small their problems, and when walking became an agony, he had himself
brought to their rooms in a wheelchair, in order to attend to
them.
A good illustration of this wongerful simplicity of Fr.
Rello in dealing with souls is brougiit·out by one of his penitents:
For me, the distinguishing trait of Father Rello was his childlike
simplicity. Perhaps, this was the offshoot of the tender love he had
for the Baby Jesus. When presented a small image of the Divine
Baby, he carried it inside his soutane, against his breast. He
simplified everything to one major concern, doing the will of God·
As a matter of fact, whenever he assisted the dying, he made thelll
say with him, "Thy will be done."
The other trait which I found striking was his unchanging
serenity, his consistent and constant cheerfulness no matter what
happened-even when he was suffering physically or was forgotten
or neglected. It was .wonderful to pour out one's sorrow to hilll
because' he was such a sympathetic and consoling listener. And
then, after the sorrow was told, he would always take one to God
-either to Baby Jesus or to the Crucified. I remember once when
he saw me crying, he took me to a crucifix and gently made me saY
with him, "Thank you, Jesus."
�FATHER RELLO
265
A favorite pastime of his was talking to his birds. Wherever he was, in Culion, Zamboanga or Manila, he kept a few
canaries and mayas in a cage in his garden. He would request
his friends to send him these warblers and would take care
of them himself. He brought some sparrows to Culion, and
years later, when he had a chance of visiting the island again,
he wrote to a dear friend in the United States:
I would like to go back to Culion even for a few hours, to see
the inmates and the sparrows which I brought in 1926. I am sure
that they have multiplied. I would like to see the fruit trees also,
and the pineapples and the houses and the church we built for
about two hundred thousand pesos on the hill of the island.
When someone asked him whether the birds understood
him, when he talked to them, he would say, "Surely, they have
their own language and I learn many things from them!"
An interesting incident about his birds is recounted by one
of his close friends :
·
The only time I saw him with tears in his eyes was when my
mother gave him a couple of rice birds to take the place of his
beloved parrot, pikoy, which died of drowning and cold when
Father abandoned it in its bath, to minister to a dying patient. He
was touched to tears that my mother understood how much he felt
the loss of his birds.
Thus, even in his little interests, he did not lose his proper
sense of values. For him, the sick came first, for that was
his work as a priest of God. He promptly answered their
calls, and left everything else to attend to them. At one time,
a call came while he was shaving. Immediately dropping
everything, he hurried to the dying person with' half his face
shaved.
A friend tells of his day's schedule at the Philippine General Hospital:
I don't know at what time he used to rise in the morning when
he was with us. It must have been at a very early hour, because
he distributed Communion to the patients in the wards before the
6 o'clock Mass. He kept this up faithfully even if during the night
he had been wakened two or three times for the dying. The first
year he was in the hospital, he did the rounds painfully on foot.
The bones in his feet kept giving him trouble after his work in
Culion. Later on, he went to the patients in a wheelchair.
But Superiors knew that the old man had finished his work,
and that his long journey through the hospital corridors had
�'
'.
266
''
FATHER RELLO
come to an end. They told him to retire to the Ateneo de
Manila, and take his well-earned rest. Reluctantly, he bade
good-bye to his patients, and like a good soldier, followed his
orders.
In 1954, he became bedridden and was taken to the infirmary at the Jesuit Novitiate in Novaliches. Here, he could
find quiet, and the younger members of the Society could learn
from him the shining virtues of simplicity and faith. The
novices and the Brother Infirmarian constantly attended him
and tried to foresee his needs. Often, they would ask him if
he wanted anything, but he would shake his head and say,
"I'm alright:· Don't worry about me. All I want are your
prayers."
One morning, as he rose from his wheelchair, he fell. X-ray
revealed that he had suffered bone fractures and had to be
brought to the hospital for treatment. The doctors said that
he would have to be in traction for at least four months, and
then in a cast for two months more. Although the injury
was serious, there appeared to be no immediate danger. Yet
it seems that this time Father saw more than the doctors did.
A few tlays after the accident, he requested Extreme Unction
which was administered, although death did not seem immi·
nent. This was the only medicine he wanted, and shortly
afterwards he died. His ears closed.'to the noise of the world
to hear this beautiful invitation: "Come because when I was
sick, you visited Me."
Before his death, he wrote to a dear friend of his in Phila·
delphia, whom he knew only through correspondence, but who
was very close to him: "I have given myself completely to
God and promised to live and die in these Islands, thus making
my sacrifice to God more complete. I have been here in the
Philippines since 1905, and I want to spend my last days here
if God so wills it." God granted his prayer. It was October
1, 1955, when he passed to his reward. He was seventy-nine
years old, fifty-eight years in the Society, and fifty years in
the Philippines.
�FATHER WILLIAM T. TALLON
�.,
-
.:
�Father William T. Tallon
James M. Somerville, S.J.
Born in Hoboken on February 9, 1881, Father William Tallon entered the novitiate at Frederick after completing his
third year at old St. Francis Xavier College in New York. He
distinguished himself very early as a classics scholar and was
sent to teach in the Juniorate while as yet only a Scholastic.
Returning to Woodstock after regency, he was ordained to
the sacred priesthood by Cardinal Gibbons in 1912. During
his fifty-eight years as a Jesuit he was successively Dean of
the Juniorate at Poughkeepsie, Dean of Georgetown College,
Socius to the Provincial, and Rector of St. Joseph's College
in Philadelphia. His last years were spent at Fordham where
he served as student counsellor and classics teacher in the
Prep and, finally, as spiritual father to the Spellman community.
For nearly a quarter of a century Father Tallon composed
the Latin text of the citations and honorary degrees awarded
by Fordham to distinguished laymen and clergy. A conservative estimate would place the number of these scrolls at close
to one hundred, including the one bestowed upon the present
Holy Father when he visited the United States as Cardinal
Secretary of State. Father Tallon had few equals in his mastery of Latin form. His citations were drawn in a terse,
elliptical style that combined the sententious brevity of Tacitus with a sly and genial academic humor. Not a word was
Wasted, yet the total effect was one of grace and elegance.
It was characteristic of this modest, retiring man that
although he had written scores of citations in praise of others,
few were aware that he had himself received the honorary
Doctor of Laws degree from Georgetown while he was President of St. Joseph's. Only after his death did his own brother
and sister learn of the degree from the press. In this instance
as in so many others, Father Tallon was quite incapable of
attaching any importance to an honor paid to himself.
267
�268
FATHER TALLON
One of the more· remarkable features of his last years was
the manner in which he adapted himself to the high school
boys as student counsellor at Fordham Prep. Naturally retiring and serious, he was nevertheless able to win the confidence
and affection of many generations of prepsters who soon
learned how authentic and unselfish his interest in them was.
His office was always crowded with noisy teen-agers who
swarmed around his desk-when they were not actually sitting
on it. They knew that this was one place where they were
always welcome and it was here more than anywhere else in
the school that they felt at home. During these years Father
Tallon ma<fe·many lasting friendships and long after graduation his "boys" would return to ask his fatherly advice and
guidance in their personal affairs.
It was not easy for Father Tallon in his old age to surrender his personal privacy and cultivated interests to engage
in the apostolate to youth; his gravity and quiet dignity
seemed better suited to the academic council chamber. Yet
he carried off his assignment with success and often remarked
that these were the happiest years of his life.
In ~ll things and at all times Father Tallon was the soul
of kindness and courtesy. This was due in no small measure
to his instinctive refinement and family background, but it
also had deeper roots in an overflmvJng supernatural charity.
He loved to do favors for others, especially if he could do them
without being found out. On the other hand, he was most
appreciative of any small kindness done in his behalf, a
quality which was most evident during his last illness. Even
when he was uncomfortable and in pain, he would rarely give
any hint of it, lest he inconvenience others. If relief was provided, he would thank his attendants with such humble gratitude that they were deeply moved. "He is such a gentleman;
so priestly," remarked one of his nurses the day before be
died.
Self-effacing and courteous to the end, Father William Tal·
lon died quietly on October 13, 1956 at St. Vincent's hospital.
May he rest in peace.
,•
�Father Martin Scott
FrancisX. Curran, S.J.
On Sunday, November 28, 1954, at St. Vincent's Hospital
in New York City, died Father Martin Scott.. This grand old
priest had completed seventy years in the Society of Jesus
and was approaching his ninetieth birthday when he was
called to his eternal reward.
Born in New York City when the last reverberations of the
Civil War were dying away, on October 16, 1865, Martin
Scott as a young boy moved with his family to Utica, New
York. There, after his elementary education, he entered in
1880 the Utica Academy. Three years later he transferred
to the College of the Holy Cross for the final year of his secondary education. On graduation in 1884, Martin Scott ap.plied for admission into the Society.
On August 14, 1884, the young neophyte entered Manresa,
the novitiate at West Park, New York. This house of training,
opened by the New York Mission in 1876, became, after the
union of New York to the Maryland Province, a rather
superfluous luxury, since the combined province had only 200
scholastics. Consequently the house was closed and in August
1885 Brother Scott travelled with the other novices and
juniors to Frederick in Maryland. There on August 15, 1886,
Mr. Scott pronounced his first vows. After the completion of
his Juniorate in 1888, he moved to Woodstock for his three
Years of philosophy. In 1891 began his years of regency. He
had a normal period of teaching-two years at Holy Cross
and three years at Xavier College on 16th Street. In 1896
began his years of theological studies at Woodstock. He was
raised to the priesthood at the theologate on June 25, 1899
by James Cardinal Gibbons. After the completion of his
studies, young Father Scott travelled West for his year of
tertianship at Florissant in Missouri.
At the end of his year of third probation, Father Scott was
assigned, in 1901, to Holy Cross as prefect of discipline. In
269
�270
FATHER SCOTT
the following year, he transferred to St. Ignatius Church at
84th Street in New York City. Here he remained as curate,
minister and-the work he remembered most fondly in his
later years-director of the choir, noted for its boy sopranos.
In 1915 Father Scott packed his bags and went off to the
Church of the Immaculate Conception on Harrison Street in
Boston. There he spent nine years in parish work. In 1924,
for the last time in his life, Father Scott again shifted the
scene of his labors. This time he moved to Xavier on 16th
Street where he was to live for the remaining thirty years of
his life. There-he did parish work and, using his own popular
volume, Ansu)e'r Wisely, taught the boys of Xavier High
School their religion. It was an impressive sight to see the
venerable octogenarian, with an eager yet somewhat uncertain step, answer the bell calling him to class. When the
ravages of advancing age-during his last years, Father
Scott was quite deaf-indicated the advisability of his withdrawing from classroom work, Father Scott did not desist
from teaching.
He continued the labor in which he had achieved notable
success, that of instructing converts. He played a notable
part in the establishment of the Xavier Catholic Information
Center and acted for a year as its director. And he continued
to 'vrite.
_
For as a writer Father Scott achieved his greatest fame
and accomplished his most notable services for the Churcb.
It is a rather surprising fact that this, Scott's greatest talent,
remained hidden till he was of an age when most men are
forced to admit to themselves that they are no longer as young
as they once had been. On his transfer to Boston in 1915,
Father Scott wrote a number of newspaper articles which
were well received. At the age of fifty-two, in 1917, he issued
these articles as a book entitled God and Myself.
As soon as the book was published, it was obvious that a
major apologist for the Catholic Church had appeared. This,
his first book, sold, it appears quite certain almost 250,000
copies. His publishers, P. J. Kenedy & Sons, informed the
present writer that their records of sales before 1921 do not
exist, but since that date 183,381 copies of God and Myself
�FATHER SCOTT
271
have been sold. It will be to the point to quote from the publishers' letter:
"I think it is safe to say that better than a million copies
(of Father Scott's works) were printed and in circulation
since 1921. A further estimate would be pure conjecture as
to what the sales were prior to 1921. It seemed, however, to
be his most popular time, and I would venture a guess of
about 100,000 during these first years of his popularity, when
one considers that there were four books, one of which was
his most popular one, then his third and fourth most popular
among them. We could say that the average would have been
50,000 each."
it is impossible to say just how many copies of Father
Scott's books were sold. And when one discusses his pamphlets, it is even more difficult to reach an approximate number, which must have been astronomical. To give an illustration-the Paulist Press informed the present writer that they
had published but one of Father Scott's books and one of his
pamphlets. The book, Marriage, finally reached a printing of
140,000, and the pamphlet, Marriage Problems, "sold approximately 300,000 copies." And how many pamphlets Father
Scott wrote it is impossible to say; it would appear that the
note on the program of his diamond jubilee in 1944 asserting
that he had published over 100 is not too excessive an estimate. Just one of his publishers, America Press, issued at
least fifteen of his pamphlets. Twelve of them are at the
Present date (1955) selling briskly. But the America Press
office could not give the writer even an estimate of the number
sold. It is interesting to note that the latest in the America
series was the first published in 1951, when Father Scott was
eighty-six years old.
Indeed, it is a bit difficult to say how many books Father
Scott published. A page in his papers, dated 1940, shows that
his books were issued by Macmillan, Benziger, and the Paulist
Press. His major publishers, however, were always Kenedy,
and their records show that they alone issued twenty-five of
Scott's books, with a total sale, since 1921, of 939,654.
Nor was the good effect of Father Scott's writings restricted only to English-speaking peoples. A note on the
diamond jubilee program informs us that Father's works were
�272
'
'
FATHER SCOTT
published in Spanish, Italian, French, Chinese, and Hindustani versions. What the circulation of these translations may
have been, no one can even guess.
Down to his last days Father Scott carried on his apostolate
of the press. After his death there was discovered among his
papers the first draft of a volume on which he was workingin his ninetieth year! But the great flood of his writings
had, quite understandably, dwindled to a trickle in his ninth
decade. To the last his mind remained clear, and the only
notable impairment of his faculties was his deafness. Until
a few months before his death, Father sallied forth for his
daily stroll,~impeccably dressed and carrying a cane on which
he had to rely increasingly. During his walks he would smilingly engage children and passers-by in conversation. Proud
of his age, (it appeared in his conversation that he intended
to live to be the oldest Jesuit in the United States), he would
challenge his chance acquaintances to guess his exact age.
From his smiling reports to the community, few guesses came
within ten years of his age. Indeed, among his papers there
is a letter from Frank Hague, political boss of Jersey City,
paying- the dollar he had lost on his wager with Father Scott.
But time took its toll, and in the last months of his life
Father Scott had to submit to the doctors. He was not sick,
he was merely old and tired. After a first stay at St. Vincent's, the doctors released him. Bift·soon he had to return to
the hospital. To his visitors the exhausted old man expressed
the hope that God would not delay his homecoming much
longer.
Finally, on November 28, 1954, God called his faithful
servant, who had written so well and so much about Him, to
Himself. On Thursday, December 2, in the Church of St.
Francis Xavier, crowded with prelates, priests, nuns, and
laity, Cardinal Spellman pronounced the last absolution over
one of America's greatest Catholic apologists.
�Books of Interest to Ours
DESERVING HIGHEST PRAISE
Son of the Church. By Louis Locket. Translated by Albert J. LaMothe,
Jr. Chicago: Fides Publishers Assoc., 1956. Pp. xiii-255. $4.50.
Father Lochet, formerly a professor of theology, has been pastor of
a worker-parish in Reims for the past six years. Through this actual
experience in the apostolate he has come to feel deeply "the enormous
disproportion between the apostle's love of men and his own innate
weakness to reach so few men and for so short a time." Certainly the
author's experience is not an extraordinary one. It is the experience of
any apostle. It is an experience which can lead to lassitude, to discouragement, even to despair. But it can also lead the apostle to reflect. That is
what the author has done, and his book is the fruit of his reflection. As
he states in the foreword, he offers it as "the testimony of a man who
works in the Church, and who seeks to understand what he is doing by
discovering what she is."
·
_
The book, therefore, is not a new attempt at furthering theological
research. Rather, it seeks to take up truths long familiar to all of. us
and re-present them in such a way that we view them not as "stimulating
speculations," but as the sole adequate explanation of our lives and our
work within the Church. The book betrays its origins: it is the work
of one who is to an eminent degree both theologian and apostle, of one
who has come to realize that the Church offers us her theology not only
as something to be contemplated but as something to be lived. The author
is not the first to have come to this realization, nor surely will he be
the last. But, more than others, he has given eloquent expression to a
realization of which all of us must be constantly reminded. It is primarily
for this reason that the book is deserving of the highest praise.
While every chapter will be read with profit, three at least seem to
merit special mention: the first, in which attention is given to the more
serious temptations that beset all apostolic activity; the fourth, in
which the author seeks to show that all our activity will have meaning
and value only when it is done within the framework of the Church;
and the ninth, in which are discussed the qualifications necessary for
the apostle of our age.
It is a matter of some regret that the English translation is at times
rather too close to its French original, so that clarity and smoothness
have suffered to some degree.
JOHN F. CURRAN, S.J.
273
�.
274
BOOK REVIEWS
CLASSICAL HUMANISM
'
A History of Education in Antiquity. By H. I . .Marrou. Translated
by George Lo,mb. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1956. Pp. xvii-466.
Histories of education are certainly not a rarity, but a history of this
quality is. For a fascinating theme, the relation of education and culture,
permeates Marrou's story of Classical humanism. This theme is the heart
of an original synthesis of recent research material on an old subject
which the author presents in a thoroughly delightful narrative style.
A further technique of the publisher makes this volume more enjoyable
to read. This is the arrangement of footnotes which allows for unobstructed reading as well as documentation, by placing the original
citations to documents as paginal footnotes, while more detailed refer·
ences constitute a substantial section, "Additional Notes."
The scope of Marrou's history extends from 1000 B.C. to 500 A.D.
First, it watches the shaping of classical education principally in the
hands of Plato and !socrates, then analyzes its classical form in the
Hellenistic age and finally, follows its propagation throughout the pagan
and Christian world of Roman influence until its destruction by the in·
vading waves of Germanic tribes from northern Europe. A continuous
picture results: an· initial athletic-militaristic training gives way first
to an artistic and finally to an intellectual-literary education. Details of
this sketch are filled in with information on methods, curriculum and
institutions of each era and with other, perhaps more interesting, topics
such as the impact of great masters of the Classical tradition.
This story of Western civilization's birth and growth will profit many
of Ours but perhaps none more than those teaching and studying in
the juniorate, high school and college. For it offers a deeper knowledge
of humanism, the basis of our Jesuit syl!tem of education. It discusses
methods, e.g. the idea of imitation (p. 84) ~nd emulation (p. 272), values
such as the mind-sharpening effect of mathematics (p. 73) and possible
weaknesses, such as the danger of superficiality and unreality resulting
from an overemphasis on humanistic culture (p. 57). These and other
points together with a special chapter give further insights into the
nature of Classical humanism.
L. H. LARKIN, S.J.
STIMULATING
The Mass and Liturgical Reform. By Rev. John L. Murphy. Milwaukee:
Bruce Publishing Co., 1956. Pp. xii-340. $5.95.
The current in the literature today is a rather marked shift fro!ll
the post-Tridentine emphasis on the hierarchical structure of the Church,
to that aspect of the Church as a living organism which is designed to
bring about an active, intelligent participation of the laity in the Jife
of that Body. In this transitional phase which has already seen so manY
reforms in the liturgical life of the Church, Father Murphy has .don:
a signal service for priests, religious and laymen whose time IS a
�BOOK REVIEWS
275
a premium, and who lack ready access to sources. Within the small
compass of this book, the author has competently delineated the meaning
of Liturgy, as well as its relations with faith, with converts, religious
instruction and everyday living. He has also given us an illuminating
analysis of the doctrine of the Mystical Body, traced a comprehensive
history of the liturgical development, and presented a penetrating and
challenging exposition of the pastoral needs of the twentieth century.
In defining exactly the current problems and proposing solutions, and
especially while treating the use of the vernacular in the Mass, it is the
author's avowed purpose to stimulate thought rather than give final
solutions.
Richly documented by use of the monumental studies of Jungmann,
first and foremost, and of Gregory Dix, Schmidt, Durst, Ellard, Klauser,
Steuart and others, the author discusses and comments on various
aspects of the liturgy and liturgical reforms. Moreover, he constantly
makes use of the pertinent Papal encyclicals, Mediator Dei and Mystici
Corporis Christi. This book should bring the reader abreast of developments and serve as a guide to the sources for anyone interested in a
deeper and more intensive study of the Mass and liturgical reform.
Certainly both lie at the very heart of the revival calculated to make
the Church of tomorrow a force that will bring the neo-pagan world
to the feet of Christ.
EMMANUEL V. NoN, S.J.
DAWSON SYNTHESIS
The Dynamics of World History. By Christopher Dawson. Edited by
John J. Mulloy. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1956. Pp. xiv-489.
$6.00.
While haunted by the memories of two world wars and nervously
attempting to ward off an even worse cataclysm, the men of the atomic
age are abandoning the search for historical facts. Men today strive
to find the meaning in events. The metahistorian who offers the best
explanation of history to Catholics is the convert, Christopher Dawson.
His socio-religious point of view aids readers to unite the mass of
historical data. For according to Dawson, religion and cultures ferment
and fuse to produce historical vitality; historical epochs are categorized
by the religious viewpoint held by the culture.
The Dynamics of World History, edited by John Mulloy is an
attempt at a Dawson synthesis. Selections culled from his works which
Were penned between 1921 and 1955 present Dawson's thesis in his own
Words; the editor confines himself to an extensive "note." The book is
divided into two main divisions. The second part, "Conceptions of World
History", far outshines the other. Dawson writes lucidly in defense
of his own metahistory. The recent dates of these metahistorical essays,
however, make a reader wonder whether the first section of the book is
as valuable. The first part, "Toward a Sociology of History", is not
too Well unified. Readers also realize that Dawson's views have sharp-
�276
BOOK REVIEWS
ened over the years. Yet the reader is made uneasy by the thought that
a synthesis is only valuable if it portrays accurately the present
opinion of the author. Would not a scholar of Dawson's caliber have
utilized the research of a genius like Lewis Mumford? Yet the section
on urbanization bears no date later than 1935; Mumford's research was
published after that date. Dawson, also, would not have approved the
spelling of Frederic Le Play's name as "Leplay" (p. 216); the French
sociologist is too well known to Dawson. The assurance of the editor
that the synthesis received Dawson's approval would be a mere shadow
compared to an actual reworking of this valuable material by Christopher Dawson.
The editor's "note", moreover, which is actually a commentary on
each section, is hidden disadvantageously at the end of the book. At the
same time the- two main divisions and the five chief subdivisions are
introduced only by a change of format on the introductory page:
Dawson is clear but even he would have provided a commentary to
show why "Prevision in Religion" is followed by "T. S. Eliot on the
meaning of Culture". The editor's commentary does link the disparate
sections but its hidden location and essay form will not win accolades.
The content of the "note" is excellent; the treatment of an "'aesthetic
approach" to history (p. 445) shows keen insight.
A second edition, more carefully edited, with the commentary readily
accessible would be useful to Catholics; a second edition, reworked by
Dawson,~would be a windfall.
EDMUND G. RYAN, S.J.
INSPIRATIONAL
The Roman Catacombs and Their Martyrs: By Ludwig Bertling, S.J.,
and Engelbert Kirschbaum, S.J. Tr;nslated by 1\:1. Joseph Coste!·
loe, S.J. Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Company, 1956. Pp.
xiv-224; 48 plates. $3.50.
For a knowledge of the miraculous spread of Christianity during
its first four or five centuries, we must turn not only to the writings
left by those early Christians but also to their "monuments," the
material remains of that era which have been preserved down to our
own day. Chief among these monuments, of course, are the catacombs
of Rome, those eighty or ninety underground miles where Roman Chris·
tians buried their dead 1500 years ago, and in so doing left for us
inspiring testimonies of the Faith they affirmed, even when it meant
the laying down of life itself.
·
However, although the catacombs of Rome have always been held
in special veneration by the Christian world, it is only since 1819 that
these precious store-houses of Christianity have been studied with t~e
care and scientific exactitude that they deserve, and so it is only within
comparatively recent times that we have been able to use the catacomb~
as a means of gaining a fuller understanding of the persecutions an
triumphs that Christianity experienced at Rome.
�BOOK REVIEWS
277
Because the catacombs do afford such clear insights into early
Christianity, and because most Christians have rather nebulous notions
concerning the catacombs and their origins, Father Hertling of the
Gregorian and Father Kirschbaum, an archaeologist of renown, set
about presenting the German Christian world with a "popular"' yet
pains-takingly accurate description of what the Roman catacombs are
and what their history has been. So successful was their endeavor that
Father Costelloe, a Fulbright scholar who studied under Father Kirschbaum, undertook translating their book into English.
· Beginning with a general description of how the catacombs came to
be, the authors then give the histories of the different catacombs,
together with brief accounts of the individual popes and martyrs whose
tombs are found there. Thus names we have ofteri heard read from the
Martyrology or have seen in the pages of the Missal become personages
separated from us by a millennium and a half, yet closely united with
us in the profession of "one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism." In
special chapter on the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul, Father
Kirschbaum, one of the four men commissioned by the Holy Father to
explore the tomb of St. Peter in 1954, tells us clearly and concisely all
that has been discovered by the recent excavations beneath St. Peter's.
However, interesting and inspiring though these chapters are, I am
sure that for most readers the chapters on .. The Eucharist," "Baptism,"
and "The People of God" will be even more highly prized because of the
insight they give into the Faith lived by these "every-day" Christians
of early Rome.
The intrinsic interest of the subject itself, the obvious enthusiasm
of the authors for their work, the clarity of their presentation, the
copious use of plates and diagrams-all go to make the reading of this
book an eminently satisfying experience.
JOHN F. CURRAN, S.J.
a
CONTEMPORARY SCHOLASTICISM
Progress in Philosophy: Philosophical Studies in Honor of Rev. Dr.
Charles A. Hart. Edited 'by John A. McWilliams, S.J. Milwaukee:
The Bruce Publishing Co., 1955. Pp. vi-216. $5.00.
Progress in Philosophy can be conveniently assessed by pointing
out three degrees of progress in its articles. The section on the philosoPhy of nature best manifests the first degree: new problems unfortunately treated like old ones. The Aristotelian method of Physics is
applied to modern physical scientific method, apparently ignoring the
distinctive methods and objects of philosophy and of science as under~tood by the practitioners of each today. Thus there is an attempt to
llluminate modern relativity and atomic theories with Aristotle's treatment of the same: with verbal similarities, the formal differences born
of two thousand intervening years appear to be glossed over. The same
confusion of objects and methods in the following essay leads the author
to reproach science for its failure to distinguish substance from accident.
�278
BOOK REVIEWS
Several highly competent articles, introduced by an essay on the
tenets of Realism by the editor of the collection, exemplify the second
degree of progress: new problems met by enriching the old answers
with new data. In the realm of metaphysical psychology, Father
Ignatius Brady, O.F.M., analyzes Saint Bonaventure's doctrine on the
soul, emphasizing its intrinsic natural ordination to the body in spite
of the body's mortality. Anton C. Pegis follows with a fine historicophilosophical presentation of the genesis of Saint Thomas' notion of
soul and, in the light of his proximity to the Aristotelian Averroes, its
surprising closeness to Augustine. In the domain of Ethics Father
Gerald Phelan states a natural law credo in challenge to currently
popular pragmatic jurisprudence. Ignatius Smith, O.P., concludes the
book with an Interesting anthology of Thomistic thoughts on the social
nature of man,, and the function of government and authority.
Finally, most stimulating and creative are the inquiries into the
proper object of metaphysics by Father W. Norris Clarke, S.J., and
Elizabeth Salmon. Father Clarke draws out the implication of the
recent Existentialist thrust in Thomism with its emphasis on the
actually existent. Since, unlike possible being, actually existent being
alone can lead to the existence of God, it alone should be the primary
object of metaphysics. Elizabeth Salmon's essay traces the false
problems that arise from the substitution of a Cartesian clear and
distinct idea of being, for an analogous notion of being that preserves
being with all its mystery. Thus being itself won't be considered con·
tradictory because one's inadequate concepts of it are contradictory.
In the other articles in this section, Jacques Maritain refines his idea
of the proper effect of subsistence on essence, and Father Francis X.
Meehan presents with critical comments the present status of the Neo·
Scholastic proof for the existence of Grul from contingency.
Clearly the good far outweighs the-hiss good in this illuminating
cross-section of contemporary American Scholasticism. The tribute
of its publication in honor of Father Hart is expressed in James D.
Collins' dedicatory encomium of Father Hart's years of devoted service
as priest, philosopher, and apostle.
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
TRANSITION
An Introduction To Philosophy. By Daniel J. Sullivan. Milwaukee:
Bruce Publishing Co., 1957. Pp. 288. $3.75.
The express purpose of this introduction is to help the modern
American college student to make the transition from his literary studies
to the philosophical realm. The transitional aspect is emphasized through·
out by th~ method of approach, the order of the book, and the stress
placed on the moral and social implications of philosophy. Not until
the last chapters is the reader introduced to metaphysical analyses·and
their applications in our knowledge of God.
The first seven chapters of the book treat of the ancient Greek
�279
BOOK REVIEWS
philosophers, culminating in Plato and Aristotle. The brevity of these
chapters and their concluding summaries will greatly encourage the
timid "beginner". Moreover the manner of describing the early Greeks
is provocative rather than detailed, arousing the reader's interest by
sketching in broad strokes the dilemmas confronted by the Greeks and
the gradual elaboration of their answers.
The author then chooses to treat the concrete problems with which
philosophy has dealt, concerning man himself, his reason, passions,
personality and final end. In comparison with standard scholastic
manuals, there is a greater proportion of space devoted to these questions, ethical and psychological for the most part. However, this is
an introduction to philosophy, not a manual. It proposes to awaken in
the student a real interest in philosophy by showing its pertinence to
his everyday ·personal and social life, and to the life of the community
and state in which he lives. And it is questionable whether such a
departure from the more traditional manualistic method of presenting
scholastic philosophy to college students, needs any apology.
This is a good introduction, brief, clear, disarmingly fluent. It
reads so easily that the reader has to take care not to miss the full
import of what is being said. Some perhaps might object to its consistent Spartan terseness, preferring to see less matter and greater
amplification. However the advantages afforded by a more universal
description of the field of philosophy, would seem to outweigh the
danger of possible superficiality and ambiguity. And the excellent
references provided throughout the book by the author, as well as an
extremely up-to-date reading list of recommended and advanced readings
which is appended, effectively supply the depth which is inherently
lacking in any true introduction.
JOSEPH L. RoCHE, S.J.
IGNATIAN AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Le Recit du Pelerin, Autobiographie de saint Ignace de Loyola. Third
edition by Andre ThirY, S.J. Louvain: Museum Lessianum.
Bruges: Desclee de Brouwer, 1956. Pp. 152. 63 B. fr.
One more fruit of the lgnatian year: a new edition of the first
French translation of the Autobiography of Saint Ignatius, first published thirty-five years ago by Father E. Thibaut. This translation,
however, has been entirely revised by Father Thiry, and enriched by
numerous annotations and references which faithfully reflect the progress of lgnatian studies in the past three decades. A remarkable sketch
of St. Ignatius' spiritual itinerary opens the book, which is attractively
Presented and contains four original maps. An appendix in which the
similarities between the Spiritual Exercises and the Autobiography are
carefully listed and classified, will prove of special interest to all students
of the Exercises and to retreat directors. In short, a precious little
Volume which deserves a place in any lgnatian library.
P.
LEBEAU,
S.J.
�'!
280
BOOK REVIEWS
CLEAR, FAIR ANALYSIS
Religion and the Psychology of Jung. By Raymond Hostie, S.J. Translated by G. R. Lamb. New York: Sheed & Ward, 1957. Pp. 249.
$3.50.
The author's intention is to examine the empirical character of
the method proper to analytical psychology in order to appreciate the
fundamental insights of the science at its true value. In the light of the
conclusions reached, he endeavors to determine what Jung means by
"-religion" or "-religious attitude" and then investigates what function is
ascribed to religions, in the sense of "confessions". Finally, the implica·
tions of analytical psychology, which extend into the fields of dogmatic
and pastoral theology, are evaluated.
In order to accomplish his task Hastie uses all of Jung's works and
his personal ~nterviews with the psychologist himself. The result is a
clear and orderly presentation of Jung's work with a corresponding
evaluation of his system and its implications. Father Hastie, admitting
Jung's sincere desire not to trespass in the sphere of philosophy and
theology, asserts that the reason behind Jung's contradictory attitudes
is his admixture of theory on the one hand, and on the other, practice
which ignores the well-defined limits of the psychic.
In his chapter on spiritual direction, the author tries to reduce
the antagonism between psychotherapy and spiritual direction. Actual
sin, he says, docs not lead to neurosis; and confession, as the sacra·
mental forgiveness of sins, is incapable of curing neurosis even in its
mildest~form. Analysis has no use for formal sins: it only becomes
interested in sins when ignorance or repression of them causes some
sort of psychic dissociation. Father refuses to accept any identification
of psychic analysis with confession, but l].e believes that there can be
some collaboration between priest and the!"apist, if these two ways of
treating the soul can be clearly defined.
People who judge Jung by his theoretical attitude will agree with
him. People who concentrate on his practical application will criticize
him. Father Hastie counsels taking a broad view of Jung's work,
acknowledging how much he has given as well as his deficiencies.
Though this is the author's first book, it is notable for its clarity of
analysis and fairness of criticism. This reviewer recommends it un·
conditionally to all students of psychology and spiritual directors.
FRANCIS SCHEMEL,
S.J.
NEW PHILOSOPHY 'TOOL'
Summary of Scholastic Principles. By Bernard Wuellner, S.J. Chicago:
Loyola University Press, 1956. Pp. 164. $2.00.
In a companion volume to his Dictionary of Scholastic PhilosophY
(Bruce, 1956; see THE WOODSTOCK LETTERS, val. 85, no. 4, PP·
474-475) Father Wuellner has incorporated all the major principles of
scholastic philosophy under forty-five general categories, such as "act
�BOOK REVIEWS
281
and potency", "habits", "truth", "will", etc. The principles are numbered
consecutively, totaling 569, due to the frequent repetition of many
principles according to their different applications under various headings. Cross references are constantly supplied. Pertinent detailed
references to modern periodicals, general philosophical works and the
better, modern textbooks, as well as to the important loci in Thomas
and Aristotle, are also provided at the conclusion of each of the categories. The relevance of these principles to certain particular fields is
briefly sketched by means of twenty exercises which are dispersed
throughout the book.
The chief usefulness of this new "tool" for the budding philosopher,
and for his professor as well, is that it provides a conspectus of the
scholastic approach to all the major fields of philosophy, as this approach
is epitomized in scholastic principles. By means of cross references,
the constant repetition of basic norms is brought graphically to light.
There may be some who might take exception to a book of this type for
a college student. It may seem too neat a summary for the all-toofacile memory of the students,-a manual providing all the "answers"
before giving the problems, or perhaps more accurately, affording a
complete list of "majors" to which the student need but add his "minor"
to come out with the conclusion. However, it is doubtful whether a
summary of this type is open to such an abuse. Even its immediate
profit for the student would be negligible. On the contrary, a judicious
use of this book by a competent teacher can avoid the pitfalls of such ·
short-cuts and over-simplifications. It can furthermore help to develop
that sense of the unity and inter-relationship between the various
branches of scholasticism, which is so often missed by the undergraduate, and lost forever by the post-graduate.
JOSEPH L. ROCHE, S.J.
CLEAR AND HELPFUL
Glossary of Sociological Terms. Compiled and edited by: Clement S.
Mihanovich, Ph.D., Robert J. McNamara, S.J. and William N.
Tome, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co., 1957. Pp. iv-36. 85¢.
"This is an attempt, assuredly not a definitive attempt, to remedy
a vital need in sociology, at· least in part. All sociologists will not
necessarily subscribe to all these definitions. However, the sociological
concepts as here presented are, at least, generally acceptable to sociologists." Thus Dr. Mihanovich in the preface to this short but extremely
Useful work. These definitions are the result of five years' work in both
the graduate and undergraduate sociology courses of Dr. Mihanovich
of St. Louis University. Fathers McNamara and Tome organized and
SYnthesized the definitions, and the completed manuscript was submitted
to experts in the various fields. Dr. Mihanovich checked all and revised
some of the definitions after the manuscript was completed. The
Sociology and social science student will find this pamphlet very helpful
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BOOK REVIEWS
for a clear and critical understanding of the many books he must
necessarily read.
R. EUGENE MORAN, S.J.
PLEASANT READING
The Lively Arts of Sister Gervaise. By John L. Bonn, S.J. New York:
P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957. Pp. 227. $3.50.
As is evident from the title of the book, the story relates the trials
of Sister Gervaise as play directress of St. Rita's Parish High School.
But her woes are not only confined to the stage and her charges. She
also finds herself involved in verbal clashes with the Reverend Pastor
over sugary hymns. ·She is later caught in a family squabble. All these
and many more amusing and heart-warming incidents add up to a very
enjoyable novel. The author has a good style and the story moves
along smoothly with periodic touches of pathos. But the most winning
quality of the novel is Sister Gervaise herself. In spite of her wimple,
her ankle-length skirt and her defects, we get the picture of an ordinary
woman trying in her own little way to do the Will of God. A novel of
this kind is most welcome indeed. The incidents seem so real that it
could happen to any Sister in any parish school, and that Sister could
be a Sister Gervaise. If you want a couple of hours of pleasant reading,
then let Sister Gervaise and her lively arts entertain you.
OSCAR
A. MILLAR, S.J.
ECLECTIC SYNTHESIS
General Metaphysics. By John P. Noonan, S.J. Chicago: Loyola
University Press, 1956. Pp. ix-273. $2:..9'<>:
Those of Ours who have used Father McCormick's Scholastic
Metaphysics will welcome the appearance of this new text in general
metaphysics. For the plan of development and philosophical point of
view are much the same. Father Noonan's aim is "to clarify and
simplify as far as possible the basic ideas of philosophy." The funda·
mental idea of Being is derived by subjective precision (ascending the
Porphyrian tree) and the resultant concept is the narrowest in compre·
hension ("that which is not nothing") and the widest in extension.
Such an abstracted concept of Being does, of course, face the apparent
dilemma that Hegel posed: a concept of being which is the concept of
no-thing is identical with the concept of nothing. The author is aware
of 'Hegel's pretended identification and argues skillfully against it. Real
being is of two kinds: the actual (physical) and the possible (meta·
physical). It follows then that existence is a "state of being" and not
an intrinsic constitutive note. Consequently too, the real distinction
between what-a-thing-is and its act of being is denied as an unnecessarY
complication (Occam's razor is sedulously applied). The truth of .tb~
distinction is at best problematical and on it no other philosophiCII
truth of any great importance rests. The Thomists, to be sure, are
�BOOK REVIEWS
283
given their innings in an extensive quotation from Cardinal Mercier in
support of the real distinction. But "from the very definitions of the
terms it seems clear that existence is a state of being and not a being
in itself."
As is probably clear too, this approach to the philosophy of being
is not Thomistic, save in the wide sense in which St. Thomas forms but
part of the scholastic tradition from which the author has fashioned his
synthesis, an admitted eclecticism for which he makes no apology and
believes none is needed. And for one who accepts the fundamental
premises-the point of departure and the methodology-there will be
no difficulty in accepting the rigorously deduced conclusions.
The text is clearly written and the language is always apt and
fresh. To that extent the author has achieved his secondary aim of
expressing philosophical ideas in good idiomatic English rather than in
the Latin-English jargon which mars many other texts. One would
question, however, the value, or need, of Latin phrases as parenthetical
expressions. A Glossary of Terms and an Appendix are added.
H. R. BURNS, S.J.
HIDDEN HEROISM
Heros dans l'ornbre, rnais heros quand rnerne. By Alphonse Gauthier, SJ.
Sudbury, Ontario: La Societe historique du Nouvel-Ontario,
1956. Pp. 43.
The glory that surrounds the memories of the North American
Martyrs might lead us to underestimate the achievements of those who
resumed their work after the restoration of the Society. This brochure
does justice to three of those dedicated pioneers of the 19th century:
the Jesuit Brothers Jean Veroneau, Joseph Jennesseaux and Georges
Lehoux, two Frenchmen and a Canadian, who labored among the
Indians in Canada. Their hidden heroism certainly justifies the enthusiasm of their biographer, and gives a moving testimony to the loftiness
of the vocation of temporal coadjutor.
P. LEBEAU, S.J.
BREATH OF SCRIPTURE
The Window in the Wall. By Ronald A. Knox. New York: Sheed &
Ward, 1956. Pp. ix-130. $2.75.
What characterizes this collection of sermons on the Eucharist is
Monsignor Knox's ability to adapt his subject to a topic uppermost in
People's minds at the time, and to penetrate deeply into the spiritual
needs of his hearers. The sermons take us through the periods of the
early years of the Second World War, the advance of the allied armies
toward Rome, the cessation of hostilities in Europe, the Nuremberg
trials, and the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. For each sermon the
Scripture text, whether from the Old or New Testament, is aptly
chosen and well developed with the use of vivid pictures. "The Window
�I
I
284
BOOK REVIEWS
in the Wall" (the title of the first ser:mon), for example, paints a scene
from the Canticle of Canticles. In the comparison Christ becomes the
Beloved calling through the window, which is His glorified Body veiled
in the Host. The window in the wall of our corrupt nature belongs both
to this world and to eternity. With our modern Christian world becoming more Bible-conscious, and with our Holy Father urging the greater
use of Sacred Scripture both in teaching and in private reading on
the part of the faithful, Ours might profit by studying how Monsignor
Knox makes the Bible live. The principal themes of these sermons are:
personal union with Christ in Holy Communion, the oneness of all the
faithful in Christ, and the ardent desire of Christ to give us the Bread
of the strong, so that we may make His life ours.
THOMAS
H.
CONNOLLY,
S.J.
SUPER-INTELLIGIBILITY
The Silence of St. Thomas. By Josef Pieper. New York: Pantheon,
1957. Pp. 122. $2.75.
Josef Pieper has written a series of three essays with a single
theme. The theme can be stated as a double paradox: Creatures are
knowable because at root they are ultimately unfathomable, and they
are ultimately unfathomable because at root they are known. Or in
Pieper's own words: "One and the same factor explains both why
things cannot be entirely grasped and why they can be known." The
inscrutability of things is almost the same as their knowability: their
status as creatures thought-created by God.
It is St. Thomas' awareness of this surplus of intelligibility in
things that accounts for his silence. He had pursued the ways of
creaturely knowledge to the. very end, to lhe boundary where omnia
exeunt in mysterium. It is not death that took pen from his hand: the
Summa Theologiae is unfinished, but of set purpose. Compared to what .
he had seen and what had been revealed to him, his work seemed as
straw.
This same awareness of the mystery of God-Fathered thoughts
in things is what Pieper calls the negative element. in the philosophy
of St. Thomas. Its presence explains why St. Thomas at times speaks
in a fashion that scandalizes many of the textbook compilers, who omit
such references as: "Principia essentialia rerum sunt nobis ignota."
Or again: "Hoc est ultimum cognitionis humanae de Deo; quod sciat
se Deum nescire." The reason is never lack of intelligibility in things,
and certainly not in God. But rather as the eye of the bat is dazzled
by the noon-day, so ·is human intelligence when faced with what is
intelligible in· itself; and even when that intelligibility is concretized
in created things, there remain depths of meaning which escape us.
This negative element likewise excludes a closed system, and therein
lies the timeliness of Thomism. St. Thomas, says Pieper, has a corrective word for the modern thinker, particularly the existentialist of
�BOOK REVIEWS
285
current vogue who so fears the rigidity and smug sureness of systematized verbal formulas. The modern thinker feels only the anxiety of
continuing "to be" in the face of the inscrutable and unintelligible. The
corrective of Thomism is to show that the "unintelligibility" is really
super-intelligibility, and that anxiety should give way to hope in the
presence of mystery. St. Thomas does not dispel mystery but gives the
mystery why at length it must be mystery; and why mystery does not
mean "nothing to be known" but "more to be known than we know or
can ever have hoped to know." Josef Pieper would add but one final note: this stress on the
negative does not deny that positive answers are possible. They are. But
they are likewise inadequate, and must be if we understand created
reality as it is. Hence that inadequacy requires as much balanced emphasis as the positive achievement. In sum, his book is filled with much
insight and wisdom.
H. R. BURNS, S.J_.
COMPLETE, SCHOLARLY EDITION
John Henry Newman, Autobiographical Writings. Edited with introductions by Henry Tristram of the Oratory. New York: Sheed
& Ward, 1957. Pp. xi-338. $4.50.
This volume contains all the autobiographical material which
Cardinal Newman left behind him in his room when he died. It comprises the following documents: an Autobiography in miniature; the
two autobiographical sketches, together with a continuation covering
the later years of his life, contributed by the Editor; the autobiographical memoir; "My Illness in Sicily"; three early Journals; the Journal,
1859-1879; "Memorandum About My Connection with the Catholic
University".
Here is a very convenient tool for the serious student of Newman
and yet one which the ordinary reader will page through with real
interest, as he sees a great personality reveal the intimate workings
of his mind and heart. The chief value of this edition lies in the fact
that these documents are here published for the first time in their
original form. Strictly speaking, they cannot be assigned to the category of unpublished matter. Anne Mozley had access to all the relevant
Papers for her Letters and Correspondence of J. H. Newman and Wilfred Ward based his biography on the private journals and correspondence. As a biographer Ward inevitably had to select but Anne Mozley
as an editor appears to have suppressed more than was necessary even
in the light of Victorian convention. Newman certainly had no objections to their publication in whole or in part and simply left it up to the
discretion of the parties who after his death would come into possession of his papers.
Fortunately, Father Tristram saw the need for a complete, scholarly
edition and finished the major part of this work before he died. His
careful introductions help the reader to appreciate the complicated life
�286
BOOK REVIEWS
of Newman "without varnishing, assigning motives or interpreting
Lord Burleigh's nods". He has done a genuine service to his brother
Oratorian in trying to stimulate a deeper interest in one of the major
intellectual forces in the Catholic Church of the nineteenth century.
JOHN J. GOLDEN, S.J.
r.
BLEND OF FACT AND FICTION
The King's Achievement. By Robert Hugh Benson. Edited by Francis
X. Connolly. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957. Pp. xiv·
368. $3.50.
Come Rack! Come Rope! By Robert Hugh Benson. Edited by Philip
Caraman, S.J. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1957. Pp. vi·
377. $3.£0'.
One need read no further than the opening paragraph of The
King's Achievement to see why Msgr. Benson enjoyed such a reputation
at the beginning of the century. To a remarkable degree he achieves
the perfect blending of fact and fiction that makes the successful historical narrative. Dr. Connolly speaks highly of Msgr. Benson's "acute
sense of historical complexity," yet it is in Benson's vivid characterization and boldly romantic style that the story finds its greatness. Thomas
More, Henry VIII, Cromwell and Cranmer move in the background, but
it is in the conflict of a house divided against itself that the story really
lives.
The -second of the two novels looks at Elizabethan England from
a slightly different viewpoint. In the opening passage Msgr. Benson
writes: "There should be no sight more happy than a young man
riding to meet his love." From that moment until the last page of
the book when that same young man dies on_"the gibbet for his priesthood
and his faith, the book is admittedly roimintic. Indeed, that gallant
romanticism is obvious in Campion's defiant cry "Come Rack! Come
Rope!" which Benson has taken for his title. Come Rack/ Come Rope!
does not have the historic sweep of The King's Achievement, but in
its narrower compass it gives, perhaps, a sharper picture of the period
of persecution-sharper because it is more personal. By judicious
editing, Father Caraman has given us a worthy companion piece to
his Autobiography of a Hunted Priest.
The editors of these two novels have done an excellent job. Some
~eaders may look in vain for favorite passages of the originals that
have been omitted, but there is no doubt that the plots have been
sharpened and quickened in the process of editing. These two novels
with their story of persecution in 16th Century England have a certain
pertinence in our o.wn age. Kenedy and Sons are to be thanked for
these new e-ditions which will give the younger generation the oppor·
tunity of becoming acquainted with Msgr. Benson's works. We earnestlY
hope that they will add a third volume to the present pair by re-issuing
that other strangely prophetic novel of Msgr. Benson, Lord of the World·
JosEPH A. GAwoN, s.J.
�287
BOOK REVIEWS
CONTROVERSIAL
The Meaning of Christian Perfection. By Jordan Aumann, O.P., &
David Greenstock. St. Louis: B. Herder Book Co., 1957. Pp. 162.
$3.25.
This book is an exchange of correspondence occasioned by a critical
review by Father Aumann of Father Greenstock's book, Be Ye Perfect,
published in 1952. The controversy is about how Christian perfection is
to be conceived. Does it consist mainly in the possession of sanctifying
grace, while the development of grace remains accidental and in a
sense exceptional? Or is perfection to be conceived as the full and
natural flowering of the life of grace, while the mere possession of
sanctifying grace is perfection only inchoatively and in seed? Father
Aumann maintains the second fuller interpretation that not only the
life of active asceticism but also the passive purgations of the faculties
caused by and leading to infused prayer all make up a natural and
organically united growth of grace in the soul. Father Greenstock's
more limited emphasis is based on the fact that few souls ever actually
attain the heights of Christian perfection or any form of mystical
prayer. Father Aumann contends that the full flowering of grace is
natural albeit rare; Father Greenstock, that it is exceptional and
accidental.
The protagonists agreed to develop their controverted points
according to the doctrine of St. Thomas. This decision unhappily tends
to cloud the issue in a welter of technical scholastic terminology. Moreover, the preoccupation with adapting the Angelic Doctor to their own
interpretations overshadows a presentation of the issue on its own
merits. This, together with the supposition of the reader's familiarity
with Father Greenstock's original book, considerably limits this book's
general appeal.
One cannot follow a debate without asking oneself who won.
Father Aumann strove manfully to keep terminological quibblings to a
minimum. The question, of course, is not a new one. However, as the
book progresses, Father Aumann's arguments, presented with a sense
of realization, gradually break through the more speculative and
system-centered arguments of his confrere. The question still remains
open. But as discussed in this book, though at the end difficulties
remained which had not been ironed out, as this reviewer saw it, they
remained in the position of Father Greenstock, not of Father Aumann.
EDWARD
V.
STEVENS,
S.J.
OF DOUBTFUL VALIDITY
Hamlet's Mouse Trap. By Arthur Wormhoudt. New York: Philosophical Library, 1956. Pp. 221. $3.50.
I question this psychoanalytical study of the drama on two points
-the general principles upon which the author bases his conclusions
and the practical applications he makes of these principles to the
�288
. i
. il
'·
·'
BOOK REVIEWS
Shakespearean play. First, with regard to the general principles, Mr.
Wormhoudt maintains that human beings have the ability to produce
the variety of sounds which form the basis of speech and writing because
this is a way of denying an unconscious reproach of conscience that we
wish to be denied food. He explains other parts of his theory as due
to conflicts between conscience and self-destructive tendencies, the
evolutionary shift from four-footed to two-footed locomotion, and the
evolutionary fact (italics mine) that human beings have not yet fully
adjusted to the shock of upright posture. And I fail utterly to see the
relationship he postulates between the toilet training of the child and
his sound producing ability.
The author.'does not pretend to give the clinical evidence of psychologists, psychiatrists and psychoanalysts, but he does give what he
calls the other type of evidence for these theories, found in the
language of great poets and artists. Yet this literary evidence seems
to consist largely of unwarranted conclusions from the obviously and
intentionally unscientific language of literary authors. For example,
he finds linguistic evidence for conscience and inhibition in the fact that
the most commonly used words in drama are short, have multiple meanings and many synonyms. I do not see what this proves other than the
fact already supposed-they are words that are used most commonly.
Likewise, Mr. Wormhoudt asserts that Shakespeare's division of the
plays into five acts is due to the five layer structure of sublimation;
Act I of-Hamlet contains scenes near a body of water which symbolizes
the pre-natal state of the infant; the suicidal tone of the "To be or
not to be" soliloquy is due to the fact that Hamlet is the visual projectiqn of self-destructive tendencies. I {ind it hard to believe that
Shakespeare, great genius that he was,..·e_ither consciously or uncon·
sciously, put all this so-called psychonalytical theory into the play.
I cannot see how the author has proved anything by the use of
highly doubtful principles and dubious applications to a piece of litera·
ture. What intends to be a psychoanalytical study of the drama ends
up, it would seem, by being questionable psychoanalysis and poor drama.
If these defects can be overlooked, the author's obvious diligence in
W<J.rking out the intricacies of his theory is to be commended.
JosEPH A. GALDoN, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXVI, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1957
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER, 1957
A BASIC IGNATIAN CONCEPT............................................................................ 291
Karl Rahner, S.J.
WOODSTOCK, HOWARD COUNTY, MARYLAND ...................................... 311
James J. Ruddick, S.J.
James J. Hennesey, S.J.
TABLE-READING DURING THE RETREAT................................................ 330
Gregory Foote, S.J.
FATHER PETER MASTE.N DUNNE.................................................................. 338
John B. McGloin, S.J.
FATHER GEORGE McANANE¥ ......................................................................... 851
Joseph E. O'Neill, S.J.
BROTHER CLAUDE RAMAZ ................................................................................355
James J. Lynch, S.J.
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS ........................................................................ 371
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Karl Rahner (Upper German Province) is a professor of theology
at lnnsbruck, Austria.
Father James J. Ruddick (New York Province) is professor of physics at
Canisius College.
Father James J. Hennesey (New York Province) is a Fourth Year Father
at Woodstock.
Father Gregory Foote (Chicago Province) is socius to the master of novices
at Milford, Ohio.
Father John B. McGloin (California Province) is a professor of history at
San Francisco University.
Father Joseph E. O'Neill (New York Province) is a professor of English
at Fordham University.
Father James J. Lynch (New York Province) is assistant editor of the
Sacred Heart Messenger.
--;
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1. 1942, at the post office at Woodotock.
Maryland. under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollar• YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK. MARYLAND
�A Basic lgnatian Concept
Some Reflections on Obedience
KARL RAHNER,
S.J.
The German original of this article: "'Eine ignatianische Grundhaltung", appeared in Stimmen der Zeit, 158 (1955-6), 253-267. The
present translation was made collectively under the direction of
Joseph P. Vetz, S.J., and the supervision of Gustave Weigel, S.J.
In contributing to a periodical which is commemorating
the fourth centenary of the death of St. Ignatius, the founder
of the Jesuit Order, what theme should a writer choose? If
he prefers not to speak directly of the Saint himself and still
wants a fitting topic, he could choose nothing better than the
concept of obedience. Jesuit obedience-some like to call it
cadaver obedience-is a well-known and even notorious tag.
It is also something which is poorly understood. Ignatius
stressed the importance of this virtue for members of his
Society, since it is a matter of great moment for an order
engaged in the active care of souls. But in reality Jesuit
obedience does not differ from the obedience found in the
other religious orders of the Catholic Church.
In choosing obedience for his topic this writer does not
flatter himself that he is rediscovering a long neglected subject. In the last ten years, in Middle Europe alone, at least
fifty books and articles have been devoted to this theme. In
attempting to say something on the subject of obedience the
Writer is troubled by a suspicion that possibly he merely
Wants to be numbered among those who have had something
to say on the point. Besides, in a short article like this, one
can scarcely hope to say anything that is at all comprehensive
or conclusive. Hence these few lines do not pretend to be
lllore than marginal notes, and the writer is resigned to face
the possible accusation that he was incapable of conceiving
a livelier topic for discussion.
291
�292
IGNATIAN OBEDIENCE
Various Misconceptions
Considered in its essence, obedience in religious life has
nothing to do with the obedience which children owe to their
parents and to others who are in authority, supposedly
equipped to care for their upbringing. The reason is that
this latter type of obedience has as its very aim its own eventual transcendence. By means of this training in obedience,
the obedience of childhood later becomes superfluous, since
the adult, having achieved liberation from the domination of
blind instincti~~ drives, is able to command himself. On the
other hand, in the case of obedience in religious life, we
assume that the subject is already an adult. But we do not
assume that the person who commands is necessarily more
intelligent, more gifted with foresight or morally more mature
than the person who obeys. If such an assumption were in
order, the relationship of superior to subject would be an
educational relationship. The one obeying would be a child
or a man of infantile character, who is not yet responsible for
his own -behavior. Human nature being what it is, there are
such persons even in religion. Still their percentage should
not be greater than that found in other walks of life. And I
suppose that, generally speaking, it is not. After all, childish
persons can find too many havens to_which to flee from their
unfitness for life without having to seek out religion as their
only refuge. One conclusion that can be drawn from these
rather obvious considerations is this: Superiors should not
act as if by nature or by reason of their office they are more
intelligent, more clever persons, more morally steadfast, more
provident and wise in the ways of the wor:ld. This may be
true in individual cases, for the world is not so constructed
that only the more stupid become superiors. But it should
be soberly stated (for subjects, lest they demand too much
of superiors, something which would be unjust and shoW a
lack of charity; for superiors, lest they delude themselves):
the higher the office, the smaller the possibility, humanlY
speaking, of fulfilling it as well as in the case of a man faced
with a lesser post. For we may reasonably presume that the
degrees of variation in mental and moral gifts among :men
are less than the degrees of difficulty found in the manage·
�IGNATIAN OBEDIENCE
293
ment of various social enterprises. From this it follows that,
as a rule, more important duties will unavoidably be more
poorly performed than lesser ones. No judgment is passed
here on any particular case. As a matter of fact, sometimes
people do grow in stature in performing more difficult tasks.
But for the most part, the opposite takes place. Along with
the assumption of a more important responsibility comes the
painful realization, felt both by the superior and those about
him, that the man is far from being equipped for his task.
The defective fulfillment of higher obligations cruelly lays
bare the shortcomings of a man's capacities which previously
escaped our attention.
Let us repeat once more: obedience in religious life is not
the obedience of children. Therefore, the religious superior
should not play the role of an Olympian papa. In the life of
the cloister (even in orders of women) there are still to be
found age-old rituals governing the etiquette of superiors,
involving demands of respect from subjects, secretiveness,
manifestations of superiority, appeals of superiors to a higher
wisdom, displays of condescension, etc. All this should
gradually be permitted to wither away. Superiors should
cast a long and quiet glance at the world around them: those
who are truly powerful and influential, who receive a great
deal of unquestioning obedience, place no value on ceremonial
of this sort. They find no need of concealing their weakness,
anxiety, and insecurity behind a pompous front. Superiors
should quietly admit that in certain circumstances their
subjects know more than they do about the matter at hand.
Given the specialization of modern life with its need for
countless types of ability to cover its many areas, present-day
superiors can no longer act as if they can understand any and
every matter that falls under their authority. In the good
old days a superior could do everything that he commanded
his subject to do. He had previously done the very thing himself. He had distinguished himself (otherwise he normally
Would not have been made superior) and so had given proof
that he understood at least as much as his subject. At least
this was the rule in the past, though naturally there were
e:x:ceptions to it even then. Today it is quite inevitable that
What formerly was the exception should become the rule.
�294
IGNATIAN OBEDIENCE
Every religious superior has many subjects who necessarily
possess a knowledge of science, of pastoral functioning, of
current affairs, which the superior (who can be a specialist
himself only in a single limited field) cannot possess. He
finds himself or ought to find himself, in the same position
with regard to the knowledge of others as Eisenhower does
with respect to the mysteries about which his atomic experts
advise him. The superior, therefore, is dependent upon the
information of counselors to an extent not required in the
past. The advisors, usually provided for superiors by the
constitutions of an order, today in many ways possess an
utterly new and more urgent function than in former times
when they were in practice only a democratic check on an
excessively authoritarian and uncontrolled government of
one individual. It would be well, therefore, if superiors would
always seek the information they need in a spirit of objectivity and concreteness, for they must give commands for
objective and concrete situations, no matter what be the value
of obedience to an objectively erroneous command. This is
not always done. A secret-cabinet policy may often be a
well-intentioned means of acquiring such objective counsel,
but it i~ not always effective. In religious life, on final
analysis, there can be no real democratization of obedience,
as will later be shown. But there can be objective and clearly
determined methods of procedure fw _achieving the counsel
and information needed for decision. ·Unfortunately this is
not always the case. Once again I insist, mostly for the
benefit of the secular opponent and hostile critic of religious
obedience: the people in religious life realize that religious
obedience is not the obedience of children. It does not presuppose children, but mature adults. And only in the measure
that it can legitimately presuppose this can it be at all true
to its own proper nature.
Again, religious obedience is no mere "regulation of traffic".
Certainly where men live together in a community there must
be order. That there be order, the power to command must
be present: Not everyone can do as he pleases, and moreover,
not everyone can discover for himself just what is required bY
the total whole. Command, however, implies obedience. When
obedience is conceived merely as a rational or rationally pre-
�IGNATIAN OBEDIENCE
295
scribed function of order for the life of a community and for
the coordination of its organs and activities toward a common
goal, then perhaps the pattern has been discovered which can
intelligently explain civic and national obedience. But in
this concept the peculiar nature of religious obedience has
not been grasped, even though it cannot be denied that in
religious life this aspect of obedience is also present, and
necessarily so. Religious obedience is no rational and inevitable regulation of traffic, by which every sensible person
submits himself to the traffic policeman, and in which a coordinating agency takes care that everything moves without
friction toward the common good. At times attempts have
been made to explain religious obedience in this merely rational fashion. But this explanation is too easy and cannot
. reach the real roots and depths of religious obedience. And
yet the obedience entailed in the rational regulation of traffic
and of the sensible coordination of work in a common effort
is part of religious obedience, though it is not the most
characteristic nor the most profound element of the evangelical counsel. For the daily functioning of obedience in religious life it ought to be noted that this element of obedience
is present; yes, that it is almost identical with the superficial
tasks of quotidian obedience. For day-to-day life, therefore,
a certain de-mystification of obedience should quietly take
place, perhaps to a greater extent than is now permitted in
some parts. In the many small details of daily life, obedience
is in reality nothing else than a rational method by which
rational beings live together. Therefore, the superior should
not try to give the impression that he stands under the immediate inspiration of the Holy Ghost, but should be courageous enough to seek approval for his commands by giving
reasons for them. It is incomprehensible how such an approach to mature and much-loved brothers or sisters in the
Lord should be a threat to the authority of the superior, who,
according to the command of Christ, should see in the authority of his office only the greater obligation to serve. This
does not mean that there should be long debates and discussions over every small decree of a superior. That was the
folly of the Parliaments in the past. This would be irrational
and childish (although unfortunately it does occur). The
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problem can be met and overcome by an appeal to higher
ascetical motives. Without irritating himself or others, the
subject should calmly and maturely consider the many unavoidable regulations of daily life in a religious community
for what they really are: inevitable burdens of earthly life
which weigh upon people in the world just as much as they
do on people in religious life. Much irritation among religious
persons caused by details of common life flows solely from
immaturity which does not comprehend that a person does
not prove his independence and personal integrity by rebelling
against communal rules and regulations. And yet it still
remains true~ religious obedience, according to its own proper
nature, is more than a merely rational regulation of traffic.
There is a third consideration which will preserve religious
obedience from misconception and excess. It is not true, even ·
in religious communities, that all initiative should take its
rise from superiors. Nor should we be too quick to consider
this statement a mere platitude. To comprehend it really, we
must make use of metaphysics, a metaphysics which consists
in pondering with wonder on the commonplace and the
obvious and then drawing some conclusions. Human authority
(even .;hen exercised in God's name) must not be conceived
as adequately and exclusively competent to monopolize all
initiative, all effort and all personal decision. Nor does it
imply that subjects are called to initiative and decision only
when authority gives the signal.
One frequently gets the impression, both in religious orders
and in the Church in general, that initiative, action, militancy,
and the like, are indeed considered necessary and desirable
in subjects, but only on condition that the go-signal be given
"from above", and only in the direction which has already
been unequivocally and authoritatively determined by superiors. Unconsciously and spontaneously a tendency is
vigorously at work to make the subject feel that he is so built
into his order or the Church that only the total structure
through its hierarchy is capable of initiative; that opinion or
enterprise· find their legitimacy only in the express, or at
least tacit, approval from authority.
Unless we wish to absolutize the community, the principle
of subsidiarity has application not only between smaller and
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larger societies, but also between individuals and their communities as well. Yet there can be no subordination of the
individual to a community and to the authority representing
it, if it tries to make the individual an exclusively dependent
function of the community and its authority. We need only
put the question in all simplicity: may one propose a wish
to a superior, or, with due modesty, propose an alternative
policy? Everyone will answer: "Obviously, yes." Hence it is
unnecessary first to ask the superior whether he wants the
request to be presented or the alternative proposed. Yet this
request, this alternative suggestion is also initiative, in which
one must take the responsibility of deciding whether it is to
be presented or not. For even when with all obedience and
modesty the decision is left to the superior, the suggestion
alters the situation of the superior in making his decision.
It broadens or narrows the field of choice. Indeed even
when the subject shows the greatest discretion, the superior
is "influenced", whether he likes it or not, whether or not
he would have followed the suggestion on his own. In the
whole world there is no autarchic human authority which is
pure activity and in no way passivity. To command absolutely
is proper only to the Creator who is not faced with opposing
structures and unavoidable initiatives, because He Himself
in the strict sense makes everything out of nothing. All other
authority, even in the Church and in religious orders, is not
the only determining initiative but is one force in an immense
network of forces, active and passive, receiving and giving.
Authority has and should have the function of directing,
coordinating, overseeing, and planning the whole interplay
of human initiatives. It is not, to speak strictly, even in the
ideal order, so representative of God that it alone is the
autarchic planner and designer of all human activity. This
would be the hybris of a totalitarian system which cannot
exist, and, more significantly, should not exist.
Hence, authority, even in religious orders, in practice needs,
calls for, and puts to use the initiative of subjects. Even in
the abstract, there can be no absolute ruler and director of
it. Independently of authority there exist initial sparkings
of forces which cannot be controlled by authority. Because
this is so and cannot be otherwise, it also should be so. That
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is to say, in no community or society, not even the Church
or religious orders, may authority act as if all good initiatives
originated from it, so that every execution of plan, command,
and wish originated in authority alone. Even the most laudable initiatives of the Holy See often are only the reaction to
an action which originated elsewhere, and this is important.
The same is true in the case of authorities of religious orders.
Subjects are not mere receivers of commands, because that
is simply impossible. The aim of obedience is not to make
merely passive subjects. This is not even an "asymptotic"
ideal, but a chimera and the usurpation of the creative power
reserved to God alone, which He can delegate to no one. Only
God has "all the threads in His hand", and He has empowered
no one to act in His fashion.
Consequently the superior cannot be a god in the fulfillment
of his office. Not to prevent his subjects from assuming initiative is not enough for a superior. He must positively count
on it, invite it; he must not be irked by it. He must, to a
certain degree, recognize himself also as only one of the
wheels in a heavenly mechanism whose ultimate and comprehensive significance is directed by one only, by God and no
one else. The superior always remains something moved.
In an ultimate sense, he does not know exactly to what end
evolution is moving. In spite of all th.e authority given him,
and in spite of all the supervision he -is.- charged with, he acts
iri trust and ventures into the unknown. He too never knows
exactly what he is doing or starting when he commands or
refrains from doing so. He must remember that authority
is not the only source for heavenly impulse, direction, and
stimulation. He must realize that God never took on the
obligation first to advise the authorities selected and authorized by Himself about God's own activity in the Church for
the· salvation of souls and the progress of history. The
superior has no exclusive vision of the divine will with the
mission to pass it on to his subjects. There is no God-given
warrant for such a process of communication. Rather the
superior must also be an obedient man, a hearer. The formal
correctness and juridical validity of his commands does
not guarantee that they are likewise ontologically guaranteed.
If the subject must obey in order not to be disobedient before
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God, this fact is no proof that the command given was the
command which, according to God's antecedent will, should
have been given. It can be the product of a permitted fault
in the superior. It can proceed from dead traditionalism,
from human limitations, from routine, from a shortsighted
system of uniformism, from a lack of imagination, and from
many other factors.
There is in the world a plurality of forces which can in
no way be hierarchically subject to authority-though such
forces cannot contradict authority as far as the latter succeeds
in bringing them within the field of direction and command.
This latter task, as has been said, can and should be only
partially achieved. Hence the subject in religious life has
no right simply to take refuge behind obedience, as if he could
thus be free from a responsibility which he himself must
bear, the responsible direction of his own personal initiative.
We often hear apologies of obedience which praise this supposed advantage. It does not exist. At least not in the sense
that the religious can thereby escape from the burden of
personal responsibility. He himself chooses obedience; otherwise he would not be in religious life. He must then answer
for the consequences of his choice.
The received command is a synthesis of elements. One is
the superior's personal and original activity, the other is the
external condition for that activity. This condition is constituted by the subject himself: his mode of being and action, ·
his capacities and incapacities (perhaps culpable), his approach and attitude to the superior. This conditioning is prior
to the command and makes the subject co-responsible for
the command itself. Certainly the religious can often say to
his own consolation that the superior has to answer for this
or that decision and not the subject. But the extent of this
consolation is not great. Taken as a whole, the religious
cannot escape the responsibility for his own life, down to
its last details. He simply hears in the command the echo
of his own character and activity. There does not exist in
this world a control-center of action from whose uninfluenced
motion all else in existence originates. A human being cannot
relinquish his personality to a representative, not even in
religious life. That is in no way the purpose of obedience.
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True Obedience
To provide a positive definition of religious obedience is
by no means a simple matter. We could immediately and
without further examination maintain that religious obedience is an abidingly vibrant obedience to God and the fulfillment of the Divine Will. But if we were to do that, we would
have to determine how it is possible to know in what sense
it can be said that that which is commanded is the will of
God. For the fact remains that there can be commands which
the subject must obey, provided that the things commanded
be not sinful; but which in the objective order, are wrong,
and which, --in given circumstances, have been commanded
with real culpability on the part of the superior. In cases of
this kind it is no simple task to say why and in what sense the
fulfillment of such a command could be the will of God.
Nor should we over-simplify the matter by praising without
qualification the "holocaust" and "renunciation" which obedience entails. For it is obvious that pure subjection to the will
of another who is not God has no value as such in the realm
of morality. In itself, pure dependence of self on the will of
another is amoral, not to say even immoral, unless some
further element be added to it.
We might add that if religious obedience is subordination
of one's own will and decisions to those of another who holds
the place of God and is the interpreter of the Divine Will, we
must at least determine how we are to know how this other
person received the divine commission to be the expositor of
the will of God. This question is a difficult one ; even more so
than that of poverty and of the evangelical counsel to renounce
the blessings of conjugal love. For these two evangelical
counsels are recommended directly in the words of Holy
Scripture and by Our Lord Himself. As far as these two
counsels are concerned, it is always possible to fall back on
this recommendation, even when we do not succeed in achieving a crystal-clear understanding of their inner meaning. In
this matter it can be said that the religious is walking in the
way of the Gospel. And to him who has set out on this path
in unquestioning surrender, the meaning of these counsels
will be more and more fully revealed. He can always say that
he is imitating Christ. And hence he needs no further argu·
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ment over and above the fact that the disciple does not wish
to be above his master, and that love understands what it
recognizes as a fundamental characteristic in the beloved
Lord.
Concerning obedience, however, the problem is not as simple
as all that. As a matter of fact, we see that in the days of the
early Church, in which a continuous procession of ascetics
and virgins was already a fact, there was as yet no mention
of religious obedience. Nor can any direct affirmation of this
concept be found in the pages of the Gospels. The early
ascetics lived the life of solitaries, and so there was no
stimulus to the evocation of a notion of obedience. And even
for a long time afterwards, obedience was not praised as a
third vow. The religious accepted a celibate or monastic life
in any form, and obliged himself to remain in a definite community which lived such a mode of life. It is clear that we
will have to proceed carefully if we are to specify the content
and arguments for religious obedience.
Before we proceed in the question of the meaning of obedience precisely as it exists in a religious community, we must
be clearly warned against another simplification which superficially gives a quick and easy solution to these questions. We
cannot simply refer to the example of Christ. Beyond a doubt
He was obedient. Obedience to His Father, according to His
explanation, was the form, the driving power and the content
ofHis life. We must by all means imitate Christ. But this is
precisely the question: how do we know that in subordination
of self to human authority we exercise the deepest obedience
to God? Christ did not do it. Certainly the Apostle knows
that there are human authorities which in some fashion take
the place of God as far as we are concerned, and whose
decrees ought to appear to us as the will of God. But Paul
is speaking of the authorities which are not freely chosen
nor created by us, but exist prior to us and prior to our
will, namely parents, masters, and the civil governors. Can
we extend and complete this Divine Will imposed on us by
subordinating ourselves to new regimes of our own making?
If we answer that religious superiors have ecclesiastical authority because they· are appointed by the Church, this reply
alone does not lead us to any clear-cut doctrine. Subordina-
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tion to the authority of religious superiors is not imposed on
men by the Church without their own free and deliberate
consent as implied by the vows. Hence the question remains:
why is it meritorious to submit to the authority of another,
when it has not been imposed on us by God Himself? Should
we not safeguard the freedom that God has entrusted to us
as much as our function of personal responsibility, since, as
we have already said, an absolute surrender of innate responsible freedom is in no way possible or reasonable?
Hence the argument from the Gospel in favor of religious
obedience is not so simple, nor can it be proved immediately
or without further examination. Our problem could be expressed succinctly in the following question: is religious
obedience a concrete prolongation of obedience to the will of
God, either in general, as it finds expression in the commandments of God, or in particular as it is manifested in God's
direction, inspiration and providential disposition of the lives
of men?
Religious obedience should by no means be considered
primarily as obedience to individual commands, nor is it
even the abstract notion of a general readiness to fulfill such
commands. Primarily it is the permanent binding of oneself
to a definite mode of life-to life with God within the framework of the Church. It involves the· exclusive dedication of
one's energies to those things whic:fi 'ilre the concern of the
Lord and to what is pleasing to Him. We accept as a form
of life the expectation of God's coming Kingdom of grace
from on high. Obedience is concerned with the sacrifice and
renunciation of the world's most precious goods; the renunciation of the right to erect a little world of our own as a
field of freedom through the acquisition of wealth; the
renunciation of the right to one's own hearth and the felt
security to be found in the intimate love of another person
through the conjugal bond. It is concerned with prayer, and
with the testimony to God's grace which is to be found in
what is co!fimonly known as the care of souls and the apostolate. Beyond this we need no further description nor argument for this life of the evangelical counsels. Obedience is a
permanent life-form giving man a God-ward orientation. It
does so ecclesiologically because by it the religious manifests
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the peculiar essence of the Church. It is the manifestation
of God's other-worldly grace beyond the reach of earthly
merit, to be accepted by faith alone in spite of all human
impotence. In this manifestation the Church achieves her
existential visibility and becomes historically tangible through
doctrine and sacrament. This is the life to which the religious
immediately and primarily pledges himself. His obedience,
with reference to the individual commands which a superior
may enjoin, is specified by this life-form giving it its definite
religious significance. Otherwise there would be no sense to
vowed obedience. It would not be a religious matter at all. It
would rather be perversity to praise this kind of obedience
in any other field of life; for instance, if one were to vow
obedience for the better functioning of a center of chemical
research in which one is employed as a research collaborator.
If we suppose that a permanent vowed obligation to a religious life is of positive value in the moral order (and this
is presupposed here), and if we further assume that it is
proper and reasonable, though not necessary, to lead such a
life in a community, then it follows that obedience to the
directors of this community is justified and meaningful in
the concrete pursuit of this permanent way of life.
Hence we are not trying to canonize an abstract notion of
obedience as the execution of another's will as such. Such
abstract obedience is due to God alone permitting no transfer
to another. Beyond this case we cannot obey purely for the
sake of obeying or of not doing our own will and determination. Something like this, considered abstractly in itself,
would have no positive significance in the realm of morality.
It would be downright absurd and perverse. The fact that
this sort of thing would be "difficult" and "a perfect holocaust", hard and troublesome for him who is obedient at all
times and in all things, can scarcely be itself an argument
for the meaningfulness of obedience. The implied presupposition of this argument, namely that the more difficult and
repugnant thing is always better and more pleasing to God,
just because it is a renunciation difficult for man, cannot be
the legitimate starting point of discussion.
Our concept of obedience also explains why religious obedience has its place exclusively in a religious society approved
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and sanctioned by the Church. The content of obedience
must be guaranteed, if such obedience is to possess moral
value. It is not enough that commands be morally indifferent.
They must be morally good in their total context. The totality
must represent for the Church and to the world the content
of the evangelical counsels. One can vow only that which is
better. Thus one cannot vow directly and as an end in itself
to do something which under certain circumstances (even if
not sinful) is less prudent, less good, less significant. Whence
it immediately follows that the proper and essential object
of religious obedience is an abiding way of life according to
the evangeli~.l counsels. For in accord with the teaching of
the Church this is certainly the better thing, but in what this
superiority consists will not be further explained here. Obedience is not at all to be conceived as the "heroic" (or almost
foolhardy) concession of a carte blanche to a superior, so
that the religious simply does not do his own will, either
because this is always pleasing and hence its renunciation
especially difficult, or because it is fraught with danger and
hence to be avoided. Thus it is that obedience is always
specified with reference to the constitutions of the given
Order, and the superior can only command within the framework determined by the constitutions. In seeking the real
essence of obedience, the most important point is missed if
only the particular command of the. superior is primarily
and abstractly considered according to the formula: I declare
myself ready to execute the command of another, if this
command be not evidently immoral. This is not the case.
Obedience is the acceptance of a common mode of religious
life in imitation of Christ according to a constitution, which
the Church has acknowledged to be a true and practical expression of a divinely oriented existence. By virtue of this
acceptance and obligation the vow explicitly or implicitly
includes the carrying out of the just commands of the authority necessary in any society, when they are directed to
the concrete realization of the life-form of religious commitments "according to the constitutions." Such realizations
cannot be determined a priori once and for all. Whoever,
therefore, is critical of the notion of religious obedience, is
really attacking the wisdom of the life of the counsels in the
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Church. He is attacking, moreover, the wisdom of a life that
is not primarily concerned with the tangible realizations of
worldly objectives, but which through faith makes the expectation of hidden grace the ground of existence, and translates this faith into act. Without such an act, faith itself
would be meaningless. This act is representative of the
Church and bears the Church's witness to the world. If this
mode of existence is to have meaning, then it must inspire a
willingness to carry out in any given instance the concrete
actions, undertakings and renunciations, which in the judgment of competent authority are deemed necessary for the
concrete realization of this way of life.
This is why obedience is connected with the teaching and
example of Christ who was obedient even to the death of the
cross. Whoever enters into a religious community, whoever
perpetually and irrevocably makes this way of life his own,
chooses for himself an unforeseeable destiny. For the consequences of such an election and dedication to the community
and its rationale of action cannot be foreseen in detail. And
these consequences can be difficult and painful. But this
gamble (considered in its formal structure) is involved in
every human obligation, whereby another person with his
own proper will becomes an inseparable part of one's own
life. We find it in marriage, acceptance of the duties of
citizenship, the responsibility of office, and so forth. Hence if
the religious community and its basic ideals are justified
and meaningful (which in our case we legitimately assume
to be true), so too is the obligation toward all its consequences
Which cannot be seen in advance. A human mode of life
Which consists in the free subordination to something higher
than itself cannot exist without this element of risk. And
Without such a surrender the individual will remain in his
own egotism behind the defenses of his own existential
anxiety, which is the surest way to destruction. But the man
Who gives himself to what is higher and nobler, who takes
the gamble, knows that he is only doing what Christ Himself
did in His obedience.
Under this aspect, that which in a given instance is irrational and indefensible but actually unavoidable really becomes the will of the Father. In this way the cross of Christ,
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a crime of the Jews and the pagans, "had" to be; it was the
will of the Father who had planned it, even though it came
about only as the result of the shortsightedness and guilt
of men. The permanent dedication to the ideal of the counsels
in imitation of Christ, who was poor and self-denying, the
crucified legate of God, consecrated to prayer and atonement,
is lived all but exclusively in a community professing the
same ideal. Hence the obedience which it entails must be
regarded as the will of God, even if a particular command
appears to be senseless (just as death, failure and the other
tragic circum'stances of human existence appear), provided
of course thlit what is commanded is not immoral in itself.
Religious obedience is thus a real participation in the cross
of Christ. Nor should one protest that the irrationality of a
mistaken command frees the subject from his contract, and
cannot be considered as a share in Christ's mission. We must
realize that religious obedience is more than a rationally
accepted agreement governing "traffic-arrangements" in a
common enterprise. This, of course, is included, for life in
any community demands obedience, though in our case communitylife is directed to God. Obedience in any other society,
in the event of an unwise command, would be justified only
by the rational insight that such unavoidable eventualities
must also be reckoned with in the ~riginal bargain. Otherwise, obedience, which is always to some degree necessary,
would end, for it would be left to the discretion of the subject
to obey. But in religion the imitation of Christ is practiced.
There the cross of Christ is considered not merely as something inevitable, or as the misfortune of life, by and large to
be evaded, but rather as the embodiment of grace and its
acceptance through faith, as something which "must" be, "so
that the scriptures might be fulfilled", since only "thus" can
one enter into one's glory. There the command, judged unwise
according to its immediate historical context, will be seen as
something which in the framework of religious life is worthwhile, even desirable. This of course does not justify the
superior in issuing such a command. Yet such an order can
be understood in the same way as the saints in their imitation
of Christ understood failure, shame, the shattering of cherished plans, martyrdom, and thousands of other unjustifiable
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307
contingencies. They secretly longed for them as the embodiment of their faith in God's grace now reaching its perfection.
It might here be in place to recognize that morality and
spontaneous moral judgment have a greater function than is
ordinarily supposed. The command of a superior may be
objectively sinful, and if recognized as such by the inferior
it should not be put into execution. Everyone will agree that
a superior, even with the best intentions, can issue an order
which is objectively wrong. If one does not consider as sins
only those things which are expressly labeled as such in
confessional manuals, then it will be hard to deny that that
which is materially false can also very often be objectively
immoral. What is more, it is not easy to explain why this is
not generally so. Let us offer a fictitious example. A higher
superior instructs the principal of a boarding school that
he must under all circumstances make the boys go to confession once a week. Let us suppose that the subordinate, in this
case the principal of the boarding school, clearly realizer:
what the superior in his idealistic remoteness cannot comprehend, namely that such a demand will eventually prove very
harmful to the spiritual life of his charges. Question: have
we here merely an inept pedagogical practice, which must
be "carried out" because commanded, or have we in fact an
innocent but unjustified demand which, since it is actually
a serious threat to the genuine spiritual development of these
Youths, should not be carried out by the subordinate? The
very ineptness of the practice offends against moral principles. Must the subject now declare that he cannot square it
With his conscience, and ask to be relieved of his office? Reading the older moralists one gets the impression that they were
lllore concerned with such cases than we are today. Have we
today become more moral, or has the principle "an order is
an order" gained foothold even in such holy quarters as
religious communities? Do we avoid talking about such
Possibilities out of fear of evils produced by the conscientious
objector, and so act as if something of this kind practically
never occurs? But is not the consequent evil caused to conScience greater than the utility of a frictionless functioning
of external government requiring of subjects a literal obedience to commands? Even the subject has the duty in con-
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science of examining the moral admissibility of what has
been commanded. The just "presumption" that the command
of a superior is not only subjectively but also objectively
morally unobjectionable does not constitute a simple dispensation from the essential obligation of every man to attain
to moral certitude respecting the moral liceity of a free
action before it is undertaken. This action is no less his own
and no less one for which he will be responsible, simply
because it is commanded.
As a religious grows older he asks himself with a deep and
secret anxiety whether he has done anything in his life which
can stand jUdgment in God's sight. Nothing of course can
so stand, except what He has given out of pure mercy. What
is worthy of God comes from God's grace alone. For this
very reason what one does is not indifferent. There is an
absolute difference between man's potentialities when God's
grace is accepted and when it is rejected. God has told us,
and He is greater than the human heart, that there are deeds
of selfless devotion, obedience to God's holy will and selfforgetting dedication. Yet we always discover in ourselves,
if we are not stupid, naive or conceited, things which always
make us afraid that there is nothing in us but open or disguised egotism. Are we sure that God's grace was ever
operative in us? Such an event should have been lifetransforming. Yet was there ever -a-- moment when we did
not seek ourselves, when success was not the fruit of egotism,
when our love of God was not anxiety, when patient prudence
was not really faintheartedness? The divine achievement of
miraculous sanation takes different ways, giving us the right
to hope that not everything in our life was open or covert
self-seeking. Nor need painful anxiety about it be another
manifestation of self-seeking or secret self-justification before God. Whoever is so concerned has made his life essentially simple and easy. We act on our own but the last
and most important deed will be effected in us by God Himself
operating through the bitterness of life itself. The individual
can always do one thing at least. He can give himself over
to something greater than himself. He can also see to it that
this greater Reality be more than an ideal or a theory, which
on final analysis is under his own control, and can be con-
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structed according to his fancy, so that it can no longer be
distinguished from the mere idols of the heart. The individual
can strive to make this nobler Reality actual. This Reality
must make demands on us, when we do not desire to be constrained; must act even when we do not wish it; must cause
us suffering when we ourselves would rather avoid it. This
happens when the greater Reality to which we dedicate ourselves becomes a tangible force of incomprehensible greatness,
whose word of command is directed towards us-and we obey.
This means to obey silently, and in the true sense, unquestioningly; to serve, and to submit to a demand we have not ourselves invented. When this happens we have too little time
and too little interest to defend or develop our personal integrity. The self has lost its importance. We might even be
so fortunate as to become a true person, who exists in so far
as he forgets and sacrifices self, in so far as he obeys. But
we must remember that life's good fortune is God's grace.
In order to become obedient, and in transcendence lose ourselves-the only way of ever really finding ourselves-we
must perhaps see nothing at all extraordinary in obedience,
hardly ever think of it reflexly. We should rather think of
the Reality which we serve as a matter of course. That Being
is worthy of all love and service, because ultimately it is no
mere cause, but the Person: God. Perhaps the truly obedient
man is simply the lover, for whom the sacrifice of selfsurrender is sweet and a blessed delight. Perhaps we should
not speak so much of obedience, for it is already threatened
when we praise or defend it. Either tactic is only meaningful
as an encouragement for the young in order to strengthen
their wills to embrace in silence a matter-of-course service of
God in the Church through a life of prayer and witness. They
must learn that this is meaningful even though the heart
shudders and the wisdom of this world panics at the thought
of losing self in the loss of freedom. The ultimate obedience,
that which demands and silently takes everything, will be
exacted by God alone. It is the command to die the death
which overshadows every minute of our life, and more and
more detaches us from ourselves. This command, to move
on and to leave all, to allow ourselves in faith to be absorbed
in the great silence of God, no longer to resist the all-
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IGNATIAN OBEDIENCE
embracing nameless destiny which rules over us-this command comes to all men. The question, whether man obediently
accepts it, is decisive for time and eternity. The whole of
religious life grounded in obedience is nothing more than a
rehearsal, a practical anticipation of this situation, which
more and more envelopes human existence. For the religious
it is the participation in the death of Christ and the life
concealed in Him.
Offprints of this article are available from WOODSTOCK LETTERS.
1\IODERATION
Superiors and Spiritual Fathers should exercise that moderation
which we know was usual with Father Ignatius and which we judge
proper to the Society's Institute, namely: if they judge in the Lord
that a man is making progress in prayer in the way of the Good Spirit,
they shall not set down rules for him or obstruct him in any way.
Rather they should encourage and strengthen him to advance in the
Lord quietly and firmly. If there is som~one, however, who is either
making no progress at all or not as much as he should, or who is led
by some illusion or error, they should try to bring him back to the
true way of prayer in Christ Jesus.
JEROME NADAL
OUR OWN KIND
Since through the bounty of God we have received our own kind
of vocation, grace, institute and end, everything should be regulated
accordingly. And so it proves nothing, as far as we are concerned, if
someone says: "This is the way the Dominicans act, or the Franciscans,
and therefore we should do the same." For they have received their
own grace, their own Institutes, and so have we our own, through the
grace of Jesus Christ.
JEROME NADAL
�Woodstock, Howard County, Maryland
JAMES J. RUDDICK, S.J.
JAMES J. HENNESEY, S.J.
Nine miles due west of the Baltimore City line, Old Court
Road dips down into the narrow Patapsco River Valley,
crosses the stream and the tracks of the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad on the opposite bank, and climbs a steep hill to the
rolling table land of the surrounding countryside. Near the
tracks stand a post office, a tavern and a few other small
buildings. More houses are built on the hillside and others
line the road as it continues in a general southwesterly direction to the Old Frederick Road. This little settlement,
bounded by the Patapsco and the Frederick Road and bisected
by Old Court Road, is the village of Woodstock, Howard
County, Maryland. In 1957, its inhabitants, including approximately 260 at Woodstock College on the northern or
Baltimore County bank of the river, number about 500.
A Clearing in the Woods
No one seems to know who gave Woodstock its name.
There is no plat of the town on record with the Commissioner
of the State Land Office, and, since the place has never been
incorporated, there is no clue in the legislative proceedings
of the State. 1 The best source of early information is in the
records of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. By November,
1831, the old main line of the B & 0 had been extended west
from Ellicotts Mills to the Forks of the Patapsco,2 approximately twenty-four miles from Pratt Street, Baltimore.
About a mile short of the Forks, the tracks passed a place
called Davis's Tavern, at the site of the present village of
-
1 John P. Hively, Junior Archivist, Maryland State Hall of Records,
Annapolis, Md. to Rev. James J. Ruddick, S.J., April 4, 1956. (Woodstock College Archives I R 9).
2 Edward Hungerford, The Story of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 1827-1927 (New York: G. E. Putnam's Sons, 1928) I, 119.
311
�312
,. I
I·
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
Woodstock. 3 The name "Woodstock" first appears in 1836.
On May 27 of that year, a United States Post Office was opened
at "Woodstock, Anne Arundel County, Maryland."' The available evidence indicates, therefore, that a settlement grew up
around the tracks at Woodstock within a year or so of the
coming of the railroad in 1830-1831. We also know that several of the contractors who built the railroad began to put up
houses and develop small factories in the area during this
period. 5 At first called simply "Davis's Tavern," perhaps
after its most prominent structure, the village was dignified
by the name. "Woodstock" at least by 1836. The first use of
the new nal!:le in official county records occurs in 1838, when
it appears in''three land transactions. After that, it becomes
quite common in the records of Anne Arundel and later of
Howard Counties.6
There is another somewhat enigmatic account of the naming of the town which should be mentioned. In the Baltimore
Sun for December 13, 1908, there is a long article on Woodstock College. The author states that: "The name Woodstock
had already been conferred on the straggling little hamlet by
a handful of loyal J acobites who wished to perpetuate their
leader's memory." 7 No authority is given for the assertion,
nor is there any indication as to who the Jacobite leader may
have been. Since there is no report of any such group in the
region, it may be that the author Df. the article in the Sun
is confusing Woodstock, Maryland with the estate of Woodstock, Virginia which was granted in 1687 by King James II
to his loyal supporter, Captain George Brent of Woodstock,
England. 8
Annual Report of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (1832).
Victor Gondos, Jr., Industrial Records Branch, NARS, Washing·
ton, D.C. to Rev. James J. Hennesey, April 13, 1956. (Woodstock College
Archives I R 9).
.
5 Charles M. Pepper, The Life and Times of Henry Gassaway Davw
1823-1916 (New York: The Century Co., 1920, 10 and J. D. Wartiel~,
The Founders of Anne Arundel and Howard Counties, Maryland (Baltl·
more: Kohn & Pollock, 1905), 371.
6 Hively, loc. cit.
7 Margaret Brent Downing, The Sun (Baltimore, Md.: Sunday A.M.,
December 13, 1908.
8 Margaret Brent Downing, "The Old Catholic Chapel and Gr~ve·
yard near Aquia, Stafford County, Va.," The Catholic Historical Remew,
New Series IV (1924-1925), 561-3. Captain Brent's estate is not to
be confused with the town of Woodstock, Shenandoah County, Va. The
3
4
;i
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
313
Although there seems to be no connection between our
Woodstock and the English town-except the one just suggested-a note on Woodstock, Oxfordshire may be of interest.
The Borough of Woodstock is located on the River Glyme, between Oxford and Chipping Norton. Its history goes back
to Anglo-Saxon times, if not earlier. The name is Saxon:
Wudestoc means a clearing in the woods. Alfred the Great
is supposed to have lived there when he was translating
Boethius' Consolations of Philosophy. Ethelred the Unready
was another royal resident. Woodstock is listed as a demesne
forest of the king in the Domesday Book and the park of
Woodstock Manor was the scene of the love story of Henry II
and "the fair Rosamund." A long succession of English sovereigns held court at Woodstock, which was also the residence
of Edward the Black Prince and, at a later date, the prison of
the Princess Elizabeth during the reign of Queen Mary Tudor.
Among the courtiers who visited the Manor were Geoffrey
Chaucer and St. Thomas More. After the battle of Blenheim,
the Manor of Woodstock was granted to the first Duke of
Marlborough and magnificent Blenheim Palace was built
there for him. It was in this palace that Sir Winston Churchill
was born. 9 A further tie between Woodstock, England and
Woodstock, Maryland is the fact that Woodstock Park was at
one time the home of Lord Baltimore.10
Indian Times and Trails
But to return to Maryland. The earliest recorded inhabitants of the Woodstock area were the nomadic Susquehannock
Indians, who lived between the Bolus-or Patapsco-and the
Susquehanna Rivers. 11 The Susquehannocks were of Iroquois
fact that the article in the Sun and that in the CHR were both written
by the distinguished historian of the Brent family suggests that there
may be more to the story of the "Jacobite leader" than appears on the
surface.
9 Official Guide to the Borough of Woodstock (Oxford: Alden & Co.,
1951), 4 ff. For a copy of this guidebook, the authors are grateful
to Dr. A. H. T. Robb-Smith, Chaucer's House, Woodstock, Oxon., whose
inquiry about Woodstock, Maryland gave the initial impetus to this
history.
1° "Calvert Memorabilia," Maryland Historical Magazine 10:273.
11 Data on the Susquehannocks has been taken from J. Thomas
Scharf, History of Maryland from the Earliest Period to the Present
Day (Baltimore: John B. Piet, 1879) I, 6 ff. and 82-97.
�314
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
stock, but had separated from them after the southward
migration of the tribes and were counted among the fiercest
enemies of the Five Nations. Their main settlements were
along the banks of the Susquehanna, but, as game grew scarce,
their hunters moved about in search of it. In spring and
summer, they would make visits to the salt water and these
visits were usually attended by inroads on the Algonquin
fishing tribes, who lived to the south of them. By the time
the first white colonists arrived in 1634, the Susquehannocks
were already well established in Maryland and were a terror
to their neighbors> Father Andrew White mentions them in
his report on conditions in America: "The Susquehanoes, a
warlike nation ravage the whole territory with frequent invasions and have forced the inhabitants by the dread of danger
to look for other homes." 12 Our first description of the tribe
comes from Captain John Smith, who met them on his voyage
up the Chesapeake Bay in 1608:
Sixty of these Sasquehannocks came to us with skins, howes,
arrows, targets, beads, swords, and tobacco pipes for presents. Such
great and well-proportioned men are seldom seene, for they seemed
like giants to the English, yea and to the neighbours, yet seemed
of an honest and simple disposition, with much adoe restrained from
adoring us like Gods. These are the strangest people of all these
countries, both in language and attire; for their language, it may
well become their proportions, sounding from them as from a voyce
in a vault. Their attire is the skins of be~res, and wolves. Some
have cossacks made of beares heads and skins, that a mans head
goes through the skinnes neck, and the eares of the beare fastened
to his shoulders, the nose and teeth hanging down his breast,
another beares face split behind him, and at the end of the nose
hung a pawe; the halfe sleeves coming to the elbowes were the
necks of beares, and the arms through the mouth, with pawes
hanging at their noses. One had the head of a wolfe hanging in
a chaine for a jewell, his tobacco-pipe three quarters of a yard
long, prettily carved with a bird, a deere, or some such devise at
the great end, sufficient to beat out ones brains: with howes,
arrowes, and clubs suitable to their greatness.1a
12 Scharf, op. cit., 94. Father William McSherry's ms. of White's
Relatio Itineris in Marylandiam is in the Maryland Province S.J.
Archives, Woodstock College. It has been published in translation bY
the Woodstock Letters and, in 1874, by the Maryland Historical Society.
13 Scharf, op. cit., 12. The citation is from the "Second Book" of
Smith's The General Historic of Virginia.
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
315
On his map of Virginia-which includes Maryland-Smith
pictures a Susquehannock chief. He says of him:
The calfe of (his) leg was three quarters of a yard about, and
all the rest of his limbs so answerable to that proportfon that he
seemed the goodliest men we ever beheld. His hayre, the one side
was long, the other shore close, with a ridge over his crowne like
a cocks comb.H
While we may have to allow for some exaggeration in Captain
Smith's account (the chief would be ten feet tall!) his description of these "first inhabitants of Woodstock" is generally
confirmed by later writers, who remark upon the height, the
sonorous voices, the proud and stately gait of the Susquehannocks. In 1666, George Alsop describes the Indians' battle dress:
The warlike Equipage they put themselves in is with their faces,
arms and breasts confusedly painted, their hair greased with Bears
oyl, and stuck thick with Swans Feathers, with a wreath or Diadem
of black and white Beads upon their heads, a small Hatchet instead
of a Cymetre stuck in their girts behind them, and either with
Guns, or Bows and Arrows.1s
The Susquehannocks lived in palisaded villages along the
River which bears their name. Within the walls of the village, or Connadago, "the houses were low and long, built with
the bark of trees, arch-wise, standing thick and confusedly
together." 16 In the late autumn of each year, the best hunters
went off into the forests where they set up temporary camps
and remained for about three months until they had killed
enough game to provide for the summer months. Among the
animals which they hunted were bears, elk, deer, wolves and
wild turkey, while streams like the Patapsco provided shad
and herringP In the course of these journeyings, the Indian
14 Scharf, op. cit., 13. A print of Smith's map with the drawing
of the Susquehannock chief faces p. 6.
15 Ibid., The citation is from George Alsop, The Character of the
Province of Maryland, which has been reprinted (Cleveland: The
Burrowes Brothers Co., 1902), 79. Alsop's history has also been reprinted as a Fund-Publication of the Maryland Historical Society
(Baltimore: 1880).
1a Scharf, op. cit., 87. The description of the Indians' settlements
and methods of hunting is Alsop's (Burrowes Brothers edition, pp.
83-84).
11 Scharf, op. cit., 7, 87 and The Ellicott City Times (Ellicott City,
Md.: Monday, March 17, 1941), B-4.
�316
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
hunters created a network of trails through the forests. Since
they marched in single file, the paths were often no more than
eighteen inches wide, but "they were the ordinary roads of
the country, travelled by hunters, migrating bands, traders,
embassies and war parties." 18 One of the most important of
the old Indian trails in Maryland crossed the Patapsco at the
site of Woodstock. This was a road which probably connected the Potomac on the south with the Susquehanna and
the Conestoga Path on the north and west. 19
The Susquehannocks reigned supreme in the northern part
of the colony of'. Maryland until the latter part of the seventeenth century-... In 1661, with the help of the Maryland
authorities, they carried on a successful war with the Cayugas
and the Senecas, but by 1673 smallpox had reduced their
effective warriors by more than half, from seven hundred to
three hundred, and in the following year they were driven off
to the south by the Senecas. 20 Scattered remnants of the
tribe eventually returned to their ancestral lands on the Susquehanna, where they continued to live for about a century. 21
By the end of the eighteenth century, there were few Indians
left in the Woodstock area. 22 But by that time, the white
settlers had already come.
The Patuxent Ranger
Not long after 1634, occasional trappers, hunters and explorers began to push northward, up the Severn and Patuxent
to the Patapsco and beyond. The initial transients were soon
followed by permanent settlers whose land grants extended
from Herring Creek on the south to the Patapsco on the north.
In 1650, the Maryland Legislature established these northern
territories as "Annarundell" County. 23 A quarter of a cen·
tury later, Baltimore County was organized and its southern
William B. Marye, "The Old Indian Road," Maryland Historieal
Magazine 15 (1920), 108, quoting from The Handbook of American
Indians, Bulletin 30, Bureau of American Ethnology.
1 9 Marye, Zoe. cit. In a series of three articles, Marye traces the
path of the old Indian road and conjectures as to its ultimate destina·
tions.
20 Scharf, op. cit., 96-97.
21/bid., 97.
2 2 Ellicott City Times, loc. cit., B-4.
23 Archives of Maryland I
(Baltimore: Maryland Historical So·
ciety, 1883), 292.
--1-8
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
317
limits set at two miles south of the Patapsco. 24 The natural
boundary of the River was ignored in order that there might
be enough ratables in the new county to support its administration. The area which we now know as Woodstock was
thus included in Baltimore County. This arrangement lasted
for fifty years, but the southern bank of the Patapsco was
returned to Anne Arundel in 1727 at the request of the region's plantation owners. The reasons given for their request
provide us with an interesting commentary on conditions in the
Patapsco Valley in the early 1700's. One point made was that
the Baltimore County seat at Joppa was so situated that even
moderate rains made the rivers and creeks of the section
impassable. The second reason alleged was that the land
south of the Patapsco was so worn out that many settlers
were moving into the virgin territories to the north. Baltimore County should now be able to manage its own finances
without the contributions of the southern plantations. 25
The first settler of the Woodstock area was Thomas Brown,
who was appointed Ranger of the Patuxent region in 1692.
His duties were to survey the land and to keep an eye on
Indian activities. 26 Brown surveyed about thirty tracts along
the Patuxent and sometime after 1692 established a plantation called Ranter's Ridge, running roughly southwest from
what is now Woodstock. His cabin on this property was the
only white habitation in the country until 1701, when Charles
Carroll's 10,000 acre manor of Doughoregan was surveyed.27
The boundaries of Doughoregan are given as extending "from
the Patuxent by a blind path to Thomas Brown's plantation
and to four Indian cabins and thence to some oaks." 28
Thomas Brown's son Joshua inherited Ranter's Ridge and
disposed of it in three parcels. The upper part of the ridge
was sold about 1740 to John Dorsey for his son Nathan. This
was Nathan's homestead, Waverly. In 1786, Waverly became
the property of Colonel John Eager Howard, who was elected
Governor of Maryland two years later. It was afterwards
the residence of his son, George Howard, also a Governor of
Ibid., XV (Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society, 1896), 39.
Ibid., XXXVI (Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society, 1916), 594.
2a Ibid., VIII (Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society, 1890), 339.
21 Warfield, op. cit., 164 ff.
28 Ibid., 336.
24
2s
�r
I
318
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
Maryland. 29 Also about 1740, a second portion of Ranter's
Ridge was sold to Thomas Davis, Sr. for his son Robert.
Except for several years in the early eighteenth century,
Davis's Manor remained in the possession of the same family
until about 1950. Finally, the third tract of Thomas Brown's
original grant was purchased by a namesake, Benjamin
Brown. This latter estate, called Goodfellowship, is on the
Old Court Road and is still in the possession of descendants of
Benjamin Brown. 30 With the passage of the years, the tiny
cabin has been enlarged by a frame addition and supplemented by the l.lsual outbuildings of a Maryland plantationgranary, milk house and barns-but the present mansion still
encloses Thomas Brown's original rectangular stone house. 31
Standing on an eminence in the fields to the southeast of
Goodfellowship is another Brown family home, Mount Pleasant. Part of this home still retains the woodwork and highly
polished floors of the early building.
Development of the Maryland Piedmont
From the beginning, Maryland was a one crop Province.
Although-Indian corn and wheat were raised for domestic
consumption, the only article which the colonists exported in
any great quantity was tobacco. The settlers of the Patapsco
Valley followed this trend and there is· no reason to suppose
that Thomas Brown and his successors "6n Ranter's Ridge were
any exception. At the same time, the needs of the economy
dictated the early development of roads in the area. Tobacco
was commonly brought down to Elkridge Landing or to Balti29 Heinrich Ewald Bucholz, Governors of Maryland from the Revolution to the Year 1908 (Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins Co., 1908),
26-31 and 114-118. Colonel John Eager Howard (1752-1827) was the
fifth Governor of the State (1788-1791). His son, George Howard
(1789-1846) was the twenty-second Governor (1831-1833). "Goodfellowship" was made over to Christopher Randall in 1728. His son Roger
joined with Joshua Brown in selling it to Benjamin Brown. Randall's
property ran to the river and was secured to him for the annual payment of 21 shillings on the feast of the Annunciation and on that
of St. Michael.
30 Much of the information on Davis and Brown land holdings
in the Woodstock area was supplied by Mrs. Frank de Sales Brown of
"Mount Pleasant." Mrs. Brown is a daughter of William Davis, one
of the descendants of Robert Davis.
31 Pepper, op. cit., 6.
Information on "Goodfellowship" was supplied by Mrs. William Howard Brown, Sr., the present holder of the
estate.
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
319
more on a series of rolling roads. The dried leaves were
packed tightly in hogsheads and these hogsheads were then
rolled over and over again, by hand, to the port. Narrower
bridle paths connected the various plantations and settlements. The only road of any considerable importance was
the old one which led from Baltimore to the German colony
at Fredericktown. This road passed over "Ranter's Ridge"
and the plantations there were thus located on the first main
highway to the west. 32 The Woodstock planters also had good
connections to the north. In 1730-1731, Old Court Road from
Gwynns Falls to the Patapsco was laid out on the bed of the
old Indian trail. Near the present location of Pikesville, this
road joined the Court Road to Joppa, which was at that time
one of the most thriving of the Chesapeake Bay ports. 33
The first notable change in the tobacco economy of the
Maryland piedmont came with the arrival of the Quaker Ellicott brothers who purchased lands and mill sites on the lower
Patapsco in 1772. Within a few years, they had built several
grain mills, and, as trade began to prosper, they were able to
persuade the wealthy planters of the vicinity to add corn and
wheat to their output. Charles Carroll of Doughoregan Manor
was one of the first to see the wisdom of the idea. To further
their plans, the Ellicott Brothers built a road from Baltimore
through Ellicotts Mills to Doughoregan. The road was soon
extended to Frederick and it became a public highway in
1792. A dozen years later, this road was authorized by the
Maryland Legislature as the Baltimore-Frederick Turnpike
and by 1821 it joined the National Road at Cumberland in
western Maryland. The new highway bypassed Ranter's
Ridge, but the farms in that area were linked to it by connecting roads. 34
While all this road-building was going on, the plantations
-
32 The developing economy of the Patapsco Valley Region is
described in Martha E. Tyson, A Brief Account of the Settlement of
Ellicott's Mills, Fund-Publication No. 4, Maryland Historical Society
(Baltimore: John Murphy, 1871). As early as 1755, there was some
kind of road between Baltimore and Frederick.
33Marye, Zoe. cit., 228.
34 Tyson, op. cit. and George R. Stewart, U.S. 40 Cross Section of
the United States of America (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1953).
Stewart gives the history of the Frederick Pike and its connection with
the National Road, which later became Route 40.
�320
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
up on "Ranter's Ridge" had developed to a point where they
could compare favorably with the best in the entire piedmont.
Governor Howard's Waverly is said to have rivalled even
Doughoregan. Lumbering garden trucks carried produce three
times a week to Baltimore, and the fact that much of the
heavy farm labor was done by slaves enabled the prosperous
landowners to enjoy a certain measure of social Iife.35 Nearly
all the families of the region-the Dorseys, the Browns, the
Davises and others-were related to one another. Family
gatherings, featuring a dance, a card party and a grand dinner, were frequent occurrences. For added diversion, there
would be horseback parties, sledding parties, and perhaps
skating on the Patapsco. The larger original holdings had
been subdivided among succeeding heirs who located on adjoining tracts and the social life of the country planters was
centered in these small communities of relatives. 86
The quiet life of the Patapsco Valley was twice interrupted
by war. Although no battles of the Revolution or of the War
of 1812 were fought in the immediate vicinity, the rolls of
the Maryland Line carry the names of many Browns, Dorseys
and Davises. Colonel John Eager Howard, who purchased
Waverly in 1786, was a trooper in the famous Maryland Flying Camp and saw service at Cowpens and at the Battle of
White Plains. Four of his sons fought in the second war
against the British. During the R~volution, Vachel Dorsey
lost a leg while in the colonial army and Captain Samuel
Brown, the owner of Goodfellowship, was an officer in the Elk
Ridge Militia. During the War of 1812, we find the names
of Lieutenant John Riggs Brown and of Caleb Davis among
the defenders of Baltimore. Maryland's proportionate contribution in terms of men was greater in these early wars
than that of any of the other states, and the planters on
35 Warfield, op. cit., 518-519. A favorite at the large family dinners
was "Maryland Biscuits," made as follows: "A section of tree was
firmly and permanently placed in a corner of the kitchen and the dough
placed upon it and usually hammered or beaten until both the dough
and the block were blistered. Then the latter was fashioned into round,
chubby shapes, like unto small, flattened oranges, pierced with a fork
and placed in a dutch oven with live coals above and underneath, wh~ce
they came forth golden in color. These were not raised with bakm¥,
powder, nor as hard as stone, but light, beautiful and wholesome.
(Ibid.)
36 Ibid.
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
321
Ranter's Ridge helped materially to swell the ranks of the
Free State's forces. 37
The Coming of the Railroad
Once America's independence was secure, the country began
to push westward. New York's Erie Canal and a projected
railroad through Pennsylvania challenged Maryland's National Road. The worried financiers of Baltimore realized
that some dramatic action was needed to avert the threat to
their city's growing prosperity. So was born the Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad, which was incorporated by the Maryland
Legislature on February 26, 1827.38 With the building of the
railroad, the history of Woodstock as a village begins.
Plans for the B & 0 called for a line with two or more sets
of rails which would run along the narrow valley of the
Patapsco to Ellicotts Mills and then, following the course of
the river, through Anne Arundel County and on to Frederick.39 By the summer of 1829, the tracks had reached Ellicotts Mills. The railroad's directors announced that trains
would not run past that point until the entire line to Frederick was completed. Feverish activity characterized the
effort. There were accidents, as once when a high bank of
earth caved in and killed four workmen, and there were
brawls. Liquor was sold freely and cheaply-whiskey was
three cents a glass-and riots were the order of the day.
Some of the contractors solved the problem by hiring German
teetotalers from York County, Pennsylvania, but violence
continued to flare up in the valley. On one occasion, a sheriff's
posse was summoned to quiet the disturbances. A contemporary account tells us that the sheriff had no trouble in recruiting volunteer deputies, but he did have trouble in keeping
them under control, "for, having come out to see a fight, they
did not want to be disappointed." 40
Labor troubles reached a climax in the summer of 1831,
When serious riots occurred at Sykes Mills, the present Sykesville. The rioting strikers were finally pacified, but not until
-
37 Pepper, op. cit., 6; Warfield, op. cit., 490-491; Bucholz, op. cit.,
26-31.
38
89
40
Hungerford, op. cit., I, 3-27.
Ibid., 10 and 25.
Ibid., 65-67.
�322
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
Brigadier General Steuart and over a hundred militiamen had
been despatched to the scene. They came by train and so
Woodstock, which was on the route, witnessed what was probably the first troop movement by rail in history. 41
In one way or another, the problems of securing workmen
and materials were overcome and by the autumn of 1831 a
double track had been laid to the Forks of the Patapsco,
twenty-four miles out from Pratt Street and a mile above
Davis's Tavern at the site of Woodstock. The line to Frederick was at last completed in December, 1831 and regular
service began ·after that. All transportation of passengers on
the new road ·was by steam locomotive, an innovation which
had been introduced in the summer 'of 1830. The first engine,
Peter Cooper's Tom Thumb, was an odd looking contraption,
somthing like a modern handcar with a vertical boiler added.
It weighed about a ton. A second engine, the three-and-ahalf ton York, was put in service in 1831 and it was joined by
the Atlantic in 1832. Two years later, five small locomotives
-all with upright boilers-were hauling freight and passengers past Woodstock to the west. 42
The Village of Woodstock
The actual work of building the roadbed of the Baltimore
and Ohio had been let out to various contractors. Two of
these men were most prominent in th~ area around Woodstock,
Peter Gorman and Caleb Davis. Gorman's section of the work
ended at a place on the river just below Goodfellowship. It
is probable that his workmen's shacks provided the nucleus
around which the village of Woodstock grew. Peter Gorman
married a daughter of John Riggs Brown. He later leased
some property near the tracks and he and his family settled
in a stone house built against the hillside. This house, which
was just back of the old railroad station, was torn down some
twenty-five years ago when the State widened Old Court Road.
It was the birthplace of Gorman's son, United States Senator
Arthur Pue Gorman (1839-1906), who was long a power in
Maryland politics. 43
41
42
43
Ibid., 116-124.
Ibid., 109 and 143.
For two unfavorable treatments of the career of Senator Gorman,
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
323
The second builder of the railroad around Woodstock was
a member of a family long resident in the section, Caleb Davis.
Caleb had been for some time a merchant in Baltimore, but
he moved back to the family farm in 1830 and invested heavily
in factories and houses along the route of the railroad. His
wife was another daughter of John Riggs Brown and one of
his sons, Henry Gassaway Davis (1823-1916), was for a number of years a Senator from West Virginia. Henry Davis was
born in Baltimore, but he grew up in Woodstock and received
his education in the free country schools of the county.H
It does not seem that the village ever amounted to very
much. No early map shows more than a dozen or so buildings
in the little hollow back of the tracks. The United States
Post Office was started in 1836, and four years later Peter
Gorman and Henry G. Childress were granted retailer's
licenses, but otherwise the official records are a blank. 45 In
1837, financial panic swept the nation and brought disaster
to the commercial dreams of Caleb Davis. The valley was
long plagued by serious floods; that of July 24, 1860 finally
destroyed any usefulness the Patapsco might have had as a
waterway. 46 One exception to the general commercial decline
was the granite industry. The B & 0 had taken steps in 1848
to acquire land for a station at Woodstock and for many years
granite from the quarries of the neighborhood was shipped
see Paul Winchester, Men of Maryland Since the Civil War, Sketches
of United States Senator Arthur Pue Gorman and His Contemporaries
and Successors and Their Connection with Public Affairs (Baltimore:
Maryland County Press Syndicate, 1923), Vol. 1 and Frank Richardson
Kent, The Story of Maryland Politics (Baltimore: Thomas & Evans,
1911). A more definitive approach is that of John R. Lambert, Arthur
Pue Gorman (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1953).
Lambert evaluates the works of Winchester and Kent rather severely.
4 4 Senator Davis' biography has been written by Charles M. Pepper
(op. cit.) Various printed sources give Woodstock as his birthplace.
But in a letter to Henry Hall, business manager, New York Tribune,
Dec. 31, 1895, the Senator's private Secretary, Charles S. Robb states
definitely that Mr. Davis was born November 16, 1823 at Baltimore.
Writing in Harper's Weekly, n.d. (1904 ?) , pp. 1206-1207, Melville
pavison Post says, "Henry G. Davis was born in Baltimore (and not
In Woodstock, Maryland, as the newspaper sketches give it)." Information on Senator Davis was graciously supplied by Charles Shetler,
~8urator, West Virginia Collection, West Virginia University Library,
"lorgantown, W. Va. in a letter to Rev. James J. Hennesey, S.J., April
19, 1956. (Woodstock College Archives, I R 9). The Davis papers are
on deposit in the West Virginia University Library.
45 Hively, Zoe. cit.
46 Ellicott City Times, Zoe. cit., I-6.
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
324
;.
•'
.
'·
i•
to Baltimore and other cities from the Woodstock loading
platform. 47
Apart from the now insignificant granite quarries, the
countryside around Woodstock has maintained an almost
purely agricultural economy. Wheat and corn are grown and
Howard County supplies the entire world with wormseed oil
-described by the Ellicott City Times as "a vermifuge for
man and beast." 48 The area has been fairly prosperous. By
1838, the northern part of Anne Arundel County had been
given its own, organization as the Howard District and in
1851 it became a separate county. 49 In luxuriant turn-of-thecentury prose,'.local historian J.D. Warfield describes Howard
County:
Bordered by the rocky profiles of the Patapsco on the north and
by the rich levels of the Patuxent on the south, this gem, set in a
frame of rushing, tragic waters, with a lustre as brilliant as the
patriotic career of the Revolutionary hero for whom it was named,
now adorns the glittering diadem of Queen Henrietta Maria's
crown. 5°
The viH.ftge of Woodstock is located in the Third-or Cross
District of Howard County, which is at present (1957) represented in the Maryland House of Delegates by a member of
the Brown family of Goodfellowship. 51
-
.
Civil War
The tension generated by the breakup of the Union in 1861
was nowhere more keenly felt than in the border states.
Maryland soldiers fought in both Federal and Confederate
armies. Pro-Southern sentiment ran particularly high in the
slave-holding country areas, and among them Woodstock made
its contribution to the Army of Northern Virginia. In the
post-war years, the town's leading citizen was Brigadier
General James Rawlings Herbert, a veteran of the ValleY
Hively, loc. cit. and The Jeffersonian, vol. 21, no. 46.
Ellicott City Times, loc. cit., E-5.
49 Warfield, op. cit., 36 and 522.
5o Ibid., 337.
51 Howard County's Third District is called the "Cross" District
on an old hand-drawn map in the Woodstock College Archives (I R 7).
Mr. W. Howard Brown, Jr. of the House of Delegates very kindlY
supplied much of the background material on his family.
47
48
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
325
campaigns and a wounded hero of Gettysburg. 52 During the
war itself, Union soldiers and supplies moved continually
along the main line of the Baltimore and Ohio, a fact which
made the railroad a major target for marauding bands of
Confederate cavalry. Large Southern armies were in the
vicinity on several occasions. General Robert E. Lee occupied
Frederick in September, 1862, before marching on to Antietam. Not quite a year later, Major General J. E. B. Stuart's ill-fated excursion before Gettysburg took him to Hood's
Mills, a few miles above Woodstock on the Patapsco. While
Stuart's troopers were tearing up the tracks at Hood's Mills,
a detachment under Fitzhugh Lee made a vain attempt to
burn the bridge at Sykesville. 53 Finally, in July, 1864, Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early led his II Corps east from the
Monocacy in a desperate attack which brought him within
sight ofthe National Capital. On Early's northern flank,
Brigadier General Bradley Johnson's cavalry reached the outskirts of Baltimore and ranged up and down the Patapsco
Valley, destroying highway and railroad bridges. 54 The Confederate soldiers, many of them Marylanders, were operating
in friendly territory. This was especially true of the country
east of the Monocacy. 5 5 An instance of the co-operation which
the invaders could expect occurred at Woodstock on one occasion. Colonel Herbert's Maryland Regiment was in the vicinity, bogged down for lack of transport. The Woodstock farmers rallied to his assistance and supplied enough wagons to
enable Herbert and his men to rejoin the main body of the
Confederate Army. The Federal authorities naturally took
a dim view of such proceedings and Beale Cavey, who had
5 2 General Herbert lived in the large house at the end of Cavey's
Lane. He is mentioned several times in Douglas Southall Freeman,
Lee's Lieutenants (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1944), III, as
a lieutenant colonel commanding Maryland units in the Confederate
Army. The General also served as Colonel of the Fifth Regiment,
Maryland National Guard, Police Commissioner and Commanding
General, Maryland Militia. (Warfield, op. cit., 159 and 364).
5 3 Freeman, op. cit., III, 51-72. Stuart rode through Hood's Mills
on his way to Gettysburg. The one day delay (June 29, 1863) at
Hood's Mills and Sykesville was a costly one for the South. The cavalry
Was not ready for action at Gettysburg until Jull 3.
54 Ibid., 559 ff. General Johnson was a Marylander.
M Ibid., 560.
.
�326
HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
recruited the rolling stock, had to hide out for a time in the
wilderness known as Soldier's Delight. 56
Post-War Years
Eight months after General Early's withdrawal from the
Washington front, Appomattox ended the Civil War. For a
place like Woodstock, 1865 marked the end of an era. The
slaves were freed and the old southern plantations became
country farms. The tiny village on the bank of the Patapsco
looked then pretty much as it does today. In 1871, an English
visitor sent home this description of it:
The rive; 'ls like the Hodder at Stonyhurst, and it flows through
the hollows of high wooded hills, wild and picturesque. The Baltimore and Ohio railroad runs along its winding course; and, at a
distance of twenty-three miles from Baltimore, but only sixteen
miles in a straight line, the little village of Woodstock nestles in
a crevice between two hills. Indeed, a poorer apology for a village,
or a feebler aspirant for municipal dignities could scarcely be
imagined: for its sum total of constituents is a railway station, a
post office, a few shanties and a county bridge over the Patapsco. 57
A Canagian visitor in 1873 was somewhat .more kindly disposed. He remarks that:
The hills on either side of the river are abrupt and in many
places precipitous, crowned with cedar groves, or woods of oak,
maple, hickory, the tulip poplar, the ~m, the fragrant sassafrass
and the more humble dogwood whose profuse white flowers in the
full blossom of spring are in striking contrast with the crimson
blossoms of the Judas tree, and whose blood red berries in the glow
of an Indian summer show even brighter than the brilliant hues
of our American forests in autumn.5s
As for the sluggish Patapsco, it has probably never been more
lyrically described than by the same writer:
56 "Soldier's Delight" is a huge tract in the "Great Barrens," just
above the new Liberty Dam. An account of its history wiii be foun?
in "Soldier's Delight Hundred in Baltimore County," Maryland Histoncal Magazine 1-144 ff. The story of Beale Cavey and his help to Colonel
Herbert was·told to Rev. James J. Ruddick, S.J. by Beale Cavey's grandson, Mr. John Herbert Cavey of Woodstock.
57 "Woodstock College," Letters and Notices (Roehampton, England: Typog. S. Josephi, 1871) VII, 50-51.
58 Arthur E. Jones, S.J., "Woodstock-Its Surroundings and Associations," THE WOODSTOCK LETTERS (Woodstock: Woodstock
College Press, 1873) II, 44.
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK.
327
The serpentine course of the Patapsco, so far down beneath us
that the noise of its waters as they dash over the rocks at the ford
is toned down to a gentle murmur, the vista between the hills
whose rough contour is softened by the woodlands on their
slopes, the strip of fertile meadow at the margin of the stream,
the island with its rank growth of reeds and willows, the stream
itself silvered by the distance and the play of light, the pearly mist
hanging veil-like midway down the valley, and the haze at the
horizon which, with more than artist's skill heightens the atmospheric perspective, the stark piers of the broken bridge, suggestive
of scenes of violence amidst one of peace and beauty, such is the
rough outline of a charming picture. 59
As a final touch to the picture of Woodstock in mid-nineteenth
century, we may add a last line from the same Canadian pen:
The unpretending hamlet of Woodstock, consisting of scarcely
half a dozen houses, nestles snugly in a fold of the hills halfway
up the southern slope, seemingly unconscious that it lies within a
score of miles of one of the great centres of American civilization.60
The College
A great event took place in the sleepy village in the late
1860's. On September 23, 1869, Woodstock College of Baltimore County opened its doors as the first permanent scholasticate of the Society of Jesus in North America. The College
is built on a high bluff overlooking the town from the north.
Although it is located in the town of Granite, 61 the presence
of such a large institution has necessarily affected the history
of the village across the river which serves as its post office
address. Men like Brother Theodore Vorbrinck, who for over
forty years supervised the College farm, and the late Brother
Charlie Abram were familiar figures in the countryside, and
did much to gain the goodwill of the neighbors. One instance
of the warm welcome given the Jesuits occurred three months
after the opening of the College, when seventy-five farmers of
the region gathered to raise the roof of the first barn on the
Property. 62 These good relations between the Jesuits on the
-
59
Ibid., 45.
Ibid., 46.
61 Actually Granite has no more legal claim to existence than does
\Yoodstock. Properly speaking, the College is located in no smaller
Circumscription than the Second District of Baltimore County.
62 Patrick J. Dooley, S.J., Woodstock and Its Makers (Woodstock:
Woodstock College Press, 1927), 45.
60
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
328
hill and the people of the valley have continued through the
years.
Woodstock College's greatest contribution to the local area
has been the part that its faculty and Scholastics played in
the development of the Catholic life of the section. Before
1869, the nearest Catholic Church was the chapel at Doughoregan Manor. The Jesuits immediately set about remedying
this situation and, within ten years, they had opened churches
at Harrisonville, Elysville and Poplar Springs. Catechism
missions were established at Woodstock, Granite, Marriottsville, Elysville~;Dorsey's Run and Sykesville. Closer to home,
the College Chapel was opened to the laity in October, 1869
and served as a parish church until the Church of the Holy
Ghost (now St. Alphonsus') was opened in 1887.63 In recent
years, the Jesuit pastor of St. Alphonsus has also acted as
chaplain of the sanatorium at Henryton.
"The More Things Change"
Apart from the presence of the College, Woodstock has not
changed very much in the years since the Civil War. Electrification has come, and tractors to the farms. Old Court Road
-the ancient Indian highway-has been straightened somewhat and paved. Old Frederick Road is now the more prosaic
Route 99. A railroad station built dpring the SO's was torn
down in 1951.64 One year before that, ·the B & 0 had discontinued passenger service over the old main line. It was just
120 years since Woodstock had first seen the Tom Thumb,
the York and the Atlantic. The flight to suburbia has not yet
affected the village to any great degree. There are new houses
along Old Court and a few late-Victorian homes on the hill·
side to the right of the village, but that is all. The Patapsco
still flows through the valley. Generally it is brown and peaceful, although still capable of an occasional rampage. 65 Fifty
Ibid., 235 ff.
Ibid., 193. According to Fr. Dooley, a telegraph station was
installed at Woodstock in 1889 at the request of Mrs. General Willia~
Tecumseh Sherman, who had taken a home in the area to be on ban
for the ordination that summer of her son, Fr. Thomas Ewing Sber·
man, S.J. The railroad station, again according to Fr. Dooley, fo!lowei
soon after. Other accounts say that the station was built in 1883 a
a cost of $7000. (The Jeffersonian [Towson, Md.] vol. 21, no. 46). k
65 A flood in the summer of 1956 reached the floor of the W oodstoc
63
64
�HISTORY OF WOODSTOCK
329
or a hundred years ago, floods on the river were a disastrous
affair. Acres of debris piled up at every bend. One flood left
a wheelbarrow hanging twenty feet up in the branches of a
tree. Woodstock's wooden bridge was swept away at least
three times and had to be replaced by an iron structure.
Whole sections of the railroad were often completely washed
out.66 At such times, the only way to cross the river was by
fiat-bottomed scow or perhaps on Jim Cavey's granite wagon,
once the waters had abated. There was also a swaying foot
bridge just above the town, at the place now called People's
Beach. 67 The recent creation of a state park in the Patapsco
Valley and the erection of Baltimore City's new Liberty Dam
on the North Branch of the river will, it is hoped, help to control the floods which have done so much damage in past years.
Epilogue
Such is the history of Woodstock, Howard County, Maryland .. In capsule form, it is the history of the development of
the Maryland piedmont, from the time of the Susquehannocks
and the coming of the Patuxent Ranger down to the present.
Woodstock had its share in the Revolution and in the War of
1812. It was even more intimately involved in the War between the States. The story of Woodstock is part of the history of American railroading and of the National Road to the
west. The new Patapsco State Parkway-if it ever materializes-will travel through country which has been a part of
the American scene almost from our earliest days.
bridge and inundated the meadow on the north bank.
sa Jones, art. cit., 52.
sr Dooley, op. cit., 41. The foot bridge appears on a map drawn
in 1872 by Father Arthur Jones, S.J. (Woodstock College Archives
I L 7.1 b).
�Table-Reading During the Retreat
GREGORY FOOTE,
S.J.
The reading at table in a religious community during the
annual retreat can be a great help or a not inconsiderable
hindrance to the success of the Spiritual Exercises. There
can be reading so heavy as to tire the earnest exercitant.
There can be selections so scatter-shot as to dissipate his
concentration. There can be matter apparently following the
scheme of the Exercises, yet so foreign to their spirit as to
dilute their powerful effect. St. Ignatius tells the exercitant
in the sixth addition,t
"I should not think of things that give pleasure and joy, as the
glory of heaven, the Resurrection, etc., (when) I wish to feel pain,
sorrow, and tears for my sins, (for) every consideration promoting
joy and happiness will impede it. I should rather keep in mind
that I want to be sorry and feel pain. Hence it would be better not
to call ..to mind death and judgment." ( #78) 1
This wise counsel of the Saint refers, as it stands, to the
exercises of the First Week, that is, from the start of the
meditation on sin until the start of the meditation on the
Kingdom of Christ, ushering in the new· mood of the Second
Week. The book of the Exercises is at pains to have the
exercitant follow the mood, thought, and spirit of each meditation as it comes. The second addition brings this out:
"When I wake up, I will not permit my thoughts to roam at
random, but will turn my mind at once to the subject I am
about to contemplate." ( #7 4)
Again in the first note following the Nativity contemplations, we find another reminder of the necessity of staying
in the mood of the retreat as it proceeds, step by step:
"Throughout this Week and the subsequent Weeks, I ought
to read only.' the mystery that I am immediately to contem1 All translations taken from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
translated by Louis J. Puhl, S.J.
330
�TABLE READING
331
plate. Hence I should not read any mystery that is not to be
used on that day or at that hour, lest the consideration of one
mystery interfere with the contemplation of the other."
(#127)
Finally, in the fourth Nativity note the above quoted sixth
addition is adapted for the Second Week: "The sixth will be
to call to mind frequently the mysteries of the life of Christ
our Lord from the Incarnation to the place or mystery I am
contemplating." ( #130)
The plain conclusion from all of this is that the exercitant
ought always to follow the retreat as it comes but never to
anticipate what is to come later, not even the very next exercise.2 What is allowed is that he look backwards, thus satisfying his mind and heart in the possession and enjoyment
of what he has gained so far in the progressive experience of
his thought and prayer.
We perhaps wonder from time to time why the Exercises
of St. Ignatius don't seem to come up with the results that
formerly made them such an outstanding success. They do
not seem to be producing all that they could. All of us know,
even without the assistance of the many available "arguments
from authority," that the Exercises are as potent for good
now as they ever were. If they are not living up to their past
and not achieving their potential, the difference must be accounted for somewhere. Among the contributing causes (leaving aside the obvious requirement of holiness and experience
in the one who gives the Exercises) must we not include inept
choice in the selection of table-reading?
There is a difference between adaptation and departure.
The Exercises have adaptation written right into them. Few
of us can say that we have given the Exercises for thirty days
to a single retreatant in some secluded place and where the
succession of meditations was not rigidly plotted out weeks
(or years) in advance. But those of us with the time to devote
2 There would seem to be two reasons for not anticipating: first, lest
one fail to reap all the fruit at the place where he is; second, that in
ideal conditions only the one giving the Exercises will know what the
"next" exercise will be, since this depends entirely on his judgment of
the present state of the exercitant. Cf. #4, 17.
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TABLE READING
to the annual retreats of religious communities can still say
truthfully that we are giving the Spiritual Exercises.
Departure is another thing. And is it not a departure to
be careless in the selection of table-reading during the retreat? Surely it goes against the plan of the Exercises to
allow reading at table that anticipates the meditations. It is
still worse to distract the mind and heart of the exercitant
with reading that bears only a remote connection with the
spirit of the retreat at any given meal. Would it not be
preferable to take all the meals in silence rather than burden
the mind and annoy the spirit of the exercitant with a multitude of considerations irrelevant to the psychology of the
Exercises?
Why, we might ask, has the important element of tablereading been somewhat neglected? One reason, no doubt, is
that some superiors may feel that certain important documents must be read to their subjects, and the retreat is the
time when they will be at their receptive and docile best.
Another reason is that not all retreats are the Exercises.
Perhaps when the Jesuit appears on the scene, he does not
make it clear enough that the retreat he will give is so planned
as to be highly dependent on the most apt use of creatures,
including reading, for the next eight days.
A certain Jesuit, formerly connected with the spiritual
development of young religious, re~rred to the lgnatian
Exercises as a series of spiritual squeeze-plays. But to work
the squeeze play, the minds and bodies of the ma:qager,
coaches, batter, and runner must all be intent on one thing
only.
Perhaps another reason for the incomplete realization of
the potential of the Exercises is that we are in the "pre-fab"
age. The retreat, too, may become stereotyped and utterly
predictable. When the retreat takes on the look of the lecture
course, well-planned and never changed, who would not infer
that the added religious information gained from listening
at table will actually supplement the work of the eight days?
What lgn~tius does is try to clear a path for the Holy Spirit
to enter by. Has not the exercitant himself sufficiently clut·
tered the landscape without our blocking the way with pious
extras and clouding the atmosphere with unnecessary con-
�TABLE READING
333
siderations? We can more justly expect the Holy Spirit to
descend when the sky is clear and the entrance open.
A more careful attention to the table-reading may mean
choosing several selections from many different books for one
eight-day retreat. This is added work, but for those who have
cultivated the habit of listening to what they hear, it is a
conditio sine qua non of their getting what Ignatius intends.
Physician, cure thyself. The tantum-quantum and the magis
of the Foundation can be applied to the reading at table just
as well as to any other creature.
The danger involved in inappropriate table-reading during
the retreat does not appear at once. It is subtle. It is the
trap of using a good at the wrong time or in the wrong way.
Ordinarily, we do not view table-reading as an indifferent
thing, achieving its communicated good from the good it
subserves. Rather, we tend to take for granted the selection
of good reading, at least as a habitual situation. That is why
table-reading can mask a typically lgnatian danger, just as,
for instance, the danger we are more ready to recognize in
indiscreet devotions, long prayers, overdoses of vocal prayer,
injurious bodily penances, overloaded curricula, recordbreaking enrollments, and so many other things. But in a
retreat, even more so than at other times, we must be discerning to select from the good only that which is more conducive to the end proposed; even more so in the retreat because the Exercises are more than a prayerful consideration
of the truth we live by; they are themselves a training period
in which we are constantly applying the attitudes and habits
we desire to carry into our daily life. The tantum-quantum
and the magis are universal, and it is according to their
greater or lesser application to all matters where we are free
to choose, that we judge the vigor of our spiritual life.
We are generally very careful to remind our retreatants
that they have not come to a series of sermons, but are entering on a course of spiritual self-activity. We tell them that
this is not a time to catch up on back correspondence, not a
time to make up spiritual reading that was lost during the
past year, nor, worse, a time to get in some extra study. We
tell them it is God's time and no place for special little sideprojects that will detract from the all-important goal. We
�334
TABLE READING
sincerely hope that the religious making the retreat are not
using their "free time" to prepare classes for the coming
semester and that summer house-cleaning in the convent does
not coincide with the annual retreat. We tell them that the
retreat is a time to seek God and live, and that all other
activity, eating, sleeping, walking, reading, thinking, working, or writing, or anything else is to be used or not used
according to its connection with the goal of the eight days.
The retreat is no time to excel as Marthas, but the one time
of the year when they should choose with Mary the better
part, knowing that but one thing is necessary. And until
they can all repeat it in their sleep, we do not cease to insist
that "it is not much knowledge that fills and satisfies the soul,
but the intimate understanding and relish of truth." (#2)
About all these things we are careful, but not nearly so
anxious about the table-reading. It is clear that the exercitant
who destroys his own silence, interior or exterior, is working
against the success of his own retreat. But a book unwisely
selected (or allowed) for table-reading has much the same
destructive power. Even subject matter pertaining to the
same Week can be out of place if it is thrust upon the attention of the exercitant on the wrong day. This is especially
true in the First and Second Weeks. The introduction at
table of such topics as sin, sorrow, punishment, and the like,
before the exercitant has left the consideration of the Foundation, is to prevent the latter from sinking in. In the Second
Week, moralizing or lesson-drawing studies of the Gospels,
tending arbitrarily to channel the interior movements of the
exercitant, can leave scanty footing for the true movements
of grace.
Of the four Weeks in the Exercises, it would seem to be the
First that calls for the most rigid selection of reading. There
the spirit of the Exercises is, perhaps, the most exacting.
That this part of the retreat will prove something of a workout seems hinted at clearly enough in the third note after the
Nativity contemplations where we read, "If the exercitant
is old or weak, or even when strong, if he has come from the
First Week rather exhausted, it should be noted that in this
Second Week it would be better, at least at times, not to rise
at midnight." ( #129) The only other Week that would com-
�TABLE READING
335
pare to the First in intensity would be the Third, but even
there it is mitigated in this sense, at least, that contemplation
has taken the place of meditation. Iparraguirre mentions this
precisely: "Less time is usually required for the exposition of
subjects which are concrete and appealing to the sensibility,
such as the Passion." 3
All in all, it is in the Third Week that there should be the
least problem about selecting the table-reading. In any Week
the chief norm will be to avoid any anticipation of the coming
exercises. In the Fourth Week the problem ought not be much
greater, if only for the reason that it occupies only one day
in the great majority of eight-day retreats. Of course, the
underlying principle for the whole retreat is to choose what
best subserves the aim of the Exercises and the actual needs
of the retreatants. For example, where the retreatants are
relatively young and making a thirty-day retreat, and where
there are four periods of prayer plus a conference daily
(rather than three and a conference), it might not be out of
place at all to devote all the table-reading to (non-moralizing)
hagiography.
To return to the First Week in the eight-day retreat. Since
there must necessarily be a great deal of telescoping (or omission) in this shortened form of the Exercises, the selection
of reading could be made to fill in those notable elements not
fully treated for lack of time. This would be neither anticipating nor distracting.
The shift of mood on entering the Second Week is considerable. It takes many adjectives to describe it. Let us say
that, in general, it is characterized by expansion, freedom,
generosity, and enthusiasm. Knowing what he has done,
Ignatius gives us some very illuminating help in the matter of
reading for the Second Week. In the second note after the
meditation on the Kingdom, he says, "During the Second
Week and thereafter, it will be very profitable to read some
passages from the Following of Christ, or from the Gospels,
and from the Lives of the Saints." ( #100)
-
3 A Key to the Study of the Spiritual Exercises, Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J., tr. J. Chianese, S.J., Hibernian Press, Calcutta, 1955, p. 17.
�336
TABLE READING
It will be easy enough to find fitting chapters from the
Imitation and there are, indeed, many lists in circulation with
just such leads. As for the Gospels, here again, following
rather than anticipating should be the norm. As for the
Lives of the Saints, Ignatius knew personally how much they
challenged him, how they inspired and encouraged him, how
they gave him consolation at seeing the devoted love that
others had shown toward his King and Lord. May they do
no less for His followers today!
As a final consideration, let us turn to a point merely mentioned above, namely that it would be better to have no reading at table at 3:ll at certain meals rather than to have poor
reading, not in line with the psychology of the Exercises. This
suggestion need not be viewed as outlandish. Ignatius speaks
of reading as something that can be used or laid aside, nor
does he even consider table-reading in the book of the Exercises. For him the retreat is primarily a time of prayer,
discernment, and resolution. When he does mention reading
at all, it is only as a means to further his end. Every retreatant must find himself at certain meals wishing to be
left un-bothered by even the best of reading.
But even here, it need not be a question of all or none.
There is every reason to believe that at certain times the very
best arrangement would be to have reading for a part of the
meal and then to finish in silence. Obviously this would be
the case when there is only one good selection available but
not long enough to fill out a whole meal.
There is another and much more valuable reason in favor
of introducing such a practice. If it happens that the thoughts
proposed in the reading appeal to the mind and touch the
heart of the listeners (the purpose of the reading) then this
reading can be a powerful stimulus, a practical help, and
a needed training toward prayer. The active recollection
achieved at this point of the meal can be abused by plunging
directly from,a fruitful topic into a new subject, and the grace
of the moment is lost. Certainly the earnest exercitant in his
own private reading does not lay down one selection only to
turn immediately to another. How many of us have not
wished to be left in peace at that point during a meal where
a particularly appealing passage has just been concluded?
�TABLE READING
337
At such a time, is that not a moment of grace when the reader
announces, "The end of the selection"? We have been led
to a point where a very peaceful and fruitful form of recollection could take over. The spade-work has been done; all the
heart asks is to be left alone. This is one of those times when
outside help amounts to a hindrance. What Ignatius says
with a view to the Election has its bearing here also. "But
while one is engaged in the Spiritual Exercises, it is more
suitable and much better that the Creator and Lord in person
communicate Himself to the devout soul, ... that He inflame
it with love of Himself, and dispose it...." ( #15)
Ignatius makes no mention of table-reading. But where he
speaks about eating at all, he is concerned that some consideration or reflection occupy the mind.
"While one is eating, let him imagine he sees Christ our Lord
and His disciples at table, and consider how He eats and drinks,
how He looks, how he speaks, and then strive to imitate Him. . . •
While eating one may also occupy himself with some other consideration, either of the life of the saints, or of some pious reflection, or of a spiritual work he has on hand." ( #214, 215)
These are suggestions the exercitant ought to try during
the retreat so that, having experienced their fruits, he will
have added motive for carrying them into his daily life whenever the body is being refreshed. This tends to confirm our
belief that the primary purpose of table-reading is not the
gathering of more religious information, good as this is in
itself. Rather, the Saint is trying to train us (see that we
understand and value the motives) to pray always, to find
God in all things, to be contemplative in all our action.
�Father Peter Masten Dunn
JOHN B. McGLOIN, S.J.
Father Peter Masten Dunne, ever a model of geniality, was
admittedly in good form as he rose to introduce the main
speaker at his Golden Jubilee dinner which was being held
in the spacious Phelan Hall on the campus of the University
of San Francisco. It was Sunday, July 22, 1957 and over
one hundred of the brethren had journeyed from all over the
northern part of the California Province to honor a scholar,
an exemplary priest, and a thoroughly respected religious of
the Society. Father Dunne had wanted Doctor John Donald
Hicks to be his special guest that night for, as chairman of
the History Department of the University of California,
Doctor Hicks had formed a close friendship with Father
Dunne, his "opposite number" at USF. The Jubilarian's
introduction of Doctor Hicks is quoteworthy because of its
studied nonchalance: "Stand up now, John, and tell the
Fathers how much you have enjoyed all this fine food!" And
stand up Doctor Hicks did but, after a ·few droll pleasantries
which are his trademark in class and e"verywhere else, he remarked how very unusual it was for the son of a Methodist
minister to eulogize a Jesuit Jubiliarian. "However," he
added, "It now behooves me in such a gathering of the clergy
to show my earlier and solidly Protestant training by offering a text as a preface to my remarks. I do so, and it is
2 Timothy, 2 :15: 'Carefully study to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed,
rightly handling the word of truth.' " And then, with a quiet
eloquence which illustrated his sincerity, this outstanding
American historian delivered a touching tribute to the fine
qualities of.' Peter Masten Dunne, Golden Jubilarian and
priest of the Society of Jesus. "He is a man of complete
integrity," said John Hicks, "And that is why he is respected
by those of us who know him from outside Roman Catholi·
338
�FATHER DUNNE
339
cism, but who admire him for all that he represents in solid
scholarship and for his never failing urbanity and gentility."
When Father Dunne had gone to the altar in St. Ignatius
Church of the University campus that morning to offer his
solemn Mass of Jubilee, his "Introibo" had been heard with
considerably mixed emotions on the part of many who so
loved and respected him. Many knew that Father Dunne had
submitted to imperative surgery several months before, and
that his stomach had been removed in an attempt to stem the
progress of a malignant condition which had suddenly manifested itself. A few days later, he who had always been so
strong and in such excellent health, had been prepared for
death by his Father Rector and, when told that he was to be
anointed, he had remarked quite simply: "So I am now going
to receive this wonderful Sacrament! Thank you, Father
Rector." But Father Dunne made a comeback and, though
doctors called it almost miraculous, there he was singing his
Mass of Golden Jubilee in San Francisco's beautiful St. Ignatius Church. It was my appreciated privilege to have preached
the sermon on that day, and I thought that Father Peter
would be pleased if I selected a text closer to home than usual.
The warm words of Peter to Our Lord at the scene of the
Transfiguration came to mind and so my remarks about this
other Peter found their inspiration in Matthew 17:4: "And
Peter, turning, said to Jesus: Lord, it is good for us to be
here." The three tabernacles which Peter wished built on the
Mount of Transfiguration seemed to provide a natural development, and so mention was made of how Father Peter
Masten Dunne had built in his fifty years a tabernacle of outstanding scholarship, a tabernacle of a singularly dedicated
Jesuit life, and a tabernacle of a truly priestly life modelled
after that of the High Priest, Our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. As I spoke that morning, I knew that Father Dunne
was yet building another tabernacle, and events were to
Prove that it was to be his finest: It was that of his complete
and serene acceptance of the will of God in the matter of his
going forth from this world as a victim of incurable cancer.
Many others shared my unspoken thoughts of that day.
· Peter Masten Dunne was born in San Jose, California, on
April 16, 1889. He was the only boy among six children, and
�340
FATHER DUNNE
all his five sisters, one a Sister of the Holy Names, survive
him. There was both wealth and property in the Dunne
family, and a modern map of California lists a Dunneville
near Hollister which was named after his grandfather who
held large ranch acreage in the area. It was both desired and
expected, especially on the Masten or maternal side of the
family, that Peter Dunne, to the manner born, would to the
same manner live. As had his father before him, he entered
Santa Clara College after preliminary schooling in San Jose
and then (on July 20, 1906) though not entirely to the liking
of all in the fa_!l}ily, Peter Dunne entered the Novitiate at
Los Gatos. He once told of the events of that Friday afternoon when two young men emerged from the fine old ancestral
home on The Alameda in San Jose. With him was his closest
personal friend, Eugene Ivancovich, who died in 1951 after a
fruitful priestly apostolate in the Society. On the old red cars,
without benefit of parents, the two newest recruits rode over
to Los Gatos that afternoon and together they walked up the
hill to the Sacred Heart Novitiate which, by 1906, had greeted
such as they for eighteen years. Together they paused momentarily at the front door, completed a pact already arrived at
as each placed a finger on the doorbell and thus, together, they
entered upon religious life. The usual training of the Society
followed and Father Dunne used occasiQnally to reminisce on
those happy years when he was, to use his own expression,
"a young and very happy Jesuit." His five years of teaching
saw him at St. Ignatius High School in San Francisco and
at his own Santa Clara College and, during his stay as a
regent in San Francisco, he began his career of writing under
circumstances which he later included in a published autobiographical sketch:
The first time I wrote for publication was during my first year
teaching in San Francisco. It was 1915, the year of the Panama·
Pacific Exposition. I was intrigued by the Chinese exhibit of the
then infant republic and described it in an article which I sent to
America. It was rejected and an unsympathetic superior said
that this would teach me a lesson. I suppose that he thought that
I was being too ambitious for a young Jesuit. I remember vividly
my, perhaps pardonable, satisfaction when, in the early summer
of 1919, I first broke into the pages of America. It was while
at our summer camp by Manresa looking out over the curving
�FATHER PETER MASTEN DUNNE
��FATHER DUNNE
341
beaches of Monterey Bay, there where Irvin Cobb said Neptune
spilt his blueing pot. We were sitting under cypress trees
after lunch amidst the tents when the day's mail was delivered. The
week's issue of America was there. I had been waiting for it.
Would it have my article? Eagerly I reached for it; I got it first
and saw my first published effort. . . . This was for me a good
moment.
Off to theology in Hastings, England, went Mr. Dunne in
1919. He was to tell later how very much he appreciated the
privilege of living in a cosmopolitan Jesuit community which
had, as its nucleus, the exiled Jesuits of France but which
included representatives of twenty-three different nationalities. Father Dunne considered these years as quite precious
in both his intellectual and spiritual formation; although he
had always liked the study of history, it was during these
years of formation at Hastings that he studied diligently in
the field of ecclesiastical history as well as in the other disciplines and he thus recorded his recollections of the values
received:
As a scholastic I came gradually to form the opinion that history,
as I saw it taught in some of our colleges out in the west, was not
taught properly. . . . Too much of only one side was given: the
whole truth was not spoken, especially where the Church entered
in. . . . At Hastings, I did my best through the reading of the
finest Catholic historians and through conferences with learned
and mature men of our Society to shape my opinions correctly
according to the spirit of the Society and of the Church. Whenever
I had the opportunity I conferred with my professors at Hastings
and with Fathers Joseph Rickaby, Lucas, Thurston and Pollen of
the English Province as well as with Fathers Delehaye and Peeters
of the Bollandists and with others such as Father d'Herbigny,
under whom I made a retreat in Brussels. I thought a great deal
about these matters of the right presentation of history and could
see my ideas taking shape. . . . Moreover, I foresaw that, when I
should return to the classroom and endeavor to actualize my ideals
in this matter, I should meet with a good deal of criticism from
others. • . . I prepared for this criticism that I was sure would
come by endeavoring to deepen my interior life through a close
union with Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Those who later lived with Father Peter Dunne will bear witness to the undeniable fact that this union to which he referred
was evident, and that it bore abundant fruit in the priestliness
and devotion which he brought to his life. On August ~4, 1921,
�342
FATHER DUNNE
Peter Dunne was raised to priesthood by Bishop Peter Amigo
of Southwark. At the successful conclusion of his theological
studies, he returned to the United States and made his Tertianship in Cleveland with Father Burrowes as his instructor.
Final Profession was made in 1925, and now Peter Dunne
was ready for his finest years, and, as he remarked during
his last few months of suffering, they were years of vibrant
health and productivity for which he was completely grateful
to Almighty God.
A brief bout with editorial work on the America staff
is thus interestingly described by Father Dunne:
Editorial Wnrk on the staff of America (1924-1925) engaged
my literary energies, even though by the indulgence of Editor
Father Richard Tierney, I was able to take some courses in History
in the graduate school of Columbia University. I slugged away
at book reviews, turned out an occasional article, and helped in
editing the Catholic Mind. Once Father Francis Talbot and I both
agreed to write an article for the Christmas number. Our Colleagues would choose the better for publication. Frank Talbot won,
of course. I was and have since remained unable to reach the luster
of his golden pen. Nor is that ali-I was a no-good journalist and
a wors~ proof-reader. I was let out after a year.
Father Dunne returned to Santa Clara to teach history
and, after one year, he was changed to the J uniorate at Los
Gatos. There he spent four years which he would later call
almost idyllic for he loved the peacefUl and orderly atmosphere which there surrounded him, and he found ample opportunity to enrich his own mind with further historical
readings while passing on some of those same riches to the
young Jesuits in his classes. Many a Father who is active
now in the California and Oregon Provinces of the Society
will recall the decidedly good influence which Father Dunne
had on the intellectual formation of his generation. He was
not given to idle boasting, but, in later years Father Dunne
was legitimately proud of the number of his former Jesuit
pupils who told him that his views on history and on the
integral presentation of historical truth had marked a treas·
ured milestoite in their intellectual formation. Later on he
freely admitted that at times he had probably over-stressed
the frailties of ecclesiastics in presenting the history of the
Reformation, but he just as freely asserted that his mistake,
�FATHER DUNNE
343
if it was such, was made out of an excess of zeal for the truth.
Few would doubt this who listened to him then or later on.
However this may have been at the time, in 1930, Father
Dunne was changed from Los Gatos to the then St. Ignatius
College in San Francisco (which in a few months changed
its name to the University of San Francisco) and, in the
already published account mentioned above, he has this to say
about the matter: "Criticism, I feel, of my presentation of
Reformation history was responsible for the move from Los
Gatos." He continues in outlining the next important step
in his career :
I had by now given up hope of satisfying the old ambition of
achieving the doctor's degree in history. But in 1932 my provincial
Superior, Father Zacheus Maher, desired that I become a doctor ...
I went to my old friend, Herbert Eugene Bolton, to guide me in the
historical field . . . I was Bolton's fourth Jesuit student and being
the most recent, I was a Benjamin at forty-five. He sent Father
Jacobson and me down to Mexico to inspect old documents and to
breathe an ancient atmosphere. We did both. After my companion
left for home, I went far into the mission country, rode out over
wild trails on horseback, pierced deep into Jesuitland.
The first of Father Dunne's numerous books had been a
modest biography of the foundress of the San Francisco house
of the Helpers of the Holy Souls. He had been asked by the
religious to do this for them and he had complied: all of his
later writings, however, were to fall into the more professional type of the trained historian. Thus, in 1940, six years
after he had won the doctorate in history at Berkeley, and
while actively engaged in an amazingly exacting teaching load
at USF, Father Dunne published his Pioneer Blackrobes on
the West Coast. This was followed, in 1944, by Pioneer
Jesuits in Northern Mexico. In 1945, as a result of a sabbatical year which he spent in visiting all the countries of Latin
America, he published his controversial A Padre Views South
America. In collaboration with Father John Francis Bannon of St. Louis University, Father Dunne published a textbook in 1947 which was entitled: Latin America: An Historical Survey. The next year saw his prolific and scholarly pen
issuing Early Jesuit Missions in Tarahuma. In 1951, Father
Dunne had still another volume ready which he entitled:
Andres Perez de Ribas, Pioneer Blackrobe of the West Coast.
�344
FATHER DUNNE
The next volume he considered his best written, and others
have found in its pages a mature exposition of its subject
matter which mark it as a really superior work; this was his
Blackrobes in Lower California. Finally, in 1955, Father
Dunne published Jacopo Sedlmayr, Missionary, Frontiersman, Historian. At the time of his death, there were two
unpublished manuscripts, one of which he had entitled Northward the Padre. This volume is a collection of the important
by-products of his research, and one which will perhaps be
published as a posthumous tribute to its author. Additionally,
a critical edition ,of the letters of an early Jesuit missionary
was partially pr~pared for the press while Father Dunne was
supposedly on the convalescent list after his operation of
early 1956. All in all, especiaUy when one adds the total
figure of over fifty articles contributed to various historical
magazines and a positive abundance of book reviews, and
when one adds the heavy class schedule maintained by Father
Dunne for many years, it is a scholarly record of which one
may be proud.
Yet Father Peter Dunne was not just a scholar. With his
love of God and of men redeemed by Christ, he would have
found a life of scholarship alone not completely satisfactory.
He once remarked to a younger colleague in his history department and in the priesthood: "We must always remember
that we are not just historians, Father..: Occasionally there
are confessions to be heard, and there are sermons to be
preached, and we are wrong if we separate ourselves completely from these priestly privileges." And so it was with
him for, as usual, when a belief or a conviction was enunciated
by Peter Dunne, it was invariably followed up by consistent
action. Past and present Father Ministers in San Francisco
will concur in the assertion that Father Peter Dunne was
very high up on the list of generous men, the special delight
of our ministers, of course, and indeed he could be called upon
-and was- in any emergency, and could be counted on to
deliver with unruffled serenity. Time and again he mounted
the pulpit in 'st. Ignatius Church as a last minute substitute,
and he was never found wanting in a message couched, occasionally, in memorable aphorisms, for Father Peter Dunne
was a phrasemaker par excellence. His legion of former
�FATHER DUNNE
345
students, both in the Society and out of. it, can testify to this
fact from listening to his colorful English in the classroom.
If Father Peter Dunne· will be remembered as a teacher
of men, and this, among other things, I think, is what will
cause him to be remembered longer than most of us, it will
be in a broader sense than is usually attached to the phrase.
One who endeavors to sum up the activities of his very busy
life is struck with the thought that, along with the formal
teaching of more than a quarter of a century in the classrooms
of USF, Father Dunne was a teacher in many other respects
as well. He probably did not give any special thought to the
matter, for his was a singularly unselfish and uncomplicated
life, and he was not at all self-conscious in the sense of taking
himself or his work too seriously. Reflection will convince
one, though, that Father Dunne taught not only through his
books, his learned articles, and his many public appearances
on the lecture platform in San Francisco and vicinity, but he
also taught the members of his own religious community by
the example of dedicated and industrious life which, in some
of its features, at least, put him in a class by himself. For
many years he rose well before five o'clock and, before that
bewitching hour, was on his daily walk from Ignatian Heights
to the Motherhouse of the Holy Family Sisters at Hayes and
Fillmore Streets (a distance of about fifteen city blocks) to
offer Mass at exactly five-thirty a.m. The Sisters knew that
Father Peter would be there and he always was-so much so
that it was a saying among the nuns that they could set their
clocks by the exact regularity of his appearance on the altar.
On Sundays, for many years he would vary the routine by
offering the 8 :30 Mass in St. Ignatius Church and his sermons
at this Mass consistently attracted a good number of auditors.
·It was noticed, though, that he was in the confessional well
before six o'clock on Sundays and that he remained there
until time for his own Mass. Incidentally, any of the Fathers
who took Father Peter's place in that same confessional must
certainly have noticed that a little shelf in it invariably contained a history book or two and they would be correct in
suspecting that not a minute was wasted if there were a
dearth of penitents. One could multiply examples of the same
kind of industriousness and of fidelity to priestly and religious
�346
FATHER DUNNE
duties, but it is felt that the pattern has now been fairly well
indicated: a cheerful and even sprightly service was always
and ever the contribution of Father Peter Dunne to the many
works of the Society in San Francisco. He taught the younger
men by his example of an industrious, productive, and wellbalanced life and was always encouraging if they approached
him with questions or with requests for guidance in any field
with which he felt conversant. And so, in retrospect, it is
not exactly surprising that this outstanding teacher of men
was destined to teach his greatest lesson in the manner in
which he prepared himself for death. I well remember the
nonchalant manne.:r in which he told me, as a confrere in the
history department of the University, that he was going to
the hospital for a few days for some "minor surgery." The
"minor surgery" proved to be a critical operation involving
the removal of his whole stomach in an endeavor to halt the
progress of an hitherto unsuspected cancerous growth in the
area. A partial recovery resulted, as already indicated, but
those close to Father Peter knew that he was never really
well from the day of the surgery until his death almost a
year later. Eating became quite a task and was always followed by a period of active discomfort, and thus it was that
he began to be missed from the recreation room after dinner
in the evening. This was especially noticep for Father Dunne
had always enjoyed recreation with the· community and he
felt his inability to be with the Fathers during this last year
of his life. But the strength of will which he showed an·
throughout these months was demonstrated in his desire to
return to the classroom as soon as possible, and this he did
for the summer session of 1956. He wished a full schedule
for the fall semester and it took almost executive action on
the part of a dean to persuade him that the time had now
come for him to ease up a bit and leave some of the heavier
burdens to younger men in the department. He finally acquiesced but then accepted a teaching chore at the Burlingame
Novitiate of the Sisters of Mercy and, twice each week, he
went there to 'teach European history to the younger nuns.
It was evident, though, to those of the brethren and to many
who watched from outside the cloister that Father Peter was
building his fourth tabernacle-that of suffering and of an
�FATHER DUNNE
347
uncomplaining acceptance of the will of God in his regardand that he was, perhaps without knowing it, teaching his
finest lesson to many who paused to watch and lingered to
admire this completely devoted man. He now drove to his
daily Mass instead of walking, but he was there each morning
at the usual early hour and he was pleased when, last N ovember, he completed a full quarter of a century as chaplain at
his beloved Motherhouse. He missed no classes, even though
it must have required almost superhuman effort to fulfill his
teaching obligations, and those of his students who suspected
or knew more than the others concerning his condition expressed their admiration at his determination to explain the
material and to answer the questions involved in his various
history courses. He remarked to a Jesuit friend that he
thought he had learned much from his sickness for, as he
said, "Previously, I have not known ill health at all and now,
for the first time, I am learning what other people have had
to put up with for so long a period of their lives. This is good
for me, and I have a fine teacher-Almighty God!"
The University of San Francisco had rejoiced with Father
Dunne when, in December, 1955, he was elected President of
the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association, an honor which his richly productive career of scholarship had brought to him and to his University. With characteristic forethought Father Dunne had written his presidential address to be delivered at the University of Oregon in
Eugene in December before submitting to surgery in February, 1956. When he was prepared for death after his operation-a preparation which happily proved premature--he
told me that "If I can't make it, you will find my address all
written out and on my desk, and you can go to Eugene and
read it for me!" It is good to record here that he was able
to go to Eugene, despite physical handicaps that would have
completely discouraged another man, and there, with characteristic distinction and under poignant circumstances which
were not lost on his auditors, Father Dunne read what he
knew full well was to be his valedictory in matters historical.
In less than three weeks, he was dead, and it would appear
that he had saved at least a part of himself for this final appearance. It was not vanity but a statement of simple fact
�348
FATHER DUNNE
that led him to say to a confrere on his return: "I think that
I never received more spontaneous applause than I did after
this talk. This pleased me!" For this address he had returned
to his favorite field of historical research, that of the Reformation, and he had entitled it "The Renaissance and the Reformation, A Study in Objectivity: Legends Black and White."
A Jesuit from another province who heard him said afterwards that the circumstances under which Father Dunne had
given his address as well as the masterful presentation of
his subject had combined to make him feel completely proud
to be associated professionally with such a scholar and such
a Jesuit.
Before going to Eugene in Christmas Week, 1956, Father
Dunne had offered his three Christmas Masses at the Holy
Family Motherhouse in San Francisco; despite great distress
which had always accompanied his celebration of the Holy
Sacrifice since his surgery, he had insisted on following the
immemorial convent routine by singing the first Mass and
following it with his two other low Masses. There was hardly
any breakfast afterwards, for he had arrived at a state when
physical nourishment of all but the simplest kind was almost
an impossibility. His Christmas dinner with his married
sister and her family consisted only of tea and soup, and he
practically subsisted on such things from this time to the end,
a few weeks later. On his return to Sa:rf Francisco after his
appearance at Eugene, Oregon, he reentered St. Mary's Hospital according to the prearranged plan: entering the room in
the company of Fathers Rector and Minister, he turned to
· them and thanked them for their kindness to him and said,
quite simply: "I shall not leave this room alive. This is the
will of God for me, Fathers, and I accept it with great love."
And completely accept it he did-as he had from the very
beginning of his illness. In a previous stay in the hospital
before Christmas, and after he had been fully informed of
the fatal nature of his illness, he had chatted almost nonchalantly with 'a Jesuit confrere and remarked, again with
a simplicity which was born of conviction and sincerity,
"After all, life is changed and not taken away. I had not
expected to go this way, but it is this way which God has
chosen for me. We have the truths of the spiritual life to
�FATHER DUNNE
349
strengthen and console us in this hour: we have faith, hope
and charity and we need no more." He weakened quickly
after his return to the hospital, and I shall not soon forget
a visit which it was my privilege to pay him several days
before his death; he was in evident and great distress and he
admitted that there was "now no longer discomfort but real
pain" but, in the midst of it all, he remarked very simply:
"It will be good to see God!" He well knew, as did his doctors,
that it would not be long before that end would come
which was to be his beginning. And when death came on
Tuesday morning, January 15, 1957, the soul of a Jesuit
priest who surely loved God went forth to see God. One
felt a certain amount of human sorrow but one rejoiced
at the precious memories of the last year of Father Peter's
life, as well as those which one could think of from former
years of close association. He had remarked once that he
didn't think that he had many friends, but the extent to
which he was wrong was demonstrated in the constant
flow of those who visited St. Ignatius Church for his wake
and who assisted at the low Mass of Requiem which
Father Rector, William J. Tobin, offered for the eternal
repose of his soul on January 17th, 1957. Prominent among
the mourners was that same Professor Hicks who had so
appropriately eulogized him on the occasion mentioned above.
In Sacramento the Senate and Assembly of the state of California adopted a resolution of sympathy on the passing of
"this exceptional historian". An embossed resolution of the
Board of Supervisors of San Francisco, introduced by the
President of the Board who is among the legion of Father
Dunne's former students, deserves partial quotation here
because it is put so aptly:
WHEREAS the impact of the loss visited on the community by
the death of Father Dunne is one which will touch not only the
members of the faith to whose needs he administered, but all San
Franciscans, regardless of creed, who reaped the benefits of his
lifetime spent in unselfish devotion to the welfare of his fellow
citizens,
WHEREAS the passing of Father Dunne takes from the community a citizen whose character and competence were of marked
superiority and takes from the University of San Francisco an
outstanding scholar, and a distinguished representative of this City,
�350
FATHER DUNNE
WHEREAS the deep sorrow felt by those legions from all walks
of life who were privileged to know, admire, respect and love
Father Peter Masten Dunne during his lifetime will be tempered
by the recollection of his unselfish productive career which brought
great honor, renown and distinction to San Francisco and which
may well serve as an inspiration to those who follow in his footsteps,
RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors of the City and
County of San Francisco does hereby adjourn its meeting of this
day out of respect to his cherished memory.
It may, perhaps, be allowed to finish this sketch with
another reference to Professor Hicks: in a letter to Father
Dunne which he.'has given permission to quote and which
Father Peter seerns to have read just a few hours before his
death, these thoughtful and appropriate words are found:
Who am I to tell one who was never faint of heart how to meet
the afflictions that come to mortal man 'l So I shan't try. But
permit me to say this, dear Peter, that come what may, your immortality will not be confined alone to the next world. For you
have invested your life in others. In them and in those who learn
from them and from their successors, you will be with this world
while time lasts. What a splendid legacy you will leave! I
salute you!
If these lines of sincere affection and respect for the life
and character of Peter Masten Dunne, priest of the Society
of Jesus, have proved anything at all, they may, perhaps, be
summed up as a conviction that his life"''was a fulfillment of
those words chosen by the same Professor Hicks for his
"text" at the Jubilee banquet already mentioned:
"Carefully study to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of
truth."
These inspired words of St. Paul seem to sum up adequately
the truly distinguished career of Peter Masten Dunne, scholar,
teacher of men, and priest of the Society of Jesus.
�Father George McAnaney
FR. JOSEPH E. O'NEILL, S.J.
Father George McAnaney was a man about whose life and
character it is difficult to write at length. The reason for
this is not that there was anything over which one would
prefer to pass or that there was anything in his nature
impossible to understand and explain. The reason lies in
the plain fact that he was a simple man, an average Jesuit,
who led an average, normal life, who never did anything in
any way unusual, outstanding, or particularly brilliant. There
were no high lights in his life, no sparkling years of dramatic
activity to hold the interest. He was a good teacher who
patiently and conscientiously taught high school for the three
years of his regency and for eleven years as a priest. On
the surface, at least, it was an uneventful, humdrum existence.
But a Jesuit does not live wholly upon the surface, and the
drama of Father McAnaney was played out very quietly,
unheard, almost unseen, and certainly without fanfare and
adulation of any kind.
The surface facts are quickly told. He was born on May 7,
1909, of parents of Irish extraction, and he grew up in
Yonkers, New York. After the usual grammar school training he went to Fordham Preparatory School from which he
graduated in 1928. A month later, on the eve of the Feast
of St. Ignatius, he entered the Novitiate of St. Andrew-onHudson, received his first vows at the usual time, made the
usual J uniorate studies and spent the usual three years of
philosophy at Woodstock. After the three years of teaching
in St. Peter's High School, he made the usual four years of
theology at Woodstock, with ordination to the priesthood
taking place at the usual time. This was followed by Tertianship at Auriesville, after which came his rather brief period
of priestly activity. It consisted mainly in teaching high
351
�352
FATHER McANANEY
school-at Xavier from 1943 to 1947, at St. Peter's from
1947 to 1950, and at Fordham from 1950 to 1954. There was
a year as assistant student counsellor which was broken by
frequent trips to the hospital, and during the entire period
from 1943 to 1956, when he died, there were occasional calls,
confessions, sermons, and the like, the usual activity of the
average Jesuit. But in all that he did he was not outstanding
in any way, nor was there anything particularly notable about
the form of his ministry. He was not a preacher, a writer, an
official. He was simply a good teacher, quiet, conscientious,
and faithful.
So much for th.e' surface facts. They are few and entirely
unexciting. It is easy enough to write them down, and they
are easier to read or hear. But reading or hearing them is
not enough. Who can say that they present a full or even
a true picture of the essential man? Who can decide that
they reveal the unique quality of the spirit? Who can weigh
the virtues and the faults of any man, and take it upon himself
to announce the degree of merit? Who, in a word, can ever
evaluate the goodness, the life of grace in any other soul,
and strictly and fairly draw the lines of portraiture about
the inner man itself? I believe that this can never be done
fully and justly for any man, by any man. One can only
go back in memory, reflect, and offer the version one knows.
I happen to think the following estimate is:~ true one, and yet
I know it is incomplete. Father McAnaney was my friend;
I knew him well, perhaps better than most. But I do not
profess to special insight and if I err in any way, it is entirely
owing to human fallibility.
What were the dominant tr.aits of Father McAnaney? I
think I can say with certainty that George McAnaney had
as his characteristic trait a quiet, unassuming steadfastness
in the Faith that sprang straight from a simple love of Christ
and His Blessed Mother, a love that was absolutely unshakable and absolutely without human respect.
Secondly, he had an unaffected humility that was based on
a true knowledge of himself in relation to God. It was strong,
unfailing, and it left him calmly unenvious of the talents and
the successes of others. I believe I can say, again with certainty, that he never had a moment of unhappiness or even
�FATHER MeAN ANEY
1
353
of normal, grumbling discontent at the glitter and the gleam
of the lives of those about him. He did not consider himself
talented and he did not brood about it. He ambitioned no
offices and coveted no honors. But this was not the supine
indifference of intellectual or physical sloth; it was the ready
acceptance of the Will of God in a simple and childlike way.
There are some people to whom the gift of Faith comes
with difficulty, who must fight to accept and keep the pearl
of great price. They are the natural sceptics, the doubters by
instinct and temperament, the men who believe but who do
so slowly, and almost with reluctance. There are others, however, in whom the will to believe rises as smoothly and easily
as the silent stream that welled up over the cold rocks of the
grotto of Lourdes where there had been no water a moment
before. George McAnaney had such a will to believe. He had
a mind naturally devout, and he stayed that way as long as
he lived, completely unaware that he was presenting, to all
who had eyes to see, a charming picture of simple and unaffected devotion to Christ and Mary that was as unobstrusive
but as pervasive and wholesome as the very air he breathed.
In temperament he was slow and mild, but he could be
aroused to indignant and even eloquent protest wherever and
whenever he thought goodness was in peril. He had a genuine
concern for the spiritual welfare of others but he was no
officious meddler, no heavy footed intruder on the privacies
of his neighbor. He did not look for faults in others and, in
fact, he claimed to be unable to see them, including those that
seem so obvious and irritating in the daily give-and-take of
religious life. He was pleasant, affable and well liked, with
the gift of making friends easily and retaining them once
they were made. He had what I do not hesitate to describe
as a good face, of the sort that clearly reflects the blessed
quality of the soul living the life of grace.
He enjoyed life but he did not feel that God was obligated
to sustain him in perpetual euphoria. That he loved God was
evident; and in his unassuming way he was faithful almost
to the point of scrupulosity in the matter of the vows and
aU the other obligations and duties of our state of life.
He was asked to bear two crosses. The first was the malignant disease that forced the life from him slowly but in-
�354
FATHER l\lcANANEY
exorably, like a great weight that cannot be shaken off or
put down even for a moment, and that eventually must crush
the bearer to death. He knew he had this disease and he knew
he could not live long, but he accepted the fact with patience
and with resignation. The other cross, as it seems to me,
consisted in this, that in spite of his fatal disease, he looked
well, even healthy in fact. Appearances, as usual, were deceptive. Inevitably, he was forced to cut down on his teaching
and finally to give it up entirely, along with other jobs as well.
It was quite easy for others, unaware of the pressure of his
ever increasing .iiiness, to make the mistaken judgment that
here was a man .~ither unwilling to work as hard as he could
or, quite simply, a hypochondriac, not quite so ill as he
thought. He knew this too, and he accepted it. But it hurt,
and he felt deeply the fact that he could no longer go on teaching, student counselling, or hearing confessions. The feeling
that he was useless was strong, but he accepted the pain of
it in a way that was not very far from the heroic. It was not
an easy way to live and it was truly a living death, a kind of
slow martyrdom, inescapable and inevitable. The final months
in the hospital were a period of progressive decline with the
fact of death an ever more certain and almost visible reality.
A room in a hospital was the setting for the quiet little battleground upon which he fought to the enp his own particular
fight, and won.
.
I think it sufficient tribute to say that Father George
McAnaney was a typical Jesuit, who died as he had livedcourageously, steadfastly, and wholly in Christ.
�Brother Claude Ramaz, S.J.
JAMES J. LYNCH, S.J.
On Fordham Road at Bathgate A venue there is an imposing
building which, like its nearest neighbor, Kohlmann Hall,
could easily seem to passers-by to be part of Fordham University. These two buildings are an enduring monument to
Brother Claude Ramaz, apostle of devotion to the Sacred
Heart of Jesus.
The Messenger building is large enough to provide storage
space for the business records and relics of many years; and,
if Brother Ramaz had had his way, the collection would have
remained complete and ever-growing. He was strongly inclined to preserve them all, lest any error in them be discovered some day; and so all justice could at least be fulfilled.
Not so with personal records and reminiscences. There is
almost nothing left of him in writing, with the exception of
jubilee tributes.
Claude Ramaz was born on November 27, 1868, in Lyons,
France. His father, Joseph Ramaz, was a silk weaver, a
craft that suffered very much because of war with Germany.
Before the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71 broke out,
Joseph Ramaz decided to emigrate to America.
When Claude was four, his father died and his mother
returned to France. Conditions were still bad in Europe,
and though she was a skilled seamstress, Claude's mother
found it difficult to make ends meet. At the end of two years,
just before mother and son returned once more to America,
Claude remembered being in a Corpus Christi procession,
wearing a surplice and carrying a candle. And he remembered religious brothers giving out candy to the children after
the ceremonies were concluded.
If Brother knew he was a Catholic at the time, he was to
forget it during the years to follow. Both his father and
mother did not practice their Faith. In fact, when his mother
355
�356
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
found out that brothers conducted the school, she withdrew
Claude to save him from religious training. He remembered
that she once said to him: "It is better to be a good civilian
than a bad ecclesiastic."
After six years in America, the two returned to France,
found working conditions there intolerable and, after six
months, returned once more to America and rented furnished
rooms in Union City, New Jersey. He was now twelve years
old. One day he was at the window watching some boys at
play with religious brothers. He said to his mother: "We're
Protestants, aren't we?" His mother replied in a plaintive
voice, "No, we're Catholics."
As a boy of thirteen, Claude, anxious to help his mother,
obtained a job in a silk mill, issuing spools of silk to the
weavers. His mother had instructed the employer that Claude
was not to sweep the floor. When he was seventeen, he was
made foreman of the spool department. By this time, their
combined earnings had made it possible for them to buy a
house of their own.
On Claude's eighteenth birthday, his mother died. After a
period of mourning, he rented out the spare rooms in his
house. In going through his mother's papers, he found his
own baptismal certificate, which showed that he had been
baptized at the cathedral town of Chazelles-sur-Lyon. He did
not know whether the Abbe Ramaz th~r"e was a relative of
his. It seems likely, since the town of Chazelles was twentythree miles from Lyons, and the interest of this priest would
explain both the fact of the baptism and the journey to
Chazelles.
The discovery of the certificate must have made a deep
impression on him. With him, when he found it, was one of
the roomers, Audigier by name, a man of thirty-two, who had
become a good friend and adviser. He instructed Claude in
what it meant to be a Catholic, and gave him a life of St.
Ignatius to read. He also made it his business to obtain the
prayers of some pious old women who had said they thought
Claude looked like one of the seminarians at the nearbY
Passionist monastery.
Claude began to attend Mass regularly, and was confirmed
by Bishop Wiggers. He also began to meditate on the reflec-
�BROTHER CLAUDE RAMAZ
�-.
.;
�BROTHER RAl\IAZ
357
tions aroused by reading the life of St. Ignatius. It was not
long before his salvation seemed to him the most important
thing in the world. He felt he would go to China, if that were
necessary. The idea of a vocation was thus being formed; and
his friend Audigier did everything he could to urge Claude
to settle the matter. Claude decided to become a Jesuit
Brother.
What Brother Ramaz thought of his kind friend Audigier
is beautifully expressed in a letter which Brother wrote for
publication in the March-April issue of the Jesuit Seminary
News in 1948 on the occasion of his sixtieth jubilee as a member of the Society of Jesus. The excerpt will also serve as an
example of Brother's literary style, which was cultured and
courteous as well as deeply spiritual. The letter reads, in part:
As a commemoration of my Diamond Jubilee-sixty years as a
Jesuit Brother-you wished me to tell you something of myself
which may be of interest to our many friends who are readers of
our Jesuit Seminary News.
I am afraid that I have nothing startling to say, except, perhaps
that through the mercy and goodness of God it has been my privilege
to spend over fifty-four of these sixty years in helping the Fathers
to promote the devotion to the Sacred Heart through the Apostleship of Prayer and the Messenger of the Sacred Heart. This has
been a most consoling work in which I could never have taken part
had I remained in the world. Now that I am nearing the end of
my sojourn in this vale of tears and recall our Lord's promise, that
those who promote the devotion to his Sacred Heart will have their
names written in His Heart, never to be effaced, it is a source of
great consolation, as you can well imagine.
The thought came to me of becoming a Brother when I was in
my nineteenth year. My father died when I was four and my
mother when I was eighteen. This left me alone as I had no relatives in this country. I was rather ambitious and animated by a
strong desire to improve my condition in life. My mother left me
some little property, and I have some recollection-my memory
is somewhat failing me now-that with the savings I could make,
I would probably have $10,000 by the time I reached thirty, and
could then start some enterprise and settle down in life. But
Divine Providence intervened and changed my plans through the
medium of a devout friend, a well-instructed Catholic, who was
able to expound in a forcible manner the inestimable benefit of a
vocation to the religious life, of living for God alone.
I was further impressed by reading the life of St. Ignatius, and
wished that he was alive so I could ask him what to do. I began to
�358
BROTHER RAlUAZ
realize more and more the need of taking the best and ·surest means
to save my soul, and that the most certain and direct way for me
was the religious life, through the dedication of my entire being
to God by the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. I realized
this so vividly that I would, I think, have gone to the ends of the
earth to become a religious.
Up to the present God gave me nearly eighty years of life. He
extended me the extraordinary privilege of spending sixty of those
years in his holy service as a Jesuit Brother. When I realize that
time is given to us by God to work out our salvation and to merit
for life everlasting, then nothing would pain me more at present
than to look back over the years and see that I had done little
or nothing for, eternity, which probably would have been the case
if I had not heeded the inspiration God in his goodness and mercy
gave me sixty-years ago.
There are many young men today who are favored as I was
but do not heed the call or put it off. To them I would say: Do not
delay; act promptly and with courage. The Sacred Heart of Jesus
may not say to you a second time: '"Come, follow 1\fe.'
Another indication of his enduring appreciation of his
friend's spiritual guidance is seen in the fact that when
Brother was preparing to take his final vows on the second
of February, 1899, his renunciation assigned $500 to Audigier, who had returned to France. This enabled Audigier to
return to America with his wife, in accordance with her
wishes. This seems to have been his last contact with
Audigier.
On Thanksgiving Day of 1877, he wint to the College of
St. Francis Xavier in Manhattan to see the Provincial. He
was referred to Fordham; on arriving there he was told to
go to St. Ignatius Loyola, at Eighty-Fourth Street. At this
last place, a man from whom he asked street directions turned
out to be an ex-Brother. Discovering Claude's intentions, he
advised him against the step, warning him that Brothers
were mere servants of the priests. Claude paid no attention
to him and obtained the interview he sought. His petition
was granted and he was told to report to the novitiate at
Frederick, Maryland, on the eve of the Feast of St. Joseph,
March 19, 1888. This he did, and remembered how, during
the Long Retreat, he wept tears of joy and consolation while
he was sweeping the corridors.
After completing his novitiate, Brother Ramaz spent a year
at Frederick as painter and bookbinder; then three more
�BROTHER RAMAZ
359
years as infirmarian. Then the Provincial, Father Pardow,
who had made his tertianship at Paray-le-Monial and who had
been spiritual father of the Brothers at Frederick before his
appointment as Provincial, asked Brother if he would like
an assignment to the Messenger of the Sacred Heart. Brother
begged to be excused from answering, wishing to leave the
matter entirely in the hands of superiors. The rector at
Frederick, Father John O'Rourke, hated to lose such a good
Brother, but was to be reunited with him later as editor of
the Messenger.
On January 27, 1894, Brother Ramaz was appointed to the
Messenger, which at that time was published in Philadelphia,
and he began his long career of dealing with printers and
other tradesmen, procuring office supplies, managing the
office workers and taking care of all matters pertaining to
circulation and advertising.
The Apostleship of Prayer was founded in 1844 by Father
Gautrelet at the Jesuit scholasticate at Vals in France. In
1861 Father Ramiere started the Messenger of the Sacred
Heart as the organ of the Apostleship of Prayer. In 1866 the
American Messenger of the Sacred Heart was inaugurated
by Father Benedict Sestini at Woodstock. He continued to
edit each issue until 1885, when he was succeeded by Father
Dewey. Father Wynne became Editor in 1891 and welcomed
Brother Ramaz as an assistant in 1894. During August of
that year, the office was moved from Philadelphia to two
houses opposite Xavier High School at sixteenth street in
Manhattan, New York City. The magazine was published
there until January, 1906, when the office was moved to 801
West 181st Street, New York City, where it remained until
the end of 1922. Since 1923 it has been issued from its own
permanent building, designed by Brother Ramaz, on ground
purchased from Fordham University at 515 East Fordham
Road, the Bronx, New York.
It was while the offices were at 181st Street that Mother
Cabrini, now sainted, used to come in in order to obtain innumerable Sacred Heart badges and other Apostleship supplies. There was one office worker, Miss Josephine Weldon,
whom she used to surprise by approaching from the rear, putting her hands over Josephine's eyes and saying: "Guess
�360
;.
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
who it is!" Josephine always knew and always remembered
the holy nun who was so joyous of heart. Brother himself
spoke to the saint only a few times.
Under the editorship of Father Wynne, Brother Ramaz saw
many changes take place. In 1897 the Messenger of the
Sacred Heart became a magazine of general Catholic interest.
The articles and departments concerned with the Apostleship
of Prayer were published in a separate volume called the
Messenger of the Sacred Heart Supplement. In 1902 the
Messenger of the Sacred Heart became The Messenger, and
the Supplement regained its proper title, being henceforth
known as th~. Messenger of the Sacred Heart. In 1909 The
Messenger ceased publication and was replaced by America,
under the editorship of Father Wynne. In 1906, Father
Anthony Maas was appointed Director of the Apostleship and
Associate Editor of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart, until
he became rector of Woodstock in 1907. Father John
O'Rourke, Superior of the Community since 1907, became
Editor of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart from 1907 until
1911. Then, after a short period as vice-rector of Brooklyn
College,... he returned to the Messenger of the Sacred Heart
from 1913-1917.
Under Father O'Rourke, Brother Ramaz's efforts. were
rewarded with wonderful results. Rather O'Rourke was a
great preacher and a great spiritual writer for the Messenger
audience. His books, Under the Sanctuary Lamp, On the Hills
with Our Lord, and Fountains of the Saviour, are still on the
active shelves of our libraries. He had very little interest in
business details, and had the greatest confidence in Brother
Ramaz.
However, Brother Ramaz had to devise little strategems
occasionally to win his point. For instance, a great deal of
the mail used to be sent out with the help of school girls.
Brother learned of a new machine which would address, stamp
and seal mail very efficiently. Father O'Rourke considered
the cost prohibitive, but allowed Brother to apply for the
machine on approval. Brother knew he could not induce the
Editor to come and watch the machine in operation. So he
instructed his helpers: "In ten minutes, Father O'Rourke
will pass by here. Have everything in readiness and, when I
�BROTHER RAl\IAZ
361
give a signal, start the machine." He gave the signal, and
Father O'Rourke stopped to watch, as anticipated. After a
short time Brother said to him: "That is the machine I was
telling you about. What do you think of it?" And the satisfying reply was: "Wonderful! Wonderful! Do we have the
money to pay for it?" And Brother assured him that there
were sufficient funds on hand. And so that matter, and many
another like it, was settled.
Brother Ramaz thought that illustrations would help to
increase the circulation of the magazine. Father O'Rourke
gave him permission to arrange for some, but no money.
There would be no need to pay young school girls. Brother
Ramaz did not have young school girls in mind; but if that
was his only recourse, he would begin that way. So the first
illustrations were markedly unprofessional; .but a beginning
had been made.
The Messenger of the Sacred Heart was to become a pioneer
in many forms of color printing. Long before other Catholic
magazines followed the same path, the Messenger of the
Sacred Heart was using as many as six different types of
color reproduction in one issue. This development was only
begun under Father O'Rourke, but the popularity of Messenger covers, frontispieces and color inserts for many years
was due to the enterprising genius of Brother Ramaz. The
beauty and simplicity of appeal in the many fine pictures it
has given its readers is one of its outstanding achievements.
Consecration pictures of the Sacred Heart hang in hundreds
of thousands of homes today, partly because Brother Ramaz
had a wise sense of what would appeal to simple Catholic
people and a French sense of economy in making the price
right. His idea was to reach as many homes as possible.
There was no marketing strategy that he did not somehow use
to advantage. His first aim was to make the magazine itself
colorful and appealing; his second was to get others interested
in promoting its sale; and, finally, he realized that only by
employing all the labor-saving devices of modern business
would he be able to keep its standards high and its price low.
His advice to a Spanish Jesuit who consulted him on the best
means of promoting the M ensajero del Sagrada Corazon was
this: "Make it good; make it cheap; make it known."
�362
,,!.
~
...
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
In 1911 the Messenger appeared with the cover and
frontispiece printed in four colors. It was something never
before tried in Catholic periodicals. Another innovation appeared in the golden jubilee issue of January, 1916. Some
of the illustrations were printed in rotogravure and others
in full-color offset. Both techniques were new in the printing
field.
In order to increase the circulation of the Messenger,
Brother Ramaz thought that there would be nothing better
to use than the services of present subscribers. When a
subscription E}_Xpired, Brother was not content with merely
sending a forfu for renewal. He would send five or ten
subscription blanks, suggesting that the reader renew his
own subscription and spread the devotion to the Sacred Heart
by getting others to take the Messenger. As an added incentive, Brother conceived the idea of giving premiums for those
who would get a certain number of subscriptions.
An even greater indication of Brother's success in business
management is seen in the following figures: In 1907, before
the time~ of Father O'Rourke, the circulation was 28,000. In
1908, when Father O'Rourke became superior, it rose to
50,000. In 1909: 83,500; 1910: 115,000; 1911: 150,000;
1912: 180,500; 1913: 200,000; 1914: 250,000; 1915: 280,000; 1920: 360,000. This was the m~:ximum circulation ever
reached by the Messenger of the Sacred Heart. It decreased
afterwards as raises in price became necessary due to wars
and the depression.
The phenomenal advance in circulation which began in
1908 was due not only to the excellence of Father O'Rourke's
spiritual writings (he wrote a good portion of the magazine,
using various pseudonyms) , but also to schemes conceived
and carried out by Brother Ramaz. When he devised a
League Emblem and a Promoter's Cross, the office was
jammed with long lines of applicants and huge boxes of
mailed requests.
The progress begun under Father O'Rourke continued
under the long regime of Father Mullaly, from 1917 to 1941.
By 1919, the financial situation was such that Brother Ramaz
saw that a special building could be financed without the
burden of any debt and that the project would be to the great
�BROTHER RAMAZ
363
advantage of the work. He proposed the idea to superiors,
including the Visitor of the American Provinces, the Very
Rev. Norbert De Boynes.
Father De Boynes was to remember Brother Ramaz so
well that, more than thirty years later, he wrote a most
friendly note to Brother when he heard about the operation
Brother had to undergo at St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie in 1953. He mentioned how he had had to undergo a
similar operation which had proved completely successful in
his case, and he was sure God would grant the same favor
to Brother Ramaz.
Brother Ramaz always attributed to Father De Boynes a
great measure of credit for having interceded at Rome so
effectively in favor of a Messenger printing plant and never
forgot him in his prayers.
When Brother was informed that all the necessary permissions had been granted, he made a tour of inspection of large
printing plants in New York and Philadelphia. From the
Curtis Publishing Company he obtained much invaluable
help. Then he explained the entire printing and distribution
process to architects, and the building, completed in 1923,
has ever since been a complete editorial, production and management unit. The first floor houses the presses, bindery and
mailing equipment. The second main floor is used for executive offices and a clerical staff. A mezzanine serves as the
national office of the Apostleship of Prayer.
Brother Ramaz wanted the latest and the best in machinery.
He smilingly told the Catholic president of the R. Hoe Company that his firm had built many presses that were doing
the devil's work, and that he should now do his very best to
make one that would do God's work. He worked with repre.sentatives of the company in the designing of a special press
which would print the magazine complete, with the exception
of cover and frontispiece. It could produce a 144-page
magazine at the rate of one copy a second. It required only
four operators and three paper handlers. Eleven feet high
and forty feet long, the Hoe Company pronounced it the best
of its kind at the time. The press was in continuous operation
until 1954.
He engaged the Meisel Company of Boston to design a press
�364
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
that would produce monthly leaflets complete in sets of three
forty-four page booklets, ready for shipment as they left the
press. This machine still produces two million leaflets a
month, and could produce millions more, if required. It is
the only press of its kind.
He equipped the entire building with similar foresight,
efficiency, and economy of design. As the famous Father
Campbell said of him:
"His perfect knowledge of all the details of press work, the
reproduction of pictures and the various qualities of paper, together
with his alertness -in availing himself of all of the most recent
devices to expedite.. the work and diminish the amount of hand
labor, as well as his shrewdness in devising means and methods to
increase the circulation of the Messenger, are commonly regarded
as the chief factor, after the blessing of God, of the remarkable
progress made."
In the summers of 1925 and 1929, Brother Ramaz visited
Europe. As he passed through his native Lyons, he inquired
for people named Ramaz. He found only a rather unfriendly
baker. Brother asked him if the Ramaz family were good
Catholics and received a curt affirmative reply. Then he continued on his Holy Year pilgrimage to Rome, where he had
the honor of an interview with Father General Wlodimir
Ledochowski.
During the course of the second trip he was present at the
beatification of his namesake and exemplar in spreading
devotion to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Claude de la Colombiere.
While in Europe Brother Ramaz was able to secure many of
the pictures which have since appeared in the Messenger.
In 1941, on the occasion of the seventy-fifth anniversary
of the founding of the Messenger, the Editor, Father Stephen
L. J. O'Beirne, S.J., paid a sincere tribute to the work of
Brother Ramaz in spreading the devotion to the Sacred Heart:
"But there is one whose name cannot be thus passed over
in any account of the Messenger and its makers. For fortyeight years, through numerous changes of editors, policies,
locations and methods, he has been a faithful and efficient
member of the staff. More than to any other merely human
factor, credit for the success of the Messenger of the Sacred
Heart is due to the splendid technical knowledge, the diligent
�BROTHER RAMAZ
365
supervision and the tireless zeal for God's glory of Brother
Claude Ramaz, S.J ."
In 1948, the occasion of his sixtieth anniversary in the
Society drew from Father General the following testimony
of esteem and paternal affection:
"Six decades will have passed on March 19, 1948, since the day
when, a young man of twenty, you entered our Society at Frederick,
Maryland. From that sanctuary of prayer and probation you went
forth after six years to the great work for which God had prepared
you. You were assigned by obedience to the Apostleship of Prayer
and the Messenger of the Sacred Heart. And now as you complete
sixty precious years as a son of Ignatius, you can look back upon
fifty-four years during which you have been continuously and
intimately associated with the spread of devotion to the Sacred
Heart in the wide expanse of the United States.
"It is said that just as the modern and efficient printing plant
in which the publications of the Apostleship of Prayer have been
printed during these past twenty-five years was in great part the
result of your planning and supervision, so, too, the remarkable
growth in the circulation of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart,
its continued improvement as a vehicle of inspiration for the
Apostleship of Prayer, has been owing in large measure to your
mastery of business details and the technical processes of printing.
"Since Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself has deigned to entrust to
Our Society the most blessed work of establishing, developing and
propagating devotion to his Most Sacred Heart and, since He has
promised saving graces to all of Ours who will strive to gratify
this desire of his (Epit. 851), it is consoling to contemplate the
rich reward that you, dear Brother, will receive from the Divine
Master. But in the name of the Society, too, I wish to assure you
today of her abiding and sincere gratitude for your sixty years
of quiet, efficient devotion to work and generous religious observance. I am happy to apply sixty Masses for your intention, with
the fervent prayer that through the intercession of Our Blessed
Mother and your patrons, Saint Joseph and Saint Alphonsus, 'the
Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Mercies and God
of all Consolation' may fill your soul with his love and ineffable
peace.
"I commend myself to your good prayers.
Sincerely in Our Lord,
(Signed) John B. Janssens, S.J."
The anniversary was celebrated at the Messenger of the
Sacred Heart with domestic pomp and circumstance, and
Brother's reply to all the congratulations will give another
�366
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
instance of his great felicity of expression and simple dignity.
He said:
I am glad to have the opportunity of expressing publicly my
sentiments of profound gratitude to Superiors for all they have
done to make this commemoration of my sixty years in the Society
most pleasant and most happy.
First to Very Rev. Father General for his Paternity's generous
and gracious gift of sixty Masses, and for his most consoling letter,
which was read to you.
Then to Father Superior and Father Minister, who have been
most solicitous and spared no effort to make this day a memorable
one for me. I do not know of anything they could have done and
have not done~ ..
The outpouring of the goodness of heart and charity as expressed
by the comforting words spoken by Father Rector, Father Superior
and Father McGratty relative to my endeavors during the years
gone by rejuvenated and filled my soul with joy. It was like
listening to the recording angels reading from the Book of Life.
My heart goes out also to the Fathers and Brothers of our little
Community, and to all our guests: the Fathers and Brothers who
are here with us this evening and who came to help me celebrate
the occasion and to rejoice with me.
That his. thoughtfulness for others went beyond the four
walls of the Messenger building and beyond the list of subscribers is touchingly shown in a letter he wrote to a pastor
in Bergenfield, New Jersey, during tha~ same year, 1948:
Dear Father McGuirk:
There is an old lady in the parish, a fallen-away Catholic whom
I knew some sixty years ago, before I became a Jesuit Brother.
About fifty years ago she married a non-Catholic. I do not think
she has received the Sacraments since. I enclose her name and
address. The poor soul is now about eighty-six years old, hence
not far from the end. I visited them a few times, years ago, in
the hope that I might be of some spiritual help, but to no avail.
Father Hillock also tried. The husband died about twelve years
ago. Now that she is getting nearer the end and the husband has
passed away, she may be more amenable to the grace of God.
If you do not know of her, you will be glad, dear Father, that
I sent these few lines in the event that something can be done for
this poor soul. Meanwhile my humble prayers go up to God for her.
In 1946, it was thought a'dvisable to relieve Brother of the
chief responsibility for business management and to introduce a successor who would have the advantage of Brother's
�BROTHER RAMAZ
367
instruction and advice. When Father Faulkner was appointed,
it was to their mutual advantage. The Father came to the
highest esteem of Brother's methods and continued using
them. And the Brother found the Father most patient and
consoling when he most needed spiritual help.
In 1935 an operation had been necessary for the removal
of one of Brother's eyes. Ever since the operation, a nervous
temperament made his strict conscience tend toward scrupulosity. This condition worsened as the years passed and he
was constantly in need of spiritual reassurance. Father
Faulkner was perpetually patient and most kind, and never
wearied of saying the necessary words as often as Brother
appealed to him.
During Brother's last years at the Messenger, he would
worry very much about whether lights were turned off at
night, whether faucets were dripping, whether doors were
locked and whether, in years past, all postal regulations had
been strictly complied with to the letter of the law. He would
get up in the middle of the night to check on such points as
these until superiors decided it would be a relief for him to
be sent elsewhere. He spent his last years in tranquil happiness at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, New York.
When the news of his change of status reached the far
corners of the earth, many missionaries, priests, Brothers
and Sisters felt about him as did Father Reith in the Philippine Islands, who wrote him the following letter.
Dear Brother, P.C.
"What is the Messenger of the Sacred Heart without Brother
Ramaz?" That is what they are all saying, and the echo of it has
reached this other side of the world and is being sent back to you.
What is the Messenger of the Sacred Heart without Brother
Ramaz?" and I might add for you, "What is Brother Ramaz without the Sacred Heart?" You have so long been associated with the
Messenger and the Sacred Heart has so long been associated with
you, that it just seems that one can't get along without the other.
And now they tell me that you are running away from the
Messenger in order to get closer and nearer to the Heart of Our
Lord. So be it. I am sure that you have merited, labored for and
won the right to a very close place, near and dear to the Heart of
Our Lord. Under the circumstances that you have already been
called away from the work that has been so dear to you through
.
�368
BROTHER RAl\IAZ
all the years, I can only pray that it will not be too long when
the great invitation will come to you to "Behold the Heart."
I think I have some personal obligations that I ought to straighten
out with you before you are engulfed in the eternal love of the
Heart. More than twenty years ago, I landed on the floor of the
Messenger and told you, not in so many words, that I was about
to take over the equipment and staff of the Messenger in order
to get a fledgling Jesuit Missions on its feet. I went down into the
pressroom and I took over the big folder to fold our little propaganda sheets; I took the addresser (and stole names from the files
of the Messenger) in order to get JM out to the people. I used the
office girls to make stencils; I begged money from them; I stole
gifts for the missions from the prizes of the Messenger. I used up
the time of the artist; I knocked Father Mullaly on his iron breastplate and asked for this and that; and every time I got into a jam
or a difficulty, or needed this or that, I would be shouting, "Where's
Brother Ramaz-" And that went on for some years; and even
after I got over here, it did not stop. If I used the name of Brother
Ramaz, I could get copies of the Messenger, I could get pictures,
I could get prizes, I could get rosaries with missing beads or crosses,
I could get a beautiful letter and, I am sure, even more beautiful
prayers.
Well, Brother, I'm only trying to tell you how grateful I am
for all the grand things you have done for me, and I hope and
pray from-your high place in heaven you will put out that long,
charitable arm of yours and keep urging me along and making me
a bit dearer to your old Friend, the Sacred Heart. You are included
in my Masses, Brother, and ever will be. God bless you, love you,
take you to Himself.
.
-
Brother Ramaz gave generously to missionaries and others,
always with general or particular permission. A letter from
him to the Editor will show how carefully he kept his accounts, and how he wished to have his books in order before
closing them. In 1954 he wrote to Father Moore:
When I was at the office, you kindly continued a permission I
had from previous superiors to send the Messenger to the following:
To Dr. Freeda, foot doctor, who treated me free.
Brother Albertinus, General of the Sacred Heart Brothers at
one time, and friend of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart.
Sister Loretto Bernard, Administrator, St. Vincent's Hospital,
and former -employee of the Messenger.
Sister Callista, nonagenarian and friend of the Messenger of
the Sacred Heart.
·
Shrub Oak Caretaker who was very kind to Kohlmann Hall
Brothers on occasion of a visit years ago.
�BROTHER RAl\IAZ
369
I am most grateful for having had the privilege of sending these
complimentary copies to these various addresses in the past, but
there is no longer any reason for me to do so.
During his latter years he was a wonderfully kind-looking
old man, short and slightly stooped in stature, with a full
head of gray hair. He dressed always in wrinkled black, and
wore an old pair of shoes mercifully cut out here and there
to accommodate his poor old feet, worn out from his eternal
walking about the plant all day long, ever present yet always
unobtrusive. He was always busy, always available.
No one who had any dealings with him could fail to note
his quick intelligence, his unfailing courtesy, his ready wit
and sly humor. Towards priests, he always acted with reverence and respect, with a dignified humility that was never
obsequious. The Messenger workers loved him. He conducted
all matters with dispatch and quiet efficiency. Visitors to the
plant, whether they came on business or merely to inspect,
found him completely at their service during the time of their
interest.
Despite the multiplicity of details that engaged his attention, he was always rigidly exact in the performance of his
spiritual duties and gave a perfect example of religious
modesty and diligence.
During all his years in the Society, he faithfully observed
a practice which testifies to his constant humility and charity.
"Twice a day," he said to one Father, "during the two examinations of conscience, I thank God that he has called me to
the Society of Jesus, and that as a Brother in the Societywhich was the best for me."
In the case of one whose whole life in the Society had been
spent in promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
we might expect, even in this life, a great share in the peace
of Christ. But Brother Claude always worried about whether
he had fulfilled his duties as perfectly as he should. Nothing
could reassure him. His clearness of vision in business matters, his firmness of decision, his understanding of human
nature, his tact in dealing with people, his refinement and
graciousness, his wisdom and charity, were gifts given him
by God not for his own satisfaction and complacency, but
for the service of others. His religious superiors, and all
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BROTHER RAl\IAZ
those who worked with him and dealt with him, had a supreme confidence in him and an esteem for him that amounted
to reverence. His judgment upon himself was so severe as
to be a real cross, to be carried unto the bitter end.
His sufferings were not the result of his own sins, but the
result of his intense love of God and his desire to serve God
perfectly. His sufferings were a trial which gave great meaning to his daily Morning Offering. He offered all this for
others. He lived the Apostleship of Prayer.
He died in the peace of the Lord on February 13, 1956.
May his great soul rest in peace.
DAILY EXERCISE
After the Exercises have been made, prayer ijf directed and preserved
and increased by perseverance in it and in the ministries of one's vocation.
Especially the purgative way is daily exercised in the examination of
conscience and in the practice of abnegation and mortification and the
desire of opprobrium and suffering for Christ. It is also found in
obedience, not only of execution and will but also of the understanding.
It is practiced too in sacramental Confession and the ordinary exercises
similar to those of the First Week, as of death and final judgment,
the secret judgments and permissions of God, the misery of sinners,
the vanity of the world, and similar matters.
The illuminative and unitive ways are practiced daily in the
meditations to which time is ordinarily given, and for others in saying
the Hours of Our Lady and the Rosary; in other mental prayer also
according to direction, as well as the time of Mass and Communion.
And briefly, in ;lll the exercises peace and quiet and devotion should
be found; for all should be directed towards the fire of charity and
zeal for souls lest they be lost.· And thus in everything one should
find God Our Lord and his way of praying.
JEROME NADAL
�Books of Interest to Ours
MASTERFUL THEOLOGICAL STATEMENT
The Image of God in Man according to Cyril of Alexandria. By Walter
J. Burghardt, S.J. (Studies in Christian Antiquity, edited by
Johannes Quasten, no. 14). Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland; Washington, D.C.: Catholic University Press, 1957.
Pp. xvi-194.
Father Burghardt's monograph on Cyril's thought promises to open
up an entirely new approach to patristic theology. For, focussing on
Cyril's doctrine of the divine image, the work is nothing less than a
phenomenological study of Cyril's teaching on the meaning of the
Atonement. The author's approach is thoroughly scientific as well as
openminded; and thus the study is not only a patristic contribution in
its own right; it is also a theological statement with important implica,
tions for our own day.
Cyril of Alexandria's productive life is usually divided into three
periods: the early period of his episcopate (A. D. 412-428), during
which he wrote his great work ·on the Trinity and a vast amount of
biblical exegesis; the Christo logical Period ( 428-431.), made famous
by his works against Nestorius; and finally, the last period ( 431-444),
during which he wrote a number of Apologetic treatises, the Contra
Iulianum and a number of other great homilies and letters. Burghardt
covers Cyril's entire prolific output, although Cyril's most important
works, for the viewpoint of this study, come in the first, or exegetical
period. And one of the most valuable features of the book is the author's
way of summarizing, at every important stage, the growth of patristic
theology before the time of Cyril.
After developing Cyril's doctrine on the meaning of 'image and
likeness' (selem and d'mut, Gen. 1 :26), the dissertation advances
through the various facets that must be grasped in order to appreciate
what Cyril meant by the image of God in man before and after Sin,
before and after the Recapitulation of Christ's act of Atonement. The
first man (and woman, by participation) possessed the image of God
in his powers of freedom and dominion, and, more especially in his
holiness and incorruptibility. In this he was an image of the divine
Archetype. By sin man lost only those facets of the image which were
371
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BOOK REVIEWS
due to the indwelling of the Spirit, holiness, incorruptibility and kinship
with God; and he suffered a diminution in the perfection of his psychological freedom as well as in his power of dominion over the beasts of
the earth. Whether one should say that the divine image was 'lost' or
merely 'overlaid' and 'blurred,' destroyed completely or merely disfigured,
·is (in Burghardt's view of Cyril) merely a question of terminology.
Actually Cyril reflects both streams of the earlier tradition. In any
case, the complete state of pristine perfection ceased to be present,
although distinctions must be made with regard to each aspect of the
image. And, it would seem, Adam did not forfeit the gift of divine
adoption; for adoptive sonship is the unique privilege of those who have
been incorporated into Christ in virtue of the Atonement. Thus, for
Burghardt, Cyril's. image theology becomes a complete soteriology. The
meaning of the R~capitulation in Christ is that the image of God
(liberty, holines; .. and incorruptibility, eleutheria, hagiasmos and
aphtharsia) is restored, even enhanced by the Incarnation. For in
the restoration of the image, the features of Christ Himself are stamped
upon the Christian, in a way that even Adam did not experience. The
archetypal analogy of Cyril is now complete: woman an image of man,
man an image of God; but now, by God's own redemptive act, man is
restored in the image of Christ.
Cyril's image theology cannot, of course, be completely understood
apart from the tradition that preceded him; and, for this reason,
Burghardt's book is doubly valuable in setting Cyril's work within its
historical context. Thus the book can be strongly recommended as a
solid introduction to Greek patristic theology in general and as an
initiation into the very difficult avenues of patristic theological speculation. How far Cyril's approach was original is not perhaps a meaningful question; in any case, his profound and -extensive analysis of the
implications of the kerygma became the matrix for much of later
theological thought. At the same time, with his dynamic concept of
hagiasmos and his Christocentric view of the restoration of the image,
Cyril might well be a source of inspiration for modern theology. For
Cyril's image theology does not stress the negative; it looks to the future
and to the progressive development of man by increasing participation
in the new, divine image of God gained through Christ.
One further point should be made. Cyrillic theology is a difficult
and sometimes very forbidding field; the patristic terminology is very
often obscure and the concrete doctrinal context in which many of the
works were written is now very often irrecoverable. But under the
author's light touch all seems somehow easier and accessible to all;
again, the Greek is everywhere translated and the more abstruse points
are handled af the foot of the page. In this way the most difficult areas
of Cyril's thought can be readily grasped. And, it is to be hoped, by
Father Burghardt's masterly exposition Cyril's doctrine can more and
more become the permanent acquisition of modern theology.
HERBERT MusURILLO,
S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
373
BRILLIANT AND BALANCED
Joyce and Aquinas. Yale Studies in English. By William T. Noon, S.J.
New Haven: Yale University Press, 1957. $3.75.
Every reader of James Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young
Man is aware he based his theory of literature upon St. Thomas' enumeration of the two constituents of beauty. Occasional references in
Joyce's later works have led the academic critics to suspect that Thomistic ideas were ·deeper and more widespread than appeared to the
general reader, and many very acute investigations have been directed
towards unearthing them. But none of these critics had the wide and
profound knowledge of the whole range of Thomistic thought and of
the orientation and ethos of Jesuit education which are required of the
scholar who would write the definitive study of this central element in
the work of the pioneering genius who boasted of a "strength steeled
in the school of old Aquinas." The task seemed providentially to have
been reserved for the hand of a Jesuit, of a Jesuit with broad and accurate learning and a keen, sensitive intelligence. Such a hand it
has found. Father Noon's book, like Father Gardiner's study of the
last phases of the mediaeval mystery plays, which was printed in the
same series of Yale studies, supplies a real need and supplies it perfectly. Every scholar of twentieth century literature will receive it
with gratitude, to which we Jesuits will add a justifiable family pride.
Instead of expatiating on the sureness with which Father Noon has
picked his way through the uncertain jungle of mediaeval and modern
aesthetics, or on the freshness and charm with which he presents a
rather forbidding subject, this review may close with a rapid summary
of the contents of Joyce and Aquinas, so that teachers who are interested
in aesthetical problems, or students who regard Joyce as incomprehensible when not a purveyor of cynical nastiness, may decide what
the book may have for them.
Father Noon begins by enquiring when and where Joyce made his first
real acquaintance with St. Thomas, and answers that it was not under
his Jesuit teachers in school and university, but in independent reading
at the Bibliotheque Nationale during his first years of exile. He next
shows Joyce accepting the notion of reality as beauty which is expounded
in the Summa and then applying it with serious distortions in an
endeavor to explain the cognitive and affective elements in the aesthetic experience. The genesis and distinguishing property of the aesthetic or rather creative act Joyce then relates to the Thomistic claritas.
Coming to closer grips with Joyce's masterpieces, the operation of the
creative imagination upon the comic aspect of life, when this aspect
is viewed in a Thomistic attitude or framework, is shown to be the
key to Ulysses. Going with Joyce deeper still into the working of the
creative imagination, Father Noon reveals a Sabellian Trinitarianism
behind the discussion of Shakespeare and his relation to Hamlet, the
fascinating and baffling discussion which may be the keystone to
Ulysses. The analogy between literary and divine creation which follows
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BOOK REVIEWS
this is far from being the jejune treatise which unhappy experience may
have led us to expect; and, crowning surprise, the punning portmanteau
dialect of Finnegan's Wake is found to have a very direct relation to the
etymological argumentation of mediaeval scholasticism.
All of us teachers know the feeling which comes once in many a
blue semester when the perfect theme, the really brilliant essay, the
luminous and balanced book report turns up among the heart breaking
fumbles. Such a feeling came to this reviewer when he sat down to
Father Noon's book. How to grade it? Praeclare, optime, and A plus
have been used too often on creditable work which is after all not
quite what was wished for. So when Father Noon's book takes its place
beside Father Gardiner's on that special shelf, one can only relapse
into silent gratitude, or at most sigh, "Ah, yes, that's itl"
'
JOSEPH A. SLATTERY, S.J.
PROFOUND AND PERSONAL
Insight. A Study of Human Understanding. By Bernard J. F. Lonergan, S.J. New York: Philosophical Library, 1957. Pp. xxx-785.
$10.00.
This monumental work is the fruit of many years of preparation
and composition by a distinguished Canadian professor of theology now
teaching at the Gregorian University. Though it is far from a perfect
book, it is undeniably a great book. What the author has attempted
to do is no less~ than to lead the reader through a grand tour of the
human mind at work in its characteristic activity of insight on all levels
and in all its main fields of application, as it is driven on relentlessly
by the dynamism of its unrestricted desire to knpw.
This daring attempt to produce a modern SumriJ.a of the life of the
mind comprises in broad outline first a phenomenology or description
of human knowledge as an activity within the knower; then a critique
of its claims to objectivity, which grounds in turn a theory of dialectical
development of human thought both in the individual and in society;
next a metaphysics of "proportionate being" (being as accessible to
human experience); an ethics; a natural theology; and finally, a theory
of the role of belief in human knowledge as an introduction to the
supernatural dimension of knowledge through divine revelation. Quite
a large order! And it makes proportionately exacting demands on the
reader by its consistently dense, though rarely obscure style, and the
wide range of background material it presumes the reader to be familiar
with, from modern mathematics to psychiatry and philosophy of history.
The phenomenological section unfolds the essential structure of the
dynamism of human knowledge as it moves upwards from sense presentation, through insight into relevant. form, to the unconditional affirmation of objectivity in judgment. Insight· into the basic realism of
judgment is next achieved by studying the privileged instances of the
knower's act of self-affirmation as knower. This in turn brings to light
�BOOK REVIEWS
375
the deep underlying dynamism of the source of all human knowledge,
the unrestricted natural desire to know being.
From here the author moves into the most original and controversial
phase of his dialectic. In virtue of the principle that human understanding must be isomorphic in general structure to what it can know by
direct experience, he proceeds to deduce "by anticipation" from the
structure of human knowledge both the notion of being and the general
metaphysical structure of proportionate being. Thus to the unrestricted
desire to know corresponds the notion of being as the totality of all there
is to be known. To the three levels of cognitive acts correspond in the
objects of experience a principle of concrete individual duality or
potency, left behind as the "empirical residue" after insight, a principle of form grasped by insight, and a principle of act or existence
affirmed in judgment. This rudimentary metaphysics leads us directly
to the necessity of a supreme self-explanatory cause, and lays bare
the basic structure of all proofs for the existence of God. "If reality
is completely intelligible, then God exists. But reality is completely
intelligible. Therefore God exists."
The author's descriptive analysis is the fruit of a profound, personal
re-thinking of the essential elements of the Aristotelian-Thomistic
theory of knowledge completed by judicious borrowing from Marechal
and other moderns. The main deficiency we find in it is its failure
to provide an adequate explanation of the judgment of contingent
existence with respect to beings distinct from the knower. The considerably more original and daring analysis of the metaphysical implications of human knowledge, especially the dialectic from knowledge
to being, is much harder to evaluate. It does raise serious misgivings
and leaves many difficulties unanswered. Yet, all things considered,
the author's approach is so profoundly rooted in the springs of tradition
as well as in rigorous personal reflection, and his case so carefully
constructed and impressively reasoned, that I feel it is only fair to
register at least a provisional affirmative vote in his favor. Only the
sifting process of prolonged critical reflection and discussion will
permit, it seems to me, a definitive judgment on this difficult, profound,
but richly instructive work.
w. NORRIS CLARKE, s.J.
SOMBER PICTURE
Priestly Existence. By Rev. Michael Pfiiegler. Translated from the
German by Francis P. Dinneen, S.J. Westminster: Newman, 1957.
Pp. xv-425. $6.00.
Priestly Existence in the words of the author proposes ••. . • to
explain the modes of priestly existence from the data of the priestly
experience itself, from the experience of tension, the necessary and
unavoidable tension between the vocation to be a priest and the fact
that such a vocation is given to a man who lives in this world." In this
sentence from the foreword of the book the author summarizes the pur-
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BOOK REVIEWS
pose and method of his work and sets the tone which will pervade the
entire book. He does not intend to sketch the general picture of the
priestly ideal, but wishes to present an outline of the existential condition in which the diocesan priest actually lives. To this end the author
makes extensive use of novels about the priesthood, which he feels
are " . . . deeply grounded in real life," and from which there emerges
a graphic picture of the priest's life from seminary to the final priestly
type.
The nuclear theme of the book might be expressed in the triad:
tension-crisis-type. The newly ordained priest, fresh from the idealism
of the seminary, is faced with the manifold tensions involved in being a
priest in the world. This context of tensions eventually produces a
crisis, a time for decision, a time to decide how to react to these tensions. According to.' the decision made there will emerge a priestly
type: the escapist, fhe saintly priest, the activist, to mention only a few.
Around this theme Fr. Pfliegler has painted a word-picture of what
he feels to be the actual priestly existence. It is an exceedingly somber
picture, but nonetheless powerful, borrowing as it does the power of
the popular novel.
This reviewer would, however, question the verisimilitude of this
picture of the priestly existence, especially as a picture of the diocesan
priest in this country. Perhaps the self-dramatization of the Cure in
Diary of a Country Priest is a common phenomenon on the European
scene; perhaps the anti-clericalism in The Power and The Glory is far
more real in france and Italy than the American observer would expect.
In any event, they are not the rule on the American scene. Tensions,
it is true, exist in any priestly life; yet they are only a part of the total
picture of that life, as experience with many American diocesan priests
abundantly illustrates.
Furthermore, tension and crisis are not, lfs.:this book would seem
to imply, the keynote of the priestly life considered theoretically. On
the contrary, the keynote is the note of joy and security: joy over the
marvelous fact that the priest is associated with the Incarnate Word
in .the work of salvation, in the task of re-incarnating the Word among
men and in men through the administration of the sacraments and the
preaching office; security in the realization that it is not the priest
alone who must perform this superhuman task, but Christ as well who
is one with him as the Father and the Son are one and who will be
with him until the consummation of the world.
Fr. Pfliegler's approach to the priestly life is, in this reviewer's
opinion, too negative, too much of a spirituality that consists in being
on the defensive against the inroads of the world on the priestly ideal.
Such a spirituality can and often does turn the servant of God in on
himself to the e;.tent that his efficacy is impaired. The priest must, on
the contrary, be orientated to what is outside his personal problems,
to Christ, the priestly ideal, and to the apostolate in which Christ's
work is to be accomplished. The priest should realize that he is a living
�BOOK REVIEWS
377
affirmation of God's will to unite men to Himself in grace and glory,
an affirmation which contemporary society is looking for. Thus the
world is not a power to be feared like some monster which is poised to
pounce upon the timid idealist; it is rather the arena into which the
priest can confidently step to perform the momentous task that brought
the Son of God into the human context. Tensions will arise, as they
did for the sinless Christ who was in solidarity with sinful humanity,
but they will be subsumed in the larger, more important context of
God's salvific purpose. In this context they will not loom so large, nor
will they destroy the joy and security that should be so characteristic
of the priestly existence.
R. M. BARLOW, S. J •
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF KERYGMATICS
The Art of Teaching Christian Doctrine. By Johannes Hofinger, S.J.
Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1957.
Pp. vii-278. $3.50.
What is the Good News and how should it be proclaimed? These
questions are the object of this lucid and inspiring inquiry into the
theory and practice of kerygmatics. Right at the start Father Hofinger
seeks out and highlights the essence of the Christian message, the
Mystery of Christ, so often lost midst the preoccupation with all the
doctrines and commandments which the catechist feels must be covered.
Having clarified the goal, the author shows how the hearer is first
to be initiated into the mystery of Christ through Bible history. Thus
on the individual level is reduplicated the progressive historical revelation of Christ made by God on the social level. Simultaneously, this
knowledge is to be deepened by sacramentally living out the mysteries
through intelligent participation in the liturgy. Finally, as the learner
matures, his knowledge is to be structured and unified by catechism.
Biblical and liturgical knowledge without catechism would be disorganized. Catechetical knowledge without the first two is devitalized
knowledge without appreciation or real assimilation.
The traditional order of presenting Christian doctrine (God, the
object of faith, demanding our duties in the commandments and precepts, accomplished by grace from the sacraments and prayer) has the
advantage of clarity. However, this order (faith, commandments,
means of grace) makes obligation the underlying theme of the Christian
message. The author proposes a slight change by making a twofold
division: God's gift to us (faith and the sacraments), and our gift
to God (prayer and commandments). The change in order is slight, but
it makes for a fundamental reorientation. The focus is now on value,
not obligation; and emphasis on Love with reciprocal love replaces the
highlighting of duty and the means to accomplish duty.
Part III of the book is an admirable proof that Father Hofinger is
not merely theorizing. Here he undertakes to outline concretely thirty
dogmatic and moral instructions, indicating the essential points of the
�378
BOOK REVIEWS
Christian message and how they illuminate the one central message:
the Mystery of Christ. Each includes specific liturgical, biblical and
catechetical hints for the teacher, together with the precise goal and
particular viewpoint of the instruction and ~ doctrinal summary of its
content. Of great help to the preacher would be a use of this section
in conjunction with an appendix which lists apt kerygmatic topics suggested by the Sunday gospels of the year.
The final section treats the spiritual and intellectual formation of
Christ's heralds. The sublimity of a vocation which demands such close
union with Christ is persuasively demonstrated, as well as the necessity
of cultivating the specifically kerymatic virtue of fidelity to the Christian
message. Fidelity implies a complete unselfishness complemented by the
winning personality of Christ which must shine through the personality
of the herald. Next,- separate chapters are devoted to the peculiar
emphases in the function and formation of catechists from the ranks of
laymen, sisters, and priests. In a final very interesting chapter the
author modestly and with eminent realism indicates how in the formation of the seminarian a kerygmatic approach can orientate and enrich
the presentation of scholastic theology, even within the framework of
current textbooks and course divisions. Besides the previously mentioned
sermon appendix, there are appendices containing sample lessons from
kerygmatically orientated catechisms and a similarly orientated three
day retreat. As finishing touches, the book is indexed and there is a
bibliography for each topic treated. A couple of typographical errors
which the next printing should easily correct are slight blemishes on
Father Hofinger's surpassingly readable and timely study.
EDWARD V. STEVENS, S.J.
KEEPER OF THE SANCTUAJi,!
El Apostol de Nuestra Senora: Biografia del Padre Salvador M. Garci·
dueii.as, S.J. By Antonio Dragon, S.J. Mexico: Buena Prensa,
1956. Pp. 149.
A man who truly lived the interior life ... a Jesuit after the heart
of St. Ignatius . . . a man solely occupied in the things of God: Mass,
confessions, missions, the poor and the children-thus the life of Father
Salvador Garciduefias is summarized. Some fifty-six testimonies were
gathered by the author from people who had known and lived with
Father Garciduefias. He lived no less a heroic life during the Calles
persecutions than Father Pro, his contemporary. Unlike Father Pro,
however, Father Garciduefias stayed in one place throughout the persecutions. He had been assigned to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the
Angels, and there 4'e stayed to the end of his life. He managed somehow
to escape the soldiers who were supposed to stop his activities in the
town of Los Angeles. He was force'd to go into hiding when the Sane·
tuary was occupied by the soldiers, but he hid in his room within the
Sanctuary, and continued his active ministry.
�BOOK REVIEWS
379
Like the famous Cure of Ars, Father Garcidueiias reformed the
town of Los Angeles. The witnesses to his heroic life speak of his
gift of reading the hearts of his penitents. He is even said to have
exercised bilocation on several occasions to save souls. But above all,
they speak of his kindness, his love of poverty, his mortified life, not
the least of which was his silent suffering for ten years of a cancerous
wound on his shoulder blades, ultimately reaching his lungs, and causing
his death. To the end, when he was reduced to mere skin and bones,
Father Garcidueiias was active in his spiritual labors. The people kept
asking for him, especially for confessions. When he could do nothing
else but hear confessions a laybrother was assigned to carry him back
and forth to the confessional.
In this Spanish translation of Father Dragon's book, the same
simple style that marked his famous life of Father Pro is once more in
evidence. Father Dragon for the most part has allowed the witnesses
to the life of Father Garcidueiias to tell the story of the Superior of
the Jesuits in hiding in Los Angeles, and to give the account of his
devotion to duty as the holy keeper of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of
the Angels.
M. J. CASALS, S.J.
DEEPENING THE FAITH
The Year and Our Children: Planning the Family Activities for Chris·
tian Feasts and Seasons. By Mary Reed Newland. New York:
P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1956. Pp. xi-328. $3.95.
As Mrs. Newland reflects on her own religious education, she realizes
how meager it was. Many of Ours probably feel the same way about
their own. Our formal training was, for the most part, limited to learning the catechism, with little or no application to the world around us.
But times have changed. The layman is taking his proper place in the
Church, and his children are receiving both at home and in school that
type of education which prepares them to live their entire lives in Christ.
An ever-increasing number of books are being offered to the layman
to deepen his Faith. And, as Mrs. Newland tells us, by reading, praying,
and thinking about the Faith, he is better prepared to teach his children.
Mary Reed Newland, mother of seven children, has made her own contribution to the literature of the laity. We and Our Children, which
appeared in 1954, has the sub-title Molding the Child in Christian Living.
Here she mentioned a few of the family customs of the Liturgical Year,
and left us with a desire to learn how the Newlands live the entire years.
The Year and Our Children has amply satisfied that desire.
Beginning with Advent and the making of the Advent Wreath and
ending with November and Mass on Thanksgiving, Mrs. Newland shows
how all of creation is a symbol pointing back to God the Creator. "All
things are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's." The
author's children are filled with Christ; they find Him everywhere. Their
baptismal candles are decorated with symbols of the Trinity, Redemp-
�380
BOOK REVIEWS
tion, etc., and of their patron saints. Each year on the anniversary of
the child's Baptism the candle is lighted. Many projects, like the making
of Mary Shrines and preparing a puppet show for the feast of St.
Nicholas, become wonderful methods of education. Then there are the
various blessings for fields, homes, etc., given by the lay priest.
The book contains a long list of liturgical symbols, and an excellent
bibliography for parents and children.
Christian parents will find the book invaluable and well worth keeping
for future reference. And Ours might find helpful suggestions for class
or parish projects.
THOMAS H. CONNOLLY, S.J .
.LOGIC COMES ALIVE
The Elements of Logic,.' By Vincent Edward Smith. Milwaukee: Bruce
Publishing Co., 1957. Pp. xiii-298. $3.50.
One might easily disagree with the proposed contents of a course
in logic, but not at all that a course is needed. If for no other reason,
logic must often supply for an imperfect grasp of the English language
and the natural logic inherent in it. (Why Johnny can't read-or write,
or reason-may well have a common cause.) Yet a highly formalized
course in logic can (and too often does, I fear) cause grave misunderstandings about the nature of the judgment, for example, or of philosophical method. Logic seems in one sense to be too difficult to be taught
first and yet too important to leave until last.
Dr. Smith's~ Elements of Logic is a fresh attempt "to make logic
come more alive." The over-all emphasis is clearly that logic is not
just a subject to be learned but a habit of straight thinking to be
acquired. And the stress on a case-history method puts logic back into
a context of real issues and problems. The auj;hor has not always,
perhaps, used the case histories to the best advantage. A more valuable,
though admittedly more difficult, procedure would be to present the
cases, not merely as illustrations of the text, but as the raw material
from which the student would derive principles and conclusions by
induction and analysis. Be that as it may, the student will surely
profit from the case work, and more from the guided awareness that
even great men do extend conclusions beyond the premises. (On the
other hand there is equal need of cautioning the student that William
James, to cite but one usual instance, is not to be dismissed on the
basis of one bad conversion. Would that "'adversaries" could be so
easily handled!)
This reviewer, of course, cannot vouch for the fact that the text,
as presented, will accomplish all that its author planned and hoped for.
But his purpose, namely to foster a dialectical exchange between student
and teacher, seems unassailable. Not all (as he himself realizes) will
agree with the deletions and de-emphases which considerations of space
have forced upon him. Others may judge that some logical dead wood
still remains and will prefer to expand those sections of the text that
�BOOK REVIEWS
381
the author has treated summarily, such as the various kinds of arguments or the special questions dealing with statistical reasoning and
truth functions. My own preference makes me regret the omission of
a more formal consideration of the various kinds of propositionsparticularly the occultly compound-since I know from experience how
little awareness there can be of what an English sentence is saying,
especially when it does not say it directly.
But reservations and personal preferences aside, Dr. Smith's book
is well worth a serious consideration by teachers of logic who, somehow
or other, must simultaneously manage an introduction to philosophy
and give some notion of philosophical method, but who all too often
find student interest fast draining from all four corners of the square
of opposition.
H. R. BURNS, S.J.
ENRICHING THE GUIDANCE FIELD
The Casework Relationship. By Felix P. Biestek, S.J. Chicago: Loyola
University Press, 1957. Pp. vii-149. $3.00.
As the director of field work and associate professor of casework
in the School of Social Work at Chicago's Loyola University, Father
Biestek has a unique vantage point to see both the essential importance
of smooth casework relationship and the difficulty frequently met in
mastering this technique. This book is his attempt to help meet that
difficulty, by providing for the novice (and veteran) social worker a
conceptual analysis of the casework relationship.
The author divides his discussion into two parts: the essence of
such a relationship, and the principles governing it. In the first part,
after a brief discussion of previous descriptions and quasi-definitions,
he proposes the following formula: the casework relationship is the
dynamic interaction of attitudes and emotions between the caseworker
and the client, with the purpose of helping the client achieve a better
adjustment between himself and his environment. The burden of the
book lies in an amplification and discussion of this definition.
Seven basic human needs of people with psychosocial problems are
listed as the pegs upon which the relationship hangs. These are: the
client's need to be treated as an individual, to express his feelings, to
get sympathetic response to his problems, to be recognized as a person
of worth, to be free from having judgment passed on him, to make his
own choices and decisions, to have his secrets kept confidential. These
needs form the first direction of the dynamic interaction between client
and caseworker. The second direction comes from the caseworker's
sensitive understanding and appropriate response to these needs. The
third direction is found in the client's awareness of the caseworker's
response to his needs. This tri-directional interaction forms the basis
of discussion of the seven "principles" which correspond to the abovementioned needs of the client. Each principle receives clear and thoughtful treatment in a separate chapter of the ~ook.
�382
BOOK REVIEWS
As Father Biestek points out in his introduction, such a conceptual analysis cannot replace the intuitive approach to casework in
the classroom and in field practices. Nor does it attempt to do so. Its
aim, rather, is to enrich such an approach and to help the caseworker
make an accurate diagnosis of faulty relationships.
While this book is obviously intended primarily for social workers
and social service students, it is suggested that student counsellors,
priests in Cana work and other forms of counselling and all who have
more than passing interest in the field of guidance will find much here
that is both stimulating and helpful.
PAUL D. CAMPBELL, S.J.
WORK OF EXPERIENCE
The Cross of Jesus. Vol~ I. By Louis Chardon, O.P. Translated by
Richard T. Murph-y, O.P. St. Louis: B. Herder Book Co., 1957.
Pp. v-304. $4.25.
This work of a seventeenth century Dominican master of novices and
director of souls is a compendium of spiritual doctrine on the suffering
and purification which are necessary for growth in holiness. Father
Chardon published this after many years of experience in dealing with
souls on their way to perfection. It is his masterpiece, and we are
fortunate that it has not been left unknown any longer. For the problem of suffering is an ever-present one and any soul that is striving to
live closer to God must come to grips with it. And where find an answer
but in Christ, Who voluntarily came to earth to do just that: suffer and
die?
Father Chardon's treatise is divided into three parts, the first
two of which are included in this first volume. The first part is on
the relationship of grace and the mystical body to the problem of suffering. Father Chardon shows clearly that the inevitable effect of grace
in Christ, Mary, and the members of the mystical body is the cross.
Throughout these chapters, a reader familiar with the dogmatic tracts
on the Incarnation, Redemption, and Mariology, will find them succinctly and forcefully woven into the writing. But at no time is the unfamiliar reader left confused or bewildered by technical tenus. The
second section treats, although the author does not explicitly state it,
with the three stages of perfection. Here he stresses the phenomena
of consolation and desolation. Perhaps this could be taken as a digression. Indeed the Introduction states that some critics have so termed
it; still, it cannot but bring much enlightenment and encouragement
to the reader.
A word of commendation should be given to the translator. There
are not a few rhetorical flourishes, which must have been difficult to
render into readable and idiomatic English from Father Chardon's
seventeenth century French. But the ·task has been accomplished very
successfully, and the entire book reads as if it had been written today,
in English.
JosEPH A. LATELLA, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
383
AFFECTIVE PRAYER
The Virtue of Love. By Paul DeJaegher, S.J. New York: P. J. Kenedy
& Sons, 1955. Pp. xi-176. $3.00.
This book, following The Virtue of Trust and One With Jesus
by the same author, presents a series of lgnatian contemplations of the
life of Christ. Between these contemplations the author injects short
essays on difficult virtues such as the spirit of faith and spiritual fervor.
Both the meditations and essays manifest profound familiarity with
affective prayer and deliberate awareness of God's presence in our
daily lives.
ARTHUR s. O'BRIEN, S.J.
CHURCH IN CHINA
Martyrs in China. By Jean Monsterleet, S.J. Translated by Antonia
Pakenham. Chicago: Henry Regnery Company, 1956. Pp. 288.
$3.75.
It is rare that we find a book which, though written some years
previously, affords a clear insight into the ever-changing news of the
day. Martyrs in China is such a book. For, in addition to accomplishing
its purpose of presenting graphically the story of the C~tholic Church
in China during the first years of Communist rule, it enables the reader
to understand the meaning of many of the recent news items emanating
from Red China concerning the relations of the Catholic Church to
the Communist State.
Father Monsterleet, who during his fourteen years in China worked
in both a country parish and in Tsinku University, is eminently qualified
to describe the plight of the Church in China. He writes not as an
historian, but as a priest and missionary describing events which he
either witnessed himself or heard from his fellow missionaries in exile.·
In so doing, however, he does make clear the pattern of Communist
persecution and the aims of Communism in the world today.
The story of the Communist attempt to force the Church to endorse
the Movement for Triple Autonomy in organization, finances and apostolate is traced as it affected both clergy and laity. The Government's
attacks on the Church's educational system, the Catholic Action Movement, particularly the Legion of Mary, and the orphanages and other
charitable works of the Church, all parts of a more fundamental attackthe attack on the mind, are described and illustrated by examples.
Perhaps the most impressive element in the book is the general
picture of the heroism of the suffering Church in China. The modern
history of the Chinese Church contains many lessons for us. Nor may
we learn only from the martyrs and near-martyrs. There were some who
succumbed to the pressure of persecution. The Marxist ideal in education, as proposed by Chiang Nan-Hsiang, namely that, "All teachers
must be so steeped in Marxism that they reach a point where they are
promoting the Communist ideal, no matter what subject they are teaching," certainly offers us matter for reflection.
�384
BOOK REVIEWS
Ours may find this work somewhat episodic. That it is a translation, too, is at times quite evident. Martyrs in China remains, however,
an inspiring study of a great people and their priests who have endured
and are enduring the new martyrdom of the mind. Their story, as told
by Father Monsterleet, makes it possible for us to follow with new
understanding and sympathy our fellow members of the Mystical Body
in their struggle against the Empire of Mao Tse-Tung.
ROBERT T. RUSH, S.J.
SCHOLARY AND PRACTICAL
The Eucharistic Prayer. A Study of the Canon Missae. By J. A.
Jungmann, S.J. Translated by Robert L. Batley. Chicago: Fides
Publications, 1956.. Pp. vi-55.
Four lectures on the Mass originally presented in a study week for
priests of both zones in Germany are offered here in English. The
approach is simple: it is as though the second method of prayer were
applied to a few pithy expressions of the Canon by one who is at once
a master of the history of the liturgy and a catechist acutely aware of
the problems of men. For example, the phrase unde et memores is
singled out. How is remembrance, thankful remembrance, related to
the actual offering, to offerimus? Father Jungmann uncovers the
original uses of the phrase, its echoes in other parts of the Mass, and
the causes for shifts in emphasis through the centuries. Yet as one
acutely touched by today's problems, he straightway suggests where
present emphases fail to meet present needs. It is the prayer of one
intent on finding fruit. The audience of the original lectures was an
added spur toward practicality. Hence when singing and processions,
vestments and architecture are discussed, it is not~1dly but with point.
The interest of laymen in the liturgy is an accepted fact and to
them much writing about the liturgy is directed. It is cause for joy
then that their pastors too are given solid food by such lectures as these.
Some religious and lay people will find them within reach and fruitful.
W. SucHAN, S.J.
7
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 86 (1957)
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1957 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Text
A.M. 1>. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND MISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF JESUS
VOL. LXXXV
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1956
FOR CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
1585
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67tJI
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�INDEX TO VOLUME LXXXV
ARTICLES
Apostleship of Prayer at St. Louis University High
Atomic Vulnerability of American Society
_ _ _ _ 389
Church and Sophia University
· - - - - - - - - - 131
59
English Novitiate in 1806 ---·-
- - - - - - - - - 175
English Translations of the Exercises .
· - - - - - - - - 435
Exercitatio Corporalis - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 53
Fortresses of God - - - - - - · - - - · - - - - - - - - 363
Georgetown and the Presidents - - - ---------------- 265
lgnatian Letter on the Church
428
Ignatian Spirituality in English ------------------------ 441
Ignatian Year Exhortations
117
India and St. Ignatius ·--------
403
Jesuit Education in Chicago - - - - ---------------·------- 159
Jesuit in Jail
65
51
Letters of an Anglican - - · - -- - - · - - - -
149
Manila I.S.O. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Music Courses in American Jesuit Schools----------- - - 197
Mystery of Andrew White ------·-·----------------------·-- 375
Notes on the Spiritual Exercises--------------------- 281
192
Novitiate at Paris -------------·------Pius XII on Ignatius _______
-------------·· 367
Reform of the Liturgy -------------- - - - - - - - - - 21
St. Ignatius and Christ .
3
St. Ignatius as Priest and Founder --------·---St. Ignatius and the Pope
--·--·--- 251
St. Joseph Pignatelli - - - - - - - - · - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
11
33
Society and the Apostleship of Prayer - ------------------ 381
Scrutamini Scripturas ----------Use of Modern Means of Communication__
- - - - - - - - 141
- - - - - - - 107
Table of Votive Masses -·----···-··---------------------- 155
�OBITUARIES
76
Brother Dempsey, Peter
Bishop Feeney, Thomas J. -------------------------199
Father Gregg, Paul L. - - - - - · - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 71
Father Hargadon, Francis B.
· - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 446
Father. Murphy, Joseph T. - - - -
-----460
Mr. Neubeck, Richard
81
Father Reilly, Thomas J. -
457
Father Talbot, Francis X.
337
CONTRIBUTORS
ANONYMOUS, The Novitiate at Paris
192
BANGERT, WILLIAM V., Letters of an . Anglican
BURKE, FRANCIS, Fortresses of God
61
363
'
COLLINS, JOHN H., Obituary of Bishop Tho.mas J. Feeney-·- - - 230
CURRAN, FRANCIS X., Mystery of Andrew White
376
DE LETTER, PRUDENT, India and St. Ignatius ·
403
DENZER, THOMAS, Apostleship of Prayer at St. Louis Univ. H.S. - - 389
DONNELLY, MALACHI J., St. Ignatius and the Pope -
11
EBERLE, GEORGE T., Obituary of Br. Peter Dempsey---- - - - - -
81
FOREST, CHARLES, Exercitatio Corporalis __
63
GENERAL, VERY REVEREND FATHER, Use of Modern Means of Communication ----------------------107
HURLEY, NEIL P., Atomic Vulnerability of American s ·o ciety - --- 131
KENEDY, EUGENE T., Obituary of Father Thomas J. Reilly------- 459
KING, JAMES W., Music Courses in American Jesuit Schools ___ 197
· LAFARGE, JOHN, Obituary of Father Francis X Talbot -------- 344
LEAHY, DANIEL, English Translations of the Exercises --- ------- 435
MACKENSIE, R.A.F., Scrutamini Scripturas ---------------------
141
MAGAN, JOHN W., Obituary of Mr. Richard N,eubeck ---- -- ------- 84
Mc<;:oRMACK, JOHN K., Reform of the Liturgy
21
McCoY, DANIEL, The Church and Sophia University ---------........
59
�McHUGH, ISABEL, Jesuit in Jail
65
MoHLER, JAMES A., Jesuit Education in Chicago - - - - - - - 159 ·
MooRE, THOMAS H., Society and the Apostleship of Prayer
381
NATIVIDAD, AGUSTIN, Table of Votive Masses
155
PLOWDEN, CHARLES, English Novitiate in 1806
175
RAHNER, HUGO, Notes on the Spiritual Exercises
281
REPETTI, WILLIAM C., Georgetown and the Presidents
265
SCHOBERG, FERDINAND, Obituary of Father Joseph T. Murphy-- 470
SMITH, PAUL F., Obituary of Father Paul L. Gregg
74
STUMPF, EDMUND J., lgnatian Spirituality in English----- 441
VARELA, MIGUEL M., St. Joseph Pignatelli
WEISS, ARTHUR A., Manila I.S.O.
33
149
YOUNG, WILLIAM J., Ignatian Year Exhortations
117
Pius XII on St. Ignatius
367
St. Ignatius and Christ
3
St. Ignatius, Priest and Founder - - - - 251
WEIGEL, GUSTAVE, Ignatian Letter on the C h u r c h - - - - - - - 428
WHEELER, Lours A., Obituary of Father Francis B. Hargadon __ 456
BOOK REVIEWS
AIXALA, JEROME, His Heart and His Society. Original Sources
of "Munus Suavissimum" (J. Harding Fisher)
359
BEDOYERE, MICHAEL DE LA, The Layman in the Church (Kenneth
C. Bogart)
241
BEGUIRIZTAIN, JUSTO, The Eucharistic Apostolate of St. Ignatius
236
Loyola (J. Harding Fisher)
BOUYER, LOUIS, The Meaning of the Monastic Life (Daniel J. M.
Callahan)
101
CARDIJN, JoSEPH, Challenge to Action (Kenneth C. Bogart) ___ 487
CHARMOT, FRANCOIS, In Retreat With the Sacred Heart (R. Eugene
Moran)
479
COLLINs, JOHN H., Soul of Christ.
Christi (J. Harding Fisher)
Meditations on the Anima
COMBES, ANDRE, St. Therese and her Mission (Sigmund J. Laschenili)
352
m
�CouLSON, C. A., Science and Christian Belief (Paul J. McCarthy) -
485
CURRY, JOHN V., Deception in Elizabethan Comedy (Edward F.
Maloney) - - - - - - · - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
89
DANIELOU, ·JEAN, Origen (Paul F. Palmer)
96
DAVIS, THURSTON N., & SMALL, JOSEPH, A John LaFarge Reader
(Avery Dulles) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 357
DoNOHUE, JoHN, Christian Maturity (Edward J. Murray) - - - 102
DONCEEL, J. F., Philosophical Psychology (Mario Delmirani) - -
86
DULLES, AVERY, DEMSKE, JAS, O'CONNELL, ROBT., Introductory
Metaphysics (W. Norris Clarke) -------
91
ENCINAS, ANTONIO, Los Ejercicios de San Ignacio (Bernard M.
Welzel)
477
ENTRALGO, PEDRO L., Mind and Body (Francis M. Forster, M.D.) -
481
FERROLI, D., The Jesuits of Mysore (E. L. Mooney) ___ _ · - - - 245
FITZGERALD, JoHN D., Papa Married a Mormon (R. M. Barlow) _
104
FULLAM, RAYMOND B., The Popes on Youth (Michael H. Jordan) _
358
GALOT, JEAN, The Heart of Christ (Robert J. Suchan) - - - - 2 3 1
GEMELLI, AGOSTINO, Psychoanalysis Today (Francis Schemel) _ _ 232
GRAYSTONE, GEOFFRY, The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Originality
of Christ (R. M. Barlow) ___
473
GRIMAL, ·J., The Three Stages of the Spiritual Life (B. Mayo and J.
Fogelsanger) ----------------------480
GUITTON, GEORGES, Perfect Friend, The Life of Blessed Claude La
Colombiere (Francis X. Moan) ------------------------------ 472
GUITTON, JEAN, The Problem of Jesus (Vincent T. O'Keefe) _ _ 100
HAIMON, LEOPOLD H., The Russian Marxists and the Origin of
Bolshevism (John F. Long) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 237
HEALY, EDWIN F., Medical Ethics (Edward L. Mooney) - - - - 481
HERBST, WINFRID, Indulgences (Robert Y. O'Brien) ---------- 247
HIGGINS, THOMAS J., Helps and Hindrances to Perfection (Robert
-J. Fitzpatrick) -------------------------------~------ 246
HILDEBRAND, DIETRICH VON, True Morality and its Counterfeits
(Robert H. Springer) --------------------------------------------- 484
HOFSTADTER,. RICHARD, & METZGER, Walter P., The Development of
Academ1c Freedom in the United States (Chas. M. Whelan) __ 235
IRALA, NARCISO, Achieving Peace of Heart (Edward L. Mooney) _
87
�JoHANN, RoRERT 0., The Meaning of Love (R. M. Barlow)
93
JoHN OF JOINVILLE, The Life of St. Louis (J. J. Golden)
479
KEENAN, ALAN, & RYAN, JoHN, Marriage, A Medical
Study (Robert H. Springer)
&
Sacramental
94
KELLY, JAs. P. & ELLIS, MARY T., What the Church Gives Us
(Joseph B. Doty)
104
KNOX, RONALD A., In Soft Garments (Joseph L. Roche)
LA DRIERE, JAS. CRAIG, Directions In Contemporary Criticism and
Literary Scholarship (J. A. Slattery)
246
90
LAWSON, WILLIAM, Good Christian Men Rejoice, (J. Harding
Fisher)
248
LECLERCQ JACQUES, The Religious Vocation (Joseph Doty) ___ 355
LIN YUTANG, Looking Beyond (Roque Ferriols)
88
LORD, DANIEL A., Played By Ear (Robert Y. O'Brien) - - - - - 244
MACIVER, ROBERT M., Academic Freedom in Our Time (Chas. M.
Whelan) _____
235
MARTINDALE, C. C., The Castle and the Ring (Robert B. Cullen) _
233
MAYNARD, THEODORE, Saint Ignatius and the Jesuits (James J.
Hennesey) ___
354
McGLOIN, JoSEPH T., I'll Die Laughing (Eugene Rooney) -------
97
McMENAMY, FRANCIS X., Eight Day Retreat Based on the Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola (R. M. Barlow)
476
MOFFATT, JOHN E., Listen, Sister Superior (Vitaliano R. Gorospe) -------------------------------------
85
MOORE, THOS. H., The Eternal Shepherd (Emmanuel V. Non) ____
85
O'CONNELL, J. B., Church Building and Furnishing (Frederick
Vernon Murphy, F.A.I.A.) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 345
O'CONNOR, EDWARD D., The Mystery of the Woman (Edward A.
Ryan) ------------------------471
OTT, LUDWIG, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma (R. M. Barlow) __ 242
PAONE, ANTHONY J., My Daily Bread (E. L. Mooney) ----------
86
PEETERS, LOUIS, An Ignatian Approach to Divine Union (Robert
J. Suchan) ------------------------------------477
PHILLIPs, GERALD, The Role of the Laity in the Church (Kenneth
C. Bogart) ------------------------------------------ 487
PLus, RAOUL, Inward Peace (John J. Heaney) - - - - - - - - - - 478
�RECE, E. H. & BEARDSLEE, W. A., Reading the Bible-A Guide
(Joseph J. Smith)
480
REIDY, MAURICE F., Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, Jacobean Court
Preacher (Francis X. Curran)
237
RONDET, HENRI, Saint Joseph (Benigno Mayo) - - - - - - - - 354
ST. MARY's COLLEGE FATHERS, The Church Teaches (R. M. Barlow) __
242
SCHOENBERG, WILFRID P., Garlic for Pegasus (Emmanuel V. Non) _
488
TAVARD, GEO. H., The Catholic Approach to Protestantism (John
J. McDonald) - - - - - - - - - - 239
THOMAS, JOHN L., The American Catholic Family (Robt. J.
McNamara)
------------------------------486
TRESE, LEO J., Tenders of the Flock (Harold J. Oppido)
97
TROUNCER, MARGARET, The Nun (Robert McGuire)
98
VAN ZELLER, HUBERT, The Gospel Priesthood (R. Eugene Moran) _
353
WARD, MAISIE, They Saw His Glory (William Suchan) _ _ _ _ 357
WERTH, ALVIN, & MIHANOVICH, CLEMENT M., Papal Pronouncements
on Marriage and the Family (Michael H. Jordan)
243
WILSON, EDMUND, The Scrolls from the Dead Sea (V. R. Gorospe) _
240
WOLFSON, HARRY A., The Philosophy of the Church Fathers,
Vol. 1 (Herbert Musurillo) ____
349
WooDs, RALPH L., The Catholic Companion to the Bible (Philip J.
Calderone) ------------_
475
WUELLNER, BERNARD, Dictionary of Scholastic Philosophy (H. R.
B~>---
GENERAL INDEX
Adams, John 266
Adams, John Quincy 267
Alexandria, Patriarch of 431
Anglicans 51, 436 ff.
Angiolini, Father Cajetan 41
Apostleship of Prayer 381 ff.
approval by popes of 385
work ol Jesuits in 386 ff.
at St. Louis University High School 389 ff.
Arthur, Chester A. 275
Asnaf, Sagad I 428
m
�Atomic alert, effects of 133, 134
Atomic vulnerability of Jesuits 131 ft'.
Baltimore, Lord 376
Batllori, Father Miguel 428, 430
Berze, Father George 406, 413, 415, 419
Betagh, Father Thomas 187, 191
Bibliography of Ignatian spirituality 441 ft'.
Bobadilla, Father Nicholas 122, 123
Brandao, Father Antonio 251, 255
Buchanan, James 271, 272
Burke, Father Francis 363
Burrowes, Father Alexander J. 167
Cano, Melchior 16
Catholic Information Center, New York 153,154
Cebrero, Father Cicero 151
Challoner-Douay Bible 146
Chicago, Jesuit Education in 159 ft'.
Christ, a companion 3 ft'.
Church 428 ff.
Civil defense, cooperation with 173
Cleveland, Grover 275, 276
Colleges in India 413-15
Communications, means of 107 ff.
possible harms from 109, 110
use in scholasticates of 111, 112
Communion of Reparation 395
Companion of Jesus 6 ff.
Company of Jesus 430
Confraternity Old Testament 146
Congress of Religious 262
Constitutions of the Society of Jesus 258, 259
Coolidge, Calvin 278
Corporal Exercise 53 ff.
Cowley Fathers (Anglican) 438
Criminali, Father Anthony 406, 408, 409, 417, 421
Current events, need of knowledge of by Ours 108 ff.
Damen, Father Arnold 159 ff., 170 ff.
Delp, Father Alfred 65 ff.
Dempsey, Brother Peter 75 ff.
Deremy, M. J. 430
Destruction from atomic blast 138, 139
Detroit University 197, 198
�Dismissals from the Society by Ignatius 120-22
Distribution of American Jesuits 132-33
Distribution of wealth in the Philippines 153
Dramatic Department at Loyola 170
Dumbach, Father Henry J. 166
Ecclesiology 428
Eiko Jesuit High School 62
Eisenhower, Dwight D. 280
Elementary schools of Jesuits in Chicago 160 tr.
Emergency shelters 138
Episcopal legislation, obedience of Ours to 114
Exercise, Corporal 53 tr.
Fatherhood of St. Ignatius 117 tr.
Federation of Free Farmers 153
Federation of Free Workers 153
Feeney, Most Rev. Thomas J. 199 tr.
Foley, Brother Henry 375 tr.
Foresters, Catholic Order of 171
Garfield, James A. 274, 275
Genelli, Father Christoph 429
General Congregation, XIX, 141
Georgetown University 265 tr.
Gomes, Father Anthony 414
Gonzaga Retreat House 82
Gonzaga University 197, 198
Grant, Ulysses S. 273
Gregg, Father Paul L. 71 tr.
Grou, Father Jean Nicholas 192
Hargadon, Father Francis B. 445 tr.
Harding, Warren G. 278
Harrison Benjamin 276
Harrison, William Henry 268
Hayes, Rutherford B. 273-74
Henriquez, Father Henry 406, 409, 411, 412, 416, 417, 419, 421
Heredia, Father Anthony de 413
Hogan, Father Walter 149 tr.
Holy Family qhurch in Chicago 159, 160
Hoover, Herbert C. 278-79
Ignatian Spirituality 441 tr.
India 403 tr.
Irish in Chicago 159, 165, 171
�Irish novices in England 187
I. S. 0. in Manila 149 ff.
Jackson, Andrew 267
Japanese Church 59 ff.
Jefferson, Thomas 266
Jesus .Christ 12
Johnson, Andrew 273
Kant 32
Kennally, Fr. Vincent 149
Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven 431
Kingdom of Christ 11, 12
Kingdom of Christ meditation 5
Kohlman, Father Anthony 44
Kreisau Circle 65, 69
Labor and management schools in Manila 151
Lainez, Father 55
Lancillotto, Father Nicholas 405, 408, 410, 411, 415, 419, 421
Langdon, Dr. 52
Larraz, Father 38
La Storta 129-30
Latin as a vehicle of prayer 28
Lausal, Brother 33
Lenten liturgy 29
Leo, Pope 432
. Lincoln, Abraham 272-73
Liturgy, reform of 21 ff.
Longridge, Rev. Dr. W. H. 438
Loyola College, Baltimore 197
Loyola University, Chicago 167, 197
Luther 13
McKinley, William 276
McMenamy, Francis X. 441
McNicholas, Most Rev. John T., O.P. 259
Madison, James 266-67
Maertens, Dom Thierry 22
Magisterium of the Church 12, 13, 17
Manare, Father Oliver 56
Manresa 126
Manresa, College of 36
Manual labor for Ours 53 ff.
Marcellus VI, Pope 15, 16
�Mass 13, 26, 52
Mediatorial function of priest 22-23
Mediator Dei 25
Meditations of a Jesuit in jail 65 tf.
Messianic office of Christ 11
Mexican Province of the Society 38
Meyrick, Father Thomas, S.J. 429
Missionaries in Japan 59 tf.
Moeller, Fr. Ferdinand 172, 173
i'tlolinism 36-37
Moltke, Count Helmut Von 65 tf.
Molyneux, Fr. Robert 175 tf.
Montserrat, Vigil at 125, 126
Morris, Father John 435
Moses 11
Mozzi, Father 40
Mulkerins, Brother Thomas 168, 169
Munich 66
Murphy, Father Joseph T. 460 tf.
Music courses in American Jesuit colleges 197, 198
Mysteries of Christ 28, 29, 30
Mystical Body of Christ, prayer of 22, 25
Mystici Corporis 12
· Mystics 4
Nadal, Father 54, 55
Nazism 65 tf.
Neale, Fr. Francis 175, 178
Negus of Abyssinia 428
Neubeck, Richard 81 ff.
Newman, Cardinal 436
Novice master, norms for 176 tf.
Novitiate at Hodder in England 175 tf.
Novitiate at Paris 192 tf.
O'Callaghan, Father Richard 187, 191
O'Neill, Father Andrew 162
O'Rourke, Father John 51-52
Oxford Movement 436-37
Paccanari, Nicholas 42-43
Pamplona 9
Paternal government in the Society 117 tf.
Paul James Francis, S. A. 51-53
i
I
\
I
l
\
l
I
~,,
'
�:
Philippine Vice Province 149 ff.
Pierce, Franklin 270, 211
Plowden, Father Charles 175 ff.
Polanco 428
Polk, James K. 269-70
Pope, the 11 ff. 432 ff.
Pope Pius XII 367 tr.
Prester John 430
Priests and Laymen's Institute of Social Action 152
Probation, St. Ignatius' idea of 261 ff.
Professional schools of Jesuits in Chicago 168-69
Puhl, Father Louis J. 439
Records, need for duplication of 137
Reilly, Father Thomas J. 457 ff.
Ribadeneira, Father Pedro 121
Rickaby, Father Joseph 439
Rodrigues, Father Simon 123
Rogers Park 166
Roosevelt, Franklin D. 279
Roosevelt, Theodore 276-77
Sacred Heart Devotion 381 ff., 389 ff.
Sacred Heart, Religious of 162
St. Ignatius 3 ff., 11 ff., 251 ff., 367 ff., 404 ff. 428 tr., 435 ff.
on the Constitutions 258 ff.
on devotion to the papacy 370-71
on Divine Office 254 ff.
on formation and probation 261 ff.
on the Mass 255 ff.
Spiritual Exercises of 4 tr., 126-29, 281 ff., 435 ff.
St. Ignatius College, Chicago 164
St. Joseph Pignatelli 33 ff.
St. Louis University High School 389 tr.
St. Margaret Mary 381-84
St. Peter 431 ff.
Scripture Studies in Scholasticates 141 ff.
Seattle University 197, 198
Shipley, Orby 38
Siedenburg, Father Frederick 167
Sisters of Charity of B.V.M. 162
Social Justice to Jesuit employees 149, 150
Society of Jesus 35 ff.
Society of the Holy Cross 438
�Society of St. John the Evangelist 438
Sodalities in . Chicago 170 ff.
Sodality in St. Louis University High School 389
Sodality, St. Mary's plan for 389
Sophia University 59 ff.
Spariish Jesuits 34 ff.
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius 4 ff., 126-29, 281 ff., 435 ff.
Spirituality, Ignatian 441
Sports, excessive interest in 114-15
Stone, Father Marmaduke 175 ff.
Stritch Medical School 169
Suppression of the Jesuits 38-39
Taft, William H. 277
Truman, Harry S. 279, 280
Tuguegarao, Philippines 373-74
Tuition in first Chicago schools 163
Tyler, John 268-69
Typhoon in Philippines 373-74
Van Buren, Martin 268
Washington, George 265-66
Weiss, Father Anthony 151, 152
White, Father Andrew 375 ft'.
Wilson, Woodrow 277-78
Wiseman, Cardinal 436-37
Young, Father William 441
Xavier 403 ff.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXV, No. 1
--~ob·=~
FEBRUARY, 1956
·~-
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1956
ST. IGNATIUS AND CHRIST___________________________________________________________
3
William J. Young, S.J.
ST. IGNATIUS AND THE POPE_______________________________________________________ 11
Malachi J. Donnelly, S.J.
REFORM OF THE LITURGY________________________________________________________________ 21
John K. McCormack, S-J.
ST. JOSEPH PIGN ATELLL__________________________________________________________________ 33
Miguel M. Varela, S.J.
LETTERS OF AN ANGLICAN ________________________________________________________________ 51
William V. Bangert, S.J.
EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS -------------------------------------------------------------- 53
Charles Forest, S.J.
THE CHURCH AND SOPHIA UNIVERSITY_____________________________________ 59
Daniel McCoy, S.J.
A JESUIT IN JAIL ______________________________________________________________________________ 65
Isabel McHugh
OBITUARIES
Father Paul L. Gregg_________________________________________________________________________ 71
Brother Peter Dempsey ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 75
Mr. Richard N eubeck --------------------------------------------------------------------- 81
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS _________________________________________________________ 85
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father William J. Young (Chicago Province) is Spiritual Father at
West Baden College.
Father Malachi J. Donnelly (Wisconsin Province) is professor of
theology at St. Mary's College.
Father John K. McCormack (Maryland Province) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock.
Father Edmund J. Stumpf (Wisconsin Province) is Regent of the
Dental School at Creighton.
Mr. Miguel M. Varela (Philippine Vice-Province) is a theologian at
Woodstock.
Father William V. Bangert (New York Province) is professor of history at St. Andrew-on-Hudson.
Mr. Vincent J. Lagomarsino (Maryland Province) is a theologian at
Woodstock.
Father Daniel McCoy (New York Province) is professor of biology at
Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan.
Dr. Francis M. Forster is Dean of the Medical School at Georgetown.
Father George T. Eberle (New England Province) edits the Province
News at Weston College.
Father John W. Magan (New York Province) is director of Gonzaga
Retreat House, Monroe, New York.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published ~our times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered aa oeeond-clll88 matter December 1 1942,
MB~Tiand, nnder tbe Act of March a,
_ •
at the post office at Woodstock,
1879
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�St. Ignatius and Christ
WILLIAM
J.
YOUNG,
S.J.
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ,
As we are still on the threshold of this Ignatian Year, it
occurred to me that it would be quite in the spirit of the Year
to devote one or more of these exhortations to the examination
of various aspects of our holy Father's life. Such a study would
show at least a certain deference to the wishes of His Paternity, as expressed in a recent letter announcing the Ignatian
Year. It would, moreover, be pleasing, I am sure, to our holy
Father himself, and acceptable, I hope, as well as profitable
to ourselves.
Ignatius' Contribution
To begin with, we could consider St. Ignatius in his relations
with Christ our Lord, and ask whether St. Ignatius, innovator
as he was, introduced any notable changes in the soul's relation to Christ, whether he was responsible for what might be
called a new point of view, a shift of emphasis, or a fresh
approach in the soul's dealing with the Saviour of mankind.
If we look into the lives of the great saints, who may be considered to have initiated such movements, we find that one
· is particularly occupied with the Divine Infancy, another with
the Hidden Life, another with the Public Life, or the Passion;
or with Christ as Model, as Teacher, as Workman, as Leader,
as Priest, as King. Researchers into the past, into the history
of Christian devotion, tell us that it was rather the Divinity
of Christ which occupied the minds of men for nearly a thousand years, when they were principally thinking of His Kingship, His Priesthood, His Godhead. It was only later, they
say, that men's hearts began to throb in unison with His
humanity. It was only then that the human Christ, the Christ
that was so like to themselves, stole their hearts away, as
even we, who are not researchers, can recognize in the crib
of St. Francis, in the burning eloquence of St. Bernard and
the melting sweetness of St. Bonaventure, all of which are
the firm assertion of our fellowship with God who became
-
An exhortation given at West Baden College.
�4
IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
man. These saints have made a distinct contr!bution to the
cultus which Christian devotion has always paid to the God- .
Man. Is it possible that St. Ignatius has added to theirs a
distinct contribution of his own?
I think that we can confidently say that he has. The great
mystics, at least those who were his contemporaries, have
almost habitually conceived of our Lord as the spouse or
bridegroom of the soul, and for this conception they certainly
have the authority of Holy Writ. Allusions to such a relationship are scattered over the pages of the Old Testament; and
the New, with its parables of bridal parties and wedding
feasts, almost forces on our Lord the appellation of bridegroom, and establishes a nuptial relation between Him and the
soul. The mystics, I say, were not slow to see this, and their
writings are full of mystical betrothals and mystical nuptials.
Now St. Ignatius was one of the greatest, if not the greatest
mystic of them all, and yet in his voluminous wr~tings, there
is not a single mention of these mystical betrothals and nuptials. To him Christ was not a suitor, not a bridegroom. He
was rather a companion. I think that it is in this concept of
companionship with Christ that we will find the secret of our
holy Father's devotion, the key to his spirituality, and his
great contribution to the sanctification first of his Company
conceived as such, his brethren in the concrete, his companions in Christ, and through them mankind at large.
The Exercises
If we begin with the Spiritual Exercises we will see an
~nti?tation of this companionship with Christ: either expressly
mdica~ed or unmistakably presupposed. When we made the
Exercises for the first time, most of us were struck I am
sure, by the dramatic introduction of our Lord in the C~lloquy
of the First Exercise. Throughout the whole meditation there
was .no direct mention of Him at all. But here in the Colloquy,
He Is sud_d~nly a~d unexpectedly placed on His cross before
the exercitant: With the challenging question, "What have I
do?e for Christ? What am I doing for Christ? What am I
g~mg t? do for. Christ?" After the dreary and difficult sessions
~~th ~m, Chr~st suddenly becomes the center of the exerant s attention, and the dramatic suddenness of the ques-
�IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
5
tions, and the very questions themselves, seem to infer or to
suppose an already existing relation of some kind of intimacy,
else how could anything I might do have an effect, make an impression on the Man on the Cross. The very choice of the word
"colloquy" for this part of the prayer, itself indicates an
established degree of familiarity, as St. Ignatius himself
points out: "A colloquy is made by speaking exactly as one
friend speaks to another, now asking him for a favor, now
blaming himself for some mistake, now making known his
affairs to him and seeking advice in them." Could he more
accurately describe what would take place between two men
who are bound together by ties of companionship?
I said that in the meditation proper there was no mention
of Christ, so that his introduction in the colloquy comes as a
kind of dramatic surprise. In the main this is true. There is
an instruction, however, placed parenthetically, as it were, in
the second prelude, in which the exercitant is directed to make
his petition correspond with the subject of his meditation. It
is rather a directive for any meditation, including, therefore,
the present one. He is to ask for joy with Christ in joy, or for
sorrow and tears and anguish with Christ in anguish. It is
all to be done with Christ always, so that we are justified in
.-· concluding that with St. Ignatius there is no joy apart from
joy with Christ, or pain or sorrow apart from Christ in pain
or sorrow. A perfect picture of the relation of companionship,
considered in its essence, and which will be verified whether
the companionship is found among pagans like Damon and
Pythias, or half-pagans and half-Christians, like the Three
Musketeers, or perfect Christians like Loyola and Xavier.
In the Meditation of the Kingdom of Christ, despite its
name, there is nothing glorious or imposing about the person
of Christ, the Eternal King, and even though we are asked
to behold Him standing in the presence of the whole world,
there are about Him none of the attributes of awe and
majesty, nothing to remind us of the fear and dread of kings.
The total import of His appeal is, therefore, that we are invited to come with Him, to labor with Him, to be rewarded
with Him. In a word, we are invited to be His companions.
And in the splendid oblation with which the meditation closes,
the formal incentive drawing the soul to bear all wrongs, all
�6
IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
abuse, all poverty, is a longing to imitate Him. It i~ the imperative need that a follower, who is also a compamon, feels
to be like his companion-leader.
The same idea is repeated in the meditation of the Two
Standards. There is no hint of companionship in the presentation of the false leader, El Caudillo, where thrones and sceptres, "wherein doth sit the fear and dread of kings," are unashamedly in evidence, and the talk is of threats or goads.
In the other camp, that of Christ, there is no mention even
of titles, and in place of threats and goads we have attraction
and persuasion, helps and recommendations. Again, the motive
for accepting spiritual and even actual poverty, insults and
wrongs, is the imitation of Him who, although presented to
us in the guise of ·leader, has really the character of companion.
The climax, of course, is reached in the Third Degree of
Humility, where "I desire and choose poverty with Christ
poor in order to imitate and be in reality more like Christ
our Lord. I choose insults with Christ loaded with them. I
desire to be accounted as worthless and a fool for Christ,
rather than be esteemed as wise and prudent in this world,
because Christ was so treated before me."
Everywhere in the Exercises it is the same yearning of the
soul of Ignatius to communicate itself to the soul of the exercitant, and always with the same intent. Christ has become
the bearer of his burdens, the sharer of his dreams, the inseparable companion of his ways. He will have no holiness
that is not mirrored in Jesus, he will be known by no other
title than Companion of Jesus.
The Constitutions and the Italian Campaign
. It is the same when we turn to the Constitutions. By this
time, of course, Ignatius has learned that
To a soul of flame all raptures besides sacrifice seem tame.
That is why he insists so much upon the sacrifice of one's
ease, one's comfort, one's preferences, one's reputation, on an
abhorrence even of all the delights that are dear to men of
the .world. If we are really serious about this following of
Christ, we will love, since we are His companions, and eagerly
long for (amant et ardenter exoptant-strong words) the
�IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
.·
7
very opposite, and be impatient until we are wearing the uniform and bearing upon our breasts the decorations we have
won in His service, as the members of His band, His men,
His companions. It never fails. You will never find in our
Father's writings, in his letters, his exhortations, his instructions, his Constitutions, the hard things of life recommended
for any other reason than that they emphasize, establish, and
cement the bonds of our companionship with our Leader,
Christ Jesus.
Plain as it is that the idea of companionship with Christ
stands out in the Exercises and the Constitutions, it seems to
me that it stands out clearer still in a very significant act from
the early days of what we might call the Italian campaign.
When his companions asked him what name they should give
to those who enquired who they were, Ignatius answered,
"Tell them that you are of the Company of Jesus." Ready
as he was to discuss, modify, reject, or accept suggestions
about the Institute, he was resolute in refusing to admit any
discussion about the name, and Company of Jesus it has remained to this day. We have here too an interesting example
of the anomalies of language. "Society" as a Latin word can
hold its head very high, but the mongrel "company" is not
even found in the Latin Dictionary, although its constituents
"cum" and "panis" are as Latin as Latin can be. We nonLatins have taken the neutral, pedigreed, noncommittal, aristocrat "Society," while the Latins have chosen the warm and
friendly, fatherless, proletarian "Company." We may say,
then, that we find this concept of companionship with Christ,
formally and designedly, at the very outset in the name
Ignatius adopted for himself and his associates, once they began to think seriously of remaining together in some sort of
organization which would give distinctiveness and permanence
to their work for souls.
Companion in Sixteenth Century
There seems to have been something of God's Providence
in the choice of the name "Company." First of all, it was a
military term, much in use at the time, and applied to those
roving bands of fighting men, who, having nothing at home to
fight for, went abroad under captains of their choice to wage
�8
IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
the wars which were little more than brawls between local
princes, dukes, and counts, who were willing to provide ~heir
followers with the action their adventurous souls destred.
With many it was pure adventure that lured them, "the open
road and the bright face of danger." With others it was something more serious, with the younger sons especially, who
wished to establish themselves in life and provide themselves
with the means of living according to their state. Ignatius
himself had a taste of this life, on a slightly higher plane,
and two of his brothers thus sought their fortunes in foreign
lands. He himself was fairly on the way to such a career when
the hand of God's Providence struck him down to claim him
for its own.
We can easily imagine the spirit of comradeship that grew
up between the members of those roving bands, who were not
in any sense of the word bandits or freebooters, but recognized
and accepted soldiers of fortune. A sense of brotherly intimacy
easily develops between men who live together, endure hardships, suffer privations, face dangers and even death in the
service of a beloved leader. We could choose such a band almost at hazard and find in them qualities which would have
needed only the saving grace which was given to Ignatius to
make of them companions of the kind he sought in the campaigns he dreamed. Companions in arms, one for all and all
for one! Generous, daring, gallant, self-sacrificing. Let them
replace the sword and cloak with the crucifix and the pilgrim's
sack, D' Artagnan with Christ, and Ignatius, with the help of
God's grace, would transform them into Companions of Jesus,
into Xaviers, Fabers, Salmerons, with the wide, wide horizons
of the world for their battlefield and their prizes the souls of
men.
Christ, Ignatius' Companion
Can we not discern in Ignatius' devotion to his Leader
Christ the same selfless loyalty of these soldiers of fortune,
but. witliout their recklessness, the same bravery without
thetr bluster, the same daring without their rashness the
sa~e love ":ithout their coarseness, the same high ide~lisxn
Wlt~out thetr :V?rldliness-all these great and noble compamonabl~ quahhes, but raised to an infinitely higher degree
of perfectwn because of the infinitely purer ideal that awak-
�IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
9
ened them, and the infinitely superior Leader to whom he was
attached? Had any of them served under one of the Loyolas
at Pamplona, they would have recognized their Captain as a
kindred spirit, and he them as the stuff out of which even
heroes of the Cross are made!
Wasn't it something like presumption for Ignatius to aim
at the equality which all companionship entails? No. For there
was too much of the Spanish gentleman, the hidalgo, in St.
Ignatius, to allow familiarity ever to become vulgar, too much
of the noble ever to allow intimacy to presume. His friendship
never trespasses. Even in his Friend's, his Companion's,
abasement, he never forgets His Majesty. He is too courteous
to become careless, too humble to be rude. His exact appreciation of the values of time and eternity never allows him to
be hurried, and his remembrance of a regrettable past safeguards him from the enormity of thinking he is bestowing a
favor when actually he is receiving one. His humility is so
genuine, and his attitude before God's mercy so correct, that
he is never betrayed even into surprise at the wonders that
have been worked in his soul. Once the first startled period
has passed, there is ever after a calmness that is imperturbable, a peace unbroken. And why not? Jesus has become his
Companion, his Companion in arms, the sharer of his experiences, his support in defeat, his guide in doubt, his protection
in danger, his reward in victory, his inseparable comrade,
whom he loves with a love that casts out all fear!
The True Christ
It ought to be plain that this Companion is not the Christ
of the artists, the Christ of the salons, of the convent parlor,
not a dainty and scented Christ who has fired the soul of
Ignatius with this flaming enthusiasm, but the Christ of the
dusty roads, of the lowly workshop, of the barren mountainside, the lonely desert, the militant Christ, the hunted Christ,
the wounded Christ, the reviled Christ, the bleeding Christ,
whom to follow is for St. Ignatius a signal privilege and a
cherished grace.
It is the Christ of the Apocalypse, the Christ of the martyrs.
It is the Christ of St. John and St. Paul, and of St. Augustine
and of St. Jerome and of all the Fathers. It is the Christ God,
�10
IGNATIUS AND CHRIST
Christ King, Christ Priest, for in Him dwelleth the fulness
of the Godhead corporally, who is the head of all principality
and power (Col. 2 :9-10). For in Him were all things created
in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones
or dominations or principalities or powers, all things were
created by Him and in Him. And He is before all, and by
Him all things consist (Col. 1 :16-17), because in Him it hath
pleased the Father that all fulness should dwell (Col. 1 :19),
who is the image of the invisible God, and the first-born of
every creature (Col. 1 :15), the first-begotten of the dead, and
the prince of the kings of the earth, who hath loved us and
washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us
a kingdom and priests to God His Father (Apoc. 1 :5-6).
"If they ask you who you are, say that you are of the Company of Jesus."
PRE-SUPPRESSION DATA
The Wood~tock Li_brary has recently acquired a forty-eight page
pamphlet e~tlt~ed Su~te du Recueil des Pieces Concernant le Bannisse·
~e~t l~es Jesuttes de toutes les Terres de la domination de Sa Majest6
a 0 ~ue. [n.p.; n.d. (Sommervogellists this work in Vol. XI 616 c
and g1ves the date as 1767.)]
'
' '
. .
.
The contents of the pamphl t ·
of th
f h
e ls a 1
lstmg by ass1stancy and province
e names o ouses colleges res·1d
·
·
f
the Society througho t' th
'
ences, semmanes, and missions o
well as a total me;bers~i world. Membersh~p by province is given, as
priests Under the M" . P odf 22 ,819 Jesmts, of whom 11,413 were
·
residences: St. Michel tsswn e Mariland en A mer. are 1· d tw o
and
.
1ste
St. Stamslas; and one college: St. Thomas
de Cantorberi.
'
�St. Ignatius and the Pope
MALACHI J. DONNELLY, S.J.
Ego vero evangelio non crederem, nisi me
catholicae Ecclesiae commoveret auctoritas. St. Augustine.
Christ's Threefold Messianic Office.
At the Last Supper, St. Thomas said to Our Lord; "Lord we
do not know where thou art going, and how can we know the
way?" Our Lord replied: "I am the way, and the truth, and
the life" (John 14 :5-6). In Christ's words we have a precise
statement of His messianic office and a compendium of the
New Covenant. Christ is the way, in that he is the door
through which all men must enter into the fold of the kingdom. "For there is no other name under heaven given to men
by which we must be saved" (Acts 4 :12). The fundamental
law of Christ's kingdom is that of charity and grace. "By this
will all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love
for one another" (John 13 :35). But, this love of Christ is
manifested by the keeping of His commandments, by the
observance of the law of grace (John 14:16, 21, 23, et passim).
· Also, as the unique mediator between men and God, Christ
rules and leads men efficaciously on their journey towards
glory.
As the truth, Our Lord is the revelation of divine truth,
both in His word and in His person. "For the law was given
through Moses ; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ"
(John 1 :17). And, in the next verse, the inspired word continues: "No one has at any time seen God. The only-begotten
Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has revealed him."
And this Son was "full of grace and of truth." Christ, then, in
His person, is truth incarnate and, in His word is the revelation of that truth to all men .
. As the life, Our Lord is the source of all man's supernatural
hfe. For, "In him was life and the life was the light of men"
(John 1 :5). And "As the Father raises the dead and gives
them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom he will."
The reason for all this is that, "As the Father has life in him-
�12
IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
self, even so he has given to the Son also to have life in himself" (John 5:21, 26).
·
The Threefold Office of the Church
Jesus Christ, therefore, is the supreme king, teacher, and
priest-saviour of mankind. In order to perpetuate his salu~ary
work of the redemption, this eternal Shepherd as the Vatican
Council teaches, decreed the founding of his Church. Through
this Church the perpetuation of the kingdom, the magisterium,
and the priesthood of Christ would be effected. To this Church
in the Apostles Christ communicated his own threefold office
of king, teacher, and priest. As our present Holy Father says:
"It is through them (the Apostles and their successors), commissioned by the Redeemer Himself, that Christ's apostolate
as teacher, king, priest is to endure. This triple power, defined by special ordinances, by rights and obligations, He
made the fundamental law of the whole Church" (Mystici
Corporis, nn. 21, 46).
After the death of the Apostles, the newly-born Catholic
Church began her journey through time and space as the
continuation of the threefold mission of Christ. And it is in
the exercise of this triple power that is found the life of the
Church. Her goal is the same as that of her Founder, the
salvation of souls. Hence, the power of ruling and of teach-.
ing in the Church are essentially subordinate to the power
of sanctifying; for it is in the effective exercise of this latter
power that the end of the Church is immediately attained.
St. Ignatius and the Church
At various crises in the history of the Church, God has
raised up men whom he had especially graced to be worthY
and effective instruments of the Church in the exercise of her
~hreefold power and office of ruling, teaching, and sanctifymg. Such a one was St. Ignatius of Loyola.
;
Here~y, we know, means a selecting, a placing of a wrong
emphasis on a particular doctrine. In this respect, the Protest~nt. heresy of the sixteenth century differed from past
d.ev1abons. In effect, the Reformers aimed at the very foundab~ns of the faith: rejection of the teaching, ruling, and sanctifymg powers of the Church. Against the power of ruling, the
�IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
13
Protestants proclaimed the absolute freedom of the individual.
With regard to the magisterium of the Church, they were
ultimately forced to deny it all real authority in matters doctrinal, in that they made it subject to the scrutiny of Scripture. In opposition to the sanctifying power of the Church,
Luther and his followers preached the priesthood of the laity,
wiping out every real distinction between hierarchy and laity
in the Church. From the Reformers' cardinal tenet, justification by faith alone, and from the later denial of the teaching
authority of the Church sprang a rejection of nearly everything Catholic: denied were the true priesthood and, consequently, the Mass, Real Presence, and sacrifice; the Catholic
doctrine on grace and justification; sacramentals, veneration
of the saints, and, later, of the Blessed Virgin, and so on and
on.
It was most fitting, then, that in such troubled times God
should raise up a man who, in his life, work, and in the religious order founded by him, should show a spirit diametrically
opposed to that of the Protestant attitude. During the years
spent at Paris (1528-1535), S. Ignatius got his first taste of
Protestantism, and it was not pleasant to his palate. Already
resolute and insidious efforts were being made to introduce
the youth of the university to the lure of the superficial freedom of the Protestants. The very year that Ignatius left Paris
the works of Calvin began to appear in the bookstalls of the
city.
The Catholic Attitude of St. Ignatius
If one were to characterize the spirit of St. Ignatius of
Loyola, one could do no better than by calling it the distinctively Catholic spirit. It is unreserved subjection to the Roman
pontiff that is the dominant trait of Loyola.
In the General Examen, a prelude and introduction to the ,
Constitutions, the candidate is told of the special vow of ·
obedience to the supreme pontiff. In virtue of this vow, the
one who takes it is bound to go at once, if the pope so orders,
to any part of the world in quest of souls, and that without
seeking or asking for the expenses of his journey. And the
entire first chapter of the seventh part of the Constitutions
stresses this obedience to the Holy See. The pope is the real
�14
IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
ruler of the Society of Jesus and, within a year of the creation
( and coronation of a new pope, the General of the Society is
\ bound to declare this obedience to the pope, "declarare pro) fessionem ac promissionem expressam obedientiae, qua ipsi
Societas peculiari voto circa missiones . ad Dei Gloriam se l
obstrinxit." Hence it was that St. Ignatius felt that the Society should have no other protector than the pope himself. ~
St. Ignatius' own personal love of the Vicar of Christ was
outstanding. From the time of his cure by St, Peter at
Loyola, he was, as the Monumenta tell us, "Petri amantissimus." When he would go to the Holy Land, it was to Pope
Adrian VI that he went for a blessing. And his respect for
and subjection to the four popes whom he knew between the
date of the founding of the Society and his own death sixteen
years later was thoroughly Catholic.
Paul III, though certainly not a saint in his earlier years,
on his accession to the papal office aimed at remedying the
abuses in the Roman Curia. In 1536 he called to his aid those
cardinals and other prelates who were zealous for reform.
And the next year, under the leadership of Contarini, the socalled Consilium Aureum was formed to implement the work
of reform. With this commission on reform Ignatius was associated, especially in the refuge house of St. Martha in Rome.
At the request of Paul III, Ignatius undertook with John
III of Portugal to establish the Inquisition in that country for
the repression of suspected books and all manner of heretical
propaganda. Whenever any danger spots arose in the Church,
the pope had simply to point out the place of infection, brief
St. Ignatius on what he wanted done, and the saint was at
once ready to direct all his own and the energies of his Society
to any part of the world where the pope cared to employ them.
In return, Ignatius was granted many favors: approbation
of the formula of the Institute in 1540, approval of the Spiritual Exercises in 1548, and in 1549 the right to communicate
in the privileges granted other religious orders.
After a long conclave of seventy days, Julius III succeeded
to the papal throne in February, 1550. Six months later, in
the Apostolic ~tter Exposcit debitum, Julius definitively ap·
proved. the Soc1ety ~f Jesus. This Letter completed the ap·
probation of the Institute begun ten years prievously by Paul
�IGNATIUS AND TH_E POPE
15
III in his Apostolic Letter Regimini militantis ecclesiae. In
practice, during the reign of Julius, St. Ignatius showed that
such obedience and subjection to the Vicar of Christ was not
mere theory. Not a single important undertaking was initiated,
not a college opened, not a missionary sent afield without the
blessing of the pope upon the enterprise. We can well imagine
the scene that took place when missionaries were about to be
sent abroad: Ignatius limping into the papal presence while
behind trooped the future missionaries with downcast eyes.
No matter who the pope might be, Ignatius saw in him, because of his own living faith, Christ who through His Vicar
ruled, taught, and sanctified. But, with the accession of Marcellus II to the papal office in 1555, Ignatius saw even with a
natural eye one whose kindly holiness was apparent to all.
Marcellus Cervini had known the Jesuit theologians at Trent
and had always been most kind towards the new Society. As \
pope, he increased his cordiality. When, shortly after becoming pope, Marcellus fell ill, Ignatius had the whole Society
praying for his recovery. As Pere Dudon tells us, the saint ·
was at table when he heard that Paul IV had succeeded to the
office which, by his untimely death, Marcellus had vacated \
after occupying it for only three weeks. Ignatius left the dinner table, went to the chapel, prayed, and then returned with
a smile on his lips, assuring the Fathers with whom he had
been eating that Paul IV would be favorable to the Society.
Ignatius' malaise is understandable. For it was this same
Paul IV, the then Cardinal Caraffa, with whom he had some
unpleasantness in 1536. At that time, when there was a movement on foot to have the Society unite with the Theatines,
Ignatius had been rather outspoken and had incurred the
wrath of the Cardinal. The latter, now pope, had in his hands
the destiny of Ignatius and his Society. But, as Ignatius had
predicted, Paul IV was favorable to the Society for the duration of the lifetime of its founder, but, after Ignatius' death
in 1556, the old animus came out and the position of the Society was, to say the least, uncomfortable.
Ignatius had to caution and, at times, rebuke his followers,
le~t they should speak unfavorably about Paul IV. When
Ribadeneira was about to leave for Flanders, Ignatius
Warned him against discussing the present pope, urging him,
�16
IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
rather to speak of good Pope Marcellus. But, no matter how •
St. Ig~atius might have felt p~rsonall~ regarding the po~e, ~e .
never once failed to regard him as his own and the Society s
supreme religious superior.
The Spiritual Exercises and the Pope
In the Spiritual Exercises, implicitly, but very really,
Ignatius shows his perfect subjection to the threefold power
of the Church and pope. By the brief, Pastoralis officii, of 1548
Paul III had approved the Exercises and everything in them
(omnia in eis contenta). This did not, however, mean that
they were received with unanimous approval throughout the
Church. On the contrary, Melchior Cano and Archbishop
Siliceo of Toledo, were violently opposed both to the Society
and to the Spiritual Exercises. Throughout this quarrel,
Ignatius kept his peace of mind, saying to those about him:
"The Archbishop is old, the Society is young; it will survive."
It is unnecessary here to mention the consequent papal approbations which the book of the Exercises has received. The
single point which should be singled out here is their instrumental value to the Church and pope in the spreading of the
kingdom of God on earth.
The purpose of the Exercises is "to conquer oneself and to
order one's life without being influenced by any irregular
attachment." Such should be the goal of the exercitant, as
stated by St. Ignatius. And the end result of one's going
through the Exercises should be to render one more prone
to cooperate with actual graces given by God to the soul. The
Exercises, obviously, do not give grace ex opere operato, but
simply dispose the soul and make it prompt to use future
actual graces offered it by God. All of these graces are directed
teleologically in accord with the finality of the Church, namely
the sanctification in this life and the ultimate salvation of
souls. It is difficult to point out, as the Sovereign Pontiffs have
not b~en s_Iow in admitting, a more efficacious means of soulsanchficatw? and soul-salvation than the Spiritual Exercises
of St. Ignatius. What a wonderful instrument then for making me~ and wom~n subject to and coope~ative' with the
Church m the exercise of its threefold power.
�IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
17
The Rules for Thinking with the Church
As Pere Dudon clearly shows in an appendix to his Life,
these rules were largely inspired by the decrees of the local
Council of Sens which had been promulgated before Ignatius
came to Paris in 1528. And, as Dudon also points out, it is
in these rules, most especially, that Ignatius shows forth that
truly Catholic spirit which was so peculiarly his own. The
dominant idea in all the rules is the emphasis placed upon the
living, teaching magisterium as the proximate rule of faith
and criterion of the sound doctrinal judgment. This is epitomized in that often discussed rule that, if what appears to
me to be white the hierarchical Church should define to be
black, then I ought to agree with her sounder judgment. Let
me quote a modern writer's explanation of this rule. Professor
A. D. Howell-Smith in his book, Thou Art Peter (Watts &
Co., London, 1950), p. 703, says: "The distinction between
the irrational and the suprarational here virtually disappears.
The hypothetical case of the Church affirming that the contrast between the sensations of white and black is not to be
always trusted undermines the bases of all judgment whatsoever. Anything may be anything else. God may be the devil.
God may be deliberately deceiving us for ends we are unable
. to imagine or approve. Hell may be heaven, and heaven may
: be hell. Islam may be as true as Christianity and so it may
be our duty to profess both." The reason why the learned Dr.
Howell-Smith can make such statements is clearly that he
does not recognize the truth of the very first one of the rules
of St. Ignatius for thinking with the Church. This rule reads
literally: ''First, setting aside every personal judgment, we
ought to have our soul ready and prompt to obey in all things
the true Spouse of Christ Our Lord, that Spouse which is our
holy Mother the Hierarchical Church."
Furthermore, had Professor Howell-Smith quoted also the
~atter part of the thirteenth rule, his ridicule would have lost
It~ force. For there St. Ignatius expressly states, si Ecclesia
hterarchica ita illud definierit, and then goes on to say that
the Church is ruled and governed by the same Spirit of God
who gave us the Ten Commandments. Once one admits the
premise, that the Church is infallible, there is no difficulty
possible in the rule under discussion.
�18
IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
The Sons of St. Ignatius and the Pope
I
As a general principle, one may say that the Society of
Jesus is an instrument of the pope who is the principal cause
in the use of such an instrument. Because he is the Vicar of
Christ on earth, the pope is, in matters of faith and morals,
in the exercise of his threefold office of ruling, teaching, and
sanctifying, a perfect principal cause. The perfection of the
effect, then, produced by him in making use of the Societ~ of
Jesus will depend upon the perfection of that same Society
· as an instrumental cause. And it seems hardly necessary to
say that the perfection of the Society depends upon the perfection of individual Jesuits.
In his Apostolic Letter, Unigenitus Dei Filius, Pius XI, in
1924, urged the following: "First of all, We exhort religious
men to regard the founder of their order as the supreme example to be followed. Let religious men, as devoted sons, direct their thought and care to defend the honor of their
founder and father, both by obedience to his prescriptions and
admonitions, and by imbuing themselves with his spirit."
Our essential work, then, as individual Jesuits will be the
endeavor to sanctify our souls by the more perfect imitation
of Christ in following out more perfectly the example of our .
founder St. Ignatius and by more perfect observance of the
Constitutions bequeathed by him to us. This should result in
an attitude of mind and disposition of will that will make us
more perfect instruments for the pope in the exercise of his
threefold power. Subordination of self to papal authority was
truly the distinctive mark of St. Ignatius Loyola.
Our subordination to the ruling authority of the pope is.
clearly shown in our subjection to all religious superiors, by
establishing within ourselves a deep respect for their God·
deriv~d authority. And that means no criticism of superiors.
Ignatius saw clearly that the Protestant way of criticising
was usel~ss and, also, scandalous. What they should have
done, he stoutly maintained, was to bring their just complaints
to those who could do something about the existing abuses.
The lesson for us today is obvious .
.our subo;dination to the teaching authority of the pope
will vary With our office in the Society. As a general rule, we
�IGNATIUS AND THE POPE
19
may say that every Jesuit should adhere firmly and sincerely
to the teaching of the Holy Father. And that not only when
he speaks ex cathedra. It is disloyal, so it seems to this writer,
for a Jesuit to attempt to maintain that, for example, with
regard to papal allocutions, one is free to reject their teaching
as that of a merely private person. It would be well for such
daring souls to ask themselves just when the pope speaks as
a private individual. Rarely, would be the considered answer
of the present writer. And, it goes without saying, that no
loyal son of Ignatius will ever criticize the pope.
For those in studies, especially in theology, subordination
to the teaching authority of the pope will largely consist in
subordination to all that makes up a house of theology. The
theological student will be docile to professors and their teaching. Before going abroad on a tour of peripheral reading, he
will endeavor to get that solida doctrina which supposes intimate and deep knowledge of Scripture, the teachings of the
Church, both in ecumenical councils and in papal pronouncements, together with her ordinary teaching. He will be cautious about novelty. He will have a love for the Church and
for her language, which is Latin. In all, he will aim at the
multum, non multa, the doctrina solida of the Institute.
Concerning the power of sanctifying in the Church the
Jesuit will pray for great faith, that he may firmly believe
: -that his holiness will proceed from an observance of the Constitutions and the use of the means of sanctification advocated
therein. It is by this means that the real perfection of the
instrument is attained, that is through personal holiness of
life. The means are all ready-to-hand, if we but use them.
As Pius IX said in Unigenitus Dei Filius, "Would that religious would so loyally adhere to the rules of their institute
and so retain the manner of life established, that they would
show themselves every day more worthy of the religious
state. Such fidelity cannot fail to win for the manifold ministries which they exercise at all times the powerful support
of heavenly graces."
By imitating our Father St. Ignatius, we may be sure that,
as was he, we will be more perfectly subordinated to the
threefold power of ruling, teaching, and sanctifying of the
pope. We will be more perfectly carried into that life of the
Church which is the life of Christ.
�20
BOOKS FOR IGNATIAN YEAR
The story of the first Jesuit Mission to Nor~h America and ~ts numerour martyrs: Felix Zubillaga, S.J.-La Flortda (1941). Price: $3.25.
The history of the early Jesuit Missions in the Ori.ent, .beginnin? ":it.h
Xavier (1542-1564): Alessandro Valignano, S.J.-:-H'ISto~a del prtnc~pto
y progresso de lq. Compaiiia de JesUs en las IndlaS Onentales. Edited
by J. Wicki, S.J. (1944). Price: $4.00.
An historical account of the Spiritual Exercises. Two volumes have
thus far been published: the first takes in the life of St. Ignatius; the
second, from his death to the publication of the first official directory.
Ignacio lparraguirre, S.J.-Prcictica de los Ejercicios (1946); Historia
de los Ejercicios (1955). Price: $2.15 and $4.00 respectively.
The classic treatise on the spirituality of the Society that has received
universal praise: J. de Guibert, S.J.-La Spiritualite de la Compagnie
de Jesus (1953). Of it Father J. Harding Fisher, S.J., says, "This is a
monumental work which should be in every Jesuit library and, in fact,
in every important library"; Father C. C. Martindale, S.J., "Never, in
England at least, has so vivid a portrait of Ignatius been painted, and
one so totally different from that to which we mostly are accustomed";
Father A. G. Ellard, S.J., "This is a very excellent work, and one that
will surely be indispensable for students, not only of Jesuit asceticism
and mysticism, but also of modern Catholic spirituality." Price: $5.00.
The historic prelude to the suppression of the Society by a collaborator
of Ludwig von Pastor: W. Kratz, S.J., El tratado hispano-portugues de
limites de 1750 (1954). Price: $4.00.
How Jesuit arichtecture began: P. Pirri, S.J., G. Tristano e i primordi
della architettura gesuitica (1955). Price; $4.00.
A glimpse of our early Southwest: E. J. Burrus, S.J.-Kino Reports
to. II,eadquarters (1954). Spanish text with English translation of
Kmo s letters to Rome. For the reference library, Latin American History department and advanced Spanish classes. Price: $1.85.
10% discount to Ours; 20% to subscribers of series. Bound copies
one ~ollar extra. Payment by ordinary check or order may be put on
Pro~mce acc~unt .at Curia in Rome. Order from: E. J. Burrus, S.J.,
Instltutum Histoncum S.J., Via dei Penitenzieri 20, Rome, Italy.
�Reform of the Liturgy
JoHN K. McCoRMAcK, S.J.
The subject of liturgical reform is a question widely discussed in the Church today, particularly in view of the several
decrees issued by the Sacred Congregation of Rites during
the reign of Pius XII. The recent Decree on the Simplification
of the Rubrics 1 is an excellent occasion to examine some of
the modern trends in liturgical reform as evidenced in the
various commentaries on the decree. By so doing, we may
hope to attain some idea of the attitude of the Church and
the spirit which governs the reform still in process of completion.
In the present remarks, the writer has relied heavily on
authors cited as authoritative in an outline of the decree published in an earlier issue of WooDSTOCK LETTERS. 2 In consulting these commentaries, the reader must take cognizance of
the individual backgrounds of the authors. The professional
liturgist or monk obligated to the recitation of the office in
choir will almost inevitably conceive the ideal of liturgical reform in a manner different from the Jesuit, in whose spirituality public liturgical worship does not receive equal emphasis .
. The Church has approved and insisted upon both liturgical and
: . nonliturgical prayer for her priests, and her ideal of liturgical
reform may well lie between two extremes of emphasis. In all
events, we must beware of interpreting the mind of the Holy
See according to the ideals and present practices of any single
institute, whether those of our own or some other religious
family.
.
Occasion and Purpose of the Decree
The decree of March 23, 1955, is primarily a reform of the
breviary through the simplification of the rubrics and the liturgical calendar. Since, however, the divine office and Eucharistic celebration are but complementary parts of a liturgical whole, change in the one quite evidently effects
~o~ification of the other. The occasion of the simplification, as
llldicated in the Decretum Generale, was offered by petitions
of local Ordinaries on behalf of their priests, now increasingly
burdened by apostolic activities, in such wise "that they can
�REFORM OF LITURGY
22
scarcely devote themselves to the recitation of the divine
office with such peace of soul as is fitting." However much it '
may disappoint the hopes of s~me, it i.s tran.quillitas ~nimi
and not brevitas temporis which IS the primary mtent achieved
by the new legislation. Abridgem~nt of the .time requir~d to
fulfill the obligation of the canomcal hours IS a per acetdens
effect (or at most, a means to the end) of the present decree,
but in fact it will not result in a gain of more than a few
minutes a day.
Any abridgement of the divine office must not be construed
as a sanction of activism. The Holy See has not succumbed to
the temptation which besets many a priest of substituting
action for prayer as the essential element in the sacerdotal
life. As is clear from Canon 125, the Church does not restrict
the prayer incumbent upon her priests to liturgical worship, ·
but the divine office retains its position of prominence and remains, as Pius XII informs us, "the prayer of the Mystical ·
Body of Jesus Christ, offered to God in the name and on behalf of all Christians, when recited by priests and other ministers of the Church and by religious who are deputed by the
Church for this.'' 8
As a wise mother, the Church realizes that prolonged prayer
becomes a burden not so much because of its length as its
tediousness and lack of interest. From the experience of her
saints she has learned that the element of time spent in prayer
reveals factors, natural and supernatural, on which depends
to a large extent whether the liturgy is to be productive of
inspiration or ennui. Mere curtailment of the time allotted to
liturgical functions is not the solution to a problem which the
Church recognizes to be far more radical: that of rendering
fruitful in modern times the official forms of divine worship.
Dom Thierry Maertens finds lack of time on the part of
priests to be an indication of excessive substitutional activ·
4
itie~· He contends that the priest is engaged in many activities .
which are properly the task of the liturgical community. The
i?eal ~s fo.r the Christian community, reanimated by the dailY
~Iturgical celebration, to join the priest in the apostolate and,
m fa~t, to assume the more important share of the work
ther~m.
must. be questioned whether the concept of the
m~diatonal function of the priest as restricted to formal wor- '
ship and a somewhat remote superintendence of apostolic '
!t
�REFORM OF LITURGY
23
activities is desirable or even valid. A more active participation of the laity both in the liturgy and the apostolate is, of
course, to be desired and promoted, but in view of the disastrous breach that exists between laity and priests in many
traditionally Catholic countries, it is unlikely that the Holy See
will champion any sort of retirement to the sanctuary on the
part of her clergy. The threefold role of the priest: liturgical
mediator, teacher, and shepherd of souls, though receiving
different emphasis in the various orders and congregations
of clerics, is seen to be far more complex with the growing
complexity of human society. Even with greater personal
assistance on the part of the laity, the outside activities of the
priest are not likely to be diminished. The concept of the
priest's essential mediatorial function must be large enough
to include the priest-teacher, the priest-student, the priestshepherd, and the itinerant missioner, who will never head a
liturgical community. Yet for them, too, the divine office and
the Eucharistic celebration are to be fruitful forms of divine
worship.
This discussion of the element of time involved in the recitation of the office was necessary if we are to understand correctly the frequent assertion of commentators that the decree
was motivated by pastoral considerations alone. Consideration
· of the pastoral situation does not imply an endorsement of
·· ·activism. Fruitful, not brief, recitation of the office is the
primary purpose of the decree. Before considering how the
present decree aims at achieving this desired tranquillitas
animi, we must make two observations.
Provisional Nature of the Decree
Any modifications introduced in the rubrics or calendar by
the decree had to be such that they involved no change in the
printed liturgical texts now in use. Since the decree is not
definitive, publishers and priests should be saved the expense
of preparing and purchasing breviaries and missals in which
further alterations will have to be made. The work of general
reform is not completed, nor is its completion imminent.
~herefore, many parts of the liturgy which require simplification remain as yet unchanged, frequently because there are
no texts available to be substituted if some present texts were
�24
REFORM OF LITURGY
omitted. To give but a few examples: though all the Sundays
are now of at least double rite, the antiphons will not be
doubled because they are not so printed in the liturgical books;
despite the greater value given to the Proprium de tempore,
the first Sunday after Epiphany and after Pentecost remain
perpetually impeded by the feast of the Holy Family and the
Holy Trinity respectively; the Vigil of the Ascension, though·
out of place as a day of penance in the midst of the Easter
season, has been retained because it enjoys a proper formulary, and lessons would be lacking if the vigil were suppressed. We have good reason to hope that the remaining
liturgical anomalies will be removed in the final instauratio
generalis.
.
The temporary nature of the decree is made clear by the '
use of the adverb interim and the expression donee aliter provisum fuerit. The decree does not guarantee that all changes
made will be retained in the general reform. There will not,
however, be a return to the complications which have existed
up to now and which the decree has partially remedied. Slow
but gradual improvement is undeniably better than awaiting
the complete reform which can take place only in the unforeseeable future. There is no room for impatience when it is a
question of basic recasting of the liturgy. In so difficult a task,
haste and precipitation would prove fatal, since it is a question
not merely of external modifications but of renewal of the
liturgical spirit.
Spirit Rather Than Principle
This brings us to our second observation. Reformation of ·
the liturgy cannot be accomplished by the mere imposition
of new regulations from without. It is not merely an historical
enterprise: an attempt to return to a liturgical form which
was purer in some given century. The modifications necessary
are. not to ?e de~uced from a systematic theology of worship
W~Ich flour~shes m the Church. The divine liturgy is the wor·
ship of an·Immutable God, but it is the cult rendered by men
who are themselves subject to change. There are unchangeable
ele~ents, o~ course, but the sacred language of the Spouse of
?hrist admits of variety and development through the centur·
Ies and demands this progress if it is to be the sincere expres·
�REFORM OF LITURGY
25
sion of Catholic piety. Pius XII, in Mediator Dei, condemns an
exaggerated attachment to ancient rites. 5 The liturgical reform must be related to "the life of the Church at present,
which imposes on its worship the rhythm requisite more perfectly to render glory to God and better to sanctify the flock
of Christ.'' 6 This preeminence of internal spirit over external
legislation in the preparation of the new reform adds meaning to the observation that it is pastoral rather than historical
or aesthetical considerations which motivate the action of the
Holy See. It makes apparent also the inevitability of gradual
and partial reform through provisional decrees such as the
present.
Simplification
With these considerations in the background, how does the
present decree intend to restore fruitfulness to the celebration
of the liturgy? It is primarily, as the title informs us, a decree of simplification. The canonical hours are the official
prayer of the Mystical Body of Christ. Now simplification is
a fundamental law in the life of prayer. Personal experience
as well as the testimony of spiritual writers bear witness to
the fact that ordinarily there is a progression in the spiritual
life from the multiplicity of prayers and pious practices,
. which mark the stage of the beginner, to the unity and rela: jive simplicity of the contemplative life.
Though simplification is the internal law of prayer, it is
characteristic of matters which require external regulation
by a human legislator for the initially simple to become more
and more complicated by the multiplication of norms to govern particular circumstances. Such has been the case with
the breviary. Clerics and religious, it may be presumed, are
relatively mature in the spiritual life; yet the official book of
prayer provided for them grows ever more complicated. Thus
the breviary comes in conflict with the internal law of prayer
and is apt to hinder the spiritual progress which it is intended
~fu~~
. ~here is the added danger that the essential may become
Indiscernible amid the manifold accretions which have lost
their original significance and utility. As Pere Doncoeur notes:
"It would not be necessary for us here to single out a number
of detailed suppressions of less importance, which really
.
�26
REFORM OF LITURGY
facilitate rather than abridge the office; added prayers, multiplication of Pater, Ave, Credo, of commemorations--if there
were not manifested here again a profound intention of the
Church. The majority of these superfluities of recent origin
derive from a certain devout inclination to multiply actions
and words, concerning which Christ said that in this multiloquium true religion does not consist. This natural and common phenomenon would be innocent enough if it did not furnish a false substitute and did not turn the attention aside
from the essential object of worship." 7 The writer then notes a
parallel between the simplification of the rubrics and a recent
decree of the Holy Office urging Bishops to restrain the tendency in many churches to encumber even the main altar of
reservation with statues, pictures, and vigil lights to such an
extent that the Blessed Sacrament, the object of adoration,
has been obscured by a sentimentality which verges on superstition.
Many of the accidental accretions burdening the recitation
of the office have been removed by the present decree: prayers
before and after the hours, ninth lesson of a commemorated
office, the sujjragium, commemoratio de Cruce, and preces
dominicales. The number of days on which the preces feriales
must be said (and then only at Lauds and Vespers) has been
considerably reduced, and the Quicumque is restricted to the
feast of the Holy Trinity. We may add to this list of simplifica·
tions the abrogation of the prayer Fidelium in the Mass
(hardly necessary considering the frequency with which
requiem votive Masses are permitted), and the reduction of
the number of Masses in which the Credo is prescribed. AI·
though the oratio simpliciter imperata is now forbidden in
more Masses, several commentators express their regret that
the Ordinaries' faculty to prescribe such prayers was not
limite~. Th~y note that in some dioceses prayers have been
prescribed for the period even of several decades sometimes
pro ;e gra~i: which results in their losing any co~notation of
special ~eb~10n. !hese commentators express the desire that
the Ordmaries Will enter into the spirit of the new legislation
by ordering prayers less frequently and for shorter periods.
i
·
·
'
·
�REFORM OF LITURGY
27
Form
By the removal of accretions encumbering the office, the
essential elements with regard both to form and content are
thrown into greater relief. With regard to the form, the essential constituents of the divine office are the psalms and lessons of Scripture or written tradition. As we have seen, they
have received greater prominence simply by begin disengaged
from the accidental elements surrounding them. A redistribution of the Scripture, perhaps in a four-year cycle, is anticipated in the general reform. At present many of the sacred
books, v.g. the Minor Prophets, Exodus, receive scant attention.
The choral structure of the office presents one of the greatest obstacles to fruitful private recitation of the hours, since
it creates an impression of artificiality. It has always been
assumed that the private recitation is an inferior imitation
of the choral celebration, which is to be the exemplar with
regard to form as well as content. The choral nature of the
office at present is evident from the rubrics and the dialogue
technique of versicle and response: everything implies a choir
that will share the various roles which in private recitation
are assigned to a single recitant.
As far back as the sixteenth century an attempt was made
by Cardinal Quinonez to draw up an abridgement of the
breviary from which every choral element would be excluded.
This Breviarium ran through a hundred editions between the
time of its approbation by Paul III and its prohibition by
Pius V. No one seems to praise the experiment today, though
all admit the problem which it was intended to solve. The
commentators agree only that the mutilated antiphons, which
suffice to give the choral tone for the psalm which follows but
convey no meaning to the private recitant, should be doubled.
Pere Doncoeur finds a praiseworthy solution to the problem
presented by the choral structure in "the recitation in common
of the breviary by a group of priests working and praying
as a team.'' 8 Would it be rash to suggest that this solution is
somewhat unrealistic in view of the large number of diocesan
priests and of religious, dispensed for one reason or other
from their choral obligations, who are unable to gather in
such liturgical communities? If the breviary is to be a fruit-
�u
t'
28
REFORl\1 OF LITURGY
I
n
ful book of prayer for the majority of priests, does it not seem "
.
reasonable that a less artificial structure of the office should .
be provided for private recitation? As noted above, eve.n .sho?ld l
the laity achieve the desired ideal of communal participatiOn·
in the liturgy, there will always be a large number of priests :
who because of physical isolation or the nature of their·
apostolic labors cannot recite the office in choir. Pere Don-I
coeur himself, though he has been fortunate enough to hear ,
the sacred liturgy sung in the proper manner and to experience '
its tremendous impact, admits the impossibility of re-creating '
the experience in private recitation. The read office in its '
present form has been justly compared to reading the libretto~
of an opera: one simply does not experience the intended
effect. And the number of religious communities that, in addi-1
tion to their apostolic labors, cannot chant the Hours as they
were intended, is great.
It is also interesting, if not consoling, to note that there is
1
no mention of the desirability of reciting the office in the
vernacular. Perhaps the obstacle which the use of Latin as a 1
I
natural and sincere vehicle of prayer presents to many is not
1
sufficiently apparent to those nations whose native tongue
I
is more akin to Latin in genius and derivation. It is not.
1
merely a question of intelligibility: for prayer to be truly
fruitful there must be a certain resonance and sympathy be-j
tween the external expression and the soul which gives it.
utterance. This desired harmony depends on too many factors 1
to be achieved by a mere study of grammar and vocabulary.
We can only hope that these problems, untouched by com· ·
mentators as well as by the decree itself, will receive consid-1
eration in the general reform of the liturgy.
I
I
Content
With regard to the content of the office the new decree has
accomplished much, but again, due to it~ provisional nature, I
leaves .much to. be done. The recurring problem has been to
keep the Propn.um sancton.tm within reasonable bounds. The .
sacred .liturgy is essentially the celebration of the Mysteries 1
of C~rist-the Mystery that is Christ. The liturgical year,
bot~ m Mass and office, centers around the person of Jesus i
Christ, and the feasts of the saints, proposed as examples of .
I
I
�REFORM OF LITURGY
29
sanctity for the faithful, occupy a subordinate position. Unfortunately, the importunities of local churches and religious
orders to extend to the universal Church feasts of particular
devotion, and the increasing and varied pious practices of the
faithful not directly related to the sacred liturgy, have resulted in an overwhelming increase of feasts and the consequent overshadowing and displacement of the Proprium de
tempore.
Pius V and Pius X restored the preeminence of the Sunday
offices and promoted greater use of the feria! offices, but nonetheless, in the absence of any principle limiting the introduction of new feasts, the Proprium sanctorum has continued to
increase in rank and extent. The present decree, though it
fails to provide any such limiting norm, seeks again to attack
the problem and restore equilibrium to the liturgical cycle.
All Sundays are now of at least double rank; those of Advent
and Lent, Passion, Palm, Easter, Low and Pentecost Sundays
are doubles of the first class ; Septuagesima, Sexagesima and
Quinquagesima Sundays are doubles of the second class. The
commemoration of Sunday is never to be omitted and has
absolute precedence; nor is more than one ordinary commemoration admitted on any Sunday. Sundays retain their First
Vespers.
To the abrogation of the semidouble rite, the reduction of
feasts of simple rite to commemorations, and the suppression
of vigils and octaves corresponds the increased prominence
of the feria! offices, which resume and prolong the Proprium
de tempore. In addition, during the Lenten season the possibility is now provided for priests reciting the office in private to
read the feria! office on any feast of a saint except those of the
first or second class.
.
All this indicates the intention of the Church to give greater
value to the cycle of mysteries and to set forth the great seasons with more prominence. This intention is, perhaps, not
sufficiently appreciated by priests, many of whom still do not
realize that the feria! Mass is the ordinary Mass during Lent
(the Mass of the saint being tolerated in private celebration) ;
some persist in looking upon the feria! day merely as a sort
of blank in the Church's calendar for which no feast has
Yet been devised.
The decree has exceeded even the hopes of liturgists in its
�!
30
REFORM OF LITURGY
suppression of so many octaves, the very concept of which
is scarcely intelligible to the faithful today. The abrogation of
the semidouble, whose significance has never been quite clear,
and the reduction of simples to mere commemorations, will
make much easier the task of re-editing the biographical
nocturnes in a manner more conformed to the demands of
historical science and a balanced concept of Christian sanctity.
All the desirable modifications, however, have not been
achieved. We have mentioned the need of redistribution of
the Scripture lessons in office and Mass.· The great body of
double feasts remains untouched, nor is there any principle
to restrain their further increase. The reduction of feasts,
octaves, and vigils in many cases necessitates the resumption
of the same formulary as the preceding Sunday, with the
consequent danger of merely substituting one type of monotony for another. Liturgists decry the multiplication of votive
Masses, which seems inevitable. In doing so, however, they
are perhaps too insistent on the principle of conformity of
office to Mass. A growing appreciation of the varied and
beautiful votive formularies may be the only practical solution
until the definitive reform is completed.
In conclusion, we might summarize the present decree as
follows. Provisional in nature and limited to those modifica·
tions which can be made without substantial alteration of
existing liturgical texts, it seeks to render more fruitful the
recitation of the breviary (and concomitantly the celebration
of Mass) by simplification of the rubrics and calendar.
Thereby it assigns greater prominence to the essential elements of the sacred liturgy: to the psalms and lessons, with
respect to form; to the cycle of the Mysteries of Our Lord's
life, with respect to content. Since it is only provisional and
limited in its method of procedure, the decree leaves manY
problems unsolved, but it is an earnest of the sincere will to
reform on the part of ecclesiastical authority and gives hope
of furth.er modifications in the future which will make of the
sacred liturgy, both for clerics and laity the efficacious prayer
of the entire Mystical Body which it i~ intended to be.
I
I
:
:
,
·
·
.
·
:
'
·
·
'
·
.
·
,
,
�REFORM OF LITURGY
31
NOTES
tAAS 47 (1955), 218.
Cf. Joseph F. Gallen, S.J., "General Decree on the Simplification of the
Rubrics," WOODSTOCK LE'M'ERS LXXXIV, 4 (November, 1955), no. 57, p.
368.
a On the Sacred Liturgy, Encyclical letter Mediator Dei of Pope Pius
XII, with introduction and notes by Gerald Ellard, S.J., (New York,
1948) no. 142, p. 61.
4 "Considerations generales sur le decret simplifiant certaines rubriques," Paroisse et Liturgie XXXVII, 4 (1955), p. 255.
GOp. cit., nos. 61-64, pp. 35-37.
6 Dom Thierry Maertens, art. cit., p. 254.
7 Paul Doncoeur, "Simplification des rubriques de I' office et de Ia
Messe: sa signification," Etudes (June, 1955), p. 370.
s Ibid., p. 372.
2
A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
THE CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY
Reverend and dear Father:
During the past summer I began gathering a small bibliography of
periodical literature on Ignatian spirituality and in the process I noted
the many excellent articles in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS published during
the last five or six years. The thought occurred to me that it might
be possible for you to get out a small volume of Ignatian Studies to
commemorate the anniversary year of 1956.
On the enclosed page I have taken the liberty of listing ten articles
that I think would make an excellent selection for such a volume. Because
all of these articles are at your disposal I believe it would be worth
considering offering them to the public in book form. As they were
published in the WooDSTOCK LETTERS for private circulation only not
too many have had the opportunity of reading these excellent studies.
I must confess that before I began to check them for my bibliography
I had not read most of them myself. Perhaps there are other Jesuits
who intended to read them when they were first published but never
got around to it either. I feel sure that many other priests and religious
would welcome the opportunity of seeing these Ignatian Studies as part
of the celebration of 1956. The ones I hav·e selected are surely of
general interest and would not come under the heading of writing
that would have to be limited to private circulation only.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
October 5, 1955
EDMUND J. STUMPF, S.J.
�32
LETTER TO EDITOR
lgnatian Studies in the Woodstock Letters
I.
Grace and the Spirituality of Saint Ignatius
Albert Steger, S.J.
Volume 78 (1949}, 205-224.
II.
The Psychology of the Spiritual Exercises
Georges Dirks, S.J.
Volume 78 (1949}, 297-319.
III.
Ignatius Loyola and the Ideas of his Time
Gustave Neyron, S .J.
Volume 79 (1950}, 193-220.
IV.
The Ignatian Retreat for Religious
Robert W. Gleason, S.J.
Volume 79 (1950}, 289-296.
v.
Pairs of Words in the Spiritual Exercises
Louis J. Puhl S.J.
Volume 81 (1952}, 29·36.
VI.
Our Lady and the Exercises
Francis J. Marien, S.J.
Volume 82 (1953}, 224-237.
VII. Doctrine of Father Jerome Nadal on the Spiritual Exercises
Joseph F. X. Erhart, S .J.
Volume 82 (1953}, 317-334.
VIII. Dogma and the Spiritual Exercises
Philip J. Donnelly, S.J.
Volume 83 (1954}, 131-157.
IX.
The Meditation on the Foundation in the Light of St. Paul
Jean Levie, S.J.
Volume 84 (1955}, 18-33.
X.
Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises
Ignacio lparraguirre, S.J.
V:.olume 84 (1955}, 221-260.
I
'
Similar suggestions were received from Father Laurence Chiuminatto, 1
S.J ., of St. Louis and from Father Thomas Burke, S.J ., of Syracuse. 1
Although it will be impossible for the Woodstock Press to carry out 1
this suggestion, it seemed useful to call the attention of our readers
to these articles.
�Saint Joseph Pignatelli-The Man
and His Role
MIGUEL M. VARELA,
S.J.
"Father Provincial, you have just performed a miracle!"
gasped the amazed Brother Lausal. And it seems he was
right. A candlestick on the main altar had fallen and broken
the favorite Bambino of Father Provincial. But here before
the Brother's eyes Father Pignatelli had picked up the fragments, said a short prayer, put the parts together, and
returned the Bambino without a scratch. 1 Had the sacristan of the Gesu at Naples looked back at Father Provincial's
accomplishments during the last few years his wonder would
have been far greater. Through the marvelous dispositions
of divine providence he was discharging most efficiently his
distinctive role as a Jesuit, Veluti alter Societatis Jesu parens,
to use the words of Pius XIJ.2 But for an appreciation of
his personality and his mission we have to set him against
the background of his age.
,·
The Background
St. Joseph Pignatelli y Moncayo is a product of the eighteenth century, one of the heroes, indeed, of what is otherwise
"the shoddiest, if not the wickedest of periods," in Martindale's estimation. 3 Barely twenty years before his birth the
Bourbon dynasty stood victorious over the Grand Alliance.
Europe had scarcely recovered from the thirteen years of
the War of the Spanish Succession when her cannon thundered the beginning of the Seven Years' War (1756-1763).
The French and Indian Wars, the American Revolution, the
loss of Gibraltar by Spain, the conquest of India, were phases
o.r consequences of this conflict. And then Europe rested,
hll once again its cities reeked of gunpowder and festering
Wounds, but now amid the shouts of a rabble led by the
Parisian Commune. While Pignatelli's heart rejoiced at the
ever brightening prospects of the full restoration of the Society of Jesus, the excesses of the French Revolution were
Painting blood-red the crumbling walls of the Bastille.
In the realm of ideas Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (1781)
�34
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
was being studied in German circles, while David Hume in
England expounded his positivism. Meantime, "Protestanism ·
continued its advance towards unbelief, Jansenism turned to
rebellion and Gallicanism, which became J osephism, made
'
.
strides toward outright schism. Among men of learmng, a
growing enthusiasm for the ideas of science and nature, from
Descartes to Boyle, tended to make these ideas prevail over
those of faith and the supernatural."4 The spirit of a misty
deism hovered over Europe, while the machinations of Freemasonry were threatening to undermine the very hills of
Rome. All this socio-religious evolution was synthesized and
incarnated in two men-Voltaire, the genius of destruction,
and Rousseau, that of Utopia.
This spirit of the Enlightenment had seeped into the walls.
of the Church itself. Scholastic theology had little to show .
during the decades that closed with the French Revolution.
The clergy of the eldest daughter of Rome was described by
the Abbe Sicard as more ready for martyrdom than for the
apostolate. 5 Even in some segments of our own Society were ·
to be found signs of a spiritual debility. The XVI General .
Congregation had denounced in 1730 the stinginess of certain ·
superiors which had led some of Ours to seek the refuge in
the natural law as justification of being their own procura·'
tors. Two defects in particular were pointed out by this ·
Congregation; namely, the solicitude of individuals to acquire
an ample supply of expensive linen, and the use of fireplaces
by only some members of a community, a practice conducive
to envy and unauthorized conclaves. 6 This spiritual lassitude
manifested itself in the Spanish Assistancy by faults of
omission that various provincials did not fail to stress in
their letters. We will mention but two of its manifestations.:
A letter of the Provincial of Castile dated October 9 1705,
read in part: "Ours go out of the hous~ more than is nec~ssary.
This situation calls for a prompt and efficacious remedy. AnY·
one who sees Ours crossing streets and entering so manY
homes for untimely visits cannot but think that we are men .
noted for our leisure." 7 The Aragon Provincial on his part, ~
during his visitation of the College of Urge! i~ 1716, came 1
across ~ rather unusual situation, which nevertheless reflected
the attitude of the times: "Today I found the library tended
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
35
with very little care. It looks more like the workshop of the
cook and the tailor. There fruits are put out for drying,
people come in to shave, and the place serves more as a
tailor shop than as a study room for the Fathers." 7 Those
conditions, however, were not to last long. With the end of
the War of the Spanish Succession the spiritual tone of our
houses in Spain began to improve.
Joseph Pignatelli joined the Society of Jesus in 1753. At
that time the spiritual physiognomy of the Aragon Jesuits
revealed the fading lines of Carthusian contemplative living,
so strong in some of the first members of that Province. This
emphasis, duly tempered in the course of the years, became
manifest during our saint's time in a special esteem for the
cultivation of the interior life. Two Jesuit ascetics, the Valencian Borgia and the Catalonian Cordeses, were influential
in marking off the ascetical practices of the Aragon Jesuits
from those of the others in the Peninsula. The devotion to
the Sacred Heart that was beginning to take root during
this century channeled this contemplative drive towards a
new goal-the Heart of the Incarnate God afire with apostolic
zeal. There was also that "melancholy humor" pointed out
by Jesuit canonical visitors of the sixteenth century now
transformed into a never-say-die spirit in the face of opposition, a trait compatible with the traditional stubbornness of
the Aragonese, but which the Bourbon ministers of Pignatelli's time were to brand as fanaticism. And not to be forgotten was the wave of secularist humanism which engulfed
the Spanish Jesuits, but which in a short time they had turned
against their foes, producing litterateurs and philosophers
who were a credit to both the Society and the Catholic
humanistic movement. It was in the midst of this environ~ent of the conscious primacy of the supernatural, of ascetical
VIgor, and of an awareness of secular humanism that Pignatelli found himself as he started his career in the Society
of Jesus.
Early Career
S Joseph was born in the ancestral castle of the Fuentes at
aragossa, Spain, two days after Christmas day of 1737. He
Was entrusted at the baptismal font to the custody of twenty-
�36
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
one of heaven's courtiers, though his earthly lineage was not
in the least insignificant. 8 On both sides he was a grandee
of Spain. On his father's side he was related to the conqueror of Mexico, Hernan Cortes, and Pope Innocent XII. He
was also a relative of St. Francis Borgia, and, through one
of his sisters-in-law, of St. Aloysius Gonzaga. When he was
twelve years old his family's prestige and benefactions to
the Society won for him and his brother Nicholas admission
as the only boarders at the Jesuit college of Saragossa, which
at the time received day students only. Here he distinguished
himself as a student and as prefect of Our Lady's Sodality.
Four years later his dream came true. On May 8, 1753 he
was admitted to the Jesuit novitiate in Tarragona. In 1756
Europe's armies were being summoned for the Seven Years'
War while Brother Pignatelli was engaged in his only year
of juniorate at the College of Manresa. His joy was great
that year for the Society, on the occasion of the second centenary of the death of St. Ignatius, celebrated the glories of
its founder. His triennium of philosophy at Calatayud was
crowned with a public defense of De Universa Philosophia.
He gave such a brilliant performance that Superiors decided
to send him to theology right away. This he studied in his
native city of Saragossa where at twenty-five, during the
Ember days of December, 1762, he was ordained to the
priesthood. It was only the recurring symptoms of tubercu- ,
losis that made superiors call off the grand act in theology and philosophy assigned to him during his last year of divinity
studies. 9
The little that we know of his lasting interest in theology
is worth mentioning. He had a facility for learning the
ancient as well as the modern languages. He is said to have
been ~ble to :ead in Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, was well
acquamted With French and English, and throughout his life
kep~ up his study of Scriptures and church history. 10 In dogmatte theology he defended Molinism though well aware of
its orig~n~ ~nd limi!ations. He thought that the prevalence
of Cal~Imsbc doctrmes during Molina's time had impelled
the. Society to come forward with a doctrine on grace which,
while upholding the Catholic position on God's omniscience,
would nevertheless not terrify the faithful. He admitted that
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
37
Molinism does not answer all the difficulties, but it leaves
the heart more consoled and at peace than does Calvinism.
In moral theology he was a probabiliorist, that being at the
time more consonant with the mind of the Holy See. Clement
XI, to defend the Society against the Jansenist charge of
laxism, counselled Ours to make more ample use of a decree
of the XIII General Congregation. This Congregation had
granted Ours full liberty to hold probabiliorism in moral
questions, a provision which Father Tamburini assured the
Pope was being implemented as the need arose.
From 1763 until1767 we find Pignatelli teaching the lower
grammar classes at his Alma Mater, hearing confessions,
teaching catechism, preaching in the public squares of Saragossa, and visiting its hospitals and prisons.11 Let it be noted
here that these characteristic Ignatian ministries were to be
Pignatelli's favorites during the years of the restoration.
Meanwhile, the schemes of the Encyclopedists, of the Freemasons, of the J ansenists, and of the Gallicans began to
take on ghastly shapes. 12 In 1759 the Society had been
suppressed in the kingdom of Portugal. The year of his ordination (1762) the French Jesuits were banished by Louis XV.
Five years later, in 1767, the Bourbons fulminated the expul. sion of the Jesuits from the dominions of Charles III of Spain.
: . That Friday morning of the third of April saw the spoliation
of 5,000 sons of Ignatius. They were stripped of home, family,
and motherland. But in return they were put under the care
of the leader of the dispersed Society and its restorer in Southern Europe, Father Pignatelli. By May 1st full blown sails
were carrying him and his brethren far away from the
Spanish shores he was never again to see.
In Exile
From then on the expelled Jesuits became the target of a
systematic incitement to desertion, much like that employed
today by the Communists with prisoners of war. There was
the journey itself with the accompanying mental agony of
those who are reduced to the condition of displaced persons;
a journey made more unbearable in those springless carts and
u?sanitary floating prisons. There was the meagre half penSion alloted to the "fanatic loyalists" as against the forty
�38
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
I
l
!'
pesos for those who secularized. There w.as the harro~ng H
theme of insinuation, enticement, accusation and promises l'
by the Spanish officials. There was also the ever-present
threat of being shadowed by spies. From the time that the
Spanish Jesuits were banished from their country until the
suppression of the Order, important letters were opened and
special agents were assigned by their enemies to find out
the names of Jesuit sympathizers. One of these spies was
the Abbate Torre whom Ambassador Azpuru selected as best
equipped to keep him abreast of Jesuit plans.13 It is no surprise then that from 1767 to 1771 Pignatelli had to grieve
the loss of 719 Jesuits to the Spanish Assistancy, though it
must have consoled him to know that his Aragon Province
had but 55 casualties, the lowest of the four Spanish Provinces.
And added to all this was the rekindling of national animosities between European and American Jesuits, occasioned by
past discriminations against the latter in filling various offices
in the Society. On landing in Europe these Americans, at
their own request, were housed in separate quarters. It
is superfluous to add that this domestic ferment was so
whipped up by the persecutors that, to give one example, of
the 677 members of the Mexican Province, 74 left the Society.
This included 14 professed and 4 former rectors. By 1768,
125 of the Mexican Jesuits had asked to be released from
their vows. But what was more painful to our saint was the
manner of living of the Scholastics who had left the ranks.
Ben no Ducrue, writing to another Jesuit, Scharz, in 1769,
commented about them, "Recognizing no Superiors, they do
whatever they like, to the great scandal not only of us, but
also of the laity. However, God has allowed it so that the
Society may be free of such people." 14 This misfortune, together with the ease with which the Roman Penitentiaria
granted secularization papers to Ourst 5 was "il gran dolore
del Generale" (at that time Father Ricci). The deserters had
lost, "together with the Society, their vocation, their honour,
!he respect of their fellow men-in fact, everything." 16 But
m contrast to the scores of weaklings were the hundreds with
u~tarni~hed s~ields. It was amidst such trying times that
thirty-six. Jesmts pronounced their solemn vows at Ferrara,
the mormng of February 2, 1771. Father Larraz who was
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
39
present for the occasion described Father Pignatelli as standing out among the rest, both physically and intellectually:
"toto vertice supra est, et supereminet omnes." 11 But in two
years God was to ask of him the renunciation of this cherished
spiritual guerdon. The 28th of August of 1773 Monsignor
Pagliarini, vicar-general of Ferrara, read the Brief of Suppression to the assembled members of the Aragon Province.U
His reaction? We do not read of him that he fainted or wept,
as some did. Rather his spontaneous remark was, "Tell them
to go and look for men who are willing to break their heads
teaching boys four or five hours a day without pay." But
then in a more self-possessed tone: "There is no nobler act
of self-sacrifice than adoringly to submit to the plans of
God's providence and humbly repeat the prayer Fiat voluntas
tua!" The predictions of a former General, Father Retz, were
to be fulfilled-the Society of Jesus was to lie dormant for
41 years in White Russia. 19
Another cross that must have weighed heavily on the
shoulders of our saint concerned his immediate family. Even
among his own Pignatelli household were to be found some
who did not share with him the conviction of the innocence
of the Society of Jesus. It was his own brother, Don Joaquin,
the Count de Fuentes, who in an effort to obtain a return
of Jose and Nicolas to their native Spain encouraged Choiseul,
and later D' Aiguillon, to work for the extinction of the Order.
The General of the Society came to know of this secret collaboration with the French anticlericals. In a letter to Joseph
and Nicholas, dated August 3, 1771, and addressed Soli,
Father Ricci informs the brothers of the fact, but with the
insistent advice not to mention it to anyone. 20 Then, too, the
Marquis de Mora, Don Joaquin's son, had assimilated enough
of D'Alembert's ideas to write in 1767 a blasphemous satire
against the Society of Jesus.
With the promulgation of the papal decree Pignatelli yielded
finally to the requests of his elder brother, Don Joaquin. He
and his brother Nicholas were notified that apartments more
befitting their nobility had been prepared for them next to
the mansion of the Spanish consul of Bologna. This change
~roved too drastic for his younger brother to bear. To his
Inadequate sense of maturity and responsibility were now
�40
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
added the freedom from religious discipline and the attractions of social life in Bologna. This so bewitched him that
he became so involved in politics and debts as to be sentenced
to four years imprisonment. His behavior was one of the
deepest sorrows of his brother Father Joseph, but when
Nicholas came to make his last confession, Father Joseph had
the consolation of hearing it, and of receiving him back into
the Society on March 15, 1804.
Father Pignatelli's twenty-four years as a secular priest
were devoted to helping the neighbor in priestly ministries,
and to private study. His weil-kept library was always open
to his ex-Jesuit brethren. A favorite hobby of his during
this period was to collect material on the history of the Society.
Father Mozzi assures us that the saint was an authority on
this subject and had read important original documents related to the Suppression. Father Pignatelli, on his part, never
ceased encouraging the ex-Jesuits to take up the scholar's
avocation. The refugees of the French Revolution received
bountifully of his kindness and his bottomless purse. And he
still found time for the intellectual life. We know from his
contemporaries that he cultivated mathematics, literature,
music, and painting; was well-versed in the arts and sciences;
and promoted both among the Spaniards. During those years
of the Suppression he collected over 3,000 volumes by purchase from France, England, and Germany. 21 His lifelong
friend, Father Doz, testified to seeing him visit the art
galleries and churches of Bologna to compare the paintings
he had acquired with similar works of the same artists. All
through his life he kept up his interest in these pursuits.
Among the objects he left at his death were an art collection
which included sixteen paintings done on copper plates, a
good number of musical scores, twenty-two bound maps,
and a solar telescope. 22 While teaching at Saragossa he had
started to write a treatise on modern philosophy, and in Italy 1
he wrote a short study of the Dutch government as indication
of his interest in political philosophy. This lo~e for serious '
study he was to transfuse into the restored Society.
I
Renewal of Vows
In the meantime, the Society in White Russia gave signs
t
r
I
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
.·
41
of renewed life. 23 A group under Father Borgo sought for
reunion through an aggregation to those Jesuits by availing
themselves of the indirect papal approval of the Russian
Jesuits. Father Pignatelli does not seem to have subscribed
to this plan. He also failed to accept the offer of Father
Benislawski made in 1783 to the Bologna ex-Jesuits of aggregation either by going to Russia itself, or by renewing their
last vows before a legitimate delegate of the vicar-general.
It was not until July 6, 1797, after an eight days' retreat,
that he renewed his vows privatim et coram Deo in sacello
meae domus. 24 From other quarters, too, came plans for the
Society's restoration, vitiated by something of the nationalism
then fostering the French Revolution. The emperor of Austria
was eager to have the Jesuits back in his realms, but under
the pressure of his Voltairian ministers, he petitioned for a
Society that would be Jesuitic only in name. Pius VI agreed
with Clement XIII: "Aut sint, ut sunt, aut omnino non sint."
The Council of Castile, on its part, was willing to reinstate
the Society in Spain provided the superior in the peninsula
would act as an independent vicar-general should the general
himself not happen to be a Spaniard. 25 Ferdinand, duke of
Parma and viceroy of Naples, was for a restored Society
that would be decentralized and directly under the jurisdiction of the local ordinary and the viceroy. Father Pignatelli
would not hear of such a Neapolitan Society of Jesus, in spite
of his close friendship with the viceroy.
But there were two other spurious attempts, Angiolini's
and Paccanari's. The turbulent and obstinate Father Cajetan Angiolini, on the strength of his appointment as assistant
to the general and vicar-general in Italy, was working for a
restoration based solely on the Constitutions and the formula
of Paul III, or the regola primigenia, as he called it. Father
Pignatelli opposed this view. He stood for a Society that
included not only the Constitutions, but also the Ignatian
spirit as it had developed during the course of two centuries.
By charity, kindness, and tact, however, he avoided useless
clashes in his correspondence with the impetuous Angiolini
While winning over to his own views the members of the N eapolitan Province. He succeeded moreover in confining the family dissension within the walls of our houses. 26 At the same time
�42
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
his foresight outmaneuvered Angiolini. Father Pignatelli's
four electors reached Polotsk in time to have a voice in the
deliberations of the V Polish Congregation held in September 1805. Today there is little doubt that if the general
con~regation had been convoked in Rome, as was Angiolini's
wish Father Pignatelli would have been elected General.
Fift~en years later the XX General Congregation not only
fully vindicated the saint's views against those of Angiolini,
but also branded the latter's adherents as perturbatores pertinaces, giving to the fiery Father Rezzi, their advocate, his
papers of dismissal. 27
The Tyrolese Nicholas Paccanari, an ex-sergeant and unsuccessful businessman, obtained Pius VI's approval for his
Societas de Fide J esu. His original idea was to fuse his organization with the Society in Russia at the opportune moment.
But captivated by the idea of remaining founder and superior
general he kept putting this off, even after the Fathers of
the Heart of Jesus, under To urn ely and Varin, had joined
his group with that incorporation as the goal. 28 How Ignatian
was Paccanari? A visit to their house at Hagenbriinn answers
the question. This had originally been a residence of the
Fathers of the Heart of Jesus. When Paccanari took it over
the time for study and exercises of piety was shortened,
recreations were prolonged immoderately, and the Fathers
were actually compelled to take up a series of athletic exercises that made them think they had returned to their college
days. The public praised Paccanari's superiorship, but his
own subjects were irked by his despotism, his frequent
absences from community life, but above all by his avoidance
of measures to bring about union with the Society in Russia.
As a sample of the men formed under such regime we have
Archbishop Carroll's description of a Paccanarist priest.
Writing to Father Plowden in England he said "There is a
priest here named Zucchi who does nothing but pine for the
arrival of his companions. Meantime, he will undertake no
work. From this sample of the new order, I am led to believe
that they are very little instructed in the maxims of the
Institute of our venerable mother, the Society. Though they
profess to have no other rule than Ours Zucchi seems to knoW
nothing of the structure of our Society: nor even to have read
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
43
the Common Rules which our very novices knew almost by
heart." And Carroll adds: "In one point they seem to have
departed from St. Ignatius, by engrafting on their institution
a new order of nuns, which is to be under their government." 29
These nuns were called Dilette di Gesu, Beloved of Jesus.
Father Pignatelli had accurately evaluated the man when
Paccanari, in Jesuit robes, visited him in Bologna in 1798.
The saint asked him how the Institute was being observed.
On being told that a number of changes had been introduced,
without a moment's hesitation Pignatelli declared: "Neither
you nor your men possess the Jesuit spirit, nor can you hope
to have it. The genuine Jesuit respects every jot and tittle
of the Institute." 30 Paccanari's men abandoned him little by
little, he himself was imprisoned by the Holy Office for unbecoming conduct, and, on being released by the Napoleonic
armies, spent his last days in oblivion. 81
While Joseph Pignatelli successfully fought such subversive plans he also saw to it that the genuine Ignatian spirituality and traditions were preserved and transmitted. It is
undoubtedly to him that the restored Society owes the establishment of the exact observance of common life and of the
poverty proper to our Institute. To carry through such ideals
he was providentially appointed Master of Novices and
,: Rector at Colorno, then Provincial of Parma, later of Naples,
and finally of Italy. His unshaken trust in divine providence
Was intensified by the devotion to the Sacred Heart which he
had propagated even during the Suppression. "He was extremely devoted to the Sacred Heart, and in promoting this
cult he unwittingly revealed to others how much he cherished
it. On the day of the feast he had the event solemnized with
the singing of first and second Vespers, a high Mass, and a
sermon. He had the image of the Sacred Heart in various
Places throughout the house, especially in the church, the
chapel, and in his own room." 32 This is the testimony of
Brother Annoni, one of his contemporaries. The first canonic~! processes mention his long hours of prayer and recollect~on, which make us think that he enjoyed the gift of continuous prayer of quiet. His biographers speak of his gift
~· prophecy, of counsel, of reading hearts, of healing bodies.
Is deep interior life suffered no loss because of his continu-
�44
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
ous travels which in the course of his 58 years of priesthood
'
.
.
. and religious life meant no less than thirty changes m residences. He never sought danger, but neither did he cower
when face to face with it. Rather, he then showed his most
distinguishing trait, an invariably serene countenance. Grace
and affability blended with his upright yet gracious carriage
which revealed his ancestry and his noble heart, a heart made
more peerless still by the purifying flames of Ignatian
asceticism.
Alter Parens
As a superior his foremost care was to preserve intact
the true spirit of the Society of Jesus. His principal efforts
to attain this end included the opening of a novitiate at
Colorno, and later of a professed house in Naples. As Novice
Master at Colorno a witness tells us, "He would always do '
himself what he wanted others to imitate. He was therefore
the first to wash the dishes on Saturdays, the first to kiss
the feet of his brethren in the refectory, the first to sweep
the house." 33 Among his favorite ministries were two that
had been favorites in the Old Society: to comfort and feed
prisoners, and to promote the Friday devotion to obtain the
grace of a happy death. Both old and new members had to
go through the Spiritual Exercises on joining his community.
To insure the restoration of lgnatian ideals he had copies of
the Rules and the Constitution printed and distributed to
Ours. Former Jesuits who sought readmission. were not
accepted without testing. They had to show that they would
not seek exemptions and privileges because of age or merit,
to the detriment of common life. Pignatelli would not accept
any of Paccanari's men who refused to go through the two
years of noviceship prescribed by the Institute. The quality
of the men he trained is unquestionable. To mention but a
few names, Father Aloysius Fortis, his beloved disciple, was
soon to be General, while Father John Grassi and Father
Anthony Kohlmann were in the course of time sent to America
to reinvigorate the remnants of the Maryland group of the old
Society. The saint's most authoritative biographer comments,
"The North American Jesuits can be proud of the fact that
they have received of the saint's spirit through Father John
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
45
A. Grassi who had been trained by him, and sent to America
to help the missionaries and in the organization of the newlyborn Society." 34 Like Ignatius, Father Pignatelli ruled by
example and sweet firmness. Never in all his years as superior,
in spite of his strictness, did he use an imperative. Love of
poverty and common life were characteristic of him, and he
tried to make Ours appreciate them also. As Provincial of
Naples he insisted that the members of the professed house
were not to receive anything from externs, even under the
pretext of gifts. Those who did not see eye to eye with him
called this a departure from old customs. To calm their
ruffled feelings Father Pignatelli sought the opinion of Father
General, who not merely approved of his decisions, but ordered
that they be followed as being most consonant with the mind
of St. Ignatius. He believed, on the other hand, that common
life was much helped when the community was not deprived
of the suitable, and under him food, though plain, was abundant. He asserted that the temporal welfare of the Society
was closely dependent on the observance of the Institute:
"Let us keep our Rules, preserve common observance in its
full vigor, endeavor to promote God's glory to the utmost, and
look to the salvation of our neighbor. Then we need not
fear that the Lord's generous hand will fail us in temporal
matters." 35
His executive abilities were sharpened by the challenge
of adversity. At Ferrara in 1768 in about three weeks he
had almost a thousand Jesuits fully established, and for all
practical purposes, ready for work. In less than a year after
assuming the office of Provincial of Naples in 1803 he not
only established regular order in our houses, but had also
opened in Rome a professed house and a tertianship, a collegium maximum at Orvieto, a college at Tivoli, seminaries
at Amelia, Sezze, and Anagni, residences at Marino and
Palestrina, promoted popular missions and even organized
a flying squadron of missionaries, a group ready at a moment's
call to come to the aid of any parish or diocese. A contempor~ry biographer of the saint affirms that the Society's expulSion from Naples in 1806 was God's way of bringing to the
Eternal City this man of God. For it was to be Pignatelli's
Presence in Rome, the reputation of his holiness and prudence
�46
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
that hastened the universal restoration of the Society.se
Lavishly, indeed, did he dedicate to the Society his time, his
talents, and his resources; but, as in almsgiving, he was careful to avoid any publicity. Despite his repeated requests to
be relieved of responsible positions his wish was not granted,
but rather two Father Generals confirmed him in office. It
was Father Brzozowski who in a letter of February 9, 1808
assured him, "For your greater spiritual profit I order and
ask you to continue for God's greater glory in the office entrusted to you and which you so profitably discharge." 37
Joseph Pignatelli is the last canonized saint of the old
Society and the first of the new. It is as if Providence would
have us see in him the divine finger pointing approvingly to
our Society. He is the priest par excellence of the revived
Society, the priest whose anointed hands and charitable soul
were to mould and perpetuate the new generation of the house
of Loyola. For this was his light made to shine before all
men, that he might enkindle in young hearts and old the
spirit of lgnatian life, that he might turn over to us, in all
their warmth and brilliance, the ideals of Manresa and Montmartre, ideals so thoughtfully stored up at Saragossa and
Calatayud, so painstakingly guarded during those tempestuous days of Corsica and Bologna. As he looked back at his
fifty-eight years of loyal service he must have rejoiced at
seeing fulfilled that prayer so often in the hearts and lips
of our brethren of the dispersion: "Oro Te, Domine J esu, ut
ultimus actus vitae nostrae sit supernaturalis et perfectus
actus amoris Dei, et ut Societas J esu, quamprimum in toto
orbe et melius quam antea, restituatur." 38 The love of God,
the restoration of the Society in melius, these two petitions
he would very soon see granted. Near at hand was the moment
he himself had described, the general restoration was soon to
be, for now only a small but genuinely Ignatian band was
left this side of eternity. "0 Sancta Trinitas! 0 Beata '
Trinitas !" this was his last prayer to God on earth. And it
was a~so -the epitome of his wayfaring. For the glory of
t?e ~rmne God had he endured forty-four years of exile, had
s1x times refused to desert the ranks of Loyolas9; had wan·
dered t?roughout southern Europe at the head of the outcasts
of Chr1st, had wept at the feet of Pius VII overwhelmed by
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
47
his great afflictions. Yes, this grandee of Spain, this son of
the company of Ignatius and Borgia and Gonzaga, this soldier
of Christ, crowned his earthly career with the most dazzling
gem of the moral virtues, the virtue of religion practiced in
a heroic degree. And to his sons he bequeathed not alone
another example of Jesuit sanctity, but also, what to him
was far dearer, he entrusted a risen Mother, the Company
that is called of Jesus. 40
NOTES
1Jaime Nonell, S.J. El V. P. Jose Pignatelli y la Campania de Jesus
... (Manresa, 1893), v. 3, p. 105.
2 A.A.S. 46 (June 30, 1954), p. 333.
8 C. C. Martindale, S.J. "Survival from a Broken World," The Month,
12 (1954)' p. 97.
4 F. Mourret. A History of the Catholic Church (St. Louis, 1945),
v. 6, p. 438-439.
5
Godfrey Kurth. The Church at the Turning Points of History (Montana, 1918), p. 184-185.
6 Inst. S. I., Acta Congr. Gen. XVI, actio 22.
7 Antonio Astrain, S.J.
Historia de la Campania de JesUs
(Madrid, 1923), v. 7, p. 51; 56.
8
V. Jose Ma. March, S.J. El Restaurador de la Campania de JesUs
· • . (Barcelona, 1935), v. 1, p. 4 where the baptismal certificate of the
saint is copied out in full.
9
On page 114 of the book which recorded the Examina ad professionem
of the Aragon Jesuits we read that at Saragossa, during May, 1763,
Fathers Javier, Heredia, Jose Pignatelli, and Jose Santa Maria were
examined ad gradum by Fathers Crispin Poyanos, Javier Sierra, Gabriel
Marimon, and Bruno Marti. All three examinees passed although only
Father Santa Maria obtained a unanimous vote to teach Ours. Jose
Ma. March, S.J., op. cit., p. 74, note (1).
10
As Rector and Master of Novices at Colorno, and later as Provincial of Naples he prescribed that during meals the Scriptures were
to be read from the Greek text. He also required the theologians to
read daily a chapter from the Hebrew text.
11
ln the Aragon Province catalogue for 1766 we read the following
status: "P. Josephus Pignatelli, Quart., 4, Cat. in foro." Decoded this
means that our Saint was then in his fourth year as teacher of a
fourth grammar class, and taught the catechism in the streets and
pl~zas on holy days. Jose Ma. March, S.J., op. cit., p. 80, note (1). Our
Samt does not seem to have made the formal year of Tertianship which
~as usual even in his time. He completed his Theology in 1763, was
en told to take a complete rest, and from 1764 to 1766 the Province
~atalogues have him as a teacher and operarius at Saragossa. It was
ere that the decree of banishment found him a year later. Even
�48
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
Father March does not mention this year of ascetical theology in his
comprehensive and definitive work on the saint.
12 That even the General of the Augustinians, Father Xavier Vazquez,
and that of the Dominicans, Father Boxadores, were antagonistic to
the Society may in part be explained by the doctrinal differences their
Orders had with the Society. The moderate Thomism of Suarez was
not gratifying to the rigid Thomists, nor did the Augustinians take
too easily our opposition to the doctrines of Berti and Noris on sanctifying grace. The rather acrimonious controversies on De Auxiliis,
the Chinese rites, and probabilism did not help foster a favorable
atmosphere of fraternal understanding among those Orders. At most,
though, this was a secondary influence, which Bourbon regalism tried
to make the most of for its own purposes.
13 Jose Ma. March, S.J ., op. cit., p. 249-250; 332 •.
a Ludwig von Pastor. The Histor11 of the Popes (St. Louis, 1950), •
v. 37, p. 182, note 5.
15 Jose Ma. March, S.J ., op. cit., p. 255, note ( 2) .
16 L. von Pastor, op. cit., p. 183. 17 Jose Ma. March, S.J., op. cit., p. 302.
1s Today Church historians admit that the Society's suppression was
the first step in the schemes of powerful, secret, anticlerical organizations, whose goal was the Vatican itself. The Spanish minister Wall
in a letter to Tanucci revealed their aims in these picturesque terms:
"We have to bind the Pope's hands while kissing his feet." The Encyclopedists, the Freemasons, the Jansenists, and the Gallicans were to taste
in the 18th century the fruits of their plans.
19 Recently some historians, for instance, Estudios americanos (Sevilla), September, 1948 and Arbor (Madrid), January, 1951, have
attributed the banishment of the Jesuits from Spain in 1767, and the
suppression of the Order, six years later, not so much to religious, as
to political motives. The Society had dared to engage in open combat
with the rejuvenating movements of that century of the Enlightenment.
It paid with its own life for daring to throw its influence in political
circles on the side of a regime that was giving signs of decadence. It
had allied itself with the moneyed and noble classes, already attacked
by the increasing influence of the proletariat. Were such a thesis true
Joseph Pignatelli would be for posterity not the hero or saint that
we venerate but rather a pompous and fanatic leader of outcasts. A
Jesuit historian's study of the problem shows that such an assertion
is not merely unproved, but also historically false. Francisco Mateos,
S.J. "Apostillas a una canonizaci6n," Raz6n y fe 150 (1954) p. 169184.
'
'
20
Jose Ma. March, S.J., op. cit., p. 219; 303.
21
Pietro Pirri, S.J. "Fonti della prima vita di San Giuseppe Pigna·
telli," Arch. Hist., 23 (1954), p. 311.
22 Ibid., p. 308.
23
That the Society of Jesus had been preserved in White Russia and
that _th~~ugh ~rovidential m~ans, has been well proved by P. Viilada,
S.J. m El Pr1mer Centenano del Restablecimiento de la Compafiia de
�ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
49
Jesus en todo el Mundo," Raz6n y fe, 38 (1914), p. 19-32; 277-291; and
39 (1914)' p. 205-219.
24 This is the complete text of his renewed profession: "Ego Josephus
· Pignatelli, Hispanus, natus Caesaraugustae in Aragonia die 27 Decembris 1737, ingressus Societatem Jesu Tarraconae, Provinciae Aragoniae, eiusdem Societatis, die 18 Maji anno 1752, testor et confiteor me
renovasse Professionem quatuor Votorum juxta formulam praescriptam
in Societatis Instituto, et emississe vota simplicia, quae earn sequuntur,
privatim et coram Deo in sacello meae domus die 6 Julii Anno 1797,
ex concessione, et gratia mihi impertita a R. P. Aloisio Panizzoni locum
tenente Parmae Revdi. Adm. Patris Vicarii Generalis Albae Russiae,
quam Professionem jam pridem solemniter feceram in Ecclesia Ferrariensis Collegii Societatis J esu, cum votis simplicibus earn sequentibus
in Sacristia Illius Collegii de 2 Februari anno 1771, juxta formam et
constitutiones Societatis Jesu. Testor iterum suprascripta omnia:
Josephus Pignatelli." Jose Ma. March, S.J., El Restaurador de la
Compafiia de Jes?ls (Barcelona, 1944), v. 2, p. 129, note (3).
25
Lesmes Frias, S.J. Historia de la Compafiia de JesUs (Madrid,
1923)' v. 1, p. 138-139.
26
Even Angiolini's own confessor, Father Goya, disagreed with his
penitent on the nature of the restoration of the Society. Father Goya
wrote him a letter on March 22, 1814 to convince him that Pius VII's
intention in restoring the Society in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
was to reinstate it "in pristinum, just as it had been before the
suppression." Angiolini's confessor defended this thesis as altogether
true, proving it in eloquent terms. Jose Ma. March, S.J., El Restaurador
de la Compafiia de Jesus (Barcelona, 1944), v. 2, p. 356, note (1).
27
Pignatelli's view on the manner of restoring the Society was fully
vindicated by the XX General Congregation held twenty years after
his death. It was this Congregation that elected his pupil of old,
Father Fortis, as General. In its 7th decree it stated: "Etsi minime
dubium videatur, et Constitutiones a sanctissimo Patre et Fundatore
nostro datas, et quidquid eis addendum decursu temporis Patres nostri
sapienter iudicarunt, ab initio restitutae Societatis omnem suam vim
ad obligandum obtinuisse, cum manifestissima fuerit sanctissimi Domini
nos_tri Pii VII voluntas, ut Societas a se restituta iisdem, quibus antea,
legrbus regeretur; tamen ad tollendas omnes anxietates, et ad frangendam aliquorum perturb~torum pertinaciam, Congregatio, non solum
Constitutiones cum Declarationibus, sed etiam Decreta Congregationum
gen:ralium, Regulas communes, et peculiares singulorum officiorum,
Ratronem Studiorum, Ordinationes Generalium, Formulas, et quidquid
ad legislationem nostrae Societatis pertinet, confirmat, et, quatenus
opus sit, de novo statuit, iuxta potestatem datam Praeposito Generali
et ?ongregationibus a Pauli III Constitutionibus; vultque ut omnia
e: smgula eamdem vim obtineant ad obligandum omnes, qui in Societate
vrvunt, quam habebant ante breve suppressionis Clementis XIV." Institutum Soc. Iesu: examen et constitutiones (Florentiae, 1893), v. 2, p. 469.
�50
ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
28 The Society of the Heart of Jesus has recently been reconstituted
and approved as a secular institute of priests und:r th~ n7w na.n:e
Society of the Sacred Heart. Cf. L. Lochet. "U.n. Insbtut s;c':her Glencal: La Societe du Coeur de Jesus," La Vie Splntuelle, (Fevrter, 1955),
p. 159-178.
29 Thomas J. Campbell, The Jesuits (New York, 1921), v. 2, P· 674.
8o Jose Ma. March, S.J ., El Restaurador de la Compania de Jesus
(Barcelona, 1944), v. 2, p. 146. The Pope himself, and even the Fre~ch
anticlericals saw through Paccanari's pretenses. Pius VII commentmg
to Fr. C. Angiolini on Paccanari's plans for reunion said: "He had
originally a good plan but now it is known that he does not want to
turn over his brethren to your Society; rather, he wants to set up
one altar against another." The French anticlericals, on their part,
identified the Paccanarists as "those who pretend to call themselves
Jesuits." [Herbert Chadwick, S.J. "Paccanarists in England," Arch.
Hist., 20, (1951), p. 160, 149.]
81 Father William Strickland, procurator of the renascent English
Province was not alone in believing that the Paccanarists were being
supported in Rome by enemies of the Society who saw in that pliable
group a convenient substitute for the too aggressive Society of Jesus.
This was also the opinion of Father Gabriel Gruber.
82 Jose Ma. March, S.J., ibid., p. 68.
83 Ibid., p. 182. 84 Ibid., p. 519. 8s Ibid., p. 394. 36 Ibid., p. 384.
87 Jaime Nonell, S.J., op. cit., v. 3, p. 190.
8 8 Jose Ma. March, S.J., "El Bto. Jose Pignatelli de la Compafiia de
Jesus; entre ardores del Coraz6n Divino (1785-1788)," Raz6n y fe
(1933), p. 153, note 14.
89 The invitation to leave the Society came to him thrice in 1767:
during the days when the Jesuits were being expelled from Saragossa;
at Tarragona, before leaving Spain; and at Bastia in Corsica. Then
in 1768 while at Sestri in Genoa. In 1795, while at Naples, he received
a personal invitation to return to Spain. In 1806 King Joseph Bona·
parte was willing to have him stay at Naples while his brethren took
once more the road to exile. His niece, the Countess of Acerra, vainly
pleaded to have him stay. In his 58 years as a Jesuit he averaged a
change of residence nearly every two years.
40
Some recent articles that throw more light into the life of our saint
are the following: Batllori, S.J., Miguel. "Jose Pignatelli, el Hombre
Y el Santo: en su canonizaci6n: 13 de Junio de 1954," Raz6n y fe, 149
(1954), p. 512-530. Marin, S.J., Hidalgo. "El Humilde Jesuita San Jose
P!g~atelli, Gr~nde d~ Espana," 1!fechos y Dichos, 39 (1954), ;. 478-490.
~~rr~, S.J., P1etro. Angelo Ma1 nella Compagnia di Gesu: suo diario
med1to del collegio ~i Orvieto," Arch. Hist., 23 (1954), p. 234-282.
Schaack, S.J., J. "Samt Joseph Pignatelli, S.J.: un pretre exemplaire
et tres actuel (27 decembre 1737 - 15 novembre 1811)," Nouv. Rev.
Theol., 76 (1954), p. 673-688. Tilliette, S.J., Xavier. "Un nouveau Saint
Jesuite: Joseph Pignatelli (1737-1811) ," Christus, 4 (1954), p. 118-126.
�Letters of An Anglican to
Father John O'Rourke
Introduction
On September 9, 1903, Father Paul James Francis of the
Society of the Atonement at Graymoor, Garrison, New York,
visited Saint Andrew-on-Hudson. This was while he was still
an Anglican and six years before he was received into the
Church. Two letters of Father Paul to the Rector and Novice
Master, Father John O'Rourke, have been recently discovered
in the archives of Saint Andrew. The first letter is dated
September lOth, one day after his visit. In it Father Paul
speaks of his desire to make a retreat at Saint Andrew and
indicates that he is aware of the difficulty about his saying
his "daily Mass" at the Novitiate. It would be interesting to
discover just how Father O'Rourke phrased his reply to
Father Paul. Inquiry was made of the Fathers of the Atonement to see whether any correspondence from Father
O'Rourke is preserved in their archives. Search was made
but neither the Fathers nor the Sisters could find anything.
The second letter was written on September 17th and it indicates that Father O'Rourke had brought to Father Paul's atten:·. tion the stand of the Church in regard to Anglican Orders.
WILLIAM
V. BANGERT, S.J.
The First Letter
Garrison, N.Y.
Sept. 10, 1903
The Rev. Father Rector:
My Dear Rev. Father,
Allow me once more to express to you my keen sense of
appreciation of your extreme courtesy and kindness to me
yesterday. My visit to the Novitiate gave me the liveliest
pleasure and filled me with a yet more ardent desire to serve
God and be true to my vocation. I want very much to come
�52
LETIERS OF AN ANGLICAN
to you for a week or nine days' retreat. There is only one
difficulty to be overcome, as far as I can forsee. Long ago
Our Lord promised to feed me with the Bread from Heaven
every day and since then until now the promise has not once
failed. Even when I have taken long journeys into Michigan
or elsewhere, I have never missed the daily Sacrifice. When
threatened by my Bishop recently with deposition, my confidence that Our Lord would keep His promise never failed.
I must not therefore wilfully or wittingly place myself in a
position where I may not say my daily Mass. I cannot think
how you can help me in this. I have, however, had some cor-~·
respondence with Dr. Langdon at the Insane Hospital and
perhaps he could improvise an oratory for me over there.
I will not however write to him about it until I hear from 1
you.
i
With the most sincere love,
I am your little Franciscan brother,
Paul James Francis, S.A.
The. Second Letter
My Dear Rev. Father,
Graymoor
Stigmata of St. Francis
1903
. I have your letter. It does not give offence. It only emphasize_s how deep and wide is the gulf that rolls between Anglicamsm and the Holy Mother Church of Rome. The Passion
~~~~~ ULo~td Jesus and the Stigmata of the great saint of
m Y a1one are efficacious enough by the omnipotent
Power of God to "fill in the ditch."
You may be very sure that everything short of the slightest
approac~ ·to the denial of the reality of Our Lord's Presence
o~ Anglican altars towards deepening the friendship so hap·
plly ~egun on. the Feast of St. Peter Claver I am eager to do.
Faithfully m the Sacred, Infinite Heart of Divine Love,
Paul James Francis, S.A.
!.
!
!
I
I
r··
I
I
I
i.
�Exercitatio Corporalis
CHARLES FOREST,
S.J.
The expression corporalis exercitatio occurs twice in the
Constitutions of St. Ignatius: first in P. III, c. 2, n. 4 (298),
"Ut non expedit tanto lahore corporali quemquam onerari
ut spiritus obruatur et corpus detrimentum patiatur, ita aliqua corporalis exercitatio quae utrumque iuvat omnibus communiter convenit, etiam illis qui mentalibus exercitiis debent
insistere. Quae quidem externis interrumpi deberent et non
continuari nee sine mensura discretionis assumi"; again in
P. VI, c. 3, n. 1 (582), "Ut nee in corporali exercitatione
ieiuniorum, vigiliarum aut aliarum rerum ad austeritatem vel
corporis castigationem spectantium." The first of these two
passages has become Rule 47 of the Summary of the Constitutions. The other refers only to corporal austerities, which,
after the last vows, are left to each one's discretion. The object
of this study is to determine what St. Ignatius meant by this
corporalis exercitatio which he prescribed for all.
Among the rules promulgated during the lifetime of the
founder and thus antedating the final draft of the Constitutions, there is more than one which speaks of these bodily
.exercises. In the Constitutiones Collegiorum, which date from
· the last months of 1549 and were drawn up under the guidance
of St. Ignatius by Father Polanco, his secretary/ we have
the significant fourteenth rule, "Let all those who would
otherwise get no exercise have some time, e.g. a half-hour
before the noon or evening meal, to engage in some bodily
activity, such as sweeping the floor, making a bed, splitting
or stacking kindling wood, washing or hanging out the laundry,
all of which are at once good exercise and useful to the house,
or, .if they have no other utility, can at least be classed as
bodily exercise." 2
Roman College
The rules of the Roman College, composed in 1551 by St.
Ign~tius, forbid (R. 5) all study at such unsuitable times
-
as Immediately after dinner and recommend that those who
Translated from the French by Vincent J. Lagomarsino, S.J.
�54
EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS
need it engage in some bodily exercise. 3 In 1553 St. Ignatius
sent Father Nadal to Spain and Portugal to promulgate the
Constitutions. Nadal composed while there a certain number
of rules. Rule 46 of the rector prescribes for the daily order
at least fifteen minutes of bodily exercise before dinner or
supper at a time to be determined by the rector. The rule
obviously refers to those who do not already find this exercise
in the performance of their assigned duties. 4 According to
rule 74, the rector must be careful that his subjects do not
fall sick. Aids to this will be a certain amount of rest after
dinner and supper and daily physical exercise. If need be,
he shall ask a doctor's advice about regulating bodily exercise.5
In the rules of the master of novices which date from the
same period, Nadal speaks again of exercitatio corporalis:
"Et praeter spiritualia, ut etiam habeant corporalem exercitationetn."6 He does not go into details. But, in rule eight of
the prefect of studies (1553-54), he explains what he means
and demands for professors and students alike fifteen minutes
of exercise either in the garden or in whatever form of manual
labor the rector shall prescribe. 7 According to a rule, which
dates from 1556 at the latest and was sent by St. Ignatius
to the college of Naples, the prefect of health shall see to it
that the Brothers go for occasional walks or find their exercise in some other occupation in the garden. 8 In text a
of the Constitutions, which is the oldest and was composed
before 1548, St. Ignatius expresses himself in the same way:
bodily exercise is recommended to those who would not find
enough of it in the duty assigned to them. Depending on what
the superior prescribes, they are to get some exercise for a
short time in the garden or the place which will be indicated
to them. 9
Manual Labor
From the preceding documents, which are all prior to the
death of St. Ignatius, it is clearly evident that in prescribing
exercitatio corporalis he has in mind before all else bodilY
exercise, which in practice will often take the form of manual
labor, especially in the novitiate. It is for this reason that
Nadal will be able to number among the officiales whom the ·
�EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS
55
rector needs a "prefecto de los exercitios corporales," 10 who
can be no other than the Brother in charge of manual work.
In the rules for the rector issued in 1567 by Lainez, 11 we
again find (chap. 4) among the ofjiciales of the rector a praefectus exercitiorum corporalium. It seems that for Lainez too
exercitatio corporalis is often synonymous with manual labor.
Not always, however. As a matter of fact, in the same
treatise, chapter fifteen, where he speaks of the health of
subjects, Lainez asks the rector to take care "Ut scholares vel
alii, qui non sunt coadiutores per quartam horae partem ante
prandium et coenam exercitium corporale faciant."
In the Ratio Studiorum of 1566-ten years after the death
of St. Ignatius-we read, "Finitis lectionibus per mediam
horam, ob varias res in Collegio componendas et mundandas
tum ob exercitium corporale tuendae gratia sanitatis tum ob
alia necessaria, se exercent verrendo cubicula et alia loca
mundanda." Here too exercitatio corporalis and manual labor
often seem to be the same thing. 12 Among the recommendations made at Mayence in 1557 by Father Nadal we read,
"A nullo anni tempore intermittatur exercitium corporale,
etiam plena hieme." 13 He is obviously referring to bodily
exercise.
In the rules for the rector which very probably date from
_.' _the time of Francis Borgia, corporalis exercitatio is not
omitted: "R. 49. Omnes, praeter illos quos ipse iudicaverit excipiendos, horae quadrantem ante prandium vel coenam corporis
exercitationi tribuant." 14 These rules remained in force until
1932 when the Regulae superioris localis 15 replaced both the
Regulae rectoris and the Regulae praepositi domus professae.
There is no trace in these new rules of the former rule 49
for the rector. The rules for the master of novices dating from
the time of Borgia speak of exercitatio corporalis: "R. 73.
Reliq~o toto tempore usque ad examen, quod semper ante
~ran?Ium fiet per quartam horae partem, in suis officiis aut
In ahquo exercitio corporali aut lahore manuum a magistro
no~itiorum praescripto occupentur. R. 77. Ipsam vero horam
ulhmam sequentem ante coenam, partim officiis domesticis
partim corporali exercitationi vel aliis occupationibus, quas
ma?ister praescripserit, impendant." 16 These two rules, in
Which the distinction is made between labor manuum (ofjicia
�56
EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS
domestica) and corporalis exercitatio, gave place in 1932 to
R. 71, "Singulis fere diebus, exceptis do~inicis et fe_stis, ~li
quod tempus officiis domesticis vel op_eribus manuah?us Impendant."17 There is no longer questiOn of c~rporalts exercitatio, the original meaning of which was certamly weakened.
Innovation
This care to enJ om bodily exercise on those engaged in
intellectual pursuits seems to be an innovation on the part
of St. Ignatius. There is nothing like it in the rules of the older
Orders, which Ignatius had before his eyes as he drew up
his Constitutions. The founder of the Society of Jesus, who
knew from experience what a hindrance poor health can be,
wished to caution his young students against excessive work.
In all things he desired moderation and he knew that without
this discretion the Society could not last. Accordingly he
listened willingly to the suggestions of competent men. It
is well known that he maintained regular contact with the
best doctors in Rome. A striking example is reported by
Father Oliver Manare, who had been in close touch with St.
Ignatius and was named by him as rector of the Roman College. In the earliest days of the Society, Ignatius saw that
the young religious were constantly getting sick. He arranged
for a consultation by the leading doctors in Rome, among them
the famous Alessandro Petri, and to them he confided his
worries about the health of his sons. After having learned
the daily order and the details of daily life, the doctors exclaimed that such a schedule could only end in disaster. With
the consent of Ignatius, they determined what would be a
reasonable number of hours for sleep, recreation, walking and
meals.18 Are they the ones who recommended physical exercise? It is more than probable. An old document gives us the
proof. Ignatius had questioned a certain Doctor Jacob about
the daily order to prescribe in the summer for newcomers at r
Rome. Th~ reply has been preserved,l9 "Che faccia a la t'
matina a buona hora et a la sera doppo la cena exercitio
temperato senza sudare." So moderate exercise of the bodY 1
which will not cause perspiration is prescribed for both
morning and afternoon. 20
The doctors' opinions about St. Ignatius' own health have
I
�EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS
57
been preserved. Here again they speak of exercitatio corporalis.21 Apparently, this preoccupation with bodily exercise
was common to doctors of those days. Is it not likely that
it was partly, at least, at their suggestion that St. Ignatius
spoke in his rule of corporalis exercitatio? There seems to
be a confirmation of this in rule 74 for rectors, drawn up in
St. Ignatius' time/ 2 according to which one should, if need
be, consult a doctor to determine sound regulations for bodily
exercise. St. Ignatius was, then, by no means opposed to
physical culture. Nothing is more in accord with his views
than the calisthenics which are customary today in certain
novitiates and scholasticates. These are means designed to
maintain health of body and to make men capable of working
better and longer for the salvation of souls.
NOTES
1 Cf. P. Leturia, "'De constitutionibus collegiorum P. loannis de Polanco
ac de eorum influxu in Constitutiones Soc. lesu," AHSI, VII (1938),
p. 1 ff.
2
Tenga a una manu todos los que en otra manera non hiziesen exercicio, alglin tiempo en el dia (como seria media bora, y esta antes de
comer ode cenar) para exercitarse corporalmente, come seria en barrer,
hacer camas, bander or subir lefia, limpiar o tender la ropa, o si otra cosa
se ofreziese, que, con ser util a la casa, fuese buen exercitio; a lo menos,
: si otra utilitad non ay, aya esta de hazer exercitio. MI. Ser. 3, v. 4, Regu. lae Soc. Iesu, p. 236. Cf. Polanco, Compl., II, 735. lndustriae 3 n. 8:
Ne dexarles en o~io, buscando semprie algo en que entiendan, aunque la
occupation no aprobechase de otro sino de occuparlos.
3
50. Non studino in bore non convenienti, como dopo pranzo et cena,
cose de importanza, et facino alcuno essercitio corporale quelli ch'haverano di bisogno, et piglino alcuna remissione dello studio, et honesta recreatione corporale, come sarebbe, andando a spasso dopo cena, in tanto
che non c'e horto. MI. Ser. 3, v. 4, Reg. S.I., p. 266.
4
46. Todos hagan exercicio corporal, cada dia un quarto de bora a
lo menos; este sera antes de comer o cenar, y el que paresciere al Rector,
Y entiendese de los que no lo hazen en suas occupaciones. Ibid., p. 350.
5
74. Tengase gran vigil an cia que los de case non caigan en enfermedad. A esto ayuda el reposo despues de comer y cenar, y el exercicio
corporal quotidiano ... , con consejo del medico si fuere menester, ordenar todos los exercicios corporales. Ibid., p. 354.
6
Ibid., p. 396-97, n. 12.
7 8
d' · Terna cuidado que los preceptores y escolares se exerciten cada
Ia por un quarto de bora en el huerto o en otros exercicios corporales
que les fueren sefialados por el superior. Ibid., p. 475.
�58
EXERCITATIO CORPORALIS
8 (90) Sua cura sara fare che le fratelli faccino essercitio alquanto
o in spazare, o in altr~ cosa che se possa fare nel giardino per loro.
Ibid., p. 541.
9 • • • asi es muy conveniente para todos ordinariamente alglln exercitio exterior, y quien no lo tubiese en el officio, que le es assignado,
sufficiente, debe alguna hora (como ordenara el superior) exercitarse en
el huerto o donde le fuese dicho. MI. Ser. 3, Const. II, p. 152, 80.
10 MI. Ser. 3, v. 4, Reg. Soc. Ies., p. 349, 1, 2 and 3.
11 Rectoris Officium, Romae, in aedibus Societatis, 1561, p. 5 et p. 23.
12 Pachtler, Ratio Studiorum, I, p. 193.
1a Epistolae Patr.is Hier. Natal., IV, p. 331.
Hinstitutum Soc. Ies (ed. Flor.) III, p. 112.
15 Regulae Soc. Iesu, Romae, 1932, p. 148 sqq.
1a Instit. Soc. Iesu, (ed. Flor.) III, p. 129.
17 Regulae Soc. Iesu, Romae, 1932, p. 200.
18 Oliverii Manarei, S.J., Exhortationes, De Meester, Roulers, 1912,
p. 613, n. 6. Cf. Van Ortroy, S. Ignace de Loyola et le Pere Olivier
Manare, in Anal. Bollandiana, XXXII (1932), p. 289 sq.
19 MI. Ser. 3, v. 4, Reg. Soc. Iesu, p. 208.
2 0 The same thing is referred to in the Memoriale P. Gonsalvii, MI.
Ser. 4, v. 1, 109, p. 205.
21 MI. Ser. 4, v. 1, p. 577-78.
22 Cf. supra, note 5.
l
HONEST ADl\URATION
I do not know who would be justified in refusing honest admiration
to Ignatius Loyola. He bears physical pain like a hero, is just as fear·
less morally, his will is of iron, his action direct his powers of thinking
spoiled by no pedantry and artificiality; he is ~n acute, practical man,
who never stumbles over trifles and yet assures to his influence a far· .
reachin~ fut1;1r:, by ~e~zing the needs of the moment and making the!ll
the basis of his activity; he is in addition unassuming, an enemy of ~
~hrases, a~d ?o comedian; a soldier and a nobleman; the priesthood
IS rather ~Is mstrument than his natural vocation. Ignatius is said to L •
be a genume son of the enigmatical, taciturn, energetic and fantastic
Basques.
!
H. S.
CHAMBERLAIN
�The Japanese Church and
Sophia University
DANIEL
McCOY, S.J.
A Catholic magazine published in Freiburg, Germany, tells
us that in the world there are some 354,000 priests and 450
million Catholics. This would mean one priest for every 1,270
Catholics. In Japan, there is one priest for every 172 Catholics,
but only one priest for every 71,000 souls.
When we post-War missionaries first came to Tokyo, it was
not difficult to know the other missionaries among the Salesians, Franciscans, Dominicans, and Maryknollers. Today it
is different; the missionary orders, both new and old, have
been generously sending their members to Japan. The number
of foreign missionaries totals over 2,221 of whom 952 are
priests. Yet statistically speaking, Japan seems to offer the
least amount of success. A post-War prognostication that the
nation, as a nation, or, at least, great segments of it, would
become Christian is not being fulfilled. It would seem then
that fewer missionaries in the sixteenth century, who had no
Japanese clery as we missionaries do (279 priests) nor
. such large number of vocations to religious institutes for
:.women (3,780), secured far greater successes than the missionaries of recent years.
When we were in language school in 1947, a veteran missionary used to tell us that the construction of the Japanese
language was the work of the evil spirit to prevent the dissemination of Christ Our Saviour's teaching. The new missionary riding up from the pier at Yokohama or in from the
luxurious air port at Haneda senses, within a very few days,
the first obstacle placed before his zeal, and that obstacle is
the monotonous application to the study of the Japanese
language. Some missionary orders require their members to
study in a formal language school for one year, others for
two and some for three. In Tokyo, the Franciscan Fathers
conduct a language school for all missionaries. The Jesuit
and Scheut Fathers have their own for their respective members.
The efforts of all the foreign missionary groups, each of
�60
THE CHURCH AND SOPHIA UNIVERSITY
which brings its own distinctive spirit of approach, its national know-how techniques in Catholicism and, above all,
its initiative and zeal in launching new campaigns and instituting areas of contact with the people, help us to realize
more deeply that the key to the conversion of the nation has
not yet been found. Today, without the Tosei News Release,
published biweekly by the National Catholic Committee of
Japan, one could not keep abreast of new and old activities
in the apostolate: all the various churches, boys' towns,
schools, labor movements, institutes for training professional
catechists, new congregations, special and popular publications; public and private addresses, articles and reports in
the great dailies and on the radio. Yet the young missionary
in the drudgery of language study feels that the effect falls
far short of the effort.
Other harvests seem so much richer and far less exacting;
yet no missionary in Japan from the heroic Frenchmen, who
were the first to return to live in the Japanese manner, to the
latest arrival, has failed to perceive what St. Francis Xavier
saw, one of the most attractive peoples who give very fervent
Catholics to Christ Our Lord. When the key is found and the
door is opened, every missionary feels that Japan will exercise the leadership in the Church of the New Age-the
Church which seems to be leaving the West and seeking its
focus among the Asiatic peoples.
Sophia University's Contribution
The Jesuit part in the newer picture of Catholicism in
Japan began in 1908 with the educational apostolate when
three Fathers, a Frenchman, an American and a German,
were sent to organize a university in Tokyo, the capital city
and the center of the nation's major activities. The founding
of a university in what was still a young Catholic community
is significant of the apostolic conditions of the nation. The
Japanese, .Possessing a culture quite ancient and a literacy
almost universal, greatly esteem learning.
The ancient missionaries were in a position to indicate to
the influential daimyo (lords) and their followers the interest
of intellectual progress. After the opening of J ap~n by Perry,
the first few missionaries living apart in separated mission
�THE CHURCH AND SOPHIA UNIVERSITY
61
stations were allowed to live out their gingerly existence.
The persecutions had been so fierce in the early seventeenth
century that the population of succeeding generations carried
a residue of aversion and of fear. In the opinion of Cardinal
O'Connell of Boston who visited Japan in the 1900's, the
apostolate in Japan required a university.
Sophia University since 1913, when officially approved by
the Ministry of Education, has a troubled history, replete with
two destructions, by earthquake in 1923, and by fire bombs
1945. But for the establishment of the Church, there are
some quiet successes recently achieved. In March, 1955, the
Sophia Graduate School received the distinction of having a
publicly recognized Department of Theology. The unseen
effect of this is the raising of the social level of the Japanese
cJergy. Previously a Japanese seminarian's education received
small civic rating in a country where educational backgrounds
are held in great esteem. The good effect has been achieved
by the affiliation of the Tokyo Regional Seminary, conducted
by the Jesuit Fathers, with the University. A seminarian who
fulfills the University requirements may be eligible for the
University's degree of master and on further completion of
requirements for the degree Bungaku-hakase or doctorate.
The Educational Ministry gave this year to the Sophia Graduate School the authority to grant the doctorate to any candidate, layman or clergyman, no matter where he took courses,
who can defend a dissertation to the satisfaction of the University faculty.
The Jesuits in Japan number over 325, come from all the
Jesuit provinces in the world, and have twenty-four nationalities represented. Eighty per cent of the man power is engaged
in the educational apostolate embracing a University with
Graduate School, three High Schools, one Junior College of
Arts and Music, the Tokyo Regional Seminary, the Jesuit
House of Theology, the House of Philosophy and the Language
School.
A_ny religious organization which comes to Japan and opens
a kindergarten, school, or university will have an excess of
applications. Eiko Jesuit High had eight applicants to one
place. The reason lies in the condition in which the Japanese
schools found themselves after 1945. The former code of
morality fell away and, with nothing positive to replace it,
�62
THE CHURCH AND SOPHIA UNIVERSITY
moral training suffered. In a Catholic school, solid principles
will be taught and demanded. The youth of Japan could be
captured and must be captured, if the Japanese priesthood
is to flower.
Young Men
In 1948 I saw the opening of Eiko Jesuit High School in
Yokosuka for which hundreds applied; careful screening sifted
out the best boys, all non-baptized. In 1953, I saw these young
men, as intellectual Catholics, tower above the other University students; they became Catholics in their school days,
and are definitely an asset to the Church. "Within ten years,"
said Bishop Ross, S.J., retired Bishop of Hiroshima, "the
secular clergy will have a hold on the situation."
When a Catholic boy enters a business firm, he will sooner
or later face a number of difficult situations. Business transactions, when completed, are sometimes celebrated in an institution which has no Western counterpart, the tea house
restaurant. It is the way of entertaining provided by the company and to be absent is to be conspicuous. In itself approvable, it may give rise to unsavory moral situations in which
a Catholic may have to suffer. For a newly employed young
man, it is not always easy. Japanese Catholic men are devout
but in some mission stations, the Catholic women far outnumber them. Catholicism with its high esteem for womanhood has a great appeal for Japanese women. I surmise every
missionary perceives in the non-baptized who have followed
the moral code of the past an awareness of the supernatural,
a reverence for the divine, a desire for goodness. Many Jap·
anese have souls which are naturally Christian. In a conversation during his visit to Japan in 1953, Father Martindale,
S.J., pointed up the area of closest contact, when he stated that
Buddhism and Christianity meet on the level of mysticism.
A personal experience of my own in educational work maY
indicate how the unglamorous may yet be inducive to major
results for the Church's progress. In 1950, Sophia UniversitY
following· the revised regulations of the Ministry of Educa·
tion found it necessary to build a biology laboratory and in·
stitute courses. This was a departure, for the strong faculties
were economics and literature. The Provincial Superior,
Father Pfister, called me to Sophia to build the laboratorY·
�THE CHURCH AND SOPHIA UNIVERSITY
63
I built it according to the highest standards and equipped it
fully, providing for every student individual places, instruments, materials and above all, a microscope and lamp. I did
not realize that my procedure was unusual, but the inspectors
from the Educational Ministry and from private educational
groups voiced rapid approval of the University. No other nonscience university did so much for non-science students.
With every forward step in greater recognition of Sophia
University goes an advance in the educational status of the
seminarians, comprising an affiliated student body. The little
group of benefactors who over four years had provided me
with four hundred dollars with which we bought the persuasive microscopes has shared more deeply than they know
in the apostolate in Japan.
JESUITS AND YELLOW FEVER
FRANCIS
M. FORSTER, M.D.
The name of Carlos Finlay brings a deep feeling of appreciation
for the great contributions made by this renowned physician in the
field of infectious diseases.
,·
On a recent visit to Cuba, I called at the Colegio Belen, a Jesuit
-School on the outskirts of Havana. Walking along the corridor to meet
Father Ricardo Chisholm I passed the chapel, where I noticed two
plaques, one on each side of the entrance. The one on the left side was
dedicated to the Jesuit Father who had established the laws governing
the course of hurricanes in the Northern and Southern hemispheres. The
one on the right brought me to a halt: it was a plaque dedicated to Dr.
Carlos Finlay and inscribed with the names of Jesuit Fathers, Brothers,
~nd Scholastics who had collaborated in his experiments. I was intrigued,
t~r I .w~s unaware of the fact that the Jesuits had played a role in
e origmal studies of Dr. Carlos Finlay on the etiology of yellow fever.
Lat:r in our discussions on the matter, Father Chisholm supplied
~~ With a copy of the official affidavit which described how Carlos
mlay discovered that the mosquito was the vector in yellow fever
and told of the experiments and studies which Dr. Finlay conducted
0
~ the. members of the Jesuit community. One night Dr. Finlay was
~ endmg a Carmelite priest desperately ill with yellow fever. The
F~c~or sat up much of the night trying to comfort the patient. Dr.
t m ay was exhausted when he returned to his home. He was about
0
go to bed when he realized that he had forgotten to say his rosary.
�64
DR. CARLOS FINLAY, THE JESUITS AND YELLOW FEVER
Too .tired to kneel, he sat in his armchair. It was a hot night; he was
perspiring uncomfortably; he was depressed with anxiety for his sick
and dying patients; and to climax it all, a mosquito began to harass
him. This taunting insect kept flying around trying to sink its proboscis
into his forehead. As he battled the heat, his weariness and the mosquito,
and at the same time tried to say his beads a thought, an inspiration
perhaps, suddenly came to him. Could mosquitoes be the vectors of yellow
fever? Dr. Finlay became very much excited as he suddenly visualized
thousands of mosquitoes biting sick people, stinging healthy ones,
and transmitting the disease.
To test his hypothesis, and to control his experiments, Dr. Finlay
needed subjects newly arrived in Cuba who had not previously been
exposed to yellow fever. At that time, Jesuit Scholastics, Fathers and
Brothers were coming from Spain to Havana. On the first night after
their arrival he would bring to the Jesuit Community house test
tubes, in each of which there was contained a mosquito which had
fed on a patient who was infected with yellow fever. He removed the
stopper and inverted the tube against the skin of the finger of each of
the newly arrived Jesuits, allowed the mosquito to feed until it had
satisfied itself and then dropped it back into the test tube. Thus was
established a successful system of inoculation; since by this technique
almost all of the newly arrived Jesuits were made immune to yellow
fever.
There were only two deaths due to yellow fever among those whom
Dr. Finlay inoculated. One of them was the Father Rector of the Colegio
Belen. He had come to Cuba as a Scholastic, had been inoculated and
had returned to Spain for his theology. After his ordination, he returned
to Cuba as the Rector. Dr. Finlay, however, not knowing that the
immunity acquired by the inoculation was a temporary and not a
permanent immunity, did not reinoculate him and thus the Rector
developed a fatal case of yellow fever.
I
Dr. Carlos Finlay was the first to establish the fact that the mosquito
is the transmitter of yellow fever and to develop a system of inoculation
against the disease. This was in the year 1881.
From the Georgetown University Medical Center
Bulletin, November, 1955
�Meditations of a Jesuit in Jail
ISABEL
McHUGH
One of the most interesting and attractive of the German
Christian resistance leaders was Father Alfred Delp, who was
hanged in Berlin on February 2, 1945.
Alfred Delp became a Catholic while still at school and entered the Society of Jesus at nineteen. As a student he was
very earnest, argumentative and even vehement. He seemed
quite incapable of accepting teaching passively. He had to
analyse everything, to confront doctrine with concrete life
from the start. Characteristically, when only twenty-four he
wrote a critical study, entitled Tragische Existenz, of Heidegger's existentialist philosophy. After his ordination in 1939 he
was appointed social and political assistant on the Jesuit
monthly, Stimmen der Zeit.
In 1942 Count Helmut von Moltke, founder of the secret
moral resistance movement known as the "Kreisau Circle,"
which aimed at uniting all denominations in the task of saving
the common Christian heritage, asked the Jesuits to find him
an expert on social questions. Father Delp was the obvious
choice, and he entered the movement eagerly in obedience to
. his Superior, though fully aware that he was risking his life.
Moltke was a Christian Democrat in politics and Delp too
was definitely liberal in sympathies. Until Moltke's arrest in
January 1944, they worked together on plans for an ideal
Christian social order to replace the Nazi regime when the
inevitable collapse should come, but unfortunately all their
blueprints for a Christian Socialist Germany have been lost.
When arrested Father Delp was writing a book on what he
called "The Third Idea " the "Personal Socialism" which he
believed to be the only ~orkable compromise between the extremes of Capitalism and Communism, actually a German
version of the ideas of the Harmel brothers and Allan Turner.
~is social theories are not explicitly expounded in his published writings, but this constant thought, the reconciliation of
modern ideas with traditional Christian teaching, is implicit
-
A feature article reprinted from The Catholic Herald, Friday, November 18, 1955.
�66
A JESUIT IN JAIL
in all of them. Indeed, everything he wrote, whether on history, current events or personalities, had this basic purpose.
Moral Underground
Moltke's moral underground worked well for several years,
but his best men were tempted away one by one to the path
of violence, caught and executed. In January, 1944 Moltke
himself was arrested, and after the July Plot on Hitler's life,
Father Delp and three others of the Circle were arrested too.
All were held in solitary confinement until January, 1945,
when, during three days' trial, nothing could be proved
against them except that, as Moltke put it, "we five thought
together." The formal charge was treason: they had reckoned
on a collapse of the Nazi regime; hence they were defeatists;
but they were cleared of complicity in the July Plot.
Obviously Moltke's chief crime was his association with
Jesuits, "the greatest enemies of the German State," whom
he had consulted on the morality of civil disobedience and
other matters.
"And it seems that I, a Protestant, am to die a Jesuit
martyr too," he wrote jocosely to his wife, describing the
trial. A fortnight later he was hanged with two others of his
Circle. Pastor Gerstenmaier, whose crime was likewise "reChristianising intentions," was acquitted, but the Jesuit was
inevitably condemned.
Father Delp found it hard to resign himself to die for he
loved life and was fully conscious of his powers. Six months'
solitary confinement, far from breaking his brilliant and sen·
sitive mind, seemed to bring it to its full maturity. "I often
feel full of grief," he wrote to his brethren "when I think
of all the things I so wanted to do. For I have' only now reallY
grown to my full stature. I'm more genuine and upright than
I used to be. My eyes have attained the plastic view of all
, dimensions, the clear vision of all perspectives. I'm overcom·
ing my s~ortcomings and limitations." His imprisonment was
a long retreat, and after four months of it on December 8,
1944, in the presence of a fellow-Jesuit se~t to him by his
Superior, and of a prison warden, he had made his final vows.
Up to his arrest he had preached regularly in two Munich
churches. In a vivid, forceful style, rich in original phrase-
�A JESUIT IN JAIL
67
ology, he strove to counter the terrible perversion of the human spirit which Nazism was achieving with such success,
even among Catholics. (Catholic Munich was proud of its title
of "The Capital of the Movement.") Naturally, he did not
condemn the regime openly, but we can see from his sermons
how deeply he felt the degradation of his country. "We are a
guilty, a terribly guilty, generation," he said more than once.
Thirty of these sermons have been published, and they make
wonderful reading- thought-provoking, stimulating, but
never easy.
His last essays and meditations, thought out as he paced
his tiny cell three steps each way, are a continuation of his
strenuous efforts to co-ordinate religion and life, to show that
the Christian system really does hang together. One must
admire a man who could think so deeply and write so finely
with the hangman's noose dangling before him, and Berlin
being bombed flat around him while he was locked and fettered
like an animal in a cage. He calmly examines the conditions
of inner freedom, true consolation and joy of soul-precious
fruits of the spirit garnered in his solitude. The future of
Christianity is his constant thought, above all the problem of
leakage. "If the churches continue to present the spectacle of
a wrangling Christendom, they are written off. We must re. sign ourselves to bear the division as historical destiny and as
: . a cross."
Ideal of Service
The primitive Christian ideal of deaconry, that is, service,
must come back. "The Son of Man came not to be served, but
to serve." And again: "Our Lord told us to go forth. He never
said: 'Sit down and wait for people to come to you.' The
approach of an exacting Church in the name of an exacting
God is no longer the right approach to this generation or the
coming ones. Between the clear conclusions of our fundamental
theology and the hearts of those who are to hear us lies a .
mountain of repugnance which experience of us has heaped
up. An honest future history will contain bitter chapters on
the contribution of the churches to the rise of dictatorships."
t An attitude of respect towards godly and godless alike must
C~e the place of clerical domination. "Representing the
urch, an arrogant person is always an evil." He is often
�68
A JESUIT IN JAIL
startlingly forthright. In a wonderful sermon on the priesthood, for instance, he says: "You must not call black white
and white black just because a person is a priest. It is up to
you to help these men to be better. Keep your eyes open and
speak up, not in cheap criticism but out of a sense of your
own responsibility for the Church."
His self-criticism was ruthless. "One must hold trials constantly in one's own heart, but they must be honest trials,
presided over by the Holy Spirit." Even his intimates were
astonished at the depth and vision and nearness to God shown
in the last notes and meditations published as Im Angesicht
des Todes (In Face of Death). It was said that Count Moltke,
in his year of solitary confinement, latterly with the Bible
his sole reading, had "penetrated to the core of Christianity."
Father Delp did so too, but in a different way, for by nature
he was no contemplative. In a lengthy meditation on the
Lord's Prayer he relates each sentence to the trials and pains
of our tortured world. His own plight lends poignant force
to his reflections-his hours of "helplessness and desperation."
" 'Lead us not into temptation.' Our Lord bids us pray to
be spared such hours. I advise everyone to take this petition
very seriously." On the Beatitudes: "To hunger and thirst
after justice," he reflects, "Only those who have counted the
hours from one piece of bread to the next can see the full force
of these words.''
Christmas Candle
In a meditation on the V eni Sancte Spiritus he harks back
again and again to the evils of the times, among them coldness
of he~rt, incapacity for religion: "Our capacity for both
adoration and love has atrophied.'' Plainly he himself did
not suffer from this. "The result of this time must be a great
inner passion for God and His Glory. My life from now on
must be a passion of testimony to the living God, for now I
have come to know and perceive Him, and He will confirm
my new life once it is freed for its new mission," he writes
on the last day of 1944. And on New Year's Day he writes:
"1.1.45, Jesus-! set this name of the Lord and of my Order
~t the beginning of the New Year. It stands for all I believe
m, hope for and pray for: inward and outward deliverance,
�A JESUIT IN JAIL
69
total and unreserved devotion, and early freedom from these
wretched irons."
A few days before the trial he wrote with his fettered hand:
"The Lord has lit a Christmas Candle of hope inside me."
Even after the verdict he wrote: "I still don't believe it will
be the gallows. Is it crazy to hope on, is it cowardice, or is it
grace? I often sit here before Our Lord and look at Him
questioningly."
Despite his handcuffs Father Delp contrived to celebrate
Mass many times secretly with hosts and wine smuggled in
with his laundry, and he kept the Blessed Sacrament on or
near his person. "I had the Sanctissimum with me during the
trial," he wrote to his brethren, "and before setting out I
celebrated. When I compare my serenity during the trial with
the stark terror I often felt during the raids on Munich, I
wonder whether this is not perhaps the miracle for which I
have been praying." In his last letter he thanks his brethren
for their love and support, asks forgiveness for his failings
towards them, exhorts them to infinite love and patience for
the blinded and misled German people, and begs them to care
for his aged and sick parents.
Then nine days after Moltke and the others had died, he
was taken away to the execution place at Plotensee. As his
friend and literary executor, Father Paul Bolkovac, wrote:
.- · "He died for the same cause that had given purpose and direction to his short but fruitful life: the interpretation of the
earthly in the light of the heavenly." He was 37 years old.
The Kreisau Circle
In 1940 Count Helmut von Moltke, adviser on international
law to the German High Command and son of a Scottish
mother, founded the moral resistance movement known as
the Kreisau Circle, which united Catholics and Protestants
to save Christianity and fight Nazism by non-violent meansspreading Christian propaganda, saving Jews and other
hunted persons, and other activities. Members ranged from
officers, diplomats, bishops, civil servants to typists, soldiers,
workers. Its password-was Griiss Gott, its weapon the Sword
of the Spirit, its first aim to save the soul of Germany. Its network operated underground even in the oc~upied countries.
�70
A JESUIT IN JAIL
After Moltke's arrest, many of the leaders turned in despair
to assassination plots and were executed. Among the few
prominent members who remain~d fait~fu~ to non-violent resistance. were the Bavarian J esmt Provmcml, Father August
Roesch who was in prison there when Berlin fell, and Pastor
Polcha~, Protestant chaplain of Father Delp's prison, Tegel.
GREATNESS
Greatness, genius, and talent do not always go together; but if greatness is the capacity to see a great goal and to make for it through
every obstacle, and at whatever cost, then whether genius or not,
Ignatius Loyola was great. Hitherto he had been devoted to a kingdom
that included half Europe, but even that had not been enough to awaken
the whole man within him. Now he saw a kingdom that embraced
all the world, and come what might he would take service in it. Hitherto
he had been content to take life as he found it, winning reputation
when opportunity came his way but making little enough of the fruit
of his life on those around him. Now he saw that there was a greater
honor than any he had so far known; not in mere ruling of men, but
in the making of them according to this new ideal. Hitherto he had
fashioned himself on the standard of men about him; now he knew that
there was a nobler standard than that, in the making himself to be and
to do whatever might best serve the new ideal. And to see was to
determine. Hitherto he had lived for nothing; now he had something to
live for. Where this determination was to lead him he did not know;
but he rose from his bed another man, with a definite goal before him,
to make himself and to make others like himself champions of the King
of the Universal Kingdom, and he pursued that goal unflinching to the
end.
ARCHBISHOP ALBAN GOODIER,
S.J.
��FATHER PAUL L. GREGG
�OBITUARY
FATHER PAUL L. GREGG, S.J.
1901-1955
Uncharacteristically, Father Paul L. Gregg, gracious gentleman, precise scholar, and exact religious priest, died
without that premeditated deliberateness which characterized
his manners and his morals, his legal and priestly studies,
and his exact observance of his religious obligations. He was
found dead in his room in Regis College, Denver, on September 22, 1955 some hours after his first heart attack. Never
robust or vigorous, yet always much about his Father's business, he had not sought medical attention and certainly
never complained of any ailment. Expecting a visit late in
the afternoon from his sister, he was at his class preparation
when death came.
Paul Lawrence Gregg was born in Wichita, Kansas, on
December 10, 1901, the youngest of six children of a respected family. His mother was of pioneer stock and exerted
a wholesome influence upon the Mexicans who were moving
into Wichita in numbers, long before social case work and
.catholic Action were so much as mentioned. Her youngest
-~on attended the parochial school at the Cathedral and later
the public high school of Wichita. All his life he was grateful
for the intellectual training he received in this public high
school. He spent his first two years of college at Old St.
Mary's, Kansas, where his penetration perceived the outstanding excellence of one instructor in English and the
comparative shallowness of certain ill-prepared and overburdened Scholastic instructors. He enrolled in the Georgetown School of Law, where in 1928, he took his degree of
bachelor of law. His diligence at the law books did not
~reclude occasional excursions into the social life of WashIngton society and into the cultural life of the capital with its
th.eatres, music halls and art galleries. He burned, to be sure,
With a hard gem-like flame, but despite the blandishments of
t~e Turbulent Twenties in the pre-Depression capital, he
himself was never burnt. In Jesuit, or at least Viennese
terminology, he was more a Stanislaus than a Paul Kostka.
�72
OBITUARIES
After graduation, he worked for a year as an administra.
tive clerk in the government of the District of Columbia,
and on September 2, 1929, he entered St. Stanislaus Seminary,
Florissant. Always respected and admired, he had a slightly
abbreviated course in the Society. His first teaching assign.
ment was at the Backer Memorial High School in St. Louis,
and, like many both before and after him, he thoroughly
enjoyed it. He returned to his native Kansas for his theology
at St. Mary's, where he was ordained on June 22, 1938. His
tertianship was made in Cleveland under Father McMenamy
of the later years. Back at Georgetown to get his degree of
master of laws, he had been urged ·to do this two years'
course in one and he forced himself to do precisely what
Superiors had asked. Returning to St. Louis for his last
vows in August 1941, he went immediately to The Creighton
University in Omaha, which was to be the scene of his work
as a professor of law and regent of the School of Law. His
tenure there was never quite normal. For the first period of
the War years, there was but a skeleton school. In the second
period after the War, there were too many law students for
too few competent instructors. In the third and final period,
the falling enrollment gave concern to both administration
and to Father Gregg. But under Father Gregg's firm but
kindly guidance, the legal objectives had been precisely
formulated, the standards were made exact and were exacted, and instruction and examinations were made effective.
Whatever Father Gregg did was characterized by high excellence.
Gracious Gentleman
Father Gregg impressed everyone as a gracious gentleman.
Newman's celebrated creation with all his social poise and
charm would have found himself improved upon by the finer
Christian traits discernible in Father Gregg. And underneath
h~s urba?ity and polish, Father Gregg was firm, just. He was
Simply mcapable of being unfair and he would not con·
sider compromising principle. As he was never in a hurry,
he would take his and the students' time to explain his
principles and to justify his application of them to a case.
In conversation, he was delightful, for his reading was
judicious and his observations were accurate; his wit and
�I'
OBITUARIES
73
!
1
t
his repartee were distinctively his own. Somewhat reserved,
and respecting always the sacred preserves of another man's
mind and preference, he avoided intimacy. He told you precisely, neither more nor less, what he wanted you to know.
At examen he did not have to reproach himself with being
carried away by his own conversation. He was cordial and
gentlemanly with all and friendly with but few, for he had
found in Christ an Intimate Friend who was all that he
needed or wanted.
Father Gregg was a man of scholarly habits and of constant
application to study and reflection. Possessed of neither great
physical stamina for sustained study nor brilliance of intellect, his great mental endowment was his precision of
thought and exactitude of expression. After teaching several
courses in law, he came to specialize, by exclusion, in torts.
Having been trained in his accurate academic arena under
ever mounting pressures his students began during the course
of the first year to think like lawyers. He constantly inculcated the highest ideals of the law, of justice, and of
equity, for he had nothing but scorn for legal legerdemain.
Those who heard his occasional sermons in St. John's
Church called him the Newman of Nebraska. This epithet
will at least indicate his style of preaching. In Denver more
. than in Omaha, he exercised apostolic zeal in taking supply.
.·
Deep Spirituality
To observe the gentleman and the scholar in Father Gregg
required no great penetration, to note his exactness in the
performance of his religious exercises required no special
acumen, but his deep spirituality was known to few, for he
made it a point of honor to hide it from those who were not
entitled to know. A stray note of his found after his death,
w~ich he had submitted to his Spiritual Father, makes this
Point clear.
"A contemplative priest will have a deep absorbing sense
of complicity with the Host before him on the altar-so
mu~h so that his Mass will be going on within him not only
While he is at the altar, but when he is away from it; at
many moments during the day, the broken Host lies on the
paten. But the fact that you are in possession of the secret,
�74
OBITUARIES
identifies you with the Host and with what is going on. And
without words or explicit acts of thought you make assent to
this within yourself simply by staying where you are and
looking on. There Christ develops your life into Himself like
a photograph. Then a continual Mass, a deep and urgent
sense of identification with an act of incomprehensible scope
and magnitude that somehow has its focus in the center of
your own soul, pursues you wherever you go; and in all
the situations of your daily life, it makes upon you secret and
insistent demands for agreement and consent.
"This truth is so tremendous that it is somehow neutral.
It cannot be expressed. It is entirely personal And you have
no special desire to tell anybody about it. It is nobody else's
business. Not even distracting duties and work will be able
to interfere with it altogether. You keep finding this anonymous Accomplice burning within you like a deep and peaceful
fire. Perhaps you will not be able completely to identify this
presence and this continuous action going on within you
unless it happens to be taking place formally on the Altar
before you, but at least then, obscurely, you will recognize in
the breaking of the bread the Stranger who was your companion yesterday and the day before. And like the disciples
at Emmaus you will realize how fitting it was that your
heart should burn within you when the incidents of your
day's work spoke to you of the Christ who lived and worked
and offered his Mass within you all the time."
This aspect of Father Gregg, hidden by his . urbanity,
scholarship, and religious exactitude, quite eluded everyone.
Possessing neither Xavier's zeal nor Bellarmine's brilliance,
neither Baldinucci's penitential practices nor de La Columbiere's gifts of contemplation, Father Gregg was, nevertheless, a true Jesuit who read over carefully the Sume et
Suscipe, weighed its words and considered its implications.
Then he repeated it deliberately and meant precisely what he
said. For ~wenty-six years, according to his abilities and
graces, he gave all that this Ignatian oblation promised. At
the Grand Review, Ignatius will surely recognize Father Paul
Gregg as one of his true sons and Christ too will know hiill
as His holy priest.
PAUL
F.
SMITH, S. J,
��BROTHER PETER DEMPSEY
�OBITUARIES
75
BROTHER PETER DEMPSEY
1877 - 1955
At the advanced age of seventy-eight, Brother Peter Dempsey died piously in the Lord at Weston College on January
18, 1955, having spent forty-one years in the Society.
The facts of his early life were obtained from his aged
sister. Born in a rural district, at Knockatoher Kiltula, near
Athenry, County Galway, Ireland, December 13, 1877, he was
one of eleven children-eight brothers and three sisters. As
frequently happens in Irish families, one of the brothers
studied for the priesthood. Because of his scholarly attainments Father Thomas Dempsey was, after a few years,
appointed president of Galway University. He died at the
early age of thirty-nine. In Ireland today, there are several
priests and many nuns, descendants of Brother Peter's
brothers and sisters.
Needless to remark, the Dempseys lived in a thoroughly
Catholic atmosphere. Every evening before a statue of Our
Lady at which a vigil light was kept burning, the family
assembled to say the Rosary. "All my brothers and sisters,"
writes his sister, "were deeply religious." Of her Jesuit
.:brother she says, "Brother Peter was pious from his boyhood.
He got his vocation to be a Jesuit brother at a mission. I
thank God to have had so wonderful a brother. When he
wrote me his letters were like hearing the priest give a sermon
at Mass."
From his family we learn that Peter was a daily communicant while living as a layman and that he was godfather
for the children of his relatives and business associates. Befo:e entering the novitiate he enrolled his fourteen godchildren as perpetual members in the purgatorial society of
the Mission Church, Roxbury, conducted by the Redemptorist
Fathers. Just how long Peter had been in America before
entering religion on August 29, 1914 at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., at the age of thirty-seven, none
of his relatives could remember. But the impression gained
Was that he came over while in his early twenties. It was
also recalled that in his quiet way he was apostolic and
�76
OBITUARIES
exercised a religious influence upon the men among whom he
worked. That is why he became a kind of professional godfather.
Manuductor
For the externals of his religious life we now turn to the
Province catalogues. There we find that after taking his
vows, he was appointed rnanuductor of the novice Coadjutor
Brothers at Poughkeepsie, an office which he held for nine
years until transferred to Shadowbrook. He remained there
but one year, being still listed as rnanuductor. Consulting one
of the older brothers who was a novice under him, it was
learned that Brother Peter was kindly and orderly, that he
had the gift of leadership, and that there was no friction.
A more circumstantial description of the manuductor was
happily provided by a distinguished Father of the New
England Province. He writes, "When I carne to St. Andrew-.
on-Hudson in 1916, Brother Dempsey was in charge of the
clothesroom. He had much to do with the novices, because
the delicate ones had their trial under him and all had
to help him sort the wash on Sunday. We found him
pleasant but a hustler who kept us going. There was no
loitering in the clothesroorn with Brother Dempsey in charge.
He was not demanding but he had a way with him that
kept us moving. He had an even philosophy of life, which
was summed up in a favorite expression. When the novices
lamented their hard lot and the burdens they had to bear,
invariably they would hear-'Brothers, that's the way we
win our crown!'
"Brother Dempsey was much more lively in those days at
St. Andrew. He was beadle of the novice Brothers and enjoyed
the confidence of Father Pettit. He seemed continually on
the go but it was about the Father's business. He was always
cheerful, affable, and approachable. So when I went in later
years to v!sit him at Weston and observed that he was almost
a recluse, I was much surprised. The reason, I was told, was
the great pain Brother suffered.
"I recall that at St. Andrew his dearest friend was Brother
Fehily. One often saw them walking together. I think theY
entered about the same time. One more thing. They used to
�OBITUARIES
77
say that Brother knew all the novices by the numbers of their
clothes boxes. He was often quoted as saying, 'I don't know
your name, but I do know your number.' I was deeply impressed by his constant, solid and practical piety."
While at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Brother Peter was entrusted with charge of the clothesroom and of the wine cellar.
During the last five years he assumed the added duty of visitor during religious exercises. After his year at Shadowbrook he was sent to Boston College, but stayed there only
a few months. Then he was transferred to Weston College
where he spent the remaining twenty-five years of his life. For
three years, beginning in 1930, he is listed as having charge
of the dining room, a difficult and responsible position. Then
for three years he is marked Ad domum, which meant that
he took care of the rooms on the faculty corridor. The next
three years he was sacristan. And finally, until 1953 he is
again marked Ad domum. He did what work he could until
he became so sick and feeble with advancing years that he
could work no more. In 1953 we find after his name, Orat
pro Societate. For him this was a new vocation to the purely
contemplative life. Relieved of all external occupation, he
was to devote the rest of his days to prayer, penance and
meditation. So much for the catalogue.
Interior Life
Our knowledge of the interior man is derived from the
impressions of those who lived with him during his quarter
of a century at Weston. All of Ours reverenced him as one
~ho was bravely carrying on in the midst of constant suffermg. He used to say, "It is good for a Brother to have headaches, for in this way he can gain merit without ceasing to
work. But it would not be the same for a Father or Scholastic." After his death one of the Fathers remarked that it
was a custom among the Scholastics, when one of them had
a serious intention to be prayed for, to ask the prayers of
Brother Dempsey.
The esteem in which he was held by the community is well
e;emplified by a letter he wrote to a niece on the occasion
~T~he deat~ of his brother Bernard at the age of eighty-four.
e superior here had Bernard's death announced from the
�78
OBITUARIES
pulpit during dinner asking for Masses and prayers. A number of the Fathers told me they had offered a Mass for the
repose of his soul. The theologians and philosophers presented
me with a beautiful spiritual bouquet as a token of sympathy:
Masses, Communions, beads and visits to the Blessed Sacrament. The Brothers also were very kind. I sent the bouquet
to his wife by air-mail."
Brother Peter was a copious letter writer. He loved to put
his thoughts on paper and this, no doubt, accounts for his
readiness and fluency in speaking of sacred things. He had
meditated long years on the Gospel story; he had caught
something of the spirit of St. Paul from whom he so often
quoted. Like the great Apostle he, too, spoke of his sufferings,
but only to a few of his intimate friends among the Fathers
and to some of his relatives.
In August 1954, about a month before going to the hospital
for his last operation, he writes, "I really had a bad spell.
It is human nature to tell those whom we love when we are
hard pressed. Our Blessed Lord in the garden of Gethsemani
told his three apostles that his soul was sorrowful even unto
death. He confided his troubles to them. He also asked his
Father to take away, if possible, this chalice from Him. But
He immediately adds, 'Not my will but thine be done.' Our
Blessed Lord has given us an example of how to act on such · '
occasions." Then passing on to the mystical body Brother
says, "We have to make reparation for the delinquent ones
in order to win the grace of conversion for them from the
Sacred Heart of Jesus. My life is devoted to this great ob·
ject, so I must expect much suffering."
Sufferings
His sufferings increased with the years. In 1953, cancer
developed in his left jaw and neck. He was hurriedly anointed
by a Passionist Father at St. Elizabeth's hospital and then
operated on. In five days he was home again. The next year,
in September 1954, he was again at the hospital for internal
cancer and this time remained there for six weeks after hiS
operation. Needless to say, he edified the nuns and the nurses
by his obedience, cheerfulness and by the little spiritual talkS
he gave them. The devoted ladies spoke of him as a saint.
�OBITUARIES
79
For years this old man, shut off from recreation with his
brethren because of his almost total deafness, had been leading a lonely life in the world of the supernatural. He could
hardly speak of anything else; with him all things led quickly
back to God.
And yet he managed to keep in touch with current events.
In 1950 he writes, "All our poor soldiers in the war in Korea
need our prayers. Death is staring them in the face all the
time." Again in '52, "I offer all the Masses said in the U.S. A.
for our newly elected president that God may enlighten him
and his cabinet to do the right thing." Quoting from Bishop
Sheen he says, "There is no defense against the atom bomb
except to keep in the state of grace."
A year before his death, he writes to tell his nephew how
he spends his day. "I am devoting my everyday life to the
service of Christ. I get up at five, wash up and go to the
chapel, make my morning offering and all my intentions.
Then Mass and Holy Communion in one of the small chapels.
After my thanksgiving, I meditate and pray until almost
8 A.M., when I go to breakfast. Afterwards, a visit to the
Blessed Sacrament and the Way of the Cross. I go to my
room and say Rosaries for various intentions. The Lord has
given me the grace to pray. So He keeps me busy most of
· the day and sometimes part of the night. We can do nothing
.··in the spiritual line without Christ. Of myself I am nothing.
With all humility I am just telling you how I spend my latter
days in the service of the Lord."
His writings show that he was well instructed in theology
and had done considerable reading and had meditated deeply
on heavenly things. They run the gamut of subjects from
the ~ypostatic union to ejaculatory prayers. To quote a few
of his remarks to a relative: "St. Augustine says, 'It is a
greater thing to save a soul than to create heaven and
earth.' Every human being has cost the blood of the Son
of God," he adds. And then, "Thank God He has given me
the grace to lead a life of prayer for this erid.'' This was
Brother Peter's favorite devotion and the intention for which
he offered his prayers and sufferings, "To gain the grace of
conversion for poor souls dying in mortal sin." He had caught
the spirit of the Kingdom: his piety was dynamic and Igna-
�80
OBITUARIES
tian. Again he writes, "No man living can be compared with
the priest or bishop. Through their power, Jesus is always
in our midst." In another letter he learnedly remarks, "St.
Thomas says, 'Sanctifying grace is a participated similitude
of the Divine Nature of God.'" He quotes from St. Margaret
Mary, "Christ gives his Heart and his Love as a gift to those
He Loves."
No one who knew Brother Peter ever imagined that he
overstepped his grade and turned preacher. He simply stated
in his gentle way what was close to his heart. When speaking
to a priest he would humbly ask, "Am I correct in this
matter?" In another letter, after composing an enthusiastic
paragraph on the privilege of being a Catholic, he says to
his nephew, "I don't intend to give you a spiritual conference.
You do not need it. It is just a little heart to heart talk. It
will help both of us to keep spiritual motives in mind."
As he grew weaker, the tone of his letters to his relatives
grew more urgent. Once after beseeching a nephew nevet to
forget the morning offering, he attempts to excuse his insistence saying, "I am not only your uncle, I am also your godfather.'' At another time, "I have asked the Holy Spirit to
tell me what to say to you."
The last days of Brother Dempsey were most edifying.
To cause the infirmarian as little trouble as possible, he used
to drag himself from bed and twice he fell on the floor and
bruised himself. He never complained but was always grateful to those who helped him. For several weeks before he
died he could take no solid food. During the night he prayed
that God would give him the privilege of receiving Holy Communion in the morning. For many years he had eaten so
little that the workmen in the kitchen used to wonder hoW
he kept alive.
He once confided to an intimate friend that for years
he had prayed that his mind would remain clear until the end.
This favor was granted him. During his last illness though
dreadfully weak, he managed to arouse himself and give each
visitor a little spiritual talk. On New Year's morning he
said to an intimate friend, "This will be a happy year for
me. I shall soon be with Our Blessed Lord, his Mother and
the saints." But he added, "I don't want to die until God
��,,.«!?
*'
··.~.
RICHARD NEUBECK
�OBITUARIES
81
calls me." And then with a smile, "I shall remember you
when I go to heaven."
He died peacefully and without a struggle. A venerable
Father and a young Scholastic who were watching said the
prayers for the dying. Not until the last day shall we know
the number of souls saved through the prayers and sufferings
of this humble and zealous member of the mystical body.
Brother Peter Dempsey, we may be sure, still continues to
fulfill in heaven the last assignment given him on earth, orat
pro Societate.
GEORGE T. EBERLE, S.J.
MR. RICHARD NEUBECK
The papers gave him only the paid obituary notices. The
annals of the Diocese might not even show his name. Jesuit
histories are apt to pass over him in silence. But Dick Neubeck, who died suddenly last week at the age of 28, deserved
more than well of Jesuits, the Church and New York.
He had fulfilled a long life in a short time, and when he
went to his reward while in a restaurant on Broadway, countless people lost an inspiration hard to equal-or, maybe,
found a patron close to God. Boy Scouts crowded the funeral
parlor at his wake, older Explorers stood by their side. A
woman alcoholic whom he kept ahead of her problem these
last two years consoled a priest who knew he had lost his
best friend.
On Earth Long Enough
Truly, Dick Neubeck was different. No one called him by his
Christian name, Richard. Yet no one who knew him failed
to recognize what a Christian he really was. Even the
Jewish men and women who daily rubbed shoulders with
him in his Broadway office perceived that in him Christianity
-
Reprinted from the Brooklyn Tablet, October 15, 1955.
�82
OBITUARIES
had an exponent whose life was more eloquent than any
apologetic text. And as he lay in death a Protestant yo~th
who scarcely knew him, moved by what he heard of D1ck,
asked a priest to start giving him instructions.
Dick Neubeck's life was full of zeal, of zeal based on faith
in Christ and a yen to bring men to Him. Even the Broadway
cop who went through his clothing minutes after he had
fallen dead, upon finding a pocket missal and a picture of
Christ, asked: "Why must it be a guy like this?" The answer
seems to be that the Lord had left him long enough on earthlong enough, as one boy put it, to get Gonzaga under way.
And after that He summoned him. For Gonzaga, the Jesuit
Retreat House for youth, the first place of its kind in the
United States, owes its life to Dick Neubeck and, in part
at least, contributed to what he was.
It was only a dream five years ago this month, when
Divine Providence caused a dreaming Jesuit to cross young
Neubeck's path. What others smiled about and thought impossible-that a Retreat House for youth might be built by
volunteers with scarcely any money-Dick saw as an ac·
complished fact. The architect and builder who saw the site
at Monroe the first time Neubeck did became less vocal all
the time, while Dick who had been introduced to the idea
a mere three days before became increasingly optimistic. By
nightfall he was making plans, and after the planning was
done was making regular trips to Monroe to turn them into ··
reality.
It took thirteen months of labor and some three hundred
volunteers to turn this Seven Springs Mountain House, site
of George M. Cohan's "Seven Keys to Baldpate," into Gon·
zaga Retreat House, but thirteen months proved no obstacle
to Neubeck. He worked by day and by night, with hammers,
sledges and saws, with concrete and wood and metal-with
anything he had, to get the project done. But most of all he
worked with boys and men, giving them his own inspiration
that they might give themselves as he had done.
Worked in Cold and Rain
Time after time, he'd corral them for a fervorino: "I kno'N
it's cold out there, and the rain isn't pleasant either. But
�OBITUARIES
83
what's cold or rain when you're building a Retreat House?
Just try to realize that other boys will be coming heremaybe for hundreds of years-thousands and thousands of
them, coming here to make a closed retreat. If only one of
them is able to save his soul because of a retreat here, what
difference does it make if you or I contract pneumonia in
getting the building up?"
That was Dick Neubeck. What difference would it make if
something happened to him, so long as he could be of help to
another? What difference did it make if he had to construct a
scaffold by night with the headlights of his car to guide the
strokes of his hammer? What difference did it make if he had
to paint at four o'clock in the morning? Wasn't he helping
to build Gonzaga Retreat House? And wasn't he helping to
build boys into men in the process?
The fact that during this time he was already overburdened
never entered his mind. Sickness at home and troubles in his
New York office were things needing attention and he gave
his best to them, but nothing needed his help more than his
Retreat House. To it he gave all he had. His reward came
only in the knowledge that in its first three years of existence
over 7,000 boys had made the Spiritual Exercises in the
Retreat House he made for them.
Yet his labors for Gonzaga did not cease when it was built.
Frequently he worked there and brought others along with
him to improve still more the product of his hands.
Honored by Boy Scouts
By trade he was no mechanic. Ladies' clothing was his
l~ne. Merchandising his specialty. But youth was his avocation and for their sake and for Christ to whom he would
lead them, any other line or trade or specialty was something
he would acquire, if acquiring it meant bringing the One
to the other. That's how he gained the know-how for the
construction of Gonzaga. That's how for years before he
saw Monroe he had his know-how in Scouting-know-how
enough to enable him to organize and maintain a troup of
Scouts while serving with the Army in Germany, know-how
enough to become one of Queens County top Scout leaders.
That's how he interested older boys for his Explorer Scouts
�84
OBITUARIES
in his parish in Queens Village, revitalizing Post 170 and
organizing Post 171. Just a week before his death his Scouting efforts were recognized when he received a trophy for his
exhausting labors this summer at the Queens Scout Camp
at Ten Mile River, N. Y. And now that he is gone, he will
receive the only tribute a Retreat House can pay, a bronze
plaque at the base of the Boy Saviour statue which he
loved at Gonzaga, bearing the inscription: "Until the One
shall introduce you to the other, please pray for the soul
of Gonzaga's Dick Neubeck, July 27, 1927-0ctober 3, 1955"
and his own words from his dedication day address given on
June 7, 1952: "No Jesuit really planned this house. But then
again, He was a Jesuit-though a very youthful one. He had
calloused hands, because they were the hands of a carpenter,
and He planned Gonzaga a very long time ago. Had He cared
to do so, He could have built it alone. But He wanted to
share with us the privilege of building it and we are here
today to express our gratitude for the privilege conferred
on us."
JOHN W. MAGAN, S.J.
THE PORTUGUESE EMPIRE
:he Portuguese Empire was the pioneer of Christianity in Eastern
Asia and opened the way for men like St. Francis Xavier and St. John de
B~itto, who are among the greatest missionaries of any age. Yet their
failure was equally apparent, and it was St. Francis Xavier himself
who passed judgment when he wrote to King John III: "Experience bas
taught me that Your Highness has no power in India for the spread
o~ the faith of Christ, but only to carry off and enjoy all the temporal
riches of the country. Because I know what goes on here, I have no
hope tha; ~om~ands or rescripts sent in favor of Christianity will be
fulfilled m India; and therefore I am almost fleeing to Japan not to
waste any more time." Whatever the intentions of the government the
forces at its disposal were far too weak for this immense task,' and
the effort to sustain the burden of empire exhausted both the physical
and moral resources of the nation.
CHRISTOPHER DAWSON
1
�Books of Interest to Ours
FRESHNESS AND BEAUTY
The Eternal Shepherd. Third Series. By Thomas H. Moore, S.J.
Apostleship of Prayer, New York, 1954. Pp. xi-83. $2.00.
In this third volume of a series of four, Father Moore continues his
meditations on the life of Christ through the last six months of his
earthly life, "Towards Jerusalem" and the "Lengthening Shadows." He
says of the Lord's Prayer (p. 19), "How simple the words, of one
and two syllables; the phraseology of a child! Yet when they are said
a masterpiece is spoken. It was the genius of Christ to put into littleness
the deep thoughts which center around the Fatherhood of God, our
need to worship Him, our place as creatures in the eternal plans of
Divine Providence." It would seem that the author imitates Our Lord
and shares in this mark of a genius. For the gracious simplicity and
clarity of his expression has a freshness and beauty wholly in keeping
with the distinguished simplicity of the Gospels. He does not reexplore
or reassess or even "remint the banal and the obvious" but there is a
telling vitality in his skillful weaving of practical, up-to-date applications into the fabric of the selected Gospel scenes making them strikingly alive and meaningful for present-day readers. To many it should
prove a splendid source of hope and encouragement. It could also
lead others "to new evaluations." This little book is to be highly
recommended for every Catholic home. One can learn how to ponder
in one's heart much in the way one learns a language not through
grammar books but by living in a place where it is spoken. For Ours
it can serve as a book for points and is an excellent source for sermon
ideas. The vital simplicity found in every page can bring a breath of
fresh air into the stuffy climate of over familiarity with the Gospel
story.
EMMANUEL V. NON, S.J.
PAINLESS CHIDING
Listen, Sister Superior. By John E. Moffatt, S.J. New York, McMullen
Books, Inc., 1953. Pp. 208. $2.75.
Because of his knowledge of the ways of women superiors and of
nuns, gleaned from years of experience as a retreat director, no one
~a:h:etter qu~lified to write this book than Father Moffatt. Only he,
"th . expression may be pardoned, can tell superiors off and get away
;I. It. His chidings in this collection of chats with superiors are
am1ess and betray an understanding of the problems coupled with
constructive suggestions. One will find the same fresh treatment, com~0~ sense, and spiritual humor that characterized his Listen, Sister.
a er Moffatt does not attempt to say something new. But the ordinary
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BOOK REVIEWS
topics that can become dry matter for an agonizing conference come to
life under his clever pen. Of the virtues which should be cultivated by a
superior, Father Moffatt highlights holiness, humility, prudence, fairness,
kindness and good example. In offering suggestions to superiors, he
avoids ~aking his book a mere examination of conscience by giving
motives and by suggesting positive attitudes and behaviours. He also
handles the question of spiritual directors with delicacy.
This is not a book merely for superiors. In pointing out their obligations concerning points of religious discipline and spirit such as unworldliness, poverty, common life, silence, obedience, the meaning of
the Cross, Father Moffatt draws out reflections for every nun and gives
the subject an insight into the superior's problem.
VITALIANO ..R. GOROSPE,
S.J.
RECOMMENDED
My Daily Bread. A Summary of the Spiritual Life. By Anthony J.
Paone, S.J. Brooklyn, Confraternity of the Precious Blood, 1954.
Pp. 439.
This is the latest of the popular publications of the C.P.B., designed
to bring the truths of our faith into the hands of every Catholic.
The book has 197 chapters which are divided into three well-ordered
parts: the way of purification, imitation, and union. Each chapter
likewise has three divisions: first, a message from Christ on some
aspect of the spiritual life; second, a brief summary designed to help
reflection; third, a concluding prayer about the matter in hand. The
chapters are brief and easily lend themselves to a daily five or six
minute period of reflective reading.
The reader will recognize the similarity of this book in style and
content to The Imitation of Christ. The author has tried to clothe what
is best in The Imitation in modern, everyday dress, while ordering it
according to the Spiritual Exercises. He has succeeded. The language
is simple; yet it retains the dignity one expects when Christ speaks
to a disciple. Though the book lacks the fullness of The Imitation on
some points, it has the advantage of uniformly short chapters, and
the simple, clear statement of many spiritual truths expressed obliquely
in The Imitation. The book can be recommended without hesitation to
any layman.
E. L.
MOONEY,
S.J.
PIONEER ATTEMPT
Philosophical Psychology. By J. F. Donceel, s.J.
and Ward, 1955. Pp. xiii-363.
New York, Sheed
This is a textbook for the psychological section of the course in
scholastic philosophy and it covers the ground usually cove" ed in such
r
�BOOK REVIEWS
87
manuals. There are, however, a few features worthy of special attention.
The last three parts, entitled: Human Sense Life, Human Rational Life,
and Man as a Person, are each divided into an experimental section
and a philosophical section. The experimental section presents the
findings of modem psychological science, sketchily since it is not intended
to substitute for a regular course in experimental psychology. The
philosophical section presents the traditional Scholastic positions in a
vital way. This juxtaposition of the experimental and the philosophical
brings out the relation between science and philosophy. Each has its
own proper approach, method, and area of investigation. One cannot be
reduced to the other. But once this difference and distinction is realized,
then the two can work together and can throw light on each other.
The philosophical treatment of human knowledge is a pleasant surprise. It is free from that overemphasis which scholastic manuals usually
put on the dictum, "There is nothing in the intellect which was not
previously in the senses." Father Donceel calls attention to that other
Thomistic dictum, "The more perfect knowledge is, the more it comes
from within."
When you drive at night on a highway, the road signs stand out in
clear light. That light seems to come from the signs, although
actually it comes from your own headlights. You may not see
the light of your car, except as reflected on the signs, yet it is the
light of your own car. Thus our intellect sees objects in its own
light, the light of the first principles. That light seems to come
from the objects; in reality it comes from our intellect, and what
we see in the object is its reflection (p. 140).
The obvious debt to Father Marecbal is frequently acknowledged. This
emphasis on the interiority of the intellectual act might lead the reader
to expect a similar treatment of the interiority of volition, especially in
- the act of love. The expectation is not fulfilled. The philosophical treatt_nent of the human personality leans heavily on J. Mouroux's The Meanmg of Man. To sum up: this book attempts to relate the latest findings
of science and philosophy in the field of psychology. As a pioneer attempt, it is remarkably successful.
MARIO DELMIRANI, S.J.
RE-EDUCATION
Ac:h" • Peace of Heart. By Narciso Irala, S.J. Translated by Lewis
Dlevmg
~ elmage, S.J. New York, Joseph F. Wagner, Inc., 1954. Pp. xvi-189.
op3.50.
th Father Irala's book may well be one of the more valuable among
A e cur:ent spate of books offering the reader peace of mind or soul.
Spamsh Jesuit, now working in Nicaragua, be writes from a background of professional skill in a thoroughly popular manner. Using
~SYchological principles learned under Father Laburu, S.J. at Rome and
r. Arthus at Lausanne, the author unrl_lvels the mental problems
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BOOK REVIEWS
that beset the hurried man of today. Stressing the psychosomatic
nature of these difficulties, Irala enumerates their common symptoms,
explains the origins of such disturbances, and then offers concrete
methods to overcome them. Fundamental to his approach is the distinction between man's receiving and producing powers. Irala associates
man's receiving powers with passivity and rest, his productive powers
with activity and ensuing fatigue. When man consciously or unconsciously tries to receive sensations and attend to ideas at the same
time, fatigue and confusion follow. By re-educating himself, man can
both increase his active output and re-create his tired or troubled mind.
This re-education is both theoretical and practical. First a man must
understand how body and mind are affected by impressions be receives
and ideas he creates and colors. Then he can go on to practice the
detailed exercises offered by the author. Out of context these exercises
may seem jejune or ineffectual. Thus the timely warning that "without having put them into · practice you will find it hard to understand
the utility of this part of the book." Throughout the book one is
reminded of the lgnatian pattern, e.g., in the particular examen, of
following out some aim with concrete means whose efficacy depends
upon frequent repetition. Persons prone to indecision or emotional
instability will find most helpful the graded hints to overcome these
tendencies by positive actions. A notable feature of the book are the
excellent schematic summaries at the end of each chapter. Each one
could easily form the basis of a lecture or conference. Father Delmage
deserves thanks for making this valuable book available to English
readers. While it does not ·pretend to solve more serious psychic dis·
orders, it can give definite help to those suffering from ordinary psychosomatic ailments. Furthermore many healthy people will find it useful
in acquiring greater efficiency and contentment in their work. Finally
anyone interested in professional or casual guidance will gain new or
clearer insights into human problems and their solutions. The book
could well be on the "must" list for college students and seminarians.
EDWARD L. MooNEY,
s.J.
EMPHASIS ON LEISURE
Looking Beyond. By Lin Yutang. Prentice Hall, N. Y. 1955. 387 PP·
The time of this novel is the future, after war shall have destroyed
most of. the civilized world as it is known today. A group of refugees
from Europe form a community in Thainos, a Pacific island which haS
so f~r eluded all map makers. Dr. Laos, the man whose philosophY
fashioned the community, is of · Greek and Chinese ancestry· he pre~umably combines the best of both cultures. The Thainian w~y of life
IS based on a partial retreat from the world of machines and on an
emph~sis on leisure. Man must overcome the feverish hurry to which
machmes have enslaved him and take time to look at life and taste
�,·
89
BOOK REVIEWS
its excellence. This way of life, however, suffers from a fatal weakness:
it is not founded on absolute values. It is founded on tolerance-not
Christian tolerance that springs from love of all men, but the bloodless
tolerance of the dilettante who is too weary to search for truth and
has decided to contemplate beautiful and graceful things-while other
men believe what they please. This weakness is most evident in those
incidents where Dr. Laos can use only force, and even cruelty, to
keep members of the community from leaving the island. But perhaps
this story was written in a light moment when the author wished to
combine humor with philosophy. If such is the case, he will excuse us
if we refuse to take his ideas seriously and dismiss them with a quiet
smile.
ROQUE FERRIOLS, S.J.
TRICKS AND DEVICES
Deception in Elizabethan Comedy. By John V. Curry, S.J. Chicago,
Loyola University Press, 1955. Pp. viii-197. $3.50.
"Jesuit Studies" has sponsored this scholarly work. Father Curry
establishes the thesis that the tricks, devices, and stratagems, in which
Elizabethan comedy abounds, are not mere episodes providing incidental
entertainment but are put to a number of structural and functional
uses. In particular, the manipulations and maneuvers of the deceivers
contribute materially to the dramatic movement of the plot. As he considers scores of plays and characters, the author manifests a thorough
acquaintance with his field. This erudition, however, would have been
:vasted in this study save for a remarkable job of organization. An
1
~troductory chapter clearly explains the point of the thesis and outlines the method to be pursued. Where necessary, distinctions are
n:tade and definitions given. Each chapter announces the matter to be
~.overed and later summarizes findings. The result is that the main
In~s of the thesis are ever dominant. The book considers the following
topics: the agents of deception; their victims; examples of dupers who
;ere duped; the means employed by dupers; and the appeal that
heception had for Elizabethan audiences. A good deal of this ground
. as been covered before but not under the aspect that this thesis
~~v~~ves. The author, however, indicates in footnotes where some other
1
oru e.s of devices and characters may be found. The clarity and
tyga~zation already remarked upon are significant in a work of this
thfse ecause it will probably be used mostly as a reference book. To
we! purpose the very complete index and the ample bibliography are
come contributions.
EDWARD
F.
MALONEY,
S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
CRITICS BY THE BUSHEL
Directions In Contemporary Criticism and Literary Scholarship. B11
James Craig La Driere, 114 pp., Milwaukee; The Bruce Publishing
Company, $2.75.
Dr. La Driere's book is not an attempt to analyse the tenets or the
numerous schools of criticism which have appeared in the present
century. The assumptions and the practice of the impressionistic,
historical, social, psychological, neo-humanistic and analytic critics
have been discriminated and described by Zabel in Literary Opinion in
America, by O'Connor in an Age of Criticism, and more recently by
Osborne in Aesthetics and Criticism. The present book is a lecture,
rewritten and in its first half rather over-written. No lecture of
tolerable length could escape banality which endeavored to traverse
such a wide and trampled field. Dr. La Driere has taken a wiser course.
He offers us an historical and mildly philosophical meditation on tbe
causes of the bewildering diversity which meets the eye glancing through
the literary journals of England, France, Germany, and, beyond all the
rest, of America.
The first and most obvious cause of this diversity is explained by
the differences in culture between the various publics which criticism
endeavors to serve. The plain man, unless he is very plain indeed,
turns to the literary pages of his magazine or Sunday paper to learn
something of the contents and quality of the newest books. The
college man will refresh and widen his acquaintance with established
authors by reading the critical biographies and studies which are
written on the level of competent university lecturing. Finally, professors
write books for professors, calling attention to newly discovered
influences and analogies, considering novel theories, or exemplifying
some refinement in critical method developed by one or other of the
contending schools. If criticism is to advance La Driere observes, and
by no means superfluously, critics should occ~sionally write for critics
with painfully exact logic and precision, and hence in what will strike
the public as painful jargon.
The . second cause of multiplicity, diversity and contradiction bas
been hmted at. Modern critics do not agree on what literature or even
c.ri.ticism is. T~is i.s an entirely natural result of the impact of Rom~·
tlcism and Sc1enbsm upon the neoclassical synthesis affected dunng
th~. ~ighteenth century. Romanticism has produced impressioni~C
cntlci~~·. Scientism has produced historical, sociological and psycho~ogt·
cal crlbc1sm. A reversion to classicism and neoclassicism has g~ven
birth to the neo-Aristotelianism of the University of Chicago of which
the analytical "form" or "new" criticism of Cleanth Brooks' seems to
be the ally or foster-brother
To any of us who are con;ent to go on in "the good old way," that is,
the way of the old Society, this lecture is prescribed reading. Pius X~
has. given us a mandate. "Quidquid boni nova aetas protulen' 1d
·
•t r
societas vestra ad majorem Dei gloriam applicabit." Perhaps afte
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BOOK REVIEWS
reading this book and a fair portion of the sources indicated in the
notes we may retain our faith that literature is in some sense imitation
and that the chief instrument in stylistic training is again, but in a
different sense, imitation. We may indeed; but if so, it will be with an
awareness of the difficulties of our position and of the real advances
that have been made since the days of Rapin, LeJay and even of
Kleutgen, in one of the most subtle and exacting of the arts.
J. A. SLATTERY, S.J.
TEXT FOR COLLEGE PHILOSOPHY
Introductory Metaphysics. By Avery Dulles, S.J., James Demske, S.J.,
and Robert O'Connell, S.J. New York, Sheed and Ward, 1955. Pp.
345. $4.50.
:
In many of our colleges the Junior philosophy course now covers a
sequence of epistemology, ontology, cosmology, and natural theology
in one year, with logic disposed of at the end of the Sophomore year.
The present volume is designed as a textbook to cover all the matter
of Junior philosophy save epistemology. It has been written by three
young teachers who pooled their ideas and their teaching experience in
three different colleges, Fordham, St. Peter's, and Canisius. All things
considered, it is about the best thing on the market for its specific
Purpose that .we have seen.
First of all, the pedagogical method is good. The material is treated
as a sequence of interconnected problems, one leading naturally into
another, with careful attention to the genesis of both problems and
concepts in experience. As a result, the student is led to realize that
the. study of philosophy is a systematic, progressive inquiry into the
ultimate intelligibility of his own experience and not a mere assimilation
: ready-made answers handed down by tradition. Within each problem,
0
• • the manner of treatment is pedagogically sound and faithful. There
18
first a rather full presentation of the question itself, then a brief
su~mary of the principal opinions of other philosophers, next a working
~~ d?f the solution by discursive analysis, following the natural method
a d ~covery of the mind rather than the strait jacket of the syllogism,
e~ph n~U~ a brief summing up of the analysis in syllogistic form. The
Pro f asis 15 on problem and analysis rather than on elaborate formal
0
the ~ or long catalogues of definitions and divisions of terms. Yet
to ~e ~s enough of a clear, formal, structure, typographically highlighted,
S a e the book an efficient tool for review and repetition.
can eco~dl!, and this is a point for which no pedagogical efficiency
of gsu s.tttute, the doctrinal content of the book manifests a great deal
blindenume metaphysical intelligence, though not without occasional
ilium· sp~ts. The intelligence comes out in many little ways, such as
cruci I~ati~g su?plementary explanations, warnings and qualifications on
a POints m proofs often oversimplified by textbooks, etc. Major
�92
BOOK REVIEWS
development is wisely given to ontology and natural theology, with the
essential parts of cosmology either worked in under the other two in
connection with change and finality or brought together in a speeial
appendix on space, time, quantity, etc. The doctrine is solidly Thomistic,
drawing its inspiration to a considerable degree from the Gilsonian
existential tradition as well as from the participation doctrine of De
Raeymaeker and the Louvain school.
The principal criticisms I would make bear on the order of exposition
and a few points of doctrine. It is quite legitimate to start, as the
authors do, with the question of how we know essences, but this should
be marked off more clearly as a preliminary epistemological problem
and not an ontological one. The first ontological problems studied
are the existence of real multiplicity in being and the problem of change.
The explanation of the meaning of being and its transcendental properties is taken up only later, after the distinction of essence and existence.
This order has the disadvantage of making the student begin the study
of being without any adequate analysis of precisely what its object
means and just what the inquiry is all about. It is fortunate, however,
that the analysis of each problem has been made as far as possible
internally self-sufficient, so that it is quite feasible for the teacher to
rearrange the chapters with minor changes in almost any order he
prefers.
The principal criticisms in the line of doctrine have to do with the
treatment of contingency and finality. The definition of contingency by
the capacity (or indifference) to exist or not exist, rather than by the
absence of the sufficient reason within a being for the existence which
it has, has always seemed to me an unhappy one, subject to not a fevr
logical and metaphysical difficulties. It should be remembered that when
St. Thomas defines a contingent being in this way, he means by con·
tingent only a corruptible composite of matter and form which has 8
real potency both to be and not to be this particular essence. ~ure
spirits are for him necessary (because incorruptible) but caused b~mgs
which in no proper sense have a capacity for nonexistence. Netther
is it accurate to say (p. 140) that for the Greeks only forms and not
matter were contingent. Both specific forms as such and matte:
necessary and eternal for them; only the composites were conttng d
Again, I do not believe it is possible to pass as immediatelY an
directly as the authors do from the fact of coming to be to the nec:ssa~
real distinction of existence from essence nor from the nonincluston
· t
·
con·
exts. enc? m ~ssen~e to the nonnecessity' or contingency of theirdifecl
nect10n m fimte bemgs. The real distinction seems to me to be a nlY
0
correlate only of participation or the one and the many and 'te
indirectly of contingency, through the contingency of every compoS!
as such. Suarez is not so easily disposed of as that.
. .
the
Finally, in the treatment of finality in nonintelligent betngs, il1
s t rongest an d deepest metaphysical argument from the a b solute necess to
ed
of intrinsic finality in any action of any agent is strangely relegat t in
a note under the principle of finality, whereas the main argumen
w;
°
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
the text is the weaker and more extrinsic one from constancy and
beneficial effects, which concludes only that "some natural agents are
governed by finality." Constancy of action is not the essential or even
a necessary reason required to prove that a nonintelligent agent must
be finalized, but only an added reason for the need of an extrinsic
intelligent cause. If the principle of finality is truly a principle, why not
take full advantage of it?
These defects, however, insofar as they are such and not merely
legitimately controverted opinions, are minor and can be easily corrected
by the teacher. The book remains in general an admirably sound and
stimulating basis for amplification by a competent teacher and an efficient tool for study. An excellent added feature is the supplementary
reading lists after each chapter and a general bibliography.
W. NORRIS CLARKE, S.J.
A METAPHYSICS OF LOVE
The Meaning of Love. By Robert 0. Johann, S.J. Westminster, Newman,
1955. Pp. vii-127. $4.00.
The purpose of this volume is the elaboration of a metaphysic of love.
The approach to love which the author has adopted is determined by his
approach to the good or being which is the object of love. Being is
achieved by way of subjectivity and thus is not looked upon as an
objective, abstract concept, held at a distance for the purpose of philosophical manipulation, but as a concrete existent seen "from the inside"
in the act of human self-consciousness. On the other hand, the author's
purpose is to construct a metaphysic of love and therefore he must
give a general philosophical formulation to the theory of love.
The scholastic tradition provides one with two types of love: desire
and direct love. Desire by its very nature involves a relationship of
potency and act, of perfectibility and perfection. One desires the accidental perfection of another to fulfill one's specific need. One does not
d.esire the other insofar as the other subsists or has substantial perfection, because as such the other is incommunicable and therefore cannot
be ordained to the potency of the one desiring.
Direct love, on the other hand, involves a relationship of act to act.
?ne loves another precisely insofar as the other subsists and is an
Incommunicable ipseity. Here a problem arises. A being loves its
ow~ good. How, then, can it love another in precisely that aspect in
~hich the other is incommunicable? How can one love in another, preCisely as other, one's own good? St. Thomas replies that one can love
~ne's own specific nature in the other, by which a relation of similitude
. et;een the two is set up. This explanation the author rejects as
~~a equate, since it finds the solution in taleity, in the abstract concep~~n of the substantial form and thus eviscerates the realism of love.
e author's explanation is that one loves another in precisely that
�94
BOOK REVIEWS
aspect in which the other is subsistent and incommunicable, namely his
participated existence. He sees participated existence playing two roles.
It is the root of the other's uniqueness by the fact that it is the cause
-of his subsistence; it is the root of the union required in direct love,
since all creatures ·h ave participated existence.
Man is, as it were, present to himself when on the level of personality
he grasps himself and loves his own participated existence, his self,
as a value. But in this very act of loving himself, he loves another,
namely the Absolute Existence of which his self is a participation and
which transcends him. He is present to the Other Self, not as to an
abstract source, but as to an intimately realized personality, a "Thou".
In loving another created person, he is present to the other's self, as to
a second self, not by an abstract apprehension of the other, but by an
intimate intercommunion or intersubjectivity.' He does not love in the
other what he sees could be enriching for himself, nor does he love a
specific similarity based on substantial form. He loves the other precisely
as existing, as a limited manifestation of Absolute Existence which is
present to himself as a second self. Therefore it is to his own good to
promote the other's fiowering in existence.
A final problem: What is the relationship between desire and direct
love? Man in loving his own participated existence, attains to a direct
love of the Absolute Existence, of the Source of all personality. He does
not love in the sense that he desires the Absolute Existence, but is
definitely enriched, for his intellect and will come into contact with their
perfect objects. Consequently man desires to love for he realizes that
in the act of direct love his nature finds its completion.
Philosophers will find this volume of value, since it gives a meta·
physical solution to the existential problem involved in direct love. But
perhaps it is even more valuable as a point of departure for the
metaphysical analysis of theological problems involving love, such as
the relationship of love in the Holy Trinity or the love of members
of the Mystical Body for the Head and for one another.
R. M.
BARLOW,
S.J.
II
I''
;
MATRIMONY: SEX AND THE SACRAMENT
i,
Marriage, a Medical and Sacramental Study. By Alan Keenan, O.F.M.
and John Ryan, F.R.C.S.E. New York Sheed and Ward 1955. pp.
viii-337. $4.50.
'
'
For long years the only available printed sources of information on
::x hav~ b:en wor~s by non-Catholic writers. Invariably such books
ere ObJectionable; If they were not outright pornography they at least
found no ;ault with birth prevention, masturbation, etc., ~nd they said
so. Here Is a book that can be put into the hands of a bride-to-be, '
stud~nt, or a seminarian without fear.
With commendable discretion it does not describe the technique of
�BOOK REVIEWS
95
marriage activity. It is, however, otherwise complete, as the following
partial list of topics indicates: anatomy of the reproductive system,
family limitation, barren marriage and artificial insemination, puberty;
the chapter on pregnancy considers the Rhesus factor, diagnosis of
pregnancy, twin and multiple pregnancies, congenital malformations
and ectopic conception. Of interest to confessors and marriage counsellors are the medical objections to withdrawal and coitus reservatus,
as well as comments on Kinsey's Sexual Behavior in the Human Female.
Special consideration is given to the save-the-mother-sacrifice-the-child
dilemma.
The presentation is not of the popular or polemic variety. Here are
the sober facts of medical science given by an expert gynecologist, in
language that the layman can easily follow, and as up-to-date as a
fresh-baked loaf. A secondary, but inescapable, conclusion is that bad
morals make for bad medicine. Certain popular fallacies are exposed, e.g.,
the birth of a child to a sterile couple in an unhappy marriage will set
all things right.
In one chapter Dr. Keenan, speaking from his experience in giving
pre-marriage sex instruction, outlines the content, method and manner
best suited to this purpose. Fr. Ryan describes a unique experiment in
sex instruction to school children. The Sisters informed the parents of
literature available in graded series and questionnaired them on their
wishes as to its use with their children. Most of the parents preferred
to give the instruction themselves with the aid of the booklets. A
small minority wanted the Sisters to give the literature directly to the
children.
A distinctive feature of the book is its distinctive handling of nonCatholic views on marriage. The authors, conscious of the mixed cultures
in Britain and the United States, present fairly and with understanding
the ideas of the dominant culture group. As they say, "It is idle for the
c.atholic to adopt a completely negative attitude to the non-Catholic
VIew, and it is unfair to the non-Catholic to leave him in ignorance of
the Catholic one" (p. 11).
These considerations of the sex function are correlated with the
spiritual aspects of marriage. In immediate connection with each
~edical question the moral aspect is discussed. In addition roughly the
T~t third .of the book gives the dogmatic theological aspects of marriage.
.e doctrme of the Mystical Body is interwoven beautifully throughout
th IS
A sect'Ion. On the whole the dogmatic truths are set forth adequately.
hs Presented, however, they must be studied, not merely read. Several
~ apters will require an accompanying explanation from a teacher or at
have had a college religion
A
0~ast the reader toreadings would have improvedcourse.part.bibliography
;~pplementary
this
in t~Ide from the uses already indicated this book will serve those
se e Cana and Pre-Cana apostolate, both director and members-and
c rve t~em well. It should provide excellent side reading for the religion
ourse m college.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
ORIGEN: VIR ECCLESIAE
Origen. By Jean Danielou. Translated by Walter Mitchell. New York,
Sheed and Ward, 1955. Pp. viii-343. $4.50.
The plan of the present work, originally published in French in 1948, is
as vast and as comprehensive as the many facets of Origen's genius.
The result is a recognizable portrait of the man rather than a caricature.
For many Origen is essentially a philosopher, whether Platonist or
neo-Platonist; for others a theologian who held heterodox ideas on the
Trinity, the Fall, Redemption, Angelology and Eschatology-in short,
an adversary to many of our Catholic treatises in theology; for others,
again, he is essentially a biblical exegete who had a tendency to obscure
if not to deny the literal sense of scripture · by an overfondness for
allegorization. In a sense, there is an element of truth in all these
various interpretations of his basic character, but none does justice
to Origen, the man. For Pere Danielou Origen is essentially a loyal
member of the Church, a vir Ecclesiae, and one of the chief author·
ities for the faith and life ·of the Christian community of his time.
It is this basic loyalty of Origen which is revealed and substantiated
in the fascinating story of Origen's life with which the volume opens.
Reared in the faith, the son of a Christian martyr, Origen never
abandoned his boyhood ambition of emulating his father as a witness
to the faith, an ambition which was realized at least in part by suffering
torture in the Decian persecution.
In the chapters that follow Pere Danielou portrays Origen with
justness and understanding as witness, theologian, philosopher, apologist,
biblical exegete and ascetical teacher. Frequently, Origen's speculative
genius betrayed him · into errors that have since been condemned ·
by the Church, although he ·h imself was never formally a heretic.
Throughout his writings his intentions at least were othodox, as is
evidenced by his rule of faith set down in his greatest theological
treatise, De Principiis, 2: "'That alone is to be accepted as truth which
differs in no way from ecclesiastical and apostolic tradition." True, it is
in the De. Principiis that we find the basic tenets of what will come
to be known as Origenism, the pre-existence of the soul and the final
restoration of all things in Christ, including the souls of the damned·
But as Danielou justly observes in his Introduction it was perhaps
necessary for Origen to go too far in searching ;ut the mysteries
of the faith, if the limits were ever to be fixed with exactness.
Unfortunately, theologians, Catholic as well as non-Catholic, have
been too much preoccupied with Origenism and not enough with
Origen. Danielou's portrait of the vir Ecclesiae will contribute much
to righting the balance. His work, the result of sound but unobtrusive
scholarship, is now indispensable for students in patrology and earlY
church history.
PAUL
F.
PALMER,
S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
97
SPIRITUALITY FOR PARISH PRIESTS
Tenders of The Flock. By Leo J. Trese.
1955. Pp. 190. $2.50.
New York: Sheed and Ward,
Father Trese's Tenders of the Flock is a delicate weaving of the
flesh and spirit that make up the warp and woof of the parish priest.
In his attempt to bring the parish priest and his work in harmony with
his great calling, Father Trese accurately accounts for the divine and
human in this vocation. The ideal Christian is equated with the ideal
priest whose life is permeated with charity. For as Father Trese brings
out, in practically all his essays or rather meditations, it is love of God
and love of one's neighbor which is the full life of the priest. "We
are aiming at an habitual attitude of attachment to God's Will, a
permanent fix on God's Will, a loving and joyous embracing of His
Will."
This book, though lofty in its ideals, is well balanced, understanding
and practical in its plan for striving after those ideals. With its
descriptive snatches of the parish priest's life and its lively style, it
has the reader smiling and thinking at one and the same time. On
every page is stamped the ideal of total love for Christ as the goal of
the priest. Father Trese has provided a book that is vecy useful for
reflective reading during times of retreat or days of recollection.
HAROLD
J.
OPPIDO,
S.J.
JESUITS: HOW DO THEY GET THAT WAY?
I'll Die Laughing. By Joseph T. McGloin, S.J.
1955. Pp. 178. $2.75.
Milwaukee, Bruce,
In the few hours required to read this work one finds a pleasant
account of the training received in our Society by those destined for
~?e Priesthood. Even with the predominance of humor, aided not a
Ittle by the cartoons of Don Baumgart, the reader comes to feel the
strong undercurrent of appreciation of the spiritual and intellectual
values accumulated through the fifteen years of training.
M The author, comparing his work with Father Lord's book, My
other, states his main purpose in the following manner, "I only wish
that I could write as good a book about another lovely mother, the
Society of Jesus." Other books have been written about the religious
life, but Father McGloin notes that they are usually written by those
no longer living the life they describe. Though not mentioned in his
work, one such endeavor was the book of Denis Meadows, Obedient
Men. Meadows' picture of the Society may be noted for its attempt
at a fair evaluation, but in no sense is it a happy portrayal of our
training. By way of contrast Father McGloin shows the Society as a
happy family, with all the warmth and solicitude found therein.
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BOOK REVIEWS
The author admirably achieves his intention through his presentation,
though at times his reflections on spiritual values might slip by unnoticed
in the casual reading of the book. Love of the Society is evident throughout, and one also finds a proper appreciation of the ingredients that
go into the making of the Jesuit, the spiritual guides, superiors and
teachers, and the course of studies in general. And while one is
aware of the sacrifice entailed in bringing about this formation, still
it can be realized that it is a sacrifice that need not be depressing. The
religious life, in training for the priesthood, can be most joyful for the
one who approaches with the proper attitude.
While the story centers about Father McGloin's own training, at
Florissant and Saint Louis, the Missions and St. Mary's, the tone of
the book is quite universal. The trick of learning not to walk up the
inside of one's cassock while mounting stairs ..is something that will
be found in every novitiate, not just at Florissant. And while stew for
dinner three times a week might belong to one house, every house
has its private institution like corn bread and prunes. This picture
of the Society, with humor and all, might be said to appeal most of all
because it is a picture of the way of life we know and love.
It is not difficult to see how this work will help externs to understand
life in the Society. Such things as the vows are simply and clearlY
explained; the meaning of ordination is stated in an inspiring manner.
And the author's treatment of the problem of those leaving the Society
after first vows will help many understand the difficulty. But above
all, this work can and should be used in fostering vocations to the
Society. The pleasant style and quick pace of the story brings the book
well within the grasp of the average adolescent who is curious to
know more about how the Jesuit "is hatched"; and Father McGloin's
appreciation of the religious life will certainly serve as an inspiration,
even unto imitation for some young man who wishes to follow Christ in
the Society.
EUGENE ROONEY, S.J.
THE SACRED HEART AND THE SAINT
The Nun. By Margaret Trouncer.
Pp. xv-297. $3.50.
N. Y., Sheed and Ward, 1955•
A certain indefinable fear grips a reader when he opens a biographY
of a saint which is cast in the form of an historical novel. This fear
can even increase when he notices that this liberal medium is being
used by a feminine pen to depict a seemingly enigmatic personalitY
like St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. Under these circumstances the
danger of literary and historical mishap is indeed great but the
reader's fear for Margaret Trouncer's The Nun, is totally unnecessa~
I? fact the authoress draws upon the license of her medium with goo
hterary and h Is t or1ca1 sense. She pamts at times an overwroug ht but
·
·
.
.
always a realistic backdrop for her subject. From St. Margaret Maris
�;
BOOK REVIEWS
99
own writings and those of her contemporaries, she gleans facts,
descriptions and conversations with such skill that perhaps for the first
time, one can picture in living form a confused, anxious French maid
whose human weakness had been called to the sanctity of heroic
sacrifice.
As one advances through the early stages of Margaret Mary's life,
a definite impression is given that the writer has no desire to cushion
the narrative. Perhaps as a reaction to the sweetened and delicate accounts given of St. Margaret by others, Margaret Trouncer presents
the facts with surprising bluntness.
The human factors that contributed to Margaret's purification are
mercilessly described. Her life as a young girl, especially after the
death of her father, is one of constant humiliation. Periodically enraged
by her incompetence, Margaret's Aunt Chappendye would literally drive
her from the farmhouse. Margaret would then seek sanctuary in the
fields where she first began to share her anguish with Christ. In addition to her rough and uncouth Aunt, Margaret's cup was filled to overflowing by her grandmother whose favorite dress concealed the hidden
splendor of many carefully stitched coins and rapacious Tante Benoite
who reveled in the mockery of God. Any soul that could survive this
array with Christian resignation would be a saint. Margaret did.
At twenty-four Margaret was accepted at the Visitation Convent
in Paray-le-Monial and separated from her devoted mother. However
even though she could commune with Christ within the convent walls,
this chosen one found there the heaviest cross of her life in the
misunderstanding and jealously of an aristocratic clique. In describing
the selfishness of these nuns and their constant persecution of Margaret,
t?e. author is unique. In them, the French tendency to mockery and
· ridicule was barely curbed by religious charity. When Margaret sought
out their company for the love of her Saviour, they ostracized her.
When her divinely chosen spiritual guide, Claude de La Colombiere,
counseled her, they considered that he was nothing more than a victim
of Margaret's spiritual infatuation. The closer Margaret drew to Christ
and His will, the more bitter were the reactions of these aristocrats.
T~is. conflict reached its climax in an episode which, if written
u~/n Its day, would have been read with avid interest. As Margaret's
~e -s~rrender to Christ reached its totality, He asked her to proclaim
Perse. as victim for the sins of her own convent. With the superior's
i:rt~Issi~n, all the nuns were called to the large Chapter Room, where
the fe middle of the floor knelt Margaret Mary. Extending her arms in
Chri ~r~ of a cross, she cried out, "I am commanded by Our Lord
sins s f 0 ?ffer myself as a victim of His divine justice, to expiate the
in H'o Hthis Community against charity, for this dear virtue is born
This IS eart." Gasps of resentment and shock spread through the nuns.
that resen_tment was even increased by an order for a special discipline
ace ;.vemng to appease the anger of Almighty God. That night,
a p:r Ing to the testimony of the nuns themselves, Margaret endured
01
onged beating in the dark corridors at their hands.
�100
BOOK REVIEWS
Indeed the intense love of the Sacred Heart consumed its victim
to perfect immolation. Throughout these contradictions and the all but
universal disbelief in her visions, this simple nun manifested the
qualities of sanctity. She never said an evil word to her persecutors.
On the contrary she tried ceaselessly to gain their affection. She fulfilled
completely the commands of her Divine Spouse and through her obedience the devotion of His Merciful Heart spread from France, where it
effaced the cold fear of Jansenism, to every section of the universal
Church. By her portrayal of a very human saint, Margaret Trouncer
may be able to help intensify in the lives of many in this generation
the needed devotion to Christ's Sacred Heart.
~OBERT
McGuiRE, S.J.
THE APOLOGETE AND THE PROBLEM OF CHRIST
The Problem of Jesus. By Jean Guitton. New York: P. J. Kenedy and
Sons, 1955. Pp. xiv-239. $3.75.
i.
i
' i
·.;
I
During the unoccupied moments of his war-time captivity, Guitton
envisioned a great Summa: La pensee moderne et le catholicisme. His
own personal studies resulting in a deep appreciation of apologetical
problems along with a keen penetration into the difficulties experienced
by modern thought in understanding and accepting the Christian
message, made Guitton ideally fit for such a project. From 1945 on, the
parts of this Summa have been appea.ring. In 1948 he published L6
probleme de Jesus et les fondements du temoignage chretien and in 1953,
Le probleme de Jesus: divinite et resurrection. The Problem of JeBUI
is his own abridgment for English readers of his two volumes in French.
The method employed is a critique de la critique. Next to the exegete
there is room for a logician who knows contemporary exegesis under its
three modes of approach, rationalistic, Protestant and Catholic, and
judges the methods, difficulties and possible solutions. By comparing
them he aims at establishing whether one of these solutions fits the
integral data of the problem better than the others.
The First Part considers the historical evidence for the content of the
Gospels, and shows that the conclusions of the negative and mythical
schools are defective.
Parts Two and Three investigate Divinity and Resurrection which
condition the problem of Jesus. The section devoted to the Resurrection
is certainly one of the most interesting in the book. Two kinds of difficulties are considered. The first are those connected with the basic
fact, local and temporal. When we talk of resurrection are we thinking
?f an event similar to the facts investigated by scien~e or history? Is
It something real? Or is it a phenomenon occurring merely in conscioUS·
ness? The difficulties of the other sort relate to the common idea of
~urrection. What is its content? Is it thinkable? What does it meant
Though not always easy reading, Guitton's work is certainly reward·
�BOOK REVIEWS
101
ing. Solutions are not always at hand, but the very rephrasing of the
problems is illuminating. Here we have a good antidote for any smug,
self-satisfied attitude toward apologetics.
VINCENT
T.
O'KEEFE,
S.J.
THE SPIRITUALITY OF THE MONK
The Meaning of the Monastic Life. By Louis Bouyer of the Oratory.
Translated by Kathleen Pond. New York, P. J. Kenedy & Sons.
Pp. x-209. $4.00.
Written at the request of a community of monks, and primarily for
and about monks, The Meaning of the Monastic Life brings a vital
message to all religious and to all other forthright seekers after God.
The author points up how in every Christian vocation there lies the
germ of a monastic vocation, and how the vocation of the monk is the
vocation of the baptized man carried to the utmost limits of its irresistible demands. Prayer and penance are at the basis of every
Christian life. The endeavor to rationalize that, side by side with the
negative, crucifying asceticism of past ages, there is room for a constructive, positive asceticism which would reject nothing of the world
and would consecrate all in it to the glory of God, is an illusion and
insidious temptation founded on false suppositions arising from confusion of thought. The Christian effort is indeed to aim at an allembracing consecration of self and of the world with all its glory and
untarnished joys, but the Cross is precisely the way that leads to the
end and there is no other.
Derived mainly from Sacred Scriptures and Tradition, the author's
analysis of the theological approach to perfection in Part One is
masterly. The opening theme is that of the Hound of Heaven, from
which poem the writer quotes extensively in Chapter One. He then
proceeds to establish that the monastic life is in reality an angelic life,
to ~hich access can be had only through a process of dying and rising
~gam: The passage through such death and resurrection terminates in
Jght Inaccessible through a movement in Spiritu per Filium ad Patrem.
~he second and practical portion of the book high-lights the salutary,
atholic teaching on detachment and the stripping of self, prayer,
r~nance an.d mortification, work, the lectio divina, the divine office and
e Mass 1n a manner and style that is pleasing, enlightening and
ro~e~~ully appealing, admirably calculated to shatter complacency and
fo Initiate heart-searching that originates deeper sincerity in the quest
gor ?od. Throughout, the work is replete with profound thought eleh an.t Y Phrased and illustrated, and the reader will quite forget that
. e 18 reading a translation. It will be appreciated and enjoyed by all
ln search of genuine sanctity.
DANIEL
J. M.
CALLAHAN,
S.J.
�102
BOOK REVIEWS
FAITH AND MATURE LIFE
Christian Maturity. By John Donohue, S.J.
and Sons. 1955. Pp. ix-244. $3.50.
New York, P. J. Kenedy
Glut and famine are the unhappy common conditions in the spiritual
literature field. The glut is the result of a proliferation of books written
by priests and religious with an ascetical modality that has little viable
application in the life of the Catholic laity. The famine is that of
works on lay theology, doctrinal and practical, exposing the depths of Ia
vie interieur·e for a growing legion of people who, tired of the manyness of their existence, wish to discover the methods of sacrificial
generosity in their union with God. This book, remarkable for its bespoken vision and the gracious language in the -service of it, will, perhaps, never gain the currency it deserves, but one can pray that some
external grace will put it into the hands of souls desirous of the more.
The author has not presented us 'vith a book of doctrine, a list of
lapidaries for Christian living, or even vignettes of prayerful thought;
rather he has written a reprise of the Christian faith as the event and
ontological fact and as the only matrix of the balanced, rich, and mature
life. Books on self-realization have been multiplying in almost geometric proportion to man's growing awareness of his own hopeless and
helpless complexity. If anything, they have increased the restlessness
for which they are purported to be the. curative. The situation and
problem have been sensitively described in Mrs. Lindbergh's Gift frorn thl
Sea. But for all its beauty and anguish the latter essay gives us only
the finer answers of ethical humanism. The delicate tracery of shells
will not indicate the complete saving pattern, but He who, if touche~
will make people whole. Roughly identical in content, a comparison IS
natural between Fr. Donohue's book and Merton's No Man Is An Island.
though the latter has modified his earlier counsel of dour flight and
eschatological concern as the solution to the modern condition. Christian
Maturity, quite differently, reveals an enjoyment in the challenge that
the fevered context of our American lives presents.
It is rather our lives themselves that must reveal shining nell'
perspectives of human existence. But since these lives are essen·
tially social that revelation must be made most often in terms of
our social action. The care of the world, therefore, is indeed our
care although not our exclusive care. Since we cannot help but be
working, art-making, political, family, community men it is :
cisely in and through these eternal human careers that we tes
to Our Lord.
Amiable abnegation, joyous dispossessio~ of self union with Christthee are the heart of t h e matter of holiness and 'wholeness, an dabove
s
'blY
all a matter of the heart. The themes of the chapters are reducl d
lgnatian, but the author's use of wide reading, fresh illustration, an
prayerful intuition, provides us with an extraordinary modern gloSS ~
~he text of !he Exercises. He has spelled out in detail what i~ involv
1D the requuements for the essential career of Christian poise.
�103
BOOK REVIEWS
Religious maturity requires a consistent and entire response to all
the implications of the great truths touching God, Jesus and the
inter-communion of men with their Saviour-King and with each
other in the Church.
This is the supreme devotion and it is an instructive pleasure to read
that Christian self-realization is not a form of pious athleticism or a
sentimentally esoteric coign of vantage, but a vocation to redemptive
solicitude and thus to high personal adventure in the real world.
EDWARD
J. 1\:IURRAY, S.J.
A 1\:IORMON ODYSSEY
Papa l'lfarried A Mormon. By John D . Fitzgerald. N. Y., Prentice-Hall,
1955. Pp. ix-298. $3.95.
Papa Married a Mormon is a highly imaginative historical sketch of
the Mormons who settled in the Utah Territory during the era of the
silver-rush and of fabulous Silverlode City.
Beginning, oddly enough, in the tempestuous bosom of the Irish
Catholic Fitzgerald family in Boylestown, Pa., the story follows the
vagaries of an agnostic son, Will Fitzgerald, who leaves his family
and his Faith to journey to Silverlode and easy riches as the proprietor
of Silverlode's Whitehorse Saloon. His brother, Torn Fitzgerald, a
fervent Catholic bent upon retrieving the prodigal, tracks him to Silverlode, but decides to stay and become the editor of the S ilverlode Advocate.
A Mormon girl, Tena Neilsen, of the nearby 1\:lorrnon community,
Adenville, wins Torn's love and marries him over the veto of her father
: and the Mormon Bishop. Married life for the couple, although strongly
· ;esembling a religious potpourri, is happy and they are blessed with a
~rge family. Onto this scene of married bliss storms Torn's sister,
. athy Fitzgerald, who declares all-out-war on the Mormon influence
~~ the family and on Torn's obvious religious indifference. Meanwhile,
e black sheep, Will Fitzgerald, returns to the Catholic Faith after
;~unds received in a gun duel which have left him partially paralyzed.
the ; .emainder of the narrative is a series of ups and downs which
e Itzgerald family takes in stride, although it seems that even they
~re a bit surprised when Kathy executes an inexplicable about-face and
ecomes a Mormon. As t h e story draws to a leisurely close, Torn, finally
.
feel"
Tening, the influence of his early Catholic upbringing, remarries his wife,
0 a,;{: a Catholic ceremony two hours before he dies.
esti: e fac; of it, Papa Married A Mormon is a compellingly intergun ~arratiVe. It literally oozes the local color of a land where the sixtrastt aw and fortunes change hands on the turn of a card. But a cona uni:g not? i.s struck, as it tells of the fervent Mormon settlers building
but ac~e ~?hgio~s nation across the prairie, intransigent in their beliefs,
riage. ep Ing kindly the accomplished fact of a Catholic-Mormon mar-
f
Although th
e author, at least nominally a Catholic, proposes to tell
' ·'
�104
BOOK REVIEWS
the story of his family according to the hard facts, the Catholic Church
certainly energes a pale second best. Toin, a well-educated Catholic
.(Loyola College, Baltimore!) abruptly changes from a champion of the
faith into a person utterly indifferent to positive religion, who feels
no qualms about marrying in a civil and a Mormon ceremony or about
allowing his children to choose their own religion. Kathy, the intolerant
Catholic, inexplicably becomes a Mormon and marries in the Mormon
Church. These abrupt changes of religion pose the biographical problem: what motivated these people to change? A fervent Catholic, unlike
the chameleon, does not change his religious color according to the sur·
roundings in which he lives. One is willing to admit the fact of the
sudden religious indifferentism in these people, but one still expects
to be shown the genesis of this phenomenon, for human beings generally
have a reason for the good or the evil that they··do. Unfortunately, the
reader will search in vain for an adequate explanation of this startling
conduct. This defective motivation strikes at the very heart of the
narrative and changes into an interesting melodrama what could have
been an informal biography of some stature, for the study of motivation
is the very heart of true biography.
On the basis of this critique the reviewer would recommend this book
exclusively to the discriminating adult reader.
R. M. BARLOW, S.J.
CATHOLIC DOCTRINE FOR THE NON-CATHOLIC
What the Church Gives Us. By Right Reverend James P. Kelly and
Mary T. Ellis. New York, P. J. Kenedy & Sons. Pp. vii-152. $2.50.
This volume is a schematic treatment of Catholic doctrine, intended
primarily for the inquiring non-Catholic. It is, however, also directed
to the born Catholic who wishes to deepen or refresh his knowledge of
the Faith.
After an initial discussion of certain philosophical truths regarding
the nature of God and man, the book in effect outlines the history of
man's relationship to God as it is
the pres~nt economy. Chapters
are devoted to the elevation in Adam of mankind to the supernatural
level, the Fall, the Incarnation and Redemption, the establishment an~ ·
growth of the Church. The Church's role as teacher ruler and sanctt·
fier is presented with special emphasis on the concret~ means of sancti·
fication, the Sacraments. The final chapters deal with the hereafter.
There are two appendices, one giving the more common Catholic prayers
and the other a rather . extensive reading list.
The distinctive virtues of this little volume are two. It gives a picture
0.f Catholic doctrine which is uncomplicated and panoramic, and hence
hkely to stir the layman to admiration and further study. SecondiYr
because of the index provided the book may serve as an elementarY but
handy reference work.
JOSEPH B. DoTY, s.J.
it;
�WOODSTOCK
LETTE-RS
VOL. LXXXV, No. 2
APRIL, 1956
CONTENTS FOR APRIL, 1956
USE OF MODERN MEANS OF COMMUNICATION--------------------- 107
Very Reverend Father General
IGNATIAN YEAR EXHORTATIONS --------------------------------------------------- 117
William J. Young, S.J.
ATOMIC VULNERABILITY OF AMERICAN SOCIETY __________________ 131
Neil P. Hurley, S.J.
SCRUTAMINI SCRIPTURAS ---------------------------- ____ ------------------------------ 141
R. A. F. MacKensie, S.J.
THE MANILA I. S. 0·----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 149
Arthur A. Weiss, S.J.
TABLE OF VOTIVE MASSES --------------------------------------------------------------- 155
Agustin Natividad, S.J.
JESUIT EDUCATION IN CHICAGO __________________________________________________ 159
James A. Mohler, S.J.
THE ENGLISH NOVITIATE IN 1806_____________________________________________________ 175
Charles Plowden
THE NOVITIATE AT pARIS ________________________________________ --------------------------- 192
MUSIC COURSES IN AMERICAN JESUIT SCHOOLS------------------ 197
James W. King, S.J.
OBITUARY
Bishop Thomas J. FeeneY---------------------------------------------------------------- 199
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS------------------------------------------------------------ 231
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father William J. Young (Chicago Province) is Spiritual Father at
West Baden .
.Mr. Neil P. Hurley (New York Province) teaches First Year High at '
Fordham Prep.
Father R. A. F. MacKensie (Upper Canada Province) teaches Old Testament at Christ the King Seminary, Toronto.
Father Arthur A. Weiss (Philippine Vice-Province), Socius of the Vice·
Provincial, is also director of the Manila I.RO.
Father Agustin Natividad (Philippine Vice-Proyince) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock.
Father James A. Mohler (Detroit Province) is a Fourth Father at West
. Baden.
Father Charles Plowden was the first Master of Novices of the restored
Society in England.
Mr. James W. King (Oregon Province) is a theologian at Alma.
Father John H. Collins (New England Province) is Father Minister at
the Provincial's Residence and author of a forthcoming book (New·
man) on the Anima Christi.
.....
.
Mr. James J. Hennesey (New York Province) is a theologian at Wood·
stock.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered "" seeond-class matter Deeember 1, 1942. at the post office at Wood•~
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yeat<~
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�Instruction on the Use of Modern Means
of Communication
Not infrequently questions are proposed to me, especially
from colleges of Ours or of externs, about the use of those
means which our age is employing more and more each day
for the communication of news, and the presentation of plays,
concerts and other things of the sort. It has seemed to me
opportune to give a little fuller instruction to the Society on
these rna tters.
Whether it is a question of daily newspapers or of illustrated
periodicals called magazines, or of the so-called digests, or of
the radio, television, or finally of movies, all are to be weighed
by the same norm, with an eye to the good and the bad
effects which follow upon their use. For of themselves, according to the intention of the Creator who gave us inventive
genius to devise such media, they are all good, and are to be
ordained toward what is good-the glory of God and the salvation of souls. However, because of our malice, carelessness
and laziness, they can become evil, and upon their misuse
follow tepidity, sickness of soul, sin and spiritual disaster.
Daily in the Divine Office we are admonished in the words
of the Apostle Peter: "Be sober, be watchful! For your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion goes about seeking some
one to devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith." 1 "Be
sober," that is be attentive, think, and do not act lightly or
without deliberation. Do not throw yourselves headlong into
everything that is pleasant, and certainly not into those
Pleasures to which men of our times give themselves indiscriminately without measure or discretion. You are Christians;
Y~u are religious. Not without reason has Christ, our Lord
~ osen you out of the world. He Himself has admonished us,
You are not of the world," 2 but, according to the remark of
the Apostle, "Your life is hidden with Christ in God." 3
th AU the conveniences of modern life which I mentioned at
. e outset, can be a great help in spreading the truth, in teach~ng the people, especially the young and the uneducated, and
In Winning souls to their Creator. And sometimes it is to be
reretted that sufficient use is not made of these means in
sc ools, or in teaching the general public, and particularly in
�108
MEANS OF COl\11\-IUNICATION
supplying for the lack of priests. What good could radio and
television broadcasts and movies not do to teach and convince
those who, for one reason or another, cannot or will not go
to our churches and Catholic schools! What could a good
digest not do to help those who lack the time or opportunity
to read books and periodicals! Besides, daily papers influence
and determine the acts of whole peoples and of their governing bodies.
Though we often lack the large sums of money necessary
to make our own these means of spreading' the truth, not infrequently we can collaborate to good purp'ose with those who
own them. When this is possible we should make every effort,
with the approval of superiors, to do so.
As these things can be a help to our students and to the
faithful entrusted to our care, so they can and should be a
help to us as well. Because of our apostolic vocation we can·
not be strangers to what is going on in the world, as we
rightly could if God had called us to be Carthusians. Indeed,
according to the requirements of our ministry, it is proper
that some of Ours be better, others less well informed. Those
who write for serious periodicals, professors who teach the
higher branches, those engaged in apologetics and controversy, students in the social field, and not a few superiors
have need of greater knowledge. Others can be content to have
a summary knowledge of current events. For others, finally,
such as our young men in the first stages of their formation
and the Coadjutor Brothers, it is better that for the time being
at least they remain in ignorance of most current events lest
they be too distracted and withdrawn from their duties.
What then will be the norm and measure to be applied in
the use of these modern means of communication? A clear
norm, though not always a pleasant or easy one, is set before
us fro~ the very outset of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Jg·
· natius, where he teaches us in the "Foundation" the right
manner of using or of abstaining from creatures: tantzt~
qu;x-ntum, or as they help or impede us in serving and glol'l·
fymg God, and in saving and sanctifying our souls. And as
the Exercises proceed further he adds a nobler norm: where
the service of God and the g~od of our soul would be equa~
we choose by preference that by which we are made :more
�MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
.·
109
like to Christ our Lord, poor, despised and fixed to the Cross.
A twofold norm, then, is recommended to us: constant purity
of intention as well as greater abnegation and continual
mortification. 4 If we apply these norms to the use of the
radio, television, movies and periodicals of different kinds,
they will turn to our advantage and the good of souls; if we
neglect them, they will do us harm and will be a cause of
detriment to souls.
Unless we use them properly, all these modern discoveries
can be very harmful. First of all, in using them there is
danger of wasting our time. And let us not think it is a small
matter to waste time, for time, i.e., our life, is a very precious
gift granted us by God so that we may win an eternal reward
for ourselves and our neighbor; time is the talent entrusted to
us by Christ, Our Lord, so that we may gain profit from it.
It is not ours, but His. While we are wasting time the enemy
is alert and working tirelessly for the downfall of the human
race. The Eternal Judge will therefore demand a strict accounting of us for the use of our time.
A second harmful effect is that the immoderate use of the
more pleasant things weakens the spirit and daily makes it
less disposed for the austere efforts of a laborious apostolic
life, and then turning it from this endeavor, brings it finally
to a love of ease. Very wisely, therefore, does our Epitome of
the Institute (n. 208,1) warn not only subjects to be careful,
but superiors as well to be on their guard, mindful of the
fact that they have in a certain sense the duty of teachers
towards their sons and the obligation of keeping at a distance
those influences by which they will be turned little by little
from the pursuit of perfection. Certainly, there is need for
:me oc~sional relaxation of mind; and the man who neglects
hi take It when he should, easily makes himself unfit for doing
b s ~est work, in fact sometimes turns to something worse;
ut In relaxing the mind there must be due moderation. Let
uf be sure that we do not confuse, as often happens, what
P eases the senses with what relaxes the mind. Nothing is
more fatig umg t o t h e nervous system, of the young especia11y,
·
·
th
't~Ugh admittedly pleasant to nature, than a long and ex~ In~ movie. On the other hand, manual work involving some
ert10n and serving some useful purposes not infrequently
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MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
relaxes the mind completely, even though it may be less
pleasant.
A third harmful effect, which often escapes our notice, is
that worldly spirit which these attractions of the world gradually and imperceptibly instill into our minds. Should we not
be afraid that the grace of a lively faith upon which the
spirit of our vocation thrives will be taken away if we are
unfaithful to it?
And finally, a fourth harmful effect, related to the preceding, more subtle but not less dangerous, is the development of
a false conscience, especially as regards ·~hastity. For when
we are constantly reading about, hearing about, and looking
at sin and the enticements to sin, it is inevitable that our
imagination and our very heart will become so entangled and
immeshed in dangerous, even wicked things, that, to say nothing of the angelic purity which our holy Father St. Ignatius
expects of us, we are perhaps unable to preserve unharmed
even the very substance of the virtue. I beg you not to pass
over this point lightly. For a too sad experience gives the
lie to the levity of those who, when warned by the rule or the
counsels of superiors, shrug their shoulders and smile.
Gladly would I be content with these rather general and
simple norms, leaving their application entirely to the prudent
discretion of provincials and local superiors. For in practice
a too strict rule rarely fits all circumstances perfectly; and
our holy Father St. Ignatius in the Constitutions has taught
us that many things must be entrusted to the inspiration of the
Spirit of Wisdom to which he occasionally alludes even in his
letters. Yet the facts have convinced me that not rarely
certain superiors are not so much moved by their own convictions, based on faith and reason, as carried along by the
importunities of their subjects, no matter how young and
inexperienced, and are frequently induced to connive, with
disastrous results. For this reason I think it necessary to
propose some more definite directive norms. According to
the different circumstances of place and person, higher
superiors will see whether in the territory of their jurisdiction
there is need of a stricter rule. Where they impose such a
rule let not subjects allege that Father General grants :more
leeway, for it is the responsibility of superiors in the par·
�MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
111
ticular place to apply the norms given by Father General in
this matter. Where laxer standards have from human weakness gained the upperhand, let the practice be brought back to
what is here described.
1. Although the young men who come to us have grown accustomed in the world to the daily use of magazines, radio,
movies and television, let them realize that, in entering the
Society, they have embraced a life altogether different from
their life in the world, a spiritual life completely dedicated to
God, a recollected and mortified life which follows other
standards than those of the world. As in the past, our novices
should not be given these various means of information and
recreation.
From time to time let the master of novices or his socius
give them bits of news about current events, about such
things particularly as have a bearing on religion or on the
good of souls. If occasionally a talk of our Holy Father or an
important religious ceremony or something else of this nature
is broadcast by radio or television, it is proper that even the
novices should be allowed to see or hear it, for the manner
of transmission makes no difference, but only the subject
matter.
2. Let superiors remember that our juniors and young
Coadjutor Brothers are in the first stage of their formation,
and that they are to be prepared gradually for religious maturity. Indeed, human nature permits no other way. It will
help their formation if, after an appropriate explanation by
a qualified professor, they hear a program of classical music,
or a speaker of greater renown, or see a documentary film,
~hr have .at hand certain selected cultural periodicals. But from
e beginning they should be taught to use these aids in such
; Way as to reap from them the fruit of a solid apostolic
do~atio? and not fritter away their time uselessly by inging Idle curiosity. Generally speaking, it is not good for
ei? t? learn the news of the world from newspapers or the
;hadiO; It will be better to observe a practice similar to that of
e novitiate.
t:
b
~n
our Philosophers a fuller maturity should be developed;
s~ ~~the s~me time superiors are not to give in to those who
at, smce they are no longer novices, they should be
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MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
treated as we generally treat our theologians. For theologians
are fully mature, their religious and intellectual formation
is further advanced, and they should receive a more immediate preparation for our apostolic life. Superiors should
keep this difference in mind, but even in theologates they
should see to it that we keep the strict, austere and recollected
life, so absolutely necessary for the fostering of solid study,
of a genuine spiritual life, and also of that spirit which our
holy Father, St. Ignatius, wanted the Society to have. As I
have so often mentioned, it was St. Ignatius' express desire
that, far from being secular priests, living 'like secular priests,
we should be religious, "fighting for God under the standard
of the Cross,'' 5 and persevering in poverty, mortification,
humility and obedience.
3. Accordingly, movies should be granted rarely in scholasticates; I would say not more than six times a year, allowance
being made for an occasional documentary film by way of instruction rather than recreation. The provincial should determine whether it is better or not to grant the theologians
the use of the radio during recreation for short news broad·
casts so that they can give up the daily newspapers, which
waste a great deal of time. They should provide that the
philosophers too be occasionally given the opportunity to
learn important news events. Let them be especially careful
about permitting magazines to our Scholastics. Not infrequently, alas! in our houses, even in houses of study, maga·
zines are on hand to be read and looked at which would not be
tolerated in a good Christian home, even though it is true
that occasionally in their articles these magazines do shoW
some little good will towards the Church.
As regards television, I advise that in scholasticates where
it has not yet been introduced it be not for the time bein£
introduced. For, aside from th; fact that regard must be had ,
for poverty, television up to the present provides little ~at
conduces to real formation, but very much that is fooliSh
and of no value.
4. I hear that in certain regions, films are shown for recr~
ation to the students of our colleges much oftener than
fitting for their proper training; and that prefects soJlletimes misuse the radio to such an extent that the students
�MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
.·
113
are being distracted by broadcasts of light and frivolous
music at a time when they should be studying, or, as happens
in some places, they are awakened in the morning by the
radio. It is evident that this effectively prevents them from
dedicating their first thoughts and desires to God as a young
Christian should.
Setting aside these abuses and adopting practices suited to
sane education, let us teach these young men by word and
deed to make use of worthwhile recreations with becoming
moderation.
But from the fact that a little more recreation is allowed to
our students, it does not follow at all that Ours can or should
be at all the movies which are granted to the students. Most of
the latter are being prepared to live their lives in the world;
we are religious, dedicated to mortification and to a life of
union with God. If some of Ours have to be present at these
movies to prefect the boys, let them really perform this office
and not allow themselves to be distracted by the movie. The
rest of Ours, with the approval of the rector or the provincial,
may occasionally attend movies granted to the students for
recreation, but it should not be oftener than once a month.
Let superiors likewise see that the prefects who are given
charge of the radio or television for the students do not waste
time by misusing them for their own pleasure, a thing which
unfortunately has happened, with serious harm to religious
life.
5. It is evident that since the tertianship is so important
and so short, it should have almost the same norms as the
n.ovitiate. For in a special way our tertians are to be exerCised in humility and are to become accustomed to that
austerity of life which they are to observe voluntarily in the
future .
.6. In communities of formed Fathers and Brothers, let the
~Ise prescription of Father Ledochowski be kept, that no one
18
to have a radio or television in his room for personal use,
~nless an exception is made for the sick in the community
~~rmary, or even in a common place to use when he likes.
e Use of these things should be regulated by the superior,
acc~rding to norms laid down by the higher superior. Genera ly speaking the daily news broadcast should be allowed at
�114
MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
recreation only, to those who desire to hear it; in this way
we can save time and not be obliged to run through the daily
papers. Let not the superior permit that in place of the recreation traditional among us just any sort of musical programs
be heard on the radio; it is extremely important that we keep
the custom we have of lively conversation with one another
to relax the mind-a custom which is among the best aids
to union of minds and to acquiring ease in dealing with people.
In the use of television, which is scarcely ever to be granted
outside the time of recreation, the superior should be sparing,
lest we get used to turning our thoughts to useless things. Let
him not allow his subjects to go out of the house to movies
as they feel inclined, but only with permission, which is but
rarely to be granted. If some regulations have been laid down
by episcopal authority for priests in this matter, Ours, howsoever exempt, are everywhere to observe these regulations.
If some question them, let the major superior make the same
regulations for Ours, or rather even stricter ones than those
affecting the secular priests in that place.
And finally, regarding even formed Fathers and Brothers,
let the superior remember that he has a duty in conscience
to see that no newspapers or periodicals, especially magazines, unbecoming for religious or which can be a danger
to anyone, find their way into our house or be kept in it. If
anyone should try to bring them in without the superior's
knowledge, he is to be admonished in a fatherly way; if the
fault is repeated he should be punished, and if he remains
stubborn in his disobedience, let him be reported to the major
superior, and even if need be, to Father General.
7. While I am on this subject I cannot help adding just a
word on a contemporary abuse which is spreading even among
us-too much interest in sports. No sensible man will denY
the real benefits in the way of bodily exercise they provide,
nor the good use that can be made of them for preserving
~ental health and training the young. 'But in this matter, as
m the use of any creature, a proper hierarchy of values must
be maintained, and consequently moderation and due measure.
Both Ours and our students should attach much more iiil·
portance, surely, to spiritual progress and to advancement
m letters and knowledge than to athletic prowess.
�MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
115
Athletic events ought to be judged according to their true
value, and not with that passionate interest which men so
commonly have in them today. It is a sign either of a poorly
trained mind or of very little self-control to be as interested
in these things as if they were events of the highest importance in the life of man. What would the sainted author
of the Spiritual Exercises have said if he saw the disciples
and followers of Christ, the King, whom he himself had
formed, rushing impetuously after the unthinking crowd,
which seems to be almost devoid of reason when present at
athletic contests? In all things let that calm and balanced
moderation be maintained, which assigns to everything its
true degree of importance among the events of the world.
8. Neither can I pass over something which, if I am not
mistaken, we often neglect: in the whole matter which this
Instruction treats of we ought to teach our students and the
other faithful as well as our own young religious to derive
true benefit from the reading of newspapers and magazines,
from movies, from the radio and television, in a word, from
the use of all those creatures which the genius of this age has
prepared for our convenience. They should be taught to read,
hear and look at these things with a critical mind, so that they
can learn to distinguish the good from the bad, the solid from
·· the superficial, the beautiful from the counterfeit. In this
~ay they may be able to rule their hearts and imaginations
In the light of right reason and faith, and not allow themsel~es to be carried away by the blind impulse of their imaginations and emotions while they share the gladness and
sorrow which they find portrayed as part of human life.
. I shall say no more. To summarize this whole Instruction
In a few words: our life and special vocation are things
~·xtemely important especially in these times, both in the
Ig t of eternal truth and in the eyes of men. While the
~o~ld rushes along its mad course to sin, while the enemies of
C~ . are every day more bitterly assailing the Church of
th rist, by word and deed denying and neglecting revelation,
h e supernatural order, and the very existence of God, we
o:v:hno ri~ht to give ourselves to idle pursuits and to squander
For ~rn time which is not our own, but Christ the Lord's.
e first commandment is this: thou shalt love the Lord
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MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
thy God with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul and
with all thy strength. "Men crucified to the world and to whom
the world is crucified, such would the rule of our life have us
be; new men, I say, who have put off their affections to put
on Christ.'' 6
Rome, December 27, 1955.
Feast of St. John the Evangelist.
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS
General of the Society of Jesus
1 1 Peter. V 8-9.
2John XV 19.
s Col. III 3.
4 Rules of Summary 17, and 11-12.
5 Formula of the Institute, n. 1.
6 Sum and Scope of our Constitutions.
-FIRST EUROPEAN MARTYR
The first Jesuit to give his life for the faith on European soil was
Edmund Daniel, a native of Limerick, who joined the Order at Rollle
while still in his teens, and is frequently mentioned in the correspond·
ence of Polanco under the sobriquet of "Edmund the Irishman." In
1564 he was sent to labor among his fellow-countrymen, in companY
with Richard Creagh, the new archbishop of Armagh, and Father Wil·
liam Good, an English Jesuit. The program set for Edmund was to
"instruct the youth of Limerick in the rudiments of the Catholic faith
and in the rules of Ciceronian eloquence." For years he labored un·
disturbed at the humble hidden task, but at length, he was betrayed
by the Catholic mayor of Limerick, a miserable opportunist, and taken
in fetters to Cork, where he underwent the usual third-degree methods
followed by the Elizabethans. He was not yet a priest but that fa~t
did not save him from rack and rope. Condemned for his CatbOhC
profession and for refusing to take the oath of royal supremacy, he
was hanged, drawn and quartered at Cork on October 25, 1572.
JAMES BRODRICK,
S.J.
�Ignatian Year Exhortations
WILLIAM J. YOUNG, S.J.
I. OUR FATHER IGNATIUS
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
In papal documents, bulls, briefs, letters, allocutions, in the
writings of historians and the flights of orators, St. Ignatius
is glorified with such titles as founder, lawgiver, commanderin-chief. Founder, lawgiver, and commander he certainly
was in an eminent degree. But when we his sons speak of
him or refer to him, we usually do so under the milder influence of what I may call a domestic mood, and give him the
familiar and affectionate title of father. He is in a true sense
our father in God, for he not only supports, nourishes, moulds,
educates and trains us in the ways of God, but he has even
begotten us to God in the Society of God's own son, Jesus.
It seems to be a universal experience that the older we grow
in the Society, the more keenly we become aware of the fatherhood of St. Ignatius. And yet, I don't hesitate to say that there
are some, eminent for their years and their achievements,
who have not entered into a full understanding of this fatherhood of St. Ignatius. Of this I am certain. Of the reason one
cannot be sure, but if I were to hazard a guess, I would say
that it was because they had not fathomed the real meaning
of fatherhood.
Fatherhood
From the very first days of our novitiate we are told, and
We hear it repeated all along the years, that the government
of the Society is paternal. The term is used in something of a
technical sense, or with the breadth of meaning we give on
occasions to the word parental. We realize that it is within
the scope of parental authority to punish a misbehaving
Youngster by confining his activities to the woodshed for the
~~ternoon, or to reward him when he deserves it by taking
nn_ along to the ballgame. The term paternal as applied to the
8OCiety seems to mean that although the Society has the name
and some of the superficial characteristics of a regiment, a
--
Exhortations given at West Baden College.
�118
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
cohort, a company, it is not governed by means of formal
trials, courts-martial, or other drumhead proceedings. Even in
contradistinction to the capitular proceedings of existing
Orders of monks and friars, the manner of its superiors when
dealing with their subjects could still be called paternal even
when it is characterized by sternness, or touched with a bit
of asperity-paternal, that is, in this technical sense. Not
that the superior is given license to act arbitrarily, for he
himself must be guided by laws, rules, customs and precedents.
Otherwise his rule "Could develop into a tyranny, or degenerate
into a state bordering on anarchy, in which he will unconsciously drive his victims into a state of smouldering rebellion;
or, on the other hand, find it more convenient to follow weakly
the loudest voices or truckle ignobly to the most reckless and
most insolent of his subjects.
Daddyism
When the interpreters of our Institute tell us that our government is paternal, they are not, therefore, to be understood
in a sentimental sense. Sentiment is sometimes, especially
when a man's selfish interests are engaged, only a shadow's
thickness removed from sentimentality, an~ it often happens
that the noble sentiment of fatherliness can gradually be cor·
rupted into the cheap sentimentality of daddyism. Perhaps
it may be only a sign of our prolonged adolescence that we
allow the childish inventions of "daddy" and "dad" to extend
their existence into our maturer years. Or, it may be that we
have never felt the full manly emotion of the relationship
between father and son. To me, at least, "daddy" has always
been synonymous with a lap to climb into, or a knee on which
to be dandled, while "dad" was always someone ready to plaY
the game and willing to respond as he should to a touch. But
the ultimate was reached in "the old man," for the phrase
was a guarantee that we had reached maturity, and meant
that we either looked up to him with approval or down at hi!ll
with pity, according to the level of our self-conceit.
Now, the point I wish to make is that we carry manY of
these father-son relations into religion with us, and when
we hear that the government of the Society is paternal, w.e
apply the yardstick of our boyish experiences to the experl·
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
119
ences that confront us in our new life, and while we might
never think of calling our religious superiors by the terms of
endearment, or tolerance, we applied to our fathers in the
flesh, we are inclined to judge of their fatherliness by the
standards we have been familiar with in our infancy, our
boyhood and our adolescence. In other words, we measure
their fatherliness by their willingness to allow us to climb
into their laps, by their sensitiveness and responsiveness to
our childish wants. We just love being spoiled, and the more
a superior is inclined to kill us with kindness, the more willing
we are to die. Of course, most of us grow beyond this stage,
and all we ask is that we be let alone. If the superior does
show an interest in us, it should not be too detailed, too
curious. We are a bit like the hard-bitten regent who commended his superior because "he minds his own business, and
lets us do pretty much as we please."
Of course, attitudes such as I have been describing are not
very common, but they have existed, still do, and almost certainly always will. When we meet them in religious they are
an indication of a retarded spiritual development, as much
a portent in the spiritual life as an idiot or a dwarf is in the
natural life; a lingering adolescence, if not worse, which the
religious in question is loath to set aside even though he has
reached the years of discretion. It is an attitude commoner, I
believe, in women than in men. St. Paul tells us frankly, almost
brutally, how he cured himself: "When I was a child, I spoke
as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. But now that
I have become a man I have put away the things of a child"
(1 Cor. 13 :11).
Nothing is plainer in St. Ignatius' dealing with his sons than
that he is a father who takes it for granted that his sons
are grownups. He recognizes, of course, that they are men of
varying capacities, and is ready and willing not only to make
allowance for this difference, but is also willing to take into
consideration even their different stages of spiritual development, and does not demand from spiritual and physical
adolescence the same gravity and maturity, the same balance
of judgment, he has a right to expect from middle age and
sen~scence. He showed, as we all know, an almost motherly
Patience with the exuberance of Pedro Ribadeneira. It was
still Patience, but patience mingled with a note of fatherly
�120
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
concern, when he had to deal with the self-importance of
Father Nicholas Bobadilla; and this concern hardened like
the steel of a Toledo blade when he applied it to the selfsufficient mistakes of the learned Father James Laynez. He
knew his men, and he also knew that they were all beginners
in the spiritual life, in that form of it, at least, which he
envisioned in his Constitutions, and he never forgot that he
had to shape them to an ideal, and that this shaping was going
to be at times painful for some of them. As sentimentality had
no place in his make-up, he did not hesitate to call upon them
to suffer pain, privation, humiliation, when he saw-and how
clear was his vision-that these things would be good for their
spiritual growth. In this he showed himself not only a strong
father, but a loving father.
Ignatius and Severity
There are certain classes of biographers who have succeeded
in presenting St. Ignatius in the role of drillmaster rather
than that of father. They seem to take a special delight in
lingering over those incidents of his life where he has acted
with a certain amount of prompt decisiveness, and they leave
the reader under the impression that the..'decisiveness was
well seasoned with asperity. There is the- instance of the
novice who coolly announced that he would be leaving
in the morning. "In the morning?" repeated Ignatius, "lie
shall leave tonight!" Or the instance of the Brother who was
guilty of a rather grave violation of the rule of tactus, whom
he would have dismissed almost as promptly had not some
of the gravest Fathers in the community interceded for hirn.
The order of dismissal was revoked but the Brother forbidden
ever to live in Rome. The sequel, however, proved that St.
Ignatius had been right, as the Brother eventually left the
Society. We will be less inclined to look upon such action of
St. Ignatius as arbitrary or unduly severe if we remember
that at times the indelicacy of the fault involved maY call
for some understatement or reserve in its recording. :More·
over, as the editors of the Monumenta observe concerning thiS
and similar incidents, St. Ignatius may also have had knowl·
edge of previous faults, aggravating circumstances, and so on,
which he did not feel free to divulge. It must not be forgotten
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
121
that he was laying the foundations of his Order and that he
could not tolerate weaknesses that might endanger the permanence of these foundations.
There is a very interesting occurrence in which he did feel
free to explain himself. It has to do with Pedro Ribadeneira,
who by this time had grown up into a sedate Scholastic. He
had come to Rome before being sent away to Paris for the
remainder of his studies. For some reason unaccountable, as
such experiences often are, he had conceived a violent dislike
of the Saint he had once loved so ardently. Happily, it was
one of those rixae amantium redintegratio est amoris. It got
him involved, however, before he was through in a very serious
temptation against his vocation. St. Ignatius told him to put
himself in the Exercises for a few days. He did so and came
down with· a violent fever. When Ignatius came to visit his
wayward son-his attention to the sick was proverbial-the
latter, utterly miserable by this time, broke into tears, and
told Ignatius that he was ready to run off with a priest who
had been working on him since his return to Rome, who was
largely responsible for his estrangement, and who was leaving
the house the next day, "evicted pitilessly and penniless by
Ignatius." Ignatius did his best to soothe the sobbing youth,
and told him the truth about the priest, which was that he,
Ignatius, had been doing his very best to prevail upon him
to remain with them a little longer in the hope of weathering
the storm of temptation that was carrying him from the light
out into the vastness of the dark!
.We should remember that many of these instantaneous dis~lssa!s were of novices, even when, as in the preceding ins ance, the novice was a priest. I understand that even in our
o~n days novice masters, who would not lay claim to even a
~ lght fraction of the insight or illumination of St. Ignatius,
i:ve shown in certain critical cases an equal despatch in freethg ~he Society from almost certain liabilities and liberating
n e Individual from a yoke, the burden of which neither grace
f~r ~ature ever intended him to bear. We must beware of
ern~lng an opinion of our holy Father from these few peran: ory dismissals. They were never mere improvisations,
he Were resorted to only when other means had failed. When
saw that patience, mildness and affection would mean
�122
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
merely the waste of further graces and would be met with
stubbornness, wilfulness and insolence, he was quick to act.
He could not endure rebellion and wasted no time on the
proud spirit of independence wherever it raised its ugly head.
His Society was to be a Society of love, and it would never
thrive if insubordination had to be wheedled into obedience.
But where a dismissal might be likely to reflect on the good
name of the individual, Ignatius did everything he could to
safeguard the reputation, even going to the extent of seeking
pretexts of temporary absences, such as pilgrimages, in the
course of which the one to be dismissed could carry into effect
confidential plans for a quiet and unobtrusive disappearance.
Adaptability
St. Ignatius had to deal with more than the rebellious and
the disorderly. There were also the weak and vacillating.
Father Espinosa quotes from the Scripta de Sancto Ignatia
the instance of the novice of noble rank who was put to work
hauling stone and earth for the erection of a garden wall
along the Via Campidoglia in the very heart of Rome. St.
Ignatius, making his round of inspection, noticed that the
youngster was overcome with shame and embarrassment, and
could tell from his face and whole attitude that he was being
tempted against his vocation. He immediately called the Min·
ister's attention to the fact with the words: "Don't you see
that this poor boy is in trouble? Why have you had hiJII
come?" The Minister, a bit flustered, answered, "Because
you gave orders that all without exception were to report·"
"Well, even though I did say that, you are Minister. Does
such an order excuse you from all discretion?" And calling
the novice, he bade him leave the work, as it was not place
for him to be (I, 410). We might have expected the drillmaster
to say, "If he can't take it, let him go!" But Ignatius is anY·
thing but a martinet. He is the gentlest of fathers. He knows
how to fit the burden to the back, to temper the wind to the
shorn lamb.
He called Father Bobadilla the arch-hypocrite of the Society, because he managed to hide so much virtue under 5~
rough and rugged an exterior. He was even all meekness an
compliance with his insolence, because he knew that hidden
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
123
away under the incrustation of some minor vices was a heart
of the purest gold. He could reduce Fathers Laynez, Polanco,
De Camara to tears by the rebukes he administered and by
withholding from them the words of tenderness their souls
were hungry for, because he knew that they had a special
work to do in the Society and would have need of hearts that
had been annealed in the furnace of self-denial to make them
ready for the tasks that lay before them. They had to be men
of tried and solid virtue who could be counted on to respond
generously to the leadership to which they were so splendidly
called.
There were others of less stalwart virtue, men of good
intentions indeed, but of unsatisfactory performance, like
Father Simon Rodrigues. For them Father Ignatius mingled
his corrections with words of encouragement, of tenderness
even. How well he understood human weakness, and how
generous he was in making allowance for it, even in those
whom he had chosen as his first companions. There is no
lowering of ideals, no weak surrender to a son's waywardness.
He is always the father speaking firmly, though gently, pleading with all the tenderness of a mother, ready to proceed
to the ultimate in severity if the prodigal refuses to return
to his senses, eagerly intent on preserving uncontaminated
the common heritage of his faithful sons. He knew that the
misguided Simon was no rebel, but that his spiritual vision
had been blurred by the pomp and glitter of a worldly court.
He is always the strong, tender and provident father,
Whether he counsels or reproves, commends or punishes. He
could point a reproof without attaching a barb to it. He could
threaten the wayward, give.courage to the timid, shame the
selfish and arouse the slothful with words of fire. He could
Pour the balm of God's love into the hearts of the bereaved
and the lonely. He was all sympathy with those who suffered,
Whether it was from sickness, or poverty, or persecution, or
:l~very. But never once does he fail to point out that these are
rra!s sent or permitted by God, and that their purpose is to
h~rrfy, and thus to unite the more closely with God those of
f 18 sons who are thus afflicted. And they recognized this manly,
atherly love of his. For those he most tried loved him most,
�124
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
and none of them but would gladly have died to win the smile
of his approval.
II. ST. IGNATIUS AND OUR LADY
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
So far as we have any documentary evidence, what we might
call St. Ignatius' Marian life began at Loyola. Shortly after
his apparently miraculous cure on the eve of the feast of Sts.
Peter and Paul, Our Lady appeared to him. We find the inci·
dent briefly narrated to Father Gonc;alves de Camara (n. 21}.
He gives no indication of any precise date, but Pere Dudon
makes out a plausible case for the vision having taken place
on the eve or the night of August 15, 1521. St. Ignatius tells
his story in the third person: "Being awake one night, he
clearly saw a likeness of Our Lady with the Infant Jesus.
During a considerable space of time he received an excess
of consolation: There remained so great a disgust with all his
past life, especially with its impurity, that he thought that
all the impressions which up to then had been so engraved on
his soul were torn out." The language of St. Ignatius is wary,
as though he feared the vision he saw might have been the
creation of an overheated imagination. But the experts, who
have since examined it according to the rules he himself
was later to lay down for judging such occurrences, are unani·
mously satisfied that it was Our Lady herself who came in
person to Ignatius to begin a relationship that was to bind
them to each other in bonds of ever growing fidelity on the
one hand, and of ever attentive intercession on the other, for
the rest of the Saint's mortal life.
We might almost say that this was the beginning, at least
the first manifestation of Our Lady's devotion to St. Ignatius.
Would it be too daring to suggest that it was she who took the
initiative? She will appear again and again in his life, but it
will be only after he has formally and publicly declared himself
her professed and faithful liege man-a declaration that he
will not be long in making.
This he did twice, the first time as a rather private and in·
formal acknowledgment of a debt: a debt which he himsel!
did not owe, but was owed by one of his relatives who ha
1
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
125
promised a night's vigil at the shrine of Our Lady of Aranzazu,
a Basque sanctuary in the mountains of Guipuzcoa, where
Ignatius stopped with his brother before slipping away from
him and continuing his solitary way to Montserrat. Years
later, in a letter to St. Francis Borgia in 1554, he recalled
the graces he had received from Our Lady on that blessed
night.
Montserrat
He was not long in shaking himself free of his brother,
and after making a few other calls of courtesy and business,
he took the road to Montserrat. We all recall the incident of
his dispute with the infidel Moor concerning Our Lady's
virginity, and if we look with a gentle surprise on his resigning judgment to his mount, as to whether he should exact
a bloody vengeance for the unbeliever's blasphemy against
Our Lady, we cannot dismiss as a matter of mere chance the
fact that the mule he was riding, acting against the gregarious
instincts of his nature, declined to follow his brother mule,
and took the road that led Ignatius away from bloodshed,
even in Our Lady's honor, to the sanctuary that at the moment
Was the center of his thoughts.
The watch of arms at Montserrat is another example of the
simplicity and forthrightness of a soldier's devotion. For
Ignatius we might say that it marks the climax of the first
stage of his conversion from a warrior of the world to a warrior at war with the world. And as it marked the end of one
stage, it also opened the way for another. Pere Dudon tells
us that "a bath, a vigil, confession, Communion, the blessing
and the surrender of his sword were the rites and ceremonies
by which the creation of a new knight was effected." Here
surely was a new knight, whose soul was bathed in the waters
of Penance after a confession that lasted three days. His purification was sealed by the absolution pronounced over him,
~d the vigil lasted the whole night through. Of the thoughts
t at filled his mind, the aspirations that elevated his soul,
h~e ~ove that expanded his heart during that eventful vigil,
f Is hps have said nothing. There was much indeed to be sorry
or, there were great plans to formulate, he had a lifetime of
neglect to repair, and a lifetime of opportunity to utilize. How
�126
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
all this was to be done he could have had little if any foresight,
except that he would walk in the footsteps of Him who on
this night fifteen centuries earlier, the Divine Word, in
order to free the world, had secretly descended to the humility
of the flesh, through the cooperation of a Virgin who wished
to be merely the handmaid of the Lord. With all his heart he
longed to imitate Christ, and to offer himself to the inspiration of His grace for a new and still mysterious destiny in
which the Gospel would be the only law. How appropriately
then he stood there at the feet of this Lady of pure love, in the
obscurity of her sanctuary, garbed like a poor man, an unknown pilgrim of the earth, where he no longer had any
fixed place of abode, nowhere to lay his head. The arms which
until now had ministered only to his vanity he left at her feet.
Henceforth he wished no other buckler than that of faith, no
other helmet than that of salvation, no other sword than that
sword of the spirit. And in the fervor of his prayer he begged
Our Lady's afd in putting on the armor of the Christian,
which is Christ.
Manresa and the Dictation
T~e~ry
Ignatius had only to cross the valley of ·the Cardoner to
find himself in Manresa which, first intended as a temporarY
hiding place, became his abode for almost a year. Here again
the ties that bound him to Our Lady grew stronger and
firmer. There was a deepening of what we have called his
Marian life, and this should be remembered by those who
look upon Manresa almost exclusively as the birthplace of the
Spiritual Exercises. Others, however, go so far as to link his
Marian life with the Spiritual Exercises to such an extent as
to say that these Exercises were dictated to him by Our LadY·
This tradition did not come to light until some seventy-five
years after the composition of the Exercises. Taking wing
from Barcelona, it appears in Rome, is published by LanciciUS
in his Gloria Sancti Ignatii in 1622, and 1626, Father Mutius
Vitelleschi sends a picture to Manresa representing the scene
of the dictation, Dictante Deipara, discit et docet. Unfor·
tunately, there is no solid foundation for the legend, and it
is rejected by Fathers Astrain, Tacchi Venturi and Watrigant.
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
127
Others, however, declare the "ancient tradition" worthy of
respect.
But to reject the dictation theory is not to deny Our Lady
all cooperation in the composition of the Exercises. It would
be almost as great a tax on our credulity to have to hold that
this homo litterarum plane rudis, to quote the breviary, wrote
a book of the stature of the Spiritual Exercises out of his own
head, that is without help of some kind. On his own admission,
God treated Ignatius during this term at Manresa as a schoolmaster treats a young pupil. Now, we know that a good
schoolmaster does not do the work for his pupil, limiting the
pupil's cooperation merely to a dumb copying of the master's
efforti'!. But he makes the pupil exercise his faculties, sees to
it that he reflects, examines, compares, grapples with his
difficulties instead of surrendering to them. He may even
permit him an occasional mistake for the sole purpose of impressing the truth more deeply on his mind. He will possibly
make suggestions that open new horizons of thought on which
the pupil may even attempt short flights of intellectual adventure. And while the work or most of it seems to be done by
the pupil, no one would claim that the master's role was a
PUrely passive one. Now it seems to me that if God so treated
Ignatius with regard to the broader and more comprehensive
outlines of the spiritual life, we may well assure ourselves that
she whom Ignatius had already adopted as his mediatrix would
have treated him in like manner in the less ample area of the
~Piritual Exercises. In the twenty-six years that intervened
IIetween their composition and their final approval by Paul
I, Ignatius, on his own admission, made many corrections
~nd additions, as experience, observation, and his growing
~owledge suggested. To act in this way, if he were conscious
0
Our Lady's having dictated the Exercises verbally, would
surely have seemed to him, as it does to us, to be an imperti~nce, Which his humble and loyal soul would have abhorred.
the Who found severe fault with Father Araoz for changing
h ~tense of a verb after Paul III's approval, would not have
0~ the temerity to add whole meditations, change and revise
in<£~rs, had he been conscious that the book he was "improvto Was the work of Our Lady herself! But there is nothing
Prevent our thinking that the writing of the Exercises was
�128
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
supervised, directed, inspired, in the broader sense of the term,
by a mind greater than his. In fact, it would seem that some
such help was absolutely necessary if an unlettered soldier,
inexperienced in the ways of the spirit, or the working of the
mind, were to go into retirement and at the end of a few
months come out of his desert with a book destined to arouse
the enthusiasm of millions of Christians, and exercise the in.
telligence and ingenuity of thousands of scholars. Many years
ago a junior with- ·metaphysical, or perhaps they were only
physical, ambitions admitted to me that he saw no difficulty
in asserting the possibility of a poem like the Iliad, or a
· tragedy like Macbeth, being accidentally produced as the net
or joint result of a crew of monkeys set furiously to pounding
the keys of a battery of typewriters, given, of course, a suf·
ficiently large allowance of eons of time! But the young genius
in question was only arguing. I think that most of us would
be willing to grant the impossibility even of Ignatius writing
entirely by himself, without aid of any kind, one of the world's
great spiritual masterpieces. At least we can claim that the
aid he received from her to whom he had a habit of turning
and who, for her part, never allowed him to turn to her in
vain, was sufficient to start him on his career and to give to
his book that imprint of genius that has made it one of the
classics of the ages.
Our Lady in the Exercises
It is surprising to learn on closer examination hoW illl·
portant a part is played by this same Lady whom he serves,
and how often she appears in its pages, from the very first
meditation to the last. There is never any exaggeration.
She is never more than intercessor, but in that role she is t~e
omnipotens supplex of the theologians. She first appears !D
the Triple Colloquy of the Third Exercise, which is, af~er ~~~
only a repetition of the First and Second. We are d1recth
to ask Our Lady to obtain from her Son three graces, t e
first being an inner knowledge of our sins and an abhorrenc;
of them-think of it, from her who knew no sin at all; an
secondly, for a knowledge of the disorder of our actio~~
from her who never knew, experimentally at least, the sM" r
est disorder; and thirdly, a knowledge of the world, froJlllle
�IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
129
who never felt the slightest pull of its attractions and who
knew of their monstrous disorder from the unspeakable pain
they would inflict, or be the occasion of inflicting, on her
Divine Son, and thus on herself. What St. Ignatius means
here is, I think, a whole making over of our inner consciousness which he thus entrusts first to Our Lady, expecting that
she will cleanse our senses to keep them from yielding to the
constant pressure of the disorder presented to them; clear
our imaginations, so that they will not dwell on the glittering
prospects that lie open before them at every turn; quicken our
intellects to make them proof against the sophistries that
play such havoc with out spiritual ideals; and refine our taste
so that we can detect the vulgar pleasures the world offers us
as the gall and wormwood they really are!
In the Meditation of the Two Standards a similar Triple
Colloquy involving Our Lady is repeated, but with a different
purpose. We are asked to have recourse to her to obtain for us
the grace to be received under the standard of Christ's poverty, to endure insults and wrongs as the means that will make
us more like her Divine Son. And this, of course, is only a
summary of the third point of the second part of the Meditation, which speaks of a desire of insults and slights that lead
to humility. This, in turn, is only a development of the first
point of the second part of the Meditation of the Kingdom,
Where there is question of those who wish to "come with me,"
"work with me," "be rewarded with me," in other words,
be my companions. And in all this, which is only the ideal of
the Society reduced to its barest essentials, St. Ignatius gives
to Mary the part of the irresistible interc.essor before her Son.
Our Lady and La Storta
Time does not permit us to examine all the interesting instances of Our Lady's intervention in favor of St. Ignatius.
But there is one of very capital significance which we should
not omit. It is an incident to which St. Ignatius always attached a great deal of importance. We know that after the
Ordination of the companions in Venice, Ignatius determined
t? Postpone his First Mass for a whole year, and in the meantime give himself to a thorough preparation for his first apPearance at the altar. He placed himself as usual under the
�130
IGNATIAN EXHORTATIONS
special protection of Our Lady, asking her to "place him with
her Son." It seems to have become for him a kind of consecrated expression, containing in its brevity all the meaning
of the "with Christ" of the first point of the second part of
the Kingdom. Some nine miles north of Rome this prayer to
Our Lady seems to have had its answer. Accounts of the
vision at La Storta are given by Fathers de Camara and
Laynez, Laynez happening to be Ignatius' companion at the
time, not a witness Clf. the vision, but a sharer of Ignatius'
confidence. According to Father Laynez, Ignatius beheld in the
heavens opened before him the Heavenly Father together
with Christ bearing His Cross. "I wish that he be 'with you' "
said the Father to the Son, and Christ, addressing Ignatius
said, "I wish that you be 'with me.' " "And I," said the
Father, "will be propitious to you at Rome." It is stretching
a point too far to say that here we have a representation of
the Triple Colloquy,-Our Lady interceding, Father and Son
granting the request verbatim?
One thing that strikes us with surprise when we think of
St. Ignatius and Our Lady and remember how chivalrous, how
filial was his devotion to her, is the absence of what in these
bustling, boisterous days, we have come to~·call propaganda.
He is the promoter of no new devotions, no special practices,
he preaches no septenaries, no octaves, no novenas, he guarantees no infallible ejaculations or aspirations. He invented no
new titles. He knew Our Lady of Aranzazu, Our Lady of
Montserrat, Our Lady of the Wayside. But they were titles
venerable with age when he learned them. And he might have
invented such glorious ones! Our Lady of the Stars, for instance, which in his own tongue would have been so sonorous
and so majestic, Nuestra Senora de las Estrellas, and so appropriate and so true; for a wreath of stars had been woven
for her, and she wore them in her hair, like a crown. Or,
Nuestra Senora de la Luna, for the moon had been given her
as a footstool. But for Ignatius, cavalier and penitent and
saint, she was simply Our Lady, the Lady whom he loved,
whom he had taken into his life and whom he venerated and
served and who rewarded him with her deepest affection and
all the largess that God had given her to bestow. To him she
was always and only Nuestra Senora, Our Lady.
�Atomic Vulnerability of the Society
in America
NEIL
P. HURLEY, S.J.
In December, 1955, I visited Washington to obtain information from government agencies concerning passive defense
measures against possible nuclear attack. My doctoral thesis
was on the problem of industrial dispersal and the government's nonmilitary defense program. While discussing the
problem with a Catholic representative of the Office of Defense Mobilization, I was made to realize that the Society
of Jesus has traditionally settled in the large metropolitan
areas, in keeping with the ideals of the second rule of the
Summary, and is consequently as vulnerable to thermonuclear
attack as any of our large scale organizations in metropolitan
areas. In the face of nuclear attack, there are several serious
considerations which heretofore were never linked with the
clever quatrain (in which Dominic sometimes spells Ignatius):
Benedict loved the mountains,
Bernard loved the hills,
Francis loved the valleys,
But Ignatius loved the big cities.
Curious whether the Society was as vulnerable as the ODM
official hinted, I scanned the ten province catalogues to ascertain the degree of concentration in critical target areas. 1 The
Table indicates the number of Jesuits in critical target zones,
as designated by the Federal Civil Defense Administration.
-----
1 In determining the number of Jesuits in each city I included the
:ctual amount of Jesuits, both those from outside the province as well
f s t~ose from the province itself. I omitted consideration, naturally of
aoreign missionaries and military chaplains. All the figures in this paper
;e drawn from the 1956 catalogues of the ten American provinces. The
few York Province catalogue fails to give statistics on student and lay
s~~lty personnel for Fordham University and Prep. I estimated 11,000
ents and 800 for faculty members.
�ATOMIC VULNERABILITY
132
CONCENTRATION OF JESUITS AND THEIR WORKS WITHIN A TWENTY-FIVE
MILE RADIUS OF CruTICAL NUCLEAR TARGET AREAS
NEWARKAREA
NEW YORK
ROCHESTER
SYRACUSE
BUFFALO
JESUITS
CoLLAY
STUDENTS TEACHERS LEGES
HIGH SCHOLASSCHOOLS TICATES
1
6
1
2
690
23
38
98
15,746
400
1,500
2,642
958
4
33
68
1
1
1
357
2,180
66
1
1
SCRANTONWILKEs-BARRE
36
1,908
69
1
READINGWERNERSVILLE
WHEELING
PHILADELPHIA
123
12
100
83
2,698
1
60
1
1
WASHINGTON,
D.C.
ST. Lours
DENVER
158
382
66
5,174
10,802
997
1,108
722
44
1
1
1
2
1
FLORISSANT (IN
ST. LOUIS
AREA)
KANSAS CITY
BOSTON-WESTON
214
54
501
2,073
8,364
62
240
i
1
1
CHICAGO
73
103
227
2,016
1,828
9,292
50
49
770
1
1
1
1
CINCINNATIMILFORD
DETROIT
CLEVELAND
TOLEDO
NEW ORLEANS
DALLAS
SAN FRANCISCO
SAN DIEGO
Los ANGELES
281
123
146
12
104
24
127
6
98
4,282
10,153
3,790
105
474
130
1
1
1
1
1
1
3,777
492
3,056
199
6
108
1
1
1
1
1
2,444
79
1
1
158
8
77
4,399
9,638
864
1
1
1
3,891
109,226
143
6,412
1
23
1
.24
9
BALTIMOREWOODSTOCK
BRIDGEPORTHARTFORD
WORCESTER, MASS.
MILWAUKEEOSHKOSH
PORTLAND
SEATTLE
TOTALS
1
1
1
1
~-
1
1
1
�Critical Target Areas for
Civil Defense Purposes
Critical Target Area Total Population = 67,750,9
I, Akron (Ohio)
4I0.03Z
514,490
437.824
671,797
1
(Md.l---------1 I, 337, 373
184,698
1' B:t~gha.rnton(N.Y.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ,
a' :Jrmingham (Ala.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , 558, 928
,: B;~~on(Mass.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
l, 369, 986
258, 137
:~· BuU!t?(~~ ~:;>nn. l ' - - - - - - - - 1 I, 089, 230
11:
(Ohio)
*
283, 194
ll, Ch' anooga (Tenn.-Ga.) _ _ _ __
246,453
14, Ci lt~go (Ill. -Ind.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ , 5, 495, 364
IS, ct'tlnnati(Ohio-Ky.) _ _ _ _ _ __
904,402
I~
tveJand (Ohio)
1, 465,511
11' ~olurnbus (Ohio) _ _ _ _ _ _ __
503,410
o:~~a.: (Texas) -- --614,799
1,, Dayt Port-Rock Island-Moline (Ill. -Ia,)
234, 256
~~. Denyon \Ohio)
. _____ _
457.333
11, Dttrt·r(Col,) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
S63, 832
11. t. 011 Mich.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
3, 016, 197
11, r::lt (Pa.)•~-:--:-------
219, 388
lt, Fa~In~~ille (Ind.) _ _ · - - - - - - 160, 422
' ll, Flint (~:~r-New Bedford (Mass. -R.I.)_
274,767
lb F
IVI.lth )
.
270.963
17: Fert Wayne.,(lnd ,------:- ~ -183,722
1!, ott Worth (Tex•.
361,253
11,
Rapids (Mich )
288, 292
lO.
rd(Conn.)_·-==--===
358,081
lt,
(Tox.)
806, 70 I
~~- nsas c·is ( I n d . ) - - - , - - - - - 551,777
li. i'tnoxvul l(ty (Kans.·Mo.) _ _ _ __
814, 357
·tan
~ Tenn.) _ _ _ _ _ _ __
337,105
ls, l.o,~~ster (Pa.)
234,717
ll&eles (Ca:Clif-c.-c)------4, 367,911
~· Alba.ny~Schen-.-,-,.-d-y--T-,--y_(_N_.-Y-.)-:_-_-_-_
0
'
4 ~~~tntown-Bdhlehem-Ea.ston (N, J. -Pa.)
'ta.nta(Ga,) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
!· B~Itimore
~~::;n
a:
)-==--=-----=--------
. 6052
• 7594
• 6462
. 9916
I. 9739
.2726
• 8250
3. 4981
• 3810
I. 6017
. 4180
• 3638
8. 1111
I. 3349
2. 1631
. 7430
• 9074
. 3458
. 6750
• 8322
4, 4519
• 3238
. 2368
• 4055
. 3999
.2712
. 5332
. 4255
• 5285
I. 1907
• 8144
1.2020
. 4976
. 3464
6. 4470
36 .
37,
38.
39.
40.
41.
42,
43.
44.
45.
46 .
47.
48.
49.
so.
51,
52 .
53 .
54 .
55,
56.
57 .
58,
59.
60 .
61,
62,
63 .
64 .
65.
66,
67.
68 •
69 .
70,
MAP I
Louisville (Ky. ·Ind.)~-Memphis {Tenn.)
Milwauhe (Wise.)
Minneapolis-St. Paul (Minn.) _ _ _ _ _
New Britain.Bristol {Conn.) _ _ _ _ _
New Haven (Conn.) ____ - - - - - - - New Orleans ( L a . ) _ - - - - - - New York-N, E. New Jersey (N.Y.-N.J.}
Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News {Va.
Peoria { I l l . ) - - - - - - - - - - - - Philadelphia (Pa.-N,J,) _ _ _ _ _ _
Pittsburgh {Pa.)
Portland (Ore, - W a s h . ) - - - - _____
Providence (R.I. -Mass.)
Reading (Pa.)--------~---Rochester (N.Y.) ________ - - - - - St. Louis (Mo.-Ill.) _ _ _ _ _ - - - - - San Diego { C a l i f . ) - - - · - - - - - San Francisco-Oakland (Cali£.) _____
Seattle (Wash.) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
South Bend (Ind.)
Springfield-Holyoke (Conn. -Mass.) _ _
Syracuse (N.Y.)
Toledo (Ohio) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Trenton (N.J.) ____
Utica-Rome (N. Y,)
Washington (D.C. -Md, -Va.) ___
Waterbury (Conn.)
Wheeling-Steubenville (Ohio-W. Va.} Wichita (Kans.)
Wilkes-Barre- Hazleton(Pa, ) ______
Wilmington (Del.-N.J.) _ _ _ ~-Worcester (Mass,) _ _ _
York (Pa.) _ _ _
Youngstown (Ohio-Pa,)
576,900
482, 393
871.047 I •
1, 116,509 l.
146.983
264, 6ZZ
685,405 1.
12,911,994 19.
589,427
250, 512
3,671,048 5.
2, 213,236 3 .
704,829 1,
737,203 I.
255,740
487. 632
I, 681,281 l.
556,808
2, 240,767 3.
732,992 l.
205, 058
407,255
341.719
395.551
229, 781
284, 262
1, 464,089 l
154,656
354,092
222, 290
392,241
268, 387
276, 336
202,737
528,498
��ATOMIC VULNERABILITY
133
NUMBER OF JESUITS AND THEIR WORKS IN THE POSSIBLE 140 MILE
DOWNWIND AREA OF RADIOACTIVE FALL-OUT
LAY
COLAREA
JESUITS STUDENTS TEACHERS LEGES
SAN JOSE
40
810
7
SANTA CLARA
58
1,114
61
1
Los GATOS
268
MOBILE
142
1
1,098
36
GRAND COUTEAU 103
WEST BADEN
242
TACOMA
25
325
1
LENOX, MASS.
146
4
148
TOTALS
1,024
3,495
. 109
'2
HIGH SCHOLASSCHOOLS TICATES
1
2
1
1
1
1
3
1
5
If one compares the Table with Map I, which shows the
seventy critical FCDA target areas, it becomes apparent that
almost sixty per cent of American Jesuits are clustered in
some thirty target-rich areas. Of the 7,163 American Jesuits
exactly 4,399 are in industrial and urban areas which rank
high on a hostile long distance bomber's priority list. In addition another thousand Jesuits are located sufficiently near
these key centers to be in serious danger of radioactive ash
falling out of the sky. In the same thirty areas are twentythree universities and colleges and twenty-four high schools
which house 109,226 students and 6,412 lay teachers. Nine
scholasticates are also found in these areas.
Assumptions
The above figures are only as terrifying as the assumptions
Upon which they rest, namely that an enemy air force will
succeed in dropping atomic and hydrogen bombs with unerring accuracy on the thirty named target areas. Whether
these assumptions will ever be verified is a moot point. One
thing is clear, however, our defense planning must be predicated on the worst possible assumptions. It is only logical
!hat the enemy will plan to attack suddenly those cities and
~n~ustries which will net the greatest destructive yield and
rmg America to its knees most quickly.
th Perhaps the most vivid way to point out the Achilles' heel of
fl e Society here in America is to develop the consequences
t'OWing from the simulated attack which was part of "OperaIon Alert" in June 1955. Key U.S. target cities were chosen
�134
ATOl\IIC VULNERABILITY
to be subjected to a theoretical thermonuclear Pearl Harbor.
The cities struck were usually ones where the Society has
large houses, churches, scholasticates, and schools. If this mock
air raid had been the real thing over half of the American
Society would have been injured or killed: 3,441 Jesuits would
have been within the zones of destruction which grow out
concentrically from ground zero, assuming pinpoint accuracy
on the part of the en.emy bombers; some 779 Jesuits, furthermore, would have been in areas easily accessible to radioactive contamination, depending upon the direction of the
wind. In addition, 85,351 students in our colleges and high
schools would have been directly affected; 2,397 would have
been in the radioactive shadow, 140 miles long and twenty
miles wide, assuming unfavorable wind directions. Some
5,064 extern teachers would have been in the blast area;
another seventy-three in areas subject to radioactive fall-out.
If we take~Newark-New York as an example we find that a
ten megaton bomb (less than the Eniwetok bomb) could
knock out or affect adversely the Provincial's residence at
Kohlmann Hall, Fordham University and the Preparatory
School, St. Peter's College and High--School, Regis and
Loyola High Schools, Xavier, and Brooklyn Prep, not to
mention the new Philosophate at Shrub Oak. An air burst on
the Newark-New York industrial axis, the richest target in
the nation, would affect 670 Jesuits, 15,746 students, and 958
lay teachers. The assumption in this example has been a ten
megaton H-bomb. It is possible today to construct a fusion
bomb of 40 megatons. What will happen when the cobalt
bomb becomes a reality and the intercontinental missile is
perfected?
Provincial Curias
Two more pessimistic notes appear in the picture of .Tesuit
vulnerability. The provincials of the ten American provinces
are all situated, together with their staffs, in major target
areas: Portland, San Francisco, Milwaukee, Detroit, N~"'
Orleans, Boston, New York, Chicago, Baltimore, and St. Lou!~
A look at the FCDA target zones shows these cities to be. 0
1
high population densities. They are all important industria'
�ATOl\IIC VULNERABILITY
135
financial, and transportation centers-sites which would not
be overlooked by any enemy task force.
Furthermore most of the major cities in which Jesuits
exercise their apostolate are in littoral areas accessible to
atomic bomb attack by submarines. The Russians, to mention
a possible foe, have the finest fleet of submarines, 800 in all,
among which are many of the German snorkel-type. Map II
indicates that within the shaded areas are forty-five per cent
of the nation's people and industry, and about forty-three per
cent of all the Jesuits in the U.S. In the coastal areas are
six scholasticates, sixteen high schools, and fourteen universities which should be prepared for submarine or air atomic attack. In these buildings are 3,158 Jesuits, 54,154 Jesuit
students, and 3,226 lay teachers.
Nor should the cities and Jesuit communities inland feel
secure since cities like Cincinnati, Cleveland, St. Louis, Chicago and Detroit, are, to give one possible example, within the
great circle air routes from such Russian bases as Uelen,
Petropavlovsk, Wrangel Island, and Rudolph Island in Eastern
Siberia. Map III shows the major cities, housing our large
communities and schools in the Great Lakes area, which are
within striking distances of long range bombers which can
refuel in the air. The industrial heartland of America offers
an enticing target to hostile planes which might fly over the
top of the world to devastate American urban, industrial, and
military centers.
Admittedly the above presuppositions are pessimistic.
Nevertheless it becomes quite apparent that America, and the
American Society of Jesus, are exceptionally vulnerable. Civil
defense planning is a sine qua non in the atomic era. Whatever
costs it may entail are actually premiums on atomic insurance. It is a question of a little neglect breeding much mischief, or as Benjamin Franklin's proverb put it, "For want
of a nail the shoe is lost, for want of a shoe the horse is lost,"
right down to the loss of a kingdom.
If an Atomic Attack Comes
Obviously the Society cannot disperse its existing facilities.
~he~ever there are people in large numbers there will be
esu1ts realizing the ideals of their vocation.
Nor must we
�136
ATOMIC VULNERABILITY
become panic-stricken as many have become who do not have
the abiding trust in Providence which has always characterized the Society. If an atomic Pearl Harbor should come, we
know that God will provide. Nevertheless the recuperation of
the Society and its works in this country will depend in large
measure upon the men who survive. Buildings and churches
can be rebuilt and restored; Jesuit vocations and experienced
workers in Christ's vineyard are only replaced over a period
of years, not to say decades. Though this article has as its
main purpose to provoke thought and stimulate thinking
along civil defense lines, some proposals are in order.
The following have been adapted from company disaster
control and defense planning manuals. First is the need for
executive continuity and succession of management. There
is no organization in the world where sound leadership is
more valuable in times of critical emergency than in the Society of Jesus. We have been blessed with the necessary excellent leadership in the past and we will need it again. We
will need more leaders like St. Joseph Pignatelli if the assumptions of this article ever become a reality. We-have shown that
the provincials and their assistants are all located in vulnerable, target-rich cities. Some provision must be made for
competent leadership in the event that the provincials' resi·
dences were bombed out. Logical emergency successors should
be provided for; obviously Very Reverend Father General and
his Curia would help here. Nevertheless some familiarity
with the problems of government are essential. Possibly ex·
provincials or former socii to the provincial, who survive an
attack, could step in and pick up the threads of government
and direct the restoration of a province or a part of it. For·
tunately some provinces do not have all their eggs in one
basket. The Wisconsin, New Orleans, and Oregon Provinces
are decentralized over many non-target cities. New York,
Chicago, New England, Detroit, and California Provinces are
relatively more centralized and urban-oriented. In New York
a decentralized location like the house of probation at Plattsburgh loses its strategic advantage by virtue of its proximity
to a new jet bomber base, which could be a target.
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MAP II
�~~~~~~~~-~-~--~-~--~-~~~~~~~~~~~-----------
THE INDUSTRIAL HEARTLAND: source of 60°/o of American
industrial
a::
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"tl
......
......
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.
prod~ction
for the past fifty years
�ATOMIC VULNERABILITY
137
Records
Another defense measure is the protection and duplication
of records. In the New England floods last summer many
companies, such as the U.S. Rubber Co., were embarrassed
when important documents such as pay roll records, accounts
receivable, inventory and stock records, were lost. The largest
non-sectarian university in New York City, with an endowment of millions, has failed to make duplicate records and
provide for post-emergency recovery. Undoubtedly to do so
is expensive, but with the process of microfilming and choosing selectively those records which are indispensable, continuity of operation can be insured in our colleges, high
schools, churches, and Jesuit communities. Financial records
and those relating to the provincial's office should certainly
be duplicated and stored in some decentralized damp-proof
vault. A vast number of corporations have adopted this
practice.
In each community and Jesuit house there should be a
civil defense coordinator. Perhaps this could be the minister,
or some priest with an inclination for such planning. During
an emergency this man should have the power of decision and
authority. In larger houses he should have a deputy. The first
task of the CDC (Civil Defense Coordinator) should be to
establish liaison with the local civilian defense organization.
The FCDA works with the state and city officials; local civil
def:nse directors have broad powers during the emergency
period. Any house defense plan should be integrated with the
~lans of the municipality. Even if the community or house
Is not in an area directly attacked, there still remains the
froblem of evacuation from damaged areas, the means of
.ransportation and communication at hand, the possible housIng and feeding of displaced and injured persons.
In connection with these problems it would be well to have
some courses in first aid for those interested. In scholasticates
:uch as West Baden and Plattsburgh, "hams" operate amaeur radio sets. This could prove an invaluable link with the
~uhter world during an emergency. In the New England floods
ams" d"d yoeman service.
I
~veryone in the community should have specific duties
assigned in case of emergency. These duties should be limited
�138
ATOl\IIC VULNERABILITY
and specific; people cannot remember details in critical
periods. Our men, of course, are above average in the coolness
and degree of cooperation they manifest in emergency periods.
This was illustrated during the Woodstock fire in 1951. Some
men should be given the job of shutting down boilers in the
event of an alert; others of removing or consuming the
Blessed Sacrament; still others of running to shelters or getting ready the means of transportation for mass migration,
if that is deemed necessary.
Sufficient shelters should be provided to house all our men.
A large underground, reinforced concrete shelter should be
a necessary item in the building of any new Jesuit house.
These shelters should be equipped with emergency lighting,
telephone, sanitary facilities, rations. Such a shelter could
be utilized for storage space outside of times of emerge~cy.
Intense Light
In an atomic bomb air burst, a ball of fire is produced which
at a distance of 5.7 miles is about 100 times as brilliant
as the sun viewed from the earth's surface. Looking at this
intense light, even for only ten seconds, will cause temporary
blindness. The shock wave which moves out is the most
destructive effect of the air burst. It will produce virtuallY
complete destruction of buildings for about a radius of threefourths of a mile from ground zero. Beyond this area damage
may be serious, but can be reduced by the measures indicated
here. The thermal radiation, or heat flash, is intense enough
to start fires in combustible material for more than a ynile
and will cause skin burns for nearly two miles. It will probably cause twenty to thirty per cent of the fatalities. Since
heat flash waves travel in straight lines relatively little P~
tection is required. Any intervening object or light-color ~
loose clothing will do the trick, except near the point of burs
The greatest source of danger is from the radiation of:
gamma rays, free neutrons, beta particles, and alpha particl~
Gamma radiation has the longest lethal range. Its intens~
depends upon the inverse square law for the decrease 0f Jn·
tensity with distance and upon the attenuation of dosage du:
to scattering and absorption in the atmosphere. Tests b~
indicated that a radiation dosage of four hundred roent&'
�ATOMIC .VULNERABILITY
139
(familiar in X-ray technology), which is the average dosage
at a distance of four thousand feet from the explosion of a
twenty kiloton bomb (Hiroshima vintage), would probably
prove fatal to fifty per cent of the people exposed.
Radioactive fall-out is the cloud of split uranium or plutonium atoms (called fission products) sucked up into the
atmosphere. These fission products pollute the atmosphere
over an elliptical, or cigar-shaped, area of some 7,000 square
miles, downwind from the explosion, roughly the size of
New Jersey.
The following data are based on the assumption of a fifteen
megaton bomb burst for the fall-out ellipses:
Time (after burst)
1 hour
3 hours
6 hours
Area
250 sq. miles
1,200 sq. miles
4,000 sq. miles
Average Intensity
(Gamma Radiation)
2,500 roentgen/hour
200 roentgen/hour
30 roentgen/hour
A schedule of the effects of external radiation upon a man is
as follows:
Roentgen Dose
50 to 100 r
150 to 200 r
200 to 300 r
400 to 500 r
700 r
Effect on Man
Few per cent casualties
50 per cent casualties
100 per cent casualties
50 per cent casualties, plus some mortality
Close to 100 per cent mortality
Since the greatest danger to human life, the Society's
~reatest asset, is from the radioactive fall-out phenomenon,
It would be well to have dosimeters handy to gauge the amount
of roentgen dosage which is in the atmosphere. It is imPortant that those in shelters not leave until it has been determined by means of a dosimeter whether the roentgen
dosage has been diluted to a safe percentage.
d Our men should be so trained that, if an atom bomb is
/ 0PPed without warning within a few miles of their loca~on, they should avoid looking at the light which lasts about
ton seconds. To look is a natural tendency which is difficult
overcome. Then they should take cover, behind a tree or any
1
arge object. Otherwise they should drop to the ground and
curl up, protecting exposed areas such as the face, hands, and
neck.
.1 there is warning, and the possibility of advance warning
f
1
W!J diminish as jet attack planes and intercontinental hal-
�140
ATOMIC VULNERABILITY
listie missiles are developed, shelter should be sought or plans
for evacuations executed without delay. After the burst
checks should be made for residual radiation. Geiger counters
help in checking for contamination. The danger of radioactive
contamination is minimized by: (1) disposal by deep burial;
(2) removal to a safe distance until activity has decayed to
a safe level; and (3) removal of the contaminate. Contaminated clothing should be burned or buried; exposed surfaces
of the body should b~ scrubbed vigorously with water and
synthetic detergents or soap, all the while avoiding abrasions
which would permit radioactive particles to enter the body.
These are some of the recommendations which large companies have been following in trying to insure post-attack
recovery in the event of nuclear attack. Very little can be done
about the location of fifty-five per cent of our Jesuits in thirty
highly vulnerable and target-rich areas, most of which are in
coastal areas subject to both air and sea attack. Still with
proper preparation and planning the Society in America
could insure that if any new world is to be built after an
extensive atomic war, the Society would be in a position to
assume a role of leadership in its reconstoiction. With some
planning for disaster control, for succession of key management, for duplication of vital records, the basic essentials will
be taken care of, should thermonuclear attack come. Most
corporations are taking pains to minimize the effects of attack. Insurance policies, in general, do not indemnify for
loss incurred in war but financial help to restore our buildings
and property would not be wanting. The chink in our armor,
however, is our Jesuit lives. They must be protected frorn
the fourfold threat of blast damage, thermal radiation, gamma
and neutron radiation, and radioactive fall-out. Otherwise
our vast network of schools, retreat houses, churches, domestic
and foreign missions will decline radically, if not become eX·
tinct. In keeping with an old Jesuit tradition, let us not
be afraid to use all the natural means available. The premiums
on atomic insurance in the age of the "awful arithmetic of the
H-bomb," to quote President Eisenhower, are not low; theY
. demand sacrifice, vision, planning, and union. These qualitieS
have never been lacking in the Society. Upon such qualities
may hinge the continuation of the Society in America.
�Scrutamini Scripturas
R. A. F. MACKENZIE, S.J.
The project of a special introduction to Scripture for our
Scholastics, prior to the standard course in theology, seems
to have originated in the French provinces during and after
World War II, and to have been another of the happy effects
of the Encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu (1943). The present
writer first heard of it while in Rome in 1946, from Pere
Xavier Leon-Dufour, then a biennist at the Biblical Institute,
now Professor of New Testament at the scholasticate of
Enghien. The XXIX General Congregation, held in that
year, studied the question and expressed its approval with
the following decree (no. 26) :
Ut, ad mentem Litterarum Encyclicarum Divino Afflante Spiritu,
cognitio, amor, usus Sacrae Scripturae in Nostris magis magisque
promoveatur, Superiores diligenter curent, ut Scholastici assidua
et bene ordinata lectione Sacros Libras cognoscant, vere ament, ad
proprium spiritualem fructum atque ad usum apostolicum adhibere
dis cant.
The Congregation further directed Father General to issue
an instruction for the whole Society on the subject; and this
he did in his lnstructio de Assidua Sacrae Scripturae Lectione,
dated March 19, 1947 (Acta Romana, XI, 262-267). 11 6 of
this Instructio refers to the help that is required, omnino
necessarium, if the reading is to be fruitful and produce the
understanding and love of the sacred text that are sought.
This help is first of all to take the form of conferences, given
by some competent person, outlining the right approach to
a given section of the Bible, explaining its nature and con~~nts, and showing its application to Christian and religious
Ife.
The Instruction also remarks (11 9) that this lectio sacra,
prescribed for all, is something new in the Society. Hence
It Inay be profitable and helpful to share experiments and
eoinpare experiences. It is in that spirit that these notes are
~Inposed, at the invitation of the Editor of WOODSTOCK
'l'TERs, to give some account of how things have been organized so far in the Province of Upper Canada, and with
What results. They deal directly not with the reading actually
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
142
done by the Scholastics but with the help thereto provided
by Superiors, and particularly with lectures given by two
members of the theology faculty of our Seminary.
Implementation
In this Province, the Instructio was first implemented in
1948, when Father John L. McKenzie (Chicago) and Father
D. J. Hourigan, then. professors of Old and New Testament
respectively, each gave several lectures at the Novitiate.
Father H. Willmering (Missouri) did the same in 1949. But
it was only in 1952 that, with the active encouragement of
Father Provincial George E. Nunan, a permanent program
on a fixed cycle was begun, at first by the present writer with
Old Testament material, and in the following year by Father
D. M. Stanley with New Testament matter.
Disregarding the experimental courses of the first year
or so, we may thus outline the practice that has been adopted.
The lectures are given at intervals during the year, rather
than concentrating them in a Biblical Week during the sum·
mer. This has the advantage of providing a regular stimulus
to the interest in Scripture, and also mean~· that the instruc·
tors are available from time to time to answ. er the questions
that come to mind in the course of reading. As worked o~t
at present, during the first semester the New Testament professor makes about half a dozen visits (at alternate week
ends) to the Novitiate, staying overnight and giving one
lecture to the juniors and one, or occasionally two, to the
novices. In the second semester, the Old Testament professor
does the same. For the philosophers, the sequence of lectures
is similar, though through complications in the timetable
the number given in a semester has varied from three to
eight.
The following is a rough outline of the Old Testament and
New Testament programs. They aim at covering the matter
in an order that will be logical and natural for the readers.
A, B, and C represent the years of the cycles, for the three
groups respectively.
OLD TESTAMENT
NOVICES
·a
A. Introduction to the ideas of inspira tion, g enera litterMl '
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
143
religious and prophetic values of sacred history. Genesis:
doctrine of the book: character and will of God; creation
and origins; man's nature and relation to God; sin, and
expectation of salv:;~tion. The Vocation of Abraham, and
the Promise.
B. Introduction to Israelite history (pre-exilic). The workingout of the Promise. Moses, the Exodus, the Covenant of
Sinai and the formation of the tribal federation. Josue,
the Conquest, Judges, Samuel, the Monarchy.
JUNIORS
A. Prophetism: the institution, and the pre-exilic prophets.
Amos, Osee, Isaias, Jeremias. Stress on development of
revelation, and growth of Messianism.
B. The Exile, and post-exilic prophecy. Ezechiel, Second
Isaias, Zacharias, Malachy, Esdras-Nehemias.
PHILOSOPHERS
A. Psalms. Classes of psalms and original use. Christian interpretation and sensus plenior.
B. Wisdom literature. Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes. The problems of retribution, theodicy, divine Wisdom.
C. Ecclesiasticus, Maccabees, Daniel, Wisdom. Apocalyptic,
belief in resurrection, background of New Testament revelation.
NEW TESTAMENT
NOVICES
A. The Synoptic Gospels. Notion of Gospel, in Deutero-lsaias,
and first traces in Acts 10,34-43.
Mark, Matthew, Luke: for each, presentation of the man,
from history and reliable tradition; the writer, literary
characteristics; the plan; the theology; personal message
of the Gospel.
B. St. John's Letters and Gospel. I John studied as introduction to themes of the Gospel; divine attributes, God's
presence in the Christian, theme of the new Covenant.
The Gospel: Prologue; themes and plan; the Sacraments
in the Fourth Gospel.
JUNIORS
A. Acts of the Apostles. The problem of primitive Christianity.
The plan of Acts; its character as another Gospel. The
theology of Acts. Outline of the life of Paul from New
Testament sources and tradition.
B. Apocalypse of St. John. Purpose of Apocalypse seen against
historical background. The literary genre of apocalyptic
in Old Testament and intertestamental literature. Plan of
the book; its symbolism; its theology.
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
144
PHILOSOPHERS
A. Epistle to the Hebrews. Its plan; relationship to Philo;
theology; question of authorship.
B. I, II Peter, Jude, James. Of each, plan, literary character·
istics, authorship, theology.
C. The Pastorals (I, II Timothy, Titus). Plans, Pauline
authorship, theology of the priesthood.
Obviously, such a vast material can be covered only very
superficially in the small number of lectures indicated; but
this is not such a iP-ave disadvantage when the purpose of
the course is considered. The idea is not so much to give a
commentary as to provide training in a technique, to supply
the orientation and guidance which will enable the Scholas·
tics to profit by their own reading, to know what to look for,
and, equally important, what not to expect. For this reason
too, formal treatment of questions of "Introduction" is kept
to a minimum, i.e., they are mostly treated ambulando, when
such subjects as canonicity, genus litterarium, typology in
the Old Testament, or form-criticism and the synoptic problem in the New Testament, come up in connection with par·
ticular passages. The summa et scopus aimed at is a contact
with the doctrine of the sacred text, not-' as something the·
oretical or merely historical but as applicable and significant
for each reader's spiritual life. From the beginning of Gen· ·
esis, it is the salvation of redeemed mankind, of the present
Church, of each member of that Church, that is being
planned, announced, and operated. Every text is of interest
because in some way or other it concerns the reader, once
he realizes his solidarity with the people of God, from the
beginning of the history of God's action on mankind. There
is no encouragement given to pious but erroneous accommodations of the text; the stress is laid on the development and
growth of revelation and the great themes such as Covenant,
Incarnation, Salvation, which run through that development
from beginning to end, linking up Old Testament with NeW,
and maintaining both as live and contemporary actualities
in the Church.
Results
It is too early yet to judge the effectiveness or usefulne~~
of these lectures ; indeed, since their main purpose is to 31
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
145
the individual to enrich his own spiritual life by contact with
the Word of God, their success or otherwise can never be
more than vaguely estimated. By 1964, when the Scholastics,
who have followed this course from the noviceship on, arrive
at their Scripture course in Third Year theology, it may be
possible to make some appraisal, at least on the intellectual
level, of the pr9fit derived from their reading, which the
lectures are intended to facilitate.
However, some preliminary impressions may be gathered
from a recent partial enquiry. In preparation for this article,
written comments were invited from the second year novices,
juniors, and philosophers, on the lectures they had been hearing for one, two, or three years; and twenty-five charitable
souls (a large proportion of our small numbers) responded.
Presumably, they were the ones most favorably impressed,
and not unnaturally they expressed their appreciation generously, detailing the profit they felt they had derived from
this initiation. At the same time, many of them had valuable
constructive criticisms to offer, such as the advantage of
mimeographed notes (supplied in one course, but not in the
other), the advisability of having the subject of a lecture
announced beforehand, the desirability of indicating collateral
reading, etc. Although some were reticent (and one or two,
quite frank) as to the small amount and irregularity of the
reading they had found time for, it was consoling to see that
a fair proportion had made a regular practice of it, and
valued it. As regards the noviceship in particular (where
there is a fixed period in the day for Scripture study), expert
appraisals by Father Master J. L. Swain and Father Socius
L. J · Fischer testified that they considered the course definitely
Worth-while.
No explicitly unfavorable judgments have reached us,
though it would be hasty to conclude from that that none
such have been formulated. We feel at least that a good start
has been made, and that we are past the pioneering stage;
on the other hand there is still need for experimentation,
and room for improvement both in the selection and presentation of the material.
Difficulties
In conclusion, it may help to indicate some of the particular
�146
SCRIPTURE STUDY
snags that such a program is liable to encounter. These are
cited chiefly from the present writer's experience with the
Old Testament material. First there is the difficulty which
inevitably bears harder on the Old Testament course: the
question of a text. In the New Testament lectures to juniors
and philosophers the Greek text is constantly referred to,
and a good number of them are able to read the original
without finding it too,much of an effort. For the novices, the
Confraternity New -'restament offers a translation which is
for the most part adequate. But the Old Testament professor
has to rely still on the Challoner-Douay Bible, which, to put
it temperately, adds much unnecessary obscurity to the inherent difficulties of the matter. It would be possible, no
doubt, to urge the acquisition, for all the Scholastics, of copies
of the first and third volumes (all that are so far available)
of the four volume Confraternity Old Testament; but, apart
from the expense, one dislikes the idea because of both the
present incompleteness and the future unwieldiness of this
addition. Frequent cross references are highly desirable, in
the kind of sweeping surveys that most of these lectures
have to be, and they are time-consuming enough without
having to manipulate several books. The Gonfraternity version will be of little practical use until the Old Testament at
least is available in a single volume. The Knox translation,
with its breezy paraphrases and its mannered and monotonous
style, is not much of an improvement, from the professor's
point of view, over the old Challoner. So the latter is still
the text, and the professor in preparing his talk must carefully check it to see that his references will actually bear
out what he is saying, without requiring long and involved
explanations of what the text ought to be.
Secondly, there is perpetually the temptation to be too
limited: i.e., in a given book, to concentrate on the exegesis
of a few passages only-which will indeed be helpful to the
hearers when they reread these, but will leave them still at
a loss before the greater part of the text. One has always
to remember that it is all of the book, not just certain sec·
tions, that has to be made, as far as can be, accessible and
comprehensible. Thus, in treating of one of the prophets (in
a single lecture!), the right technique seems to be, to give
most of the time to background exposition-the situation in
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
147
which the work originated, what to look for in the way of
traditional material and new doctrinal development, the
place and significance of the book in the history of revelation,
etc.; then an outline, as detailed as time allows, of its division
into sections, with indications of their historical context or
situation in life. This outline analysis, superseding the conventional chapter divisions, is a simple but often surprisingly
effective help towards intelligent reading.
Fidelity and Fruitfulness
The last and most delicate point is the question of how to
ensure that the purpose of all these courses is actually attained, namely, that the Scholastics do devote the necessary
time and attention to familiarizing themselves with the sacred
text. The decree cited above says that Superiors are "diligently to attend" to this, without specifying further, and the
Instructio leaves it at that. The new Ratio Studiorum Superiorum (68 1f 1) lays the same responsibility on the deans of
faculties, but again without suggesting any sanction. Salvo
meliori judicio, the present writer does not consider that
any external test should be imposed, by way of quizzes or
Written reports, and much less in the shape of an examination.
In the ascetical tradition of the Church, this lectio sacra for
religious is understood to be as much a spiritual as an intellectual exercise. For Jesuits, it should be a happy combination, or rather reunion, of the two activities of prayer and
study, which sometimes tend in our modern training to be
unduly separated. As regards the time to be allotted to it,
the lnstructio, ,-r 5, suggests that a part of the time assigned
for spiritual reading may be given to Scripture; or, if the
reader prefers, he may give additional time to the latter,
especially on Sundays and holidays. This lectio is clearly
something different from ordinary study; thus it seems in
Place to suggest that, as the deans, or other officials, are to
see to it that facilities are provided and the Scholastics en~o~r~ged to make use of them, so it might be the part of the
t:ll'Itua~ Father, dealing with individuals, to enquire as to
M: e fidelity and fruit with which this exercise is performed.
re~~~While it is up to the professor to demonstrate, by his
IgiOus approach to the subject, that his lectures are to be
�SCRIPTURE STUDY
148
thought of as conference rather than as class, and that the
end sought is not only nor mainly an increase in learning, but
growth in the understanding and love of God's revelation,
which has been granted to the Church as a whole and to each
one of us in particular.
BdoKS
..
FOR THE IGNATIAN
YEAR
The story of the first Jesuit Mission to North America and its numer·
our martyrs: Felix Zubillaga, S.J.-La Florida (1941). Price: $3.25.
The history of the early Jesuit Missions in the Orient, beginning with
Xavier (1542-1564): Alessandro Valignano, S.J.-Historia del principia
y progresso de la Campania de JesUs en las lndias Orientales. Edited
by J. Wicki, S.J. (1944). Price: $4.00.
An historical account of the Spiritual Exercises. Two volumes have
thus far been published: the first takes in the life of St. Ignatius; the
second, from his death to the publication of the first official directory.
Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J.-Practica de los Ejercicios (1946); Historia
de los Ejercicios (1955). Price: $2.15 and $4.00 respectively.
The classic treatise on the spirituality of the Society that has received
universal praise: J. de Guibert, S.J.-La Spiritualite de la Compagnie
de Jesus (1953). Of it Father J. Harding Fisher, S.J., says, "This is a
monumental work which should be in every Jesuit library and, in fact,
in every important library"; Father C. C. Martindale, S.J., "Never, in
England at least, has so vivid a portrait of Ignatius been painted, and
one so totally different from that to which we mostly are accustomed";
Father A. G. Ellard, S.J., "This is a very excellent work, and one that
will surely be indispensable for students, not only of Jesuit asceticism
and mysticism, but also of modern Catholic spirituality." Price: $5.00.
The historic prelude to the suppression of the Society by a collaborator
of Ludwig von Pastor: W. Kratz, S.J., El tratado hispano-portugues dl
Umites de 1750 (1954). Price: $4.00.
How Jesuit arichtecture began: P. Pirri, S.J., G. Tristano e i primordi
della architettura gesuitica (1955). Price: $4.00.
A glimpse of our early Southwest: E. J. Burrus, S.J.-Kino Reportl
to Headquarters (1954). Spanish text with English translation of
Kino's letters to Rome. For the reference library, Latin American 1Iis·
tory department and advanced Spanish classes. Price: $1.85.
10% discount to Ours; 20% to subscribers of series. Bound copies
one dollar extra. Payment by ordinary check or order may be put on
Province account at Curia in Rome. Order from: E. J. Burrus, gJ.,
Institutum Historicum S.J., Via dei Penitenzieri 20, Rome, Italy.
�The Manila I.S.O.
ARTHUR A. WEISS
On November 12, 1954, Very Reverend Father General sent
a letter to Father Vincent Kennally, Vice-Provincial of the
Philippine Vice-Province urging the immediate formation in
the Vice-Province of a Centrum aliquod actionis et studiorum
socialium. Father General referred to the "gravitas problematis socialis apud vos" and to the work that had been
done thus far-"a Patribus qui optime in illo campo laborarunt
et laborant, ut P. Gualterus Hogan." But this work was not
enough. It was to be made "efficacius quam hucusque" by the
establishment of a Centrum aliquod actionis et studiorum
socialium. The Centrum was to be staffed "paucis Patribus"
who were to be full time, "alia occupatione liberis," prepared
for the work, "praeviis studiis quantum opus est praeparati."
In addition to these full time priests there would be others,
"sive de Societate sive de clero saeculari, qui potissiumum
actioni ipsi incumbant."
What were to be the aims of the Centrum? Father General
first refers to the "normam a Congregatione Generali XXIX
rnihi propositam." The XXIX General Congregation sets down
the following aims of such a Centrum-"1. ad laborem social em
explicandum; 2. ad laborem socialem propagandum; 3. ad
communicandam impulsum et directionem actioni sociali
Nostrorum." To these norms Father General adds, as general
aims, "1. applicare doctrinam socialem Ecclesiae necessitatibus istarum insularum; 2. normasque proponere." How soon
should the Centrum be started in Manila? "quam prim urn,
v~lde urget, alia opera, non exclusis vestris collegiis quantumVIS necessariis, minus urgent quam hoc unum. Proinde saltern
ad tempus eorum bonum postponendum foret si aliter apostolatui sociali efficaci provideri non potest."
Social Order in Jesuit Houses
y·On the occasion of this letter, Father General reminded the
ICe-Province not to forget to put its own house in social
o~der. He exhorted Father Vice-Provincial on the occasion
0
his annual visitation not only to remind all local superiors
�150
MANILA I. S. 0.
of their obligations but also to demand that they fulfill their
obligations erga famulos, opifices, magistros laicos, obligations set forth clearly in his Paternity's letters on the Social
Apostolate and on Poverty. Superiors should not hesitate to
retrench from certain conveniences if they can in no other
way satisfy the demands of conscience erga, auxilia,res nostros.
Father Kennally immediately brought the letter of Father
General to the attention of the Vice-Province Consultors.
Father Socius Arthur Weiss was asked to organize a committee to consider ways and means of implementing Father
General's letter. On Dec. 9th, 1954, Father Socius sent out
a letter to a committee consisting of Fathers Horacio de la
Costa, Pacifico Ortiz, Gaston Duchesneau, William Nicholson,
George Willmann and Thomas Mitchell. This letter asked the
Fathers of the Committee to draw up a memorandum to be
submitted to Father Vice-Provincial by January 1, 1955. The
memorandum was to be specific in its recommendations
"touching on:- such points as personnel (giving names of
Fathers and possible appointments in the Institute); means
of financing the Institute; place of residence for the ISO community; particular type of work to be engaged in, and any
other factors which you may consider -important." Since
Father General in his letter had recommended that the Manila
Centrum be modeled somewhat along the lines of the Poona
Institute of Social Order, Father Socius sent a letter to Father
Jerome D'Souza at Poona asking for suggestions.
On the annual Vice-Province status the following ISO ap·
pointments were made: Father Arthur Weiss, Director;
Father Cicero Cebrero, Assistant Director, Father Walter
Hogan, Assistant Director. The following Fathers were ap·
pointed part time to the work: Fathers Duchesneau, de la
Costa, Nicholson, Ortiz and William Masterson. Just recently,
Father Hector Mauri has been added to the staff. Father
Mauri is full time chaplain and adviser of the Federation of
Free Farmers. On July 31, 1955, for the opening of the Ig~
natian Year the new headquarters of the ISO on the fou~t
and fifth floors of the Vicenta Building, 330 Nueva St., Man~!~:
were blessed by Father Vice-Provincial. At the Vicenta BU 1 ~.
ing there are rooms and offices for two members of the sta d
Father Weiss and Father Hogan, a secretary's office an
�l\IANILA I. S. 0.
151
quarters for a house boy. There is also a small chapel in
which the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, a library, a conference room and a large sala.
Labor School
These steps were by no means the first taken in the ViceProvince to meet social problems. For a number of years
Father Walter Hogan's Institute had been functioning and in
mid-August of 1955 ninety-five people received certificates
for having faithfully attended the Labor-Management School
over a period of three years. At the same time an alumni
association was formed. A few days after the August graduation, another year of the Labor School got under way. The
eight weeks' course (thirty-two hours, four hours a week)
was well attended with an average of forty in every class.
On Wednesday evenings Father Cebrero teaches a course in
Catholic Social Doctrine at the FEATI Graduate School and
each Tuesday teaches catechism in Tagalog to about forty
Workmen at Assumption College. In addition to this activity,
Father Cebrero has already given quite a few retreats to
priests, management groups and workers, to the latter in
Tagalog. Towards the end of August 1955, Father Hogan
Was sent to the States to acquaint himself with the latest developments in the labor field and to see whether he could secure financial assistance for a proposed research program.
An attempt has been made to interest members of the
hierarchy in the work. For this purpose, Father Cebrero
Visited the Bishops of Cebu, Lingayen-Dagupan, Mountain
Province, Tuguegarao, Sorsogon, Caceres, Zamboanga and
Manila. It is planned to visit other bishops as occasions offer
themselves. It is quite noticeable that the convenient location
?f ~he ISO headquarters in downtown Manila is a standing
Invitation for many visitors. People come to use the library,
labor groups hold meetings in the sala, officials from governInent Intelligence groups as well as businessmen and company
Inanagers come for consultation.
Publicity has been good. At the inauguration of the head~uarters a descriptive brochure was widely distributed. The
~cal press was very cooperative in publicizing the Institute .
.c..ach Week Father Weiss writes a column ISO NOTES which
�152
MANILA L S. 0.
appears in the Catholic weekly, The Sentinel. Father Weiss
also edits the SOCIAL ORDER DIGEST, a six page monthly, 500
copies each issue, which is circulated to interested readers
in the Philippines and elsewhere. For Ours there is a monthly
mimeographed sheet titled THE CENTRUM.
Activities
Father Hogan is in charge of both the Management School
and the Labor Schooras well as the weekly Sunday broadcast,
now in its third year. At present writing the Labor School,
which is now in its second semester, has an enrollment of 53.
Classes are held at the Vicenta Building from 5 :30 to 7:20
each Tuesday and Friday evening. The following courses are
being offered during the second semester: Father Cebrero:
Labor Ethics; Father Hogan: Labor Problems; Attorney
Beltran: Labor Law; Attorney Enage: The Union Meeting.
The Management Class is held at the air-conditioned Columbian Club on Taft Avenue each Wednesday evening. Lecturers are Father Hogan, Mr. Victor Lim, General Manager
of the Manila Gas Corporation and Mr. Juan C. Tan, President of the Federation of Free Workers. This year's enroll·
ment is twenty. Although there are no fees-attached to the
Labor course, a charge of fifty pesos is made in the Management course because of the added expense in hiring the
Columbian Club, etc.
One of the important activities of the Institute is the
PLISA or Priests and Laymen's Institute of Social Action, a
five day lecture course held during the summer. This course
is under the direction of Father Masterson of the Ateneo de
Cagayan. It is planned to hold the 1956 PLISA in the folloW·
ing cities: Iloilo, Bacolod, Davao, Legaspi and Manila. The
purpose of the PLISA is to reach clerics and laymen who,
because of distance or lack of time, are unable to come in
contact with the ISO staff during the year and cannot benefit
by the courses offered in Manila. On the 1956 agenda is a
three weeks' training course for priests recently appointed
by the Philippine hierarchy as diocesan directors of Social
Action.
What is the general approach of the ISO? It may be called
the organizational approach. The goal of Christian social
�MANILA I. S. 0.
153
order as drawn up in the encyclicals is a social structure which
conforms to God's will for men and for their use of material
things, the fundamental point being, according to Pius XII,
"that the goods of the earth created by God for all men should
in the same way reach all, justice guiding and charity helping." The fact is that a large proportion of the people of the
Philippines cannot make use of God's gifts of material things
to live in simple comfort and so be helped in seeking God as
their final end. They are dreadfully poor. Their human dignity is not recognized. Their homes are not proper places to
bring up a Christian family. A small proportion of the Filipino people possesses and controls most of the country's
resources.
In order to reach the goal a certain formlessness of society
must be changed. The popes point out that this formlessness
reduces society more or less to the individual and the state
with little in between the two. Hence all our study and action
must have a strategic value in helping to build those very
organizations which will change this formlessness, enable
people to use the goods of the earth more in accordance with
their proper purpose intended by God and gradually work
towards that vocational grouping which can better direct the
social order towards its appointed end. Concretely, in the
Philippines, organizations of managers, farm workers and
city workers are needed .
. We have made a start with the city workers in the Federation of Free Workers and with the farm workers in the Federa~ion of Free Farmers. We are seeking to find the point at
Whrch we have a sufficient group in size and quality to begin
~n organization of employers. The Institute's efforts will pay
est rewards if we concentrate on helping to build those organizations and similar ones quantitatively and qualitatively.
NEW YORK CITY INFORMATION CENTER
at T:.e Center is open Monday through Saturday from noon to eight
Centight and is staffed by eighteen volunteers, each one covering the
er for about three hours on her assigned day. These receptionists
�154
INFORMATION CENTER
share in all the clerical work, window arrangements, and other details
incumbent upon Information Centers. For the non-Catholic with a ques·
tion who seeks a satisfactory explanation without approaching a priest,
the Information Center is an answer to prayer. The questions often
center about divorce and annulment, evolution and Freemasonry. The
receptionist has been trained to avoid controversy and can usually give
a pamphlet on the subject.
Unlike other Information Centers in the City, the Xavier Center
maintains a Lending Lil?rary with well over a thousand books ranging
from the Summa of St. Thomas and the philosophy of Maritain to the
novels of Mannin and Dudley. At present the Library has a membership
of about three hundred. Most of the members are Catholic, including
many converts to Catholicism who appreciate the opportunity of using
such a varied collection of Catholic books. The non-Catholic members are
for the most part skeptical seekers after truth who avail themselves of
the Catholic Encyclopedia, the Bible commentaries and other reference
books on hand. At the present time we are compiling a list of every
book in our many categories and will send them to all members and to
other groups in the vicinity, such as Xavier parishioners. The library also
carries a complete line of the Image Books and these are selling more
rapidly than we had expected.
The window display has proved to be our most successful tool in
attracting non-Catholics. Every effort is made to install inspiring and
eye-catching displays. After the theme for the win<Jow has been decided
upon, the subject is thoroughly sifted until we can.convey the message
in the least possible words for wordiness discourages attention. We are
fortunate in having one receptionist of superior artistic qualifications
who does the actual designing and printing and then her co-workers set
it up in the window. Every window display is accompanied by pamphlets
on the subject and requests for the pamphlets used run from twenty-five
up. Recently the window theme was "The Catholic Church and Science"
and among those who were impressed by the display was a Quaker
minister from Pennsylvania who bought ten pamphlets, not only on the
Church and Science but on various doctrines of the Church. Durin~ t~
May window display on the Mother of God an elderly and distingwsh
looking gentleman came into the Center after spending some tiJne
studying the window display and stated that he had been a convert to
Catholicism for over forty years and was ashamed to confess that be
had always found the Catholic doctrine on the Mother of God diflicult
to accept. He went on to say that our window display had helped solve
his ~iffi~ulty.
.
.
. the
This IS the XaVIer Information Center-nothing remarkable ID 1
realm of statistics but here to welcome the man on the street who ea~
to drop in. If discerning, he will find in the library spiritual t~easubJt
he will want to read; if skeptical, he will buy pamphlets on topiCS t repuzzle him; if an ill-informed Catholic, he will buy a catechism to tb
16
inforce his knowledge of the Faith. The Center is located at 30
St. in New York City.
w
.
�A Simplified Table of Private
Votive Masses
AGUSTIN NATIVIDAD,
S.J.
The need of a simplified table of private votive Masses is
evident. The table usually found in ordos is unnecessarily
complicated. The purpose of this article is a new table containing only the necessary information and that in the clearest form possible. The practicality of a new table is based
on the fact that the reasonable use of votive Masses will
prevent the monotonous repetition of the Mass of the Sunday,
which is now so often found in the increased number of feria!
days under the simplified rubrics.
Only the color and place of the Mass are listed in this new
table. S1 and S2 signify the first and second series of votive
Masses. PT, PS, CS, PSOC and MP AL signify respectively
Proprium de Tempore, Proprium de Sanctis, Commune Sanctorum, Proprium Societatis Jesu, and Missae pro Aliquibus
Locis. The colors of white, red, and violet are signified by
w. r. and v.
Praesupponenda
1. Masses that may be said as votive Masses. Only Masses
for which permission is expressly given may be said as votive
Masses of the Divine Persons, the Blessed Virgin, and the
Angels. This permission is verified when the Mass is listed as
a votive Mass or when directions are given in the Mass,
Usually after the Gradual, for saying it as a votive Mass. All
the Masses of the Blessed Virgin in the Missae pro Aliquibus
Locis may be used as votive Masses, except that of the ExPectation of the Birth of Our Lord (Dec. 18), but only in places
W~ere the festal Mass is permitted. A votive Mass may be
~ald in honor of any canonized saint whose name is inscribed
~n the Roman Martyrology, in its approved supplements, or
ln the calendar approved by the Holy See for any diocese,
~eligious order or congregation. Votive Masses may be said
or the various necessities contained in the second series of
~tive Masses of the Missal. All Masses permitted as votive
asses are listed in the table with the exception of those for
�156
VOTIVE MASSES
various necessities, in which only the Masses more likely to
be said are listed.
2. Masses that may not be said as votive Masses. This prohibition extends to Sunday, feria!, and vigil Masses, and also
to the Mass of any beatified person. An apostolic indult is
required not merely to celebrate the feast of a beatified person,
but to celebrate the Mass as a votive Mass.
3. Rite. The rite of_a private votive Mass is simple, and it
may be a low, high, or solemn Mass.
4. Days when votive Masses are permitted. A black dot in
our ordo, except during Lent and Passiontide, signifies also
that low private votive Masses are permitted. The added
days on which they are permitted, when sung, are sometimes
found in the notanda of ordos or may be ascertained by consulting the ordinary manuals. The votive Masses in the first
series are not restricted to the day of the week to which they
are assigned except when said in place of a conventual Mass.
5. Mass to be said. If there is a proper votive Mass of a saint,
this must be said. For example, the Mass of St. Joseph is that
on feria quarta of the first series, not of March 19. When
there are several feasts in honor of the sanie saint, a votive
Mass is taken from the feast whose Mass contains directions
for saying it as a votive Mass, e.g., that of St. John the Bap·
tist is June 24, not August 29, that of St. John the Evangelist
is December 27, not May 6.
6. Because of the simplification of the rubrics, the preface
of Nativity is no longer proper to the votive Mass of the
Blessed Sacrament, of the Cross to the Mass of Christ High
and Eternal Priest, and of the Apostles to Masses of Evan·
gelists and Roman Pontiffs.
DmNE PERSONS
w. Blessed Trinity
r. Holy Spirit
w. Blessed Sacrament
w. Christ, High and Eternal Priest
r. Holy Cross
v. Passion
w. Holy Name
w. Holy Family
w. Sacred Heart
S 1 F2
Sl FS
S 1 FS
S1 FS
S1 F6
S1 F6
PT Sun. after Circwn·
PT Sun. after Epiph.
PT F6 after II Sun. Pent.
�VOTIVE MASSES
r. Precious Blood
w. Christ the King
157
PS July 1
PS After Oct. 24
BLESSED VIRGIN
cs
w. 5 de S. M. in Sabbato
w. Immac. Cone.
PS Dec. 8
PS End of March
PS Aug. 22
PSOC Apr. 22
MPAL Dec. 10
MPAL May 31
w. Seven Dolors
w. Immac. Heart
w. Queen of S.J.
w. House of Loretto
w. Mediatrix All Graces
ANGELS
w. St. Gabriel
w. St. Michael
w. Guardian Angels
w. St. Raphael
w. Angels
PS Mar. 24
PS Sept. 29 but May 8 in TP
PS Oct. 2
PS Oct. 24
S 1 F3
SAINTS
w. St. Joseph
r. Sts. Peter and Paul
r. All Apostle(s)
r. St. Peter
w. All Saints
For other saints, Mass and color of the
feast; if none, of the common with any
Proper parts. Color of Holy Innocents
is red.
S 1 F4
St F4
S1 F4
PS after June 29
PS after Nov. 1
FOR VARIOUS NECESSITIES
v. Propagation of the faith
v. Removal of schism
v. In time of war
v. For peace
v. In time of pestilence (epidemic)
r. For grace of Holy Spirit
v. For forgiveness of sins
v. For pilgrims and travelers
v. For the sick
v. Grace of a happy death
v. Any necessity
'IV.r. Thanksgiving
S2
S2
s2
s2
S2
S2
S2
S2
s2
S2
s2
s2
Observanda
Gloria is said only in Masses of the B. V. M. on Saturday
an~ in any Mass of the angel (s). Benedicamus Domino is said
un ess the Mass has a Gloria.
Prayers are 1 o of the Mass; 2 o of the office of the day, even
�158
VOTIVE MASSES
of a common feria! day; 3 • first commemoration of the office
of the day, if any. Ordinary commemorations are omitted in
a sung Mass. Orationes imperatae are said, but an oratio
simpliciter imperata is omitted when there are already three
prayers prescribed by the rubrics or the Mass is sung. If
there are three prayers prescribed by the rubrics and also
an oratio imperata pro re gravi, the last of such prescribed
prayers is omitted and the imperata is said in its place.
A prayer for the ii'ving may be added in low Masses at the
mere will of the celebrant after all other prayers but not
when the limit of three prayers (including absolutely all
prayers said) would be exceeded. This norm applies also
to the same type of prayer for the dead outside Paschaltide,
but its position is next to the last prayer.
Preface is that proper to the Mass; if none, that of the
season; if this also is lacking, the common. The determined
proper preface of a Mass is indicated in the particular Mass.
Sequence and Credo are never said; and the Last Gospel is
always of St. John.
Septuagesima to Easter. The Alleluia verse after the Gradual is omitted, and the Tract is substituted.:·
Paschaltide. There are to be two Alleluias after the first
verse of the Introit and one (usually two for martyrs) after
the Offertory and Communion verse. The Gradual is omitted,
and the Great Alleluia is substituted.
In Masses of the saints, change such words as natalitia,
festivitas, solemnitas to commemoratio or memoria and the
Introit Gaudeamus omnes in Domino, diem festum celebrantes
to one from the common. Omit such words as hodie, annua,
hodierna die, solemni cultu.
DESTRUCTION
Every year . in the houses and institutions of Catholics more historical
material is destroyed than five historical societies will hereafter be
able to collect in twenty years.
JOHN GILMARY SIIEA
�Jesuit Education in Chicago
JAMES A. MOHLER, S.J.
The year 1956 marks the centenary of Jesuit education in
Chicago. As we look back over the years, we see that the
Chicago Jesuits pioneered in a grade school system, academies,
and a university which were used as models by many Catholic
educators throughout the nation.
Grade Schools
In the beginning of this story we should say something
about Father Arnold Damen, S.J., for it was Father Damen
who visualized and founded Jesuit education in Chicago.
Father Damen was born in Belgium in 1815. In 1833 the
famous Indian missionary, Father De Smet, paid a visit to the
school in which young Damen was enrolled. Fired by the
zeal of this great missionary, Damen set sail for America and
the Jesuit Novitiate at Florissant, Missouri, in the year 1837.
Upon completing his Jesuit training, he was appointed as
Pastor of St. Francis Xavier Church in St. Louis. He achieved
success there and began to build up his reputation as a giver
of missions. It was in this latter capacity that he came to
the notice of the Right Reverend Anthony O'Regan, Bishop
of Chicago. Bishop O'Regan asked him to come to Chicago and
take over the Cathedral Church of the Holy Name. Father
Damen, however, had other ideas and asked if he could start
a new parish on the West Side where many Irish immigrants
were building homes and needed the care of a Catholic
Parish. These Irish were to help Father Damen to build his
Parish and school system.
F In the summer of 1856 Arnold Damen and three associates,
Cathers Florentin Boudreaux, Benedict Masselis, and Michael
torbett set out for Chicago from St. Louis. Almost immedia ely a small wooden church was erected on the corner of May
a~d Eleventh Streets. This was to become the grade school
; en the new church was erected in 1859. In fact, when
e new edifice was completed, it was reputed to be the third
1
i:rgest Catholic church in North America. Later, after
had been enlarged, it claimed to be the largest. Here it
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would do well to recall that the people of Holy Family Parish
were of Irish stock and the Irish were never prone to underestimate. When the new Holy Family Church was dedicated,
thirteen bishops came from all over the country to be present
at the exercises. Among the prelates were Archbishop Peter
Richard Kenrick of St. Louis and Bishop John Bernard Fitzpatrick of Boston.
The quick erection of such a magnificent edifice and the
equally speedy development of an integrated parochial school
system are due chiefly to the genius in finance and organization of Father Damen. James W. Sheahan wrote in the
Chicago Tribune in 1866, "Father Damen is the Hercules
who has in a few years wrought all this work. To his energy,
his ability, his sanctity, his perserverance, is due, not only
the erection of this magnificent edifice, but the great spiritual
success which has crowned the labors of the Society." 1
Father Damen's genius for finance has been recognized by
alL In fact, lt was this adeptness in money matters which
made possible his religious and educational foundations ·in
Chicago. In building the new church, Damen marshalled his
men into teams to collect money; he held festivals and bazaars,
picnics and lantern slide shows. He even ·held a bazaar in
the new church before it was consecrated. In a letter to his
provincial, Father John B. Druyts, in 1858, Father Damen
shows some of his financial acumen: "Now, dear Father, try to
act cleverly for Chicago. Give me $6000 for Jane Graham's
property and I will never again ask you for a cent for Chicago. Had I $6000, I could make all the payments and put
a roof on the church. And after all what would a debt of
$6000 be on a church like this, chiefly when there is enou~h
real estate to pay twice that amount. Therefore, effect thiS
loan without fear. Had not times turned out as they have
done, I would have plenty of money to meet all obligationsBut no one could have foreseen these difficulties." 2
Father General's Contribution
The unfores~en difficulties were the panics and financial depressions of the fifties. In spite of these trials and thoS~ to
come with the Civil War, Father Damen erected his instJtu·
tions on a sound financial basis. He was never timid wben
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161
asking for his churches and schools. In a letter to his Father
General asking him to donate a set of stations for the church,
he writes: "These pictures should be three or four feet wide.
And I hope that they will be worthy of the Father General
of the Society of Jesus. What do you think of this, Very
Reverend Father? Don't shake your head now, but say, 'Oh,
yes, that is right, I am going to send something beautiful to
Chicago to excite the admiration and sustain the piety and
devotion of all those good people and at the same time console my dear sons in the Lord.' " 3 So we see in Arnold Damen
a man not only of great business acumen, but also of clever
determination. He was one who would not take, "No" for an
answer. On one occasion when he was refused by his provincial, he waited until the superior was called away on business and then quickly persuaded the vice-provincial to approve
his plans.
Father Damen did not wait long to start his new school
system. Even before the new church was built, he had erected
two small school wings for the wooden church on Eleventh
Street. Since these were Know-Nothing times, he knew there
was no chance that his schools would receive any public aid.
Yet he knew that any parish without a school is clearly
crippled. So he set out to build his parish school system on
his own. When he began Holy Family Parish, there was only
one Catholic school on the West Side of town, St. Patrick's.
And there was only one public school within miles of the
church. This was called the Foster School.
When the grand new church on Twelfth Street was finished,
the old church became the school, overcrowded as it was.
Father Damen saw the immediate need for a larger school
and proceeded to erect a new one in 1865. It was the first
complete Catholic school in Chicago and accommodated 2000
Youngsters.
The school for boys came to be known as the Brothers'
~chool because of the two Jesuit Brothers who were assigned
; teach there: Brother Martin Corcoran, S.J., and Brother
thomas O'Neill, S.J. This is what we would note as unusual
.oday, But, when Jesuit education was just getting its start
~n .the Midwest, it was not unusual to see Jesuit Brothers
omg Yoemen service in the classroom. The Brothers' School
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was supervised by Father Andrew O'Neill, S.J., who was
to have charge of the entire Holy Family School system for
thirty-five years.
Father O'Neill was a man of prodigious energy and inventive genius. He was constantly organizing brass bands, fife
and drum corps, cadets, Zouaves; hiking clubs in summer, and
skating parties in the winter. Father O'Neill was literally
a furnace of energy. >It was due largely to his interest that
the Holy Family scliool system was soon to be regarded as
a model for public and Catholic educational systems alike.
Religious Women
Once the boys were cared for, Father Damen set out in
search of an order of nuns who would come to Chicago to
teach the girls of his parish. The Religious of the Sacred
Heart accepted his invitation and founded the Seminary of
the Sacred Heart, an excellent academy built to accommodate
a thousand girls. They conducted this fine school in Holy
Family Parish for forty-seven years before moving to their
new location in Lake Forest.
In a short time it was clear that these twa.-schools would not
be enough for the growing parish. St. Aloysius School was
built on Maxwell Street. And Father Damen invited the
Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, popularly
known as the BVM's, to take over. In The New World in
1900 this introduction of the BVM's to Chicago was called
one of the happiest events in the history of Chicago education.'
One has to look only briefly at the scores of Chicago schools
of today that are excellently taught and managed by the
BVM's to understand the full meaning of this New World
statement. The BVM's are truly specialists in elementarY
education. And at least some credit should be given to Father ·
Damen for introducing them to this work in Chicago.
The Holy Family school system continued to grow. In 1867
St. Stanislaus School was erected on 18th Street. Then five
years later St. Veronica's School was built at Ashland and
22nd Streets. Today it is known as St. Pius. More schools
were to come: Guardian Angel in 1875, St. Joseph, now a
colored mission, and St. Agnes in 1877.
In the first seventeen years Father Damen had built two
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163
churches, Holy Family and Sacred Heart. He had planned
and executed a system of eight grade schools and one convent
school for girls. This was the largest single parish system in
the world. Such an achievement could hardly escape the notice
of the press. The Chicago Post and Mail in 1876 published a
. review on the Catholic schools of the city. The Post based its
article on the Holy Family system.
"Though differing from the common schools in many details,
yet these differences form, not merely an interesting field of
study, but one pregnant with suggestions of improvement of
the public school system, now so boasted of by educational
men.
"These schools are not strictly free, and yet no one by
reason of poverty is deprived of the educational privileges
there afforded. The children of parents whose pocketbooks
are of ordinary length, are taxed from fifty cents to a dollar
a month, according to the studies taught them. Children,
whose parents are unable to shoulder the tax, are allowed to
pursue their studies side by side with others and are charged
no tuition. Nor is this lack of means allowed to humiliate the
Poorer children as no distinction is made between the classes.
And the Brothers having charge of the office of finances is
supposed to be the only one who knows whether a pupil pays
tuition or not.
"The course of study is generally such as will give a student
a thorough mastery of all the branches as taught in the
graded schools, with the addition of a complete course in book~eeping, commercial forms, and law for the boys, and also
I~struction and needle work for the girls. Considerable attention is also paid to music, both vocal and instrumental. Of
~.o~rse as is well understood, much attention is paid to re;gious instruction, Bible History being quite a prominent
Seature in this part of the course. And the knowledge of
acred History possessed by some of the younger pupils
~ould p~t to shame that often displayed by the preachers in
e Pulpits of other denominations." 5
From the foregoing paragraphs we can get an idea of the
cSurhriculum, tuition, etc., which characterized the Holy Family
c ools.
Jesuits have long been noted for their education in the
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secondary and college levels. Still, one of their most notable
contributions in Chicago was the Holy Family grade school
system. This system was recognized by many as the best in
the country. Here is a quotation from The New World which
appeared in 1900.
"Jesuit parochial schools have long been an example and
an incentive for other parochial schools of the city. Moreover,
they would not suffer by comparison in any particular with
schools of the highest rank anywhere, either public or
parochial." 6
Throughout the United States the Holy Family schools
won the admiration of the hierarchy. James Cardinal Gibbons
called them the "Banner Schools of America."
Jesuit Higher Education in Chicago
Once Father Damen had established his grade school system, he looked forward to the foundation of a school of higher
learning in Chicago. So in 1867 he established St. Ignatius
College which he hoped would soon be the rival of Georgetown
in Washington, D. C. St. Ignatius was not the first Catholic
college in Chicago, for the Seminary of St: .Mary of the Lake
had been established in 1832. However, there was a growing
need of Catholic higher education in Chicago. Father Damen
was finally given permission to build his new school, but
was told he could not collect money or conduct any cam·
paigns in its behalf. This is like telling a man to go ahead
and build a house, but not to use any wood or bricks.
Father Damen was, however, a financial wizard. And al·
though money was dear in this country following the Civil
War, with interest rates ranging from ten to twelve per cent, .
Father Damen had a plan that would soundly finance his neW
buildings. He . would borrow money from Europe at a loW
interest rate with parish property as collateral. The inter~t
could be paid from the income of the college. And the princl·
pal could be paid off whenever he chose to sell some of t~e
land which the parish had acquired. Since this land greW 1 ~
value each year, he chose to wait a few years till he coul
demand a higher price.
The building was not yet complete, when on September 5,
1870, the college opened its doors. Thirty-seven young men
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165
applied for admission and constituted the first class of the
college. The faculty, for all practical purposes, comprised one
young man, a Scholastic, Mr. John J. Stephens, S.J., who
taught English, Greek, Latin, and arithmetic, and a priest,
Father Dominic Niederkorn, S.J., who taught German. The
school administration consisted of three priests: Father
Dam en, president, Father John Verdin, vice president, and
Father Michael Van Agt as prefect of discipline. These latter
probably did some teaching along with their administrative
duties.
The preparatory and high school divisions were also begun
at this time. The enrollment in the new college steadily increased until it numbered 494 in 1895. Up to that time over
1500 students had been enrolled, 69 had received degrees and
59 had gone on to the priesthood. St. Ignatius College was
to be a great source of vocations just as Holy Family had
been through the years. In fact, the overall figures from
the parish through the college up to the year 1923 stood at
649 of whom 235 were priests. This is, surely, something of
a record. The tradition carries on at the West Side right up
to the present day. It is not unusual for ten graduates from
any one year at St. Ignatius to go on to the priesthood.
The curriculum of St. Ignatius College emphasized the
Jesuit Ratio Studiorum in which the classics, science, andreligion play the major roles. The school could boast of great
~lassicists such as Fathers Charles Coppens, who taught there
ln his old age. Its science department was well known and
even today is considered as one of the best in Chicago on the
secondary level. As was common in many Jesuit schools of
~he day, a museum was founded to spur on the students'
lnterest in science. Yet religion held the uppermost spot.
The results of the Jesuits' training in religion can be seen in
~ vocations which have flowed from the ranks of the alumni.
e sodalities of Our Lady, which helped augment this proID'am, we shall consider later.
f As early as 1888 the Jesuits were anxious to move away
r?m Twelfth Street.T Chicago was expanding. The Irish,
iV~thout whom Holy Family Parish and St. Ignatius College
~lght have been run-of-the-mill, were moving on. In their
Paces came the Russian Jews, who took up residence on Max-
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well Street, and West Roosevelt Road. About the year 1910
came a large Italian immigration. The Italians settled throughout the near West Side, making Holy Family for all practical
purposes an Italian Parish. The Irish pastors did not understand the new nationality and frequent clashes were seen
between Irish and Italian Catholicism.
As the years went by, the West Side became less feasible
as a center of educational work. And the Chicago Jesuits
began to look around for a new site in which to get a fresh
start with a college and a parish. Already in 1888 they had
started a branch high school in a rented building on North
La Salle Street. The school, however, closed in 1900 when the
Jesuits found that their new parish on the North Side was
not forthcoming. By 1902 the consultors of St. Ignatius Col·
lege were really getting worried. The neighborhood was going
from bad to worse. All recommended a site in Austin or Oak
Park. The rector, wrote the following to his provincial in
1902, "Our position on the West Side is in a deteriorating
neighborhood. And it may some day have to be abandoned like
old St. Louis University. It does not at present command the
field. Steps should have been taken twenty years ago, (1882).
Shall we now take steps for twenty years- hence ?" 8
In spite of this urge to move, the college on Twelfth Street
had been enlarged in 1895. This addition could accommodate
five hundred more students and was of the latest fireproof
construction. This seemed to indicate that although the
Fathers wanted to move, still they knew that permission to
do so would not be given for some time.
Founding of Loyola University
In the year 1906 Father Henry J. Dumbach, S.J., the rec~r
of St. Ignatius College, bought a tract of twenty-five acres 1n
Rogers Park on Chicago's North Side. The land was in an
ideal location fronting on Lake Michigan. Here was begun
the academy building in 1908. Gradually through the years
the buildings on the Rogers Park tract grew. By 1930 a~
administration building, a science building, gymnasium, an
library were erected. Whereas the old St. Ignatius College
specialized in the arts and sciences, from the beginning LoY01~
University was intended to train professional men. The tren
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167
in Jesuit education in the Midwest was moving into the professional fields.
The evolution of St. Ignatius College into a university was
due largely to the enterprise and foresight of Father Alexander J. Burrowes, who was rector from 1908 to 1912.
Father Burrowes was an ardent devotee of the idea that the
time had come when the universities in America should
broaden their scope by equipping themselves with professional
departments. In the year 1909 St. Ignatius College became
the Arts and Sciences Department of Loyola University. And
finally in 1921 all college activities ceased on the West Side
and St. Ignatius continued on the high school level.
Meanwhile Loyola's professional schools were coming into
existence. In 1908 the Lincoln College of Law was established. Then in 1909 the Illinois Medical, and in 1910 the
Bennett School of Medicine, became affiliated with Loyola.
Moreover, in 1917 the university acquired the property and
equipment of the Chicago College of Medicine and Surgery.
Loyola's department of engineering was founded in 1911 but
was destined to be short-lived. Finally in 1914 Father Frederick Siedenburg, S.J., instituted the School of Sociology.
This sociological school is especially worthy of note for it
was the first in the Catholic world. Catholic schools of sociology had been recommended by Pope Leo XIII in his great
encyclical on the social order, Rerum Novarum. Catholics,
however, seemed slow to react to this suggestion. It was not
until1914 that a school of Catholic sociology was founded and
this at Loyola. The rise of socialism and communism; the
long, bitter fights between capital and labor in the latter part
of the nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth
demanded immediate action. Leo XIII had clearly drawn the
Church's position in regard to these social problems. Now
Were needed schools where these doctrines could be taught to
the world. Here begins the trend towards social studies in
Catholic education. It is a trend which grows year by year.
Much good has been done in the family, government, welfare,
capital, and labor, not only by the Loyola School of Social
Studies, but also by other Jesuit and non-Jesuit social schools
throughout the world. After two years of study at the Loyola
school, the student received a certificate of Social Economy.
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168
Although the attendance was numbered at 150 in 1914, the
year it opened, by 1922 it had grown to 1689.
Why Professional Schools?
In answer to the question, "Why did the Jesuits become
interested in professional schools around the turn of the
century?" I would like to quote from a volume written by
Brother Thomas Mulkerins, S.J., called The History of Holy
Family Parish.
"Two reasons seemed to make it imperative that the Jesuits
should enter the field of advanced and specialized education.
The first was the fact that the college, as an organic part of
the educational system, was no longer capable of producing
the amount of good accomplished by it in the past. Every
year the mistaken idea that the high school provides all the
general and classical culture necessary had been growing
up amongst the people. Every year the number of those
entering upon
business career or taking up professional
training immediately after high school was increasing. The
Jesuits as educators aimed to mould their men into alumni
of principle and vision. Without university facilities, loss of
control of the students is suffered, and thar"at the very .time
when they are most in need of proper guidance.
"The second cause was the increasing flood of atheism and
materialism in the professional schools of the country. If
civic honesty is to be restored and administration of justice
made efficient, prompt, and unbiased, the coming generation
of lawyers and doctors must be thoroughly grounded in the
divine moral code, binding upon all without exception or reser·
vation. Such were the arguments in favor of the universitY'
and other extension work of the Jesuits in and about Chi·
cago." 9
So universities were the coming thing. Without them the
Jesuits would certainly lose control of their students during
an important part of their lives. Moreover, the many zna·
terialistic professional schools of the time presented a real
danger to the faith of the Catholic students in attendance.
Today the danger is no less. We can see, for instance, by t~e
interest of Cardinal Stritch that he sees the need for a CatholiC
school of medicine in the Chicago area.
a
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169
Some of the extension works mentioned by Brother Mulkerins included the Home Study Course which offered courses
by correspondence to those who were unable to attend classes
at the university. The Loyola University Lecture Bureau
was founded to spread the Church's doctrines on faith and
morals and social problems throughout the Middle West in
the form of lectures to clubs and organizations. This was
probably one of the first attempts at adult education in the
United States.
More professional schools were added to Loyola University
in the twenties. In 1923 the Chicago College of Dentistry
affiliated with Loyola. The following year the School of Commerce and Finance was opened. Gradually more and more
professional schools had either been founded by the university
or else were affiliated with it. The Graduate School was instituted in 1926 to give higher degrees in many divisions.
From the twenties on Loyola grew steadily until in 1938
it numbered over five thousand students. The North Side
campus grew with the addition of a fine new library and
chapel. A seventeen story office building, Lewis Towers, was
given to the university by Mr. Francis J. Lewis to house the
Loyola downtown school. The Lewis Towers Campus now includes the Arts College, Commerce and Finance, and Sociology School.
At present (1955) Loyola continues to grow. Over onehalf the funds for the new multimillion Stritch School of
~:dicine has already been collected. Ground will be broken
Is summer for the Medical School which, along with the
Proposed Mercy Hospital, will form a $10,000,000 medical
center stretching over a fifty acre tract which was formerly
~ Part of the North Side suburb of Skokie. The medical
acuity has been keeping pace with the new expansion pro~arn by continued research. Great strides have been made
In recent years in studies made of the heart, cancer, polio,
and Psychiatric ills.
S Other new buildings in the Loyola family are the new Law
. chao} building on Pearson Street and the new dormitory
Just completed on the North Side campus.
Loyola's psychology department has gained fame throughout the years. The Loyola Center of Child Guidance and Psy-
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chological Service, which operates under the auspices of the
psychology department, has aided over five thousand families
in various personality problems over the past thirteen years.
Finally Loyola's dramatic department has developed into
a firsklass division of the school, producing yearly many
excellent plays in the Loyola Community Theatre. This de·
partment conducts yearly a festival in which many HoJJy.
wood stars appear. A recent project in communication arts at
Loyola is the development of an educational TV station on
· channel 11.
With this brief summary of activities at Loyola today, one
can easily see that the University is keeping abreast of the
times. Not only has interest been kept up in the professional
schools, but also new departments are being developed such
as the dramatic and television schools. This keeping up with
the times seems to have the same purpose that the development
of the profes$ional schools had just after the turn of the cen·
tury. Catholic schools of drama and television must be presented to Catholic youth in order to keep them from material·
istic and godless schools of this nature which flourish in manY
of our secular universities.
- •·
Jesuit Sodalities in Chicago
Before summing up our story of Jesuit education in ~·
cago, it will be well to mention something of those Jes~
organizations which cannot and should not be separa
from Jesuit education. I refer to the Sodalities of the Blessed
Virgin Mary. These Sodalities reached their highest develoP'
ment in Chicago around the turn of the century.
The first Jesuit Sodalities in Chicago were founded b!
Father Arnold Damen, S.J. He founded the Married Mens I
Sodality in 1858. "Honest John" Commiskey, whose son:
to found the Chicago White Sox, was the first secretarY· ..e
early Sodalities seemed to put a premium on external acti:
ties such as sports, ushering in church, etc. It would 5~ed
that the first reason why Father Damen founded the Marr'as
Men's Sodality was to take care of the parish needs such !liS
the collecting of money and ushering on Sunday. There see ee
5
to be little mention of the personal perfection which we
emphasized in the Sodality rule.
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171
Some of the activities of the Men's Sodality included a large
library collected by the efforts of the members, a highly developed baseball league, and a Sodality band. One committee
was a special benevolent association founded for insurance
purposes. This committee later developed into the Catholic
Order of Foresters, which from those humble beginnings as
a Sodality committee in Holy Family Parish has become a
thriving national insurance organization with thousands of
members in every State of the Union.
Here is a story that shows that the Irish parishioners were
not always in entire agreement with their German and Belgian pastors. It seems that the Sodality band wanted to
march in the St. Patrick's Day parade. The German Father
who was director of the Sodality at the time was definitely
against this project. It is not the part of a religious society to
march in such secular parades. On second thought, he asserted, St. Patrick wasn't an Irishman anyway. At this
declaration quite a number of the Sodality walked out of the
meeting.
The Married Ladies Sodality was founded in 1862. Here
again it seemed to be the idea of Father Damen to fill the need
for women to work around the parish. It was not until ten
Years later that it joined the Prima Primaria in Rome. The
total probation of the Married Ladies Sodality consisted in a
week's waiting between meetings. All who showed up the
second week were received. By 1885 there were almost a
~ous~nd members in this Sodality. Here are a few of the
arrred Ladies Sodality's by-laws:
b "T~e object of this Sodality is the improvement of the memt~rs rn every Christian virtue and especially in devotion to
e Blessed Virgin Mary.
C"On the first Sunday of the month all are to receive Holy
ommunion at the 7 o'clock Mass in Church.
"M:
.
1! ;etings are twice a month at 2 :45 in the afternoon in the
~.rrred Ladies Sodality Hall.
f In case of sickness the sick member is visited by members
0
,~he Sodality.
h On the decease of a member, a High Mass is offered for
a~r soul. Officers and members will attend her funeral. And
should wear their uniforms." 11
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As can readily be seen the members were kept busy with
many external activities such as meetings, visiting the sick,
building up the library, etc.
Sodality Hall
In 1878 a large Sodality meeting place was built on the
corner of May and Eleventh Streets. The new building was
named Sodality Hall and was four stories high and contained
meeting rooms, chapels, and libraries for all the divisions of
the Sodality. There were also several large assembly rooms
and a gymnasium. Today Sodality Hall is used as a grade
school for Holy Family Parish and the gymnasium and large
meeting hall are used by St. Ignatius High School. From this,
one can get a good idea of the size of the building. The erec·
tion of such a grand edifice for a Sodality meeting place seems
to be unique in the history of the Sodality in the United States.
Let us see fQ.r a moment the younger branches of the Soda!·
ity at Holy Family. The Young Ladies Sodality was founded
in 1861 and had a special chapel, library, and meeting place
in Sodality Hall. Many vocations came from this branch
of the Sodality, vocations guided by such ~en as Rev. Ferdi·
nand Moeller, S.J., under whose guidance the Holy FamilY
Sodalities blossomed into new strength, and the Rev. William
Nash, S.J., who is now house historian of St. Ignatius High
School. By the turn of the century the Young Ladies Sodality
numbered over eight hundred members.
Although the Young Men's Sodality was founded in 1858,
it remained identical with that of the Married Men until
1869. Here again much emphasis was placed on external
activity. There was a dramatic club, a band, and baseball
teams. So much emphasis was put on baseball that, as one
report has it, "Owing to the success of the baseball team for
the past three ·years, membership in the Sodality has been
on the increase." The success of the ball club could not be
denied for twice, in 1910 and 1911, it took first place in ~he
National Catholic League. Moreover, one of the early Sodal~ty
stars, Charles Commiskey, went on to star in the :maJor
leagues and founded a team of his own, the Chicago White SolCt
Still more Sodalities were erected at Holy Family to benefit.
those who were already out of school. The first was the S
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173
Joseph's Working Boys' Sodality founded by Father Francis
P. Nussbaum in 1880. Father Nussbaum started out with
just twelve boys, but during the next eight years, 1806 were
received into the group. As an adjunct to the Working Boys'
Sodality Father Nussbaum started the Junior Sodality, which
dressed in military garb. This extra attraction of a military
uniform was used by many youth organizations of the time.
Two other groups completed the Holy Family organization.
One was the St. Agnes Sodality for working girls founded in
1891. And the other was the Ephpheta Sodality founded for
the deaf and dumb by Father Ferdinand Moeller, S.J., who
was not only a pioneer in Sodality work, but also one of the
first in the Midwest to labor among the deaf mutes. In all
there were seven separate Sodalities in Holy Family Parish.
An eighth division might be considered by including the
Junior Cadets.
The Sodalities seemed to reach a high point in the early
1900's. When many of the Irish began to move away between
1910 and 1920, the Sodality became less active. Many branches
died out, others carried on at a less active pace. The high
school and college Sodalities persevered and have been the
source of many vocations right up to the present day. Today
the Sodalities of St. Ignatius High and Loyola Academy and
of Loyola University are flourishing under a new wave of
Sodality enthusiasm. In place of the bands and baseball teams
of the early Sodalities can be found days of recollection, retreats, common recitation of the Rosary and the Little Office
of the Blessed Virgin. Yet there is no lack of external works.
~ati~g parties and dances on the social side; working for
~ Little Sisters of the Poor, collecting magazines for the
~Issions, teaching catechism to underprivileged children on
.he apostolic side give evidence of Sodalities which show their
Interior spirit by external works.
Conclusion
c The Jesuits have had a long and fruitful influence in Chiftago education. In the early days from 1856 to 1880 their innUence was chiefly on the primary school level. This was the
liecessity of the times. Their grade schools were copied by pubc and parish schools alike across the nation. They have been
�•
174
CHICAGO SCHOOLS
called by some the best in the world at that time. When others
came into parish work and when the Sisters had sufficient
numbers to continue the management of the elementary
schools, the Jesuits moved on to higher education. They were
pioneers on the high school and college levels and there they
led the way till around 1900 when a need arose for Catholic
professional schools. _To supply this need Father Burrowes
founded Loyola Uni~~!sity.
With its schools of medicine, law, dentistry, commerce,
finance, sociology, Loyola became one of the leaders in the
national movement of the Jesuits towards the development
of professional schools. Today the trend moves on. Other
Orders are moving into high school and college education and
the Jesuits are tending to become experts in the professional
fields. Each year a fairly large number of Jesuits attain degrees in a wide variety of professional fields. The reason
for this interest in professional schools is the same today as it
was fifty years ago. The Catholic youth must have a profes·
sional school where he can learn his future occupation in the
light of Catholic principles of morality and not under the in·
fl.uence of atheistic materialism or indiffereri~ secularism.
These one hundred years of Jesuit teaching in Chicago
have, indeed, been fruitful. One needs only to look at the
long list of bishops, priests, and religious, doctors, lawYers,
and business men who are alumni of the Chicago Jesuit
schools to measure the effect of their work in Chicago edu·
cation.
NOTES
Mulkerins, T., Holy Family Parish (Chicago, 1923), p. 32.
Ibid., p. 35. ,
(;onroy, Joseph, Arnold Damen, S.J., (New York, 1930), p. 88.
4 Ibid., p. 152.
5 Ibid., p. 154.
6 Ibid., p. 152.
e
7 Garraghan, Gilbert, The Jesuits of the Middle United States, VolUlJI
III, (New York, 1938), p. 459.
s Ibid.
9 Mulkerins, T., op. cit., p. 504.
10 The New World, June 26, 1953, p. 15.
11 Mulkerins, op. cit., p. 578.
1
2
3
�The English Novitiate in 1806
The story of the restoration of the Society in the United
States and the establishment of the first novitiate at Georgetown has been told several times in the pages of the WooDSTOCK LETTERS*. Father Robert Molyneux, the first Superior,
was forced by circumstances to appoint as Master of Novices
a secular priest, Father Francis Neale, who would make his
novitiate together with his novices. Father Neale's preparation for his office was limited to the reading that he was able
to do in the Institute, the Industriae of Father Aquaviva and
the Spiritual Exercises. To assist his efforts, Father Molyneux wrote for advice to Father Marmaduke Stone, Provincial of England. At Father Stone's request, the English
Master of Novices, Father Charles Plowden, sent the letter
which follows to Father Molyneux. Father Plowden (17431821) was first Master of Novices and second Provincial
of the English Province of the restored Society.
JAMES J. HENNESEY, S.J.
Reverend Father, P.C.
Reverend Father Stone1 has directed me to transcribe for
You the order of daily duties, the religious discipline, which is
established in the rising novitiate at Hodder House. 2 What I
may write upon this subject will not by any means present to
You a model for imitation; it will at most show you the attempts which have been made, amidst innumerable inconV'eniences, to revive the ancient discipline and spirit of this
first stage of our religious life, deemed so important in the
Society, though Your Reverence may gather the true mode
~f training novices more securely from the Constitutions and
rom the rules of the magister novitiorum, as well as from
;our own recollection and judgment, aided by the advice of
our respectable Bishop.8
gr'I'he education of the novices at Hodder has been hitherto
eatly impeded by local inconvenience, by the want of a re-
--
an~S:e the
accounts by Fr. E. I. Devitt, WOODSTOCK LETTERS 63:405 ff.
4:203 ff. and by Fr. Joseph Zwinge, ibid., 44:1 ff.
�176
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
ligious community to edify and overawe them, and still more
by their being abandoned to one Superior, single and unassisted, but I am happy to add that, in spite of these circumstances, those who have been admitted to vows appear to
have taken the right spirit and are actually giving much edifi·
cation at StonyhursU Probably this good effect would not
have ensued if the advice of one or two of our elders, who have
not rejoined the Society, had been taken. They recommended
the abolition of many restrictive practices as minutious and
trifling and wished the novices to be less confined than formerly with respect to obedience, mortification, conversation,
company, choice of books, and so on.
The duty of commenting on the Summary and Common
Rules has given me a higher idea of the whole Institute than I
had before; and the more I compare it with the circumstances
of the English Mission, the more I am convinced that strict ad·
herence to it in all its Constitutions and Rules is the sure and
only means to prevent the greatest fault of English missioners,
I mean dissipation and fondness for secular life. I well knew,
before the late Father Gruber had remarked it, that in his
initiis it is impossible to put in motion all. the springs of ou;
government, to practise all the rules, even the sex expert·
menta, examen generale, and so on, but we must enforce the
observance of whatever we can, as the best means to
strengthen the lex interna charitatis, which, in St. Ignatius'
judgment, is paramount to all rules, and ought to be the
main spring of the Society in its second birth as it was in the
first before rules were written. 5
Accurate Idea of the Institute
I believe the Master of Novices ought to apply himself i~
his instructions to give them an accurate idea of the Ins~j
tute, and a growing love of it. If he can effect this, theY Wl1
relish his doctrine when he shows them how the interior ruleS
of the Summary and the exterior Common Rules concur to
form men at once pious, virtuous, studious and labOrioUS·
Unless Jesuits are to be of this character, their services ar~
not wanted ; others may as well do their work. There ~r
be no need to revive the Society. If they acquire during thei
1
novitiate a willing love of their professional business, it Jllll
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
177
be presumed that the confidential and mild government so
much wished for by the Constitutions will again prevail, if
ever Providence should again magnify us in· gentem magnam.
Your discerning Bishop has often complained, with much
reason, of the neglect of extensive, that is, constitutional,
study in our little Province; and I apprehend that this was
not the only fault that might be traced to neglect of the Constitutions, which Superiors did not enforce. I think it important that the Master of Novices bring into use all the
Constitutions which regard them, inasmuch as he can, and I
should hope that in two years they would contract, besides
improvement in the great virtues, a steady habit of regularity
and a love of their desks. I am persuaded that more than half
of those who made their simple vows last autumn will, if not
impeded, become men of sound and extensive learning.
On these considerations, I could not think myself warranted
to deviate from the ancient, restrictive system of our novitiate,
which Mr. Stone required me to follow, as far as I should find
it practicable. I think the whole arrangement, as well of the
novices' accommodations as of their duties, ought to be calculated to exclude distraction from without, and to keep them
in continual dependence and under constant inspection, so
that they may at all tilll€s feel the presence of a Superior.
This ought to be thought of in the distribution of their
quarters, which should also be made comfortable both in
Winter and in summer, if they must there learn to love their
desks.
In all novices' apartments which I have seen, there was at
least one place appropriate to private devotion, namely a neat
little altar or ornamented picture or statue or reliquary,
Where many acts of piety were performed. The Superior's
room should be within easy reach, and the lodge of the
Manuductor should command every novice's cell. Among us,
a second year novice (called Porter), and in foreign novitiates
of the Society, an elderly lay brother, was Manuductor, who
co~stantly attended the novices, issued orders, and made
da1ly reports to the Superior.
In our and your present circumstances, many arrangements
of regular discipline must undoubtedly be left to the discretion
of the Master, who will make improvements as he advances,
�178
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
and the improvements will be more valuable, the more he
studies the Constitutions and the regulae magistri novitiorum.
Mr. Francis Neale
In a late letter to Bishop Carroll, I expressed some disapprobation of the appointment of a Master who never was in the
Society. By this I meant no disrespect to Mr. Francis Neale,
with whom I am entirely unacquainted, but I still think that,
in spite of all his irterit, he must enter upon his office under
a great disadvantage. If his novices have been trained in
regular schools, his task of forming them to punctual obedience and regularity will be, as I know from experience,
greatly facilitated. If unfortunately he must be, as I now am,
their schoolmaster to teach them Latin, contrary to the Constitutions, this alone will be a heavy clog upon all the rest.
If any one of our ancient brethren had been appointed to
manage your novices, I should think it superfluous to enter
into details which he would remember as well as I.6 To Mr.
Neale, everything must be new, and therefore, for his information, I will here write down, as I am desired, the distribution of the day and a few of the customs and practices
~- .:
established at Hodder House.
I first observe that the hardest part of my personal labor
hitherto has been the preparing of suitable Instructions or
Exhortations for the novices, which must be frequent and for
many obvious reasons ought to be written. If this is the main
duty of the Master, he must spare no pains to possess a sequel
of sound instructions, which he will every year improve.
The subjects are marked out in the rules and indeed the
Summary alone affords opportunity to introduce everything
that regards spiritual life. To assist Mr. Neale in this task,
I have nothing better to offer than an imperfect set of old
and short exhortations, eighty in number, written by Father
Thomas Lawson who died at St. Orner, I believe, later than
1750.7 They were sent to me about two years ago by the Ladies
of the Bar School, York, 8 who had received them from Father
Robert Knatchbull and they added that some which were
missing were thought to be in the hands of Rev. Mr. HenrY
Pile.9 They were read to the novices by Fathers Corbier
Blackiston,11 Constable/ 2 and Knatchbull, and probably bY
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
179
other Rectors who preceded them. I have looked over many
of them, and without detailing their defects, I can say that
they often present useful and improveable matter. The language of them is very low and I wish they contained better
details on the nature of the Institute, as well as on the dangers
and duties of missioners in this country. They shall all be
forwarded to you with this paper. I shall add some notes sent
to me by an ancient French Father, relative to the novitiate
of Paris.13
DISTRIBUTION OF THE DAY.
4:30
5:00
6:00
6:30
7:00
7:30
7:45
8:30
9:30
11:00
11:30
11:45
12:00
12:30
1:45
2:30
3:00
4:00
4:30
4:45
5:15
5:30
6:30
7:00
8:00
8:30
8:45
r N.B.
Rise, wash hands, visit to the Blessed Sacrament for Morning
oblation.
Meditation
Reflection, making beds
Mass
Reading Rodriguez
Breakfast
Exhortation, the same recapitulated by the novices in companies.
Manual Work
Study
Learning by heart
Ad libitum
Examen of conscience
Dinner
or when dinner ends, Short visit to Blessed Sacrament, then
Recreation.
Short visit to Blessed Sacrament, then ad libitum
Conference, or catechism, or Tones, or some other exercise.
Manual work
Spiritual reading
Reading The Imitation and preparing meditation
Meditation.
Short reflection, then visit to Blessed Sacrament, with vocal
prayers.
Beads, then ad libitum
Supper, short visit as after dinner.
Recreation
Litanies, meditation read and prepared.
Examen of conscience.
De Profundis, to bed.
During five months of the winter, this order is a
Ittle varied, because the novices then rise at 5 o'clock.
On the recreation day of the week, after breakfast the
�180
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
novices are employed in such manual works at least as must
be performed every day, after which they either walk abroad
in companies or have some exercise at home until 11 o'clock,
or 11 :30, when silence again recommences. In the evening,
after the short visit at the end of ordinary recreation, they
prepare the refectory for supper and then walk out, as in the
morning, or amuse themselves at home until 5 o'clock. They
then repair to the,chapel, where, after a short prayer and a
lecture from The".lmitation, the meditation (the same as in
the morning) is read out and lasts half an hour. Everything
after it, as on ordinary days.
Formerly at Watten, 14 the novices in summer made their
evening mediation abroad in the fields, but this is not allowed
at Hodder, unless on extraordinary occasions, or when they
are sent on Fridays in the summer to catechize children in
the more distant cottages and farms. Besides the catechism
day, they commonly walk out twice in a week.
On Sundays and holidays, they prepare the refectory im·
mediately after breakfast, and the rest of the morning until
examen remains ad libitum, to be spent in silence and prayer,
reading or writing. All are free to hear a second Mass at
ten o'clock. In the evening, Vespers arid· Compline are said
with Benediction, after which they are often allowed to con·
verse till half past four, or five o'clock, as on recreation days.
On Sunday evenings, and on their recreation days, when they
return from walking, some frequently ask and obtain leave
to retire for a certain time to their desks, at the Superior's
discretion.
In times of ordinary recreation after dinner and supper,
games of drafts and chess and so on are not permitted. The
novices are parted into companies of three or four, who
converse separately, but all meet once, to hear one novice re·
late a pious .Story or example to the rest. The Master will
easily give them proper instructions for conversation without
cramping them or turning relaxation to a toil.
Faults Observed
Two are never allowed to walk out or converse at home together. When they walk out, they say Our Blessed Lady'S
Litany and the De Profundis at starting and Beads in coming
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
181
home. One in each company is bound to make a report, if
anything has happened contrary to rules. In like manner, the
Manuductor or Porter is bound to make a report to the
Superior every evening of every fault that he has observed
during the day, his own as well as those of others; and the
good order of the novitiate is really connected with his accuracy and vigilance. If there were a priest companion of
the Superior, it would be his duty to superintend and direct
the novices in all their exterior duties; he would properly be
their prefect. The Porter at present in some measure supplies
his place. He receives daily orders from the Superior, addresses them to the novices, conducts them to all duties, and so
on.
A day or two after an exhortation has been delivered, the
novices are allowed a quarter of an hour to recapitulate it a
second time in separate companies, after which a public conference is held upon it; each one, as he is called upon, repeating what he remembers, proposing questions and so forth.
This is called "Repetition and Conference." Thus each exhortation serves for the morning exercise of two days. This
familiar mode of instruction is found to be profitable.
The evening exercise at 2:30 o'clock is thus conducted: a
novice reads a catechistical discourse which he has prepared
on a given matter; or one answers catechistical questions
which another proposes, but without having written anything
upon them; or finally, they declaim little speeches called
Tones, which they know by heart, according to the rule.
On Saturdays, they sleep till five o'clock, and the morning
exercise is omitted. In the evening, they meet to recite to the
Superior the verses of the psalms which they have learned
by heart during the week. Every one recites the portion of
~ach day (a few verses) to his admonitor as soon as he has
earned them.
h' Twice a week, after the evening visit, each one hears from
Tis. admonitor the faults which have been observed in him.
his admonition is private and no reply is to be made to it.
0
. n Saturday evening, every novice admonishes the Porter
In this manner.
Three or four days in the week, some or all of the novices
come in turns to the Superior and on their knees acknowledge
�180
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
novices are employed in such manual works at least as must
be performed every day, after which they either walk abroad
in companies or have some exercise at home until 11 o'clock,
or 11 :30, when silence again recommences. In the evening,
after the short visit at the end of ordinary recreation, they
prepare the refectory for supper and then walk out, as in the
morning, or amuse themselves at home until 5 o'clock. They
then repair to the chapel, where, after a short prayer and a
lecture from The Imitation, the meditation (the same as in
the morning) is read out and lasts half an hour. Everything
after it, as on ordinary days.
Formerly at Watten, 14 the novices in summer made their
evening mediation abroad in the fields, but this is not allowed
at Hodder, unless on extraordinary occasions, or when they
are sent on Fridays in the summer to catechize children in
the more distant cottages and farms. Besides the catechism
day, they commonly walk out twice in a week.
On Sundays- and holidays, they prepare the refectory immediately after breakfast, and the rest of the morning until
examen remains ad libitum, to be spent in silence and prayer,
reading or writing. All are free to hear a second Mass at
ten o'clock. In the evening, Vespers and ·Compline are said
with Benediction, after which they are often allowed to con·
verse till half past four, or five o'clock, as on recreation days.
On Sunday evenings, and on their recreation days, when they
return from walking, some frequently ask and obtain leave
to retire for a certain time to their desks, at the Superior's
discretion.
In times of ordinary recreation after dinner and supper,
games of drafts and chess and so on are not permitted. The
novices are parted into companies of three or four, who
converse separately, but all meet once, to hear one novice r~
late a pious story or example to the rest. The Master w!ll
easily give them proper instructions for conversation without
cramping them or turning relaxation to a toil.
Faults Observed
Two are never allowed to walk out or converse at horne y'together. When they walk out, they say Our Blessed La~ 5
Litany and the De Profundis at starting and Beads in cornJn&'
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
181
home. One in each company is bound to make a report, if
anything has happened contrary to rules. In like manner, the
Manuductor or Porter is bound to make a report to the
Superior every evening of every fault that he has observed
during the day, his own as well as those of others ; and the
good order of the novitiate is really connected with his accuracy and vigilance. If there were a priest companion of
the Superior, it would be his duty to superintend and direct
the novices in all their exterior duties; he would properly be
their prefect. The Porter at present in some measure supplies
his place. He receives daily orders from the Superior, addresses them to the novices, conducts them to all duties, and so
on.
A day or two after an exhortation has been delivered, the
novices are allowed a quarter of an hour to recapitulate it a
second time in separate companies, after which a public conference is held upon it; each one, as he is called upon, repeating what he remembers, proposing questions and so forth.
This is called "Repetition and Conference." Thus each exhortation serves for the morning exercise of two days. This
familiar mode of instruction is found to be profitable.
The evening exercise at 2 :30 o'clock is thus conducted: a
novice reads a catechistical discourse which he has prepared
on a given matter; or one answers catechistical questions
Which another proposes, but without having written anything
Upon them; or finally, they declaim little speeches called
Tones, which they know by heart, according to the rule.
On Saturdays, they sleep till five o'clock, and the morning
exercise is omitted. In the evening, they meet to recite to the
~uperior the verses of the psalms which they have learned
Yheart during the week. Every one recites the portion of
~ach day (a few verses) to his admonitor as soon as he has
earned them.
h' Twice a week, after the evening visit, each one hears from
T~· admonitor the faults which have been observed in him.
ls admonition is private and no reply is to be made to it.
0
innt ~aturday evening, every novice admonishes the Porter
hls manner.
c Three or four days in the week, some or all of the novices
ome in turns to the Superior and on their knees acknowledge
�182
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
some fault and ask some of the usual penances for it. They
perform it during dinner after having publicly declared the
fault from the reading desk. Sometimes a reprimand from
the Superior for faults, with a penance enjoined, is read out
in time of table. On certain days, each one writes his faults
to be read at dinner. These are called chapters. Now and
then, they are all assembled to tell faults of one another, each
in turn kneeling. to hear them. A little attention will be wanting in the Superior-to hinder all this from dwindling into an
un-meaning routine. He may easily make it a powerful check
upon the novices and an exercise of wholesome humility.
Agreeably to the spirit of the fourth rule of the Summary
and to the constant practice of the Society, the use of exterior
mortification is allowed, and is enjoined to particular novices
and to all the novices, in due moderation and discretion; and
it consists in the four modes which were in general use
throughout t}!e Society, fasting, disciplines, hair cloths and
sharp chains. As it seems important that these things be not
omitted, so the quantity, manner, frequency and so on of them
must be regulated by the prudence of the Superior, who will
not fail to explain the true spirit of the fourth rule. In this,
as in other things, his aim will be to create habits in the
novices which they may be willing and able to retain in their
future life. One of the most valuable will be the habit and
love of regularity and of application to professional business.
With this, there will be little danger of "idleness, the root
of all evil, having place in our house," contrary to the fortY·
fourth rule of the Summary, which, in past times, might, I
believe, have been observed more perfectly than it was bY
some Superiors as well as by several of their subjects.
Dependence and Inspection
Attention is given at Hodder to keep the novices con~in·
ually dependent, leaving them no choice to do any thin? ":1t~·
out orders or leave from the Superior. On the same prmciP '
they are kept, as much as may be, under continual inspection{
The Superior frequently sees each one apart, independentlY~
the terms of manifestation, endeavoring by this means ~
support an easy and confidential intercourse with everYon
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
183
and to prevent that suspicious jealousy which young men often
have of their Superior.
The rule of manifestation is comparatively easy in the
novitiate because the Superior is always the confessor. To
inure the novices to it, it is formally practised at Hodder four
or five times a year. On the whole, the Master of Novices
ought and easily may be informed of anything that is said
or done in his absence. Provided he be not hasty, or fret and
tease them without cause, he will not lose their esteem by
giving close attention to everything they do.
A principal point of his care must be to prevent, if possible,
or to remedy every trespass against charity, civility and good
manners. Every thing that is like wrangling is reckoned a
serious fault. This matter is frequently introduced into exhortations, and the novices are often advised to converse at
recreation on edifying, instructive and pious subjects, such
as church history, that of the Society, its undertakings,
successes, persecutions and so on, and to promote this, the
Master sometimes joins them at recreation.
Experience having shown that time is lost and distractions
are multiplied by writing and receiving letters, it is found
necessary to prohibit such correspondence, and it is allowed
only in cases of necessity. In general, pains are taken to sequester the novices from all communication with persons out
of doors, according to the rule.
The order of reading at dinner is: first, some verses of
Holy Scripture; second, a passage in Rodriguez or some other
spiritual book; third, an historical book, for example, the
history of the Society of Jesus; fourth, the martyrology. At
supper, only the historical book. N.B. Supper is here only
a slight meal, namely milk, potatoes, or what may be left
from dinner.
Every novice has some little domestic office assigned him,
f.or example, to take care of the chapel, the refectory, .the
hnen, and so forth, and these employments are frequently
~?anged. Besides these, they are sent to work in the garden,
ltchen and so on, to clean shoes, candlesticks, and so on.
~e Master will establish a fixed order and method in all these
h l~gs, the observance of which will contribute to form the
ab1ts of regularity.
In the course of the day, several short visits to the chapel
�184
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
are appointed, for the purpose of recovering and supporting
recollection of mind. They are marked principally at the end
of the several duties. The novices are instructed to employ
the time ad libitum either in vocal prayer or in reading or
writing or in some quiet exercise that will not disturb others.
They may pass this time in the chapel or at their desks, or in
the garden, marking their names in a table or telling the
Porter whither they go.
-Reading and Study
No novice keeps any book without leave. The morning
spiritual lecture is always from Rodriguez; the evening spiritual lecture from other spiritual writers. Each one has a different book, but on Saturday, all read the Scripture, namely
the Gospels and historical books of the Old Testament. During the time allotted for study, and, if they please, the times
ad libitum, they may study the Scripture (as above) in a commentatory or read Latin Fathers, especially St. Bernard, St.
Leo, St. Bonaventure; or study the Greek Testament and
Greek Fathers, especially St. Chrysostom, or read the ascetic
tracts of Bellarmine and other moderns, who have written in
Latin; or they may read approved sermons iind abridge them,
or prepare the catechistical discourse on the subject allotted to
each by the Superior. For this purpose, the study of catechistical works is much recommended; and the Master takes an account from each, how he employs his time. Besides spiritual
books, he tries to furnish each one with some book of instructive and entertaining lecture, such, for example, as Bercastel's
Ecclesiastical History, Lettres Edifiantes, controvertistical
tracts against the Jansenists, the volumes of the Historia
Societatis J esu, lives of eminent men of the Society or others,
accounts of foreign missions, and so on.
Unfortunately~ the stock of books is not large at Hodder,
but there are enough to accommodate ten or twelve novices.
The loss of the valuable library at Liege, of the mathematical
and physical instruments, and of the church plate will always
be the more regretted, as all these things were safely conveyed to Maestricht by the industry of the young men in
1794 and might all be now at Stonyhurst, if they had not been
undervalued and neglected by the gentlemen who conducted
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
185 .
the emigration. Many cart loads of the best books were torn
up by the French to make wadding for their cannon. These
are sorrowful recollections.u
The rule of silence is at all times in force among the novices,
excepting the times of recreation.
At the evening visit after meditation, the prayers are said
aloud. First seven Paters and Aves for the Indulgence of the
Stations granted to the Society. Then succeeds a pause for
private prayer. After this, Litany of the Blessed Virgin with
Defende, followed by the collects of Patron Saints and lastly
De Profundis. The visit lasts nearly a quarter.
Stiff Precision
To obtain punctual attendance at all spiritual duties, the
signal for them is generally given a little before the time, that
all may be present at the instant when they commence.
I remember that Bishop Carroll once expressed to me his
disapprobation of the stiff precision of the virtuous French
clergy in the education of young ecclesiastical students, which
he thought incompatible with the honest freedom of English
boys. I then thought and still think his observation very just
With respect to the generality of British or American youth;
but I still hope that the exact discipline of our novitiate will
not be too severe a trial for young men who on reflex principles have resolved to renounce their own will and to lead a life
of labor. The experience of the two last years seems to prove
that those novices will not find it too difficult who during their
college course have learned to love study and who during
~heir novitiate acquire an esteem and love for the Institute.
f. they are too light to become students, I would rather part
With them than find them with vows.
The several unconnected articles and scattered hints in this
Paper have been written by starts at different times, as they
~curred. I shall be glad if they can be of any use to Your
t everence in forming, with Mr. Neale, as no doubt you mean
~do, a fixed and regular plan of conduct for the management
~· Your novices. Your advice will be the more necessary to
0
of the unavoidable disadvantage which he
8to~~·ers~Illaccounthaving undergone what he must teach others
never
Undergo. Your old schoolfellow, Father Richard Haskey
�186
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
(Reeve), observes in a recent letter from Petersburg that
the General has testified his surprise and disapprobation of
the appointment of Mr. Neale, solely on this account. 16 It
would really be well, if Your Reverence or some other of our
brethren would take charge of the novices during the two
first years, until Mr. Neale has pronounced his vows.
I feel much for you in the scarcity of active members and I
see clearly that your demands on Mr. Stone cannot be satisfied, since those among his subjects who will be fit to conduct
schools will be especially wanted at Stonyhurst, and two of the
best of them are shipped away, for the sake of their health,
to Palermo. It is equally important not to interrupt at present
the studies of those who give such promising hopes of success
in them.
The General has lately acknowledged to Mr. Stone thereceipt of letters from America. He wishes Mr. Stone to send
to you, if he possibly can, two masters of lower schools and
says that he will sent to you from Poland a professor of
theology and another of philosophy.H Father Haskey says that
he has several to spare.
-·
The General has instructed Father Pignatelli, the Pro·
vincial of Naples, now at Rome, to use every means to obtain
from the Pope, if not a Brief, at least a Rescript for England
and another for America, which may be privately shown to the
Bishops, authorizing us per interim to prosecute the work
which we have undertaken.18 He promises to answer your
American letters as soon as he shall have received Father
Pignatelli's answer. One of the General's letters during winter
spoke of six copies of the lnstitutum Societatis J esu, which,
at his desire, "optimus Dominus comes de Widman" had prom·
ised to forward to London from Venice, and which he wishe~
Mr. Stone to distribute between England, Ireland an
America. No intelligence has been received of these bookS
from ':enice and Mr. Strickland19 apprehends that theY ha.~~
fallen mto the hands of some French privateer. 2° Count V{l
man is a Venetian nobleman whom I remember in the Rorna~
Seminary in 1770. His mother was sister of the two Cardina s
Rezzonico and niece of Clement XIII.
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
187
An Implied Invitation?
If there were only two or three novices at one time, I should
not think it worth while to keep them in a separate house, on
a separate establishment, since the proper order and discipline
of a novitiate cannot well be maintained with so small anumber. They might be educated in some retired part of the
college under a particular Superior, as novices were in the
Professed House and great College at Rome from the beginning of the Society until St. Francis Borgia obtained St.
Andrew's in Quirinali, and instituted distinct houses for them
in every province. A new house is built for them at Hodder
and will probably be inhabited by them this summer. I do
not presume to invite Your Reverence to send any of your
novices hither to begin their course on the old accustomed
day (September 8th), though Mr. Stone is of opinion that
advantages might ensue from it which would balance the
expense. I observed last year that the proposal of sending
students to Stonyhurst was absolutely rejected in letters from
America; and certainly such a measure would not be advisable,
unless in the necessity of forming a first set of masters for
the college at Georgetown, which can never succeed without
a succession of men duly trained to the business. If, ten or
twelve years ago, you had sent over seven or eight picked
Youths for this purpose, you would now see them forming
successors for themselves at Georgetown, without any uneasy
fears for the continuance of the college. I am inclined to think
that you will be necessitated to adopt this measure at last.
We have at present, both at Stonyhurst and at Hodder,
several Irish, sent on this plan by Fathers O'Callaghan21 and
~etagh, 22 though unfortunately the greatest part of them
ave been selected with very little discernment and the
~o~gheaded prejudices of Betagh, who is always opposite
0
~Is good old compere, increase the difficulty which we exPerience in conducting these eleves. I endeavor to direct their
~~al.to missions among the poor in Ireland, for I apprehend
t~ Ignorance of some of them will disqualify them for any
~ er service. I trust however they will never share the
ea?It of contemning other ecclesiastical bodies which, I fear,
SJn~ted in too great a degree in some provinces of the old
OCiety.
�188
ENGLISH NOVmATE
In my lessons at Hodder, far from concealing the faults
which I think were observable in the old body, I have more
than once specified them by way of caution to my young
hearers; and on this subject, besides the vain self-preference
hinted above, I have sometimes spoken of certain faults in
the article of poverty, some neglect of prayer, chiefly among
non-priests, and the inactivity of many missioners for whom
their Superiors did npt provide work suitable to their abilities
and talents.
··
Everything in his initiis is attended with difficulties, and I
find myself in the decline of life 28 reduced to labor and toil
more than in any preceding stage. I shall be much pleased to
hear what progress you have made in your novitiate, where
it is fixed, how peopled, and so forth, and I hope a friendly
intercourse of correspondence will always exist between it
and Hodder House. If you should ever send any of your
postulants to learn their business here and at Stonyhurst, '
I trust you will not entertain groundless jealousies and sus·
picions that they will be detained from you for the service of
England and, besides this, be ill used by those who detain
them. These are the wild notions of one at :O.nblin with respect
to the Irish novices.
~ -·
* * * * *
I am almost ashamed of having written so many desultory,
ill-connected pages. If each of them should afford you one useful hint, I shall hope to be excused for the rest. In my present
situation, I commonly want time to arrange and abbreviate
what I must write. I end with wishing you a long old age;
though, if you protract it thirty years more, you will nev~r
be so old as is your ancient scholar, Mr. S. Mr. Semmesu 13
stout enough to attend his school of theology, subject to in·
terruptions from an almost broken constitution. Mr. Barrow,
much wanted at Stonyhurst, is a hopeless prisoner at Liege,
where he loitered too long, when he might and ought to ha~e
returned. 25 Many hundreds of British subjects are in ~s
situation, victims of their foolish reliance on public faith 1.n
France. The last news told me was that all chance of peace 1:
utterly defeated and that it is much more than probable thai
the Pope is to be dismissed from Rome to make place for
know not what new king.
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
189
Mr. Hughes and Mr. Thomas Reeve are both frequently
disabled by returning illness and are both at present absent
by reasons of bad health. 26
I remain greatly
Yours in Christo,
Charles Plowden
Hodder House, April 29, 1806.27
NOTES
1 Father Marmaduke Stone (1784-1834) entered the Society in 1767.
He was ordained two years after the Suppression and in 1803 became
first Provincial of the restored English Province, an office which he
held until 1817. (Henry Foley, S.J., Records of the English Province of
the Society of Jesus, Volume VII, Part the Second, pp. 741-2). This
volume and its twin will be referred to hereafter as Collectanea.
2
The first English novitiate in the new Society was established at
Hodder Place, Stonyhurst, in 1803, with Father Plowden as Master of
Novices. The novitiate remained at Hodder until 1854, although it was
temporarily closed from 1821-1827. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the First,
p. 134 n.)
sFather Plowden and Bishop John Carroll were close friends. Many
of the Bishop's letters to Father Plowden were returned to Maryland
and are now in the Archives at Woodstock College.
•The English College of Liege was transferred to Stonyhurst, Lancashire, in 1794. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. xlix).
5
A month or two before Father Plowden's letter, Father General
Brzozowski had written in similar vein to Father Molyneux: "'S umus
~tnqua~ in exordiis Societatis: fervore tunc compensabatur, quidquid
Ut~rmtati experimentorum deesse poterat. Faciamus nunc idem. SupPtebtt Dominus reliqua per gratiam suam, ubi bonam nostram voluntatem
~ conatus viderit." (Brzozowski-Molyneux. Petropoli. 22 Feb. 1806.
aryland Province Archives, Woodstock College, 500:4).
f
the five Jesuits who had renewed their vows in the summer and
Fa 1 of 1805 in Maryland, Father Molyneux was already Superior,
a:her Charles Neale was needed in Charles County, Father John
B
W~t~on v.:as superannuated, Father Sylvester Boarman was occupied
F Parish work and Father Charles Sewall was ill.
7
N .ather Thomas Lawson (1666-1750) was Rector and Master of
(;~cesat Watten in Belgium from 1721-1724 and again from 1734-1740.
,;~Y, Co~lectanea, Part the First, pp. 440-441).
of th e Ladies of the Bar Convent, York, are the Sisters of the Institute
'Be Blessed Virgin Mary, founded by Mary Ward.
0
A.lll ~h Father Robert Knatchbull and Father Henry Pile were native
ertcans. Father Knatchbull (1716-1782) was Vice-Rector and Master
1
;of
�190
ENGLISH NOVITIATE
of Novices at Ghent from 1765 until the Suppression. (Foley, Collectanea,
Part the First, p. 424). Father Pile (1743-1814) returned to Maryland,
but did not re-enter the Society.
1oFather Henry Corbie (1700-1765) was Master of Novices at Watten
(1745-1756) and at Ghent (1764-1765). Foley, Collectanea, Part the
First, p. 168).
nFather William Blackiston (1698-1768) was Rector and Master of
Novices at Watten. (foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 63).
12Father Robert .Constable (1705/6-1770) was Rector and Master
of Novices at Watte'n from 1759-1765. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the
First, pp. 160-161).
UThe notes apparently were sent to Father Molyneux. There is a
list of the instructions received in the Maryland Province Archives,
but none of the instructions themselves. A translation of the account of
the French novitiate follows this article.
HThe English novitiate was at Watten, near St. Orner in Belgium
from 1624/5-1767/8. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, pp. liv-lv).
HFather Marmaduke Stone was in charge of the emigration from
Liege to Stonyhurst. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the Second, p. 741).
1 6 Father Richard Reeve, alias Haskey, (1740-1816) taught English
at the Jesuit College in St. Petersburg at this time. In a letter to the
Maryland Superior, Father General Brzozowski expressed his consent
to the appointment of Father Francis Neale as Master of Novices in
the following terms: "Quod ad Magistrum Novitiorum attinet, non sum
invitus quominus designatus P. Franciscus Neale hoc munus obeat, si
alius non suppetat, sed legere Institutum et de consuetudinibus Soci·
etatis et Tyrocinii informari a Ra. Va. debet." (Brzozowski-Molyneux.
Petropoli, 22 Feb., 1806. Maryland Province Archives, Woodstock College,
500:4).
17The two professors referred to must be Father Anthony Kohlma!lll
(philosophy) and Father Peter Epinette (theology), who arrived at
Georgetown in November, 1806.
18 The Society was approved for White Russia by the Brief, Catholical
Fidei in 1801. In the letter by which he authorized Bishop Carroll to
aggregate the American Jesuits to the Society in Russia, Father Gene~~~
Gruber explained how he could do so: "Pius VII dedit etiam pro all~
extra Russiam ·regionibus vivae vocis oraculum, de quo ad me scripsJt
tam Eminentissimus Card. Consalvi Secretarius Status, tum theolo~s
penitentiarius Vincentius George, olim noster, tum procurator generahs
Societatis pater Cajetanus Angiolini, qui a me Romam ab anno miss~s
frequentem ad Sanctum Patrem habet aditum. Per bane vivae vocJS
facultatem licet nobis in silentio et sine strepitu ubique aggre~are
socios." (Gruber-Carroll. Petropoli. 12 Maii, 1804. Maryland ProVl~
Archives, Woodstock College, 500:2a). The tenuous situation of
Society was, nevertheless, a source of continual worry to Bishop Car~ '
4
and he was never fully satisfied until the complete restoration of 18 '
J
�ENGLISH NOVITIATE
191
t9Father William Strickland (1731-1819) was the principal agent in
effecting the restoration of the Society in England in 1803. (Foley,
Collectanea, Part the Second, pp. 745-746).
20The mails were largely disrupted by the Napoleonic Wars. Four
years later, it took two years for the letters appointing Father John
Grassi as Superior of the Mission to reach America. Letters to Father
General were sent to one of four or five addresses in various European
ports and sent on from there. The usual agent for American correspondence was the future President, John Quincy Adams, Minister to
Russia. (Maryland Province Archives, Woodstock College, Box 500).
21 Father Richard O'Callaghan (1728-1807) had been for many years
a missionary in the Philippine Islands, where his tongue was slit by
the natives through hatred of his zeal and faith. He is considered
the founder of the restored Society in Ireland. (Foley, Collectanea,
Chronological Catalogue of the Irish Province, S.J ., p. 80).
22 Father Thomas Betagh (1738-1811) was the last survivor of the
Irish Jesuits of the old Society. He served as Vicar-General of Dublin
and is described as "a celebrated and indefatigable preacher, a priest
glowing with charity to the poor." (Foley, CoUectanea, Chronological
Catalogue of the Irish Province, S.J., p. 82). Father Plowden's strictures
on the Irish novices would seem to be a bit too sweeping; among them
was the famous Father Peter Kenny, whom Plowden himself referred
to as "the incomparable Kenny." As a novice at Hodder, he once
had to be told to leave the pulpit, as the novices were spellbound by
his exordium and interrupted their meal. (Foley, Collectanea, Chronological Catalogue of the Irish Province, S.J., pp. 85-86).
23 Father Plowden was at this time 63 years old.
24 Father Joseph Semmes (1743-1809), a native of Maryland, taught
Philosophy and theology at Liege and Stonyhurst. (Foley, Collectanea,
Part the Second, p. 697}.
25
Father Thomas Barrow (1747-1814) had gone to Liege after the
Peace of Amiens to look after the property of the English Jesuits there.
(Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 36).
26
Father John Hughes (1754-1828) entered the Society in 1770, was
ordained after the suppression and served at Liege, Stonyhurst and in
~he English mission districts. (Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, pp.
b79 -380). Father Thomas Reeve, alias Haskey, (1752-1826) was the
.. ~ther of Father Richard Reeve mentioned above. Foley says of him:
e was exceedingly abstemious, his supper consisting of two stewed
Prunes and a piece of fried sole. His bottle of wine lasted so long
as to become a proverb." ( Collectanea, Part the Second, p. 642).
27
M The original of Father Plowden's letter will be found in the
aryland Province Archives, Woodstock College, 203 A 1.
�The Novitiate at Paris
The following account of the Novitiate at Paris in the Old
Society was written for Father Charles Plowden by "an
ancient French Father." In 1806, Father Plowden sent it to
Father Robert Molyneux in Maryland. 1 Plowden did not
give Molyneux the name of the author, nor is there any indi·
cation of the time when the French Father was a novice at
Paris. An examination of the catalogues of the English Province suggests two possibilities. Father Jean-Nicolas Grou, the
spiritual writer, was a member of the Province of France, and
he died at Lulworth, England on December 13, 1803, three
months after the establishment of the English novitiate at
Hodder Place. A second member of the Province of France,
Father Anthony Aloysius Sionest (alias Simpson), reentered
the Society in England in 1805, and was stationed at Stony·
hurst. 2 If Father Grou is the author, the description would
refer to the novitiate at Paris in the years 1746-1748, when
he was a novice there. Father Sionest was a novice from 17591761. In any event, the account cannot describe a period anY
later than 1762, the year in which the Province of France
was dispersed.
~ ·
JAMES J. HENNESEY,
S.J.
Daily Order
I shall describe all the practices of the Novitiate of Paris,
as far as I can recall them. I begin by giving the order for
ordinary days :
We arose at four o'clock. The excitator opened the door of
each room, saying, Deo Gratias. There was a quarter of an
hour to get up, dress, and bring your vase de nuit to the place
designated.
At 4:15, we made a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, and ~t
4:30 made our prayer in our rooms. Each novice had hiS
oratory, or prie-dieu, near his bed, and he made his medita·
tion there, either standing or kneeling. If at times he wis~ed
to sit down, he asked permission to do this from the senior
1
of the room. At 5:30, there were several minutes for reflecfD
~
0
on the prayer, after which you made your bed and went
wash your bands, etc.
�PARIS NOVITIATE
193
At 6 :00, Father Rector said Mass, at which all the novices
assisted, ranged in a line in the sanctuary, and on their knees.
Two novices served Mass. After Mass, there was about an
hour before breakfast, but I forget what we did during that
time.
At 7 :30, we took breakfast, which consisted of a piece of
bread and a glass of water. At 7 :45, we had corporal exercise,
which meant sweeping the halls, the stairs and all the common
rooms. Each novice wore a grey linen smock over his cassock.
After free time at 8 :45, we had spiritual reading from
Rodriguez at 9:00, followed by a visit to the Blessed Sacrament
at 10:00. At 10:15, we went walking in the garden or to the
recreation room, and memorized by heart four verses from the
Epistles of St. Paul. These verses were recited to the Admonitor. On Saturday, we studied nothing new, but repeated what
we had learned during the week.
At 10:45, there was free time. We could go during this
period to ask permission to make a public acknowledgment
of our faults. This permission was asked kneeling, and we
were allowed to accuse ourselves only of external faults
against the rules.
After making a general examen at 11:00, we had dinner at
11 :15, during which a novice read, first, some verses of Holy
Scripture, then the history of the Society, then a book in
French, and finally, the Martyrology. At noon, there was
recreation. The Admonitor appointed three novices to each
band, always taking care to mingle the older novices with
the younger ones.
At 1 :00, we made a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, and at
1:15 the particular examen. At the end of the particular
examen on all Wednesdays and Fridays, the senior of the
room asked each novice for his observations on his conduct,
and reciprocated with his comments on the individual novices.
At 1:30, there was free time, and we could go to the library
to return books and obtain others from the librarian. After
~orporal exercise at 2:00, we made spiritual reading at 3:00
rom some historical book. At 4 :00, there was a period for
Writing. We could write letters during this time, but only
after having obtained permission.
After free time at 4:30, we made our prayer at 5 :00, and
�194
PARIS NOVITIATE
a visit to the Blessed Sacrament at 5 :30. There was free time
at 5 :45, followed by rosary and preparation for meditation at
6:00. The preparation for the meditation was made from
Avancino. 3 Supper was at 6:30 and recreation at 7:00. After
recreation, you recalled the subject of your morning meditation. We had litanies at 8:00, examen at 8:30 and retired at
8:45.
Twice a week, the>Rector gave an exhortation, which we
repeated the next day. This exercise replaced the reading of
Rodriguez.
There were two or three days of rest each week, always assigned by an express order of the Rector, which was announced
the day before during the evening examen. On these days,
we got up at 5 :00. Mass was at 7 :00 and the rest of the day
as above.
Communion Days
On Communion days, Mass was said at 6 :30. We assembled
in the domestic chapel at 6 :00 to listen to some reading on
Communion. At 6:15, the Rector gave a little exhortation and
proposed a subject for meditation on the. Eucharist, with
which each one occupied himself during Mass, at the end of
which we received Communion. By way of thanksgiving, we
heard a second Mass, up to the Sanctus.
Since there was no corporal exercise on these days, we
walked for about an hour in the garden, reading Father Lallemant's commentary on the New Testament. 4 When there
were no vespers or sermon in the afternoon, we assembled
in the domestic chapel to read aloud some historical book like
the history of Arianism, of the Crusades, of the Great Schism,
etc. The Admonitor corrected all faults in the reading.
Novice Customs
Sometimes, that is to say five or six times a year, we bad
the "exercise of charity"; one novice named by the Rector
knelt in the middle of the chapel and heard all the observa·
tions which each made on his conduct. If by chance anyone
made accusations which were too sharp, the Rector scarcelY
ever failed to make him take the place of the one whom be
had criticized.
�PARIS NOVITIATE
195
Every Wednesday and Friday, we took the discipline. This
exercise was regulated by the senior of the room, and the
signal for the end of it followed quite soon after that for
the beginning. The same procedure was followed for the
public disciplines which were taken in the refectory under
the direction of Father Rector.
One day each week, two novices, dressed in the smock which
they wore during corporal exercises and carrying a little
basket on their back, followed the Brother Buyer to the
public market, receiving in their baskets what he put there
and carrying it back to the Novitiate.
The first Thursday after Easter, all the novices went early
in the morning to the Hospital of the Incurables, heard Mass
there, and perhaps received Communion on the first day. Then
they went into the wards to help the sick in whatever way
they could. After two hours of such work, they went to the
country house and spent the rest of the day there. On the
following day, and on every day for two weeks, the same visit
was made, except on Sundays, and afterwards we walked on
the boulevard.
The other practices of mortification in use at the Novitiate
were to eat at the little table, kiss the feet of the others, and
to serve in the refectory and kitchen.
Vacation Days
From Easter to All Saints, we went once every two weeks
to spend an entire day in the country. We left the novitiate
a~ 4:30, making our prayer on the way. Upon arrival, we asSisted at Mass, then had breakfast. After breakfast, each one
a:nused himself according to his tastes ; the games were bilhards, backgammon, chess, draughts, skittles and bowling.
. A quarter of an hour after dinner, we made examen. During
dinner, there was reading, but from an entertaining book like
;he Memoires of D'Aurigny 5 or something on the subject of
ansenism, etc. After recreation, we made the particular
~lCatnen, after which you could amuse yourself as in the mornIng. At 4 :00, there was a collation of fruit or milk-foods, then
we said the Litany of Our Lady and left the country house.
On the way back to the Novitiate, we made the evening prayer.
�PARIS NOVITIATE
196
The rest of the time was spent in conversation with our companions, but in the city we kept silence.
Besides these days of recreation, we went to the country
house at least once a week in winter. We left the novitiate
after dinner and returned either early or late, depending
on the season. 6
NOTES
1
Father Plowden's letter is published in this number of the WOODSTOCK
LETTERS.
• Catalogus Provinciae Angliae Societatis Jesu ineunte 1803 and
ineunte 1807. These catalogues are reconstructions, printed by Bro.
Henry Foley, S.J. in 1885. See also Status Assistentiae Galliae Societatis
Jesu, 1762-1768 (Paris: Leroy. 1899).
• Nicholas Avancinus, S.J. (1612-1686), Vita et Doctrina Jesu Christi
(1665).
• Father Jacques Lallemant, S.J. (1660-1748), Reflexions morales avec
des notes sur le Nouveau Testament en franr;ais (1713), and Morale du
Nouveau Testament partagee en reflexions pour tous les jours de l'annee
(1722).
• Father Hyacinthe Robillard d'Aurigny, S.J. (1675-1719), Memoires
chronologiques et dogmatiques pour servir a l'histoire ecclesiastique,
1600-1716 (Paris: Guerin. 1720), and a similar history of Europe (Paris:
Mezieres. 1725).
- •
• The original French text of this document is in the Maryland Province
Archives S.J., Woodstock College (203 A 3).
LOYOLA'S CREED
One may sum up Loyola's creed by saying that he took both man and
society as he found them. Upon neither did he impose a wholly ideal
standard, or a principle of living derived exclusively from another epoch
and another moment of culture. If men were to adapt themselves to
Christianity, the Christian Church, as its vehicle, must adapt itself to
men, to the time, the place, the action demanded by contemporary
ture: that was the Jesuit method and doctrine. The Jesuits sought 1n
a more than Pauline fashion to be all things to all men. In order to win
others over to the Lord, Loyola counseled Fathers Broet and Salmeron to
"follow the same course that the enemy follows with regard to the
good soul."
LEWis MuMFORD
cu!·
�Music Courses In American
Jesuit Colleges and Universities
JAMES w. KING, S.J.
The following survey is based upon the catalogues of our
American colleges and universities. It is valid for the year
1954-1955. The purpose of the survey is to show which
schools offer full time music courses leading to degrees, which
offer degrees through affiliation with non-Jesuit music
schools and which offer non-degree courses and extracurricular musical activities.
Three universities and a college have self-contained music
schools:
1. Loyola University, New Orleans, offers bachelor of
music degree with majors in piano, voice, instrumental music,
organ, composition, sacred music; bachelor of music education with majors in voice, instrumental music, and piano;
certificate in music with majors in piano, instrumental music.
One hundred courses are offered, with a faculty of thirty.
2. Seattle University offers a bachelor of music degree
with majors in voice, piano, violin, violincello, organ, wind
instruments; bachelor of arts or philosophy with major in
music, bachelor of education with major in music, and
master's degree in applied music. One hundred and seventeen courses are offered, with a staff of twenty-two.
3. Gonzaga University offers a bachelor of education with
music majors in piano, voice, organ, strings, brass, woodWinds, percussion; bachelor of arts with major in music;
master of arts in music education. Sixty-five courses are
offered, with a faculty of eight. This is the only Jesuit university offering a master of arts in music education.
4. Spring Hill College offers courses leading to a minor
in music, with a faculty of three.
One university and one college offer music degrees through
affiliation with outside music schools:
1. University of Detroit is affiliated with Detroit Institute
~ M~sical Art. Through this affiliation the University of
etro1t offers a bachelor of music degree and a bachelor of
�198
MUSIC
music education with majors in theory, strings, piano, woodwinds, brass, percussion, organ, and voice. The Detroit Institute of Musical Art has a faculty of thirty-two and offers
270 courses in music.
2. Loyola College, Baltimore, is affiliated with Peabody
Conservatory of Music. Through this affiliation Loyola College offers a bachelor of arts and a bachelor of science in
music, accepting a miriimum of fifty credits in music taken at
the Conservatory. Peabody Conservatory has a faculty of
seventy-three and offers 230 courses in music.
The following table lists all other American Jesuit Colleges
and Universities which offer non-degree music courses. In
the case of Fairfield, Loyola (Chicago) and Marquette Universities and Wheeling College no listings are available.
X X X
Boston College - - - - - - x
Canisius College
X
X
Creighton University _ _
X
X
X
Fordham University------Georgetown University _ _
X
X
X X X
Holy Cross College ------John Carroll University __
X
X
LeMoyne College _ _ _ _ x
X X
Loyola College (Baltimore) _
X X
Loyola University
(Los Angeles)
X X X
X
Regis College - - - - ·
Rockhurst College
2 X
X
X
X
St. Joseph's College -------St. Louis University ___ _
X
X
St. Peter's College ------- x
X
X
University of San Francisco
3 X X X
University of Santa Clara _
X X X
University of Scranton _ _
X
X
Xavier University _ _ __
X
X
X
X
1
2
1 1
X
X 1
X
X
1
X
1
X
2
2
X
X
X
X
X
2
1
1
1
4
2
2 2
1 1
��MOST REVEREND THOMAS J. FEENEY, S.J., D.D.
(1894-1955)
�OBITUARY
MOST REVEREND THOMAS J. FEENEY, S.J.
1894-1955
"The difficult we do at once; the impossible takes a little
longer." That watchword of the intrepid Seabees of World
War II permeated the life of Bishop Thomas J. Feeney, S.J.,
Titular Bishop of Agno and Vicar Apostolic of the CarolineMarshall Islands, who passed to his eternal reward September
9, 1955.
Twenty-seven years of that life he spent either as a missionary in the field or in the laborious task of supporting the
Society's missions. His accomplishments in the mission field
were great. He threw himself into difficult tasks with an ardor
not to be gainsaid; the impossible led him into detailed study
and complicated planning that often enough overcame
obstacles apparently insurmountable. The fact that not a few
of those who worked with him and under him, both lay folk
and fellow religious, preferred the more realistic approach
of granting that impossible meant impossible and that the difficult often approached that point, caused at times a certain
bewilderment and affected adversely his seemingly grandiose
Plans.
Yet to him adversity was a spur to ultimate accomplishment. It intensified his zeal, added power to his drive, and
achieved for him a notable success to which only the brevity
of his life could set a limit. The Far East in the Philippines,
~amaica in the West Indies, the far-flung isles of the Pacific~n him the proverbial twain of East and West did meet and
~n the meeting heard the world-shaking message of the Kingom of God on earth and of the glory of the saints in heaven.
~ 0 those realms of golden harvest, like thousands of his Jesuit
br~th:en before him, he traveled on ships of sea and air,
rmgmg the good tidings of great joy and peace to men of
good will.
J Born in Boston, Massachusetts, September 4, 1894, to James
t · and Mary Ann Craven Feeney, the future Bishop attended
he Margaret Fuller School and later the Leo XIII School,
�200
BISHOP FEENEY
the present St. Thomas Aquinas School, in Jamaica Plain.
When the Bishop's father was a boy of ten, he came upon an
old man dying in a field near the village of Lackey, County
Roscommon, Ireland, and called a priest. Looking up to James,
the dying man said: "Thank you, son; for this your progeny
will preach the Gospel in the four parts of the world." Of the
seven Feeney children, one became a missionary in South
America and Jamaica; another a missionary in the Philippines, Jamaica and tlfe Caroline-Marshall Islands, and a third
a Sister of St. Joseph in the Archdiocese of Boston.
Early Jesuit Life
For his secondary education a kindly Providence directed
Bishop Feeney's steps in 1908 to Boston College High School,
from which he graduated in 1912. A year at Boston College
followed, at the end of which he entered the Society at St.
Andrew-on-Hud_on, Poughkeepsie, New York, September 7,
s
1913. Here, first as a novice and later as a junior, he displayed
the same energy and application that had characterized his
high school and college days. To him the daily exercises of
the noviceship were a joy; no task was so.'lowly as not to
deserve his best effort. Spiritual exercises,-work, play-into
each and all he threw himself wholeheartedly and without
reserve. An avid reader and ready debater, he ever had the
right question and distinction to make the truth appear in its
full light. Gifted with a pleasing singing voice, he stood out
among the Scholastics both in the choir and in community
entertainment. His cheerful disposition, engaging smile,
hearty laugh and keen appreciation of the humorous, even at
his own expense, were disarming. Intimate with no one, he
was all to all, giving and taking in a high spiritual and
religious sense.
Even in those· early days he became deeply interested in
foreign missions and often broached the subject in conver~a
tion. Maps of the foreign mission areas, comparative stat~s
tics, stories from the mission field, lives of the Jesuit mrs·
sionaries from Xavier down to modern spendthrifts for
Christ, these filled much of his extracurricular reading a~d
doubtless fanned to flame the spark already kindled in hrs
generous heart. How that flame grew until it hurried him to
�BISHOP FEENEY
201
many of the world's little known islands and their rejoicing
inhabitants, a brief obituary notice can never adequately
describe.
In the summer of 1917, with the country in the throes of
World War I, the Scholastic, Mr. Feeney, began his philosophical studies at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland. If
hitherto his application to study had been serious, it now took
on new depth. A metaphysical bent and a dexterity in argument were for him telling weapons in the vast arena of subtleties provided by Aristotle, Aquinas and the host of scholastic philosophers. Outdoor exercise on Woodstock's memorable
picnics and in the wartime vegetable gardens made for a sound
body to house his sound and active mind. Always a fund of
humor accompanied his work and play. Always, even when
caught on a dilemma's horns, he could argue still. This period
of his life, more than any other, developed in him an intellectual acumen which manifested itself in divers ways throughout his mature years.
Canisius High School, Buffalo, was his first assignment as
a teacher in September, 1920. Students of his regular Second
Year class and his Fourth Year mathematics still remember
his outstanding qualities as a teacher and his personal interest
in the individual student. One of them recalls how on the first
day of the school year Mr. Feeney walked into his mathematics
class and gave an interesting talk on the value of the subject
he was to teach. Speeches of such a nature do not always
Inake a lasting impression, but that talk so impressed the
cl~ss that from then on it looked forward to its daily period
Wrth Mr. Feeney. The pace he set was a lively one and it
relllarned so for the rest of the year. The students' enthusiasm
·
~ould not shrink under a teacher whose own enthusiasm never
agged.
Vigan in Philippines
In 1921 Very Reverend Father General transferred the
13
po:n?a~ Mission to the Spanish Province of Aragon, and the
J hrlr.pprne Islands, a mission of that Province, to American
t esurts of the Maryland-New York Province. That summer
en Priests and ten Scholastics left for Manila. Mr. Feeney
~as one of six Scholastics with teaching experience. Arriving
rn the Islands, four Fathers and three Scholastics, one of them
�202
BISHOP FEENEY
Mr. Feeney, pushed on with the veteran missionary, Father
John Thompkins, to Vigan, 270 miles north of Manila, to staff
the Colegio-Seminario in the Province of Ilocos Sur.
Vigan's physical surroundings were pleasant, varied and
at times gloriously beautiful. In the dry season the Abra
River, cutting it off to the south, was crossed by strong-arm
rivermen, who poled bamboo rafts large enough to carry
several automobiles;, When the rains came, the River became
a raging torrent, rushing through the narrow gorge to the
east, as if the mountains were pouring down liquid silver. In
the quiet of evening along the shore of Pandan, Vigan's south·
ern tip, the China Sea flamed with scarlet and gold, as native
fishermen dragged the sea for fish, their wives and children
awaiting. them on the sands.
The district's religious background was complex. On paper
Vigan was ninety percent Catholic. It was a cathedral city,
with the Colegio-Seminario, part college and part seminary,
housed in a rather decrepit and altogether uninviting building.
Vigan had known that exasperating variety of Protestant
missionary whose chief effort consists in belittling Catholi·
cism, by declaring openly, or implying at least, that there were
no Catholics in America, that the few priests in America said
Mass differently than did the Spanish priests, etc. In manY
sections of the Ilocos provinces Isabelo de los Reyes, righthand man of Gregorio Aglipay, had kept the Aglipayan schism
alive. Such an atmosphere was scarcely calculated to inspirit
young Americans from metropolitan areas, counting millions
of Catholic souls and boasting of rapidly growing schools and
colleges. Yet, Fathers and Scholastics alike made gallant ef·
forts against the highly discouraging odds.
At the Colegio Mr. Feeney took over the teaching of English
in several of the higher classes and of Latin in the liberal arts
courses. An excellent teacher with intense drive, be accom·
pUshed more than an ordinary man would essay. He became
director of athletics and dramatics, and prefected most of the
students' recreational periods. Since the people were no longer
properly instructed in the faith and had only one priest t~
8,000 Catholics, a sense of frustration clung to all like a we
garment, until in the last of their three years Father Johtl
Monahan arrived from Manila.
This energetic Irish apostle, who at the age of tbirtY· 011e
�BISHOP FEENEY
203
had given up a dental practice to enter the novitiate and had
spent the greater part of his theological studies as a surgical
patient in Baltimore hospitals, succeeded Father Thompkins
as Vice-Rector in Vigan in October, 1923, and provided the
needed spark for steadily drooping spirits. One evening at
the end of a busy day, the Vice-Rector tapped off on his typewriter a call for American Catholic literature and handed
the letter to Mr. Feeney with the words: "This is the first gun
in a major offensive." It was. That offensive grew into a
campaign that in Father Monahan's four years of mission life
flooded every province of the Philippines with Catholic magazines, pamphlets, books and newspapers. So thoroughly did
he organize and promote his apostolate that he richly deserved
the title of Padre of the Press.
During his last year in Vigan Mr. Feeney let no occasion
slip to second Father Monahan in his campaign. He spent
hours, first in unpacking, sorting and classifying the huge
shipments of literature arriving from the States; next, in
packing bundles for delivery; finally, in accompanying Father
Monahan on many of his missionary journeys in the Provinces
of !locos Sur and !locos Norte. On every journey the youthful
missionary found opportunity for catechizing children and
grownups and teaching them to pray. After departure from
the Philippines he followed Father Monahan's campaign in
that and other parts of the Islands. During his years in the
study of theology at Weston College, Weston, Massachusetts,
he published the story of that tireless apostle's mission labors
Under the title Padre of the Press.
Back Home-A Sick Man
Returning to the States in the summer of 1924, the young
~issionary began his theological studies at Woodstock. The
ew England area of the Maryland-New York Province had
~lready begun to function as a separate Vice-Province and on
. uly 31, 1926 became officially an independent Province, with
~ts house of studies at Weston, Massachusetts. New England
t~eologians moved from Woodstock to Weston shortly before
t e end of the 1926-27 scholastic year. On June 23, 1927
bhe ~cholastic, Mr. Feeney, was ordained priest at Weston
Y Il1s Excellency Bishop John J. Collins, S.J., retired Vicar-
�204
BISHOP FEENEY
Apostolic of Jamaica, British West Indies. The young priest
spent one more year in the study of theology at Weston.
All during his four years of theology he was a sick man.
In the Philippines he had contracted a tropical disease known
as sprue, which caused him to undergo several hospital treatments and left him at the end of four years in a seriously
debilitated condition. His patience in suffering and his determination to conquer the aggravating illness won the admiration of professors and Scholastics alike. It was a living martyrdom, a heavy splinter of the Cross which he had embraced
willingly years before .. ,
At the end of his theology, in June, 1928, Father Feeney
spent the summer convalescing at Shadowbrook, the New
England Novitiate at Lenox, Massachusetts. There, as a result
of treatment and special diet, he was able in September to
teach classes in Greek and education. For two years he
carried on successfully, although not entirely freed of his
indisposition. Again his devotion to study, his zest and vigor
in conducting classes, his love for the Society, her history
and traditions, made a lasting impression on the young Jesuits
under him. One .of these, receiving three difficult assignments
at the same time, remonstrated: "But, Father, that is impossible!" Father Feeney replied: "Young man, the Society will
always be asking the impossible; begin to get accustomed to
it!" To him nothing seemed impossible that· was attempted
for Christ our Lord and his Church.
The two years spent at Shadowbrook in the invigorating
air of the Berkshire Mountains improved his physical condition immensely and enabled him to begin and complete his
year of tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie,
New York. Here the ardent longing for the mission field never
left him. If anything, it increased a hundredfold. A Fordham
graduate, who made a retreat under him there, recalls: "MY
memories of Bishop Feeney go back to the early 30's when
he was making his tertianship at St. Andrew's. A friend and
I had gone to St. Andrew's to make a retreat. On arrival, we
were introduced to Father Feeney. So vivid an impression
did he make on me that I recall most distinctly many of the
things he did and said on that occasion. Without question,
that was the best retreat I ever made. He spoke profoundlY
�BISHOP FEENEY
205
and intensely about the principle of indifference or Christian
detachment. His store of tales and illustrations was endless.
By the end of our retreat he stood out in my mind as a
perfect personification of what a Jesuit should be. His zeal I
could easily perceive, even then. It would always make such
demands upon his bodily strength and spiritual energies as
to exhaust him."
Propagandist
In the Fall of 1931 Father Feeney succeeded Father Vincent Kennally, now Vice-Provincial of the Philippines, as
associate editor of Jesuit Missions. Father Joseph Gschwend
of the Missouri Province was editor-in-chief and Father E.
Paul Amy of the New York Province the other associate editor. For the first year or two, while devoted to his work,
Father Feeney was still fighting the sickness which he had
contracted in the Philippines. A persistent doggedness, however, coupled with the enduring zeal for souls that had sent
him early to the Far East and would lead him later to further
mission labors, kept him going.
A drive in Washington for subscriptions to Jesuit Missions
gave him the opportunity for treatment at Georgetown Hospital. There, doctors hit on a diet which started him on the
road to recovery. From that hour, he was tireless in his work
for the missions. Of unquestioned intellectual ability, cheerful manner, and unstinting generosity, he proved an efficient
associate editor. He was not one always to follow beaten
Paths. His was a mind fertile in ideas and plans and a will
strong to carry through his plans, once they were approved.
The fact that at times his ventures, either through lack of
c_ooperation in quarters where he looked for it or through too
httle prudent foresight of his own, fell short of the expected
success, never daunted him nor caused him to relax in zeal,
effort or effectiveness.
Combined with his zeal was exceptional ability as a writer,
~n editor, a speaker, and an expert on mission affairs. In the
1
~terest of the magazine he preached regularly in the Arch~?ceses of Boston, New York and Philadelphia; and in the
IOCeses of Albany, Brooklyn, Portland, Providence, Worcester and Manchester. His America Press pamphlet, The
�206
BISHOP FEENEY
Church in Spain, was a telling answer to the campaign of
Red calumny being launched against the Nationalist elements
of the Spanish revolution and in particular against the Catholic clergy. With an irrefutable array of facts gathered from
very reliable sources he dispelled the Red myth that the
Church in Spain had become fabulously wealthy at the expense
of the poorer class.
His lecture, "The Mass of the Missions," gained such popularity that the Jesuit Mission Press published it in an eightypage booklet. It was an appreciation of the Mass of the
Propagation of the Faith, featuring the Eternal Sacrifice as
offered "from the rising of the sun, even to the going down
of the same" in Catholic mission fields around the world, and
interspersed with eloquent passages such as the following:
"That the sins of the world may be blotted out through the Gospel
of Christ, American and Canadian blackrobes are today conquering
the air, the land and the waters of Alaska with plane, on dog sled
and in sealskin kayaks. In a day when too many scientists have
exiled God from his own world and from their egocentric cosmos,
let us pay homage to Catholic scientists and priests who set their
altar stone on glacial steppes, in rocky caverns and in the mooncraters of Alaska, to offer unto God the sacrifice of God's eternal
priesthood, the undying sacrifice of the God-Man's body and blood,
man's most perfect act of homage to his God.
"Over the frozen tundra and along forest trails, blazed with the
Sign of the Cross, they traverse Canada's deep unknown. They pace
the shell-torn streets of Shanghai and dare th~ ·dark recesses of
pagan lamaseries in China's hinterland. In rickshaws and sedans
they visit Urakami, that oasis of faith in the pagan stretches of
old Japan.
"From Kurseong in the Himalayas, they look down by night upon
the forbidden country of Nepal, or by day toil on beneath a tropic
sun by India's magic temples and converted bonzeries. In a palm
grove by the waters, they rest and meditate upon man's improvidence
to man as they gaze upon the rice paddies of the Philippines and
see in vision those other harvest fields that still lie fallow for the
want of a tiller's hand.
"They kneel on the white sands of the Caribbean and pray for
the souls of blackrobed heroes whose merits were wafted back to
God in the tragedy of Belize. They plough the waters of the Spanish
Main or plunge into the hills and bushland of Jamaica.
f
"'The blackrobes likewise venture into the mountain fastness 0f
the Carolinas and of Tennessee. They paddle down the bayous ~I
the Southland. They scale the American Rockies and sit in coun~
by the campfires of the Indians in our great Northwest. For
�BISHOP FEENEY
207
they offer the eternal sacrifice of the Mass, the sacrifice of the
Cross."
To many not acquainted with Father Feeney his many lectures on Communism, Fascism and Racism, his wide knowledge of American labor and social conditions may have seemed
to be excursions into non-mission fields. But all these things
belonged to his really grand and inspiring concept of what
interest in the missions should comprehend. The problems the
missionaries face on the missions of today are the same as
those that confront us at home; they are world problems and,
if we would know the missions, we must know them. That
was his credo.
Crusader Against Communism
He was an early and intrepid crusader against Communism.
It may have been the fact that the Communists' favorite location for soap-box oratory was Union Square (right in St.
Francis Xavier's parish) that inspired him, but in any case,
he studied and mastered the subject of Communism to such
an extent that he spent many an evening, after a hard day
at the office, lecturing on that burning topic in various parts
of the metropolitan area. Those were the years of the depression, when Communism was riding high and local comrades
Were staging riots against the police. Speakers were needed
to expose the system, and Father Feeney rolled up his sleeves
and plunged into the fight. One of his able assistants in that
campaign writes: "He had a downright, fearless, and perspicacious way of analyzing the world's woes, especially Comlllunism. I think he must have foreseen how the muddleheadedness of our political, social and intellectual leaders
lllight eventually pave the way for a vast growth and dominpance of Communism and Communists throughout the world.
erhaps many moderns, who do not use words well because
they often substitute slogans and fine phrases for reasoning
and reality, would regard his activity against Communism
~nd his apostolate for social justice as a kind of fanaticism. It
~d nothing to do with fanaticism. It had everything to do
With that selfless love which inspires all true apostles in
Preaching the Gospel and in applying it to their lives, in
season and out of season."
�208
BISHOP FEENEY
Father Feeney's Queen's Work pamphlet, Communism Our
Common Enemy, was an indictment of Communism as the
common enemy of every true American-Catholic, Protestant
and Jew. In it he laid down, and by facts and figures, exposed
with clarity and unusual decisiveness the three points: Communism in its atheistic content contradicts the universal experience of mankind, pre-Christian and Christian; it destroys
national morality; containing within itself, as it does, the very
principle of disintegration, it would foist upon our country a
set of false and revolutionary educational values. In those
early thirties, when Communism by its machinations in the
Spanish Civil War was beginning to lift its head high, his
was a clear voice rfriging in the wilderness and prophesying
the ugly growth of the past twenty years.
Father Feeney possessed exceptional ability to meet and
win people, a gift which he used for no personal advantage,
but rather to further the works of zeal in which he was engaged. As associate editor he organized two groups of coworkers for the missions, the Veritas Catholic Action Club
and the Fordham Alumnae Group. These enthusiastic workers
were attracted to mission work as much by their director's
personality and all-embracing interest as by their desire to
help the missions. With them he first aimed at personal sanctification, by demanding of them prayer, penance and medita·
tion. He insisted on a program of activities that would include
those three and in consequence some form of apostolate. He
knew just which individuals could be helpful by writing,
which by speaking, by leading forums, by selling tickets for
social events, by their advice on whatever project he was
promoting. These groups did extra clerical work at the
Mission Office, sewed for mission churches and chapels, dis·
tributed Catholic literature and raised money for the missions
by conducting various social functions.
Throughout 1938-1939 Father Feeney carried on a cam·
paign for spreading Catholic pamphlets and booklets that was
reminiscent of the work he did with Father Monahan as a
Scholastic in the Philippines. With the cooperation of the
two groups mentioned above he divided the United States
into forty-eight areas according to the States, a pro~ote~
for each State. Each promoter essayed enlisting a unit 0
�BISHOP FEENEY
209
fellow workers to sell or distribute ten pamphlets each per
month in a given state. The pamphlets were of two kinds:
first, those that brought the mission world and its problems
to the knowledge of American Catholics, and secondly, those
aimed at advancing the missions themselves. In the first
category were pamphlet stories of life on the missions, together with brief biographies of famous missionaries, many
of them martyrs for the faith. The second category included
a number of titles on doctrinal, controversial, liturgical, moral,
and economic issues of the day. All over the country these
pamphlets reached hospitals, prisons, poorhouses, military
camps, doctors' offices, hairdressers shops, etc. In one year
the Veritas Action Club made more than 2500 visits to patients
in Bellevue Hospital alone. Many sets of pamphlets went as
gifts to home and foreign missionaries. This campaign did
much to offset prejudices both at home and on the missions.
Work For Souls
Along with the office and editorial work, the members of
the Jesuit Missions staff did a good deal of retreat work. In
this, also, Father Feeney's dynamic zeal produced far-reaching
results. There was a freshness of approach in the material
he gave. He prepared it well and delivered it with that rich
flow of language which was ever his gift and an effective tool
in his hands. One of his retreatants writes: "My first contact
with him was the impersonal, distant one of a retreat he gave
at Maplehurst, New York City, in June, 1932, to the Hunter
College Alumnae Newman Club. His discourses on the
Spiritual Exercises followed the usual pattern, but were
marked by a precise choice of words, fine distinctions, and
unusual emphasis on Catholic Action (a new phrase in those
days) and the missions. On Sunday afternoon he gave a
general conference for the religious, their guests, and the
retreatants on the missions in the Philippines. His zeal and
dedication to the spreading of the Gospel to the thousands
of People who were clamoring for it made a deep impression
on us-so deep that some of us resented the implication that
"'te were indifferent and selfish unless we devoted our lives
0 the missions."
One who later became a religious adds: "I first met Bishop
�210
BISHOP FEENEY
Feeney, when as a junior in college I made a retreat under
him at the New York Cenacle. I had never heard of the
Cenacle, had not made a closed retreat and had never had
any close contact with the Jesuit Fathers. The combination
of graces brought to me through that retreat given by Father
Feeney changed my life completely. Everything about the
retreat was new and strange, but I shall never forget the
spiritual impact of those conferences. Father was simply on
fire with the love of God and the call to complete dedication
to God's work in his holy vocation. Father invited us to come
to see him in private, if we wished, during the retreat. I
took advantage of this' opportunity twice and felt I was standing at the entrance to- a new world, whose treasures I was only
beginning to discover, and that here was an excellent guide,
eager and anxious to reveal it all to me. It was the beginning
of a friendship of twenty-five years, during which time Father
Feeney never ceased to be an inspiration, both by word and
example, to keep climbing higher up the mountain to union
with God."
Always in those busy years he had time for people. He was
a patient and sympathetic listener, who made every effort to
help in any way he could. No obstacle was too great. In fact,
there were no real obstacles, as he viewed them; they were
simply challenges to generosity and enterprise. Expert in
protocol, he was enchanted with charity. Fath~r Feeney never
allowed protocol, as such, to interfere with charity. He was
approachable and easy to talk to, but if firmness was needed
in his direction of a soul, there was absolutely no watering
down of principle.
One thing he never was, and that was petty. His sense of
humor was intriguing. No matter how sick or tired, he was
always ready to laugh or join in the fun around. He could
play tricks, and would laugh the loudest when the joke was
on him. His personality was magnetic. To meet him once
was to become his friend.
To one who was_ troubled in the spiritual life, he said: "The
very best way to solve problems is to get down on your two
knees and pray as you never prayed before. God's work must
go forward. The devil bothers with scruples to keep souls
disturbed and away from God. Shoot ahead in the spirit of
�BISHOP FEENEY
211
the Kingdom. Go to the chapel and shut out everything but
God ; talk your heart out to Him."
Zeal for souls would not permit him to begrudge his time,
no matter what the hour. Many a time, after a busy day,
he would visit some sick person, travel a distance to offer a
word of comfort to the grieving at a wake, or talk for hours
giving helpful advice. Called late one night, he set out for a
distant point on Long Island to bless a sick child whose case
the doctor had pronounced hopeless. Not long after Father
Feeney had blessed the child with a relic of St. Francis Xavier,
the fatal symptoms disappeared. One of those close to him
at the time reproached him for punishing himself thus physically. His reply was : "Look, first and last I am a priest, and
because I am a priest, I have no fear of dying, because then
I shall meet our Lord. You are afraid for me, because your
faith is not strong enough. I am here to help anyone who
needs me, regardless of the hour, and I do not, as a priest,
have the right to withhold any comfort or help I may be able
to give just because I may not be as physically strong as
you feel I could be."
This unselfish spirit indicated the purity of his Christlike
zeal. The warmth of his personality, his sincere interest in
the individual as a person, his painstaking effort to encourage
and help in every way, left an indelible impression on those
who knew him and worked with him. A religious in her morning meditation can recall his well-organized outlines for sanctity, or a recently ordained priest can say a special prayer
of thanksgiving for his help that made college, and thus his
Vocation, possible, or the father of a family can be grateful
for his blessing before he "popped the question," just as a
teacher in the hectic classroom of today can remember his
agere contra and smile. His influence will never be completely
known this side of the grave.
Superior of Jamaica Mission
In the Fall of 1939 Father Feeney received the call that
~as to make him a real shepherd of souls for fourteen of the
SIXteen years of life remaining to him. His knowledge and
love of the mission field made him a likely choice as Superior
of the New England Province Mission of Jamaica, British
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BISHOP FEENEY
West Indies. The October issue of Jesuit Missions of that year
announces his departure as follows: "As we stood on the
United Fruit Company's pier in New York and watched the
SS. Talamanca, with Father Feeney aboard, turn about in
the Hudson's tide and head out to sea, something of what
this sailing meant to Jesuit Missions came to us. We were
losing one of our most valued men-one who had been with
us almost from the foundation of the magazine. Only the
thought that we were at last giving him to the missions was
there to console us. As Superior of Jamaica, which is one of
the most important missions operated by American Jesuits,
Father Feeney will find a large field not only for his mission
enthusiasm but for h'is practical experience in handling labor
and social questions. We congratulate the Mission of
Jamaica!"
Arrived in Jamaica, the new Superior began from the start
to show his remarkable vitality as an organizer. He had
regained his health and vigor. Nothing was too big for him
to undertake, nothing so small as to escape his interest.
Jamaica, being a British colony and mostly agricultural, had
already begun _to feel the blockade effects of World War II.
Its exports had decreased to a minimum. German submarines
played havoc with the shipping upon which the Island de·
pended for many of its commodities. Wit'!! goods scarcer,
prices climbed; chances for employment dwi:pdled. The poor
became poorer, with a consequent tax on the missionaries'
efforts. The new Superior recognized the plight of the people
and their priests, and made every effort to relieve distress
wherever he found it. Many a time the Fathers of Winchester
Park would waylay individuals who came to beg of Father
Feeney, lest they impose on his generosity. Only God knows
how many he helped in their financial straits.
At that time Winchester Park was the residence of the
Mission Superior, the faculty of St. George's College and the
Fathers who served the Cathedral parish. In time Father
Feeney obtained from His Lordship Bishop Emmet a separate
residence for the parish Fathers adjoining the Cathedral.
Both college work and parish service began to produce better
results.
In October 1940 the British Government transferred all
�BISHOP FEENEY
213
the female population and 267 children, altogether about 1500
Spaniards, from the danger of bombing on the Rock of Gibraltar to the Island of Jamaica. Practically all of these displaced persons were Catholics. The Government leased two
hundred acres of land and constructed suitable buildings in
a rural section northeast of Kingston and asked Father Feeney
to serve on the Board of Governors of Camp Gibraltar. In
his usual efficient manner Father Feeney engaged five hundred
students from the Catholic academies to fit out rooms for all
the exiles in the space of three days. When the latter arrived,
everything was ready for them. Father Feeney met them in
person as they landed. At the Camp priests and sisters welcomed them. The Sisters took over the teaching of the children and the Superior's brother, Father William Feeney, began to act as Camp chaplain. For the duration of the war
Camp Gibraltar became the second largest city in Jamaica.
The exiles had Mass regularly, the Sacraments, Sodalities, the
usual special services, e.g., novenas, care of the sick and aged,
so that for them life went on pretty much as if they were home
in their native Spain. With his fluency in Spanish acquired in
the Philippines and his interest in the spiritual welfare of the
exiles, the mission Superior was a true father and friend.
After the war they returned to Gibraltar with hearts full of
gratitude to Jamaica's Superior and their kindly hosts.
As auxiliary chaplain to the U. S. Army's Fort Simonds,
of Vernon Airfield, and the Navy's Little Goat Island, Father
Feeney's generosity to soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines
brought them to the Park in droves. He never counted the
cost of feeding or entertaining them. Invariably the Catholics
arnong them would go to confession before they left. Many of
them returned again and again throughout the war years.
A passing remark in one of his letters of 1942 contains
a~ augury of things to come: "I am performing some of
Bishop Emmet's functions since he went up to the States two
Weeks ago. On Pentecost Sunday I confirmed a class of 250.
J:here was one from the Gold Coast and one from the Caroline.ntarshall Islands."
d" The Superior's relations with Government were most corIa}. Governor Arthur Richards often consulted him on
Inatters of policy, particularly in education. Once he declared
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BISHOP FEENEY
in public that the only positive force for education in the
Island was the Catholic Church. It was he who gave the
Leper Home to the Marist Sisters and, against local opposition, sold the Constant Spring Hotel to the Franciscan Sisters
for the Immaculate Conception Academy. It is suspected that
the idea of an adult education program took rise from Father
Feeney's talks with Governor Richards. A number of technicians from the Government Laboratory and teachers of
science asked and received from St. George's help in biology
for one year. One night a picture of St. Francis Extension
School Co-operatives appeared at Winchester Park, and next
day Father Feeney presented outlines of an extension school
offerin~ all types of~ courses.
Educational and Social Work
Father Walter J. Ballou, then the headmaster of St.
George's, as dean of the new St. George's College Extension
School appointed October 5, 1942 as the opening date and
advertised courses including biology, chemistry, physics,
mathematics, economics, sociology, history, public speaking,
logic, ethics, natural theology, co-operatives and modern languages. There were to be three terms of ten weeks each, with
two periods a week. The Extension School opened with 126
adults enrolled. In a month's time this number increased to
181. Within ten years the enrollment had~jumped to nearly
600. In this scholastic year, 1955-1956, it is 650. Students
from every grant aid school in Jamaica attend. Today, St.
George's College Extension School and its further develop·
ment, the Extra-Mural Department of the University College
of the West Indies, are the most important factors in adult
education on the Island. So highly did Government think of
the Mission Superior's ability and effectiveness in educational
circles that it appointed him a member of the Board of
Education, of the Kandel Commission for reorganization of
secondary education in Jamaica, of the Board of Directors
of the Industrial School at Stony Hill, and of the Board of
Directors of the Mental Hospital in Kingston.
Shortly after his arrival in Jamaica Father Feeney observed
signs of a new movement that in time and with his constant
cooperation was to develop into a most beneficial institution
�BISHOP FEENEY
215
in the life of the poor laboring classes. Only one-third of all
the wage-earners were permanently employed. Vast numbers
of the people worked for only a day or so a week, if at all,
and lived on wages that did not allow for the simplest necessities of life. Living in misery, with not enough to eat, most
of the natives, including 70,000 Catholics out of a population
of one and one half millions, had lost a sense of personal dignity. They needed badly some form of social action.
In 1935 Father Joseph Krim had founded the Catholic
Young Men's Sodality of the Cathedral parish. For four years
some fifty young Jamaicans received training leading to
Catholic Action. Father Krim's procedure was to intensify
motivation, develop the spiritual life, and illuminate the hearts
of these young men with the teachings of the Mystical Body
of Christ. When Father Feeney arrived, Father John P. Sullivan had been directing fourteen of these Sodalists in intensive
study of the papal encyclicals on social action. Such an organization was just to the new Superior's liking. He encouraged
Father Sullivan to form his first Credit Union. The latter,
with his fourteen indefatigable neophytes, succeeded almost
beyond expectations. From 1940 to 1944 Father Feeney took
every occasion to enlarge in public on the nexus between the
Co-operative Credit Union and the Church's task in a mission
country. In establishing the St. George's College Extension
School, he included a co-operative department. Under his
aegis and because of Father Sullivan's tireless efforts, the
movement spread, until today Jamaica's poor conduct cooperatives and credit unions in almost every category of labor.
Scholarships
Father Feeney's interest in the education of Catholic youth
extended into fields beyond the courses given on the Island
Preparatory to university studies. After an extended visit to
the States in the winter of 1942-1943, he announced thirtytwo scholarships he had obtained for deserving students. These
scholarships he listed as follows: one in pharmacy and one in
bio-chemistry at Creighton University; two in social welfare
administration at Boys' Town, Nebraska; one in homestead
Planning at Granger Homestead, Iowa; one in medicine and
one in social service at St. Louis University; one in engineer-
�216
BISHOP FEENEY
ing, one in industrial chemistry, and one in dentistry at Marquette University; one in medicine at Loyola University, Chicago; one in engineering and one in industrial chemistry at
Detroit University; one in law, one in pre-dental, and one in
social service at Boston College; one in chemistry and one in
bachelor of arts at Fordham University; two in bachelor of
arts and two in bachelor of science at Holy Cross College;
one in any course desired at Notre Dame University; one in
bachelor of arts at Emmanuel College, Boston; one in premedical for girls at Regis College, Weston, Mass.; one in any
course desired at Manhattanville College; one in bachelor
of arts at New Rochelle College; one in nursing at St. Vincent's Hospital, New York City, St. Luke's Hospital, Pittsfield,
Mass., and St. Vincent's Hospital, Worcester, Mass., and two
in nursing and one in operating theatre technique at St. Louis
Infirmary.
Typical, also of the mission Superior's impetuous furthering
of any good project was his founding of Campion Preparatory
School. In January, 1940, Father Feeney came upon Fathers
Joseph Krim and William Colman, with paint brush and
broom, tidying up a rather disreputable spot on a sagging
back porch of. St. George's College. Father Krim had gone
from house to house on a bicycle and had rounded up a class
of sixteen small boys as the nucleus of a preparatory school
for the College. For a year and a half the .two Fathers held
classes in the impromptu classroom. Sudaenly one morning
Father Feeney appeared and announced that he had purchased
for the school Roslyn Hall, a pleasant guest house with four
acres of land in Liguanea, a residential section of Kingston.
Fathers Krim and Colman with the aid of Brother Thomas
McElroy soon had the place ready for occupancy for the first
boarders and the day scholars.
Hurried along by Father Feeney's restless temperament
and fatherly solicitude, Campion Hall has for fifteen years
vindicated his farseeing wisdom. It has prepared almost five
hundred boys for St. George's College, the great majority of
whom have persevered in their studies and won honors. This
fact, together with the steady winning of free scholarships,
has persuaded parents to hand over their sons' preparatorY
education to the Jesuit Fathers. There is a long waiting list
for the years to come.
�BISHOP FEENEY
217
Simultaneous with the opening of classes at Campion Hall
was the start of the Laymen's Retreat League, again the result
of Father Feeney's irresistible drive. In the past fifteen years
over one thousand laymen have enjoyed the closed retreat at
Campion.
In October, 1944, at a dinner held in St. George's College
Hall, Father Feeney launched a drive for funds to provide
quarters for boarding students. Amid loud acclaim the House
of Issa announced an initial contribution of one thousand
pounds. The St. George's College Old Boys Association was
largely instrumental in the success of the drive. The old
Pawsey homestead, acquired first in 1905, was completely remodeled and graced with seven wide arches rising from the
outer edge of a wide veranda. Practically a new building, the
boarding school, with accommodations for sixty students,
opened its doors in January, 1945. At present the boarders
represent eleven of the fourteen civil parishes of Jamaica.
Farewell to Jamaica
Zeal and generosity-those were Father Feeney's two outstanding qualities in dealing with his Jesuit brethren on the
Mission. Ever ready to listen to any proposal for bettering
existing conditions, he would not only approve the plan, but
Would lend all his energy to effect a successful issue. If a
missionary in the bush needed a new chapel or rectory, he
Was sure of the Superior's interest and backing. He was constantly soliciting and collecting useful gifts and giving them
to the missionaries. The following incident, narrated by a
member of the Winchester Park community, illustrates the
unselfish solicitude of his generous heart: "He was one of
the most unselfish persons I have ever known. He never demanded anything for himself, but was most solicitous for
even the least of us. I recall that one day he came home at
about two o'clock from a meeting of the Education Depart:ent. He had missed lunch, and rather than bother the
rother in the kitchen, he was eating dry bread and drinking
glass of milk. He would not allow me to get him a regular
d~nch, lest I disturb the kitchen. Yet, when I would be eating
rnner alone after late classes in the Extension School, he
Would always come in to see that I had a properly prepared
f
�218
BISHOP FEENEY
meal, and, if anything was lacking, he would immediately go
to the kitchen himself and see about it. When anyone was
ill, his kindness was a byword. He would visit them several
times daily and do his utmost to cater to their every whim.
His unconcern for self and solicitude for others won all our
hearts."
In its issue of June 24, 1945, Catholic Opinion, which Father
Feeney changed from a monthly to a weekly publication, ran
this farewell editorial when his six years' tenure of office was
finished:
The demission of office as Superior of the Jamaica Mission by
Father Thomas J. Feeney, S.J. on Monday last marked the official
close of one of the most vital chapters in the history of the Catholic
Church in Jamaica, a story of action and a tale of many-sided
achievement which commanded the impartial admiration of the en·
tire Jamaican community, Catholic and non-Catholic. They were
unquestionably, these last six years, years of progress. This we
acknowledge and for this we are grateful, speaking in the name of
all, to Father Feeney, whose dynamic personality, unflagging zeal
and broad vision constituted the driving-force that moulded the
shape of things to come and added new lustre to the name of
Catholicism in Jamaica, making it a force to be reckoned with and
endowing it with an influence vastly out of proportion to its
numerical strength.
In a short space we cannot do justice to the many wonderful
•. things Father Feeney accomplished in so short a time. What we
definitely would like to say by way of a last word is that we are
certain·that above all Father Feeney will be remembered as a kind
man, always and everywhere kind.
On his return from Jamaica, Father Feeney received the
appointment as Mission Procurator. As Director of the Jesuit
Foreign Missions Office of New England, he threw himself
immediately into a program similar to that on which he
launched when associate editor of Jesuit Missions. By pro·
curing the latest in office equipment he modernized the Mis·
sion Office on Newbury St., Boston. He organized the Jesuit
Mission Associates, some thousands of monthly contributors
to the missions. He founded the Campion Club, a group of
young men and women who did volunteer work at the mission
office and held monthly study-club and social meetings. From
a beginning of about twenty members, the Campion Club has
grown to a membership of nearly three hundred with a groW·
�BISHOP FEENEY
219
ing interest in the missions. As time permitted, he resumed
his work of lectures and retreats. His pace was rapid and
his efforts were crowned with success.
Laetentur Insulae Multae
The augury of 1942 in which Father Feeney administered
Confirmation to a Caroline-Marshall Islander was soon to be
realized in fact: A few months following the end of World
War II the United States Military Government charged with
administering the numerous islands of the Central Pacific
requested the dispatch of American Jesuits to help replenish
the depleted ranks of the Spanish Jesuits who in 192'1 had
taken up anew the missionary work started by other Spanish
Jesuits in 1665 and continued through the years by Spanish
and German Capuchins. Immediately upon his return to the
Philippines in late December, 1945, following a rest after
the hardships to which he had been subjected in internment
during the war, Father Vincent I. Kennally, Novice Master
and Rector of the Jesuit House of Studies outside Manila, was
appointed religious Superior and Apostolic Administrator of
the Caroline-Marshall Islands.
The Vicariate of the Caroline and Marshall Islands comprised all the former Japanese mandate islands, except the
Marianas. More commonly known among the Caroline group
were Yap, Palau, Truk, Mortlock and Ponape. Among the
Marshalls the better known war names included Kwajalein,
Jaluit, Majuro, Likiep and Eniewetok. The ViCariate covered
a stretch of tropical Pacific in area the size of the United
States· from Los ·Angeles to Baltimore and from Chicago
to New Orleans. It embraced about 2000 islands, islets and
coral reefs with less than 1000 square miles of land area.
About one-third of the 45,000 inhabitants were Catholics, some
of whom had been without a priest since World War I, others
deprived of the consolations of religion since the beginning of
World War II. One thousand miles off the nearest trade route,
they had no manufactures, no commerce, no material resources
and scarcely food enough to sustain life.
·
The retiring Spanish Jesuit Superior wrote in February,
1946: "Much remains to be done that the mass of the people
may become J?enetrated with the spirit of Christianity. The
�220
BISHOP FEENEY
Japanese Government never allowed the Church to have anything to do with schools and the education of youth. This was
the principal reason why the religious formation and even
moral training left much to be desired. Came the War. Almost
all our churches and houses were occupied by the military.
Religious worship was curtailed or suppressed. Towards the
end, seven missionaries were put to death, leaving the entire
Marshalls, the Palaus and Yap without a single priest. Many
of the remaining missionaries are in broken health. Our
churches and houses have been leveled."
At first the three. American Provinces of New York, New
England and Maryland were asked to supply mission personnel. In New England, Father Frederick C. Bailey and
Father Feeney received the assignment. The former Philippine and Jamaica missionary, to whom complete offering of
self had been a life-dream, tells of his reaction: "Little by
little, through the years the dream crystallized and finally in
the light God has given me, it has become more than dreaming.
I am capable of sacrifice, of a final complete offering. I might
have been bound to city streets and office walls and limited
achievements._ I have come to the moment of choosing and I
have chosen the way of sacrifice. For the first time in mY
life I am absolutely free."
From Father Kennally came a letter of Ju:o.e 1, 1947, saying:
"I am assigning you to the Marshall Islands. Your address
will be c/o U. S. Naval Military Government Unit, Kwajalein,
Marshall Islands, F.P.O. San Francisco, California. Prepare
on the supposition that you will be starting a new mission sta·
tion from scratch-church, house, school-and that you wiii
have what you bring with you and nothing more. Climate
will be strictly tropical and often very damp. The only build·
ing materials are salvaged military wood and zinc sheeting
and old J ap installations. Pandanus, a kind of nip a palm, is
the native material. Education is primitive, little schools 0
primary calibre. There is a crying need for boys' schools an
dormitories, especially in the Marshalls. In all the Marshalls
there is not a church or house, except one house on LikieP
where you would go eventually. Air mail takes approximat~Iy
a week. There are no commercial planes, no commercial shJ~
ping, either for passengers or freight. All transportation iS
!
�BISHOP FEENEY
221
by Navy plane or Navy supply ship out of San Francisco. No
home province in the States to care for us yet, not even a procurator."
On Wednesday, October 1, 1947, Father Feeney, accompanied by Father Thomas C. Donohoe of the Wisconsin Province, sailed from San Francisco on the Navy's U.S.S. General
Anderson and reached Pearl Harbor on the following Monday,
October 6. On Thursday, the 9th, they left Pearl Harbor by
Navy Air Transport Plane, which landed them at 4:30 Saturday morning, October 11, at Kwajalein, the center of the Marshall Islands group of thirty-four islands covering an area
almost twice the size of Texas, with a land area of only
seventy-four square miles.
Kwajalein is the name of an island and the name of an
atoll, an atoll being an island or group of islands surrounded
by a coral reef. During the war Operation Crossroads was
located there. The Islands were first discovered by the
Spaniard Loyasa en route to the Philippines in 1526; later by
Gilbert and Marshall, English navigators, in 1788. From 1885
to 1914 they were a German protectorate and during those
years the thoroughgoing German Fathers of the Sacred Heart
laid the foundations of Catholicity among the natives. After
1914, until driven out by American forces in 1944, the Japanese destroyed much of the fruits of the missionaries' labors,
first by ousting the German Fathers and then by curtailing
the efforts of the Spanish Jesuits whom they had allowed to
enter in 1921. About the only habitable relic of missionary
Work was a dilapidated residence on Likiep, ninety miles north
of Kwajalein.
Likiep
Within a week after landing at Kwajalein, Father Feeney
:a~e a flight by Navy plane to Likiep and the next week to
aJuro, to the southeast, returning by an Army C-47.
~Ppointed Superior of the Marshall Islands on November 1,
I e chose Likiep as his headqu~rters. Here in the days of the
sland's glory were chapel, priest's house, convent, girls'
~chool and boys' school. Now all that remained was the resi;nce badly in need of repair. Its material assets consisted
0
three empty rooms; one front veranda; one kitchen of
�222
BISHOP FEENEY
thatch and slats; one cistern with a capacity of 7500 gallons of
rain water; five axes and four sheets of plywood. Here for
more than thirty years without benefit of clergy the natives
had recited the Rosary in their native Marshallese for the
return of the missionaries who would instruct them and
sanctify their lives by administering the sacraments. Now
they beheld the answer to their prayers.
American-Marshallese relations at the time were a cooperative venture between two basically different cultures with a
single immediate objective; self-sufficiency for the Marshallese. Given this, American opinion on that crossroads of the
Pacific believed that.. the Marshallese themselves could carry
on from there. It was also the objective of the Catholic Church
for the Catholic Marshallese-the re-establishment of the
Church on an economically self-sustaining basis. The new
Jesuit Superior of the Marshalls expresses this twofold objective and its promise in the New Year's answer to the challenge
of an imaginary sentry on the sands of Likiep.
I am the New Year, 1948, and I come to your islands of coral
from far over the western and eastern waves, down from the north,
up from the-south, bearing gifts of great good will. Among them
are such unromantic but practical things as plans and blueprints
and programs, together with initial though temporary subsidies with
which to implement the same.
I bring you leadership and administrative l!hsonnel, naval, civil,
and ecclesiastical. I bring you independent commands, Army, Navy
and Air, with their individual contributions integrated for the com·
mon good. I bring you educational advisers. And for both you and
them I carry other special gifts in season; gifts that betoken and
become children of the Wise Men who followed the Star.
I bring you faith to sustain you in the face of possible political
chicanery and deceit. I bring you hope, your sole bulwark against
depression of spirit. I bring you charity, which you will need in
your attempt to resurrect from the ashes of war and enemy occupa·
tion the peace that you desire; the sustenance you need and must
yourselves redeem; the ancient culture that is still abroad in the
land, along your waterways and on the shores of your lagoon~
indigenous alike to your people of the West and to your people 0
the East.
More than this I cannot now, at this time, give, unless it be 8
kindly warning. For, if the legacy of 1948 is to be merely a legacY
of what might have been, it will be you Marshallese and America~
who will have made it so. If, on the other hand, it be a tale 0
mutual confidence, cooperation and many-sided achievement, yours
�BISHOP FEENEY
223
likewise be the honor and the glory, the admiration of a worried
world, the ancient triple blessing of your God.
In the short space of three years, due to the indefatigable
energy and zeal of Father Feeney, aided first by Father
Donohoe and later by Father John T. McCarthy of the New
York Province, Likiep blossomed into a complete mission, with
church, school, Sisters' convent, machine shop and mission
ship. During the months of preparation for his arduous task,
Father Feeney had rallied his many American friends for the
new ventures before him. Prominent among these was a new
mission club, the St. Isaac Jogues Group of New York City
and Brooklyn. His flare for presenting his cause presuasively,
to the Navy especially, was instrumental in bringing the material co-operation which counted so much in building up the
station. In that Navy personnel the names of Captain J.P. W.
Vest and Captain Cecil B. Gill, who succeeded him, stand out
as symbols of the true spirit of America and bear eloquent
witness to the fact that Church and State in the Marshalls
could and did function with enviable harmony and co-operate
in peace for the common good.
The following from a letter dated October 2, 1948, is an
example of the Superior's industry in collecting material
usable in construction: "I spent a month on and off Kwajalein
scrounging what I could. The sum total was two more
launches with four or five engines in each, a jeep to pull the
flat car that pulls the wood for the convent, two LCT's full of
Wood, zinc, wiring, cement from Roi and Kwajalein, sufficient
to put up our convent, trades school and church."
In December, 1948, the Governor of the Marshalls in his
Civil Administration Majuro Quarterly Report makes the
following laudatory comment on Likiep's mission school:
"With reference to education, a significant development of
the past year has been the establishment and rapid growth
of the Catholic Mission School on Likiep. It is quite true that
this school continues to draw pupils not only from the comlllunity school at Likiep but also from Majuro, Jaluit and other
~tolls. These pupils are by no means exclusively Catholics.
lhe reason is fairly apparent. This school at present offers
~·better quality and higher level of instruction, both scholasIC and manual, than any of the community or other mission
�224
BISHOP FEENEY
schools in the Marshalls, because of the training and ability
of the missionaries who operate it. With the prospective addition, during the coming year, of a third priest and three Sisters, it appears probable that the existing discrepancy will
further increase, unless the Protestants send to this area
mission teachers of equal ability and in equal numbers. It
will be many years before the public community schools, with
Marshallese teachers, can equal the instruction offered by the
Catholic Mission School. The Marshallese will naturally tend
to go where the best schooling can be obtained."
Progress was in the air. The Sisters' convent was finished
and ready for occupancy by May, 1949. In September of the
following year three Maryknoll sisters arrived to take over
the elementary school. Meanwhile Father McCarthy was conducting the boys' trade school with more than ordinary success. In addition, a night school for adults was well on its
way, a library of 8,000 books and pamphlets established, containing 250 copies of an English-Marshallese Exercise Book
and 500 copies of Selected Marshallese Vocabulary and Readings, both by Father Feeney, and 500 copies of Aesop's Fables
in Marshallese. For the study of special skills, the mission
could boast of-generators, electrical equipment, materials for
carpentry, plumbing, agriculture, seamanship, surveying,
printing, radio and photography, all of which lent substance
to the Governor's commendation of Likiep's. Catholic Mission
s~~
--
Along with this educational, social and economic advance
went constant and ardent labor in the care of souls. Not only
did the Catholic community on Likiep and its eleven adjacent
islands enjoy the ministration of their priests, but, as time
and transportation afforded the opportunity, Majuro with its
four outstations and Jaluit with its three had Mass and the
Sacraments and suitable instruction. A typical mission trip
which Father Feeney made, accompanied in part by Father
Donohoe, included stops at Kwajaleih, Majuro Island, Laura,
Imroj, Mejerrik, Namorik, the deserted Jabwor, and Ebon.
On this last island Father Feeney walked eight miles, part
of it through thick underbrush, to bring Holy Communion to
an aged sick couple. Everywhere the people gathered frorn
the small outlying islands to hear the instructions, attend :Mass
and receive the Sacraments. Everywhere the processing of
�BISHOP F,EENEY
225
souls went on, the processing which continues from day to
day in every sector of the Catholic world.
Bishop of Agno
The Spring of 1951 brought increased joy to the already
rejoicing islands and their inhabitants. By appointment from
Rome the beloved Superior of the Marshalls was raised to the
episcopate. On September 8th of that year in Holy Cross
Cathedral, Boston, His Excellency Archbishop Richard J.
Cushing, D.D. consecrated Father Feeney Titular Bishop of
Agno and Vicar Apostolic of the Caroline-Marshall Islands.
On that occasion Archbishop Cushing said of him: "A Bishop
has been consecrated this morning who has no cathedral, no
episcopal residence and no money to build them. His Vicariate
covers 2,000,000 square miles and it numbers less Catholics
than some of the parishes of the Archdiocese of Boston. The
task would be too much for most men, but not for Bishop
Feeney. His whole life has been a series of hard assignments
filled with great success."
Like Xavier, who dreamed of being the first missionary to
evangelize China, Bishop Feeney also had his dream. He predicted that in sixty years his Vicariate would no longer be a
missionary diocese. Once the Vicariate had sixty native
priests, the same number of Brothers and one hundred and
twenty Sisters, then there would no longer be any need
for missionaries. Nor was his prediction just a hope. Although
Bishop Feeney would be the first to disclaim credit for the
fruits of his fellow missionaries' efforts, at the time of his
death there were already a number of native novice Sisters,
eight minor seminarians in the Xavier Minor Seminary at
Truk, seven more minor and one major seminarian at San
Jose Seminary in Manila, two Jesuit Scholastic novices and
four Jesuit Brothers. The Bishop was especially proud of this
beginning of native vocations.
After months spent in the States collecting not only financial
assistance but also various material additions for the Vicariate, the new Vicar Apostolic arrived at his episcopal head~uarters on Truk, Eastern Carolines, May 2, 1952. The Caroh~es are divided into the Eastern Carolines, including Truk
With its twelve, Lukunor in the Mortlocks with its ten, and
�226
BISHOP F·EENEY
Ponape with its seven outlying island stations. In the Western
Carolines are the Palaus, with Koror their center and a group
of ten inhabited islands with Catholics numbering about 2,000,
and Yap with its fifteen additional island stations. In a short
time the new Vicar made a hurried trip to the various centers
of his Vicariate. He looked into the future undaunted and
unafraid.
During the Navy Administration of the Islands a group of
civil administrators worked under Navy control and direction.
Before leaving for his episcopal consecration, Father Feeney
had defended successfully the Mission's rights against a certain attack stemming from bigotry on the part of a civil administration officiaf ··While in the States preparing for his
consecration, the United States Department of the Interior
took over officially the complete control of the CarolineMarshalls under the title of the Civil Administration of the
United States Pacific Trust Territory.
The new Vicar Apostolic was ever watchful of the Church's
rights in the mission field. In the Spring of 1953 he composed
a rebuttal to a proposed House of Representatives bill "to
provide a civil government for the Trust Territory of the
Pacific Islands~and for other purposes." The bill as proposed
contained an obnoxious section that would endanger the mutually cooperative relations of Church and State in the Trust
Territory. Through the representations of .Honorable Frank
E. Midkiff, the new High Commissioner of the Trust Territory, to the Secretary of the Interior at Washington, the obnoxious proposal was dropped and a new charter drafted.
Xavier Minor Seminary
Before his untimely illness and death Bishop Feeney had
only just enough time to become really acquainted with his
extensive Vicariate and its needs. His ad limina visit to
Rome in the Fall of 1953, followed by the acceptance of an
invitation to ordain the New York Scholastics to the subdia·
conate and diaconate at Fordham in June, 1954, and a further
business journey to Australia had prevented him from visiting
various mission stations as he would have desired. The estab·
lishment of his Xavier Minor Seminary kept him at Truk a
good deal of the time. There would be time for extended tripS
�BISHOP FEENEY
227
to the missions. His plan for a native clergy must be realized.
To his Minor Seminary he was like a fairy godmother.
When he first saw "the Ruin on the Hill," as he called it, he
at once decided to make it his headquarters. It was a mere
shell of a building, obtained after much wrangling with certain government officials. Its partitions had been torn loose,
plumbing removed, all windows destroyed, etc. With his usual
thoughtfulness of others and foresight for the future, the
Bishop decided to make it over. He built private rooms, installed a large generator, plumbing facilities, aluminum windows, a well-equipped kitchen, tropical furniture and tiled
floors, and provided sufficient classrooms, a simple chapel, a
fair dormitory and dining rooms for the students. He was
especially concerned about the food of the community. In his
last week with them his greatest worry was whether or not
there would be enough money to care for them properly.
His interest in and plans for the individual missions and
their missionaries were ever keen. The social graces were his
to an extraordinary degree. Rather than grieve about failures,
he would make the best of a given situation. He never scolded,
never lost his temper. He believed wholeheartedly in a policy
of encouragement. He trusted and respected those under him.
He was humble and self-effacing even when the views of others
clashed with his. If at times he felt forced to override a given
opinion, it was because he was firmly convinced that his
decision was for the good of the mission. He was a man among
men.
An instance of his self-sacrifice was his last trip to the
Mortlocks. On his return from Guam on an AKL, he received
an invitation from Father Rively to come down to Lukunor,
165 miles away, and administer Confirmation. The Bishop
sent word that he would be delighted to come, even though
an accumulated mail of some months was awaiting him.
Riding on an AKL is really roughing it. The ship may stop
at an island for five or six hours. The missionary must climb
~own the ship's ladder, often in a rolling sea, get into the long
oat or a native outrigger, clamber over the reef, round up
the People, set up his Mass kit, hear confessions, perform
~~ptisms, bless marriages, anoint the sick, etc. Although he
Id not know the Mortlock languages, the Bishop took care
�228
BISHOP F'EENEY
of five islands in this way on the trip to Lukunor. His great
heart was always in the missions and their people.
A round trip in the spring of 1954 took him to the Marshalls, where he visited his beloved Likiep and its firmly established mission church, rectory, schools and convent, thence to
Majuro and Jaluit, and finally to Ponape. He had superlative
praise for the accomplishments of Father Hugh Costigan on
Ponape, another complete mission setup in the Eastern Carolines.
In December, 1954, he visited the mission on Yap Island,
the northernmost of. ~he Western Carolines. While there, he
never stopped talking, praying, planning. He hoped to come
back in June, learn ··the language, and live with the people
for some time. Eager for all to see, know and hear their
Bishop, he used his episcopal robes as a standard, calling attention not to himself, but to God and the Church. He looked
and felt exhausted. It was, perhaps, the beginning of his final
illness.
It may have been a presentiment of the end that prompted
him to write shortly before this: "My trip to Australia gave
me time to think and count-! could disappear tomorrow or
tonight and there would not be a ripple in the tide of time or
circumstance; nought but a momentary stop in the lives of
friends and dear ones. The plane trips have.become a purga·
tory in anticipation and reality. I have been-alone with God,
my own past and present, and there is no need of a prophet
for my future. I come out of this retirement, as it were, when
I am asked to talk or when I mingle with people. But at
sixty one looks forward to the end; no longer backward to the
beginning. I have prayed with complete surrender to the will
of God and complete confidence therein. I am happy to be
home."
The twilight of his missionary labors was closing in. The
following February found him so run down that he had to
seek rest and treatment at the U.S. Naval Hospital on Guam·
In the hope that native air and more congenial surroundings
might be more beneficial, Father George McGowan acco:m·
panied him to New York, whence after a short stay he retired
to St. Vincent's Hospital, Harrison, New York. Here he began
to recover and to enjoy visits of friends and brief trips to
�BISHOP FEENEY
229
the City with new plans for the future. One who was close
to him in these days writes: "In his sickest moments he was
always the gentle, considerate soul. I have never met a man
in his position so completely humble and uncomplicated in
his outlook. His whole range of thought was directed towards
the spiritual, and nothing else. His manner was warm and
gracious, in a way hard to describe. To my dying day I shall
always remember the gentle kindly soul of Bishop Thomas
Feeney."
On June 15 Bishop Feeney arrived in Boston, intending to
convalesce at the summer home of his sister, Mrs. Paul Mayr,
at Magnolia, Massachusetts. During his first night at Loyola
House, the New England Provincial Residence, he suffered
such severe abdominal pains that superiors called a doctor,
who came at seven in the morning and after examination advised immediate removal to St. Elizabeth's Hospital. Next
morning the Bishop underwent abdominal· surgery which
showed a fatal condition probably resulting from his early
tropical affliction. After two weeks he recovered sufficiently
to move to Magnolia, where for the next two months he was
up and about and at times able to say Mass. A few days before
the end, however, he appeared to fail rapidly, and on the
morning of September 9 was found to be in coma. Priest and
doctor came in haste to attend him and in a short space his
great and gentle soul was with God.
On Monday, September 12, Archbishop Cushing celebrated
a Pontifical Requiem Mass at St. Ignatius Church, Chestnut
Hill. The Bishop's Jesuit brother, Father William Feeney,
acted as deacon and Monsignor Edward F. Sweeney, Director
of the Boston office of the Propagation of the Faith as subdeacon. Father Francis W. Anderson, Director of the New
England Jesuit Foreign Missions Office, delivered the eulogy.
Assisting Archbishop Cushing at the final absolution were
the Bishops of Worcester, Fall River and Springfield in Massachusetts and Bishop James H. Griffiths of the Military Ordinariate. Interment was in Weston College cemetery.
Tributes
Tributes came, as one might expect, from many quarters,
ecclesiastical and lay-from members of the hierarchy, fellow-
�230
BISHOP F·EENEY
Jesuits, the military, the clergy and the Sisterhoods.
From Archbishop Cushing: "A great warrior has laid down
his sword. I have met hundreds of missionary Bishops over
the years but no one who worked as did Bishop Feeney of
the Caroline-Marshall Islands."
From Lt. Gen. F. L. Parks, U.S. Army: "Bishop Feeney's
influence for good will long be felt at Likiep and his passing
leaves a void in the lives of his parishioners which will be
hard to fill. A devout and consecrated man, he was an inspiring and devoted friend to all with whom he came in contact.
His assistance to the Army has been invaluable. I join his
many friends in ke~n sorrow at his death, but I rejoice in the
knowledge that his reward in heaven will be great indeed."
From Rear Admiral M. E. Murphy, U. S. Navy: "It was
indeed a great shock to learn of Bishop Feeney's death. He
will be sorely missed in the Trust Territory. I counted him a
personal friend and I mourn at his passing."
From Hon. Frank E. Midkiff, former High Commissioner
of the Trust Territory: "Bishop Feeney was a dynamic leader.
His life was an inspiration to all who knew him. He was trans·
forming the life and thinking of Micronesia as a bearer of
the simple message of Christ. He was beloved by all and his
visits were occasions of great rejoicing and benefit. He will
be sorely missed. Personally I am indebted to him for his
encouragement and able support in my wor.k as High Com·
missioner. He stood by me throughout the Trust Territory,
and also on two occasions when I reported to the United
Nations. His friends will never forget him and his work will
live on."
Much has still to be done before Bishop Feeney's dream for
the Mission can come true. But the Church will be established
in the Caroline-Marshall Islands, and no one who knew and
loved Bishop Feeney thinks for a moment that his part in
that work is finished. No one is more confident than the
sixty-one Jesuits, who continue his work in the Vicariate,
that his interceding prayers will help them in their struggle
to win the Carolines and the Marshalls for Christ.
JOHN
H.
COLLINS,
S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
BIOGRAPHY OF THE INTERIOR CHRIST
The Heart of Christ. By Jean Galot, S.J. Translated by John Chapin.
Westminster, Md. Newman Press, 1955. Pp. ix-295. $3.50.
Wealth of keen insight and new aspects of the human psychology
of Christ our Lord become transparent to the English reader in this
neat little book. It is a biography of the interior Christ, not a work
on devotion on the Sacred Heart as the title might suggest. Two things
distinguish it from other works of its type: its simple division and the
fact that it is remarkably close to the Gospel account. In fact it is
nothing more than an exquisitely sensitive examination of the Gospel
incidents for what they say of Christ's attitudes and loves, as He
looked to His Father in heaven, His Mother on earth, and His fellow men
whom He would save. This is the Heart of Christ, a thing of great beauty.
But more marvelous dimensions still are revealed in the master stroke
of the final short chapter: this Heart of Christ is none other than
the Heart of the Father in heaven.
Newman Press showed its acumen both in selecting the work for
translation and in engaging an excellent translator. The idiom is
English: a clear, smooth, simple English; the thought and emphases
remain those of the original. Hence, a certain French tone in some
places is born of the thought of the author, not the English expression.
The simple and less learned will find this book simple, easy to read,
fruitful; the more learned will find it profound. The preacher and writer
will find material easy to use, though he will have to read it through
first, since there is no index. All will find it just like the Gospel
Figure it is designed to illuminate.
ROBERT
J.
SUCHAN
SPIRITUAL CHILDHOOD
St. Therese and her Mission. By Abbe Andre Combes. Translated
by Alastair Guinan. New York, P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1955. Pp.
x-244. $3.50.
St. Pius X declared Therese of Lisieux to be the greatest saint of
~odern times. What prompted the holy pontiff to such a statement
18
not known, but the Abbe Combes is set on justifying the fact by
exposing the basic principles of her spirituality.
Love and an intuition are the very foundation of the Theresian formula
ior sanctity: love of Jesus, a true, willed love, called forth by His
ove of her; and an intuition of God as self-abasing Love, stooping
~0';TI_ to our nothingness in order to transform us. In this way was
~erese of the Child Jesus drawn to give pleasure to Christ, to be
liis spouse as well as to be always a little child in the sight of God,
�232
BOOK REVIEWS
depending on Him utterly for her spiritual growth; in this spirit she
prayed. "I desire to be a saint, but I feel my own powerlessness, and
I ask you, my God, to be yourself my sanctity." For this reason she
wished to live a victim of His love. And her love of God flowered into
an intense love of men. She yearned to open the floodgates to the flow
of divine love on sinners especially and on those who hardly seemed to
know Him; her desire was to spend her heaven in doing good on earth.
Such is the thrilling message which Abbe Andre Combes brings to
his readers, and he delivers it in a manner startling, and sometimes
unhappy: startling, as when he explains away the varied expositions
of Therese's "spiritual childhood" given by Benedict XV, Pius XI and
Pius XII as rather "representing attempts to present an abstract
concept [spiritual childhood] which will sum up the universal or general
possibility than as efforts to express the way in which Therese had
concretely realized it and.put it into practice;" and unhappy, as when
searching for one-it will be Therese ultimately-to instruct men in
the secrets of intimate union with God, he warns, "Whoso confines
himself to the Exercises of St. Ignatius, may be reproached for having
subordinated love to fear, for having preferred the service of the
King to union with the Spouse, for being satisfied with rather
anthropocentric boundaries."
The lengthy appendices, two conferences given before the Catholic
Academy of Vienna, and an address delivered in the chapel of the
Carmel of Lisieux, serve as a quieter, but none the less valuable,
complement to the Abbe's presentation of the spiritual life of Therese
Martin.
Alastair Guinan's translation is at least adequate. The literary style
of the author, however, is labored because of one involved, periodic
build-up of ideas after another practically without cessation throughout
the entire work. Although at times this effects a~·s).lspense similar to
that of the detective story, it is so recurrent as to become tedious.
Abbe Combes has something to say; no doubt about it. He is a scholar
in the matter, though one might wish for a more extensive use of the
actual writings of Therese in the present work. He fires one with the
desire to read the Little Flower's own journals, to learn her life.
SIGMUND J. LASCHENSKI, S.J.
PSYCHOANALYSIS AND THE CATHOLIC
Psychoanalysis Today. By Agostino Gemelli, O.F.M., M.D., Translated
by John Chapin and Salvator Attanasio. N. Y., P. J. Kenedy &
Sons. 1955. Pp. 153. $2.95.
This book, according to the author, has a modest object in view. His
purpose is to explore certain key ideas in modern psychology with the
view of presenting them ·to the general public. The key ideas he haS
chosen are: psychoanalysis, analytic psychology and Pius XII's vieWS
�BOOK REVIEWS
233
on these two subjects. It would be unfair to evaluate the author's treatment of these subjects as a scholarly work, since such was not his aim.
Still, we cannot help but be disappointed at the cursory treatment accorded to such prominent authors as Freud and Jung and at the superficial critique of their theories. The author does, however, point out
Freud's agnostic tendencies and show that Jung is not quite so orthodox
in his religious views as one might think. But to reject Freud's theories
of the unconscious and to discredit the role of dreams in analysis in one
or two brief sentences, is, indeed an oversimplification of the problem.
Although the book will have some appeal for the general public, such
a brief treatment might prove confusing to the layman rather than
provide him with an orientation for evaluating modern trends in psychoanalysis, as the author had intended.
FRANCIS SCHEMEL, S.J.
SAINTS IN ABUNDANCE
The Castle and the Ring. By C. C. Martindale, S.J.
Kenedy & Sons, 1955. Pp. 280. $3.75.
New York, P. J.
In this, his latest work, Father Martindale makes full use of his vivid
imagination and a vital interest in the lives of the saints in forging
a plot which is an amalgamation of historical events and personages,
and of fine allegorical fiction. This is a book which brings to light the
versatility and ingenuity of the author along with his talents as a
storyteller.
The plot is interesting and unique. The gold presented to the Holy
~amily by the Magi, and given to St. Luke by the Blessed Virgin, falls
mto pagan hands, is made into an ornament, and then into a Ring by
Constantine the Great for his mother, Helena. In the year 445 it finds its
way to the elevated hut of St. Simeon. Through the centuries it is
Passed, from St. Simeon to St. Genevieve, Alcuin, St. Bernard and many
others, until it finally comes into the possession of an old Catholic
family of northern England, named Medd. Here the Ring, symbolizing
t~e ever-spreading circle of God's eternal love, is contrasted with another
Circle which greatly influences the lives of the Medd family, the grand,
seemingly indestructible Medby Castle.
Through Alcuin, who in the eighth century had supervised the construction of a gigantic stone tower around which Medby Castle was to
f.ow,_the author brings into clear focus the theme of the story, "Then
18
nnnd slipped back again. What house was other than a prison that
~akn rebuilt for himself whenever it fell into ruins? No perfect circle,
1
ept being broken into arcs that had no meaning. But suddenly he
saw the circle-not a line enclosing a point, but a point triumphantly
~diating in all directions equally. But the center? The center? Ah,
artin of Tours, Mary of Chartres, Peter of Rome, you are all at the
c;nterl" (p. 51) Then again, through Hugh, the third son of the Earl
0
Aiedby, this theme is repeated. Hugh asks, "Will Medby last? Can
�234
BOOK REVIEWS
anything human clasp the world and be eternal?" (p. 83) And a holy
hermit answers, "I will give you a Ring. If it does not clasp the world,
at least it has neither beginning nor end and may suggest to you
eternity!" (p. 38 f.)
Some readers may find themselves a little out of breath trying to
follow the progress of the Ring from owner to owner due to the seem·
ingly endless catalogue of characters who find their way into the story.
Likewise, some may object to the amount of time Father Martindale
spends in narrating its tortuous journey prior to its appearance in the
central plot-the effect it has. on the occupants of Medby Castle and
their wandering relatives. Aside from this somewhat exhausting, and
possibly over-meticulous exposition of the Ring's entire history, it is this
reader's opinion that al\ should find The Castle and the Ring interesting.
ROBERT
B.
CULLEN,
S.J.
ACADEMIC FREEDOM
Academic Freedom in Our Time. By Robert M. Maciver. New York:
Columbia University Press, 1955. Pp. xiv + 329. $4.00.
Fervent and frequently persuasive, this apology for academic free·
dom is a major contribution to one of the great discussions of our time.
Although the epistemological, social, and political foundations of Dr.
Maciver's position are themselves matters for serious debate, we are
decidedly in his~ debt for a clear and thoughtful exposition of one platform in the controversy.
For Dr. Maciver, the university is an arena for the highest endeavor
of the human mind, the scientific quest for the enlargement and com·
munication of rational knowledge. Academic freedom, the freedom of
the honest scholar to investigate and to teach according to scientific
principles without interference from authority, is an indispensable con·
dition of the integrity and fruitfulness of university activity. Because
this freedom cannot exist without guarantees for the social, economic,
and political security of the scholar, it demands as the condition of its
own existence ample protection against authoritarian social, economic,
and political pressures. In the concrete, this entails the education of the
people to an awareness of the intrinsic value of the university function,
the establishment of a universal and effective system of tenure, and the
inhibition of irresponsible legislative interference with the autonomY of
academic institutions.
The specific proposals made for the achievement of these goals a;~
too numerous and detailed for comment here. But a word must be 581d
on two broader issues, the inevitability of the conflict between science 8~
religious authority, and the theoretical scope of academic freedom !11
Catholic universities.
1
Dr. Maciver is careful to note that academic freedom is a pec?Iia~~
important phase of a larger liberty, the right of every man ratJona
�BOOK REVIEWS
235
to seek the truth as it is and honestly to communicate it as he sees it.
Authority, of whatever form, limits this freedom, because it substitutes
tradition for investigation. This limitation, he admits, is justified in
the field of revealed truth (if there is any such thing); it interferes with
academic freedom only when it withdraws from scientific investigation
some matter which is susceptible to the tests of observation and experiment. Unfortunately, the history of authority is full of such interference; under guise of protecting a code of values, it has stifled free
scientific study of the things of which those values are predicated and
the conditions which that code is meant to regulate.
Since Dr. Maciver is personally committed to a theory of the intrinsically tentative character of all human knowledge, he necessarily
finds an irreconcilable dualism in authority and science. Nevertheless,
what he has to say is as applicable to Catholic as to non-denominational
universities. Of its very nature the scientific method, strictly so-called,
can produce only probabilities or hypothetical certainties; and insofar
as every Catholic university makes use of this method, it is bound to
accord to students and faculty alike that freedom of mind without which
the method ,simply will not work. Since the Church closes no field to
rational inquiry, there is as much room for academic freedom in Catholic
as in secular universities. No dogma requires that all or even the weight
of human evidence, studied through the lens of the scientific method,
be in favor of the truths of revelation. The Catholic Church's case
neither stands nor falls with the validity of any scientific hypothesis;
its justification is of an intrinsically superior order, the word of God.
In this connection, it is important to note a serious fallacy in one
of Dr. Maciver's proofs of the actual diminution of academic freedom
in denominational universities. No professor, he argues, in an institution whose theological doctrine condemned the use of contraceptive
devices as sinful would be permitted to advocate the introduction of
birth-control clinics as a solution for the problems of an overpopulated
area. This example confuses science with ethics. Whether the introduction of such clinics would solve the specific social and economic
~roblems in question is a scientific problem; whether such a solution
ls desirable or morally permissible involves a value judgment on the
;alidity of which science (in Dr. Maciver's understanding of the term)
In incompetent to pronounce. If nothing else, pressure groups have
taught us that not everything that works is good.
CHARLES
M.
WHELAN,
S.J.
The Development of Academic Freedom in the United States. By
Richard Hofstadter and Walter P. Metzger. New York: Columbia
University Press, 1955. Pp. xvi + 527. $5.50.
1 When Henry Dunster, the first president of Harvard, publicly chalrenged the legitimacy of infant baptism, his resignation was a foregone
esu]t, quietly accepted. ~s a matter of course by both parties. The
�236
BOOK REVIEWS
issue was not whether Dunster had a right to his job, whatever his
religious opinions, but simply whether his theology was orthodox. The
gap between this type of controversy and our recent storms over the
discharge of politically suspect professors is one measure of the growth
of academic freedom in the United States.
The story of this development is an important one, and Professors
Hofstadter and Metzger have told it well. Lively, moderate, and carefully constructed, their account begins with an excellent survey of
academic freedom in Europe from the Middle Ages to the eighteenth
century, and ends with a study of the achievements of the American
Association of University Professors during the First World War.
More recent developments are covered in the companion volume, Robert
M. Maciver's Academic Freedom in Our Time (reviewed above).
Anyone who is prone· to reduce the fight for academic freedom to a
simple antithesis between science and religion will do well to study
the evidence which Hof~tadter and Metzger have amassed. The Darwinian crisis in the second half of the nineteenth century was indeed
the occasion of a great growth in academic freedom, but the bitterness
of its memories has obscured the importance of still more formidable
enemies of professorial independence. If religious zealots have sinned
against academic freedom, so too have politicians, businessmen, and
the general public.
CHARLES M. WHALEN, S.J.
DEVOTION TO BLESSED SACRAMENT
The Eucharistic Apostolate of St. Ignatius Loyola. By P. Justo Beguiriztain, S.J. Translated b11 John H. Collins, S.J. Boston, 1956.
Pp. 56. $1.
~' _
To those who wish to know St. Ignatius this book is important, be·
cause it brings into due prominence one of the best loved, most charac·
teristic and widely successful forms of the Saint's apostolate. Its
author declares that St. Ignatius was the Saint who contributed most
to the movement that restored to the faithful the practice of frequent
Communion. In the sixteenth century, excessive reverence bad gradu·
ally succeeded in keeping Catholics from the altar-rail. It was rare
for any lay person to receive Holy Communion oftener than once 8
year. Immediately after his conversion St. Ignatius began to receive the
Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist frequently and urged those
he met to do the same. When he became a priest he preached the fre·
quent reception of Holy Communion constantly and everywhere. lie
ordered the priests of the Society to follow his example and the non·
priests to receive as often as possible and publicly.
Their doing so awakened a storm of opposition. They were denounced
from the pulpit as dangerous innovators, but St. Ignatius and his sons
continued to make this practice the favorite theme of their sermonS·
The effects were immediate and widespread. This Eucharistic apostoiate
�BOOK REVIEWS
237
has been emphasized throughout the Society's existence. All this is
proved not merely by the statement of the author but by careful documentation. The present universal devotion to the Blessed Sacrament is
due largely to the efforts of St. Ignatius.
The book would be an excellent gift for religious and the laity, an
lgnatian Year book and one to be recommended to members of study
clubs and sodalities. It is privately published and may be obtained
from Reverend John H. Collins, Loyola House, 297 Commonwealth
Avenue, Boston 15, Massachusetts.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
BISHOP ANDREWES AND THE JESUITS
Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, Jacobean Court Preacher. By Maurice F.
Reidy, S.J. Loyola University Press, Chicago, 1955. Pp. xiii-237.
$3.50.
The present volume is another in the series of "Jesuit Studies" so admirably edited and published by the Loyola University Press. The subtitle declares that the volume is "A Study in Early Seventeenth-Century
Religious Thought" and Father Reidy of the College of the Holy Cross
sticks closely to his announced topic.
Bishop Andrewes impinges on Jesuit history, inasmuch as he was
the champion of James I in the controversy with Cardinal Bellarmine.
But since this story is not g·ermane to the purpose of the book, it is
touched upon only lightly. Nor, though the salient details of Andrewes'
life are given, is the book a biography. It reminds us of Andrewes'
importance in his own day,-court preacher to Elizabeth I and James I,
bishop of three Anglican dioceses, intellectual leader of the Church of
England.
But the bishop's major importance stems from the fact that he stood
at the source whence flowed the High Church movement of Archbishop
Laud, the Tractarians of the nineteenth century, and the present AngloCatholics. His theological thought therefore deserves study, and Father
Reidy has given us a most competent analysis of Andrewes' religious
teachings.
.The book appeals only to a very specialized audience, but its readers
Will find it an interesting, readable, and thorough treatment of its topic.
FRANCIS X. CURRAN, S.J.
FOR THE STUDENT
The Russian Marxists and the Origins of Bolshevism. By Leopold H.
liaimson. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1955. Pp. viii,
246. $5.50.
For many, communism is a phenomenon which burst upon the world
�238
BOOK REVIEWS
in November 1917. The understanding of its ongms and growth is
hazy at best. This is partly due to the fact that the triumphant Bolshevik
faction of communism has presented only doctored accounts of its
early history, and partly to the fact that so much of the source rna.
terial for a comprehensive study of this twentieth century phenomenon
is locked away in Russian periodicals and pamphlets which have not been
translated.
Attempts have been made, especially in the last decade, to shed more
light on this material. Bertram Wolfe, in his Three Who Made a Revo·
lution (New York: Dial Press, 1948), made a contribution by his pres·
entation of some of this material in English. Leopold H. Haimson makes
a further contribution in this book, which is one of a series presented
by the Russian Research Center of Harvard University. As with the
other books of the series; there has been a detailed investigation of Rus·
sian sources which are not readily available. If for no other reason, this
would make it a useful book.
Communism, in its Russian form, was strongly influenced by the
Russian soil in which it grew. Though originally a western ideology,
it was fitted into the general pattern of violent unrest which character·
ized the Russia of the nineteenth century and, in the process, experienced
some modification in both form and content. It is this process which
Mr. Haimson describes.
Mter a preliminary chapter, in which the author sketches the intel·
lectual ferment in Russia and the revolutionary activity of the period
between 1820 and 1890, we are introduced to the men who projected
Marxism into this maelstrom and presided over its development. Paul
Axelrod, George Plekhanov, Yuri Zederbaum (Martov) and Vladimir
Ulyanov (Lenin) are the principal figures in the:account. The back·
ground of each is presented along with a consideration of the growth
in their thought. Though they were to be close collaborators in the
early development of Marxism, the seeds of the dissension which was
to cause a bitter struggle in later years were already indicated.
This struggle revolved around the precise role of the proletariat in
the ovethrow of Russian absolutism and the final establishment of a
classless society. Against some, who emphasized the development of
the workers' consciousness as a "spontaneous" process, impervious to
outside control, Plekhanov and the Social Democrats (the name as·
sumed by the Russian Marxists) insisted that this development could
be hastened and properly channeled by the conscious direction of the
most advanced elements of the proletariat, i.e. by the Social Democrats·
But the struggle concerning the "spontaneous" element and "conscious·
ness" also entered the ranks of the latter. Where Axelrod and Marto;,
were for allowing a fairly large field of operation for the "spontaneousd
element, Lenin insisted on the fact that it should be rigidly control~e
by the "conscious" element through strong organizational bonds. u~ty
and rigid discipline were to characterize the "vanguard of the pro e·
tariat" during the lengthy period it would need to develop the conscious·
�BOOK REVIEWS
239
ness of the inert masses. Martov, Axelrod and finally even Plekhanov
were to break with him because of this position.
The development of these ideas and the struggles which culminated
in the split of the Social Democratic party at the Second Congress in
1903 is the burden of Parts Two and Three of the book. We are given
information on the formation of the Bolshevik and Menshevik factions
and how they received their names. Though initially in the minority,
Lenin, by astute maneuvering, was able to turn the tide in his favor
and, during the short time in which he held a majority, he assumed the
name Bolshevik (majority) as contrasted with his opponents, the Mensheviks (minority). Though in later years his group was often very
· small, Lenin was to cling to this name with all its psychological advantages. It was the first of many times that the Communists were
to usurp words for their own use.
Mr. Haimson's book ends with the Second Congress and its immediate aftermath. Therefore, it does not give a complete picture of Marxist activity before the revolution. However, his study of the early
development of Marxism is recommended, especially for its liberal use
of source material. It gives a key to understanding not only that element of Marxist thought which was eventually to come to power
in the Soviet Union but also the other dissident Marxist elements. His
many quotations will make it possible to see these elements more
clearly and also to realize the inadequacy of the entire Marxist ideology
as the solution to the philosophical and social questions of the present
day. The author does not draw this conclusion himself. However, he
does provide a wealth of material which should make this book, meant
Primarily for the special student of communism and Russian affairs,
useful to a wider circle of readers and especially to the philosopher and
the social scientist.
JOHN F. LONG, S.J.
OUR PROTESTANT NEIGHBORS
The Catholic Approach to Protestantism. By George H. Tavard, A.A.
N. Y., Harper and Brothers, 1955. Pp. xv-160. $2.50.
Alerted by the scandal to unbelievers that arises from the missionary
competition among Christian churches and sects, Protestantism has
been keenly aware of its "sinful" disunity. From the early missionary
assemblies of 1854 to the Evanston Assembly of the World Council of
Churches in 1954, Protestants have struggled with doctrinal and psychological disagreements, experimented in unity and, in general, have
P_roduced a theology of ecumenism. What has been the Catholic reac~Ion to their endeavors? What should be the Catholic attitude to ecumenlsm and how can Catholics help in the "common search after Christian
::ity by Churches that do not know or misunderstand the Catholic unit of
e Church of Rome?" Father George Tavard of the Augustinians of the
Assumption has attempted to answer these questions in this little book.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Painstakingly objective, he traces Protestantism in its various major
forms from its beginnings to present-day churches. He outlines its basic
doctrines, its anti-Roman prejudices, its searching for unity, its theology
of ecumenism. The Catholic approach to ecumenism is then analyzed
and for the most part is found to be wanting in scope and vitality. In
spite of official pronouncements of the Holy See, most Catholics persist
in a negative, defensive attitude toward Protestantism. Admittedly,
however, because of the courageous efforts of a few in the past,
Catholics are becoming more ecumenically conscious. The book closes
with concrete suggestions for Catholic contributions to a "creative peace"
that will effect a psychological and spiritual understanding of the
Protestant positions and sensibility, while preserving a profound sense of
the requirements of Catholic truth and an unshakable loyalty to the
Church.
Father Tavard writes with a dedicated pen. Aware of the lack of
ecumenical knowledge among Catholics, his book is intended to stir to
action. It is meant to be a popular treatment of what the author un·
doubtedly thinks should be a popular concern. Its popularity will suffer,
however, from a confusion in the early chapters of the book. The author
so weaves his own thoughts into a sympathetically written history of
Protestantism that at times it is difficult to tell where Proestant ideas
end and his thoughts begin. His meetings with European Protestants
have led Father Tavard to an obvious enthusiasm which in turn generates
an impatience with the apparent lack of response of Catholics; this
can be the only explanation for the captious tone of sections of the
book. However, -the book is worth reading for its brief history of
Protestant ecumenism, and the author's chapters on positive attitudes
are inspiring. Especially penetrating are the last two chapters. In them
prominent twentieth century factors that raise hopes for realistic
ecumenism are analyzed. According to Father Tav.l}rd, these factors are
the theological awakening of our century, a return to the Bible, the
liturgical renewal, the accession of the laity to responsibility in the
Church, a desire for peace and the immediate and permanent threat
of a dictatorship inspired by an atheistic philosophy. Seminarians and
priests must become familiar with the problems of church unity; this
book will serve as an introduction.
JOHN J. McDONALD,
s.J.
THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
The Scrolls From The Dead Sea. By Edmund Wilson.
ford University Press, 1955. Price: $3.25.
New York, Ox·
Credit must be given to Mr. Wilson for being the first to attempt a
popular synthesis of what has been described as the most sensational
manuscript discovery in modern times. He does not simply rehe~rse
once again the story of the 1947 discovery and succeeding exc~vatio~
in the Qumran region but presents the origin, organization, beliefs an
�BOOK REVIEWS
241
practices of the Essene sect in an absorbing account. He captures
interesting human situations, gives pen pictures of important persons
like the Metropolitan Samuel and Pere Roland de Vaux, and makes us
feel that we, too, have been actually at the site of the discovery. Mr.
Wilson gives generally reliable information concerning factual data
connected with the discovery and a good digest of learned periodicals,
but when he begins to speculate on the religious significance of the
scrolls, on the basis of Dupont-Sommer's theory, he is not authoritative.
It has been said more than once that the discovery of the Dead Sea
Scrolls will revolutionize our thinking on Christianity. This is the explosive possibility that Mr. Wilson has made very much of in Chapter V
where he tries to resurrect Renan's cryptic statement, "Christianity is an
Essenism which has largely succeeded." To say as Mr. Wilson does that
scholars have regarded the Dead Sea Scrolls as a secret to be jealously
guarded and that tension among them is due to the "fear of impairing
the authority of the Masoretic text" or "fear that the uniqueness of
Christ is at stake" is misleading for the uncautious and uncritical reader
and unfair to biblical scholars. If the Dead Sea Scrolls are to shed light
on the immediate background of Christianity, that will come in good
time after sober and prolonged study and there is no need to fear that
the scrolls will prove Christ to be merely a holy, historical figure and
not the Son of God.
VITALIANO R. GOROSPE, S.J.
THE CHURCH AND THE LAYMAN
The Layman in the Church. By Michael De La Bedoye·re.
Burns & Oates, 1954. Pp. vii, 111.
London:
There are at present far too few works in English that have taken
into account the monumental work of Father Yves Congar, O.P., on the
layman's place in the Church. This book does, and well. Though not
meant to be a strictly theological work, it rests on solid theology and
offers the educated and busy layman a stimulating treatment of his
real problems and opens avenues toward a solution.
After a general statement of Congar's theology of the layman as
P:iest, prophet and king, the author offers a fine summary of the long
history behind the present concern for a "lay spirituality." Turning
next to the social relations of lay members of the Mystical Body, he
concludes that the layman's spirituality, like that of the religious and
the Priest, must essentially involve his particular function in the
C~urch. In the concluding section of this short volume the author
pO~n.ts up concrete problems in lay-cleTical cooperation, centers the
sp~ritual practices of the layman around their liturgical core, and finally
~terates his basic thesis: a lay spirituality is not a luxury item in the
urch's theology.
. This is an opportune time for such a book. It will heighten interest
In the basic problems of a deeper spirituality and a lay apostolate.
�242
BOOK REVIEWS
It may induce more to read the work of Father Congar, which is soon
to appear in an English translation. It will undoubtedly stimulate
priests and seminarians to ponder the implications, theological and
practical, of this layman's contribution to the discussion.
KENNETH
C.
BOGART,
S.J.
DOGMATIC THEOLOGY IN ENGLISH
Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma. By Dr. Ludwig Ott. Edited by
James Canon Bastible, D.D. Translated by Patrick Lynch, Ph.D.
St. Louis, Herder, 1955. Pp. xvi-519. $7.50.
The purpose of this monumental work is to give a basic course in all
Catholic dogmatic theolQgy. Skillfully translated from the German of
Dr. Ludwig Ott, it approaches the miraculous by accomplishing its im·
mense task with concise thoroughness in just 519 pages. The body of
the book is preceded by a detailed table of contents and followed by
indices of persons and subjects, which render the book useful as a
ready-reference manual for the busy teacher or parish priest.
This book will undoubtedly meet with unqualified approval from the
educated Catholic audience. It will find a hearty welcome from the col·
lege religion teacher, who will at last be able to put into the hands of
his students a competent reference work on scholastic theology. It will
doubtlessly be found in the book case of the overworked pastor, a gold
mine for advising study clubs and preparing ,sermons. But most sig·
nificantly, it will open to the educated lay Catholic an easy path to the
understanding of the Church's theological wealth.
R. M.
BARLOW,
S.J.
THE CHURCH TEACHES
The Church Teaches. By The Jesuit Fathers of St. Mary's College.
St. Louis, Herder, 1955. Pp. xiv-400. $5.75.
To any student of Scholastic Theology the name Denzinger or even the
letter "D" together with its number evokes a familiar, if not always a
pleasant, memory. The present volume is a selection of Catholic mag·
isterial documents culled principally from Denzinger's Enchiridion
Symbolorum, with this notable difference, that it makes these documen:s
available in remarkably readable English. Another practical feature IS
that the editors of this volume, departing from the format of Denzinger,
have arranged the .documents according to subject matter, rather tha~
in chronological order. Each document, especially if it is an extende
citation from the Acta of an ecumenical council, is preceded by con·
cise introduction, which gives the historical genesis of the docum.en;
cited, its doctrinal import or a summary of the peculiar theologJcaf
problem it was expected to solve. These introductions lend an air 0
�243
BOOK ttEVIEWS
history to the collection and enhance its usefulness especially for the
Jay reader. In addition, if the clerical reader should desire a longer
citation than is presented in this volume, marginal numbers referring to
the appropriate place in Denzinger are to be found next to each selection.
These and other desirable features of this book will make it a must for
the educated Catholic layman's library. Teachers of college religion
courses will find it invaluable as a source-book of documents pertinent
to their courses. Finally it should also be a great practical aid to the
priest in the preaching apostolate, as a gold mine of topics for the
Sunday sermon.
R. M. BARLOW, S.J.
POPES ON CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE
Papal Pronouncements on Marriage and the Family From Leo XIII to
Pius XII (1878-1954). By Alvin Werth, O.F.M. Cap., A. M., and
Clement S. Mihanovich, Ph.D., Milwaukee, The Bruce Publishing
Company, 1955, Pp. x + 189. $3.00.
Pertinent pronouncements by our modern pontiffs on marriage and
the family can be found in abundance in this compact reference book.
Covering a period of seventy-five years, the authors have arranged their
quotations in topical form and chronological sequence down to, and
including, the 1953 Christmas Message of Pius XII. The purpose of the
book and the sources used to locate the papal documents are briefly indicated in the introduction. Social Wellsprings, edited by Joseph Husslein,
S.J., (Bruce, 2 Vols.) provided most of the translations used by the
authors for the encyclicals of Leo XIII and Pius XI. Most of their
quotations from Pius XII have been chosen from the translations appearing regularly in The Catholic Mind. Nine other major sources
have been utilized.
The authors have done their work well, but have limited themselves
to "quotations taken from documents that have been translated into
the English language in their entirety or in major part." With this
severe limitation, they were forced to omit many papal pronouncements on marriage and the family. They have also chosen to omit the
Yearly allocutions of Pius XII to the Sacred Tribunal of the Roman
Rota. Translations of most of these are available in The Canon Law
n·
tgest, by T. Lincoln Bouscaren, S.J. (Bruce, 3 Vols.). They do, how~ver, include one short quotation, from the 1941 allocution, on divorce.
n the introduction to Chapter II, the authors state: "According to
:raditional Catholic teaching the right to marry is one of the most
undamental of the natural rights of man." They fail, however, to
quote either the above 1941 allocution, or the 1942 Christmas Message
~ Pius XII on this matter. With these limitations in mind, we should
F h~ppy to have so many Papql Pronouncements on Marriage and the
amtly available in one handy and very useful volume.
MICHAEL H. JORDAN, S.J.
�244
BOOK REVIEWS
A GREAT JESUIT
Played by Ear. By Daniel A. Lord, S.J.
Press, 1956. Pp. xiii-398. $4.00.
Chicago, Loyola University
While hospitalized by his final illness Father Lord wrote his autobiography in the unique form of replies to thirteen letters sent him by
parents, nuns, a Jesuit Scholastic, a writer, and a child. By giving his
attention to the problems he answers, the memoirs of the humorous,
loving priest become pleasingly alive. The reader comes to know the
versatile Jesuit by learning what he believes and what he loves, what
he enjoyed and what he suffered, rather than by being told who he is and
what he did.
The three pages devoted to St. Ignatius' concept of a Jesuit explain
the deepest mystery o:f Fr. Lord's driving power. "He dared his fol·
lowers to attempt the liard and to challenge the impossible. He must
have often looked down from heaven to know celestial annoyance when
conservatism, caution, respect for convention, and attachment to things
as they are chained even one of his Jesuit sons." The very force of
these few sentences indicate that all the accomplishments of the ·
author were inspired by one clearly sensed dream. The subsequent
life of Father Lord was making the dream come true and sharing
it with others.
The thousands who did share his vision felt the cheerful, trusting
optimism found on nearly every page of his writings, "My days have
been happy, blessed, fortunate beyond the possibility of gratitude enough
to God, days I would willingly share with others, writing of the goodness
and zest and joy of the years. Without knowing it we lived with God's
arms around us, all of us. Sin became difficult, for goodness and activity
were much more delightful. And after years of life·as a Jesuit, I know
that I would not trade it for any other that man Ii~s ever lived."
But changing the lgnatian idea for himself into reality was of prior
necessity and of greater difficulty. Sometimes the characteristic opti·
mism was buried in trying doubts. Fearless men may be the subjects
of biographies, but intimate autobiographies reveal dread as a part of
man's nature. Father Lord accepted each assignment with reluctance
and apprehension. The external serenity he communicated was the
outcome of struggles. He describes his scruples, sickening nervous at·
tacks following lectures, his terror of surgery, some frustrating failures,
even the 'deep freeze' attitude of some of his fellow Jesuits. The apostle
of happiness had a sensitive, artistic soul which could record, "The
daily carrying of the cross is a personal assignment, not the comrnis·
sion to insist that all others be aware of its shadow and weight. For
years I wrote slowly and painfully. Here (in St. Theresa's life) was
the most attractive sanctity, great suffering leading to great sacrifice.
I cried tears of loneliness and weakness."
As Father Lord recounts his boyhood in the Chicago of the GaY
Nineties, Catholic education, then and now, comes under scrutiny. The
profile of Mr. Pernin, S.J. teaching in the old St. Ignatius College is aS
�BOOK REVIEWS
245
compelling as was that Scholastic's influence on the youthful Dan
Lord. The vivid enthusiasm of novitiate life does not obscure profound
reflections on the religious way of life. Such aspects as common life
and silence are presented in a manner capable of winning hostile critics
or of simply buoying up the discouraged. Years of stern discipline in
composing poetry and in re-writing culminated in Father Lord, the
author, capable of producing 15,000 words per day. The letter, reviewing
his Regency, proves that Mr. Lord, S.J. was resolved to work with
every talent given him. He taught high school and college courses, wrote
and directed school musicals, formed a band, a student council, a yearbook, a school paper, began classes in education at St. Louis University,
and lectured on literatue to adult groups. After his ordination, Father
Lord recalls his efforts to coordinate the moribund sodalities, and to
promulgate their common rules. A more glamorous feature of his
priestly life was his work in Hollywood, first, as technical advisor, then,
as author and advocate of the film industry's censorship code. Father
R. Bakewell Morrison, S.J. has written an Introduction, but no bibliography of books by Father Lord is given.
Non-Catholics will find the life of Father Lord both a challenge to
seek the pearl of great price and an attractive presentation of the
spirit of Christ's Church. Reading of the gay, active boyhood which
nurtured a religious vocation could be a source of peace to young people
who too often assume every vocation involves a painful struggle.
Parents will find that F11ther Lord's· literary abilities beautifully express the love within a family, so strong but often so inarticulate.
Fellow Jesuits will find the secrets of the endurance, zeal, and charity
of a priest whose presence was felt in the developing Church of our
country through retreats, pamphlets, drama, lectures, sodality direction,
and guidance. As his life is relived on paper, we see ourselves small
by comparison, but we feel ourselves greater by association.
ROBERT
Y. O'BRIEN, S.J.
JESUIT MISSIONS IN INDIA
The Jesuits in Mysore. By D. Ferroli, S.J.
1955. 238 pp.
Xavier Press, Kozhikode,
MIn 1648 the first Jesuit priest arrived in the Portuguese mission of
EYsore, an Indian state south of Bombay. For the next 132 years
uropean missionaries labored there to spread Christianity. Every two
?r three years they sent detailed letters on their labors to their Superior
~ Rome, and these letters are the main source of this book. In 1780
ere Were over 20,000 Christians in Mysore. This may seem like a small
:umber. However, added to the small number of missionaries-their
. umber never exceeded thirteen-there were the recurrent persecutions
;nstigated by the Brahmins, the Dazoras, and certain greedy or envious
u!leal kings and officials. Thus the history of the mission is a continual
P·and-down affair, whose real success is known to God alone. The
�246
BOOK REVIEWS
labors of the missionaries were heroic, and were often repaid by outstanding devotion and courage on the part of the native converts. After
the Suppression of the Society, the Jesuits were finally relieved of their
jurisdiction in 1780. Their place was slowly taken over by priests of
various French orders.
Although the book has no index, there is a detailed outline at the
beginning of each chapter. Scattered throughout the book are abundant
incidents describing the varied labors of the Jesuits and the life of the
people. One misses, however, a systematic summary of the missionary
methods employed. Another desideratum is a critical appraisal of the
miraculous events related in the annual letters of the missionaries.
Although it seems clear that the zealous lives of the Jesuits, and the
sincere fervor of the Christians brought down special favors from God,
one wonders how much credence should be given to many of the events
thus narrated.
·
E. L. MOONEY, S.J.
MODERN APOLOGETICS
In Soft Garments. By Ronald A. Knox.
1956. Pp. ix-214. $3.00.
New York, Sheed & Ward;
In the field of modern apologetics, perhaps no name is so widely known
today as that of Monsignor Knox. In Soft Garments is the first collec·
tion of Oxford _Conferences given by Knox, first published in 1942.
Their re-publication is due largely to the enthusiastic reception ac·
corded the second collection of conferences, recently published under the
title of The Hidden Stream. The conferences are not ordered along anY
preconceived plan, but rather deal with intellectual problems that any
Catholic student will have to face.
~ ·
The first two chapters on the proof for the existence of God, and
mind over matter, are among the best in the book. The proof for God's
existence from conscience, is subsequently summed up in a trenchant
question, "Can anything matter, unless there is Somebody who minds?"
There follow chapters on Christ's coming, His claim, miracles, the
marks of the Church-all taken up in the same easy, eminentlY
readable style.
JOSEPH L. RocHE, s.J.
AN ATTAINABLE IDEAL
Helps and Hindrances to Perfection. By Thomas J. Higgins, S.J. Mil·
waukee, Bruce; 1955. Pp. ix-258. $4.50.
.
·s
To many members of the Church Militant the word ••perfectiOn" 1
a hallowed trisyllable that tastes of the vague, unattainable ideal, ~
target perhaps for someone else. Yet Christ's command to be perfec
�247
BOOK REVIEWS
does not leave much room for velleity in the matter. The careful reader
of this second of Father Higgins' volumes-a worthy sequel to his
PeT/ection Is for You-that deal professedly with perfection, becomes
aware of the possibility of fulfillment of Christ's precept by. lay Catholics
as well as by Religious.
The present collection of a dozen essays on the natural hazards and
obstacles in the race to spiritual perfection, deals in a very sane and
sometimes chatty manner with the profundities of faith and the depths
of friendship, with the myrrh of renunciation and reparation, with
patience and pleasure. The striking chapter on Time-that "infinitesimal parenthesis in eternity"-recalls St. Ignatius' attitude on time and
eternity. The daily fare of Catholics should be a balanced diet of work
and contemplation; the author indicates what heights of prayer the diligent athlete of Christ can reach, even outside the monastic gates in
modem America.
The ancient classic poets and Christian spiritual writers, St. Thomas
of Aquin, the first pope and our present one, all meet in these pages
and share their treasures with Father Higgins in developing his themes
from philosophical and theological points of view. Apt scriptural
phrases and texts, with and without quotation marks, happily abound.
The modern educated lay Catholic-and Religious, too-who look for
a sound treatment of some of the hindrances to perfection can find
here an eminently readable initiation into the attitudes to be developed, the aids to be used, the roadblocks to be foreseen and avoided.
Preachers and retreat masters will be tempted to borrow heavily from
the author's abundance. The format and workmanship are typical of
the Bruce Company's excellent techniques. The price may attract a
smaller reading public than the book rightly deserves.
ROBERT
J.
FITZPATRICK,
S.J.
THE CHURCH'S TREASURY
Indulgences. By Winfrid Herbst, S.D.S.
vi-103. $1.50.
Milwaukee, Bruce, 1955.
Pp.
In presenting a summary of the doctrine concerning indulgences,
Father Herbst has added prudent directives for utilizing these resources of the Mystical Body while avoiding the extreme of IBM
spirituality. The well-indexed, paperbound volume explains the source,
~urp~se, significance, objective and subjective conditions for indulgences
escnbed in the 1952 Enchiridion Indulgentiarum and not restricted to
members of designated organizations. Lucid explanations permit any
adult to learn the precise meaning of terms such as Privileged Altar,
~eroic Act, "fulfilling the usual conditions," "prayers for the Pope's
Intentions," etc.
In making the faithful more familiar with the Raccolta, which "as
�BOOK REVIEWS
248
a prayer book, should rank next to the Missal in popularity," two
valuable results ensue: there is given a strong motive for avoiding
venial sin, and the authentic mind of the Church regarding devotional
prayers is discovered. Father Herbst points out the limitation of a
plenary indulgence by affection for venial sin. The Church's esteem for
the Way of the Cross, the Rosary, and All Soul's Day prayer is evident
from the rich remissions of temporal punishment available for specific
practices of these tlevotions. In compressing the products of much study
into a summary there occur some definitions which are inexact in state.
ment, but they are clarified in the subsequent explanations and examples.
ROBERT Y. O'BRIEN, S.J.
-~
IDLE TEARS
Good Christian Men Rejoice. By William Lawson, S.J.
Sheed and Ward, 1955. Pp. 202. $2.50.
New York.
This book is a lesson on happiness, its meaning and attainment. It
has for its object to bring happiness into an unhappy world. The author
is acutely aware that this world is a valley of tears, but he is also
aware that many of the tears are idle, needless tears, and his purpose
is to point out the way to avoiding and transfiguring them. Supernatural
joy, he tells his readers, can and does flower from natural suffering.
There can be rejoicing in the midst of, and in spite of, and even because
of pain and sorrow. To attain this blessedness, however, one must
live the Christian code. It is because men have forgotten the Sermon
on the Mount, and have wandered into pagan bypaths and have sought
to find happiness in the counsels of purely human rather than divine
wisdom that they are wrecking and have wrecked their lives.
Father Lawson teaches his lesson through the ~edium of the Beati·
tudes, and he does so very effectively. His explanation of the Beatitudes
is original, unusual and convincing. He not only makes Our Lord's
revealed truth very clear, he reinforces it with many kindred texts from
the Old and New Testaments. This part of his book will be helpful in
preparing conferences and sermons. Another valuable feature is its
treatment of the faults that militate against happiness. Father Lawson's
knowledge of the follies and frailties of human nature is wide, but
it is a kindly knowledge. He is also well acquainted with the disastrous
effects of trying to compromise with wordly ideals. We have a strict
duty, he tells us, to strive for happiness. Eternal happiness is the corn·
pletion of temporal happiness. But the happiness we should seek is the
happiness embodied in the Beatitudes, the happiness taught by Christ,
happiness in accord with the Christian code.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXV, No. 3
JULY, 1956
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1956
ST. IGNATIUS AS PRIEST AND FOUNDER ____________________________________ 251
William J. Young, S.J.
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS ________________________________________ 265
William C. Repetti, S.J.
NOTES ON THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES ___________________________________________ 281
Hugo Rahner, S.J.
OBITUARY
Father Francis X. Talbot _____________ ------------------------------------------------------- 337
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS·----------------------------------------------------------- 345
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father William J. Young (Chicago Province) is Spiritual Father at
West Baden.
Father William C. Repetti (Maryland Province) is Archivist of
Georgetown University.
Father Hugo Rahner (Upper German Province) is Rector of the
Canisianum at Innsbruck.
Father Louis 1\lounteer (New York Province) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock.
Father Pierre Janvier (Southern Belgian Province) is a Fourth Year
Father at Woodstock. -,
Father John LaFarge. (New York Province) is an Editor of America.
1\lr. Frederick Vernon Murphy, F.A.I.A., is a well-known Washington
architect.
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WOODSTOCK
to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a one·
inch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also 'be-· used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairlY
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these wiii, of course, be returned to the contributor.
LETTERS
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For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Wood•~·
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Year 1
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�St. Ignatius, Priest and Founder
WILLIAM
J. YOUNG, S.J.
THE PRIEST
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
We have been considering various aspects of the life of St.
Ignatius. There is one which it would seem unforgivable to
overlook, for it was one of the most salient features of his
life. I am thinking of St. Ignatius the priest. His love of
the priesthood, one of the proofs of which is the long and
difficult struggle he maintained to reach it, has long been
recognized. In art he is often depicted clothed in sacerdotal
vestments. Painters and sculptors have vied with each other
in portraying this devotion; so one concludes when confronted
with the masterpieces in which they represent the saint in
vestments richer and more precious than any he ever wore.
Ordination
When we speak of priestly functions, we think of Holy
Mass and the Divine Office as the sublimest, of preaching and
the administration of the sacraments as necessary and exalted,
of course; indeed, as indispensable, but on a lower level of
sublimity. It comes, therefore, with the sharp stroke of surprise when we learn how rarely these priestly functions were
exercised, relatively speaking, by St. Ignatius. After the
establishment of the Society and his election as General, his
Preaching, such as it was, seems to have come to a more or
less abrupt end. We hear of no crowds besieging his confessional. To save his eyesight he had to be dispensed from
the obligation of reciting the Divine Office. He showed none
of the eagerness to ascend the altar for his First Mass, which
We have come to associate with the newly ordained levites
of today. In fact, he waited eighteen months, a full year and
~ half after his ordination, before he approached the altar
or the first time-delay which today might even be the
occ .
B as10n of scandal. Once, when asked by Father Antonio
randao how often priests who were still at their studies,
--
Exhortations given at West Baden College
�252
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
should celebrate Mass, he replied on Sundays and feast days
and twice during the week, unless obedience, the common
good, or great devotion moved them to do so oftener (June
1, 1551) !
There seems to be so much about this that needs explanation if we are to justify the high and holy regard for the
priest and his functions with which posterity has enveloped
our holy Father.
Once St. Ignatius had come to see, even obscurely, God's
plans for him, and to understand that those plans included
the priesthood, he began at the age of thirty-three to prepare
himself for it, and·' has left us the richer for the story of
those heroic years- ..of study and preparation. But I think
that we can safely say that at the beginning and all through
the middle of his wayfaring his attitude towards the priest·
hood was not that it was an end to be sought for itself, but
a means to a further end, and that further end was the
greater service and praise of God. Of this he never lost
sight and would have been perfectly willing to surrender his
priesthood and all its marvellous prerogatives and privileges,
if such surrender were more in keeping with God's will and
his own service of the Divine Majesty. There is nothing
in the extant literature about him that would lead us to
believe that his imagination was fired and his feelings
aroused by the thought of his approachi.Jig ordination. In
fact, there seems to be a complete absence of anything we
might call sentiment in connection with this unique experience, no sighs of longing, no movements of impatience at the
slow passage of the years-some thirteen of them-no dreams
of the alter Christus type to sustain his courage, to soften
the pressure of his waiting and to ease the pain of his
longing. His immediate preparation was a forty days retreat
at Vicenza, where as he told Gonc;ales da Camara, with characteristic brevity, he experienced again some of the illumination and consolation he had known at Manresa. His ordination took place at Venice on June 24, 1537, when he was in
his forty-sixth year.
First Mass
And then that interminable wait of eighteen months before
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
253
saying his first Mass! This is not the behavior of a man
who found the passing of the years long, or the postponement
of his standing at the altar a trial to his patience. He
has never explained his action in this instance, and even the
most learned of his biographers, like Father Dudon, have
respected his silence and made no attempt to explain it.
Others have been more inquisitive and more daring, and
have seen in the year's postponement a wish to offer his
First Masses at one of the holy places in Palestine, Bethlehem
perhaps, or the altar raised on Calvary. We know that he
had bound himself by vow to go to the Holy Land if passage
could be had within the year. Before the year had passed,
however, he became embroiled in a court action at Rome
which was particularly vexatious. It was not settled to his
satisfaction until six months after the expiration of the vow,
and it is just possible, as some have conjectured, that the
atmosphere of litigation in which he moved at the time was
not in his thought favorable to the recollection in which he
wished to prepare for his first offering of the Holy Sacrifice.
Be that as it may, we know that it was shortly after the
Roman court had finally passed a formal sentence clearing
himself and his companions of the charges brought against
them by Mudarra and Company that he determined to say
Mass. He chose Christmas Day, and his First Mass was
celebrated in the Chapel of the Manger at St. Mary Major.
This circumstance lends some color of probability to the
conjecture that he had been thinking of Bethlehem as the
scene of his First Mass, and that being impossible, he chose
the altar which sheltered what was then thought and still
is thought by many to be part of the manger in which the
Child Jesus was laid on the night of His first coming into
the world. "We can only guess," says Father Dudon, "with
What feelings his great heart must have throbbed, when for
the first time he held in his hands the Word Incarnate, the
only object of his love." There is not one line from him or
his companions on the impressions of those blessed days,
bt~t We can guess what a sacred colloquy took place between
his Ring, Companion and Priest and him whom He was
~ending to preach to the meek, to heal the contrite of heart,
t~ Preach a release to the captives, and deliverance to them
at are shut up (Is. 61 :1).
�254
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
The Divine Office
We know of his devotion to the Divine Office-what a
means of tender communication it was between his great
soul and the heart of God Himself, so tender that soo~
he could not read the print for the abundance of tears. So
critical did this condition become that in order to save h~
eyesight he had to be dispensed from the recitation of the
Office. That this must have been an affliction to his priestly
soul we can gather from the admission he once made to one
of his companions that so great was his love of the Church's
psalmody that he -sacrificed the common recitation of the
Office in the Society only because he was convinced that such
recitation was against God's will. He spoke so positively
on the point, that I do not think it would be rash to suppose
that he had a revelation on the matter, or at least such an
enlightenment of mind that to disregard it would be more
obstinate than to deny the evidence of his senses.
Certainly it will not be without reason if we surmise that it
was a duty he loved; that it was easy for him to realize that
the Divine Office made him one with the Ecclesia Orans;
that in reciting the Psalms he was actually giving that serv·
ice and praise and glory to God about which, in his Spiritual
Exercises and in his life, he integrated all his thought and
activity, and did it in a medium that was inspired.
There is scarcely a moan of repentanc~, ·a sigh of pity, a
cry of distress, a paeon of praise or a shout of victory that
does not have its echo somewhere in the Book of Psalms. The
Psalmist is the universal man, and in his sin and sorrow
and loneliness and defeat, we find our own sin and sorrow
and loneliness and defeat. And God is there too, with His
patience, His providence, His hand of healing, His unmis·
takable light and His mercy that endureth forever. All the
land is full of His goodness, His trees spread their sha~e
over sleeping pools, His streams murmur as they run, JIJS
light puts the darkness to rout, His fields and His vines are
rich with fulfilment of the springtime's promise, and high
over all is the quieting, feathery softness of His win~s
outspread to protect and defend, as the exile soothes hiS
heartache on the river banks in the land of the strangerd.
Surely, there is no doubt that our blessed Father woul
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
255
wish us to cultivate a deep and abiding love of the Divine
Office. He would have us look upon it not so much as a
task that will soon become a burden, but as a privilege, as
did he, that soon becomes a means of attaining the purpose
of our existence, which he tells us is the praise and service
of God. With us it is, of course, a private duty, but it is
also something more. In reciting the Divine Office the priest
is spokesman for the Church : as the priest prays, so the
Church prays. There is, therefore, a responsibility attached
to this privilege, for we know that graces to the individual
and to the community are made to depend on the fountains
that are released by this official and liturgical praise which
God has placed in the hands of each and every one of His
priests, whether they chant the Office solemnly in choir, or
recite it simply in the privacy of their studies, their gardens,
or their chapels.
Many priests have learned to love their Office. For them
it has become, as it would have been for St. Ignatius, one of
the gladsome experiences of the day-something to look
forward to with eager anticipation, with the expectation of
a sense of relief, of peace, of God's enfolding presence.
Use of the Mass
It would require a soul with something of the same temper
as the soul of Ignatius to understand his appreciation of the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. And we should have to know
something also of the temper of his times to understand
what looks like a kind of indifference on his part as to
Whether he said Mass or no. It can hardly be that daily
Mass was as much taken for granted then as it is today. His
answer to Father Brandao is one indication of that. Another
is his direction for priests in the General Examen, where he
says that although they are to confess once a week, they will
celebrate more frequently. In the Sixth Part of the Constitutions it is laid down that "none shall postpone more than
eight days the reception of communion or the' celebration of
Mass, except for legitimate reasons approved by the SuPerior." This would seem to indicate that daily Mass was
~ot as common a practice then as it is today. The Epitome,
owever, 184, (jf2, says that "priests should so strive to
�256
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
live as to be worthy of celebrating daily, according to an
old custom of the Society." It may, perhaps, be doubtful
that that old custom-usus antiquus-goes back as far as
the days of St. Ignatius. It could certainly be an old custom
without necessarily doing so. But even if this supposition
were true, we should not be justified in drawing the con.
elusion that interest in the Mass and devotion to it were any
less fervent then than they are now with us. At most, it
would simply show that St. Ignatius was, in one sense, a
man of his generation, while in other respects he was
centuries ahead of it.
We cannot help 6eing struck by St. Ignatius' faith in
the impetrative po«rer of the Mass. At the first sign of
difficulty over the approval of the Constitutions, he promised
to have three thousand Masses celebrated to obtain their
approval. What a formidable task this was can be appre·
ciated if we remember that the Society at the time was
made up of a handful of priests, and the first approval
limited their number to sixty. Unless this restriction were
removed and their number increased rather rapidly they
would be occupied an unconscionable time in fulfilling this
obligation. We know how much he relied on the lights he
received during the saying· of his Mass, when he was
wrestling with the problem of poverty to be observed in
our professed houses. The surviving days of..his journal which
deal with this problem are eloquent testimony of the faith
he placed in the Mass as a prayer of petition for light. The
Society has ever shown herself faithful to the example he has
set her, because for four hundred years now each one of her
priests has on September 27 offered the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass in thanksgiving, and St. Ignatius' promise of three
thousand has grown in its fulfilment to many thousand times
that number.
An Anomaly
But we are still confronted with the strange anomaly of a
saint who is hon'ored for his priestly virtues, who has been
an inspiration to the priesthood through four centuries and
yet exercised the sacred functions of the priesthood so rarelY·
It was his very love of the Mass which more than once made
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
257
it unwise or even perilous for him to attempt the Holy
Sacrifice because of the very impetus of the divine transport
which swept him into the bosom of God. He knew that
only in the sacrifice of the altar could he give God the omnis
honor et gloria that was the ceaseless yearning of his priestly
heart. The tears that never failed to flow in abundance
during the course of the Divine Office made its continued
recitation impossible. Is it any wonder that without these
priestly consolations, this priest par excellence should find
the burden of life growing heavier with every privation?
From the time that he assumed the government of the Society,
we hear next to nothing about his preaching and his confessing. His duties as an executive curtailed and eventually
put an end to his activities as an apostle. Without his Mass,
without his Office, without his contact with souls, what was
left for this priest, this apostle, but to die? Most biographers
tell us that he died of fever. A recent biographer, who is a
layman and a poet, asserts unhesitatingly and without qualification that he died of malaria. Another, who is a priest
and no poet, says that he died of love, of the fever which
love had enkindled in his soul, of his longing for God, a
longing that at last became a transport breaking the bonds
that held body and soul together. He died, therefore, in an
ecstacy of desire, as any priest might wish to die, as only a
priest like him could ever die.
THE FOUNDER
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
From Plato and Polybius, through St. Thomas More and Sir
Francis Bacon down to Butler and Wells, our western civiliza!ion has been entertained by satirist or instructed by idealist
In the art of government.
Man by his very nature is
forced to live in communities of some kind, and these communities are impossible without the institution, the observance and the administration of law or custom. If
tribe, clan, club, or nation, or any grouping of these is to
~aintain its identity, and therefore its continued existence,
It rnust, in the common emergencies that are certain to befall,
act with a community of purpose. This it cannot do unless
�258
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
the multiplicity of personal, individual aims is merged into
the unicity of the group. At the very dawn, therefore, of
civilization, mankind is presented with the problem of bringing into harmony two apparent and, often enough, real
irreconcilables-the Many and the One. Broadly speaking
the solving of this problem is the work of the supremest of
arts, the dynamis politike. Perhaps it is its very supremacy
that is responsible for its frequent failure. For man's history and his literature are irrefutable witnesses of his historic inability to govern himself justly and decently. Every
age, and almost every land, has produced its Utopias, those
regretful acknowledginents of failure, those wistful expressions of our unsatisfied longings for justice and peace, those
challenging announcements of our unconquerable search for
liberty, fraternity, equality.
The Constitutions
We have to deal this evening with a document which, because it has succeeded in fulfilling the supernatural aims of
its author, has escaped the notice of the political minded, and
has seldom if ever come to the notice of the dusty but honest
researcher. No student of government would think of considering the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus as a work
of the first importance, and yet they bear ·plainly stamped
upon themselves the mark of a man of genius. They are the
blue prints that have held together a community of men
under the stress of storm and trial and under the pressure
of prosperity and persecution for more than four hundred
years. If their existence was interrupted for the space of a
generation, it was not because of any flaw in their character,
but because of an external force to which they were essentially subject, and this force itself once again breathed life
into the surviving remnants and raised them from their
grave.
The writing of the Constitutions of the Society was reaiiY
the work of a man of genius. St. Ignatius used to admit to
his companions his belief that the founder of every religious
Order was inspired by God. We may suppose him to take the
word inspiration in one of its wider meanings, to signifY
that such men were under a special providence and helped
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
259
with a very special grace, a providence and a grace which
in his case did not release him from the obligation of making
every reasonable effort in the working out of his task. It
would be to misunderstand him completely, as some seem t~
have done, to think of him as meaning that this guidance
of the Holy Spirit was such that he needed no other books
of reference than his crucifix and his Bible. It is a known
fact that he and his secretaries ransacked the histories and
the constitutions and rules of the ancient Orders in their
efforts to glean every grain of wisdom that might be incorporated into the Constitutions of the new Order they were
founding. In fact, besides sparing no effort in their use of
human means as helps, they sought the divine assistance in
prolonged and unremitting prayer.
The late Archbishop of Cincinnati, Most Reverend John
T. McNicholas, O.P., once remarked to one of our Fathers
that the more he learned of our Constitutions the more he
admired the genius of St. Ignatius. And well he might,
for this many-sided man of genius produced a system of
government that has been the admiration of all those who
have had the opportunity to examine it. Time will allow us
this evening to take only a cursory glance at its fundamental
simplicity, but that glance should be enough to assure us that
we have before us the work of no ordinary legislator.
Although its general form of government is monarchical,
the Society presents us with practically every known form
of civilized government incorporated in varying proportions
into her composition, democracy, aristocracy, gerontocracy,
oligarchy, monarchy, even theocracy. St. Ignatius never for
a moment forgot his dependence on Divine Providence, but
for him that dependence is never a pretext excusing him from
the exercise of an ever vigilant prudence. God is all good.
Men are good too. But they are also weak and wilful, and
sometimes ignorant, or let us say, lacking in foresight. Had
Ignatius shown less genius in drawing up this document,
it would have been only because he felt himself inspired to
devise a society along theocratic lines, like Israel of old.
Indeed, there are not lacking those who think he was so
inspired, because of a cryptic answer he gave to their questions about certain arrangements, "I saw it thus at Manresa."
�260
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
Inspiration?
But it is quite plain that his answer was not fully and
clearly understood by them. Whatever he saw at Manresa,
it was not the Society described in the Constitutions confirmed by Julius III, in his Exposcit debitum of 1550. There
was too much investigation, too much discussion, too much
hesitation in the lawgiver at Rome, and too many false beginnings before Rome, if he was really the seer at Manresa
these admirers think he was. In fact, the success at Rome
was his third attempt. The first, at Barcelona was hardly
more than a feint. ·, The second at Alcala showed more
substance, but really·· broke to pieces on the rocks of the
Inquisition at 'Salamanca. The third and final attempt was
planted at Paris, acquired some firmness and cohesion at
Venice, and after escaping Jerusalem, bore its hundredfold
of fruit at Rome. We do not know how much thought,
possibly none at all, Ignatius gave to the Constitutions as
long as there was any possibility of the Holy Land venture
succeeding. It does not seem that this was regarded as a
mere pilgrimage. The purpose was rather to have remained
there in the hope of converting the infidel who was in undisputed possession, a rather quixotic adventure! The successes
in northern Italy, and the possibilities offered by Rome,
changed the current of his thoughts and suggested a closeknit organization that would give stability -and permanence
to their efforts. To Ignatius was committed the task of
drawing up the articles of agreement, which after due
discussion, deliberation and prayer became the Constitutions
as we know them today.
They were the work essentially of Ignatius, and he is their
author. He had the assistance, of course, of a succession of
secretaries, but their work always remained secondary, secre·
tarial. His was the originality, the clinging to tradition when
tradition did not hobble his movements; his the rejection
of tradition when it did. For instance, the great apostolic
Orders of the Friars elected their General Superiors onlY
for a term of years. Ignatius would have his Superior
General elected for life. And his reason? He wanted a man
of such outstanding intellectual, moral and spiritual attain·
ments as could rightly be expected to appear once in a genera·
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
261
tion. He would have a novitiate lasting two full years,
followed by simple but perpetual vows, though no Order of
his day demanded more than one year before the taking of
solemn vows. Not he. No solemn vows in his Society but
for those who had passed through many years of sifting and
trial as a guarantee of their being better than average in
both learning and holiness.
Training or Trial
A great deal is said about the training of the Society. But
St. Ignatius never mentions it. Not so many years ago
one of the great national pictorial weeklies ran an article
on the trainin,g given by the United States Navy at Annapolis
to candidates for commissions. Wishing to give a vivid impression of the sternness of that training the writer of the
article said that it was more like the training of candidates
for the Jesuit Order than anything he could conceive. There
is nothing strange or unusual about that, for we hear our
training spoken of on all sides. You may be surprised to
learn that there is no mention of training in the Constitutions.
I doubt that the word itself (formatio, formacion) occurs.
But we do hear much about probare, probatio, experimentum,
tests and trials. It is certain that St. Ignatius wished his
candidates (all who had not taken their last vows) tested
from time to time, to see whether they had imbibed the
principles of the Spiritual Exercises, which are, as you know,
the first experiment they are expected to undergo. That,
perhaps, for him was training enough, in our sense of the
Word. What he wants after that is an occasional test to
see whether the candidate has organized his life on the
principles there proposed and expounded. The purpose of
the test is, I suppose, to encourage him to do so, if he has
not, and to dismiss him if he refuses to, for it must never
be forgotten throughout all this time, that from the day he
finished his first probation, his second probation began, and
extended, in the broad sense, to the third probation. The
obligations he assumed at the end of his first two years
constituted a unilateral contract binding him, but not the
Society, which reserves the right to dismiss him should he
fail to respond satisfactorily to any of the tests imposed.
�262
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
Who ever heard of anything even approaching this in the
religious life? Orders that admit their novices after one year
of trial to solemn vows, including a vow of stability, may not
dismiss unruly members and must make use of stern measures
to reduce them to obedience.
Ahead of His Time
A few years ago, at the Congress of Religious, held at
Notre Dame, a small group of religious men gathered to
discuss certain problems concerned with the training of
novices and seminarians. The writer of a paper dealing
with the Holy Father's suggestion that some means be devised against the sealing off of these young men from all
contact with the world suggested that a certain amount of
radio and TV entertainment might accomplish that perfectly.
Evidently, he had completely misunderstood the Holy Father's
mind in the matter. It was not that His Holiness wanted
these young men kept in touch with the pleasures and
pastimes of the people of the world, but with their problems,
their pains, their disappointments. One Jesuit wanted to
tell them, but could not, that St. Ignatius offered them a
key for the solution of their problem, and in doing so,
showed himself ahead of his time. In his Constitutions be
provided for such a contact by sending his novices abroad on
a month's pilgrimage, with no more provision for their
journey than a stout pair of boots and a stouter trust in
God's providence. He kept them in touch with the world's
woes by having them serve the sick in the hospitals, and
what hospitals they were, according to modern standards!
He eased the world's ignorance by having them go about
teaching the catechism to children and the unlearned. And
when they were at home, they were employed in the humble
and menial domestic tasks. Their homes were never placed
on inaccessible mountains, or amid unfrequented forests, or
among remote farmlands, or in lonely deserts. Solitude
never seems to nave been a trial to which he wished the
members of his Order subjected. The desert was not part
of their palaestra. Indeed, St. Ignatius seems, as I have
said, to have given very little thought to what we call in our
�PRIEST AND FOUNDER
263
day formal training. He expected his men to have drunk
so deeply at the sources of the Spiritual Exercises, as to
acquire a supreme indifference to all that is not God, a
gallant eagerness to be found always close to the struggling
Christ, at His very side in fact in His battle to promote the
Kingdom of God.
The campaign he has in mind calls for intelligence and
skill and selflessness, especially this last, and these periodic
tests are designed to indicate whether the recruit can fulfil
at least the minimum requirements, which though minimum
are yet high and exacting. After the tests of the novitiate
come those that are scattered throughout the twelve or fourteen years of the second probation, such as the periodic
manifestation of conscience, the faithful and generous giving
of self in a more and more perfect observance of rule. And
last of all, the year of third probation.
Originality of Thought
In all these tests St. Ignatius proved himself a very original thinker. Indeed there was so much that was original
about his concept of the religious life that even to this day
there are some who are unwilling to admit the Society to the
rank of the Religious Orders. But this reluctance is in most
instances due to misunderstanding or ignorance of canon law.
Certainly, one cannot study the Constiutions and fail to see
that St. Ignatius holds before his sons a shining ideal of
exalted holiness.
We may here pause to ask ourselves a practical question
or two. Was it a mistake on the part of Ignatius to make
the ideal so shining that the nearest we can come to it is
only a spotted reality? My own answer is that the ideal has
been achieved often enough, and that the reality is so often
spotted because we have become too unwilling to make the
effort. Instead we resort to a number of cowardly and
comforting distinctions. We seize upon this very distinction
between the ideal and the real to lay a flattering unction to
our souls, deceiving ourselves into thinking that what is true
of the ideal order is not necessarily so of the real; that a
certain obligation may oblige per modum habitWJ, but not
l
�264
PRIEST AND FOUNDER
necessarily per modum actus; that what is valid circa substantiam may not always be so circa circumstantias; that we
must be careful never to allow the letter of the law to kill
the spirit. Habitual recourse to such formulas that enable
us to slip pillows under our elbows to practice easy virtues
on, will make the angels grieve, and to an honest man smacks
of cowardice when confined to his own life and of a kind of
diabolism if used to approve the cowardice of others, and in
the end leads to a pitiful caricature rather than a true image
of a man of the Institute.
The Third Probation
a:
St. Ignatius made final effort to ward off such a catastrophe. This effort he called the third year of probation, or the
school of the heart. What a daring thought that must have
been, that after all these years of testing, there should be a
final test lasting a whole year! Trained priests are kept
encamped for months, to make sure that none of the precious
lessons learned in that first Long Retreat have been forgotten
or laid by; to make sure that they are still men crucified
to the world and to whom the world is crucified, for whom
Christ is all and for whom to die is gain. Lethargy? Folly?
Or is it prudence and foresight? One after another his
innovations of four hundred years ago ar!') becoming the
common practice of today. The very idea of.the tertianship
has inspired some modern congregations of men and women
to give up six or seven weeks of their summer vacation to a
compressed, and in our point of view, an unsatisfactory attempt at a tertianship. But before another century has
passed, the six weeks may have grown into a year, and it
will then be discovered that St. Ignatius was really five
centuries in advance of his time. Maligned, calumniated,
hated by his enemies who are usually the enemies of Christ's
Church as well; mistrusted, misinterpreted, opposed and disliked by those who feel themselves supplanted and surpassed,
this man of genius continues on his victorious way, unperturbed, undismay.ed, large-minded, openhearted, and when
another four hundred years have been added to the past,
he will be found to be still in the van of religious thinkers
and legislators.
�Georgetow·n and the Presidents
W. C. REPETTI, S.J.
An old Georgetown tradition states that all of the presidents of the United States visited the College. Sometimes
the tradition gives a further detail, that the visits occurred
during the term of office of the presidents. A later variation
tells that the visits were uninterrupted up to the presidency
of Woodrow Wilson. Eight years of work in the Georgetown
archives, however, have not produced evidence that half of
the presidents made such visits.
In connection with the presidents it is of interest to know
that the Georgetown Archives has a book containing a letter,
note, or signature of every president. The book is bound in
dark blue leather, with the seal of the college embossed in
gold, and it has blue sheets with plastic protective covers.
The title, Autographs of the Presidents, is also in gold.
George Washington
When Washington completed his second term as president,
before retiring to Mount Vernon, he held on March 15, 1797,
a public reception in Georgetown. The President and Faculty
of the College joined with the citizens in paying their respects, and. the archives has a copy of the address made by
Father Louis Dubourg and Washington's reply. Washington's visit to the college on August 7, 1797, may have been
in the nature of a return compliment, or was due to the fact
that two of his nephews, Bushrod and Augustine, had been
students in the school. Washington's published diaries record
that he was in Georgetown on August 6 and 7, 1797, but they
Inake no mention of the visit. It could not have been much
e~rlier, because Robert Walsh, who read a poem on the occaSion of the visit, did not enter the school until June, 1797;
and it could not have been much later, because Mr. (after:ards Father) William Matthews, who met Washington, went
0
the seminary in Baltimore in September, 1797.
. The traditionalists take pleasure in calling attention to a
lllcture which shows Washington addressing the students
from the porch of the Old North building. They fail to point
~ut that the date, 1796, given on the picture is erroneous;
hey fail to mention that early pictures of the building do not
�266
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
show such a porch; and further, it was not until 1893 that
the quadrangle was cut down to the level shown in the picture.
The letter written by Washington and preserved in the book
of autographs is dated, Philadelphia, December 2, 1791, and
addressed to Daniel Carroll of Duddington. This Daniel Carroll was a cousin of Archbishop John Carroll and the Dud dington Manor house was on the second block southwest of the
present Providence Hospital. Daniel had built, or commenced
to build, a house which encroached on New Jersey Avenue,
as planned by Pierre-Charles L'Enfant, and the latter
promptly demolished the house. This led to bad feeling and
Washington's letter.'was an effort to placate Daniel. He re·
marked, "It woul(r be unfortunate if disputes amongst
friends to the federal City should arm the enemies of it with
weapons to wound it." Daniel's house was rebuilt back of the
street line. When he died he was buried in the old Trinity
parish cemetery on the Georgetown Campus, and his remains
were transferred to Mt. Olivet Cemetery in 1888.
Adams, Jefferson, Monroe
The letter ,of President John Adams in the Georgetown
archives is dated, Philadelphia, March 17, 1800, is addressed
to Rev. Mr. John B. Sim, and expresses thanks for a poem
in honor of the late George Washington. Adams could
scarcely be expected to pay a visit to a Je~_uit institution, if
he could avoid it. Writing to Thomas Jefferson on May 6,
1816, he delivered himself of the following comment, "If anY
congregation of men could merit eternal perdition on earth
and in hell, it is this company of Loyola."
President Thomas Jefferson's letter in the archives was
written at Monticello, July 23, 1815, and is addressed to :Mr.
Bernard McMahon, asking him to attend to the forwarding
of a package of seeds. Jefferson's reply, on August 6, 1816,
to the letter of Adams' quoted above, shows that he would
not have relished a visit to Georgetown any more than Adams.
He wrote, "I dislike with you the restoration of the Jesuits,
because it makes a retrograde step from light towards dark·
ness."
The presidential book contains a check of James Madison
for $100 in favor of Abraham Eddins, dated August 14, 1814,
and drawn on the Bank of Columbia.
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
267
The letter of James Monroe in our presidential book was
written on February 13, 1811, while he was Governor of Virginia, and certified that James Hagerty was a native of the
Commonwealth of Virginia. The document is fortified with
an official paper seal.
John Quincy Adams
Adams served one term, 1825-1829, and was present at
two Georgetown commencements, July 25, 1825, and July 30,
1827. At the commencement of 1825, besides the President,
the Secretary of State and members of the diplomatic corps
attended. Reporting the event, the National Journal, in the
style of the day, said: "The President of the United States,
with a readiness and satisfaction which really added to the
dignity of his character, at the request of the President of
the College, consented to distribute the premiums to those
to whom they had been adjudged; and if we can augur from
the unsophisticated countenances of innocent youth, the favor
and kind feeling which his benevolent countenance expressed
could never be effaced from their minds."
Andrew Jackson
The presidential book contains the ending of a letter by
Jackson. On May 30, 1829, Bishop Benedict Fenwick, S.J.,
of Boston, and Father John W. Beschter, Rector of Georgetown College, called at the White House and were graciously
received by President Jackson. In 1829 the Commencement
was held on July 28 and an invitation was extended to the
President, which he accepted, but sickness prevented him
from attending. John Gilmary Shea gives the letters in his
history of the College, but the originals have disappeared.
Jackson could conquer the British at New Orleans but he
could not do much with his nephew and ward, Andrew Jackson Hutchins. This youth had been expelled from two colleges, and we read in a life of Jackson that he placed Andrew,
"in a Catholic institution in Georgetown, hoping the strict
discipline would be a good thing." Under date of November
~· 1829, in the Entrance Book it is recorded that Andrew,
bPays according to the prospectus, is furnished with a bed,
.,rought no spoon." In May 9, 1830, Andrew left Georgetown,
at the request of the faculty," we are told in the Life of Jack-
�268
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
son by Marquis James. He then went to the University of
Virginia only to be dismissed again.
Van Buren, Harrison, Tyler
The Presidential book contains the end portion of a letter
of President Martin Van Buren of which the date is not
clear, signed "M. V. Buren." While he was Secretary of
State he placed two of his sons, John and Smith Thompson,
at Georgetown College. The Entrance Book, under date of
January 11, 1830, has the following, "Sons of Martin Van
Buren, Secretary of State to pay according to prospectus,
furnished with bep' and silver spoon." The Dictionary of
American Biography gives John's scholastic record: he was
sent first to the Albany public schools, then to Albany Acad·
emy, whence he went to Yale. In college, he drank and
gambled freely, studied little, worried the authorities, and
cost his father unnecessary expense and sleepless nights. The
boys left Georgetown on July 27, 1830.
William Henry Harrison was inaugurated on March 4,
1841, and died one month later. The Presidential book con·
tains a check, entirely in his handwriting.
John Tyler- succeeded Harrison and was present at the
Georgetown College Commencement on July 26, 1841. A
contemporary newspaper account tells us that there were
addresses in Greek, Spanish, French and ,English. The same
account describes the address of John O'Neill in the follow·
ing terms, "Ireland was warmly vindicated by Mr. John
O'Neill whose beautiful oration was well remembered by his
hearers. An ardent temperament, a rich imagination, a fancy
coruscating like the rocket which bursts upon a darkened
sky, a just taste, and ample research, fitted him to pronounce
the merits of the island gem of the ocean." And further on
we are told, "The President of the United States who at·
tended during the whole time honored the institution and its
scholars by dispensing the premiums and diplomas; thus
exhibiting that respect to religion and to literature which re·
fleets credit on ·his station, exalted as it is." John Howard
Payne, the author of "Home, Sweet Home" was also present.
The letter of Tyler which is preserved in the presidential
book was written in Washington on September 16, 1841, and
recommends William Denby of Richmond, and his two sons
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
269
"whom he proposes to place at Georgetown College." One of
these sons, Charles, later became Minister to China. Tyler
again attended the Commencement of July 26, 1842. His son
became a student of the college as we learn from the Entrance
Book, "October 23, 1843. Entered this day Tazewell Tyler,
son of his Excell. John Tyler, President of the U. States.
Pays according to the prospectus." He left the college at the
end of the scholastic year, July 26, 1844.
James K. Polk
Polk was President, 1845-1849. He was invited to attend
the Annual Commencement in 1845, and his acceptance read
as follows, "I have had the honour to receive your note inviting me on behalf of the President and Faculty of Georgetown College to attend the Annual Commencement of their
institution on the 24th instant, and to preside at the usual
distribution of dipolmas and premiums. It would give me
pleasure to be present, though I must ask to be permitted to
decline to preside on the occasion."
Under date of September 11, 1845, the Entrance Book has
the following, "Entered this date Master Marshall T. Polk,
nephew and ward of his Excellency James K. Polk, President
of the U.S. Paid at entrance $150." Polk's Diary contains
the following entries, "The President, in company with Judge
Mason and the President's nephew and ward, Master Marshall
T. Polk, visited Georgetown College where the President had
determined to place M. T. Polk at school. The President paid
to Mr. Mulledy, the President of the College, $150 to pay his
tuition, board, books, etc., for the next session which was to
commence on Monday, the 15th Sept., 1845. September 28,
1845. The President and Mrs. Polk rode to Georgetown Colle.ge about 5 o'clock P.M. to see Marshall T. Polk, Jr.; found
hJm very well and well satisfied. Sunday, October 12, 1845.
Attended the First Presbyterian Church today with Mrs.
Polk and Mrs. J. Knox Walker and M. T. Polk who had come
on a visit from Georgetown College."
p The presidential book contains the following letter from
resident Polk to Revd. Mr. Mulledy, "My nephew Marshall
T. Polk requests me to ask your permission for him to visit
lt!e on Tuesday next, which he informs me is a holiday in
College. If his classmate, Master Yell, desires to accompany
�270
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
him, will you permit him to do so?" It is dated October 18,
1846.
Taylor, Fillmore, Pierce
Zachary Taylor (1849-1853) attended the Annual Com.
mencement July 24, 1849. The House Diary records that he
visited the College on October 5, 1849, and classes were dismissed in the afternoon. The presidential book contains an interesting letter from him to Father James Ryder under date of
October 12, 1849, "You will accept my best thanks for the
handsome present of wine of your college, a present the more
valuable since I ha.._ve seen the vineyard and the means em·
ployed in producing this domestic beverage. Absence in Baltimore has prevented an earlier acknowledgement of your kind
attention. Please accept with this my warmest wishes for the
health and prosperity of yourself and those under your
charge."
President Taylor died on July 9, 1850, and was succeeded
by Millard Fillmore. The presidential book contains the fol·
lowing:
Buffalo, N. York.
Dec. 31, 1866.
John Gilmary Shea.
Dr. Sir;
.
I enclose my check for $3 for the Historical-Magazine for 1867.
Please to acknowledge the receipt of this.
Respectfully Yours,
Millard Fillmore.
Franklin Pierce (1853-1857) attended the Annual Com·
mencement on July 11, 1854. The House Diary notes that after
the Commencement, dinner was served in the Community Re·
fectory to guests and graduates, and in the Students' Re·
fectory to the boarders, musicians and constables. It does
not say that the President attended the dinner.
The President visited the college on June 5, 1856, and we
find only the terse note in the House Diary : "Praeses
Reipublicae nos invisit." And again on November 6, 1856,
the Diary records: "Illustrissimus Pierce Praeses Rei publicae
nos invisit." On December 4, 1856, the Cadets marched to
the White House to visit the President, but we have no de-
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
271
tails of the event. The President had been invited to attend
the commencement of 1856, but did not come, as explained
in the following newspaper clipping, "A note was received
from President Pierce apologizing for his inability, in consequence of the inclemency of the weather, and press of official
business, to be present, as was expected, and informing them
of his regrets at the unexpected disappointment."
James Buchanan
James Buchanan 1857-1861 while holding the office of
Secretary of State enrolled a nephew, Joseph B. Henry, at
Georgetown College on September 22, 1846. The boy remained two years. In the course of a letter, dated December
14, 1847, addressed to Father James Ryder, Buchanan discussed the question of a representative at the Vatican, and,
in the course of the letter, remarked, "If my opinion be of any
value it is well known that I have entrusted to a college of
Jesuits the education of a nephew to whom I stand in the
relation of a parent, being myself childless, in preference to
sending him to any other Institution. And this, though I am
a Presbyterian! Such an act speaks louder than words."
Buchanan attended the Annual Commencement on July 7,
1857, and a long description of the event was carried by the
Catholic Miscellany of Charleston, S.C., of which the following is a small portion, "The large exhibition hall was gorgeously decorated; the audience was immense and brilliant;
and the charms of eloquence and music enraptured ear, mind
and heart, during the six hours occupied by the exercises.
The valedictory was one of the most beautiful and heartgushing farewell addresses to which I ever listened, the tribute to the Reverend Professors of the College was a masterpiece of heart eloquence, and caused many a dewy drop to
sparkle in the eyes of the hearers." The Secretary of the
Treasury, the Secretary of the Interior and the Attorney
General were also present.
On October 19, 1857, the College Cadets marched to the
White House to pay their respects to the President. He was
invited to the Commencement of 1858, but sent the following
reply to Father Bernard Maguire, "I am very sorry to say
that the state of my health is such that I can not think, in
this hot weather, of passing two days in succession in a
�272
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
crowd. I can assure you it would afford me very great pleasure to be with you on Wednesday, but I feel obliged to be
with the Ladies on Thursday. I hope to enjoy the pleasure of
meeting you there; but I trust I shall not again require to be
taught by you how not to place a crown on a lady's head,
wrong end foremost."
The Ladies to whom he referred were the Students of the
Visitation Academy, where his niece, Harriet Lane, had been
a student. Harriet took it on herself to write to Father
Maguire, "I am very sorry to say that the President finds it
impossible to visit the College today-and as you will not
allow me to distribute the diplomas or premiums or make
myself useful in any-way, I thought it best to remain at home
also. But really we both regret not being able to accept your
very kind invitation for today. The President's business is
so pressing and I too far away to get off alone. We hope to
have the pleasure of seeing you at our country home."
Buchanan was invited to the commencement of July 6,
1859, and was able to attend. Father Clement Lancaster,
S.J., graduated that year and recalled that he was beginning
to speak when the President entered. The speech was inter·
rupted by the ln.usic of the Marine Band and the cheers of
the audience. The· President, with the courtesy for which
he was distinguished, having acknowledged the greeting,
turned to the orator and said, "Now the young gentleman
from Pennsylvania will please to continue- llis oration." In
January, 1859, the Cadets again marched to the White House
and were received by the President in the East Room.
Lincoln, Johnson, Grant
The 69th New York Regiment occupied the College from
May 4 to June 4, 1861, and on May 8th President Abraham
Lincoln came to the College to review the Regiment. In the
presidential book there is a card dated April 29, 1864, on
which Lincoln wrote, "Allow Mrs. Wm. R. Smith, late Miss
Easby, pass our lines and to go to New Orleans." Mrs. Smith,
late Easby, was the mother of James Easby-Smith, who grad·
uated from the College in 1891, and was awarded the degree
of M.A. in 1892, of LL.B. in 1893, of LL.M. in 1894, and of
LL.D. in 1920. Mrs. Smith was also the grandmother of
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
273
Rev. Russell W. Wilson, S.J. of the California Province, currently on the faculty of the University.
The presidential book contains the appointment of Buckingham Smith to the office of Tax Commissioner of Florida,
signed by Andrew Johnson, June 18, 1866. On November 5,
1866, Andrew F. Johnson, son of the President was enrolled
in Georgetown College and remained three years. The House
Diary for July 3, 1867, has the entry: "Exhibition day.
President Johnson came at 12, made a speech, took a collation
and left."
The presidential book contains a note from the Executive
Mansion, Washington, D. C. and dated February 23, 1872. It
is signed "U. S. Grant" and thanks a Mr. F. W. Bogen for
sending a copy of his book, The German in America.
President Ulysses S. Grant attended the Commencement
of 1869, and the House Diary has only this to say, "July 1,
1869. Exhibition Day. President Grant distributed the
prizes. Ex-President Johnson arrived after the students had
left the hall." The newspaper accounts give more details,
among which is the following, "It was expected that ex-President Johnson, one of whose sons is a pupil of the preparatory
school, would be present, and a seat was accordingly reserved
for him next to that of President Grant. Owing to a detention, Mr. Johnson did not reach the grounds until the exercises were just closing." Another account tells us that, "President Grant was present and conferred the degrees and diplomas to the graduating class and distributed the prizes to the
students." The program is then given and the address of the
Rector, who said, among other things, that he, "thanked the
President for his presence on this occasion. It was a comPliment they should appreciate and treasure up as a sweet
memory. It was a privilege this College has enjoyed for
seventy years. They had been honored with every president
from General Washington to President Grant." This last
dogmatic statement shows how some traditions are born.
Hayes, Garfield, Arthur
Rutherford B. Hayes 1879-1883 attended the commencement on June 26, 1879, and on July 16, Father Mullaly, the
Acting Rector wrote to Father Healy, who was in California
�274
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
at the time, "The Commencement was held in the new hall.
The speeches were very good but there was a lack of vim in
the delivery which detracted considerably from the merit
of the pieces. Duffy did very well in the valedictory, the
manner and matter were equally good. I had determined
after consulting several of Ours and outsiders not to invite
the President, but further thought of it, and especially of
what you would do in the case, induced me to change my
mind and show him the courtesy due to his office by calling
and tending the invitation. Mr. Rodgers, whom I saw first,
told me that he thought he would go and he procured an
interview for me. ~The President said he would be glad to
go if in town and riot kept too busy by Congress. He then
spoke in great praise of the new building through which from
cellar to garret he and Mr. Rodgers had gone quietly and
alone. He arrived accompanied by Mr. Devens just as we
were taking our places on the stage. He seemed to be much
pleased with everything. At the end I invited him to confer
the degrees and deliver the medals and premiums. I requested
him to say a few words but he begged to be excused. So there
was no speaking at the close of the exercises. The stage was
well filled with old graduates and others. There was a lunch,
as formerly, except for the President and Mr. Devens whom
I invited to your room for a glass of wine and cake, of which
they partook heartily. Mrs. Hayes was nQt along."
The presidential book contains a note -written by Hayes
from Fremont, Ohio, 17 June 1886, and is of little value ex·
cept to complete the book,
Dear Sir:
Mrs. Hayes and I have been absent during the last few weeks
so much that our correspondence is in a shocking state. I look
at the pile of unanswered letters and wonder I can ever get
abreast of this duty again. How soon must the matter you require
be furnished ?
Sincerely,
R. B. Hayes.
Mrs. Holloway;
James A. Garfleld was inaugurated on March 4, 1881, and
was shot by Charles Guiteau on July 3 of the same year, and
so it is not surprising that Georgetown was not honored bY
a visit from him. He was standing, when attacked, in the
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
275
waiting room of the Baltimore and Potomac Station, at the
southwest corner of 6th and B streets, N.W., a site now
occupied by the National Art Gallery. Two metal stars were
placed in the floor of the Station to show where he had been
standing and where he fell. Guiteau was a disappointed office
seeker and the Georgetown Archives have some of his letters
to his attorney. The presidential book contains a note written
by Garfield to a Mrs. Sherman under date of September 28,
1878. It has nothing to do with Georgetown.
Garfield died on September 19, 1881, and Chester Alan
Arthur took the oath of office on the 20th. The presidential
book contains a letter written by him when he was Quartermaster General during the Civil War, again without reference to Georgetown.
Grover Cleveland
Cleveland attended the Annual Commencement, June 27,
1887, and was accompanied by the Assistant Postmaster General Knox and the Assistant Attorney General Montgomery.
The degrees were given by the President.
The President attended on the third day, February 22,
1889, of the Centennial Celebration of the University. The
account, much abbreviated, from Shea's history follows,
"Shortly after two o'clock the Reverend Rector left the College to bring President Cleveland and Secretary Bayard to
the closing exercises. The presidential party was met at
Washington Circle by the Cadets and the Marine Band and
was escorted by them to the College. As they entered the
gate, the cannon thundered forth a noisy welcome while the
great bells in the central tower rang out their changes until
it seemed as though the granite walls of the new building
Would burst for very joy. Father Gillespie ushered President Cleveland up the great porch to the hallway, whence
they proceeded to the Rector's Office. After a few moments
the President, arm in arm with Cardinal Gibbons, entered
the hall. The President made a short address at the end of
the exercises and then proceeded to the Coleman Museum for
a reception to the alumni and their friends."
The presidential book contains a letter written by Cleveland
to Father J. Havens Richards from Princeton, New Jersey,
�276
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
February 19, 1898, "Your Hospital project commends itself
to me in the fullest possible way, and it would gratify me
to aid it in a substantial manner. I cannot, or rather will
not, justify my failure to contribute except by confessing
that my pecuniary condition is so straitened and the necessary
demands upon my income so numerous, that I am forced to
decline indulgence in such charitable ways."
Harrison, McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt
The presidential book contains a letter of Benjamin Harrison written from the White House, September 24, 1892, to
Whitelaw Reid, but it has no reference to, or connection with,
the University. We~ have found no record of a visit to Georgetown University by Cleveland during his second term.
William McKinley's letter in our presidential book was written in Canton, Ohio, dated July 17, 1880, and is to a personal
friend, and is of no further interest to Georgetown. McKinley
attended the Annual Commencement on June 23, 1897, which
was also attended by Attorney General Joseph McKenna,
Secretary John Sherman, Secretary James Wilson and Secretary Lyman Gage. The following is a short extract from
a newspaper account, "It was just 10:30 o'clock when President McKinley, accompanied by Mr. Porter, his secretary,
reached the hall. The bachelor's oration was in progress.
The entire audience arose and cheered and.'clapped, to which
President McKinley graciously responded ..- President McKinley was present not only as an honored guest, but to discharge an important function, the bestowal of the honors
upon the graduates." On June 28, 1897, a note came from
the White House stating, "The President greatly enjoyed
his visit to your University and is much gratified by your
cordial reference to the part he took in your Commencement
Exercises."
The presidential book contains the following note, dated
December 19, 1904, from President Theodore Roosevelt to
Father Jerome Daugherty, "I am particularly grateful to you
for having been the means of presenting me that atlas. 1
prize it greatly." The atlas to which reference is made maY
have been Father John G. Hagen's Atlas of Variable Stars.
On June 14, 1906, President Roosevelt attended the Annual
Commencement, accompanied by Secretary of the NaVY•
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
277
Charles Bonaparte, and Justice Edward D. White. Charles
Bonaparte was a descendant of Napoleon's brother Jerome and
Elizabeth Patterson of Baltimore, the marriage having been
performed by Archbishop John Carroll. Later on, Jerome
submitted to an imperial annulment and took another woman.
In introducing President Roosevelt, Father David H. Buel
helped to perpetuate the old myth that "all the presidents,
with the exception of two, had visited the University during
their incumbency in office." He did not specify the two, nor
did he mention as visitors, John Adams, Jefferson, Monroe,
Madison, William Henry Harrison, Fillmore or Arthur. An
extract from a news account states, "The President delivered
an address in a happy vein, which was received with great
enthusiasm. In concluding he begged the indulgence of the
audience for the use of athletic language in impressing a
final injunction upon the members of the graduating class
for their life motto. He said to them, 'Don't flinch, don't foul,
and hit the line hard.' "
Taft, Wilson, Harding, Coolidge
William H. Taft (1909-1913) was invited to be present
at the unveiling of the statue of Archbishop John Carroll,
and in the presidential book we find a letter to Father
Alphonsus J. Donlon, dated April 30, 1912, stating, "I now
find that my engagements will take me out of the city on
May 4th, and, it will, therefore, not be possible for me to participate in the ceremonies incident to the unveiling of the
Bishop Carroll Monument." Two days before the end of his
term, Taft made it a point to visit Georgetown, and the
liouse Diary has the following entry, "Sunday. March 2,
1913. Wm. H. Taft addressed the students of the various
departments of the University at 5:45 P.M. in Gaston Hall,
after having received the members of the different Faculties
Presented to him in the large parlor. The hall was packed.
A banquet, combined with the Provincial's feast, was tendered
to the Apostolic Delegate and Chief Justice White after the
President had left."
W
The presidential book contains a letter from President
oodrow Wilson to William G. McAdoo, Secretary of the
~reasury, approving the idea of a conference of Central and
outh American governments on business matters. It is
�278
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
dated November 3, 1914. President Wilson's handling of the
Mexican situation would not have been a recommendation
for honor by any Catholic institution.
The presidential book contains a personal note written in
Marian, Ohio, Aug. 3, to "My dear Harry" which informs
the latter that President Warren G. Harding will be present
at some event.
President Calvin Coolidge attended the Annual Commencement of June 9, 1924, at which he spoke, and a newspaper
account summarized his speech as follows, "There must be
loyalty to the family; loyalty to the various civic organizations of society; loyalty to the government which means,
first of all, the observAnce of its laws; and loyalty to religion."
The presidential book contains the appointment of Father
Charles Lyons, S.J., by President Coolidge to the United
States Bunker Hill Sesquicentennial Commission, dated
March 10, 1925. The other members of the Commission were
Mrs. Helen Rogers Reid of New York and Mr. Isaac T. Mann
of West Virginia. The appointment is fortified with a large
paper seal of the United States. In April, 1925, Father Lyons
was the recipient of a gift of Easter flowers from the White
House. The attached card was engraved, "White House.
Washington," at the top, below which is a picture of the front
of the White House, and below that, "To Father Lyons.
Georgetown University." At least on one qccasion, January
20, 1927, Father Lyons dined at the White Iloilse. The dinner
was attended by several Justices of the Supreme Court and
some socially prominent persons of Washington. The dinner
was followed by a musicale.
Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt
Herbert C. Hoover (1929-1933) attended the Commence·
ment of June 8, 1926, when he held the office of Secretary of
Commerce, and was awarded the degree of LL.D. in recog·
nition of his promotion of foreign trade and meritorious serv·
ice to humanity in Belgium, Poland, Armenia, the Balkan
states and Russia. On March 12, 1932, when the country W~
suffering from the depression, Father W. Coleman Nevils
~rote to the President, informing him that a decision had
been reached to erect a recitation hall, although only a portion
of the necessary funds was in hand, and thus, said Father
�GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
!
279
Nevils, "we shall be able to keep employed an average of three
hundred and ninety-five men for nine or ten months." Hoover
replied on March 14, 1932, "Your letter of March 12th is
most encouraging and I write to thank you very much indeed
for your kindness in sending it to me."
VVe gather from correspondence in the archives that the
Board of Regents of the University was not unanimously in
favor of extending an invitation to the President, Franklin
D. Roosevelt to visit the University. Nevertheless, a special
invitation was sent, inviting him to attend the Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1939. He replied to Father Arthur O'Leary
on April 25, 1939, "I regret exceedingly that a very heavy
schedule of official duties running well into the month of June
prevents my acceptance of the kind invitation of the President and Directors of Georgetown College to participate in
the commemoration of the Sesquicentenial of the first Catholic
college in the United States." In a second paragraph he noted
the coincidence of this Sesquicentennial with that of the
adoption of the Federal Constitution, and hopes that it will
inspire new zeal. The presidential book contains a letter
from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Father Laurence C. Gorman,
dated March 24, 1945, "I have this day approved H. R. 2506,
'an Act to amend an Act Regulating the Height of Buildings
in the District of Columbia, approved June 1, 1910, as
amended', and am sending to you the pen with which it was
signed." This bill, amending the restriction on height of
buildings, was passed in order to allow the desired height of
the new Hospital.
Truman and Eisenhower
At the commencement on June 17, 1945, the degree of
LL.D. was conferred on President Harry S. Truman, but it
Was imposible for him to be present because the War was
still in progress and he had been in office only two months.
lie Was represented by the Hon. Dennis Chavez, Senator from
New Mexico, and graduate of the Georgetown Law School. On
August 11, 1945, President Truman wrote a note of thanks
t~ Father Paul McNally for "a thoughtful message" sent by
~Im .. The presidential book contains the following letter from
resident Truman to Father Hunter Guthrie, dated June 28,
1949, "It was certainly kind and thoughtful of you to send
�280
GEORGETOWN AND THE PRESIDENTS
me a copy of Georgetown University's Ye Domesday Book of
1949. It is a wonderful book and the pictures of the Inauguration are highly appreciated by me. I shall put it with my historical collection." On December 1, 1947, President Truman
unveiled a plaque in the Children's Wing of the New Hospital,
which was dedicated to Franklin D. Roosevelt, and to the
equipment of which the CIO had contributed $55,000.
On November 17, 1952, President-Elect Dwight D. Eisenhower acknowledged a note of congratulation from Father
Edward B. Bunn, Rector of the University. On Inauguration
Day, January 20, 1953, the Inaugural Ball was held in two
places, in the National Guard Armory and in the McDonough
Gymnasium at Georgetown. The President and his party
went to the Armory for the early part of the evening and
did not arrive at the Gymnasium until after 11 P.M. He went
first to the Alumni Lounge where he received Father Rector
and a number of invited guests, after which he proceeded to
the east gallery of the gymnasium where he could see and be
seen by all.
President Eisenhower was the guest of honor at the banquet of the United States Chamber of Commerce held in the
McDonough Gymnasium on April 29, 1953. Just at that time
the Junior Class of the College was having its campaign for
class officers. Frank Van Steenberg, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, was a candidate for the office of pre-sident of the class.
When the first course of the banquet had been served and
the plates were removed, President Eisenhower found one
of Van Steenberg's cards at his place, and he made a joking
reference to it before he began his speech. The Secret Service
men were at wit's end. It was learned that the caterer had
engaged some of the students to assist in setting up the tables,
and a friend of Van Steenberg put the card under the President's plate.
It has been the practice of some rectors of Georgetown,
shortly after taking office, to call on the President and thus
become acquainted. There is no record of the number of times
that this has been done, and it is just as well that names be
not given; otherwise, in the course of time, it would be char·
acterized as one of the old Georgetown traditions dating back
to the time of George Washington.
�Notes on the Spiritual Exercises
HUGO
RAHNER, S. J.
FOREWORD
Father Hugo Raimer has kindly authorized this translation
of his typewritten notes on the Exercises. The translation is
the work of Father Louis Mounteer, who used a French translation as well as the German original. Father Pierre Jan vier
assisted the translator with a portion of the work. Bibliographical additions in the French text have been retained and
some English titles included.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS wish to express sincere thanks to
Father Rahner for these rich and enlightening pages which
should be read in connection with his The Spiritudity of St.
Ignatius Loyola (Westminster, 1953). They will help our
readers to acquire that familiarity with the Exercises which
is prescribed in the Regulae Sacerdotum: "Intelligant sibi
ratione peculiari incumbere ut Exercitiorum Spiritualium,
quae tantopere ad Dei obsequium conferre cernuntur, usum
valde familiarem habeant."
ABBREVIATIONS
Numbers without further reference refer to the marginal numbers
bf the Exercises given in Spanish-Latin text of Marietti (Turin, 1928)
and reproduced by L. J. Puhl, S.J. in his translation of the Exercises
(Westminster, 1951) .
. Confessions of St. Ignatius, also called Autobiography and Testament
In English, are referred to according to the numbered edition in Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu, 66 (Rome, 1943) 355 ff.
_Rahner refers to his The Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola (Westnunster, 1953).
·
MH_ Ex refers to the Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu, Monumenta
1
Ynattana, Series Secunda, 1 (Madrid, 1919), Exercitia Spiritualia et
eorum Directoria.
SH refers to G. Harrasser, Studien zu den Exerzitien des hl. Ignatius,
1
' (Innsbruck, 1925).
Ds refers to Dictionnaire de Spiritualite.
~AM refers to Revue d'Ascetique et de Mystique.
zRT refers to Nouvelle Revue Theologique.
refers to Zeitschrift fur Askese und Mystik.
c!TH refers to Zeitschrift fur katholische Theologie.
1906 E refers to Collection de la Bibliotheque des Exercises (Enghien,
/M
·1926).
�282
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
CHAPTER I
GENESIS OF THE BOOK OF THE EXERCISES
First Period: Loyola
The first period goes back to the days at Loyola and was a
result of the personal ascetical experience of Ignatius.
Texts
"There could not be found in the house a single one of
the books he was used to reading but they gave him a book
entitled Vita Christi. and another, Flos Sanctorum, both in
the vernacular. From frequent reading of these books he
acquired an interest in the matters treated in them. He interrupted his reading at times to go back over the worldly things
he used to think about." (Confessions 5 f.)
"There was, however, this difference. When he was dwell·
ing on the worldly day dream he found much pleasure, but,
when tired out, he ceased to think of that, he found himself
arid and discontented; and when he imagined going bare·
footed to Jerusalem and eating only herbs and doing all the
penances which he saw the saints had done, he was con·
tented and joyful not only in such thoughts but after, wearied,
he had ceased to dwell upon them. At first, however, he did
not really weigh that difference, until one time his eyes were
a little opened and he commenced to wonder at that difference
and to reflect on it, catching hold by experience of the fact
that after one sort of thoughts he remained sad and after
the others joyful, and so, little by little, coming to know the
diversity of spirits which moved him; the one of God, the
other of the devil." (Confessions 8)
"However, Our Lord helped him, bringing about that t~
these thoughts there succeeded others which were born °d
what he had read. Because reading the Life of Our Lord a~d
of the Saints, he thought, talking with himself, 'How wou d
it b~ ~f I . did what Blessed Francis did, or what Bl~sses.
Dommie did?' And thus he considered many good thJn~:
And always he proposed to himself difficult and hard tas e
and, as he did so, he seemed to feel that their performa~~e
would be easy for him, and this for no other reason than
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
283
thought, 'St Dominic did this; therefore I will also do it. This
was done by Blessed Francis; then I will do it also.' " (Confessions 7)
This took place in 1521. On October 20, 1555, St. Ignatius
answered a question of Father Gon~alves da Camara on the
origin of the Exercises as follows: "The Exercises were not
all written at one time but some things which he had observed
in his own soul and found useful seemed to him perhaps
fitted to be useful to others and so he put them in writing.
For example th.e way of examining the conscience with the
aid of lines, etc. Especially he told me that the section about
the election he had drawn from the conflict of spirits which
he went through in the castle of Loyola when he was suffering from his leg.'' (Confessions 99)
Notes
The concrete result of this period was progress in the discernment of spirits. This led St. Ignatius, with God's help,
to form a resolution, to make an election, to reform his life
Permanently. These two experiences were the first to be set
down, since Ignatius realized that they could be useful to
others. Together, therefore, they form the embryo of the
Exercises. Note that election and discernment are as closely
connected as grace (or temptation) and decisions of the will.
If the purpose of the Exercises is not to make a lifelong
choice for God, or to strengthen such a decision, their essence
is changed and they lose their internal dynamism and punch.
Nothing is left but a series of instructions more or less
closely united.
Second Period: Manresa
The second period is the stay at Manresa (March 1522Its source was mystical experience.
February 1523).
(Rahner 46 ff.)
Texts
t "In those days God was treating him like a boy in school,
eaching him and that because of his rudeness and gross
rn·
.
find, erther because there was no one to teach him or because
0
the firm will which had been given him by God Himself
�284
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
for His service. At all events he judged (1522) and has
always judged (1555) that God was so teaching him. If he
doubted it he would think he was sinning against the Divine
Majesty and then it can perhaps be seen from the following
five points: (Confessions 27)
1) "One day his understanding began to be raised as if he
saw the Most Holy Trinity; ... and that with much joy and
consolation, so that all his life the impression remained with
him to feel great devotion in offering prayer to the Most Holy
Trinity. (Confessions 28)
2) "Once he saw in his understanding with great spiritual
joy the way in whiclr-God had created the world.
3) "Also at Manresa, where he stayed almost a year after
he began to be consoled by God and saw the fruit of his efforts
to help souls, he gave up those extremes which he before
practised and cut his nails and hair ... He saw clearly with
the understanding how Our Lord Jesus Christ was in the most
Holy Sacrament.
4) "On many occasions and for a long time when in prayer
he saw with the interior eyes the humanity of Christ ... If
he should say twenty or forty times he would not dare to
judge that it was a falsehood ... He also saw Our Lady in a
similar form . . . Those things which he had seen gave so
much confirmation to his faith that he hgs often thought
within himself that if he had not read the-~Scriptures which
teach us those things of the faith, he would determine to die
for them solely because of what he had seen. (Confessions
29)
5) "Once he went to a church which stood a little more
than a mile from Manresa which was called, I think, St. Paul,
and the road runs next to the river. And walking and saying
his prayers, he sat down for a little with his face toward the
river. And thus sitting, the eyes of his understanding began
to open and, without seeing any vision, he understood and
knew many things-as well spiritual things as things of the
faith and things in the realm of letters and that with bright·
ness of illustration so great that they seemed to him entirelY
new things. And the details of what he then understood can·
not be explained though they were many. All that can be
said is that he received a clarity in his understanding of such
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
285
a sort that in all the reasoning of his life up to the age of more
than sixty-two years, collecting all the help he had received
from God and all he has known and joining them into one,
it does not seem to him that he has gained as much from all
these advantages, as from that single illumination when he
sat by the river and that left him with an understanding so
enlightened that is seemed to him he was another man and
that he had an intellect different from the one he had before.
And after this had lasted for some time, he went on his knees
before a roadside cross which stood nearby to give thanks to
God." (Cnnfessions 30 f.)
The connection between these illuminations and the Exercises is established by the testimony of the disciples of St.
Ignatius.
Father Nadal: "Of this method of the Exercises Father
Ignatius was the author under the grace and guidance of God,
beginning from the time of his retirement to Manresa in order
to pray and do penance. Whatever his experience had shown
as useful for himself and of possible usefulness for others, he
wrote down in a notebook. All during his life he used these
Exercises for himself and others." (MH Ex 30). For other
texts from Father Nadal see Rahner 53 and 89.
Father Polanco: "After this illumination and experience
he began by the Spiritual Exercises a work very helpful to
the neighbor by teaching the manner of cleansing the soul
from sin by contrition and confession and the method of progressing in the meditations on the mysteries of Christ by making a good election of a state of life and in other particulars
and finally by pointing out the way to increase the love of God
in the soul as well as various kinds of prayer." (MH Ex
30 f.)
Father Oliver Manare: "From the beginning of his conversion and vocation, when he went to Montserrat and to a
Solitary spot, he devoted himself principally to two exercises,
the Two Standards and the Kingdom and so prepared himself
for warfare against the infernal enemy and the world." (MH
Ex 31)
Notes
Thanks to light from on high, there came into the
amorphous experience of his ascetical life a first crystalliza-
�286
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
tion, form and method, and also the drive to share his treasures with others.
This period is not the result of slow evolution but bears the
stamp of unique mystical experiences.
The concrete results of this period are the contuitus
mysteriorum, at least the meditations on the Kingdom and the
Two Standards, and the arrangement, with a view to an election, of the Mysteries of the Life of Christ as they are found
in the Second Week.
According to Padre Codina the whole material structure
of the Exercises is contained in five points: Creator, Mankind,
Church, Christ, Goq:
[Los Origenes de los Ejercicios
Espirituales (Barcelona, 1926) 78 f.]
Third Period: Alcala, Salamanca, Paris
The third period embraces the student days of Ignatius,
the time of his philosophical and theological training.
Facts
When Ignatius left Manresa at the beginning of 1523, he
already had notes on the teachings he wished to communicate
to others. After his pilgrimage to Jerusalem and some preliminary studies at Barcelona, he began at Alcala the philosophy courses on which depended the reali7.ation of his plans.
How much of the Exercises was contained in Ignatius' notebook? We learn from the acts of his trial by the Inquisition
that he tried to bring those he influenced to make an election
and that he was already accustomed to distinguish between
beginners and proficients as they are described in the Exer·
cises 18.
The eighteenth Annotation, indeed, corresponds almost
word for word with the acts of the trial. This is understandable since Ignatius had to submit his notes to the Baccalaureus
Frias for examination. (Confessions 67)
From 1528 to 1535 Ignatius studied at Paris.
In 1528 what was still missing from the Exercises?
1) A principle, brief and reduced to its most objective
form, fixing the attitude necessary to make an election trulY
governed by the magis: the Foundation and the Meditations
on Sin.
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
287
2) The aid of revelation for a more precise development
of the meditations on the Kingdom and the Two Standards.
Therefore, a knowledge of Scripture, especially of the life of
Christ.
3) The concrete form of the Kingdom, the Church (Rahner
55 ff.) and the Regulae ad sentiendum vere in Ecclesia.
4) The effect of the Exercises on the group of companions
Ignatius would need in order to realize the plan of the Kingdom and Two Standards.
Ignatius fills in these lacunae at Paris. By 1535 the book
of the Exercises was complete. In 1548 it was approved by
the pope and printed for the first time in the Latin translation of Frusius.
Notes
At Alcala and Salamanca the division into weeks appears
clearly, or at least that between the First Week and the other
three; Ignatius also distinguishes between beginners and the
proficient. For the former the First Week without the Foundation is to be used.
The Foundation has a theological and speculative character. It is the logical expression of what can be accomplished
by one who can make the Second, Third and Fourth Weeks
with profit, that is, by a proficient. Ignatius is always thinking of the thirty day retreat. The Foundation contains the
magis which is not found in the exercises of the First Week.
(Exercises 23 ff.)
The Kingdom of Christ turns out to be the Church. St.
Ignatius must have come to this conclusion at Paris where he
Was in contact with the Reformation and with contemporary
Problems about the Church: Regulae ad sentiendum.
From his study of exegesis and his knowledge of Ludolph
the Carthusian, Ignatius assembled the Mysteries of the Life
of Christ which are found as an Appendix to the Exercises.
BIBIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
H. Watrigant, "La genese des Exercises" in Etudes 71 (1897), 5065
29; 72 (189), 195-216; 73 (189), 199-228.
S ~· Pinard de Ia Boullaye, Les etapes de redaction des Exercises de
amt Ignace. (Paris, 1950)
�288
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
CHAPTER II
THE QUESTION OF THE TEXT
Are we sure we have the Exercises as they carne from the
hand of Ignatius?
The Original
The notebook of St. Ignatius has been lost.
Copies
We have today only the Autograph of 1541 in Spanish. It
is so called because Ignatius himself used this copy, made by
a member of the Order, and up to 1548 corrected it in details
and added to it. Today it is in the Archives of the Society
of Jesus. It was printed in collotype in 1908. (MH Ex 742)
Since Ignatius had been joined by non-Spaniards at Paris
(Favre, Le Jay), he had to plan a Latin translation, which
he either did himself or had someone else do in 1541. Since
it follows the Spanish text closely, Padre Codina supposes
that it was translated by Ignatius himself. In fact this
V ersio Prima is the original text for anyone who does not
know Spanish:
Sources
Did Ignatius have sources from which he drew his book
of the Exercises? ( SH, 20-33; MH Ex 3Q..l36)
Conclusion from G. Harrasser, Studien
den Exerzitien
des hl. Ignatius (Innsbruck, 1925), 20-33: Ignatius used onlY
three sources. If he had used all the sources alleged by va:r·
ious authors, there would have been a complete library in
the cave at Manresa. The three sources used are:
1) Vita Jesu Christi by Ludolph the Carthusian. Although
it made no contribution to the actual structure of the Exer·
cises, its influence can be seen in a number of details: Exer·
cises 51, 111, 201, 219, 275, 287, 299, 334, 344.
2) Flos Sanctorum by Blessed Jacopo de Voragine (c.1230·
c.l298). This work went through many editions. Its im·
portance for the Exercises may be gleaned from the folloW·
ing:
Where the meeting of Dominic and Francis is described,
mention is made of discernment of spirits and of the conquest
of the world for Christ.
zu
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
289
The life of St. Augustine contains elements of patristic
theology which turn up in the meditation on the Two Standards, "Love of God even to the contempt of self, and love of
self even to the contempt of God."
In the life of St. Francis, "Francis, if you really wish to
know Me, seek sweetness in bitter things and despise thyself." This is the heart of the Exercises, the Third Degree
of Humility.
3) The Imitation of Christ, attributed in St. Ignatius' day
to Jean Gerson, the chancellor of the University of Paris. He
called it Ger~onzito.
These external sources are no more than the raw material
of the Exercises which get their form solely from the interior
vision of Ignatius himself.
Since we cannot conceive that the Exercises were composed
without special interventions of grace in the first two periods
at least, later authors have spoken of direct divine inspiration.
Under Father Mutius Vitelleschi, General of the Society from
1615 to 1645, this idea was expressed in a picture, Our Lady
appearing at Manresa and dictating the Exercises to Ignatius.
Cf. on this the sources in MH Ex 35 ff.
Practical Conclusions
It is quite in the spirit of the Exercises (100) to introduce
during them ideas from the Imitation, from the lives of the
saints, and especially from the Gospels. We shall append an
outline of readings from the Imitation as an appendix to these
notes.
We must try to relive the experiences of Ignatius so that
they may become our own. Even if we cannot do this for
each experience, we should remember that study, prayer to
receive the interior insights we lack ( donum consilii!) and
especially knowledge of the purpose of the Exercises is the
essential preparation for one who is to give the Exercises.
Cf. in MH Ex, the Directory of Father Polanco, 803; the
Directory of Miron, 846; the Anonym us B1, 892, and 904:
Constitutions IV, 8, 5.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
. H. Pinard de la Boullaye, "'La vulgate des Exercises de Saint Ignace"
In RAM (1949), 389-407.
E. Raitz von Frentz, "Ludolphe le Chartreux et les Exercises" Ibid.,
p. 375-388.
�290
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
CHAPTER III
TOOLS FOR INTERPRETATION
We mention here those which are of immediate use in the
interpretation of the Exercises. For further details, see E.
Raitz von Frentz, Exerzitien-Bibliographie (Freiburg, 1940)
and the articles by the same author in ZAM (1931) 72-81.
Directories
St. Ignatius opens the Exercises with a directory. The
Twenty Annotations ar.e, in fact, the prototype of all direc·
tories. But since all of Ignatius' disciples did not have equal
facility in giving the Exercises, these Annotations proved
insufficient.
MH Ex contains the following directories, mostly in Latin:
1. Directorium autographum (778 ff.) written in Spanish
by St. Ignatius. 785 ff., dictation by St. Ignatius to Father
Victoria.
2. Directorium P. Polanco (795 ff.) has twelve chapters.
i. Whence have ~the Exercises their effectiveness? ii. Four
ways of giving the Exercises to four classes of men. iii. Pre·
liminaries for those making a retreat of thirty days. iv. Sug·
gestions for· the director. v. First Week. vi. Second Week.
vii. Preliminaries to the Election. viii. T~. Election. ix.
Third Week. x. Fourth Week. xi. Methods of Prayer. xii.
Scruples and Thinking with the Church.
3. Directorium P. Miron (758 ff., 846 ff.) was presented to
Father Lainez. and approved by him. Very detailed treat·
ment of all details concerned with giving the Exercises.
4. Directorium Anonymum B 1. (883 ff.) This contains:
i. Excellence of the Exercises ( Christus ipse eadem met Exercitia dedit Patri nostro Ignatia) and efficacity. ii. A definition. iii. Parts of the Exercises. iv. Which exercises are to
be given: to the sick and those in ill health? to a clever roan
who has many occupations? to a clever man who is free to
make the Exercise"s? to a religious of another Order? to religious of the Society of Jesus? to boys? to women?
5. Directorium Anonymum B 2 (896) is similar to the
preceding.
6. Directorium P. Pauli Hoffaei (987).
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
291
Praxis
The directories contain two kinds of observations: 1) Practical advice for giving the Exercises. Most of them presuppose that the structure of the Exercises is known. 2) More
detailed observations on the internal structure and connection
of the parts of the Exercises. They are especially helpful for
the preparation of introductory conferences. [Cf. J. Bohr,
Das Direktorium zu den geistlichen Uebungen des hl. Ignatius
von Loyola, (Innsbruck, 1924). ]
Commentaries
The following help to understand the substance of the Exercises:
1. Codina, Nexus Exercitiorum (MH Ex 12 ff)
2. Two commentaries, influenced by tradition coming directly from St. Ignatius, are to be considered classics:
a) Achille Gagliardi (1535-1607), published at Bruges in
1882.
b) Luis de La Palma (1556-1641), published at Alcala in
1626 and at Barcelona in 1887.
3. Aloisius Bellecius, Medulla asceseos seu Exercitia S. P.
lgnatii (Innsbruck, 1757). For an eight-day retreat. Feeling, warmth.
4. Fr. Hettinger, Die Idee der geistlichen Uebungen nach
dem Plan des hl. Ignatius von Loyola (Regensburg, 1908).
5. Fr. von Hummelauer, Die Exerzitien des hl. Ignatius,
English translation by Hommel and Roper (Westminster,
1955). One of the finest experts on the internal structure of
!he Exercises. He was himself a mystic. The Latin edition
Is better than the translation.
6. M. Meschler, Das Exerzitienbuch des hl. Ignatius von
Loyola, edited by W. Sierp, (Freiburg, 1926) 3 volumes.
Positive: deep knowledge of the Exercises. Negative: it is
all too logical, too reasoned. Ascetic interpretation of the apPlication of the senses and in the life of Jesus.
7. W. Sierp, Hochschule der Gottesliebe, Warnsdorf, 19351937, 3 volumes. Positive: Fr. Meschler's disciple, but more
~itical and historical. Fine, rich documentation. Negative:
" uch too long, and developed in the form of a meditation.
Narn puncta proponantur succincte satis et non diffuse."
�292
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
8. E. Przywara, Deus semper major, Freiburg, 1938-1940,
3 volumes. The contrary of Sierp. Positive: A sense of
theology, cognizant of the internal structure of the Exercises.
Negative: difficulty of the language. The logical framework
of the analogia entis and the philosophy of opposition are an
encumbrance. Theologically it goes beyond St. Ignatius, a
theology on the occasion of the Exercises. Cf. the critical review of H. Rahner in ZKT 64 (1940) 171 ff.; and Chastonay
in Stimmen der Zeit 134 (1938) 270 ff.; 135 (1939) 405; 137
(1940) 375.
9. P. Vogt, Exercitia Spiritualia Sancti lgnatii sententiis
Sanctorum Patrum: .. illustrata, 3 volumes, (Bilbao, 1923).
Brilliant theological explanation from the Fathers.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
R. Rouquette, "Le directoire des Exercises. Histoire du texte," in
RAM 1933, 395 ff.
L. de Grandmaison, "L'interpretation des Exercises" in RSR 1920,
398 ff.
'F. Cavallera, "La spiritualite des Exercises" in RAM 1922, 357 ff.;
"La retraite, d'apres les Exercises," ibid., 1929, 290 ff.
J. de Guibert, "Spiritualite des Exercises et spiritualite de Ia
Compagnie de Jesus", ibid., 1940 225 ff and La spiritualite de Ia
Compagnie de Jesus, Esquisse historique (Rome, 1953).
Les grandes directives de la retraite fermee (Paris, 1930).
Nouvelle Revue Theologique of November 1948 a!nd Revue d'Ascetique
et Mystique 1950, 5-94, have a number of articles on the Exercises.
Joseph Rickaby, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, in
Spanish and English, with a Continuous Commentary (New York,
1923).
Aloysius Ambruzzi, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius (Manga·
lore, 1941 and A Companion to the Spiritual Exercises (London,
1931).
G. Longhaye, An Eight Day Retreat Translated by B. Wolferstan
(New York). Does not give all the riches of Pere Longhaye.
.
Joseph Rickaby, Waters That Go Softly (London, 1923).
.
J. Calveras, The Harvest Field of the Spiritual Exercises of St.
Ignatius. Translated by J. H. Gense (Bombay, 1949).
Our Colloquium. · Papers on the Spiritual Exercises (Dublin, 1931).
A. Goodier, St. Ignatius and Prayer (New York, 1940).
T. Brosnahan, Searchlighting Ourselves (New York, 1949).
A. Brou, The Ignatian Way to God (Milwaukee, 1952).
J. Clare, The Science of the Spiritual Life (London, 1924).
M. H. Longridge, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola
(London, 1919).
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
293
CHAPTER IV
PLAN OF THE EXERCISES
Foundation and First Week
Number
Content
IHS
Anima Christi
1-20
Annotations
Title
21
First Week
22
Preliminary Note: Presupposition
23
Principle and Foundation
Examination of Conscience
24-26
Time of Particular Examination
27-31
Technique of Particular Examination
32-42
Matter of General Examination
43
Technique of the General Examination
44
General Confession and Holy Communion
45
Title of First Exercise
46-54
History of Sin. Triple Sin (Object: Shame)
55-61
Psychology of Sin. Personal Sin (Object: Sorrow)
62-63
Repetition
64
Second Repetition
65-71
Eschatology of .Sin: Hell (Object: Realization of
Sanction)
72
Hours of Meditation.
73-90
Ten Additional Directions: Method of Prayer,
Corporal Penance and Examination of Conscience
during the Exercises.
Notes
lHS: seal of the Society of Jesus, adopted by St. Ignatius
in memory of the legend of St. Ignatius of Antioch. (Rahner
64)
Anima Christi: Not found in the Autograph, nor in the
Versio prima nor in the Vulgate. Officially printed for the
first time in Father Roothaan's edition but it appears in private editions as early as 1583. (MH Ex 22, 1082) It dates
from the first half of the fourteenth century. St. Ignatius
Used it often and prescribed it as a colloquy prayer in the Exercises 63. Father Przywara in his first volume gives in con-
�294
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
nection with the prayer a carefully worked out introduction
to the Exercises.
Annotations: notes and observations on the art of giving
the Exercises and on the attitude of the one who makes them.
Ignatius drew them from his own experience, perhaps at
Paris where, for the first time, he gave the thirty day retreat.
They are the nucleus of a directory and contain ideas for
introductory conferences. Cf. Miron's Directory (MH Ex
846) or Polanco's (MH Ex 802).
First Week: is not in the Autograph. It would fit in
better before the First Exercise.
Title: Important f6r the structure of the Exercises. Short,
provisional definition of the Exercises. Cf. nn. 1, 169, 179,
189 in fine.
Preliminary Note: introduced later on. Echo of experiences from 1538 to 1548. The Exercises were often exposed
to hostile attacks. The note is meant for unfriendly readers.
Foundation: it does not belong to the First Week but is
a preparatory testing of dispositions, already containing and
explaining the_ whole substance of the Exercises. That is
why it does not have the form of a meditation, but of an
extremely succinct, logical consideration, because it con·
tains the assumptions in which Ignatius lived and thought.
This disposition must at the outset be Jnstilled into the
retreatant.
·
The Foundation is to be developed into meditations to
regulate one's life with eyes fixed on God. That is why it
will be necessary in many cases to create the essential condi·
tion for understanding the Foundation, that is, the true and
complete idea of God the Creator and of the Divine Majesty.
Examen of Conscience: This important element belongs to
the original scheme of the Exercises (from Alcala), espe·
cially intended for simple people. To understand the in·
ternal structure of the book, we can, for the moment, put it
to one side.
Confession and Communion: The distinction between the
preparation for the Exercises and the First Week is here
forgotten (cf. the last sentence). The General Confession
and Communion constitute the normal conclusion of the
First Week.
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
295
St. Ignatius prescribes five meditations for the day: four
meditations on sin, a meditation on Hell. And this brings
us to the end of the text for the First Week. How can we
fill out a whole week? (Cf. Annotation 4) Are there no
more meditations for the First Week or does St. Ignatius
want us to repeat these meditations during the week?
Answer: The Foundation does not really belong to the
First Week. However the Versio Prima and Roothaan's
Versio include it.
The Ignatian assumptions of the Exercises must be realized
first of all. Therefore many meditations are required, approximately two days, for the Foundation. A simple logical explanation is not enough.
The Foundation in turn has an assumption: God. There
is no Ignatian anthropocentric outlook. It is necessary
first to instill the Ignatian outlook of the Foundation by
considerations on the One God (De Deo Creante) and the
Triune God (De Deo Elevante) by reliving St. Ignatius' experiences at Manresa.
In 71, the Versio Prima and the Vulgate have an addendum
which no doubt comes from St. Ignatius. It shows that the
problem was raised very early and very clearly: how fill out
the First Week?
Opinions and concrete possibilities:
In 74 and 78. St. Ignatius already indicates the ideas
which can be added to the meditations on sin: death and
judgment.
See the Directory dictated by St. Ignatius (MH Ex 784 and
791.) Strictly speaking the five exercises should suffice.
Nevertheless death and judgment, or some others, may be
added.
The Apology for the Exercises (1580-1590) shows the difficulties the first Fathers had when they gave the Exercises.
CMH Ex 690 ff.). Many had twenty meditations: De vocatione, de annihilatione, and others which are not to be
admitted. "Non multiplicando meditationes, sed efficaci
Voluntate paucas retinendo et ruminando."
Conclusions:
Develop the theology of sin .
. Do not destroy the value of the meditations on sin by
Joyful thoughts (78), but thanksgiving is very much in
�296
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
order! ( 61). Colloquy with Christ on the brink of Hell.
Proceed with discretion in balancing the proportion between the meditations on the Foundation and on sin according to the spiritual state of the retreatant.
The repetitions should also begin with the meditations on
sin.
Second Week
Number
91-99
100
Content
Kingdom
Notes OJ! reading during the Second Week
Second Week
101-109
First Day
Incarnation
110-117
Nativity of Our Lord
118-119
Repetition
120
Repetition
121-126
Application of the senses to the mysteries contemplated
127-131
- Additions
132
Second Day
Presentation in the Temple
Flight into exile in Egypt
Repetition
Repetition
Application of the senses
133
Note: Arrangement of the hours of meditation
according to the purpose and dispositions of the
retreatant. Notice the error: fourth day should
be third day.
134
Third Day
Nazareth; Finding in the Temple
135 (163, 169) Two states of life
Fourth Day
136-148
Two Standards (here again at midnight;
hence error in 133)
Repetition
Repetition
Repetition
149-156
Three classes of men (at the hour for the applica·
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
157
158-159
160
161
162
163
164-168
169
170-174
175-178
297
tion of the senses)
Note
Fifth Day
From Nazareth to the Jordan
Repetition
Repetition
Repetition
Application of the senses
Note on the particular examen, especially
important in these days of decision.
Sixth Day
From the Jordan to the Desert; Temptations
Seventh Day
Vocation of the Apostles
Eighth Day
Sermon on the Mount
Ninth Day
Apparition on the waves of the sea
Tenth Day
Preaching in the Temple
Eleventh Day
Lazarus
Twelfth Day
Palm Sunday
Notes
We pass to the treatment of the election. It begins with the meditation "From Nazareth to the
Jordan."
Election:
A) Prelude to the disposition for making an election: Three Degrees of Humility
B) Attitude of the election itself: the dispositions of the Foundation are resumed
C) Object of the election
D) Times of the election
1) Mystical: election by the power of special
grace.
2) Ascetical: election by the discernment of
spirits.
3) Theologico-discursive: election by quiet
consideration.
�298
179-188
189
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
For this latter time:
E) Ways of making a good election
1) Six points
2) Four rules and a note
F) Election for the reform of life. Principle
for making a genuine election: tantumquantum.
Final note.
Notes
Second Week: Its §tructure is similar to that of the First
Week. Neither does· St. Ignatius put the title "Second
Week" here, but begins with the "Call of the Earthly King."
The Kingdom. This meditation is the Foundation of the
Second Week, the Foundation of the Exercises manifested
concretely in the history of salvation. The principle: to
labor with Christ and thus enter into glory.
Incarnation. In the record of the history of salvation,
this is the opposite of the meditation on sin of the First
Week: the restoration of sinful humanity by the Incarnate
God's assumption of toils.
Application of the senses. This requires an extraordinary high level of prayer. Application of the senses cer·
tainly means here a sublime, premystical manner of prayer.
Nazareth and the finding in the Temple:· · The first basic
meditation of the Second Week, the first of the decisive
moments in Jesus' life and the retreatant's, who prepares
for the transition that takes place in 135. First preamble
to the election. First great departure in the heroic life of
Jesus.
Fourth Day. Day of decision. In no retreat can this be
omitted because it gives meaning to the whole. The mys·
teries of Jesus' life must be adapted to the decision. (Exer·
cises 135).
Triple Colloquy. The decision for the magis is alreadY
possible as a grace, and, therefore, is an object of prayer.
Note, 157. "Indifferent" becomes the object of a protesta:
tion in which one transcends himself before God. (Cf. 16•
MH Ex 816).
.
Fifth Day: Nazareth to the Jordan. The second basiC
meditation of the Second Week; Jesus' second decisive de-
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
299
parture. The internal dynamism of his life appears here
more clearly. According to 163, it is here that the question
of the election begins.
Note on the particular examen, 160. Even in meditation
man tries to resist God's plan; therefore, with reason, the
particularly grave danger of negligence in prayer is forestalled here.
Sixth Day: Temptation in the desert, 161. The adversaries, Christ and Satan, face each other in the triple
temptation, which parallels the meditation on the Two
Standards.
Notes, 162: The other mysteries in the Appendix may be
inserted here or left out, but always in view of the purpose:
the election.
Three Degrees of Humility, 164. They include the final
concretization of the Foundation, now directed entirely to the
retreatant. St. Ignatius here uses the language of the
Foundation; the Foundation and the Degrees of Humility
are a consideration, not a meditation; the First and Second
Degrees reflect the first and second part of the Foundation;
the Third Degree corresponds to the last sentence of the
Foundation, but is not altogether intelligible before the
Kingdom of Christ, which is the Foundation seen on the level
of the history of salvation. It is, ascetically and psychologically, the adaptation of the Foundation to me in the light
of reason and revelation.
Notes, 189. For a man of action and expert guide of
souls like St. Ignatius, it is lasting success that the retreatant
is to acquire through his struggle. The norm, to which the
retreatant can constantly refer, is this: the genuinity and
value of the election is measured by the degree of self-renunciation. (Cf. Imitation, I, 25.)
Third and Fourth Weeks and Mysteries
Number
190-198
199
Content
Third Week
First day
Bethany to the Last Supper
Note: the election might not be completely
settled, or may be subject to some new difficulties. Hence the colloquy intended to con-
�300
200-202
203
204-207
206
208
209
210-217
218-225
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
firm it. (Return to the Second and First
Weeks: 15, 157, 147, 16)
Approaching the Garden
Suggestion for the whole week of the Passion:
prayer to be brokenhearted with the brokenhearted Christ
Additions for the Third Week: changes made
according to the sincerity, the degree of
success and the firmness of the election.
Backward glance at Christ's election, i.e.,
at th,~ way of the cross which begins at His
birth.
(Cf. 116: From Birth to Cross)
Second day
From the Garden to Caiphas' house (Very short
presentation. As the retreat advances, less and
less should be said to the retreatant.)
Third day
From the house of Caiphas to Pilate, to Herod
~ Fourth day
From Herod to Pilate
Fifth day
From Pilate to the Cross (St. Ignatius becomes
more laconic)
Sixth day
From the taking down from the Cross to the
tomb.
From the tomb to Our Lady's house.
Seventh day
Review of the Passion: contemplation of the bodY
of Christ and its separation from the soul (Cf.
196) ; contemplation of the solitude of Our Lady;
contemplation of the disciples' solitude.
Note on the choice of subjects for medita·
tion and on the number of days: How pro'long them?
Eight rules for regulating one's taking of
food (83, penance)
Fourth Week
tl'g
First contemplation: Christ appears to .P1
Mother
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
226-229
230-237
238-260
261-312
313-336
337-344
345-351
352-370
301
Additions: changes in the Fourth Week
Contemplation to attain love
Three methods of prayer
Mysteries of the life of Christ
Twenty-two rules· for the discernment of
spirits: fourteen for the First Week; eight
for the Second. Actually they come first,
printed last in the Exercises. Cf. Annot.
9-14. The text took shape during the time
of the ·Saint's studies.
Seven rules for the distribution of alms.
Also from the Paris period.
Six notes concerning scruples. (Confessions
25.) Connection with the rules for discerning spirits. Transition to what follows.
Eighteen rules for true appreciation of the
Church militant.
Notes
After the election the Exercises seem to be finished. The
question arises: what is the meaning of the Third and Fourth
Weeks?
Answer: They strengthen the election by testing the basic
Principle of the Kingdom: "labor and thus enter into glory";
for this is the best way to reach the goal. Concrete presentation, on the level of the history of salvation, of the Third
Degree of Humility, that is, of the Passion of Christ and of
his Cross.
Third Week, 190. Ignatius assigns only seven days to this
Week. Twelve were devoted to the Second Week because of
the election. (Annotation 18.)
Note, 199. At Manresa Ignatius understood the ways of
the mystery of salvation. That is the reason why at every
stage of the Exercises we find a comprehensive picture of
the mysteries of revelation and their history, in such a way
that they can .be very easily adapted to souls.
t Sec.ond Day, 208. The stronger the tension becomes in
he h1story of salvation and in the soul, the more sparing of
~ords and silent St. Ignatius becomes. That is why all is
0
be presented to the retreatant according to the words of
�302
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
St. Ignatius, "Succincte satis, non diffuse." (MH Ex 783;
Annot. 2.)
Sixth Day, 208. "Exclusive and inclusive" do not come
from a fondness for divisions, but is a kind of way of the
Cross which shows how much St. Ignatius was filled with
these comings and goings. Echo of his own pilgrimage to
Palestine and of the division by Ludolph the Carthusian.
Note 209. "For his greater profit," because the Week of
the Passion is to help the election.
Rules to Secure Due Order in the Use of Food, 210 ff.
These rules are found- here because they are linked with the
Last 8upper. (214) We do not know when they were
worked out-perhaps very early, at Manresa or Alcala.
They may be connected with the starvation diet that Ignatius
followed there. (Confessions 24, 25, 27.) Later on Ignatius
returned to an ordinary way of life and made much of
common life and a certain liberality in regard to food. The
idea of the rules is "to free oneself from all disorder" in the
accomplishment of the election. These are the principles of
the election applied to eating. (Cf. St. Ignatius, MH Ex 784.)
Contemplation to Attain Love of God, 230-237. Like the
Foundation, the Kingdom and the Three Degrees of Humility,
the Contemplation to Attain Love is a consideration which
aims at creating a disposition, a formaf -principle which
should be operative throughout the Exercises.
Three Methods of Prayer, 238-260. Why precisely the
three methods of prayer at this point?
They belong to the primitive scheme of the Exercises. Cf.
the manner of giving the Exercises at Alcala and Polanco's
Directory. (MH Ex 800.) Prayer is the atmosphere of the
Exercises, the engine, so to speak, which makes them go.
Concordance of the Mysteries of Christ
Second Week
In the text of the
Exercises
101 ff. Incarnation
110 ff.
Nativity
262
263
264
In the Appendix
Annunciation
Visitation
Nativity
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
303
265 Shepherds
266 Circumcision
267 Wise Men
Presentation in the
Temple
Flight into Egypt
268 Purification
134
Nazareth
271
Nazareth
135
Finding in the
Temple
272
Finding in the Temple
From Nazareth to
the Jordan.
Baptism
273
Baptism
132
158
161
From Nazareth to
the Desert.
Temptation
Call of the
Apostles
269 Flight into Egypt
270 Return from Egypt
274 Temptation
275
Call of the Apostles
276
277
Sermon on the
Mount
Apparition on
the sea
Preaching in the
Temple
Lazarus
Cana
Sellers driven from
Temple
278 Sermon on the Mount
279 Storm calmed
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288-
Walking on the water
Mission of the Disciples
Mary Magdalen
Multiplication of loaves
Transfiguration
Lazarus
Bethany
Palm Sunday
Preaching in the
Temple
�304
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
Third Week
190-198 First day:
From Bethany to
the Supper
200-202
From the Supper
to the Garden
Second day:
From the Garden
..
to Annas
From Annas to
Caiphas
Third day:
From Caiphas to
Pilate and Herod
Fourth day:
From Herod to
Pilate
Fifth day:
From Pilate to the
Cross
Sixth day:
Taking down from
Cross. Burial
Seventh day:
The entire Passion
Mary-the
disciples
289
Last Supper
290 From the Supper to the
Garden
291
292
From the Garden to
Annas
From Annas to Caiphas
293
294
From Caiphas to Pilate
From Pilate to Herod
295
From Herod to Pilate
From Pilate to the
Cro"§gc
297 Mystery of the Cross
1. Seven Last Words
2. Reaction : reliqua
super faciem terrae
3. Other mysteries. The
end : mystery of the
Heart
296
298
From the Cross to the
tomb: guards
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
305
Fourth Week
218-225
Christ appears to
Our Lady
299 Christ and Mary
300-311 Apparitions
The holy women at the
tomb
The holy women on the
road
Peter
Disciples at Emmaus
Apostles
Thomas
Genesareth
Tabor
Five hundred disciples
(1 Cor. 15 :6)
James (1 Cor. 15 :7)
Joseph of Arimathea
Paul and the Fathers in
Limbo
312 Ascension
Notes on the Concordance
The best presentation of the parallels and differences is
found in Schmid's German translation of Hummelauer.
The Incarnation is the first meditation of the Second Week.
The Christological Foundation is not within the Week.
The contemplation of the Annunciation in the Appendix is
more Marian than in the body of the Exercises. Mary seems
to be more prominent in 'the Appendix.
132, "Flight into Exile in Egypt"; 269, "Flight into
Egypt". In the body of the Exercises the final purpose is
dominant: the election and hence the idea of departure
(monastic and ordinary asceticism).
Cf. Thalhammer,
Jenseitige Menschen. The actual history of the Bible is more
�306
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
evident in the Appendix.
in the Temple.
Compare 161 and 288, Preaching
134 ff. and 271 ff. The inversion of Nazareth and the
Finding in the Temple. From this can be deduced the importance Saint Ignatius attributes to the former.
The contemplations beginning with the Vocation of the
Apostles will aid in a gradual increase of heroism in the
service of the King. On this cf. Hummelauer-Schmid, 223.
The same purpose is seen in placing the Preaching in the
Temple before Palm ·Sunday. In the body of the Exercises
a dramatic approach.·· dictates this; in the Appendix its
insertion follows the biblical order.
In the Third Week the contemplations in the Exercises
and in the Appendix follow the same order, with a few minor
exceptions. (294) In the Fourth Week there is only one
contemplation in the Exercises. This leaves room for discreta
caritas which will easily discover the subject matter for this
week.
297. The Mystery of the Cross is completed in the Appendix by the Mystery of the Heart.
298. In the mind of Ignatius the guards at the tomb are
important. Weak resistance to the brilliant manifestation
ofg~cy.
- ·
300-311. The apparitions at Tabor and to Joseph of
Arimathea are taken from the Flos Sanctorum of Ludolph.
Paul, especially close to the heart of Ignatius, who feels
that, like the Apostle, he too is one "born out of due time."
We should also notice and investigate the mystery of the
descent into Limbo. (311)
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
307
CHAPTER V
THEOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE EXERCISES
To what extent is the Foundation the basis of all the
Exercises? Is it fundamental in the order of the Incarnation
(Regnum Christi) and for asceticism (Electio)?
On the Principle and Foundation cf. Przywara I, p. 47 ss.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Directo111 of 1599, 12. (MH Ex 1139).
2. W. Sierp, lgnatianische Wegweisung. (Freiburg, 1929).
3. H. Watrigant, La meditation fondamentale avant saint Ignace,
CBE 9, 1907.
4. E. Przywara, Vol. I: The logic of the Foundation (analogia entis)
corresponds best to Przywara's philosophico-theological idea.
5. F. Hettinger has numerous texts from St. Thomas and St.
Augustine.
6. C. Loenartz: in SH, p. 84-97.
Interpretation of the Text
1. According to the Directory of 1599, 12, 1-7.
Preliminary question: Did Ignatius derive the text and
ideas of the Foundation from another source?
Answer: It was long asserted that Ignatius had borrowed
the Foundation from Erasmus of Rotterdam, Enchiridion
militis Christiani. (MH Ex 124, 131) It is true that
Ignatius read this work at Barcelona, but, dissatisfied,
abandoned it. There are more elements which favor the
Imitation III, 9, and Ludolph as sources. (MH Ex 74, 132)
The Foundation, as regards its essential content, derives
certainly from an interior source: the understanding by a
logic of the heart of the Second Week and of Christ crucified.
It is a teleological principle flowing from Ignatius' personal ideas on the Exercises; it reappears in all the crucial
meditations and all the decisive considerations.
Principle, because at the beginning. Foundation of the
moral and spiritual structure (Direct. XII, 1).. Foundation
is telos, in the Aristotelian sense (per considerationem ultimi
finis).
Plan : Finis ob quem creatio; media ad fin em; difficultas
eligendi; (cum ignoremus) indifferentia.
The main point is indifference; cf. 15 and 16.
�308
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
God as He is seen in the Foundation: Maiestas Divina:
Deus Creans Unus et Elevans Trinus.
Why is the Foundation supernatural?
( Cf. Sierp,
Hochschule der Gottesliebe I, 119 ss.)
The reason is that Saint Ignatius says in the Foundation
that creatures help and hinder. This apparent inconsistency
is resolved only by supposing an elevated and fallen creation.
And all the other meditations of the First Week, since they
depend entirely on the Foundation, can be understood only
supernaturally, i.e., on·,the level of sin and Redemption by
the Cross. The man of. pure nature never existed.
In the meditations which develop the subject (therefore,
especially those on God) we must be careful not to wander
from the goal to which we have been directed. The Foundation is always the prelude to the goal towards which the
First Week is directed.
No length of time has been determined for the meditations
on the Foundation; I should merely examine whether my
dispositions are those of the Foundation. There is therefore
great liberty in extending the meditations on the Foundation.
The importance of the Foundation: Although the Foundation is primarily a setting for all the Exercises and especially
the Election, it is, moreover, a continual point of reference
to the exact aim of the Exercises. (169) -·
2. Further precision of the structure of the Foundation,
with particular attention to 165-167.
End of the creature, man: God-praise, honor, service.
Salvation of his soul; of the other things on earth: to aid.
(Whence the constantly repeated expression in the Exer·
cises; cf. 60, 97, 98, 102, 103, 106, 145.)
Attitude towards the end, in the mind of Ignatius, is of
supreme importance and assumes a triple form:
Ex quo fit or unde sequitur: to accept the things that help,
to refuse the things that hinder-this is necessary for salva·
tion; cf. First Degree of Humility, 165. Quocirca opus est or
quapropter necesse (Fr. Roothaan: much too strong!). The
Spanish has: es menester, which means: required, most suitable. It is a question of the indifference necessary for
sanctity; cf. Second Degree of Humility, 166-Indifference
and the will never to commit a venial sin!
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
309
Solamente deseando y eligiendo lo que mas nos conduce
para el fin: desiring and choosing only quae nos magis conducunt ad finem. In the E~ercises and for Ignatius the
specific necessity of perfection is expressed by self-giving,
superindifference, a disposition of fervor and love (16, 157) ;
Third Degree of Humility, 167. Consequently the Third
Degree, which is clearly distinguished from the Second, should
be insisted on.
Objection: The text of St. Ignatius is a simple continuation
without a new sentence, unice desiderantes.
Answer: In the Spanish text we have participial forms,
dear to St. Ignatius (expressing tension) and often used to
introduce a new thought (Leturia); therefore solamente implies "but there is another thing;" cf. by way of proof the
Vulgata which reads "solum optemus et eligamus ea quae
magis conducunt nos ad finem."
From this we see the aim: the affection for magis motivates the entire Exercises and is therefore present here as a
third element which surpasses indifference.
3. The Foundation is continually reappearing in the Exercises. (Przywara I, 47)
First Week, the reversal of the Foundation: 46, servitium
purum majestatis divinae; 49, the preparatory Prayer is the
same throughout the Exercises; 50, reversal of the Foundation in the history of the angels; 51, of mankind; 60, reliqua
super faciem terrae.
Second Week, Christological and psychological portrayal of
the Foundation in the struggle between Christ and Satan:
96, 98, reliqua super faciem terrae and 102, reliqua in the
world under the Divine Majesty of Christ; 97, magis in
unice desiderando; 104, major charitas Christi in Second
Addition, 130; 130, majus servitium.
Two Standards: 135, purum servitium Patris; 142 (98),
riches, honors and pride represent the diabolical reversal of
the Foundation; 145, reliqua super faciem terrae; 146;
Poverty, contempt, humility represent the concrete Christological expression of the Third Degree of Humility.
Three Classes: 150, 153, "to save their souls and find God",
the conditions necessary for salvation; 154, endangering salvation; 155, self-conquest, the condition necessary for perfection (cf. 157, 16).
�310
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
Three Degrees of Humility: "lord of all creation" and
necessity of salvation;· 166, riches, honors and long life endangering salvation; 167, "the First and Second Degree attained", conditions necessary for perfection.
Election: 169, "to this end for which I am created"; 177,
condensed repetition of the Foundation; 179, another repetition of the Foundation in which the question is whether I am
in the Second or Third Degree; 189, Reformation of One's
Way of Living, the Third Degree is suggested in the phrase
"in proportion to his surrender".
Contemplation for _.Obtaining Divine Love: 233, to love is
to serve: 234, homo creatus ad amandum; 235, 236, reliqua
super faciem terrae are only helps to love.
The obvious conclusion from all this is that the entire
Exercises are found in embryo in the Foundation; the whole
superstructure rests on it.
The Foundation in the Old Directories
The Foundation should be so presented that there will be
instilled in the ~xercitant a deep and lasting conviction.
1. Directories written or dictated by Ignatius himself:
In MH Ex 783 : "Let the Foundation be proposed before the
rest; as for the manner, the method of points should be
adopted." Cf. SH 85: "Ignatius delays a lo'ng time and in
detail in order to clarify indifference and to- give examples."
2. Polanco: "Before all else the Foundation is proposed;
and after having given the points briefly, the retreatant
should be invited to reflect on himself." (MH Ex 807)
3. Miron: "Regarding the order, the Foundation should be
proposed before anything else. Once proposed, then one must
suppress whatever hinders attaining its goal, viz., sin, by
exciting sorrow and contrition for it." (MH Ex 853)
4. Anonymous B 2: "The themes of creation, conservation,
redemption, etc. are placed here (Foundation)." (MH E"
896)
5. P. Gonzalez:' "First, propose the Foundation by way of
points. Some development can be added for meditation.
When the end for which man is created has been proposed, in
the meditation the Retreatant can meditate how he haS
wandered from this end during his past life, how manY
creatures he has abused." (MH Ex 910)
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
311
Consequences: The Foundation should never be omitted.
One may enlarge on it. The Foundation has in view the
meditations on sin, and therefore is never to be understood
in a purely philosophical sense, but always theologically and
supernaturally. The Foundation should be proposed by way
of points for meditation.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
P. Bouvier, L'interpretation authentique de la meditation fondamentale (Bourges, 1922). Translated at West Baden College, 1943.
P. Vuilliez-Sermet, "En face de la verite fondamentale" in Les
grandes directives de la retraite fermee (Paris, 1930), 94-109.
C. Daumont, "L'idee de Dieu dans le Fondement", ibid., 110-114.
P. Defrennes, "'La meditation fondamentale. Son contenu, sa signification et son role dans les Exercises spirituels de saint Ignace de
Loyola" RAM, 1939, 113-135.
G. Dirks, "L'interpretation du Fondement des Exercises," ibid., 1949,
370-374.
J. Levie, "La meditation fondamentale des Exercises de saint Ignace
a la lumiere de saint Paul" NRT, 1953, 815-82. Translated in
Woodstock Letters 84 (1955) 18-33.
J. Coyne, "The Fundamentum" in Our Colloquium, 31-39.
First Exercise: History of Sin
Sin of the Angels, 50
W. Sierp, "Das Christusbild des ersten Woches" in Theologie und
Glaube, 1929.
Summa Theologica 1, qu. 63, a. 2 f. (used by Ignatius).
P. Vogt, Grundwahrheiten I, 527.
The sin of the angels is the first reversal of the Foundation in history ; hence we ask how the Exercises show the
perpetuation of this diabolic principle of every sin.
63, Mary and evil (Confessions 10); 135, "the enemy of
our human nature"; 139, "the rebel chief;" 141, "he summons innumerable demons and scatters them throughout the
whole world", (echo of the Foundation); 314, 'the enemy"
(Satan in the life of Jesus; 318, "the evil spirit; "325, the
evil spirit is already vanquished and so conducts himself
like a woman;" 326, "like a false lover;" 327, "like a caudillo."
Theological development: We have the revelation of this
~vent which happened before the creation of the world only
ln relation to Christ through Him. Therefore the theological explanation must preserve the essential reference of the
fall of the angels to the coming of Christ.
�312
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
The sin of the angels was superbia: cf. Ignatius, Thomas,
Augustine, the general teaching of the Church. Therefore
50 must be understood as pride regarding the coming of
Christ. In what did the superbia of the angels consist? St.
Thomas says they wanted to achieve unaided the state of
grace, the right to the vision of God. They were, as it
were, the first Pelagians. This is the general teaching of the
Church. Suarez teaches that this pride arose when the angels
saw that they were to share in the glory of God through
God made man; theY._ \vere unwilling to accept this means.
The New Testament 'presents the sin of the angels as a
refusal of Christ. (Hebrews 1:5; Ephesians 3 :10) ; whence
the hatred and stupendous struggle against the Son of God and
His Kingdom. Thus Lucifer becomes inimicus humanae
naturae, "a murderer from the beginning" (John 8 :44).
Practical use of the material. This idea should be studied
closely from Scripture and the Fathers.
New Testament: The manner in which Christ and Satan
are opposed. Christ as man between the good and bad
angels: Incarnation, Temptation, Mount of Olives; 1 John
3 :8 ff. contains the fundamental notions. Sin is the refusal
of Christ as man (Pharisees. Cf. the id~a of scandal in
Guardini, The Lord; and Wirtz, Das gros-se Aergernis);
Jude 4, 6; John 8:44: "murderer from the beginning". Hence
every sin is a share in the corpus mysticum diaboli (the devil
has a plan!) .
Fathers: Tertullian, Lactantius, Origen; cf. Index of
Kosel's edition of the Fathers of the Church. Also, Scheeben,
Handbuch der kath. Dogmatik II, 578 ss, 581: the sin of the
angels was an appetentia unionis hypostaticae; Mysteries of
Christianity (St. Louis, 1946) 263 ff.; Przywara I, p. 198 ss.
Theological speculation must never obscure the purpose of
this meditation. , This is expressed in these words, "filled
with shame and confusion when I compare the one sin of the
angels with the many sins I have committed," confusion before our generous Lord, who pardons his servant so oftef
and who is so patient. What an unfathomable mystery 0
love, how strong the love of God that is found in the single
fact that this love never fails to call and attract me!
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
313
The Sin of Adam and Eve, 51
Interpretation of the text: The interpretation of Feder who
puts the field of Damascus in Syria is wrong. Campus
Damascenus is for Ignatius near Bethlehem-where Christ
was born, where Adam was created. (Cf. Rahner, Ignatius
und die Kirchenviiter, ZAM, 1942, 61 ff.) "Original justice"
is probably an addition from the time of the first debates
of Trent.
Theological development: Suarez and Scotus say that our
first parents saw, before committing this act of disobedience, that they would lose grace for the whole human race,
and even that from their flesh and blood would arise the
God-Man as the transformed head of the race. Note in St.
Thomas 2-2, q. 2, a. 7. Thus original sin enters into Christology, since the refusal of Christ constituted the essence of
this sin and of every sin: according to 71, Christ is the
center of the history of the world and of humanity.
Since every personal sin is the fruit of original sin, at the
end of this point as of the first (but more intensely, since
we are here talking about men, i.e., our equals) we find very
deep shame and a double allusion to the chastisement undergone by the first parents. Therefore the question, what am I
going to do for Christ, comes more to the fore.
The Third Sin-the ParticUlar Sin of any Man, 52
Context: The internal dynamism of the presentation of sin
comes a step closer to my own person by considering an
alter ego who has gone the full course of sin. This is not a
~trictly rational, coldly philosophical consideration, since it
18 a mirror reflecting the future of myself.
Personal sin
appears as a sinister reality since it is nothing less than
deicide. It is only in this light that we can understand the
following colloquy between the retreatant and Christ crucified,
~~ucified by the retreatant. But the Crucified is, at the same
Ime, the Creator of the world, who has already determined
not only the history of salvation, but the salvation of the
retreatant's soul. Without this synthetic view, the colloquy
Would be quite unprepared.
Interpretation of the text: Connect 52 with 71, 185, 339:
�314
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
whoever is rejected is so in Christ: Christ is "set for
the rise and fall of many."
Theological development: Every sin is esse ex diabolo, to
share the enslavement of the one who destroys the world
and murders men, to belong to the organism of the corpus
diaboli. We may ask in what consists the domination by
Satan even after liberation by Christ. Scheeben goes deeply
into the question in Dogmatik, II, 670-684.
'
Second Exercise: ~~ychology or Existential Aspect of Sin
Context: This meditation is a continuation of the preceding.
Here also not theological interest, but theological purpose
is required: sorrow and repentance, because at the very least
I might still belong to the corpus diaboli. Here Ignatius
prescinds as far as possible from theology and presents a
purely personal experience. Therefore we must ask this
question: what experience of sin did Ignatius have?
On this point the narratives of Nadal and Polanco (Polanco,
Chronicon I, 10 (Madrid, 1894); Astrain, Historia de la
Compaiiia de Jesus in la Asistencia de Espana, I, 11 ss.
(Madrid, 1902); Dudon, Saint Ignace, p. 50 ff. (Paris, 1934);
1\IHSJ, Scripta de Ignatio, I, p. 565-587) reveal a dark pic·
ture. Why did Ignatius need three days -for the confession
of his sins? Obviously a confession of normal length was
not enough for him. This also explains the terrible remorse
at Manresa, despite the absolution he had received. It was
the result of his sins and an extremely clear understanding
of the Divine Majesty. Ignatius afterwards frequently made
general confessions, for example, before accepting the
generalate.
Interpretation of the text: I find myself alone with mY sin
before God. In this respect this meditation goes farther than
the preceding. , This is likewise expressed in the purpose
of the meditation: feeling of sorrow and tears of repentance
for my sins. Should I really ask for tears for my sins? (:Mil
Ex 691 ff.) Not essential for true repentance (Codina).
But in the Exercises we should not be fainthearted, since we
are dealing with a unique decision of vital importance.
Though Ignatius is generally restrained, he really means
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
315
tears here. To eliminate sin from the whole of one's life,
such a help is by no means excessive.
The processus peccatorum in 56: according to Przywara,
a judicial trial of sins. "Place, dealings with others, office I
have held". This is not a theological consideration. We put
ourselves on trial as concretely as possible.
In the Directory which Ignatius himself dictated, he remarks that a more general review, a contuitus peccatorum,
is more conducive to repentance than a minutely detailed
analysis. (MH Ex 796)
The processus peccatorum serves as a foundation for the
colloquy, 63. I cannot picture myself concretely without
facing these facts about myself which must now be cleared
away for good.
57: Evaluation of sin. For this purpose I select the most
frequent and most characteristic sin. (Hummelauer-Schmid,
82 ff.) At this point it is perhaps neither correct nor fruitful
to evaluate sin simply as contra naturam humanam, because
this view is not in harmony with the contuitus mysteriorum.
What is required here is typically Ignatian reverence before
God. This view does not focus on the consequences or prohibition of sin but on the fact that sin itself is loathsome and
mean. The feeling of interior malice and corruption should
be evoked.
58: Continuing the evaluation of sin, I consider that, with
respect to all creation, my sin reduces me to nothing. Concretely, choose an angel or a saint, Ignatius, Augustine, and
compare my own weak, ridiculous existence to his spirit,
talent, degree of grace. The war has given us this experience.
Development and psychological presentation: This is really
St. Ignatius' description of his own soul, the result of his
experience at Manresa, where he was once tempted to suicide.
(Confessions 24) Our missions to the people derive all their
f?rce from the concrete, practical form given these meditations. 59: The reverse of this view of man is found in the
Contemplatio ad Amorem, 237.
60: For this the Foundation must have furnished a
luminous vision of God. It is only against this background
that one can realize what it means to have offended God.
We can best visualize this situation by imagining ourselves
�316
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
in the presence of a kind and loving person towards whom we
have acted meanly and ungratefully. The word "God" should
be enough to awaken in us this disposition of soul and state
of mind.
Regarding this fifth point, some Ignatian literature is
wrong. Since in other places the remarks of Saint Ignatius
are quite restrained and unemotional and he is inclined to
silence rather than to rhetoric, the cry of wonder, the surge
of emotion and surprise have been looked on as emotional
acrobatics. But this cry of wonder should be the spontaneous
result of what preceded. It arises from a powerful mystical
experience and belongs, therefore to the arcana verba of the
Saint. [P. Peeters, Vers l'union divine par les Exercices de
saint Ignace (Louvain, 1931), 146.] We cannot really attain
this unless we have experienced something similar. Therefore, two questions arise: Can I achieve this increasing
emotion of soul without insincerity? What is our actual
feeling at this point of the Exercises in comparison with the
text?
61 : I am, in the last analysis, no more than a child
(Confessions 27) wanting to say thank you by his simple
Our Father. (Przywara, I, 244) This colloquy of mercy
is certainly an expression of thanks, but not yet an expression
~j~
~~
Practical remarks: In connection with the preceding meditations on mortal sin, should we not also meditate, and have
others meditate, on venial sin? Are not our retreatants
eager for advancement? In this regard venial sin has an
essential role. Indications of this in 35, 44, 63, 65.
In giving the Exercises, it is important to take into con·
sideration the situation of the retreatants. Are we such
masters of the interior life that each retreatant will say:
He is thinking of me?
Finally, personal experience and knowledge must find their
foundation and 'justification in Holy Scripture, e.g., the
Penitential Psalms. For other readings suited to fostering
interior compunction in the retreatants, cf. MH Ex S4S,
949; Imitation,· Confessions of Saint Augustine, 2, 1 ff.; De
quattuor novissimis of Denis the Carthusian.
.
d
According to the dispositions of the retreatant, one wlll ad
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
317
meditations on death and judgment (71, 74, 78, 186, 187),
presented with the help of dogma, Scripture, and liturgy
(death). Models in MH Ex 956 ff. (Spanish). Ignatius
himself advises them. (MH Ex 791)
The work of the First Week, facere veritatem, is penance,
87. (MH Ex 809, 856)
Third and Fourth Exercises: Repetitions
62: The repetition is under the form of the triple colloquy
and begins as soon as the spirit is moved. Cf. Vulgate,
"Deinde, occurente nobis spirituali motu, ad colloquia, quae
sequuntur, tria veniemus." Even for the first Fathers this
colloquy was the subject of theological reflexion. (MH Ex
808) For the place of the triple colloquy in the Exercises,
see Przywara, I, 226 ff. He sees the Three Degrees of Humility already foreshadowed in this colloquy.
The purpose of this exercise is to refine the supernatural
delicacy of conscience, and this in view of both purity of soul
and the elimination of the least internal disorder. This exercise conforms to the purpose of the Exercises, which is to
root out the disorders from one's life.
Fifth Exercise: Meditation on Hell
This is not a meditation in the strict sense (meditatio),
but an application of the senses (applicatio sensuum).
There are two basic opinions on this kind of prayer:
a) From the standpoint of the classical and official norm
found in the Directory of 1599, 20, 3 (MH Ex 1150) the apPlication of the senses is an easier, and therefore less highly
regarded method of prayer than strict meditation. The
latter is discursive and considers the cause, the effect, and
the consequence of the object. Father Roothaan and Father
Meschler are recent defenders of this opinion. The fruit
of this type of prayer can be compared with a little bouquet
or wild fruit brought home from a walk.
b) Against this conception there is an objection as early as
the Anonymous (MH Ex 199): it sees periculum laedendi
organa capitis. Also in the older Directories we find the
application of the senses as a preliminary step to mystical
Prayer, prayer of quiet, oratio simplex, contemplatio (St.
�318
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
Thomas, 2-2, q. 180). See also on this point the interesting
developments on meditatio and contemplatio in Thomas and
Bonaventure in P. Lorenz, Das sittliche Menschenbild bei
Thomas von Aquin und die Wende vom Platonismus zum
Aristotelismus, Dissertation (Innsbruck, 1946) 9-14. Principal authorities for this view: Polanco (MH Ex 812 ff.);
Miron (ibid. 867); Gonzalez (ibid. 918 ff.) ; La Palma, Gagliardi; Sierp, II, 99-111; Suarez in De religione S.J., commenting on the Exercises; Peeters, Vers l'union divine.
The second Annotation ()ll{2), which is really only a simple
indication, is decisive-in favor of the second opinion.
Consequently if the meditation on hell is given as a real
application of the senses, it must have been preceded by the
theological and biblical treatment of the subject. This must
be presented first. Sources: the most important passages
from the Old and New Testaments. For the doctrine from
Tradition, cf. Denzinger, Index XIV, a and b, as well as
Vogt's work.
The Our Father of a man who has had the grace to escape
hell.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
J. J. Navatel, «La devotion sensible, les larmes, et les Exercises" in
CBE 64 (1920) 20 ff.
P. Galtier, "Le sens du peche a entretenir" in RA'M, 1952, 289 tr.
J. Marechal, "Application des sens" in DS 1, 810 ff..R. de Maumigny, Pratique de l'oraison m entale 1, 298 ff.
L. de Grandmaison, Ecrits spirituels 1, 168.
Meditation on the Kingdom of Christ
This is, strictly speaking, where the action of the Exercises
begins. All the preceding was merely preparation.
Introduction: To what extent, in the mind of Ignatius and
his first companions, should the meditation on the Kingdom be
given even to beginners? According to 18, the door seems
closed to them. But can we not find a way to let a feW
glimmers of the Second Week filter through into the First
Week? For example, in the three-day retreats given to
students.
An opinion was formed quite early that men of the First
Week are suitable for the light of the Kingdom of Christ.
Miron (MH Ex 858) : "It is customary to give these pe?pidle
some of the exercises of the Second Week.'' Polanco (tb ·
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
319
801) : "They can be given meditations on the life of Christ."
Anonymous B 1 (ibid. 887) : "Besides some meditations on
the life of Christ, the meditation on the Passion of Christ
can be added."
Even those, then, who do not go as far as the election
can be given some meditations from the Second Week. Cf.
also Directory of 1599, 19, 3: they can also be given some
inkling of the decision for Christ. At any rate, to decide
which way this question is to be solved in a particular case,
we keep in mind the magis, the major Dei gloria of the
Exercises themselves.
Views of Ignatius and the first Fathers on the Kingdom as
the second Foundation and the central idea of the Exercises.
Polanco (MH Ex 810 ff., Direct. 62), compared with MH
Ex 807, Direct. 45.
Miron (ibid. 861), "It is to be noted that the Call of an
Earthly King at the beginning of the Second Week is the
Foundation, so to speak, of all the meditations on the life of
Christ which follow."
Anonymous B 1 (ibid. 885), "It remains only to enlighten
our understanding so we may know God and all that concerns Him, and ourselves as well."
Direct. 1591 (ibid. 1046) : "The first exercise in this Second Week is on the Kingdom of Christ: it is not included in
the meditations, since the first of these is the Incarnation.
It is a kind of Foundation or introduction to this whole tract,
a summa and compendium of the life and work of Christ."
Direct. 1599, 19, 1.
The meditation on the Kingdom as the concrete form of the
Foundation in terms of salvation worked out in history: The
Preceding paragraph confirms the fact that the meditation on
the Kingdom is a new Foundation. Now we ask, in what
sense? This second Foundation, besides having a function
similar to that of the Foundation of the First Week, is a
Projection of this first Foundation into the history of salvation.
Let us see how they are parallel to each other:
23
91 ff.
homo creatus est
Verbum caro factum est.
reliqua super faciem
95, the eternal King: Col. 1, 16
�320
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
quae impediunt (peccata)
salus animae
indijferentia
magis
95, 97: labor and glory
Reconquer the world: Rom. 5 :12
96, those who have judgment and
reason
98, et oblatio praeciosior or major
Notes
There was one who realized the Foundation fully in praise,
reverence and service: Christ. Through His dignity as God
and His service as man, He is the end of the universe. To
pride and disobedien'2e are opposed His humility and obedience.
Since the necessary dispositions for redemption are the
precise objective of the First Week via purgativa, MH Ex
861, 865, they are no longer mentioned expressly in the
meditation on the Kingdom. The Second and Third degrees
of Humility are in the foreground: that is why they must
already have been contained in the Foundation.
The oblatio praeciosior consists in the struggle against the
world, the flesh- and sensuality, for it has already been noted
in the First Week that some things hinder the attainment of
the end. Therefore a meditation should be made on the
realization of the Foundation in the Kingdom of Christ.
Conclusions: The spirit of the Kingdom. -should pervade
all the succeeding meditations on the life of Christ.
There is a double idea here: "to labor" and "to enter into
glory", in the same sense as Christ explained these ideas to
the disciples from Emmaus. (Luke 24: 26) This was one
of the basic insights of Ignatius at Manresa. It is used in
all the mysteries included in the appendix to the Exercises.
This must be kept in mind too when replying to the ques·
tion whether the meditation on the Kingdom is meant to
excite zeal for the missions or the apostolate. If this were the
case, how would we understand the surprising conclusion of
97: to fight against the world and sensuality in self. Ignatius
is convinced that the essential task for the Kingdom of God
is this struggle against love of the flesh and the world. ThiS
is so basic that everything else, even the apostolate, floWS
naturally from it. To achieve this end, the idea of the Ki?gdom must be given a scriptural, patristic, and theologtcal
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
321
complement. Each word of the Exercises can be made to
rest upon a biblical and theological substructure.
The parable of the king raises another question. On the
historic background of this- parable, see the article by P.
Kellerwessel, ZAM (1932) 70 ff. Two stands are taken on
this question of the background: The parable can be illustrated along its historic lines: conquista, crusade, Ignatius'
naval plan, conquest of the New World. But the important
idea is loyalty of the knight to his king. On Ignatius' naval
plan, cf. Polanco's letter to Nadal, August 6, 1552 MHSI 1, 4,
354-359.
Regarding this question Father von Nostitz, in SH, p. 112,
feels that in our time these ideas are antiquated; to recall
the notion of feudal chivalry will rather dampen than excite
enthusiasm. The parable must, therefore, be reshaped according to current ideas. Consequently it had best be left
aside.
Father Rahner, however, does not completely agree. The
fundamental point of the parable of the Kingdom can still
be vividly grasped: humanity today wants and clamors for a
leader to bring it peace. The concept of king is not only a
datum of history.; it is an archetype of the human mind
(Jung, Zurich). "There is no great man who is not conscious
of being led by another greater." For this very reason, king
is a concept belonging to Revelation, where it refers to God
and Christ. So also the mind of the Church in the feast of
Christ the King. Every noble man tends to this ideal: I
belong to a great man; I am his soldier. This attitude of
submission is based ultimately on man's contingency.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
L. Poullier, "La partie alh~gorique de la contemplation du Regne"
in CBE 61 f. (1920), 9-14.
H. Monier-Vinard, "L'appel d'un divin Roi" in Les grandes directives,
149-171.
G. Dirks, "Le De regno Christi et la personne du Christ" in RAM
1953, 317-356.
R. De Ravine!, "L'appel du Christ" in RAM, 1953, 327-336.
E. Cahill, "The Kingdom of Christ" in OC pp. 40-49.
Meditation on the Two Standards
Position in the Exercises: Position with respect to the Election: In 97 and 98 there is already an allusion to 135. The
�322
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
end is purum servitium, as in every introductory meditation.
By way of introduction: One is struck here by the typically
Ignatian style. The director of the Exercises remains discretely in the background and merely proposes what might be
useful. He is merely an instrument of divine grace.
This is a kind of meditation to get acclimatized in view of
the tension of spirit which will be felt when the election is
faced; the plan of Christ. It explains 97 and 98: here too
the battle between Christ and Satan is decided but now it
is not a question of saving one's soul but of the Kingdom of
God and the concrete fox;;m that the magis will take.
There is the same division here as in the Foundation: first
an historical consideration, in which are indicated the two
fronts existing throughout the history of the world; only
after this follows a psychological consideration: the Three
Classes of Men. The leaders of the two fronts : Christ and
Satan set in opposition. The insight of the Second Week
is the realization of the complete separation of the two. Thus,
with this meditation, we come to the most intimate point of
the Exercises.
The prayer for grace in 139 is formulated accordingly. We
look back to the meditation on the Kingdom: behind the
world, the flesh, and sensuality (97) we find. an eminently
intelligent and personal power. This shows" .more clearly
why Christ spoke forthwith of the struggle against these
three things, for Christ's triad is opposed to that of Satan:
142
146
Poverty
Riches (will to possess)
Vainglory (desire to be esHumiliation
Humility (First, Second,
teemed)
Increasing (cannot be
Third Degrees)
checked) pride (will to be)
Preliminary look at the Third Degree of Humility:
Gonzalez (MH Ex 921) considers how gentle (delicada)
Christ's voice is in this meditation. To hear it, very close
attention is required. Therefore (as our Father himself
says, MH Ex 781) when you are dealing with someone who
will not reach the Third Degree of Humility, or at least the
Second, he should not be given the Two Standards and Three
Classes of Men. It is better to wait until he has the necessarY
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
323
maturity and grace. Ignatius (MH Ex 781) says that complete resignation of will is necessary for the election. Cf.
Directory of 1599, 19, 2 f.
The meditation on the Two Standards, therefore, fits into
the pattern: it clarifies the meditation on the Kingdom, and
it looks forward to the Three Degrees of Humility.
Position with respect to the Mysteries of Christ which are
parallel to it: The Mysteries in question range from Christ in
the Temple to Christ in the Desert. Of these, the Temptation
in the Desert is the biblical meditation on the Two Standards.
The triad of Satan is found there. Christ begins His apostolic
life following the triad: poverty, contempt, humility, in His
struggle against sensuality, vanity and pride, the substance
of the triple temptation (Matthew 4 :1-11).
Theological and Biblical Study: This meditation on the
Two Standards reveals the most intimate aspect of the history of the world, lays bare, so to speak, the very nerves of
the history of salvation. The opposition between BabylonJerusalem, Christ-Satan, is one of the fundamental data of
theology. For this reason many authors (MH Ex 80, 124)
have presumed that Ignatius borrowed the meditation from
ancient sources, for example, St. Bernard (De pugna spirituali, PL, 183, col. 761-765). This is excluded by the fact that
Ignatius did not know Latin when he was at Manresa;
however, he had read Ludolph the Carthusian and the Flos
Sanctorum, where similar ideas appear. These scattered,
suggestive elements are to be connected with the great Catholic theology of history in the Middle Ages, which have their
source in Augustine's City of God. Ignatius, enlightened by
his interior experience, reduced these ideas and suggestions to
his brief triad. In this respect, the meditation is entirely
his idea and his work.
Biblical and patristic development of Ignatius' key ideas:
For sources in Church history, cf. Tourniers' article, "Les
deux cites," Etudes 123 (1910) 644 ff.; Vogt's commentary
on the Exercises.
In Sacred Scripture, each one should make a personal study
to form a complete picture of Christ's opposition to Satan
all through His life. Cf. 1 Jn. 3:8, and parallel passages.
For the theology itself:
Summa Theol. 1, q. 114, a. 1.
�324
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
Constitutions (when Ignatius speaks of the enemy of human nature). Liturgy: Death-Life, Light-Darkness. Baptismal liturgy. Confirmation in this context, cf. Umberg,
Die Exerzitien und die Sakramente; cf. Rahner, Pompa diaboli, ZKTh, 1931.
Meaning of the Meditation on Two Standards: (Cf. "Geist
der Gesellschaft J esu und ihr padagogisches Werk, by
Bominghaus, in Festschrift zum 75-jiihrigen Bestehen der
Stella Matutina, 24 ff.) The effort here is to see the inner
choices of mankind in relation to the history of the world.
No ascetical training sh,puld be undertaken without this universal outlook, seeing a choice affecting all in the choice of
the individual, in the strength of Christ and of those few
souls who allow themselves to be completely imbued with His
spirit. This kind of meditation, let me repeat, is not directed
to resolutions for the apostolate, but to the transformation
and renewal of the whole man on the model of Christ. On
this depends everything.
BmLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
F. Tournier, "Amor Dei,
A. Codina, "'In affectu'
P. Blet, "Note sur les
Gregorianum, 1954, 99-111.
L. Bouyer, "Le probleme
Dieu vivant, n. 6, p. 17-42.
amor sui" in CBE 61 f . (1920), 17-21.
an 'in effectu.'" Ibid., p. 43-45.
origines de l'obeissance ignatienne," in
.
du mal dans le christiani&me antique" in
Meditation on the Three Classes of Men
Preliminary Remarks: This is the psychological meditation
based completely on the Two Standards. It presents the
inner aspect of the struggle between Christ and Satan. It
weighs our personal dispositions again. All this is in view
of the coming election.
The expression "classes of men" is simply one of those
expressions, as when we speak in moral theology of Titus
and Livius in a casus conscientiae.
Poverty was a matter of such importance in the reform of
the Church of those days that this meditation must have been
conceived at Paris, says Father Bominghaus. But one's attitude towards wealth is always a matter of importance: Beati
pauperes spiritu and 1 Tim. 6 :9 ss. Cf. SH p. 123, 126.
Purpose of the Meditation: Ignatius knows that manY
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
325
obstacles come in the way of a full committment of the man
to Christ, the King of hosts, and that one would prefer to
give up less than is demanded by the ideal, magis. St.
Ignatius describes man's reaction to God's call with perspicacity, shrewdness and understanding.
The purpose is noted in 152: it is the magis of the Foundation. 151 shows its importance. This Composition of
Place does not recur until the Contemplatio ad Amorem.
The purpose is specified in the Directories: Polanco (MH
Ex 816, n. 76), Miron (ibid. 867) ; Directory of 1599, 29, 6.
Any solution besides the third is seen as halfhearted,
cowardly, and perverse. Therefore the meditation is the
immediate prelude to choosing the Third Degree of Humility.
Essential Content:
Ten thousand ducats amounted to a fortune, a man could
live on the revenue from this sum. They were acquired
legitimately, but not for a motive of love of God. All three
desire salvation: again salvation comes into view. Once
again the possibility, however remote, of losing one's soul
comes to the fore.
·
Still, we are not here dealing immediately with something
that would cause loss of salvation, but only with an assurance
against every possibility of damnation. Here we find the
distinction between the First and Second Degrees of Humility.
Although the Second Degree is not necessary for salvation,
to abandon it endangers one's salvation. For the result could
be that some day the soul will actually sin mortally.
The various responses:
154, this solution is cowardice. It achieves nothing. Saint
Ignatius excludes it.
155, this is the typical procedure of the Second Degree of
Humility. If God wants me to keep the ten thousand ducats, I
shall keep them. The important thing is that the choice be
not governed by any disordered affection. Therefore, act as
if every attachment had been broken-typically Ignatian.
The Spanish means: I put myself in the same attitude as if
I had already renounced it. This is something more than the
first part of 155. I experience, as it were, the concrete
Possibility of God's calling me to actual renunciation.
157: there is again explicitly question of self-conquest. It
is a divine invitation. Ignatius becomes almost eloquent here:
�326
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
the whole thing is an attempt to pass from the Second to the
Third Degree, an interior attitude as if I had been called to
the Third Degree.
Ignatius says (MH Ex 779): "In order that the retreatant
be better disposed to arrive at the greater glory of God and
greater personal perfection, the retreat director should prepare him to prefer the counsels rather than the precepts,
provide'i that God will be better served through them".
And again, "As a matter of fact, more signs from God are
needed to choose the precepts rather than the counsels, for
Our Lord Jesus Christ~offers the counsels without restriction,
but points out difficulties to those who want to retain their
wealth."
Therefore, in lining up the election, I need clearer signs
if I am to retain my possessions than if I am to abandon
them. It is less frequent that God wills that a man live a
rich, long and comfortable life than a poor, short and hard
one.
Finally, this matter may be seen in its connection with the
Third Degree of~Humility. Gonzalez (MH Ex 921), "As a
general rule, no one is admitted to the election unless he first
asks for it and desires it and is persuaded that it will profit
him. Therefore the retreatant must have his .soul free from
every inordinate desire and be inclined solely..- to what God
wants. And should it become clear to him that he ought to
follow the counsels rather than the precepts, he should be
reminded of St. Ignatius' words: more signs are needed for
the precepts than for the counsels."
Directory of 1599 (MH Ex 1154, 4) : the same.
Practical Observations:
The case proposed by Ignatius is only one of many possible
cases. Therefore in practice we should adapt. For example: Gagliardi, three classes of soldiers; Gonzalez, three
classes of merchants; Lancicius, three classes of religious.
For its use in an election of reform, see 89 and MH Ex
1068.
.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
H. Pydynkowski, "Quaestiones de tribus binariis" in CBE, 57 (1919)
12-17.
J. de Guibert, "L'clection dans les Exercices" in Les grandes direc·
tives, 172-194.
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
327
A. Pottier, Pour saint Ignace et les Exercices (Paris, 1930) 88-136.
Three Degrees of Humility
Classic example of such an election: consideration of the
first Fathers of the Society in 1539. Should they form an
Order in the strict sense, in the ecclesiastical sense? The
question was: obedience or liberty. As in every case, characters were different and their opinions varied; hence they
decided to pray and reflect; then to confer with each other
about the result. They weighed the reasons pro and con; but
the definitive judgment of all was that the way of obedience
was more heroic;. thereupon more prayer and consideration,
with the result: unanimous vote for obedience.
This choice was made because all were disposed to embrace
obedience even though, without it, God's glory would have
been achieved equally well.
What is the most powerful, the highest motive for choosing
the Third Degree? Is it the view of what contributes most
to attaining the end or is it rather heroic effort for Christ?
According to Feder and Raitz von Frentz, the equal glory
of God is presupposed; i.e., prescinding from imitation of
Christ crucified.
Suarez (MH Ex 368, note 1, referring to De religione S.J.
9, 5, 22-26): "nulla enim ratio virtutis vel honestatis in
hujusmodi electione" (choosing poverty for poverty's sake),
since suffering is not an end in itself. But we know from the
whole course of the Exercises that the greater glory of the
Father is promoted precisely by Christ poor and crucified.
For Przywara (and Bominghaus), the summit is "intoxication with love of the Crucified, prescinding from the divine
glory" (Przywara III), in the "scarlet splendor of love of the
Cross" (Bominghaus).
The example of the first Fathers shows the gloria Dei to
consist in the quotidiana mortificatio of the Third Degree of
Humility. Cf. 168. Thus also for the choice of the Third
Degree of Humility, the motivation is major gloria divina
based on the conviction that the best way to promote it is to
attain the greatest possible resemblance to Christ crucified.
This choice puts the finishing touch on the work of the election in the Exercises.
�328
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SUPPLEMENT
J. Dargent, "Les degres d'humilite d'apres saint Benoit et saint
Ignace" in CBE 61-f. (1920) 46-49.
H. Pydynkowski, "De tribus humilitatis modis" in CBE 70 (1921)
1-26.
F. Prat, "Sur les trois degres d'humilite d'apres saint Ignace" in
RAM, 1921, 248-255.
P. Loiselet, "La montee des trois degres d'humilite," in Les grandes
directives, 248-259.
C. Boyer, "Le troisieme degre d'humilite de saint Ignace de Loyola
et Ia plus grande gloire de Dieu" in RAM 1931, 162-169.
A. Gaultier, "Le troisieme degre d'humilite de saint Ignace. L'hypothese impossible" in RAM, 1931, 218-229.
J. Delepierre, "Note sur les trois degres d'humilite" in NRT 1948,
963-975.
APPENDIX
OUR LADY IN THE EXERCISES
BIBLIOGRAPHY
MH Ex 39 ff.
Confessions 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 29.
Spiritual Diary (MHSI, Constitutiones 1, 86 ff.).
MHSI, Monumenta lgnatiana, 1, 12, 667.
Exercises, 47, 63, 73, 98, 74, 102 ff., 109, 111 ff., 114, 135, 147, 158,
273, 218-225, 263, 264, 266, 276, 298, 299.
Notes
Confessions 10 and 11 are also important ~for the discernment of spirits.
In the Exercises, 63 in the First Week is the fundamental
text on Our Lady. The Hail Mary here would provide a
fruitful meditation in the form of a colloquy with Mary, who
was sinless and without any disordered affections (Cf. Title
of the Exercises, Election, Degrees of Humility). 63 is
decisive in the First Week.
147 is the fundamental passage on Our Lady in the Second
Week, Regina Societatis lesu.
135: the incident in the Temple, Our Lord's departure
and our Lady's acceptance.
The Exercises bring out Mary's presence at the turning
points in the life of Jesus. (Mediatrix)
In his Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine,
Part II, Chapter XI, Section 2, (jf 4 and 5, Cardinal Newman
studies the position of Our Lady in the Exercises.
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
329
THE CHURCH IN THE EXERCISES
18, 42, 170, 177, 351-370.
Regulae ad sentiendum in Ecclesia militante. For Przywara
it is the serving Church, i.e., serving God; not the militant
Church.
170 is often left out when interpreting the Exercises. All
enthusiasm must be kept within the limits prescribed by the
hierarchical Church, vita communis. In the Election we
should be concerned not only with moral good but also with
the retreatant's conformity with the hierarchy.
THE CROSS
Its place in the First Week:
23: Foundation-in the triad "sickness, poverty, dishonor,"
Christ crucified is implied. It is the same theme as found
in the Kingdom and Three Degrees of Humility.
48: More concrete indication-possibility of future choice
of suffering.
53: Colloquy with the Crucified and reference to the Foundation: "as Creator". "What ought I to do?" ( Cf. 203.)
61: Continuation in the colloquy of mercy.
63: Anima Christi, prayer to the suffering Christ.
71: Colloquy (at the edge of hell) with the Crucified, center
of the universe.
87: Supreme motive for penance: imitation of the Cross.
Its place in the Second Week:
95: Ideal, "Whoever wishes to join me must be willing to
labor with me (Cf. 93) that he may follow me in glory."
(Saint Paul!)
98: Result, oblation in the fight against the flesh and the
World. The fate of the world in my area of combat is decided
here. Echo of the triad !
116: Born for toil and for death on the Cross.
147: The offering formulated more exactly. Triad of
Satan, world, flesh, opposed to conformity with the Cross.
(Cf. 97.)
167: Foundation brought to its culmination and most per-
�330
NOTES ON TilE EXERCISES
sonal point; folly of the Cross as the highest point of the
Election.
189: Tantum-quantum (Imitation I, 25), norm for sincerity of election.
MILITIA CHRISTI
Christus Rex militans according to Scripture and the Apostolic Fathers.
Is the idea of Militia Christi in St. Ignatius and the Office
of Christ the King .~)reflection of the period or an idea from
Revelation? Nature ..of the militia in Gen. 3, 15, and Augustine, De Civitate Dei, esp. books XII and XIV.
The militant Messias of the Old Testament:
1) Person of the Rex Militans: Genesis 3,15; Psalms 2 and
109, Isaias 42, 13; 59,17; Zacharias 12,14; Daniel 7,10;
13,2; 2,44; and His future kingdom: Isaias 49,11; 42,1;
29,14; Daniel 7,27; Joel 3, 17-18; Zacharias 12,6.
2) Person of the adversary, Satan: Job 1,6; Zacharias 3,1;
the Serpent: Genesis 3,15; Isaias 27,1; his seed, his kingdom,
the demons, the nations and kings, the world, Egypt and
Babylon, the Beast, personified evil, Israel turned from God.
3) Messianic victory: Genesis 3,15; 49,8; Psalms 21,29;
Isaias 53,1 ; 63, 3-6; Daniel 9,25; and the final outcome of the
Messianic kingdom: Daniel 7:22; Isaias 60,66; 54,17; Zacharias 8,9; Micheas 4,3; and of Satan's kingdom: Isaias 66,24.
4) The militant Messias in Judaism: Testament of the
Twelve Patriarchs, IV Esdras, the Sibyl (Cf. Schlagenhaufen,
ZKTh, 1927, p. 521 ff.)
Christ militant in the Gospels:
1) Messianic mission: solvere opera diaboli: Matthew 12,
30; John 18,37; 8 :45; 1 John 3,8; 2,21 ; origin of His adver·
sary, Satan: John 12,31; 14,30; 16,11; the world and the souls
it governs: John 6, 70; 8,44; Luke 22,3.
2) Christ's struggle with temptation: Matthew 4, 1-11, and
parallels; kingdom against kingdom: Matthew 12,28; Luke
11,14; 12,10; 9,32; 10,17 ;· its expression in parables: Luke
11,14 Ff.; Matthew 22,7; His victory on the Cross: John
12,31; 16,11; as principle of His royalty: Luke 22,28.
3) Continuation of the Messianic mission (militia) bY
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
331
his own in the Church, for they are also sent into the world
and carry on an unceasing moral struggle against Evil:
Matthew 16,18; 10,25; Luke 22,31; Matthew 10,34, etc., with
the same outcome.
Militia Christi in Saint Paul and the other Epistles:
1) The adversaries: Christ and Belial. Reign of the prince
of this world, the present world, his collaborators, and the
prince of salvation and everlasting life, Christ and His
kingdom, the Church-perfect contraries: 2 Corinthians 4,4;
Colossians 2,15; Hebrews 2,8; 10, etc.
2) Victory of the Cross, peace in His Blood: Colossians
2,15; 1,20; Hebrews 2,14; 10,13.
3) Application and distribution of the fruits of the GodMan's victory in the regnum gratiae:
a. Christians, soldiers of Christ by faith, by the essential
victory of Baptism and by the armor of God: Ephesians 6,13;
1 Thessalonians 5,8.
b. Apostles and priests, Soldiers in the kingdom of Christ
in a special way: 2 Corinthians 10,3; 2 Timothy 2,3; etc.
4) Revelation of the final outcome and beginning of the
total dominion of the Rex militans: 1 Corinthians 15,23, etc.
and the Apocalypse.
Militia Christi in early Christianity:
According to Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin,
Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Tertullian.
1) The Church, castra Domini, and her unique enemy:
Satan and his minions. Christus lmperator.
2) Christians, soldiers by Baptism and Confirmation.
3) Victory in the Cross alone: vexillum Domini.
Conclusion:
Its prolongation in tradition and its limitation to monasticism. Saint Benedict, Eastern monasticism.
Tradition of the Sacrament of Confirmation, sacramentum
rnilitiae.
DIVISION OF THE EXERCISES INTO FIVE DAYS
(For use by those who have studied theology)
Introduction: "0 Sapientia, veni ad docendum nos vias
prudentiae." Great antiphons for Christmas
�332
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
First Day
1. The divine mystery in the obscurity of Christmas.
2. Creatus sum. "Ego ex ore Altissimi prodivi." (Ecclesiasticus 24,5) •
3. "The other things on the face of the earth" are my existence. The Church and the priesthood are, indeed, the
face of the earth of my existence. The Church and the
priesthood, continuation of the mystery of Christmas.
4. Instruction: my., body and my supernatural birth as a
participation in the .
.Holy Trinity.
Second Day
1. "0 cia vis David" Triple Sin: the opposite of the mys-
tery of Christmas.
Sin of the angels and the Incarnation ( cf. Scheeben, Mysteries of Christianity).
Sin of Adam and the Incarnation. (Cf. Summa Theologica
2-2, q. 2, a. 7)
Sin of man and the Incarnation.
2. Personal sin destroys the grace of Christmas in me:
birth of God-death of God.
3. Final goals: "ut cum secundo fulserit metuque mundum
cinxerit." The last Advent for me: death, for humanity: the
coming of Christ. Consequence: decision *hereby the divine
Revelation of Christmas becomes definitive.
4. Venial sins and Christmas.
Third Day
1. "0 Oriens" The Kingdom, presenting the choice of
Christ and the fundamental law of His kingdom.
2. Incarnation: full revelation of this basic law.
3. Daily life and the hidden life: application of this law.
4. Instruction: Messianic consecration of Christ at the
Baptism, as the consequence of Christmas and as the priestlY
consecration for His redemptive function.
Fourth Day
1. "0 rex gentium" Christ's decisive struggle with Satan
(Two Standards): giving meaning to our actions.
2. Christ's solitude: chastity and celibacy.
3. Lordship of Christ: awareness of our mission.
4. Christ lost in God: Christ's life of prayer.
1
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
333
Fifth Day
1. Christ's Sacrifice: The Eucharist, "e Virginis sacrario
intacta prodis victima."
2. Christ's death; the Cross, the birth on Christmas ratified for the last time.
3. The Church: The Risen Christ and His ever present
birth.
4. Love: the cause of Christmas and end of all creation,
of the Christmas of Eternity.
"Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to
serve Thee as Thou deservest; to give and not to count the
cost; to fight and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not
to seek for rest; to labor and not ask for reward, save that
of knowing that I am doing Thy will." St. Ignatius
SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR AN EIGHT DAY RETREAT
(Chosen by Father A. Merk, especially for priests)
First Day: Recollection, the Foundation
Apocalypse 1-3; John 3-5; 7 and 8; Isaias 2; 40; 43; 44;
45 and 55; Psalms 8; 18; 28; 89; 103 and 94; Luke 12.
Second Day: Sin
Luke 16, 19-31 and 17, 20-37 ;. Romans 1-4; 5, 12-21 and 7;
Hebrews 3-6; 9 and 10; Isaias 1; 5 and 14; Ezechiel 18 and
28; Joel 12, 12-32; Jeremias 2; 5 and 6; Osee 2 and 14,
2-10.
Third Day: Reconciliation
Matthew 3; Luke 3, 1-10; 13, 1-9; 7, 36-50 and 15; Romans
6; Galatians 5; Ephesians 2; Isaias 63, 7-19 and 64; Jeremias
30, 9-24; Micheas 7; Psalms 4; 5; 84 and 102.
Fourth Day: Christ
Matthew 1; Luke 1 and 2; John 1, 1-18; Ephesians 1;
Colossians 1 and 2 ; Hebrews 1 ; Isaias 7 ; 9 ; 11 and 12 ;
Micheas 5 ; Aggeus 2.
Fifth Day: Imitation, Election
Matthew 5-7; 10; 11; 19 and 23; Luke 9, 57-62 and 10,
25-37; I Corinthians 1, 12-31 and 9; I Timothy 6, 6-19;
Cliolossians 3, 1-17; I Thessalonians 2, 1-12; II Timothy 2;
ebrews 11 ; Ezechiel 34; Zacharias 3; Malachias 3.
�334
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
Sixth Day: Apostolate, Priesthood
Luke 11, 1-24; 14, 15-35 and 18, 1-14; Matthew 13; 16; 18
and 20; Mark 9; Romans 12; 14 and 15, 1-13; I Corinthians
8 and 10, 14-33; Jeremias 1; 12; 15, 10-21; 16, 1-9; 17,
5-18; 23 and 45; II Corinthians 6, 1-13 and 11, 11-12; 18;
Isaias 6 ; 42 and 49 ; Ezechiel 2 ; 3 ; 13 and 33.
Seventh Day: Eucharist, Passion
John 6; Matthew 26 and 27; Mark 14 and 15; Luke 22 and
23; John 18 and 19; II Corinthians 1, 1-11; I Corinthians 11,
17-34; Hebrews 4, 14~5, 10 and 12, 1-13; Galatians 2, 15-21;
3, 7-14 and 6, 11-18; I Peter 4, 12-19; Ephesians 2, 1-22;
Isaias 52, 13-53, 12; Jeremias 11, 18-23; Wisdom 2, 12-25;
Psalms 21 ; 54; 58, 68 and 70.
Eighth Day: Joy
John 14-17; 20 and 21; Matthew 28; Luke 24; I Corinthians
15; Romans 8; I Corinthians 13; II Corinthians 5; Ephesians
6, 10-20; I Peter 2, 1-10; Apocalypse 21 and 22; Isaias 49,
17-24 and 54; .60-62; Ezechiel 37 and 47, 1-12; Psalms 17;
20; 26; 29; 41; 42; 83 and 87.
SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR AN EIGHT DAY RETREAT
(Chosen by Father Rahner.f _,
First Day: Maiestas Divina
Isaias 6, 1-5 and 40, 6-31; Ezechiel 1, 26-28; Daniel 7,
9-10; Apocalypse 1, 11-16; Psalm 18, 8-20; 28; 29; 96;
97 1-7; 103 and 104; Job 37; 38; 9, 3-18; 12, 13-35 and
26, 1-14; Ecclesiasticus 42, 15-25 and 43, 1-33.
Second Day: Servitium Dei
Service of God the Strong: Psalms 61 and 62. Servant of
God: Psalms 85 and 86; Isaias 49, 1-25. Praise of God:
Psalms 112, 113, 144 and 145. Reverential Service of God:
Ecclesiastes 4, 1.7-5, 6; Ecclesiasticus 17, 1-32 and 18, 1-14.
How to serve God: Malachias 3, 1-24.
Third Day: De Peccato
Awareness of Sin: Psalms 6; 31 and 32; Job 15, 14-3.5;
I John 1, 5-2, 2. Confession of Sin: Isaias 59, 12-21; Danied
9, 4-10 and 9; 17-19. Sorrow and Repentance: Psalms 37 an
�NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
38; Job 11 and 13. Exhortation to Penance: Joel 2,
Sins of Priests: Malachias 1, 6-2, 9. Final Decision:
66, 10-17; Apocalypse 20, 11-15; 21, 1-8 and 22,
Mercy of God: Psalms 102 and 103; Ephesians 2,
Romans 8, 1-11.
335
12-17.
Isaias
12-16.
1-10;
Fourth Day: Kingship of Christ
Isaias 42, 13-17; 43, 1-7; 54, 1-17 and 25, 1-11; Jeremias
30, 18-22 and 31, 1-6; Daniel 7, 9-14, 27; Micheas 4, 1-7 and
5, 1-5; Psalms 71 ; 20 and 88; John 18, 33-37 ; Colossians 1,
13-24; Hebrews 1, 5-13 and 2, 5-18.
Fifth Day: Christ the King in Battle
Prophecy of victory through humility: Isaias 11, 1-5; 42,
1-12 and 49, 1-7; Zacharias 9, 8-17; II Thessalonians 2, 7-12.
Encounter of Christ and Satan: Matthew 4, 1-11; Mark 1,
12 and 13; Luke 4, 1-13; Matthew 12, 25-30; Luke 4, 31-37
and 11, 14-23; John 8, 44-45; 12, 31; 14, 31 and 16, 11;
Colossians 2, 15; I John 3, 8; Hebrews 2, 14-15. Continuation in the life of a Christian; Ephesians 6, 10-17; I Peter 5,
8; James 4, 7; I John 5, 19. Outcome: Apocalypse 12, 7-12;
20, 10 and 21, 7-8.
Sixth Day: Understanding the Cross
Prophets: Isaias 6, 1-9; Jeremias 2, 1-10 and 3, 16. Suffering: Lamentations 3, 1-24; Jeremias 20, 7-13 and 15,
10-21. First Call of the Apostles: Matthew 4, 17-22; Mark 1,
14-20 ;, John 1, 35-51. Final Call: Matthew 10, 1-4; Mark 3,
13-19; Luke 6, 12-16. Introduction to the Cross: Matthew
10, 16-42; 16, 21-28 and 20, 17-28; Mark 8, 31-38; 9, 30-32
and 10, 32-45; Luke 6, 20-26; 9, 22-27; 9, 44, 45; 12, 4-12,
18, 31-34 and 22, 25-27.
Seventh Day: Death and Glory
Isaias 53, 1-10 and 11-12; Psalm 21, 1-21 and 22-31;
Psalm 68, 1-22 and 23-37. The Cross is glory: John 7, 39;
12, 23-28; 13, 31-32 and 17, 1. From the Cross comes glory:
Luke 24, 26; Acts 2, 22-36 and 5, 30-31; Philippians 2, 5-11;
Hebrews 2, 9-10 and 5, 8-10; I Peter 3, 18-22; Apocalypse 1,
5-8.
Eighth Day: Glory of the Father
The Glory to come: Isaias 54, 11-17; 60, 1-22; 62, 1-12; 65,
�336
NOTES ON THE EXERCISES
17-18 and 66, 10-24; Jeremias 33, 1-26; Philippians 3, 20-21;
I Timothy 6, 14-16; II Peter 3, 1-13; Apocalypse 21, 1-27;
22, 1-5. · Glory of the Church: Ephesians 1, 20-23; 4, 7-16;
I Timothy 3, 14-16; Isaias 61, 10-11; 54, 1-5. Glory in the
heart: Romans 8, 12-17; I Corinthians 13, 1-13; Colossians 3,
1-4 and 3, 12-17.
READINGS FROM THE IMITATION OF CHRIST
First Day
Solitude: 1, 20; 3, 1_ and 2. God our only end: 3, 9, 34
and 21.
Seeond Day
Service of God: 3, 10. Purity of Intention: 3, 33 and 2, 4.
Indifference: 3, 17 and 37.
Third Day
Sorrow for Sin: 1, 21. Sin and Grace: 3, 55. Examen: 3,
11 and 4, 7. Death: 1, 23. Judgment and Hell: 1, 24. Secret
Judgments of God: 3, 14.
Fourth Day
Imitation of Christ: 1, 1. Call of the King to the Cross:
3, 56. Reading of the Scripture: 1, 5. Int~rior Voice of
Jesus: 3, 1 and 2.
-·
Fifth Day
Battle with the Enemy: 3, 6. Battle between Nature and
Grace: 3, 54. Peace through Renunciation: 3, 23 and 25.
Liberty through Mortification: 3, 32 and 37.
Sixth Day
Dying Daily: 3, 56. Daily Cross: 3, 47 and 51.
ence 3, 13. Few Lovers of the Cross: 2, 11.
Obedi-
Seventh Day
Few Lovers of the Cross: 2, 11. Bearing the Cross with
Jesus: 3, 18. Royal Road of the Cross: 2, 12. The Cross
and Glory: 3, 47.
Eighth Day
God all in All: 3, 34. Peace in God: 3: 21. Desire of
Heaven: 3, 49. Love of Jesus: 2, 7. Prayer to Obtain Love:
3, 5. Suscipe: 4, 9.
��~
.~
FATHER FRANCIS X. TALBOT
�OBITUARY
FATHER FRANCIS XAVIER TALBOT, S.J.
1889-1953
Father Francis X. Talbot died at Holy Trinity Rectory,
Georgetown, D.C., after a short illness from pneumonia, on
December 3, feast of St. Francis Xavier, 1953. Certainly, if he
could have chosen the day of his own departure from this
world, none would have been for him more acceptable, for his
life was spent in the spirit of his holy patron, towards whom he
felt an intense devotion. If magnanimity be chosen as a most
distinguishing trait of Xavier, it applied notably to Father
Talbot. His too was the type of soul which "naturally warms
to the thought of great undertakings for God and man,'' which
possesses an "instinctive affinity for all people, especially
young people, who are ready to venture much and aim high.
A magnanimous person communicates his spirit to those
around him. He may accomplish much or little. In either
case he has a master attitude toward life and men." (America,
Dec. 19, 1953, p. 317).
Francis Xavier Talbot came to the Society young in years,
about seventeen, and still younger in appearance among the
novices of St. Andrew-on-Hudson, which he entered on August 15, 1906. So youthful was his appearance that kindly
visitors to the novitiate were concerned and inquired who was
the small boy among the novices. But he was well fortified
with a background of faith, the inheritance from a staunchly
Catholic home. He was born in Philadelphia June 25, 1889,
of Irish parents, Patrick and Bridget (Peyton) Talbot, residing at 2506 North lOth Street, in the parish of St. Edward
the Confessor. He lived there until entering the Society of
Jesus and retained a lifelong loyalty to the parish and its
clergy. He was the youngest of seven children. Mary, John
and Joseph were deceased at the time of his own death. Three
sisters survive at the date of writing, Miss Elizabeth Talbot,
Mrs. Anna Powers, and Mrs. Nellie Myers. He attended St.
Edward's Parochial School and was taught by the Sisters
of the Holy Child Jesus, serving as an altar boy and taking
Part in all church ceremonies and school activities. His
�338
FATHER TALBOT
sisters relate that he was fond of sports and especially baseball, and dearly loved a variety of boyish pranks.
Mother Mary Margaret of the Holy Child Jesus, one of
his teachers, was much interested in him and persuaded him
to take the examination for a scholarship offered by St.
Joseph's. He came out victorious, was an excellent student
and took part in all activities at the school. In the parish
Father John Dever and Father William McCaffrey, assistant
pastors, were also interested in him, as both thought he had
a vocation to the priesth:ood. Father Dever thought he should
join the seculars, Fath(lr McCaffrey, the Jesuits. The pastor,
Father Vandergrift was neutral and left it to the boy's own
decision. He finally decided on the Society and his parents
were proud and happy. He returned their generous offering
by his own constant devotion, writing to them weekly throughout his period of training.
After two years juniorate at St. Andrew and three years
of philosophy at Woodstock, he taught English at Loyola
School, New York, 1913-1916; religion at Boston College,
1917-1918, making his theology at Woodstock 1918-1922. He
was ordained priest by Bishop Owen Corrigan at Woodstock
on June 29, 1921, and said his first Mass at Trinity Church,
where, incidentally, he said his last Mass before his death.
During his tertianship 1922-1923 he administered the Last
Sacraments to his father, who died December 22, 1922. In
1926 he made a trip to Ireland, and his mother died July 18,
1930.
The most decisive turn in his life was when he became
literary editor of America in 1923, at the invitation of Father
Richard H. Tierney, S.J., following Father Walter Dwight
in that position. As Literary Editor he developed an amazing
creative and organizing power. Keenly anxious for Catholics
to escape the literary ghetto and to raise up a new and bold
generation, the scope of his plan covered the whole field:
creative prose, poetry, literary criticism, drama and journal·
ism, as well as an editor's and publisher's encouragement of
pamphlets and encyclopedia contributions.
Typical of his many sided approach were the various
personages whom he welcomed to his discussions, such as:
Dr. James J. Walsh, George N. Shuster, Euphemia Wyatt,
�FATHER TALBOT
339
Helen Walker Homan, Michael Williams, Richard Dana Skinner, Shane Leslie, Hubert Howard, William T. Walsh, Theodore Maynard, Julie Kernan, Msgr. Joseph H. McMahon,
Msgr. Arthur J. Scanlan, Rev. James M. Gillis, C.S.P., along
with younger men like Thomas Kernan and Sterns Cunningham (now Brother Basil, Oblate, O.S.B.). John G. Brunini
was also a close associate.
All who knew Father Talbot recall his urbanely insistent
personality, his intense urging of young folk to try and try
again, his plain advice graciously given, his willingness to
tackle drudgery and attend to troublesome details.
His intimacy with the late Mr. Thomas F. Meehan, K.S.G.,
for very many years assistant to the managing editor of
America, developed in him a keen historical sense and love of
historic research, so much so that in 1925 he became one of the
trustees of the United States Catholic Historical Society.
Mr. Meehan's own explorations introduced Father Talbot to
many of the sources of historical knowledge.
His inventiveness and enterprise originated projects so
wide in scope that they are difficult to catalogue. In 1928
Father Talbot launched the Catholic· Book Club, which celebrated a twenty-fifth anniversary two years ago and is the
most successful enterprise of that sort in the Catholic Church,
probably in the entire world. In 1932 he was instrumental
in originating the Spiritual Book Associates, and later was
chairman of its editorial committee. In 1934 he collaborated
with the founding of another enterprise in the same line, the
Pro Parvulis Society, for children's books. In 1930 he conceived the idea of uniting the Catholic poets of the United
States in an organized body, and with the cooperation of a
small representative group, he formed the Catholic Poetry
Society of America, which now has the largest membership of
any poetry society in the United States. He was chaplain of
the society from 1924 to 1926. He was also chaplain of the
Yorkville Council, Knights of Columbus.
A particularly important enterprise was the launching by
Father Talbot of Thought, a quarterly magazine of culture
and criticism. Father Talbot took the keenest interest in
every detail of the magazine's structure, style and appearance, and was its first editor. Published by the America
�340
FATHER TALBOT
Press in its earlier years, Thought was later taken over by
Fordham University. After consultation with the faculties
at Woodstock and elsewhere, Father Talbot proposed in 1939
the idea of a theological magazine to be published by the
American Assistancy. He called the organization meeting at
Inisfada where it was decided to carry out the suggestion,
should superiors approve. Father William McGarry was
named to carry on the work which led to the launching of
Theological Studies.
Along with Father Daniel Lord and Father Wilfrid Parsons, he became deeply.,interested in the question of the films
and was chosen chaplain of the National Motion Picture
Bureau of the International Federation of Catholic Alumnae.
He was a contributor to the Encyclopedia Britannica and
wrote a new historical sketch of the Society of Jesus to
counteract the biased and inaccurate story which they had
published. This led to a program of revision with a view to
making the Encyclopedia more acceptable to Catholics, a work
which still goes on. He contributed also to the Britannica
Book of the Year.
Among his best known books are Jesuit Education in Philadelphia (1927) ; Richard Henry Tierney (1930); Shining in
Darkness (1932). He also edited several volumes such as The
Eternal Babe (1927); The America Book of .Verse (1928),
and Fiction by Its Makers (1929). Father Talbot was active
in the foundation of the Catholic Theatre Conference and the
Catholic Library Association.
He was awarded the degree of Doctor of Letters by St.
Joseph's College in 1926; Doctor of Humane Letters, Holy
Cross College in 1941; and Doctor of Letters by Fordham
University also in 1941.
From his childhood Father Talbot had taken keen interest ·
in the North American Martyrs and set for himself the
arduous task of reconstruction for his own knowledge of the
missionary life of St. Isaac J ogues, as preliminary to writing
his best known book, Saint Among Savages, which has been
translated into the principal European languages. He visited
the archives of Orleans in France, Quebec, Boston and NeW
York, and had traveled in person over the long, sinuous course
by lake, river and forest that the heroic missionary himself
�FATHER TALBOT
341
had covered in Canada and the United States. In his painstaking researches he laid also the foundation for a subsequent
work, a biography of Saint John de Brebeuf entitled Saint
Among the Hurons, and collected much material, as yet unpublished, on saintly persons among the Huron and Iroquois
Indians.
The varied experiences in recent years of the famous
Dionne quintuplets, of whom only four are now surviving,
remind us of the intense interest that Father Talbot took in
their case. He became deeply interested in the tragic situation
of the Dionnes, whose case had been misrepresnted in great
part to the American public, and became personally acquainted with their father, Mr. Olivia Dionne, who proved to
be a most friendly and cooperative person. Father Talbot
gained the confidence of the girls who besought him to enable
them to escape from the oppressive tutelage of Dr. Dafoe, the
country physician who had won headlines by bringing the
infants successfully into the world. Father Talbot had become
convinced that Dr. Dafoe was exploiting them for his own
benefit. He managed to induce the Quebec Provincial authorities to act and was happy in seeing the girls restored to
their parents.
Becoming Editor-in-Chief of America in 1936 and ex officio
also editor of the Catholic Mind, succeeding Father Wilfrid
Parsons in both offices, he was anxious to give to the magazine a distinctively militant flavor and tried to express this
spirit in a highly stylized format and rhetorical titles for the
articles. He became deeply interested in Spain and General
Franco's war with anarchists and communists, as Father
Tierney had been in Mexico, and saw in the Spanish upheaval
an opportunity for publicizing a cause which in general was
anything but popular in the United States. This interest
led him to organize the America Spanish Relief Fund for
the purpose of bringing relief to the distressed victims of
the Spanish Civil War, particularly to the children in the
territory controlled by the Nationalist troops. The Fund was
organized through the cooperation of the U.S. Catholic Hierarchy and the editors of American Catholic periodicals, in
~ooperation also with the American Friends (Quakers) ServI:e Committee. Shortly after the project was launched conSiderable differences sprang up between the original group
�342
FATHER TALBOT
organized by Father Talbot and a distinctively lay organization in the same field, headed by Michael Williams, called The
American Committee on Spanish Relief. However, the original group, the America Spanish Relief Fund, continued its
campaign, made progress, collected and distributed in Spain
nearly $100,000 1 • Father Tierney, be it remembered, had
collected a still larger sum, in the neighborhood of a quarter
of a million dollars, for Austria after the First World War.
Father Talbot's attraction to the romantic and dramatic
side of life encouragedjnitiative but also brought certain difficulties in its train, such as a readiness at times to accept
oversimplified solutions of complex political and social problems. He was to a certain extent victimized by ambitious
persons who took advantage of his enthusiasm. The consequent disillusionment led frequently to bitter disappointment.
He felt these disappointments all the more as he was himself instinctively high-minded and generous and as Superior
of Campion House most considerate.
Leaving America, in 1944, he became regional director of
the Institute of Social Order, residing at Georgetown from
1944 to 1947, as assistant archivist and writer. During
World War II, he was auxiliary chaplain at Fort Myer, Virginia. As a result of his long acquaintance with Miss Mary
Benjamin, the distinguished collector of autographed manuscripts, and her mother, Mrs. Parke Benjamin, Father Talbot
was the recipient in the name of the University of an altogether unique gift, presented to him by Mary Benjamin after
her marriage to Harold G. Henderson. This was the Francis
X. Talbot Collection of autograph letters of the saints, unique
among such collections in the world, now a prized possession
of the Georgetown University Library.
On July 26, 1947 Very Reverend Father General appointed
Father Talbot Rector of Loyola College, Baltimore, a position
that he held until August 14, 1950. While Rector he built
with lavish expenditure the beautiful College Chapel. After
spending a short time at Georgetown as assistant archivist,
he devoted himself to writing and to parish work at St.
Aloysius Church, Washington, then to retreat work at Manresa on the Severn at Annapolis in 1952-53. His last position,
1
The Manner is Ordinary. John LaFarge, S.J., pp. 392-394.
�FATHER TALBOT
343
in which he was engaged up to the time of his death, was that
of parish priest at Holy Trinity Church, Georgetown.
While Father Talbot's name will most naturally be associated with his distinguished literary and editorial achievements, his memory lingers in the hearts of those who became
acquainted with him in his priestly ministrations, and they
cherish the memory of his habitual kindness and pastoral
charity. He greatly welcomed the parish work with which
his latter years were occupied as an opportunity to practice
this less conspicuous but sublime aspect of a Jesuit's vocation.
Typical of the impression he made upon souls was a testimony in his praise offered by one of his spiritual children,
Miss Mary A. Rooney of New Jersey, who at one time did
office work at the Rectory of St. Aloysius Church in Washington. Writes Miss Rooney: "It was indeed a blessing and
privilege to know Father Francis X. Talbot, S.J. Words fail
me when I try to express what a saintly priest he was; so
humble, gentle, kind, generous and good to all but especially
to those in trouble and need. Yet he was so talented and
wonderful! Like the great founder of his Society, St. Ignatius,
he truly loved our Blessed Mother. One year while I was in
Washington he preached a novena in honor of Our Blessed
Mother for the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The
church was crowded every night and indeed every night more
and more came."
Father Talbot also had charge of the Sodality at St. Aloysius
and he worked zealously to improve it, to get more members,
new charter, etc., in spite of opposition from some of the
older folk. Miss Rooney describes how a young mother who
had arrived with her five children from Florida, a nonCatholic, appealed to him for help in finding a lodging. Father
Talbot's desperate attempts to get help met at first with rebuff, but in the long run with success. As a result of his
charity the little family entered the Church, and Father
Talbot had the privilege of baptizing them.
"Father Talbot, like St. Ignatius," says Miss Rooney, "suffered from severe ill health, yet he always had a smile and
cheerful word for everyone. He wanted so to finish the book
he was writing. I hope he did finish it." Reference to his ill
health is a reminder of the acute suffering that Father Talbot
experienced from exceptionally stubborn sinus trouble for
�344
FATHER TALBOT
years and his equally stubborn refusal to let it impede his
ceaseless activity.
To one of the touchstones in a Jesuit's religious life, the
exact observance of holy poverty, Father Talbot responded
with delicacy and loyalty. Father Talbot consulted the author
on several occasions with real anxiety as to the proper use of
stipends he had received for his lectures, so as to make sure
that they would be utilized in the full spirit of the Society.
The great Spanish dramatist Jose Maria Peman entitled
his play concerning the life of St. Francis Xavier El Divino
Impaciente, translated:..::.....not very precisely-as A Saint in a
Hurry. Something of the same spirit of divine impatience
inspired Francis Xavier Talbot. On the debit side it imparted a certain restlessness to his character; a feeling that
his work was not achieved, a trait that rather increased with
years and poorer health and made it hard for him to remain
attached to any one regular occupation. On the other hand,
his "divine discontent" impelled him to greater generosity
and a desire to come ever closer to the example of his Divine
Master.
~
Shortly after Father Talbot's death some of his former
literary associates on the staff of the magazine of poetry
Spirit, recalled that the magazine would not have existed had
"the gentle genius of Father Talbot not spa"rked it to life."
A Requiem Mass was offered for Father Talbot in Holy
Trinity Church, Georgetown, on December 6, 1953, by the
most Reverend John M. MeN amara, Auxiliary Bishop of
Washington. The day and hour coincided with the funeral of
Father Joseph J. McLoughlin, S.J., at St. Aloysius Church in
Washington. Following the Mass, Bishop McNamara praised
Father Talbot for his writing about the North American
martyrs, and said that these martyrs, by their courage and
fortitude, have a special appeal to the youth of today. "Father
Talbot has placed us in his debt," the Bishop said, "by making
the lives of these ·martyrs better known."
Certainly few men in our time have endeavored more faithfully than did Father Talbot to make the lives of the martyrs
known, or to follow their high example in his own personal
life. Part of the debt that he bequeathed is an obligation of
love, to see that the work is completed that he had begun.
JOHN LAFARGE, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
A WELCOME CONTRIBUTION
Church Building and Furnishing: The Church's Way. A Study in
Liturgical Law. By J. B. O'ConnelL University of Notre Dame
Press, Notre Dame, Indiana.
"The original manuscript first entitled, The Church's Way, was the
basis of the author's lectures in the Liturgy Program in the 1953 Summer Session of the University of Notre Dame." Written from the special
point of view of liturgical law the book touches upon many phases of
the construction of a church and establishes rather well the how and
why of Catholic church requirements as laid down by ecclesiastical
authority. Father O'Connell renders a real service to many architects,
artists and craftsmen, even patrons, by comprehensively relating rubrics
with technical solution. Since tradition and rubrics are not ends in
themselves, much latitude is suggested and the viewpoint is not narrow.
In the Foreword, art is defined with St. Thomas Aquinas as recta
ratio factibilium, right thinking applied to making. We are informed
that right thinking governs the interpretation of all laws about the
liturgy of the Church in the interest of creating reverence, piety and
the spirit of order. The cncylical Mediator Dei of Piux XII pronounces
against the second rate and the stereotyped. St. Piux X in a Motu
Proprio stressed the requirements of good taste, the respect for truth
and simplicity of design and ornamentation for the house of God.
In as much as the author invites answers from an architect from the
Point of view of design as different from that of Canon Law or Sacred
Liturgy, I shall discuss very briefly form and materials of construction
compatible with purely liturgical requirements.
The housing of the Blessed Sacrament is the foremost thought in a
church building. An element of design is thus created that exists in
no other form of building. The character of whatever architectural
eTx~ression is given to the structure must yield to the character sought.
his may be a very difficult objective to reach within the bounds of
severe limitations created by costs of construction, lack of skilled labor
and sometimes the unavailability of certain building materials. The
very great respect in which we hold tradition in itself creates certain
~onflicts as to choice of style. The transient nature of our communities
In which churches are to be built adds to the difficulties that confront
ahn architect at the very beginning in making his first studies for
c urch edifices.
t No book of rules exists on the adaptation of stylistic architecture
0
..,
our contemporary purposes. 'Ve know, however, that the aesthetic
1
8~ ~es are to be sought as an appeal to the public and that the design
p a I not be esoteric but intelligible to the masses. This is a difficult
rogram but nevertheless a binding one and may cause the architect
�346
BOOK REVIEWS
to use up reams of paper in the search for the best apparent motif
for the particular design at hand.
The text of Father O'Connell's book is very well organized and discusses very clearly the matter of site and general plan. There are
chapters on the sacristy, the construction of an altar and church furnishings. In conclusion a series of directives are enumerated as a very useful resume of the subject matter preceding 'it in the book. Naturally,
historic reference is included only as proper co-ordination is demanded.
Certain very general topics are treated such as the Christian artist and
his patron and the necessity in vocational training of religious culture
and of knowledge of Christian iconography. As the author points out,
the artist and architect should deem it an honor and privilege to work
for God's glory and the- !lpiritual good of their fellow man.
In defining church decoration its real purpose is stressed, viz., that
of completing, embellishing and enhancing the existing harmony of
the church form, its structural pattern, with the means sought to add
beauty and dignity. There are many modes of expression; and, doubt·
less, in the minds of those designers who are thinking about the more
perfect achievement of harmony and beauty, the purely structural items
of plan, both transverse and longitudinal sections, dominate. Trial and
error are the routine of the drafting room. Perspective studies are made
in color, scale models are constructed and all engineering devices
to make the buildings sounder and more resistant to deterioration as
well as to eliminate any possible structural failures, of which in the
past there were many, are employed.
Pius XI, when inaugurating the new Vatican Gallery of Painting on
October 27, 1932, stated, "Open wide the portaL~·: and tender sincere
welcome to every good and progressive development of the approved
and venerable traditions, which in so many centuries of Christian life,
in such diversity of circumstances and of social and ethnic conditions,
have given stupendous proof of their inexhaustible capacity of in·
spiring new and beautiful forms, as often as they are investigated or
studied and cultivated under the twofold light of genius and faith."
Further, Pius XII in Mediator Dei gives his approval to living, con·
temporary art. He writes ''Thus modern art, too, may lend its voice to
the magnificent chorus of praise which great geniuses throughout the
ages have sung to the Catholic faith."
In the many phases of architectural expressions developed in Chris·
tian times there is always the same concern about the establishment of
a type or model that succeeds in symbolizing religious, aesthetic opin·
ion. Size takes over at times with soaring heights or spans of gre~t
strength and weight. Today, an element of airiness and freshness 1~
sought. These qualities are not too easily found in the more traditiona
materials. In modern materials, such as flexible, re-inforced concrete{
design finds creative expression. In addition to the reasonably normad
adventure of coping with building codes, predicting costs in adv~nce ~ s
cognizance of opinion, lay as well as clerical, the church arch1tect a
�BOOK REVIEWS
347
a responsibility not to allow himself to be intimidated into making hopeless copies of period pieces of distinction or of abjectly accepting the
cliches that are found in all current professional publications.
Color is not to be overlooked as an element of design, adapted to the
forms used. Since in the range of modern materials of construction
there are new and happy contributions to be made, color becomes a
field of adventure and should be exploited with skill and understanding.
We have to a great extent cleared our minds of the many fetiches that
existed in the past in regard to color and in church furnishings especially a feeling of color is of paramount importance. Christian iconography will realize splendor veritatis et caritatis in which divine purpose transcends the human. Statues and their place in the Church are
well described and the extreme latitude permitted is helpful to those
familiar with a small variety. To the materials used in the past should
be added the modern materials, glass or synthetic materials of distinction.
In view of supporting the opinion that a study of stylistic architecture, however irksome, might develop better understandings of space,
form, scale etc., it is possibly quite true that we have often ignored in
seeking novelty the valuable lessons afforded by examples of the past.
A shock sometimes awaits us when we find that in the search for something original we turn up with an anayslsis made centuries ago. Not all
art forms, even in architecture, can be extracted from the past but
many remain to be extracted from the Classical, the Gothic and the
architecture of the Orient.
In the interchange of ideas possible today and with the enthusiasm
for variety may we not find much that is endowed with aesthetic value?
Our early American buildings very frequently showed surprising
virtuosity. The attack upon symmetry has puzzled many of the younger
designers. More cautious analysis and study of balance and harmony
disclosed another means to the end of the "axis of symmetry" as a
quick claim to excellence became less influential. Likewise the value
of added pictures or applied ornament prompted calm judgment as
to what we were getting and also what it was costing. Most of our
architecture was overloaded and we were lacking in common sense in
splashing ornaments recklessly about. The ornaments themselves were
frequently very good and often well detailed. We were seeking a new
vernacular. Our technique was to try out a lot of things, experiment
ceaselessly and then stand back and evaluate. Even the resort to the
use of the machine-made-products had one good point. It did not take
too long to achieve the result; so boredom could be detected more quickly.
We have learned much about church design as architects but have
~ot as yet begun to apply much of our understanding. We will do so,
owever, and a period of genuine interest appears to be imminent. Our
Planning of churches is doubtless better than it was. The excessive
costs may not be so much a liability as a salvation for design. The costs
of good design are probably not excessive, if we regard values in their
�348
BOOK REVIEWS
proper scope, seeking character and honesty of expression at the expense of elaboration. Our architecture is becoming more sincere and
perhaps better. The church and its furnishings complement each
other.
It is useless for us to ignore the value of the mass of information
concerning design and construction that we have collected. It is a
temptation for many to solve a design problem by looking it up in the
book. Design evolves from laborious, personal deductions and reasonings based upon knowledge and experience. Once the overall design
is achieved, artists are at our beck and call and are anxious to cooperate if given a chance. With the advances made in the science of
engineering we have now. solved the acoustical, waterproofing and soundproofing problems. Artisanship may be less spontaneous but there is no
reason to suppose that good craftsmanship has disappeared. It is relegated to the background for the present but only temporarily.
Since each form of building employed today has its special peculiar
use, the church must be studied and seriously contemplated by the
architect. Experience with other constructions may equip him to do a
church but such a book as we are examining is essential to his proper
understanding of the problem. In other words, his gifts as a designer
and constructor must be focused upon the special problem of the church.
While the general practitioner may and sometimes does achieve good
results it is certainly the devoted designer familiar with the issue who
would seem most likely to succeed.
Books containing rules of design, as such, are nonexistent. Examples
have been copied and the "orders" studied to the end of getting something of proven and recognized value. The best work will be the result
of the solving of the problems starting with the site-and environmental
influences, budget, cost and possible length of useful service to be
expected, fitting all into a well-proportioned edifice. The selected illustrations in the back of the book should evoke interest in some of the
contemporary designs pertaining to church architecture, sculpture,
vestments, ciboriums and tabernacles. Father O'Connell's book is a
welcome addition to a field that has need of serious study and selfless
interest.
FREDERICK VERNON MURPHY, F.A.I.A.
PATRISTIC PHILOSOPHY
The Philosophy of the Church Fathers. Vol. I: Faith, Trinity, Incar·
nation. By Ha~ry Austryn Wolfson. Cambridge: Harvard Univer·
sity Press, 1956. Pp. xxviii, 635. $10.
The work under review marks the second great installment in a series
devoted to the development of Western thought by the Nathan Littau~
Professor of Hebrew Literature at Harvard University. Professor Wol
son is a modest, retiring scholar who continues to cause amazement bY
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349
his control of a truly encyclopaedic store of information. After publishing a masterpiece like the two volume study Philo: Foundations of
Religious Philosophy in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (Harvard,
1947), many another man would have wished to retire in glory. For
he is also the author of a profund analysis of Spinoza's ethics [The
Philosophy of Spinoza, (Harvard, 1948) ], he has collaborated on an
edition of A verroes for the Mediaeval Academy and published the extremely valuable study called Crescas' Critique of Aristotle. With his
wealth of background Professor Wolfson, in The Philosophy of the
Church Fathers, has inaugurated a completely new line of thought:
he comes to a study of patristic theology-for the book is nothing less
than that-bent on discovering the origins of early Christian thought
in the cultural milieu of Philo and the syncretistic Jewish Gnostics.
Wolfson is not the first scholar who has come from a reading of Philo
with the impression that here, in the writings of the Alexandrian
Jewish pedant, lay the clue to Christian belief. And this very approach
creates inevitable blind spots which even Wolfson, for all his documentation, is unable to overcome.
The most important sections in the volume are those which treat the
allegorical method (pp. 24-72), the double-faith theory (pp. 102-140),
the development of the doctrine of the Trinity (pp. 141-256 and 287363), the mystery of the Incarnation (pp. 364-493), a chapter on Platonic
Ideas in the Fathers (pp. 257-286) and two final chapters on Gnosticism
(pp. 495-574) and the Christological and Trinitarian heresies (pp. 575608). This outline may give some idea of the incredible scope of
Wolfson's learning. And it is no exaggeration to say that his rather
unorthodox findings will undoubtedly cause a violent reaction among
Christian scholars. At the same time the shortcomings and logical
weaknesses of the book should not blind the student of patristic thought
to the many good things which he may be led to under Wolfson's
stimulus.
The unstated presupposition of the book is, of course, that Christian
dogma arose in an entirely human way from pre-existing elements which
can be scientifically isolated (e.g., Jewish syncretism, Philonism, Platonism, etc.). This approach, which one would have thought to be completely outdated, makes it difficult to take Wolfson's conclusions seriously. Thus he has completely lost sight of the most important element
of early Christianity: the specific, concrete Christian situation, whose
formularization in kerygma and didache is the primary fountainhead
of all dogma. The various problems connected with the doctrines of the
Trinity and the Incarnation-and, indeed, there are not a few-can
hardly be solved by one who completely mistakes the nature of the
dogmatic development.
All this is not to deny, however, that some of the chapters are extremely important. On Allegory, for instance, Wolfson's approach
brings out in clear focus the intimate connection between Alexandrian
exegesis and that of Philo and the Midrashim. In addition to the literal
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BOOK REVIEWS
(or verbal) interpretation of a text, the Midrashim use four others:
1) the moral, legal, prudential, which consist largely of conclusions from
a text relative to human conduct and which make up the majority of
Rabbinical interpretations; 2) rationative, giving the reason for the
specific wording of a text (and even its punctuation) ; 3) credal, or
religious beliefs (rarely, in the Rabbis, philosophical) about God, the
world, angels and men; 4) predictive, which are related to later historical events, particularly the final coming of the Messiah. Now of
these Philo most often uses interpretations 1-3; but in Philo they are
resolved largely into two categories, the "physical" or "somatic" (dealing with God and the cosmos), and "ethical" (with human conduct).
The main tenor of Philonian allegory is philosophic in the Hellenistic
sense-an aspect which- clearly sets it apart from the midrashic
halakoth and haggadah. Further, the Midrashim rarely if ever supplant
the peshat, or literal meaning of the words (there is indeed, a dispute on
this point among Rabbinical scholars), whereas in Philonic allegory the
"hidden meanings" regularly do. Wolfson draws up a list of the expressions Philo uses to refer to allegory, e.g., type, shadow, enigma,
parable, mystery, hidden meaning, and these become criteria for a
study of allegory in the early Church.
Here is the most valuable part of the book, and although in Wolfson's
mind it serves as a mere preliminary and links the Alexandrian school
more closely with Jewish thought than modern scholars would admit
(for Wolfson constantly underestimates the pagan technique of allegorism as used by the Stoic-Cynic school), it nonetheless will help to
clarify many difficulties. The section would have been even more valuable if the author could have pointed out some of the parallels in the
hermeneutical principles reflected in the Dead Sea Scrolls, especially the
Habakkuk Commentary (DSH). For it is clear from what we know
of DSH that the concern was not so much with halakoth (or moral-legal
interpretations) but precisely with what Wolfson calls "adventual" or
predictive historical interpretations, i.e., indications that the work of
the Teacher of Righteousness was already foretold by the prophet
Habacuc. A closer study of this entire question of biblical interpretation
will yield a more concrete picture of the way in which Christ Himself
trained his disciples, before sending them forth, in both the moralallegorical (cf. the parable of the seed, Luke 8:10 ff.) and the "adventual'' interpretations (cf. the exposition of Moses and the prophets suggested in Luke 24 :27). In fact, Our Lord's completely different approach
to traditional biblical interpretation was undoubtedly, in large measure,
the occasion of the ,opposition he met among Pharisees and Sadducees.
But Wolfson avoids this extremely crucial connection and the important
information the Gospels give us on the origins of Christian exegetical
methods. Instead, his effort is to suggest that Paul and later writers
used allegorism to distort the Scriptures in a Messianic direction.
Paul, in Wolfson's view, taught that the "preexistent Christ" and
the Holy Spirit were the same and were both identified with the Widso!l1
�BOOK REVIEWS
351
of God: it took "the form of a man in the sense that it existed in the
body of Christ as a soul . . . an additional soul over and above both
the irrational and the rational soul . . ." Matthew and Luke then modified Paul's doctrine as follows: "the preexistent Christ of Paul, definitely
identified in these two Gospels with the Holy Spirit, is said to have
been made in the likeness of men by being the begetter of Jesus. In the
Fourth Gospel •.. there is a new version . . . The preexistent Messiah
is identified with the logos of Philo's philosophy" (p. 177).
The fact that a scholar of Wolfson's stature can make such absurd
statements without the slightest attempt at documentation is another
proof of the frailty of the human mind. In any case, it suggests the
direction in which the author is going. There are extremely valuable
sections on the patristic adaptation of the Aristotelian doctrine of
"composition" and "mixture" by way of explaining the hypostatic union
(pp. 372 ff.), and the rejection of the Stoic union of juxtaposition;
but these will probably be lost on most readers whose sympathies have
not been won by Wolfson's biased approach.
The treatment of Gnosticism (pp. 495-574) is one of the best that
can be found anywhere, for it reflects an area in which the author is
really competent; yet the final chapter on Trinitarian heresies is the
sort of thing that can be found in many books and could well have
been omitted. It is unfortunate that Prestige's excellent book on the
Trinity (God in Patristic Thought), from which Wolfson undoubtedly
learned a lot, did not serve him as an example of brevity. But the
abnormal length of the volume could have been tolerated if it showed
signs of an appreciation of modern patristic textual analysis. But it is
perhaps ungracious to criticize a work which must have occupied many
Years of devoted and painstaking study. It is nonetheless legitimate
to question the validity of what Wolfson has called the "hypotheticodeductive method of text study," for which the main lines were laid
down in Crescas' Critique of Aristotle in 1929: the purpose of historical
research in philosophy is, in Wolfson's view, to uncover the latent images
and processes of reasoning, with their previous sources, which lie behind philosophers statements, for their "uttered words, at their best
and fullest, are nothing but floating buoys which signal the presence of
submerged unuttered thoughts" (Philo, i, p. 107). Though this process
of textual psychoanalysis may be useful at times, the danger is always
~hat images are taken for actual thought, mere associations for causative
~nfluences. But the chief difficulty with the technique-at least as it
Is applied in The Philosophy of the Church Fathers-is that Wolfson
has no hesitation in filling in the enormous lacunae that invariably exist
between the uttered and the unuttered words; for although this can be
less precarious in an author, for example Philo, with whom Wolfson is
completely at home, it can produce veritable moonshine when applied to
others without adequate textual control.
HERBERT MUSURILLO,
S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
SECOND METHOD OF PRAYER
Soul of Christ. Meditations on the Anima Christi. By John H. Collins, S.J. Westminster, Newman Press, 1955. Pp. 122. $2.50.
Father Collins with his constant zeal and facile pen and aided by a
discerning publisher has given us another excellent spiritual book. For
its object it has one of the Church's best loved prayers and for its
technique St. Ignatius' Second Method of Prayer. Its title will recommend it especially to every Jesuit and scarcely less to priests and religious and to all lovers of Christ. All who use it for meditation will
find in it inspiration, consolation, unshifting grounds for hope and
countless motives for love. It is also something of a compendium of
theology although writt~n in words so simple that a child could understand it.
~ ··
Each chapter is an enlargement on the revelation of the incomprehensible love of God for wayward man, as expressed especially in the Life
and Passion of Christ, and concludes with the loving response of the
man of faith to the mystery of mysteries. The book lists many tokens
of Our Lord's unfailing care for His children and puts into words the
gratitude and confidence and love that all who know Christ must inevitably feel. Father Collins has done well to write this book. It gives
a useful and beautiful example of how the Second Method of Prayer
is made, a form of prayer which has led many holy persons into higher
forms of union with God.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
ECCLESIA MATER
- .
The Splendour of the Church. By Henri de Lubac, S.J. Translated b!l
Michael Mason. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1956. Pp. xii-289.
$3.50.
In this instance, the familiar principle, "it loses so much in translation" need not be invoked. This book does not lose in translation. The
English version reflects with high fidelity the graceful, vibrant power
of Father de Lubac's thought. Gratitude is due to the translator for
his care. His smooth rendition has rendered real service in making
more available this significant work on the Church.
,
There is little point in attempting to add to the praise which the
book has won. Once again the author exhibits that high thinking and
plain writing habitual with him and which endow his work with outstanding merit. So the -book's originality and genuinity are guaranteed bY
Father de Lubac's gifts, credentials too well-known to require scrutinY·
If in this book, those gifts come into play with greater poise and vigor,
the reason is that the author attempts nothing scientific, not just a~
other theological treatise on the Church. He rather contemplates 1n
the light of faith the mystery of the Church. He gives us his meditaticffis,
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BOOK REVIEWS
made in piety and love, on some aspects of Ecclesia Mater, as the title
of the moving seventh chapter calls her. Thus his intellectual gifts, a
lucid mind in control of amazing erudition, are enhanced by warmth of
heart and spirit. "Love," he tells us, "should be, of course, our only
reaction to our Mother the Church." The poetic quality of these consoling meditations however does not sacrifice theological soundness. The
dual aspect of the Church's mystery does not drop from sight. Throughout the book, she is realistically presented as Ecclesia, at once convocatio
and congregatio, the "divine c;alling-together" and the "community of the
called together." Nor does this unblinking realism detract from love.
It is invidious perhaps to single out particular excellencies in a book
of such uniform superiority. Yet certain passages, which linger in the
memory, might be noted. There is the seventh chapter, already mentioned, in which the vir ecclesiasticus is described. There is the splendid
fourth chapter in which the heart of the mystery of the Church, Christ's
Mystical Body, is seen in the mystery of the Eucharist. The respect,
candor and loyalty of the eighth chapter, "Our Temptations concerning
the Church," deserve mention as does the richness of the final chapter
on the Church and Our Lady.
This is a fine book. In depicting integrally the mystery of the one
Church, it shares the love and joy which the vision of the Church should
evoke in her sons. Father de Lubac achieves his object, that of helping
others to a clearer sight of the Bride of the Lamb in all her radiant
motherhood. It is appropriate that this enjoyable translation of his
book can be offered to American readers in the lgnatian year.
JAMES
F.
COLEMAN, S.J.
THE PRIESTHOOD AND THE LITURGY
The Gospel Priesthood. By Dom Hubert Van Zeller, O.S.B.
Sheed and Ward, 1956. Pp. xii-118. $2.50.
New York,
This book represents a series of articles which appeared in Emmanuel. In writing them Father Van Zeller's purpose was to cover the
liturgical year, taking the dominant idea of the month or season, and
applying some of the liturgy's more practical principles to one or other
aspect of the priestly vocation.
The ideas are solid and traditional, and presented in clear short
sentences. The chapter on "The Vigilant Priesthood" is very well done
and one wishes that the rest of the book were as much alive and forceful. In this chapter Father Van Zeller writes: "'Starting in the seminary
Where he feels he is living in the cross between a barracks and a kindergarten, the man who is called by God to the ministry discovers that the
actual thing is like living in a combined watchtower and clinic: the
priest is always either scanning the horizon or offering his arm for a
blood transfusion. The danger is that he goes to sleep on the watchtower and lives on other people's blood in the clinic. To correct these
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BOOK REVIEWS
tendencies he must remember that the wolves which prowl are live
wolves and not dead ones (duelling and slavery are wrong, but forget
about them-they are dead; and anyway they are not as serious as their
modern counterparts)."
Father Van Zeller leaves his priest-reader with the impression of
detachment from the affairs and events of this world, a detachment one
experiences when he visits a monastery and listens to the cowled monks
chanting the divine office. Absent in this short work is that emphasis
which Father Trese brings out so well in his book Tenders of the Flock
on redeeming each hour of the day for Christ; or that urgency for
the priest to redeem this present world, with its crises and problems,
which permeates Cardinal -Suhard's dynamic and timely pastoral letter
Priests among Men.
R. EUGENE MORAN, S.J.
IGNATIUS LOYOLA
Saint Ignatius and the Jesuits. By Theodore Maynard.
P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1956. Pp. 213. $3.00.
New York,
This Ignatian Year tribute by the well-known American Catholic
author is written in a popular vein, in that style which has become
familiar to the readers of Dr. Maynard's many biographies. After a
preliminary consideration of the life, character and training of Ignatius,
the author devotes a chapter each to the Spiritual Exercises and to
the Constitutions of the Society. The remainder of the book pictures
the broad lines of development of the lgnatian ideal through four
centuries of Jesuit history. Special attention is given
early missionary
enterprises in England, Germany and in the Far E""ast, and a chapter
outlines the work of Ours among the Indians of North and South
America. In his analysis of the reasons for the Suppression, Dr. Maynard makes the interesting observation that the oft cited Jesuit pride
might better be termed esprit de corps. The period of the Suppression
and Restoration are described, and two final chapters treat the educational system of the Society, some of the more recent phases of the
Jesuit apostolate, and, finally, the notion of corporate achievement
which the author considers as characteristic of the Jesuit mind.
to
JAMES J. HENNESEY,
S.J.
ST. JOSEPH: THE THEOLOGIAN'S PICTURE
Saint Joseph. By Henri Rondet, S.J. Translated and edited by Donald
Attwater. New York, P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1956. Pp. v-254.
$4.00.
There goes with the contemporary Marian movement and the workers'
movement a cautious explanation of the theological aspects of St.
�BOOK REVIEWS
355
Joseph's role in the economy of salvation. In this book, Father Rondet
aims to give the first sketch of the gradual development of the devotion
to St. Joseph and of the pertinent theology of this devotion.
Though devotion to St. Joseph was widespread, it had departed from
the authentic picture of the real workman that emerges out of the
Gospels. Apocryphal writings, especially the Gospel of James and
popular legends, with their expression in the arts, had obscured the
truth about St. Joseph. But from the fifteenth century on, theological
treatises on St. Joseph endeavored to bring back devotion to him to the
text of the Gospels. In modern times, the Popes were vigilant both in
repressing exaggerations and encouraging sound devotion. Religious
writers and episcopal prounouncements both paved the way for and
seconded papal decrees and utterances on St. Joseph.
The second part of the book consists of a number of excellent extracts from writings and sermons about St. Joseph. These selected extracts show in the concrete the development of the theology of St.
Joseph. In this English edition, some of the texts that figured in the
French original have been omitted and others substituted by the translator and editor. Particularly interesting are the sermons of Bossuet
and Father M. O'Carroll and Pere Jean Guitton's articles.
A reader of this book goes through a certain purification of his former
ideas. He is given a solid theological basis of his devotion; and after
seeing the true picture of this workman, he hopes with the author that
the statues and pictures of St. Joseph in our churces will at last lose
the stiff pose that legend gave them, and show instead the holy workman
engaged in his humble job, the faithful husband who rejoiced in his
wife's love, the father who brought up and trained the Incarnate Son
of God.
BENIGNO MAYO, S.J.
A NEW APPRAISAL
The Religious Vocation. By Canon Jacques Leclercq. Translated by
The Earl of Wicklow. New York, P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1955.
Pp. 7-184. $3.75.
Canon Leclercq's treatment of the religious vocation is in full harmony
With the modern movement towards re-evaluation of the religious life
and re-emphasis on its theocentric character. An adequate description
of this valuable work is impossible in a review of this type. A few general observations must suffice.
The first two chapters outline the essential elements of a religious
vocation. First and foremost, the vocation is a call and an answer to
the call; and this basic principle is the theme of the entire book. A
lllan comes to know God as a living reality, a person, the essential
Presence; and he realizes deep within himself that God is saying,
"Corne." The response to this call is the desire to give oneself entirely.
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BOOK REVIEWS
This "call-gift" phenomenon is the vocation fundamentally, and whatever else develops from it is simply an effort at realizing the vocation.
Poverty, chastity, obedience are not the vocation but conditions for its
concrete fulfillment. The practice of the vows is paramount, but the
spirit of the vocation itself must be the soul of that practice. For instance, celibacy is the very point of departure of the religious life; but
it is not embraced merely with a view to efficiency or edification, but
rather because the vocation itself compels one to seek for God alone.
Consequently the vow involves not only continence, but a wholehearted
sacrifice of human love, the home, parenthood. One cannot be integrally
faithful to it if he continues to seek those joys, or their substitutes, in
his apostolate.
·
Similarly, the general t1orms of Canon Law and the constitutions of
particular orders are not the vocation. While recognizing their validity
and value, both from a theoretical and historical point of view, the legal
aspects of religious life must not be overstressed to the detriment of
that personal consecration which is the heart of the vocation. "It is
permissible to ask whether, in modern times, concentrating almost exclusively on the canonical character of the religious life has not produced a certain stiffness, and if this is not partly the reason why consecration to God, personal inner consecration, the personal character of
this consecration, has lost its emphasis" (p. 57).
Canon Leclercq !llso deals intelligently with the question of action
and contemplation, happily pointing out the magnetism which often
exists between them; how those who begin with the apostolate eventually
yearn for contemplation and band together for that end, while the
contemplative in turn tends to find an outlet for the.divine love which
is in him. The book also presents sound judgments--on the problem of
initiative and responsibility among religious, and the possible disparagement of celibacy in the light of modern psychology's emphasis on the
human perfection to be found in the married state.
We are indebted to the publishers for bringing us this English version
of La Vocation Religieuse which was originally published abroad in
1952. The book is critical and discreet, inspiring and practical. It will
handsomely repay a careful and prayerful reading.
JOSEPH DOTY,
S.J.
VAST PERSPECTIVES
A John LaFarge Reader. Selected and Edited by Thurston N. Davis,
S.J. and Joseph Small, S.J. The America Press: New York, 1956.
$3.50.
In our age of specialists, there is an obvious need for men like Father
LaFarge, able to keep in touch with many specialties, and to assess ne'W
developments in each of them from a broadly humanitarian and theo!og·
ical point of view.
�BOOK REVIEWS
357
The present selection of Father LaFarge's articles and speeches,
published in honor of his Golden Jubilee as a priest and as a Jesuit,
initiates the reader into the vast perspectives of the author's mind. It
affords many illustrations of Father LaFarge's balanced approach to
complicated questions concerning art and literature, religion and social
action. In all of these fields he cautions against simple formulas and
easy panaceas and insists instead on the need for prudence, patience,
and technical competence. He particularly calls for the formation of
lay leaders to bridge that fatal chasm between faith and works which
is not peculiar to Protestant Christianity. Unless the task of shaping
the future is to be turned over to atheistic humanists, Christians must
labor diligently to put into practice the social corollaries of their
dogmas. Only through a concerted effort of this kind, Father LaFarge
reminds us, can the Church appear in her full splendor as signum
levatum in nationes.
While this volume lacks the warmly personal touch of The Manner
is Ordinary or the unified impact of The Race Question and the Negro,
it is a welcome supplement to Father LaFarge's previous works. The
piece written in 1934 on "The Philanthropy of Ignatius Loyola" will
prove espedally timely for Jesuits in the present Ignatian year. It
convincingly exhibits our Founder's primary concern that the fruits
of divine Redemption should be applied, not merely to the salvation
of individual souls, but to the total restoration of human society.
AVERY R. DuLLES, S.J.
SCRIPTURE STUDIES FOR THE LAYMAN
They Saw His Glory. By Maisie Ward.
1956. Pp. 278. $4.50.
New York: Sheed and Ward,
This aptly titled introduction to the Gospels and Acts helps to span
the gap between the average educated person and such scholarly works
as A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture and the Bible de JeruBalem. It would richly complement the college religion course in its
treatment of the Gospels. In the initial chapters, the light of the latest
archaeological finds and textual research is focused on the question of
the historical value of the Gospels, on the cultural and religious background of the New Testament, and on its early oral transmission.
Albright, Ramsey, and Kenyon are among those cited. Biblical inspiration and inerrancy are extolled but their meaning could be clarified.
Similarly literary forms might be explained at this juncture. In the
body of the book, each Gospel is probed for its primary and secondary
themes. Here too the work is strongly laced with insights, in part of
the Fathers, but more so of the modern writers, for example of Lagrange, Prat, Lightfoot, Jacquier and Cerfaux. A separate listing of
the more available and helpful authors is included. The treatment of
the individual books is excellent; that of the Acts is exceptionally so.
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BOOK REVIEWS
We see the early Church both as a visible, structural community and as
a living unity. Its growth, through the charisms of the Holy Spirit
and despite the human weaknesses, is pointed out. The individual
Christian communities are glimpsed in their origin in the latter half of
the Acts; their growth is revealed by opportune reference to the Pauline
Epistles. In all this the role of the layman is underlined.
Primarily an introduction to the Gospels and Acts, this volume is also
an inviting appetizer. Maisie Ward brings to the reader the fruits of
wide reading in several languages, of a trip through Palestine, and of
a practical, inquiring bent, tempered by years of activity in the Catholic Evidence Guild. Equally important in these days when so many
see nothing but the outer 'cover of the Bible, she brings to the reader
a zest for its contents. Knox and other translations are compared for
richness. Parallel passages are laid side by side to reveal the individual
traits of the Evangelists. Greek words are tapped for their primitive
ring, as is doule for the true note of Our Lady's fiat. True, mention of
the Diatesseron, of "the papal decision at Chalcedon," and other unamplified references may prove trying to less educated readers. Yet
they may prove provocative as do the questions that are voiced,-what
did "Son of God" mean on the lips of a Roman centurion? Vistas too
of developing doctrine unroll,-discussion of the Spirit of Jesus in the
early Acts shows that "the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity is beginning
to be elaborated in.human language." This volume, then, will win many
a Catholic who thought himself familiar with the New Testament to a
revitalized perusal of its pages. It brings to mind the words addressed
to biblical scholars by the Holy Father, "What is more sublime than to
scrutinize, explain, propose to the faithful the very word of God, communicated to men under the inspiration of the Holf Ghost?"
w.
SUCHAN,
S.J.
MINE OF EDUCATIONAL INFORMATION
The Popes on Youth. Principles for forming and guiding youth from
Popes Leo XIII to Pius XII. Compiled and edited by Rev. Raymond
B. Fullam, S.J. New York: The America Press, 1956, xvii + 422
pp. $5.00.
Father Fullam's papal anthology is destined to become a classic in
youth-guidance literature. It is an outstanding example of scholarship
in papal matters and should become a standard for other compilers of
papal documents in the future. The author wanted "to make available
in topical arrangement, convenient for study and reference, what the
Popes in modern times have taught on the Christian formation of
youth." He saw the pressing need for such a compilation of papal
documents. In a very readable way he has brought their practical value
before the public.
After a brief introduction, there follows a short but adequate series
�BOOK REVIEWS
359
of selections on the obligation of the Popes to speak on matters affecting
our young people and the urgent need of their following such directives.
In Parts Two and Three, which form the real bulk of this excellent
work, the papal teaching on the principles to be followed in the Christian
formation of youth is given, as well as directives on adult responsibility
toward youth. The final group of selections show the many harmful
influences working in the modern world against efforts to form Christain youth. The entire work is separated into thirty-nine chapters
containing over seven hundred selections from papal documents. The
author states that a similar number of selections were rejected in order
to avoid repetition.
Perhaps the outstanding feature of this particular papal anthology
is its great usableness. The author has taken care to render the fruits
of his labor easily accessible for reference. Each selection has been
numbered and its source is clearly indicated. The papal documents used
have been catalogued, and cross referenced. The author has also included an annotated listing of the more important collections of papal
documents in English, a study guide to related chapters, and an excellent topical index. A bibliography on matters pertaining to youthguidance is an added feature.
Introducing each chapter is the author's summary of papal teachings
on the subject under consideration. These alone would be worth the
price of the book. The Popes on Youth offers everyone a mine of educational information. No one connected with the modern apostolate can
afford to be ignorant of these papal principles on youth and youthguidance.
MICHAEL H. JORDAN, S.J.
A SACRED TRUST
His Heart and His Society. Original Sources on the "Munus Suavissimum." Compiled by Jerome Aixala, S.J. Bombay: Published by
Very Reverend A.M. Coyne, S.J., St. Xavier's High School, Bombay
1, India. Pp. 191.
This book is not, as its title might imply, a book of devotion, at
least not primarily; rather it is factual. It is a collection of the important documents that concern the commission given by Christ Himself
to the members of the Society of Jesus to spread the devotion to the
Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the official acceptance of that commission
by the Society itself. Naturally, it begins with the statement of St.
Margaret Mary Alacoque, repeated again and again, in excerpts taken
from her letters to her Superior, that Our Blessed Lord Himself entrusted this task to the Jesuits.
The official acceptance of this "Munus Suavissimum" by the Society,
at the close of the XXIII General Congregation took place when "the
Fathers rose as one to their feet and unanimously proclaimed the fol-
�360
BOOK REVIEWS
lowing declaration: that it should be definitely laid down that the Society
of Jesus with the greatest pleasure and deepest gratitude accepts and
assumes the most sweet charge entrusted to her by our Lord Jesus
Christ of practising, fostering and propagating devotion to His most
Divine Heart." Later Congregations endorsed this acceptance and
Father Aixala in each instance quotes the formula of acceptance.
This solemn pledge, so solemnly and so frequently ratified has been
crowned by Our Lord with such signal success and has been preached
so fervently and so universally, both by Jesuits and other priests, that
there is scarcely a parish in the Church where the Sacred Heart devotion is not known and loved. Exhortations to Jesuits to keep this
solemn trust were unnec;:essary, for it is part of the heart of the
Society. Nevertheless it lias been the frequent topic of letters written
to the Society by the Fathers General. The text of these letters is
given in the volume and provides ample material for sermons, triduums
and novenas.
The author also quotes from the Epitome the passages in which the
practice and propagation of the devotion is enjoined on the members
of the Society. He mentions, too, the approval given by St. Ignatius
to the acceptance by the Society of the task entrusted to it by Our
Lord, in his mesage to Father de Hoyos, in which he says "that the
Society's purest glory should lie in her sons being especially chosen
to promote and spread the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus."
Jesuits who wish to have documentary evidence of the fact that Our
Lord Himself entrusted the practice and propagation of devotion to the
Sacred Heart to the Society and that the Society has accepted this
charge, formally and officially, will find it in Father Aixala's book,
-·
which is limited ad usum Nostrorum tantum.
J.
HARDING FISHER,
S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXV, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1956
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER, 1956
FORTRESSES OF GOD-------------------------------------------------------------------------- 363
Francis Burke, S.J.
PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS------------------------------------------------------------------------- 367
William J. Young, S.J.
THE MYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE_ _____________________________________________ 375
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
THE SOCIETY AND THE APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER______________ 381
Thomas H. Moore, S.J.
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER AT ST. LOUIS UNIVERSITY
HIGH ________________________________________________________________~----------------------------- 389
Thomas Denzer, S.J.
INDIA AND ST. IGNATIUS __________________________________________________________________ 403
P. De Letter, S.J.
AN IGNATIAN LETTER ON THE CHURCH ____________________________________ 428
Gustave Weigel, S.J.
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS OF THE EXERCISES _______________________ 435
Daniel Leahy, S.J.
IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY IN ENGLISH ________________________________________ 441
Edmund J. Stumpf, S.J.
OBITUARY
Father Francis B. Hargadon _____________________________________________________________ 445
Father Thomas J. ReillY--------------------------------------------------------------------- 457
Father Joseph T. MurphY------------------------------------------------------------------ 460
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS------------------·---------------·······-·····-··-·- 471
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Francis Burke (Maryland-New York Province) died in 1934.
Father William J. Young (Chicago Province) is Spiritual Father at
West Baden Coilege.
Father Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is professor of his·
tory at Shrub Oak.
Father Thomas H. Moore (New York Province) is National Secretary
of the Apostleship of Prayer and Editor of The Messenger.
Mr. Thomas Denzer (Missouri Province) teaches English at St. Louis
University High Schooi.
Father Prudent De Letter (Province of Northern Belgium) is Spiritual
Father and professor of theology at Kurseong.
Father Gustave Weigel (New York Province) is professor of ecclesi·
ology at Woodstock Coilege.
Father Daniel Leahy (Maryland Province) is in tertianship at Auries·
viiie.
Father Edmund J. Stumpf (Wisconsin Province) is regent of the
Dental School at Creighton University.
Father Louis A. Wheeler (Maryland Province) is a member of the
Mission Band with residence at the Gesu, Philadelphia.
Father Eugene T. Kenedy (New York Province) is Scriptor at St.
Francis Xavier's, New York City.
Father Ferdinand Schoberg (Maryland Provin~e) is a member of the
Mission Band with residence at Old St. Joseph's, Philadelphia.
*
*
*
*
*
*
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as seeond-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock.
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�Fortresses of God
FRANCIS BURKE,
S.J.
How wondrous are Thy temples, Lord of Hosts!
These armed tabernacles of Thy love
Sit here as sit Thy arsenals above
Against the breezes, on their craggy coasts ·
By seas where evening folds her purple sail.
I love to see
The cloistered hills wearing their forest veil,
And the great river through Thy garden run;
Thy pines, like citherned Cherubs, 'gainst the sun;
To hear the sweep of the wild harmony
Thy fingers call at vesper down the vale.
But sweeter far
It is to kneel, what time the evening star
Hath with her taper kindled all the night,
And the moon hath hung her sanctuary light
O'er the tumbled clouds that build Thy mystic throne,
To kneel within the darkened doors and fold
Myself to Thee; to feel Thy touch, to hold
The pulse that quivers with Thy leaping Heart
And hear the marching hours that yet must part
Thee and Thy man-at-arms. Then must I bring
My heart to cry, "Glory to Thee, 0 Lord!
Not for the summer on Thy hills alone
But that the red strength in our veins can sing
The love of Thee, whose power doth accord
Unto our weakness everything!
Glory to Thee, 0 Lord!"
For here doth kneel
Thy blackrobed boy, Thy youngest knight,
At soldier tryst before Thy Mother's shrine.
It was Thy might
�364
FORTRESSES OF GOD
Made strong his heart to hear Thy word,
Girt him thrice round with virgin cord
And o'er the dolor of a mother's love
Fixed on the silent cross-posts that were Thine.
Here too doth wait
The white old sentinel at Thy palace gate:
Hands that have borne Thy sacrificial cup
And Thy white ben~dictions lifted up
Finger, too, ThY.. Mother's steel.
Eighty snows upon his head
Are springs where the brothers of his youth lie still
In the white legion of the King's own dead
Under the hemlocks on the hill.
Or do I think again
Of him who wears his wounds of pain
Stretched on his pallet cross; who cannot fall
Here at Thy-silent altar, but must wake,
Waiting the taper's running beam,
A silver tinkle down the hall ;
Yet counts all exile sweetness for Thy sa~.e~
Ah, Holiest, Sweetest, Blest,
Strong Heart! that takes Thy battle-worn to rest
And swells young sinews with the strength of war,
So hath thy power trodden mercy's ways
And so hath Wisdom willed to upraise
Kingdom to Thee, and glory evermore!
Thy kingdom come! For, with the young dawn shaking
Across the world its pennons in the air,
Aloft the mou_ntains of the morning, waking,
Thy warrior hosts are mustered unto prayer;
Waiting the sunrise call of judgment, noises
To man the bluest battlements of day,
Dawn in the saddle, and all her silver voices
Piping and blowing, "Rally, troop and away!"
�FORTRESSES OF GOD
Away and away! For there's Queen Earth, outringing
Brazen blasts to the muttering of her doom,
Up the black crags her storming hordes is flinging,
That shelter night, and breast the age's spume.
Brand in hand, on her mail the heart blood flowing:
Pale dawn that strikes on the madness in her eyes:
Bugles that scream, and Seraph clarions blowing,
And wings of thunder shaking through the skies!
Thy Kingdom comes with the sound of many voices,
And moaning on eternal shores that beat:
Ringing of steel, and nearing battle noises
And the thunder tread of armed angel feet:
With clang of golden portal, that upflowing
With the morning-ocean of their lances sheen,
Pours out white sainthood in the glory glowing,
And knells the judgment of the hour's Queen:
Thy Kingdom comes with the holy standards streaming
And all the holy hosts in war that trod
Where Sion's skies saw Godfrey's war-axe gleaming
And Louis led his chivalry of God,
And virgins lift their oriflammes there, kneeling,
And martyrs keep the lily sword of Joan :
Down the torn skies of East and West outwheeling,
The eagles of Thy wrath scream round Thy throne.
Lord God of Hosts! Our God! Be it ours in glory,
Marshalled by one who bore a knightly part
Where the Martyrs' Mount is hung with battle story
And Marne runs red in the land of Thy Sacred Heart,
To cleave the pale jaws of the night asunder
Under the Queen of Gentiles, and on high
Loosing the universe's pitted thunder
'Shake down the solid pillars of the sky;
And stand above the chasm till the quaking
Shall be a tinkle down the cloven steep,
365
�366
FORTRESSES OF GOD
And from the night-hung emptiness, breaking,
There sigh a silence in the black-mawed deep.
Then call Thy legions back, the turrets belling
Their glory; and about Thy great white throne
Draw them to Thee. They speak, Thy praises telling,
Their glory is to yield it Thee, alone!
Spires of the morn stream banners of their glory
And organ peals-of triumph roll amain,
Thy cord of love they gird about them closer
And link the fetters of Thy golden chain!
Then shall Thy Seraphs lift their bucklers never
Almightiness alone shall be adored.
And soldier hearts shall cordon Thine forever.
"Glory to Thee, 0 Lord.
Not that for us Thou dost fore'er unfurl
The ivory city's morning skies of pearl,
But that the~red strength in our veins can sing
The praise of Thee, whose goodness doth accord .
Unto our weakness everything:
Glory to Thee, 0 Lord!"
�Pius Xll on Ignatius
WILLIAM J. YOUNG, S.J.
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ: On July
14th last Very Reverend Father Provincial informed us that
"according to rescripts of the Sacred Penitentiary and the
Sacred Congregation of Rites, the plenary indulgences previously granted for the Ignatian Year are extended to September 30, 1956. During this time solemn functions, whether of
three or eight days, may also be celebrated in honor of St.
Ignatius."
In that case, I do not suppose there can be any reasonable
objection to a simple function, occupying a half hour or less.
After all, we have not yet passed beyond the golden afterglow
of the quadricentennial festivities, and are still within the extended limits of the solemnities. We should appear wanting,
I fear, in devotion if we failed to avail ourselves of the opportunity of hearing what Our Holy Father the Pope had to say
as he brought the solemnities at Loyola in Spain to a triumphant end, in an address which is replete with admiration
and affection for St. Ignatius and his sons. We shall have to
place ourselves in the midst of the thirty-five thousand faithful, mainly Spaniards, but with representatives from every
part of the world. The vast spaces before the basilica of Loyola
are filled to overflowing with this enthusiastic but reverent
throng. The hierarchy is there, resplendent in robes of office,
representatives of the state and of the military lend color,
Precision and dignity to the scene as the teeming crowd waits
breathlessly for the announcement that the Common Father of
all is about to speak to them. All is quiet; and the voice of the
announcer breaks the stillness, as it comes clearly over the
listening air, "His Holiness!" And the Supreme Pontiff,
Christ's Vicar among men, speaks:
"Like the arrangement which brings a great musical comPosition to an end by repeating and joining all the principal
tnotifs and themes into a final harmony; like the dying chord
-
. WoonsTOCK LETTERS are happy to close the series of exhortations,
~v~n at West Baden College by Father Young and reproduced by us
urmg the Ignatian Year, with this discourse which was given on
8eptember 24, 1956 and is taken up for the most part by Pius XU's radio
address to Loyola, Spain, July 31, 1956.
�368
PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
of a symphony which sums up all the feelings and emotions
contained in it, and lifts them higher still; like the last stanza
of a hymn, which gives a better and more vibrant expression
to the idea; so you, beloved sons, assembled in the valley of
Loyola to bring to a close the quadricentennial celebration of
the death of the great patriarch, St. Ignatius, are now ending
these solemn commemorations with an act in which We have
consented to be present, not only in spirit, but also by means
of the spoken word, just as We were present at the opening
of the quadricentennial, and as We have been present, whenever occasion offere~, all through the extent of it.
"Let Our first expression be an act of thanksgiving and
gratitude to the Giver of all good. A year ago today, when We
wrote to Our beloved son, the General of the Society of Jesus,
We could safely presume that the centenary which We were
then opening would be worthy of the object it had in view.
We added Our desire that the whole celebration would, for the
good of souls, take on a tone that was by preference spiritual.
Today we can see that it has actually done so, and that if it
has been remembered in every corner of the world, in the press,
on the radio, through the spoken word, in congresses and in
public and private manifestations, in acts of simple piety and
in those of solemn worship-yes, in all, the.dominant note has
been a true spirit of interior renewal. You.in particular, be·
loved sons of Catholic Spain, you will be Our witness, for it
was in your country, if We are not mistaken, that the cen·
tenary has reached two culminating points, namely, the
Spiritual Exercises given to the entire nation with so much
profit to souls, and the progress of the relic of the Saint
through all the dioceses of Spain, which someone has com·
pared to a great nation-wide mission.
St. Ignatius, Glory of Spain
"It was only right that the great Spanish fatherland should
show its esteem and affection for one of its most famous sons{
one in whom we behold incarnate, the loftiest expression
its spirit, and that in one of its most outstanding ages.
"The gallant and noble boy; the strong, prudent and valia~t
youth, who even in his waywardness must always maintain
his lofty aspirations; the mature man, courageous and Ion&'·
°
�PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
369
suffering, with heart and soul naturally great and inclined to
great achievements; and most of all the Saint, into whose
breast the whole world may be said to have entered-the Saint
who embodied without being aware of it, the best of the activities and the virtues of his race, and was, as has been well said,
'the most lively personification of the spirit of Spain in her
Golden Age,' by reason of his innate nobility, his greatness
of heart, his leaning to what was fundamental and essential,
until he surmounted the barriers of time and space, without
loss of any of that rich refinement, which made him love again
and feel all the difficulties and all the problems of his country
and of his age, in the great general panorama of the history
of the Church and of the world.
"What is most marvelous in the sublimest raptures of the
Spanish mystics of his time; what is most admired in the great
theologians who illumined the firmament of those days; what
is most charming in the immortal pages of the writers, who
even today are models of style and taste; the skill that so many
statesmen, politicians, diplomats were able to place at the
service of that Empire on which the sun never set-of all that
there is a reflection in the soul of Ignatius, in the service of
a much higher ideal, and that without loss of what belongs
to him as personally characteristic.
"It was becoming, therefore, that the Spain of today, lawful
daughter of the Spain of yesterday, should at this moment
acclaim one of her sons who has honored her the most.
Son of the Church
"But, beloved sons, We look upon you with the eyes of the
spirit, and We see that with you, Catholics of Spain, are united
today in person, and much more in spirit, many other of Our
sons of other nations, to proclaim as it were that, if Ignatius
is the honor of his fatherland, he is also, and in a sense much
more real, the honor of humanity and of the Church.
"The saints are always the honor of their Mother, our holy
Mother the Church. But in some of them, and precisely at a
time when this Mother happened to stand in need of good sons,
it might be said that this note was specifically accented, even
to the point of endowing them with qualties that are essentially their own. Among them there was none more than St.
�370
PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
Ignatius who knew how to build his holiness, first, on the
purest love of God 'from Whom all gifts and blessings descend'
(Spiritual Exercises, n. 237); secondly, on this same love,
turned into unconditional service of Him, 'the supreme Captain of the good, Who is Christ our Lord' (Ibid. n. 138); and,
finally, on this same service transformed into obedience and
perfect submission 'to the true Spouse of Christ our Lord, who
is our holy Mother the hierarchical Church' (Ibid. n. 353) .
"Fancy has been allowed much freedom concerning the
lady of the dreams of Ignatius the cavalier, and perhaps will
never come to a definiti~e conclusion as to her identity, which
is something of only secondary import after all. But if one
wishes to say who the Lady was whom he served unreservedly
from the moment of his conversion, who she was for whom
he dreamed the greatest exploits, who occupied the first place
in his heart, there can be no doubt when we affirm that she was
our holy Mother the Church, as the living Christ, as the Spouse
of Christ, she whom he was not content to serve in person all
his life, but to whom he wished to bequeath his principal work,
his Society, to keep alive in it a spirit of love and service, a
spirit of sacrifice in that same service, which gives to this
soldiery its reason for existing and its individual characteristic.
Devotion to the Papacy
-
>
"But there was another spark-an insight into things that
were to come bordering on genius-in the holiness of St. Ignatius which We, unworthy Vicar of Christ on earth, cannot
at all pass over in silence. Because the holiness of St. Ignatius
went from gratitude to love, from love to the service of Christ,
from the service and love of Christ to the love and service of
His Spouse the Church, and from the service and love of the
Church, to the unreserved filial adherence to him who is the
head and foundation of the Church, to Christ living on earth,
the Roman Pontiff, at whose disposal the little group of students at Montmartre was already thinking of placing itself, to
whom the first Fathers whom Ignatius led to Rome were
already eager to consecrate their lives, and to whose service
'whoever wishes to campaign for God under the banner of the
Cross and serve the Lord alone and His Spouse the Church,
under the Roman Pontiff, Vicar of Christ on earth,' must
�PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
371
know that he is consecrated. (Litt. Apost., Exposcit debitum,
July 21, 1550)
"Regardless of all the shadows and all the defects which in
a given time can becloud any institution, Ignatius with his
eyes on high, felt and proclaimed himself a soldier in the service of the Vicar of Christ, bound himself to him by the strictest
ties, and consecrated his whole life, with all his self-reliant
energy, making of this close union and submission almost the
vital principle of the soul of his sons, who in the service of
the Roman Pontificate and the Church have fought, and are
fighting, under every sky, without a thought of reward or
of the sacrifice. And well do you know this yourself, my dear
sons of Spain, since in days not yet long passed, you could
admire the example of hundreds and thousands of men turned
out of their dwellings and their houses, despoiled of everything and for the most part driven into exile. It was then you
could admire, not the silence and the peace, but the joy with
which they all suffered, precisely because the principal reason
of so vast an injustice was their adherence to the Vicar of
Christ and their dependence on him.
Ignatius Glorified
"Ignatius was a human being of the highest rank, enriched
with the divine gift of holiness; a good servant of the Church,
to which he consecrated his toil and his life; a faithful soldier
of the Pontificate, to which he has left a faithful soldiery alive
with his spirit as a precious heritage. Tireless fighter and
sublimest contemplative; tenacious in his purposes and gentle
in his manner of carrying them out; religious in all his
thoughts, but without closing his eyes to the realities imposed
by life; most broad in judgment, but capable of reducing the
lllost complicated problem to the clearest order; inflexible in
Principle, but understanding with men whom he influenced
tnore by his moral qualities than by his intellectual gifts; stern
reasoner who could harbor in his heart every delicacy and
every tenderness of feeling; prudent to the last detail in everything, but attaining his ends at the same time by a supernatural trust; in love with Christ, even to folly; modest,
hu:mble, self-sacrificing, poor in his person and in his possessions; solid in his principles and his method of direction;
�S72
PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
inseparably united with God Whom he could see in all things.
This was Ignatius of Loyola, captain of Christ's militia, soldier
of the Papacy and the Church.
"Behold him, beloved sons! We seem to see him come
through the high entrance into the shadow of the old ancestral
mansion, under the rough escutcheon which recalls the glories
of his fathers. He walks still clad in knightly panoply, but
simply. On one leg he wears a bandage, and advances with
difficulty, until he places himself in the last rays of the setting
sun, which await him at the edges of the darkness. We then
get a better view of .his serious countenance, and the strong
light which flashes from his eyes, as if the heavens were reflected in them. Is he going to recite a Salve to Our Lady of
Olaz, as he does every evening? He begins to move along. He
usually limped slightly, but not today. Today he lets his gaze
sweep for a moment over the broad valley, he turns his eyes
to the left, and begins to ascend the slope of the Izarraiz.
Upward and upward he withdraws from the earth, rising
above the hills one after the other, and finally turns to look
at us. Do you ~also look at him, in this moment which your
devotion wishes to dedicate to him. His courtly raiment has
been converted into the armor of a warrior; his feet rest upon
a ship's keel, as though he wished to cleave a passage through
the waters of the world. His whole stature..h~s been enlarged,
has grown until it dominates the watercourses, until it rises
above the windows of the world, high above his valley, high
above the Pyrenees, high above his fatherland, high above the
concerns of the world. It is the destiny of the saints, of great
souls, that instead of being consumed by slow degrees and
waning to the vanishing point on contact with this silent and
inexorable file which is called time, they are enlarged, and
grow with the widening horizons of the centuries, like this
monument of yours which, beheld at close range, can hardly
be seen for what it is, but beheld from afar gains constantly
in grandeur and majesty.
"From these 'heights, or better still from the heights of
heaven, may he bless his native land which he loved so much.
May he continue ever interceding for this Church, whose son
he always so deeply felt himself to be. And may his interces·
sion and the laborious service of his zealous sons continue
uninterruptedly under the command of the Vicars of Christ,
�PIUS XII ON IGNATIUS
373
who have always shown him the special regard of their paternal love.
"To you, beloved son, Our Legate, who have so worthily
represented Us, together with Our Brothers in the episcopate,
priests and religious present, the Chief of the Spanish State,
with all the civil and military authorities who with such edifying devotion have contributed to the greater splendor of these
solemnities, to all Our sons here present, to all our beloved
Society of Jesus, to all this part of Spain, and to Spain itself,
no less than to all who are listening to Our voice, carried to
them over these mysterious waves, he, Ignatius, wishes that
our blessing be the pledge of all these gifts and graces to you." 1
His Holiness ceased speaking.
As we gaze, the scarlet and the crimson of the prelates fade
and blend with the colors of the setting sun, the gold and
silver trophies on the breasts of diplomats, of officials of the
army and the state, lose their glitter in the gathering twilight,
even the multitude melts away into the mists of the mountains,
and we find ourselves, my brethren, you and I, members of a
black-robed army, without insignia, without decorations, alone
in the presence of our Commander. What a feeling of satisfaction should fill our minds at the thought of the membership
we share in this indomitable, incomparable Company, and
what bliss should fill our hearts as we contemplate our peerless
Leader, the Father of our souls, whose zeal begot us in Christ,
whose wisdom inspires us, and whose love will save us in the
name of the same Jesus Christ our Lord! For we give him not
a limited allegiance, not a reserved service, but one that grows
with every breath, ever more, ever more in service, in sacrifice
and in love.
1
Ecclesia, Sabado, 4 de Agosto, 1956, no. 786, Madrid.
LETTER FROM TUGUEGARAO
Charlotte was a typhoon, which came roaring in on us in the middle
of the night, slammed into our little buildings, gave us the one-two,
and went spinning merrily away, leaving destruction and devastation
behind. We had no warning whatsoever. In fact, when we went off to
bed, we hadn't the slightest suspicion or indication that we would be so
~dely awakened in a couple of hours by winds snapping and tearing
hke howling monsters at our building. It was on us so quickly that we
�374
TUGUEGARAO
scarcely had time to close even the most exposed windows. The violence
of the first gusts of wind was so great that many windows could not
be held in place long enough to fasten them properly, or after they
were fastened, they were torn loose again; the result was that many
windows flapped about until their panes were shattered or they were
torn off completely. Before we were able to let down the flagpole, it had
been bent down to the ground like a bow !
As you may know, a typhoon is like a giant tornado. It spins and
twists like a great top, turning and whirling about in its irregular
path. The center is a hollow of dead air-the calm or center of the
storm. The front of the storm hits you on one side, the dead calm
passes, then the back hits you on the other side. That's the one-two!
Charlotte was traveling ·from east to west. Her path passed almost
directly over us, a little t~ the north. First she hit us from the northwest.
The impact jarred and shook the house and everything in it. This
building is a two-story affair, made of wood, with a galvanized iron roof,
built in the shape of an L. The short arm of the L runs north and south
at the west end of the building. We heard a grinding, crunching sound;
we gritted our teeth and prayed. What was happening? Was the whole
building going? Much of what we heard in the middle of the night
mystified us, until we saw the damage in the light of the dawn. What
was torn loose in the first onslaught was the whole northwest corner of
the roof as if it were a piece of cardboard!
Our nightmare~had begun! It was to last two or three hours. We did
not realize the extent of the damage. We only knew that the water was
now pouring in and that everything in the west end of the building was
going to be inundated. Hastily we formed a plan. We began to move all
our supplies down to the center of the house, still' on the second floor,
to a dry room. We worked with might and main fof a half-hour in the
blustering wind, as the building shook and quivered. We were still occupied with transferring paper and chalk and notebooks, when everything
went calm. We relaxed. We thought it was all over. We felt happy that
the destruction was not worse. There was not a sound, not a stir of air.
Then Charlotte struck with fury from the southeast. It seemed ten
times worse. The inside of the L caught the full force of the 125-milesper-hour gale. Like a ship tossed about in a storm, the house shook and
swayed and tugged at its foundations. "Zing, zing", the metallic sheets
of galvanized iron roofing were stripped off like sheets of paper from
a pad. "Ping, ping" went panes of glass, as they shattered and splin·
tered. "Bang, bang", the flying debris crashed against walls. The wind
whistled and howled. Gutters and conductor pipes flew past windows.
Please pray for us; that we may be able to carry on, that somehow we
may find the money we need to keep our school going. Our insurance
does not cover damage due to typhoons. So we are on our own. Pray that
generous benefactors may be moved to extend to us a helping hand.
GERARD
Tuguegarao, Cagayan, Philippines
September, 1956
E.
BRAUN,
S.J.
�The Mystery of Andrew White
FRANCIS
X.
CURRAN,
S.J.
The fourth centenary of the death of St. Ignatius coincides
with the three hundredth anniversary of the passing of one of
his most distinguished sons. While the Ignatian Year is celebrated, the memory of the Jesuit who, in a true sense, is the
sower of the mustard seed whence sprang the American
Church should not be forgotten.
A bibliography on St. Ignatius would fill a fat book; the
writings on Andrew White can be listed on a single page. One
obvious reason for the paucity of studies of White is the fact
that we have so little information about him. We can draw a
fairly complete picture of White's years in America, but many
details of his life in Europe are shrouded in obscurity. It
seems that even in the United States White's name had been
practically forgotten until, the year before he was made the
first Provincial of Maryland in 1833, Father William McSherry in the Jesuit archives in Rome came across and transcribed writings by and about the Apostle of Maryland.
Using these transcripts, Bernard U. Campbell published the
pioneer article on White, "Biographical Sketch of Father
Andrew White and his companions, the first Missionaries of
Maryland, with an historical account of the first ten years'
Mission," Metropolitan Catholic Alamanac and Laity's Directory, (Baltimore, 141), pp. 43-68. The second centenary of
White's death was ceiebrated by a sketch of his life by Richard
H. Clarke published in the Baltimore Metropolitan, 4 (1856),
pp. 73 ss. 1 Very properly, the first article in the first issue of
the Woodstock Letters [1 (1872), 1-11] was J. A. Doonan's
"An Historical Sketch of Father Andrew White, S.J., the
Apostle of Maryland."
Foley and Hughes
These first articles on White were written without benefit
of the researches of Brother Henry Foley, who began publishing his massive Records of the English Province in 1877, and
Father Thomas Hughes, the last volume of whose History of
1
Not seen by the present writer; cited in DAB, sub voce "White,
Andrew," and in Carlos Sommervogel, Bibliotheque de la Compagnie
de Jesus, VIII, p. 1093.
�376
l\IYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE
the Society of Jesus in North America appeared in 1917. After
two such painstaking researchers have made a thorough examination of all available documents, it can safely be said that
little, if any, further information on White remains to be
discovered. For all practical purposes, then, all the documents
have been collected and published.
Nevertheless, the definitive biography of White remains to
be written. When it does appear, it will not come in book form;
the material is too scanty for that. But the documents available suggest something much lengthier and much more
scholarly than the few brief sketches which have appeared
since Foley began publiShing. In the last seventy years, only
four noteworthy articles on White have appeared. Two appeared in the American Catholic Historical Researches, the
first by Andrew A. Lambing, "Very Rev. Andrew White, S.J.,
the Apostle of Maryland," [3 (1886), 13-20], the second by
Edward I. Devitt, S.J., "Father Andrew White", [19 (1902),
72-74]. In Historical Records and Studies, 15 (1921), 89-103,
Father Richard H. Tierney, 'S.J., published ''Father Andrew
White, S.J., and the Indians," a revision of Doonan's article
without benefit of quotes. Most recently The Month, 198
(1954), 222-232, published "Andrew White: Apostle of Maryland (1579-1656) ," an incomplete study based on the sources.
To this brief list should be added sketches of White published
in various compilations; the most notable are tll:ose by Father
Devitt in the Catholic Encyclopedia (XV, 610-611), by Thompson Cooper in the Dictionary of National Biography (XXI,
32), and by Richard J. Purcell in the Dictionary of American
Biography (XX, 87-88) .2
The list of White's own writings is shorter than that of the
writings about White. The obscurity that shrouds White's
life touches even his writings. There is little mystery about
two brief compositions by White which were used by Lord
Baltimore as advertising copy for his Maryland Plantation
and which have been frequently reprinted. The first of these
is the Declaratio Coloniae Domini Baronis de Baltamore in
Terra Mariae prope Virginiam, qua lngenium, Natura et Conditio Regionis et Multiplices ejus Utilitates ac Divitiae
2 Other articles on White have appeared, but not offered as historical
studies; e.g., John LaFarge, "Father White and the Maryland Project,"
America, 49 (1933}, 249-251.
�MYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE
377
Describuntur. An English translation was published in London in 1633. The only mystery is: were there two editions?
The New York Public Library contains two reproductions of
the pamphlet, the first in photostat, the second in facsimile.
The title of the photostatic copy is: A Declaration of the Lord
Baltemore's Plantation in Mary-land, nigh upon Virginia;
manifesting the Nature, Quality, Condition and rich Utilities
it contayneth. The facsimile copy bears the more engaging
title: A Declaration of the Lord Baltemore's plantation in
Mary-land; wherein is set forth how Englishmen may become
angels, the King's dominion be extended and the adventurers
attain land and gear; together with other advantages of that
sweet land. The classic Relatio ltineris in Marylandiam is the
other of White's brief writings, frequently reprinted in both
Latin and English. Lord Baltimore published the work in 1634
under the title A Relation of the successeful beginnings of the
Lord Baltemore's Plantation in Mary-land, and another version in the following year, entitled A Relation of Maryland;
together with a Map of the Countrey, the Conditions of Plantation, with His Majesties Charter to the Lord Baltemore,
translated into English. The curious will note that the name
is spelled Baltamore or Baltemore, not Baltimore.
Grammar, Dictionary and Catechism
About White's other writings there is a mist of uncertainty.
It is generally stated that White composed a grammar, a dictionary, and a catechism in an Indian language; the DNB
goes so far as to identify the language as Timuquana. We have
the contemporary evidence of so great a name in historiograPhy as John Bollandus, obviously reporting a personal interView with White in Antwerp in 1648, that White did indeed
compose an Indian grammar and dictionary. 8 It is a commonPlace that McSherry unearthed the catechism in the Jesuit
archives in Rome! If the catechism was salvaged from the
~reck of the mission in 1645, why not the grammar and dictionary? What happened to these manuscripts? Indeed, what
happened to the catechism?
....._
8
Letter of Bolland us, cited in Hughes, History, Documents, I, 128.
. • A common reference is John Gilmary Shea, The Catholic Church
tn the United States, I, 41,
�378
MYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE
All the published studies on Andrew White could be read
in the space of an hour. One of the noticeable things about
them is the lacunae. There are obscurities about White's birth,
his life, his death; and it is unlikely that the mysteries will
ever be solved. To touch upon only a few of the puzzles as
examples: When was White born, and who were his parents?
It is generally agreed that White was born in 1579, and in
London. No one ventures to assign a day or a month. While
Foley has a number of references to Catholics named White,
to none of these people can Andrew be definitely related. 5 In
an outburst of Irish.. chauvinism, the suggestion was made
that White was a son of the Emerald Isle. 6 Brother Foley
demolished that contention and incidentally rebutted, before
it was advanced, the DAB's claim that White was of gentle
birth. 7 Of White's early years we know little, save that he was
educated in the English colleges at Vallodolid and Seville,
studied theology at Douai, and was probably ordained there
about 1605. Soon after his ordination, White ventured on the
dangerous English mission, was captured in the aftermath of
the Gunpowde:r Plot in 1606, and exiled to the Continent.
We know that White was in the first group of novices to
enter the English Jesuit novitiate at Louvain in 1607 and took
his first vows two years later. In the interval between 1609
and 1629, White alternated between periods: pf service on the
English mission and teaching theology and Sacred Scripture
in Jesuit houses of study on the Continent. Obviously White's
intellectual abilities were of a high order; that anti-Papist
who described him as "a very dull fellow" misjudged his man.s
White's professorial career came to an end in 1629. Hughes
maintains that he was "certainly relieved of his office for his
rigorous and exacting theological views," and presents in
evidence a number of documents, which appear to be liable to
a somewhat different interpretation than that assigned bY
Hughes. 9 Nevertheless, the fact raises an intriguing question:
5
Foley, Records,' I, 86, 381, 518, 606; III, 810; IV, 576.
,
William P. Treacy, "What was Father Andrew White's Nationality?'
Woodstock Letters, ·14 (1885), 384-386.
1 Henry Foley, "The Nationality of Father White," Woodstock Letters,
15 ( 1886)' 80-81.
8 John Gee, The Foot out of the Snare, cited in Foley, Records, I, 679 ·
9 Hughes, History, I, 169.
6
�l\IYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE
379
did White become the Apostle of Maryland because he was
too rigid a Thomist?
In Chains to England
We can piece together, from original sources, a fairly adequate picture of White's dozen laborious years on the Maryland venture. We know that in 1645 White, together with
Copley, was transported in chains to England, put on trial
for his life, and acquitted. But what happened to White thereafter? The letter of Bollandus, already cited, informs us that
before he was thrown ashore in Belgium White had spent
three years in prison in constant expectation of a bloody execution. Had he been remanded to jail after his acquittal? Or had
he been released, recaptured, and retried? Hughes favors the
second view, and there is some evidence for it, 10 but the other
solution is not at all improbable.
Where was White between 1648 and 1656? He was then a
septuaginarian, afflicted with deafness, in precarious health;
three times in Maryland he had nearly died of sickness, and
three years in an English prison could not be considered a rest
cure. Consequently we can dismiss as sheer fiction Tierney's
picture of White, "for ten years, flitting from place to place
under an assumed name." 11 We do know that the old man
asked permission to return to Maryland. Quite understandably,
he was not allowed to return. But he did manage to go back
to the equally dangerous English mission; just when, we do
not know, but it was some time during the 1650's. We cannot
be certain where he lived in England. But considering his
Physical condition, there is high probability in Foley's statement that he passed his final years as chaplain to a noble family in the Rants district (Hampshire) .12
The final mystery of White is the date and place of his
death. Beyond giving the year 1656, Hughes surprisingly
?ffers no information or opinionY The DAB places his death
In London, the Catholic Encyclopedia at or near London; but
Foley and the DNB declare for Hampshire. Even more in
---10
Hughes, History, II, 12; Foley, Records, I, 515.
Tierney, art. cit., 102.
12
Foley, Records, VII, 834.
13
Hughes, History, II, 678.
11
�380
MYSTERY OF ANDREW WHITE
doubt is the date of his death. Sommervogel cites "Sotwel"
(i.e., Nathaniel Bacon, aJias Southwell, author of Bibliotheca
Scriptorum S.J.) as the authority for September 27, 1655.u
The DNB declares for June 6, 1656. Foley in his seventh volume gives January 6, 1656, and in his third offers the most
commonly accepted date of December 27, 1656.15
These, then, are some of the problems that make up the
mystery of Andrew White. Surely it is time, now that three
centuries have passed since his death, that someone came
forth with suggested solutions to the puzzles. It is not fitting
that the founder of the Church in the United States still remains without an adequate biography.
H
15
Sommervogel, Bibliotheque, VIII, 1092.
Foley, Records, III, 339; VII, 834.
RULES FOR SUPERIORS
Father Ferdinand Lucero, S.J. ( + 1625), whose name appears in the
Spanish Menology for January lOth, was one of Sp~in's best superiors.
When asked what rules a superior should follow in governing his sub·
jects, he gave the following:
1. Let the superior's conduct be such that his subjects are aware of his
sincere regard for them.
2. Let him not be inflexible in the matter of granting exemptions; the
rule is not made of iron.
3. Let him trust his subjects in any observations they may make; at
least let him not show himself incredulous.
4. Let him know how to dissimulate at times in order not to see faults.
5. Let him give correction without anger.
6. Let him treat all of his subjects, especially the old, with respect.
7. Let him show nQ distrust of any of his subjects; and yet let him be
careful not to expose them to dangers.
8. Let him learn the talents and resources of each of his subjects, and
only ask what each is able to do.
9. Let him speak favorably of all.
10. If he hears ill spoken of any subject, let him remember that he is
father to that person.
�The Society of Jesus
and the Apostleship of Prayer
THOMAS
H.
MOORE,
S.J.
If you believe at all in the revelations of the Sacred Heart
to St. Margaret Mary, you have to think that Our Lord intended the Society of Jesus to be a special instrument in the
propagation of the Sacred Heart devotion. When the Saint
asked Our Lord for the means through which she could obey
his command to have a special feast of the Sacred Heart
established, He told her to address herself to Father de La
Colombiere, superior of the Jesuit house at Paray, who was to
do his utmost in this regard. (Apparition within the Octave
of Corpus Christi, 1675) In the vision of July 2, 1688, Our
Blessed Mother spoke in these words, "If it is given to the
daughters of the Visitation to make the precious treasure of
Christ's Heart known and loved, and to give it to others; it
has been reserved for the Fathers of the Society of Jesus to
make known and understood its usefulness and value, so that
by receiving it with the respect and gratitude due to so great
a benefit, all may derive profit from it." (Bainvel, p. 26) Why was the Society chosen for this glorious work? Saints
from other Orders of men and women had already manifested
great devotion to the Heart of Christ. Up to the time of
Blessed Claude de La Colombiere, few if any Jesuits had taken
the Heart of Christ round which to center their spiritual life.
Had God been looking for individuals already given to the
devotion, the divine choice must have fallen on others. But it
seems that .heaven was not looking for individuals. It would
consign the work of spreading this devotion to a religious
order, the spirit and training of which made it most apt for
the divine purpose. God chose the Society of Jesus.
Apostolic Nature of the Society
First, the goal of the Society was in every way an apostolic
one. "The end of this Society is not only to work with the help
of divine grace for the salvation and perfection of our own
-
English translation of address given in September, 1956 at the
Apostleship of Prayer Congress in Rome.
�382
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
souls, but also to strive for the salvation and perfection of
our neighbor." (2nd Rule of Summary) While the Sacred
Heart devotion, up to the time of St. Margaret Mary, had been
instrumental in the personal sanctification of individuals, it
is clear from the apparitions that from that time on the devotion was to be an apostolic one, an instrument in the hands
of the Church for the reclamation and conversion of souls.
At Paray, Christ had in mind, not only the thwarting of
Jansenism, but also the needs of the Mystical Body in those
ages to come when false philosophies dealing with the social
nature of man could .only be checked through emphasis on the
social nature of the Church. The Sacred Heart devotion was
to provide emphasis. The Encyclicals of recent Popes are
proof of this.
'Secondly, the motive which urged the Jesuit on to his goal
was a great personal love of Jesus Christ. It was a business
of the heart. A quick look at the Spiritual Exercises, by which
the Jesuit is trained for his life's work, can be very convincing.
In the First Week of the Exercises, the retreatant rids himself of his attachments to sin. He is made to repent, not only
because of what happens to the unrepentant sinner, but also
because of what sin did to Christ. The colloquies at the Foot
of the Cross in the meditations on the Triple Sin and Hell
emphasize the love of contrition, not the feal"..cof attrition. The
sinner, risen from his knees, looks not at himself but at Christ.
He already has a new standard with which to measure himself,
"What have I done for Christ in the past; what am I doing for
Him now; what will I do for Him in the future?"
St. Ignatius does not leave the question long unanswered.
The first meditation of the Second Week puts the retreatant
on the road to an apostolic career. Christ the King has work to
do in a world where even after the redemption souls can be
lost. To succeed in this work He needs your help. Are you with
Him, yes or no? If you are going to work with Him (in whatever capacity He chooses for you), you have to know Him, so
as to love Him and make yourself over in his image. Otherwise,
how can you do his work? Come, study his life, prayerfullY
and lovingly. It will make you over into another Christ. You
will want to do his work of saving souls, because in your great
love for Him you will share his great love for them. You cannot love Christ to the full of the Second Week without con-
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
383
secrating yourself (as did Margaret Mary) to the great
purpose which left his Heart open on the heights of Calvary.
Where does the Jesuit look for the strength to do this? The
Sacred Heart shared with Margaret Mary the pain of Gethsemani, that she might find in this manifestation of his love
for her the strength to love Him in return, no matter what
the cost. Out of their mutual love, spiritual sons were to be
born in the birth pangs of reparation. St. Ignatius, a hundred
years before Paray-le-Monial, gave his sons the Third Week
of the Spiritual Exercises for the same reason. They would
meditate on the Passion to clinch their love for Christ. "He
loved me and He gave Himself up for me. What shall I do for
Him in return?"
In the Fourth Week of the Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius
has the exercitant wake up, as did the Apostles, to the reality
of the resurrection. Once you know that Christ is risen, then
you also know that death, the destroyer of all things, can never
thwart his work nor the work we do with Him, the work of
saving souls. On the supernatural level, death is behind us.
Because we are now one with Christ in his Mystical Body,
everything we do, short of sin, can have salvific value. Here
is our power. The Exercises end with a Contemplation for
Obtaining Divine Love, bringing us to the point where we
make a complete consecration to the services of the Divine
Lover, even as Margaret Mary dedicated herself to all that He
had in store for her, once she saw, in the vision of Paray, the
length and breadth of his love.
The Apostleship of Prayer
The ·Spiritual Exercises, daily food of the Jesuit, prepared
him most perfectly for the preaching of the Sacred Heart
devotion. It was only a question of time when the apostolic
character of the Society and of the devotion should meet in
the Apostleship of Prayer. For the Apostleship is at once an
extension of the Jesuit way of life and a practical expression
of love for the Sacred Heart. St. Ignatius, in the Second Rule
of the Summary, tells his sons that they cannot go to heaven
alone. They must bring others with them to God. In the
Apostleship of Prayer, the Jesuit tells those who would come
With him to heaven that neither can they come empty-handed.
�384
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
They must bring others with them to God. They are to be just
as apostolic as he is.
What is to urge them in this direction? Nothing less than
the caritas Christi. All that the Sacred Heart devotion meant
to Margaret Mary, the holy hours that she made with Our
Lord in the Garden of Olives, all that the Passion means to
the Jesuit in the daily living of his Spiritual Exercises, persuades the Christian to volunteer for the work of redemption.
Love of Christ's Heart, bled dry for sinners, is the grand
motive of the Apostleship of Prayer. This gives our love a
noble purpose, a stimulus strong enough to bring it into action.
But what can they do, these people of the world, who have
families to support, a living to make; things which take up all
of the time of a day, which the apostle spends in the service
of souls? No less an advocate of the Apostleship of Prayer
than Pius XII gives answer to this question, "The daily offering of self is perfected by other acts of piety, especially by
devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The daily life of each
member is thus. converted into a sacrifice of praise, reparation
and impetration. In this way the forces implanted in Baptism
are activated and the Christian offers his life as· a sacrifice in
and with Christ for the honor of God, the F~ther, and for the
salvation of souls." (October 28, 1951, Letter-·to Very Reverend
Father General) Through the power of Christ and by the will
of the Christian, there is effected here a kind of transubstantiation, by which the ordinary acts of a day are given salvific
power, even as the bread of men becomes the Body of Christ
at the altar.
Nor does the Apostleship of Prayer neglect the social aspect
of the Sacred Heart devotion. There is an army marching,
with an army's power, in the unified attack which the Apostleship makes, under the direction of the Pope, upon the foes of
the Mystical Christ. There is constructive unity, too, in the
co-operation of millions of cells in the living Body of Christ,
conspiring together for the healing of the Body's wounds and
the restoring of the Body, through grace, to the health which
makes for its spiritual well-being and growth. Reparation to
Christ has many aspects. But the Heart of Christ, concerned
about the effects of J ansenism on his people, wounded by the
iniquities of men in the savagery of modern materialism, looks
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
385
to apostolic reparation, as we understand it in the Apostleship
of Prayer, for consolation and redress.
The Apostleship of Prayer and the Society
You are all acquainted with the attitude of the Popes
towards the Apostleship of Prayer. They speak of it as the
most perfect form of the 8acred Heart devotion, the best way
of Christian living. The Church recognizes it as the Society's
way of executing the commission given to it by Our Lady in
the vision of 1688. Surely the Society does not do its duty in
this regard by setting aside Fathers for the work, much as she
would appoint men to teach biology or to examine the Dead
Sea Scrolls. The Apostleship has become a part of our background. The Jesuit who teaches mathematics is not thereby
exempt from all that the second rule of the Summary means
to a parish priest, to a master of retreats. Neither can he be
allowed to forget those words of the Epitome (n. 672) which
tell him, "Let it be the happy duty of all to practise and spread
devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus; a duty given to the
Society by Christ the Lord, and on her part accepted most
willingly and with deepest gratitude. Ours are to do this
especially through the Apostleship of Prayer."
On October 28, 1951, the Holy Father wrote a letter to Very
Reverend Father General, approving the new statutes of the
Apostleship of Prayer. The words of the Pontiff became the
occasion of a letter from Very Reverend Father General to the
whole Society (December 3, 1952), in which he said, "The
Sovereign Pontiff insists that the Apostleship of Prayer assume a lar,ge, a partly new role in the pastoral care of souls. It
is necessary, therefore, that all of Ours have a thorough
understanding of the Apostleship and co-operate with one
accord in promoting it." This thorough understanding of
which Very Reverend Father General speaks throws the burden of explaining the Apostleship not only upon masters of
novices and tertian instructors, but also upon those who give
retreats and monthly instructions to Ours in scholasticates
and in other houses of the ,Society. For it is too much to expect
that Scholastics in their studies and Fathers engaged in the
varied and time-consuming works of the ministry will feel the
impact of the Apostleship in their lives, unless those entrusted
�rr
;s•J;gwzu-tVJ'
386
m
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
with their spiritual care make it a point to feature the Apostleship of Prayer in their exhortations. The whole Society must
become Apostleship-of-Prayer-minded. Only then will its members be able to co-operate with one accord in promoting it as
a great instrument in the pastoral care of souls.
The Jesuit who is well informed on matters of the Apostleship will always be conscious of it as an extension of the
Society's purposes into the Body of the Church. St. Ignatius
will not let him go to heaven alone. Neither will he let those
who come under his infhience go to heaven alone. In dealing
with souls, he is aware- 'that every Christian is meant to be
apostolic; that a man cannot be a good Catholic without wanting to help others heavenwards. He must love his neighbor
as himself. The Apostleship of Prayer is bigger than the
Society of Jesus; it is co-extensive with the Church itself. The
words of Pius XI to the directors of the Apostleship (September, 1927) come to mind, "Your duty will not be fulfilled
nor your work accomplished as long as a single soul remains
to be enrolled in this apostolate." Because the Apostleship is
for everybody, it~ is organized on diocesan lines. It is the
diocesan director who has the power to establish local centers
in the diocese. It is, for the most part, diocesan priests who act
as local directors in the parishes and bring the Apostleship
directly to the people. The vigor and permanence ·of any center
depends upon them. The main work of the Society in this
regard is to convince the bishops and priests of the worth,
and even of the necessity, of the Apostleship in diocese and
parish. We must keep the words of Pius XII ringing and ringing in their ears, "If pastors will introduce the flocks committed to their care to the spiritual practices of the Apostleship of Prayer, they will satisfy no small part of their pastoral
obligations towards them." The part of the Society is to persuade the diocesan priest that this is literally true; to shoW
him why it is that "the practices of the Apostleship of Prayer
contain the sum total of Christian perfection and put into
the hands of all men the means by which Christians sanctify
their lives."
The Bishops
There is an old saying: Cuius regio eius religio. To get the
Apostleship of Prayer established in a diocese at all, it is first
�I
1
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
387
necessary to get the approval of the bishop and have him designate a diocesan director. The more enthusiastic the bishop,
the greater will be the pressure upon the priests to understand
the worth and put into practice what the bishop desires.
Bishops will read a general report comparing the percentage
of active centers in their dioceses with those of others. Send
them such a report at least once a year. Send them a copy of
each publication of the National Office, as it appears in print.
Make personal calls when possible. Offer the services of Ours
to promote the 8acred Heart devotion in the diocese. If you
can persuade the bishop to let you address his priests at their
conferences, if you can get him to take a personal part in
convincing his priests that this is the best way for them to
sanctify their people, you will have moved that much closer
to the establishment of active centers.
Those who give retreats to priests have an unparalleled
opportunity ·to instruct and persuade them of the worth of
the Apostleship, without in any way departing from the strict
purposes of the retreat. Very Reverend Father General has
pointed this out in some detail in his Instructio of December 3,
1952. The part of this paper which deals with the choosing of
the Society for the spreading of the Sacred Heart devotion is
indicative of what can be done in this regard. By the time the
priests' retreat is over, the thought should be well imbedded
in the mind of each that they can best satisfy their obligation
to sanctify their people by establishing a vigorous Apostleship
of Prayer in the parish.
The work of these retreat masters can be most successfully
abetted by Ours who are invited by pastors to give missions,
retreats, novenas, and weeks of reparation in their parishes.
They are with the parish Fathers for a number of days. They
eat with them, they recreate with them. What a magnificent
opportunity to indoctrinate them in the Apostleship of Prayer!
Indeed, they expect us to do this. If nothing is said to them in
this regard, they are justified in drawing the conclusion that
the Apostleship no longer holds the interest of those who first
established it, that it has gone the way of those devotions
Which were popular for a time but which no longer attract
attention.
The need of Ours to keep themselves well informed in matters of the Apostleship puts upon the National Office the
�38S
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
obligation of having available whatever reading matter is
needed. When one of Ours writes in to ask for a pamphlet with
which to follow up work he has done through personal contact,
we should have it to send to him. Otherwise his initial work
is frustrated. It withers like unpicked fruit on the vine. He
becomes discouraged with our lack of co-operation and loses
interest in the Apostleship. In all this work of enlisting the
aid of others in the Apostleship of Prayer, we must never
forget that there will be no action without knowledge and conviction. The Popes have made astounding claims for the
Apostleship. According-·to them, the world could be saved
through this devotion to Our Lord's Heart. Through the voice
of his own Mother, Christ has given to us the privilege of
arousing the Church to the worth and value of all that the
visions at Paray-le-Monial mean. This cannot be done by the
few. It must be done by the Society in its full battle array.
In the thirteenth chapter of Jeremias, the prophet tells us
that the Lord came to him and said, " 'Go, and get thee a
linen girdle, and thou shalt put it about thy loins, and shall
not put it into water.' And I got a girdle according to the word
of the Lord, and put it about my loins. And the word of the
Lord came to me a second time, saying: 'Take the girdle which
thou hast got, which is about thy loins, and arise, go to the
Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole in the. l-ock.' And I
went, and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord had commanded
me. And it came to pass after many days, that the Lord said
to me: 'Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from thence the
girdle, which I commanded thee to hide there.' And I went
to the Euphrates, and digged, and took the girdle out of the
place where I had hid it; and behold the girdle was rotten, so
that it was fit for no use.
"And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 'Thus saith
the Lord: After this manner will I make the pride of Juda,
and the great pride of Jerusalem to rot. For as the girdle
sticketh close to the loins of a man, so have I brought close to
Me all the house of Israel. That they might be my people, and
for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would
not hear.' "
In like manner has the Lord brought close to Himself the
house of Ignatius, that we might be his people for the spread·
ing of the Sacred Heart devotion, for the name of Jesus, for
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
389
the glory of God. We are the Israelites of our day, a chosen
people with a promise and a mission. It must be our firm
purpose to fulfill the promise and accomplish this mission, lest
what happened long ago on the banks of the Euphrates happen
to us in this hour when God and his world depend upon us
so much.
The Apostleship of Prayer at
Saint Louis University High School
THOMAS DENZER,
S.J.
Introduction: A Dilemma. A few years ago the Sodality at
Saint Louis University High School was reorganized according to the Saint Mary's Plan. The purpose of this plan was to
establish an integrated, four year program for the Sodality
in the high school, and to form Catholic leaders according to
the way of life set forth in the Apostolic Constitutions of the
Sodality. It is clear to those who have studied these Constitutions and the recommendations of our Holy Father concerning
effective sodalities that not all high school students are willing
or capable of keeping the rules of the Sodality and of living
the way of life proposed to its members. For this reason, the
membership of the Sodality has been restricted to a select
group of Catholic leaders. This reorganization of the Sodality
according to the desires of our Holy Father presents certain
difficulties to the moderators and principals in the high schools
in which it has been established. In addition to the problem of
determining the qualifications and bases for selection of
Sodality members, there is the difficulty of what is to be done
with the majority of boys who are not admitted into the
Sodality. The dilemma is this: the Sodality without a reorganization according to some plan similar to the Saint Mary's
Plan-which will make the Sodality a true third order of the
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APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
Society of Jesus-will be ineffective; yet the adoption of such
a plan will leave the majority of students without a spiritual
organization in which they can participate.
A Proposed Solution. This was the dilemma faced by the
Sodality moderators at Saint Louis University High School.
A solution was found in the adoption of a new plan for the
Apostleship of Prayer. Although the Apostleship of Prayer
was already established and active at the High School, it was
believed that it could be reorganized in such a way that it
would give all of the ~students a spiritual organization and
way of life comparable to the Sodality program, one in which
all of the students could participate, and which would establish
the devotion to the Sacred Heart as the center and spirit of
the high school life in a very practical and realistic way. The
following summary is an outline of the program that was
adopted and followed during the 1955-1956 school year. It is
by no means the only way in which the Apostleship of Prayer
can be organized in a high school ; however, it represents an
experiment that met with some success and shows the adaptability of the Apostleship to the objectives in mind.
General Objectives. The overall objective of this plan was to
make devotion to the Sacred Heart the focal point of the student's spiritual life and of all of his religious activities. It was
meant to present the Apostleship of Prayer as a :riorm of Christian life, a spirit which is to pervade all activities, and which
offers a simple yet most sublime way of dedicating one's life
and talents to the kingdom of Christ. The aim of the new organization was a practical one. It sought to teach the high
school boy the practice of devotion to the Sacred Heart in a
way he could understand, and which would shape his thinking
and acting in all of his intellectual, recreational, social, and
spiritual endeavors.
To achieve these objectives, it was made clear to the students that the Apostleship of Prayer was the principal spiritual organization on' the campus. It was the organization all
were expected to join, including Sodality members. This
establishment of the Apostleship of Prayer as the spiritual
organization did not relegate the Sodality to a secondary position. On the contrary, it set up a balance between the two
which enabled both organizations to obtain their objectives
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
391
more effectively. The two were not in competition; both offered
the high school boy a way of sanctification; the practices of
the Apostleship of Prayer were simple and in easy reach of
all, while the Sodality program under restricted membership
required the sodalist to go beyond the simple practices of the
Apostleship in order to follow the Sodality way of life. The
sodalists were expected to be not only members of the Apostleship of Prayer, but outstanding members who would keep the
Sodality rules requiring meditation, spiritual reading, etc., in
addition to the practices of the Apostleship of Prayer. In this
way, the two spiritual organizations were a help and support
to one another. The Sodality permitted the formation of
Catholic leaders according to the way of life outlined in the
Sodality rules; the Apostleship of Prayer permitted an effective organization of the Sodality by giving to the remainder
of the student body a spiritual program within easy reach
of all.
Organization
Promoters. The entire success of this program was built
around a group of enthusiastic promoters and a set of projects
that would enable the promoters to present the cult of the
Sacred Heart to the student body in a practical way, in a way
all of the students could share. Two groups of promoters were
organized: the freshman promoters, about whom more will
be said later in this summary, and the promoters for the
sophomore, junior, and senior years. In all, twenty-five promoters were chosen, one from each class in the school. Each
promoter was responsible for promoting devotion to the
Sacred Heart in his own class. The promoters who were
selected were not sodalists. This permitted the promoters
meeting to be held during the same period set aside one day
a week for Sodality meetings. It also permitted the development of a core of leaders in addition to those of the Sodality.
The motto of the promoters was SsC. This Latin abbreviation for The Most Sacred Heart exemplified their threefold
aim: to study, to spread, and to cultivate personally the cult of
the Sacred Heart. They sought to study the devotion to the
Sacred Heart and to develop practical ways of promoting it
both in the school and in family life. Of prime importance
Was their own practice of the devotion which would enable
�392
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
them to carry out the projects of the Apostleship with more
effectiveness.
Qualifications of Promoters. The promoters were required
to attend all of the weekly meetings. If a promoter missed
more than one weekly meeting without previous excuse, he
was automatically dismissed as a promoter. In this way, emphasis was placed on the importance of promoters meetings to
the success of the program. Promoters were expected to organize, direct, and execute the projects, which will be explained
later, of the Apostleship:' The effectiveness of each promoter
was found to depend upon his own enthusiasm and his ability
to sell the projects and practices of the Apostleship to his
fellow students without offense. His enthusiasm was largely
dependent upon his own conviction that the practices of the
Apostleship of Prayer offered the· high school boy the easiest
yet sublimest way of dedicating his talents to Christ, and of
repairing for the sins and ingratitude of so many in the world.
Promoters Offices. For effective organization of the
promoters, officers were appointed by the moderator, and
elected by the promoters during the latter part of the school
year. The officers and their duties were as follows:
President. The president was expected to preside at all of
the meetings, to direct all of the committees, to plan the projects with the moderator, and to direct the pr()rn.otion of all
aspects of the Apostleship of Prayer in the school.
Vice-President. The vice-president was expected to assist
the president in all of his functions, to preside at the meetings
in the absence of the president, and to supervise the activities
of the various committees.
Secretary-Treasurer. The secretary-treasurer was appointed
to handle all of the financial matters of the Apostleship, and
to direct the activities dealing with the sale of Sacred Heart
pictures, collection of funds, etc.
Corresponding Secretary. The corresponding secretarY
handled all of the ·correspondence of the Apostleship and
directed its publicity.
Recording Secretary. The recording secretary kept the minutes of the meetings and the records and history of activities.
In addition to the above offices, the promoters were divided
into five committees with a chairman appointed for each com-
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
393
mittee by the president. The Projects Committee determined
effective ways of promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart,
discussed these projects, and directed their completion. The
Publicity Committee determined ways to advertise the projects and practices of the Apostleship, and directed the making
of signs, posters, and bulletin board displays. The Speech
Committee aided the promoters by gathering materials useful
for the weekly talks that the promoters were required to give
in their classes. Model talks were presented to the promoters
as an aid to effective promotion. The Business Committee
assisted the secretary-treasurer, the corresponding secretary,
and the recording secretary by coordinating their activities
and preparing a business report for the weekly meetings. The
Library Committee made available pertinent books, articles,
and pamphlets dealing with devotion to the Sacred Heart.
l\feetings
All of the promoters met for forty-five minutes each week,
at the same time that the various Sodality groups were holding their meetings. A preliminary meeting of about thirty
minutes duration was held with the officers several days in
advance in order to plan the procedure and matter for the
regular promoters meeting and to prevent waste of time.
Order of Meetings. The order of meetings was as follows:
Opening prayer.
Business and announcements.
Committee reports and projects.
Discussion concerning promotion of projects, led by a
promoter.
Summary and conclusions by the president.
Talk by the moderator or guest speaker.
Summary of meeting.
Closing prayer.
The meetings were conducted with a practical aim. The
emphasis was placed on ways and means of presenting devotion to the Sacred Heart to the students in a concrete and
realistic way. For this reason, theoretical discussions were
held to a minimum. Several meetings during the first part of
the Year were devoted to an explanation of devotion to the
Sacred Heart and its relation to the Apostleship of Prayer.
�394
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
The following meetings then took up particular aspects of
this explanation and embodied them in the particular project
for the month. This manner of presentation permitted the
promoters to develop devotion in an effective way.
The topics of promoters meetings were confined largely to
specific projects concerning devotion to the Sacred Heart, and
ways to promote this devotion in the school and in the home.
Following such a program, the moderator was able to cover
the following topics:
Nature and Purpose of the Apostleship of Prayer.
Conditions of Membership.
Benefits of Membership.
Publications of the Apostleship of Prayer.
The Sacred Heart Badge.
The Morning Offering.
Communion of Reparation.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart.
Consecration to the Sacred Heart.
Reparation to the Sacred Heart.
Apostolic Devotion to Mary.
Eucharistic Crusade and Communion of Reparation.
The Nine First Fridays.
The Holy Hour.
.
The Apostleship of Prayer and the Mass.~·-·
The Apostleship of Prayer and the Mystical Body of Christ.
Each of the above aspects of the Apostleship of Prayer was
explained in connection with a specific project. The materials
were gathered from books, pamphlets, and articles covering
the above topics. The promoters were required to bring to
each meeting a copy of the Handbook of the Apostleship of
Prayer, and a Promoter's Manual. Plenty of material was
found for discussion and development from these two sources.
Articles from the Messenger of the Sacred Heart were also
helpful.
· Projects and Promoters
The program was built around a group of enthusiastic
promoters and a set of projects. The projects were designed
to present the practices of the Apostleship of Prayer in ways
that would appeal to the high school student. The projects
were divided into major and minor projects. Each of theJil
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
395
stressed consecration to the Sacred Heart, reparation to the
Sacred Heart, and the Morning Offering. By emphasizing one
of these in each project, it was believed that the students
would discover the essence of devotion to the Sacred Heart,
and would find that the three practices of the Apostleship of
Prayer offer the best means of practising this devotion.
Each month the promoters selected a major project to serve
as the focal point of their activities. Along with the major
project for the month, certain minor projects were continuously promoted. The duties and activities of the promoters in
carrying out these projects will be described in the following
summary.
1. Consecration of the School to the Sacred Heart (Major).
Every week the promoter for each class delivered a five to
ten minute talk to his class explaining some aspect of the
Apostleship activities and urging participation in the projects
which were then being conducted. In preparation for the
consecration of the school, several talks were given by the
promoters explaining the meaning of consecration, its importance, its purpose, and the way in which the students could
participate. The weekly talks were designed to present the
devotion to the ,Sacred Heart in language that the students
could easily understand. The talks were meant to pinpoint the
relationship between the devotion to the Sacred Heart and the
Project for the month. In addition to the talks, the promoters
Prepared weekly posters for each class which explained in a
brief and attractive way the activities for that week and
month. The promoter was expected to keep personal contact
with each member of the class and to stimulate interest and
Participation in Apostleship activities. In addition to the talks
by promoters concerning consecration to the Sacred Heart,
this consecration was explained by the religion teachers prior
to the day of consecration.
The consecration took place at Mass on a Friday morning
with all of the students present. A ten minute sermon followed
the Mass and explained to the students what they were about
to do. The principal of the school led the students in reciting
the prayer of consecration.
2. Class Communion of Reparation (Major). Excl,usive of
Fridays and holy days on which most of the students received
�'.
396
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
Communion, each of the twenty-five classes of the school had
an assigned day a month on which it was to receive Communion in reparation to the Sacred Heart. Promoters explained this voluntary project to their respective classes,
reminded them of their day, posted an attractive calendar
in each class indicating the schedule for the month, and led
the class in reciting an act of reparation at Communion. In
addition, each day the principal of the school announced over
the public address system the class which was to receive
Communion the folloWing day. The success of this project
was indicated by the-number of Communions-double that of
the previous year.
3. Making and Distributing Sacred Heart Badges (Major).
The promoters made eight hundred and twenty plastic badges
of the Sacred Heart for distribution to the students. The
plastic covering and printed badge were purchased with funds
donated by the senior class. The lacing for the badges was
made from intravenous feeding tubes obtained by the promoters from local hospitals. The tubes were dyed and cut to
appropriate lengths for the badge. Each promoter assembled
the badges for his class. The promoters explained the Sacred
Heart badge to their classes, pointing out its history, its use,
and significance to the devotion. Freshmen fU}eakers talked to
various classes concerning the blessing of the badges. The
blessing and distribution of Sacred Heart badges took place
at Mass on a Friday morning when all of the students were
present. A ten minute sermon on the badge of the Sacred
Heart was given. The badges were then blessed by Father
Rector and distributed to the promoters at the Communion
rail.
4. Sacred Heart Essay Contest (Major). English and religion teachers cooperated with the League promoters in
sponsoring an essay contest. Each student was asked to write
about four hundred words on the following topic: "What Can
the Apostleship of Prayer Do for Our School?" The topic was
selected in order to give the contest a practical slant, since it
forced the students to think out the relationship between
devotion to the Sacred Heart and their school activities. It
also permitted the promoters and moderator of the Apostleship to determine how effective the new program was in
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
397
developing the practice of devotion to the Sacred Heart among
the students. An individual prize was awarded for each year.
A large, gold-framed picture of the Sacred Heart was presented to the boy in each year who wrote the best paper. The
papers were judged by the Philosophers at Saint Louis University. The pictures were awarded at the student assembly
along with scholastic honors. Excerpts from the prize winning
papers were printed in the school newspaper. The contest
enabled the promoters to su,ggest ideas to their classes on the
Apostleship of Prayer and devotion to the Sacred Heart.
5. Consecration of School Activities to the Sacred Heart
(Major). This project helped the students to understand the
essence of devotion to the Sacred Heart. The project had
many aspects. First, the promoters obtained a number of
Sacred Heart pictures which they mounted and framed. Second, an individual act of consecration was written for each
activity. This act consecrated the activity to the Sacred Heart
in reparation for a particular sin of our day. For example, the
act of consecration for the Poster Club read as follows: "We
the members of the Poster Club at Saint Louis University
High School consecrate our activity to the Sacred Heart of
Jesus in reparation for those who use art and advertisement
to incite the passions of men and lead them to sin." These
acts of consecration were printed and framed so they could
be hung beneath a picture of the Sacred Heart. The moderator
of the Apostleship of Prayer spoke to each activity in the
school to explain the purpose of the project and the particular
need for reparation. The promoters explained the project to
their classes and urged all of the students to participate. The
Promoters explained that all the activities-athletics, speech,
acting, newspaper work, etc.,-could be used to make reparation for those who use such activities to lead men to sin. The
consecration of activities took place on the last day of the
student retreat. After Mass, a sermon was given on the relationship between the retreat and the students' devotion to the
Sacred Heart. After the talk, the leaders of each activity
came to the Communion rail and recited their individual acts
of consecration. Father Rector blessed the pictures of the
Sacred Heart and presented them to the activity leaders. The
Pictures and the acts of consecration were then hung in the
�398
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
rooms where the various activities meet. Before each meeting
the act of consecration and reparation is read by the moderator.
6. Consecration of Families to the Sacred Heart and Sale
of Sacred Heart Pictures (Major). This project called for
the sale of Sacred Heart pictures at the school for a month
previous to the date of family consecration. Letters were sent
to the parents explaining the project and asking them to consecrate their families to the Sacred Heart on the date set.
Pamphlets were distributed to the students explaining family
consecration. The promoters made a survey before and after
the consecration to determine how many families had complied.
7. Holy Hour and Week of Reparation (Major). One of
the proposed projects was a holy hour and week of reparation
during Lent. Each class was to have an assigned day during
Lent on which the members of the class kept a constant vigil
before the Blessed Sacrament. All were urged to receive Communion during the week of reparation.
8. Promotion of the Morning Offering (Major). The Morning Offering served as a framework for the major projects of
the promoters. Several talks were devoted to an explanation
of the practice and its relation to the Mass. It was presented
as a summary formula of devotion to the Sacred Heart and a
daily consecration of activities. The promoters prepared
attractive posters showing the relation of the Morning Offering to the various activities of one's life. The Morning Offering
was s~id daily at the beginning of religion class. Promoters
reminded the students that this should be a renewal of the
Morning Offering they made upon arising.
9. Distribution of League Leaflets etc. (Minor). Each
month, when distributing the League Leaflets to their classes,
the promoters explained the monthly intention recommended
by the Holy Father: Charts, illustrations, and statistics were
employed as much as possible to make the intentions interesting and vivid. The monthly projects were timed to conform
with the Apostleship of Prayer intentions. In addition, the
promoters collected the intentions of the students and their
contibutions to the Treasury of Good Works. An explanation
of these practices gave the promoters opportunity to point out
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
399
the need for and benefits of membership in the Apostleship of
Prayer. Promoters made copies of the list of indulgences
which can be gained by members and distributed these to the
students when they (the promoters) gave a talk on the benefits
of membership.
10. Preparation of Posters and Displays (Minor). The
Publicity Committee prepared posters and displays to advertise the projects and practices. A weekly poster was prepared
on some particular practice. Posters announcing the general
intentions for the month were placed in each classroom where
they could be easily seen. Classroom calendars for the Communion of Reparation were prepared for each class, indicating
the date. Bulletin board displays were prepared on devotion
to the Sacred Heart. There was a contest between classes for
the best display each week. Individual posters were prepared
for each project. News articles explaining Apostleship of
Prayer activities were submitted to the school newspaper each
week.
11. Promotion of the Nine First Fridays (Minor). The
promoters fostered the Nine First Fridays each month by
classroom reminders of the Twelfth Promise. Since the students are not obliged to attend Mass at school on First Friday,
but may go to their own parish, a general Communion was
not held.
12. Promoters' Reception (Minor). Near the end of the
school term a solemn reception of the senior promoters was
held at a meeting in the student chapel. The reception followed
the program outlined in the Handbook of the Apostleship of
Prayer. Individual awards were presented to outstanding promoters at the school banquet held at the end of the school year.
In addition to the above major and minor projects, the promoters carried out many other activities. They supported the
Sacred Heart Radio and TV Programs by urging the students
and their parents to write to the station managers. They held
a Panel discussion on "The Apostleship of Prayer in the High
School" for the Mothers' Club of Saint Louis University High.
They went to other high schools in the city to explain their
Work at Saint Louis University High School and to study what
other schools are doing to promote devotion to the Sacred
IIeart. They visited the Sacred Heart Radio Program offices
�400
APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
during the Christmas holidays to learn from Father Eugene
P. Murphy, S.J., how important the work is and in what ways
they could promote devotion to the Sacred Heart. They planned
a speech contest with a prize for the best speech given on some
practice of devotion to the Sacred Heart. They prepared a
program which would combine the Novena to Saint Francis
Xavier with Apostleship activities. Each promoter was responsible for the activities in his own class. The success of each
project depended upon the enthusiasm and zeal of the pro"'
moters.
Other Students
In considering this program for the Apostleship of Prayer,
it is clear that the activities are planned and conducted by the
promoters under the direction of the moderator. The question
naturally arises, "To what extent do the other students (not
promoters) participate in the activities?" To answer this question it is necessary to point out that an ideal situation would
exist if each class in the school could be organized into a
Sacred Heart ~study group under an individual moderator.
This would permit the introduction of an integrated program
similar to that of the Sodality. The shortage of moderators,
the lack of time, and the need for a prog_ram which would
activate the Apostleship of Prayer in co-operation with the
new Sodality program made the present organization imperative. It offered ample opportunity for all of the students to
participate. The students were active in the following ways:
(1) Under the leadership of their promoter, the members of
each class could come to understand and practise devotion to
the Sacred Heart. (2) Students participated in all of the
projects of the Apostleship under the leadership of the promoters. The success of class and school projects depended
upon the co-operation of all students with the promoters.
Projects were of such a nature that student participation was
essential. (3) A monthly meeting of all members of the
Apostleship was held in the chapel on one Friday a month. At
this meeting the students heard a talk on the Apostleship of
Prayer, at times by a guest speaker, renewed their act of consecration, and participated in the monthly project-for example, in the consecration of activities to the Sacred Heart.
Freshmen Members. A separate plan was followed for the
�APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
401
freshmen. At the beginning of the school year, the moderator
spoke to the freshmen, giving a brief explanation of the
Apostleship of Prayer and urging them to join by submitting
their names for inclusion in the Apostleship of Prayer register. Those who joined were placed in a Sacred Heart study
group. Three groups were formed, each under a Jesuit moderator. The purpose of these groups was to introduce the students to the practices of the Apostleship of Prayer, and to
serve as a basis for selection of Sodality members and League
promoters in the second semester. The groups met once a week
during the period set aside for Sodality meetings. Each
group required the freshmen to participate in reading, discussion, question periods, and Apostleship projects. In this
way the moderators could discover the leaders of the year and
make selections for the Sodality and Apostleship. The topics
covered in the meetings were as follows:
Nature and Purpose of the Apostleship of Prayer.
Conditions and Benefits of Membership.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart.
Consecration and Reparation to the Sacred Heart.
The Morning Offering.
Communion of Reparation.
The Holy Hour and Nine First Fridays.
Devotion to Mary and the Apostleship of Prayer.
Rules of the Sodality.
Use was made of the material contained in the first book
of the Saint Mary's Plan for Sodalities which covers fundamental points of the spiritual life and the rules of the Sodality.
At the end of the first semester, the freshmen study groups
were dissolved and new Sodality groups formed. Sodality
:rne:rnbers were chosen from the Sacred Heart study groups
on the basis of leadership qualities. Seven freshmen promoters
for the Apostleship were also selected from these study
groups. Separate meetings were held for the freshmen pro:rnoters until they qualified to attend the regular promoters
:meetings for the sophomore, junior, and senior years. The
freshmen promoters carried out the Apostleship projects in
the freshman year.
Promoters Communion. In order to increase their devotion
to the Sacred Heart and to make reparation for sin, the pro-
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APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYER
moters decided to attend daily Communion during the school
year. They renewed their act of consecration at each monthly
meeting of all Apostleship of Prayer members.
Summary and Conclusions
It should be emphasized again that this is not the only way
in which the Apostleship of Prayer can be organized in a high
school. The success of this experiment serves to demonstrate
the many possibilities-open to directors and the adaptability
of the Apostleship of.. Prayer. The program at Saint Louis
University High School was built around a group of promoters and a set of projects. The promoters concentrated their
efforts on promoting devotion to the Sacred Heart within the
school and within the families. Projects were restricted to the
principal practices of the Apostleship of Prayer. The organization of a union of various centers in all of the high schools of
the City was postponed until the program at Saint Louis
University High School proved successful.
As a result of this experiment, four conclusions can be
made:
(1) The success of any program to establish the Apostleship of Prayer in a high school depends uj)on the support
given it by superiors and the full co-operation of all members
of the faculty.
(2) If the Apostleship is to be successful, the moderators
and promoters must be ever mindful of the commission given
to the Society of Jesus to spread devotion to the Sacred Heart,
and personally convinced that "there is no other formula of
ascetic-apostolic life so solid and sublime and at the same time
so simple and generally applicable as that which is proposed
in this work."
(3) The moderators and promoters must exhibit an enthusiasm based on firm conviction which will be most instrumental in spreadi~g devotion to the Sacred Heart among the
young men in high school.
(4) Materials are needed which cover all phases of the
Apostleship of Prayer. These materials should be developed
into an integrated program for the training of promoters and
presentation to students.
�India and S.t. Ignatius
P. DE LETTER, S.J.
India was the first mission of the Society. It became so less
perhaps through the choice or initiative of St. Ignatius and
the first companions than through the will of others and those
providential circumstances which sent Xavier to the East.
During the whole lifetime of the founder and first Generalnot to say throughout the history of the Society-it was the
first and foremost Jesuit mission. The great bulk of Jesuit
missionaries sent out during the generalate of St. Ignatius,
from 1541 to 1556, went to the East Indies. Granero, in his
study on the missionary action and methods of St. Ignatius,!
lists seventy-one for India, against seventeen for Brazil and
eight for the Congo. 2 Adding to these the number of candidates who joined the Society in the missions during that time,
these numbers grew, according to the same author, to one
hundred and twenty-two for India, including Malacca, the
Moluccas and Japan, twenty-six for Brazil and eight for the
Congo. 3 India was also the first province of the Society to be
erected outside of Europe. It became the third province of
the Society by a decree of St. Ignatius of October 10, 1549,
with St. Francis Xavier as its first provincial-a decree that
was carried into effect only in November 1551, when Xavier
received his appointment. 4 According to its first catalogue of
1553, the Indian Province counted some sixty-five members of
whom nineteen were priests. After the death of St. Ignatius,
the catalogue of 1557 lists thirty-one priests, forty-six brothers and thirty-four novices, one hundred and twenty-one in
all ;s at a time when the whole Society counted little more than
a thousand members. 6
These facts show the place India took in the plans of the
first General of the Society. They invite to a closer inspection
of what India meant to him and to the Society of the time.
This task has been made easy by the publication of the
Documenta Indica, the first three volumes of which, published
to date, 7 together with the previously published Epistolae S.
Francisci Xaverii, 8 cover the whole generalate of St. Ignatius.
It is mainly from the letters he received from or concerning
�404
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
India that St. Ignatius learned what India actually was. A
survey of these letters and of their contents will enable us to
understand the Jesuit Indian mission during the lifetime of
St. Ignatius. 9
The Documents
The letters from or concerning India are seventy-six in all.
They were addressed to St. Ignatius or to the Society in
Europe. Five never reached the addressee, written as they
were in December 1556 or in 1557, after the death of St. Ignatius. Nor is it very likely that he ever read three letters written
early in 1556, except perhaps one sent from Lisbon in April
1556. This leaves about seventy letters from which St. Ignatius got the news about India and the Indian mission. 10 The
text of these letters is preserved in four languages: Spanish,
Italian, Portuguese or Latin.
The authors are some twenty-one, all except two Jesuitsthe non-Jesuits were Bishop Albuquerque of Goa, and Father
Peter Gon~alves, ~a secular priest, vicar of Cochin. The
greater number of letters come from St. Francis Xavier (15),
and from Father Nicholas Lancillotto (16); further from
other provincial or local superiors, like H. Henri.quez (7), and
G. Berze (3). There are some from missionaries· not in positions of authority, for instance, John de Beira (1) or Alphonso
Cyprian (2). The places in which the letters were written are
in India, except for some fourteen. Nine were sent from Portugal (Lisbon or Coimbra); the Indian mission and even the
Indian Province were dependent in a rather ill-defined manner
on the Province of Portugal, if not juridically, at any rate
through the circumstance that all missionaries for India
sailed from Lisbon. Another five came from Malacca (3), and
Ormuz (2). Chief among the mission places in India are Goa,
which was, theoretically at least, the residence of the mission
superior or provincial (14 letters), Cochin (23) and Quilon
(12). Other places are San Thome (Mylapore), Punakayal,
Tuticorin, Vembar, Bassein. This list of place names shows
that the early Indian mission was mainly confined to the coastal regions of the peninsula.
The places the letters report on are not only the Indian
mission proper, as we understand the phrase today, but the
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
405
whole Jesuit mission of the East, including India, Ethiopia,
Ormuz (Persian Gulf), Malacca, the Moluccas, Japan and
in spe China. In this survey, however, we shall limit our consideration to India and Ceylon. Most, not to say all, of the
letters were written at the request of St. Ignatius, in obedience
to his directives about sending the information he required
for the proper government of the new and faraway mission.
He desired that regular reports should be sent especially by
superiors, and had Polanco specify the topics on which information was to be sent.U
Main Contents
Of Xavier's letters, only eleven out of the sixteen give information about India. The other five deal with the Moluccasletters of January 20, 1548, or with his projected journey to
Japan-letter of June 22, 1549, or with his apostolate in
Japan and plans for China-three letters of 1552. These do
not concern our present purpose. Of the Indian letters, the
first two, written some five months after his arrival in India,
gave information about Goa and the College there-September
20, 1542; and a third one, a month later, about the mission
on the Fishery Coast-October 28, 1542. The later letters are,
however, more instructive. One of January 15, 1544 reports
on the Indian mission, and another of a year later, January
27, 1545, on the work in Travancore. But the most informative
are the three letters of January 12 and 14, 1549, in which he
expresses his views on the people and their attitude to Christianity and to the priestly or Jesuit vocation. The remaining
three letters are mainly requests for spiritual favors and faculties12 and for missionaries.
As is well-known, Xavier's judgment of India and the
Indians was not very favorable-he was manifestly partial
to the Japanese whom he considered better gifted and more
open to Christianity. That is why it is imperative to compare
his views on India with those of his companions. It was St.
Ignatius'-and India's-good fortune that more than one
Voice from India was heard.
Among the more important of the letters from India are
those of Nicholas Lancillotto. They draw a graphic picture of
the situation in the mission, the work, methods, successes, and
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IGNATIUS AND INDIA
reverses. In many a point his views differ from Xavier's, for
example, on the need of learned missionaries, on serious preparation before baptism, on the talents of Indians, on their
aptitude for the priestly and Jesuit vocation.-Father Henry
Henriquez, a Tamil scholar and active missionary, sends regular reports on the work done, on the methods followed, for
example, on the use of catechists and his contacts with the
Hindus. For them he has greater hopes and in them he sees
better qualities than Xavier did. Father G. Berze, working
first in Ormuz, where~he converted both Mohammedans and
Hindus, and then in Goa, reports as Vice-Provincial on the
situation of the Mission; he hopes for indigenous vocations to
the Society-which Xavier did not-and insists on work
among non-Christians. Father Anthony Criminali mentions
the division of opinions about the length of preparation for
baptism, and also insists on the need of learning in the missionaries. These few examples suffice to show how the judgment of St. Francis Xavier on India must be completed by the
views of his COll).panions. From their collective reports, it
should be possible to obtain a fairly complete and objective
view of the early Jesuit mission in India such as St. Ignatius
could have had. For clarity's sake we may group the information around three main points: the people amo~g whom they
work; their ministry in the colleges and the missions: methods, difficulties, results; the growth of the Society.
The Indian l\Iission before Xavier
To see the early Jesuit mission in India in true perspective
and get a correct idea of its peculiar character as a missionit was a mission in the Ignatian sense of the word as found in
the Formula Instituti and not exactly in the sense of the
modern pagan mission-it is imperative briefly to recall the
situation of the Catholic mission in India at the arrival of the
first Jesuits. 18 The .mission began some thirty years before
Xavier landed in Goa. The Portuguese traders and colonists
brought out priests both secular and regular, to look after
their spiritual needs, and also to evangelize the people of the
country. Wherever there were Portuguese settlements of importance, there were also resident priests. Though Goa was
not erected as a separate diocese till 1534, and its first bishop
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
407
John of Albuquerque arrived only in 1538-before that it
depended on the bishop of Funchal, Madeira, and was intermittently visited by a coadjutor of that bishop-it had its
resident priests from 1510 on. By 1542, Goa had a chapter
with thirteen canons, six vicars, and one parish priest, and
there were parishes at Cochin, Cranganore, Quilon, San
Thome (Mylapore), Chalyam, Bassein and Diu. The Franciscans were settled in Goa and Cochin since 1518 and recruited new members from among the Portuguese and Eurasians in India. Dominicans had passed through before their
permanent establishment of 1548. But the quality of the
clergy, we are told, was not up to the mark. There was little
preaching and still less work among the people of the country.
There were, however, exceptions. Two zealous priests, the
Franciscan Father Vincent de Lagos and the secular priest
Father Didacus de Borba, even started local seminaries; at
Cranganore for the children of the St. Thomas Christians, and
another at Goa itself, the seminary Santa Fe, better known as
St. Paul's College, of which Xavier on arrival was asked to
take care.
As for the Christians, they comprised not only the Portuguese officials, merchants and soldiers but also a Eurasian
Christian community, developed since the Viceroy Afonso
Albuquerque (1509-15) advocated marriage with Indian
women-by 1527 there were some eight hundred such Portuguese families with over a thousand children. Besides these
there were indigenous Christians: convert slaves, Hindus and
Mohammedans; and also the St. Thomas Christians, particularly in Cochin, Quilon and San Thome. Some figures are
available: in 1514 Cochin had six thousand Christians, Quilon
over two thousand. In 1527, Cranganore had a thousand and
San Thome, eighteen hundred. But the first mass conversions
took place in 1535-37, when 20,000 Paravas, of the fisher caste
on the Fishery Coast, living in some thirty villages, were baptized by the vicar of Cochin and his clergy. They had had
practically no preparation and were little more than nominal
Christians. It was to take care of these that St. Francis Xavier
had been sent to India. This was his first mission. 14
Accordingly, the early Jesuit mssion in India did not begin
with territory being entrusted to the Society, as foreign missions generally do in our time. Jesuits were asked to come to
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IGNATIUS AND INDIA
the diocese of Goa, which at the time extended from Cape of
Good Hope to Japan, to help the secular and regular priests
who were already working there. The apostolate in India,
therefore, was not unlike that of the first Jesuits in Europe,
but with one great difference. In the East that apostolate
could not but be missionary, in the strict sense of the word,
namely, the propagation of the faith and the establishment of
the Church inter injideles.
The Jesuit Mission Field
Xavier and his companions on landing in India came into
contact first with the already existing Christian community.
Shortly after his arrival Xavier reported to St. Ignatius on
Christian Goa: a town wholly Christian, with a Franciscan
monastery and many Friars-(in 1548 they were forty), a
cathedral with canons, vicars, and a parish priest, many
churches and chapels-in 1548 there were fourteen of them,
besides a hospital and a college. 15 He met three native clerics:
two deacons and one in minor orders, from the Fishery Coast,
where he was to go soon. 16 Before going he was faced with
the offer of the College of Goa, founded six years before by
the secular clergy; it gave hope for the conversion of India
but would require many Jesuits. 17 In Goa mos(_ though not
all, of the Christians were Portuguese or descendants of the
Portuguese. What their value as Christians and their zeal for
the faith was, we do not learn at first from Xavier, though
later he will incidentally remark on them. His companions complained of the bad example some gave the people of the country by their thirst for material gain and the immorality of
their private lives.18 Perhaps Lancillotto and Cyprian inclined
to exaggerate, nor should we generalize their statements. There
were, as we know from other sources, good and zealous Christians among them. Among the Portuguese officials, too, some
were favorable to religion, others a hindrance; we read of
both kinds in the letters. 19 This Portuguese and Luso-Indian
Christian community was the first, though not the chief, field
of labor for the early Jesuits.
A very different Christian community Xavier found on the
Fishery Coast. The members had become Christians six years
before, between 1535 and 1537/0 and had been received by
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
409
the vicar of Cochin, Peter Gon~alves. No Portuguese lived
among them as the country was too poor. These new Christians, having had little or no instruction, scarcely knew more
than to say that they were Christians. They had no Mass
since there was only one priest for the whole region, and no
one to instruct them. They were ignorant but keen on learning the prayers and the faith. "I am sure," Xavier writes,
"they will make good Christians". 21 His prophecy came true :
the labors of Criminali, H. Henriquez and others succeeded
in founding a Christianity which still exists. Still a third class
of Indian Christians Xavier was to know and his successors
were to contact, the St. Thomas Christians of Malabar of the
Syrian rite. All through the centuries that India was cut off
from the West they had kept the faith although some errors
had crept into their teaching and practice. During the lifetime
of St. Ignatius, they took only a small place in the work of
Jesuits in India. 22
The great bulk of the population, even in the coastal regions
to which the labors of Xavier and companions were practically limited, was non-Christian: Moslem and Hindu. It was
on these that they desired to centre their missionary effort.
The Mohammedans, though we hear of occasional conversions
among them, come in mainly in the role of enemies and persecutors of the Christians-they were the enemies of the Portugese-particularly on the Fishery Coast. It is chiefly among
the Hindus who live on relatively peaceful terms with the
Christians that the Jesuits hope to spread the faith. And their
judgments of the Hindu population differ a good deal.
St. Francis Xavier was rather severe in judging Brahmins,
Hindus and Indians in general. In his first great letter to the
companions in Rome, January 5, 1544, he sternly condemns
the perversion, insincerity, greed, ignorance of the Brahminic
caste which is the prop of pagan religion and of idolatry. He
has scarcely a good word for them; no more esteem for their
intellectual than for their moral qualities. From discussions
With them he was only convinced of their ignorance or bad
faith. "Clearly", Father Wicki remarks, "Xavier never knew
the better type of Brahmin such as De Nobili was to know." 23
Yet Xavier, too, admits exceptions. He mentions a Brahmin
Who became a Christian and was a very good man ; others also
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IGNATIUS AND INDIA
would accept the faith were it not for human respecU' The
Paravas, who were not Christians as yet, he not only believed
fit for the faith but actually baptized thousands of them. 25
Five years later, in the three letters of 1549, his opinion, if
anything, has grown more severe. Indians are little cultured,
he writes; both Mohammedans and pagans are ignorant, insincere, inconstant, rooted in their false religion. Because of
their sins, they feel no inclination towards the faith; they
oppose it and persecute those who become Christians. What
a contrast with the Japanese and Chinese who are so keen
on hearing about the"things of God! 26 Even with converts
and new Christians the Fathers had much trouble in addition
to the fatigue and trials that came from the hot climate, the
poor food, the difficulties in learning the languages. 27 Apparently, Xavier did not detect in the non-Christian Indians
the natural virtues of the anima naturaliter christiana. Yet,
what he did for them speaks louder than his words. We should
not forget that the majority of the converts Xavier baptized
during his career were Indians.
His companions, however, as already mentioned above, did
judge more favorably. Two witnesses stand out among them:
Father Nicholas Lancillotto, sickly but zealous priest, who
worked in the Colleges of Cochin and Quilo_ri,. as rector and
teacher, was superior of the Fathers in the South, but did not
know the vernacular and never worked on the mission proper;
and Father H. Henriquez, missionary and superior of the
missionaries on the Fishery Coast, Tamil scholar, author of a
grammar and several opuscula in Tamil, who lived in the
midst of Indian Christians and Hindus, and knew the latter,
no less than the former, from close contact.
Lancillotto, occupied in the education of the Indian youth,
is in a position to judge of their aptitudes. In 1546, a year
after his arrival in India, he says that the Indian boys in the
College of Goa have talent, understanding and memory and
so corroborates his plea for the education of the people of the
country who, however illiterate, when taught show good
talent, optima ingenia habent. 28 Four years later, from Quilon
he advocates caution in conferring holy orders on Indian
clerics. 29 He has not, however, changed his mind about the
intellectual talents of the Indians. He pleads for missionaries,
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
411
no less learned than saintly, who can master the Hindu teachings on God and the gods, on the transmigration of souls, etc.30
Their teachings and practices may be superstitious, but he
admires and praises the poverty of the yogis, their frugality
and chastity 31-a contrast with what he reports of the Portuguese. Again in 1552, after his experience of teaching and
guiding boys in the College of Quilon, he believes that the
people of this country are certainly not less gifted than Europeans, no less capable of science and learning; if the students
apply themselves properly, a great Christianity will spring
up. 32 Yet, the same Lancillotto, in 1547, was severe on the
mixed motives that prompted conversions: freedom from
slavery, desire of protection against oppressors, hope of getting a hat, a shirt or a wife. 33 A year later, November 1548,
he seems more optimistic: some say converts come for some
human favor; no matter. If adults are not perfect Christians,
the younger ones will gradually grow better; spiritual and
temporal help should not be stopped. 3 ~ But when later on he
has to give an opinion on the customs and beliefs of the Hindus, he shows little appreciation of their ideas of God, creation, reward and punishment. 35 But did he know these first
or second hand? Or was he in a downcast mood, as when he
wrote again that converts came only from personal interest? 36
Father Henry Henriquez who knew both Indian Christians
and Hindus from close observation felt more confident. In
1548 he writes that from the start he learned Tamil and was
interested in the legends and myths which the Hindus narrate
about their gods. He is now able to carry on discussions with
them. There are, he has found out, monotheists among them.
So he made friends with one particular yogi who believed in
one God and instructed him (Henriquez) about things Indian;
he even helped in correcting errors and evil practices of both
Hindus and Christians. Unfortunately he lacked humility.
Frequently Father Henriquez discussed religion with him.
With others also he discussed Christianity and Hinduism,
Particularly the different ways in which Hindu ministers and
Catholic missionaries act towards sick people. 37 A year later
he wrote contentedly that he had made progress in his knowledge of Hindu legends; he hopes to write them down and
refute them, both in Tamil and Portuguese, for the instruction
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IGNATIUS AND INDIA
of Hindus and Christians. He was happier still to say he had
hopes for the conversion of his yogi friend; little by little he
had explained to him the principal articles of our faith and now
the yogi has expressed the desire to be a Christian. 38 As for
the Christians, he writes in January 1552, they make progress
in the service of God and ·of their neighbor and grow ever
more constant, so much so that he believes they would persevere even were the Portuguese to withdraw-a conviction
Xavier did not share. 39 He would like to select some boys for
further instruction and training, such as show themselves
desirous to serve God,~but as there is no college on the Fishery
Coast, he has to send them to Cochin or Goa. 40 A few months
later he again reports on his contacts with and preaching to
learned pagans/1 and expresses great hope for the conversion
of a whole tribe, 20,000 strong, that of the Kavalcas, related
to the Christian Paravas.42 Father Henriquez's sympathy for
the Hindus was clear-sighted. When a yogi in Vembar spread
his errors and even tried to mislead Christians, he opposed him
vigorously-so his letter of 1555. He continued his discussions
with Hindus and desired to write more about the pagan gods
and sects for the benefit of the Christians and the Fathers;
unfortunately he cannot do so because his time is taken up by
his duties as superior. 43 These few gleanings from the letters
of two companions of Xavier should suffice to give a somewhat
balanced picture of India and the Indians; Ignatius himself
must have been able to get from them a more complete and
objective idea of this field of Jesuit labor.
The Works of the l\linistry
To the great variety of the people among whom Xavier and
his companions came to do the work of the nascent Society
answers an equally wide range of ministerial activities. ManY
were common to the Jesuit ministry in India and Europe,
particularly the apostolate in the Portuguese Christian community and also, to some extent, the work in the schools and
colleges. But many were new, namely, the spiritual care of the
converts from paganism and the work of conversion itself.
These required new and daring initiatives and directives
which the Fathers were not slow in taking and asking while
St. Ignatius was ready or cautious, according to the case, in
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
413
approving and granting. From the letters he received from
India St. Ignatius could get a graphic picture which contains
lessons for the Jesuit ministry, the missionary apostolate in
particular, even today.
Among the Portuguese Christian Community
St. Francis Xavier's first months in Goa were spent in the
ministry to the Portuguese Christian community. He reports
on it in his letter of September 20, 1542: spiritual ministry
to the sick in the hospital; to the prisoners in jail whom he
prepares to make a general confession; teaching the prayers,
the Creed and the Commandments to the children in the different churches of the town; preaching on Sundays and feast
days, teaching the prayers to the people: the Our Father, the
Hail Mary, the Creed and the commandments-exactly the
program of his little catechism. 44 This program of instruction
may seem to be very elementary but it shows the crying need.
Xavier would repeatedly insist on this point, contained in the
Formula Instituti, and he himself was to be a master in catechetics.45
What Xavier did in Goa, other Fathers did after him, both
there and in other Portuguese settlements. G. Berze, for example, reports on his preaching, care of the sick and of prisoners, preparation for confessions and similar ministries in
Goa. 46 And he could sum up the work of Father Anthony de
Heredia in Cochin by saying that he was reaping much fruit
in the customary exercises of the Society. 41
Schools and Colleges
A striking feature of the work of the first Jesuits in India,
one of which not only the Portuguese and their descendants
but also the Indian Christians were the beneficiaries, was the
care devoted to the education of youth. Providential circumstances, which on the landing of Xavier in Goa in 1542 offered
the Society the spiritual and intellectual care of the recently
founded College, threw into relief both the importance of the
Work and the need of capable educators.48 There is hardly a
letter from Goa to Ignatius that fails to report on the College.
Xavier himself did so first in a letter of September 20, 1542.
lie is full of praise for the school buildings and church, for
�414
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
the financial provisions for the maintenance of a hundred
students, for the work already done-in six years some three
hundred students of various tongues and races passed through
it. The College was founded to educate native youths, and
send them back to their own homes, there to instruct their
own. Xavier had great hopes for the future increase of Christianity which would result. He asked for more capable Fathers, to take care of the spiritual and intellectual formation
of the students. They~must be in good health and not too old,
for there is much other work: confessions, preaching, priest
retreats, teaching Scripture and sacramental theology to the
clergy.49 Xavier himself was not a man to settle down in a
college. But it speaks volumes for his vision as a leader that
he saw the need and importance of educational work, and
kept this conviction throughout his many travels. His letter
of January 12, 1549, pleads for men from Coimbra, so that
colleges may be expanded and multiplied for the good of present and future Christians. 50
We cannot follow here in detail the growth of the College
of Goa which was soon entrusted to the Society, and of its
fortunes and misfortunes which the letters of the companions
report to St. Ignatius. 51 One unhappy episode was the rectorship of Anthony Gomes, who dismissed Thdian students to
admit only Portuguese-a measure contrary to the very intention of the founders of the College and against which the
Fathers do not fail to protest to St. Ignatius. 52 This policy was
corrected at the instance of the Viceroy himself. 53 We need
not enter into the problems of policy, reported to St. Ignatius
in the absence of Xavier from India; for instance, the question
of the separation of Indian and Portuguese boys, 54 and of our
Scholastics from the college boys. 55 What must be noted is the
range of educational grades in the College, from elementary
classes for learning to read and write, through grammar and
the classics to phUosophy and theology. 56
Besides the College of Goa, which remained the most important educational institution of the early mission, other schools
on a smaller scale were opened in 1549 at Cochin, Quilon, and
Bassein. The College of Cochin was started by Father Francis
Henriquez and counted in 1552 some one hundred and fifty
day scholars. 57 Of that of Quilon Father Lancillotto was the
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
415
founder and for many years the Rector. 58 It was intended
primarily for children of Portuguese colonists but also for
Indians. 59 At Bassein the College was opened by Father Melchior Gon~alves. 60 These schools began with the elementary
grades, and taught boys reading, writing and Christian doctrine, as Giles Barreto reports from Bassein.61 St. Ignatius,
through Polanco, gave his full approval to this system. 62 The
institutions were meant for Christians only, and primarily
to foster vocations to the priesthood and the Society.
The importance of the education of youth was fully realized
not only by St. Francis Xavier and St. Ignatius, 63 but also
by all the Fathers in India. One proof of this is Father Lancillotto's letter of November 1548: the care of educating the
young is the best means for planting the faith in these regions.64 Father G. Berze also expresses his hope for vocations
from the college of Goa. 65 Even a jungle missionary like Father H. Henriquez shared this opinion and regretted there
was no such institution on the Fishery Coast.66 No wonder
then that the Provincial of Portugal, Father J. Miron in his
report to St. Ignatius insisted on developing schools in India. 67
He must have known of the royal decree by which the Portuguese government wished to entrust to the Society the entire
education of youth in India. 68 The importance given to educational work, even apart from future vocations to the Society,
-a feature in which, according to Father Wicki, the Society
in India was ahead of Europe--69 may be one more indication
that the Jesuit mission in India was originally not thought of
as different from the missions in Europe or elsewhere.
Among New Christians and Non-Christians
It is mainly by work among the converts from paganism
that the mission of Xavier and his companions to the East
Was to develop into the modern foreign, or pagan, mission.
Xavier became the Apostle of India because of his work
among the non-Christians of the country, mainly among the
Paravas of the Fisher Coast and the Macuas of the coastal
region of Travancore. Twice he spent a year or so among them
as an active missionary instructing and baptizing: the first
time a few months after his arrival in Goa, from October 1542
to October 1543, and again from early 1544 to December of
�416
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
the same year; moreover he paid a short visit to the Fishery
Coast, to give his directions as superior to the missionaries
working there in January and in October 1548.10 What he did
during these periods of missionary activity he reported to St.
Ignatius in different letters. His letter of October 28, 1542, depicts the state of Christianity and his own work during his
first stay: he was helped by seminarists from the place; he baptized children in great numbers, taught prayers to children
and adults: the Sign' of the Cross, Credo, Pater, Ave; his
small catechism he had translated into Tamil; he reports on
the conversion of a whole village. 11 Another letter of January
1544 speaks of his work of instructing and baptizing on Cape
Com orin: Christians are ignorant but are learning the prayers, Creed and Commandments; on Sundays especially he
instructs them, both children and adults; the children he sends
to say prayers over the sick. 12 How many he baptized, Xavier
does not say, but Father Schurhammer calculates he must
have baptized _some 8,000 on the Fishery Coast. 18 Xavier's
most famous baptizing expedition took place in his second
period of missionary work when he, through favorable circumstances, as he reports in his letter to Rome of January 27,
1545, in one month's time baptized 10,000 converts from the
Macua fisher caste in Travancore. He des~ribes his manner
of instructing: first he calls the men and boys, then the women
and children, and teaches them the Sign of the Cross, the Conjiteor, Creed, Commandments, Pater, Ave, Salve Regina; he
leaves copies of the prayers and instructs them to say them
morning and evening. 14 What he had done himself, he consigned to writing in his well-known instructions to the missionaries of the Fishery Coast, after his meeting with them
in February 1548. He insists on baptizing infants, instructing
children and adults, on Sunday Mass, care for the sick, explanation of the, articles of the faith, on peaceful relations
with the Portuguese, on not talking unfavorably of the new
Christians to the Portuguese, on gaining the affection of the
Christians, yet correcting them when needed, etc. 15 Of his
last visit to the Fishery Coast we may find an echo in his
letter of January 12, 1549, when he speaks of the trials and
labors of the missionaries there. 16 In the same letter he praises
the work and method of Father H. Henriquez, a man of great
�iGNATIUS AND !NinA
411
virtue and edification, who speaks and writes Tamil and does
the work of two men. 77
Father Henriquez's own letters narrate in detail his work
on the Fishery Coast. His manner of evangelization may serve
as a model of the early pagan mission. A missionary from
shortly after his arrival in India in 1546 and, after the death
as a martyr of Father Anthony Criminali in 1549,78 Superior
of the Fishery Coast missionaries for twenty-five years, he
was the best qualified to give St. Ignatius an idea of the work
of the missionaries in India. He did so in some seven letters
from 1548 to 1555. Several features of his missionary action
deserve to be pointed out-besides its spiritual and apostolic
inspiration to which not only Xavier bore witness but also
others, for instance, Father Lancillotto.79 In the first place we
note his knowledge of Tamil in which he achieved such proficiency that he was able to compose a grammar and write
pamphlets for the benefit of his Christians and brethren. 80
Besides the access this gave him to the faithful, who could
speak and write to him in their own tongue, 81 and to Hindu
writings and legends, 82 it enabled him to do full justice to the
various tasks of the sacred ministry, particularly, catechizing,
preaching and hearing confessions. No wonder he expects his
collaborators to learn the language and is happy to report
that they are doing so. 83 Another feature of his work, inherited from Father Criminali, 84 is the use and organization
of catechists who teach the prayers, baptize in case of necessity and help the Fathers. He praises their work and its
results repeatedly, and notes that in the scarcity of Fathers
and Brothers they play an irreplaceable role. 85 Others too like
Father Lancillotto appreciated and praised this method of
missionary work. 86 Father Henriquez's assiduity in catechizing and instructing, in teaching the prayers, the faith and
the Commandments never diminished; it was part of his daily
routine. In most of his reports to St. Ignatius we read about
his teaching Christian doctrine to children and adults. 87 Another recurring item in his letters is the love, affection and
esteem which the Christians have for the missionaries in
return for the kindness they show according to Xavier's direction. 88 This kindness does not exclude firmness, and, where
needed, he corrects either by himself or through the village
chiefs. 89 Real progress in the Christian manner of life is the
�418
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
happy result. 90 The same sympathetic understanding he shows
to non-Christians whom he receives and entertains, with whom
he discusses the relative merits of their religion and the true
faith-he can do so because he knows the language and their
religious legends. 91 He does so with good results. Once, for
instance, he baptised fifty at one time. 92 And in addition, Father Henriquez finds time to build churches, to construct a
hospital for the sick Paravas, and to think of a kind of retreat
house for the Fathers and Brothers. 93 Nor does he omit to
send promising boys, fJiture helpers of the mission, for further training and study fo Quilon or Goa. 94 The great handicap
of the mission is the scarcity of laborers. His letters clamor
for more men, as did those of Xavier. 95 "For three years now",
he writes in 1555, "I have been the only priest here, with one
companion who is not a priest, for forty villages." 96 In spite
of this, the Christians increase in number and quality. They
make progress in virtue and edification; they begin to see the
errors of paganism and the truth of Christianity.91 If he has
to report sad news at times, as the apostasy of a number of
Christians in Ceylon, 98 he can write in 1552, that the Christians are more than 40,000. 99 In 1553, Gasper Berze was told
their number was 60,000,1°0 while Lancillotto, in 1555, speaks
of 70,000. 101 Since Xavier's arrival, therefore,~and during St.
Ignatius' lifetime, the numbers had been more than doubled,
if not trebled.
If the mission of Cape Comorin was the most successful, we
should not overlook the conversions among non-Christians
elsewhere. In practically all Portuguese settlements, from Goa
to Bassein and Quilon, contacts were made and conversions
registered. 102 In Goa, we hear of a regular catechumenate for
men and one for women.103 Special laborers are asked to take
care of this special ministry. 104 It is difficult to obtain definite
figures. Still we may recall Father Schurhammer's calculation
of Xavier's baptisms in Portuguese settlements: he puts them
at a thousand,t 05 not all in India proper. And his companions
did not fail to carry on the work for which he had shown the
way.
Qualifications of Missionaries
To carry on this work, in the supreme need of more helpers,
the workers in the field ask for recruits with the highest
�lGNA'rlus AND INDIA
419
qualifications. Without exception they require as a first condition solid virtue, love of the Cross and of hard work, unshakable moral integrity and deep spirituality which can remain
unaffected by loneliness in the midst of moral and physical
dangers. Xavier insisted that only chosen men should be
sent.106 Lancillotto, Henriquez, Berze echo his request: let
them be men who are prepared for the Cross, men of holy life
and great zeal, of solid virtue, humble, trustworthy and hard
working, men of prayer. 107
But virtue, though the first and chief quality of the missionary, is not sufficient. Xavier, it is true, wrote that for
India, in contrast with Japan, little learning but much
strength of body and soul were necessary. 108 But on this point
few if any of his companions saw eye to eye with him. They
all clamored for learned, capable missionaries. Criminali asked
that many learned man should come.109 So did Lancillotto
repeatedly. Indeed, he complained that those sent were incapable; he tried to explain the need for learned men but could
not find words to do so-calamo consequi non valeo; men of
authority and doctrine, men capable of learning the languages
well, intelligent and virtuous men, are needed. 110 Gaspar Berze
in Goa asked for capable theologians, for masters of arts, for
grammarians; he did stress virtue above all, but he also
wanted men of letters and talented preachers. 111 If Father H.
Henriquez rarely spoke of learning as a requirement for the
missionaries on Cape Comorin, he did ask that they should be
able to learn the language, and expressed the wish that a
gifted and capable Father be sent to take the place of Xavier,
too often absent from India. 112
When we consider the difficulties proposed and the faculties
asked, the intricate cases and situations handled among the
Portuguese, the new Christians, and the prospective converts,
we can understand that a firm grounding in theology was considered a prerequisite, not to mention the special qualifications
required of those called to teach the higher branches or to
minister to the clergy in Goa. Xavier himself was highly
gifted, and as papal legate had many special faculties-the
list of them may .have been a forerunner to the Formulae
Facultatum granted today to ordinaries in mission territories.113 But his companions during his long absences from
India needed such faculties also; all the more as opinions
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
differed, for instance, about the censure on trading with nonChristians,114 or the validity of marriages not contracted according to the requirements of Canon Law. 115 So requests go
to St. Ignatius for faculties to dispense from marriage
impediments of consanguinity and affinity in the third
and fourth degrees, 116 and to absolve from reserved censures. 111 But even on the interpretation of certain faculties
granted in connection with marriage, different interpretations
were current. 118 All this goes to show that Xavier's companions were not mtstaken in asking of new missionaries
doctrine as well as virtue.
The Society in India
The clamor from India for more and capable missionaries
did not go unheeded by ,St. Ignatius. He seems to have been
partial to the Indian mission, so striking was his willingness
to send men. Even if the number and quality of those sent in
the first years dig not come up to the expectations and needs, 119
it may be said that the generosity, which prompted him to
assign to India two of the first companions, remained undiminished during all the years of his generalate. The number
of Jesuits sent out grew, from the first reco@oitrers of 1541
-Xavier and two companions-to thirty-eight priests and
about thirty-three non-priests, a total of some seventy by
1556. 12 ° Considering the needs of the nascent Society elsewhere, this figure is really considerable and speaks for Ignatius' interest in India. But he insisted too that India should
do her share in recruiting new members for the Society.
Actually a number of natives were admitted: by 1552 some
thirty-seven, by the end of 1554 some fifty-many unfortunately did not persevere; indeed no less than thirty left.121
St. Francis Xavier, it is true, did not believe that Jesuits could
be recruited from among the Indians, or even Luso-Indians;
he hoped for a few from the Portuguese but mainly as lay
members. 122 St. Ignatius did not agree with Xavier's view, and
in his answer proposes five ways of fostering vocations to the
Society in India: pick out gifted boys and spend much time on
their training; send them to the colleges; take the young awaY
from any milieu where they are exposed to evil influences;
multiply the number of colleges; and finally recruit from
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
421
among the Portuguese. 123 Xavier's companions, Criminali, Lancillotto and Berze inclined to Ignatius' views, rather than to
those of Xavier.124 Actually, during Xavier's lifetime no Indians joined the Society and but a few Luso-Indians. 126 Even
after his death the· policy was slow in changing, 126 though
judging from the increase in numbers, from 1553 to 1556,
Ignatius' directives bore fruit: from sixty-five members, of
whom nineteen were priests, the Indian Province rose to
a hundred and twenty-one, of whom thirty-one priests, and
thirty-four were novices. 127
If growing numbers did mean a comfort and relief for the
early Jesuit missionaries in India, quality and spirit were
considered no less important. Their letters bear witness to
their anxious desire to preserve the true spirit of, and to follow in all things the mode of action proper to the Society, and
this desire was all the keener, in those first years, as their
particular circumstances were so novel and they were so far
from Ignatius. Their letters show their desire to be of the
same stamp as the companions in Europe and to do the same
apostolic work for God's greater glory. Ignatius who wished
no less than they to see them genuine sons of the Society must
have been pleased with this attitude. They look to Xavier,
their leader and Ignatius' alter ego, for direction and guidance. They complain of his long absence from India. 128 Since
these cannot be helped, they ask that another capable superior, thoroughly acquainted with the spirit of the Society,
be sent to India to take Xavier's place. 129 Their requests are
all the more justified as the temporary substitutes for the
absent provincial were either appointed in an ill-defined manner, with the result that uncertainty prevailed as to the real
bearer of authority, or proved incapable and unsatisfactorywith results that proved more than once most painful. 130
Meanwhile the Fathers report to St. Ignatius, according to
his directives, on the state of the colleges, their labors in the
Portuguese settlements and in the mission of Cape Comorin,
on the efforts of each of the companions, the kind and manner
of their ministries, their reverses and successes. 131 Of certain
Practices they doubt whether they are in accord with the true
spirit of the Society; for instance, liturgical singing or taking
Part in processions. 132 They have difficulty in keeping the rule
�422
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
of socius, given the great scarcity of Fathers and Brothers.133
Since it is not possible to relate everything in writing and
certain things cannot be written, the suggestion was made at
an early date that a Father should be called to Europe to report in Rome on the whole situation by word of mouth. 134 St.
Ignatius, as we know, took the suggestion to heart, and directed Polanco to express his agreement. He even called
Xavier himself back. He, however, had died before Ignatius
dispatched the letter commanding him to return in virtue of
holy obedience. 135 Another Father actually went as relator to
Portugal and to Rom~. Father A. Fernandes, who left India
early in 1553 and reached Rome in the autumn of 1554.136
Meanwhile the Fathers are most anxious and eager to receive
the Constitutions as soon as possible; from the year 1550 on
they ask for them and beg that a capable and competent Father come to instruct the companions in their true spirit. 131
It was not until 1555 that Father de Quadros reached India
with the Constitutions,1 38 to the great joy and consolation of
all. 139 The eagerly desired directives were taken to heart at
once: several practices not in conformity with them were
altered or omitted. 140 During the period of waiting, Father G.
Berze, the Vice-Provincial, had begged Ignatius for a letter to
the Jesuits in the East and for an instructio~ for the superiors.141
This keenness of his sons in India for the true spirit of the
young Society must have been a joy for St. Ignatius and a
justification of his decision to make India the third province
of the Society, after those of Spain and Portugal. 142 This
measure is another hint that he did not consider the mission
on which Jesuits were sent to the East different from those
in other parts of the world. And his insistence on native vocations in order to plant the Society in India, 143 as also his
admission of some five or six Fathers in India to the solemn
profession144-a relatively high number when the whole Society counted only forty professed Fathers 145-point in the
same direction. At the present moment of the history of the
Church and of the Society, when foreign and pagan missions
are changing in character because of anti-colonialism, we are
perhaps coming closer again to the Ignatian concept of a
mission.
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
423
NOTES
1 J. M. Granero, La accion mwwnera y los metodos misionales de
San Ignacio de Loyola, Burgos 1931.
2 Op. cit., 216-20.
3 Op. cit., 220-25. According to Fr. \Vicki, cf. below n. 7, if a number
of the candidates that joined in India did not persevere, this was
perhaps because there was no proper novitiate or scholasticate, and
also because the superiors in Goa changed so frequently (DI III, 7*).
4 Cf. Wicki, below n. 7, DI I 77, 507-10.
5 Ibid. DI II 121, 618-21; III 118, 783-88.
6 Synopsis Historiae Societatis Iesu, ed. 1950, 34.
7 Documenta Indica
edidit Josephus Wicki S. I. I (1540-49), II
(1550-53), III (1553-57), Rome, Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu,
1948, 1950, '1954. Here referred to as DI I, DI II, DI III.
8 Epistolae S
Francisci Xaverii aliaque eius scripta. Nova editio.
Ediderunt Georgius Schurhammer S.I. et Josephus Wicki S.I. I (153548), II (1549-52). Rome M.H.S. 1., 1944 and 1945. Referred to here
as EX I, EX II.
9 What St. Ignatius did for India was briefly sketched elsewhere from
the Documenta, cf. "St. Ignatius and India", in Ignatiana (1955) 12-16,
29-34, 55-61.
10 There is no need to add to this list some ten letters written to
Europe by Xavier's first companions, but not to St. Ignatius; they add
little to the information we have. As for the letters written to
Portugal on which Province the Indian mission depended, they are
numerous, some sixty. Though not destined for St. Ignatius, yet echos
of them could and most probably did reach him. Of these letters, however, we shall make only an indirect use.
11
Cf. DI I, 41 *; letter of St. Ignatius, January 30, 1552, DI II, p.
318, or of Polanco to Berze, August 13, 1553 and February 24, 1554,
DI III 5, pp. 15f. 19, 4, p. 63; and to Mich. de Torres, November 21,
1555, DI III, p. 307.
12
Cf. G. Schurhammer, ••Facultates et gratiae spirituales S Francisco
Xaverio pro India Orientali concessae", in Studia Missionalia 3 (1947)
131-53.
13
Cf. J. Wicki, DI I, 18*-20*, and of the same "The Indian Mission
before Xavier", in the Clergy Monthly 16 (1952) 168-75.
14
Cf. Wicki, DI I, 21 *, EX I, 80, 124.
15
EX I 15, 5, pp. 132f.
16
Cf. Lancillotto in DI II 34, 4, on slaves and slave trade, p. 128; ib. 8,
on sins of impurity with slave girls, pp. 130!.; and DI III 41, 5, Portuguese in India are an obstacle to conversions, pp. 231f.; Cyprian, DI
III 61, 1, the Portuguese lead bad lives and are despised by the people
of the country, pp. 298f.
17
18 Cf. n. 16.
DI, I, p. 111.
19
Cf. a favorable report by Fr. H. Henriquez DI II 64, 18, p. 30G;
and an unfavorable one by the same DI III 73, 10, pp. 417f.
�424
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
2o Cf. G. Schurhammer, "Die Bekehrung der Paraver (1535-37) ", in
Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu 4 (1935) 201-33.
21 EX I 19, 2, pp. 147f.
2 2 We find a mention of the St. Thomas Christians in letters of
St. Francis Xavier v.g. EX II 70, 13-14, pp. 14f.: they are in 60 places;
in 1550 one estimate puts their number at 40,000; another adds 40 to
50,000; also his companions mention them, v.g. Ant. de Heredia DI II
98, 9, pp. 412f; 114, 2-3, pp. 555f.
2 3 EX II 20, 10-13, pp. 170-74; Wicki, ibid. p. 170 footnote 31.
24 Ep. cit. pp. 171, 173.
2 5 Cf. G. Schurhammer, "Die Taufe des hi. Franz Xaver", in Studia
Missonalia 7 (1953), 33-75: out of 28,200 baptisms, some 20,000 were
given in India: some 1,000- in Portuguese settlements, 8,000 on the
Fishery Coast, 11,000 in Travancore.
2 6 EX II 70, 1, 7, pp. 5, 9f; 71, 1, 3, 7, pp. 22, 23, 24.
27 EX II 71, lf., pp. 22f.
2 8 DI I 15, 15 and 17, pp. 145.
29 DI II 34, 4, p. 127.
3o Ibid. 5, pp. 127f.
31 Ibid. p. 128.
32 DI II 90, 4, pp. 280f.
33 DI I 24, 2, pp. 182f.
34 DI I 52, 5, p. 343:
35 DI III 47, 3-4, pp. 230f.
36 Ibid. p. 231.
37 DI I 45, 16, 19-21, 23, pp. 288, 291-93, 295.
3s DI I 85, 11, 14, pp. 582, 584f.
-39 DI II 64, 4, p. 301; cf. EX II 70, 6, p. 8.
4 0 DI II 64, 5, pp. 301f.; 94, 11, p. 398.
41 DI II 94, 8, p. 396; cf. 64, 17, pp. 305f.
4 2 DI II 94, 8-10, pp. 397f.
43 DI III 73, 23-24, pp. 421f.
44 EX I 15, 12-13, pp. 129f.
45 Cf. A. Pereira, "An Incomparable Catechist", in the Clergy Monthly
1952, 186-96, reprinted in Review for Religious 11 (1952) 282-90.
46 DI II 56, 40, pp. 265f, letter of December 16, 1551; other examples
are Ant. Gomes and G. Berze, cf. Lancillotto, letter of 1548. DI 152,
1-2, p. 342.
47 DI II 118, 8, p. 582.
48 The origin of the college is sketched by Fr. Wicki, DI I, pp. 111-14.
to EX I 16, pp. 132-36:
so EX II 70, 11, pp. 12f.
51 V.g. Criminali, October 7, 1545, DI I 4, 2, p. 12 (ages of students
from 7 to 21); Lancillotto, November 5, 1546, DI I 15, 4, p. 135 (poor
teachers); of the same, October 10, 1547, DI I 24, 5, p. 185 (different
opinions about age of admission of boys); Berze, January 12, 1553, Dl
II 118, 24-25 (future priests in or outside the Society).
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
425
n Cf. Letters of Lancillotto, December 26, 1548, DI I 61, 11, pp. 439f.;
January 25, 1550. DI II 7, 2, pp. 10f.; January 6, 1551, DI II 38, 4, p. 148.
~ 3 Cf. Lancillotto, letter of January 6, 1551, DI II 38, 4, p. 148.
5 ' Cf. DI II 7, 2, p. 10, and Ignatius's answer DI II 46, 4, p. 187.
55 Cf. DI II 118, 23, pp. 592f., and Ignatius's answer DI III 25, 4, p. 97.
5 6 Cf. DI II 104, 31, p. 468: 118, 24, pp. 593f.
57 Cf. EX II, p. 440; DI I 59, 6, p. 415; 84, 8, pp. 521f.; also the letter
of Ant. de Heredia, DI II 61, 1, pp. 290£.
ss Cf. EX II 71, 6, p. 24; 73, 3, p. 30; DI II 8, 3, p. 16.
s9 Cf. EX II 79, 16, p. 77.
6o Cf. DI I 84A, 8, pp. 562f.; II 8, 3, p. 15.
61 DI II 109, 11, p. 595.
62 DI III 61, 11, p. 307.
63 Cf. DI I 78, 8, p. 514.
64 DI I 52, 6, p. 344.
6 5 DI II 118, 24-25, pp. 593f.
66 DI II 64, 5, pp. 301ff.
6 7 Cf. DI III 18, 5, pp. 54£.; letter of February 14, 1554.
68
Cf. DI II 13, 3, p. 36; letter of March 28, 1550.
69 DI I 14, p. 112.
7°Cf. G. Schurhammer, In itineribus saepe, in the Clergy Monthly
1952, 176-80.
71 Cf. EX I 19, pp. 146-50.
72 Cf. EX I 20, 2-7, pp. 161-66. In this letter is found Xavier's famous
appeal to the Doctors of the Paris university to come and preach in
the East, ibid. 8, pp. 166f.
73
Cf. above n. 25.
u EX I 48, 2, pp. 273f.
75
EX I 64, pp. 425-35; English translation in Indian Missionary
Bulletin, 1952, pp. 82-85.
76
EX II 70, 2, pp. 5f.
77
Ibid. 12, pp. 13f.
78
Fr. Criminali has left no written report on the mission of the
Fishery Coast but we know much of him and his work there from the
Praises Xavier gave him, v.g., in EX II 71, 4, p. 23 or 72, 1, pp. 29f., or
from letters of his successor, Fr. Henry Henriquez, v.g. DI 85, 5, 16,
Pp. 579 f., 586f.
79
Cf. Dl II 38, 1, p. 145.
8
Cf. DI I 45, 15-18, pp. 286f.; 85, 10, pp. 581f. (Tamil grammar);
94, 4, p. 395.
81
Cf. DI III 42, 15, p. 239.
82
Cf. DI I 45, 16, p. 288; 85, 11, pp. 582f.
83
Cf. DI III 73, 8, pp. 466£.; II 64, 14-16, pp. 304f.
84
Cf. DI I 85, 5, p. 578.
rr
°
�426
IGNATIUS AND INDIA
85 Cf. DI I 85, 5, pp. 579f.; II 94, 2, pp. 394f.; III 48, 7-8, p. 238; 73,
6, p. 416.
ss Cf. DI II 90, 7, pp. 382f.
87 Cf. DI I 45, 9-10, pp. 283f.; II 64, 2-8, pp. 302f.; III 42, 6, p. 238; 73,
7, p. 416.
88 Xavier's instruction quoted above n. 75; cf, DI II 64, 9-11, p. 303;
94, 4, p. 395; III 42, 20, p. 240.
89 Cf. DI II 94, 13, p. 399.
9o DI II 94, 14, p. 399; III 73, 20, p. 421.
91 Cf. above nn. 37, 38..
92 DI III 73, 20, p. 421:._ c
9 3 Cf. DI I 85, 6, p. 58o·; II 94, 12, p. 398; 64, 21, p. 307.
94 Cf. DI II 94, 21, p. 398; III 42, 13, p. 239.
9 5 EX I 20, 8, p. 166; 60, lf, pp. 397f.; II 72, 3, p. 30.
96 DI III 73, 2, p. 415; cf. DI I 45, 7, p. 283; 85, 18, pp. 287f.; II 94, 18,
p. 400; III 42, 8, p. 238.
97 DI III 42, 12, p. 239.
98 Cf. DI III 73, 24, p. 422; cf. Lancillotto who speaks of 25,000
apostates in Ceylon, DI III 41, 8, p. 232.
99 DI II 64, 24, p. 308.
1oo DI II 118, 11;- p. 583.
101 DI III 41, 8, p. 232.
102 Cf. v.g. DI II 61, 5, p. 292 (300 converts Chorao near Goa); II
109, 11, pp. 545f. (Bassein); II 8, 3, p. 16 (converts at Quilon); ibid.
p. 15 (at Bassein), ibid. p. 16 (at Cochin).
- .
1o3 DI III 68, 2, p. 380.
104 EX I 16, 6, 116.
105 Cf. above n. 25.
10 6 EX I 16, 5, p. 135; II 70, 3, 12, pp. 6 and 13.
107 DI I 45, 7, p. 283; 85, 18, pp. 587f.; II 55, 3, pp. 342f.; 94, 18, P·
400; 118, 22, pp. 591f.
108
EX I 47, 2, p. 258; II 71, 3, p. 23; cf. Wicki, DI I 27*-29*.
109 DI I 4, 7, p. 19.
110 DI I 15, 11 and 15, pp. 139, 144; 24, 3, p. 184; II 7, 5, p. 12;
18, 6, p. 19; 34, 5, p. 127; 90, 2, p. 379.
111
DI II 55, 7, p. 244; 56, 41, p. 266; 118, 22, pp. 591f.
112 DI II 2, 2, p. 5..
113 Cf. above n. 12 ;'
114
Cf. DI II 1, 2, pp. 2f.; 34, 7, p. 130.
m Ibid. p. 3.
116
DI II 8, 7, p. 19; 64, 25, p. 308; 94, 20, p. 400; III 73, 18, p. 420.
111 DI II 7, 3, p. 11; 34, 9, p. 131.
11 8 Cf. Henriquez, DI III 42, 22-24, pp. 261f.
119 Cf. Wicki, DI I, 32*.
�IGNATIUS AND INDIA
427
120 Cf. Granero, op.cit. who lists 71 (pp. 216-20) and Wicki who counts
69, DI I 29*f, II 6*f, III 4*.
121 Cf. EX II, p. 324 n. 3; DI II, 9*; II III, 7*.
122 Cf EX II 70, 6, p. 8; also J. Wicki, "Franz Xavers Stellung zur
Heranbildung des einheimischen Klerus in Orient", in Studia Missiona lia
5 (1949) 93-113.
123 DI I 78, 8, pp. 512ff.
124 Cf. DI I 4, 11, p. 22 (Criminali); 15, 15, pp. 144 (Lancillotto);
II 42, 2, p. 2 (Gomes); 118, 24, pp. 592f (Berze).
125 Cf. DI I, 25*.
12s Cf. EX II, p. 8 n. 9.
1 27 Cf. above n. 5.
1 2 8 Cf. v.g. Lancillotto, DI I 15, 13, p. 141; Berze, II, 55, 3, p. 243;
Henriquez, III 73, 27, p. 424.
129 Cf. Lancillotto, I 15, 2, p. 53; II 7, 5, p. 12; Miron III 18, 2, p. 53;
Nunes Barreto III 30, 10, pp. 126f.
1 3o Cf. Wicki DI I, 37*; II pp. 10*-12*.
131 Cf. v.g. Henriquez, I 45, 1, 27, pp. 279, 298; A. Gomes, I 81, 3-10,
pp. 519-23; Henriquez I 85, 12, 15, pp. 583, 586; Lancillotto, II 8, 3, pp.
15ff; II 39, 2-10, pp. 151-53; A. Gomes II 42, 4-5, pp. 177-79; Berze, II
118, 3-16, pp. 581-87; Lancillotto, III 40, 13-19, pp. 225-27.
132 DI I 4, 9, pp. 20f.; 15, 14, pp. 142f.
133 Cf. Xavier EX I 60, 2, pp. 398f.; Lancillotto, DI I 61, 8, p. 438; cf.
DI I p. 242 n. 4.
134 Cf. Lancillotto, I 15, 13, p. 141 (year 1546) ; again 61, 6, p. 437; II
35, 1, p. 132; 58, 4, p. 275; 90, 3, p. 379-0n this office of 'relator' cf.
Wicki, DI II, pp. 376f.
135 Polanco DI I 26, 21, p. 191; 30, 2, pp. 206f.; cf. DI III 1, 2, p. 2
(order to Xavier); 2, 2, p. 6.
136
DI III, 12*f.
137
DI II 35, 2, p. 133; 41, 6, pp. 173f.; III 18, 2, p. 53 (Miron).
138
DI III, 8*.
139
DI III 67, 17, p. -377; 68, 5, p. 381; 71, 7, p. 405.
140
DI III 8*; 101. 12-14, pp. 616-18.
141
DI II 118, 31, p. 599 (year 1553).
142
C. above n. 4.
143 Cf. above n. 123; and further DI III 14, 8, p. 44; 61, 14, 21, pp.
308, 310.
144
145
DI III 4, 3, p. 11.
Synopsis Historiae Societatis Iesu, ed. 1950, 34.
�An lgnatian Letter on the Church
The nature of the Church is obviously important for the life
and thought of St. Ignatius. Yet in his time there was no
systematic theology of the Church in all its phases, nor were
ecclesiological data organically presented in the schools. Needless to say there was an implicit ecclesiology in the thinking
of the age. It would in consequence be highly interesting to
have someone make an explicit construction of the implicit
ecclesiology which can be discovered in the Ignatian writings.
For such a future CQ~struction one letter of Ignatius is of
paramount significance:· It is the letter to Asnaf Sagad I,
alias Claudius, the Negus of Abyssinia, written in the February of 1555. This letter cannot help but serve as a guide-line
for any investigator who wishes to construct St. Ignatius'
vision of the Church, because it seems to be the only instance
where his views are presented in a sharply synthetic fashion.
Fortunately or unfortunately, the letter appears in two
different versions. The two are in substantial agreement as
to the general content, but one version is longer than the
other. Both are found as epistula 5205 in the Monumenta lgnatiana, series prima, tom.8, pp.460-476, of the Monumenta
Historica Societatis Jesu. (Madrid, 1909.)
The two versions are in Spanish. The first and shorter,
dated February 23, 1555, is a copy annotated by Polanco and
included in the Ignatian correspondence files. The origins of
the second version are not clear. It survives only in variant
copies and translations of copies. Whatever was originally
sent on its way to Abyssinia has been lost.
It is the second version, dated February 16, 1555, which is
better known. The editors of the Monumenta lgnatiana indicate the sources and editions of the version. (Cf. Note 1,
pp.467-8.)
Father Miguel Batllori of the Archivum Historiae Societatis Jesu in Rome·expressed the following opinions concerning the two versions in a letter to Woodstock (February 20,
1956.):
.
"The two letters of St. Ignatius to the King of Ethiopia, pub·
lished in the Monumenta lgnatiana, vo1.8, pp.460ss. & 467ss. must
be considered as authentic. The only difference between them is this:
�IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
429
the first letter corresponds to the first draft prepared in collaboration with Polanco and placed in the files. However, the fact that all
the copies of the letter preserved here and there correspond to the
second of the two versions leads one to believe that the original letter
Igtiatius sent to Abyssinia (lost, as it seems) corresponds to the
second version.
"'That the second draft reproduces the final redaction of the Saint
and thus conforms to the lost original sent to Abyssinia is confirmed by the fact that this second version is the only one preserved
in the Codex Hist. Soc. I A of our Roman Archives (formerly
Codex Roman us I). This codex is made up principally of autographs and final drafts of various letters. Consequently I am of
the opinion that, in spite of the fact that the copies preserved
outside of Rome present a revised and corrected text, our second
draft must be accepted as definitive. The difference of ideas when
compared with the letter in the files must be explained by a later
and more mature revision prepared by the Saint himself."
(Translated from the Italian.)
An English translation of the second version can easily be
found, due indirectly to Father Christoph Genelli, who in
spite of his name was a German Jesuit who died in Cincinnati
in 1850. In 1848 he published at Innsbruck Das Leben des
Heiligen Ignatius von Loyola. This was translated into French
by M. Charles Sainte-Foi as La Vie de St. Ignace. (Paris:
1857.) Father Thomas Meyrick, S.J., rendered the French
into English under the title, The Life of St. Ignatius (London:
Burns & Oates, 1871.) This work was reprinted by Benziger
Brothers (New York) in 1889, in which same year a revised
edition of Meyrick's rendition was prepared by James Stanley
and issued by the Jesuit Manresa Press of Roehampton,
England.
Father Genelli saw the importance of the letter of St. Ignatius to the Negus and he found the Roman Spanish version
Which he translated and included in his work. In consequence
of the translation of Genelli's book into English, we have
three English editions of the letter, where the English derives
from the French rendition of Genelli's German translation of
the Spanish! In the original Burns & Oates edition it can be
found on pp.270-76, and in the Benziger edition, pp.311-16.
It seems that up to the present no English translation of
the first version has yet been published. Hence a translation
is now printed here. There are reasons for reproducing this
�430
IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
version. Granted the force of Father Batllori's suggestion that
the variants in the second version are authentically Ignatian,
yet it remains true that our surest witness concerning the
letter is Polanco. He tells us that Ignatius wrote such a letter
(Vita lgnatii Loiolae, Chronicon Societatis Jesu, tom.5 p.S.
Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Madrid, 1897.), and our
first version is the only one we have authenticated by Polanco's
own hand.
Another reason makes us cautious not to overlook the first
version. Its date over_Polanco's annotation: For Prester John,
King of Ethiopia, is February 23. The date for the second
version in all but one reproduction is February 16, and the
dissenting copy gives a date which is proper to the first
version, February 23. If the dates are trustworthy and given
the hypothesis of two drafts of the letter, the first version
seems to be the later. Besides, the second version appears in
variant forms in the different sources and translations. This
confusion in the tradition led M. J. Deremey to conclude that
a harsh original was maliciously toned down by later Jesuit
historians so that Ignatius would not appear so intransigent! [Cf. Analecta Bollandiana, XII (1893), pp. 330-32.]
GUSTAVE WEIGEL, S.J.
"'\%odstock College.
LETTER OF ST. IGNATIUS TO THE NEGUS OF ETHIOPIA
To Claudius, (Asnaf Sagad I}, King of Abyssinia
Rome, February 23, 1555.
My Lord in our Lord Jesus Christ:
May Christ our Lord's greatest grace and love greet and visit Your
Highness with His most holy gifts and spiritual graces.
The Most Serene King of Portugal, moved by that great zeal, infused
in him by God our Creator and Lord, for His holy name and for the
salvation of the souls redeemed by the precious blood and life of His only
Son, has written to me several times that he would be very pleased if
I named twelve religious of our least Company, named after Jesus,
from which Your Highness would choose one as Patriarch and two as
his coadjutors and successors; and that I should request the Supreme
Vicar of Christ our Lord to give them the necessary authority and
thus be able to send them, together with the other priests, to the king·
doms of Your Highness.
�IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
431
Because of the great respect, devotion, and gratitude which our Society
feels toward Christian princes in general and to the Most Serene King
of Portugal in particular, I did what he requested, especially as he has
recently written again. I have assigned twelve priests in addition to
the Patriarch, all of whom are members of our brotherhood, to conform
to the number presented to our devotion by Christ our Lord and His
twelve Apostles. These men are to engage in all the difficulties and
dangers necessary for the good of the souls residing in the lands subject to Your Highness. I did this with even greater pleasure because of
the special desire which God our Lord has inspired in me and the whole
Company to serve Your Highness. For we see you surrounded by so many
infidels and enemies of our holy faith, imitating your predecessors in
your efforts to conserve and extend the religion and glory of Christ our
God and Lord.
And a still greater reason was the wish that Your Highness have
spiritual fathers who possess the true power and authority of the Holy
Apostolic See and the true teaching of the Christian faith, both of
which are symbolized by the keys of the kingdom of heaven which
Christ our Lord promised and afterwards gave to Saint Peter and his
successors. He first promised the keys when He said to him (as Matthew
the Evangelist tells us) : Ego dico tibi, tu es Petrus et super hanc petram
aedificabo ecclesiam meam; et tibi dabo claves regni coelorum, et quidquid ligaveris super terram, erit ligatum in coelis; et quidquid solveris
super terram, erit solutum et in coelis. And in fulfillment of this promise
He gave the keys to St. Peter after he had risen from the dead and before
He ascended into heaven, saying to him three times: Simon Jona, diligis
me plus his'! And after Peter's answer, He said: Pasce oves meas. By
putting Peter in charge, not of a part, but of all the sheep, He gave
him the fullness of power required to keep the faithful in the pasture
of Christian life and religion, and to guide them to the pasture of eternal
joy in the Kingdom of Heaven.
To the other apostles Christ our Lord gave delegated authority. To
Peter and his successors He gave ordinary and full authority so that it
could be communicated to the other pastors according to their needs.
They must obtain it from the supreme pastor and recognize him as their
superior. As a figure of this power God our Lord says in Isaias, speaking
of Eliachim, the High Priest: Et dabo clavem domus David super
humerum ejus; et aperiet, et non erit qui claudat; et claudet, et non
erit qui aperiat (Is. XXII, 22). Here we find Saint Peter and his successors prefigured for they possess the complete power represented by
the keys, which are usually given as a sign of real and effective jurisdiction. So Your Highness should thank God our Lord that during your
reign He should have had great mercy on your kingdoms, by sending
them true pastors of souls united to the Supreme Pastor and Vicar
Whom Christ our Lord left on earth, from whom they have received
their extensive authority.
It was not without reason that both the father and grandfather of
Your Highness did not want a Patriarch from Alexandria. Inasmuch as
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IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
a member that is separated from the body does not receive living influx
nor movement nor feeling from its head, so the Patriarch in Alexandria
or Cairo, since he is a schismatic and is separated from the Holy
Apostolic See and from the Supreme Pontiff, who is the head of the whole
body of the Church, does not receive for himself the life of grace or
authority; nor can he give it legitimately to any other patriarch. The
Catholic Church is but one in the whole world. Thus, there cannot be
one Church under the Roman Pontiff and another under Alexandria.
Just as Christ her Spouse is one, so too the Church is but one, the Church
of which Solomon sings in the Canticles in the name of Christ our Lord:
Una est columba mea (Cant. 6:8). And likewise the Prophet Osee:
Congregabuntur filii Israel et filii Juda, et ponent sibi caput unum
(Osee 1:11). Or as St. John said afterwards: Fiet unum ovile et unus
pastor (Jo. 10:16).
The ark of Noe was unique, as we read in Genesis, outside of which
there was no means of being saved; the tabernacle which Moses made
was one; one the Temple that Solomon built in Jerusalem, where men
had to offer sacrifice and adore; one too was the synagogue whose decisions had to be followed. And all these symbols are a figure of the
Church which is one and outside of which there is nothing good. For he,
who is not united to her body, will not receive from Christ our Lord, who
is the Head, the influx of grace which vivifies the soul and prepares it
for eternal life. I.p order to profess this unity of the Church against
some heretics, the Church sings in the Symbol: Credo unam, sanctam,
catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam. For it is an error, and one condemned by the Councils, that there should be local churches, such as the
Alexandrian, Byzantine, and the like, which are not subject to the
universal head, who is the Roman Pontiff. The Roman Pontiffs have
come down with uninterrupted succession from St. Peter-who as St.
Marcellus the Martyr tells us, selected this see by command of Christ
our Lord and confirmed it with his blood. The same Roman Pontiffs have
been recognized as Vicars of Christ by many holy doctors, of the Latin,
Greek and all nations, revered by holy anchorites and bishops and other
confessors. Their claims have been confirmed by many miracles and by
the blood of many martyrs who have died in faith and union with this
Holy Roman Church.
At the Council of Chalcedon, therefore, Pope Leo was acclaimed
unanimously by all the assembled bishops as Sanctissimus, apostolicus,
universalis. Likewise in the Council of Constance the error of those who
denied the primacy of the Roman Pontiff was condemned. Later too at
the Council of Florence, in the pontificate of Eugene IV, where even the
Greeks, Armenians 'and Jacobites were present, it was defined in ac·
cordance with previous councils: Definimus sanctam apostolicam sedem,
et pontificem romanum, in universum orbem tenere primatum, et sue·
cesorem esse Petri, et verum Christi vicarium, totiusque ecclesiae caput;
et omnium christianorum patrem et doctorem existentem, et ipsi in beato
Petro, pascendi, regendi, gubernandi uni1:ersalem ecclesiam, a Domino
Jesu Christo potestatem plenam esse traditam.
�IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
433
Thus, your predecessor, the Most Serene King David of happy memory,
father of Your Highness, moved by the Holy Spirit, sent an ambassador
to recognize the rights of this Holy See and to show his obedience to
the Supreme Roman Pontiff. Among the many praiseworthy exploits of
Your Highness and your father, two will always be remembered and
celebrated throughout your realm which will thank God our Lord and
Author of all good for the great blessings He has bestowed upon them
through the efforts and virtue of Your Highnesses. These two enterprises are: the action whereby your father was the first to render
obedience to the Vicar of Christ; the second, whereby his son brought
into his kingdom the first true Patriarch, the legitimate son of the Holy
Apostolic See. It is indeed a singular benefit to be united to the Mystical
Body of the Catholic Church, vivified and governed by the Holy Spirit
who, as the Evangelist says, teaches all truth. If it is a great gift to be
illuminated by the light of her doctrine and to be established on the
Church's firm foundation-which St. Paul describes to Timothy: Quod
est domus Dei, columna et firmamentum veritatis (I Tim. 3:15) and for
which Christ our Lord promises his assistance: Ecce ego vobiscum sum
usque ad consummationem saeculi (Mt. 18:20)-then it is only reasonable that all in your kingdom should give thanks to God our Creator
and Lord whose Providence has conferred so many benefits upon them
through Your Highness and your most distinguished father. I hope
especially that, in His infinite and supreme goodness, this unity and
conformity with the Holy Roman Catholic Church will bring the kingdoms of Your Highness both spiritual prosperity and an increase in
temporal blessings, along with a great exaltation of the royal estate
and the overthrow of all your enemies, insofar as this is fitting for the
greater service and glory of Christ our Lord.
All of the priests, especially the Patriarch and his coadjutors and
successors who are being sent to Your Highness have been very well
tested in our Company and have been exercised in many works of
charity. They have been chosen for such an important undertaking because they are outstanding models of virtue and sound learning. They
go with great courage and joy, hoping to spend their lives and labors
in the service of God and of Your Highness as spiritual guides for your
subjects, and anxious to imitate in some way the love of Christ our Lord,
who gave His blood and life to redeem men from eternal misery, as He
says in St. John's Gospel: Ego sum pastor bonus: pastor bonus animam
suam dat pro ovibus suis. (Jo. 10:11) So the Patriarch and the others
are ready not only to teach doctrine and give spiritual help, but also, if
need be, to lay down their lives for your people. It is my hope that as
Your Highness gets to know them more intimately and more closely,
You wiii experience spiritual joy and satisfaction in our Lord. As far
as their doctrine and the credit to be given to their teaching are concerned, Your Highness knows that they, and particularly the Patriarch,
have the Pontiff's own authority. Hence to believe them is to believe
the Catholic Church, whose mind they interpret.
Since it is necessary for all the faithful to believe and obey what
�434
IGNATIAN ECCLESIOLOGY
the Church commands, and to recur to her in difficulties, I have no doubt
but that Your Highness, in accord with your piety and kindness, will
order your subjects to believe and obey, and have recourse to the Patriarch and to those whom he shall delegate. For they hold the place and
authority of the Supreme Pontiff, which is Christ's and is communicated
to Christ's Vicar on earth. We read in Deuteronomy (17:8-13) that those
who had doubts or difficulties went to the synagogue, which here is a
figure of the Church. Hence Christ our Lord says: In cathedra Moysi
sederunt scribi et pharisei: omnia quaecumque dixerint vobis facite (Mt.
23:2-3). And Solomon the Sage teaches the same truth in Proverbs 1:8
when he says: Ne dimittas praecepta matris tuae, who is the Church.
And in another place: Ne transgrediaris terminos quos posuerunt patres
tui, who are the prelate'S·· (Prov. 22 :28). So great is the credit that
Christ our Lord wants the Church to be given that he says through St.
Luke the Evangelist: Qui vos audit me audit; qui vos spernit me spernit
(Lk. 10:16); and in St. Matthew: Si ecclesiam non audierat, sit tibi
tamquam ethnicus et publicanus (Mt. 18:17). No credit is to be given
to those who claim that the Catholic Church should be envisaged differently. As St. Paul said to the Galatians: Si aliud vobis angelus de coelo
evangelizaverit, praeter id quod evangeliza'lJimus vobis, anathema sit
(Gal. 1 :8). And this is what the holy doctors teach us by their examples and words. This is what has been determined by the holy councils
and approved by ..the common consent of all the faithful servants of
Christ our Lord.
Of course the Patriarch and all the others will always have great
respect and reverence for Your Highness, and they will do their best to
serve and please you in every way possible for the glory of God our Lord.
Your Highness can be sure that those of our least -Company, who remain here, are all very eager to serve you in the Lord. In our prayers
and sacrifices we shall beg (as we already do) that His Divine Majesty
may keep Your Highness and your great, noble country in His holy
service, so that the earthly prosperity He gives you may lead you to
the true joy of heaven.
May He grant us all His grace so that we may always know and
perfectly fulfil His holy will.
Rome, 23rd of February 1555.
Written in the hand of P. Polanco: For Prester John, King of Ethiopia.
Translated from Epistle 5205 in the Monumenta lgnatiana, series
prima, tom. 8, pp.460-467. Madrid: 1909.
0 God, Who in Thy desire to call enslaved Negroes to a knowledge of
Thyself, didst give blessed Peter strength to help them with marvelous
charity and patience, by his intercession grant that all of us, seeking not
our own interests, but those of Jesus Christ, may love our neighbor with
that true love which is expressed in deeds; through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
-from the Mass of St. Peter Claver, Sept. 9.
�English Translations of the Spiritual
Exercises
DANIEL LEAHY,
S.J.
"The Exercises belong to the class of books said to be
written with the point of a sword rather than with a pen,"
remarked Father Rickaby penetratingly. 1 He meant that
Ignatius was not a polished writer and that translation of his
writings is difficult. Difficult or not, English translations of
the Spritual Exercises have numbered no less than twelve, 2
because the sword with which St. Ignatius wrote has proved
so effective in spiritual warfare.
The diffusion of English translations was slow in getting
under way, for the first of them appeared sometime between
1684 and 1736. Subsequently, four were published in the nineteenth century, and seven in the present century. The reason
for this delay is not hard to find, since most retreat masters
were content with the official Latin version. It should also be
remembered that there was not a large reading public and
it was difficult to print English books in Penal Days. It was
probably not intended that the text should be widely disseminated among the reading public since St. Ignatius tells us
in the Eleventh Annotation that the exercitant in the First
Week should not know anything of the matter of the Second
Week. Furthermore, in the Directory we are told that the
exercitant is not to have any books save the breviary, the
Imitation, the Gospels, and lives of the saints.
The first English translation was printed at the English
Jesuit College at· Saint Orner in France, and while no copy
Was available for examination, it is a fair supposition that it
was intended for private use. Some support for this position
is given by the fact that the next Jesuit translation, that by
Father John Morris, was circulated privately for some time
before it was published in 1880.
Between these two, three other translations were released:
one in Dublin in 1846, that of Seager in 1847, and Shipley's
in 1870. Seager was a convert from Anglicanism, and Shipley was an Anglican clergyman at the time he published his
translation, although he later became a convert. Morris him-
�436
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
self was a convert from Anglicanism, and we are all familiar
with the excellent translation made by the Anglican Longridge
in more recent years. It is apparent that the Spiritual Exercises are highly esteemed in English ecclesiastical circles, and
this is remarkable considering the virulence of the attacks on
the Exercises in earlier centuries in England. 3 Between these
two attitudes must be placed the Oxford Movement and all the
influences which brought Catholic matters out of eclipse.
Cardinal Wiseman was a commanding figure at the Catholic
terminal of the Tractarian Movement and he welcomed many
of the Anglicans into' the Church after he had encouraged
them from the sidelines. He had come to know a goodly
number of them from the days when he was Rector of the
English College in Rome, and in those times calling on
Wiseman was as customary for visiting Anglicans as seeing
the sights of Rome. In 1833 Newman and Froude called to
see him, and in 1838 Gladstone and Macaulay. Wiseman
impressed them as much by his thoroughgoing British patriotism as by his scholarship. It was in the year of Newman's
visit to Wiseman that the Oxford Movement began to gather
momentum.
Cardinal Wiseman was an admirer of the Spiritual Exercises. On the occasion of the annual retreat_. of the English
College in 1837, he invited a Jesuit to conduct the Exercises.
The retreat made a deep impression on both Wiseman and
the students.4 Later, when he was Cardinal Archbishop of
Westminster, he applied to the Jesuits for missionaries to
give retreats, and he tells us that he was somewhat disappointed when he was informed that a dearth of subjects
made this impossible at the time. 5
Wiseman saw in St. Ignatius' Exercises an answer to one
of the stock Anglican objections to Catholicism, to wit, that
the Church interposed an object between the Creator and the
creature. Accordingly, after the publication in 1841 of Tract
90, Wiseman wrote to Newman and urged him to enter the
Church. In his letter, among other things, he pointed out that
the Exercises "keep with some accuracy the due sense of proportion between doctrine and sentiment, making trust in our
Lord and meditation on His example all in all.'' 6
Newman in his Apologia tells us of the effect of the Exer-
�ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
437
cises on him: "What I can speak of with greater confidence
is the effect produced on me a little later [ca. 1843] by studying the Exercises of St. Ignatius. For here again, in a matter
consisting in the purest and most direct act of religion,-in
the intercourse between God and the soul, during a season of
recollection, of repentance, of good resolution, of inquiry into
vocation,-the soul was 'sola cum solo' ; there was no cloud
interposed between the creature and the object of his faith
and love." 7
All the while William George Ward, one of the brightest
stars of the Oxford Movement, was studying and propagating
Roman books and manuals of devotion among the Oxford
group. 8 He was particularly impressed with the Spiritual
Exercises, as his friend Wiseman had been before him. The
future Cardinal was by now Bishop of Melipotamus, Coadjutor
to the Vicar Apostolic of the Midland District, and President
of Oscott College. This was not far from Oxford, and many
of Ward's group called to see him.
An important article appeared in the Edinburgh Review
for July 1842, and it is attributed 9 to Thomas Babington
Macaulay. The article expressed great admiration for the
Spiritual Exercises. At any rate, Macaulay, in his well-known
review of Von Ranke's History of the Papacy in the October
1840 issue of the same periodical, had expressed his esteem
for the Catholic Church and for the Jesuits. After his visit
to Wiseman, then Rector of the English College, Lord Macaulay came away with genuine respect for the papacy. Both
these articles in the Edinburgh Review added to the general
interest in the Spiritual Exercises and the Church then burgeoning in England.
The next few years were to see the submission to Rome of
such scholars as Charles Seager in 1843, Ward and Newman
in 1845, and John Morris in 1846.10 Seager was an Orientalist,
and had been attracted by Wiseman's knowledge of the Eastern languages. He came to Oscott to be received into the
Church by Wiseman. 11
The fruit of their association was the English translation
of the Exercises published in London in 1847. This is an
interesting volume, since it has an introduction by Cardinal
Wiseman, who informs us that he has carefully revised
�438
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
Seager's translation after comparing it with the original. The
Cardinal remarks, "It has been reported that these Exercises
are to be soon published as a work 'adapted for members of
the Church of England,' in the same way as other Catholic
books have appeared. If so, we cannot anticipate any result
but misunderstanding and fatal error." 12
Evidently the Anglicans recognized the value of the Exercises in the formation of their clergy, for a great number
of retreat books were published in the remaining years of the
nineteenth century unde·r Protestant auspices with much borrowing from St. Ignatius. In 1855 the Society of the Holy
Cross was founded as an association of Anglican ministers
to give retreats. Ten years later the Society of St. John the
Evangelist, popularly known as the Cowley Fathers, was
formed with the aim of promoting the Exercises in the Church
of England. Five years later, in 1870, the Anglican minister
Orby Shipley published a translation of the Ignatian Exercises
which was well received. It was edited to some degree to bring
it more in accord with the doctrine and discipline of the
Anglican Church,~ for the members of which the translation
was especially intended. Not until 1878 did Shipley enter the
Church.
Ten years after Shipley's translation the fir~t Jesuit translation of modern times was published, that by J6hn Morris of
the English Province, in 1880. We have seen how Father
Morris had been received into the Church in 1846. It is interesting to note that he was secretary to Cardinal Wiseman and
to Cardinal Manning before he entered the Society. His translation of the Exercises is a hardy perennial, for it has run
through five editions, the latest one released in 1952. It is
rightly considered a classic.
The Reverend Dr. W. H. Longridge of the Cowley Fathers
put out in 1919 a scholarly translation and commentary on
both the Exercises and the Directory of 1599. This work has
elicited the commehdation of reviewers in Civilta Cattolica
and in Manresa of the Spanish JesuitsY It is a much admired
translation, and had gone through four editions up to the
year 1950. It is a faithful rendition of the whole of the
Exercises; Dr. Longridge did not even omit the "Rules for
Thinking with the Church,'' although as one reviewer put it,
�ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
439
his commentary on these rules is somewhat jejune.H Sad to
say, Dr. Langridge died in 1930 without entering the Church.
There were two other English translations, that of Father
Joseph Rickaby in 1915, and the other in 1928 by a Benedictine Nun of Stanbrook Abbey, with a preface by Father
Cuthbert Lattey, S.J. Father Ambruzzi's text appeared in
1927, and was remarkable in being the work of an Italian
missioner in Mangalore, India.
America was first heard from with the translation published in 1914 by Father Elder Mullan of the Maryland-New
York Province, who was at that time stationed in Rome as
the Substitute Secretary for the English-speaking provinces.
An edition of the Exercises published in 1948 by the Catholic
Book Publishing Company in New York, with a Preface by
Father Thomas H. Moore of The Apostleship of Prayer, is
simply a reproduction of Langridge's translation, according
to a reviewer in the Woodstock Letters.15
The latest translation is that by Father Louis J. Puhl of the
Chicago Province, whose version came out in 1951. Father
Puhl takes advantage of modern textual criticism and scholarly studies of the text, and while he does not give a literal
translation, he makes his version as perfect as possible for
reading purposes. A number of consecrated phrases are
dropped; for example, "Annotations" become "Introductory
Observations." "Composition of Place" is rendered by "Mental Representation of the Place," and so forth.
It is interesting to note that all translations of the Exercises prior to that of Morris in 1880 were based on the Vulgate
version. Since that time all the versions have been made from
the Spanish Autograph, in an effort by the translator to get
as close as possible to the thought and language of St. Ignatius
in accordance with modern critical practice.
Most of the translators have tried to be as literal as possible, but in this they were at times baffled by the grammar
and style of the saint. Unanimous as the translators have
been in praising the matter of the Exercises they have been
no less so in expressing their difficulty in rendering them into
good English. One feels in reading their prefaces that they
have put into practice the admonitory note of St. Ignatius that
"every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a good
�440
ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS
sense to a doubtful proposition of another than to condemn
it."16
As one of the critics has suggested, it remains to be seen
whether the latest translation, that by Father Puhl, will drive
the others out of circulation by the operation of some inverse
literary Gresham's lawY Since the Exercises have passed into
the realm of spiritual classics, one may suppose that they will
continue to have almost as many versions as there are publishers.
NOTES
Joseph Rickaby, S.J. Spiritual Exercises, (London, 1923) ix.
The sources consulted to establish the number of English translations were as follows: Carlos Sommervogel, S.J., Bibliotheque de la
Compagnie de Jesus (Brussels, 1890); Henri Watrigant, S.J., Catalogue
de la Bibliotheque des Exercices de Saint Ignace (Enghien, 1925);
Manresa, Revista Trimestral, Madrid; Guide to Catholic Literature
(Grosse Pointe); British Museum, Catalogue of Printed Books; Library
of Congress, Catalog of Printed Cards; J. B. Morris, S.J., Text of the
Spiritual Exercises (London, 1880).
3 Etudes, 75 (189,8) 577. Henri Watrigant, S.J., Les retraites spirituelles chez les Protestants.
4 Wilfrid Ward, Life and Times of Cardinal Wiseman (London) I, 260.
5 Ibid., II, 116.
6 Ibid., I, 375-376.
7 John Henry Cardinal Newman, Apologia Pro Vita ·sua (New York,
1942) 228.
8 Wilfrid Ward, William George Ward and the Oxford Movement
(London, 1890) 145-146.
9 Watrigant in op. cit., 578; also attributed to Macaulay in Manresa,
10 (1934) 78.
10 Pere Watrigant says in his article in Etudes, cited above: "Devenue
catholique et enfant de saint Philippe de Neri, Newman disait de son
Bienheureux Pere dans un panegyrique de ce saint: 'As then he learned
from Benedict what to be, and from Dominic what to do, so let me consider that from Ignatius he learned how he was to do it'" (p. 581).
11 Denis Gwynn, Cardinal Wiseman (Dublin, 1950) 90.
1 2 Charles Seager, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius (Baltimore,
1850) 17.
•
13 Civilta Cattolica,, 3 (1922) 54-59; Manresa, 2 (1926) 368-373.
14 George Zorn, S.J. in Woodstock Letters, 80 (1951) 401-402.
15 Woodstock Letters, 79 (1950) 191.
1 6 W. H. Longridge, The Spiritual Exercises (London, 1922) 24.
11 Homiletic and Pastoral Review, 53 (1952-53) 94-95.
1
2
�lgnatian Spirituality in English
EDMUND J. STUMPF, S.J.
The following list grew out of an attempt to collect a few
articles written in English on Ignatian Spirituality since 1940.
How few they are became apparent as the task progressed.
After listing the ten articles from the WooDSTOCK LETTERS
published in the February, 1956 issue of that periodical, only
about twice that number were found in other periodicals
written in English until the Ignatian Year.
At first it was thought this shortage could be explained in
view of the "many" books that had been published on the
subject. Further investigation revealed that while much had
been written in French, German, Italian and Spanish since
1940, very few articles or books had been published in English.
This discovery suggested the idea of printing the list such as
it is in the hope that it might stimulate some writing on the
subject this year or in the near future.
If it were not for the translation into English of works
written long before 1940 made by Father William J. Young
and a few others since 1940, the list of books would be much
shorter than it is; only half as long, in fact. In regard to the
periodicals, even two of the best articles ( Coreth and
Danielou) are translations and two others (Knox and Siqueira) antedate 1940.
This list is not limited to writings specifically on the Spiritual Exercises but is especially concerned with works on the
spirit of Ignatian spirituality if the expression may be permitted. It purposely excludes books of eight or three day
retreats and points for meditation. An exception may be made
for Francis X. McMenamy's Eight-Day Retreat (Bruce,
1956), as this is unique in so far as it is for Jesuits, not for
religious in general.
BOOKS IN ENGLISH
I. Biographical and Historical Background
T Justo Beguiriztain, The Eucharistic Apostolate of St. Ignatius Loyola,
ransi. by John H. Collins, Loyola House, Boston, 1955.
James Brodrick, The Oriuin of the Jesuits, Longmans, Green & ComPany, 1940.
�442
BOOKS ON IGNATIUS
James Brodrick, The Progess of the Jesuits, Longmans, Green & Co.,
1946.
James Brodrick, St. Ignatius Loyola: The Pilgrim Years, Farrar,
Straus and Cudahy, 1956.
Paul Dudon, St. Ignatius Loyola. Transl. by William J. Young, S.J.
Bruce, 1949.
Martin P. Harney, The Jesuits in History. The America Press, New
York, 1941.
John LaFarge, A Report on the American Jesuits. Photos. by Margaret Bourke-White. Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, 1956.
Pedro Leturia, Inigo de Loyola. Transl. by Aloysius J. Owen, S.J. Le
Moyne College Press, 1949.
Leonard von Matt and_Hugo Rahner, St. Ignatius Loyola: A Pictorial
Biography, Translated by"John Murray. Henry Regnery, 1956.
Theodore Maynard, St. Ignatius and the Jesuits. P. J. Kenedy, New
York, 1956.
William J. Young, St. Ignatius' Own Story, Henry Regnery, 1956.
II. Ascetical and Doctrinal Studies
Alexander Brou, Ignatian Methods of Prayer. Transl. by Wm. J.
Young. Bruce, 1949.
Alexander Brou, The Ignatian Way to God. Trans!. by Wm. J. Young.
Bruce, 1952.
James J. Daly, ·The Jesuit in Focus. Bruce Publishing Company, Milwaukee, 1940.
Manuel Maria Espinosa Polit, Perfect Obedience: A Commentary on
the Letter on Obedience of Saint Ignatius Loyola. Transl. by Williall!
J. Young, S.J. Newman Press, 1947.
Henry J. Gill, Jesuit Spirituality: Leading Ideas iiF the Spiritual Exercises. M. H. Gill & Sons, Dublin, 1935.
Archbishop Alban Goodier, St. Ignatius Loyola and Prayer. Benziger,
New York, 1940.
Louis Peeters, The Ignatian Approach to Divine Union. Trans!. by II.
L. Brozowski, S.J. Bruce, 1956.
Louis J. Puhl, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Newman Press,
1951.
Hugo Rahner, The Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola. Transl. by
Francis J. Smith, S.J. Newman Press, 1953.
Archbishop T. D. Roberts, Black Popes: Authority, Its Use and Abuse.
Sheed and Ward, New York, 1954.
ARTICLES IN ENGLISH
Robert Boucher, "St. Ignatius Loyola: The Pilgrim," America, 95
(July 28, 1956), 400-404.
James Brodrick, "'St. Ignatius and His Dealings with Women" The
Month, 16 (August, 1956), 110-114.
George Burns, "Comtemplation in Action," Letters and Notices 61
(Autumn, 1954), 50-64.
�BOOKS ON IGNATIUS
443
J. A. Canavan, "The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius," Irish
Monthly 76 (July, 1948), 303-310.
Emerich Coreth, "Contemplative in Action," Theology Digest, 3
(Winter, 1955), 37-45.
Jean Danielou, "The lgnatian Vision of the Universe and Man,"
Cross Currents 4 (Fall, 1954), 357-366.
Augustine G. Ellard, "lgnatian Spirituality," Review for Religious,
11 (May, 1952), 125-142.
Augustine G. Ellard, "'So Trust in God As If," Review for Religious,
12 (January, 1953), 9-14.
Joseph H. Fichter, "The Personality of the Jesuit Founder," Catholic
World 151 (August, 1940), 582-585.
Maurice Giuliani, "Finding God in All Things," Theology Digest 4
(Spring, 1956), 93-96.
John A. Rardon, "St. Ignatius' Letter on Obedience," American
Ecclesiastical Review 128 (May, 1953), 335-346.
Bishop John Carmel Heenan, "The Founder," The Month, 16 (July,
1956), 6-11.
C. A. Herbst, "The Third Mode of Humility," Review for Religious
14 (May, 1955), 150-155.
V. F. Kienberger, O.P., "The Impact of St. Ignatius," Cross and
Crown, 8 (June, 1956), 195-201.
Augustine C. Klaas, "Current Spiritual Writing," Review for Religious 10 (May, 1951), 153-158.
Augustine C. Klaas, "St. Ignatius and Social Service," Cross and
Crown, 8 (June, 1956), 127-133.
Ronald A. Knox, "The Prayer of Petition and the Prayer of Acts,"
Clergy Review 16 (June, 1939), 485-498.
Ronald A. Knox, "St. Ignatius Loyola," The Month 181 (July-August,
1945), 305-308.
John LaFarge, "The Hands of St. Ignatius," Catholic Mind, 54 (June,
1956), 382-385.
John LaFarge, "Jesuit Education and the Spiritual Exercises" Jesuit
Educational Quarterly, 19, (June, 1956), 17-26.
John LaFarge, "Ignatius Loyola and Our Times," Thought, 31
(Summer, 1956), 165-186.
Francis X. Lawler, "The Doctrine of Grace in the Spiritual Exercises," Theological Studies 3 (December, 1942), 513-532.
John Little, "The Problem of the Contemplation for Obtaining Love,"
Irish Ecclesiastical Record 73 (January, 1950), 13-25.
William F. Lynch, "St. Ignatius and the 'New Theological Age,'"
Thought, 31 (Summer, 1956), 187-215.
C. C. Martindale, "St. Ignatius: Manresa, La Storta," Letters and
Notices, 61 (July, 1956), 145-149.
C. C. Martindale, "lgnatiana," Blackfriars, 37 (July-August, 1956),
292-297.
Peter Milward, "A View of the Contemplatio ad Amorem," Letters
and Notices 61 (Autum, 1954), 64-70.
�444
BOOKS ON IGNATIUS
John L. Murphy, "Faith and the Liturgy," Clergy Review 31 (April
1949)' 217-229.
William T. Noon, "Four Quartets: Contemplatio ad Amorem," Renascence 7 (Autumn, 1954), 3-10.
B. O'Brien, "Spirituality and the Active Life," The Month 177
(March-April, 1941), 140-149; (May-June, 1941), 237-247.
Walter J. Ong, "A.l\LD.G.: Dedication or Directive?" Review for
Religious 11 (September, 1952), 257-264.
Walter J. Ong, "St. Ignatius' Prison Cage and the Existentialist
Situation," Theological Studies 15 (March, 1954), 34-51.
W. Peters, "St. Ignatius in England," The Month, 16 (July, 1956),
21-29.
Wulstan Phillipson, "St:.Jgnatius and Montserrat," The Month, 16
(July, 1956), 42-44.
E. A. Ryan, "The Career of Ignatius Loyola,"- American Ecclesiastical
Review 134 (May, 1956), 289-303.
Joseph A. Siqueira, "The Spirituality of the Spiritual Exercises,"
Thought 13 (December, 1938), 574-588.
Tiofilo Urdanoz, 0. P., "The Glory of God," Cross and Crown, 8
(June, 1956), 202-214.
William A. Van Roo, "'The Law of the Spirit and Written Law in the
Spirituality of St. Ignatius," Gregorianum, 26 (No. 3, 1956), 417-443.
Gustave Weigel, .!.'The lgnatian Vision of Life," Catholic Mind, 54
(July, 1956), 376-381.
John F. Wickham, "'The Worldly Ideal of Inigo Loyola," Thought 29
(Summer, 1954), 209-236.
Henry Willmering, "For the Greater Glory of God," Review for
Religious, 15 (July, 1956), 173-176.
-· -·
John E. Wise, "Saint Ignatius in 1956," School and Society, 84 (Sep·
tember, 1956), 70-73.
Bishop John J. Wright, "Saint of Our Times," Catholic Mind, 54
(July, 1956), 370-375.
William J. Young, "Xavier and Ignatius Loyola," America 94 (Decem·
ber 3, 1955), 270-272.
REVOLUTIONARY
It has been said that Dante is the man who bridges over the gap be·
tween the middle ages and the modern era. Perhaps with greater accu·
racy the title should be given to Ignatius. His work, admittedly, was
revolutionary. He was often attacked for his innovations. But it was
also profoundly traditional, with its strong loyalties to the three medie·
val institutions: imperium, sacerdotium, studium.
MIGUEL A. BERNAD,
s.J.
��FATHER FRANCIS B. HARGADON
�OBITUARY
FATHER FRANCIS BERNARD HARGADON, S.J.
1874-1955
In jotting down the recollections of Father Hargadon, who
in his early priestly days was known as "The Laughing Saint
of Philadelphia," one recalls his retreat years ago to the
students at the Frederick Visitation Academy. The day that
Father left, a general gloom settled upon the children. An
older girl expressed the common feeling by the remark,
"Something has gone out of our lives." May not this same
sentiment be echoed by the numerous brethren and friends
in the death of Father Frank whom they so lovingly cherished
as a consoling beacon and a tower of strength in their spiritual
strivings?
Born in Baltimore on October 24th, 1874 of Dominic
Aloysius Hargadon, an immigrant from Ireland, and Della
Marie Coffey of Richmond, Virginia, Frank was baptized in
St. Peter's Church on Poppleton Street and was the eldest of
sixteen children, nine boys and seven girls, most of whom
died in childhood. The only survivors were Francis Bernard,
the subject of our sketch, Leo Ignatius, who died at Fordham
University a Jesuit priest in 1952, famed as a librarian, Loretto recently deceased, Kathyrn and Camilla who are still
living at Cullen, Maryland, and Las Vegas, New Mexico
respectively. Frank's father worked for the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad in the old Mount Clair Shops and is said to
have been skilled in. metallurgy, as far as it was known in
those days, and even to have made certain improvements in
the process of hardening steel. Mrs. Hargadon was a little
Woman of whom Frank spoke lovingly as a nurse and even a
doctor. She was a reserved, quiet and very sweet tempered
Person. A soul of love, she left that winning trait deeply imbedded in Frank. He used to say that he had never known
What sorrow was until he came home as a priest and saw the
crepe on the door, which told of his mother's death. But she
had had the happiness of attending his ordination at Woodstock on June 27, 1907.
Frank was educated at St. Peter's Parochial School, where
�446
FATHER HARGADON
the Sisters of Mercy made their first foundation in Baltimore.
Eventually the Hargadon family moved to Guilford Avenue
in St. Ignatius Parish and Frank attended Loyola High
School and College, both located in those days on Calvert
Street.
Jesuit Training
On August 12th, 1892 he entered the Society of Jesus at the
Frederick Novitiate when Father John H. O'Rourke was
Master of Novices. Tbroughout his long life Father Frank
Hargadon never tired of expressing his gratitude to God for
the gift of his vocation and he prayed daily to be faithful
and die a Jesuit. He loved to reminisce on his novitiate days
in Frederick. His devotion to his distinguished Master of
Novices never waned. In his first year as a novice, he had
headaches. Father Provincial Campbell was inclined to dismiss him but Father O'Rourke with his prophetic insight
managed to have him remain.
Some of those._ who entered with Frank Hargadon became
distinguished Jesuits in later years such as George Johnson,
the great teacher; John C. Geale, a cultured educator, pastor
and patient sufferer from asthma before dying in California;
Joseph T. Keating, eminent procurator at Fo:t:dham; Richard
H. Tierney, the renowned editor, brilliant writer and teacher;
and Richard J. A. Fleming, a tireless and ever charitable
minister.
Some of the second year novices were John J. Cassidy, so
many years in Jersey City and beloved by many; Matthew
Fortier, a refined and learned priest and a great moderator
of Our Lady's Sodality in the early days; Arthur J. McCaffrey, still living, and for ten years the beloved master of
novices at Guelph, Ontario, and now edifying all by patience
and prayerfulness in his blindness at Loyola Seminary, Shrub
Oak, New York; Thomas Addis Emmet of Georgetown Prep
fame and later Bishop of Jamaica, British West Indies; and
finally William J. A. Devlin, that gentleman par excellence,
scholar and fatherly superior.
Father Frank had four years of juniorate, during two of
which he was favored to have that exacting and eminent
teacher, Father Raphael V. O'Connell. In his philosophy at
Woodstock he was fortunate to learn from Father James A.
�FATHER HARGADON
447
Dawson, known for his clarity, simplicity and kindness and
Father Charles Macksey, a brilliant professor, who was to
win applause at Rome, not merely as a teacher at the Gregorian but as spiritual director of the North American Coll~ge seminarians.
In his regency three years were spent at Georgetown under
the fatherly rectors, John D. Whitney, noted mathematician,
convert and ex-Navy man and Jerome Daugherty whose
memory remained green for many years in the Maryland-New
York Province and after whom the present Auxiliary Bishop
of Baltimore was named, Jerome Daugherty Sebastian. At
Georgetown Mr. HargadC'n taught algebra, German, and
physical geography and acted as prefect. His fourth year
regency was at St. Joseph's High School, where he taught
algebra and German.
During his theology at Woodstock he was beadle ·of his
class for two years and catechized on Sundays. On June 27th,
1907 he was ordained priest by John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York, whose nephew, John M. Farley, was a
member of the ordination class.
·
After leaving Woodstock Father Hargadon went to Holy
Cross College to be professor of Latin to which was added
Prefecting in the dormitory and preaching in the chapel. It
was during that year that he was transferred to St. Joseph's
High School, Philadelphia, to guide third year. One of his
pupils, now a Jesuit priest, gives testimony that Father Hargadon was always kind and trusting towards his boys, bringing out the best qualities in their characters.
Father Thomas J. Gannon, former provincial and later first
American assistant at Rome, was instructor when Father
Hargadon made his tertianship, 1908-09 at St. Andrew-onHudson. Father Hargadon taught from 1909 to 1923 except
for the year 1914-15 that he spent as an operarius at St. Ignatius Loyola Parish in New York City. During those final years
in the classroom, Father Hargadon guided fourth year five
Years at Philadelphia, spent two years with third year at
Loyola in Baltimore and six years as professor of freshman
at Loyola College. He made his last vows in the Gesu Church,
Philadelphia, on February 2nd, 1910 with Father Cornelius
Gillespie, officiating. He helped Father Philip Finnegan to
open the new Loyola College at E.vergreen in 1917. He was
�448
FATHER HARGADON
Minister for a year at St. Joseph's College, Philadelphia, but
did not like the work as he shrank from having authority
over Ours. Yet he was very kind and considerate to all.
Retreat Work
Father Frank Hargadon's great apostolate was retreat
work during forty years, in the summers from 1909 to 1923
and then exclusively until 1949. In that time he conducted
401 retreats, his first being to the Presentation Nuns at Fishkill, New York, in 1909 and his last to ladies at Mendham,
New Jersey, in 1949. The Sisters of Mercy were his first
teachers and to their communities over a wide area from
Maryland to New York State and New England he gave
forty-four retreats. Next came twenty-one to the St. Joseph
Sisters, nineteen to the Visitation Nuns, sixteen to the Good
Shepherd, fifty-five to girls and thirty-six to ladies and then
a long list to many different communities in the East, Middle
West, and New England, including forty-eight different Sisterhoods, Marist, Jesuit and Irish Christian Brothers, seminarians and laymen. In his long apostolate, Father Hargadon's prodigious memory stands out in the minds of many.
At one of the students' retreats, he sought out between conferences the non-Catholics in the playroom, wliere all crowded
around him. On the day of his departure, he went to the study
hall to say good-bye. The entire school was present. After a
few words to the group, Father walked down each aisle between the desks, shook hands with each girl and called her by
name. It was a remarkable feat of memory. Once in a girls'
retreat a young lady sought an interview. Father said, "Don't
tell me your name." After a pause he added, "You are so and
so's sister." She replied, "How did you know, Father?" He
rejoined, "I taught your brother years ago at Georgetown
and you are the image of him." Notwithstanding the thousands with whom .he had contact, Father Hargadon never
seemed to fail to recognize them.
One of his endearing traits was the promptness with which
he answered letters although his correspondence must have
been voluminous. Father always found time to write a few
very helpful and consoling words. In Philadelphia, among'
the employees of the Walk Easy Shoe Company are some great
�FATHER HARGADON
449
admirers of Father Hargadon. They are mostly non-Catholics
and Jews. Each Christmas they sent him a card signed by
every one of them and they treasured Father Frank's joint
reply. They would say, "The nicest man who comes into our
store," and added that he made it a point to greet each one.
When this was mentioned to Father at St. Joseph's Hospital,
Reading, Pennsylvania, two days before his death by Father
Dinneen, Father Hargadon's face lit up and he said, "Father
Connie Gillespie introduced me to the Walk Easy people in
1909 and I have been wearing their shoes ever since."
His cheerfulness and spirit of innocent fun made Father
Hargadon a delight at community recreations, whenever in
his travels he had time to stop by and relate his experiences.
Once finding himself without a server at Mass, he noticed a
little boy watching him admiringly. "Would you like to serve
my Mass?" The small lad replied, "But I'm not sure of what
to do." "Oh, that's all right, I'll tell you what to do as we go
along." The Mass went on smoothly enough until it was time
to change the missal. "Take it down the middle and up the
other side," Father whispered. Having recited the Munda cor
meum, it occurred to Father that the boy was taking a long
time. Out of the corner of his eye he took a glance and to his
astonishment the boy was walking down the middle aisle with
the missal. On another occasion he met a little girl crying
bitterly and asked the reason of her sorrow. She answered
that she couldn't go to Holy Communion because she had
broken her fast. "Tell me, my child," Father inquired, "in
what way did you break your fast?" The little one replied,
"I kissed the cat." It was this saving sense of humor and wit
that drew so many souls to him, young and old, rich and poor,
Catholic, non-Catholic and Jewish; once they met him, they
could not forget the uplift his great spirituality gave them.
Father Hargadon used to tell of his first experience in the
confessional soon after ordination. He had prayed most earnestly and he recalled the gentle kindness and patience of confessors he had known. He sat in the confessional awaiting a
Penitent. One came in, stumbling over a stool. Silence ensued
for a while. Father felt sure that he had near him a sinner
fearful and abashed. Finally he said, "How long since your
last confession?" A timid child's voice answered: "It's my
�450
FATHER HARGADON
first." Father often said that he felt like saying to the tiny
negro boy, "This is my first too: so go ahead."
Father Hargadon often described his missionary trips as
summing up his life, "I'm nearly always to be found in a
railway station with a ticket in my hand, going about my
Father's business."
Children in retreats loved Father Frank because he would
often sing for them in his rich loud voice humorous songs
and ditties. If joy is an echo of God within us, then surely
the Holy Trinity livedJn Father Frank because his joy and
happiness were inspiring. His laughter was heart-warming
and was aptly described as going all the way up the scale and
starting over again.
The Director
His direction of souls and kindliness in and out of confession were noteworthy. All classes of people have testified
that he came to them as a friend in need and often at a time
of great spiritual crisis. He was genuinely Christlike and
possessed the spirit of sacrifice in an eminent degree. He
would hear confessions even on Christmas Day, instead of
resting or recreating. A nun wrote of her first meeting with
Father Hargadon as a student in the seventh: grade in 1928
and how until a year before his death he lufd helped and
encouraged her by his thoughtful letters and wise counsels
and the assurance of a remembrance in his daily Mass. His
advice meant so much to her in her adolescent years and his
guidance to the contemplative Visitation Order was decisive.
To the scrupulous he was particularly tender but with great
firmness he insisted on obedience; he had a way of setting
scruples aside by making one see the cheerful side of things,
a way of lifting up little trivialities to show them to be stepping stones on which to come closer to the Sacred Heart; a
way of making one feel that nothing was too difficult, if it
meant consoling that loving Sacred Heart of Christ. Everyone
who knew Father Frank appreciated his confidence, his spirit
of joy and holy liberty of spirit which he tried to communicate to all.
A young man, now a seminarian of the Baltimore Archdiocese, took a friend of his, out of the Church for years, to
see Father Frank at Manresa. He left his friend with Father
�FATHER HARGADON
451
and went to see another priest in the house. Within an hour
he met his friend beaming with joy and grateful to be in
God's grace again. Baltimore and Washington Manresa men
have often declared that in their confessions to him they felt
that Our Lord Himself absolved them. Father Hargadon
seemed to have a special unction, to impart a sense of having
been thoroughly and delightfully cleansed, when he would
say, "And for all the sins forgotten, the Precious Blood now
covers you".
During a retreat to boys and girls at Leonardtown, Maryland, a certain positive young man did not want to attend the
exercises. Finally he decided to listen to Father Hargadon,
attended every meditation faithfully and kept a strict silence.
He declared afterwards that one could not help being good
after listening to that holy old man. Stricken soon after with
leukemia, the boy often expressed his happiness over that particular retreat because he was ready and willing to die. God
called him soon afterwards.
Father Haragdon had a special gift of dealing with high
school girls and Sisters. While kind, he firmly insisted that
there is only one road to Heaven and that is by doing the Will
of God. Many, who attended his retreats, have spoken of the
simple and fervent prayers he said after Mass in thanksgiving
for Holy Communion. His favorite prayer then was, "Take
my body, Jesus, eyes and ears and tongue." His conferences
were spiritual heart-to-heart talks. He spoke in a gentle,
kindly, familiar way but never swerved a hair's breadth from
the dignity of his priestly calling. He often said that he needed
a half-hour before each conference to prepare for it by prayer.
He loved his room, silence and prayer, and this was the source
of his power with souls. His Holy Hours, masterpieces of
spiritual simplicity and love, deeply impressed all present.
Casting a loving glance at the Blessed Sacrament, he would
sometimes say, "Now, Jesus, is this not so?" Every thought
expressed came from his saintly heart and was a token of his
intense love for his Divine Master.
Father Hargadon had a Christlike love for souls. Once he
left recreation in the evening to hear a man's confession in
the parlor and give him Holy Communion. The man was a
railroad engineer who had fasted all day to receive Holy Communion between trains, as it was the First Friday and he
�452
FATBER HARGADON
never missed that day. While in a rectory a young lady came
at one in the afternoon from a downtown office, fasting in
order to receive Holy Communion on a First Friday. Father
gladly took her to the Church and, being so deeply touched at
such devotion to the Sacred Heart, arranged with the housekeeper for a little repast before she returned to work. He
instilled into hearts, young and old, a fervent devotion to the
Sacred Heart of Jesus. He would urge everyone to face life
with perfect trust in this Divine Heart and in that of His
Blessed Mother. His favorite aspiration, placed on his memorial card in his own"handwriting, was, "Sacred Heart of
Jesus, I place my trust in Thee through Mary Immaculate."
He recommended that it be said five times a day for the Poor
Souls in Purgatory.
Manresa
Nor was Father Hargadon appreciated only by women and
children. In 1933 he began his Apostolate of fifteen consecutive years among the men retreatants at Manresa-on-Severn,
Annapolis, Maryland. The men of the Archdioceses of Baltimore and Washington were inspired by his retreats and,
whether he conducted the retreat or not, sought him out in
his room near the chapel for consultation. Wllen, after that
steady connection with Manresa, he was moved ·to Holy Trinity Church, Washington, D. C., with only occasional contacts
on the Severn, we read in the October issue of the Manresan,
1947, this beautiful tribute:
"After fifteen years of generous and devoted service as an
Assistant Retreat Master at Manresa on Severn, Father Francis B. Hargadon, S.J., well known to thousands of Manresa
men, was recently assigned to reside at Holy Trinity Church,
Washington, D. C., yet giving retreats still. It is with a feeling
of regret that Manresa parts with this cheerful, companionable priest, after his fifteen years of sturdy spiritual service
on the banks of the-Severn. Father Hargadon has been a real
friend and benefactor of Manresa. Little do most retreatants
know of the continual and generous financial contributions
made by the good Father down through the years for the support of Manresa. No layman ever matched his offering. The
men at Manresa will miss Father Hargadon. They will miss
his genial smile, his cheery word, his little jokes, his evident
�FATHER HARGADON
453
sincerity in the chapel, his kindness and wisdom in the confessional. So too will the members of the Community at Manresa miss him for the same and even more intimate reasons.
At the age of seventy-three after fifty-five years of service
in the Society of Jesus, this healthy, happy, holy priest begins
life anew with the prayer of the Master on his lips, 'Thy will
be done.' Our sincere gratitude to dear Father Hargadon from
all the men at Manresa."
During those fifteen years on the Severn, Father Hargadon
reached his Golden Jubilee in the Jesuit Order on August
15th, 1942. He concluded a retreat in Syracuse, New York, on
his jubilee day. That evening Father reached Manresa in fine
fettle after a twelve hours journey to Annapolis. Along
with the good Father came his famous old travelling bag
which was the backache of many a porter. On the occasion
Brother Hobbs carried it up the hill from the station. The
modest celebration at Manresa was held on August 17th.
Interviewed at Manresa Father Hargadon gave this formula
for the next fifty years, "Smile and the world smiles with you;
groan and you groan alone,-unless there is some crank
present.''
After two years at Holy Trinity, Washington, D. C., Father
Hargadon's robust health began to decline and he retired to
the Novitiate of St. Isaac Jogues at Wernersville, Pennsylvania, for a year; but recovering somewhat and yearning for
his apostolic contacts, he returned to Manresa-on-Severn and
lived there for four more years, 1950-1954. The pages of the
Manresan echo the joy of all at his return in the October
Issue, 1950, "We are happy to announce to all our men that
Father Francis B. Hargadon, S.J., has recently returned to
Manresa and is now in his old room close to the chapel. Father Hargadon is not as young as he used to be and he is now
in his fifty-eighth year in the Society of Jesus. However he is
still very cheerful, still wears that wonderful smile and has
not lost his sense of humor. We are very happy to have him
with us once again and we know that all Manresa men share
our sentiments. So pass the work around, men, and, as Father
Hargadon does, keep on smiling".
Two years later Father Hargadon reached his sixtieth year
as a Jesuit. Asked to describe those sixty years, the dear old
�454
FATHER HARGADON
priest remarked, "Like a walk in the afternoon down a busy
street." What a wonderful way to characterize the quick
passing of his busy years as a Jesuit! Many were the affectionate prayers and Masses offered for him on this occasion.
In those less active years of his closing apostolate at Manresa, Father Hargadon's piety and trust in God were more
apparent and a source of constant edification to Ours and to
the Manresa Men. He grew even more outstandingly kind and
sympathetic. He seemed to have only one mission in life, while
it lasted, that of relieving troubled souls. For this all the talents of his generous nature were brought into play that he
might gain the confidence of the men whom God destined him
to help. He would reminisce too on the sacred places in the
Province, notably on the religious heritage around Conewago
in Pennsylvania, where the first church dedicated to the
Sacred Heart of Jesus in this country was built and is still
in use. He loved McSherrystown nearby, where he gave so
many retreats at St. Joseph's Academy. How often he had
prayed at the graves of those early missionaries and their
flocks. He was wont to say that the very altars used by them
breathed their sanctity and missionary zeal. In his life Father
Hargadon had experienced striking proofs of God's protection. Once, while shaving in the chaplain's quat:ters in a convent, a force pulled him away from the basin.-He resisted it;
then he was violently pulled away. At that moment the whole
ceiling fell and he narrowly escaped serious injury. Father
was convinced that he owed this service to his Angel Guardian.
Last Days
Father Hargadon's health became so impaired that his
return to the infirmary at Wernersville was imperative. There
he constantly edified the novices, who visited and waited on
him. Frequently he would say to the novices : "Our good
mother, the Society, cares for me and cares for all." One day
on getting his dinner he remarked, "Do you know why people
do not advance more spiritually? Because they pay little attention to the Holy Spirit. Say a prayer often to the Holy Spirit."
Every day at three in the afternoon he was wheeled to the
gallery of the chapel to make his Holy Hour. In his active
days, he often spent from three to four hours a day before
�FATHER HARGADON
455
the Blessed Sacrament. On one occasion in a retreat he said,
"Devotion to the Blessed Sacrament is the king of devotions.
What is anything compared to one moment in His presence?"
And he realized so fully the oneness of this devotion with that
to the Sacred Heart of Jesus because the whole humanity of
Christ with His Divinity is in the Holy Eucharist and from
this Holy Sacrament exposed Our Lord had revealed the devotion to His Sacred Heart.
Father Hargadon's patience was marvelous despite the fact
that his body became acutely sore. He would exclaim, "Everything that has happened to me is fine". He offered up his
greatest sacrifice, his inability to say Mass, in a generous
spirit of love for priests who do not appreciate the Mass
sufficiently. He was always thanking God in his sufferings
and offering his desire to celebrate Mass, hear confessions,
etc., for the salvation and perfection of souls. He rejected with
thanks the offer of a radio and sat instead in his chair for
hours with his beads in his hands. He loved the life of Father
William Doyle, S.J., of Ireland and also the diary of Father
Doyle entitled, A Thought for Each Day. To a Scholastic, who
remarked how difficult it is to make points on Our Blessed
Lady, he advised, "Think for the rest of your life how Mary
is your Mother". When too ill to talk to Ours, tears would
well up in his eyes and he would say, "I'm sorry, I can't talk".
Often, when he would discourse on his pet principles, he would
talk almost wrathfully about things Jesuits should not do and
seeing a person awed, he would add, "Oh, I am not angry at
you."
The big decline came after Christmas of 1954 and for
several months before he died, he was an inmate of St.
Joseph's Hospital, Reading, Pennsylvania. He had been
anointed before leaving the Novitiate. One of the Scholastics,
a patient in the same room with him, observed his patience
and cheerfulness in suffering. Although unable to express himself, Father Hargadon was always cheerful. Barely audible
yet with a smile he would often say, "Wonderful." As his
sufferings increased and with his rosary around his neck, he
would exclaim, lifting up the beads or the cross, "Say an Our
Father with me."
On Easter Sunday morning, April 10th, 1955, he died alone
�FATHER HARGADON
456
and seemingly without a struggle, at the age of eighty-one
years and sixty-three in the Society. It was most fitting that
this soul, so beloved and loving and so saintly as well, this
true priest of God, should meet his Master on Easter Sunday
near the hour of the Resurrection, for he had so resembled
Him Who said, "Peace I bring you, My peace I leave you".
About five o'clock that Easter morning, the nurse had some
difficulty keeping Father Hargadon in bed, for he was somewhat confused. Perhaps his most ardent love in life, the Mass,
was on his mind and he desired to celebrate it on that great
feast. He was finally qui~ted and seemed to rest. No apparent
change could be detected. in his condition. About twenty minutes later the nurse returned to find that Father was no
longer breathing. She called the chaplain and the doctor.
Father Gallagher administered the last rites. Father Frank
Hargadon's passing from this life was in harmony with his
way of living-just a quiet slipping away to God. May he rest
in peace.
LoUIS A. WHEELER, S.J.
*
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ANGELS GUARDIANS
The great Peter Favre, the first priest, the first preacher, the first
lector of theology of the holy company of the name of Jesus, and the
first companion of blessed Ignatius its founder, coming one day from
Germany where he had done great works for the glory of our Lord:
and passing through this diocese of Geneva, in which he was born,
related that while traversing many heretical places, he had received a
thousand consolations by saluting the Angel Guardian of each parish
as he approached it, and that he had been conscious of their help, in
that they had protected him from the ambushes of the heretics, and had
rendered several souls gentle and docile to receive the doctrines of salvation. And he said this with so much emphasis, ,that a lady, then
young, who had heard it from his own lips, related it with extreme feeling but four years ago, that is to say more than three score years afterwards. I had the consolation during the past year (1607) of consecrating
an altar in the place where God was pleased that this blessed man
should be born, in the little village of Villaret, among our most rugged
mountains.
ST. FRANCIS DE SALES
�FATHER THOMAS J. REILLY
1878-1955
Father Thomas Reilly died on March 26th, 1955, after
apparently recuperating from an emergency operation for
intestinal obstruction and cancer. Few even suspected how
ill he was, when, only a few days previously he had gone to
St. Vincent's Hospital for treatment. He had asked to be
excused a couple of times from a main altar Mass but insisted
it was just a virus condition. His sense of duty, of always
"marching with the army," was evidenced when, just before
being stricken, he said to Brother Joseph Keashen, the Sacristan, "Keep an eye on me on the altar during Mass. I don't feel
well." He completed the Holy Sacrifice and distributed Communion without incident, however.
Father Reilly's was a devoted life of close to sixty years in
the Society that he had loved and served so well. Only after
his death was it known how many friends he had made in
the parish, especially among the poor and the sick whom he
favored. He did his work simply and quietly. For twenty
years, 1935 to 1955, in St. Francis Xavier's he served first
as prefect of the church, and later was assistant pastor.
Frederick, Maryland
Born in 1878 in the adjoining St. Bernard's Parish, he
attended the old college of St. Francis Xavier. Entering the
Society in 1897 he was sent to the Novitiate in Frederick,
Maryland. He thus became one of the last of the novices and
juniors trained in that historic town. Strange to say, they
Were then, as a matter of fact, closer in years to the Civil War
than we are today to World War I.
It is not surprising, therefore, that many traditions and
stories, some even from eyewitnesses, were often repeated in
the quaint old Southern town. Thus Stonewall Jackson was
said to have inspected his troops, as they marched past, from
the Novitiate doorsteps. Many wounded from battlefields like
near-by Antietam and the Monocacy river and even from faraway Gettysburg were cared for and operated on in our Novitiate, turned hospital. The steeple of old St. John's Churchthe highest point of vantage in the neighborhood-was used
both by Confederate generals like Stonewall and by Union
ones, such as Lew Wallace, the author of Ben Hur, as a look-
..
�458
FATHER REILLY
out in the border town that changed hands so often. Frederick's
strategic importance was great, being almost equidistant
from Washington and Baltimore. It was historic, also, as the
birthplace of the author of the "Star Spangled Banner," Francis Scott Key, as well as Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney, the
first Catholic to hold the office who was buried in the Novitiate
cemetery.
But Brother Reilly was beginning a different kind of warfare, one that was spiritual. His Master of Novices was the
famous Father John.H. O'Rourke, when among twenty primi
anni he received the..habit to form part of the eighty-one novices and juniors in the Community. The catalogues of those days
give some interesting statistics showing how much the Province has grown in the lifetime of Father Reilly in the Society.
Thus in 1897 the total number of Jesuits in the old MarylandNew York Province-now become three-was only 594. Today
New York alone numbers more than fifteen hundred. Each of
the three provinces today is larger than the three combined
in those days! So Father Reilly lived to see the greatest
growth ever r~corded in the history of the old province. The
daughters have far outgrown their mother! But even though
the novices and juniors together never numbered ninety in
Frederick, the quality of the community between 1897 and
1901 is shown by the number of outstanding men of Father
Reilly's day. Among them were four who- were to become
provincials, ten rectors, one master of novices and several
superiors of communities. Besides these, a junior was to
become the first American to head the Biblical Institute in
Rome while a few were to become professors at Woodstock
and Weston. Father Phillips was to win a fellowship and
honors in higher mathematics at Johns Hopkins, and others,
to teach with marked success in Colleges. Father Francis
Kimball, for example, is commemorated by a building in his
honor at Holy Cross College, while two others, Father John
Toohey and Father Joseph Murphy taught philosophy for
many years at ·Georgetown and Fordham respectively. Two
other novices of the time, Father Thomas Delihant and Father
Charles Connor, became most popular preachers on the Mis·
sion Band for years.
Hidden Life
In such company Father Reilly, impressionable by nature,
�FATHER REILLY
459
could not help but be deeply influenced. True, he got little
acclaim in his hidden life, being content to be just a member
of the "long black line," provided only the work of the Society
prospered. He used the talents that God gave him.
His regency was spent teaching and prefecting at the prep
schools of Georgetown and Fordham. Only those who prefected study halls and dormitories for boarders in those days,
before the era of private rooms, know how onerous this work
was. He won deserved praise for his four years as head prefect of the small boys in St. John's Hall, Fordham.
After ordination he was Prefect of Discipline for years at
Regis High School, worked for a year at Nativity Church
before being made minister of Brooklyn Prep in 1926. There
he remained for nine years taking charge of the Women's
Sodality and helping in the parish in addition to his work
for the Community.
His last assignment, as already mentioned, was for parish
work from 1935 to 1955 in St. Francis Xavier's. So his life
as a Jesuit ended in the same place which he had left fiftyeight years before to enter the Order. There too be celebrated
his golden jubilee in 1947. His health was always remarkably
good. Only once, and that due to an automobile accident, had
he spent any lengthy time in a hospital. On December 17th,
1947, returning from his sister's funeral, the machine in
which he was riding was in a collision and he spent several
months in St. Francis Hospital, Poughkeepsie, to which he had
been brought from Pawling, New York, where the accident
occurred.
Father Reilly's keen sense of humor remained with him
till the very end. I visited him in the hospital the day before
his operation. On leaving I asked if there was anything I
could do for him. Because of his intestinal condition they had
all but starved him. His answer came at once, "Yes, get me a
hamburger." Like Father Lord he could joke despite his
lethal affliction. He had no fear of death. Yet he must have
been looking forward to his diamond jubilee only two years
later. But it was not to be. That, we hope, he will celebrate in
heaven along with his fellow novices of 1897!
EUGENE T. KENEDY, S.J.
�FATHER JOSEPH THOlUAS 1\IURPHY, S.J.
1891-1955
"God love you!" was the radiant message left with thousands
by Father Joseph T. Murphy, S.J., who died somewhat unexpectedly the night of Tuesday, January 18, 1955, in Our Lady
of Lourdes Hospital, Camden, New Jersey. Spoken in a rich,
warm voice with a twinkling of brown eyes and a broad smile,
this salutation brought comfort and confidence to many souls.
It expressed his attittrde toward people. "He loved people",
wrote someone after his death. He spent himself unsparingly
trying to bring God's Love to souls in missions, novenas, retreats and countless personal contacts.
Father Murphy would be grateful for prayers rather than
words written about his life, although he made the Heroic
Act long ago. It was evident in later years that he shunned
publicity. He would not furnish photographs for use in publicizing a mission or novena. He preferred to let someone else,
even if younger ahd less experienced, take charge of a mission
to which he was assigned. Although realizing that God had
given him a grand voice and other talents, he extolled the
ability of others and minimized his own. He· preferred not
to return to a parish for a second mission, fearing he might
not be able to give acceptable new material. Yet he was a
gifted pulpit orator who could easily adapt himself to any
audience. Father Murphy had his shortcomings as do all of
us mortals: they highlight the virtues. Of sanguine temperament and character, strongly emotional, with a quick, practical mind and a decisive, dominating will, boundless in energy,
forthright in speech and powerful in voice and presence, he
was predominantly a man of action. Such a temperament and
character are sometimes betrayed into flare-ups or hasty, outspoken opinions not always warranted by facts or sanctioned
by prudence. It was remarkable, however, how true his quick,
decisive judgments were on many issues, how prudent and
welcome his advice to many souls, how instant and unsparing
the help he gave, how challenging yet appealing his pulpit
preaching, how effective and dramatic his marshaling of Godgiven powers and energy to draw souls to God! Had he lacked
the decisive mind and will, the deep and powerful emotions
�/
FATHER JOSEPH T. MURPHY
�-·
�FATHER MURPHY
461
and the booming voice, he would never have been such an
effective priestly workman.
Early Life
Joseph Thomas Murphy was born in Wilmington, Delaware,
October 31, 1891. He was the tenth, and next to the last, child
of Thomas A. Murphy and Maria J. Ready. Both of his parents were born in Ireland, emigrated separately to the United
States, settled, met and married in Chicago, Illinois. The
oldest daughter was baptized in the Jesuit Church of St.
Ignatius. His father, somewhat older than his mother, had
early schooling with the Augustinians and had acquired a
great love for his faith and for the Church. This was shown
later when he was a trustee of his parish and held office in
the St. Vincent de Paul, the Holy Name and Temperance
Societies. After the birth of the third child the Murphys
moved to Wilmington, Delaware, where Joseph was born.
There, at St. Mary's he was baptized, made his First Holy
Communion and received Confirmation. There too he attended
parochial school.
About this time the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales opened
the Salesianum High School in Wilmington. Young Murphy
enrolled. Enrollments were scarce in those days. He graduated
in 1909 with three others, received honors and a gold medal
for religion, and delivered a highly praised commencement
address. During high school he took private lessons in elocution as well as in playing the piano and organ to acquire skills
which came into excellent use later in his Jesuit life. Noteworthy too that two others of the four graduates also became
priests, one an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales and one a Vincentian.
How did one who had so little contact with the Society of
Jesus become a Jesuit? His devoted mother always thought
that she played an important part in that decision. Years
before in Chicago, when unmarried, she met a Patrick A.
Murphy who became a Jesuit and later went to Woodstock.
During a visit he made to Chicago she told him jokingly that
she was going to enter religion. On his return to Woodstock
he wrote her a beautiful letter, long treasured in the family,
advising her to select a regular confessor and to read certain
�462
FATHER MURPHY
things on the religious life. After her marriage the family was
friendly with Patrick A. Murphy, S.J. When young Joseph
decided to become a priest and a Jesuit he discovered that
Father Murphy was at Marquette University and started a
correspondence with him.
There were, however, more immediate influences contributing to his vocation. At an early age he decided to become a
priest. His father died when he was twelve. He chose Holy
Thursday, 1906, to tell his mother that he wished to be a
priest after his gradu~tion. As graduation in 1909 came near
he asked permission to accompany two members of St.
Patrick's choir who planned to go to St. Andrew-on-Hudson
for retreat. About this time Father Louis S. Weber, S.J., was
giving a retreat to Ursuline Nuns nearby. Hearing that young
Murphy was going to St. Andrew's he visited the family to
talk with the boy and give him some encouraging advice.
Then he made it his business to be at St. Andrew's during
the retreat. On his return trip to Wilmington Joseph stopped
in New York City to see the Jesuit Provincial, Father Joseph
A. Hanselman, and make application for entrance into the
Society. Father Provincial referred him to the Fathers at the
Church of the Gesu, Philadelphia. A talk witq them produced
the suggestion that he spend a year attending_.a special class
at St. Joseph's. This he did. When the year was completed he
entered the Novitiate of St. Andrew-on-Hudson, August 13,
1910.
Jesuit Training
From 1910 to 1917 Father Joe went through the usual
training of a Jesuit. At the novitiate in Poughkeepsie he was
happy to have Father George A. Pettit, S.J. as his Master of
Novices. When he reached the rhetoric year of the juniorate
he thought himself fortunate to have Father Francis P. Donnelly, S.J. as his professor. After the two years of juniorate
he went on to Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland, for
the usual three years of philosophy.
During these years his musical talent came to the fore. As
a novice and junior he had the privilege to go along with the
priest to a near-by mission in order to play for Benediction.
When Cardinal Farley paid a visit to St. Andrew's, the young
�FATHER MURPHY
463
Jesuit from Wilmington took part in the academy given in
the Cardinal's honor by rendering Chopin's Polonaise on the
piano. At Woodstock he played the piano frequently for the
Scholastic orchestra. Whenever there was need of an organist
he was glad to sit at the keyboard.
Regency began for him at Georgetown University Prep
where he taught a class, assisted with the prefecting and acted
as moderator of the orchestra from 1917 to 1919. He composed
the music for Georgetown's Blue and Gray, for which Leo P.
Burke, '20, wrote the words. In 1919 he went for a year to
Regis High School, New York City. The next scholastic year
1920-21, Mr. Murphy went to Baltimore to teach in Loyola
High School, then on Calvert Street. In addition to teaching
a high school class, French and elocution, he was moderator
of the dramatic and debating societies. At the end of the
year the students presented King Lear under his direction,
and on that occasion a full orchestra helped to present for the
first time the new Loyola anthem, Men of Loyola Hail, his
composition both in words and music.
After four years of teaching and extracurricular work in
the regency Mr. Murphy returned to Woodstock College for
his four years of theology. He was ordained on the feast of
the Sacred Heart, June 27, 1924, in Dahlgren Chapel at
Georgetown University by Archbishop Michael J. Curley.
The newly ordained priests of that day were not permitted
to return to their home cities for their first solemn Mass. Thus
it happened that Father Joe offered his in the chapel of the
Holy Cross Academy, Dumbarton Heights, Washington, D. C.
His mother, four brothers and two sisters, as well as two
sisters-in-law, were with him on this consoling occasion and
were guests of the Sisters for breakfast.
Priest at Work
Father Murphy finished his course at Woodstock in the
Spring of 1925. Two years intervened before tertianship.
The first of these was spent at St. Peter's College, Jersey
City, New Jersey. While teaching a high school class and acting as moderator of the debating society Father Murphy
helped in the church, accepted twenty Sunday calls, gave a
novena in honor of the Immaculate Conception and a triduum
�464
FATHER MURPHY
for Children of Mary, a Novena of Grace at St. Michael's,
Jersey City, a Lenten course in Rahway, New Jersey, a
Knights of Columbus sermon, an address at a N.C.C.W. banquet, etc. The following year he was student counsellor in St.
Francis Xavier High School in downtown New York. Some
estimate of his zeal and unsparing labor may be gained by
noting that during this year at Xavier he directed all school
Sodalities and the Knights of the Blessed Sacrament, was
extraordinary confessor·for two convents, gave seven novenas,
six retreats, two tridua;- two Lenten courses, one Three Hour
service and one baccalaureate address. He conducted also the
weekly Xavier devotions, heard five thousand confessions,
and spent August helping on Randall's Island. At the end of
the year there were seventeen vocations to the Society of
Jesus. He journeyed to St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie
to begin tertianship in September, 1927.
The pattern of his priestly life is evident. After tertianship,
he resumed more active priestly work when he was assigned
to the Brooklyn Preparatory School in 1928 as student counselor and moderator of the Sodality, the League of the Sacred
Heart and the Knights of the Blessed Sacrament. At the end
of this scholastic year there were five vocatioll£' to the Society
of Jesus. Two other events marked this year: one of them
sorrowful. Shortly after school opened he was called to
Wilmington because of the serious illness of his mother. On
November 2, 1928, she was stricken with a heart attack and,
annointed by her priest son, expired peacefully in his arms
on November 6. The other event was the pronouncement of
his final vows in Brooklyn, February 2, 1929.
In 1929 Father Murphy was transferred to the Gesu,
Philadelphia, to remain there until 1937. He served as parish
priest, moderator of the parish Sodality of the Blessed Virgin,
chaplain at Lankenau Hospital, director of the Jesuit Seminary Fund drive, and, from 1933 to 1937, as a teacher in
St. Joseph's High School located there. His great work was
in preaching and directing the Sodality. Some four hundred
single women were members of the Sodality and met in the
church every Tuesday evening, except during the summer
months, to say the Office, hear a talk and assist at Benediction.
Father Murphy was popular here also as a confessor and
�FATHER MURPHY
461>
preacher, and was known for his great kindness and his faithful attendance on the sick. Perhaps sixty percent of the sodalists who later married asked him to be the officiating priest
at their marriage. While at the Gesu a generous parishioner
gave him $8000 for a burse for the education of a Jesuit and
wished it named, "The Joseph T. Murphy Burse".
In 1937 Father Murphy was given notice to take up his
residence at the rectory of Our Lady of the Wayside, Chaptico,
Maryland, and be pastor of St. Joseph's Church, in nearby
Morganza. St. Joseph's had a mixed congregation, white and
colored, with two separate schools. The place was run down,
the tabernacle needed renovation, vestments were old and
worn, the ceiling of the church was in need of repair and the
church itself of paint, and the cemetery nearby was overgrown with weeds. He got the men of the parish to clean up
the cemetery. He called on his many friends in convents to
provide new vestments and altar linens, then burned the old
ones. The Good Shepherd Nuns of Peekskill, New York, sent
him a splendid organ. The church was painted, the ceiling
previously repaired. The pastor could be found, for example,
making screens to keep flies and insects out of the Sisters'
convent. His flock was dispersed over a large area. Therefore,
there was plenty of pastoral work for the shepherd. Tobacco
growers in the parish were selling their product through a
commission merchant and reaping little profit. With characteristic decision and helpfulness Father Murphy talked to the
growers and worked out an arrangement to have them sell
their tobacco at auction to agents of tobacco companies in
near-by warehouses, at a· considerable profit. This arrangement was later copied by others. His friendliness and zeal
appears in another incident. Driving along the road he saw
some of his colored parishioners trudging along to church
for confession. When he overtook them, he invited them to
ride. To which in amazement came the reply, "Father, nobody
ever asked us to ride in an automobile!" One day Father
John F. Cox, S.J., director of the Mission Band of the Province dropped in for a visit. Sitting on the porch at Chaptico
he asked of Father Murphy, "What are you doing down
here?" When the answer was given, he continued, "You
shouldn't be down here. You ought to be on the Mission Band.
I'll see to it that you are put on the Mission Band." Father
�466
FATHER .MURPHY
Murphy enjoyed his work at Morganza. He spoke of his assignment there as an act of Divine Providence to give him a
knowledge of how to administer the affairs of a parish.
l\lission Band
Father Murphy was assigned to the Mission Band in 1941
with residence at Old St. Joseph's, Philadelphia. For fourteen years until his death he remained a member. He joined
the Band at a time when there was need of reviving and extending its work, especially after the separation of the Maryland Province from the New York Province of the Society of
Jesus in 1943. There is no doubt that his power as a preacher
contributed much to that revival and extension.
While giving missions, novenas, retreats, tridua and occasional sermons, he had invitations or assignments in the territory of the three archdioceses and twelve dioceses which are
coextensive with that of the Maryland Province of the Society
of Jesus, from the lower half of New Jersey to North Carolina. On occasions his voice was heard in the New York area,
in the Midwest, and even farther afield. He preached in
cathedrals, in large and small churches in cities, towns and
villages, and gave retreats in convents, colleges and schools,
and in retreat houses for laymen and laywomen. Three years
in succession he gave the freshman retreat at Loyola College,
Baltimore. He preached the Three Hours in the Blessed Sacrament Cathedral, Altoona, in St. Matthew's Cathedral, Washington, as well as in Old St. Joseph's, Philadelphia and St.
Ignatius, Baltimore, and St. Alice's, Stonehurst, Pennsylvania.
His voice was equal to the largest church, without a public
address system, which he preferred not to use. Often he expressed the desire to visit the South, if that could be arranged,
and there go from church to church instructing Catholics
and influencing non-Catholics in that region where priests
are few.
Father Murphy was a successful missionary. Some did not
like his style of preaching. Most priests and the people did.
No sacred orator can always be at his best in the drudgery
and emotional exhaustion of a mission, with its early rising
and late retiring, the daily preaching morning and night, and
the daily sessions of confessions. Father Murphy was no ex-
�I
FATHER MURPHY
467
ception to this. The effectively powerful voice could at times
become too powerful, the barbs pointed at human sins and
follies at times perhaps too pointed. But he had usually the
power to draw people to make a mission and keep them intently interested when they carne. His effectiveness is shown
by the numbers he attracted to missions, by the constant
trek of sinners to his confessional and by the numbers
harassed by marital and other problems who sought an interview with him in parish rectories.
In analyzing his effectiveness, attention must be given to
his physical and mental equipment and to his spirit of faith,
of justice, of zeal and of charity. He had a good mind which
did not lose itself in abstractions. He had the knack of translating speculative truth into practical use for souls and their
needs. Practical, highly emotional and close to the people, he
knew them and their way of thinking, could talk their language, knew their foibles and failings which he could point
out vividly, strongly and even humorously. His lively imagination and powerful voice enabled him to express himself in
stirring phrase and pull out the stops of human emotions
somewhat as he did when he sat at an organ. He knew the
tricks of the orator's trade, and used them. Not insincerely.
For he was zealous to awaken in souls the spirit of faith, of
love of God, of love of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament
and of His Mother Mary. Father Murphy worked tirelessly
during a mission in preaching, in the confessional, and in
dealing with people's problems, but was ever solicitous to
spare another working with him from too great a burden of
labor.
For the matter of his preaching he drew from the Scriptures, from history, philosophy and theology of which his
written sermons and conferences indicate he had a good grasp,
from his knowledge of human beings, from his personal experiences which provided dramatic illustrations, and especially from the Exercises of St. Ignatius. He would say, "I just
give them the Exercises." He did present almost the bare
truths of the Foundation or the Kingdom in a way many
others could not hope to imitate. Then he would make his
applications. Of course, he used the matter required for mission instructions on confession, commandments, etc. He often
said, "What they need today is instruction." But there are
�468
FATHER MURPHY
different ways of instructing. One is the rather quiet development of the topic with sufficient exemplification. His was a
very effective dramatic way.
A few observations concerning his method of preaching
will complete the portrait. His style was direct. He looked at
his audience, talked to them, talked with them. Much of his
preaching was animated conversation: questions, observations, pointed jibes, frequent repetition to make them remember, humorous remarks or imitations. He might have his
audience listening intently to his dramatization of a story or
give them relief with a laugh as he imitated in voice and
gesture their easily recognized foibles. He understood well
the feminine mentality and could portray in voice, in gesture
and in action their failings as he brought them into dramatic
focus. On the other hand, when addressing men, he would be
strong, clear, brief, pointed, manly. Just as readily could he
adapt himself to the mentality of youngsters and hold their
attention with his remarks, his imitations, his facial expressions. When h& conducted the mission service for the blessing
of infants he could do so with such unction and fatherliness
that mothers would feel proud of their role in life and of their
children. His gestures were graceful, his .presence always
dignified. Most of the time he preferred to stand or move just
inside the altar rail. Walking down the aisle when men or
women said their beads aloud or sang the hymns, and leading
with his resonant voice, he could make them into a unified
praying and singing congregation. One might sum it up by
saying that he threw himself wholeheartedly into his task
with all the powers God gave him, yet never without dignity.
He said Mass and gave Benediction with great devotion. People saw in him the devout, devoted priest. His personal contacts with people made a deep impression on them. He was
not one to talk about his contacts, his converts, the sick he
visited and the p~ople he helped. But they were many.
Illness and Death
In the year 1954 Father Murphy had a painful recurrence
of an annoying back condition. He had suffered from this
sacroiliac condition through many years. He had consulted
doctors and secured special shoes. When at home in Old St.
�FATHER l\IURPHY
469
Joseph's he used to sleep in a bed into which hard boards had
been inserted. One can only imagine what trouble he must
have had in such attacks as he shifted from bed to bed in
different rectories and institutions to which his work called
him.
The recurrence of the attack in 1954 found him quite bent
over. Prevailed on to see a specialist he underwent traction in
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Camden, New Jersey, which he
entered June 1 and left June 8, feeling much better and wearing a brace. About this time a heart condition was discovered
which seemed linked with hypertension. It did not seem serious but he was advised by the doctor to refrain from all
strenuous preaching. This order he followed, restricting himself to week-end calls and an occasional talk or triduum or
light retreat. Though he rested at Old St. Joseph's, he did
what he could to help the superior, Father Thomas J. Love,
and the treasurer, Father John J. Brown, with their mail.
Father Love himself, had a critical heart condition and needed
assistance. On Sunday morning January 2, failing to get a
response to a knock, Father Murphy entered Father Love's
room only to find that he had arisen and fallen back with a
fatal heart attack. Father Murphy anointed him. The experience must have been a shock to him. Later he is reported to
have said, "I'll be the next one." From then on he had temporary charge of the community and the task of the funeral arrangements. Habitually unsparing of himself, he was all
action in doing what had to be done, even serving table and
washing dishes when help was short.
About six o'clock Friday morning, January the fourteenth,
Father Murphy rapped on the wall of his neighbor, Father
John J. Brown. Father Brown entered the room and found
that Father Murphy had what seemed to be a bad heart attack, but was sitting up in a chair. He gave him the last rites
and summoned a doctor. Soon Father Murphy was in an
ambulance on his way to the hospital. He seemed to expect
death. But quiet and rest in an oxygen tent quickly brought
down his high pressure, suggesting that his attack may have
been caused by hypertension. Though he was not in a critical
condition, his relatives were notified. Reverend Father Provincial William F. Maloney paid him a visit on Monday, January 17, was startled to find him in an oxygen tent, and feel-
�470
FATHER l\IURPHY
ingly told him how much he appreciated and thanked him for
the good work he had done for the Society.
That night about ten o'clock, January 17, he had a sudden
attack and pulmonary collapse. The next morning the doctor
said that the prognosis was grave, but it was uncertain what
would happen. It turned out to be the last day of Father's
life. His younger brother, Francis, remained in the hospital
that day. That evening he was joined by another brother,
Dick, and his wife, Nan, who had hurried from Cleveland.
They talked to the p-atient, helped a nurse to arrange him for
the night, and finally left the room about nine-thirty. The
doctor then gave them the impression that the patient's condition, though uncertain, did not seem critical, and that they
could safely go to their hotel. Earlier that evening Father
Murphy had looked often at a crucifix on the wall and then
asked that the rosary be put in his hands. The nurse reported
that Father Murphy, who had told her that afternoon that he
was not afraid, prayed much and uttered ejaculations such as
"Jesus, Mary and Joseph" and "0 Mary conceived without
sin". A special nurse entered the room at eleven o'clock and
found the patient's color poor, the respiration shallow and
the pulse imperceptible. She summoned a doctor. At eleventen the doctor pronounced him dead. He }lad died of heart
failure with congestion of the lungs to whickhardening of the
arteries and hypertension contributed.
Many friends, including sodalists of old at the Gesu, came
to Old St. Joseph's to pay their respects. The funeral Mass
was attended by many Jesuits, diocesan priests, relatives and
friends. The Most Reverend Joseph McShea, D.D., Auxiliary
Bishop of Philadelphia, gave the last absolution. Burial was
in the cemetery at the Novitiate of St. Isaac Jogues, Wernersville, Pennsylvania. Father Murphy, with his decisive mind,
dominating will and oratorical ability might have become a
very successful man in many walks of life. Long ago, however, he set his heart on living and dying for Christ.
FERDINAND SCHOBERG, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
TRULY NOTABLE
The Mystery of the Woman. Edited by Edward D. O'Connor, C.S.C.
Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1956.
Pp. x-150. $2.75.
This important book contains three theological and two historical
essays. The former concern the Marian dogmas which have engaged the
particular attention of theologians. In "Theotokos: The Mother of God,"
it is the thesis of Father Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., that the significance
of the divine maternity in 431, when it was equivalently defined, lay
in its relationship to the physical Christ; and that its added significance
today lies in its relationship to the mystical Christ. In other words, the
significance of the divine maternity in fifth-century Ephesus lay primarily in this, that it furnished a fresh insight into the person of
Christ, into Christology, into the fact of the Incarnation; its added
significance in twentieth-century America lies in this, that it suggests
a fresh insight into the work of Christ, into soteriology, into the task of
redemption. In his effort to penetrate the divine design of redemption
and Mary's role therein, Father Burghardt starts with the patristic
affirmation that Mary is the Church, or a privileged type of the Church;
he shows that she represents "the believing Church, the whole community of Christians, hierarchy and laity, in so far as it hears the word of
God and welcomes it within." At the moment of her fiat, the substance
of the mystery of the Church to come was realized in her. "The Church
is a collective Mary, and Mary is the Church in germ." This beautiful
and profound doctrine is further illuminated when considered in the
light of the fact that Mary's motherhood was virginal. "The denial to
man of any initiative in her fruitfulness must, if it be Christian, stem
from a woman's total dedication to God, a complete openness to the
divine, receptivity to God and to God alone." For Mary and the Church,
it is only by reason of virginity thus understood that they can achieve
fertility. It was by Mary's total response to God's invitation that she
became the mother of His Son. It is by prolonging this response that the
Church forms Christ in individual souls. Moreover, these lovely truths
are further clarified by Mary's Immaculate Conception, her personal
sinlessness and her glorious Assumption. "Mary conceived without sin
is Mary redeemed, and Mary conceived without sin, Mary redeemed,
Prefigures the whole community of the redeemed, fashioned without sin
from the lanced side of the Crucified." In Mary's personal sinlessness
"we discover in its ideal state the sinlessness which is of the Church's
essence, yet is realized not at once, but from day to day, till humanity
be gathered up in Christ." The consummation of the redemption operated by the Church, which will have place only when the body is transformed and the whole man, body and soul, confronts his Creator in an
eternity of knowledge and love, "finds its first purely human realization
in Mary assumed into heaven, body and soul."
�BOOK REVIEWS
472
Father Ferrer Smith of the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D. C., in the second of the theological essays presents an inspiring
discussion of the Immaculate Conception. First he studies the devastation caused by sin. Sanctifying grace was "the channel allowing the
passage of the infinite goodness, the infinite love of God. Through it
would pass riches without end and eternally. Through it God would
pour out divinity, pour out Himself. By sin man damned up that channel, closed off that source of enrichment." Next Father Smith gives
some beautiful paragraphs on grace as the love of God. "All creation
is, and literally, a divine love song." We are loved infinitely. Grace
"breathes of beauty as a flower in the midst of the desert and the
beauty is the beauty of Gog.' Grace is love and the fruit of love; grace
is life and life everlasting."'' Christ died that Mary might never know
the slightest stain of sin. Mary was moulded to undreamed perfection
by the love of God and the Passion of Christ. Finally Father Smith
discusses the strangeness and remoteness which some might notice in
Our Lady. He concludes, "If we do not know Mary in her fullness, do
not love her in her sublimity, do not imitate and take her to ourselves,
the fault lies, not in her, but in our unwillingness to see, in our unwillingness to give ourselves to God."
The third of the trilogy of theological essays written by Monsignor
George W. Shea of the Immaculate Conception Seminary, Darlington,
New Jersey, is an explanation of the solemn definition of the Assumption by Pius XII and shows an extraordinary mastery of the literature
on Our Lady. The insights into the basic importance of the dogma for
our times by the rejection of naturalism and angelism are especially
noteworthy. The essay on "Our Lady in our Land" by· Daniel Sargent
recalls his earlier distinguished work in this field~· whereas Father
Eugene P. Burke's final essay is a brief but moving one on Our Lady
at the University of Notre Dame. In a distinguished foreword, Father
Theodore M. Hesburgh, President of Notre Dame, explains the origin
and purpose of this truly notable production.
EDWARD
A. RYAN, S.J.
THE PERFECT STORY
Perfect Friend, The Life of Blessed Claude La Colombiere, S.J.
By Georges Guitton, S.J. Translated by William J. Young, S.J.
B. Herder Book
1956. Pp. xxii-440. $6.00.
Go.,
Once again, Father Young has performed a valuable service for
English readers by his translation of the life of Blessed Claude La
Colombiere, S.J., from the French of Georges Guitton, S.J.
Though it is true that La Colombiike's principal role was to be an
apostle of devotion to the Sacred Heart, readers will also be grateful
to Pere Guitton for opening up to them the other facets of La Colombiere's career. He was a distinguished preacher in a century and country
�BOOK REVIEWS
473
of distinguished preachers; he was an accomplished humanist; an incomparable spiritual director; an able superior; a victim of the Titus
Oates Plot in England; a patient sufferer. And though Pere Guitton
deals with each of these roles in a competent way, the reader cannot
but detect that what we know of La Colombiere from the sources is a
mere shadow compared with what we do not know.
Yet the Jesuit La Colombiere can be more easily known. His spiritual
notes, many of his letters of direction, his sermons-in fact, six large
volumes of his own writings-remain. From these Pere Guitton has
chosen judiciously. He has discovered the true La Colombiere and has
presented the interior man adequately. It is for this, rather than
for the narrative story, that the book should be read. La Colombiere was
a great ascetic. He deserves far more recognition, respect and imitation. God makes use of human instruments in working out His inscrutable will. Surely, then, the spirituality of La Colombiere must have
played some part in moulding this devotion, recently termed by Pius
XII "a true synthesis of the whole Christian religion." By a study of
his own writings, we may come to understand his influence on the
devotion.
FRANCIS X. MOAN, S.J.
DISPASSIONATE
The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Originality of Christ. By Geoffrey Graystone, S.M. N. Y.: Sheed and Ward. Pp. 117. $2.50.
It is indeed a rare phenomenon in a country addicted to booing the
"egg-head" when anthropological erudition makes a "big hit." Yet
it is undeniable that the excavations at Qumran and the discussion of
the Dead Sea Scrolls have done just that. Aside from numerous articles
in journals destined for the elite of the scholarly world, two books (The
Scrolls From The Dead Sea by Edmund Wilson and The Dead Sea Scrolls
by Millard Burroughs) have brought the story of the excavations and
their possible repercussions upon Christian history to the attention of
a wide cross section of the reading public. Indeed, a person who does
not have at least a nodding acquaintance with the Dead Sea Scrolls
might well find himself at a loss in polite conversation today.
This popularization is, however, a mixed blessing. As Father Graystone points out in this volume, there is a tendency to draw unwarranted conclusions from the data so far deciphered, conclusions which
might lead the less critical reader to believe that Christianity is but an
historical outgrowth or a concretization of the religious temper of the
Chosen People just before the advent of Christ. This volume (originally
a series of articles in the Irish Theological Quarterly) is an attempt by
a Catholic biblical scholar to clarify the problem of the Dead Sea Scrolls
and their relationship with the genesis of Christianity and to submit to
scholarly scrutiny other works on the same subject.
We are indebted to Father Graystone for a dispassionate attempt
�474
BOOK REVIEWS
to examine the "facts" and the "conclusions drawn from them" in a
style that is at once both scholarly and readable. Even a brief perusal
of the volume will indicate the author's constant endeavor to prescind
from argumentative apologetics and to illumine the facts involved in
the case. Perhaps one might not find himself in complete agreement
with the author concerning the degree of indirect influence on "the
peripheral elements" of the New Testament literature, but this would
be an incidental difference of opinion within a much wider context
of agreement about essentials.
R. M.
BARLOW,
S.J.
COMPLETE AND CAREFUL
Dictionary of Scholastic Philosophy. By Bernard Wuellner, S.J. (Milwaukee: Bruce Publishing Co.), 1956. $4.25.
Father Wuellner's Dictionary is a complete and careful compilation
of all the terms that are customarily used in the philosophical manuals,
along with their accepted definitions and, occasionally, certain logical
schemata which show the relationships between the various preferred
usages of the same term. The definitions fall into two general classes:
the first merely gives the manual definitions; the second includes references to the primary sources, particularly the works of St. Thomas
and Aristotle. Most of the definitions would be more serviceable, had
examples been appended. As it is, the undergradmtte student, for whom
this dictionary has been designed, is not liable-· to find some of the
definitions helpful. Take for example, analogous concept: "a concept
that represents a nature that is known not immediately but by an incomplete comparison with some better known nature that is only
partially like the object of this analogous concept." Or again, virtual
quantity: "some quantitative measure of a quality according to the objects to which a power or principle refers or to which it can or does
attain, or according to the rate of action." Examples would help to
clear up some of these obscurities.
Many a teacher, however, will not look with favor on the suggestion
that his students need a dictionary in order to understand what he is
teaching them. It may very well be true in certain cases that the
students do need such an aid. But the solution in such cases would not
be a dictionary but a new teacher. For it is supposed that a teacher
of philosophy tries to have his students understand, not words or terms,
not even Scholastic thought as such; rather to understand some real
experience which he is analyzing philosophically with them in class.
He does not aim at "proving that (the) definitions do correctly express
what a nature or activity is;" but rather, as Father Wuellner properlY
explains under the entry for induction, to assist the students to make
the proper induction from their own experience. And he who induces
�BOOK REVIEWS
475
does not prove; he "sees" and understands, and precisely in his own
world and in his own times.
Father Wuellner, however, does not subscribe to any of the possible misuses mentioned here. On the contrary he is fully aware of
the difficulties that face the tyro in philosophy and has designed
this dictionary as an instrument to be intelligently used in solving
some of them. No doubt that so used this dictionary will not be without
value. It will be up to the teacher, however, to insist on such intelligent
use at the risk of abandoning the attempt, always a difficult one at
best, to have the students think through a problem. He will find them
memorizing definitions instead. They may do so faithfully, even successfully; but the end result will be that they may learn to agree on
the meanings of terms but may overlook the more important achievement
of agreeing on reality.
H. R. BURNS, S.J.
ON THE SCRIPTURES
The Catholic Companion to the Bible. Edited by Ralph L. Woods.
Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott, 1956. Pp. 313. $3.95.
Anthologies naturally tend to offer kaleidoscopic impressions of their
subject. By way of exception this anthology on writings about the
Bible spreads a mosaic before the reader. The editor has selected
authoritative, interesting, provoking passages on Sacred Scripture,
written by Catholics throughout the centuries. He has arranged his
material in orderly fashion: Part One dealing with the nature, value,
and authority of the Bible; Parts Two and Three with the Old and
New Testaments. Modern writers, exegetes, theologians, philosophers,
as well as Fathers and Popes have been included: Augustine, Jerome,
Thomas; Leo, Benedict, Pius; Lagrange, De Lubac, Jones, Griffith,
Maritain, Heinisch, and a host of others. This volume beautifully pictures the ageless Catholic reverence, love, and appreciation of the Word
of God entrusted to the Church.
Mr. Woods sets for himself a modest goal which he attains. The
book is meant to be a companion and guide for the thoughtful Catholic
who is reading Scripture habitually, or for the first time. It is purPosely devoid of the technicalities germane to a scholarly study but
does succeed in ''placing the Book in the full context of Catholic faith
and teaching." Short, devotional quotations abound throughout the
Work. The spiritual reality of Scripture, its symbolism, inspiration,
inerrancy, canonicity, and various historical points comprise the first
Part. Then a few Old Testament problems are handled, together with
the religious value of Genesis and the Prophets. The redemptive
role of the Jews and of Mary climax this section. Part Three covers
historical, geographical, literary, and apologetic questions connected
�476
BOOK REVIEWS
with the New Testament and devotes a few pages to each of the
Gospels, to the Acts, Paul, Peter, and the Apocalypse.
Since the editor intends to make Scripture more meaningful by emphasizing its spiritual content, one can perhaps overlook the omission of
several exegetes with a more up-to-date approach. This omission is
especially noticeable in the part dealing with the New Testament, but
it seems to have been unavoidable. For the sources of this volume
have been limited to books written in English or translated. Periodicals
and the vast amount of material in French have been left untouched.
PHILIP J. CALDERONE, S.J.
THE EIGHT DAY RETREAT
Eight Day Retreat Based on the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius
Loyola. By Rev. Francis X McMenamy, S.J. Edited by Rev. William Grace, S.J. Bruce, Milwaukee: 1956. Pp. x-218. $4.00.
The familiar problem of adapting the Spiritual Exercises to the
exigencies of an eight day retreat is admirably met in this little volume.
It is not a set of instructions or a latter day Directorium; it does not
speculate upon the theological implications of lgnatian spirituality; it
is not a textual study. Rather it is one man's simple method of giving
the Exercises in eight days. That this method has met with remarkable
success needs no mention here. The very name, Francis McMenamy, has
become in the minds of a generation of America-D.--Jesuits synonymous
with a good retreat. Father McMenamy's notes on the Exercises, long
circulated in typed or mimeographed form, have brought his admirable
spiritual insights to many Jesuits who did not have the good fortune
to have made one of his retreats. This little volume is the first edition
of his retreat notes in printed form. It has been painstakingly edited, so
that the structure, the thought and even the style has lost none of its
original flavor.
Father McMenamy follows the customary sequence of meditations as
presented in the book of the Exercises and his points for meditation are
fine examples of the traditional approach to the Exercises. Occasionally,
however, such short treatments as those on the supernatural life, on
purity of conscience, and on poverty and chastity are added as an inter·
pretation of the Exercises themselves. Outstanding even in this uni·
formly excellent v~lume are his treatment of the Principle and Founda·
tion, the Hidden Life, the Crucifixion and Death of Christ, and the
Contemplation for Obtaining Divine Love. Retreat Masters should find
in this book an invaluable source of ideas and of inspiration for their
work. It is to be recommended, also, to the Jesuit priest who makes his
own retreat as a practical handbook on the Spiritual Exercises.
R. M.
BARLOW,
S.J.
�477
BOOK REVIEWS
THE LITERAL APPROACH TO THE EXERCISES
Los Ejercicios de San Ignacio. Explanacion y Commentario Manual
para formar Directores de Ejercicios y para la oracion mental diaria.
By Antonio Encinas, S.J. Santander: Sal Terrae, 1952. Pp. 816.
Father Encinas is not a newcomer to the field of lgnatian spirituality.
He brings with him rich knowledge and long experience in the Ars
lgnatiana, from his long years as a tertian instructor and retreat master.
This volume has been published in a twofold edition: one for priests
and religious in general and the other for Jesuits, with comments and
application particularly suitable in Jesuit life. The first impression is
favorable. One is particularly struck by the extraordinary clearness of
the printed text, which uses at least five different sets of type. Furthermore, there are excellent summaries at the end of each meditation.
Unfortunately one looks in vain for an alphabetical index and a bibliography, two fundamental appurtenances of any scholarly book of this
type. Needless to say Father Encinas like a true Spaniard and son of
St. Ignatius follows the text of the Spiritual Exercises literally, too
literally. Why, for example, should we feel constrained to cling to that
division: persons, words, actions? Can such artificial vivisection really
hope to produce a scene true to life, where we imagine ourselves to be
present? Admittedly St. Ignatius was not a man of fertile imagination,
as is clearly seen from his writings. Is it not better, then, to follow his
spirit, rather than his letter, if he asks us to represent to ourselves the
scene as though we were actually present? In this connection one might
compare the dry, artificial applications of the senses which are offered
in this volume with the accomplished masterpieces of such artists as
Father Longhaye and the unsurpassed Father Meschler. The difference
will be immediately evident.
The title is somewhat misleading, unless there is a second volume to
follow. For the book contains only thirty-two meditations and makes
little mention of such important items as the Additions, the Annotations
or the various rules which are so important as interpretations of the
corpus of the Exercises. It seems strange that, while much that forms
an integral part of the Exercises has been omitted, Father Encinas
should, on the other hand, have added much of his own thought, not to
be found in the Spiritual Exercises. Reference is made especially to the
complicated schemes and elaborate diagrams on daily self-analysis.
BERNARD M. WELZEL,
S.J.
SUPERNATURAL CONTEMPLATION
An lgnatian Approach To Divine Union. By Louis Peeters, S.J. Translated by H. L. Brozowski, S.J. Bruce, Milwaukee, 1956. Pp. xiv-114.
$3.00.
The present volume is a translation of the first edition of the author's
Vers l'union divine par les Exercises de S. Ignace (Beyaert, 1924).
�478
BOOK REVIEWS
Since a second enlarged edition of this same work has appeared in
French, it is something of a mystery why the smaller first edition was
chosen for the introduction of Father Peeters to the English-speaking
world. Still it must be admitted that this translation expresses the author's
thesis with sufficient clarity and, incidentally, spares the reader the
rather distracting answers to objections. The inner finality of the Exercises constitutes the master theme of this book. This finality is manifest
not only in the text of the Exercises, but also in the intention of their
author. In support of this idea, the life of St. Ignatius is studied, and
the text of the Exercises is submitted to scrutiny. No gift of supernatural contemplation, the ·author maintains, exists, that does not find
its place and its development in the Spiritual Exercises. In spite of the
controversy the book tou~hed off, the solidity of its exposition is
attested to and the thesis is given full approval by Father de Guibert
in his recent historical work on the spirituality of the Society. For the
most part the English is good-certainly true to the author's thought.
There are a few awkward turns of phrase, at least one dangling participle. Every Jesuit will thank the translator for making available a
powerful vindication of the lgnatian way, and a spur to its persistant
pursuit.
ROBERT J. SUCHAN, S.J.
DOCTRINE AND PEACE OF SOUL
Inward Peace. By Raoul Plus, S.J. Westminster: Newman Press, 1956.
Translated by H. Ramsbotham. Pp. 131. $3.00.
In his usual readable style Father Plus presents us-with a short book
on the theory and practice of Christian peace. The first part of the book
treats the nature of peace and its dogmatic groundwork: faith, hope,
and love. The theory unfolds through the use of the anecdotic quote and
pertinent excerpt from spiritual diaries and secular biography. In the
second section the author considers the strange case of Angelique
Arnauld. In her search for peace this strong-minded lady of Port Royal
never completely assimilated the shrewd advice of St. Francis d~ Sales.
The approach of the book is on the popular level. It does not pretend
to be a psychiatric manual. Rather it is a swift-moving spiritual guide
which traverses the pertinent areas of Christian revelation with an
eye open to the inner experiences of various souls, from Michelangelo
to Peguy. Since the book draws much of its interest from these glimpses,
the reader may find them all too brief and fleeting. However, they make
for interesting and animated reading.
JOHN J. HEANEY, S.J.
The Two-Edged Sword. An Interpretation of the Old Testament. By
John L. McKensie, S.J. Milwaukee: Bruce, 1956. Pp. xv-317. $4.50.
The purpose and precise nature of the Old Testament is here explained by an expert. We plan to publish a longer review of it later.
�479
BOOK REVIEWS
MEDITATIONS ON THE SACRED HEART
In Retreat With the Sacred Heart. By Fra~ois Charmot, S.J. Westminster. Newman Press, 1956. Pp. x-226. $3.00.
This strikingly unusual volume is a collection of meditations on the
Sacred Heart. Its appearance in a year which has seen official commendation given both to the devotion to the Sacred Heart and to the
author of the Spiritual Exercises is indeed felicitous. The attention of
the reader is immediately arrested by the mode of expression which
the author uses to develop his spiritual insights. For this volume is
written somewhat after the manner of the Psalms in a type of rhytl\.mic
prose that is peculiarly adapted to foster devotion. Still, it must be
insisted, this is not a pious book in the pejorative sense of that word.
On the contrary, the uninstructed layman will find some chapters difficult. The first two meditations, for example, discuss the foundation of
the devotion to the Sacred Heart-the relation of the Sacred Heart
to the Trinity. This teaching, it will be remembered, was emphasized by Our Holy Father in his Encyclical, Haurietis Aquas. The poet,
the theologian, the priest-for all, this book will have an appeal. Both
religious and laity will find the meditations helpful in supplementing a
retreat. Sister Maria Constance's translation is so well done that one
is almost led to believe that this is not really a translation at all.
R.
EUGENE
MORAN, S.J.
THE CHRONICLER AND THE KING
The Life of St. Louis. By John of Joinville. Translated by Rene Hague
from the text edited by Natalis de Wailly. New York: Sheed and
Ward, 1955. Pp. 306.
This third volume of the Makers of Christendom series, under the
editorship of Christopher Dawson, presents a modern English translation of John of Joinville's popular life of St. Louis, King of France. The
book falls into three parts, the longest of which lies between two shorter
Parts of a very different character. This middle section contains the
memoirs of John of Joinville, when he was overseas with the King. At
the beginning and end are shorter sections concerned with the virtues of
St. Louis. Excellent annotations by the translator fill in the background
of the story. For those desiring a contemporary account of the actual
life of the medieval Crusader, these memoirs of St. Louis's first Crusade
Will prove most satisfying. Joinville is a frank, honest writer and is at
his best as an eyewitness, whose experience gives him an opportunity
to speak of Louis's courage, charity or humour; of his hasty temper;
his extreme severity and even his petulance. What emerges from the
reading is the personal virtue and faith of St. Louis. Even in captivity,
his dignity and integrity so impressed his captors, that some of them
in jest proposed that he should be their next Sultan. There is no cor-
�480
BOOK REVIEWS
ruption of great power here but a stirring example of Christian faith
b: the noblest character of all the Crusaders.
J. J. GOLDEN, S.J.
CONVERSION TO UNION
The Three Stages of the Spiritual Life. By J. Grimal, S.M. Translated
into English u.nder the direction of Joseph Buckley, S.M. Milwaukee:
The Bruce Publishing Co. 1956. Pp. I- v-117; II- v-144; III- v-114.
3 vols. $8.00.
Father Grimal's three volumes correspond to the traditional three
stages of the spiritual lift;>. The first volume treats of the true conversion of heart and the obst.-\cles to this conversion; the second, of the
soul's progressive dominati01i of deliberate venial sins and the practices
of virtues; the third, of the intimate and almost constant union of the
soul with God through affectiv(.~ and effective love. As· stated in the preface of the first volume, this po~·thumous translation of Father Grimal's
three little French volumes is mea:nt as a testimony of affection for him
as well as of admiration for his writing. It seems that these volumes
are not directed ..to any particular audience. Each has ten or more
chapters, which themselves could bec~')me books. Thus, brevity does not
permit the author the clarity of expo~>ition necessary for the beginner
whereas the advanced might complain o.f over simplification. It may be
because of this lack of development of · each chapter that the reader
finds himself disagreeing with the author·~
..·
B. MAYO, S.J.
j~. FOGELSANGER, S.J.
READING THE BIBLE
W:·
Reading the Bible-A Guide. By E. H. Rece and
A. Beardslee.
Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1956. Pp.'·_188-vii. $3.75.
The authors have designed this book "to make possible a~ intelligent
discussion of the meaning of the Bible." By presenting a sketch' 'ilf the
geography of Bible lands, an outline of Hebrew history and brief a)r" .. alyses of the books and authors of the Bible, they succeed in giving in
a small space an introductory knowledge of the growth and development
of the Bible and a familiarity with its purpose and content. Because
this Guide was written by Protestant authors for Protestant readers,
it will prove to be unreliable for Catholics. For example the introduction to the study of the Bible (Chapter One), contains two misleading
pages touching on the inerrancy and authority of Scripture, and on the
Bible as the Word of God. Chapter Two, a history of the translation of
the Bible, creates the false impression that the Church was opposed
on principle to the spread of the Bible in an English translation. For a
�BOOK REVIEWS
481
Catholic, too, much in the chapters dealing with the New Testament
will prove unsatisfactory. The portrayal of the development of the
leadership of bishops in the Church as a purely human phenomenon is
hardly satisfying. Another blemish is the rigid presentation of the
documentary theory in explaining the origin of the Pentateuch.
JOSEPH J. SMITH, S.J.
DOCfOR, HOSPITAL AND CATHOLIC MORALS
Medical Ethics. By Edwin F. Healy, S.J. Loyola University Press,
cago, 1956. Pp. xxii~440. $6.00.
Chi~
The author who gave us Moral Guidance in 1942, followed in later
years by Marriage Guidance and Christian Guidance, has now written
Medical Ethics. His purpose is to provide a textbook for Catholic medi~
cal schools, and a reference work for Catholic hospitals. This double
purpose has been amply fulfilled. Each of the eleven chapters,
which begin with the fundamental ethical principles, and end with the
spiritual care of patients, receives a clear and full treatment. Thus, for
example, the perennial problem of abortion is treated at length, and a
problem of special interest today, psychic hermaphroditism is clearly
explained in the light of morality. After the various principles are ex~
posed, they are pinpointed by several examples or cases wherein a
definite problem is given, a solution is offered, and an explanation of
the solution is added. These cases should be most helpful in teaching.
Each chapter has an up-to-date bibliography of pertinent books and
periodical literature. A twenty-three page index at the end of the book
makes reference to particular problems easy. A subsidiary aim of the
book is to provide a handy source of ethical information for non-Catholic
doctors who may wish to find out more about the moral principles which
their Catholic patients follow. This aim is also ably met, both by the
clear, documented explanations of the Catholic positions, and the genuine
respect for doctors of all faiths which is evidenced in Father Healy's
book. For the convenience of physicians there are printed at the end
of the book the declarations of ethical principles of three influential
groups in the United States: the Catholic Hospital Association of the
United States and Canada; the American Medical Association; and the
American College of Surgeons.
EowARD L. MooNEY, S.J.
SOUL AND BODY
Mind And Body.
1956. $3.50.
By Pedro L. Entralgo. New York: P. J. Kenedy.
Pedro L. Entralgo is the Rector of the University of Madrid and the
Professor of history of medicine in the Unviersity's Medical School. He
�482
BOOK REVIEWS
has written widely in the fields of psychology and psychotherapy. The
present volume is a fascinating one dealing with the historical changes
in the concepts of disease, relating these to Judeo-Christian culture and
particularly to Christian thinking. Entralgo points out that in the higher
primitive cultures human individuality developed to a marked degree
and the spiritual life became more complex. Eventually there was
recognition of the dignity and efficacy of thought to the point where the
hero of individual action, the knight-errant, could be supplanted by the
hero of individual reflection, the thinker. With this change came the
development of the feeling-and idea of guilt. Personal responsibility
became an acute sensation. Closely allied to this development of personal
responsibility was the early'"concept of illness as noted in the AssyroBabylonian cultures. Disease was primarily sin or moral impurity and
diagnosis consisted in something akin to examination of conscience.
Treatment was by expiatory rites. This led to a concept of the moral
unconscious which is evidenced by pre-expiation of omissions in the
ritual of religious services. The Homeric Greeks divided the immediate
cause of illness into two consecutive realities, the first being physical,
and the second moral, namely impurity. Homeric therapy therefore included the physical katharsis and the religious treatment of epidemic
diseases. Greek medicine led to a consideration of disease as being "by
nature", and suggested that Hellenic and, indeed, all Occidental medicine
had an inherent defect: the fundamental and dangerous limitation of
adhering too strictly to human nature, or corporeal consideration.
The school of Greek naturalism led to broader interpretations and
indeed in this era Entralgo limits katharsis to three specific meanings
and interpretations:
- ·
a) A religious ceremonial cleansing from a moral standpoint.
b) The intellectualized conception of Plato and Aristotle of katharsis
as a psychologic operation producing temperance by the employment of appropriate words.
c) The strictly medical concept of katharsis as medicinal purging.
These had a common orgin and were relatively interdependent in the
age of Greek naturalism. Entralgo carefully defines the two types of
medicine co-existing in Greece in Plato's time. These included theological
medicine which was a technical art and was the medicine for the aristocratic; whereas the non-physiological based on faith was primarily for
the people. Psychosomatic pathology in its current meaning could have
existed in Greece and indeed the Greeks came close to this potentiality,
for some brief notes 1>f Plato and Aristole indicate that the cathartic
action of the spoken word was appreciated. Galen, a victim of the
limitations of Hippocratic nosology, could not rise to the point of evolving this concept. Pathology according to Galen could not become biographic or personal.
With this background Entralgo launches into the description of the
impact of Early Christianity upon these concepts of illness in the treatment of psychological and moral inner life of the individual. The Christian world was trans-natural or trans-physical in its frame of reference.
�BOOK REVIEWS
483
The allusions in the New Testament to disease and to medicine are in
part metaphorical, presenting faith in Christ as the way to attain health,
in part literal relating to the actual circumstances, and in part deal
with the didactic teaching of the duties of a Christian in relation with
the sick. Entralgo carefully goes into the matter of demoniacal posses~
sion as recorded in the New Testament and eventually concludes that,
as in the case of miracles, possession should be considered possible and
creditable only when the understanding of the case is beyond the knowl~
edge and power humanly attained. Entralgo carefully traces a path of
medicine to the days of the Early Christians pointing out how Tatian
would permit the pagans to use medicinal remedies but not the followers
of Christ. The Early Christian attitude toward disease is brought out
as an acceptance, a means to obtain grace. The author points out that
the first hospital was founded by St. Basil of Caesarea about the year
370 A.D. Of particular importance for us is the great role that the love
of fellow men played in the care of the sick in the Early Christian days.
The first part of the book is extremely well written, carefully annotated
and widely illustrated with copious references from the Bible, from the
classics and from the writings of Early Christians.
The author then turns to disease in Occidental medicine and covers
rather quickly the range from Salerno to Freud. The somatic concepts
of medicine which evolved during this era, the great descriptive era for
the diseases of the body, are touched on briefly. Entralgo then treats the
work of Freud and his immediate predecessors like Charcot and Janet.
Freud is discussed in reference to the concepts of neurosis at the time
and Entralgo indicates that the major points in the psychoanalytic con~
tribution to medicine are:
1. The absolute necessity of dialogue with the patient.
2. The appreciation of instinct as a component of human life.
3. The discovery of the existence and significance of the different
forms of psychological factors.
4. Consciousness of the influence which mental life exerts on bodily
movements, and vice versa.
5. The successful attempt to assign the illness to its proper place in
the total biography of the patient.
The author looks upon the contributions of Freud as emphasizing the
Value of some of the excessive personalism of ancient Semitic medicine
and credits him with having brought to fruition the possibilities of
primitive Christianity. Freud in his work has added an anthropological
turn to western pathology so that the patient has come to be considered
a person. Entralgo's work is most fascinating but there is considerable
de-emphasis of somatic medicine throughout the book. This, of course,
would be in the line with what the author set out to do.
Certainly Entralgo with his broad grasp of medicine and its history
must be fully aware that somatic medicine had to evolve to a sufficient
degree to permit psychological medicine to achieve its own great heights.
Entralgo's beautiful work is a milestone in the development of cultural
and scientific trends in medicine.
FRANCIS M. FORSTER, M.D.
�484
BOOK REVIEWS
NEW ETHICAL THEORIES: AN EVALUATION
True Morality and Its Counterfeits. By Dietrich von Hildebrand with
Alice Jourdain. New York: David McKay Co., Inc., 1955. Pp. ix179. $3.00.
This is the second volume of a trilogy, of which Christian Ethics was
the first. In the main it sets forth two major deviations of present
morality, circumstance or existential ethics, and sin mysticism.
The authors present fairly and in detail the valid contributions of
these new ethical patte:tns. They are praiseworthy reactions against the
attitudes of the Pharisee· and the self-righteous. Situation ethics points
up the inadequacy and superficiality of the moral bureaucrat for whom
the only obligations are purely legal ones. It has it origin in the sincere
desire to find the will of God. Sin mysticism rightly protests against
the better-than-thou condemnation of the sinner by the proud.
The deficiency of sin mysticism, however, is that it "projects into sin
a kind of mysterious depth, a halo of humility, as though sin itself
were a protection against pharisaism" (p. 95). The prime manifestations of this moral trend are found in the novels of Graham Greene,
Mauriac and others. Such writers picture the tragic sinner, v.g., the
Catholic married .to a divorced person, as more noble and moral than his
proud and mediocre critics. Granted that such a sinner may indeed
possess a superior moral nobility, he is so not because of his sin, but
rather in spite of it. The book develops at length in what this nobility
consists, then with rare clarity and cogency acutely.analyzes the errors
and absurdities of the new mysticism.
- ·
Circumstance ethics is far more than the perennial discrepancy between principle and practice, code and conduct. It denies the applicability
of principle and code to moral life; or rather, it dispenses with all
but the one moral norm of conscience. The virtuous man need only do
what his conscience dictates in the concrete situation in which he finds
himself. Law and ethical rules cannot be applied because each moral
situation is entirely distinct from every other. Each moral decision is
based on a unique set of circumstances and is the result of a confronta·
tion of the "I" of the person with the "I" of God. Only the sincere
intention with which man follows his conscience before God is of anY
ethical import. God is not concerned with our actions. Thus situation
ethics in its more radical tenets is moral subjectivism, nominalism and
relativism, all in one.
But do not look 'for a complete or thoroughly scientific analysis of
existentialist morality in this work. There is no indication of the relation
between ethical theory and existentialism as a philosophy. In fact the
authors hold that neither circumstance ethics nor sin mysticism "are
philosophical theories, but rather lived, existential approaches to moral
problems" (p. 5). There is no mention of Jean Paul Sartre and but a
footnote reference or two to Kierkegaard. Only one or other of the pertinent papal pronouncements are cited. The book would profit by a
bibliography and an index. It is not documented in the proper sense of
�BOOK REVIEWS
485
the word. Perhaps its restricted length does not permit so adequate a
treatment of the subject.
Despite these shortcomings True Morality deserves to be read as a
supplement to the terse st:;1tements of the Holy See concerning situation
ethics. The papal allocutions give the basic skeleton of the theory.
Hildebrand and Jourdain give it flesh and blood. The book should go a
long way toward convincing the pseudo-Christian existentialist of the
radical untenableness of his position and awaken Christians to a purer
appreciation of the beauty of genuine morality.
ROBERT
H.
SPRINGER,
S.J.
THE SCIENTIST AND RELIGION
l:lcience and Christian Belief. By C. A. Coulson. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press. 1955. Pp. ix-127. $2.50.
This erudite little volume contains the McNair Lectures delivered by
the author at the University of North Carolina in 1954. Dr. Coulson is
a renowned theoretical physicist and is professor of applied mathematics
at Oxford University. In these lectures he sets himself to answer the
perennial question: Can a place be granted to religion in the scientific
age in which we live? The answer comes back as a resounding "Yes."
The book makes it clear that the author is a man of deep religious convictions; his scientific works show him a scientist of no mean ability.
The problem of science versus religion has evidently been harmoniously
resolved in his own life. He here discusses in detail a solution to the
problem.
Coulson states that the opposition to religion shown by many great
scientists may be due in part to a false approach of the Christian to
science. A dichotomization of experience and of existence, an assumption that science and religion are mutually exclusive, the postulation
of some special action of God to fill the gaps in our scientific knowledge
are all part of this wrong attitude. Coulson then discusses the nature of
scientific method and truth and comes to the conclusion that "on the
basis both of its actions and its search for truth, and of its mode of
Working and its presuppositions, science must be described as an essentially religious activity."
The book offers an interesting synthesis, and contains many valuable
insights. For example, the author strongly champions the fundamental
unity of science and faith, and he brings out forcibly the part the imagiation must play in scientific research. However, the synthesis is not
~ompletely satisfactory. In all fairness we should realize that the author
lS not a professional theologian, and we must admit that he does not
seem to be attempting a proof of God's existence or attributes from
reason. His definition of religion seems to have little relation to what
the word ordinarily denotes.
�486
BOOK REVIEWS
Despite these reservations, however, we must again warmly praise the
book as a deeply sincere attempt to reconcile what so many preconceive to be irreconcilable: religious faith and scientific knowldege.
PAUL J. McCARTHY, S.J.
A CLASSIC ON THE CATHOLIC FAMILY
The American Catholic Family. By John L. Thomas, S.J. Englewood
Cliffs, New Jersey: P~ntice-Hall, Inc., 1956. Pp. xii-471. $7.65.
The publication of Father Thomas' book on American Catholic families has been eagerly awaited by all who are familiar with the articles
he published while the book was in preparation. Father Thomas has not
disappointed us. His book is a masterpiece of the sparklingly clear
cultural analysis we have come to expect from him.
The basic question posed by this book is deceptively simple-and a
little startling. How can the American Catholic family remain Catholic
in America? No individual can dissociate himself from the culture which
surrounds him, coloring his attitudes, interests, beliefs, his entire personality. Nor can the American Catholic family. It is strongly influenced by
the varied, somewhat contradictory, changing phenomenon known as
American culture. Thus the complexity and the pertinence of Father
Thomas' question becomes more apparent when put in cultural terms:
how can a more or less loosely defined cultural subsystem (Catholic
families) retain its ideology and the institutionalized values derived
from its ideology, when it exists within a dominant-culture wholly or
partially at variance with its ideology and value system?
Taking as a social fact the existence of an American Catholic minority
who are Catholic and who wish to remain Catholic, Father Thomas
explains the inner logic of the Church's position on marriage; this
explanation embraces a large part of what can be called Catholic culture.
Thus Catholic ideology takes a fixed position on the origin and the end
of man, his nature and his relations with God. This ideology emerges
in institutionalized values, v.g., family, church, state, economic order,
etc. To implement these values, Catholics must have a coherent pattern
of individual and social action; otherwise the institutions are weakened,
and the ideology becomes obscure in Catholic life. Father Thomas'
treatment of this section of his book is so lucid and well organized that
many social scientists will probably recognize clearly for the first time
just what the Catholic· Church is and what it is trying to do.
Parts IV and V of the book are entitled "Family Breakdown" and
"Programs for Survival." In the former, Father Thomas uses his own
research into the factors influencing the breakup of Catholic marriages
in the Chicago archdiocese. His immediate source was the records of
the archdiocesan separation court, a unique and unusually reliable data
source for sociological analysis. The result is a well balanced picture of
divisive factors in Catholic marriages.
�BOOK REVIEWS
487
Father Thomas has written an excellent book, a classic of its kind. It
should be required reading for Catholic college students. For Catholic
teachers and parents, for priests and seminarians, the book is invaluable.
For marriage counsellors it provides necessary background and a wealth
of practical insight. For sociologists and anthropologists, it is a book
of major scientific importance, and has been recognized as such in the
professional journals.
RoBERT J. McNAMARA, S.J.
THE HOUR OF THE LAITY
The Role of the Laity in the Church. By Msgr. Gerard Philips. Translated by J. R. Gilbert and J. W. Moudry. Chicago: Fides. 1956.
Pp. 175.
This book gives evidence of real progress in the theology of the layman's role in the Church. It is the best work on its subject in English
and is likely to remain one of the most valuable for years to come. An
added worth comes from the hundreds of references given to books and
articles of the last ten years in this field. It attempts to give briefly the
theological foundations and consequences of the layman's role in the
Church. While conciseness is a happy keynote of this book, it is sometimes overdone. It is especially fortunate that a professor of ecclesiology
undertook this synthesis: the Church seems to be the best focal point
for it. In the book this point is never lost sight of in the maze of details.
The sections devoted to Catholic Action and the lay apostolate cut
through some recent confusion to get at the theological core beneath
them. Many will find that the chapter on a lay spirituality is about the
most stimulating.
KENNETH C. BOGART, S.J.
MSGR. CARDIJN SPEAKS
Challenge to Action.
Pp. 148.
By Msgr. Joseph Cardijn. Chicago: Fides, 1955,
The inspiration of Msgr. Joseph Cardijn has meant a great deal to the
specialized movements of Catholic Action, and has long been a moving
force behind the rapid expansion of the Young Christian Workers and
Young Christian Students. His name is something of a byword among
those who have even a passing acquaintance with the lay apostolate.
Now we have his chief addresses collected and translated. These addresses were not meant to be collected in book form. Though they read
Well, they repeat fundamental ideas. The first three talks in the book,
among the latest chronologically, express those ideas best. It is impossible to miss the urgings of apostolic charity that rise from deep within
the soul of Msgr. Cardijn. Some American readers will have difficulty in
�488
BOOK REVIEWS
appreciating the European background of some remarks made in the
book, and all may wince at a few jarring translations: "Maria!", "Entry
forbidden", "mates". But all should make the acquaintance of the man
who spoke this book.
KENNETH C. BOGART, S.J.
JESUIT EXPLORER
Garlic For Pegasus. The Life of Brother Bento de Goes, S.J. By Wilfred
P. Schoenberg, S.J. Westminster: Newman Press, 1955. Pp. x-214.
$3.50.
Were it not for the subtitle, this book could easily be taken for a
stray volume from the home economic shelf, instead of a stirring narrative of a sixteenth century Jesuit, an adventurer and ex-soldier from
Portugal. Pegasus, the winged horse of classic myth, is used to epitomize
his epic odyssey over the roof of the world to the Cathay of Marco
Polo. Garlic, however, strikes a more pedestrian note, for it was actually
used to sustain life on the taxing journey. Rubbed into festering gums
and fed to the pack horse, it was supposed to retard circulation and
thus prolong energy on those dizzy heights.
If the author had not assured us that "this biography is authentic to
the extent that the critical works on the subject have been carefully
followed," we might believe that the journey had b_een concocted by a
Hollywood scenarist with a bent for mad adventure: For three years
Brother de Goes, in the disguise of a Persian merchant, was without
Mass or Communion and at the end, on his death bed in Su-Chou, he
was bereft, like Ignatius and Xavier before him, of the solace of the
Last Sacraments. Yet, before he died, he was able to whisper to Brother
Fernandez, who had come from Father Ricci: "God is very good to me.
For many years I have not wilfully offended Him." This is indeed a
remarkable book about a remarkable man.
EMMANUEL
V.
NoN,
S.J.
•,
Commentarii lgnatiani 1556-1956. Volume XXV of the Archivum His·
toricum Societatis Iesu. Rome: Institutum Historicum S. I. 1956.
Pp. 615.
This is one of the most significant of the many periodical tributes to
St. Ignatius. Twenty-nine distinguished scholars, non-Jesuit and Jesuit,
have written on Ignatius' kin, life, fame, the sources of his life, the
Spiritual Exercises, and the Constitutions. The article by B. Schneider,
S.J., on the vow of obedience to the pope is deserving of special notice.
��-- -·
�
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Woodstock Letters
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n79046634" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits</a>
<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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Jesuit Archives & Research Center
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives & Research Center
Saint Louis University
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JA-Woodstock
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 85 (1956)
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1956 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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JA-Woodstock-085
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BX3701 .W66
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eng
lat
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JA-Woodstock
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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2017-2
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1956
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A.M. D. G.
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND MISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF JESUS
VOL. LXXXIV
:1371_
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1955
FOR CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
�INDEX TO VOLUME 84
ARTICLES
Decree on the Simplification of Rites--------------------English Jesuits Go EasL----------------------------------First Trial of the Noviciate------------------------------Georgetown University and McLean GardenS----------------------How Electricity Came to W oodstocL-------------------------Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises---------------------Jesuits in Buffalo: 1848-1869..------------------------------Jesuit Patrologists at Heythrop _____________________________
348
195
131
54
205
211
99
319
Jesuit Provinces in North America: 1805-1955------------ 155 and 287
Letter of His Holiness Pius XII ____________________________ 291
Letter of Very Reverend Father General on the Chinese Martyrs ____
Letter of Very Reverend Father General on St. Joseph Pignatelli__
Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus-------------------------------Meditation on the "Foundation" in the Light of Saint Paul________
Monument to Jesuit Heroism _________________________________
297
3
115
18
335
Never-Failing Source ----------------------------------------- ___ 10
New Tribute to Marquette UniversitY------------------------------------------ 61
Norms for the Buildings of the Society_________________________________ 301
November Thoughts ------------------------------------Powerful and Brilliant Armor______________________________________
Recent Discoveries of the Relics of St. Jean de Brebeuf_______
School of St. Philip Neri-------------------------------------Vatican Radio Station__________________________________
325
33
49
123
145
OBITUARIES
Father Thomas Aloysius Becker_______________________________________________
Father Vachel Brown_____________________________________________
Brother John F. Cummings __________________________________
Father Charles Denecke _______________________________________
Father Matthew Germing_____________________________________________
Father Augustine Krebsbach ___________________
Father Daniel Lord ____________________________________________
65
369
80
270
162
172
261
CONTRIBUTORS
!REVALO, CATALINO, Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises ___________
BURGHARDT, WALTER J., iesuit Patrologists at Heythrop__________
BURRUS, E. J., The Vatican Radio Station _______________
URRUS, E. J., Monument to Jesuit Heroism________________
211
319
145
335
�CARRABINE, MARTIN, Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus
CHARLTON, JOANNE LAMPE, A New Tribute to Marquette University
CuRRAN, FRANCIS X., The Jesuits in Buffalo: 1848-1869______
CUSHING, ARCHBISHOP RICHARD J., A Never Failing Source____
FITZSIMONS, M. J., Obituary of Brother John F. Cummings___
FOREST, CHARLES, The First Trial of the Noviciate _____________
GALLEN, JosEPH F., Decree on the Simplification of Rites ______
HENNESEY, JAMES J., Jesuit Provinces in North America: 1805-1955
IPARRAGUIRRE, IGNACIO, Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises __
JANSSENS, JOHN BAPTIST, VERY REVEREND, Letter on St. Joseph
Pignatelli -------------------------------Letter on the Chinese Martyrs _____________________________
115
61
99
10
80
131
348
155
211
KELLY, LAWRENCE J., Obituary of Father Thomas Aloysius Becker_
LEEBER, VICTOR, Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises _________
LEVIE, JEAN, The Meditation on the "Foundation" in the Light of
St. Paul-------------------------------MILWARD, PETER, English Jesuits Go East _____________________
MURPHY, GEORGE M., The School of St. Philip NerL_______
65
211
18
195
115
NOLAN, JoHN T., Spiritual HelP----------------------------PHELAN, HORATIO P., The Relics of St. Jean de Brebeuf_________
Pms XII, HIS HOLINESS, Letter to Very Reverend Father GeneraL_
PRENDERGAST, CHARLES I., November Thoughts ______________
324
49
291
325
REPETTI, W. C., Georgetown University and McLean Gardens___
REPETTI, W. C., How Electricity Came to Woodstock____________
SLATTERY, JosEPH A., Obituary of Father Vachel Brown ______
TATTU, SAMUEL A., Obituary of Father Augustine Krebsbach _ _
TuNoN, ALFONso, Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises _________
WALsH, THOMAS F., Obituary of Father Charles Denecke _________
WATERS, LEONARD A., Obituray of Father Matthew Germing_________
WOBIDO, LEO P., Obituary of Father Daniel Lord_ _________________
ZoRN, GEORGE, Powerful and Brilliant Armor__________________
54
205
369
172
211
270
162
261
33
3
297
BOOK REVIEWS
AHERN, PATRICK H., The Life of John J. Keane, Educator and Archbishop (Edward A. Ryan)-----------------------------BRACELAND, FRANCIS J., Faith, Reason, and Modern Psychiatry
(H. J. Bihler)---------------------------·-----BROWN, LEO C., FoLEY, ALBERT S., GAVIN, MoRTIMER H., LAND,
PHILIP S., NoLAN, WILLIAM A., THOMAS, JoHN L., Social Orientations (Vitaliano R. Gorospe)---------------------BuRKE, THOMAS J. M., Mary and Modern Man (Joseph E. Kerns)_
CAROL, JUNIPER B., Mariology, Volume I (Patrick J. Sullivan) __
180
399
390
86
284
�CRONIN, JoHN F., Problems and Opportunities in a Democracu
(Michael H. Jordan)
179
CURRAN, FRANCIS X., The Churches and the Schools (Harry J.
Sievers)
DE GUIBERT, JoSEPH, La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus
(J. Harding Fisher)
------ - - DOBBELSTEIN, HERMAN, Psuchiatry for Priests (Robert H. Springer)
FICHTER, JosEPH H., Social Relations in the Urban Parish (Robert
H. Springer) -------FERNAN, JoHN J., Theology, A Course for College Students (James
Alf) - - - FILAS, FRANCIS L., Joseph and Jesus (Gerard P. Bell) ______
GENSE, JAMES H., Feast Days in the Jesuit Calen~ar (John J. Nash)
HANDREN, WALTER J., No Longer Two (James~ Alf) _______
HERBST, CLARENCE A., The Letters of Saint Md~garet Mary (Robert J. Suchan)
--HoARE, F. R., The Western Fathers (Raoul M. Barlow) _____
HOHLENBERG, JOHANNES, Soren Kierkegaard (Avery R. Dulles)_
HoUSELANDER, CARYLL, The Way of the Cross (Gerard P. Bell) __
HUMMELAUER, FRANZ VoN, Points for Meditation (John F. X.
Burton)
___
90
95
88
281
83
176
89
391
185
90
186
286
397
JURGENSMEIER, FRIEDRICH, The Mystical Bodu of Christ (Vincent
T. O'Keefe) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 394
KENTON, EDNA, The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents (Joseph
R. Frese)
------285
KLEIST, JAMES A., LILLY, JOSEPH L., The New Testament (James
T. Griffin)
-----------84
KLEIST, JAMES A., LYNAM, THOMAS J., The Psalms in Rhythmic
Prose (Raoul M. Barlow)__
173
LAWLER, BRENDAN, The Epistles in Focus (Francis J. McCool)------- 183
McCoRRY, VINCENT P., More Blessed Than Kings (Edward A. Ryan) 96
MERTON, THOMAS, No Man Is an Island (Edward A. Ryan) _____ 396
MosT, WILLIAM G., Mary in Our Life (Garret J. Fitzgerald) ___ 184
Mouaoux, JEAN, The Christian Experience (Raoul M. Barlow) __ 177
NEUBERT, EMIL, Mary in Doctrine (John F. X. Burton) _ _ _ _ _ 85
ODDO, GILBERT L., These Came Home (Allen Cameron) __________ 188
PALMER, PAUL F., Sources of Christian Theology (Edward T. Murray) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 393
RAYMOND, ALLEN, Waterfront Priest (Thomas F. Walsh) _____ 390
ROBERTS, ARCHBISHOP THOMAS, Black Popes____________ 94
Roos, H., S.J., Soren Kierkegaard and Catholicism (Avery Dulles)_ 187
RooTHAAN, JOHN, S.J., How to Meditate (George Zorn) _________ 192
RoYCE, JAMES E., Personality and Mental Health (Hugh J. Bibler) 282
ROYER, FANCHON, Padre Pro (John F. Long)-----------------
92
�ScHEEBEN, MATTHIAS J., S.J., Nr:ture and Grace (Thomas E. Clarke)
SCHMANDT, HENRY J., STEINBICKER, PAUL G., Fundamentals of Government (S. Oley Cutler) _____
SIMON, BORIS, Abbe Pierre and the Ragpickers of Emmaus (Vitaliano R. Gorospe) -------------------------------SMITH, WILLIAM J., Spotlight On Social Order (Robert J. McNamara) --------------------------------------------------SuAREZ, FRANCisco, The Dignity and Virginity of the Mother of
God (William D. Lynn) ------------------------------------TALBOT, C. H., The Anglo-Saxon Missionaries in Germany (Wallace Campbell) -----------------------··----------------THURSTON, HERBERT, Ghosts and Poltergeists (Robert H. Springer)
TRESE, LEO, A Man Approved (Thomas F. Egan) _______________
VAN DOORNIK, JELSMA, and VAN DE LISDONK, The Triptych of the
Kingdom (Vincent O'Keefe) ------------------------WEIGEL, GusTAVE, A Survey of Protestant Theology (Vincent
O'Keefe) ----------------------------------WICKI, JosEPH, Le Pere Jean Leunis (Thomas L. Sheridan) ________
WILKIN, VINCENT, The Image of God in Sex (Paul F. Palmer) ____
GENERAL INDEX
American Provinces, History of 155, 287
Bibliographies on Exercises 215
Boston, Archdiocese of 10 ff.
Boston College 10
Brebeuf, St. Jean de 49
Buffalo 99
Catholic Education 14
Chinese Martyrs 297
Christocentric Detachment 24
Commentaries on the Exercises 214
Contemplation for Attaining Divine Love 257
Cushing, Archbishop Richard J. 10 ff.
Decree on Simplification of Rubrics 348
Delayed Vocations 123
Education 12 ff., 334
Electricity to· Woodstock 205 ff.
English Jesuits Go East 195 ff.
Filipino Catholic Association of Washington 71
Fordham University 99, 156
Foundation in the Light of St. Paul 18 ff.
Germing, Father Matthew 162 ff.
Gianfranceschi, Father Joseph 151
Georgetown University 54 ff., 333
Hegarty, Father Denis 49
Heythrop Meeting of Jesuit Patrologists 319 ff.
Holy Cross College 10, 68
398
178
174
93
175
188
283
191
87
182
176
394
�Hong Kong 199
Hus, Father John B. 103 ff.
Indifference 28
lndipetae 336 ff.
Introduction to the Spiritual Exercises 211 ff.
Japanese Mission 195 ff.
Jesuits in Buffalo 99 ff., 157
Jesuits in New England 10 ff.
Kino, Father Eusebio 345
LaFarge, Father 114
Lainez, Father James 119
Leunis, Father John 119 ff., 132
Long Retreat 131 ff.
Love 130, 295
Mahan, Father G. S. 129
Maine 17
Maintenance of Our Buildings 317
Manare, Father 134
Mangin, Blessed Leo Ignatius 297
Manila 200
Manresa 116
Marmion, Abbot 36
Marquette University 61, 157, 338
Maryland 155 ff.
Mass 355
McCarthy, Father 199
McCullough, Mary A. 385
McHugh, Mr. Joseph 124
McLean, Mr. John 59
Meagher, P. K. 39
Meditation 18
Mercurian, Father Everard 138
Messina 131
Method of Election 21
Mexico 339
Milward, Peter 195
Milwaukee 157
Missouri 155 ff.
Modern Youth 13
Molyneux, Robert 155
Montabone, Father Alphonsus 149
Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Exercitia et Directoria 212
Monument to Jesuit Heroism 335
Morris, John 212
Mortification 23
Moscardo, General 121
Moses 24
Mottle, Father A., 45
Moxley, Lloyd 57
Mullan, Elder 212
-·
�Murphy, Father George 123
Nazism 121
Neale, Charles 155
New England 11 ff.
Newman, Charles R. 59
New Mexico 157 ff.
New Orleans 157 ff.
New Spain 338
New York 155 ff.
Nolan, Father Henry 148
Novaliches 201
Noviciate 131 ff.
Obedience 34 ff.
Objective of Spiritual Exercises 226 ff.
Obligations to Educators 15 ff.
Octaves 351
O'Donnell, Edward J ., 61
Office 359
Ohio-Michigan Region 158
Olphe-Galliard, M. 42
Oregon 156
Origin of the Jesuits 37
Papal States 6
Parallel Actions of Grace 19
Parish Societies 16
Patten, Mrs. Anastasia 58
Paul, St. 18 ff.
Peck, General 56
Penetanguishene 52
Perron, James 108 ff.
Petitdidier, Father 139
Phelan, Horatio P., S.J. 52
Philip Neri School123 ff.
Philosophy 14
Pignatelli, St. Joseph 3 ff.
Pile, Colonel R. P. 54
Pontifical Academy of Science 151
Preparatory Prayer 22
Providence 5
Provinces 155. ff.
Queen of the Society 115
Queen's Work 263
Radio Station of Vatican 145
Regan, Father Robert E. 38
Regnaut Report 49 ff.
Relics of St. Jean de Brebeuf 49 ff.
Relations, Jesuit 49
Religious, Congress of 1952 37 ff.
Rubrics, Simplification of 348 ff.
Science 13
�Scranton University 273
Sewall, Charles 203
Soccorsi, Father Philip 151 ff.
Social Apostolate, On The 7
Sodality of Our Lady 120 ff.
Speicher, Father Peter 109 ff.
Spiritual Exercises 18 ff., 117 ff., 131 ff., 211 ff.
Stefanizzi, Father Anthony 147
St. John Berchmans 138
St. John of the Cross 47
St. John's Seminary, Foundation of 11
St. Louis Church, Buffalo 99 ff.
St. Michael's Church, Buffalo 107 ff.
St. Paul, Relation to Foundation 18 ff.
St. Philip Neri, School of 123 ff.
Tesson, Father P. E. 43 ff.
Theology Digest 40
Tigar, Father Clement 123
Timon, Father John 99 ff.
Undergraduates 13
Urbina, Ortiz de 323
Vatican 145
Vespers 358
Veterans Administration 124
Vigils 350
Villa 55
Vincentians 99
Vocations 10, 122, 386
Votive Masses 363
Vows 5, 116
Wadding, Father Michael 345
Wah Yan College 199
Walsh, Father Edmund 60
Walsh, Father Gerald G. 322
Walsh, Thomas F. 60
Weninger, Father Franz X. 102, 111
Wernersville 375
Wernz, Father Francis X. 301
Whitemarsh 156
White Russia 138, 155
Wicki, J. 141, 210
Williams, Mrs. Missouri 385
Williamsville 100
Wischaven, Father Cornelius 131
World Assembly of Youth 197
Writers House 152
Xavier, St. Francis 46, 116, 195, 267, 327 ff., 335 ff.
Xavier, Church of St. Francis, St. Louis 165
Xavier, Mission of St. Francis, South Dakota 171
Youth 13
--
�W 0 0 D ·S T 0 C K
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIV, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1955
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1955
A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL ON
THE RECENT CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLL 3
A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
Archbishop Richard J. Cushing, D.D.
10
THE MEDITATION ON THE "FOUNDATION" IN THE
LIGHT OF SAINT P A U L ' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 18
Jean Levie
POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARMOR_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 33
George Zorn
RECENT DISCOVERIES OF THE RELICS OF ST.
JEAN DE BREBEUF-----------·
Horatio P. Phelan
49
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS _ _ 54
W. C. Repetti
A NEW TRIBUTE TO MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY
Joanne Lampe Charlton
61
OBITUARIES
Father Thomas Aloysius ·Becker______________________ 65
Brother John F. Cummings _______________________ 80
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
Theology, A Course for College Students (Fernan)__
The New Testament (Kleist & Lilly) ____________
Mary in Doctrine (Neubert>--------------------------Mary and Modern Man (Burke) _________________________
The Triptych of the Kingdom (Van Doornik, Jelsma, &
Van De Lisdonk>-----------------------------------Psychiatry for Priests (Dobbelstein)__
Feast Days in the Jesuit Calendar (Gense) __________
The Church and the Schools (Curran)____________
Padre Pro (Royer)-------------------------------------------Spotlight on Social Order (Smith) _____________________
Black Popes, Authority: Its Use and Abuse (Roberts) _____
La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus (de Guibert) _ _ _
More Blessed Than Kings (McCorry)____
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
92
93
94
95
96
�CONTRIBUTORS
Most Rev. Richard J. Cushing, D.D. is Archbishop of Boston.
Father Jean Levie (Southern Belgian Province) is a professor of
theology at the scholasticate of the Southern Belgian Province, Louvain, Belgium.
Father George Zorn (Maryland Province) is Minister and Procurator
at Loyola College, Baltimore, Md.
Father William C. Repetti (Maryland Province) is Director of the
Archives at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Father Horatio P. Phelan (Upper Canada Province) is Professor of
Philosophy, Economics, and Sociology at Loyola College, Montreal,
Canada.
Joanne Lampe Charlton is a member of The Department of Public
Relations at Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis.
Father Lawrence J. Kelly (Maryland Province) is former Provincial
of the Maryland-New York Province and is now residing at Georgetown
University, Washington, D.C.
Father M. J. Fitzsimons (New York Province) is Professor of English
at the Novitiate of St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WooDSTOCK
LETTERS to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contributo~.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
:nte~ed
as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
ary and, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�A Letter of Very Reverend Father
General on the Recent Canonization
of Saint Joseph Pignatelli
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ: Pax Christi
In a few days, for the first time since he was raised to the
honors of the blessed, we shall celebrate the feast of St.
Joseph Pignatelli, whom we can rightly call the first saint of
the reborn Society. It is, of course, true that the Society
was not restored throughout the whole world until 1814.
However, from 1801 in the Russian Empire, and from 1804
in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, it was recognized by a
formal rescript of the Holy See. Besides this, with the approval of the Supreme Pontiff, there were also a good many
members living in other countries who were officially affiliated
to the Society in Russia. As has been often said, our Saint
provides a link between the old Society, which he had entered in 1753, and the restored Society.
Among the outstanding virtues of which he has left us
examples, I may mention here two in particular, his fidelity
and his charity. Both of them strike us as highly relevant
considerations in this day and age. We may thus suppose
that it is not without some special design of Divine Providence that a whole century passed before this canonization
took place, the cause for which was introduced back in 1842.
St. Joseph Pignatelli was a paragon of fidelity. All of you
realize how easily Pignatelli might have joined another Order
or become a secular priest once an unjust decree had deprived the Society in Spain of its civil status and condemned
its members to a merciless banishment. Indeed, from the
very outset· and all during his exile, these were the courses
to which he was time and time again most strongly invited
and urged by his relatives. Furthermore, what man would not
have found good reason for hesitation when he saw himself
banished from every dominion of the King of Spain with no
reasonable hope of any priestly ministry of the sort he would,
on the contrary, so readily have been permitted to exercise
in his homeland? Or when he saw himself well-nigh destitute of resources for all pious work, resources he would have
�4
THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
found in abundance among his relatives? Or when he saw
himself uncertain of all that the future would bring, a future
that might have proved happy and comfortable for him in
the bosom of his family? Deportation from his country at
the side of his brothers in religion was the choice St. Joseph
made. Sailing homeless from one strange shore to another,
he preferred tp endure extreme poverty, a starvation diet,
rough lodgings, all the nasty trials of the poor physical health
that was already his, rather than to forget the vows he once
took in the presence of His Divine Majesty. He might have
asked and obtained a dispensation from the Holy See permitting him to remain in his own country without, it seems,
violating any obligation in conscience. He would not even
consider it. This is clear from his letters to his brother who
was the King of Spain's ambassador in Paris. Such a course
he thought of as infidelity to God and man alike.
After the Holy See's suppression of the Society in 1773, he
was reduced by the same brief of Clement XIV to the status
of a secular priest. Thus he remained for many years, until
more than sixty years of age, he sought earnestly for readmission into the Society, with no less fervor than once
possessed him when, in his sixteenth year, he asked to be
enrolled among the Society's novices. Many would suggest
that a man as old as he, one long accustomed to a less austere
life, honored and esteemed as a priest by his contemporarieS,.
might with conscience pure and unsullied have done what
many actually did do, lived out in the world a life adorned with
virtues to a death already not too far off. Pignatelli did
not think so. At the first chance that was his to offer once
again the sacrifice of vows which he had once before offered
to God, he resumed his place in the Society, ready to do battle
for God beneath the standard of the Cross.
This is the kind of example the Supreme Magisterium of
the Church praises, confirms, and proposes for imitation.
Anyone else might think such fidelity rather excessive. Not
so tlie Spouse of Christ, the Teacher of Truth. Not so we,
the disciples of Christ. Not so our brothers, at this moment
prisoners for Christ in Eastern Europe. When they were
offered their freedom on the condition that they leave the
Society, though still undertaking the care of souls, all to
�THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
5
a man, the older ones in the lead, refused to depart from
prison. Vows made to God do not cease in the face of situations that are difficult to surmount, but only with death; or,
rather, with the coming of death, they are ratified for
eternity.
The fever of innovation which stirs our times, and which
proves more attractive than fruitful, has this among its effects,
that many have begun to doubt the efficaciousness of our religious life such as from the beginning our Holy Father Ignatius has taught it to us in The Constitutions and in the
Rules, many of which are substantially his work. It is admittedly true that the Church for more than a century now
has begun to sanction other different forms of the life of
perfection which are, indeed, freer from the sort of religious
observance that flourishes in our own Order as well in others
more ancient. It is, however, to the Society of Jesus that
Divine Providence has called us. This Society, with the
Church's approval and at her injunction, maintains intact
The Exercises and Constitutions of her Holy Father and the
decrees of her Congregations and Fathers General. As the
need arises, the Society is accustomed to change what is truly
outmoded and of secondary importance, but, emphatically,
she is not going to abandon her Institute. Thus, she will
never fail to guard unchecked that hallmark of religious men,
the observance of the vows and of the Rules. Abstention
from the things of the world, utter dependence in the use of
temporal goods, an obedience patterned on the famous letter
of our Father, and briefly set forth, too, in The Constitutions;
such are the objects which the Society honors, such will she
ever propose as deserving of honor. It is precisely in this
respect that we ought to follow the example of St. Joseph
Pignatelli, and prove our fidelity as he proved his fidelity to
an heroic degree, by counting as nothing any sacrifice whatsoever.
In the same way that he showed a constant and lofty fidelity
to the Order to which Divine Providence had originally called
him, so, too, did St. Joseph accommodate himself thoroughly to
the demands of time and place. To be brief, I mention only
his charity, which, for the circumstances in which he found
himself, was extraordinary.
�6
THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
His noble lineage, the refinement and gentility of his upbringing, afforded Pignatelli no little influence i~ the eyes of
princes and officials. He took advantage of this t.o re~der
every kind of service to brethren who had been driven mto
exile. He was untiring in his efforts to lighten the penalties
inflicted on them. To mention just one instance which surely
all of us remember, there is the comfort he brought to his
brethren as they were sailing for Italy, Corsica, and elsewhere. From one ship to another he passed, looking in on
the sick and aged, helping the dying, bringing relief to all of
them. With what hardship to himself, a sick man, he did all
this, one can well imagine. From time to time he coughed up
blood from his lungs. He was at the mercy of a high sea, shut
up in the cramped quarters of the ships of his day which were
crammed with deportees.
Far from converting the help of his highly placed relatives
into some respite for himself, he used their resources for quite
another purpose-to help his companions in their almost universal need. Still a young priest, he eagerly took up the
task of looking after those of Ours who were exiles and of
being responsible for them in the eyes of the Society. This
he did in circumstances which would have left any other
man utterly helpless and disarmed, even one prepared for it
by many years experience of office. What do you do when
young men by the hundreds are put into your care who have
no home, no food, no clothing, no books, no money? This was
exactly the assignment Pignatelli drew after he had been
driven first to Corsica, the1_1 to Genoa, then to the Papal States.
This was the burden placed by obedience on a religious who
had not yet taken his last vows. Once the pope had actually
suppressed the Society, to how many fellow religious reduced
to ?estitution did our Saint bring help out of alms painstakmgly collected from relatives! To how many men in the
world did the meek and humble priest bring secret assistance
to those especially whose previous position in life made the~
ashamed to beg!
~e recall the days following the partial restoration of the
Society. When ~he Roman Pontiff was forced into exile, St.
~ oseph offered him as an outright gift all the money he had
m the house. Shortly afterwards, living in Rome, he gained
�THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
7
a reputation for holiness that was due mainly to his boundless
charity towards the city's poor. No wonder God came more
than once to his servant's aid with what looks like a miracle of
multiplication of coins.
The wonderful example of our Saint speaks for itself.
There would be no need to follow it with further exhortation
were not the present condition of the world so precarious,
did it not cry for urgent remedies such as a greatly increased
fidelity in the imitation of the saints.
In a past instruction of mine, On the Social Apostolate, I
tried to show the difference between this kind of charity and
the work which today is called social work. The first was the
only form of charity towards the poor practiced in the days
when St. Joseph lived. It is good, it is praised by Christ our
Lord, it has enjoyed the constant approval of the Church.
It does bring help to those members of Christ who suffer here
on earth. Nor will it ever be finished with, since, as a matter of fact, "The poor you have always with you." The second
type of charity, however, is better and is a nobler form of the
virtue, being, as it is, more universal and more enduring.
The first type relieves the needs of a few. The second roots
out so far as it can the causes of the sufferings of a great
number, and thus the whole Mystical Body of Christ gains in
health and vigor.
As I urged in the instruction just mentioned, so now with
still greater emphasis and earnestness I beg that we open our
eyes to the wretched condition of so many men. How many
countries are there, otherwise quite-even highly-civilized,
where many or most of the inhabitants lead a life, as I then
pointed out, unworthy of a human being and a son of God.
Behind all this is a defectively organized temporal economy,
the fruit of which is that a few rather than many or all reap
the advantages of the increase of goods that comes of natural
ingenuity and work. When you meet a beggar on the street
whose clothes are torn and whose look of starvation betrays
his need, you are moved to pity and you feel your obligation
to help him in some way; and rightly so. What, then, of the
millions throughout the world, in our own country even, and
certainly in our missions, who are suffering much the same
fate? The answer? A remedy can be found. We can work
�8
THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
to help apply this remedy. Our efforts joined to the efforts
of others can root out those evils, not, of course, today or tomorrow, but within, say, a time not longer than one or two
generations. Will we depart this life guiltless in God's sight
if we fold our arms and leave the job for others to do?
Observe what a turn for the worse matters have taken
since the twenty-ninth General Congregation in 1946 urged
us to vigorous action. Please, let us not wait until the doctrine
that is overthrowing the Kingdom of God wreaks further
havoc before we do our part to apply the remedy. Two years
have not yet passed since my allocutio.n to the Procurators
meeting in Rome when I dwelt on this problem at length.
I dwell on it again, hoping to arouse the reluctant spirit of
some; for the problem is a pressing one.
Under the patronage, then, of St. Joseph Pignatelli, who
is such a magnificent example of charity towards the poor, let
us bend all our efforts to promoting that form of charity which
is nobler and more universal. Without it, the existence of
the Kingdom of Christ in not a few vast territories stands in
danger.
The Church and, at her side, the Society are suffering persecution in those countries where the subversive doctrines I have
just alluded to have won the day; persecutions of much the
same sort as those suffered by our Saint. We see our Fathers..
and Brothers, by the infinite kindness of God, enduring them
with hearts courageous and undaunted. Let us not cease to
commend the Society to the care of the first Saint of her
restoration. Let us ask him that we might for God's glory
continue to endure our present afflictions; that we will be prepared to bear with equal patience and strength of heart, when
it does befall us, whatever may be in store for us in other
countries as well. Let us at the same time humbly beg Divine
Providence to shorten, if it be His good pleasure, th~se days
of our tribulation and of the loss of so many souls. St. Joseph
Pignatelli saw the whole Society overthrown. He never lost
confidence that it would be restored. By prayers and good
works he obtained his wish that during his lifetime that
restoration begin. And meanwhile the prospect of a worldwide resurrection grew steadily brighter.
�THE CANONIZATION OF ST. JOSEPH PIGNATELLI
9
I commend myself to the Holy Sacrifices and prayers of all
of you.
Rome, the Feast of the Martyrs of Rio Plata, November
17, 1954.
The servant of all in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus
* * *
Banishment Brings Heroism
Father Joseph Pignatelli's tribulations began at Saragossa in 1767.
In the month of May of that year, the mayors of the towns in Spain,
where the Jesuits had colleges, each received a confidential letter from
Madrid. They were told to open the enclosed sealed instructions in the
evening hours of April 2, 1767.
When the mayor of Saragossa opened the sealed cover he was given
the following orders:
You will see to it that all the Jesuits be placed under arrest, and
immediately taken to Tarragona, there to embark within twentyfour hours in ships provided for that purpose, ... not allowing any
Jesuit to take anything away with him, except his prayer book and
the clothes absolutely necessary for the voyage. If after embarkation there should remain in Spain a single Jesuit, he will be punished
with death.
Signed: Yo el Rey, I, the King.
The author of this iniquitous decree was the Count of Aranda, who
was bent on following the example of Pombal in Portugal and of
Choiseul in France, whence the Jesuits had been expelled in 1759 and
1764 respectively. So long as Isabel Farnesia, Charles III's mother was
alive, Aranda's intrigues had ended in failure. After her death, he
succeeded in persuading his royal master that the Jesuits were conspiring to deprive him of his throne, because he was illegitimate. The
calumny was believed, and the decree of expulsion followed.
�An address by Archbishop Richard].
Cushing, at the dinner tendered to
Clergy Alumni by Rev. Father Rector
on May 4, 1954 at Boston College.
A Never-Failing Source
The progress of the Church in the Archdiocese of Boston is
in great measure parallel to the growth within the Archdiocese
of the Society of Jesus. In the year 1611 the Jesuit Fathers
arrived on the mainland of Canada. In that same year one of
these intrepid religious, accompanied by. a group of French
traders, found his way along the coast of Maine to the island
of Monhegan, where he raised the Holy Cross that so beautifully symbolizes the triumph of faith in New England. From
that day to this the Jesuits have played an indispensable part
in the execution of the divine plan which destined this area to
be so important in the life of the twentieth-century Church. I
shall not usurp the historian's task of tracing in detail the
steps through which the Jesuit Fathers have reached their
present position of spiritual influence in our midst and in so
doing have entered into the spiritual formation of our Archdiocese. I shall limit myself to a few reflections of a more
particular nature on the part which the Jesuits have played in
developing vocations to the priesthood and in the broader field -of the training of our Catholic youth for their membership in
the Church of God.
The Jesuits and Vocations
In 1864, when Boston College opened its doors, there were
less than seventy priests in that part of southern New England which then constituted the Archdiocese of Boston. Only
ten years before, after a frightful tragedy in which the original
foundation laid by Bishop Fenwick had been swept away by
fire, th~ new Holy Cross College had been erected and had
already sent many of its graduates into the Boston area.
Bishop Fitzpatrick, who had sustained the courage of the
Jesuits during these trying days, now sought their help in the
creation of a new institution of higher learning in Boston.
The beginnings were humble indeed, and present-day educators
�A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
11
might well look with disdain on the meagre material resources
with which Boston College carried on its work during at least
half of its period of existence. But in those early days there
was a spirit of sacrifice which no obstacle could conquer, a devotion to the ideals of Christian learning which no want of
material sufficiency could dampen. The successful achievement of the Boston College of today, and of the high school
which shares its name, must trace its beginnings beyond the
present, in which new buildings are added to old, beyond the
past of immediate recollection, in which expansion was made
possible through the generosity of an ever-increasing body of
alumni, back to the days when the pioneer courage of a Fitzpatrick and a McElroy braved the cold indifference of a hostile
majority, to take the first steps that brought the present farflung institution to a point of immediate realization.
Here was the fire of supernatural faith that has never been
extinguished. It is not too much to say that the phenomenal
growth of the diocese, its erection into an archdiocese in 1875,
and above all the increasing numbers of vocations which made
this growth possible could never have been brought about if
there had been no Boston College to prepare young men for
ecclesiastical seminaries, and to develop in those who were
destined for business and professional life the sane and constructive outlook that is necessary to keep God in the world.
We are happy that the establishment of Jesuit schools and
colleges in New England has likewise made it possible for the
Society itself to recruit its candidates in numbers adequate
for its work. As we pay tribute to the Jesuits today, however,
our first thought is to acknowledge the debt which the Archbishops of Boston owe to them for having planted the seeds of
priestly vocation in so many who have labored as priests of
the Archdiocese. The foundation of St. John's Seminary in
1884 could never have been contemplated, if the Jesuits had
not already provided the educational environment in which the
hearts of young men would be turned towards the priesthood,
and their minds and characters given the preliminary formation so essential for the specialized training which the Seminary must afford.
Among the thirty-five students who were enrolled in St.
John's Seminary on the day of its opening in 1884, fifteen had
�12
A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
received their early education at Boston College and three more
at Holy Cross. From that day until 1940, when the Archdiocese was at last able to establish its own Minor Seminary
in accordance with the requirements of ecclesiastical law, the
Seminary looked to a great extent to Boston College and Holy
Cross as proving grounds for its prospective candidates.
Even today, when diocesan high schools have multiplied and
several other colleges are cooperating to afford Catholic education for all who want it, and can profit by it, the Seminary
still finds in Jesuit schools a never-failing source of vocations.
At the present time almost forty high schools and colleges
have former students in our archdiocesan Major Seminary;
but the figures show that five-twelfths of the total number of
our seminarians have at some time attended either a Jesuit
high school or a Jesuit college.
These figures bear eloquent testimony to the debt which the
Church in New England owes to the Society of Jesus. I am
certain that the records of Boston College High School and
Boston College, to say nothing of Jesuit institutions in other
parts of New England, could afford even more convincing
proof that large numbers of their former students have found
they way into both the religious and diocesan priesthood.
The Jesuits and Education
Mor.e significant than mere numerical strength, however, is
the influence which the Jesuit system of education has exerted
in maintaining standards consistent with the requirements of
the priesthood and the Christian way of life. The Jesuits have
been faced with the need of meeting the demands of the modern educational world, which emphasizes training for function
rather than for the development of human capacities.
The l~st three decades have witnessed a radical change in
the curr1culum of Boston College. Those of us who matriculate.d in the earlier years of the century found little opportumty for the specialized studies which the students of the
present day are afforded. Today the undergraduate student
at B?ston College can find courses which will prepare him accordl~g to universally accepted standards for law for
te~chmg, fo~ medicine and dentistry and oth~r scientifi; pursuits. In sp1te of this diversified program Boston College has
���A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
13
never lost sight of the general purposes for which education
in a Catholic College must always be directed, and it is for this
reason, above all others, that its Faculty deserve today our
commendation and our thanks.
The same cannot be said of secular educational institutions,
which have tended all too strongly to sacrifice culture formaterial advantage. The humanizing influence of classical
studies has lost its appeal; the university student has learned
to measure the value of his courses in terms of the salary they
will enable him to make. Unfortunately the greatest opportunities today lie not in fields of pure scholarship, but in those
of scientific achievement. Science ministers largely to the
body; it stops short of the deeper yearnings of the soul. Modern educators are beginning to realize that in yielding to the
demand for training that will have material value they are
standing in the way of the spiritual growth that is essential
for a rightly ordered human society. Man does not live on
bread alone. The secrets of the atom, however deeply penetrated and usefully applied, contribute little to the development
of the whole man.
Thus we hear once more the praises of the liberal education
that emphasis on science has relegated to a position of secondary importance. A few thoughtful minds, contemplating
with horror the selfishness and lack of culture of large numbers
of university students, are demanding that training for living
in society be restored to a position of effective influence in
undergraduate curricula, and that specialized skills be imparted only to those who have grown to human maturity under
the disciplinary force of classical studies. Catholic educators
approach this problem from the supernatural point of view of
man's ultimate destiny.
What modern youth needs is, not so much the humanizing
power of a liberal education as the integrating dynamism of a
reasonable philosophy of life. Young people must be taught
not only what they can do but what they are; not only how
human society had developed in its historical past, but what
has been its origin in the timeless antecedents of worldly
events; not only what are the economic possibilities of human
striving, but what is the ultimate goal in which every form of
�14
A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
human activity finds its true meaning and justification. No
amount of merely human culture can substitute for the eternal
truths on which human society is founded. No culture can be
truly human, unless it draws its inspiration from God and
points the way to eternal happiness in God's presence.
It is reassuring that Boston College, while growing to meet
the demands of the modern educational world, has kept philosophy in its rightful place as a subject of major importance
and has expanded its courses in religion to the proportions of
treatises in elementary theology. It thus fortifies its graduates
for eternity while equipping them for success and prosperity
in their sojourn here below. Boston College has thus strengthened the principle on which the Church has always insisted:
that Catholic education provides for our Catholic youth the
best possible preparation for the proper discharge of their
responsibilities to God and country. The Catholic philosophy
of life, developed under the safeguards of divine revelation and
the infallible authority of the Church, affords a proper perspective from which every problem of modern society may be
viewed, and subjects to the control of absolute truth the trialand-error procedures which are necessary antecedents of progress in every field of human enterprise. No Catholic can be
truly educated unless his basic convictions have been developed
in accordance with right reason and brought to practical application under the influence of divine grace.
This is why we cannot suppress feelings of apprehension and
misgivings as so many Catholics, for reasons which often seem
to be insufficient, insist on sending their sons and daughters to
secular institutions of higher learning despite the availability
of equal opportunities in colleges and universities conducted
under Catholic auspices. It is no longer possible to urge the
objection that standards of scholarship are maintained elsewhere which we are unable to meet, or even that opportunities
for advancement are greater elsewhere than we are able to
provide. The time has come when we should make a concerted
effort to present Catholic education to our people as an advantage an~ an enviable privilege rather than as a duty to the
Church which comes into conflict with their ambition for
worldly success.
�A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
15
Our Obligations to Our Educators
On this occasion, therefore, when the President and Faculty
of Boston College have so graciously invited the Diocesan
Clergy to join with them in commemorating its long years of
successful achievement, we may well ask ourselves to what
extent the promotion of the cause of Catholic education is our
responsibility as well as theirs, and to what extent it may be
possible and necessary to bring the functioning of our parishes
into relation with the work of the Catholic College. Boston
College and Boston College High School, along with every
other Catholic college and secondary school in this area, have
afforded ample proof of the part they are able and willing to
play in the development of vocations and in the dissemination
of Catholic ideals. What are we bound to do for them, we who
serve the faithful in their individual parishes and dispense to
them week after week the treasures of divine grace by which
their supernatural life is sustained?
Without question our first obligation is to impress on our
people, in our sermons and instructions and in our contacts
with them as individuals the seriousness of their obligation to
take advantage of the opportunities for Catholic education
which are placed at their disposal. To break down the prejudice against Catholic higher education which still exists in
some circles, and to persuade our people generally that the
Catholic college has a definite and indispensable place in the
world, as well as in the Church, is a delicate task which must
be approached with the greatest possible prudence. We have
already won the victory in the field of secondary education;
we cannot build high schools fast enough to satisfy the demands of parents who have found in actual experience that the
Catholic high school has something to offer which they cannot
find elsewhere. It is our duty to God and the Church to make
this same effort in the field of higher education, to remind our
people of their obligation to continue the religious education
and training of their sons and daughters beyond their high
school days and to warn them of the dangers to their faith
which modern secular education almost always presents. As
pastors of souls we cannot be indifferent to the problems which
face our young people who are fortunate enough to be able to
attend college. We must create in them and in their parents
�16
A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
the impression that we are interested in them, that we are concerned about the preservation of the faith which we have
helped to nurture in them from their childhood days and that
we are able and willing to help them in the right choice of their
future educational environment. Oftentimes just a word of
friendly advice from a priest will suffice to determine hesitant
parents to choose a Catholic college for their sons and daughters and to convince the sons and daughters themselves of the
long-range benefits which they will derive from a Catholic
education.
We have another obligation towards the Catholic college
which I think is somewhat less likely to impress itself upon us.
When our Catholic young men and women leave college after
having received their degrees, they still belong to our parishes.
They are in a position, as educated Catholic laypeople, to
render exceptional service to the cause of Catholic Action. We
must be ready and willing to recognize their superior attainments and to encourage them to participate intelligently and
actively in our parish life.
Above all, we must provide for them, in our sermons and
instructions the intellectual stimulation and the inspiration
which will keep them firm and loyal in the faith which their
Catholic education has developed. Our parish societies should
be organized and directed with an eye to the number of needs
of our parishioners who are capable of deeper than average
penetration into the truth of divine revelation. We must provide sympathetic and prudent direction, both in and outside
the confessional, for those who may have unusual difficulties
and those who may yearn for the higher degrees of spiritual
perfection.
Unless we make a determined effort to present the Church to
our educated laity on their own level, it is more likely that
large numbers of them will lose their faith. We must be all
things to all men because the divine mysteries which we dispense are meant for all, and can bring lasting comfort and
peace to ~II .. We must not be responsible for turning any group
of the faithful away from their parish church because of our
failure to provide for them spiritual advantages which they
a.re capable of profiting by and which our own clerical education should have trained us to give them. Only thus can the
�A NEVER-FAILING SOURCE
17
work of the Catholic college be continued. Only thus can we
render full measure of cooperation to our Catholic college
faculties who represent our strongest line of defence against
the paganism of modern education.
May God bless and strengthen the President and Faculty of
Boston College! May He reward with ever-increasing success
their efforts to save our Catholic young men for God and for
the Church! We pledge to them today every assistance within
our power to render. We shall all work together, shoulder to
shoulder, in the sacred cause which unites us through the
sacred priesthood of Christ our Lord.
* * *
Historical Statement
Boston College, one of the twenty-eight Jesuit institutions of higher
learning in the United States, had its beginning in the days of the
Civil War. In 1857, Father John McElroy, S.J., the superior of old
St. Mary's in the north end of Boston, purchased the property and began
the erection of the buildings which were to house the college on Harrison Avenue. By an act of the Massachusetts Legislature in 1863,
the college was formally incorporated as a university, and on September
5, 1864, the doors of the college were first opened to students. Its first
president was Father John Bapst, S.J., whose heroic sufferings for the
faith in Maine had made him a famous figure in New England history.
After a half century of existence in that location, the college was
transferred in 1913 to its present site at University Heights, Chestnut
Hill, Newton. Thomas I. Gasson, S.J., was the courageous and farsighted president who planned and carried out this change.
Since coming to the Heights, Boston College has grown steadily. Its
campus is spacious and attractive and is adorned by a group of buildings
which are universally acclaimed as outstanding monuments of Collegiate
Gothic in the United States.
�I count everything loss because of
the excelling knowledge of Jesus
Christ, my Lord. Phil., III, 8
The Meditation on the "Foundation"
in the Light of Saint Paul
JEAN LEVIE, S.J.
INTRODUCTION
The days are gone forever when commentators could
regard the meditation on the Foundation in the Exercises as
a page of natural philosophy, not necessarily presupposing the
supernatural economy of the beatific vision and grace. Today
everyone admits that in the mind of St. Ignatius the opening
meditation introduces us immediately to the supernatural
order and that it cannot be understood apart from that order.
The days are gone forever when not a few supposed that
Christ was not to appear in the Exercises before the beginning of the second week and that He had no essential role
during the first week; as if the reconciliation of the sinner
with the heavenly Father could be effected without Him who
is for us the unique way to salvation, the sole Savior, the only
Redeemer! From the first colloquy of the first exercise of the
first week St. Ignatius puts me on my knees before Christ on
His cross and has me ask: Quid egerim ego pro Christo, quid
agam pro Christo, quid agere debeam pro Christo. The whole
first week of the Exercises, including the meditation on the
Foundation, is doctrinally just as Christocentric as any other
part.
Finally, the days are gone forever when certain friends and
certain enemies of the book of the Exercises considered it to
be primarily a powerful ascetical training of the will, which
could be conceived psychologically as independent of grace
and of the divine economy of salvation by a free, heaven-sent
gift. Today everyone likes to point out the central place
grace holds not only in the theology of the Exercises but even
Translated by Louis A. Mounteer, S.J., from Nouvelle Revue
Theologique, 1953, .Vol. LXXXV.
�THE l\IEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
19
in the tiniest psychological details of the book. St. Ignatius
is more convinced than anybody that God always begins, and
that man's role consists merely in accepting or refusing the
divine gifts.
1. Essential Points in the Theology of St. Paul
In recalling these three phases of recent progress in interpretation of the Exercises, three essential points in the theology of St. Paul naturally come to mind.
Man achieves his salvation not through his natural powers,
nor by the moral effort of his intellect and will, nor by realizing his own "justice," but by subordinating his whole being,
his intellectual and volitional powers to a higher justice which
is born of faith and grows with faith, by subjecting these
natural powers to a free gift sent from heaven, the "justice
of God." Chi-istian asceticism is essentially supernatural and
cannot be reduced to a natural theodicy or natural ethics.
Of this radical transformation of human morality Jesus
Christ is the sole Mediator. Through Him alone we pass
from sin to Life; solely through Him and in Him we are
sanctified by being gradually assimilated to Him, a claritate
in claritatem, until we reach the perfect likeness of heaven.
And all that is a gift, a free divine initiative, God's grace,
the unique cause of all holiness and all moral greatness.
Grace alone can restore the moral balance of our nature,
weakened by sin. It alone can be for us the principle of a
higher moral dynamism which comes from Christ and not
from ourselves; which ends in Christ and through Christ in
the Father.
2. Parallel Actions of Grace
We intend to show in this article how the fundamental
meditation of the Exercises finds its full value and perfect
meaning in the light of the ascetical and mystical doctrine _of
St. Paul. This is, to our way of thinking, but one example of
many. Similarly the Ignatian doctrine De regno Christi
could be compared to the Christocentrisme of St. Paul; the
concept of the third degree of humility could be compared to
the Pauline theology of mortification; the whole book of the
�20
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
Spiritual Exercises indeed is best illumined by the theology
of St. Paul.t No Christian doubts, of course, that the true
Christian asceticism of the Catholic Church, whether it be
Augustinian, Benedictine, Dominican, Franciscan or Ignatian,
finds its ultimate justification in the heart of the inspired
writings, in the Gospels, in St. Paul and St. John, and through
them in Our Lord Jesus Christ. This article, therefore,
makes no pretense of making some new discovery, any more
than would a similar article on St. Benedict, St. Francis or
St. Dominic. But a member or friend of one of the Catholic
Church's schools of spirituality always finds consolation and
profit in tracing the thought of the Founder of the Order,
of the initiator of the doctrine, to its infallible sources guaranteed by divine veracity. It is reassuring to ascertain not
the fact of this basic accord-for this is already guaranteed
by the Church's approval-but the manner and nature of
the accord.
Such is the purpose of this essay, expository in nature-worked out during the course of retreats to priests and
religious-concerning the doctrine of detachment as it is
proposed by St. Ignatius in the Foundation. 2
1
Still, there is no effort here to make a study of "sources" in the
usual meaning of the word. Although St. Ignatius continually meditated on the Gospels and quoted them, he rarely cites the Epistles of
St. Paul in the Exercises, the Constitutions, or in his correspondence.
Nor does he seem ever to have made a profound study of them. The
parallelisms that can be established do not prove an immediate and conscious influence of St. Paul's thought on his, but simply show, on the
one hand, the influence of the Church, which in various ways communicates the substance of the inspired writings to her children, and on the
other ~and the parallel action of grace, which directs all Christian souls
accordmg to the same essential principles.
:. We g~ve here the text, translated by Louis J. Puhl, S.J.:
M~n IS created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord, and
by th1s means to save his soul.
"The other things on the face of the earth are created for man to
help him ~n attaining the end for which he is created.
"Hence
· t
. ' man Is ? make use of them in as far as they help him in
tthhe attamment _of h1s end, and he must rid himself of them in as far as
ey prove a hmdrance to him.
"Therefore we must m k
1
· ·
'
a e ourse ves md1fferent to all created things
as far as we are allowed free choice and are not under any prohibition:
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
21
A preliminary remark will clarify our procedure. Most
interpreters recognize that the Spiritual Exercises of St.
Ignatius have, besides their general aim of a total Christian
formation-a fact that has led the Society of Jesus to make
them the substance of every retreat of its members from
their entrance into the novitiate until their death-a particular
aim, which is attained for the most part the first time they are
made. They are a method of "election," or more precisely, of
"choice of a state of life," of a new orientation of life in the
light of the divine plan. This particular aim in many details
flows over into the structure of the Exercises and sometimes
particularizes what is really more general and more basic in
St. Ignatius' total thought.
We are well aware, for example, in the meditation on the
Two Standards that the first two degrees of the devil's tactics,
love of riches and worldly honor leading to pride, are precisely the two essential obstacles that turned Christians of
St. Ignatius' time away from the religious or priestly life.
But that does not mean that for St. Ignatius the general
tactics of the devil are always and everywhere those that
are here considered from the limited aspect of the election.
Likewise we are convinced that, especially for one who has
already made the Exercises several times, the meditation on
the Foundation ought to be constructed in the light of St.
Ignatius' total thought on God, as expressed, for example,
in the Contemplatio ad Amorem: the whole history of our
salvation starts with the idea that God gives Himself, the
basic idea of the Contemplatio ad Amorem. 3 Amor consistit
'in communicatione ... ; adducere in memoriam ... quantum mihi dederit (Deus) ex iis quae habet; et consequenter
Consequently, as far as we are concerned, we should not prefer health
to sickness, riches to poverty, honor to dishonor, a long life to a short
life. The same holds for all other things.
"Our one desire and choice should be what is more conducive to the
end for which we are created."
3
Here we have in mind only that part of the Contemplatio ad
Amorem which completes the Foundation from the point of view of the
divine initiative and communication of God to His creatures. Other
aspects of the Contemplatio ad Amorem, particularly the admirable
fourth point, might provide a subject for a further study. On this, too,
St. Paul would shed light.
�22
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
(quantum) idem Dominus desideret dare seipsum mihi in
quantum potest . . .
SUPERNATURAL ASCETICISM
1. In the Foundation: "Man Was Created"
The meditation on the Foundation is clearly to be taken
on the supernatural plane-the only way ever envisaged in
the exclusively religious thought of St. Ignatius. Clearly for
him the formula homo .creatus est signifies the real order in
which we live and launches the meditation on the note of our
supernatural elevation, and concludes it with the salvation of
our souls (ut salvet animam suam), which implies all the
wealth of the beatific vision. This is indeed the only justification for the radical detachment proposed here. Clearly for
St. Ignatius all this is God's gift and therefore, from this
moment, the preparatory prayer of each meditation resumes
under the form of a prayer the doctrine of the Foundation:
I ask God 'Ut omnes meae intentiones, actiones et operationes
pure ordinentur in servitium et laudem suae divinae
Maiestatis. Finally, it is clear that here, as everywhere in
the thought of St. Ignatius, Christ is present as our Mediator
and only Savior. St. Ignatius is aware that the meditation
on the Foundation will become clearer in due course; it will
reappear especially in the meditations dealing directly with
Jesus Christ. In the Contemplatio de Regno Christi the
offering is made to Christ in the second point: omnes qui
habuerint judicium et rationem offerent se totos ad laborem,
the task set down in the Foundation. It will appear again in the
essentially Christocentric consideration of the three degrees
of humility, where the attitude of the Foundation shows up
clearly in the second degree.
The doctrine underlying the meditation on the Foundation
is, therefore, very pervasive. St. Ignatius' procedure is to
raise our intentions to the level of eternity and. direct our
daily actions on the plane of our eternal destiny. The
essential orientation of our whole life as well as of each
action,. must be ~etermined with refere~ce to eternity where
God w1ll be all m all. By creation God has given man all
that man has and is naturally; but God has done infinitely
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
23
more: He has given Himself in the entire supernatural
economy, promising man happiness above his natural powers,
because it is the happiness of God made ours; proposing to
man a love which surpasses his natural powers, because it
is a participation in the love of God for Himself. The most
disinterested love of God and the supreme joy of man in this
same love constitute man's supreme detachment. In this
future condition of man, beatified in and by love, consists
the glory of God. The Foundation demands that we undergo
an apprenticeship here on earth of this supreme "detachment"
of heaven. During the trials and struggles of our life on
earth we are to make our soul fit for eternity. Between our
life in time and that which is timeless there is no opposition;
there is a basic continuity: gratia initium gloriae. Man does
not mortify himself on earth in order to enjoy life in heaven;
he does not humble himself in his present state to be glorified
hereafter; he does not deny himself nor detach himself at
the present moment in order to regain himself or realize
himself for eternity. Nothing is negative or temporary in
our Christian way of life; its whole structure is positive, lasting, eternal. Mortification, humiliation, renunciation are
intended gradually to fashion within us the detached soul,
essentially humble and in love with God, which will be ours
in eternity and which will find its supreme happiness in this
very love. Our daily life of love, praise and service of God
is already raised by grace to the level of the supreme love
and total praise of God in the glory of heaven.
Obviously this makes no sense and cannot be justified
except in the supernatural economy. By himself man is incapable of grasping this outlook on eternity and of making
his soul a citizen of heaven unless there is a constant call
from above and unless there is a free gift of grace, which
alone can draw us up to God because it comes down from Him.
2. In St. Paul: "Our Citizenship Is in Heaven"
If we look for the central theme of the spirituality of St.
Paul, the one from which all the others flow, we can find
it in the Epistle to the Philippians, III, 20: "Our citizenship
is in heaven." Here especially the thought of Paul is
Christocentric: the presence of Christ in heaven makes our
�24
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
heavenly citizenship real and tangible; in fact he adds:
"from which also we eagerly await a Savior, our Lord Jesus
Christ, who will refashion the body of our lowliness, conforming it to the body of his glory" (Phil. III,20-21).
Now to be a citizen of heaven is not only an assurance for
the future, but a present reality, an actual moral state: "For
you have died (i.e., died to the old man and the whole economy
of the old world) and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, your life, shall appear, then you too will appear
with him in glory" (Col., III,3-4). At present the Christian
lives with Christ in God the life of heaven, hidden from men,
dead to purely human interests, a life lacking only one thing:
its manifestation. In this way the essential continuity between the present and future life of which we have been
speaking is clearly affirmed ; the difference between the two
lives is a question merely of manifestation. That very glorification which would appear to be the essential element of
the future life is already developing in the spiritual aspect
of the present life: "But we all, with faces unveiled, reflecting
as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed
into his very image from glory to glory (a claritate in
claritatem), as through the Spirit of the Lord" (II Cor.,
III,l8). Our Christian life continually reflects within us the
unveiled glory of Christ, who is God. This action of Christ
is not only exterior but also interior, likening us interiorly to
Christ, not gradually diminishing, like the divine radiance
which shone from Moses, but rather always growing, causing
us to enter more and more into the splendor of Christ. This
,is normal, since Christ is the principle of all spiritualizationthe spiritualization which is proper to the life hereafter.
CHRISTOCENTRIC DETACHMENT
1. St. Paul: ''Hoc enim sentite in vobis quod et in
Christo J esu."
. Our duty then is clear: to fashion a "soul for eternity"
1s to endeavor to make one's own the sentiments of Christ
to ~ashio~ a soul ,!ike Christ's: "Hoc sentite in vobis quod
et tn Ch~sto ~ esu (Phil., II,5). The detachment preached
by Paul1s Chr1stocentric; our longing for heaven, our loftiest
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
25
intentions are founded on the resurrection of Christ: "Therefore, if you have risen with Christ, seek the things that are
above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Mind the things that are above, not the things that are earth"
(Col. III,1-2).
This total and fundamentally supernatural detachment is
based on a truth of Christianity often recalled by St. Paul.
The Christian is holy, not with a natural holiness acquired
through the light of his own intellect and the strength of
his own will, but with a holiness received as a gift of God.
Our "justice," our moral worth, is not the "justice of works,"
our works, but the "justice of God," which is freely communicated to us and will produce within us divine qualities,
the fruits of the Spirit. "But now the justice of God has been
made manifest independently of the Law ..., the justice of
God through faith in Jesus Christ . . . (Men) are justified
freely by his grace . . . to manifest his justice, . . . to
manifest his justice at the present time, so that he himself
is just, and makes just him who has faith in Jesus. Where
then is thy boasting? It is excluded" (Rom., III,21-27). The
most basic principle of Christian detachment is that our
holiness itself is a pure gift of God; it is the "justice of God,"
the "holiness of God," revealed in Christ, manifested on earth.
It becomes truly ours, an inner principle of a new life elevated above itself and divinized. I have become "a new
Creature" according to the constant teaching of St. Paul
(II Cor., V,17; Gal., VI,15), "a new man" (Eph., IV,24; Col.,
III,10). But all this is a gift from above, a gift which I
!eceive humbly, without having deserved it. From the beginning to the end of my new life God gives Himself to me and
transports me entirely into the sphere which is His own so
that I may live by Him and for Him. The very richness of
the divine gift becomes for me a principle of complete humility, since all comes from Him, and a principle of absolute
detachment from passing concerns, in the light of my sharing
in the happiness of God promised to us, and in the glory
of God.
For, as St. Paul says so often, we are called to share in
the glory of God (Rom., VIII,18,21; IX,23; I Cor., II,7; II
Cor., III,18; Eph., 1,17-18; I Thess., II,12; Il Thess., II,l4), we
�26
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
hope for it (Rom., V,2; Col., I,27) ; the great mis~ortune ~f
men before the coming of Christ was to be depr1ved of 1t
(Rom., III,23). Never has Paul indicated any possible opposition between the glory of God and complete human happiness.
It is well known that the Hebrew word, "kavod," glory, is
not interpreted very accurately in the Latin phrase, classical
since its use by Cicero, clara cum laude notitia. The Hebrew
mind, instead of taking its point of view from the judgment
of someone else who knows and praises another's greatness,
starts from the greatness itself, from the wealth of its content, from the personal value which makes it so deserving
of respect. The glory of God is the hidden splendor of the
Almighty manifesting Himself to our senses; it is His infinite
perfection seen by others, brilliant to behold and powerful
in its works. The strength of Jahweh and the glory of
Jahweh are synonymous in several contexts.
In the Old Testament the supreme blessing is "to see the
glory of J ahweh" (Isaias, XXXV,2; LXVI,18; cfr. Exod.,
XXXIV,29 ff.). In the New Testament it is the participation
in the glory of God promised to the elect, because God has
destined them to be conformes imaginis Filii sui (Rom., VIII,
29) ; because Christ reformabit corpus humilitatis nostrae,
configuratum corpori claritatis suae (Phil., III,21). The glory
of God consists in communicating Himself, in making human
beings share in the Son's supreme love for the Father-and
this is the supernatural perfection of every man, the highest
good of the intelligent creature, who aspires to it even
naturally, as to a free gift beyond his reach.
If all this requires detachment from and the renunciation of
passing goods, it is the adolescent's renunciation of his childhood toys and youthful tastes in order to adopt the attitudes
of a man: "When I was a child, I spoke as a child I felt as
a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have beco~e a man,
I have put away the things of a child. We see now through
a mirror. in an obscure manner, but then face to face. Now
I know in part, but then I shall know even as I have been
known" (I Cor., XIII,ll-12).
God ~sks sacrifices and self-denial from us only to enrich
us. Thmk what we may, do what we may it is not we who
give to God; it is He who gives and we al~ays receive. The
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
27
glory of God is in the sanctity of men: "In this is my Father
glorified, that you may bear very much fruit, and become my
disciples" (John, XV,8). The holiest man is the one who has
received most. To give oneself wholly to God, to make sacri. flees which seem heroic, is to receive from God, to receive God.
One of the most striking and consoling aspects of the theology
of St. Paul is his insistence on the divine initiative, on the
justice of God which comes from above, is shared with us
through Christ, and becomes our own, remaining nevertheless
more Christ's than our own.
Our adherence to these higher gifts is expressed by the
three virtues of faith, hope and charity, brought to the attention of the Thessalonians in the very beginning of the inspired
lines which Paul has left us (I Thess., I,3). These, he told the
Corinthians, are the only three means of attaining what is
lasting, the three virtues which make us constantly aware of
the eternal: Nunc autem manent fides, spes, charitas, tria haec
(I Cor., XIII,13). For this reason no human detachment or
self-denial will have any value except in so far as it derives
from our deepest faith, hope and charity, at the same time
planting these virtues deeper in our heart.
2. St. Ignatius: " ... tantum ... quantum ...."
There is one last point by way of clarifying, in the light
of St. Paul, all the doctrinal wealth of the meditation on the
Foundation: the concrete, practical aspect of this detachment
(indijferentia) which St. Ignatius makes the basis of his
Spiritual Exercises. Temporal goods, events and situations
are only means to achieve an end superior to the passing
event; the means are used only tan tum . . . quantum, according to the exact measure in which they help obtain the
end; they are rejected in the exact measure in which they
withdraw us from this end. To arrive at such clarity of
judgment and flexibility of will in the use of creatures we
strive gradually for that disposition of soul which gives things
their right value, for that "indifference" which raises the
whole man above the sensible reactions of self-interest,
pleasure or imagination until we reach that detachment which
rivets the will to eternal and definitive values and scorns
what is merely passing.
�28
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
St. Ignatius has in mind here preparation for the election,
the fundamental ordering of our whole life in keeping with
the divine plan. But he has more especially in mind the
formation of the supernatural man through the constant exercise of this Christian detachment. We have already recalled
its purpose: the gradual formation during this life, by fidelity
to grace, of a soul which is a citizen of heaven, a soul prepared for eternal life.
GOD'S INITIAL GIFT OF GRACE
1. For lgnatian Indifference
It is undoubtedly a difficult task to become supernatural
without destroying or falsifying nature. It is difficult to
realize in ourselves God's designs, which raise us above human
nature, and not underestimate the deep-seated inclinations
put in us by God our Creator. It has often been shown that
the greatest difficulty in the spiritual life is not mortification
or self-denial, but the judicious selection of mortifications
and self-denial which will make us supernatural, creating in
us a new man according to grace, and not a stoic lacking all
human spontaneity. Grace alone can produce in us this
miracle of light and strength, teaching us what uplifts and
giving us the courage to accept it from God. We rise to God
only if God calls us. Grace always proceeds the same way:
within the soul of man it causes the attraction for goods of
eternal worth to work constantly in conjunction with disaffection from things of passing value. We do not become
detached in order to impoverish ourselves or diminish our
worth, but to enrich ourselves and increase our stature by
attachment to the eternal. This detachment raises us to a
better understanding of heavenly gifts and to a more ardent
desire for them. It is always God who gives and gives
Himself. His glory consists in the ceaseless communication
of Himself, inclining us more and more to the love of God,
the love with which God loves Himself.
2. For St. Paul's Principle of Detachment
In the life of St. Paul this detachment from the temporal
was always inseparably united to attachment to eternal gifts.
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
29
Always foremost in his thought was the notion of God's gift,
of God's love which stoops down spontaneously to humanity
in order to pour out God's wealth on us. Any activity of man
which is directed to God, any human detachment is really
only the response to a call, or more exactly, simply man's
acceptance of God's action within him. No sooner does Paul
express his ardent personal striving to take hold of Christ
than he brusquely changes the direction of his sentence to
show that it was Christ who first took hold of him: "that I
may know him and the power of his resurrection and the
fellowship of his sufferings: become like to him in death, in
the hope that somehow I may attain to the resurrection from
the dead. Not that I have already obtained this, or already
have been made perfect, but I press on hoping that I may
lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of me
(Phil., III,l0-12).
All creation is under tension and groans for what is beyond,
because God has offered the fullness of His gifts. The whole
eighth chapter of Romans utters the sharp and anguished
cry of our present universe for eternal life. Here Paul
notes the nothingness of the temporal in comparison with
the eternal: "For I reckon that the sufferings of the present
time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come
that will be revealed in us" (v.18) ; our body will be fully
ransomed and liberated only in the life to come: "we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption of
sons, the redemption of our body" (v.23) ; our mind feels
itself here on earth terribly ignorant in view of God's
promises: "For we do not know what we should pray for as
we ought, but the Spirit himself pleads for us with unutterable groanings" (v.26). Behind all this is God's love for us:
God loves us and leads us infallibly through Christ to our
goal: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ (from
Christ's love for us)'? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or the sword?
But in all these things we overcome because of him who has
loved us" (v.35-37).
Paul has defined as the essential condition of all detachment the vision of the eternal in the things of time: "while
we look not at the things that are seen, but at the things
�30
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
that are not seen. For the things that are seen are temporal,
but the things that are not seen are eternal" (II Cor., IV,18) ·
Surely this vision of the eternal in our temporal life is one
of those inspired directives which best express the ideal which
St. Ignatius attempts to achieve in the meditation on the
Foundation. This vision based on faith is the source of
detachment.
Citations from St. Paul could be multiplied indefinitely
expressing this spontaneous (one could almost say "instinctive") orientation of his thought towards eternity, that
eternity where Christ is so closely united to us and where
He has a place for us. This orientation is well summed up
in the text cited above: Si consurrexistis cum Christo, quae
sursum sunt quaerite, ubi Christus est in dextera Dei sedens;
quae sursum sunt sapite, non quae super terram (Col., III,l).
Detachment is possible only by virtue of the Incarnation and
Redemption, fulfilled in the Resurrection. The detachment
of the Foundation was actualized on earth once and for all
when Christ came among us to "die to sin," to be "crucified
to the world" ; and it is only the strength of His detachment
that can inspire and direct ours, or more exactly, that is
communicated to us and becomes ours. It is the victory of
detachment, brought about by the Resurrection of Christ,
which lights up our path and carries us into the sphere of
the hereafter. From now on "we overcome because of him
who has loved us" (Rom., VIII,37).
Moreover, formulas which express the drama of Calvary
are used by Paul to sum up Christian detachment. His highly
expressive language centers around the idea of death and
crucifixion: Mortificate ergo membra vestra quae sunt super
terram (Col., III,5) ; "God forbid that I should glory save
in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the
world is crucified to me, and I to the world" (Gal., VI,14).
Paul's language is standard Christian vocabulary: "mortification," a "crucified life," etc. This Christocentrisme with its
passionate devotion to the Master is what gives Paul's detachm~nt its remarkable spontaneity, ease and vigor. Compared
w1th the divine gifts offered to men by Christ, purely human
yalues no lon~er exist; whatever is purely natural and not
mcorporated mto the new economy is mere waste : "But the
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
31
things that were gain to me, these, for the sake of Christ,
I have counted loss. Nay more, I count everything loss because of the excelling knowledge of Jesus Christ, my Lord.
For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I count
them as dung that I may gain Christ ... " (Phil., III,7-8).
St. Paul's scorn for the things of time is so instinctive
that it sometimes inspires him to express involuntarily certain ironic paradoxes which he hastens to correct immediately. The Christians of Corinth were hurting the union
among themselves by carrying their conflicts of purely human
interests before pagan judges. Paul's reaction is typical.
You Christians who are called to judge the world, "are you
unworthy to judge the smallest matters?" And carrying
his thought to the extreme: "If therefore you have cases
about worldly matters to be judged, appoint those who are
rated as nothing in the Church to judge." Temporal interests
are so incidental that anyone at all in the Church, even the
least talented, is qualified to be judge of them. But then
immediately, alerted by administrative talent, Paul corrects
himself: "To shame you I say it. Can it be that there is not
one wise man among you competent to settle a case in his
brother's matter?" Paul can't understand how a temporal
concern could lead Christians to compromise their mutual
union: "Nay, to begin with, it is altogether a defect in you
that you have lawsuits one with another. Why not rather
suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?" (I Cor.,
VI,l-8).
Paul carries his scorn for the temporal so far as to charge
his converts to remain voluntarily in their present social
claRs, provided they can find in that state the means of sanctification: "Let every man remain in the calling in which he
was called. Wast tnou a slave when called? Let it not
trouble thee. But if thou canst become free, make use of
it rather" (I Cor., VII, 20-21). For Paul enslavement or
freedom has no importance with respect to eternal goods; as
long as the latter can be had, nothing else counts.
SUPPOSITION OF A TRUE CHRISTIAN HUMANISM
Does that mean to say that from a human point of view
Paul does not suspect the need for the natural order in our
�32
THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
present life rooted in the very constitution of our being?
Does he fail to understand the social and individual needs
arising from our very nature as created by God? At the root
of this detachment of both Paul and Ignatius is there not a
kind of scorn for scientific progress, social progress, spiritual
progress? Isn't there a full renunciation of all humanism, ,
however legitimate it may seem to us?
Quite the contrary. It seems to us that St. Paul's thought,
as well as St. Ignatius', leaves a wide opening for a true
humanism which is included in the total divine scheme of
things. We cannot begin to treat here so vast a problem;
this question would take too much space and is beyond the
scope of this article. 4 The conclusion, however, is important.
From Paul's viewpoint what comes first in the history of
humanity is necessarily the divine intervention through
Christ. In the present economy we do not start with man
and arrive at God; everything comes down from God to man.
For the expression, "Christian humanism," Paul would no
doubt prefer "human Christianity," which indicates more
clearly the essential primacy of the supernatural element, the ,
beneficent influence of the gift of Christ on everything human,
and at the same time Paul's deep respect for the work of God
the Creator. St. Paul's thought is that in the last analysis
nothing is lasting, useful or fruitful on earth unless one first
accepts the principle that a divine gift has been given through
Christ and that one must submit himself freely to what is
sent from heaven for our salvation and enrichment. Knowledge which is not open to the humble attempt to understand
the mystery now revealed to men by the wisdom of God will
remain Sapientia huius saeculi et principum huius saeculi
qui destruuntur (I Cor., II,6). To reach its full significance
in the divine plan, to be redeemed, the human body must
let itself be spiritualized by the risen body of Christ: "No, the
body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord
fo: the b_ody. Now God has raised up the Lord and will also
raise us up by his power. Do you not know that your bodies
are members of Christ?" (I Cor., VI,13-15). Even the search
4
Cf. the remarks on this subject in our work: Sous les yeux de l'incroy-
ant, 2nd edition, 1946, pp. 131-135 and 150-152.
�THE MEDITATION ON THE FOUNDATION
33
for God, if it has not already found Christ or is secretly
directed by Him, will remain blind groping after Him (Acts,
XVII,27), or "zeal for God, but not according to knowledge"
(Rom., X,2). Attachment by faith to the divine economy
and to the mystery of God is the indispensable condition of
complete natural progress and of all perfect human equilibrium, individual or social.
CONCLUSION
Thus Paul concludes with the triumphant affirmation of the
Christian's victory in the world. Concerning the parties at
Corinth in conflict about Cephas, Paul and Apollos he
writes: "Therefore let no one take pride in men. For all
things are yours, whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas; or
the world, or life, or death; or things present, or things to
come--all are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's"
(I Cor., III,21-23). An Anglican Exegete gives a perfect
interpretation of the thought of St. Paul: "The believer in
God through Christ is a member of Christ and shares in His
universal lordship, all things being subservient to the Kingdom of God, and therefore to his eternal welfare, as means
to an end. The Christian loses this birthright by treating
the world or its interests as ends in themselves, i.e., by becoming enslaved to persons or things. Without God we should
be the sport of circumstances and 'the world' would crush us,
if not in 'life,' at least in 'death.' As it is, all these things
alike 'are ours.' We meet them as members of Christ, rooted
in God's love.'' 5
Isn't that precisely the ultimate meaning of the fundamental meditation of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius?
5
Right Reverend Archibald Robertson and Rev. Alfred Plummer,
A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the First Epistle of St. Paul
to the Corinthians, (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1911), p. 72.
�Powerful and Brilliant Armor
GEORGE ZORN,
S.J.
The indefatigable Father Young again puts every Englishspeaking Jesuit in his debt. In the past ten .years his tran~
lations have provided us with a solid core of Important J es~1t
reading: Brou's lgnatian Methods of Prayer and Ignatwn
Way to God; Dudon's Life of St. Ignatius; Aurelio Espinosa
Polit's Our Happy Lot. Father Young gives the impression
in his latest work1 that he was also the unnamed translator of
Manual Maria Espinosa Polit's Perfect Obedience; for he tells
us in the introduction of his new pamphlet that "the text of the
Letter is practically that which appears in ... the great commentary (Perfect Obedience)."
Innovations in the New Translation
1
I first compared the pamphlet with the translation in the
Polit commentary, pp. 20-30. Almost every paragraph of the
pamphlet shows changes from the Polit version. Thus in
paragraph No. 4 the last sentence in the Polit reads, "From
this you can judge, when a religious is taken not only as a
Superior, but expressly in the place of Christ our Lord, to serve
as a director and guide in the divine service, what rank he
ought to hold in the mind of the inferior, and whether he ought
to be looked upon as a man or as the Vicar of Christ." This
exceedingly awkward sentence has been improved in the new
pamphlet to read, "From this you can judge what rank a man
should hold in the mind of an inferior when that inferior has
taken him not merely as a Superior, but expressly in the place
of Christ our Lord, to serve him as director and guide in God's
service, and whether the inferior should look upon him as a
man merely, or as the vicar of Christ our Lord." Despite the
improvement in this and other places, a third redaction is
needed to unravel "the leisured sinuosities of sixteenth century Spanish," and reweave them into good idiomatic English.
I next compared the new pamphlet with the standard English version we are accustomed to hearing in the refectory each
month. There is no denying that in general Father Young's
sentences ~re sho~ter and less complicated, but strange to
relate, my 1mpresswn was that by his choice of words Father
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35
Young greatly tempered the pungency of much of the letter.
For example in No. 12, the standard version reads, "There
perishes that zeal and speed in performing . . ." Father
Young substitutes two polysyllables, "promptitude and readiness."
In this same section, the standard version's "whole force
and dignity of this virtue," becomes the colorless "all the
perfection of this virtue."
In section 14 one is glad to note that the "obedient man is
made a living holocaust most acceptable (not most grateful
as the standard version has it) to the Divine Majesty."
Still, in section 15 one regrets any change in that quaint
phrase, "It seems to me, most dear brethren, I hear you say,"
especially when it is such a small and insignificant change as
Father Young's, "I think I hear you say, beloved brethren."
Section 16 wherein we were formerly urged to "hear their
voice no otherwise than if it were the voice of Christ," becomes the good straightforward, "Consequently when the
Superior gives you a command, do not take his voice to be any
other than the voice of Christ."
The last sentence of section 18 reads as follows in the standard version, "Wherefore this manner of subjecting our own
judgment, so as without questioning, to sanction and approve
within ourselves whatsoever the Superior commands, is not
only a common practice among holy men, but also to be imitated by all who are desirous of perfect obedience, in all things
where manifestly there appears no sin." Father Young has,
"What I mean to say is that this manner of subjecting one's
own judgment without further enquiry, supposing that the
command is holy and in conformity with God's will, is in use
among the saints and ought to be imitated by anyone who
wishes to obey perfectly in all things-where it is manifest, of
course, that there is no sin." The words I have italicized do
not appear in the standard version or in the Latin.
Instead of "declaring" to the Superior in section 19, Father
Young would have us "bring to the notice of the superior,"
surely better English. Where the standard version urges that
perfect obedience be practiced "as if the whole good and safety
of our Society depended thereon," Father Young substitutes
the less vigorous, "whole welfare." In this same section the
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delightfully ar~haic "lowest by the middlemos~ and the middlemost by the highest," of the standard versiOn em~rg~s unchanged in the· new translation except for the substitutiOn of
"midmost" for "middlemost," indeed a loss.
The final paragraph urges us in the standard version to be
"desirous and greedy of so glorious a victory," not mer~ly "to
make every effort," as Father Young weakens the sectiOn.
"The danger in the spiritual life is great," says the Young
version in section 11, "when one advances rapidly in it."
Would it not have been better to retain "runs" in this context?
If it is a true advance, and not a mere running to and fro, the
danger is not so great.
In the new translation, St. Bernard remarks "that neither
the endeavor of good works nor the tears of penitence would
have been agreeable to Him out of Bethany." What has happened to "the quiet of contemplation"?
The Importance of Religious Obedience
Since 1953 marked the fourth centenary of this famous letter, it is fitting to have this commemorative edition. The
pamphlet deserves the widest of circulations. For in this age
there is danger of misunderstanding, not appreciating, and
even opposing the truly sublime ideal of obedience proposed
by St. Ignatius, who "received from God, as a work especially
entrusted to him, the mission of bringing men to the practice
of this same virtue (obedience) with greater earnestness." 2
There is a danger that this most powerful armor be weakened
and its brilliance tarnished, for as Pius XII told us recently,
"Some praise as the real peak of moral perfection, not the
surrender of liberty for the love of Christ, but the curbing of
such surrender . . . restrict liberty only where necessary ;
otherwise give liberty free reign as far as possible." 3
Father Young's introduction and notes form an excellent up
to date miniature commentary on the letter. His developments of th~ admittedly difficult sections of the letter are most
welc?me. .Every smallest insight into the mystery of religious
obedience 1s needed if we are to give an account of the obedience which is in us.
Even such a giant among modern spiritual writers as the
Abbot Marmion showed no familiarity with St. Ignatius' letter,
�POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARMOR
37
and in fact drew unfavorable comparisons between the "economic" obedience of the apostolic institutes and Benedictine
obedience, "desired in itself as the soul's homage to God." 4
In the thirteenth century, St. Bonaventure had arrived at
an opposite conclusion. In his Expositio in Regulam Fratrum
Minorum the Seraphic Doctor had declared that the obedience
of the monks was inferior to that of the mendicant orders, for
the new form of obedience introduced by St. Francis is at the
same time more intimate and more extensive than that of the
ancient monasteries, because it is less limited by the letter of
the rule and includes everything that can have any bearing on
the spiritual usefulness of the subject.
Father Brodrick, in his Origin of the J esuits 5 ironically attempts a synthesis,
The Ignatian doctrine of obedience, so often harshly criticized
and condemned, is substantially the same as that contained in
the fifth chapter of the rule of St. Benedict, nor does anything that Ignatius says on the subject go beyond the following
declaration of the Father of Western Monasticism, 'If perchance
any heavy or impossible commands are laid on a brother, let him
receive the order of the Superior with all meekness and obedience.
But should the weight of the burden seem altogether to exceed the
measure of his strength, let him patiently and opportunely put
before the Superior the reasons why it is impossible for him to bear
it, in no spirit of pride or resistance or contradiction. Supposing,
then, that after this representation the order of the Prior remains
what it was, the subject is to know that it is expedient for him, and
to obey, relying out of charity on the help of God.'
But all such comparisons of obedience may easily become
odious, and it is better that all strive for a thorough knowledge
of the perfection of the virtue. It would appear that few
spiritual writers today are doing this.
Recent Discussions on Religious Obedience
It has been remarked that the 1952 Congress of Religious at
Notre Dame University rather soft-pedaled the notion of religious obedience. There were indeed three papers delivered
on the subject. Mother Josita's discussion of "Special Problems of Religious Obedience in Modern Times,'' 6 is excellent in
dealing with the necessity of providing formal instruction and
Practical training in obedience to young religious directed to-
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ward the formation of solid habits of perfect obedience. "Today as much as in the time of the desert fathers and St.
Ignatius," Mother J osita remarks, "personal holiness demands
the understanding and practice of blind obedience. Some modern writers seem to see in such obedience the unreflecting
watering of a dry stick which to them seems outmoded." This
is perhaps the most forthright affirmation of the need of blind
obedience in all the recent literature.
In the men's section of the Congress, Reverend Robert E.
Regan, O.S.A. discussed "The Exercise of Authority by Religious Superiors in Modern America."1 .. Amid much sound
advice and shrewd observation on the characteristics of the
modern American young man, Father Regan makes such statements as the following, which are certainly very far indeed
from the high ideal St. Ignatius teaches, "Is it asking too much
that American religious superiors out of deference to the
American temperament, approach the matter of the exercise
of their authority in a kind of democratic manner?" 8 "I recommend that male candidates for the religious life in our
country be advised as to the canonical limits of religious obedience . . . this should be emphasized." 9 There is certainly
nothing wrong in doing this, but immediately Father Regan
adds, "I further recommend that great discretion be used in
acquainting American religious candidates with the principle ..
of what is termed 'blind obedience'. After all, blind obedience
does pertain to the higher areas of spiritual perfection . . .
(and) should not be an item in the ordinary spiritual diet of
American male religious." Having remarked that, "if a religious can grow up to the exercise of 'blind obedience', all
well and good," he goes on to observe. "On this point it may
be well to note that every command of a religious superior
must be submitted to a cursory examination by the religious
receiving it. We are all forbidden by a higher law to execute
any command contrary to the law of God; and how would the
religious subject avoid such a danger if he did not examine
... the commands given him." 1° Father Regan seems to say
with one breath that blind obedience is "well and good," and
at the same time that a subject obeying blindly cannot avoid
the danger of executing commands contrary to the law of
God. Such a confusion one feels could be overcome by a careful
�POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARMOR
I
I
,.
i
39
study of St. Ignatius's letter. "No one would wish religious
authority to be watered down or religious obedience to dry
and shrivel up," the author is careful to conclude, but his treatment of the subject is fraught with great dangers.
Father Paul Kevin Meagher, O.P. contributes the most
thoughtful contribution to the Proceedings, 11 but even he is a
little shy of discussing obedience of the judgment. "The good
which we are called upon to surrender by the counsel of obedience is self will," he says, and then goes on for several pages
to develop this idea. It is only somewhat later that he adds
just one sentence which mentions the judgment; and even
here, from the context, one is not sure he is talking about the
Ignatian obedience of the judgment. "So long as the superior
acts within the limits of his authority, the subject cannot be
mistaken in his judgment that it is God's will for him to
obey." 12
The religious obedient man is a strong character for he
obeys only because he chooses to obey, and has the strength to
overcome whatever impulses would urge him to rebellion. And
as an antidote to the dangerous suggestions of democratic
adaptation, he declares truly, "Any gain, therefore, in the
readiness with which a subject will submit to commands because they are given with more democratic deference to his
views and wishes does not represent a gain in obedience, and
may in fact represent a loss." 13 "It is necessary that our spirit
of obedience be strengthened against these tendencies of the
age which I have associated with the democratic spirit, for
obviously, this spirit, if taken as it actually reveals itself in
contemporary life rather than as it is ideally conceived, must
be much chastened before it can really be made welcome to the
religious cloister." 14
Recent Writings on Religious Obedience
Certainly one of the finest articles on obedience is that by
Father Heinrich Keller, S.J. For a lofty and profound discussion of the subject, the reader should consult the full article.
Just a few quotations are put down here to show how different
is Father Keller's view from those expressed by Father Regan.
Again and again Ignatius insists on an obedience which transcends
all legal obligations. 15 There should be great reserve in stressing
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the legal standpoint in the religious life.16 Perfection of, and love
for obedience are left (by the legalists) as by-products and adornments. . • . How often are perfection and charity neglected when
superiors and religious orders take their stand too readily on legal
ground. If perfection and charity cannot be commanded they can
be recommended, counselled, and desired. The remark of a modern
philosopher throws light on this situation. Speaking of the family,
he remarks that insistence on the legal viewpoint supposes that
both children and parents have abandoned the viewpoint of love.
Does this not apply fully to the religious life? 17
Some of the best writing on obedience is being done by the
Dominicans. 18 Father Th. Camelot, O.P. in La Vie Spirituelle
has a fine discussion (condensed in Theology Digest, Spring,
1953) of how obedience and liberty are reconciled. His final
observation is worth recalling,
"Obedience will be truly free and mature only if it is fundamentally freed from all human motivation and attachments. In
other words, one must obey for God and for God alone. To obey
a superior solely because he or she is sympathetic and understanding
is to obey a human being not as a representative of God, but precisely ·for his or her human qualities. To obey for such reasons is
not to obey God in the glorious liberty of God's children, but rather
it is to make oneself a slave to a man."
By far the best and most realistic book is that of Ferdinand
Valentine, O.P., Religious Obedience, a Practical Explanation
for Religious Sisters (Westminster, Maryland: Newman Press,
1950). He discusses the dangers of overly severe discipline,
of too gentle discipline, of too personal a rule, obligations of
superiors, etc., the whole climaxed in a splendid forty pages
on surrender of the judgment.
An interesting recent work by a Benedictine, Dom Columba
Cary-Elwes, Law, Liberty and Love (London: Hodder and
Stoughton, 1950) is "a study in Christian obedience, foundation of Christian civilization." This is an historical outline of
the development of true Christian obedience and how it is
related to law, liberty, and love. Obedience is an act of love,
but it can easily degenerate into legalism. The desert fathers,
Cassian, Pachomius, Benedict, the founders of Cluny, Francis,
Domi~ic, ~homas Aquinas, the Jesuits, Luther, Rousseau,
Mac~1avelh, t~e Little Flower, the views of modern popes, are
all discussed m a competent and interesting manner but too
cursorily to satisfy.
i
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41
A short but more pertinent discussion is that of Joseph
Loosen, S.J. in Geist und Leben (1951), pp. 169-209. This is
an historical study of the development and theological foundations of religious obedience. Father Loosen shows how religious obedience passed through three stages which parallel
the evolution of the religious life. Solitary anchorites were
succeeded 'by cloistered monks living in organized communities,
and these communities were succeeded by apostolic societies
oriented toward the secular world as a field of action. It is
this modern development especially which requires that the
religious should exercise a certain independence and initiative
in carrying out the work assigned.
THE SYMPOSIUM ON OBEDIENCE-FRANCE 1950
1. The Evolution of Religious Obedience
In point of volume and variety of outlook the major contribution to the recent literature is Obediencer a series of 21
papers which 20 authors delivered at a 1950 symposium in
France. These 300 pages form an encyclopedia of material
on the vow and virtue of obedience. The aim of this symposium
was to take stock of the nature of the virtue and the vow, both
under their unchangeable aspect and in what is common to all
forms of religious life, as well as from the standpoint of its
adaptation to female psychology and to contemporary circumstances. Hence, a great deal of the historical and theological
exposition regarding obedience will be found of value to all
religious whether men or women. There are four main divisions to the symposium. The first part comprises three historical papers tracing the evolution of the notion of religious
obedience from its earliest Christian obedience to its culmination in the clerks regular of the sixteenth century.
The absolute character of the obedience of the monks of the desert
flowed from its nexus with humility ... it inspired confidence, and
simplicity, condemned all scrutiny or criticism of commands given;
apart from the rule and will of superiors there is nothing holy, useful
or prudent. This relentless attitude showed a somewhat crude
mentality. The notion of obedience became more humane, and
drawn from a less pessimistic view of the natural order. It acquired especially in the necessities of the apostolic life, more flexibility, a more formal recognition of initiative, a more developed
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sense of the rights of personality.zo With Caesarius there is a
breach with the former authoritarianism, so rigid and uniform. 21
Benedictine obedience is characterized by a perfection both interior and human, and implicitly contains the Ignatian submission
of judgment.22
The author of this paper, incidentally, is a Jesuit, M. OlpheGalliard. After the motive of humility which was paramount
in the case of the earliest Fathers of the desert, a new motive,
imitation of Christ who was obedient to death, began to come
to the fore. It was only much later that a new aspect of the
supernatural motive of obedience appeared~ Now the Abbot
is seen to be the representative of Jesus Christ. Now obedience is not only the following of Christ, but faith in His presence in the community in the person of the Abbot. 23
In the middle ages more than ever before the conception of religious obedience and the organization of the monastery show an
interdependence with a given social structure. . . . When the newborn orders of the thirteenth century reject this social structure,
there is an evolution of the concept of religious obedience ... and it
is St. Francis of Assisi who effects this.z4 To Francis obedience
is a form of spiritual poverty. . . . It is not merely juridical but
vera et sancta et caritativa obedientia.zs The evangelical spirit,
full of love, must be present lest the vow stifle the virtue.zs
Francis disentangled evangelical obedience, in its essence from
the earlier social structures in which it had become embedded.2s
This paper on the obedience of the apostolic orders in the
thirteenth century is by a Franciscan, Marie Adrian Coreslis.
In more than one place the author suggests that Benedictine
obedience was outmoded, once the social structure on which it
was dependent collapsed. Unfortunately there is no representative of the Order of St. Benedict to give us a Benedictine
view on this matter. Did Benedictine obedience continue uninterruptedly through the centuries? Is today's Benedictine
obedience the same as that of the times up to the thirteenth
century? This would form an interesting and valuable discussion. ·Incidentally, the lack of discussion on the papers is a
r~al.loss; for the various papers abound in challenging, confhcb~g, even c~ntradictory statements, and one is at a great
loss. m a!tem~tmg any synthesis from the whole symposium.
As m th1s pomt on Benedictine obedience, so in many other
matters, the reader would be forced to a great deal of inde-
�POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARl\IOR
43
pendent research to resolve his doubts or gather the basic
information for a judgment, a task which, not unreasonably,
one might have expected to be done by the symposium for him.
Father P. E. Tesson, S.J. who writes on the clerks regular
of the sixteenth century, makes some interesting points on the
obedience in the Society.
The sovereign pontiff is by law the highest superior over all
religious institutes .•. but whereas the authority of the pope as
regards other religious is contained within limits which are set
by the rule to which they bind themselves (thus the pope could
not compel a Carthusian to do missionary work by virtue of his
vow of obedience) he can entrust a mission to the Society as a
whole, or to any one of its members, and they are thereby held to
it by obedience.2T
Could the pope, as a matter of fact, command the whole
Society, in virtue of the vow of obedience, to become a contemplative order; could the pope do so in the case of even one
member? There is no doubt that the whole Society or the
individual Jesuit would obey, but not in virtue of the vow of
obedience, for by so obeying they would as surely cease to be
apostolic and Jesuit, as the Carthusian would cease to be contemplative and Carthusian. It is true that the Jesuit vocation
is to the greater glory of God wherever that be found, and in
theory it might be argued that if greater glory were to be
found in a purely contemplative life, then the Society, or certain members commanded thereto, would not be doing violence
to the Institute of the Society in leading a purely contemplative
life. Gagliardi in Part I of his De Plena Cognitione Instituti,
where he discusses the end of the Society, makes a big point of
the unlimited nature of the Society's works, and suggests that
any work at all is proper to the Society if such work is to the
greater glory of God, or is commanded by legitimate superiors.
Still in taking his Jesuit vows, the novice did so omnia intelligenda juxta ipsius Societatis constitutiones, and those constitutions clearly outline an apostolic, not a contemplative order.
In a true sense then, the Society's ministries are limited. Those
of us who have been accustomed to thinking that a characteristic mark of the Society was the unlimitedness of its ministries, as contrasted with, say, the Benedictines who are usually
considered to be committed to the liturgical apostolate, will
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POwERFUL ANI) BRILLIANT ARMOR
be interested in the remarks of the Abbot Marmion in the same
28
chapter on Obedience previously referred t0.
In instituting monasticism, the great Patriarch did not intend to
create an Order exclusively destined to attain such or such a particular end or to accomplish such or such a special work. He
wished onl; to make perfect Christians of his monks and envisaged
for them the plentitude of Christianity. Doubtless, as we have
seen it has befallen that in the course of ages, monasteries have becom~ centers of civilization, by preaching, the clearing and cultivation of land, teaching, art, literary work, but this was but the outward blossoming, the natural and normal outcome of the fulness
of Christianity with which these monasteries were inwardly animated. Being vowed to God, the monks spent themselves in the
service of the Church, and under every form that this service
demanded. But what they sought before all, was to give to God,
for love of Him, the homage of all their being in obedience to an
Abbot, as Christ, in coming into this world, only sought His
Father's will, leaving to His Father the determination of this will:
Ecce venio: ut faciam Deus voluntatem tuam.
"How is this will determined for the monk? By the Rule and the
Abbot. It is for the Abbot, inspired by the Rule and respecting its
traditions, to fix the direction of the activity of the monastery.
Having, moreover, according to our Holy Father's saying to govern
the monastery 'wisely,' he will undoubtedly be watchful to see how
he may utilize for God's glory and the benefit of the Church and
society, the talents placed by God in each of his monks. But as
for the monk himself, he has nothing to arrange or determine in
all this: he does not come to the Abbey to give himself to one occupation rather than another, to discharge such or such a function
that he finds suitable; he comes to seek God in obedience. In this
lies all his perfection.
Father Tesson suggests that the manifestation of conscience
in the Society represents the last survival of the conception of
the superior as it was known to the Fathers of the desert, with
its most complete filial confidence in the superior. 29 "St. Ignatius like all the others considered in the preceding historical
studies, master of spirituality though he may be, is not a
professed theologian, nor a moralist, nor a canonist. He points
the ways. of perfection, he lays down its laws with emphasis,
but he does not profess to deal with practical difficulties which
ari~e in daily life, and one cannot go to him to find solutions." 30
This sounds _good until you remember that it was precisely to
offer a ~olubon to a very practical difficulty that St. Ignatius
wrote his famous letter to the brethren in Portugal.
f
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45
2. The Doctrine and Psychology of Obedience
The second part of the symposium is entitled Doctrine.
Father A. Motte, O.P. leads off with a paper, The Theology of
Religious Obedience, actually a commentary on St. Thomas
doctrine as found in the Summa. Solid and profound and
most valuable as this paper is, it does not discuss the most
important and theological aspect of the problem, namely just
how and in what sense and with what limitations the Superior
truly represents God. The following excerpts give some idea
of the range of his discussion.
The immolation of the will in obedience must be understood correctly. One does not give up the act of willing; one does not even
give up choice; one renounces only that choice that does not accord
with a legitimate superior. The command of a superior does not
suppress either will or choice but determines them. This determination does not override liberty but presupposes it, since it is
freely accepted for the love of God.a1
Obedience according to St.
Thomas serves perfect love in a pre-eminent manner, a) as an antidote to pride and the excesses of self-will; b) as a liberation from
the worries entailed by an independently organized life; c) as an
immolation of man's greatest good, free will. 3 2 Begotten not of
natural necessity but of charity, religious obedience must continually be cherished by charity. 33 The perfection of obedience
consists in entering totally into the will of the superior, that is to
say, in conforming oneself in all that is licit to his will, forestalling
his commands, seizing with predilection on painful occasions of
obedience because in them the will has less likelihood of its selfseeking, and because a maximum contact is thus guaranteed with
the superior's will, and this in the last resort means with God's.a4
The union of wills does not come to its full maturity until it has
been ferged in the severe conditions of terrestrial trial.35
Other papers in this section treat of obedience in the Code of
Canon Law, obedience of women and the special problems
arising from the fact that women in the church are always
under male superiors at least mediately, and from the psychological dispositions of women to be receptive to authority.
The woman is advised to make consistent efforts to disentangle
her obedience from the swaddling clothes of mere natural
disposition and give it the status of a real virtue.
Part three discusses psychological maturity and obedience,
and the final section gives the results of some experiments
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POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARl\IOR
made in France to foster initiative, maturity, and responsibility step by step with an increase in the habit of obedience.
3. The Purpose of the Discussions
r
As a matter of fact, as the editor of the symposium admits,
all the papers converge toward the resolving of the antitheses
between autonomy and dependence; maturity and spiritual
childhood. The major preoccupation of the authors seems to
be to show that true obedience does not repress, stunt, or
deform personality. One gets the impression that obedience is
on trial to justify its existence. If it can be shown not to harm
personality development, then it is acceptable, but at all costs
personality must be safeguarded. Again and again, there is ~~
talk of infantilism, of childishness, of irresponsibility, flattened personality, enfeebled judgment, crushed initiative, mind
moulding, atrophying, enslavement, etc. We are told of Sisters
who cannot make even the smallest decision because "Reverend
Mother is not at home." After a hundred pages of theorizing,
one is ready to shout out for some of the good red blood of
history to be transfused into the discussion. Never a mention
of St. Francis Xavier, the most obedient and the most resourceful of men, nor of the countless others who under the command of obedience have gone out to convert the heathen, found
colleges, inaugurate new movements, and full of great daring,
fearlessly do heroic deeds for the Church. Had the authors
scrutinized carefully the lives of the saints, and omitted some
of the finely spun theory, we might have had a genuine contribution as to how this antithesis is resolved; for resolved it
was, and in fact is being daily resolved by thousands of religious in America, where the work of God goes on without
the. t?warting of personality and the inability to come to a ,
dec1s10n because reverend mother is not at home. Despite the
claim of all the contributors that the antithesis is to be solved,
Father Tesson maintains in his paper that the "outstanding
characteristic of the obedience of the Society . . . (is) the l·
harmony of initiative and submission." 36 Not true, the authors
would say, for such harmony must be present in any true
obedience.
In these papers there is the full quota of objections to "blind
�POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARMOR
47
or imprudent obedience," to the stultifying of intelligence in
such obedience, etc., but the objections do not bring out anything different from the ones already quoted. The final paper
on Total Surrender introduces us to the doctrine of St. John of
the Cross, full of the love of God as we would expect. In the
midst of this fine discussion, for some reason I cannot explain,
the author throws in this paragraph, "Teaching on the virtue
of obedience has become more and more overformalized with
its obedience in execution, in will, in judgment. This threefold division has been handed down for centuries and to many
is held sacred and inviolate. The justification which theologians give for it are not as a rule shining examples of
theological acumen." 37
Conclusion
So there is still great discussion concerning religious obedience, and St. Ignatius' classic letter is not the last word.
Throughout the discussions one is struck by the infrequent
mention of St. Ignatius, the doctor of obedience. It may well
be, as Father Young suggests, that if the Abbot Marmion
reveals no knowledge of the Ignatian letter, many other writers
are likewise ignorant of this great classic. Hence, may Father
Young's new translation be broadcast far and wide among
English-speaking religious men and women, and may all from
a careful study and meditation on its contents grow to the full
perfection of this great Christlike virtue.
NOTES
1
St. Ignatius of Loyola, The Letter on Obedience, trans. William J.
Young, S.J. (New York: America Press, 1953).
2
Pius XI, Meditantibus Nobis.
3
Pius XII, Address to the Delegates of the General Congress of Religious Orders, December 8, 1950.
4
Marmion, Christ, the Ideal of the Monk, p. 259.
5
Brodrick, Origin of the Jesuits, pp. 99-100.
6
Mother Mary Josita, B.V.M., "Special Problems of Obedience in
Modern Times," Religious Community Life in the United States: Proc~e.dings of the Sisters' Section of the First Nationa,l Congress of Reltgwus in the United States (New York: Paulist Press, 1952).
�r
POWERFUL AND BRILLIANT ARMOR
48
Regan "The Exercise of Authority by Religious Superiors in Modern
America,' Religious Community Life in the United States: Proceedings
1
of the Men's Section of the First National Congress of the United States
(New York: Paulist Press, 1952).
8 Ibid., p. 179.
9 Ibid., p. 183.
10 Ibid., p. 184.
11 Meagher, O.P., "The Spirit of Religious Obedience in Modern
America," Proceedings of the Men's Section •••, pp. 186-199.
12 Ibid., p. 190.
1a Ibid., p. 197.
14 Ibid., p. 199.
15 Heinrich Keller, ..Jesuit Obedience," WooDSTOCK LETTERS, (February, 1949), pp. 27-46.
16 Ibid., p. 44.
11
Loc. cit.
A curious exception is the outstanding Gerald Vann, O.P. who discusses unfavorably the "theory of what is called blind obedience" in
Of His Fulness (New York: P. J. Kenedy, 1939). Such a theory in
Father Vann's view "gives the will the responsibility of compelling the
mind against its natural bent. Obedience is a virtue of the will, not of
the understanding. It cannot, then, consist in trying to force the mind to
concur with rulings which it cannot honestly agree to be right. . . ."
This indicates a lack of understanding of the traditional, or at least the
lgnatian doctrine of blind obedience.
19
Religious Life III: Obedience (London: Blackfriars Publications,
1953).
2 o Ibid., p. 30.
21 Ibid., p. 33.
22 Ibid., pp. 34-35.
23 Ibid., p. 35.
24 Ibid., p. 40.
25 Ibid., p. 42.
26 Ibid., p. 45.
27 Ibid., p. 54.
28
Marmion, Christ, the Ideal of the Monk, Chap. XII, pp. 259-260.
29
Religious Life III: Obedience, p. 57.
18
Loc. cit.
Ibid., p. 69.
32 Ibid., p. 68.
33 Ibid., p. 74.
34
Ibid., p. 86.
35 Ibid., p. 87.
36 Ibid., p. 55.
37 Ibid., p. 282.
30
31
I
i
�Recent Discoveries of the Relics
of St. Jean de Breheuf
Editor's Note: The following letter is addressed to Very
Reverend Father Gerald Goulet, Provincial of the Province
of Lower Canada, and relates the recent discoveries of the
relics of St. John de Bn'!beuf that were unearthed in
August, 1954, at the Martyrs' Shrine, Forte Ste. Marie,
Near Midland, Ontario. The letter is of particular significance to American and Canadian Jesuits, since the life,
work, and sufferings of this martyr are the common heritage of both. The editor wishes to express his sincere
gratitude to Father Leon Pouliot, S.J., editor of Lettres
du Bas-Canada for his gracious permission to reproduce
such an interesting article in the Woodstock Letters. Appended to the letter is a brief summary of the latest developments that have been made subsequent to the excavations in August. For this recent information and the
accompanying pictures, the editor is once again indebted to
our Canadian Jesuits, and in particular to the prompt and
generous cooperation of Father Horatio Phelan and Father
John McCaffrey.
August 19, 1954
DEAR FATHER PROVINCIAL, P.C.
Father McCaffrey has asked me to send you some account
of what has happened here during the past few days. Press
reports may have thinned down by the time they reached the
Montreal papers.
On Tuesday, August 17th, Father Denis Hegarty unearthed
what seems to have been the coffin used in the burial of St.
John de Brebeuf.
Father Hegarty spent two years at the University of Western Ontario training in archeology with Mr. Wilfred Jury and
others, and worked with Mr. Jury here at Sainte Marie.
You will recall that the account of the Relations, which
seems to be based on the Regnaut Report, definitely fixes Sainte
Marie as the place of first burial. Neither the excavations
under Mr. Kidd of the Royal Ontario Museum nor under Mr.
Jury turned up any evidence of the precise spot.
With this point in mind Father Hegarty set out this year to
try to locate it. You are aware that the entire area of the old
�50
THE RELICS OF ST. JEAN DE BREBEUF
mission residence has been excavated. The building sites are I
clearly marked and have been identified. Father Hegarty
felt that the bodies would have been buried either in the Domestic chapel of the Jesuit residence or in the chapel in the
Christian Indian compound. The entire residence was divided
into the three sections: European, Christian Indian, Pagan
Indian.
In looking for the burial place of Brebeuf and Lalemant he ~
quite logically decided to begin with the Indian chapel. Mr.
Jury had excavated and identified it a few years ago.
After removing the sod and top soil, Father Hegarty and.
his assistant worked systematically froni the east of the
former buiding towards the west. He worked through the '
area carefully, sifting the soil and sand and following all post ~
mould, decomposed wood and discoloured soil through to the
undisturbed waterlaid sand level.
Last Friday, August 13th, at a spot 20 feet from the west
end wall of the chapel and 3 feet from the south side wall,
approximately opposite the centre of the Christian cemetery
which abuts the chapel at this point, he found a disturbed area
measuring 88 by 42 inches. At the time bad weather pre-~····.·
vented further work.
On Monday, at a depth of 40 inches he found one iron nail
of the type used in the coffins of the Sainte Marie cemetery and
found there during Mr. Jury's excavations in quantity. On
Tuesday, further work in the disturbed area uncovered just
below the 40 inch level the distinct outline of a coffin, formed
by decomposed wood and blackened earth in the white sand.
Recognition was facilitated by the fact that Father Hegarty
worked with Mr. Jury a few years ago when nineteen such
coffins were discovered in the Christian cemetery next to the
chapel. All burials were obviously within twelve years of \
one another and should normally produce present conditions
approximately the same.
The outline measured 79 inches in length, 33 inches in width :;
at the head and 30 inches at the foot. The base of the outline
rested on white sand at the 54 inch level. The depth therefore
of the coffin was approximately 14 inches. It was found on a ~
1
north-south axis with the foot three feet from the south chapel
wall, near the spot where a door from the chapel to the ceme·
r·
�Location of the Grave
Outline of the Grave
��THE RELICS OF ST. JEAN DE BREBEUF
51
tery had been identified in previous excavations. The black
outline of the coffin was fringed with a pinkish colour, possibly
due to ochre.
There was strongly marked black matter in the outline from
the centre to about one foot from the head. This black matter
revealed no discernible pattern. It has been carefully collected
and will be submitted to experts for analysis.
At 1:40 P.M. on Tuesday, Father Hegarty's assistant,
James Hood of Midland, found a lead plaque bearing an easily
legible inscription. It is as follows:
First line: "P. Jean de B--beuf" (very clear)
Second line: "
par-es Iroq--" (first word looks
like: '"brule")
Third line: "16
17 (this date slightly higher than 16) de mars"
Fourth line: "1649" (very clear)
The plaque is in excellent condition and after cleaning
should be completely legible. It measures 2 by 1112 inches
and was found near the spot where the left shoulder must
originally have rested. It appears to have been wrapped in
birch. The marking on the metal suggests the appearance of
birch bark. The lettering is very similar to the script
of extant documents of the period which are contained in almost all of the works on the Martyrs. It was clearly buried
with the coffin for purposes of identification. There are no
holes in it by which it might have been attached to the coffin.
It is quite heavy and suggests lead or lead and zinc. It will be
submitted to experts for complete cleaning and analysis.
Father Hegarty found what he says may be two fragments
of bone. They are small and doubtful. They also will be submitted to analysis. No other bones were found in the coffin
outline nor could they be expected. You will recall Regnaut's
Report:
When we left the country of the Hurons, we raised both bodies
out of the ground, and set them to boil in strong lye. All the bones
were well scraped, and the care of drying them was given to me.
I put them every day into a little oven which we made of clay,
after having heated it slightly; and, when in a state to be packed,
they were separately enveloped in silk cloth. Then they were put
into two small chests, and we brought them to Quebec, where they
are held in great veneration.
�52
THE RELICS OF ST. JEAN DE BREBEUF
You will recall that the solution of lye and flesh is usually
described as having been buried again at Sainte Marie. The
presumption is that it was put back in their respective coffins.
We hope to find Lalemant's nearby.
Mr. Jury is working at Penetanguishene, seven miles from
here, at present. Father Provincial invited him over yesterday to show him the plaque and the site, and describe to him
what happened and what was found. Since he did not see the
actual outline in the sand, he could not give an official opinion
on its authenticity. On the other hand, it is difficult to contest
the plaque and the obvious undisturbed nature of the outline
which took all of three hundred years to form by decomposed
wood and post mould.
Sincerely in Our Lord,
HORATIO P. PHELAN, S.J.
Latest Developments Since August 1954
The excavations continued in the old residence of Ste. Marie
until the end of the summer, but not the slightest trace was
found of Lalement's coffin. A complete report was described
in The News-Letter of the Province of Upper Canada for
November as "almost completed". It has not yet been published. The following is from a brief article in the same
issue of The News-Letter:
While the excavation of the coffin was going on, a quantity of
sand was seen. Some of this was collected for analysis. Finally
the plaque was found. Four white cedar posts were set to mark
exactly the corners of the coffin, and a mound raised. A week later
the mound was reopened and some more of what remained was
taken. The mound in the Indian Chapel at Ste. Marie still marks
the grave of Brebeuf. As a check or comparison, sand was also
gathered at a different place, so that the samples, i.e., some of that
gathered at the time of the excavations, some taken when the mound
was r~opened, and the check-sand were brought to Professor F. F.
Morw1ck of th~ Department of Soils, Ontario Agricultural College,
Gue~ph, Ontano, for analysis. In his report he marked these as
Ordmary Sand, Grave Sample I and Grave Sample II. Analysis
was made for phosphorus content and for organic matter. The
�THE RELICS OF ST. JEAN DE BREBEUF
53
first would indicate the probable presence of disintegrated bone,
the second that of flesh. The summary reads:
Phosphorus Content in
(1) Ordinary Sand 30 lb to ac
(2) Grave Sample I 120 lb to ac
(3) Grave Sample II 70 lb to ac
Organic Matter in
(1) Ordinary Sand
very low
(2) Grave Sample I moderately high
(3) Grave Sample II moderately low
The plaque from the coffin was brought to the Ontario Research
Foundation in Toronto. Dr. Martius did the actual cleaning and
examination. Dr. Ellis, Director of Metallurgy at the Foundation,
showed keen interest. The plaque is a small plate, 3%" x 2" x %",
pure lead, with the inscription etched into it apparently with a nail,
for the ridges show as well as the furrows. A scale deposit had
formed all over it. The scale was a mixture of lead oxides and
lead carbonates. This was partly cleaned from the front. The
back remains as it was. The inscription reads:
P. Jean de Brebeuf
Brusle par les Iroquois
Le 17 de Mars l'an
1649
* * *
Quotations from Father Becker's Book, The Hidden Life of Christ
Those who will not have God as a master, cannot master themselves.
Their passions are the enlightened "categorical imperative" to which
they give allegiance.
What ascetical writers mean to describe as indifference is a poise or
equilibrium of will that is not swayed by feeling or by the push or pull
of created things.
Pride is a vice that goes not only with high place. It is a parasite
of the stupid as well as of the gifted mind. There are petty tyrants
as unloving as imperial ones.
The charity that is self-complacent, that advertises itself, that is rich
in professions but poor in performance, is not a virtue-not even a
natural virtue. The steam that escapes into the air, even with a noise,
will never move a ship or a locomotive.
A capricious and vacillating will is the mark of a weak character.
A firm and steadfast will is the proof of a strong character. Flawless
Principles, lofty ideals, and inflexible will make a perfect character.
�Georgetown University and
McLean Gardens
W. C. REPETTI, S.J.
The earliest document in our archives on the McLean
Gardens property is a survey made in 1839 by Lewis Carbery,
surveyor of Georgetown, for Colonel Richard P. Pile. On
September 18, 1845, Pile purchased sixty-five acres of a tract
known as " Terra Firma," which was contiguous, in parts, to
a section known as "Friendship." The price was five thousand dollars.
At the time that the property was acquired by John R.
McLean the following information appeared in the Washington Post:
In connection with the interesting history of the new summer
home of Mr. and Mrs. John R. McLean, the Post has been requested
to state that the name of the builder and owner of the present
house was Col. Richard Parris Pile, who came from the island of
Barbados in 1839. Col. Pile was born in the West Indies of English
parents, and, like all colonial children of his class, was sent to
England to be educated. He took his degree at Cambridge and
returned to the West Indies, where his family had large estates for
generations. He took an active part in the colonial government,
and resigned his office of speaker of the assembly to take up his residence in the United States. Far from being a refugee, as has been
erroneously stated, he was given a banquet by the officers of the
assembly on the eve of his departure, when the massive silver
loving cup which is frequently mentioned in the Washington
chronicles of a generation ago was presented him by the people
of St. Joseph's parish, Barbados, the same cup now being in the
possession of his granddaughter, Mrs. S. F. Gaudell, of London, to
whom it was given on the occasion of her marriage a year ago.
Col. Pile's children are the Misses Pile of 912 Nineteenth Street,
and Mrs. Green, of London. Sir George Pile, at present president
of the council on the island of Barbados, is a cousin of the former
owner of College Villa, who to his last days enjoyed the confidence
and res!Ject of the government of his native island.
Mrs. Pile's given name was Eastmond, and her two sons,
Eyre and William Hinds, entered Georgetown Prep on July
15, 1840. They began in Second Rudiments and in the next
year William was in the First Division of Third Humanities
and Eyre was still in Rudiments. The last entry in the treas-
�GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
55
urer's ledger was dated July 31, 1842, and that seems to have
ended their connection with Georgetown College.
On July 10, 1840, Colonel Pile acquired possession of a tract
of land from Walter Smith, trustee of Clement Cox, deceased.
It was located on the west side of the Georgetown-Tenleytown
Road (now Wisconsin Avenue), a short distance above the
present Macomb Street. It had a frontage on the Georgetown Road of about 790 feet and a depth of about 2,000 feet;
the price paid was $750. It was a portion of a larger tract
known as "Terra Firma."
On August 22, 1843, Richard P. Pile increased his land
holdings by obtaining a deed from Thomas S. Jessup, U.S.A.,
and his wife Ann, of Allegheny County, Pa., for a tract of
land immediately to the north of the piece which he had
acquired in 1840, and the price for this new portion was
$4,600. It is described in the deed as being part of a larger
tract called "Terra Firma."
On September 13, 1845, Colonel Pile mortgaged the two
pieces of property for $5,000 at 6% interest, to be paid off in
three years in semi-annual payments. The holder of the
mortgage was John Farley.
On August 13, 1846, the President and Directors of Georgetown College met and resolved to
purchase the house and farm (on Rockville Road about two miles
from Georgetown, D.C.) from R. P. Pile, Esq. This house and surrounding lots to be used as a villa. The treasurer was instructed
to insure the house from the time of purchase in the Aetna Insurance Company.
The purchase was made on April 8, 1847, and the price was
$5,500 and the deed was
subject to the effect and operation of a certain indenture • . •
bearing date on the thirtieth day of September in the year of
Our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty-five.
That is, the College assumed the responsibility for the
mortgage of $5,000, which Colonel Pile had now reduced to
$4,500. On April 23, 1847, the College purchased farm implements, live stock and a considerable amount of house furniture
from Colonel Pile at a cost of $850. On May 22, 1848, John
Farley, holder of the mortgage, allowed the College to postpone payment until September 30, 1849; but it was not paid
�56
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
I
l
at that time, and on January 11, 1850, he asked for a settle- '
ment at an early date. On April 16, 1850, the College paid
$2,500, and on May 11 closed the transaction by the pa~ment
of $2,000. The interest on the mortgage was 6o/o and m the
interval between April 8, 1847, and May 11, 1850, a total of I
$424.58 was paid. There was a charge of $4.37 for recording .
the deed, and thus the total amount paid for the acquisition 1
of the villa was at least $11,275.
i
The first villa was spent there August 1-25, 1849, and we
learn from the Minister's diary that there were 12 priests, f
24 scholastics and 4 brothers. Later on, the Baltimore
scholastics joined those of Georgetown. After 1869, when the
scholasticate was moved to Woodstock, the villa was discontinued and the property was rented.
Father Barnum recorded in his notes that the Province was
a part owner of the villa property, but we have not the date at
which it entered into this partnership. Father Barnum further related that once a year, the Georgetown Cadet Corps,
in full uniform, paraded to the villa and spent the day in
target practice, and on these occasions halted in front of the
Visitation Academy and presented arms.
From January to April, 1862, the villa was occupied by
General Peck and his staff of the Union Army.
Continuing Father Barnum's account, we are told that in
1864 there was a proposal to sell the villa for $15,000. After
its use as a villa was discontinued it was occupied by the
Country Club which had an option of purchasing it for $20,000.
On January 7, Father Charles Jenkins, procurator at Georgetown, wrote to Father Keller, Provincial, that he was informed
by Father Early that the Province was willing to sell the villa
for $30,000. These names enable us to date this letter between
July 14, 1870, and September, 1872. It also appears to bear
out Father Barnum's assertion that the Province was a part
owner of the villa.
The next piece of information which we possess is dated
May 5, 1877, at which time
!
William L. Davis agrees that, in consideration of the latter's tenancy of a portion of the Villa property belonging to the President
and .Directors of Georgetown College, he, the said Davis, will immed..ooly and doea h"eby
to the Autho<itiea of the aaid
'"'""do"
I
~
�GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
57
College all the said Villa property now held and occupied by him
with the exception of the house, garden and orchard thereunto
attached; and that on or before the 15th day of October, 1877, he
will surrender all the residue of said property, so excepted, waiving
all notice whatever to which he may be entitled by law and paying
in the meantime therefor as rent the sum of $65 per quarter. And
on the failure of said Davis promptly to surrender the property as
herein agreed, the Authorities or officers of the College may enter
therein and possess themselves of the same in any manner they may
elect.
On August 1, 1881, the Villa was leased to Lloyd Moxley
for a period of five years, who agreed to pay $1,000 in full on
the said date, and then to pay one-half of the taxes and assessments levied on the property during the continuation of the
lease. Moxley also agreed to keep
the dwelling house properly painted and in good repair, to renew the
fences around the farm and keep them in good repair, to keep the
roads and hedges in good order, to place sufficient soil around the
roots of the trees to prevent their decay, and not to sublet the same
premises or assign the lease without written permission.
We now come to the sale of the Villa property. In the
Minister's Diary, under date of January 11, 1887, we find the
entry:
Father Minister arranged with the real estate agents to accept
the proposition to accept now $45,000 in cash, and the balance in
1, 2, and 3 years, secured by mortgage.
And on March 3, 1887, the following entry was made:
The sale of the Villa property was consummated today. Fr.
Rector received a check for two-thirds the purchase money, $45,000,
less the expenses; commission and $1,000, allowed for quit claims,
amounting $2,535.75, making the actual amount of the check
$42,464.25. The balance of $15,000 is secured by deed of trust and
five notes each $3,000 for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 years.
And on March 7 Father Minister wrote
Father Rector paid Father Hayes, procurator of the Province,
$28,309.50, 2/3 of the first payment on sale of villa.
The Archives has a clipping, from an undesignated paper,
which says
The sixty-four acre tract, known as the College Villa, situated
on the Georgetown and Rockville turnpike, and adjoining the country
residence of Secretary Whitney on the south, in the immediate
vicinity of President Cleveland's cottage, was sold last week to a
�68
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
Washington syndicate for the handsome sum of $60,000. Ma~y
of the Rev. Fathers of the Society of Jesus, and former scholastics
and teachers in Georgetown College, no doubt cherish pleasant
recollections of the happy vacation days which they passed amid
the rugged but picturesque scenery in which, before the hand of
improvement began to level the hills and fill up the valleys, the
quiet villa reposed like a beautiful gem in a brilliant setting.
The Record Book of the College contains an account, as
given above by the Minister in his Diary for March 3, and
also adds that on June 6 there was a refund of $780 out of the
$1,000 which had been allowed for quit claims and survey, and
that two-thirds of this refund ($520) was sent to the Procurator of the Province.
The Record Book, just mentioned, states that the sale was
made through Thomas Fisher and Co. to Anastasia Patten
and John Beall, but we have no copy of the deed by which the
ownership of the property passed from the College to Mrs.
Patten and Beall. Father Barnum's comment in his Stray
Notes is as follows:
March 3, 1887, the college accepted an offer of $60,000 for the
property. It happened that just at that time of this sale President
Cleveland was negotiating for the purchase of a place nearby,
known as Red Top. The fact that the President had bought a summer home here very naturally caused a great rise in the value of
real estate in the vicinity. Mrs. Patten, the purchaser, was aware of
this and realized a fine profit from her investment as she immediately sold it for $120,000. The old villa is now included in the
princely estate known as Friendship belonging to the McLean family.
Father Barnum's account is substantially correct, but on
January 24, 1951, the writer heard more about the transaction
from Mrs. Edythe Patten Corbin, a daughter of Mrs. Anastasia Patten. She related that one day while her mother was
giving a tea a man called on business, but was told that Mrs.
Patten could not see him at that time. He insisted that his
business was very important; that a syndicate of Virginia men
were interested in her property on the Rockville Road, that
they were leaving town the next day, and must have a decision
at once. Mrs. Patten met the man and accepted his offer of
$110,000 for the property, before the deed had been turned
over to her.
Among our records there is a deed of trust dated February
15, 1887, and recorded on March 2, 1887, by which John Beall
·
j
,.
I
1
\f
,
1
�GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
59
and his wife deeded the property to Charles R. Newman and
Edward J. Stellwagen to secure the payment of five notes of
$3,000 each, signed by Beall and payable to the President and
Directors of Georgetown College. It is not clear to the writer,
nor to Mr. McGregor, how this deed enters into the transaction, and a four-hour search in the land records of the District
of Columbia failed to reveal any other document bearing the
name of anyone involved in this sale.
We also have in the villa file a receipt, dated February 1,
1889, by which the Procurator of the Province acknowledges
the receipt of $2,195.83 from the Procurator of the College,
as the Province's part of the second note, with interest, on the
villa property.
John R. McLean, publisher of the Cincinnati Enquirer and
the Washington Post, purchased the Friendship property in
1898, and it contained 76.9 acres; 63.7 acres of the old Villa
property and 13.2 acres in adjacent sections. The frontage of
the villa property on Wisconsin Avenue was 1,693 feet, that
is, from a point 50 feet north of Macomb Street to a point
between Quebec and Rodman Streets. The greatest east-west
depth was about 2,000 feet. The town house of the McLeans
was on I Street, facing McPherson Park, where the RFC
building now stands.
Mrs. McLean was a daughter of Edward Fitzgerald Beale
who was a student at Georgetown College, 1832-1835. He
entered the Navy, reached California under Commodore Stockton at the beginning of the Mexican war, acquired land in
California, and became Commissioner of Indian Affairs in
California and Nevada in 1852. In 1876-77 he was Minister
for the United States in Vienna. After his death in 1893 his
widow presented to Georgetown College the copy of Rubens'
"Descent From the Cross" that is now in the Carroll Parlor.
Beale purchased it in 1867 from the artist who was painting
it in the Cathedral of Antwerp. His name is on a tablet in
the Ryan dining room.
Truxton Beale was a son of Edward Fitzgerald Beale and
became the owner of the Decatur House at the corner of Jackson Place and H Street. After the death of Commodore Decatur his widow retired from social life, moved to Georgetown,
Was baptized in the Old North Building in 1828, gave the
�60
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY AND McLEAN GARDENS
Decatur Prize money to Georgetown College in exchange for
an annuity, and was buried in the old parish cemetery near
the White-Gravenor Building. Her remains have been transferred to Holy Rood Cemetery.
After the marriage of Nicholas Longworth and Alice Roosevelt they spent a couple of days at Friendship before starting
on their wedding trip.
After the death of John R. McLean in 1916, the property
passed to his son, Ned McLean, who had married Evelyn
Walsh, daughter of Thomas F. Walsh of the Camp Bird gold
mine. Vinson McLean was born in 1909 and was known as
the one hundred million dollar baby. At the age of ten, in
spite of several guards, he ran out of the gate at Friendship
and was hit by a passing auto and died that night of a fractured skull.
In 1942 the government bought Friendship for one million
dollars and began the housing development that is there today.
In 1947, Friendship, Fairlington in Virginia, and some property in Washington State were sold to a man from Texas.
After the death of Evelyn Walsh McLean, a newspaper
account, dated March 21, 1949, stated that the Friendship
property (the old Villa property) contained 175 acres, and
became known as McLean Gardens. This may be a misprint
for 75 acres. After the sale of the old Friendship estate, Mrs.
McLean bought 2% acres at Wisconsin A venue and R Street,
and named it Friendship. After her death in 1947 her trustees
valued the property at $172,000; and the trustees were Judge
Thurmond Arnold, Msgr. Fulton J. Sheen, and Father Edmund A. Walsh, S.J.
This ended the story of Georgetown College, the villa, and
the McLeans. But in retrospect one wonders why, in view of
the fact that the Province had a two-thirds interest in the
villa, the scholasticate was put in the backwoods of Woodstock
in 1869 instead of on the Rockville Road? Was it the influence
of the old_ colonial idea that it was necessary to have a large
farm to support the house? And also, why were the Georget?wn. College authorities, or their agents, so ignorant of the
r1se m value of Cleveland Park property? Did it make this
spectacular rise between January 11 and March 2, and were
they bound by the conditions agreed upon on January 11?
�A New Tribute To Marquette University
JOANNE LAMPE CHARLTON
The work of Jesuit educators that had its beginning seventyfive years ago in the bustling lake-city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is now reaping an abundant harvest at Marquette University. Noteworthy among its numerous testimonials of
growth and fruition are the impressive new buildings that
have been erected on the University campus. Under the direction of Very Reverend Edward J. O'Donnell, S.J., President
of the University, the following buildings have been erected
and incorporated as part of the University: a new College of
Business Administration, a student union, a residence hall
for women, an addition to the medical school, and a library.
Future plans include a dormitory for men, a new Liberal and
Fine Arts building, a Communication Arts building and additions to the science hall and dental school.
However, the most unusual of the new buildings that have
been erected since 1950, is the 500,000 volume Memorial Library which was dedicated in December 1953. This well designed structure provides for all the various activities of the
modern university library, and is in almost perfect harmony
with the traditional Gothic architecture of the other buildings
. of the University.
Planning for the library began more than ten years ago.
But in 1948, when it became apparent that the doubled enrollment was not likely to sink back to prewar levels, it was
imperative to make permanent provisions for the larger
student body as soon as possible.
A committee, headed by Father Edward J. Drummond,
S.J., then the graduate dean, and now vice-president of the
University, and representing members of the faculty, administration, library staff and alumni, prepared a statement of the
library's requirements. It was found that facilities would
be needed to stack about 300,000 volumes immediately and
approximately twice that number at maximum capacity. Adequate reading room space, and research accommodations for
the faculty were also primary requisites.
With these facts in mind the committee spent many hours
�62
MARQUETI'E UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
of research and travel before the final plans were completed.
Prominent library experts were consulted and twenty university libraries in all parts of the country were visited by
the architect and members of the committee. The experiences
of other colleges and universities which were building or had
completed post-war libraries were generously shared with
Marquette.
A handsome, three-story building of contemporary styling
was the result of this meticulous preparation. Cut stone,
granite, glass and face brick, matching the other campus
buildings, were used on the exterior. Cross-shaped, the library measures 202 ft. long and 65 ft. wide; the cent!al portion is 82 ft. by 56 ft.
The committee planned for maximum flexibility in layout
and operation. All interior walls of the building are movable
except those in the seminar area. Consequently, the present
reading room arrangement can be changed if desired. The
peculiar plan also makes future expansion possible without
modifying the essential architectural design or the library
procedure.
Reading rooms and stack areas are serviced from the library
charge desk which is situated on each floor at the bisecting
point of the wings. All stack areas and entrances to stack
areas are behind the charging desk. Thus, a change from
the present "open-stack" operation to "closed-stack" can be
accomplished by a simple turning of a key.
The two upper floors of the library are subdivided with
mezzanines, making five stack levels in all. There is room
for storage and expansion on the basement level.
Facilities on the first floor of the building include the reserve reading room and two glass-enclosed discussion study
rooms in which conversation is permitted while students work
on co-operative projects. Across the hall there are four
.
'
semmar rooms, an audio-visual room, a large student lounge,
a cloak ~oom, and quarters including a kitchenette for the
staff.
~unning the length of the rear wing is a wood-paneled bail
smtable for art shows and special displays. The names of
library donors will be fastened along the margin of the walls
as a permanent memorial. Adjacent to the corridor is a
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�Built at a cost of $1,450,000, the Memorial Library, with a shelf capafity of 500,000 volumes, was dedicated December 2, 1953
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�MARQUE'ITE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
63
small, tastefully furnished room dedicated to Pere Marquette
in which material pertinent to the University and to Pere
Marquette will be displayed.
The second floor of the library contains two large reference
and periodical reading rooms. Behind the librarian's desk
are the general catalogue, a bibliographical room and the staff
work rooms and offices. Bound volumes of periodicals are
housed in stacks on the mezzanine and the adjacent stack level.
Similar in arrangement to the second floor, except for more
stack areas, the third floor contains the library's general collections. On the mezzanine, 32 individual study carrells are
available to the faculty. There are in addition, 80 carrells in
the stack areas for the students. Approximately 1,080 persons may be seated at one time in the reading rooms. Typing
and audio-visual rooms are immediately accessible to all the
reading rooms.
The library furniture was made to harmonize with the
interior decoration of the building. The furniture also affords
the comfort, utility and good taste needed in library equipment.
Made of laminated plastic material and greyed birch, the
tables have slightly tilted legs repeating the angled lines of
the buttresses in the reading rooms. The chairs, also of birch,
are an innovation in library furniture. They are built with
the traditional strength and solidity of general utility chairs
but their backs of flush wood slats are bent to give the comfort of a posture chair during long periods of use.
Other utilitarian furniture such as periodical racks, map
stands and service desks are of functional design matching
the reading room chairs and tables. Lovely, contemporary
designs are used for the furnishings in the student lounge and
the Pere Marquette room. Yet, the extremes of modern
decorating have been avoided, making the decor fitting for
even future years.
The monotony of rows of reading tables placed at right
angles to the northern walls in each of the reading rooms is
broken by a lounge area of upholstered davenports which
allow leisure reading in library quietness.
Low toned shades of green, grey and terra cotta have been
used to reduce eye strain. The adjustable, concave-shelved
�64
MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
book stacks are painted a soft green to blend with the general
color scheme.
Floors of the reading rooms, stack areas and offices are
covered with rubber tile. The entrance foyers and ground
level corridors are floored with terrazzo. Stairways are concrete with terrazzo.
The walls throughout the library are plaster. Acoustical
materials on the ceilings make the whole building practically
soundproof.
A ventilating system circulates air through the rooms and
cleans and controls the humidity of incoming air. Provision
has been made for the future installation of an air conditioning
unit.
Besides two automatic elevators for the use of the staff and
for freight purposes, each stack area and charge desk is
serviced by a book lift.
The $1,450,000 construction cost of this beautiful building
was largely financed through the generosity of friends and
alumni of the University. Standing imposingly on Milwaukee's main thoroughfare, it is a symbol of the contributions
which the Jesuits have made to the community in learning and
leaders.
Seattle University
Seattle University listed 34 students in its 1931 registration. In 1954,
the registrar listed 528 boarders and 2,833 day scholars for a total
student body of 3,361. For the education and care of the student body
there were 45 Jesuits and 127 lay teachers.
In 1948, when the school celebrated its fiftieth anniversary, (it was
chartered October 17, 1898) Seattle College had its title changed to
Seattle University.
The school offers over two hundred subjects and is open to men and
women of all religious belief. Religious affiliation of the day students
showed .1,612 Catholics; 91 registered as non-Catholics; 2 Anglicans;
20 Baphsts; 4 Jews; 51 Lutherans; 39 Methodists; 32 Presbyterians;
224 Protestants; 37 Episcopalians.
Of the registered students, 1,322 were men and 789 were women.
The number of single students was 1,885 and 224 were married. There
were also 53 World War II veterans and 328 veterans of the Korean
campaign. The out-of-state students amounted to 431.
�OBITUARY
FATHER THOMAS ALOYSIUS BECKER, S.J.
1872-1954
Early Years-Noviceship
Father Becker had just celebrated his eightieth birthday
and had completed almost a half century in the priesthood
when he suffered a severe stroke at St. Aloysius' Rectory,
Washington, on October 5, 1952. With his right side completely paralyzed, and deprived of the use of his voice, he was
to spend the last two years of his life in patient suffering and
resignation to God's Will until his death on February 17, 1954.
The only child of James and Catherine (Nery) Becker,
Thomas Becker was born in Washington, D.C., on September
22, 1872. He attended the parochial school of St. Aloysius
and completed his early education at Gonzaga High School,
where he showed himself a devoted student and an insatiable
reader of history. Graduating from Gonzaga at the age of
fourteen, young Becker entered the Society at Frederick,
Maryland, on August 13, 1887, wearing his first pair of long
trousers. He was the youngest of fourteen that entered the
Society on that day, and because of his age he did not pronounce his first vows until October two years later. One of
the novices of his year, and at the same time, one of his
closest friends was Father Denis Lynch who had been Vicar
General of the Diocese of Burlington, Vermont. Young
Becker always cherished the kind and understanding friendship of this zealous priest who, in later years, labored as a
missionary in Jamaica, in India and finally in the Philippines
where he died. The master of novices was Father Michael
A. O'Kane who was most kind, encouraging and fatherly, yet
strong and virile in the training of his youthful charges.
Under this skilled master of the spiritual life, Brother Becker
Was introduced to the religious life and laid the solid spiritual
foundation that was to make his sixty-seven years in the
Society the work of a fruitful laborer in the vineyard of our
Lord. On Sundays the novices taught catechism to the parish
�66
OBITUARIES
children of St. John's Church and were also sent to the farmhouses in the Catoctin Mountains, ten miles to the northwest,
where they taught not only the Catholic and Protestant children, but the parents of the children as well. The roads
radiating from Frederick were of limestone and were excellent
for walking, which was the principal exercise of the novices
on holidays and free afternoons. Carissime Becker had a
long stride and when asked how he had acquired it, replied
that it came from taking walks as a boy with his grandfather.
About five miles from Frederick, the Georgetown road, as it
was called, led across the Monocacy River on the banks of
which was an old mansion called Araby. Rented as a weekly
villa, its extensive grounds for baseball and tennis were enjoyed by the juniors on Thursdays. The novices went out
to Araby on other days of the week for laborandum, keeping
the grounds in condition and caring for the orchard.
Juniorate and Philosophy
After . taking his vows, Father Becker spent three years,
not unusual at that time, in the study of grammar, poetry and
rhetoric. There were ten in his first class, humorously called
by their teacher, William Cunningham, "the nine muses,"
with Pegasus as their leader. Pegasus had formerly been an
alderman in New York City. For summer villa the juniors
travelled from Frederick to Woodstock on the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad, a ride so tortuous that many would get seasick.
But it was a welcome change from city life in old Frederick.
Early in July 1891, news was received of the tragic death by
lightning of two philosophers and a theologian at St. Inigoes
Villa. Because the memory of the accident was so frighten·
ing, next year the philosophers and theologians went to Chapel
Po~nt in Charles County for their villa, while the future
philosophers and juniors spent their three weeks vacation at
Georgetown University. Washington and its beautiful federal
buildi.ngs offered many advantages for sightseeing, and the
vacationers made many excursions down the Potomac or up
the Baltimore and Ohio Canal.
From 1892 to 1895 Father Becker's class reduced to nine,
made their three years of philosophy at Woodstock under
Father Timothy Barrett who, after his return from Inns·
�FATHER THOMAS ALOYSIUS BECKER
�-·
�OBITUARIES
67
bruck and the completion of his tertianship, had succeeded
Father Sabetti as teacher of moral theology. Many a humorous incident was afforded by Father John Brosnan who was
then Professor of Chemistry. Father Holaind, their ethics
professor, who was then engaged in a controversy with Archbishop Ireland, did not fail to inspire and impress young
Becker with his enthusiasm and philosophical learning.
Father Becker's class being so small, everyone during his
three years of philosophy had at least one circle or repetition
each week.
Regency-Theology-Ordination
Father Becker spent his years of regency, 1895-1900, at
Holy Cross. He spent one year in second humanities, two
years in freshman and two in sophomore, teaching Latin,
Greek and English. One of his contemporaries, Father Leo
Butler of Kingston, Jamaica, has given some impressions of
him and of his reputation as a teacher. They confirm the
testimony of those who were associated with him in later
years. Physically Mr. Becker, as he was then called, was tall
and athletic and remarkable for his enormous strides as he
walked along the corridors or took his brisk afternoon exercise, no matter how cold or windy the weather. His teaching
of the Classics was masterful. By whatever grapevine method
news and opinions were circulated in those days, it was generally accepted that he was unequalled by any of the professors
in his knowledge of Greek and Latin literature and in the
teaching of Greek. Yet with such a reputation he was modest
and unpretentious, asserting that he knew nothing; but he
could always quote books, chapter and verse for you on the
subject in question. A graduate of the class of 1900 recalled
that in Father Becker's days Holy Cross was so small that all
the Jesuits, from the Rector, Father Lehy, down, and all the
student body seemed to merge into one large family, with
everybody knowing everybody else. Father Becker was of a
very retiring nature, simple and unassuming, and no member
of the faculty was more widely respected. Hardly anyone but
those who were in his classes, with whom he was always
Popular, knew his superior qualities intimately. One of his
students was Louis Sockalexis, an American Indian from Old
�68
OBITUARIES
Town, Maine, who brought great renown to Holy Cross as a
champion in track and baseball.
A Holy Cross alumnus who was a member of Father
Becker's freshman class wrote with enthusiasm about his deep
religious spirit, describing him as one who walked and talked
with God. He could not say enough to express the love of the
students for the good padre, as they called him, even though
he was not yet ordained. He was sure that Father Becker
in his unobtrusive manner had influenced many of his students
to enter the Society. He loved young men and maintained a
distinct companionship with them. On holidays Mr. Becker
would gather them for long walks. They would walk down
Linden Lane and over the Auburn Road, on past the old stables
and down the hill to Aninsigamond, and further down the
hills to the lake and the old ball park. His chats with the
boys were always interesting, not weighted with religion yet
carrying their religious lessons. In his voluminous pockets
he would bring fruit, oranges, apples, etc. as his part of the
dessert. When examinations came, he would kindly encourage
the backward, and in a friendly tone and spirit warn the
careless against future neglect and failure.
In September 1900 Father Becker returned to Woodstock
to undertake his four years of theology. In the first year he
also conducted a Greek Academy for the philosophers. At
the end of second year he received Minor Orders from the
Apostolic Delegate (later Cardinal) Martinelli; and on June
28, 1903 he was ordained by Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of
Baltimore. Father Becker was one of a group of twenty-two
ordinandi, which was considered a large number at that time.
Two were from the Buffalo Mission, ten from the New Orleans
Province and ten from the Maryland-New York Province.
Among the latter were two future Vicars-Apostolic of Jamaica, Bishops Joseph N. Dinand and William F. O'Hare.
Eight of the twenty-two reached the Golden Anniversary of
their ordination.
After his fourth year of theology Father Becker made his
tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudson Poughkeepsie under
Father William Pardow as Instructo~, and the ne~t year,
1905-1906, he remained at Poughkeepsie as Prefect of Studies
and Professor of Rhetoric. On August 15, 1906 he made his
�OBITUARIES
69
profession at Fordham University where he was assigned to
teach junior philosophy. At Fordham, as everywhere, he was
known for his modesty and unfailing affability.
His Work in the Philippines
After the Spanish-American War the Jesuits of the Maryland-New York Province assumed charge of the Philippine
Mission, while the Jesuits of the Aragon Province were gradually transferred to India. In 1907 Father Becker was one
of the first to be assigned to this new field where he was to
labor for the next seven years. Though he was endowed
with intellectual gifts of a high caliber, he always entertained
a lowly opinion of himself. It was, therefore, with great
satisfaction and enthusiasm that he volunteered to teach grade
school classes in Manila from 1907 to 1909 and from 1912 to
1914 and to work at the same time as assistant parish priest
at the Cathedral. It pleased him even more when he was sent
for two years, 1910-1912, to serve the poor lepers on the island
of Culion. In 1914 he returned to the United States and spent
the next eight years teaching Spanish, philosophy and the
Classics at Boston College.
Poughkeepsie-Shadowbrook-Woodstock
In 1922 Father Becker began the responsible work of teaching in the juniorate and, in the Collegium Maximum. For six
Years he taught the rhetoricians at St. Andrew-on-Hudson,
interrupted by a year of humanities (1924-1925) at the newly
opened Shadowbrook in the New England Vice-Province. At
St. Andrew's he went one day to the Rector, Father Pettit,
and declared his unfitness to teach the Classics. The next day
the beadle of the rhetoric class complained to the rector that
the class could not keep up with Father Becker. It was said
that he could hear recitations and make corrections and explanations without opening the textbooks. He had made the
same protest when teaching in Boston, but Father Lyons,
countering by expressing his own unfitness to be rector, said,
"that he had yielded to the will of superiors." There may have
been some who thought Father Becker's frequent protestations of ignorance or inability to undertake certain tasks
�70
OBITUARIES
somewhat false, something that was put on; not so, however,
for his whole demeanor showed that he sincerely looked upon
himself as the most unworthy and useless member of the
province. He was convinced that others could accomplish
his work much better, and that the house or province would
be better off without him; in short, he felt that he should be
put on the shelf. As a priest, when he was appointed to
preach for some special occasion, to sing the Christus part in
the Passion or to write an article he was usually heard to say:
"Father, I am not capable of doing that." However, as soon
as he saw the will of his superiors, he went about the task
assigned and did his best, which was usually splendid. It
was a real trial to his humility when the Fathers at more
than one Provincial Congregation elected him Secretary to
write the minutes that were to be sent to Rome.
In 1929, when he had completed twenty-six years of teaching in the colleges and juniorates, he was appointed Spiritual
Father of the philosophers at Woodstock. At the same time
he taught them pedagogy and humanities, lecturing on the
texts of Aristotle and St. Thomas. In 1935 he became Spiritual
Father of the community for two years, continuing his classes
in Greek and Latin literature.
His Writings
Besides book reviews and numerous articles on religious
and historical topics, Father Becker also wrote two series of
spiritual treatises on the Hidden and Public Life of Christ.
These treatises first appeared in The Messenger of the Sacred
Heart. The first of these was published in book form at New
York in 1937. In his book, Father Becker presented meditations on the mysteries of the Hidden Life from the Incarnation
to the Flight into Egypt. It also contained chapters on our
Lord's ?bedience, His obscurity, His labor and prayer, all of
which were so well exemplified in Father Becker's own life.
The second treatise was not a life of Christ but a series of
events in our Lord's public life that were arranged in chronological order. It was published in 1939 and provides the
devout laity, priests, and religious in the active life with excellent material for meditation.
r
I
�OBITUARIES
71
His Golden Jubilee in the Society
The year 1937 brought a complete change in Father Becker's
life as a teacher. Up to that time, besides the twenty-six years
given to the colleges and juniorates in the class room, he had
devoted nine years to his brethren, the priests and Scholastics
at Woodstock. When the status was published in June 1937
he returned to Washington, to the parish of his birth, after an
unusually distinguished career. It was the year of his golden
jubilee as a Jesuit, a favor not granted to many. He held his
celebration in St. Aloysius' Church, with his fellow jubilarians,
Father McLoughlin and Father Kelly, on Sunday, September
12. His Excellency, Archbishop Cicognani, Apostolic Delegate, presided at the Solemn Mass. Bishop MacNamara,
Auxiliary Archbishop of Baltimore and Bishop Dinand of
Jamaica, another jubilarian, attended with the Provincial,
Very Reverend David Nugent. Several of his fellow novices
came for the celebration, one of whom, Father Daniel Quinn,
preached the sermon.
On this occasion the Filipino Catholic Association of Washington paid tribute to Father Becker in the following words:
Father Thomas A. Becker, S.J. is not a stranger among us
Filipinos. Seven of the best years of his priestly life he spent
working among our people in our country. For five years at the
Ateneo de Manila and the Central Seminary of St. Francis Xavier,
he taught our Filipino youth, among them many of our present-day
leaders. The Arenetas, the Bengzons, the Sisons, and many others
all felt in some degree the influence and guidance of Father Becker.
He was co-author of one of the most popular and useful text-books on
the Victory of the Philippines. And for two long years our suffering
countrymen at Culion had in Father Becker their great spiritual
physician, consoler, comforter and friend. He therefore comes to
us now as chaplain with a long experience and a keen sense of the
needs and aims of our Filipino Catholic Association in Washington.
More than that, he comes as a Jubilarian completing fifty years
as a Jesuit, years replete with learning, virtue and experience.
To our words, therefore, of hearty welcome, we add our feelings
of joy and congratulation, our best wishes and prayers, that he
may find in us an ever ready cooperation, and that he may be
blessed with many more years in the service of that great army
of Christ and His Church, the Society of Jesus.
�.
I
.
72
OBITUARIES
I
Parish Work
Assuming his duties as assistant parish priest at St.
Aloysius, Father Becker gave himself to them without stint
or reservation. Within the next fifteen years he served as
chaplain of the Filipino Catholic Association, gave retreats
and conferences to many religious communities and exhortations to his own community and to those at Carroll House in
Brookland. Father Becker's exhortations were enlivened by
many scriptural quotations and classical references. One
year he selected the virtue of humility as his general topic,
and for ten or more talks developed some phase of that virtue.
He will be remembered for many things in the Society and
among the laity, but one of his superiors, much younger than
he, regarding as most edifying his humble deference wrote:
"To be superior over many men of his stamp and religious
observance would be too much-it would be heaven on earth."
Instruction of converts occupied most of his free time. He
preferred giving lessons to individuals rather than holding
classes; and though this system consumed much more of his
time, he nevertheless gave three or four instructions each day,
being careful to see that every convert received the sacrament
of confirmation.
He was not an orator in the usual sense of the word, but an
earnest and eloquent preacher, whose deep theological knowledge and clear exposition of the mysteries and doctrines of our
faith made him popular in the pulpit. He said he could not
preach long sermons, and was best in the short ones at the
low Masses on Sundays. They were well constructed and
admirably expressed, and always left a deep impression; you
were always able to carry away one outstanding thought and
lesson. He told how once when preaching his memory suddenly failed, something that never happened to him; but he
continued on another thought, as if inspired, until he remembered his prepared address. After the sermon a man
who had been away from the sacraments for many years
came to his confessional. When asked what it was that moved
him to come to confession, it happened to be the very thing
that the preacher said when his memory had failed. Washington in the summer months can become very disagreeable with
�OBITUARIES
73
the heat and humidity. Others would escape the sweltering
heat, but Father Becker stayed on, serving faithfully his penitents and those entrusted to his keeping, especially the sick.
Devotion to the Sick
When anxiously summoned to one suddenly stricken his
response was immediate. Reverently carrying our Lord close
to his heart, his quick, long stride brought him to the sickroom
within minutes of the call. With gentle understanding he
made the soul ready for its Maker if, in God's plan, its work
on earth was finished. To those souls who regained health
after being anointed he was faithful in the days that followed,
solicitous for their continued health and making them realize
that in Holy Communion they would find their greatest help.
Therefore he carried the Blessed Sacrament to the sick and
aged at frequent intervals, no matter what the weather or
his other duties might be. This he did in some cases over
a period of years, all in the line of duty.
One who experienced Father Becker's kindness to those
suffering for a long period pays this tribute:·
His humor brightened many a day for those who were depressed
or discouraged; his wisdom banished those spiritual and temporal
worries that steal away peace of mind and soul. His warm and
generous heart let those who sought his help know that he was glad
to render it. If the sick and aged felt they were weak or forgetful
or 'living on borrowed time,' he humbly confessed his own infirmities. When his friends were blessed with good fortune he was
sincerely happy; when sorrow came upon them he was genuinely
sympathetic and thoughtful. He had a Christlike awareness of a
troubled and anxious heart. He would graciously heal and comfort
the soul in distress. In a word, one has only to listen to the expressions of gratitude from people who received his ministrations
in order to realize how much he came to mean to them as a parish
priest.
We give another, though more briefly, of the many expressions of esteem in which good Father Becker was held, and
of gratitude to him as confessor and counselor.
It was a privilege to know the true beauty of his character, his
perfect humility, simplicity and sincerity. Always kind, understanding and courteous, he never failed those who came to him for
comfort and guidance, and he gave most generously of his time
�74
OBITUARIES
and of his great fund of wisdom and knowledge. Greater spiritual
strength and willing acquiescence to God's will came to those who
went to his confessional. He will always be remembered as a
priest of simple dignity and wondrous kindness, as a wise counselor,
a true friend and a comforter in time of real necessity.
Confessor and Spiritual Director
Father Becker's outstanding work was in the confessional.
It took up much of his time, but at the assigned hour he was
at his post and was never late. He was sought by a constant
flow of penitents, many of whom, by his kindness and wise
counsel, were directed to the religious life or to a life of holiness in the world. He was confessor for many priests and
distinguished members of the clergy. A devout layman who
went to confession to him almost weekly for several years
commented, that formerly he had found it difficult to manifest
his problems to other priests, but with Father Becker he always felt he was in the presence of a true priest and holy
friend to whom he could freely reveal his soul. He was much
consoled and grateful to God for having found such a prudent
and helpful counselor. When leaving to make his retreat
Father Becker surprised him by humbly asking him "to pray
for his conversion." He feared, perhaps, that in spite of all
his years in the priesthood he might be falling into careless
habits, or had not given his heart completely to God.
One of Father's best loved duties was the spiritual
direction of diocesan priests, though he would say : "Why do
you come to me for advice; there are other priests you could
see?" We will quote:
But we priests knew him for what he was, a saintly priest of God,
or we might have looked elsewhere. One in need of direction soon
knew that he had chosen the right priest. His judgments were sound
and balanced. He believed firmly in building virtue on the natural.
If it were a confessional problem he would give you the answer and
refer you to the exact place in the moral textbook. Of course he
himsel~ knew nothing about moral theology. If it were a personal problem he would brush away any scruple. 'Don't worry', he
would say, ''don't get too serious; be a good holy priest; do what you
can and don't worry.' His understanding and experience and the
example of his life of prayer gave power to his advice. In fact his
saintly life of prayer did more than anything else in his direction
of the souls who consulted him, for they knew he was a true religious
�OBITUARIES
75
of the old Ignatian school. Being the holy man that he was, he
always had something to offer. His words impressed us because
we would always find him quietly praying in his room or in the
chapel. We priests will never forget the little black book containing
the names of his former students who had become priests or of
those who came to him for confession. He would say, 'Father Soand-so has died a young man. Why did God overlook me? I'm no
good, but this was a young and a good man.' Or he would say:
'Father N. has become a pastor, or Father N. has been appointed
to an important position in the diocese.' He was proud of his boys.
Unsuspected, as he thought, he watched their progress; yet his boys
knew he was watching them. His interest in his priests was a "'come
on" to any who knew him. Exceedingly humble as he was, he was
really proud to have them come to him week after week. He
realized that priests had to come at odd hours but his time was
theirs at any hour of the day, and he grieved if he missed you or
disappointed you in any way.
Further impressions of Father Becker as director of priests
have been given for this sketch by another one of his penitents:
Father Becker was one of the kindest priests that I have ever met
in many years, and I miss him very much. During the years he
was always the same in the confessional. I believe he thought the
term "Spiritual Director" was rather strong, for he had definite
views that no priest ever sent anyone to the convent or seminary.
It seemed to him that the grace of the sacraments and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit were everything. In conversation it was
more than evident that he was a master of theology and the spiritual
life, and had answers to any difficulty. He would not give his own
opinion on anything as such but would quote numerous books on
whatever regarded the spiritual life. On one occasion I asked him
a question of that nature but he only indicated the precise book
in which I could find the answer. It was more by prayer and
example than by advice that he helped those who came to him. However, he never hesitated to answer a direct question in matters of
conscience, and you could be sure it was the correct answer. He
seemed to play a twofold role-as the priest and as the confessor.
As a priest one could get much out of him; as a confessor he was
still more responsive. That the peace of the Prince of Peace be his
eternal possession, is the wish of every diocesan priest who came
to him for confession or direction!
His Spiritual Life
Examples of Father Becker's spirit of self-sacrifice and self~ffacement have appeared throughout this sketch. His whole
hfe was one of spiritual union with God. Anyone who visited
�76
OBITUARIES
his room was sure to find him at prayer or reading some
spiritual book. He seemed especially fond of Tanquerey's
The Spiritual Life. His devotion to the Mass and to the
liturgy of the Mass was intense. He was grieved by anything
like carelessness in the rubrics, though he was too kind to
criticize. Gratitude was a distinguishing virtue of his life.
The slightest favor was acknowledged by him immediately,
by letter or telephone, and his friends were repaid a hundredfold for their thoughtfulness of an "old man." His gratitude
was also shown when daily before Mass he would read in a
little book the names of those to be remembered: his family,
friends, priests, the departed. He was strongly drawn to
the Blessed Sacrament, and when saying the Office he could
always be found in the chapel or sacristy of the church for,
by this practice, he could gain a plenary indulgence for the
holy souls. His intense interior life can be best described
by saying, he was truly a man of God.
Diamond Jubilee as a Jesuit
On Sunday, October 14, 1947, the three Jubilarians of ten
years previously, Father Becker, Father McLoughlin and
Father Kelly, gathered together once again in St. Aloysius
Church to celebrate their Diamond Jubilee in the Society.
Father Becker sang the Mass and Father Henri J. Weisel, a
former rector preached the sermon. The solemnity was repeated in Holy Trinity, Georgetown, on Sunday, November 23,
on which occasion the sermon was preached by Father James
A. McCarl, a former pastor of Holy Trinity. That year the
students of Gonzaga dedicated their year book the "Aetonian"
to Father Becker and Father McLoughlin who had been their
confessors for a long period. Their tribute read as follows:
"As confessors of Gonzaga College High School these men of
God have preserved and guarded the spiritual interests of
Gonzaga men for many years. In keeping with the high
ideals and glorious traditions of the Society of Jesus, they
have devoted their lives to self-sacrifice in the service of Jesus .
Christ."
Golden Jubilee as a Priest
June 28, 1953 was the Golden Anniversary of Father
�77
OBITUARIES
Becker's ordination. At that time he was back at Woodstock, but unfortunately too ill to have any public celebration.
He did not even have the consolation of saying Mass on his
anniversary. He was like St. Peter Claver who was an invalid the last two years of his life, and like many another
holy priest, God was pleased to ask of him his own sacrifice in
union with Jesus, the Victim, his Divine Lord and High Priest.
No better eulogy or epitome of his life could have been written
than that of Very Reverend Father Provincial, whose letter
follows:
BALTIMORE, JUNE 28,
1953
DEAR FATHER BECKER: PAX CHRISTI
It is with a deep sense of joy and thanksgiving that I salute you,
in my own name and that of the Province, on your day of Jubilee,
the fiftieth anniversary of your ordination to the Sacred Priesthood.
The mere consideration of this remarkable event takes one's breath
away. Most of us Jesuits consider it the ultimate mark of God's
favor to live fifty years in His service as a member of the Society
of Jesus. But to reflect that the munificent generosity of God has
given you fifty years of offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass,
wherein the Eternal Victim is offered to the Father, fifty years
since the day in June when Cardinal Gibbons annointed your hands
with the holy oils-this sends us to our knees in humility and
thanksgiving and reverence for the way in which God in His
Profound goodness and love has fashioned your heart and mind
into the perfect instrument.
We think of the tremendous contributions you have made to the
Province and its works: in the Philippines and at Boston College;
among the juniors at Poughkeepsie and Shadowbrook; with the
philosophers at Woodstock, and now for many years bringing Christ
to the parishioners of St. Aloysius'. Sixty-five years as a prayerful,
kindly, intensely spiritual and loyal son of the Society. It is a
pleasure to transmit to you the felicitations of His Paternity.
Perhaps because you have been so closely associated with the
Eternal Victim in the Holy Sacrifice; God in His Providence has
asked of you the perfect sacrifice during the past months: to deny
Yourself the privilege of offering Mass through your priestly pow,ers.
It is my earnest hope and prayer that He will see fit to restore your
strength, that once again you will have this consolation. I will
be happy to offer my Mass for this intention.
Devotedly in Our Lord,
WILLIAM
F. MALONEY, S.J.
�78
OBITUARIES
His Life Closes
We conclude with a short account of the last months of
Father Becker's life, months of patient suffering and waiting
for the call of the Master. For six months after his sudden
collapse at St. Aloysius' Rectory, he had been a patient at
Providence Hospital, Washington. He had lost the use of
his speech and his entire right side was completely paralyzed.
For some time he did not seem to recognize visitors; then he
began to show recognition by looks and by taking their hands.
As there were no signs of recovery, he was moved, on April
27, 1953, to the infirmary at Woodstock, and appeared frail
and weak and low in spirits. He would try to speak and
occasionally one could catch a word or two, but only Father
Rector and the infirmarian could understand what he wanted
to say. His hearing had been poor for sometime but his sight
was unimpaired; visitors could note the gracious smile with
which he wished to greet them. Was it mere recognition, or
was it a smile of radiant innocence and of gratitude to the
visitor, the persistent courtesy of the perfect Christian gentleman he had always been? The infirmarian arranged a daily
routine for him, taking him to the infirmary Chapel to hear
Mass and to receive Communion. For an hour each afternoon he could sit up in his wheelchair. This improved his
memory and his reflexes, and he began to take more interest
in people and daily happenings. On the eve of Christmas his
room was gaily decorated with a tree, and toys and ornaments were placed under the tree, all of which he enjoyed
with saintly simplicity. On Christmas day the faculty led by
the Rector, Father Murphy, visited him and gave him their
blessing and Christmas greetings. The infirmarian, Brother
Orr, took him to the domestic Chapel to visit the Crib. He
contemplated the Holy Infant for fully fifteen minutes and his
eyes filled with tears. On leaving he exclaimed quite distinctly, "It is marvelous!"
For the two months preceding his death Father Becker
showed signs of increasing weakness, and could no longer
hear Mass in the infirmary Chapel. He seemed to have no pain
but grew more and more helpless. After the holidays his
~tren~h failed rapidly and visibly. He developed a hidden
mfect10n that caused his fever to rise up and his pulse to
�OBITUARIES
79
quicken, which often made him lapse into a semi-coma. But
for a while he would respond to treatment and would become
himself again. By mid-February he could hardly take even
liquid nourishment, and the doctor warned that the end was
not far off.
On the morning of the seventeenth of February he received
extreme unction but was unable to receive Viaticum although
he had received Communion in that form for several days
previously. At seven in the evening prayers for the dying
were recited and the Rosary was said continuously by those
present. His crucifix was placed in his hands and his beads
were twined around his fingers. Absolution and prayers for
the dying were repeated and at ten minutes to nine he breathed
his last with no apparent signs of a struggle. Quietly and
peacefully and without pain he died, and went, as all thought,
straight to heaven.
Father Murphy, Rector of Woodstock, remarked, "Father
Becker seemed to have won heaven by a long life of activity
in God's service and he has put the crown on that life by his
patience." It was a blessed release for which he had been
praying for many months. For those who were with him at
his death there was no sadness but only joy, that a great
Jesuit, a real martyr of helplessness, an extraordinarily gifted,
generous, and holy priest had run his course and entered into
the reward, exceedingly great, which God had waiting for him.
Father Becker's funeral took place Saturday, February 20,
at Woodstock and was attended by many of his friends from
the parish of St. Aloysius and from the city of Washington.
He was buried in the little cemetery near many of his brethren
whom he had edified by his holy life and to whom his teaching
had been a shining light.
For the consolation of his former parishioners a Solemn
Requiem Mass was celebrated for him by the Rector, Father
Kienle, on February 22, in St. Aloysius Church, where he had
been baptized and to which he had given the longest period
of his priestly ministry. His Excellency, the Apostolic Delegate Archbishop Cicognani, with whom he had enjoyed a long
friendship, presided at the Mass and gave the absolution.
LAWRENCE
J.
KELLY,
S.J.
�80
OBITUARIES
BROTHER JOHN F. CUMMINGS, S.J.
1870-1953
When Brother Cummings was considering the religious life,
he thought of entering the Benedictines but decided against it
when he found that he would be required to take a vow of
stability; he did not wish to remain in one place. Therefore,
he chose the Jesuits whose vocation it is "to travel to various
places and to live in any part of the world," entering the
Novitiate at St. Andrew-on-Hudson in 1906. Strange as it
may seem, his desire and dreams of mobility, of toiling in
various parts of the world were never realized, for it was
within the sheltering walls of this Novitiate that he was to
spend the remaining forty-seven years of his life.
There is not much to record of extraordinary events in the
story of such a life, hidden with Christ in God, except that in
the memory of the hundreds of Tertian Fathers and Brothers,
juniors and novices, who lived with him during those years,
he is lovingly cherished as a kind, patient, devoted Brother.
The unique qualities of his character and his sincere holiness
and his years of sacrificing devotion are his achievement and
memorial. Surely all who passed through St. Andrew during
their training period remember his stories from the Monks
of the West, from Rodriguez, and his quotations from the
Imitation. The words of remembrance from all who knew
him would make a litany of Jesuit domestic virtues: selfeffacing, kindly, completely a gentleman, patient and cheerful
in the suffering and weakness of his later years, gratitude, and
inexhaustible charity. His dominant interest was in the
members of the province and their work, and he had a fund
of stories and anecdotes of all he had known.
Owing to his skill in moulding in concrete, several solid
statues of saints he loved are on the grounds of the novitiate;
but they are monuments to devotion rather than to art. In
modern terminology, "oblational art" may be a kindly description of them.
. We are indebted to Brother Gerard Gordon ' the Brother
.
mfirmar1an who cared for him during the last five years of
his life, for obtaining from him details of his life. Brother
Cummings was born in Lambertville, N.J.; and the familY
�BROTHER JOHN F. CUMMINGS
��OBITUARIES
81
soon moved to Philadelphia. His father died about 1903, but
his mother lived to the age of ninety, and Brother was with
her when she died. He started to work at the age of nine in
a brick yard, rising at 4 A.M. to be at work at 5 o'clock. At
the age of twelve he was apprenticed to a mason. He often
mentioned how glad he was of the humane laws that were
enacted against child labor. In 1896 he married, but after
ten years of happy life together, his wife died, and they had
lost their three children, two at birth and one at the age of
five. In his last years he spoke of his wife and children with
great affection and always considered them his advocates in
Heaven.
Naturally he found the noviceship a severe trial, transplanted as he was to an entirely new world. But his temptations to go back to Philadelphia, he would say, were overcome
by the prayers of his mother, and the keen and gentle understanding of his novice master, Father George Pettit, whom
he always remembered with great affection. Then followed
years of many offices, principally as buyer, cook, and infirmarian. His edifying and humorous stories cured many a
fit of depression in his young patients, and, as some confessed, often saved their vocations. Those who knew him
will scarcely believe that his main battle was to overcome a
fiery temper and impulsive nature; for so successful was his
conquest that he was never known to show anger or impatience. It must not be forgotten that beneath a simple
exterior, Brother Cummings had a shrewd judgment of men
and situations, derived from his background of common sense
reality and spiritual insight. Fathers and Brothers were often
glad to profit by his wisdom.
His last twelve years were spent as a patient in the infirmary; and his hardest cross was his feeling that he was
useless to the Society. His daily routine never changed. At
8:15 A.M. he began the fifteen decades of the Rosary; then the
Stations of the Cross, which he made on his crucifix, followed
by a half hour of Rodriguez, his favorite author. After his
devotions he would make the round of the rooms, visiting
· the sick. Always a cheerful word and a story, and even
though they were repeated many times, they always amused
and comforted. Every day he read the "Little Office of the
�82
OBITUARIES
Immaculate Conception". No matter how feeble he became,
he continued his faithfulness at common recreation. He
claimed that faithfulness at recreation assures perseverence
in one's vocation. The cook, Brother Czajka, recalls that
Brother Cummings would never agree with his complaints
about the hoboes, "the men of the road" who came to the
novitiate for their meals. "They are all God's children,"
he would say-no matter how often and regularly the same
men returned. His warm affection was for the colored-they
were God's special children.
Brother's final days were peaceful-not a word of complaint passed his lips. A word of thanks to those who cared
for him and an occasional burst of prayer were all that was
heard. He died peacefully on November 14, 1953.
No better summary of Brother Cummings' hidden and devoted life may be found (and of him as a symbol of our Coadjutor Brothers) than the words of Pope Pius XI. In 1928,
at the occasion of the beatification of a Brother of the
Christian Schools, the Holy Father spoke spontaneously and
from his compassionate heart:
The life of this humble servant of God was entirely commonplace
and ordinary, he said.
But how uncommon is such ordinariness
as this. The daily round, always the same, with the same weak·
nesses, the same troubles, might well be called 'the terrible daily
round'. What fortitude, then, is needed to resist this terrible
monotony. We need uncommon virtue to carry out with uncommon
fidelity, and with attention, piety, and fervor, the routine which
fills our daily lives. Holy Church shows herself most just and most
wise as a teacher of holiness when she exalts these humble souls.
Extraordinary deeds, important events, great enterprises, need only
to be seen to awaken admiration in all; but the commonplace, the
ordinary, the daily round, with no relief, no splendor about it, has no
power to excite or to fascinate. And yet it is this which makes up
the lives of most people; a life which is woven only of common
things and daily happenings. How seldom do extraordinary cir·
cumstances arise in the course of a lifetime? They are rare indeed,
and woe to us if sanctity were restricted to the extraordinary!
What would the majority of men do? For we must declare the
truth: to all without exception comes the call to sanctity.
~rother Cummings answered this call, an ordinary life, lived
m an extraordinary manner. These words of Pope Pius :X:l
may fittingly stand as his eulogy.
M. J. FITZSIMONS, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
THEOLOGY
Theology, A Course for College Students. Vol. III. The Mystical Christ.
By Rev. John J. Fernqn, S.J. Syracuse, Le Moyne College, 1954.
Pp. vi-272.
Ours who are engaged in the important work of teaching college
religion will welcome this third volume of the Le Moyne College series
of texts. Father Fernan is to be warmly congratulated for maintaining
the high standards of his first two volumes in spite of the extraordinary
difficulties of producing a new book in three successive years while he
was carrying the burden of teaching and other duties.
The general plan of the first two volumes is followed in this text for
Junior year: a preliminary reading and study of a portion of Sacred
Scripture; exposition of some of the principal doctrines encountered
in the sacred books.
In his preface Father Fernan outlines the present volume.
The
scriptural study includes the Acts of the Apostles and selected Epistles
of St. Paul. The chief truths to be highlighted in these readings are
the doctrine of the Mystical Body, the Person, mission and activity of
the Holy Spirit, and, presiding over all, God's Fatherly Providence.
These readings and doctrinal expositions find their continuity with
previous study in the course in that they complete the revelation and the
redemptive work of Christ, which comprised the main subject matter
of the first two years.
The treatment of the Acts will be truly helpful to the student without
pretending to supplant the inspired narrative. The commentary makes
a special effort to point out the activity of the Holy Spirit in the
Church by emphasizing the organic character of the Church in "its
alternating periods of growth, of struggle, of rest and renewal." At
suitable points there are insertions of dogmatic summaries on Holy
Orders, on Confirmation, and on the Councils of the Church.
The obviously formidable task of leading college students to a reading
and understanding of St. Paul is met successfully by describing the
historical context of the epistles chosen (Galatians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 Corinthians, Colossians, Ephesians) and by a topical outline
which is sufficiently developed to assure the student of safe guidance
through the text.
. A chapter written by Father Edward Messemer on the Catholic teachIng on the Blessed Trinity merits special praise for its clarity of exposition.
The test questions after each chapter supply the same usefulness
as in the previous volumes of the series. A new and welcome feature
of the present volume are the four maps of the journeys of St. Paul.
JAMES ALF, S.J.
�84
BOOK REVIEWS
SCRIPTURE
The New Testament. Translated by James A. Kleist, S.J. and Joseph
L. Lilly, C.M. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1954. Pp. xii-690. $5.00.
Recent Papal directives to lead the faithful to a more intimate contact with the written word of God have found their answer and fulfillment in certain new translations of the Scriptures. The current effort
of Father Lilly and Father Kleist, echoing and surpassing the early and
imaginative labors of Father S. H. Spencer, O.P., is worthy of great
praise. This heroic, scholarly undertaking will bear much fruit for souls.
To tackle such a task demanded heroism as well as scholarship. First,
the Vincentian and the Jesuit decided to work from the Greek rather
than the Latin Vulgate translation. Secondly, . they would turn the
Greek into modern American English. Both decisions broke with tradition. Both decisions will bring the American public to a deeper under_standing and a fonder love of the word of God.
The Greek of the Gospels was the common language of the day. So
was Jerome's Latin effort. Later in Elizabethan England the King
James version caught the language of its own time. The work of Lilly
and Kleist are part of that long history of bringing God's writing to
the men of each age. The Greek from which these two scholars worked
is the text of Bover (Novi Testamenti Biblia Graeca et Latina: Madrid,
1943). The product is accurate without extreme literalness and clear
without excessive simplification.
Father Kleist with his mastery of post-classical Greek culture and
language was able to penetrate more profoundly the story of Christ
recorded in the Gospels. He was further assisted in breaking from the
antiquated forms of the Rheims-Challoner version by his late mastery of
English. His ear and eye were not attuned and focused by the constant
contact with the old version from his youth. Thus he could more easily
break the mold and give us a faithful version in the common speech of
our day.
Father Lilly was graced with an exegetical training and a biblical
scholarship which served him well in clarifying the Epistles and the
Apocalypse. Especially to be commended is his work on that most
difficult of all books, the Apocalypse. It is superb. He has turned
that mysterious work into the most intelligible English (Goodspeed's
excepted) available.
Working from the Greek both men have done their difficult work well:
one Greek word becomes several in translation, for connotation is of the
essence; long Greek sentences are transformed into smaller units.
Everything is done to render the whole intelligible, nineteen centuries
after the composition in the symbol of another age.
Naturally there are some flaws and some suggestions for improve·
ment.. The Acts of the Apostles is the weakest part of the work. Per·
haps lt was more proper for Father Kleist to have done this book with
his equipment better fitted for that narrative role. In its present form
�BOOK REVIEWS
85
it is uneven, disconcerting. More generally, however, we regret to read
"alas" and "yea" and "lo" along with "give ear," when from the start
we expect that we have left them to languish in the limbo of antiquated
translations. Then too there are misprints or misspellings like Bythinia
for Bithynia (1 Peter 1/1), comment for commend (2 Timothy 2/2),
him for them (i.e. Paul and Silas) (Acts 17 /6), Athalia for Attalia
(Acts 14/25). For the most part, however, the publication by Bruce is
excellent and beautiful.
Further commendation is to be lavished on the helpful, succint and
accurate notes. These are the work of Father Henry Willmering, S.J.
for the Gospels and of Father Lilly for the rest. The brief introductions provide a sufficient background on authorship and literary values
for the ordinary reader. The maps of Palestine and Jerusalem and
Paul's Three Journeys are clear and adequate for the authors' purposes.
But a reviewer of this book must return to admiration for the skill and
courage with which the common language of the Greek is communicated
to modern readers who read here their own common tongue giving them
the sense of the original.
JAMES T. GRIFFIN, S.J.
l\IARIOLOGY
Mary in Doctrine. By Rev. Emil Neubert, S.M., S.T.D.
Bruce, 1954. Pp. 257. $4.25.
Milwaukee,
At the close of the Marian Year, we can look back with gratitude on
more than a score of books on Mariology that have been given to us to
increase our appreciation of the glories of Mary. But because there
have been so many, not all of these books can be expected to be of the
highest quality. Should anyone find himself assigned to that doubtfully
useful task of selecting the "top ten" books on Mariology, published
during the Marian year, he ought to place this present work high on
his list. For here is that rare book in spiritual literature: one whose
spiritual content grows out of, and is nurtured by, sound dogma. To
judge from the paucity of truly great works in spiritual literature
Written at the present time, it would seem that too few theologians
who write possess that "unction of the spirit" required to give dogma
the attractive glow of life-giving truths. And of the "non-professional"
theologians who write spiritual books too few seem to possess the
theological acumen necessary to reduce their work from the simply
Pious. Father Neubert happily for us is a professional theologian who
possesses the ability to present theology as living, practical and attractive. It is not out of place to compare this work with those classics
?f the late Dom Marmion-both writers seek to make dogma bear fruit
In daily living, as indeed God intended His Revelation to do.
The author has traced the dogmas of Mary through Scripture, the
Councils, the teachings of the Fathers and Theologians, and the liturgy,
bringing all this in line with the most recent pronouncements of Pope
�86
BOOK REVIEWS
Pius XII. (The French from which this translation is made appeared
in 1953). Taking his start from the Divine Maternity, Father Neubert
shows how Mary's prerogatives may be grouped together either as
privileges, such as the Immaculate Conception, or as functions, as, for
example, her spiritual maternity and mediation. Each privilege and
function is given satisfactory treatment.
The book will be welcomed by priests and religious who feel the need
for a clearer understanding of present-day Mariology as it reflects and
goes beyond the traditional Marian theology. Members of Sodalities
and the Legion of Mary will find here material on which they can
meditate and through which they may increase their practical devotion
to Mary.
JOHN F. X. BURTON, S.J.
Mary and Modern Man. Edited by Thomas J. M. Burke, S.J.
York, America Press, 1954. Pp. xvi-231. $3.50.
New
"The purpose of this book is neither theological nor devotional. It
wishes to explore the relevance of Mary as a cultural ideal for modern
man." In pursuit of this aim, the editor has assembled a group of
well-known writers, priests and laymen, Europeans and Americans,
to discuss the topic in the light of their special knowledge of fields in
which they have won distinction.
Their approach is remarkably varied. Frederick Harkins, S.J., developes the idea behind the book, that Mary " ... is a divinely established
necessity without whom there is neither salvation in eternity nor perfect
humanity in time." Daniel Sargent reflects nostalgicly on the days
when it was impossible to live in Western culture without being influenced by Our Lady. "Mary and the Flesh" by Paul Palmer, S.J., an
historical study of the Christian attitude toward sense pleasure and the
material world, is eminently profound and readable. Conrad Pepler,
O.P., offers the unique suggestion that Mary is the answer to man's
inborn yearning for an other-wordly Mother and Protectress. Industrial
man, fascinated by the vast impersonal energies of nature, has repressed
this instinct only to compensate for it by a sickly-sweet sentimentalitY
toward religion and motherhood. The other essays range from "The
Ethical Content of Marian Piety" by John La Farge, S.J ., to "'Mother
of the Church of Silence" by William Juhasz, a survey of devotion to
Mary behind the Iron Curtain.
The book is a happy exception to the rule that great names marshalled
for a great occasion never do great work. Original and rewarding, it
avoids the unfortunate tendency of books on Our Lady to lose themselves
in emotions that are more easily felt than expressed. As is to be
expected in any collection, the quality of the offerings is uneven, and
so~e have only a tenuous connection to the theme as stated by the editor.
Still, the average educated Catholic will find here many provocative
suggestions for his effort to blend the Faith with the culture we live in.
�BOOK REVIEWS
87
The greatest value of the book may well be one which the editor has
not foreseen. Some historian years from now will see in these essays an
unconscious but no less accurate reflection of devotion to Mary in the
middle years of the twentieth century: a few relics of the days when
she was Queen of Western Culture, a more exclusively spiritual image
of her by a group that is now a cultural minority, the fierce love of the
persecuted Church, a quiet but persistent trend to prayer and penance
in response to an amazing series of apparitions, and the periodic defining of her privileges for a generation that is less buoyant, more
critical, and anxiously looking forward to a new culture which they feel
is taking shape around them and which in a new tongue will proclaim
her its Queen.
JOSEPH E. KERNS, S.J.
APOLOGETICS
The Triptych of the Kingdom. A Handbook Of The Catholic Faith.
By Dr. N. G. M. Van Doornik, Rev. S. Jelsma and Rev. A. Van De
Lisdonk. Translated from the Dutch. Edited by Rev. John Greenwood. Westminster, Maryland, The Newman Press, 1954. Pp. 491.
~4.75.
Those engaged in convert work will welcome this course of instructions
by Dutch priests working in Holland under the auspices of the Una
Sancta movement. The success of their methods made the translation
of their work into English most desirable.
Clear in its style and logical in its development, the handbook is
careful to keep before the reader's mind the precise point that is at
issue and how it fits in with what has gone before. To this end most
of the chapters are introduced by a synopsis of what is to be treated.
The result is a unified treatment quite different from a mere collection
of disconnected dogmas. Indulgences, purgatory, veneration of the
saints and the other perennial difficulties receive a full discussion but are
situated in their proper place in the sweep of Catholic doctrine. The
rich experience of the authors is brought out clearly in their observations
regarding the reactions of non-Catholics at various stages of their study
of the Catholic faith.
In addition to its use as a "text" to be employed by instructors with
Prospective converts, "The Triptych Of The Kingdom" provides a clear
and solid explanation of the faith for Catholics desirous of something
more than a catechism knowledge. Many will be helped, e.g., by the
emphasis on the correct interpretation of the purpose and significance
of the Bible regarded as the Word of God, in that it is not a textbook for
students of cosmogeny or biology, but is to present important religious
truths in an intelligible way.
The matter treated covers so vast a field that we can only outline the
general plan. The "Triptych" refers to the three inter-related stages
�88
BOOK REVIEWS
of the development of the Kingdom of God: 1) its preparation in the
Chosen People and the prophecies of the Messiah and His Kingdom;
2) the Messiah, Jesus Christ; 3) His Kingdom, the Church.
After an introductory chapter on the nature of God and man's duty
to serve Him, the first part of the book lays the foundation of the
Church, leading through the history of the Chosen People and the Old
Testament prophecies to the question of the Messiah and the Kingdom
of the Messiah. Part two deals with the teachings of the Church and
includes the structure of the Church, the sources of her teaching, the
mystery of the Blessed Trinity, creation, the fall and redemption,
grace, the communion of saints and the sacraments. The liturgical life
of the Church, the moral law, its principles, the ten commandments, the
six precepts of the Church and spiritual growth with a discussion of
prayer, mortification and perfection make up the third part. The concluding section treats of the four last things and the end of time. A
good summary is to be found at the end in a question and answer form.
VINCENT O'KEEFE,
S.J.
PSYCHIATRY
Psychiatry for Priests. By Herman Dobbelstein, M.D. Tr. by Meyrick
Booth, Ph.D. New York, Kenedy, 1954. Pp. 148. $3.00.
Perhaps the reader's reaction to this title is: "Here's a book for the
chaplain of a mental hospital, but it's not for me." The men of medicine,
however, insist that not seldom we priests unwittingly are dealing in
the parlor and confessional with cases of real mental illness. The ultrapious, the chronic liars, and the perpetually depressed who seek our
help may well be psychopaths, at least incipiently so.
This book treats of the psychoses, both the endogenous and those that
are external in origin. It is not concerned with the question of the administration of the Sacraments to the mentally ill. For this aspect
one may consult the available manuals and the periodical literature.
Nor does it tell the priest how he may help such persons to accept their
cross and sanctify their lives. This subject has been capably handled
elsewhere, for example in Tonquedec's article "Sanctification des Anormaux" in the Dictionnaire de Spiritualite. Rather the author's aim is
to point out how the priest may recognize mental abnormality in a
parishioner, and to show how he may tactfully induce the sufferer to
accept psychiatric aid. A priest, the author insists, should be able to
make a partial and tentative diagnosis of the type of mental illness and
thus be aware of the danger of suicide or of harm to others. His task is
to alert the family and overcome their prejudices to medical treatment
and to confinement in a mental institution, when this is indicated. Dr.
Dobbelstein enters into detail, marking out the approach to be taken and
almost formulating the words which the priest will find most helpful
in dealing with the patient and his family.
But the priest's role is not conceived as merely subsidiary to that of
�BOOK REVIEWS
89
the trained mental specialist. There is a large number of schizophrenic
cases which do not demand medical care. Or the sufferer may resolutely
refuse to have a specialist called in to explore his disturbed mind. How
is the priest to deal with such types? First he must show understanding
and sympathy. He should not probe psychoanalytically into the disordered inner life; such a procedure only aggravates the condition. He
should make light of the patient's affliction, direct his attention to his
normal capabilities, and interest him in activity calculated to distract
from the personality disorder. The priest should assure the patient that
he is a responsible individual. This is not deceit, since he is responsible
in the unaffected areas of his mind. To assert the opposite would offend
the sufferer and drive him away. However, it is equally disastrous to lie
to these less seriously affected patients. They must be told with tact that
they are suffering from mental disturbances which they cannot understand. The author tells what the priest can say to give comfort, indicates
the prognosis according to the nature of the malady, and warns of other
mistakes to be avoided. Of all this, space does not permit even a summary here.
Dr. Dobbelstein is a Catholic German psychiatrist, and in no sense
a Freudian. His style is nontechnical and clear. Where there are
variations between the European and American use of terms, the editors
have called attention to this fact in footnotes. The book is to be recommended to all priests on two counts. It is a fine introduction to the
essentials of phychotic disorder. Secondly, it serves as a useful 'reference to be consulted when one suspects mental abnormality in a penitent. Given its brevity, the book is almost a catalogue of diseases and
symptoms; hence it lends itself to ready consultation. It is to be
hoped that the author will present us with a companion work dealing with
the neuroses in the same lucid style and adapted to the same clerical
audience.
ROBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
HISTORICAL
Feast Days in the Jesuit Calendar. By James H. Gense, S.J. Bombay,
India, St. Francis Xavier's College, 1954. Pp. vi and 414. $2.00.
. This is a volume of biographical and historical sketches which furnish
Information about the feasts that are found in the "Jesuit Supplement."
A note on the dust-jacket advises the reader that this "book is not a
SWift, smooth-running Rolls Royce; but an old-fashioned prairie schooner
lumbering across the grasslands of time with its precious freight of
Je_suit domestic virtues." The reader, who keeps this asseveration in
mmd, will discover a rich store of facts in Father Gense's book.
~irst of all, there are the biographies of the Jesuits who have been
raised to the honors of the Altar through canonization or beatification.
In these compendious but adequate accounts the reader will find the
salient dates and events of the lives which they record. A book of this
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BOOK REVIEWS
character requires of the author a genius for felicitous selection of
incidents. Father Gense has succeeded, if not in all cases, at least
with remarkable and constant good judgment in his choice of incidents
that delineate character. Unfortunately, the urge to moralize has not
been sufficiently controlled. Reflective comments do not abound, it is
true, but occasionally one encounters short digressions. Some will feel
that such digressions detract from the effectiveness of brisk, factual
narrative. It would be inaccurate to say that the book contains
biographical sketches of all the Jesuit Beati. Not every "group" feast
is treated with the inclusive approach that marks the account of the
North American Martyrs.
Jesuit readers will be very grateful for the information the book
contains concerning such feasts as the Society's titular feast, the
commemoration of the restoration of the Society and the feasts of our
Lady that are proper to the Society. The omission of two significant
dates, March 12 and September 27, might be justified on the grounds
that their treatment would involve repetition.
It is an unpleasant duty to note that the proofreader, whose generous
work the author acknowledges, missed a number of glaring errors in the
matter of dates. Despite the blemishes, which will be corrected in future
printings, the appearance of this book is an event to which all of Ours
should attend. The book has almost unique value as a source of information and inspiration for Jesuits and as a means for spreading
devotion to Jesuit Saints and Blessed. For us and for externs the first
step must be to know. Father Gense has given us a little encyclopedia
about temporal history of great Jesuits whose eternal destiny we hope
to share.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
The Churches and the Schools. American Protestantism and Popular
Elementary Education. By Francis X. Curran, S.J. Loyola University Press, Chicago, 1954. Pp. vii-152. $3.00.
It is a fact that American Protestantism has relinquished the control
of popular elementary education to the state. The Churches and the
Schools, a scholarly and readable monograph of the "~esuit Studies
Series," explains this fact and details the causes which accomplished
this revolutionary change in the history of education and in the history
of Christianity. The net result is a singularly successful contribution
to the history of church-state relationships in the important field of
f?rmal elementary education. Careful research, thorough documentation, freedom from bias and clear presentation stamp this study as good
history competently written.
The author is no newcomer to the field of American Church History,
and his earlier volume, Trends in American Church History affords
manifest evidence of close familiarity with both subject and' sources.
The Churches and the Schools demonstrates that Father Curran has not
�BOOK REVIEWS
91
lost his art. Careful but unobtrusive footnotes as well as eight pages
of valuable bibliography are a silent testimony of devotion to a cause.
Previous authors, Father Curran points out, have claimed that the
Protestant surrender of popular education was a reluctant move. Still
others claim that the Protestant Churches had relinquished education
to the state even before our American Constitution had been adopted.
This study proves that both contentions are erroneous. Although the
church and the schoolhouse were in heavenly alliance "as if to bring
up our children, literally as well as figuratively, under the droppings
of the sanctuary" (p. 20), still no effective competition was ever offered
by Protestantism to the meteoritic rise of common or public schools at
the time of Horace Mann and Henry Barnard.
In six compactly written chapters the author traces with freshness
and vigor the nineteenth century story of how the Episcopalians, Congregationalists, Reformed Churches, Quakers, Methodists, and Baptists
gave up control of the primary education of the children of their respective memberships. Even though some Episcopalian schoolmen saw
common schools as "favorable to vice" (p. 19), still the Church's General
Convention of 1870 resolved that Episcopalians should "extend cordial
support to the schools of the state 'from the inspiration of patriotism'
and 'for the sake of Christianity itself'." The perennial problem of
few trained teachers and an increasingly strong anti-Catholic animus
not only solidified opposition to Church schools but also successfully
fostered contentment with a .,completely secularized elementary education under the sole control of the State." (p. 36).
The tale in the Puritan Church parallels the Episcopalian story. Surrender to state schools was made easy where the fires of anti-Catholic
prejudice burned brightly. Time and again Catholics were censured for
"keeping education in their own hands." The line of propaganda so
familiar today in church-state discussions was daily fare in the third
quarter of the nineteenth century. The Catholic parochial school system
was derided as "sectarian, diverse, narrow, clannish, anti-republican,"
(p. 42), and this state of affairs was explained by the fact that
the "Roman Catholic population was priest-ridden and bound in the
chains of hereditary ignorance." (p. 49). While many Congregationalists chanted that the principal freight of the Mayflower was a free
Bible, they quickly jettisoned their cargo in the rough waters of secular
education.
The Reformed Churches, aware of Calvin's ideal of church-controlled
education, inaugurated a paper campaign for their own parochial
schools. These efforts came too late. Churchgoing members, who had
already accepted state schools, busied themselves with a defense against
the supposed attacks of infidels and Catholics. Here Church leaders
followed. All claim to Reformed Church control of popular education
Was silently abandoned.
For a period before and after the Civil War Quakers boasted a succe~sful system of Friends' schools. A relatively small Church membership, however, could not provide teachers and was unwilling to bear
�92
BOOK REVIEWS
a double school tax. Also a watering down of Quaker doctrine made
the surrender to state schools easy. An attempt by the Methodist Church
to sponsor a school system was at best sporadic. Church newspapers and
periodicals preached a consistent doctrine that the "Common Schools"
were the "'anti-dote to Jesuitism" and the "sheet-anchors of Protestant
safety." When the Church came to the position that "all private and
parochial schools were anti-American and anti-Protestant," popular
education by Methodists collapsed. (P. 87). Baptists, on the other hand,
especially the Southern Baptist Convention, never seriously considered
the problem of Church-sponsored elementary education. In their eyes
Common Schools were Protestant institutions, and hence there was no
need to imitate Catholic parochial schools which gave America "mutilated
men and women." So it was that the Baptists joined in rejecting the
traditional claim of the Christian Church to control popular elementary
education.
The book's final chapter, "The Churches Relinquish Control," contains
an excellent summary and deserves careful reading. Shortage of funds
and trained teachers, anti-Catholic bias, rapid and solid entrenchment
of the Common Schools, hesitating leadership and general apathy all
explain the Protestant surrender. As Father Curran points out: "The
failure of united leadership meant the lack of strong interest in church
schools among the average members of the congregation." When leadership wavered, church membership wavered. The alternative was to
brand state schools as Protestant, and if the common school was
simultaneously Christian, Protestant, and above all American, why
should the average Protestant "expend labor and money to create other
Protestant schools under the control of the Church?" This is the story of
how the state fell heir to the Christian heritage of Church controlled
education.
HARRY J. SIEVERS, S.J.
Padre Pro. By Fanchon Royer.
248 pp. $3.50.
New York, Kenedy and Sons, 1954.
The recent announcement of significant advances towards the beatifi·
cation of Father Miguel Pro, S.J. makes this new biography of the
"Modern Mexican Martyr" a particularly timely book. Many are al·
ready acquainted with Father Pro through Father Dragon's earlier
biography but all should appreciate this new appraisal of the events
surrounding the life and death of that heroic Jesuit.
Though the active ministry of Miguel Augustin Pro lasted for only
two short years, it was sufficient to give proof of his ardent zeal for
souls and his personal spirit of mortification combined with an engaging
sense of humor and chivalry. He suffered from ill health· his course
of studies was often interrupted and never quite comple{ed; he was
frequently forced to exercise his ministry in secret and to flee from the
pursuing police. Through all these difficulties, he retained that deep
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
personal love of Our Lord and joyful devotion in serving Him in His
persecuted brethren which has characterized so many of the great sons
of St. Ignatius. His letters and spiritual notes, his varied apostolate
and his final actions as he faced the executioners' bullets all show that
he had drunk deep at the fountain of the Spiritual Exercises and that
his ardent spirit was refined and tempered in the fire of true Jesuit
obedience.
The particular value of this book lies in the great use the author has
made of primary sources and of her own extensive knowledge of life in
Mexico. This is not to deny that there is a certain unevenness to the
book. The emphasis placed on details of Mexican life and customs and
the too frequent conjectures concerning events in the early life of Miguel
Pro prove distracting and make the opening chapters move slowly. However, when the author reaches the Jesuit period of Father Pro's life and
especially when she treats of his active apostolate and the events of
his death, her use of letters, official records and eye-witness reports
make for interesting and absorbing reading.
Much remains to be written about the social, political and religious
life in Mexico which helped to contribute to the events of that tragic
period which the late Bishop Kelley has called the era of "BloodDrenched Altars." In Padre Pro, however, Mrs. Royer has made a
significant contribution towards an understanding of those unhappy
times and has given us a greater appreciation of that heroic Jesuit who
was one of the first to epitomize in his own life the terrible struggle
that exists today between Christianity and Atheistic Communism.
JOHN F. LONG, S.J.
SOCIAL ORDER
Spotlight On Social Order. By William J. Smith, S.J.
Christopher Press, Inc., 1953. Pp. 241. $3.00.
Rochester, The
With this book Fr. Smith wants to reach "the people who are
changing the social environment of America today, . . . the men and
women with a newspaper in one hand and an election ballot in the
other;" these people Fr. Smith has "come to know by the thousands
as they seriously endeavor to improve their educational background
through the medium of informal adult programs such as those offered
at St. Peter's College Institute of Industrial Relations." For them
Fr. Smith expounds the Industry Council Plan.
The book is divided into four parts: the first part, Realism of Rerum
Novarum, sketches the important teaching of that great encyclical; the
second part, Modern Materialistic Capitalism, relies heavily on Quadra~esimo Anno in exposing the evils of Capitalism, particularly as found
~n the United States; the third part, Common Sense Christian Idealism,
18
a positive presentation of the Industry Council Plan; the last section
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BOOK REVIEWS
calls for the reader to base his own actions on the Christian principles
governing industrial society.
Fr. Smith's book is developed on a contrast; he shows us what we do
have and what we should have. As regards what we should have, while
Fr. Smith makes no attempt to solve the economic problems inherent
in the Industry Council Plan, he does spell out ICP as an ideal and
an idea, insisting on individual and group acceptance of the principles
of social justice and social charity as a necessary prerequisite to ICP
or to any satisfactory cooperation for the common good of an industrial
society. As regards what we do have, the book certainly minces no
words in describing the evils of capitalism; in the opinion of this reviewer, a few should have been minced. For example: stock shares
are widely distributed "for the deliberate purpose of eliminating control
by the owners and of concentrating a usurped power of ownership in the
hands of non-owners" (p. 40) ; "Pensions for workers is not a new
obligation of the employer. It has always been his obligation. . .. It
is but a feature of the living, family wage, payment of which is deferred
to the future" (p. 46, italics author's own) ; "The only adequate norm
for the true role due to the workers in an industrial society is the
union shop" (p. 103). Statements like these carry a sort of slogan tag,
and call for careful distinctions which Fr. Smith does not always
either make or indicate.
The value of the book lies in the attitudes and the values which it will
produce in the people for whom it is intended. ICP will never be
realized by top-level planning alone. If it, or any system like it, is
ever realized, it will arise from the attitudes of the people Fr. Smith
identifies as the ones "changing the social environment of America
today," the great bulk of the people who live and work in American
society.
ROBERT
J. MCNAMARA, S.J.
Black Popes. Authority: Its Use and Abuse. By Archbishop Thomas
Roberts, S.J. New York, Longmans, Green & Co., 1954. Pp. vii-139.
This book is the fruit of wide experience and was written to commend
the right idea of authority. Those in authority have power but they also
have responsibility. They must be careful not to lean too much on
their power and not to be too grasping for money. Archbishop Roberts
points to the long delays of civil and ecclesiastical bureaucracies, to
ambitious careerism, to yes-men and the helplessness of authorities when
people fail to offer constructive criticism. All in all it is a fresh and
invigorating book, one which meets a real need.
�BOOK REVIEWS
95
ASCETICAL THEOLOGY
La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus. By Joseph de Guibert, S.J.
Rome, Bibliotheca Instituti Historici S.J ., 1953. Pp. xl-659. $5.00.
(Bound Copies: one dollar extra.)
This is a monumental work which should be in every Jesuit library
and, in fact, in every important library. In some ways it may be
called the author's lifework. He was commisioned by Father General
Ledochowski to write it as part of the celebration of the Fourth Centenary of the Society. Although it reaches seven hundred pages, it was
not fully completed when death intervened very suddenly to put an end
to Father de Guibert's labors before its final revision and development.
Had he lived longer he would, no doubt, have availed himself of some
valuable recent studies made by others and have treated phases of
the Society's spirituality which are eminently characteristic but which
he did not have time to discuss at length. He and Father General
were about to discuss it when he was taken ill and died within three
days on March 23, 1942. Father Ledochowski had come to desire that
the volume should be more of an exposition of the doctrinal aspects of
the spirituality of the Society rather than a history. Father de Guibert
would, no doubt, have modified his work in this sense had he lived;
but the book as it stands is the fulfillment of his original commission,
a history of the Society's spirituality. In present form it is extremely
valuable and will always be a necessary book of reference for all Jesuits
and for those who wish to know the true spirit of the Society.
Those who are at all acquainted with Father de Guibert's voluminous
and authoritative writings on spiritual subjects would naturally expect
that this work would be of the highest excellence. For years he had
been one of the foremost exponents of Catholic spirituality both within
and without the Society. In this posthumous volume he fulfills all
expectations. He begins with an exposition of the spirituality of St.
Ignatius. He traces this spirituality through four centuries in its
many manifestations and shows that the inspiration and teaching received from the founder have persisted essentially unchanged throughout
its existence. He ends with the exposition of the Society's system,
insisting largely on setting right misconceptions of its real meaning as
advanced by those who have failed to grasp its essence.
His exposition of St. Ignatius' spiritual ideals and apostolic purpose is
especially remarkable. The saint, according to the author, was a mystic
not less favored than St. John of the Cross or St. Teresa, but a mystic
with his own marked characteristics. The Spiritual Exercises and The
Constitutions are a record of his communings with God, with the Most
Holy Trinity and indicate a mysticism which drove him ceaselessly
and with increasing intensity, to a life wholly dedicated to the service
of God and the salvation of souls. From the beginning of his conversion God led him along the way of zeal, and the vision of La Storta
~a~ the climax and the crown of his long spiritual training. In this
VlSlon our Blessed Lord, bloodstained and laden with his cross, at the
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BOOK REVIEWS
request of God the Father, received Ignatius as his servant. From that
time Ignatius was irrevocably convinced that he and his Society were
to be committed absolutely to the service of God through love. The
influence of the vision of La Storta is as marked today as it was in
the beginning, and every Jesuit is convinced that his vo.cation is a call
to service of Christ bearing his Cross. To be a compamon of Jesus, to
share in his labors, to spread the fruits of the Redemption, and to be
like Christ even in his sufferings,-such is the ideal which made Ignatius a tireless apostle and has driven his sons to the ends of the
world in their quest for the greater glory of God in the salvation of
souls. Father de Guibert shows that this ideal has been preserved unchanged throughout the history of the Society.
J.
HARDING FISHER,
S.J.
More Blessed Than Kings. By Vincent P. McCorry, S.J. Westminster,
Maryland, The Newman Press, 1954. Pp. 242. $3.00.
Father McCorry's latest book deserves a wider audience than Those
Terrible Teens, Most Worthy of All Praise and As We Ought; but it is
just as cheerful and will be just as acceptable to priests and religious
as to the faithful of all conditions and both sexes. More Blessed Than
Kings contains fifteen essays on certain minor characters of the Four
Gospels, people like the Shepherds, Martha and Mary, the Men of
Gerasa, Mrs. Zebedee and the Father of the Lunatic Boy. The author
writes pertinently about them and at the same time limpidly and gayly.
Each character is handled in a fresh and friendly manner and each
essay has a point which is in no danger of being overlooked by any
reader. These points include clerical celibacy, the problem of evil,
mortal sin, and the relationship of priest and people in the United
States. Other essays extoll patience, little people, humility, confidence
and sisters, "not nuns but natural sisters to whom, naturally, no one
ever pays any attention." There is even a plea for good manners.
Father McCorry occasionally denounces in good round English, as when
he repudiates the Santa Claus image of God and the attitude of certain
Protestants to our Blessed Lady. It has been well said that "these
lessons . are so luminous that they make one squint."
A deft and helpful book, surely. The author confesses toward the
end that he is going to miss the company of the little people he has
been explaining. He has quite obviously enjoyed being with them and
in extracting from them good counsel and happy smiles. We rnay,
then, look forward to future volumes, some of them, perhaps, about
the _major characters of the Gospel. One might be pardoned, too, for
hopmg that Father McCorry may at some future date give us a work of
fiction. His ability in picturing and characterizing people and in
painting situations shows that he possesses the gifts of the successful
nove~ist. In fictional form he would be able, perhaps, to employ so:rne
of h1s talents even more effectively.
EDWARD A. RYAN, g.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIV, No. 2
CONTE~TS
APRIL, 1955
FOR APRIL, 1955
THE JESUITS IN BUFFALO: 1848-1869 -------------------- 99
Francis X. Curran, S.J.
MARY, QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS ------------- 115
Martin Carrabine, S.J.
'I'HE SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI ----------------- 123
George M. Murphy, S.J.
THE FIRST TRIAL OF THE NOVICIATE ----------------- 131
Charles Forest, S.J.
THE VATICAN RADIO STATION - - - - - - - - - - - - - 145
E. J. Burrus, S.J.
JESUIT PROVINCES IN NORTH AMERICA: 1805-1955 ------ 155
James J. Hennesey, S.J.
OBITUARIES
Father Matthew Germing -------------------------------- 162
Father Augustine Krebsbach ------------------------ 172
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS --------------------------- 175
The Psalms in Rhythmic Prose (Kleist and Lynam); Abbe
Pierre and the Ragpickers of Emmaus (Simon); The Dignity
and Virginity of the Mother of God (Suarez); Joseph and
Jesus (Filas); Le Pere Jean Leunis (Wicki); The Christian
Experience (Mouroux); Fundamentals of Government (Schmandt and Steinbicker); Problems and Opportunities in a
Democracy (Cronin); The Life of John J. Keane (Ahern); A
Survey of Protestant Theology in Our Day (Weigel); The
Epistles in Focus (Lawler); Mary in Our Life (Most); The
Letters of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque; Soren Kierkegaard (Hohlenberg); SQren Kierkegaard and Catholicism
(Roos); and others.
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Francis X. Curran (New York Province) is stationed at Xavier
High School, New York City.
Father Martin Carrabine (Chicago Province) is General Secretary of
Sodalities in the Province.
Father George M. Murphy (New England Province) is Superior of
Our Lady's Hall, Haverhill, Massachusetts.
Mr. Thomas L. Sheridan (New York Province) is a theologian at
Woodstock.
Father E. J. Burrus (New Orleans Province) is Secretary of the
Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu and writer for the Monumenta
·
Historica Societatis Jesu.
Mr. James J. Hennesey (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock.
Father Leonard A. Waters (Missouri Province) is professor of English at St. Stanislaus Seminary, Florissant.
Mr. Samuel A. Tattu (California Province) teaches Latin at Loyola
High School in Los Angeles.
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WOODSTOCK
LETTERs to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contributor.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-elass matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock.
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearl1
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�The Jesuits in Buffalo: 1848-1869
FRANCIS
X.
CURRAN,
S.J.
In 1847 the young and vigorous city of Buffalo was created
the seat of a diocese and Father John Timon, Superior of
the Vincentians in America, was consecrated its first bishop.
The new bishop entered his diocese at the end of October
1847, surveyed the vast field of his labors and his handful of
priests (there were but sixteen1 ) , and at once appealed for
assistance to, among others, the Jesuits. 2 The Jesuit to whom
he turned was Father Clement Boulanger, Superior General
of the New York-Canada Mission of the Province of France. 3
The Fathers of the Society were as new to the State of New
York as the bishop was to his diocese. Only in 1846 had
Boulanger led his men to St. John's College at Fordham.
Although he had only a few men, he was busy, in 1847, laying
the groundwork of the future College of St. Francis Xavier
in New York City. But from the Canadian section of the
mission he was able to detach two men to assist Bishop Timon
in handling a very special problem.
For Bishop Timon had inherited with the new diocese an
old headache, which even Bishop Hughes, when Buffalo had
been under his jurisdiction, had not been able to banish. The
problem was the board of trustees of the German Church of
St. Louis.• In the history of the trustee troubles which
plagued the American Church, the story of the Church of St.
Louis is outstanding. To bring the rebellious trustees to their
senses, Bishop Hugh~s had gone to the extremity of placing
the church under an interdict, which lasted for sixteen
months. 5 Even the application of so severe a measure had
not taught the trustees the proper obedience due to a bishop.
Within a few weeks of his arrival in Buffalo, Bishop Timon
and the trustees of St. Louis were at loggerheads.
The Bishop hoped that the preaching of a mission at St.
Louis might teach the trustees and their supporters among
the congregation the proper relation between a parish and its
bishop. At his request, Father Boulanger instructed two
German Jesuits, Bernard Fritsch and Lucas Caveng, to go to
Buffalo and preach the desired mission. The Fathers crossed
the Canadian border, appeared in Buffalo, and in April 1848,
�100
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
preached the mission. But the effect desired by the bishop
was apparently not accomplished and the two Fathers returned to their posts in Canada.6
Bishop Timon did not want them to go. He appealed to
Father Boulanger to create a permanent Jesuit settlement in
the diocese of Buffalo, to assist in the work of the parishes
and to conduct a college. 7 Again Father Boulanger obliged.
In June 1848 Father Fritsch with two Jesuit companions re. turned to the diocese. 8 The Jesuits established their headquarters in the parish of Williamsville, a suburb of Buffalo.
They also took charge of two neighboring parishes, and within
a few months had created two more parishes in the little
suburban towns along the Erie Canal. 9 One of the Fathers
moved into the bishop's residence; besides assisting in the
neighboring parishes, he constituted the entire faculty of
Bishop Timon's small seminary of eight or nine students. 10
While the Jesuits were busy about these manifold occupations, the bishop developed another plan to use the Fathers
to destroy the rebellious spirit in the Church of St. Louis. He
would try to install the Jesuits as pastors of the German
church. If his efforts failed, he would have the Jesuits build
another German church in the immediate neighborhood of
St. Louis. The very existence of this Jesuit church, the
bishop hoped, would curb, if not destroy, the insurgent spirit
of St. Louis.
Early in 1851 the bishop was ready to act. The Jesuit
superior had agreed to staff St. Louis and to supply the men
to carry out the bishop's plan. 11 Timon's first move was to
employ, once again, the device of a parish mission. Caveng
was summoned from Canada and Fritsch from Williamsville.
During the first two weeks of February thousands heard and
were moved by their eloquence. More than 5,000 people, according to Fritsch's report, packed the huge church for the
closing services of the mission. 12 The mission had the chief
effect desired by the bishop. So favorably impressed by the
Jesuits was the congregation of St. Louis that a delegation of
~he parishioners called upon the bishop and petitioned him to
Install the Jesuits as their pastorsY Timon was more than
ready to agree and the Fathers more than ready to serve.
But the trustees, jealous of their power over the purse strings
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
101
and rightly suspecting that the Fathers would cripple their
control, refused to accept the Jesuits. 14 Once more, the
Fathers left the city.
Before the Fathers began the construction of their church
in Buffalo, Timon decided to make one last effort to place
the Jesuits in control of St. Louis. It was a rather theatrical
coup de main. · On Easter Sunday, April 27, 1851, Lucas
Caveng mounted the pulpit of St. Louis Church and read to
the congregation a letter from Bishop Timon appointing him
the pastor of the parish and five laymen administrators of
its temporalities. 15 This frontal attack on the trustees stung
them to instant retaliation. They wrote the bishop that he
had tricked them in the appointment of Caveng and rejected
his intervention in the control of the parish temporalities. 16
The second and final act of the drama was played on the
following Sunday. Once more Caveng mounted the pulpit
of St. Louis with the bishop's answer to the letter of the
trustees. 17 The reading of the letter caused an uproar in the
church. The newly appointed pastor, menaced by threats,
was forced to remove the Blessed Sacrament and retire from
the church. 18
After this dramatic failure, the bishop immediately implemented the second part of his plan. The Church of St. Louis
was once more placed under interdict. 19 The new Church of
St. Michael the Archangel was decreed, with the Jesuit
Fathers in charge. The Sunday following Caveng's withdrawal from St. Louis he celebrated the first parish Mass of
the new church. 20 Until its own building could be erected, the
congregation of St. Michael's held divine services in the basement of the French Church of St. Peter. 21
St. Michael's was not long in being built. Only a few
hundred yards from St. Louis the bishop had purchased a
plot of land as the site of his future cathedral. This land
he deeded over to the Jesuits. Plans for a small and simple
church were hurriedly drawn up and contracts signed. So
quickly was the work pressed that Bishop Timon laid the
cornerstone in August, and the congregation of St. Michael's
greeted the New Year of 1852 with its first services in its own
church. 22 Parochial schools were soon in operation. Until
the rectory was built two years later, a rented house served
�102
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
the Jesuits as their headquarters in the Buffalo diocese; the
house in Williamsville was closed.23 As a curb on St. Louis,
St. Michael's quickly proved its value. The faithful Catholics
of the Church of St. Louis-the majority of that congregaion-abandoned their enormous church to crowd the small
and inelegant St. Michael's. 24
But although the rebellious trustees saw the major part of
their constituency drift away from St. Louis, they refused
to submit. The weeks became months, and the months years,
while the church remained under interdict. Indeed, the rebellious trustees were instrumental in having a state law enacted, with the wholehearted assistance of the Know-Nothings,
forbidding Catholic bishops to possess the titles of parish
churches. The trustees, some of whom were members of
forbidden societies and none interested in the practice of
their reputed religion, were more interested in the power
and the social prestige attached to their position as trustees
than in the salvation of souls. Since they would not listen
to their shepherd, he sought to get them to hear the voice
of the delegate of the pope himself. When Archbishop Bedini
made his eventful visit to the United States in 1853, Timon
invited him to Buffalo to try his hand at persuading the insurgents of St. Louis to return to their proper obedience.25
But the trustees would not obey even a Papal delegate. 26
Reluctantly, the bishop of Buffalo took the ultimate step of excommunicating the trustees of the interdicted church. 27
Possibly this final move caused some members of the rebellious congregation to reconsider their stand. At any event,
another visitor to the diocese was able to fracture the united
front of the insurgent congregation. This man was Franz X.
Weninger of the Jesuit Province of Missouri, one of the most
famous German preachers of nineteenth century America. 28
In 1854 Weninger made one of his many apostolic visits to
Buffalo, preaching missions in all the German parishes of
the diocese. St. Louis Church, of course, he could not visit,
but his nation-wide fame as a German preacher drew manY
members of the congregation of St. Louis to the mission he
preached in St. Michael's. They came, they listened, and
sought reconciliation with the Church. 29 But the trustees
and the hard core of their supporters still remained adamant,
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
103
and still controlled the physical plant of St. Louis Church.
Encouraged by this success, however, Bishop Timon sought
Weninger's aid in a final effort to bring St. Louis back to its
proper relations with its bishop by means of a parish mission.
In the late Spring of 1855, Weninger returned to Buffalo,
prepared to undertake the task. On May 27, 1855, four years
after the interdict had been laid, Timon published a document
lifting the interdict and revoking the excommunication of
the trustees of St. Louis, to be effective on the day Weninger
began his course of sermons. 30 Obviously with the consent
of the trustees, Weninger moved into the rectory of St. Louis,
and preached in the church a number of successful sermons.
He remained in the parish until the Church of St. Louis was
reconciled to its bishop. 31 The rebellious spirit within the
congregation was not destroyed; there were to be troubles in
the future. 32 But the schism was ended. With the hospitable
doors of St. Michael's only a few steps away, the trustees of
St. Louis never again dared to rupture relations with their
bishop.
With the problem of St. Louis Church apparently solved,
Bishop Timon intensified his efforts to secure more Jesuits for
his diocese and above all to press the Fathers to open a college.33 Due to a shortage of personnel, the Jesuits were not
in a position to staff another college. Yet urged on by the
bishop, Caveng requested authorization to purchase land besides St. Michael's Church as the site of the future college.u
St. Michael's financial state, however, was very poor.35 Its
site, the gift of the bishop, was still encumbered by the mortgage which came with the gift. The Jesuits had gone further
into debt to build the school and the rectory and to maintain
the parochial schools. The end of the schism of St. Louis
caused a notable drop in the attendance at St. Michael's, and
a concomitant drop in its revenues. 36 Yet Caveng purchased
additional land for $13,000, which merely increased St.
Michael's debts by that amount. 37
The heavy debts on St. Michael's troubled John Baptist
Hus, who had assumed office as Superior General of the New
York-Canada Mission late in 1855. In the summer of 1857,
Hus discussed the matter with his consultors, who advised
him to reduce the debts by selling off some of the land the
�104
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
Jesuits had purchased in Buffalo. 38 In September 1857, Hus,
accompanied by one of his consultors, John Larkin, went to
Buffalo to explain to Bishop Timon that the Jesuits must retrench. 39 The bishop, insistent on a college, urged instead a
policy of expansion. Confident that Buffalo's rapid growth
would continue, and with it land values would rise, he urged
the Fathers to buy extensive land for future sale. He told
them that not only would they recoup their initial investment,
but that they would make enough profit to build another
church for the Germans and to erect a college building beside
the church. 40 The Mission consultors advised Hus to have no
part of the plan. Among other reasons, college connected
with a German church would be considered a German college;
non-Germans would not send their boys to it, and the Germans would not supply enough pupils to keep it going. 41 That
would seem to have put an end to the matter. But Bishop
Timon kept urging his plan, and he was seconded in his
efforts by Caveng.42
Once more, in December 1857, Hus came to Buffalo. When
he returned to New York the following month, the commitments of the Jesuits in Buffalo had been greatly increased.
Timon had extracted from Hus a promise that the Jesuit college would be in operation in 1862, or at the latest in-1863.43
Hus had agreed to build and staff another church for the ..
Germans in Buffalo. Although all the Jesuits in Buffalo, save
Caveng, had opposed the step,44 and despite the pressing
debts and the lack of revenue, Hus had purchased, purely as
a speculation, large blocks of land.
For one block of land, comprising ten and a half acres,
Hus agreed to pay $15,000.45 The speculator who sold the
land to Hus had another plot of land, comprising 200 acres,
that he wanted to dispose of. He offered to make a gift of a
few acres to Bishop Timon on the condition that a church
be erected there and a priest assigned to the church before
the summer of 1858. Clearly, the offer was not motivated
by altruism, 46 but Timon wanted to close the proposition. He
asked Hus to undertake the obligation, but Hus, pleading the
lack of men and money, refused. Hus recounted the story in
the course of a conference to a convent of nuns. The sisters
approached a wealthy friend, who offered to give the Jesuits
a
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
105
the $4,000 necessary to erect a temporary church. Hus,
thereupon, changed his mind, and informed the bishop that
the Jesuits would build and staff the church. Apparently on
the principle of "in for a penny, in for a pound," Hus as a
speculation purchased more land about -the site of the future
church for another $6,000. 47 Before the superior left Buffalo,
he had doubled the debts of the Jesuits to more than $45,000.48
The first effects of the financial crisis of 1857, caused largely
by land speculation, began to be felt.
In the spring of 1858, the new church named in honor of
St. Ann was erected. By mid-summer the parish was a functioning organization.49 The Jesuit staff in Buffalo wa's increased to six, with two priests and a Brother at each church. 5°
Caveng remained as superior of both Jesuit parishes. His
main preoccupation was the problem of the debts. He appealed to the Jesuit General to obtain subsidies for the Buffalo
churches from the various missionary societies in Europe. 51
Hus too was worried about the debts. He made several hurried trips to Buffalo to consider the problem. On one occasion, to meet notes that were falling due, he brought with
him $3,000 he had borrowed from the colleges in New York
City. 52
Besides the pressure of the debts, the Fathers were under
continual pressure from Bishop Timon to start their college.
Early in 1857, Hus, forgetful of his promise to Timon at the
end of 1855, instructed Caveng to inform the bishop that the
Jesuits were not bound to begin construction of the college
building until 1863, nor to start classes until 1865. 53 The
bishop was manifestly displeased at the Jesuits' slowness, 54
and he did not like Hus' attempt to shift onto his shoulders the
responsibility of the Jesuit land speculation, which was a
miserable failure. When Hus was replaced as superior early
in 1859 by William Murphy, the bishop wrote the new superior
that he had advised the Jesuit purchase of land only because
Hus would not start the college at St. Michael's. 55 Since Hus
insisted on a different site, the bishop proposed various other
sites, one of which Hus bought. Murphy forwarded Timon's
letter to the Jesuit General/ 6 and later sent him a report on
the situation in Buffalo. 57 The report showed that the Jesuit
debts there totaled $48,500; and while the Fathers had an in-
�106
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
come of only $2,600, their annual expenses, including interest
on the debts, was $4,700.
Yet with the economic upswing in 1859, the pressure of the
debts eased off. When Felix Sop ranis, Visitor of the Jesuit
Provinces and Missions in America, came to Buffalo in the
Spring of 1860, the chief object of his visit was the problem
of the future college. This was the main topic in the exchange
of letters between the Visitor and the General on the subject
of Buffalo. 58 Yet the General also approved the suggestion
again advanced by the mission consultors that the debts in
Buffalo be reduced by the sale of land. ~ There was but one
difficulty to this solution-no purchaser 'could be found. 60
During the years following 1860, the burden of work done
by the Jesuits in the diocese of Buffalo remained rather constant. At one time or another, they supplied temporary
pastors to a number of parishes, 61 and gave a number of
parish missions and retreats to religious congregations. Their
main work, however, was devoted to their three parishes, each
with its parochial schools whose registration totaled about
1,000.62 They also served as chaplains in two convents, two
hospitals, and in the local poor house and insane asylum. 6s
To find German-speaking priests to do the work was no easy
task. Matters became even more difficult when Caveng took
sick and died early in 1862,64 and when Fritsch was recalled ·to Germany in 1866.65 Yet Remigius Tellier, named Superior
of the New York-Canada Mission in 1859, somehow managed
to increase the Jesuits in Buffalo to six priests and four
Brothers. 66
New purpose and direction was given to the work of the
Jesuits in Buffalo with the appointment, in August 1863, of
Joseph Durthaller as Superior. This vigorous man took in
hand and eventually solved the problem of the debts.
But before that task was undertaken, the question of the
Church of St. Louis once more was raised. When the schistn
was ended in 1855, secular clergy were put in charge of the
parish. At one time or another, the Jesuits were called in to
serve St. Louis on a temporary basis. But they hesitated to
do any more than to say Mass-they would not conduct Vespers, or even preach, lest the suspicious trustees charge thetn
with plotting to take over the church. 67 When in 1861 the
5
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
107
secular pastor, who was retiring from office, offered to turn the
church over to the Jesuits, the Fathers refused the proffered
gift.68 Timon still hoped to install the Jesuits in the troublesome church. When in 1863 St. Louis was once more without
a priest, the bishop requested Durthaller to act as temporary
pastor so as to sound out the opinion of the parishioners on the
Jesuits as their pastors. 69 Durthaller agreed. Weninger,
once again in Buffalo, saw the possibility of a solution of the
Jesuit problems. He wrote to the General, urging that the
Fathers give up St. Michael's and St. Ann's to concentrate at
St. Louis. But the consultors of the New York Mission agreed
that the plan was impracticable. 70 Durthaller informed the
General that the proposal had already failed. 71 The trustees
of St. Louis, fearing the end of their power, opposed the
Jesuits as pastors, and the congregation had not forgotten
that the Jesuits had built St. Michael's to keep them under
control. Timon had abandoned that hope, and had installed
a secular priest at St. Louis.
Durthaller turned his attention to the construction of a new
and magnificent St. Michael's Church. The question of a new
church had been raised as early as 1860, but Bishop Timon,
insisting that the Fathers first build their college, had refused
to sanction the proposai.7 2 However, the Jesuits felt that if
they were to remain in Buffalo, they had to build. The
original church, hurriedly erected in 1851, was but a temporary one, small and unattractive. Their parishoners were
discontented with the wretched church and the poor schoolhouse. The Fathers felt that their parishoners deserved whatever consideration they could give them. These faithful
Catholics had refused to join the trustees of St. Louis in
schism and had, in the face of threats and insults, built St.
Michael's. Unless the parishioners were given an attractive
church, they would drift away to the neighboring parishes.
Furthermore, the restricted capacity of the church made for
restricted revenues. A larger church would bring increased
income and the future extinction of the debts. 73
Yet before c~nstruction was begun, a final attempt was
made to merge the congregations of St. Michael's and St. Louis
under the direction of the Jesuits, but it failed. 74 Consequently, in the Spring of 1864 ground was broken for the new
�108
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
St. Michael's. The plans called for a truly large church, with
a seating capacity of more than 1,750. 75 That Durthaller was
confident of the future is shown by the fact that though he
had but two curates, he installed a dozen confessionals in
the new church. It was three years before the church was
ready for its dedication, which took place in the summer. of
1867. 76 In the meanwhile, other improvements were made;
the rectory was enlarged, and the original church was converted into a schoolhouse. The total cost of these developments came to almost $100,000. 77 Although Durthaller had inherited a debt of over $50,000 on his arrival in Buffalo in
1863, by the beginning of 1868, in spite of the new capital
outlays, he had reduced the debt to $75,000. Provided he was
given an adequate staff, he anticipated no difficulty in wiping
out all indebtedness. He had acquired $10,000 from the sale
of land-a large loss, but the drain of interest and taxes had
been ended; $8,000 had come from prosperous St. Ann's; and
$56,000 more Durthaller had secured by begging. 78 Part of
this money had come from European missionary societies.
In 1865, for example, the Leopoldine Society granted $1,000
to the Jesuits in Buffalo, and another $500 had come from
the Society of the Progagation of the Faith. 79 Durthaller
did his best to secure further grants from these sources. 80
Although the financial problem was well in hand, the difficulty of securing sufficient personnel remained and grew more ~ .
acute. Every departure or death of a German-speaking priest
raised a new problem for the Superior of the New YorkCanada Mission. James Perron, who took that office in 1866,
found the problem beyond his powers. When the Bishop of
Newark requested German-speaking priests, Perron had to
refuse, as did the Provincial of the Maryland Jesuits. 81 To
handle the problem of the large German population, not only
of Buffalo, but also of other major cities, Perron, in 1867,
suggested to the Jesuit General that one of the Germanspeaking provinces establish a mission in the United StateS. 82
Later he repeated his suggestion. He declared that a good
base for the proposed mission was Buffalo, and he offered to
turn over to the future German mission all the property of
the New York Mission in that city.sa
Perron also sounded out the Fathers in Buffalo about his
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
109
proposal. He found that all, with but one exception, wholeheartedly approved of the plan. 84 It appeared that the Province of Germany was willing to undertake the task. Fritsch
reported that his Provincial stood ready, as soon as Perron
requested them, to aid the New York Mission with men. 85
Further support came from the Missouri Province, whose
Provincial Perron had converted to his ideas. 86 Word came
from Buffalo that the indomitable Durthaller was at last
discouraged-not by debts, but because he had no German
preacher with a voice strong enough to fill the huge new
church. 87 The Fathers were convinced that the New York
Mission had to turn over its works in Buffalo, if not to the
German Jesuits, then to the Redemptorists. 88
In the summer of 1868 the Provincial of Germany informed
Perron that he was sending a Father to survey and report. 89
In mid-September Durthaller welcomed Perron, who brought
to Buffalo two German Jesuits as curates for St. Michael's. 90
The third Father, Peter Speicher, Perron accompanied on his
tour of inspection as far as Cleveland, where the bishop offered
the German Jesuits an opening in Ohio. 91 Thereafter Speicher
toured the Midwestern states, particularly those with large
German settlements. 92 By the end of October, his report was
on its way to the Provincial of Germany. 93
Apparently his report on the situation in Buffalo was adverse. For Father Durthaller implored the General to order
the German Provincial to accept the houses in Buffalo. 94 He
informed the General that he had told the provincial that the
only reason why the New York Mission desired to surrender
Buffalo was, not the debts which could be handled, but the
lack of German-speaking priests. When the two Fathers in
Buffalo received intimations from their provincial that they
Would soon be recalled to Germany, Father Durthaller again
appealed to the General. 95 Apparently the Jesuit General did
intervene. 96 Before the end of 1868, Father Perron received
the information that the German Province had accepted the
Work in Buffalo. 97 Although one of the Fathers in New York
~xpressed grave doubts about the wisdom of erecting a Jesuit
Jurisdiction in America on the basis of a foreign language, 98
the New York Mission did all in its power to facilitate the
transfer. 99
�110
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
On January 23, 1869, the New York Mission and the German Province agreed on the terms of the transfer,t 00 and the
General quickly approved.101 Father Speicher, who had returned to Germany early in the year to make a personal report,
was named superior of the new mission.102 On July 4, 1869,
he re-entered Buffalo with the vanguard of the men of the
German Province.103 Before the end of the year, thirteen
priests and five Brothers had arrived to staff the new mission.104 For a time, Father Durthaller at St. Michael's and
Father John Blettner at St. Ann's remained as pastors, with
the unusual luxury of five assistant priests at each church.105
The members of the New York Mission.gradually withdrew.
Father Blettner, the last to go, boarded the train for New
York on July 26, 1870. 106 The first phase of Jesuit activity
in Buffalo was at an end.
Six weeks later, the first classes of Canisius College were
initiated. Neither Bishop Timon nor the New York Jesuits
were there for the happy event. But both the dead Bishop
and the departed Fathers could justly consider that development the crown of their labors. During their score of years
in Buffalo, the Fathers of the New York Mission had done
notable work. Plagued as they were by debts and a shortage
of manpower, they had founded a half-dozen parishes, ended
a dangerous schism, and contributed no little strength to the
growing Church of the diocese of Buffalo.
··
NOTES
1
Bishop John Timon, Missions in Western New York and Church
History of the Diocese of Buffalo (Buffalo, 1862), p. 235.
2
Archivum Romanum Societatis Jesu (hereinafter ARSI), Clement
Boulanger, S.J., to John Roothaan, S.J., Feb. 26, July 6, 1848. Boulanger
was Superior General of the New York-Canada Mission and Roothaan
was the General of the Jesuit Order.
8
For the history of the origins of the New York-Canada Mission, see
the writer's "Jesuits in Kentucky, 1831-1846" Mid-America 35 (1953),
223-246.
'
'
~ F.or Timon's o'\Vn account of the early part of the struggle, see his
M.wswns, pp. 221 ff. A more complete account, with many documents,
w~ll be found in Charles G. Deuther, Life and Times of the Rt. Rev. John
Ttmon (Buffalo, 1870), pp. 98-113, 120-157, 188-212.
3
Timon, Missions, p. 229.
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
111
8 ARSI, Bernard Fritsch, S.J., to Roothaan, Feb. 1, 1849. Archives of
Canisius High School (hereinafter CHA), Diarium Domus Societatis
Jesu in Buffalo ab anno Domini 1851, March 1848.
1 ARSI, Boulanger to Roothaan, July 6, 1848.
s ARSI, Fritsch to Roothaan, Feb. 1, 1849, Feb. 18, 1851.
s Nicholas H. Kessler, "The History of Canisius High School," p. 2,
identifies these places as Pendleton, Tonawanda and Elysville. Kessler's
unpublished master's thesis is in the Canisius College library. Fritsch
himself (ARSI, Fritsch to Roothaan, Feb. 1, 1849) mentions Williamsville, Northbush and Transit.
10 ARSI, Boulanger to Roothaan, Jan. 16, 1849.
n ARSI, Boulanger to Ambrose Rubillon, S.J., Dec. 9, 1850; Boulanger
to Roothaan, Jan. 6, 1851, April 20, Aug. 6, 1851. Rubillon was the
Assistant for France to the Jesuit general.
12 ARSI, Fritsch to Roothaan, Feb. 18, 1851.
13 ARSI, Fritsch to Roothaan, Feb. 18, 1851; Timon to Congregation
of St. Louis, Easter Sunday, April 27, 1851, cited in Deuther, Timon,
pp. 126-127.
14 CHA, Diarium, Feb. 1851; ARSI, Historia residentiae Buffalensis,
1851-1852.
15
Deuther, Timon, pp. 126-127.
16 Documents in Deuther, Timon, pp. 129-132, 139-143.
11 Given in Deuther, Timon, 128-133.
18
CHA, Diarium, May 4, 1851; ARSI, Historia residentiae Buffalensis,
1851-1852. See also Deuther, Timon, p. 134.
19
The interdict was laid June 14, 1851. Cf. Deuther, Timon, p. 134.
20
ARSI, Historia residentiae Buffalensis, 1851-1852; Historia domus
Sti. Michaelis, 1851-1856.
21
ARSI, Historia domus Sti. Michaelis, 1851-1856.
22
ARSI, Historia domus Sti. Michaelis, 1851-1856; Boulanger to
Roothaan, Aug. 6, 1851.
23
ARSI, Boulanger to Roothaan, Aug. 6, 1851.
24
ARSI, John Baptist Hus, S.J., to Peter Beckx, S.J., May 11, 1857.
Hus was Boulanger's successor as superior of the New York-Canada
Mission, and Beckx succeeded Roothaan as general of the Jesuits. See
also Timon's statement in Deuther, Timon, p. 202.
25
CHA, Diarium, Oct. 22, 1853.
26
Documents in Deuther, Timon, pp. 188-197.
27
Deuther, Timon, p. 211.
28
For Weninger, see Gilbert J. Garraghan, Jesuits of the Middle
United States (New York, 1938), II, 53-65.
29
ARSI, William Murphy, S.J., to Beckx, Sept. 14, 1854. Murphy
Was a prominent member of the New York Mission and for a time in
1859 its Superior.
30
Document given in Deuther, Timon, p. 211.
31
ARSI, Murphy to Bckx, July 26, 1855. Deuther, Timon, 212.
�112
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
82 E.g., CHA, Diarium, Aug. 18, 1867, notes "magna turbatio et valde
dolendum scandalum" at St. Louis, when a banned association with its
banners appeared for a funeral.
83 The bishop's requests for more Jesuits and for a college are a recurrent theme in the documents. E.g., ARSI, Timon to Roothaan, Dec. 7,
1852; Caveng to Beckx, May 7, 1857. Archives of the New York
Province (hereinafter NYP A), Acta Consultationum Superioris Missionis, Sept. 14, 1852, Feb. 5, 1854, Sept. 13, 1855.
34 NYP A, Acta, April 21, 1857.
35 ARSI, Caveng to Beckx, May 7, 1857.
36 CHA, Diarium, May 23, 1855.
37 ARSI, Hus to Beckx, May 11, 1857.
as NYPA, Acta, Aug. 13, 1857.
39 CHA, Diarium, Sept. 7, 1857.
4o NYP A, Acta, Sept. 24, 1857.
41 NYP A, Acta, Oct. 4, Oct. 24, Oct. 27, 1857.
ARSI, Hus to Beckx,
Oct. 30, 1857.
42 NYP A, Acta, Dec. 10, 1857.
43 ARSI, Hus to Beckx, Jan. 17, 1858.
44 ARSI, Historia domus Stae. Annae, 1859-1860.
45 CHA, Diarium, Jan. 9, 1858; NYPA, Acta, Jan. 12, 1858; ARSI,
Hus to Beckx, Jan. 17, 1858.
46 A Ms "Outline History of St. Ann's Parish, 1857-1945" by Father
John Stedler, S.J., in the parish archives calls the donor a benefactor
of the parish.
47
NYPA, Acta, Jan. 12, 1858; ARSI, Hus to Beckx, Jan. 17, 1858.
48
ARSI, Caveng to Beckx, April 24, 1858; "Buffalo", Nov. 29, 1859...
49
Building began March 15, 1858; CHA, Diarium, March 15, 1858.
The church was dedicated June 20, 1858, and its first pastor took
charge on July 30, 1858; Archives of St. Ann's, Diary, under dates
given.
5
°Catalogus Provinciae Franciae, 1859, pp. 89-90.
n ARSI, Caveng to Beckx, April 24, 1858.
52
CHA, Diarium, July 13, Aug. 6, 1858.
53
ARSI, Instructions du P. Hus au P. Caveng, April ?, 1859.
54 NYP A, Acta, May 15, 1859.
55
ARSI, Timon to Murphy, Oct. 6, 1859.
56
ARSI, Murphy to Beckx, Oct. 30, 1859.
57
ARSI, "Buffalo", Nov. 29, 1859.
58
ARSI, Sopranis to Beckx, March 31 1860 · Beckx to Sopranis,
April 27, 1860; Benedict Sestini, S.J ., Bre~e nar~azione della visita di
Maryland, under March 24, 1860. Sestini had acted as Sopranis'
Socius during his visit to Buffalo.
59
NYP A, Acta, July 5-6, 1860 · ARSI Beckx to Sopranis Aug. 11,
1860.
'
'
'
�JESUITS IN BUFFALO
113
60 ARSI, "Buffalo", Nov. 29, 1859; Joseph Durthaller, S.J., to Beclo:,
Jan. 14, 1864. Durthaller was named Superior of the Jesuits in Buffalo
in 1863.
61 Among the parishes, in addition to those listed in note 9, CHA,
Diarium, 1861-1862, mentions Black Creek, Lockport and Black Rock.
62 The third parish was that of Elysville; cf. Catalogus Provinciae
Campaniae, 1868, p. 39, and 1869, p. 30.
63 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Dec. 4, 1865.
64 ARSI, Remigius Tellier, S.J., to Beckx, June 14, 1861.
Tellier
was named Superior of the mission in 1859. Missiones Americae
Septentrionales 1863, p. 25.
6 5 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Aug. 22, 1866.
66 Catalogus Provinciae Campaniae, 1864, p. 54.
6 7 CHA, Diarium, July 4, 1858, June 12, 1861.
68 NYP A, Acta, April 11, 1861.
69 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Jan. 14, 1864.
7o NYPA, Acta, Jan. 7, 1864.
71 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Jan. 14, 1864.
72 ARSI, Tellier to Beckx, Oct. 18, 1860.
73 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Jan. 14, 1864, Sept. 20, 1864; Tellier to
Beckx, Sept. 15, 1864.
74
CHA, Diarium, April 20, 1864.
75 Synopsis of Specifications for St. Michael's New Catholic Church
(Buffalo, 1864).
76
Die neue St. Michael's Kirche zu Buffalo, N.Y. (Buffalo, 1867), p.
17, gives the date as June 16, 1867.
77
ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Jan. 23, 1868.
78
St. Ann's, in its first years a drain on the Jesuits' revenue, produced a surplus for the first time in 1867. ARSI, James Perron, S.J.,
to Beckx, April 8, 1868. Perron succeeded Tellier as superior of the
mission.
79
ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Dec. 4, 1865, and ?, 1865.
80
ARSI has a copy of one of Durthaller's letters to the Society of
the Propagation of the Faith, Dec. 17, 1864.
81
NYP A, Acta, Jan. 10, 1867.
82
ARSI, Perron to Beckx, Feb. 17, 1867.
83
ARSI, Perron to Beckx, April 16, 1867.
84
The man opposed to the plan was John Blettner, pastor of St.
Ann's; ARSI, Perron to Beckx, April 16, 1867.
85
ARSI, Perron to Beckx, April 16, 1867.
86
Garraghan, Jesuits of the Middle United States, I, 582-583.
87
ARSI, Blettner to Beckx, May 18, 1868.
88
ARSI, Blettner to Beckx, May 18, 1868; Durthaller to Beckx,
Nov. 10, 1868.
89
NYP A, Acta, Sept. 9, 1868.
�114
JESUITS IN BUFFALO
CHA, Diarium, Sept. 17, 1868.
ARSI, Perron to Beckx, Oct. 30, 1868.
92 CHA, Diarium, Oct. 1, 1868 to Jan. 2, 1869, passim.
93 ARSI, Perron to Beckx, Oct. 30, 1868.
94 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Nov. 10, 1868.
95 ARSI, Durthaller to Beckx, Nov. 22, 1868.
96 St. Michael's Church, Buffalo, 1851-1901 (Buffalo, 1901), p. 35, declares that Speicher "was on the point of withdrawing, when a most
categorical order from headquarters in Rome forced him to accept ..."
9r NYP A, Acta, Dec. 28, 1868.
9s ARSI, Thomas Legouais, S.J., to Beckx, Jan. 26, 1869.
Legouais
was one of the oldest members of the New York Mission.
99 NYP A, Acta, Jan. 21, 1869.
1oo CHA, Litterae Annuae Residentiae Buffa:lensis, 1869-1870.
101 Ibid.
102 CHA, Diarium, April 5, 1869; Litterae annuae, 1869-1870.
1o3 CHA, Diarium, July 4, 1869.
1o4 CHA, Diarium, Aug. 30, 1869 et passim.
105 CHA, Litterae Annuae Residentiae Buffalensis, 1869-1870.
1os ARSI, Historia domus Stae Annae, 1870-1871.
uo
91
* * *
FATHER LAF ARGE AT
75
During this year 1955, Father LaFarge is marking three unusual
anniversaries. On Sunday, February 13, he quietly celebrated his 75th
birthday. (The next day he was off by plane on a distant apostolic mission.) In August, God willing, he will celebrate the golden jubilee of
his priestly ordination in Innsbruck, Austria. November will mark
the golden jubilee of his entrance into the Society of Jesus. During his
brief absence from the office we can conveniently pay tribute to one
of his most endearing virtues: his readiness, when asked, to counsel
his younger colleagues, which he always does in a most encouraging
way. This year will also, we believe, see the publication in France ~f
the .French version of his best-selling autobiography, The Manner 18
O~d~nary. Partly out of "enlightened self-interest," we pray that our
D1v1ne Lord will keep our former Editor-in-Chief with us for many an
"ordinary" year.
AMERICA, February 26, 1955
�Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus
MARTIN CARRABINE,
S.J.
Spring was slow in climbing the Pyrenees Mountains. It
was cold in the Shrine of Our Lady at Montserrat, which huddled close to the ancient Benedictine Monastery. It grew
colder as night fell. The Shrine was emptied of all its worshippers; of all save one, a man in a beggar's garb, a man who
looked like no beggar. Flickering candles were finally trimmed
for the long night hours ; they cast his shadow far behind him.
It was a soldierly shadow, although the straight figure that
cast it leaned heavily on a wooden staff. A gleaming sword,
obviously his, hung close to Our Lady's ancient statue. The
sword was a symbol, a symbol of a reality that he had renounced, and a sign of a future total donation. All through
the cold night he stood or sat till the early pre-dawn Mass on
the Feast of the Annunciation, 1522, began. A new knight in
a strange garb passed a weird vigil; vowed everlasting fidelity
to a Queen, and militant loyalty to her Son, Jesus Christ.
The unconventional soldier was Ignatius Loyola. "That night,"
says the English poet, Francis Thompson, "was born the Company of Jesus, the free lances of the Church."
That night, we may add, the new Order in its chivalrous
Founder chose Mary as its Queen. More than four centuries
later, in 1940, Pope Pius XII, on the four-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the Company of Jesus, established for
its members the special feast of Mary, Queen of the Society of
Jesus. And so, a crown four centuries old was placed on Our
Lady's head by her Jesuit sons.
Obviously, it was not the intention of the Holy Father to
make Our Lady a kind of special property of the Jesuits!
Obviously, too, it should be the aim of the Jesuits to make
Mary the Queen of every Catholic in the world and to spread
her rule into every heart that does not yet beat in full harmony
with her Son's. The Jesuit Order rejoices and is full of gratitude these days at the announcement that Pius XII is estab-
-
Taken from a sermon delivered by Father Carrabine at The
Crowning Glory Octave, sponsored by the Servite Fathers at Our
Lady of Sorrows Church, Chicago, on September 20, 1954.
�116
QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
lishing a new Feast this Marian Year: "Mary, Queen of All
the World."
There are many reasons for the feast of Mary, Queen of the
Society of Jesus. Most of these reasons will lie in four broad
areas:
1) in the career of the chivalrous founder of this Company
of Jesus, St. Ignatius Loyola; 2) in the great book Ignatius
wrote, The Spiritual Exercises; 3) in the unremitting strug- .
gle of Jesuit theologians and writers, and teachers, to bring
to pass the definition of Mary's Immaculate Conception; 4) in
the lay organization which Jesuits founded and fostered to
shape average men into saintly Catholics and stout defenders
of the Church, the Sodality of Our Lady.
The Founder of the Society of Jesus was Mary's fighting
man. The vigil at the Shrine of Montserrat made that clear.
The Montserrat vigil itself was the result of a sick-bed pledge
at Loyola, a solemn pledge to be her Son's servant for the rest
of his life.
After the night of vigil Ignatius moved to the nearby town
of Manresa. There followed months of struggle with sin and
Satan, dark memories of a past he hated, physical illness,
mental and moral tortures, the first testing in their original
form of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises; then came years of
study, appalling struggles to get an education, imprisonment,
disgrace, manful but unsuccessful efforts to muster a band of ···
followers. His native Spain would have none of him; it would
not even let him get an education in peace. He moved into
France and its lovely capital, Paris. There he got his education. It was at Paris also that he chose his first followers,
giants all, men willing to set their sights by his lofty vision.
It was twelve years after Montserrat and it was again a
feast of Our Lady, August 15, 1534, Our Lady's Assumption;
it was again on a mountain, half way up Montmartre; it was
again a chapel of Our Lady. There seven men vowed themselves to a common work-the work of Mary's Son. Not yet
did they pronounce vows of religion; that would come six years
later in Rome. Two of them now are saints, Ignatius and
Francis Xavier, one is blessed, Blessed Peter Favre, probably
the best-loved Jesuit of four centuries. Peter Favre was as
yet the only priest in the group.
�QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
117
Two years later, on June 24, 1536, occurred the first Ordinations in the young Company of Jesus. The original seven had
now increased to ten. The nine who were not yet priests received Holy Orders. But Ignatius humbly waited until Christmas of the year 1538 to offer his First Mass. He offered this
Mass in St. Mary Major in Rome, but deep down in the crypt
in a little chapel, where tradition tells us, lies the wood of the
first crib in which Our Lady laid her Infant Son.
"Our Lady of the Way" is a special Jesuit feast with its own
special history; "Our Lady of the Way" was one of the favorite
Madonnas of Rome, and it was enshrined in its own little
chapel. Clearly it should have, and did, become a favored spot
for Ignatius to offer Holy Mass. After all, his men were
already on the road, and often on the run, over the highways
of Europe; over the almost unmarked trails of East India;
and later over the mysterious lands of Japan and China and
over the wilds of North and South America. Ignatius begged
and schemed to get the chapel for his free lance Companybut always against a blank wall of opposition. Prayers and
pleading, joined with penance, ascended to Heaven and
prayers and pleadings prevailed. Eventually he gained not
only the chapel of Our Lady of the Way but the chaplain as
well for his Company! In later years this chapel became a
treasured Jesuit shrine.
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius is not only an important fundamental book, giving as it does the root of all
things Jesuit, it is also a Marian book. The text of The Exercises reveals that at every critical point in the subtle process
of achieving their purpose, the Exercises manifest Our Lady's
presence and Our Lady's power.
The Exercises are uncanny in their effectiveness to bring
men or women not only to see the need of a decision, but to
muster power to make the decision. To make a decision has
been rightly called the most human, the most important thing
a man can do. Never is a man more a man than when he
decides.
The Exercises fashioned the men of decision who were the
moral and religious giants of the infant Company of Jesus.
Very shortly the same Exercises were building giants of decision in small cells of laymen who were trained to hold the
�118
QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
hard-won positions that toiling and courageous early members
of the Company gained, as they fought to turn the tide of
the Protestant Revolt. Jesuits and laymen alike were brought
to razor-sharp decisiveness by making The Spiritua~ Exercises. To make a noble choice and make it stick through
time and eternity was the desperate need of the sixteenth
century as it is of the twentieth. The Exercises unerringly
brought men to do just that.
The process was this: Mary supported and permeated the
Exercises, which turned a moderately successful soldier of
Spain into a highly effective commander of Christ; Ignatius
through the Exercises built a religious fighting force, the
Society or Company of Jesus, that turned back the tide of
revolt and error threatening the Church in the sixteenth century; then the Society formed about itself an organization of
laymen, trained them as Jesuits themselves were trained by
The Spiritua~ Exercises, and pledged them to defend and
spread the kingdom of Christ. This lay group-of whom we'll
speak later-had a real vocation, and yet one that demanded
no religious vows. The Exercises made the group of religious,
Companions of Jesus; they made the lay group Sodalists,
Companions of Mary. Both groups quite realistically were
doing Christ's work in Mary's way.
Towards the close of the eighteenth century powerful ene- ..
mies of the Church rose up; if anything they were more bitter
in their enmity to the Jesuits. They included royal houses and
crowned heads and they brought strong pressure on the reigning Pope Clement XIV to suppress the Company. Clement resisted as long as he could, but finally to avoid greater evil he
sadly yielded to their demands. By a decree of the Supreme
Pontiff (to whom the Company was especially devoted) the
entire Society was extinguished; extinguished by a formal
Papal decree in every country in the world, except in Russia.
Forty years later, in 1814, Pope Pius VII restored the Society
of Jesus. The lay groups, Mary's Sodalities, were never suppressed.
This year of Mary marks the centenary of the solemn
definition of her Immaculate Conception. For a century now
it is clearer than sunlight that this privilege is uniquely hers.
The dogma was not always so evident. The issue was far
�QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
119
from final when the young Company of Jesus was only a very
scanty band. But this special privilege of one so close and
so dear to their Eternal Captain, became a fighting issue to
the Company from its beginning. Its brilliant theologian,
James Lainez, had been chosen as one of the Pope's personal
theologians at the Council of Trent. Lainez laid an important
foundation stone at that Council. On one occasion he addressed the Council for three consecutive hours on Mary's
Immaculate Conception, while the assembled prelates listened,
entranced. Later in their solemn decree the Council's delegates made a most unusual addition. Into the record they
wrote their solemn refusal to include Mary under the common
law which lumps all humanity in the curse of Adam's original
sin.
But there is one department of the many-sided activity of
the Society of Jesus which openly and always militantly carried her banner and emulated her utter devotedness, the
Sodalities of Our Lady. The subject deserves fuller treatment than we can give it here.
The first ten members of the early Society were quite inadequate to the demands made on them. It was heartbreaking
to recapture a vantage point, then to be summoned away to
another crisis. What to do? How to hold each hard-won
position? A partial answer lay in discovering dedicated laymen, turning them into men of decision by that best of disciplines, The Spiritual Exercises, developing them into a force
which would hold till reinforcements might come.
So, in tentative fashion, these dynamos of zeal sought
desperately needed lay helpers, trained them through the
Exercises, and thus multiplied themselves at a great saving
of energy and time. It was far later than most men thought,
deplorably later (we are sad to say) than many an unworthy,
untrained prelate of that sad age knew. The work of these
champions was effective for all its apparently improvised
character.
Then appeared a man of history, John Leunis from Liege
in Belgium. He was admitted into the Society of Jesus by
the Founder himself in the last year of Ignatius' life, 1556.
Leunis established a simple organization among very young
students at the Roman College. Only a year he stayed, only
�120
QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
time to plant a seed-but how it grew! John Leunis, sickly,
seemingly dour, destined to die a comparatively young priest,
established the first of the famous, much defamed, ardently
loved and openly feared, groups known throughout Europe
and the world as Sodalities of Our Lady. For nearly two centuries of its stormy history women were held ineligible for
admission into the Sodality, for Sodality demands were too
severe, dangers too great, assignments too rugged.
John Leunis is founding his first Sodality carefully
searched for generous lads, then drew up a training program,
repeatedly laid down tests of prayerfulness, self-renunciation,
and generosity. Then somewhere in the process, he put his
lads through the essentials of The Spiritual Exercises. In less
than a year he had been a kind of novice master for a generous group of genuine young men. At its close he invited
them, laymen all, to give themselves to Christ's cause under
Mary's protection. Their response startled the young cleric.
It was beyond his expectations; it stayed firm under stern
reiteration that this was for good, for life. He learned the
youthful paradox, which those of us who work with young
people have also learned: ask for little and get it not; ask for
all, forever, and the answer to your appeal will be overwhelming.
Leunis built far more wisely than he realized, or perhaps
more accurately, he followed his inspiration, and came to know
the power of God's Providence when it is set in motion through
Our Lady, and works after Mary's pattern. He could scarcely
have realized that his little group and his simple yet flexible
plan for formation and operation under Mary's banner had
opened up undreamed of extensions of the "Free Lances of
God."
A history of the Sodality of Our Lady would take too long
to tell. A few high points must be given. The Pope who has
given to all the Church this Marian Year and the latest Marian
defined dogma, her glorious Assumption into heaven, is himself the most distinguished living member of the Sodality.
Six years ago he issued an Apostolic Constitution which our
own beloved Cardinal Stritch has called the "Magna Charta of
the Sodalities." Less than two weeks ago in Rome Pius XII was
greeted by Sodalists from all the world on the diamond jubilee
-~
�QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
121
of his admission into Our Lady's Sodality. His words and
writings on the Sodality have a lyric quality one seldom finds
in papal documents.
Historical records of the Sodality reveal that its way of life
has produced some forty canonized saints, four of whom are
Doctors of the universal Church; it has nurtured thirty-seven
founders and foundresses of Religious Orders or Congregations; it includes heads of State of almost every kind in many
lands, of whom two examples will serve, both of them martyrs
to principle: Garcia Moreno, the martyred President of Ecuador, and heroic Chancellor Dolfuss of Austria, one of the
earliest opponents of Nazism; military leaders like Marshal
Foch of World War I and General Moscardo, Commander of
the Alcazar. In the Fine Arts, Sodalist Tasso stands out;
and distinguished painters like Seghers and Rubens. Rubens
was secretary of the Latin Sodality at Antwerp for seventeen
years.
But much more important than famous names, and much
more characteristically Marian Sodalists are the unknown
and unsung faithful servants of Mary in Our Lady's Sodality
in every land and in almost every walk of life. The aim of
these was not simple devotion to Our Lady, not the shaping
of a bond of dependence to a rock of safety. It was scarcely
self-centered at all. It was the building of men who could
make the noblest thing that man can make-a decision, a
decision that fits a man's destiny and his dignity, that makes
him immeasurably more a man. "Men, real men," to use
the words of Pius XII, was the end result of Sodality formation, Sodality living, Sodality apostolate, men who in the
Words of Pius XII "became ministers of Mary and, so to
speak, her visible hands on earth."
These, for the records, are the unsung plodders in a glorious
army of militants. To them, more than to heroes, heroines,
and geniuses goes out the love and care and gratitude of Mary,
Queen of the Society of Jesus and Queen of the Sodality. Immaculate Mary, then, Queen of this, our own free land, and
soon to be declared by Christ's Vicar, Queen of All the World,
is Queen of the Society of Jesus. For she mothered and supPorted its military Founder; she was by his side as he shaped
the discipline of his Company of Jesus through The Spiritual
�122
QUEEN OF THE SOCIETY
Exercises. Mary's Immaculate Conception became for these
disciplined troops the symbol and the touchstone of true
faith and high courage. Finally, when the sons of Ignatius
were unequal to the battle that faced them, it was Mary who
inspired the formation of a dedicated lay group under her
standard, the Sodalities of Our Lady. For these reasons and
many more is Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus.
Jesuits gratefully and humbly form their ranks and raise
their banners alongside other and, in many cases, older fighting forces of this peerless universal Queen-Queen of the
Servites, Queen of the Benedictines, Queen of the Dominicans,
Queen of the Franciscans, Queen of a recent gallant American
missionary order which has already poured out its man power
and woman power and its very blood, Queen of our own
nation's Missionaries of Maryknoll; Queen of every active and
contemplative group of religious men and women, who in
devoted multitudes spread Christ's kingdom and Mary's reign
into a world that desperately needs this Son and this Mother.
* * *
How
An earnest enforcement of interior religion, a jealousy of formal
ceremonies, an insisting on obedience rather than sacrifice, on mental
discipline rather than fasting or hairshirt, a mortification of the reason,
that illumination and freedom of spirit which comes of love; further, a
mild and tender rule for the confessional; frequent confessions, frequent
communions, special devotion towards the Blessed Sacrament, these are
the peculiarities of a particular school in the Church, and St. Ignatius
and St. Philip are masters in it. As then St. Philip learned from St.
Benedict what to be, and from St. Dominic what to do, so let me consider that from Ignatius he learned how he was to do it. He said to
some Jesuits whom he met, "You are children of a great father. I am
under obligation to him, for your master, Ignatius, taught me to make
mental prayer."
CARDINAL NEWMAN
�The School of St. Philip Neri
GEORGE M. MURPHY,
S.J.
In the fall of 1945, two priests at Weston College, Fathers
Edward L. Murphy and Richard V. Lawlor, discussed the need
of a school for delayed vocations to care for veterans of military service. It was their opinion that many veterans would
be looking for such a school in order to begin their preparation
for the priesthood. This opinion was submitted to Father
John J. McEleney, the Provincial of the New England Province. Father McEleney shortly thereafter discussed the
matter with the Most Reverend Richard J. Cushing, Archbishop of Boston. Archbishop Cushing gave hearty approval
to the suggestion that a school for delayed vocations be undertaken by the Society of Jesus in the Archdiocese of Boston.
Because so many priests were serving as chaplains, nothing
further was done about the school until the spring of 1946.
By that time the chaplains were being released from military
service in large numbers. In March, Father George M. Murphy, still technically in the Army but on terminal leave,
returned to Boston. Father Provincial called Father Murphy
to see him at Weston College where he was engaged in the
annual visitation. He explained the proposed school and asked
Father Murphy if he could plan and publicize it in time for
opening the following September. Father Murphy thought
that he could do so. He was authorized to undertake the
Work. About two weeks later, April 8, 1946, Father Murphy
took up residence at St. Andrew House, 300 Newbury Street,
Boston, where he began the detailed planning for the school.
Campion House, Osterley, England, a school for delayed
Vocations, was founded by the late Father Edmund Lester,
S.J., after World War I. A few years ago Osterley, as the
school is commonly called, commemorated the ordination to
the priesthood of the six hundredth alumnus. Father Murphy
wrote to Father Clement Tigar, S.J., who had been associated
with Father Lester in the work and who had succeeded him as
superior. Father Tigar was very helpful. He sent literature,
an outline of the course of studies and other information. It
Was evident, however, that the proposed American school
Would have to be conducted quite differently. Osterley is a
�124
SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
boarding school. Candidates, who have had only the equivalent of an American grammar school education, are accepted.
Depending upon the scholastic background and talents of the
individual, the students attend Osterley from one to three
years. The Latin course stresses Ecclesiastical Latin and the
Latin of the Fathers. With substantial aid in the nature of
freewill offerings obtained regularly from the laity, together
with the work of the students in the house, in the garden and
in the hennery, board and tuition charges are adapted to the
financial status of the individual.
American Conditions
The American school would have to be a day school for some
years, at least. Because of compulsory education to the age of
sixteen, most Americans are high school graduates. Only by
exception, therefore, would students with less than a high
school diploma be accepted. Most of the seminaries and religious houses of study require a foundation in Classical Latin
for admission. Since the American school was to be selfsupporting and there was no endowment available or in prospect, there would be fixed charges for tuition. With acceleration in mind it was determined that the course of studies
would be limited to one school year. Encouragement to make
this decision was derived from the fact that in one school year
very good results had come from the class, called Special Latin, ..
which had been taught by laymen at Boston College High
School for many years. Mr. Eugene Feeley and his successor,
Mr. Joseph McHugh, two exceptionally versatile, devoted and
self-sacrificing men, are revered in the memory of many
priests in the Boston area who received their early Latin
training in that special class.
The Veterans Administration requires approval by state
authorities of any school in which veterans use their GI benefits. The Board of Collegiate Authority is the agency authorized to approve in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. To
get approbation it is necessary to submit a rather detailed pro·
spectus of the various courses offered, the schedule of classes,
etc. With the aid of an old Latin Syllabus for the Jesuit high
schools of the Maryland-New York Province and a current
catalogue of Boston College High School, the prospectus was
�SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
125
prepared and submitted to the Board of Collegiate Authority.
The approval was received rather promptly, thanks to the
reputation of the Society of Jesus in educational matters.
In that prospectus two programs were defined. Program I
was offered for those who were lacking a high school Latin
foundation. Program II, in which a Latin foundation was
supposed, offered an accelerated junior college course in Latin
poetry and rhetoric together with other subjects. In both
programs English, French, Greek, Mathematics, History and
Religion were offered. A full schedule involved twenty-five
class hours weekly, the number stipulated by the Veterans Administration since the school was approved on a class hour,
not on a semester hour, basis. In the prospectus the proposed
school was named "The School for Delayed Vocations."
Some time previous to the final determination of the curriculum, a tentative site for the school was arranged. On
April 10, Father Robert A. Hewitt, Rector of Boston College
High School, offered The School for Delayed Vocations the
use of two unoccupied classrooms and an office in the Annex
of Boston College High School, 620 Massachusetts Avenue,
Boston. Though, for reasons which will be brought out later,
the school never occupied any of this space, the address was
used in the application for state approval and in the first
publicity.
Final authorization to publicize the school had not yet been
granted by Father Provincial. April and May passed and, as
each week went by, Father Murphy became more and more
concerned over the delay because there were only three months
remaining before the scheduled opening of the school. It
should suffice to note here that much of the delay could be attributed to apprehension or, perhaps, prudent concern, about
substantial financial commitment. On June 1, 1946, Father
Murphy was authorized to send out the publicity.
Publicity
In the preparation and distribution of the publicity, Father
Calvert Alexander, editor of Jesuit Missions, was very helpful.
Upon his advice the releases to the Catholic press included a
mat of Father Murphy in army uniform. Father Alexander
supplied Father Murphy with a complete list and the ad-
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SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
dresses of Catholic magazines and newspapers in the United
States. The publicity was released under the date of June
12th. The response was so prompt and so widely distributed
that it is presumed the press coverage was rather complete.
By mail and by telephone the inquiries about the school were
multiplied. In addition to the press release, typed letters to
all Catholic bishops and major religious superiors were mailed
at about the same time. Many replies, manifesting personal
interest in the school, were received from the bishops.
In May Father Murphy had looked into the facilities of
Boston College In town at 126 Newbury St., Boston. There
was sufficient classroom space available, since only night
classes were conducted there. Anticipating, however, that
the college in Newton might need the space for some day
classes, Father William L. Keleher, Rector of Boston College,
hesitated at that time to allow the new school to be established
at that site. About two weeks after the publicity was sent out
and after the address of the school had been announced as
620 Massachusetts Ave., Boston, it was definitely determined
that Boston College Intown would be available for The School
for Delayed Vocations. Father Keleher graciously granted
the permission. At the time and until September 9, the day
of schola brevis, the allotted space was occupied by Newman
Preparatory School. Newman Prep then moved to another
and more commodious location.
Still using his room as an office and the parlors of St.
Andrew House for interviews with prospective students,
Father Murphy personally took care of all correspondence
and other details until August 19, when an office was set up
with a telephone, typewriter and a secretary in one of the
vacant classrooms at Boston College Intown. Fathers Bernard A. Murphy and Eugene P. Burns had already been assigned to teach at the school and to reside at St. Andrew
House. In early August it was clear that some provision
would have to be made for boarding facilities for many students. With permission of Archbishop Cushing and the late
Father George Gately, pastor, on Sunday, August 4, Father
Murphy spoke at all the Masses at St. Mary's Church, Milton.
He asked the parishioners to offer their homes to board the
students. The following Sunday, the same appeal was made
�SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
127
at all the Masses at St. Mark's Church, Dorchester, with the
permission of the pastor, Rt. Rev. Msgr. Patrick J. Lydon.
The people of both parishes responded generously. Accommodations for over forty students were provided. Because
the prospective enrollment was far in excess of what had been
anticipated, Father Provincial was asked for another teacher
and assigned Father John L. Barry to the school. Four Catholic laymen, full time teachers in Boston high schools, were
retained to teach French, Mathematics and History.
Friday, September 6, was Registration Day. Eighty-five
students were registered, forty-five of them being out-of-state
boys. Over ninety per cent were veterans of military service.
The youngest student was eighteen years of age; the oldest,
thirty-six. The average age was twenty-six.
Valuable Observations
It would be burdensome to record, and probably boring to
read, many of the incidents and trials of those days when the
school was having growing pains. Without regard for chronological sequence or relative importance, some of the observations of the past eight years will be set down in the hope that
they may be of value to some of Ours.
It is now clear that The School for Delayed Vocations,
renamed The School of St. Philip Neri in the spring of 1947,
is a permanent institution. The average enrollment over the
Years has been about ninety. Although many of the candidates have been delayed by military service, in recent years
that delay is not the primary reason for seeking out this
school; rather it is a lack of sufficient foundation in the
studies, principally Latin, required of candidates for the
priesthood. Pragmatic American educational theories have
rather generally reduced the emphasis on Latin studies. Some
public high schools offer no Latin; others offer only two years
of Latin. Where the policy of social promotions is the practice, a student could study Latin for four years in high school
and still know very little of the fundamentals of Latin grammar and syntax.
The influence and reputation of The School of St. Philip
Neri has been established by its graduates in seminaries and
religious houses of study throughout the United States. For
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SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
the past three years the school has refrained from any paid
advertising. What little advertising of that sort had been
done previously was found to be unproductive. The present
large enrollment of over one hundred proves that the school
is rather well-known both in the United States and in Englishspeaking Canada. Already twenty-five of the graduates are
priests.
Program II, which offered accelerated junior college subjects, was discontinued at the conclusion of the school year
1952. There was little demand for that course, probably because there was no great need. If a candidate for the priesthood was young and had a good Latin. foundation, it would
be better for him to take the regular colle.ge courses in a minor
seminary or in a religious house of studies. If the candidate
was older and had a good Latin foundation, experience had
taught Father Murphy that the need of further Latin studies,
as such, would depend upon the requirements of the diocese or
religious community which the candidate chose. Philosophy
and theology, as taught in many seminaries in the United
States, demand little more than a reading knowledge of Latin.
Many graduates of the school, who had only the Latin of
Program I, have entered the philosophy department of major
seminaries and have progressed with their classes. The subjects offered in Program I have been limited for some years to
Latin, English, Greek or French and Religion. Mathematics ..
and History have been dropped in order to devote more time
to the other subjects.
Several inquiries from priests concerning the method of
teaching Latin have been received over the years. The writers
were interested in acceleration, and seemed to think that The
School of St. Philip Neri might have a special technique.
They have been advised that all teachers are Jesuit priests
with long experience, that each teacher has his own method,
and that there is no substitute for the long and wearisome
hours of study on the part of the students.
Admissions
In the admission of students the school has a particular difficulty. Because the applicants come from all over the United
States and occasionally from Canada and because their back-
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129
grounds vary so much, it is impossible to give them a formal
test or to have them travel to Boston for an interview. It
has been very helpful, therefore, to refer applicants to Jesuits
of other provinces for an interview, wherever that is practical.
The interview is concerned more with temperament and moral
suitability than the scholastic ability of the applicant. The
consequent reports have been checked against the letter of
recommendation received from the pastor or a priest-friend
of the applicant, because, at times, there has been deliberate
suppression of evidence in the personal recommendations.
Certain applicants with a history of psychoneurotic and alcoholic episodes have been recommended without qualification.
On July 1, 1949, an estate in Haverhill, Massachusetts, was
acquired by purchase. The estate itself is not large (only a
little over five acres), but twenty-five additional acres of field
and woodland were bought a few months later to insure room
for possible expansion. Haverhill is thirty-four miles from
Boston. Although the majority of the students of the school
are enrolled as day students in Boston, Our Lady's Hall at
Haverhill provides a resident school for a maximum of thirtythree students. During the first year Our Lady's Hall was
annexed administratively to Campion Hall, North Andover,
of which Father William A. Donaghy was then superior.
Father George S. Mahan was minister of Our Lady's Hall
and assistant director of The School of St. Philip Neri. Father
John W. Chapman was instructor in Latin, Greek and English.
Father John F. Duston was spiritual counsellor and instructor
in religion. July 31, 1950, Father George M. Murphy, director
of the school, was installed as superior of Our Lady's Hall.
Since that time the day school and the office in Boston have
been substantially administered by an assistant director, at
present, Father Edward L. Murray, who resides at St. Andrew House.
According to certain statistics available in the spring of this
Year (1954), it is estimated that about forty per cent of the
graduates will attain to the priesthood. Twenty to twentyfive per cent of the candidates enrolled drop out before graduation, of whom about half leave because of scholastic deficiencies. Thus, in a class of one hundred, twenty to twenty-five
will leave during the year. Of the seventy-five to eighty stu-
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SCHOOL OF ST. PHILIP NERI
dents who graduate, thirty to thirty-five will attain the priesthood. In the first three years after graduation about fortyfive per cent of the graduates abandon their aspirations to the
clerical state; in the succeeding years, as ordination approaches, the defections annually are appreciably Jess, averaging roughly about five per cent each year. In the past eight
years since the school was founded six hundred and fortythree graduates have been certified for further study for the
priesthood. Graduates of the school are candidates for, or
have already attained to, the priesthood in fifty dioceses and
thirty religious and missionary societies_.
* * *
THE WAY OF ALL WHO LoVE
"The glory of God is to conceal the word, but the glory
of kings is to find it out," says Solomon the Wise (Proverbs
25, 2). Commenting upon the passage, Bacon remarks that the
Divine Majesty, adopting the simple play of children, takes
delight to hide His works, to the end to have them found out;
and that kings can have no greater honour than to be God's
playfellows in this game. It is not the way of children only,
to hide that they may be found; it is the way of all who love.
The watchin,g, the delay, the seeking keeps the mind alert and
stirs the heart into activity, while the delight of each fresh
discovery swells the volume of love. "Seek and you shall find"
is the rule of life, of the whole of life from its morning until
night, in its intercourse with God. With Him it is not only the
play of love that leads Him to lie hidden, though we know Him
to be there; but a necessity of His ineffable nature, which, in
this world, must ever remain in part remote and inaccessible,
be He ever so near and friendly. Though He longs to be found
He does not force Himself upon unwilling hearts. The will of
our heart is expressed and our moral nature invigorated by
the search after Him, here and there, at every turn in the house
of nature, everywhere throughout the house of grace. But we can
never find or know Him so completely that nothing more remains to be known. If we could, God would be no greater than
we, nay, even less; since what we can master must be lower
than ourselves. We can master the science of numbers but not
the science of God. "Never seek to be satisfied," ~ites St.
John of the Cross, "with what thou canst comprehend of God,
but rather with what thou comprehend~st not." This it is that
keeps up the game, and stimulates day by day our faith and
hope and charity. "They that eat Me shall yet hunger: and
they that drink Me shall yet thirst" (Ecclesiasticus 24, 29).
WILLIAM ROCHE, S.J.
�The First Trial of the Noviciate
CHARLES FOREST,
S.J.
It was by means of the Spiritual Exercises that St. Ignatius
recruited his first followers. Once his Order had been approved by the Holy See, he won new members to its ranks by
this same means. It was entirely natural therefore that when
candidates presented themselves for admission into the Society of Jesus in the years that followed, the first trial to
which they were subjected was that of the Spiritual Exercises.
This was the case at least for those who had not yet made them
before their entrance into the noviciate. The Constitutions
written by St. Ignatius are explicit on this point: the first
experiment is to be the thirty day retreat. "Primum est in
Spiritualibus Exercitiis mensem unum plus minusve versari." 1
Although the normal procedure is to begin with this experiment, it can, by reason of circumstances, be postponed till a
somewhat later time. 2 But it can never be entirely omitted or
replaced by another longer experiment, as can, for example,
the month-long pilgrimage. 3
Omission of Exercises
It may appear strange that, despite these strict injunctions,
a certain number of novices in the early years of the Society
finished their noviciate without having made the Exercises.
There is no lack of evidence to substantiate this. The first
noviciate of the Society was opened at Messina in 1550 under
the direction of Father Cornelius Wischaven. The novices,
whose fervor was a source of universal admiration, followed
the regular courses of the College of Messina. 4 It is hard to
see how they could have made the thirty day retreat at the
same time, unless they did it during the vacation period.
Father Jerome Nadal's testimony is more convincing. Commissioned by St. Ignatius to promulgate the Constitutions, he
Went about the provinces of the Society in Europe. In the
course of these visitations he made use of certain questionnaires.3 Some of these, as well as the answers elicited, have
been preserved. One of the points of the first questionnaire
-
Translated from the French by Thomas L. Sheridan, S.J.
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had to do with the Spiritual Exercises. Had the Fathers and
Brothers made them? For a period of how many days? How
often? A long extract from these answers has been published.6 We discover therein at least five Fathers or Brothers
who, despite several years of religious life, 'have not yet gone
through the Exercises; some others have made only the first
week; there are some who did this latter twice. We find one
who prolonged his retreat for a period of five weeks. Father
Costerus spent a month in it, which was considered the normal
procedure. Another made twenty or twenty-one days; others
speak of ten days. There is one who made the Exercises
before entering religion. Several others answer that they
went through the Exercises, without giving any further details. For a large number no answer is cited. We must
suppose that all of these received the usual formation. We
are not surprised therefore at Father Nadal's recommendations to the Provincials whose houses he visited. In 1566,
after his stay at Vienna, he asks the Provincial to make
inquiries in all his colleges about those who have not yet made
the Spiritual Exercises and to see to it that they make them
as soon as possible. 7 A similar request is made at Mainz 8 on
the seventh of January 1567 and that same year, or the year
following, at Louvain. 9 The same recommendation is found
in the general observations which were revised by Nadal
towards the end of his life. 10
We come to the same conclusion from examination of a sixteenth century edition of the Directory of the Exercises. The
author is examining the procedure followed in giving the
Exercises to members of the Society. He distinguishes between different classes of exercitants: first of all the novices
and then the older religious (antiquiores) ; among the latter:
"Vel alii ingeniosiores et doctiores, et qui semel fecerunt
saltern primam hebdomedam aut qui non fecerunt, etiamsi
diutius manserunt in Societate." 11 In these early days then
there were some who, after many years of religious life, had
not even made the first week of the Exercises. A typical case
in point is that of John Leunis, the founder of the Sodality of
Our Lady. 12 He entered the Society in Rome on May 3rd,
1556. After a little more than three months noviciate he
took his vows,t 3 without having made the Spiritual Exer-
-·
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cises, 14-and this during the lifetime of St. Ignatius. His
noviciate had been interrupted because of the serious situation
then existing in Rome.u
Explanation
How are we to explain this anomaly? In these early days
the Society was still in the experimental stage. The Constitutions, still on the drawing board as it were, had not yet
been published. That explains a great deal. Nevertheless we
can cite other causes. One of the principal causes was the lack
of noviciates properly so called. At Rome St. Ignatius took
personal charge of the formation of the novices. But in the
provinces they were often scattered among several houses of
the Society, in some cases without a master of novices capable
of forming themY We have seen that the first noviciate was
founded at Messina in 1550. Francis Borgia founded another
one in 1552 at Simancas. It was while he was general that
Sant' Andrea was opened at Rome in 1567Y Moreover noviciates were beginning to multiply. By the year 1579 there were
twelve.18 From that time on they continued to increase in
number and the formation of the novices became more and
more uniform. Another reason why the Exercises were often
delayed is to be found elsewhere. As they were first conceived by St. Ignatius, the Exercises were to be given to each
one individually under the personal supervision of a director.
Now in a house of formation the Master of Novices could give
the retreat to, at most, only a few novices at a time. When
novices were numerous, it was necessary to postpone the
exercises for many of them to a later date and to begin the
noviciate with other trials. In this way some finished their
period of formation without having had the opportunity to
make the long retreat. This happened all the more often in
the beginning when the noviceship was ordinarily curtailed,
sometimes lasting only a few months. 19 Nevertheless it was
required that they make up later on whatever trials they had
missed,2o
One of the ways in which this was done was the so-called
Eight days before the fall holidays this catalogue was published in the houses of study. 21
In it are enumerated the majority of the noviceship trials:
Catalogus Mortijicationum.
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"Exercitia spiritualia, peregrinationes, in hospitali servire,
servitia domestica, docere pueros doctrinam christianam."
These were some of the penances which were proposed at the
Roman College and which served as a guide for the provinces.
It was up to the scholastics to choose which they preferred;
the superior could either grant the permission or refuse it.
The latter, according to a remark of Father Nadal/ 2 was not
to be too generous in granting permission for the pilgrimages,
but more liberal as regards the Spiritual Exercises and other
practices which could be performed within the house. 23 It
was by means of these retreats, of more or less lengthy duration, that fervor was renewed and the ·scholastics were able
to make up for what they had missed in the noviciate. The
remedy was, however, insufficient.
Group Retreats
A solution to the problem seemed to lie in giving the Spiritual Exercises to an entire group of novices who had entered
the same year. Some attempts were made at this. Father
Duhr reports that, "in the Rhine Provinces the retreat was
customarily given to several novices at the same time; but
on November 4th, 1582 this was prohibited by Father Manare,
the Visitor to Germany at that particular time." 24 In a Directory of the Exercises which was written before 1591 by Father ..
Paul Hoffaeus, who had been the German Assistant since
1581, mention is made of the Spiritual Exercises being given
to three, four, or more of Ours at once. When the master of
novices does not have the time to give the points for meditation to each one individually he can do so to the entire group,
giving them in summary form the points for three or four
meditations. These points are then to be posted in a place
accessible to all. Once a day, if he so deems, the master is
to give a conference for all. 25 The Rector of the noviciate of
Landsberg, Father Crusius, in a letter to Father Claude Aquaviva dated July 3rd, 1584, asked for permission to give a
group retreat to some two to six novices who had entered at
about the same time. In his answer of August 8th that same
year26 the General declined to grant this permission. The
traditional practice then everywhere in effect was to be fol·
lowed. The Exercises must be adapted to the dispositions of
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135
each one. For some it will be necessary to repeat a certain
meditation, for others not. For some individuals entire sections of the Exercises can be omitted; for others certain parts
must be added. According to the book of the Exercises the
director is to visit each retreatant once a day and ask him for
an account of his progress in making the Exercises. It seems
that Father Crusius assembled the entire group of retreatants
to question them about the meditations which they had just
made. He even saw therein certain advantages from the
point of view of their training. Father Aquaviva was entirely
opposed to this :27 whatever answers are given in such sessions
will only have to do with generalities; no one will speak of
the inner workings of his soul in the presence of others and
thus the director will fail to come to know each retreatant
personally, a factor of paramount importance in the Exercises. When Father Crusius again pressed the point, urging
his reasons, Father Aquaviva (November 28th, 1584) was
steadfast in his refusal. 28 From his answer we learn that in
Rome several used to make the retreat at the same time, but
they each received personal direction, being given the points
for meditation privately once or twice a day. 29 As the noviciates became more numerous, however, and the number of
novices in them increased, the practice of the group retreat
was finally adopted.
Views of St. Ignatius
What did St. Ignatius think of the group retreat? In his
own time the Exercises had already been given to entire communities at once. Since it was physically impossible to do
otherwise the founder was not opposed to it. 80 And yet when
the complete Exercises were given to really apt subjects, this
Was done in private. When the formation of members of the
Society was involved, we can well believe that any departure
from this method was considered undesirable. In the Examen
Generale St. Ignatius, speaking of the noviciate trials, writes:
"Primum est in spiritualibus exercitiis mensem unum plus
minus versari." 81 He adds, however, at the end of the same
line: "tum etiam in oratione vocali et men tali, iuxta cuiusque
captum." In the Third Part of the Constitutions, in the
section devoted to the noviciate, he will say: "ad quod confert
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aliqua Exercitia spiritualia illis qui nondum se exercuerunt in
eis vel omnia tradere, prout unicuique in Domino iudicabitur."32 In the Declaratio which follows this section33 St. Ignatius distinguishes between three classes of novices: the first
are formed men, who have already been initiated in the Spiritual Exercises ("qui ex se Exercitiorum spiritualium intellegentiam habent") ; general direction will be sufficient for
these. The second group is made up of those who are suited
for the Exercises ("quamvis ad spiritualia Exercitia apti
sint"), but who have not yet made them. These are to receive additional help (operae pretium erit aliquando iuvare).
It is safe to say that most of the novices who were young when
they entered religious life fell into this .. category. A third
class is not suited for the complete Exercises. This type can
be found among the Brother postulants. They will be given
what is suitable for ipsorum captui and what will help them
in the service of God.
The same standard is not suitable then for all. Some will
make the complete retreat (omnia). Others, less proficient,
will only be given a part of it (aliqua). There is no reason
why these latter cannot make a thirty day retreat, but they
should make use of simpler exercises and those which are
more within their scope. Since a private retreat lends itself
much more easily to this process of adaptation, it is easy to
see why the first Generals hesitated to depart from the tradi- ..
tional practice in this m!ltter.
Another Type
It might be well to make a distinction here between group
retreats with points for meditation given to the entire group
in a body and retreats made by several at the same time
wherein the director gives each one individual attention. The
first type of retreat was not allowed in the noviciates. We
learn this from the Responsa of the Generals.34 But this is
not true of the second type. In Father Aquaviva's time,sG as
well as under his successor, Father Vitelleschi, 36 both at Rome
in the noviciate of Sant' Andrea and probably elsewhere, it was
customary for several novices to make the long retreat at one
and the same time. In the midst of his other occupations,
Blessed Peter Faber, and he was not the only one, sometimes
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137
gave the exercises to a number of separate retreatants. 31 We
have a wrong notion of the nature of the Exercises if we think
that the points for meditation must be given before each one
of the meditations. According to the book of the Exercises,
the director would ordinarily see the retreatant once a day 38
and would furnish him with sufficient matter in abbreviated
form for the meditations of that day. This was usually done
in writing. 39 In this way the retreatant was left more to himself and hence had more time for prayer. During the first
week the five exercises which are assigned for the first day
are repeated on the days following as long as they furnish
what is desired. Usually the meditation on the four last
things is added, but not even this is absolutely necessary.
The meditation on the Kingdom is repeated without the necessity of any new points. At the beginning of the second
week one hour is devoted to the contemplation of the mystery
of the Incarnation, another to that of the Nativity. The next
two exercises are merely a repetition of these. St. Ignatius
notes that for the contemplations no special preparation is
necessary. Something like an addition takes its place: "Ubi
primum in mentem veniet adesse meditandi horam, priusquam
accedam, prospiciam eminus, quo ferar, coram quo sim appariturus; ac transcursa obiter Exercitii oblati parte, contemplationem statim auspicabor." 40 The same method is recommended for the weeks that follow. The important thing is
the daily visit of the retreat master and his interview with
the retreatant as directed by the Annotations. 41 Conceived in
this way, the retreat can be given by the master of novices to
several at one time. In the days of Claude Aquaviva and his
successor, Father Mutius Vitelleschi, groups of novices made
the Exercises in this way. We have their explicit testimony.
When several boys of about the same age enter the noviciate directly from a secondary school the circumstances in
which they find themselves are much the same and it is conceivable that the matter of the book of the Exercises could
be presented to them as a group. This development is entirely
natural and in no way contrary to the mind of St. Ignatius,
Provided care be taken to preserve individual guidance. We
saw above that this was done in the time of Father Hoffaeus,
the German Assistant under Aquaviva. And was this not
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very likely also the case at Malines? It is hard to see how a
certain Father Sucquet, Saint John Berchmans' master of
novices there, could have given an individual retreat to each
of the more than one hundred scholastic novices. 42 We know
from the writings of St. John Berchmans43 that during this
period in 1616 and 1617 there were groups of novices who
made the long retreat together; the retreatants were not too
numerous and undoubtedly the retreats were made throughout the entire winter. The novices who were making the
retreat would have breakfast in a special refectory and eat
dinner and supper at second table, at places reserved for them.
We may suppose that the same procedure was followed then
as in the time of Father Hoffaeus: the points for meditation
would be assigned once a day and the retreatants would be
visited daily by the master of novices who would give each
one individual attention and guidance. These were really the
Spiritual Exercises, as St. Ignatius understood them.
Various Practices
The history of the Spiritual Exercises has not yet been
written from this point of view. It is certain that the practice of giving the long retreat to a group of novices entering
about the same time spread gradually and, little by little, became the general rule. Father Balthazar Alvarez, the im- .
mediate successor to Saint Francis Borgia, who lived duringthe time of Father Everard Mercurian, "was very strict in
observing the rule which prescribes that the novices are to be
left alone in their rooms during an entire month." This is
what we read in Father Luis de la Puente's biography of
him.** There is obviously no question here of a group retreat.
St. Joseph Pignatelli, who was a master of novices immediately after the restoration of the Society in Italy, was content
with giving the points for meditation in common twice a
day.* 5 His biographer is careful to point out*6 that he was
faithful to the traditions of the province of Aragon, to which
he had belonged before the Supression in 1773. The Fathers
in White Russia, who had never experienced the Suppression
continued to give the long retreat to their novices according
to the traditional method of the Society. We read in the life
of Father J. B. Roothaan that for the thirty day retreat each
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139
one had the use of the Latin text of the Exercises (the Vulgate) as well as Father Petitdidier's work containing all the
meditations of the long retreat. Twice a day Father Eckart,
Socius to the Master of Novices, would explain the text of
St. Ignatius to the retreatants and would point out to them
the matter for meditation. Every day each one had his assigned hour in which to give an account to the retreat master
of the progress he was making in the retreat. 47 Apparently,
therefore, the method used here was the same as that employed by St. Joseph Pignatelli for the novices in Italy.
In Rule 28 for the master of novices there was to be no
immediate change, however, in the prescription that the
retreat be given individually to each novice: "Exercitia spiritualia primum singulis, eo quo procedunt ordine, praescripto
tempore atque exacte tradantur, secundum uniuscuiusque dispositionem et captum, juxta regulas libri Exercitiorum, praetermissis tam en his, quae ad electiones spectant; mente et
voce orandi rationem habeant, quam in posterum servare debeant."48 It was not until the 1932 edition of the Regulae
Societatis J esu that this rule was modified and made to conform to actual practice of the Society. "Exercitia Spiritualia,
quod est primum ac praecipuum experimentum, omnibus eo
quo procedunt ordine, praescripto tempore atque exacte tradantur secundum Regulas Libri Exercitiorum, non instituta
tamen nova electione status, ut inde praeter alia genuinum
Societatis spiritum hauriant et certam nostroque Iristituto
consentaneam mente et voce orandi rationem in posterum
habeant. Quamquam autem haec Exercitia omnibus simul
tradi solent, Magister tam en unumquemque pro eius indole
et animi dispositione privatim iuvet ac dirigat." 49 It is the
duty of the master of novices therefore to give individual
guidance to each one and thereby avoid the disadvantages
Which could be incurred because of a group retreat.
Length of Exercises
How long should the Exercises last? As we have seen
above, St. Ignatius specifies a retreat lasting thirty days,
more or less, for the noviciate: "Primum est in Spiritualibus
Exercitiis mensem unum plus minus versari." In the Third
Part of the Constitutions 50 he makes provision for the case
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of those who would not be able to make the four weeks of the
Exercises. There is no reason why these latter cannot spend
the entire month in simpler exercises, of which there is no lack.
And yet we find some departures from this. In 1622 Father
John Copperus, Provincial of the Rhine Province, sent Father
Mutius Vitelleschi a report concerning the length of the
Exercises. 51 In that province the practice had existed for
several years of finishing, after a space of only three weeks,
what they called the first probation and long retreat. This
practice had been approved by a Visitor. He adds that the
novices made a three day retreat twice a year on the occasion
of the semiannual account of conscience and, in addition to
this, made an eight day retreat at the end of each year. In
this way they made up in some way for missing the long
retreat at the beginning of the noviciate. Father Vitelleschi's
answer is that the Exercises are to be made in their entirety:
"Curandum erit, ut exercitia fiant integra." 52 Still he does
ask the Provincial to send him a report on the entire question,
after he has sought the advice of his consultors and other
experienced Fathers. 53 In this same responsum Father Vitelleschi recalls that at the Roman noviciate (in 1622) the exercises usually lasted three full weeks (twenty-four days). 54 If
we take into consideration the days spent in the retreat which
has just been made during the first probation and which con- ..
sisted of the first week of the Exercises, 55 we have the monthlong retreat envisioned by St. Ignatius for the first trial of
the noviciate.
Father Nadal is more accommodating for the late-comers
who have still to make or complete the Exercises. If they
cannot make the Exercises in their entirety then they are to
make at least the first week and some of the contemplations
of the second week. 56 The practice of making the long retreat
for the space of about a month is now in force in all the novici·
ates of the Society of Jesus. During the eighteenth century in
France it was customary to give the four weeks of the Exercises, not all at once, but over a p·eriod of time with rather
long breaks in between each week. Father Petitdidier
(+1756) is our source for this fact: "In quo tamen a multis
annis tenerae novitiorum aetati prudenter consultum est, ut
mensis ille, non continuo fluxu et uno tenore, sed interpolatis
�FIRST TRIAL
141
vicibus obiretur" and he adds the reason for this: "per quod
et taedio longioris secessus obviatur, et aucto fervore fructus
uberior colligitur." 57 By acting in this fashion all they did
was to conform to the spirit of St. Ignatius who stipulates that
account must be taken of the age, the dispositions, and the
physical health of each one. 58 Young novices are in no way
to be treated like grown men. St. Ignatius himself allows men
who cannot free themselves entirely from matters of pressing
business to make the Exercises even in their entirety, spending
an hour and a half each morning and extending the length
of the retreat for a much longer period. 59 The Exercises are
only a means. The end in view is "the conquest of self and
the regulation of one's life in such a way that no decision is
made under the influence of any inordinate attachment." 60
NOTES
1
Comt. Soc. Jes., Examen, c.4 n.65.
Ibid. n.64.
3
Monumenta Historica S.J., NADAL, Ep. IV, 596: "Exercitia spiritualia dentur iis, qui in Societatem admittuntur, nee videtur causa ulla
esse posse cur mutentur in alias experientias, seu probationes, sicut
caetera mutari possunt cum iudicio et dispensatione superiorum." Cf.
alsop. 206 and Reg. Mag. Novit. 36(28).
fA. Kleiser, Ein Seeleneroberer, Cornelius Wischaven, 1930, p. 131.
5
NADAL, I. Appendix XX-XXIII, p. 789 ff.
6
NADAL, II, p. 527-589.-We discover the existence of a similar
situation shortly after the restoration of the Society of Jesus in 1824.
Out of sixty novices in Rome only five had made the long retreat alone
with the aid of books. G. Pirri, P. Giovanni Roothaan, 1930, p. 182 ff.
In P. Albers, De Hoog Eerw. P. Joan. Phil. Roothaan, Nymegen 1912,
I., p. 58, 59 we find the same details. Father Roothaan remedied this
situation. In 1834 he was able to write that all the novices were making
· the Spiritual Exercises for the space of a month.
7
NADAL IV, 289.
8
Ibid. 329.
9
Ibid. 344.
10
Ibid. 597.
11
M.I. ser. 2a, Exercit. spirit. 889-890.
1
~ J. Wicki, Le Pere Jean Leunis (1532-1584), Fondateur des CongreUattons Mariales. Rome 1951.
13
These were devotional vows.
2
�142
FIRST TRIAL
14 Wicki op. cit. pp. 21, 54, 59 ff.
"Nullas probationes feci praeter
communes in domo probationis," answer to Nadal, p. 105, 9.-0n the
occasion of his last vows in 1584 he made a retreat which lasted a few
days, p. 122, doc. 28.
15 Wicki, p. 15.
There was danger of war breaking out between
Paul IV and the Hapsburgs.
16 NADAL, III, 507, 2.
Francis Borgia to Nadal: '"parte perche e
pili facile di trovar un maestro di novitii che molti."
17 NADAL, III, 531, 3.
In a letter to Nadal announcing this event
Francis Borgia speaks of the founding of two other houses of formation,
one at San Angelo in the kingdom of Naples, the other established by the
Archbishop of Salerno at San Severino. Ibid. 560, 3, Borgia points out
to N ada! that there is still no noviciate in Belgium.-In the Province of
the Rhine the house at Trier was made a noviciate in 1569. Here they
assembled the novices who had been scattered about in the colleges;
nine arrived from Cologne, six from Mainz. Trier was able to begin
that same year with twenty-three novices. B. Duhr, Geschichte der
Jesuiten, I, p. 527.
18 AHSI XIII (1944) E. Lamalle, Les Catalogues des Provinces et des
domiciles de la Compagnie, p. 78.
1 9 Mon. Borgiae, III, 500-501 and passim.
2
°Const. Examen gen. c.7, 6 (127): "quibus (experimentis) si non
fuerit, propter causas aliquas legitimas, ac fine aliquo bono prae oculis
habito, antequam ad studia mittatur, perfunctus, eis (studiis) confectis,
omnia experimenta et probationes superius declaratas subibit."
21 NADAL IV, 447-448.
22
Ibid. 416: "Videant autem Superiores ne sint largi nimium in mit·
tendis ad peregrinationes. Sint autem in dandis exercitiis largiores et.
aliis mortificationibus, quae agi possunt domi."
23
And yet we see John Leunis asking several times for permission to
devote some time to making the Exercises, which he had not yet made.
He even asked for permission to go and spend some time in the noviciate
to renew his fervor. And although he never succeeded in obtaining
either of these requests, he was allowed more than once to make long
pilgrimages. Wicki, op. cit. 21, 34, 45, 59.
24
B. Duhr, op. cit. I, p. 535, note I. Father Oliver Manare wrote at
this time to Claude Aquaviva: "communiter exercitia dantur simul
pluribus," apparently to condemn this practice.
25
M.I. ser. Ia, Exerc. spir. p. 994.
26
"Certum est non expedire ut pluribus simul et una opera tradantur,
non solum quia nunquam fuit talis usus, sed etiam quia pro diversitate
personarum diversae saepe meditationes tradendae sunt et quibusdam
quidem iniungendum ut aliquas repetant aliis non· a!iqu~ndo etiam cum
aliquibus, certa puncta vel meditation:s integra~ omittendae; ex quo
apparet non uno omnes tenore duci posse." A.R.S.I. G.S. I, 120v. Cf.
Duhr, op. cit. I, p. 533-535.
�FIRST TRIAL
143
21 "Accedit etiam quod quando ab ipsis ratio exercitii peracti exigitur:
si coram aliis fiat, communia quidem facile aperientur, alia vero magis
particularia, nee ut plurimum facile exponent, nee certe saepe expedit
coram aliis exponi; unde non bene poterunt illorum spiritus discerni qui
est fructus inter alios exercitiorum non minimus." A.R.S.I. ibid.
2s A.R.S.I. G.S. 1. fol. 130.
29 "cum neque tan tam is tic multitudinem existere credamus simul se
exercentium, ut non singulis satisfieri possit, et si tamen aliquando
existeret, facile occurri possit ei incommodo boris ita distributis ut
omnibus suum tempus suppetat, quod etiam hie Romae videmus succedere
ubi tamen saepe accidit eodem tempore pluribus exercitia tradi." Ibid.
30 Cf. Ign. Iparraguirre, Practica de los Ejercicios de San Ignacio
en vita de su Autor, p. 137-138.
31 Const. Examen c. 4, n. 10 ( 65).
32 Const. P. III, c. I, n. 20 (277).
33fbid. R (279).
3f Cf. supra, notes 24 and 26.
35 Cf. supra, note 29.
36 Cf. infra, note 54.
37 Andrew Oviedo sometimes gave the Exercises to twelve or fourteen
persons individually. lparraguirre, op. cit. p. 69.
38 Lib. Exercit. Annot. 2.-Directorium, c. 6 ( 422): "Coeptis Exercitiis sit diligens in visitando suis temporibus eo qui exercetur. Videtur
autem expedire, ut quotidie semel eum adeat, neque tamen saepius, nisi
aliqua occurreret necessitas."
39
Directorium, c. 8 (434): "Ipsae autem meditationes dari solent in
scriptis ne fatigetur memoria exercitantis (quod solet impedire devotionem, cum vires omnes sint integrae reservandae intellectui et voluntati)."
fo Lib. Exerc. II a Hebdomada, notandum quintum (131).
u Ibid. Annotatio 7 ff.
42
Without counting the brother-postulants, there were from 100 to
120 Scholastic novices in the noviciate of Malines. K. Schoeters, De H.
Joannes Berchmans, p. 101.
43
Tony Severin, S. Jean Berchmans. Ses Ecrits. Lou vain: 1931.
Monita generalia, p. 55 and 56.
44
Louis DuPont, Vie du P. Balthasar Alvarez, French translation by
J. B. Couderc, Paris: 1912, p. 180.
45
M. March, Beato Giuseppe Pignatelli ed il suo tempo. Versione di
p: Agostino Tesio, p. 398 ff. The author points out that the Saint made
himself available for consultation by the novices not only during the day
?ut even: "andava anche talvolta a ritrovarli nelle loro camere, per
Jnformarsi del frutto spirituale ricavato, e li faceva passare ad altra
;nateria, oppure ripetere una o pili volte la stessa, secondo che vedeva
a loro mente penetrata della verita e la loro volonta decisa ad allon~~arsi dal male ed abbraciare il bene conosciuto." It is to be noted that
b 18 manner of giving the Exercises is the same as that recommended
Y Father Aquaviva. Cf. supra, note 26.
�144
FIRST TRIAL
46 Cf. ibid. Cap. 43. Trasmettendo lo spirito dell' antica Compagnia,
p. 477 ff. and passim.
41 P. Pirri.
P. Giovanni Roothaan, 1930, p. 57 ff. Father Eckart was
the sole survivor from among Pombal's victims in Portugal. In P.
Albers, De Hoog Eerw. P. Jo. Phil. Roothaan, Nymegen, 1912, I. p. 102,
we find the same details on the subject of the long retreat in White
Russia.
4s Inst. S.I. vo. III, Flor. p. 124.
49 Regulae Societatis Jesu, Romae, 1932, p. 190, ff.
5o Const. P. III., c. I, n. 20 R (279).
51 A.R.S.I. Congr. Prov. 1622, 57, fol. 31.
52 Ibid. fol. 32.
The answer was given on the ,thirty-first of December
1622, ibid. fol. 38.
_
53 We have not been able to find any trace "of this report.
We are
forced to presume that from that day forward the Exercises were given
in their entirety in the Province of the Rhine.
54 "In Romano novitiatu tres minimum integrae hebdomadae, ferme 24
dies, in exercitiis ponuntur."
55 Cf. Nadal IV, p. 596: "priori modo dantur (exercitia), vel in prima
probatione exercitia primae hebdomadis, vel, ubi sunt ingressi secundum
(probationem), statim etiam reliqua."
56 Nadal IV, 317: "Erit curandum, ut, qui non fecerunt exercitia, ii
faciant bini vel etiam singuli, si non omnia, saltern primam hebdomadam,
et nonnulla ex secunda, absque electionibUil, et habeant suum secessum."
and 597: "Qui hactenus e nostris exercitia non egerint, illa transigant et
exacte quidem, si eorum patiatur valetudo vel capacitas, adhibito iudicio
superioris, absque electione status."
51 P. Io. Petitdidier, Exercitia spiritualia, tertio probationis anno a
Patribus Societatis Iesu per mensem obeunda, Lugduni, 1825, praefatio,
2, 3.
58 Lib. Exerc. n. 72: "Quae temporis distributio singulis quatuor heb·
domadis communis est; variari tamen potest, atque augeri vel mi~ui!
prout unicuique, ad peragenda dicta quinque Exercitia, aetas, amm'
corporisque dispositio, sive naturae ipsius complexio subservit."
59 Ibid. Annotatio 19.
60
Ibid. 22, Titulus: "'Exercitia quaedam spiritualia per quae homo
dirigitur ut vincere seipsum possit, et vitae suae rationem, determina·
tione a noxiis affectibus libera, instituere." Translator's note: I have
used the translation of this as contained in Father Louis J. Puhl, S.J.,
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius-A New Translation. Westminster: Newman, 1951, p. 11.
�The Vatican Radio Station
E. J. BURRUS, S.J.
The Vatican Radio Station, located on the summit of Vatican
Hill and within the gardens of the Vicar of Christ, is at once
close to the heart of Christendom and its most eloquent voice.
Broadcasting in twenty-eight languages over numerous short
and medium wave lengths, it sends its message of truth and
peace to countless souls and brings the enlightening and consoling word of God to all countries, especially to those in
whose areas God's priests cannot set foot.
This world-wide apostolate is effected by the zealous and
steady work of some twenty Jesuits and by the part time work
of many others, Jesuits and non-Jesuits alike. "There are
no speeches nor languages, where their voices are not heard;
their sound hath gone forth into all the earth, and their words
unto the end of the world." These words of the Psalmist, so
aptly applied by the liturgy to the Apostles, might appropriately characterize these modern apostles. Their work is made
possible by a tireless Jesuit Brother and a devoted staff of
some forty laymen, who attend to the material needs of the
Fathers, to the technical details of transmission and recording, and to the translation of the news bulletins and important documents into numerous languages. Every visitor
is amazed by the smallness of the Vatican Radio staff, but
extra work on the shoulders of the few explains its output
and success. 1
The Physical Plant
All the studios, the transmitting stations and the antennae
are crowded into the Vatican gardens. The studios are located in the former summer residence of Leo XIII, and are
connected to the ancient tower built by Leo IV over eleven
h.undred years ago as part of the fortifications of the papal
City. So many remember the impressive Castel Sant'Angelo,
that they forget, or even fail to notice, at the other end of
the Leonine walls, the tower that today forms part of the
Vatican Radio Station. Within the massive walls of the
Leonine Tower, which are more than twelve feet thick, is the
�146
VATICAN RADIO
beautiful chapel dedicated to the Archangel Gabriel, the patron saint of radio and all other telecommunications. All
the illumination in the chapel comes from above and is symbolic of the source of the truth diffused by the radio station.
Equally symbolic and impressive are the words inscribed in
large letters around the base of the dome in the chapel: "Quod
dico vobis in tenebris, dicite in lumine; et quod in aure auditis,
praedicate super tecta." 2 These words may well be taken as
the commission of the Vatican Radio in the world of today.
Even the relics beneath the altar are so arranged as to bring
out the Catholicity of the territory served by the station. At
the end of each arm of the cross is a reliquary. The cover of
each reliquary is made of marble and precious stones and
represents one of the continents of the world. Beneath the
cover representing the American continents are the relics of.
the Jesuit martyrs of North America and of La Plata. On
the circle that unites the four reliquaries is inscribed the
significant reminder, "Pro fide passi vivunt."
The telegraphic department is also located in the Leonine
Tower. This department relays to the Nunciatures and Apostolic Delegations the coded communications that are sent and
received through the facilities of the Vatican Radio Station
and handles the commercial radiograms for the Vatican State.
On the tip of the Tower is the small high frequency antenna
that will link the Vatican radio with the new powerful directional antennae that are being installed about fifteen miles
away.
In the spacious and modern studios nearby are numerous
private booths from which individual speakers broadcast or
record, as well as larger rooms and halls for group programs
and concerts. On the wall of the main studio, which adjoins
the central control room, hangs the original papal brief of
1951, proclaiming the Archangel Gabriel the patron saint of
radio. And as Gabriel was most appropriately designated the
protecting patron of radio, inasmuch as he first announced
the word of truth and salvation, Mary might be taken as the
model of the attentive and receptive listener to the same word.
In the chapel, along the corridors, and in the studios, the
theme of the Annunciation is given artistic expression through
reproductions from Fra Angelico, Melozzo da Forll and others.
�VATICAN RADIO
147
Across from the papal brief is the Latin text of the first discourse ever delivered over the Vatican Radio, by Pius XI
on February 12, 1931.3
Besides the library containing books and reviews on radio,
there is a large collection of tape and disc recordings with
their corresponding reference files. All the studios are well
equipped to make recordings on discs or on tapes. Tape recording is of particular importance, as it enables numerous
programs to be presented on the air at a time that may be
opportune for the audience, but not for the speaker.
To supplement the stationary transmitters and antennae,
there are two fully equipped mobile units. These mobile units,
having a radius of thirty miles and equipped with recording
apparatus, can pick up broadcasts in the basilicas, in the
churches, and even at Castel Gandolfo, and either record them
for later transmission or relay them to the main station for
immediate transmission.
The Staff
Of the many Jesuits who are devoted exclusively to this
apostolate, only Father Anthony Stefanizzi, the Director of
the Radio Station, has his residence in the studio building;
the other Jesuits live at the Writer's House (Domus Scriptorum Sancti Petri Canisii) adjoining the Curia of the Society,
and together with the members of the Jesuit Historical Institute form a single community. The radio speakers, however,
take their supper in the studio building on the Vatican
grounds, and are transported to and from the studios by a
Vatican car. It is interesting to note that the license plate of
this car does not carry the usual designation "Roma" or the
name of some other Italian city, but the three letters "SCV"
indicating the Vatican State-"Stato della Citta del Vaticano."
The universality of the Church is given eloquent expression
through the many languages employed by the staff. With the
recent addition of the three main Scandinavian languages, the
number was raised to twenty-eight. Daily broadcasts, usually
fifteen minutes each, are given in the principal European and
World languages. Thus, there are two daily . broadcasts in
English, with its Tuesday program beamed especially to India,
Pakistan and Ceylon. There are two full time speakers on
�148
VATICAN RADIO
the English program: Father Henry Nolan, director of the
program and recently appointed Superior of the Writer's
House, and Father Thomas O'Donnell, who joined the staff
this year; both are members of the Irish province. They are
ably assisted by Father J. Edward Coffey of the New York
province, Professor of Sociology at the Gregorian University,
who broadcasts twice a week. The daily English news bulletins are translated by a layman and broadcast by Father
Coffey. Italian has three daily broadcasts, with a special
program for the sick on Fridays. Twice a week the Italian
broadcast is beamed to the Middle East. French also has
three daily broadcasts; a fourth progr~m, presented three
times a week, is directed to West Africa. Spanish has a
similar number of programs, Thursday being the day for the
special South American broadcast. Daily programs in Portuguese, German, Hungarian, Polish, Slovak, Czech, and Russian
are carried over the air. The four other principal Slavic
languages (Croatian, Slovenian, Ukrainian and Ruthenian)
are employed several times a week. That Latin is very much
of a living language is manifested by the nine Latin broadcasts each week, destined especially for priests and seminarians behind the iron curtain ; they bring them important
religious news, keep them up to date on pontifical documents
and refresh their memory of theology. Such languages as
Chinese and Arabic are also employed, and a number of
minor languages brings to a close the long catalogue of
tongues through which the Vatican Radio speaks to mankind.
Programs
Not to be forgotten is the fact that the Vatican Radio
Station was founded to give the Holy Father a means of unimpeded communication with his children throughout the
world; hence, his discourses are given priority over all else.
They are regularly recorded on tape and broadcast at the op·
portune time. When the Holy Father speaks in public on
important issues, his words may be broadcast directly or are
recorded for subsequent transmission. Encyclicals and similar pronouncements are translated and put on the air. On
particularly solemn occasions, such as the declaration of a
dogma, the opening and closing of the Holy Year or of the
--
�VATICAN RADIO
149
Marian Year, the proclamation of new liturgical feasts for
the entire Church, popular canonizations, and Eucharistic
congresses, the Vatican Radio is linked up with other net
works to give better reception in the respective countries.
There are, of course, other special programs, such as sacred
concerts, daily recitation of the Rosary by different parish
groups, broadcasts for the sick, and various liturgical functions in the different rites of the Church.
The moral issues back of everyday events and of newspaper
reports can not be overlooked, if the Vatican Radio is to effectively carry out its apostolate. News constitutes an important part of the broadcasts. Many of the languages have a
special time for their news bulletins. For countless listeners,
the Vatican Radio is the only window that opens out upon the
truth. The positive explanation of the teaching of the Church
is the most essential part of the broadcasts, but the refutation
of error and propaganda has also an important role. All
broadcasts are introduced by the reverent salutation, "Praised
be Jesus Christ"; the station's interval tune is that of
"Christus Vincit."
The Vatican broadcasts are very brief, at most fifteen minutes, but many hours of hard work and the collaboration of
many are necessary to prepare each program. The news must
be gathered, checked very carefully, and translated into the
different languages. Talks must be written out in full detail
and submitted to the judgment of competent authorities.
This would prove relatively easy for a month or so, but selfsacrificing effort and ingenuity are required to maintain variety, freshness and interest year after year. Dramatic,
musical, and other group programs must be painstakingly
rehearsed.
There is a special section of the radio staff that is assigned
to gather the news items to be broadcast: the Vatican Radio
Information Bureau, designated IRVAT (Informazioni Radio
Vaticane}. Father Alphonsus Montabone of the Turin Province, an exceptionally fine linguist, selects the news items in
numerous languages, and issues a daily news bulletin in
Italian. A staff of laymen translates this bulletin into the
respective languages of the other speakers. Another source
of news is the semiofficial Vatican daily, the Osservatore
�150
VATICAN RADIO
Romano, supplemented by the Vatican press office. Other
news agencies, such as Fides, NC, KNP (Dutch), KNA (German), AFAR (French), about forty in all, are called into
service by the Vatican. To insure a more complete coverage
of the important news, the Vatican Radio receives approximately one hundred newspapers each day, in addition to some
fifty reviews.
The Radio's effectiveness is extremely hard to gauge, particularly where its broadcasts are most needed and least welcome. The violent attacks of the Communist press and radio
attest to the effectiveness of this apostolate, as do also the
attempts at jamming the station and even. broadcasting on its
wave lengths a spurious Vatican program. The Vatican Radio
is the Church for many behind the iron and bamboo curtains.
Even government officials who listen to it are bound to be
influenced. For every listener there are many others who
are in turn given the message of truth. This is its mission:
peace and good will through the diffusion of the word of God.
Financing the Vatican Radio
The two usual sources for maintaining a radio stationadvertising and license fees-cannot be adopted by the Vatican. Hence, the Holy See through the voluntary offerings of
the faithful must make a considerable outlay of money. Since
the Jesuit speakers on the radio accept only a nominal sumsufficient to take care of their board and lodging-the Society
is able to make a constant and substantial contribution to the
Holy See. However, the salaries of the part time non-Jesuit
speakers and technicians, as well as the cost of repairs and
the constant upkeep of buildings and equipment, are so many
headings of considerable expense.
The vastness of the territory to be reached, and the variety
of difficulties to be overcome, place demands upon the Vatican
Radio that no other network experiences. The increase of radio
stations around the world, and carefully planned and executed
interference make it imperative to· secure more powerful
equipment, above all, directional antennae in sufficient number
and with adequate power to reach every corner of the world
under all conditions. But there is simply not enough room
on Vatican territory to erect such antennae. There are in all
�VATICAN RADIO
151
only one hundred and eight acres to the Vatican State-even
the Lilliputian Republic of San Marino is some one hundred
and forty times as large--and a great part of this area is
taken up by St. Peter's, the Vatican and other buildings.
After long negotiations, the requisite authorization was obtained from the Italian government to install the necessary
equipment some fifteen miles away. Work on the erection of
the new apparatus has begun, but lack of adequate funds has
greatly hampered the project. For the Golden Jubilee of
Pius XII in 1949, a considerable sum of money was collected
to purchase and set up this new equipment. Particularly
generous were the Dutch, Spanish and American Catholics,
but even so, much more money is needed if the Holy See is to
have the radio station that will convey the message of truth
effectively throughout the world.
The Prewar Years
One of the first projects to which Pius XI turned his attention after signing the Lateran Treaty with the Italian
State on February 11, 1929, was the Vatican Radio Station.
At the Pope's request, Guglielmo Marconi and Father Joseph
Gianfranceschi, S.J., erected a small sending station in the
Vatican gardens. Here the first broadcast was delivered by
Pius XI on February 12, 1931. On one side was Marconi,
proud that his creation would be enlisted in such a noble cause,
on the other was His Holiness' Secretary of State, Cardinal
Pacelli, and in an anteroom, waiting to give the first translation in English, was Monsignor Spellman.
In the beginning, the Vatican Station was thought of as a
means of broadcasting the Pope's discourses and communicating the official pronouncements of the Holy See. Only
gradually and almost through necessity did it take on the task
of regular broadcasts. The first director was Father Gianfranceschi, professor of physics at the Gregorian University,
and until his new appointment, its Rector. He was also the
President of the Pontifical Academy of Science. He remained
the Director of the Vatican Radio Station until his death on
July 9, 1934.
A young professor of physics at the Gregorian University,
Father Philip Soccorsi, succeeded Father Gianfranceschi as
�152
VATICAN RADIO
director. At first one, and then two, Jesuit Brothers were
assigned to assist Father Soccorsi with the material upkeep
and improvement of the station. No regular Jesuit radio
speakers are listed in the catalogues during the pioneer years;
announcing and broadcasting was just another task added to
regular duties. The numerous nationalities in Rome made it
possible to secure speakers in many languages as occasion
demanded.
When the new Vatican Observatory was inaugurated at the
papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo on September 29,
1935, the Vatican Radio Station acquired,its old home in the
Vatican gardens. Father John P. Delan~y of the New York
Province, appointed assistant director of the Vatican Radio
in 1938, was the first Jesuit priest appointed to help the director. The following year, however, four full time speakers
were assigned to the radio staff. These Jesuits form!'!d part
of the Writer's Community, residing in the Jesuit Curia, just
a few steps away from the Vatican City. This arrangement
has continued up to the present with only slight variations.
By the year 1947, eight Fathers had been assigned as radio
speakers. This number steadily increased with the increase
of languages and broadcasts in succeeding years. The present
staff numbers twenty full time Jesuit and twenty part time
Jesuits and non-Jesuits. In 1953, Father Anthony Stefanizzi,
professor of physics at the Gregorian University, replaced
Father Philip Soccorsi as director. Last summer, the Writer's
House, comprising the Jesuit Historical Institute and the
Vatican Radio staff, moved to its new residence, Barberini
Villa, a former retreat house that is adjacent to and connected
with the Curia building. In September 1954, Father Henry
Nolan was appointed Superior of the Writer's House, succeeding Father Candido de Dalmases.
War Years
During the war years, broadcasts were presented regularly,
but not daily, in Italian, English, French, German, Spanish,
Portuguese, Polish, Ukrainian and Lithuanian. There was a
regular American broadcast twice a week at 2:15A.M., Roman
time. This program was a live presentation at first, but was
later a recorded one. Father Coffey was in charge of the
--
�VATICAN RADIO
153
broadcast until August, 1940, and was succeeded by Father
Vincent A. McCormick. Several other Fathers also shared in
broadcasting the program during these trying years.
One senses the intense drama of the war years through the
meager jottings of the diary that was kept by the radio community. The power was cut off during air raids; there were
frequent blackouts; there was criticism of partiality or favoritism from both groups of belligerents although the Vatican Radio endeavored to remain impartial and to present the
truth. Occasionally, the diarist asks the practical question,
"Where will we get our next meal?"
Until his death on December 13, 1942, Father Led6chowski
directed the work of the staff. He repeatedly suggested the
content of the broadcasts, counseled practical prudence in
speaking to critical audiences, and helped in drawing up
norms to guide the speakers in the choice of subject matter
and the handling of debatable topics. He personally read
every broadcast, suggested changes here and there, and secured needed speakers. He also solved such delicate problems
as the handling of the race question in Nazi territory, the discussion of Communism, and so on.
No material improvements could be made on the radio
during these years. It took great ingenuity and care to keep
equipment functioning when repairs had to be made by using
old parts. It is to the credit of the small corps of engineers
that the Holy Father's consoling messages of peace and truth
Were able to reach the ends of the world. As new languages
and territories were added, inquiries had to go out to ascertain
receptivity. This task was made doubly hard during the
universal conflict. Interference, accidental and planned, had
to be checked and overcome under the most unfavorable conditions. Requests, asking local stations to cooperate by not
edging too close on wave lengths, met with varying responses
and success.
No more eloquent proof of the universality and neutrality,
as Well as the true charity, of the Vatican Radio could be
found than in the information furnished about prisoners of
War and in the efforts made to locate displaced and missing
Persons during and after the war. To write the history of
this service, one would need to know the joy and reassurance
�154
VATICAN RADIO
brought to millions by the knowledge that their dear ones had
been found.
NOTES
t Oral communications of the staff of the Vatican Radio Station constitute the main source of this article. Several of the Fathers have
generously read the manuscript to insure its accuracy. The community's
diary, despite its incompleteness, has been very helpful, as have also
been the Roman province catalogues from 1930 to 1954. Of printed
accounts, the most complete in a series of fiv.e articles in Bolletino Ufficiale del Comitato Centrale (July, 1950), pp.""3-22; these articles have
been translated into English and published in the Official Bulletin of
the Central Committee issued at the same time. A general account is
given by John Adrian, "Vatican Radio 1951," The St. Anthony Messenger (August, 1951), pp. 2-5. For the war years Robert Speaight
wrote in the series of the Sword of the Spirit pamphlets, "Voice of the
Vatican: The Vatican Radio in Wartime," (London), 16. For the
authorization to erect antennae and other equipment outside the Vatican
State, the most complete study is that of Father Soccorsi, S.J., "L'accordo supplementare fra la santa Sede e l'Italia in materia di radiocomunicazioni," Civilta Cattolica (October 20, 1951), pp. 129-140.
2 Mt. X, 27.
3
An English translation of the discourse can be found in The Catholic
Mind (March 8, 1931), pp. 105-109.
4
J. Stein, S.J. and J. Junkes, S.J., Die Vatikanische Sternwarte in .•
Vergangenheit und Gegenwart (Vatican City, 1952), p. 54; in the same
authors' Italian version, La Specola Vaticana nel passato e nel presente,
the reference is to page 50.
�Jesuit Provinces in North America
1805-1955
JAMES J. HENNESEY, S.J.
When Robert Molyneux, Charles Sewall and Charles Neale
pronounced their vows in the Society on August 18th, 1805,
they were the only three Jesuits on the North American continent. At the beginning of 1954, the American and Canadian
provinces numbered 8,845 men, now distributed over ten provinces, two regions, the Philippine Vice-Province and a dozen
other missions overseas. The present survey is intended to
trace the origins of each of the American provinces and to
indicate their common heritage. Such a brief glance is
necessarily incomplete. Before the Suppression, missionaries
from Spain and France traversed much of North America and
in the restored Society the nascent American provinces owed
much to the missionary zeal of Europeans from many lands.
The labors of Swiss exiles in the eastern half of the United
States and of Belgian Jesuits in Missouri are two prominent
examples of European endeavor in nineteenth century
America. However,· only those European Provinces which
actually exercised control over some segment of what is now
the American Assistancy or Canada in the restored Society
will be treated as mother provinces. The sole exception to
this rule is the Province of England, since the English Mission of Maryland did preserve a corporate existence from the
Suppression until the Restoration.
Eastern Provinces
There are two main streams of descent for the American
Provinces, one from the English Province, or, perhaps more
correctly, from the Maryland Mission and the second from
the Province of France. The Maryland Jesuits were aggregated to the Society in White Russia in 1805.1 Maryland retained its status as the independent Missio Americae Foederatae until 1833, when it became the first American province. 2
In 1879, the New York section of the New York and Canada
Mission was joined to Maryland, which then took the name of
the New York Province. 3 This name was changed a year later
�156
JESUIT PROVINCES
to Maryland-New York Province. 4 The Maryland-New York
Province was twice divided: in 1926, when the New England
portion of the old Maryland Province was separately organized and again in 1943, with the formation of the New York
and Maryland Provinces. 5
Midwestern Provinces
In 1823, Father Charles Van Quickenborne led the famous
trek of novices from the Maryland novitiate at Whitemarsh
to Florissant, Missouri. 6 Until 1831, the midwestern Jesuits
were dependent on Maryland, but in that' year the independent
Missouri Mission was created. 7 MisS'ouri became a ViceProvince in 1840, 8 a Province in 1863, 9 and, in 1928, was
divided into the Missouri and Chicago Provinces. 10 Both these
Provinces were divided in 1954, the Region of Wisconsin
being formed in the Missouri Province and that of OhioMichigan in the Chicago Province. 11
The Far West
The California and Oregon Provinces originated with the
Rocky Mountains, or Oregon, Mission of the Missouri ViceProvince, founded by Father Peter De Smet in 1841.12 A
group of Italian Fathers made a foundation in California in
1851/ 3 and in that same year the entire western Mission was ··
separated from Missouri and made directly dependent on
Father General. 14 The Turin Province accepted the direction
of the Mission of Oregon and California in 1854. 15 In 1858,16
the two were separated and remained so until 1907, when the
combined California-Rocky Mountains Mission was formed.H
This Mission became the California Province in 190918 and
was divided into the California and Oregon Province in 1932P
The New York and Canada Mission ·
The first venture of the Province of France in the United
States was the establishment of a community at St. Mary's
College, Kentucky, in 1831.2° In 1846, St. Mary's and St.
Ignatius' School, Louisville, were given up and the French
Jesuits moved to Fordham in New York. 21 In the same year,
the Mission of Canada, founded by the Province of France in
�JESUIT PROVINCES
157
1842/2 was joined to the New York group and the New York
and Canada Mission came into being. 23 This Mission was
transferred to the new Champagne Province in 186324 and
became independent in 1869.25 In 1879, it was divided, New
York going to help form what became the Maryland-New
York Province and Canada becoming a mission of the Province
of England. 26 The Canada Mission became independent in
1888 ;27 it was established as a Province in 1907,28 and divided
in 1924 into the Province of Lower Canada and the ViceProvince of Upper Canada. 29 Upper Canada became a Province in 1939. 30
New Orleans Province
A third mission of the Province of France was that of New
Orleans, founded in 1836-1837.31 This Mission was made over
to Missouri in 1838, 32 was annexed to the Lyons Province in
1847,33 and became independent in 1880. 34 New Orleans became a Province in 1907.35
The New Mexico-Colorado Mission
There are two more foundations which must be considered,
the New Mexico-Colorado Mission of the Naples Province
and the Buffalo or North American Mission of the German
Province. New Mexico welcomed Neapolitan Jesuits in 1867.36
The name "Colorado" was added in the 1877 catalogue. 37 In
1919, the houses of the Mission in New Mexico and Texas
Were transferred to the New Orleans Province and those in
Colorado to Missouri. The New Mexico-Colorado Mission
Was dissolved. 38
The Buffalo Mission
Jesuits first came to the city of Buffalo in 1848 from the
New York and Canada Mission. 39 They founded two residences in the city to minister to German-speaking people. In
1869, these residences were transferred to the Province of
Germany. 40 Two years later, the territory of the Buffalo Mission was designated as the dioceses of Buffalo, Erie, Fort
Wayne, Rochester, Cleveland, Detroit, Marquette, St. Paul,
LaCrosse, Green Bay and one station in Milwaukee, Racine
or Madison. 41 Houses were also established in Mankato, Min-
�158
JESUIT PROVINCES
nesota and Burlington, Iowa, as well as among the Indians in
South Dakota and Wyoming. 42 The Buffalo Mission of the
German Province ceased to exist as a separate entity on
September 1, 1907. Buffalo was attached to the MarylandNew York Province, the midwestern houses of the Mission
went to Missouri and the Indian Missions to the CaliforniaRocky Mountains Mission. 43 These Indian Missions were later
transferred from California to the Missouri Province.44
Conclusion
The lines of descent are fairly clear.· Stemming from
Maryland we have the Missouri Province. From Missouri, to
which were added parts of the Buffalo and New MexicoColorado Missions, come the Chicago Province, the Wisconsin
Region and the Ohio-Michigan Region. The Oregon and
California Provinces were founded from Missouri, but developed for a half-century under the government of the Turin
Province.
Four provinces can trace their descent from the Province of
France. New Orleans, the foundation of 1836, was attached
later on to the Missouri Vice-Province and then to the Lyons
Province. In 1919, it took over part of the Neapolitan New
Mexico-Colorado Mission. The two Canadian Provinces and
the New York Province are heirs of the first foundation of
the Province of France in the United States. After 1863,
they were attached to the Champagne Province. In 1879,
Canada passed under the jurisdiction of the English Province,
while New York joined Maryland. From the Maryland-New
York Province, to which was added the German· Mission of
Buffalo, come three of our present Provinces, Maryland, New
York and New England.
NOTES
~he date of the restoration of the Society is variously given. Accordmg to documents in the Maryland Province Archives, Woodstock
Coilege, the sequence was as foiiows: May 25th, 1803, Bishops Carr~ll
and Neale sent Father General Gruber a petition on behalf of ex-Jesmts
and others; May 12th, 1804 (March 13 in the General's letter-book,
according to Father Hughes), Father Gruber authorized Bishop Carroll
to carry out the restoration. Bishop Carroll appointed Father Molyneux
1
�JESUIT PROVINCES
159
superior in a letter dated June 21st, 1805, supplemented by another
dated June 27th, 1805. Father Molyneux is listed as Superior a die 27
Junii 1805 in the first Catalogus Missionis Americae Foederatae (1807,
26 Ibid., p. 13.
The decree of June 16th, 1879 was promulgated August
7th, 1879.
27 Liber Saecularis, p. 157. The Synopsis Historiae S.J., p. 589, gives
the date as 1887, but, p. 581, has 1888. The new Synopsis repeats these
assertions, col. 709 and col. 698.
28 Acta Romana I (1906-1910), p. 82.
Decree promulgated August
15th, 1907.
29 Ibid. V, I (1924), pp. 101 ff.
The decree of June 8th, 1924 was promulgated June 27th, 1924.
30ibid. IX, III (1939), pp. 375 ff. The decree of January 18th, 1939
was promulgated March 12th, 1939.
31 Garraghan, op. cit. II, pp. 134-138 and Catalogus sociorum et officiorum Provinciae Franciae (1837), p. 18 and (1838), p. 20. Father
Nicholas Point came from Kentucky and was Superior at Iberville, La.,
from October 9th, 1836. His community arrived from France on March
12th, 1837. The community was established at Grand Couteau on St.
Ignatius' Day, 1837. The Liber Saecularis, p. 159, gives the following
dates: November 4th, 1836, Bishop Blanc signed a pact with the Society;
February 22nd, 1837, the Fathers began their ministry; January 5th,
1838, the college at New Orleans was begun.
32
Garraghan, op. cit. III, p. 140. The decree was dated July 14th, 1838
and read at St. Louis in October, 1838. The Liber Saecularis, p. 159,
gives the date as July 24th, 1838.
33
Garraghan, op. cit. III, p. 154. Decree of February 2nd, 1847. See
also Catalogus Provinciae Lugdunensis (1847), p. 40. The Liber Saecularis, p. 159, gives July 16th, 1847 as the date of transfer.
34
Liber Saecularis, p. 159. The date was April 28th, 1880. See Catalogus Missionis Neo-Aurelianensis (1881). The Synopsis Historiae S.J.,
col. 465, says that New Orleans became independent on October 12th,
1880. The new Synopsis repeats this, col. 471.
35
Acta Romana I (1906-1910), pp. 85 ff. Decree promulgated August
15th, 1907.
36
Catalogus Prov. disp. Neapolitanae (1868), p. 7.
Ibid. (1877), p. 17.
38
Acta Romana III (1919), pp. 119 ff. The decree was dated August
15th, 1919.
39
WOODSTOCK LETTERS 83, 4 (November, 1954), p. 352.
40
Ibid., p. 355.
41
Garraghan, op. cit. I, p. 586.
42
lbid. I, p. 587.
43
Acta Romana I (1906-1910), pp. 94 ff.
44
lbid. I (1913), pp. 54 ff. Decree of May 24th, 1913.
37
�OBITUARY
FATHER MATTHEW GERMING, S.J.
1867-1954
Speaking familiarly upon the occasion of a Golden Jubilee
celebration for one of our priests, the Most Reverend Charles
H. Helmsing, Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis laid emphasis
upon what seemed to him the remarkable fact that "the life of
every Jesuit is a hidden, humble life."
To anyone who kn.ew Father Matthew Germing, S.J., the
truth of Bishop Helmsing's observation must come home
with force as he stands in the quiet cemetery at Florissant to
read the headstone which marks the final resting place of: P.
Matthaeus H. Germing: N atus April 15, 1867: Ingress us Au_.
gust 8, 1887: Obiit August 8, 1954. These words sum up
the life of a man who spiritually, intellectually, and culturally
represented the best traditions of the Society and her work.
In the traditional way these words fittingly mark every
Jesuit grave, but Father Germing's personal influence upon
the members of the Society in the Mid-West through half a
century must be recorded here as the memorial of his splendid
life for God, hidden, throughout his career, in the work of
teaching and governing our own men.
In his long life of sixty-seven years in the Society, Matthew ..·
Germing was, indeed, distinguished by being called upon to
exercise every office of government in the province, and to
direct the Missouri Province during the most trying period
of its modern history. Nevertheless, his was ever a hidden
life and through it all his characteristic gift was that of
humble obedience to God's will. He was, as one who knew
him through a lifetime recalls, "a true man of God, with a
strong faith, a strong sense of duty, a strong will. He was
forthright and without guile, uncompromising in matters of
principle, with an unquestioning devotion to the Church and
to the Society."
Early Life and Training
Matthew Germing, the youngest son of Joseph and Gesina
Germing, was born April 15, 1867, in the village of Lahn,
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FATHER MATTHEW GERMING
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�OBITUARY
161
province of Hanover, Germany, and baptized at Werlte, Diocese of Osnabriick, Westphalia. He was the youngest of four
boys in a strong, simple Catholic family of rural people. God
took both of his parents by death while Matthew was yet a
boy, and this was undoubtedly a major factor in the decision of
the young men to emigrate to America. The eldest son alone
remained in Germany, married, and lived to a ripe old age
there. The three younger brothers, Benedict, Henry, and
Matthew, came to the United States in 1882 and settled at
Blackjack, Missouri, in the Florissant Sacred Heart parish.
They lived here with Mr. Henry Germing, a second cousin,
and his wife and family. Father Germing, used to speak with
great affection of this family and particularly remembered
how Mrs. Henry Germing had been "a second mother to him"
in this country. Henry, in August of their first year here,
entered the Society at Florissant as a laybrother and became
a splendid religious. He was an unusually fine gardener, intelligent and imaginative. His work on the seminary grounds
was for many years the admiration of all visitors. His death
in the prime of life, in 1915, was almost as much regretted
as that of his famous contemporary, the peerless Brother infirmarian, Caspar Saeger. As an old man, Father Germing
used to say of his brother Henry, "He was the intellectual in
our family."
Benedict, the elder brother, was equally loved and admired
by Father Germing, for, said he, "it was through his toil that
I Was enabled to get an education." And this was true. This
fine man, twenty-two years old when he came to this country,
worked cheerfully until, in 1885, Matthew was enrolled in St.
Mary's College, St. Mary's, Kansas, and able to study at leisure.
It is a crowning tribute to his character to record that in 1894
Benedict followed his two brothers into the Society and lived
a devoted life as a laybrother until his death in 1938. The
union of affection and prayer among these three brothers is
itself a testimonial to a side of Father Germing's character
often overlooked.
Divine Providence thus prepared the way for Matthew
Germing's acceptance of the grace of a vocation to the priesthood and to the Society. His fine talent and steady industry
Inust have been recognized in his youth for he alone among
�162
OBITUARY
his brothers was continuing his studies in the old country. He
had completed eight years of school and was in the midst of
the Gymnasium curriculum when he came to America. Rather
than be discouraged by this radical interruption of his schooling, he cheerfully accepted his new home land, his new mothertongue, and new customs. In later years, when congratulated
upon his mastery of distinguished English speech, he used to
smile and recall that he was seventeen and a half years old
before he attended an English-speaking school. So perfectly
did he master pronunciation and so careful was his use of
idiomatic expression that, even in his old age, it never occurred
to a listener to think of his mother-tongue as anything but
English. This determination to continue his education and to
make himself a master of English is a good gauge of his
whole character. "You have no idea how I worked on it," he
confided to a Father who had admired his distinctive speech.
And he went on to relate how, even as Provincial, he had
designated "a very good and sharp admonitor, Father Adolph
Kuhlman," to take him to task for every faulty pronunciation
or construction. "And he did it, too!" Father Germing concluded with a wry smile.
St. Mary's College played a very important part in the intellectual formation of Father Germing's mind, and in the
fostering of his vocation. He was ever grateful for the strict
classical English he was there taught (Washington Irving ··
was the model) and he was never sure that modern schools
quite came up to the same standards. In later years he used
to puzzle over slang expressions and would use "guy" and
"o.k." and "stuff" with a guilty little smile that told how these
words were a concession to the times and not by any means
the kind of English he valued. His Latin studies were a delight and he competed in the first Intercollegiate Latin Contest held in the Missouri Province in 1887. He took second
place in that contest, which, by the way offered Longfellow's
"Psalm of Life" to be turned into Latin prose. First place, he
used to recall, was won by a companion and friend of his at
St. Mary's and a fellow resident of Florissant, Missouri,
Bernard J. Otten, who also distinguished himself in later years
as a theologian in the Society.
To complete the story of Father Germing's vocation, men-
�OBITUARY
163
tion must be made of Father John A. Bauhaus, S.J., pastor
of the Sacred Heart Church in Florissant when the Ottens
and Germings were young men. He was a pastor who exercised the finest kind of influence upon the youth of his parish,
instilling into them habits of piety and fostering inclinations
to the religious life. The memory of this zealous friend was
cherished by Father Germing, and in his concern for vocations he never forgot the wise direction given him in his
diffident boyhood by a watchful pastor.
How is one to evaluate or express in a few words what
sixty-seven vigorous years in the Society did for the soul of
this generous young immigrant boy? Matthew Germing entered the Novitiate at Florissant on August 8, 1887, and it
seems safe to say that his love and loyalty to the Call of the
King deepened every year of his life. His was not the fiery
temper and quick ardors of, let us say, his contemporary
Father John Mathery. His was rather a moderate, slow,
sometimes even awkward loyalty which, nevertheless in its
love of the Society and in its desire to give of his best to her,
merits to rank equally with that of the great Father Mathery,
whom he loved. In keeping with his character and under
the spiritual guidance of his novice master, Father Rudolph
Meyer, he cultivated the practical rather than the speculative,
the ascetic rather than the mystical, the apostolic rather than
the contemplative mentality.
His perfect observation of the rules, his modesty of action,
his recollection, downcast eyes, and manly bearing are mentioned by his early companions. There was never any doubt
of his self-denial. "A man far above all personal ambition,
seemingly unconscious of his great gifts," "a kind and humble
man," "a man of prayer, of charity, of prudence, and obedience to the Jesuit vocation," "a source of genuine edification
by his recollection and his humility"; these comments come
from men who knew him through long years, who were his
fellow scholastics, and his subjects. From their reports one
must try to divine the inward struggle of this practical man
to put on generously the spirituality of St. Ignatius. As he
demonstrated in his own guidance of souls, it was in works
like those of Bishop Hedley, B. W. Maturin, and Rodriguez
�164
OBITUARY
that he found his ascetical food; poetical souls like Faber he
did not understand.
Intellectually, his training in the Society was part of the
same pattern. His point of view in everything was inclined to
be practical and apostolic. His was the type of mind that
brushes aside the speculative, the imaginative-the secondary
and merely ornamental things of life-to concentrate on what
it considers primary and most conducive to the end of moral
and religious living. His temperament, intellectually, was
Roman rather than Hellenic. In order to perfect his Latin
for example, he chose, in his early years as a teacher, to give
up the further study of Greek-a step which he later regretted-because he felt that it impeded his mastery and comprehension of Classical Latin. Again, as evidence of the same
practicality, he ceased to cultivate the German tongue, in order
to make himself a master of English. In his last years he
had almost forgotten how to write German, such was his self
discipline in this matter.
No discussion of his intellectual growth would be complete
without a word to signify his admiration for the thought and
style of John Henry Cardinal Newman. Unquestionably,
Newman became the model for Father Germing's use of English. He read his works with relish, especially his sermons.
He recommended them invariably to his juniors. He would
start a young man out on the sermon "Parting of Friends," the ~.
dramatic last sermon of Newman in his beloved St. Mary's
Church, Oxford. "Read it," Father Germing would say, "read
it, once, twice, three times, four times." That was his way.
He taught by his own enthusiasm and his constant imitation,
and his students were invited to learn the secret. Among
many, Father Daniel M. O'Connell, whose works on Cardinal
Newman are well known, pays tribute, in the foreword to
Favorite Newman Sermons, to Father Germing, "who, I am
happy to say, many years ago, aroused in me a lasting admiration for Newman."
Thus were his years of training spent. Philosophy and
theology were both made in St. Louis. Three of his teaching
years were at St. Mary's, one at St. Louis, and one at Cincin- ·
nati where, instead of his usual Greek-Latin-English assignments, he taught Chemistry and Mathematics. Finally, on
�OBITUARY
165
June 28, 1902, he was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop
John Joseph Kain in St. Francis Xavier's Church, St. Louis.
Of that glorious day, Father Germing had the unusual privilege of celebrating the fiftieth anniversary.
Before Father Germing was assigned to teach Latin in the
juniorate he, with Father Joseph Conroy, was sent to Johns
Hopkins University for advanced study. This was an unusual
procedure in those faraway days and it seems not to have been
successful. Apparently both he and Father Conroy looked for
a type of training that would broaden their acquaintance with
matters which could be put to immediate use in the classrooms
of the province. Instead they were assigned advanced research work. At any rate, they returned home at the end
of a semester. The practical cast of Father Germing's mind
made him impatient with dry-as-dust scholarship. In later
years he came to regret this viewpoint and warmly encouraged
advanced study.
The Teacher and Superior
After tertianship, made in Florissant under the direction
of Father Henry Moeller, Father Germing began his long
years of teaching in the juniorate. First as professor of
Latin, then as professor, dean, and superior of juniors (the
rector was also master of novices in those days) his provincewide influence was felt. Different men will, of course, form
different judgments upon him, but of his culture and his
ability as a teacher of the Classics there can never be any
doubt. His classes were scholarly, most carefully prepared,
thorough. His orderly mind and strong will inculcated disciPline as it probed relentlessly into a junior's mastery of a
Latin passage. His way was quiet but it was forceful. His
single, cryptic word, "Next!" is remembered emphatically
as sufficient expression of the dean's disapproval of one's
effort. He was always kind to those who came to him for
Private help, understanding and generous with his time, but he
Was, nevertheless, strong and decisive in his enforcement of
discipline. His manner was not enthusiastic, dynamic in the
classroom, but rather slow and deliberate. His mannerisms
of speech and facial expression were associated with this deliberation and precision. He did not cultivate that manner;
�166
OBITUARY
it was his own and he was too genuine and simple to try to
change it. All through his life he admired spontaneity and
encouraged it in pulpit and classroom work. One remembers
the evident self-consciousness with which he told the theologians that they must have "vivacity-(a hesitation)-pep in
the classroom."
As superior and dean, Father Germing used to give most
excellent Wednesday night instructions to his juniors. They
were substantial, well thought out, spiritual, practical, and
withal, spoken with conviction and distinction. The Rule, and
the life of studies were his common tHemes and the effect of
his instructions was cumulative. Steady, peaceful advance
in the Jesuit life, self-denial, good taste, and gentlemanly
conduct; a high ideal of culture which included the supernatural and natural virtues alike, these were his spiritual
doctrine. His apostolic spirit was moved by the neglect of the
negro Catholics and he founded the St. Peter Claver parish at
Anglum (now Robertson) in 1920 where he, with the help
of the juniors and brothers, built a small church and taught
and preached devotedly as the first pastor of this parish.
His scholarly interests were practical and he developed a
great love for medieval Latin hymnody with its virile piety,
and for Seneca, the practical moralist among the ancients. He ..
was thus the editor of a little book called Latin Hymns, published in 1920 by the Loyola Press, and in 1922, of an edition
of Selected Letters of Seneca.
His interest in the Classics and in the work of education led
him, toward the end of his career as a teacher, to take a lead'ing part in organizing the Classical Association of the province. This organization, in turn, combined with the English,
Science, History teachers in the first general convention of
teachers of the Missouri Province which met at Campion
College, August 1, 1922. Father Germing presided over the
Classical section on this occasion. It seems worthy of note
in our day when classroom teaching is considered too insignificant an operation in the great education industry to require animation, that over two hundred teachers gathered in
this 1922 convention, sixty-seven of them in the Classical
section. The fact suggests the kind of intellectual apostolate
�OBITUARY
167
which Father Germing represented: the competent, interested
teacher in the classroom as the core of our schools.
An entirely new direction was given Father Germing's
academic life when, in 1921, Father F. X. McMenamy, the
Provincial, chose him as his socius. Undoubtedly, the wellknown gift which Father McMenamy ever had for judging
men led him to see in this efficient teacher the qualities of
leadership as understood in the Society. At any rate, Father
Germing took up his new duties with his characteristic exactness and after five years he was appointed by Reverend Father
General Provincial of the Missouri Province, September 27,
1926.
His Achievements as Provincial
From our vantage point of time it is obvious how remarkably the Holy Spirit was guiding the work of the Society in
those difficult times. It should likewise be evident how great
is the debt of gratitude which the Jesuits of this region owe
to the practical, steady moderation of Father Germing during
the days of the financial "depression". He held the office of
Provincial in the most difficult days of our century and it was
necessary for him to make a good many of those unpopular
decisions which only a courageous, uncompromising Superior
makes. The most unenviable duty of closing his old alma
mater, St. Mary's College, fell to Father Germing's lot, and
again from our vantage point, it is obvious how unavoidable
yet courageous was his decision. Likewise, the removal of the
theologate from St. Louis to St. Mary's was a peculiarly unenviable decision to have to make. Father Germing did it
under financial stress, but also with a long-range view of improving the scholasticates. These decisions, like all positive
leadership, point to the quality of mind and will which lay
behind the superior's humble and uncomplaining dependence
upon Divine Providence.
The success of the Jesuit Seminary Aid Association during
those difficult times is another providential gift which, under
God, we owe to Father Germing's leadership. He turned very
simply to the theologians in those depression days and asked
them to undertake the appeal for their own support. Their
response was remarkable and the modern development of the
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OBITUARY
JSAA, with the Jesuit Bulletin, annual memberships, burses
and the rest was, until recent years, the result of fine organization by the theologians.
Finally, it is sometimes forgotten that Father Germing was
the last Provincial Superior to rule over the Society from
Michigan to the boundaries of Texas and from the Great
Lakes to the Rocky Mountains. Under him the final division
of the Chicago and Missouri provinces was announced by
Very Reverend Father General Ledochowski, July 2, 1928.
This did not involve merely routine action on Father Germing's part. An incipient "Ohio Region"~had been in existence
for three years and the final division of provinces differed
very considerably from the provisional separation. It will
probably never be known how much the Jesuits of the whole
Mid-West owe to the generosity and good judgment of Father
Germing in the very difficult matter of re-adjusting the
province boundaries so that the whole Chicago region was
added to the Ohio section, as well as the re-assigning of men
and money, so that the final division was so remarkably successful.
Personally, Father Germing is remembered as a most
sympathetic superior, with a remarkable memory for names
and faces, a keen analytic mind and a paternal heart. "It
was not hard to lay one's whole soul open to him," a priest
writes, "and to know that his manifestation of conscience
would be received with patience, some fatherly admonitions
perhaps, but always tempered with charity."
A heartbreaking blow to the province in these times of
stress was the disaster of September 10, 1931 by which the
whole of St. John's College in Belize, British Honduras, was
destroyed by a hurricane and tidal wave. It took, with its
material destruction, the lives of eleven young Jesuits, six
priests, four scholastics and one brother, men who could onlY
with difficulty be spared from the apostolate. All of these
things a man of different mettle might have borne impassively,
but they bowed down the head and heart of Father Germing
in sympathy and humility. He carried until his dying day the
marks of these times of sorrow and trial.
~~
�OBITUARY
169
Rector and Writer
On October 15, 1931 Father Horine succeeded to the office
of provincial and on July 31, 1932 Father Germing was appointed Rector of the St. Mary's College with its V'ery large
group of theologians. From 1932-1938 he discharged this
difficult task and demonstrated the same strength in matters
of discipline, together with the same devotion to God and the
Society. In 1933 he was selected to represent the province in
Rome at the Procurators' Meeting of that year. He was
deeply moved at seeing the whole Society in cross-section and
spoke enthusiastically of it upon his return. He likewise
visited his home town of Lahn in Germany and cultivated a
charity toward the war-torn people of Westphalia which, after
the last war, led him to an apostolate among them through
the medium of CARE packages.
After his term as rector he returned to Florissant in 1939
and devoted his days to the task of translating and editing
works for the use of Ours. He published in 1942 an authorized translation of August Coemans' Commentary on the Rules
of the Society of Jesus. It has already established itself as
an invaluable spiritual reference book and the translation
and editing is thoroughly competent. · He now revised the
Liber Devotionum, another staple among Jesuit spiritual
books. In 1928 he had gathered and edited this splendid collection of prayers, and now he gave unstinted effort to improving it and the English version for the Brothers. His brief
collection of Selected Decrees of the Twenty-Eighth General
Congregation was published in 1946. It, again, is a wise
selection and translation of decrees which demonstrates the
Practical concern of its author for the good of the Society.
Patient Sufferer
Thus did Father Germing spend his final active years. He
became Spiritual Father at Florissant in 1941, but by 1945
mounting physical weakness forced him to retire and his last
Years were spent largely in the infirmary, where his constant
Visits, his spiritual reading, and his love o{ the Mass, were a
source of edification to all. He retained his splendid enuncia-
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OBITUARY
tion and choice of words until the last.
zest for accuracy. "Come, Father," he was told in hi very last
months of life, "we will fix your bed and you can wdown."
The half-audible reply was: "lie down!" His greatest sorrow
in the declining years was his inability during the last year
and a half of his life to say Holy Mass. It was a touching
and pitiful sight to see this determined man pouring over
the Altar Missal hour by hour in an effort to bring back
sufficient memory of the canon to go to the altar of God.
His final illness began about a week before his death and
for two or three days he struggled against the disease. Then,
a rapid decline in vitality set in and ~it was decided to administer the last sacraments. One characteristic spark remained. "Do you understand what we are going to do?" he
was asked. "Do you realize that you are going to receive
Extreme Unction?" He opened his eyes and with a trace of
the old smile said simply, "Fully!"
In his last days, Father Germing was always afraid his
death would be long in coming and difficult, but he longed for
heaven with a childlike simplicity. "What shall we do in
heaven?" he asked an old friend who stopped in to visit him.
He was answered with the beautiful words of Saint Augustine: "Ibi vacabimus et videbimus, videbimus et amabimus,
amabimus et laudabimus. Ecce quod erit in fine sine fine."
"There we shall rest and see, see and love, love and praise. ..,
This is what shall be in the end without end." These words,
indeed, express the fitting reward for a life like his lived in
devotion to the will of God-a life of prayer and charity, of
prudence and obedience to his Jesuit vocation. He died a
peaceful death on the eighth of August, the same day on
which he had entered the Society sixty-seven years previously.
LEONARD
A. WATERS, S.J.
FATHER AUGUSTINE KREBSBACH, S.J.
1880-1954
About fifty-seven miles southeast of Cologne, where the
Mosel flows into the Rhine, is situated the town of Coblenz.
�OBITUARY
171
For centuries because of its strategic location it has been the
coveted goal of foreign armies. It was in this town, so rich
in historical background, that Father Augustine Krebsbach
was born on January 13, 1880.
For sixteen years Augustine developed his extremely bright
personality amid the surroundings of his native town. Decades later his eyes shone as he relived and retold these early
days. Especially dear to him were the family gatherings. In
these the center of attraction was always the piano and the
countless German songs. He always enjoyed music, and in
particular the songs of his youth.
But the peace and warmth of his family life was broken
in 1896 when he left home for the United States. Before two
years had passed, Augustine, a youth of eighteen, entered the
Society of Jesus in Buffalo, New York. His religious training
took him to St. Francis Mission, South Dakota, then to Spokane, and finally to St. Louis. In 1914, after he had finished
his theology, Father Krebsbach acted as minister for a year
at Gonzaga in Spokane.
The golden years of his ministry, from 1915 to 1931 were
spent at Missoula in Western Montana. During these sixteen
years, Father faithfully performed the offices of assistant
pastor, teacher, and pastor. As pastor, from 1926 to 1931,
he inspired his choir and altar boys with a desire to make the
liturgy as perfect as possible. The delicate beauty of the
liturgical cycle, the joy of Christmas carols, the lamentations
of Holy Week, Easter's pomp and glory, all these were keenly
felt by him.
From Missoula Father was called to become Procurator
at Gonzaga. After wrestling with this burdensome job for
a year he was assigned to teach at Marquette High School in
Yakima. From there he became pastor of St. Leo's, Tacoma.
Just as Father had spent sixteen years in his prime laboring
at Missoula so he was to spend sixteen years, from 1934 to
1950, as pastor of St. Leo's. Boundless energy and a deep love
for his flock marked this phase of life.
In 1951 Father moved to the outskirts of town to Bellarmine
Prep as Spiritual Father of that community. There he went
about his duties till he became too weak to walk.
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OBITUARY
There is an old Latin adage, mens sana in corpore sano;
{the mind will be healthy in a healthy body). Father Krebsbach still had the first when he arrived at Mount St. Michael's
in the summer of 1953. His mind was clear and full of humor
even to his last moments, but his body was borne down with
multiple sclerosis and diabetes. Father's seventy-three years,
his long, active life, took their toll on his large body and left
him confined to a wheel chair.
It is hard for a person to be confined to his room because of
sickness, especially for one used to an active life. This was the
last phase of Father's life-the phase ~f preparation for his
life's last deed. Father made this prepafation well, with daily
Mass {which he said sitting down, by special dispensation),
with recitation of the Office, and with constant aches and
pains.
On the afternoon of March 10, a Scholastic visited Father
and found him suffering from three "minor" ailments. In his
condition, these caused more than minor suffering. The
frame of mind with which Father bore them was indicated by
his conversation that day: he spoke of the sufferings of the
war-stricken people of Europe. Of his own sufferings Father
remarked, "Well, I asked for them, and now I have them."
"When was that, Father?" the Scholastic asked, thinking
Father must have prayed vaguely for "suffering" as a novice. ..
"That was my intention during the Novena of Grace {then
in its seventh day) -that God would send me all the evils I
so dreaded. And now I am praying for strength to bear them
bravely." He expressed a priestly fear that he had said his
last Mass that morning.
Father Krebsbach, old and sick and already burdened with
constant suffering, had asked his God for more. That night
he was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital. On March 14, at
five minutes to seven in the evening, only four days after he
had entered the hospital for his final agony, Father Krebsbach
passed to his eternal reward. His last offertory had been
accepted.
·
SAMUEL A. TATTU, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
SCRIPTURE
The Psalms in Rhythmic Prose. Trans. by James A. Kleist, S.J. and
Thomas J. Lynam, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1954. Pp. xii-236. $4.00.
This translation of the psalms has three qualities which recommend it
for general use among Catholics. The English vocabulary is easily
understood; the rendition of the translation is rhythmic and thus approaches the poetic character of the original; there is a short preface
before each psalm which explains its meaning.
The psalms were in their origin the spontaneous religious songs of a
much tried people calling upon their God to be their defender, thanking
Him for their preservation and exulting in joy over the gifts He had
bestowed. In the older translations this popular flavor has been obfuscated by the sonorous solemnity of the Victorian stylist. Fathers Kleist
and Lynam, however, have achieved in their new translation a unique
balance between the exigencies of the new Latin version of the psalms
brought out by the Pontifical Biblical Institute and the simple concreteness of modern English usage. What more easily understandable expression could be given to the following selection from the fifth psalm?
For you are not a God to take a delight in wickedness;
No vicious man is welcome in your house,
Nor do the godless in your presence stand their ground.
It has been said that the truest poetry is born of the peaks and
valleys of emotion, when man spontaneously sings out his joy and desire,
his anxiety and sorrow. This statement is certainly true of the psalms.
The translators of this volume have not attempted to render the psalms
in terms of intricate poetry. They have, rather, introduced the rhythm
of the iambic meter into their prose rendition, and, by the occasional
substitution of the faster anapestic rhythm, have adapted the movement
to the mood of the particular psalm. Contrast, for example, the slower,
meditative pulse of hope in this selection from Psalm 129:
My trust is in the Lord;
My soul trusts in his word;
My soul awaits the Lord.
with the joyful anapestic movement in this selection from Psalm 134:
0 Praise the name of the Lord,
All you who stay in the house of the Lord,
Within the courts of the house of the Lord.
The average Catholic reader will find the short, clear, explanatory
Preface which precedes each psalm of great help in interpreting its
thought and feeling. In the preface are explained not only the occasion
?n which the psalm was sung, but also the various thought-segments
Into which it is divided.
This translation should find wide acceptance among the laity as well
as among the clergy, because it fulfills a long-felt need for an edition
of the psalms in English which can be to the modern American Catholic
�174
BOOK REVIEWS
the same vital, personal prayer that the original psalms were to the
chosen people centuries ago.
RAOUL M. BARLOW, S.J.
RAGPICKERS
Abbe Pierre and the Ragpickers of Emmaus. By Boris Simon. Trans.
by Lucie Noel. New York, Kenedy, 1955. Pp. 250. $3.75.
The recent restrictions of the Holy See on the "Priest-Worker Move·
ment" need not make Ours wary or suspicious of this much publicized
book. For it offers a change from the usual "Priest-Worker" venture
and suggests itself as a new source of inspiration and experience for
the social apostolate and militant Catholicism...
It was in February, 1954, when seventeen Parisians, among them a
newborn baby, froze to death from lack of housing, that the name of
Abbe Pierre Groues, a French priest, ex-member of the Chamber of
Deputies, and hero of the French Resistance, and his Ragpickers and
Companions of Emmaus, first made the headlines of France and the
world. For over two years, since 1951 Abbe Pierre and forty Ragpickers-men rescued from the abyss of wickedness occasioned by war,
alcohol, and social injustice-worked the "miracle" of Emmaus. They
provided homes for the shelterless poor of the outskirts of Paris by their
house-to-house begging, trash-can digging and garbage-dump scavenging.
Their example inspired a hundred other men-the Companions of
Emmaus-who formed a group of junkmen and a community of homebuilders, creating from the refuse of Paris an Emergency City of 180
homes for the refuse of humanity. This social welfare center became
known as Emmaus, namerl after the village where the two disciples .•
passed from despair and encountered hope. For it turned out to be a
haven of peace and joy for desperate men where each one again found
the will to live and love mankind.
If this truly moving narrative told only the story of another housing
scandal, another adventure of a priest turned worker, and nothing more,
it would not have challenged the conscience of a nation. But that is not
all there is to Abbe Pierre and the Ragpickers of Emmaus. Their his·
tory opens unwilling eyes to the frightening problems of the homeless
and unwanted of society; it points out one concrete way whereby wrecked
lives can be salvaged-self-rehabilitation through self-dedication. How
a home saved a marriage on the rocks; how the sight of a cassock
begging alms in a cafe made a stranger return to the God of his youth;
how a sense of belonging and being wanted transformed an ex-convict,
and an orphaned juvenile delinquent into· apostles of mercy-these are
but a few of the incidents that are part of the "miracle" of Emmaus.
The other part of the "miracle" is Abbe Pierre himself, the leader of
the "Insurrection of Kindness" referred to as "a modern St. Vincent
who has warmed the heart of all mankind with his works of love in the
dump-heaps of Paris." His example was so contagious that it made a
�BOOK REVIEWS
175
seminarian beg his superior to be allowed the trial of a Ragpicker, and
an engineer of promise turn his back on love and riches in order to share
the life of the Companions of Emmaus. His intense sympathy for the
poor did not make him mistake malice for weakness as when he reluctantly put out one of the Ragpickers; there was no room for pity when
a principle was at stake. In the work of the apostolate the sense of one's
helplessness as an individual and the apparent futility of the work in
the face of apathy could break an apostle's will to give up anymore of
himself for the work of God. Not so with Abbe Pierre whose selfabnegation, devotion to the poor, resourcefulness and courage were born
of an unshakable trust in Providence which, in his own words, "sometimes reveals itself fifteen minutes too late in order to allow us to show
our faith."
Because Boris Simon is a gifted writer who threw in his lot with the
Ragpickers, he succeeds in this highly uplifting tale in sharing with the
reader what he calls his "lightning" encounter with Abbe Pierre and the
Ragpickers. By means of unforgettable individual cases, he combines
authenticity and dramatic effect, stark reality and spiritual depth.
VITALIANO
R. GOROSPE, S.J.
MARIO LOGY
The Dignity and Virginity of the Mother of God. By Francisco Suarez,
S.J. Trans. by Richard O'Brien, S.J. Indiana, West Baden College,
1954. Pp. iii-116. $.90.
Suarez complained that he could not understand why his predecessors
had written so profusely about every imaginable question pertaining to
the nature and dignity of the angels and yet had written so meagerly
about Mary, Queen of the Angels. There were, to be sure, many devotional treatises about the Mother of God, but no one had yet constructed
a comprehensive scientific study of Mary and her privileges. Suarez
undertook the task. That his work is a monument in the field of theology
is witnessed to by Gabriel Vazquez, Suarez' contemporary rival and
critic, who wrote of this treatise: "Suarez has rendered an outstanding
service to sacred science when he used the scholastic method and submitted to strict theologial criticism all the questions relating to the life
of the most pure Virgin Mary." Later theologians have offered the
more eloquent praise of imitating his method and using his material.
Of the eighteen disputations which Suarez devoted to the Blessed
Virgin, the West Baden translation presents three which treat of Mary's
fundamental privileges: her divine maternity (disputation I), and her
Physical and spiritual virginity (disputations V and VI). These well
chosen selections offer a fine example of Suarez' method and erudition.
Erudition should, perhaps, be put in capital letters because one cannot
read these encyclopedic pages without experiencing a vertigo of astonishment that one small head could have ferreted out and synthesized so
much of what the fathers and theologians had said about Mary in the
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BOOK REVIEWS
course of sixteen centuries. The work is notable for its clear and orderly
development, the frank exposition and discussion of difficulties, and its
restraint in the use of the accommodated sense of scripture as applied
to Mary. But it is the wealth of positive matter compactly synthesized
that is the outstanding quality of these pages.
WILLIAM
D.
LYNN,
S.J.
ST. JOSEPH
Joseph and Jesus. By Francis L. Filas, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1952.
Pp. x-179. $3.50.
Recognised as an outstanding authority on St. Joseph, Father Fi!as
here presents a brief but widely inclusive synthesis of the fatherhood of
the Saint, giving us the first comprehensive study of Joseph's fatherhood
ever published in any language. The author considers his subject in the
light of a single basic principle: the fatherhood originates and depends
upon the fact of Joseph's virginal marriage to the Mother of God. With
this principle in mind, the writer first describes the nature of St. Joseph's
fatherly position by an analysis of the Gospels. Subsequent to this he
considers the writings of the Fathers of the Church, the opinions of the
Medieval theologians, the works of seventeenth-century writers and
orators and pertinent references to more recent official Church documents on the Saint.
Of particular interest is the author's treatment of St. Augustine. It
is the Bishop of Hippo's influence on the historical development of the
theological relationship of Joseph and Jesus that serves as the connecting theme of the work. The final chapter recapitulates the entire
book and clarifies the generally confusing terminology referring to
Joseph's fatherhood. Of the various titles applied to the Saint, it is that -·
of "Virgin Father" that is accepted by Father Filas as the one that
"goes far beyond the incompleteness of all other titles of the Saint,
tracing the fatherhood to Joseph's virginal marriage with the Blessed
Mother of God-the union which received Jesus Christ as its miraculous
fruit."
All those particularly devoted to the Saint, as well as those who seek
more theological material for meditations, sermons, retreats or tridua,
will find this synthetic study interesting and profitable. In addition to
helpful summaries at the conclusion of each chapter, a comprehensive,
carefully-prepared index completes the book.
GERARD P. BELL, S.J.
SODALITYLe Pere. Jean Leunis, S.J. By Joseph Wicki, S.J. Rome, Institutum
Historicum Societatis Jesu, 1951. Pp. xxii-138. $1.75.
At a time when much is being done to restore the Sodality to its
original position of importance among apostolic works of the Society,
�BOOK REVIEWS
Father Wicki's scholarly life of that organization's founder should
certainly be welcome among Jesuits everywhere. The subject of this
biography, Father John Leunis, is known to most Jesuits only as the
founder of the Sodality and beyond that very little had hitherto been
known about Father Leunis.
Twelve years ago, however, Father Joseph Wicki, co-editor of the
letters of St. Francis Xavier, gained access to the archives of the Society
at Rome. Together with Father R. Dendal, who is credited with having
done the research on Leunis' early life and background in Belgium,
Father Wicki has produced a biography which, for all its brevity, is
very scholarly and at the same time eminently readable. Besides the
life itself, which is extensively documented, the book also contains a
definitive bibliography on John Leunis and an appendix containing all
the most pertinent documents on the subject.
The biography itself is not an attempt at glorification of the Sodality's
founder. On the contrary, anyone who has hitherto pictured Leunis as
a spiritual giant, gifted with extraordinary talent for organization, will
be surprised at the very ordinary character of his life. In fact, the book
is filled with surprises, not only concerning John Leunis himself, but
about the early days of the Society as well.
This book should have a wide ;1ppeal for Ours, not merely for Sodality
Directors, for whom it was primarily written, but equally so for anyone
who is interested in the history of the Society. For the latter, it affords
an opportunity to see the Society in its early days from the viewpoint of
one Jesuit who probably would never have been mentioned in a history
of the Society, much less have had a biography devoted to him, but for
the fact that he founded the Sodality of our Lady.
THOMAS
L.
SHERIDAN,
S.J.
RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE
The Christian Experience. By Jean Mouroux. Trans. by George Lamb.
New York, Sheed and Ward, 1954. Pp. v-370. $5.00.
The problem which Canon Mouroux proposes to investigate in this
tightly reasoned volume might be stated briefly in the following question: how can the Catholic scholar evaluate in terms of scholastic
Philosophy and theology the nature of religious experience? By religious
experience is meant not the search for the objectively true (reasoning),
but the act or series of acts involved in the realization of personal contact
with the Divine Presence. Nor does the author offer a treatment of the
strictly mystical phenomena, but rather confines his attention to the
lllore universal experience, that of ordinary sincere religious life.
. In the beginning of his discussion Canon Mouroux takes pains to
Isolate the idea of religious experience by disentangling it from the
e111pirical notion which would render it useless from the Catholic point
ot View. Still the question might be asked: is such a nonempirical
religious experience possible? The author replies in the affirmative by
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BOOK REVIEWS
showing the possibility of universal Christian experience as distinct
from the phenomenon of mysticism. Furthermore, since it is within the
bounds of the Faith that this experience is to take place, the liturgy,
the Fathers of the Church and the scholastic theologians are introduced
to show what consciousness a Christian may have of that faith.
Once the possibility of such an experience is established, Canon Mouroux analyzes varied scriptural themes from St. Matthew, St. Paul and
from the first epistle of St. John, not only because they present the
problem, but because they give a schematic view of the structure of the
experience. At the same time the author emphasizes the fact that this
experience takes place within the Church and thus acquires a new orientation towards Christ whose mediator the Church is.
Canon Mouroux has a very sane and cautious approach to the role of
feeling in the individual religious experience.- Although religious experience, he points out, does involve feeling, (gra"ce, in this case, building
upon the affective element in man's nature) feeling must find its place
in a more sublime integration of the experience as a whole.
In an attempt at a summary, Canon Mouroux places the personal
Christian experience in its proper supernatural context in the following
way: "personal experience is only safe, if it is continually being re-immersed in the faith of the Church, continually referred to the Church's
norms, continually judged by her infallible propositions, in ceaseless
conformity with the movement of her life."
Christian experience, then, is essentially ecclesiocentric, and only on
the condition that the individual wishes it to remain such, can it find
its place in the divine economy of salvation, and grow into the supreme
experience of a person delivered, sanctified and fulfilled by Christ.
By locating individual experience in its ecclesiological context, this
book, doubtless, has made a significant contribution to the theological
thought of an age which places great emphasis on existential experience. ·•
This book, however, leaves much to be desired from the point of view of
style and structure. The style of the translation, in an attempt to cope
with the esprit intellectuel of the French original, turns out to be a very
unwieldy and confusing vehicle. Furthermore the book is so intricately
written and so over-packed with documentatlon that the reader must
inch his way through it and take extensive no~s in order to keep the
interrelation of the concepts clearly focused in his own mind.
RAOUL
M.
BARLOW,
S.J.
GOVERNMENT
Fundamentals of Government. By Henry J. Schmandt and Paul G.
Steinbicker. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1954. ·Pp. xii-507. $4.50.
As the authors of this excellent textbook on the fundamentals of
Political Science point out very well there has been for the last two
decades an increased recognition of the need on the part of American
colleges and universities of a course on the elements or principles of
�BOOK REVIEWS
179
government. This has been true of Catholic educational institutions as
well as their secular counterparts. Unfortunately, until now there has
not existed an adequate text on the Christian philosophy of the state
integrated with the ordinary textual matter on elementary Political
Science. This present book is a welcome answer to that need.
The breadth of scholarship of the book is at times very impressive,
perhaps even too much so for the ordinary undergraduate. Professors
Schmandt and Steinbicker combine with their historical surveys, profound insights and broad syntheses, yet ever giving a primacy to a true
philosophy of government based on the Natural Law. It is fortunate,
too, that this has been accomplished without the desiccated tone of some
socio-philosophical manuals on kindred topics. The Catholic teacher of
government will likewise welcome this eminently teachable book. The
chapters proceed in a very orderly fashion and projected problems, with
suggested further readings, conclude each chapter. A healthy balance
for the modern-day student is maintained by scores of contemporary
political and legal examples as well as a concluding chapter on The
Family of Nations.
The book is divided into eight parts. The first on the bases of politics
considers the fundamental problems of the scope and methodology of
Political Science, concluding with the philosophical and historical appraisal of the Natural Law. The authors then go on in the next three
chapters to describe the nature of the state and its purpose. The concluding chapters consider governmental structure, by taking up one by
one the various forms of government, the division and separation of
political powers and the lawmaking process. This latter treatment of
the legislative process is especially well done, a unique contribution in a
field which counts few adequate treatments of the functional aspects as
well as the psychological movements behind lawmaking. It is regrettable that the authors have chosen to restrict the consideration of
international law merely to the academic level, neglecting a consideration
of the private extralegal mechanisms operative especially in the field
of international trade.
s. OLEY CUTLER, S.J.
Problems and Opportunities in a Democracy. (A Course in Government
and related social studies for seniors in the Catholic high school.) By
John F. Cronin, S.S., Ph.D. Chicago, Mentzer, Bush and Co., 1954.
Pp. xii-755. $3.68.
To produce this important and much needed textbook, Father Cronin,
Assistant Director of the Department of Social Action, National Catholic
Welfare Conference, has synthesized his own scholarly training in economics and Catholic social teachings in a most effective manner. After
consulting with other leading educators and scholars, he has written a
hook which will supply high school students with an abundance of information about the concrete problems of our times, and show them
how to apply their Christian ideals to these same problems so that they
might "act effectively as a Christian citizen in our democracy."
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In Part One, "Social America," society is studied in its relations to
the individual, the family, the school, the Church and the community.
An excellent study of marriage and its problems also highlights the
modern Catholic organizations working for the family. The Church is
shown to be vitally interested in solving all the modern human relations
problems, and no opportunity is missed to point out the careers open to
young students anxious to pursue .. the fulfillment of the American
dream."
The complex problems of "Economic America" are described in Part
Two. Workers and their unions, farmers and their organizations, bankers, business men, their organizations and their problems are briefly expressed. The teachings of the Social Encyclicals and the work of various
Catholic organizations devoted to social action_ are seen as effective instruments in promoting harmony in our labor:management relations.
"Political America," Part Three, clearly traces the growth of our
government, examines the legislative process on national, state and local
levels, and emphasizes the rights and duties of good citizens. One very
fine chapter is devoted to a study and brief commentary on "Our Federal
Constitution."
An excellent treatment of our international relations is found in Part
Four, "America and the World." The problems of war and peace, nationalism, and the rights and duties of nations are all treated from the
viewpoint of the Church's teachings on international order. Various
political and social systems throughout the world are studied, and a
special chapter is devoted to Communism as a world and a domestic
problem. The United Nations and UNESCO are both examined carefully in the light of Catholic social teachings.
Every teacher seeking to implement Father General's suggestions for
high schools, as found in his letter on the "Social Apostolate," should
examine this book. The Catholic Library Association has chosen it as
one of the best books of the year for adults, yet it is so clearly and
interestingly written that the average high school teacher will find it an
excellent tool for educating future Catholic citizens. Visual aids are
found on almost every other page, and each topic concludes with suggested projects for the student or stimulating discussion questions. A
series of "points to discuss," which adapts the case technique to high
school students, concludes each chapter. An adequate reading list of
current pamphlets and books is also furnished. This book is highly
recommended either as a school text, or as background reading for
individual students and interested high school teachers.
MICHAEL H. JoRDAN, S.J.
GREAT FIGURE
The Life of John J. Keane, Educator and Archbishop. By Patrick
Henry Ahern. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1955. Pp. xi-396. $6.50.
"One of the most beautiful and disinterested souls I have ever encountered" was Cardinal Gibbons' judgment on the subject of Father
-·
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181
Ahern's interesting and moving biography. As a young priest in Washington, D. C., Keane showed active and prayerful zeal for souls and an
openhanded generosity which led him to give away practically everything
he possessed. A friend of Father Isaac Hecker, he was thinking of
joining the Paulists when he was elevated to the episcopate.
As Bishop of Richmond, Keane showed himself to be an able administrator, an advocate of temperance and a staunch friend of the colored.
He grew in the esteem of the public and of his colleagues in the hierarchy
because of an alert mind and an undeniable charm,-joined to a spirit
of self-effacement. Although unprepared for university administration,
Keane succeeded in organizing and launching the Catholic University
of America of which he was the first Rector (1889-1896). A natural
orator with a direct, fluent and imaginative style, he lectured widely in
university circles both in and outside the Church and was much in demand as a preacher. Because of poor eyesight which made reading
difficult, he was not always as well informed as he should have been.
Father Alphonse Magnien, his friend, was always afraid that Keane
would "commit himself to some extraordinary and very suspicious statement." It is certain that he exposed himself to misunderstanding by his
exuberant enthusiasm and ingenuous sincerity. Archbishop Satolli
seems to have completely misjudged Keane and to have treated this truly
spiritual man with lasting suspicion and distrust.
Keane's humility was apparent to all when he was dismissed from the
presidency of the University. Retiring to Rome to do curial work, he
continued to advance the interests of the American Church. He was in
the Eternal City during the struggle which led to Testem Benevolentiae.
As a disciple of Father Hecker and a friend of the Paulists, he threw
himself into the fight with such ardor that he seriously impaired his
health. He was still capable, however, of the truly heroic act of volunteering to collect funds for his beloved University in an hour of need.
After a successful begging tour and at the request of all the American
archbishops, he was appointed Archbishop of Dubuque. Plagued by ill
?ealth, he was forced to resign his see in 1911, although he lingered on
In retirement until 1918.
Archbishop Keane was a significant figure in the American Church of
~he eighties, nineties and early years of this century. A biography was
In order, and Father Ahern's work is characterized by sound scholarship
and balanced judgment. Keane undoubtedly believed that at times in
his career "the Jesuits" were against him. Father Ahern shows how
the Italians, Cardinal Mazzella and Father Brandi, who had taught at
Woodstock and knew English, opposed him on some occasions. He also
asserts that other Jesuits did. On the other hand, he quotes Father
Elliott to the effect that in the Americanist controversy the American
Jesuits were on the side of the Paulists (p. 272). In truth, Satolli was
Keane's real opponent.
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
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THEOLOGY
A Survey of Protestant Theology in Our Day. By Gustave Weigel, S.J.
Westminster, Newman, 1954. Pp. 58. $.90.
It is indeed regrettable that whereas the early Protestants receive due
attention in Catholic dogmatic treatises, the contemporaneous Novatores
are scarcely mentioned. Barth, Brunner, Bultmann, Cullmann, Niebuhr,
Nygren, Pittenger, Tillich et al., who are definitely forming the Protestant
mind of our day, mean little or nothing to our young seminarians.
Father Weigel in his introductory pages presents a splendid summa·
tion of the general observations necessary for an understanding of
Protestant theology in the concrete. The Catholic theologian should be
anxious to know what Protestant theology in our day has to say, and yet
it is difficult to find a synthetic but authentic expression of the Protestant
mind. This is due to the fact that formulas used by different Protestants
cannot be reduced to a unified system of categories because different
Protestants use different categories and starting points which are
irreducible. There is no perennial systematic skeleton proper to
Protestant divinity. In the place of systematic theology, most of the
work of the Protestant theologians is an attempt to outline the valid
method of a dogmatic theology, showing the effect of such a method on
one or other theme of dogmatics. Such a method is usually inspired by
a current philosophy with special emphasis on epistemology. The sys·
tematic visions change because the epistemologies change.
Though the concrete Protestant theologies of our time cannot be reduced to one scheme, they are classified by Father Weigel into opposed ··
groups which are distinguished according to certain major principles.
The considerations are restricted to theologies important for the American scene.
The Protestant theologies are divided into three groups, and a chapter
is devoted to each group. The three are labeled Left, Right and Center.
The stand of the primitive Protestants admitting the supernatural, and
clinging to the notion of divine revelation as a propositional deposit
to be accepted with a high degree of literalness, is taken as a point of
departure. Those imbued with this spirit are called the Right, while
the Center and Left are movements away and farther away from this
spirit.
This short but significant book should be a part of every seminarian's
desk set as a reference work on Protestant theology. The warm and
immediate welcome accorded to Father Weigel's work by both Protestant
and Catholic circles indicates that it is the answer to a pressing need
of our times.
VINCENT T. O'KEEFE, S.J.
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183
SCRIPTURE
The Epistles in Focus. By Brendan Lawler, S.J.
1954. Pp. 165. $3.00.
New York, Kenedy,
In his introduction, Father Lawler, professor of cosmology and rector
of the philosophate at Tullabeg, Ireland, informs us that the sixteen
chapters of this book are a '"revised, slightly-enlarged and somewhat
rearranged form" of sixteen articles which he had contributed to the
Irish Monthly, a Catholic magazine of general culture, now unhappily
defunct. The purpose of both endeavors was to provide encouragement
and help for Catholics who had been long intending to read the epistles
of the New Testament, but who for one reason or another-probably
because they had never found a book like The Epistles in Focus-had
never got around to it. If this was their reason, they need hesitate no
longer. This modest work, urbane in style and non-technical in treatment, gives the help they have been waiting for.
The book's structure is simple. After two introductory chapters on
the Acts of Apostles and the literary form of the epistle, each of the
New Testament letters is treated in chronological order. This treatment
is standard and satisfactory. A first section gives the "useful information, partly certain, partly conjectural" needed to situate the letter in
early Christian history. Thereupon a brief commentary is added, which
in most cases is hardly more than a simple explanation of the thoughtdevelopment in each work. The author has 'been faithful to his main
purpose throughout. He will encourage and help-but not to excess.
For his major interest is firmly to lead his readers to the epistles themselves. When they have contacted them and have begun to understand
them, The Epistles in Focus has accomplished its aim and may be
safely set aside.
But, before this stage is reached, the average reader will have learned
much from the wise counsels which the book contains. He will have
been told that in reading these letters he "must learn to appreciate them
in their original settings by going back in imagination to the times and
circumstances in which they were written." This is sound advice, and
unless the reader heeds it, the exact meaning of the letters will never
come through to him. But of itself, this counsel is not enough. The
New Testament does not merely belong to the first but to every century
and is as timely today as the latest best-seller. Therefore, its reader
should "consider what message it has for him today; for he shall surely
derive profit from letting the voices of the Apostles resound in the
twentieth-century environment of his life." In these phrases we are
shown the double context in which we must read these letters if they
are to benefit us as they can.
But Father Lawler does not abandon his reader to his task once he
has given him general directions such as these. When he finds himself
mired in the subtleties of rabbinic argumentation in Galatians, Romans
or Hebrews, the reader is advised to skip these sections for the time
being and is consoled by the reflection that "where we could not follow
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the Apostle's line of thought or ... see the cogency of the quotatfons,"
even these baffling turns of thought were inspired by God and therefore
true. He is told, besides, that a letter like Romans cannot be fully
grasped at a single reading and that it might be better to forget about
chapters 9-11 the first time around. Again and again as he works
through the book, the point is indicated on which he should focus his
attention during the first reading of an epistle and then he is shown
what further treasures remain to be uncovered in a second or a third
contact with the text. This realistic evaluation of the difficulties which
this corpus contains and the shrewd remedies proposed to counter them
add value to the book.
Inevitably in a book of "simplified introduction," an author will adopt
positions which will not commend themselves to every critic. For
example, one wonders if it would not have been wiser to attribute the
inertia Paul is combatting in the second Thessalonians to the general
Jewish tradition on the coming of the Messiah rather than to the misinterpretation of a single phrase in the first letter. Or is it as certain
as the book seems to imply that Peter came to Rome in the reign of
Claudius? Or would it not have been better to interpret the Pauline
authorship of Hebrews more widely than has been done here? On these
debatable points the author has usually decided to hold to "traditional"
positions, probably a wise decision in a book of this nature. On the
other hand, his publishers might have advised their author that to refer
to the Confraternity translation of the New Testament as the "American
Revised Version" would cause misunderstandings on this side of the
Atlantic. Moreover, some of the author's excellent modern parallels to
the New Testament historical situations presuppose a knowledge of
the Irish scene, e.g., the reference to Muintir na Tire, which is not very
widespread here. But these flaws are too small and infrequent to
detract from the usefulness of this splendid book.
FRANCIS
J. McCOOL, S.J.
l\IARIOLOGY
l\lary in Our Life. By William G. Most.
Pp. xvii-323. $4.00.
New York, Kenedy, 1954.
Among the many recent publications on Our Blessed Mother Father
Most's book holds a prominent place for a clear and concise presentation
of the dogmas on Our Lady in relation to a development of one's interior
life. Following the principle that true piety must be founded upon
doctrinal truths, the author expounds in the early chapters the teachings
of the Church on the role of Mary in God's plan for man's redemption
and sanctification. With special indebtedness to recent papal pronouncements, he deduces for Mary a true, but subordinate part in the objective
redemption of the human race, and indicates precisely her share in
man's sanctification by an exposition of those glorious titles, Mediatrix
�BOOK REVIEWS
185
and Dispensatrix of all graces, the new Eve. As a consequence he
emphasizes as a basic concept the fact that in all solid spirituality Our
Lady must play an indispensably vital part.
The second part of the volume attempts an application and integration
of these truths to the basic principles of the spiritual life, giving to
Mary her special honor in any adequate expression of prayer, suffering,
mortification, the practice of virtues and growth in the love of God.
The author culls spiritual principles from the writings of the saints and
theologians and links them systematically through succeeding chapters.
The close of the book treats of devotions to Mary and the appendices
discuss theological positions on the question of Mary as Co-Redemptrix,
the history of the Rosary, and the origin of the Brown Scapular.
This volume in honor of the Mother of God proves a valuable handbook for grasping the basic truths about Our Lady and in making easy
reference to the fundamental tenets of Christian spirituality. With its
valuable notes, indices and discussion questions for each chapter, it lends
itself readily to use among study clubs.
GARRET J. FITZGERALD, S.J.
SACRED HEART
The Letters of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. Trans. by Clarence A.
Herbst, S.J. Chicago, Henry Regnery, 1954. Pp. xxxiv-286. $5.00.
Letter-writing was so repugnant to St. Margaret Mary in her desire
for hiddenness, that she had to take a vow and force herself to it under
obedience. She constantly repeats that she can write nothing but what
"her Sovereign," the Sacred Heart of her Lord, commands. These
supernatural elements no doubt explain the unction of this collection of
the Saint's letters.
Here we see the Saint revealing her own spiritual riches in her efforts
to move others, both religious and lay, to take up and promote devotion
to the Heart of Christ. Keenly aware of difficulties and trusting in her
divine Director, she keeps her soul in enduring peace. Fearful of being
deluded herself and of deluding others, she acts only in accordance with
obedience and the spirit of the Visitation institute. With fine spiritual
insight and balance, she counsels and lives a life of love, of humiliations
and of the cross, abandonment of self and complete trust in the Heart
?f "this divine Spouse." With this compendium of spirituality centered
In the Heart of Christ, the Saint is also profuse with promises of the
great graces to be had readily and safely by all who will make the selfdedication she has made. And so, although the constant self-depreciation
of the Saint and her fearfulness, almost comical at times, are not easy
to read, they become acceptable as indicating unmistakably that the
Spirit of God is here working admirable things.
Father Herbst's introductory sketch of the Saint's life is brief and
adequate; as are his notes on the text. Father Doyle indicates, in his
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Introduction, the value of the Letters, and shows how the teaching of the
Letters reflects perfectly the doctrine of Pius XI on devotion to the
Sacred Heart, even though the Church does not canonize a saint's writings in canonizing the saint.
Especially interesting to Jesuits will be St. Margaret's remarks about
Father L~ Colombiere and the value of his "Spiritual Retreat," her
delineation of the Society's place in spreading the devotion, and the series
of letters to Father Croiset which had a strong influence on his subsequent book, a classic on the devotion.
A chronological table gives the main dates and facts of the Saint's
personal life and work, and in three pages the index summarizes her
teaching under principal subject-headings. This makes the sourcematerial of the book handy for sermons, conferences and personal
reference and supplies for the lack of order-~.n thought-content that a
series of letters makes unavoidable.
ROBERT J. SUCHAN, S.J.
BIOGRAPHY
Soren Kierkegaard. By Johannes Hohlenberg. Trans. by T. H. Croxall.
New York, Pantheon Books, 1954. Pp. x-321. $5.00.
The life of Soren Kierkegaard, although short and outwardly uneventful, was rich in interior drama. This frail and sensitive hunchback,
as twisted in soul as in body, was a keen observer, a brilliant dialectician, a master of irony and scorn. Forced in upon himself by the
contingencies of heredity and environment, Kierkegaard discovered what
too many of his contemporaries had overlooked, the inner depth and
resources of the individual soul. As a result, he found himself trans- ·•
formed into a prophet. By his pitiless exposure of the rationalistic,
secular, and perfunctory Christianity of his compatriots, he brought
down upon his head a storm of obloquy. He smarted under the blows
of his adversaries, but took comfort, like Luther before him, in the
thought that the signum crucis is the hallmark of authentic Christianity.
The present biography, intermediate in length between the two which
Walter Lowrie has written, was first published in Denmark in 1939.
The author, in addition to his full familiarity with the Danish background, has brought to his work psychological perception, philosophical
erudition, and literary power. With a genuinely existential flair, he
focusses on Kierkegaard's interior development, and casts new light on
that succession of soul-rending conflicts by which he cut himself free
from all those to whom he felt attached: first his father, then his fiancee,
next his literary and philosophical colleagues, and finally the leaders of
the established Church.
Contemporary man, it would seem, is oppressed by the prevalence of
the external, the material, the collective, the statistical. Kierkegaard's
f~ith, inward and personal to an excess, is well adapted to open up neW
VIstas and startle one into spiritual awareness. For this reason, perhaps,
�BOOK REVIEWS
187
he has had an immense influence on philosophical and religious writing
in our century, and cannot be ignored by anyone who wishes to be in
contact with these trends. Since Kierkegaard's thought was but a
reflection on his experiences, one would be well advised to read his life
as an introduction to his thought. The present biography is excellently
suited to the purpose, since it provides an abundance of quotations from
his journals and stresses the psychical aspect of his formation.
The translator, T. H. Croxall, already known for his own Kierkegaard
Studies, has done an unusually conscientious piece of work, and has
added fifteen pages of valuable footnotes which were not present in the
original text.
A VERY R. DULLES, S.J.
Siiren Kierkegaard and Catholicism. By H. Roos, S.J. Trans. by
Richard M. Brackett, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1954. Pp. xx-62.
$1.25.
Although Kierkegaard had very little acquaintance with Catholicism,
his relationship to the Church has been much discussed of late, especially in continental Europe. Father Roos, in the present lecture, maintains that there are conflicting tendencies in Kierkegaard, which can be
grouped under the headings "Catholic" and "anti-Catholic." Among the
former he includes the Danish theologian's emphasis on good works, on
free will and on authoritative preaching; among the latter, his subjectivism, his theory of paradox and his rejection of organized religion.
While this booklet has some value in bringing together various statements of Kierkegaard on these crucial points, its centra'! thesis is not,
to this reviewer, convincing. The dichotomy between the two types of
tendency seems artificial. Certain isolated statements of Kierkegaard
on the imitation of Christ, or on good works, might appear pro-Catholic
at first glance, but they are thoroughly Protestant when viewed against
the background of his entire doctrine on merit. His insistence on the
paradox of God's dominion and man's free will is not, as the author
Would have it, "Thomistic through and through," but is typically Kierkegaardian. One might question also the author's obiter dictum that he
Who accepts Apostolic Succession "is no longer Protestant, but eo ipso
Catholic."
Similar objections could be made to Father Roos's list of anti-Catholic
tendencies in Kierkegaard. Isolated sentences are taken out of their
context, and interpreted without regard for Kierkegaard's real intent.
In a fuller treatment, the author would doubtless have introduced many
qualifying remarks. But the pamphlet, as it stands, is unsatisfactory
and even misleading.
AVERY R. DULLES, S.J.
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These Came Home. Compiled and edited by Gilbert L. Oddo, Ph.D. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1954. Pp. 179. $3.00.
Without rival for its sure-fire appeal as a story of man's innermost
religious strivings and the workings of God's grace, the convert-story
is fast becoming a popular staple of modern Catholic apologetic
literature. It is particularly gratifying to welcome a new compiler
to this field. Professor Gilbert L. Oddo of Mt. St. Mary's College,
Emmitsburg, Md., has provided the reader with fifteen captivating autobiographical essays by recent converts to the Faith, both at home and
abroad.
All contributors are university graduates, eminently articulate and
intelligent moderns, possessed besides of the gift of introspection, which
enables them to transfer into cold print the 'longing and the mental
anguish of their search for the true religion:··
Some are former Protestant clergymen. Anglican, Baptist and
Presbyterian ministers tell of their progressive disillusionment with
the legacy of the so-called Reform. Theirs are by far the most gripping
narratives, recounting as they do a truly heroic fight against educational
background, personal interests and temperaments, as though all they
ever had or were conspired to keep their eyes turned away from the light.
Other contributors there are who travelled the long road from sterile
agnosticism, the stock-in-trade of secular universities in Europe and
America, through the morass of emotional palliatives offered by sectarian Churches, driven almost to the edge of despair in seeking religious truth among the sacred books of the East, before accepting the
gift of Faith. For some others the way was a brief stroll around the
corner to the parish Church, convinced that that Faith must be the
true Faith which could produce a soul like that of Francis of Assisi, or
of "Jim P.," a gunner in an armoured car during the war, or of a family ·•
who went to Mass on Sunday, not out of fear (as was thought), but
out of love. Others are led in more unlikely ways. All are led by
grace. In the life of a religious soul seeking God the influence of
grace is so real as to be almost palpable. This is the first lasting im·
pression created by this ensemble of convert-stories.
The second is that, contrary to a common misconception, every convert
has a distinct story to tell. No influences are ever parallel in the life
of two souls. No roads they travel are ever the same. Some such
realization as this must be common to all pastors and directors of
convert classes, that there is nothing more individualized than the direct
dealings God has with the souls He draws to Himself.
ALLEN CAMERON,
S.J.
The Anglo-Saxon Missionaries in Germany. Translated and edited by
C. H. Talbot. New York, Sheed and Ward, 1954. Pp. vii-234. $3.50.
The greater part of The Anglo-Saxon Missionaries in Germany, the
second volume of The Makers of Christendom Series, is devoted to the
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life of St. Boniface and to a skillful selection of his correspondence.
Far less space is given to lives of Saints Willibrord, Sturm, Leoba and
Lebuin, together with the Hodoeporicon. (travelogue) of Saint \Villibald. These contemporaneous biographies and the correspondence are
translated into clear, fluent English.
A very necessary general introduction sets the stage historically and
geographically for a thorough understanding of these missionary biographies. Christianity in the seventh and eighth centuries, throughout
what is now Germany and France, was in an unsettled and distressing
condition. Papal influence was negligible because of the exercise of
political power over ecclesiastical matters. Civil rulers appointed
bishops. Bishoprics too often became proprietary apanages of aristocratic families. Church discipline collapsed and the instruction of the
people was neglected. Add to this the superficial nature of the conversion of many groups. The result was not encouraging for Christianity. The Irish, under Columbanus, although experiencing great initial
missionary success had not laid the foundation for a secure and strong
Christian Church in Germany. Lack of organization with regard to
converts and the formation of a hierarchy in the face of political opposition, kept the Christian community from proper development and
permitted many individual Christians to fall away.
Out of the well organized and papal orientated Church in southern
England came the eighth century Anglo-Saxon missionaries. Willibrord,
Boniface and their companions converted and reconverted the people
in the Netherlands, Germany and even parts of France. They established ecclesiastical dioceses and provinces with fixed bishops and archbishops. The clergy was reformed and made responsible to bishops for
fixed areas. The bishops were subject to archbishops and, most important, the clergy, bishops and archbishops were united firmly with
Rome and the Papacy. The trials, bitter disappointments and resplendent successes of these missionaries are focused for us as we read their
biographies and the correspondence of Boniface.
To avoid misunderstanding, the editor would have done well to add
a footnote in explanation of a case in Boniface's correspondence. Pope
Gregory II answered in the affirmative an inquiry of Boniface concerning the possibility of a man marrying again if his "wife" is unable
through illness to allow him his marital rights. There is considerable
doubt as to the circumstances of this case and its proper interpretation.
The inquiry of Boniface is not extant. Many interpreters think that it
refers to a formal engagement and not to marriage. Others believe that
it is about a marriage ratum but not consummated while others advance
different opinions. With this warning, The Anglo-Saxon Missionaries in
Germany presents for all readers a solid contribution to our historical
knowledge and cultural understanding of the development of Christianity
in eighth century Germany.
WALLACE CAMPBELL,
S.J.
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The Western Fathers. Translated and edited by F. R. Hoare. New
York, Sheed and Ward, 1954. Pp. vii-320. $4.00.
The Western Fathers, a one volume study from The Makers of
Christendom Series, has as its subject the lives of five great saints of
the century from 350 to 450. But the book is not a simple collection
of hagiography. As Christopher Dawson, the general editor of the
series, explains, its purpose is not "to convert the contemporary picture
of the makers of Christendom into modern biographies," but "to
see these makers of Christendom, as far as possible, as their contemporaries saw them." Thus Dr. Hoare has selected the primary sources,
written by men who knew their subjects intimately.
After a survey view of Church History from 350 to 400, the author
starts with St. Martin of Tours who is presented in documents by his
contemporary and disciple, Sulpicius Severus:. The Life of St. Martin,
Three Letters of St. Martin and Two Dialogues. It is interesting to
note that Severus, free from the checks with which previous biographies
of his subject would encumber him, gives ample reign to his admiration for St. Martin, a fact which inclines the reader to suspect the
exactitude of some of the facts in "The Life." But "The Life" enthroned Severus as a leading literary figure of the time. Realizing
the rich ore that he had struck in St. Martin, Severus promptly plunged
into the so-called letters and dialogues of the Saint, which conveyed
a minimum of information and a maximum of overelaboration. It must
be said, however, that these writings played an important role in promoting devotion to St. Martin and contributed substantially to the
popularization of monasticism in France.
The Deacon Paulinus, confidential secretary of St. Ambrose, wrote
the life of this Saint and he followed closely the style of Severus.
Paulinus, however, made a more careful search for accurate informa- ..tion than did Severus. St. Ambrose is pictured as an intensely devoted
servant to his half acre in the vineyard of Christ, but, as the editor
notes, does not assume his true proportions as one of the last great
personalities of the Western Empire. This latter defect, due in great
part to the absence of material from Ambrose's vast correspondence,
is surprising in the writings of one who had acted as personal secre·
tary to the Saint. The life is valuable, nevertheless, for the picture
of St. Ambrose's personal holiness, his influence on the organization of
the Church in Italy, and his absolute fearlessness in the face of the
sometimes hostile temporal power.
St. Possidius, the biographer of St. Augustine, was a member of
Augustine's community in Hippo and later, as bishop, joined his felloW
bishop, Augustine, in the struggle against the Donatists. Possidius
gives a personal account of Augustine as priest and Bishop of Hippo,
whe.re he defended his church publicly in sermons, debates and writings
agamst the Manicheans, Donatists and Pelagians. The final picture of
St. Augustine, pining for heaven, yet steeling the church in Africa
against the Vandal invasion, in itself would recommend the life as
worth reading.
�BOOK REVIEWS
191
The short account of St. Honoratus, Bishop of Aries, is in reality the
eulogy delivered by St. Hilary on the first anniversary of the death of
the former. Though cast in the conventional mould of the pulpit oratory of that day, the work manifests an evident sincerity. Hilary pays
special emphasis to the Saint's spiritual life: his conversion, oddly
enough, in a Roman army camp, his life as a monk, his personal
solicitude for Hilary himself, his spiritual influence on Southern France
and his successful stewardship in the See of Aries.
Constantius, Bishop of Auxerre, is the author of the biography of St.
Germanus, which for construction and style is the most interesting
in this volume. Germanus appears as a clever lawyer, appointed military governor and then made bishop of Auxerre by universal popular
acclaim. Aside from the holiness of his life and his efficient rule of
the See of Auxerre, two journeys made by the Saint into England are
interesting. For on one of them, Germanus puts to rout a strong invasion force of Saxons and Picts.
Of great value to Church historians and patrologists, this volume
will also be of interest to priests and religious in general because of
the personal flavor these first hand reporters have given to the lives
of the Saints.
RAOUL M. BARLOW, S.J.
"EXAMEN" FOR PARISH PRIESTS
A Man Approved. By Leo Trese.
Pp. 152. $2.25.
New York, Sheed & Ward, 1953.
This book can be considered a sequel to Vessels of Clay, Father
Trese's first work on the priesthood. Whereas this latter book was a
series of intimate sketches of the everyday life of the busy parish
Priest, A Man Approved takes the form of a detailed examination of
conscience for the same busy individual. The nineteen essays, originally
given as conferences at a priests' retreat, deal with the chief duties of
the priest, the characteristic priestly virtues, and the ideals of a sincerely apostolic priest.
Examining the consciences of others is always a risky undertaking.
A writer can easily give the impression that he is looking down on the
common lot with their common failings. Father Trese surmounts this
difficulty by effectively identifying himself with the great body of
Priests who find that the battle against mediocrity must be a constant
factor in their lives. There is high idealism in his pages, a presentation
of age-old spiritual principles in crisp, vivid language capable of
~triking a responsive chord in the priest of the present age. And there
18 also understanding born of experience of the many demands of
Parish work which appear as so many obstacles to the development of a
Priest's interior life.
�192
BOOK REVIEWS
Deserving of special praise are the chapter on confession, which
turns out to be a pointed little meditation on Christ's institution of
the sacrament of the keys; the chapters on poverty and chastity marked
by much sane and wholesome motivation, and several of the final chapters in which the doctrine of the Mystical Body is applied in practical
fashion to the essentially social vocation of the priest. One criticism
against the book could be the rather brief treatment of mental prayer,
despite the author's insistence on its indispensable role in the life of
the priest. It is not enough to advise heeding the alarm clock and
throwing off the blankets. Once risen, the priest needs some subject
ready for prayerful consideration. In a practical work of this type
some suggestions on the proximate preparation for prayer would seem
to be in order. But this topic could well provide Father Trese with
material for another book. Meanwhile A Man..4pproved stands on its
own merits as a successful effort to present traditional spirituality in
a form adapted to the modern parish priest and his problems.
THOMAS
How to Meditate. By John Roothaan, S.J.
S.J. St. Meinrad, Grail. 25c.
F. EGAN, S.J.
Translated by Louis J. Puhl,
This is a reprint in convenient pamphlet form of the translation
Newman Press published in 1945. Father Puhl's short introduction is
a model of frankness and a welcome defense of Roothaan's explanation
of what is commonly referred to as the "'Ignatian method." True,
Roothaan places great emphasis on method and strictness of form, and
no doubt provided ammunition for the writers earlier in this century
who attacked the "arid rigidity" of Ignatian prayer. But these critics
have long since been answered by Brou, Peeters, and many others.
It is an undeniable fact that in Roothaan even the most unlettered beginner will find a clear, easy, fruitful method, that can easily be adapted
with experience to personal needs and dispositions. Here, too, suggests
Father Puhl, those long familiar with meditation may find the reasons
why they have not derived more fruit, and will be spurred on to greater
diligence and method in their prayer.
Father Puhl's translation is clear and straightforward; the format of
the book is excellent; and at this low price it deserves the widest circulation both within and outside the Society.
GEORGE ZoRN, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIV, No. 3
JULY, 1955
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1955
ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST______________________________________________
195
Peter Milward, S.J.
HOW ELECTRICITY CAME TO WOODSTOCK.________________________
William C. Repetti, S.J.
205
INTRODUCTION TO THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES _________________
211
Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J.
OBITUARIES
Father Daniel Lord, S.J·------------------------------------------------------------------- 261
Father Charles Denecke, S.J ·---------------------------------------- 270
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS______________________________________
281
Social Relations in the Urban Parish (Fichter); Personality
and Mental Health (Royce); Ghosts and Poltergeists (Thurston); Mariology, Volume I (Carol); and others.
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WOODSTOCK
~ETTERs to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneInch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This wiii aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of Printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as Possible; these wiii, of course, be returned to the contributor.
�CONTRIBUTORS
1\lr. Peter 1\lilward is an English Schclastic assigned to the ViceProvince of Japan.
Father William C. Repetti (Maryland Province) is archivist of George.
town University.
Father Ignacio lparraguirre (Province of Western Castile) is professor
of church history at Oiia.
Father Catalino Arevalo (Philippine Vice-Province) has just com·
pleted his theology at Weston.
Father Victor Leeber (New England Prcvince) was a Tertian in Italy
during the past year.
l\lr. Alfonso Tunon (Vice-Province of Venezuela) is a theologian at
Weston.
Father Leo P. Wobido (Missouri Province) is an editor of The Queen's
Work.
Father Thomas F. Walsh (New York Province) is a theologian at
Woodstock.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, April, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�English Jesuits Go East
PETER MILWARD,
S.J.
The following pages form a partial record of the experiences of three English Scholastics, Michael Cooper, Adrian
Jones and Peter Milward, in the course of their voyage to
Japan. The significance of this record lies in the fact that
they are the first English Jesuits ever to be sent to the Japanese Mission, since it was founded by St. Francis Xavier four
centuries ago. They embarked on the German cargo-liner,
"Frankfurt," at Southampton on July 24th, 1954; and after
six weeks at sea arrived safely at Yokohama on September
.2nd. The journey was smooth and pleasant, in striking contrast to the voyages described by Father Plattner in his book
Jesuits Go East (from which the present title is derived).
What made the voyage pleasant, however, was not so much
the modern amenities on board ship, which cannot overcome
the tedium of six weeks at sea; but rather the welcome they
received at each port of call, where they invariably found
themselves greeted by their fellow Jesuits and made to feel
quite at home. The article is, therefore, not a full account of
the voyage as a whole, but a series of descriptions of their
arrival at each port and the manner of their reception. In
this way, it is hoped to give some idea, not just of one particular voyage, but of some of the Society's work in the vast
continent of Asia, and above all of the spirit of charity which
unites all its members in one body "Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam."
Then what is seen as scattered throughout Asia, is found all
together in Japan, where Jesuits of all nationalities-Americans, Germans, Spaniards, Portuguese, with many others,
now at last including Englishmen-are laboring in harmony
With one another, united in the one purpose of bringing Japan,
and the whole continent of Asia, and all the world, into the
Kingdom of God's Love.
Ceylon
Through the glowing sunset and the gathering gloom of
evening, we sped along the road from Colombo to Kandy. The
�196
ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
direction of the car bore very little resemblance to the flight
of the crow: it twisted and turned around innumerable bends,
more like one of the cobras which infest these tropical parts.
At every corner our hearts were in our mouths, expecting
instant death; but we seemed to bear a charmed existence.
At long last we reached our destination, the Pontifical Seminary, situated on a hill overlooking Kandy: it was late in the
evening, and the community were on the point of retiring to
bed. Father Rector hastened up to welcome us, and ushered
us into the refectory for a hasty repast. I say hasty, because
we were informed of a splendid procession to be held in the
town that very night, by the famous Raja Perahera, and we
did not want to miss it.
When we were ready, Father Minister and a Spanish Scholastic came with us to lead the way and to explain these
oriental mysteries to our mystified minds. At first we thought
we had arrived too late, as we passed many people coming
away; but we discovered we were in excellent time after all.
We took up our positions by the roadside near the Temple of
the Tooth, and waited in the darkness. Soon we could see
the light of blazing torches and hear the cracking of whips
coming nearer and nearer; and then the procession itself came
into view. Behind the torches came groups of dancers, each
group performing a different kind of dance, commemorating
some religious custom or historical event; and behind every
group stalked three or four massive elephants in solemn line
abreast. There must have been quite a hundred elephants
altogether; and behind them, bringing up the rear of the
procession, towered the largest animal of all, the privileged
bearer of the sacred Tooth of Buddha enshrined in an elaborately adorned casket. The whole scene was one of colorful
chaos, made rather frightening by all the noise: it was certainly most impressive--a confused phantasmagoria of heat,
light and sound amid the silence of the surrounding darkness.
All was quiet on our return to the Seminary; and in silence
we made our way to the rooms which had been prepared for
us--the one a physics, the other a chemistry laboratory, since
the rooms in the house were all occupied. On awakening next
morning, we became aware for the first time of the magnificent
view stretching away beneath our window-a view over a
...
�ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
197
wide valley, densely wooded in all directions, and irrigated by
a river which twisted no less than the road. In the morning
sun we were able to see and appreciate the rich color of the
surrounding vegetation, which in the moonlight of the previous evening had appeared as uniform silver. Unfortunately,
we had not long to enjoy the view or the colorful scenery.
Our ship was due to sail that afternoon; and after we had
seen round the Seminary, it was time to say our goodbyes and
return with all speed back along the road by which we had
come.
Singapore
We had a vague idea that the Irish Jesuits had recently
established themselves in Singapore, but where exactly, we
did not know. It seemed the best plan to inquire at the
Cathedral, which was not very far from the harbor. The door
of the Presbytery was opened by a French priest, who directed
us to the Catholic Centre just across the road. Sure enough,
there we found a Jesuit Father, only one, and not Irish but
American, clad in a white soutane, sitting in the editorial
office of the Malayan Catholic News. At the moment he was
attending to multifarious reports coming in all the time from
the W.A.Y. (World Assembly of Youth) Conference, then in
session at the Anglo-Chinese School; but he gladly took a
respite from his labors, to have a chat with us. Soon another
Jesuit appeared from a meeting of the Legion of Mary upstairs, and introduced himself as Father Kelly, Superior of
the one and only S.J. house in the Colony and a genuine Irishman.
So while the Editor, Father Kearney, returned to his precious news items, Father Kelly told us to hop into his car,
Which was waiting just outside. As we drove to Kingsmead
Hall, he told us something about the history of the Mission,
or rather the Jesuit part of it, which began only two or three
Years ago. The result of that beginning we were soon able to
see for ourselves-a fine modern building in an imposing
Position on the top of a hill, destined to serve as a hostel for
students at the Teachers' Training College nearby. Our first
impression, however, as we climbed out of the car, was a
certain resemblance to a fire-brigad~ station since there were
�198
ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
large folding doors on the outside painted bright red. But
this impression was dispelled, once we were inside. We had
indeed to make allowances for the fact that it had been completed but two months before, and that only in substance.
There was little sign of interior decoration, just bare concrete
floors, bare walls, and no ceilings; but the actual structure was
graceful and impressive.
After having seen round the building, we were taken to the
community wing, and there introduced to the Superior of the
Mission as a whole, Father Patrick Joy, 3: man of outstanding
personality, who had been Superior of the Hong Kong Mission
at the time when the Jesuits there wer; 'under fire from the
invading Japs. So on the pleasant balcony overlooking part
of Singapore, we had a very interesting discussion of the
Catholic position in Malaya and throughout the Far East in
general. We stayed at Kingsmead Hall for the evening meal,
enjoying true Irish hospitality; and when it was time to go,
Father Joy himself accompanied us back to the harbor, where
he left us with a cordial invitation to return to the Hall for
lunch next day.
The following morning we heard Mass at the Cathedral, and
breakfasted with the Port Chaplain, Father Fox, who turned
out to be a friend of Archbishop Roberts, after whom he made
tender inquiries. Afterwards he drove us round the center
of the town-what the Americans expressively call "downtown"-and then we went to Kingsmead Hall for lunch. In
the course of the meal, I learnt from the Fathers that two of
my friends happened to be staying in Singapore at the time;
and so I was able to meet them both, before our ship sailed
that evening. One of them, Michael Kaser, an O.W., was in
an important position at the W.A.Y. Conference, as population expert, and was doing invaluable work in standing up for
the Catholic point of view at the discussions. The other, John
D'Cotta, an O.S. and former member of the Campion Hall
Sodality, had arrived a month or two before to arrange matters connected with his father's sudden death. It all made
the world seem a much smaller place than I had thoughU
1
0.W. means "Old Wimbledon boy" and O.S. "Old Stonyhurst boy".
�ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
199
Hong Kong
An Irish Scholastic was waiting to greet us when we arrived at Hong Kong, or rather at Kowloon on the opposite
shore. With him was also waiting the sister of one of our
English Scholastics, John Dove, who had forewarned her of
our coming. We all went across to Hong Kong on the ferry
together, and then drove up a road no less circuitous than the
one we had taken to Kandy, right up to the Peak, from which
we were able to get a superb view over Hong Kong and its
harbor, surely one of the eight wonders of the world. From
there we made our way to the house of John Dove's sister;
where she and her husband entertained us to dinner, with the
rnonotonous but enchanting sound of innumerable crickets
ringing in our ears. At ten o'clock we returned in darkness
and silence to Wah Yan College (Hong Kong), where rooms
had been prepared for us. The door was opened by a merry
Irishman, called Father Grogan, who was acting as minister;
and many pleasantries were passed before we retired to rest
our weary limbs.
Next morning we visited the other Jesuit establishments in
Hong Kong; and there is no denying, the Irish Fathers have
left their mark on the Colony. Another Scholastic accompanied us to Ricci Hall, which is to Hong Kong University
what Kingsmead Hall is to the Teachers' Training College at
Singapore. There we met a Father of our own Province,
Father McCarthy, who is working with the Irish Fathers as
the acknowledged expert on agriculture and fisheries in the
Colony, a most important position. We chatted for a while
about news of the English Province; and then took our leave,
reluctantly, as we had arranged to have lunch at Wah Yan
College (Kowloon), on the other side of the water, and the
morning was already far spent.
We recrossed the Ferry; and soon found ourselves face to
face with the College-another magnificent modern building,
if anything a bit too modern for my conservative taste. It
seemed at first rather confusing having two separate Colleges
both called by the same name; and I was inclined to put it
down as an instance of that inscrutable Celtic humor. There
is indeed a radical difference concealed beneath the superficial
�200
ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
similarity of names, the difference between old and new, ramshackle and modern; but apparently, to make confusion worse
confounded, even this difference is soon to disappear. For
the Rector of Wah Yan (Hong Kong) was telling us of plans
to move the College to another site in the town, with a building
even more modern than that of the sister College.
John Dove was not the only English Scholastic with a sister
in Hong Kong: he shared the honor with John Eckes. This
other sister we met, after leaving Wah Yan (Kowloon) that
evening. She had invited us out to dinner with her husband;
and when we called for them at their hotel, they took us to
the United Services Club and treated. us to a Chinese meal
complete with chopsticks. The meal was very tasty, but we
found ourselves seriously hampered by our instruments ; and
when the novelty had worn off, the temptation proved too
strong to lay them aside, and to carry on with the spoon which
had also been provided as a concession to human frailty.
Still it was our first meal with chopsticks, and as such a red~
letter day for our diaries-the first of many more to come.
As our ship was not due to leave till the following day, we
again spent the night at Wah Yan (Hong Kong), and again
enjoyed the advantage of Mass and Communion in the morning, a comfort we had been denied on board our pagan ship.
Then after breakfast we resumed our sight-seeing by driving
out to Aberdeen, a small fishing village on the other side of ..·
the island, to visit the Regional Seminary, staffed like Kandy
by our Fathers. The building turned out to be no less impressive than the Pontifical Seminary; and there was a view
over the little fishing harbor, with several islands in the
distance, not quite so grand, but no less beautiful in its own
way than the view at Kandy. We went for a swim in the bay
to give us an appetite for lunch; and after lunch Father
Rector showed us round-the rooms proving as austere from
the inside, as they looked impressive in their Chinese style
from without. We then took our leave of the community, in
order to rejoin our ship, which was due to sail that afternoon.
Manila
We did not quite know what to expect when we arrived at
Manila, not even whether the authorities would allow us to
�ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
201
land. But, as it turned out, we only had a few hours wait on
board, and all was clear for us to go ashore. We had secured
a couple of Jesuit addresses in the city, both in a street called
Herran. We chose one of them at random, and found ourselves at a House of Retreats, called La Ignaciana. There was
a retreat for the secular clergy going on at the time; and the
Father Minister there advised us to go further up the road, and
pay our respects to the Father Vice-Provincial. One of the
Brothers led the way for us; and we were soon being welcomed by the Vice-Provincial, Father Kennally, a very kindly
man. He spoke with us for a while about our destination to
Japan; and then introduced us to the Master of Novices, who
happened to come in at that moment. So it was arranged for
us to spend the night at the Noviciate at Novaliches.
On the way we stopped at another Jesuit House, Chabanel
Hall, which is the Language School and Philosophate of the
Chinese Missions in exile-consisting of former army huts,
communicating with each other over duckboards a foot above
the ground. The whole place breathed the pure spirit of
evangelical poverty, and would certainly have delighted the
heart of St. Ignatius, had he lived to see the day. When we
reached N ovaliches, the house was outlined in red against a
flaming sunset, a glorious sight. We had supper in the refectory with the Novices, crowds of them; and afterwards
met the Fathers at recreation.
Next morning we came down to Mass, arrayed in some white
soutanes which Father Minister had provided for us. Then,
after breakfast, Father Rector showed us all over the building-the only Jesuit House in and around Manila to escape
damage by the J aps during the war. A new wing had recently
been added for the Juniorate, another fine modern edifice of
the same type as Kingsmead Hall and Wah Yan (Kowloon).
Father Minister then drove us to our House at Areneta nearby,
the Noviciate and Juniorate of the Chinese Missions, to meet
Father Kou, whom I had known two years ago at Roehampton.
The building-if it can be dignified by that name-proved to
be even more evangelically poor than Chabanel, but the
Fathers and Brothers there were amazingly cheerful, and
hardly seemed to bother about the possibility of the roofs over
their heads being blown away by the next typhoon.
�202
ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
From there we drove on to the great showpiece of the Society in Manila, the Ateneo (Athenaeum or College). We
went straight to the refectory for lunch, as we had arrived
rather late; and two Filipino Scholastics took us under their
(metaphorical, as they wear soutanes, not gowns) wings, for
a tour of inspection. The buildings were very many, very
large and extremely modern, scattered over a spacious campus
(as they call it). The place where we had lunch was the
Faculty Building; then there were the College (in the American sense of the word), the four divisions of the High
School, each named after a Jesuit saint, the Grade School for
children, still in process of construction,_ ~nd, above all, the
Gymnasium. This last-mentioned building is, in fact, a vast
stadium, capable of holding 10,000 spectators on the occasion
of some important basketball game-which is the national
sport of the Filipinos: the place is almost another Olympia
or Empress Hall in size. In this context it hardly comes as
a surprise to hear that the Ateneo as a whole numbers upwards of 3,000 scholars, and that it is the leading school in the
Islands.
We were watching some boys playing at basketball with
astonishing energy in a large covered court, when we were
told that Father Provincial had come to fetch us. Apparently
our ship had anticipated the time of sailing by several hours,
on account of a typhoon in the neighborhood, called Ida; and
the Provincial had come in his car to take us back to our ship.
On our return we did what little we could to repay him for his
kindness, by showing him round the vessel-a brand-new
German cargo-liner on her maiden voyage.
Japan
The end and climax of our journey we reached after four
days at sea from Manila-four relatively calm days, with
hardly a trace of the threatened typhoon. Our actual entrance into Tokyo Bay was made memorable for us by a
glimpse of the slopes of Mt. Fuji outlined in gold against the
setting sun; while all around hung the rain-clouds-to remind
us of home. We did not, however, put into dock till early next
morning; and when we came on deck from our cabin, we
discovered that Father Minister with three Spanish Scholas-
�ENGLISH JESUITS GO EAST
203
tics from Taura had anticipated our coming, and were already on board to welcome us to the Land of the Rising Sun.
Father Rector himself also arrived half an hour later to greet
us. But when we stepped ashore, there was little sign of the
rising sun-only a steady drizzle, which lasted till we were
well clear of the customs and speeding along the road to
Yokosuka. We noticed how the roadside was lined with
wretched hovels the whole way; but we were told that the
ratio between the disreputable outside and the unseen interior
was exactly inverse.
About noon we reached the Language School, a former
American naval base, whose buildings, severely functional,
were already showing signs of decay and ruin. On entering
within the portals, we heard not a sound: the place was
plunged in silence-the silence, we found, of a community
retreat. Not all were in retreat, however; there were also
the Fathers, mostly German by nationality, who welcomed us
with great warmth, as well as. the three Spanish Scholastics,
who had arrived only a few days before ourselves. They all
exerted themselves to show us the utmost kindness; and in so
doing, showed in themselves the epitome of all the hospitality
we had experienced during our voyage out East. Up till the
present we had been, as it were, guests in strange houses,
albeit houses of one and the same Society; but now at last,
after six weeks homeless at sea, we were really at home and
felt at home. It was the final sentence of a most inspiring
lesson, the lesson of experience, teaching us the true meaning
of the Society of Jesus--:-its universality and its unity in the
love of His Sacred Heart.
JESUIT MEDICAL REMEDIES
In the Archives at Woodstock is Father Charles Sewall's copy of the
Ordo for the year, 1791, printed in London by J. P. Coghlan. On page
29, the printer lists a number of medicines which he has prepared and
has for sale. Of interest are the following:
The Jesuits Balsamic Cordial, Price One Shilling the Bottle, (Duty
included) Which is an effectual Remedy for the most violent internal
Pains in the Stomach or Bowels, whether they proceed from Gripes,
�204
JESUIT MEDICAL REMEDIES
Cholick, or even Convulsions; and is good in almost all Disorders to
which Women are subject. They are particularly serviceable in any
Complaints of the Nerves, Fevers, Head-ache, Internal Bleeding, Hurts
or Wounds, and withal so innocent in the Composition, that Children
may take it, though they be ever so young, without the least Danger of
getting Cold; and those who are obliged to follow dangerous or unwholesome Trades or to visit where there are infectious Diseases-Painters,
Plumbers, &c. or that are subject to take Cold-would do well to fortify
their Stomach with this Cordial as a Preventative in such Cases.
Directions for the Use. Give a new-born Infant Six or Eight Drops
in a Teaspoonful of Water; and, if you find not the Relief expected
within half an hour, increase the Number of Drops, but not the Quantity
of Water, and so on every half hour, till the _Child breaks Wind. The
same Method is to be made use of when an Upirown Person takes them,
only that the Quantity to be taken by them ~is, a Tea-spoonful of the
Cordial to double that Quantity of Water.
The Jesuits Nervous Pills, Price only One Shilling the Box, including
the Duty. Which contains Ten Pills, calculated to prevent or extirpate
every Disorder of the Nerves, and are effectual against Palsies, Apoplexies, and most of the Diseases attending the human Frame.
Medicated Snuff. A Cephalic of many Virtues, prepared from the
Original Receipt found in the Jesuits Library, Price One Shilling a
Bottle, including the Duty.
This Preparation, if the Bottle be close stopped, will be good for many
years, and is a sovereign remedy in all_ Disorders to which the Head is
subject, and where no Medicine will ascend it gives relief; taking a few
pinches daily, particularly the first thing in a Morning, and the last at
Night; or if mixed with other Snuff, besides the fragrancy, it will participate of all the Virtues. It prevents or removes all the dismal effects
of Apoplexies, and every kind of Stupefaction, Dropsy, or Scurvy in the ·•
Brain; gouty, rheumatic, nervous, or hysterical Complaints; Agues,
Fevers attended with any Sort of malignancy, such as Small Pox,
Measles, putrid, spotted Fevers, &c. Giddiness, Deafness, swelling of the
Glands, dimness of Sight; and in cases of drowned Persons, where the
Body has not been immersed in the Water too long, if put into boiled
Vinegar, and rubbed with Flannel, about the Nostrils, Temples, Belly,
Arm-pits, &c. will promote or effect a speedy Recovery.
The True St. Ignatius, or Jesuits Bean, Price Five Shillings each.
Which being steeped for Three or Four Hours in a Glass of Water, affords a most excellent Bitter, which when taken inwardly, fortifies and
strengthens the Stomach, promotes Appetite and Digestion, repels unwholesome and infectious Air, Fevers, Agues, &c. and, by washing the
Mouth daily therewith, prevents or cures the Scurvy or other Disorders
in the Teeth and Gums; whilst a long and. constant Use causes but very
little Waste in the Bean itself.
NOTE: Father Sewall was a Jesuit on the Maryland Mission. He was
born in 1744, entered the Society in 1764, and died in Maryland, Novem·
ber 10, 1806.
�How Electricity Came to Woodstock
WILLIAM
C.
REPETTI,
S.J.
In August, 1918, a new Father Minister was appointed at
Woodstock. The war was still on, coal was becoming difficult
to obtain, and carbide, used for acetylene gas in the toilets,
corridors, refectory and chapel, was rapidly increasing in
price. Moreover, acetylene was an unsatisfactory source of
illumination, being very hard on the eyes. Kerosene was increasing in price, the lamps were a continual nuisance in the
age of electricity, and a great source of heat in the top floor
rooms.
Father Minister called a meeting of the beadles and subs
and a few mature theologians to discuss ways and means of
econom1zmg. Committees were appointed to investigate
clothing, food, heat and light. Mr. William Storck was detailed to the last two. He, in turn, discussed them with the
writer. We considered the use of oil in place of coal but the
prospects were not good. We were near a coal-producing
area, and located on a coal-carrying railroad. Tank trucks
had not been introduced to any great extent, if at all. If we
decided to use oil we would have to lay a pipe line from the
Woodstock siding and pump the oil from a tank car to the
boiler house, or possibly have it shipped in barrels and then
hauled up the hill from the siding, just as with coal.
We then turned to the installation of electricity. I went to
the power company in Baltimore but got no satisfaction.
There were only two possibilities. There was a line from
Ellicott City to Alberton (Daniels) to supply the mills and
this line was used just about to capacity. Any further load
Would necessitate enlarging the line from a substation outside
of Baltimore, and the company was not interested in doing
this. The other possibility was a line from Pikesville to
Woodstock; but Pikesville was already carrying a good load.
The company had surveyed our area as far as Marriotsville
and would not undertake an installation at their own expense.
The only way in which we could obtain a line was on the same
terms as those under which Harrisonville had obtained current; we would have to pay for it and get our money back in
rebates from future customers.
�206
ELECTRICITY COl\IES TO WOODSTOCK
Secondhand Equipment
We then began to plan our own installation. Mr. Storck's
brother, who was in business in Baltimore, suggested that we
get in touch with the Standard Electric and Equipment Company, with which he had satisfactory dealings. Secondhand
units seemed to be the quickest way of getting results. A wait
of six months or a year would be involved in having units
made to order and the cost would have been $5,000 or more.
We also believed that we could save a large amount of money
by doing the work of installation and wiring by ourselves.
The Standard Company offered us a 40 kw direct connected
set for $1,200, guaranteeing it to be in 'first class mechanical
and electrical condition. We were told that it had come
from the Mount Royal Apartment House. Our next move
was a visit to the Apartment House to interview the engineer.
He said he knew the set well. There had been a pair. The
other one was good. "Don't take the one the Standard has;
it is a steam eater." Mr. Storck took William and me to his
house for dinner and we talked over the situation. We decided to take a chance on the set. The engineer might have
had a grudge against the compa;..y. Mr. Storck had found
it to be reliable. If we passed up this chance there was
no telling how much longer we would have to wait. With the
approval of superiors the deal was closed, but not before ..
Father John Brosnan was sent down to look at the set and
give his approval. I talked over my plan with the electrician
of the Standard Company and he approved of drop cord
lighting with wood molding. It was the cheapest and yet
would be approved by the fire underwriters.
The generator set ( 40 kw) was delivered and we began the
actual work on November 13, 1918, by digging the hole in the
engine room for the pier. I commenced the wiring at the
north end, the fourth floor, philosophers' wing, i.e., at the
north end of Pipe Alley. I was helped by Father J. MahoneY
and Messrs. R. Schmitt, J. Brown, A. Bleicher, E. Kenna. As
soon as they learned the method of ·installation I put each of
them to work separately with a helper. Mr. Cashell, the carpenter, made a stage with rollers that was of the proper height
to work on the ceilings of the first, second, and third floors
and he did a large amount of the molding work in the rooms
�ELECTRICITY COMES TO WOODSTOCK
207
on those floors. Father Martin Schmitt drilled almost all of
the holes through the brick partitions on the theologians' side.
Metal conduits were laid under the basement floor and Father
Deppermann relaid all of the bricks. Father Abell, of the
Southern Province, did the metal molding in the old class
rooms. He worked during recreation after dinner, and later
on suffered from a fallen stomach, probably induced by his
work, the only casualty we had.
The Fathers' rooms were wired during the Christmas vacation. The domestic chapel was the most tedious job. The
refectory was wired in one day. All necessary material was
gathered and all hands worked all day. Most of the work of
installing the generator set, switchboard and main lines
through the tunnel was done on Thursdays and holidays. Just
when we had finished pouring the concrete of the pier, Mr.
Pfisterer, the agent of the Standard Company, rushed into the
engine room to tell us that a mistake had been made in the
plan; the two outermost bolts of the dynamo were about six
inches too far out. We had to dig away the fresh concrete
and move the bolts back. When we bolted together the engine
and dynamo Mr. Pfisterer pointed out the punch marks of the
two flanges. This fact served us well later on when we had
trouble with the Company about the set.
Trouble With Engine
When the engine was first started we had a man from the
company present and after a few revolutions there was a
bang, something rattled around in the flywheel and the engine
stopped. The rocker arm of valve rods had snapped, and one
of the governor stops had broken. These were taken to
Baltimore and welded and returned. When ready to start the
Company man was afraid to take the throttle because it was
in line with the flywheel and he was afraid of being hit by
something. I had to start the engine, and the same thing
happened as before. The engineer then told his helper to
remove the valve chest cover. It was clogged with grease
and dirt so that the valve could not keep up with the piston
and as a result the flywheel governor drove against the valve
rod 'and then smashed one of its stops. It was evident that
the engine had not been put in shape by the Standard Com-
�208
ELECTRICITY COl\IES TO WOODSTOCK
, pany. The rocker arm was welded again, the valve chest
cleaned and the engine ran properly.
Then it was noticed that there was a flicker in the lights.
The engineer blamed it on the dynamo. An electrician was
sent for but he could find nothing wrong and blamed it on the
engine. The engineer still blamed it on the dynamo. Mr.
Pfisterer came out, tried to find loose bolts and then blamed
the engine. The engineer came back and made indicator tests.
He was not very adept at it and a genius would have been
required to make anything out of the diagrams.
In the meantime we had gotten a 20 kw set from Philadelphia through the father of Wilfred and~Robert Parsons. It
was an old set but had been put in first class condition with
extra heavy new bearings. The Standard Company asked us
to put off a decision on their set until we had the 20 kw set
running and made a comparison. We did so and the smaller
set worked perfectly. The Standard Company was then notified that their set would not be accepted because it did not
fulfill the conditions which they had guaranteed. They wrote
a letter trying to shift the blame to us. They had one sentence, about seven lines long, enumerating all the possible
defects they could think of: installed by inexperienced persons,
dynamo not correctly connected to engine, unreliable drop
cord lighting, etc., etc. I replied to each phrase; their Mr.
Pfisterer was present when we set the machines ; he pointed
out the punch marks showing the proper joining; their electrician had approved of drop cord lighting, etc., etc.
A New Engine
Then they asked for one more test: to excite the field of
their dynamo from the small dynamo. I agreed. When their
electricians came out and I asked some questions, they replied:
"We are not authorized to say anything." The test was a
failure. The flicker remained and they agreed to take back
the set and refund our money. They asked for $100 in view
of the fact that we had the set for about four months before
putting it into use. We agreed. On July 4, 1919, the set
was removed from the pier and rolled to the door to be taken
away. The defect was probably insufficient weight in the flywheel to overcome a probable lack of balance in the governor.
�ELECTRICITY COMES TO WOODSTOCK
20S
With the 40 kw set gone, it was necessary to look for another one. Mr. Parsons offered us a 25 kw set that had been
in a New York brewery for four years before Prohibition. It
was in good condition and was shipped down from Philadelphia by truck. Mr. McCampbell, an engineer, was sent down to
check the installation. He lived in the house and was highly
impressed by the spirit of the scholastics. The truck arrived
at 3:00P.M. and at 9:00P.M. we had the set on the pier. The
installation was completed in about a week, and the set gave
satisfaction. We also installed a feed water heater which we
obtained from Mr. Parsons. An additional feed water pump
was also put in. The Green House, the White House, the
refrigerator motor and bake shop were fed from a box at the
north end of the basement corridor. This was supplied by
two lead covered cables laid across the lawn, about one foot
underground.
When two underwriters' inspectors came to pass on the job
they did not arrive until about 12:30 P.M. and I had been
planning to catch the 2 :30 train. I took them to the engine
room, then through the basement and showed them the risers,
and then some molding. They also saw the platform of the
movie machine. At the first opportunity I told them that I had
expected to catch the 2 :30 train and they said they intended
to do the same. They were satisfied with a look at each type
of work. I met them at the station and they told me they
Would be out of a job if all installations were as good as ours.
The most faithful workers were Messrs. R. Schmitt, Brown,
Bleicher, Kenna and English.
Mr. Schmitt was the
only theologian who persevered through the entire job. Mr.
Kenna was the most efficient and practical. A total of 75 or
80 fathers and theologians worked at various times at different
tasks. I had estimated $5,000 as the cost of the job and
When Father Provincial came for visitation he came to the
door of the engine room one day and asked if I expected to
keep within my estimate. I did not keep an account of the
expenses; I left that to the procurator, if he wished to do so.
One consultor said that it was worth anything to get the imProvement into the house. During most of the time that
electricity was being put in, Messrs. Muenzen and Downey
Were engaged in installing a new telephone system. This
�210
ELECTRICITY COl\IES TO WOODSTOCK
was not included in the estimate for lights. Another extra
item was a motor driven pump at the foot of the hill. This
was a failure. Mr. Parsons' engineer made the calculation.
The pump would put water into the tanks in the towers but
not in sufficient quantity.
BOOKS FOR THE IGNATIAN! YEAR
The story of the first Jesuit Mission to North America and its numerour martyrs: Felix Zubil!aga, S.J.-La Florida (1941). Price: $3.25.
The history of the early Jesuit Missions in the Orient, beginning with
Xavier (1542-1564): Alessandro Valignano, S.J.-Historia del principio
y progresso de lq, Campania de JesUs en las Indias Orientales. Edited
by J. Wicki, S.J. (1944). Price: $4.00.
An historical account of the Spiritual Exercises. Two volumes have
thus far been published: the first takes in the life of St. Ignatius; the
second, from his death to the publication of the first official directory.
Ignacio lparraguirre, S.J.-Practica de los Ejercicios (1946); Historia
de los Ejercicios (1955). Price: $2.15 and $4.00 respectively.
The classic treatise on the spirituality of the Society that has received
universal praise: J. de Guibert, S.J.-La Spiritualite de la Compagnie
de Jesus ( 1953). Of it Father J. Harding Fisher, S.J ., says, "This is a
monumental work which should be in every Jesuit library and, in fact, .
in every important library"; Father C. C. Martindale, S.J., "Never, in ..
England at least, has so vivid a portrait of Ignatius been painted, and
one so totally different from that to which we mostly are accustomed";
Father A. G. Ellard, S.J., "This is a very excellent work, and one that
will surely be indispensable for students, not only of Jesuit asceticism
and mysticism, but also of modern Catholic spirituality." Price: $5.00.
'The historic prelude to the suppression of the Society by a collaborator
of Ludwig von Pastor: W. Kratz, S.J., El tratado hispano-portugues de
limites de 1750 (1954). Price: $4.00.
How Jesuit arichtecture began: P. Pirri, S.J., G. Tristano e i prirnordi
della architettura gesuitica ( 1955). Price: $4.00.
A glimpse of our early Southwest: E. J. Burrus, S.J.-Kino Reports
to Headquarters (1954). Spanish text with English translation of
Kino's letters to Rome. For the reference library, Latin American History department and advanced Spanish classes. Price: $1.85.
10% discount to Ours; 20% to subscribers of series. Bound copies
one dollar extra. Payment by ordinary check or order may be put on
Province account at Curia in Rome. Order from: E. J. Burrus, S.J.,
Institutum Historicum S.J., Via dei Penitenzieri 20, Rome, Italy.
�Introduction To The Spiritual Exercises
IGNACIO IPARRAGUIRRE,
S.J.
Foreword
These notes are intended primarily for the use of theological
students and young priests who, convinced that they have in
the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius a truly effective instrument in the work of the apostolate, are studying during their
years of training how they may put this God-given instrument
to proper use in their ministry. These pages had their origin
as supplementary notes for courses given to theological students and young priests in Spain and in Italy. As it was for
them that these notes were first written, so it is for them,
and others like them, that they are published.
By their very nature these notes are schematic and highlycondensed outlines. Much as the Exercises themselves, they
are not meant to be read through hurriedly, but rather to be
studied slowly and reflectively. They are meant to present
an outline; it is for classes, seminars and later study to fill in
the details. They are intended to indicate problems that
should be worked out, to serve as an introduction to the
commentaries that should be read, as an orientation for all
the work that must be undertaken by those who desire to
arrive at a mastery of the technique of the Exercises.
My aim here is to indicate, and merely to indicate, not to
explain or develop at length, the essential lines of the Ignatian
method. I shall point out the principal difficulties and the
crucial problems that will be met. I hope the young director
may thus have at hand from the start a safe guide that will
enable him to avoid the loss of precious time and effort.
I have tried to make use of the ideas and the experience of
-
This article is a translation of the brochure entitled Lineas Directivas
de los Ejercicios lgnacianos (Bilbao, 1949). Father Catalino Arevalo
of the Philippine Vice Province made the translation with the author's
Permission. The volume, Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu: Exercitia et Directoria, Madrid, 1919, is referred to as follows: MH Ex. with
the page. Numbers in brackets refer to the numeration of paragraphs
of the Exercises adopted by MHSI in 1928. Some English titles have
been introduced into the bibliographies. Father Arevalo was assisted
in his work by Father Victor Leeber and Father Alfonso Tuii6n.
�212
INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
the great masters; I have followed them wherever I could. It
can be truthfully said that these pages are merely brief summaries of the very fine things I have found in their great
works. Only a few of them cannot call me their debtor!
Whenever I thought the brevity of these notes allowed it, I
have allowed the masters to speak in their own words.
Introductory Bibliography
The Text
The authoritative edition, found in the Monumenta Historica Societatis J esu, Exercitia et Directoria, Madrid, 1919,
contains: a reproduction of the manuscript copy used by St.
Ignatius--the original text has been lost; this text is called
"the autograph" because it contains emendations made in the
Saint's own hand; the two Latin translations approved by
Pope Paul III on July 31, 1548,--one probably St. Ignatius'
own translation, the second Father des Freux's more elegant
Latin version; a third, exact literal translation made by Father
Roothaan.
Editions
Morris, John, Text of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius,
Newman Press, Westminster, Md., 1934. Mullan, Elder, The
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, Kenedy, New York, 1914.
Rickaby, Joseph, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
Loyola, Spanish and English, 2nd ed., Benziger, New York,
1923. Langridge, W. H., The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, Mowbray, London, 1919. Ambruzzi, Aloysius,
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, Mangalore, 1931.
Puhl, Louis J., The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, Newman Press, Westminster, Md., 1951.
In the volume of the M onumenta cited above will also be
found the principal Directories written in the sixteenth century by Jesuits who were closely associated with St. Ignatius.
Of particular interest are those of Fathers Polanco, Gil Gonzalez Davila, Cordeses (published under the title of Directorium Granatense) and the official Directory of 1599.
Genesis of the Exercises
· It is now known that St. Ignatius wrote the substance of
the Spiritual Exercises at Manresa in 1522 but in the form
··
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
213
of notes made for his own personal use. During the next ten
years he gave them more definitive form, and during the remaining years of his life he kept working on the book, perfecting it even in its details. The influence of some authors
(especially that of Ludolph, the Carthusian author of the
Vita Christi, of Jacobo de Voragine, Thomas A. Kempis, and
other representative writers of the devotio moderna) has been
found in the Exercises, but these various influences affect
the work only slightly. The core and substance of his spiritual
teaching came from the extraordinary illumination of soul
which he received at Manresa. The most recent monographs
dealing with these questions are: Hugo Rahner, The Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola (translated from the German by
Francis J. Smith, S.J.), Newman Press, Westminster, 1953,
a valuable and illuminating synthesis; Henry Pinard de Ia
Boullaye, Les etapes de la redaction des Exercises deS. Ignace,
Beauchesne, Paris, 1950, and Pedro de Leturia, "Genesis de
los Ejercicios de San Ignacio y su influjo en la fundaci6n de
Ia Compaiiia de Jesus," Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu,
X (1941), 16-59.
History of the Exercises
H. Bernard, Essai historique sur les Exercises spirituels de
S. Ignace, 1521-1599, Louvain, Museum Lessianum, 1926-a
rapid survey, with some striking, but not always well founded,
ideas. Ignacio Iparraguirre, Historia de la practica de los
Ejercicios de San Ignacio: I Practica de los Ejercicios en vida
de su autor (1522-1556), Rome-Bilbao, 1946; II Desde la
muerte de San Ignacio hasta la promulgaci6n del Directorio
oficial (1556-1599), Rome-Bilbao, 1954.
Studies on the Theory of the Exercises
The most important commentator of the Spiritual Exercises is Father Luis de la Palma (1556-1641). His classic
Work is Camino espiritual de la manera que lo enseiia el B. P.
San Ignacio en su libro de Ejercicios, Madrid, 1944.
Also worthy of special mention among the early commentators are:
Achille Gagliardi (1535-1607), Commentarii seu explanationes in Exercitia spiritualia, Bruges, 1882, and Francisco
�214
INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
Suarez (1548-1617), De religione, tract. x, lib. ix, cap. 5-7
(Vol. 16 of the Opera Omnia), Paris, 1856-61.
Other authors who have also written excellent commentaries are:
Antoine Le Gaudier (1572-1622), Gaspar de Figuera (d.
1637), Nicholas Lancicius (1574-1652), Ignatius Diertins
(1626-1700), Aloys Bellecius (1704-1757), Balthasar de Moncada (1683-1768).
Since these notes are intended to be practical and schematic
in form, we cite only the very best authors.
Among the modern commentaries, th_e ~ most useful are:
Jose Calveras, The Harvest Field of the Spiritual Exercises
of St. Ignatius (translated from the Spanish by J. H. Gense),
Bombay, 1949. Roig de Gironella, Teoria de los Ejercicios
Espirituales, 2nd ed., a digest-adaptation of Father Calveras'
profound work, Barcelona, 1952.
Francesco Calcagno,
Ascetica Ignaziana, "Documenta," Marietti, Turin, 1936.
We may also mention here the names of Ponlevoy, Mercier,
Meschler, Marchetti, Ferrusola, Denis, Nonell, and among recent writers, Valensin, Pinard deJa Boullaye, Monier, Marchetti, Orsini, and Sierp.
Commentaries on the Exercises
Another group of commentators not only explain the theory
of the Exercises but also give developments of the meditations, the notes, and other sections of the book. These commentaries are very useful when one is preparing the points
for meditation to be given during retreat.
Among the modern commentaries of this type, we wish to
single out the following:
In Spanish: Ignacio Casanovas, Comentario y explanacion
de los Ejercicios Espirituales de San Ignacio. Spanish translation by Pedro N. Isla and Manuel Quera. 6 volumes. Editorial Balmes, Barcelona, 1945-1948. Antonio Oraa, Ejercicios Espirituales de San Ignacio de Loyola. Explanacion de
las meditaciones y documentos en ellos contenidos, 5th ed.,
Madrid, 1954. Antonio Encinas, Los Ejercicios de San Ignacio, explanaci6n y comentario manual, "Sal Terrae," Santander, 1952.
In Latin: Franz von Hummelauer (d. 1914), Meditationurn
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
215
et contemplationum S. Ignatii de Loyola Puncta, 2nd edition,
Freiburg, 1909. English translation, Points for the Meditations and Contemplations of St. Ignatius of Loyola, new and
revised edition, Newman Press, 1954.
In German: Moritz Meschler (d. 1912), Daz Exerzitienbuch
des hl. Ignatius von Loyola erkliirt und in Betrachtungen
vorgelegt, 2 tie., Freiburg, 1925-26.
In English: Joseph Rickaby (d. 1932), The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, in Spanish and English, with a
continuous commentary, 2nd ed., Benziger, New York, 1923.
There are innumerable other commentaries on the Exercises: more than 800 authors have written commentaries or
developments on the book. We may mention:
Aloysius Ambruzzi, The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius,
Mangalore, 1931, and A Companion to the Spiritual Exercises,
Coldwell, London, 1931.
Joseph Rickaby, Waters That Go Softly, London, Burns
Oates and Washbourne, 1923.
Georges Longhaye, An Eight-Day Retreat, translated into
English by Bertram Wolferstan, Kenedy, New York, 1929.
·
Bucceroni, Ubillos, Rosa, de Boylesve.
I
Bibliographies
Most useful as a guide for study is the bibliography published by Father E. Reitz von Frentz, Exerzitien-Bibliographie,
Freiburg, 1940. The catalogues of the Spiritual Exercises
libraries at Enghien and Loyola, published by Fathers H.
Watrigant and A. Oraa respectively, although compiled for a
different purpose, may also prove useful as a tool for study.
The review Manresa (Barcelona) publishes a classified listing of books and articles relating to the Exercises of Saint
Ignatius.
The commentaries of Fathers Oraa, Pinard de la Boullaye,
and Orsini contain ample bibliographies. Father Pinard's
bibliography has very useful annotations and brief evaluations of the works listed.
For a brief and systematic survey of the principal modern
studies regarding the Exercises, with some observations on
current trends, we may refer the reader to our articles in
Manresa, "Orientaciones sobre la literatura de los Ejercicios
�216
INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
de San Ignacio en los tres ultimos decenios," 20 (1948) pp.
343-358, 21 (1949) 257-278. A brief annotated bibliography
will be found in Obras Completas de San Ignacio de Loyola,
Madrid, 1952, pp. 143-149.
Father Canuto H. Marin, in his Enchiridion of the Exercises, Spiritualia Exercitia secundum Romanorum Pontificum
Documenta, Libreria Religiosa, Barcelona, 1941, has gathered
together nearly 600 pronouncements of the Roman Pontiffs
relating to the Exercises, together with statements of Cardinals, Bishops, and Superiors of Religious Orders. His explanatory notes accompanying the text. are scholarly and at
'
times very instructive.
PART ONE
TRAINING OF A DIRECTOR OF THE EXERCISES
Fundamental Steps:
1. A clear and complete knowledge of the internal structure
of the Exercises.
2. A profound and vital assimilation of St. Ignatius' main
directive principles and of the spiritual teaching contained in
the book of the Exercises.
3. Competence and skill in applying these principles and
this teaching to the needs of the exercitant. This calls for
qualities which have direct bearing on the Ignatian method, -·
as well as other qualities of a more general nature with which
we shall not deal in this work, v.g., the difficult art of conversation, the command of an audience, the use of appropriate
style and choice of words, the ·study of public speaking, the
necessary knowledge of psychology, pedagogy and asceticism.
None of these elements can be omitted in the formation of
a director of the Exercises.
This formation must therefore include: continual and
fervent prayer to Our Lord, Our Lady, the guardian angels
of the exercitants, St. Ignatius and Blessed Peter Faber as
patrons of the Exercises, etc.
.
The art of spiritual direction belongs to the supernatural
order. For even the slightest step forward in this art, grace
is necessary. This necessary grace must be gained by humble
petition.
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
217
Personal understanding of the principles and methods of
the Exercises, by putting them into practice in one's daily life.
Systematic and progressive study of the Ignatian technique.
It is this point that we will develop in these notes.
Study of the Text
Method of study (from the Letter of Very Reverend Father
General Luis Martin, March 1st, 1900) : study the book of the
Exercises with earnestness and diligence, reflect and meditate
on it; try to penetrate the full meaning of the text itself and
to comprehend it; strive for a clear understanding of the
common and primary purpose of the Exercises as a whole;
strive for a clear understanding of the end proper to each
week; strive for a clear understanding of the end proper to
each individual exercise; investigate thoroughly with regard
to the various exercises: the particular force and efficacy of
each one; how the affections may be moved and the will drawn
to the end proposed; their mutual connection and interdependence; try not to neglect or undervalue any document of
the text; finally, try to bring to light all the riches hidden
away in this treasure-house of the spiritual life.
A project of these proportions requires "long, diligent and
tireless study" (Father Martin). If the method of study
proposed by Father Martin seems to be exaggerated, we must
realize that the work in hand consists in digging out from
closely compressed passages a wealth of profound spiritual
treasure.
For we find in this pithy little book, "Todo lo mejor que yo
en esta vida puedo sentir, pensar y entender, asi para el
hombre poderse aprovechar a si mismo, como para poder
fructificar, ayudar y aprovechar a otros muchos" (St. Ignatius). "Omnia quae ad spiritualem instructionem et interiorem animae salutem conducere possint" (Suarez). "Perfectionem et quidem eius apicem" (Becanus).
Practical Norms for This Study
1. The most fruitful method for arriving at a profound
understanding of St. Ignatius' thought is to collate and study
Parallel passages, that is, texts which express the same idea
in different ways. St. Ignatius' language is terse and highly
concise. To make it yield its full meaning, one must examine
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
the varying ways in which St. Ignatius expresses the same
essential thought. One will thus become cognizant of precise
shades of meaning and important nuances which underlie
many of his expressions. The safest way of deepening one's
understanding of St. Ignatius' thought is to track down the
exact sense of his words and expressions. A useful guide for
this kind of study is the word-index compiled by Father Calveras, Ejercicios espirituales, Directorio y Documentos, Barcelona, 1944.
2. Look for the relation of each phrase with the meditation
as a whole. Only by examining each expression in its context
shall we be sure that we are interpreting, its sense correctly;
only thus shall we discover the secret of St. Ignatius' technique.
3. To arrive at an understanding of the purpose of each
day, each week, etc., we have at hand a safe guide in the study
of the various petitions and colloquies, in which St. Ignatius
customarily indicates the end which he is seeking. It is very
helpful to compare the petition and the colloquy of one meditation with the petition and colloquy of the next, noting their
gradual progression.
4. To grasp the inclusive pattern which St. Ignatius ordinarily employs, developing an idea or bringing the will
gradually to a point where it will decide to do what it sees as
most pleasing to God, it will be necessary to study attentively
how the various additions, instructions, notes, meditations,
are linked and co-ordinated with one another and with the
general purpose of the Exercises.
5. Briefly, "the director must be thoroughly familiar with
the book ... and every time he reads it, he will draw fresh
light and understanding from it" (Official Directory, c. 8,
n. 4).
On Explaining the Exercises during Retreat
1. It is most necessary that the text of the Exercises be
thoroughly understood. However, gi~ing the Exercises is not
the same thing as giving an exposition of the sense of such
and such a paragraph.
2. For the director, the study of the Exercises must precede
the retreat; for the retreatant, this study is something he
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
219
should do later. The retreatant has to have confidence in the
director, as the Presupposition requires him to have. The
retreat is not the time for discussion, but for growth in the
spiritual life.
3. The retreat should be so given that it will be evident to
the retreatant that the director has a mastery of the book of
the Exercises and a real understanding of each section, each
meditation, each document in the book. The retreatant should
not get the painful impression that the director is wearily
and laboriously fighting his way through an impossible maze
of quotations and texts.
4. Regarding the use of philological and historical references, we do not say that they should be altogether excluded,
but we do wish to indicate that they are to be used only when,
and inasmuch as, they are necessary. It may, for instance, be
judged necessary to have recourse to them when, either because of the type of retreatant or because of special circumstances, these references would really help to hold the attention
of the audience or to bring out the sense of a particularly
difficult passage.
5. The director's ordinary procedure should be to go directly to the heart of St. Ignatius' thought, to what the text
itself means. Delaying on the words, or on the forms of
expression, is always an obstacle to progress. The words of
the text are meant to be vehicles of the thought; attention is
brought to bear on them only insofar as this will lead us to
the thought.
THE IGNATIAN METHOD
1. The Exercises must be genuinely and authentically Ignatian. "The Exercises of St. Ignatius will always be one of
the most efficacious means for the spiritual regeneration of
the world and for the establishment of true world order, but
only if they remain authentically Ignatian" (Pius XII, 27
October 1948). In general, this should be said: the annotations, directions and rules, the entire method of giving the
Exercises as it is given in the book of the Exercises, ought
to be followed closely. It was St. Ignatius' own teaching that
if this is properly done, abundant fruit will be gathered from
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
these meditations; but if the prescribed method be neglected,
very little benefit will be gained (Gil Gonzalez).
2. Being genuinely Ignatian does not mean a word-forword, mechanical parroting of the text. Paradoxical as it
may seem, it would be un-Ignatian in most cases to give the
Exercises in this way. This would be to use the text for
something not at all intended by St. Ignatius, who wrote the
book for the director. In it he gives the director the general
structure, the framework,. the plan of the fundamental elements and the guiding principles. Just to read out the Exercises as St. Ignatius wrote them would be like serving
unprepared and uncooked food to the retr.eatant. There would
be lacking one element which to St. Ignatius' mind is an
essential one, one which is part of the director's duty: the
adaptation of each meditation to the present condition of the
retreatant.
3. The text should serve as a guiding-light leading us in
our effort to enter into the mind of St. Ignatius. We may
point out in passing what Pope Paul III himself suggested:
that the enduring and timeless efficaciousness of the Exercises
springs from the fact that what St. Ignatius' masterful pages
give us is really the purest doctrine of the Gospels. An anonymous writer of the sixteenth century had already described
the Exercises as "the Gospel itself set forth in systematic and
practical order to teach men how to pray well and live well." -·
To study the text of the Exercises in the light of the Gospels
is really to penetrate into St. Ignatius' mind and to draw, as
he did, from the same lifegiving and fruitful source of action.
4. To be truly Ignatian one should not delay on the surface,
so to speak, of the text; one must go beyond it into the mind
of St. Ignatius, to the mainsprings of his spirituality. Only
after we have steeped ourselves in the Ignatian ways of thinking and even reacting, can we, without fear of mistake or
danger of distorting the Saint's real teaching, apply the
method of the Exercises to the needs of each soul and draw
from the spirituality of the Exercises what is best for each
retreatant.
5. Briefly, the Ignatian method is not the mechanical repetition of the text of the Exercises, but-always with "fidelity
to its spirit and method" (Pius XII)-the judicious and ap-
�INTRODUCI'ION TO THE EXERCISES
221
propriate application of its essential teaching to the needs of
each retreatant, so that he may put order into his life and
work out the problems he has in his spiritual life. The more
perfectly one assimilates from the Exercises the mentality of
St. Ignatius-his attitudes, judgments, evaluations, and even
reactions-the better will he be able to communicate to souls
the basic life-giving truths which the Exercises contain.
6. This communication can be effected only if the essential
elements of the Exercises are given, and application of these
made, in the way intended by St. Ignatius. Otherwise we
would have not an adaptation, but a distortion, perhaps even
a deplorable mutilation of the Exercises.
The Congress of the Spiritual Exercises held in Barcelona
in 1941 defined what elements have traditionally been considered as essential, in order that the Spiritual Exercises may
be made in conformity with the Ignatian method. These
elements are :
1. The purpose or end of the Exercises. This is indicated
in the text [1, 21, 233].
2. Steps for the attainment of this end. These are: acceptance of the ideal (Principle and Foundation) ; purification of
soul through contrition· (First Week); total self-oblation to
Christ (Kingdom); knowledge and love of Christ (Second
Week) ; establishment of order in the three powers of the
soul: understanding (Two Standards), will (Three Classes),
heart (Degrees of Humility); election or reformation of one's
way of life; an introduction to the contemplation of the Passion and the Resurrection; life of union and familiarity with
God (Contemplation for Obtaining Love) ; providing means
for further spiritual progress (Methods of Prayer, General
Examen, etc.).
3. Manner of application: prayerfulness and recollection,
in the perfect degree described by St. Ignatius; diligent personal activity during the meditations; impetration of grace
(Colloquies, petitions, penances).
4. Self-examination: watchfulness over oneself throughout
the day (Particular Examen); especially regarding the meditations (Reflection on the meditation) ; constant attentiveness
to the inner motions of grace.
5. The necessary instructions and explanations regarding
the end and the steps for attaining the end of the Exercises.
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INTRODUCfiON TO THE EXERCISES
ADAPTATION
Adaptation, rightly understood, constitutes, as is well
known, one of the basic elements of the Ignatian system; but
it is also one of the most difficult to handle rightly. If the
necessary adaptation is not made, the truths of the Exercises
will not be judiciously applied, and thus they will not produce
the desired results. If, on the other hand, one is led to the
opposite extreme by an excessive desire for adaptation, the
genuine spirit of the Exercises is watered down and the effects
intended by St. Ignatius will not be obtp.Ined.
"To depart in greater or lesser measure from the genuine
Exercises of St. Ignatius merely for the sake of variety and
adaptation and still expect the fruit which the Exercises are
wont to produce would be an illusion" (P. Ledochowski).
Pius XII warns against the double danger in this matter:
either to dilute the Exercises "in the colorless waters of excessive adaptation," or-the more serious danger-to remove
"some essential parts from the Ignatian system." It is often
the temptation of originality, "an excessive preoccupation
with novelty both in one's language and in one's presentation"
(Toni), that leads us to this extreme.
Adaptation is difficult principally because there are so many
variable factors involved in each retreat. One must have
considerable experience, prudence and knowledge of circumstances if one is to adapt the Exercises skillfully and successfully. Here we can set down only general principles, pointing
out what factors must be taken into account if this problem
of adaptation is to be solved satisfactorily. The concrete
circumstances, as we have already indicated, will influence
the manner of adaptation. These factors are: the natural
capabilities, temperament, health, character, education, and
circumstances of life of each retreatant [18-20] ; the purpose
or end intended in this particular retreat; the choice of the
subject-matter, which must meet the needs of the retreatant
and be adapted to his concrete reactions [ 4, 17] ; the concrete
conditions of the retreatant's spiritual life, the way in which
he brings these conditions to bear on his spiritual growth.
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�INTRODUCI'ION TO THE EXERCISES
223
QUALITIES OF THE IDEAL DIRECTOR
One who aspires to be a director of the Exercises should
keep in mind the qualities which a director should possess, so
that all during his years of training he may keep striving to
reach the ideal set before him. In general, these qualities may
be reduced to two: light and inspiration of the Holy Spirit,
and natural gifts developed through training and experience.
More particularly, writers on the Exercises require the director to possess especially the following qualities:
1. Holiness of life. The Exercises are really a life that is
communicated to souls. The more perfectly one possesses this
supernatural life, the better will he be able to communicate it
to others. The retreat-master, properly speaking, is not the
director. He is rather the instrument of the principal director, God [15]. He will be a more apt instrument the more
closely he is united to God our Lord. The director ought to
be a master in the art of prayer, a discerning judge of the
various movements of the soul in general, and of the election
in particular.
2. A very great attentiveness to God's action on the soul.
"It is the director's duty to cooperate with the divine action"
(Dir. Cordeses).
3. "Discernment of spirits. Long experience in meditating
on the Spiritual Exercises and in directing souls" (Cordeses).
4. Familiarity with the spiritual life and a good basic understanding of dogmatic, moral and ascetical theology.
5. Knowledge of the retreatant, of his problems, of his state
and condition of life, of all the circumstances that may have a
bearing on the progress of the retreat: prejudices, capabilities, aptitudes, desires ...
6. Prudence and tact.
7. An ample and varied store of thoughts and reflections
Which are to be drawn, not from substitutes for the lgnatian
meditations, but from a thorough penetration and complete
command of the rich substance of the Exercises themselves.
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
SOME NOTES ON GIVING POINTS FOR MEDITATION
1. Fundamental norm: the purpose is to give a method and
order of praying. The points should therefore provide whatever is necessary for attaining this objective. This will vary
according to the various kinds of retreatants. In general, the
more spiritually advanced the retreatant is, the less time
should be spent in developing the points for meditation, and
vice versa. Ordinarily too the time spent can be made more
and more brief as the exercitants gain a greater familiarity
with prayer. Subjects which lend themselves more easily to
development, like the Passion, should normally be presented
more briefly.
2. The exercitant must be taught how to pray and how to
examine his conscience, if he does not already know how to
perform these exercises. Some directors in dealing with retreatants less accustomed to meditation have found it profitable at times to meditate aloud with them. It is a good practice, too, during the course of the retreat, to join actual
practice to theoretical instructions which the director may
give.
3. In the same way the director- should impress on the
retreatant, without fear of repeating himself, the need of
personal effort during the meditations, in the examinations
of conscience, in his free time, etc.
4. It is necessary also to instruct the retreatant with a view
to his future spiritual growth, explaining to him the dogmatic
truths on which the meditations are based. "Little by little
and very briefly every opportunity should be used to instruct,
to encourage and direct the retreatant at every step, for in
this way he will easily advance and be encouraged to make
further progress. This is the method by which boys are
tutored in every art; to do anything else would produce only
confusion and discouragement. The whole book of the Exercises requires this, and thus it follows no pedagogic method or
order, taking for granted that the director will supply this"
(Gagliardi).
·
5. The basic ideas ought to be well grasped by the director,
and the manner of presentation carefully prepared, according
to the director's own character and abilities. "The director
should have made long and careful preparation, and if he has
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
225
already given the Exercises frequently, he may abbreviate the
time for preparation, but the immediate preparation should
never be omitted. This preparation has to be his own work.
He may make use of other people's notes and books, but he
will find most useful the fruit of his own experience and his
own effort."
6. Personal effort is just as important for the director as
it is for the exercitant. Without this double personal effort,
the genuine Exercises of St. Ignatius cannot be made. Thus it
is that little fruit is gained from the cut and dry explanations
of a director who does not take the trouble to keep constantly
revitalizing his retreat in accordance with his own new experiences, with the demands of changing circumstances, with
the peculiar needs of the exercitant.
7. Striking phraseology, beautiful thoughts, the appeal of
stimulating reflections are not to be sought as the end of one's
efforts. They are only means to an end, no more. Their only
purpose is to impress the essential ideas deeply in the soul.
If the mind pauses to take delight in the manner of presentation, precious time can be squandered on trifles which distract
the mind from its necessary work. What should be only a
means, albeit a useful and important one, becomes an end in
itself. But as long as the director keeps in mind the principle
that these are mere means, he should work at the manner of
presentation with utmost care, especially when he is addressing educated people. A sober and restrained presentation
does not of itself rule out an imaginative and striking development of thought. The director should express himself clearly,
concisely and vividly. It is good to remember, however, that
"after a talk which is too brilliant, the exercitant busies himself with jotting down notes instead of meditating. The work
at hand is not literary creation; it is the leading of souls to
God" (Frederich).
8. The key to success is to be found in a complete giving of
oneself to the retreatant. This complete dedication will involve much self-denial and self-sacrifice. It is a hard task,
Which involves no little strain, to lay aside every other concern
and to interest oneself in small and at times even bothersome
details.
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INTRODUCfiON TO THE EXERCISES
PART TWO
OBJECTIVE OF THE EXERCISES
The Exercises may be made with different purposes in view:
the solution of a definite problem, the choice of a state of life,
to learn how to pray, growth in grace, the practice of penance,
overcoming a state of tepidity, and many other like objectives.
These are all particular, subjective, personal ends which
must be taken into consideration in the direction of each soul,
so that they may be fitted into the total process of the Exercises. Underlying all these particular objectives, however, is
one which is the essential end or purpose of the Exercises
themselves. All other particular objectives will be attained
only in the measure that they are integrated with this general,
essential end.
Commentators have described this essential purpose in various ways. This diversity is due to the different points of
view they took when examining this end of the Exercises, to
the varying emphases they laid on~the elements they thought
should ·be highlighted according to the different circumstances
in which they lived, or the different people for whom they
wrote. This diversity of viewpoint is manifested in the
various ways by which each commentator has the Exercises
bring about certain results in preference to others. But with
regard to the basic purpose which the book of the Exercises
itself states so explicitly, the authors do not differ.
In an effort to keep our study as objective as possible, we
will quote the exact words of the text of the Exercises, trying
thus to indicate, not to enlarge upon, all the elements which
St. Ignatius himself considered as fundamental. The passages in the book of the Exercises which throw light on the
purpose are: 1, 21, 87, 189 (b), 233. The ideas expressed in
these passages can be set down as follows.
General and Ultimate End
To obtain "health of soul" ( salud) in the highest degree of
perfection possible to eacli one [1]. St. Ignatius uses the
word "salud" (health); this means more than just "salvation"; it adds to the notion of salvation the implication of a
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
227
life lived with a certain harmonious well-being, with spiritual
faculties operating and developing not only normally, but
with ease and readiness. This health is the integral perfection
of each exercitant, his being able "in all things to love and
serve the Divine Majesty" [233].
The More Particular and Immediate End
"To find the will of God in the disposition of (one's) life"
[1].
1. First and foremost: to find the will of God in the general
direction of one's life.
The election of a state or way of life is therefore the practical objective for those who have not yet found what God's
will is for them in this regard, or for those who believe that
they ought to set aright a choice that has already been made.
But the total and complete end or purpose of the Exercises
cannot be reduced to the choice of a state of life. First, because if this were true, the Exercises would have no usefulness
for many classes of people. Secondly and principally, because
the doctrine of the Exercises is of much wider application; it
can be brought to bear on other things besides an "election;"
unless, of course, the word "election" is taken as applying
"not only to a choice of a state of life, but also to any choice
regarding any of our actions and habits of life" (Nadal,
MHSI, EN. IV, 157).
2. Then, after finding God's will, to conform oneself to it
as fully as possible both in the general direction of one's state
of life and in all its details. This means "looking for, and
finding, the special character which God wants us to put into
our life: more contemplation, more penance, more active work.
It means making the decisions which here and now are required by the state of our soul, or hy the external circumstances of our life, the degree of progress we have already
made, the demands of grace on us, our spiritual advancement or failings, etc. . . . The Exercises .bring the soul to the
state wherein it can make these decisions on a wholly supernatural plane, with complete generosity" (De Guibert).
For the attainment of this end the Exercises provide the
following means: Negative: "To rid oneself of all inordinate
affections." Positive: "To prepare and dispose the soul''-in
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
practice, "to re-order one's life according to the pattern of
Christ's life, imitating Him in fulfilling at each moment the
divine will sought for and found through prayer" (P. S. G.
Nogales).
Affection: An attachment, small or great, to some one
person or thing. Inordinate: An attachment that is less, or
greater, than it ought to be. When an affection does not lead
me to God (as right order demands) this is because it is held
and tied down by some creature. Therefore that creature,
that affection or attachment, does not serve as a means enabling my soul to ascend to God who is its end, as right order
demands. Rather it is a stumbling-black, a barrier, which
impedes my soul's way to God, or at least distracts me and
delays me uselessly along the way. That is why it is inordinate, or disordered. For an attachment to a creature to be
well-ordered, it is not merely enough that it is not inordinate;
it should also tend ordinately toward God.
This two fold task, negative and positive, includes the conquest of self, that is, as St. Ignatius explains: "that our
sensual nature should obey right reason;" "that all of our
lower faculties be brought into greater subjection to the
higher" [87].
Summary of the Gradation of the Ends and the Means
We prescind here from any particular subjective ends,
which are really just particularized applications of the objective end which we are here discussing.
In the Spiritual Exercises these objectives are sought:
the conquest of one's self in order to overcome inordinate attachments, in order to prepare and dispose the soul to find
the will of God, in order to attain health of soul, that is, to be
able in all things to serve and to love God our Lord.
Notes
1. The Exercises do not give perfection. They prepare and
dispose the soul for it.
.
2. The choice of a state or way of life and the reformation
of one's life are only two particular applications of the general end of the Exercises.
3. St. Ignatius gives us in the Exercises what might be
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
229
called a compendium of the pursuit of perfection, a resume
of the stages of the spiritual life up to its highest point, and
an exercise, brief but intense, in the ways of the spirit.
4. Each soul will find in the Exercises whatever it needs for
the attainment of the highest perfection it can reach in the
spiritual life: the ways of praying most suited to its needs, the
principles of spirituality that it must follow to arrive at the
highest perfection it can in fact attain. "Merely to teach beginners a good method of praying and of making a general
confession, without trying to open the way to other methods
of prayer or higher contemplation, and to the hidden experiences of souls who have attained to union with God, is clearly
a serious mistake" (La Palma, Bk III, chapter 2). "Unless
the retreatant himself hinders this through his lack of good
will or his inconstancy, the Exercises will lead to the highest
evangelical perfection" (Gagliardi). "Progress will be made
to the very highest perfection and sanctity" (Becanus).
"They contain the perfect method for the formation and development of each one's interior life" (Biondo).
5. The complete Spiritual Exercises have in view souls
whom God calls to a life of perfection. Thus their concern is
not with the choice of a life of perfection, but rather with the
choice of a definite state of life, or of a particular way within
the state of life chosen, wherein the life of perfection is to be
lived.
6. The Exercises presuppose a divine call not precisely to
the active apostolic life, but to the apostolate. An exercitant
cannot close his eyes to the ,apostolic mission which God ent:usts to him. He may choose to embrace the contemplative
hfe, or the married state, but no matter what his choice is, he
should keep before his eyes the needs of souls, offering up his
Work and prayers for them.
7. After what we have just considered we now see more
clearly how it can be truthfully said that the fruit of the
Exercises is to gain a spirit of prayer, to attain perfect union
With God, full conformity to His will, etc. These are the most
effective means for attaining the highest perfection and, in
any particular state in which the soul finds itself, they are
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
very frequently the means most conducive to the removal of
inordinate attachments and the finding of the will of God.
These are, then, subjective ends, and they have an intrinsic
value for the soul, but they are not the final end, nor the general, or absolute purpose of the Exercises. "Our holy Father
St. Ignatius was aiming at the attainment of perfection, even
the very height of perfection, when in the Exercises he wanted
the exercitant to advance to such a point that he would have
the same mind as that of Christ Jesus. He leads the exercitant by no other way than that which Christ walked, a way
marked by the prints of His sacred feet'~, {Becanus).
PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
Principle: inasmuch as it states a truth of the speculative
order. It is directed to the understanding.
Foundation: inasmuch as it states a truth of the practical
order; the norm man must follow in the concrete conditions
of his life. It is directed to the will.
Connection with the general end of the Exercises: To attain the end which we have just indicated, man must put order
into his life. Remember that the Exercises are made for this
purpose: "to conquer oneself and put one's life in order"
[21]. Since putting one's life in order consists in conformity
of action with a given norm, St. Ignatius lays down the norm ··
of the Principle and Foundation, the fundamental rule of
order: man should do all things in accordance with the end
for which he was created and in the way God wants them done.
By acting in accordance with this norm, we put our lives in
order.
Thus, order in the concrete is the use of things for the end
for which they were made and to the extent that they will
attain that end. And disorder is the use of things for a
purpose for which they were not made, 'and the use of them in
a way which would displease their Maker and Owner, even if
such a use is not contrary to their nature.
To act in this way would be to act irrationally, to do vio·
lence to nature, or at least to right order. From this follows
also the moral disorder in a world which does not follow the
rule of the Principle and Foundation. It is because of this
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
231
that St. Ignatius begins by telling us why things were made:
to lead us to God. More concretely and more briefly : order is
the use of things in so far as they lead us to God. This, then,
in synthesis is the guiding rule that should regulate all of life.
It is also the synthesis, the sum and substance of perfection.
In the principle and foundation the exercitant should arrive at the realization: 1) that the deepest meaning of all
created things and of all reality consists in this: that all things
depend utterly on God and that they should be used only as
God wishes them used; 2) that any other end or purpose is an
absurdity and sheer nonsense. Creatures have no real value
except as means to this end. Used independently of, contrary
to, this end, they become only obstacles; 3) that conformity
with this end should be the one rule, the light that must guide
us through life.
On Explaining the Principle and Foundation
1. Saint Ignatius instructs us to propose the subjectmatter of this consideration. The Principle and Foundation,
then, is not strictly speaking a meditation. It can be, however, conveniently proposed as a meditation, as long as it is
not aimed at arousing the affections, and as long as there is no
useless delay on pious reflections which can take up too much
attention and distract the mind from the purpose for which the
Principle and Foundation is given. This explanation should
rather help the exercitant to reflect on these truths and
deepen his understanding and realization of them.
2. The explanation should be "such that the exercitant may
have the opportunity of finding what he desires" (Dir. Ign.).
By this we mean: the exercitant should by ,personal effort
determine for himself how in the concrete he can reduce this
norm to practice in the actual conditions of his life. As long
as the exercitant does not make this practical application of
the Principle and Foundation to himself, as long as it does
not become the living guide of his life, it will remain something inert and sterile in his soul. It will not exercise a vital
influence, it will not be assimilated into his spiritual life.
I
3. The time spent in explaining the Foundation should be,
Preferably, brief. Spend whatever time is necessary in order
that the exercitant may understand what this norm of life is
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
and why it must be the norm of life, see its connection with
the end and purpose of the Exercises, and make it a living
principle in his soul. Saint Ignatius himself, at least in some
instances, spent two days in explaining this consideration
(MH Ex. 1096). We should bear in mind that at this point
in the Exercises there is no question yet of removing any
disorder, or even of striving to remove any inordinate attachments or of putting them in due order, but merely of seeing
the reason and necessity for this, of arousing the desire to do
this. What we are striving for here is that the mind reach "a
profound understanding of this end and what it means" (Le
Gaudier) ; that the soul come to "an unshakeable resolve to
attain this end" (Gagliardi) ; to "imptess into the mind a
clear and profound knowledge and understanding of this end
that we may be moved to will its attainment efficaciously"
(Ceccotti); "It is of the greatest importance that the mind
understand this end thoroughly and penetrate its meaning
profoundly" (MH Ex. 1107).
4. Above all in the repetitions it is necessary to consider the
real difficulties that stand in the way of the attainment of this
end in life, to see these difficulties .in the light of the principle
and foundation. Thus the exercitant will know how in actual
practice the principle and foundation should guide and regulate his life. He will also see what actions must be brought
into conformity with this norm and the various circumstances ..·
in which all this should be carried out. ( Cf. Polanco, MH Ex.
807 and the Dir. Gil Gonzalez Davila, MH Ex. 910).
5. Throughout the Exercises the Principle and Foundation
should be reduced to practice by means of the preparatory
prayer, which is really a summary of the Principle and Foundation itself or rather a practical application of it. In the
preparatory prayer we beg for the grace to enter our prayer
with the right dispositions of the Principle and Foundation.
6. The Principle and Foundation forms a single indivisible
unit. "In practice, nevertheless, it is more convenient and
also quite easy to divide the subject-:q1atter" (Ponlevoy). But
this must be done in such a way that we do not thereby lose
sight of the total structure of the consideration. Its logical
unity should not be obscured, because the principal force and
efficaciousness of this consideration lies in the penetration of
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
233
this total synthesis ·as an organic whole. Saint Ignatius proposes the following division: the end for which man was
created ; the means of attaining this end; the difficulty of
choosing between this or that means; hence the necessity of
putting oneself in a state of indifference (Dir. Vitoria MH
Ex. 792 and 1139) .
Explanatory Notes on the Principle and Foundation
Man: any man; all that is in man. To praise, reverence,
serve: (Ponlevoy) what is important here is that the end of
man be understood as an organic whole, a unified synthesis,
and not that each of the terms be examined singly. The end
and purpose has two aspects: 1) the glory of God which follows from praise, reverence and service; 2} the health of the
soul (salvation and perfection) which constitutes supreme
happiness. The extrinsic glory of God coincides with health
of soul. Praise, reverence and service are particular ways of
glorifying God. This glorification of God must be attained in
all the details of everyday life; it must embrace all our relations with God. The reason for this is clear: man is surrounded by God's dominion. It is only natural that God, who
gave man everything that man is and has and uses, should
have the full right to ask man to use all things with reference
to his Creator.
To serve: every creature is wholly dependent on God not
only for its being but also for its particular mode of being
and activity. Thus, man must as man be subject to God. For
him the total dependence of creaturehood is service. To serve
God is to depend wholly on Him, to be entirely subject to Him
(Ponlevoy).
Tantum quantum: this rule includes 1) purity of intention:
the exclusion of false and spurious ends; 2) right measure in
the use of creatures.
Indifference: this is the fundamental disposition which the
will must have if it is to observe and enforce order. It is the
resolute will to embrace in every instance what it sees as most
conducive to the end. Indifference implies an effective renunciation of all that is not God and of ·all that does not lead us
to God. In practice it means this: to want whatever God
wants of me, and to want that alone. It is not, therefore, to
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
desire nothing at all, but rather to prefer nothing on my own
until I see what God wishes me to do. This disposition of
will does not require an absence of all contrary inclinations
of our sensual nature. The exercitant should implant indifference in his soul (Cordeses, MH Ex. 953).
St. Ignatius proposes: 1) the objects of indifference: all
created things; 2) the limits of indifference: "in all that is
allowed to free will ... and is not forbidden to it"; 3) the
concrete manner of practicing indifference: "not preferring
the more pleasing thing, but desiring only what is more conducive to the end."
.,
Desiring only: an obvious, immediate-deduction from the
general principle that man was created for God alone. Any
other objective is disordered, since it hinders man's way to
God.
More conducive: "this norm is already implicit in the tantum quantum rule. Creatures are to be used only inasmuch
and in so far as they help me attain my end in life. When in
a given instance one creature helps me more than others, I
should make more use of the one which helps me more; that
is, I ought simply to prefer it to the other creatures· which
help me less" ( Calveras).
In practice then, to use what is less conducive to the end,
when I am able to use what is more conducive to it, implies
that I am setting aside for myself, for my own selfish purposes, a definite number of creatures. I am then using these
creatures for a purpose other th~n the service of God, 'and this
is opposed to the Principle and Foundation. "To take from
the outset the very general resolution of choosing in each
instance that which best leads me to my final end is the only
sincere and efficacious disposition of soul to have. This is the
disposition of dedicated men who are true to their convictions,
of efficient and enterprising and successful men. This is how
we act when we are earnestly bent on attaining an objective:
we take the surest, most efficient, and most effective means"
(Encinas) . Here is also called into play what we may call the
logic of the heart. It is impossible to be fully given over to a
cause, to make it the supreme goal of all our desires, and not
try to attain it in the surest, swiftest and most effective waY
possible.
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
235
Notes
1. In the Principle and Foundation, St. Ignatius "with remarkable directness and consummate mastery poses and solves
the whole problem of humanity, of every man, of the deepest
meaning of man's existence" (R. Vilariiio).
2. Thanks to the Principle and Foundation, "the spiritual
life is not an array of disconnected truths. The Principle and
Foundation goes down to the very root of human existence, to
the transcendent element in man. It takes man out of his
littleness and narrowness and places him in the heart of
reality: the life-giving truth of his dependence on God" (E.
Bominghaus) . "Here we gain a new understanding of the
spiritual life" (Segarra).
3. "We must note that all evangelical perfection is contained in this foundation and that from the start of the Exercises St. Ignatius demands this .perfection--:-in desire, at least,
and in determination" (Gagliardi).
4. The Principle and Foundation is a compendium and
synthesis of the Exercises (Ceccotti).
5. "Not rarely a retreatant may find himself turned upside
down by the Principle and Foundation. Ordinarily, however,
it works slowly. It is like a seed planted in the soul. It
germinates by its own proper virtue, but it needs time. Meanwhile, we dig all around it, and pull out the roots of sin, and
above all keep nourishing the seed by reflection on congruous
truths" (A. Oraa).
6. In setting forth the end of man, St. Ignatius enumerates
explicitly only those elements which he needed to set down as
premises from which the rule of order could be deduced. The
other elements: the glory of God, our own perfection, the love
of God, are implicitly included in other parts of the Exercises.
In the older directories these other elements were often
explicitly dealt with in the Principle and Foundation (v.g.
Dir. Cordeses, MH Ex. 952).
7. In the Principle and Foundation all creatures are given
their proper value, their right orientation. To evaluate all
things according to this criterion of value is to appraise them
by God's own standards.
8. St. Ignatius demands indifference, not so much in order
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
that we may abstain from using creatures, but that we may
use them in accordance with right order.
PROCESS OF THE FIRST WEEK
End of the First Week: "contrition, sorrow, tears for
sin" [ 4] ; a detestation of the disorder in my actions and of
vain and worldly norms [63]. "To have compunction of
heart, and to remain in that state of compunction for several
days in order that the soul may be cleansed and purified from
sin and thus prepared for the following weeks (Dir. Cordeses,
MH Ex. 958).
.
Steps in the Attainment of this &nd: the retreatant
has seen in the Principle and Foundation the theoretical norm
which should regulate his actions. All of St. Ignatius' efforts
will be directed to bringing one's life into conformity with
this end. As his first move in this campaign he traces a plan
directed at removing all obstacles, the disorders which make
progress impossible, since they are directly opposed to the
practice of the Principle and Foundation.
There are three clearly marked out stages in this plan:
I. Making the exercitant realize- the disorder in his life:
The process that follows is really the same process which St.
Ignatius employs at all the decisive moments in the Exercises.
It is like a common pattern which he uses time and again
during the course of the Exercises. An understanding of
this process gives one a grasp of one of the profoundest and
most characteristic aspects of the psychology of St. Ignatius.
1. St. Ignatius starts out by presenting the objective basis
of the entire process: the disorder considered in its concrete
reality. In order that we may realize this in the most objective manner possible, he first considers this disorder in others:
in the angels, in our first parents, in another man. He wants
the exercitant to see this problem of sin as something outside
of himself, so that no fears or prejudices may cloud the clarity
of his realization of it.
Note that St. Ignatius is, in fact, pri~cipally concerned with
mortal sin because it is the principal disorder. But his procedure holds good for any other disorders and ought to be
applied to them whenever the needs and the condition of the
retreatant call for such applications. By applying his method
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
237
to one concrete case, St. Ignatius shows the soul how it may
be used with regard to other problems in life. St. Ignatius
himself applies this method to less serious disorders in the
triple colloquy of the Third Exercise [63].
2. He then leads the exercitant to a knowledge of the disorder in itself. He points out the consequences of the real
events considered in the First Exercise. From these effects
he traces the characteristic notes of the disorder itself [50,
53]. All the while he is bringing the reality of the problem
of sin nearer and nearer home to the exercitant himself, by
presenting him with considerations that show its points of
contact with himself. The angels were creatures like him;
Adam and Eve, although created in a special manner, were
human beings like him; and the man in the third point of this
meditation is both man and sinner like himself. To deepen
this realization, he brings further light to bear on the effects
of this disorder: hell, death,-so that the exercitant may see
in even greater detail the nature of sin.
3. Making the exercitant realize his own disorder, his own
sins. St. Ignatius makes the exercitant see the disorder he has
himself been guilty of, the sins he has in fact committed, from
the viewpoint of sin considered in itself. Here the personal
and particularized application begins. The exercitant makes
this personal application by reflecting during his meditations
and above all in his examinations of conscience. In these
exercises he will see his sins and his inordinate attachments
with greater clarity.
II. Bringing about detestation for this disorder: This detestation of the disorder in one's life is the great Ignatian
weapon in the First Week. A soul that acquires a sincere
and deep hatred for sin, or "shame ... and confusion" [ 48],
cannot long remain in sin; it will find itself filled with sorrow
and contrition.
This horror is an effect of the realization of the malice and
ugliness of sin. The soul instinctively hates and recoils from
whatever is ugly and evil. To arouse this disposition in the
soul St. Ignatius dwells on the ugliness of its own disorders
and sins. He wants the heart and the affections to be moved
by this because he wants to create a phobia for sin. The
more deeply penetrated the exercitant is with a realization
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
that this disorder is his own and within himself, the more he
feels personally identified with it, so much the more readily
will he be filled with a profound aversion for it. To this end
St. Ignatius multiplies: repetitions and resumes: the unhurried consideration and intimate assimilation of these ideas
will necessarily leave in the soul a deep-seated hatred for sin;
colloquies: the most important and most difficult dispositions
which the soul must strive after and for which it needs special
graces from God are precisely the things St. Ignatius puts
down in the form of colloquies. He .urges the exercitant to
beg persistently for these graces because. nothing is so important at this stage than that he be steeped with this shame
for his own sins.
III. Amendment of life: This is an effect of the detestation
for sin which makes the soul turn away and thrust aside from
itself, instinctively, what it abhors. The entire psychological
technique of St. Ignatius is directed at this point to arousing
this instinctive repugnance so that the soul may put away all
disorder from itself by a quasi-reflex reaction. This is the
secret of the effectiveness of reflecting deeply on the Ignatian
truths, and of the colloquies frequently repeated.
This instinctive repugnance should not be something blind.
It must seek to uproot the causes of the disorders themselves,
the root of evil in the soul. This is what St. Ignatius does
especially in the famous three colloquies of the Third Exercise.
Only in this way can an effective and lasting reform of life be
made.
Summary of the Fruit of the First Week
Knowledge of self and of the disorders in one's life: "to
know the interior state of our soul" (Le Gaudier).
Shame and confusion for one's own sins and detestation of
all disorder.
Purification of soul [32].
Reformation of one's life at the very root, i.e., the disorder
itself [63].
Meanwhile the soul is gradually acquiring virtues [327] ·
There is a further, more hidden objective in this entire
process, something going on below the surface, so to speak:
preparing the soul for the work of the succeeding Weeks.
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
239
During the First Week various paths are opened up which
lead on to further objectives. Many of the points are like
seeds which will grow and reach full flower only in the Weeks
following.
To this more hidden end are directed:
The desire to make resolutions to do something great for
Christ [53].
The presentation of Christ as our redeemer, recalling his
coming, his teaching, his example [71].
Arousing the desire to realize and acknowledge all that
the retreatant owes his Savior [71].
The tracing in more general lines of the plan for reform
and re-ordering of life which later will be made more explicit
[61, 63].
Notes
The Examen is very important. It is the first thing that
must be taught. It is the easiest way of setting the retreatant
on the road to prayer. It is the basis for all the personal effort
that must be made in order to come to the necessary knowledge
of one's self and the detestation of all disorder in one's life.
During St. Ignatius' lifetime, several days were spent on the
Examen at the start of the Exercises. It made up a sort of
pre-Week.
The Examen also provides the basis for the application of
the Principle and Foundation. 'IIhanks to the Examen the
soul sees in the concrete which creatures lead it to God, which
ones take it away from Him, what disordered tendencies remain within it. . ·
The Particular Examen, according to Nadal, is made "not
only for the avoidance of sin, but for greater progress in the
spiritual life" MHSI, EN, IV, 465.
"The Particular Examen is a means of keeping the soul
wide-awake and active through all the hours of the day, so
that man may reach the end which has been set before him,
and reach it in the most earnest and efficacious way possible.
The Particular Examen fosters a state of soul which keeps
man attentive" (Casanovas).
Gagliardi makes this observation, with regard to abnormal
cases: "The Particular Examen of faults is of the greatest
importance for all, but the rather precise way of making it
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
by means of lines can be of no use and harmful for scrupulous
people or for those who have poor memories or little or no
imagination. Such people should make their examens in some
other way which they may find more useful."
First Exercise: this exercise may be said to be the reverse
side of the Principle and Foundation. Here we see the very
terrible consequences both of the disregard of the end and
purpose of man and also of the lack of indifference; we see
the false reality of creatures when used independently of their
true end. "St. Ignatius does not present the sinner with
abstract reasoning which would make n~ 'impression on his
soul. Instead he confronts him with the arama of true happenings, whose causes and effects should move him strongly
and deeply" (Oraa).
Colloquies: their purpose is to arouse a horror and detestation of sin and disorder, a desire for true order in one's life,
so that inordinate attachments may be uprooted from the soul.
In these colloquies the exercitant "pours out his soul under
the motion of the Holy Spirit" (I. Moran).
Meditations on death and judgment: These have been used
from the earliest days of the Society, and are very useful for
confirming the meditations of the First Week. It is in the
light of death and judgment that the soul sees most clearly
what sin is, and what the world is. The meditation on judgment is especially helpful in bringing about the realization of
the supreme transcendence of the Principle and Foundation,
since it is this norm which the Divine Judge Himself goes by
in that all-important instant. "It is mainly the meditation on
death that gives us this knowledge of the world from which
springs the abhorrence for all that is worldly and vain and the
will to put them away from one's self. It is for this reason
that this meditation is usually made and it should be made at
this point" (La Palma, Bk. I, C. 23).
"One who lives his life in the light of death has shut the
door and cut off at the very roots al) outside influences that
can bring him trouble and a relapse into sin" (La Palma,
Bk. I, C. 23).
Observations
1. "There is no sinner so great that he cannot be moved to
�INTRODUCfiON TO THE EXERCISES
241
repentance by the First Week ; nor is there anyone so holy as
not to need some improvement with regard to venial sins, their
causes and roots in his soul" (Gagliardi).
2. "The First Week will also help to arouse in us zeal for
souls, so that, detesting serious sin in others, we will work
for their spiritual welfare" (Gagliardi).
3. St. Ignatius brings the exercitant to "perfect contrition,
leading him by degrees from very imperfect motives to the
most perfect ones. Thus, he who, at the start, considering
only himself and his own interest, was deeply moved by the
fear of hell, now, forgetting himself and seeing what one
offense against God deserves, cries out in wonderment that all
other creatures do not rise up against him" (La Palma, Bk. I,
c. 20).
STRUCTURE OF THE SECOND WEEK
Connection of the Second Week with the First Week and
with the general end of the Exercises: here we are given the
answer to the question asked in the First Week: "What ought
I to do for Christ?" [53]. The soul has to fill the void left
in it by the uprooting of inordinate attachments; it has to
channel the energies that have surged up within it from contact with such vivifying truths. St. Ignatius attains this
objective by directing the soul to Jesus Christ. Our Lord will
fill the soul as no one else can, and in Him the soul will find
the pattern of all perfection. Our Lord draws up a magnificent program which is directed to this: that the retreatant's
mind and will and heart may be filled with Him, may come to
know Him and imitate Him in the fullest possible way.
The whole man, then, is won over, and this total involvement, this complete conquest of the exercitant by Christ,
assures the success of the undertaking. Knowledge and love
are vital acts. Only by means of them does one become like
Christ. It is by means of them that the soul shall also find
spiritual health, since Jesus Christ is the soul's true life. He
shall fill the soul with this more abundant life.
Jesus Christ communicates this life: by His teaching:
"Thou hast the words of eternal life;" by His example: "He
Who follows me shall have the light of life;" by His own
Person: "I am the Life ... and he who remains in me shall
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
have eternal life." The knowledge and love of both the teaching and the Person of the Redeemer, and the following of
Him, which St. Ignatius lays down as the purpose of the
Second Week, mean nothing else but making our lives progressively more and more like Christ's.
Recapitulation of the plan of the Second Week.
Presenting Jesus Christ as the concrete norm of order in
life: there is no one more perfect than Jesus Christ. No one
can show us a more perfect way. The highest possible perfection, in practice, is the following o~ Christ. Thus, the
following of Christ is the norm of or.qer in life; it is the
practical realization of the ideal of the Principle and Foundation. "The nearer we draw to Christ, the nearer we shall
be to our last end" (Gil Gonzalez) ; no one has fulfilled man's
last end more perfectly than Christ. To follow Christ is, then,
to fulfill the Principle and Foundation in our lives, with this
added advantage: it becomes easier to put this norm into
practice with Christ's living example before our eyes.
"Beyond all doubt the way of life which Christ made His
own during His years on the earth is the most perfect one
possible. Most perfect, then, is the state of life which most
closely approaches that of Our Lord Jesus Christ" (Miron).
This first step (presenting Jesus Christ as the concrete
norm of order in life) is the meditation on the Kingdom of ··
Christ. This meditation may be considered the second Principle and Foundation. It is a panoramic view of the program
of Jesus Christ. St. Ignatius has masterfully drawn from the
pages of the Gospel the essence of the program of perfection
which Christ gives there, and in this way he brings us to the
fundamental principles of the doctrine of the gospels.
The meditation on the Kingdom of Ghrist is a compendium
of the Gospel (Oleza), it is "a summation of the life and the
work of Our Lord, of the mission which He received from His
heavenly Father" (Gil Gonzalez, MH Ex. 917). It summarizes
the thought and doctrine of Our Lord, centering it around an
image chosen by Our Lord Himself as the basis of His principal parables: evangelium regni, a concept so thoroughlY
catholic that it belongs to all peoples and to all times (Oleza) ·
Following a technique that is so characteristically his, St.
Ignatius presents in synthesis the objective which he will later
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
243
develop in detail and whose accomplishment he will try to
bring about during the rest of the Exercises. This basic
objective is the imitation of, and assimilation to, Christ; it is to
this that Christ really and historically calls all men, just as
He did during his life on earth.
"The life of the Eternal King is a constant call to His subjects: a call to conquest for the Kingdom of Christ. Christ
is the Way. And the guide is the secret call of Christ"
(La Palma).
Typically Ignatian, too, is the manner in which this call is
presented to the retreatant: he makes me see in others, dispassionately, what is happening to me. In the concrete, this
is the application of the plan at this .point: to see the way
Christ actually called His disciples during His life on earth,
so that I may understand and properly appreciate the call
that He gives me now. We saw St. Ignatius using this same
procedure in the meditation on the Three Sins. We shall see
it once again in use in the meditation on the Three Classes of
Men and in the second of the Two Ways of making an election
"in the Third Time." The exercitant is made to consider the
problem as something which does not personally involve him.
By doing this he makes sure that no feelings of like or dislike influence him before his decision. Once the election has
been made, the feelings and affections are allowed to enter
the scene, to make the decision secure, to rejoice in the resolution that has been taken, to facilitate perseverance in the
course which has been chosen.
Reasoning de minore ad maius: here St. Ignatius uses this
argument in the parable of the temporal king. The parable
is a means: "it will help." According to the Ignatian rule,
then, it is to be used only as far as it helps to attain its purpose. In this case, it should always serve to make the second
Part of the meditation achieve its purpose; it should be so
Presented as to bring into sharper relief the truth contained
in the second part, and not the other way around.
· The parable of the earthly king serves, too, to fire the will
by showing it vividly in how many ways Christ Our Lord
surpasses the king in the parable (Iglesias).
·
Living with Jesus Christ in order to imitate Him more
easily: to bring this about St. Ignatius sets down as the ob-
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
jective proper to the first three days the implanting of a very
deep attachment within the soul: to the Person of Jesus
Christ; to the life of poverty and humility in which Jesus
Christ begins His life on earth. St. Ignatius saves for this
stage of the Exercises the most consoling notes of the entire
book. He directs that the night meditations be omitted. He
wants the exercitant to be wholly filled with an intense interior sweetness, so that he may be heartened and cry out:
"Bonum est nos hie esse." In the meditation on the Kingdom
of Christ he has bound the understanding to heroic resolutions; now he wishes to bind the heart to Christ with bonds
of deepest and most ardent affection. ~ ..
The force of this pattern: the exercitant, dominated by a
love for Christ, more easily purifies his heart: instead of
cutting down the aged tree of his attachments branch by
branch, so to speak, he sets his whole heart aflame with the
fire of love for Christ, a fire that will burn up his attachments;
has his understanding illumined: love makes him see all things
through the eyes of the beloved one, in accordance with the
beloved's norms; has the great forces of his enthusiasm and
his love polarized by this ideal.
Steps to this life: "not to be deaf to his call" [91] ; to imitate Him in all things [98] ; "intimate knowledge of Our
Lord" considering what He has done for me [104, 195] ; to
love Him, follow Him [104]; to "imitate Him more closely,
who has thus become man for me" [109] ; an understanding
of the true life which He shows me; this way of life is brought
into clearer light by the consideration of the deceits of the
enemy and his way of death [139] ; to surrender one's own
self-love, one's own will and self-interest [189].
A soul can thus begin to grow in love and attachment for
Jesus Christ. This penetration into the "depths of Christ
Jesus" will be perfected in the Third and Fourth Weeks. But
in the Second Week the exercitant already begins to know
Christ intimately, to "taste and see the sweetness of the Lord"
[124].
.
The method of prayer that St. Ignatius here proposes, of a
more affective character, contemplation, the application of the
senses, is most suitable for obtaining this more intimate life
with Christ. By proposing simpler, more affective ways of
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
245
prayer, St. Ignatius gradually brings the soul to a more
interior, and deeper, prayer.
"Contemplation, already simplified in the repetitions, is
simplified still more becoming more intuitive, quieter, more
intimate and delightful" (Moran).
Father Gil Gonzalez thus sums up this second step: "The
soul which is going through the Exercises of this Second
Week should strive to gain familiarity with the Eternal and
Incarnate Word, accompanying Him, listening to Him, serving Him, honoring Him as his own Lord, his older Brother,
his soul's one true good" (MH Ex. 919).
Arousing the desire of doing the most perfect thing: St.
Ignatius gradually requires of the retreatant: a more intense
affection to offer oneself: "I wish and desire" [98]. For this
reason, at this moment of initial enthusiasm, St. Ignatius,
with great psychological insight, goes from the more difficult,
the offerings which first present themselves in these moments
of holy fervor, to the less difficult. Later, when he is concerned with the practical realization of these resolutions, he
will follow the reverse order, starting with what is easier
and going to the more difficult. I must ask that I may obtain
the grace "to be received" [147] and ask in spite of whatever
repugnance I may have [157].
The object required beeomes, at each step, more concrete
and more definite: a general disposition of soul-in the abstract, as it were: the object is not made definite: "in all
things" [98] ; a particular disposition regarding some possible, and ordinary, objects (the hidden life of Christ); a
Particular disposition regarding some possible, and difficult,
objects (the Two Standards); a particular disposition regarding some possible objects which are difficult and repugnant to
human nature (the Colloquies, Classes of Men, Third Mode of
Humility) ; a particular disposition with regard to real objects
(the Election and Reform of Life).
"The retreatant should strive to bend his will to the most
Perfect thing" (Miron). "The disposition which is required
of our exercitant is that he should choose, of his own accord,
the more perfect thing, if God should give him the grace to
do so" (Gil Gonzalez Davila).
The soul, in thus progressing towards more and more gen-
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
erous desires, ought to arrive at least at the Second Mode of
Humility. Throughout this entire process St. Ignatius is
shaping in the soul the attitude necessary for the Election,
the disposition needed for loving and serving God our Lord in
all things. At the same time he is cutting the soul loose from
anything that is mediocre, base, routine; he is familiarizing
the soul with the strategy of an offensive against the enemy,
exercising it in continual agendo contra-doing what is diametrically opposed to its inordinate attachments, doing unceasing battle for growth in the spiritual life.
A voiding the influence of any inordJ::,W,te attachment.
"St. Ignatius is afraid that error may be made in descending
from the principles to their practical consequences; he is
afraid that self-deception may enter the scene when the dispositions of the will are brought into 'action" (Iglesias).
In this crucial moment St. Ignatius is anxious that inexperience or cowardice or self-deception do not destroy all the
work already accomplished. He obviates the principal dangers which may present themselves to the exercitant at this
point. Against these major dangers he sets up three important meditations or considerations: against dangers of the
understanding: the meditation on Two Standards; against
dangers of the will: the meditation on the Three Pairs of Men;
against dangers of the heart: the consideration of the Three ..
Modes of Humility.
The object of these meditations is to foster a quasi-instinctive mistrust, and-if possible,-even a detestation, of all that
is not Christlike, just as in the First Week a similar quasiinstinctive repugnance was fostered with regard to sin.
Two Standards [135, 139, 147]
Purpose : to remove the fundamental danger that we maY
be deceived in the orientation of our life. If the norm according to which the election is made is not the right one, the
right ordering of life will be impossible. St. Ignatius follows
the method which he used in the meditation on the Kingdom
of Christ, in the parable of the temporal king. He could well
say: "the consideration of the strategy of the evil leader helps
us to understand the objective of the true and supreme captain.'' What he proposes here is not, strictly speaking, a new
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247
doctrine. He is really drawing conclusions from what has
already been seen, "since the consideration of the world and
its disorder made in the First Week and the reflection on the
mysteries of Our Lord's infancy made in the Second Week
lead up to the conclusions which are summed up in the opposed
strategies of Satan and of Christ" (Pinard de la Boullaye).
He sets down Our Lord's principles and his teaching in
strong and vigorous lines which present the plan of Christ
with accuracy and precision. This is what the soul needs at
this moment preceding the Election: to put together in synthesis the truths of the preceding meditations and to set in
motion the necessary dispositions of soul. St. Ignatius desires
to obtain an interior transformation ("how we ought to dispose ourselves") in order "to arrive at perfection." "The
means by which he hopes to bring about the necessary transformation is the exact knowledge and understanding of the
strategy of the two leaders" (Pinard de la Boullaye).
He thus constructs an exact and correct standard (norm of
choice) of the spiritual life, the foundation for the transformation of mind and the basis for the disposition of perfect
indifference, wholly necessary at this point, which the will
must acquire.
The meditation of the Two Standards should engrave these
truths deeply in the soul: Jesus Christ calls me to perfection
in whatever state of life He may choose for me; the one true
·doctrine of perfection is that which Christ teaches me, the
doctrine which is summed up in the beatitudes: poverty, etc.;
whenever I have an attachment to riches or honors I am
wearing one of Satan's chains; I ought to get rid of riches
in reality whenever that step is necessary for breaking the
devil's chain (Casanovas).
Three Pairs of Men [149]
Purpose: to remove the second danger that the will may
grow weak and fearful when it comes to putting the principles
of Christ into practice, and thus lose the courage necessary for
going ahead. It is for this reason that St. Ignatius takes the
pulse, so to speak, of our will [152, 155]. This meditation is
like a touchstone by which we can test our resolutions and see
how solid they are. At this point, then, I must place before
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
my mind that object which for me here and now, in the concrete, is an obstacle to perfection, and by considering it, find
out just how my will is disposed.
The meditation on the Three Pairs of Men gives us the
spirit, the soul of the Election. It puts us in that condition
wherein we are ready to choose the most perfect way.
Then comes the matter for the election [163] : in what state
of life, in the concrete, will I practice perfection? This presupposes the spirit of the Election: generosity. Without it,
all else is useless, and the Election is foredoomed.
Three Modes of Humility [164]
This consideration is aimed at putting perfect order in the
affections of the heart: "to be affected toward the true doctrine." St. Ignatius wants to block every avenue of escape
so that the exercitant may not fall back at this decisive moment if he sees that he must choose what he finds repugnant.
There is no quicker way to conquer these repugnances than
by implanting in the soul so strong 'an attachment to Christ
Jesus and spiritual perfection that it will counterbalance the
awful weight of the repugnance. ~
That this consideration may really influence the affections,
St. Ignatius tells the exercitant to reflect on it "from time to
time during the day." The heart's affection is won over
quietly, slowly, gently; it must arise spontaneously. It must ..·
be drawn gradually to a growing love of its object. It is in
this way that the spark of great resolutions is struck, in this
way that the soul is moved in its depths. At times perhaps a
single reflection will suffice, a look, a colloquy. The means
is of secondary importance. What matters is that this generous interior desire, this ardent attachment to the "true
doctrine of Christ," take root and grow strong within the
soul, and that the heart be wholly possessed by it. That the
heart and soul be ever bound by love for Christ, this is a
great grace, the great secret of Saint Ignatius.
Humility: not so much in the sense given it after the sixteenth century, but as it was understood by St. Bernard and
St. Thomas: submission and subordination to God without
putting oneself "above that point which has been fixed for
him according to the divine rule": supra id quod est sibi
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
249
praefixum secundum divinam regulam (Summa Theol. II-II,
qu. 162, art. 5, corp.). This subjection of all that we are to
God lets us see our littleness and obliges us to humble ourselves before Him. From this springs subordination, that is,
obedience. This subordination without the inner spirit of
submission is not humility. Humility brings with it submission to the manifestations of God's will.
Because of this rather wide-and traditional-eoncept of
humility, these three degrees are in fact three degrees of
perfection.
To move the heart one must set before it great and dominant
truths. This is what St. Ignatius does here. In a complete
and precise formula, but most attractive because it is centered in the Person of Jesus Christ, he gives us all the laws of
sanctity. They are contained in the Principle and Foundation,
but only implicitly. To make this synthesis complete and
explicit, we must add to the laws which follow from creation
(the Principle and Foundation) those which have been promulgated by Christ the Redeemer. In the editing of the text
of the Exercises we notice an effort to join together and to
synthesize these two sets of laws: the two plans of salvation,
creation and Redemption.
Choosing what the soul sees it must here and now choose:
the Election presupposes the other elements indicated in the
preceding meditations. For this reason St. Ignatius once
again synthesizes these elements in the preamble of the Election. Before beginning the Election one must make sure that
he is entering upon it under the proper conditions and with
the proper dispositions of soul. Otherwise all the work will
be of no use, perhaps it will even be harmful.
The preamble or introduction [169] is the "soul" of the
election. It is really the Principle and Foundation as applied
to the Election. To understand St. Ignatius' importunate insistence on this point, we should recall Father Gil Gonzalez
Davila's observation: "There is nothing more difficult, in the
whole course of the Exercises, than to know how to conduct
the process of the Election properly, nor is there any matter
which requires more skill and spiritual discernment" (MH
Ex. 920).
The subject-matter of the Elections [170]: it must be
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
morally "indifferent or good in itself" and the object of a
mutable choice. Regarding Elections once badly made which
cannot now be changed, we must see how these choices can be
set aright within the state which has been definitively chosen.
Regarding Elections which were duly and rightly made: let
him perfect himself as much as possible.
The four traditional steps are the following: life of the
commandments or life of the counsels; if a life of the counsels:
outside the religious life or in it; if in the religious life: in
what order or congregation; when this determination to enter
the religious life must be carried out.
"St. Ignatius warns us that in this m~tter we must proceed in an orderly manner, step by step" (Gil Gonzalez
Davila, MH Ex. 922).
The choice itself is made at one of three possible times.
Time refers to an inner disposition in which the soul may
find itself. One does not choose the time for himself. It is
God who places us in it.
First Time
This is an extraordinary time and a supernatural intervention. It would rbe illuminism to pretend that God touches and
moves the soul immediately and directly without reason, but it
is not illuminism to accept this gift from God and follow its
promptings when it has been granted. This divine motion
can come to us sine nobis, without our cooperation, and even
contra nos, in spite of our resistance; but God's sovereignly
free ~action may very well join itself to a previous disposition
on our part. Normally the divine action presupposes a greater
purification of soul, a more intimate compenetration with
Him, but we cannot assign laws to God. God chooses whom
He wills, and when He wills. "The Exercises dispose us most
aptly (for this divine action). When St. Ignatius supposes
that the exercitant has reached the third degree of humility,
he explains this time to him" (Casanovas) . The first time
includes, then: the direct action of .God; certainty, on the
soul's part, that this motion is from God: a certainty that
allows of no doubt; docility of soul.
Second Time
The basis of the second time of Election is consolation
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251
[316]. Without experience of consolations and desolations it
would be useless, perhaps even harmful, to try to use this time.
Consolation is, so to speak, God's voice heard within the soul.
"This visit of the Lord is had when the soul finds itself encouraged and heartened (by Him) ; when the soul finds it easy
to converse with God, and from this converse with God ready
to undertake difficult and arduous tasks for His love; when the
soul feels as if it were freed from the burden of this body"
(Gil Gonzalez Davila, MH Ex. 924).
The practice of this time depends on the experience which
each one has of the graces of consolation. A habit of familiarity with God should precede its use, a habit formed at
least during the course of the Exercises, during which period
the exercitant will have learned to know ,and recognize God's
wishes and desires. An election according to the method of
the second time is always a long and difficult process and it
requires much care and watchfulness for its proper use. We
know that this was St. Ignatius' own favorite method and
that he made much use of it during his life.
Third Time
A more ratiocinative method in which one's last end is kept
in view and considered with attentive reflection. It presupposes an equilibrium of inclinations (Polanco, MH Ex. 820),
or, better still, an inclination toward what is most perfect, the
surest guarantee that there is no influence of an inordinate
attachment and that thus the Election will be wholly in accordance with right order.
This method can be applied in two ways: the first [178-183],
presupposes perfect indifference: all the reasons pro and con
are given due consideration: in this process it is the intellect
which plays the dominant role; the second [184-187] involves
the affections in greater measure. It is the better method to
use in cases where some attachment does exist and one wishes
to set it 'aright. It is also the better method for people who
are less experienced in the spiritual life. It proposes truths
which are easily understood and which move the emotions
deeply; these truths can easily provide a proper orientation
for the Election to be made.
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
Notes
1. The meditations on the Temporal King, Two Standards
and the Three Modes of Humility can be proposed even to
those who are not going to make the Election; this is also true
of the first meditation, on the Foundation. For in all these
meditations we are dealing not so much with what must be
here and now chosen in an Election which is to be seriously
and earnestly made, but in a general way we consider rather
those things which everyone can do for t~e greater glory of
'
God (Miron, MH Ex. 867).
..
2. The third degree of humility is the objective toward
which St. Ignatius directs everything else. Everything is to
be found in it, and everything that we seek is most readily
and, as it were, spontaneously derived from it (Diertins).
3. In order to make an election of a state of life it is not
necessary that a man be wholly perfect, purified of all evil tendencies and adorned with virtues. What is necessary is that
he should desire this perfection, that he should resolve to try
to attain it (Gagliardi).
4. The third degree of humility is the highest point which
sanctity can possibly attain-the divine folly of Christianity
which ·gives a distinguishing mark to the greatest saints. It
is the truest and most sublime following of Christ (Meschler).
5. "Even if the probability of bearing insults and contempt
may be slight, we should nevertheless explicitly include them
among the objects that our love for Christ leads us to choose
and desire, as St. Ignatius tells us to do. For a heart which
is on fire with the love of Our Lord, it is both comforting and
fruitful frequently to consider the suffering of hardships for
Christ" (Encinas). If we do not feel these desires, we ought
not therefore omit the triple colloquy: On the contrary, we
should insist on it all the more. Thi~ practice recommends
itself to us all the more when we consider that frequently the
very thing toward which we feel a repugnance is precisely
that which Our Lord is asking us to do (Roothaan).
I
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253
PARALLELISM BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND WEEKS
First Week
1. to know the disorder
(of sin)
in others
(angels, etc) ;
in itself;
in myself;
2. to detest disorder in order
to make its removal more
easy.
3. to carry out the reformation of life:
a) resolutions to live a life
in greater accordance with
right order;
b) confession, other means
for persevering in the
service of God, obviating
the infiltration of any disorder.
Second Week
1. to know Christ-as the
norm of order
for others
(the calling of the apostles) ;
in Himself
(the Temporal King, the
Standards, meditations
on the Gospel);
for myself
(how He calls me);
2. to love Christ and be compenetrated with Him in
order to make more easy
my following of Him.
3. to imitate Christ and thus
carry out the right ordering of life:
a) to desire always the
more perfect;
b) meditations to prevent
the infiltration of the least
traces of inordinate attachment, and Election or
reformation of life, so that
I may in the future serve
God in the most perfect
possible way.
THE THIRD AND FOURTH WEEKS
St. Ignatius reduces the number of notes and instructions
as we keep advancing in the course of the Exercises, for he
supposes that the director has become familiar with his
method. Thus, as the Exercises proceed, the director, even
with less detailed directions, should be able to understand
thoroughly the matter proposed.
And this should be true not only of the director. The exer-
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
citant himself should have less need of the assistance of a
guide, since he should be growing in prayerful familiarity
with God. It is for this reason, surely, that St. Ignatius is
less concerned with detail in the meditations which he sets
down in the latter part of the Exercises. It is for this reason
above all that the text for the meditations takes on here
greater depth and makes greater allowance for the difference
among souls; this is evident, for example, in the last point of
the Contemplation for Obtaining Love. The text provides
each soul with what it needs for its ascent toward God. But
the ways that lead to God are varied; ea-ch soul finds its own
way, different from those of others. There is much less need
of method and of instructions here.
With regard to the points of these meditations, then, many
different interpretations are possible, and perhaps all of them,
at least theoretically, are true. But in practice the only acceptable interpretation will be the one which the soul needs
at any given time. Behind many of the comprehensive,
concise and pithy expressions there lies a great respect for
the working of grace and an ungerstanding of the special
ways, the loving ways, of God's dealings with souls.
For this same reason we shall not descend to particular details either. We believe that to do so would be to act against
the mind of St. Ignatius. We shall limit ourselves to some ..
brief pointers.
At these higher levels even the less experienced director
must be able to penetrate into the depths of the lgnatian system. Now, more than ever before, one can never pray or
reflect enough. For we are in the depths here, or, if you will,
on the heights. Many things will always remain hidden.
Whenever we go back to the text, reread it and meditate on
it, there will always open out before our eyes unsuspected
horizons.
Purpose of the Third Week: the contemplation of the Sacred
Passion of Our Lord during the Th~rd Week should produce
in our hearts a profound gratitude to Our Lord for all that He
has suffered for our sakes, and an ardent desire to love Him
more. The Third Week should strengthen the resolutions of
the preceding Weeks: foster an increased abhorrence for our
own sins and for the disorder and worldliness of our lives
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
255
which have brought about the death of the Saviour; an ever
stronger desire to embrace poverty and humiliations which
He first embraced out of love for us; a firmer determination
to strive earnestly against all inordinate tendencies in ourselves: What we seek in the Third Week, then, is to be
spiritually con-crucified with Christ, and through it become
vitally compenetrated with Christ and attain to oneness with
Christ in God.
The natural way of forming in our souls the disposition
which makes us embrace and make our own whatever is
Christ's is to experience the sufferings which He underwent.
Every noble heart suffers with someone who suffers; it wil1
feel even more keenly the pains of One who suffers for his
sake. We should try to bear suffering not as if it were really
our own, nor merely Christ's, but as both His and ours at the
same time. Thus we will feel in our hearts the sorrow that
He felt, and His passion will be prolonged in us (Casanovas).
The supreme ideal is the love of the Cross: to receive all
sufferings gladly. Thus will our will be strengthened and
encouraged to overcome readily the tendency to flee from
suffering. Love, if it is well-ordered, does not stop at the
outward appearances of things, but goes beyond them to their
truest and deepest reality: the reflection of God in them, their
innermost value as ways leading to divine glory. And since
suffering does lead us to divine glory, because it is a necessary
means for expiating sin and for obtaining victory over concupiscence, we can look upon it as a divine benefit, a divine
good. When the soul realizes these truths, when these truths
have penetrated deeply into the mind and heart, there springs
forth within the soul the love of the cross, seen now no longer
as an inevitable evil which has to be borne, but as something
precious and fruitful in itself.
This is the same plan which St. Ignatius made use of in the
First Week in order to foster in the soul a hatred of sin.
Here, however, his objective is different: there are inordinate
attachments which must .be pulled out by the roots. In the
First and Second Weeks we wage war against them: against
those that lead us to sin (First Week) and against those that
hinder us in our pursuit of perfection (Second Week). There
are other inordinate tendencies which may spring from nat-
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
ural factors (v.g. intemperance). These tendencies must be
regulated and their excesses curtailed. The Third Week
serves to crucify these tendencies ( Bover) .
Purpose of the Fourth Week: in the Fourth Week we complete the process of right ordering of our own will, our selflove and self-interest, which was begun in the preceding
Week: "it is wholly directed at setting the heart on fire with
divine love": tota posita est in infiammando divino amore
(MH Ex. 886). This reordering of self is truly accomplished
when the interests and desires of the souLbecome so identical
with thqse of God that the "I" is wholly lost in "Him."
"This communication of goods is really nothing else but so
loving and so acting out of love that lover and beloved share
in each other's every joy and sorrow, in whatever good or evil
comes to each of them, in whatever each one has, whatever
each one suffers, as if whatever one of them has, or suffers,
the other has, and suffers, too" (La Palma).
Here St. Ignatius indicates a higher and even nobler step:
to rejoice intensely in the great joy and triumph of Jesus
Christ [221]. Thus the exercitant will be able to exclude all
claim to ownership over his own self and his own excellence and establish true friendship with God, by means of a
mutual sharing of all- things, even of that which is most personal, most intimately his own: his liberty [234].
What we might call a by-product of the meditations of the
Fourth Week is a disposition of unlimited confidence in Christ
the Consoler: "the office of consoler that Christ our Lord
exercises, . . . as friends are wont to console each other"
[224].
To the exercitant who at this point may be weary from the
effort that has gone before, and perhaps worried and fearful
about the future, concerned with how he will carry out his
resolutions in the stress of real life, Christ our Lord comes
with his divine courage, tenderness and joy. The soul can put
its trust wholly and confidently in Christ's strong and tender
heart. Let the exercitant's heart be filled with the great joy
of its Lord, rejoicing in his gladness as if it were its own,
because when it has Christ and his joy it possesses all things.
�INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
257
CONTEMPLATION FOR ATTAINING LOVE
Following his usual method with its cyclic character, St.
Ignatius goes over the entire process of the Exercises once
more, but this time he reconstructs this process in a synthesis
of greater breadth and depth, and in this new construction
the various truths we have already seen take on an even richer
significance and wider bearing for our lives.
St. Ignatius gathers up all the essential elements into a
compendium which, because it is so simple and concise, can be
used as a program of life in capsule form, a program into
which have been concentrated all the elements found in a
thousand particular truths. During the course of the Exercises we gave God our word of service, our pledge that we
would serve Him. It is in the course of our lives that we must
fulfill our pledge. But often enough we do not find time for
the extended reflection, for the long periods of meditation
needed for renewing and keeping alive this inner disposition
of loving service. There is danger that little by little we may
forget our holy resolutions. St. Ignatius sees the danger; he
does not want this to happen. It is for this reason that he
gives us in a higher, transcendent synthesis all the life-giving
truths of the Exercises. He hopes by this means to make the
transition to real life easier. Seen from this angle, the Contemplation for Love is a bridge linking the Exercises with the
reality of one's everyday life.
St. Ignatius' formula is a very simple and a very practical
one. It is to show how perfection can be practiced in one's
daily life, in the midst of one's daily occupations, making use
of the most trivial things that lie at hand. This is the secret:
to pour the spiritual force and energy accumulated during the
Exercises into the channels, seemingly so commonplace, of our
daily life. Thus the fulfillment of our ordinary round of
duties, instead of distracting us from the loving service of
God, will bring us progressively closer to Him. All the work
We do, all our service, can be converted into love, so that
service and love become one and the same thing. True, love
does not consist, strictly speaking, in deeds, but in an act
elicited by the will, immanent in the will. But it drives the
lover to perform actions, to do .things for his loved one; it
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INTRODUCfiON TO THE EXERCISES
drives the lover to give the beloved everything he can give.
We can in all truthfulness say then, that love must consist
in deeds: "It consists," St. Ignatius says, "in a mutual sharing" [231], or as Father de la Palma has so beautifully put it,
"in having love and working by love."
Our daily life then, if it be directed to God, is really loving.
And as a consequence of this identification of service and
love, "action, far from hindering our union with God, becomes
a really wonderful means to that union" (Gagliardi). Ordinary, commonplace service, at times so t~ifling, done for God
and offered to Him, is the channel into which St. Ignatius
turns the torrent of spiritual energies ~hich have been released in the soul of the exercitant during these days of contact with God. Because of this, the exercitant, without any
special effort, should find himself disposed to serve God with
fullest generosity, recognizing the divine will at every moment
and fulfilling it perfectly, loving God wholly and without
reserve. His life will become an uninterrupted service, and
thus an uninterrupted exercise of love. It will be an answer,
the only worthy answer, of man's~whole being to the friendship which God offers to him. Through this interchange of
love, realized in the mutual offering of self, begins in real
earnest the soul's friendship with God, which is then carried
out into the details of ordinary life. But it is necessary that ..·
in very truth his friendship should suffice for the soul, and
therefore the soul is bound to seek its heart's satisfaction nowhere else but in His love, bound to seek His presence with
all earnestness ( Calveras) .
A soul that has attained this point in the spiritual life has in
a very complete way set aright his love of self, redirected it
rightly from the roots up, transferring to God all the weight
of his love, making Him the one object of his will, all his
heart's desire. In the points of the Contemplation St. Ignatius specifies how this ideal can be realized, how this synthesis
of service and love can be put into practice: loving Him by
serving Him, serving Him by loving Him. The .various ways
proposed in this consideration may be summed up in these
key ideas: we can serve God and love God always; effective:
by fulfilling His will perfectly: a life of service; affective:
by walking in His presence, by seeking to commune with Him
�INTRODUCI'ION TO THE EXERCISES
259
as frequently as possible: our soul's reply to His presence
within it; by seeking Him out in all things, attributing to Him
all the good that we find in creatures: our return for His
divine activity within our soul; by loving Him in all creatures;
ascending towards Him by means of them all, without tarrying on any one of them; finding His vestige in them all, so
that all things lead us to love Him alone, since all that we
contemplate in creatures are but pale mirrorings of His infinite perfections.
The Contemplation for Attaining Love helps to complete
the Principle and Foundation. It is the final cycle which
concludes the process begun in that first consideration in the
Exercises. The Foundation and the Contemplation on Love
complement and compenetrate each other.
The Contemplation on Love helps us to praise, by showing
us the work of God, the wonders of His creation; to give
reverence, by showing us God as present in all creatures;
to serve, by showing us God assisting us in our way towards
our last end; to understand indifference, by showing us God
as the fountainhead from whence flows all truth and goodness,
and all beauty. "Every good and perfect gift is from above,
descending from the Father of Lights, a patre luminum"
(James 1, 17).
Notes
1. We will do well to keep in mind that the very heart of our
union with God does not consist in concepts, or in raising our
minds toward all these things (presented in the Contemplation) ; it consists in deeds. The true force of this union is
above all else in the will, not in the will as a power dependent
on the speculations of the intellect, but in the will as the
power that commands and carries out whatever work is done
for the love of God, in the will as a faculty able to offer itself
and all it possesses to God from the most pure motive of His
glory, resolving and desiring, moreover, to commune in all its
actions with God Who is present to itself, and transforming
itself wholly into Him. To do all that one does for this
motive and effectively to carry out all this in life is to be
united with God in a practical way. By thus joining a total
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INTRODUCTION TO THE EXERCISES
surrender of one's will to God, there takes place a true transformation of man into God, and an exaltation, a rapture, not
of the mind, but of the will and of the whole man. "For love
is more excellent and more efficacious if it be in the will and
in deeds, rather than in the flights of the mind alone" (Gagliardi).
2. "The Contemplation for Attaining Love contains, in
truth, the sum and substance not of the whole of the Spiritual
Exercises only, but of the whole of perfection" (Le Gaudier).
3. We will not attempt to explain the: methods of prayer
which, as St. Ignatius explicitly tells us,~belong to the Fourth
Week [ 4]. We refer the reader to the excellent commentary
by Father Calveras, Los tres modos de orar en los Ejercicios
espirituales de San Ignacio, Barcelona, 1951.
PRUDENCE
By common consent, the palm of religious prudence, in the Aristotelic
sense of that comprehensive word, belongs to the school of religion of
which St. Ignatius is the founder. That great Society is the classical
seat and fountain (that is, in religious thought and the conduct of life,
for of ecclesiastical politics I speak not), the school and pattern of discretion, practical sense, and wise government. Sublimer conceptions or
more profound speculations may have been created or elaborated elsewhere; but, whether we consider the iiiustrious Body in its own constitution, or in its rules for instruction and direction, we see that it is its
very genius to prefer this most excellent prudence to every other gift,
and to think little both of poetry and of science, unless they happen to
be useful. It is true that, in the long catalogue of its members, there
are to be found the names of the most consummate theologians, and of
scholars the most elegant and accomplished; but we are speaking here,
not of individuals, but of the body itself. It is plain that the body is
not overjealous about its theological traditions, or it would certainly not
allow Suarez to controvert with Molina, Viva with Vasquez, Passaglia
with Petavius, and Faure with Suarez, de Lugo, and Valentia. In this
intellectual freedom its members justly glory; inasmuch as they have
set their affections, not on the opinions of the Schools, but on the souls
of men. And it is the same charitable motive which makes them give
up the poetry of life, the poetry of ceremonies,-of the cowl, the cloister,
and the choir,--content with the most prosaic architecture, if it be but
convenient, and the most prosaic neighborhood, if it be but populous.
CARDINAL NEWMAN.
��FATHER DANIEL A. LORD
�OBITUARY
FATHER DANIEL A. LORD
1888-1955
Father Daniel A. Lord died at St. John's Hospital in St.
Louis on January 15th, just a little less than a year after he
had been notified of the malignancy in both his lungs.
Father Lord's reaction to his doctors' verdict was voiced
in strict character: "How long do you think I have? I have
very much to do." And very much he did indeed during the
next nine, work-packed months. His chief problem was
choosing from the vast variety of the things he wanted to do.
All of these were important, yet some were more urgent
than others.
For the first six weeks in his room at St. John's Hospital in
St. Louis he worked furiously at his typewriter, turning out
pamphlets, articles, columns, the last and gayest of his booksThe Man Who Was Really Santa Claus, and a book-length
manuscript of reflections made on his last retreat, besides
keeping up with his voluminous correspondence. He seemed
to work faster and even more intensively than usual. A
month's road trip took him to Denver for a fine arts institute,
to Milwaukee for a youth convention, to Detroit to complete
a film, to Toronto to make preparations for his mammoth
Marian pageant. Then back to the hospital and protracted
writing. In three weeks time he produced, in addition to
other output, over 400 pages of personal history. (We shall
have occasion to refer to this work again later on.) Commitments took him out of town to keynote a civic religious celebration, to highlight an alumnae anniversary, to deliver a
university baccalaureate. Then for the last time he began
the strenuous grind of the Summer Schools of Catholic Action,
spearheading for the twenty-third time the "traveling Catholic college" he had inaugurated back in 1931. The removal
of a cancerous growth from his right shinbone in mid-July
1954 drained much of his ebbing strength. But he gallantly
Went on to the eastern Summer Schools. Racked with pain
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OBITUARIES
and fever in New York, he was unable to go on to the final
school in Chicago.
At Toronto
Sufficiently recovered to travel, he returned to St. Louis and
went immediately to Toronto to begin work on his enormous
musical spectacle that was to climax the celebration of the
Marian Year in this part of Canada. From his bed at St.
Michael's Hospital, all day long he directed the detailed operation involved in a huge undertaking on a regional scale.
Each evening, seated in a chair on the stage, he directed the
preliminary rehearsals in a downtown theater. By the time
the rehearsals moved out to the spacious Toronto Coliseum,
his lower left leg and ankle had swollen to twice their normal
size. Nevertheless, almost singlehandedly, propped up on a
cot in front of his director's booth, he directed superbly the
huge cast of 1,200 actors and dancers and coordinated the
orchestra, chorus, and large production staff throughout the
difficult final rehearsals and the entire eleven performances.
He was constantly attended by a nurse who would administer
sedatives to him whenever his pain became too difficult to
endure. Artistically, musically, and inspirationally his final
salute to the "World's Loveliest Lady" was acclaimed the
greatest achievement of his fabulous theatrical career.
Back at the hospital in St. Louis, his left leg responded to
treatment and returned to normal. Unable to type, he daily
dictated into a dictaphone material sufficient to keep two
stenographers constantly busy. Then without any warning
the strong body which he had driven so relentlessly for so
long suddenly seemed to take its full revenge on him. He became unbelievably feeble. Henceforth he could take no solid
nourishment and had to be sustained to the end by blood transfusions and intravenous feeding. Over the week end following
Armistice Day he began to sink rapidly and was anointed.
Throughout the ceremony he was fully conscious and responded to all of the prayers. During the days following he
grew somewhat stronger but intermittently began to be irrational and to become less articulate. Yet always he was most
gracious to everyone and grateful for everything-doubtless
the result of a lifelong habit. His last fully conscious act was
�OBITUARIES
263
a warm but inarticulate gesture of gratitude expressed to his
physician and his secretary standing alongside his bed. During his final week he was terribly restless and constantly
chafed under his restraints. During his increasing periods
of delirium he would frequently be engaged in exhorting large
audiences and pleading with his imaginary co-workers to
extend their efforts to the utmost. In his instructions to
everyone, which were invariably to "get going on this right
away ... speed it up ... hurry, hurry!" he was revealing
subconsciously perhaps something of the terrific pressure
under which he constantly worked.
Last Days
7
Three days before the end Father Lord lapsed into a state
of semiconsciousness induced by fatigue and by his toxic condition. But except for the last hour of his life he was never
in a coma. Even in his extreme weakness he would suddenly
recover surprising strength, due no doubt to his indomitable
spirit and incredible stamina. On Friday evening, January
14, he was again anointed and the members of The Queen's
Work staff alternately kept an around-the-clock vigil at his
bedside. Late Saturday morning he was perceptibly changing color. By midafternoon there was no sign of any struggle.
And at 4 :35, January 15, 1955, while he was holding in one
hand his beloved rosary and in the other his vow crucifix,
while the prayers for the dying were being recited by his
fellow workers, the joyous, generous, courageous soul of
Father Lord passed peacefully into eternity.
It was particularly fitting that Father Lord died on a Saturday, the day of the week especially dedicated to the Blessed
Mother.
He was truly Our Lady's gallant knight. Few men ever
loved the Queen of Heaven with a more ardent and articulate
love, and no one perhaps ever contributed more splendid and
varied talents towards making her better known, honored,
loved, and imitated.
His attitude towards her was, as it was towards every girl
and woman with whom he ever dealt, always and in everything-knightly.
There is no need here to give a summary of Father Lord's
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OBITUARIES
life or to list his many and versatile accomplishments. Already virtually every large city daily and every Catholic
weekly newspaper across the nation has done this. Moreover,
the editors of several Catholic and secular magazines have
declared their intentions of opening up their pages to fulllength articles featuring various aspects of Father Lord's
lifework, and two or three writers of some prominence have
volunteered to make Father Lord the subject of a definitive
biography.
But to delineate faithfully the fascinating character that
was Father Lord and to evaluate accurately the influence that
his extraordinary life and work has had ~on our times will
require the special genius of a biographer of the stature of
Father James Brodrick, S.J.
Then, too, there is his own unfinished autobiography, about
which we would like to say a few words.
Because so many of his friends and correspondents during
the past few years repeatedly asked him the same question,
"Are you going to give us your life's story?" Father Lord left
behind him a rather remarkable, if incomplete, document.
But only after God's gentle but definite warning was announced through his doctors did he decide to write an account
of God's great goodness to him and of the zest and the joy of
the exciting years that he spent in His service. In this spirit,
without benefit of notes or references of any kind, he completed in a little over three weeks time 431 pages of an autobiographical sketch which he modestly entitled Played By Ear.
"It is merely a medley of memories," Father Lord insisted,
"of things that stood out, of faces that smiled through the
years, of gatherings that at the time seemed significant or
full of promise in which I was privileged to play a happy
part."
Since letter writing was for Father Lord a lifelong hobby,
a pleasant diversion which he considered to be almost his
chief apostolate, the autobiography is in the form of letters.
Each letter is addressed to an actual person or to a typical
inquirer, and each letter constitutes a separate chapter. Like
the letters to his friends that he wrote to the teen-age Sodalists
over the past years through the columns of The Queen's Work,
these autobiographical letters are written for friends to and
�OBITUARIES
265
for whom he had written steadily through the years-the
same type of friends who everywhere gathered around him
and listened while he sat at the piano and played for them
by ear.
Played By Ear is fast-moving and delightfully entertaining.
It is, nonetheless, a significant religious and social commentary on our own unsettled but exciting times.
Like most men and women who have written extensively
over the years, Father Lord actually told much of ·his life
story as he went along. Two of his books, three of his longer
booklets, several of his pamphlets, and much of the material
that appeared in his two weekly columns contain considerable
autobiographical information. Played By Ear recalls much
of what he has already told but retells it freshly and systematically, in more or less chronological order, adding what
seems to be worth while by way of connection and explanation. The following letters suggest the subject matter of the
chapters and indicate something of the contents.
Contents
"To a Young Father and Mother" relates the story of
Father Lord's ancestry and of his childhood in the homes of
his parents and relatives on Chicago's south side and in Oak
Park. "To Another Young Father and Mother" describes his
boyhood during the gay nineties: his companions ... his informal education through books read to him ... his formal
training in art, music, and dancing. "To a Young Educator"
expresses rather completely Father Lord's basic ideas on
education from the preschool period through college illustrated
by flash backs to his own home and homes of others . . .
kindergarten at Forestville Public School with Miss Florence
· .. Holy Angels' Academy and the early but lasting influence
on him of the incomparable Sister Mary Blanche . . . De La
Salle Institute with Brother Baldwin and Brother Pascal ...
St. Ignatius High School and the role played in his education
by the volatile Mr. Claude Pernin, S.J. . . . old St. Ignatius
College: the faculty, courses, and the extracurriculars . . .
the influence of Father Francis Cassily, S.J., and Father EdWard Gleeson, S.J. . . . parish activities in the basement of
St. Catherine's Church in Oak Park. "To a Typical Child of
�266
OBITUARIES
This Age" is a remarkable tracing of the social changes undergone since Father Lord was an adolescent and the challenge
which the present "most exciting period in history" presents
to Catholic youth everywhere. "To a Young Man Considering
His Vocation" is a thorough retrospective account of the numerous obstacles Father Lord encountered in deciding his own
vocation.
"To an Old Friend" who many years ago asked him the
question, "What makes a Jesuit?" Father Lord explains the
idea of religious life: the vows of religion . . . his own religious and academic life in the novitiate and juniorate ...
his indebtedness to Father James Finn, KJ., his spiritual
director at Florissant, Missouri. "To Some Pleasant Teaching
Sisters" outlines, in answer to the inquiries of some visiting
sisters, the purposes and content of the Jesuit's course in
philosophy and theology ... his own life in these houses of
study, then located on the campus of St. Louis University.
"To a Jesuit Scholastic About to Begin His Teaching" gives
Father Lord the opportunity to re-create vividly the three
wonderful years he spent as a regent teaching at St. Louis
University, where, in addition to holding a full-time professorship in the English Department, he also organized and
directed the band, started the student newspaper, revived the
yearbook, handled the debating squad, promoted social activities, wrote and produced the college shows, gave outside public
lectures, and administrated the newly founded School of Education on Saturdays. "To a Young Jesuit About to Be Ordained" discusses the significance of the ordination rite ...
the sublimity of the priesthood ... and compares the present
situation confronting the priest of today to the time when he
was ordained over thirty years ago. "To a Member of the
IFCA Board of Review" is the story of Father Lord's lifelong
interest in motion pictures . . . the influence of movies on
American manners and morals . . . his role as adviser to
Cecil B. De Mille and association with other top Hollywood
producers . . . evolution of the organized protests against
immoral films ... his drafting of the Production Code ...
the setting up of the Hays (now Johnston) Office to enforce
the code ... his recent connections with the motion-picture
makers.
J
�OBITUARIES
267
"To a Young Catholic Writer" answers the frequently asked
question about why he wrote, for whom he wrote, how he
wrote, and what value he placed on his own writing ... the
progress of his own self-development as a writer extending
over half a century . . . the story of his pamphlets and children's books. "To a Perfect Secretary" details Father Lord's
duties as assistant to the editor of The Queen's Work magazine in 1913: "I soon found myself altar boy, errand boy,
private secretary, stenographer, copyboy, proofreader, layout
man, printer's devil, appraiser of manuscripts, author, and
rewrite man." ... the Sodalities he belonged to in his youth
... the condition of the Sodality in the United States at the
time of his reassignment to the Sodality national office in
1925 ... gratitude to his associates ... what he hoped and
planned to do with the Sodality.
After completing this last chapter addressed to his secretary, "chronic exhaustion," as the doctors termed it, forced
Father Lord to lay aside his dictaphone apparatus and lay
his tired body down on his bed of death. He never lived to
finish the autobiography. In his own estimation Father Lord
never finished anything he ever undertook to do. Whatever
he finished could always have been done so much better and
there was always so much more to be done.
His happy gift of zeal was, like that of Francis Xavier, a
fatal gift. Like his great hero, Xavier, he too during his
stretches of delirium on his deathbed was doing big things for
God and planning ever bigger ones.
There is a matter-of-fact line in Father Lord's autobiography that might supply a key to his character and help to
explain the secret of his tremendous output of work. "I have
always had the feeling," he wrote without any heroics, "that
the day I look back on what I have done, little as it is, I shall
have finished doing anything more. And I don't want that
to happen."
Father Lord was born in Chicago, April 23rd, 1888. He
entered the original Missouri Province on July 26th, 1909.
His course in the Society followed the standard line of the
times: novitiate and juniorate at Florissant, philosophy and
theology at St. Louis, tertianship at Cleveland. He was
ordained in St. Louis by the late Cardinal Glennon on June
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OBITUARIES
24th, 1923. His requiem Mass was celebrated in St. Francis
Xavier College Church on January 19th, 1955, and he was
buried in the cemetery at St. Stanislaus Seminary.
Principal Apostolate
There is much conjecture as to what was Father Lord's
main apostolate. It is interesting to note in his autobiography that although he wrote over the years more than 20,000
words a month for publication and that he could in emergencies turn out, on some familiar subject, consistently 15,000
words a day-he nevertheless insists that his writing was
only incidental to the work to which ii~ was at the time
assigned. "My writings grew out of my work," he declares,
"and my work was supported mainly by the writing." Although Father Lord spent only three formal years teaching
in the classroom, he always considered himself to be simply
a Jesuit teacher of religion. So he states in the autobiography: "Teaching religion through a variety of mediums has
been my life's work. Among other habits, I have the habit
of theology. I doubt now if I could pass the examination
which was relatively simple when l finished my theological
course many years ago; but I never rise before an audience,
large or small, young or old, without using theology and I
have yet to write anything without putting at the top of my
paper the Jesuit A.M.D.G. To which I always like to add
B.V.M.H."
In his funeral oration, Bishop Helmsing, Auxiliary Bishop
of St. Louis, correctly appraised Father Lord when he acclaimed him "a great Christian teacher"; to which appraisal
an editorial writer appropriately added, "He was a Christlike
teacher, one who took for his classroom the whole wide world,
who utilized every conceivable educational art to fight the
stubbornest of all enemies-ignorance-who outwitted with
his matchless gifts and boundless zeal the most subtle of all
subversives-apathy. He won eternal victories in the minds
and hearts of millions. By precept and example he taught the
men and women of our day how to love God and in Him, their
fellow men, how to live a dedicated life and to die a valiant
death."
LEO P. WOBIDO, S.J.
.. ]
�OBITUARIES
269
Father Lord's Credo
We append a letter which Father Lord wrote to a young
friend-a college graduate and major league baseball playeron the occasion of his entering the Trappists. The letter was
dictated shortly before Father Lord's death and may be considered a kind of testament.
Dear Paul:
Rather than that long letter with which I threatened you,
I felt possibly that a synopsis would be more easy to handle.
So here are some suggestions that may be largely supplanted
when you get to your new life :
1. Henceforth your life is God and yourself. Keep your
eyes on God, and stay close to Him, and let Him do the worrying about you.
2. Your life will be hard; offer that up for sinners. You
can save them.
3. Offer up some of your work for priests. We priests are
the important element which, humanly, advances and holds
back the cause of Christ.
4. Pay as little attention as possible to others. What they
do should influence you not at all.
5. Keep your prayer simple. Talk to God as to a Father, to
Christ as to a Brother, to the Holy Spirit as to a constant
Companion.
6. Make your spiritual reading largely the Gospels. Read
them over and over slowly and thoughtfully.
7. You will learn to make Christ your personal pattern and
your standard for everything.
8. Bring small things to Mary, as to your Mother. The
big problems of your life will all be small. Take them up with
her.
9. Try to do any job, important or trivial, with pride in it
and with an effort to do it well. Offer it up at the beginning
and end and keep your mind divided between what you do
and Who does it with you.
10. Watch your disposition. Keep your mind completely
cheerful, at peace and content. Despise temptations and
�270
OBITUARIES
laugh at any signs of scruples. You're God's son and that's
your basic good fortune.
11. Take reasonable care of your physical health: keep
clean, be regular, eat what you are allowed, get what sleep is
permitted and extra when granted, force yourself to regard
your body as the companion of your soul-wonderful as an
aid to all life, a drag when neglected.
12. Never decline any job you are asked to do, if it is possible for you to do it.
13. Silence can become simply apathy and inertia. Mentally talk to your guardian angel and Y~our patron saints.
14. Consider yourself as vitally impor'fant for the Church.
Keep the general interests of the Church Universal always
in your work and prayer.
15. Avoid personal routine. If you have any free time, try
to handle it differently each week, each month. Don't become
mechanical.
16. Make your answer to commands, requests, bells a simple
"Yes, Lord!"
17. Remember grace is the smile in your soul.. Keep smiling, even though you are deeply dignified externally.
18. Grow! When you stop growing spiritually, you are
asleep or dead.
Devotedly in Christ,
DANIEL A. LoRD, S.J.
FATHER CHARLES J. DENECKE, S.J.
1907-1953
There is a way of thinking best suited to the study of the
humanities, and another best suited to the study of philosophy
and theology; the transition from the one to the other can be
critical for success in the upper reaches of the course in the
Society. From 1946 to 1951, Jesuit Scholastics beginning the
study of philosophy at Woodstock received their new intellectual orientation from Father Charles J. Denecke. In an
early class that first year, he summed up the transition in
these words: "You have to get used to wrapping your minds
�FATHER CHARLES J. DENECKE
��OBITUARIES
271
around a problem until you solve it. It is no longer sufficient
to read a poem and be happy." This sardonic summation does
little justice to his high esteem for belles-lettres; it does serve
to indicate the soundness of his approach to philosophy and to
explain the lasting awareness of problems and earnestness in
dealing with them that he engendered in his neophytes. A
pupil of his might in later life ignore intellectual problems or
deal with them halfheartedly and carelessly; but if he were
to do so, he could never comfort himself with the illusion that
he has done any thinking.
Undoubtedly a prime factor in Father Denecke's success as
a teacher was the decided impression of strength that he
made on his class. A man of medium height and rugged physique, he spoke in a rich baritone, clipping his words. At first
sight his most arresting feature was his direct steady gaze;
and, as time wore his other features together into a familiar
blend, the penetrating quality of that gaze never grew dull.
This would be especially true for the hapless student of epistemology who was being questioned on the prelection and whose
answers were not precise and clear. That steely gaze would
hold the erring scholar immobile under the lash of the insistent query: "Sane vel non?" Then it would release him
and sweep away across the class, allowing the victim to slump
ignominiously into his seat.
The questioning on the prelection, while frequently painful,
was invariably salutary. It was part of Father Denecke's
skillful adaptation of Socratic midwifery to the limitations of
classroom work. For his questions, always clear, penetrating,
and ranged in logical sequence, exposed to the class any
glaring deficiencies in their grasp of the matter. Then followed a lecture on the same matter, in which the difficult
points shown up in the recitation were touched on with special
care.
A demanding teacher Father Denecke certainly was; but
he was a compelling teacher as well, communicating his own
enthusiasm for philosophy and illuminating its depths with a
clarity that awakened interest and enthusiasm in the minds of
his students. And yet, to dismiss him as a compelling and
demanding teacher is to betray the narrowness of one's point
of view. For Father Denecke is seen only from the scholars'
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OBITUARIES
benches; and few men who teach would care to rest their
reputation exclusively on the judgment of those they have
taught. For there is an alchemy at work on those who become
teachers, changing ordinary metals into gold in some men, in
others masking the most precious elements with a film of
dross. Paradoxically enough, when those precious elements
are a certain sensitivity and warmheartedness in a man naturally sociable, an assignment to teach can inhibit precisely
those qualities, and that although they are invaluable to one
whose essential task is communication.
The Man in the Making
That Father Denecke was sociable, charitable, and sensitive flows naturally from the character of the family into
which he was born. The third of six children, he was born in
Buffalo, New York, on September 25, 1907, to warmhearted
parents of German descent. He was always deeply devoted to
them; friends remarked later the great respect in which he
held his father. After graduating from Canisius High School
in 1924, he entered St. Andrew-on-Hudson; and from there he
went to Woodstock for Philosophy.
During his Regency Father Denecke taught at St. Joseph's
College, Philadelphia. While there he gave evidence of the
genuine maturity which was to mark his character all the rest
of his life. This rare quality was recognized by older members
of the Society from whom it earned him a deference unusual
to be accorded a Regent. Nor was his maturity lost on the
college students. This was noted particularly during one trip
with the debating team. Their average age was twenty-four,
the same as his; but there was no doubt about the respect
that was accorded the young moderator without constraint,
embarrassment, or dissimulation.
Theology brought him back to Woodstock. Although studies
engaged his main interest, one of the visible changes in Woodstock at that time was the building of the golf course. One
aspect of that event impressed him strongly, the fact that the
house Procurator, Father Edward Phillips, who had refused
permission to build the course when Provincial, surveyed the
land and laid out the course when his successor granted the
permission. Father Denecke did his share of the more humble
�OBITUARIES
273
work on the course, but his labors were not rewarded by any
real proficiency at golf; ten years later he still constituted a
clear and present danger to other golfers on the course and
to bystanders not in the intended line of flight. Indeed, his
erratic progress around the links seemed a source of perpetual
discomfiture to him. As he addressed the ball, his face mirrored grim determination, but the flight of a golf ball has a
way of frustrating even the strongest will. Still he was anything but inept athletically. When he taught at Woodstock,
he and Father Charles Neuner made a formidable combination
on the handball court, often humbling opponents far younger
than themselves.
Father Denecke was ordained at Woodstock on June 20,
1937. All through his priestly life he manifested the Jesuit's
great regard for the priesthood, showing it in demeanor that
was at once simple, natural, and reverent.
After Fourth Year Theology and Tertianship, Father
Denecke entered the graduate school at Fordham to study
philosophy. He spent two years there, and during that time
he kept himself on a rigorous daily schedule. After a full
morning of study he would quit work at noon, get a rest,
perhaps a few minutes of exercise, eat his lunch-usually a
bowl of cereal-and be back at his desk shortly after two.
Except for the break at dinner time, he would work steadily
from the early afternoon until late into the night. However,
he was not completely successful at Fordham, largely as a
result of a disagreement with another philosopher, a man of
great name and of ideas equally as definite as Father Denecke's
own. His doctorate was finally awarded by Georgetown University in 1943.
When Scranton University was entrusted to the MarylandNew York Province in 1942, Father Denecke joined the faculty to teach ethics and religion. When visiting the homes of
friends in the vicinity, it was the usual thing to have the
Younger members of the household clambering all over him
by the time the evening was over. He spent some time too
Working to reclaim young women from a life of prostitution;
the fine reserve and deep sympathy that marked his dealings
with them served as an accurate index of the warmth of his
heart.
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OBITUARIES
The Main Task
When he was called to Woodstock to teach epistemology in
the middle of the year 1945-1946, he began his first class with
an apology for his halting Latin on the plea that he had not
spoken it for seven years; whereupon he regaled the assemblage with a dazzling display of elegant and unhesitating
Latinity. At Woodstock he maintained his demanding order
of time; suffice it to say that before the community breakfast
he had usually put in at least a half-hour at his desk. He
wrote an excellent set of notes and kept in contact with others
in his field, especially in Jesuit scholasticates, in his eagerness
to keep abreast of developments.
During his fourth year of teaching at Woodstock, Father
Denecke became acting Dean of the Philosophical Faculty in
the absence of Father Ralph Dates who spent the year teaching in England. As Dean he had it at heart that the Philosophers apply themselves seriously to the coursework. At the
same time he was fully sympathetic with those experiencing
difficulty in studies, in health, or in family affairs. He himself
chauffeured to the railroad statiorr a Philosopher called home
by a death in the family, and he made the trip to Mount Royal
in what must still be the standing record time.
During the following summer Father Denecke had a term
as Superior of the Regents' Summer School at Port Kent. His ..
desire to make the session pleasant and profitable for the
Scholastics was signalized by his presence on the station platform to greet the arrival of the First Year Regents. One
occasion that summer which gave him particular pleasure was
a barbecue to which he invited the late Monsignor Ambrose
Hyland, chaplain at Dannemora Prison in Auburn. During a
song-fest that followed the meal at the clubhouse of the old
golf course, Father Denecke and Father Hyland sat on the
lawn, smoking and listening. Father Denecke called for the
whole range of the infectious musical sagas about Woodstock
and philosophy; and he was clearly delighted at his guest's
enjoyment of them.
The Quest for Truth
As it happened, Father Denecke's administrative duties
were no more than episodes in a career given mainly to the
�OBITUARIES
275
teaching and continuing study of philosophy. The dominating
factor in his work as a philosopher was his preoccupation
with the foundations of metaphysics. As a graduate student
he was governed by this preoccupation in selecting a subject
for his doctorate thesis; as Professor of Epistemology at
Woodstock he made this problem the core of his course and
devoted the major portion of his time, attention, and not inconsiderable talent to its elucidation and solution. The title
of his dissertation, "The Role and Importance of Self-Existence in the Science of Metaphysics," is misleading: it is not
so much self-knowledge that commands his interest as the
problem of establishing the objectivity of the notion of being.
And it was not without reason that he preferred to entitle his
course in epistemology "The Metaphysics of Knowledge": for
him the so-called "critical problem" was much more than a
validation of the pretensions of common-sense; it was the
problem of the correspondence of mind and reality, of being
as known and being as it is in itself, the problem of the metaphysical object.
As an epistemologist then Father Denecke was primarily a
metaphysician. He conceived epistemology not as a separate
science, but as a critique interior to metaphysics itself. The
first function of epistemology, in his opinion, was to secure
the rational foundations of our subsumption of particular
being under the common notion of being. Between the writing
of his dissertation and the later drafts of his class notes his
thinking underwent progressive and profound changes, for
the same independence of thought and integrity of purpose
that marked his criticism of others were equally manifest in
his constant review and revision of his own ideas; yet his
initial orientation and basic principles remained the same.
Though self-knowledge gave way to the experiential judgment
about sensible reality as the material of his critical analysis,
it was always the crucial juncture of thought and being and
its metaphysical import that provided his central problem.
In handling this problem he steered a narrow course between two contemporary approaches, the Mediate Realism of
Father de Vries and the Methodic Realism of M. Gilson. In
the one he saw the dangers of a cogito ferme, a knowledge
imprisoned within the confines of a windowless mind, that
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OBITUARIES
adopts a myopic view of cognition's initial data and condemns
itself to the impossible task of constructing a bridge between
a walled-in world of thought and an unknown world of reality.
In the other he saw a refusal to come to grips with the prolem: no philosophy, he felt, that hopes to experience and
communicate complete confidence in the objectivity of its
conclusions can abstain from examining the relationship of
knowledge and reality; and the only place to initiate this inquiry is at the unique point where thought and being effect
their mysterious union, namely in the cognitive act. Father
Denecke's reflective analysis of the e~eriential judgment,
with its detailed and penetrating explicifation of cognition's
ontological principles, provides a secure and rational critique
of human knowledge and a solid foundation for a sane metaphysics.
It is this peroccupation with metaphysics in the field of
theory of knowledge that gives the brief professional career of
Father Denecke its chief significance. In this, of course, he
was not alone: he was one link in that small but growing band
of contemporary scholastic philosophers who are buttressing
the claim of metaphysics to be the queen of the sciences.
The Test of Truth
The first indication that Father Denecke was not well came ··
in early 1951. Until that time he had enjoyed normally good
health, with the exception of one routine, if painful, illness
which required surgery. But, beginning in the summer of
1950, several blood counts revealed an unusually high concentration of white blood corpuscles. Two stays in quick succession at Baltimore's Mercy Hospital during January, 1951,
forced Father Denecke's physician to diagnose his condition
as chronic lymphoid leukemia. A breakdown of communications concealed the fact from his superiors at Woodstock until
the following May. Even so, the doctor felt that Father Denecke had suspected the nature of his disease all along. In
the course of a check-up in New York during the following
May, one of the doctors who examined him said that he had
seldom seen a better physical specimen. Nevertheless, the
Baltimore diagnosis was confirmed, and Father John McMahon, the New York Provincial, told Father Denecke the
�OBITUARIES
277
sad news. That evening Father Denecke was in a gathering
of Jesuits whom he had not seen for some time and none of
whom knew anything of what he had just learned. All of
them complimented him on his apparent good health; and
neither from his affable greetings nor from his lighthearted
repartee could any of them suspect that he had anything on
his mind. A day or two later at the Philippine Mission Departure Ceremony at Fordham, he mentioned the matter to
an old friend. Although he seemed shaken and under a severe
emotional strain, his deepest concern was that the word of his
illness be kept from his mother; he was worried about her
health and fearful of the effect the news would have on her.
In another day or two he entered the hospital and was as
courteous and cheerful with his visitors as if his life had not
been changed in the least.
Father Denecke did not give in easily to his illness. He
was young and strong, he had prepared well for the work he
projected, he had many qualities which should have enabled
him to do fine work for God. Since his condition did not
demand a complete cessation of activity, he was able to teach
the regular epistemology classes during the last academic
year in which the subject was taught at Woodstock. On the
other hand he was fatally sick. Inevitably his sickness
showed, in occasional short-tempered words in class and later
in the hospital. But he never gave way to moaning; all his
victories and any defeats in his fight to keep going resulted
from the fact that it was a fight. To the very end he did as
much as the doctors permitted; a chance to drive a car, for
instance, he found an especially welcome relaxation.
Still his determination to live did not goad him to any
frenzy of activity; rather, he deliberately paced himself to a
calm moderate scale of living. His walk was still firm but no
longer aggressive. He gained weight and it showed in his
face especially, giving him a more robust appearance than he
had ever had in the previous five or six years. He slept late
and made his meditation faithfully in mid-morning in the
chapel. During this whole period, he remarked, he found new
depths and unsuspected riches in prayer and in union with
Our Lord.
During early 1952, there was some question of his being
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OBITUARIES
transferred to Bellarmine College, Plattsburg, the following
summer when the philosophate was to be moved. Clearly
Father Denecke himself would have wanted to continue teaching and Father Provincial was ready to let him do so as long
as it was in his best interest. But by that time the doctor
had begun X-ray therapy with encouraging results, and he
wanted Father Denecke to have adequate medical facilities
near at hand for further treatments. For that reason it was
decided that Father Denecke should stay at Woodstock.
He responded to treatment favorably enough to be allowed
to take a South American cruise in March, 1952. His trip
took him as far south as Cuzco, Peru, alfuough he spent most
of his time ashore in and around Lima. To prove that old
habits are not easily broken, he had flown south to Lima
from Colombia: "All sorts of accidents in Buenaventuraslow-down (possibly the usual pace of dock-workers there),
a national election in Colombia (nobody permitted ashore),
and a full stoppage by the stevedores!" Still his capacity for
enjoying the local scene and the local people was unimpaired,
once he got where he wanted to go, as he showed in a subsequent letter: "I had a full week w1th Dr. (Julius) and Mrs.
Klein and managed to see most of Lima during that time.
Very lovely city-and most leisurely." And he adds: "The
Jesuit community has been very warm in its welcome-as
have all the Peruani."
A week later he was still enjoying a mild social whirl in
Lima: "I came here to stay with the Maryknoll fathers. Much
more relaxing than the hotel. My activities are limited to an
occasional visit in town to pick up my mail and drop in at the
Embassy. Mother M. Ivo (Phila. Immaculate Heart) guided
me on a shopping tour this morning.... Monday, I was invited to tea at the American Embassy. The Sisters from
Villa Maria, the Nuncio, Father McCarthy, superior here, and
some ladies to pour. Very pleasant. Sunday I am lunching
with the Nuncio-spaghetti, I presume."
That Father Denecke was congenial to the Peruvians and
the international community in Lima shines out of a letter of
condolence after his death from Doctor Klein: "Charles was,
as you know, our particularly close friend and we had such a
delightful visit with him in Lima. I was so happy to be able
�OBITUARIES
279
to arrange some special contacts for him there and even
though his visit was brief he left a large group of warm
friends among the Peruvians."
Father Denecke started the trip north on the Santa Barbara
of the Grace Line. But on April 8 at Panama City a check on
his blood condition showed the white count alarmingly high
and the red count alarmingly low. The ship's doctor advised
him to leave the ship and to get to a hospital. Accordingly he
flew home immediately, arriving in Washington the next day
and going directly to Mercy Hospital, Baltimore. The stay
at Mercy was a long one, extending into the late summer;
during that period he received blood transfusions, radiation
therapy, and cortisone injections.
That stay was, moreover, the first of a series of periods in
the hospital that grew longer and more frequent, as the
respites between them grew shorter. Father Denecke would
return to Woodstock when he was discharged from the hospital or he would make a short trip to visit relatives. At
Christmas he went to Silver Spring, Maryland, for a few days
to stay with his mother and father at the home of his sister.
By now patience had become part of the pattern of his life,
a strong manly patience, the only kind his could be. It was
rooted in his strong faith, and in a new gentleness noted as
characteristic of him by all who knew him those last months.
His faith and resignation to God's will were still to be
severely tested. Early in January, 1953, he returned to the
hospital for a long stay. The inactivity of those long weeks
he found extremely trying. In February he wrote jokingly:
"I hope to be free again sometime soon. This, my boy, is a
very monotonous life. I have become a cabbage. . . . What
I had projected for myself is still waiting for the opportunity.
I am not impatient about it. If God wants me to do it, He
will provide time and health. Otherwise-?"
In mid-March he returned to Woodstock. He seemed, at
least in retrospect, quieter than ever before. His stay was
only for a few days; on March 23 he entered Mercy Hospital
once again. From then on he weakened steadily. During the
following week members of his family arrived from upstate
New York. By Easter Wednesday, April 8, he was very low.
He was told at five-thirty that afternoon that he was in danger
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OBITUARIES
of death, and he replied that he suspected as much. Suddenly
all the tension and apprehension left him. By ten-thirty he
seemed at the very end of life; his breathing was irregular
and he could not be aroused. The Sisters of the hospital staff
gathered, and Father Joseph F. Murphy, Rector of Woodstock,
led them in the prayers for the dying and then in the Rosary.
Suddenly Father Denecke opened his eyes and asked Father
Murphy what was going on. When he received the reply that
it had been touch-and-go, he remained perfectly tranquil, received absolution and the Last Blessing, said that he would
like Father Murphy and the Sisters to say the Rosary, and
joined in the responses. He dozed on into the morning; about
three o'clock he awoke and said a few words to Father Murphy. By then he felt much better and thought he would have
a good day. "I alternate," he said, and referring to his recent
brush with death he added: "What a fizzle."
He did have a good day on Thursday, saw his family three
times during the day, two at a time, and at the last visit
blessed them before they went home for the night. Apart
from weakness due to continued internal bleeding, there were
no indications that he would not live through the night. A
few moments of discomfort and a touch of nausea marked the
night and early morning hours. He slipped into a quiet sleep
at a quarter to two; his pulse began to slow about a quarter
to three; at ten minutes to four he died.
There are different degrees in which men love the Society
and reveal in their lives its training; his love was deep, unfeigned, and unashamed, his life and character a tribute to
the Society's training. May that Truth, that above all engaged his love and loyalty during his life, fill his heart and
mind through all eternity.
THOMAS F. WALSH, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
SOCIAL ORDER
Social Relations in the Urban Parish. By Joseph H. Fichter, S.J.
Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1954. Pp. vii-264. $5.50.
Father Fichter needs no introduction to Jesuit readers. His controversial Southern Parish, 1951, thrust his name beyond province, assistancy and even Jesuit confines. It was no doubt a deciding factor in the
invitation extended to him to lecture at the University of Muenster in
1954.
The author begins with the fundamental problem-how determine who
is a parishioner? Next, parish members are grouped into several categories: the active, the practicing, the marginal and the dormant. With
each of these categories a relevant problem is discussed: lay leadership,
social solidarity, institutional inconsistency and defection from the
Church. In each of these problem areas lesser issues are treated: the
percentage attending Mass of obligation, the penetration of anti-authoritarianism among lay Catholics, the more common causes of leakage, the
role which lay leaders wish the priest-moderator to take in their group
activity-and the extent they wish him not to participate! It would be
a pity to moderate parish organizations while ignoring the findings of
this study regarding the ordinary member a~d the lay leader. Other
chapters deal with the influence of urban mobility on parish life, the
relations of social status to religious behavior, evolution in the social
roles of the parish priest, the ethical principles which govern the social
scientist, etc.
For those of us who have had no academic training in sociology, this
work fills a need. Time was when seminary education in the natural
sciences was limited to the trivium of physics, chemistry and biology.
Fortunately the social sciences have finally established a beachhead in
the curriculum. It is to be hoped that they achieve the rightful place
which the ideal of the modern educated man postulates for them. Until
they do, the reading of such works as this will help fill the lacuna in our
knowledge and formation.
This is not, however, a textbook of sociology, though to some extent it
may serve this purpose. It will be read with profit by sociologists and
students of this science, by those in parish work as well as superiors
and administrators, by seminarians and their teachers.
It may be that we nourish a certain bias, as well we might, because
of the amoral and positivistic attitudes of certain sociologists. But
there need be no fear of losing one's faith in reading this book! Indeed
the author demonstrates clearly how sociology properly conceived is not
a denial or degradation of the supernatural, as no true science can be.
Or our bias may take the form of the question: "What right has the
sociologist in the sanctuary?" The an thor answers:
Knowledge of the objective facts is a preliminary essential to the
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BOOK REVIEWS
proper and intelligent functioning of any social group or community. If this knowledge can be achieved and analyzed through
sociological techniques, the Church has at its disposal a potent instrument of internal and external progress (p. 237).
This thesis is exposed and defended in the appendix. The effort meets
with signal success, a note characteristic of the whole undertaking.
ROBERT
H. SPRINGER, S.J.
PSYCHOLOGY
Personality and Mental Health. By James E.
Bruce, 1955. Pp. vii-310. $3.50.
~oyce,
S.J.
Milwaukee,
Succinctness, clarity and richness of content and treatment are the
outstanding qualities in this new text for Clinical and Mental Hygiene
Psychology courses. The good teacher is manifest in every page of the
book. Father Royce insists that he had the student in mind and the
careful development of the subject matter shows that he has realized
his ideal.
There are five parts, of which the first points up the prevalence and
preventability of mental maladjustment. Part two copes with the basic
pattern of adjustment, which is a fitting of behavior to inner tensions
and the environment. The resultant is a system of habits, whose patterns constitute the personality. There follows a definition of normalcy and integration; and the chief components of personality are
identified.
Part three is an exploration of the basic factors of personality development and an excellent section is devoted to the developmental stages ..
of life, including a most helpful section on the School Years. Part four
provides the student with a basic knowledge of the problems of adjusted
and maladjusted personality. It is entitled the Management of Personality. This section is very rich in content and gives an excellent working
knowledge of defense mechanisms and six common personality problems:
fears, anxiety, guilt, inferiority feelings, sex and alcoholism.
Finally, part five offers a compact treatment of the various grades
and types of mental disorder. In the sections on the causes and prevention of mental disorders, the author shows distinctive originality.
Finally, the last chapter is devoted to the Care and Treatment of Mental
Disorders. Here, as throughout the book, the author manifests a very
wide acquaintance with the current literature.
The author purposely refrained from enriching his book with cases.
Many will regret that decision, as it does make the reading difficult at
times. But any teacher would supply this lack. The reader will be
surprised at the cavalier treatment of Freud on p. 292. The space
allotted to Jung and Harry Stack Sullivan is rather miserly.
One persistent question remains in this reviewer's mind. Father
Royce commendably exploits the framework of a psychology of adjust-
�BOOK REVIEWS
283
ment in terms of needs and drives. This formulation owes its existence
to a Freudian and Behavioristic psychology. Father Royce, of course,
issues timely caveats and correctives. 'He successively clarifies his own
position and thus is perfectly orthodox in his psychology. And the reviewer's question is concerned not with what the author holds and
eventually explains, but in what he neglects to make explicit in his
formulation of the problem of adjustment and the definition of personality. Needs and drives are made to include every possible human goal
and the crude reductionism of behaviorism is thus deprecated. But
without further explicitation, the intimations of a backstroke, almost
solipsistic, adaptation is immediately suggested. Again, in the definition
of personality as "the unique organization of habit systems of all man's
operative powers (physical, sensory and rational), from which flow his
relations to all other beings," the image of man the goal-seeker does not
impose itself. Where is the explicitation of self-possession and selfdetermination, man's realization of what he is, his self-determined
struggle towards what he wants to be and his self-dedication to what
he ought to be?
In Time magazine recently Jung's superiority over Freud was extolled
in terms of his demand that man's adjustment should not only be to
animal instincts but to his "great paradoxes and his eternal religious
needs." Father Royce would, of course, agree one hundred per cent.
But it seems to the reviewer that he does not with sufficient explicitness
convey the richness of his true concept of personality and its selfdeterminative goal character.
HUGH J. BIBLER, S.J.
SPIRITUALISM
Ghosts and Poltergeists. By Herbert Thurston, S.J. Edited by J. H.
Crehan, S.J. Chicago, Henry Regnery Co., 1954. Pp. xi-210. $4.00.
This is not a book of mystery stories, though it reads as interestingly
as one. It is a posthumous compilation of critical studies, all from the
pen of Father Thurston, which appeared originally as articles in various
periodicals.
The array of ghosts who parade through these pages are a peculiar lot.
Some delight in biting their victims. Others, less malicious, like to
tease. Many lessen their annoyances, if entreated, but increase them
when abused. They have, however, much in common. The author gives
this eerie list of characteristics:
A poltergeist is simply a racketing spirit, which in almost all cases
remains invisible, but which manifests its presence by throwing
things about, knocking fire-irons together and creating an uproar,
in the course of which the human spectators are occasionally hit by
flying objects, but as a rule suffer no serious injury (p. 2).
They are then a class apart from benign heavenly visitants and from
those restless wanderers supposedly from purgatory. Nor do they ap-
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BOOK REVIEWS
pear to be a devilish lot. For exorcisms as a rule do not suppress their
clatterings. Other phenomena usually associated with diabolical possession are likewise absent. Their behavior is too childish and purposeless to be ascribed to the astute enemy of mankind. There is, however,
a factor which these manifestations have in common with spiritualism.
The visitations depend on the presence of a human who has some of the
qualities of a medium. Generally this is a young person, often a child.
There is this essential difference. The "medium" does not consciously
invoke the spirit but is rather his playth!ng and victim.
What are poltergeists then? Father Thurston does not venture to
say. His sole purpose is to establish by sound epistemological norms
their objective reality. In doing so he shows both acumen and broad
erudition, winnowing out the purely imaginative and collating the data
of many climes and ages. Scholar that he is, JJ..!! will not impose on our
credulity with the poorly attested reports others have accepted.
Though this work lacks a philosophical or theological construct of
the nature of these beings, it does prove their existence. And from this
fact two corollaries are drawn. The materialist and the positivist must
reckon with this evidence of "'the existence of a world of spiritual agencies, not cognoscible directly by our sense perceptions" (p. 202). Secondly, scholars of earlier centuries were too prone to write the whole
matter off as the work of the devil. Though the author does not declare
them as certainly wrong, he does hold them as not certainly right in their
judgment.
This book then is a contribution to the moral study of the First Commandment and superstition. Likewise noteworthy is the inclusion of
the text of a rite of exorcism for haunted houses taken from a Roman
Ritual of 1631, strangely lacking in the modern Rituals and in those of
medieval times. Father Crehan, the editor, has woven into a commendable unity the disparate threads with which he had to work.. More com- ...
mendable still, he has not intruded his own ideas but gives us pure
Thurston.
RoBERT H. SPRINGER, S.J.
MARIO LOGY
Mariology, Volume I. Edited by Juniper B. Carol, O.F.M. Milwaukee,
Bruce, 1955. Pp. xvi-434. $6.75.
During the past several decades the specialized literature on Mariology
has reached such mountainous proportions that even the most intrepid
soul must pale at the thought of covering it all. Indeed, so prodigious
has the literary output been, in the form "of countless monographs and
of innumerable articles, that a critical and complete Marian bibliography
has yet to be compiled. If the professional theologian grows weary in
his effort to keep abreast of the field, the problem for the general student
of Mariology is so magnified as to be discouraging. The urgent need,
therefore, for a modern compendium which would contain an up-to-date
�BOOK REVIEWS
285
and scholarly treatment of Marian theology and cult has long been
recognized by interested parties on both sides of the Atlantic. Father
Paul Strater, S.J., has met this need for Germany with his Katholische
Marienkunde. Father H. du Manoir, S.J., (Maria. Etudes sur la Sainte
Vierge) and Father G. M. Roschini, O.S.M., (La Madonna secondo la
fede e la teologia) are in the process of fulfilling this need for their
compatriots. For once American scholarship is not far behind; with
Volume I of Mariology the distinguished Marian scholar, Father Juniper
B. Carol, O.F.M., has undertaken to satisfy the same need for English
speaking peoples.
A brief review can scarcely do justice to the riches of this volume.
Yet a special word of praise is due to several of the authors. While not
every Old Testament scholar will necessarily agree with the interpretations which Father Eric May, O.F.M.Cap., ("Mary in the Old Testament") adopts for classically disputed texts, nonetheless all will concur
in the judgment that here we have a complete and eminently clear
presentation of a very difficult subject. In "Mary in Western Patristic
Thought" we find Father Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., fayoring us with
an essay characterized by his usual depth and acumen. It is only just
to single out this article for its fine style and profound scholarship as a
work of distinction and excellence. "Mary in the Apocrypha of the New
Testament" by Father Alfred .C. Rush, C. Ss. R., provides an interesting
and discerning introduction to a much neglected source. In his "Outline
History of Mariology in the Middle Ages and Modern Times" Father
George W. Shea not only gives us an excellent outline but also fills his
footnotes with a rich bibliography. "·Mary in the Eastern Liturgies"
by Very Rev. Cuthbert Gumbinger, O.F.M.Cap., is a beautiful compendium of Marian prayers used in the Eastern Liturgies. The Byzantine, Alexandrian, Ethiopian, Antiochene, Armenian and Chaldean Liturgies are reviewed; the selected bibliographies given are brief but precious.
Father Carol is to be commended for his work, for Mariology has the
distinction of being the only work of its kind in the English language.
This distinction rests not merely on its uniqueness but even more so on
its theological excellence. We can well agree that this symposium constitutes a significant advance in Marian studies in the United States.
PATRICK J. SULLIVAN, S.J.
HISTORY
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents. With an introduction by
Reuben Gold Thwaites. Selected and Edited by Edna Kenton. Preface
by Dr. George N. Shuster. New York, The Vanguard Press, 1954.
Pp. liv-527. $6.00.
Jesuit missionaries are letter-writers of necessity. They rely very
heavily on the prayerful and financial support of those at homes. Besides, letter writing is a great tradition in the Society. Not only is it a
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BOOK REVIEWS
natural expression of the real love which exists among us, but St. Ignatius also wanted it to foster the union of his sons one with another.
For this reason he makes special provision in the eighth part of the
Constitutions for the litterarum missarum frequens commercium.
The Jesuit missionaries of New France were no exception; they were
great letter-writers. This was particularly true of Paul Le Jeu,ne whose
informative style brilliantly inaugurated the series of Jesuit Relations
of New France which lasted for forty years. This became the famous
Cramoisy series which was read so avidly in Seventeenth Century
France. It should also be remembered that the Jesuit Relations made a
positive contribution to the colonization and Christianization of Canada.
To be sure there were other letters from New, France's missionaries:
some were published in mission magazines at
time; some were sent
to superiors. Other papers-memoranda, jourii.als-pertaining to the
missions were added to the already considerable total and the whole
under the editorship of Reuben Gold Thwaites was published in seventythree volumes with the title The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents.
As this complete work was published in a rather limited edition and
was meant for the scholarly rather than the popular trade, some efforts
were made to bring the interesting material found in the Relations to a
wider public. Edna Kenton culled some of the best sections of the
seventy-three volumes and these were published in a single volume in
1925. This single volume is now reappearing in a second edition. This
should be good news for all Jesuits, especially those interested in the
Canadian missions. The book will even be helpful to the incipient scholar.
the
JOSEPH R. FRESE, S.J.
The Way of the Cross. By Caryll Houselander.
Ward, 1955. Pp. 173. $2.75.
New York, Sheed &
"The stations of the cross are not given to us only to remind us of the
historical passion of Christ, but to show us what is happening now, and
happening to each one of us." This is the spirit and theme of Caryll
Houselander's posthumous work, "The Way of the Cross." The author
offers us in this series of meditations, not an historical contemplation
of the suffering physical Christ going through the stages of His passion,
but rather an existential contemplation of the sorrows of the mystical
Christ as He suffers today in the members of His Body. It is a unique
presentation.
,
The author knows her subject matter well. Since her first work,
"This War Is the Passion," the suffering Christ has been the predominant theme of her writings. In this, her final work, she successfully
communicates the fruits of her life's contemplations in a simple yet
compelling style.
GERARD P. BELL, S.J.
�JESUIT PROVINCES
287
(Insert above on p. 159 before note 26.)
VVOODSTOCK LETTERS
Vol. 84, No. 2, April, 1955.
reproduced at Woodstock in 1887). He and Father Sewall renewed
their vows on August 18th, 1805. Father General Brzozowski approved
Father Molyneux' appointment in a letter dated February 22nd, 1806.
The first novitiate was opened at Georgetown on October lOth, 1806.
Several of these documents will be found in Thomas Hughes, S.J. History of the Society of Jesus in North America (Longmans, London,
1910), Documents, I, II, pp. 815-821 and in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS
XV (1886), p. 115 and pp. 214-215; and cf. XXXIV (1905) pp. 203 ff.
2 The Synopsis Historiae Societatis Jesu (Pustet, Ratisbon, 1914),
col. 583, gives the year as 1831. According to the Liber Saecularis Historiae Societatis Jesu 1814-1914 (Romae, 1914), p. 88, Father Kenney,
Visitor in America, was still discussing whether Maryland should be
made a Vice-Province or a Province in letters to Father Roothaan in
August, 1832. The decretum erectionis by Father Roothaan, as recorded
in the Maryland Province Archives, 502.3, p. 13, is dated February 2nd,
1833. It has been reproduced in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS 62, 1 (1933),
p. 118. The decree was read officially at Georgetown on July 8th, 1833,
ibid., p. 117.
The new edition of Synopsis Historiae (Louvain, 1950) makes the
same mistake, col. 700.
a Catalogus Prov. Neo-Eborac. (1880), p. 4. The decree was signed
June 16th, 1879 and promulgated August 7th, 1879.
4 Catalogus Prov. Maryl.-Neo-Eborac. (1881), p. 79.
Father Beckx's
letter announcing the change is dated August 19th, 1880.
5 Acta Romana V, III (1926), pp. 519 ff. and X, III (1943), pp. 583 ff.
Decrees promulgated July 31st, 1926 and July 2nd, 1943.
6 Gilbert J. Garraghan, S.J. The Jesuits of the Middle United States
(New York, 1938), I, pp. 79 ff.
7 Father Roothaan's letter of September 28th, 1830 erecting the separate Mission was promulgated February 26th, 1831. The Synopsis Historiae S.J., col. 583, says that Missouri was annexed to the Belgian Province on March 26th, 1836. Father Alexander Vivier, Nomina Patrum et
Fratrum qui Societatem Jesu ingressi in ea Supremum Diem obierunt
7 August 1814-7 August 1894 (Parisiis, 1897), p. xvii, also reports this
annexation. Father M. W. O'Neil, Socius of the Missouri Province,
Writing in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS 26 (1897), pp. 462 ff., states that
there is no documentary evidence for such an annexation. In the same
volume of the WooDSTOCK LETTERS, p. 468, there is a note to the effect
that Father Vivier had asked that the assertion be deleted from his text.
It is a fact that the Missouri catalogues were printed in conjunction
with those of the province of Belgium between 1837-1842.
The new edition of the Synopsis repeats the statement of annexation,
col. 700.
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JESUIT PROVINCES
Garraghan, op. cit. I, p. 490. Father Roothaan's letter of September 24th, 1839 was promulgated March 9th, 1840.
9 Ibid. I, p. 576.
Father Beckx's decree raising Missouri to the rank
of a Province was promulgated December 3rd, 1863.
1° Ibid. III, p. 597. On August 15th, 1928, the Ohio Vice-Province
(erected within the Missouri Province, September 8th, 1925), with the
addition of part of Illinois, became the Chicago Province.
n Acta Romana XII, IV (1954).
12 Garraghan, op. cit. II, p. 257. Synopsis Historiae S.J., col. 425, says
1840. Repeated in new Synopsis, col. 431.
13 Ibid. II, pp. 413 ff.
H Ibid. II, p. 437.
Letter of Father Roothaa~; October 30th, 1851.
1 5 Ibid. II, p. 436. The Turin Province assume<l control of Oregon and
California on August 1st, 1854.
1 6 Catalogus Prov. Taurinensis clisp. (1859), pp. 14 and 17.
11 Acta Romana I (1906-1910), pp. 88 ff.
The date is June 7th, 1907.
1 8 /bid. pp. 145 ff.
Decree promulgated September 8th, 1909.
1 9 /bid. VI, IV (1931), pp. 869 ff.
The decree of December 8th, 1931
was promulgated February 2nd, 1932.
20 The Synopsis Historiae S.J., col. 417, gives November, 1830 as the
beginning of the Kentucky Mission. Father Francis X. Curran, S.J.,
"The ,Jesuits in Kentucky, 1831-1846," Mid-America 35, 4 (1953), pp.
223-246, gives the following chronology: November 19th, 1830, departure
of the first community from Bordeaux; February 7th, 1831, arrival at
New Orleans; May 14th, 1831, arrival of Father Superior Chazelle at
Bardstown, Ky.; July 7th, 1832, Father General Roothaan's permission
given to accept St. Mary's College near Bardstown; January 1st, 1833, ..
opening of the school under Jesuit auspices. The new Synopsis has
same date, col. 423.
21 Curran, art. cit., p. 246.
Maryland Jesuits had maintained a Mission in New York City from 1808 to 1817. F. X. Curran, "The Jesuit
Colony in New York, 1808-1817," Historical Records of Studies, 42, 51 ff.
2 2 Lettres du Bas Canada I, 1 (October, 1946), pp. 9 ff.
23 Ibid., p. 11.
24 Ibid., pp. 11-12.
The date was December 3rd, 1863.
2 5 /bid., p. 13.
The date was April 3rd, 1869.
8
��SACRA CONGREGATIO
DE SEMINARIIS
ET STUDIORUM UNI\'ERSIUTIBUS
PROT. NUM.
Romae, die IX m. iulii a.D. UCMLV
874/55
Clar.me ac Rev.me Domine,
perlibenter accepimus volumen
Rev.di P. A. Garcia Evangelista, S.I., "La experiencia mistica de
la inhabitaccion" (Granada 1955), dissertationem doctoralem Facul
tati Theologicae Collegii S.I. Woodstockensis exhibitam.
gratias agimus ob librum humanissime missum
Dlm1
art. 43
11
ad normam
0rdinationum" Apostolicae Constitutionis "Deus scientia·
rum Domims" adnexarum, vehementer gratulamur tum erudite auctori
tum praeclaris laudatae Facultatis Magistris de d111gent1a qua
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scipulosque fusis precibus flagitamus.
Tibi in Ch.I. addictissimus
;t&V7-"'
Clar.mo ac Rev.mo Domino
D. P R A E S I D I
Theoloeicae Facultatis
Collegii Maximi S.J.
= WOODSTOCKEUSIS=
w
c
~~J'~~
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIV, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1955
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER 1955
LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS PIUS XII ----------------------- 291
LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL ON THE
CHINESE MARTYRS ------------------------------------ 297
NORMS FOR THE BUILDINGS OF THE SOCIETY ---------------- 301
JESUIT PATROLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP ----------------------------------- 319
Walter J. Burghardt, S. J.
NOVEMBER THOUGHTS ------------------------------------------------------------ 325
Charles I. Prendergast, S. J.
MONUMENT TO JESUIT HEROISM -------------------------------------------- 335
E. J. Burrus, S. J.
DECREE ON THE SIMPLIFICATION OF RITES ----------------------- 348
Joseph F. Gallen, S. J.
OBITUARY
Father Vachel Brown ----------------------------------------------------------- 369
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS --------------------------------------------------- 389
Waterfront Priest (Raymond); No Longer Two (Handren);
The Catholic Church and You (Grace); Sources of Christian
Theology (Palmer); Sacredness of Sex (Wilkin); Nature and
Grace (Scheeben); and others.
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Walter J. Burghardt (New York Province) is professor of
patrology at Woodstock.
Mr. John T. Nolan, an advertising executive in Cincinnati, is a devoted friend of the Society.
Father Charles I. Prendergast (Missouri Province) is pastor at
Olanchito (Yoro), Honduras.
Father E. J. Burrus (New Orleans Province) is secretary of the
Archivum Historicum Societatis Iesu.
Father Joseph F. Gallen (Maryland Province) is professor of canon
law at Woodstock.
Father Joseph A. Slattery (New York
English literature at Shrub Oak.
P~ovince)
is professor of
For Jesuit Use Only
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�Letter of His Holiness, Pope Pius XII
To Our dear son, John Baptist Janssens, General of the
Society of Jesus, Health and Apostolic Benediction.
It was a real joy for Us to hear that the Society of Jesus,
which you, beloved Son, have governed in a worthy manner
for the past nine years, is about to celebrate with solemn
festivities the memory of its holy founder on the fourth centenary of his death, to the end that all its members may be
aroused to a more ardent love of their beloved father and
lawgiver, and a more perfect observance of his institute.
These centennial celebrations receive our hearty approval and
we join thereto our prayers for their success, the more willingly because of the well-founded hope that rich benefits will
flow from them not only to the sons of St. Ignatius but also
to the souls of the faithful. For, just as by an Apostolic
Letter expressing our affection on the occasion of the fourth
centenary of the founding of your Society, as a gesture of
comfort to ourselves as well as to you, "we reckoned up
with gratitude those remarkable achievements which God in
his providence had brought about in the course of the past
four hundred years through the Society of old and today," 1
so we take pleasure in recalling the same on this occasion
as a precious pledge for the future. We are also happy to
exhort you once more from the heart of a father to carry
forward with untiring earnestness, especially in the spiritual
sphere, all your activities, your ministries and everything
by which you may give timely answers to the changing and
ever-increasing needs of our own times. 2
We have been informed that all your provinces throughout
the world have with a will set themselves to celebrate this
centenary year by devoting themselves with still greater zeal
and fidelity to the Spiritual Exercises of their father and
founder and to spreading their use more widely. In truth,
St. Ignatius has left his sons no legacy more precious, more
useful, more lasting than that golden book which, from the
time of Paul III, sovereign pontiffs 3 and innumerable saints
in the Church have frequently praised most highly. If there
is truth in that which Father La Palma wrote 4 that the
�292
LETIER OF HIS HOLINESS
book of the Spiritual Exercises was the firstborn of St.
Ignatius, the saintly author can be equally well said to have
been the firstborn of those Exercises. They are what invigorated his soul with new life, guided his first steps in the way
of perfection, increased his strength to enable him to choose
the Divine King wearied by toil, harassed by insults, submissive to torture and death in the service of His Eternal Father,
and to follow Him to the very summit of love, so that, ablaze
with the fire of divine love, he ardently desired to bring not
only himself, but the whole world, to the feet of Christ our
Saviour. Ignatius, who had tested the great force of these
Exercises, on one occasion declared that "in them was contained "everything that is most excellent that I can think of,
feel and comprehend in this life, to enable a man to make
fruitful progress in his own soul, and be of benefit and a
stimulus to others." 5
So no one will be surprised that your saintly Founder
wished to be fully tested in these Exercises each one who
desired in this Society "to fight God's battle under the banner
of the Cross, and to serve solely our Lord and his Spouse,
the Church, guided by the Roman ~Pontiff, Vicar of Christ
on earth.'' 6 He wished his sons to imbibe that spirit, which
is the foundation of the Society, from the same source from
which he had drunk his new life. This spirit is a marvellous
and holy ardour of mind, aroused by the grace of God working
in the Exercises, which would make them not only desirous;
but prompt and eager, to devote themselves to God's glory,
and for the sake of the same to undertake exacting labours.
Hence, forgetful of their own convenience, shunning leisure,
devoted to the practice of prayer based on personal mortification, they would strive with all their might to attain the
end proposed to them in the Society.
But when Ignatius, authorized by Pope Paul III, our predecessor of happy memory/ later composed the Constitutions
and gave them to his companions, his intention was not that
rigid laws should replace the living and life-giving law of
interior love. And after the Society was established, he did
not lose sight of the meaning of that phrase, "to be at the
special service of the Holy See" 8 under the standard of the
Cross,-that Cross to which Jesus Christ affixed the decree
..
l
�LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS
293
written against us, after He had wiped it out, so that all
men might be freed from Satan's power and march in the
light of faith and warmth of charity. The command given
on Mt. Olivet sounded clearly in his ear: "You will be my
witnesses to the ends of the earth." 9 Later Augustine would
write: "Spread charity through the whole world, if you want
to love Christ, because Christ's members are throughout the
world." 10 And Ignatius himself was destined to see over a
thousand of his followers serving under the standard of the
Cross in the distant lands of Europe, America, India, Ethiopia. This was the beginning of that apostolate which would
call his sons to the vast field of the Lord, some to the heathen
missions, which the popes over the years would entrust to
them to improve with unremitting labor, exact knowledge,
even with their blood; others to labor close to heads of state,
or among those oppressed by slavery; still others to direct
schools of youth or to occupy university chairs; still others
to give the Spiritual Exercises to every class of men, or to
enrich and brighten the world of letters by their writings.
It will be for the Constitutions to open the road by which
the whole Society and all its members, though dispersed
throughout the world yet united to each other and its head
by the same love of the Eternal King, might in the spirit of
the Ignatian institute attain that perfect manner of life
which is the chief fruit of the Exercises.
Beloved son, who of the Society, in this fourth centenary
year, will not listen to that word, once Paul's, now spoken
by Ignatius, "Be content, brethren, to follow my example
and mark well those who live by the pattern we have given
them." 11 Through God's goodness, the Society never lacked
saintly men, who, exactly conformed to the Exercises of Ignatius, kept that pattern unmarred, and drew energy and
strength to live precisely according to the Constitutions, so
as to reproduce in themselves more perfectly that pattern,
and work more effectively for souls. Pius VII, of immortal
memory, sought men of this stamp when he wished to equip
Peter's storm-tossed bark with strong, expert oarsmen. 12 Holy
Mother Church in these troubled times asks the Society for
helpers of the same mould. May today's sons of Ignatius,
therefore, strive to follow in their footsteps. Under the
�294
LE'ITER OF HIS HOLINESS
standard of the Cross may they stand firm against all the
attacks of the princes of this world of darkness. Loving and
ready obedience must be shown to superiors, especially the
Supreme Pontiff: this is their most honorable badge. To
worldly desires, love of poverty must be opposed ; to empty
pleasure a certain austerity of life and untiring labor; to
the discords and quarrels of the world, gentle and peacebringing brotherly love, love for each other and for all men;
to materialism that sincere and earnest faith which always
acknowledges and reverences the presence of God in the universe. If all this comes to pass, Ignatius, though dead, will live
on in his sons.
As we write these lines, dear son, with all the love of a
father's heart, our thoughts turn to those fathers and brothers
who have suffered or are actually suffering bitter exile and
torture at the hands of their persecutors. Surely they are
most worthy sons, echoing the most glorious traditions of the
Society of Jesus. They are confessors of the Catholic faith,
who are an honor to their brethren as well as an example.
May God strengthen them; most willingly do we bless them.
But it is to all the sons of Ignatius that we extend our loving
greetings, begging God that under the patronage of your
founder, father, and lawmaker, protected by the ever Blessed
Virgin Mary, they may day by day increase in virtue, thus
moulded by divine grace into a strong instrument so that
all things may be guided aright by the divine hand, and
happily contribute to the greater glory of God.
In testimony of Our special benevolence towards the Society of Jesus, We lovingly bestow on you, dear son, and
on all those religious throughout the world entrusted to
your charge, the Apostolic Blessing.
Given at Rome, at St. Peter's on the thirty-first day of
July, in the year nineteen hundred and fifty-five, the seventeenth of our Pontificate.
PIUS PP. XII
FOOTNOTES
1
2
Apostolic Letter "Nosti Profecto," A.A.S. vol. 32 (1940), p. 289.
Ibid., p. 295.
�LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS
295
a Cf. Paul III: Apostolic Letter "Pastoralis Officii," 31 July, 1548;
Benedict XIV: Apostolic Letter "Quantum accessus," 20 March 1753;
Leo XIII: Letter to Rev. Fr. Louis Martin "Ignatianae commentationes,"
8 February, 1900; Pius XI: Apostolic Constitution ••summorum Pontificum," 25 July 1922 (A.A.S. vol. XIV, pp. 420-422); Encyclical Letter
"Mens Nostra," 20 December, 1929 (A.A.S. vol. XXI, p. 698-706).
4 Luis de La Palma: Camino espiritual (Madrid, 1944) Bk. V., ch. 3,
p. 702.
5 Monumenta Hist. S.I.: Monum. lgnatiana, vol. I, p. 113-Epist. ad
Miona.
6 Julius III, Apostolic Letter "Exposcit Debitum," 21 July, 1550.
7 Paul III, Apostolic Letter "Regimini militantis Ecclesiae," 27 Sept.,
1540.
8 Constitutions of the Society of Jesus, Part X, Letter B.
9 Acts of the Apostles, I, 8.
1o St. Augustine, Letter of John to the Parthians, Tr. X, n. 8, ML.
III, 2, 2060.
u Philippians, III, 17.
1 2 Pius VII:
Apostolic Letter, "Sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum,"
August 7, 1814.
LOVER OF SELF
It is the evil man who assigns to himself the greater share of wealth,
honors and bodily pleasures who is scorned. Such men, Aristotle maintains, do not really love themselves, for they are too depraved to seek
for their true selves and love that. "If a man were always anxious that
he himself, above all things, should act justly, temperately, or in
accordance with any other of the virtues, and in general were always
to try to secure for himself the honorable course, no one would call
such a man a lover of self or blame him." A man exercises selfcontrol and is praised just for honoring the rational principle within
him; and that this is the man himself, or is more so than anything else,
is plain, and also that the good man loves most this part of him. Whence
it follows that he is most truly a lover of self, of another type than
that which is a matter of reproach, and as different from that as living
according to rational principles is from living as passion dictates, and
desiring what is noble from desiring what seems advantageous.
MARTIN
D'ARCY
�296
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The story of the first Jesuit Mission to North America and its numerour martyrs: Felix Zubillaga, S.J.-La Florida (1941). Price: $3.25.
The history of the early Jesuit Missions in the Orient, beginning with
Xavier (1542-1564): Alessandro Valignano, S.J.-Historia del principia
71 progresso de lq Compaiiia de JesU& en las lndias Orientales. Edited
by J. Wicki, S.J. (1944). Price: $4.00.
An historical account of the Spiritual Exercises. Two volumes have
thus far been published: the first takes in the life of St. Ignatius; the
second, from his death to the publication of the first official directory.
Ignacio Iparraguirre, S.J.-Prcictica de los Ejercicios (1946); Historia
de los Ejercicios (1955). Price: $2.15 and $4.00 respectively.
The classic treatise on the spirituality of the Sdciety that has received
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monumental work which should be in every Jesuit library and, in fact,
in every important library"; Father C. C. Martindale, S.J., "Never, in
England at least, has so vivid a portrait of Ignatius been painted, and
one so totally different from that to which we mostly are accustomed";
Father A. G. Ellard, S.J., "This is a very excellent work, and one that
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The historic prelude to the suppression of the Society by a collaborator
of Ludwig von Pastor: W. Kratz, S.J., El·tratado hispano-portugues de
limites de 1750 (1954). Price: $4.00.
How Jesuit arichtecture began: P. Pirri, S.J., G. Tristano e i primordi
della architettura gesuitica (1955). Price: $4.00.
A glimpse of our early Southwest: E. J. Burrus, S.J.-Kino Reports
to Headquarters (1954). Spanish text with English translation of
Kino's letters to Rome. For the reference library, Latin American History department and advanced Spanish classes. Price: $1.85.
10% discount to Ours; 20% to subscribers of series. Bound copies
one dollar extra. Payment by ordinary check or order may be put on
Province account at Curia in Rome. Order from: E. J. Burrus, S.J.,
Institutum Historicum S.J., Via dei Penitenzieri 20, Rome, Italy.
�A Letter of Very Reverend Father
General on the Chinese Martyrs Blessed
Ignatius Mangin and Companions
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ: Pax Christi.
About the year 1900, many thousands of Christians were
put to death apparently out of hatred of the faith in the mission then called Tchely, which had been committed to the
Champagne Province of our Society. Of these the Church
has chosen fifty-six, whose martyrdom has been proved easily
and without a shadow of doubt, to raise to the honors of the
Blessed. In the crown of the Spouse of Christ, our Holy
Mother the Church, they sparkle like a precious stone that
always displays a new brilliance from whatever angle it is
viewed. Their ranks include not a few old men, one of whom
was seventy-nine years of age; they include men and women
of all ages; they include young men and even boys. There is
also that remarkable girl of fourteen years, Anna Wang, who
heartened her companions on to martyrdom and chided them
when they faltered. When she was decapitated, her body remained upright upon her knees, a symbol, as it were, of the
invincible bravery of an innocent victim.
Together with the faithful laity, four of our Fathers died
for the Faith, Leo Ignatius Mangin, Paul Denn, Remigius
!sore and Modestus Andlauer; and they along with their people have been raised to the honors of the altar. All of them,
according to the testimony of their contemporaries, by their
devout religious lives, their constant self-denial, their obedience and mortification, their zeal and holy desires, for some
years had given proof that one day they would be worthy of
martyrdom. They might easily have fled to safety, but all
wished, like true shepherds of souls, to remain at the risk of
their own lives among the sheep committed to their care, now
in the gravest peril. Hence, the first two mentioned were
slaughtered by the persecutors as they stood at the steps of
the altar urging the faithful gathered in the church to persevere; and the other two were murdered as they prayed before
the altar in the chapel of the residence. Martyrs themselves
and guides and teachers of martyrs, they acted like faithful
heralds of Christ unto the end.
�298
l\IARTYRS IN CHINA
A holy joy pervades our province of Champagne, and joy
fills the whole Society over these martyrs who are the first
members of our Order restored by Pius VII to be numbered
among the Blessed. But above all there is joy and gratitude
to God in the hearts of our Chinese Fathers and Brothers,
whose lot it now is to undergo for the Faith of Christ sufferings that are similar but far more savage. Today there is no
summary decapitation of the victims or stabbing in the breast,
as was generally the case in the Boxer Rebellion; but by a slow
martyrdom that in some cases will last for years, today's
victims waste away confined in prisons,-in labor camps, and
in private houses, or compelled to wander about "destitute,
distressed, afflicted" (Hebr. 11, 37). Joy and thanks to God
are in the hearts of the faithful dispersed throughout China,
who are enduring a far more subtle persecution, which the
evil spirit in these days of seemingly higher culture has cunningly contrived.
Patience and cheerful courage are the lessons taught our
Religious in China and their faithful flocks by the example of
our Blessed. All of them without exception, as is clear from
their Acts, stirred up their eagerness for the sacrifice of their
lives with a lively faith and unshaken hope in the eternal bliss
that would soon be theirs. "Let us have patience," Blessed Leo
Ignatius Mangin said to the faithful in the church whom the ..
persecutors were preparing to cut down with gunfire or burn
alive, "soon we shall be in Heaven!" This hope of eternal life
ought to shine as a beacon light for every Christian and every
Religious throughout all his days, and surely in the case of
those who suffer barbarous torments for Christ it must ever be
before their eyes. "This light and momentary affliction ...
brings with it an eternal weight of glory" (2 Cor. 4, 17).
How far from the truth and the mind of the Church do men
stray when they maintain that the apostles of Christ ought to
show less concern about eternity and more about happiness in
the present life. Let them read again our Lord's Sermon on
the Mount, let them meditate the Gospels, let them search
through the Epistles of St. Paul. Does not Divine Wisdom
bid us make the eternal treasures of the invisible world our
constant concern night and day?
Moreover, all the sons of the Society scattered throughout
�MARTYRS IN CHINA
299
the world will find striking examples in the deeds of these new
martyrs of Christ. Today, it is true, there are very few
Christian Chinese when compared with the vast number of
non-Christians about them, but there were fewer when the
persecution raged fifty-five years ago. Everywhere men said:
"Christians are lunatics; they have been deranged by some
drug. Simply by a word they can accept apostasy and escape
death, and yet they refuse!" Those men whom Christ our
Lord called "the world," much more numerous than the fervent
faithful, esteemed their ways and "their life madness and their
end without honor" (Wisdom 5, 4).
Such is the case with us too. We are, surely, but a handful
if compared with other men; and when we follow the teachings of the Gospel and the Exercises of our Holy Father Ignatius and commend a life of self-denial and mortification, a life
unencumbered with the goods of this world and its many
pleasures, in short, when we preach the love of Christ crucified, apart from whom "there is no salvation in any other"
(Acts 4, 12), the world mocks us as men who are old-fashioned,
foolishly struggling against what they call the course of history, unacquainted with the modern mind, and driving people
farther and farther away from the Church. But we must
imitate the example of our martyrs, who, in spite of their very
small numbers, remained unshaken before the scorn of the
multitude. We, if we wish to be apostles of Christ, must take
our stand against the false views of the majority of men, who
give their hearts only to earthly goods and believe that pleasure's every whim must be indulged. "Do not love the world, or
the things that are in the world. If any one loves the world,
the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2, 15); indeed,
"the world is crucified to me, and I to the world" (Galatians
6, 14). With the same meekness and love that Christ our
Lord manifested on earth, but with his firmness also, we must
oppose the sophistries of the world. If any one takes scandal
at this, let us recall our Lord's saying on a similar occasion:
"Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be
rooted up" (Matthew 15, 13).
Sometimes, unfortunately, even among men whose lives are
dedicated to the service of the Church there are some who lack
the courage to proclaim the whole truth of the Faith to the
�300
l\IARTYRS IN CHINA
men of their day, as they have no desire to contradict the
views of the majority of the people; as if the opinions of the
majority constituted the criterion of truth! In recent times
certain heads of states have tried and are trying to eliminate
all personal thought and judgment from the minds of individuals to the end that all may blindly accept the common way
of thinking proposed by the head of the state or by "public
opinion." Thus it is hoped that somehow a "collective" intellect will be formed, and no dissent will be allowed. But
Divine Wisdom will one day ask each of us whether we have
served the truth by giving it our obedience and carrying it
out in our lives.
Like our wonderful Chinese martyrs, we are witnesses of
God in the world, even against the world, witnesses of the
eternal truth preached by Christ and propounded by His
Church. In a sense we become traitors and apostates if we
do not make bold to proclaim the whole truth.
Daily we meditate on the Gospel of our Lord; constantly we
read His Holy Scriptures, including the Epistles of St. Paul,
which sound the depths of our Lord's teaching and set it
forth with unflinching courage. ·From these sources, I beg
you, let us not extract only those truths that are agreeable to
our temperament and to the contemporary climate of opinion,
but let us teach the whole truth, including whatever is hard
to bear.
Not only in China but in various places and at various times
the Society has been persecuted by the enemies of the Cross
of Christ precisely because she has refused to withdraw from
her faithful service of the Catholic Faith. "Let us not stain
our glory" (1 Machabees 9, 10); against the world and its
spirit, "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride
of life" (1 John 2, 16), let us declare war and bravely do
battle. "He who judges me is the Lord" (1 Corinthians 4, 4);
it was this conviction that brought our martyrs to their
eternal victory.
I commend myself to the Holy Sacrifices of all.
Rome, April 17, 1955
Your servant in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus.
�An Instruction on the Norms for
Buildings of the Society
FOREWORD
This Instruction was first published by Father Francis
Xavier Wernz on October 30, 1911, and printed in the Acta
Romana of the same year [AR I(3), 108-119].
Since, however, all to whom it pertains do not have it on
hand, I thought it opportune to republish it, making some
changes in the order of the material, and adding some advice
suggested by the experience of recent years. Besides, a third
chapter, "The Upkeep of our Buildings," has been added, and
the first chapter of the earlier edition, "An Historical Study
of the Prescriptions for Erecting Buildings," has been omitted.
I communicate this revised Instruction, then, to all major
and local Superiors.
Rome, November 6, 1954
The Feast of All Saints of the Society.
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus
INTRODUCTION
I
1. The subject under consideration is an important one.
If our buildings are constructed in accord with our prescriptions, they will greatly contribute to the protection of our
religious life, the preservation of good health, and a more
efficient practice of our ministries. But if they are imperfectly
constructed, the condition of the buildings, religious poverty,
the edification of externs, the health of Ours, and our ministries can suffer greatly. Errors once committed in this matter
are not easily remedied. It can happen that an error arising
in building will have its bad effect for many years and may
even impede the indispensable growth of the Province.
2. This Instruction will concern itself mainly with the
erection of new buildings. As far as possible, however, the
same norms should be adapted to the improvement, repair,
and extensive renovation of existing buildings.
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OUTLINE OF THE INSTRUCTION
INTRODUCTION.
The Importance of the Subject (n. 1).
The Matter under Consideration (n. 2).
CHAPTER 1. Requirements for our Buildings.
1. General Requirements (n. 3).
a) Suitable for Living in, and therefore Accommodated
to:
Religious Life (n. 4).
Intellectual Pursuits (n. 5).
Offices of the Domestic Life (n. 6).
Our Ministries (n. 7).
b) Solidly Constructed (n. 8).
c) Conducive to Good Health (n. 9).
d) Consistent with our Poverty (n. 10).
e) Constructed along Fitting Architectural Lines (nn.
11, 12).
2. Safety Measures (n. 13).
CHAPTER II. Practical Procedure for the Construction of
Buildings.
1. Previous Deliberation (n. 14).
2. Previous Procurement of Faculties (n. 15).
3. Choice of the Architect (n. 16).
4. Instructions for the Architect (n. 17).
First Draft and Preliminary Estimate of the Cost (n.
18).
5. Censorship of Both (n. 19).
6. Examination by the Local Superior, the Provincial, and
their Consultors (n. 20).
7. Documents to be Sent to Rome (n. 21):
a)· Drafts (nn. 22-24).
b) Preliminary Estimate of Cost (n. 25).
c) Explanation of the Drafts (n. 26).
8. Final Drafts and Final Estimate of Cost (nn. 27, 28).
9. Construction (nn. 29-31).
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CHAPTER III. Upkeep of our Buildings.
1. Maintenance, the Duty of the Local Superior (nn. 32-33).
2. Ordinary and Extraordinary Repair Expenses (nn. 34,
35).
3. Prudence in Making Changes (n. 36).
4. Insurance against Fire and Other Losses (n. 37).
CONCLUSION.
If the Norms of this Instruction are Followed, Wasteful
Errors and Expenses will be Avoided (n. 38).
CHAPTER I
Requirements for our Buildings
3. According to the decree of General Congregations, the
buildings of the Society should be "practical for our ministries, suitable for living in, healthful, and enduring, but
exemplifying our spirit of poverty. Therefore, extravagance
or over-nicety are out of place" [Coll. deer., d. 212 (Epit., n.
576)]. The following, then, are required:
4. (1) That our buildings may be suitable for the religious
life:
a) The rule of cloister, according to the norm set down
in nos. 457-459 of the Epitome, must be exactly observed.
Parts of the house which are subject to this regulation have
to be separated from the rest by some material barrier, such
as a wall or door, and clearly marked.
The parlors should be near the door and out of cloister. The
parlor doors must be partly glass so they can properly be
called open. Besides, the parlors should be so located that the
Porter and whoever passes by can see what goes on in them.
b) As far as possible, neighbors must not be able to
look into our rooms or Ours into the rooms of neighbors.
c) In our schools, living quarters of Ours should be separated from the part assigned to the students, and if possible,
also some distance away, so that Ours may enjoy peace and
quiet.
d) The church or chapel in which the Blessed Sacrament
is reserved must be easily accessible to all of Ours, so that
they can make visits, especially the morning and evening
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visits, without any difficulty. The regulations of n. 77 Elenchus
Facultatum, which pertain to the reservation of the Blessed
Sacrament in our chapels, should be followed closely.
The following prescriptions of the Code must be observed:
"In the church a passageway or window must not open into
a house of the laity. A basement or second story, if the
church has one, must not be used for a completely nonreligious
purpose" (Can. 1164, ~ 2). Public chapels "are subject to the
same regulations as a church" (Can. 1191, 1f 1). And a semipublic chapel must also be "properly constructed" (Can. 1192,
1f 2), reserved for divine worship alone;'and exempt from all
private uses (Can. 1196, 1f 2).
Competent authorities in canon law are to be consulted
for an interpretation of the words "for a completely nonreligious purpose" in reference to churches and public chapels,
and "properly constructed" regarding semipublic chapels.
Some hold that libraries are not included under completely
nonreligious uses. The Sacred Congregation of Rites has
answered that permanent living quarters cannot be built over
a church proper, and therefore over a public chapel, in which
Mass is celebrated daily (Decreta authentica Congregationis
Sacrorum Rituum n. 756, 11 May, 1641).
Concerning a semipublic chapel, the same Sacred Congregation referred it to the judgment and prudence of the ordi- ..·
nary of the place in a particular instance to allow living
quarters over one, provided they were "constructed above a
ceiling of double thickness" (Ibid., n. 2812, Sept. 12, 1840).
And over a semipublic chapel in which Mass is celebrated daily
and the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, a place for walking
is not prohibited, provided it is "separated from the chapel
by a thick stone ceiling." Over this ambulatory there may be
living quarters (Ibid., n. 3460, July 27, 1878). Since there
is no distinction in the Code of canon law between living
quarters and a room for other "nonreligious" use, such as
an amb,!.llatory, some authorities think living quarters may
be built over a semipublic chapel, oh condition that the floor
of the rooms is built on top of the roof of the chapel, forming
a solid double thickness. The Sacred Congregation of Rites
also granted an indult allowing dormitories over a chapel, if
a large canopy, commonly called a baldachino, covers the altar
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305
(Ibid., n. 3525 ad II, Nov. 23, 1880). But without an indult
from the Holy See, a canopy over the altar would not seem
to suffice, unless, as some authorities hold, a solid and
thick floor also separates the chapel from the living quarters,
as has been said (Ibid., n. 4213 ad III, Jan. 24, 1908).
There are many uncertainties regarding ecclesiastical law
in this matter, and, in at least some of the cases mentioned,
necessity or the avoidance of grave inconvenience entered
into the consideration. Therefore, the chapels in our houses,
if possible, must not have permanent living quarters immediately over them. And never may such living quarters be built
over the chapel without a solid and thick floor separating them.
The church or chapels, of which there should be a sufficient
number, ought to have enough altars for priests to celebrate
at a convenient hour. There should also be room for additional
altars if the number of priests seems likely to increase. Each
altar should be so located that the priests do not inconvenience
one another. Besides, in houses of probation and colleges of
Ours, the community chapel should have only one altar, so
Ours can follow the audible parts of the Mass [cf. Const., p.
IV, c. 4, B, (343) in fine], recite the responses of a dialogue
Mass (AR., VII 227-232), and assist at High Masses on certain days, according to the approved custom of some provinces.
Several other altars should therefore be provided in some other
chapel, in the basement, for instance, or in another suitable
place.
e) Parts of the house destined for community exercises
must be situated where Ours can readily convene.
f) If there are different divisions of the community in
one house, the layout of the building ought to promote the
observance of separation between them. Hence, each division
must have a definite part of the house, grounds, etc., assigned
to it, and the members of one division should not have to
pass through a part assigned to another division on the way
to community exercises, to go outside, to visit the infirmary,
etc.
5. (2) To foster the intellectual life in our houses:
a) Libraries should be so situated that those using them
may have easy access to them. And they should be such as
can be easily expanded, especially in the larger houses.
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BUILDING NORl\IS
b) According to the prescription of the fifty-third rule
of the local superior and the ninth of the librarian, a suitable
place should be provided where frequently used books may
be collected together. Provision should also be made for a
place where Ours can read both in the heat of summer and
in winter.
6. (3) That our buildings may provide suitable and convenient locations for the offices concerned with domestic life:
We should especially see to it that the various officialsthe cook, refectorian, clothesroom-keeper, etc.-are free to
exercise their various duties. Space should be provided for
the receipt and storage of incoming goods, and there should
also be some means of later transferring these goods to specific
parts of the house. Noisy offices should, if possible, be placed
where they will not be a source of disturbance to the rest
of the house.
7. ( 4) That our buildings may be accommodated to our
ministries:
a) Where there is a public church, confessors should
have easy access to it from their rooms.
b) In the colleges, students ~should be able to proceed
quickly and conveniently to places assigned them, to the
church, to the chapel for private visits to the Blessed Sacrament, and to the room of the Spiritual Father. And all should .
be so arranged that as few of Ours as possible are employed ··
in prefecting the students. To this end let the hallways be
straight (not full of turns) and amply lighted. Stairs between
floors should be identifiable at a single glance.
c) In retreat houses, the exercitants should have an easy
means of access to the various exercises.
8. (5) That our buildings be solidly constructed:
We should select building material which will provide us
with a strong and firm structure, and which will at the same
time conform to the norms of safety and a true and prudent
economy. Besides, the materials chosen should not be soundcarriers; in order that peace and 'quiet, so desirable in a
religious institution, may be preserved.
9. (6) That our buildings may conduce to good health:
a) The climate of the site chosen should be bright and
healthy [Const. P. X, littl. C, 827 (Epit. n. 268)].
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307
b) Both the house and the individual rooms should allow
free circulation of the air, and the whole house, including
the halls, should be sunlit. According to the needs of various
localities, let sufficient provision be made against excessive
heat and cold.
c) In determining how the various parts of the house
are to be used, we should ascertain: at what times certain
parts are sunlit; which parts are more subject to cold and
strong winds; those parts which will be disturbed by the
noise from the street. After these considerations have been
taken into account, the better rooms should be given to those
who spend most of the day in their rooms. Those parts unfavorably situated should be used where Ours gather for a
short time only, such as the refectory; or let these parts of
the house be given to those who spend little time in their
rooms.
d) Windows and doors of rooms should be suitably placed,
in keeping with the locale.
e) Drinking water should be clearly distinguished from
water that is unsafe.
f) Toilets and baths should be sufficient in number and
so placed that they have good ventilation.
g) If possible a garden for walking about should be provided, as well as a cloister or porch where Ours can find
protection from rain or sun. Besides in our houses of training
and in the colleges, there should be athletic fields or gymnasia
for games and other forms of physical exercise.
h) "If possible there should be an adequately equipped
infirmary in all houses. In larger houses this is an absolute
necessity" (Epit., n. 266.). It should be placed in a healthful
and very quiet part of the house and should have toilet and
bath facilities for the infirm. Let there be one or two rooms
set aside for contagious diseases, and also a chapel to afford
the sick the opportunity of easily hearing Mass even from
their beds, and of receiving Communion.
All that has been said above applies equally to infirmaries
set up for our students. However, as far as possible, Ours
and our students should occupy different parts of the infirmary.
In our houses of training and in boarding schools for ex-
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BUILDING NORMS
terns, there should also be a place set apart where those
convalescing may quietly relax.
10. (7) That our buildings conform with our poverty:
They should be simple, i.e. "neither extravagant nor too
fine" [Coll. Deer., n. 212 (Epit., n. 576)]. We should avoid
the ornateness of a wealthy home or palace, and also that
worldly superficiality in decoration that marks modern hotels.
Even though these trappings be of low cost, they still smack
of the world. In addition, our poverty requires that private
rooms have neither bath nor toilet facilities.
"It is my earnest wish," wrote Reverend Father Beckx, "that
Ours persuade and convince themselves' that only that form
of poverty which I have outlined will be an efficacious means
towards the complete attainment of the end of our vocation.
They, who believe that the Society's good name and prestige
are reconcilable with any kind of vulgar embellishment and
outward show, are greatly deceived and are deluded by a
mistaken notion of what is proper. For in the sight of God
and men the outstanding mark of religious men is this:
that they are as a matter of course like to Him, 'who being
rich became poor for our sake, that through his poverty we
might become rich.' This is the one thing that religious by
their very lives profess to be seeking" [Epistolae Selectae
Praepositorum Generalium (Romae 1951), p. 71, n. 9.].
This simplicity does not prevent us, under the pretext of
economy, from purchasing sturdy and durable building materials (n. 8). On the other hand, simplicity permits a chaste
and pleasing architectural beauty which may help to elevate
the mind to God and heavenly things, and allows us to make
our houses attractive instead of barrack-like.
"For what purpose are we building this house?" This question should always be foremost in our minds. Buildings like
colleges which are to be erected primarily for the use of
externs should conform with the prevailing architectural style,
especially of Catholic buildings, in the locality. Both in buildings destined for habitation by Ours and in the retreat houses
which are designed to afford externs a place of quiet reflection, the architectural style should be a bit more austere.
However these buildings should be attractive, not grim and
forbidding.
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309
11. (8) That our buildings may be constructed in good
taste architecturally:
The style of architecture should, while always subject to
the special conditions laid down by time and place, be that
which is common in the region where Ours, with God's help,
intend to build. A worldly or highly unusual style should
not be employed; but we should not cast aside the ordinary
laws of good architecture, and always, as already said (n.
10), our houses must manifest due gravity and religious
poverty.
Throughout the world, and especially in the foreign missions (northern, tropical, and southern), we should exactly
adhere to the local norms for building which are based on
long experience of that region, provided they are in accord
with architectural progress. And no church or house should
be built in an alien style except for a sufficiently grave reason
and after mature consideration.
12. We should keep before our minds the prescription of
canon 1164, ~ 1 pertaining to churches: "The ordinaries
should, both in the construction and restoration of churches,
abide by the canons of sacred as well as the stylistic norms
handed down by Christian tradition. And if need be they
should, before acting, take counsel of men skilled in these
matters." If the alms we have received will permit, our poverty should in no wise be a hindrance to the erection of an
exceedingly beautiful temple in God's honor. Yet in this
matter we must consider whether it might not be to the
greater service of God, if without prejudicing the wishes of
the donors of the alms, we choose to construct a church on
a less grand scale, in order to provide at the same time for
places in Christian or pagan lands which are bereft of
churches, or to endow the new church suitably, provided of
course the house is one which, according to the Institute,
should have a permanent source of income.
13. To insure the safety of our buildings:
We should take careful precautions against the danger of
fire, especially in the sacristy, library, archives, treasurer's
office, etc. And this matter should receive special attention
when we determine the position of stairs and windows in the
house. Adequate fire extinguishing equipment should be on
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BUILDING NORMS
hand and kept in conspicuous places, especially in the stairwells and in the above mentioned places. We should particularly make certain that there are suitable fire escapes for
the members of the community (cf. Instr. de adm. temp.,
n. 166).
CHAPTER II
Practical Procedure in the Erection of Buildings
14. Antecedent Planning.
In the construction of a particular building, the following
should be taken into consideration:
·
a) Is the proposed building definit~Iy necessary, or at
least very useful, and are there sufficient funds at hand to
cover all costs? The norms dealing with such expenditures,
set down in nos. 17-19 in the Instruction on Temporal Administra~ion, should be consulted.
b) Is the site chosen for the building really suitable, that
is, conducive to health (n. 9), in surroundings that are not only
good but likely to remain so, easy to get to, close to sources
of water and electricity, etc.? Necessity or utility may call
for future expansion, so this should also be taken into consideration. More than once it has happened that our houses
have been forced to buy adjacent property which was needed
for expansion, for four or five times as much as they would
have had to pay in the beginning.
15. Permission to be Obtained Beforehand.
Construction should not begin until the provincial has discussed the matter with his consultors and with other experienced men and has approved the proposed building. The
approbation of Father General is needed if the cost exceeds
the amount which a provincial may authorize as extraordinary
expenses.
16. Choice of the Architect.
Once the proposed building is approved, an architect is
to be chosen to make the drawings and give a tentative estimate of the cost. The choice should be made with the approval
of the provincial; and before giving it, the provincial should
discuss the choice with the province consultors and with other
men who have had experience in such matters. The man
�BUILDING NORMS
311
chosen should be very competent and completely worthy of
our confidence. Therefore, it is not enough that he be a
good man and well-disposed toward the Society, but he must
have completed a course of architectural studies and have
acquired sufficient experience in actual construction. He should
also have a good knowledge of our intentions in building and
of the site of the proposed building. Sometimes a man who
has experience, even though he has not completed the full
course of architectural studies, will suffice for some minor
construction work or other, but generally only experts should
be chosen, even though their fees will be necessarily higher.
It is wrong to allow some less competent person to make
the drawings-whether he is one of Ours or an extern, or
some friend who charges nothing for his services. Experience has shown that often a good deal of money is lost, not
to mention other disadvantages, by such mistaken economy.
17. Instructions for the Architect.
The architect should be given exact information as to what
is desired. He should, therefore, be given written instructions
as to the number and the size of the different rooms needed
in the proposed building, e.g., sleeping accommodations, classrooms, libraries, recreation rooms, corridors, working quarters, etc.; in our houses of formation and in schools for externs
there should be a hall, equipped or not with a stage, large
enough for a general assembly. Accurate information should
also be given as to nature of the rooms, and how they are to
be arranged and interconnected so that the order and arrangement may answer as conveniently as possible both the general
needs of our houses and the particular needs of the house
under consideration ( cf. nos. 4-13 above). This arrangement
can be indicated by a very simple sketch.
All this information should be given to the architect by
the superior of the community to which the proposed building
will belong. But he should first give his consultors enough
time to think over these points and then discuss them with
him. Let him also consult some Fathers who have already
had experience in the problems of building. This work, which
is to be carried out by local superiors, is to be considered
very important, for, entailing as it does an exact knowledge
of the nature and exigencies of the site, it can do much to
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BUILDING NORMS
assure the success of the entire undertaking, that is, if it is
done conscientiously.
In most cases it will be profitable to give the local superior
a helper, to be assigned by the provincial. This Father will
take care of gathering the necessary information, dealing
with the architect, and preparing the matter to be examined
at the consultors' meetings. Such a man, of course, will be
absolutely necessary if it is a question of building a new
house which does not yet have a superior.
18. Tentative Drawings and Estimate of Cost.
When the architect has studied the site, the information
and the sketches given to him, let him'' draw up one or a
number of different sets of drawings of the proposed building,
making any changes in the original sketches which architectural laws require. Let him add to each set of drawings a
tentative estimate of the cost, taking into consideration the
type of materials used and the size of the building; this
estimate should be the normal one for this particular type
of building. The estimate should not be just a meaningless
guess, but, as far as possible, should give a true picture of
what the costs will actually be.
~
19. Critical Examination of the Tentative Drawings and
of the Estimated Cost.
Before the drawings are examined by the local superior,
the provincial, and his consultors, they should be given for
critical examination to two experienced men who are to be
appointed by the provincial. It will be theirs to pass judgment
on these three points:
a) Do the drawings fulfill the requirements of our houses
as indicated in nos. 3-13 above?
b). Are they architecturally satisfactory in regard to
both solidity of construction and suitability of appearance?
c) Is the cost commensurate with the building in question? Have needless and excessive expenses been avoided?
Is the tentative estimate of cost accurate?
The critical examination of the first point should always
be made by men picked from among Ours; experienced externs
may be chosen to judge the second and third points if none
of Ours is qualified to do so. In any case men should be
..
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313
chosen who are undoubtedly capable and experienced; they
should also be men who will have nothing to do with supervising the construction of the proposed building, so that they
may pass judgment more dispassionately.
When those appointed to make this critical examination
have, at their leisure, given careful consideration to all points,
they should send their judgment in writing to the provincial.
20. Examination to be Made by the Superior of the House,
the Provincial, and their Consultors.
The drawings and tentative estimate, together with the comments of those who have made the critical examinations,
should be examined first by the superior of the house and
his consultors and then by the provincial and the consultors
of the province. All the documents should be given to each
consultor beforehand so that he may examine them carefully
at his leisure, as is stipulated in no. 773, IT 1 of the Epitome.
21. Documents to be Sent to Rome.
After the plans and a first estimate have been thus examined and corrected according to the criticisms made, those
documents should be drawn up which are to be sent to Rome,
as explained below under nos. 22-26. These documents are
commonly preserved at Rome, and are usually not returned
to the provinces.
22. A) The Plans.
When the divisions and enumerations in the plans are
entirely finished and the plans are now complete to such an
extent that they cannot be changed without a considerable
outlay of time and money, it suffices to send to Rome a draft
of the plans which has been accurately drawn. These plans
should clearly indicate:
a) The site both of the building itself and of the area
in which it will be erected. Everything which adjoins the
building or area must be shown-such as public thoroughfares, noting their width, houses, and other buildings either
of Ours or of externs with their purpose designated, gardens, etc. If the area in which the building is to be erected
or the adjacent area is not level but varies in different parts,
the plan of the site must specify either the height of each
part, especially in the immediate vicinity of the proposed
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BUILDING NORMS
building, or have elevation contours for the various heights
and depressions of the area's surface.
b) The arrangement (floor-plan) of every place on each
floor of the building, with its purpose designated. Also exact
indication of where cloister begins.
c) There should further be some view of the vertical
sections of the building, especially of the principal axes, and
of those parts whose height differs from the other parts, as
frequently happens in the chapel, auditorium, refectory,
library, etc. In the vertical sections the location of the stairs
should be shown, especially of those which pertain to these
larger parts of the building.
d) One or other sketch of the exterior of the buildings,
from which we can easily see what they look like.
The quality desired above all others in these plans is
clarity. It is hardly necessary that they be elegant and
artistically perfect. It is sufficient that the plans be merely
pencil sketches, and even copies of sketches may be sent.
23. If, however, the business in hand does not concern
the erection of a new building but .the expansion of an existing
one, a plan of this existing part must also be sent, so that
we may judge whether the new addition fittingly accords
with the old both in its internal arrangement and in its
external style.
24. Whether a new building is to be erected or an old
one changed and repaired, the plans for the whole projected
building must always be drawn up and sent, even if the funds
necessary for completing the construction are lacking. These
plans may later be carried into effect part by part, if necessary.
When drawing up the plans it is also important to keep
in mind the future expansion of the building which will probably someday be necessary or useful (as was said above
when speaking of the area of the building, n. 14, b).
25. B) The Preliminary Estimate of the Expense.
Two kinds of cost estimates should also be sent. The first
should state the entire expense for the erection of this structure, including the price of the site, if it is necessary to buy
it, the cost of the building, taking into account the quantity
and the quality of all the materials required, the wages to
�BUILDING NORMS
315
be paid to the architect, and the taxes or rents to be paid.
The other estimate should show the total amount of money
which is on hand, according to the norm laid down in n. 14, a,
or which is certainly available to meet all the expenses.
26. C) Explaining the Plans.
There should be in a separate folder a clear and orderly
explanation of the plans. This should clearly show how everything has been properly arranged so that the building meets
existing needs, and should make clear all those things which,
if they were not explained, would hinder the proper understanding of certain parts, or might even seem unsuitable. Such
are the special features required by the locality, the site,
place, or the purpose of the house (n. 9, c).
27. The Final Plans and the Final Cost Estimate.
When the first draft has been approved at Rome, a final
and exact set of plans and a final estimate of expenses are
to be drawn up, after determining accurately what demands
of the civil administration must be met, and what details
are necessary for initiating transactions with the contractor
who will take charge of the actual construction of the building. Besides this, the conditions of construction, or specifications for carrying out the work, must be settled on. This
description should then be submitted for examination to the
same censors who were mentioned in n. 19.
28. If, in this final set of plans, no major change is made
in the draft approved by Rome, and if the expense estimate
is not increased, the provincial may now give permission for
the work to begin.
If, however, the draft is notably changed, or the expenses
increased, all the plans and expense estimates must again
be sent to Rome. A final copy of the plans must always be
sent to Rome to be kept in the archives of the Society.
29. Carrying out the Construction.
After the civil laws of the region have been carefully
examined, great care should be taken in choosing the person
who will be charged with constructing the building. The following points should be given special attention:
a) The construction is to be committed only to men
who are really experienced, as was said when speaking of
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BUILDING NORMS
the architect in n. 16, and who are known for their honesty.
There must be no departure from this norm on the false plea
of economy.
b) Before construction is begun, everything must be
thoroughly examined and decided upon. Moreover, the contracts with the ll:lborers who will be employed should be
made carefully according to the prevailing laws, and these
contracts should be examined by experienced men. On the
one hand, an honest and exact execution of all the plans
and specifications (n. 27) should be guaranteed by these
contracts, and on the other the way in which bills will be
paid should be clearly determined by them. These norms
must be observed even in the agreements made with the
architect himself, even though he be a man completely trustworthy and very friendly to us. Nor will it be licit for the
provincial to give permission to begin construction before all
the necessary agreements are made.
c) The supervision of the whole project is to be given
to some qualified father who is not too burdened with other
occupations. It will also be this Father's duty, either personally or througll another, to prepare an accurate account
of money expended for construction while the building is
in progress.
30. Finally, when all these conditions have been fulfilled,
actual construction of the building may begin at the time
deemed most suitable for construction, precautions being
taken against excessive haste. Generally speaking, it is
better to construct the whole building at once rather than
one part at a time. But if because of lack of funds or for
some other good reason the whole building cannot be constructed at one tirne, the plan of the whole building already
approved (n. 27) must be retained, and care should be taken
that the work be completed part by part in the most feasible
manner.
31. Du:t;:ing construction, the plans which have been approved as here prescribed are not to' be changed without
the permission of Father General, unless perhaps the change
involves only something of lesser importance. Even then
it should not be done ·without the advice of the architect and
superior and by the consent of the provincial (n. 28).
�BUILDING NORl\IS
CHAPTER
317
III
On the Maintenance of Our Buildings
32. Our buildings "are to be well maintained and minor
repairs made in good time lest the need for greater repairs
should arise" (Epit. Inst., n. 577 ~ 2).
33. It is the duty of the local Superior to provide for the
maintenance of buildings [Const. P. IV, c. 2, n. 5 (326); P.
IX, c. 3, n. 3 (7 40)]. This can be accomplished if needful
repairs such as the repainting or replastering of walls is
done betimes before any serious damage appears, thus forestalling more expensive repairs. For this reason all local
superiors should have the buildings entrusted to them carefully inspected by a competent man every three years who will
provide them with a written list of necessary repairs. Provincials will see that this directive is carefully observed by
all local superiors.
34. Repairs, even more costly ones, if they are necessary
for the maintenance of buildings, pertain to the ordinary
expenses (Cf. Epit. Inst., n. 549). Local superiors can undertake them on their own authority, unless it should be necessary to go into debt for this purpose, when, of course, recourse
must be had to major superiors or to the Holy See. Such
repairs include not only those that must be made after comparatively brief intervals, the repainting of walls, etc., but
also those less frequent repairs such as the repair of roofs
or flooring (Cf. AR, XI 382).
35. Extraordinary repairs, however, such as the repair
of a house damaged by fire or the installation of a new
heating plant, require the approval of the provincial or the
General, according to the norms established by the General
for the exigencies of time and place. (Ibid.)
36. Great prudence should be exercised in making changes
in our buildings. There is real danger that the large amount
of money spent for such changes would surprise Ours and
externs as well, especially since very little improvement is
effected. Every arrangement has its advantages and disadvantages. Superiors should remember that even in this
matter they are administrators of the patrimony of the poor,
�318
BUILDING NORl\IS
not independent owners. Consequently they should keep in
mind only solid and real benefit to the common good and not
indulge their own inclinations.
37. All our buildings, as noted above (n. 13), must be
equipped with the means of preventing fires or extinguishing
them, should they happen to start. Besides this, local superiors, in so far as they can, should adequately insure our
buildings against loss by fire, storms or earthquakes, or other
such disasters. Superiors should be seriously concerned about
matters of this nature and care for them in good time. They
will thus obviate the danger of our hou~es suffering irreparable losses or of our ministries being seriously hampered or
interrupted for a time, if God permitting, our buildings should
happen to be severely damaged or completely destroyed.
*
*
*
38. If, according to the prescriptions of this Instruction,
we proceed in the construction and repair of our buildings
according to the prescribed steps and the norms and order
suited to our Institute, as seculars with an eye for good
administration would do, and if we show constant diligence
in maintaining our buildings, many an error and useless
expense will be avoided. And further, our buildings will
more perfectly serve the end proposed to us-the greater ..·
glory of God and the salvation of souls.
FALSE DUALITY
God is the common good of the whole universe and all its parts;
hence each creature naturally loves God more than itself. The duality
set up by love of self and love of God is a false one; a true love of
oneself is a love of God, and a true love of God means that one cherishes
oneself as part of God's purposes. Putting it in another way, St.
Thomas says that everything tends to its proper perfection, but as this
perfection is part of a divine plan of love and itself is a likeness of God,
the movement of every creature is a desire for God either unconsciously
or indirectly or directly.
MARTIN D'ARCY
�Jesuit Patrologists at Heythrop
WALTER
J. BURGHARDT, S.J.
To students of Christian antiquity the Second International
Conference on Patristic Studies has a familiar ring. Centered
at storied Christ Church, Oxford, September 19-24, 1955, it
attracted over 400 delegates from various areas of the world,
including two representatives of Russia. Established scholars
like Aland and Danielou, MoHand and Mohrmann and Marrou,
Quispel and Capelle, Bouyer and Boyer and Botte, Grillmeier,
Hanson, de Riedmatten, Florovsky, J ouassard, Leloir, R. M.
Grant, Metzger, Rousseau, Sagnard, Schmaus, Beryl Smalley
and Ortiz de Urbina-these and a host of others gave the
Conference its unmistakable air of distinction and internationalism. Ten major addresses, forty papers with open
discussion, and 115 shorter communications were crowded into
four rather breathless days.
Less familiar, even to patristic scholars, is another meeting
that took place September 25, the Sunday after the International Congress closed. Due to the initiative of Father
Bruno Brinkman and the gracious hospitality of Father John
Diamond, the Jesuit delegates to the Oxford assembly were
invited to spend the week-end, September 24-26, at Heythrop
College, the house of philosophy and theology for the English
Province of the Society of Jesus.
Heythrop is a charming spot, with roots deep in the past.
Its story goes back to 1697, when Charles Talbot, Duke of
Shrewsbury, purchased the manor and lands of Heythrop,
situated on the high land some sixteen miles to the north of
Oxford. Twenty years later Shrewsbury's dream of a more
impressive Heythrop had matured in a massive stone structure
a mile to the southeast of the old manor. The finished product,
Heythrop Hall, was the achievement of an English architect,
Thomas Archer, whom Shrewsbury considered the ablest of
his time. Rich tradition attaches to it: the Talbot who became
a Jesuit and never assumed the title, Earl of Shrewsbury;
the leasing of the Hall as a hunting-seat to the Duke of
Beaufort; the fire which gutted the building in 1831, leaving
only the outer walls standing; the purchase of the entire
estate (14,000 acres) by the railway contractor, Thomas
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PATHOLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP
Brassey; the remodelling of the grounds and the rebuilding
of the Hall's interior and two wings by Brassey's youngest
son. It was not till 1923 that the Hall and 400 acres were
purchased by the English Jesuits; it was not till 1926 that
Heythrop College opened its doors.
List of Scholars
This is the Heythrop that welcomed a score of Jesuit
scholars on the evening of September 24. From Belgium came
George Dejaivfe, director of the Museum Lessianum, and
Roger Leys, author of L'Image de Dieu chez saint Gregoire
de Nysse; from Holland, P. Smulders, professor of patrology
at the Canisianum. Rome gave Charles· Boyer, acknowledged
authority on Augustine; I. Hausherr, specialist in the mysticism of the Eastern Churches; Ignacio Ortiz de Urbina,
known for his work on the Nicene Creed and early Eastern
Mariology; and Joseph P. Smith, of the Biblical Institute,
translator of Irenaeus' Proof of the Apostolic Preaching,
currently engaged on an edition of the Greek New Testament.
Frenchmen very much in evidence were F. Graffin, editor of
Patrologia orientalis; Claude Mondesert, editor of Sources
chretiennes; Jean Danielou, who~ has illumined the typology
of Christian antiquity and done so much to rehabilitate Origen; and Edouard des Places, who edited Plato's Laws for
the Bude series and spoke on "Patristic Citations from
Plato" at the Oxford Conference. Spain was represented by
Santiago Morillo, of the Centro Estudios Orientales in Madrid;
Germany by Heinrich Bacht and Aloys Grillmeier, the learned
editors of the monumental three-volume Das Konzil von
Chalkedon. Three Americans were on hand: Edgar R. Smothers, who is preparing an edition of Chrysostom's Homilies
on Acts; George P. Klubertanz, professor of philosophy at
Saint Louis University; and the present writer, professor of
patrology and patristic theology at Woodstock. The English
Province was well served by Thomas Corbishley, Master of
Campion Hall, Oxford; Anthony A. Stephenson, whose recent
articles· on Cyril of Jerusalem in ·Theological Studies occasioned much favorable comment; and several members of the
Heythrop faculty, including Maurice Bevenot, of Cyprian
fame, and J. H. Crehan, author of Early Christian Baptism
and the Creed.
�PATROLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP
321
Morning Session
The Sunday morning session took place in the genial
atmosphere of the Faculty Recreation Room. Seated in a
circle, with Father Corbishley as moderator, the delegates
reviewed in order the Master-Themes portion of the Oxford
Conference-ten groups which met simultaneously each of
four afternoons to exchange information on ten subjects of
wide contemporary interest: The Fathers and Biblical Exegesis, The Constantinian Epoch, Problems in Christology,
Monastic Origins, Early History of the Liturgy, The Fathers
and Hellenistic Philosophy, Fundamental Principles in Literary Criticism, Early Christianity and Contemporary Judaism,
Patristic Spirituality, Patristic Ideals and Their Present
Significance.
The value of such a review was twofold. In the first place,
an individual delegate at Oxford could attend on a given afternoon no more than one of the ten Master Themes-in all,
four out of forty sessions. Happily, each session of the
Master Themes found at least one of the Jesuit group on hand.
Consequently it became possible to discover at Heythrop what
had transpired in each of the forty sessions at Oxford; and
this information was summarized, analyzed, evaluated, and
supplemented. Secondly, what was still more striking, an
air of unfeigned, uncompelled charity dominated the discussion. Despite the fact that three languages-French, German,
and English-were in constant use, and at least eight nationalities were represented, there was in the group an absence
of tension, a pervasive feeling of oneness, that was genuinely
touching. It was more than academic politeness, or even religious protocol; this was "sympathy" on a lofty level. Perhaps the English Jesuits merit a word of commendation here
for the spontaneity and relative ease with which they shifted
so often to the French language.
At 4 P.M. the schedule called for Tea at the Huts. The
Huts are what Americans might term shacks-rude picnic
houses in Heythrop's woods, built by the Scholastics, adequately equipped for the culinary arts, some rather attractive, all designed for temporary escape from the College
proper. The visiting Jesuits were invited to have tea at
�322
PATHOLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP
any one of three Huts, according to linguistic preferences:
the Trap entertained in French, the Bee Hut in German, the
Golf Hut in Spanish.
Evening Session
The diversion was brief. From 5.30 to 7.30 a symposium
was held in the Faculty Recreation Room on "The Present
State of Patristic Studies in the Society." The program,
wisely planned and tactfully guided by Father Brinkman,
presented five reports, and a final summation by Charles
Boyer. Father Danielou sketched the. 'extensive, enviable
activity of French Jesuits in patristics. Ife confessed candidly
the difficulty of replacing scholars like Lebreton, de Grandmaison, d' Ales, Cavallera, and Prat, but saw reason for satisfaction in the achievements of Mondesert, Graffin, du Manoir de Juaye, Henry, Maries, and others. Father Grillmeier
surveyed the significant accomplishments of the Society in
Germany, highlighting the work of Otto Faller (now Provincial of Upper Germany), the Rahner brothers, and Jungmann, and paying deserved tribut~ to Guido MUller for his
Lexicon Athanasianum.
The present writer summarized the relatively scant contribution of American Jesuits to the understanding of early
Christianity, indicating (a) textual work, such as that of ··
Edgar Smothers, Herbert A. Musurillo, and Jesuits who have
worked under Werner Jaeger at Harvard; (b) translations,
notably the contributions of William P. Le Saint and James
A. Kleist to Ancient Christian Writers, and that of Gerald
G. Walsh to The Fathers of the Church; (c) monographs and
articles, such as the patristic contributions in Theological
Studies, e.g., the recent article by Joseph A. Fitzmyer on "The
Qumran Scrolls, the Ebionites and Their Literature."
Father Corbishley pointed out that in the context of English
Catholicism-where the intellectual activity of the Society has
necessarily been engaged in great measure, though not exclusively, with the popular and semi:popular presentation of
the faith-the notable achievements of scholars like Bevenot
and Crehan give solid hope for a patristic future. One point
Father Corbishley understandably omitted: much of the success of the Oxford Conference is attributable to his own close
�PATROLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP
323
collaboration as Master of Campion Hall with the guiding
genius of the Convention, Dr. F. L. Cross. That collaboration
is itself an enviable contribution to patristics.
Father Ortiz de Urbina gave an encouraging report on
Jesuit patristic efforts in Spain, despite the loss suffered in
the death of Jose Madoz. Spain has given several patrologists
to Rome, notably De Urbina himself and the promising
Antonio Orbe.
Practical Resolutions
If Superiors permit, the Heythrop talks are to be translated into action. In consequence of a suggestion made by
Father Grillmeier, the first tentative steps were taken towards
an Institute of Jesuit Patristic Studies. True, a resident community of patristic scholars will not materialize for some time.
There will, however, soon be a center, a sort of clearing house,
where Jesuit efforts in patristics will be catalogued; from
this center information on current projects, titles of dissertations, suggestions for research and requests for assistance,
etc., will radiate to Jesuit patrologists the world over. In this
way duplication will be avoided, collaboration facilitated.
Such collaboration has already begun. At the Heythrop
symposium this writer lamented the fact that, due to our geographical separation and personal isolation one from another,
Jesuit contributions to patristic theology have been all too
individual, casual, haphazard. The problem of tradition is a
case in point. Different aspects of this thorny question have
been handled in recent years by Danielou, Smulders, Plagnieux, and others. But their achievements have not had the
impact they merit, primarily because our approach to the
problem has been sporadic, desultory, unmethodical. The
Heythrop reaction to this jeremiad was enthusiastic and
practical. In two years' time a substantial volume will appear,
covering rather exhaustively the patristic notion of tradition.
It will be a cooperative effort, combining the work of ten
or more Jesuit patrologists. It will be published completely
and simultaneously in at least four languages: French, German, English, and Spanish.
The Third International Conference on Patristic Studies
will be held at Oxford in 1959. It is to be hoped that Heythrop
�324
PATROLOGISTS AT HEYTHROP
will once again play host to the Jesuit delegates for a postConference week-end. Of such graciousness much history
may be fashioned.
SPIRITUAL HELP
Some place in the United States there must be at least one Jesuit community which could use this idea, either as suggested, or with appropriate changes, to insure greater spiritual help to laics and good public
relations help for the Jesuit institution. Many Jesuit colleges and high
schools are situated in fairly prominent downtown areas and their cafeterias are used for noonday service to the students. Would it not be
possible to use these same facilities, perhaps an hour later, each day for
the benefit of business men and women who might want to hear a bit
of spiritual reading while they eat?
The average business person, sincere Catholic though he be, oftentimes finds it impossible or inopportune to go to daily Mass, or take any
time out in his busy day for spiritual consideration. While this is not a
happy situation, it nevertheless is true, and is a result of the laity having
good intentions but not disciplining itself to set apart such time. Most
workers take from three-quarters of an hour to an hour for lunch; they
go with their Protestant or Catholic friends to enjoy a lunch amid the
noise and hurry of a typical restaurant. It is natural then that their
conversation, while relaxing, is of little benefit to them. If a system
were set up in at least one Jesuit school to provide cafeteria service at
a reasonable cost, it goes without saying that after the plan became
known a number of Catholics would visit the school for luncheon purposes. Undoubtedly, the Catholics would bring their friends, regardless
of faith, and all would derive some spiritual help.
Then, too, a small profit could be made from the lunches which would
provide the school with a slight additional revenue and, what is equally
important, the plan would be a real public, relations effort to remind
alumni and· friends of the continued interest the Jesuits have in them.
Any subsequent fund-raising drives would be made much, much easier.
Such a broad plan needs to be worked out to fit the school in which it is
tried, but it seems certain that, once a pattern is established, the idea
might be used in many cities throughout the country.
JOHN
T.
NOLAN.
�November Thoughts
CHARLES I. PRENDERGAST,
S.J.
In our Jesuit life, everything we undertake is chosen with
a view to foster the end of our vocation: the salvation and
perfection of our own soul and that of our neighbor. Departure from this high purpose quite obviously means to withdraw ourselves from service under the banner of Christ,
or at very least to render ourselves ineffective in Christ's
cause. And our ineffectiveness would be in direct proportion
to our own self-will, sought at the expense of obedience. This
is certainly the case if Ignatius speaks truly when he says
that it is as much an evil to go against the precept of the
abbot out of watchfulness as out of sloth. And whether we
make of our religious life a haven of rest or an outlet of
great energies and remarkable talents, we are equally ineffective if self-will and self-love are the motivating forces. Disobedience, no matter what its issue, is a departure from the
law of charity and reduces the love of Christ to mere sentimentality. It reduces Christ to an object of sense and refuses
to consider his will in the matter, however that will be made
manifest. We love Christ with supernatural charity when
we seek to do his will, and his will only.
What is expected of us, therefore, is an aggressive zeal
and self-effacement under the direction of obedience. There
is no consideration given to worthwhileness, efficiency, success, personal comfort, utilization of one's talents, but only
to the will of God, manifest in the legitimate demands of
our superiors. Through supernatural love we work our way
through the modes of humility to imitation of, conformity to,
and union with Christ. This fruition of supernatural love is
our only success; its opposite, our only failure.
Now it is our good fortune as Jesuits-not enjoyed by all
Christians-to have the way of our perfection mapped out
and planned for us in detail. Our way of life is approved by
the Holy Spirit through the Church, and under the guidance
of that same Spirit, we are certain that our way is the way
of God's will. Our success depends on the conviction we have
of things taught by faith, our love of things known by faith,
�326
NOVE.l\IBER THOUGHTS
and our trust in the means provided by faith. But there
must always be a sustained interest in the tools, so to speak,
of our life. Now one of the things militating against sustained interest in these things is the fact that our religious
life, as a life under the three vows, our Constitutions and our
Rules, is a kind of science inasmuch as there must be a
thorough grasp of first principles if there is to be any further
development or realization of final conclusions that rest on
these principles. Unfortunately, except in· rare cases, the
study of fundamental notions has a way of wearying the
mind. Yet if these notions are to be grasped, if these first
principles are to inform and motivate our lives, there must
be a sustained interest based on the conviction that our
Jesuit way of life is a pattern of success.
In a larger sense this is recognized by the Church guided
by the Holy Spirit. One of God's ways of sustaining interest
in the Catholic verity is the revelation of his perfection manifested in the lives of the saints. Through the infallible magisterium of the Church, God makes known to us that the men
and women who lived lives of heroic virtue motivated by faith
and informed by grace are crowned with glory. Such knowledge is salutary for the faithful. The martyrology is a testament revealing the pattern of success that is the way of
Christianity. The victories of the saints tell us indeed that
"the souls of the just are in the hand of God : and the torment
of death shall not touch them. In the sight of the unwise
they seemed to die: and their departure was taken for misery.
And their going away from us, for utter destruction: but
they are in peace" (Wisdom 3, 1-3).
Our Saints
Now the purpose of the Church is not merely to give us
the catalogue of the saints for our edification and inspiration.
She commands besides that we pay special reverence to our
own, as is manifest in the higher rite whereby we celebrate
their feasts. She does this for the obvious reason that they
are th~ mirror of the perfection to which we are called and
therefore which we can attain. Their lives are a kind of
lifelike commentary on our Rules and Constitutions made
authoritative by the solemn action of the Church and, in
�NOVEMBER THOUGHTS
327
the case of the canonized, ratified by the Church's prerogative of infallibility. As Father Led6chowski points out in his
letter on devotion to our saints, God's providence "wisely distributes them through different nations and different lands,
through different families and institutes, as though He would
plainly signify when and by whom especially He wishes his
faithful servants and beloved friends to be particularly honored and revered." As regards the Saints of the Society, our
way of life, our Institute "has brought forth these heroes
to Christ, trained them, consecrated them, has accompanied
them step by step in their admirable ascent to heaven, and
has presented them to the Church, the spouse of Christ, so
that she may rejoice when their virtue and glory are proclaimed." The Church may rejoice and we may rejoice and
be inspired with hope and confidence, for by that same wonderful providence we have in the Society patrons and models
for each and every grade, office, and ministry of the Society.
If our ambition is to fulfil the ideal of a Jesuit it should
be a source of great comfort to us to behold those great
men, who have experienced the same difficulties and fought
the same battles, come at last to such a great triumph. And
not only do we have before us models of certain success, but
men who will plead mightily before the throne of God that
we continue with success the great work of the Society most
dear to their hearts.
That devotion to our saints is a practical means of our
own sanctification is apparent from the example of those
very saints themselves. Consider this following reflection
of St. Peter Canisius, "It is a matter of certainty," he says,
"that we have in heaven many saints from among the first
Fathers and their companions, and that the number of saints
is augmented each year, that even some saints are always
to be found among the sons of obedience who are mentioned
when the list of the dead is announced, although we may not
know just who they are nor when they took flight for heaven.
But the more they are who take flight, the more the name
of the Lord is strengthened, increased and glorified, and the
more intercessors our Society shall have in heaven to help
their comrades still serving on earth." And the same conviction was in the mind of Francis Xavier. We read in his letters
�328
NOVEMBER THOUGHTS
how in the midst of the toils and dangers of his apostolic
labors, he used to commend himself to his brethren who had
died piously in the Lord, and even to pray through the merits
of the Fathers and Brothers still living. It is common knowledge how the great apostle of the Indies was animated to
the realization of holiness in his own life by the example and
inspiration of Ignatius and Peter Faber. John Berchmans,
canonized because of his holy enthusiasm for religious rule,
was equally enthusiastic about fostering devotion and knowledge of our saints, especially Ignatius, Xavier, Stanislaus,
and Aloysius. Like Xavier, so also Peter Canisius and
Francis Borgia regarded Ignatius and Faber as sublime models. Blessed Antonio Francisco, one of the martyrs of Salsette,
was seized with a desire for martyrdom on hearing of the
martyrdom of Blessed Ignatius Azevedo and his companions.
St. John de Britto sought to rival the deeds of St. Francis
Xavier. Blessed James Sales prepared his soul for the struggle he was to undergo by frequent meditation on the glorious
achievement of Edmund Campion. Blessed Rudolph Aquaviva
was one of the first to practice devotion to Stanislaus and
was inspired to an intense desire of martyrdom by reflection
on the lives of Edmund Campion and Alexander Bryant. It
is interesting to note a kind of holy chain reaction in this
holy hero worship of our saints. Thus Blessed Charles Spinola
longed to imitate Rudolph Aquaviva, and Spinola was himself
the inspiration of Isaac Jogues. Berchmans sought successfully to reproduce in his own life the angelic virtue of Aloysius
and was in turn the inspiration of Blessed Claude de Ia
Colombiere and St. John de Brebeuf.
The Same Difficulties
The above paragraphs show concretely how our saints themselves profited from devotion to the holy men of our Order.
But it would be a mistake to conclude that their devotion
concerned itself merely with seeking their intercession in
heaven for various favors. From their letters and other
writings it is clear that they had studied the lives of the
men they revered so much, or perhaps had even been personal
acquaintances of them. It was noted above that these saints
of ours are apt objects of study because they experienced
�NOVEl\IBER THOUGHTS
329
the same trials and difficulties that are to be found in any
Jesuit's life. It is interesting and inspiring to note that
many of these men, before achieving the sanctity to which
God had called them, did not always manifest the greatest
spiritual heroism. Edmund Campion, for example, blinded
by success and royal preferment, took the oath of supremacy
and deacon's orders according to the new, heretical rite.
Francis Xavier almost elected the obscurity of an earthly
glory. Noel Chabanel was tempted to discouragement by
his inability to learn the Huron language or to bear the dirt
and squalor of that savage people. Peter Canisius could have
become a comfortable, prosperous Dutch merchant, unknown
to history and ineffectual in the cause of Christ's kingdom.
Thomas Tzugi, terrified by the increasing momentum of the
Japanese persecutions, even begged to be released from his
vows. For the sake of vanity Ignatius himself was willing
to put himself through exquisite torture to regain a straight
leg. Such is the picture of the saints in their upward struggle.
In their weaknesses they portray the not always too wellrealized truth that there is no substantial heroism but Christian heroism, that no man is or can be a veritable hero until
he is able to say, "I live, now not I, but Christ liveth in me."
As for us, so also for them the enemy of souls tempted our
saints to settle for present comfort and earthly success. And
when they did finally turn to the business of perfection, the
enemy again tried to discourage them into saying, "I can
never make it," or else tried to get them so to plan their
spiritual lives as if the whole success depended on their unaided effort. In the case of any man who makes a goal of
self-love Satan has won his battle, for this man no longer
seeks to fulfill the only purpose of his existence. In the case
of a man who is seeking perfection he tempts him either
to weaken in the struggle or through weariness or anxiety
to give up the fight. It is to our advantage to know thoroughly
and accurately the lives of our saints that we may know how
to plan our strategy when confronted with these ambuscades.
From their lives we learn how they met the deployments of
the enemy and how, after long struggles, they succeeded, by
relying on the strength and wisdom of their leader (outlined
in the Institute), in overcoming completely the temptations
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NOVEMBER THOUGHTS
that assailed them. Canisius, for example, sighing for a
more salubrious climate and a better quality of beer, is not
the Canisius of self-denial and perfect conformity to the will
of God, the doctor of the Church and the champion of his
faith, but Canisius, the human being, absorbed, distracted
and worn, perhaps, to a rough edge by the cares of office
and the demands on his mind and heart. It is Canisius, victim
of original sin, crying out with the Apostle, "Unhappy man
that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?"
(Romans 7, 24). Thomas Tzugi, quailing before the fierce
barbarity of persecution, is Peter again, denying his Master.
The glory of the saints is rooted not so much in their
achievements as in this, that they knew how to cope with
those weaknesses which might surprise them. They would
never rationalize themselves into a false sense of security.
They were always honest enough and humble enough to come
back by God's grace to the saving truth that Providence had
placed them in these trying circumstances and that grace
would be present and sufficient for them to come through
to glorious victory.
Hidden Saints
The presence of saints in our Society is of value to us for
another reason and indicates yet another cause-of love of,
and enthusiasm for, our Order. For their sanctity can be
said to be an indication, a kind of proof, of the presence of
many holy men besides themselves. Historical research bears
this out, the saints of the Society attest to it, and we ourselves have certainly thanked God for the company of men
who make perseverance in the state of grace so joyful and
easy for us. As an archaeologist can conclude to a high and
noble culture from a few outstanding monuments, so we, too,
from considering the outstanding examples of sanctity that
are our canonized and blessed, can conclude that they must
spring from an Institute that has its share of unheralded,
but noble and holy men. St. Robert Bellarmine, who was
spiritual father of the Roman College when Aloysius was a
student there, asserts that there were several young men in
the same house whose spiritual gifts of soul were every bit
as remarkable as the perfection of the young saint. Another
�NOVEMBER THOUGHTS
331
fact pointing to an imposing number of holy men in our
Order is the attitude of the enemies of the Church. They
always single out the Society as one of the first obstacles to
be removed. If ever it were different we should fear for the
spirit of the Order. Why is this so? Because the enemies of
the Church are the enemies of Christ and the allies of the
prince of this world. And they seek first of all to destroy
those who are Christlike and who are doing Christ's work,
those who love Christ and stand uncompromisingly under his
banner. Certainly if holiness in the Order were limited to
those few holy men who have been officially recognized as
such by the Church, the enemies of the Church would hardly
expend so much effort in seeking to destroy her. Therefore,
if Godless forces are so vehement and relentless in their
attacks upon the Society, we can only conclude that as a
body the Society must have an imposing number of holy
members whose love of Christ and zeal for God's greater
glory enrages the enemies of Christ and thwarts their plans.
But this would not be the case if the Jesuit were a man
whose ambitions centered on some form of selfishness. True,
we are all selfish, and that very often; but it would, I think,
be impossible to find a Jesuit who had either implicitly or
explicitly settled on self-love as the motif of his religious life.
Our heroes, our truly great men, are those who have overcome
self in every important emotion and movement of the spirit.
But even for them this high achievement has been the work
of a lifetime. One advances but slowly on the path to perfection. When Christ tells us to be perfect even as our heavenly
Father is perfect (Matthew 5, 48), it is obvious that He
urges to us to strive unceasingly for something that is, absolutely speaking, unattainable. Perfection, it is true, is in the
term, but this does not mean that only in the term is good
found. Good is found in every advance towards the term,
and advance, unceasing advance, is all that God demands
of us. It is all his grace enables us to achieve. The general
in battle recognizes every retreat of the enemy as a vindication of his own strategy.
A Sign
This life of ours is a life of faith, and while it is true that
faith demands our strongest and most certain assent, it is
�332
NOVEMBER THOUGHTS
likewise true that faith is "the substance of things to be
hoped for and the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews
11, 1). As such it exercises its appeal on our supernature,
whereas nature tends to the tangible and measurable results
in the order of things sensed. We just naturally want our
conclusions based on things we sense and know by our own
unaided powers. The soldier, lost in a maze of over-all strategy,
planned by superior officers, finds it easier to fight and is
more willing to fight when the battle at last focuses on a
definite, visible objective.
When Christ demanded faith from the ·people, they immediately sought a sign in the visible ordel-': Before them, it is
true, stood the best, the noblest, the gentlest, the holiest of
men, but nevertheless a man as far as they could sense and
see. The demand for a sign, therefore, was a legitimate
demand, for even the good and earnest Jew was only asking
Christ to establish the reasonableness of his assertion of
divinity. And Christ himself would say to his enemies, "If
you do not believe me, believe the works which I do" (John
10, 38). In the order of signs it probably can be said that
the lives of our saints are for the average Jesuit what the
miracles of Christ were for his contemporaries. Just as the
good Palestinian Jew could conclude from Christ's works
that "a great prophet has arisen among us" and "God hath ..·
visited His people" (Luke 7, 16), so we, too, should certainly
conclude that the approval of God is on our Institute from
the great heroism of our saints. God in his wisdom, his goodness, and his love would not allow an enemy to work the
wonders Christ worked in his name, and Christ would not
allow his enemies to achieve in his name such wonderful
sanctity.
Sometimes the dread temptation may come over us that,
despite the certainty that faith brings, the bleak void is all
that awaits us at death. We become fearful, discouraged. Our
work seems useless. The starch, so .to speak, is taken out
of our zeal. The words of Christ, the promises of Christ, the
victory of Christ seem far away, unreal. Like Peter we are
hypnotized by the swelling waves, we fall back on our own
pitiful ingenuity, and we begin to sink. Then we should
remember that the same fears and temptations assailed our
�NOVEl\IBER THOUGHTS
333
heroic Jesuit brothers. Many of them, doubtless, because of
their many and varied talents, were tempted to turn to the
substance of things at hand, to the evidence of things seen ..
Some were terrified by the sword of persecution. Some saw
ecclesiastical or civil preferments lost forever in the life of a
Jesuit. Probably at one time or another every Jesuit is
tempted to throw off the trappings of religion and return
once more to the world of men to become known, to achieve
wealth, to occupy a position of prestige. But like Peter, enough
are sufficiently brave, which means sufficiently humble, to cry
out, "Lord, save me; I perish." In and through faith they
turn to Christ, their exemplar and their strength. And in
Christ they conquer.
And with St. Augustine we can conclude with a small, but
significant question :
Potuerunt hi; cur non et tu?
THE GEORGETOWN SEAL
The Great Seal and the Coat-of-Arms of the United States are the
reverse and obverse sides, respectively, of the official seal adopted on
June 20, 1782. These two sides of the official seal may be seen on the
one-dollar silver certificates of the United States. Up to 1928, at least,
the Great Seal was not used officially by the United States; the Coat-ofArms was used to seal official documents.
The Georgetown "seal," as it is usually styled, resembles the Coat-ofArms of the United States. In 1909, the State Department issued a
booklet, "History of the Seal of the United States," and on page 65 we
find the statement "when the Continental Congress made the obverse of
the Great Seal the national arms it intended that the device would pass
into common use among the people, as the flag has done." Therefore,
no exclusive rights were ever granted, or ever needed, by Georgetown
College to use a seal resembling the Coat-of-Arms of the United States.
It is not surprising then that the Georgetown Archives possesses a
Georgetown seal with all the essentials of the present day seal, except
that it bears sixteen stars. It is safe to assume that this seal dates
back to the period when there were sixteen States in the Union, i.e.,
1796-1803.
�334
GEORGETOWN SEAL
A picture of this seal may be seen in the Georgetown University
Alumni Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 4. This seal was used as late as 1854 on
the Merit, or Testimonial, cards given to the student for excellence in
their work. It also appears, printed in green, on envelopes used in 1860,
but the legend around the edge is changed to "Georgetown College,
Georgetown, D. C."
The charter of 1815 makes no mention whatever of a seal, and all of
the current "explanations" of such a seal are pure fiction. The Act of
Incorporation of June 10, 1844, specified that the corporation "shall
adopt a common seal," and "the same seal, at their pleasure, to break
or alter, or devise a new one."
The present official seal is a lead impression seal, 1 o/s" in diameter,
with thirteen stars and other features resembling the coat-of-arms of
the United States, and a legend around the edge read, "'President and
Directors of Georgetown College, D. C."
W. C. REPETTI, S.J.
JESUIT EDUCATION
Planning and adaptability were two of the pillars of Jesuit education.
The third, equally important, was the high standard of the books which
were studied, and, consequently, of the achievement demanded from their
pupils. The Jesuit schools were established largely to counteract the
Protestant Reformation, and their founders went on the excellent principle that they would do this best by producing Catholics who were not
only devout but brilliant. To do this, they must teach them the most
exacting and most rewarding subjects, superlatively well. They worked
out, therefore, a curriculum of the finest things in classical literature,
on the assumption that "we needs must love the highest when we see it."
This book is not concerned with the subject-matter of education but
here. the form and the material are virtually impossible to distinguish,
for, as the Jesuits said, they used the classics as "hooks to catch souls."
The success of Jesuit education is proved by its graduates. It produced, first, a long list of wise and learned Jesuit preachers, writers,
philosophers, and scientists. Yet if it had bred nothing but Jesuits it
would be less important. Its value is that it proved the worth of its
own principles by developing a large number of widely different men of
vast talent: Corneille the tragedian, Descartes the philosopher and
mathematician, Moliere the comedian, Urfe the romantic novelist,
Montesquie~ the political philosopher, Vo1taire the philosopher and
critic, who although he is regarded by the Jesuits as a bad pupil is still
not an unworthy representative of their ability to train gifted minds.
The Company of Jesus has many enemies but none of them has ever said
that it did not know how to teach.
GILBERT HIGHET.
�A Monument to Jesuit Heroism
E. J. BURRUS, S.J.
It is a unique monument, not of marble or of bronze, but
of the many thousands of letters written by our fellow Jesuits
through the centuries, all with one theme: the offer and the
plea to work in the foreign missions, "in the Indies," as the
phrase commonly had it. Still extant in our Roman archives
are over fifteen thousand of such letters, gathered into thirtyone bundles of some five hundred letters each, with many
others scattered in various sections of the same archives. 1
Yet, numerous as are these petitions, they represent only a
part of the requests that reached Father General in Rome.
Xavier, by setting out for the Orient in 1541, was, of course,
the first Jesuit to go to the Indies and the foreign missions.
In the fifteen years that remained in the life of St. Ignatius,
numerous were the pleas from those of his sons who were
insistent upon following in the footsteps of the Apostle of the
Indies. The letters that reached Europe from Xavier and
his fellow workers found a responsive echo during an age
of spiritual, no less than temporal, adventure. More than
three years before Xavier died on Sancian, Jesuits had volunteered for the missions in the Western Hemisphere, had crossed
the Atlantic to Brazil, and founded there the first province in
the Americas. 2
With his sons no longer gathered about him in Rome or
within relatively easy summons from some European country,
but scattered in the East and West Indies, Ignatius insisted
that the family spirit that animated the first companions be
maintained through frequent letters to and from Rome. These
letters, in turn, fired many with the desire to enter the Society
and devote their lives to the missions. But soon, even more
numerous than the letters of the missionaries, were the petitions of those who begged to be accepted for the mission fields,
rapidly opening up in both the Spanish and Portuguese empires. Goa, the Fishery Coast, Japan, Macao, China itself,
Ethiopia, Ormuz, Congo, Morocco, Angola-these and other
regions came within a few years into the sphere of Jesuit
missionary activity. Across the world, their fellow workers
had consolidated their position in Brazil, had attempted to
�336
JESUIT HEROISM
establish a beachhead in Spanish Florida, and had founded
the provinces of Peru and Mexico as well as the mission of
the Philippines dependent upon Mexico. 3
Indipetae
Such intense missionary activity set off among the youth
of Europe an extraordinary chain reaction, inspiring many
to enter the Society and firing others already in the Order
to volunteer for the foreign missions. In the first years of
the Society such requests were not filed under any special
category; in fact, most were lost in the course of time and
we know of their existence only through references to them
in other documents. But sometime before 1600 it was decided
to start preserving such letters and they were accordingly
filed in a special section of the archives that today is known
as the Fondo Gesuitico. Since the secretary in filing these
letters regularly wrote the identifying phrase "Indias petit"
or its equivalent on the back of the message, the section
was termed "Volunteers for the Indies," or in the Latin
original lndipetae, to refer to both the volunteer and his
petition. 4
In the one special section alone there are 14,067 such
requests, written by 6,167 of our fellow Jesuits. The earliest
is dated 1589, the latest 1770, the eve of the Suppression. To
these must be added approximately one thousand such letters
preserved not in the archives of the procurator general, as
are the bulk of the extant petitions, but in the main archives
of the Society. 5 Even the formation of a special section did
not preserve all these messages; we have today possibly one
fourth or less of the letters sent to Rome. As is obvious, the
volunteers usually wrote more than once; some wrote ten,
twenty, or more times; the record is held by the Jesuit who
bombarded Rome with fifty-three missives!
The Volunteers
The writers who penned these letters were European Jesuits
who volunteered for the foreign missions. In other sections
of both archives, there are letters and references to letters
written by missionaries in the Americas volunteering for the
more difficult missions of the Orient, particularly Japan dur-
�JESUIT HEROISM
337
ing the height of the persecution, but such letters were not
filed under Indipetae. During the nearly two and a half
centuries of existence of the Old Society, most foreign missions
were under the patronage of the Spanish and Portuguese sovereigns. As vocations from the mother countries and their
relatively populous dominions by no means sufficed to take
care of the spiritual needs of such vast regions, apostolic
helpers were summoned from other European countries. To
what precise extent non-Spaniards and non-Portuguese helped
out in the far-flung mission world, is a subject not yet completely investigated ; more fully studied is the changing legislation that permitted or forbade foreigners to participate in
the apostolate. Yet one thing is certain and that alone concerns us here: from the time of Xavier to the expulsion of
the Society prior to its universal suppression in 1773, there
were always large numbers of non-Spaniards and non-Portuguese in the foreign missions. 6 They were chosen from the
volunteers whose letters we are considering. The extant letters of the Spaniards who volunteered come to about a thousand; of the Portuguese, to about five hundred. Italy heads
the list with nearly eleven thousand; the Low Countries
are next with one thousand five hundred; there are about
five hundred each for Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and France.
Volunteers sent in their pleas from other countries also, from
Ireland, England and Scotland, for example; but these last
were reminded of the great need of apostolic workers in their
own countries, and no special series was formed of such
letters; we usually know of their existence only through other
documents. Province and mission catalogues also show that
Jesuits came from these countries to work in the foreign
missions.
The petitions are written by Jesuits in every stage of
their formation and in every grade. A few are from novices,
especially if they had entered as priests. More numerous are
the messages from juniors: there is the occasional young
Jesuit who informs Father General that he is already in his
third years in the Society, is now studying rhetoric (and shows
that he can apply it), having pronounced his vows fully
two months ago. A few, too, are from those engaged for
several years in the home missions, in city ministry preaching
�338
JESUIT HEROISM
and hearing confessions, in the classroom or at their desks
writing books. They believe that their real vocation is in the
foreign mission field. But the vast majority are from those
in their studies of whom many have finished at least philosophy. Ordination and tertianship proved ideal occasions
to remind Father General of earlier requests. Some of those
who in Europe carried on most effective work in behalf of
the foreign missions had requested to go to the Indies and
upon refusal spent their lives interesting others to assist the
missionaries; such was Father Joseph Stocklein, founder and
editor for many years of the mission periodical, the Welt-Bott;
others were such European promoters""Of the foreign missions
as Philip Alegambe and Andres Marcos Burriel.
Individuals
Let us meet a few of the volunteers. There are the missionaries of New Spain who mastered several native languages
and compiled grammars and dictionaries for their more fortunate successors; two such outstanding missionaries were the
Italian Pietro Gravina and the Bohemian Adam Gilg. There
is Father Luigi Buglio of Chinese mission fame who composed numerous theological works in Chinese and translated
the missal and a considerable portion of St. Thomas into the
same language. The Bohemian, Brother Borushadsky, deserves a special word. He wrote one of the most persuasive
letters in the entire lndipetae section. "Your Paternity's letter mentioned the need of priests in the foreign missions,
but I am sure that capable Brothers could also lend a helping
hand." There follows a list of his abilities. He was to accompany Father Eusebius Kino and his group to the New World,
but when shipwreck in the harbor of Cadiz, Spain, threatened
to delay their sailing for another year, Brother Simon hired
a boat and boarded another ship as it was leaving for Mexico,
thus arriving in 1680 instead of the following year as did
Father Kino and his contingent. 7 ,
We meet such incomparable explorers and cartographers as
Salvatierra, Piccolo, Marquette, Consag and Kino. The last
explored Lower California and proved that it was a peninsula,
he founded the missions of Pimeria Alta and Arizona to the
north; he explored a vast portion of our Southwest and the
�JESUIT HEROISM
339
approaches thereto; he wrote as well as made mission history
of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth century; he
drew the most exact maps of his time of the regions he
explored. Kino's heart was set on the East, the scene of the
apostolic work of his patron, Francis Xavier. But his fellow
Tyrolese, Anton Kerschpamer also preferred the Orient, and
Kino was not one to be selfish even in heroism. They agreed
to cast lots. Kerschpamer drew the Philippines, gateway to
the Orient, Kino drew Mexico; and thus the course of their
lives was fixed by a bit of pious gambling. Many years later
Kino was to write, "These new American missions of this
unknown North America are superior to and more fruitful in
conversions than the Asiatic missions of the Mariana Islands
and of Great China." This statement is not to be considered
as belonging to the category of sour grapes, but was the conviction of a seasoned missionary that his pious gamble with
Kerschpamer did not turn out so badly after all. 8
Juan Maria Salvatierra was the first to succeed in colonizing
Lower California after nearly two centuries of defeat; Francesco Maria Piccolo arrived at the crucial moment to save
the beachhead. 9 Father Jacques Marquette needs no introduction to students of North American history. Ferdinand
Consag continued the work of Kino and Salvatierra leaving
us priceless accounts of his explorations. We have petitions
from future martyrs, such as Karl Boranga, slain in 1684 in
the Mariana Islands, and whose remains now rest in the
Kirche-am-Hof in his native Vienna. 10 Juan Font and
J er6nimo Moranta were martyred on the same day, N ovember 19th, in the 1616 Tepehuan uprising in Mexico; their
petitions to go on the foreign missions are among the earliest
we possess. The last whom we shall meet is the Bohemian,
Brother John Steinefer or Steinhofer, whose book on practical medicine for the busy missionaries has been reprinted
countless times and found use even in the Philippines; he
worked for some twenty years in the Mexicari Sonora missions, where he died in 1716,11
Missions Requested
When foreigners were admitted into the m1sswns of the
Spanish and Portuguese dominions it was with the proviso
�340
JESUIT HEROISl\1
that they be employed among the infidel natives, not in the
schools and parishes of the cities. Thus it is that we find
Anton Benz and Jakob Sedelmayr on the rim of the southwestern missions, Jakob Baegert and Benno Ducrue in Lower
California, Matthias Strobel, Lazlo Orosz, Martin Dobrizhoffer and Bernhard Nussdorffer in the Paraguay Reductions.12
But this is exactly what the petitioners had requested in
their letters-inter infideles, ad barbaros are commonly recurring phrases. A multiple choice was often left to Father
General: the East, whether China, Japan or India; sometimes
a clear preference was expressed for ~Malabar, Persia, the
Americas, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Paraguay, the Philippines,
the Marianas, and other regions where the Society was working or might soon open up new fields. But commonest of all
was complete indifference-ad quamvis orbis partem.
Motives for Volunteering
The motives expressed in the letters are not new or startling, but such as one would expect of aspiring missionaries.
They are the solid reasons furnisiied by the conviction that
such an apostolate is in perfect keeping with the spirit of
the Society and affords the best opportunity of fulfilling its
highest ideals. Very many gave as the reason for entering
the Society the chance of working in the foreign missions.
For many others it was the hope of doing more in the vineyard
of the Lord. "In Europe there are comparatively many workers; I know that missionaries are badly needed," are phrases
one reads frequently in the lndipetae. The foreign missions
were looked upon as a means for greater personal sanctification, as a way to express gratitude for a religious vocation,
for the gift of faith; not a few treasured the missionary ideal
as a prelude to martyrdom. Numerous are those who state
that their petition is the fulfillment of a vow for recovered
health, for perseverance in their vocation. Possession of the
necessary qualifications for mission work, such as good health
and exceptional linguistic ability, seemed motive enough to
many to request the Indies. No less than two thousand assign
as the motive of their mission vocation the example of St.
Francis XavierP In the course of time his example is sup-
�JESUIT HEROISM
341
plemented by that of other heroic Jesuits: the Canadian martyrs, the English martyrs, Father Ricci, Father Rhodes and
other eminent missionaries.
Occasions for Volunteering
The election of a new General gave the petitioner a good
psychological introduction to his request: he congratulated
His Paternity, wished him many years of fruitful work,
assured him of a generous remembrance in prayer, even
enclosed a spiritual bouquet, and quietly slipped in a subordinate clause begging to be sent on the foreign missions.
He might even remind Father General that the imperative
of eo, ire is i; he need but write the one letter, and the petitioner would be on his way to the most distant mission. Some
even held out a spiritual bribe to His Paternity-"If my
petition is granted, you are to receive an extra Mass every
month, first intention, as long as I live." Other propitious
occasions were requests from the mission front for help. The
Spanish and Portuguese assistants sent out circular letters
asking for missionaries. When mission procurators attended
the congregation in Rome, they usually made known the needs
of the missions and accompanied the new recruits to the
field of work.
Nature of the Petitions
The essence of a typical letter amounts to the following,
"I am convinced that God calls me to the foreign missions;
I believe that I have the necessary qualifications; I volunteer
for any mission to which Your Paternity may wish to assign
me." Others trace the genesis and evolution of their special
calling, and add motives and reasons in an effort to more
certainly reach the desired goal. Most show that their offer
is not the expression of some sudden impulse but rather the
fruits of years of thought, reflection and prayer. They have
long delayed before writing in order to test the sincerity and
firmness of their desire; they have consulted others for advice
and guidance, the spiritual father, or the provincial for
example; they have spoken with missionaries who have worked
in the very regions to which they aspire. There are jubilant
letters of thanksgiving from those who have been informed
�342
JESUIT HEROISl\1
of their acceptance for the missions ; not a few of such missives were written en route to their new home.
A small percentage of the Indipetae were written by men
of an overemotional character, given to sudden impulse and
apt to abandon the most serious undertaking at the appearance
of the first real opposition or difficulty; their expressions are
of an excited, exalted and exaggerated nature, which automatically eliminated them as fit candidates for so arduous
an apostolate, and hence the researcher today will usually
hunt in vain for the writers of such petitions among those
who actually went to the missions.
'
Most of the letters were written in Latin, a few in the
vernacular languages of the petitioners and some even with
the charming dialectical differences of the spoken patois
rather than the rigorous form of the accepted literary language. The writers were, as a rule, on their best calligraphical
behavior. Letters are neatly formed; the script is even and
careful, almost printed at times; the grammar is faultless
and had quite possibly been checked by others. But there are
some exceptions, where in understandable excitement, Father
General's name is misspelled, place and date omitted, even
the writer's name left out; on some occasions, the petitioners
seem to have neglected to let the ink dry.
A manual might be compiled from these letters, if not on
the art of persuasion in general, then at least on the art of
persuading Father General to grant authorization to the
aspirant to go on the foreign missions. Some of the artifices
and rhetorical devices must have made His Paternity smile
at their patent obviousness, but they revealed at the same time
the earnestness of the writer and his high purpose; love is
inventive, and no group of men were ever more in love with
an ideal than those who penned these letters.
The language problem loomed large in the mind of the
aspiring missionaries, and accordingly finds expression in
nearly every letter. Many petitionei:s assure Father General
that they have learned Spanish, Portuguese, or French; sometimes two, or all three, of these languages. Some few have
even learned one of the more common native languages. The
petitioners seem to take transfer of training for granted, for
they inform His Paternity that they have tried out their
�JESUIT HEROISM
343
facility on difficult languages at home; several have learned
Hungarian, another learned Hebrew to keep in practice for
the time when he could take up the study of Chinese. When
Father Martin Martini of Chinese mission fame came as procurator to Rome in mid-seventeenth century, his native helper
was kept busy teaching Chinese to aspiring missionaries. Not
a few asked to sail with returning missionaries so that they
might acquire a working knowledge of the native language
during the long months of the voyage. The few grammars
and dictionaries of native languages to be found in Europe
were eagerly sought out and carefully studied. One young
petitioner assures Father General that he had learned Guatemalan from just such a source and now all he needs is
practice--and, of course, practice could be had only in the
missions.
Envelopes are a modern invention; letters were formerly
folded much as are air-letters today, and the address added
on the back of the message. The lndipetae were addressed to
Admodum Reverendo Patri . . . Praeposito Generali, Roma.
Sealing wax took the place of mucilage and insured the contents of the letter against prying curiosity. Blotters are another modern invention; drying-sand had stood the test of
ages and still sparkles today and rubs off as the modern
researcher handles the documents.
Answer from Rome
In the Roman Curia, a secretary carefully read through
the letters, adding a memorandum on each for Father General
and the appropriate title in order to be able to file away
the petition for future reference. He noted the province and
city from which the letter came, the date, the name of the
author, he summarized the request in a brief phrase such as,
"Petit Indias," "Petit missionem Indicam," "Offert se ad missiones quascumque Indicas"; he indicated a few salient facts
about the aspirant, whether he had finished his course of
studies, or what stage of his formation he had reached. As
not a few of the requests were insistent reminders, this fact
was also recorded, "Denuo se missionibus Indicis offert."
Occasionally the secretary jotted down some question to be
asked of the aspirant.
�344
JESUIT HEROISM
In letters written out by one of the secretaries but signed
by Father General, the Indipetae were answered. Since these
answers were sent to the petitioner, usually only a copy is
to be found in Rome and this in the registers of the Generals'
letters; but by some chance or other a few of the originals
are still extant in the Roman archives. Father General
thanked the petitioner for his generous offer, informed him
that his name had been entered on the list of aspirants for
the foreign missions, and urged him to make himself worthy
of so lofty a vocation. "Vocationis tuae memoria in album
candidatorum consignata est; ex quo repetetur. Tu te interim
ilia vocatione dignum praesta," is the usual reply to the first
petition. The aspirant was to be informed when a definite
choice had been reached and an opportunity to go to the Indies
presented itself; all this was contained in the brief phrase
"ex quo repetetur," which Father General was often not
allowed to forget; hence the letters that followed up the first
request. Through the centuries it was held that scarcely a
severer punishment could be meted out for a fault than to
have one's name taken off the list of mission aspirants.
Excerpts
In 1670 Juan Maria Salvatierra wrote from Genoa the
first of his three extant requests. "As I am about to finish
my two years of novitiate, I have determined with the
approval of my immediate superiors to make known to Your
Paternity my longing to go on the foreign missions, a holy
ambition that goes back to earliest memories. Before I entered
the Society, I studied at the Jesuit College in Parma; here
I formed the plan of setting sail for the Indies while still
a student and in the guise of a pilgrim. Prudence instilled
into me by others kept me from carrying out my resolve, yet
with the years my longing has but increased." 14
The only two extant letters certainly in the handwriting of
Marquette are both Indipetae, although we know that he
wrote at least three such petitions. In '1665 he wrote Father
General from Pont-a-Mousson, "At the end of seven years
of teaching and already in the twenty-ninth year of my life,
I find myself now facing still another course of studies. Hence,
I turn to Your Paternity with the request sent to your
�JESUIT HEROISM
345
predecessor seven years ago and approved of by all my
immediate superiors, namely that I be allowed to go on the
foreign missions. This has been a childhood ambition of mine,
and was one of the determining motives of my entering the
Society. I should like to add that earlier I expressed preference for the Indies, but now I am wholly indifferent to whatever mission Your Paternity may choose for me." Father
Marquette's second letter was written the following year from
La Rochelle en route to Canada. He has in the meantime
been ordained and now thanks Father General for acceding
to his petition to go on the missions. 15
Father Francesco Bernardoni of the Sicilian Province wrote
Father General in 1650 volunteering for the Indies, and
reminding him that he is of the same family as St. Francis
of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco Bernardone), who had once
aspired in vain to go on the foreign missions; he should
like to carry out the holy ambition of the Saint. Father
Bernardoni continues, "I have spoken recently with the renowned missionary Father Alexander Rhodes and he has
promised to take me with him on the foreign missions if I
obtain the approval of Your Paternity, who need write but
one letter of the alphabet, just one small i, and I shall set
out immediately with him." 16 A similar petition comes from
Luigi Gonzaga, relative of the Saint.
In 1676 Father Kino wrote from Ingolstadt in Germany
his seventh extant request to go on the missions. "As those
who are just one year ahead of me in theology are preparing
for ordination to the priesthood to be conferred in a few
weeks, I am reminded of your kind and encouraging letter
in answer to my request to go on the foreign missions, for
Your Paternity then wrote that once ordained, I should have
a better chance of being chosen. The purpose of this letter
is to remind Your Paternity that with my ordination just one
year off, my longing to set out for the missions is more ardent
than ever." 17
Occasionally a missionary already in the Indies requested
a still more difficult mission; such a one was the Irishman
Michael Wadding. 18 During his course of theology, Michael
wrote from Mexico City to Father General offering himself
for Japan. The General's answer, dated from Rome, April
�346
JESUIT HEROISM
20, 1617, has been preserved for us. "My dear brother in
Christ, I received your letter of May 3, 1616. After thinking
over the desire through which Our Lord has prompted you
to volunteer for Japan, I believe that it should be given more
mature consideration and made the object of fervent prayer
to God. Strive on your part to become indifferent to going
to that mission or to remaining in your present province. The
decision reached should reflect the will of God and the greater
good of souls. In the New World, where you now are, you
will surely not lack opportunity of working among the Indians. May Our Lord guide us in coming to·the best decision
and give you, as I desire, generously of~His blessings. In
union of prayers, Mutius Vitelleschi." The very next packet
of letters to the General from Mexico brought word that
the Tepehuanes, living on the northwestern rim of New Spain,
had gone on the warpath and had slain eight of the nine
Jesuit priests working among them (November 18-20, 1616).
New missionaries would be needed to take their place. The
General's words, "You will surely not lack opportunity of
working among the Indians," must have seemed prophetic
no less than providential to Wadding. His studies finished
and without waiting for a year of tertianship, he set out in
the summer of 1618 on his journey to the northern missions
of Mexico, which were to be the field of his apostolate as long
as health permitted.
These fifteen thousand letters are more than so many petitions to go on the foreign missions. They are indicative of a
high and widespread heroism in the Society through the centuries. Not all who sent in these petitions attained to the
fulfillment of their longing and high ambition, but merely
to have aspired and to have entertained such an ideal raised
the level of spirituality among their fellow Jesuits. Page by
page and letter by letter, our Jesuit brothers of another age
contributed to fashioning a unique monument of generosity,
zeal for souls, and love of God, and thus the Indipetae constitute not merely a monument to Jesuit heroism, they are also a
monument of Jesuit heroism.
NOTES
1 Of these thirty-one bundles, thirty are in the Fondo Gesuitico, housed
today in the Jesuit Curia in Rome; one bundle is in the main archives
�JESUIT HEROISM
347
(Archivum Romanum Societatis Jesu) and designated Ital. 173.; the latter letters are from the Roman and Milan Provinces.
2 Serafim Leite, S.J., Hist6ria da Companhia de Jesus no Brasil, vol. 1
(Lisbon-Rio de Janeiro, 1938) p. 18.
a Antonio Astrain, S.J., Historia de la Compaiiia de JesUs en la
Asistencia de Espana, vol. II (Madrid, 1905), pp. 284-303 (Florida and
Mexico), pp. 304-315 (Peru); vol. IV (Madrid, 1913), pp. 426-505
(Philippines).
4 As the word is not found in any dictionary, I may be permitted
to point out to the reader that the word is accented on the antepenultimate syllable (in-di-pe-tae). The modern Russipetae derive, of
course, from a like formation.
6 Cf. above, note 1.
6 The fullest study of this subject is: Lazaro de Aspurz, O.F.M., La
aportaci6n extranjera a las misiones espaiioles del patronato regio
(Madrid, 1946) ; a brief but scholarly account limited to Spanish
America is: Theodore E. Treutlein, Non-Spanish Jesuits in Spain's
American Colonies in the volume Greater America: Essays in Honor of
Herbert Eugene Bolton (Berkeley, 1945), pp. 219-242.
7 Herbert E. Bolton, Rim of Christendom: A Biography of Eusebio
Francisco Kino, Pacific Coast Pioneer (New York, 1936), p. 65.
8 E. J. Burrus, S.J., "Francesco Maria Piccolo (1654-1729), Pioneer
of Lower California, in the Light of Roman Archives," in The Hispanic
American Historical Review, vol. 35 (February, 1955) page 65, note 10.
9 Ibid., p. 61.
10 Anton Huonder, S.J., Deutsche Jesuitenmissioniire des 17. und 18.
Jahrhunderts (Freiburg, 1899), pp. 166-167.
n Ibid., p. 116.
12 Ibid., see Personenregister for respective missionaries.
13 Georg Schurhammer, S.J., "Sulle orme del Saverio," in Ai Nostri
Amici, vol. 23 (Palermo, October 1952), p. 217, "Duemila fra queste
lettere attribuiscono espressamente al Saverio l'ispirazione alia loro
domanda per le missioni. E per tutti gli altri l'Apostolo delle lndie e
del Giappone rimaneva il grande ideale da imitare."
H Pietro Tacchi-Venturi, S.J., "Per la biografia del P. Gianmaria
Salvatierra: Tre nuove lettere," in Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu,
vol. 5 (1936), pp. 76-83.
1s Gilbert J. Garraghan, S.J., "Some Newly Discovered Marquette
and La Salle Letters," ibid., vol. 4 (1935), pp. 268-290.
16 G. Schurhammer, S.J., op. cit. pp. 219-220, where the original Italian
text of the entire letter is printed.
11 Pietro Tacchi-Venturi, S.J., "Nuove lettere inedite del P. Eusebio
Francesco Chino [Kino] d. C. d. G." in Archivum Historicum Societatis
Jesu, vol. 3 (1934), pp. 248-264.
18 E. J. Burrus, S.J., "Michael Wadding, Mystic and Missionary (15861644)," in The Month (June 1954), pp. 339-353.
�General Decree on the Simplification
of the Rubrics
JOSEPH
F. GALLEN, S.J.
I. GENERAL NORMS
a. The decree is dated March 23, 1955 and is effective and
obligatory from January 1, 1956.
b. Its purpose is a partial and provisional simplification
of the rubrics of the divine office and Mass.
c. It concerns only the Roman rite.
d. It leaves unchanged anything it does not mention.
e. It affects all ordos, i.e., of the universal Church, dioceses, and religious institutes.
f. It abrogates without any exception all contrary particular induits and customs.
g. It affects both public and privat~ recitation of the divine
office except where the contrary is stated in the decree.
h. The text of the breviary and missal meanwhile is to
remain unchanged, since the completion of the work begun
by this decree will require several years.
II. OFFICE AND MASS
1. The semi-double (sd.) is abrogated, and the rites are s.
and d. (d., dm., d. 2 cl., d. 1 cl.).
2. Feasts of saints formerly sd. are s. Those formerly s.
are reduced to a simple commemoration (memoria) without
rite. There were 56 simples in 1955; there will be 98 prescribed simples in 1956. The increased number is caused by
the simplification of semi-double feasts and the simples arising from suppressed privileged and common octaves. There
will also be" 14 optional simples during· Lent and Passiontide
of 1956. In the ordo of the universal Church there will be
121 prescribed simples in 1956 and 12 optional during Lent
and Passiontide. Our lesser number is caused by the Society
feasts impeding the simples.
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
349
3. Optional simples. On any feast except a d. 1 or 2 cl.
(therefore on a dm. or d. feast) that falls between Ash
Wednesday and the Saturday before Palm Sunday, both the
private recitation of the office and the Mass may be either
of the feast or of the feria! of Lent or Passiontide. This was
formerly permitted only for Mass. The days for 1956 follow,
and an asterisk denotes the days on which the feria! prayers
must be said: February 21, 22, * 23, 28; March 6, 7, * 8, 9, *
10, 12, 17, 21, * 23, * 24.
4. Neither the office nor the Mass of an impeded Sunday
is anticipated or resumed. Cf. February 5, November 3, 1955.1
5. Circumstances of commemorations:
a. In the office: They have only the antiphon, versicle, and
prayer at Lauds and Vespers. They no longer have a proper
verse in the responsorio brevi of Prime; nor a proper conclusion of the hymns except in the periods of January 2-5,
January 7-12, Ascension-Vigil of Pentecost; nor do they any
longer have a IX lesson.
b. In the Mass : They have only the collect, secret, and
postcommunion prayers. They no longer have a Credo, proper
preface, nor a proper last Gospel.
Sundays
6. D. 1 cl. Sundays. The following Sundays are to be celebrated in the rite of a d. 1 cl.: all Sundays of Advent and Lent,
Passion, Palm, Easter, Low, and Pentecost Sundays.
a. The rite was formerly sd. 1 cl. The II-III-IV Sundays
of Advent, formerly sd. 2 cl., have been added to this category.
b. These Sundays are preferred in any occurrence (conflict of two offices) or concurrence (conflict of two vespers) .
D. 1 and 2 cl. feasts are transferred; others are simply
omitted. Cf. Low Sunday, April 8.
c. If a d. 1 cl. feast falls on the II-III-IV Sunday of Advent,
Masses of the feast are permitted on the Sunday except in
the conventual Mass.
For example, if the Immaculate Conception, d. 1 cl., December 8, falls on the II Sunday of Advent, the office and the
Mass of this December 8, in virtue of b. above, are of the
Sunday. The office and the Mass of the Immaculate Concep-
�350
DECREE ON RUBRICS
tion, but not the precept of hearing Mass, are transferred
to December 9. However, all Masses of such a Sunday falling
on December 8 may be of the Immaculate Conception except
the conventual Mass.
7. D. 2 cl. Sundays. These are Septuagesima, Sexagesima,
and Quinquagesima. They were formerly ranked as sd. 2 cl.
8. D. Sundays (Sundays throughout the year; lesser Sundays). All other Sundays are d. They were formerly sd.
a. If a feast of any title or mystery of Christ Our Lord
falls on such a d. Sunday, the feast takes the place of the
Sunday, and the Sunday is merely commemorated. By taking
the place of a Sunday, such a feast acquires I Vespers. Cf.
January 8, November 18. (Cf. n. 30.)
Vigils
9. All vigils of the universal church and of dioceses or
religious institutes are suppressed except the privileged vigils
of Christmas and Pentecost and the common vigils of the
Ascension, Assumption, St. John the Baptist, Sts. Peter and
Paul, and St. Lawrence.
Therefore, the classification of privileged of the second
class (Epiphany) is abrogated, as also nine common vigils
of universal law and all vigils proper to dioceses or religious
institutes.
a. The vigil of Pentecost, now a sd. for the office, becomes
a d. for both the office and Mass. Its antiphons in the office
are therefore probably doubled. The vigil of Christmas
remains a s. in the office for Matins but a d. from Lauds, and
its Mass continues to be celebrated as now. All common vigils
ares.
b. A common vigil falling on a Sunday is simply omitted
and consequently not anticipated in any way, neither with
regard to fast and abstinence (c. 1252, § 4 ; cf. August 13,
1955), nor with regard to the office and Mass. The vigil of
the Ascension cannot fall on a Sunday. If the vigil of St.
John the Baptist (June 23), of Sts..Peter and Paul (June
28), of St. Lawrence (August 9), or of the Assumption (August 14) falls on a Sunday, the office and Mass are not anticipated on the preceding Saturday, as in the past. Cf. August
13, 1955.
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
351
c. Only the privileged vigil of Christmas can fall on a
Sunday. Its rubrics in the breviary and missal remain unchanged.
Octaves
10. All octaves of the universal Church and of dioceses
or religious institutes are suppressed except the privileged
octaves of the first order of Easter and Pentecost and of the
third order of Christmas.
a. Days within all these octaves are elevated to the rank
of a d.
1 • Days within the octave of Christmas are celebrated as
now, also with regard to the transfer of the Sunday within
the octave. Cf. the rubric of the breviary after December 28.
2" Days within the octaves of Easter and Pentecost are
preferred to any feast and admit no commemorations. Therefore, a d. 1 or 2 cl. feast occurring during these octaves is
transferred; other occurring feasts are simply omitted. The
commemoration of the Greater Litanies, April 25, is made in
Mass during the octave of Easter, since it is an imperative
commemoration (cf. n. 15, b.).
b. The three periods: January 2-5 inclusive; January 7-12
inclusive,· Ascension-Vigil of Pentecost exclusive. These days
after the Circumcision and of the suppressed octaves of
Epiphany and Ascension, unless a feast occurs, become common ferial days (s.):
1" The office is ferial of the current day of the week:
a) The antiphons and psalms of all hours and the verse
of the one nocturn are from the current day of the week, as
in the psalter.
b) The three lessons are of the current day, but the
responsoria in the first and second lessons, according to our
Adiumenta, are of the Circumcision (Epiphany, Ascension).
A Gloria is to be added to the second responsory.
c) The conclusion of the hymns and the verse in the
responsorio brevi of Prime are of Christmas (Epiphany,
Ascension).
d) The rest of the office is of the Circumcision (Epiphany,
Ascension), but January 7-12 the antiphons at the Benedictus
�352
DECREE ON RUBRICS
and Magnificat are of the current day of the suppressed
octave of the Epiphany.
e) The Te Deum is said.
2o The Mass is of the Circumcision (Epiphany, Ascension), with Gloria, without Credo, Preface of the Nativity
(Epiphany, Ascension) but without proper Communicantes.
3o Such days are common feria! days (s.), and thus yield
to any office, even simple, and also to the office of S. Maria
in Sabbato, without any commemoration of the feria.
4 o During all these three periods, low private votive Masses
and the low Missa Quotidiana Defunctorum, (not when sung)
are forbidden. Privileged requiem Masses. ..(even when read)
are not forbidden.
c. January 13. Commemoratio Baptismatis D. N. J. C.
(dm.). The office and Mass are said as now on the octave
day of the Epiphany, but the proper Communicantes is omitted
from the Mass.
If January 13 is a Sunday, it will be the Feast of the Holy
Family, without any commemoration. The beginning of the
I Epistle to the Corinthians will then be placed on the preceding Saturday.
d. Suppressed octaves of Corpus Christi and the Sacred
Heart. These become common feria! days (s.), and have
nothing proper in the office or Mass.
e. Sundays formerly within the octaves of Ascension,
Corpus Christi, Sacred Heart.
1 o These are celebrated the same as now in the office and
at Mass.
2° The color of the Sunday after the Ascension is white;
of the other two, green. The preface of the first is of the
Ascension, of the other two, of the Trinity.
Feriae
11. Feriae remain unchanged both as to their division and
their rite (s.).
a. Greater privileged: Ash Wednesday, Monday-TuesdayWednesday of Holy Week.
b. Greater non-privileged: Advent, Lent, Passiontide, September Ember days, Monday of Rogations (Monday before
Ascension).
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
353
c. Common or lesser: All other feria e.
12. a. Feasts transferred.
From
To
SS. Apostoli Iacobus et
Philippus
May 1
May 11
S. Franciscus de Hieronymo,
May 12
C.
May 11
BB. Antonius Ixida et
Socii, MM.
September 3 September 1
S. Angela Merici, V.
May 31
June 1
B. M. V. Mediatrix Omnium
December 15
May 31
Gratiarum
b. New feasts.
May 1. S. Joseph Opifex. The Solemnity of St. Joseph
is suppressed. The patronage of St. Joseph, formerly mentioned on his Solemnity, is now mentioned on March 19.
May 31. B. M. V. Regina, d. 2 cl. In 1956 it is transferred
to June 1 because of Corpus Christi.
July 20. BB. Leo Ignatius Mangin et SS., MM.
Commemorations
13. Commemorations. The following norms apply both to
Lauds and Vespers and to Mass.
14. As is now true of any double, per se there will be
only the one prayer of the office of the day in both the office
and Mass, even if only of simple rite. Cf. January 16, 30,
February 13.
15. Inseparable and imperative commemorations are always made, no matter what the rite or type of Mass.
a. An inseparable commemoration is that of St. Peter in
the office and Mass of St. Paul, of St. Paul in those of St.
Peter. These occur on January 18, 25, February 22, June 30,
August 1, and in the votive Masses of each of these saints.
Even though under a distinct conclusion, the inseparable is
considered as if one with the prayer of the office of the day.
Consequently, it is always in the first place, preceding even
imperative commemorations. For example, on February 22,
the inseparable commemoration of St. Paul precedes the
imperative commemoration of the greater feria of Lent.
�354
DECREE ON RUBRICS
b. Imperative commemorations, which have absolute precedence after the inseparables, are:
1. Any Sunday;
2. D. 1 cl. feasts;
3. Feriae of Advent, Lent, and Passiontide;
4. All September Ember days ;
5. The Greater Litanies with regard to Mass (feast of
St. Mark, April 25).
16. Only inseparable and imperative commemorations are
made in the following. In other words, all ordinary commemorations (those that are not inseparable or imperative)
are dropped.
1. D. 1 cl. Sundays;
2. D. 1 cl. feasts;
3. Privileged feriae (Ash Wednesday, Monday-TuesdayWednesday of Holy Week);
4. Privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost);
5. In a Mass cantata or solemn;
6. In solemn votive Masses, even when not sung.
N. B. Our ordo for 1956 (p. 19) will note the dropping of
ordinary commemorations in a sung or solemn Mass but only
on the days when we are apt to have such Masses, e.g., Sundays. For example, the ordo states that ordinary commemorations are to be dropped on Sunday, January 15, 22, February 5 but that the imperative commemorations are to be
retained on Sunday, January 8, May 13, June 24, July 1,
October 28, November 18.
17. Ordinary commemorations are omitted in the following whenever their inclusion would bring the number of
prayers above three. Otherwise, they are included on these
days as follows:
a. On d. 2 cl. feasts and any other Sunday (d. 2 cl. and d.),
only one ordinary commemoration is included. Cf. January
15, September 23, October 21, November 4, 11.
b. On all other feasts (dm., d., s.) and all other feriae
(greater· non-privileged and commqn), only two ordinary
commemorations are included.
N. B. The limit of three prayers certainly extends also to
orationes votivae stricte dictae (those added at the mere will
of the celebrant) and to orationes simpliciter imperatae. It
certainly does not extend to either species of orationes impera-
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
355
tae pro re gravi nor to the oratio super populum in Lent and
Passiontide. It does not seem to apply to orationes votivae
late dictae (Pro Papa on the anniversaries of the Pope and
bishops ; prayer of the Blessed Sacrament; prayer on the
anniversary of ordination), nor to the prayer of thanksgiving.
Cf. March 12. The result of the new norms is that, exclusive
of orationes imperatae, about two-thirds of the days have
only one prayer, over one-third are days of two prayers, about
ten days have three prayers, and March 12 has four.
III. THE MASS
18. On common !erial days when a commemoration is made
of a saint (formerly an s., now a mere commemoration, n. 2
above), Mass may be said of the feria! or in the festal manner
(thus with Gloria; Ite, Missa est; and a commemoration of
the feria) of the commemorated saint. Cf. January 19, February 3, 14.
This norm is only an application of an existing law which
permits the low festal Mass of a commemorated office provided the day is not a double, Sunday, privileged octave,
vigil, or a feria of Lent, Passiontide, Ember day, or Rogation Monday. Therefore, festal Masses of commemorated
saints are not forbidden on the feriae of Advent. For example, on December 5, which is a feria of Advent with a
commemoration of St. Sabbas, the Mass may be said of St.
Sabbas. 2
19. The Credo is said only on:
a. Sundays, even if only commemorated;
b. Feasts that are d. 1 cl.;
c. Feasts of Our Lord and the B. V. M.;
d. Festa natalicia of Apostles, Evangelists, and Doctors
of the universal Church;
e. In sung solemn votive Masses;
f. Within octaves.
A festum natalicium or primary feast of a saint is that on
which the entrance of the saint into heaven is celebrated;
his other feasts are secondary. For example, the Feast of
Sts. Peter and Paul, June 29, is natalicium and primary;
those of the Chairs of St. Peter, the Conversion of St. Paul,
etc., are secondary. Because of the new norms, St. Mary
Magdalen, July 22, loses the Credo, St. John the Baptist,
�356
DECREE ON RUBRICS
June 24, acquires the Credo. The number of times the Credo
has to be said has been reduced by more than a fourth.
In virtue of 19, e., it is certain that the one votive Mass
of the Sacred Heart privileged by general indult for First
Friday has a Credo only if sung. The same thing appeared to
be even more true of the Society's privileged Mass of the
Sacred Heart on First Friday. However, a first response
from our Roman Curia stated that the decree did not touch
our privilege, but a second response admitted at least that the
matter was not clear. Therefore, until the matter is authoritatively decided to the contrary, also our 'privileged Mass of
the Sacred Heart has a Credo only if sung:The reasons for this
opinion are: the pertinent wording of the decree, V, 7 ("in
Missis votivis sollemnibus in cantu celebratis."), restricts the
Credo to a sung Mass; the decree, I, 4, abrogates contrary
particular induits; otherwise, we would have the contradiction
that the low Mass of general indult, which is of higher rite,
would not have the Credo, and our low Mass, of lower rite,
would have the Credo; finally, the retention of the Credo
would be a complicating factor and consequently opposed to
the wording, purpose, and spirit of the decree ( Cf. n. 51).
20. The orationes pro diversitate temporum assignatae seu
commemorationes communes (A cunctis, Eccl., pro Papa, De
Sp. Sancto, etc.) are abrogated. Therefore, as in the past for
a d., per se only one prayer has to be said in any Mass. Cf.
n. 14.
21. The prayer Fidelium is abrogated, i.e., the law commanding that it be said on the first ferial day of the month
and on ferial Mondays.
22. Orationes simpliciter imperatae are forbidden on the
days and in the Masses listed below (an asterisk denotes a
change from the former law):
a. D. 1 cl. and 2 cl. feasts;
b. All Sundays*;
c. Privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost)*;
d. Privileged ferials (Ash Wednesday, Monday-TuesdayWednesday of Holy Week);
e. Privileged octaves (Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost)*;
f. In solemn votive Masses sung pro re gravi and in
Masses that have the privileges of a solemn votive Mass;
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
357
g. In any sung Mass*;
h. Whenever in a Mass there are already three* prayers
prescribed by the rubrics; if only two* prayers have been
recited, and the Ordinary has prescribed two collects, only
the first* collect is added. In computing this number of three
and two, orationes votivae late dictae are included. •
N. B. The law with regard to orationes imperatae pro re
gravi and pro re gravi etiam in duplicibus I classis remains
unchanged.
23. Prayers in requiem Masses.
a. In a Mass cantata or solemn, there is only one prayer.
b. Privileged requiem Masses, even when low, continue
to have only one prayer.
c. In the Quotidiana Defunctorum Mass, certainly one or
three prayers may be said.
1 o If one prayer is said, the celebrant has the choice; if
three, the law on the prayers is the same as now.
2 o There may not be more than three prayers, since the
limit of three extends to prayers added at the mere will of
the celebrant ( Cf. n. 17) .
3 o It is more probable that the law of the unequal number
of prayers remains here. Therefore, it is less probable that
only two prayers may be said. If the latter opinion is followed, the celebrant has the choice of the first prayer; the
second must be Fidelium.
24. The sequence Dies irae may be omitted except:
a. In the funeral Mass when the body is physically or
morally present (missing from a reasonable cause);
b. On All Souls' Day at the principal or at the first Mass.
The principal Mass is to be defined as the main public Mass
celebrated on days of obligation or of special public celebration in a parochial or quasi-parochial church for the benefit
of the people of the parish, e.g., the sung, solemn, or even
low Mass followed by the absolution of the catafalque in such
churches.'
In other Masses the celebrant may but is not obliged to
omit the Dies irae.
25. The preface is that proper to the Mass; if none, that
of the season (Lent, Passiontide, Paschaltide); if this also
is lacking, the common preface.
�358
DECREE ON RUBRICS
The prefaces of the Nativity and of the Apostles are no
longer proper to the following:
a. Nativity: Transfiguration (August 6); Corpus Christi,
votive Masses of both of the preceding, and votive Masses of
the Eucharist.
b. Apostles: Feasts of the Roman Pontiffs, Mass of the
Creation and Coronation of the Pope and the anniversaries
of each of these.
Therefore, when there is no preface of the season, the
preface of all of the above will be the common preface. Cf.
January 5, 16, 20, March 12, April 11, 26, May 5, July 13,
August 26, September 3, 23, October 26, ~November 12, 23. 5
26. The last Gospel is always that of St. John except in
the third Mass on Christmas and Masses on Palm Sunday
at which the palms are not blessed.
27. Alleluia on Corpus Christi. From I Vespers of the
day before and on the feast itself of Corpus Christi (not
throughout the suppressed octave) Alleluia is added at Benediction to the Panem de coelo and its response and also to 0
Sacrum convivium and Panem de coelo and its response in the
administration of Holy Communion -outside of Mass.
IV. THE OFFICE
28. Although all Sundays are at least d., the antiphons in
the meantime are not to be doubled.
29. The hymns proper to certain saints and assigned to
certain hours are no longer transferred.
For example, on the feast of St. Mary Magdalen, July 22,
the present rubric directs that the hymn, Pater superni, assigned to Vespers, be said at Matins when it is not said in
either I or II Vespers. According to the new rubric, the
hymn will not be transferred to Matins. Cf. a similar present
rubric at the beginning of Matins of St. John Cantius,
October 20.
30. First Vespers (sive integrae, sive a capitulo, sive per
modum commemorationis) are had only by feasts that are
d. 1 or 2 cl. and by Sundays.
All other offices commence at Matins. Those of dm. or d.
rite have II Vespers. Feasts of simple rite cease after None,
and, except in the concurrence of an office endowed with
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
359
I Vespers, the Vespers and Compline will be of the feria.
Cf. January 16, 23, 30. In other words, the Vespers on such
a simple feast will be the same as if it were a ferial day
and they are so indicated in the ordo, i.e., V esp. fer. Feriae
have second Vespers, e.g., February 3, 14, 16, 17.
31. Hymn lste Confessor. The m. t. v. is abrogated. The
third verse is always meruit supremos laudis honores.
But in the hymn at Lauds for a Confessor non Pontifex,
Iesu, corona celsior, the third stanza, Dies refulsit lumine,
etc., remains unchanged. In the hymn, Iste Confessor Domini,
on the Impress. Stig. S. Francisci, September 17, the third
and fourth verses remain unchanged, i.e., Hac die laetus
meruit beata/Vulnera Christi.
32. The IX Lesson of a Commemorated Office, scriptural
or historical; the Suffragium Sanctorum and the Com memoratio de Cruce; and the Preces Dominicales are all abrogated.
33. The Preces Feriales are said only at Vespers and
Lauds, only when the feria! office is said, only on Wednesday
and Friday of Advent, Lent, and Passiontide and on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of all Ember days except those of
Pentecost.
If such a feria is commemorated in the office of a saint,
the preces feriales are not said. If the office of a ferial is said
during Lent and Passiontide, even though a d. or dm. feast
is commemorated, the preces feriales are said, because the
office of a feria is being said. These days are February 22,
March 7, 9, 21, 23, (Cf. n. 3).
34. The Symbolum Athanasium (Quicumque) is said only
on the feast of the Most Holy Trinity.
35. Proper antiphons at the Magnificat assigned to some
ferial days of the weeks of Septuagesima, Sexagesima, and
Quinquagesima are not resumed when not said on their proper
day. Cf. the rubric after feria VI of Septuagesima and after
feria IV of Sexagesima.
36. Beginning and end of the hours ( cf. n. 56) .
a. Beginning: Mat. begins from Domine, labia; Compline,
from lube, domne; all others, from Deus in adj.
b. End: Prime ends with Dominus nos benedicat; Compline, with Div. aux.; all others, with Fid. animae.
On Epiphany, Matins begins from the antiphon, Afferte
�360
DECREE ON RUBRICS
Domino. In the Office of the Dead and on the last three days
in Holy Week, Pater, Ave, and Credo are to be omitted, and
all hours begin as in the breviary.
Anyone may say Aperi, Domine, or Sacrosanctae from devotion. The indulgences of Sacrosanctae are now attached to
the final antiphon of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Although the general decree of the Sacred Congregation
of Rites is confined to the rubrics of the divine office and
Mass, an answer obtained through our Roman Curia confirms
the inference that from analogy the norms on the beginning
and end of the hours (nn. 36-37) may-,be licitly used by
religious institutes in both the choral and private recitation
of the Little Office of the B. V. M. This is also the doctrine
of M. Noirot, L'Ami du Clerge, August 1955, 512, note 2.
37. Final Antiphon of the B. V. M. is said only after
Compline.
38. If the scripture readings for the current day cannot
be said on the day assigned, they are omitted, even when
they contain the beginnings of books of the Bible. The one
exception, a Sunday on January 13, is given in n. 10, c. Cf.
the 1955 ordo: February 5, August -2, September 30, October
29, November 3, 7, 19, 23.
Structure of the Office
39. On any feast the lessons of the first nocturn, if proper
lessons are not assigned from the proprium de tempore, proprium sanctorum, or commune sanctorum, are from the scripture readings for the current day. If there are no scripture
lessons for the current day, these are taken from the commune sanctorum. Cf. Mar. 6, 7, 8, 9, etc., through Lent. In
other words, the General Decree makes no change here.
40. Sundays and d. 1 cl. feasts. Nothing is changed.
41. D. 2 cl. feasts and d. or dm. feasts of Our Lord or
the B. V. M.
a. Mat. Lauds, Vesp. and Compline (A). In these the office
is festal (A) from the proper or common. Consequently,
the psalms, not antiphons, of Lauds are of Sunday; Compline
is of Sunday.
b. Horae minores (Prime, Terce, Sext, None) (B). The
psalms and their antiphons are from the current day of the
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
361
week, but a capitulo these hours are from the proper or
common (B). In summary, the office is mixed, partially festal
(A), partially ordinary (B). Compare September 8, 15, 24
of 1955 and 1956.
When such an office is celebrated on a Sunday, the psalms
and their antiphons at the Little Hours, since they are from
the current day of the week, are from Sunday. Therefore,
the psalms at Prime will be 117 (not 53), 118 i, 118 ii. Cf.
January 8, October 7.
42. All other feasts, vigils, and feriae are said as now from
the psalter, common and proper. However, when such feasts
at any or all hours of Matins, Lauds, and Vespers have proper
·
antiphons and psalms, then:
a. Horae minores and Compline (B). The antiphons and
psalms are from the current day of the week; a capitulo from
the proper or common. This second type of mixed office can
be readily distinguished from the preceding species of mixed
office, since here Compline is always (B); in the former, Compline is always (A).
b. Matins, Lauds, Vespers (A). All three, two, or .only
one of these hours may have proper antiphons and psalms
and be a festal (A) office. If so, at Matins there are proper
antiphons and psalms that are either proper or from the common; at Lauds, proper antiphons and psalms of Sunday; at
Vespers, proper antiphons and psalms that are either proper
or from the common. Again here, the office is partially festal
(A), partially ordinary (B).
c. This second type of mixed office already existed on the
following days: January 21, S. Agnes; June 26, SS. Joannes
et Paulus;August 3, Invent. S. Stephani;November 11,S. Martinus; November 22, S. Caecilia; November 23, S. Clemens;
December 13, S. Lucia, and on February 5, S. Agatha, which
is perpetually impeded in the Society by the feast of the
Japanese Martyrs.
d. The General Decree simply adds the following days to
this second type of mixed office: January, Dom. I post Epiph.,
S. Familia; January 25, Convers. S. Pauli; March 24, S.
Gabriel, Arch.; May 8, Apparitio S. Michaelis; June 30,
Comm. S. Pauli; August 1, S. Petrus ad Vincula; August 29,
Decollat. S. Joannis Baptistae; October 2, SS. Angeli Cus-
�362
DECREE ON RUBRICS
todes; October 24, S. Raphael, Archangel us.
e. All of the feasts that have this type of mixed office are
dm., d., and one iss. (Invent. S. Stephani).
43. Lessons in a simple feast (s.).
a. The 1 and 2 lessons are de scriptura occurrenti.
b. The 3 lesson :
1. Ordinarily will be the former contracted IX lesson, e.g.,
January 16.
2. Or, as noted in the rubrics, the former IV lesson when
this is the only historical lesson, e.g., July 13, 17.
3. Or the former IV and V lessons united into one when
these alone are historical, as noted in-.the breviary, e.g.,
September 27 in the ordo of the universal Church.
4. Otherwise, the former IV-V-VI lessons united into one.
5. However, if the feast completely lacks historical lessons,
all three lessons are de scriptura occurrenti, e.g., S. Georgii,
April 23.
44. IX Lesson in some doubles. The IX lesson of a commemorated office has ceased to exist (cf. n. 32). Therefore,
if the IX lesson of a double was formerly the lesson of a
commemorated office, the VII or VIII lesson, as will be noted
in the ordo, will be divided into two parts, thus constituting
two lessons. Cf. March 23, August 7, October 28.
V. OTHER CHANGES
45. Funeral Masses. The only change is that these Masses
are now forbidden on the Feast of St. Joseph, Opifex, May 1.
The indult of the United States remains in force. Cf. Bouscaren, Canon Law Digest, II, 200; Notanda of the Ordo, 196.
46. Privileged requiem Masses (cf. nn. 23-24). These are
forbidden on:
a. Sundays, holy days of obligation, and the feast of St.
Silvester, December 31.
b. All Souls' Day.
c. D. 1 cl. and 2 cl. feasts, even if transferred.
d. The privileged ferials (Ash Wednesday, Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday of Holy Week).
e. The privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost).
f. Within the privileged octaves (Christmas, Easter, and
Pentecost).
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
363
47. Missa Quotidiana Defunctorum (cf. nn. 23-24) when
sung is forbidden on:
a. Any double.
b. Any Sunday.
c. The privileged ferials (Ash Wednesday, Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday of Holy Week).
d. The privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost).
e. Within the privileged octaves (Christmas, Easter, and
Pentecost).
When read, it is forbidden also on:
f. All vigils.
g. Ember Days.
h. Monday of Rogations (before Ascension).
i. December 17-23.
j. January 2-5 and 7-12; Ascension-Vigil of Pentecost.
k. Any day of Lent and Passiontide except the first free
day of each week after Ash Wednesday, i.e., a day on which
a double feast, Ember day, or privileged feria does not occur.
48. Private votive Masses when sung are not permitted on:
a. Any double.
b. Any Sunday.
c. The privileged ferials (Ash Wednesday, Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday of Holy Week).
d. The privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost).
e. Within the privileged octaves (Christmas, Easter, and
Pentecost).
f. All Souls' Day.
g. In a church where the procession is held and there is
only one Mass on the Lesser Litanies (Monday-TuesdayWednesday before Ascension).
h. Where the conventual Mass is of obligation and cannot
be s~tisfied through another priest.
When read, they are forbidden also on:
i. Ferials of Lent and Passiontide.
j. All vigils.
k. Ember Days.
I. Monday of Rogations (before Ascension).
m. December 17-23.
n. January 2-5 and 7-12; Ascension-Vigil of Pentecost.
The only changes in the rite of a private votive Mass are
�364
DECREE ON RUBRICS
that the first prayer is of the Mass, the second of the office
of the day, even of a common feria! day, the third is the first
commemoration in the office of the day, if there is any. Prayers
may be added at the mere will of the celebrant but not so
as to exceed the limit of three prayers ( cf. n. 17). The preface
follows the new law (n. 25), and the last Gospel is always
that of St. John (n. 26).
49. Missa Votiva pro Sponso et Sponsa. Even when low
and also during Advent, Lent, and Passiontide, if the local
Ordinary permits the solemn nuptial blessing during the
tempus clausum, this Mass is permitted ori'all days except:
a. Sundays, holy days of obligation, and the feast of St.
Silvester, December 31.
b. All Souls' Day.
c. D. 1 cl. and 2 cl. feasts.
d. The privileged ferials (Ash Wednesday, Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday of Holy Week).
e. The privileged vigils (Christmas and Pentecost).
f. Within the privileged octaves of Easter and Pentecost.
g. In a church where the procession is held and there is
only one Mass on the Lesser Litanies (Monday-TuesdayWednesday before Ascension).
h. Where the conventual Mass is of obligation and cannot
be satisfied through another priest.
On days when the Missa Votiva is excluded, including days
within the tempus clausum if the same permission of the local
Ordinary has been given for the solemn nuptial blessing, the
prayer of the Missa Votiva is added to the prayer of the
Mass of the day under one conclusion. On All Souls' Day and
Good Friday both the Missa Votiva and its commemoration
are forbidden. Therefore; the solemn nuptial blessing may
not be given on these days. 6
50. Missae votivae sollemnes pro re gravi et publica simul
causa. The days on which such Masses are forbidden 7 are
the same as in the past with these additions: a. they are forbidden also during the octaves of Easter and Pentecost;
b. since they are forbidden on Sundays of the first class, this
prohibition now extends to the II-III-IV Sundays of Advent
(n. 6).
Only inseparable and imperative commemorations are made
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
365
in these Masses (n. 16). The only change with regard to the
days on which such votive Masses are impeded is that no
commemoration of the votive Mass is made unless it is prescribed and not merely permitted. 8
51. Votive Mass of the Sacred Heart on First Friday.
a. The rite according to the privilege of the Society and of
the one Mass privileged by general indult is as follows:
Mass of the feast (Cogitationes).
Gloria.
Commemorations. In the privileged Mass of the Society,
only a feria of Advent is commemorated (n. 16) ; in that of
general indult, a feria of Advent, Lent, or Passiontide (n. 16).
Other prayers. Pro Papa on the anniversaries of the Pope
and bishops must be added (cf. March 2). The prayer of the
Blessed Sacrament is never added to this Mass because it
is of the identical mystery of Our Lord.
Orationes simpliciter imperatae are omitted (n. 22 f.),
but both species of pro re gravi are added (n. 22).
Credo is had only in sung Masses (n. 19).
Proper Preface.
Last Gospel is always of St. John (n. 26).
Leonine prayers may be omitted.
b. The votive Mass of the Sacred Heart of general indult
is never commemorated under one conclusion with the prayer
of the Mass on any day it is excluded, as in the past, since
this Mass is permitted, not prescribed. 9
c. The Mass of general indult is excluded, but the Mass
indicated below may be said in the rite and with the privileges
of the solemn votive Mass :10
t• The Mass of the day on any feast, octave, or vigil of any
rite when the office or a commemoration is of Christ, Our
Lord, including the Feast of the Purification of the B. V. M.,
February 2.
2" The Mass of the Circumcision (January 1), when the
First Friday falls on January 2, 3, 4, 5.
3" The Mass of the Ascension, when the First Friday falls
between the Friday after Ascension to the vigil of Pentecost
exclusive.
d. The Mass of general indult is excluded, and the Mass
said has neither the rite nor the privileges of the solemn
�366
DECREE ON RUBRICS
votive Mass on All Souls' Day; on all doubles of the 1 cl.
that are not feasts of Christ Our Lord; within the octave of
Pentecost; when the conventual Mass must be said, and there
is but one priest; and in parish churches when there is but
one Mass, and this is the Missa pro populo.
e. The Society privilege is excluded, and the Mass said
has neither the rite nor the privileges of the solemn votive
Mass not only on all the days listed above (c. and d.) but
also on any d. 2 cl. feast and in Lent and Passiontide.
52. Prayer of the Blessed Sacrament. As in the past, this
prayer is to be added at the altar where: immediately after
Mass the Blessed Sacrament is for a -public cause to be
exposed. However, the law commanding that it be added
also at every altar in a church or oratory where Exposition
of the Blessed Sacrament is in progress is now restricted
to the altar of exposition alone.U The law with regard to
both cases has also been modified so that this prayer now
precedes the commemorations.12
53. Office of S. Maria in Sabbato. This is an office sui
generis, and is neither a feast nor a feria. It is not reduced
to a commemoration nor is it commemorated when it cannot
be celebrated. It loses I Vespers by the General Decree (n.
30). Otherwise it is to be celebrated as now. 13 As in the
past, the low Missa Quotidiana Defunctorum and any votive
Mass that is not of the Blessed Mother may be said on such
a day, with the exception of the three periods listed in n.
10 b.; but the only Mass of the Blessed Mother permitted
is that of S. Maria in Sabbato.14
54. Impeded doubles (cf. the ordo before January 28). If
a feast of dm. or d. rite is impeded permanently or accidentally, a private (non-conventual) Mass may be said in the
festal manner of this impeded feast provided the impeding
feast is not:
a. A d. 1 or 2 cl. feast.
b. Any .Sunday.
c. A privileged feria! (Ash Wednesday, Monday-Tuesday·
Wednesday of Holy Week).
d. A privileged vigil (Christmas and Pentecost).
e. Within the privileged octaves of Easter and Pentecost.
55. Commemorated office. A private (non-conventual)
�DECREE ON RUBRICS
367
Mass of any office (feast or feria) which is commemorated
at Lauds, or of any mystery, saint, or beatified person of
whom mention is made that day in the Roman Martyrology,
or in its appendix approved for certain churches, may be
said in the festal manner provided the office of the day is not:
a. A double.
b. Any Sunday.
c. Within the privileged octaves (Christmas, Easter, and
Pentecost).
d. A feria of Lent or Passiontide.
e. An Ember Day.
f. Monday of Rogations (before Ascension).
g. Any vigil.
56. Beginning and end of the hours in greater detail (cf.
nn. 36-37). Anything not in italics has been abrogated.
MATINS
LAUDS
B. Aperi, Dne. Pater, Ave
Deus in adj.
os
Dne. in
unione
Pater, Ave,
Credo
Dne labia
E. Fid. animae
Pater
VESPERS
B. Pater, Ave
Deus in
adj.
E. Fid. animae
Pater
PRIME
TERCE,
SEXT, NONE
Pater, Ave,
Credo
Deus in adj.
Pater, Ave
Deus in adj.
Fid. animae
Dnus. nos
Pater
benedicat
Dnus. det no- Pater
bis
Ant. B. V. M.
Div. aux.
Fid. animae
Pater
COMPLINE
lube, domne
Bened. et custod.
Ant. B. M. V.
Div. aux.
Pater, Ave, Credo
Sacrosanctae
Pater, Ave
�368
DECREE ON RUBRICS
57. Bibliography. The best works and those being universally accepted as authoritative are the following, all published
by the Ephemerides Liturgicae:
Ordo divini officii recitandi Sacrique peragendi iuxta kalendarium universalis Ecclesiae, 1956.
Bugnini-Bellocchio, De rubricis ad simpliciorem formam
redigendis. Commentarium ad decretum S. R. C. diei 23 Martii
1955.
Bugnini, La Semplijicazione delle Rubriche.
Other articles are:
L'Ami du Clerge, 1955, 321-331; 505-514,(M. Noirot). The
..
second is the more useful article.
La Maison-Dieu, 1955, 11-28 (A. G. Martimort).
Periodica, 1955, 239-332 (H. Schmidt).
Etudes, 1955, 367-372 (P. Doncoeur).
Nouvelle Revue Theologique, 1955, 513-524 (L. Renwart).
The Clergy Review, 1955, 385-391 (J. B. O'Connell).
The Australasian Catholic Record, 1955, 253-267 (P.
Murphy).
Revue du droit canonique, 1955, 175-183 (L. Gromier).
Paroisse et Liturgie, 1955, 254-262 (T. Maertens).
The Irish Ecclesiastical Record, 1955, 265-269 (G. Montague).
FOOTNOTES
All dates are of 1956 unless otherwise stated.
Cf. J. O'Connell, The Celebration of Mass, 56.
a Cf. J. O'Connell, ibid., 191.
• Cf. J. O'Connell, ibid., 121, 724; L. J. O'Connell, The Book of Ceremonies, 574.
• Cf. Bugnini-Bellocchio, De rubricis ad simplicioremformam redigendis,
65-66 ;Ordo universalis Ecclesiae on the dates mentioned.
6 Cf. the rubric before this Mass; J. O'Connell, ibid., 94; A. Croegaert,
Tractatus de rubricis missalis Romani, 136.
7 Cf. J. O'Connell, ibid., 75-76; Croegaert, ibid., 132.
8 AAS 47 (1955), 418-419, ad IX; Bugnini-Bellocchio, ibid., 37.
9 AAS 47 (1955), 418-419, ad IX.
10 Ordo Un.iversalis Ecclesiae, pp. xxvi-xxvii;
u AAS 47 (1955), 418-419, ad IX; Ordo Universalis Ecclesiae, p. xxv;
Cf. G. Montague in The Irish Ecclesiastical Record, Oct. 1955, 267.
12 Cf. Ordo Universalis Ecclesiae, ibid.; G. Montague, ibid.
1a Bugnini-Bellocchio, ibid., 33.
14 J. O'Connell, ibid., 72, note 44; J. Pauwels, S.J.; Compendium rubricarum, n. 83.
1
2
��...
..
:
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~.
FATHER VACHEL BROWN
�OBITUARY
FATHER VACHEL J. BROWN
1890 - 1952
The career of Father Vachel Brown would supply matter
for a very interesting study to anyone interested in contemporary Jesuit history, particularly in the history of our
educational effort East of the Alleghanies. Father Brown
was brought up in a cultured Baltimore home, both of his
parents being products of Catholic schools, and descended
from ancestors who had won relative affluence in colonial
America. He himself was educated in the colleges and scholasticates of the Society before being sent to Cambridge University for further courses in literature. When he left the
province English classes were in the hands of belle-lettrists
who taught "Poetry" so called and "Rhetoric," that is to
say what were regarded as the precepts of these arts and
illustrated their rules by an intense study of appropriate
models in Greek, Latin and rather secondarily and incidentally in English. When he returned, English had turned into
a major department usually in control of lay professors who
had no very deep or sympathetic understanding of our Ratio
Studiorum, and whose approach to their subject, in those
days before the "New Criticism" had gathered momentum,
was in the main genetic. The impact, then, of a representative of an older culture, a priest of intense Jesuit loyalty, on a
contemporary college community overwhelmingly composed
of the sons and grandsons of immigrants would be a subject
of no ordinary interest and perhaps of some value to those
of us who are engaged in college work. But to have real
value such a study would have to be critical and written by
someone who has a glimpse of the administrative work that
goes on behind the scenes. The present sketch is neither
critical nor authoritative. It is a tribute to an extraordinary
personality, achieving a rare and difficult triumph on the
level of the spirit. What has been said was intended to
indicate in broadest outline the background which fixed the
conditions, supplied the resources and determined the obstacles
which made this particular triumph possible.
�370
OBITUARY
Apprenticeship
One might begin this sketch with a glimpse of Father
Vachel as he appeared to the postulants who came to the
novitiate at Poughkeepsie in mid-August 1911. They were
told that their trunks would be unpacked and all their
immediate necessities attended to by the sub-manuductor.
This was Brother Brown, who at the age of twenty-one was
just completing his first year of noviceship. He turned out to
be a very alert, keen, and rapidly moving young man, of
somewhat over middle height which he.carried with a very
slight, and if the phrase is not absurd, graceful stoop. Under
closely cropped hair, the tanned features were vaguely suggestive of a young Indian warrior or better still of the pioneer
who had driven the Indians westward. All this Fenimore
Cooper effect, however, was balanced by the calm grey eyes,
the gentle expression of the mouth, and finally, by a soft and
distinguished Southern accent. Why labor over these trifles
here, it might be asked? Because during the long years which
followed this novice hardly changed in the impression he at
once created of an extraordinary~ person, a blend of great
manliness and gentle humility. As the strength met and bore
the sorrows of life it became sterner of course and deeper;
but likewise the sweetness was deeper and more fluent. It
was necessary to say this much to explain some of the attrac- ..
tive power which Father Brown expressed so effortlessly during the years of his priestly ministry. So Brother Brown was
sub-manuductor; and, after the trunks were unpacked, had
to worry about keeping his seventy novices supplied with
everything from paper and ink to an occasional mid-afternoon
refreshment, duly noting the importance of these events in
the official diary. Thus as an example, "Nov. 13, 1911. 4.40
P.M. Haustus. All out for the 4.40 !" He was supplying more
than shoe laces and cookies. Gradually his companions
learned more about his background. He had spent a summer
in EuroP.e after graduating from Loyola College. Descendant
of old colonial Catholics, the shadows of St. Ignatius and St.
Vincent de Paul had hovered over his cradle and his was
only one of a dozen religious vocations in this exceptional
family.
Speaking in human terms, we may say that this outpouring
�OBITUARY
371
of grace was in part granted to reward the charity of Vachel's
grandfather, Vachel Jeremiah Brown, who had founded the
family business, a wholesale grocery concern in Baltimore.
Of all his ancestors this is the only one on whom Vachel
ever touched in pride. And the reason? Mr. Brown was the
mainstay of the Vincent de Paul Society in Baltimore. "Noblesse oblige!" writes the grandson in one of his letters home,
"one feels pretty much like the moon, shining with reflected
light, but it is a great incentive to try and make myself in
some way worthy of what people think I am." He returns
to the idea in the sestet of a sonnet which he wrote about
this timeLord of my life, take, in Thy love untold,
Take every thought, and word and work of me
For souls more precious and more tried than gold.
Toiling for those Thou lovest I toil for Thee,
That one may be the Shepherd, one the fold.
Take them for Thee, for Thine eternally!
This then was the other thing which the sub-manuductor was
giving to the novices. He was supplying for even the dullest
to see a living exemplification of the Novice Master's teaching.
Father George Pettit, the Master, used to sum up his doctrine
somewhat as follows, "The attitude you are to try to attain
is love of God. The act which expresses this attitude is a
really pure intention. The consequences of this act is a life
that spends itself for the help of the neighbor and the glory
of God." As for the sonnet Vachel had begun to live it before
he wrote it. How he was to continue to live it for forty years,
is the theme of the following pages.
Studies
Vow day came on September 21, 1912 and was followed
by a year in the Juniorate at Poughkeepsie. Graduates who
were to do only one year of literature were in those days
assigned, perhaps largely on the basis of taste, either to
Humanities or to the succeeding class of Rhetoric. Vachel
was fortunate in getting into Humanities where the professor
was, as most of his students will maintain, something of a
pedagogical wizard. This was Father Francis M. Connell,
whose eulogy will be found elsewhere in Woodstock Letters.
�372
OBITUARY
At this time he was writing the textbook, still used in many
colleges, which under the title A Study of Poetry presents an
excellent elementary introduction to literature. Father Connell took the critical ideas which had been worked out during
the nineteenth century and systematized in Winchester's
Principles of Literary Criticism and applied them with considerable insight and taste to poetry, which was then the
main concern of the so-called Humanities class, really a compromise between Humanitates of the Ratio and the course
offered Freshmen in American colleges in the more literate
era which proceeded World War I. The jdea of studying the
genus, literature, through one of its specfes had been anticipated in Pere Longhaye's brilliant and doctrinaire Theorie
des Belles Lettres, where oratory was taken as the representative species. What was original, or at least unique, in
Father Connell apart from a very keen and vital interest in
the mind as a practical instrument and consequently in its
training through education, was his synthesis of the theory
of the nature of literature traditional in Jesuit schools with
that which had developed within th~ framework of nineteenth
century romanticism; the theory, namely, of art as an imitation of nature, achieved mainly on the level of rational discourse, with the theory of art as a communication of the
experiences involved in the operation of the creative imagination. Whether Father Connell's work was a genuine, that is
a consistent, synthesis or a compromise between diverging
tendencies need not be discussed here. One thing may be
said. There were few men of his generation better equipped
for the accomplishment of this necessary task than Francis
Connell. His interests were about equally divided between
mathematics, music, and literary criticism: three disciplines
which seemed to offer in their utmost purity the intellectual
values of lucidity and elegance; but his reputation had been
made by his masterly teaching of Rhetoric before he was
assigned ~o the class of Humanities, at Poughkeepsie. His
conception of the function of this cfass in our system was
approximately the following. While it consolidated the training in logic and precision which had been initiated in the
grammar classes, it advanced to the appreciation of aesthetic
structure and beyond that to the nature and activity of the
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creative imagination. Thus it laid the foundation for the
formal and above all for the substantive elements of oratory
which was understood not precisely as the clever marshalling
of arguments and inducements to action, but rather and
primarily as the communication of the dynamic appeal of an
ideal. Naturally this ideal is a product of the creative imagination, hence the emphasis upon this faculty in the preparatory discipline of Humanities. Regarded as independent of
their place in our system and of a possible application to
oratory, the knowledge and skills involved in literary study
were to be developed for their own value, since they most
certainly involve the liberal knowledge and even something
of the philosophical habit of mind which as Newman had
argued in The Idea of a University are goods which can be
conceived without reference to a further end. They are enhancements of life.
Some space has been expended on the elucidation of this
point because Father Brown throughout his active career
was a teacher of Humanities and his attitude towards his
subject never wavered from that of his first and perhaps
greatest teacher, Father Connell. It helps to explain his
extraordinary success with certain types of pupil, and also
it may be, his comparative frustration with more earthbound
and utilitarian minds.
In 1913 began a three year course of philosophy at Woodstock. It was, one is tempted to think, the happiest period of
Vachel's Jesuit life. He was in his native delightful countryside, his physical powers were at their height, a very considerable height, as those who saw the truly tremendous force
which he released on the tennis courts or the pitcher's mound
will remember. They will also recall the camaraderie which
had made Woodstock a focus of happy memories to half the
Assistancy. Above all, in those days before the pursuit of
academic degrees came in to plague us, it was a place of
blessed leisure. A man had time to read and think and
talk himself out in long tramps along the dirt roads or by a
campfire. Vachel loved outdoor life, people, manly piety,
literature, philosophy. He loved Woodstock. In spite of the
sudden catastrophe of the European war and the financial
reverses which at that time overtook his father's business
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OBITUARY
one may believe he was very happy. For money and its consequences he did not care a straw and in his letters to his
valiant father he attempted with infinite tact to impart his
conviction that reverses, even failure leading on to poverty,
could bring spiritual treasures richer than anything which
wealth could buy.
The philosophers of those days had a lecture and debating
club where in return for exemption from a term paper
certain volunteers would expound their views on subjects
in some way related to the curriculum. Vachel took the opportunity to read a lecture on the role of Scholasticism in liberal
education. This was in one way a remal'kable performance.
Without being aware of it, he had hit upon a topic which had
been omitted from Newman's Idea of a University as the
text then stood.~ It will be recalled that after the first four
lectures which are devoted to vindicating a place for theology
among the liberal arts, Newman went on to say that all these
arts must be connected and given perspective by a synoptic
vision, that is by a philosophy wider than, because underlying, the several divisions. This lecture, out of courtesy to
Cardinal Wiseman who had expressed a somewhat different
view of the matter, Cardinal Newman had dropped from the
1859 and from all subsequent editions. Vachel had perhaps
felt that there was a lacuna in Newman's theory as it thus
stood and, taking a hint from Oxford University Sermons,
asserted in his lecture the need of a synthesizing science and
demonstrated clearly that Scholastic Philosophy was the only
science sufficiently comprehensive and consistent to satisfy
that need. A very remarkable performance, one may repeat,
for one of our third year philosophers working without guidance and without even elementary training in the methods
of research.
The chronology of the next nine years of training may be
passed over briefly. In 1916 Mr. Brown was assigned to St.
Joseph's Preparatory School in Philadelphia where he taught
for three years. In 1919 he was promoted to Freshman class
in St. Joseph's College and the next year to the same class
at Georgetown. He returned to Woodstock for his course in
theology, and was ordained after two years, his prolonged
regency being regarded as an effect of World War I and
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thus entitling him to enjoy a privilege which the Holy See
granted to all seminarians whose progress to the altar had
been delayed by circumstances arising out of the war. The
ordination took place at Georgetown, the old chapel at Woodstock having been found inadequate to accommodate the
increasing classes of ordinands. His first Mass was said at
the neighboring Visitation Convent on June 29, 1923. After
theology, Father Brown went back to Poughkeepsie to teach
Humanities for a year and in September, 1926, went to St.
Edmund's House, a hostel for priests studying at Cambridge
University, and completed the English course with honors in
June, 1929. Tertianship was made at Amiens in France, and
in the early days of September, almost on his fortieth birthday, his long apprenticeship over, Father Vachel stepped into
the Humanities classroom of the newly opened Juniorate at
Wernersville to commence the career of teaching and spiritual
direction which was to end abruptly and poignantly twentytwo years later.
Before we consider that twofold ministry, however, it is
worthwhile to turn back and see Vachel in action as he
appeared to the eyes of close and continual observers. Father
William Gleason who sat under him in the juniorate in 1926
writes:
"In recalling the year spent as a Poet in the juniorate
under Father Brown, I think of him as teacher, Jesuit, friend.
His influence on the class was in those three roles, and it was
deep. As a teacher he was quiet in manner, never sarcastic,
patient to a fault, almost too deferential to our half-formed
opinions. We had a high opinion of his competence in the three
fields he taught, Latin, Greek and English. His effectiveness as
a teacher was shown in the interest he aroused in literature.
As the year progressed he was directing many in further
reading in one of the three languages according to individual
taste and ability. He communicated in his own quiet way a
love of literature, especially of the many characters to be
known, Hector, aged Priam, Lear, Chaucer's Pilgrims. A
great deal of reading was done by his class in the essay, in
lyric and epic poetry, in the drama; and this was due to his
stimulus. One reason was his interest in your own personal
reactions to what you had read. You knew you were going
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OBITUARY
to share your experience with him. Since his own taste was
catholic, he could be a very willing listener to each of us, no
matter how varied our individual preferences might be.
"As a Jesuit his influence on us was great, even without
our realizing it at the time. His hard work was obvious, but
his most marked characteristic was his charity. It was shown
in his patience, his kindness. He could not say a harsh word
or give a stinging rebuke. He never talked down to us, or
showed up our ignorance, but neither did he give foolish
praise or empty flattery. He was too genuine for that. He
never seemed out of sorts, or short-tempered, though he must
often have been tired from long study at night. As in his
teaching, so here his influence as a Jesuit was quiet and unobtrusive, but for that very reason perhaps more effective and
constant.
"At the end of the year most felt that they had gained a
personal friend in Father Brown. Again like his influence
as a teacher and Jesuit, the friendship was simply there as
if it were the natural and expected thing, to be taken for
granted. Probably you could not point to any single act of
kindness that bound the friendship.~ There had been a persistent giving, a constant thoughtfulness on his part until
in spite of youthful callousness you realized that you had a
loyal friend. Somehow even then we knew that here was one
you could call on after years of separation, or of neglect, and
he would always be the same. You could impose on him, but
it would never be taken as imposition, because he was so selfforgetful, unassuming, so true. What, at the time, we grasped
vaguely, proved during the years to be exact, for he was the
most loyal friend you could have. What Belloc wrote of
Chesterton might be said of him, 'To have known him was a
benediction.' "
At Cambridge
The writer of this sketch was Vachel's companion at Cambridge and after separating for tertianship travelled home
with him on a little French ship, half freighter, half liner,
plying out of Naples with a picturesque cargo of spaghetti
sauce, olive oil and delightful Italian families coming over
to join their men-folk in Brooklyn.
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At St. Edmund's House we were all a bit out of our element.
It was controlled by the English bishops under a set of ordinances drafted by Cardinal Manning with the aim of producing the atmosphere of a fairly stiff seminary. Meager
rations, tepid radiators, early curfew, common spiritual reading, night prayers and an occasional day of recollection reminded us that, though we were in a carefree youthful world,
we were not of it. But indeed, our American loyalties and
accents, our advanced years and it may be some of our
advanced social ideas were enough to set us apart from
the young English priests who were our housemates. Out
of the house, that is in the University proper, our differences
were of course still more marked. Father Brown was thirtysix years of age, the ordinary undergraduate began his
course at about the age of eighteen. As he remarked, "This
is in the spirit of St. Ignatius with a vengance; a gray old
mastiff is learning tricks with the pups!" After the methodical advance, the well-considered objectives and skillful pedagogy of a Jesuit education, the English nonchalance, the
mingling of all sorts of subjects to be followed simultaneously
in the lectures, the laissez-faire attitude of certain tutors,
their seemingly haphazard approaches, varying from the
impressionistic to the dogmatic, could be disconcerting.
The ethos of Cambridge at that time has been brilliantly
described by Father Merton in The Seven Storey Mountain.
His Dante instructor Bullough is not included in his indictment, nor should be Leavis or Henn or Bennett in the English
department. The sanity of their outlook and the solidity of
their scholarship are now known to all who are interested in
such matters. But what Father Merton says of the scepticism,
really nominalism and materialism with its corollary of polite
hedonism, in a word the Spirit of Bloomsbury, advocated in
the somewhat showy lectures and publications of I. A. Richards and F. L. Lucas, gave the tone to a good deal of undergraduate life.
Father Brown advanced into this cockpit, for so it would
seem to a Jesuit, with some of the same spirit with which
he came to bat on the Woodstock ballfield, with that look
which made the third baseman draw back a little to protect
his glasses. He did well with the bewildering studies and
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OBITUARY
conquered their difficulties. He did well with the undergraduates and won the affection of those who were in his
tutorial group. He made his way with the dons, too, even
with the learned and cantankerous G. G. Coulton, the encyclopedic hostile critic of Medieval Catholicism. It did one's
heart good to see him standing in one of the side streets of
the old town with Vachel at his side expatiating on some
curiosity of Gothic architecture. England and Ireland, it
may be added, were both holy lands to Vachel. The former
often seemed to him like some vast religious house, all but
abandoned by its tenants and falling almo~t into decay. Of
the latter he wrote, "Eire is the isle of saints and one can feel
sensibly the difference in passing from England. To live
there is to live as in a Catholic family, almost to live in a
religious house,-a eulogy which will appear excessive, perhaps, but it is true. This people, in spite of centuries of
persecution, has kept a living faith and in the present generation there is great happiness and the greatest hope."
When he visited Rome on his return journey he viewed it
with the same eyes. Destined teacher of the classics as he
was, Rome showed itself not primarily as a vast museum of
classical antiquities, but as a chapel stored high and low
with relics of the saints, fragrant with heroic memories and
vibrant with mighty hopes. One incident only of the return
journey need be mentioned. When the ship left Palermo for
a night crossing to Algeria, the Mediterranean produced one
of its sudden squalls driving Father Vachel's companion to
"seek the seclusion which a cabin grants." In entering he
carelessly allowed the lock to catch and found on awakening
that he was alone. Father Vachel rather than disturb a
slightly indisposed man by rapping on the locked door had
spent the night in a chair in the shabby, ill-furnished, illsmelling lounge. That story calls for one word of comment.
It is one of countless such anecdotes which could be related
of Vachel Brown, stretching unbroken from his first day in
the novitiate to the hour when he breathed his last.
Ministry
We left Father Brown on the point of beginning his career
as a full fledged Jesuit. He started as teacher of "Humanities"
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at Wernersville in September, 1930, and remained at this
post with unflagging, perhaps excessive devotion for three
academic years. In 1933 came a change in appointment from
Wernersville to St. Peter's College in Jersey City. The
reasons prompting this change are of course unknown and,
by now, probably unknowable. Certainly Father Brown never
bothered to enquire or speculate, but his friends surmised that
the excess of zeal in scholarship-many sighed for more speed
and less thoroughness, more organization and less hesitationcombined with his lavish expenditure of time and energy
on all those who came to him for spiritual help was exhausting
his nervous energy. Here we may turn aside for a remark
on one aspect of his life which one may presume was rarely
suspected by the recipients of his charity. Father Brown
seems to have taken in a stern sense the old and useful
cliche about being hard on oneself and easy with others.
Again, underlying that gentle Southern courtesy, that unaffected love of all the life God has created, was a will of
iron and perhaps a tinge of fierceness brought from the
Scotland of the covenanters by Sam Browne his first American ancestor. At any rate when duty called, it was answered
as a summons to battle and had to be meticulously carried out.
Hence the daily renewed three cornered contest between
Vachel's engagements, his breviary and the clock, a contest
which produced so many laughable, pathetic incidents; hence
the tense effort every morning to offer a liturgically perfect
Mass; hence the ceaseless study to present his classes with a
lecture complete in erudition and consummate in form. "It
is no crime to do second-rate work," he would remark, "it
is only a crime to be satisfied with it."
At St. Peter's Father Brown encountered the new style of
teaching literature. No longer was there a class of Humanities
under a professor who was presumed to teach one approach,
aspect or level of criticism and composition through the
medium of Latin, Greek, and English. Classics and modern
foreign languages and English were distinct departments and
Father Brown was assigned to the last. At that time English
courses under a brilliant dean had been organized in a sequence which assuredly was aimed at producing the maximum
benefit for the average student, but which might have been
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OBITUARY
regarded as unconventional by a devotee of traditional Jesuit
practice, at least as found in the Eastern States. This circumstance would involve a certain embarrassment and perhaps
awkwardness for a man who like Father Brown had been
so deeply indoctrinated in the older system.
At about this time an effort was made to standardize the
English courses in the colleges of the province by drawing
up a general syllabus, which it was hoped, would combine
Jesuit objectives and methods with contemporary needs and
resources. Such a syllabus might have encouraged the production of textbooks inspired by Jesuit ·educational ideals,
thus improving classroom performance and incidentally assisting the efforts of superiors to maintain an adequate revenue for the scholasticates. Father Brown was called on to
cooperate in this project which for reasons never made
public was eventually dropped. This may be regarded as a
misfortune for him, since one could not help observing that
a trace of frustration and bewilderment seemed to appear
in his work henceforth. It may be assumed that some of his
difficulty is attributable to a certain isolation he must have
felt in a field dominated at that time by lay professors, who
naturally had little appreciation of the Ratio Studiorum and
who presumably were more sympathetic to the fashions, variegated and mutually contradictory, of the universities where
they had been trained. Whatever the difficulties, Father
Brown's work at St. Peter's was devoted and fruitful above
the average.
At St. Joseph's
In 1941 Father Brown was recalled to the Maryland Province and assigned to the English Department of St. Joseph's
College in Philadelphia. Here he remained for the last eleven
years of his life. In addition to his English classes he was
given charge of the Bellarmine Guild, a ladies' auxiliary
founded to help the college to carry the burden of debt
incurred by a much needed building program. If the motive
of the appointment was to show our friends the calibre of
the men caring for the education of their sons, a better choice
could hardly be imagined.
The young men themselves, it seems, were less apprecia-
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tive. The eulogy which they printed in their student paper
The Hawk after his death sounds like an act of contrition and
of regret for a missed opportunity.
"Perhaps the words once penned by Lamartine of the
priest epitomize best the hidden virtues of Father Brown,
and illustrate most succinctly the facets of his warm and
engaging personality that were almost unknown to his
recent students. It is no secret that Father Brown's many
merits were not fully appreciated by many. Father
Brown's classes, in recent years, bordered at times on
the turbulent, and it was difficult to gauge the native
charm and high Christian virtue of the teacher. But
those students who had achieved a bit of maturity attentively observed and learned a lot.
"They learned a lot of poetry. If there was one thing
that Father Brown insisted upon, it was 'the memory.'
Each class began with the recitation of 'the memory.'
They learned the meaning of pity. They saw a man who
had grown meek and humble in the service of God, being
taken advantage of because of his gentleness and patience.
They learned one thing more about their teacher, Father
Brown. He loved the thought of death; he longed to
be in heaven with his God. With a delicate and a determined artistry, surely but not blatantly, did Father
Brown reproduce in himself the features of Lamartine's
priest: A man 'who having no family, belongs to a
family that is worldwide. He is one whom innocent
children grow to love, to venerate, and to reverence;
whom even those who know him not salute as Father;
at whose feet Christians fall down and lay bare the most
inmost thoughts of their souls and weep their most
sacred tears. He is one whose mission is to console the
afflicted and soften the pains of the body and soul; who
is an intermediary between the affluent and the indigent;
to whose door come alike the rich and the poor-the rich
to give alms in secret, and the poor to receive them
without blushing. He belongs to no social class because
he belongs equally to all-to the lower by his poverty,
to the upper by his culture and knowledge, and by the
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OBITUARY
elevated sentiments which a religion, itself all charity,
inspires and imposes.' "
It is pleasant to turn from the spectacle of precious pearls,
thus cast away, to another field and see Father Vachel in
extracurricular activity, which was charity. It is safe to say
that no family connected with the college or with the Society
was visited by death, or by serious illness, or by spiritual
distress, during the years of his ministry in Philadelphia without receiving comfort and sometimes very substantial help
from his generosity. The students remarked that when he
left the college after classes he never seemed to choose his
bus, but took the first that came along. It ..was sure to bring
him to some home or hospital where he was needed. His
nightly battle with the breviary on buses and even occasionally under the street lamps was precipitated by the urgency
of the calls upon him during the afternoon and evening. Here
is a day or two in his life as recounted by a religious of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.
"In July, 1942, my Mother underwent a serious operation
and we did not expect her to recover. I was under a great
strain in caring for the home, and~working every day and
had had to postpone all my plans for entering the convent.
During the operation, I died a thousand deaths. My brother
and I were the only ones able to be at the hospital. Just when
I thought I would faint, Father came along, took me by the
hand and said, 'Don't worry, lady.' Later that day, as I
leaned over a washboard, I was surprised to see him in the
doorway with a strange bundle, a copy of America wrapped
around a bottle of wine! His orders? 'Here, lady, you're sick
and overworked. Drink this and go to bed. I'll get supper
for dad and the boys.'
"During March, 1944, while I was in the novitiate my parents were taken ill with influenza. We were all away; it was
impossible to get a nurse or any domestic due to the wartime
conditions, and they were too sick to do anything about the
situation. Father happened to visit them and immediately
took over. During their entire illness, he came down home
early in the morning before class, fixed breakfast for them,
took care of the furnace, made orange juice and junket for
them. After class, in the early afternoon, he returned to get
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383
supper, etc. Had I known this was going on, I would have
been out of the novitiate, for I felt so selfish in being the
last to leave them."
Another tells how patiently and skillfully he worked with
her after she had left the religious life and might have lost
her health, her sanity and her salvation had she not been
enlightened and encouraged by, she puts it bluntly, a saint.
Still another nun writes, "For years I studied his policy, his
technique, call it what you will. Every individual who crossed
his path was a soul to bring closer to God. No one was ever
spurned, no one ever turned away, or put off till tomorrow.
We often discussed this matter, for I could see that he was
working himself to death, and, selfishly, I wanted him a few
more years. But his answer was always the same, 'The night
cometh wherein no man can work. You wouldn't want me
to go to God with my work undone. There is so much to do,
so few to do it!' "
All this amounted to approximately an eighteen hour workday, which continued through years could, naturally speaking,
have only one issue. In July 1952, there is reason to believe,
he suffered a heart attack, but no doubt misreading the symptoms neglected to see a doctor. Instead he began to make the
novena preparatory to the feast of St. Ignatius, making the
long journey from St. Joseph's College at City Line to attend
the services in the downtown Church of the Gesu. His intention may be gathered from the fact that he carried a bottle
of St. Ignatius' holy water. He was probably asking our
Holy Father to prolong his usefulness. On the last day of the
novena, July 30 when he was standing on the forward platform of a car crowded with workers returning from their
jobs the answer came. He fell to the floor apparently quite
dead. He was lifted to a seat and supported in the arms
of a kind colored woman who removed his collar. A colored
man gently massaged his neck. He was removed to Hahnemann Hospital and pronounced, "Dead on arrival." So like
St. Francis Xavier and St. Francis Regis he died far from
the ministering hands of his religious brethren, surrounded
as it were by the trophies of his long and gallant fight, amid
the. humble and charitable, after forty-two years of devotion
to offices in which humility and charity are chiefly practised.
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To some it may seem strange to associate a death on the
floor of an American streetcar with one on the sands of
Sancian or in the snows of the Cevennes, but not to those for
whom this memorial tribute was written, those who knew
and loved Father Brown. For these then, I venture to say
the last word in more familiar tones, "Dear Vachel, great
work!"
JOSEPH A. SLATTERY, S.J.
Appreciations
His provincial wrote, "No one was tp.ore devoted than
himself to those who needed comfort. The· circumstances of
God's call horne to him was a grace for all of us."
A former provincial wrote, "He never tired in his zeal to
win souls to Our Lord, indefessus as is said of St. Ignatius.
Our Lord rewarded him with the perfect happiness of celebrating Our Holy Founder's Feast in Heaven with all the
Company of Jesus, whose name he bore with humility, with
great charity, with dignity."
A former New York provincial wrote, "In the early days
I carne to know Vachel well but have seen little of him the
past years. When I did meet him, however, I found him completely unchanged, the same humble, self-effacing fellow he
always was, with his never-failing smile and gentle ways. If
he ever complained about anything, I never heard him."
Father William M. Slattery, Superior General of the Vincentians, wrote from Paris, "Father Vachel, we feel sure,
has a rich reward in Heaven after his years of devoted
service to Our Lord. His beautiful Christlike life will always
be an inspiration to me."
Letters Describing Father Brown's Death
1.
Letter of Miss Mary A. McCullough to
•
Father J. Calvert Brown, S.J.
Dear Father Brown:
I am a Catholic and was a passenger on the 21 Car when
your brother collapsed Wednesday evening. I thought you
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385
might like to hear from someone who was present at the
time of his death. I believe your brother was dead when he
fell to the floor of the car. He was standing on the front
platform. The car was crowded and most of the passengers
were colored though I am white. It was a colored man and
colored woman who took over and cared for him. He was
lifted from the floor and put on the front seat. His collar
was removed and I saw the man massage the back of his neck.
The woman held his head up and another person held smelling salts or something of the kind to his nostrils. I saw his
face plainly but there was never any sign of life. I feel certain
death came to him before the fall. I repeated ejaculations as
I realized the passing of his soul. As you no doubt know the
rescue squad removed the body from the car, but the colored
hands that cared for him were kind, respectful and sympathetic, I assure you. Parting with a brother is sad, even for
a Jesuit. Please accept the sincere sympathy of a passer-by.
Sincerely,
July 31, 1952
Mary A. McCullough
2.
Letter of Mrs. Missouri Williams to
Mother Helen Brown, R.S.C.J.
Dear Mother Brown,
Your letter was received sometime ago but I was called
to Virginia to my mother's bedside; and the Lord has taken
her away from me. So I did not have any mind to write;
but the Lord never does anything wrong. About your brother:
yes, I gave aid to him. His last breath was with his head in
my arms. No, he did not say anything. Yes, I did remove his
collar. I felt his pulse. I saw he was gone. I held him until
the cops took him off the trolley. I did not have any smelling
salts; they would not have done him any good anyway. I
am learning how to care for the sick in school. When I get
back, I will let my teacher read your sweet letter. I am in
nursing school and when I finish I will let you know. I was
glad I was able to help someone in the last hour. That's what
a Christian should do. May God bless you in your work.
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Sorry I did not see you but if we never meet here I will do
my best to meet you on the other side. From
September 22, 1952
Missouri Williams
A Story of Vocations
On the Feast of Our Lady's Assumption, 1854, the first of
nine children was born to Mr. and Mrs. Vachel J. Brown in
Baltimore. Nine years later the last of a score of children
and step-children was born to Captain and Mrs. Thomas
Singer in Philadelphia. The mother of that first-born son
was a convert, and the mother of that ·last-born daughter
had been received into the Church on March 19, 1837 at St.
Joseph's College, Emmitsburg, Maryland. Two younger sons
of Mr. and Mrs. Brown entered the Society of Jesus, Howard
in 1879 and Albert in 1889. A daughter of Mrs. Singer by a
former marriage became a Sister of Charity.
Now the marriage of that eldest son, Harry Cook Brown,
and that youngest daughter, Fanny Singer, which took place
in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on June 5, 1889, was to prove
even more fruitful in vocations. Young Mrs. Brown prayed
that her first-born would choose the~ service of God. On September 6, 1890 a son was born and named for his paternal
grandfather, Vachel. After graduating from Loyola College
in 1910, he applied for admission to the Society of Jesus and
was received at Poughkeepsie on September 21st. His mother
was pleased at his choice; nevertheless his departure for the
novitiate was felt keenly. She had borne ten children, five
boys and five girls, and lost three by early deaths, two boys
and a girl; so, after these four heartaches, caused by death
and the sacrifice of her eldest to God, she prayed still, not
directly for more vocations, but that God might guide each
of her remaining children in the path of His choice.
In December, 1915, these lines, called "A Mother's Prayer,"
were published in the Sacred Heart Messenger by Frances S.
Brown:
Sweet Heart of Jesus, oh list to the· prayer
That I breathe for the souls Thou hast placed in my care.
Lead them, I pray Thee, by Thy light divine,
And make them Thy children, these treasures of mine.
Didst Thou not protect them, 0 Father above,
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And teach them to lighten their labors by love,
They would faint by the wayside, leaving untrod
Paths up the starry heights leading to God.
Guard them and guide them! 'Tis thus that I pray
For those Thou hast lent me, Thou Light of our way.
And when life is over for them and for me
May our home be in heaven, Christ Jesus, with Thee!
In 1918 her eldest daughter, Helen, a graduate of the Visitation Academy in Baltimore, after a retreat of election at
Eden Hall, Philadelphia, applied for admission to the Society
of the Sacred Heart and was received at Kenwood. In 1920
another daughter, Gertrude, a graduate of St. Joseph's High
School, Emmitsburg, began her postulancy as a Daughter
of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, to be followed in the same
community by her younger sister Vincentia four years later.
That same year, 1924, the youngest son, J. Calvert, followed
the oldest into the Society of Jesus. For the fifth time now
that mother's heart had felt the pangs of parting, only to be
made more lonely a few weeks later, when God called her husband to his eternal reward on September 17, 1924. Mr.
Harry Brown's had been a quiet, uneventful life. His father,
like his father-in-law, had started out as a grocer's clerk,
but had worked his way up to the establishment of a wellknown and respected wholesale grocery, V. J. Brown & Sons,
which still exists, though no member of the family belongs
to the firm. After Mr. V. J. Brown's death in 1912 circumstances made it necessary for Harry Brown to seek employment elsewhere, and reverses along the years left his family
living almost a hand-to-mouth existence. His poor health
finally forced him to give up entirely and the last two years
of his life were spent in prayer and reading at home. During
this period his son, Vachel, was ordained and was allowed to
say Mass at home three times before he read his father's
Requiem, thus writing finis to the career of a Christian
father, who will not be remembered by a materialistic world,
but was remembered by his wife and children for his example
of patience and deep love of God through the scriptural span
of three score and ten years.
A son and daughter remained with their widowed mother;
the daughter married in 1931. Ten years later, on the Feast
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OBITUARY
of Our Lady's Rosary, surrounded by five of her children,
the mother closed her eyes in death to open them before the
throne of God after seventy-eight years of spiritual childhood
and forty-two years as a truly Christian mother.
E. Howard Brown, the remaining son, had supported his
mother for twenty years. A veteran of World War I, he took a
defense job for the remainder of World War II. After three unsettled years he felt the call to leave the world and follow his
brothers and sisters in religion. On the advice of a disinterested Jesuit priest and after a retreat of election, he entered as a postulant lay-brother in the Society of Jesus at
Poughkeepsie, and on the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of
Mary, 1950, at the age of fifty-eight he pronounced his first
vows there, and served one of the two masses of thanksgiving
that were said by his two Jesuit brothers. In the meantime
two nieces had entered religion, one as a Helper of the Holy
Souls, the other as a Daughter of Charity. A nephew, Mr.
Paul Brown, and a cousin, Father Edward C. Phillips, also
died as Jesuits.
0 God, Who dost mercifully lavish upon us infinite treasures of love in
Thy Son's Heart, wounded by our sins, grant, we pray Thee, that we
may offer Him devout homage, loving service, and fitting reparation;
through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the Mass of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
God, Who didst adorn Thy blessed confessor John Francis with wonderful charity and unfailing patience in his countless labors for the salvation of souls, graciously hear our appeal; that we, schooled by his example
and aided by his prayers, may obtain the crown of eternal glory;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the Mass of St. John Francis Regis, June 16.
�Books of Interest to Ours
FATHER JOHN CORRIDAN
Waterfront Priest. By Allen Raymond. 1955. Henry Holt, New York,
xviii-269 pp. $3.50.
This is a tale of human greed and misery, of conspiracy against the
lives and souls of men, and of courage nurtured on confidence in God.
It details eight years in the life of Father John Corridan of the Xavier
Labor School in New York City, years of growing acquaintance with
the evils of the New York waterfront, years of effort to awaken men
in business and government to their responsibility, years of defeat,
failure, and determination to finish the job. Waterfront Priest is, in
addition, a work of concrete economics. The port of New York is losing
its once-giant volume of traffic to other East Coast ports because of
the frequent work stoppages, the thievery and extortion which attend
the handling of cargo. Management representatives, union leaders, and
government officials connive to maintain a cheap, captive labor force
and to protect the hoodlums who pillage valuable shipments and prey
on the longshoremen. The shipping and stevedoring firms suffer from
this malpractice because of increased costs and the flight of traffic from
New York. The general public of the metropolitan area suffers because
of the loss of revenue and of jobs, and the nation's consumers suffer
from higher prices on shipped goods. Most of all, the men suffer,
betrayed by their leaders, exploited by their employers, terrorized and
victimized by gunmen.
It is the men who are the focus of Father Corridan's interest and
efforts. Through the pages of this book stalk men whose minds cannot
but be eaten up with resentment at society and the coalition of forces
that reduce them to the condition of slaves. Readers whose background
is largely theological and whose preoccupations are even indirectly pastoral will be struck by the difficulty of living a Christian life on the
waterfront. If ever there has been a case study pointing up the need
of the social apostolate, it is Waterfront Priest. The book reads easily,
detailing the injustices in matter-of-fact style. There is a certain
choppiness arising from the flood of names, dates, and union local
numbers; but that drawback is probably inseparable from the satisfaction of making contact with the facts. The elements do not combine
to produce eloquentia perfecta, although Allen Raymond's style is clear
and readable. Nor are the quotations from Father Corridan couched
in his own West Side Manhattan eloquence. There rings through the
book, however, indignation at sins that cry to heaven for vengeance.
Toward the end there is a jarring note. Notice is being taken of
Father Corridan's satisfaction that his example is encouraging seminarians to interest themselves in practical social problems; he is quoted
as saying about the seminarians, "They know now there's plenty of
room in the church for priests who do other things than swing a smoke
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BOOK REVIEWS
pot." There is no denying that a censer is a smoke pot; and it is easy
to appreciate Father Corridan's anxiety that priests do other things
than swing censers. But in some measure the censer in the hands
of the priest symbolizes everything that Father Corridan is trying to
do. For his own efforts will succeed only if they help to provide a
measure of food, drink and something for a rainy day for the men of
New York's waterfront parishes. Only then can those men participate
with human dignity and peace of soul in the worship the Church offers
up by means of brel,ld and wine and incense.
THOMAS F. WALSH, S.J.
SUITABLE TEXTBOOK
Social Orientations. By Leo C. Brown, S.J., Albert S. Foley, S.J.,
Mortimer H. Gavin, S.J., PhilipS. Land, S.J., William A. Nolan, S.J.,
John L. Thomas, S.J. Chicago, Loyola University Press, 1954. Pp.
iii-680.
A need for an integrated course in the social sciences in the light of
Catholic social principles as part of the general-education program for
Catholic college students is easily recognizable. We are indebted to
the members of the Institute of Social Order for an introductory textbook for such a college course. They have done a splendid job in combining into one volume social history, social science, and social ethics
applied to Amerian social, economic, and politial life according to
Catholic social teaching. Rev. John F. Cronin's Catholic Social Principles
(Bruce, Milwaukee, 1950) is an excellent college textbook, but it is
limited to the American economy, emphasizes principles, and presupposes
some social orientation. His Problems and Opportunities in a Democracy (Mentzer-Bush, Chicago, 1954), though sufficiently comprehensive,
is designed for senior high school. Social Orientations differs in its purpose, general approach, and plan of presentation. Its purpose, as the title
claims, is to introduce the average college graduate to major problem areas
and current social thought. Experience has taught that the best approach
in teaching the Church's social doctrine is to "start with a description
of the facts and then advance to the principles and their applications
to specific problem areas." The presentation followed throughout the
book falls into a threefold pattern. Carefully selected areas of social
action are studied in terms of their historical development, their relation
to the institutional and ideological patterns of which they form a part,
and the value~ they imply and reflect, that is,, their social significance.
The merit of the book lies in supplying tM student with sufficient
statistical and factual data about the American scene where he lives
so that his knowledge of Catholic social principles can come to grips
with reality.
Leaving the judgment of its feasibility as a college textbook to those
whose office it is to draw up the college curriculum, it might be well
�BOOK REVIEWS
391
to point out other good points about the book. It is surprising to find
that abundant material is developed in considerable detail yet in clear,
succinct, fashion without duplicating what has already been treated
in religion, ethics, or supplementary classes. This can only be the result
of expert writing in specialized fields. The book has been taught on an
experimental basis over a period of years in the Middle West and has
benefited by the criticism of teachers and students alike.
Granted the introductory nature of the book, still it is puzzling to
find it silent on American social responsibility towards international
society, international peace, foreign relations, and international trade;
on rural life, as a separate unit, and the work of the National Rural
Life Conference; on the problem of depersonalization consequent upon
a highly technological society, and on the Industry Council Plan. Problems and projects are added at the end of each chapter for further
discussion and mature consideration. It would have been better for the
sake of ready reference to have listed the suggested readings at the end
of each chapter (as in chapter 23) instead of putting them as footnotes.
Because of the rich statistical and factual data and because of the perspective it throws on the manifold social problems of today, Ours will
find the reading of this book worth their while.
VITALIANO
R. GOROSPE, S.J.
CASTI CONNUBII
No Longer Two. A Commentary on the Encyclical Casti Connubii of
Pius XI. By Rev. Walter J. Handren, S.J. Westminster, Md., The
Newman Press, 1955. Pp. xiv-242. $4.00.
The task of constructing a syllabus for the course in religion in our
colleges, or its approximate equivalent in study clubs, has not yet been
achieved to the general satisfaction of those engaged in the work. In
the case of college courses, differences in theory with regard to finality
and pedagogical method are further complicated by limitations of time
and the consequent necessity of selection and omission. It would seem
to be impossible to draw up a syllabus which would meet the unqualified
approval of all teachers. There are some who think that insufficient
attention has been paid to the liturgy; others demand a heavier historical emphasis in the courses; others want a full treatment of contemporary moral problems. Obviously, in the vast field of learning
that borders on the revelation and theology there are countless topics
over which there can be disagreement when it comes time to draw
up a syllabus.
Father Handren of St. Joseph's College, Philadelphia, solves the problem for one semester by beginning with the premise that one of the
imperative needs of our time is a Catholic laity living according to the
ideals of Christian marriage. He draws the conclusion that Catholics
"must attempt to know all there is to be known about the state of
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BOOK REVIEWS
matrimony and all the duties and obligations which belong to it."
To supply for this need, Father Handren selects the encyclical Casti
Connubii of Pius XI. His intent is clearly defined, "It is to acquaint
the Catholic college student with this encyclical in the form of a brief
textbook. The text develops the ideas contained in the encyclical to a
greater or lesser degree, according to the way the author has found
it necessary in his experience in teaching this matter. At the same
time it leaves much latitude to anyone else using it." Father Handren's
execution of his plan is simple and clear. Each section begins with
a portion of the text of the encyclical; then follows the commentary:
on the dogmatic implications in the text, or the Pope's moral teaching,
or the points of canon law which are pertinent, or practical examples,
suggestions and advice. Father Handren has wisely strengthened his
commentary by frequent and sometimes full 1;piotations from the
writings of Leo XIII and Pius XII. Appendices·· include a selected
bibliography and the text of the marriage rite. It seems unfortunate
that the new translation of the rite could not be used. There is a
good index.
JAMES ALF, S.J.
LONG EXPERIENCE
The Catholic Church and You. By William J. Grace, S.J. Milwaukee,
The Bruce Publishing Company, 1955. Paper. Pp. viii-246. $1.90.
Three years ago readers of the WooDSTOCK LETTERS were introduced
by Father Grace to the organization and administration of The Inquiry
Forum he founded at the Gesu Church, Milwaukee. Three other works
of Father Grace on the conduct of group instructions for non-Catholic
inquirers have been published by The Paulist League in Techniques for
Convert-Makers. Now in answer to many petitioners, Father Grace
has reproduced his own twenty-four talks given repeatedly during the
course of instructions over the past ten years. It would be difficult to
find anywhere on Catholic catechetical bookshelves a volume as valuable
as The Catholic Church and You. It is the book to place in the hands
of an interested non-Catholic or to be used as a textbook in private or
group instructions in Catholic doctrine and practice. Father Grace's
book should have an appeal to the average non-Catholic, whose problems receive consideration and sympathy. Long experience has taught
Father Grace what religious truths to emphasize and how to impart
them. Hence the value of this exposition of Catholic doctrine to the
parish priest who wants to be sure of a mee~ing of minds when he
instructs the non-Catholic.
Constant use of the Scriptures and the discussion of the Catholic
teaching on the inspiration and infallibility of the Bible at the very
opening of the course reveal Father Grace's understanding of the
Protestant mind. Apt illustrations and anecdotes dot the pages wherever
�BOOK REVIEWS
393
a difficult doctrine or particular non-Catholic persuasion is treated. The
first ten lectures are devoted to the arguments and proofs from reason
and history for the Catholic teaching on the divinity of Christ and on
the Church as Christ's only representative on earth. The apologetic section concludes with a vital chapter, often overlooked, distinguishing for
the non-Catholic the divine from the human elements in the Church. A
careful index gives this book value as a reference work. The boldface
printing of the first few words of paragraphs where the thought shifts
slightly within a lecture adds greatly to the readability and typographical attractiveness of the book. Priest, layman and non-Catholic inquirer
have been enriched by the publication of Father Grace's course of
religious instructions and owe him a debt for sharing his wisdom with
them.
ALLEN J. CAMERON, S.J.
DOCTRINE AND RITE
Sources of Christian Theology, Vol. 1, Sacraments and 'Vorship. By
Paul F. Palmer, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1955. Pp. xxll-227. $4.75.
The inaugural volume of a projected series that will give scholars
and students easy access to the basic texts that control and enrich
theological thought is a distinct service altogether expected from the
author of Mary in the Documents of the Church. The obvious contribution of the book is the gathering of the documents-from the Didache to
Mediator Dei. Any one interested in the positive theology of the sacraments and the liturgy will now be spared many trips to the library
stacks; the fundamental texts are assembled and chronologically ordered.
What will be perhaps more appreciated by any one with experience of
these loci classici is the exactness, clarity and felicity of the translation.
The author has used the best renditions and in many instances has
made his own. There is a special excellence in the brief commentary
that prefaces each selection. The author has put at our disposal in
concise form the conclusions of modern scholarship. The meaning of
some of the documents is quite elusive and knowledge of the historical
context is a requisite for any full intelligence of their meaning. Where
interpretation has not been clearly established, there is no prejudging
of the issue. In seminary and college courses there has been for too
long a divorce between sacramental doctrine and liturgy. We have
now a manual that presents doctrine within rite and rite within doctrine. The static formulae of the Schoolmen are seen to be not just
intellectual crystallizations but the salvific action of Christ and his
Church. Baptism, confirmation and the Eucharist are the subjects of
this first volume. Following it, the author promises one on the sacrament of penance. We are, and shall be, very much in his debt.
EDWARD
J.
MURRAY,
S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
INVALUABLE
The Mystical Body of Christ as the Basic Principle of Spiritual Life.
By Friedrich Jilrgensmeier. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1954. Pp.
xxi-379. $5.00.
An English translation of the late Father Jiirgensmeier's Der
mystische Leib Christi appeared in 1946 in this country. A review of
this is to be found in Theological Studies 8 (1947) 338-341. After describing the real merits of this work, the reviewer Clllls attention to
serious theological inaccuracies with regard to the doctrine of the mystical body, as well as to the inaccuracy and theologial ineptitude of the
translation. This new English edition, Archbishop -Cushing tells us in
his foreword, has been prepared with the express_purpose of bringing
the work into complete harmony with the most recent papal teaching.
A comparison of the errors and defects cited in the review mentioned
above with the present text shows that the errors have been deleted and
the translation recast.
The main purpose of the work is to give a uniform idea of asceticism
from the biblical-dogmatic doctrine of the mystical body of Christ which
will present religious life as an organic entity. In the first part St.
Paul's teaching on the mystical body is presented. Then follows a dogmatic analysis of the economy of salvation to establish the fact that
religious life is a growth in Christ. In the second part which comprises
the major portion of the book, an organic,~ uniform idea of ascetical
theology is built upon this biblical-dogmatic basis. The entire Christian
life is shown as an organic development of the life in Christ and an
ever-increasing growth in Him. This is a work of real merit which
will be invaluable for one's own spiritual life and for the direction of
others. Parish priests should find it most useful.
VINCENT
T. O'KEEFE, S.J.
THE SACREDNESS OF SEX
The Image of God in Sex. By Vincent Wilkin, S.J. Sheed and Ward,
New York, 1955. Pp. 88. $1.75.
From title to concluding paragraph this little book or monograph is
challenging. With the same insight and need that prompted St. John
in his Prologue to speak of the Word made Flesh, Father Wilkins
speaks out bol~ly for the sacredness of sex. Gnostics and Manichaeans
regarded the flesh as evil and sex as the inStrument or function by
which evil was perpetuated. Christians of every age have regarded
marriage as good, but many have felt that there is something faintly
wrong about even the legitimate experience of sex. In their eyes sex is
wholly biological, something that derives from the subhuman. The purpose of this treatise is to show that sex is ..a reflection from on high, an
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BOOK REVIEWS
image derived from above" (p. 10). Actually, the author presents a
good synthesis of what he calls "The Theology of Sex," an expression
which will startle those whose view of the subject is limited to what is
physiological. The synthesis begins where it must, in the infinite fecundity
of God, to whose image man, male and female, was fashioned. In succeeding Chapters Father Wilkins develops under the guidance of Scripture, the Fathers and the liturgy, the nuptial union between the Word
and the flesh in the mystery of the Incarnation, and the fruitful union
of Christ and the Church in the mystery of the mystical body, unions
which are made intelligible by human marriage and which in turn give
significance to Christian marriage. Against this theological background
prospective bride and groom are introduced to the Church's liturgy of
the nuptial Mass, the nuptial blessing, the blessing before childbirth
and the often misunderstood significance of the churching of women,
a ceremony of thanksgiving rather than of purification. The book closes
on a highly practical note. Having formed their marriage in accord with
the archetypal union between Word and flesh, between Christ and his
Church, parents will realize most perfectly the fecundity which is in
God by forming children to the image of his Son become flesh.
PAUL F. PALMER,
S.J.
WOMAN AND PRELATE
John Carroll of Baltimore: Founder of the American Catholic Hierarchy.
By Annabelle M. Melville. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons. Pp.
ix-338. $4.50.
This biography of Archbishop Carroll is not only readable but also
thoroughly reliable from the historical viewpoint. Although a book of
this type can scarcely be said to replace the huge work of the late Monsignor Peter Guilday, Mrs. Melville, taking full advantage of recent
research, corrects many of his errors. As a woman, she labors under a
certain disadvantage in interpreting the career of a prelate, but the
unbiased reader will be forced to admit that she has acquitted herself
of her task with real distinction.
Mrs. Melville's treatment of the Society of Jesus, which figures prominently in many parts of the book, is not only well informed but uniformly
kindly. She twice quotes, it is true, Carroll's statement that hatred of
the Jesuits by other Catholics had arisen "from the obligation to which
our General, Father Aquaviva, subjected our schools of combatting
constantly the doctrine of the powerful body of Thomists, instead of
leaving us, as St. Ignatius, bound to the maintenance of no particular
opinions, but only to the doctrine of the Catholic Church." Too much
importance should not be attached to such remarks. Carroll, like most
of his Jesuit contemporaries, was simply stunned by the Suppression.
Although the diary of his trip with Lord Stourton shows that sometime
before the actual Suppression Carroll had no illusions as to the final out-
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BOOK REVIEWS
come of the struggle, the blow itself left him at a loss. Nearly two
centuries have passed and the Suppression is still one of the mysteries
of Church 'History. Now, however, the affair can be seen in its relation
to the French Revolution of which it may be considered a prelude.
It is quite clear that neither the traditional dogmatic positions of the
Society nor, for that matter, her certainly sound but far more vulnerable
moral theology, led to her extinction. Rather, the Suppression appears
to have been the desperate effort of clever and unscrupulous politicians
to prevent a political landslide which was rightly felt to be imminent by
a concession to the rising spirit of unbelief. Even today the machinations against the Society appear so stupid as to be incredible but we, at
any rate, are not reduced as Padre Cordara and, to a lesser degree, John
Carroll, were to looking for contributing causes in the principles and
modes of action of the Jesuits of the time. As~a group those heroic
men deserve to rank with any Jesuit generation not only for their zeal
and prayerfulness but also for the sureness of their informations and
the breadth of their views. The Zeitgeist was against them.
EDWARD
A. RYAN, S.J.
PRUDENT DOCTRINE
No Man Is an Island. By Thomas Merton. _New York, Harcourt, Brace
and Co. Pp. xxiii-264. $3.95.
Father Merton's new book has been hailed as his most notable production. It contains meditations on certain problems of the spiritual life
and, like Seeds of Contemplation, reflects Cistercian piety rather than
the more ambitious mysticism attempted in The Ascent to Truth. Unquestionably many souls will be helped by its sane message, especially
by its balanced teaching on love.
It may not be amiss, in view of the general applause which has
greeted the work, to essay to put a few question marks into the text.
The doubtings are not numerous and they bear on details-another
tribute to the book. Father Merton in his valuable remarks on prayer
(Chapter Three) asserts that prayer is "'a gift of God, a gift which is by
no means given to all men." Since he is not concerned with those who
die before attaining the use of reason, this statement is equivalent to
saying that this grace is not given to all adults. Would the author exclude the tiniest efficacious grace of prayer from some lifetimes? That
would be a hard saying.
Replying to· an objection (p. 107) that some of the saints did ruin
their health by their austerities, Merton takes refuge in the statement
that the renunciation of health was necessary for the sake of some
greater good. A simpler and truer explanation would be found in the
Franciscan dictum that it is hard for those who follow the way of
interior sweetness to give the body what it requires. More serious doubts
�BOOK REVIEWS
397
arise when reading the denunciations of modern city life (p. 108 f.) and
of advertising (p. 193 f.). Here once again Father Merton gives a
handle to those who claim that he is out of touch with reality. In fairness, however, it must be pointed. out that there is less of this in the
present work and the accent is just a trifle less sharp.
There are other questionable statements too: "One·might say that the
priest's holiness should be as great as the cumulative holiness of all
those to whom he administers the sacraments" (p. 142) ; and "The
damned are exiled even from themselves" (p. 220). But they are more
than compensated for by pages of lucid prose in which the principles of
the religious life are illuminated by searching analysis and prudent
doctrine.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
SPIRITUAL EXERCISES
Points for the Meditations and Contemplations of St. Ignatius Loyola.
By Franz von Hummelauer, S.J. Translated by V. J. Hommel, S.J.
Second revised edition by H. Roper, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1955.
Pp. xv-443. $4.50.
This particular "point book" has come through many editions in the
original German, as well as in other languages, and is now made available in English. The present volume is indeed handsomely bound and
the general format and printing leave little if anything to be desired.
Perhaps the greatest praise that might be offered in recommendation
of the book is the welcome fact that Father Hummelauer has tried
throughout to keep the "reader's" attention focused on the text of the
Exercises. In some "point books" which serve by way of commentary on
the spare text of St. Ignatius, the author usually succumbs to the temptation to introduce his (or her) own ideas on the spiritual life, and
sometimes unfortunately carries the meaning beyond what is warranted. Father Hummelauer has succeeded in overcoming that particular temptation. Consequently any one using the '"points" will find
himself close to the meaning and spirit of St. Ignatius from beginning
to end. Scarcely more can be asked of any "point book," given the
purpose of the Spiritual Exercises and their proper use.
The present edition also contains certain preliminary remarks by the
German Jesuit in which he gives himself ample opportunity to comment
on the structure, ideal, etc. of the Exercises. Father Puhl's translation
of the text, and, for the most part, the Confraternity edition of the
Scriptures are used throughout.
JOHN F. X. BURTON, S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
NOT FOR RELAXATION
Nature and Grace. By Matthias Joseph Scheeben. Translated by Cyril
Vollert, S.J. St. Louis, B. Herder Book Co., 1954. Pp. xxiv-361.
No chapter in dogmatic theology is so crucial for a grasp of the
Christian faith than the one which deals with the relationships between
human nature and the grace which divinizes it. And no modern theologian has handled this theme with greater brilliance, depth and solidity
than Scheeben. Father Vollert, who has previously put English-reading
students in possession of the monumental The Mysteries of Christianity
(to say nothing of Mersch's The Theology of the Mystical Body and
De Ia Taille's essays on the Incarnation) now increases our indebtedness
with this readable and painstaking translation -of Scheeben's earlier
and less comprehensive study of the supernatural. Nature and Grace
is, indeed, a first sketch of the great theological synthesis which Scheeben was to elaborate in The Mysteries of Christianity. Father Vollert
makes this clear in a foreword in which he skillfully situates the great
German against his nineteenth-century background, and delineates the
reasons which made him "the chief theologian of the supernatural
order" (p. xv).
What Scheeben set out to do in Nature and Grace was to take the
distinction between the natural and supernatural orders, the key to the
Church's solution of the ethical problem involved in the Pelagian and
Jansenist controversies, and apply it to th; solution of the intellectual
problem raised by the challenge of contemporary rationalism. This
could be achieved, he felt, only if theologians went beyond the relationships between nature and grace on the moral and intellectual planes,
and studied their relationships on the ontological level. Hence it is
chiefly by using the conception of grace as a quasi-nature or supernature
that he succeeds in unfolding the harmonious teaching of revelation on
the Christian economy. In his formation Scheeben drank from two main
sources: Scholasticism, which he imbibed at Rome during the mid-century
resurgence under Taparelli, Liberatore, Kleutgen and others, and
patristic tradition, especially in the Greek Fathers-here Franzelin was
particularly influential. As a result, the reader encounters in him two
distinct types of passages-pages of speculative analysis which demand
vigor and endurance in the response; and then, almost by way of reward,
calm paragraphs full of unction, which appear to reflect not only his
love of the Fathers but an interior living of the mysteries which he
describes. It is, perhaps, in this blending of scholastic analysis and
contemplation of the mysteries of faith, that the power of Scheeben
chiefly lies. One may not read this book for' relaxation. Nor does it
offer predigested sermon and conference material. It will be best appreciated by those actually engaged in the study or teaching of theology.
Even for them, the study of this first major work of Scheeben will not
be easy. But it will surely be rewarding.
THOMAS E. CLARKE, S.J.
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399
PSYCHIATRY AND RELIGION
Faith, Reason and Modern Psychiatry, Sources for a Synthesis. Edited
by Francis J. Braceland, M.D. New York, Kenedy, 1955. Price: $6.00.
Is there a conflict between modern psychiatry and our Catholic faith
and Scholastic philosophy? The contributors to this volume do not believe
in such an impasse. The editor, Dr. Braceland, who incidentally gives us
a masterful outline of clinical psychiatry, summarizes this viewpoint
very modestly as the "position that a truly comprehensive and tenable
concept of man is achievable within the Christian ideology" (p. 27).
Here is no implication that the psychiatrist is to become a preacher
of the faith; nor does he in any way supplant the priest. Rudolf Allers
neatly formulates the role of psychiatrist as that of "'preparing the
way of the Lord." All are agreed that once the unconscious has been
unmasked, the fog of conflict dissipated and a man has "become what
he is by nature" by opening his mind to listen to the Word from above,
normal mental and spiritual health can be attained. But there remains
the stubborn problems of sanctity and neurosis, which the reviewer
believes have not been solved in this volume.
Everyone knows that mental illness may proceed from organic causes.
But is there some organic basis in all abnormality? Dr. Ibor believes
there is; and he astoundingly deepens our knowledge of basic emotions,
normal and abnormal. But Rudolf Allers wisely and learnedly deals
with influence of a man's philosophy of life on his sanity, insanity, or
neurosis. Cleverly, too, he unmasks certain existentialist philosophies
and shows that they are neither sound theories nor therapies. On the
other hand, Karl Stern and Gregory Zilboorg, make us keenly aware of
the fact that false appraisals of religion can issue in abnormality. And
Zilboorg shows how Freud's personal bias against religion prevented
him from benefiting from it and from appreciating its role in therapy.
In a penetrating comparison of magical rite and sacramental ritual,
however, Dr. Zilboorg misses the essential difference between a sacrament and a magical ritual; in the sacrament, the efficacy is due to God,
and his promise, backing the external rite. How did illness enter the
human domain? Or did it re-enter? Is it the result of original sin?
Dr. Lain-Entralgo offers us an interesting theology of illness. Perhaps
few will agree with his proposal that in the state of original justice
illness and pain existed. But we are very much in his debt for the
delineation of illness as a trial and a vocation. If a man's philosophy
can, and does, influence his health, it must be a true philosophy. With
that problem Vincent Edward Smith and Dorothy Donnelly grapple,
the latter from the standpoint of an anthropologist. Rudolf Allers'
remarks on Jung's archetypes seem much more penetrating than does
the chapter of Dorothy Donnelly.
Leon Bloy once remarked that the saddest thing of all was, and is, that
we are not all saints. How sad it would be if mentally ill persons
were forever barred from the goal of sanctity. Father Aumann, O.P.,
�400
BOOK REVIEWS
attempts to cope with this problem and, unfortunately, is unsuccessful.
A far better approach would have been to take cognizance of recent
utterances of the popes; on the occasion of canonizations, on the qualifications for sanctity. Father Aumann does not even mention Pere
Tonquedec's work on this subject. Spiritual direction of abnormal
people is a perennial problem for the priest and he will be greatly helped
by Father Mailloux's chapter on «Psychology and Spiritual Direction."
On the basis of the experience of the O.S.S. during World War II,
however, one might question the generalization that mental conflict inevitably issues in infantilism, as Father Mailloux avers (p. 255). Dr.
Braceland deserves our enduring gratitude for this volume which demonstrates the fruitfulness of the inductive-deductive approach to such
problems even as the reconciliation between modern psychiatry and
religion.
.
J. BIHLER, S.J.
H:·
Grail Publications (St. Meinrad, Indiana) has issued Father T. L.
Bouscaren's translation of the letter of the Sacred Congregation of
Seminaries and Universities (February 2, 1945) on the proper training
of clerics to an appreciation of the Divine Office in handy pamphlet form.
Father Owen M. Cloran has added a valuable critical bibliography on
the subject. The price is ten cents.
The theme of The Christian Life Calendar for 1956 (Bruce, $1) is
thanksgiving to God for his graces. The caiendar was originated by
the late Father William Puetter.
��
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Text
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIII, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1954
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1954
A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
ON THE MARIAN YEAR TO THE WHOLE SOCIETY____
3
EXHORTATIONS OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
TO THE CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
First Exhortation - - - - - -
10
Second Exhortation - - - - - - -
23
THE HOUSE OF THE ASSUMPTION ~--------- 36
James D. Carroll
THE SOCIETY OF JESUS, AN ESSENTIALLY MISSIONARY
ORDER ---------Bernard Saint-Jacques
47
CENTENARY AT WEST BADEN - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 65
Joseph Karol
A VILLA IS BORN------------B. J. Murray
72
HISTORICAL NOTE
Father Joseph Havens Richards' Notes
on Georgetown and the Catholic University - - - - - - - - - - 77
OBITUARY
Father John F. X. Murphy----------
--~-102
�BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
History of the Popes, Vols. XXXVIII to XL (Pastor) ____
The Life of Bishop Anthony J. Schuler, S.J., D.D.
(Sister M. Lilliana Owens, S.L.) ---------------------The Spanish Jesuit Mission in Virginia
(Lewis and Loomie) -----------------------------Our Shepherd (Boyer) ---------------------------The Story of the Romance (Rively) -------------------------Saints and Ourselves (Caraman) -------------------------Blackrobes in Lower California (Dunne) ------------------------The Two Voices (Steuart) -------------------------Our Best Friend· (Pesch) ------------------------------------The Life that is Grace (Matthews) --------------------------------
119
119
121
122
122
123
124
125
127
127
• • •
CONTRillUTORS
Mr. Bernard Saint-Jacques (Lower Canada Province) is a third
year philosopher at L'lmmaculee-Conception, Montreal, Canada.
Father James D. Carroll (New Orleans Province) is Professor of
Humanities at St. Charles College, Grand Coteau, La.
Mr. Joseph S. Karol (Missouri Province) is studying theology at
St. Mary's College, St. Marys, Kansas.
Father B. J. Murray (Missouri Province) teaches· religion at Regis
College, Denver, Colo.
Father E. J. Burrus (New Orleans Province) is Secretary of the
Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu and writer for the Monumenta
Historica Societatis Jesu.
Father Martin P. Harney (New England Province) teaches history
in the College of Business Administration at Boston College, Boston,
Mass.
·.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER
GENERAL ON THE MARIAN YEAR TO THE
WHOLE SOCIETY
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ: Pax Christi.
December 8 marks the beginning of the Marian year, in
which we shall celebrate the centenary of the proclamation of
the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. It is my wish, in
the spirit of the Encyclical Fulgens corona gloriae,t to discuss
with you what special action we, the companions of Jesus,
should take this year to show ourselves worthy sons of our
dear and loving Mother.
The Society from its very inception has always been distinguished by a tender, genuine and filial affection and devotion for the Most Blessed Virgin Mary-manifest in the lives
of the Saints and Blessed of the Society, and in the history of
its apostolic activity.
That this devotion to Mary, as a characteristic mark of our
Society, still flourishes, was shown recently when my predecessor, with universal approbation, sought and obtained the
privilege of celebrating liturgically the feast of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus. The whole Society remains dedicated in a filial manner to its most sweet
Mother.
And yet, must we not confess that our devotions, especially
those we have practiced from our youth, frequently are, as it
were, gradually deprived in the passage of time of the breath
of life, and slip into mere formalism? Therefore it is a good
thing, on the occasion of the Marian year, to consider how we
may honor the Most Blessed Virgin, and what in a practical ·
way and in the concrete, as they say, we can do to satisfy the
desires of the Supreme Pontiff, and venerate the Immaculate
Virgin with special devotion in this jubilee year.
Devotion to Mary
Above all I ask you-at least Superiors and those engaged
in the ministry-to read attentively the above-mentioned Encyclical. There you can find the practices of devotion and the
intentions in praying to Mary that are recommended by the
�4
THE MARIAN YEAR
Holy Father himself. 2 I urge you, then, in accordance with
the Ignatian method, to honor the Most Holy Virgin in three
ways: first, by meditating, examining and contemplating the
mystery of her Immaculate Conception and all her exalted
privileges; secondly, by striving humbly to imitate the example of her virtues; thirdly, by zealously spreading her
veneration among all the souls which divine Providence puts
in your path.
,,
Prayer
Children at play are wont to observe the actions and gestures
of their mother, and they have her continually, as it were,
before their eyes. Thus gradually and without knowing it
they imitate their mother's every movement. Is it not true
that in the mannerisms of a boy, indeed even of a youth and
a young man, in the way they smile and in their very tone of
voice, we recognize their striking resemblance to their mother?
And the more they have observed her, the more they are like
her.
Such I desire should be or become your attitude in prayer to
our heavenly Mother. May you so contemplate her with the
eager regard of the eyes of the soul, that you may unconsciously, as it were, imitate her virtues, and that the features
of her moral countenance, as it is said, may be imprinted
deeply on your souls: "Our Most Sweet Mother wishes for
nothing more, never rejoices more than when she sees those
whom, under the cross of her Son, she adopted as children
in His stead portray the lineaments and ornaments of her own
soul in thought, word and deed." 3
·,
Imitation of Mary
This imitation of her virtues is a second way of honoring the
Most Blessed Virgin-usually more difficult than simple contemplation. It is this means especially that the Supreme
Pontiff earnestly desires us to practice this Marian year:
'This centenary celebration should not only serve to revive
Catholic faith and earnest devotion to the Mother of God in the
souls of all, but Christians should also, in as far as possible,
conform their lives to the image of the same Virgin.' 4
�THE MARIAN YEAR
5
I shall dwell on the imitation of one virtue only, charity,
which embraces all the rest in an eminent degree. Charity
brings about a penetrating understanding of doctrine, it animates and unifies the whole Christian spiritual life, it furnishes
a true and stable foundation upon which all human society can
be built in peace for its own common good.
The Immaculate Conception is a mystery of love, both of a
divine love which goes before and predisposes the creature
chosen to be the Mother of the Word, and of a human supernatural love, whereby the humble Virgin of Nazareth, by a
complete and irrevocable offering of herself, responds to the
divine invitation.
This loving dedication, ineffably powerful and pure, removed all base concupiscence, all inordinate affection towards
herself or other creatures. Mary, the spouse of the Holy
Spirit, loves all men and all things in God and loves God alone
in all.
How can we imitate this splendid and personal perfection
of Mary's love?
1.-We should above all imitate our Mother by living for
God alone and by neglecting nothing which can contribute to
the attainment of perfection. We must ask ourselves sincerely: Do we always act in such a way that the faithful think
of us as men of God? Do they approach us often to hear from
our lips the words of God and His precepts? If we cannot
give an outright affirmative answer, let us not hesitate to seek
the cause for this failure of apostolic effectiveness: Do we
make our annual retreat, our daily meditation and examinations of conscience with the same fervor and care as in the
early days of our religious life?
2.-Another form of imitation will be in the full and honest
practice of supernatural indifference, of a self-denial regarding all that is not God and does not lead to God. This selfdenial takes in the exercise of the three vows of religion,
poverty, chastity and obedience.
Let us long with ardent desire to imitate Christ crucified by
renouncing not only illicit pleasures, but in the measure of
grace imparted to us, even those, which though licit and proper,
are unessential and distracting. To express it briefly: 'Pious
works of penance should be added to our united prayers.' 5
�6
THE MARIAN YEAR
3.-We shall imitate the charity of the Virgin Mary by
serving all men our brothers in humble devotion.
We must have a regard for reality. Those who have eyes
to see, who can distinguish the voice and the signs of the
times know with what desperate anguish the nations look for
a sign of the presence of the Redeemer, the sign of Christian
brotherly love, which is "the fulfillment of the Law.'' 6
Let us not be content with dispensing to this or that person
a passing "alms," whether spiritual or temporal, but let
us so strive to impress a 'stamp on society by the manifestation
of our love that we may promote the greatest common good of
all mankind. Let us learn to live in peace and cooperation
with each other that we may as far as in us lies improve the
disagreeable circumstances of every-day life. Let us not
weary of working together sincerely and earnestly with the
other members of the Mystical Body of Christ, and of striving
for the good of souls, preserving Ignatian discipline and order
in our labors. In directing the labors of others let us be firm
and prudent, with~ trust in God alone; in obeying let us be
simple and generous.
This love for society and mankind should urge us to embrace
gladly a life of poverty and austerity. As long as there are
men in the world who lack those goods which are absolutely
necessary for leading a life worthy of man, it should be intolerable for us to enjoy superfluities. Let us not wish to be
treated more gently than our Lord. "No disciple is above his
teacher.'' 7
Finally to be able to gain souls for Christ and provide for
their individual happiness, to convert sinners and infidels, the
apostolic priest above all must defend himself, through the
intercession of the Immaculate Virgin, with the shield of
chastity, so that he can be an effective and fatherly spiritual
guide, and even approach the table of sinners without being
stained by the foulness of sin.
The observance of the evangelical counsels, of poverty, chastity and obedience, by the manifestation of fraternal love,
carries with it extraordinary persuasive influence.
The third method of honoring the Immaculate Virgin is by
spreading devotion to her.
�THE MARIAN YEAR
7
Increasing Mary's Honor
According to their respective fields of endeavor let all try, as
far as possible, to induce those who serve us as well as our
own communities to put in practice the recommendations of
the Supreme Pontiff himself, 8 or of the Sacred Congregation
of Religious. 9
As far as we Jesuits are concerned, I wish all, especially
Superiors and those engaged in the ministry, to consider what
attitude they take towards Sodalities of our Lady. These
offer the Immaculate Virgin a homage that is unceasing and
characteristic of the Society, and for the abundant fruits of a
holy apostolate they have always been recommended earnestly
by my predecessors. Rev. Father Retz writes: "The Sodalities
of our Lady are justly reckoned among what may be considered the principal means devised by our Society for increasing divine worship and gaining the salvation of souls." 10
Do we follow with filial loyalty the direction given us by
Superiors, which expresses the will of God? Do we read over
at times what is written about the Sodalities-for example in
the time appointed for superiors to make their consideration?
Do we really have a high esteem for the Sodalities of our Lady?
Do we know about them-their rules, their history, the secret
of their effectiveness? Otherwise, how can we esteem what we
do not know? To the question why the Sodalities of our Lady
sometimes languish, Rev. Father Ledochowski answers: 'The
first cause, not only in order but in importance, is that many
of our own superiors and directors have no clear idea of the
essential nature of the Sodality, and do not sufficiently understand, indeed seem actually ignorant of what is the true purpose of the Sodality, what its interior spirit and what the
right manner of directing it.' 11
Have we seriously endeavored, especially since the promulgation of the Apostolic Constitution Bis Saeculari, to revive and restore with earnest apostolic zeal those Sodalities
which in the course of time became merely pious meetings?
"The director of a genuine Sodality of our Lady according to
authentic norms and with the help of divine grace will soon
realize that the Blessed Virgin has not ceased to be the Mother
of this generation also.'' 12
�8
THE MARIAN YEAR
Let us not too easily criticise an institution which perhaps
may have its defects; but let us strive unceasingly in a spirit
of confidence to restore and renew it by earnest fraternal cooperation.
What work can prove more pleasing and more acceptable to
the Mother of Jesus, Mary Immaculate, than that which leads
to her innumerable companies of men and women, boys and
girls, who steeped in a solid and deeply spiritual life, have
determined, according to their state of life, to imitate the
purity and chastity of their heavenly Mother? Their purpose
is to be able to serve the Church better, and leagued together
in orderly cooperation, to bring many others to the faith, the
practice of religion and even sanctity.
Let us have confidence, dear Fathers and Brothers in Christ,
in our Lady, our guide, our model and our protectress, who is
herself as valiant as a host in battle array; if we courageously
imitate her example, especially her charity, we shall see the
opposition of the enemies of God fade away and the kingdom
of our Lord Jesus Christ grow stronger day by day in peace
and love throughout the world.
I commend myself earnestly to your holy sacrifices and
prayers.
Given at Rome, December 3, 1953, on the feast of St. Francis
Xavier.
The servant of all in Christ
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS
General of the Society of Jesus
APPENDIX
A summary of the recommendations of the Sacred Congregation of Religious for the holy observance of the Marian
year, as embodied in the letters sent to Superiors General November 17-18, 1953.
A. For the Religious themselves :
1.-By reading, study and meditation let them strive to
gain a deeper understanding of the dogmas concerning the
Virgin Mary, especially the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.
�THE MARIAN YEAR
9
2.-Let Superiors have learned and fervent priests give
conferences on Mariology to their subjects.
3.-The following works and practices are particularly recommended:
a) That the eighth day of each month be set apart in a
special way for devotion to Mary;
b) That every Saturday Superiors and subjects assemble to invoke Most Holy Mary and to pray in the spirit
of penance for all-especially Religious-who are suffering persecution; that the rights of the Church may be
preserved throughout the world; that the persecutors
themselves may be converted;
c) That measures be employed calculated to animate the
very apostolate of the Religious with wholehearted and
renewed generosity;
d) That all the Houses, Provinces and Institutes endeavor to initiate some social or benevolent work.
B. For the students and alumni of the schools of Religious
or even for all who receive spiritual direction from Religious:
1.-To instruct them more deeply in the privileges and mysteries of the Most Blessed Virgin and especially the Immaculate Conception; to have them produce or fashion some artistic
or literary work in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
2.-To spread the custom of family recitation of the Rosary,
the practice of saying the Angelus, as well as personal consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
3.-To have them also initiate some work of a social character or cooperate effectively in existing works.
NOTES
1
A.A.S. XXXXV, 577, 592.
Ibid., 584-590.
8 Ibid., 584.
4 Ibid.
~ Ibid., 591.
6
Cf. Rom. 13.10.
7 Mt. 10.24.
8
A.A.S. XXXXV, 584-590.
9 See appendix.
10
Epist. Select. ed. IV. 145.
11 A.R. III. 448.
12 A.R. XI. 333.
2
�INTRODUCTORY EXHORTATION
OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
TO THE CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
September 27, 1953
At the beginning of Part VIII of the Constitutions our holy
Father, Saint Ignatius states: "Because the members of this
Congregation are scattered throughout different parts of the
world among the faithfuland infidels, union with one another
and with their head is much more difficult to achieve. We
must then with greater urgency seek out those means which
make for unity, since the Society can neither be preserved
nor governed, and much less can it attain the end toward
which it strives for the greater glory of God, unless its members are closely linked with one another and with their
head." 1
Then among the means calculated to foster this union Saint
Ignatius notes "that every third year at least one man from
each province should come to Rome to give Father General information on a variety of matters." 2 It is then with the deepest affection in the Lord that I greet each and_.'every one of
you who has had the opportunity to come here. · In spite of
the wonderful facilities of modern travel I cannot visit in
person the whole Society, since it is so far-flung; still it is a
pleasure for me to receive here at Rome men who are the
elected and trusted delegates of their provinces, and to talk
over with them in a spirit of paternal affection the affairs of
their provinces.
Purpose of Meeting
1.-According to a wise provision of the second General
Congregation of the year 1565 (deer. 19), sanctioned by the
twenty-seventh General Congregation, 3 it is the duty of the
Province Procurators not only to inform the General about
the conditions and undertakings in their provinces but also
to assemble as a Congregation to decide in view of their
knowledge of the whole Society whether or not a General
Congregation must be convened.
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
11
As you are aware, the formula of our Congregation, no. 18,
cites two cases in which a General Congregation should be
convened: the first, when the necessity arises for deliberation
on matters of great and permanent importance; the second,
when there is need of deliberation on conditions, which though
in themselves not permanent are yet so difficult as to become
the concern of the whole Society, or else they involve the
Society's methods of meeting a particular situation for which
the General and his Assistants have been at a loss to provide.
In this second case, however, there is another requirement to
be noted: it must appear certain that a General Congregation
can provide a remedy for such a situation. The wisdom of
these provisions is evident and has been confirmed in the long
history of the Society.
With equal wisdom the formula indicates (no. 15) that the
procurators should seek information concerning the state of
the Society and its affairs only from Father General, from
the other Fathers of the Congregation, including of course
the Fathers Assistant and the Secretary of the Society. All
others without proper delegation are prudently excluded for
fear that without any proportionate gain there should result
a grave detriment to peace and union of minds.
Finally, the formula (no. 19) warns the assembled Fathers
that in casting their ballots on the question whether or not a
General Congregation should be convened, they are not bound
by the opinion approved in their own Provincial Congregation, but are in duty bound to follow that opinion to which
they are more inclined in view of all the information which
they have received. It may well happen that facts which
have escaped the notice of one province were known in other
provinces or at Rome, and these facts may well influence the
Fathers to amend the vote taken in their own provinces.
The method followed in our Congregations, whether they be
Provincial Congregations, Procurators' Congregations or General Congregations, points up this fact: that the more faithfully we observe what is prescribed in the formula (which
has been sanctioned by a decree of a General Congregation,
the supreme authority in the Society), the more happy and
fruitful are the results of our labors in these Congregations.
�12
FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
And so in a spirit of humble obedience we shall carry out
faithfully and accurately the prescriptions of the formula,
and our esteem for it will be heightened by reading it over
carefully, paying special attention to its third chapter, De
petendis informationibus.
Recent History of Losses and Gains
2.-To help in the achievement of the purpose of this Congregation, and to carry out the duties of my office, like my
predecessors I should like to sketch briefly for you the events
which have occurred in the Society during the last three-year
period.
The absence of sorely missed procurators from the two
Provinces of Poland, and from the Provinces of Hungary and
Bohemia, and the absence from Rome of representatives from
the Vice-Provinces of Lithuania, Croatia, Rumania, Slovakia
and the Missions of the vast China mainland vividly remind
us of glorious pages in the history of our Society written in
the recent past and still being penned today. Hundreds of
Ours have been exiled, stripped of all their possessions, shut
up in prison or concentration camps, forced into military
service or slave labor, treated with contempt··before so-called
courts, tortured with hunger and every type of cruelty, and
in some cases murdered because of their loyalty to the Church.
This is the heroism for which we offer special thanks to the
Divine Goodness. Blessed are they who suffer persecution
for justice's sake. The two Provinces of Poland and the
Vice-Province of Croatia still survive, but they show the
effects of grim battles, while the rest of the Slavic Assistancy
has been tyrannically wiped out. In China there still remain
the British section of the Hongkong Mission and the city of
Macao. The other ten China Missions, once so flourishing,
have been liquidated. Meanwhile our Chinese Fathers with
exemplary courage and fidelity practically single-handed bear
the whole brunt of the attack. Some of them are now in
prisons; others are under house arrest; others in disguise
secretly minister to the faithful, while the few who are allowed a little more freedom find it difficult to work among the
souls committed to their care.
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
13
Practically to a man Ours have borne and are bearing this
stern test with constancy, strength of soul and fidelity to the
See of Peter and their own vocation. This we may regard
as a manifest sign that the Spiritual Exercises of our holy
Father Ignatius and the other experiments which he desired
for the formation of his sons have not lost their efficacy, and
that the Society of today vibrates with the same splendid
spirit of its founder.
Likewise the spirit of ardent zeal and love of Christ Our
Lord shines forth in the courage with which Ours in the last
three years have undertaken every new enterprise, no matter
how difficult.
In the vast territories of South America because the laborers
are few and the Church in grave danger from Protestantism,
Spiritism and Communism, we have attempted to step up the
work of the Apostolate there by using a new approach. Our
efforts were seconded by the ardent generosity with which
many provinces of the Society accepted the territory offered
to them. With the two independent Vice-Provinces already
set up in the regions of the Antilles and Ecuador, the two new
dependent Vice-Provinces of Bahia and Goriaz-Minas will
ease considerably the burden formerly carried by two Provinces of Brazil. Likewise the difficult mission of Diamantino
in Matto Grasso has been transferred from the Province of
Central Brazil to the Province of Southern Brazil, because
of the latter's greater personnel. With the formulation of
plans for the separation of Uruguay from the Province of
Argentina, the latter Province was relieved of the burden of
apostolic labor in Bolivia and Paraguay which are already
restaffed with admirable generosity by the heavily-manned
Province of Tarragona. Besides, preparations have been
made for the future division of the vast territory of the Province of Mexico with the appointment in the northern section
of a Vice-Provincial with his own group of consultors.
In India, where the work is progressing favorably, the
Province of Madura has been established. This is the first
Province since the restoration of the Society to be set up with
full rights in that part of the world. With a view to raising
other territories as soon as possible to the same status, the
�14
FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
missions of Bombay and Ranchi have been created independent Vice-Provinces. May God grant that in the near future
other missions of India through an increase in the number
of vocations may be able to follow the same path.
In Asia, the Mission of the Philippines has been raised to
the rank of a Vice-Province, though still dependent. Here
the Fathers of the New York Province, following in the paths
of the Spanish Fathers who preceded them in the same Mission, have brought about a state of affairs so flourishing, that
surely a few of the older provinces might well emulate their
progress, especially in the number of vocations.
Finally, not long after the last Congregation of Procurators, in compliance with the wishes of its Provincial Congregation the Vice-Province of Australia was granted the status
of a province with full rights.
Since the China Missions on the mainland were suppressed,
a new mission to the dispersed Chinese is being organized.
Many missionaries expelled from China, now subject to the
one Superior of extra-China Missions, are busy laboring for
Chinese on the island of Formosa, in the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaya, just to mention· a few of the
more important places.
When the Province of Sicily was relieved of its mission in
Greece and the Province of Turin had its mission in Pengu
suppressed, they sent their men to help the French Provinces
with their work in the island of Madagascar.
It became necessary to suppress juridically the Mission in
the Orient served by the Province of Greater Poland. It was
already destroyed by violence and owing to the changed political setup in that territory it showed no hope of coming to
life in the near future.
The international seminaries in Rome conducted by the Society, with the approval of the Supreme Pontiff, have been
placed under the immediate jurisdiction of Father General.
The purpose of this move was to save the Roman Province
from being overburdened and to conform to the general practice here at Rome for the administration of international institutions.
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
15
For similar reasons, and also with papal approval, the
Astronomical Observatory at Castel Gandolfo has been made
a work common to the whole Society.
At the Gregorian University, an Institute of Social Sciences
has been added to the Faculty of Philosophy. Such an Institute serves the pressing need of those sections of the Church
which are not yet able to set up their own Catholic Social
Institutes.
Two special works common to the Society, the Apostleship
of Prayer and the Sodalities of Our Lady, have received new
and visible tokens of goodwill from the Supreme Pontiff. He
has approved the new statutes of the Apostleship of Prayer
and also those drawn up for the formation of an International
Federation of Sodalities.
Growth and Expansion
3.-I shall not go into an exhaustive enumeration of the
houses which have been opened, divided, transferred or abandoned during the last three years. Omitting mention of
modifications effected by persecution in the countries known
to you, I shall list some of the more notable changes.
For various reasons the following colleges were closed: the
College of Frascati in Italy, the college for externs at Biiren
in Germany, the College of .Commerce at Barcelona, Spain,
and the recently organzied college in Nirmala, Delhi. The
college at Muntilan in the island of Java was given over to
other religious; the minor seminaries in Guatemala, at Coro
in Venezuela and at Gravatai in Brazil, were restored to the
diocesan clergy. Due to the increase in numbers of our young
men in Houses of Formation the following institutions were
separated from the houses to which they formerly belonged:
the Novitiate of the Province of Eastern Germany (Ockenheim), the Novitiate of the Province of Upper Germany
(Neuhausen), the Juniorate of the Provinces of Germany
(Tisis), the Juniorate of the Missions of Northeast India
(Ranchi), the Philosophate of the Province of New Orleans
and the Philosophate of the Provinces of New York and Maryland and the Vice-Province of the Philippines.
�lG
FIRST EXHORTATION TO TilE PROCURATORS
I am sending out a list of schools which have been separated
from residences and of independent colleges which have been
erected. I shall send out also a list of Houses of Retreat
which are either annexed to institutions already existing or
have been set up as independent establishments.
Now to review the important new foundations. A second
novitiate has been opened in the Provinces of Tarragona,
Mexico and Missouri; a new novitiate was founded in Bolivia
(Cochabama), and it is hoped that one will soon be started in
Paraguay; in Venezuela a Catholic University is to be founded
this October; two colleges have been started in the United
States, one at Phoenix in the Province of California and the
other at Rochester in the Province of New York; in Latin
America, colleges have been set up in Guatemala, at Barquisimeto in Venezuela, at Asuncion in Paraguay, and at San
Juan in Puerto Rico; in Bogota, Colombia, the government
has restored to us our old College of St. Bartholomew; through
the generosity of the President of the Dominican Republic
we have been given the Polytechnical Institute of St. Christopher in San Cristobal; in India three colleges have been
established, at Gomptipur and Mitapur in the Ahmedabad
Mission and at Hazaribagh in Ranchi; soon a fourth will be
opened in the Telugu region of the Province of -Madura. In
North Africa at Rabat, Morocco, a technical school has been
started; in Central Africa there is now a college in the region
of Urundi at Usumbura, and in the Belgian Congo there is a
technical institute at Makungika. Our Fathers of the Patna
Mission have been able to penetrate a land closed for ages to
Catholic missionaries and have founded a college at Katmandu,
the capital city of Nepal. In India and Venezuela, Institutes
of Social Studies have been officially established. Mention
should be made of the unique house for missionary activity
set up by the Province of Venice-Milan in cooperation with
the Province of Turin; it is ideally located at the head of the
Po valley, a section badly infected with Communism. In view
of the happy results of this project, the Province of Rome will
soon undertake a similar work in Tuscany where the same
dangers exist.
On the list of other houses which have been erected we note
the restoration of the well-known professed house in Madrid;
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
•
~
1.
17
to the number of native language schools already in existence
have been added schools in Bolivia, in Paraguay, on the island
of Ceylon and at Baghdad. At Hongkong and Formosa a
House of Writers has been founded for Sinologists.
This is a recapitulation of only the principal changes in the
setup of our houses. A full listing would show over a hundred houses in part or entirely new, with thirty-five houses
suppressed or temporarily closed. But what we have noted
is enough to show that the Society in accordance with the
spirit of her founder is at the service of the Holy See to work
anywhere for the good of souls and shows herself flexible
enough to meet as far as lies in her limited power the needs
of our times. How comparatively little can sixteen thousand
priests, a mere handful scattered throughout the world, accomplish, when we consider that Latin America is easily
short of forty thousand priests needed to minister to the most
urgent needs of souls ! Yet, if all of us according to our
physical ability do what is in our power, through the all-powerful grace of God our small efforts will reap an abundant
harvest.
Still sufficient, and even plentiful, are the numbers of vocations to the Society, except in the greater part of Italy and
practically the whole of France. In these countries laicism
has so deeply infected so many families that it has become
far more difficult than in other days for the seed planted in
the soul by divine grace to germinate.
Although here and there some effort has been made, I
would not venture to assert that a suitable remedy has yet
been found for our scarcity of Coadjutor Brothers. We suffer a real loss in the religious life of our houses because our
Brothers are so few. To our prayers and Holy Sacrifices
should be joined mutual assistance in working out for this
problem various approaches suited to different sections of
the world.
The status of the Society in temporal matters is practically
everywhere beset with difficulties and is precarious. Yet
this situation is calculated to keep aflame our trust in Divine
Providence. Conditions would be much better if provincials
with proper foresight would see that procurators of provinces
�18
FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
or of larger houses received training through special studies
and practical experience. If it was ever true in the past, yet
certainly in our day it is no longer enough that one, in a spirit
of obedience but otherwise unqualified, should undertake the
task of managing the goods (or the debts) of the Society.
What great losses provinces or houses have suffered and still
are suffering from this carelessness on our part!
Interior Spirit
4.-These remarks should about suffice to explain the external state of the Society. When we turn our attention to
the interior state of the Society, it would be rash for me to
make unqualified assertions. God alone reads the inner
heart; we from our observations can make only some conjectures.
The spirit of zeal and fortitude, of self-denial and prompt
obedience in matters of greater moment, which I praised when
speaking of Ours who are undergoing persecution at the hands
of Christ's enemies, flourishes today throughout the whole
Society. In the matter of our daily life many faults crop up,
and when you take them all together, you are inclined to conclude that we are too negligent in the observa~c·e of our Constitutions and Rules. But if one is to make a sound judgment,
he must take into consideration not just a single line, but the
whole picture. Suppose a superior reports to me: In a particular house there is need of greater regularity; and also
reports that in that same house all seem devoted to the duty
obedience has imposed upon them even to the detriment of
their health. The first item reported is certainly not something to be approved, but in forming a judgment about that
community I give consideration also to the report of its spirit
of devotion to duty.
As my predecessor Father Ledochowski frequently said, "In
Ours there should be a thirst not only for virtue, but also for
religious perfection." We cannot be content to lead the lives
of good and zealous priests; we must push on farther to that
greater abnegation and humility which is the basis of a more
fervent and active charity proper to the religious state.
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
19
Defections: Causes and Remedies
5.-Judging from the Acts of some provincial Congregations, it would appear that some view with alarm what they
term an increase in the number of dismissals from the Society. Permit me to touch briefly on this matter. In the
first place, we should not make lightly such general statements.
With great care we must first examine statistics and not be
too ready to affirm that everything was better in the past.
Let us remember that from the earliest days of the Society
these defections occurred. It could well be that an increased
number of dismissals is a sign, not so much of inconstancy on
the part of subjects, as of salutary severity on the part of
superiors. The Instructions against tolerating failures in
the second vow, dating back almost to the period of Father
Beckx, and still in force in the Society, are more stringent
than those promulgated in the time of Father Aquaviva. And
it is to be desired that all, both superiors and confessors, show
firmness in following these norms. Our times, full of dangers
and temptations, make this imperative.
Should one investigate the chief causes of this want of perseverance, the answer today is the same as in the past: "he
who contemns small things shall fall by little and little."'
Rightly have ascetical authors applied this text of Scripture
to spiritual matters. The religious, be he young or old, even
ordained and with last vows, who neglects the norms set up
by obedience and prudence, who judges that he is exempt
from observing the Rules or looks upon them as examples of
outmoded formalism, should not be surprised if after months
and years he finds himself destitute of a supernatural outlook,
weak in time of temptation and wearied of life in the Society.
From the earliest days of the Society down to the present day
this is the sorrowful history of most defections.
We are not immune from the contagion of the world. Our
candidates carry in this spirit with them. Afterwards in our
daily life we meet this spirit in books, periodicals, on the
radio, in movies and even in those constant dealings with externs which our particular vocation requires. Surely we can
and should avoid unnecessary dissipation. Superiors on their
Part must understand how grave is their obligation to protect
�20
FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
their subjects from dangers into which they carelessly may
have plunged themselves. Superiors must remember that no
one, not even a priest or a man in religious life for many
years, is confirmed in grace except by a divine privilege.
Still, no matter what superiors may do, we are never safe,
unless each one of Ours courageously and constantly leads a
strong spiritual life of prayer and recollection.
Supernaturalism Versus Naturalism
6.-We are not isolated· from the environment of naturalism
and materialism. When these evil doctrines are proposed by
Communists, we bar them at the threshold; but let us watch
for fear that we may carelessly admit such doctrines when
they creep in through other entrances. If we lay claim to
every convenience of life which those about us are so eager to
enjoy, what are we doing if not embracing the spirit of the
world and banishing the spirit of penance, of reparation for
sin, of mortification of the passions and every disorder? If
we excuse ourselves from observance of the Rule, if we freely
question the orders of superiors or church authority and weigh
all things in a scale of our own fashioning, what else are we
doing but turning our backs on Him who is "meek and humble
of heart," and returning to the world with its pride of life?
If we pass over in silence the parable of the rich man and
Lazarus to think only of the present and to give scarcely a
thought to eternity, do we not incur the judgment passed upon
that same rich man?
Naturalism would have us rely too much in our apostolic
work upon our natural talents and not enough upon the workings of God's grace. From naturalism springs a disturbed
state of mind when visible success is slow to appear and does
not measure up to our expectations. Certainly the desire to
adopt newer and better methods in our apostolate springs from
zeal, and such a spirit is timely and imperative. It is the
mark of a lazy and slothful man to think that we must travel
oniy old, well-beaten paths. Yet at the same time we must
take care that we do not forget the fact that only those
methods which are eternal and revealed to us by God Himself
will be fully efficacious. Diligent religious instruction of the
�FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
21
young, and today also of adults, continual insistence on the
practice of prayer, use of the sacraments, particularly Penance and the Eucharist, the avoidance of sin, of impurity and
injustice, of hatred and envy, and flight from occasions of
sin-these are the means we must use, otherwise our most
carefully devised techniques remain and will always remain
useless. And so, even though some may not think this exactly opportune, I insist and I shall not cease to insist on the
performance of those works proper to the Society, works
which are directly supernatural: conduct of the Spiritual
Exercises in both "closed" and "open" retreats, the work of
the Apostleship of Prayer and the Sodalities of Our Lady.
Without this directly supernatural apostolate the social
apostolate, so necessary in so many parts of the world (particularly in Latin America, Asia and Africa), will effect little
for the salvation of souls and the cause of world peace.
We are exposed and will always be exposed to the world's
dangerous teachings about philosophy, dogmatic theology and
moral theology. In the fields of philosophy and theology the
Encyclical Humani generis has given us some timely warnings.
We have tried to make the provisions of this document effective by a special letter to the whole Society and by other means,
either openly employed or covered by professional secrecy, as
charity and the practice of the Church demand. s Against
errors on sexual morality disseminated for years in various
places, Ours have waged a strong and heroic battle. But I
do not think that the danger from this quarter is passed; and
so, Superiors must constantly take care lest some who allow
themselves to be ruled more by feelings than by reason be
taken in by specious theories. With full fidelity and no false
sympathy we must uphold the precepts of the natural law
and the teaching of the Church. In dealing with matters of
this sort anyone, who omits mention of the sacraments and
grace and trusts in merely natural aids, has clearly swerved
from the right path. Finally, in Germany, in Anglo-Saxon
and Slavic countries we are continually faced with problems
not so well known in Latin countries. These problems arise
from our dealings with non-Catholic Christians. In meeting
these problems Ours have proved themselves not only immune
from error, but also energetic in spreading the teaching .of the
�22
FIRST EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
Church. If anyone is detected veering off from the right path,
then, as in the past so in the future, with God's help salutary
warnings, reprimands and corrections will not be wanting.
In doctrinal matters we must avoid two extremes. In the
first place we must not be stricter than the Church and we
should not condemn those opinions which, though not yet
commonly held, one is still free to uphold. Secondly, we must
not in any way compromise with doctrines which are dangerous or lead to dangerous conclusions. Let us faithfully follow the wise directives ..of our Institute: in our teaching let
us follow doctrines which are entirely safe,S in our studies
let us courageously and prudently seek ways "to fight in defense of the ancient faith with new weapons." 7 In the Society this has ever been a fruitful tradition; it has produced
our great theologians, our trusted defenders and heralds of
the faith, our pioneers for progress in the sacred sciences,
who were not only fearless but also trustworthy.
Let these few remarks suffice for now. Instead of expounding further my own judgment on the present state of the Society, it is better that I await the judgment made by you who
have been delegated for this task by the whole Society.
In the modern world where all things, tempo_ral and spiritual alike, are everywhere turned upside-down;·heavier indeed
is the responsibility of religious superiors and all those whom
the Spirit of God has appointed to feed the flock of Christ.
May the Spirit of Good Counsel grant light in abundance to
all of us on whose shoulders now lies the burden of promoting
the welfare of the whole Society.
NOTES
Const. P. VIII, c. 1, n. 1 (655).
Ibid. P. VIII, c. 2 B ( 679).
s Fo1·m. Congreg. Proc. c. 1.
4 Eccli. XIX, 1.
GA. R. XII, 47-72.
e Epit. Inst. 314-321.
7 Coll. Deer. d. 105; Epit. Inst. 322.
1
2
�SECOND EXHORTATION
OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
TO THE CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
September 30, 1953
On the occasion of a Congregation of Procurators it is
customary for the General not only to give each delegate a
message for his own province but to discuss with all the
delegates as a group certain matters of common interest to
all provinces. The points of particular urgency in the present day, which I would commend to you and through you to
the whole Society, can be grouped under two main headings:
first there is the matter of the interior life, and secondly the
matter of our apostolic labor.
The Interior Life
1.-It is now almost seven years since I, in accordance with
the wishes of the last General Congregation, sent a letter to
the whole Society on the matter of fostering the interior life. 1
As then, so now I recommend the letter to your prayerful
consideration and I would wish to see its suggestions reduced
to practice.
As my predecessor of happy memory, Father Ledochowski,
pointed out in the twenty-eighth General Congregation, our
danger lies in this, that we may grow content to lead the
lives of good priests and of good Christians following a community form of life. Certainly it is no small achievement
to live the life of a good Christian and show oneself humble,
chaste, honest, temperate, charitable and devoted to good
works. May the Divine Goodness save us from the deadly
delusion which might lead us to believe that if we are seemingly devoted to prayer and regular observance, we may disPense with the common every-day virtues. Indeed I am
mystified when sometimes it is reported to me that so-and-so
is really a good religious, and yet he refuses even to speak
to a fellow-religious in the same community, or neglects entirely the work obedience has entrusted to him so that he may
take his ease or do things which are pleasing to him. How
�24
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
can a man be called a good religious, when he does not keep
well even God's commandments?
For us, then, there are God's commandments to be observed;
but there are also the evangelical counsels embodied in our
vows, and along with them our Rules, sanctioned by the
Church, proposed to us in the Novitiate and on our vow day
publicly accepted by us in the presence of the Church as an
obligatory plan of life. Our vows and Rules delineate how
the evangelical perfection, which we profess to follow in our
vocation, is to be worked out in the details of our daily lives.
True perfection in the ·sight of God surely consists in a fervent spirit of internal charity which prompts us to observe
the commandments and counsels, the rules and inspirations
which the Holy Spirit pours into each one's soul. But an
apparent sensible feeling of this charity divorced from the
faithful fulfillment of tasks imposed by obedience would be
a mere delusion.
Primary Duties of Superiors
2.-The interior life, consisting in a continual interchange
of love between God and the soul, is, was and ever will remain
the heart of our entire apostolate. As our holy Father, Saint
Ignatius, stated: "These are the interior thfngs from which
force must flow to the exterior for the end proposed to us." 2
All superiors are to remember that their chief duty does not
consist in fostering good relations with civil and ecclesiastical
authorities, nor in the management of the temporal affairs of
a house or school, nor in wise planning for progress in studies.
All these things are necessary, but there is something more
important. The first and foremost question which a superior
should propose to himself is this: What is the spiritual condition of my community and of each individual committed to
my care? Not that the superior is the sole Spiritual Father
of the community, but it is his duty to see to it not only that
all his subjects faithfully perform their external assignments,
but also that they make use of aids to stability in spiritual
life, such as prescribed prayer, regularity and religious observance. Should his subjects be negligent in these matters
or the Spiritual Father fail in his duty, then it devolves upon
the superior to take care that each one preserves his zeal for
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
25
religious fervor. Before the Supreme Judge a superior will
have to answer before everything else for the souls of the
Religious committed to his charge.
Hence a superior should count it among his main concerns
to be approachable, so that in accordance with the wishes of
Saint Ignatius his subjects, whether asked or of their own
volition, may with ease fully disclose to him the state of their
souls. 3 Let subjects, too, look upon the superior with the
eyes of faith and not consider themselves fervent members
of the Society, unless throughout their whole lives, and even
after many years in religion, they make use of the humble
and sincere manner of giving an account of conscience which
they learned at the beginning of their religious lives. What
deplorable falls and even apostasies from the Society could
have been prevented if some, as their spirit of faith grew
cold, had not gradually omitted and perhaps condemned this
splendid practice only to deprive themselves of a strong help
and a sure remedy for their spiritual troubles!
Superiors should take care that each year all their subjects
faithfully make the Spiritual Exercises in their entirety and
in accordance with the tradition of the Society. Let them
check the abuse of proposing to Ours exercises which are
not Ignatian. They should see to it that the Exercises are
given to Ours according to the method of St. Ignatius, which
calls for short points set forth in summary fashion (Annot. 2)
and affords one the opportunity for private prayer to
which the whole assigned time is to be given, no matter how
difficult or desolate it may be (Annot. 12 and 13). They must
be watchful to make sure that during the period of retreat,
even those who are more mature and have received their last
vows are kept free from all temporal concerns, which may
have their proper place at another time (Annot. 20). I fear
that in this respect some superiors show weakness. As
Father Aqua viva used to note: "At the least sign of resistance
on the part of a subject or to please particular individuals
who might grumble, or to prevent stirring up a hornet's nest
against themselves, some superiors do an injury to the spiritual welfare of a subject and even do harm to the whole Society."4
Is not this same weakness of some superiors manifest in the
�26
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
faltering manner in which they carry out their duty to see
that all faithfully fulfill the daily spiritual duties prescribed
by Rule? Frequently it is reported to me that the rule of
visiting Ours during the time of meditation and examen of
conscience, a rule sanctioned by the whole Society at the time
of the seventh General Congregation (held in 1615-1616, cf.
deer. 25) and reaffirmed by the twenty-seventh General Congregation (deer. 53), is not observed because "such a display
of mistrust on the part of superiors" is frowned upon particularly by younger members of the community. Let us keep
far from the government of the Society anything that smacks
of the spying methods employed by those who do not have
the courage to work in the open; but let us use that vigilance
demanded by human weakness. Let all of us be humble and
acknowledge that our frailty is helped if our superiors exercise some watchfulness over us. All are frankly told that
they will be visited;. they know who the visitor will be; they
realize that it is the visitor's duty to report to the superior
at fixed times. In~ this whole procedure is there anything
wrong or something that is not above-board? All superiors
are to realize that the decree concerning visits during times
of daily spiritual duties is still in force and is to be observed;
the only exceptions granted are those explicitly--·or implicitly
conceded in Ordinations of the Fathers General. 5
As I pointed out in my Letter on Fostering the Interior
Life fidelity to morning meditation will be greatly helped if
superiors take care that subjects go to bed at the appointed
time. 6 Who is not rightly surprised at the fact that in certain scholasticates the superiors do not dare to insist on this
point even with Scholastics? Whom should we be striving
to please-men or God? At times superiors themselves tell
me that they do not know at what hour of the night some
Fathers return home. Whose duty is it to know, if not the
superior's? It is the responsibility of the superior to check
the abuse of visiting externs without permission. Moreover,
permission to visit friends and acquaintances, particularly in
the evening, is not to be granted unless the greater good of
souls demands it. Let the superior himself set an example
for others; then no small profit will accrue to the spiritual
life of the community and each of its members.
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
27
Qualifications for Spiritual Directors
3.-This fostering of the interior life will be greatly helped
if Ours have Spiritual Fathers whom they approach with
ease. What explanation can there be for the universal complaint that we lack men to fill this office worthily and well?
Have we not deceived ourselves in believing that the matter
of providing good Spiritual Fathers has been sufficiently
cared for by the appointment of men advanced in years and
praiseworthy for their good example? Certainly it is necessary that one appointed to this important office be a man of
proven virtue. But where there is question of one who is to
train the Novices, or direct Scholastics in Houses of Formation
or guide the Tertians, solid virtue acquired by long ascetical
training is not enough. There is need of certain additional
talents of heart and mind; there is required a scientific training in what we know as ascetical theology. Remember the
sharp complaints of St. Theresa of Jesus about confessors
who were pious but destitute of knowledge! A confessor
should indeed be holy; but in addition, especially where it is
a matter of directing Religious, he should be soundly trained.
Tertian Instructors should take care that the Tertian Fathers
have a knowledge of the Institute, but even more so a solid
training in ascetical theology. Let them stress with the Tertian Fathers the special need in their private reading for a
methodical perusal of the classic spiritual authors and give
them direction in their spiritual reading. In very many Tertianships too much time is devoted to works of the ministry
(such ministries-whether done uninterruptedly or intermittently-are to be limited to a period of one month); sufficient
time should be provided for these ascetical studies. All the
Tertian Fathers should realize that the direction of souls in
the way of perfection is accounted one of the primary works
of the Society. 7 What work could be more divine? This is
an office which the Church expects us to fill. We are not to
say lightly, "The Spiritual Exercises of our holy Father,
Saint Ignatius, are enough for us; they, taken alone, offer a
safe plan for spiritual direction." It is beyond question that
the Spiritual Exercises do provide sound spiritual norms, and
one who faithfully follows these principles with great gener-
�28
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
osity of heart will undoubtedly attain a high degree of perfection. Still, Saint Ignatius did not intend to list all the
principles of the spiritual life, but only those which would
serve the purpose toward which the Exercises were directed.
But today, quite understandably, there is a demand for an exposition of the deeper theological foundations of ascetical
principles. Hence, in treating of the matter, the twentyeighth General Congregation in its twenty-first decree recommended that "Masters ~of Novices, Spiritual Fathers and Professors of Ascetical Tli'eology trace out the sound dogmatic
principles and conclusions which are the basis for spiritual
doctrine." 8 Certainly to comply with this recommendation
such men should be well experienced not only in the practice
of virtue, but also in the knowledge of spiritual principles.
And so, I again advise major superiors not to hesitate in
sending to Rome (or somewhere else, if a better opportunity
presents itself) for a "biennium" in ascetical theology, young
Fathers who they judge will be suitable Masters of Novices
or Spiritual Fathers. With such planning there is reason
for the hope that after a few years the Society will again have
skilled spiritual writers whose number today is far too small.
The whole matter comes down to this: every;· superior in the
Society should place the spiritual life of his subjects above
all other concerns. Temporal prosperity, a high degree of
perfection in intellectual work, a wide reputation for writers
and preachers, impressive and flashy projects are not to be
valued as much as the merit before God of the humble, mortified, laborious and holy lives of our religious.
· These remarks will suffice for the matter of fostering the
interior life, a subject which has often been treated on other
occasions. Now I would like to note a few points with regard
to our apostolic labors.
Basic Principles of the Apostolate
4.-0n all sides is heard the saying that our works must be
adjusted to meet the needs of our times. Now anyone who
will deny this assertion would be closing his eyes to patent
facts. Still the situation in which we find ourselves must be
rightly understood. It is not peculiar to this age that there
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
29
is a difference in reaction to Christian teaching, with a ready
acceptance on the part of some, with small response on the
part of others and no response at all on the part of many.
Christ's words are perennially true: "The sower went out to
sow his seed; and as he sowed some fell ... upon a rock." 9
It is not characteristic of this age alone that faithful souls
are comparatively few. Christ spoke for all ages when he
said, "How narrow is the gate, and strait the way that leads
to life, and few there are that find it; how wide is the gate,
and broad is the way that leads to destruction." 10 It is not a
phenomenon unique at this particular period of history that
the Church is found to be militant and not triumphant. So
we should beware of the illusion entertained by some who
seem to hope that with a change of methods practically everyone in a short time will accept the word of God. So, too, we
must guard against a spirit of naturalism which would have
us forget that in the world the activity of Satan, an evil spiritual power hostile to God, is influencing and aiding the attacks
of men on the Church and on truth.
As I noted in my introductory exhortation, the methods to
be used in our apostolate are in some measure unchangeable
and constant. Against the "spirits of wickedness" 11 we must
always fight with those spiritual weapons entrusted to us by
Christ and the Apostles. What faith teaches us and what
the Church proposes to us are never to be jeopardized.
Moreover, today there is a certain danger, fully warranted
by facts, that we may wish to alter principles in accordance
with actual situations, so that the norm of action would become, not what should be done, but what actually is being
done. A good number of those outside the Catholic Church
do not readily admit the existence of absolute norms of truth
and morality, which have been established by God, the author
and sanctifier of human nature, and which must be followed
if one would avoid eternal spiritual destruction. Among us
let there be no weakness, which would make us slaves of socalled "public opinion." Recall again Saint Paul's words, "If
I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ." 12
God has chosen us out of the crowd that He might station us
among men as his ambassadors who fear no man and who
Proclaim the truth to all, to individuals and to nations, whether
�30
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
they find the truth agreeable or distasteful. We should
be far removed f:rom that strange weakness of personality
which is no longer able to think for itself and can only reiterate sayings which happen to be current and accepted among
the many. It is the duty of the priest under God's guidance
and inspiration to lead and not to be led. In the formation
of such leaders a main factor is the Society's course in philosophy and theology, pursued with the depth and the positive
and profoundly speculative approaches intended by Saint
Ignatius.U
These certainly are the fixed elements in our methods and
they are not to be modified to fit this particular age.
Catholic Flexibility
5.-In connection with the elements that apparently should
be changed, I will make only two observations; both are based
on those norms which our holy Father, Saint Ignatius, gave
us with regard to the choice of ministries.
First of all, the fact that a certain work or house or college
has been long established and has become dear to us is not a
conclusive proof that we should hold on to any of them.
Among the houses founded one hundred or eight§ or fifty years
ago, some are now superfluous. It could very well be that
in a certain town or city or region there has been an increase
in the numbers and abilities of both diocesan and religious
priests. If we relinquish foundations in such places, the
Church and the care of souls will not be impaired. Is it not
our duty according to the Institute and the spirit of our
Founder to give up even possessions which are dear to us, in
order that we may devote our resources to other projects
which, though arduous, are seen to be more conducive to the
greater glory of God? Provincials and provinces should not
be amazed. when such sacrifices are asked of them. Our aim
must be not to labor merely for the good of a province or
even of our Order, but to work for the good of the Church.
Quite rightly we implant in the hearts of Ours a love of this
Society to which God has called each one of us; but let us
fix more deeply in their minds a love for the Church.
The present age more than any other demands this catholic
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
31
flexibility envisioned by Saint Ignatius. With it we dedicate
all our energies not to our own province, or our own assistancy, or our own nation, but to the world-wide Church. More
and more today the boundaries separating nation from nation
are disappearing and it is my hope that the narrower limits
of our own little provinces may not hem us in from laboring
for the universal good. Our Society was so instituted that
with its readiness "to labor in any part of the world where
there was hope of promoting God's greater service and the
salvation of souls" it might be always at hand to serve the
Holy See wherever needs were greater.H This is one reason
why our holy Father, Saint Ignatius, paid little notice to
ministries which tied Ours to one place, such as the management of parishes or the continual direction of Religious
women ;1 5 for with a large segment of the Society already involved in the conduct of schools, it would not be good to have
the rest of the Society shackled in its other ministries.
There should be no cause for wonder when I insist that we
give up several projects in our provinces and send greater
numbers to Latin America or to the foreign missions. There
should be no surprise when for the staffing of institutions here
in Rome I summon from provinces their very best professors.
This is a course of action demanded of me, if I am to carry out
the substantial requirements of our Institute ~1 6 this is a duty
imposed upon me by present day needs and by the Society
in virtue of my office.
We are to remember that we do not labor for the .Church
apart from others but along with them. So our work cannot
be conducted as if the Society alone existed. All our works
must dovetail with the other works of the Church.
We should not strive that our works, our houses and our
colleges be set up as rivals to the works and houses and colleges of others. Let us transfer our resources where ministries for the needs of souls do not yet exist, where there are
no religious houses, no Catholic colleges. As I pointed out
in my letter to the whole Society Concerning Our Ministries, 11
We are not to start projects which others are already conducting; and without the least difficulty we leave to them works
Which they desire. We must keep intact that independence
from diocesan bishops which the Church grants us and wishes
�32
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
maintained, for we must always be at the service of the supreme Pastor rather than the pastors of particular dioceses.
Yet at the same time humbly and zealously and devotedly we
must collaborate with the bishops whom the Holy See, either
directly or through the superiors of the Society, has directed
us to help.
More particularly collaboration among different Religious
Institutes is to be promoted. In some places under the
supervision of the Apostplic Nuncio, in other places through
the self-initiated activity of provincials of various Institutes
there are being held conferences of superiors, similar to the
meetings of the Superior Generals here in Rome. In these
meetings, along with a fostering of mutual charity and the
universal good, joint discussion is held on problems of common interest. Such efforts are in full accord with modern
needs and the mind of the Holy See. It is hoped that in this
way there may gradually arise a closer unity in action to the
advantage of the w}10le Catholic apostolate.
Time and again I have pointed out the present day need
that in addition to their traditional general formation given
in the Society, which more than ever before must today be
solid and sound, many of Ours should receiv.i training in
those special branches of knowledge, now so multiplied by
progress in research. Although many more men have been
set aside for such studies, yet in some places their numbers
are still too small. It is not a sacrifice to send Scholastics to
universities, even when there arises a temporary curtailment
of manpower for existing works. Who will call "a sacrifice"
the allocation of funds which will reap richer returns in the
future? Such investments are the marks of wisdom and
foresight.
The first point, then, which I would have noted in this matter of adapting our ministries to modern needs is that we
are to be Catholic, and more and more Catholic with each
passing day.
Teaching and Practice of Social Justice
My second point deals with a specialized matter which I
treated at length four ·y ears ago in an Instruction to the
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
33
whole Society concerning the apostolate to bring modern life
into alignment with the norms of justice and charity. I would
not dare to assert that this Instruction On the Social Apostolate/8 which was worked out in accordance with the decrees
of the last two General Congregations, has produced everywhere the fruits I hoped for. It is in this matter that some
delude themselves into believing that no innovation should
be introduced, no methods are to be improved and one can
still travel the same old beaten paths. Experience is bearing
witness to the fact that not merely in many but in a majority
of institutions conducted by the Society the students and
alumni are still a long distance away from a frame of mind
which squares with the Gospels and is sought for by the
Church in her sons. I commend highly the achievements in
certain localities where particularly in the upper grades youth
has been well educated in a spirit of charity towards the
overwhelming number of men who drag out their days tortured by want. Yet I grieve because the same accomplishments are still to be looked for in other places. If the love
of Christ Our Lord, suffering in His poor, does not move us
as it should, at least we should be roused by the fear of subversive doctrines spread daily farther and farther abroad.
Let us not deceive ourselves with the false assurance that civil
laws and governments, external force and threats, form a
barrier to the dissemination of vicious teachings. I do not
know of a single instance in history which shows that any
doctrine was ever wiped out by force. Only a doctrine that
is at once truer and better and more effective can uproot a
false and baneful body of principles. The masses will not
Pay any attention to a truer doctrine unless actual results
show it to be a better and more effective norm for life. Our
~eachings must instil in the rich a finely tempered restraint
ln the use of wealth, a sacrifice of the insatiable craving for
money, a care for the rights of the poor, and a sustained effort
to eradicate the excessive inequality in living conditions. All
this they must be taught to do at the cost of their own convenience and a renunciation of their position of powerful
domination. Unless our doctrine is implemented in this way,
how will the poor be able to envision our teaching as a plan
which can win for them a station in life suited to the dignity
�34
SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
of a man and a son of God? They will reiterate what they
are now saying everywhere over and over again: "You preach
a very fine-sounding doctrine, but only the Socialists and the
Communists have done something to improve our condition."
In the Instruction already cited I have at greater length
shown the roles to be played by the laity and by priests.19
Certainly it is always our duty so to train the laity, particularly in our colleges and houses of retreat, that they may
be prepared for effective activity in the social field. There
is profit in discussing -Without vexation and overzealousness
the various experiments made by our Fathers and others in
the apostolate among the working classes. Different procedures will be advantageously employed according to the
needs of various places. It would be a distinct step in the
right direction if certain men from regions where we are still
far from our goal would at times visit places where the success of our efforts would seem to be a proof of the value in
certain methods. A great source of inspiration is found in the charity with
which our Fathers and Brothers in mission territories serve
those who are entirely abandoned and utterly po.verty-stricken.
I beg that the same charity be exercised towards the abandoned and the poor whom, unless we are utterly blind, we
can see around us in almost every part of the world. Their
ranks comprise not only those who have to be sustained by
alms, but also those, as I noted before, who, "although they
have the strength to earn a decent living, are prevented by
defects in the modern social order from providing properly
for themselves and their families." 20 Such people actually
constitute by far the greater portion and practically the whole
of the human race. To help them is the spirit of Christ; it
is the spirit of the Society of Jesus.
A Work of Courage and Charity
6.-In this company then, where we campaign under
Christ's banner, let no one ever lose heart or give up the fight.
At the same time let no one judge too harshly a fellow Jesuit
because he has suffered some setbacks in his work. Indeed
I would desire that in many places in the Society Brothers
�SECOND EXHORTATION TO THE PROCURATORS
35
and Fathers were judged with greater kindness by their own
Brothers in Christ. As someone noted recently, the true
history of the Society is written in the records of God by the
countless men who humbly and silently and loyally do their
work day in and day out, constantly sacrificing themselves
without anyone apparently giving them any notice. That
large number of men, about whom no one writes to the General, about whom Superiors have nothing to report, in the
eyes of God wins those blessings from heaven with which, as
far as we can judge, the Society of Jesus is still favored.
And so with St. Peter Canisius we commend to Christ "the
entire body of the Society with the prayer that in its superiors
and its subjects, in its members who are healthy and those who
are ill, in its men who are advancing in virtue and those who
falter through spiritual weakness, in all its spiritual concerns and temporal cares, the Society may be rightly governed
for the glory of His Name and the service of the whole
Church." 21
NOTES
1
A. R. XI, 147-176.
Const., P. X, n. 2 (813).
3
Exam., c. 4, nn. 34, 35; Const., P. VI, c. 1, n. 2 (551).
4
lndustriae, c. 2 (668).
5
Epit., 183, parr. 2 and 3.
6
A. R. XI, 166.
1
Exam., c. 1, n. 2 (3); Summary of the Const., Rule 2.
8
A. R., IX, 24.
9
Luke VIII, 5 ff.
10
Matt. VII, 13-14.
11
Epistle to the Ephesians, VI, 12.
12
Epistle to the Galatians, I, 10.
13
Cfr. Const., P. X, n. 3 (814); P. IV, c. 5, n. 1 (351); c. 14, n. 1, (464).
14
1bid., P. III, c. 2 G (304); P. VI, c. 3, n. 5 (588).
15
Ibid., 1. c.
16
Coll. Deer., d. 13, par. 5, n. 5 ex Form. Inst. n. 3.
17
A. R., XI, 308.
18
Ibid., XI, 710-726.
19
Ibid., XI, 718.
20
Ibid., XI, 713.
21
Braunsberger, B. Petri Canisii Acta et Epistolae, t. VIII, p. 782.
2
�THE HOUSE OF THE ASSUMPTION
JAMES
D. CARROLL, S.J.
February 1, 1953, was a memorable first in the history of
the New Orleans province. At Spring Hill, Alabama, there
was dedicated the first house of training specifically built for
Ours within the province limits. Previously novices, philosophers and tertians were housed in buildings made over to meet
their respective needs, _but this new building was our own,
derived from many hours of thought and worry and reared to
suit the consensus of the province.
Just as when the drive for funds began, representatives
from all the houses of the province gathered together, so now
at the completion of the venture came Jesuits from Albuquerque, Key West, Augusta and El Paso to take part in the
dedication of the new philosophate, to be known as the Jesuit
House of Studies under the patronage of Our Lady's Assumption.
It was fitting that the alumni of so many Jesuit philosophates should gather for the dedication of their own province
house of studies. Ever since the Jesuits cam·e back to the
South in 1837, generations of southern Jesuits 'have gone to
Woodstock, to St. Louis, even to Europe for philosophy. During the twenties, New Orleans Jesuits were received with open
arms at Mount St. Michael's. In the decade of the thirties up
until 1937, the majority of the province philosophers again
studied at St. Louis.
Ventures in establishing a philosophate within the province
stand as milestones. Twice Grand Coteau and once Loyola
University in New Orleans had been the site for a more coordinated pursuit of wisdom. However, in 1937 it was decided
that a philosophate should be located in the old high school
quarters at Spring Hill. A province philosophate was thus
begun, but at the time its permanent location at Spring Hill
was still in question. Since the number of vocations steadily
increased in the next ten years, it became evident that more
adequate facilities were necessary. At the same time Spring
Hill College was expanding and was looking with calculating
eye upon the space used by the temporary philosophate.
�THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
37
Building Plans
The determination to build called for a site. The central location of Spring Hill at least in relation to the schools of the
province, the very evident advantages accruing from the college courses and library facilities, and the law of inertia in
institutions-these and other factors led to the purchase of
land that would have the philosophate contiguous to the college, but as an independent entity.
A new building meant plans: for raising the walls of the
building, and for raising the wherewithal. First steps in the
architectural line were taken with the appointment of a building committee consisting of five priests and two Brothers.
Once this committee combined ideas-its own and those gathered from other Jesuits during the period of a year-the
product was turned over to the architect firm, Platt Roberts
and Company of Mobile. For the site of the building, the
committee designated the highest spot on the Spring Hill property. This land, a block along the brick road from the college
chapel to Old Shell Road, was purchased from the college by
the province.
Meanwhile, to raise a substantial part of the building costs,
a province-wide appeal for funds was organized. The drive
was conducted during the first six months of 1950. An extension of the drive on a quiet follow-up basis brought the total
beyond the original goal, $950,000. However, costs had also
been climbing, and the final construction bid was approximately fifty percent higher than anticipated. A considerable
portion of this added expense has not yet been raised through
the public appeal.
By the middle of 1951 it was felt that the building could be
started, and on June 2, the feast of the Sacred Heart, ground
was broken by Very Reverend A. William Crandell, S.J., provincial since August of the preceding year. The date set in
the contract for the completion of the building was September
1, 1952, but there were the usual and some unusual delays.
Immediately steel allocation became a builders' nightmare.
Recourse to Washington helped expedite the steel, but the
contractors could always henceforth rejoin to any observations
on slow construction, "If the steel hadn't been delayed."
�38
THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
Still, the building did rise finally to its full height of four
stories, and at the end of 1952 the contractors turned it over to
the Society. On January 3, 1953, the community swarmed into
the new quarters. The philosophers took possession of a modern, functional, concrete and steel four-story structure, whose
T-shape was modified in that the transverse bar is the long
front of the buildings and the two tabs of the transverse are
one-story structures housing the library and the auditorium.
The building is faced with_cream-colored brick, bordered with
dark brick and set off wit'h architectural stone. Projecting
concrete ledges that stretch the length of the building above
the windows of each floor in the front, afford protection against
· the full rays of the summer sun. The prominent feature of
the fa<;ade is six squared columns, rising to the full height
and setting off the bay at the center of the building.
The building was not precisely new to the philosophers when
they moved in. They were all honorary members of the sidewalk superintendents association during the two years of
construction. They had already studied the basement that
underlay the vertical bar of the 'T'. They had watched the
fitting out of the laundry, boiler room, work shops, trunk room,
workmen's dining rooms and storage rooms. Here· is the result
of a determined effort to foresee the operational needs of the
building· and to forestall for a long time the conversions of
space that happen in Jesuit houses as a new need is suddenly
realized.
The T-Shaped Building
It might be simpler to view the whole building by approaching from the driveway the terraced flight of steps. The main
entrance opens into a lobby with terrazo floor and marble
walls. The first feature to strike a visitor is a large, beautiful
oil painting of Our Blessed Lady as the Immaculate Conception. The picture, attributed to Alonso de Tobar as a free
copy of Murillo, was restored under the direction of Reverend
Thomas J. McGrath, S.J., and is set in a picture box between
the two doors opening into the main corridor.
Visitors regularly stop to consider the bronze plaque that
expresses gratitude to all donors to the building fund:
��..... . :
�THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
39
IN GRATEFUL APPRECIATION OF
THE GENEROSITY OF NUMEROUS BENEFACTORS
WHO HAVE MADE POSSIBLE THIS HOUSE OF STUDIES
FOR THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD
AND THE EDUCATION OF JESUIT PRIESTS
THE MEMBERS OF THE NEW ORLEANS PROVINCE
OF THE SOCIETY OF JESUS
PROMISE A PERPETUAL REMEMBRANCE
IN THEIR MASSES AND PRAYERS
ERECTED A. D. 1952
To one side the lobby gives access to the parlors, and to the
other, the porter's lodge and a small guest dining room.
These rooms are within the structure of the first floor of the
building, but naturally outside the cloister.
Along the east wing of the main corridor, which like all the
corridors of the building is finished with glazed tile wainscoting, there are rooms for Brothers and guests. At the end of
this wing, the library falls back from the main structure. In
the west wing of this floor are the Brothers' and philosophers'
recreation rooms, barbershop, mimeograph room, locker and
shower room. At the end of the wing, paralleling the library,
is an excellent auditorium with a capacity for two hundred.
The ceiling is stepped so that the house-lights are concealed
and indirect; the floor is ramped. Oak panelling on the walls
adds a simple but impressive dignity to the room. A large
stage with diversified lighting arrangements and room for
scenic-art ventures will encourage the presentation of dramatic performances as well as furnish the setting for periodic
disputations. A movie-booth will provide the rationed firstnights.
Running back from the main corridor of the first floor and
flanked on each side by the stairwell, closets and service rooms,
a short corridor leads to the refectory which occupies the
vertical bar of the 'T'. Though there are only a hundred and
twenty-five living rooms, the refectory was built to seat a
hundred and sixty. Like all rooms for common use in the
building the dining room is well lighted. Asbestos tile flooring
,I
·'
�40
THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
was chosen to favor the readers and preachers. Behind the
refectory is the kitchen equipped with modern stainless furnishings.
The Chapel
Above the refectory is the main feature of the building, not
only spiritually, but also artistically, the chapel, which occupies
the two remaining floors ,of this section in the building.
Chaste simplicity is the pr,~dominant note, and straight lines
are used with remarkable effectiveness. The design converges
on the altar of botticino and rosso di francia marbles and on
the oak-paneled reredos with its lifelike crucifix, whose cross
is red marble, the corpus standing out in white marble.
Around the crucifix are eight symbols of the Passion carved
of botticino marble with rosso di francia background. An oak
baldachino reaches out over the altar.
Two side altars h_ave the same marble composition as the
main altar, with beautiful botticino statues of St. Joseph and
of the Blessed Virgin as Mother of Grace standing recessed
above them. All the altars are of sarcophagus style.
A marbled Communion rail with bronze center'gates effectively sets off the sanctuary. The color symmetry is carried
out in the sanctuary terrazo, and is even extended to the stations of the cross; the stations, however, are of imitation
marble. The sanctuary furnishings are the work of the
Da Prato Studios.
In the body of the chapel, under the huge, imitation-wood
cross-beams, the pews are of white oak in natural finish; this
wood is also used for the wainscoting and strongly contrasts
the dark ribbing of the ceiling. From the ceiling are suspended
the two rows of massive bronze light-fixtures which afford
ample light, without distorting the harmony either by glare or
shadows. The windows are amber glass and fit into the design
neutrally; eventually, it is hoped that stained glass windows
will be provided. The choir loft is adequate and gives entrance
to the chapel for visits from the third floor.
The sacristy is spacious; the oak finish has been used for
the large vesting tables and cabinets, into which a safe has
��-·
�THE SPRlNG HILL PiiiLOSOPliATE
41
been built. The usual cry of the sacristan for more space was
forestalled by utilizing the otherwise empty upper reaches of
the sacristy as an upper story with a rather large workroom
and ample storage space.
Room-Layout
Off the short corridors leading both from the chapel and
from the choir loft there are private chapels, two on the second, and two on the third floor. Directly opposite the chapel
along the short corridor is the Fathers' recreation room, which
has beautiful oak paneling and built-in bookshelves. The lighting fixtures are a joy to those who have strained their eyes at
reference works in other such rooms.
Along the main corridor on the second floor to the east are
the faculty rooms. These rooms offer a very pleasing feature
in that a full partition divides the room affording privacy for
living quarters with the other section reserved for study and
consultation.
At each end of the main corridor there is a spacious, airy
modern-equipped classroom. These rooms have attracted attention for their external appearance, since they project from
the building, the outer end of the room being supported by two
pillars; thus, it might be a question as to whether they are
strictly in the building. The doors at the ends of the first
corridor open out onto a loggia formed by the classroom and
its supporting pillars. Inside the rooms have full windows to
the north, but have small windows on the south side for crossventilation without glare.
Scholastic rooms take up the western end of this corridor.
The feature of a living room is the built-in cabinet which contains a spacious section for hanging clothes, another section
with drawers, a five-shelf bookcase at one end, and over all
this a storage space for hand-luggage and blankets. The
storage problems of other buildings encouraged the designers
to insist upon adequate facilities throughout the house and
along all corridors.
The two floors above follow the same pattern, without the
classrooms at the end of the corridors. A third classroom is
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THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
situated on the third floor above the fathers' recreation room;
this is the largest of the three. Its outer wall is fan-shaped
since the room is in the central bay of the building. Here
again the lighting is excellent. Tablet armchairs are in use
for all the classrooms.
On the fourth floor, the infirmary arrangement has won
praise from all. Four rooms are so angled that the occupants
from their beds can follow Mass at the altar which stands
against the corridor walJ. Adjacent are dispensary, bath facilities, treatment room, diet kitchen, and a room for the
infirmarian. There is a beautiful outlook from the infirmary
rooms, and during the summer months the best possibility of
a breeze will be there.
The infirmary delighted the parents when they were inspecting the building. During the open house hours, one
mother had waited upon her son as the number one patient,
sick with a minor ailment.
Cost cut down the scope of walkable space on the roof; only
the central section was reinforced for use. From this vantage
point, out over the stately pines that surround the house, can
be seen Mobile to the southeast; to the southwest rise up the
tips of the college chapel spires, although the-·other buildings
are hidden behind the heavy growth on the campus. Below
and around the building, lawns are appearing; the sodding has
taken hold and the grass reflects a delicate nuance of green
onto the cream-colored brick. Shrubs and young trees are
gradually fitting into the pattern.
By fire law all the stairwells are enclosed, thereby reducing
hazard and noise. An elevator balances the position of the
central stairway and will make the ascent simpler for all the
older members of the community. The terminal stairways
were designed so that they would not block the end of the corridors and so were structured into the forward corners of the
building. All corridors have bath and toilet facilities midway
in each wing. It is the infallible law of building, that once
the structure is complete, the residents immediately find the
obvious missing parts; so far, the discoveries at the Hill have
been limited to very minor factors, because of the foresight and
worry that went into the planning.
�TliE SPRING liiLL PHILOSOPHATE
43
To the west across the brick-road a large area was cleared
for a recreation field. Already the ball-field is in use; later,
black-topped handball and basketball courts will find their
places beside it.
To the east of the philosophate is the scholasticate of the
Brothers of the Sacred Heart, definitely within a stone's throw;
it will cheer the respective ministers' hearts that between the
two groups there is cordiality and no danger of stone-throwing.
The glass surfaces in the walls of the two buildings would
provide costly targets. Even before the Brothers' building
was completed three years ago, many of them attended courses
at the college during the summer or in extension classes; now
with the building in use, their scholastics follow many courses
in the college. For some of the classes, it is easier for the
Jesuit professor to teach inside the Brothers' own classrooms.
The Dedication
The dedication of this House of Studies marks another
chapter in the long history of Spring Hill College which began
in 1830 under the first bishop of Mobile, Bishop Portier, and
secular priests. In 1847 the college administration was turned
over to the Jesuits, who had first come to Mobile in 1702 when
Father Paul de Rhu accompanied Bienville at the city's founding, and who had returned to the South in 1837. As His Excellency, Bishop Toolen, observed on the dedication day, the
House of Studies is the fulfillment of Bishop Portier's dream
that the Hill would be a training ground for young priests.
The new philosophate was planned to house a community of
125. The first community numbers eleven priests, seventyfour scholastics, and four Brothers. In earlier days, it has
been noted, the province at times had philosophers scattered in
half a dozen provinces; it is fitting that this first community
should number men from most of the provinces in which our
men have studied: Chicago, Maryland, Missouri, New York,
and one non-host province, Northern Brazil. In the month
following January 3, the community settled into the house and
had it in full running order by the time the dedication day and
open house arrived on February 1.
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THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
Highest dignitary at the dedication services on that date
was Samuel Cardinal Stritch, Archbishop of Chicago, wellknown to many of the older Fathers of the province because of
his early labors in the diocese of Nashville, and because he had
an uncle and two cousins in the New Orleans Province. Cardinal Stritch presided at the Solemn Pontifical Mass which was
celebrated in the college chapel whose capacity was greater
than that of the philosophate chapel. Here, however, Mass
was also celebrated for~ those who had gathered to hear the
Cardinal's sermon over speaking system.
When the procession before the Mass assembled at the College administration building, there was a gathering of the episcopacy greater than had ever assembled for any of the many
celebrations during the hundred and twenty-three years of
Spring Hill College's existence. As they had graciously encouraged the drive for the house of studies, so now to take part
in the dedication ceremonies came: the Most Reverend Joseph
Francis Rummel, archbishop of New Orleans; the Most Reverend Richard 0. Gerow, bishop of Natchez; the Most Reverend
Jules B. J eanmard, bishop of Lafayette, Louisiana; the Most
Reverend Thomas K. Gorman, coadjutor bish_op of Dallas;
the Most Reverend Charles F. Greco, bishop
Alexandria;
the Most Reverend William D. O'Brien, auxiliary bishop of
Chicago; the Most Reverend Thomas J. Toolen, bishop of Mobile; and the Most Reverend Samuel Metzger, bishop of El
Paso. Before them marched Jesuits representing various
provinces and various houses of the assistancy. Reverend
Brother Martin, S.C., provincial, was present with some of
the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. Although the celebration
was on a Sunday, many of the diocesan clergy attended the
Mass as well as Benediction later in the day.
The colorful procession moved through the beautiful grounds
to the chapel of St. Joseph and wound its way up the aisle of
the crowded chapel. At the Mass His Excellency, Bishop
Toolen, was celebrant. Very Reverend Father Provincial, A.
William Crandell, S.J ., was assistant priest to the celebrant;
other religious orders in the diocese were represented by the
Reverend V. D. Warren, S.S.J., deacon, and by the Reverend
Francis Doimellan, S.S.E., subdeacon.
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In his sermon, Cardinal Stritch said that of all the Jesuit
schools . . .
their houses of study are the most important. • . • The young
Jesuit must be grounded well in the sacred sciences, for it is not
simply his mission to be a great scientist, but to bring science into
the service of Christ the King. He must not only be a research
scholar but an apostle among research scholars. He is not just an
educator who teaches and studies. He is seeking all the time to
develop leaders for the King.
Citing the "challenge for the sons of Loyola," Cardinal
Stritch continued:
The confused, chaotic and troubled world wants an ideal, a philosophy of life, a loyalty. Materialism, whether it be communism or
democracy or sheer humanism, cannot satisfy it and give it unity
and peace. There is but one answer: it is Christ the King's world,
and it must submit to His conquest.
Sons of Ignatius, you have a mighty work to do in this troubled
world. You have an endowment far greater than millions. You have
blessed Truth to teach to men . . . . This house of studies will form
and train Jesuits through the years for their mission of working
and laboring in classrooms, churches and the market-places of the
world, to bring men piously and lovingly to point to the thorncrowned, blood-stained Christ and cry out: "Behold our King!"
Following the Mass, the clergy reformed the procession and
returned to the rotunda of the administration building for a
reception and reunion. Dinner was served in the faculty
dining room, with the visitors more than filling the emptied
places of the philosophers, the head tables gleaming with an
unaccustomed display of rings. In passing, it might be noted
that the philosophers, temporarily displaced from even their
own refectory, literally took to the woods.
While the clergy was dining, the philosophate was thrown
open for inspection~ thousands of Mobilians, hundreds from
New Orleans, and handfuls from other Southern cities-most
of them donors to the building fund-eagerly went through
the building to see how Jesuits live. Most eager of all were
the parents of the philosophers, who wanted to see the number
one room in the house-their boy's room; one could tell the
difference at least by the name on the door.
�46
THE SPRING HILL PHILOSOPHATE
Of particular interest were the numerous bronze plaques on
doors and walls, recording the gifts of special contributors.
The book of benefactors, listing all donors, was in its place and
already in perusal.
At half past three in the afternoon dedication services were
held in the new building with Cardinal Stritch presiding and
blessing the building. The services began in the scholasticate
chapel and were concluded on the entrance platform, with those
in attendance gathered around on the lawns. After the blessing of the building addresses were given by Bishop Toolen and
Father Provincial.
Father Provincial's talk consisted principally of an expression of gratitude to those in attendance and to those who
helped to make the building a reality, either through donations
or work. Bishop Toolen paid a glowing tribute to the work of
the Jesuits in the.South, particularly at Spring Hill College,
and envisioned greater results because of the better facilities
which would now be available for Jesuit training. The program closed with Benediction of the Most BlessEi!d Sacrament,
celebrated by Cardinal Stritch at an altar set-·up before the
main entrance.
The following day, Father Provincial celebrated Mass in the
scholasticate chapel; at the Mass, Brother Burt Rivet pronounced his Last Vows. That afternoon, there was again open
house, particularly for religious, and at the end of the day,
dinner was provided for the clergy of Mobile. After dinner,
an entertainment was given by the philosophers in the new
auditorium.
Thus closed the two-day dedication program and the community settled back happily to regular order, while visiting
members of the province returned to their communities with
glowing accounts of the building and the dedication. With its
new building complete and occupied, the philosophate went to
the task of building its proper mores and traditions under its
first rector, the Reverend Henry F. Tiblier, professor of ethics
and former superior of the philosophers.
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�·THE SOCIETY OF JESUS, AN ESSENTIALLY
MISSIONARY ORDER
BERNARD SAINT-JACQUES, S.J.
The Jesuit of today cannot help observing with some surprise the immense effort of world-wide apostolate made during
four centuries by his Order. From the very beginning the
first companions with inexhaustible energy tried to compass
the earth although their number was so laughably small.
Walking in their footsteps and fired by the same desire, subsequent generations of Loyola's sons have penetrated to all
parts of the world and embraced in different places the most
,varied forms of apostolate. The Jesuits at the command of
the Supreme Vicar of Our Lord continually try to conquer the
world for Christ by preaching the word of God, by dispensing
the sacraments, and by employing many other means of saving
souls. A common bond unites them through time and space:
the objective set by the first of their number: "the greater
glory of God."
"The apostolate of Saint Ignatius," writes Father de Chastonay, "is characterized by universalism; it embraces everything that can be considered apostolic service." 1 This apostolic
spirit has been inscribed by Ignatius in the very heart of his
Constitutions: "It is according to our vocation to travel to
various places and to live in any part of the world where there
is hope of God's greater service and the help of souls." 2 "It is
to be noted," Ignatius continues, "that the intention of this
vow which the Society made of obeying without any excuse the
sovereign Vicar of Christ, is that we should go wherever he
sends us for the greater glory of God and the good of souls,
whether among the faithful or infidel. And the Society did
not have in view any particular place, but wanted to be scattered throughout the whole world in various regions and localities. It desired to choose what was best and thought this could
best be realized by letting the Supreme Pontiff dispose of its
members." 3
Translated by Louis A. Mounteer, S.J., from Lettres du BasCanada. Montreal, 1953, vol. vii, No. 3.
�48
JESUITS, A 1\IISSIONARY ORDER
The Society through the centuries has never lost the spirit
of its Founder. In the legislation concerning the choice of
ministries, the Epitome repeats the very words of Ignatius:
"In choosing ministries the Society follows this norm: to seek
always the greater service of God and the more universal good,
since the more universal a good is, the more divine it is; therefore, other things being equal, it prefers ministries which
procure the more lasting good of the greater number."• Or
again: "The Society fulfills its ministry either by traveling to
various places-and this is very characteristic-or by working
permanently in some place; Jmt in either case, among infidels
not less than among the faithful." 5
Since its beginning the Society has recognized certain forms
of apostolate as more suited to the exercise of its all-embracing
zeal for promoting the greater glory of God. These forms of
apostolate, which are most characteristic of the Society, have
been made substantials of the Institute: "The principal ministries of the Society are: to preach and give public lectures and
to exercise every othe:r type of sacred ministry for the defense
and propagation of the faith and for the progress of souls in
the life and teaching of Christ; to give Spiritual Exercises; to
instruct children and the ignorant in Christian dqctrine ; to
hear confessions and administer the other sacraments; to perform works of charity, as will seem best for the greater glory
of God and the common good." 6
Missions, instruction of youth, preaching and other ministries are all substantials of the Institute and represent, therefore, the principal apostolic channels through which flows the
Society's inner spirit. The aim of this article is to consider
the importance given to one of these principal forms of the
Society's apostolate: missions to infidels, heretics and schismatics; such importance that one of its Generals could say
that the Society of Jesus is essentially a missionary order,
Ordo essentialiter et ex suo lnstituto missionarius.1 Our first
part will be devoted to a study of the missionary nature of the
Society of Jesus, as it appears in its Founder, its Generals and
its history; our second, to the consequences of the Society's
missionary nature.
�JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
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I. THE l\IISSIONARY NATURE OF THE SOCIETY
Saint Ignatius and the Missions
God raised up Ignatius at a time when the whole world was
turning its gaze to unknown lands and was dreaming of new
conquests. Spain and Portugal were covering the seas with
their galleons, pushing back the frontiers of the world and
discovering immense fields for Christ's workers. Ignatius,
after his conversion, remained thoroughly Spanish and a man
of the sixteenth century. His Exercises reveal a soul yearning
for spiritual conquests: "Recall that in writing the Exercises,"
remarks Father Brou, "Ignatius speaks of the temporal king
whose will is to reduce to subjection all the land of the infidels, and contrasts him with our eternal King, who also wishes
to conquer the whole world and all enemies. So, too, in the
contemplation on the Incarnation he shows us the persons on
the face of the earth so varied in dress and carriage, some
white and others black. Simple pictures, these, stamped on his
imagination by accounts of travelers, but suggesting a soul already ripe, so to speak, for missionary endeavor." 8
Father Polanco tells us, too, what Ignatius was looking for
when he left for Jerusalem: "He wanted not only to satisfy his
devotion by visiting the holy places, but also, should it be
possible, to preach the faith and doctrine of Christ to infidels,
to do and suffer great things for love of Him." 9 As early as
1523, therefore, the thought of missions among infidels was in
the mind of Ignatius. "It reappears ten years later, in 1534;
but this time not only in his own mind, but also in the minds of
the companions he has recruited. When speaking of the vows
at Montmartre, Simon Rodriguez mentions several of our first
Fathers, Favre, Xavier, Laynez, Salmeron and himself, as
burning with an 'incredibly strong desire to go to Jerusalem,'
and there dedicate themselves to the salvation of the neighbor.
'Several,' he says, 'had an ardent desire to bring the light of
the Gospel to the infidel: an ardor,' he adds, 'more or less
burning according to the inspirations of grace.' 10 In the Holy
Land, therefore, our first Fathers planned to exercise their
zeal, as appears from the following clause added to their
�50
JESUITS, A l\IISSIONARY ORDER
vows of August 14, 1534: 'If, within the year, they did not
succeed in making the voyage, or if, after reaching the Holy
Land, they are not permitted to remain there, or if, after
prayer, they find themselves unable to help the infidel as they
would like to, then they vowed to go and offer themselves to
the Sovereign Pontiff.' 11 We would not be far from historical
truth," concludes Father Brou, "in affirming that the Society
came into being through the desire for foreign missions.'' 12
Although later, under Ignatius' influence, a principle more
conformed to the greater glory of God prevailed, namely, perfect indifference and readines.~ for any papal mission, whether
among Catholics or heretics, Moslems or pagans, the original
plan, missions among the infidel, remained always very close
to the heart of Ignatius. Father Dudon writes: "When he
considered the vast conquests to be made in the world, the
value of a Christian life, the honor of the apostolic ministry,
Ignatius desired to live as long as the patriarchs, to spend
centuries in bringing redemption to the largest possible number of the elect.'' 13
Once he had become 'General of his Order, during his entire
administration Saint Ignatius always shows his deep affection
for this apostolate and the importance he attached to it. As
early as March, 1540, some months before his Order; scarcely
numbering a dozen men, was first approved, Saini·Ignatius
did not hesitate to send his most illustrious son, Saint Francis
Xavier, to the Far East. The year 1542 marked the foundation
of the College of Coimbra, "considered as the Mission Seminary for India. No other institute of the Society was to produce, during the two ensuing centuries, so many great missionaries as the College of Coimbra.'' 14 About 1543 a plan for
the diffusion of the divine message appeared. An organization
with its center at Rome, La Casa Catecumeni, was founded by
the papacy as an apostolic institute for the work of the missions. Here again Saint Ignatius was in some way precursor:
the first pontifical institute for missions, founded at Rome,
was the fruit of his initiativeY "Written reports were not 1
sufficient for Ignatius. He desired that intelligent men, repre- \
sentatives of those distant races, be sent to Europe so that they r
could be interviewed and by their very presence make an ap- ·
�JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
51
pe~l on behalf of the mission cause. He proposed that such
young men be trained in Rome or perhaps at Coimbra, and
eventually return to their own country. This suggestion was
a kind of rough draught of the plan from which, later, the
College of Propaganda was to issue. In this way the missionary activity of the Society of Jesus was formed, adapted and
developed in Saint Ignatius' own lifetime." 16
In 1553 Ignatius himself established Brazil as a province of
his Order and appointed as its provincial a man of distinguished merit, Father Manuel Nobrega. It is interesting to
note that at this same time Ignatius personally arranged for
the first mission of the Society to Ethiopia, the mysterious
realm of Prester John. Saint Ignatius was so enthusiastic for
what is called his Abyssinian plan that he offered the King of
Portugal the support of the entire Society for this task, and he
offered to go himself to Ethiopia if the professed would allow
him to leave. 17
These are some of the facts which indicate clearly the high
esteem Saint Ignatius had for foreign missions as a ministry
of the society.
The Constitutions and the Missions
Ignatius wanted to pass on his affection for the missionary
apostolate to his sons and he wove it into the very fabric of the
Constitutions.
In the first place, the Bulls of approbation state expressly
that the foreign missions are a genuine apostolate of the Society. That of Paul III in 1544: " 'We have thought it extremely useful that each one of us be bound, not only by the
common bond which unites all Christians to the Pope, but by
a special vow: so that whatever the present and future Sovereign Pontiffs command for the profit of souls and the extension
of our faith, we are obliged to do all we can to go at once to
Whatever countries they send us, without hesitation and without excuse; whether we are sent to the Turks or any other
infidel nation, even to the so-called Indies, or to heretics, schismatics, or to any group whatever of the faithful.'" The Bull
of Julius III in 1550 repeats the same thought: "'The better
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JESUITS, A 1\IISSIONARY ORDER
to renounce our own wills and the more surely to put ourselves
under the direction of the Holy Spirit, we have decided that it
will be most helpful to bind each one of us and all who will
later embrace this way of life, over and above the three customary vows, by a special vow to carry out whatever the
present Pope or his successors command for the spiritual profit
of souls and the spread of the faith; so that, without any hesitation or excuse, we go immediately to whatever country they
wish to send us: whether to the Turks or other infidels; even
to the regions called the Indies ; or to any heretics or schismatics, as also to any of th_e faithful, as they think best.'"
The Constitutions are no less explicit. In the seventh part,
dealing with the special vow of obedience to the Pope, Saint
Ignatius writes: "Note that the intention of this vow, by which
the Society is bound to obey without any excuse the sovereign
Vicar of Christ, is that we go wherever he wishes to send us
for the greater glory of God and the good of souls, among
either the faithful or infidels." In Chapter II of the same part
of the Constitutions, Saint Ignatius, explaining the rules to be.
followed in the choice .of ministries, expresses himself thus:
"In order to follow the best procedure in sending men to one
place or to another, keeping in view the greater service of God
and the universal good, it seems that as a rule in choosing missions that locality in the vast vineyard of Christ .ri].lr Lord
should be selected which has the greatest need; whether because of the scarcity of other workers or because of the weakness and misery of those who live there, or the danger of final
damnation. For the more universal a good is the more is it
divine. We should, accordingly, prefer to help large nations,
like the Indies, or influential peoples, or universities, since
great numbers usually flock to them. For people like this, once
we have won them, can be instruments in the winning of
others."
"In this way," says Father Brou, "the Society of Jesus inaugurated a new type of ~eligious order. The papal Bulls, the
Constitutions, all the official documents explicitly suppose,
with· no possible ambiguity, that the Society was established
for all kinds of missions, including those to infidels. And this
applies to the Society as a whole and to each of its members.
Among the latter, the professed are bound by a special vow;
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�JESUITS, A l\liSSIONARY ORDER
53
the coadjutors and scholastics by virtue of their vow of obedience."18 "For the first time," writes a contemporary historian,
"there existed an institute where obedience to the rule implied
for all the possibility of a missionary assignment, and where
the formal acceptance of such a possibility was, for a certain
number, the solemn object of a special vow; for the first
time an institute was vowed to the missions, not exclusively, of
course, but explicitly nevertheless." 19 And it can be reasonably concluded that many of the characteristics which distinguish the Jesuits from previous religious orders are explained
by the need Saint Ignatius felt for adaptation to the needs of a
distant apostolate. In fact, Father de Ribadeneira, in his
treatise published in 1605 on the purpose of the Society of
Jesus, gave this as the reason Jesuits renounce occupations
requiring too great stability and a distinctive garb.
These texts make it clear that according to the spirit of the
Constitutions of Saint Ignatius, the call to the missions is not
something added to the vocation of a Jesuit, but is inherent in,
'and perfectly natural to it. And it is in this sense that Father
Vermeersch, in his Miles Christi J esu, writes that "a general
vocation to the missions is included in the vocation to the
Society."
The Epitome and the Missions of the Society
The sons of Saint Ignatius, in the course of the centuries,
have never abandoned their Father's ideal on this point.
Numerous prescriptions of the Epitome prove this clearly. In
the beginning of this article we have seen how the Epitome
considers the missionary apostolate as a substantial of the first
order of the Institute of the Society. We could rightly mention here the numerous statements of the Epitome on the missions-those destined for them,2° prayers and suffrages recommended for this intention, 21 etc. One passage, however, simply
cannot be omitted. In the seventh part the Epitome devotes
an entire chapter to the explicit treatment of foreign missions.
First, by way of preamble, it recalls that foreign missions are ·
one of the principal ministries of the Society: "Missions to the
. infidel, heretics and schismatics are to be considered among
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JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
the principal ministries of the Society, and their needs should
be provided for liberally, even if thereby the provinces must
contribute of their limited means and be deprived of men who
would be very valuable to them." 22 Next it treats of the choice
of missionaries, of their preparation and of the government of
the missionsP It is remarkable that these are the very prescriptions that the 28th General Congregation, in its 33rd
Decree, recommends particularly, while requiring "that they
be known and carried out with an ever greater diligence."
Equally significant are two, quite recent recommendations
added to the first two editions..gf the Epitome. The first states
that when candidates ask for the foreign missions when they
enter the Society, the Provincials may promise to send them,
provided that later on they have the necessary qualities and no
serious reasons prevent it. 24 The second decree stipulates the
importance of intensive missionary propaganda among Ours
as well as outside, and particularly among the young: Maxime
juvabit M18sionum nostrarum notitiam non solum Nostris inde
a vitae religiosae limine, sed etiam externis, praesertim juvenibus, rite et copiose ·tradere." 25
The Constitutions and the Epitome, therefore, leave no room
for doubt: the missionary apostolate is one of the primary
works of the Society. Recalling the words of His .Holiness
Pius XII in his encyclical, Evangelii praecones, we cannot help
admiring the sense of balance displayed in Saint Ignatius'
Constitutions and the excellent equipment of the Society of
Jesus for missionary work. In fact the Pope highlighted the
important role of education in the missions with these words:
"Schools are an excellent means for missionaries to make contact with pagans of every class. The young people formed in
them will tomorrow be the leaders of the state; the masses will
follow them as their guides and teachers." "For the first
time," remarks Father Retif, "a Pope's words sanction by
• their authority the work of colleges among pagans. This indirect apostolate, often misunderstood or underestimated, remains for the Church a primary and essential work." 26 Now
does not this primary and essential educational work belong,
with missionary work, to the great apostolic activities of the
Society according to the very spirit of its Founder?
�JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
55
The Generals of the Society and the Missions
The Generals of an order perpetuate among its members the
personality of the founder and watch over the preservation of
his spirit. Saint Ignatius considered the missionary vocation
and apostolate as eminently proper to the Society and held
them in great esteem; his sons who followed him in governing
the Order felt the same esteem. The testimony of both those
in the old Society and those in the new has exactly the same
ring.
Very Reverend Father Laynez, speaking to the Fathers and
Brothers in India, wrote as follows:
A special favor has already been granted to those called from
the vanities of the world to this least Society . . . ; but we should
consider as far more precious the gift given those sent to that vineyard of the Lord where you are working, whether we consider the
greatness and importance of this undertaking, or the prerogatives
and eminent dignity of workers employed in so sublime a task! Your
work is not merely one of preserving religion and helping Christians,
as ours is here at home; but you have to save many others besides
and call them to true and holy liberty, to divine adoption, and make
them children of God, co-heirs of Jesus Christ. 27
In 1569, Saint Francis Borgia, in his letter on the means of
preserving the spirit of the Society, expressed this desire:
May the Lord deign to send to His vineyard many such workmen
that we may be ready to meet the wants, I will not say of Europe
alone, but of Mrica and Asia and India so that the whole world
may be drawn to Christ Jesus, and that there may be but "one fold
and one Shepherd."2s
Very Reverend Father Aquaviva, in 1583, gave this exhortation:
Whilst Our Lord Jesus Christ bids us look forth on the "countries already white unto the harvest," which He has entrusted to
our zeal in various parts of the North and East, it has pleased Him
in these latter days to add the still vaster missions of the Indies,
and notably the great island of Japan, where precious opportunities
are offered for spreading far and wide the honor and glory of the
Christian name . . . The character of our Institute, too, compels
us to break the bread that nourisheth unto eternal life to the many
who now seek it,29
In 1617, in a letter on prayer, Very Reverend Father Vitel-
�56
JESUITS, A l\liSSIONARY ORDER
leschi wrote these very striking lines :
I recommend to the prayers of all the prosperity of the Church
in Japan and the Indies, and I beseech the Lord to infuse into the
hearts of many of Ours energy and enthusiasm of zeal, so that
they will go and with their tears, with their blood even, render
fertile for God the barren waste of those Continents. In this matter,
I would have Superiors, as they bear love to the Lord, give their
aid and assistance, and be delighted to find and to foster such
vocations in their subjects. Let them not allow themselves to be
influenced by selfish attachment to their provinces and apprehend
the loss of the best men in. the ministry, but let them trust in
Providence, assured that if)n a generous spirit, they supply the
Indies with many 'and flourisliing missions for His glory, the Lord
will enrich their European provinces both in the number and
character of their subjects . . . It is clearly manifest from experi·
ence, that the true spirit of the Society is best maintained and
developed by means of these apostolic vocations and journeys.ao
Very Reverend Father Roothaan, one of the first Generals
of the new Society, speaking on the foreign missions, said:
The ministry of propagating the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and
the Catholic Faith, e"\'en in remote regions, is one truly noble and
most in keeping with our vocation. Our Society, in obedience to the
will of God and a manifest call, embraced this ministry from its
very origin.a1
Very Reverend Father Beckx wrote in 1865:
It is now time to address a few words to those exercising the
various ministries of the Society in the vineyard of the Lord: and
first of all, to such as, in keeping with the spirit of our vocation,
more completely sacrifice every earthly affection, and devote them·
selves to foreign missions,32
In 1916, Very Reverend Father Ledochowski, in a letter to
the provinces of the United States regarding foreign missions
wrote on this subject which he had especially at heart:
First, as regards the spirit, to deserve the name of the genuine
spirit of our Society, it. must be above all else apostolic, or what
comes to the same thing, the soul, aflame with an ardent love for
Our Lord and for mankind redeemed by His blood, must be quick·
ened to desire and strive that the Kingdom of Christ may be
extended as much as possible, and that all the nations may be en·
lightened and saved by the true doctrine of Christ. If any one should
�JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORi>ER
57
not perceive something of this spirit in himself, he would not be
a true companion of Jesus.
On occasions such as the annual retreat, the triduums and in the
domestic exhortations, Ours should be induced to arouse within
themselves desires worthy of an Apostle. If such thoughts, in accordance with the spirit of St. Ignatius, are often brought forward
and recalled to mind, the result will be that, with the grace of
God, a holy yearning to succor the souls of the infidels will spring
up, and divine vocations will mature to this apostolate among the
gentiles, an apostolate which is in such perfect accord with the
spirit of our Society.aa
And in 1947 Very Reverend Father Janssens, concluding the
part devoted to foreign missions in his letter on our ministries,
expressed his mind in this short sentence: "What we have
said shows that in the selection of our labors we must give the
foreign missions a place before all others." 34
The History of the Society and the Missions
Even though the unanimous pronouncements of the Fathers
General, following those of the Founder, of the Constitutions,
and of the Epitome, supply evidence enough, still the language
of history and facts gives them new meaning. Has the Society,
in fact, throughout its four centuries of existence, been really
faithful to the spirit of the Constitutions? Has it responded
to the pressing appeals of its Generals? In a word, has it
clearly understood and realized its missionary duty? The
Society's history gives a magnificent response to these questions.
In 1749, twenty-four years before the suppression, the Society had reached the ends of the earth and could claim 273
missions; of the 22,589 Jesuits who made up the Society, 3,262
were missionaries. 35
At the beginning of 1950, the following statistics were
established :
Of all the foreign missioners in mission countries, one out
of every seven is a Jesuit. Nearly 200,000,000 non-Christians,
that is to say an eighth of all the non-Christians in the world,
are entrusted to the care of the Jesuits. Of all the catechists
and teachers, one out of six belongs to a Jesuit mission. Of
all native seminarists, one out of eight is trained by the Jesuits.
�58
JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
Of all the periodicals published in the missions, one out of five
is edited by the Jesuits. Of all the students in mission lands,
one out of three receives his training from Jesuits. Three out
of every five colleges and universities in the missions are directed by the Jesuits. 36
The journal, La France catholique, stated recently: "During
four centuries the Society of Jesus has never stopped developing its missionary activity despite persecutions, the suppression and difficulties of every kind. The figures here published
are convincing proof. In 1952 there were 5,104 Jesuit missionaries in the whole world._·., These missionaries exercise
their apostolate in 54 archdioceses, vicariates, prefectures
apostolic, or simple missions; in territories including 200 million non-Christians. In these mission countries the Jesuits
have charge of 17 universities, 40 seminaries, 67 normal
schools, 95 professional schools, 169 colleges, 7,820 primary
schools, 25 printing establishments, 10 leprosaria, 155 orphanages, 70 hospitals, 349 dispensaries. In these countries 250,000
baptisms are administered every year; 34,000 adult conversions are recorded for a~single year. The missionaries are
aided by 6,700 catechists and 12,700 instructors; at the same
time catechumens number 276,000. Finally, we should emphasize again that scientific work plays an important role in the
various activities of the Jesuits; to date they have ip.stalled
six observatories in mission countries." 37
•
What should be said of the missionary influence the Society
of Jesus has exercised in the world? Joseph Brucker writes:
"Saint Francis Xavier has become the great innovator and has
remained the incomparable model of all missionaries of the
modern era. He is not only the ideal missionary, the conqueror
who first opened vast countries to the Gospel; he created the
model on which all missions have been organized since his
time." 38
Some names are connected forever with certain localities of
• the world; some names are ineradicably engraved in the missionary history of the Church: N obili, Ricci, Lievens, Britto;
some names will remain forever dear to certain nations: Brebeuf, Campion, Canisius, Claver. Church history furnishes
remarkable confirmation of the missionary importance of the
Society. In fact, historians assign as one of the principal
�JESUITS, A l\IISSIONARY ORDER
59
causes of the distress in the missions in the first quarter of the
nineteenth century the suppression of the Jesuit Order.
Father Brou was trying to show this missionary influence
of the Society when he remarked: "The Society of Jesus is the
first religious order which is expressly and completely consecrated to mission work-an innovation which has opened the
way to other innovations: the creation of societies exclusively
consecrated to the foreign missions and even to certain missions in particular." 39
The missionary activity of the Society has always been
recognized, both in and out of the Church, as an apostolate
essential to its Institute. In a brief of 1567 Pius V addressed
the Fathers of the Society in these words: "The bestower of
all graces, the Almighty, has planted in your hearts so much
love for His glory, so much zeal for the salvation of souls, that
many members of your Society, burning with desire to propagate the Christian religion and to lead idolotrous pagans to
the knowledge of their Creator and Savior, have not been
frightened by the fatigue and dangers of travel by land and
sea; from these regions of Europe they have no hesitation to
go to Ethiopia, to Persia, to India, to the Moluccas, to Japan,
and to other islands of the Orient far removed and situated
even at the extreme ends of the earth." Four centuries later,
a Protestant historian, Rene Fiilop-Miller, wrote these very
significant, though inadequate, lines about the Jesuits: The
decision of John III to send Jesuits to the Indies "introduced
an entirely new epoch, not only for Catholic missionary activity, but also for the Society of Jesus; the achievements of the
Jesuits as apostolic preachers completely eclipsed all the successes of the other missionary orders, and it was through its
activity in the mission field that the Society of Jesus first won
its real world renown." 40
Our study of the principal charters of the Society, the writings of her Founder and Generals, and her general history
Permit us, therefore, to understand to what extent the Society
has devoted herself to that most authentic form of her apostolate: the foreign missions. Very Reverend Father Ledochowski was emphasizing a fact when, at the Missionary Congress of the Society in 1925, he affirmed, Sumus ordo essen-
�60
JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
tialiter et ex suo Instituto missionarius.
Saint Ignatius, a man of the Church par excellence, desired
the Society he founded to serve the Church and her Pontiff in
all possible ways, to be a small militia completely devoted to
ecclesiastical concerns. The Society, then, has made its own
in a marvelous way the principal work of the Church and considers it one of its most beloved duties. The actual formal
mission of the Church is to apply to all men the fruits of the
universal Redemption; this is the dogma of catholicity:
catholicity of Christ's mission; catholicity of His Redemption,
catholicity of His Church. 41 ~Therefore missionary activity is
the principal work of the Church and it is this duty that Pius
XI pointed out: "Whoever, by Divine Commission, takes the
place on earth of Jesus Christ, becomes thereby the Chief
Shepherd who, far from being able to rest content with simply
guiding and protecting the Lord's flock which has been confided to him to rule, fails in his special duty and obligation if
he does not strive by might and main to win over and to join to
Christ all who are stilLwithout the Fold." 42 As a daughter of
the Church, bound to the Sovereign Pontiff by a special vow,
the Society has made this work its dearest duty and by its very '
Institute has bound itself forever to "go into the wh~le world
and preach the Gospel to every creature." 43
•
II. CONSEQUENCES OF THE MISSIONARY
NATURE OF THE SOCIETY
The consequences of this missionary character of the Society are obvious. If indeed every Christian, by the very fact
of his incorporation in Christ, shares His universal mission
and is thus bound to missionary duty by the double obligation
of justice and charity, how much more is a member of an
essentially missionary Order bound to this duty! A Jesuit can
fulfill this duty in two ways: either by going to the missions or '
by cherishing the missionary spirit. Very Reverend Father
Ledochowski reminds us of this fact: "All are bound to help
our missionary work. Let those who feel they are called to
missionary life give notice to their superiors. The rest, although remaining in their own country, should contribute to
�JESUITS, A 1\IISSIONARY ORDER
61
this apostolate either by their conversations, their sermons,
their teaching, their writing, or by giving advice, collecting
alms, founding clubs or associations, or by any one of the
thousands of ways which zeal for souls will inspire." 44
"To be willing to go under obedience is certainly much, but
not enough for a Jesuit. That being his first and most noble
vocation, he should signify his eagerness for it to his superiors,
and earnestly solicit such a function." 45
The missionary vocation is essential to the spread of truth.
In fact, as Saint Paul asks the Romans, how are men to believe
in God if there is no one to preach ?46 It is a vocation "so eminently proper to the Society of Jesus," writes Very Reverend
Father Ledochowski; yet a vocation which requires many good
qualities, as Very Reverend Father Janssens remarked in his
recent letter on our ministries: "It is also of extreme importance to root out from among us that prejudiced view which
creeps in here and there that those especially should be sent to
the missions. who are strong in body and burning with zeal,
though of mediocre talent and inferior learning, while those
endowed with greater gifts of intellect and character should be
kept within the province. That the truth may appear, we must
say that not only is this view false, but almost the contrary is
true." 47 These few lines of Very Reverend Father General on
this subject are no more than the faithful echo of the mind of
the Church. Pius XI, in 1925, interpreted this mind: "We are
living in such a time," he said, "that it is more obvious than
ever that all the heroic acts and all the sacrifices which accompany missionary activity are insufficient if they remain exclusively on the plane of experience; we must have the help of
science which enlightens, points out the most direct ways, and
suggests the most suitable means." 48
Missionary Spirit of the Jesuit
All the efforts of the missionary, however, will be nullified
if other Christians are not, as collaborators and co-workers,
inflamed with a burning desire to harvest by lives of prayer
the graces necessary for the conquest of pagans. This is the
missionary spirit whose necessity Pius XI emphasized in his
encyclical Rerum Ecclesiae: "Even though the missionaries
�62
JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
labor most zealously, though they work and toil and go so far
as to lay down their very lives in order to bring to the pagans
a knowledge of the Catholic religion, though they employ
every means known to human ingenuity and spare themselves
in nothing, all this will avail them nothing, all their efforts will
go for naught, if God by His grace does not touch the hearts of
the heathen in order to soften and attract them to Himself."
For the Jesuit this missionary spirit means much more, since
by the bond of his vows he is closely united with his brothers,
who work in the front line and who expect his indispensable
cooperation both of a spirit.~:~al and a material kind. Very
Reverend Father Ledochowski characterizes this missionary
spirit of the Jesuit thus: "This end must not only be wished ·
for, but earnestly striven after, either directly, by asking for
and taking up the work of the foreign Missions, or indirectly
at home by recommending, promoting, and assisting the foreign Missions in every possible manner. If one should not
perceive something of this spirit in himself, he would not be a
true companion of J esus." 49
Every Jesuit is, there_!ore, a missionary by the very fact of
his vocation. And it is this that an old Canadian missionary
wrote with enthusiasm: "That I should glorify with the title of
missionary the 30,578 Jesuits spread throughout the world
today might surprise you. Still all these educators, th.ese scientists, these preachers of closed or parish retreats, thes-e directors of consciences, these writers, these leaders of Catholic
action with whom you rub elbows every day are most certainly
missionaries just as Xavier, Claver, or the Canadian Martyrs
were, because the Society of Jesus is, by its Founder's desire,
which the Church has approved, essentially a missionary
order."~ 0
The challenge of love that Ignatius of old entrusted to his
sons who were leaving for distant lands: "Go and set the universe on fire," re-echoes still today with more force than ever;
• for if the harvest is great, the workers are still very few.
* * *
�JESUITS; A MISSIONARY ORDER
63
NOTES
P. de Chastonay, Les Constitutions de l'ordre des Jesuites, p. 179.
Summary, Rule 3.
3 Constitutions, VII, I, 1.
4 Epitome, 602, 1.
5 Ibid., 611.
a Ibid., 22, 6, 7.
7 W. Ledochowski, S.J., in Acta Congressus Missionum S. I. 1925,
(Rome: Apud Curiam Praepositi Generalis, 1925), p. 25.
8 P. A. Brou, S.J., "La Compagnie de Jesus, Order Missionaire,"
Acta Congressus Missionum, p. 6.
9 J. Polanco S.J., "De Vita P. Ignatii," Vita Ignatii Loiolae et Rerum
S. J. Historia, (Madrid, 1894), T. I, p. 26. Cp. Gonzalez da Camara,
"Acta P. Ignatii", Monumenta Ignatiana scripta de Sancto Ignatia de
Loyola, (Madrid: Gabriel Lopez de Horno, 1904), T. I, p. 64.
10 S. Rodriguez, S.J., "P. Simonis Rodericii Monumenta", Epistolae
PP. Paschasii Broeti, Claudii Jaji, Joannis Codurii et Simonis Rodericii,
(Madrid: Gabriel Lopez de Horno, 1903), p. 458.
u Polanco, op. cit., p. 50.
1 2 Brou, op. cit., pp. 6, 7, 8.
13 Pere Paul Dudon, S.J., St. Ignatius of Loyola (Milwaukee: Bruce
Publishing Co., 1949), p. 377 (trans. by William J. Young, S.J.).
14 Georges Goyau, Missions and Missionaries, (London: Sands & Co.,
1932), p. 73.
15
Georges Goyau, L'Eglise en marche (Cited from R. Morency, S.J.,
l'Entr'aide, 1935-1936).
16
Goyau, Missions and Missionaries, p. 82.
17
Ibid. (French edition) p. 61.
18
Brou, op. cit., p. 11.
19
Goyau, op. cit., (French edition), p. 5.
20
Epitome, 36, 4.
21
Ibid., 853, 3.
22
Ibid., 630.
23
Ibid., 630-633.
24
Ibid., 631, 3 ( Supplementum ad lam et 2am editionem).
25
Ibid., 633 bis.
26
Retif, "Vingt-cinq ans d'efforts missionaires", Etudes, Sept., 1951.
27
Letter to the Fathers and Brothers in India, Dec. 12, 1558.
28
"Letter of St. Francis Borgia on Preserving the Spirit of the
Society and of our Vocation," April, 1569, Select Letters of our Very
Reverend Fathers General to the Fathers and Brothers of the S.J.,
(Woodstock College, 1900), pp. 25-26.
29
"A Letter of our Very Rev. Father Claudius Aquaviva to the
Fathers and Brothers of the Society, on Renewal of Spirit," Sept. 29,
1583, Renovation Reading, (Woodstock College, 1886), p. 47.
1
2
�64
JESUITS, A MISSIONARY ORDER
3o "A Letter of Very Rev. Father Mutius Vittelleschi on Prayer and
Other Virtues," op. cit., pp. 139-140.
31 "A Letter of Very Rev. Father John Roothaan on the Desire of
Foreign Missions," Dec. 3, 1833, op. cit., p. 239.
32 ..A Letter of Very Reverend Father Peter Beckx on the Fruit to
be Gathered from the Example of Blessed Peter Canisius and John
Berchmans," Dec. 27, 1865, op. cit., p. 374.
33 "Letter to the American Assistancy on Helping Foreign Missions,"
June 30, 1916, Selected Writings of Father Ledochowski, (Chicago:
Loyola University Press, 1945), pp. 675-676; 678.
34 A Letter of Very Rev. John Baptist Janssens concerning Our Ministries; June 22, 1947.
35 R. Morency, S.J., l'Entr'aide, .1935-1936.
3s Le Brigand, juillet-aout, 1951. ··
37 Quoted from Institut Social Populaire, annee XXI, no. 48.
38 Joseph Brucker, S.J., La Compagnie de Jesus (Paris: Beauchesne,
1919)' p. 93.
39 Brou, op. cit., p. 11.
40 Rene Fiilop-Miller, The Power and Secret of the Jesuits, (London:
G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1930), p. 200 (trans. by F. S. Flint and D. F.
Tait).
u J.-E. Champagne, O.M.I., Manuel d'Action missionaire, C. X.
42 Rerum Ecclesiae, 1926, The Encyclicals of Pius XI, (St. Louis: B.
Herder Book Co., 1927), pp.'157-158 (trans. by James H. Ryan).
43 Mark, XVI, 15.
44 Letter to the Fathers and Brothers of the Provinces of Turin,
Castille and Leon, Dec. 25, 1921.
45 Quoted from Arnold Lunn, A Saint in the Slave Trade, (NJ~w York:
Sheed & Ward, Inc., 1935), p. 52.
... ·'
46 Romans X, 14.
4 7 A Letter of Very Reverend Father John Baptist Janssens concern·
ing our Ministries, June 22, 1947, p. 13.
48 Inaugur. Expos. Vaticane, 1925.
49 Letter to the American Assistancy on Helping Foreign Misstuus,
op. cit., p. 676.
6 0 P. Alphonse Boileau, le Brigand, juillet-aout, 1951.
* * *
The Past at Georgetown
Georgetown College, having a seal as early as 1803, or possibly 1798,
never received, and did not need, authority to adopt a seal resembling
the coat-of-arms of the United States. The Act of Congress of 1815
made no mention whatsoever of a seal.
W. C. REPETTI, S.J.
�CENTENARY AT WEST BADEN
JOSEPH KAROL, S.J.
During 1952, two important anniversaries were marked at
West Baden Springs, Indiana. One was a centenary, for one
hundred years ago, in 1852, Dr. John A. Lane opened Mile
Lick Inn, the first West Baden Springs Hotel. • The other was
a golden jubilee, for in June, 1902, Lee Sinclair welcomed the
first guests to his newly built West Baden Springs Hotel and
proudly led them to see its acre-sized dome, the largest of its
kind in the world.
But Lane and Sinclair only gave the final human ending to a
story that began perhaps over a hundred million years ago.
At that time a great sea covered Southern Indiana and the
greater part of what is now the eastern half of the country.
After this sea receded, the sediment it left slowly turned to
stone. Time and the elements eroded the stone and thus
carved out the hills and the valleys we see in Southern Indiana
today.
At a point in Washington County east of Paoli, pure rain
water seeped down through the surface stone for a hundred
feet or so, until it reached a layer of porous limestone. As the
water flowed west through this layer, it absorbed the various
chemicals which had been left by the ancient sea in that layer:
calcium sulphate, sodium sulphate, magnesium carbonate and
others, including rather large amounts of sodium chloride,
common salt.
The water, now charged, but still flowing through the same
stratum, reached a low valley where it collected in a pool. It
then forced its way up through cracks in the stone above, and
finally bubbled through the naked stone floor of the valley.
Thus were born the mineral springs of French Lick valley,
Without which this valley would have been' just another hollow,
hidden among the rugged, rolling hills of Southern Indiana.
As age followed age,' silt and then vegetation covered the
stone surface of the valley, but the springs bubbled on, exuding
their rotten egg smell upon. the world. They satisfied the
craving for salt of the prehistoric creatures that at one time
roamed this area.
�66
WEST BADEN CENTENARY
Animal Visitors
The first animals known to have used the springs were the
mastadons, the great, shaggy members of the elephant family
which inhabited this area some ten to twenty thousand years
ago. In 1904, workmen who were digging a cistern near
Pluto Spring in French Lick found the tusk of a mastadon
buried thirty feet down in the soil. The huge animal had
perhaps become stuck in the ooze that surrounded the spring.
The next known animal visitors to the springs were the
buffalo, part of the great her:ds which at one time ranged over
most of the present United St~tes east of the Mississippi River.
The particular herd which wintered in Kentucky and summered in Illinois beat out a path across Southern Indiana
which became known as the Buffalo Trace. This Trace passed
three miles south of the springs valley, so the buffalo detoured
into the valley by lesser trails. Thousands of them came during their spring and fall migrations.
The buffalo licked the salt deposited by the evaporation of
the mineral water, hence the name "lick." As late as 1787,
travellers along the Trace who stopped to camp at the lick,
reported seeing a great number of buffalo. One of these
travellers, the Moravian missionary, Rev. John Hec~ewelder,
described the lick as a spot "so much trodden down-.nnd grubbed up that not a blade of grass can grow." He wrote, "Entire
woods are for miles around quite bare." General Harmar, on
his way back to Louisville from Vincennes, stopped at the lick
on October 4, 1787. He mentioned in his journal, "There was
a vast quantity of buffalo at this lick." What he saw was
most probably the Kentucky-bound herd that had stopped for
salt.
The buffalo that came to the lick year after year probably
also beat out the side paths which can still be seen radiating
from the valley. They were made as the buffalo sought shelter
and forage during their.stay, and also as the animals found
their way back to the main Trace. So at one time the hills
that brood over the valley must have reverberated to the bellows of the buffalo as they had once resounded with the primal
trumpetings of the mastadon. The buffalo were no longer seen
at French Lick or in Southern Indiana after 1800. The ter·
f
.
·
I
I
,
1
�WEST BADEN CENTENARY
67
rible winter of that year destroyed the remnant of the herd
that had not been slaughtered by hunters.
Human Settlers
The first humans to use the springs were probably the prehistoric mound-builders, who were followed by the later Indians. Tradition has it that the Indians came from miles
around to hunt, trade and drink the waters for their medicinal
value.
The first white men in the valley were most probably the
French who in 1732 had built a military settlement at the
point where the Buffalo Trace crossed the Wabash River.
The French named the fort Vincennes. The later inhabitants
of Vincennes claimed that in 1742 the Piankeshaw Indians
gave to the French a vast tract of land surrounding Vincennes.
The boundaries of this tract included the springs valley. It
could have been about that time, 1742, that the French came
to the lick.
That same year, Father Xavier de Guinne, the first Hoosier
Jesuit, began at Vincennes a permanent mission for the Indians. It may have been one of the neophytes of this mission
whose bones workmen found in 1912 on West Baden Hotel
property. They were levelling a hill near Lost River in order
to build a golf green when they broke into an Indian grave.
They found in it some bones, a cross with some beads attached,
and some religious medals.
The French at the lick probably had no more than a rough
cabin as headquarters for trading and making salt. When
they departed they left only their name. The tradition is that
they were driven out of the valley by the Indians. Whatever
did happen, the valley was already known as French Lick when
it walked onto the stage of recorded history. That was on
September 19, 1786. George Rogers Clark and his army, en
route to Vincennes by way of the Buffalo Trace, halted along
the way to settle a disturbance that had arisen. One of the
officers of the Army wrote in his journal that they stopped "at
a place called French Lick." Murals depicting this visit of
Clark to the valley decorate the walls of a hotel in downtown
West Baden Springs.
After that, the lick is often mentioned in the writings of
�68
WEST BADEN CENTENARY
those who travelled the Buffalo Trace. The first permanent
sign of civilization appeared in the valley shortly after the
turn of the century when, about 1805, a ranger fort was built
on or near the site of the present French Lick Springs Hotel.
The Rangers were supposed to work out of the fort and to
patrol the Trace in order to protect the settlers who were
coming up from Kentucky.
The presence of the Rangers did not, however, keep one of
the first settlers of the valley, William Charles, from being
killed by the Indians. One day· in the year 1812 he was plowing his field on the site of the· present French Lick Library,
when the Indians crept up and shot him. They escaped before
the soldiers at the fort could do anything.
But the Indian threat soon passed and the settlement grew,
especially after the close of the War of 1812. Settlers came
up from Kentucky where they had stayed in the interim between their leaving the Carolinas and other coastal states and
their arrival north of the Ohio. Some of the settlers were
coming to claim land which they had been given in payment
for military services. Not too long ago, the title to a small
piece of property included within the West Baden Springs
Hotel was finally cleared up. The land had belonjed to a
Revolutionary War veteran who had never come out to ciaim it.
By 1817, there were twenty-four voters in French Lick,
which then included the whole valley. These men set up a
civil government and elected Joel Charles as justice of the
peace.
These early settlers still used the springs. They hid in the
trees above the springs and shot the wild animals that came
there for salt. They brought their cattle to the Lick for salt.
When a man discovered that his cow had run away from near
• the house, he was pretty sure of finding her at the lick.
In 1816, when Indiana ~as admitted to statehood, the state
government had set aside the springs valley as a salt factory.
But the project failed, probably because too much mineral
water had to be boiled to make one bushel of salt. The valley
lands were then put up for sale.
�WEST BADEN CENTENARY
69
The First Hotel
Dr. William Bowles bought the land in the thirties, and in
1840, he built the first French Lick Hotel. It was a narrow,
frame structure, three stories high in front, with a two story
wing in back, and it occupied the site of the present hotel. In
1846 Bowles went off to fight in the Mexican War and leased
the hotel for five years to another doctor, John A. Lane.
The hotel continued to prosper under Lane's management,
so he got the idea of building his own place. He investigated
Mile Lick, a group of springs a mile up the valley north of
French Lick. He saw there an inky black swamp where the
mineral waters mingled freely with the creek water, providing
a home for snakes, mosquitoes, and gum trees.
When Lane's lease ran out in 1851, he bought from Bowles
770 acres of land at Mile Lick. He hired a crew of workmen
and put up a saw mill amid the magnificent stand of hardwoods on the hillside above the springs. In one year Lane and
the men bridged French Lick Creek and then built the hotel at
the base of the hill. The building was probably finished in
late spring or early summer of 1852.
West Baden
Lane called the small, simple, frame building Mile Lick Inn
at first. Then he got the grandiose idea of making his resort
an American rival to the famous spa at Baden-Baden in Germany, so he named it West Baden. The same name was given
to the town that was springing up on the hillside across the
valley, opposite the hotel. The word "Springs" was added to
the name later.
The first West Baden Hotel and its surroundings were
primitive. The three springs were harnessed with hollow gum
logs to separate them from the encroaching swamp and to
make them accessible and usable. But despite the primitive
surroundings, more people came to West Baden, first from
the Midwest, then from all over the country. They were willing to endure any inconveniences for the sake of "taking the
waters," which were advertised as a cure for just about any
and every disease known to man.
The ownership of the hotel went through several hands until
�70
WEST BADEN CENTENARY
1888, when it was bought by Lee Sinclair, a native of Cloverdale, Indiana. The Monon Railroad arrived in the valley three
years before Sinclair did. Spring No. 7, the famous Sprudel,
was rediscovered shortly after his arrival. Both of these
events, coupled with Sinclair's native genius for organization
and for promotion, increased the hotel's business tremendously.
Sinclair made many improvements. It was during his ownership of the hotel that the trek of world famous celebrities to
West Baden began.
When the hotel burned down in June, 1901, Sinclair set
about building the present structure. He had it finished almost a year later. The first guests came in June, 1902, although the hotel was not completely finished until August.
The new hotel had seven hundred rooms and was topped by
the largest unsupported dome in the world, a round acre in
size.
Many of the hotel guests were Catholic, but there was no
church for them in the vicinity. The few permanent Catholic
residents among the "Bible Belt" population of the valley were
cared for by a priest from a Catholic settlement in the diocese.
He said Mass in a private home in West Baden.
With characteristic energy, Sinclair at once set about building a Catholic church. He chose a piece of ground. on the
hillside immediately behind the hotel and on this sit~ built
Our Lady of Lourdes. It was of pressed brick construction,
trimmed with Bedford limestone, and capped by a large belfry
with an eight-day clock and a quarter-hour peal of Westmin. ster chimes. Sinclair then obtained a chaplain and paid his
salary.
Bishop O'Donoghue, auxiliary of Indianapolis, formally took
possession of the church for the diocese on February 27, 1903.
In his speech of acceptance he said: "I feel that Divine Providence will find some way to reward Mr. Sinclair as he deserves."
Divine Providence did r~ward Sinclair. He received Catholic baptism two weeks before his death on September 7, 1916.
Our Lady of Lourdes remained in use until the hotel was
closed. Before the Jesuits moved in, however, the Protestant
townspeople, who had only tolerated the church because of its
connection with the hotel, razed it to the ground. Their reason
�WEST BADEN CENTENARY
71
for doing it was that the belfry tower was in danger of falling.
Some say that the tower put up a strong resistance before it
was finally pulled down.
After Sinclair died, his daughter and son-in-law, the Rexfords, took over the management of the hotel. They added
the formal gardens and new spring houses, refaced the atrium
and refurnished the rooms. In 1922 they sold out to Edward
Ballard, a native of West Baden, who had been born in a cabin
in the hills nearby. He ran the hotel until the depression
forced him to close it in 1932.
Two years later he gave it to the Society of Jesus as a seminary. Mr. Ballard died in 1936 and his funeral was held in the
atrium under the big dome.
West Baden Springs Hotel today is West Baden College.
Several hundred Jesuit students for the priesthood from many
states of the Union and from many countries of the world are
now studying philosophy and theology at the College. Hundreds of others have finished their courses and are now scattered over the five continents, doing the work of God, spreading the teachings of the Gospel that they learned in the famous
springs valley.
* * *
The Past at Georgetown
General George Washington and the Marquis de Lafayette were received inside the Old North Building at Georgetown. Since the present
porch did not exist in their time, they could not have addressed the
students from it.
The bell on Georgetown's Dahlgren Chapel, bearing a Spanish inscription, was cast in 1814 and came from a Calvert estate near Riverdale,
Maryland, and not from any old building in St. Mary's City, Maryland.
W. C.
REPETTI,
S.J.
�A VILLA IS BORN
B. J. MURRAY, S.J.
The name of Cozens has been linked to Regis College for
forty years. The family, though never rich, deeded Maryvale
to the Jesuits. This summer villa nestles high among the
pines at an altitude of eight thousand feet close to the Continental Divide that rises over thirteen thousand feet to the
east and south, and when groups from Marquette, Saint Louis
University, Creighton and Rockhurst come here for a summer
vacation, they return home ready for the work of the coming
year.
At the turn of the century, when Denver's Sacred Heart College and parish belonged to the Neapolitan Province, the
members of the college faculty camped out for summer vacations in the cool refreshing mountains. A couple of wagons,
covered ones at that, were the means of conveyance. Naturally
it was a rugged experience; the roads were rough and narrow,
the weather as you found it, but the adventure was physically
exhilarating.
About 1902 the erudite Jesuit professors, with a summer's
growth of beard that made a more grizzled set hard to find,
were wending their weary way back to Denver, hoping to
make Berthoud Pass approach that night, only to have_a wheel
break on one of the wagons. Near by was Cozens' ranch house
and Father Bertram, the superior of the campers, inquired
whether the Jesuits might camp in the yard for the night.
The request was graciously granted and Ours set up their
tents. The next morning Cozens received an impressive shock.
He saw the group quietly and silently walking around the yard
during meditation. After breakfast he came out to talk to
them, and the absence of profanity and cursing made him think
very highly of his guests. As a result he invited Father Bertram to stay for a few days, to go across the river and set up
. tents. This invitation was accepted and during the few days
that followed, Cozens' esteem so increased that he asked Father
Bertram to return next year for the whole summer. The following year he suggested that if the Jesuits would make their
permanent vacationing spot on the ground beyond the river,
he in turn would give them enough property on which they
�THE MISSOURI VILLA
73
could raise permanent buildings. This offer was very tempting; it would put an end to the hardships of outdoor camping.
It was accepted very heartily. Hence in 1905 the Jesuits were
deeded eighty acres "across the river."
Life of Benefactor
William Z. Cozens, Sr., an old-west character, courageous,
determined, honest and deeply respected, was born at Songuerl,
Ottawa, Canada, on July 2, 1830. As a young man he moved
to New York and made his living as a carpenter. The lure of
the West, however, brought him to Denver in June 1859, and
he quickly started his trek through the hills to Golden, the
first capital city of Colorado, a distance of some fifteen miles.
Here gold dust and the wildest type of rumors about Black
Hawk and Central City were rampant. He did not delay, but
began his trip up Clear Creek Valley toward Black Hawk.
There he obtained a job as a bartender and grocery man in
Jack Kehler's combination store in which the price of a drink
was as much gold dust as could be pinched with thumb and
forefinger from a miner's buckskin pouch. Later that same
year he set out for Central City. In December of 1860, the
year he was elected sheriff of Central City, he married Mary
York, who was born of Irish parents on March 17, 1830, in
London. At the age of ten she came to Canada. In 1859, she
moved to Central City. Seven children were born of the union,
four dying in childhood. Of the surviving children William,
Jr. was born in 1862, Mary Elizabeth in 1864 and Sarah Anne
in 1866. Among the papers left by William, Jr. when he died
November 30, 1937, was found the very interesting and unique
certificate of his parents' marriage. 1 Hand stamped in purple
ink is the heading:
St. Mary's Cathedral
1530 Stout St.,
Oct. 24, 1894
DENVER, COLORADO
1
It is a unique document in as far as the officiating priest became the
future Bishop of the Denver diocese, the pastor became famous as a
historian, the name of St. Mary's Cathedral was changed to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and the name of Mountain City
Was changed to Central City.
�THE MISSOURI VILLA
74
The following is written by hand in black ink:
Mountain City
Wm. Z. Cozens
&
Mary York
I certify to this
Wm. J. Howlett
Pastor
The record of St. Mary's Cathedral Church of
Denver, Colorado, has the following entry:
On the 30th of December 1860 William Z.
Cozens, son of William Z. Cozens and Marietta
Towns, from New York,
and
Mary York, daughter of James York and Elizabeth Cane, from Ireland, were joined together
by me in the bonds of matrimony in the presence of George Ethernton and 0. G. Smith
J. P. Machebeuf
V. G.
(The seal of the Cathedral is affixed.)
From Lafayette Hanchett's book, The Old Sheriff and Other
True Tales, sidelights of human interest are recorded of colorful Cozens, Sr. He was the first sheriff of Gilpin County and
"alone brought law and order to Colorado during the sixties
solely by means of his bravery and determined and vigorous
personality." A story is told which gives an insight into his
fearlessness and courage. A roustabout stabbed and killed
one of the better-liked miners. The incensed crowd meant to
take the law into its own hands, selected the tree and dispatched someone to get a strong rope. At this point sheriff
Cozens arrived, took charge of the murderer and marcl).ed him
to the court house steps. Loud talk and much muttering went
through the crowd; they demanded that Cozens let them take 1
care of the man. Placing the murderer on the first step, I
Cozens waved back the front rank of men, very determinedly 1
drew a line on the ground in front of them, took up his position 1
at one end of the line, cocked his six-shooters and said, "I am
sheriff of this county and am here to see that justice is done.
This man is a murderer, but the law, and not you, will condemn
him. I will build the gallows myself, if he is to be hanged.
But if you try to take him away from me the first twelve to
cross this line will be shot dead.'' They knew their sheriff; not
• a man stirred. The next day court was held, the man sentenced
to death by hanging and the sheriff rigged up the gallows.
Feeling that the peace, quiet and future of Fraser Valley
would be more conducive to family happiness and prosperity
than Central City, in July, 1872, Cozens made a trip over the
· Divide, staked out his water rights, becoming the first white
I
�THE MISSOURI VILLA
homesteader in that part. He grubbed out the willows and
sagebrush, built a log cabin, moved the family in 1875. The
next year he built the present ranch house. He ran some
stock, had milk cows, became postmaster of Fraser Precinct in
1876, which position he held until his death, opened up a
grocery store in connection with the post office. Mrs. Cozens
raised chickens. When William, Jr. reached his majority he
was elected justice of the peace. Thus the post office and
grocery store became also the court house. The Cozens home
became a stage coach stop, noted for genuine hospitality and
fine meals.
On January 17, 1904, at the age of seventy-four, William Z.
Cozens died. The prayers of his Catholic family availed not;
he never entered the Church. He was buried across the river,
up among the pines.
The Grant of Land
In the following year the Jesuits were deeded eighty acres
on the other side of the Fraser River. When two Jesuits surveyed the property they discovered that the graveyard-to-be
was not included in the deed. Mrs. Cozens then told Father
Bertram that either the graveyard was on our property or we
got no property. It was included. Another provision that she
made was that if we ever sell the property the bodies in the
little cemetery should be transferred to the Catholic cemetery
in Denver.
Mrs. Cozens was evidently a very exemplary Catholic
woman, full of determination and prudence and a good wife for
her non-Catholic husband. Her religious instruction to her
family was manifested by the depth of faith imbedded in her
children. She died in 1909.
Shortly before the death of Mrs. Cozens the construction of
our permanent building began. Under the architectural
design of Father Bertram it assumed a tuning-fork shape,
with the chapel on one long prong and the recreation room on
the other, in the rear the dining room and kitchen, in the leftover space the sleeping quarters. As time went on cabins were
built, three double and one triple. Then in 1950 a magnificent
dining and recreation room building, one hundred and ten
feet long, was started and should see completion in 1954.
�76
THE MISSOURI VILLA
Through the kindness of a devoted family a beautiful villa
was born. Cool days, occasional cold nights, vast open spaces,
mountain scenery, fine fishing, invigorating hiking-all go to
make Maryvale very enjoyable. The land was given to Regis
with no strings attached, to help in any possible manner the
educational needs and aspirations of the college.
A touching scene occurred annually with the arrival of a
newly ordained priest. Until the time of their deaths William,
Jr. and his elderly sisters would go down on their knees in the
yard and beg the young priest for his blessing. In token of
Jesuit gratitude he would say Mass the next morning in their
own chapel for their intentiorls. It was the least that could
be done for all they had done for Ours. Charity, mixed with
loyalty, was inherent in the old sheriff's children, who now
rest peacefully amid the pines, but a few feet from the shrine
of Our Blessed Mother, within their little plot, surrounded by
an iron fence, and a cross of white at their feet.
FATHER JAMES PYE NEALE
•
The July, 1953, issue of the Woodstock Letters contained a series of
extracts from the letters of Father James Pye Neale. The information,
as obtained, about the recognition of Father Neale in a Philadelphia
hospital, and the period of Father Noel's chaplaincy, as given in the
Province catalogues, led to the conclusion that his death occurred in the
period 1901-1906.
It has since been ascertained that the St. Mary's Beacon, published in
Leonardtown, Md., gave the definite date of his death as March 19, 1895,
only two years after he left the Society.
l
�HISTORICAL NOTES
FATHER JOSEPH HAVENS RICHARDS' NOTES ON
GEORGETOWN AND THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
The account of the relations of Georgetown with the
Catholic University was recorded by one who could speak with
authority. Father Richards was Rector of Georgetown from
August 15, 1888 to July 3, 1898, that is, from approximately
one year before the opening of Catholic University until about
the end of the first nine years of its existence. These ten years
of office spanned an intensely active period for both universities.
February 20-22, 1889, the very year following Father Richards' appointment, Georgetown, our nation's first Catholic
college and university, celebrated its centennial. This commemoration coincided with the first centenary of the establishment of the American hierarchy and the opening of
Catholic University. Father Coleman Nevils thus sums up
the rectorship of Father Richards: "It is no reflection upon
any of his predecessors or his successors to say Georgetown
enjoyed during his ten years as rector a period of scholastic,
social, cultural, and educational prosperity unsurpassed at any
other time in its history. The Richards' regime was a golden
age for Georgetown . . . . [When] he became [its] thirtieth
president, he was faced with two big propositions, the necessary preparation for an appropriate celebration of the centennial of the University [and] the completion of the Healy
Building.... It was Father Richards who removed the boards
that had for nearly ten years closed the front entrance ....
He built the Coleman Museum and the Riggs Library. One of
the records says: 'The College looked like a poverty-stricken
school; when he finished, it looked like a prosperous institution.' ... Father Richards' other great initial work was to see
to the commemorating in a fit way the first centenary of the
College. This he did in grand style." 1
The Catholic University, after overcoming the considerable
opposition from and the almost fatal division within the ranks
of the hierarchy, held, after receiving papal approval, its formal
opening in November, 1889, the very year, as we have seen,
�78
HISTORICAL NOTES
that marked Georgetown's hundredth birthday. 2 Steps were
taken to found within its immediate vicinity houses of study
for several religious orders and congregations. On October 1,
1895 the McMahon Hall was opened with the inauguration of
the School of Philosophy and the School of Social Sciences.
Foreign professors were invited to lecture and lend prestige to
the new institution. Bishop Keane was succeeded by Father
Thomas J. Conaty, who in turn was replaced a few years later
by Monsignor O'Connell. Catholic University was not so fortunate as Georgetown to have the same rector to direct, uninterrupted for ten years, its manifold activities and solve its
numerous problems.
In the notes edited below, Father Richards tells the story of
the relations between these two Catholic universities destined
to play their respective roles within a few miles of each other.
He does so with authoritative knowledge, good will, impartiality, and calm objectivity. His was not an easy dilemma to
face or solve-to safeguard and promote the interests of a
Catholic university chartered by His Holiness Gregory XVI,
and also to help to the "Qest of his ability a national institution
of higher learning which enjoyed the favor of the greater part
of the hierarchy and the approval of another Supreme Pontiff.
While reading the excerpts, however lengthy, that m:e quoted
from his notes in the obituary notice appearing €arlier in
·WoODSTOCK LETTERS, one is always left in doubt about the
author's thought on the subject, due to their incompleteness;
hence, they are here edited in full. 3 There will be no attempt·
made to defend, reject, or discuss at length the statements and
opinions of Father Richards; to do so, it would be necessary
to have access among other sources to the files of his correspondence. The notes are edited here solely as an historical
document recorded by one in a position to know whereof he
spoke.
The account of Father Richards' life is readily accessible in
Father Nevils' Miniatures of Georgetown, already referred to,
and in the lengthy necrology that appeared in the 1924 WooDSTOCK LETTERS. Suffice it to recall here that Joseph Havens
Richards was born in Columbus, Ohio, on November 8, 1851.
Nearly twenty-one years later, on August 7, 1872, he became a
Jesuit novice at Frederick, Maryland. Approximately a year
�HISTORICAL NOTES
79
after his appointment as rector of Georgetown, he pronounced
his last vows on August 14, 1889. After his long tenure of
office, he devoted himself to parochial work and continued to
write articles on Catholic education; he also published in book
form the life of his father, a convert to the Faith as was also
his mother. From 1915 to 1919, he was rector at 84th Street,
New York. Shortly after August 7, 1922, which marked his
golden jubilee as a Jesuit, he celebrated at Weston this happy
crowning of a truly devoted life. He died at Worcester on
June 9, 1923.
Notes on the early relations of the Catholic University of
America, Washington, D. C., with the members of the Society
of Jesus of the Maryland-New York Province, prepared by
Joseph Havens Richards, S.J., rector of Georgetown University, Washington, D. C., from August 15, 1888 to July 3, 1898. 4
Before speaking of this subject directly, it seems to me well
to premise a few items concerning the history of Georgetown
University, as it is with that institution particularly that
causes of friction might have been supposed to exist in regard
to the Catholic University.
History of Georgetown University
1789: Foundation. 1791: Opening of Classes. 1801: Philosophy. Georgetown University was founded in 1789 by
John Carroll, then Prefect Apostolic of the United States of
America, and his associates, all ex-Jesuit priests. 5 Classes
were opened in 1791. Naturally, these classes were at first of
only academic grade. But in 1801 the course of philosophy
Was instituted, with seven students, and Georgetown became
thus a complete college.
1806: Transfer to the Society of Jesus. The Society of Jesus
having been re-established 6 in the United States in 1805 by the
authorization of Pius VII, Georgetown College was given over
to the Society in 1806, and Father Robert Molyneux, who had
been appointed superior of the Jesuit Fathers, became also
President of the College.
1815: University Charter from Congress of the United
States. On March 5, 1815 Georgetown College received a
�80
HISTORICAL NOTES
charter from the Congress of the United States authorizing it
to grant "any degree in the faculties, arts, sciences, and liberal
professions to which persons are usually admitted in other
Colleges or Universities of the United States." 7
1833: Charter from Pope Gregory XVI, as only Catholic
University. On March 30, 1833 Georgetown College was chartered by Pope Gregory XVI by a brief bearing that date, as
the only (Catholic) University in the United States, and was
authorized to grant degrees in philosophy and theology, after
examination of the candidates:' The purpose was stated to be
particularly that "young ecclesiastics, allured by the hope of
the Doctorate, which is highly esteemed in those States, would
gather from all directions and thus make thoroughly the course
of theology, which they now make superficially in their dioceses."8
"Georgetown University was thus duly invested with all
powers by the authority of the Government of the United
States and of the Catholic Church and took its position as the
first great Catholic University of the United States" (History
of Georgetown College, oy John Gilmary Shea, LL.D., p. 108).
In pursuance of this purpose, the courses of philosophy and
theology for the Scholastics of our Society were carried on at
the College, and secular students, whether candidate§' for the
priesthood or not, were admitted to them. Those who had
already received the degree of Bachelor of Arts, studied for
the higher degree of Master. In some cases, even non-Catholic
graduates attained to this second degree.
1843-44: Astronomical Observatory. In these same years,
1843-44, the Astronomical Observatory was built and equipped.
1844: Second Charter from the United States. On May 27,
1844 the Congress of the United States issued a second charter
to the College, specifying more particularly its ample financial
• powers. This act was approved by the President of the United
States on June 10, 1844. ·
1851: Medical Department. In 1851 the Medical Department of Georgetown University was opened under Father
James Ryder, rector, thus making another step in the develop. ment of the University.9
�HISTORICAL NOTES
81
1863: Transfer of Scholasticate to Boston and Return. 1869:
Transfer of Scholasticate to Woodstock, Maryland. During
the Civil War, the scholasticate of the Maryland Province was
transferred temporarily to Boston, Massachusetts, where it was
housed in the new buildings erected for the Boston College.
Near the close of the war, about 1864, the scholasticate was
returned to Georgetown, but in September, 1869, it was transferred to Woodstock, Maryland. 10
Owing to these disturbances and changes, the postgraduate
studies of philosophy and theology in Georgetown University
suffered a temporary eclipse and it was only in 1889-90 that
the postgraduate courses of philosophy, letters and sciences
were reopened, though the courses of philosophy, both rational
and physical, in preparation for the Bachelor's degree were
retained and carried on in a thorough and flourishing manner.
1870: Law Department. In 1870 under the rectorship of
Father Bernard Maguire, the Law Department of Georgetown
University was founded. 11
1878: Main Building. In 1878 there was added to the College by Father P. F. Healy, then rector, a new building of
great size, solidity, and beauty, which was generally conceded
at the time to be the finest educational building in the United
States. 12
1886: New Building of the Medical Department. In 1886
under Father J. A. Doonan, rector, a new building was erected
for the Medical Department, which up to that date had been
housed in rented quartersY
In August of 1888 the present writer was sent to Georgetown University as rector. 14 I had spent the five years of my
teaching as a Scholastic at Georgetown, from 1878 to 1883. I
Was therefore familiar with the history and aims of the University. It did not profess to be as yet a fully developed and
equipped University, such as the Church would like to possess
in the United States. But it had all the essentials of a university organization in actual existence and was progressing
steadily toward the realization of the ideal, being retarded only
by lack of financial means.
�82
HISTORICAL NOTES
The Founding of Catholic University
1881,: Third Council of Baltimore. Some years before this
date agitation had begun for the establishment of a Seminarium Principale for the higher education of the clergy.15 In the
Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, held in November and
December of the year 1884, the necessity of such an institution
was insisted upon by the assembled bishops. In the decree on
this subject, De Seminario Principali, there is no explicit
question of any but ecclesiastical students, though it adds that
such a seminary would constitute a nucleus from which,
through the favor of God's grace, a perfect university would
develop. The decree goes on: (Cap. III, De Seminario Principali, p. 93)
Re mature perpensa, convenerunt Patres jam advenisse tempus
quo grande hoc opus inchoandum sit. Quod ut strenue urgeatur,
visum est Concilio, Commissionem instituere cujus erit collatis
conciliis id conniti ut quamprimum fieri possit, Seminarium quod·
dam Principale pro Statibus Unitis Americae Septentrionalis prope
civitatem quandam insignem et populosam erigatur ad quod undique
clerici praestantioris- ingenii, ordinarium studiorum curriculum
emensi, et etiam sacerdotes, confluere possint, ad eminentissimam sibi
comparandam scientiam. Hujusmodi seminarium omnimodae juris·
dictioni, directioni et administrationi Episcoporum • eorundem
Statuum subjectum erit, ad quos spectabit studiorwn. rationem
definire, leges disciplinae praescribere, professores caeterosque
officiales instituere, aliaque omnia ordinare quae ad rectum seminarii
regimen pertinent.
Catholic University. Quoniam de facultate theologica et philo·
sophica juxta normam Universitatis Catholicae agitur, leges regi·
minis et disciplinae ac rationis studiorum postquam de iis inter
Archiepiscopos et Episcopos deliberatum erit, examini et appro·
bationi S. Sedis subjicientur nee nisi hac approbatione obtenta.
vigorem habebunt.
Previous to the Council, Bishop J. L. Spalding of Peoria,
Illinois, had secured from his niece and former legal ward,
Miss Mary Gwendoline Caldwell, the promise of a gift of
$300,000 for the foundation of a Catholic University. 16 The
Council, in the thirtieth private session, accepted the gift and
appointed as an Executive Committee "qui novi Seminarii
Principalis, universitatis primordiorum, negotiis gerendis
praeessent" certain bishops and laymen, whose names were
�HISTORICAL NOTES
83
suggested by Miss Caldwell, with power to aggregate other
members, either clerical or lay, if desired (Excerpta e Congregationibus Privatis VI, p. LXVI).
The proposition was warmly approved by Leo XIII. In the
preliminary arrangements, Bishops John L. Spalding of Peoria, John Ireland of St. Paul, Minnesota, and John J. Keane
of Richmond, Virginia, were particularly active. It was confidently expected that Bishop Spalding would be named rector,
but when the appointment came, it was found that that office
had been conferred on Bishop Keane. The reason was generally supposed to be that Bishop Spalding who had made his
studies, or at least some of them, in Germany, seemed to have
adopted the philosophical systems, or at least imbibed the
spirit of the non-Catholic German philosophers and to be decidedly wanting in knowledge and appreciation of the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas and the other scholastics. This
fact was made plain in a public address which he had made
some time before and which had been widely reported in the
newspapers.
1888: Selection of Washington for Catholic University of
America. Much discussion had occurred as to the location of
the proposed university. Some wished it to be in New York;
other cities were proposed, but the final conclusion was in
favor of Washington, D. C., the capital city of the Nation. It
Was clearly seen by the projectors that the presence in Washington of Georgetown, possessed of all the powers and much
of the equipment and development of a University, was a grave
objection. I was told by my predecessor, Father James A.
Doonan, that he had been approached by Bishop Keane with
an enquiry as to what price Georgetown would ask, if the
Catholic University would offer to buy its entire property.
To this enquiry, Father Doonan answered unfavorably, saying
that we did not wish to sell at all.
1888-89: Condition of Georgetown University. When I arrived at Georgetown as newly appointed rector, August 15,
1888, the first building of the Catholic University was apProaching completion. It was called Caldwell Hall, and was
intended exclusively for theological students, all of whom were
expected to be already ordained priests. The condition of
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HISTORICAL NOTES
Georgetown University, as shown by the annual catalogue of
that scholastic year 1888-89, was as follows:
College-Students
Faculty-Fathers
Scholastics
Lay Teachers
Medical Department-Students - - - - - - - - - - - Faculty-Professors - - - - - - Assistant Professors and
Demonstrators
Law Department-Students
Faculty-Professors
As'sistant Professors _ _ _
Total - - - - - - - - - - - ________
Hence in all: Students, 504; Professors and Instructors, 75.
220
17
11
7
80
11
15
204
8
6
504 75
Catholic University's First Rector
Relations with Bishop Keane. I was given no directions as
to the attitude to be observed toward the future Catholic
University. No superior even mentioned the subject to me.
However, I knew Bishop K.eane very well, indeed was very
friendly with him. When he was an assistant pastor at St.
Patrick's Church, Washington, he had converted and received
into the Church an aunt of mine, Mrs. William Rich~rds, and
we were all very grateful to him and entertained a very high
esteem of him as a zealous and holy priest and dear friend.
I had met him also at Woodstock during my course of theology,
when he came there to consult Father Camillo Mazzella on
some points of Scholastic Philosophy, especially on the doctrine
of matter and form, which seemed to give him great difficulty.
After he had been relieved of the care of his diocese of Rich·
mond and was engaged in preparing for the future Catholic
University, he visited Georgetown College, remaining two or
three days, during which I had some charge of him. He asked
. me at that time what use we had of so extensive buildings for
the college. This seemed to me at the time to indicate that he
had very little practical knowledge of educational matters.
Visit from Reverend. Doctor P. L. Chapelle. Shortly' after
my coming to Georgetown, I received a visit from Rev. Dr.
P. L. Chapelle, then recently appointed pastor of St. Matthew's
'
�HISTORICAL NOTES
85
Church, afterward made Archbishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico.U He came to tell me that he feared the fact that he had
advocated the locating of the Catholic University at Washington might cause him to be considered an enemy of Georgetown;
that on the contrary he was sincerely attached to the College
and was convinced that the new University would not interfere
at all with Georgetown; if he had believed it would, he never
would have advocated that location. I reassured him and
asked why he feared such an interpretation of his position.
He said that he knew remonstrances had been made at Rome
against the selection of Washington as the site. I asked him
who had made the representations at Rome, for I knew nothing
of them. He answered that he supposed that they were made
by members of the Society. I never received any further information on this point, except that I did hear a report that
Father Camillo Mazzella, afterward Cardinal, had been consulted and had answered to the effect that in his time Georgetown College was a living tree with two dead branches (referring, no doubt, to the Medical and Law Departments).
1889: Centenary of Georgetown University; 18 Cablegram of
Bishop Keane. When Georgetown University celebrated the
first centenary of its existence in February, 1889, Bishop
Keane was in Rome, completing arrangements for the new
University. He cabled a congratulatory message which was
read at the final session of the celebration. When he returned
to Washington about a month afterward, a reception and banquet were tendered to him by the clergy at Welcker's Hotel.
Address of Welcome at Reception by Clergy. At this banquet
I was chosen to respond to the toast "Our Sister Universities."
As this speech was of some importance, giving the Bishop a
warm welcome and expressing great confidence in the beneficial
results to be expected from the new University on Catholic
education in the United States, and thus outlining the conciliatory policy that Georgetown was to follow, I have preserved a
copy of it. At the close, Bishop Keane thanked me very
Warmly for what he called "the best utterance he had yet
heard on the Catholic University."
Bishop Keane's Address to Georgetown Alumni; Assurances
1 No Interference. Shortly after this banquet, the Alumni of
0
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HISTORICAL NOTES
Georgetown University held their annual meeting at the College. To this reunion Bishop Keane was invited as a special
guest of honor. At the dinner he made an address in which he
said that some fear had been expressed in a number of quarters
that the locating of the Catholic University at Washington
would interfere with Georgetown's success. He professed
great friendship for "dear old Georgetown" and declared that
the new University would not interfere in the least with her
or any other Catholic college. He mentioned also particularly
Notre Dame University, Indiana. It was planned to be so far
above all of them in its studies'that no interference would be
possible. These same assuranc·es were given by Bishop Keane
in an article published in the Catholic WorldY The University was to be exclusively of a postgraduate nature and would
not come into competition with any of the existing Catholic
institutions.
Georgetown's Conciliatory Policy. The policy which I deliberately adopted from the first and which was faithfully adhered to by Georgetown throughout my administration (and I
suppose later, to the present moment) was that we should
make no opposition in any point to the new University, but on
the contrary that we should show cordial friendship and cooperation in its work. This, because the new institutiQn came
to us with warm approval of the Holy See and the ree·ommendation of the Holy Father Leo XIII, and also, because if it
were properly managed it would be an immense influence in
elevating and co-ordinating Catholic education in the United
States. But secondly, we should not on account of the presence
of that University curtail in any way the progress and development of our own University. We had been in existence for a
hundred years; we also had the special approval and authorization of the Holy See ; we had flourishing departments of
university studies attended by many hundreds of students; we
had several thousands of former students, both Catholic and
• non-Catholic, in every walk of life scattered throughout the
States, even the most distant, and not a few in foreign countries. Many of these former students were occupying or had
occupied very high positions in the professions, as bishops,
priests, laWYers, physicians, etc., and particularly in government offices, such as senators, governors, members of Congress,
�HISTORICAL NOTES
87
judges, generals, etc., etc. These would certainly not look
kindly upon any attempt to check the legitimate growth of
their alma mater.
This policy, consistently followed, brought us through these
ten years without any misunderstanding with the Catholic
University, while at the same time Georgetown University
continued to increase and develop steadily and rapidly. Without doubt there was some gossip and ill-natured talk by friends
of both institutions; but to this we showed no favor. I did
indeed understand that the students of the Catholic University
spoke very frequently and unkindly of Georgetown; but our
students certainly did not speak so of them. On one occasion,
one of our older students (afterward a priest of the New York
diocese) going with permission to visit the Catholic University, on leaving the company of the young priest-students
there, said to them: "This is a strange thing! I have spent
four years at Georgetown University and I have never heard
a word against the Catholic University. I have been here two
hours and have listened to unfavorable criticisms of Georgetown the whole time!" But all of these frothy manifestations
of feeling we passed over with as little notice as possible.
Donation Obtained by Father Clarke, S.J., for Catholic University. When the early preparations for the Catholic University were in progress, the well-known Jesuit, Father William
Clarke, then stationed in Baltimore, obtained from two ladies
a gift of fifty thousand dollars for the foundation of a chair in
that institution.
Complimentary Dinner at Georgetown to New Professors of
Catholic University. When the first band of professors, Drs.
Schroeder, Pohle, Bouquillon, etc., came to the Catholic University from Europe, we invited them to a special dinner at
the College. On this occasion Dr. Bouquillon presented to me a
copy of his Theologia Moralis Fundamentalis, then recently
Published, as an homage to the Society of Jesus and a testimony of his regard for it. Some months after this, the great
conflict on parish school education was precipitated by Dr.
Bouquillon's pamphlet Education-To Whom Does It Belong?
in which he seemed to exalt unduly the claims of the State.
In this regrettable dissension, Georgetown took no part, except
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HISTORICAL NOTES
that I wrote for the American Ecclesiastical Review a conciliatory article in which I outlined a plan of law by which the
governments of the states or cities could support the schools of
religious denominations without any undue burden on other
taxpayers, while leaving entire control of our schools to us.
This article was approved and signed by Martin F. Morris,
LL.D., the dean of the Georgetown Law Department, for I
thought it better that my name should not appear. 2 ° Cardinal
Gibbons, when told that I was the real author, expressed to me
his pleasure with the article and his conformity with its sentiments.
..
Relations with Mgr. Satolli
Coming of Mgr. F. Satolli as Extraordinary Apostolic
Delegate. In 1892 Monsignor Francis Satolli arrived in the
United States as Extraordinary Delegate with the mission of
settling the school controversy which had raged with extraordinary bitterness among our prelates and clergy. As the
presence and ultimate friendship of this prelate affected to
some extent the condition and prospects of Georgetown University in respect to the-Catholic University, it is necessary to
give some details of our relations with him.
Liberalism Among American Clergy. It must be r~marked
that at first it was expected that he would be the toot of those
who were considered the Liberalistic wing of the clergy. Of
this party, Archbishop Ireland of St. Paul, Minnesota, was the
acknowledged leader. It comprised also, at least in popular
estimation, Bishop Keane and other prelates and a great number of priests in many dioceses. Cardinal Gibbons himself,
Archbishop of Baltimore, was thought by many to be a member
of the party, and he undoubtedly was greatly under the influence of Archbishop Ireland. He himself told me once smilingly
that some American Catholics had expressed the wish that he
should be the next pope, "in which case Archbishop Ireland
• would be the power behind the throne!" But the Cardinal was
too wise and prudent to commit himself unreservedly to such
influences, though he was strongly in favor, as I have heard
him declare, of obtaining from the Holy See permission to
celebrate the liturgy in the English language. In this he only
perpetuated the conviction and desire of the first Bishop of the
�HISTORICAL NOTES
89
United States, John Carroll, a member of the Society of Jesus
before its suppression and always a staunch friend and protector of the Society. His neutral policy in the school question
did very great harm in his own Archdiocese and also in the
country at large.
Monsignor Satolli had first come to this country merely to
take part in the celebration of the centenary of the hierarchy
and had delivered an address at the opening of the Catholic
University, in November, 1889. When he returned in 1892 as
Special Delegate Apostolic he brought no credentials whatsoever, and no official notice of his appointment came from Rome.
It was supposed, probably on good grounds, that his selection
and appointment had been due to the influence at Rome of
Archbishop Ireland and his partisans. No one seemed to know
what his status was, what authority he possessed, or to what
subjects his mission extended. Hence he was received coldly
by the more conservative clergy. In November of that year,
he attended a meeting of the archbishops of the United States
held in New York and proposed to them, in fourteen propositions, a solution of the school problem which was still a subject
of heated discussion. His propositions did not meet with the
cordial approbation of the archbishops, and Leo XIII called
for individual opinions on the subject from all the bishops of
the United States. A large majority was said to have been
entirely opposed to Archbishop Ireland's position. Satolli then
took up his residence in the Catholic University. On January
24, 1893 the regular Apostolic Delegation in the United States
was established and Monsignor Satolli was appointed the first
delegate.
1893: Satolli at Georgetown University; His Criticism of
Bishop Keane. On March 7, 1893 Monsignor Satolli attended
the celebration at Georgetown College of the Episcopal Jubilee
of Leo XIII. He was accompanied by Abbe Hogan, S.S., who
Was then president of the Divinity Department of the Catholic
University (the only department then in existence). I made
an address to Monsignor Satolli in Latin, at the end of which
the Abbe Hogan congratulated me most warmly, saying the
address was "most happy in every respect." At the supper
table on that occasion, Satolli spoke to me of the Liberalism
Which he declared to be prevalent among some of the American
�90
HISTORICAL NOTES
clergy. He undoubtedly referred to Archbishop Ireland,
Bishop Keane, and others associated with them. Of Bishop
Keane in particular he spoke strongly, saying that in the latter's recent address before the Unitarians there was nothing
which any non-Catholic might not have said. This language
surprised me exceedingly, as it was still generally supposed
that Satolli himself was allied to that faction. I did not dare
to make any comment or remark in return. But events soon
showed that Satolli was far from being hostile to the Society of
Jesus. He soon removed his dwelling and offices from the
Catholic University to a house purchased for the Legate by
the Bishops of the United States, situated very near to the
Jesuit Church of St. Aloysius in Washington. Here he became
very friendly with Father Cornelius Gillespie, S.J., rector of
Gonzaga College and St. Aloysius Church. 21
Satolli at Commencement Exercises of Law Department of
Georgetown University. While living there he attended one
of the annual commencements of the Georgetown University
Law School. He was undoubtedly deeply impressed by the
great number of young Il!en receiving their degrees as Bachelor
or Master of Laws, the enthusiasm of the large audience and
the evidently high standing of Georgetown University in the
eyes of the public. He no doubt realized that any attempt to
uproot Georgetown as a University would be a fatal move that
would meet with great resentment from Catholics and Protestants.
Attempt to Detach Law and Medical Departments from
Georgetown and Attach Them to Catholic University. He then
attempted to detach the Medical and Law Departments from
Georgetown and attach them, without any other change, to the
Catholic University. The first information I had of this was
from the deans of these two Departments, George L. Magruder,
M.D., and Martin F. Morris, LL.D. Both of these gentlemen
told me that they had received a letter from Satolli proposing
• to them to separate their r~spective departments from Georgetown and ally them to the Catholic University. He guaranteed the consent of Very Rev. Father General, which he would
obtain; and, if I remember rightly, he said that he acted with
the approbation of Leo XIII. About the same time, I received
· a letter from Father General Martin, through Father Rudolph
�HISTORICAl. NOTES
91
Meyer, warning me to act very prudently. 22 But all necessity
of any deliberation on my part was obviated by the action of
these two deans and the respective faculties, who, without any
suggestion from me, refused positively to consent to any such
plan. I did not see their letters, but I was told by them that
their refusal was absolute and that the Law Faculty in particular declared that even if they were compelled by the
Fathers of the Society to break their connection with Georgetown, they would not join the Catholic University but would
continue to carry on their Law School as an independent body.
Some time later, after the secretary of the Apostolic Delegation, Dr. Hector Papi/ 3 now professor of Canon Law at
Woodstock, had entered the Society of Jesus (with full approbation, I believe, of his chief, Monsignor Satolli), I asked him
how it was that the Delegate had taken the very unusual course
of addressing the deans directly instead of first approaching
the rector of Georgetown University. Dr. Papi answered that
Satolli had sent him twice to the College to see me and speak
to me on the subject; but finding on both occasions that I was
absent from the College, he concluded to write to the deans
directly. Bishop Keane was absent when all this occurred,
soliciting funds in the West. When he returned and heard of
Monsignor Satolli's attempt, he declared that he had nothing
to do with it and knew nothing of it. He also told the dean of
our Medical School, Dr. George L. Magruder, that the Catholic
University had no intention of adding a Medical Department
for many years to come, if ever.
About the same time (1893) Father Provincial (Pardow)
called on me to prepare a statement for Father General on
the condition and prospects of the Medical and Law Departments of Georgetown. 24 This I did immediately in Latin and
the statement must no doubt be on file in the Curia of Father
General, probably with Father Pardow's own letter. In this
statement I declared my conviction that Georgetown ought
either to be developed energetically by the Society, so that it
might be a university in the fullest sense of the word, of
Which we might be proud, or all its university character should
be abandoned and the Medical and Law Departments turned
over to the Catholic University or otherwise disposed of. At
the next Provincial Congregation I proposed a postulatum to
�92
HISTORICAL NOTES
Rev. Father General, asking that Georgetown should be fostered as a university, even by sending to it foreign professors,
if necessary, for its development. This postulate was adopted,
either unanimously or almost so. If I remember rightly, the
answer to this postulate from Father General was that he
approved its sense but recommended us to depend upon our
own professors. 25
1892: Conference with Cardinal Gibbons; His Willingness to
See Our Scholasticate Return to Georgetown. Toward the end
of February, 1892, I had a conversation with our Provincial,
Father Thomas J. Campbell,2~. at Elizabeth, N. J., whither we
had gone to attend the funeral of John Gilmary Shea, the historian. I found to my surprise that Father Campbell still
cherished to some extent the plan that he had proposed and
advocated warmly in October, 1888, viz., to transfer the scho·
lasticate from Woodstock back to Georgetown, placing it on
Observatory Hill. At that time I had encouraged the plan
very strongly and had assured Father Campbell that if it were
carried into effect, Georgetown would undoubtedly give all the
land necessary for buildings, etc., free of all costs to the
Province. The plan had been given up and other sites con·
sidered, especially one at Fordham, N.Y. When I found that
Father Campbell was again inclining to Georgetown bpt feared
that Cardinal Gibbons, who was, as chancellor, the Jlominal
head of the Catholic University, would object for fear of inter·
ference with that institution, I expressed some doubt and he
immediately and positively directed me to call on the Cardinal
and ask his sentiments on the subject. This I did, at the
Cardinal's residence in Baltimore. His Eminence told me that
he regretted very deeply that there was any thought among
the Fathers of removing the scholasticate from his Arch·
diocese. This, he said, he would regard as a very severe blow
to the Archdiocese, and if he found that it was seriously under·
taken, he would not fail to make his voice heard at Rome
against it. He did not see why we were not satisfied with
Woodstock, but if in fact'we were not, he saw no objection to
our scholasticate coming back to Georgetown. He did not
know what those gentlemen at the Catholic University might
think of it; but that would make no difference to him. We
could justly say to them, if they objected, with the lamb to
�HISTORICAL NOTES
93
the wolf in the fable, that we were not troubling the water,
but they. We had been at Georgetown a hundred years, we
had eminent professors, etc. They, on the other hand, were
newcomers, etc.
Several years later, when Dr. Conaty was rector of the
Catholic University, Father Edward Purbrick, then our provincial,27 told me that he believed Cardinal Gibbons had
changed his attitude to some extent and that he would not look
favorably upon a scholasticate at Georgetown, with power to
admit secular students, clerical and lay, to courses in philosophy and theology, as that would evidently come in competition
with the Catholic University.
1893: Satolli at Our Novitiate, Frederick, Maryland; His
Approval of Transfer of Scholasticate to Georgetown. About
the same time Monsignor Satolli went to our Novitiate at
Frederick, Md., to attend the domestic celebration of the feast
of St. Stanislaus (November 13). I accompanied him from
Washington. On the train our conversation fell upon Georgetown University. I asked him what he would think of our
transferring our scholasticate to Georgetown, with the power
of admitting secular students, lay and clerical, to the courses
of philosophy and theology. He answered that he saw no
objection at all so far as philosophy was concerned (in fact,
we were already giving both undergraduate and postgraduate
courses in this and similar branches) . As to theology, he
was not so decided ; though, according to my recollection, he
did not positively and finally disapprove even of that.
Further Relations Between the Universities
Satolli's Solution of the Relations Between the Catholic University and Georgetown University. As to the future relations of the Catholic University and Georgetown University,
he said that his solution would be this, that each should continue in its own field and thus the Catholic Church would have
in Washington a complete University with all the courses. He
said: "Each University has now certain courses, you have
letters and general college studies, Medicine and Law; the
Catholic University has theology; let each continue in its own
field." Asked about the degree to be given, he answered that
�94
HISTORICAL NOTES
he could not judge positively whether there should be only one
united degree or whether each should continue to give its own
degrees. But in either case, the function of a Catholic University would be fulfilled.
1895: Bishop Keane's Address at Georgetown to Induce
Students to Go to Catholic University after Graduation from
Georgetown. In the year 1895, the School of Philosophy of
the Catholic University was opened in a new building (McMahon Hall) erected for the purpose. This was expected to
attract lay as well as clerical s"tudents. Shortly before or after
this event, Bishop Keane haarequested our Provincial, Father
William Pardow, to authorize him to visit all the colleges of
our Province and address the students, in order to attract
them to the Catholic University for their higher studies.
Father Pardow submitted this request to a large meeting, including his consultors, all the rectors of the Province and a
number of the older and more experienced Fathers. This
meeting was held at Gonzaga College, Washington. The two
questions submitted to it were the reduction of Gonzaga College to a High School and the answer to the request of Bishop
Keane. In regard to the latter, the opinions of the Fathers
were divided and Father Provincial preferred to leave the
decision in each case to the individual rectors concerned. 28 A
day or two later, I received a telephone message from· Bishop
Keane asking that privilege from Georgetown. I readily and
cordially consented. When he came, we had all the members
of our graduating and postgraduate classes, numbering, I
think, nearly forty, in academic robes and caps, to hear him.
All the Fathers of the College were also present. I made a
brief introductory address on the advantages of higher uni·
versity studies, noted that we were already cultivating a
corner, at least, of that broad field, and encouraged the Bishop
to explain the advantages of the Catholic University. This
he did in a fervent address.
Modifications of the Catalogue of the Catholic University.
After the meeting, while talking in my office about the co·
operation of the two institutions, I drew his attention to the
fact that in the catalogue of the Catholic University there was
a clause explicitly suggesting to the students of Catholic Col·
�HISTORICAL NOTES
95
leges to come to the Catholic University for their first (the
Bachelor's) degree, thus proposing to deprive the colleges of
the privilege now enjoyed by all of granting degrees and of
giving courses in philosophy. The Bishop expressed his satisfaction at this honest criticism, and promised that the objectionable clause should be expunged. This promise was fulfilled in the next annual catalogue. Whether it is still observed
or not, I do not know.
Bishop Gilmour's Address at Opening of McMahon Hall,
Catholic University. At the opening of McMahon Hall, the
new School of Philosophy (and Sciences) of the Catholic University, the address of the occasion was given in the chapel by
Bishop Gilmour of Cleveland. In that address he declared
that the "Catholic University of America" was not, and was
not to be in th~ future, the only Catholic University in America. He said: "We already have Notre Dame University (Indiana) and Georgetown University, and in future there will
undoubtedly be great Catholic universities in New York, Chicago, and other large cities." 29
1896: Removal of Bishop Keane from Rectorship of Catholic
University. In 1895 (November 29), Monsignor Satolli was
created Cardinal Priest and in October, 1896 he was recalled
to Rome. Shortly before his departure, the Catholic public was
astonished by the announcement that Bishop Keane was suddenly removed by Leo XIII from the rectorship of the Catholic
University and invited to Rome. This action was due entirely
to the recommendation and influence of Satolli. Some persons
imagined that it was due to the influence of the Jesuits. But
I can testify that this was entirely false-and in fact it never
gained any general acceptance. We were as greatly surprised
(even astounded) as any one. I heard that Satolli, in speaking
to someone (I think it was to Father Dumont, a Sulpician, at
that time assistant in disciplinary matters in the Theological
Department) said: "Have you heard of the removal of Bishop
Keane? I did that!"
He said to Father Gillespie that Bishop Keane had "no
Philosophy, no theology and no (I think it was) administrative
ability." This was, in my opinion, too harsh a judgment, but
from the beginning, Satolli had not approved of Bishop Keane.
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HISTORICAL NOTES
The latter was of a very optimistic character, possessed with
the idea that America was to develop the highest type of
Catholicity, and this disposition it was, together with his
ardent zeal and great energy, that led him into positions and
measures that savored of excessive Liberalism. As soon as I
heard of the removal, I went in haste to the Catholic University to call on Bishop Keane. I found him in his room with
Cardinal Gibbons, making preparations for immediate departure. I expressed my sympathy and regret. Both prelates
greeted me warmly and seemed much pleased with my call.
Meeting of Sympathy for Bishop Keane; Address of Father
Richards. After the departure of Bishop Keane, a public
meeting was organized to express sympathy and esteem of the
people for him. It was held in the hall of the Carroll Institute,
an association of laymen of which Bishop Keane had had the
direction, I believe, when he· was assistant pastor of St.
Patrick's Church. Both Catholic and Protestant notables were
invited to speak on subjects assigned. Dean Martin F. Morris
of the Georgetown Law School was the presiding officer. He
accepted the position, as~he explained to me, because he feared
that otherwise the meeting might get into the hands of some
rash individuals who might give it the character of a meeting
of indignation against the Pope's action. I was assigned to
speak on the subject, "Bishop Keane as a Priest." This I was
able to do in all truth and sympathy, for I had some knowledge
and a high esteem of his character and career in that capacity.
My speech was printed in full in the Catholic News, and I received a message from Cardinal Satolli, then on his way to
Rome but not yet having sailed from New York, congratulating
me on the "tact" of my address. While the meeting was full
of sympathy and admiration for Bishop Keane and regret for
his departure, not a word was said against the action of the
Holy Father.
Catholic University's Second Rector
Appointment of Rev. Dr. Conaty as Rector of Catholic University; His Assurances of No Interference with Catholic
Colleges. After a short interregnum, Rev. Dr. Thomas J.
Conaty, pastor of the Church of the Sacred Heart, Worcester,
�HISTORICAL NOTES
97
Mass., was appointed rector. He was a graduate of the Jesuit
College of Holy Cross, Worcester, and was esteemed a soundly
conservative churchman and a friend of the Society of Jesus.
But he had no experience in higher education. In his inaugural
address, he insisted very strongly on the assertion that the
Catholic University was entirely postgraduate in character
and that, with the exception of Clark University in Worcester,
Mass., it was the only university "in the United States purely
postgraduate. Some graduates of Harvard University who
were present representing their university were said to have
been displeased with this exaltation of the Catholic University.
This exalted programme was not adhered to, even during the
administration of Dr. Conaty. One very flagrant case was that
in which a very young boy from St. Louis, a student (and an
unsuccessful one) in a low class of the High School Department of Georgetown College, was admitted to the regular
classes of the Catholic University, and was to have all the
privileges of university students, including that of going out
to the city at will. In this case, Dr. Maurice F. Egan, a graduate of Georgetown, then professor of English Literature at
the Catholic University, wrote me an apologetic letter, saying
that he was strongly opposed to the enrollment of this boy to
his class and was not responsible in any way for his admission.
The boy's father, however, withdrew him altogether from
College.
Opening of Undergraduate College Department of Catholic
University. At a somewhat later period, the Catholic University established an undergraduate department, thus entering into direct competition with the other Catholic colleges and
violating its positive and repeated public assurances. This
college department is said to have now about two hundred
students.
About the beginning of the year 1898, or somewhat earlier,
I Was told by Father Purbrick (who had become provincial on
March 14, 1897) that Dr. Conaty had complained to him that
the Georgetown catalogue of that year seemed to be an imitation of that of the Catholic University. In fact, it was only the
regular form which had been followed by Georgetown in
former years, with the single exception that the local residence
of the postgraduate students, some of whom were allowed to
�98
HISTORICAL NOTES
live outside of the college walls with Catholic families authorized by the College to receive them, was given in addition
to the State from which they came. This feature, however,
was and is common to the catalogues of very many universities
in the United States. This was the only complaint ever made,
to our knowledge, by the Catholic University, concerning our
conduct toward it.
As the collapse of my health in March, 1898 compelled me to
leave to subordinates all details of college management from
that time, and since on July 3;,1898 I was succeeded as rector
by Father John Whitney, I had nothing further to do with the
Catholic University. But I believe that the friendly relations
established in the beginning have persisted unbroken.
Bishop Keane's Public Testimony in Sermon in the Church
of St. Louis University to Friendship and Co-operation of
Jesuit Fathers of Georgetown University. In the year 1899,
Bishop Keane, having returned from Rome to this country with
the mission of collecting funds for the Catholic University,
spoke in the Jesuit churches and halls. Among others, he delivered an address in the church of St. Louis University. In
this speech or sermon he made public acknowledgment and
expressed his gratitude for the constant co-operation shown
him in his work at the Catholic University by tjie Jesuit
Fathers of Georgetown College and especially by the rector,
Rev. J. Havens Richards. This was reported to me by Father
William Deeney of our California Mission, who was present
and heard the testimony. 30
Since my removal, the spontaneous development of George·
town University has gone on steadily. But of this others can,
of course, give more information than I.
The most important feature has been the establishment of
the Department of Foreign Service. In this field, so important
under present conditions of the world, Georgetown University
is the pioneer and by far ~he most successful cultivator. From
the very beginning of this department, it has attracted hun·
dreds of students and has added immensely to the importance
and prestige of the University.
In June, 1921 (the latest date of which I have information)
the condition of Georgetown University was as follows:
�HISTORICAL NOTES
Departments
99
Students
College-Graduate School ____
Undergraduate School
Medicine
Dentistry - - - - - - - - - - - Law - - - - - - - - - Foreign Service
Total - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Instructors
10 _ _ _
435
172
163 ____
1153 ____
427
2360
35
125
12
40
50
262
These figures do not include the Preparatory Department,
now at Garrett Park, Md.
Postscript. In the preceding pages, when mention is made
of the proposed plans to bring the scholasticate back from
Woodstock to Georgetown, it must not be imagined that
there was any thought of placing it at the Catholic University.
This had never been considered. It was indeed understood
that Cardinal Gibbons and the Managers of the Catholic University would be highly gratified if the Jesuit Scholastics were
sent thither. But so far as known to the present writer, no
proposition to that effect was ever made to our Fathers.
Bishop Keane had indeed, when he was engaging his first band
of professors in Europe, asked Very Rev. Father General to
give Father Lehmkuhl for the chair of moral theology. But
when answered that the Father was too old and feeble to
assume such a burden, the Bishop did not ask for any other
Jesuit.
NOTES
1
Coleman Nevils, S.J., Miniatures of Georgetown (Washington, n.d.),
pp. 175-177.
2
John Tracy Ellis, The Life of James Cardinal Gibbons (Milwaukee,
1952), I, p. 412 ff.
8
WOODSTOCK LETTERS, Llll ( 1924), pp. 248-271.
4
The present edition of Father Richards' Notes is made from a typeWritten copy in the Archivum Romanum Societatis Jesu marked in
Pencil "For Very Reverend Father General." The only changes made
by the editor are the correction of obvious mistakes in spelling and the
use of the original marginal captions as paragraph headings. The
o~ituary notice (see note 3) states that he was baptized Havens Cowles
Richards. When he changed his name to Joseph Havens Richards, no
one seems to know. Father Nevils (op. cit., p. 176) ventures,".•. he
seems to have assumed Joseph when he became a Jesuit." The 1873
Province catalogue-the earliest to contain his name-already prints
"Josephus H. Richards."
�100
HISTORICAL NOTES
5 Due to the suppression of the Society. Carroll was in Bruges, Belgium, at the time the decree was made known to the English Jesuits
there (September 5, 1773) ; he set sail for America in the late spring
of 1774 (Nevils, op. cit., pp. 37-38).
6 See Petrus Albers, S.J., Liber Saecularis Societatis Jesu (Rome,
1914), ch. I (pp. 5--53); Gilbert J. Garraghan, S.J., The Jesuits of the
Middle United States (Milwaukee, 1938), I, pp. 9-10; WooDSTOCK
LETTERS, XXXII (1903) pp. 190 ff. These authorities make it clear that
Father General, Gabriel Gruber, empowered the Maryland Jesuits in
1805 to be affiliated to the Society as existing in Russia.
7 The photostat of the original charter shows that it was signed by
President Madison on March 1, 1815 (Nevils, op. cit., opposite page 58).
8 An English translation of the~ entire decree can be found in Nevils,
op. cit., pp. 108-9.
9 Father Ryder was appointed rector on August 7, 1848.
10 See Gilbert J. -Garraghan,
S.J., "The Project of a Common
Scholasticate for the Society of Jesus in North America" in Archivum
Historicum S.J. II (1933), pp. 1-10.
11 Father Bernard Maguire was appointed rector on January 1, 1866.
1 2 Father Healy was named rector of Georgetown on July 31, 1874.
1a Father Doonan had been appointed on August 7, 1882.
14 On August 15th, as he-himself informs us later on.
15 For official documents on the early period of the Catholic University,
see: Constitutiones Catholicae Universitatis Americae a Sancta Sede Ap·
probatae cum Documentis Annexis (Rome, 1889). On pages 9-12 is to
be found the letter of Leo XIII approving the statutes of the'new Uni·
versity; this document removes earlier restrictions and ~iimitations
( .•• rectae institutioni tum clericorum tum laicae iuventutis, ac doc·
trinae in omni scientiarum divinarum et humanarum genere . . ·
Potestatem itaque academiae vestrae facimus, ut alumnos quorum
doctrina experimentis probata fuerit, ad grados quos vocant academicos
provehere possit . . . magisteria in omni doctrinarum genere ita sint
constituta ut clerici invenes ac laici aeque opportunitatem habeant
. . . ii etiam [admittantur] qui vel incipiendis vel prosequendis eius
scientiae curriculis navare operam velint).
16 On Miss Caldwell's gift to the Catholic University, see J. T. Ellis,
op. cit., pp. 392 ff.
1 7 Chapelle was made Archbishop of Santa Fe on January 7, 1894.
1 8 See Nevils, op. cit., pp. 175 ff. for details of centenary celebration.
19 Keane, John J. "A Ch~t About the Catholic University," The
Catholic World, XLVIII No. 244, 216-226.
2 0 Morris, Martin F. "A Bill for the Promotion of Education in the
United States," American Ecclesiastical Review, VII No. 1, 6-13.
21
Cornelius Gillespie was appointed rector of Gonzaga on November
18, 1890.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
101
22 Father Rudolph Meyer of the Missouri Province was at the time
substitute secretary at the Jesuit Curia, then at San Girolamo, Fiesole,
near Florence, Italy.
23 Papi was born in Rome, Italy, on August 7, 1861 and entered the
Society on January 10, 1895; he died in Washington, D.C., on June 18,
1929.
24 Father William Pardow was appointed provincial on November
16, 1893.
25 At this time the general was Luis Martin (1892-1906).
2s Provincial since May 21, 1888.
2 7 Provincial since March 14, 1897 as stated below.
2s There is a marginal note in ink: "Not one of our Jesuit colleges
refused this request of Bishop Keane."
29 Needless to recall that nearly twenty years earlier Father ·walter
H. Hill, S.J., had published his Historical Sketch of the Saint Louis
University; the Fiftieth Anniversary or Golden Jubilee on June 24, 1879
(St. Louis, 1879).
30
The manuscript has Father William Dineen, of whom there is no
trace in the Province catalogues. The 1899 catalogue of the Turin
Province, to which the California Mission belonged, lists on page 58
among those studying second year philosophy at St. Louis a William
Deeney.
E. J. BURRUS, S.J.
* * *
�OBITUARY
FATHER JOHN F. X. MURPHY, S.J.
1876-1952
A historian of vast erudition, a tireless laborer for almost
half a century in classroom and on lecture platform, a happy
master of sparkling witticism, an intellectual warrior of fearless honesty, a priestly counsellor of boundless charity, Father
John Francis Xavier Murphy/ or, as a legion of friends and
former students affectionately''knew him, Father J.F.X., was
one of the outstanding American Jesuits of our times. The
memory of him will recall an indefatigable champion of Holy
Mother Church, who battled for her causes every moment of
an intense life. The mention of his name will at once bring
up a store of anecdotes of his prodigious learning, his delightful humor, and his constant thoughtfulness of others.
John Murphy was born on January 2, 1876, at Nashua,
N.H., and was baptized ..the following day at the parish church
of the Immaculate Conception. He was the youngest child of
the family of Patrick and Hannah Murphy, recent emigrants
from Cork, Ireland. The father had died shortly before the
baby's birth, leaving to the widowed mother the hard_task of
rearing a family which included four other sons and a daughter. Hannah O'Sullivan Murphy, quiet, soft-spoken and
kindly, was a woman innately refined and markedly noble in
character. In her own gentle way she impressed a sturdy independence on her children, as they grew up amidst the small
Yankee aristocracy of a New England mill-town of the 1880's.
No fear of their becoming sycophants, when they heard often
from her lips the sage advice: "Always be courteous and respectful to everyone, but never take their patronage."
John Murphy's long association with the classroom, covering
• seventy years, began in ~880 with his entry into the public
primary school at the age of four and a half. There was no
Catholic school in Nashua at the time. Five years later, when
the Sisters of Mercy came to open the parochial school of St.
Rose of Lima, Mrs. Murphy hastened to place her son in their
care. Prepared by the Sisters, John made his First Com·
��-·
�OBITUARY
103
munion on Ascension Day, 1886, and, on the very same holyday, received the Sacrament of Confirmation. Father J.F.X.
always valued his education by the nuns as one of his greatest
blessings. He never tired recalling-and so proudly-incidents
of their devoted teaching, of their methods of instruction,
quite superior to the contemporary practices of the local
schools, and of the plays, exhibitions and drills which their
pupils enacted, much to the astonishment of all Nashua, but
especially to the proud elation of the Catholics. Father Murphy was noted in after life for his deep regard for all nuns;
but first in his esteem remained the Mercy Sisters of his childhood. The nuns were attracted to the small lad, modestly
respectful, as his good mother had trained him, and so well
read for one of his age. They were astonished, as everyone
since has been, at his knowledge. In his own family, even at
the age of eight, he was known as "the walking encyclopedia."
He started with an inquiring spirit and a remarkably retentive
memory. These gifts were fostered in the home circle, for he
was brought up in an atmosphere of books. His wise mother
encouraged her children's reading, often buying books which
she could ill afford that her boys might be attracted to spend
their leisure at home. At her fireside there was always talk of
books. The eldest of her sons, Dan, was an omnivorous
reader; and, encouraged by his mother, he used to read aloud
to the others the novels of Scott, Dickens and Cooper or books
of history. John's sister Anna, who was just a few years
older, tells how the two of them often paused in their childish
Play to listen to their elder brother ;1 and thus, even before
either could read, they were learning of men and their deeds,
fanciful or real.
In 1889 ·John Murphy entered the Nashua High School.
The authorities of that institution, skeptical of the education
given in the new parochial school, had ruled that all its graduates should submit to entrance examinations. John took the
tests and answered so brilliantly that the examinations were
abolished there and then. One of his new schoolmistresses,
unable to contain her amazement at the abundance of his
knowledge, used to ask him, "Murphy, how is it that you
know so much? And you are a Catholic!" She was, however,
a fine character, one of those excellent and devoted New Eng-
L
�104
OBITUARY
land teachers. She afforded every help to her bright young
student, suggesting books for him to read, opening up new
horizons of learning to him, and continually challenging his
eager intellect. Father J.F.X. often asserted that she was the
best teacher he had ever had. The good lady must not have
been the schoolma'am who lost her temper and punished John
when he asked her how the same identical act could be excoriated by her as cunning deceit when done by the French colonists, but extolled by her as brilliant strategy when done by
the English frontiersmen. The youthful Murphy, even then,
a martyr for historical truth t During his last two years at
high school John worked as a·uroofreader for the local Nashua
Telegraph and contributed occasional articles; he was only
fifteen at the time. He also took a turn at teaching school in
the nearby village of Hudson, for a brief interval from Christmas to Easter of 1893. In the June of that year he received
his high school diploma.
The year 1893 was also the date of John Murphy's entrance
into the Society of Jesus. There seems to have been nothing
extraordinary about his vocation. From his early childhood he
wanted to be a priest.- Once, when he was only four, the
family physician, a Protestant, who had taken a great fancy
to the little fellow, and who used to chat gravely with him,
asked him, "John, how would you like to be called Doctor
Murphy?" To which small John replied, "It would" be nice;
·but don't you think that Father Murphy would sound better?"
His pious mother in her good home and the Sisters of Mercy
in the school fostered the vocation; service as an altar boy
enhanced the desire. John was drawn to the Society of Jesus
by his readings and by conversations with Father John A.
Buckley, S.J., the Prefect of Studies of Boston College, when
he came, as he frequently did, to help in the parish church of
Nashua. Father Buckley, noted for his interest in boys, was
especially attracted by his little Mass server and his questions.
He answered the lad's inquiries about the Jesuits and en·
couraged him to apply f.or admission. The application was
accepted, and on August 14, 1893 John F. X. Murphy entered
the Novitiate at Frederick. With him as a companion was
Thomas A. Emmett, one day to be Bishop of Jamaica. A
characteristic note should be added: the late Father Joseph
�OBITUARY
105
Williams, S.J., then a second year novice, used to delight in
telling how word got quickly around the Novitiate that a new
novice named Murphy, from New Hampshire, had arrived and
that he was a great talker!
Under the guidance of Father John H. O'Rourke, as his
novice-master, Carissime Murphy was introduced to the religious life and imbued with the spirit of the Order. The two
years of probation passed uneventfully, and on August 15,
1895, he pronounced his first vows. The Juniorate in his day
lasted for three years; but for one who reveled in books, as he
did, it was a completely absorbing time. In the second year
Brother Murphy was beadle for the class of humanities, a position which brought him into daily contact with its professor,
Father Raphael V. O'Connell, one of the finest of our classicists. This gentle and cultivated scholar exerted a profound
influence on his beadle, inspiring him with his own enthusiasm
for the classics. Even to the end of his days Father J.F.X.
spoke with an .almost religious reverence of Father Raphael
O'Connell. In the three following years Mr. Murphy was at
Woodstock, making his philosophical studies. The Rector was
Father Burchard Villiger, one of the outstanding figures of
the Maryland Province; he made a deep impression on the
young philosopher, for Father Murphy numbered this great
Swiss Jesuit among his heroes.
At the beginning of the Regency there came a distinction,
rare in those days, Mr. Murphy was sent to Johns Hopkins
University for a year of study in Greek and Medieval English.
He had the good fortune to have among his professors, Dr.
Gildersleeve. Then followed two years of teaching the classics
at the high school level at Boston College, and two more years
of teaching the same subjects and history at St. Francis
Xavier's in New York. In the last assignment Mr. Murphy
Was given additional tasks, unusual and significant for his
future labors: he was appointed Lecturer of History and Political Science to the alumni and in the Graduate School, and he
Was also named Assistant House-Librarian. Life at Woodstock was resumed again when he began the four years of
Theology, 1906 to 1910. The culmination came on July 30,
1909, on that date Mr. John F. X. Murphy was raised to the
Priesthood by Cardinal Gibbons. The first academic labors of
�106
OBITUARY
Father Murphy after his ordination were at St. Joseph's College, Philadelphia; there during the year 1910 to 1911 he
taught Rhetoric and History and conducted a convert-instruction class. The next year, 1911 to 1912, brought him to Holy
Cross, Worcester, as a teacher of history.
Then came one of the golden years of Father J.F.X.'s life,
his Tertianship at Tullamore in Ireland. From childhood John
Murphy had loved Ireland with a passionate devotion; now he
was to live in the land of his dreams, to steep himself in the
scenery he had known only from books, to tread in the footsteps of the Irish saints, and tb meditate at the shrines of the
martyred race. His compan1dn was Father Thomas Emmett,
the novice who had entered with him. Their fellow tertians
were drawn from England, Ireland, Belgium, Italy and Spain;
and the two Americans got on famously with all of them. It
must be noted, indeed, that two of his best friends among the
tertians were Father Keane, later provincial of England, and
Father Garrold, the writer and British Army chaplain. Father
Murphy profoundly admired the Tertian-Instructor, Father
Gartland, a former provincial of the English Province; in
later years he spoke often and with respectful reverence of
the holiness, practical piety and wide charity of Father Gartland. The Lenten Experiment in Glasgow afforded Father
J.F.X. the chance of pilgrimaging through the p.istorical
shrines of Edinburgh, Dunfermline, Abbotsford and" Durham.
After the close of the Tertianship, together with Father Em·
mett, he had the priceless privilege of extending this pilgrim·
age to the historic spots of England, Belgium, the Rhineland
and Northern France. The following letter of his friend,
Father Paul Conniff, most interestingly pictures Father J.F.X.
in his Tertianship:
The occasion of this letter is some things Father Emmett told
me about John, that you will be interested in hearing. In the
Tertianship, the prevailing element was English, with Irish next,
and the rest from almost every nation, Spanish, Belgian, etc., etc.
John was popular with all and the best liked. He was a general
favorite. The foreign element remained at Tullamore during Lent,
as they could not preach in English, and they were lonesome with·
out John. One of the Irish Fathers said to Father Emmett at the
end of the year that Father Murphy ought to have a vote of
thanks for the life, instruction ;:~nd entertainment he had con·
�OBITUARY
107
tributed to make the year a pleasant one. The Father appointed
for the talk on Freemasonry was a clever Englishman, bright and
learned. He got most of his information on this topic from John
and admitted it and had John sit next to him.
On his return from Europe Father Murphy was appointed
Professor of History at Fordham University, where he remained from 1913 to 1918; then he was made a teacher of the
classics at Regis High School for the year 1918 to 1919. During these half-dozen years he was much occupied with helping
the staff of America, although he was never officially connected
with the weekly. He was most eager to share his vast store
of historical and literary knowledge with the editors, and they
were frequent in calling upon his aid. Occasionally he even
lent a hand at the proofreading. The editor-in-chief, Father
Richard L. Tierney, was Father Murphy's greatest hero; for
him he held an intense and most affectionate admiration. In
the battle which Father Tierney waged for the persecuted
Catholics of Mexico, he had no more enthusiastic supporter
than Father J.F.X. While all the members of the staff were
highly regarded by their temporary colleague, the genial
Father Walter Dwight and the brilliant Father Paul Blakely
were especially beloved by him. In the fall of 1919 Father
Murphy was sent to Georgetown University, and for three
Years he lectured there on history and political science. It was
the time when across the seas in Ireland the bitter struggle
for independence was being fought; over here, and especially
in Washington, the supporters of both sides were striving
mightily to influence American opinion. It was but to be
expected that Father J.F.X. would join the effort to bring
Ireland's case before the American people. He addressed several meetings with such fearless and forceful eloquence that
he came to be acknowledged as one of the leading champions
of the Irish cause in the national capital.
In 1922 Father Murphy was back at Fordham, to be until
1925 the Head of the Department of History and Political
Science. During the last of these years he was given an extra
assignment, the chaplaincy of the Ward's Island prison. This
employment, so different from any other of his occupations,
meant that every Friday night he had to leave his books and
Papers and spend the weekend ministering to the inmates and
�108
OBITUARY
the guards. The work brought him into contact with the
parole system, since all cases involving Catholic prisoners had
to be checked with. him. Father Murphy would often discuss
his experiences at Ward's Island; his comments revealed a
shrewd observer of men and a sound thinker on social problems. The beginning of the academic year of 1925 brought
Father John to Holy Cross College, Worcester, to head the
Department of History and Political Science, a position which
he held for four years until 1929. One of the high lights of
his sojourn at Holy Cross was the production of Oedipus Tyrannus. The college authorities determined to present the
drama in Greek and with the ..utmost fidelity to the theatre of
Sophocles' time. All details of costume, scenery and properties were entrusted to Father Murphy. Always the ardent
classicist, he gave himself wholeheartedly to the task. The
play was a triumph; and nothing about the whole production
won higher praise than the beauty and faithfulness of its details. Thanks to Father J.F.X., Athens came to life at the foot
of Mt. St. James. By invitation the play was reproduced as
part of the Sesquicentennial Celebration at Philadelphia in
the same year.
With the status changes of 1929 Father Murphy came to
Boston College to begin his long service of more than twenty
years, teaching in the Graduate and Undergraduate Schools
and lecturing on the public platform. He was at the height
of his powers: brilliant and quick in mind, tremendously informed by half a lifetime of voluminous reading, matured in
judgment from personal experience and by wide acquaintance
with historical personages and trends, movingly eloquent, and
always sympathetically understanding. It is no wonder that
Father J.F.X. became the best known and the best beloved
Jesuit in the history of Boston College. His name grew to be a
password among a whole generation of Boston alumni and
alumnae, as well as with numberless auditors of his popular
lectures.
The first thought about Father Murphy in the minds of all
who heard him was his prodigious knowledge. There were
few subjects in the whole gamut of history which he could not
discuss, and at great length. But this same wide erudition of
his embraced also the classics, English literature, geography,
�OBITUARY
109
ethics, political science, theology, and even phases of medicine
and the physical sciences. Other professors were constantly
having Father Murphy address their students; one finds,
paging through the back numbers of The Heights, the college
newspaper, Father lecturing to the most varied classes, Greek
literature, Latin oratory, Chaucer, scholastic principles of government, architecture, biology, sociology, and even modern
commerce. Goldsmith would certainly have said of Father
J.F.X.: "and still the wonder grew, that one small head could
carry all he knew." A typical example among the numerous
anecdotes of his intellectual prowess is the story of his lecture
on Freemasonry before the Historical Academy of Boston College in the presence of Mr. Frank Simpson, twice Grand Master
of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. Father Murphy in the
course of one of his usual two hour talks defined Masonry,
traced its beginnings, rejected several spurious theories of its
origins, described its organization, local and world-wide, explained the essential incompatibility between Catholicism and
the most innocuous forms of the craft, distinguished between
American and Continental Freemasonry, and by vivid illustrations related the warfare of Continental Freemasonry against
the Faith. At the conclusion, and the present writer remembers it distinctly, Mr. Simpson congratulated Father J.F.X. in
these words: "Father Murphy, you could have given this lecture before the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts and, except for
one point of jurisdiction, we would have agreed with everything you have said."
In view of Father Murphy's vast store of learning, it is certainly regrettable that he was never able to reduce his knowledge to book form. His writings are few and meagre, just
sixteen short articles in the Catholic Encyclopedia and one
pamphlet on the Jewish question. The articles bear the mark
of scholarship and reveal a familiarity with Jearned works in
Latin, German, French and Italian; one, two columns in length,
an account of Pope St. Celestine I, reads very well. The
articles were written in his youth, when he was a theologian
at Woodstock. In his mature years Father seemed to have
lost the ability of compressing his knowledge into a textbook
or a learned volume, though he often dreamed of doing so.
Perhaps it was expecting too much: Father J.F.X. in his
�110
OBITUARY
knowledge was a veritable genius; he would have been a double
genius, had he been able to confine that information within the
covers of a book. Besides he never possessed the leisure to
write, so occupied was he with his classes and his lectures.
The pamphlet, The Problem of International Judaism, published in The Catholic Mind, was the text of an address which
provoked a national controversy. Father Murphy criticised
what he honestly believed deserved criticism; but he was by
no means an anti-Semite. He held a special admiration for
his Jewish students, whose zealous pursuit of studies pleased
him greatly; in fact he wa~-'accused of favoritism towards
them. Among his most valued friends were the two Jewish
converts, Rosalie Levy and David Goldstein; they were frequent correspondents. He enjoyed the esteem of one of the
most distinguished Jewish scholars of Boston, Lee Friedman,
whom he assisted in the translation and publishing of a letter
of the great medieval Bishop of Lincoln, Robert Grosseteste,
written for the protection of the Jews. Mr. Friedman twice
had Father Murphy inspect his magnificent library of Jewish
lore; and on one other ·occasion he had Father as his dinnerguest to meet Dr. Cyril Roth, of London University, the foremost English Jewish historian. At the dinner Father J.F.X.
was the lone Christian among fourteen rabbis.
_
All his learning and all his intellectual powers Fatller John
F. X. Murphy dedicated to Christian education. Above all
else he was a teacher, and a teacher in the best traditions of
the Society. Forty-four years of his life he spent joyously
and enthusiastically in the classroom. Teaching to him was
an apostolate of justice, and the sacred duty of the teacher
was the inculcating of justice. For an education that merely
imparted information he had only contempt. He was kind
thoughtfulness itself to every one of his students ; and while
he delighted in the bright scholar, he devoted just as sincere
attention to the slow learner-all that he asked was an earnest
desire for knowledge. Even in the infirmities of old age, when
lecturing became a terrible burden to him, he drove his aching
body and wearied nerves to keep on. Often he was completely
exhausted after a class, but he would hotly resent any sug·
gestion of retirement. He would cease teaching, so he answered
�OBITUARY
111
a solicitous questioner, only when he could no longer form
forty people in the image of Christ.
Father Murphy's classes have become a legend among the
Boston College alumni, for he was an extraordinary teacher.
Clearly, forcefully and fearlessly he discussed historical personages and movements, emphasizing always their significance
for the Church of God. There was never a dull moment in
his lectures; the presentation, salted with apt illustrations and
homely analogies, was ever sparkling and exciting. He had a
facility for verbal repetition; and he would work around and
around a point until the dullest could never forget the truth he
was establishing. Famous were his digressions; yet, except in
his old age, they were not purposeless wanderings but calculated deviations rich with golden thoughts. Blessed with a
glorious sense of humor, at times almost boyishly exuberant,
he brought to every lecture a full measure of satire and rollicking fun. If there ever was a happy warrior, it was Father
J.F.X. The students thronged to his lectures; many, not enrolled in his course, would cut their own class, if the rumor
got about the corridors that, "J.F.X. is going to be good today."
Not one of his students will easily forget him : a short, rotund
figure, bald-headed, animated in countenance, pacing ceaselessly back and forth, back and forth, across the platform,
talking rapidly in an endless flow of words; one moment
raising his listeners by the sheer earnestness of his eloquence
to breathless, yes, at times misty-eyed, attention, and in another moment convulsing them into roars of laughter by the
sallies of his pungent wit. Father Murphy was most generous
to the extra-curricular academies in giving after-class lectures.
And there was always a full house, though it was taken for
granted that the talk would go for at least two hours. Even
after the formal lecture, groups of students would cluster
around their beloved mentor to explore the topic further. No
one ever set a watch on these parleys; for there was one sovere.ign answer to anxious parents and delayed suppers: "I was
hstening to J.F.X., and he was swell!"
The affection of his students was warmly reciprocated by
Father Murphy. And when they passed from his tutelage he
continued to hold them in fond remembrance, all of them,
Wherever he had taught them, B. C. High, Xavier, Fordham,
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OBITUARY
Regis, Georgetown, Holy Cross, or Boston College. One group
there was among his students, for whom he had a deeper affection than for all the rest; they were the nuns whom he had
taught at Fordham and Boston College. Father loved these
sisters with a religious veneration. To teach them, to train
them, to share his knowledge with them, was for him a sacred
privilege; he counted no cost of time too high, no sacrifice of
energy too great, if he could but serve them. He would spend
days, and even weeks, aiding a sister in the production of a
grammar school textbook, or in her preparation of a thesis or a
dissertation. For two years, every week-end, he made a tiresome railroad journey to Ml!_nchester, New Hampshire, that he
might give the novices and tne younger religious of the Sisters
of Mercy their undergraduate history courses. He always dis- ,
played a most kindly understanding of the difficulties which
the teaching sisters encountered in attaining academic degrees
while still laboring in the classroom and occupied with domestic
duties of the convent. He once said to a Nazareth Sister of
Charity, whom he was preparing to be a teacher of her own
religious in their summer sessions: "I am giving you all this
direction and all these reports so that you will be a better
teacher for the sisters: Be easy on the sisters. Don't burden
them with research." He often said to the present writer:
"The sisters will not close their books the day they get their
degrees. They will be reading and improving themselves all
the rest of their lives." He made special efforts to brighten up
the classes of the nuns with his liveliest wit and pleasantest
humor, striving always to bring as much recreation as possible
into late after-school classes or hot summer-school days. He
teased the sisters unmercifully; but they loved it-for to them,
no priest or teacher was greater than their Father J.F.X.
As has been said, Father Murphy had a religious veneration
for nuns, to him they were holy persons; hence even the
thought of attacks upon them overwhelmed him with sorrow.
On one occasion in the course of a lecture on the vicious tactics
of professional anti-Catholic bigots, he suddenly cried out:
"Oh, let them spread their filthy lies about us priests, but when
they turn their dirty tongues against our consecrated vir·
gins--," he could not go on, but broke down and wept unre·
strainedly at the very idea of their vile insults to the Catholic
sisters. It was some minutes before he could control his grief
�OBITUARY
113
and continue his remarks. His fierce denunciations of the
persecutions in Mexico and Spain were aroused in large measure by his keen suffering upon learning of the beastly outrages
committed on the Mexican and Spanish nuns. Father Murphy
taught hundreds of sisters at Fordham and Boston College.
Some preceded him to Heaven, to make him a welcome there;
most survived him, and by their prayers and in their remembrance they will keep his memory greener than any of his
other students could possibly do.
The second field of Father Murphy's apostolate was the
popular lecture. Particularly was this so in his twenty years
at Boston, when he was continually giving addresses or Communion Breakfast talks for Holy Name Societies, Newman
Clubs, councils of the Knights of Columbus and other Catholic
fraternal organizations, and various Catholic study groups.
He was being constantly called upon by pastors, curates, chaplains and former students. He refused only when prevented
by ill health or previous commitments; for no organization was
too small or too distant. Some idea of how numerous his lectures were, may be obtained from the fact that during two
years, 1934 to 1936, he delivered thirty-eight talks on the persecutions of Catholics in Mexico and Spain-in addition to
several lectures on other topics. His public addresses were
usually historical in treatment; and, except for his speeches on
Ireland, his subjects dealt with the Catholic Church. He possessed a remarkable skill in bringing difficult and many-sided
historical questions within the mental comprehension of his
audiences, composed for the most part of ordinary folk with
small educational attainments. Yet he never talked down to
his hearers. If they were capable of it, he could give as
learned and as scholarly a treatment as one could desire.
Father lectured with plain forcefulness; and, although he seldom brought to the public platform the fun of his classroom,
he always spoke in a pleasant, witty vein .
. The supreme aspect of Father John F. X. Murphy's zealous
hfe was his complete dedication to Holy Mother Church. Well
beyond ordinary measure did the thought of her motherhood
Penetrate his soul; in consequence he loved the Church with
the most intense filial affection all the days of his life. His
devotion knew no limits: he pursued knowledge tirelessly, he
�114
OBITUARY
taught and lectured unceasingly, he helped others unstintingly,
fellow Jesuits, secular priests, nuns and layfolk, in a word he
did everything because of his ardent attachment to the Holy
Mother. His role, as he conceived it, was to be her champion,
ever proclaiming her glories, ever battling her foes. All men
and all movements, whether in the historical past or in the
present circumstances, he judged by a single measure: their
attitude toward the Catholic Church. Her friends were his
personal friends, her enemies his personal enemies. It was
characteristic that high among his heroes were St. Athanasius
and St. Gregory VII, St. Pat:r:ick and St. Peter Canisius. Even
his vigorous advocacy of Iri~?P. causes stemmed primarily from
his concern over the Catholic element in Ireland's affairs.
It is not surprising that sometimes this ardent warrior
should have become partisan, or that in so many controversies
he should have erred occasionally in his judgments of events
and personalities. It is more remarkable that his mistakes
were so few. Father Murphy was endowed with a keen mind
and blessed with a singularly honest intellect, both of which
enabled him to pierce the most elaborate propaganda. He was
always the brave spirit, who, ignoring either fear or favor,
states his considered opinion courageously. The current view,
no matter how popularly supported, meant little to him.
Moreover his historical knowledge, furnishing hi.m with a
wealth of precedents and the widest experience of..-men and
their causes, provided him with strong supports for his deci·
sions. Few men have had the historical perspective in the
measure possessed by Father Murphy. Needless to say he
never assumed infallibility.
There were some things of which he had little comprehen·
sion; one such was athletics. The cult of athleticism was but
beginning in his boyhood; although, complete student that he
was, it probably would never have had any appeal to him.
Later as a professor he was sharp in his criticisms of the
athletic policies of our colleges, vigorously citing instances oi
large sums devoted to athletics and small sums spent on cui·
tural facilities. He had no understanding of the appeal oi
sports to the American youth, while he was painfully aware
of the lack of intellectual ambitions on the part of college
students. There was only one sport that had any attraction
�OBITUARY
115
for him; amusingly enough, it was the marathon. He never
missed watching the runners in the B.A.A. marathon pass
Boston College. No doubt they recalled for him the days of
classic Greece and he saw in the weary plodders reincarnations
of the heroic Pheidippedes carrying the news of Marathon's
glorious victory to Athens. Father Murphy was criticised for
having buried himself too much in the past and of having
failed to keep abreast of the times. The judgment is not a
valid one, except for the very last years of his life, when weariness and sickness dulled his zeal for inquiry. But with his
long historical experience of human successes and failures, the
old observer might have been pardoned his skepticism of solutions, still largely in the experimental stage. After all his was
the wisdom of the centuries.
For one particular objective, the recognition of historical
studies, Father Murphy fought a lifelong battle. In the beginning, especially, it was a hard struggle, since there were relatively few Jesuits who understood the nature of history or
appreciated its cultural and apologetical values. And owing to
the paucity of colleague-historians it was a lonely task. Father
was often deeply discouraged; and he needed all his sanguine
temperament to persevere in the battle until a better day.
Hence one of his most satisfying experiences was the reception accorded him at the meeting of the American Jesuit Historical Conference during the Boston Convention of 1948.
Despite weak health Father Murphy was present, for the
Fathers from the different provinces requested his attendance.
Some knew J.F.X. personally, and others, only by reputation;
but an· welcomed him most heartily and made much of him.
And it was inevitable that the old veteran should give one of
his fiery talks, which he did to the satisfaction of all. This
recognition by his brother Jesuit historians was one of the
rnost pleasing memories of his declining years .
. Of Father Murphy's personal virtues it would be difficult to
glVe an adequate appreciation. He was extremely reticent
about his interior life; never did he discuss his own experi~nces in prayer or his own spiritual motivation, not even when
e Was giving direction to others. With a shyness, almost a
bashfulness, he concealed with the veil of a strict, silent reserve this facet of his personality. Yet unwittingly he gave
�116
OBITUARY
evidence of holiness. There was the simple devoutness of his
saying Mass; more than one observer has remarked his quiet
yet complete absorption in the Holy Sacrifice. Now and then
a rare incident would reveal his intense devotion to the person
of our Divine Lord, as when during a retreat to the novices of
the Notre Dame Sisters, while speaking of the sufferings of
Jesus on the road to Calvary, he was overcome with grief and
had to leave the chapel. An occasional reference to the Blessed
Virgin Mary, dropped by chance in a conversation, disclosed
his fervent filial love of our Blessed Mother. But these were
but brief liftings of the veil of his closely guarded reserve.
One must judge his sanctity by its manifestation in his external virtues.
Father Murphy's zeal for souls was first among these virtues, and is evident from this appreciation. Little more need
be said, except that he remained to the end the same tireless
laborer in the vineyard. Even in his last years he would take
any class at any time, late afternoon or night. When some
one remonstrated with him that such hours were not good for
him at his age, he answered characteristically, "Any time is
good to save souls." His labors brought him very much in the
public eye and gained him a host of admirers; yet with all the
notice and applause he remained a man of profound humility.
Praise embarrassed him, and flattery caused him actual suf·
fering. Always he was striving to be unnoticed. No doubt he
could have received academic honors; no Jesuit teacher de·
served them more; but the mention of such distinctions in·
variably brought from him an immediate and an almost angry
rejection. Public appearance for its own sake he shunned;
and he would never attend a public event for merely social
reasons. Once only did he consent to attend a banquet in his
honor; it was a dinner given by the alumnae of Boston College
on the occasion of his golden jubilee as a Jesuit. His consent
was obtained by dint of the most persistent persuading and
only after a solemn promise was given that there would be no
speakers. Father J.F.X. would enjoy the friendship of hiS
students; but he absolutely refused to sit and listen to their
praises of himself.
The virtue which endeared Father Murphy to his fello'l'l
Jesuits, was his charity. John F. X. Murphy will be recalled
j
�OBITUARY
117
as a savant and as a brilliant lecturer; but just as much must
he be remembered as a most generous helper of his brethren of
the Society. He was possessed literally with an anxiety to
assist his colleagues. If any member of the Order sought from
him information, assistance or advice-one of the most common expressions in the community was, "Ask J.F.X. about
it"-he always found Father most eager to share his great
store of learning with him. Indeed Father J.F.X. often embarrassed the inquirer with the very abundance of the information and with his lavish prodigality of his own energy and
time. As for time, it meant nothing to him if he could help a
fellow Jesuit. He was always ready to take the class of any
member of the faculty who was ill or forced to be absent.
Father Murphy's joyous spirit increased the happiness of
every compmnity of which he was ever a member. His pleasant witticisms, his humorous banter, his good-natured jokes
rolled on in unceasing flow, enlivening recreations and brightening the whole daily routine. With no group was he more
closely connected than with the scholastics; whether by design
or not his room was always on their corridor. He was continually waging good-natured war upon his younger brethren,
mockingly upbraiding them and playing all sorts of amusing
tricks upon them; while they were in constant endeavor to
turn the tables on him, usually with a notable lack of success.
Yet to the scholastics, above all others, Father Murphy gave
the best of his help and inspiration, the largest amount of his
time, and the fullest sharing of his intellectual resources. For
the sick, Father reserved an especially devoted love. He gave
to sufferers the kindest attention, limitless patience and the
most heartening charity. He seemed to have a sixth sense of
understanding and helping when things went wrong. His
very presence in the house bred a confidence in the afflicted.
~hen death came, none were more faithful than Father J.F.X.
In attending the funerals of relatives of Ours or of the kinfolk
of the students. It is of record that on one single evening
Father made visits of condolence to the homes of three bereaved families.
This wide sympathy for the sick and the afflicted came
frorn a man who himself had suffered much. For many years
he was not well, and in the last decade of his life he was in
�118
OBITUARY
continual and painful illness. Yet Father Murphy, as was
noted, never relented in forcing his aching body to its work for
souls. Only in the last year or so of his life did he give up,
when internal disease and a series of shocks gradually impaired
his powers, dulled his mind, and eventually deprived him of
speech and memory. Thus he lay a helpless invalid for several
months in the infirmary of Weston College until death, on
August 2, 1952, brought him rest and eternal reward. He was
in his 77th year.
The editorial in the August 9th edition of the Boston Pilot
makes a fitting closing tribute:-,
FATHER J-F-X.
Usually the use of letters in the place of a man's name serves
the purpose of anonymity. Not, however, in this case. Almost
every one knows at once that they refer to the beloved Jesuit
Father John F .X. Murphy, although the fuller title seems strange
even as we write it.
Father Murphy was a rare character. To have known him is a
great privilege and a happy memory. Bubbling over with God's
grace, he walked for over a splendid half-century of his life in the
ranks of the soldiers of ·Loyola. Rather we should say he "ran"
for few there were who could keep up with him.
His memory was phenomenal, his erudition incredible. He was
a professor for whose course students registered before knowing
what the subject matter was. Like the ancient writer he could
truly say, "Nothing human fails to interest me." But to this, this
man of prayer could add "and certainly nothing divine."
MARTIN
*
* *
P.
HARNEY,
S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
HISTORICAL
History of the Popes from the Close of the Middle Ages. Vols.
XXXVIII to XL (1769-1799). By Ludwig von Pastor. Translated
by E. F. Peeler. St. Louis, Herder, 1952-53. Pp. xv-602, xv-496,
xv-410. $7.50 per volume.
These three volumes contain the translation of the last two sections
of the sixteenth and final volume of Von Pastor's monumental work.
Volume XXXVIII contains the history of the pontificate of Clement
XIV, opening with an interesting account of the conclave. The future
pope seems to have made it sufficiently clear to the enemies of the
Jesuits that he considered it necessary to yield to their desires. At
the same time he kept the good will of the majority of the cardinals
who favored the Society. After his election he tried to put off the
decision and gain time but the representatives of the Bourbons were
inexorable. The pope finally capitulated in 1773. He died the following
year in a state of depression but there is no proof that he repented of
having issued Dominus ac Redemptor nor that he claimed to have been
forced to issue it (Com pulsus feci). It is well known that Pastor had
personally composed this volume, although it was published after his
death.
Volumes XXXIX and XL contain the history of the pontificate of
Pius VI (1775-1799). Pius is shown to have been too haughty, too
generous with his relatives and too anxious, at least in the beginning
of his reign, to please the Courts, but he also appears as a remarkable
pope who did all he could to restore the waning prestige of the Holy
See. Independent of character and jealous of his authority, Pius'
long reign was a series of struggles with the Jansenists, the disciples
of Febronius, and the Free Thinkers. He lived through most of the
French Revolution and suffered as pope and individual from the
cataclysm.
During his reign the forces which were to bring about the Catholic
revival of the 19th century were beginning to appear. Pius VI did
what he could to encourage them.
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
The Life of Bishop Anthony J. Schuler, S.J., D.D. By Sr. M. Lilliana
Owens, S.L., Ph. D. El Paso, Revista Catolica Press, 1953. Pp. 584.
This book is a third in a trilogy of historical studies which the
REVIsTA CATOLICA is publishing to commemorate the 75th year
of its founding, 1875-1950. The two other studies already published are:
Jesuit Beginnings in New Mexico, 1867-1922 and Reverend Carlos M.
Pinto, S.J., Apostle of El Paso. What the author had uppermost in mind
�120
BOOK REVIEWS
was not so much a definitive and historical biography of the late Bishop
of El Paso-but a just tribute to the memory of the saintly Bishop and
his apostolic labors. This study contains a varied history of Catholic
movements, institutions and important personages connected with the
late Bishop Anthony J. Schuler's episcopacy. His 27 years as a Bishop
coincided with the first 27 years of the history of the Diocese of El
Paso, Texas.
Anthony J. Schuler was born of poor Catholic parents of German
descent. His father, a coal miner, died as a result of injuries sustained
from a falling rock. With a mother and 3 other children dependent on
the 14-year old Anthony, the young man stopped his formal schooling
and served as a parish sacristan to Father N. Matz who was later to
be consecrated second Bishop of Denver. Father Matz taught his young
sacristan Latin and English at night. In 1886 Anthony entered the
Jesuit novitiate at Florissant, Mo., to start his 58 years as a Jesuit.
The field of his priestly labors was both educational and parochial.
From 1901 to 1915 his assignments brought him to Regis College in
Denver and to different parishes in El Paso, Texas, and Denver, Colorado. When the Holy See decided to create the new Diocese of El Paso
in 1914, Pius X appointed Father Anthony Schuler as the first Bishop
of the new diocese despite his protests and representations to the
contrary. He served humbly and tirelessly as Bishop of El Paso for 27
eventful years. Two years before he died, he resigned his bishopric,
asked the Jesuit General to be readmitted to a Jesuit community, and
joined the Regis College faculty in Denver. He died on June 3, 1944.
To appreciate adequately Bishop Schuler's apostolic works, one has
but to consult the statistics gathered from the Official Catholic Directory
at the beginning and end of his episcopacy. He had 64,000 multi-lingual
Catholics spread over a mountainous area of 68,394 square miles. Only
31 priests took care of the 22 parishes, 58 missions, 3 a"fatl.emies, 9
parochial schools and 3 Catholic hospitals in his diocese. When he retired 27 years later the faithful in his diocese numbered 123,000.
There were 118 priests to care for the 49 parishes, 97 missions, 5
academies, 13 parochial schools, 4 hospitals, 3 day nurseries, 1 rna·
ternity clinic and 1 large Catholic Action center. The story of how he
managed to care for his flock despite the difficulties of language and
race barriers, the competition of Protestant sects, poverty, lack of per·
sonnel, and rugged terrain makes quite engrossing reading. Throughout
this interesting 584 page study, Sister M. Lilliana Owens, S.L., has
gathered a tremendous number of facts, figures and photographs spread
out in 35 different chapters and 124 illustrations. Most interesting
chapters are those on the split of the Jesuit New Mexico-Colorado
Mission in 1919, and the erec~ion of the now famous National Monument
to Cristo Rey at El Paso.
Rather than being a strictly historical biography, this book is a
chronological collection of various data about the late Bishop Schuler
and his works. In her diligence to note down minutest details, v.g.
enumeration of Archbishops and Bishops and prominent laymen present
�BOOK REVIEWS
121
at a ceremony together with a time schedule of the program, the author
seemed to have sacrificed historical continuity. Furthermore the or·
ganization and interpretation of the facts cited are oftentimes quite
faulty. Every congregation, institution, personage in any way connected with Bishop Schuler is allotted a chapter. As a result, endless
repetitions were unavoidable. However the publication of this study
should stimulate further research about the saintly Jesuit Bishop.
The bibliography of primary and secondary source materials covers 27
pages. The list has been most diligently compiled and therefore will be
extremely valuable to a historian and research worker.
FEDERICO
0. EscALER, S.J.
The Spanish Jesuit Mission in Virginia: 1570-1572. By Clifford M.
Lewis, S.J. and Albert J. Loomie, S.J. Published for the Virginia
Historical Society by the University of North Carolina Press,
Chapel Hill, 1953. Pp. xviii-294. $7.50.
It is a real pleasure to see this book. Most of us are too occupied
with the problems of the present to be greatly concerned about the
distant past. Yet if the blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians, the
American Assistancy, so strong and numerous today, should remember
with gratitude those early Jesuits who are the seed of our American
Provinces. Fortunately, White and Copley are not forgotten, Kino is
not unknown, Jogues and hfs co-martyrs are held in veneration. But
few of us know about the first Jesuit attempt to gain a foothold within
the boundaries of the present United States.
It is a gallant story, written in blood, of but a few years-the effort,
under the direction of St. Francis Borgia, to plant the Standard of the
Cross in Spanish Florida, that tremendous area stretching from the
Florida Keys to the Chesapeake, and from the Atlantic to the unknown
territories of the distant West. The story opened in blood-the martyrdom of Pedro Martinez, the proto-martyr of the Society of Jesus in the
Western Hemisphere. It closed in blood, with the death at the hands
of the Indians of the eight Jesuit martyrs of Virginia.
It is the final chapter that Father Lewis and Father Loomie have
told so well and with such loving care. It is safe to say that their
Work will remain the definitive volume on the Jesuit mission of Ajacan.
It leaves nothing to be desired. Divided into three parts, it first recounts
the history of the mission in Virginia. The second part reproduces the
original documents on which the authors' narration is based, together
With translations and notes. The final section discusses the topography
and other elements of the area of the Virginia mission. The text is interspersed with almost a score of illustrations, chiefly reproductions of
ancient maps of the Chesapeake. The publishers have done a magnifi·
cent job on the volume. Its only drawback is its price, necessarily high.
Of special interest is the site of the Jesuit mission in Virginia, long
�122
BOOK REVIEWS
a moot question. The authors advance and ably defend the theory that
the Jesuits sailed up the James River, landed a few miles from the spot
where the English were to settle a generation later, crossed the peninsula to the York River, and there erected their primitive chapel and
dwelling. Unless new evidence is forthcoming, their solution of the
problem will not be seriously questioned by historians.
The book is not designed for popular consumption. But it is to be
hoped that all of Ours will become acquainted with the narrative section
of this splendid volume.
FRANCIS X. CURRAN, S.J.
One Shepherd. By Charles Boyer;'S.J.
1952. Pp. xvi-142. $2.00.
New York, Kenedy & Sons,
One Shepherd, a translation of the French Unus Pastor, by Charles
Boyer, S.J., president of Unitas, the international association coordinat·
ing the Church's apostolate to Separated Christians is a readable little
book giving the Church's position on the question of ecumenical unity.
With chapters like "The Present Situation," "The Ecumenical Move·
ment," "Prospects for . . ." and "Attempts at Reconciliation," "Diffi·
culties," and "Means to the End," it presents a careful study of the
various movements toward reunion on the part of the Eastern Churches,
Anglicanism and Protestantism. In a Foreword, Father LaFarge, S.J.,
indicates the importance of Unitas and stresses also the solution it offers
for the problems of our "agonized world situation."
JOHN J. MCCONNELL,
S.J.
-The Story of the Romance. By William E. Rively, S.J.
Rinehart, 1953. Pp. 241. $3.50.
New York,
Father Rively, Maryland Province missioner in the Caroline Islands,
reveals himself as a zealous and ingenious fisher of souls as well as a
captivating spinner of sea-yarns in the old Nantucket tradition. Several
harrowing experiences in typhoons, one of them on the open sea in a
frail native outrigger of breadfruit wood and twine, dramatized the
need of a well-built sailing vessel for his watery and widely scattered
mission parish.
After introducing the reader to some indigenous pastoral problems,
Father Rively devotes a major part of his personal narrative to the
• trial and error adventure of ~cquiring and then navigating his dream
ship. Divine Providence, almost miraculously it would seem, provides
the first two installments towards the purchase money. High points
of suspense dot the subsequent business transactions. First the reluctance of the purported owners to part with the Romance, a sturdY
brigantine custom built in 1934 in Hong Kong according to specifica·
�BOOK REVIEWS
123
tions of a retired skipper, then an almost prohibitive price, and a final
despairing leave-taking of San Francisco for the western Pacific-all
point to apparent failure. At Honolulu, however, the Mission Superior,
a veritable deus ex machina, contacts Father Rively via short wave and
orders the purchase of the Romance.
Father Rively's experiences mustering a seemingly acceptable crew of
five, a particularly inauspicious "shake-down" cruise on which the ship
first ran aground and then pitched and tossed in heavy seas enough to
send the would-be salts scurrying to their bunks-all form an appetizing
prelude for the five-thousand mile sail across the Pacific to the Mortlocks
in the Carolines.
After a voyage reminiscent of Kon-Tiki, replete with several "near
tragedies" due to the imprudences of the amateur seamen, the Romance
completes the first leg of its voyage at Honolulu. Here captain, cook
and two crew members, who had come to think more respectfully of the
moods of the Pacific, terminate their association with the Romance.
With an even greener crew than before, Father Rively hoists sail and
points the prow toward the Marshalls across a two-thousand mile
stretch of open ocean. Undoubtedly intrigued by his newly acquired skill
with sextant and chronometer, Father Rively gives an account of charting his uncertain course, which reads like an authentic ship's log. The
reader may regret the absence of a map giving an exact plot of the
ship's course, particularly as the ship island-hops among the unfamiliar
atolls of the Marshalls and Carolines.
The book is handsomely printed, and attractively illustrated with
eight pages of photographs. The reader may well close this book with
the hope that another volume will follow recounting Father Rively's
missionary endeavors with the assistance of the rechristened Maris Stella
in this isolated corner of Christ's kingdom.
ALLEN
J.
CAMERON,
Saints and Ourselves. Edited by Philip Caraman, S.J.
Kenedy & Sons, 1953. Pp. 146. $2.50.
S.J.
New York,
"Take a dozen pre-eminent lay thinkers and writers thinking and
~riting at their distinguished best, plus a dozen or more of the most
Interesting saints interpreted in all their astounding contemporaneity,
and you have the formula-and also the best description-of this book."
So says the book-jacket, and it is essentially correct. Originally these
essays appeared in The Month in 1952. They have been collected into
the book described above-a group of good writers writing well about
worthwhile subjects.
Especially good among the efforts are the chapter on the Early
Martyrs by Donald Attwater, St. Thomas Aquinas by Antonia White,
~nd J. B. Morton's treatment of Therese of Lisieux. Also outstanding
15
the section on St. Francis of Sales. Only one chapter did not make
�124
BOOK REVIEWS
a good impression (though Rosalind Murray's on St. John of the Cross
seems to labor heavily at times). The one chapter is on the one person
not a saint in this book-Yen. Mary of the Incarnation. The author
seems to have realized this, since he begins his sketch with the words:
· "Few of the great saints have been entirely amiable." \Vhether or not
this is true, it is surely true that his subject does not emerge as entirely amiable. However, she is most assuredly interesting, and this
part of the book, just as every other chapter, is rewarding to the reader.
Perhaps the most rewarding to the lay reader would be the sections
on St. Francis of Sales and St. Therese of Lisieux. Both of these speak
directly to the busy man, the ordinary person. St. Francis of Sales'
La Vie Devote and St. Therese's "little way" both have great appeal to
those who are living in an atmosphere of such material pressure that
the very frail vase of spirituality 'is severely strained.
The book is ideally suited to be ~read in snatches of fifteen minutes or
so, since each selection hovers around that length. It is at its best when
not merely relating facts, but is a reflection or a series of observations
on a saint's words or life.
E. B. Strauss, writing on Maria Goretti, says: "I am assuming that
the question which the editor really has in mind is: 'The life of which
saint has in your opinion special significance for the modern world,
and why?'"
Each writer has at least picked the saint he thought valuable, and
though the choice is so varied in time, personality, and circumstances,
the same ideal is verified in·each saint, outstanding success with God.
Not that these chapters contain complete systems of spirituality, of
course. The book is not meant to be exhaustive. It is an introduction
to a singularly charming and successful group of human beings, some
of whom the reader may like so much, or whose company l!,e' may find
so valuable, that he would like to make them better friends. ·
ARTHUR
E.
GoRDON,
Blackrobes in Lower California. By Peter M. Dunne, S.J.
University of California. Pp. x-540. $6.50.
S.J.
Berkeley,
Father Peter M. Dunne, S.J., the author, is no stranger to the field
of early Jesuit activities in lower California. His excellence as a his·
torian and a stylist is attested to by this present volume. He has
achieved to a remarkable degree the ideal of combining historical facts
with an interesting and readable narration of these facts. The fast·
moving account, singularly free of ponderous sentence constructions,
yet satisfyingly complete with historical data makes this work a mag·
nificent contribution to the field of history.
The story of the early Blackrobes in lower California dates from
the years 1697 to 1768, the date that marks the expulsion of the SocietY
from that area. The author treats in some detail the founding and the
�BOOK REVIEWS
125
development of each of the seventeen missions during this time.
Special interest and space are given, also, to the saintly missionaries,
fifty-five in number, who dedicated their lives and talents to the Indians
of California. As Father Taraval, S.J., an early California Padre,
expressed it: "The missionary in charge frequently had to be father,
mother, brother, son, servant, cook, doctor, confessor, gravedigger and
priest at the cost of almost superhuman effort." Three missionaries,
the pillar of strength during the first days of the struggling missions,
deserve special mention. They were Juan Salvatierra, S.J., the first
superior and efficient organizer of the whole mission system of lower
California; Francisco Maria Picolo, S.J., who arrived but a few months
after Salvatierra, and for thirty-two years endured the privations and
great hardships of this barren land; and finally, Juan Ugarte, S.J.,
who conquered all the odds of nature amidst California's rocks and
cacti, and made his mission, San Javier, succeed. He arrived but two
years after Salvatierra and Picolo, and devoted thirty years of his
heroic life to the salvation of the Indians.
During this period, nearly three-quarters of a century, the Jesuits
proved themselves tireless explorers. Beginning with Father Kino in
1697 to Father Link in 1766, the Blackrobes made five exploratory expeditions to determine whether this southern section of California was
an island or a peninsula. The careful records of these journeys, the
description of the terrain and the visits with the various tribes of
Indians are invaluable historical documents. Added to these expeditions
were others of a less official nature, but of great importance to the
field of discovery, nonetheless.
The results of Father Dunne's labours are singularly impressive and
informative. The scholar will find a well-documented book with careful
and thorough use of primary sources; the casual reader will be delighted
with the numerous incidents skillfully presented concerning the Jesuits
and their different activities in the various missions. The over-all
impression is highly favorable. It is a history with flesh and bonesa correct evaluation of the achievements of the early Blackrobes of
Lower California.
An excellent bibliography is offered at the back of the book, along
with several appendices and an index. The author's scholarship and
strongly developed literary gift have interwoven together remarkably
Well in leaving us a true picture that is living history.
JAMES M. BURKE, S.J.
SPIRITUAL
The Two Voices. By R. H. J. Steuart, S.J. Edited, with Memoir, by
C. C. Martindale, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1952. Pp. viii-274.
$3.25.
The first third of this volume is a careful study by Fr. Martindale,
�126
BOOK REVIEWS
done in his usual fine style, in which he tries to explain to us some of the
inner life of the fellow English Jesuit and close friend who seemed to
him "the perfect example of 'vocation'." Fr. Steuart, known to the world
as a successful retreat-master, emerges as a man of talent, both artistic
and spiritual, a man whose life lacked exterior incident because of his
shy reserve, sensitivity, and fastidious taste, a man whom you are inclined to admire rather than greatly like. He seems to have puzzled
many, to some being almost a dual personality, to others very much the
same person consistently. This memoir by Martindale is worth reading,
if only as a clear and engaging description of a complex and baffling
character.
The title of the book is taken from the first of the twenty~ight
conferences of Fr. Steuart which 'follow the memoir. The "two voices"
are the voice of faith telling us tli'at God is almighty and that all things
are in His hands, and the voice of experience, of wordly common sense,
asking us how God, if He be almighty, can permit the world to come to
the present sorry pass. The earlier conferences deal with various
"problems" (time, pain, God's love, God's will), with the Christian
virtues, with the Mystical Body and the Holy Ghost; the last are concerned with prayer, comprising one general conference and a series of
eight conferences on different aspects of prayer.
It is very hard to evaluate spiritual conferences, since so much in
these matters depends upon one's own tastes and cast of mind. These
talks, however, are the work of a highly effective retreat-master, and
on that count alone are well worth reading. They lean to the philosophical side and tend to be abstract, but they are clearly presented and
explained, and now and then we catch flashes of originality and imagina·
tion, which will repay the thoughtful reader. To quote -i>nly a few
examples, which cannot do him justice, we read in "Christian Love of
·God": " ..• as a poet has said: 'I will not have my thoughts of Thee
instead of Thee.' Yet for the most part what we are trying to do is
to love our thoughts of Him rather than Himself: and indeed, but for
the Incarnation, what other resource should we have?" (p. 132). From
"God and Time": "It is as impossible for us to imagine an order of
things in which there would be no time as it is for a blind man to
imagine a world of colour: .. .'' (p. 115). From "The Mystical Body":
"A useful analogy (which, of course, must not be pressed too far) maY
be drawn between this doctrine and that of the Hypostatic Union.
This latter teaches that in Christ there are two entirely distinct natures,
the human and the divine, but only one person-one 'I', one 'lie'.
Similarly, in the baptised, 'Christ-ened' man there are his own simply
human self and the divine-li.uman self of Christ, and the two, caused
by Baptism, present before God a new Christ-person, supernaturallY
alive only because he is such; 'I live, now not I, but Christ liveth in
me.' " (p. 199).
PAUL
V.
CALLAHAN,
S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
127
Our Best Friend. By Christian Pesch, S.J. Translated from the German by Bernard A. Hausmann, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1953.
220 pp. $3.00.
Devotion to the Sacred Heart chiefly from the aspect of friendship
is the theme of this book. The first fifteen chapters are an analysis of
the essence and different qualities of friendship. These are then applied to Our Lord and found to be completely fulfilled only in Him and
transcended in Him. Fr. Pesch searches into the meaning of a generous
friend, a wise friend, a powerful friend, a profound friend, and in the
latter part of each chapter he moves to the Gospel to find that these
qualities have been fulfilled more than could be expected in any human
friendship. In the last fifteen chapters, the grief of the Sacred Heart
and its causes are studied with a concluding section which considers
the promises of the Sacred Heart and the essence of the devotion.
The author presents a great deal of dogma in a clear and simple manner. The book is solid devotional reading. The short chapters of about
eight pages each are suitable for use in meditation or spiritual reading.
Liberal use is made of scriptural quotes and these are well-chosen and
inspirational.
Some readers may find the treatment of friendship, which is tinged
at times with sentimentalism, less to their taste than a more extensive
treatment of the revelations to St. Margaret Mary and of the devotion to
the Sacred Heart as such. However, admittedly the book does not have
as its chief end the defense of this devotion. Some readers, too, may
find depressing the emphasis on the cowardice and indifference of men
as a motive for love.
The book must be read carefully for many profound thoughts may
otherwise be missed. In fact, the plain, open style with its certain lack
of imagination and freshness of approach seems to bring about this
very effect.
However, the effort put into reading this book will be repaid by
the renewed realization which must dawn on the reader that "this
language of the pulsations of the Divine Heart was reserved for later
times in order that the ageing world, growing cold in love, might again
become rekindled at the recitation of such mysteries."
The translation from the German is uniformly excellent.
JOHN J. HEANEY, S.J.
The Life that is Grace. By John V. Matthews, S.J.
Newman Press, 1953. Pp. vii-196. $2.50.
Westminster,
In 1944 Father Matthews published With the Help of Thy Grace a
clear and accurate exposition of the Catholic doctrine of actual grace.
The Work was divided into more than a score of chapters in question
�128
BOOK REVIEWS
and answer form, each followed by a "Practice" in which the doctrine
given was applied to the events of life. In 1950 under the title Actual
Grace and the Spiritual Life a revised and considerably augmented
edition of this book appeared in Ireland. The catechetical style was
dropped but the practical applications were retained and developed.
In his new book Father Matthews passes to the study of sanctifying
grace. The basis of the work is not St. Paul's idea of grace as justification but St. John's teaching on grace as life; "I am come that they
may have life and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). At the
beginning the author shows how Christ our Lord is a consecrated lifesaver, meriting the loving title of Savior given Him by his brethren.
Next we learn how our Lord did ~ot labor to bring us a life below our
own human life, or merely a h)Jman life, or even an angel's life but
really gives another and higher kind of life, a life of holiness, a life
somehow divine.
We study how this abundant life is possessed by the soul only while
ennobling the body also. We learn how it is destined for all men. After
recalling how our First Parents lost this godlike life for themselves and
all their descendants, Father Matthews recalls briefly how our Savior
restored this precious pearl in a more perfect form to those who desire
to receive it. The new Holiness and the holy newness of the life of grace
is next developed. "How comforting is the fact," exclaims the author,
"that as we age daily toward the grave, there is a renewal of eternal
youth, a steady growth of undying life within us." The innerness of
this new life which shows itself in exterior deeds of virtue and the stages
of its growth from spiritual childhood and the adolescence into the full
virtue of spiritual manhood are carefully examined. This life of holi·
ness is a start on our life everlasting and should endure et~rnally. A
longer chapter studies the relation between this life and the Sacraments
which give and increase holiness in our souls. In a beautiful chapter
on the life of grace as a life of sonship, Father Matthews also shows
how our Lady mothers us in the supernatural order. Finally studies
on the putting on of Christ and the glories of the Mystical Body, that
mirror of Christ's holiness, put a crown on the book.
Father Matthews, who has spent years teaching and meditating on the
Scholastic treatises on grace gives us in his books, in a Scriptural and
realistic form, the substance of Catholic doctrine. Following the Divine
Teacher, he uses a number of carefully chosen similitudes and examples
to impress his message on the reader. Anyone reading this book cannot
fail to conclude that it is the product of personal, constructive and progressive thought, not a mere assemblage of thoughts about the subject.
It is the kind of theologicaf work which could only be written by one
thoroughly familiar with the dogmas involved in all their implications.
The Newman Press also deserves congratulations on a beautifully produced book and on the moderate price.
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTER· S
VOL. LXXXIII, No. 2
MAY, 1954
-----=~·=~~~--
CONTENTS FOR MAY, 1954
THE DOGMATIC FOUNDATIONS OF THE SPIRITUAL
EXERCISES --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 131
Philip J. Donnelly
MONUMENTA HISTORICA SOCIETATIS JESU (1894-1954) ______ 158
E. J. Burrus
OBEDIENCE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 169
James B. Reuter
ST. ANDREW THROUGH FIFTY YEARS----------------------------------------- 177
William Bangert
WHY I RESIGNED THE SEE OF BOMBAY --------------------------------------- 197
Thomas Roberts
HISTORICAL NOTES
Early American Missionaries -------------------------------------------------------------- 202
OBITUARIES
Father James J. Daly -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 204
Brother Peter Wilhalm -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 209
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
Philosophy of Human Knowing (Hassett,
Mitchell, & Monan) ---------------------------------------------------------------------Christ Our High Priest (Fernan) ----------------------------------------------------Norms for the Novel (Gardiner) -------------------------------------------------------History of Philosophy III (Copleston) -------------------------------------------The Hidden Stream (Knox) ---------------------------------------------------------------Story of Marquette University (Hamilton) -------------------------------------The Riddle of Konnersreuth (Siwek) -----------------------------------------------Fundamental Psychiatry (Cavanaugh & McGoldrick) ---------------New Eucharistic Legislation (Ford) -----------------------------------------------Theology of the Spiritual Life (de Guibert) --------------------------------
213
214
215
216
218
219
220
221
222
223
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Philip J. Donnelly (New England Province) is Professor of
Dogmatic Theology at Weston College, Weston, Mass.
Father E. J. Burrus (New Orleans Province) is Secretary of Archivum
Histon·cum Societatis Jesu and writer for the Monumenta Historica
Societatis Jesu.
Father James B. Reuter (Philippine Vice-Province) teaches at the
Ateneo de Manila, Quezon City, Luzon, Philippine Islands.
Father William V. Bangert (New York Province) teaches history at
St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, New York.
Archbishop Thomas Roberts (English Province) is Spiritual Father
at Campion Hall, Oxford, Engla,nd.
Father Lawrence J. Kenny (Chicago Province) is a writer residing at
St. Louis University, St. Louis, Mo.
Father John E. Coogan (Chicago Province) is a lecturer on sociology
at Detroit University, Detroit, Michigan.
Mr. William C. Dibb (Oregon Province) is a philosopher at Mount
St. Michael's, Spokane, Washington.
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WooDSTOCK
LETTERS to observe the following: type triple space, leaying a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately-sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings sho1,1ld also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and HisH5rical Notes. Pictures, fairlY
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contributor.
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1. 1942. at the post office at Woodstock.
Maryland. under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOC~MARYLAND
�The Dogmatic Foundations of
The Spiritual Exercises
The theology of the Exercises, fully grasped and
personally realized, enriches souls, sanctifies society
PHILIP
J.
DONNELLY,
S.J.
In his 1947 Christmas message "Urbi et Orbi," Pope Pius
XII pointed significantly to the world-wide wave of insincerity,
which threatens to engulf truth and to crush all attempts for
a stable peace. 1 It is this increasing insincerity in international relations, in civil society, and in family life, which is
symptomatic of Godlessness. Men who do not know God
cannot know themselves; they cannot discern the paths of true
happiness from the broad highway that leads only to the
dead-end of disillusionment and despair. 2
The challenge of Godlessness to Christianity, and to each
God-fearing man and woman throughout the world, is as obvious as it is urgent. That this challenge is being confronted,
vigorously and honestly, needs no further proof than the many
movements among religious leaders everywhere to plan, organize and realize an ever more complete integration between
fundamental dogmatic truth and Christian life, not only for
the benefit of individuals or of differing cultural levels of
society, but for the whole human race in its undeniable and
radical social identity as a family-the family of God. 3
Man's Need of Dogma
. The most heartening feature of these unrelenting efforts to
stem the tide of Godlessness is the ever increasing realization
among Catholics that the most fundamental need of our age is
the knowledge of dogmatic truths. Undoubtedly, personal
sanctity, liturgical worship, unselfish interest for others in
all phases of the social apostolate, an accelerated zeal for improving the economic conditions of laborers, and countless
other manifestations of Catholic Action, must engage the resources of Catholics as never before; but all of these endeavours must spring from, and be integrated with, a penetrating and all-pervasive knowledge of God's revealed plan of
salvation.
�132
DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
We Catholics can never be, and do not pretend to be, any.
thing more than submissive and living instruments of God's
infinitely wise providence for the full redemption of the human
race. Therefore, unless we, especially leaders in various fields
of Catholic Action, know God's designs on us personally and
His pleasure concerning all men, there is grave danger, particularly in an era of prolonged crisis in which false ideals can
be eternally costly, that we shall act, not as instruments of
divine grace, but rather as independent agents, and thereby
distort for others, perhaps irreparably, the incomparable
beauty and attractiveness of _God's creative and redemptive
plan. 4
'
Theoretically, no one can doubt the urgent need of making
dogmatic truths operative. Practically, divine providence has
supplied us with various excellent means, adapted to the varied
exigencies and capacities of widely differing classes of people.
Without doubt, the most efficacious and most universally applicable means is the rapidly growing movement of closed retreats. Among the multiple methods of conducting a retreat,
the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola occupy an
enviable position of preeminence, because of their remarkable
efficacy during the last four hundred years and because of their
unparalleled praise by the Holy See. 5
The year 1948 marked the fourth centennial of papal approval of the Spiritual Exercises. Innumerable examples of
the past, and modern experience as well, show that the permanent fruits of a retreat are directly proportioned to the solid
dogmatic foundations supporting each single meditation and
the entire superstructure of a· spiritual life. Without these
foundations, beautiful oratory or rhetorical flights will not
penetrate beyond the senses, and cannot inflame the will to
heroic and persevering action. Accordingly, the purpose of
this paper is to focus the light of Catholic dogma on some of
the fundamental meditations of the Spiritual Exercises.
THE PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION OF
THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES
"Man was created to praise, reverence, and serve God, and
thereby to save his soul." To make this fundamental truth
truly operative in our lives requires a selfless dedication not
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
133
merely to asceticism, but to an asceticism informed and impregnated with sharply defined ideas of God, of His purpose
in creating us, and of our ineradicable relation to Him. We
shall most certainly adhere closely to the spirit of St. Ignatius and his famous "Rules for Thinking with the Church," if,
in our interpretation of this basic truth, we rely chiefly on
St. Thomas of Aquin, whom the Church has repeatedly singled out as the guide in all theological learning, and whose
principles she wishes to become effective in our own lives and
in our dealings with others.
The history of asceticism shows that, in general, all aberrations from sound spirituality can be reduced to two: either
we so exalt our creaturehood as to deny our total dependence
on God, or we reduce God to the level of a glorified creature,
upon whom we are really dependent, but only as a slave is dependent on a tyrannous master, as the poor depend on the
wealthy, and as the masses depend on the whims either of a
pagan capitalistic state or of an atheistic totalitarian regime. 6
In either aberration, our essential relationship to God is
perverted. The common denominator of this perversion is that
we conceive God as only relatively superior to ourselves, because He supposedly receives some sort of advantage, some
vaguely imagined aggrandizement from our service to Him.
In this line of thought, it is impossible to remove commercialism from our spirituality. If God receives even the slightest
benefit from us, are we not entitled in some sort of justice to
receive from Him in return? May we not apply the language
of the mart: "No one ever receives something for nothing, not
even God"?
The history of religions and of individual lives proves that
an exaggerated estimate of human autonomy springing from
the personal experience of our free will can easily make any
one of us succumb to either of these two aberrations; on the
other hand, our conviction that we are radically and totally
dependent on God does not and cannot arise from any corresponding experience, but only from constant, arduous, and l
Prayerful reflection on the revealed truths of our faith and on i
bitter experiences of our own insufficiency and misery. The ·
d.angers of a fatal misconception concerning the very foundations of spiritual life can only be completely warded off by
L
�134
DOGl\IA AND THE EXERCISES
penetrating deeply the Catholic dogma of God's purpose in
creating us, and this dogma has been stated by no one as
cogently as by St. Thomas; because he removed from its interpretation every vestige of Neo-Platonic pantheism and
Aristotelian rationalism, St. Thomas' doctrine has been canonized in the solemn definition of God's utter transcendence,
'
given by the Vatican Council/
Divine Transcendence and Communication
God is the only person who is or can be truly liberal; He is
the only person who can give without receiving or needing to
receive any return. Precisely because nothing apart from
Him can exercise the slightest causality upon Him, or be, in
even the smallest way, to His advantage, God creates with a
freedom totally removed from all necessity or compulsion.
God, in the beloved phrase of St. Thomas, is the sole source
of all goodness. This divine goodness is not an end which is
in any way produced, affected or enhanced by men who are
ordered unto God as their unique ultimate end; rather, His
goodness is the end, whereby they are brought into existence
from nothingness and attracted to their own perfection; therefore the activity of God alone is purely liberal, because nothing
whatsoever accrues to Him from the execution of His will or
from His operations in behalf of men. 8
Only the total acceptance of this principle of di~ine communication can give a solid, permanent and fruitful idea of
what our creaturehood really means. By God's utterly liberal
and generous act of communication, we are drawn from the
nothingness, to which alone we can lay any claim in justice or
in truth. Furthermore, God has given to each one of us, not a
static and wholly inactive existence, but a share in His power
of communicating goodness to others. We are perfected and
brought to our completion as men, not as automatons, but by
our willing cooperation with the unceasing pouring out of un·
diminished divine goodness; we are made a teeming reservoir
and channel of divine bounty to share with others. However
(and this is essential if we are not to transgress the limits of
our creaturehood), not only our static perfection of mere
existence, but equally every increase of perfection through our
cooperation with God, and our power to imitate Him by giving,
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
135
all these are His gifts, which add not one whit to His internal
glory or to His infinite happiness; not one of these gifts exercises or can possibly exercise any causality on its Giver;
rather, they are all simply the effects of His goodness, which
can neither be increased nor diminished. These gifts-we
ourselves, our growth in perfection, our activity for others,
our ultimate perfection in the face-to-face vision of the Blessed
Trinity-are all God's external glory, it is true, but His external glory is in no wise the motive of His creative activity,
nor does it consist in His aggrandizement, but solely in the
benefits which we willingly receive. 9
Fundamental Truths
Once the deep implications of the principle of divine communication have been grasped and accepted, our essential
duties of praising, reverencing, and serving God, without
which all of our activity in any walk of life is valueless and
barren, are purified from all perversion and assume a richness
which makes them supremely desirable and attractive.
Our praise of God, St. Thomas teaches, is in no wise causative; it is only an expressed recognition of the truth that we
are completely dependent on Him for all our goodness and
happiness, now and forever. On the contrary, when God
praises or blesses a creature, His blessing is causative and
pours out goodness · into us. Our praise of God is only the
bedrock humility of our essential nothingness apart from Him,
the recognition that in Him alone, by Him alone, and through
Him alone, we exist, move, and have our being. It is, then, an
utterly pagan attitude, a complete perversion of truth, if we
ever imagine that our praise of God affects Him by adding to
His happiness, or that it was in any way the reason or motive
of His creating us. According to St. Thomas, our praise of
God is nothing but truth, the truth of our nothingness apart
from Him; the truth that our final perfection and happiness
lie only in Him ; the truth that we cannot take even one step
on the arduous way back to Him, which is not His absolutely
unselfish gift to us. 10
Likewise, our duty of reverence, which is a salutary comPosite of filial love and fear, is totally to our benefit, not God's.
Without any possibility of equivocation or of misunderstand-
�136
DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
ing his clear meaning, St. Thomas writes: "We manifest our
reverence for God, not for His sake, since He is infinite God
to whom nothing can be added by our acts, but for ourselves,
because in reverencing Him, our hearts are fixed on Him,
in whom alone our perfection consists." 11
Similarly with regard to our service of God. To serve is to
fulfill the will of another. But God's will concerning us, as
St. Thomas delights to point out, is totally different in its motivation from the will of even the most perfect creature. Not
even mother-love, the highest expression of altruism which we
ordinarily experience, can act without, in the very act of
giving, finding itself increased and made more perfect. Beyond the facts of empirical observation, this is true in the case
of the Blessed Virgin, and even of the sacred humanity of
Christ, who grew, as man, in wisdom, age, and grace before
God and man.
God's will, whose sole possible motive is His infinite and
undiminishable goodness, simply cannot act to acquire anything whatsoever for Himself. God can only give, according
to His plan of infinite wisdom, based on infinite sanctity and
truth. When, therefore, we say that our primary duty in
life is to serve God, ~we can only mean that it consists in
fulfilling His will, which cannot acquire, but can only communicate. Our duty of service, in accord with the solemnly
defined dogma of God's absolute immutability and th~ teaching
of St. Thomas, consists solely and totally in receivi:ri"g. .willingly
from God what He wants to give-namely, Himself-precisely
as in His divine providence He attracts us to Himself sweetly
and powerfully. Dogmatically, the famous motto of Saint
Ignatius, Ad maiorem Dei gloriam, which epitomizes the entire
spirit of his Spiritual Exercises, can suffer no other interpretation.
The only alternative to serving God-that is, receiving from
Him willingly what only infinite goodness could devise for our
happiness-is deliberately to fall back into ourselves, and,
living a lie, to try to derive from the emptiness of our intimate
relation with nothingness that happiness for which alone we
have been made by our loving God.
How eager we and all men would be to serve God, if only we
realized the profound truth of the divine paradox that we have
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES '
i37
been created to receive, not only something, but everythingGod Himself in His Trinitarian life-for the nothingness from
which we have been drawn by omnipotent Love, and to which
alone we can claim any right. If these fundamental truths,
derived from the principle of divine communication, were
realized in all their dogmatic richness and practical implications by Christians, the awful insincerity and hypocrisy of
our age, so distressing to the Christlike and fatherly heart of
Pope Pius XII, would be dealt a death-blow. Our own lives
would be elevated and transformed from their comfortable
mediocrity; and all our activity would be what it is divinely
intended to be-the work of God in us showing forth unmistakably to the world that infinite goodness, which is the first
cause and the last end, the Alpha and Omega, of all things. 12
THE INCARNATION AND THE KINGSHIP OF CHRIST
" ... that I may not be deaf to His call, but ready and diligent to
fulfill His most Holy Will."
All that we have seen of the work of God as Creator is incomparably deepened and enriched by the revelation of the
work of God, made man for our salvation. But revelation
itself is not ultimate salvation; the two are separated by the
whole complex process of time and history, by the Incarnation
of God in a human nature, by the incarnation of man in the
myriad changes and fluctuations of material forces, and by
the painful effort of human nature, aided by grace, to subordinate matter to spirit, and to allow spirit to be filled "unto all
the fullness of God" (Eph. 3 :19).
The day of Christ's inevitable triumph in the complete and
glorious redemption of His members will not arrive until the
absolute, unchanging, and transcendent truths of Christian
revelation have been lived dynamically, preserved inviolately,
and cherished heroically, not in a vacuum nor in an undisturbed atmosphere of speculative contemplation, but in time,
. in the terribly vital struggle and conflict centered in every
single human heart, and in the cruel clash of tensions between
individual and community interests, between national and international welfare. We cannot by our own strength win in
this awful struggle involving eternal life or eternal death; we
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DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
must have a share through Christ in the very life of God; we
must become permeated with the mind and heart and motivation of Christ, if we are to avoid eternal failure.
Can we apply the principle of communication to Christ's
motivation? Does not this principle, as outlined and applied to
our fundamental duties of praise, reverence, and service seem
to be confronted with an insuperable obstacle in the life, teaching, and example of Christ? Did He not point out as the
highest goal and aspiration of Christian life that we should be
perfect as His heavenly Father is perfect, and was not the
whole purpose of Christ's life the glorification of His Father?
Did He not in turn command
His absolute right of Kingship
that we should also glorify Him as He glorifies the Father?
Does it not then seem to follow that both the Father and
Christ seek and demand their own glorification as an acquisition to be derived from our service? Consequently, is not the
principle of communication false and pernicious? The answer
to these questions depends obviously on Christ's motive for
glorifying His Father and on His motive for desiring to be
glorified in us. The proper understanding of Christ's motivation is, in turn, the key to the meaning of His exhortation that
we be perfect as the Father is perfect.
as
Motivation of Christ
His .
Again, we turn to St. Thomas. Christ in
human
nature is a finite being, a creature elevated to the ineffable
dignity of being assumed by the Second Person of the Most
Blessed Trinity. As finite, Christ's entire humanity, His soul
and body, have the same relationship to nothingness that we
have. Through absolutely no antecedent merit nor any predisposing factor whatsoever, but rather, due to the ineffably
munificent out-pouring of divine love, this Sacred Humanity
was not merely drawn from the abyss of nothingness by crea·
tion, but was also gifted from the first moment of conception
with the personality of the only begotten Son of God.
Christ's human mind, never for an instant without the face·
to-face vision of God, was aware as no other man, no angel
possibly could be, of the nothingness of His creaturehood apart
from God's creative love, and of the utterly extravagant gra·
tuity of the divine anointing which united His human nature
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139
substantially to the Son of God. Christ knew that nothing in
His human nature called forth or in any way attracted the
gift of its Deification; He saw, on the other hand, with intuitive
vision, the motivation of the Blessed Trinity, a motivation
founded solely, founded intrinsically and lovingly on infinite
goodness; a motivation, moreover, founded on an inexpressibly
perfect freedom, because the humanity of Christ could not
possibly add one whit to the eternally infinite happiness of the
Blessed Trinity's personal and mutual communion.13
Therefore, Christ glorified His heavenly Father in the exquisite love of His Sacred Heart and in the total holocaust of
His Body and Blood; therefore, He praised the Father with a
humility of truth whjch we can never attain; therefore,
Christ's praise of His Father was expressive of the truth that
His human nature had received the highest gift possible in the
infinite range of God's freedom and goodness. Can we imagine
the human mind of Christ even for an instant entertaining the
blasphemous thought that His unceasing human praise was the
eternally foreseen motive which had moved God to confer this .
marvelous gift, or that His human praise in any way accrued
to His Father's advantage and increased His infinite happiness?
Christ's reverence for His Father differed from ours only in
this, that He could not possibly fear the loss of His Father's
good pleasure the dissolution of the Hypostatic Union; but He
did not consider this tremendous grace of impeccability as due
to His human nature; He recognized its source in God's goodness alone.
Christ's service consisted in fulfilling His Father's will, the
salvific will, which desires all men to be saved through the
Kingship of Christ over His Mystical Body. Christ served
His Father by humbly accepting His destiny as Saviour as a
gift of God and by conforming His human mind and will to
the exigencies of the divine economy of salvation, instead of
devising His own plan. Having received in His human nature
by pure gift everything, the highest that even God can' give,
He became willingly the humble instrument of the divinity,
which alone could restore to fallen men their pristine dignity
of God's beloved children. Christ knew that the slightest, almost inaudible sigh of His Sacred Heart was worthy of being
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DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
God's unique instrument for saving a sinful race, but He accepted from the beginning the hard and thorny way of the
Cross, because, in the eternal designs of infinite wisdom, this
way would be more to the advantage of us, His Father's
adopted children, His brothers. Having received all from God,
He could desire no selfish advantage from us whom He came
to save. Because in God, and only in God, was His perfect
treasure, His Sacred Heart could cry out with perfect selflessness: "I came, not to be ministered unto, but to minister unto
others." 14
We now have the answer to our initial question, an answer
which, far from undermining the principle of communication,
strikingly illuminates and corroborates it; Christ's motive for
glorifying His Father with every breath of His life was the
recognition of truth, the ecstatic vision of God's goodness
which had drawn His human nature from the abyss of nothingness and made it the nature of an Incarnate God. Christ's
motive for desiring us to glorify Him was this: His heavenly
Father had made Him in His human nature the unique channel
of Redemption, the "first-born of all creatures" to be admitted
into the family of God; accordingly Christ as man desired to
share divine life with all men, actually to produce this life in
their souls as its unique source under God; Christ's glory,
then, consists entirely in our receiving willingly what He came
to minister to us, His own divine life. But we cannot receive
this gift, unless we recognize its source and embrace the means
which alone unite us to Christ, and through Him, to the Father.
In the words of the liturgy, "We praise thee, 0 Christ, and we
bless thee, because by the holy Cross thou hast redeemed the
world." We do not glorify, praise and bless Christ, because
He came seeking honour and recognition as an accidental, but
very real complement to His infinite dignity. Our praise and
glorification of Christ have always been and will always be
transferred by Him to the source of all goodness, to the fountain-head of all love, to His heavenly Father from whom He
has His origin both human and divine, and from whom we too
have been given the power through Christ to say: "Our
Father !" 15
The Spirit of Christ's Kingdom
The principle of divine communication, applied to the In-
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141
carnation, constitutes the living spirit of the Kingdom of
Christ; it has been stated, not in metaphor nor in richly expressed illustration, but in the white light of Catholic dogma,
the expression of eternal truth. The spirit of the Kingdom is
to be perfect as Christ and His Father are perfect, not indeed
with the unlimited and unchangeable perfection of the Godhead, nor yet with the awful dignity and sanctity of the
Hypostatic Union, but by receiving willingly, as "the pearl of
great price" the call of our King to share, by pure gift, in His
divine life.
If we are indeed living members of Christ's kingdom, if we
have accepted wholeheartedly the principle of divine communication, we shall share in Christ's unselfishness; we shall 1
.
recognize humbly that in His gift of Himself and the gift of
His Father, sealed with the abiding presence of the Holy
Spirit, we, who of ourselves are nothing, have everything; we
shall grow in the realization that God's only desire, revealed
and manifested unmistakably to us in Christ, is that the divine
life within us, which is the very life of Christ hidden in God,
may daily increase, until it shall break the bonds of flesh and
blood, and shall blossom forth into the splendor of the unending vision of our Triune God completely unveiled.
The outstanding member, i.e. the insignis of Christ's Kingdom is one who is so lost to self in the possession of God, so
completely in love with God the Giver, that his love overflows,
as a faint imitation of divine love; he is one who desires with
the very desire of God Himself, through His charity diffused
into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, that all men may receive
what we have received, the only enduring gift that God wishes
to give, because it alone is worthy of Him-Himself. If we ~
wish to signalize ourselves in the service of Christ, we shall
live in an atmosphere of constant mortification, we shall take
up our cross and die to ourselves daily, but only in order that
we may be the more firmly rooted in Christ and receive a
greater share in His divine life; no other motive of self-denial
is Christian. We' shall give ourselves over completely to activity seemingly without limit, but we shall be always keenly
aware that this activity, no matter how superficially success~ul, is utterly worthless, sterile, and even pernicious, unless it
Is a living instrument of God's diffusive goodness, a powerful
attraction of souls, not to ourselves, but to the loving God who
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DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
is using us as ministers of reconciliation (I Cor. 4:1; II Cor.
5:18}.
Even as :Mary, the Mother of Divine Grace, so mastered this
principle of communication that God found her worthy to be
the unique channel of His greatest gift to men, so we, in the
measure that we grasp this same principle and live by it, will
be found worthy to do the work of God. And our worthiness,
under God, will be measured precisely by the degree of our
realization that only in Christ are we truly great; only through
Christ and from Christ have we anything worthwhile to give
to others. We are truly Christians, we are really doing perfectly the work of God, only,,when we have made our entire
lives, in thought, word and deed, a living prolongation of
Mary's prayer: Magnificat anima mea Dominum . . . quia
fecit mihi magna qui potens est: et sanctum nomen eiUS. 16
THE PASSION AND DEATH OF CHRIST
"He that spared not even His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all,
how hath He not also, with him, given us all things?" (Rom. 8:32)
In the third week of his Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius
confronts us with the awful and unrelieved spectacle of a
broken-hearted God, giving, until even infinite love and infinite
wisdom could find no more to give. Here, we see the uncompromising truth of St. Thomas' great principle --of divine
communication, which for all eternity will be a stumbling
block of stupid folly to the proud, and the unique source of
salvation for the truly humble.
"Why, why?" The narrow confines of the human heart,
wedded to self-love and impeded by the senses from the vision
of divine charity, need the light- and life-giving grace of faith
to grasp even feebly the utter prodigality of a merciful God,
who could so love a sinful race as to make His only begotten
Son a worm and no man, that by His death we might live with
the justice of God.
·
"All this for me?" is' the constant reflection of St. Ignatius. It must be ours, as, following the Ignatian method, we
proceed from the application of our senses and imagination
before the scene of Calvary, and ascend to the spiritual order
of motivation.
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143
Perhaps no one has penetrated more deeply into the motivation of Christ's passion and death than St. Thomas. Despite the eminent place of the humanity of Christ in the work
of our redemption and salvation, St. Thomas' doctrine,
which is identical with St. Paul's, is fundamentally and
radically theocentric. It is absolutely true that the Cross of
Christ is actually the unique means of salvation. But the
physical aspects of the sufferings and death of Christ are
quite secondary; these sufferings could have been greater or
less, and derive their sole efficacy for our salvation exclusively
from the charity of Christ's Sacred Heart which willingly
embraced them.
The Divine Plan
The first essential question to be answered, then, is: why
did Christ embrace willingly and accept lovingly the Cross?
Was it His own plan, the plan of a loving Son wishing to
repair, as it were secretly, the outraged majesty of a loving
Father, by presenting Him as a fait accompli with an example
of unparalleled devotion which would outweigh by its infinite
dignity the indignity of all possible sins?
What was the motivation of Christ's charity; what prompted
Him to undertake willingly His awful Sacrifice? St. Thomas
answers simply: it was entirely the initiative of the Father
which impelled Christ to embrace freely the total oblation of
His sufferings and death for us. Neither the Jews, nor Judas,
nor the High Priests, nor Pilate and Herod, nor the sin of
Adam, nor the countless sins of the sons of Adam-none of
these had the slightest power to hand Christ, the omnipotent
Son of God, over to His torturers or to condemn Him to death.
Again, with the simplicity of genius, St. Thomas states: it
was the Father who delivered Christ over to His death.
How was this done? In a sentence, which should be the
key for our proper understanding and deeper penetration of
the redemption, St. Thomas continues in pregnant phrases
which deserve long hours of reflective and assimilative prayer:
first of all, by decreeing that His divine Son should be made
man; secondly, by inspiring into His human heart that affection of charity, whereby He would willingly and freely
undergo death for men; therefore, only through the initiative
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DOGl\IA AND THE EXERCISES
of the Father can Christ be said to have handed Himself over
of His own will to His death.H
The series of "Whys?" which must be answered, if we are
to appreciate ever more fully God's love for us, must be pushed
back further. Why did God the Father will that we should be
redeemed only by the bloody way of His Son's complete oblation for us? Was it because of a real loss sustained by God
from the sins of men? Did the honor, of which God was
deprived by sin, set up such a disequilibrium in divinity, that
the tension between divine mercy and charity on the one hand,
and divine justice on the other, could only be relieved by the
death of an Incarnate God? ~ ··
St. Thomas, by removing from theology the Anselmian
notion that the Incarnation and death of Christ were necessary for the complete remission of sins, rejects absolutely all
tentative solutions of this kind. He had too lofty a vision of
God's transcendence to picture Him offended by sin as man is
offended by the personal affront of a fellow-man. St.
Thomas even went so far as to define divine offense as follows:
"God is only offended by us inasmuch as we act against our
own good." 18 Nothing that we can do in the line of intended
insult or even of blasphemy can cause the slightest diminution
of God's infinite happiness and self-sufficiency. As the great
St. Augustine taught so forcefully, the only one hurt intrinsically by sin is the sinner himself. 19 Inasmuclt ·as the
sinner chooses sin instead of God, he chooses nothingness in
place of plenitude; he seeks to find ultimate and complete happiness in the privation of the source of all goodness; he strives
in vain to possess completely and exclusively for himself creatures which are nothing but the emptiness of a mirage apart
from their relation to God; by his perverse act, the sinner
condemns his whole being to a hunger and thirst for God,
which may remain unslaked for all eternity; he chooses to live
a lie instead of the truth of his radical and total dependence
on the goodness of God who desires only to give, but can onlY
• share His perfection in accord with His infinite wisdom, truth
and sanctity; it is utterly impossible that God should welcome
into the intimate vision and familiar companionship of the
Most Blessed Trinity the unrepentant sinner who has denied
that God is the unique source of all goodness.
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145
Our question still remains unanswered: why did God will
that we be saved only through the death of Christ? Quite
clearly, the reason cannot be found in God's utility or aggrandizement: "God the Father did not spare His Son because He
sought some advantage for Himself who is God infinite; rather,
because of our utility, He subjected His Son to His passion." 20
In what does this utility consist? The germ of our answer
must be sought and found in the fundamental truth so frequently emphasized by St. Thomas, and so often passed over
too rapidly, not only in retreats, in ascetical and devotional
books, and in the practical instruction of Catholics, but even
in thwlogical manuals: Christ died primarily to remedy, not
the actual sins of Adam's posterity, but the racial sin of Adam
as it is transmitted to each one of us by natural generation.
But the sin of Adam in his posterity is essentially the loss of
supernatural life, and the physical impossibility of attaining
our unique destiny, which remains the Beatific Vision. Moreover, original sin in us is in no wise due to our personal fault
or the responsibility of our personal will, but solely to the
sinful act of Adam's will. 21
Restoration of Supernatural Life in Man
Therefore, according to St. Thomas, Christ died primarily
to restore divine life to a race powerless to attain its supernatural destiny because of the sin of Adam alone. Now, although God is infinite simplicity, there exist a perfect order
and harmony of cause and effect in the created objects of His
eternal decree of redemption, and this order depends solely on
His infinite wisdom. We know from the New Testament that
God's salvific will did not cease with the sin of Adam, but
endured for the whole human race despite original sin. Christ
Was predestined from eternity; His passion and death were to
be the unique means of imparting to the sons of Adam that
divine life, which they would have received by pure gift at the
moment of conception, had not Adam sinned. 21
Did not Christ die also for the sins of all men to the end of
time, and not merely for the sin of Adam in us? Obviously,
lie did; this is a revealed truth. 22 But this revealed fact, that
God willed the death of Christ to be an efficacious remedy for
possible sins, does not touch the question of ultimate divine
an
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DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
motivation; it should not, above all, be taken to mean that
God was motivated by His foreknowledge of actual sins to
decree the death of His divine Son. Such a motivation of the
divine will can and must be excluded with certainty, from the
following theological consideration, based on revealed truth.
The death of Christ on the Cross was decreed absolutely,
with utter gratuity, and independently of God's foreknowledge
of even one single actual sin in the descendants of Adam.
How can this possibly be true? We answer: because of the
revealed doctrine of God's salvific will; all theologians now
agree that, after the sin of Adam, all men who are capable of
sinning (i.e., those with sufficient use of reason) receive an
actual grace, really and physically inhering in their wills,
before they sin. But all of these actual graces after the sin
of Adam are graces of Christ; they are conferred solely because of the foreseen merits of Christ's passion and death. If
this is true, the death of Christ was decreed by God absolutely
and before His decree to give graces, which are exclusively due
to the actually foreseen merits of Christ as effects are due to
their causes. God simply could not confer graces merited
solely by Christ's death, unless the death of Christ were de·
creed absolutely and before the decree of conferring the graces
themselves. Consequently, by virtue of God's sincere will to
save all men, every single sin of the sons of Adam, which ever
has been, or ever will be committed to the end of time, must be
the rejection of a grace of Christ actually conferred and exist·
ing in the human will before the sinful choice is made. God,
therefore, (if indeed He has a salvific will) cannot foresee anY
actual sin of the sons of Adam except as the rejection of a
foreseen grace actually existing in the human will before the
sinful act; He cannot foresee this grace as actually existing,
except as the effect of Christ's death, actually foreseen and
decreed absolutely, because it is the sole meritorious cause of
all these graces. 23
This may all be summed up in the principle of St. Thomas
phrased so trenchantly:·Deus vult ergo hoc esse propter hoc;
sed non propter hoc vult hoc. 24 God willed that the passion
and death of Christ should be an efficacious means of remitting
all possible sins to the end of time, but He was not, and could
not have been motivated in His absolute decree that Christ
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147
should die, by any foreknowledge of these sins as actual:
"... labor with the Gospel according to the power of God,
Who hath delivered us by His holy calling, not according to
our works [either good or evil!], but according to His own
purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before
the times of this world" (II Tim., 1 :8-9).
Life Hidden with Christ in God
Our question, then, as to God's motivation still remains, but
the answer can only be found in the recesses of divine love, or,
in what amounts to the same, in the mystery of our supernatural elevation to the life of God. St. Thomas answers
that God willed our redemption through the passion and death
of Christ, because this was the best means which infinite love
could devise to bring men to a lasting and solid conviction of
their supernatural destiny to the Beatific Vision, to a share in
the very life of the Blessed Trinity. 25 For our humility, although we possess by baptism the same supernatural dignity
as sons of God which Adam lost, we have not the same consciousness of our internal splendour, and, above all, we have
not the same almost angelic strength to ward off temptation
and to avoid eternal death. But these internal bulwarks of
Adam's preternatural integrity were not immune from the
shattering forces of almost diabolic pride. We, as Christians,
from the first dawn of reason are generally too exposed to a
living awareness of our own insufficiency, our sensuality, our
waywardness, and our pride, to rely for long on ourselves, as
both Satan and Adam did. Christ dwelling within us, Christ,
the Vine whose life-giving grace fills our souls, Christ the Good
Shepherd searching for us with tender solicitude when we
have gone astray, Christ who came only to minister unto us
that we might have His divine life and have it more abundantly-He, it is, who superabundantly makes up for Adam's
marvelous interior harmony and equilibrium, which an all-wise
God has chosen not to restore to us, because He has seen that
it is better for us and more to our eternal advantage, that we
Place all our hope of conquering the world, Satan, and ourselves in Christ and in Him alone.
Truly the Church is gloriously justified in crying out on Holy
Saturday: 0 felix culpa quae meruit talem et tantum redemp-
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DOGl\IA
.A.L~D
TilE EXERCISES
torem. No longer will men find it impossible to conceive that
their nothingness has been elevated to the dignity of divine life
hidden with Christ in God, no longer will they think it incredible that they are destined to see God one day face-toface, if once they shall have grasped the motivation of the
heavenly Father, and of Christ Himself in His passion and
death. If infinite love can pour itself out for us in the
ignominy of Calvary, cannot that same love transform, and
divinize, and make sons of God even the most ungrateful and
sinful sons of Adam ?26
In this perspective of our redemption and of divine motivation, sin stands forth in all its stark repulsiveness. Sin can
no longer be even conceived 'as an intrinsic damage or loss
inflicted on God; rather it is the blasphemous assertion of
an independence, which is diabolic in the intensity of its ingratitude and in the perversion of its error. Sin is seen to be
what it really is, the choice of the awful alternative to God,
which is inherent to our freedom. We can either freely allow
God to fill us with the plenitude of divine life, for which alone
He has created and redeemed us, or we can deliberately embrace the nothingness which we are by ourselves, and worship
our hollow emptiness in place of God, and receive from it the
only reward that it can give, the gnawing and corrosive torture
of the damned. 27
For those who grasp and live the principle of divine communication as revealed in the passion and death of Christ, the
following statement of St. Thomas forms an admirable summary: "In giving Christ to us, has not God given us everything; the Three Divine Persons to enjoy fully in heaven, men
and angels as our companions on earth, all creation for our
use, not only prosperity, but also adversity? All things are
ours, we are Christ's and Christ is God's." 28
CONTEMPLATION TO GAIN LOVE
"All is Thine, dispose of it according to Thy will. Give me
Thy love and Thy grace; for this is enough for me."
Even as the Spiritual Exercises find their consummation in
the Contemplatio ad amorem, so the principle of communication is the circular movement initiated by divine love and cul·
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
149
minating in the union of the Church Triumphant in the faceto-face vision and embrace of infinite charity.
Critics of the Exercises have made almost a cliche of their
unwarranted assertion that St. Ignatius reserves his consideration of charity, the greatest of the virtues, to the end of
the retreat. This type of disparagement, authoritatively rejected by Pius XI/ 9 could be set forth seriously only by those
who have a false concept of the only possible theological motivation for loving God; and this false concept, in turn, is derived
from failing to consider the entire four weeks of the Exercises
in the light of the principle of communication.
From his very first consideration, "The Principle and Foundation," first and foremost in the mind of St. Ignatius is his
dominating and controlling idea of the Bonitas Fontalis, the
infinite ocean of divine goodness, which alone motivates God
to share His perfection through creation, and to shower lavlishly the unspeakable gift of divine life on the creatures of
His hand drawn from nothingness. The goodness of God,
stressed in the Foundation as the sole possible motive of God,
is concretized in the person of Christ the King, elevated in His
human nature loftily above the choirs of angels by the Hypostatic Union, joined by the perfect bond of the Holy Spirit to
His beloved Father, sharing the lowliness, the monotony, the
hardships, the sorrows, and even the death of men, with a
humility surpassing our comprehension, that He might show
us the way to the Father and bring forth in our hearts the
seed of divine life, born of the charity of God, and tending to
the consummation of perfect union.
St. Ignatius' contemplation Ad amorem, then, is not a
rude and abrupt intrusion of an ideal and a goal totally foreign
to the rest of the Exercises. It is rather the complete flowering of the seed of perfect charity planted in the Foundation;
Protected and safeguarded by the considerations on sin, death,
hell, and judgment; brought to an integrated and sturdy maturity through the contemplations on Christ's life, death, and
resurrection; strengthened and radicated more deeply in our
souls by the great meditations on The Kingdom, The Two
Standards, The Three Classes of Men, and The Three Degrees
of Humility; and, finally made manifest by contemplating the
dazzling splendour of that uncreated beauty and goodness, of
Which it is the supernatural image and likeness.
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DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
It is St. Ignatius' ardent desire that in this contemplation
we may imprint so deeply on our souls the infinite love of God
for us, that for the rest of our lives we shall need no stimulus
of fear to goad us to virtue, no motivation to sanctity except
the interior law of love which is the heart and soul, the epitome
of the Exercises, as well as the genuine spirit of that Society,
which St. Ignatius desired to be, not only in name, but also
in truth, the Society of Jesus.
However, this goal of the entire Exercises can only be attained, if the contemplation receives constant illumination
from revealed truth; here aboye all, if the principle of divine
communication is applied in all its richness, our whole life can
easily become a holocaust of perfect charity, responding generously to the outpouring of infinite love in Christ Jesus.
Divine Love
We can never reach this perfection, however, until we grasp
with profound humility the essential truth of Christianity that
there is nothing in us which is, of ourselves, lovable. It is only
because God has first loved with a transcendent love totally
independent of us, utterly unattracted or motivated by us,
that we exist, that we tend toward Him, and can find our rest
only in Him. As St. Thomas, echoing the beloved disciple
St. John, delights in pointing out over and over again, the
love of God is the only love which is not solicited by previously
existing goodness; God's love is the only love, which, instead
of being drawn and attracted by some external goodness to be
acquired, creates goodness out of nothing and pours it forth
from the undiminished fountain of infinite perfection. The
fundamental truth of Christianity-the fact of our total de·
pendence on God-is synonymous and identical with the truth
that God's love alone is the source and the goal of our being.
Granted, then, that we are in no wise the motive of God's
love, why has He loved us to the lavish degree of making us
members in the Mystical Body of His only begotten Son 1
There can be only one answer; because God can only give;
because He has no potency whatsoever to acquire even the
slightest perfection; because, totally without needs, He is in·
effably free to give in accord with His providence; because,
by a completely gratuitous decision, motivated solely by His
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151
internal and immutable goodness, He has freely chosen to pour
into our nothingness the highest gift that even He can giveHis own divine life, a supernatural share in His perfect
happiness.
The Perfection of Man
What does He wish from us in return? He wishes only that
we serve Him, that we fulfill His will according to the motivation which prompted Him to create us and to re-create us unto
the image of His beloved Son. He wishes, first of all, that we
cooperate with Him by receiving willingly what He wants to
give, in accord with His infinitely wise plan. Here, there can be
no question of selfishness on our part in fulfilling God's will, no
disorder whatsoever, but only the humility of truth, which
recognizes that creaturehood in relationship to God can only
mean receiving; or as St. Augustine stated so forcefully: "You
imagine that you are making some return payment to God?
In reality, you are only receiving more from Him." 30
It is utterly absurd to imagine that anything finite can exercise any causality on our infinite God. It is the insidious
heresy of Pelagianism, if we grant that our initial existence is
a gift of God, and then try to convince ourselves that our
activity is not also His gift~ that our virtue is His aggrandizement, and that our sanctity is a prize eagerly coveted by a God
seeking to acquire the admiring praise of His creatures. In
his constant refrain, that God intends His external glory not
for Himself but for our utility and benefit, St. Thomas is the
faithful disciple of the great St. Augustine, crying out:
"By so much is a man more like unto God, by the degree to
which he is removed from any desire or seeking of glory." 31
It is then essential for our sanctity that we desire for ourselves
eternal life with Christ in God, because from all eternity God
has willed this glorious destiny for us. It is equally requisite
that we conform our lives in all their free choices to the directives of infinite wisdom, pointing out the path which alone can
lead us to salvation.
We can now ascend a degree higher in our quest of perfect
~harity, and ask: what is the moving power of God's outpourIng of His gifts? For we must not only will what God wills;
We must also strive to will it for the same reason which moti-
�152
<...
DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
vated him. 32 We find God's motivation exclusively in the alllovable, internal, and unchangeable goodness which is Himself. In Him alone is the fountain-head of our initial being
and of our consummated perfection. He, then, alone is worthy
of our complete love, the total and irrevocable surrender of
our wills. In this complete oblation of our emptiness, we lose
nothing to gain all; we desire, in the words of St. Paul,S3
"to be filled unto all the fullness of God," because He, who can
only give, invites us, attracts us, and entreats us sweetly but
powerfully, to lose our hearts, to detach them from everything
created, and to center all our affection, all our devotion on that
ineffable goodness and beauty; in which alone our Triune God
possesses infinite happiness. -·Here is the pinnacle of sanctity
and of perfection-the love of God for the same reason that He
loves Himself with an infinite love·: because He is infinite
goodness.
However, unless we have made the principle of divine communication a part of our very being through humble and persevering prayer, the insidious question will keep coming back:
"But surely God expects, demands, and was motivated by a
• desire of acquiring some greater return from us than our love,
which is, after all, His gift?" The cynical, materialistic, commercial-minded spirit of our age, gauges every promise, every
offer, by the promptings of self-interest: "How much is this
going to cost me? What hidden returns must I me~e?"
In return for His infinite love calling us to the all-holy intimacy of the very life of God, what return does He expect from
us; what can we add to His infinite riches and happiness to
make. His giving worthwhile? In the words of the Psalmist:
"What return shall I render unto the Lord for all that He has
rendered unto me?" And the answer to these questions-an
answer which epitomizes the principle of communication-is
given to us daily at the altar of Christ's complete oblation for
us: "I will receive the chalice of salvation; with a heart
full of praise, I shall call upon the name of the Lord, and I
shall be saved from mine enemies."
This is all that God expects us to do, because this is all we
can do as creatures. We can only cooperate, by disposing our
nothingness through His prevenient grace, toward receiving
more and more of His divine life-of Himself. God would
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
153
no longer be God, if He could receive some return from us;
we would no longer be creatures, if we were co-partners of
God.
Only by accepting completely the fact of our undeniable and
indelible creaturehood, but in this very acceptance and in its
interior power of transforming us through divine grace unto
the likeness of God, can we become living instruments of omnipotent divine love. This essential humility is the exclusive
stepping-stone to that lofty degree of charity, whereby we
refer all that we are, all that we have, all that we hope to be,
to God, the giver of it all. In this humility and charity, we
possess even in this life a happiness which no human effort
alone could achieve, and no diabolic power of man or Satan
can destroy; we become a light illuminating those that sit in
darkness and the shadow of eternal death, and pointing the
way, not to ourselves, not to our own grandeur or renown, but
to the Giver of all, our strength and our joy, to Him who wishes
that all men may share in the same undiminishable and infinite
riches which we have received in Christ Jesus.
By the principle of divine communication, we become identified in mind and will with the First-Born of God, who, having
received everything through no merit of His own, burned with
the consuming zeal of His Father's infinite charity to pour
forth the Holy Spirit of Love into men's hearts. 34
As it was divine charity alone which created the immortal
souls of men; as it was divine charity in Christ Jesus which
alone has reformed men from sin to their pristine image of the
Father; so in this dark period of the world's history, men can
still be saved from themselves and their own folly, only by
divine charity, no longer as made manifest in the overpowering munificence of an earthly paradise, no longer as made
Palpable in the visible presence of Christ on earth, but by the
charity of God in Christ, cogently and powerfully reflected in
living human instruments of divine grace, in human hearts so
completely transformed by the gift they have received, that
they now share in the selflessness of their infinite Lover. 85
NOTES
Acta Apostolicae Sedis, XL (1948), p. 9: "Lo stigma, che porta sulla
;ronte il nostro tempo e che e causa di disgregazione e di decadimento, e
a tendenza sempre piu manifesta alia 'insincerita'."
1
�154
DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
2 loc. cit.
"Non e Nostro proposito di descrivere qui specificamente le
rovine prodotte da questo torneo d'insincerita nella vita publica; abbiamo
pero il dovere di aprire gli occhi ai cattolici di tutto il mondo-ed anche
a quanti hanno Ia fede in Cristo e in un Dio trascendente-sui pericoli
che questo predominio della falsita fa correre alia Chiesa, alia civilta
cristiana, a tutto il patrimonio religioso ed anche semplicemente umano,
che da due millenni ha dato ai popoli Ia sostanza della !oro vita spirituale
e della loro reale grandezza."
3 loc. cit.
4 Ibid., p. 11.
5 cf. Pius XI, "Mens Nostra," Acta Apostolicae Sedis, XXI (1929),
689-706; English translation: "On Promoting the Wider Use of Spiritual
Exercises," The London Tablet, January 4, 1930, or The Catholic Mind,
February 8, 1930, America Press, ·New York: "If the Spiritual Exercises
be extended everywhere through all the classes of Christian Society, and
if they be diligently performed, spiritual regeneration will follow; piety
will be enkindled, the forces of religion will be nourished, the apostolic
office will unfold its fruit-bearing branches, and peace will reign in
society and in the hearts of all." (The Catholic Mind, p. 57).
6 cf. Henri Rondet, S.J., Gratia Christi: Essai d'histoire du dogme et
de theologie dogmatique; Paris: Beauchesne et ses Fils, 1948, p. 15:
"Mais I'homme peut pretendre se passer de Dieu pour atteindre sa fin
derniere, soit qu'il se leurre sur Ia veritable nature de cette fin, soit qu'il
se dresse orgueilleusement en face de Diu comme un etre affranchi de toute
tutelle superieure, sinon pmi"r echapper a Ia Ioi morale, se situer par dela
le bien et le mal, du moins pour observer Ia loi avec ses seules forces."
7 cf. Denzinger, Enchiridion Symbolorum, 1782, 1783, 1785.
8 cf. Saint Thomas, C. Gent., III, 17-18, and "The Ultimate Purpose of
Creation according to Saint Thomas Aquinas," Theological-Studies, II
( 1941), 53-83.
9 cf. Pope Saint Celestine I, "Indiculus de gratia Dei," Denzinger, op.
cit., 134: "Quod omnia studia et omnia merita ac opera Sanctorum ad Dei
gloriam laudemque referenda sunt; quia nemo aliunde ei placet, nisi ex
eo, quod ipse donaverit"; cf. also St. Thomas: "Illud quod est volitum
sicut finis est movens voluntatem, et perficiens earn: et sic nihil movet
voluntatem divinam nisi Deus: sed illud quod est ordinatum ad finem est
volitum ab eo sicut effectum a voluntate et motum ab ea; sicut patet in
voluntate artificis quae est principium operationum ordinatarum in finem .
. • . Deus non ordinat creaturas in finem bonitatis suae, quasi per eas
suam bonitatem assequatur, sed ut ipsae creaturae divina operatione
similitudinem aliquam divinae bonitatis acquirant. Quod esse non posset,
nisi eo volente et faciente (in. I Sent., d. XLV, a. 2, ad 2, ad 4) "· "Res
vero creatae, quas Deus vult, non se habent ad divinam voluntatem sicut
fines, sed sicut ordinata ad finem .... Nee tamen quia Deus vult creaturas,
sequitur quod a creaturis movetur; quia creaturas non vult nisi ratione
suae bonita tis (De veritate, q. XXIII, a. 1, ad 3, ad 7) ." "Ad primum
ergo dicendum, quod Iicet nihil aliud a Deo sit finis, tamen ipsemet est
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
155
finis respectu omnium quae ab ipso fiunt; et hoc per suam essentiam,
cum per suam essentiam sit bonus (Sum. Theol., I. q. XIX, a. 1, ad 1) ."
10 cf. St. Thomas, In II ad Cor., lect. II.
cf. II, II, p. 91, a. 1 "Sed ad
Deum verbis utimur [the same is true of mental prayer. cf. II, II q. 83,
9.2. "Utrum sit conveniens orare"], non quidem ut ei, qui est inspector
cordium, nostros conceptus manifestemus, sed ut nosmetipsos et alios
audientes ad eius reverentiam inducamus-et ideo necessaria est laus
oris, non quidem propter Deum, set propter ipsum laudantem: cuius affectus excitatur in Deum ex laude ipsius," etc. cf. also esp. C. Gent. Ill, cap
119,120. "Exercentur ab hominibus quaedam sensibilia opera non quibus
Deum excitent, sed quibus seipsos provocent in divina-quae non fiunt
quasi Deus his indigeat, qui omnia novit et cuius voluntas est immutabilis
et qui affectum mentis et etiam motus corporis non propter se acceptat;
sed propter nos facimus ut . . . intentio nostra dirigatur in Deum et
affectus accendatur; simul per haec profitemur Deum animae et corporis
auctorem." For notion of Divina Acceptatio, cf. De Veritate, q. 27, a. 1.
"Deum acceptare aliquem, vel, diligere quod idem est," etc. This chapter
is a magnificent compendium of the doctrine of the Principle of Communication and destroys at its base the juridical notions of praise and
glory, as if they were in any wise the motive of God's will, and not entirely in nostram utilitatem, etc.
11 Summa Theol., II-II, p. 81, a. 7.
12 cf. St. Thomas, Summa Theol., I, q. 19, a. 1, ad lm; a. 4, ad 3m; a. 7.
13
cf. St. Thomas, op. cit., III, q. 2, a. 11.
14 Me. 10:45; cf. the comment of Jules Lebreton on this verse; "Tout
le dogme de la Redemption est la." La Vie de Jesus-Christ; Paris; Beauchesne, 1947 (16th ed.), II, p. 151.
15
ln Rom., C. VIII, Lect. VI.
16
cf. St. Thomas, In Galat., C. VI, Lect. IV: "Unusquisque enim in ea
re gloriatur, per quam reputatur magnus. Sic qui reputat se magnum in
divitiis, gloriatur in iis, et sic de aliis. Qui enim in nullo alio se magnum
reputat, nisi in Christo, gloriatur in solo Christo."
17
cf. St. Thomas, In Rom., C. VIII, Lect. VI.
18
C. Gent., III, 122: "Non enim Deus a nobis offenditur, nisi ex eo
quod contra nostrum bonum agimus."
19
"Ut bonus sit, Deus nobis non indiget, nee nobis tantum, sed . . .
~ec. ipsis caelestibus, nee supercaelestibus, nee caelo caeli quod dicitur,
Ind1get Deus ut aut melior sit aut potentior aut beatior" (Enarr. Ps., 70,
II, 6; PL 36, 896) ; "Ne putemus fratres charissimi quia beneficium praestamus Deo.... Non enim unde augeatur illi damus" (Sermo 117, 4; PL
~8, 664); "Nullius peccatum aut tibi (Deo) nocet aut perturbat ordinem
~mperii tui vel in primo vel in imo" (Con{. XII, 11; PL 32, 635); "Et
ldeo nee angelus, qui cum spiritibus aliis satellitibus suis superbiendo
d~s.eruit obedientiam Dei et diabolus factus est, aliquid nocuit Deo, sed
Sihi, • • • Itaque nee diabolus aliquid Deo nocuit quia vel ipse lapsus est,
vel hominem induxit ad mortem; nee ipse homo in aliquo minuit veritatem aut potentiam aut beatitudinem Creatoris sui" (De Cat. Rud., 18;
�156
DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
PL 40, 333); "Nihil Deus iubet quod sibi prosit, sed illi cui iubet" (Sp.
138, I, 6-7; PL 33, 527-8); cf. also Ep. 102, III, 17, PL 38, 377; Civ.
Dei, X, 5, PL 41, 282.
2o St. Thomas, In Rom., C. VIII, Lect. VI: "Non tamen Deus pater filio
suo non pepercit, ut ei aliquid accresceret, qui est per omnia Deus perfectus, sed propter nostram utilitatem eum passioni subiecit."
21 cf. St. Thomas, Summa Theol., III, q. 1, a. 4.
21 his cf. St. Thomas, Ibid., q. 24, aa. 3, 4.
22 cf. 1 Tim. 2:4.
23 cf. St. Thomas, Summa Theol., III, q. 49, a. 1, ad 3m: "Ad tertium
dicendum, quod Christus sua passione nos a peccatis liberavit causaliter,
id est, instituens causam nostrae liberationis, ex qua possent quaecumque
peccata quandocumque remitti, vel pi:aeterita, vel praesentia, vel futura;
sicut si medicus faciat medicinam, ex· qua possint quicumque morbi sanari,
etiam in futurum." This doctrine shows forth the depth of divine love,
and provokes us to gratitude, much more than if we imagine that God's
motive in delivering Christ up to His death was the prevision of our
actual sins. It is also a much more profound motive for avoiding sin.
cf. Scheeben, The Mysteries of Christianity, (Herder: St. Louis, 1946,
trans!. C. 0. Vollert, S.J.), pp. 344-56; Mersch, S.J., La theologie 'du
corps mystique, (Desciee de Brouwer: Paris, 1946), Vol. I, pp. 302-22.
24 Summa Theol., I, q. 19, a. 5.
2 5 Ibid., III, q. 1, a. 2.
26 cf. St. Thomas, Comp. -Theol., 201: "Non enim restat incredibile,
quin intellectus creaturae Deo uniri possit, eius essentiam videndo, ex
quo Deus homini unitus est, naturam eius assumendo. Perficitur etiam
per hoc quodammodo totius operis divini universitas, dum homo, qui est
ultimo creatus, circulo quodam in suum redit principium, ipsi rerum
principia per opus incarnationis unitus."
-·
2 1 It is due solely to the incomprehensible depths of divine love, that we
are offered the inestimable grace of making reparation to the Sacred
Heart of Jesus, after we have made a mockery of His Cross by grievous
sin. Only by a true miracle of divine condescension did Christ during
His earthly life forego those connatural effects of the Hypostatic Union
which would have made it impossible for Him "to be bruised," both in
body and in spirit, for our offenses. We shall not grasp adequately the
human tenderness of Christ's love for us, nor the profound implications
of the theology of reparation, unless we keep in mind the following
dogma, defined by the Second Council of Orange: "Ita sunt in vite
palmites, ut viti nihil conferant, sed inde accipiant unde vivant: sic
quippe vitis est in palmitibus, ut vitale alimentum subministret iis, non
• sumat ab iis. Ac per hoc, et manentem in se habere Christum, et manere
in Christo, discipulis prodest utrumque, non Christo." (DB, 197.)
2s St. Thomas, In Rom., C. VIII Lect. VI.
2 9 Pius XI, "Mens Nostra," America Press, translation, p. 56: "In ver'J
deed, the excellence of spiritual doctrine altogether free from the perils
and errors of false mysticism ... the wonderful and lucid order in the
�DOGMA AND THE EXERCISES
157
meditation of truths that follow naturally one from another ... lead a
man ... up to the supreme heights of prayer and Divine love." cf. also
Hugo M. de Achaval, El Problema Del Amor En Los Ejercicios
Espirituales De San Ignacio De Loyola; Buenos Aires: Editorial
Verbum, 1948, p. 167: "Ignacio no nos lega con esta su obra maestra,
ni un humanismo, la palabra es muy equivoca, ni una teoria, ni un libro
siquiera; Ignacio nos lega un coraz6n que supo de amores, pero al cual el
mismo Dios como dice la esposa de los Cantares, ensefi6 el amor: 'ordinavit
in me caritatem'." (Cant. Cant. II, 4)
so St. Augustine, Sermo 333, 4; PL 38, 1466: "Certe retribuebas?
Accipis, adhuc accipis."
st St. Augustine, De Civitate Dei, 1. 5, c. 14, PL 41, 158.
s2 St. Thomas, De Malo, q. 1, a. 5, corp.
33 Eph. 3:19.
u St. Paul, Rom., 5:1-4.
35 The principle of divine communication as outlined in this article
should be complemented by the brilliant and profound development of
the same notions in the light of St. Paul by Jean Levie, S.J., "La
meditation fundamentale des Exercises de Saint Ignace a la lumiere
de S. Paul." Nouvelle Revue Theologique, LXXXV (1953), pp. 815-28.
* * *
POPE PIUS XI
In the Apostolic Constitution, Summorum Pontificum
"We regard it as certain that most of the ills of our
days start from the fact that 'none considereth in his heart.'
We deem it proved that the Spiritual Exercises, made according to the plan of St. Ignatius, have the greatest efficacy
in dispelling the most stubborn difficulties with which human
society is now confronted; and we have studied the rich crop
of virtues that ripens today no less than of old in spiritual
retreats, not only among members of religious congregations
and the secular clergy, but also among the laity, and, what
in our age is worthy of special and separate remark, among
the working classes themselves."
�Scholarly research in the Society's historical records brings to light the
truth that dispels error and reveals
an inner spirit which engenders pride.
Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu
(1894-1954)
E. J. BURRUS, S.J.
Nineteen hundred and fifty-four marks 60 years 8ince the
first volume of the Monumen;ta Historica Societatis Jesu came
off the press in Madrid, and 25 since the editorial staff transferred to Rome. With volumes LXXIV and LXXV in press,
this collection of early Jesuit documents forms the largest and
most important single source for the history of the Society.1
Its pages have been studied not only by the official historians of the various assistancies, provinces and missions,
but by numerous other historians of more general Church
history, or of a more limited biographical nature. Thus,
Pastor drew, whenever~possible, upon the Monumenta for his
history of the popes beginning with Paul III. Further,
members of the Jesuit Historical Institute in Rome collaborated with him on later volumes, even those that appeared
posthumously. In another field, Father Brodrickr.'with his
broad culture and irrepressible humor, has given us such
1 Some of the more complete accounts of the Monumenta are: D.
Fernandez Zapico, S.J. and P. Leturia, S.J., Cincuentenario de Monu·
menta Historica S.J. in Archivum Historicum S.J., XIII (Rome, 1944),
pp. 1-61; P. Leturia, S.J ., Historia y contenido de la colecci6n documental
"Monumenta Historica S.J." in Revista Javeriana, XXXVIII (Bogota,
1952), pp. 144-159; this same article appeared later with slight changes
-mainly emphasis on the German participation in the work of the
Institute-in Historisches Jahrbuch, LXXII (Munich-Freiburg, 1953),
pp. 595-604, under the title Geschichte und Inhalt der Quellensammlung
"Monumenta Historica S.J." Father Thomas Hughes, S.J. gave a brief
account of the early Roman Ipstitute in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS, XXIV
(1895), pp. 247-256, in the form of a letter from Rome and bearing
the title The Vatican Archives; 40 years ago, Father Hughes wrote for
WooDSTOCK LETTERS an account of the first 20 years of the publication
of the series under the caption Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu
(Volume XLIII [1914], pp. 293-298).
�MONUl\IENTA HISTORICA
159
delightfully readable and reliable volumes as The Origin of the
Jesuits (1940), The Progress of the Jesuits (1946), Saint
Francis Xavier (1952), to mention but three, that draw copiously upon the volumes of the Monumenta and other publications of the Historical Institute.
Accounts of the various phases of Jesuit apostolate have all
profited from the use of this collection. Thus, Farrell, Herman, Schroteler, Barbera are deeply indebted to the documents found in this series for their studies in pedagogy;
Arens, Schurhammer, Leonhardt, Leite, Decorme, Astriiin,
for the missions; Dudon, Casanovas, Aicardo, Iparraguirre,
Leturia, for Ignatius. Particularly through the scholarly
Oblate Father Streit, Bibliotheca Missionum (1916 ss), the
Monumenta have entered into mission bibliography. The
series have given much direct and indirect help to such Protestant scholars as Boehmer, Van Dyke, and Sedgwick, making
their lives of Ignatius more scholarly and favorable to the
Society. But, above all, it has been for the inner spirit of the
Society that the Monumenta are of capital importance. The
numerous letters and other writings of Ignatius and Xavier,
the critical edition of the Exercises, Rules and Constitutions,
the reports from the mission front, pulpit and classroom, are
all expressions of this inner spirit in the daily life of the
Society.
The M onumenta extend their influence incalculably through
the books, articles and apostolate that it has inspired. Thus,
the critical edition of the Exercises has set off a veritable chain
reaction in the written and spoken word: handy and accurate
texts in Latin and Spanish which served as the solid basis
for more exact vernacular translations (Esperanto included),
commentaries using the notes of this and other volumes of the
Monumenta, manuals of retreat for religious and lay people
furnishing in turn the retreat director or missionary with the
weapons each needs.
The present brief account will attempt to sketch the background of the foundation of the Monumenta, the activity of
the editorial staff in Madrid from the inception of publication in 1894 and the work of the contemporaneous historical
institute in Rome. It will record the transference of the
Madrid staff to the Eternal City in 1929, the foundation of
�160
l\IONUJ\IENTA HISTORICA
the Jesuit Historical Institute, the publication of an historical
review from 1932, and the inception of a new collection in
1941. In conclusion, a word will be said about a few of the
more important publications of the Institute.
BACKGROUND OF THE MONUMENTA
A two-fold realization has gone into the publication of the
Monumenta. First, many unreliable and inaccurate publications about the Society were due not to ill will but to the
almost total lack of trustworthy sources, and scholarly refutation to numerous misstatements was to be found only in the
documents. Secondly, it 'vas mainly in the Society's own
archives that the most abundant material would be found;
this could be best studied and edited by members of the
Society.
A. Archives of the Society
Providentially, already during the generalate of Ignatius,
the more important archival material was preserved at central
headquarters next to the Gesu. 2 The archives emerged almost intact in 1814 at the restoration of the Society; but with
the uncertainty that resulted from the taking of Rome in 1870,
they were transferred to central headquarters established
at Fiesole near Florence. A few decades later they traveled
first to Exaten and then to Valkenburg in Hollana. With
the Nazis poised to strike, the archives set out on a new
journey in the summer of 1939, this time by sea to an Italian
port and then overland to Rome to repose in the new Curia
within the shadow of St. Peter's, a few days before the be·
ginning of hostilities.
There are two main funds at the central headquarters today.
The first is the archival material of the Curia proper; the
second contains mainly the documents of the old Procurator's
office. It is customary to designate the first, Archivum
Romanum Societatis J esu, and the second, Fondo Gesuitico.
The A rchivum Romanum has furnished by far the greater
number of documents for publication. The reason for this
2 G. Schurhammer, S.J., Die Anfaenge des Roemischen Archivs der
G. J. (1538-151-8), in Archivum Historicum S.J., XII (1943), pp. 89-118.
�...
1\IONU.l\IENTA HISTORICA
161
will be clear when it is remembered that it contains nearly
all the extant correspondence from and to the Curia, the
catalogs of all the provinces, the numerous reports from
officials, the acts of the general and provincial congregations,
general and particular histories of the Society, an entire section devoted to the lives of Ours, another to matters controversial, and a more important one to outstanding manuscripts
of Jesuits. Add to these the autographed formulas of vows
of thousands of Jesuits through the centuries, the death
notices arriving from every part of the world and carefully
filed, regulations on the studies of our schools, and one catches
a glimpse of the wealth of material for the history of the
Society.
Sections of special interest to the historian in the Fondo
Gesuitico are the foundation of schools throughout the world
and the more than fourteen thousand extant letters of those
pleading to be accepted for the foreign missions-surely an
impressive monument of the generosity, not to say of heroism,
ever vital in the sons of the Society. There are letters from
novices, professors of philosophy and theology, and preachers
of fame. The pleas are penned by future martyrs, renowned
explorers, eminent scientists, writers, but signed at the time
for the most part by "a student of first year juniorate," or
"still in regency," "in my third year of theology," "a tertian";
there is an occasional exuberant ending "en route to the
missions."
B. Other Sources of Documents
But it is not only the historical treasures of the central
archives upon which members of the Institute can draw. The
Vatican Library and Archives are only a few minutes away.
The Italian National Library is of special significance because its nucleus is the library of the old Jesuit Roman College confiscated in 1873. The Spanish Embassy to the Holy
See possesses the library of the Professa. These together
With numerous other libraries and collections make Rome the
ideal center for the editing of the Monumenta. Archives and
libraries in very many other cities, from Florence in Italy to
Tokio in Japan, through their catalogs and the personal consultation of the members of the Institute, have made a gen-
�162
l\IONUl\IENTA HISTORICA
erous contribution to the series, but it is the Society's own
archives that constitute the really decisive source for the
Monumenta and other similar publications.
C. Scientific Editing of Documents
To the Bollandists belongs the credit of first issuing a critical edition of some of the treasures of the central archives.
Such was their 1731 edition of the Autobiography of Ignatius
and other documents concerning the life and work of the
Saint. The example of the Bollandists inspired the Spanish
Jesuit historian, Andres Marcos Burriel, to whom the history
of America owes so much;- .to plan the foundation in 1750 of
a research Institute in Madrid which would have initiated the
work that had to wait for nearly 150 years. 3 The year seven·
teen hundred and fifty-five saw the removal of Father Ravago,
Burriel's intermediary with King Ferdinand VI, and 12 years
later Charles III expelled the Jesuits from all his dominions;
the suppression of the Society followed in 1773.
In 1870 a young scholastic who had just finished his regency
in Havana as Professor of Physics came to Woodstock to
study four years of theology. He was Jose M. Velez, destined
to translate into reality the plans of over 100 years earlier.
When in 1889 he saw the thousands of lgnatian letters in the
central archives in Fiesole, he realized that the. 1874-1889
edition of 850 letters prepared in Madrid by a stait·of Jesuits
of whom he was one, was completely inadequate and an en·
tirely new edition would have to be undertaken. The General,
Father A.M. Anderledy, seconded Velez' plan.
In 1883, Johannes Janssen, author of the History of the
German People 1 who had encouraged young Ludwig Pastor to
write the story of the papacy from untapped sources, coun·
selled another historian, Father Bernhard Duhr, S.J., not to
attempt to write his history of the Jesuits in German-speaking
countries until the main sources had been published. This
advice of the learned prelate inspired Father Duhr to work
out a plan for the esta,blishment of an historical institute to
edit such documents and sent the outline of it to Father
Anderledy.
Jose Simon Diaz, Un erudito espanol: el P. Andres Marcos Burrie!
(Madrid, 1949), especially page 35.
3
�l\IONUl\IENTA HISTORICA
163
With Velez' more complete edition of lgnatian letters in the
making and Duhr's very practical plan before them, it is not
surprising that the delegates to the 24th General Congregation
in 1892, should unanimously request the new General, Father
Louis Martin, to have the history of the Society published
according to the more critical exigencies of the time. The
history of the various assistancies would be written to serve
as the basis for that of the whole Society.
FOUNDATION OF THE MADRID AND
ROMAN INSTITUTES
To write such scientific accounts from primary sources, it
was decided to found two distinct institutes: one in Rome, the
other in Madrid. The first was to work more directly on the
history of the various assistances ; the second, to publish the
historical sources until the death of Borgia in 1572. This
series was called the Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu.
The Roman institute was guided by Father, later Cardinal,
Ehrle, prefect of the Vatican Library, and made up of such
well-known historians as Pollen, Hughes, Astrain, Duhr, Pastells, Gaillard and Tacchi-Venturi. The last, in the 93rd year
of his life and 76th in the Society, is the only surviving member of the first Roman institute. Part of the staff was assigned to catalog the Jesuit documents reposing in various
archives and the remaining members were to utilize their
findings. But as the research scholar needs the inspiration
imparted by published results and the writer, in turn, must
have first hand acquaintance with the sources, the Roman
institute as such was doomed to an early death, although the
individual historians persevered successfully in their apPointed tasks.
The Madrid institute, on the other hand, continued to work
corporately publishing six volumes within a few years, five of
the volumes under the guidance of Father Velez. The years
1897-1913, with Father Cecilio Gomez Rodeles as Superior,
are the golden age of the Spanish Monumenta, inasmuch as
during that period thirty-six volumes appeared in rapid succession.
Father F. X. Wernz, General from 1903 to 1914, deserves
�164
1\IONUl\IENTA HISTORICA
an honored place in the history of the Monumenta for his decision to continue the series beyond the original narrow limits.
In 1911 several Jesuit historians in Rome advised that the
editing. of the Monumenta be done in the Eternal City and
that the efforts of individual historians be coordinated
through a real historical institute. Twenty-eight years were
to pass before their recommendations could be put into effect.
TRANSFERENCE TO ROME
Father Ledochowski's dynamic genius has left its impress
upon every sphere of apostolate to which the Society dedicates itself. His deep interest in Jesuit history led him to encourage in every way the scientific publication of its sources.
In the same spirit he decided upon the definite transference
of the Madrid institute to Rome. Further, he initiated a most
important section of the series, that of the foreign missions.
He was inspired to take this last step by Pastor, who pointed
out the need and importance of such sources for the general
history of the Church.
HISTORICAL REVIEW FOUNDED
Father Ledochowski's interest in the work, however, did
not end here. He encouraged the founding of aii bistorical
review that would present the history of the Society in a
scientific spirit, free from all controversy or propaganda. It
would publish articles dealing with the Society for the most
part prior to its suppression in 1773. The first number of this
semi-annual review, the Archivum Historicum, appeared in
1932. The issues have continued uninterrupted to the present,
even during the war years, forming a collection of 22 volumes
with a general index for the first 20. The publication has an
exchange list of over 200 historical reviews.
The impartial and international character of the revieW
has won for it historians in every land, both as readers and
as contributors of articles. The main European languages
(English, French, Spanish, Portuguese and German) as also
Latin offer a wide choice to contributing historians. Quotations and notes have no language restrictions.
�1\IONUMENTA HISTORICA
165
Besides the articles on some phase or problem of Jesuit
history, the review strives to offer as complete a bibliography
as human diligence can compile. This handy reference catalog of J esuitica lists other recently published bibliographies,
the general history of the Society, then, according to countries
and missions, the various forms of apostolate, such as pedagogy, literature and art, and lastly the numerous biographies
of Ours. The bibliography is indexed for quick reference.
Our historians, writers, teachers, lecturers, retreat and sodality directors, missionaries and many others will find this
bibliography a copious, reliable and current catalog of all
that pertains to the history of the Society. The Institute's
32,000 volume library owes much to the review section of the
publication for obtaining current historical books.
Approximately 120 pages are devoted each year to reviewing the more important current books on Jesuit history.
The last section of the review contains a brief chronicle of
the activities of the Institute and the death notices along with
bibliographies of the historians who have written on the
history of the society.
A NEW SERIES OF PUBLICATIONS
In 1941 appeared the first volume of a new series published
by the Institute. This series is designated Bibliotheca Instituti
Historici Societatis J esu. The most recent volume of the collection is the classic account of the Spirituality of the Society
by Father Joseph de Guibert. Plans call for a minimum of
two volumes a year. The publications are in the nature of
monographical studies on the Society. Father Felix Zubillaga's history of the first Jesuit mission to North America
and its tragic end in Spanish Florida opens the series. The
same author also published the first volume of the Monumenta
on the missions in the New World, those of Florida, and is
now preparing the first of a series of tomes on Mexico. 4
Besides the Monumenta, the historical review and the series
4
S The scholarly study by Fathers C. M. Lewis, S.J. and A. J. Loomie,
.J., The Spanish Jesuit Mission in Virginia 1570-1572 (Chapel Hill, 1953)
owes much to the two volumes on Florida by Father Zubillaga as the
authors generously state in their preface.
�166
l\IONUMENTA HISTORICA
of monographs, members of the Institute publish numerous
other volumes and articles, issued either by the Institute (but
in no special series) or by other publishers. All will call to
mind the numerous publications of the Xavier specialist,
Father Schurhammer, praised so highly by Father Brodrick
in his life of the Apostle of the Indies. Father Wicki, coeditor with Father Schurhammer of the new edition of the
letters of Xavier, wrote a scholarly life of the founder of the
Sodalities, Father Jean Leunis.
MORE IMPORTANT VOLUMES OF THE MONUMENTA
..
In conclusion, a word about some of the more important
publications of the .Monumenta. The series opened with the
Chronicon of Polanco, of special interest to all Jesuits because
it contains his life of Ignatius and the history of the Society
during the lifetime of the Founder. Seven years before the
death of Ignatius, the first province in the New World, that
of Brazil, was established. The documents pertaining to
the early years of this province are being edited in the
.Monumenta by the well-known Portuguese historian of the
Brazilian Province, Father Serafim Leite, author of the ten
volumes of the colonial history of the Society in Brazil and
of numerous other studies on the same area.
.
Mention has already been made of the new edition of the
letters of Xavier prepared by Fathers Schurhammer and
Wicki. Father Schurhammer has the first volume of the
definitive life of Xavier ready for the press. Father Wield
besides publishing the life of Xavier by Valignano as the
second of the monographs in the collection Bibliotheca Instituti Historici Societatis, has edited two volumes of Docu·
menta Indica in the mission section of the .Monumenta and has
a third volume in press. Father Edward Hagemann of Alma
College, formerly a member of the Jesuit Historical Institute
in Rome, helped prepare the early documents for the Indica
series. The Institute js indebted to Father Hagemann on
another score; through the generosity of his parents, the
tottering finances of the library were bolstered to allow for
the purchase of needed books.
The letters and instructions of Ignatius were published
�1\IONUMENTA HISTORICA
167
in twelve volumes; these together with the letters of the
companions of Ignatius, Broet, Le Jay, Codure, Rodrigues,
Salmeron, Laynez, Bobadilla, Fabre, and his early associates,
Nadal, Polanco and Ribandeneira, constitute a precious legacy
for every Jesuit. The Exercises, Directories, Constitutions
and a series still in progress, Fontes Narrativi on Ignatius
and companions edited by the present Director of the Institute, Father C. de Dalmases, are so many classic manifestations of the inner spirit of the Society.
MEMBERS OF THE INSTITUTE
A final word about the members of the Institute. From
1929 until 1953 they lived in the Curia. With the growth of
the work, more space was needed. Father General graciously
placed at their disposal the nearby retreat house, the former
Barberini Villa, adjacent to and even connected with the
Curia building. The largest number of historians are engaged in publishing documents on the missions: Father
Schuette on Japan, Father Wicki on India, Father Sebes,
now studying at Harvard, will prepare the series in the
Monumenta on China; Father Zubillaga and the present
writer are working on Mexican history, Father Egafia on
Peru. Father Batllori, editor of the Archivum Historicum Societatis J esu, has published several studies on Latin America,
the most recent being his important study of the precursor
of Spanish American independence, J. P. Viscardo. Father
M. Scaduto is continuing the history of the Italian Assistancy
begun by Father Tacchi-Venturi. Father Pirri is best known
for his life of Roothaan and especially for his studies of the
Roman Question. Father E. Lamalle was editor of the review
for the period 1939-1950, and compiled its bibliography for
nearly twenty years. The other members of the Institute have
been mentioned in the course of this article. But the work
of one and all has been made possible only through the
competent and self-sacrificing work of a staff of devoted
Brothers, coadjutors in the fullest sense of the term. Brother
Amescoa has been assisting the Fathers since the Institute
opened here in 1929 as amanuensis and librarian; Brothers
Arana and Ferreira for nearly as long as expert amanuenses,
�168
MONU.l\IENTA HISTORICA
copying and deciphering the most difficult manuscripts. Other
Brothers have come in more recent years to take care of
the humbler but necessary tasks of the Institute. Not partici.
pating in the work of the Institute yet forming part of the
same community, are the speakers of Vatican Radio. But
I leave the account of this international group and their
interesting apostolate for another time.
*; *
*
Enemies in the Household
Perhaps nowhere more clearly than in mission lands, rich in souls,
are the lines of battle drawn between the salvific will of God and the
damnific desires of Satan. And one cannot help but feel that in this
daily Armageddon, the devil reserves the choicest laurels of hell for
America's bad Catholics in fields and seas afar. Bluntly, they are the
missionary's sorest trial -and greatest agony. His spirit suffers keenly
as he witnesses the damage that they do upon the souls of those who
would otherwise be Christ's.
Against the infallibility of Christ's Vicar pontificating from the very
site of the tomb of St. Peter, they range the impregnaqjiity of their
own personal prejudice. As quickly as they crush a cigarette· they would
gut the flaming charity of the harried missionary in the ashes of their
spiritual isolation. Standing afar off, they view the challenging Faith
of a simple Ulithi native with agnostic speculation. They would com·
bat the dedication of the few with the defection and revolt of the manY·
To the frankness of the truth they oppose the attitudinizing of hypoc·
risy and deceit. Modernistic Scribes and Pharisees, they have long since
pushed even the chair of Moses aside. Neither in word nor in deed do
they offer to our newly converted devotees of Christ, these Gentiles of
the Farther East, anything but one more desolating witness to the an·
cient adage: Corruptio optimi pessima, "Corrupt a saint and you have
a devil on your hands."
Yet for these also, after their brief and foolish day, there comes an·
other: Dies !rae, Dies llla. ·And one can only wonder, when sentence is
pronounced, if there will be even one, except paradoxically the verY
natives they scandalized most in life, who will say: "May God have
mercy on your souls."
BrsHoP TfioMAs J. FEENEY,
s.J.
�Obedience
JAMES
B.
REUTER, S.J.
Sermon delivered on the feast of St. Ignatius Loyola,
at Padre Faura Chapel, Manila, July 31, 1953
Four hundred years ago, on the twenty-sixth of March, 1553,
Ignatius Loyola signed a letter to "the Brethren of the Society
of Jesus who are in Portugal." He probably dried the signature with sand, folded the letter and sealed it, and gave it to a
messenger, who carried it over the mountains by coach and
horse to Portugal. Today that letter is read in every Jesuit
house in the world, in every language, every month. It has
become relatively famous as "the letter on obedience." This
morning, on the feast of St. Ignatius Loyola, and on the
four hundredth anniversary of the writing of that letter, suppose we meditate for a few moments on Jesuit obedience, as it
was conceived in the mind of the founder of the Company of
Jesus.
"It is the voice of God
through human lips."
A man's approval or disapproval of this letter will vary in
direct proportion to his approval or disapproval of religious
orders. I say that your like or dislike of this letter will vary
in direct proportion to your like or dislike of religious orders;
I do not say that it will vary with your like or dislike of the
Society of Jesus; because the doctrine contained in this letter,
which has been branded as Jesuit obedience, might just as well
be called Benedictine obedience, or Augustinian obedience, or
Franciscan obedience, or Dominican obedience, because all
religious take the same vow to the same God ; we try to lay
our lives on the altar in the same way; we give to God as best
we can our whole heart, our whole soul, all our mind and all
our strength. And every religious obeys the voice of God as
it comes down to him through the lips of the superior. He
rnay be a Benedictine superior, or a Carthusian superior, or a
Carmelite superior, or a Dominican superior; he may be brilliant or dull; he may be gentle or rough; he may be charming
�170
JESUIT OBEDIENCE
or rude-but always it is the voice of God coming down to the
subject through human lips, and the way in which that command is obeyed is essentially the same in all religious orders.
That is our common bond. All religious live and work and
grow old and die under obedience.
It is true that Loyola did say: ". . . in true and perfect
obedience I greatly desire that those who serve God in this
Society should be conspicuous, and they should as it were be
distinguished by this mark . . ." but he said that because of
the peculiar nature of the company which he had founded.
He looked upon the Jesuits as.a little body of trouble shooters
for the Holy See; it was "ac!!ording to our vocation to travel
to various places and live in any part of the world, where there
is hope of God's greater service and the help of souls." He
wanted the Society to be extremely mobile, and therefore
obedience was perhaps more fundamental for us than for any
other order.
"The spirit of the Society gives
the meaning of the words."
But the letter has drawn fire down through the centuries,
not because the ideas were new, not because obedience was
peculiar to the Jesuits, but because of the words that Loyola
used. He said blind obedience. "In doing that which your
superior commands you must be carried with a kind· of blind
impulse of your will, desirous to obey. . . . You must not
only obey the superior in doing exteriorily the things which
he enjoins, entirely, readily, constantly and with due humility,
without excuse, though the things commanded be hard and
repugnant to nature . . . you must endeavor to be resigned
interiorly, and to have a true abnegation of your own will
and judgment, conforming your will and judgment wholly to
what the superior wills and judges . . . proposing to yourself the will and judgment of the superior as a rule of your
own will and judgment ... and this at the mere sign of the
• superior's will, though h~ should give no express command
. . . persuading yourself that all things are just, denying
with a certain kind of blind obedience any contrary opinion
or judgment of your own.... You must be like a dead body,
to be treated in any manner whatever; you must be like an old
�JESUIT OBEDIENCE
171
man's staff, which serves him who holds it in his hand where
and in what use soever he pleases."
Loyola said all that, and when you read those words four
hundred years after, you might think: "This is hard. This is
calculated to suffocate thought. This is meant to stifle inspiration, to smother personality."
Well, it is not just to judge by the letter of the law. . . .
Suppose, four hundred years from now, some cold-blooded
German historian unearthed a copy of the training rules for
an N.C.A.A. basketball team. He would study it scientifically
-the rigid regulations on diet and exercise and sleep and
practice-and he would say: "Why, this N.C.A.A. was . . .
puritanical! Basketball is supposed to be a game, but these
rules smother all the joy in it!"
What he has is the letter of the law; what he does not know
is the spirit of the N.C.A.A. He can not see Rizal Memorial
as it will be this Sunday afternoon. He does not know the
boys for whom the rules are written. He does not know what
the rules are meant to produce. He can not know what it
means to a player to intercept in the last minute and go
dribbling down the floor with the enemy guards racing beside
him. He can not see the boy go high in the air and shoot,
while ten thousand people stand up and scream. In that moment, all the training rules are understandable. All the hours
of practice seem a very small price to pay for that instant,
because if the ball goes in, five thousand people will go mad
with joy; and if it misses, five thousand people will groan. You
can not judge the letter of the law unless you know the spirit
in which it was written, and the spirit in which it is obeyed.
And so it is with the letter on obedience. You can not know
the meaning of the words unless you understand the spirit of
the Society of Jesus.
In 1553 the world had just broken open. The horizon had
cracked like an eggshell. A new world had been discovered.
There was a whole new continent to be conquered. The old
framework of Europe was gone. They had opened up the
route around Africa to India and the East. In Europe there
Was a sudden surge of new life, youth gushing like a fountain,
a violent vitality. Some of this power ran wild and produced
the Protestant revolt. But within the Church the energy was
�172
JESUIT OBEDIENCE
channeled, and one of the channels was the Society of Jesus.
"Loyola wrote his rules
for iron men and saints."
Loyola wrote his rules for men like St. Peter Canisius,
who went tramping over Germany, looking for the spires of
the next city to come up over the horizon; Canisius-who
taught catechism and founded colleges; who heard confessions
and preached every day, though his head was filled with the
thousand problems that fill the mind of every Provincial; in
the morning he shopped in the market place, buying furniture
for the new schools, and at night he wrote so much and so well
that he became a doctor of the Church.
Loyola wrote for St. Francis Xavier, who trudged over
the sands of India, looking for the next village to come shimmering up out of the heat; the hungry Xavier, who sailed into
typhoons, heading for the next island, the next continent. He
wrote for men like St. John de Brebeuf, who slogged over
the snow in Canada, stronger than the savages, and when
finally he was martyred they tore out his heart and drank his
blood, in order to drink in some of his courage.
Loyola wrote for men who were impatient with time and
space; men who wanted to conquer the whole world, right now.
They wanted to go and teach all nations, personally. They
were impatient with the existing framework of Christianity;
they were always on the far horizons, throwing back the frontiers. The rules presuppose power. Loyola presupposes a
surging joy in the service of God. He is the only writer on
record who ever called weariness a vice. He says that if we
do not have obedience of the understanding, "there arise pain,
trouble, reluctance, weariness, murmurings, excuses, and other
vices of no small moment."
Did you ever see a lead horse? A lead horse is a horse that
will not be headed. He must be first. If any other horse tries
to pass him, he will let out, despite all the efforts of the rider.
To control a lead horse yop. use two bits-one under the tongue
and the other over it, and one of the bits has saw-tooth edges.
When you tighten the reins you can strangle the horse; you
can make him bleed at the mouth. When you first see this
bridle, you say: "This is cruelty!" But when you see the
�JESUIT OBEDIENCE
173
horse for whom it was made, then you understand. You appreciate the bridle when you see the horse, and so you understand Jesuit obedience only when you know the men Loyola
was thinking of. He wrote for iron men and saints, men who
were bursting with ideas of their own, great-souled men, with
powerful minds and strong wills ; they were all leaders and
the rules were meant to guide them like a bridle. The rules
were meant to control great power, and to unleash it in the
right direction.
Jesuit obedience is like a bridle, and so it is hard, but
strangely enough it is no harder than the obedience you find in
the world. Loyola insists on blind execution of the command,
in all things where there appears no sin. How is that harder
than the obedience you find in any army? When, during World
War II, a tired captain said: "Lieutenant, at 1400 hours your
platoon will take Hill 75"-what lieutenant would say: "Why?"
He would obey, blindly, subjecting his will and judgment.
How many men died on Okinawa and Iwo Jima under blind
obedience, for an island in the Pacific on which nothing will
grow?
And not only in war, but in time of peace, in the streets of
the city, even in the schools. Next Sunday a coach will send
some eager young boy into a basketball game at Rizal Memorial, and the coach will say: "Go in for the right guard, and
stay back. Don't shoot. I want you in there for security on
defense!" When the boy reports to the scorer, the radio announcer will not even know his name; he will have to look up
the name in the program. And every unknown boy would love
to be the star; he would love to take that shot from the center
of the court and score the winning goal; he would love to make
the crowd stand up and roar; but this boy will do exactly
what he is told, entirely, readily, constantly and with due humility, without excuse, though the thing commanded is hard
and repugnant to nature. He will obey without question,
blindly, in order to win a game.
"Religious obedience is our
supernatural service of God."
Religious obedience is of course deeper than that. It aims
at more than mere efficiency. It is not only the natural, pru-
�174
JESUIT OBEDIENCE
dent subjection of one intellect and will to another, as we find
it in the soldier or the athlete, it is our supernatural service
of God. When we subject our will to the will of a superior,
and when we try to conform our intellect to his, we are putting
all the powers of our soul into the hands of God ; it is the
greatest sacrifice a man can make, and it is our greatest
consolation, because we can say of our every action: "God
wills it! God wills it!" just as certainly as if Christ had
come down and appeared to us in a vision. Of all the causes
for which men live and die, ours is the best. And yet, in
obedience, we are sometimes surpassed by clerks in an office!
There are salesmen selling so~p who obey the slightest suggestion of their superior more swiftly, and with greater good
will, than we obey the voice of God.
That is the only disconcerting thing when we meditate on
men like Loyola, and on the rules he wrote. There is no difficulty with what he said; the trouble is with his presuppositions. He presupposed a flaming love of God. He presupposed
that we were all cheerful givers, running with great strides in
the service of the Lord. He presupposed that we would have
no other interest in life but to spread the kingdom of God.
He presupposed that we would be men like Claver in Cartagena, like Campion in England, like Pro in Mexico. He says
we should be like a dead body, but his concept of a dead body
was a sixteenth century cannon ball which went-~mashing
through until it met an immovable object. He says that we
should be like an old man's staff, but his idea of an old man's
staff was Canisius in Germany, the Hammer of the Heretics.
We feel, sometimes, that they were giants on the face of the
earth in those days, and now we are unworthy sons of noble
fathers. We read the rules and we are ashamed. We think:
"Here we have the harness, but not the horse."
"By small trials
great saints are made."
That is not entirely true. Hidden here and there among us,
even now, are great saints. If St. Benedict or St. Dominic
or St. Francis or St. Augustine were to look down todaY
at the quiet men who wear their robes, they would say, with a
certain pride: "These are my own." And so too, with Ignatius
Loyola.
�JESUIT OBEDIENCE
175
Down in the leper colony on Culion there is a man whom
some of you may know. He has been in the Philippines for a
long time. In 1898 he stood on the roof of the old Ateneo in
Intramuros and watched Admiral Dewey sail into Manila Bay.
At that time he was procurator, and when Dewey began slinging shells into Manila, he buried the books in the crypt of
San Ignacio. In 1904 he defended all of scholastic philosophy
and theology at St. Louis University, and there in the audience was Theodore Roosevelt, the president of the United
States. Later he was Rector of the Ateneo de Manila, Superior
of the Philippine Mission, Provincial of the Province of Aragon in Spain, Ecclesiastical Visitor to the whole Philippine
Islands, Superior of Ahmedabad, Prefect Apostolic in India
... and now he is eighty-six years old, going through the
wards in Culion each day, moving from bed to bed, hearing
the confessions of the lepers. The spot for his grave he has
already chosen. He will be buried there among the lepers;
without a coffin, and on the wooden cross over his grave they
will put his name: Father Joaquin Vilallonga.
Like all great men, he has little peculiarities. He is firmly
convinced that what keeps him strong and vigorous are vitamin pills. One day he ran out of vitamin pills. He came to
the superior with the empty bottle and very humbly asked for
more. At that moment-it was just this past summer-! was
the acting superior of Culion, for a month. He was Spanish,
I was American. He was fifty years older than I. He had a
Grand Act in St. Louis, while most of the theology I know
was learned here during the war, in the Japanese occupation.
Yet I was the superior, and he was the subject. I looked through
the cabinet, and there were no more pills like the ones he had,
but there was another kind. So I offered him this substitute,
saying: "They are probably just as good."
The moment I had said it, I knew it was a mistake. At
eighty-six a man has deep confidence in what he is used to.
Father Vilallonga did not want a substitute. I could see that.
I could feel the effort he was making to take it well. He said:
"Yes. They are . . . probably . . . just as good." And he
thanked me, and took the bottle, and went off into his roomthat great old man.
It was such a trivial thing-a bottle of pills-but life is
�176
JESUIT OBEDIENCE
made up of little things and it is by small trials like this that
great saints are made. Any of us would obey willingly, joyously, if we were commanded to go into Russia and die; what
hurts is the command to go into the class of 1-F and teach the
third declension. The big things are easy; it is the little
things that try the soul.
But if St. Ignatius had looked down that morning at the
little nipa shack in the leper colony, and at the old man sitting
at his desk, trying by the force of his will to bend that great
intellect, trying to persuade himself that all things are just,
denying with a certain kind of blind obedience any contrary
opinion or judgment of his .q.'vn, trying to convince himself
that the substitute was probably just as good as the originalif Loyola saw the great effort of that grand old man to be
religiously obedient in this small detail, I think that he would
say, with a kind of quiet pride: "That old priest, with the
white hair-he is a Jesuit. This is the order I founded. This
is the Company of Jesus."
* * *
Modern City Pays Tribute to 16th Century Jesuit
On a bright February morning, Cardinal Motta, Archbishop of Sao
Paolo, offered Mass at the site of a hermitage established in 1554 by the
Portuguese Jesuit, Father Jose de Anchieta. Throughout Sao Paolo,
Brazil's most prosperous and highly industrialized city with a population
numbering 2% millions, church bells pealed in jubilation and factorY
sirens re-echoed with salutes; inaugurating a year of civic celebration
in commemoration of its founding 400 years ago by a zealous missionarY·
The city's historic coat of arms, which depicts an·armored arm gripping
a white flag with a cross, symbolizing the struggles and victories of the
Christian explorers and colonists of the region, proudly hung everywhere
in display.
�St. Andrew Through Fifty Years
A half-century gives witness to the life and growth, friends and
benefactors of the New York Novitiate
WILLIAM BANGERT,
S.J.
Father Mercurian, fourth General of the Society, anxious
to have the recollections of one who participated in the foundation of the Society, asked Father Simon Rodriguez to write
what he recalled of the Order's early days. In 1577, whenhe ·
and two others were sole survivors of the original seven at
Montmartre, Father Simon pro suo erga Societatem amore
looked back over the years and wrote what he called De Origine
et Progressu Societatis. 1 That was thirty-seven years after
the Regimini Militantis of Paul III and forty-three years after
the vows on the Hill of Martyrs in Paris.
It is over fifty years since the community of St. Stanislaus Novitiate, Frederick, Md., moved to the new Novitiate of
St. Andrew-on-Hudson, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and twentytwo members of that group still labor and pray in the ranks of
the Society. The recollections of these men would be treasured
with reverence and interest. A few have played the part of
good Father Simon and have written some of their memories,
which, along with two early articles in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS/ might be called De Origine et Progressu Novitiatus
Sancti Andreae.
Old Memories
One of them, Father Eugene Kenedy, a rhetorician in 1903,
recalls that a feature of the journey from Frederick to Poughkeepsie was the planned avoidance of family reunions along
the way.
1 remember Father Joseph Murphy, later provincial, then a junior,
sitting next to me as we stopped for a few minutes in the streets of
Trenton, N.J., pointing to a window of a business establishment not
fifty feet away and remarking to me that his father was working
right there. And he couldn't meet him! We had the tertians in
the first car behind the engine. The juniors were in the second while
the novices were in the third. There was absolutely no fusion all
day! Father O'Rourke said, probably in jest, that as the tertians
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ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
were the most valuable they would be in the safest car behind the
engine. As the juniors were the next most precious they were in
the second, while the novices brought up the rear. However, they
were protected by two baggage cars after them. 3
Father John J. Bernard, a novice at the time of the migration, has the same memory as Father Kenedy of a meal that
never attained its finis subjectivus. Father Kenedy's version
is:
My saddest recollection of the trip is that of the swell lunch that
we almost had, but missed. The Visitation Sisters, our great friends
in Frederick, decided to surprise us by ordering an expensive lunch
(almost a dinner) from the .best hotel in town (almost the only one).
This was sent to the train and packed away somewhere so that no
one knew of it. Imagine our dismay when on unloading the freight
car a week later we discovered the gaudiosa-haustus spoiled beyond
redemption. After fifty years I have never quite gotten over that
"so near and yet so far feast" that still tantalizes me in retrospect.
After the arrival at St. Andrew one of the immediate
concerns was that of providing for the athletes in the group.
Father Bernard recalls, "A tour of inspection was in order the
night of our arrival.~ A few of us ascended to the garret to
inspect the terrain. The first discovery and decision we made
was the site of our ball field; big enough for two stadia. Were
we disappointed the next morning when we realized the ex·
panse was the Hudson frozen and covered with slf6w !"
Father Ferdinand C. Wheeler, a novice at the time of the
transfer, recalls the presence of the Provincial, Father Thomas
Gannon, during the labor of arranging the furnishings of the
house. "The following morning Father Gannon personallY
superintended the placing of the desks in the novices' ascetory.
We brought them up from the cellar covered with dust and
were being reprimanded at the door of the ascetory by Father
William Walsh, the Father minister, until he spied the Pro·
vincial, who had ordered us to bring them at once from the
cellar."
Father Henry M. ·Brock, a rhetorician who assisted
Father Rector in serving lunch to the community while on the
train, remembers that the lights in the juniors' coach went out
just before reaching the Poughkeepsie bridge so that "it was
easy to see objects outside. The frozen river below and the
�Novitiate, erected fifty
ago on a site overthe l{.l"andeur of
historic Hudson, has
welcomed grateyoung Jesuit aspirto its ascetories,
classrooms,
yearly from
have come men
in the wisdom of
asceticism and imthe spirit of its
ad majol'em Dei
Jesuits who first
its threshold num123.
They enthe traditions,
••~''""'"~u house customs
initiated the "long
line" which in the
of two generations
totaled 2145. Only
of the Jesuits who
ago arrived at St.
in the darkness
Jesuits Who Knew Frederick Returned for Joyous Festivities
fo~)m ~ft to right: Frs. M. Clark (N.Y.
· M N · Brock (N. Eng. 1900), E.
;9 Fmara (Oreg. '02), G. Treacy (N.Y.
,02 )• A Wheeler (Md. '02), I. Cox (N.Y.
1\.T •
• O'Leary (Md. '03)*, E. Kenedy
(
.,,y, '99), V. McCormick (N.Y. '03)*,
S)
C. Connor (N.Y. 1900), J. Murphy (M1
'03)*, D. Cronin (N.Y. 1900), J. Parson
(Md. '03)*, J. McGehee (Md. '01), ;
Duston (N. Eng. '03)*, G. Kiehne (M4
'03)*. (Asterisk indicates Jubilarians w}
entered St. Andrew August 14, 1903
��ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
179
lights of the city in the darkness seemed to be at the bottom
of some deep chasm."
It was natural that memories of Frederick would be intertwined with the adventure of opening the new Novitiate.
Father O'Rourke confessed this in a letter he sent to the
Frederick News.
We have so many and such de11r friends in Frederick that we will
always have an interest in everything connected with our old home.
As I look out over the frozen Hudson to the hills beyond, somehow a
feeling of lonesomeness comes over me and I think of Frederick
Valley, sequestered amid the old familiar peaks of High Knob, Sugar
Loaf, and White Rock, and of our many true friends, in whose
thoughts and affections I trust we shall long remain. 4
This affection for Frederick is one of the memories of
Father Michael Clarke, a novice at the time. "Antiquated as
the Novitiate at Frederick was, it was rather sad in many
ways to leave the old homestead with all its many memories
and traditions. It was very much like parting from a dear old
friend."
New Home
Time was not lost, however, in setting the customs and
shaping the routine of the new home. All the things that find
their way into the diaries of ministers, beadles and manuductors, were entered throughout 1903 and 1904 as though the
house had been running since the days of Father Andrew
White. The community arrived on January 15. On the 18th
Mr. Ferdinand A. Muth preached in the refectory ;5 on the
19th the Novices had catechesis ;6 on the 25th two Novices
taught catechism at the Wayside Shrine. 7 On February 12,
the Juniors had their first debate :8 Messrs. Corcoran and Duffy
vs. Messrs. Viteck and Rankin, quibus est flos victoriae.
Father Errasti, rector in Cuba, arrived on August 9 to spend
the summer learning English. 9 September 3 was a picnic day
for the Juniors at Pleasant Valley. 10 "We had our picnic in
Mr. Kirk's field. The old bachelor considered himself highly
favored by our presence on his property and would be only
too delighted if we came often. He says he does not go to any
church, but he would not live in a place where there was no
~hurch. He feels he would not be safe." On September 29
he long retreat opened. 11 November 30 was a skating holi-
L
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ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
day. Father Minister made the note: "While skating on the
ice, Brother Breen managed to fall on it and break three
teeth, two of them right close to the gums." 12 Holy Innocents
Day came in due time, but was not observed as the novices'
feast day. Father Minister's notation has the air of decisiveness: "Reverend Father Provincial, Thomas J. Gannon, crossed
it out at the Visitation. It is now history." 13 Later generations of novices know that this feast day of theirs had not
been irrevocably consigned to the domain of Clio.
So the days passed and Frederick became more remote.
The fifty years ahead were to be years of blessing, especially
in the great numbers who would come to the Novitiate. From
1903 to the beginning of 1953 St. Andrew's has received
2145 novice scholastic candidates. 14 Of these, 280 or 13.05
per cent left the Novitiate during the first twelve months; 88
or 4.10 per cent left during the second twelve months; 1605
or 74.83 per cent pronounced their vows at St. Andrew's.
One hundred and seventy-two or 8.02 per cent are accounted
for in other ways: five died as novices, eight left after two
full years of noviceship, one went to Florissant to pronounce
the vows of temporal coadjutor, one became a member of the
English Province, forty-three were transferred to Wernersville where all pronounced their vows, sixteen went to other
houses, Yonkers, Woodstock, Los Gatos, Shadowbrook, to
pronounce their vows; ninety-eight are still novices:" Exclud·
ing those who are still novices and those who died as novices,
81.6 per cent of all who entered pronounced their vows, 18.4
per cent left as novices.
Every month of the year is credited with the reception of
scholastic novices. August leads with 816 candidates; Sep·
tember is second with 584 and July is third with 561.
After Father O'Rourke there have been five Novice Masters
at St. Andrew. Father George Pettit trained 550 novice
Scholastics, Father Peter Cusick 287, Father Clement Risacher
321, Father Leo Weber 565, Father William Gleason 602.
These figures include those who had had a year under the
previous master.
·
The Novice Master who was longest in that position, Father
On a Rocky Crest Among the River-Edge's Spreading
Trees, St. Andrew-on-Hudson Fulfills a Divine Trust
It
���ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
181
Leo Weber, (1928-1942), received the smallest average annual
group, 36.4 novices. Father Clement Risacher who had the
shortest term, (1923-1928), received the largest yearly average, 55.4 novices. The figures for the average annual groups
of the other Novice Masters are: Father George Pettit (19041917), 40.5 novices; Father Peter Cusick (1917-1923), 39.5;
Father William Gleason (1942), 52.
Between 1903 and 1939, tertian Fathers coming to St.
Andrew to make their Tertianship numbered 1027, of whom
323 were not from the Maryland-New York Province. During
the same period there were ten instructors of tertians, Fathers
James Conway, William Pardow, Edward Purbrick, Thomas
Gannon, Michael Hill, Augustine Miller, John O'Rourke, Anthony Maas, Elder Mullan, Peter Lutz.
In recording the number of Novice Brothers received it is
necessary to make a division between before and after the
new Code of Canon Law and the prescription of a six months
postulancy. Between January 15, 1904 (when the postulancy
record begins) and April 30, 1918, 131 coadjutor postulants
were received, of whom 18.3 per cent left during postulancy,
30.5 per cent left as novices, 51.2 per cent pronounced their
vows either at Saint Andrew or elsewhere. Between May 1,
1918 and February 28, 1953, of the 255 coadjutor postulants
received, 38 per cent left during postulancy, 13.7 per cent left
during the noviceship, .8 per cent are still postulants, 4.4 per
cent are still novices, 2 per cent were sent to other houses,
41.2 per cent pronounced their vows. These are the impersonal figures behind which are hidden the noble desires and
saintly aspirations of the novices and the untiring and loving
guidance of the novice masters through fifty years.
St. Andrew soon became a source of help to those who
~eeded the assistance of priests. Fathers were soon helping
In places like Pleasant Valley, Highland, Cragsmoor, SaugertiesY Father Minister wrote in his diary on January 9, 1904 :
"F ather Brock to Saugerties, crossed river at Poughkeepsie
.
In a sleigh. Father Mulligan left on N. Y. Central at 8:50 to
Inake connection for Kingston. On reaching Rhinecliff he
had to walk over the river." 16
On March 3, 1905, some Marist Brothers paid a visit to
St. Andrew to find out where they might hear Mass. They
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ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
had recently bought the MacPherson-Coddington Estate for
their novitiate. It was arranged that they would hear Mass
in St. Ignatius' Chapel and then, when the weather would be
warmer, in the Wayside Chapel. Father Clark was to be
their confessor. Father Minister's cryptic conclusion was:
"This is all we shall have to do with them for the present." 11
From this casual acquaintance has developed a close association and at present a member of the St. Andrew's faculty is
assigned as chaplain to the community of Marian College.
A month after arrival at Poughkeepsie our Fathers took up
the work of caring for the_ Catholic patients at the Hudson
River State Hospital, then 11u'mbering 1350 of the 2300 persons
confined there. 18 Previous t'o this time, Mass was said at the
Hospital but a few times a year. Father Casey began to say
Mass each Sunday at a portable altar in the old amusement
hall of the main building. Father Gaffney attended to the sick
calls. One of the names fondly remembered at St. Andrew
in connection with the Hudson River State Hospital is that of
Father Charles Schmidt, who in his years of service there and
at Kings County Hospital had administered the sacrament of
extreme unction over~ 40,000 times.19
The Grounds
The landscaping at St. Andrew is a tribute to artistic
conception, persevering labor and dynamite. St.. Joseph's
Garden, the Lourdes Shrine, the Compassionata, the Campo
degli Angeli are but a few names in the long litany of im·
provements, each of which is an area of conquest from a dif·
ficult terrain. Judging from the liberal use of dynamite
during the years, one of the chief enemies to progress seems
to have been rock and shale. Dynamite was used by teams of
novices and juniors between 1914-18 in the reduction of a
rockpile on the west side of the house. 20 In 1918 Messrs.
Bouwhuis, O'Keefe and Hewitt had to blast so that Mr. Edward
Coffey could proceed with erecting the Lourdes Shrine. As
late as 1933 Brother Joseph Rock had to call on the blasters
in order to carry through his project of cutting into a shale
bluff twenty feet high.
An intricate system of roads and paths is part of the land·
scaping at St. Andrew. One of the first tasks was the con·
�ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
183
struction of the main road, or rather, the reconstruction of
what had been sort of a carriage road. That was in 1903.
In 1907 Father Dillon supervised the landscaping of the oval
in front of the house. The route of this main road was devious
in the extreme, winding from the State Highway, through the
present parking lot, to the front door. On March 26, 1925,
Father Schmidt had a collision with a taxi at the curve near
Our Lady's statue. 21 This emphasized the danger of the blind
curves and gave impetus to the idea of straightening the
road. Under the direction of Father Dominic Hammer the
job was begun April 6, 1926. On the day the surfacing was
being completed a steamroller happened along and worked
over the entire road. Not until the work was done did it
become known that the operator of the roller had been looking
for the Marist Brothers.
The Tertians Road-Berchmans' Lane system is the result of
the ambition to give St. Andrew a mile path somewhat
like the Via Sabettina at Woodstock. It was originally planned by a professional landscape artist, hired by Father Dillon.
Between 1914-16 novices, working under Brother John Pollock and Brother Joseph Wieckmann, cut trees and hauled
shale for the road to the present basketball courts. In 1916-17
the tertians, headed by Father Louis Young, started in the
direction of St. Andrew's statue. A year later the juniors
worked toward the statue from the other direction. Plans
called for a tunnel under the statue, but the contemplated
blasting had to be dropped because of a wartime restriction on
the use of dynamite. After 1935 the work on this version of
the Via Sabettina was pushed to completion.
From the winter of 1904 on through to 1935 a series of lakes
was created so that St. Andrew was well on the way to
becoming a sort of Dutchess County Interlaken. 22 It started
with the temporary dams erected by the juniors in the winter
of 1904, resulting in the Upper Hollow Pond, now known as
Xavier Lake. By a skillful placement of dams the overflow
of Xavier Lake was used to make the swimming lake and the
hockey lake. In both of these projects Father Lawrence Stanley assumed the role of dam-builder, in 1916 as a novice and
again in 1934 as a tertian. Father Clement Risacher is responsible for the enterprise of completing and purifying the
�184
ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
swimming lake. Father Peter Lutz, the tertian instructor,
inspired the formation of the northernmost lake in 1934-35.
This is known as Tertians Lake or Lake Lutzerne.
The present cemetery site was chosen by Father Hanselman on May 19, 1907. Father Minister's diary speaks of the
former site as being northwest of the house. It was not long
before they found this an undesirable burial place. Brother
Ranahan was buried on August 13, 1903, and Father Minister
noted, "Brother Ranahan buried among the rocks at 11 A.M.
He could not be buried immediately after Mass as the grave
was not yet ready. In the present place it takes us two days
to dig, or rather quarry a grave." 23 On November 30 of the
same year Brother Michael ..Hogan's requiem Mass was celebrated, "but the funeral could not take place as the grave was
not yet 'quarried'." The burial was put off until the next
day. 24 The first burial in the new cemetery was that of Father
John B. Gaffney and six days later the five who had been buried
in the original site were transferred.
Mr. Timothy McCarthy, Brother Rossi and one or two others
were sent to West Park to transfer the Jesuits buried there
to St. Andrew. Father McCarthy recalls: "We were sent
to West Park to dig up the old graves and carefully collect
every little bone from each grave separately, placing them
reverently in a separate box bearing the name of the person
whose name was on the headstone. To make sure '$Ve had all
the bones, we even screened the clay of each grave~ ·We then
carted the bones down to the Hudson River and rowed them
across." 2 ~
The oratory in the cemetery was the gift of Helen Morton
in memory of Father John Young. The first Mass was cele·
brated there on the Feast of All Souls, 1930. 26
Mrs. Morton's name is associated with another structure,
now demolished, but for a number of years affiliated with
St. Andrew's. She contributed most of the money toward
the repair of the old house on the former Webendorfer Estate
so that it might be used as a rest home for the ailing members
of the Province. 27 On June 3, 1920, the building was blessed.
Holy Mass was celebrated and the Blessed Sacrament was reserved there. 28 The next Sunday an informal reception was
held during which Mrs. Morton inspected the building and
�ST. ANDREW·ON-HUDSON
185
gave evidence of her pleasure with what had been accomplished. At Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament the juniors'
choir sang, and "after Benediction a cup of tea was served." 29
The March of Time
The major modification of the main building was of course
the erection of the domestic chapel, the gift of Mrs. Thomas
F. Ryan. Archbishop Farley consecrated the chapel on November 19, 1907. The Mass, at which but a few outsiders were
present, began at about 11 :15 A.M. It followed upon the consecration ceremonies that started at 8:30 A.M. Neither Mrs.
Ryan nor any of her family was present. She requested that
very little be said about her connection with the chapel and
nothing whatsoever about the vault. 3 ° Father Thomas Campbell
preached what the Poughkeepsie News-Press called a "powerful sermon." 31 Work on the foundation trenches had been
started on December 19, 1905. 32 The first stone was laid on the
foundation on January 22, 1906, and the workmen had their
own little ceremony for this event. "The man who laid it is a
Protestant, but Mr. Kelly, the hod-carrier, who seems to be
somewhat of an overseer, made him lay the stone 'In the name
of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost' ." 33
During the fifty years since 1903 important changes in
church law and practice and severe trials in the nation's life
were felt at the Novitiate. In 1905 Pope Pius X issued his
decree on frequent Communion. Scholastics had received the
Holy Eucharist only on certain days designated by Father
General or on special occasions such as the one noted in the
juniors' diary the day after the death of Pope Leo XIII:
"Communio generalis in requiem Papae Nostri concessa est." 34
It took almost a year for the force of the decree to be felt in
the Novitiate because it was not until December 5, 1906,
that Brother Manuductor entered in his diary the note: "Novitii communionem quotidie recipiunt." 35
A question of canonical importance was highlighted by the
first vows of Brother Edward Donnelly, Scholastic, and of
Brother Peter Murphy, temporal coadjutor, on March 19,
1918. The new Code of Canon Law would become obligatory
from the 19th of May of that year and by virtue of Canon 574
temporary vows of three years would be required before the
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ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
pronouncing of perpetual vows. In the light of this legislation
Father Minister noted in his dairy: "If the new code stands
these are the last to take perpetual simple vows in this house." 38
The Society's vows, however, remained unchanged because on
June 29, 1918, the Commission of Cardinals for interpreting
the canons of the Code declared that the Society was not
obliged by Canon 574. 37
America's entry into the first World War brought up the
question of the military status of the men of eligible military
age. The question was not as facilely handled as during the
World War II. The possibility of some of the men being
called to serve in the armed: forces was a real one and its
imminence was probably the reason why Father Minister used
red ink to write on January 19, 1918: "One of our Lay Brothers,
Anthony Nolan, was classified in. Class I Div H and will leave
to serve in the army if called." 38 Three days after, a trip to
New York to try to obtain exemption for Brother Nolan was
unsuccessful. 39 Eventually, however, Brother Nolan's classification was changed and he was not called. 40 Ten first year
novices celebrated Christmas of 1917 as exorcists, acolytes,
readers, and porters, because just three days before they had
received minor orders from Bishop Collins and thus could
claim the distinction of ordination when seeking exemption
from military service.H The ceremony was repeated on May
16, 1918, for 82 Scholastics, most of them juniors. 42 The next
day 69 more received minor orders; the majority of them were
novices. 43
Wartime restrictions on food were felt at the Novitiate.
Notice was given the community of certain dietary changes
which would give the men at St. Andrew an opportunity
of complying with the President's proclamation on food conservation. Some of the changes were: "Only one dish of the
secondary meat will be served to each table; only one pot of
tea will be served to each table ; corn bread shall be served
three times a week whe~ possible, once only with syrup and
twice with stew; one breakfast each week shall be meatless
(besides Friday)." The notice concluded with the following
caution: "Our house doctor says that we eat altogether too
much meat and advises that we eat very little meat for break-
�ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
187
fast and supper." 44 On February 5, 1918, Father Minister
wrote: "There is no hope of getting any coa1." 45
Closely associated with the sorrows of the war was the
influenza epidemic which paralyzed the country and which
brought acute grief to the community of St. Andrew.
Twice within an hour on January 29, 1919, the De Profundis
was tolled. Mr. Harry Annable and Mr. Edward Reilly died
victims of the epidemic. Two days before, two others had
died, Mr. Andrew Ramisch and Brother Francis P. O'Sullivan,
novice Scholastic. 46
Even the much debated Eighteenth Amendment embraced
St. Andrew in its tentacles, for on April 28, 1924, a federal
prohibition inspector came to examine the books. No mention
is made of what he did or did not find. 47
The 1920's were days of the fiery crosses of the Ku Klux
Klan. In 1924 they had burned a cross at Shadowbrook.48 On
May 6, 1927, a junior interrupted the Fathers' Casus Conscientiae to report that the KKK were at Della Strada burning
down the chapel. Father Farrell, armed with a cane and
accompanied by Brother Hart, went forth to meet the Klan.
Father Farrell entered the chapel to see two women dressed
in white with white handkerchiefs on their heads making a
visit to the Blessed Sacrament. 49
A House of Study
Through the years there has been a wide variety of academies and dramatic productions which are but the more obvious
indications of the earnest and active intellectual life veiled
behind the oft repeated phrase de more on the juniors' side
of the house. A few months after the arrival from Frederick,
to honor Father Rector on his feast day, the juniors presented
some scenes from Julius Caesar and Mr. Joseph Murphy honored the occasion with a poem entitled, "So I Will Have Him
Remain Till I Come." 5° At the academy honoring St. John
Chrysostom in 1916 Mr. Torpy delivered an English poem,
"The Golden Tongued" and Mr. Hoar rendered a vocal solo,
"The Bell in the Light House." 51 On April 25, 1917, the poets
Presented an academy on "The Writing of Poetry." Two of
t~e papers were: "The Combination of Images" by Mr. Wilham Glaeser and "Plain and Figurative Language" by Mr.
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ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
John F. Treubig. 52 On December 19, 1929, the juniors enacted
the "Trial of Warren Hastings." 53 Debating has had its part
in the intellectual life at St. Andrew. The pros and cons
were weighed of such questions as: "Is Cicero's use of the
exordium superior to that of Burke's?" and "Does our province have a greater need of preachers than writers ?" 54
This house of studies has been singularly blessed by a long
line of refined, capable, and inspiring professors. Those who
have taught ten or more years at St. Andrew are: Father
Edward S. Pouthier, ten years; Father Matthew J. Fitzsimons
and Father George F. Johnson, each thirteen years; Father
Francis P. Donnelly, sixteerl years, and Father Francis A.
Sullivan, seventeen years. 55 - "For about two years, walls that
had for a long time listened in on the metre of Maecenas atavis
heard unusual and strange phrases as professors discoursed on
Barbara, celarent, darii, ferio, and Scholastics discussed the
Porphyrian Tree. They were the years when the first year
philosophers were at St. Andrew, as revealed by the Province catalog for 1921 and 1922. 56
The ~ovitiate Experiments
While the juniors were at study, the novices were being
tested, especially in the various experimenta. The hospital
trial in its most memorable form was probably the one started
in 1919 at the Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor .at 183rd
Street and Belmont Avenue in the Bronx. 57 Brother John J.
Long and Brother Vincent de P. O'Beirne were the first novices
to be chosen for this trial. Their daily order of time called
for arrival at the Home at 10:30 A.M. from the Yonkers Novitiate where they spent each night. The novices made beds
until examen time and then they served dinner. In the afternoon they did house work, washed windows, took care of the
tonsorial needs of the old men. Each novice delivered an
eight minute talk to the old men and women in their respective
dining halls each day and once a week to the entire community,
men, women, and nuns. 'Mother Superior was referred to as
"Good Mother." The novices recorded on Ash Wednesday,
March 5, 1919, the following experience: "When we arrived
at the house we were not a little surprised when Good Mother
asked us to distribute the blessed ashes to the men and women
�ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
189
in the infirmary who couldn't receive them in the chapel at
Mass. We performed the ceremony as though we had done it
all our lives, but as for the indulgence, well ..."
Two years later a change was made in the style of the dress
of the novices on this trial. Brother Sub's diary for January
2, 1921, has the note: "The hospital men henceforth to wear
Prince Alberts and stiff hats." Brother Manuductor's version
is a bit different: "They wore Prince Alberts and derbies. The
latter were very conspicuous, but the former were hidden by
overcoats."
The trial was suspended on January 28, 1923, because of
the closing of the Yonkers Novitiate. It was soon resumed,
however, and lasted from September 2, 1923, until December
23, 1924, during which time the novices spent the nights at
Fordham University. Other phases of the hospital trial were
the one at St. Joseph's of the former Webendorfer Estate from
1921 to 1925 and the one at Monroe from January, 1923 to
May, 1929.
Even more unusual for the American novice was the pilgrimage trial. The Master of Novices, Father Peter F. Cusick,
in August of 1920, wrote to the pastors within a radius of
about forty miles of St. Andrew explaining his desire to inaugurate a pilgrimage trial for his novices, and offered the
pastors novices for manual work clerical work or catechetical
.
'
mstruction. "They are to receive absolutely no compensations
for their services, the only remuneration being their food and
lodging, for which, as this is a pilgrimage, and inconveniences
are welcomed, any room with two cots or beds would suffice."
The novices were to be with the pastor from Monday evening
to Saturday morning, these two days being spent traveling on
foot from and back to St. Andrew.
Father Lavelle, the pastor of Amenia, was the first to grasp
this exceptional opportunity and on September 20, 1920, welcomed the two pioneers of this experiment, Brother Francis
G. Power and Brother Glen E. Walsh, who had set out that
morning "with knapsack and umbrella." While they were at
Amenia Brother Power and Brother Walsh sent a letter back
to St. Andrew each day and these letters were read at conference. Father Lavelle's enthusiasm for the pair and their
Work was nearly limitless. To Father Cusick he wrote: "Your
�190
ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
choice of novices for the trip here was splendid. If all the
novices at St. Andrew's are like them, then I say 'the Jesuits
in America are safe, the Church is safe' ." 58
This experiment was terminated in 1923, but re-established
by Father Clement Risacher in a different form in 1928. In
that year the destination of the pilgrimage was Auriesville.
The novices were given seven sealed envelopes containing instructions and identifying places where a church might be
found in order to hear Holy Mass. The first envelope was
opened on leaving the grounds, the others on succeeding days.
Before setting out each day the pilgrims wrote a letter to
Father Master. June 2, 1928, was the initial day of this ex- .
periment when Brothers James J. Shanahan, Joseph J. Farrell
and James J. Ball set out on the road to the Mohawk Valley.
Seven bands made this pilgrimage which was ended on Sep- ,
tember 10, 1928.
At present the novices have an experimentum at Auriesville
where they assist the director of the Sacred Heart Retreat
House in the care of the building and in attending the priest
retreatants.
Temporal Necessities
But whether the novices were on pilgrimage or at home or
whether the juniors were in class or on a picnic, the smooth
running of the house in its numerous offices, bakesh;p; sacristy,
infirmary, is largely attributable to the Brothers. It has been
in their daily contact with them that the novices have learned
many a lasting lesson in humility and charity. It would be
difficult to mention some names without others. But all who
have lived at St. Andrew sometime during the past forty-seven
years have known Brother John F. Cummings who has been
at the Novitiate since he entered nearly a half century ago.
During those years he has brought his gentle wisdom to the
offices of buyer, cook and infirmarian. Innumerable are the
novices and juniors who,received from Brother Cummings an
extract from Rodriguez' Christian Perfection with a pill, a
bandage, or a prescription of "pink and whites." 58 bis
It is a major accomplishment that is never ending to keep
a community as large as that at St. Andrew supplied with its
needs. Cups and saucers, linen and hats recur time and
�ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
191
again as entries on the invoices, but it is possible to identify
with almost pinpoint accuracy the decade when any particular
invoice was received, so widely diverse are the prices. In 1908
St. Andrew bought from Wm. R. Farrington of Poughkeepsie three dozen plates at $1.50 a dozen; six dozen saucers
priced at 42c a dozen. 59 In the same year the Baltimore
Bargain House sold the Novitiate two dozen tea pots at $2.77 ·
a dozen. In 1910 five yards of table cloth were purchased
from Wallace Company of Poughkeepsie at 30c a yard.
There was at least one item, however, where the 1910 price
was in excess of the present price. In that year the Novitiate
was billed by John van Benschoten for three dollars for the
use of an auto to the Landing and three dollars for the use of
a car to and from the depot.
Misunderstanding can occur in business affairs. In 1906
Father Dillon received a letter which might have led him to
believe that he was a member of the Dutch Province. The
letter was from Leonardi, Hayman and Co. of Tampa, Florida,
and read in part: "At the request of Father Navin we are
sending you today samples of our cigars. As we understand
you order cigars in lots of about two thousand we will quote
You the following wholesale prices." Then follow the prices
for "Conchas Especiales," "Puritanos," "Perfecto Especial,"
etc.
In a transaction involving the turn-in of an old Chevrolet
and Ford, on June 30, 1924, a new Chevrolet station wagon
was obtained. The retail price was $734.00. 60
At Thanksgiving in 1921 it seems that the price of turkey
suggested the idea of slaughtering the ducks, for Father Minister records: "A good dinner was served, our own ducks replacing turkey which is 60c and 70c per pound. The ducks
Were raised by a junior, Mr. Horn." 61
The River Boats
During the summer months, swinging at anchor near the
small landing dock, is the St. Andrew fleet of five sturdy
boats, including two life boats from the ill-fated French liner
Normandie. These are successors to the small craft that for
many years had given the St. Andrew community the op-
�192
ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
portunity of enjoying more fully the length and breadth and
beauty of the Hudson River.
The boats, every now and then, have been the occasion of
Scholastics enjoying something unplanned. Three Juniors,
Messrs. Whelan, Diehl, and Rooney, on November 17, 1921,
went to Yonkers by early train to bring to St. Andrew a
motorboat and two other new boats. Off Ossining, in a low
tide, they ran the ships on the river flats and were compelled
to seek the hospitality of the Maryknoll community with whom
they spent the night. 62 On June 28, 1947, the novices sailed
up the river on an all day ~ilia outing to the Cardinal Farley
Academy at Rhinebeck. The· schedule called for arrival home
at about 7:30 P.M. Because of motor trouble the novices with
full-throated song drew near to St. Andrew's shore at about
10:30 P.M. Fortunately for Father Socius, who was in charge,
the Master of Novices was three thousand miles away in
Europe for the canonization of St. John de Britto and St.
Bernardine Realino. 63
But late homecoming was not without precedent. It had
happened forty-one y,ears before, on July 2, 1906. Some
juniors, on villa order, went up the river for an evening boat
ride. A violent thunderstorm broke and forced them to beach
the boat off Rogers'. After 9:00 P.M. a phone call came
through "Central" that all were safe in the signal_tower of
the railroad. They arrived home about 9:45 P.M. 64
Distinguished Visitors
St. Andrew has been a place of retreat for many distinguished men, especially members of the American hierarchy. Bishop-elect Hanna of San Francisco, Bishop-elect
Dunn of New York, Bishop-elect Brennan of Scranton, Bishopelect Curley of Syracuse came to the Novitiate to prepare
themselves for the high office they were assuming. 65 Two
more recent retreatants were Bishop-elect Kearney of Salt
Lake City and Bishop-elect Stephen Donahue of New York. 66
In 1924 Mr. Kinsman, ex-Episcopalian bishop of Delaware,
came to make a retreat, at the close of which he spoke to the
juniors. 67 In the first year of the house and some years before
his conversion Friar Paul of Graymoor came, not as a retreat-
�Solemn High Mass in
for God's blessings over
was offered by the
of the three eastern
Father Joseph Hogan, a
at the time of the transfer of the
novitiate from Frederick to Poughkeepsie, preached the sermon. Later in
the morning His Eminence Cardinal
Spellman graciously greeted each guest
and member of the community and posed
for photographs.
��ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
193
ant, but to pay a visit, having travelled to Poughkeepsie in
what Father Minister called his "regimentals." 68
Archbishop Farley of New York paid a number of visits to
the Novitiate. "Deo gratias" was given for the first time at
supper since the evening of arrival from Frederick when the
Archbishop came on November 13, 1905. It was another visit
of the Archbishop that occasioned the first "Deo gratias" at
breakfast in the history of the house. That was the morning
of the consecration of the chapel, November 19, 1907.69
The Anniversary
The skillfully planned and excellently executed three day
celebration was a proper expression of thanksgiving for the
fifty years of blessings received from Almighty God. Of the
community that travelled from Frederick to Poughkeepsie in
1903 four rhetoricians, four poets, thirteen novices and one
novice Brother are still living. From New York, Maryland,
New England, Oregon, and Canada thirteen returned to Saint
Andrew to share in the joy of those who are following them as
members of the 1953 community. They were joined by six
other Fathers who had entered the Novitiate in 1903.
On the first day His Eminence Francis Cardinal Spellman
Presided at the Solemn High Mass, the officers of which were
the Fathers Provincial of the three eastern provinces. The
sermon was preached by Father Joseph S. Hogan who was a
novice when the change was made from Frederick. His Eminence could not have been more gracious as he met each community member and guest after the Mass. On this day the
Pastors of the area were guests. At Solemn Benediction of
the Blessed Sacrament Father William F. Maloney, the Provincial of Maryland, was celebrant, and Father James P.
Sweeney and Father Francis A. McQuade, former provincials
of New York, were deacon and subdeacon.
The Solemn High Mass of the second day was celebrated by
Very Reverend Vincent A. McCormick, assisted by Father
Ferdinand C. Wheeler (1902) and Father Ignatius W. Cox
(1902) as deacon and subdeacon. Father Charles F. Connor,
a Poet at the time he moved from Frederick, preached at the
Mass. At Solemn Benediction the officers were Father Arthur
A. O'Leary (1903), celebrant, Father Henry M. Brock (1900),
�194
ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
deacon, and Father Eugene T. Kenedy (1899), subdeacon.
Representatives from the different religious communities in
the neighborhood were the guests of the second day.
On the third day the Solemn Mass was offered by Father
John A. Hughes, rector, assisted by Father John J. Killeen,
rector from 1939 to 1943, as deacon, and Father Thomas A.
Henneberry as subdeacon. Father Henneberry was substi.
tuting for Father Francis X. Byrnes, rector from 1933 to 1938,
who was not able to be present. Very Reverend Father Assistant preached. The officers at Benediction were Father
Master, celebrant, Father Minister, deacon, and Father Dean,
subdeacon. The rectors and superiors of the New York Prov·
ince, the rectors of Shadowbrook, Wernersville, and Weston
were the guests of the third day.
The novices presented a delightful academy the first night.
Excellently prepared papers were read on various aspects of
the antecedents and growth of St. Andrew. On the second
night the juniors staged a universally applauded and enjoyable
Latin play written by a seventeenth century Jesuit, Father
Gabriel Le Jay, called Damocles seu Philosophus Regnans.
The sure hand of Father Anthony D. Botti was in evidence
throughout the three days in the renditions of the choir. The
great success of the celebration was the gratifying fruit of the
hard work and generous labor given by all members of the
community under the modest and competent iuidance of
Father John A. Hughes, the rector.
Fulfillment of a Trust
In 1907, in his sermon at the consecration of the chapel,
Father Thomas Campbell had said: "This house will be true to
its trust. Everything in it and round it proclaims its mission.
The first rays of the morning sun illumine the chapel where
round the altar the community is kneeling for instruction and
strength ; the mighty arms of the edifice stretch to the north
and south in benediction, and as it faces the mountains on the
west it is contemplating the eternal hills towards which all
are tending." 70
When the history of St. Andrew is written it will be a
story that will give prophetic quality to the words of Father
Campbell. St. Andrew has been true to its trust. But the
�ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
195
people and the events that will fill the pages of this history will
give but an intimation of why St. Andrew has been faithful
to its purpose, for the substance of its being is the vita abscondita cum Christo in Deo.
NOTES
1Mont. Hist. Soc. Jes., Epist. PP. Paschasii Broeti, Claudi Jaji,
Joannis Cordurii et Simonis Rodericii, p. 438.
2lfoodstock Letters, XXXI, p. 430; LVII, p. 223.
a Fathers Kenedy, Bernard, Clark, Brock, Ferdinand Wheeler kindly
sent to the author letters containing some of their recollections.
f Minister's Diary, Jan. 15, 1903.
5 Juniors' Diary, Jan. 18, 1903.
6 Novices' Diary, Jan. 19, 1903.
7 Ibid., Jan. 25, 1903.
s Juniors' Diary, Feb. 12, 1903.
9 Ministers' Diary, Aug. 9, 1903.
1o Ibid., Sept. 3, 1903.
11
Ibid., Sept. 29, 1903.
12 Ibid., Nov. 30, 1903.
13 Ibid., Dec. 28, 1903.
14
Brande, Edward W., N.S.J., Brochure entitled "Facts in Figures.
A Statistical Survey of the Novitiate of St. Andrew-on-Hudson, 19031953."
15
Minister's Diary, Aug. 16, 22, 29, and Sept. 5, 1903.
16
Ibid., Jan. 9, 1904.
17
Ibid., Mar. 3, 1905.
18 lVoodstock Letters, XXXVI, p. 306.
19
Personal recollections of author.
20
O'Malley, William J., N.S.J., Brochure prepared for anniversary.
21
Minister's Dairy, Mar. 26, 1925.
22
O'Malley, N.S.J., op. cit.
23
Minister's Diary, Aug. 13, 1903.
24
Ibid., Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, 1903.
25
O'Malley, N.S.J., op. cit.
26
Ibid.
27
Minister's Diary, June 6, 1920.
28
Ibid., June 3, 1920.
29
Ibid., June 6, 1920.
30
Ibid., Nov. 19, 1907.
81
Poughkeepsie News-Press, Nov. 20, 1907.
32
Minister's Dairy, Dec. 19, 1905.
33
Ibid., Jan. 22, 1906.
34
Juniors' Diary, July 21, 1903.
35
Novices' Diary, Dec. 5, 1906.
36
Minister's Diary, Mar. 19, 1918.
37
Acta Romana, 1918, p. 607.
88
Minister's Dairy, Jan. 19, 1918.
�196
ST. ANDREW-ON-HUDSON
Ibid., Jan. 22, 1918.
Ibid., Jan. 19, 1918.
n Ibid., Dec. 22, 1917.
42 Ibid., May 16, 1918.
43 Ibid., May 17, 1918.
u Ibid., Feb. 5, 1918.
45 Ibid.
46 Woodstock Letters, Vol. XLVIII, pp. 391-399.
47 Minister's Dairy, April 28, 1924.
4B Personal recolleetion of Father Anthony Keane.
49 Minister's Dairy, May 6, 1927.
5o Ibid., May 6, 1903.
n Juniors' Diary, Jan. 27, 191f:i.
52 Ibid., April 25, 1917.
53 Ibid., Dec. 19, 1929.
54 Minutes of "Sti. Ignatii Societas," October 1909.
55 Brande, N.S.J., op. cit.
56 Province Catalogue 1921 and 1922.
57 Sullivan, Patrick T., N.S.J., Brochure for Anniversary.
5s Woodstock Letters, Vol. L, p. 175.
5Sbls Brother Cummings died on November 14, 1953, at St. Andrew,
after the completion of this article.
59 Invoice files for years indicated.
60 Minister's Dairy, June 30, 1924.
"Newman (the dealer) expects to
get enough from the sale.. of the old Chevrolet and Ford to pay the cost
price of the new wagon. The retail price of the station wagon would
be $734 delivered."
61 Ibid., Nov. 24, 1921.
62Ibid., Nov. 17, 1921.
63 Personal recollection of author.
-·
64 Minister's Diary, July 2, 1906; Juniors' Dairy, July 2, 1906.
65 Minister's Diary, Nov. 25, 1912; Oct. 18, 1921; April 17, 22, 1923.
66 Ibid., Oct. 18, 1932; April 21, 1934.
67 Ibid., March 2, 1924.
6s Ibid., Sept. 9, 1903.
69 Ibid., Nov. 13, 1905; Nov. 20, 1907.
ro Poughkeepsie News-Press, Nov. 20, 1907.
s9
40
*
* *
The Past at Georgetown
Georgetown College dateS' its institution from January 25, 1789, when
the first piece of property was purchased for seventy-five pounds. The
history of Georgetown is not traceable to Bohemia Manor nor to a
school in St. Mary's City, though its inception may be pushed back a
few years earlier to the Reverend John Carroll's idea of a school.
W. C. REPETTI, S.J.
�Traditional privileges and con·
flicting jurisdiction ended with
appointment of India's first
native Cardinal Archbishop.
Why I Resigned the See of Bombay
ARCHBISHOP THOMAS ROBERTS,
S.J.
The substance of this article was recently delivered
as a speech to the Catholic Students Union in Bombay
This meeting offers me the chance of explaining for the first
time the circumstances of what I expected in August, 1948, to
be my final departure. An Archbishop does not usually leave
his diocese by signing on at the docks as one of the crew of an
oil tanker, or boarding a ship completely vague as to his
destination.
What was the point of doing so and what relation had this
departure to His Eminence's presence here tonight as first
Cardinal Archbishop of Bombay?
To answer these questions, I must go back a little. Eleven
years before this, in August, 1937, I was about my lawful
occasions as Rector of St. Francis Xavier's, Liverpool, when
I was rung up one afternoon by the Daily Post and asked for
a statement on my new appointment. I said, "What appointment?"
They said: "Well, you are the new Archbishop of Bombay,
aren't you?"
"Not if I know it. Where did you get the rumour?"
"It isn't a rumour; our evening edition has printed the announcement already, and the authority is a Vatican release to
the British United Press."
So I cabled this news about the news and asked Rome for
comment. It came next day.
Archbishop Goodier
I have had bigger surprises since, but I am not under
anesthetic now and discretion holds me paralysed. My conc~rn is to remind you of the conditions that obtained at the
tune of my appointment.
-
Reprinted from The Catholic Herald, Feb. 12, 1951-
�198
ARCHBISHOP ROBERTS' RESIGNATION
Archbishop Goodier, then living in England, had resigned
the See of Bombay in 1926.
Reasons of health were alleged-as they were to be later
in my own case-but that is a Roman convention due possibly
to the extreme rarity of episcopal resignation.
It was the health of the diocese that was Archbishop
Goodier's concern; he had seen, first as Rector of St. Xavier's
College here, then as Archbishop from 1919, the effects of a
double jurisdiction. That system by which a comparatively
small number of Catholics in a single city were divided between
an Archbishop of Bombay holding not much more than the
title, and a Portuguese Bishop also resident in Bombay, was
itself a compromise designed to settle disputes which had
often brought this part of India very near to schism.
The story of those times as told from documents by Father
Hull in his two-volume Bombay Mission History is not a matter of simply academic interest. I recall it now because you
and I have been and are affected by it here and now.
Bombay History
The overwhelming majority of Catholics in Bombay have
Portuguese names. That is because your ancestors, some
four hundred years ago, received in this part of India, the
Christian faith through priests usually Portuguese, brought
here always by Portuguese ships, dependent on -portuguese
money.
The Portuguese kings who sent them-and also claimed an
admitted monopoly in the matter--could not, of course, as
Catholics, claim to commission them as missionaries. Only
Peter's successors could do that; but since the men sent by
papal authority could not, in fact, function at all in Portu·
guese territory without Portuguese permission and good will,
the relations between the spiritual and temporal powers con·
cerned were regulated by a number of treaties called "con·
cordats."
The right to make such treaties follows necessarily from the
conception admitted by all Christians before the Reformation
of divine authority flowing in two channels, one providing
chiefly for our souls, the other for our bodies.
·
Obviously, two spheres of operation so intimately connected
�ARCHBISHOP ROBERTS' RESIGNATION
199
need co-ordination, definition. That part is not easy. You
may know all about navigation and take your ship successfully
over the stormiest oceans, but when you get into a river liable
to change course every day, to put a sandbank in a channel
where there was none yesterday, you need an experienced
local pilot. Ecclesiastically, Bombay is on a river trickier to
negotiate than even the Ganges.
When the British took over the civil bank of the river from
the Portuguese, the latter still claimed control of the ecclesiastical side.
"Double Jurisdiction"
That is why there have been times when Bombay Catholics
did not know who had lawful jurisdiction in Bombay; then
there was the compromise of "double jurisdiction" with one
Bishop, a Portuguese, and one of any nationality except Portuguese.
Archbishop Goodier's resignation ended-as he meant it to
-that situation, and Portugal was compensated by the right
to have a Portuguese Archbishop in Bombay whenever a
British one died or resigned.
That was the situation when letters and cables from Bombay
began to pour in on me at Liverpool. Only one of them suggested my immediate resignation of the appointment just received. Most of them were generous offers of safe pilotage.
Now it has always seemed to me that one way of understanding a point of view that seems to you strange is to study
on the spot the situation that produces that view, and to listen
carefully to its authorised exponents. That was why I began
my ministry by two weeks spent in Lisbon.
Through the rector of the English College there, and the
British Embassy, I was given access to all the authorities,
from the Prime Minister downwards. The result of this
friendly contact was that I was enabled to ignore the advice
of pilots here who warned me gravely of certain channels
studded with mines. Some of them were swept, others exploded harmlessly.
For example, there was no substance in the belief that
Portugal would always demand, for the sake of prestige, that
her two national parishes in Bombay should retain a vague
�200
ARCHBISHOP ROBERTS' RESIGNATION
undefined jurisdiction all over the city. When I pointed out
to the then Consul General that the effect of such a claim
was to impede the normal delimitations and healthy functioning of some fifty-five parishes, he undertook to secure the
approval of Lisbon, hence of Rome-to the division as you have
it now.
War Time
Big as these storms seemed to us in our Bombay teacups,
they were reduced to their proper proportions when the great
war broke out. My contacts with the British Government as
delegate for the armed forces and quasi-official link with cer·
tain government departments ,gave me a preview of probable
developments.
So, even before the end of the war I went to Europe where
the R.A.F. gave me both access and transport to Rome, still
under military occupation.
There I had an hour with the Holy Father, apprised him
of the facts, proposed to him the appointment of Father
Gracias as Auxiliary Bishop; to him I was authorised to hand
over without prejudice to the final decision of the Holy See,
all my authority over ~the archdiocese.
Meanwhile, an interval would be needed for the revision
of the "Concordat" to enable the Holy Father to appoint not a
Portuguese but an Indian Archbishop. Only the _two parties
to the concordat could rescind or alter it by mutual agreement. Nobody knew whether or when I should be able tore·
sign a title freely disposable by the Pope for an Indian sue·
cessor. Neither in Lisbon nor in Rome is there a cult of speed.
Five and a half years elapsed between the presentation of
my plans and their implementations. Under orders to remain
Archbishop of Bombay, I could not take any permanent po·
sition inconsistent with that office; holding indefinite leave
of absence at my own request, my experiment required :me
to stay out of Bombay.
The time came when living anywhere on land proved more
difficult than living at sea. That is why I signed on for the
first time in an oil-tanker in August, 1948, armed spirituallY
with the Holy Father's blessing on an attempt to visit world
ports in the interest of the Apostleship of the Sea; that the
�ARCHBISHOP ROBERTS' RESIGNATION
201
British Tanker Company and, later, other British companies,
gave me the widest and most generous facilities for free travel
on their ships all over the world is proof that the "Catholic
State" is not the only pattern of co-operation. Neither did
these companies ask of the Church any return. There were
"no strings" to their aid.
And this leads me to a little grandfatherly-your father
being His Eminence-advice, with your permission.
Catholics Today
A small minority in a secular State, you are liable to view
as a heavy liability the Christian allegiance once presented as
an asset-yes, even a worldly asset-to your ancestors. The
association of the Church in the past with a Christian nonIndian State, the benefits and privileges so conferred are alive
in the memory of your non-Christian rulers, not always to
your advantage.
You may not find it easy to explain, still less justify, events
of the past in a new context contrasting violently with the old.
The most intelligent and educated Catholic may fail in that
endeavour, through no fault of his own.
May we not at this juncture "forget" with St. Paul "the
things that are behind and stretch ourselves forward to the
prize of our Christian vocation?"
More today than ever before in history has the Christian
become champion of fundamental human rights. Formulated
in your Indian Constitutions, there is rooted in reason and
conscience, the patrimony you share with Hindu, Muslim and
Parsee.
Yours peculiarly is the Christian heritage of the inspired
learning that defined those rights; yours the experience of
two thousand years of strug,gle to defend them; yours the
sacred duty of witnessing by your lives to your faith in these
values.
Concretely, your national leaders appeal passionately today
for discipline; for honesty in government and business; for
Patriotism proved by deeds .
. India's need is the Christian's opportunity. It is by showIng good deeds as a light that our Master will have us glorify
our Father Who is in Heaven.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
EARLY AMERICAN MISSIONARIES
Some time ago there appeared in the Catholic papers a
charmingly written article on our foreign missions telling of
the wonderful achievement of American missionaries in the
past several decades. Unfortunately, there crept into the story
one brief line that was not in harmony with the facts. It was
stated that at the beginning of this century American-born
missionaries did not eixst. ·,It would have been nearer the
truth if it had said that ~there were American-born missionaries before there was a United States.
Since it is an historian's duty, they insist, to keep the record
straight, let me first name some American-born missionaries
of whose American birth and of whose missionary careers before the year 1900 I can personally vouch. I was intimately
associated with Maurice Sullivan, William Stanton, William L.
Hornsby, Henry B. Judge, Francis Barnum, William Wallace,
all priests of the Society of Jesus, and Bishop John J. Collins
of the same Society. Maurice Sullivan, S.J., born in Michigan, died before 1900,
in Belgaum, in the East Indies.
William Stanton, S.J., whose life is written by Father William Kane, learned Spanish in Central America, wliich acquisition fitted him for labor in the Philippines when those islands
came under the American flag. He was a native of Stanton, III.
William Hornsby, S.J., a native of St. Louis, whose ancestors
were in America contemporary with those of George Washington, was a missionary in China during the Spanish-American
War. He went as chaplain in Dewey's fleet to the battle at
Manila Bay.
The Judge family, of which Father Judge, S.J., was a mem·
ber, is numerous in St. Louis; he, however, was a Marylander,
and a pioneer in Alaska, where he died in Dawson City, when
that place was under the U. S. government. It was later
found to be in Canada.
Francis Barnum, S.J., was in Alaska about the same time,
but was transferred later to Jamaica to join the Eastern
Province Jesuits who had been working there before the be-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
203
ginning of the century. Jesuits of the Western Province were
missionaries in British Honduras.
William Wallace, S.J., born in or near Milwaukee, was superior of these Missouri Jesuits in British Honduras.
John J. Collins, S.J., was in Jamaica, soon to be the first
American bishop there. He was a native of Kentucky, but
belonged to the Eastern (Maryland) Province.
These are only some Jesuits with whom I was acquainted
intimately. The American-born Jesuit foreign missionary history certainly goes back to the time when the future Archbishop Leonard Neale of Baltimore was wading through the
jungles of British Guiana in South America. He returned,
broken in health, to his native Maryland about the time Washington was being inaugurated the first president of the United
States.
Enough has been said about the Jesuits as missionaries
before the beginning of the century. Perhaps as much might
be added about various other Orders, particularly the Franciscans. Mention must be made of Father James Kent
Stone, the Passionist, a native of Boston, graduate of
Harvard and president of Hobart College in Ohio before his
conversion to Catholicity. Few ecclesiastics were better known
at the turn of the century than the author of The Invitation
Heeded by Father Fidelis, his name in his Order. About 1880
he was conducting notable missionary works in Argentina and
a little later in Chile.
Catholic women, American-born, were not unknown in the
mission field before 1900. The two Jesuit Fathers, Boudreaux,
were proud of their little sister, a Religious of the Sacred
Heart, who was among those missioned to New Zealand in the
early SO's. She was a native of Louisiana.
These random items indicate sufficiently, I imagine, that
the statement which declared at the beginning of the century
that American-born missionaries did not exist was out of
harmony with the facts. The enemies of God are so many and
so fierce in the missionary fields that one cannot but rejoice at
the astounding achievements of recent years. At the same
time the achievements of earlier American trail·blazers should
not be forgotten.
LAURENCE J. KENNY, S.J.
�OBITUARY
FATHERJAMESJ.DALY
1872-1953
A surprise it must have been to many younger American
Jesuits to hear of the death at the University of Detroit, August 17, 1953, of Father James J. Daly. He had lived so
quietly on the margins of Jesuit activity for so many years
that many scarcely thought .of him as still belonging to the
"gallery of living authors." ~·'
Never having had more tha-n slight reserves of strength, the
quiet life had been his necessary portion. Throughout almost
the whole of life his guard was up, warding off threatening ill
health. The effort was reasonably successful. He finally died
with all preparations, of mere shortness of breath, aged eightyone, sixty-three years a Jesuit.
Early Life and Training
Father Daly was a -product of Holy Family Parish, born
there in 1872, almost literally among the ashes of the great
Chicago fire. Passing from parish school to St. Ignatius High
School and College, he showed himself a devoted stu.dent and
lover of the classics both ancient and English. He-there laid
the foundations of that culture and chaste English style that
eventually won him a reputation as a stylist of impeccable
taste.
Despite his delicate health, his scholastic years were not
without some physical achievements. In his old age he used
to speak at times of the baseball triumphs of the scholastics
over the town teams at the summer villas. His biggest moment came when he knocked a three-bagger in one of those
games off a pitcher from a Big Ten university. When slender
Jimmy Daly pulled up at third, the surprised pitcher looked
over in silence a moment1 then inquired, "Young fellow, what
did you eat for breakfast?"
His course of Jesuit studies was that customary in the Missouri Province of his day-Florissant and St. Louis, tertianship also being made at Florissant; much later he was given
�-
FATHER JAMES J. DALY
��OBITUARY
205
a year of study and travel in Europe. The first two years of
his regency were spent at St. Mary's College, Kansas, where
he made its literary magazine, the Dial, outstanding in collegiate circles.
Recalled to St. Louis University, he was again for three
years in charge of the literary magazine, the Fleur-de-Lis.
He remained in St. Louis for his theology and ordination.
His first two years of teaching as priest were at St. Xavier
University, Cincinnati.
In 1909 Father Daly joined Father John Wynne and associates in launching America, Father Daly being literary editor.
He ever afterward expressed high admiration for the power
and initiative of Father Wynne. That the admiration was
mutual was shown by Father Wynne's never forgotten lament
at the recall of Father Daly after a scant two years, to Campion College. "The greatest loss America ever suffered," said
Father Wynne, "was the severance of James J. Daly from its
list of editors. His literary column was more than enough to
make a reputation for the Review."
In the Classroom
Of Father Daly the college teacher we have an affectionate
picture drawn for the Chicago Province Jesuit Bulletin by one
of his old students, describing him as he appeared a few years
after his return from the editorial board of America. This is
from the pen of Clement J. Freund, for many years the distinguished dean of the College of Engineering of the University of Detroit.
On a cool and sunny September afternoon in 1913,
some thirty of us freshmen waited in a classroom for the
opening of the semester's English course. There was no
horseplay; the spell of the professor's fame was already
upon us. He was reputed to be of the literati, and to
write articles and poems for the New York Times and the
Literary Digest.
In the meantime, a slender man, with his biretta on the
back of his head, was slowly walking across the grounds
from ancient Kostka Hall, the Jesuit residence. He
clasped two armfuls of books in front of him and wore a
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OBITUARY
black overcoat about his shoulders with the sleeves flying
in the wind.
He paused at the door of the classroom and looked us
over. The look was kindly but each of us immediately
understood who was to be boss in the place. He knelt on
the platform to pray briefly in an undertone, crossed himself, dumped the books on the desk, sat in the chair, pulled
the chair up until the back of it crushed him against the
desk, drew his overcoat up around his neck, and proceeded
to prove to the thirty of us that he was a great teacher.
We were ordinary boys, slipshod, lazy, and indifferent,
but before long he succeeded in putting us to work. More
than that, he made us like work. We explored Shakespeare, Milton, Pope, Addison, Burke. Gradually we
learned to write clearly, and that done, acquired at least
the rudiments of style. But Newman was the climax. In
our senior year we analyzed and argued about every paragraph, every sentence in the Idea of a University.
The Teacher and Friend
Father Daly's teaching of English literature was not
the deadly, critical, specialized sort of thing which modern
scholarship too frequently inflicts upon American undergraduates. He flavored ideas and arguments_.with colorful and convincing references and illustrations: His resources were boundless: Elizabeth's London, and Hamilton's New York; Cape Town, Singapore and Vladivostok.
He drew upon the great authorities of other years and
ages, and so graphic were his anecdotes and quotations
that Ruskin, Gladstone, Jefferson, Lee, Pitt came to life
again in their cutaway coats or velvet suits or ruffled
shirts. The stalwarts of our time he introduced to us in
the flesh, and James Walsh, Father Finn, T. A. Daly,
Joyce Kilmer and others visited the class and either spoke
to us or, to our immense delight, sat with us and recited
and took part in the discussions.
There was a trace of languor in Father Daly's actions.
He always sat, and gestured only with his forearms. But
there was nothing languid about the vast power of his
speech, derived from wide range of inflection, crisp enun-
�OBITUARY
207
ciation, dramatic facial expression, overwhelming conviction, superior knowledge of his subject matter and, most
of all, his astonishing knack of making each of us feel
that he was speaking principally to him.
Whenever the trend of his discourse permitted, he inserted pithy and epigrammatic advice:
"Pray for common sense if you can't think of anything
else to pray for."
"You don't have to be a drunkard to kill yourself by
drinking."
"It is dangerous to be too bright; you get into the habit
of taking it easy."
Discipline was never a problem; our work was too fascinating. When, very occasionally, some hapless lad ventured a remark inspired by flippancy or folly, correction
was instantaneous and a masterpiece. And the gleeful
sympathy of his classmates was always against the culprit.
Father Daly's teaching reached beyond the confines of
the classroom. In his own room, in the library, even on
campus benches, he conferred at great length with the
students harassed by debate assignments, stories for publication in the college magazines, theses, or the fearful
oral examinations. During these interviews the student
and his· problem completely absorbed him, and had the
Pope himself joined them, I fear he might have finished
what he was saying to the boy before turning to greet the
illustrious arrival.
Very quickly he became our close friend and companion,
and on a "free" afternoon in spring or autumn, arrayed
in suitable sweaters and high shoes, he would join a dozen
of us and tramp along the lanes or over the hills and
through the forests, miles from the college.
The friendships lasted. Until advancing age prevented,
he kept in touch with the boys, visited them, married
them, and blessed their homes.
He was always extremely modest. Although he had
many distinguished friends, he never sought out the lion
in a company, the bishop, statesman, scholar, artist, author or hero; you could find him in a corner somewhere,
conversing with the obscure and the humble.
�208
OBITUARY
After nine years at Campion, Father Daly became associate
editor with Father Garesche on The Queen's Work, St. Louis.
In 1927 he was teaching again at St. Louis University; then
on to the University of Detroit in 1931 where he finally left
the classroom in 1940. During the thirteen years ending in
1939 he was literary editor of Thought, begun as an adjunct
of America, but later taken over by Fordham University.
Writer and Works
The bound writings of Father Daly comprise a scant six
volumes, beginning with his St. John Berchmans. He contributed a lengthy paper on ·~'Catholic Contributions to American Prose" to the five-volume Catholic Builders of the Nation.
The Jesuit in Focus was his offering to the celebration of the
four hundredth anniversary of the Society. His Memoir of
Nicholas Brady he wrote by request in tribute to that great
benefactor of the Maryland-New York Province.
But biographical and historical writings were not his forte.
His best works were The Cheerful Ascetic and The Road to
Peace. In those volumes he shows a style and a breadth of
culture that would ha~e won distinction at Newman's Oxford.
The essay form gave him the opportunity for the expression of
the slowly ripened wisdom of the quiet mind.
His was always the quiet way. Of him with proper measure
can be used the words he himself wrote of the Incarnate Word:
"It was not His way to organize enthusiasms on a huge scale
with the aid of posters and music and committees for the purpose of swinging sentiment and converting nations wholesale.
It was characteristic of Him while He walked among men
to win back errant love by individual approaches." But gentle
as was his voice, it will not soon lose its charm wherever the
"eternal fitness of things" is appreciated in the English speak·
ing world.
Father Daly's only published volume of poetry is Boscobel
and Other Rimes. Its one sustained number, "The Grand Review," describes the fimil triumphant march of the saints led by
the King of Kings. In God's scattered acres he pictures:
Some orient morn their hushed communities
Will hear the rising bell: and they shall rise,
And know . . . the tumultuous thrill
l
�In 1916 Kilmer Visited Father Daly at Campion. Two years later he died in France, a
hero. At Campion in 1937 the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Library was Dedicated.
They loved the simple things of life
and sang of them sweetly-KHmer of
"Trees" and Father Daly of the little
town with the musical name of "Boscobel." Friendship between them began
in· 1912. Correspondence increased and
occasioned their first meeting at Campion, Prairie du Chien, Wis. A year
later the young litterateur and his wife,
Aline, entered the Catholic Church.
Sr. Mary Michael, O.S.B., Daughter of Kilmer, Visits Father Daly in his Declining Years
�--
�209
OBITUARY
Of glorious legions, swinging in review
Down golden pavements on God's holy Hill.
Generous Personality
Friendship was another of Father Daly's gifts. Joyce Kilmer's interest in Campion dates from the time that Father
Daly lived there. If he received inspiration from names
greater than his own in the literary world, he gave no less than
he received, as his correspondence with Louise Imogen Guiney
attests.
What is particularly remarkable about Father Daly's
achievements is that they were accomplished without benefit
of special courses, credits, and degrees. The scholastic of his
day had to rely on his own enthusiasm and initiative to make
his way; the fact that Father Daly could cultivate so faultless
a taste for what was right and good in prose and poetry and
so sound a knowledge of the whole of English literature is a
great testimonial to his natural talent.
The familiarity he shows in all fields of writing must have
been acquired only at the cost of great effort, an effort which
speaks volumes for the zeal and industry with which he carried on in spite of delicate health.
Father Daly wrote too little to satisfy the discerning, but he
never wrote a line that he need wish blotted out. Nor do those
who lived with him during what he called "the old years, the
grey years, with their dull time and their sick time," recall
his having spoken a single word that had better have remained
unsaid. It was not that with the years his words too had mellowed. Father Daly never seemed to know any other than
mellow words. He lived all his days in that "stillness of mind
in which the perception of beauty and harmony and fitness can
grow up." Ever mindful, as he himself put it, of "the memento
mori of the falling leaf," he lived with mildness and without
offense. Now he himself moves into line for the Grand Review; on his white charger, well forward in the ranks of the
sons of Ignatius. Those who know him best can hear his quiet
chuckle as he reflects, "Imagine seeing Jimmy Daly here!"
JOHN
E.
COOGAN, S.J.
�210
OBITUARY
BROTHER PETER WILHALM, S.J.
1885-1954
On Friday evening, January 29, God called to its everlasting
reward the great soul of Brother Peter Wilhalm of the Society
of Jesus. For nearly five years Brother had waged a courage.
ous battle against cancer, a battle fought with an ever present
wit and sense of humor, and a battle which brought into clear
relief the unmistakable holiness of this humble Jesuit Brother.
Born on June 29, 1885, at Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Peter
Wilhalm spent his boyhood and youth on the family homestead
near Jackson, Minnesota. ~Shortly after the turn of the century he and his older brother, Edward, emigrated to the
Pacific Northwest to seek their fortunes on wheat farms in
the rich-soiled Big Bend country of Washington's Inland
Empire. When Edward married, Peter, undecided about the
future, came to Spokane where he worked for the sisters of
several religious orders. A sister at Holy N arne Convent
observing his quiet and steady piety suggested that he talk to
the Jesuit Fathers at Gonzaga College about the Jesuit
Brother's vocation. After a conference there was no longer
any doubt about his future and he was received into the Society
of Jesus on the nineteenth of January, 1909, at St. Regis
Mission, Colville, Washington.
The young novice Brother was sent to Sacred Heart Novitiate, Los Gatos, California, and two years later on February 2,
1911, Peter Wilhalm consecrated himself to God forever in the
Society of Jesus. He returned to the Northwest immediately
and served in Montana at St. Ignatius and St. Paul Missions
and at the parish in Missoula. The year 1916 found him a
member of the community at Seattle college in the city known
as the Gateway to Alaska, that fabulous and rugged expanse
which had been a United States possession for nearly fiftY
years. Later that same year a letter came from Father Provincial instructing him to proceed to the Alaska Mission. As
the steamer plowed its way through the gray and icy North
Pacific the little Jesuit Brother rubbed shoulders with men of
all descriptions who had but one ambition, to get rich quick in
Alaska's incredible gold mines or prolific fishing industrY·
For 32 Years in the Cold Alaskan North Bro.
Wilhalm's Talents Worked for God's Glory
Jt
���OBITUARY
211
Peter Wilhalm, S.J., was not going to Alaska to take his bit
of her extravagant wealth; no, Alaska was to receive the
prayer, patience, and sweat of the next thirty-two years of
his life.
Alaskan Missioner
Fairbanks, a bustling little boom town on the Tanana River,
was his first station where he assisted Father Francis Monroe.
There he remained until 1920 when he was called hundreds of
miles west to the new missions at Hot Springs and Pilgrim
Springs, seventy-five miles north of Nome.
The best description of the labors that took up the next
twenty-nine years can be found in the province catalogues for
those years. After Peter Wilhalm's name are two little words
with big meanings, ad omnia, which mean that no task was
too large or too small. Father Hubert Post, the superior of
the mission, soon found Brother Wilhalm to be an indefatigable worker who utterly scorned a minute's idlness. During
the summers he and Brother Hansen cultivated a large vegetable garden and supervised the catching and storing of the
fish supply for the winter; they cut and stacked wood to fight
the freezing, fierce Arctic wind. An air strip was constructed
and the heating plant was given constant care. All of this
work was absolutely necessary that God's little Arctic mission could continue in operation. Many were the summer
nights that he could be found working at midnight,
unaware of the time because of the long hours of daylight.
And when the bitter cold of winter kept all inside, Brother
would busy himself with carpentry and improving the heating
system. Upon Brother Wilhalm fell the task of recovering the
frozen body of Father Frederick Ruppert, S.J., who died trying
to bring a crate of oranges to the children for Christmas.
The mission finally had to be closed down in 1941 and
Brother Wilhalm was transferred to St. Mary's Mission at
Akulurak on the delta of the Yukon River. St. Mary's was a
larger mission and Brother gave himself to his work as tirelessly as he had at Pilgrim Springs. The rigor of thirty years
of hard work began to tell on his robust frame and in 1947
Brother Wilhalm returned to Fairbanks where he spent the
last two years of his long stay in the North.
�212
OBITUARY
In the summer of 1949, because his health continued to fail,
Father Small, the Provincial, thought it best that Brother
return to the States for treatment. Brother had spent thirty.
two years in the land of the midnight sun; he had weathered
storms on the Bering Sea and had traveled far across the
desolate tundra; the magnificent aurora borealis and arctic
sunsets never ceased to thrill him. There he left his heart
as he boarded the airliner that would hurdle in a few hours
the Gulf of Alaska which had required days to cross by boat
three decades before.
Patient Sufferer
Now came the greatest task that God was to ask of him,
for cancer was the verdict of the doctors in Spokane. Almost
five years remained and during this time he underwent with
remarkable patience and courage numerous operations and
constant treatment. As he had always done, so at Mt. St.
Michael's, he still worked with all the strength he had. His
vegetable garden made considerable savings in the house grocery bill; the fascinating stories of experiences in Alaska,
made the more delightful by his clever wit, thrilled the young
scholastics; his prayers and sufferings, offered always with
complete submission, constituted a treasure known to God
alone.
_:
In October of last year the physician broke the news to him
that further treatment would be of no avail. Henceforth
Brother's prayer was that God would come and take him
quickly to heaven, but three months remained during which
he grew steadily worse. Then, in the middle of January he
was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital where on the evening of
the twenty-ninth after a final agony he became very peaceful
and breathed forth his soul.
On a cold cemetery tombstone are recorded the simple facts
of Brother Peter Wilhalm's life, his birth, entrance into the
Society and death, but inscribed in the hearts of all who knew
him is the enviable, forty-five year record of consecrated devo·
tion to work, fidelity to rules and vows, and a deep, personal
love of God.
WILLIAM C. DIBB, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
EPISTEMOLOGY TEXT
The Philosophy of Human Knowing. By Joseph D. Hassett, S.J., Robert
A. Mitchell, S.J., and J. Donald Monan, S.J. Westminster, Newman
Press, 1953. Pp. viii-174. $3.00.
This book is a lucid, simple, very readable text-book of epistemology
for the undergraduate. The style is concrete and down-to-earth, the
pupil is never forgotten. Despite the triple authorship the work is a
remarkably unified and objective whole.
The book first gets the student to wonder about human knowledge by
raising the questions: "How can man justify the fact that, under proper
circumstances, he knows some truths with certitude; how can man
recognize the norm for true and certain knowledge; what are the sources
of error; what are the limits and weaknesses of man's knowing faculties?" (p. 10). It is quite clear, throughout, that the critical question
cannot be "an inquiry into the possibility of true human knowledge"
(p. 159). The basic position of the authors with respect to the questions
they do raise seems to be that of Fr. Boyer, with generous approval,
however, of that of Gilson.
Chapters two, three and four are negative, showing the impossibility
of holding (1) the position of complete scepticism, (2) the position of
those who would deny the basic validity of sense knowledge, and (3) the
position of those who would deny the validity of all but sense knowledge.
Chapter five is the high-point of the book, showing that though we
do not demonstrate, we do justify, by reflection and analysis, the
validity of our acts of knowing.
Next follows a chapter of applications, "Human Problems", with
a section on first principles; a section on the degrees of certitude; a
section on testimonial, historical and statistical certitude, concluding
with a neat discussion of certitude from the convergence of probabilities;
an unusually helpful section on speculative and practical judgments;
and a final section on deduction and induction.
Chapter seven discusses the various sources of error, while the concluding chapter ventures to summarize the book with a definition of
epistemology as: "a philosophical investigation into true and certain
human knowledge, through reflection and analysis, in order to make
explicit the criterion of true and certain human judgments; and to
analyze the motives, limits and conditions of various types of human
knowing" (p. 163).
. The whole is an orderly and progressive structure and, besides fulfillIng its avowed aim, will be of service for integrating epistemology with
llletaphysics (section on first principles), with psychology (sections
against sensism), and even with ethics (section on speculative and practical judgments). Integration with theodicy might find an obstacle in
801lle of the vari;mt formulas given to the principle of causality (pp. 54,
�214
BOOK REVIEWS
91, 95, 96). At least, a pupil who equates "contingent being" with "a
being that begins to be", may fail to appreciate the irrelevancy, in a
proof for God's existence, of the possibility of an eternal world.
Explicit discussion of historical aspects of the various problems are
deliberately omitted (imagine! a whole book of epistemology without the
name of Kant so much as once appearing!) However the readings suggested at the end of most of the sections supply for these omissions.
These references should be readily available in any Catholic college
library. A few, however, are to works in foreign language and will
scarcely help the average student. References, say, to Brother Benignus'
Nature, Knowledge and God, could have been helpfully substituted for
the foreign titles. On p. 85, the authors could have pointed out that the
French article of Fr. Boyer to_ which reference is made, appears in
English as the Appendix of the' English translation of Fr. Hoenen's
Reality and Judgment.
A most unfortunately-worded sentence appears on p. 71: ((The adop·
tion of the position of the complete sceptic)) " •.• has always been,
and must always be, both the initial and closing chapter of all epistemology."
ARNOLD J. BENEDETTO, S.J.
COLLEGE RELIGION
Christ Our High Priest. ~By John J. Fernan, S.J.
College, 1953. Pp. xiv-284.
Syracuse, Le Moyne
This is the second in a series of four volumes comprising the course
in College Religion at Le Moyne College. As in the case of Volume I,
Christ as Prophet and King, the author acknowledges his indebtedness
for outline and inspiration to Father John Courtney Murray, S.J., as
well as to the various members of the Conferences on College Religion
which have been held during the past years in the New York and
Maryland Provinces.
In a fine preface Father Fernan declares that the aim of the College
Religion Course "is to help the student come into a vision of his
Christian faith as a whole, wherein all the parts are organically related,
and are referred to one common center, the living figure of Christ."
Briefly, the basic elements of the course are: The Life of Christ,
Christ's Life in the Church, Christ's Life in the Member of the Church,
and Asceticism. The present volume, designed for Sophomore Year,
begins with an historical study of Christ's Passion, Death, and Resur·
rection. The question concerning the precise significance of this historical
account finds its answer in. the doctrinal synthesis which follows, em·
bracing man's original justice, fall, redemption, and rebirth through
Christ into his original heritage. From a study of these doctrines there
will issue a fuller realization of the mystery of Christ.
Relying heavily on Scripture, the author follows the psychologic~!
and historical method of presentation: the redemption of mankind IS
�215
BOOK REVIEWS
dramatized through an analysis of the liturgy of Baptism; the Priesthood of Christ is viewed through the eyes of St. Paul in the Epistle to
the Hebrews; finally, the sacrifice of the Church is presented through
a study of the Mass and its liturgy.
Should the Life of Christ be presented in its entirety in Freshman
Year; what place does Moral Theology have in the Religion Course?
Whatever be the answers to these and other controversial questions
concerning the content of a College Religion Course, there is, in the case
of the present volume, no obscurity about the general and specialized
objectives to be achieved; and this clarity of purpose throughout the
text affords the student-and the teacher-opportunity for constant
reorientation. The clarity is further implemented by the format, subbeadings, and a comprehensive index.
It has been maintained that if the college textbooks are solid and
scholarly, the student will be much more likely to keep them as a part
of his permanent library, to refer to them in the future, and even to read
them again when he is more mature. Christ Our High Priest is such a
text-book. Perhaps the inclusion in a later edition of a bibliography of
standard reference works would enhance its permanent value.
EDWIN
H. CONVEY, S. J.
LITERARY CRITICISM
Norms for the Novel. By Harold C. Gardiner, S.J.
America Press, 1953. Pp. ix-180. $2.00.
New York, The
This is not a new book, but a revised and enlarged edition of the
widely read pamphlet, Tenets for Readers and Reviewers, which was
itself a development of several articles published in America in 1943.
Those original articles, many will recall, were occasioned by an adverse
reaction to Fr. Gardiner's estimate of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn as a
"classic". It is to Fr. Gardiner's credit that he raised the level of
discussion above the particular criticisms leveled at Betty Smith's sentimental novel of light and shadow in a city slum (no strict "'classic", to
he sure, but still less a corrupter of public morals), and focused his
attention on the broader question at stake: to what extent should a
Catholic's moral principles enter into his evaluation of a piece of art?
Through the years Fr. Gardiner has mulled over the answer he gave
at that time, developing a thought here, appraising a more recent
~ovel there; the result is in every respect worthy of the permanent
ook form in which it now appears.
The semi-inductive, tentative method of literary appraisal, the
~ethod of Aristotle's Poetics, is employed throughout. In this method
hes both the strength and the weakness of Norms for the Novel. On the
one hand, Fr. Gardiner's conclusions, emerging from and tested upon
several dozen best-sellers of our time, are far more convincing and digestible than would be a collection of a priori dictums. And no one will
�216
BOOK REVIEWS
deny that the balance, taste, and sense of fair play demanded by such
a method are possessed by Fr. Gardiner in an eminent degree. On the
other hand, however, one fears that in too short a time this study will
be dated; for while Aristotle had a Sophocles and a Euripides to provide his models, Fr. Gardiner is perforce enmeshed in a group of novels
few of which are likely to be remembered in another decade.
Perhaps, however, this drawback is not too great. Fr. Gardiner's
"mission" (if the word is not too strong) has been to call a halt to
narrow puritanism in Catholic literary criticism and remind American
Catholics of some forgotten principles of literature and morality. Few
will doubt that in recent years Catholic readers have grown more mature in their approach to this problem and Catholic teachers more conscious of their responsibilities .. It is, indeed, quite possible that in
another decade there will be little need for Norms for the Novel, for
the problem it sets itself to solve ·will be behind us and another problem
-that of Catholic literary creativity in America-will be in the forefront.
If, then, Norms for the Novel does soon go out of date, if even now
many of its pages seem like a dreary rehearsal of a battle already won,
let us remember that no small credit for the victory should go to Fr.
Gardiner. His courtesy in controversy and persistence in drawing a
point to its logical conclusion have done much to call a halt to a quarrel
that never should have started among the spiritual descendants of Geoffrey Chaucer and Thomas More.
JOSEPH LANDY, S.J.
HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY
A History of Philosophy, Vol. III, Ockharn to Suarez. By Frederick
Copleston, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. ix-479. $5.00.
The philosophical developments which took place in the three cen·
turies dividing Duns Scotus from Descartes are of crucial importance
in the history of modern thought. In the fourteenth century northern
Europe was swept by a nominalistic trend which went far to pave
the way for the Fideism of a Luther or the Empiricism of a Locke. Italy,
during the Renaissance, was the cradle of a naturalism which was to
mature into modern secularistic humanism. Finally, in the sixteenth
century, under the leadership of Catholic Spain, scholasticism re·
emerged as a fully systematic philosophy, in a form in which it could
no longer be taken for a mere footnote to Aristotle or a mere prenote
to sacred theology.
These three great movements furnish the subject-matter for the three
parts of Father Copleston's latest volume. With his genius for s~·
thesis, he has exhibited the main lines of development without art!·
ficially forcing the thinkers of the age into an a priori pattern. In the
first section of the book he shows how the metaphysical principles which
had been taken for granted in the thirteenth century were subjected to
�BOOK REVIEWS
217
a severe logical critique by the Ockhamists. Ockham, he maintains, was
primarily concerned with vindicating the liberty and omnipotence of
God; but in his preoccupation with these attributes he was led to deny
the reality of the divine ideas, and consequently found it difficult, if not
impossible, to admit the necessary character of the natural law or the objective validity of universal concepts. While he succeeds brilliantly in
expounding the voluntarism of Ockham, Father Copleston's treatment
of terminism is somewhat disappointing. One would wish, for example,
that he had indicated the precise points wherein terminism differs from
moderate realism, and where Ockham's theory of suppositio departs from
that of the Thomists. His reluctance to dilate upon these points may ·
be due to the unavailability of satisfactory texts of many of Ockham's
works-a lacuna to which he calls attention.
In the remaining chapters on the via moderna (the more ancient and
suitable designation for what is commonly called Ockhamism), Father
Copleston gives an enlightening survey of Nicholas of Autrecourt's
critique of metaphysical knowledge, the scientific conjectures of
Nicholas of Oresme and John Buridan, the secularist pamphleteering of
Marsilius of Padua, and the theological speculations of the fourteenthcentury German mystics.
The second portion of the volume deals with the non-scholastic
philosophy of the Renaissance. After two preliminary chapters on the
Italian Platonists and Aristotelians, there follows a more detailed account of the philosophies of nature propounded by Nicholas of Cusa,
Telesio, Campanella, Bruno, Boehme, and others. This portion of the
history concludes with three eminently wise and balanced chapters dealing, respectively, with the scientific movement of the Renaissance (including the Galileo controversy), Francis Bacon (with special emphasis on his theory of the sciences), and the Renaissance political
philosophers (Machiavelli, Hooker, Bodin, Grotius, etc.).
In the final hundred pages Father Copleston indicates the main
features of the scholastic revival. Although he deals adequately (considering the limitations of space) with the controversy about grace and
free-will and with the political speculations of Mariana, Vitoria, and
others, he devotes scant attention to other aspects of sixteenth-century
scholasticism. His treatment of the great Dominican commentators on
St. Thomas seems unduly brief, but perhaps he will have more to say
about John of St. Thomas in the next volume of the series. As for
Cajetan, Father Copleston would lead one to believe that he contributed
very little other than an ingenious, yet totally indefensible, doctrine of
analogy, Perhaps Father Copleston is repelled by the partisan spirit
With which some modern Thomists have adhered to the letter of
Cajetan.
In his treatment of Suarez, on the other hand, Father Copleston is
able to give full scope to his sympathy for a mind which was deliberately, in some sense, eclectic. He presents a valuable, if somewhat
dry and mechanical, precis of the Disputationes Metaphysicae and the
De Legibus. Stressing the points of agreement between Suarez and St.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Thomas, Father Copleston declines to express a preference between them
on those questions (such as the principle of individuation and the
distinction between essence and existence) which, as he acknowledges,
they answered in opposite ways. He also makes it clear that he finds
no justification for the charge of "essentialism" which has been leveled
against Suarez by some contemporary Thomists.
By and large, the present volume has the merits of its predecessorsmeticulous scholarship, synthetic power, balance of emphasis, and
breadth of appreciation. The style is clear, flexible, and interesting,
though at times more informal than seems appropriate for a history
which is, in many ways, monumental. Often enough the author makes
no effort to disguise the fact that he is setting forth his own personal,
and indeed tentative, opinions. In the concluding review with which
he closes the present volume, he mentions various after-thoughts which
he would incorporate into the first two volumes if, as he explains, he
were to rewrite them.
Such humility, in a historian, is refreshing. Especially in view of the
subject matter of the present volume, it is not without justification.
The period is too complex, and as yet too little understood, for a single
scholar to reduce it to a final synthesis. Without presenting a definitive
history, Father Copleston has done all that one can reasonably ask. He
has given a more complete and reliable account of the entire panorama
than is currently available, I believe, in any language. For those desirous of further study he has provided helpful bibliographies for each
chapter. The present volume, then, may be warmly recommended not
merely for those academically concerned with the history of philosophy,
but for anyone aspiring to a clearer insight into the process by which
the European mind cast off the tutelage of the medieval doctors.
Jesuits, particularly, will appreciate this volume because of. the light
which it sheds on the efforts of the early Society to re'litalize the
scholastic tradition.
AVERY R. DULLES, S.J.
PRACTICAL APOLOGETICS
The Hidden Stream. By Ronald A. Knox.
1953. Pp. vi-248. $3.00.
New York, Sheed & Ward,
Delightful! Intriguing! Stimulating! These are the qualities of Msgr.
Knox's lectures on apologetics given at Oxford in recent (the last 12)
years. He has salvaged, as he puts it, these studies which range from
the nature of religion and the necessity of revelation through the proof
of Christ's divinity to the proplems of faith, marriage, and divorce.
The book is delightful because it is rich in humane and humanistic insight into man's nature, his problems, and his efforts at solving those
problems. There are broad vistas of human history from Adam through
Aristotle to Aldous Huxley to make his audience aware of the reality of
God. There is a splendid chapter on the preparatio evangelica which
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BOOK REVIEWS
reaches the broad scope of the whole of human history and leads into
that special and most extraordinary segment of man's story, the Jewish
people and the messianic hope. Here the author insists on the importance
of the Old Testament prophecies without which the Bible is a mutilated
story.
It is intriguing because there is ever before the reader the hidden
pathway to a new vision, the ripe and tender leading of a truly intricate
mind. He can integrate Columbus's discovery of America with Luther's
revolt against man's goodness and Descartes's isolated idealism; demonstrate their influence on the divorce between philosophy and theology.
He can show the integration of the two in his excellent study on the
Christology of St. Paul-a really brilliant chapter.
It is stimulating because it challenges. And the challenge is to the
emotions as well as to the mind. There is an effort at reaching man in
his totality-not as a separated substance or as a bundle of nervous
ganglia. This total approach to his listeners makes Msgr. Knox's words
intoxicating. They goad to thought and to warmth. They might even
lead one into the "hidden stream" where he will find freedom from
negation and despair. For it is his intense conviction that not all the
philosophies of Oxford are cloaked in despair and negation. Oxford,
like the world, is also fed with the secret streams of God, Christ, the
Church, the Sacraments. The reasonableness of the Faith is marvelously shown in the witness of the New Testament through the claims and
miracles of Christ. And the Roman Catholic Church is vindicated through
the marks which Christ stamped upon His Church.
JAMES T. GRIFFIN, S.J.
MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY
The Story of Marquette University. By Raphael N. Hamilton. Milwaukee, Marquette University Press, 1953. Pp. xii-434. $6.00.
Father Hamilton's impressive history of Marquette University deserves a place in the libraries of all of Our houses. It should provide a
source of inspiration and encouragement to Ours, whether working in
the educational field or not, because of the universal qualities which the
author has imparted to this account of a particular school. As drawn in
this study, the initial undertaking of Marquette University resembles
other tasks that have been entrusted time after time in every period and
in every Province to courageous Jesuit pioneers.
To begin with, the physical aspect of this book is pleasing. It is
large and well printed; a colorful perspective sketch of the Marquette
campus and surrounding Milwaukee is supplied as a dust-jacket for the
hook, and is well-worth preserving for its own sake. The end-papers
form a helpful map of the entire city, with points of interest to the
University marked out. Sixteen pages of photographs preserve for
Posterity early pictures of the buildings, and depict some of the latest
Projects under way. The index, which occupies thirty-four double-
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BOOK REVIEWS
column pages, makes the book an instrument of easy reference for
dates, names, and accounts of historical importance to the University,
In addition to this, appendices list the names of presidents of the institution, award recipients, and others.
In planning this work, Father Hamilton was, of course, faced with
a choice which must be made by every institutional historian: he had to
decide whether his history would be an all-inclusive storehouse of facts,
where future information-seekers could find ready answers to historic
queries on the University, or whether the account would be oriented to
the tastes of the "continuous reader,"-the person who would wish to
read the book from cover to cover. Usually, if a history is the first or
only recent account of an institution, the choice is made in favor of the
former, with the idea of keeping for future generations the wealth of
pertinent facts available now, which might very well be lost in the century to come. The cost of this W?.rthy decision is paid for in some loss
of general-reader interest, for it is almost impossible for an author to
crowd in all the details of dates and names and places for any given
episode, and, at the same time, maintain the smooth narrative and the
clear, over-all view of the historic landscape which the general reader
would demand in return for his attention.
Credit is due to Father Hamilton for the skill with which he has attempted to serve both of these needs, although it is clear that his decision
has been the traditional one in favor of the factual treasury.
However, if selectivity of incident was sacrificed for comprehensiveness, the book has the accompanying advantages of such encyclopedic
structure: it can be opened·at random and provide, in addition to formal
history, countless samples of curiosity-stirring information and anecdote.
There is, for example, the account of one of the founders, who, as a
young man, had been helped in the beginning of his law practice by
Abraham Lincoln. And later in the book, the story of the University's
intriguing motto: "God and the River." For older Marquette-'men, moreover, there is pleasant nostalgia awaiting them as they scan again
litanies of almost-forgotten names and incidents.
There is no question but that this book is a scholarly and definitive
history of the University. Whoever, in the future, writes of Marquette
will have to build on this foundation constructed with such loving dedication by Father Hamilton.
DAVID
R.
DUNIGAN,
S.J.
MYSTIC OR FRAUD?
The Riddle of Konnersreuth. By Paul Siwek, S.J. Translated by Igna·
tius McCormick, O.F.M. Cap. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1953. Pp.
xvi-228. $3.50.
The results of Fr. Siwek's scholarly scientific investigation into the
Konnersreuth phenomena are already familiar to readers of WoonsTOCK
LETTERS ( cf. W L., 80 ( 1951) 92-94). This smooth version of his Une
stigmatisee de nos jours is, however, more than a direct translation of
�BOOK REVIEWS
221
the original edition. While substance, aim, and method have remained
unchanged, the whole text has been rewritten; many sections have been
expanded to develop ideas passed over quickly in the French book or to
introduce new problems: thus, for example, the pages on Theresa's moral
imperfections, on the naturalist approach to the wonders, and on the
Church's attitude to Konnersreuth. Throughout the section on Theresa's
healings, further data has been added from Benedict XIV's classic treatise
on the beatification and canonization of saints and from psychosomatic
medicine; the chapters on stigmatisation, ecstasy, and visions have also
been enlarged.
The chief merit of Fr. Siwek's book, in contrast to the often naive descriptive literature on Theresa, is its scientific character. Guided by
the Church's hard-headed scepticism, summed up in the principle that
"we should appeal to a supernatural cause only when the insufficiency of
natural causes has been proved" (p. xii), the author examines the Konnersreuth phenomena in the light of medicine and the psychological
sciences. His own conclusions are confirmed by those of the majority of
the savants who have studied Theresa: "All the extraordinary phenomena
seem amenable to a natural explanation, except Theresa's continuous
fasting, and this has never been proved factual" (p. 222). For many,
Fr. Siwek's book will be in addition an initiation into the mysterious
world of parapsychology; some knowledge of the latter can be helpful
these days when your neighbor's backyard may become the next scene of
signs and wonders.
MATTHEW J. O'CONNELL, S.J.
CATHOLIC PSYCHIATRY
Fundamental Psychiatry. By John R. Cavanaugh, M.D. & James B.
McGoldrick, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1953. Pp. x-582. $5.50.
This book, which has been written by a practicing psychiatrist in
collaboration with a teaching psychologist fulfills "a definite and pressing need for an organized presentation of psychiatric studies duly based
on a full and adequate picture of human nature." It is truly an organized presentation of the etiology of psychiatric disorders, the clinical
approach to psychiatry, the psychoneuroses, the psychoses, and what the
authors call the borderlands of psychiatry (the psychopathic personality,
epilepsy, mental deficiency, disturbances of sex, and homosexuality).
What is particularly well handled is the concept of marginal consciousness and the repressed unconscious of Freud. The points of agreement and disagreement with Freud are neatly outlined at the end of
this section of the book. From time to time the reader would perhaps
like to see a fuller treatment of various topics, but since the text was
written to provide basic and fundamental information, he cannot expect
a complete presentation. The bibliographies at the end of each chapter
are ample for those who wish to make further investigations on a particular topic that might receive scanty tre:;ttment.
�222
BOOK REVIEWS
The manner in which the various topics are considered is facilitated
by clear definitions, of psychiatric terms, outlines, case reports, and sum·
maries. From a cursory inspection of the text one gets the impression
that it was especially edited for the professional student-nurse, medical
student, or seminarian. The authors point out that "no professional
student should be allowed to complete his training without a good
understanding of psychiatric concepts."
The chief contribution that this book offers is not so much an organ·
ized presentation of psychiatric studies in themselves, as a presentation
of these facts against a background of a dualistic, mind-body approach.
Many of our modern psychiatric manuals are based on a materialistic
philosophy of life which can do harm not only to the professional student
but also to those whom he or she
later trellt in psychiatric practice.
will
JAMES
A.
MCKEOUGH,
S.J.
CANON LAW
The New Eucharistic Legislation. A Commentary on Christus Dominus.
By John C. Ford, S.J. New York, Kenedy, 1953. Pp. x-129.
In his introduction to this booklet on the new Eucharistic legislation
Father Ford states that he had in mind a manual that "carefully and
conservatively applies the new law to cases likely to occur in practice."
Everyone who reads the booklet will agree that he has successfully
achieved his purpose; it is careful, conservative and practical.
One could not begin to list Father Ford's opinions on the many practical questions which he takes up in his commentary. It is packed with
a wealth of valuable material. But here are the positions ]ie takes on
some of the more controversial issues that have arisen in connection
with the legislation. He believes that where the advice of the confessor
is required by the law, it is necessary for the validity, and not merely
the liceity, of the dispensation. Though he presents a good case for this
position, it does not seem to have many followers. Those who have
commented on this part of the legislation thus far seem to feel that since
the confessor neither grants the dispensation nor, in the strict sense,
gives permission to use it, his intervention is required only for liceity.
He has more of a following in the opinion that the advice may be given
only by a priest who has faculties to hear the confession of the petitioner.
In fact, this is the more common opinion, though there are those who
maintain that a priest who has faculties to hear confessions somewhere
may advise anyone anywhere.
He presents a strong argument, too, for the opinion that even the
priest, celebrant or communicant, needs the advice of a confessor, though
he realizes that here he is championing a lost cause. Commentators are
almost unanimously on the other side. He is of the opinion, finally, that
for the faithful in the special circumstances mentioned in Norm V there
must also be a grave personal inconvenience; for the priest the special
�BOOK REVIEWS
223
circumstances alone will suffice. But though this opinion adheres very
closely to the wording of the Instruction, several other positions have
been defended by different commentators. Some authors demand a
personal inconvenience for all; others would allow the special circumstances to suffice for all; still others would allow only certain of the
special circumstances to suffice. This question may demand some authoritative clarification on the part of the Holy See.
Some may consider Father Ford's approach to the legislation at times
a bit too conservative. Working on the principle that it is easier to
broaden an interpretation than to tighten it, he seemed to feel that until
opinion has crystallized on the interpretation of the various parts of the
Christus Dominus and the accompanying Instruction, it would be wiser,
particularly in a manual, to follow a conservative course. This is a
viewpoint with which one can certainly sympathize. A commentary on
new legislation, and particularly on legislation of such practical and
universal application, is bound to have a strong impact on the immediate
solution of the countless cases that will occur. As a result, a lenient
opinion, even though expressed by only one author, might quickly be
reduced to widespread practice. It would be difficult later to root it out
in the event that it received no further support, or at least, insufficient
support to give it extrinsic probability.
Father Ford has given us the most comprehensive treatment of the
legislation which has appeared up to the present. While one may differ
with some of his interpretations, no one will deny that he has done a
thorough piece of work and that he has given all opinions a fair hearing.
Besides the commentary, the booklet contains the original Latin text of
the Constitution and the Instruction together with an English translation
of both. It includes also several appendices in which the matter is summarized for confessors and helpful notes added for the use of religion
and catechism teachers. In his foreword to the booklet Archbishop
Cushing stated that it "should be warmly received." Father Ford has
indeed performed a valuable service in making available to the clergy a
handy little booklet to which they can safely refer in the countless
questions that arise regarding the recent legislation.
JOHN
R. CONNERY, S.J.
ASCETICAL AND MYSTICAL THEOLOGY
The Theology of the Spiritual Life. By Joseph de Guibert, S.J. Translated by Paul Barrett, O.F.M.Cap. New York, Sheed and Ward,
1953. Pp. x-382. $4.50.
In 1937 Father de Guibert well known French theologian of the
Gregorian University published his Theologia Spiritualis ascetica et
mystica: Quaestiones Selectae in praelectionum usum. There was a
second edition in 1939 and a third in 1946, after the death of the author
(March 23, 1942). The present translation was made on the third
�224
BOOK REVIEWS
edition. The outline of the complete treatise on the spiritual life which
Father de Guibert intended to write is given in pp. 13 f. with an indi·
cation of the place in it of these select questions. Actually the author
did publish articles on many other points. The questions treated in
this book concern the more fundamental and difficult problems of the
spiritual life. In their English garb they are sure to extend the influence of a theologian whose thought had depth as well as clarity,
whose erudition was immense, and whose judgment-all important
point in these matters-was finely balanced.
Part One (pp. 3-34) contains an introduction of great value. Defini·
tions, divisions, methods, sources, the relationship between theological
treatises, and allied topics are discussed with unusual competence.
Practical suggestions for learners are also given. Part Two (pp.
37-108) studies the nature of perfection. The learned author examines
the notion of perfection, the relation between it and charity, the other
virtues, the evangelical counsels, union with God and with Christ, abnegation, and conformity to the divine will; finally he treats of the
desire of perfection. Throughout this section Father de Guibert clears
up the meaning of many vague notions which are presently current.
The inspiration and gifts of the Holy Spirit and the discretion of
spirits form the object of the Third Part (pp. 110-144). In the Fourth
Part (pp. 146-186), which treats of man's cooperation with God in the
spiritual life, most of the space is given to spiritual direction. Part
Five (pp. 189-254) is devoted to mental prayer. Its nature, kinds,
necessity and fruits are studied in turn; the states of mind that favor
or impede it are explained, methods of making it, and acts which prolong it are examined. In the Sixth Part (pp. 256-301) the degrees of
the spiritual life are examined and the active and contemplative lives
are compared. The Seventh Part (pp. 304-367) treats of ~p.fused contemplation. The author exposes its nature, degrees, its relation to
perfection and to the extraordinary phenomena which at times ac·
company it, and ends with some practical considerations on the desire
of such contemplation, the reading of mystical writings and the direction of contemplatives.
Father Barrett's translation is competent throughout. He has seen
fit to omit the special bibliographies with which the author begins each
section as well as the long and useful list of spiritual writers included
as an appendix of the original. This could be done without much loss
since those to whom these pages are of special value will probably have
access to them in the Latin edition. Father Barrett has added a useful
bibliography of works mentioned by the author which were originallY
written in English or are available in translation. An index of names
and an index of subjects are also furnished.
Father Barrett is to be congratulated on giving the English speaking
world a readable version of one of the soundest manuals of ascetical
and mystical theology, and at the same time one of the most representa·
tive of the Jesuit School.
EDWARD
A.
RYAN,
S.J.
�W 0 0 D S T· 0 C K
LETT· E R S
VOL. LXXXIII, No. 3
JULY, 1954
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1954
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE OF THE AMERICAN
ASSISTANCY __
Alphonse M. Schwitalla
ST. ROBERT BELLARMINE'S SERMON ON
ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
Joseph E. Henry
--227
- - - - - - - - 301
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
The Manner is Ordinary (LaFarge)---------------------------------- 313
Set All Afire (de Wohl)------------------------- 315
Marriage and the Family (Mihanovich, Schnepp & Thomas) ___ 315
In Praise of Work (Plus>------------------------------ 316
The Catholic Church and German Americans (Barry) ____________ 317
Jesus of Nazareth (Felder>----------------------------- 318
The Easter Book (Weiser)-------------------------------------- 319
Familiar Prayers (Thurston)-------------------------------------- 319
The Trinity in our Spiritual Life (Marmion)---------------- 320
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Alphonse M. Sehwitalla (Missouri Province) is a member of the
American Medical Association-the first "layman" to be so honoredand a writer residing at St. Louis University, St. Louis, Mo.
Mr. Joseph E. Henry (Maryland Province) is a philosopher at Bellarmine College, Plattsburg, N.Y.
'
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WooDSTOCK
LETTERs to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the coutributor.
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as seeond-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at WoodstoCk,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearl1
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�The Medical Apostolate of the
American Assistancy
ALPHONSE M. SCHWITALLA, S.J.
Editor's Note: At the request of WooDSTOCK
LETTERS the author wrote this general survey of the work of American Jesuits in the
field of medicine. Opinions on phases and
problems of Jesuit medical activities, administration, place and importance of a
Regent, cooperation with sisterhoods reflect
Father Schwitalla's experience of over
thirty years.
The extensive apostolate of the Society reflects the manysided character of its saintly founder, and since this article
ambitions to report, probably for the first time, on the medical
and related activities of the American Assistancy, it is particularly apt to begin with a short summary of St. Ignatius'
medical interests.
Throughout his life many activities manifested his concern
for medicine--he gave personal service to the sick, associated
with physicians in great numbers both as a friend and as a
patient, was the beneficiary of many hospitals as a patient or
guest, and the benefactor of others as a propagandizer and
promoter in hospital campaigns for funds. He also served
in an administrative capacity for several hospitals and until
his death was associated in a more than transient way with no
fewer than ten or twelve institutions.
Ten months of prayer, activity and suffering were spent
at the Hospital of St. Lucy in Manresa. While attending
the University of Alcala he lodged at the Hospitai of
Antezana, and later in that same city during one of his trials
for preaching without authorization, he stayed at the Hospital
of St. Estella. The Hospital of Saint Jacques housed him
When he went to the University of Paris, and Ignatius speaks
With considerable concern of a conflict between his scheduled
classes at the University and the daily order at Saint Jacques
Which served not only the sick but also travelers, making the
hospital known in the Paris of his day as both a nosokomeion
and a xenodokeion.
When Ignatius returned to Spain to regain his health, prior
�228
THE l'tlEDICAL APOSTOLATE
to the foundation of the Society, he lived at the Hospital of
St. Magdalen in Azpeitia, the town of his birth. Here, too,
he was largely instrumental, perhaps even predominantly so,
in founding a new hospital by a group of public-spirited
citizens for those patients who were sensitive about their
poverty. Half of the building funds was contributed by some
relatives of Francis Xavier and by a merchant, probably at
Ignatius' solicitation, since this donor was a friend of our
saint. On another occasion he mediated a peace between the
parish priest at Azpeitia, a relative, and the administrators of
the public hospital regarding an old controversy about the
hospital's relation to the parish.
At Venice Ignatius lived in a Hospital for the Incurables
at the same time that Francis Xavier and four companions
were at the Hospital of Sts. John and Paul, waiting for transportation to the Holy Land.
And when advanced in age and forced by health and the
expressed wishes of his advisors to relinquish some of his
duties, he revealed his predilections, no matter how indifferent
he must have been, in the petition that he be allowed to keep
the responsibility for the operation of the infirmary in the
Professed House. He carried out his self-selected task with
the utmost faithfulness and kindliness.
An achievement of Ignatius was the drafting of regulations
for hospitals that required regular contributio~·s from the
people of a community and forbade appeals for funds except
authorized and conducted by recognized agencies. He thus
led the way into the future Society's medical and health
activities.
Ignatius' attitude towards medical matters did not fail to
impress itself upon his followers. Xavier, Laynez, Nadal,
Borgia, Canisius, Aloysius and thousands of other Jesuits have
followed his hospital interests. Early missionaries practicallY
all made significant contributions to the history and practice
of medicine. Marquette, the early Canadian missionaries,
Father Boym in China; and the missionaries of the Malabar
region of India made numerous references to topics of medic~
interest-in fact, even detailed descriptions of disease condJ·
tions and remedies, as well as directions for the maintenance of
health. Between the years 1700 and 1825, we find listed in
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
229
Sommervogel a large number of special treatises of medical
interest: a physiological discussion of the human body as a
machine, an account of the differential diagnosis of tertian
fever, a case history written by a Brother infirmarian, and a
large number of descriptions of epidemics in Europe and other
parts of the world. Such accounts and narrations form the
stock content of many a missionary letter. These are mentioned here to emphasize the fact that the medical activities of
the American Assistancy maintain a Jesuit tradition centuries
old.
PART I. ACADEMIC AND EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
A. SCHOOLS OF MEDICINE
At the present time, there are five schools of medicine in
the American Assistancy: at Creighton University, at Georgetown University, at Loyola University (the Stritch School of
Medicine), Chicago, at Marquette University, and at St. Louis
University. At one time, Fordham University had a school
of medicine, founded in 1905 but discontinued in 1921. St.
Louis University had a school of medicine as early as 1838
but because of the dangers threatening the school from the
disorders occasioned by the Know-Nothing movement, it
severed its relationship with the University in 1855 and continued independently as the St. Louis College of Medicine until
1891 when it became the School of Medicine of Washington
University. The present medical school at St. Louis University dates back to 1903.
1. Historical
There may be a close historical connection between the
original school at St. Louis University and that of Georgetown
University. The first school of medicine of St. Louis University was founded by a future provincial of the Maryland
Province, Father Peter Verhaegen. From the all too meager
available details of his experiences in organizing the school
of medicine, he must have lived through a stormy year or two.
On January 5, 1845, he took up his residence at Georgetown
University and remained there until January 1848. Three
Years after, Georgetown opened its school of medicine. While
�230
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
no documentary evidence has been found, it still may be surmised with a high degree of probability that he must have
carried to his new field of labor, the results of his experience
in initiating the school of medicine at St. Louis. At any rate,
when in 1849 four physicians decided to establish a medical
school of their own and appealed to Georgetown to take the
new school under its protection, little time was wasted in deciding to get the school started, thus giving some indication, it
would seem, that the ground had been prepared by Father
Verhaegen's attitudes and activities.
It is a matter of interest that of the schools of medicine now
conducted in this Assistancy, the first schools of medicine at
St. Louis, Georgetown University and Creighton University
were founded entirely de novo, while the other schools, in·
eluding the present schools of medicine at St. Louis University, Marquette and Loyola Universities, were founded by
absorbing previously existing schools into the university.
At St. Louis University the medical school became part of the
University after it had existed as two separate and independent schools, one (Beaumont Hospital Medical College)
founded in 1886, the other (the Marion Sims School of Medicine) founded in 1890. They were amalgamated as the Marion
Sims Beaumont School of Medicine in 1901, and in 1903 the
combined school was purchased by Father William Banks
Rogers, then President of the University, and one-of the most
far-seeing, resourceful and energetic educational administra·
tors of the Missouri Province. Georgetown University School
of Medicine, as already indicated, arose as an independent
school without a previous school of medicine. The same is true
of Creighton.
At Marquette University and at Loyola University, the
schools of medicine on the other hand are developments of
previously existing schools; Loyola's predecessor was founded
in 1912, Marquette's in 1915. The pre-history of both of these
schools, unique in both instances, is full of incident and in·
terest. Loyola University School of Medicine was buffeted bY
many storms from the approving and accrediting agencies
before it finally won its high, distinguished reputation of todaY
with the honor of being renamed after its illustrious patron,
His Eminence, the Cardinal.
�GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL with a School of Nursing, administeJ
by the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, stands alongside the schools of medici!
dentistry and pharmacy.
��THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
231
2. Characterization
Any attempt to characterize these schools as a group, to
reveal identities or similarities which may be assumed to have
developed from their filiation by the Society, or their individual differences derivable from the Society's versatility and
local uniqueness, would require the presentation of too much
detail, scarcely justifiable here. Some interesting suggestions
are deducible as matters for intimate controversy from a
comparison of the three schools which had their origin inside
of our universities and those which were adopted by us. The
individuality of each school in its physical facilities, mode of
administration, achievements and future capabilities is more
obtrusive than its similarities to the other schools, as anyone
would expect who knows the Society's unlimited capabilities
for variation in expressing its fundamental purposes. In general, it can be said that our five schools have devoted themselves largely to the production of medical practitioners,
though all have participated to a significant and successful
extent in the development of medical specialists and research
workers. Moreover, in each of these schools, there is a wellrecognized participation in the affairs of the university and in
none of them is there a decentralizing, disruptive cleavage
between the university as a whole and the school of medicine.
Any comparison of either research success or educational
achievements in these different schools, except on the basis of
extensive documentation, would prove to be practically impossible without incurring the charge of unfairness since each of
the schools boasts of outstanding successes, educational, scientific, professional, and sociological. The interest of each of
the five schools is closely interwoven with the welfare interest
of their respective dioceses, religious orders of men and
Women, and lay Catholic organizations. Each of the schools has
an active alumni association, has received recognition for distinguished service in both war and peace, has participated in
governmental activities, has received grants for research from
both the government and from some philanthropic foundations, has rendered noteworthy service to the armed forces,
has a diaspora of graduates throughout all states of the Union,
has recruited its faculty from some of the best schools of
medicine of the United States, Canada, and of Europe, and, in
�232
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
general, has sought to maintain a high level of educational
endeavor, diversified in detail but dynamically unified in total
pattern. Each has encountered and overcome large and small
difficulties, financial, administrative, and professional. Each
has a fine reputation for its relation to the various professional
associations, especially the American Medical Association,
locally and nationally.
In their inter-institutional relationships with other schools
. of medicine, the Georgetown school is located close to George
Washington University, the University of Maryland, and
Johns Hopkins University arid various institutions of the government, not to speak of its -close proximity to the five schools
of medicine of Philadelphia and the five schools of New York
City. The Stritch School of Medicine is located in the same
city with four other very good schools of medicine and must
thus meet a great challenge due to its proximity to, and the
local influence of, those schools. In this respect Marquette
University School of Medicine seems to enjoy a measure of
freedom, although the School of Medicine of the University of
Wisconsin offers many a challenge to Marquette University
School of Medicine. Creighton University faces a formidable
neighbor in the Medical School of the University of Nebraska,
as does also St. Louis University School of Medicine due to the
propinquity of the Washington University School of· Medicine.
In the history of medical education Creighton University's
large-minded attitude will always stand as exemplary, since it
could have refused its approval to the transfer of Nebraska's
clinical departments into the city of Omaha and thus rendered
less burdensome its future acute competition. For this Creigh·
ton deserves and receives complimentary, even if silent and
perhaps grudging, recognition. These relationships of our
schools of medicine to their non-Catholic neighbors must be
regarded as expressive of cooperative friendship and healthy
competitive attitudes that have provoked discussion and
elicited much approval and general satisfaction, thus adding
to the better understanding of the objectives of our schools
and the spirit which actuates them, and promoting better relationships between non-Catholic and Catholic agencies in
their several communities. Our professional and educational
�THE 1\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
233
relationships are thus placed well above puny antagonisms
and petty misunderstandings.
3. Objectives
There are certain characteristics, to be sure, which the five
Jesuit schools of medicine could hardly help but have in common. First of all, they are unanimous in their educational
objectives. It is proper here to raise the question why in a
Jesuit university there should be a school of medicine. In the
past there was some lack of unanimity among Ours concerning
the question why we should conduct schools of medicine.
Even now some of Ours think not only that our schools of
medicine absorb a disproportionately large percentage of our
university funds, but also that the returns which the schools
of medicine make to the Society are scarcely commensurate
with the Jesuit effort expended in their behalf. It is not
enough, therefore, to answer the question by pointing out that
medicine is one of the great divisions of knowledge and professional life. It is difficult to resist the temptation at this
point to use Newman's criteria as measures of both religious
and professional success of our schools of medicine. One
point however must be expanded, certainly not completely
overlooked. Newman wrote at the time when he was organizing the Catholic University of Ireland:
"There cannot be a worse calamity to a Catholic people than to
have its medical attendants alien or hostile to Catholicity; there cannot be a greater blessing than when there are intelligent Catholics
who acknowledge the claims of religious duty, and the subordinations and limits of their own functions. No condition, no age of
human life, can dispense with the presence of the doctor and the
surgeon; he is the companion, for good or for evil, of the daily ministrations of religion, its most valuable support or its most grievous
embarrassment, according as he professes or ignores its creed."
The application of these concepts to and in our schools of
medicine constitutes a worthy challenge to our Jesuit resourcefulness in education and to our spiritual purposes.
The further question must then be raised whether our Catholic schools of medicine are achieving the ideal objective thus
formulated by Cardinal Newman and if so, how they are
achieving it.
�234
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
For one answer we may turn first to the catalogues of our
schools. Four of these schools have published a considered
statement concerning their objectives. It is recognized that one
may find high idealism in the catalogue of a university sometimes without a fundamentum in re. Nevertheless few of Ours
have reached the pinnacle of cynical sophistication achieved
by the academic punster, who, on being asked how the college
quadrangle resembles the college catalogue, answers by saying,
"They both lie about the college."
Formulations of our objectives might be cited:
The aim and purpose of thi~ school is the education and adequate
training of competent practitioners of medicine in accordance with
the principles and ideals of the University. This in general implies
the full application of knowledge in the formation of character, in
the inculcation of sound moral, ethical and religious principles, and
in the awakening of latent talents and skills of the student.~
The fundamental objective of a school of medicine is to provide
an opportunity for education in sound medical science and to fit the
qualified student for the practice of medicine. It is also the aim as
a Catholic school of medicine to foster in professional students a
sense of other values of supreme importance to the physician and
to society-ideals of high personal integrity, Christian ethics and
human charity.2
The aims of this school of medicine are: Primarily to train physi·
cians of high moral and ethical character, and secondarily to extend
the field of medical knowledge by original investigation.8
This school wishes its students so to be formed that with the usual
internship and post-graduate clinical training, they shall be com·
petent for the practice of medicine, whether generalized or in a field
of intensified interest. . . . It is believed that effective adherence to
the most exacting ideal in medical practice will best be achieved if
the school and its students have the sort of basic life philosophy,
orientation to the truth and science and motivation towards the wei·
fare, the value and the health of human beings, which characterize
this school of medicine as a part of St. Louis University which is a
Catholic University under Jesuit. auspices.4
The realization of these objectives by the different schools
emphasizing, as they do, the unity of the professional, the
spiritual and religious ideals, is achieved in various ways, not
Creighton University Bulletin School of Medicine, 1951-52, p. 47.
Loyola University Bulletin School of Medicine, January 1948, P· 27.
a Marquette University Bulletin School of Medicine, 1950-51, p. 23.
• St. Louis University Bulletin, the School of Medicine, 1952-53, p. 132·
1
2
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
235
all of them equally stressed nor emphasized in the same proportion in the various schools, thus providing individuality
for each school. All five schools give courses in medical
ethics which are followed by Catholic as well as non-Catholic
students and they all assume that Catholic students have had
some courses in scholastic philosophy. All schools offer their
students opportunities for membership in sodalities and other
Catholic organizations; they require the Catholic students to
make at least a three-day retreat each school year and all
students are given opportunities for closed retreats. In each
school, there is at least one member of the Society who can
be easily reached for conferences and counselling, and in several schools a great deal of attention is given to this particular
matter with emphasis upon the specialized applications of
medical ethics in the life of the physician or of the nursing
Sister, the functioning of the Catholic chaplain, and the needs
of the Catholic patients. All five schools have relationships
with the Catholic school system, Catholic Charities, as well as
other diocesan and parochial activities in their various cities.
All schools, moreover, attempt to maintain faculty selection
processes which enable them to keep in contact with Catholic
physicians and other Catholic professional persons.
Some schools of medicine emphasize medical research to the
detriment of the undergraduate educational program. This is
not the case in our schools of medicine. The attitude in our
five schools is that research on the part of both the faculty
members and the student body must be considered an integral
Phase of the undergraduate and the graduate teaching activities.
After all, the purpose of a professional school is the preparation of the student for his lifework as a physician. It is
universally granted today that a scientific attitude, an attitude
of inquiry and endeavor which pushes the borders of knowledge farther into the regions of the unknown, is essential not
only for the teacher of a medical subject but also for the
Practitioner of medicine whether he be the general practitioner or a specialist. Hence, a research attitude is unquestionably necessary in preparing the future doctor. This is all
the more true today since the enormous growth of scientific
medicine during the past few years would be unintelligible to
�236
THE 1\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
a physician who has not kept himself, his thinking and his
reading, up to date in the various fields of his professional
interest. All of this, however, does not excuse an undue emphasis upon research in a school of medicine since, as has been
often and well said, "a doctor who is only a research worker
or only a teacher can hardly be a good doctor. He forgets that
a physician's major activity is service to the patient." The
attitudes of a particular school with reference to this question
are detectable and measurable in a great variety of ways, at
least as approximations, for example, by studying the percentage of graduates who go into sp~cialization and those who go
into general practice, by forming"estimates of the percentage
of graduates who find their way into administrative, educational or public health positions.
The second factor in unanimity of our schools lies in the
details of the personal objectives of the students. There are
some schools of medicine in which the choice of rural area for
professional practice by the graduates may be contrasted with
the numbers seeking urban facilities. Faculty participation
in the activities of learned ~societies and in the publication of
scientific journals and their leadership in various communities
are also factors. One can often form a judgment as to the
character of the school from its graduates. This means, in
other words, that not the size alone but also the character of
the student body determine the individuality and excellence
of the school.
If this paper were an effort to present an adequate report on
the schools of medicine alone, no opportunity would be more
acceptable to the writer than to attempt an interpretation of
medical education as a legitimate activity of the Society. But
since the purpose here is simply to draw a base line in general
terms for future studies of a similar nature to be made during
the next two or three hundred years with the present survey
serving as a bench mark, as it were, we must restrict our
discussion to a few outstanding phases of medical education.
A brief discussion, therefore, may not be out of place on·
general administration, student administration, faculty ad·
ministration, and clinical facilities.
�In the northwest section of the city of Washington the new Georgetown University Hospital faces the morning sun.
�-·
�THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
237
4. General Administration
It is not intended here to reveal all the administrative secrets
of the schools of medicine. A more or less identical pattern of
administration is observable in the five schools of medicine.
This was not always the case in all details. In St. Louis in
1903 the problem of acquainting the president of the University with the activities, needs, policies and future plans of
the School of Medicine, was entrusted to a regent, a member
of the Society, who, largely because more than a mile separated the administrative group of the University from the
School of Medicine, was looked upon as a personal representative of the president in the School of Medicine. It was assumed that this regent would make himself familiar with
medical education and be ready to give competent advice to
the University authorities. In its general purpose the plan
resembles closely the organizational features for administering universities whose schools are located on several campuses,
the University of Illinois, for example, located at Urbana and
Chicago. This plan was worked out by Father John C. Burke
collaborating with Father William Banks Rogers, and over a
period of about ten years it was found to be a very effective
means for achieving the purposes which the University had in
mind. It was carried over into each of the five schools in the
course of time.
While for domestic purposes the plan proved to be very
workable and effective, it can scarcely be regarded as a success
in fostering relations between the accrediting agencies and the
school of medicine nor between the general public and the
school of medicine. For a time there was some misunderstanding. Certain ambiguities were attached to the terminology and it was not clear whether the regent was administratively superior to the dean or the dean to the regent. More
important than this, however, was the attitude of at least one
of the evaluating agencies which very frankly stated that
unless the dean is the finally responsible officer in the conduct
of a professional school, such as that of medicine, it is hard
to see how a Jesuit priest acting as regent, supplemental to
the dean could serve as the officer who coordinated the very
technical and the multi-directional relationships of the school
of medicine both within and without the university. In the
�238
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
course of time, as the universities grew and as the schools of
medicine clarified both their objectives and procedure and
especially when a member of the Society himself became a
dean in one of the schools and the office of regent was there
discontinued, the significance of the regent's position became
gradually more and more indefinite and at the present moment,
seems to be losing most of its importance. In all likelihood,
significant changes with reference to this question are bound
to take place in the future.
The question may well be raised whether one of Ours should
be dean of a school of medicine. It goes without saying that
there are certain incompatil?.ilities between Jesuit community
life and the obligations of such a position. Whatever may be
the objective facts, those outside of the Society believe that a
Jesuit dean of a school of medicine is too much under the
control of a Jesuit president of a university to permit that
freedom of action in public relations and that elasticity in
administration upon which the schools of medicine, in America
especially, have prided themselves. ·on the other hand, depending largely on the personal relationships between a Jesuit
dean of a school of medicine and the president of one of our
universities, the vow of obedience should in itself offer the
most secure guarantee that adequate standards of education
will be maintained in the school of medicine. As in many other
questions of similar import, a solution of the probiem lies in
the competence, the compatibility and religious spirit of the
individuals concerned. One of our schools of medicine was
emphatically accused of intolerance and unethical conduct by
the Association of American University Professors in con·
nection with the controversies about the Spanish Civil War,
but even though the school was listed as unapproved by that
Association for years, no serious consequences seem to have
ensued.
The impression should not be left that this is the only large
administrative problem in our five schools. The financial
problem is, of course, the most constantly urging one. The
cost of educating a student of medicine is said to range some·
where between a thousand and three thousand dollars per
year, the exact amount depending upon the size of the school,
its location, ambitions, multiplicity of activities, the avail·
ability of clinical facilities, and many other factors. It is clear
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
239
that a school of medicine cannot subsist on income from student fees alone and hence must constitute a drain upon the
university's finances. It has been said, and the statement is
cheerfully endorsed in a spirit of gratitude by the schools of
medicine in many universities, particularly the private ones,
that the success of the school of medicine is the measure of the
administrative unselfishness of the other schools of the university. It is amazing that our schools have done as well as
they have, when these facts are kept in mind. God has been
providentially mindful of our needs, but if our objective is
worthy, the sacrifice must be continued. This, of course, is
no reason for lethargy on the part of medical school administrators in seeking ever larger resources, thus to ease the strain
upon the universities. In our American pattern Catholic
education is a monument which testifies to the value we place
upon true education-and that holds emphatically for medical
education.
5. Student Administration
Under this heading, again the subjects on which comments
should be made are legion; only a few can be selected. Making
the selection demands a certain reckless foolhardiness on the
part of the writer.
All our schools of medicine must be listed as large schoolsthe smallest with 300, the largest with about 500 students.
As averages from year to year in the late forties and early
fifties, there were among the seventy-two four-year medical
schools of the United States, twenty-three schools smaller than
our smallest, Creighton with 293, and thirteen schools larger
than our largest, St. Louis with 475 students.
Moreover, all our schools are what should be designated as
national schools, that is, they draw their student body from
many states and from a large number of colleges of arts and
sciences and colleges of liberal arts. In 1950 the school of
medicine, in whose freshman roster the smallest number of
states was represented, had selected its incoming class from
sixteen states, while the school selecting from the largest
number of states had incoming students from twenty-seven
states. Four of our schools omitting Georgetown had high
Percentages of freshmen from their own state, but only one
school had its own state registrants to the extent of 33 per
�240
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
cent; the other three had such registrations to the extent of
22, 18 and 14 per cent. Georgetown's problem in that respect
is unique. In some years the greatest percentage of incoming
students at Georgetown has come from New York.
The greatest emphasis in this phase of administration must
be placed upon the fact that our schools of medicine are
Catholic schools. It is estimated that there are about as many
Catholics in the non-Catholic schools all together as there are
in our five Catholic schools, at least such was the case about
fifteen years ago when Dr. Fred Zapffe, Secretary of the Association of American Medica! Colleges, himself a Catholic, now
dead, conducted a private study.
A discussion of student· administration in our schools of
medicine brings up a vast number of problems, many of which
have been sources of controversy between our five medical
schools and the deans of their respective colleges of arts and
sciences. It seems important to take this occasion for laying
down a few general principles which probably would find
rather wide acceptance as abstract principles in the administration of the colleges. Obviously, our schools of medicine
exist for the purpose of realizing in our activities all the objectives which the Society has in mind in its educational work.
Hence, the further statement seems inevitable that the student
body of our schools of medicine should be Catholic to whatever extent may be possible. Does that mean that preferential
admission to our schools of medicine should be given to the
pre-medical students of our colleges? Let us agree that the
term pre-medical curriculum is unfortunate, if it is intended
to designate by this term anything more than merely a certain
sequence of courses ; still it is a convenient term. That the
student body should not be exclusively Catholic seems equallY
obvious from a consideration of the Society's history in educa·
tion and from our present day successful practice. The student body in our five schools at the present time is made up
practically entirely of Catholics at Georgetown, to the extent
of 97 per cent at Stritch, 92 per cent at Creighton, 85 per cent
at St. Louis, and '(5 per cent at Marquette. There was a time
when one of our schools, St. Louis, had a serious problem to
face in the reduction of the number of non-Catholic students,
combatting numerous phases of anti-non-Catholic prejudices
from anti-Semitism to anti-Seventh Day Adventism. At one
�THE .MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
241
time, almost half of the student body in St. Louis was nonCatholic. This has been progressively remedied year after
year until at present it may be said that our five schools of
medicine are surely making a strong contribution, as they
should do, to Catholic life in the United States.
To what extent then should emphasis be placed upon the
religion of the student in selecting freshmen who, except for
their academic origin, Catholic or Jesuit, would probably not
be admitted to the schools of medicine because of their low
aptitude rating or low college achievement? The applicant may
be a leader among the students, a member of Alpha Sigma
Nu, an outstanding worker in Catholic Action, the possessor
of all the moral qualities which, in the opinion of his generous
Jesuit sponsor, would make him a grand doctor.
It will throw some light upon the general situation if we
attempt a brief analysis of the problem here. The school of
medicine is essentially a graduate school, that is, the curriculum of a school of medicine is of such a character that collegiate preparation is indispensable for a student of medicine.
We are apt to forget, however, that the student of medicine
takes preparatory college studies for two reasons rather than
for only one: first, because a physician must be a broadly educated person, and secondly, because college studies supply
Proper intellectual tools which the student needs in following
the intricate courses of the medical curriculum.
In the achievement of the first of these purposes, it is highly
desirable that the future student of medicine should be broadly
educated in languages, history, sociology and particularly,
Philosophy, and should possess the kind of character and personality for which his Jesuit admirers are prone to eulogize
him. As far back as the sixth century, St. Isidore of Seville,
the first of the European encyclopedists, had emphasized the
thought that medicine is the synthesis of all the sciences and
all the arts. 5
As for the second objective of pre-medical preparation, the
student needs physics as well as mathematics, chemistry, biology, and especially recently, social science so that he may be
Properly prepared for the study of anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, public health and other medical sciences.
-G
Libri Etymologiarum, IV, De Medicina, chapter 13.
�242
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
No matter how well prepared in a broad way an applicant
for a school of medicine may be, if he does not have a sound
basic preparation in English, mathematics, chemistry, physics
and biology, and sociology, he is unskilled in the use of the
tools which he needs for advanced study in anatomy and biochemistry, unless his collegiate foundation is solid and broad.
And if in this sequence of prerequisite courses, chemistry
seems to have been given an over-weighted emphasis, it is
surely because of the preponderant penetration of biochemical
viewpoints into the medical sciences and arts, thus requiring
commensurate preparation in the numerous branches of chemistry from Descriptive to-·Physical and Isotopic Chemistry.
As for the quality of the students who are accepted by our
schools of medicine, there is available an immense amount of
data, the presentation of which would prove inconclusive unless it could be presented in very considerable detail. In
brief, it may be said that our schools of medicine are getting
from the colleges, Jesuit and others, students who have distinguished themselves by relatively high aptitude scores and
college achievement above the average, but that we are still
losing all too many distinguished students to other schools of
medicine. Secondly, our schools of medicine are receiving
from non-Catholic schools, a number of students who are outstanding both for their aptitude and their college achievement
record, but it is also true that the presentation of high aca· ·
demic qualifications should be more emphatically stressed in
accepting students from other than Catholic institutions.
For a final and very practical suggestion in this matter:
letters of recommendation written by Ours for a prospective
student of medicine should emphasize those phases of a stu·
dent's characteristics which an experienced examiner of col·
lege transcripts cannot derive by the study of the student's
academic performance. All too frequently letters of recom·
mendation are merely summaries or interpretations of a stu·
dent's transcript, characterized by a Carlylian "genius for the
obvious," whereas, the intention in requiring letters of recom·
mendation is to enable the school to inform itself concerning
those qualities which are not detectable through the mer~
mechanical reading or examination of college transcripts. I
this point were more emphatically stressed, there would be
���THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
243
much less complaint that our schools of medicine are entirely
too impersonal in their selection of students. What are needed
in the medical student and the future practitioner of medicine
besides strong moral qualities-and in our Catholic students,
besides a deep religious faith and loyal Catholic love-are
such virtues as unqualified truthfulness, a strong sense of
responsibility, a deep interest in human affairs, unselfish concern for others, a profound loyalty and uprightness. But all
of these qualities, great as they are and transcending any
merely human values and skills, cannot by themselves make a
carpenter, neither can they by themselves make a biochemist
or a neuro-anatomist such as is needed in the practice of
medicine.
6. Faculty
Another administrative area in which our schools of medicine have encountered more or less serious difficulties, is that
of faculty selection. The tendency in most schools of medicine today is distinctly away from the dominance of the
volunteer faculty. It has been traditional for the last half
century that a school of medicine should have a full-time
faculty at least in the first two years of the medical curriculum,
that is, in the basic medical science courses. For the last two
and a half decades, however, the necessity of having a goodly
number of full-time instructors in the clinical departments,
that is for the junior-senior and graduate student, around
whom an effective clinical teaching program by volunteer
teachers may be carried out, has been recognized. At the
present moment the emphasis is very strongly upon the fulltime clinical teacher assisted by volunteer teachers for safeguarding scientific interests in the clinical years of the medical
student's curriculum. This tendency undoubtedly has come
to stay. Many of these volunteer teachers make literally
enormous sacrifices in keeping up a teaching program in addition to a very exacting medical practice. Our five schools owe
an unrepayable debt of gratitude to the volunteer teacher in the
medical profession.
The educational activity of the school of medicine does not
end with the close of a student's fourth year. It extends for
another year into the education of interns, and then for three
�244
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
or four years into the education of residents, and still further
into the years of a physician's practice through the organization of postgraduate and graduate courses. It is surely unnecessary to say that any discussion of these various educational activities will lead altogether too far in this place. It
may be pointed out, however, that certain effects have resulted from the conscientious and painstaking performance of
these various extracurricular activities which are not without
their significance at this point. First of all, it should be
pointed out that by reason of our five schools of medicine, the
Catholic hospitals throughout the United States and Canada
and to some extent in other foreign countries, have received
more Catholic interns than they would otherwise have received
from schools of medicine. The same statement can be made
with relatively even greater definiteness of the educational
specialist in medicine who is prepared in the residencies.
Many of these residents immediately after the completion
of their specialty curriculum, remain as house physicians in
Catholic hospitals for several years and thus prepare themselves more and more effectively for taking positions on the
faculties of our Catholic schools of medicine. The number of
Catholics teaching in our Catholic schools of medicine today
is far greater than it was two decades ago. This statement
can be made with considerable assurance even though it is
impossible to present accurate statistical totals.·· A similar
statement can be made about the increase of medical officers
in the armed forces. In this same connection, the question
should also be raised as to just how many Catholic physicians
there are in the United States. Occasional samplings of the
number of physicians in the larger centers would seem to indicate that there are somewhere between thirty and thirty-five
thousand Catholic physicians in the United States. The Catholic Physician Guilds will undoubtedly do much to enable us
to make a more reliable estimate within the not too distant
future.
The maintenance of sound ethical teaching in the schools of
medicine depends, to be sure, upon the attitude of the depart·
mental members in the various areas of medical interest as
well as upon the guidance which these faculty members r~
ceive from the administrative authorities. In a Cathohc
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
245
school of medicine the principle cannot be defended that the
dean of the school need not concern himself with anything
other than what pertains to the teaching program in the
science and art of medicine. It is a matter for deep congratulation due, no doubt, to a special protection of God, and we
may confidently say, in answer to continuous prayer, that as
far as can be readily ascertained, no serious erroneous teaching in matters of faith and morals has occurred in any of our
schools. This does not mean that occasional lapses have not
occurred in the course of hundreds of hours of lecturing and of
student guidance by faculty members of diverse faiths and of
no faith. During half a century and more, words we should
wish never to have been uttered must have been spoken. But
it does mean that as soon as a faculty member in one of our
schools of medicine is made aware of the attitude of the university, disapproving his position on certain questions, he is
generally found to be willing either to modify his position or,
failing that, at least to refrain from insisting upon unethical
teaching. This latter statement, to be sure, leaves much to be
desired. But on the other hand, such situations as here come
to mind have been seized upon by responsible officials in our
schools as occasions for instructing the non-Catholic members
of our faculties. At times many hours of conference have
been spent between non-Catholic faculty members and some
of Ours, rivalling in dynamic oratory and effectiveness, the
inter-religious conferences of the days of the Reformation.
Numerous interesting and pertinent instances could be described-some highly dramatic-if space allowed. Most of
the problems occur in the various areas of obstetrics, gyneco~ogy, psychiatry and urology, but at times controversy pertains also to the morality in medical practice and in the economics of medicine, misleading advertising, participation in
community activities inimical to Catholic interests, and to a
basic philosophy materialistic in its tendencies and attitudes.
In only very few instances has a conflict arisen between one
of our schools of medicine and the ethics committees of the
~cal, regional or national medical societies. Instances are,
owever, on record of a request for a resignation, and in
scarcely an instance has such an incident been carried before
the public or a professional association or an evaluating
�246
THE .1\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
agency. Those who are "in the know" in such matters, cannot
but feel deeply grateful to God for what must be special divine
guidance and protection.
7. Clinical Facilities
The buildings of the school of medicine for the most part
represent facilities for the teaching of the basic medical
sciences, such as anatomy, biochemistry, bacteriology, physiology, pharmacology and pathology. Such laboratories and
lecture rooms, however, by no means represent the entire requirement for teaching facilities. The clinical content of the
medical curriculum, internal medicine, surgery, gynecology
and obstetrics, and their numerous sub-divisions, must be
taught also in hospitals, out-patient departments and allied in·
stitutions. The student of medicine who is a scientist must be
made into a physician by his contacts with sick persons.
Hence, one of the major responsibilities or perhaps the major
responsibility of a school of medicine is the maintenance and
use of hospitals, out-patient services, so-called medical centers
and similar agencies for the diffusion of medical care. In a
highly endowed institution, a large part of the available finan·
cial resources are taken up with expenditures for the mainte·
nance of such facilities. In our five schools of medicine, we
are fortunate enough to have available a number of Catholic
hospitals in which, while the care of the patients is there·
sponsibility of sisters and to the support of which our schools
of medicine make a more or less substantial contribution, the
arrangements redound to the mutual advantages of the school
and the hospital. The magnitude of this responsibility of a
school of medicine cannot be appreciated by anyone who has
not had the duty of dealing with these problems. Our five
schools of medicine are successful in their clinical teaching
programs by virtue of stabilized agreements and continuing
policy in no fewer than nineteen sisters' hospitals which belong
to nine different sisterhoods and to twelve different sisterhood
jurisdictions.
.
To understand even in some remote way some of the aspects
of these major problems, a word of explanation must be
premised. Some of these hospitals to which reference is here
made are what are called technically university hospitals, 11
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
247
term which, seemingly definite and denotative, still has no
universally applicable definition. In general, this term is applied to a major teaching center of a university school of medicine. A university hospital is an institution in which the school
of medicine has a major responsibility for the care of patients, generally by controlling appointments to the hospital
staff. In such a hospital the school of medicine maintains
diagnostic and therapeutic facilities in whole or in part as a
responsibility of the school; formulates and promotes a teaching program for various groups of medical personnel, such as
interns, resident physicians, students of medicine, nurses and
members of the auxiliary medical professions, such as laboratory technicians, radiological technicians, dieticians and many
others; and finally, exercises supervision over the entire medical activity of the institution.
Our five schools of medicine have solved the problem of developing a university hospital as their chief teaching center in
a variety of ways. Georgetown University owns its university
hospital, located on the same campus as the school of medicine
and the school of dentistry. The Sisters of Charity of Nazareth conduct the administrative and nursing functions. St.
Louis University has organized the St. Mary's Group of Hospitals of St. Louis University, three hospitals, all conducted
by the Sisters of St. Mary, two of which are owned completely
by the Sisters and the third, the Firmin Desloge Hospital,
owned half and half by the University and the Sisters. The
latter is located across the street from the school of medicine.
Marquette University does not have a university hospital in
the proper sense of the term but its relations with the Milwaukee County Hospital and with the Veterans Hospital are
unusually favorable. At the Veterans Hospital Marquette has
full scientific and educational control as well as full control
of the staff. Creighton University has made arrangements
With the Franciscan Sisters who conduct St. Joseph's Creighton Memorial Hospital and with the Sisters of Mercy con~ucting St. Catherine's Hospital. Finally, Loyola University
18 still working on the completion of its university hospital
Program but already has a working agreement with the
Sisters of Mercy Hospital.
Besides their relations with the university hospitals, all of
�248
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
the schools of medicine have numerous agreements, contracts
and informal arrangements with a large number of other hospitals, which as far as university organization is concerned,
may be classified into two groups-affiliated or associated hospitals and staff-related hospitals. The distinction between
these two groups of hospitals on the one hand, and the university hospitals of the school of medicine on the other hand,
is the degree of responsibility which the university exercises
in these institutions. The greatest responsibility is, of course,
exercised, generally, by the school of medicine in the university hospital. The staff-related hospitals, on the other hand,
are institutions whose pers~oimel and programs are controlled
by non-university groups including, in some instances, nonCatholic health or welfare institutions. Between institutions
of maximal and minimal university responsibility are the associated or affiliated hospitals for which relationships are
established sometimes on the basis of personal, and sometimes
on the basis of institutional implications. In general, it may
be said that our five schools of medicine have very satisfactory
relationships with their chief teaching centers due in each case
to the fact that a Ca.tholic sisterhood has extended the most
generous and, at times, financially costly, courtesies for the
furtherance of Catholic higher education in the field of medicine. There are instances on record in which the sisterhoods
have literally expended rather large annual sums of money to
keep the medical schools' clinical educational program on a
sound, satisfactory, and even ideal, basis.
A word must still be added concerning the relationship of
our schools of medicine with governmental hospitals, local,
state and federal. Each one of our five schools has developed
relationships of the utmost value to both the hospital and the
school with such agencies as the city hospitals, state hospitals
for nervous and mental patients, isolation hospitals, army hoS·
pitals, veterans' hospitals and other institutions. That much
administrative detail and executive wisdom have been required to build up in each of these five schools of medicine
satisfactory clinical relationships with so many institutions,
and to do this without the expenditure of vast sums of moneY
which many of the non-Catholic schools of medicine must expend in supporting and developing adequate clinical facilities,
�•.
GEORGETOWN WILL HOUSE PAPERS OF ALEXIS CARREL
The Alexis Carrel collection arrives at Georgetown. From left, Drs. W. Proctor Harve)
and Charles A. Hufnagel, Medical School professors, and Rev. Thomas J. O'Donnell, S.J.
R~gent, examine items in the shipment of 63 cases weighing 13,000 pounds. Tht
SCientific papers, manuscripts and souvenirs were presented to the University ir
August by. Dr. Carrel's widow.
DA collection of manuscripts amassed by
r. Alexis Carrel, world-famous surgeon who died in 1944, has been donated
to Georgetown's School of Medicine. The
fapers were transferred to Georgetown
the Rockefeller Institute in New
ork City late ·in August and were
formally presented to the University at
~edical School convocation held at the
b Diversity September 13 and attended
Y a number of leading scientists and
fi~~d!~rs from the medical and allied
.yom
U
knDr. Carrel, author of Man the Unown, is probably best known for his
experiment with Charles A. Lindberg~
on tissues of a chicken heart which wer1
kept alive for several years in a mech·
anism constructed by Lindbergh. Col
Lindbergh met with Drs. Charles Huf·
nagel and Proctor Harvey of George·
town to discuss the content of the Carrel
papers. The collection contains a num·
ber of unfinished manuscripts and ex·
periments, as well as published works
letters, biological specimens and part oj
Dr. Carrel's research library. Dr. Huf.
nagel, an outstanding American hear1
surgeon, will direct the cataloging and
evaluating of the material.
��THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
249
affords dollar evidence, very convincing in character, of the
value of the relationships of our schools with the religious sisterhoods. The statement can be proved to the point of demonstration that the schools of medicine owe their continued existence as well as the degree of excellence which they have
achieved, under God, first of all, to their own university, and
secondly, to the sisters.
As our five schools have been the beneficiaries of the sisters
in their educational programs, so they have tried to diffuse
their services, in turn, throughout the diocesan and religious
institutions in their various localities, providing medical care
and other health services in schools, academies, orphanages,
motherhouses, custodial institutions of various kinds, and
undertaking educational and protective services for health
caring and medical administrative projects of the most diverse
kind. As examples there may be listed: school health examinations, survey courses for missionaries going into the foreign
missions, supplementary health teaching in special educational
programs, health examinations of prospective applicants to
religious orders, facilitating the admission of sick relatives of
priests, nuns and others into health-caring institutions and
numerous other services. Similar services are rendered to
various community welfareagencies as well as to non-Catholic
organizations. In some instances such services have merited
and received striking acknowledgment and gratitude from
members of the Hierarchy, redounding to the honor of God
and the advantage of the Society.
B. SCHOOLS OF DENTISTRY
Much of what has been said about our schools of medicineexcept, of course, statistical and historical data-can be said
also about our schools of dentistry. Our schools of dentistry
are administered for the most part much like our schools of
medicine. There was a tendency a few decades ago to entrust
the responsibility for both of these professional schools to the
same regent-though with us there were always two deansquite unlike the situation applying in some other universities.
We have been fortunate in gaining possession of some
~chools which for many years have been looked upon as leaders
In their fields, and which have remained among the leaders in
�250
THE 1\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
that profession, notably at Chicago, Georgetown and Milwaukee. The number of applications for admission has been
very large and continues so, affording an excellent opportunity for student selection. The data about the religion of
the students is less easy of access than that about the medical
schools, but there is partial indication that the percentage of
Catholics in the student body is not much smaller than in the
schools of medicine.
The relationships between the schools of medicine and those
of dentistry have been increasingly fostered and developed in
the last two decades not only in their educational but also in
their professional, social and .administrative aspects. Several
committees of various dental s'ocieties are at present studying
the medical-dental relationships. A leader in these activities
is an outstanding Catholic dentist. Moreover, such organizations as the American Medical Association, several of the
surgical societies and various governmental agencies, are developing joint (medical and dental) administrative and hygienic committees in the armed forces and in public health.
Thus, an intimate cooperative relationship has been promoted
for the development of joint projects.
Research in dentistry and oral pathology is progressing commendably in the special research fields peculiar to dentistry.
This is as it should be, and in our schools one finds situations characteristic of the whole field of dental education and
dental pathology. Of late, considerable basic research has
been undertaken in the field of amalgams and prosthetic materials, thus greatly furthering dentistry's indispensable
_efforts in promoting human welfare. With all such projects
and the implied viewpoints, our universities which conduct
schools of medicine and schools of dentistry are in hearty sympathy and have manifested this both in their statements of
policy and in their practice. This point deserves special mention since contrary views are entertained in some educational
and professional quarters.
•
In the American Assistancy, seven of our universities conduct schools of dentistry: the universities already mentioned
that conduct schools of medicine, and two others, the Univer·
sity of Detroit and Loyola University of New Orleans. The
development of dental education in the Jesuit universities took
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
251
place between the years 1891 and 1932. The Chicago College
of Dental Surgery was founded in 1883 but it was not until
shortly after the opening of the medical school that the Chicago College of Dental Surgery became an integral unit of
Loyola University. The Chicago College of Dental Surgery
was not only the pioneering school of dentistry in Illinois, but
from its earliest days the distinguished leadership which it
possessed, secured recognition and acceptance of this school
as one of the great schools of dentistry of the world. Georgetown University School of Dentistry functioned at first as a
department of the school of medicine, but by 1901 it was administered as a separate school. The integration of the St.
Louis Dental College into St. Louis University was a gradual
process beginning with a loose affiliation in 1903 at the time
when the University acquired its school of medicine. The
relationship between the school of dentistry and the University was not finally established until 1908 when the school of
dentistry was purchased by the University. Marquette University School of Dentistry also has a stratified history. It
began in 1894 as a department of the Milwaukee Medical
College; in 1907, it was affiliated as a unit of Marquette
University separate from the medical school and finally, in
1913, it became a constituent unit of the University. The
other schools of dentistry in the American Assistancy, that of
Creighton University, of Loyola University, New Orleans, and
of the University of Detroit, began de novo as creations of
their several universities in the years 1905, 1914 and 1932,
respectively.
All these seven schools now have enviable standing among
the schools of dentistry in the country for the excellence of
their educational program, for the adequacy of their clinical
facilities, which are considered unusually good, for their administration, for the high level in student selection and faculty recruitment, and for their participation in the activities
of the professional associations. A noteworthy development
has taken place in the last decade in their research activities
and in the number and excellence of the papers published by
the faculty members. In more recent years, the full-time
staffs of all seven of our schools have been greatly enlarged.
The volunteer teaching plan is still in effect at some places
achieving excellent results.
�252
THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
The average student enrollment per school (1952) of the
forty-two schools of dentistry in the United States is 227 students. Of our institutions, five are larger and two are smaller
than the general average size. The average size of our seven
schools is 298 students; therefore these must be counted among
the larger schools. Although they constitute 16.6 per cent of
the dental schools of the country, their combined student
bodies make up 21 per cent of all students of dentistry. While
statistics are not reliably available concerning the number of
Catholics in the student body of these schools, it must be
pointed out that in each of the,schools, there is a noteworthy
and proud awareness, on the~part of these students, of their
place in the university. The students take enthusiastic interest
in the various university religious activities, membership in
the Sodality, attendance at open and closed retreats, participation in the routine religious exercises and so forth. Moreover, these students become active and enthusiastic alumni and
our graduates have been pointed out as noteworthy in their
religious, parochial and professional environment for their
loyalty to the Church, the Society and their school, and for
their cooperation in projects of dental interest in the affairs
of our parochial schools.
A comparative feature should here be mentioned in passing
as having some significance. While our medical schools constitute somewhat less than 6 per cent of all the schools of
medicine in the country and our students of medicine comprise
7.4 per cent of all medical students, the corresponding percentage for the schools of dentistry are, as just stated, 16.6
and 21 per cent respectively. This fact seems pregnant with
suggestion for the emphasis which might be placed upon the
educational program of our universities.
At Detroit's school of dentistry the much desired and
comparatively rare opportunities for the education of dental
assistants (one year post-high school prerequisite) and dental
hygienists (two year post-high school prerequisite) are of·
• fered. Marquette, too, has had a curriculum for dental hY·
gienists for years, a two year and a four year course; and in
the summer of 1953 a course was given for dental assistants.
At Loyola in New Orleans some training in dental lab is given
on a non-credit basis.
�THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
253
C. SCHOOLS OF PHARMACY
Of the seventy-two approved schools of pharmacy in the
United States, only twelve are being conducted in non-tax
supported institutions. Of these twelve schools, six are
Catholic and of these six, three are conducted by Jesuit universities. It is worth emphasizing this point for many reasons: chiefly, because an enormous revolution has taken place
in the curricula of schools of pharmacy, and secondly, because
the indirect services which a good pharmacist can render in
the maintenance of proper ethics among the clientele of a
pharmacy exceeds by far the opportunities which were available for the promotion of sound ethics among pharmacists of
three or four decades ago. Reference is here made, as can
readily be surmised, first, to the responsibility for dispensing
restricted drugs, secondly, to the ethical implications in the
sale of birth control preparations, and thirdly, to the obligations arising from the sale of obscene literature and permitting obscene and lascivious conversation in the modern drug
store. The modern drug store is apt to be more akin to a
variety store, such as a five, ten and twenty-five cent store, or
a bargain basement of a department store than it is akin to
the old time pharmacy. This movement is due in great part
to the modern revolution in medical practice. The compounding of drugs is avoided. Individual symptoms of a sick person
are met by specialized therapy directed to relieve a particular
symptom only. With this in mind, it can easily be understood
why changes in the curriculum of the school of pharmacy
have been so far-reaching and radical. By 1956 all Jesuit
schools of pharmacy will be on a five year program.
The three schools of pharmacy in Jesuit universities were
organized respectively: at Creighton University in 1907, at
Fordham in 1915, and at Loyola, New Orleans, in 1913. The
total student enrollment in these schools numbers 729 students, our largest school being that of Fordham University
Which has more than doubled the student enrollment of either
of the other two schools. There are three Catholic non-Jesuit
Schools of pharmacy whose combined enrollment is somewhat
larger than the combined enrollment of our three schools,
being 747 as compared with 729.
The objectives in conducting schools of pharmacy
�254
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
are worthy of Jesuit purpose in education. Fordham says in
its catalogue that: "The whole curriculum in the college of
pharmacy tends to stress the professional and the cultural."
It then points out that "pharmacy was looked upon as a nonessential business" while Fordham led in the attempt "to emphasize the professional aspects." Creighton University expresses an identical objective but insists that it "has adapted
to modern conditions the fundamental principles set forth by
prominent educators who have been members of the Society
of Jesus during the four centuries of its existence." The total
census of undergraduate students in the seventy-two approved
schools numbers 16,639. There are in addition 548 graduate
students in pharmacy schools. The development of a graduate
program leading to a Master's degree emphasizes particularly
the physiological and the biochemical aspects of pharmacy and
thus leads directly into highly specialized areas of research.
At the present time, research in our schools of pharmacy requires development but there are encouraging indications that
a change in this situation is imminent and will prove successful.
D. THE SCHOOLS OF PROFESSIONS ANCILLARY TO MEDICINE
.
The growing complexity of the scientific aspects of medicine
has affected its practice in a vast number of ways. During
the last three-quarters of a century, the mere physical actions
made imperative by the increase in diagnostic and therapeutic
procedures, resulted in a vast increase in the number of assistants whom a doctor needs to carry out the necessary specialized procedures for a particular patient. In the beginning
of this era, which must be dated as beginning approximately
in the 1870's, physicians appointed unskilled persons as their
assistants and by some form of apprentice-training, developed
techniques and skills as each physician wanted certain procedures carried out. The various areas in which this was true
were in the practice of chemical, bacteriological and patho·
logical diagnosis, in the a'J)plication of radium and x-rays for
the diagnosis and treatment of disease, in the field of record
keeping, in the field of physical medicine or biophysics, in
nutritional techniques, in administrative fields, such as hoS·
pita! administration and hospital finance, and perhaps in manY
�l
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
255
other subdivisions of these various fields, as for example, in
electrocardiography and encephalography. The second stage
in the development of these assistants to the physician was
that of training technicians in schools of medical technology.
These schools became very numerous throughout the country.
Every large city has a number of them. Some of these schools
became very generally known not only in this country but
also abroad.
Without attempting too accurate a generalization, it may be
said that these schools were actually doing what a description
of them indicated, namely, they gave training to the student in
skills, teaching the use of hands and eyes in the performance
of the various procedures that were necessary for diagnosis
and treatment. It was soon found, however, that assistants
trained in this way had only a limited usefulness to the physician. This became emphatically evident first of all in the
field of medical research in which a mere training in skill
produced a technician fully capable of performing repetitive
procedures, but incapable of adjusting such procedures to
changing demands as would be required for a research assistant.
Approximately at the beginning of the third decade of the
present century, the desire was expressed by educators in
these fields that the assistants should have some basic knowledge of the various sciences, and skills which they were using
in assisting the physician. Thus the demand grew that the
medical technician should have a basic course in biochemistry,
for example, before he or she learns biochemical techniques; in
bacteriology, before he or she learns bacteriological techniques; and so for the many sub-divisions of various other
medical activities and medical sciences. From this in turn
grew the realization that persons so qualified could be best
Prepared in colleges and universities, particularly in those
institutions of higher learning to which a medical school is
attached, and in this way in the course of time, an undergraduate degree program was developed. Presently there are
still two-year schools of medical technology, side by side with
the four-year schools. It may be said, however, that the
student who has a Bachelor of Science degree in one of the
medical technologies is by preference chosen as a faculty mem-
�256
THE 1\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
her of a hospital school or a specialized school of medical
technology, and is being increasingly preferred by general
hospitals. Institutions which conduct researclt in one of the
medical fields find it is highly desirable to choose a person
who has graduated from one of the four-year. curricula.
The various schools and colleges in the American Assistancy
have participated to a very large extent in these developments
and have adjusted their programs in a very satisfactory manner to keep pace with the scientific developments. The sisters
have practically led the country-in these developments. There
are 144 Catholic hospitals which are carrying out educational
work in these various fields. Each of our five universities
having medical schools has participated in introducing collegiate curricula. The number of students in these various
fields has grown until in some of our schools, the student
body in these curricula numbers sixty or seventy. Obviously,
the capacity of each school for this kind of education cannot
be unlimited, since so much of the work must be individualized,
supervised and conducted by highly specialized instructors.
The fields in which our schools in the Assistancy have offered
educational facilities are: medical laboratory technology (in
six or seven specialties), medical record library science, radiological technology, hospital dietetics, physical medicine technology, occupational therapy, and a highly important field
which may become one of our greatest contributions in our
medical activities, hospital administration. Not too manY
years ago, only two schools were approved for the preparation
of hospital administrators, namely, St. Louis University and
Chicago University. Since that time the number has increased.
The significance of these developments is many-sided. Apparently from the very beginning, this kind of work made a
strong appeal to the nuns, so that today when this area of
• education has blossomed forth into many professional organi·
zations, into evaluating and accrediting agencies, and into
social organizations of various kinds, we find Catholic sisters
as officers of these various professional groups, as members of
executive committees, as members of accrediting committees
and, in general, as members whose participation, advice, and
���THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
257
influence are accepted as most significant for promoting the
high-level care of the sick.
This development too has influenced the missionary field.
The number of Catholic medical missionaries, either lay persons or nuns, and Catholic nursing missionaries is growing,
and interest in these various fields is being progressively intensified. The medical technician today is carrying her or his
share of these new and greater responsibilities, corresponding
to the changing needs of the medical activities not only in
civilized but also in less favored cultural areas of medical interest. It is found that the nun who has familiarized herself
by her professional studies and by her experience with diagnostic and therapeutic procedures is most useful particularly
in outlying isolated hospitals where there is an inadequacy of
physicians.
In this work too, the American Assistancy has produced
results of the utmost importance. If at first sight it seems
that so much of this lies outside of the spiritual activity of
the nun in the Missions, our fears on that score can be readily
set at rest if we recall the attitude of Father Pierre
Charles, S.J., who points out that the medical missions to be
sure have an objective in common with all the religious orders
and with the priest missionaries, namely, the salvation of
souls, effected by the numerical increase of the Church and
the progressive prestige of the Church enabling it to influence
Wider and ever wider circles of men. Our Holy Father has
repeatedly emphasized the need of thorough professional preparation for missionary priests and nuns.
E.
SCHOOLS OF MEDICAL SOCIAL WORK
Medical social work, which must now be considered an integral part of the medical activities in our Assistancy, sprang
from two sources as can be seen when the origins of the
various curricula in this field and its.activities are studied. In
one or two of our universities it sprang from the progressive
recognition of the need for establishing a closer liaison between the patient and the physician on the one hand, and
between hospitals and social service agencies on the other. In
other of our universities it has developed as a specialized form
of social service very much as group work, psychiatric social
�258
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
work, or school social work were developed as specialized
forms of a general program in social work.
Of the six Catholic approved programs in medical social
work, four are conducted under the auspices of one of our
universities, one of. the other two under the auspices of the
Catholic University and the other, by Our Lady of the Lake
College of Texas. A number of partial programs are conducted in some of our Catholic institutions (orientation
courses, review courses, etc.) but these have thus far failed to
impress themselves in any tangible way upon the general field.
A number of general social workers employed in various
Catholic agencies have begun informal specialization in their
activities by a division of responsibilities after graduating
from a recognized general curriculum in social work. In other
words, not all of the social workers who are referred to as
medical social workers have actually completed a specialized
curriculum. Similarly, not all of the schools offering a cur·
riculum in social work are emphasizing the need for speciali·
zation.
How great the need for such specialization is can be seen
from the type of probfems, which are today recognized as the
field for the medical social worker, demanding not only basic
knowledge of several medical fields and a knowledge of com·
munity health and welfare resources, but also highly spe·
cialized understanding of the problems which may develop in
th~ relationships between patients and physicians and between
patients and social agencies. It is equally true that almost
every social worker no matter what the field of specialization
or field of practice, must have at least some rudimentary
understanding of the kind of problems which at times confront
the medical social worker. It should also be pointed out that
not everyone interested in the field of social service fully un·
derstands the need of specialized curricula in medical social
work, with the result that often the responsibilities of a
worker in the field of sociology are confused with those of a
social worker. It might' be well to illustrate this point by a
brief review of a publication concerning the graduates of
Fordham University in the field of social work.
The school was established in the fall of 1927. Of the grad·
uates who received the Master's degree in one of several field~
of social work, 59 are now occupied in hospitals, 39 in one 0
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
259
the federal bureaus, 87 in the governmental agencies of the
city of New York and of the state of New York, 18 are employed in foreign service and 125 in state agencies outside of
the state of New York. Among these graduates, there were
17 priests, 4 of whom are Jesuits, and approximately 60 sisters.
These graduates have served as vehicles to carry Jesuit influence and Jesuit philosophy into many environments, which it
would be quite impossible for us to reach in any other way
than the one we have used. The four recognized curricula in
medical social work were all established between 1927 and
1940.
F.
THE SCHOOLS OF NURSING
Thirty years ago this section would have been very easy to
write with little if anything to say about the activities of the
American Assistancy in the fields of nursing and nursing
education. Today these areas of education represent two of
the largest and very influential phases of the medical activities
of the Society.
Today it is fairly generally understood that nursing education is given in collegiate as well as non-collegiate programs,
that is, in colleges and universities and in hospitals. All of
the programs are partly theoretical and partly practical. The
difference between the collegiate and the non-collegiate programs arises from the content of their curricula, the form of
organization of the school, the extensiveness of the programs
and the general patterns of administration. Many of the
hospital schools, as a matter of fact, have some form of affiliation with colleges affecting the hospital school program in
various ways. Sometimes the colleges accredit the curriculum
of the hospital school as a whole (institutional or "block"
accreditation), or accredit one or several selected courses
(course accreditation), or share instructional or administrative personnel with the hospital school. A number of such
hospital schools have one of Ours giving one or more coursesReligion, professional and general Ethics, English, or PhilosoPhy.
Thirteen of the colleges and universities in the Assistancy
are listed in the School Directory of the Catholic Hospital
Association as having such relationships with twenty-six hosPital schools of nursing. It can be asserted safely, however,
�260
THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
that there are more than the number just stated, as either the
college or the hospital school may have failed to report pertinent facts. The non-collegiate program is, in general, the old
three-year school of nursing program, enriched by supplementary courses in the humanities and the sciences. The educational terminology in this relatively new professional field is
not as yet sufficiently stabilized to permit uniformity of definition and classification. This statement holds true for many
phases of the subject here under discussion.
To return for a moment to the relationship between our
schools and universities and the Catholic hospital schools of
nursing, in the twenty-six schools to which reference has just
been made, Jesuits were reaching somewhat more than 2,520
student nurses during the year 1951-52. The importance of
the influence thus exerted gains greatly owing to the fact that,
for the most part, the members of the Society thus engaged
are teaching the most dynamically effective courses in the
nurses' curriculum. Opportunity is afforded for exerting
influence in educational, religious, social, spiritual and vocational guidance, inclusjve of spiritual direction towards religious vocations, and promoting the increase of membership
in such organizations as the Sodality, the Apostleship of
Prayer, the Children of Mary, various Social Action groups
and other spiritual organizations. Our activity in .these hospital schools of nursing also affords opportunities for the
promotion of closed retreats and for effective influence upon
the religious, some of whom may not have, up to very recent
years, felt the influence of the ideals and spiritual activity of
the Society. Most immediately also, the Society is given an
opportunity to influence a greatly needed, highly responsible
group of nurses and through them, to affect their patients not
only during illnesses but in an increasing number of instances,
for years after their first contacts with members of the Society. Furthermore, Ours thus receive a measure of stimula·
tion for zeal through the indirect effect exercised by the
diocesan nurses' guilds. ·
In passing, just a word must be said about certain verY
recent developments in areas of educational interest related to
nursing and nursing education. Some of the hospital schools
of nursing have also introduced programs in sub-academic
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
261
nursing activities, such as courses for practical nurses, first
aid workers, Red Cross workers and Grey Ladies, and nurses'
aides. No doubt other groups in diverse places of our country
have felt effective influence from schools of nursing in which
Ours are more or less active,-all this, we may confidently
hope, redounding to the glory of God through the practice of
virtue and the promotion of the salvation of souls. All students in these sub-professional groups are peculiarly responsive to such influences as we can exert since they have experienced the heightened susceptibility to the inspirations of
grace which is apt to come to those who have been in contact
with the spiritual realities and other implications of human
suffering. It would seem too that a rich spiritual harvest is
reaped by those of Ours who give aid by teaching administration and counseling to these students, Catholic as well as nonCatholic, particularly in non-Catholic schools of nursing.
In addition to the participation of our colleges and universities in the basic professional education of nurses, they participate also to an even greater degree in the nurses' collegiate
education. Here again it is not easy to summarize and define
either from a professional or an educational viewpoint the
distinctions between the various activities of the colleges.
Chiefly two classes of programs must first be differentiated:
the program for the Bachelor of Science Degree for those
nurses who have already completed their basic professional
Program and have graduated from a hospital school (a program which is described briefly as "the degree curriculum for
R.N's." or some similar title), and the program for those who
are following a basic professional curriculum integrated with
courses of a humanistic, literary, mathematical and scientific
character. The latter program is usually designated as "the
Bachelor of Science Curriculum in Nursing." Historically
~Peaking, the latter program was the one which was developed
In the early activity of colleges in its education of nurses. By
reason of the intermingling of professional and academic
courses and the consequent intermingling of professional and
academic objectives, very considerable confusion developed in
the administration of these various programs and some of the
difficulties which then developed still haunt the colleges up to
the present time. Various schools "allow" thirty to sixty
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
credit hours towards the B.S. degree for the three years of the
basic nursing curriculum, depending more or less upon the
student's academic performance and the extent of sound educational control of the basic professional curricula by an
academic institution. As for the content of these supplementary· courses through which the nurse earns sixty to ninety
hours of credit for the degree, she is offered a choice of taking
the Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing or in Nursing Education or in Public Health Nursing.
The first differentiation which occurred was to offer diverse
numbers of hours of credit for curricula taken in different
kinds of hospital schools-for-example, thirty semester hours
of credit for the curriculum in an unaffiliated hospital school,
forty-five semester hours of credit for nursing schools affiliated with an academic institution, and sixty semester hours
of credit for the nursing curriculum given under strict university or college auspices. Paralleling these differentiated
awards of semester hours of credit, the nursing schools were
described as hospital schools, university affiliated schools, and
the university schools. At the present time the situation has
been greatly simplified by programs of combined academic and
basic professional courses into a four- or five-year curriculum.
The four-year curriculum also calls for the completion of
three full additional summer semesters to compensate for two
regular session semesters demanded by universities which require five years for the Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing
or in Nursing Education.
The Jesuit schools of the American Assistancy became interested in these various educational activities almost from
the very beginning of the movement and have been largely
influential in the Catholic educational field of promoting the
advanced education of nurses. Ten of our colleges and universities are offering programs leading to the Bachelor of
Science degree for students who have already completed their
professional education. Seven are offering curricula leading
to the Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing and in Nursing
Education for students who are taking an integrated professional and collegiate curriculum. Four of our universities are
offering advanced studies leading to a Master's degree in
Nursing, and in Nursing Education or in Public Health Nurs-
l
[
J
���THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
263
ing. At present there are only two of our universities offering
a certificate course in nursing (the basic professional curriculum) and it is very likely that in time, all academic sponsorship of the segregated basic professional curriculum will
be completely eliminated. The tendency at present is to restrict the basic professional educational activities to the
hospital schools. In the various Jesuit colleges and universities at the end of the school year 1952-53, there was a total of
2,264 students in the various degree programs and 82 students
following a Master's program.
The Jesuit schools in the American Assistancy represent
approximately one-third of the total number of Catholic colleges and universities offering such educational opportunities.
Our ten colleges and universities, however, contain almost 80
per cent of the number of students availing themselves of such
opportunities in Catholic institutions. If in addition to this it
is kept in mind that the Catholic schools of nursing represent
a total of 30 per cent of all student nurses in the United States,
one can form some idea of the great influence which the colleges and universities of the Society have exerted on the
profession of nursing.
A further word of interpretation cannot be considered out
of place regarding the total results of education in a profession
which only a very few years ago was looked upon with suspicion. Some results of our activities in this area might be
briefly summarized as follows. We have introduced an additional group of approximately twenty thousand girls to some
initial understanding of Catholic philosophy and religion, thus
giving them a better insight into Catholic living, Catholic
action and the practice of the ascetical and religious life. In
the same way, our colleges and universities have fostered religious vocations to the various sisterhoods and particularly
to the missionary sisterhoods. The nursing and hospital sisters have been brought more closely into harmony with the
teaching sisters, especially in those groups that carry on both
nursing and teaching activity. A deeper appreciation of Catholic education for the professions has thus been spread among
the religious of the country with a result that could have been
achieved in no other way to the same extent. Another intan. gible hut very real result has been the extension of Catholic
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THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
education into non-Catholic areas through participation of
Catholic nurses in the various nursing organizations, accredit.
ing organizations, social and professional groups, and the
development of leadership by Catholic women in agencies formerly completely closed to them. To offer statistics in proof
of these statements is all but impossible in a summary of this
type, but various aspects of this subject have been competently
and exhaustively treated by a wide diversity of authors.
Jesuits have been well represented among authors dealing with
such matters. It must also be pointed out that through these
various activities, the Society has been able to exercise a
greatly increased influence upon some of the sisterhoods which
not too long ago were almost' immune to suggestions for their
educational development.
The new development which confronts those engaged in
these professional activities promises even larger opportunities for Catholic influence. The history of school accreditation
in the nursing field is one of many disappointing or inadequate
starts and incomplete efforts. In the general nursing field
the quest for valid objectives and their definitions continued
for many years and has only recently begun to yield definite
and clear results. Upon the definitions of such objectives the
problem of accrediting schools became clarified. In the meantime, in the Catholic group, an effort was made to develop an
accrediting agency of its own, an effort which for-many reasons failed in its primary objectives but which as a by-product
produced the result that the Catholic schools, both hospital and
collegiate, were well prepared to face the investigations and
examinations preliminary to accrediting.
Specialization in nursing, especially in the overlapping
areas of education and welfare, for example, school nursing,
psychiatric nursing, home nursing and similar activities, have
felt the stimulation of the newer social attitudes and a large
field is thus opening to our colleges which have already exer·
cised leadership in these various fields. As a third comment,
we find many of our Fathers participating in local nursing
guilds and in nursing school alumnae associations both of the
hospital schools and of the collegiate schools. Details con·
cerning these activities can hardly be presented. It will prob·
ably, however, be quite generally conceded that these many and
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
265
varied activities offer an excellent field for the promotion of
the Society's aims and purposes.
PART II. NON-ACADEMIC MEDICAL ACTIVITIES
The medical activities of the Assistancy extend also into
many non-academic directions, into the areas of welfare organizations, welfare work, the visitation of the sick incidental
to the cura animarum and to an even greater extent, into
missionary activities.
A.
ORGANIZATIONS
1. Medical Interests in Welfare Organization
The Catholic Hospital Association, the first of its kind, it is
believed, in the Catholic world, has achieved untold good in
the thirty-eight years of its existence. It was founded in 1915
at Minneapolis, Minnesota, at St. Mary's Hospital, by a group
of sisters, whom Father Charles B. Moulinier, S.J., (died 1941),
had invited to discuss the possibility of organizing the Catholic hospitals of the country into an association. The sisters
were enthusiastic at the prospect and Father Moulinier defined
its purpose to be to place emphasis upon the spiritual viewpoints, principles, and practices in the management and operation of Catholic hospitals of the United States and Canada, to
preserve an understanding and to foster dissemination of
knowledge concerning the religious backgrounds of all hospital
activities, and finally, to foster the achievement of progressively higher idealism with reference to religious, professional,
social and charitable activity of the Catholic hospital, as alone
worthy of the dignity of an institution which glories in its
designation as a Catholic hospital.
Father Moulinier immediately undertook to visit members
of the American and Canadian Hierarchy as well as the professional health and medical agencies of the country, such as
the American College of Surgeons, the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Medical Association.
Be then visited a large number of Catholic hospitals, as a committee member of the hospital standardization program of the
American College of Surgeons. His work on this committee
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
was most effective and influential. On all sides his project
received generous endorsement. His Excellency, Sebastian G.
Messmer, the Archbishop of Milwaukee, took a hearty interest
in the new venture from the first moment that he heard of
Father Moulinier's plans. The meeting in Minneapolis convened with his approval and blessing.
The active membership of the Association is institutional,
that is, the Catholic hospitals rather than the sisters are the
members. However, all the sisters and brothers occupied in
such institutions, were regarded as associate members and thus
the organization became popularly known as the Sisters' Hospital Association. This form .. of organization was, unfortunately, not clearly understood and led to controversies even
years after the beginning of the Association.
Another source of misunderstanding was the somewhat
unique method of electing the president and other officials
during the entire first quarter of a century of the organization's existence. Father Moulinier himself acted as president
on the basis of repeated re-elections from 1915 to 1928 and was
succeeded by the writer .who served as president from 1928 to
1947. It should be noted, however, that in all probability for
the earlier years no other form of organization or management
could have been equally successful.
In 1944 negotiations were begun to place the organization
under the more immediate direction of the Hierarchy. The
National Catholic Welfare Conference accepted responsibility
for the re-organization and placed it under the care of His
Excellency, Karl Alter, then the Bishop of Toledo and now
Archbishop of Cincinnati. The new form of organization
among other features modernized the election of officers. A
president was elected from among the Diocesan Directors of
Hospitals through usual parliamentary procedures and a member of the Society, Father John Flanagan, was appointed to
act as the Executive Director of the Association. At the same
• time, the headquarters of the Association were fixed in St.
Louis in connection with ·st. Louis University. Previous to
that time the headquarters had been for a number of years at
Marquette University in Milwaukee, then at Spring Bank,
Wisconsin, also in connection with the University, then in Chi-
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
267
cago but independent of any Jesuit dependency, except that
the president was a Jesuit.
At the time of Father Moulinier's foundation of the Association, he was Regent of the School of Medicine of Marquette
University. He was not alone, however, in his epoch-making
work. Father Edward F. Garesche of the Society deserves
much more than the passing mention that can be given to him
here for his stimulating and resourceful activity. Father
Garesche supplemented Father Moulinier's efforts in a hundred
ways and invented new outlets for the Association's influence.
Mention must also be made of the devoted interest of Father
Albert C. Fox, (died 1934), Father Patrick J. Mahan, (died
1938), Father William P. Whalen, (died 1938), and no doubt
many others of the Society, also of many diocesan priests,
many physicians and Catholic laymen and literally hundreds
of devoted sisters in every corner of the United States and
Canada.
To evaluate the results achieved by the Association in terms
of the Society's objectives would be a difficult project. Such
an evaluation should be made to reveal the compatibility of
the Association's objectives with those of the Society. It must
suffice to say that the Catholic hospital of the United States
and Canada is today one of the pillars of the faith. It is a
leader in health-caring activities and welfare work among the
people of the United States and Canada, Catholic as well as
non-Catholic. If the sisters of the Catholic hospitals are
generally regarded today as conducting hospitals and schools
of nursing upon a high level of professional excellence in the
rnany fields of hospital service, these results, under God, are
attributable probably in a dominant degree to the work of the
Catholic Hospital Association. There is a well founded guarantee that continuance of these successes is ensured under the
new leadership and within the new organizational framework.
Ever greater results are to be expected because of the Association's more intimate contact with members of the Hierarchy
in both countries.
The international expectations and results can be summarized with even greater difficulty. Many of the countries
of Europe and of Asia have their Catholic hospital associations
Inodelled after the great exemplar which under God and under
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
the permissive stimulation of the Superiors of the Society, we
owe to Father Charles B. Moulinier.
2. The Federation of Catholic Physicians Guilds
The retreat given to fifty-nine prominent physicians of Manhattan and the Bronx by Father Gerald C. Treacy, at that
time Director of the Mount Manresa Retreat House in April,
1927, culminated in the formation of a retreat group of physicians. Dr. Rendish was elected president of the group. Before very long, the retreat group was changed into the Physicians Guild and Father Ignatius W. Cox accepted the responsibilities of moderator.- .. Father Cox actively promoted
the development of similar organizations in other cities and
in 1929, at the annual Convention of the American Medical
Association, representatives of several of these Physicians
Guilds met to form the Federation of Catholic Physicians
Guilds. At the beginning of 1953 there were eleven such
guilds, one of them, the Hamilton Guild of Canada. Since
that time there has been a meeting of the Federation of Catholic Physicians Guilds each year in connection with the convention of the American Medical Association. At the last
meeting in 1952 there were no fewer than 150 physicians in
attendance at the meeting and a full afternoon's program was
carried out, including noteworthy papers and discussions.
The writer of this article took the responsibilty for the
Catholic Physicians Guild when requested to do so by the
National Catholic Welfare Conference to which organization
the Federation was affiliated. Father Cox found it necessary
on account of the pressure of his numerous duties to relinquish
this responsibility. At the present time the moderator of the
Catholic Physicians Guild is the Right Reverend Monsignor
Donald A. McGowan, who is also the representative for Catholic hospitals in the National Catholic Welfare Conference.
3. Catholic Medical Mission Board
An editorial in America of March 14, 1953, calls attention
to the fact that the Catholic Medical Mission Board has con·
eluded a quarter century of practical assistance to the missions
which was "nothing short of amazing." Since 1928 the Cath·
�he Pharmacy-Chemistry Building (Bobet Hall) of New Orleans' Loyola University.
Cardinal Stritch College of Medicine of Loyola University, Chicago.
�-·
�THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
269
olic Medical Mission Board has shipped a total of six million
pounds of needed medical supplies.
The Catholic Medical Mission Board founded by Father
Edward F. Garesche, is unique among Catholic organizations
throughout the world. It is a voluntary society which aids
Catholic missions medically anywhere and everywhere on
earth, and in fact has helped about three thousand missions
conducted by about one hundred missionary communities and
bishops. Governed by a board of clerical and lay directors, it
is supported by voluntary contributions from all over the
United States. With headquarters in New York City it carries out an active apostolate, gathering funds for the medical
work of the Catholic missions, collecting and distributing
drugs, medical instruments and other equipment. It supplies
information in answer to inquiries from any Catholic medical
mission center in the world, rendering medical advice, and in
general, promoting the medical activities of the Catholic
medical missions. The Board acts as intermediary between
the medical centers in the mission fields and the mission areas.
As soon as new drugs are put into use, as for example the
recent introduction of "D.D.S." as a curative drug in leprosy,
the Catholic Medical Mission Board attempts to secure such
drugs and give the Catholic medical missions the benefit of new
discoveries as promptly as possible. It is not surprising that
an editorial in America gives the impression of being literally
overwhelmed by the magnitude of Father Garesche's agency.
4. The Daughters of :Mary, Health of the Sick-The Sons of
Mary, Health of the Sick
Father Garesche's activities in connection with the Catholic
Medical Mission Board, draws attention to the enormous responsibilities assumed in his great zeal for the missions by the
organization and promotion of two new religious communities,
both of them distinct from the Catholic Medical Mission Board
and yet both organized to support the activities of the Catholic
missions throughout the world. The Daughters of Mary,
Health of the Sick, is a community that was established under
the authority of His Eminence, Patrick Cardinal Hayes, then
~rchbishop of New York, "to help the catechetical and medical
Interests of missions both at home and in foreign lands." This
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THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
Community, in its early days, greatly assisted Father Garesche
in carrying out his enormous activities for the missions. The
headquarters of the new sisterhood are now at Vista Maria,
Cragsmoor, New York.
Paralleling the work of the Daughters of Mary, Health of
the Sick, a mission order of men, The Sons of Mary, Health of
the Sick, with headquarters at Silva Maria, Framingham,
Massachusetts, was established in Boston under the authority
and approval of His Excellency, Archbishop Cushing, on March
27, 1952. A community of this brotherhood was incorporated as a religious association under the laws of Massachuetts with His Excellency, the ·Archbishop, as Honorary President and with officials of the Boston Archdiocese among the
incorporators. On August 15, 1953, two brother novices and
two novices who aspire to the priesthood took their first vows,
a solemn and deeply significant occasion.
The event was signalized by the presence of His Excellency,
the Archbishop, and all who were in attendance felt that they
had witnessed the beginning of a truly significant event in the
history of the Church in our country. Father Garesche wishes.
it understood that while both of these religious communities
owe their origin in some direct manner to the Catholic Medical
Mission Board, all three agencies are separate so that any responsibilities incurred by one are in no way binding upon the
other two.
5. Nursing Organizations
Over the years several attempts were made to form an
organization of Catholic nurses under the auspices of the
Catholic Hospital Association. These efforts, however, did
not secure permanent results partly by reason of a failure to
define objectives. In the organization of the Catholic Hospital
Association the desire of making the sisters associate members
of the Association if their hospital was an institutional member could not be applied without some modification to the
schools of nursing. First of all, in the earlier years and up to
about 1940, the schools of nursing were organized as integral
parts of the hospital. It would have been logical to declare
the nurses, lay as well as religious, as associate members of
the Catholic Hospital Association, but that would have meant
destroying the special character of the Association as a Sisters'
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
271
(and nursing Brothers') Association. Besides with the coming of the second world war several events occurred which
influenced this situation. Many efforts were made to secure
the independence of the hospital schools of nursing from their
parent hospitals, and the hospitals' alleged exploitation of
the schools of nursing was emphasized. The development of
the collegiate and the university schools of nursing intensified
this emphasis as did also the inauguration of the Nurses Cadet
Corps under new Congressional legislation. At the same time
the development of new nurses organizations, the emergence
of new schools, and the inauguration of nursing schools accrediting agencies, brought about temporary confusion out of
which has evolved the present status of the nursing field.
The Catholic Hospital Association, with several of Ours, was
vocal and active in these movements. Long before they became critical, Father Garesche had attempted an organization
of nurses without attempting an organization of nursing
schools, directly dependent upon the C.H.A. In many dioceses local guilds of nursing sprang up and sought incorporation with the C.H.A. During the decades of 1930-1940 and
1940-1950 the Association expended its resources and energies
largely in the development and organization of a Council on
Nursing Education and most recently, the Conference of
Catholic Schools of Nursing. It was recommended furthermore that the nurses' guilds should be formed on a diocesan
pattern, and should become affiliates distinct from the National
Council of Catholic Women, much as the groups of the Catholic Physicians Guild are part of the N.C.W.C.
At present, therefore, many of Ours are active and influential in administering Catholic schools of nursing. Some are
in contact with national organizations, while others serve as
moderators or spiritual directors of the nurses' guilds in
various dioceses. Thus far it has not been feasible to develop
a complete list of Ours, who labor in these fields.
Lastly we mention an appointment by our present Holy
Father of Father Edward F. Garesche, as the International
Secretary of Catholic Nurses Organizations throughout the
World. The disturbed world situation has impeded a better
Understanding of the role Ours are taking in these international matters in which His Holiness and several Roman dignitaries, especially Cardinal Pizzardo, have shown a deep and
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THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
enthusiastic interest. The Catholic lay nurse, as well as the
Catholic religious nurse, have "arrived," as one might colloquialize, and it is a source of satisfaction for us, that Ours
have had their part in these large developments.
B. PUBLICATIONS
As in so many other phases of the Catholic apostolate so too
in the medical phases of our Assistancy's work, the press has
served a very effective purpose.
1. H ospi~d.l Progress
Hospital Progress, the official journal of the Catholic Hospital Association, is in its thirty-fourth year. From 1919 to
1928 it was edited by Father Moulinier with Father Edward
F. Garesche, as associate editor; from 1928 to 1947, by Father
Schwitalla and since then by Father John Flanagan. It is a
worthy journal dealing with hospital affairs. Despite its
avowedly limited appeal, it wields an influence far beyond its
subscription list. It has been eminently successful in achieving its primary purpose, the promotion of a high level of excellence in Catholic hospital service but it has also been very
successful in achieving its several secondary purposes, such
as development of sisters and brothers as competent experts in
their various fields of hospital interest, and the assurance of
a'source of funds for maintaining the Association.
A summary glance over the thirty-three completed volumes
of Hospital Progress reveals the striking parallel between the
content of the journal and the Association's history and contemporary general hospital history. The first ten years of the
Association's life was the period of progressive growth and
hospital standardization; the second decade was a period of
internal development and the achievement of relative perfection in service ; and the third decade, a period of extension of
the hospital into the community's interest through public
• relations and participation;.in community service and activities.
Similarly during the first world war, the Catholic hospital was
not as ready as it became later to take a large part in wartime hospital responsibility. Later, however, in the formula·
tion of federal legislation concerning hospital construction,
emergency maternity and infant care, and the Cadet Nurses
�THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
273
Corps, the Catholic hospital played a commanding role in
planning, developing and implementing federal and state legislation. Many questions of far-reaching Catholic interest
were faced and solved during those important war and postwar years, such as the evaluation of the Sisters' Contributed
Service, the participation of Catholic hospitals in federal
funds for institutional capital costs, the acceptable methods of
co-operation in technical service and in professional education
of Catholic with non-Catholic agencies and many others. His
Excellency, the Most Reverend Karl J. Alter, D.D., at that
time, Bishop of Toledo, gave his time and efforts most liberally
in those busy years and proved to be an enlightened, wise and
prudent leader of the Association. As the appointee of the
National Catholic Welfare Conference, his leadership and direction proved to be powerful and effective. The Bishop's Committee on Hospitals, in Canada, was no less powerful. It may
be said without exaggeration that Hospital Progress contains
as complete a record of all these matters as could be assembled
under existing limitations.
2. The Linacre Quarterly
The Linacre Quarterly is now in its twentieth year. From
1933 to 1943 it was edited by Father Ignatius W. Cox, and
since 1947 it is now edited by Father John Flanagan. During the intervening years responsibility for this journal rested with the present writer. The Quarterly announces
as its sub-title banner line "A Journal of the Philosophy and
Ethics of Medical Practice." As the official Journal of the
Federation of Catholic Physicians Guilds, it has gained enormously in influence, distinction and authority by Father
Gerard Kelly's valuable, regular contribution on current
llledico-moral problems during the last five years. The Linacre
Quarterly promises a significant and influential future.
3. The Medical Mission News
The Medical Mission News is edited by Father Edward F.
;.aresche for the Catholic Medical Mission Board. Published
Hnonthly, it serves as the propaganda vehicle for the Board
and contains articles about and for the missions. You may
find in it an article about Mother Dengel's missionaries, one
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
on tropical medicine by a professional physician, an article on
techniques by a nurse or a graduate medical technologist, side
by side with an article by a missionary bishop or priest, detailing the points of a morning's meditation that lightens and
sweetens the bearing of the Cross. Besides these articles, we
find Father Garesche's stirring appeals.
4. Medical Interest in Other Publications
These three Journals deal explicitly with medical activities
of the Assistancy. In addition, much incidental medical inter·
est may be found in the~~umerous publications of the As·
sistancy. Now and then, an article of medical interest occurs
in almost any one of our American Jesuit publications, America,
Thought, Jesuit Missions, Jesuit Seminary News (two of
them), Jesuit Bulletin, Southern Jesuit, The Patna Mission,
Letters, The Western Jesuit, The Oregon Jesuit, The Jesuit,
Philippine Jesuit, The Review for Religious, Theological
Studies, The Theology Digest, Sacred Heart Messenger, Re·
vista Catolica, Queen's Work, Action Now, Mid-America, and
probably in other J esnit publications which may have escaped
the writer's notice. Jesuit contributions to professional jour·
nals, such as the Journal of the American Medical Association,
and Medical Education may be occasionally found.
Another great area of pertinent interest must here be passed
over with only a brief mention since opportunities have not as
yet been taken by the writer to compile scattered available
information. In current publications, Catholic and occasion·
ally non-Catholic, reference is sometimes made to some of
Ours whose work lies in medical missionary fields. In the back
numbers of Mother Dengel's periodical, The Medical Missionary, in numbers chosen at random, dated between April, 1939,
and October, 1949, there occurs mention of twenty-two Jesuit
missionaries in India in connection with the medical activitieS
of Mother Dengel's sisters. Four Jesuit missionary bishops
receive more or less extensive mention and biographical details are given concerning eighteen American Jesuits. Eight
articles were written by Ours. Materials written by Ou~s,
but not readily available for analyzing, have been found JD
some ten or twelve other missionary journals. It would be
interesting to reprint here a list of these names with a sum-
�The Carey Memorial addition to Marquette's School of Medicine.
,(udent nurses in Marquette University's College of Nursing receive their professional
training at St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee.
��THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
275
mar1zmg statement of the reason for their inclusion, as it
would show to what extent, in the mind of a sister medical
missionary, the "job analysis" of American missionary activity
in India must include Jesuit activities.
PART III. MEDICAL ACTIVITIES IN THE MISSION
FIELDS OF THE AMERICAN ASSISTANCY
It will not be difficult for any of Ours to understand that this
section of the present paper will suffer much more than the
others from condensation and from swivel-chair authorship.
Among the many achievements of Father Pierre Charles,
of the Belgian Province, in furtherance of the missions, probably none is more lastingly significant than his clarification of
the purposes of missionary endeavor. In his pamphlet, M edical Missions, he gives five sound and convincing reasons why
the objectum formale of the missions is not the salvation of
souls but rather "the building of the visible Church in countries where this is not yet done" and thereby, to save souls. 6
In this way medical and other welfare activities of the missions
receive not only justification but a reasonable explanation for
their existence. Whatever controversies this pronouncement
may have aroused among Ours and others, this much must be
admitted: Father Charles's view constitutes much more than
merely a probable justification for medical missions.
Father Charles recalls that: "In Annam, in the seventeenth
century, the Jesuit, Alexander de Rhodes, started the big drive
for Catholicism chiefly through his catechists who were properly trained in medicine, and went about as doctors and
teachers." 7 In this way we can better understand how and
Why the Church regards a mission center as a temporary unit.
A mission country graduates out of the sponsorship of the
Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, and in its adulthood is integrated into the permanent organization of the Church. That
viewpoint disposes of many objections to Catholic medical
activity in the missions.
-
6
Charles, Pierre, S.J., Medical Missions, New York: The America
Press, 1949.
7
Ibid, p. 16.
�276
THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
At the beginning of 1952, out of the total number of 7,348
Jesuits of the American Assistancy, 1,216 were listed as
laboring in the various mission fields allotted to the American
provinces. This is more than one-sixth of all the Fathers,
Scholastics, and Brothers of the Assistancy. Each of the eight
provinces has at least one assigned foreign mission field while
the Missouri Province has three ; the Oregon, the Chicago, and
the New York Provinces have two fields each. The New York
Province has the distinction of supplying one-third of the
American Jesuits in the mission field.
Perhaps all too few persons, inclusive of Ours, realize how
much missionary work still remains to be done before our
dear Lord permits us to gather in the complete potential harvest. It is strange that while in most affairs we emphasize
quantitative and are prone to overlook at first the qualitative
aspects of a subject of study, we have emphasized the difficulties of, and the obstacles to, missionary effort and have
disregarded the quantitative aspects of the problem. It is
estimated for example~,. that of the 370,000 Indians and Eskimos in the United States, only 110,000 are Catholic, about
100,000 are Protestants, and approximately 160,000 have not
as yet any Christian affiliation. In other words, while 31 per
cent are Catholics and 27 per cent are Protestants, 42 per cent
still claim to have no religion. The relatively great "scatter"
of the Indian and Eskimauan population complicates both the
religious and the medical problem. In contrast with this
situation, "convertibles" in India cannot be enumerated in
terms of thousands only or even hundreds of thousands, but
in terms of millions. Moreover population density is in
equally sharp contrast to that among the Eskimos and the
American Indians. These contrasts in population illustrate,
inadequately to be sure, how diversified are the problems
which the various missions of the Assistancy present.
Equally obtrusive are the contrasts in the character of
• the medical needs of our· missions and hence in our medical
mission activities. The opportunities for contacting the pros·
pective Catholic, as well as the patient, are reduced to almost
none in some places, while in others they approach the limits
of the individual missionary's capacities. It must be admitted
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
277
that people, when in need, are at times a bit more eager to
find a dispensary than they are to seek the Church.
A. THE INDIAN MISSIONS
Three of the provinces, Oregon, Chicago, and Missouri, are
laboring among our American Indians. These three provinces
have sixteen residencies on various Indian reservations in
seven states. Their influence extends to no fewer than twentyone tribes. Eighty-three members of the Society labored in
these localities in 1952. Generally speaking, each of these
residencies qualifies under Father Charles's definition as a
center of Catholic life and has some responsibilities which may
be properly designated as medical activities. All report very
satisfactory cooperation with governmental agencies, federal,
state, and local. In several of these centers there are satisfactory public health facilities such as a medical center, a
diagnostic hospital, the mobile X-ray, the public health laboratories and health agencies, the travelling dental clinics for children, and similar opportunities. Wherever in these residencies there is a school (in sixty-one localities), there is also
provision for a satisfactory dental infirmary for the children
and, generally, a more or less adequate school health program.
In several stations the mission school is a sort of medical
center for the general population of the locality, attended in
some places several times a week by a visiting physician and in
some cases by a resident doctor.
A few details may prove interesting. Father Louis E.
Meyer, of the Holy Rosary Mission, South Dakota, reports that
at Pine Ridge there is a forty bed government hospital with
four doctors and six nurses in residence. Service costs are
defrayed out of Indian Bureau funds. The hospital is visited
frequently by one of Ours, to whom, it is said, every courtesy
is shown.
Father Paul Prud'homme's apostolate is in the upper peninsula of Michigan, where there is a noteworthy, though scattered, Indian population, and where there are four Catholic
hospitals. One of the hospitals, conducted by the Sisters of St.
Joseph, is located at Hancock, Michigan, where an Indian is
only rarely seen. The other three, conducted by the Franciscan Sisters of Peoria, are located at Marquette, Escanaba,
�278
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
and Menominee. Father Prud'homme estimates that approximately one hundred Indians a year are hospitalized in these
private hospitals. Government agencies defray the expense.
In his territory, the various stations have very complete school
health services: visiting school nurses, a well-organized school
dental service, special facilities for orthopedically handicapped
children. Unfortunately there are no Catholic schools in that
territory so that the hospital really represents the "front line"
of Catholic cultural and social welfare progress. A beginning
has been made to attract native Indian girls to the sisterhoods
and to encourage the girls to enter nursing or some other
health caring profession. E~ther reports that in his opinion
the relations of our various stations with different public
organizations are particularly good. He notes with considerable satisfaction that the missionaries have frequent dealings
with the various social and welfare departments of the different counties and are often called upon by these agencies to
assist in meeting problems for Catholic clients. He calls particular attention to the fact that tuberculosis sanatoria have
been very cooperative. It will be extremely interesting to
watch developments, if~and when contemplated new legislation
goes into effect, and Indians are legislated out of their alleged
preferential position as a protected minority group.
The National Catholic Almanac for 1952 summarizes the
work of the American Jesuits among our American Indians:
The Jesuit Fathers have missions among the Eskimo Tinneh
Indians in Alaska, the Yakima, Colville and Spokanes in Washington,
the tJmatillas in Oregon, The Coeur d'Alenes and Nez Perces of
Idaho (the Oregon Province); the Flatheads,• Crows, Assiniboines,
Gros Ventres and Blackfeet in Montana, the Sioux in South Dakota,
(the Pottowatami in Kansas, dispersed), the Arapahoes and Sho·
shones in Wyoming (in the Missouri Province); the Chippewas in
Michigan (the Chicago Province).s
It may be safely assumed that public health measures have
been instituted under governmental regulations and at gov·
ernmental expense among the various Indian groups. As a
generalization, however, it may be stated that personal medical
and nursing care are as yet inadequate.
8 National Catholic Almanac, Paterson,· New Jersey: St. Anthony's
Guild, 1952, p. 350.
�3:
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
t.
11.
11.
owa_.
Fi;.·;;.i~
DeSlOge -HOspital
Convent
Pathology Institute
Out-patient Division
Location of the Cardinal
I
Glennon Memorial Hospital
Catholic Hospital Association
Extension of Chemical Laboratories
Firmin Desloge Hospital Chapel
(Ralph Adams Cram, Architect)
Stlllieat Bealtla Senice
Jelat)f 1tJ tile Unlnnlty ...
the Sisters of St. Mary, is the heart of the St. Louis University Medical Center.
THE FIRMIN DESLOGE HOSPITAL,
�-·
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
279
B. THE NEGRO MISSIONS
Approximately forty Jesuits are assigned to the care of
Negro parishes and stations in eight states. Interesting as the
problem is, it has not been practical in a short time to secure
much data about medical activities in this field. One recent
health development with which Ours were in intimate contact
is the dedication of St. Mary's Infirmary, St. Louis, with 110
beds, for the exclusive use of Negroes. This institution is
owned, administered, and staffed by a white sisterhood, the
Sisters of St. Mary. The medical staff is exclusively colored
and a special committee of the St. Louis University School of
Medicine serves as a professional advisory committee. Several
members of the St. Mary's Infirmary staff are faculty members
of the St. Louis University School of Medicine. The School of
Nursing is maintained on a high level of excellence. One of the
most gratifying results of the new project is the admission
into the St. Mary's Sisterhood of several young negresses, and
their perseverance, to date, for more than ten years.
C. THE ALASKAN MISSIONS
The missions of Alaska conducted chiefly by Ours must
certainly be regarded as among the most difficult locations for
our missionary activity. Aside from the physical encumbrances resulting in great privations and actual suffering,
there are countless difficulties which arise from the strangeness and taciturnity of the people, the inconveniences in housing and travelling, the language problems, routine monotony
in sustenance, and many other physical and psychological conditions which impose very severe hardships upon all of Ours
Working in this apostolate. The greatest physical obstacle to
effective missionary work is said to be the wide "scatter" of
the population.
With reference to the medical aspects of this apostolate, a
notable, outstanding circumstance is the inadequate professional personnel for coping with the numerous health problems.
The Oregon Province catalogue lists eighteen stations at which
Ours are permanently or temporarily housed. The Hospital
Directory of the Catholic Hospital Association lists three hosPitals at which Ours serve as chaplains: St. Joseph's Hos-
�280
THE .MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
pita!, Fairbanks, conducted by the Sisters of Providence of
Seattle; the Ketchikan General Hospital, Ketchikan, conducted by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Newark; and the Griffin
Memorial Hospital, at Kodiak, conducted by the Grey Nuns
of the Sacred Heart. Ours are interested also in a number of
hospitals conducted by the government either as public health
institutions or as hospitals for members of the armed services.
Medical care of the patients in some of these hospitals demands
unusual and, at times, even heroic sacrifices.
The outstanding reaction in reviewing the activities of Ours
in these far off regions is admiration for the enthusiasm and
devotedness of our Fathers .. in their work. The number of
quotations which one might wish to submit as samples of
attitudes towards so difficult an apostolate is somewhat embarrassing. Father F. M. Menager went to Alaska twentyfive years ago and has been occupied continuously in one or
another of the numerous mission stations. He tells us:
The doctor here is yours truly. Ever since I came to Alaska
twenty-five years ago, I have practiced medicine among the Eskimos
since there was nobody else to do it. I was born in a family of
doctors of medicine and I imbibed medicine on my mother's knee.
My father was a doctor, one of my brothers and one of my brothers·
in-law were doctors, and in our home, medical questions were al·
ways in order. I have been accustomed to go with my father on
his calls and from my earliest years, especially after I became a
Jesuit, I was interested in science and biology and followed with
keen eagerness the modern development of medical science. When
I came to Alaska, I made sure to be prepared not only to take care
of souls but also of bodies as need might be; my father gave me
plenty of help in the shape of books and instruction. I was given a
surgical kit and, armed with this and the grace of God, I took care
of the sick Eskimos on the Bering Sea coast; at that time, there
was not doctor or a nurse within three hundred miles of Hooper Bay.
When I was appointed to St. Mary's Mission three years ago, I took
up medicine again and with the help of Mother Antoinette, an
Ursaline nun, we handle all ordinary cases and manage to cure the
sick or at least to improve their condition. We have 780 Eskimos
in our district and 125 children in the school. We attend to all o!
them. In case of a serious emergency, we contact the government
hospital at Bethel by radio and our patients are taken there by
plane. The nearest Catholic hospital is four hundred miles from
here at Anchorage. The hospital at Fairbanks is even farther.
Somehow our big problem, that is, the procurement of the newer
drugs, can generally be solved in some way by means of airplanes.
�St. Mary's Hospital with a Sc:hool of Nursing is the principal unit of the St. Mary's
Group of Hospitals of St. Louis University.
Mt. St. Rose Sanatorium, tubercular, c:hest and heart hospital, administered by the
Sisters of St. Mary of St. Louis.
�·,
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
281
Father Menager speaks of two dispensaries, one at the
priest's residence and the other in the sisters' convent. Thanks
to Father Garesche both of these dispensaries are equipped
with medicine and bandages.
The early history of Father Menager _as a priest--physician
was anything but encouraging. When first assigned to a mission station, the local medicine men, who were uneducated
Eskimos, felt that he had come to displace them and they did
everything in their power to interfere with his activities.
After a number of encounters, one of the medicine men suffered an accident and had to call upon Father Menager to care
for him "professionally." From that time onward Father's
position among the Eskimos was secure.
While there is no complaint about failure to secure support
from the government for local health care, it is still obvious
that the missionaries would welcome more support for their
Eskimo charges. The Alaskan Native Service is subsidized
by the federal government. The Territorial government of
Alaska subsidizes some of the orthopedic hospitals and obviously, some of the physicians are paid by the Territorial
government. One of the visiting nurses also is salaried by the
Territory. Preparations are under way for the extension of
hospital facilities for tuberculosis patients. In securing all
of these developments, Ours have been greatly active.
Private control of hospitals and agencies is one of the outstanding needs of the Alaskan Missions. Several letters recently received point out the great expectations which the
Fathers could entertain if a Catholic hospital development
could be foreseen in the not too distant future.
Father Lawrence A. Nevue has a different but equally interesting story to tell about his medical activities at Sitka.
There is a home for men and one for women, financed by the
Territory. In each there are Catholic inmates with some Catholic nurses on the staff. Father says Mass there on Saturdays.
In addition to a small hospital, chiefly maternity, conducted by
the Presbyterians, the Alaska Native Service conducts a General Hospital, a Tuberculosis Sanatorium and an Orthopedic
Hospital. Father distributes Holy Communion in these hosPitals on the First Fridays, donates reading matter to the
Patients, and gives religious instruction over the hospitals'
�2S2
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
public address systems every Sunday morning. He also finds
time to give religious instructions by correspondence.
Father Endal at Kanakanak, not too far south of Dillingham, has other problems to meet. He walks five miles to the
hospital, gets reluctant cooperation from a Seventh Day Adventist doctor who fears that extreme unction excites the
patients. Father brings religious comfort to the Russian
Orthodox, whose religion is dying out because of a lack of their
own clergy, encounters problems concerning abortion, and successfully secures the cooperation of the nursing staff among
whom there are some Catholifs.
D. THE CARiBBEAN AREAS
There are two mission areas in the Caribbean Sea in the
charge of the Assistancy, both of them Crown colonies of
Great Britain: Jamaica, under the care of the New England
Province, and the mission of British Honduras, which includes
the area of Yoro in Spanish Honduras, under the Missouri
Province.
~
1. Jamaica
By reason of the rather complete organization and governmental administration of Jamaica, the activities related to
medicine of the more than seventy-one priests consist-of little
more than the visitation of the sick in homes and hospitals.
Father Gerald F. Heffernan, the editor of Catholic Opinion,
says that the Public Health Department in Jamaica achieves
a great deal of good in preventing and controlling such diseases
as syphilis, gonorrhea, malaria, tuberculosis, and yellow fever.
Four or more venereal disease clinics are operated in Kingston,
Montego Bay, and Port Antonio. Our missionaries have co·
operated in the preventive work being done by the Public
Health Department and have interested themselves greatly in
the development of the King George V Memorial Sanatorium.
Mobile health units have been provided and our Fathers have
• served on the boards of .Several of the hospitals and other
public health agencies. There is a leper home with about three
hundred patients under the management of ten Marist sisters
from Bedford, Massachusetts. Our missionaries actively
maintain their own and the public's interest in this institution.
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
There is also a hospital for nervous and mental diseases, under
government auspices. Ours have served on its directing board.
A privately operated Catholic hospital is conducted in Kingston, the capital, by fifteen Dominican sisters from Blauvelt,
New York. One of Ours acts as chaplain in this hospital. The
outstanding impression which Father Heffernan's letter conveys is his satisfaction over the relationships that exist between Ours and these public and private agencies in the care
of the sick. He indicates also his satisfaction that the Catholic
institutions have assumed so large and difficult a share in the
care of the sick in his field of labor.
2. British Honduras and Spanish Honduras
The colony of British Honduras, though not as well organized, is divided into five districts whose chief centers are also
the focal points of Catholic interest in each district. The situation here is in many respects similar to that of Jamaica.
There is one striking difference. In Jamaica there are approximately 500 physicians, many of them private practitioners, for a population of approximately 1,200,000 persons,
i.e., 1 for each 2,400 persons; whereas in British Honduras,
there are probably no private physicians and all health care
is in the charge of the district medical officer, who, however,
is allowed private practice to supplement his low governmental salary. In Belize a government-operated hospital is
regularly visited by Ours, and in each of the districts there is
at least one small government hospital. Maternity cases are
treated like other patients, the fees ranging from twenty-five
cents a day to three dollars, often paid by the Jesuit pastor,
While poor and indigent patients are received free, fortunately
without too much ceremony or too penetrating a "needs test."
There are nine rural public health nurses in the colony. Provision is made for reaching distant and secluded spots by
motor launch wherever possible or, on rare occasions, by air,
since satisfactory roads are not available to many points in the
interior. Our work is greatly simplified by these arrangements which are regarded in general as satisfactory, though
of course, physicians are hard to reach for accidents and cases
of sudden and critical illness. The missionary in the outlying
districts must frequently enough serve as a first aid attendant.
�284
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
The situation at Yoro in Spanish Honduras differs greatly
from that just described. Details are not as yet available. It
is apparent, however, that as the interest of Ours in the new
area intensifies, more and more will be done to render physical
assistance also to the hundreds of thousands of persons who
have been under our spiritual care for only the last five or six
years and who stand woefully in need of some health care.
E.
INDIA
Of the eleven missions of the Society in India at the beginning of the year 1952, three, 'the New Delhi, Jamshedpur, and
Patna Missions, assigned respectively to the Missouri, Maryland, and Chicago Provinces, constitute slightly more than 11
per cent of Jesuit missionary activity in that section of the
world. The most complete medical program in any of the
missions of the American Assistancy is carried out at Patna.
This is due very largely to the fact that Mother Dengel's
medical missionaries have worked in such close cooperation
with the Society at Patna. There is also at Patna the Prince of
Wales Medical College which in 1952 celebrated it silver jubilee. Such highly concentrated local medical interest demands
cooperation on our part, and it is being given generously, as
the medical missionary sisters amply testify. The new Holy
Family Hospital of the sisters is in process of cqmpletion.
Numerous as these medical activities are, there still·remains
ever so much more to be done. A former inspector general
of the State of Bihar in which Patna is located, pointed out
that there is only one hospital bed for every forty thousand,
one doctor for every twenty thousand and one hospital or dispensary for every sixty thousand of the state's population.
Some medical problems in India seem well nigh beyond solution. Among the Hindus, the non-Christian section of the
population, there is still a great deal of prejudice against nursing as a menial profession. Father Saldanha writes: ''But
there are parts of India where this is being rapidly improved,
though the majority of nurses and hospitals are still Chris·
tian." The Catholic Medical Mission Sisters have plans to
organize a medical school under Catholic auspices in the
Province of Bihar, but just at present the costs would be
entirely prohibitive.
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
285
Such are some of the difficulties which Ours are encountering in furthering medical activities. The nursing problem is
one of the most serious. Fortunately, as Father Bernard G.
Dempsey has pointed out, the social status of the nursing nuns
is regarded as excellent. In Hindu society, he says, woman has
no status except within the home. In some homes the grandmother exercises matriarchal authority but it is assumed that
any woman is "no good" apart from such a sheltered environment, unless protected by her social status as a Maharani.
This implies a superior status for the Catholic nun, always
above suspicion, and the only exception to "the ironclad rule
that a father who does not provide his daughter with a husband protector is a failure." Some sisters, such as Sister Barbara and Sister Elice of the Medical Missionaries, whose reputations as physicians extend far and wide throughout India,
have secured great advantages and respect for all others.
These physician-nuns and nurse-nuns have been very influential in elevating the social status of women throughout India.
Another phase of the medical activities which threatens to
become of major importance is the birth control propaganda,
reaching as it does from the highest social levels to the lowest.
A powerful but morally vicious scare seems to have been put
into the minds of the inhabitants of India by the threatened
famine which is ascribed so largely to overpopulation. The
occasion was quickly utilized by American and other propagandists for birth control and planned parenthood. It is taken
for granted by those who have given some study to the question that this problem may constitute a very great obstacle to
the future spread of the Faith. Whatever one may say about
the reliability of fertility statistics for India, it must be admitted that the future holds many a hidden and mighty
Problem.
In addition to the four high schools which are conducted in
the territory designated as the Patna Mission (which until
recently included mysterious Nepal), there are also twentysix mission stations where some health clinics are conducted
and annually visited by travelling public health equipment.
During the year 1953 the Nirmala College at New Delhi was
closed and the six Jesuits, five priests and one Brother, have
�286
THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
returned to their home Province. High hopes for its wholesome influences are now gone.
The Province of Maryland within the last few years opened
a mission in one of the large inland cities, J amshedpur. Of
the medical activities going on in this area, Father Carroll I.
Fasy writes: "In five of our stations situated in industrial
areas, there are hospitals conducted by the various industrial
companies or collieries. In each of these, one of our Fathers
looks to the care of the Catholic patients by weekly or daily
visits. In one of these hospitals, one of our Fathers conducts
a lecture course in medical ethics for nurses." And then he
adds a word of comment on the situation which has been previously discussed: "The Hindus for the most part shy away
from nursing as a task so menial that it can be done only by
the lowest classes or castes. At four of our stations, there is a
dispensary to take care of the needs of the very poor; these are
administered by our Fathers."
F. CEYLON
No long argument is needed to make us realize that the mission field of the New ~Orleans Province is, from a hygienic
point of view, perhaps the most hazardous and stubborn of
the mission fields cared for by the Assistancy. Ceylon's population is predominantly Buddhist and hence predominantly
self-satisfied, fatalistic, and obstinately stolid. The island,
moreover, is one of the chief reservoirs of tuberculosis in the
East. With such a combination it is still regarded as a paradise in the Pacific for its beauty and scenic variety. Father
James Brodrick, S.J., in his recent biography of St. Francis
Xavier, notes: "An old Portuguese chronicler, Ribeiro, de·
scribed Ceylon as 'the loveliest parcel of land God had put
into this world.' " 9 In the larger. cities, Colombo and Trinco·
malee, typhoid prevails, largely perhaps for the lack of a pure
milk ordinance. Malaria still claims its victims by reason of
popular opposition to modern remedial programs and to the
anti-mosquito campaign. · Indifference is so much harder to
manage than active opposition. Evidently the health situa·
tion was dynamically appreciated in the post by one of ours
9 Brodrick, James, S.J., Saint Francis Xavier, New York: The Wick·
low Press, 1952, p. 212.
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
287
since in a mission station at Akkaraiputtu, the church is dedicated to "Our Lady of Good Health," a unique dedication in
our Assistancy's mission fields, as far as the writer knows.
The urgency of the problem cannot be overstated. It was
estimated in 1948 by the Minister of Health that there were
150,000 cases of active tuberculosis in a total population of
7,000,000 persons, that is, one tubercular person in every 47.
The incidence in the cities, however, is thought to be as high
as one among 15 or 20 persons. The comparative gravity may
be understood from the fact that the death rate from tuberculosis in 1945 (the year of the last sampling survey) was 451
per 100,000 of the population, as compared with 19.2 deaths
per 100,000 in the United States in 1951, and 6.5 per 100,000
in Wisconsin in 1952. Surely the tuberculosis situation in
Ceylon presents a challenge which, it is said, is realized by our
American Jesuit missionaries.
There are numerous other phases of the health situation, too
complicated to be discussed here. One of these, however, must
be briefly referred to as potentially influencing our schools in
the Trincomalee Mission. The infant death rate from tuberculosis is gratifyingly decreasing; not so the child death rate
which in the one to five year group has shown no improvement.
Living is said to be scarcely above a subminimal level of mere
existence because of malnutrition, inadequate housing, intestinal parasitism and respiratory infections. In perusing governmental and other reports, one misses the reference to the
use of church agencies and other voluntary agencies in case
finding, follow-up, and other phases of preventive or therapeutic health work. And yet our missionaries are doing their
share and more in these activities. It would seem to be imPortant that a summary of such activities should be available
for its possible apologetic value. It may be expected, moreover, that Ceylon's new status as a Dominion will result in
more effective health legislation.
G. THE PHILIPPINES
The New York Province has the distinction of administering probably the largest .mission area in the whole Society,
namely, the Philippine Islands. It is unnecessary to point out
that this mission is one of the most important in the whole
�288
THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
Society; its traditions include the customs and procedures of
the Spanish provinces as well as of the New York Province,
and for that reason, as well as others, this mission demands
the utmost administrative wisdom of any of the missions of
the Assistancy. We read in the life of St. Francis that even
as far back as 1538, St. Francis himself became conscious of
the very great importance of the Philippines as a base for the
evangelization of the whole of Asia. 10 There are indications
in his correspondence that the Philippines might eventually be
considered a better base for missionary endeavor than India.
St. Francis himseif, it is saidl was careful never to intrude
upon Spanish rights. But the Spaniards were not so care-'
ful of Portuguese feelings and claimed the Moluccas on the
ground that they were on their side of Alexander the Sixth's
famous line.U
In 1921 Maryland-New York Jesuits arrived in Manila to
take over teaching at the Ateneo. Six years later the Philippine Islands were entrusted as a mission area to the MarylandNew York Province of the Society. Today, the Philippine
mission is a Vice-Province of the Society but still dependent
upon the New York Province.
The care of the Philippine mission is a matter of pride to
the American Assistancy. For many years the mission activities paralleled the governmental care given by the United
States to these Islands, in pursuance of its purchase of the
Archipelago from Spain after the Spanish War. Today, we
have in the Philippine Islands, the most important Catholic
educational institution in Asia, the Ateneo de Manila. Other
schools include the Ateneo de Cagayan de Oro City, Berchman's College in Cebu City, Ateneos at Naga City, Davao City,
San Pablo City, Tuguegarao, and Zamboanga City, a novitiate at Novaliches and San Jose Seminary. In all of these
various institutions no fewer than 175 Fathers, 222 Scholastics, and 38 Brothers, a total of 435 persons are occupied in
educational, parochial, and missionary activities.
The medical activities in this vast missionary field are far
flung, massive, and remarkably stabilized. "In the entire mission," writes Father Arthur A. Weiss, "our Fathers supervise
10
11
Ibid.
Ibid., p. 247.
�1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
ARCHITECT'S MODEL (above) of the
Cardinal Glennon Memorial Hospital for
Children. Now under construction along
Grand Boulevard and Park Avenue, this
Hospital
Chapel
Surgical Unit
Convent
Nai'Ht!l' Home
Internes' ResWenee
modern hospital, 750 ft. by 325 ft., wilJ
open in 1955 and be administered by the
Sisters of St. Mary and stalled by the
.St. Louis University School of Medicine.'
CATHOLIC HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION
(below), a recent addition to the Catholic
hospitals of St. Louis.
�-·
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
289
ten medical clinics . . . parts of mission parishes. There are
only about five doctors in charge and that same number of
nurses, and these only part-time. The clinical activities consist mainly in distributing medicines, taking care of minor
ailments and first aid. During the past year (1951) about
19,200 of such treatments have been given in these clinics."
These clinics, however, are not the only outstanding feature
of the medical activities in the Philippine missions. Father
Weiss tells us that in the great eruption of the Hibok-Hibok
Volcano a few years ago, our Fathers distinguished themselves
in helping the Red Cross taking over to a large extent the work
of burying the dead. It seems that no fewer than five hundred dead were buried personally by our Fathers on Camiguin
Island.
Besides, our Fathers are responsible for five hospital chaplaincies: two in leper hospitals, one in a mental hospital, another in the General Hospital at Manila, the Islands' largest,
and the fifth in the General Hospital at Zamboanga. Three of
these chaplaincies are full-time.
Both of the leper hospitals, one at Culion and the other at
Novaliches, are institutions of great importance and effectiveness. At the latter, the Tala Leprosarium, our novices from
nearby Sacred Heart Novitiate, assist the Dominican chaplain by teaching catechism once a week. The Leprosarium at
Culion was called to the world's attention in 1940 by the publication of Perry Burgess' book, Those Who Walk Alone. This
book is now being used by the American Leprosy Foundation
in propagandizing for the Leonard Wood Memorial, thus reviving the interest of the American medical profession and
the public in this outstanding unsolved medical problem, as
much a feared menace today as it was in the days of our
Blessed Lord's public life, and as much deserving of His miraculous blessing. In passing it may be noted that one of the
resident chaplains at Culion is Father Joachim Vilallonga,
now in his 86th year, whose name will live in high honor in the
Assistancy as St. Louis University's champion in the Grand
Act of 1904, the year of the St. Louis World's Fair, on the day
en which President Theodore Roosevelt visited the University.
The American Assistancy cannot but glory in a profoundly
Spiritual sense, in the heroism of Ours at Culion, rivalling as
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290
it does the complete self-immolation and heroic martyrdom of
the Spanish Jesuits at the Fontilleo Leper Colony. Every
American Jesuit must find strength and encouragement to
heroism in the self-incarcerating martyrdom of our fellow
American Jesuits of the New York Province at Culion.
H. IRAQ
A letter dated February 13, 1952 from Father Joseph Connell of Baghdad, Iraq, of the New England mission, points out
that "the medical activities -9f our missions in Iraq are nil.
The needs, of course, are ~.nifold."
The Iraq government has undertaken health supervision,
providing some ten hospitals and five hundred clinics in different parts of the country for five million inhabitants, without adequate staff, and "under an appalling shortage of trained
~ersonnel." He points out that the American Seventh Day
Adventists have a small hospital in Baghdad and the Iraq
Petroleum Company "a very up-to-date hospital at Kirkuk."
There are in addition several nursing homes, and a nuns'
hospital, but these are~the only health facilities under private
auspices. Father Connell concludes that "Baghdad could very
well make use of a hospital, ,owned and operated by United
States nuns. The field of work is vast; and the field is theirs,
if they come.... We are twenty-two priests ready and eager
to help."
I. CHiNA AND THE MARSHALL-CAROLINE ISLANDS
Finally, little as has been said about the medical activities
of some missions, even less can be said about such activities
in the Yangchow (China mission of the California Province)
and of the Marshall and Caroline Islands (mission of the New
York Province). Our knowledge about the first is practically
nil since the closing of the mission stations, the arrest and
incarceration of practically all of Ours. Those at liberty
are living in the Philippines and in Formosa.
In the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands with a popula·
tion of 50,000 living on about 250 islands, health care and
medical facilities are patently inadequate, though the govern·
I
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291
ment maintains a very satisfactory chain of hospitals in the
main islands and provides health aides for the outer ones.
Jesuit missionaries dispense first-aid treatment in a limited
way and, laboring without the assistance of a group of nursing
sisters, look dispairingly into the future for immediate improvement of the present, staggering problem.
CONCLUSION
By way of conclusion, it may be repeated that this study
makes no pretense at completeness. Too many areas of important Jesuit activities have not even been touched upon.
Thus for example, no mention has been made of hospital
chaplaincies such as those on Welfare Island (Blackwell's
Island) or of Cook County Hospital, Chicago. These represent huge responsibilities, medico-religious in character, and
imply many activities besides the care of souls. There are
similar chaplaincies in the Philippines, for example, those in
the general hospital of Mindanao, which also deserve particular
study. At Camp Phillips in the Philippines, Ours are very
active not only in religious matters but in medical administration. Neither has it been possible to assemble data concerning
"the hospital experiment" as conducted in our novitiates and
tertianships. Much more should be said about the literary
activities of Ours in medical fields especially in the area of
medical ethics in which several of Ours in the Assistancy have
rendered distinguished and important service. Again, it has
been impossible up to the present to offer a satisfactory discussion of student health services in our high schools, colleges,
and universities, or to report on courses dealing with health
and medicine offered in our various schools or departments of
sociology, social work, social welfare, or kindred subjects.
But even with these omissions, there is some satisfaction in
having assembled a report on what was more easily accessible.
This paper, therefore, seems to the writer to offer convincing
evidence that the medical interests of the American Assistancy
are consonant with the objectives and the spirit of the Society
in achieving results for God's greater glory and the welfare
of souls.
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
Appendix
THE FRESHMAN CLASS OF 1953-1954
The Jesuit Medical Schools
Since the preceding article was submitted to the editors,
there has appeared in the April 1954 number of the Journal of
Medical Education (Volume 29, Number 4) an article entitled
"The Study of Applicants for Admission to the United States
Medical Colleges, Class Entering in 1953-1954" by John M.
Stalnaker, the Director of. Studies for the Association of
American Medical Colleges,_ ' A note under the title reads, "A
four-year trend shows the 'number of students applying to
medical schools is decreasing steadily. The current study
indicates that even among schools having a large number of
applicants, competition for the able student has increased."
It was thought wise to present here a brief review of some
features of Dr. Stalnaker's article so that such information as
is now available on several of the points touched upon in the
preceding paper may be brought up to date. The points here
reviewed are:
~
I. The number of applications, applicants, acceptances and freshmen in the schools of medicine in
the United States, 1953-1954.
.
II. Some student statistics concerning the-· current
freshman class in the Jesuit schools of medicine.
III. Means of the scores made by applicants to the
schools of medicine in the Medical College Admission Test.
I.
The number of applications for admission to the schools of
medicine for the classes entering September 1953 was 48,586;
the number of applicants, 14,678; the number of acceptances
given to applicants by the 79 schools of medicine (including the
two schools of the medical sciences-two-year schools) was ,
7,756; and the number 'of freshmen enrolled in all of these
schools was 7,276. During the past seven years, the number of
applications for admission to the schools of medicine has decreased from a peak of 88,244 in 1949-1950, to 55 per cent of that
peak, namely, 48,586, in 1953-1954, as stated above. The number
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293
of individuals applying has decreased for the same two annual
periods from 24,434 in 1949-1950, to 60.8 per cent of that
number, namely, 14,678 in the current year. The highest
number of applications per individual applicant was reached
in the year 1950-1951 when all the schools of medicine combined received a total of 3.7 applications per applicant. This
figure has now decreased for the current year to 3.3, the
lowest that it has been since 1947-1948 when it was 3.0 per
individual applicant.
It is unnecessary to say here what the significance of the
average 3.3 applications per applicant is. From these figures
it is apparent how intricate the problem of the multi-applicant
has become. Dr. Stalnaker attempts to give his readers some
understanding of the situation. He assumes a medical school
which actually has 1,000 applicants. "These 1,000 applicants
filed a total of 7,550 applications, or 6,550 applications to
other medical schools in addition to the original school to
which application was made. (Taking the averages as revealed by the statistics for the current year), 955 acceptances
were given by the schools, including 100 from the first medical
school. However, many of the acceptances were for the same
group of individuals, thus it can be seen that it would be
wrong to conclude that each school offering an acceptance
would secure the applicant as a student. In the total applicants to each medical school are many individuals who will not
accept a place at that medical school if another and preferred
medical school would accept them. If a medical school seeking 100 freshmen has 1,000 applicants, it may well be quite
incorrect to say that there are 10 applicants for each place,
because many of these applicants will accept another medical
school if given the opportunity" (I.e. pp. 15,16).
To a reader who is curious about this situation a number
of problems immediately present themselves. Does the number of applicants to a school of medicine indicate or not, the
Presumed or alleged quality of a school of medicine? This
implies a question which is so often asked: Which is the best
school of medicine? Should that question be answered by
saying it is the school which has the greatest number of applicants? Obviously, that cannot be the answer. Neither does
the article which is here being reviewed give an answer,
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THE .MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
since it is not concerned with any basic facts regarding the
relative excellence of schools of medicine. Neither does the
answer lie in the relative arithmetic means of the class which
is accepted on the basis of mental tests. The question concerning the best school of medicine cannot be answered as it
stands without specifying "best" for whom and for what.
Within the field of medical education there is a great variation
in the valid objectives which a school may set for itself and
in the valid objectives which it may set before its students
and help them to attain. At the present time there are no
so-called Class-B schools of medicine. Through persistent
efforts, all the extant schools··of medicine comply with minimal
requirements of the Association of American Medical Colleges
and of the Council on Medical Education and Hospitals of the
American Medical Association, thus making them worthy, in
the opinion of the appropriate evaluating and supervisory
agency, to be given accreditation; but within the limits of the
requirements for such approval there are still wide opportunities for variation in curricula, course content, student and
faculty administration, educational and professional emphasis and other matters, ~and surely also for many diverse levels
of excellence in all of these elements.
Another question upon which Dr. Stalnaker's article throws
some light is what becomes of the students applying_to a school
of medicine but who fail to receive an acceptance. Interestingly enough, 40 per cent of the applicants who had received
no acceptance for the school year 1952-1953 were accepted
upon re-application for the year 1953-1954. The author of
the article comments, "This group contains many very able
individuals who were advised to complete one additional year
of undergraduate education, but it also contains some persistent but less qualified individuals. Of the group applying
for the first time, 57 per cent were accepted."
Another interesting point of considerable general interest
is the variation which exists in the various schools of medicine
in the test achievements of the applicants. . "Some medical
schools had a wealth of good applicants. The competition for
these applicants was heavy, for such students usually apply
to several schools and all schools seek them. The medical
schools which limit their applicants to the residents of the
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295
state in which the school is located in many instances had to
scrape the bottom of the barrel to secure a freshman class"
(I.e., p. 15) .
These comments emphasize the importance of gathering
statistics on the number of applications filed by those students
who are accepted and by those students who are not accepted.
Of the 5,972 students who filed only one application for admission to the current freshmen class, 2,821, that is, 47.2 per cent
were accepted; of the 9,862 making from 2 to 9 applications,
4,531, that is, 45.8 per cent were accepted; and of the 844
making between 10 and 45 applications 404, or 48 per cent
were successful in securing at least one acceptance.
A slightly different picture is presented when a study is
made of the number of applications made by those applicants
who did receive acceptances. Of the 7,756 who were accepted
2,821, that is, 36.3 per cent made only 1 application; 4,531,
that is, 58.9 per cent made between 2 and 9 applications while
404, that is, 5.2 per cent made between 10 and 45 applications.
It is interesting to note that of the 5 applicants who made
between 35 and 45 applications, 2 received acceptances for
the current year; but it is also worth noting, to forestall our
further discussion below of this fact, that these 2 applicants
had a median score for their test in the scientific section considerably higher than the median for the entire group. Needless to say, that this is an extreme case.
II.
It would be very valuable for student counselling if statistics
about our five schools of medicine could be presented with as
much detail as has here been presented for all of the schools
of medicine. Unfortunately, Dr. Stalnaker's paper does not
contain the data required for such an analysis. It is known
that our five schools of medicine received 5,365 applications
and that their combined freshmen classes for the current
school year number 513, but the data are lacking in the paper
Under review for making a calculation of the number of applicants to our five schools unless the assumption can be recognized as valid that the ratio of the number of applications to
~he number of applicants in the entire field obtains also
In our five schools as a group. The reason is that in the school-
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THE l\IEDICAL APOSTOLATE
by-school statistics there are only two columns, namely, the
number of the freshman class and the number of applications
received by the school, the number of applicants being therefore omitted.
The 513 freshmen in our five schools of medicine constitute
6.7 per cent of the total number of freshmen, while the number
of applications received by our five schools constitute 8.9 per
cent of the total number of applications made to all the schools.
Each of our schools of medicine had a higher ratio of thenumber-of-applications to the-number-of-freshmen-accepted
than in the whole field: Creighton-9.8 applications per freshman; Georgetown-7.6; Stritch-7.8; Marquette-9.2; and
St. Louis-8.6. The ratio for our five schools of medicine combined is 8.5.
Just how much or how little that ratio means and how
cautiously it must be used in deriving conclusions from it has
already been indicated above in the quotation from Dr. Stalnaker's article. One point, however, might be of some special
interest in connection with our schools, the number of women
applications. Creighton had 20, Georgetown, 45, Stritch, 29,
Marquette, 36, and SC Louis, 36, a total of 166 as compared
with a total number of women applications of 2,866 in all
the schools. Our applications therefore represent 5.8 per cent
of the total whereas our applications from men represented
9.1 per cent of the total applications from men.
..
Since Dr. Stalnaker's article did not give the data for the
actual number of acceptances in each of the schools of medi·
cine but only the total for all schools, we might by the usual
extrapolation use the number of freshmen students as a base
and increase that by 3 per cent since the number of accept·
ances by all the schools was actually 3 per cent higher than
the number of freshmen; in other words, the number of accept·
ances given by our five schools of medicine in recruiting
a class of 515 freshmen, was probably 530. This means that
since our five schools received 1,429 applicants there were
899 applicants who did not receive an acceptance from our
five schools. It would be interesting to know how manY of
these are students of our own colleges, how many of them are
Catholics, how many of them are students whose mental and
moral qualifications are of an order of excellence which make
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
297
them a real loss to the medical profession and to the Catholic
interests in the medical profession, for example, the hospitals.
But these are questions, naturally, which will have to await the
ingenuity in educational research of some interested individual. Much of the material required for such a study is obtainable but has thus far not been obtained. Each school
receives from the Educational Testing Service a detailed study
of the scores made by each of the applicants in each of the
four sections of the test; and college achievement can be
studied from each school's admission records together with
letters of recommendation from the students' instructors and
counsellors. Such a study, it would seem, could be of
enormous help in furthering the success of our efforts in professional education.
III.
Relatively little can be said concerning the scores achieved
by those who took the tests of the Educational Testing Service.
Still interesting sidelights on some aside-problems may not
be without value and interest. Dr. Stalnaker's article presents in some detail and for the purpose of rather broad generalization only the mean scores made by various groups.
Thus he presents a table showing the mean scores made in the
four sections of the test by the group of applicants who made
l,Z,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, then 10-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-45
applications. He does this for the groups not accepted by
any school just as he does it for the groups of students accepted. He also presents a brief study of similar groupings
of applicants who applied for the year 1952-1953.
To gather their full value from the complicated tables which
have been presented in the paper under review would require
Inore space than should be allotted to them in a general
journal. Nevertheless, a few outstanding features might here
be selected for mention, especially those that tend to answer
questions which are frequently asked about medical school admissions or applications. First of all, it should be remembered
that the Medical College Admissions Test is administered in
four parts-one, which in some way is said to test the verbal
command of the applicant; the second, a test of the applicant's
ability to work with quantitative facts; the third, a test con-
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
cerning the applicant's command of knowledge of modern
society; and fourth, a test of the applicant's ability to work
with scientific data. For brevity's sake these four sections
of the test may here be referred to as they are referred to in
the test literature itself, as the verbal, the quantitative, the
modern society, and the science tests. The technique in reporting is simple enough but when one tries to describe it
briefly a person who is not constantly working with such
reports is apt to find it very intricate. The author simply
divides his human assemblages of applicants, accepted students, freshmen students, et cetera, into groups as already
indicated, that is those making·a given number of applications,
with sub-divisions for the various sub-phases of the subject,
such as those receiving acceptances and those not receiving
acceptances, those applying this year and those applying last
year. This technique permits the author to work with several
variables at once without incurring the charge of being obscure or lacking in definiteness or clearness. He then elaborates the arithmetic mean which is essentially nothing more
than the arithmetic average of the various groups, and finally
in tabulations he offers his information in a way to facilitate
easy comparison.
As a sample of the kind of fact discoverable in the reading
of the tables we may select the following. The averages in
the four sections of the test (verbal, quantitative, modern
society, science, as stated above), that is the mean scores
made by the group receiving one acceptance, were respectively 503, 517, 511, and 516 while for the group making one
application only for admission to a medical school, without
however being accepted by the school, were respectively 455,
454, 465, and 453. Evidently in each part of the test the
mean of the groups was significantly higher in this instance
for the groups of students who received acceptances than for
the groups of students not receiving any acceptances. It would
seem to be unnecessary to apply further statistical requirements in evaluating the differences in these various scores.
Contrasting the average of the averages made in the four
parts of the test of the group receiving and the group not receiving acceptances, we find for the verbal part a mean score
of all those receiving acceptance of 519 contrasted with those
J
�THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
299
not receiving acceptances, 461. For the quantitative part respectively, 525, 427; for the modern society section, 524, 472;
for the science section, 530 and 460. In other words these
scores for three of the sections of the test present differences
in the averages between 50 and 60, while for the science section
the difference is in the 70's. These scores establish the fact
that admission committees to our schools of medicine are
impressed with the student's performances in the science test
or at least that they were so impressed while selecting the
class for the current year.
The number of facts tabulated in terms of averages well
exceeds 500 in the author's various tabulations. The following
general conclusions applicable only, it must be emphasized, to
the present set of statistical data may easily be proved from
the facts contained in the article. The mean scores of the
groups receiving acceptances are significantly higher than
the mean scores of the groups not receiving acceptances.
Nevertheless, it is somewhat surprising to the writer that the
differences of the two groups in the examinations are not still
more pronounced, an indication that it would be valid to
conclude, that the students of our colleges who submit applieations to the school of medicine are of relatively homogeneous
mental endowment. This also corroborates the impressions
of many who have worked on admissions committees to our
schools of medicine and who may well remember for years
afterward the mental anxiety caused by being surfeited with
a large number of borderline applicants, most of whom are
"all equally desirable," as far as this can be revealed by such
records.
Another problem occurs when one assumes that students
Who have the highest scores in the Medical College Admissions
Tests are the ones who are most generally accepted; in general
this is true. But when a study is made in relation to the
number of applications which these various numbers of students have filed some interesting facts emerge. Thus the
highest mean score in the four sections of the test made by
multi-applicants receiving acceptances were in the group
making 20-24 applications. This gives evidence that the
committees on admissions were impressed by other than
mental endowment or achievement in their selection of these
students.
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THE MEDICAL APOSTOLATE
There is a relatively slight but still a noticeable difference
in the mean scores of the various groups of those who applied
last year and this year and finally received an acceptance. But
there is practically no difference in the scores made in the
different sections of the test by those who received no acceptance for both years. Other phases of Dr. Stalnaker's article
are of less immediate concern to our schools. All of our five
schools, as pointed out in the preceding article, are what have
been called national schools, that is, they draw their student
body from any one of our states or from any foreign country
provided that the student presents the required qualifications.
* * *
A LETTER FROM A MISSIONARY ARCHBISHOP
May 11, 1954
Early in January I went to Manila for the annual meeting of the
Hierarchy and when I returned to Cagayan, I began to prepare a
two-month pastoral visitation of the mountain parishes of Bukidnon
and the coast of Misamis Oriental, inviting the former Vicar of Guam,
Bishop Olano, to help me ~with confirming. We finished up on Palm
Sunday with a record well over 50,000.
The trip was most consoling, though a strain and at times very
tiring. Despite the heat, poor transportation and other inconveniences
which make such a trip long and wearing on a missionary,_l can only
say, "Thank God for His Blessings!" No one will ever know the
spiritual joy that fills my heart. Within 46 days I visited 61 towns
where I confirmed 141 times, gav,e 135 sermons and instructions in
Visayan. The priests were zealous and overworked, the people full of
faith and eager to comply with their duties as Catholics.
The crying need is priests. We have only 35 for 400,000 Catholics
in a territory stretching 260 miles along the coast and into the mountain
regions in an Archdiocese of 6,000 square miles. And more Catholics
settle here every month to farm the excellent soil made available by
new roads. I've been trying to obtain more missionaries but with little
success. May I ask your good prayers for this intention? Oh! if you
could see the glow of contentment on the faces of parents who, after
their children have received confirmation, cry out, "Gracias sa Dios."
The faith is here and we • must preserve it against proselytizing
Protestant missionaries now swarming into the Philippines because they
can't enter China.
I returned to Cagayan just in time for Holy Week in the Cathedral
where a record attendance of 10,000 brought Easter joy to our hearts.
ARCHBISHOP JAMES
T. G.
HAYES,
S.J.
�Delivered on Friday evening, June 20, 1608-
St. Robert Bellarmine"s Sermon
On St. Aloysius Gonzaga
Translated by JOSEPH E. HENRY, S.J.
Since today is the anniversary of our blessed brother
Aloysius, I desire to say a few words for our mutual encouragement and devotion. I have taken my text from the beginning of the epistle which we read recently at Mass. "Humble
yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He
may exalt you at the time of visitation." 1 These words apply
so fittingly and appropriately to blessed Aloysius that they
seem to have been placed in the Mass at this time, not by
chance, but by Divine Providence. First of all I shall briefly
explain their meaning and then show how aptly they apply to
the life and virtues of blessed Aloysius.
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of
God, that He may exalt you at the time of visitation." The
Apostle Peter warns us that there will come a day when
Christ will reappear among men. Man shall be visited and his
conscience, then revealed, shall be his testimony. Not to reform shall Christ come; neither shall He come to enforce
obedience to His commandments, nor to lay down new ones,
but to exalt the humble with great glory and to humiliate the
Proud to the depths of disgrace. That is why Peter exhorts
his children and says to them, "Humble yourselves." We
shall, however, consider in turn each phrase.
"Humility summarizes everything
that is required for salvation"
He first advises, "Humble yourselves," because this phrase
summarizes everything that is required for salvation. For
there are so to speak five types of humility and the phrase,
"Humble yourselves," is understood to include all of them.
The first type of humility is that of the intellect, which is
Properly concerned with faith. It is easy enough to kneel
or to make subservient the members of the body which are
governed by the will; but to make the intellect subservient
1
I Peter, 5, 6.
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ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
so as to believe what it cannot understand, that is indeed one
of the loftiest manifestations of humility. But there is an
even greater humility, exercised when the intellect is brought
to believe what the senses deny, as for example, when the
intellect is ordered to believe that in the Eucharist what it
cannot see is present, and what it perceives is not present.
Of this type of humility the Apostle Paul has written: "For
the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but powerful before
God to the demolishing of strongholds, the destroying of reason
-yes, of every lofty thing that exalts itself against the
knowledge of God, bringing every mind into captivity to the
obedience of Christ." 2 The mganing of this passage is that the
preaching of the Apostles, wfiich was confirmed by miracles,
did much to humble the proud human mind which exalts its
own knowledge in opposition to that revealed by God. In fact,
it so suppresses this pride that the intellect is brought to submit again to the word of Christ. Faith is humility of the
intellect, satisfied with revealed truth which it neither perceives nor understands. For it allows itself to be chained, as
by captive bonds, to the heavenly authority it has come to
know.
A second type of hu~ility, arising from the will, is a lack
of confidence in one's personal endowments, trusting rather
hopefully in God. That is a remarkable humility by which a
man, however learned, powerful or blessed with human talents,
does not trust in his own strength but is wholly dependent
upon the help of God. He hopes, it is true, to overcome
temptation and attain to everlasting glory, but he does not presume upon his own strength; he depends upon the aid of the
Most High.
The third type is obedience which likewise arises from the
will, for obedience is no more than the subjection of the created will, in its every act, to the Eternal Will. "He humbled
himself, becoming obedient to death.'' 3 But obedience cannot
be truly humble and perfect unless it is joined with charity.
"He who loves Me will keep my word"; and again, "He who
does not love Me does not keep my word." 4
The fourth type is a certain patience and this is even more
2 II Cor. 10, 4-5.
aphil. 2, 8.
4 John, 14, 23-24.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
303
in the will. It includes within its scope the reverses and misfortunes which affect our body, our reputation and our wealth,
or that of our dear ones. And let patience "have its perfect
work," as St. James says. 5 It is greater virtue to endure injuries patiently and so be overcome and humbled by our
enemies, than to serve God and His vicars through obedience.
So when the Apostle had said, "He humbled himself, becoming
obedient to death," he added, "even to death on a cross" ;6 that
is, He was obedient even to the extent of suffering the most
severe tortures. And to the Hebrews St. Paul says: "He learned
obedience from the things that He suffered" ;7 that is, by
patiently enduring crucifixion and death Himself, He learned
experimentally the meaning of perfect obedience.
"Humility is knowledge-self is nothing, all from God"
Finally the last type is the virtue of humility itself. That
is the virtue by which a man knows himself for the wretch
that he is and is content to occupy the last place. Humility,
then, is the true knowledge of self which tells a man that in
himself he is nothing and that whatever he possesses he holds
as a gift from God. God has given it and God can take it away.
He realizes too that there are interior gifts of grace and
virtue of greater worth than external honors and riches. With
this knowledge a man despises himself because he sees that
he is worthless; he prefers himself to no one, rather every
man is his master. For he does not know whether the man,
apparently lacking in worldly gifts of honor, wealth or
knowledge, may nevertheless be far superior to him in the
grace and love of God. Or if somehow he should be aware
that today a certain man is in mortal sin, he does not know
whether or not that man is to be one of tomorrow's saints,
destined for overwhelming graces and glory. And so he does
not dare consider himself above him but freely he accepts the
last place as the place which, in all justice, is his due, never
quarreling with inferiors over· precedence.
Now when I say to go and occupy the last place, I am only
5
James, 1, 4.
Phil. 2, 8.
7
Hebr. 5, 8.
6
�304
ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
speaking of a disposition of soul, for it is the soul that must be
so disposed when the glory of God demands it. But at all other
times each one should occupy the place assigned to his rank
or position. It was to teach this that our Lord said: "Learn
from Me, for I am meek and humble of heart." 8 For it is in
his heart that a man should make himself the servant of all;
externally he should assume, with due meekness, his own
proper place. Then he will be ready, not merely to struggle
against evil, but to conquer evil by good.
"Humble yourselves," then, implies faith, hope, love,
obedience, patience and humility, the virtues required and
sufficient for a man to be glori~ed on the day of justice.
"To be wholly submissive
to God is man's perfection"
In the phrase, "under the mighty hand of God," we have
the reason why a man can and ought confidently to expose himself to humiliation. If the Apostle were to exhort us to bring
our intellects to believe what the philosophers say and our
wills to trust in men, we could then with good reason doubt
why we should have this type of faith. But when he says,
"under the mighty hand of God," all doubt is removed. It is
a source of great perfection to humble the intellect by forcing
it to believe what God has revealed-God who is capable of
creating things which far surpass our understanding:· To trust
in Him, obey Him, suffer adversity out of love for Him, to
subject ourselves wholly to Him, who is majesty and goodness
itself, to Him whose power no man can resist-these are the
steps to perfection. These words, moreover, show the special
necessity of being wholly submissive to God since His is the
power to force obedience upon even the unwilling. If there
is anyone who does not freely wish to subject himself to
obedience in this life by believing and hoping in Him, by resignation and the acceptance of the lowest place, His all powerful
hand will force such a one to subjection, not for a time but for
• eternity. For men who are unwilling to humble themselves
in this life by believing in Him, as the heretics refuse to do,
will confess their belief after death, but then they will tremble
in fear like the demons. And the one who will not cast off his
s
Matt. 11, 29.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
305
self-love and place his hope in God, he, too, will understand
after death how groundless was his self-confidence and how
hopeless was the reliance on his own powers. And those who
did not desire to obey God out of a motive of love, will be forced
to obey because of God's just vengeance. Then they will have
no further opportunity to steal or commit adultery, to kill
or be enticed away from the path of virtue. Likewise, the man
who was not content to suffer hardships on earth for the sake
of justice, will be condemned to more severe punishment in hell
because of his offenses. And lastly those who would not
humble themselves before the court of heaven from a motive
of Christian virtue, will be humbled before the devils in satisfaction to the justice of God. From this you can plainly see
the blindness of the man who refuses to humble himself for a
brief span of time when, by so doing, he has the firm hope of
everlasting reward and when he knows with absolute certainty
that if he does not do so, he must be humbled forever by the
punishments of hell.
"Trusting in God will be
exalted to the heights"
The next phrase is, "that He may exalt you at the time of
visitation." This is the reward given for humbling oneself
before God. Just as "humble yourselves" included the possession of every virtue necessary for salvation, so likewise
we shall see that the phrase, "that He may exalt you," means
the possession of complete glory and beatitude. For the man
who has humbled himself by placing his faith in the words of
God, shall be granted the beatific vision, which is the consummation of wisdom and the perfection of knowledge. There at
the source of all wisdom will his desires be satisfied. For as
Aristotle has said, "All men by nature desire to know." 9 The
~an who has humbled himself by trusting rather in God than
In his own powers will be exalted to the heights. He will
neither fall nor waver; he will neither sin nor be troubled by
temptation. And a person who has humbled himself by obedience to God, and to those to whom God has given authority,
shall be raised to dominion over all creatures. All things shall
-0
Metaphysics, 980 a 21.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
306
be made subject to him. The man who has humbled himself
by the patient endurance of suffering and death for the glory
of God, shall be raised to immortality and will be incapable
of suffering. Nothing can harm him. Finally, the man who
has humbled himself by taking the last place, shall be raised
to the heights of heaven-even to a place on the heavenly
throne: "He who overcomes, I will permit him to sit with me
upon my throne; as I also have overcome and have sat with my
Father on his throne." 10
I now come to blessed Aloysius. In his life every type of
humility is to be found in an eminent degree, so that we have
every reason to believe he has attained to that manifold glory
which we have just described.
But before we come to mention the blessings which we can
share in common with him, I wish to point out three privileges
which he had, to which we cannot even aspire.
The first was that he was called by God at an extremely
early age. Others, indeed, according to the parable of the
vineyard, are called at the first hour, or at the third, or at the
sixth, or the ninth, or the eleventh, meaning either in child·
hood, boyhood, youth, maturity or old age. But blessed
Aloysius was called almost from his infancy, since from his
seventh year, which is really infancy, he was called to the
knowledge of God, to contempt of the world, and to a lif'e of
perfection.
-He himself used to tell me that it was his seventh year
which saw his conversion. Sometime before that he had begun
to consider winning renown as a soldier, but that year, due to
a magnificent blessing of God, he began to cast off the desire
for worldly fame and to enter upon the pursuit of Christian
perfection. It was not a vain and childish thou,ght, but com·
pletely earnest and mature. This is clear from the fact that
he persevered and grew in that resolve to the day of his death.
"A gift of integrity greater than
the gift of resisting te.rnptations"
His second privilege was a special gift of chastity, so that
he was preserved from all defilement of the flesh and of the
spirit, as well in thought as in deed. There are many virgins
1o
A poe. 3, 21.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
307
in the Church of God, at least many who have lived chastely for
a long time, and yet I have known none who were free even
from the stirrings of the flesh except this blessed youth. Perhaps there may be others, but I have not known them. This
truly is a most outstanding privilege, far greater than the
gift of resisting temptations, -which is clear because Christ
our Lord, when He willed to be tempted by the devil, did not
allow Himself to be tempted in this regard. Much less did
He suffer the interior urgings of inordinate desires. Neither
did He permit His most holy Mother to be attacked by evil
thoughts or fleshly desires.
But, you may say, those who do not know temptation, cannot gain the crown of victory. True, but an increase of grace
from another source, and love, will more than replace such
experience. Take as an example, those who have never sinned,
as Christ and His Blessed Mother. Without a doubt they lack
the reward and the merit of penance, but blessed is that loss,
for it is more than repaid by the reward of innocence and a
greater grace.
"No distraction at prayer-so intense
the realization of the presence of God"
His third privilege was freedom from distraction at prayer.
Anyone who devotes himself to prayer can appreciate the
value of such a gift. For we endure no trial more frequent
and annoying. St. Augustine, while commenting on the eightyfifth psalm, says that God is indeed merciful because He puts
up with so many distractions while we are at prayer.U And
David, when he says, "Thy servant has found his heart and so
Prays to Thee,"u points out clearly that hearts steadfast in
Prayer are rare because there is nothing so restless as the
heart.
But what is even more marvelo!JS to my mind is that when
I asked him one day how he could so compose himself for
Prayer that for a whole hour he turned his mind to no other
thought, he replied that he wondered how anyone, standing
before God, could ever be turned to any distracting thought.
11
12
Patrologia Latina, Vol. 37, 1086.
1I Kings, 7, 27.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
308
Just as soon as he knelt and began his prayer, his mind was
fixed on God. So intense was his realization of the presence
of God that during the whole time he was unconscious of any
disturbance in his room or of anyone entering or leaving it.
Frequently superiors send visitors to find out whether a man
is giving the appointed time to prayer and religious duties,
but he never realized that a visitor had entered.
But let us forget those unique privileges and consider those
virtues which we said were contained under the name of
humility, so that we sinful elders may learn the way to everlasting life from the example,of this sinless youth. For there
is no disgrace in learning from a youth "who surpassed his
elders in understanding." 13
The first virtue is faith, which we said was humility of the
intellect. There are two examples which show us how perfectly blessed Aloysius possessed this virtue. He used to prepare himself so diligently for the reception of the most holy
sacrament of the Eucharist, that he would use the entire
week in preparing for his Communion on Sunday. Every day
he would perform certain exercises of piety by which his soul,
as if it were the bridegroom's chamber, would be purified and
more fittingly adorned. This diligent preparation is the most
certain proof of the outstanding and fervent faith which he
had in the Real Presence; for negligence in preparation is a
sign of weak faith, as the Apostle says about those··"who pro·
fess to know God, but by their works they disown Him." 14 He
had especially in mind a worthy reception of this sacrament.
How can anyone believe with a really strong faith that the
Lord of splendor is truly present in this sacrament, and yet
receive his Lord with his soul unprepared? Would he dare
approach so great a mystery with a heart cold and filled with
distractions?
"Strong faith shines forth in
love of the Holy Eucharist and
contempt for temporal things"
The second example in which the strong faith of blessed
Aloysius shines forth is the contempt he had for temporal
1s
Ps. 118, 100.
14
Titus, 1, 16.
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
309
things. Only the man who, with strong and perfect faith,
believes in a future life, can truly contemn worldly possessions.
For instance, it is rumored that a fabulous treasure is buried
in a certain place. Many who hear about it, however, do not
bother to search; but a few leave everything and immediately
go out to look for it. Now certainly we can say that the first
group did not believe what they heard about the buried
treasure; the second group did. The first seem not to believe
or certainly they do not believe with their whole heart. They
are not really and completely convinced that after this
life there is another life infinitely happier. But those alone
advance unwaveringly to the full realization of their sublime
calling who cast everything aside and as the Apostle says,15
"give up everything" to strive with all their strength to please
God. They show in a way that removes all doubt that they
believe what the Catholic faith teaches about the life of the
blessed and the eternal punishment of the wicked. The
strength of blessed Aloysius' conviction is shown by the fact
that he freely gave up all temporal dominion and the wealth,
honor and pleasures which it would entail. He took upon
himself the humble life of a pauper. Finally, after he had
given up all temporal power, he chose that religious order in
which ecclesiastical dignities are accepted only under obedience-and then only very rarely-so that he would not later
aspire to ecclesiastical prominence.
In regard to the second division of humility which is a lack
of confidence in our own ability and a confidence in God, blessed
Aloysius is especially distinguished. For although he was so
fortified by that marvelous gift of chastity, as we have already
Pointed out, still he would never dare to expose himself to any
danger. He was very severe in chastising the body by fasting
and other penances, as if he stood in great need of those
remedies for suppressing the urgings of the flesh. He was so
diligent in fleeing from the s~ght and friendship of women
that he would not even look upon his own mother's face.
Finally, when in his last illness I asked him to beg God for a
longer life, he replied that he could not do so because he did
not know, if he lived longer, whether he would persevere in his
good resolutions, so little did he trust in his own strength.
--
151 Cor. 9, 25.
�810
ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
"The judgment of confessorsnever committed a mortal sin"
In our third division, which is obedience founded on love,
the holiness of blessed Aloysius is especially evident. Indeed,
he was so exactly obedient to the commandments of God and
of the Church during the entire course of his life, that in the
judgment of the confessors who heard his general confessions,
of whom I myself am one, he never committed a mortal sin.
Consequently he never really broke a commandment, for venial
sins are not properly speaking contra legem but rather praeter
legem.
~-·
He mounted to the higliest peak of perfect religious
obedience so that during all the time I knew him I never saw
him become grieved over any command of superiors, or' press
his point in anything, except when he had been refused arequest for more penance; only then did he with due modesty
persist in begging for mortifications. He humbled himself in
imitation of his Lord, becoming obedient even to the extent
of performing the most severe mortifications. These he not only
never refused but always sought with the greatest eagerness.
And what shall I say about his patience, the fourth division
of humility? To begin with, for most of his life he suffered
headaches but with such perfect patience that he never complained. Secondly, he served the poor in the hospitals with
such zeal and exhausting effort that in a certain manner
even he himself was amazed and a little while before his fatal
illness he told me he thought that in a short time he would
be dead. For he used to say that he had been consumed by
a burning desire to suffer and work for the poor since so
little time was left him to dedicate himself in this life to
the service of God and the chalice of Christ's Passion. FinallY
in that last long illness, he gave his greatest example of patience. Though scarcely anything remained of his body but
skin and bones, and his long confinement had raised nasty bed
sores, still whenever he was asked how he felt, he always replied with a smile that he was fine.
Humility alone remains for our consideration. Here too he
was heroically outstanding. He always took the last place and
even gave preference to the Lay Brothers. When walking
along the street he yielded the place of honor to men who were
�ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
311
scarcely worthy of being his servants in the world. I have
seen him at times walking on the left of Temporal Coadjutors.
But as much as I admired his humility, still afterwards I admonished the Coadjutors to remember their place. Let this
one example stand for many, since humility pervaded his
entire life. He wished that his former rank remain unknown;
he longed to receive the worst clothes in the house; he used to
seek out the lowest tasks and especially those which others
tried to avoid, like teaching boys in grammar school. And all
these things he did without external show. It was always
evident that he longed for humiliations but hated to have a
reputation for humility.
In addition he had a burning desire of eternal life which
arose from a pure love of God.
"A pure soul rejoices in
death to go to Christ"
As I said before, I asked him to pray that his life be prolonged because I felt that it would be a great benefit to the
youth who attended the college. But he replied: "Father, God
gives man no greater grace than to call him from this world
when he is in the state of grace. I possess the incomparable
gift of a great hope of my salvation if I die now. How can I
ask to linger on in this world where there is so much danger
and temptation?" After this he spoke freely of the future life
of the blessed. I told him that it was possible to attain the
beatific vision immediately after death and he was filled with
great joy that night. In fact, though he had spent a great part
. of the night in the contemplation of heaven, it seemed to him
only a short time and he was surprised to learn that almost
the whole night had passed. Finally, he had no fear of death.
When I asked him to let me know when he thought we should
begin the prayers for the dying, he calmly told me when to
start. And so I read the prayers and he himself gave each
response as if he were praying, not for his soul, but for the
soul of someone else. Is it so remarkable that so pure a soul,
one that had served God with such devotion, even from childhood, should have rejoiced in death? He did not fear it; he
longed to be freed from his flesh and to come to Christ. Surely,
then, we can believe that this youth, who had so humbled
�312
ST. ALOYSIUS GONZAGA
himself under the mighty hand of God, was exalted on the day
when Christ came to him. And he shall be exalted again before
the whole world at the time of its visitation, and yet again on
the day of the general judgment.
"Youth can ascend to
heights of perfection"
We can easily believe that he has been raised to the beatific
vision and joined with the angels. and saints in heaven.
For there is the divine testimony of the numerous miracles
whereby his glory is reflected in every part of the world.
For after our blessed Fatherlgnatius and his holy companion,
Father Francis Xavier, this blessed youth is the only one
who has been raised by God to such heights in the Society.
And yet in the Society there have certainly been many men
of outstanding virtue, even glorious martyrs. But God was
greatly pleased by His servant Aloysius, and just as He
had consecrated this youth to Himself from his mother's
womb, so He has deigned to honor him after death by the
testimony of miracles. And no one can demand reasons of God.
For perhaps He was pleased to exalt this young man above
others so that great numbers of youth, not only members
of the Society, but also those who attend our schools, might
be encouraged to strive for perfection and to realize that no
age is immature in God's sight; even youth can ascend to
the heights of perfection.
We can now only give thanks to God for the bright and
shining torch which He has enkindled in our day. Let us
earnestly pray to him that we, with eyes fixed on this lamp
of glory, may follow him through the shadowy paths of this
life, and that we who possess his remains and who were
his companions in this world, may, through his intercession,
attain to that vision which he now already enjoys.
Praise be to God, His Virgin Mother
and blessed Aloysius forever.
�Books of Interest to Ours
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
The l\lanner is Ordinary. By John LaFarge, S.J.
Brace, 1954. Pp. viii-408. $4.75.
New York, Harcourt,
In his autobiography Father John La Farge, Associate Editor of
America, has written the record of a life that sheds honor on his own
name and that of his family, on the religious congregation to which he
belongs, and on his Church. Not that he set out to do himself honor; if
anything can be read between the lines of this book, it is the gentle
and self-effacing gratitude of one to whom and through whom God has
done great things. Already it has been noted in other quarters and on
more than one occasion how remarkably unobtrusive Father LaFarge is
in his own life story. The resultant impression is that he serves only
as the rather shadowy substance through which is bodied forth the
remarkable record of an individual's thought, experience, and achievement.
The record is truly remarkable. Its beginnings could hardly be more
auspicious, since the LaFarge family heritage combines the staunchest
of American patriotic traditions from the Perrys of Revolutionary War
fame with the ancient Catholic loyalty and rich, yet sensitive, perceptiveness of a father who was an artist of recognized merit. The portraits
of both the mother and father are engrossing human studies, done with
honesty and delicacy, love and loyalty. This is particularly true in the
case of the father, the elder John LaFarge, whose artistic preoccupations and attendant success made him somewhat unmindful of his duties
as a son of the Church, husband of a woman whose main strength was
her ardent faith, and father of a sizable family. A great deal of the
companionship denied this mulier fortis by the wanderings of her husband she found in the rather frail, unusually mature and open-minded
youngster who bore his father's name.
Hardly less interesting than the principals are the backgrounds against
Which Father LaFarge's early life was lived. Newport and turn-of-thecentury New York, university life at Harvard and Innsbruck, travels
through Europe, especially the visits to Rome, all give depth and variety
to the narrative. And the backgrounds are peopled by friends and relatives of the LaFarge family and, later, by acquaintances of the eminently
sociable young seminarian, many of whom are otherwise famous. The
elder John LaFarge initiates Henry and William James into the mysteries of Browning; with Henry Adams he visits Robert Louis Stevenson
in Samoa. Frederic Bartholdi sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, stays
at the LaFarge home with his inamorata and the pair is persuaded to
regularize their relationship, whereupon young John introduces 1\lme.
Bartholdi to the secrets of corn-popping. Theodore Roosevelt counsels
LaFarge pere to send LaFarge fils to Harvard and, later, to allow his
son to follow his call to the priesthood. A fellow student at Innsbruck is
Count Clement von Galen, later an arch-foe of the Nazis. From the
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BOOK REVIEWS
hands of St. Pius X the young American seminarian received Holy Communion and the Pontiff bends a long and searching look on him before
bestowing his blessing. And through this world of glowing personages
John LaFarge moves alert and appreciative, but never overawed.
Even the manner of his career in the Society cannot be considered
completely ordinary. Few American Jesuits have made their application
for entrance directly to the General. And since he arrived at St.
Andrew-on-Hudson as Father LaFarge, the course had only to supply
him with those elements of his formation peculiarly lgnatian. His
active ministry was properly begun with eight months as hospital and
prison chaplain on Blackwell's Island. Then, with his assignment to
the Counties of Maryland in 1911, begins a saga of achievement that
culminates where-in the editorial chair (one caster missing) of America
in 1944, in a hand-written letter from the Vatican on the feast of St.
Robert Bellarmine in 1946 to "Our'Beloved Son John LeFarge, S.J.," in
an audience with the Holy Father in 1947 when Father LaFarge thought
the interview was over and started to leave, only to have His Holiness
ask him what was his hurry? On the strength of the record, indeed,
there is no assurance that the culmination has yet been reached. It
begins with the toilsome work of a country pastor. There the problems
of the Negroes were thrust upon Father LaFarge at close quarters, and
he began the first free Catholic schools for Negroes in southern Maryland. Years of struggle followed to staff the schools with Sisters and
to scrape together the financial support for them from outside sources.
Later came the founding, temporary success, and ultimate failure of
the Cardinal Gibbons Institute, an industrial school for Negroes. In
1926 came the appointment to the staff of America. Into the years
between, there have been crowded the arduous duties of an associate
editor and of an editor-in-chief, plus active interest and participation
in the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, the Catholic Association
for International Peace, the National Liturgical Conference, the Liturgical Arts Society, the Catholic Laymen's Union, the New York Catholic
Interracial Council, numberless discussions with those of other persua·
sions, plus a pre-war and post-war survey trip of Europe as Editor of
America and, in 1951, seven weeks in Germany as a visiting consultant
to the United States Government of Occupation.
The record indeed is impressive. Still more impressive is the unob·
trusiveness, already noted, of Father LaFarge in the printed pages of
the record. But most impressive of all is the winning portrait of the
man who emerges, willy nilly, from between the lines. This is the
least turgid of autobiographies; in the place of soul-searching in the
modern, anguished manner, we are treated to a glimpse of one of the
sons of the Light. There is a pervasive and irrepressible sense of humor,
• sometimes faintly edged with mild irritation, as in the instance of the
Rector of the Innsbruck University, who made a "stupid, hesitating
little speech" and proceeded to mangle the names of the students, in·
eluding that of one "Chawn LaJartch." The genius of Augustine is
put at the service of a shepherd prodding a balky sheep, for Father
LaFarge quotes to the old man Augustine's words: "Show a green bough
�315
BOOK REVIEWS
to a sheep and you draw it after you." Behold, the shepherd complies
and the sheep follows him docilely into the distance. The green bough
technique is applied thenceforth time after time, and with what success
is writ large in the record. The balky sheep was encountered near
Assisi on a journey to Rome from Innsbruck, a journey the author says
he undertook to find out the ultimate truth in his own life. And as the
reader looks back with him through this travel book of that quest, he
sees in the life of Father John LaFarge not truth only, but-as St.
Augustine says: "delight in the truth, delight in blessedness, delight in
justice, delight in eternal life."
Ad multos annos I
THOMAS F. WALSH, S.J.
FRANCIS XAVIER
Set All Afire.
280. $3.00.
By Louis de Wohl.
New York, Lippincott, 1953.
Pp.
A life of a saint, whether fiction or not, is always a hazardous venture
for any author. He must beware of devitalizing his hero or heroine by
smothering the reality in pious imaginings or by parading the lifeless
bones of documentary facts. To recapture them as flesh and blood, yet
spiritual giants, as it were, from another world, has proven an unavoidable pitfall for many well-intentioned writers. Louis de Wohl neatly
guides his latest novel, based on the life of St. Fr;mcis Xavier, past
these dangers. Set All Afire proves a captivating, swift-moving story,
where fact is well blended with Mr. de Wohl's excellent imaginative
creations. He has conjured up for the reader an image of the whirlwind,
the dynamo of spiritu!ll energy, the ceaseless, untiring laborer which
Xavier must have been. It is an inspiring tale stretching from Francis's handball playing days as a devil-may-care student in gay Paris
to his forlorn death on Sancian. If one is interested in books to be
used as an introduction to spiritual reading for young men, this will
surely sharpen their appetite for more. For those accustomed to more
substantial fare in a life of a saint, it will prove a diverting change.
J.
ALAN DAVITT,
S.J.
SOCIOLOGY
.Marriage and the Family. By Clement S. Mihanovich, Gerald J.
Schnepp, S.M., and John L. Thomas, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1952.
Pp. x-502.
In the past the publications of American Catholic Sociologists have
tended to suffer from one or other of two basic defects. Some have been
aimed at nothing more than popularization of a set of theses from
Special Ethics. A more or less successful imitation of scientific work
�316
BOOK REVIEWS
by non-Catholics in the same field has been the effect of others. Marriage and the Family represents a welcome break with this tradition.
Its scientific standards will bear the scrutiny of any scholar, while the
Catholicity of its authors consistently informs, and enriches their work.
It is a pleasure to remark that the outstanding sections in this volume
seem to be those contributed by the Jesuit member of the trio of authors.
This is noted without prejudice to the other authors, since it was the
reviewer's privilege to study under Dr. Mihanovich and Brother Schnepp.
Their past achievements and the quality of their present contributions
are certainly to be praised. The chapters however on "The Changing
Family," "The Family as a Sociological Unit," and "The Development of
the Modern American Family," are especially excellent and reveal Father
Thomas' critical scholarship and originality.
This book deserves the attention o(a wide range of Jesuits. Certainly
any priest or teacher would profit from a reading of the chapters above
mentioned.
Again, those on "Courtship," "Intermarriage," and
"Family Crises," offer a great deal of valuable pastoral information.
Two chapters: "Church Laws on Marriage,'' and "Legal Aspects of
Marriage," are first-rate summaries of their complex subject-matters.
Of special interest, too, is the appendix containing an analysis of "The
Opinions of a Select Group of Doctors on the Effectiveness of the Rhythm
Method and the Extent of its Practice." It may be noted that a reference, in the section on sex instruction prior to marriage, to a pamphlet
formerly available in most rectories, is now outdated.
In addition to its value fol' preaching, guidance, and other forms of
pastoral work, Marriage and the Family commends itself as a college
text for the sociology course on marriage or familial relations. To this
end each chapter concludes with an excellent summary, a useful list of
suggestions for further study, and a carefully selected bibliography.
DONALD
R.
CAMPION,
S.J.
CATHOLICS AND WORK
In Praise of Work. By Raoul Plus, S.J.
Press, 1952. Pp. 181. $2.50.
Westminster, The Newman
Father Plus has offered to his numerous readers another very readable
product of his busy pen. This book, as the title might suggest, presents
a thoughtful and delightful expression of a Christian philosophy of
work. It is thoughtful in presenting to men of all professions a challenge
to give themselves wholeheartedly to their life's work. It is delightful
• in the apt illustrations of all the professions that he examines.
There are three parts to the book: "'On Work in General"; "In
Particular Professions"; and "Professions that are Vocations." The
first part considers the nature of work. Work is said to be "activitY
undertaken to accomplish something productive." This consists in the
persevering use of all one's effective energy in any occupation with the
�BOOK REVIEWS
317
intention of rendering service to others. To every man and woman, God
has assigned a particular task. And their answer to this call to work
is their chief means of sanctification. This first part is discussed under
such interesting headings as Luck, If . . . ?, Beginning, Pluck, and
Providential Insecurity. All the characteristics of work are illustrated
with appropriate stories. Part Two, "Ip. Particular Professions," comprises the largest section of the book. The range of professions discussed by the author extends from the humble work of laborers, domestic employees, and soldiers, to the more exalted occupations of artists,
educators, and surgeons. From each profession Father Plus chooses an
outstanding representative whose particular genius is delineated to
show his singular contribution to the spirit of his calling. In the third
part, "Professions that are Vocations," particular religious vocations
are indicated for "those with vast ambition." Examples of men of
yesterday and today highlight these sections. The vocations of monks,
priests, nuns, martyrs, even mothers and fathers of priests are presented for our consideration.
In Praise of Work is a book of interest to both religious and laymen
of all callings. It is a book that should be at hand for the perusal
of high school boys and girls as well as for their fathers and mothers
during a weekend retreat.
WILLIAM F. CARR, S.J.
HISTORICAL
The Catholic Church and German Americans. By Colman J. Barry,
O.S.B. Milwaukee, Bruc~, 1953. Pp. 348. $6.
A wave of nationalism spread over America after 1865. The United
States had survived a civil war; it was young and strong and wealthy.
The people took pride in the titanic growth of industry; distant sectors
of the country and the world were brought near to them by steel rails
and copper wires. They were enthralled with a vision of democratic
destiny which led them to welcome foreigners to their shores. America,
they believed, was great and would be greater.
It was natural that members of the hierarchy who had been born
or raised in the United States believed in the American vision and
saw the Church sharing in the glorious future of their democracy.
Woefully unconscious of this spirit were the German Catholic immigrants. These people saw the United States as a country not a nation,
and what was worse, a Godless country where they would have to struggle to preserve their faith. "Language saves the faith" became their
battle cry. They fought for national parishes, representation in the
hierarchy, and other privileges.
What the German Catholics were aware of was the Irish ancestry of
the majority of the American hierarchy, the fact that many of the
�318
BOOK REVIEWS
bishops were temperance men, and the lack of sympathy with which
their early requests for cooperation h<~d been greeted.
A twenty years' war ensued in which hot words were exchanged
between the antagonists and found their way into public print. Exaggerated charges and countercharges were aired in Rome, Germany,
France and the United States. The emotional fury of the conflict left
little room for intelligent thought and discussion. And only two men
seemed to have been completely honorable throughout the hostilities:
Pope Leo XIII and Cardinal Gibbons. If the coolheadedness of these
two great churchmen had been adopted by others, most of the battles
need never have been fought.
Father Barry proves that American Church History has come of
age. Without losing any of the ·heat of battle, he has recounted the
entire controversy with objectiVity and documentation. The intrigues
are here; so are the greatness and pettiness, the vision and blindness
of the combatants. It is a fascinating, discouraging, heartening tale.
JOSEPH
D. AYD, S.J.
LIFE OF CHRIST
Jesus of Nazareth. By the Most Rev. Hilarin Felder, S.T.D., O.F.M.
Cap. Tr. by Berchmans Bittle, O.F.M.Cap. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1953.
Pp. xii-353. $4.75.
·
In this book Bishop Felder gives us a composite picture of the Christ
of the Gospels and the Christ of theology. Jesus of Nazareth is not just
another "Life of Christ." It is an objective, scholarly and inspiring
study of the total personality of Jesus as set forth in the syn9ptics, early
Church, Pauline and Johannine Christology. We may be led to think
that the author could not do justice to so broad a subject within the
pages of a small volume. However, this book reflects the immense
knowledge and extensive research of Bishop Felder's previous two
volume apologetical work, Christ and the Critics. As the author himself points out, this present work differs from his previous one in content,
structure, and mode of presentation. Whereas in Christ and the Critics
the Messiasship and Divinity of Jesus are considered from a negative
angle against the rationalists, Jesus of Nazareth takes a more positive
approach to the entire person of Jesus in the light of the New Testa·
ment sources.
After establishing the credibility of Jesus of the Gospels against
the rationalistic critique, the author gives us a progressive insight into
the fundamental facets of Christ's person: His humanity, His prophetic
spirit, His sinlessness, His fullness of virtue with respect to Himself,
to men, and to God the Father, His Messiasship, and finally how all these
attributes harmonize and culminate in the Divinity of Christ. The
author concludes by showing briefly how the witness of the gospels con·
cerning the Person of Jesus is confirmed by the witness of the primitive
�BOOK REVIEWS
319
Church in the Acts, in the Epistles of Paul, and in the Gospel, Epistles,
and Apocalypse of John the Evangelist.
A word about the translator. Father Bittle has rendered the original
German with Knox-like clarity and has added new footnotes and current
English titles of other works mentioned for the benefit of American
readers.
VITALIANO R. GoROSPE, S.J.
EASTER
The Easter Book. By Francis X. Weiser, S.J.
Brace & Co., 1954. Pp. 224. $3.00.
New York, Harcourt,
Father Weiser's The Easter Book comes as a fine companion piece to
his previous work, The Christmas Book [cf. WOODSTOCK LETTERS
82:2 (May, 1953), 190]. Understandably similar in style and construction this popularized study of Easter delves into the customs, profane
and liturgical, associated with the feast and gleaned from all nations and
periods. The result is a startling assemblage of facts and ideas manifesting a broad familiarity with folk-lore, medieval literature, the
writings of the Fathers, music, the history of Catholic liturgy, and,
surprisingly enough, national cuisines. Despite its faint encyclopedic
atmosphere Father Weiser has created a sound unity by following the
liturgical chronology of the Lenten Season, Holy Week, and Easter and
by strongly impressing his reader with the realistic and simple spirit of
devotion possessed by the faithful of by-gone eras. It is something of
a revelation to realize, for example, the once devotional significance of
pretzels, of Easter eggs of various hues, of choral singing at dawn on
Easter morn, of the "Easter walk" and to understand the tremendously
personal part taken by the laity in the liturgical functions of this
entire season. Because of its interest and readability-his style is of the
simplest and clearest-this book will justly enjoy great seasonal popularity among reading Catholics for many years to come. Because of
its spiritual content it is highly recommended for such consumption as
an historical aid to a more vital participation in and deeper understanding of the full meaning of The Feast.
J. ALAN DAVITT, S.J.
FAMILIAR PRAYERS
Familiar Prayers: Their Origin and History. By Herbert Thurston,
S.J. Westminster, Newman Press, 1953. Pp. 200. $3.50.
The title of this book might lead the reader to expect a popularized
discussion of familiar prayers. But unless he is fairly conversant with
Wasserschlebert, Egbert, and Chrodegang; the Ancren Riwle, Adgar,
and Mabillon; the Book of Nunnaminster, Ms. Cotton Tiberius A iii, and
the Pseudoapostolischen Kirchenordnungen, and many others even
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BOOK REVIEWS
more frightening to the uninitiate, he may find Father Thurston's
essays pretty heavy going.
All eleven papers appeared originally in The Month between the years
1911 and 1918. At the time of his death in 1939, Father Thurston had
started revising them for re-publication, but, as they appear here, the
chapters remain substantially as originally written.
Eleven prayers are discussed. Of most general interest the three on
the Sign of the Cross, the Our Father in English, and the Hail Mary
should be singled out. Here is the Thurston of the fascinating little
sidelights, here liberal quotations from the Fathers of the Church.
These three articles, incidentally, can be found in much the same form
in the articles on them in The Catholic Encyclopedia by the same author.
Other prayers whose origin and history are discussed include the Salve
Regina, Confiteor, Regina Coeli, ~!oria Patri, De Profundis, and the
Menwrare.
GEORGE
T.
ZoRN,
S.J.
ASCETICISM
The Trinity in Our Spiritual Life, an Anthology of the Writings of
Dom Columba Marmion, O.S.B. Compiled by Dom Raymund Thibaut, O.S.B. Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. xxii-284. $3.50.
Around the turn of the last century, Dom Marmion was teaching
theology at Louvain to his Benedictine confreres. It was at this time
(presumably while teaching the tract De Deo Trino) that the saintly
scholar composed an act of consecration to the Most Blessed Trinity.
This same period was one of profound spiritual growth for Dom Marmion, and we can but surmise that his unction and ardor overflowed into
his students, of whom Dom Thibaut was one. This act of consecration
serves as the theme of this compilation from the earlier writings of
Dom Marmion. The anthology is constructed by way of allowing selec·
tions from the corpus asceticum of Marmion's spiritual writings to serve
as his comment of the individual phrases of this prayer.
The appeal of Marmion is at once both to the heart and to the
mind. He was ever conscious that we must have an enlightened faith
before we can love. And with St. Augustine, he realized the profound
fecundity of this most central of all dogmas: the revelation of the Most
Blessed Trinity. We may rightly say, then, that devotion to the
Trinity is a distinguishing mark of his spirituality. He knew that God
spoke to us of Himself as only a friend dare speak to a friend, and it
was this message of divine friendship that he sought to convey to his
hearers while at Louvain. We are the happy heirs of his classroom
lectures. Not that his writings are reminiscent of the text-book. Rather
he has distilled the teachings of the theologians and Fathers, and gives
us in these pages the revelation of the Trinity as it is meant to affect
our spiritual life.
JOHN
F. X.
BURTON,
S.J.
�WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXIII, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1954
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER, 1954
A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL TO
ALL MAJOR SUPERIORS AND RECTORS OF HOUSES OF
HIGHER STUDIES -------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------- 323
A LETTER FROM HOME ______________________________________________________________________ 331
Laurence J. McGinley
GREATER GEORGETOWN DEVELOPMENT CAMPAIGN_ ________ 341
Edward B. Bunn
A HISTORY OF CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL __________________________________ 352
James J. Hennesey
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY OF
JESUS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 365
P. De Letter
OBITUARIES
Father John J. Clifford _______________ ------------------------------------------------------ 402
Mr. John R. Gleason ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 406
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
China in the 16th Century: The Journals of Matthew Ricci
1583-1610 (Gallagher) ------------------------------------------------------------- 409
News of the World (Hoffman and Grattan) ______________________________ 410
His Heart in Our Work (Filas)----------------------------------------------------That We May Have Hope (Donaghy)----------------------------------------··
A History of Modern European Philosophy (Collins) __________________
Catholicism in America (Commonweal)-------------------------------------------Christ in Our Time (Plus)-----------------------------------------------------------The Law of Love ( Devas) ----------··--------------------------------------------------The Problem of Abuse in Unemployment Benefits (Becker) ________
The Quest of Honor (Ba~rett) ------------------------------------------------------·-
410
411
411
412
414
414
415
416
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Laurence J. McGinley (New York Province) is Rector and
President of Fordham University, New York, N. Y.
Father Edward B. Bunn (Maryland Province) is Rector and President
of Georgetown University, Washington, D. C.
Father P. De Letter (North Belgian Province) is a professor at
Kurseong, India.
:M:r. James Hennesey (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
Father William A. Dowd (Chicago Province) is the professor of Sacred
Scripture and Hebrew at the Theological Seminary of St. Mary of the
Lake, Mundelein, Illinois.
:M:r. Eugene Quigley (New York Province) is a theologian at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WooDsTOCK
LETTERS to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a one·
inch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contributor.
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a
year~'
in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�A Letter of Very Reverend Father
General to All Major Superiors and
Rectors of Houses of Higher Studies
Reverend Fathers in Christ: Pax Christi
By this time you have received the new Ratio Studiorum
Superiorum which was issued by order of the Twenty-ninth
General Congregation (Decree 28, No. 3).
1. In drawing it up careful consideration was given to the
requests of the provinces and houses of higher studies which
were sent to Rome in answer to the direction of the Twentyeighth General Congregation (Decree 38, No. 2). But from
the very nature of the case it was impossible to comply with
each and every request.
After the Twenty-eighth General Congregation (Decree 39)
had wisely declared all of Ours who are to aim at the profession of four vows should also follow the courses required for
academic degrees, we are bound by the prescriptions of the
Constitution, Deus Scientiarum Dominus, promulgated in
1931, and the attached ordinations of the Sacred Congregation
of Seminaries and Universities. The present mind of the
Holy See has been clearly and frequently expressed to the
effect that these prescriptions should still be exactly observed
and put into practice, since there has been no abrogation of
the law or dispensation from it. For this reason, no changes,
for the present, can possibly be obtained with regard to the
Statuta Factultatum Theologiae et Philosophiae, which have
been established in our colleges, unless they deal with matters
of minor importance which are not connected with the Apostolic Constitution and the annexed ordinations, such as was
done lately with regard to the number of examiners (Cf. Ratio
Studiorum, N. 228, 1 and 2).
This new regulation for studies departs in some respects
from the older traditions of the Society, but it is very clear
that it will secure the proficiency of our studies, if it is correctly understood and put into practice according to the intention of the lawgivers. Your Reverence will, therefore, please
�324
RATIO STUDIORUM SUPERIORUM
see to it that wherever circumstances seem to require it, both
professors and scholastics be reminded of the perfect obedience demanded of us by our Institute. The Statuta of our
faculties, as they have been drawn up according to the Deus
Scientiarum Dominus, and approved by the Holy See, together
with the additional determinations of this new Ratio Studiorum, must everywhere be faithfully observed, "fully,
promptly, courageously, with due humility and without pleading of excuses." I should rather say that it shall be our duty
"to make every effort," in this instance also, "to have an
inward resignation and true denial of our own will and judgment" (Constitutions, P. III,. c. 1, n. 23; Thirty-first Rule of
the Summary).
··
2. One who looks through this new Ratio Studiorum will see
that it offers some relief from a number of inconveniences
arising in some places from a too strict application of the
pontifical Statuta. By the frequent addition of the adverb
circiter, an over-scrupulous narrowness of interpretation is
avoided, and the more exact definition of the time to be given
to classes and other scholastic exercises is left to the authority
in each of the faculties: Too great a diffusion of attention,
which was to be feared from the large number of courses and
examinations, has been obviated; less important subjects may
be joined with others that are more important; examinations
are to be had at definite times of the year, twice, in fact, after
the custom of many universities. For more advanced students
provisions are made for fewer scholastic disputations, which
among us go by the name of "circles," and precautions are
taken to make them more efficient and better adapted to the
needs of the times.
But these are all of minor importance. What changes of
more importance have been introduced into this new Ratio
Studiorum can be reduced to two heads; a clearer distinction is
made, as was to be expected, between studies leading to the
licentiate and those leading to the doctorate; and fuller pro·
• vision is made for the sho:r:t course in theology.
3. -There was need of a clearer distinction, on the one hand,
for the courses required for the licentiate, which are pre·
scribed for all those who are aiming at the profession, whether
they are preparing to teach these higher branches at some
�RATIO STUDIORUM: SUPERIORUM:
325
future time, or preparing to exercise the ordinary ministry of
the priesthood with greater authority and a more thorough
knowledge especially of theology; and on the other hand, with
regard to studies for the doctorate, 'vhich are suitable mostly
for those who are expecting to teach philosophy and theology
and to undertake research problems in them. The former
should be given some introduction to the research methods
which the latter are to employ ex professo. Those who are
studying for the licentiate should start with the rudiments of
the subject; those who are aiming at the doctorate, after
finishing the whole regular course of studies, are to be more
fully trained in some restricted field. The former are bound
by a prescript of the Holy See itself to gather their learning,
for the most part, from classes in common; the latter are held
only to a minimum of class, with a group of special students,
and are to devote themselves especially to private study under
the direction of competent professors. Adhering in this way
to the practice of the best universities, we favor a twofold
course of studies, the first of which looks to an instruction of
a more general nature, the second to one that is more specialized.
4. Because of the necessity of giving its full value to the
doctorate, as the Constitution Deus Scientiarum Dominus demands, the conditions imposed on our houses of higher studies
for conferring the doctorate are more severe than they have
hitherto been. Our colleges which have already enjoyed the
right of conferring the doctorate continue to possess that right
to the full. However, they are not to use it in the future until
they have fulfilled all the requirements of this our new Ratio.
It will not redound to God's glory if each and every province
assumes the heavy burden of fulfilling all the conditions required for the conferring of the doctorate. Only a few of our
colleges are to undertake this task, and these can be determined
for the future after consultation with those concerned.
5. In any case, I beg the provincials not to seek, because of
a very foolish desire for the honor of their provinces, to set
up, at the sacrifice of all else, or to preserve, each in his own
Province, a house of philosophy and theology. They should
try rather, as far as they can, to act in concert with other
Provinces. Thus we will not have many weak houses of higher
�326
RATIO STUDIORUM SUPERIORUM
studies, scantily supplied with books and resources, but rather
a smaller number of them, first class, however, in the number
and ability of professors, the value of libraries and scientific
museums, and the emulation that comes from a large body of
scholastics. Along this way the Society will make progress in
the life of study, to the praise of Christ and His Church on
earth. If, however, because of circumstances that are altogether exceptional, it should be necessary to set up small
houses of higher studies, there is nothing else for the province
to do but, sacrificing to a certain extent all other works, gather
the men and resources necessary for properly carrying on so
worthy an undertaking.
6. The second set of changes introduced into our Ratio has
to do with improving what we call the short course in theology.
We must always keep in view the difference between the
short course as it was once given in the Society and the course
as described by the Twenty-eighth General Congregation (Decree 40, No.2). Your Reverence should recall that the course
of "cases of conscience," as it was once designated, and limited
to two years, was lengthened to three only towards the end of
the nineteenth century, and then, with the promulgation of the
Code of Canon Law in 1917, extended to four years. The
Twenty-seventh General Congregation in 1923 wished that
the "members of the short course be solidly and ..fully instructed in dogmatic theology so that they could teach religion
with satisfaction, answer the usual objections brought against
it, and expound it in sermons" (Coli. deer. d. 96). But in
1938 the Twenty-eighth General Congregation went much
further and laid it down that in the short course "theology
should be so taught that the scholastics be provided with solid
learning, and be ready to make use of it in sermons, in writings, and in teaching in the schools. They would be able thus
to carry on their sacred ministry effectively not only among
the humbler classes, but even among the educated laity and
the clergy" (AR IX, 40). We are all aware how much is
• demanded here. And no one with even a slight experience in
the ministry, considering how conditions have changed, will
refuse to admit that it was a wise ordination.
To meet these requirements some new prescriptions have
now been added to those already laid down in the provisional
�RATIO STUDIORUl\1 SUPERIORUl\1
327
edition of the Ratio Studiorum promulgated by Father Ledochowski in 1941. This at least should be provided for everywhere, namely, that separate classes be held for each course, at
least in dogmatic theology, and as far as possible even in
fundamental theology. I might even say that the same is
recommended for moral theology and sacred scripture (AR
IX, 40). In not a few places this has been rather easily overlooked, with loss to studies in both courses. Provinces which
are unable to carry this out are bound to send their scholastics of either one or the other course to a house where students
are provided for as directed.
7. I see that there is no little variation between individual
provinces in their choice of those who are to follow this or the
other course in theology. In some places nearly all are sent to
the long course, while elsewhere, they are equally divided between short and long course. Hence, the question suggests
itself, whether it would be better to be severer rather in the
examination de universa philosophia, and thus from the beginning screen out those who are destined for the long course,
or, if we are easier in allowing them to pass to the long course,
are we then, later in their theological studies, to send a larger
number to the short course, or fail them in the examination
ad gradum. If in regard to the aptitude of candidates whom
we are wont to admit into the Society, we follow the mind of
St. Ignatius, who felt that spiritual coadjutors should also be
admitted, we will see that this screening should not be such
that only they who far surpass the average in gifts of mind
should be admitted. It follows from this that one is mistaken
if one thinks that all of Ours should per se be placed in the
long course. It would be much easier if from the beginning,
the members of the long course be of a single blend, and such
as would make it worth while for their professor to unfold the
more difficult speculative questions for them. Besides, it is
also desirable that those who have been endowed by our Lord
with less talent for these studies (which no man in his senses
will hold to any one's discredit), should, from the beginning,
have classes accommodated to themselves, from which they
Will be able to draw the maximum of benefit. For this reason,
it will be more advantageous for our course of studies, if candidates for the long course, are carefully selected before they
�328
RATIO STUDIORU.l\1 SUPERIORU.l\1
begin their theology by means of the examination de universa
philosophia. The new Ratio Studiorum (No. 230) strongly
insists on this.
8. The Ratio also insists on the use of Latin in teaching the
greater number of the courses in philosophy and theology. It
does this designedly, and by no means because of an excessive
and absurd reverence for a long-standing practice. Individuals have no right to wish to regulate these sacred studies;
we are under obligation to obey the Church and the Society.
Our own General Congregat~ons prescribe the use of Latin
for us in pursuing certain~~tudies. Anyone who gives the
matter even a moment's consideration will easily see how soon
it would be fatal for our studies, especially in theology, if we
did not insist on a ready use of the Latin tongue, at least of
ecclesiastical Latin, on the part of the professors and students. Access to the fontes magisterii, to the sources of tradition and learning, will be all the more difficult, I might even
say the approaches will be closed in part to him who is not
sufficiently skilled in the language of the Councils, of the
Fathers of the Latin Church, and the great theologians. This
is proved by experience in not a few houses of ecclesiastical
studies. No one is unaware of the fact that the general use
of the language of the Church, in the largest part of the
Catholic world, has contributed and continues stili to contribute to preserving incorrupt the purity and the unity of the
deposit of faith.
The objection is heard in places that our scholastics have not
a sufficient command of Latin to get any benefit from classes
carried on in that language. What is the answer? If our
scholastics, because of a defective earlier training, have come
to such a pass, they should take upon themselves the task of a
private study of Latin until they have made good whatever
they may lack on this point. This amount of self-conquest
they have learned from our holy Father. An effort of this
• kind, and even greater, many of Ours are required to make to
learn foreign languages, and we behold men advanced in years
win through, by a mighty effort, to this objective. Can we not
expect our young men to learn enough of the Church's language? Consequently, let superiors and professors all insist
�RATIO STUDIORU.M SUPERIORUM
329
on this point. For if we are firm and unyielding we will soon
get results more easily than we think.
I take this occasion to remind provincials seriously to look
into the whole course of training of Ours in this matter. In
our classical high schools all teachers should make it a point
to be methodical from the lowest class to the highest, and to be
exacting in all their demands. In those countries where
classical studies are done away with by those in charge of the
public schools, it will be incumbent on us to make good this
loss, either in our apostolic schools or in the juniorate. It
hardly seems proper that any should be admitted to the novitiate as scholastics who have never studied even the elements
of Latin. What Ours should learn in the novitiate is a ready
use of that daily Latin which they will need in their studies
and clerical duties, rather than an education that is strictly
classical. The use of Latin as a living language should not be
overlooked in the juniorate, although there they are to study,
ex professo, what is strictly classical in literature. If provincials will only insist on these few points courageously and
continuously, that knowledge of the Latin language will soon
revive which will never cease to belong to the patrimony of our
Christian scholarship.
9. In this edition of the Ratio Studiorum, special studies, in
keeping with the importance they have for our times, have
been treated a little more in detail, even when they deal with
secular subjects, and are pursued in our own schools or elsewhere. I should like to have Your Reverence give some attention to the fact that, not only scholastics, but priests too,
who are destined for such studies, especially when they are
sent to non-Catholic universities, are in need of attention and
direction, not only for the preservation and promotion of their
religious life as a whole, but also in the matter of their studies.
None of them, therefore, should be left to himself. Their
superiors will be held answerable for them before God and
the Church, just as they are for the philosophers and the theologians. The success of our studies, the apostolic effectiveness
of the Society and its ability to meet the needs of our times,
will in large measure depend upon the skill of the spiritual
direction which is given to those who are employed at special
studies.
�330
RATIO STUDIORUM SUPERIORUM
10. It only remains for me to exhort Your Reverence in the
Lord to take measures for the firm and faithful execution of
this Ratio Studiorum. You will be impelled to this, as your
office requires, by your desire for the good of the Society and
of the Church. But if in your province, or in some of its
colleges, you think, because of more than usually serious reasons, some changes should be considered in regard to the common Ratio Studiorum, there is nothing which should prevent
Your Reverence from proposing them. There is, in fact, a
note to this effect in the text of the Ratio (No.6). You should
be careful, however, to keep this_ in mind, as I reminded you in
the beginning of this letter, thl!t' we may not depart from the
prescriptions of the Twenty-eiglith General Congregation, nor,
for the present, hope in the possibility of any general dispensation in regard to studies which the Holy See makes a requirement for academic degrees.
11. For the more successful carrying out of this Ratio Studiorum, a permanent commission, or secretariate, on higher
studies has been set up here at the curia. It will serve as an
instrument in the hands of the General for directing these
studies throughout the whole Society. This commission will
also be a source of help and advice to the General and his
Assistants in settling doubts concerning corrections or changes
or improvements to be made in our higher studies, whether
they make themselves felt in the beginning, or as time goes on.
May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Seat of Wisdom, obtain for
us that whatever efforts we make may tend to the praise and
more acceptable service of her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Rome, Feast of our holy Father St. Ignatius, July 31, 1954.
The servant of all in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
rP'1f'
{:~IP · .;
General of the Society of Jesus.
The Society and its Men
Of 32,008 Jesuits, 5,463 are missioners, making the Society of Jesus
the largest missionary order in the world. American Jesuits number
7,496 of which 1,022 labor in mission fields.
~
�A Letter From Home
Address by Rev. Laurence J. McGinley, S.J., President of Fordham
University, at the lOOth Annual Dinner of the Fordham University
Alumni Association.
1854
Like all Gaul, I propose to divide these remarks into three
sections: 1854, 1954, and 1964. Naturally, at the hundredth
annual dinner our thoughts turn back to Fordham a century
ago. In 1854, St. John's Hall was headquarters for 185 students, though even in those early days 56 of them came from
foreign countries. It cost only $200 yearly for board, a bed
and tuition-and for $15 more you could stay all summer.
You had to have six suits, though, and a silver spoon ~nd a
silver cup with your name on it I
The nearest post office was five miles away in Westchester
and the leader of the school was privileged to drive there
daily. (Today we have three mail boxes and our own post
office on the campus I) Advertisements said that the college
was only twelve miles from New York City but students felt
it might as well be 1,000, because it took permission of the
faculty and a letter from home to pay New York a visit.
There was one big day each year-July 4 when faculty and
student body stretched out on the grassy banks of the Harlem
with huge picnic lunches and huge bundles of firecrackers to
help digestion.
One thousand eight hundred fifty-four was the year when
the Debating Society drew up its constitution and one of the
first signatures, by pleasant coincidence, was that of A. del
Vecchio. Two great friends in senior class that year were
John Hassard, historian-to-be, Editor of the American Cyclopedia, and writer for the New York Tribune; and Martin
McMahon, Civil War General and adventurous diplomat in
Paraguay. Sylvester Rosecrans, first Bishop of Columbus,
Ohio, was among the young alumni, as was Michael O'Connor,
orator and future U. S. Senator from South Carolina. Fordham's first President, Cardinal McCloskey, was then Bishop
�332
TOMORROW'S FORDHAM
of Albany; her third President, James Roosevelt Bayley, was
Bishop of Newark; and her Founder, John Hughes, was still
Archbishop of New York. It was the year when KnowNothings held a meeting on Fordham Heights and planned to
burn the college. A man named Cole sent word of the plot
from his blacksmith's shop on Kingsbridge Road and Archbishop Hughes sent muskets, a dozen of them, for the faculty
to defend the campus. One of the muskets, still unfired, is in
my office now.
We have no record of that first Alumni Dinner but it was
probably held, as later ones were, in Delmonico's at Beaver
and William Streets. We can ..be sure from later accounts
that the oratory, whether stirring or not, was at least
abundant. It seems to have held the listeners spell-bound. Or
perhaps they simply couldn't move. This is a sample of an
early menu:
Oysters
Lettuce, Tomato and Sardine Salad
Consomme
Cold Tongue, Cold Ham, Calves' Foot Jelly
Fillet of Beef
Mushroom Sauce, Creamed Potatoes, Asparagus
Squab on Toast with Rice
Chicken Salad
..
Ice Cream, Strawberries and Cream, Fancy Cakes
BonBons
Demi-tasse
Cigars
We are indeed, gentlemen, the inheritors of a robust tradition!
1954
A century after such gastronomical achievements, Fordham's most notable change is in the extent, the intensity and
'the multiplicity of each day's living. It is still a university of
people rather than things-of men like Professor Bacon employing his years of wisdom and experience at the helm of
the Law School and James Fogarty, College '35, newly
charged with the destinies of the School of Social Service. It
�TOMORROW'S FORDHAM
333
is the University of Father Millar, who 50 years ago last
summer began his Jesuit life of which 30 years were to be
given to Fordham; of Father Deane, who 50 years ago this
coming summer left Fordham as a layman only to return to
it for all time as a Jesuit and the Alumni's friend; of men like
Dr. Glasgow, first Kavanagh Professor of Speech, and Professor Liegey, honored through Cardinal Spellman by the
Holy Father himself. Faculty names are many and so are
their activities in Stockholm, Sweden, and in Cleveland, Ohio,
in Rome and Chicago and Iraq and Dublin, in Paris and Germany and Egypt and Worcester, Massachusetts. Their lecturing and writing covers Metaphysics and Puerto Ricans,
French Literature and Adolescent Psychology, Ants and the
Supreme Court, Natural Law and Art, Wood Pulp and Interracial Justice.
Students from 620 high schools are with us, students from
China and Ireland, from Panama and Lithuania, from Iran
and Chile, from VietNam and Holland and Australia. Four
thousand seven hundred of them go to school downtown;
2900 are women; 400 have come back safe from the Korean
War. You and they were honored by a National Luncheon
of the N ewcomen Society last October, by the fact that last
month in a Latin-American Educational Congress in Havana
four of the six outstanding leaders were men of Fordham.
One hundred eighty-five students have grown to nearly
12,000. The buggy that went to Westchester for the mail has
multiplied until there is a registration bureau for cars of
faculty and staff. On the campus alone, 2500 phone calls pour
through the switchboard daily. The Library in one of its
minor book exhibits presented the Gospel in 20 languages.
Fordham's Radio Station WFUV is heard each day in 24,000
homes.
There seems to be an unending variety to the activities of
the undergraduate. Last week a dozen or more AFROTC
were in jet planes at Langley Field, Virginia; the Sodality
has Nocturnal Adoration the night before First Friday in the
University Church; after the Temple Game, the seniors of
the different schools held a reception and dance for the
Alumni; the Junior Class has just presented its own fulllength, original, musical comedy. Through it all I think there
�334
TOMORROW'S FORDHA.l\1
is a spirit never surpassed by Fordham students. To this
spirit you have contributed by your interest, your financial
support and your diligent labors on behalf of football at Fordham. The new gym has helped, with its floor and stands
known to hundreds of thousands in this area through TV and
the basketball team. This year's sophomores have gone all
out to foster Fordham spirit among the freshmen and merit a
real accolade for their success. In downtown Fordham a
bowling league, the School of Education basketball team and
another fine Fordham glee club are signs of student activity.
Uptown intramural sports, und~r Father Brady's enthusiastic
leadership, are no longer just a' notation in the catalog: last
fall a league of 61 touch-football teams made intramural history, as did the previous spring's 79 teams in basketball and
81 in softball.
This internal ferment and vitality has its external counterpart. Representatives of 104 institutions of higher learning in
New York State came to Fordham last December for their
annual meeting. This month over 100 college and university
professors from 30 institutions in the metropolitan area held
a Day of Recollection in the University Church. The most
outstanding Conference of Mission Specialists in the nation is
held each year at Fordham. Business executives are going to
school at Rose Hill these days, 20 at a time: eight sessions of
three weeks each, six days a week, their classroom the lounge
in Bishops' Hall. The first course in aircraft procurement
has already terminated with solid satisfaction. Its participants enthusiastically entered into the spirit of the campus
from their freshmen week, when they attended a basketball
game wearing "beanies," to their senior dinner complete with
"honor cards." On Friday, March 5, in cooperation with the
American Arbitration Association, Fordham sponsored a
Conference on Industrial Peace in which national leaders of
·labor and management toqk part, including Mr. Mitchell,
Secretary of Labor.
These are some of the facets of the Fordham of 1954. It
takes thousands of newspaper column inches each year to tell
the story. The seed of a century ago was fecund. The root-
�TOl\IORROW'S FORDHAM
stock is fruitful and strong.
1964?
335
What of the future-what of
1964
THE GOAL AHEAD
The resources of a University are both spiritual and material-books and labs and playing fields; traditions and
moral values and teachers who believe in God. For more than
a century Fordham has emerged from each period of national
crisis richer in intellectual and moral and spiritual resources.
The last ten years are no exception. The material means
necessary to open up these resources for youth, however,
vitally concern us now.
Inflation has rocketed the costs of education out of proportion to normal income. Each year the tuition dollar covers a
bit less of the cost of educating each student. We are not
crying, "Wolf." We can survive. But our country's way of ·
life is too important to the world; and ideals are too important
to our country's way of life; and Fordham is too important
for these ideals, to be content with mere survival.
And so I want to tell you something about the Ten Year
Plan for Fordham. You have read about it in the press. The
brochure with the details is available for you now. Meanwhile, I want to speak to you briefly about what we are trying
to do and how we are trying to do it.
The Operating Budget
Last year it cost about $4,700,000 to operate the University.
We had a deficit of $22,000, which is modest enough as such
deficits go. But the deficit was small for the wrong reason.
It was small because of an item of some $265,000 of services
contributed by Jesuit teachers and administrators. We are
glad to contribute these services: indeed we are vowed to do
so. We are glad that they saved the life of the operating
budget last year. But they really belong on the capital budget.
These are the resources of Fordham that used to build our
buildings. We must build with them again. And that means
that we must have unrestricted funds to help balance our op-
�336
TOMORROW'S FORDHAl\1
erating budget, a need in meeting which every member of our
Fordham family should help.
To Do the Task Better
Balancing a budget, however, is merely survival. We must
do more than that to do our task well. Our current needs concern people first of all: our teachers and our students. No
amount of money could purchase the loyalty and devotion we
receive at Fordham from our lay teachers, but they must live
in the economy of 1954. Talented young teachers for the
future too must be encouraged and they must have tangible
proof that they are partners in'·a great enterprise, not hired
hands. You will see from the brochure that since 1939, even
with the latest adjustments, our teachers' salaries have increased only 50 to 60 per cent while the cost of living has
gone up 90 per cent. You will see also that the student aid
which Fordham gave to nearly 1400 students this past year
has been enhanced in value and in importance beyond our
financial compass.
People come first, but things are important, too, if we are
to do the task properly in which we are now engaged. Class·
rooms are cramped, libraries and laboratories inadequate.
We are holding back unwillingly on research which could
widen the frontiers of human knowledge.
To Do the Task Fully
As Fordham has a history so also it has a future and as
you and I have memory we must also have vision. There are
some 2,150,000 in America's colleges today. By 1964 a throng
near to 4,000,000 will be knocking at the gates. Let us not
think of these young men and women as mere statistics. They
are your sons, your grandsons, your nieces and nephews; they
are the future priests and lawyers and doctors and teachers,
the parents, the business leaders and, please God, the political
leaders of tomorrow. With no thought of expansionism, but
·simply to keep faith with the. University we have inherited and
which we must pass on, we are bound in conscience to think
in terms of long-range capital improvements.
Uptown at Rose Hill we have seventy-five acres of one of
�REV. LAURENCE J. McGINLEY, S.J.
President and Rector of Fordham University.
�Most Reverend John J. Wright,
first Bishop of Worcester, Mass., receives the honorary degree of Doctor
of Laws at a ceremony in the office
of Father McGinley. Bishop Wright
had been scheduled to receive the
degree at the 1953 Commencement
exercises, but a tornado struck his
diocese on Commencement eve,
forcing him to cancel the trip to
Fordham.
•'
�The celebration of the liturgy according to the SlavoByzantine (Russian) rite has become an annual feature of
the University's Summer Session. Co-sponsored by the Institute of Contemporary Russian Studies and the Russian
Center, the fourth annual "Russian Mass" in August drew
almost a thousand persons, religious and lay, to the terrace
of Keating Hall. The iconostasis, the icons and candelabra
used on the outdoor altar came to the Russian Center from
the ~ussian Colony in Shanghai.
�Still well pre:;erved after three hundred centuries,
skull of Egbert, a lad of the Stone Age, undergoes car
examination at the hands of Father J. Franklin Ew
director of rese!lrch services at Fordham, and Ieade1
the expedition which unearthed Egbert in 1947 J
Beirut, Leb!lnon.
Father Joseph Lynch is shown demonstrating the techniques of
~~v~~-~~c~~d __ .....?~
u~
the
t~;acing·
shock
seismograph
ofl
�TOMORROW'S FORDHAM
337
the most beautiful college campuses in the country. This is
the testimony not only of ourselves, who love each blade of
grass, but of all the many agents of TV and Hollywood who
have photographed those scenes this year. We have all these
lovely acres almost in the heart of New York City. We have
buildings, some old, some new, all of them, save temporary
housing erected in the last war, built to endure. The time for
temporary housing has come to an end. The sturdy walls of
Dealy need new interiors. A classroom building where we
can train our students in efficient comfort, a library wing to
house the books for which there will be no space next fall, a
student building where you and your sons can gather and
where food services may be sensibly and economically handled:
these needs are urgent.
For almost fifty years Fordham has made its impact on
downtown New York City: the Law School, the School of
Social Service, the Undergraduate and Graduate Schools of
Education, Business, General Studies. It is time that these
schools, which have meant so much for New York and for the
nation, get out of the stage of Mark Hopkins on one end of a
log. This, I repeat, is not expansionism. It is simply doing
the job well. For it we shall have to increase our operating
income at least $500,000 annually, and plan and build and pay
for, in the next ten years, capital growth in the sum of at
least $8,000,000.
The security of our country in the days ahead must begin in
the hearts of our own people. It must rest upon the virtue and
the vigilance of men and women who believe in God and who
know that every right has its corresponding moral obligation.
We are not building human calculating machines in Fordham
nor bulldozers. We are trying to form the person God intended each one to be: physically, intellectually, morally and
spiritually. There are many curricula in the different Fordham schools, but religion and philosophy to prepare for intelligent, personally moral, lives, are part of all of them.
These are the values we must labor to maintain and strengthen.
This is why we need help, you and I-that we may do our task
\Veil.
How shall we accomplish the task ahead? Let us begin with
this fact. There are a great many people in this city and in
�338
TOl\IORROW'S FORDHAl\1
this land who have at least this one strong bond with Fordham: devotion to those spiritual ideals for which Fordham
stands and which can alone keep America strong and free.
It is to these people we must appeal to help us. In other words
our Ten Year Plan for Fordham envisions an enlarged effort.
It means going outside of our own Fordham family to our
friends, to all the men and women and businesses and corporations and foundations which have a stake in the way of life to
which Fordham is so important.
ACHIEVING OUR GOAL
The plan you will read abo.ut in the brochure is the result of
a year's study in conjunction"with the deans and the administrators and the teachers of Fordham, the directors of the
Alumni Association, the President of the Alumni and the
former presidents, and many individual alumni and alumnae
beginning with His Eminence Cardinal Spellman.
In brief, the plan envisions a Fordham Council to be made
up of an outstanding graduate of each school, the dean of
each school and a dozen leaders from our alumni and friends.
The second part of this plan consists in publicity, initially
in the brochure outlining the Ten Year Plan, and then in
special brochures for each school and for each source of help;
publicity in the Alumni Magazine, the other alumni and
alumnae publications, in all the media by which we can make
our Fordham story known. Here I should pause to voice a
very sincere word of congratulations to the public press which
has been so alert to the importance and to the needs of higher
education. It has been generous and accurate in its informa·
tion and, to my knowledge, Fordham itself has never been
accorded clearer public voice than in months past.
The third part of the plan concerns the recruiting of willing
workers who will contact fellow alumni, alumnae and friends
of Fordham-all who can give and all who can work-some
giving more, some working more.
Finally the plan concerns those sources of help for the
greater Fordham of which each one of us dreams. Among
these sources are first of all annual giving on which we must
count for full and proper operating day-by-day. Alumni,
Alumnae, Friends of Fordham, these will obviously be asked.
�TOMORROW'S FORDHAM
339
So also will parents who more and more have come to know
that tuition does not cover the full cost of educating their
sons and daughters. Capital gifts in larger amounts and for
special purposes will have to be sought from wealthier friends
and alumni, from foundations, from corporations. Here again
due credit must be given to the vision and sense of social obligation growing in our corporations, more than seven hundred
of which have already set up foundations through which to
make gifts to education and philanthropy. Finally, from thousands and thousands, rich and poor, we must seek bequests.
This has been the strongest source of gifts to Fordham
throughout our history. It will always be. Indeed there can
be no more fitting memorial to the memory of a man or woman
than the youth of Fordham to whom their generosity has made
possible training for a richer and a better life.
THE TASK IS OURS
The students who throng to Fordham and other American
universities now and in the days ahead have in their hands the
future of our country's ways of life in a most critical period.
What we make of them will influence our generation and theirs
and all the world. We can do no less than the best.
It is important to understand that when we say "we," it
means all of us-students and future students, faculty and
administration, and the alumni and alumnae who are forever
Fordham. We all have our task, our sacrifice. I have already
made mine when I gave to this work my own right arm, the
one who for twenty years has trained the presidents of Fordham, the Founder and Editor of the Alumni Magazine, the
friend of Fordham graduates all over the world-Ed Gilleran.
Your diploma symbolizes your share in Fordham, the bond
of your attachment. In everything that Fordham does and is,
You have a stake. Your own personal stature as a Fordham
graduate increases with Fordham's service to its students,
their parents, the alumni and alumnae, the community in
which we live. Fordham is yours and will always be: The
Great Cosmopolitan University with a Conscience.
Let us not be diffident or discouraged about fund raising.
There is no secret to it. It simply means a lot of people who
believe in a cause, systematically asking a lot of people who
�340
TOMORROW'S FORDHAM
share that belief to give for it. Nearly 5,000 Fordham graduates and friends contributed well over $400,000 to Shrub Oak.
Our whole appeal is for less than some universities have received in a single year-less than some national campaigns
have achieved in a single dinner. I think the University
never really asked. We have to start to ask and ask hard
enough.
I think one other point should encourage us, also, and that
is that Fordham is here in New York City. That means it
has an incomparable opportunity to serve. It also has an
incomparable impact on this metropolitan area where 20,000
of our graduates live and sl:utre community responsibilities.
It therefore has an incompara6le right to seek the help of this
city and this metropolis. Other universities, some far off,
have set up offices in New York City to solicit funds. New
York has a big heart and it has been generous. It is time
that New York think of the home folks too.
Ultimately, of course, unless God builds the house, we labor
in vain. We shall succeed if we believe enough in Fordham
to tell her story from our hearts and enough to get down on
our knees to ask God's blessing on all of us as we work our
way together.
�Greater Georgetown Development
Campai~
"A Message /rom Georgetown's President" is reprinted from Today and
Tomorrow, the fund-campaign brochure; Father Edward B. Bunn's
Address at the Invitation Dinner was delivered ex tempore and taperecorded.
A 1\IESSAGE FROl\1 GEORGETOWN'S PRESIDENT
Like those who preceded us, the present generation of
Georgetown alumni, faculty, students, and friends must regard
Georgetown's historical tradition and record of achievement as
an inherited trust. Down through the years, since 1789, had
any generation of our predecessors been content to rest upon
the laurels of the past, the progress of the University would
have been interrupted and her service to mankind curtailed.
With education and scientific research on the march, Georgetown today can ill afford to continue along the even tenor of
her way. She must forge ahead if she is to add new lustre to
her escutcheon and prove worthy of her mission. To accomplish this, she must become an even finer Georgetown. She
needs a broadening of opportunity for her students and an
improvement of facilities and tools for her faculty.
Through the years, buildings not only depreciate but often
become inadequate or obsolete. The field of man's quest for
knowledge is ever broadening and requires the addition of
new academic courses or the modification of existing ones.
Scientific research and discoveries are not only opening up
horizons for the student but are requiring new laboratories
and equipment. Professors' salaries have not kept pace with
increased living costs. Student tuition has been increased
somewhat but has not kept pace with increased costs; endowments have become less productive. These are some of the
urgent problems that stand in the way of a finer Georgetown.
To solve them, we carefully made plans to establish the
Greater Georgetown Fund. This is designed to provide opportunities for supporting Georgetown through both an annual
giving program and a long-range development of capital imProvements.
The University is giving its all through a devoted and
�342
THE GREATER GEORGETOVf.N
capable faculty combined with the calibre of its educational
system. But we cannot bring the program to a successful
fruition without the physical, moral, and financial participation of everyone who has an appreciation of Georgetown and
its achievements in the past 164 years.
THE ADDRESS AT THE INITIATION DINNER,
OCT. 24, 1953MR. CHAIRMAN: There are no distinguished guests here,
because you are all our alumni,and devoted friends of Georgetown. I should, however, mention particularly the President's
Council, because I spent a full day today going over the details
of the University with them and seeking their expert advicean important factor. When I look around here and see the
executives and faculty of the University and feel what they
contribute by their wholehearted support, by their devotion,
by their complete consecration to the work, I realize that any
efforts I make for the University can be successful and fruitful
only to the extent that I have their cooperation. I also take
this occasion to thank the alumni who have oeen so cooperative
through the years. They have initiated things: they have,
for example, contributed to the erection of the hospital; and
we know it is a great hospital-we could not erect it today for
seven million dollars. They initiated the Alumni Gymnasium
Drive and they worked tirelessly to accomplish what has been
done. So it is a debt of gratitude I pay, a debt of gratitude to
the faculty, a debt of gratitude to the alumni.
Father Foley wants me to speak on "Georgetown Today and
Georgetown Tomorrow." That sounds somewhat formal. I
propose rather to speak to you informally, to tell you as sincerely and as simply as I can, just what we are hoping to
accomplish for Georgetown in our Development Campaign.
Behind all my motivation there is a very personal thing.
I was only eighteen months old when my mother became a
• widow at the age of twenty-four. Through my early years I
wanted one thing and that was a college education. I do not
know where I got the desire, the aspiration, except that mY
grandfather was a college graduate; and I wanted particularlY
to go to one school, a Jesuit School in Baltimore, Loyola Col-
�THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
343
lege. Going to a school like Georgetown was simply beyond
possibility.
Not Half, but All
I remember taking a scholarship examination for Loyola
High School. I do not think I was first in the examination but
we all had to go in and see the President. I went in and he
said to me, "You are coming to Loyola." I was only a little
lad of twelve at the time. The opportunity was there; and I
have always believed-even if it was impossible to crystallize
the fact in those days-in America as a land of opportunities.
They told us in first year high that if we took an examination at the end of the summer we could go into third year;
and I remember taking that seriously. I went to the Prefect
of Studies and said, "I want to take that examination."
He looked at me in bewilderment and said, "Who told you
about it?"
"My teacher," I answered. "I will take the examination."
He added, "You must take it in second year Greek, in second
year Latin, and in second year Mathematics."
"All right, I will take it at the end of the summer."
I did and went into the third year. At the end of the fourth
year they told me, "You have earned a scholarship to the
College."
Throughout those years there was one dominant thought in
my mind: this is the opportunity of a lifetime. Of course,
every boy in those days dreamed of making a lot of money. I
was going to be a millionaire. Dreams do not hurt anyone-so long as they do not stop there! And I said to myself, "When
I get out and make money, one half is going to Loyola College." When college days came to an end I decided suddenly! had half a dozen professions· in mind-1 decided to become a
Jesuit. And in the providence of God I was appointed President of Loyola in 1938; and the thought came back to me,
"one half to Loyola College." It was not half, it was all; I
cannot do anything but all-in anything. And that is the
idea I have about the alumni of a college. They want to give
back everything they can. Why? To give other boys an opportunity.
I am interested in one thing-giving boys opportunitydeveloping talent, wherever I see it, ingenuity wherever I see
�344
THE GREATER (.;EORGETOWN
it, good will, basic earnestness wherever I see them. Give the
young an opportunity. We do not make human resourcesGod makes human resources. Ours is the privilege of being
able to cooperate with the Creator in developing-in co-creating, so to speak-these individuals who will be the great men
of the future. And of course today the key to our problem
lies in human resources. Here in America we do not consider
numbers so much as the development of individuals. It is
talent, it is genius that will enable us to do much more than
could be done with mere numbers. You can put numbers in
a line and they can all be shot down. But genius invents
things and does things. Genius conceives various ways of
meeting new situations. Foi'··instance, in our School of Languages and Linguistics-! see Dr. Dostert there-we have a
mechanical translator that will translate Russian into English. That is what is being done at the School of Languages
and Linguistics. And when I see what they do in the Medical
School-how they are able to keep a person alive with an
artificial kidney, how they are able to put into people's hearts
plastic valves and keep them alive, how they are able to produce drugs which will keep people from becoming crippled and
helpless. When I see what is done in all the other schools, then
I see the University fulfilling its function in the development
of qualitative men. For that is what we are interested in,
qualitative men. Let me say at this point that my experience
with the Georgetown alumni convinces me that we have qualitative men. You could have quantity easily; but, gentlemen,
quality requires a tradition that goes back many, many years.
And that is what we have at Georgetown.
Tuition in Twenty Installments
When I came here five years ago, I expected to bow out of
Georgetown after a few years. I was Director of Studies of
the Maryland Province and made a few recommendations
about two schools, the Nursing School and the reorganization
of the Dental School. I made the recommendations because
usually recommendations 'are carried out by other people. If
you thought that you would have to carry out the recommendations yourself, you might not make them. I was sent here
to carry out my own recommendations. It happened last
1
·~.
�REV. EDWARD B. BUNN, SJ.
President and Rector of Georgetown University
�Georgetown University, justly proud of its vari~d accomplishments in the field of science, plans to integrate physics
and biology in a new Science Building (above) at a cost of
$1,350,000, thus releasing additional space for expansion in
chemistry. The $2,300,000 library (below) will make readily
accessible to the students the 250,000 volumes now overstacked into a wing and attic of the Healy Building with
a normal capacity for only 100,000 volumes.
�According to the N ational Catholic Education
Association, by 196~ twice
as many students will
clamor for higher education than are now enrolled.
To meet this
need the faculty envisions the Georgetown
of the future. The architect's model shows buildings now erected and
those to be constructed.
The new structures are
indicated with flag-likE
symbols. At the top is
the Medical Center wiU
proposed extensions to thE
riew hospital and schooh
of dentistry and medicine
and planned erections oJ
medical and dental dormi·
tories, Nurse's Dormitorl
and residence for Gradu
ate Nurses, and a conven
for the hospital Sisters. l1
the lower right, near _th,
main campus and over
looking the Potomac, ar'
the new Dining Hall, Li
brary, Science, Foreig1
Service and G r a d u a t
School Buildings.
�Healy with its foreign service dassrooms and dormitories
Copley (left), a dormitory building for upper-classmen, and the
White-Gravenor administration and dassroom building
�THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
345
October 7 when I was called on to go in as Pvesident of
Georgetown University on October 10-three days' notice.
Jesuit regimentation!
Just a week ago I attended a reunion of the 1913 class of the
Law School. There were 250 men graduated in that class in
1913, among them Chief Judge Laws, Judge Pine and Judge
Bastian. We had a wonderful evening, about forty of us, a
real old-time dinner, and I felt they were more or less from
my generation. And I was surprised to learn later from Dean
Fagan-the Dean is here tonight, one of those consecrated
individuals, dedicated to a great cause-that those lawyers, at
least a great many of them, had paid their tuition in twenty
installments, although the tuition at the time was one hundred
dollars.
Now that is a Jesuit ideal also. After all, gentlemen, we
are in this business to educate human beings. Jesuits were
formerly not allowed to take tuition. We had to have a dispensation from Rome to take tuition. Ignatius conceived our
colleges as all being free schools. We were to put ourselves
entirely and completely into the work of training great people;
and he did not want anything but greatness. That was
Ignatius. Ignatius never thought in terms of anything but
the best. But in this country we could not run schools without tuition, so we have a dispensation; but the spirit of the
free school still rings in the mind and heart of every Jesuit.
All we want is to do an excellent job in the education of boys.
Today the tuition and fees collected in universities no longer
pay expenses. That is a fact. You could cut down to the
bone, but if you did you would destroy the university. You
would not develop. How was it possible to develop the Foreign Service School and the School of Languages and Linguistics here at Georgetown? We stand first in those branches,
you know. Think of the great men in the past, starting a
medical school and a law school and a hospital on a shoe
string! They do not do things that way these days. That was
America, that was the land of opportunity; and that was what
they did. Today the five Catholic medical schools in this
country are Jesuit medical schools.
St. Ignatius never wanted anything inferior. He would
never be satisfied with an inferior graduate school, an inferior
�346
THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
law school, an inferior medical school. It is not worth it,
gentlemen; it is not worth giving your life for something
second rate. Resign. Close it. Unless you can do the best
possible job, unless you can do a high type thing, it is not
worthwhile. It is not worth. a man's life to produce something
mediocre. It is not a question of getting food and drink and
having a night's sleep. You can get that other ways. We are
in education for one thing: the best, and to have the best you
need shoulder-to-shoulder work of everybody who is interested.
The whole idea today is using human resources for international understanding-and that ·is what we strive to achieve.
You can achieve international understanding by the development of men's minds. There is nothing so difficult as dealing
with ignorance, narrowness, bigotry. I do not think anything
is so heartrending as an apparently competent human individual who is filled with prejudices. Now liberal education
can change that. The development of the mind, will, emotions,
and imagination can remove bigotry and prejudice, and that
is the only way the world will ever get together. We are
striving to do that in a perfect way in every one of our schools:
community service, national service, international service.
We have fifty foreign countries represented in our schools.
We have students from every State in the Union. We are
national and international.
Missed Opportunity
We have the inspiration of John Carroll-a truly great man,
cousin of Charles Carroll who signed the Declaration of Independence. John Carroll showed farsightedness in the way
he planned things, and especially in conceiving the idea of,
and planning, Georgetown University. We have advanced
through struggle-we have never missed an opportunity to
my knowledge, except one. The opportunity we have missed
has been bringing to the attention of our friends in a sys.tematic way just what is being done here at Georgetown, and
what Georgetown needs. We are a little late in that, but not
too late, I hope.
Since 1945 by our efforts and through the help of devoted
alumni we have put eight and a half million dollars into this
plant. We see what has been done here but somehow-! do
�THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
347
not know why-we all feel that much remains to be done, and
somehow or other each one feels he has to do it alone. But,
then, minds open and vision expands to include all our friends
and all our alumni. In the early days there were friends. I
remember in the early days at Loyola how George Jenkins
gave a science building and a library. We have been fortunate that way in some sections of the country in having benefactors who gave on their own initiative. People today do not
realize the needs-the world has become too complex, too intricate, too involved. We must bring it to their attention. We
have to have an organized, systematic program. We have
tried to produce one. Fathey Foley has worked tirelessly at it.
Here is the brochure that states the case. It is excellently
done, and I am sure that each one of you will read every
line of it because it makes interesting reading. And I am not
going to repeat what it contains, except a paragraph at the
beginning, which is an ideal:
Make no little plans: they have no magic to stir men's blood and
probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim
high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical plan once
recorded will never die, but long after we are gone will be a living
thing asserting itself with ever growing insistency.
That is our aim. We are not running a drive. This is a
normal function of the University. We have put our heads
together, the directors of Georgetown, with our alumni and
friends, and we have worked this thing out meticulously. It
is not a thing of supererogation. It is a necessary part of
University planning. You cannot run a university these days
without such planning. And I do not feel that we are mendicants. Rather we are giving people an opportunity to give
where they know it will count for what we are seeking most
today, national and international understanding. I know that
your hearts will respond with great intensity to the project
and to the ideal.
The important thing is that information should reach the
proper people. We spent a long day today, the Council and
myself, going over the affairs of the University. We shall
spend many another doing the same thing, because we are
determined that we will use every available resource to create
the greater Georgetown. That is the important thing. Not
bigger in size necessarily-we are not interested in size. We
�348
THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
have a diversity of schools. Our college is limited in the
number that it accepts; so, too, is our Foreign Service School,
our Medical and Dental Schools, our Institute of Languages
and Linguistics, our Law School, our School of Nursing. We
are not looking for numbers, but we must have development.
We want to use the resources we now have for further effectiveness: that is the important thing in the development
program.
New Buildings to Save Money
We are not looking for buildj,ngs for building's sake. We
are looking for buildings onlybecause they are necessary; and
I tell you this, gentlemen, not merely two men or three men
say they are necessary. We have had experts in here to determine whether they are necessary. We got a grant from the
Ford Foundation to make a business management survey.
The advice received was to put as much money as possible into
the educational program in order to save money. They say
buildings are absolutely necessary to save money. We need a
dining hall to save money.; we need a library to save money;
we need a science building to save money. That sounds odd
because usually an additional building will increase your maintenance costs. But in our case there are certain buildings that
are so necessary that we need them to save money. That is
the actual situation.
This plan, gentlemen, has required a great deal of study.
Ours is no superficial conclusion. We have gone into it in
every detail, every ramification of it, and this plan is the outcome, the plan for the Georgetown of tomorrow. The Georgetown of yesterday was a great Georgetown, and we can never
achieve-! know I shall not and I feel my successors will notwhat the great men in the past have achieved so heroically
by dint of great sacrifice. We do not advertise. Ignatius
never wanted us to advertise what went on. All he asked of
us was all we have to give. ,That is what we Jesuits do when
we pronounce our First Vows and that is what we do when we
pronounce our Last Vows. To give our all, that was his idea.
He took it for granted. That is what "the greater glory of
God" means in his conception, and only that-his two great
points, liberality and generosity of a human heart and human
�THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
349
industry. He was a man of few words but he picked out
Xavier. We know what Xavier became and what he did for
the East.
A Letter from the Archbishop
I would like to close, gentlemen, with a letter from his Excellency, the Archbishop of Washington. He has written a
beautiful letter in relation to our Georgetown Development
Campaign. He is, of course, the Chancellor of Catholic University and he said to me, "Look, we take up a collection all
through the country to meet the deficits. How do you people
meet the deficits?"
I said, "I am trying to· find that out myself, your Excellency." So he sent the following letter:
My dear Father Bunn:
With very great interest I have learned of the inauguration
of the development campaign to realize the long-cherished
plans for a "Greater Georgetown." This is, I understand, not
a mere drive for added funds, however necessary, but a long
term plan, looking toward increased effectiveness of Georgetown University in the future, in every School and Department, for the fuller achievement of Georgetown's ideals and
purposes.
It is a source of considerable pleasure to me, as Archbishop
of Washington, by favor of the Holy See, to complement and
second your high purposes with sincere, prayerful good wishes
for their complete success, to the glory of God and the good
of souls. Particularly do I hope most fervently that the celebration of your hundred and seventy-fifth anniversary, in
1964, which I understand is set as a timely goal, may witness
the accomplishment of the labors on which you embark today.
Georgetown University has a long and honorable history
of a hundred and sixty-four years, since her founding in 1789
by the illustrious John Carroll, as a tiny "academy on the
banks of the Potowmack." Well and faithfully has she realized the hopes and aspirations of the first Archbishop of
Baltimore--the predecessor of every Bishop in the United
States, and more particularly of the Archbishops of Baltimore
and of Washington. For on this little Academy, John Carroll
said, rested all his hopes for the permanency and success of
our holy religion in the United States. And from the halls of
�350
THE GREATER GEORGETOWN
Georgetown, through the years, have come forth eminent
servants of the Church and of the State. One has but to recall
the names of William Gaston, the first student; of the beloved
James Ryder Randall, of the distinguished Edward Douglass
White, to know that the rosters of alumni are studded with
names enshrined in the hearts of all loyal Americans.
"Alma Mater of all Catholic colleges in the United States"
is the title beautifully and justly bestowed on Georgetown
University by the late Pope Pius XI, of happy memory,-an
encomium repeated by the present Holy Father, Pius XII.
Georgetown has lived that title.. not merely by reason of her
antiquity-her life co-terminous with the life of the nationbut more so, as the nurturing mother of men who have given
impetus and direction to the advance of Catholic education
throughout continental United States, and in not a few of our
sister countries as well.
But the eyes of the men of Gorgetown today are not content
to rest on heights achieved, to look back with complacency on
paths already trod. With the same forward-looking vision
that characterized John Carroll-and before him, the saintly
Founder of the Society of Jesus, Ignatius of Loyola, in whose
school Carroll himself was trained-the Jesuit Fathers of
Georgetown today look ahead to the peaks still to be won.
Georgetown's work is far from done--nor ever will be done,
while there yet remain youth to be trained in the ways of God,
reared to the service of God and of neighbor. The achievements of yesterday are but the vantage-points to see, and the
stepping stones to meet the challenges of tomorrow. And that
those challenges will be severe and critical the temper of our
times is ample evidence. To meet the needs of today, and of
tomorrow, Georgetown University must prepare herself.
I rejoice to know that a beginning is shortly to be made in
the erection of a new School of Nursing, for the training of
more and more young women in the Christlike works of mercy.
• I know that a Law Center is in contemplation, for the development of more and more proponents of law in conformity
with Divine and natural principles. I have learned of some
of your other plans-for the building of a School of Foreign
Service, for a Graduate School, for a Science Building and a
Library. And so of the other Schools and Departments of the
�THE GREATER GEORGETOvv.N
351
University-all are included in the overall development of the
Greater Georgetown.
Yet a University is not merely a campus, however expansive, not a set of buildings, however stately. The soul and life
of a University is in its alert and capable faculty, training and
guiding the souls of eager youth for careers in time and in
eternity. Too often, alas, in many marts of learning "the
hungry sheep look up and are not fed." May it never be said
of Georgetown that she has made the error of building gilded
palaces of ignorance. Rather may she continue, as the fabled
pelican, to feed from her mothering breast the fledglings entrusted to her for nurturing.
For this reason I am particularly interested in the plans
having to do with the founding of professorships, of chairs
and fellowships, to insure a continuing source of talented and
dedicated professors; and the development of funds to afford
needy but worthy students assistance in attaining the education their circumstances might otherwise forbid. For thus
will be insured in perpetuity men to carry on the traditions of
Georgetown in sound research and solid teaching ; thence also
will continue to come from Georgetown men to follow in the
footsteps of their forebears, devoted sons of Holy Mother
Church, staunch defenders of our American democratic principles. Thus may Georgetown University continue into the
future, "as a tree that is planted by the waters, that spreads
out its roots towards moisture; and it shall not fear when the
heat cometh. And the leaf thereof shall be green, and in the
time of drought it shall not be solicitous, neither shall it cease
at any time to bring forth fruit."
And so, my dear Father Bunn, as you begin the long and
arduous task of building the Greater Georgetown, I extend to
you, and to your associates, clerical and lay, at Georgetown,
and to all who engage and assist in this worthy undertaking my
most hearty greetings and good wishes, and a prayer for
God's abundant blessing on your endeavors.
With a paternal blessing,
Devotedly yours in Christ,
PATRICK A. O'BOYLE,
Archbishop of Washington
October 15, 1953
�Jesuit education in Buffalo, begun in
1855 with a small Latin class and
today thriving with high school and
college, crowns a century's apostolate
among the city's devout Catholics.
A History of Canisius High Schoor
JAMES J. HENNESEY, S.J.
On August 29, 1948, a strange procession wound its way
through the halls of Buffalo's magnificent Consistory building. A procession of Catholic clergymen escorted the Most
Reverend John F. O'Hara, C.S.C., as he passed from the
huge auditorium, richly decorated with Masonic emblems and
quotations, across the foyer and into a recently added bright
new classroom building. The occasion? August . 29, 1948,
marked the end of one era-a full century of Jesuit growth
in the City of Buffalo-and the beginning of another: the
inauguration and blessing of the new Canisius High School.
Jesuit Beginnings in Buffalo
For a new school, Canisius has a long history. Its roots go
back to the year 1848, when two Fathers from the old New
York and Canada Mission came to Buffalo at the invitation
of the Right Reverend John Timon, C.M., first Bishop of the
diocese. The Bishop was plagued with that perennial problem
of the early Church in the United States, trustee trouble.
Difficulties had arisen in the Church of St. Louis on Main
Street and Bishop Timon hoped that the Jesuit Fathers might
be able to reconcile the disaffected parishioners. He hoped,
too, that once the rebellious parish had been restored to ec• 1 This history is based on the house archives, dating from 1848, and
"preserved at Canisius High School." Permission to make use of these
records was graciously given by Father Gerald A. Quinn, present
rector of Canisius High School. The author also acknowledges his
indebtedness to the thesis, The History of Canisius High School, presented to the· Graduate School of Canisius College in 1948 by Nicholas
H. Kessler.
�CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
353
clesiastical discipline, the Jesuits might settle down to educational work in the city. 2
The Residence at St. Michael's
The pioneers of what came to be known as the Buffalo
Mission were Father Lucas Caveng and Father Bernard
Fritsch. These Fathers were successful in effecting a temporary solution with the trustees of St. Louis', but renewed
difficulties continued until 1855, when the parish finally submitted to the Bishop. Meanwhile, Father Fritsch, Father
Joseph Fruzzini and Father William Kettner had taken up
residence in the suburban village of Williamsville, where they
did parochial work for several years. In 1851 Father Caveng
was named pastor of St. Louis', but, when the people refused
to accept him, plans were made to care for the German element of the old parish in a new Church, to be dedicated to St.
Michael the Archangel. On August 20, 1851, Bishop Timon
laid the cornerstone of the new Church on Washington Street,
at a site which had originally been selected for the Cathedral
of the diocese. St. Michael's Church was opened on January
1, 1852, and not long after the Fathers from Williamsville
moved in to make up the first Jesuit community in the City
of Buffalo.
The first few years of the new residence were quiet ones.
The Fathers attended to the Church at St. Michael's and cared
for several missions in the now-forgotten hamlets of Elysville, North Bush and Buffalo Plains. Once a month a Father
journeyed across Lake Erie to a mission station at Black
Creek, Ontario. In 1858 a farm was purchased, on what was
then the outskirts of the city, with the idea in mind to build a
college and a church on the land. The intended college never
did get past the planning stage and part of the property had
to be sold at a loss, but the new Church of St. Ann's proved
-
2 The controversy between Bishop Timon asd the trustees of St. Louis'
Church is treated in the standard histories of the Church in the United
States. Bishop Timon had inherited the controversy along with his
diocese at its foundation in 1847. An interesting account of the controVersy will be found in the small volume Brooksiana (Catholic Publishing
Rouse, N.Y., 1870). See especially p. 45 ff. where contemporary newsPaper articles dealing with the dispute and giving statements by Bishop
Hughes of New York and the rebellious trustees are given.
�354
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
to be a success. Father Bernard Fritsch was its first pastor.
The year 1863 saw a new superior in charge of the Jesuits
in Buffalo, Father Joseph Durthaller. 3 His seven year tenure
was one of marked activity. Immediate plans were made for
a new church on Washington Street. The foundations for the
edifice were begun on April 20, 1864, and within three years
the building was ready for use. This is the present St.
Michael's Church.
It had been the hope of Bishop Timon that the Jesuits would
undertake the work of higher education in Buffalo. Although
no permanent school was opened until 1870, there were definite
moves made in that directioii"in the 1850's. Eight students
attended Latin classes at St. Michael's in 1855. Two years
later, two young men studied philosophy under the tutelage
of Father Charles J annsen and in that same year, 1857,
Reverend Father Hus, superior of the mission, accompanied
by Father Larkin, the former rector of St. Francis Xavier,
New York, made several visits to discuss the question of a
college with Bishop Timon. We have already seen that plans
were made in 1858 for a college to be attached to the Church
at St. Ann's. However, all of these plans failed to materialize,
and the first chapter of Jesuit history passed without the
erection of the much desired educational facilities. In connection with the private tutoring courses offered fr.om time
to time at St. Michael's, we might mention the name of one
of Father Durthaller's Latin students in the 1860's. This was
Nelson H. Baker, who was later to become famous as the
Right Reverend Monsignor Baker, Vicar General of the
Diocese of Buffalo and founder of the Basilica of Our Lady
of Victory and the institutions at Lackawanna which bear his
name.
Father Durthaller was to be the last superior of the New
York and Canada Jesuits in Buffalo. On September 17, 1868,
Father Peter Spicher, a representative of the German ProFather Joseph Durthaller .' (1819-1885) was an Alsatian by birth.
In America he labored as an Indian missionary, professor at St. Mary's,
Montreal, and superior at Buffalo, Xavier and the German Church of
St. Joseph's, New York City. Besides building the new St. Michael's
Church, he was responsible for the construction of the school building
at St. Francis Xavier's. For further geographical data, see wooosrocK
LETTERS XIV, p. 287 if.; XV, p. 65 ii. and XLVIII, p. 330 fi,
3
�CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
355
vincial, Father George Roder, arrived to begin negotiations
for the transfer of the mission to his province. Father Spicher
concluded his arrangements with Reverend Father James
Perron, Superior General of the New York and Canada Mission, on January 23, 1869, and in the following May Father
General Beckx approved the transfer. St. Michael's and St.
Ann's were now the care of the North American Mission of
the Province of Germany. Father Spicher was named first
superior of the new mission and took up residence at St.
Mary's, Toledo. Five Fathers and three Brothers came in
the first contingent to replace the New York Fathers although two of the latter remained for a time as superiors of
the two Buffalo houses, Father Durthaller at St. Michael's
and Father Blettner at St. Ann's. In speaking of the change,
the diarist of the time remarks that the new mission superior
took care that all the customs of the German Province be
introduced into the newly-acquired houses, with the result that
the new arrivals were able "to attack the tasks committed
to them Germanico more, bono animo et magno corde."
The German Fathers'
With the departure of Father Durthaller on July 26, 1870,
twenty-two years of work by missioners from New York and
Canada came to an end. From the small beginnings at Williamsville had grown two large churches, St. Michael's and
St. Ann's, each with its own parish school, and three smaller
churches. The Fathers were also regular chaplains at the
Poorhouse and at St. Vincent's Hospital. There was as yet
no college. That was to be the work of the German Fathers.
Foundation of Canisius College
In 1870 the residence at St. Ann's was separated from St.
Michael's. In the same year, Father William Becker came to
4The transfer of the Buffalo Mission to the German Province is
treated in Father Garraghan's book, The Jesuits in the Middle United
States, I, pp. 583-7 and in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS, XLVIII, pp. 332 and
335,
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CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
America as second superior of the mission. 5 The community
at St. Michael's now numbered thirteen. The shortage of
men which had plagued the New York Fathers was at an
end, and, in September, 1870, a school was opened in a small
building adjacent to the. residence on Washington Street.
The first president of the new school was Father Ernest
Reiter. When he was assigned to Erie, Pa. in the course of
the year 1870, Reverend Father Becker combined the position
with his own and so became the second president. By the
end of the first school year, some fifty boys had been enrolled in the new school, dedicated to Blessed Peter Canisius.
Canisius College and Canisius ·High School had been founded.
Growth of the College
The years 1870-1912 saw the development of the tiny Latin
School on Washington Street into a full-fledged college and
high school. For the most part, the German Fathers, aided
by a few laymen, did all the teaching, although it seems to
have been customary in the early days for the New York
Jesuits to supply an occasional scholastic to help out. In
1870 we find mention of "scholasticus unus ex missione
Neo-Eboracensi in schola Latina occupatus." This was Mr.
Anthony Gerhard, who taught the commercial class .. A man
who seems to have established a reputation as a strict disciplinarian, Father Henry Knappmeyer, taught the Latin class.
The old diaries note that Mr. Gerhard left for New York
immediately after the commencement exercises in June, 1871.
He was succeeded in Buffalo by another scholastic from the
New York and Canada Mission, Mr. Benedict Guldner, who
later was well known for his work as a priest on the Woodstock faculty and in Philadelphia.
Father William Becker continued as president of Canisius
6 Father William Becker served as mission superior and president
• of Canisius for two years, retu'rning to Germany in 1872. He later returned to America and served in various houses of the Buffalo Mission
until his death at St. Ann's, Buffalo, January 22, 1899. An interesting
contrast between the extremely kindly Father Becker and his more
stern successor Father Henry Behrens is drawn by Sr. M. Liguori Mason,
O.S.F., in the book, Mother Magdalen Daemen and Her Congregation,
(Stella Niagara, N.Y., 1935). See especially p. 314 ff.
�CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
357
until December, 1872, when he was succeeded by Father Henry
Behrens, an indefatigable worker who is perhaps the bestremembered of the early German Fathers. Father Behrens
also became superior of the mission at this time. 6 It was
under his regime that the new college developed into a fully
organized school.
Accommodations in the beginning had left much to be desired. Until Christmas, 1870, the boarding students lodged
with various families in the city. Later they lived, with one
of the Fathers as Prefect, in a house on Ellicott Street and in
one on Goodell Street. By September, 1871, some had to be
housed in the Fathers' residence. The school was growing
and more extensive accommodations were imperative.
In the spring of 1872, the cornerstone of the main building
of a new college on Washington Street was laid by the Right
Reverend Stephen V. Ryan, Bishop of Buffalo, and in November of that same year the central portion was completed.
The north and south wings, the auditorium, chapel and infirmary were added in later years. To make way for these
later additions, the old church was torn down in 1881. A
further addition had been made in 1875 when a large property about two miles from the College was purchased. This
property, known as the Villa, provided recreational facilities
for both students and faculty.
While the physical plant was being expanded, developments
were also taking place along organizational lines. In the
year 1883, the High School was incorporated by the State of
New York as the Academic Department of Canisius College.
6 Father Henry Behrens (1815-1895) might well be the subject of
a full-length biography. He served as superior of a band of exiled
Jesuits coming to America in 1848, then returned to Germany and was
successively rector and master of novices at Friedrichsburg, Westphalia, instructor of tertians at Paderborn, and superior of Ours engaged as hospital personnel in the Franco-Prussian War. For his
services to the Fatherland he was awarded the Iron Cross, rode in
Bismarck's triumphal procession into Berlin and, a few weeks later,
was sent into exile with his fellow Jesuits. Returning to America, he
served in various capacities in the Buffalo Mission, of which he was
twice superior (1872-6 and 1886-92). At his death in 1895, Bishop Ryan
of Buffalo said of Father Behrens: "I have a saint in my diocese and
his name is Father Behrens." Accounts of the life of Father Behrens
Will be found in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS, XXV, pp. 150-51 and p. 385 ff.
�358
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
Nine years later, in 1894, the commercial course was discontinued and the classical course, which had been six years,
was lengthened to eight full years, four of high school and
four of college. The stage was set for the eventual division
of the old-style collegium into two separate schools. It might
be interesting to note in passing that during the 1890's
Canisius took on the semblance of a military school. A school
uniform was prescribed and the student body was marshalled
into a band and five companies of cadets. This practice
seems to have been discontinued about the turn of the century.
Moving now into the tweptieth century, we find that by
1907 there were 430 students"in the college and high school.
Of these, 110 were boarders, since Canisius had been from
the beginning a boarding and day school. As it was no
longer possible to house such a large student body at the
downtown school, 50 of the academic students attended classes
at the Villa. Then, at the end of the scholastic year 19071908, there appears the following notation in the history
of the house: "Exit convictus." Nothing more, nothing lessthe boarding department had been closed down. This decision had been made the previous January 20 at a meeting
of the Board of Trustees convoked by Reverend Father Joseph
Hanselman, the Provincial.
Transfer of the College
-·
The departure of the boarders had not solved the housing
problem completely. By September, 1912, there were 379
students in the High School and 73 in the College. The decision was made to effect a final separation of the two schools
and on January 6, 1913, seven of Ours moved to new quarters
at the old Villa property on Main Street. A new College
building at Main and Jefferson had been dedicated on De·
cember 30, 1912. The Washington Street buildings were
turned over to the exclusive use of the High School, although
• both communities continued to be under the same superior
until 1919, when Father Robert Johnson became the first
rector of the separate high school community.
The years from 1912 to 1944 saw the gradual development
of what had once been proudly called the unicum collegium
Germanicum in Statibus Frederatis into an integral part of
�CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
359
the American Jesuit educational system. On September 1,
1907, the Buffalo Mission of the German Province had ceased
to exist and, after a lapse of thirty-eight years, the American
half of the old New York and Canada Mission, now joined
with Maryland as the Maryland-New York Province, resumed
control. 7
The Last Years on Washington Street
Finances have always been a problem in Buffalo. Soon
after the building of St. Michael's Church, we find mention
of a large debt pressing down on the shoulders of the
Fathers. In 1868 Father Spicher had hesitated in his negotiations with Father Perron because of the poor financial condition of the mission. In 1919 still another financial crisis
had to be weathered and that condition has continued, to
some extent, through the years. The enrollment in the High
School after its separation from the College hovered around
the 400-500 mark, and, although there were 736 students in
1922, the number had dropped to 450 in 1939. Succeeding
years showed a slow increase, so that there were 530 students
in 1942 and over 600 the following year.
By the middle 1940's, superiors had begun to give serious
consideration to the project of moving the High School from
its old location on Washington Street to a more favorable
site. The buildings of the old school were deteriorating and
the neighborhood had become rather run-down. Protracted
negotiations carried on by Father James J. Redmond, Rector
from 1942-1948, finally resulted in the purchase of the former
Masonic Consistory on Delaware Avenue from the City of
Buffalo. As might be expected, there was considerable opposition to our plans, but a bid of $95,000 was finally accepted
by the City Council on May 14, 1944.
The Consistory building, once the grandiose headquarters of
the Freemasons of Buffalo, was at that time occupied by
students connected with a wartime army program at Canisius
College. Soon after the purchase, renovations were begun and
1 The decree dissolving the German Mission in North America and a
letter written on that occasion to the members of the Mission by Very
Reverend Father Wernz will be found in the Acta Romana (1906-1910),
pp. 94-99.
�360
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
plans made to house the new freshman class at the Delaware
Avenue property. From 1944 to 1948, the High School was
conducted in two divisions: the upper school remaining at
Washington Street, and the first two years being taught at
the Delaware property. During this period the Jesuits teaching at the uptown school commuted to and from classes each
day.
Canisius on Delaware
The new Canisius High School is situated on Delaware
Avenue, for many years the outstanding residential street in
Buffalo. The sides of this av~nue are lined with twin rows
of towering elm trees shading the gracious mansions of a
bygone era. A few blocks to the south of our school are situated the Cathedral and episcopal residence of the bishop of
Buffalo. The property occupied by the High School has nearly
a full block fronting on Delaware Avenue. Facing the street
is the former Rand Mansion, and attached to it, the former
Masonic Consistory and the new school wing. These three
structures now form three wings of one large building. A
second structure, the former Milburn Mansion, houses most
of the Jesuit faculty. In all, the entire campus, including a
large lawn and a blacktopped playing area, covers approxi·
mately four acres.
The School Buildings
It would be easier to draw a map of the combined Rand
Mansion-Consistory-school wing than to try to describe it.
The Mansion is a castlelike structure built of stone in the
English Tudor style and complete with oriel windows. On the
ground floor, the domestic chapel, the community refectory,
a parlor and several activities rooms open off a large corridor.
The second floor is reached by a circular stone staircase. On
this floor are located four Fathers' rooms and the Fathers'
• and Scholastics' recreation rooms. There are two more
Fathers' rooms on the third floor, the greater part of which
serves as a storage attic. This entire building, erected
towards the end of the first World War, was originally in·
tended to be the home of the late George F. Rand, a leading
Buffalo financier and prominent Freemason. It was oc-
�REV. GERALD A. QUINN, S.J.
President and Rector of Canisius High School
�A Century's Report
.-
<
In their advance -to esteem and influence in the city of .
Buffalo, Jesuits first encountered trusteeism, then started
downtown parishes and- outlying mission stations, and with
meager finances and insufficient numbers established schools
for the higher education of Catholic youth. It was back in
1848, at the invitation of Bishop Timon, that Fathers from
t:pe New York and Canada Mission arrived to reconcile the
disaffected parishioners of St. Louis Church. Their efforts
met with partial success and four years later a Jesuit community took up quarters on Washington Street when St. .
Michael's was opened to care for the German parishioners.
Through the years seeds were sown for the Kingdom of Christ.
Education commenced with a Latin class in 1855. A year after
the arrival of the German Fathers in 1869, Canisius College
was opened. Increased enrollments and the wear of time
upon facilities necessitated the move of the College in 1913,
six years after the attachment of Buffalo to the MarylandNew York Province, to the old villa property at Jefferson and
Main Streets. The High School continued at Washington
Street until the purchase of the Consistory in 1944 with its
full-block fronting on Delaware Avenue. ~ow, with the apos4--.1 ........ _
-.~ ...._,1.,..,...,....,4-:...,._·
_.....,.11
.n.n.f...,'l1.1:c.1..111.~
.:- L"'l'll_n....,n.f-n.rl n-,1
'111-
�lird's-eye view of the new Canisius High School on elm-shaded Delaware Avenue.
the College moved in 1913; the High School remained alongside St. Michael's till 1948.
�A Century's Report
In their advance .to esteem and influence in the city of
Buffalo, Jesuits first encountered trusteeism, then started
downtown parishes and· outlying mission stations, and with
meager finances and insufficient numbers established schools
for the higher education of Catholic youth. It was back in
1848, at the invitation of Bishop Timon, that Fathers from
the New York and Canada Mission arrived to reconcile the
disaffected parishioners of St. Louis Church. Their efforts
met with partial success and four years later a Jesuit community took up quarters on Washington Street when St.
Michael's was opened to care for the German parishioners.
Through the years seeds were sown for the Kingdom of Christ.
Education commenced with a Latin class in 1855. A year after
the arrival of the German Fathers in 1869, Canisius College
was opened. Increased enrollments and the wear of time
upon facilities necessitated the move of the College in 1913,
six years after the attachment of Buffalo to the MarylandNew York Province, to the old villa property at Jefferson and
Main Streets. The High School continued at Washington
Street until the purchase of the Consistory in 1944 with its
full-block fronting on Delaware Avenue. Now, with the apostolate of education well established in separated and up-to-date
The
�tl's-eye view of the new Canisius High School on elm-shaded Delaware Avenue.
'College moved in 1913; the High School remained alongside St. Michael's till 1948.
~
�A Century's Report
i'
I[·
I.
In their advance .to esteem and influence in the .city of
Buffalo, Jesuits first encountered trusteeism, then-·started
downtown parishes and outlying mission stations, and with
meager finances and insufficient numbers established schools
for the higher education of Catholic youth. It was back in
1848, at the invitation of Bishop Timon, that Fathers from
the New York and Canada Mission arrived to reconcile the
disaffected parishioners of St. Louis Church. Their efforts
met with partial success and four years later a Jesuit community took up quarters on Washington Street when St.
Michael's was opened to care for the German parishioners.
Through the years seeds were sown for the Kingdom of Christ .
• Education commenced with a Latin class in 1855. A year after
the arrival of the German 'Fathers in 1869, Canisius College
was opened. Increased enrollments and the wear of time
upon facilities necessitated the move of the College in 1913,
six years after the attachment of Buffalo to the MarylandNew York Province, to the old villa property at Jefferson and
Main Streets. The High School continued at Washington
Street until the purchase of the Consistory in 1944 with its
full-block fronting on Delaware Avenue. Now, with the apostolate of education well established in separated and up-to-date
�Bird's-eye view of the new Canisius High School on elm-shaded Delaware Avenue.
l'he College moved in 1913; the High School remained alongside St. Michael's till 1948.
~·
�Side-view of the Rand Mansion witli the adjoining Consistory
New classroom wing is annexed to the Rand Mansion
�'I
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
361
'.
cupied by various members of the Rand family until 1925,
when it was sold to the Masonic fraternity for use as a
clubhouse.
It is to the Masons that we are indebted for the next section
of the new Canisius. They added to the Rand Mansion a large
auditorium (now used as a combination auditorium-gymnasium with a seating capacity of 2700), a swimming pool,
eight bowling alleys, a smaller gymnasium and several locker
rooms.· On the second floor of this building, known as the
Consistory, there was a large Grand Ballroom, now in use
as the High School library. The interior construction of the
Rand building and the Consistory is such that they now form
two sections of one continuous building. Exteriorly, the Consistory conforms to the architectural style of the mansion.
The third wing of the main building is the new school section. On three floors of the school wing, there are 27 classrooms and laboratories. Each of the classrooms is well lighted
by wall-to-wall windows and batteries of fluorescent lights.
The "blackboards" are made of green glass. The entire basement space is taken up by a large cafeteria and kitchen which
can accommodate the entire student body-some 800 or morecomfortably.
Jutting out from the south end of the classroom wing, but
not attached to it, stands the residence of most of the Jesuit
faculty, euphemistically called the Milburn Mansion. It was
in one of the rooms in this house that President William McKinley died in 1901, a week after he had been shot by an
assassin. The Milburn home has suffered the fate of many
a large residence. It came to be divided into a number of
apartments and the attendant alterations and additions have
turned it into a labyrinth of narrow, winding corridors.
One entire section of the house is completely separate from
the rest and can be reached only by its own outside staircase.
There are six ordinary doors and several more which are
now closed off. It may be safely said that the Milburn is
unique among Jesuit houses-a fact which will be attested
by the many visiting Jesuits who had to requisition the services of a guide to help them find their way about.
:I
�362
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
The Trek from Washington Street
For four years, from 1944 to 1948, classes were conducted
in every nook and cranny of the Rand building. One class
had to be housed in the nearly windowless basement which
now serves as a temporary students' chapel. To equalize
matters, a system was organized whereby classes exchanged
rooms periodically. Meanwhile, work was begun on the new
school wing in November, 1946.
The construction of the classroom building was delayed by
a series of strikes. Costs rose steadily. But, by the summer
of 1948, the time had come toJn.ove the entire school from
Washington Street to Delaware Avenue. The school wing was
blessed by Bishop O'Hara on August 29, 1948, and a short
while later the second century of Jesuit growth in Buffalo
had begun with the High School securely established in its
new home.
The Old School
With the students and fas:ulty removed to Delaware Avenue,
the old buildings served only as a residence for the Fathers
attached to St. Michael's Parish. The top floors were closed
off and the abandoned buildings began to deteriorate at a
more rapid rate. As the Society had no further use for the
structures, Father James R. Barnett, who had become rector
in the summer of 1948, asked permission to sell the property,
valued nominally at $350,000, in order to pay off part of the
debt contracted in the construction of the new school. Very
Reverend Father General granted the permission on December 7, 1948, provided that the sale price was not below $250,
000. Many suggestions were received, among them that the
site might be used as a shopping plaza, a veterans' housing
project, a business office building, and so on, but, as none
of these ideas materialized, it became clear that outright sale
of the property would be difficult. Added to problems such
as the high cost of insurance 'on the unused buildings was the
fact that the abandoned structure had become a favorite playground for the children of the neighborhood. Several times
fires were started, but they never did destroy the buildings.
There always remained the possibility that one of the children
�CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
363
might be injured while playing in the buildings and it was
impossible to keep them out without mounting a twenty-four
hour guard.
When two and a half years had gone by and there were
still no reasonable offers, permission was asked to rent the
property as a parking lot. This was allowed and arrangements were made for the demolition of the buildings. The
plans called for the demolition to begin in September, 1951,
but long before that date the young unofficial "housewreckers"
of the neighborhood had gone to work and actually demolished
almost an entire wall of one of the smaller buildings.
On the feast of its patron Saint, 1951, St. Michael's Church
celebrated its centenary and soon afterwards the demolition
of the old school buildings was begun. By December the
wrecking crews had completed their job and on January 25,
1952, the new parking lot opened for business. The old college
built by the German Fathers was no more. St. Michael's
Church still stands and the parish Fathers, a separate community since August 1, 1952, now reside in a small rectory on
Washington Street. Plans are now under way to build a new
residence adjoining the church for these Fathers.
Future Plans
Despite the fact that Buffalo is now blessed with an extensive diocesan high school system, Canisius has more than
held its own. Although a large debt precludes further expansion at the moment, plans have been made for the eventual
removal of the Milburn Mansion and the erection of a new
faculty residence adjoining the north side of the Consistory.
The High School is already the owner of a large piece of
property which will be the site of this residence. Within a
few years, thanks to the kindness of two alumni, George and
Edward Frauenheim, two large houses in back of the school
will be torn down to make way for an athletic field. There
has been an increase in enrollment over the past two years
and, if the present rate continues, the facilities of the new
school will soon be taxed to the utmost.
We have now traced the history of the "new" Canisius from
its remote beginnings in 1848, down through the time of the
Fathers from the New York and Canada Mission to the com-
, I
�364
CANISIUS HIGH SCHOOL
ing of the Germans in 1869 and the formal opening of the
College in September, 1870. The story of the past eighty~three
years is one of continual expansion and development and the
prospects for the future of Canisius High School and of its
sister institution, Canisius College, are indeed bright.
A
TABLE OF IMPORTANT DATES IN THE HISTORY OF CANISIUS
HIGH SCHOOL
1847:
1848:
1851:
1852:
1855:
1858:
1863:
1864:
1868:
1869:
1870:
1870:
1871:
1872:
1872:
1880:
1881:
1883:
1893:
1894:
1907:
1908:
1913:
1919:
• 1928:
1944:
1944:
1946:
1948:
1948:
1951:
April 23: Erection of the See of Buffalo
Arrival of the first Jesuits
August 20: Laying of the cornerstone of old St. Michael's
Opening of the residence at St. Michael's
November: First Latin classes taught at St. Michael's
College projected at St. Ann's
Arrival of Father Durthaller
April 20: Beginning of the new St. Michael's Church
Sept. 17: Arrival of the first German Father, Peter Spicher
May: Very Reverend Father Beckx establishes the German
Mission
July 26: Departure of the last N.Y. Father, Joseph Durthaller
Sept. 5: Opening of Canisius College
June 30: First commencement (awarding of honors) ..
May 5: Cornerstone of old college building laid
Dec. 14: Arrival of Father Henry Behrens
North wing of old school built
Old church torn down; south wing of college begun
January: Canisius chartered by New York State Regents
April 30: Silver Jubilee of college celebrated
Adoption of the eight year course
Sept. 1: Buffalo attached to Maryland-New York Province
June 21: Closing of boarding department
Jan. 6: Transfer of Canisius College to Main Street
Father Robert Johnson first independent rector of the high school
Sept. 27: High School receives an independent charter
March 21: Purchase of the Consistory
Sept. 29: Opening of the Delaware school
November: Ground-breaking for the new school wing
August 29: Blessing of the new wing
September: Consolidation of all four years at the new school
Sept.-Dec.: Demolition of the old school
�The testimony of history: from the
polemics of 1540 to the solemn
definition of 1854, Jesuit saints and
scholars were conspiculously devoted to Mary's unique privilege.
The Immaculate Conception and the
Society of Jesus
P. DE LETTER,
S.J.
In his posthumous work on the spirituality of the
Society of Jesus, Father J. de Guibert notes that much could
be said on the role Jesuits played in the development of
Marian devotion, particularly their efforts in favor of the
doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. 1 In the centenary
year of this Marian dogma, it is perhaps not out of place
to sketch briefly their endeavors.
The Situation at the Origin of the Society
At the time of the foundation of the Society, between the
years 1530-40, the belief in the Immaculate Conception was
fast growing in extension, soon to be both the more common
doctrine in the theological schools and the ever more widespread persuasion of the faithful. More than half a century
before, the energetic intervention of the Franciscan Pope
Sixtus IV on three successive occasions had cleared the ground
for the spread of both the cult and the doctrine. In 1476, his
Constitution Cum praeexcelsa granted for the celebration of
Our Lady's Conception, December 8, the same spiritual privileges that had formerly been conceded for the feast of Corpus
Christi. 2 In 1480, he approved the Office of the Immaculate
with the oration, Deus qui immaculatam virginem Mariam ...
ab omni labe in conceptione sua praeservasti ... (Brief Libenter ad ea) .3 And in 1483, by the Constitution Grave nimis,
he declared false and erroneous and straying from the truth
those opinions which explain the feast of Mary's Conception
as referring only to her sanctification or brand as heresy the
belief in her Immaculate Conception.' · Little wonder that
.,.
�366
THE 11\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
thus favored by the highest ecclesiastical authority, both cult
and doctrine spread rapidly, in spite of opposition particularly
from the Dominican Order. It is true that Pope Leo X's attempt at arriving at a definitive doctrinal decision in the early
16th century had failed because of Cardinal Cajetan's deterring conclusion in his Tractatus de conceptione Beatae Mariae
l'irginis (Rome 1515), written at the Pope's own request.
Cajetan maintained that, in the face of the ancient tradition,
the authority of modern doctors who in their numbers held for
Mary's privilege, gave the doctrine only small probabilityvalde exigua. 5 But this papal withdrawal, which naturally
was not officially proclaimed, Irttle affected the belief of the
faithful and the teaching of the schools. In the universities
and religious orders, among the faithful and their pastors,
belief in the Immaculate Conception found ever growing
success.
Accordingly, at the time of the origin of the Society the
situation may be summed up as follows: the doctrine of the
Immaculate Conception was the more common teaching in
theological schools, except among the Dominicans who followed St. Thomas' teaching. But it was not held as a doctrine
of the faith; nor did many theologians think that it should
or could become a doctrine of the faith. The feast was celebrated rather universally, and except for places where Dominican ideas prevailed, in the sense of Mary's preservation from
original sin. The belief of the faithful in the Immaculate Conception became more and more widespread.
The Society naturally was not the only nor the chief agent
in promoting the doctrine and cult of the Immaculate Conception. There were many other and more important agents in
the field : other religious orders, especially the Franciscans ;
universities, chiefly in Spain, which pledged themselves to
the defense of the Immaculate Conception; the hierarchy, both
the Holy See and the bishops, who legislated and took dis~iplinary action concerning the doctrine and the celebration of
the liturgical feast; and the' pious associations in honour of
Our Lady which, in several countries, played a prominent
role in popularizing the faith in the Immaculate Conception.
Among all these influences the minima Societas also had its
share. From its very birth the Society stood for the defense
�THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
367
of the doctrine and the cult of Mary's privilege, and until
the solemn sanction of these by the infallible definition of
1854, remained faithful to its initial stand and its role in promoting them, if anything, grew stronger.
St. Ignatius and Early Companions
The Society had been taught devotion to the Immaculate
Conception from the earliest days. The university of Paris,
where the first Fathers received their ecclesiastical training,
was strongly in favor of Mary's privilege. Even as early as
1496 or 1497, it demanded of its doctors that they bind themselves by oath to the defense of the Immaculate Conception. 6
That this was no mere formal gesture appears from subsequent facts. In 1521, the university censored a proposition
of Luther's couched in these terms, "Contradictoria huius
propositionis, 'Beata Virgo est concepta sine peccato originali,'
non est reprobata," as "falsa, ignoranter et impie contra
honorem immaculatae Virginis asserta." 7 In 1528, a doctor of
the theological faculty took to task a statement of Erasmus
that was adverse to Mary's privilege, the same no doubt as the
one Salmeron refers to when writing, "Erasmus ausus est
dicere, quod sit genealogia interminata; et quod Virgini alii
magni tituli non desunt, quibus illustretur." 8 These facts
reveal the opinion of the Paris university at the time when St.
Ignatius and his first companions were studying there. It
must have grown stronger in favor of the Immaculate Conception even before they left. In 1543, the view of a Dominican
who taught that the Virgin Mary had been in need of a
liberative redemption was condemned as "heretical and tending to the dishonor of the most holy Virgin Mary." 9 Later
still, in 1560, one of the propositions of Baius which was to
be condemned by St. Pius V in 1567 (cf. Denzinger 1073},
"Nemo praeter Christum est absque peccato originali; hinc
beata Virgo mortua est propter peccatum ex Adam contractum ... ," was branded by the university as "heretical in
all its parts, and to the dishonor of the Blessed Virgin Mary." 10
Paris decidedly inclined to consider the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception as part of the doctrine of the faith, no
doubt influenced by the pseudo-definition of the Basel Council
in 1438, which many in France (there had been a large number
�368
THE 11\ll\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
of French members of that council) and also in some other
places \Vere disposed to regard as an authoritative decree.11
The first Jesuits trained in Paris naturally inherited from
their Alma Mater belief in and devotion to the Immaculate
Conception. St. Ignatius himself, we learn from Ribadeneira,
considered the Immaculate Conception as a true doctrine and
loved to hear it preached; but he disliked his sons to enter into
public discussion about it with the Dominican Friars. 12 His
first companion, Bl. Peter Faber, venerated the Immaculate
Conception of the Blessed Virgin; in his Memoriale he calls her
tota pulchra et tota sine macula. 13 St. Francis Xavier apparently left no written recordof his devotion to the Immaculate Conception, though many a sign of his devotion to Mary.u
Lainez and Salmeron left monuments of their faith in the
Immaculate Conception in their theological action and writings
(cf. below). Of other early companions we are told that
Father Nadal meditated, defended, praised the Immaculate
Conception; that he endeavoured to penetrate into its meaning, succeeded in clearing up difficulties, received lights on the
mystery and bore witness to the fact that in his time most
people even some who formerly opposed the belief now shared
the devotion. 15 Ribadeneira recalls with visible gratitude that
under St. Ignatius' command he was ordained a priest on the
feast of the Immaculate Conception in 1553; and twq· years
later he reports from Brussels about the sermons he preached
on the feast at Louvain. 16 The feast of the Immaculate Conception (which was not to become a holy day of obligation till
1693) was celebrated in the early Society with due solemnity,
and Jesuits preached on Mary's privilege with fervor. It was
reckoned among the five great feasts of Our Lady kept at the
time: the Annunciation, Conception, Purification, Assumption
and Nativity.U
Imbued with this family devotion to the Immaculate, we can
surmise what must have been the action of the Jesuit theolo_gians at the Council of Trent when in the discussions on
original sin, the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception came
to be considered. Three of them were there : Le Jay, Lainez
and Salmeron (the first did not stay till the solemn fifth session of June 17, when the decree on original sin was promulgated). Unfortunately, from the Acts of the Council we are
,. ~··
�!. I
I
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
369
nearly left to our guesses. The Acts faithfully report on the
opinions, objections, or requests of the Fathers of the Council;
they leave us in the dark about the contributions of the
theologi minores. We may perhaps see a reflection of Trent
from Salmeron's insistence in his commentary on Rom. 5 of
the need of treating the question of the Immaculate Conception.18 At any rate, we expect to hear about "the efforts of the
Jesuits" in favor of Our Lady's privileges, mentioned by
Father Foley in his life of St. John Berchmans.19 According
to the Imago Primi Saeculi S.I., it is Lainez who mainly decided the question of mentioning the Immaculate Conception
in the decree on original sin. Called upon to speak, though
suffering from fever, he defended Mary's privilege for three
hours-"tres ipsas dixit horas pro asserenda Virginis immaculata conceptione"-with such power of conviction that
"augustissima ilia sacrorum Procerum corona" was won for
the case. 20 Even when allowing a good deal for the panegyrical character of the Imago, it is a fact attested by others
that Lainez did intervene influentially in favor of the Immaculate Conception. 21 And he actually won his point. The decree on original sin could not leave the Blessed Virgin's
privilege unmentioned as was advocated by the Dominican
theologians and prelates, for whom, at the time, adherence
to the Immaculate Conception meant unfaithfulness to St.
Thomas. 22 Besides it was widely accepted by the faithful and
celebrated in the liturgy of the Church. The result of the discussions is well known. In the final declaration of the decree
the Council, renewing the constitutions of Pope Sixtus IV,
states it did not intend to include in the decree on original sin
"the blessed and immaculate Virgin Mother of God."
The Tridentine decree clearly meant, at the very least, that
there is nothing unsafe in following the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. This could not but be a hint to all of
Mary's devotees. Enthusiasm tnay have cooled somewhat in
1570 by the Constitution Super speculam Domini of St. Pius V
which, while renewing the Tridentine decree, insisted on discretion or silence about disputations in popular preaching.
This relative silence was only temporary and was lifted after
the Pope's death (1572) .23 Little surprise then if, before the
end of the 16th century, in its Fifth General Congregation held
�I
I
I
I
t.
370
THE 1!\IMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
under Father C. Aquaviva in 1593, the Society adopted the
doctrine of the Immaculate Conception as its official teaching.
The 41st decree of that Congregation, on the doctrine to be
followed in the Society, legislates as follows: "Sequantur
nostri doctores, in scholastica theologia, doctrinam S. Thomae
... De Conceptione autem B. Mariae ... sequantur sententiam
quae magis hoc tempore communis, magisque recepta apud
theologos est." 24 That this decree was little more than an
official confirmation of the actual practice should be clear from
even a quick glance at the teaching of the early Jesuit
theologians.
>
Early Jesuit Theologians
I
!.
iI
Among the early Jesuit theologians, the chief defenders of
the Immaculate Conception were Lainez, Salmeron, Canisius,
Toletus, Bellarmine, Gregory of Valencia and Suarez. 25 Lainez
( +1565) left no printed record, but his action at the Council
of Trent, mentioned above, is sufficient proof of his theology
of the Immaculate Conception. His unfinished and still unpublished Summa The_ologica does not seem to include a
treatise on the Immaculate Conception. 26 Salmeron ( + 1585)
treats the question of Mary's privilege extensively. In his
commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, already 'referred
to, he has four disputations on the Immaculate Cghception.
The divine privilege which exempted the Blessed Virgin from
original sin, he proposes in the following manner: "(Deus)
veluti dixit: Volo ut libera sit, quia Filii mei genetrix et electa
sponsa: voloque ut hoc illi promereatur Christus filius meus." 27
After showing that the question of the Immaculate Conception
cannot be set aside (as Lainez defended at Trent), he answers
objections from Scripture (disp. 50) and from the Fathers
(disp. 51) and then states the complete argumentation in
favor of the doctrine ( disp. 52). St. Peter Canisius ( + 1597)
is no less explicit. Even in his catechism, or Summa Doctrinae Christianae, when. explaining the Hail Mary, he mentions the Immaculate Conception by the phrase, "ab omni labe
peccati libera," with a reference to the Tridentine decree. 28
And in his large work "De Maria Virgine incomparabili et Dei
genetrice," tom. II of his Commentaria de V erbi Dei corruptelis, he gives five chapters of Book I to the defense of the
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THE ll\ll\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
371
doctrine. 29 He does not seek to defend it as of faith but as the
more probable doctrine and more likely meaning of her sanctification (ch. 9); opponents deny it, "salva Ecclesiae fide" (ch.
6). F. Toletus (+1596), in his Summa de Instructione Sacerdotum, libri 7, mentions the excommunication which they incur
(according to the Constitution of Sixtus IV renewed by
Trent), who treat as sinners or heretics the defenders of the
Immaculate Conception, and those who so call its opponents;
and he says, "de fide utraque potest teneri absque mortali peccato, quamvis certius multo sit, et verius esse, sine ulla macula
conceptam, et ita nos credimus." 30 And in his Summa Theologica, he writes, "Id persuasum est mihi citra fidem esse veritatem certissimam, et quae, Deo volente, aliquando certior erit." 31
St. Robert Bellarmine ( + 1621), besides mentioning the Immaculate Conception in his catechism, after Canisius' example,
when explaining the gratia plena with these words "nullius
peccati macula nee originalis aut actualis, nee mortalis aut
venialis infecta fuit," 32 has a most remarkable statement on the
theology of the Immaculate Conception, his "votum" or
"sententia pro Immaculata Conceptione Sanctissimae Virginis
Mariae." 33 He gives his opinion on two questions: "1 o An sit
definibilis quaestio de conceptione; 2° An expediat illam nunc
definire." His answer to the first question is formulated in
four propositions: "a) Non potest definiri sententiam communiorem (in favour of the Immaculate Conception) esse
haereticam; b) Non potest definiri sententiam contrariam esse
haereticam; c)· Non potest definiri quod sententia communior
non sit tenenda ut pia, sed ab omnibus reicienda ut temeraria
et scandalosa; d) Potest definiri Conceptionem Virginis sine
peccato originali esse recipiendam ab omnibus fidelibus ut piam
et sanctam, ita ut nulli deinceps liceat contrarium sentire vel
dicere sine temeritate et scandala et suspicione haeresis." To
the second question he answers, "Dico expedire, imo necessarium id nunc definiri." He gives six positive proofs and ten
negative proofs in refutation of Cajetan's opinion that it is
not safe to abandon the common opinion of the Fathers who
held, so Cajetan said, that the Bl. Virgin was conceived with
original sin. He ends by quoting Dominican authorities in
favour of the Immaculate Conception. Gregory of Valencia
( +1603), when asking "utrum omnes omnino Adae posteri
JIJEUIW
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THE 11\IMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
contrahant peccatum orginale," exempts the Blessed Virgin
and argues against Cajetan to show that this exception from
the general law is possible; and he states "id quod de B. Virgine pie credi potest." 34 Again, in his De rebus fidei hoc tempore controversis, in answer to the same question about the
universality of original sin, he argues from the Tridentine decree to say that in it the Church interprets authoritatively the
text of St. Paul, Rom. 5 :12ff, "Ecclesia ex hac sententia
probat omnes excepta B. Virgine contrahere peccatum originale de facto ... , hoc ipso inquam fit nobis de fide certum,
sensum illius sententiae esse' quod omnes caruerunt illo
privilegio, quod opinari possumus fuisse concessum B. Virgini".35 G. Vazquez ( +1604) deals with the question of the
sanctification of the Bl. Virgin very extensively in his commentaries on the Tertia of St. Thomas. He defends the Immaculate Conception as the more probable opinion: "B.
Virginem in momenta suae conceptionis per sanctificationem
a peccato originis fuisse praeservatam probabilior scholasticorum opinio fert." 36 He does not however stop at that. In
chapter 14, he explains, "In hac controversia nihil adhuc ab
Ecclesia de fide definitum esse, tametsi definiri possit." And
he formulates his opinion on this definibility as follows:
"Ego . . . censeo iudicium Sixti IV de utraque parte huius
controversiae nihil omnino obesse, quominus aliquac· earum
tempore aliquo legitime ab Ecclesia definiri possit famquam
dogma fidei. . . . Deinde addo, difficilius multo mihi videri
fore ut Ecclesia umquam iudicet ut tamquam dogma fidei
definiat, B. Virginem in peccato originali conceptam esse, eo
quod auctoritate sua festum conceptionis celebrari in tota Ecclesia praeceperit." 37 Finally Francis Suarez ( + 1617) has perhaps been the most influential of Jesuit theologians in his defence of the Immaculate Conception. In his "disputationes"
on the Tertia, q. 27, "De B. Virginis Mariae santificatione,"
he discusses, disp. 3, "de tempore quo primum B. Virgo sanctificata fuerit." We may come straight to section IV, "An
potuerit in ipso momenta conceptionis sanctificari," a question
to which he answers, " ... dicendum est, potuisse B. Virginem
praeservari ab originali peccato, et in primo suae conceptionis
instanti sanctificari" (n. 2). In the following section he inquires about the fact of this preservation, "An B. Virgo
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373
fuerit ab originali peccato praeservata, et in primo suae conceptionis instanti sanctificata." After stating different
opinions, he affirms his own: "Dicendum nihilominus est, B.
Virginem in ipso primo instanti conceptionis suae fuisse
sanctificatam, et ab originali peccato praeservatam" (n. 8),
the proof of which he develops in thirteen reasons. Finally,
in section VI, he explains the degree of certainty of the doctrine. We note only two statements: "Dico ... primo, veritatem
hanc, scil. Virginem esse conceptam sine peccato originali,
posse definiri ab Ecclesia, quando id expedire iudicaverit" (n.
4) ; and, "Dico secundo, hactenus nihil esse in hac controversia
definitum, ideoque sententiam nostram non esse de fide"
(n. 5) .ss
From these few indications it should be clear that the early
Jesuit theologians were of one mind in accepting the Immaculate Conception. Equally evident is their opinion about
the degree of certainty of the doctrine; it is not of faith,
though the Church could define it if she judged it opportune
to do so; it is the more common and more probable teaching.
Even Mal donatus ( + 1583) who got into trouble with the University of Paris on the question of the Immaculate Conception
-he had in fact expressed his disapproval of the oath the
University demanded of its doctors, "quamvis non expediat"held the Immaculate Conception no less than other Jesuit
theologians. Concerning St. Paul's text on original sin, he
taught, "nihil impedit quominus Dei beneficio aliquis sine
peccato conceptus sit: quod credimus de B. Virgine"; and in
his commentary on St. Matthew, 10 :13, he speaks of the Bl.
Virgin as "omnium iustorum iustissima, quam a peccato originali praeservatam credimus." 39 But he refused to say, with
the University, that this doctrine was of faith, because Sixtus
IV and Trent had maintained the lawfulness of the opposite
opinion. 40 This is an example of how the Jesuits, whatever
the fervor of their devotion to the Immaculate Virgin, did yet
not attribute to this belief a greater certainty than did the
Church. And we can understand the ancedote which a Spanish preacher, Father J. Ramirez, communicates in a letter to
Father Lainez, then General, when in 1562 he reports on his
preaching for the feast of the Immaculate Conception: so
fervent and impressive had his sermon been that he had to
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
state explicitly, "I do not mean to say that the doctrine is of
faith; the contrary opinion is no heresy, as appears from
Pope Sixtus IV's decision." 41
Mary's privilege, the Imago primi saeculi says, "Societas
universa propugnavit." After Lainez had set the tone at
Trent, "confestim omnes Ignatii socii ad arma concurrere,
calamis domi, foris lingua, in templo precibus, in scholis
argumentis, in exedra concionibus, . . . decertare; immaculatae Virginis intactam illibatamque conceptionem cum omni
deinceps omnium saeculorum secutura posteritate constantissime defensuri." 42 The statement, for all its rhetoric, expresses an historical fact.
··
Jesuit Saints and the Immaculate Conception
For the spread of a doctrine such as the Immaculate Conception of the Bl. Virgin, which has grown not less by the
cult and devotion of the faithful than the scholarly study of
arguments, the influence of the Saints, model teachers of the
lex orandi, may not be discounted. Among Jesuit Saints the
two most outstanding examples of devotion to the Immaculate
Conception are the lay-brother St. Alphonsus Rodriguez and
the scholastic St. John Berchmans.
St. Alphonsus ( + 1617) was an apostle of the Immaculate
Conception, at a time when the doctrine was debated~heatedly
in Spain, particularly in Majorca, not only among theologians
but also among the laity. He himself said the office of the
Immaculate Conception daily for forty years. He urged our
Fathers to defend Mary's privilege, sure as he was, for having
learned it from heaven, that one of the reasons why Provi·
dence had called into being the Society of Jesus was to defend
and spread the doctrine and cult of the Immaculate Concep·
tion. The special revelation just hinted at was mentioned
in the process of his beatification. " ... dixit unam ex causis
ob quas nostram religionem, scil. Societatem Iesu, Christus
• Dominus instituerat, hanc fuisse, ut immaculatam Concep·
tionem notam faceret atque propugnaret. Haec autem tanto
fervore emisit, ut maiorem numquam aliquis in eo notaverit:
et subiecit ease non de suo protulisse sed accepisse divinitus." 48
St. John Berchmans ( +1621) is renowned for his devotion
to the Immaculate Conception from the vow he made less than
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
375
a year before his death and signed with his own blood, always
to defend the Immaculate Conception. The original text of
this vow has been preserved and it reads as follows: "Ego
Ioannes Berchmans, indignissimus Societatis filius, protestor
Tibi et Filio tuo quem hie in augustissimo Eucharstiae Sacramento praesentem credo et confiteor, me semper et usque
sempiternum (ni aliter Ecclesia) Immaculatae Conceptionis
tuae assertorem et propugnatorem fore. In cuius fidem proprio sanguine subscripsi et Societatis sigillo insignivi. a. 1620.
Ioannes Berchmans." 44 He took this vow on the feast of the
Immaculate Conception, December 8. This gesture of devotion to Mary is easily understood in the setting of the time.
Rome was hot with discussions on the Immaculate Conception.
The Spanish universities of Salamanca, Seville, Granada, Valladolid, Alcala, Barcelona and others took vows to defend the
privilege of Our Lady. At the bidding of Philip III of Spain,
legations came to Rome to plead with the Pope Paul V for a
dogmatic pronouncement on the Immaculate Conception.
Antonio de Trejo, bishop of Carthagena, arrived at Rome for
that purpose in December 1618, a few days before Berchmans.
The young Saint could not fail to be taken up by the fervor
and enthusiasm. To us of the 20th century his signing of the
vow with his own blood may look rather romantic, but it was
to the taste of the time-though less to that of Father General
Vitelleschi-45 At any rate, his example could not but influence
the admirers of the youthful Saint.
Other Saints of the Society may have been less spectacular
in their devotion to the Immaculate Conception; nor have all
of them left historic proof of it. The circumstances of their
life and ministry, when offering little occasion for manifesting
or preaching a special devotion to this privilege of the Blessed
Virgin, generally explain their silence.
St. Francis Borgia ( +1592), third General of the Society,
was known, no less than his two predecessors, for his devotion
to Our Lady, particularly to Our Lady of Loreto and to the
image of the Madonna so-called of St. Luke. 46 But he left no
indication of his veneration of the Immaculate Conception.
Was it because his generalate coincided with the pontificate
of the Dominican Pope, St. Pius V? St. Aloysius Gonzaga
( +1591) rated the devotion to the Blessed Virgin third after
II.&
I&
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THE ll\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
those to the Blessed Sacrament and to the Passion of Our
Lord; he commended it in his letters, but apparently without
stress on her Immaculate Conception.H Neither did St.
Bernardine Realino ( + 1616), whose love for Our Lady was
the most outstanding feature of his piety, insist particularly
on the Immaculate Conception whether in the sodality for
priests or other Marian sodalities he directed. 48 Yet, as we
shall say presently, he could not have been the fervent apostle
of the Marian sodalities he was without preaching veneration
of this privilege of Mary. ·St. Francis Regis (+1640), the
great up-country missionary,)left no special record of his
devotion to the Bl. Virgin or-.to her Immaculate Conception.
Not so the overseas missionary, St. Peter Claver ( +1654).
As a disciple of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, how could he have
failed to learn from our laybrother Saint the devotion to
Mary's Immaculate Conception? Actually his biographer tells
us that Marian devotion was one of his characteristics and
that the Immaculate Conception lay close to his heart. 49 Of
one of the Canadian martyrs, St. Charles Garnier ( + 1649),
we are told that as a Marian sodalist he took and signed with
his blood the vow to tlefend Mary's privilege. 50 Was it
Mary's return for this proof of his devotion to send him the
crown of martyrdom on the eve of her feast, December 7?
An outstanding apostle of the Immaculate Conception is St.
Francis Jerome (+1716). The streets and squares o{Naples,
the chief scene of his apostolic activity, saw the processions
of Mary's devotees following the Saint's renowned banner of
"Our Lady Immaculate transfixing with her lance the infernal
dragon." Nor did he fail to celebrate this privilege of hers
among the other glories of Mary, which he never tired of
preaching, particularly in the church of the Gesu at Naples,
dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. 51
The Sodalities and the Devotion to the Immaculate Conception
One of the great means the Society has used from its early
years in spreading the faith in the Immaculate Conception
and the cult of her feast is the Marian Sodalities. 52 Already
shortly after their foundation by Father Leunis in 1564 when
their titular feast was not that of the Immaculate Conception,
as was the case for the very first ones founded by Father
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
377
Leunis in the Roman College and in the College of Clermont at
Paris under the title of the Annunciation, the Sodalities, after
the example of the Society, celebrated the Immaculate Conception as one of the five great Marian feasts. As early as 1574
and 1575, Sodality statutes, and a little later, the Sodality
rules of 1587 prescribe Holy Communion on that feast. 58 In
Spain the sodalities for priests were very influential in spreading the pious belief in the Immaculate Conception of Mary.u
It was a priest sodalist who took the initiative of collecting
letters from bishops attesting their belief in the Immaculate
Conception, and in presenting these documents to Philip III,
asking his protection for the devotion to Mary's privilege.
The delegation to Rome mentioned above was partly occasioned by this sodalist.
Another concrete way the Sodalities spread devotion to the
Immaculate Conception was the practice already mentioned
of taking the vow to defend until martyrdom Mary's privilege.
In France-but not only in France-many sodalists bound
themselves in that manner. Nor only individual sodalists, as
the king of Poland, Ladislaus IV, but entire Sodalities took
the vow, first being that of Ecija in Spain in the year 1616.55
The Sodalities for the military in Spain who called themselves
"soldiers of the Immaculate," and those in the Netherlands
were fervent propagators of the devotion and of the vow. 56
Sodalities for university men were real promoters of the belief
in and cult of the Immaculate Conception. In Vienna, for
example, they were so influential as to obtain from Emperor
Ferdinand the public erection of a statue of the Immaculate,
and from the university that all its members take the oath to
defend Mary's privilege. 57
Considering the rapid and widespread growth of the Sodalities throughout Europe and the world, following in the wake
of the Society itself, we can easily visualize how important
was the part played by them in promoting the belief in and
the cult of the Immaculate Conception.
Perhaps the most eloquent testimony to what the Society
did to spread the devotion 'to the Immaculate Conception and
belief in this doctrine is the bare chronological list of writings
which Jesuits gave to the world up to the time of the definition
of the dogma, both before the suppression of the Society in
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1773 and after its restoration in 1814. Sommervogel's Index
in volume X of his Bibliotheque de la Compagnie de Jesus
(1909) lists them under three headings: doctrinal, polemical,
and devotional (cult), besides the sermons on the Immaculate
Conception, in the alphabetical order of authors. 58 If we rearrange them according to the chronological order, which
allows us to trace the influence of Jesuit writings on the
growth of the belief and of the devotion, we obtain the tabulation shown in the appended catalogue.
Jesuit Writings in favour of the Immaculate Conception
Some remarks are needed coricerning the real significance
of this rather impressive list. First of all, the catalogue does
not include all that Jesuits wrote in favour of the doctrine
and cult of the Immaculate Conception, but only the writings
that exclusively, or nearly so, deal with Mary's privilege. For
a complete survey of Jesuit writing on the Immaculate Conception, we should have to consider the particular sections
that treat of it in their general works, whether theological,
exegetical, historical, paraenetic or devotional, much the same
way as we did above for some early Jesuit theologians. We
should have to refer to and quote the testimonies of the viri
illustres . . . doctrina listed in the Synopsis Societatis I esu
(edition 1950) under the headings: theologia ... schqJastica
(col. 760-63), theologia positiva et polemica (763-66), interpretatio Sacrae Scripturae (768-70), historia ecclesiastica
(771-73), historia Societatis (773-77), without omitting
praedicatio (747-50), catechesis (749-52) and scriptores
ascetici (783-86). A fair number of new names would so be
added to our catalogue. But this naturally would take us too
far; it would hardly stop short of a respectable volume. For
our present purpose however there is no need of entering into
the complete detail of the contributions of the bibliotheca Societatis to the cult and doctrine of the Immaculate Conception.
Jt may suffice to recall the, unanimity of Jesuit writers in
favour of Mary's privilege.· It seems safe to say that there
were no exceptions to the family tradition. There were differences of opinion on particular points, as will appear
presently; but nowhere do we find discordant voices in the
chorus of praise to Mary. In view of the official legislation
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379
of the Society in this matter, this is not surprising. But the
fervor many Jesuit writers brought to their teaching on the
Immaculate Conception is noteworthy; all the more so because
this doctrine can hardly be said to have held in the Society
the central place that it took, for example, in the Franciscan
Order. 59 Moreover, the influence of Jesuit writings on the
development of the doctrine and cult of the Immaculate Conception is due, to the extent that this is traceable, to the ex
professo treatments of the question such as are found in the
appended catalogue, more than to the routine chapters or
theses of manuals or general treatises.
Of these works it is striking how they reflect the whole
doctrinal and devotional development connected with the Immaculate Conception during the three centuries that elapsed
from the foundation of the Society to the definition of the
dogma (1540-1854). It may be said that nothing of significance happened which is not attested to in Jesuit writings.
A number of these are devotional and propose practical ways
and motivation for honoring the Immaculate Conception. A
larger number still, perhaps by far the greater part of them,
are controversial or polemical and intend to defend the doctrine and cult of Mary's privilege by answering theoretical
and practical objections-meeting, for example, the difficulty
that arises from the past opposition of the great medieval
scholastics by endeavoring to enlist them, St. Bernard and St.
Thomas in particular, among the defenders of the Immaculate
Conception. This controversial character of many writings is
not surprising at a time when serious doctrinal or cultural
objections were raised against a doctrine that did not appear
as being part of the faith.
But the Jesuit contribution to the glory of the Immaculate
Virgin is not merely negative. It is also positive: in general,
by strengthening both doctrine and cult of the Immaculate
Conception as a result of their defense ; and in particular in
three ways. First, in the study and answer to the question
whether the Immaculate Conception could become a defined
doctrine of the faith. 60 None of them, I think, held that it was
already so after the council of Basel (1438), as the Paris
Sorbonne inclined to believe and some other theological centers
as well. Though all of them considered the doctrine as a
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
pious belief, certain to a degree, but below the certitude of
faith, they differed on the point whether it could or could
not be defined by the Church as a doctrine of the faith. The
question was asked and answered by Jesuit theologians at an
early date (cf. above: early Jesuit theologians). Some held,
as Bellarmine did and probably Maldonatus, that the Church
could infallibly propose the Immaculate Conception as a pious
belief but not as a doctrine of the faith. The greater number,
however, while maintaining that it was not yet a doctrine of
the faith, taught also that the Church could define it as a truth
of the faith, if and when she wq_uld judge fit to do so; among
these there are Toletus, Suarez: Vazquez, Poza, Velasquez
and many others, not to mention the theologians of the 19th
century. From the early 17th century on there had been
repeated attempts, on the part of theologians, universities,
kings, bishops, at obtaining from the Holy See a doctrinal
decision in the matter. The Jesuit writings on the point of
the definibility of the Immaculate Conception both reflected
and influenced these steps. That they actually helped to prepare the definition which 'Yas eventually to come can scarcely
be doubted, even if it is not possible to measure the extent of
their influence.
Another question, mainly theological, in which Jesuit
writers, especially in the 16th century, intervened, is the controversy about Our Lady's liability to incur original sin. 61
The doctrinal meaning of the controversy lies in its bearing on
the reconciliation of the Immaculate Conception with the
doctrine of the faith about the universality of the Redemption.
Mary's preventive Redemption implies that she was somehow
liable to contract the stain of our race had she not been preserved from it. The controversy divided theologians in two
camps, and we find Jesuits in both of them. Some held a
debitum proximum, an actual liability which was prevented
from having its effect by the privilege of her exemption. So
did, among early Jesuit theologians especially, Bellarmine,
Vazquez, Suarez, Gregory of Valencia. Others admitted only
a debitum remotum, exempting the Blessed Virgin even from
the actual liability to contract original sin. Salmeron, Nieremberg, Perlin, A. de Penalosa, Burghaber concurred. It was
the latter view, though not always formulated in the same man-
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381
ner, which was eventually to become the more commonly accepted opinion.
A third controversy in which Jesuit theologians took an
active and leading part centers round the votum sanguinarium. 62 It has both a practical or devotional and a doctrinal
aspect. We mentioned above the vow of St. John Berchmans
and the action of Sodalities in spreading the practice of a
similar oath by which individuals or groups bound themselves
to defend the Immaculate Conception unto martyrdom. This
wide spread practice was violently attacked in the first half
of the 18th century by Muratori, writing on two successive
occasions under the pseudonyms of Lamindus Printanius (in
1714) and Ferdinandus Valdesius (in 1743). Was it legitimate at all to vow oneself to shed one's blood for a pious belief
that was not a doctrine of the faith? Was this not simply
creating for oneself the mirage of a pseudo-martyrdom? A
number of Jesuit authors answered to justify the practice and
by so doing they focussed the point of the certitude of the
doctrine. The Immaculate Conception, they argued, was no
longer a matter of theological opinion only. Since the feast
of Mary's privilege, in agreement with the nearly universal
persuasion of the faithful, celebrated her preservation from
original sin, and the Holy See not only allowed and encouraged (Alexander VII, 1661) but imposed that celebration
(Clement XI, 1693), this cult has every guarantee of truth:
it is citra dubitationem verus. The oath concerned is therefore no mere act of private devotion but is based on the official
cult of the Church. It is legitimate because the belief in the
Immaculate Conception has a degree of certitude sufficient for
the Church to define it, if she so judges. As to the practice
of the oath, the controversy, if anything, only contributed to
maintain and spread it, thus inversely helping to increase the
persuasion of both faithful and theologians about the certitude
of the doctrine.
Two more remarks. We must notice the close connection
between Jesuit writings on the Immaculate Conception and the
decisions of the Holy See. One striking example is their reactions to the constitution of Alexander VII which appear in
several writings on our list. It happened that a Roman decision ,seemed less favorable; such was the rather contro-
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
versial decree of the Holy Office of 1644, prescribing to speak
only of the Conception of the Immaculate Virgin, not of the
Immaculate Conception of the Virgin. 63 When opponents of
Mary's privilege inclined to overstress this pronouncement
in their own sense, Jesuit theologians took occasion to show
why and in what sense the title of Immaculate Conception
could and should be retained. Another typical feature of
these writings, one which mirrors the situation of the Society
all through these centuries, is their international character.
The same ideas and the same works originate and spread in
Spain or Italy, the Netherlands-Qr Poland, Austria or France,
at a time when communications were in no way as rapid or
easy as they are today. The Society's tradition about its
colleges, whose influence appears also in this field of the doctrine and cult of the Immaculate Conception, was one factor
of this international and universal action.
These brief annotations suffice to show that Jesuit writings
on the Immaculate Conception, from the beginning of the
Society till its suppression and again after its restoration,
definitely went in the direction of the future definition.
Role of Jesuits at the time of the Definition
A word must still be said on the role Jesuit theologians
played in the actual preparation of the definition, though it
may not be possible nor necessary to assess that influence accurately.64 It goes without saying that they were not the
only ones to work at this preparation; nor is there any need
to try and magnify their role unduly. Two names stand out
here, those of Father J. Perrone and of Father Passaglia (who
did not die in the Society) , both of them professors of the
Gregorianum at the time. Already in 1847, whether by request
of the Holy See we cannot say, Father Perrone in his Disquisitio theologica de Immaculata B. V. Mariae Conceptu, had
discussed the question whether the Immaculate Conception
could be defined dogmatically and concluded his study in the
affirmative sense. Both he and Father Passaglia were, from
August 4, 1851 on, members of the theological consultation
commissioned officially to study the question of the definibility
of the doctrine. He it was who drew up a first scheme for the
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383
Bull of the definition. His scheme, however, was not accepted,
nor was another, made by Father Passaglia. Pius IX then
established, on May 8, 1852, a special commission for the
redaction of the Bull. Both Father Perrone and Father Passaglia were on the commission whose work, a third scheme,
was still subjected to several revisions and corrections till a
last draft (eighth scheme) by December 1, 1854, met with a
general approval. Their influence appears in the assessment
of the arguments from Scripture, which, Perrone agrees, do
not prove with strict cogency, as well as in the concept of dogmatic progress agreed on by the commission-(progress has
a part in the proposition of the dogma only, not in the doctrine) .65 Father Passaglia's three volume work, De Immaculata Deiparae Virginis Conceptu, whose first volume was presented on July 6, 1854, to the Consultative Congregation of
Cardinals that convened March 22, 1854, is perhaps the best
illustration of the share he took in preparing the definition. 66
The definition itself was the occasion for a number of publications on the new dogma, as shown in our chronological list,
some of them polemical and apologetical, others doctrinal or
historical, others still pastoral and devotional. We need not
enter into detail about these, as they do not add anything substantial to the previous work the Society had done in favor of
the doctrine and cult of the Immaculate Conception. They
continued in the same vein, with one difference, however,
namely, they no longer needed to defend but only to stand by
and preach a doctrine and cult which henceforth were sacrosanct for all Catholics. Their labors continued in a less spectacular manner because of its peaceful setting during the
years that followed. We need no other proof for this than
the public manifestations in honor of the Immaculate Conception held the world over and throughout the Society on the
fiftieth anniversary of the dogma. 67 Moreover, how could
Jesuits lag behind in a homage to the Immaculate for which
the Pope himself, St. Pius X, had given the impulse? As then,
so now also, the papal honor paid to the Immaculate Conception in this centenary year of the definition in the encyclical
Fulgens corona and the lavish spiritual favors of the Marian
year should find Jesuits equally ready and enthusiastic to
.'
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THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
manifest their fidelity to the family pledge of loyalty that binds
them to the Immaculate Queen of the Society.
NOTES
1 La Spiritualite de la Compagnie de Jesus, Essai Historique (Rome:
1953), p. 380.
2 X. Le Bachelet, art. Immacuiee Conception, in Dictionnaire de
TMologie Catholique, 7 (1922) 845-93, 979-1218; for the period concerned, 1124-1218, which is the main source of historical data in this
paper, referred to as DTC, 7; cf. ib. 1122; and Denzinger, 734.
a Cf. DTC, 7, 1122.
·~
4 Ibid., 1124; Denzinger 735.
5 DTC, 7, 1163.
6 Ibid. 1127.
7 Ibid.
8 Ibid.; Salmeron, Opera, Edit. 1604, t.XIII, p. 457.
9 DTC, 7, 1127.
10 Ibid. 1127f.
u Text in DTC, 7, 1113.
12 Monumenta Historica Societatis Iesu (=MHSI), Monumenta Ignatiana, Scripta de S. Ignatia, I, p. 434.
1a MHSI, Fabri Monumenta, p. 590.
H MHSI, Scripta S. Francisci Xaverii, ed. Schurhammer-Wicki, Index
s.v.Maria.
15 MHSI, Epistolae Nadal, IV, pp. 693, 701, 762, 871.
16 MHSI, Ribadeneirae Monumenta I, pp. 56, 111, 125.
17 MHSI, Lainii Monumenta VI, 200 (letter of 1562); VIII, .p. 235
(letter of 1564).
18 In Rom. c p. 5, disp. 49.
19 The Modern Galahad (1937) p. 152.
20 Imago Primi Saeculi S.I. (Antwerp: 1940), p. 139.
21 Cf. M. Tognetti, O.S.M., L'Immacolata al Concilio Tridentino, in
Marianum 15 (1953), pp. 304-374; 555-586; cf. p. 351f.
22 Tognetti, art. cit., pp. 560f.
23 Cf. DTC, 7, 1171.
24 Institutum S.I., ed. 1869, I, p. 252.
25 Cf. DTC, 7, 1130.
26 Cf. P. Dudon, Le projet de Somme theologique du P. Jacques Lainez,
in Recherches de Science religieuse, 21 (1931) pp. 361-74.
27 Opera Tom. XIII, pp. 457-483; quotation p. 460.
28 Summa Doctrinae Christianae (Paris ed. 1585), p. 133.
29 Lyons edition 1634, pp. 29-51.
30 Antwerp edition 1609, p. 143.
s1 In III, q. 27, a. 2, concl. 7; cf. DTC, 7, 1154.-Whether Toletus deals
with the Immaculate Conception in his Commentary on the Epistle to
the Romans, we cannot say.
�THE ll\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
385
32 Christianae doctrinae copiosa explicatio, in Opera, (Cologne 1617),
VII, 1262; cf. DTC, 7, 1140.
33 Published by X. Le Bachelet, in Auctarium BeUarminianum, (Paris
1913), pp. 626-632.
34 In his Commentarii in I-II, De Peccato originali, disp. VI, q. 11,
punctum 2; (Venice edition of 1600), col. 549-54.
35 Paris Edition 1610, p. 130.
36 In III Partem S. Tho mae, disp. 117, cap. 2. Edit. Ingolstadt 1612,
Tom. II, pp. 27f.
37 Op. cit. p. 46.
38 Opera, (edit. Paris Vives, 1860), Tom. 19, pp. 27-55.
s9 Cf. J. Prat, Maldonat et l'Universite de Paris, (1856), p. 352.
•o Cf. DTC, 7, 1150-52.
41 MHSI, Lainii Monumenta, VI, p. 200.
42 Imago, p. 139.
43 Cf. Vie admirable de S. Alphonse Rodriguez (Paris 1890), pp.
333-338; quot. p. 338.
44 Photographic reproduction of the Ms in Foley, Modern Galahad,
facing p. 157.
45 Cf. K. Schoeters, S.J., De HZ. Joannes Berchmans, (1930), pp. 172f;
DTC, 7, 1172f.-A similar vow was to spread later and lead to the theological controversy around the votum sanguinarium of which cf. below.
46 Cf. P. Suau, S. Franr;ois de Borgia, (1905), pp. 140ff; MHSI
Monumenta Borgiae V, index s.v.Maria.
47 M. Meschner, A Life of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, p. 142.
48 Cf. G. Gernier, San Bernardino Realino (1943), pp. 462, 367.
49 Cf. C. VanAken, Vie deS. Pierre Claver (1888), pp. 173-175.
5oJ. Villaret, Histoire des Congregations mariales, I (Rome: 1950), p.
351.
51 Cf. A. M. Clark, The Life of St. Francis de Geronimo, (1891), p. 201.
52 Villaret, op. cit. passim. Most of the facts about the Sodalities mentioned here are taken from his history.
53 Op. cit. pp. 343. and 381.
54 Op. cit. p. 196.
55 Op. cit. pp. 250f.
56 Op. cit. pp. 352, 234.-A manual composed for the military sodalists
in the Netherlands by Father del Vigne, "the Soldier's breviary" (Den
brevier van den krijgsman) lists numerous practices in honour of the
Immaculate Conception: cf. Villaret op. cit., p. 352.
57 Op. cit. pp. 352f.
5s C. Sommervogel, Vol. 10, col. 167-71, 434, 592f. The sermons on the
Immaculate Conception, listed col. 269-87, among the sermons on the
Blessed Virgin are very numerous, no less than 190 entries, that, means
by far the greater number of all the sermons listed. We give them in an
additional list.
59 Cf. M. Briek, OFM., "Legislatio Ordnis Fratrum Minorum de Immaculata Conceptione B.M.V." in Antonianum, 29 (1954), pp. 3-44.
so Cf. DTC, 7, 1153ff.
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�386
THE IM.l\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
Ibid. 1157ff.
Ibid. 1180ff.
63 Ibid. 1174.
6• Ibid. 1195ff.
65 Ibid. 1195ff; G. Marocco, "La bolla 'Ineffabilis Deis' di Pio IX.
Studio storico-dogmatico del suo processo formativo", in Scrinium 1
(1953) pp. 183-229.
66 Cf. Marocco, art. cit. p. 202 and 205.
6 7 Cf. Woodstock Letters, 34 (1905) pp. 1-112: The Jubilee Celebrations of the Definition of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception in our
College and Churches of the United States and Canada.
61
62
CHRONOLOGICAL LIST' ·OF JESUIT WRITINGS ON
THE ll\IMACULATE CONCEPTION
Preliminary Note: Many titles have been shortened and only what indicates the contents of the works has been retained; capitalization has
been simplified; names of places are in English or a modern language;
generally only the first editions are mentioned; references are added to
Sommervogel, volume, column, entry.
Before the Suppression
Torres Fr., Epistola ~• •• de definitione propria peccati originalis
ex Dionysio Areopagita, et de conceptione Virginis et Matris Dei
sine peccato ex Scriptura angelicae salutationis et testimonio antiquorum Patrum. (Florence), VIII, 119, 24.
16- Fuentes de Albornoz Gonz., Padece el dano quien le hac~, de que
sola fue libre le siempre indemne e inmaculada santisima Vt'rgen
Maria, Madre de Dios nuestro Senor, concebida sin los danos de la
culpa [Alcala (unpublished)]; III, 1054, A.
Gonzalez de Mendoza F., In/ormatio brevis pro tuendo titulo Im·
maculatae Conceptionis (no indication) ; III, 1590, 3.
Herrera P., Carta ••• sobre o breve de Conceptions; [Evora
(Ms)]; IV, 314, B.
Pevernage A., Libellus de Immaculata Conceptions Beatae Virginis
(Ghent?), VI, 640, 2.
Ventimiglia J., (wrote on favours received at Termini, Sicily,
1651, through devotion to the Immaculate Conception) ; VIII,
562, 2.
161- Seco D., De Immaculata·Conceptione disputationes duae (no indications); VII, 1040, B.'
1615 Pineda J. de, Declaracion y advertencias acerca de la fiesta de la
Concepcion de la Virgen: VI, 799, 9.
Memorial de respuestas • • • y su declaracion y advertencias
acerca de la fiesta y celebridad de la Inmaculada Concepcion de la
Santisima Virgen Madre de Dios VI, 799, 10.
1581
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THE Il\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1616
1617
1617
1618
1629
1630
1632
1638
1640
1642
1647
1651650
387
Ojeda P. de, Informacion eclesicistica en defense de la limpia
Concepcion de la Madre de Dios (Madrid), V, 1877, 2.
De Immaculata Conceptione Deiparae (no indications); V,
1877, A.
Bellarmino Rob., De Conceptione Immaculata B.M.V. (his votum
Ms.); I, 1252, C.
Granada Jac., De Immaculata B.V. Dei Genitricis Conceptione
(Sevilla), III, 1661, 1.
Pineda J. de, Advertencias al privilegio .•. en favor de la fiesta
y misterio de la Concepcion de la Beatisima Virgen Maria sin
mancha de pecado original (Sevilla), VI, 799, 11.
Chirino de Saleazar Ferd., Pro Immaculata Deiparae Virginis
Conceptione defensio (Alcahi), II, 1149, 2.
Salinas Fr., (Theses on The Immaculate Conception defended:
incorrect date); VII, 473, 4; De Immaculata Conceptione Beatissimae Virginis (no indications); VII, 473, A.
Sopranis J., Utrum possit ab Ecclesia definiri praeservatio B.
Virginis ab originali, Ms. (Sevilla), VII, 1388, C.
Perlin J., Apologia scholastica sive controversia theologica pro
Magnae Matris ab originali debito immunitate, ex Sanctis litteris,
Conciliis, Patribus aliisque theologicis argumentorum sedibus •••
collecta (Lyons), VI, 543, 1.
Aponte Marc. de, B.V. Mariam esse a peccato originali immunem
(printed conclusions of a public disputation at Alcala), I, 475, 1.
Moncada J. de, Tractatus de Conceptione Mariae Virginis Immaculata (no indications) V, 1202, B.
Pallavicino Sf., Dissertatio de Conceptione B.M. V. (no indications) ; VI, 141, E.
Pinto Ramirez A., Deipara ab originis peccato praeservata
(Lyons), VI, 832, 2.
Poza J. B., Index sententiarum Petri de Perera ••• in libro de
Conceptione (Cuenca), VI, 1141, 31.
Sanctae Ecclesiae •.• salus plurima. Index sententiarum pro
Deipara Patris Galatini Minoritae, maxime circa Immaculatam
Conceptionem (Cuenca), VI, 1142, 32.
Compendium fusioris tractatus circa declarationem Decreti
Romani de titulo Immaculatae Conceptionis (Cuenca), VI, 1142, 33.
Trinkellii Zach., (history of the erection and dedication of the
marble statue of the Immaculate Conception at the court of
Ferdinand III); VIII, 247, 1.
Castilla Gonz. de, Memorialia circa titulum Immaculata (Ms. unpublished and lost) II, 847, B.
Penalosa Ambr. de, Vindiciae Deiparae de peccato originali et
debito illius contrahendi, rigore theologica praestructae (Antwerp), VI, 470, 2.
Poussines P., De veritate Conceptionis B.M.V. (MontaubanPalermo), VI, 1125, 9.
Gabiot J., De Beata Virgine immaculate concepta gratulatio (in
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i
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I
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388
THE l.l\ll\lACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
Th. Raynaud, Opera VIII, 259-60); III, 1077, 1.
Mariae Matri .•• pro acceptis a Deo in sacra et illibata Conceptione beneficiis votiva gratulatio (Lyons), III, 1077, 2.
1650-60 Oquete D., Biblicae theses in quibus defendit B. Virginis immunitatem a peccato originali (Alcala), V, 1926, 2.
1651 Cichocki (Cichovius) Nic., Angelici Doctoris S. Thomae Aquinatis
de Beatissimae Virginis Deiparae Immaculata Conceptione sententia (Posen), II, 1177, 6.
Mendo A., Memorial ••• por la lnmaculada Concepcion de la
Virgen Jlrfaria, Senora nuestra, y respuesta a las razones de la
opinion contraria, concluyese que es proxime definibile por misterio
de fe por la Sede Apostolica (Oviedo), V, 892, 2.
Raynaud Th., Dissertatio de retinendo titulo lmmaculatae Conceptionis (Cologne) VI, 1534,-44.
1652 Burghaber Ad., Immunitas B.V.M. ab ipso etiam originalis contrahendae debito (Luzern), II, 338, 10.
Guarnizo Jos., Memorial .•. sobre el proximo estado que tiene para
que se defina por dogma de fe la opinion pia que afirma que la
Madre de Dios fue concebida sin pecado original (Madrid), III,
1901, 1.
1653 Nieremberg, J. E., De perpetuo obiecto festi Immaculatae Conceptionis, with De doctrina Patrum circa Immaculatam Conceptionem; De gratia Deiparae in conceptione sua; De controversia
Virginis Conceptionis decidenda (Valencia), V, 1756, 39.
Olzina J., De Immaculata Conceptione B. Virginis pro eius ultima
definitione tractatus (Barcelona), V. 1916, 3.
1654 Albi H., Defense de la conception toute pure et sans tache de la
sainte Vierge, et des raisons que l'on a d'en esperer de l'Eglise une
-·
derniere definition (Grenoble), I, 136, 12.
Galindo Math., Original y positiva obligacion que la ciudad de la
Puebla de los Angelos tiene de jurar y defender al misterio de la
Concepcion Inmaculada de la Virgen Maria (Mexico), III, 1113, 3.
Velasquez J. A., Maria immaculate concepta (Valladolid), VIII,
545, 4.
1655 Esparza Mart. de, Immaculata Conceptio B.M.V. (Rome), III,
449, 1.
Fabri Hon., Corolla virginea, opusculum in quo nova methodo
quid de controversia Immaculatae Conceptionis V. Deiparae censendum sit, piamque sententiam certam omnino esse et infallibilem,
ex Decretis et Constitutionibus Apostolicis concluditur [Palermo
(Brussels 1662) ], III, 512, 6.
Nieremberg J. E., Exceptiones Concilii Tridentim pro omnimoda
puritate Deiparae Virgines expensae, quibus non solum eius actualis sanctitas verum et iustitia originalis confirmatur; with
Dissertationes epistolicae de Immaculata Deiparae Conceptione
(Antwerp), V, 1756, 40.
Sanvitores P. L. de, Memorial ••• de la grande conveniencia del
voto de la Inmaculada Concepcion de nuestra Senora en la esclare-
�THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1656
1657
1658
1659
166-
1662
1663
389
cida Orden de San Juan (Madrid), VII, 615, 1.
Nieremberg J. E., Theoria compediosa de solida veritate Conceptae
Deiparae absque labe originali (Valencia), V, 1756, 43.
De nova moneta Sanctissimi D. N. Alexandri VII pro gmoria
Immaculatae Conceptionis perpensa (Valencia), V, 1757, 44.
Nieremberg J. E., De sanctitate instituti festi ••• , singillatim in
festo Immaculatae Conceptionis praecepto a Summis Pontificibus
(Valencia), V, 1762, 46.
Febvre Turr. le, Pratiques d'un serviteur de la sacree Vierge Mere
de Dieu amoureusement devot de sa tres pure et immaculee Conception (Douai), III, 582, 11.
Izquierdo Seb., Theses de Immaculata Conceptione (Alcala), IV,
699, 1.
Nieremberg J. E., Opera Parthenica de super-eximia et omni-moda
Puritate Matris Dei; opus novum et eximium, in quo quidquid ad
sacram Deiparae Conceptionem defendendam afferri potest, doctissime expenditur (Lyons), V, 1763, 49.
Besson J., "Nuovi documenti della Chiesa orientale intorno all'Immacolata Concezione di Maria SS.," [published in Civilta Cattolica,
1876, ser. 9, t. 12, pp. 541-556] ; I, 1412, 3.
Roccioli Jos., Veritas definibilis praeservationis Virginis Mariae
a peccato originali ex constitutione Alexandri VII • • • (not published), VI, 1805, A.
Motivi per impetrare della Sanctita di N. Signore la licenza
della stampa del mio libro sopra l'Immacolata Concettione della
B.Vergine, Ms. (Rome), IX, 806, A.
Leyte Ant., Escudo de Portugal em honra da Concei!(aO da
Senhora (Coimbra), IV, 1770, A.
Nidhard J., Examen theologico de cuatro proposiciones de ciertos
autores anonimos •.• al culto, fiesta, objeto y sentencia pia de la
Inmaculada Concepcion de la Virgen Santisima Madre de Dios
(Madrid), V, 1717, 3.
Nieremberg J. E., Supplex libellus pro Immaculata B.Virginis
Conceptione (Bruges), V, 1756, 41.
Velasquez J. A., AI Rey ... Razon en favor del culto son que la
S. Iglesia Romana celebra la fiesta de la Inmaculada Concepcion
de la Virgen Maria (Madrid), VIII, 545, 6.
Celada D. de, Opusculum circa auctores adductos pro contraria
sententia de Immaculata Virginis Conceptione [unpublished]
(Spain), II, 940, A.
Fassari Vine., Opera varia de Immaculata Conceptione [unpublished] (Palermo), III, 550, 6 B.
Labbe Phil., Immaculata Conceptio beatae Virginis Mariae anagrammatibus 444 ••• celebrata, autore JB Agnansi (Paris), IX,
563, 84.
Loeffs Dor., Cultus Immaculatae Conceptionis B.Virginis solidus
as Deo Deiparaeque per-gratus ••• [with the 444 anagrammata
of above] (Brussels), IV, 1899, 7.
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1664
1665
1666
1668
1669
.167-
1671
THE ll\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
Nidhard J., 9 Ms. memorialia in Spanish on the controversy with
the O.P. concerning the Immaculate Conception (Madrid, Zaragoza, Pamplona), V, 1718f.
Davila J. B., De originali Mariae impeccabilitate (Spain), II,
1854, A.
Guyet Ch., Notitiae de Conceptione (Ms; no indications), III,
1976, A.
Nidhard J., Examen theologicum quattuor propositionum •••
[Latin of above 1662] (Madrid), V, 1717, 3.
Responsio ad libellum supplicem R. P. Mag. I. M. de Prado,
O.P., de Immaculata Conceptione (Douai), V, 1716, 2 (also in
Spanish, Madrid).
Bialowicz Val., Parodia genialis de Immaculata Conceptione B.V.
Mariae (Vilna), I, 1434, 1.
··
Fassari Vine., Immaculatae Deiparae Conceptio theologicae commissa trutinae ad cognoscendam et firmandam certitudinem eius.
Lucubratio opuscula complectens ..• De acceptione nominis conceptionis pro conceptione seminum, a prima antiquitate usque ad
tempora S. Thomae inclusive. Secundum de acceptione eiusdem
nominis post S. Thomam ad hoc usque tempus, pro prima infusione
animae (Lyons), III, 550, 6.
Gerwig Laur., Quaestio theologica ad q. 81 D. Thomae I-Ilae, in
qua ostenditur S. Thomam Aq. clare asserere sacrosanctissimam
Virginem Mariam •• •-sine peccato originali conceptam fuisse
(Freiburg in Br.), III, 1361, 1.
Nieremberg J. E., Omen honori Immaculatae Conceptionis B.
Virginis Mariae (Cracow), V, 1766, 54.
Avendone D., "Prolusio apologetica pro Virginis Deipa!ae Immaculatae Conceptione his maxime opportuna temporibus" (in
Problemata Theologica, Tom. I) (Antwerp), I, 862, 3.
Gerwig Laur., Quaestio theologica in qua ostenditur S. Bernardum
nullum peccatum imputasse Sacrosanctissimae Virgini Matri Dei
(Freiburg in Br.), III, 1361, 2.
Spuccess Jos., Pro Conceptione Immaculata tractatus (no indications); VII, 1464, A.
Escobar Y Mendoza A., De Mariae Deiparae Conceptione Immaculata non iam confirmata argumentis sed post Bullam Sanctiss.
Alexandri VII panegyricis illustrata (unpublished), III, 444, A.
Pawlowski D., De Immaculata Conceptu Beatae Mariae Virginis
(Cracow), VI, 396, 3.
Nidhard J., Sacra apotheosis mysterii Immaculatae Conceptionis;
and Allegatio theologica de retinendo iuramento (no indications) ;
V, 1721, A.
Gerwig Laur., Miscellanea ad 3am portem S.Thomae ••• de Im•
maculata Dei parae Conceptione (Dilingen), III, 1361, 5.
Nidhard J., De Conceptione Immaculata Beatissimae Virginis
[same as above 1665 Responsio] (Cologne), V, 1717.
�THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1678
1681680
1681
1682
1684
1688
1696
17-
1700
1701
391
Elizalde M. de, Representaci6n sobre el juramento de la Universidad de Napoles acerca de la purisima Concepcion (unpublished),
III, 383, 9.
Bouzonic J., Douze preuves pour la Conception Immaculee de
Marie ( Poitiers), II, 59, 5.
Illsung Jac., Virgineae Matris Conceptio absque macula praeservantis filii meritis compensata (Ingolstadt), IV, 555, 9.
Feurstain A., Disputatio theologica de Immaculata Conceptione
(Luzern), III, 709, 2.
Kwiatkiewicz J., Primum instans Marianum per gratiam originalem sanctum, seu clarissima et compendiaria piae sententiae de
Immaculata Conceptione B.Virginis elucidatio (Calisz), IV,
1284, 21.
Perdicaro Jos., Dodici privilegii della Madre di Dio nella sua Immacolata Concezione (Naples), VI, 487, 12.
Stimoli per esercitare la devozione verso l'Immacolata Concezione .•. (Palermo), VI, 487, 12.
Weiss Chr., Biblia Virginea, seu Biblia Scara pro mysterio Immaculatae Conceptionis Virginis Deiparae expensa .•• Tom. III
(no indications); VIII, 1036, A.
Dantzig, College of, Liber in conceptu prohibitus, seu intacta per
originalem noxam concepta . . . per Adamum Ramowski promulgata [Dantzig (Poland)], II, 1182, 2.
Gonzalez Thyrs., Tractatus de certitudinis gradu quam infra fidem
nunc habet sententia pia de Immaculata B.Virginis Conceptione
(Dilingen), III, 1594, 4.
Ivanich G., Virgo Deipara ex praevisis Christi meritis ab originali culpa pra,eservata [Kaschau (Hungary)], IV, 694, 2.
Eggartner F., De Immaculata B.V. Mariae Conceptione (no
place); III, 341, 3.
Panizzoni Mat., (various pious booklets about the devotion to the
Immaculate Virgin Mary) ; VI, 169, 1.
-Solemnis cultus Immaculatae Conceptae B.V. Mariae a piis
verisque Sodalibus ex praescripto legum Congregationis reddi
solitus (Lemberg), IX, 1317.
Aler P., Imago divinae bonitatis, sive Maria sine labe originali
concepta (Cologne), I, 163, 16.
Strozzi Th., Controversia della Concezione della B.Vergine Maria
descritta istoricamente (Palermo), VII, 1652, 14.
Mostacedo Bl., Tractatus de Immaculata Conceptione B.M.V., unpublished (Lima), V, 1335, A.
Svent-Ivany Mat., Hungaria in Immaculatam Conceptionem B.
Mariae Virginis Magnae Dominae suae credens et iura,ns (Tyrnau), VII, 1768, 22.
Vorster G., Vindiciae illibati conceptus Mariani (Tyrnau), VIII,
905, I.
Tyrnau college, 67 panegyrics or praises on the Immaculate Conception for the years 1701-1773; VIII, 319, 1-67.
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THE 11\ll\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
Aguilera F., Approbation (3pp) of "Voces del Cielo repetidas
en la terra en obsequio de la purissima Concepcion de Maria" ...
by Fr. Navarro, Franciscan (Mexico), I, 90, 3.
1707 Alff Balth., Anamartusia tes Theotokou, sive Maria peccati immunis, sodalibus Ma,rianis in strenam oblata (Hildesheim), I,
172, 1.
Pfister P., Immunitas Magnae Dei Matris a debito proximo contrahendi peccatum originale asserta (Dilingen), VI, 659, 2.
1708 AUf, Balth., Apologia pro B.V. Maria contra tres libellos H. B.
Witteri, praedicantis Lutherani (Hildesheim), I, 172, (1).
1711-22 Scheffer Vit., Biblia immaculata, Tomus primus complexus tria
capita libri Geneseos, in quibus •.• deducuntur argumenta pro
lmmacul.ata Conceptione Deiparae in usus panegyricos .•. ; etc.
Tom. XII (Prague), VII, 725,.. 21.
1712 Bogucki Jos., Conceptus mirabilis votivis epigrammatibus insertus, seu continua prodigiorum et testimoniorum piam de Immaculata Mariae Virginis Conceptione sententiam confirmantium
••• Accessit victoria conceptae Deiparae de orco in prima instanti reportata (Posen), I, 1588, 2.
1715 Leytam F., De Conceptione Deiparae Immaculata (no place), IV,
1769, A.
1716 Haan J os., Theses ex universa logica quas Conceptae sine labe
Virgini illibatae .•. defendent ••• (Munster), IV, 3, 1.
1717 Hayko M., Immaculat.CJ, Conceptae Magnae Matris Dei Virginis
semper fidelis Mariae illustrata et asserta (Prague), IV, 172, 2.
1723 Szabo Et., Silentium tuba victoriae Marianae, sive Maria augustissima Verbi Incarnati Mater qb inhonora primorum parentum labe
ex imposito adversariis silentio vindicata (Tyrnau), VII, 1737, 3.
1725-27 Gengell G., Vindiciae Marianae innocentiae per eneivationem
propositionum XL illibatae Conceptioni pretiosissimae Dei Parentis adversantium; 3 tom, [Lemberg (Austria)], III, 1314, 9.
1731 Keri F. B., Immaculata Deiparae Conceptio oppugnata illustrior
(Tyrnau), IV, 1009, 2.
Mora J. A. de, Anagrammas seu aplauso y gloria de la Concepcion
purisima de Maria senora nuestra, concebida sin la culpa original
(Mexico), V, 1276, A.
1733 Akai Christ., Immaculata Deiparae Conceptio mille testibus
firmata (Tyrnau), I, 105, 1.
1734 Cassani Jos., (A Letter on the definition of the Immaculate Conception, in "Memorial teologico de la justicia y necesidad de Ia
sagrada definicion del misterio de Ia Inmaculada Concepcion de la
Virgen Maria" •.. porI. L. Moreno) (Madrid), II, 813. 7.
1736 Wielens J os., Reflexions pie uses sur les prerogatives de l' I mmacuzee Conception de la Sainte Vierge Marie (Antwerp), VIII, 1114,2.
1737 Ptizina Et., De Immaculata Conceptione SS. V.Mariae (in Polish)
(Warsau), VI, 1319, 4.
Voces liberae de libera ab omni labe in conceptione S. Matre Dei
�THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
393
Diva Maria, caelestes, terrestres et sub terra (in Polish) (Warsau), VI, 1319, 5.
Tyrnau College: Beatissimae Virginis Mariae Immaculata Conceptio .•• propugnata (Tyrnau), VIII, 319, 33.
1739 Burgio Fr., Votum pro tuenda Immaculata Conceptione ab impugnationibus recentioris Lamindi Pritanii vindicatum (Palermo),
II, 396, 1.
1740 Burgio Fr., De pietate in Deiparam amplificanda dissertatio duplex, in qua exponitur et vindicatur votum pro tuenda eiusdem
Deiparae Immaculata Conceptione susceptum (Palermo), II, 396,
f
f
(2).
174- Oudin F., An communis opinio, quae B.M. Virginem noxae originalis lege eximit, probari possit ex capit. 121 (122 edit. Benedict.)
lib. IV D. Augustini adv. Iulian, (unpublished); VI, 26, E.
1741 Lorenzo M. di, Riposta ad un cavaliere erudito desideroso di sapere, ciocche debbe intendere intorno al libro del signor Antonio
Lampridio, nel quale si asserisce imprudente, superstizioso, sanguinario e peccaminoso il voto di defendere usque ad sanguinem
la Concezione Immacola ta della Madre di Dio (Palermo), IV,
1964, 1.
Trigona Vesp., Lettera ••• ad Antonio Lampridi, de superstitione vitanda, seu censura devoti sanguinarii (Palermo),
VIII, 246, 5.
Santocanale Alex., Lettera • • • in cui si dimostra con quanto
raggione si debbe attribuire alla Concettione della SS Vergine il
titolo Immacolata (Roma, Palermo), VII, 595, 5.
1741 Zaccaria F. A., Lettere al Signor Antonio Lampridio intorno al suo
libro ••• De superstitione vitanda (Palermo), VIII, 1382, 4.
1742 Milanese Jos., Lampridius ad trutinam revocatus. Dissertatio theologica de Immaculatae Mariae Conceptionis certitudine, eiusdem
immunitate a debito proximo originalis culpae contrahendae
(Palermo), V, 1091, 2.
Pepe F., Motivi proposti ai fideli d'ogni stato per onorare l'Immacolata Concezione di Maria SS, e pratiche per esiguirla
(Naples), VI, 478, 5.
Trigona Vest., Lettere critiche contro Antonio Lampridio impugnatore del generoso voto di sangue in difesa dell'Immacolato Concepimento di Maria Vergine (Palermo), VIII, 246, 5.
173 Buedrioli Andr., Esempi di cittd o persone, per la divozione all'Immacolata Concezione della Madre di Dio liberate o preservate della
peste (Genova), II, 334, 4.
Lorenzo M. di, Risposta data in quattro dialoghi all'ottava lettera
del sig. Ferdinando Valdesio, ne quali si pruova lodevolissimo il
voto di defendere sino all'effusione del sangue la pia sentenzia
dell' Immacolata Concezione della Madre di Dio (Palermo), IV,
1965, 2.
Trigona Vesp., Lettere ••• al signor Ferdinando Valdesio •••
";
.I
�394
1744
1746
1747
1648
1750
1751
1752
1756
1757
176-
1761
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
(sul) voto di defendere col sangue Immacolata la Concezione di
Maria (Palermo), VIII, 246, 7.
Pepe F., Prima novena di Sabbati dell'Immacolata Concezione di
Maria SS •.• Seconda novena, Terza novena (Naples), VI, 478, 7.
Prima corona di dodeci stelle, discorsi ••. precedente alla festa
dell' Immacolata Concezione ••. Seconda corona ••• Terza
corona (Naples), VI, 479, 8.
Vargyas (Wargyas) Et., Votum fundendi sanguinis pro asserendo
Deiparae illibato conceptu ab iniusta superstitionis nota dictione
aratoria vindicatum (Tyrnau), VIII, 464, 1.
Piazza B., Causa Immaculatae Conceptionis SS Matris Dei .••
sacris testimoniis, ordine chronologico utrimque allegatis et ad
examen theologico-criticum revodatis, agitata et conclusa (Palermo) (Cologne 1751), VI, 887,-5.
Esterreicher F. X., Speculum immaculatum quo demonstratur ex
probatissimis auctoribus B.V.M. sine !abe originali esse conceptam
(Cassovia), III, 460, 3.
Lazcano F. X., Opusculum theophilosophicum de principatu seu
antelatione Marianae gratiae, ••. ubi, concordata physica cum
theologia, natura cum gratia, scientia cum religione, scholasticam
accendit facem ad primordia/em Immaculatae Virginis Dei-Genitricis in primo suae conceptionis instanti gratiam nonnihil illustrandam (Mexico) (Venice 1755), IV, 1603, 6.
Tyrnau College: Votum Immaculatam Conceptionem Deiparae
tuendi ••. propugnatum ••• (Tyrnau), VIII, 319, 46.
Budrioli And., Delle celebri cartine che invocano e protestano Immacolata la Concezione di Maria (Padova), II, 335, 9.
La Madre di Dio preservata della peste del peccato originale,
convenientissima preservatrice o liberatrice della peste, §i dell'
anima e del corpo (Padova), II, 335, 10.
Mazzolari J os., Apparecchio di nove giorni alta festa dell'Immacolata Concezione di Maria SS .•• (Roma), V, 844, 9bis.
Lopez V., Siglos dorados por la Concepcion de Maria Stma; Ms.
(Mexico), IV, 1956, A, cf. IX, 605, A.
Vallarta J., Dissertatio de Immaculata Deiparae Conceptu
(Mexico), VIII, 412, A. Ms. De Dei para sine I abe concepta;
VIII, 412, B.
Venegas M., Relaci6n de los milagros de la Virgen Maria en su
imagen de la Concepcion Inmaculada (Mexico), VIII, 560, A.
Reflexiones importantes • • • De Conceptione Virginis Ms.
(Mexico), VIII, 561, L.
Larraz BI., Gratulatio ad Hispanos ob SS Dei Matrem Mariam in
mysterio purissimae Conceptionis suae praecipuam Hispaniarum
Patronam Apostolica auctoritate constitutam (Cervera), IV,
1538, 13.
Posen College, Lucubrationes theologicae de Immaculata admirabilis et praetiosissimae Matris Dei Conceptione ... (Posen), VI,
1059, 111.
�...
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1762
1763
395
Ferrusola P., Gozos devotos y antiguos de la purisima concepcion
de Maria, y su explicacion (Madrid), III, 700, 7.
Novenario en honor de la Inmaculada Virgen Maria patrona
electa de las Espanas [Cervera (1762 or 1763)], Ill, 700, 9.
Rychlowski Math., Dissertatio theologica de Immaculata Conceptione B.V.M. (Posen), VII, 342, 1.
Lucubratio theologica de Immaculata Dei Matris Conceptione
(Posen), IX, 1159.
Anaya Jos., El siglo de oro, padron immortal que por las suplicas
de la nacion espanola y la piedad del Augusto Carlos III levanto
a la Concepcion Inmaculada de Maria el Santo Padre Clemente
XIII (Pueblo de los Angelos), I, 309, 1.
1768 Lemberg College, Solemnis cultus Immaculatae Conceptionis B.V.
Mariae a piis verisque sodalibus ex praescripto legum Congregationis reddi solitus (Lemberg), IX, 584, 143.
1772 Rohm Jac., De Immaculata Conceptione B.V. Mariae (Prague),
VII, 26, 1.
During The Suppression
1782 Stadler Fr., German translation of Albertini's answer on the
refusal of the oath to the Immaculate Conception [Augsburg
(uncertain)], VII, 1469, 4.
1787 Rivera F. X., Tractatus de Immaculata Dei Genitricis Conceptione
[Bologna (Ms) ], VI, 1880, A.
1794 Marcelli Et., Triduo per la festa dell'Immacolata Concezione di
M.V. (Bresicia), V, 1294, 21.
1795 Matthaeis P. de, La divozione a Maria SS. Immacolata (Rome),
V, 737, 12.
After The Restoration
1828 Segui Gaet., Devocion a la punstma Concepcion de nuestra
Senora la Virgen Maria (Madrid), VII, 1095, 1.
184- Perkowski Jos., Maria refugium nostrum. Duo novenna in honorem
Immaculatae Conceptionis B.V.M. [(in Polish) Lwow], VI, 543, 11.
1843 Perrone J., Sunto analitico della dissertazione • • • del Card.
Lambruschini sull'Immacolato Concepimento di Maria (Rome),
VI, 563, 7.
1844 Felix Jos., Dissertatio de Immaculata B.V. Mariae Conceptione
(Laval), III, 591, 1.
Fessard Mich., Dissertatio de Immaculata B.Virginis Conceptione
(Laval) , IX, 334, 1.
1847 Peronne J., De Immaculata B.V. Mariae Conceptu, an dogmatico
deere to definiri possit • • • (Rome), VI, 565, 14 (also Madrid:
1848; Munster: 1849; German tr. Regensburg; 1849).
Felix Jos., «Opuscule theologique du R. P. Perrone sur l'Immaculee Conception de la B. Vierge Marie" (art. from 'L'ami de la religion) (Paris), III, 591, 2.
185- Czezowski Yv., Corona Immaculatae Conceptionis [(in Polish)
Cracow], II, 1767, 6.
�396
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
Around And After The Definition
Calvetti Jos., "II domma (dell'Immacolata Concezione) e la
Civilta" in Civilta Cattolica, t.8, 1854, 481-504; II, 569, 1 g.
Liberatore Matth., "Definizione dommatica sopra l'Immacolato
Concepimento di Maria SS," in Civ. Catt., 8, 353- ; IV, 1782, 41 v.
Gargarin J., "L'Immaculee Conception," in L'univers, 25 Oct. and
2 Dec., III, 1094, 35 d.
1854-55 Passaglia Ch., De Immaculato Deiparae Virginis Conceptu, 3
vols. (Naples), VI, 334, 12.
Schrader Cl., Theses theologicae, and collaboration at Passaglia's
work, VII, 912, 1.
1854-56 Ballerini Ant., Sylloge monitmentorum ad mysterium Conceptionis Immaculatae Virginis Deiparae illustrandum, 2 vols. (Rome)
(Paris 1855-57), I, 844, 8.
1855 Denis Ant., Neuvaine en l'honneur de l'lmmaculee Conception
(Tournai), IX, 194, 2.
Haan Jos., Die unbefleckte Empfiingniss der seligsten Jungfrau
und Mutter Gottes Maria als Glaubenslehre der katholischen
Kirche (Paderborn), IV, 3, 1.
Knackstedt F. X., "Refut!ltion of a sermon ••. against the Immaculate Conception," articles in The Catholic Mirror, May 12,
16; June 2, 9, 16, 23; IV, 1124, 1.
Maurel, Ant., L'Immaci!Hie Conception de la S. Vierge (Lyons),
v, 759, 3.
(1855) Perrone J., Thesis dogmatica de Immaculata B.V.M. Conceptione (Rome), VI, 569, 25.
Rademaker Ch., 0 triumpho da [gre ja romana definir;iio do·dogma
da Immaculada Conceir;iio de Maria (Lisbon), VI, 1370,
Speelman Edm., "L'Immacult~e Conception de la Sainte Vierge
sollennisee a l'Universite catholique," in Revue catholique (Louvain), VII, 1432, 2.
1856 Speelman Ch., La Vierge Immaculee, patronne de la Belgique
(Tournai), VII, 1432, 4.
Parodi Al., La fede e la divozione a Maria sempre Immacolata
dichiarata ••• coi sentimenti e colle parole de SS Padri (Rome),
VI, 283, 1.
1857 Gargarin J., Lettre a une dame russe sur l'Immaculee Conception; 2e. lettre .•• ; 3e. lettre ••. , 4e. lettre (Tournai), III, 1091, 8.
Parodi AI., Novena in preparazione alla festa dell'Immacolata
Concezione della Madre di Dio (Rome) coll'aggiunta d'un triduo,
VI, 283, 3.
1858 Gargarin J., Curieu:x: temoignages en faveur de l'ImmacuUe Conception (Paris), III, 1091, 9.
186- Gargarin J., Quatre lettres a une dame russe sur le dogme de
l'Immaculee Conception; [Tournai (same as above 1857) ], III,
1091, 8.
1854
r:- ·
�THE ll\11\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1860
1861
1862
1867
1868
1871
1876
1879
1880
1882
1891
397
Buck, V.de, "Osbert de Clare et l'abM Anselme, instituteurs de la
fete de l'Immacuh~e Conception de la sainte Vierge dans l'E:glise
latine" in Etudes religieuses, nouv. ser. 1860, II, 64-97, 545-82;
II, 327, 71 c.
.•. Mariakapelle oder die Verehrung der ohne Erbsiinde empfangenen allerseligsten Jungfrau und Gottesmutter Maria in den
Festen, Gebriiuchen, Andachten und Congregationen, sowie im
Volksleben der katholischen Kirche, von Paul Sauceret. In der
deutschen Bearbeitung durchgesehen und verbessert von einem
Priester S.J. (Munster), IX, 1168.
Tavani Mich., Sette domeniche della B.V. Immacolata (Rome),
VII, 1895, 1.
Jungmann Jos., Gebeten und Betrachtungen zur Verehrung der unbefleckten Empfiingniss Mariii ••• von A. Parodi, iibersetzt und
vermehrt (Innsbriick), IV, 884, 4.
Cornoldi J., Sententia S.Thomae de immunitate B.V.M. a peccati
originalis labe (Brescia), IX, 114, 2.
Baczynski Th., Corona duodecim stellarum lmmaculatae Conceptionis Mariae Virginis [(in Polish) Cracow], I, 756, 3.
Gargarin J., L'Eglise russe et l'lmmaculee Conception (Paris),
III, 1093, 26.
Jungmann Jos., Zur Verehrung unserer Lieben Frau, namentlich ihrer unbefleckten Empfiingniss. Andachtsiibungen • • •
(Freiburg in Baden), IV, 885, 10.
Cahier Ch., "Le petit office de l'Immaculee Conception," in Etudes
religieuses, 5, 143-47, 622-23; II, 518, 14 q.
Vagnozzi J., Lavere felicita gustata in un mese di apparecchio alla
festa delllmmacolata Concezione (Modena), IX, 895, 6.
Kingdon G., Form of consecration of studies in honour of the Immaculate Conception B.M.V. used at Stonyhurst. IX, app. xii, 18.
Cornoldi J., Partenio. La creazione e la lmmacolata. Converzazione
scholastiche. (Rome), IX, 119, 49.
SERMONS ON THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
Preliminary remark: Many entries in this list include more than one
sermon on the Immaculate Conception; a few of them are also found in
the first list; in this catalogue are not included the sermons on the Immaculate Conception contained in collections of sermons on Our Ladyin Sommervogel's Index there are as many as seventy-five of such collections which may include sermons or panegyrics on the Immaculate
Conception. We leave out titles and places and list only the names of
the authors, with references to Sommervogel's volumes.
'I
I
Before The Suppression
I
161- Giullen Den., III, 1935, 2.
1615 Manrique Rodr., V, 504, 1.
1615-18 Pineda J. de, VI, 799-800, 8, 13.
..
''
I_
.'
i
�398
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1618
Mastrilli N., V, 717, 2.
Onate P. da, V, 1918, A.
1619 Labata Fr., IV, 1291, 2.
Matute Bern. de, V, 746, 1, 2.
Mayr J. B., V, 819, 1.
1622 Escobar Barth., de, III, 435, 2.
1624 Igra~a J. de, IV, 550, 1.
Magalhaens C. de, V, 306, E.
1637 Raynaud Th., VI, 1540, 58.
1640 Spucces Jos., VII, 1462, 7.
1641 Colindres P. de, II, 1290, 1.
Pimentel F., VI, 760, 5, 6.
1642 Herrera Ant. de, IV, 311, 1. )
1643 Naxera Emm., V, 1601, 2, 15.- ..
1646 San Miguel J., VII, 572, 1.
1647 Gans J., III, 1183, A.
Machado Fr., V, 252, 5.
1648 Luca Ch. F. de, V, 144, 4.
1649 Gentilotti Corn., III, 1330, 1.
1651 Almaguer Andr. de, I, 186, 1.
Castro BI. de, II, 859, 1.
Cobos P. de, II, 1255, 1.
1653 Lindelauf J., IV, 1840, 1.
1654 Castro Aug. de, II, 857, 11.
Ribadeneira Ant. de, VI, 1523, 2.
1655 Legaspi L. de, IV, 1659, 1.
1657 Engel Arn., III, 393, 1.
1658 Jellentschitsch Fred., IV, 788, 4.
Saa Ant. de, VII, 355, 7.
Sarasa A. A., VII, 627, A.
1659-60 Fresneda Fr. de, III, 966, 1, 3.
166- Mangen Ch., V, 477, 3.
1661 Cortes Osorio J., II, 1489, 1.
1662 Allemand P., I, 182, 1.
Esquex P. Fr., III, 456, 23.
Rodriguez de Vera F., VI, 1982, 1.
1663 Principato Fr., VI, 1231, 3.
Takacs Mart., VII, 1819, 1.
Todtfelder Christ., VIII, 59, 3.
1667 Quiles Cuellar P., VI, 1344, 1.
167- Maruffi Sulp., V, 658, 2.
1671 Pawlowski D., VI, 396, 7. ,
1672 Ferrand J ., III, 662.
Vazquez Aug., VIII, 971, 5.
1675 Wallis J. Rob., VIII, 971, 5.
1676 Neumann M., V, 1653, 1.
1677 Schwann Wolfg., VII, 943, 4.
1679 Dantzig Coli. of, IX, 174, 36.
Kretzmer H., IV, 1239, 2.
-'L
�THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
399
1682 Lopez Fr., IV, 1946, 8.
1685 Tanner J., VII, 1857, 13.
1687 Rynicwicz R., VII, 345, 2.
1689 Robles J. de, VI, 1925, 8.
1692 Badlahar J., I, 757, 1.
1692-3 Tapia Jos., VII, 1866, 1, 2.
1694 Castilla Mich. de, II, 848, 1.
1696 Ivanich G., IV, 694, 2.
1696-7 Turotzi Mich., VIII, 280, 2.
1698-1772 Vienna Coli. of, VIII, 717-24, 5, 7, 16, 31, 38, 40-2, 44, 45.
170- Eggartner Fr., III, 341, 3.
1701 Vorster Guill., VIII, 905, 1.
1701-1773 Turnau Coli. of, VIII, 318-21, 1-67.
1702 Petretics St., VI, 631, 1.
1703 Lopez Laur., IV, 1954, 3.
-(an), IX, 1357.
1704 Dunin P., III, 286, 19.
Gullik Gasp., III, 1948, 1.
1705 Szamaroczi P., VII, 1742, 2.
1706 Chraligh J os., II, 1158, 1.
1707 Sigrao And., VII, 1204, 1.
1708 Uihazi Gasp., VIII, 339, 1.
1709 Ramirez Ant., VI, 1432, 1.
Tamasi Nic., VII, 1826, 1.
1710 Turotzi Lad., VIII, 278, 2.
1712 Andia Irarrazabal J os. de, I, 135, 1.
Grandi F., IX, 430, 3.
Gyalogi J., III, 1980, 1.
1714 Garbelli Ant., III, 1199, A.
1715 Gassner J. B., III, 1254, 1.
Leris Jos. M. de, IV, 1713, 1.
1716 Haider J os., IV, 25, 1.
Lemberg Coli. of, IV, 1677, 44.
Szczaniecki Et., VII, 1745, 11.
1717 Tallian P., VII, 1821, 1.
1718 Donati Fred., III, 134, 1.
1719 Ostrowski Cas., V, 1983, 3.
1721 Brumovski Fr., II, 243, 3.
1721-35 Andosilla J os., I, 136, 2, 3, 6.
1722 Carli Th., II, 751, 1.
Libenitzki J ., IV, 1772, 1.
1723 Szabo Et., VII, 1737, 3.
1724 Benyovski Paul, I, 1314, 3.
Bogucki Jos., I, 1588, 3.
Wiewszewski Cas., VIII, 1121, 9.
1725 Imrickovics G., IV, 559, 4.
Lamberg Jos., IV, 1407, 1.
1725-30 Fernandez Trevino Fr., III, 658, 2, 3.
�400
THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
1726 Rachenberger Math., VI, 1363, 1.
1727 Tagliarini P., VII, 1814, 10.
1728 Echeberria Mart. de, III, 328, 1.
1729 Litkei Ferd., IV, 1870, 1.
1730 Fischer Leop., III, 754, 5.
Hicsoldt P., IV, 365, 2.
Mijares Jac., V, 1080, 1.
1731 Keri Fr. B., IV, 1009, 2.
1734 Basani Jac. Ant., I, 1002, 5.
Trstzyanski J. B., VIII, 256, 4.
1735 Honorato J., IV, 455, 1.
Petko N., VI, 628, 4.
1736 Brunn, Sodality of, II, 261, 2. (1736) Laurenchich Nic., IV, 1563, 1.
1738 Kelemen Ant., IV, 975, 5.
"174- Plochocki Jos., VI, 299, A.
1740 Scickmayr F. X., VII, 780, 1.
1741 Peringer A., VI, 539, 1.
1742 Kmita Stan., IV, 1123, 2.
Schmidhauer And., VII, 805, 1.
1743 Cseffalvai Paul, II, 1715, 1.
1744 Garcia y Vera Jul., III, 1224, 1.
Jaszlinsky And., IV, 759, 1.
1745 Espejo A., III, 452, 1.
Maister Jos., V, 371, 1.
1746 Vargyas Et., VIII, 464, 1.
1747 Wittmann Ad., VIII, 1185, 1.
1748 Jabroczki Paul, IV, 705, 1; IX, 512 2.
1749 Loska G., V, 27, 1.
175- Kowalski J ., IV, 1208, 13.
1750 Grill G., III, 1826, 6.
Skenderlitz P., VII, 1287, 1.
Szegedi M., VII, 1755, 14.
1751 Mayol J., V, 806, 2.
Reviczki Ant., VI, 1687, 1.
1752 Budrioli And., II, 335, 8.
Ivansics J., IV, 694, 3.
1753 Bedekovics Cas., I, 1126, 1.
Mira Ant., V, 1120, 1.
1754 Kenyeres J os., IV, 1002, 1.
Purulich Math., VI, 1311, 1.
1755 lllei J., IV, 553, 1.
Pohl F. X., VI, 919, 1.
1756 Bernolak Ant., I, 1353, 1.
Faicser Fred., III, 529, 1.
Kielpsz M., IV, 1035, 3.
1757 Horvath Mich., IV, 4 71, 2.
Przemyl Coli. of, VI, 1263, 24.
�THE 11\ll\IACULATE CONCEPTION AND THE SOCIETY
401
Geppert Ern., III, 1341, 4.
Radics Ant., VI, 1382, 1.
1759 Wagner Ch., VIII, 938, 1.
1759-62 Juan Joach., IV, 861-2, 1-4.
1760 Horvath J. B., IV, 465, 1.
Mitterpacher L., V, 1133, 1.
176- Tessanack J., VII, 1904, 2.
1761 Ferrusola P., III, 700, C.
1762 Zacher And., VIII, 1436, 1.
1763 Eximeno Ant., III, 492, 6.
Pingserver And., VI, 1300, 4.
Solai Gasp. de, VII, 1350, 4.
1764 Holzacpfel L., IV, 447, 2.
Petzler J os., VI, 639, 1.
1766 Maillath Ant., V, 341, 3.
Miralles Jos., V, 1124, 2.
1767 Adami J. N ep., I, 50, 1; VIII, 1570, 1.
Diesbach J., III, 55, 4.
Dubnitzai J., III, 227, 1.
1768 Szerdahelyi G., VII, 1779, 1.
1769 Rainis Jos., VI, 1409, 3.
177- Grotz! God., III, 1718, 1.
Urira Ign., VIII, 1249, 77, L.
1770 Grim J ., III, 1829, 1.
1771 Trist Gasp., VIII, 254, 3.
1772 Irowski J ., IV, 648, 4.
1758
During The Suppression
1774-80 Schoenfeld F., VII, 850-1, 10, 15, 23.
1778 Diernbacher J ., III, 52, 2.
178- Cella J ac. della, II, 943, M.
1784 Jarocki Ign., IV, 747, 2.
1795 Mastalier Ch., V, 710, 2.
After The Restoration
Perrone J., VI, 567, 20.
Passaglia Ch., VI, 334, 11.
Curci Ch., II, 1736, 12.
Frentrop Arn., III, 963, 5.
Lerdo Ign., IV, 1712, 8.
Narbone AI., V, 1580, 37.
Vercruysse B., VIII, 589, 3.
1858 Paris Jul., VI, 218, 3.
1865 Sagrini Tib., VII, 375, 2.
1871 Orlando J os., IX, 735, 3.
1875 Rossi J. B., VII, 173, 8.
1881 Onorati A., IX, 733, J, d.
1853
1854
1855
I
�-----·
-FATHER JOHN J. CLIFFORD
1883-1953
Father Clifford was the second superior of the Jesuit community at St. Mary of the Lake Seminary, Mundelein, Illinois,
and the seminary may be said to provide a good summary of
his life as a priest, since most of his activities were either
centered in it or stemmed frow it.
His funeral emphasized the fact of his close identification
with the seminary. Though death came to him in a Chicago
hospital, his remains were brought back to the seminary for
a solemn requiem celebrated by Msgr. Foley, the rector of the
seminary, and the blessing at that Mass was given by Bishop
O'Connor of Springfield, Illinois, who is an alumnus of the
seminary. When in the afternoon the body was to be carried
back to Chicago, the entire student body in cassock and surplice escorted the remains. from the chapel to the hearse where
the farewell blessing was pronounced by Father Culhane,
prefect of the theologians. In Chicago the next day at St.
Ignatius Church, after the recital of the office of the dead by
the Jesuit community, another solemn requiem was celt~brated
by the provincial of the Chicago Province, Father Egan. In
attendance were an archbishop, four bishops,. one of whom,
Bishop Cousins of Peoria, delivered the funeral sermon, and
a large gathering of diocesan and order priests, most of them
connected in some way with the seminary. Cardinal Stritch
was in Rome at the time; but he sent a cablegram expressing
his sorrow at the great loss to himself and to the archdiocese.
After tertainship at Paray-le-Monial Father Clifford went to
Rome for a biennium in preparation for teaching moral
theology at the seminary. He began his teaching in the fall
of 1923 and for twenty years he conducted classes with the
·liveliness and enthusiasm that were so characteristic of him.
There was never a dull moment in his classes. He taught
principles clearly, forcibly, and in pithy form, illustrated them
with telling examples, and thrashed them out in daily quizzes.
How well his students remembered these principles is attested
-L
�-
©sHELBURNE
FATHER JOHN J. CLIFFORD
�-·
�OBITUARY
403
by the fact that they still love to quote verbatim their professor's pet phrases. Besides his class work he encouraged
the founding of the Bellarmine Society, a group of students
dedicated to the literary expression of topics of general
Catholic interest, and he supervised their work and presided
at their biweekly meetings for many years until his duties as
superior of the community forced him to commit this task to
another member of the faculty.
From the very beginning of his teaching at the seminary
Father Clifford was selected by Cardinal Mundelein to conduct
the quarterly diocesan conferences for the clergy of the archdiocese, and he continued this work up to the time of his
death. This involved preparing cases of conscience and
papers on matters of moral or canon law and conferring with
those chosen to present the matter at the conferences.
During all these years not only his former students but
other priests also consulted him frequently on their "cases,"
and many came regularly to the seminary to seek his advice.
His worth as consultant became known beyond the confines
of the archdiocese, and his extensive correspondence shows
how prelates, priests, and laymen even from distant localities
prized solutions and counsels from his pen.
Branching out from this work was his lecturing to groups of
Chicago professional men, especially doctors. From his early
years at the seminary he was much sought after as a preacher
for special occasions such as the Tre Ore. Later he undertook the task of giving retreats to priests, and he was soon in
demand as a retreat master for priests not only in the Middle
West but also in the East. His retreat was a practical, persuasive presentation of the Spiritual Exercises in substance,
if not always in form.
Twelve years before his death Father Clifford succeeded
Father Furay as superior of the major residence of Ours at
the seminary, and as such he was also President of the Pontifical Faculty of Theology and General Prefect of Studies
for the whole student body. This office called for unusual
executive ability because of the arrangement by which Ours
are in charge of the scholastic and spiritual training of the
students, while the general administration and some of the
teaching are entrusted to the secular priests of the faculty.
'
' i
�____
404
OBITUARY
It is easy to imagine the conflicts that could result from such
divided jurisdiction. Within a year Father Clifford was confronted by at least one very trying situation, but under his
patient and tactful direction the harmonious working of all
the factors was successfully maintained.
This increase of work, however, soon proved too great a
strain, and within two years Father Clifford suffered his first
heart attack. His preaching and retreat days were over. For
months he slowly but surely regained his physical strength,
and then he was able to take up_his seminary work again. He
held daily conferences with th~ 'students, acquainting himself
with each one's scholastic standing, advising on difficulties, and
inquiring about spiritual progress and contentment.
Shortly before he became superior, he had succeeded
Father Furay in actively co-operating with the National
Catholic Educational Association. He continued this work
up to his death, for many years being Senior Vice President of
the Association and a member of the executive board. Members of the Association highly appreciated his counsel, and
many of them wired N atiQnal Headquarters that they mourned
him as a departed friend. In his letter of condolence the General Secretary wrote: "His interest and zeal have been matched
only by the great spirit of dedication that he brought to the
work of the Association. It is hard to recall a time when
Father Clifford failed to be present for the thrice yearly meeting. He could always be counted upon to present a sane and
thoroughly Christian and forward-looking program."
It was especially by his devotion to priests active in the
general pastoral ministry that Father Clifford was for thirty
years "a priest's priest", as Bishop Cousins described him in
his funeral sermon. Besides serving as their guide in moral
theology, he was frequently present at their parish activities
such as dedications, confirmations, and jubilees. He rarely
missed the funeral of a priest or of a priest's close relative,
p.nd he made it a matter of duty to assist at the last rites of a
parent or near relative of a· Mundelein seminarian. All this
made him thoroughly acquainted with the clergy of Chicago,
and he encouraged his faculty to do all they could even at
great expenditure of time and labor for the alumni in the
vineyard.
..
�OBITUARY
405
So it is not to be wondered that Father Clifford was dearly
beloved by priests everywhere, and especially by the Chicago
clergy. In his sermon after the requiem Mass in the seminary
chapel the Rector of the seminary exclaimed, "We feel his
loss very keenly." Priests of his own age and younger members of the alumni wrote about his death in terms of unmistakable affection. They manifested their esteem by coming in
crowds to the wake, the funeral, and the burial. Bishop
Cousins' comment was: "He touched our lives so intimately
that each of us feels he has suffered a personal loss."
Father Clifford was not only a priest of preeminence with
the men of the diocese, but he was an excellent community
member too because of his daily fidelity to spiritual duties and
his faithful attendance at community recreation and "long
order" soirees. The latter cut into much needed rest, but
kept him close to his community. He made recreation time
an enjoyable period for conversation-he had so much to chat
about, and he could be a good listener also. In dealing with
people he displayed admirable self-control, being patient to a
marked degree. with all his callers. As superior he was
strenuous in defending his community against the criticisms
of those who failed to give proper consideration to the unusual
conditions in which Ours work at the seminary. The one time
when his consultors agreed that his attention should be called
to a less prudent innovation, he immediately acquiesced in the
monitum and graciously complied to the end. He served as
consultor of the Chicago Province over a period of eleven years
and on two occasions was elected "alternate" by provincial
congregations.
On Tuesday, the twentieth of October, Father suffered an
acute coronary occlusion. Under an oxygen mask he was
rushed to Columbus Hospital in Chicago. There a few hours
later, after receiving extreme unction, he passed to his eternal
reward. The cablegram sent by Cardinal Stritch closed with
the words: "We shall treasure his worth and his work in
the annals of the archdiocese."
In the light of this and similar tributes from observant
churchmen of prominence, is there not indicated a definite
likeness between the intense consecration of Father Clifford
to the hierarchy and clergy of today and the all-out devoted-
�406
OBITUARY
ness of our first Fathers to the needs of the great archdioceses
of their time?
_}VILLIAM A. Down, S.J.
MR. JOHN R. GLEASON, S.J.
1924-1952
The unsuspected always fights for its recognition. Whether
the unsuspected is the sudden death of a friend, the unlookedfor kindness of a stranger, or the remarkable operation of
grace in an ordinary man in pain, it fights for its recognition
by our minds, which strive to squeeze it into the ordinary
pattern of the suspected. It is this unsuspected display of
grace's operations in the last days of an ordinary scholastic,
John Gleason, S.J., which interests us. Prior to his final illness, little in his brief time in the Society would have led us to
assert vigorously anything more about this man than an ordinary endurance of an extraordinary sickness. But, behind
the facade of ordinariness, God's grace had secretly prepared
his soul for the hour of assault.
Even the community, Brooklyn, in which John Gleason was
born on September 22, 1924, is best described as a sprawling
collection of ordinary, middle-class homes and f~milies, who
follow the local baseball club like other Americans. During
the early days of his boyhood in Brooklyn, John, as has happened to many priests and religious, became interested in the
priesthood. He built himself a small altar out of boxes, scarfs,
glasses, and cardboard; frequently went through the ceremonies of the Mass on this altar, using his own missal. This
early interest, however, did not make him sanctimonious, for
if there was any fun going on in the classroom or neighborhood, John was usually in the middle of it.
While the early interest in the priesthood continued into his
high school days at St. Fr.ancis Prep in Brooklyn, John also,
like many boys of this age, developed a devotion to Our Lady,
which found its expression in John's case in the purchase, out
of his own savings, of a statue of Our Lady of Grace. In his
home the boy gave this statue a place of honor. Such love
and interest in the Mass, priesthood, and Our Lady grew obvi-
�-
•
OBITUARY
407
ously into a desire to dedicate his life to God. After reading
many books on various orders, this high school lad felt an
attraction to the Society. This attraction persisted despite
the fact that a former Jesuit to whom John spoke, advised
him against entering the Society. In time, John met Mr.
Harold Miller, who urged him to send his questions to his
brother, Father Walter Miller, S.J., then studying at Harvard. Father Miller suggested to John that he transfer for
his senior year to Brooklyn Prep. From there he entered the
Society at St. Andrew-on-Hudson on September 7, 1942.
The years at St. Andrew, novitiate and juniorate, and the
years at Woodstock were marked by ordinary success in
studies, a s~emingly ordinary response to the spiritual life,
and a less than ordinary athletic ability. Only one incident,
known to very few, does not harmonize with this picture, but
stands out in contrast. During a haustus on Sunday night a
scholastic, who had been unwell during the day, visited John
and mentioned that he had not been able to go to supper, but
felt hungry now. John at once offered to go and get something for him from haustus. While John was carrying out his
errand of mercy another scholastic, who was looking on, took
it upon himself to accuse him of selfishness for taking food to
his room. Mr. Gleason never explained the circumstances,
but the next morning simply went to the scholastic to apologize for cre_ating a scene.
At the end of philosophy, Mr. Gleason was to begin a period
of cheerful acceptance of the pains of cancer. He tried diligently, and almost successfully, to hide his suffering. Few of
those who knew him ever learned how much he endured.
The illness began during the summer after philosophy when
John was troubled by a great deal of pain at the base of his
spine. It was not until October, however, that the doctors
found the source of the trouble, a tumor, and operated. Since
the diagnosis of cancer was doubtful, John was sent to Memorial Hospital for Cancer in New York to see if a certain
diagnosis could not be had. Here, although the X-rays produced serious reactions, the pain was considerably relieved,
and by April he was resting at 84th Street, St. Ignatius.
Still weak at the end of the next summer, John asked for
and received a teaching assignment at Brooklyn Prep. In the
beginning it was a light schedule, but John, not wishing to be
b
a
�408
OBITUARY
a burden to anyone, repeatedly asked for a regular schedule,
which was granted to him at the mid-term. During these ten
months John was plagued by the necessity of changing the
dressing on the wound and by the constant fear of inability to
control his natural functions. A scholastic at Brooklyn maintained, "I cannot recall that he even once complained of the
pain he was suffering or hinted at the inconvenience of changing the dressing on the wound, though he had to put on a new
bandage three times a day." His eagerness to help out continued unabated, even though the pain and suffering grew more
intense. "Each time that I asked him to do something for
me," a scholastic writes, "I received the impression that he
considered it a real favor to be asked to help out."
At the end of second year of regency, Mr. Gleason returned
to Memorial Hospital, never to leave. For eight months the
tumor continued to grow inwardly, pressing on the nerves
and surrounding organs, and outwardly through the original
incision. As demonstrative of his attitude towards suffering,
he told his mother never to pray that the pain would ease, but
only that he could get on his feet, as he would welcome any
cross just to become a priest. Frequently he assigned various
hours of sufferings to different intentions. Particularly difficult parts of the day were given as spiritual bouquets to someone sick or in trouble. Few of his intimates were ever allowed to know of these practices, for, when they visited him,
he asked about the Society, the changes in the province, the
success of various works. His interest in the Society forced
backstage his own plight.
As the months dragged on, John's intimates, by piecing
together small details, began to realize the extent of his sufferings, for it was conceded by the doctors that his was one
of the worst cases at Memorial. His friends realized that
John had hidden the extent of his pain and the religious use
of his pain. This unsuspected acceptance of pain did not fit
the pattern of the ordinary man they had known before, this
"l.msuspected acceptance fought for its recognition, this unsuspected acceptance demands of those who knew John the
humble acknowledgment that here was the secret and loving
operation of God's providence and grace.
EUGENE J. QUIGLEY, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
HISTORY
China in the 16th Century: The Journals of Matthew Ricci 1583-1610.
Translated by Louis J. Gallagher, S.J. New York, Random House,
Inc., 1953. Pp. xxii-616. $7.50.
By means of this translation from the Latin of an Italian original
draft, the English speaking world is now in contact with a great missionary document. Ricci, who was born a month and a half before
Xavier died, begins his account with the saga of St. Francis' vain
attempt to enter China. He traces the early efforts to gain a permanent
foothold on the mainland, which the Chinese, suspicious of foreigners
since the Tartar conquest of their nation, strongly opposed. In September of 1583 the first beachhead was secured in the province of Canton.
Amid hardship, persecution, consolations, and obvious divine intervention, the mission was established step by step until, at length, a center
was opened in the royal capital at Peking. The first editor of these
journals, Father Nicholas Trigault, S.J., completed this tale of the
pioneer efforts of the Church and the Society of Jesus in China by
adding the details of Ricci's death.
The basic purpose of these journals was to tell of the foundation
and growth of this mission. But it would be altogether wrong to think
that this is all that is found in them. The first of the five books in the
Journals tells of the customs, language, arts, and religions of the people;
the geographical features of the country; and the political and educational systems that prevailed at the time. Throughout the later books
more light and detail are added to the content of the first book.
Fr. Ricci stands out as a giant of God. He combined deep piety with
vast learning, admirable tact with a certain inspired audacity, and with
all this he had the power of captivating men's hearts. He is a prime
example of missionary adaptation. Besides putting on all the externals
of the Chinese literati, he so learned the language and classics of China
that the greatest masters, at times, sent their students to Ricci for
further instruction.
Of course, the volume evokes comparison with the China of today.
China is now closed to the Catholic missionaries by rulers in the garb
of Mars breathing hatred of God and His Church. But, in Ricci's time,
a suspicious China was also a peace-loving realm guided by men steeped
in the Confucian ethic, who were able to perceive the goodness of the
Christian message. Reading this volume one is reminded of Xavier's
vision of a Christian China leading to a Christian Orient. Now, the
communists are busy trying to destroy the work of the last three
and a half centuries, but Xavier, Ricci, and the others who have died
on Chinese soil in God's cause must prevail in the end.
Fr. Gallagher's translation work is of a high order. A few maps
would have aided one in following the peregrinations of Ricci-and of
Brother Bento de Goes, S.J., whose remarkable overland "odyssey" from
India to China is told in three chapters of this book. A "Chinese Index"
�410
BOOK REVIEWS
is added, which may be of some value to Sinologists. However, explanatory notes and other scholarly apparatus are very sparse. But, these
few defects do little to lessen the impact of an extremely edifying and
informative work.
JOHN J. LYNCH, S.J.
News of the World. A History of the World in Newspaper Style. By
Sylvan Hoffman and C. Hartley Grattan. New York, Prentice Hall,
1953. Pp. 208. $4.95.
This volume gives a broad outline of world events from 3000 B.C. to
the present day. It consists of fifty-one four-paged issues of News of the
World, each of which is dated and printed in a format similar to the
modern tabloid. The first issue is dated March 17, 1447 B.C. but some
of the news items included are also tlated more than a thousand years
before. The next to last issue is dated Sep. 8, 1945 and covers the
years 1939-45. The material is presented in journalistic style and is
uniformly easy to read. In addition the writers are well informed
and there is, as a rule, substance to their production. The scope is
broad: religious, political, cultural; and many other newsworthy events
of the East as well as the West are reported. Catholic readers will be
pleased to find that matters affecting the Church are handled in as
friendly a spirit as could be expected. References to the Jesuits, which
are of course few, are well informed, except for the announcement of
the Suppression. The book should stimulate· those who desire to know
world history by creating an eagerness for further investigation.
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
PRIESTLY APOSTOLATE
His Heart in our Work. Thoughts for a Priestly Apostolate. Edited by
Francis L. Filas, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce, 1954. Pp. x-192. $3.75.
These essays have been collected from the now defunct Alter Christus,
the one-time journal for priests, edited by mid-western Jesuits. And a
good selection is contained in the book at least in breadth of subject
matter. Among those aspects of the priestly spiritual life touched upon
are: devotion to the Sacred Heart, to Mary and St. Joseph; the apostolate,
virtues, prayer and the liturgy. Each of these reflections could well
serve as material for the monthly recollection. And to aid in this use
of them there is an appendix, presenting an "examen status."
The essays number forty-three, the contributors twenty-four-most
of them well-known Jesuits of both the Chicago and Missouri provinces:
James J. Daly, Gerald Ellard, Adam Ellis, Francis X. McMenamy,
•
Gerald Kelly, etc.
Aside from the rather steep price, the book is well-worth reading and
praying over. Essentials of sanctity, such as prayer and its relation
to the active life, are found throughout. The style is arresting, and the
length of each reflection is suiteP, to a morning's mental prayer.
JOHN F. X. BURTON, S.J.
�•
411
BOOK REVIEWS
EPISTLES OF THE LITURGICAL YEAR
That We May Have Hope. Reflections on the Epistles of the Sunday
Masses and Some of the Feasts. By William A. Donaghy, S.J.
New York, The America Press, 1954. Pp. xii-205. $3.50.
The author disclaims the intention to present anything distinguished
or notable in these brief comments on texts from Holy Scripture. The
book is, however, notable in that it is one of the few of its kind that
treats of the Epistles of the Liturgical Year. And readers will find
that it does not lack that distinction which pertinent thought on the
problems of life gives to literature, secular and religious. One characteristic of the essays is an obivous charity of outlook which is more
than gentlemanly good humor and kindliness but includes them. This
charity extends to thoughts and attitudes as well as to persons. Father
Donaghy hopes that his commentary will lead the faithful to personal
examination of the Holy Scriptures. Whether this pious purpose is
realized or not, his essays will bring the inspiration of some sections
of Holy Writ to many.
EDWARD
A.
RYAN,
S.J.
MODERN PHILOSOPHY
A History of Modern European Philosophy. By James Collins. Milwaukee, The Bruce Publishing Company, 1954. Pp. vi-854. $9.75.
The principal aim of A History of Modern European Philosophy is to
introduce students to the vast field of modern thought. Both the length
of the one volume book (some eight hundred pages), and the scope of
the work (the Renaissance background through Bergson), indicate the
extent and the type of introduction that are offered.
The chapter unit is composed of three elements: a systematic exposition of the main themes of the philosophy under examination, a succinct
summary of the findings of the investigation, and a bibliographical note
for more detailed analysis. The note attached to the first chapter will
prove invaluable to both teacher and student, since the suggested tools
of research range from simple introductions to philosophy to the specialized bibliographies that cover the entire modern period. The
bibliographical note does not simply list a number of books. It indicates the special quality of the book that recommends it, and appraises
its specific contribution.
Each chapter gives a concise biographical sketch of the thinker, explains the philosophical guiding principles, and pays particular attention to the nature of method and the possibility of metaphysics. The
author says that the first task of the history of philosophy is to gain an
accurate and sympathetic understanding of the methods and general
standpoints along with the special doctrine of the great thinkers. And
it is in this sympathetic understanding of methods that his history
excels. This understanding of methods is gained through objective
investigation and precise description of the philosopher's "own terrain."
Without this orientation to the mind of the thinker, the history of
: i
�412
BOOK REVIEWS
philosophy would become a sterile project of fact finding and reporting.
With this orientation the history of philosophy re-creates the philosopher's living metaphysical journey.
It is with doctrinal exposition that Dr. Collins is mainly concerned.
And the exposition is as complex or as simple as the exigencies of the
matter. There are always given the metaphysical and methodological
presuppositions of the philosopher, as his relation to preceding thinkers
is fixed. Following the systematic exposition of the philosophy, there is
a sufficient amount of criticism. The author points out the deficiencies
and limitations of the system from the standpoint of the constructed
framework. This is done sometimes through the recording of the
philosopher's own attempt to reconcile conflicting or embarrassing conclusions. Sometimes it is done by pointing out the departure of his
followers from his camp. Outside the ·framework of the system criticism comes from the rejection or modification of his thought by succeeding philosophers. Finally, formal criticism of the author is given
from the Thomistic standpoint whenever the problem has a special
relationship to the content of scholastic philosophy. It is obvious that
every questionable point in a man's system could not be challenged, but
as Dr. Collins suggests, ample opportunity is given the instructor to
develop his own line of criticism.
In the preface it is stated that the purpose of the present volume "is
to aid in some measure the efforts of students to understand and weigh
the leading postmedieval philosoi.?hies." This purpose is most definitely
achieved.
WILLIAM F. CARR, S.J.
CHURCH AND STATE
Catholicism in America. A Series of Articles from Commonweal.--New
York, Harcourt, Brace, & Co., 1954. Pp. viii-242. $3.75.
This series of essays compiled by the editors of Commonweal first appeared in their magazine during 1953. The principle of unity is the
theme, Catholicism in America. Fifteen Catholic laymen and two nonCatholics, all experienced in their field, make up the list of authors.
Reinhold Niebuhr and Will Herberg present a Protestant and a Jewish
attitude toward American Catholics. The contributions are provocative
and deliberately so. Also, without exception, the questions raised are
pertinent, if the Church is to reach its full stature in American life and
if its thirty million members are to exercise an impact proportionate
to their numbers, a thing which these writers seem to agree they have
not done in the past. Regardless of one's opinion on these controversial
issues, the reader is confronted with many situations that will demand
much future thought.
·
The book is an ambitious and successful attempt to present some of
the more liberal ideas on the current role of the Catholic Church in our
secularistic American culture. Background for the problem is the
unique experiment of American government with its fusion of countless
nationalities and its peculiar separation of Church and State, with
�•
BOOK REVIEWS
413
the consequent delicate position of the idem civis et Christianus. The
discussions have the "announced aim of being 'critical' and 'objective'."
They are uniformly critical and for the most part objective. From the
bold nature of the undertaking it would be hard for anyone to agree
with everything that has been said, but impossible for anyone to
disagree with it all. No claim is made "to have produced, even jointly,
anything like a full portrait of American Catholicism."
In the first essay William P. Clancy, assistant editor of Commonweal,
sets the scene. Catholics in this country with its first amendment are
an accepted but suspect and powerful minority. They look upon themselves as the sole bulwark against a rampant secularism. Many nonCatholics, on the other hand, see the Church as authoritarian and antiliberal, and therefore constitutionally opposed to an anti-pluralist democracy. From this arises the question of Catholic pressure tactics. After
justifying the democratic right and duty of groups as well as of individuals to make themselves heard for the good of society, the author
points out that the activity of pressure groups, Catholics included,
is primarily a matter of prudence. From the constant tension between
the two societies and from the unpopularity of achieving a modus vivendi
through a papal concordat, the citizen who is a Catholic, with his right
to speak and vote, must assume the responsibilty of mediating between
Church and State. So the Christian-citizen is today a diplomat faced
with a "historic challenge" and burdened with a "most delicate task."
His real problem arises not on the spiritual plane of activity, nor on
the mixed, where the spiritual must predominate, but rather on the
temporal, where Catholics "seek a false unity," when they speak as
Catholics on utterly material questions which are outside the jurisdiction of a spiritual society but not beyond their rights as mere citizens.
For in a clash between absolute values, the "reaction to the threat of
doctrinaire secularism sometimes becomes an equally doctrinaire
spiritualism." The friction between religion and democracy imposes
a mutual obligation: on Catholics, greater respect for things temporal;
on non-Catholic liberals, greater respect for the rights of the spiritual.
After these preliminary ideas, the subsequent articles present with
varying cogency the not insignificant thought of individual laymen
toward analysing and easing this tension in the various fields of
Catholic activity and increasing the Church's positive contribution to
American culture in education, science, politics, movies, art, literature,
etc. But granted the fact that the Church traditionally dons the costume
of every nation and era, it seems that, at times, some few of the authors
tend to de-emphasize the supernatural nature of the Church as the
hierarchically organized Mystical Body of Christ.
JOHN F. LOWE, S.J.
CHRIST AND THE LAITY
Christ in Our Time. By Raoul Plus, S.J. Tr. by Elizabeth Belloc.
Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. ix-105. $2.25.
The latest addition by Newman Press to their publication of transla-
.,
i
�414
BOOK REVIEWS
tions of Father Raoul Plus's well known writings is Christ in Our Time.
The original, Comment presenter le Christ d notre temps, was published
in 1943 at Paris. The French title gives a clearer idea of the contents,
for the book primarily aims at instilling in priests a feeling for the
need of the ideas expressed. However, much of what Father Plus has
to say can be fruitfully used by the laity engaged in any sort of apostolic
work, as he himself states in his Introduction.
The book is a small treasure trove of inspiration and ideas concerning
an apostolic and practical Christology. The author has divided his
work into two parts: "Christ in the Mind" and "How to Bring Christ
into Human Lives." The first part's particular message is that Catholics
must not only know and believe in Christianity but must really live it
by "putting on Christ." It is, of course, the Pauline doctrine of incorporation, and it is noteworthy that ''the book first appeared in the
year Pope Pius XII gave Mystici Corporis to the world. The second part
is its application to a world rapidly becoming thoroughly pagan. Of
especial interest and force in the first part are two chapters: "Theology
and Life" and "Christ in Christianity"; in the second "What is Meant
by 'Alter Christus'."
One outstanding element in the book leaps out at the reader from
every page: the zealous enthusiasm which the author has so skilfully
transferred to the written word. Miss Elizabeth Belloc deserves high
praise in retaining this flavor and spirit of the original in her translation. To imbibe some of his ~spirit by a thoughtful reading of its
pages, or even meditation upon some of them, will abundantly repay in
spiritual profit the negligible outlay in time.
SERMON SELECTIONS
--
The Law of Love. Spiritual Teaching of Francis Devas, S.J. Edited
by Philip Caraman, S.J. New York, Kenedy & Sons, 1954. Pp. 155.
$2.75.
Father Philip Caraman, S.J., Editor of The Month, follows up his
Saints and Ourselves [Cf. W.L. 83:1 (February, 1954), 123-4] with this
collection of passages selected from the sermons of Father Francis
Devas, S.J. Not too well known here in the United States, Father Devas
for more than thirty years till his death in 1951 was one of Farm
Street's foremost preachers. It is interesting to note here that Father
Devas never wrote out his sermons; the source material for this book was
the stenographic notes taken by a group of admirers who followed him
in·his round of preaching assignm12:_nts. This and many other facts on
his life and ideals Father Caraman sketches briefly in his really intriguing Introduction.
The book itself is a small one, yet brimming with a practical, inspiring spirituality. The only regret of this reviewer is that the passages
selected are normally just a page in length. It would have been of
some interest, and profit, to have had a fuller development of much of
.
..-··
.
�BOOK REVIEWS
415
what Father Devas said so soundly and so graphically. Despite Father
Caraman's efforts towards unity of thought by grouping selections according to related subject matter, the brevity of the selections and the
recurrent change of ideas mark the book as not meant for continuous
reading of any great length of time. For its full value it should be
used for brief periods of reading, joined with reflection on what he says.
As such it is recommendable to Catholic and non-Catholic readers alike.
The Problem of Abuse in Unemployment Benefits. A Study in Limits.
By Joseph M. Becker, S.J. New York, Columbia University Press.
Pp. xx-412. $6.50.
A permanent program of Unemployment Benefits cooperatively administered by State and Federal governments came into existence in
1935 with the enactment of the Unemployment Insurance provisions of
the Social Security Act. Over the years this legislation has been subject
to much modification, and the system itself has not escaped continual
criticism. Some critics have opposed the very concept of Unemployment
Benefits, but for the most part criticism has been focused on "abuses"
in the administration of the program. "Abuses" in this context is
broadly used and includes both improper benefit payments, that is, payments to employed workers and to the voluntarily unemployed, and also
E'xcessive payments, that is, payments which penalize employers seeking
labor for lower paying jobs.
These abuses have been widely discussed, but for the most part the
extent of abuse has been the subject of conjecture, conjecture made by
partisan defenders and critics of the unemployment program. Such
charges are hardly adequate norms for the judgment of the extensive
program of unemployment insurance.
Father Becker's work offers a comprehensive, scholarly analysis of
abuse in the program for the period 1945-1947. Father Becker has
chosen the period of reconversion following World War II as a "limiting
case," a period when abuse would be at a maximum and when the provisions of the legislation would be put to their severest test. An assessment of abuses in this period supplies significant data for an objective
evaluation of the success of the program of unemployment benefits.
The claims that Father Becker makes for his work are modest. It is,
he says, "a study in limits, and a limited study," and his conclusions
cannot be definitive (a limitation often imposed on a scholar who is
first to enter the field). Furthermore, the very mass of data, and its
inadequacies do not permit the measurement of abuses with any degree
of mathematical accuracy. But precisely because of these limits, these
self-imposed restraints, the book is significant. Father Becker displaces
partisan conjecture with facts, facile generalizations with scholarly
analysis.
The book may not please partisan friends or critics of the unemployment program. The lower limit of abuse is indeed higher than friends
of the program have been willing to concede, the upper limits much lower
�416
BOOK REVIEWS
than critics have claimed. But it will be welcomed by students of the
field as an important, objective and impartial study. It will be welcomed too, by hard-pressed administrators of the program caught in a
crossfire between captious public criticism on the one hand, and the
sometimes excessive demands of beneficiaries on the other.
Finally, Father Becker's book is important for still another reason:
Father Joseph Fitzpatrick, S.J., justly observed a few years ago in
"Catholic Responsibilities in Sociology" (Thought, Vol. XXVI) that
"Catholics have a tendency to allow their faith to substitute for knowledge that can only be gained through competent empirical research."
Such competent empirical research is a prerequisite to any Christian
reconstruction of the social order. Father Becker's book is a worthy
addition to the still small number q_f empirical studies by Catholic
scholars.
DANIEL P. MULVEY, S.J.
REFLECTIONS ON HONOR
The Quest of Honor. By E. Boyd Barrett.
Pp. 122. $2.50.
Milwaukee, Bruce, 1953.
The virtue of Honor has always been a fruitful source of literary
inspiration and Dr. E. Boyd Barrett has made it the basis for his recent
collection of reflections, The Quest of Honor. In this book he has attempted to remind the world -of this much misunderstood, urgently
needed virtue. The Godlessness blanketing our country today has
dulled the desire for it, confused its meaning, and set men to babbling
about "honor systems" in education, while they rule it out of business,
social, and even familial relations. In the light of this tragic fact_ and
his own understanding of the generic characteristics of honor, Dr. Barrett discusses such virtues as temperance, justice, courage, hard work,
veracity, pursuit of knowledge, and shame. The book's main appeal
does not depend on any startlingly unique analysis or ideas. Rather it
relies on his quiet approach to and development of his subject; it reads
as if he has aimed directly and acutely at the majority of reading
Americans-the hustling, hurried man and woman. who seldom slow
down for a few minutes of conversation or meditation on the more fundamental values of life, which they normally scamper past. Those
readers who liked his Shepherds in the Mist and Life Begins with Love,
will find this to be quite similar in manner. Those who did not can
pass this. by, since the impact of what he has to say depends so much
OJ} the way he says it.
EUGENE J. O'BRIEN, S.J.
The Christian Life Calendar for 1955 (Bruce, $1.00) has as its theme
increase in virtue. The Calendar which was founded by Father William
Puetter, S.J ., is now edited by two members of the clergy of the Milwaukee Archdiocese.
1
j
-~.
�..
�
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
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Text
THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXII, No. 1
FEBRUARY, 1953
225
CONTENTS FOR FEBRUARY, 1953
A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION ----------------------- 3
DEVOTION TO MARY IN THE SODALITY ------------------------ 17
Josef Stierli
ST. FRANCIS XAVIER-THEN AND NOW ------------------- 46
Honorable Clare Boothe Luce
OBITUARY
Father Raymond J. Mcinnis ----------------------------------- 53
Father Edward C. Phillips ---------------------------- 65
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
The Holy See and the Irish Movement for the
Repeal of the Union with England, 1829-1847 (Brodrick) ______ 93
Novissima Verba ------------------------------------- 94
Life Begins With Love (Barrett) ------------------------------------ 94
Theoriae Corpusculares Typicae in Universitatibus
Societatis Jesu (Feyer) ------------------------------------- 95
PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED -------------------- Inside Back Cover
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Josef Stierli (Swiss Vice-Province) is Master of Novices at
St. Stanislaus Novitiate in Rue, Switzerland.
Father Hugh Bibler (New York Province) teaches experimental psychology at Bellarmine College, Plattsburg, N.Y.
Father Terence Connolly (New England Province) is Director of the
Library at Boston College, Boston, Mass.
Father Gustave Weigel (New York Province) teaches ecclesiology at
Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland.
Mr. Joseph Vetz (Maryland Proyince) is studying Japanese at the
Jesuit language school in Yokosuka, Japan.
Honorable Clare Boothe Luce was former Congresswoman from Connecticut.
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1. 1942. at the post office at Woodstock.
Maryland. under the Act of March 3. 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�A LETTER OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
TC THE WHOLE SOCIETY ON CONTINUAL
MORTIFICATION
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
Pax Christi!
1.-All of you are mindful of the approaching Fourth Centenary of the death of St. Francis Xavier. Whilst various public functions are in course of preparation or are already being
celebrated in different provinces, our whole Society may
rightfully expect that a common effort be made to renew its
interior spirit, for such a renewal will be more pleasing to
God and more conducive to the salvation of souls than external festivities alone. Amongst those who aided St.
Ignatius in founding the Society of Jesus, the principal place
is deservedly attributed to St. Francis Xavier; by his example he has shown the way to all members of the Society
engaged in apostolic ministries; for those especially who are
engaged in what we call foreign missions, he is proclaimed
by the Church, Primary Patron. Though being active to a
miraculous degree, yet at the same time incessantly given to
the loftiest type of contemplation, he showed by his achievements how the men of the Society, if they are faithful to the
grace given them, can "seek God in all things."
It was by his heroic and continual mortification, as far as
we can judge by externals, that St. Francis cooperated with
this grace. Following the counsel of his holy Father Ignatius,
who was his master in the spiritual life, Xavier, while still
making the Exercises at the very outset of his conversion to a
life of greater perfection, began, by severe penance, to make
amends for the purposelessness of his earlier life. Nor is anyone ignorant of the severe sufferings he underwent during his
apostolic journeys right up to his final efforts to enter China
and the severe penances he unreservedly added to the trials
sent by Divine Providence.
This anniversary, therefore, offers me an apt occasion to
fulfil what I promised in my letter of September 15, 19511 to
the whole Society on the matter of poverty of Ours, namely,
to speak to all of you regarding the spirit and practice of
mortification in our daily religious life.
�4
ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
2.-A treatment of this subject is called for, I believe, by
reason of the too rapidly spreading influence of that opinion
already proscribed by the Encyclical Humani generis, by
which opinion "in disregard for the definitions of the Council
of Trent," not only "is the notion of original sin perverted,"
but "the very notion of sin in general as an offense against God
and likewise the notion of satisfaction offered for us by Christ
is perverted." 2 For if the life, passion and death of Christ our
Lord were not in truth a satisfaction for the sins of the human
race, since there was no need for "satisfaction," why are we
disciples of Christ asked to do reparatory penance? Again,
if there is no place for satisfaction, how can penance be pleasing to God and procure His graces. Should we not in fact
give up those narrow counsels still being handed down to us,
as they say, from the Middle Ages? Should we not give up
our devotion to the Sacred Heart in the sense in which it was
taught by St. Margaret Mary and approved by our late
Supreme Pontiff, Pius XI? 3 Should we not be content with
that moderate natural asceticism which is sufficient to hold in
check the more violent impulses of our nature excessively
prone as it is to evil because of a depraved heritage of many
centuries?
3.-These and other errors connected with them are not
confined to one locality nor can it be said that our Order had
been no wise contaminated by them. What a tragedy indeed
it would be if our Society should fall away from orthodox
teaching in this matter! For if the first Fathers, formed by
the very founder, could reduce the spirit of our Cortstitutions
to that formula, in reality Pauline, which we custoinarily call
the Sum and Aim of Our Constitutions: "Men crucified to
the world and to whom the world itself is crucified, such would
the rule of our life have us to be," 4 how can we boast that,
having been freed from that "formalism" whereby the letter
threatens to kill the spirit, we wish to return to the original
spirit of our founder whilst at the same time we differ from
him on such a fundamental issue?
4.-To you who have both the Spiritual Exercises and Constitutions constantly before your eyes, there can be no question
regarding the mind of our holy Father on mortification. After
he has explained the doctrine, too, of corporal mortification or
�ON CONTINUAL l\10RTIFICATION
5
bodily penance in the Exercises which are wholly directed to
conquering and mortifying inordinate affections which hinder
the soul from a complete service of God, 5 in the Constitutions
he applies the same teaching to our religious and apostolic
life. Very well known to you is the text which has become
Rule Twelve in the Summary of our Constitutions: if we desire more perfectly to arrive at that high degree of perfection,
namely, the love and following of Christ humiliated and suffering referred to in the Eleventh Rule of the Summary, St.
Ignatius counsels us, " ... let it be each one's chief and most
earnest endeavor in all things, as far as he can, to seek in the
Lord his own greater abnegation and continual mortification."6 These words are hard on sensuality but they are the
authentic words of our Father. When he treats of the formation of his religious, he demands "in those things that pertain to food, clothing and lodging and other bodily necessities,
that with God's help care be had that these be such as to
test their virtue and self-abnegation, but at the same time
sufficient to sustain nature." 1 Therefore, our holy Father
desires that the superior certainly take care of the strength
and health of his subjects without at the same time neglecting to try their virtue and abnegation in those things pertaining to the care of the body. Where, however, he treats of
the formed religious, our holy Father expressly teaches what
he often intimates elsewhere in the Constitutions: namely,
he supposes that his religious, inspired by an ardent spirit
inculcated in them by the Exercises, will be inclined to go beyond the limits of severity and will have to be restrained by
their confessor or the superior himself. "Regarding the use
of fast, vigils and other means of bodily austerity and chastisement, it does not seem that any rule should be set down
for them except that norm which judicious charity will dictate
to each one . . ." 8 He desires that the rector of a college or
university be a man "conspicuous for his good example and
edification and also eminent for his mortification of all evil
tendencies" ;9 the very same thing he repeats concerning the
General himself. 10 What use is there of going further? Who
is there who doubts the mind of St. Ignatius with respect
even to corporal mortification?
�6
ON CONTINUAL l\IORTIFICATION
5.-It is true that our "manner of living as to external
things . . . is common ; and has no ordinary penances or
corporal austerities obligatory on all," yet this by no means
hinders "one from undertaking, with the superior's approbation whatever he shall think expedient for his greater spiritual
profit"; furthermore, as St. Ignatius adds explicitly, and whatever for the same end "superiors may impose upon him."11
Although, in most Orders of that time it was the practice to
fast on days besides those set down by the common laws of
the Church, to rise at night for the Divine Office, to go barefoot, to take the discipline on appointed days, yet this was not
imposed on all Institutes. The use however of these and
similar exercises, when undertaken "according to the measure
of holy discretion," 12 is highly recommended to the individual
members of the Society. Nor will it be an exaggeration to
maintain that a religious of the Society would extinguish the
fervor of his spiritual life, if he should entirely omit corporal
penances unless he do so because of illness or some equally
good reason and, as far as possible, this omission have the
approval of his confessor.
6.-Is there anyone amongst us who would be so bold as to
say that his sensuality is already under such control that it
never in any wise rebels against the dictates of reason? For
if even those wise men antedating Christian Revelation recognized the advantages of some kind of asceticism for the proper
training and direction of the natural passions, what should
be the attitude of the Christian who understands that his
nature is not only imperfect and prone to evil but-that it also
bears the wound of original sin and the further weakness consequent upon his personal sins. If the Apostle Paul must confess that he chastises his body and brings it into subjection
lest after he has preached to others he himself should become a
castaway,t 3 what, I beseech you, should weak men like ourselves say and do in this respect? We can less afford to disregard that partially natural efficacy of mortification, for because
of unsteadiness of nerves the will of most of us is also
weakened and this weakened will, as is borne out by daily experience, now more easily falls prey to less serious temptations. By a certain prudent yet strong and austere asceticism, the will will be rendered strong in good and with this the
�ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
7
nerves will be strengthened at the same time. For mortification when used with discretion, benefits not only the soul
but also the body which gains in vigor with harsher treatment.
7.-Also whilst calling attention to this particular advantage derived from mortification, St. Ignatius, in that lOth
Addition for the First Week,14 lays stress on what seems to be
the principal purpose of mortification, namely, satisfaction
for sins. Certainly no one of us will so "deceive himself" as to
say he "has no sin." 15 Nor will anyone, unless he would sever
himself entirely from the teaching of the Church, dare to assert
that it is not necessary to make satisfaction for sins that have
been committed, even "by our voluntary acceptance of
punishment in atonement for sin." 16 Moreover since we are
all one body in Christ, the kind mercy of God enables us to
make satisfaction also for the sins of others. What then is
more in accord with our apostolic vocation than by faithfully
following our Redeemer to join with Him in ransoming
through His merits the souls of sinners, "by filling up those
things that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ" in our
flesh ?11 Let the following opinion of the Angelic Doctor be a
comfort to us: "Punishment derives its power of satisfaction
chiefly because of the charity with which man bears it. And
since greater charity is evidenced by a man satisfying for another than for himself, less punishment is required of him
who satisfies for another than is required of the offender.
Hence it is .stated in the Lives of the Fathers 18 that a person
who out of'charity for one of his brothers did penance for a
sin which his brother had not committed obtained remission
for another sin which the brother had actually committed." 19
8.-From this it also becomes clearer how great an impetratory effect penance can have, especially that apostolic
penance whereby we impose upon ourselves punishments in
behalf of others. The Roman Pontiffs of our era have frequently reminded us of the importance of the counsel of
Christ Our Lord regarding the necessity of joining fasting to
prayer if we hope to destroy Satan's power over man. Is
it not correct to say that the severe penance of St. John Vianney accomplished as much, or even more, than his own prayer?
He himself was certainly convinced that whatever very severe
�8
ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
sufferings he either of his own accord imposed upon himself
or patiently bore at the hands of Divine Providence, wrought
more by God's mercy for the conversion of sinners than all
his other works. Is it not legitimate to suppose that many of
us· would produce greater results in the apostolate if, instead
of striving to find ways and means to fit the spirit of our
times, we worked rather to mold the times to conform with
that economy of salvation which we know by Faith alone'!
In vain do we seek new methods unless at the same time we
apply ourselves with more ardent charity to prayer and
penance.
9.-Certainly the most secure method of all for leading our
neighbor to God whilst we ourselves draw near to Him is that
·which both our Institute, authentically approved by the
Church, and the Vicars of C}lrist on earth right down to our
present times have pointed out to us. We see all too clearly
how the devil is making dupes of countless thousands and how
he controls almost entire nations; we see too how men who
are at odds on all other issues, and seek to destroy one another, join together in a remarkable way to calumniate, attack,
and undermine the Catholic Church. How shall we do battle
against this powerful invisible enemy, who "armed keepeth
his court," 20 unless, as is taught by the Man-God, we make
haste to implore the help of One Who is stronger? Our
apostolic efforts will be vain unless "by prayer and fasting''
supernatural strength is injected into them, "for this kind
(of devil) can go out by nothing'' 21 but by these means.
10.-When we turn now to the doctrinal principles regarding mortification proper to Christians and to religious, the
question can arise: how can a teaching which we inherit from
the anchorites and cenobites of the early centuries be made
practicable in this our day'! For unless we conform ourselves
to the spirit of our times, people will shun us.-Certainly we
should avoid having people shun us. Our Lord Himself told
us "when thou fastest, anoint thy head ... that thou appear
not to men to fast." 22 Certainly most of our penances should
be hidden from the eyes of men and known only to God and
the spiritual Father or superior: assuredly this applies to
corporal penance whereby sufferings are inflicted on the body
by means of fasts, scourgings, hairshirts, and other kinds of
�ON CONTINUAL l\lORTIFICATION
9
austerities. In fact Catholic asceticism, particularly in an
apostolic Order such as ours, has always condemned that
warped type of mortification which renders one sad, dull and
spiritless. Sound theology demands that we follow, not
anticipate the grace of God; grace however does not inspire
any action without supplying the strength to carry it through;
we may be certain that this strength has been granted when
the burden of mortification in no way hinders the cheerful
performance of obligations arising from our state of life or
from the demands of fraternal charity. Mortification which
has sprung from pride and is excessive is neither pleasing to
God nor edifying to the neighbor; on the other hand mortification which has sprung from the Holy Spirit, adds new
force and lustre to apostolic charity.
11.-When treating of this bodily mortification St. Ignatius
urges us to use it with discretion and only under advice and
guidance. In conformity, however, with Catholic tradition
and teaching, he assumes that all his sons will practice this
mortification. Consequently it is up to us to take a firm
stand against that merely natural "humanism" so prevalent
today which now aims, as I mentioned at the outset, to destroy this mortification. In opposition to this, it is necessary
then that masters of novices give proper instruction concerning its use, that superiors and spiritual Fathers in houses of
formation be watchful lest our young men give up this
practice through fickleness or indolence, that tertian instructors impress it more deeply on those under their charge,
that superiors in colleges, residences and missions inquire in
a kindly way about the matter according to their office, when
their subjects render their Account of Conscience. Those
also who are in poor health or are oppressed with labor that is
too burdensome, can do something, at least, in fact they can
often do a great deal, so long as the kind of penance in each
case is aptly and prudently chosen.
Even a light measure of corporal penance, when undertaken
with a generous and constant spirit of charity, goes far ·in
drawing our own souls and those of others to God. Anyone
surely can perform those countless small acts of penance
which no wise impair health or attract the attention of others.
The fact that such acts seem trivial has the added advantage
that they can scarcely feed our vanity let alone our pride.
�10
ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
As we have to beware here of that indiscreet fervor which
is wont "to do hurt and hinder greater good," 23 we have to
guard also against cowardice. For cowardice is not something
peculiar to our own age, but is natural to man. You all remember our eminent Father Rodriguez' account of how
humorously St. Bernard derided the monks of that age
which appears to us to be an iron age, because they pretended
that they had not sufficient strength for a life of austerity. 24
12.-Aside from the points already mentioned, the daily
work itself of our vocation offers an opportunity to do battle
against the impulses of nature. The statement "in the sweat
of thy face shalt thou eat bread," 25 does not refer to manual
labor only; this stern law of labor applies to all. In fact our
obligation is even greater by reason of the more precious
spiritual and eternally-lasting,goods entrusted to us; since the
salvation of souls and either their eternal happiness or
damnation is dependent upon our toil! The temptation to
sloth threatens us religious more than other persons from
the very fact that unlike the case of men who live in the world,
we find that superiors through their charity provide for our
sustenance whether our daily work shows more or less industry or negligence. Let us not therefore be satisfied whenever we make some use of our time, even though matters have
gone smoothly and serenely, persuading ourselves that thus we
have fulfilled our duty: since we shall have to give an account
of our earthly stewardship, I fear that the Supreme Judge is
going to weigh things in a different scale! Let constant and
exhausting labor be our daily cross, a stern law indeed but a
sweet one. I am aware of the fact that often our shoulders
are laden with burdens beyond their strength; nor shall I
cease exhorting superiors to be watchful in accordance with
the precept of St. Ignatius, 26 of preserving "moderation in
labors of both body and mind"; but at the same time let them
see to it that Ours do not neglect more exacting and by far
more fruitful works to undertake easier and less productive
ones. To mention but one example: how much more effective
the apostolate in certain provinces would be if more Fathers,
after having completed their studies, would at once apply
themselves with persevering effort to the cultivation of the
dogmatic, spiritual, moral, and social sciences rather than
�ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
11
abandon themselves entirely to "Action!" For this overemphasis on action can be a mask for laziness.
13.-Nor should we forget, as I have already mentioned
elsewhere, that religious observance, even the faithful custody
of Rules governing our external conduct has also been so
imposed upon religious as continually to mortify their nature.
For it crushes pride and self-will; it crushes our love of ease;
it crushes that license, so agreeable to our times, of saying and
doing whatever we please. How easily is union with GQd
accomplished by that religious who, faithfully observing his
rules from a motive of love, is always anxious to fulfil the
divine will even in the smallest details! What an invaluable
service those superiors render the souls of their subjects, who
without any human respect, in a manner always serene and
paternal but at the same time sincere, cause their forgetful,
negligent, or tempted subjects to return to a faithful esteem
and observance of the rules. How grateful subjects will be to
a firm superior when they come to realize either in later life
or especially in the future life, that he who was too severe (so
it seemed) in reality increased their fervor in religion and
their glory in heaven. On the other hand will there be those
(you indeed have known such examples) who gradually fell
away from their vocation and even from the very practice of
Christian virtue precisely because somewhere along the line
they began to contemn that mortification exacted of them
by humbling obedience.
14.-The very progress in material things, though on the
one hand it can serve to increase and multiply the fruits of
our labors even in the apostolate, on the other hand tends
gradually to promote the conveniences also and the pleasures
of life and to whet our appetite for these conveniences and
pleasures so that, unless we remain watchful and steadfast,
imperceptibly, we shall desert the spirit of the gospel for the
spirit of the world, become more easy-going, less constant in
hardships and less firm in resisting sinful pleasures. People
of the world, it is true, buy for the most part, if they can
afford it, whatever new product promises their greater convenience and pleasure and they use and enjoy the product.
Let not this be our way of acting. We are religious, "men
crucified to the world and to whom the world itself is cruci-
�12
ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
fied," men, therefore, who rather withdraw from things which
make life easier or more pleasurable, except in so far as
these things can lead to better results in the spiritual order.
When I look upon the crucified One and at the same time reflect on certain uses already prevalent even in our Society in
certain places, I cannot believe that we are drawing closer
to God by this more lax manner of life. I notice that soft and
expensive chairs are being used in some places instead of
the customary poorer and harder ones; that many use
tobacco without moderation not even considering, so it seems,
whether or not out of love of God and souls they might give
up or at least curtail this pleasure. I notice the use of
liquor which is permitted in our communities only for sake
of hospitality or during very few feasts is becoming more
widespread, and what is worse, some drink almost to excess
when in their visits with secular persons. I fear that radio,
television, moving pictures, sport events and the like, instead
of being permitted, as befits our vocation, only for truly
apostolic purposes or for legitimate recreation, in the case of
some feed their unmortified curiosity, laziness and sensuality.
How prudently does our Institute prescribe that "superiors
take the proper measures and subjects the proper care lest the
desire for their own ease imperceptibly usurp control, destroy
the right thinking of Ours, distract from apostolic labors
proper to our vocation and impel us finally to a love of idleness."27
15.-Anyone of Ours, howsoever physically weak he may
be, can cultivate that very salutary mortification-which enables him to accept from the hand of the Lord with gratitude
and if not with joy, at least with patience, all spiritual or
bodily discomforts he may encounter. The Council of Trent
teaches "so great is the liberality of the divine munificence
that we are able through Christ Jesus to make satisfaction
to God the Father not only through punishments voluntarily
undertaken by us in atonement for sin ... but also (which is
a very great proof of love) by the temporal scourges inflicted
by God and borne patiently by us." 28 What great merit
whether for himself or others shall a person deserve in the
sight of God and how much shall his soul be purified and
drawn closer to its Creator, if not yielding internally or ex-
�ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
13
ternally to discontent, he will show cheerfulness no matter
what difficulties confront him. How far indeed do we fall
short of that perfection when to ease our nervous tension we
loose the reins to impatience and self-love by indulging in
what we term "constructive criticism." Because this failure
to mortify one's self which so easily sows discord between
superior and subjects, between brethen of the same religious
family, is the worst type of failure, it finally destroys the
spirit of obedience and charity. The carping, cynical attitude
which has frustrated the efforts of many in the Society and
sometimes has rendered them cowardly and diffident throughout their entire life, has in not a few cases crushed the desire
for work itself. How different indeed is this way of acting
from the charity of Christ!
16.-In a word that interior mortification which easily
avoids the danger of illusion and excess can be practiced in
many ways. To interior mortification is applied perfectly
that counsel of our holy Father to seek as far as possible continual mortification.
Since dangers and inducements to sin arising from a culture
so steeped in materi.alism surround us on all sides, watchfulness and prudence, whereby we do our best to forestall and
avoid the occasions and temptations to sin, demand of us
numerous victories over self. All of our senses, especially the
ears and eyes must be restrained from questionable curiosity;
books or pamphlets which in every age (by no means excepting our own, as sad experience teaches) create a danger to
fallen human nature should out of humble prudence be
avoided; entertainments of too frequent occurrence which
debilitate the soul should, as I have said, be used with moderation; that spiritual solitude, proper to the state of virginity,
which seeks help from God alone and after all is not intended
as a means of solace for us but for others, should be manfully
endured; that human respect which causes us to fear that we
be mocked as old-fashioned, should be subdued. Let us be
mocked indeed as followers of the gospel and faithful disciples of Eternal Truth, always ancient and always new! Our
holy Father Ignatius has most beautifully explained this
diversified manner of mortification pleasing to God and to men
�14
ON CONTINUAL l\lORTIFICATION
in the text of the Constitutions~ 9 which incorporated in the
Summary as the 29th Rule, is often considered by you all.
17.-That same rule treats also of a more sublime means of
interior mortification, namely, it urges us to avoid whatever
can harm that fraternal charity which the Apostle St. John
asserts is the sign and the only genuine sign of the true love
of God. Let good manners be observed, let silence in word and
deed be safeguarded for the edification and also the convenience of others, let any suggestion of oetraction, envy,
ridicule, all impatience, and boasting be excluded from our
conversation: in this way we shall find abundant opportunity
of conquering ourselves. Moreover if we desire not only to
avoid offenses against charity but to further it by our own
actions, how broad a field lie,s open before us for renouncing
what suits our own convenience, for concealing personal difficulties and sadness, for conquering slothfulness, for hastening
to undertake whatever is more disagreeable to us. How great
would be unity, peace, joy, strength of action amongst us, if
only, forgetful of ourselves, we should live more fully for
others. With how great pleasure will the invisible Lord dwell
among us when He shall see us joined together with Him
in charity and mutual love.
18.-Nor can I omit to make mention of a matter which is
of great help to the ministries and duties of our vocation, in
order that each one of us should in a spirit of pea~e and internal humility learn and strive continuously to eontrol our
nerves and imagination so that he might maintain a sane, wellbalanced and peaceful attitude of mind. Though we are
physicians of souls, yet through heredity or early training
many of us are of a nervous and rather stubborn disposition.
If we physicians of souls shall impose on ourselves the following mortification, namely, to control the impulses of our soul,
also· to watch constantly over bodily health, to correct our
own judgment in conformity with the counsels of wiser men,
to acknowledge frankly our mistakes, we shall perform a
work pleasing to God and salutary to the Mystical Body of
Christ. For to be unwi~ling to be guided by sense but by faith
and reason in all things, that is penetrating mortification.
�ON CONTINUAL MORTIFICATION
15
19.-Finally in closing this letter, I exhort you all, Reverend
Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ persistently praying with
deep confidence, to implore for the Society an abundant outpouring from that Spirit of Holiness which leads us to Him
Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. That image of
Christ Crucified which the Society gave us as a memorial of
our first vows at the completion of our novitiate is in the
hands of each one of us. May the benign Lord grant that this
image by no means grow commonplace by use but on the contrary may it with the passing of time speak more intimately to
our souls. It will teach us if God enlightens the mind that
efficacious love which is shown not by words but by deeds;
and it will continually bring to mind those words: "What have
I done for Christ, what am I doing for Christ, what ought I
do for Christ!" 30
I desire that the Society bound together in one and the
same genuine spirit generously play its humble role in providing for the spiritual needs of the present time. For on this
earth the road to the Kingdom of God Who is Charity and
Justice, will be the more unobstructed, the more fully inordinate affection to created things and the occasion and incitement to sin are conquered in ourselves and others.
20.-Whilst in those lands towards which the dying St.
Francis Xavier gazed, beseeching for them the light of the
Gospel, our own Brothers, heralds of Christ, are suffering privation, prisons, persecutions at times worse than death; whilst
in many provinces of Europe hundreds of our Brothers are
experiencing the same fate; whilst all these true sharers of
Christ's Cross offer to God for the salvation of souls whatever
they are forced to suffer, is it not right that the other members of the Society who conveniently and freely enough carry
on their work, being mindful of their redemptive mission, in
voluntary imitation of the suffering Christ implore of the
Divine Mercy pardon for the sins of the world, grace of conversion for the erring, justice and charity in the social life of
man? May the powerful intercession of the Apostle of the
Indies preserve the grace of our vocat{on!
I commend myself earnestly to your Holy Sacrifices and
prayers.
�ON CONTINUAL 1\IORTIFICATION
16
Given at Rome, April 22, 1952 on the Feast of the Blessed
. Virgin Mary, Queen of the Society of Jesus.
The servant of all in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus
·I
NOTES
A.R., XII 108·124.
A.A.S., XLII 570.
s Litterae encyclicae Miserentissimus Redemptor, A.A.S. XX 165-178.
• Cf. Praefatio antiqua Constit .. In edit. 1949 p. 6.
6 Cf. Inscriptio ad "Praesupponendum" Exercitiorum [22].
6 Exam. Gen. c. 4 n. 46 [103]; Reg. Summ. 12.
1 Constit. P. III c. 2 n. 3 [296].
s Ibid. P. VI c. 3 n. 1 [582].
9 Ibid. P. IV c. 10 n. 4 [423].
1o Ibid. P. IX c. 2 n. 3 [726].
11 Exam. Gen. C. I n. 6 [8]; Reg. Summ. 4.
12 Constit. P. III c. 1 n. 25 [287]; Reg. Summ. 24.
13 Cf. I. Cor. IX, 27.
u Exerc. Spir. I Hebd. Addit. X [82].
u Cf. I John I, 8.
1 6 Cf. Cone. Trident. Sess. XIV, Doctrina de Sacramento Paenitentiae:
c. 8 et 9; Denz. 904-906.
11 Cf. Col. I, 24.
1 8 Cf. H. Rosweyde: Vitae Patrum, Libr. V, lib. 5, ~:· 27, p. 439.
Lugduni 1617.
1u Suppl. Q. XIII art. 2 in C.
20 Cf. Luke XI, 21.
21 Cf. Mark IX, 28.
22 Matthew VI, 17.
23 Constit. P. III c. 2 n. 5 [300]; Reg. Summ. 48.
2 4 Rodriguez, A., Ejercicio de Perfeccion y Virtudes Cristianas, P. III
Tr. V, c. 16 n. 2. S. Bernardus, Serm. 30 super Cant.
2~ Lib. Gen. III, 19.
2s Cf. Constit. P. X n. 10 [822].
21 Epit. n. 208, 1 o; Call. deer. 60.
2 8 Cone. Trident. Sess. XIV, Doctrina de Sacramento Paenitentiae;
Denz. 906.
29 Constit. P. III c. 1 n. 4 [250].
so Exerc. Spir. I Hebd. [S3].
1
2
"'
�DEVOTION TO MARY IN THE SODALITY
JOSEF STIERLI, S.J.
Author's Preface
In our day the subject of the Marian devotion that is proper
to the Sodality demands attention on two scores. First of all,
from the viewpoint of the new flowering of devotion to Mary
whose fruits we see in theology and in piety. This resurgence
obliges the Sodality to examine and to intensify its own devotion to Mary. Secondly we are also obliged by the actual
historical moment in the life of the Sodality to furnish a
sound interpretation of the meaning and importance of devotion to Mary in the total structure of the Sodality. Indeed
the Apostolic Constitution Bis Smculari and all the other
pronouncements of the Pope concerning the Sodality are
resounding calls for a renewal of the pristine spirit of the
Sodality. The resulting consideration of the essence of the
Sodality compels us to explain precisely the position and the
nature of its Marian devotion.
To explain devotion to Mary in the Sodality, the present
work is divided into two parts:
First of all we shall consider devotion to Mary in the light
of the history of the Sodality (Chapter One).
Secondly we shall consider devotion to Mary according to
the internal structure of the Sodality idea (Chapter Two).
Chapter One
Devotion to Mary in the Light of the History of the Sodality
Two preliminary ideas should be noted. First a word
about the significance of historical research. We do not
study the history of the Sodality merely for its inherent interest, nor in order to bask in the sun of its earlier accomplishments. The Sodality should be opportunely warned
against this danger just as it should be advised of the necessity of stimulating a self-understanding and a dynamic trust
Translated by Joseph Vetz, S.J., and Gustave Weigel, S.J., from
Die Marienverehrung in der Kongregation, Arbeitsstelle der Mar. Mannerkongregationen, Frankfurt/M. 1951.
�18
,,
,,
DEVOTION TO .MARY
for the future through a study of its history. Finally research
into its history does not have as its objective the freezing of
the Sodality's past as its unchanging form. The Sodality has
a right to existence only when it exists for today and for
tomorrow. Our objective is to find the essence of the Sodality
in its history; we wish to feel its living heartbeat of today in
rhythm with the past, and fanned by the warm breath of its
early enthusiasm, we shall strive to reenkindle the flame
of its ideal.
A further reason makes it imperative to study the history
of the Sodality. The suppression of the Society of Jesus and,
at a later date, the expulsion of the same Society from
Germany and Switzerland broke the living contact of the life
of the Sodality with that of its first two centuries and loosened
the spiritual ties that boul}d it to its original plan. In many
places this led to false projections and to a wrong type of
development. In their aprioristic interpretations and decisions, which not only fail to agree with the original idea but
even at times directly contradict it, even zealous priests manifest this disastrous lack of historical knowledge.
This leads to our second preliminary note. The historical
approach and especially the architectonic formation of the
Sodality idea postulate references to the Society of Jesus.
We must not attribute such references to a biased desire for
power or totalitarian absorption. Rather we must acknowledge an historical fact which does not co,ntribute to the
reputation and honor of the Order nearly as mu~h as it imposes upon it a serious responsibility in the present and for
the future. We will have occasion to investigate more
thoroughly the mutual relationship between the Society of
Jesus and the Sodality and in so doing we will understand that
an exposition of the essence of the Sodality must take into
account as basic this interrelation. Before considering
the historical evolution of devotion to Mary· in the Sodality
we must explain, at least in brief outline, the origin of the
sodality idea. This first chapter can be divided into two sections. First we must consider the formative forces in the
early history of the Sodality, and secondly within this framework we shall discuss the question of the spiritual and historical basis for the Sodality's devotion to Mary.
�I
DEVOTION TO MARY
19
I. The Formative Forces of the Original Sodality Movement
In the history of the Sodality we distinguish two great
eras essentially different one from the other. The first embraces the period from its founding in 1563 to the year 1773,
that is, to the time of the general suppression of the Society of
Jesus. During this time the Sodality was practically under
the exclusive direction of the Society of Jesus with basically
the same ends and, as far as possible, the same means translated into terms of the life of the laity. In the light of this
fact, the relatively small number of sodalities during the first
two centuries of Sodality history becomes reasonable. During
this period we find in all about 2500 foundations, a number
equal to the new foundations of a two year period between the
First and Second World Wars.
The second era begins with the suppression of the Society
of Jesus. In the summer of 1773 the Sodality seemed marked
for dissolution, because as a spiritual work of the Society of
Jesus it also was subject to the terms of the Brief Dominus ac
Redemptor. Soon however influential circles endeavored to
restore this religious, apostolic lay society, and as early as the
autumn of the year of suppression a cardinalitial commission
was entrusted with the direction of the Prima Primaria.
Individual sodalities, however, at least those which were not
automatically dissolved with the colleges and schools of the
Order, passed over to the direction of the local ordinaries and
to the priests under their jurisdiction. Nevertheless, terrible
crises and a dangerous decline could not be avoided. An
essentially new orientation was canonically given to the
Sodality. Up to this time the Sodality was a subsidiary
organization of a religious Order. It is true that the Sodality
was always ecumenical in its outlook and activity; still it
was under the Order and not immediately under the Church.
From now on it was under the Church itself. Nor was this
change substantially modified when in 1814 the Jesuit Order
was restored. Only the sodalities attached to the churches
and schools of the Order were under the direction of the
Father General. Today these Jesuit sodalities comprise only
four percent of the total number, while all the other sodalities
are dependent on the local ordinaries. The Jesuit General
can do no more than aggregate them to the Prima Primaria.
�20
DEVOTION TO l\IARY
This second era is marked in particular by a tremendous
growth in membership especially during the last hundred
years. Today there exist seventy to eighty thousand sodalities with from seven to eight million members. However, this
is accomplished by an unhealthy mass membership and
superficiality. In many places the emphasis has shifted to
women's sodalities, whereas up to the year 1751 only young
men's and men's sodalities were established and these alone
were considered as genuine.
Perhaps we stand today at the turning point to a third era
introduced by the Apostolic Constitution Bis Smculari. In any
event, a new development is the sincere wish and the set
purpose of the Holy Father. During this new period it will
be a question of a lively, progressive synthesis between the
first and second eras, and the inculcation into the present
large groups of the spirit or'the early Sodality.
In studying the formative forces of the Sodality movement
(forces which should shape the work of our present-day
sodalities), we shall study above all the times of the first era
and in particular the century of its origin and of its dynamic
growth. In that period the Sodality is characterized as
follows:
(1) It is a lay movement of the Society of Jesus;
(2) It was therefore pledged to the same end of selfsanctification and the sanctification of the world in the sense
of a universal apostolate;
(3) It was vitalized by the spiritual springs of the Exercises to which the Society owed its own existence: __
1. The Sodality Was Founded as a Lay Movement of The
Society of Jesus
Whoever studies the history of the Sodality, even cursorily,
recognizes in this religious, apostolic society, placed under the
special patronage of the most holy Virgin Mary, the work and
offspring of the Society of Jesus. As a matter of fact, the beginnings of the history of the Sodality may be traced back
even before 1563, the date usually assigned as the year of its
founding. Father Emil Villaret, the onetime Director of the
Roman Central Office of the Sodality, in a valuable study published in the Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu, gives us a
�DEVOTION TO MARY
21
glimpse of the "prehistoric" sodalities which arose spontaneously with the founding of the Order. 1
A twofold circumstance led thereunto: The number of Jesuit
workers in the face of the great needs of the Church was
small, and the first apostolic work was characterized by a
rapid expansion. Under these circumstances the few men
about Ignatius were sent out by the Pope and the General
from one city to another and from one country to another in
order to bring about reform. As a result, there arose a pressing need for apostolic assistants who would multiply the
efforts of the few Jesuits and, after they had departed, could
cultivate the seed of a zealous religious life which had been
scattered and was now growing. A basic principle of the
Constitutions of the Order was also in play, namely, that in
the choice of works special care should be taken for the
permanence and radiation of apostolic influence. Out of
these initial situations developed the proper Sodality movement. This included, first of all, college students, then university students and theologians, and with the organic
progress of the years, professional men and priests. At the
end of the sixteenth century among the more than two
hundred colleges of the Order, there was not a single one without a Sodality. The idea of the Sodality quickly spread to
bourgeois groups of officials, merchants, apprentices, artisans-and always, where it was possible and prudent, based
itself on the class principle of grouping together men sharing
the same ideas and tasks.
The apostolic work which the Society of Jesus had performed within the pattern of the Catholic Reformation and
the Jesuit contribution to the missions were vitally supported
by the sodalities and without their valuable aid the extent
of these great works would never have been possible. The
following statement was made by Father Joseph Miller of
Innsbruck after he had made a study of the sodalities of the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries: "We must not view the
sodalities of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in
isolation. They performed an essential fuction in the great
work of reform which the Society of Jesus had undertaken.
If we are to understand and judge them correctly, we must
see them as a religious revival movement in the spirit of the
�22
DEVOTION TO MARY
Order as delineated in the meditation on the Kingdom of
Christ in the Spiritual Exercises." 2
2. The Sodality Is Intended To Be a Religious and Apostolic
Society for an Elite
The Sodality was not merely founded by the Society of
Jesus. It also had the same objectives, that is, it was not
just a lay movement organized by the Jesuits but a lay
organization according to the Jesuit ideal. It should be
characterized by the same spirit, the same ends, the same
methods in so far as these are feasible in such groups. "The
end of this Society is not only that we should occupy ourselves by the divine grace with the salvation and perfection of
our own souls, but also that we should by the help of the same
grace earnestly devote ourselves to the salvation and perfection of our neighbor." 3 The objective which St. Ignatius
established for his own Order in his Constitutions was also to
be the spirit of this organization.
Moreover the Sodality should seriously attend to the universal ideal of Christian perfection. The word self-sanctification was not merely a slogan but a goal to be achieved with
high, unflinching effort-a goal that would be attained by a
gratifyingly large number in the fullest sense of ecclesiastical
approbation through- canonization, and would be approached
more or less closely by very many others. The distinguishing
mark of this striving after sanctity is a synthesis of intensive
sacramental-liturgical life together with more earnest personal effort in the interior life of prayer and solid-work in the
formation of character. From the richness of a personal
Christianity an apostolic commitment would then develop
of itself both in the individual as well as in the community of
the sodality. If the Pope so emphatically ascribes to the
Sodality the full title of Catholic Action, then history merely
corroborates the fact that the Sodality has long ago truly
realized this central program of Catholic action. In repulsing
a victoriously advancing Protestantism, in the rich reconversion of lost regions, and in the work of revival within the
Church, the sodalities made a contribution which can no
longer be dismissed from the picture of history. This
apostolate was not merely an assistance rendered to the
�DEVOTION TO MARY
23
clergy. Hundreds of thousands were .brought back to the
Church and to a living faith because of the sodalities alone.
Their apostolic activity also had a part in the Jesuit missions
of India and even more so in Japan and China. The sodalities
provided the leave!\ for a new Christian community.
It is quite obvious that such a community depends on a
select group. However the notion of an elite is a matter of
quality rather than of quantity. Quantitative selectivity in
the sense of restriction to a small number is nothing more
than the practical application of the principle of quality. By
reason of its nuclear idea the Sodality makes demands which
are more than average, and consequently it mobilizes a high
idealism which is never something to be found in the large
mass. Only at the cost of diluting it can the Sodality ideal
be presented to the ordinary Catholic as accessible and agreeable. The elite character of the Sodality has been proposed
as a problem of many discussions in past years. There is
actually no problem. The Sodality is an elite phenomenon because it is an ideal carried over ~ffectively into practical life.
3. The Sodality Ideal Originally Stemmed from the Spirituality of the Exercises
Since the Sodality in its original form was the lay movement
of the Society of Jesus and grew out of the Society's purposes,
it follows that the Sodality like the Jesuit Order itself was
rooted in the Exercises. Furthermore, just as the Society of
Jesus is the spirit of the Exercises in the form of an
organized religious order, so, too, the sodalities are its parallel
in the form of the incarnation of the Exercises in a religious
apostolic lay society. Consequently the fundamental principles of the Exercises are the fundamental and formative
forces of the Sodality: the application of the Principle and
Foundation, the resolution to follow Christ enthusiastically
but soberly in terms of a devoted love that "finds God in all
things."
This explains the early recommendation in the Sodality
rules that the members should make an annual retreat. By
this means through the spirit of the Exercises the everyday
life of the sodalist is formed in his religious exercises, and in
the concrete dedication to his own calling and state of life.
Just as one must look for "the power and secret of the
�24
DEVOTION TO MARY
Jesuits" in the Exercises, so must one look to the same source
for the power and secret of the Sodality. It follows as a
practical corollary that we should not make the mistake of
giving to sodalities and to our sodalists the customary attenuated retreat, but that we should realize their solid religious formation in retreats of from six to eight days. A
statement of the late Father Bangha, who had for some time
directed the central secretariat in Rome, may be cited as a
conclusion for this section.
Sodalities were something quite different from what the later
organizations, which are called sodalities today, would lead one to
believe. They were foci of religious movement and activity; they
became a powerful force in the work of religious regeneration. They
were moreover vessels into which the distinctive spirit of the Society
of Jesus was infused so that it might be diffused into the widest
possible circles. 4
II. The Spiritual and Historical Foundation of Devotion to
Mary in the Sodality
This sketchy analysis of the essence of the Sodality derived from its historical evolution provides a framework
within which we can develop our particular question concerning devotion to Mary. For a correct understanding of the
Marian character of the Sodality it is useful and to a certain
degree ·downright necessary to consult history. It is precisely this historical vision that will enable us to construct
an accurate judgment of devotion to Mary in the spirit and
temper of our times without distorting the original idea of
the Sodality.
-
.
This topic admits a clear threefold division.
(1) First of all it is necessary to establish conclusively the
fact of a particular Marian character of the Sodality;
(2) Secondly we shall consider the source of this Marian
character and find it in the spirituality of the period of its
origin;
(3) Lastly an even more profound and ultimate source
will be found in the parent-Order of the Sodality and in that
Order's founder. The Marian characte~ of the Sodality is
determined by the Marian character of the Society of Jesus
which in turn is det~rmined by the Marian spirit of St.
Ignatius.
�DEVOTION TO MARY
25
1. The .Fact of a Special Marian Character of the Sodality
The fact that the Sodality today has a Marian character
cannot be doubted. That this is a de iure reality and not
merely a de facto phenomenon must be emphasized at this
point in opposition to the tendencies which spring from
considerations of adaptation and propaganda, and which tend
to relegate the Marian element to the background. All official
documents on the subject of the Sodality in our time stress
this Marian character.
Even an elementary knowledge of the general statutes
manifests this point so clearly that further discussion would
seem to be superfluous. In addition to this, the Apostolic
Constitution, Bis Smculari, the authoritative canonical statutory code for the Sodality, emphasizes strikingly this basic
Marian feature of the Sodality:
These Sodalities are to be called Sodalities of Our Lady not
only because they take their name from the Blessed Virgin Mary,
but especially because each Sodalist makes profession of special
devotion to the Mother of God and is dedicated to her by a complete
consecration, undertaking, though not under pain of sin, to strive
by every means and under the standard of the Blessed Virgin for
his own perfection and eternal salvation as well as for that of
others. By this consecration the Sodalist binds himself forever
to the Blessed Virgin Mary, unless he is dismissed from the
Sodality as unworthy, or himself through fickleness of purpose
relinquishes the same. 5
As a further testimony we might adduce, at least as a
marginal note, the speech of Pius XII on the occasion of the
fiftieth anniversary of his reception into the Sodality, or the
letter of His Holiness addressed in April, 1950 to the conference of Sodality promoters which met in Rome. In that
letter the Pope affirmed with terse cogency: "This basic
formation of the soul and the apostolic efficacy resulting therefrom must have a thoroughly Marian character." 6
This clear assertion in our own times is by no means an
innovation even though the Marian character was not so evidently underlined during the first period of the Sodality's history. In those first Sodalities devotion to Mary was much
more taken for granted and presented no problem as it does
to many today. The student association of Father Leunis by
reason of its consecration to Mary on January 1, 1564 became
a true Marian Sodality, that is, a society dedicated to Mary in
�26
DEVOTION TO MARY
a particular manner and, in consequence, acknowledging
special obligations to her; a society over which Mary had
special rights and which was commended to her protection in
a special way. In the oldest rules of the Roman Sodality we
read a golden phrase which was carried over into the Statutes
of Father Claude Aquaviva and has been handed down to us in
stereotyped repetition through the history of the Sodality:
Since the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, is the first
patroness of this society, we can be confident that, as the Mother
of Mercy, she will care for us in a special manner; moreover, since
she loves those who have a love for her, it is expedient that the
sons of this society should not only love and honor her in a special
manner, but that they should also endeavor to imitate the example
of her lofty virtues by the purity of their doctrine and of their
conduct and to encourage one another to love and devotion for Mary
by frequent conversation among themselves, and to cherish in their
hearts a burning desire that .her most holy name be ever more
praised. 7
The man who acts in conformity with this ideal, automatically
belongs to the elite.
The extent to which they were aware of this Marian
characteristic in those original Sodalities is evidenced by the
statement of Gregory XIII in the Bull of December 5, 1584,
confirming the Prima Primaria. Here it is declared that
every similar society which would seek affiliation with the
mother Sodality in Rome for the enjoyment of its privileges
and indulgences must adopt this same title of the Annunciation of Our Lady. Subsequently, at the request of Father
Aquaviva, Sixtus V suspended this condition and in"_effect no
Marian denomination was required. Actually, however, most
of the Sodalities during this period were Sodalities of Our
Lady with some title of the Mother of God and with devotion
to her taken for granted. Finally, Benedict XIV sanctioned a
middle course in the "Golden Bull" of September 27, 1748 (on
the bicentenary of which the Apostolic Constitution Bis
S:eculari was promulgated), whereby a Marian denomination
was required with Mary as principal patroness, but freedom of
choice was permitted in the selection of the particular mystery
of Mary's life.
Over and above these official testimonies the whole history
of the Sodality furnishes proof that the devotion to Mary
was emphasized conspicuously. These evidences lead us to
�DEVOTION TO MARY
27
the question: What is the source of this Marian character of
the Sodality?
2. The Relation of the Marian Nature of the Sodality to the
Religious Spirit of the Period of Its Founding
In a truly significant sense the Sodality's devotion to Mary
is the fruit of the actual religious character of the era which
the Sodality naturally assimilated. The age in which the
Sodality was founded, the period of the Catholic Reformation
and of baroque art, was distinguished like all epochs of religious revival by a Marian character which develops a more
profound and interior religious life and is nourished by that
spirit. The joyful Catholic life, which that era stimulated and
cultivated, revealed itself in personal devotion to Mary which
found expression in prayer and in song, in pilgrimages and in
religious drama, in theology and in the establishment of religious societies.
Another situation developed during this period: the spreading Reformation attacked with ever increasing vehemence the
honor and devotion directed to the Mother of God. Precisely
for this reason there arose in the associations of the idealistic
men and youth of the Sodality a desire for valiant defence and
zealous reparation. That explains the fact that this Marian
feature was more strongly emphasized in the northern
Sodalities of this period and assumed an apologetic, knightly,
protective character. The original formula of consecration,
which goes back to Father Coster and is familiar to us today
in connection with the name of St. John Berchmans, expressed this desire vividly. In fact, however, even with these
citations we have not as yet arrived at the deepest source of
the devotion to Mary that is proper to the Sodality. In the
Baroque era the Marian spirit was itself radically influenced
by the Marian apostolate of the Society of Jesus. Moreover,
the knightly service of love, as it is seen in the Sodality, has
its model as well as its spiritual and historical background
in the founder of the Society of Jesus.
3. The Roots of the Marian Character of the Sodality in the
Piety of the Society of Jesus and of Its Founder
The most important document in the history of the original
Sodality, the "Golden Bull," furnishes a sketch of the his-
�28
DEVOTION TO MARY
torical development of the first Marian piety in the Society of
Jesus. Thereby it traces the Sodality's devotion to Mary back
to its sources in the Society. It presents, first of all, a picture
of Montserrat:
Under the guidance and with the help of Our Lady, Ignatius
of Loyola entered upon the arduous way of perfection . . . When
. he had chosen his first group of companions and had determined
to lead them into battle, together with them he bound himself by a
solemn oath in the sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin at Montmartre,
and upon this powerful rock he laid the foundation of his Order.
He himself was accustomed to command no work of great
moment nor to assume such work himself without first of all calling
upon the holy name of Mary. Therefore it was his desire that all
his disciples would make it a rule of their lives, in all the tasks
and duties imposed on them by their vocation, to place their highest
hopes in her protective patronage and, in all the dangers which
they would have to undergo in the service of religion, to rely
upon this Tower of strength from which hang a thousand shields
and to confide in it as the safest place of refuge and the most
powerful bulwark against the attacks of the enemy.
Now, as they carry the adorable name of Jesus across the
oceans and to every part of the world, to kings and nations, they
could never fail to make known at the same time the most loveable
name of His Mother, Mary; and so, they propagate along with
the light of faith and holiness of life the veneration and devotion
to the Mother of God in all parts of the world. 8
Even if we prescind from accounts that refer to the days of
his pre-conversion, there were numerous appearances of the
Mother of God in the sick-room at Loyola related in the life
of St. Ignatius and these, on his own testimony, brought
him freedom from temptations of the flesh for the" remainder
of his life. A truly knightly act followed, for, on his way from
the old to the new life, he gave all the money he had, left to
pay for the restoration of a picture of Our Lady in a halfruined chapel. During this same critical period, as he was entering upon a new way of life, the fervent prayer that he made
in the Chapel of Our Lady of Aranzazu-that he might be a
true servant of Mary throughout his life-was answered with
quick and wonderful results. From the same spirit sprang
that knightly deliberation whether or not he should pursue
the Moor who had insulted Mary and with his dagger chastise
him. The knightly vigil and the knightly vows at Montserrat
where, significantly, on the morning of the feast of the An'•
�DEVOTION TO MARY
29
nunciation, he bound himself forever through Mary to Christ,
the eternal King, are symbolic of his new way of life. Here was
foreshadowed in its purest form all future consecration to
Mary in the Sodality. At Manresa he often made pilgrimages
to the Church of Our Lady in Viladordis and he fasted in
Mary's honor every Saturday. The opinion that Mary
dictated the Spiritual Exercises to him in the holy cave may
not be fully authenticated, but it is undeniable that during the
ten months of his experiences there Ignatius was in extraordinary communion with Mary. From that time on, Our
Lady was not to be excluded from his own life, from the book
of the Spiritual Exercises or from the Society that was to be
established. We could develop this evidence at greater
length-the vows at Montmartre on August 15, 1534; the
solemn profession before the venerable image of Our Lady in
the Church of Saint Paul Outside the Walls; the efforts to
obtain the little Church of Our Lady of the Way as the first
church of the Order. Finally, there are memorable passages
in the Spiritual Diary one of which deserves consideration in
this discussion :
February 15, (1544): Afterwards, as I began my preparation
for the celebration of Mass, I beheld Our Lady. She revealed
herself to me and I realized how much I had failed the day before.
Not indeed without deep emotion and abundant tears it seemed
to me that by my wretched faults I had caused shame to Our
Dear Lady since she had to intercede for me so often, and so
Our Dear Lady concealed herself from me and I no longer felt any
attraction for prayer whether to her or to the Most High.
After some time, groping in my inability to discover Our
Lady, I raised my eyes and I experienced a powerful impulse to
tears and sighs, and at the same time I understood clearly that Our
Heavenly Father was well disposed towards me, so much so indeed
that He permitted me to understand by a sign that He would be
pleased if Our Dear Lady, whom I could not see, would intercede
forme.
While preparing the altar, after vesting and during Mass, I
experienced profound interior emotion together with abundant tears
so that many times I was incapable of speech. When I had finished
Mass-and even before Mass during my preparation and at
thanksgiving-! was keenly aware of the presence of Our Dear
Lady as she interceded for me with the Father, so that in my
prayers to the Father and to the Son, and during the consecration,
I could think of nothing else but that she was the cause and the
means of the rich spiritual graces which I felt.u
�30
,.
DEVOTION TO MARY
We can describe this devotion of St. Ignatius to Mary with
two words. Considered from the point of view of historical
psychology it is the valorous love-sacrifice of a knight for his
lady, the exalted Lady to whom the pure love of his heart belongs. It is one of the many psychologically possible and
historically developed forms of devotion to Mary influenced
to a definite degree by time and circumstances. This naturally raises the question whether in practice we cannot exploit
this knightly form of service to Our Lady in our sodalities
for young men and for men in general.
The second characteristic note of Ignatian devotion to Mary
stems from dogmatic grounds and has an absolute value over
and above all the conditioning of an historical period or
psychological motivation. We find it in the gradation of the
triple colloquy of the Spiritual Exercises, which occurs at the
most decisive points and 'the most important phases. We
find it even more frequently in the Spiritual Diary of St.
Ignatius and so learn how dear to the Saint was this form of
prayer. The suppliant, first of all, makes his petition to Mary,
the noble Lady and tender Mother; with her he goes to the Son
to present his petitions to Him in the company of Mary; with
both of them, as Ignatius often says, he turns to the Father in
order to gain the grace he is asking for.
This triple approach is not merely a favorite form of prayer.
It is the dogmatically sound and radical plan of his spiritual
development and, in general, of his ascetical system : to go to
Mary so that in her and through her he may arrive at a most
intimate following of Christ, and thus, with Mary and with
Christ, to bring to perfection a loving, life-long sehice of the
divine Majesty of the Father.
Although these historical connections are helpful for an understanding of the devotion to Mary that is proper to the
Sodality, still they do not furnish a full explanation. There
are still deeper meanings behind these historically authenticated facts.
The Sodality was formed at a critical period in the history
of the Church. All such crises, however, from the Christian
controversies in the early Church up to our own depressing
but not entirely unconsoling age, exhibit a clearly discernible
Marian character. In ·this historical phenomenon, obscured,
but to some extent recognizable, lies the truth that Mary has
�DEVOTION TO MARY
31
been given to us as a sign of salvation, as our refuge in times
of distress, as the dawn of the divine victory of the Cross.
Thus the prophetic vision of the Seer of Patmos in the
Apocalypse (Ch. XII) is fulfilled.
If then the Sodality through its founders has received such
an express Marian character, we must see God's grace at work
in all these historical and psychological phenomena. The God
of history has Himself stamped this Marian character on the
Sodality and has made of it a fruitful instrument of sanctifica~
tion. In view of the fact that the whole economy of salvation
operates from God through Mary to us, our personal salvation
and the success of our work for the salvation of others will be
attained to a degree commensurate with our intimate union
with Mary.
Whoever studies the richly blessed history of the Sodality
appreciates something of the divine theology of history as he
looks back into the past. He must be firmly convinced, as he
looks into the future, that the hour of the Sodality strikes
with particular urgency today.
Chapter Two
Devotion to Mary in the Structure of the Sodality Idea
Let us keep in mind the conclusions of the foregoing
analysis as a point of departure for this second chapter which
treats the place of devotion to Mary in the internal development of the Sodality idea.
(1) The Sodality was born and developed as a lay movement of the Society of Jesus; it then evolves as the fruit of a
providential crisis, in the transition from the eighteenth to
the nineteenth century, into a world-wide work of the
Church itself. This new constitution was again solemnly sanctioned in the Apostolic Constitution Bis Smculari. But in the
light of other repeated descriptions of the Pope the origin of
the Sodality from the spiritual womb of the Society of Jesus
cannot be disregarded. There are two principal reasons for
this: first, the recognition of this primary relationship between the Sodality and the Society of Jesus will contribute to
a correct understanding of the Sodality idea; secondly, the
�32
DEVOTION TO MARY
fact that the Pope clearly and emphatically commanded the
Order which founded the Sodality to care for its further development also clarifies this internal relationship. This mandate is not intended as a bestowal of vested control but is
directed designedly towards a genuine apostolate for souls.
d''
(2) The Sodalities, as organized according to the spirit of
their original idea, are religious, apostolic and select groupsCatholic Action in the truest sense of the word, inspired by
the spirit of the Mother of God and entrusted to her powerful and maternal patronage. Pope Pius XII has repeatedly
stated this as the essential Sodality idea. 10 The historical
dependence on its founding Order and its own purpose permit
us to comprehend more clearly and precisely the end which
the Sodality has in view. In this essential task of the
Sodality no essential change has been introduced by reason
of its canonical transition \Vhich marks the passing from the
hands of the Society of Jesus to direction by the universal
Church. Bis Smculari, as well as many other documents,
furnishes unambiguous testimony to this fact.
(3) From its original organization we glean another fact,
namely, that the genuine spirit of the Sodality is identified
with the highest ideal of the Spiritual Exercises in which it
was rooted and by which it must always be nourished. Therefore, the Exercises, in the purest possible form, will be the
best school for the true, dynamic spirit of the Sodality.
( 4) This religious, apostolic society called the Sodality
throughout its history has retained its true Marim1 character
essentially unchanged despite varying modes. •:flie resulting
devotion to Mary is not merely an inheritance from the time
of its origin but rather the inheritance Jrom its founding
Order. Consequently its potentialities are world-wide because
it is dogmatically profound and trans-temporal.
On the basis of these conclusions which we have reached
through an historical consideration is posed the question:
In the development of the idea of the Sodality what is the
proper position of, and what is the specific function of, devotion to Mary? How are the fundamental ideas of the
Sodality and devotion to Mary related? In what sense does
the Marian feature determine the essence of the Sodality?
We will proceed through two steps in answering these
�DEVOTION TO MARY
33
questions. In the first place a negative delimitation is suggested in order to avoid false or erroneous interpretations of
the Marian nature of the Sodality. Thereby we will clear the
way for a positive explanation of this fruitful Marian mystery.
If we so explain the meaning and limits of the Marian
character of the Sodality we will possess a clear picture of
its essence.
I. Negative Delimitation
Before we approach the individual propositions which are
intended to provide a negative limit, we would like to emphasize that this negative norm should not be considered in
isolation but rather in closest connection with the positive
presentation. Then we shall not encounter in these negations
any danger of minimizing the Marian orientation of the
Sodality, a mistake which we find taking place in some parts
of the Church. On the other hand, love of Mary should not
mislead us into making assertions and claims which are not
tenable in the light of the history and ideal of the Sodality.
Truth and love, moderation and zeal must all play their parts.
1. Devotion to Mary Is Not the Proper End of the Sodality
For the proof of this thesis we need only refer to the first
chapter of this work and let the documents speak for themselves. Until the time of the General Statutes of 1910, in
which for the first time devotion to Mary was classified as an
objective, ·all the rules with constant unanimity, although the
precise wording may vary, _have given the same answer to this
essential question. The end of the Sodality is Christian perfection, with particular emphasis on the perfection of one's
state in life and on the apostolate. The Apostolic Constitution Bis Steculari, which today forms the basic canonical law
of the Sodality, acknowledges no other end. The Sodality
exists in order to achieve a Christian life, ever moving towards its highest ideal form, which quite naturally is realized
in the double orientation of self-sanctification and the sanctification of the world.
We could dismiss the subject with this conclusion were it
not for the fact, to 'which we have adverted, that the first
rule of the General Statutes of 1910 approved by the authority of Father General Francis Xavier Wernz seemingly
�34
DEVOTION TO l\IARY
propounds another concept. There we read the following:
"The Marian sodalities established by the Society of Jesus
and approved by the Apostolic See are religious societies with
this objective, to cultivate in their members a special devotion, respect and childlike love for the Blessed Virgin
Mary...." 11 Is, then, devotion to Mary the end and purpose
of the Sodality? The solution of this difficulty is not hard.
It is certain that the Rules of 1910 were not formulated to
bring about an authoritative reformation of the Sodality.
This becomes clear to us if we examine these rules in their
totality and analyze the other statements of Father Wernz
on the subject of the Sodality. These always propose the
same ideal, often in the same words, as the traditional documents. Rule One, which seems to express the objective of the
Sodality, is in fact an editorial contraction of the earlier rules
one and three; it attempts to combine devotion to Mary and
the service of Christ in one statement. It is clear from the
second part that the two are to be joined hierarchically. It
goes on to say: " ... and through the medium of this devotion and under the protective leadership of so good a Mother
to train their members to become real Christians who sincerely strive to sanctify themselves in their state of life, and
zealously proceed ... to save and sanctify others." 12 Here
again devotion to Mary is looked upon as a means and a way
for the attainment of the proper end.
To some extent, perhaps, this discussion wh~ther or not
devotion to Mary is an end or a means is only a -dispute about
words. Certainly it is not simply that. If we wish to call end
all that we are striving to attain, we could indeed speak of
devotion to Mary as an end and we could recognize it as a
concomitant end-subordinated to the principal end of the
Sodality, by means of which, as Rule One expressly states, we
can try to bring to realization the essential goal of the Sodality,
namely, self-sanctification and the apostolate. The important
thing is that in determining this objective we do not stop at
devotion to Mary but see the proper end of the Sodality in a
consummate Christianity which transcends the limits of duty
and effects its own self-sanctification and the sanctification of
the world.
·
�DEVOTION TO MARY
35
2. Devotion to Mary Is Not the Most Important Means of
the Sodality
In modern books about the Sodality one frequently .encounters the idea that devotion to Mary is the principal means
of attaining the end of the Sodality. Opposed to this we read
in the earliest Roman Statutes: "Because the objective of our
organization is to unite knowledge with Christian piety, and
because the principal means to this end is the frequent reception of the sacraments, as the saints also counsel, we therefore propose to adopt these means." 13 We read similar statements in the First General Statutes four years later and in
many other rules, including those still in force today, which
were formulated on this pattern.
The reception of the sacraments has first place as a means.
In this respect also the Sodality is essentially the child of the
Society of Jesus which from its inception stimulated a widespread sacramental movement. The testimony of history
concerning the cultivation of the sacraments in the Sodality,
and through it in the Church generally, is nothing more than
a vital manifestation of the rules. Moreover, among the
means emphasized are prayer, meditation, examination of conscience, frequent attendance at Mass, the recitation of the
rosary, spiritual direction by a regular confessor, devotion to
the saints, in which definite forms of Marian devotion are included, the Spiritual Exercises, and others.
At this point we can hear the obvious objection: In that
case, if devotion to Mary is neither the objective nor the
principal means in the Sodality, what is left?
For the moment let us anticipate the answer which will be
developed more fully and clearly in the second part of this
chapter: Devotion to Mary in the Sodality is a universal approach to the attainment of the Sodality's proper objective,
the:. fully integrated Christian life. The sodalist pursues his
goal of close personal fellowship with Christ and of generous
Christian service to the world along with Mary, in her spirit
and under her powerful protection.
If this be the meaning of the assertion that Marian devotion is the principal means of the Sodality, then we agree
completely. Pius XII himself confirmed this interpretation in
the Apostolic Constitution with a statement which we have
�36
DEVOTION TO MARY
already quoted in the early part of this work: "The Sodality
is Catholic Action under the leadership and in the spirit of
the most holy Virgin Mary." In this statement there is both
a subjective and an objective accent: The sodalist by his service of Catholic Action stands under the protective leadership
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and he fulfills his mission animated by her spirit.
3. Devotion to Mary in the Sodality Is Not Different from
the Common Catholic Devotion to Mary
This third limitation is necessary in order to avoid the attachment of an erroneous meaning to the statement of the
Pope which we have just quoted. Devotion to Mary in the
Sodality is essentially the same as the common devotion of
Catholic people to Mary._ Objectively this means that the
Sodality does not restrict ··its Marian devotion to a single
Marian mystery which would control its entire Marian piety.
When in its early history we frequently come upon the
mystery of the annunciation as a title of the Sodality, this
does not argue to a one-sided preference of the Sodality for
this mystery, but it is due, in part, to the fact that the meeting place of the first sodality was the Church of the Annunciation of the Roman College and that Gregory XIII, in his Bull
of Confirmation, ascribed this title to all the affiliated sodalities. But we find by a more penetrating analysis a reason for
this in the position of cardinal significance which the annunciation has with respect to all the mysteries of Mary.
From the subjective point of view there is .no peculiar
Marian asceticism in the Sodality. If we wish to speak of an
asceticism proper to the Sodality, we must look much more to
the Book of the Spiritual Exercises out of which the whole
movement sprang and of which, it must be added, the spirit
is a completely Christocentric type of piety.
When in the fourth decade of this century a spirited controversy arose on the subject of the Marian nature of the
Sodality, Father Joseph Miller of Innsbruck wrote an article,
The Sodalities in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries,
which climaxed the discussion. 14 On that occasion Father
General Ledochowski, appointed by the Church as the interpreter of the rules of the Sodality, stated his decision in
this matter. In it is the answer to our particular question:
'II,,
�DEVOTION TO MARY
37
"In the Sodality there is no singular type of Marian piety or
asceticism that is imparted. Moreover, its devotion to Mary
is nothing exclusive; it is a simple form of devotion that
spontaneously springs from a tender love of Jesus and Mary
and, consequently, is in common practice in the Church." 16
The Congress of Moderators held in Rome in 1935, a significant gathering, issued a statement concerning our question:
This devotion to Mary does not differ in kind from that devotion which is common to all the faithful. Nevertheless, the
sodalists should be conspicuous for it and, most assuredly, in all
its forms and applications, the simple as well as the more demanding, provided they are commanded or counselled by the Church.
A devotion to Mary should be fostered which has this object in
view, namely, that the sodalist be constantly more united to Christ
and that he should take for himself this motto: "To Christ through
Mary."16
Again, what this devotion to Mary in the Sodality stresses
is its inner strength and power, its conscious and assiduous
emphasis whereby in intensity it transcends the limits of
devotion to Mary as commonly practiced' among the faithful.
The above mentioned letter of Father Ledochowski continues
with this idea: "The sodalists should be distinguished by the
strength and ardor of their devotion to Mary and the development of Mariology in the teaching of the Church and in her
devotion should find a loving sympathy and a ready acceptance in the Sodality." 17
This depth of Catholic devotion to Mary is something taken
for granted in the original Sodality movement for two reasons : first of all, because of the history of the period. The
Sodality was founded and had a marked success in a period
which was distinguished by its fervent practice of devotion
to Mary. We have already noted that in our historical survey.
The other reason flows organically from the peculiar spirit of
the Sodality: it demands and cultivates perfectly an intensive
spiritual life into which the sincere practice of devotion to
Mary is harmoniously and naturally built. For, an intensive
religious life without an ardent practice of devotion to Mary
would contradict integral dogma.
II. Positive Presentation
The result of this necessary delimitation is to leave us with
the necessity of an assiduous practice of devotion to Mary,
�38
DEVOTION TO MARY
not, indeed, as the primary objective, nor as the first and
therefore most important means, nor in the form of a
peculiar Marian asceticism; but precisely as a basic characteristic and as an indispensable element of the spirit of the
Sodality.
Now we are in a position to approach the positive explanation: Where precisely does this intensive practice of the common Catholic devotion to Mary fit in the Sodality?
,.
1. Intense Devotion to Mary in the Sodality Finds Its Specific
Expression in the Patronage of the Blessed Virgin
Let us recall the more significant facts: On January 1,
1564 Father Leunis placed his school organization, which had
been established in the Roman College of the Society of Jesus
a year earlier, under the special protection of Mary and he
gave to it the name of the·church of the college calling it the
Sodality of Our Lady of the Annunciation.
On that account Gregory XIII, in his Bull of Confirmation
on December 5, 1584 prescribed that all similar societies
desirous of obtaining the indulgences and privileges of the
principal Sodality in Rome should take the same title of the
annunciation. Sixtus V at a later date abrogated this rigid
condition and, in fact, he did not demand even a title of Mary
for affiliation with the mother Sodality at Rome. Benedict
XIV, in the "Golden- Bull," then provided a middle course inasmuch as he decided that for affiliation a congregation must
choose Our Lady as its chief patron and must, consequently,
take some Marian title.
In practice, however, even before this decree,-·most of the
sodalities were under the special patronage of the Mother of
God; and here we see one of the most significant values of the
Sodality. Let us recall the rules of the oldest Roman Sodality
to which we have already made reference. Ten years after
Father Leunis had consecrated his group to Mary those rules
begin with the highly significant assertion: "Because the
Blessed Virgin Mary is the first patroness of this society we
can entertain the hope that she, as the Mother of Mercy, will
care for us in a special manner; furthermore, since she loves
those who love her, it is quite proper that the sons of this
society should not merely love and honor her in a special way,
but that they should endeavor, through purity of doctrine and
�DEVOTION TO MARY
39
conduct, to imitate the example of her lofty virtues, and by
habitual conversation among themselves they should encourage
one another to love and respect her, and they should cherish
in their hearts an ardent ambition to see her most holy name
praised ever more."18
Again, the original Common Rules of Father Aquaviva
highlight this acknowledgement of the special patronage of
the Blessed Virgin. Subsequently, in all the official documents
that concern the essence of the Sodality, we find this confirmed, as in the Fortieth Rule of the present General
Statutes: "The most holy Virgin Mary is the principal
patroness of the sodalities."
Here again, as was indicated in the first citation, deep devotion to Mary and her patronage are found to be in a mutual
and causal relationship. Deep devotion to Mary achieves
proper expression in the patronage; this patronage, in turn,
establishes a new obligation for the practice of devotion to
Mary. That the Sodality is under the direct patronage of
Mary is an indisputable faCt. What concerns us more at this
point is the question: How does this patronage of the Mother
of God over the Sodality and over its individual members
originate?
The answer is simple. It is accomplished in the same manner in which the first sodality of Father Leunis was placed
under the patronage of Mary: by consecration to Mary.
At a very early period in the Sodality movement we discover definite formulas whereby not only the Sodality as such,
but each individual member also, upon his reception into the
ecclesiastical organization of the Sodality, is placed under the
protection of Mary. Attempts were made to establish a
separation of the idea of patronage from that of total consecration to Mary. In reality, however, both of these are
intimately interrelated. Consecration is the act whereby we
initiate patronage; patronage is the fruit and lasting expression of this consecration. Consecration is the subjective
aspect and patronage the objective aspect of the same reality,
namely, deep devotion to Mary. In the official letter concerning the Marian nature of the Sodality, to which several
references have already been made, Father Ledochowski confirms this position: "By consecrating his life to Mary the
sodalist places his religious life and activities without reserve
�40
DEVOTION TO MARY
under the powerful protection and under the secure direction
of his heavenly Queen and Mother." 20
The Mother-child relationship between Mary and the
sodalist, already established by reason of baptism, through
consecration is worked out more clearly and more intimately;
it also gives to it a more specific and intelligible interpretation. Pius XII in his memorable discourse on the occasion of
his own golden jubilee as a sodalist on January 21, 1945 expresses the same thought:
, ..
Consecration to the Mother of God in the Sodality is an
absolute surrender of one's self for the remainder of one's life
and for eternity. It is not a mere formality, not an emotional
thing. It is more. It is a real surrender which proves itself in a
full Christian, Marian life and in apostolic work. It makes the
sodalist a servant of Mary and, at the same time, her visible worker
on earth. Joined to this is the spontaneous growth of a vigorous
spiritual life which per~e·ates all external works of genuine piety,
of God's service, of charity and of apostolic zeal.21
And so, we come face-to-face with the next question: What
is the meaning of this patronage in its proper and genuine
sense?
2. The Patronage of the Blessed Virgin Is a Deep, Life-long,
Love-inspired Covenant of Protection and Service Between
Mary and the Sodalist
We can illustrate the intrinsic worth of this patronage, as
it proceeds through the consecration, from two points of view:
first of all, from the historical meaning' of the idea of patronage; then, more profoundly though profitably illustrated by
the first point of view, from the dogmatic aspect:-· "
As we have already indicated in the historical section of
our work, the sodalist's consecration in the primitive stage of
men's and young men's sodalities was marked by a knightly
significance. This characteristic was especially developed in
the North because of the valiant defence of the honor of the
Mother of God which had been attacked. It was from this
martial and knightly spirit that Father Coster's consecration
formula sprang.
Much of the medieval spirit of a noble and knightly service
of Our Lady perdured in the original idea of patronage; even
as, in general, the Middle Ages had with great success applied
images of the secular world to the sphere of religion thereby
�DEVOTION TO MARY
41
enriching religious life on the one hand and, on the other,
giving a unique religious touch to the secular world. 22
There are especially two images which have influenced devotion to Mary. In the first Mary is represented to the believer
as an empress or queen, as senora or madonna, and thus the
relation of a Christian gentleman to her took the form of a
knightly allegiance springing from a personal relationship of
trust and loyalty, love and honor, dedication and service.
Besides this image of the Lady (a word that never had a
fixed meaning but connoted rather the respectful submission
to a Noble Lady) and its correlative complement, the free
knight, the Middle Ages also had a living image of Mary as
patroness by means of which the first two images were joined
and integrated. This concept of patroness was also greatly
enriched by the legal forms of the period, although the religious idea of patronage was older than the FrankishGarman legal system. In the turbulent, often lawless, times
from the eleventh to the fourteenth century lesser free
knights spontaneously entered the service of a powerful man.
This man was known as a patron, advocate, or guardian. The
surrender took place in the form of a legal act, the Commendatio. By it the patron promised to requite all the wrongs
perpetrated against his client, his friend and servant; to
plead for him and to avenge his death. The client on his part
pledged himself to serve his lord in all things. The relationship of both men was a personal one which concerned them
in every detail; it was a life-long attachment to the patron.
But the friend did not thereby become a bondsman; he retained his previous social standing, for example, of knight
or of a free land-holder. During the legal process the ceremony of imposition of hands or of covering with a cloak was
customary. Thus we see in the familiar image of the protective mantle of the Madonna a direct transference of
secular relationships into the religious sphere and an example
of patronage that can be understood at first sight as it is implied even today in our hymn, "Mary Spread Out Thy Cloak."
While the religious significance of patronage goes back even
to the time of the Roman Empire, nevertheless these medieval
legal forms have given to it, as to so many similar thi~gs, a new
force whereby they live on in the realm of religious thought
long after the disappearance of parallel relationships in secular
�II
42
DEVOTION TO l'tlARY
society. We have a classical example of this in the parable
of the King in the Spiritual Exercises and in the concomitant
notion of the following of Christ.23 From these parallels,
taken from legal history, the concept of patronage now
takes on a much richer aspect: Patronage takes place
by a solemn legal act of consecration which goes back
directly to the medieval custom of dedicating one's self to a
patron, and which frankly takes over the legal concepts of
that dedication. The basis of this consecration is mutual
trust and allegiance, reverence and love. It implies on the
part of the sodalist a pledge of loyal service for his entire
life; on the part of the Blessed Virgin her promise of powerful and motherly protection with an abundance of graces.
With this knowledge we can enjoy a clearer and deeper
understanding of the words oi Pius XII spoken in 1945 on the
occasion of his jubilee as a sod.alist: "A sodalist who is truly
a son of Mary, a knight of the Blessed Virgin, should not be
content with an ordinary service. He must dispose himself
to receive all the instructions of his Lady. He must make himself the protector and defender of her Name, her privileges
and her interests. He must bring to his brothers the graces
and affection of their common Mother, and he must fight unceasingly under her leadership which alone drives all error
from the world. The sodalist has vowed himself to enduring
dedication under her banner. He no longer has the right to
lay down his weapons through fear of assault and persecution. He can no longer, without being unfaithful to his word,
give up and abandon his place of battle and of honor/' 24
It can be objected that in our own times this knigntly idea
of patronage has paled into insignificance. However, we can
retort, given the still existent canonical formula of patronage,
can we not renew the ideal on the basis of such historical
precedents just as we clarify the revelations and parables of
holy scripture through comparative history? And, even
though there is something of dead romanticism in the image
of knightly service, yet, fortunately, the young man is still
something of a romantic who can be inspired by such images,
comprehending the inner content much differently than does
• the cold intellectualist who analyzes and vivisects them.
We should not, however, rely merely on historical references, no matter how valuable they may be, for the deeper and
~\i
l
~
�DEVOTION TO MARY
43
more significant comprehension of patronage. It is rather
the dogmatic consideration which presents to us the full
richness of patronage. In his consecration the sodalist
achieves in his own fashion that which was achieved by the
eternal Son of the Heavenly Father. He surrenders himself
completely in loving faith and trust ·to the mystery of the
motherhood of Mary. Just as the divine Logos, in order to
become man, entered into Mary in every way possible and she
protected Him with the warmth of her love, and served Him
selflessly with all her heart, in both the physical and spiritual
sense of the word, and then anxiously accompanied Him on
His grievous and painful way, so, too, the sodalist, by the
consecration of his life enters into Mary consciously and in the
most intimate possible manner, in order that in her and
through her he may arrive at the full stature of Christ and
may by participation in the grace of Mary's maternity cooperate in the work of redemption. In other words we are
faced with the universal, Catholic meaning of consecration
and thus recognize its Christocentric character.
3. The Patronage of Mary and the Sodalist's Devotion to
Mary Implied in It Marks the First Universal Stage of the
Christian Way to the Father
Although the historical explanation of the notion of patronage is valuable, still, the dogmatic aspect furnishes us an essentially more profound appreciation. In it we find the
harmonious solution of all the problems concerning the Marian
nature of the Sodality.
Christian life is brought to perfection through stages. This
does not mean that we leave one level below us, once we begin
to advance to the second. Rather, this gradual way is the
continuous living rhythm of our earthly pilgrimage. St.
Ignatius of Loyola has outlined this development, as we have
already observed in the historical chapter, in the Triple
Colloquy which, as a form of prayer, is placed at the close of
the most important meditations of the Exercises and which
occurs as movingly in the personal spirituality of his diary:
Then we make our petitions to Mary. With the Noble Lady
we .go to the Lord to present with Mary the selfsame petitions; and then, with both Intermediators, as St. Ignatius
always says, we will finally make our prayer to the Father so
�44
DEVOTION TO MARY
that He, by reason of the intercession of Jesus and Mary, will
grant our petition. In this Ignatius with the deep vision of
the mystic has grasped the mystery of the triple ascent
characteristic of Christianity. Development of the doctrine
of the redemption clarifies this more and more. This way of
approach to Mary, with Mary to Christ, and with both of
Them to the Father is not the privileged way only of the holy
man of prayer; it is the objective pattern of the spiritual life
for all of us. Just as salvation was granted to us by the
Father in Christ and through Mary first in the Incarnation
and from then on through the distribution of His graces, so
the way of redeemed man proceeds from Mary's maternity in
the Church to living fellowship with Christ and, thus, to
childlike dedication and filial service to the Father.
This way is objectively an~ universally valid. It is the only
way to salvation which we follow if we achieve salvation, even
though we only: travel along it step by step unconsciously.
Moreover, especially here at the very core of Christianity,
it is the absolute ideal that subjective perfection should correspond as far as possible to the objective order. The
sodalist, therefore, seeks loyally to achieve this ideal in its
purity because he wishes to be an integral Christian. That is
the deepest meaning of his consecration to Mary and of his
devotion to Mary.
_
As a result of this dogmatic approach we understand better
the negative side with which we had to preface the positive
exposition. Because Mary is not the goal of the way of
salvation but simply constitutes the way to Christ and through
Him to the Father, it follows that we cannot designate devotion to Mary as the proper end of the Sodality. But, since the
Marian mediation of the salvific process is universal, em·
bracing the total man and all his activity, and is co-extensive
with his total life as long as he is a pilgrim on earth, we must
not consider his Marian piety as "nothing but" a means;
rather, we must expand it into an all-embracing spiritual attitude of the Christian wayfarer, an attitude in which all the
means for salvation are dynamized and realized.
In the light of this dogmatic consideration we can appreciate fully the deep and fruitful meaning of consecration to
Mary as a total, life-encompassing and life-forming dedication
to Mary. It also explains its dynamic incorporation into the
�DEVOTION TO MARY
45
objective of the Sodality: Man's total transformation into
Christ and the Christianization of the world, thus to bring
home the individual and a part of the world to the Father in
heaven.
NOTES
Archivum Historicum Societatis Jesu. January, 1937, pp. 25-57.
Zeitschrift fiir katholische Theologie. 1935, p. 109.
3lnstitutum Societatis Jesu: Examen Generale: Cap. I, n. 2.
4 Cited from Stierli "Die Marianischen Kongregationen," Werkheft
I, p. 5.
5 From the English translation published by the Revista Catolica
Press, 1948, pp. 11-12.
6 From German edition, Munich, p. 5.
7 Quoted from Stierli, Werkheft, I, p. 55.
8 Mullan, Elder: The Sodality of Our Lady, NN. 1015-1016.
9 Feder: "Tagebueh des hl. Ignatius von Loyola, pp. 47•49.
10 The first such statement was made in 1938 on the occasion of a
Sodality Day which was held in Menzingen in Switzerland.
11, 12 Cited from the German translation in Stierli, Werkheft, II.
13 This citation is to be found in the works of Elder Mullan and
Emil Villaret.
HStierli, Werkheft, I, p. 55.
15 Zeitschrift fur katholische Theologie. Vol. 58 (1934), pp. 83-109.,
16 Acies Ordinata: 14 (1937), p. 6.
1 7Acies Ordinata: 13 (1936), p. 104.
1 8 Acies Ordinata: 14 (1937), p. 7.
19 Cited by Stierli, Werkheft, I, p. 55.
2 0Acies Ordinata: 14 (1937), p. 7.
21Priises: 4 (1945), p. 17.
22 The following sketch is taken from the works of Ivo Zeiger, S.J.,
on the history of law.
23 Zeiger, Ivo: "Gefolgschaft des Herrn" in Zeitschrift fur Askese
und Mystik, 17 (1942), pp. 1-6.
24 Priises: 4 (1945), p. 18.
1
2
�ST. FRANCIS XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
HONORABLE CLARE BOOTHE LUCE
Quite recently I edited a book for Sheed and Ward about
some of the great lovers of God, the strong and sweet ones of
the world who loved Him above all else, and who were judged
in the evening of their lives in love. They were judged to be
saints for then, and forever. And that means, of course,
Saints For Now.
Two Jesuit saints appear in the book. Ignatius Loyola is
there, of course; surely the man himself and the Order he
founded were never more timely than now. And Francis Xavier
is also in the book; next to Ignatius himself, he was the
founder of the Society of Jesus, as a great missionary Order.
Kate O'Brien did his portrait, and it is a vivid, sharply cut,
finely conceived one. But, with your permission, I will tonight
make a few comments of my own on this darling hero of God.
For it seems to me that there are few saints in the calendar
who lived in an historical context more similar to our own. He
speaks to our human situation, as well as our spiritual condition, in a startlingly familiar way. For he fought in the dark
night of Asia's godlessness for the soul of China, as we must
fight for it again today, in the re-gathering gloom.
There is an editorial in_the October issue of Jesuit Missions
(a wonderfully informative, excellently edited magazine)
which reminds us of the historical fact that in the sixteenth
century Francis Xavier "stood at the beginning of a new era."
It was the era of colonial expansion into the Orient. It_was the
time when the greedy Westerner first came to the Far East
in search of the fabulous wealth of the Indies, its silk and
silver, its spices and pearls. It was the time, too, when the
Church, in the flame-like person of Francis Xavier, first came
to the Far East, in perilous quest of treasure of another kind.
Xavier sought that pearl of great price, that imperishable
jewel, Asia's soul.
Four hundred years have passed. And today the great colonial empires founded in the sixteenth century all lie withered
or have been destroyed. Today the Westerner is departing
An address delivered at the tenth annual Jesuit Mission dinner in New
York City on November 6, 1952.
�XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
47
from Asia; more precisely, he is being thrust out. We stand
now at the beginning of a new political era.
We stand, too, at the beginning of a new spiritual era. The
Church has not, and cannot, leave Asia with the Westerner;
for the Church is not of the West nor of the East, but of all
the world and of every age. The quest for the pearl of great
price still goes on. But the quest has become more urgent and
more perilous with each passing day. Then let us who love the
Church and who love that pearl-like soul of Asia too, invoke
the lambent spirit of Francis Xavier to stand with his Jesuit
brethren, with the Church, with us, as all together we confront
the new era and its new perils.
Shall we first evoke the memory of the man, summon up
again the poignant scene of his last hour? It was his hour of
night, that was also the hour of Asia's dawn. We see him on
the island of Sancian, six miles off the coast of China, some one
hundred miles southwest of Hong Kong. Beyond lies the land
of the Emperor Kia-Tsing, great ruler of the Ming Dynasty.
Xavier is still a young man, as we now know age. He is fortysix. But his curly black hair and beard are shot with white,
silver ribbons won in his long battle for beloved souls in danger. His splendid strength is consumed by ten years of spendthrift labor and prodigal journeyings on dangerous tropical
seas. In the words of Claudel's poem on St. Francis Xavier,
"His body is more worn than his old soutane." There, in a dot
of a hut on a poor pinprick island in the vast Asian seas,
Xavier lies dying, alone except for Antonio, a faithful Chinese.
And there in the distance lies his heart's immediate earthly
goal: the mainland of China with its millions of unbaptized
souls-China, the great gateway he dreamed of opening to
Christ. The gateway is barred to him. And because he could
not enter through it, he dies before it, offering his life as a
sacrifice upon the altar of Asia's Christian destiny.
The deathless memory of this dying Saint is itself an inspiration for our zeal and a reproach of our lassitude. But let
us dare do more than evoke a memory of the man. Let us invoke the presence of the man himself. Let us boldly transplant
him in history and place him on Sancian today. There he stands
again in the vigor of his young years, looking out upon the
�48
XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
teeming world he loved-China, Japan, India, Malaya, Indonesia, Indo-China.
And let us ask what he would see today and what, out of
his apostolic heart, he would say to us.
What would he see? Surely his first eager look, athirst with
love, would be bent in the direction of his last dying lookupon China. Ten years of labor in India, Malaya, and Japan
had convinced him that China was the key to the Orient, and
the door to Asia's soul. Four hundred years ago Xavier believed that to free the soul of China unto captivity to Christ
the King would be, in the end, to bring the freedom of the
grace of Christ to all Asia.
The profound intuition of the Saint has proved increasingly
true since Xavier's time. But was it ever, in four hundred
years, more true than it is today? And yet today Xavier would
see the door to China more firmly closed against the Christian
missionary than ever before in history. More firmly closed
than it was in his own day.
In 1552 an edict of the Emperor Kia-Tsing had shut the door
to China in Xavier's face. Simple age-old. hatred for the foreigner had prompted the edict. And hatred and fear of the foreigner are nothing new in the history of nations. Moreover,
the China sealed off from Xavier was the China of Confucius.
Confucianism was rationalist and materialist, but it was at its
best a noble system of human ethics based on filial love and
loyalty. As Dr. Paul K. T. Sib, the Catholic convert, writes in
his spiritual autobiography, Confucian teaching· could be "a
national foundation stone to the supernatural edifice· _of the
Church." Once the door of Xavier's own time had been battered down, there was to be found behind it something good to
build upon.
But Xavier, alive today on Sancian, would confront a more
impregnable door, a door of iron. Its guardians are far more
sinister than the Emperor Kia-Tsing. Their hatred is not
merely instinctive hatred of the foreigner's person; it is a quite
conscious hatred of one person whom they blasphemously call
"foreign," the person of Christ Himself.
Think of the new adversary that Xavier would face today.
· He would face Mao-Tse-':['ung, servant of the power of the
Kremlin, and herald of the "faith" of Lenin. Xavier would face
�XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
49
a new materialism, dynamic, revolutionary, total in its claims,
missionary in its essence. He would confront today a thing unknown in his own day-a new secular faith, counter to his
own, with its own corps of trained missionaries, that is making a carefully calculated counter-bid for the ancient pearl of
great price, the soul of China-the China that is now Christian, as well as the China that is still Confucian.
What a historic irony it is that the Communists today should
have inherited the prophetic vision of a Jesuit missionary!
Xavier, dying, had bequeathed his deathless vision to his own
brethren. And with Jesuit purposefulness they acted on it.
Through four centuries they have kept in their hearts the
mighty hope that glows serenely and ardently in the words
that Xavier wrote to Ignatius from Sancian just before he
died: "I have the highest hope that by means of the Society
of Jesus both the Chinese and the Japanese will abandon their
idolatry and adore God and Jesus Christ, Saviour of all
nations."
In the effort to realize this redemptive hope, which is the
hope of Christ Himself, the Jesuits have written across four
centuries of Eastern history a thrilling record of patient labor
and glad sacrifice, of heartbreak and heroism, even unto death.
And now today, alive on Sancian, Xavier would see the iron
door of history's most evil idolatry closing upon the imprisoned
Asiatic millions, threatening death to the hope which is found
only in Christ Jesus, Saviour of all nations.
Would Xavier, alive today, be dismayed by this new and
deeper darkness over Asia? Would he flee in fear from the
long heavy hand that stretches out from Moscow to seize by
violence the Church's pearl of great price, the soul of China?
Or would his heart sink at the other spiritual spectacles that
would greet his ecumenical gaze? There is war on the Chinese
mainland-savage in itself, ominous as a portent. There is war
in Malaya and in Indo-China, symbol of boiling unrest. A dark
irrational force, colonial nationalism, whose European progenitor he had hated, is churning to its depths the whole of the
Far East, and the Near East, and Egypt, and Africa. These
are spectacles big with menace to the City of Man and the
Kingdom of God.
But no one could possibly imagine Xavier being dismayed by
�50
XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
them. To be sure, his great heart would feel even more agony
than it did four hundred years ago. For he would be more
fiercely caught in the grip of that immense "compassion on
the multitude" that drove him relentlessly, for ten years, over
thirty thousand miles of typhoon-swept seas, over ten thousand miles of land, in the steaming heat of the Great ·
Archipelago and in the freezing cold of Japanese winters.
"He was," writes Father Brodrick in his wonderful new
biography of St. Francis Xavier, "indeed one to have compassion on the multitude, the humble peasant scraping and
scratching from morn till night to wrest a pittance from the
sunbaked ground, the fishermen in their bobbing catamarans,
the ragged children swarming everywhere, mirthful though
starved, the desolate negro· slaves pining for their African
Kraals, the huge anonymoUs crowds in the cities who had no
crucifix to assuage their sorrows or give their deaths a meaning, these were the parishioners of Francis, and the thought
of his impotence to help them made his daily Gethsemane."
Yes, his Gethsemane would today be more terrible because
he would see these great Asiatic multitudes, not wandering
as sheep without a shepherd, but driven as sheep towards an~
abyss by false shepherds. And with his compassion for the '
multitude there would be in his heart a great wrath against~
the. evil tyrannies that hold them in thrall.
1
But in Xavier's heart there would be no dismay. Upon his
naturally gay, buoyant, sanguine, Basque temperament supernatural grace had built an unshakable structure of hope and
confidence in God. Hardly more than a month bef~re he died,
he wrote to Father Perez in Malacca of the perils to be met on
his hoped-for journey to China. He recounts them soberly, but
then he adds : "The danger of all dangers would be to lose ·
trust and confidence in the mercy of God for whose love and
service we came to manifest the law of Jesus Christ, His Son,
our Redeemer and Lord . . . To distrust Him would be a far
more terrible thing than any physical evil which all the enemies
of God put together could inflict on us, for without God's permission neither the devils nor their human ministers could
hinder us in the slightest degree."
In our era the enemies of God seem better than ever organized for a final assault on the body and soul of man. Never-
I
I
I
�XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
51
theless, if Xavier were writing today, he would still give this
magnificent statement of the "danger of all dangers," this ringing witness to his confidence in God, which was so great that
it spilled over even into a human optimism. Xavier was himself no poet, but Claudel, who was, has caught his living spirit
in the powerful lines: "The devil is not as large as God, nor
is Hell as vast as Love. And Jericho after all is not so great
that we cannot encircle it with siege."
Jericho, the City of Evil, has assumed appalling dimensions
in our day. But Xavier would not doubt that its stubborn walls
can be shattered by the singing trumpets of Christian love.
And he would not wholly lack visible grounds for his victorious hope. Because, look you, in all the lands through which
he urged his weary steps-and in other lands too-there is
still shiningly visible his own Society. Jericho, Satan's world,
is still besieged. Let us call the roll of its besiegers. And since
we are a sort of Jesuit family tonight, let us name only
Xavier's own brethren, the men of the Company of Jesus.
In China, 994 Jesuits, and in Japan 232; 1,845 Jesuits in
India, and in Ceylon 115; in Java and the Great Archipelago,
225 Jesuits; and in the Philippine Islands, the only pearl of
the Orient that reposes in the treasury of the Church, Jesuits
to the number of 401. In all, 3,782 in the lands where at his
death Xavier had left but a struggling handful. Add to them,
1,112 Jesuits in the Near East, Africa and Oceania, and then
add to this total of some 5,000 the further thousands of priests
and religious men and women of other Orders and Congregations, and you will see indeed that Jericho is not so great that
it cannot be encircled, nor is Satan grown so large that he can
daunt the men of God.
The Jesuits who challenge his power, with Xavier's own
urgent love, are from England and Ireland and Canada and
Australia, from France and Spain and Portugal, from Italy,
from Holland and Belgium, from Germany, Austria and Hungary. And with them, and with the native clergy around them,
are Jesuit men from our own country. New York is in the
Philippines and in Oceania; Maryland is in India and Japan.
But at their posts, these Americans are no more Americans
than Xavier was a Basque. Like him, they are men of the
Church universal.
�52
XAVIER-THEN AND NOW
And each of them, if he were questioned as to his hopes,
would say, I think, that he was striving to have written above
his grave that simple line in Claudel's poem which well serves
as an epitaph of St. Francis Xavier: "He did what he was told
to do--not all of it, but what he could."
Xavier, alive today on Sancian, would be full of that anxious
solicitude for all his brethren that breathes through his busy
letters. If he were to look upon them and upon the world in
which they work, or suffer when they cannot work, he would
surely have something to say to us here tonight. It would be
a simple message; for he was no man of rhetoric. But in it
would be all the passion of his divinely passionate heart.
He would say: "You too do what you are told to do-all of
it, as far as you can. You are told to pray, 'Thy Kingdom
come!' Let it not be a prayer ~that slips lightly from your
lips, untouched by any fire from your heart. Let it be a terrible sigh from the Christian depths of you, that may reach to
the heights of God's mercy, and fetch it down upon the vast
shadowed pagan world."
"You have been told," St. Francis would further say, "You
have been told with assurance, 'whatever you do unto the least
of my brethren, you do unto me.' " And he would go on to
make, as I now make, a simple forthright plea for his own
brethren, that they should have our aid and alms, and thus
we their gratitude, in the sweet name of Jesus.
-·
* * *
0 God, Who by the preaching and miracles of blessed Francis wast
pleased to bring into Thy Church's fold the peoples of the Indies, grant us
this favor, that we who revere his glorious achievements may also imitate
·the pattern of his virtues; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the Mass of St. Francis, Dec. 3.
Novena of Grace: Mar. 4-12.
�OBITUARY
FATHER RAYMOND J. MciNNIS
1891-1952
Both of Father Mcinnis' parents-his father, James, and
his mother, Margaret (Feehan)-were from Prince Edward
Island, Canada, where five of their seven children, four boys
and three girls, were born. Raymond and Victor were born
after the family removed to Boston-Raymond on March 17,
1891. Two sisters, Anna and Mary, survive. One child,
baptized George, died in infancy; Lewis, in 1915, when Father
Mcinnis was a philosopher; Adelle, Sister Mary Margaret of
the Charity Sisters of Halifax, in 1926; and Victor, in 1935,
when Father Mcinnis was teaching at Weston.
In Boston the family settled in the section known as Roxbury. The immediate neighborhood, Mission Hill, takes its
name from the Mission Church of the Redemptorists, where
Father Mcinnis served Mass during his entire boyhood and ·
for several years was soloist in the boys' choir. The evening
of his graduation from the Mission Church Grammar School,
June15, 1904, his mother died. But the news was kept from
him until after the exercises, during which he took part in a
play and sang several solos.
After winning a competitive scholarship, he entered Boston
College High School in 1904 and during his four years was
awarded the medal for the highest average in his class. After
graduation he again won a competitive scholarship for Boston
College, where he continued to lead his class in all branches.
After freshman year he entered the novitiate at St. Andrewon-Hudson, August 14, 1909. Here he began his religious life
as a cheerful giver such as God loves, and in whom He "is able
to make all grace abound." And his cheerful giving did not
fail in the hour of his father's death, early in the second year
of his novitiate. During the two years of juniorate he was
brilliant but never ostentatious. It was not until philosophy
that his extraordinary ability became really manifest. At the
end of the regular three-year course, he was appointed to prepare for a public disputation in psychology and criteriology.
The disputation was held in the old Woodstock Library, May
�54
OBITUARY
2, 1917 in the presence of the late Cardinal Gibbons, the
Rector, faculty and student body, and a large gathering of
distinguished guests. At the close of the two hours' disputation, Cardinal Gibbons spoke and especially commended the
defender for his wide knowledge of his subject and its able
presentation. From Woodstock, Father Mcinnis went to Holy
Cross for three years of regency, during which he taught
freshman and sophomore and was moderator of The Purple.
Among his former students, now alumni, he is still a tradition-his brilliance in the classroom, his friendliness on the
campus, his amazing ability in every branch of athletics. As
one of them has written: "He was the rare man whose very
presence commands the best in you; who draws out your
noblest qualities and, in an instant, all without words, fires
you with zeal to do your best and ·be your noblest. His perfect
loyalty was his finest gift-he was unshakably true and devoted. Those who knew him as a close friend, knew the
wonder of constant and uncompromising fidelity."
Returning to Woodstock at the conclusion of his regency in
1920, he followed the regular course in theology and at the end
of the third year was ordained by the late Archbishop Curley
at Georgetown, June 28, 1923. After the fourth year of
theology, he went to the Gregorian University, Rome, for
a biennium in dogmatic theology, 1924-1926. He returned to
the United States for tertianship at St. Andrew-on-Hudson,
1926-1927, and immediately after the tertianship was assigned
to Weston, where he pronounced his final vows, February 2,
1928, and remained for fourteen years as professor of dogma.
In 1941 he was made instructor of tertians, an office which he
held for eleven years until his death.
A few years after he went to Weston, Father Mcinnis in.augurated an academy on the Spiritual Exercises. The
purpose of the academy was to stimulate interest in retreats
and to compile a source book of the best available material. A
special library of more than three hundred volumes on the
Exercises was established for the work. One Exercise was
assigned to a particular theologian whose duty it was to read
)Videly on the subject, select what was best, have it mimeographed and distribute it to·the theologians. Then a meeting
was called and Father Mcinnis gave a model meditation on the
�OBITUARY
55
Exercise under discussion. In this way, in approximately
three years, the Four Weeks of the Exercises were studied and
discussed, and three mimeographed volumes of notes were
compiled. More eloquent than an encomium of this great
work is the fact that after a lapse of twenty years, these
notes are still in demand by retreat masters and copies are to
be found in nearly every part of this country and in many
places in Europe.
In 1939 Father Mcinnis inaugurated the two-year course in
sacred eloquence, for those selected after the completion of
four years of theology. Daily lectures were given on dogmatic, ascetical, moral and sociological subjects, on the
Spilitual Exercises and papal encyclicals. There was a daily
written assignment which was meticulously corrected by
Father Mcinnis for defects in expression, development and
general technique. There were also classes in the training and
use of the voice.
This meagre outline of these two great accomplishments is
totally inadequate to give an idea of their significance and extent, but it will exemplify the unusual versatility of Father
Mcinnis and the unsparing use he made of his gifts.
The opening words of Father Mcinnis' Long Retreat to the
tertians were St. Paul's in his Second Epistle to the Corinthians, IX, 6-8: "Now this I say: He who soweth sparingly
shall also reap sparingly: and he who soweth in blessings shall
also reap blessings. Everyone as he hath determined in his
heart, not with sadness or of necessity: for God lovetk a
cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound in
you; that ye always, having all sufficiently in all things, may
abound to every good work." It would be difficult to find a
clearer statement of Father Mcinnis' personal ideal of the
spiritual life, or a more complete summary of his life's attainment. He was a cheerful ,giver, always, and grace abounded
in him to the doing of a great work. As he himself expressed
it, "It does not tax omnipotence too heavily to bring out the
best that is in us, once we have shown the determination to be
cheerful givers." From the first days of his life as a Jesuit,
he gave unsparingly as well as cheerfully of himself and his
great gifts of body and soul. And the recipients of his giving
were almost exclusively Jesuits.
�56
OBITUARY
Because of his unusual natural endowments, there were
those who regretted that his life was spent so entirely with
and for Jesuits. As one of Ours rather picturesquely expressed it, in football lingo, after he had heard Father Mcinnis
give a talk at a Communion breakfast, "They have him all
wrong. They should not have him playing in the line out
there at Weston. He should be in the backfield. They should
build up the plays around him-give him the ball, get him out
in the open and let him run with it." But superiors had other
ideas. And, we may add, so had Father Mcinnis-the hidden
work of fourteen years as professor at Weston and eleven
years as instructor of tertians was the sort of life he loved,
because it was work with and for Ours. It was his personal
exemplification of what he once said to his tertians, "The
Society is not impressed by·· your efficiency, initiative, by
purposes and plans-this My New Curate idea is in all young
men. The Society wants to know if you fit into the vast
A.M.D.G. movement where one ounce of the interior life
counts more than a ton of explosive, external, natural or
selfish effort. . .. God was not talking idly or into thin air
when He assured us: 'unum est necessarium.' And the unum
necessarium is prayer, union with Him, love of the law and
obedience.''
On the relatively few occasions when he worked and mingled
with externs, he was always eager to go home. And home for
him was the Jesuit house where he was stationed. The rule of
companion was never a burden to him. He never wanted to
go anywhere unless he had one, two or three Jesuits ·as companions. And wherever there was a group of his contemporaries together-novices, juniors, philosophers, regents,
theologians, or fellow priests-he just naturally assumed
leadership, whether it was in games, in singing, in discussion,
or in work. He was blest with unusual physical strength and
skill in every branch of athletics, a good voice and a prodigious
memory for music and words, a gaiety of spirit, largeness of
heart, unusual intelligence and a generous nature which was
often taken for granted under the false impression that it cost
him no effort. A man of less wisdom would have relied upon
these natural gifts for success in life. But Father Mcinnis
had a healthy and, at times, a seemingly reckless disregard
�FATHER RAYMOND J. MciNNIS
��OBITUARY
57
for them because he measured their worth against eternal
verities and the grace of God. He disdained formality divorced
from reality, but he had a reverent regard for convention
when it was joined with essential goodness. These traits
and similar ones were easily discernible to anyone who met,
or knew him slightly. But there was one trait known only to
his friends-natural shyness and diffidence so great that he
became actually ill, on occasions, at the prospect of facing a
class or audience. From this came a subtle power of concealing his finest qualities with the air of one who was doing
an ordinary thing in an ordinary way.
In the numberless tributes to Father Mcinnis written since
his death, nearly everyone mentions his integrity and love of
truth. He consistently applied to his own life and actions the
principle enunciated by Leo XIII when he opened the Vatican
archives to historians, "The first law of history is not to dare
to utter falsehood; the second, not to fear to speak the truth."
Not infrequently, integrity and love of truth are joined with
ruthless disregard of an opponent. But Father Mcinnis,
whether in the classroom, private conversation, or taking part
in group discussion, would express his opinion in a forthright, uncompromising way, without the slightest offense or
annoyance to those who disagreed with him. He could demolish an argument without demolishing his opponent and he
was far too intelligent to confound vehemence and a loud
voice with strong argument. He was so humbly confident of
the truth of what he was saying that he never indulged in
sarcasm or cynicism, that last refuge of the vanquished.
Especially in class at Weston and in conducting oral examinations he invariably tried to make an answer appear
reasonable, if not altogether correct, even when it was not
easy to do so.
In his study of theology and Holy Scripture, Father Mcinnis
had a healthy disdain for anything that savored of Wissenschaft. He inclined more to the assensus pius, and tended
to accept such wonders as those of a second nocturn until
they were proved false. His rare versatility of mind delighted
in the stories of Father Finn as well as in the works of the
great masters. He could give himself completely to the writing of a play for the colored children in Woodstock and he
�58
OBITUARY
worked hard to train them to act and sing. He had surprising
knowledge of politics and world affairs and of numberless
wise and foolish things alike, because of his wide reading, his
prodigious memory, and his seemingly effortless ability to
master any subject any time.
One of Father Mcinnis' greatest gifts was his power in the
use of words. He could literally make them talk-little words,
big words, foreign words, familiar words and, especially,
coined words that smacked of genius. He had an instinct
for the verbum proprium, the "punch line" and the O'Henry
ending. His style was usually popular but seldom pedestrian
and never flippant.
He described the first Good Friday as "the day the world
went mad." To the tertians he once said, "You need not be
old fashioned and long faced.-, You can be as modern as a
zipper and as cheerful as St. Philip Neri." On the necessity
of prayer in a priest: "Sickness, accidents, battlefields bear
witness to the laity's eagerness to have the priest. They want
God's man. They can't get God Himself. And after God, we
are the next best. They want the man with richer endowment
than the world can give. They want the alter Christus, the
soul-healer, the sacrament-giver, the man who deals in holiness
and stands between God and man for the salvation of the
world. In the providence of God, the world needs us, wants us
just as surely as the enemies of God want our destruction. It
is part of our accepted Catholic tradition that we know God's
ways, speak His language, are nearer to Him, more potent in
intercession. Are we?"
_
Developing a human parallel to St. Peter's reactio~ at the
sight of the Risen Saviour: "There is an uncontrollable urge to
cry when you see the Holy Father. There is a moment under
ecstasy but above joy, when control is gone-and a strong
man blurts out his heart in sobs." Contrasting the finite and
Infinite: "We cannot stuff God's Infinite Wisdom into finite,
limited minds. God measures life for what it is, not for what
it seems." On the Two Standards: "Can I put more meaning
into the phrases 'I belong to God,' 'I am God's man,' 'Jesus
Christ is my Way, Truth and Life'? I mean now, I suppose,
that He is my Ideal, sought and at times prayed for. St.
Ignatius says He is an actuality, really attainable. And St.
�OBITUARY
59
Paul literally 'put on Christ.' •• Describing the scene on
Calvary: "There is a whole series of words in the story of the
Passion that have hardened into stereotyped meaning. We
don't read the venom behind an old-fashioned word like Vah!
We speak of mockery, taunts and jeers, but we don't deal with
these words and we fail to realize that this day of God's
misery was a day of wild laughter for His enemies. That was
Calvary-until terror broke over the hill. They were laughing, splitting their sides, nudging one another, thinking out
wisecracks about Christ's appearance, His record, His Mother!
He was spared nothing spiteful, personal or obscene that a
saint or follower would have to hear. And they applauded
and yelled with laughter when some blasphemy was newlyphrased, some novel insult screamed to win special attention."
On His sufferings and the torture of martyrs: "Campion and
Southwell will tell us when they see us, of the agony in the
distention and dislocation of a racked body-like Christ's that
was pulled and stretched to meet the dimensions possibly arranged for Barabbas." On Ignatian Indifference: "Here's
the rub! This indifference, actually had or purposefully
sought, is a necessity if work is to be apostolic, if the greater
glory of God is to be procured, if our own salvation is to be
made certain and other saved-souls multiplied. It happens to
be an essential element of our service! The man who keeps
his eye and ideal on God's majesty and Christ's hunger for
souls, who remembers that he is called in an Ignatian way,
simply has to smash to bits his personal aims and wants and
preferences, his longing for his own way and his own people
and yield without compromise to the truth that he is God's
man, working at the dictation of Jesuit superiors in a service
as wide as the world, unending as time, important as Christ's
own apostolate." Finally, in a meditation on the last word of
Our Saviour on the cross," 'Father, into Thy hands I commend
my Spirit': Christ's only unbroken treasure. They have
smashed and smeared His Body; they have torn His reputation to ribbons, scattered His organization, pricked the bubble
of His popularity, parched His tongue, tied His feet, fettered
his giving-hands-but they never broke His spirit; they never
reached His spotless and courageous soul. ... Now that He
has won for the world atonement and given us all a Mother,
�60
OBITUARY
now that pain has had control long enough to kill the strongest of men, Jesus Christ, still King, still strong, still fighting,
lifts Himself literally on His wounds and shows us how sublimely a man can die. He calls to us in death: 'Just die-and
find out what I have won for you. You could never conceive
it.' " Those who were privileged to watch Father Mcinnis
die, know that he learned what he taught and gloriously exemplified it in the end.
God's providence is often mysterious in its manifestations.
But there are times when it is tempered to human understanding, as when Father Mcinnis was appointed instructor
of tertians. "My job?" he wrote. "Miles over my head!
I've been plugging all day, but I can't seem to pull threads together. It will take years to build up the assurance that will
make my talks worth while. ~ In the meantime I'll chew on
failure as a diet and see how I l'ike it."
Previous to this time there were periods when an excess of
charity resulted in a great waste of his time. He seldom
sought the company of others. But he was incapable of denying his own company to others whenever it was sought. And
it was often sought when his own preference would have
been study and quiet reading, which might have resulted in
some, at least, of the published works for which his friends
hoped until the end.
In his letters there was often a revelation of self that his
deliberate reticence of action habitually concealed. On the
last anniversary of his ordination, he wrote: "Yours ~as the
sole remembrance of my anniversary. The loved ones who
might have written can write no more; I said a prayer for
myself at Mass-the special prayer allowed on this day-and
then wrote to a young Jesuit just ordained, hoping that he'd
make more of the grand privilege than I have.'' To a friend
who was ill: "I come to you at your physical worst and religious best and say, 'God must trust you a lot to let you so
closely into His redemptive activity! The whole business of
pain staggers me-except to know that it is the divine secret
of complete fellowship with Our Lord, who chose it, won by it,
bears the marks of it and shares it with big friends.' "
A Christmas card bright with singing birds bore this inscription: "Your lovely letter would make anyone sing in his
�OBITUARY
61
heart. So, in gratitude I join the birds in the easy praise of
song hoping that God will accept it in place of more reflective
prayer. Here I just look out the window and thank Him for
sea, clouds, sky, trees, grass, friends, roof, food, drink, recreation, grace, sacraments and for Himself in our chapel."
There are flashes of his integrity, wide knowledge and
power of the written word in his many reviews that appeared
in America. But the characteristics of his writings are best
found in the notes of his Long Retreat from which we have
already quoted. Some of the meditations must have had a
deeper meaning for Father Mcinnis during his last Long Retreat in October, 1951. This was during the interim between
his first illness and serious operation for cancer during the
summer of 1950, and the second illness, November, 1951,
which terminated in his death. It is difficult to choose where
the standard of excellence is so high and so uniformly sustained.
In the first meditation: "There may be a tendency to say:
'I'll take it easy, to start, and then work into it,'-or: 'I'll let
it come to me,' or: 'There's no need of diving overboard,' or:
'I won't bite off more than I can chew.' They are all fair,
human, natural reasonings, nicely practical for things of
time, and wholly inadequate for things of God. We are starting on spiritual exercises-starting to do, not to wait
for things to come. We can't start with an easy, little
'yes way' of holiness. There is need of diving overboard
if you want to make a clean break, a full gesture
towards self-realization and conquest of God. And you must
bite off all you dare. Who knows how much you can chew?
Did Lawrence think he could stand fire? Did Bobola think
that he could stand live butchering of his own body? Did
Jogues think he could stand Iroquois clubs and teeth? Did
Southwell think he could stand the rack? They all bit off
more than they could chew-did it, as St. Paul says, not
grudging anything, not of necessity, like slaves or animals, but
high-hearted, finding in the depths of their own souls,
strength they had not known, gifts grand enough for God."
On the will to suffer: "What of pain? Only that, on faith,
it is a proof of love-Christ's proof, as Calvary shows. Inward penance, a disciple's self-denial, is bound to overflow into
�62
OBITUARY
outward act, as the body under the will's sacrificial impulse is
used as the instrument of sanctification. Body and soul, I
work and pray and suffer for the love of God. I school myself
in small practices, to be ready for the sharp crisis, the last illness, the full surrender to God."
In points on the Ascension: "Without Christ the Apostles
were as we are-men of faith. We shall see God-you and I
who are called to His apostolate, favored by His Presence in
sanctifying grace, familiar enough to hold and carry His
Body, dear enough to be called socii Jesu. We are to see Him
face to face and talk over with Him our adventure, the
strangeness of human living and our own faltering and
blundering efforts. We have in us some of the overboldness
of Peter, the doubts of Thoi!_las, the sins of Magdalen, the
dumb understanding of Philip, 'the temper of James and John,
the slowness of Simon and Jude, the material outlook of
Matthew. But we are His men, His apostles, His friends.
"What He wants, we know. He has quick understanding
and full forgiveness for the actual falls and faults of His
friends. But He wants the habit of hope entrenched. He
wants the habit of love to be consuming. In a world where
hope has died and given place to cynicism, boredom, flippancy,
He has called us to preach His gospel, His good news. In a
world made sad by jealousies and ridiculous by self assertion
and greed, He has called us to live the gospel of charity, one
with another and each with God. He mfa::tks hus ~or ~tuffhe rin~-k ,f ~
some of it voluntary penances, some o 1 t e mev1 a e sic - ,
ness and anxieties of time-by amice, stole, ma:ri'iple and i
chasuble. He clothes us in the white alb of fools. He has us
dressed in defiance of world fashion and asks us with a 1
hundred liabilities to traffic till He comes, to try, to fail, to !
decrease, to be ill, to go to far places, to die-and He will find ~
us, He will come, He will bring us where we belong-into the!.~
very heart of God."
In the meditation of death: "Death is unique in this-it
comes only once. There are no rehearsals. There is no chart.
There is no previous experience. It is irrevocable-we meet
or lose God forever as th~ door closes. I must go alone.
"A day comes and is now known when my world dwindles to
four walls-when sensations are blunted, speech almost im-
1
I
�OBITUARY
63
possible, mind clouded, temptations strong, body restless or
inert, and I am called upon to do the biggest thing I've ever
done--a personal interview with Almighty God. I face a
door and it opens on eternity. I am afraid to go forward. I
can't go back. Men have schooled themselves to bear fatigue,
cold, pain-but the mystery here has some chill for every
blood. There is nothing romantic about dying!
"There is small danger of our dying in mortal enmity to
God. There is persistent danger of dying with sinful attachments that lower our record and keep our dying from
being that big and unconditional surrender it should be. The
light of a deathbed candle reveals new values and proportions.
Let me learn them now. From the mountain of God's mercy
where Christ died to ease my dying, let me gather the trust
to die and live in God's love."
The tertians who listened to that meditation only a few
months before the lips that spoke it were silent in death will,
indeed, be fortunate priests and disciples if, as their master
once bid them by word, and since has taught them by example, they gather "from the mountain of God's mercy where
Christ died to ease [our] dying, the trust to die and live in
God's love."
While extreme unction was being administered by Father
Patrick Haran a few days before the end, Father Mcinnis,
whose mind was clear and alert until the last hour or two
of his life, answered the responses in a clear, strong voice.
As he blessed himself at the end, he said to Father Haran and
another Jesuit who was present, "Now I have a favor to ask
of you two. Don't feel sorry for me! I have had everything
a man could possibly desire. It's wonderful."
If ever a man died as he lived, that man was Father Raymond Mcinnis. A Jesuit who saw him often during his last
illness, wrote the following letter, after his death: "Now that
the end has come for Ray, an end that is surely only a beginning, you will want to know more details than I could ever
find time to tell about his illness and death. I feel rather a
loathing and a sense of editing things too secret for words
in sending even this much. But you will be patient and understanding, I know, judging the motive and not the accomplishment.
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"During the many weeks of Ray's illness I saw him at least
once or twice a week, and during the last three weeks I saw
him every day-missing only yesterday, the last. I scarcely
know how to tell you what I most want to say, because it
eludes words. Perhaps I can suggest it merely by saying that
as I watched him from day to day, his body becoming
emaciated beyond your imagination to picture, I felt no horror
and no revulsion in what I saw. Without my consciousness
of it, there grew within me a realization that this falling away
of the body was revealing the veiled soul that we had loved
but never known. There was nothing dr.amatic, nothing
notable, nothing that can be described in words-merely a
quiet revelation of patience without end, complete simplicity
and absolute confidence in God's mercy. Always Ray would
thank those who visited him for their friendship and devotion-utterly unconscious of the fact that in death as in life he
gave more than he ever received. Next to the last time I saw
him, he asked me for my blessing which I gave. That night
as I recommended him to God in prayer I realized my own
conceit in giving a blessing where I should have asked one,
and so I prayed that Ray might live until the next day. When
he did, I lost no time in going to Worcester to ask his blessing.
He gave it, enunciating every syllable and making a welldefined sign of the cross. I believe it was the last blessing he
gave. And I know that he will want me to say that it was for
you and all his friends-not only for me.
"A few days before the end Ray turned and said, -iPerhaps
this is dying. If it is, it is very easy. I have no pain. God
has been so good! It seems He does not want to hurt me.'
Any comment would be a strange blend of affectation and
presumption. You will, I know, be generous in your remembrance of his great soul at the altar."
Death came at four o'clock, Monday afternoon, February
18, 1952 in St. Vincent's Hospital, Worcester. The body was
brought to St. Mary's, Boston, where, on Thursday morning,
February 21, the office of the dead was chanted and the Holy
• Sacrifice of the Mass offered by Very Reverend Father
Provincial in the presence of Father Mcinnis' family and
friends and a very large number of Jesuits from the New
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York and Maryland Provinces as well as from New England.
Burial was at Weston.
Since Father Mcinnis' death there have been many tributes
to him from laymen, religious, friends and fellow Jesuits.
In all of these tributes the same qualities are stressed-absolute honesty, straightforwardness, fidelity, selflessness, generosity, integrity of life and of judgment, unequalled love of
the Society and its members, great love of the priesthood, a
consuming love of God, and a tender love of His Blessed
Mother.
In a book review on mysticism, printed in America, (September 22, 1951), less than six months before he died, there
is a paragraph with which we shall close. We shall not mar
by any comment of our own the disparagement of self which
could only bEl inspired by such humility as was his: "We who
walk only in the lowlands, partially perhaps because we have
been afraid to climb, thank God for those who took the high
road at His call and came so near to invading, while yet in the
body, the realms of Vision. But even for us, the cowardly,
the often ungenerous, there is still the example of the lovely
two who were closest of all. Through the mercy of Jesus and
the intercession of Mary we hope to come in simplicity, in
small strivings, after many defeats, to the same eternal union
with God."
TERENCE L. CONNOLLY, S.J.
FATHER EDWARD C. PHILLIPS
1877-1952
The seventh of eleven children, Edward Charles Phillips
was born in Germantown, Philadelphia, on November 4, 1877,
the son of Charles L. and Mary Louise (Stewart) Phillips.
One week later he was baptized at St. Vincent's Church.
Little is known of his mother, except that she died at the
early age of thirty-nine years, on July 7, 1885. Although
Edward was less than seven years of age at the time, he recalled years later that he was sent to summon the priest, when
she lay dying.
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His father, Charles L. Phillips, was born in 1846. He was
a distinguished Catholic; in fact, a prominent one, if we may
judge from the fact that he was a co-founder of the Catholic
Club and the Champlain Club as well. An address entitled
The Layman's Call, which he delivered at the dinner of the
Xavier Alumni Sodality in 1904, was printed in the Fordham
Monthly. For years Mr. Phillips was the president of the
Particular Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and for
the last twenty-five years of his life was a daily communicant.
During the depression of the late 1880's, Mr. Phillips' bank
failed. Though he was personally not responsible, the depositors evidently thought so, for a mob threatened to burn
down his home. Alarmed at the possible harm to his children,
Mr. Phillips sent them to France where he had some holdings
and resources. The girls attended the St. Servan Convent
School, near St. Malo in Brittany. In a letter, written some
sixty years later, Father Phillips recalled a visit which he
and his brother Osmund made to this convent on Christmas
eve, 1887. The family was never again to be completely reunited, as two of the Phillips' girls married Europeans, one
residing in England, the other in Holland.
Writing to a newly discovered niece in England in 1949,
Father Phillips reminisced on his own solitary journey to
France as a little boy often years. His destination was Paris,
where his father's agent lived. The latter was supposed to
meet the boy at Le Havre but he missed the boat-train and
little Edward arrived alone in a strange land, unable to speak
a word of French and unaware of his exact destination. A
kind gentleman, who had befriended him on the boat, found
his destination in the boy's trunk and discovered a telegram
at the steamship office, directing that the boy be put on the
boat-train for Paris. In later life Father Phillips remarked
that the gentleman took only what was needed for the ticket !
and put the rest back in the boy's purse. He also recalled that I
he did what any little boy would do under the circumstances:
he sat on his trunk and cried.
!
At Paris he was met and taken to a pensionat, where his
future stepmother was the concierge. He tells us that, although neither of them understood the other's language, he
could sense that she was a very kind person.
His sister Pauline, who survives him, writes that the family
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67
lived in the country for a while at a village in Brittany named
Pleurtuit. Father Phillips, again writing to his newly discovered niece, said that he and his brother Osmund went
every morning to the seven o'clock Mass at the parish church
after which they had breakfast at the convent of the Sisters
of Charity and studied French. According to his sister
Pauline, he and his brother later went to the Christian
Brothers' School at Neuilly, near Paris. French became
practically a second mother tongue for him and he loved to
speak it throughout his life.
His sister does not recall exactly how long the family remained in France. But it could not have been more than five
or six years, as he was about ten when he journeyed to France
in November, 1887; and in 1893, at the age of fifteen, he entered St. Francis Xavier's, New York, for first grammar.
According to his curriculum vitro he had had some schooling
in Brooklyn, New York, where the family then resided. His
father had remarried.
Edouard, as he first signed himself on coming to Xavier,
completed first grammar with honors in 1894 and enrolled in
the college department in September, 1894. He had the highest average in his class that freshman year and won the gold
medal in religion, English, Latin, and French. Sophomore
year brought him his second gold medal for English and
Latin. In his junior year the gold medal was a reward for
excellence in religion, Latin, Greek, mathematics and chemistry. He was credited with the highest average in his year:
98.1. In June, 1898 he graduated summa cum laude with the
Bachelor of Arts degree and the highest average in the
graduating class-a mere 98.9. This time the gold medal
was awarded for his excellence in religion, mental philosophy,
natural sciences and applied mathematics. He belonged to
the League of the Sacred Heart and the Sodality, of which he
was second prefect, and was a promoter in the Apostleship of
Study, or the Pope's Militia, as it was called. In addition he
Was vice-president of the senior debating society and assistant
editor of The Xavier. This extraordinary record was the beginning of the brilliant scholastic career he was to have in the
Society and at Johns Hopkins University.
On August 14, 1898 he entered the Society at Frederick,
Maryland. We are fortunate to have his spiritual notes and
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some other writings of his from his noviceship days onward.
They portray a very earnest novice, assiduous in prayer, careful of his particular examen. The only extant examen book
is his last and it is marked up to the night before he died.
He had great difficulties with this practice, as he often confessed in his diaries; but the remaining booklet is a remarkable tribute to his faithfulness. During the noviceship he
was very much concerned about charity. One of his fellow
tertians, who was later associated with him in his early teaching days at Woodstock, informs us that Father Phillips was
extremely solicitous about charity in word and he applies to
him the judgment of St. James: "a man who is not betrayed
into faults of the tongue must be a man perfect at every
point ... " (James 3, 2). Some of his noviceship notes show
how he laid the foundation for ..this early in his religious life.
He tells us, for instance, that he will interpret the actions of
others in the best possible light, and, if the action cannot be
defended, he will at least give the person credit for a good intention. This perfection of charity is observable throughout
his life. As provincial, we find him pondering during his retreats how he can serve and love his brethen more. And it is
highly significant that the one and only resolution of his last
retreat, the 1951 house retreat at St. Andrew-on-Hudson, was
to "see Christ more and more in niy brothers."
During the year of juniorate Mr. Phillips' diary evidences
a continuance of noviceship fervor. He was very serious about
the ordinary penances, asked for an increase in their pse and
he showed that abstemiousness that was to characterize him
throughout his life by not taking dessert, or by taking as little
as possible by the device of eating slowly. It was during his
juniorate days that he decided to dispense with siesta, whenever possible. When it was really necessary, he would not
prolong it. As provincial, he rarely took a siesta beyond a
half-hour, when he did so at all.
After one year of juniorate, he was sent to Woodstock for
philosophy in 1901. Here he became beadle in his second year.
He was not allowed, or did not ask, to accelerate his course,
although, as one of his teaching associates remarks, he was
• certainly capable of doing. so. In his first year of philosophy
he had a defense. The following year he read a paper at the
disputation on the liquefaction of gases. In his spiritual notes
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for this period, he remarks that never had a task so interfered
with his prayer as had this essay.
At the conclusion of his philosophy in 1904, he was given
the then unusual status of graduate studies in mathematics at
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore. His spiritual diaries of
this period reveal the same struggle for perfection in his
spiritual exercises and his studies. He upbraids himself for
not excelling in his studies, even accusing himself of sloth and
procrastination. But these confiteors are to be understood in
the light of two facts: he was unwell, as his battle with·
tuberculosis was soon to disclose; secondly, his professors
were evidently more than satisfied with his performance, as he
was elected a fellow of Hopkins on June 4, 1906. He had such
high ideals of what a Jesuit Scholastic should be both spiritually and in his studies, that he found that he was not measuring up to these standards fully. His deep humility was always
based on truth. Thus he always recognized his gift for
mathematics-knew, too, that he excelled in it. But he never
looked down on others less gifted. All his fellow Jesuits acknowledged his brillance of mind and the accompanying
humility.
Tuberculosis finally forced him to interrupt his graduate
studies at Hopkins during the year 1906 and he journeyed in
July to Gabriel's Sanatorium, near Lake Saranac, New York,
to seek a cure. The arrestment was effective, though he always had to be careful about his health.
On December 14, 1906 he was recalled to St. Francis
Xavier's, New York City, where he completed the scholastic
year, teaching a third year high school class Latin, Greek and
English. His spiritual diary of this period shows that he
was tempted to great discouragement. He felt that he was not
a good teacher and that he could not enforce discipline. He
did not blame the boys but shouldered it himself and, through
motives of zeal, attempted manfully to remedy what was
wrong. His discouragement was resolved by a consideration of
the sufferings of Our Lord.
In September, 1907 he was back at Johns Hopkins and was
elected a fellow for the year 1907-8 with remission of tuition.
His dissertation was on the pentacardioid. He won the doctorate in June, 1908 and was elected a member of Phi Beta
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Kappa on May 7, 1908. The following year was spent teaching
physics, astronomy and calculus at Boston College.
The Fall of 1909 found Mr. Phillips a theologian at Woodstock and he attained the goal of the priesthood on June 24,
1912 at the hands of Cardinal Gibbons. True to his principles,
he kept a faithful record during theology of his retreats,
monthly recollections, and tridua. Here it is not difficult to
discern an ardent desire for perfection and a somewhat
merciless self-scrutiny. He had to struggle against illness
and fatigue and this accounts for the difficulty he had in
keeping awake during meditation time. Not unconnected with
the illness that was to threaten him throughout his life, there
were also other trials and temptations, which troubled him not
so much because of the bother, they gave him but because of
his purity of conscience. He-.)vas tender-minded rather than
scrupulous. But he was remarkably obedient to his confessor and spiritual father.
His studies at Hopkins had whetted his interest in mathematics and we find him censuring himself for devoting so
much time to this diversion. However he never really neglected his theology, as is shown by the fact that his fellow
theologians consulted him and found him, not only a master
of his field, but very honest in admitting if he did not understand or disagreed with an opinion taught. But he would
say that he did not see the cogency of the proof rather than
express it as a criticism. Another index of the brilliance of
his course may be seen in the fact that superiors assigned him
to teach De Ecclesia and De Actu Fidei immediatelY.,.after his
fourth year of theology.
In the spring of his third year of theology, his revered
father died. In one of his reflections of that period, he makes
the remark that he had been spared so many temptations because of his good Catholic home and parents. During
theology he exercised his zeal by teaching catechism at Ellicott
City, where he struck up a life-long friendship with Father
Ryan, the pastor of St. Paul's Church. He never forgot such
friends and benefactors.
How did he impress others? In his ordination retreat this
very thought must have arisen in his own mind. ·He was
meditating on the "little things of daily life" and, referring
to recreation, he asks himself: "Do I help to make it (recrea-
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71
tion) religiously agreeable and agreeably religious? Do I
frown? Am I a mar-joy? General Examen: Is my conduct
singular? Am I considered an oddity-and why? Perhaps
I am. Do I make it my business to attend to other people's
business? Am I a fault finder?" Some of these questions may
be repetitions of suggestions made by the retreat master. We
have no way of knowing. But it cannot be said that he was
what one might term a popular person. In fact, he must have
been in those student days a lonely man as far as close human
friendship is concerned.
One of his fellow novices offers the following brief sketch of
these scholastic days. "He was always kindly but rather
withdrawn, I would say, until he became provincial. He did
not manage to go out to people. If you managed to get in to
him, you found him everything you would want in a friend:
sympathy, kindness, good advice. Due. to this reserved
attitude, he might seem cold. He was strict, of course, in his
judgment not of others but of himself. And he was an official-beadle in the noviceship and in philosophy-and that
put the stamp of the law upon him, too." There seems to
have been some awesomeness about his strict, unerring observance and his reputation for brilliance and learning probably helped to build a sort of barrier. But there was a natural
shyness in him, which grace finally enabled him to overcome.
If we look for reasons here, it will be recalled that he lost
his own mother when he was very young, that the family was
separated for some years, never in fact to be fully reunited.
In the Society he rarely had visitors and even at his ordination, there were no relatives present. He told the juniors in
his last years that he "adopted" some of the visitors of one of
the Italian ordinati. His father had but recently died. None
of his .brothers or sisters or his stepmother was there to
share his gladness. He explained this in later years by saying
that they were indisposed. The religious indifference and
even apostasy from the faith of several members of the family
had raised barriers between them and him. In his zeal to
reconcile the members of the family he had unintentionally
stirred up antagonism. All these differences were later settled
and he was genuinely loved by all his relatives.
After one year of teaching fundamental theology at Woodstock, he was released to make his tertianship at St. Andrew-
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on-Hudson under Father Thomas Gannon. It was certainly ,
here that he laid the foundations for that fine grasp of the
Institute, which was to grow when he became provincial some
fourteen years later. It is not surprising to find him as exact
a tertian, as he had been a novice. Indeed this characteristic
exactness in every grade of the Society struck everyone with
amazement till the end of his life. The novices and juniors,
during his declining years, noticed it immediately and were
very edified. His careful notes on the conferences on the
Institute and the knowledge they show of the classical
authors on the same subject make it very evident how busily
occupied he was as a tertian. His diary of the long retreat
is extant and in its pages we observe a soul ardently in search
of the gift of prayer, to which he had been faithful all his life.
There are renewed accusation~. of neglect of and dryness in
prayer. But they have to be viewed in perspective, in the light
of the high ideal he had of what a Jesuit's prayer ought to be.
He had his consolations and desolations in meditation all his
life. In regard to his diaries and spiritual notebooks, one
point should be stressed: there is never a word of recrimination of superiors or of the brethren. He searched for the
blame in himself for everything that happened. Certainly he
planned during tertianship a regimen of sanctity, which all
believe he attained.
Throughout his life he was gathering material for sermons
and conferences, though the actual number of sermons and
conferences that survive are few in number. Actually he
gave only one six-day retreat and a limited number oi tridua.
Rarely did he preach. All this was simply not his forte and
he was kept too busy in other assignments. Zealous as he
surely was, he really longed for the ministry. His sermons
manifest careful reasoning and homely similes. But when it
came to delivery, his voice was weak and sleepy and his
mathematical and theological studies and interests must have
parched his style. He had little taste for imagery, just as he
had little time or appreciation for beautiful scenery when he
was traveling.
Tertianship over, he was sent to Woodstock to teach short
course. This was an unusual status for one who had done
brilliant studies in mathematics. One of his rectors at Woodstock deplored this failure to capitalize such abilities and
�FATHER EDWARD C. PHILLIPS
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73
eventually succeeded in having Father Phillips assigned to
fields more germane to his abilities and interest. But in all
his notes and diaries, there is not one suggestion of complaint.
In fact, he censures himself for devoting too much time to his
mathematical interest and not enough to preparation for his
theology classes. He perhaps did not know that his notes,
though intended for short course theologians, were highly
prized by the long course men as well.
Beginning in 1919, and for six years thereafter, he taught
astronomy, physics and mathematics at Woodstock. Now he
was in his element, though he accuses himself of not studying
astronomy more deeply, so as to make his classes both more
interesting and profitable for his students. Field work,
especially surveying, always attracted him. For this he
would enlist the help of philosophers who were interested.
The observatory was open to welcome any one who wanted to
observe the stars. In teaching calculus he seemed to aim his
course at those who would profit most. This was sound
pedagogy; and those who were less well prepared always
found him most willing to retrace his steps if he omitted any.
In 1923 he was made prefect of studies at Woodstock.
Father General called a group of experts to Rome for a cosmological congress in 1924. Father Phillips, along with
Father John Gipprich, was sent from the old Maryland-New
Your Province and he read a paper entitled: De Structura
Systematis Stellaris. The account of the congress that appeared in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS was his. During his stay
at Woodstock, in fact while he was teaching theology, he
designed an instrument which he called: a new transit reduction computing machine. The purpose of the machine was to
relieve astronomers of the burden of long calculations in the
correction of clocks for the determination of time. Naval
Observatory astronomers manifested an initial interest in the
invention, when Father Phillips read a paper on the machine
at the summer meeting of the American Astronomical Society.
In fact a comparative test was staged, in which Father
Phillips, employing the device, finished the calculations in a
much shorter time than did a designated member of the
Observatory staff. But the First World War was on and the
Observatory astronomers were busy about many things. The
result was that Father Phillips' instrument was never
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adopted. Now more modern methods of determination are
employed.
Another essay in charity, as well as science, was his Wood~
stock percentage computer. It was designed to minimize the
labor of teachers in computing marks and grades with skill
and speed. Both devices demonstrated inventive skill and,
but for the circumstances of the times and other later developments, might well have found wide application. Few people
perhaps knew of this very practical side of his character and
ability.
In 1925 Father Phillips was transferred from Woodstock
to the post of director of the Georgetown Astronomical Observatory. It would seem his scientific career had now been
launched. But he was to hold, the post for only three years.
In his diary he honestly appr.aised his practical experience in
astronomy and admitted that it was limited. But at once he
set about to remedy this. He visited some of the more important observatories in this country and consulted eminent
men about the fields of research that lay open to Georgetown.
Apparently he first envisaged some work on latitude determinations and, in fact, was invited by the United States
Coast and Geodetic Survey to take over the Gaithersburg
(Maryland) International Latitude Station. On consultation
with Father Hagen, he _declined this invitation, though he did
some research in this field. He soon embarked upon an important international astronomical enterprise: the world longitudinal determinations, in which radio was used to transmit
the time signals. The three chief stations of the cooperative
venture were the Jesuit observatories at Zikawei, San Diego
and Algiers. Many other observatories participated with
Georgetown in this project. Father Phillips declared that his
chief purpose was "to secure a more precise determination of
the longitude of Georgetown and also to contribute one more
link in the chain of secondary stations." Another purpose was
to test the hypothesis of movements in the earth's crust. An
account of this work appeared in the Jesuit Science Bulletin.
As director of the observatory he undertook a study of the
personal equation in observing occultations and, at the meeting of the American Astronomical Society in 1926, read a
preliminary report on this work. Not only was the report
well received, but he was encouraged to continue the work.
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An abstract of the paper appeared in Popular Astronomy.
His first list of fifteen occultations was published in the
Astronomical Journal. At the 1927 New Haven meeting,
Father Phillips read a paper entitled: "A Second Note on the
Personal Equation in Observing Occultations." In this paper
he offered a synopsis of most of the work that had been done
on this problem during the preceding forty years or more.
Several of the astronomers in attendance requested or advised the publication of this correlated data. The paper appeared in Popular Astronomy.
During his stay at Georgetown, he did not lose interest in
mathematics and was invited to lecture on Gothic tracery at
the Kansas City meeting of the American Association for the
Advancement of Science in December, 1925. He lectured
on the same subject at Goucher College, Baltimore.
How he supernaturalized all his scientific labors may be
seen from the notes on the second meditation of his 1926
retreat. "I have accomplished practically nothing for the
glory of God during the past year. I seem to be useless in
His· Vineyard and scarcely know what to do. I must purify
my intention more in my scientific work and I must be more
methodical in it, so as to secure, if possible, some definite
scientifiC! result, in order that this indirect means of helping
souls may be efficacious. Otherwise I am like the barren fig
tree and uselessly occupying the ground." During the same
retreat, on the meditation on the annunciation, he wrote: "I
should overcome my fear of labor, my dislike for outside
active work with people of the world and all other impediments, and say generously : Ecce adsum, Domine, fiat mihi
secundum verbum tuum ... Quidquid Deus vult." The above
self-accusation of laziness and unproductivity must be viewed
in the light of various facts. At the time of this retreat he
had spent about one year at the Observatory. He was still
trying to chart a course for research. When he had first
arrived at Georgetown, he had surveyed the situation, taken
stock of his own qualifications for the post and of the work
to be done or continued in the fine tradition of his predecessors.
He had had no formal training in astronomy and, among the
recommendations that he made in his report, he had suggested that he be sent to some university for the necessary
training. For good reasons, no doubt, he was never given this
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opportunity. Without it he went ahead and learned the hard
way and, in a few years, he did win recognition in astronomical circles. If he felt frustration at times, he never expressed it in his reports to superiors or in his spiritual diary.
Like the saints he took the blame himself. His success and
labors at the Observatory must be accounted a triumph of
obedience.
It does seem true to say that God led him to the provincialate through the stars, as He had the Magi. When Father
Phillips' appointment as provincial was announced, Father
William Tynan made the witty comment: "Well, that is something remarkable. Here you have a man who has looked at
fixed stars all his life. And now he's going to look at variables!" Father Phillips himself used to say of his appointment rather mournfully: "If.. I had not gone to Rome, I
would never have been provincial." The story of his appointment is rather amazing.
The Astronomical Society had appointed him a delegate to
the 1928 International Meeting at Leiden, Holland. Father
Kelly, then provincial, had asked for permission for him and
Father Matthew Fortier to attend various European conventions and to go to Rome. The reply was rather slow in coming
and, when it arrived, it turned out to be a refusal. For
special reasons Father- Kelly decided that Father Fortier
should go, and he informed Father General. But he intended
to detain Father Phillips. The message, which he sent to
Georgetown to notify him, never reached Father Phillips. On
the boat Father Fortier, believing that Father Phillips had
Father General's approval, asked him to intercede witli Father
General in his behalf, when he reached Rome.
At the Leiden Congress Father Phillips presented the preliminary results of the longitude operations carried on at
Georgetown in 1926, and also made a brief report of the work
done at the Observatory on the personal equation in observing
occultations. In the interests of his work he visited observatories and other astronomical institutes at Heidelberg, Mannheim, Strassbourg, Milan, Merate, Florence, and finally arrived in Rome on July 31, 1928. He spent a little less than
three weeks there, mostly at the Vatican Observatory with
Father Hagen, one of his predecessors at Georgetown. But
one night Father General called for him and gave him an
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assignment which precluded his being provincial. The very
next morning he summoned him once more and appointed
him provincial of the Maryland-New York Province. There
seems to be good evidence to believe that another Father had
already been appointed to this post. But Father General
rescinded his previous appointment in favor of Father
Phillips.
On September 12 the new Provincial was read in at Kohlmann Hall. There was an amusing incident. When Father
Phillips arrived at Kohlmann Hall and presented himself to
the Sub-Minister, he was told that there was no room for him
and that he should have written ahead.
The appointment was a blow to him, as he tells us; and
it took him some months to grow into it. He had never been
either minister or superior and it is unlikely that he was ever
included in the list of the apti ad gubernandum. He rode
almost immediately into the depression and, when his procurator became ill, he had the added burden of watching the
finances of the Province. For work such as this he was
particularly fitted. Some members of the Province attributed
our weathering the storm of the depression to his guidance
and prayers. He would take particular delight iri watching
the fluctuations of the stock market because he realized the
needs of the province, and the intricacies of the market intrigued him. He was averse to speculation and always insisted upon safe investments, even though the returns were
less spectacular. The result was that the Province weathered
the storm successfully, and Father Phillips was not forced to
limit the number of candidates received for the novitiate. He
used to say that if God gave a boy the physical, mental, and
moral qualifications for admission, He would not fail to give us
the money to support him. On the other hand he was adamantine in maintaining the standards that had been set for
admission.
The job of being provincial was a blow to him, because he
deemed himself incapable of governing, and he admits in his
spiritual notes a dislike for all preferment. Yet he worked up
the courage required by relying on God's help. In his retreat
for 1933, in meditating on the Incarnation, he indicates the
source of his fortitude. He writes: "I then went to speak to
God the Father under the mantle of my Mother, and holding
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OBITUARY
the hand of Christ, my Brother and Redeemer, I asked Him
to help me to know His Son better, to keep close to Him, to
walk hand in hand with Him, though I know how utterly unworthy I am of such intimacy."
In one of his retreats as provincial, he ponders very beautifully the opportunity he has as provincial to give pleasure to
Christ by doing good to the brethren. He realizes that he
ought to see Christ in his brethren, that, in serving them, he is
serving Christ. Again, it was his high ideals that makes him
brand himself as pusillanimous, when the opposite impression
was shared by all. He was absolutely fair and just, and would
call for obedience from superiors as well as subjects. He was
convinced that reform, where needed, should begin at the top.
It was said that in the beginning he was too attentive to the
reports of superiors. But h~. soon gained the reputation of
hearing both sides and was called the "champion of the
underdog." He used to say that he often found it difficult to
determine where the truth lay in conflicting stories or reports.
Sometimes, he said, Providence would provide the answer
and he had to wait for it.
It is hardly necessary to state that he was obedient as
provincial to the ordinations and wishes of Father General
and respectful to ordinaries. When Father General issued the
Instructio of 1934, Father Phillips began to set more men
aside for higher studies. He built up the faculty of Woodstock, especially that of the philosophy department, by increasing the staff. As a subject he was most exact in his
obedience. An amusing example of this occurred wh(!n he had
returned to Woodstock, after his term as provincial had expired. During his incumbency of that office he had always
refused to grant permission for golf at Woodstock. He considered it against poverty. Almost immediately his successor
granted the permission and Father Phillips undertook to survey the projected site for the course with the same eagerness
as if he had granted the permission himself.
His honesty and fairness in dealing with subjects became
proverbial. Some felt that his scientific training prevented
him at times from reaching a moral, rather than a mathematical judgment; and they might not always be able to agree with
some of his decisions. But these same people, and all others,
admitted that there was nothing capricious or purely sub-
�OBITUARY
79
jective about his judgments. They were impartial and just.
As one member of the province once put it: "There is a
man who would rather die than do the least injustice to
any one of us." He would enforce a regulation, such as that
on Christmas travel, without favoritism or human respect,
whether the request came from superior or subject. Yet he
was justly deferential to superiors and would make most of
his permissions subject to their approval. His annual status
was, in the latter years at least, almost invariably late in appearing. The reason was not procrastination but a deep concern to save the reputation and feelings of a subject, when he
had to be changed for reasons of incompetency or for some
disciplinary matter. He was ever alert to guard the reputation of his subjects, even to the extent of keeping his socius
in ignorance of certain things.
One incident which occurred in 1933, demonstrates an extension of this protection against attack on Ours by externs.
Father Louis Bonvin, a distinguished musical scholar, had
been accused in Commonweal of formal disobedience to the
Holy See for some statement, attributed to him at least, on the
liceity of mixed choirs. The old scholar could not rise to his
own defense as he had been told not to write on affairs of
Church Music. Father Phillips wrote a very calm letter to
Commonweal, which he asked them to publish. He disavowed
any intention of starting a controversy but declared that he
wished to set the record straight. He remarked that it was
the exclusive right of ecclesiastical superiors to accuse a
priest of formal disobedience to the Holy See and, as far as
Father Bonvin was concerned, there had been no such accusation nor had he been disobedient. The Commonweal finally
published the letter vindicating Father Bonvin.
Coupled with his honesty and integrity was his accuracy;
we might even call it a passion for truth. It was part of his
very nature but had been reinforced by his scientific training
and wholly supernaturalized. Unless you knew him intimately, you might be tempted to regard it as painful exactness. Thus he would use circumlocution in giving the time.
He would say: "It is about ten o'clock," or "a little after ten,"
because there was necessarily a lag between the time indicated
and its subsequent announcement. In his last years, doubtless due to his illness, this concern for the truth was really
�I
80
OBITUARY
exaggerated, as was manifest in the points he gave to the
juniors. He would spend a disproportionate amount of time
on some irrelevant point of detail of the composition of place.
But is was all a part of a pattern of love for the truth. And it
was definitely not scrupulosity.
Despite his self-accusations of laziness and procrastination
in the performance of the duties of provincial, he was always
busy and would hardly ever take a siesta. And yet in those
closing years of his office he was a vecy tired man. He expected the same application to duty on the part of his subordinates in the Curia, and showed this, not indeed by
tyrannical insistence but by his example. There were no
days off or holidays. As procurator later on, he regretted this
and said that when he was younger he never realized that
young men need more relaxatiop, though he personally could
dispense with it. He learned a lot about human nature, or
the "variable stars," in the course of office and definitely
mellowed in his expectations of others. However there had
never been anything harsh in his requirements or enactments and I remember overhearing him counsel a visiting
provincial, who had a reputation for harsh exaction, to lean
more towards gentleness in government.
He supernaturalized everything and this proved a source of
strength in his government as well as a cushion for others,
when he had to make some adverse decisions. In reaching
his decisions he was ever guided by the Rules for the Election,
as laid down by St. Ignatius. Certainly that crucifix above
his desk could tell of many a sigh and pleading glance·~uring
such elections. One of these recorded elections on a little slip
of paper, dating from his hurried plane trip to Manila in the
Summer of 1948, begins with the invocation: "Doce nos
Domine Voluntatem Tuam. Decision submitted to our Lord
during Mass, Wednesday, July 21, 1948. Better move the
Ateneo to Cubao."
Just sixteen years before, in 1932, he had had to decide that
the A ten eo should be moved to the San Jose site, after the old
buildings had burned down. That was during his visitation
of the Philippine Mission. In this visitation he spent almost
• six months, including trav~l, and he visited every station, no
matter how remote, in order to show his fatherly interest in
each missionary. Those who profited by this visitation still
I
�OBITUARY
81
remember his deep kindliness and concern. This interest and
predilection for the Mission and its members never waned and
he kept up correspondence with missionaries, old and new, including the Scholastics who had left St. Andrew as juniors,
while he was stationed there. The writer thought that the
missions and mathematics were his predominant special interests. If he was abstracted at recreation you had only to mention either the missions or some mathematical problem and
Father Provincial was all alert. It was during his visitation
in 1932 that Novaliches was opened as a novitiate for the
Philippin~ Mission. Other important decisions were reached
in regard to the Mission at that time. Funds accruing from
the government salaries of the staff of the Observatory and
Weather Station at San Jose had been accumulating. Father
Phillips transferred them to the Area Seminarii and thus
helped to put the Mission on a solid financial basis. He encouraged the building of the new San Jose Seminary, when the
latter's buildings had been taken over by the Ateneo.
He had to report to Father General and to the Holy See
on his return trip from Manila and thus he went to Rome.
'l'he division of the diocese of Zamboanga resulted from that
trip. In the course of his audience with the Holy Father, Pius
XI, Father Phillips suggested to his Holiness that the Philippines were too large for one province or order to handle. The
Holy Father replied: "Father Provincial, I expect the impossible of the Society." Then he went on to explain that, because of the training of the Society and the number of men,
we were able to accomplish things that others could not.
Father Phillips always cherished those words ,of the Holy
Father. Later, both Bishop Luis del Rosario and Bishop (now
Archbishop) James Hayes invited other congregations of religious men into their dioceses to help in the harvest of souls.
As provincial, Father Phillips was very generous in men and
money to the Mission and to the missionaries as well. At
Christmas time, even during the depression, he would have
the procurator of the Mission Bureau send perhaps twenty-five
or fifty dollars to each Mindanao missionary, whether
Spaniard, Filipino or American. It was not much, but it did
attest the faithful interest of Father Provincial in each lonely
missionary.
He always adhered strictly to the principle set down, or
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OBITUARY
rather reasserted by Father General Ledochowski, that application to the mission was for life. When someone suggested
that this was not universal, since there was evidence that, in 1
the old English Mission in Maryland, men were sent back to
England at times, Father Phillips held strictly to the principle,
since it was Father General's wish. Once his secretary suggested that there might be more volunteers, if Father Pro- f
vincial would make it clear that there could be, exceptionally
at least, enlistments for from three to five years. But Father l
Phillips refused to make any offers that would impugn the !
general rule. The same secretary .once asked Father Pro- I
vincial if he thought only the best men should be sent to the I
Mission. His reply was: "Well, perhaps not all the best." I
In calling for volunteers, he was at pains to make it clear I
that a mission vocation involved hardships. On his return
from the Philippines, he issued a call for volunteers. It
was a objective statement, in which he set forth the needs
of the Mission, the difficulties involved, and all this without ·
romantic appeal of any kind. His secretary volunteered on
this occasion. And Father Phillips, perhaps fearing that the
priest did not understand the full implications, or perhaps
might be seeking an easy post, said with characteristic
honesty: "It may mean the bush, Father."
During his regime -the new Wernersville novitiate was
opened and St. Peter's College, Jersey City, was reopened at
the insistence of the Ordinary of Newark. Beliarmine Hall
was purchased as a villa. Aside from these, there were no
new foundations during his term of office. Faithful.tq Father
General's insistence that we consolidate our commitments, he
was averse to new engagements. In those days the personnel
of the Province was somewhat inadequate and Father Phillips
was deeply concerned that Ours, especially the teaching Scholastics, should not be so overburdened with duties that their
spiritual life would suffer.
Well versed as he was in the Society's legislation on the
poverty of different types of houses, and also due to the
financial exigencies of the Province, he began to demand from 1
the better-off colleges that stipends and perquisites for Masses
and other spiritual functions be sent to the Area. He was
very chary about giving· permission for automobiles for the
houses, unless certain requirements were fulfilled. In his own
!
I
I
�OBITUARY
83
personal poverty, he was exemplary; and he remained that
way till the end. The juniors found him mending his own
habit-no doubt to avoid notice. He always appeared neat,
but his clothing was old and sometimes threadbare. On returning from a visitation one day, his secretary suggested to
Father Provincial that he needed a new hat. The only reply
was: "It's good enough for me."
He had an old Woodstock duster for about forty years and
brought it out for use at St. Andrew. I do not know whether
he ever used a parlor chair on a train, but I do recall traveling
from Buffalo to New York with him in a coach and he brought
his lunch along with him. He never smoked, though he was
not the wet-blanket type that would make smokers uncomfortable in his presence. Like St. Ignatius he did not demand
or counsel the same for all. But, if he thought a subject was
ready for it, he would suggest that he give up smoking or
other things. In this connection I recall one conference which
he gave when we were theologians at Woodstock, the burden of
which was: "Be reckless with God."
Father Phillips will long be remembered for his longsuffering patience in listening to manifestations during visitations. The result was that he could not always complete the
visitation of the whole province each year. Never did you
feel that you were pressing him for time. Even the novices
could spend all the time they wished with him and they would
come in with their notebooks and comments on the points for
rendering the account of conscience. He felt that he was
giving them practice in this important exercise and never
begrudged them the time. It was not uncommon for him to
spend four weeks or more in the visitation of Woodstock.
In the same way at the provincial's residence he was
always available. At times this must have amounted to a
real trial for him, when he was immersed in business, but I
cannot recall one complaint or any refusal of admission.
There was no one to regulate admissions, although many
Would first ask Brother Ramspacher or Father Socius to announce their arrival. Most of the visitors simply knocked
at his door and that weak, somewhat tired-sounding, but
always pleasant voice answered: "Come in."
A very painful trial overtook him in 1934, when his brother
Osmund, then City-Editor of the New York Times, died sud-
�84
OBITUARY
I
I
denly. Mr. Phillips had married a Protestant and apparently ~
attended Protestant services, if he did not become a Protestant. 1
Father had wrested a promise from his sister-in-law that she 1
would call a priest in case his brother was in danger of death.
But it all happened very suddenly and so there was no time.
A Protestant burial service was held, which Father Phillips
did not attend. He did, however, go to the actual interment.
At the time of this death, Father was making his visitation
of St. Andrew-on-Hudson. Just after he had received the
tidings, the Father Socius to the Master of Novices came to
his room with the mail. Father Phillips admitted to him that
he was going through the agony of the garden. For some
years there was a deep misunderstanding between Father
Phillips and this sister-in-law, evidently due to his attempts
to straighten out his brother. ~Later this was cleared up and
he kept up correspondence with her and his non-Catholic
nieces in an attempt to win them to the Church. The defection of some of the family from the Church was a great
cross to him all his life. Their reconciliation with the Church
was uppermost in his mind, though he had a deep affection
for them, too.
When after many years, communication was re-established
with his sister, Mary Frances, and her daughter, who lived in
England, Father Phillips wrote to his niece, February 27,
1950:
What I want to· know especially is whether when you say that
your mother "goes to Church when the weather is fine" means that
she goes to the Catholic Church or not; you know thatt-·we were
all brought up as Catholics and that is the reason why I ask. You
do not say that you accompany her but I take this for granted.
Perhaps I am mistaken. The fact that Mary Frances says that
her marriage with the Baron de Lorme-for I have always thought
that he was a French Baron-was in "a chapel" I have taken
it for granted that it was in a Catholic chapel; you can be very
honest with me for I am a priest and am interested very much
in this matter, as you know.
It would be interesting to give detailed references to the
high esteem in which Father Phillips was held by Father
General and his fellow provincials of Canada and this
• country. This was very ~uch in evidence at the provincials'
meetings each year, over which he presided. He sent the
travel money to one provincial, whose province was then in
�OBITUARY
85
dire need, so that he could attend the 1934 meeting at
Montreal. A Father of this province who was studying in
Rome when Father Phillips was a delegate to the General
Congregation in 1938 and later stayed on for the work of the
revision of the Ratio Studiorum, writes that he often walked
about Rome with Father Phillips and felt that he was walking
with a saint. He adds: "The impression of other Jesuits in
Rome was that Father Phillips was one of the finest and holiest Jesuits they had ever met and they added: 'Have you any
more like him?'" He was kindly and sympathetic to lay
people and helped not a few relatives of Ours, who came to
him for financial help. But in all this he was conforming to
the same pattern. Everyone realized that in Father Phillips
they were meeting a man of keenest intelligence, unassuming
charity, and sanctity.
Just as he had never ambitioned office or preferment, so he
would have been delighted to be relieved of office after six
years of service. But Father Ledochowski in a personal
letter asked him to continue in office for another year. This
extra burden he took with true resignation, despite the fact
that he was a very tired man, ever threatened with tuberculosis, which a wheezing cough always betrayed. But
liberation came in August, 1935. For a few months more
he remained at Kohlmann Hall, where he volunteered to clean
out the files for his successor. In the late fall of 1935, he
arrived at Woodstock as spiritual father of the theologians.
It is not to his discredit that he was not universally acclaimed
as a spiritual father. However, he was always on hand, as
his beloved predecessor the saintly Father Barrett had been,
and was very conscientious about the colloquia.
From 1937 to 1940 he was, officially at least, dean of
philosophy at Woodstock and did some tutoring in mathematics
as well. However the Provincial Congregation of 1937 elected
him delegate to the General Congregation, which was to convene on March 12, 1938. During the General Congregation,
he and Father John Hynes, of the New Orleans Province,
were appointed to the Commission for Higher Studies to act
as the representatives of the American Assistancy. The appointment was more than a sinecure and involved, in fact,
considerable work in addition to the usual duties of delegate.
This commission had as its purpose the preparation and
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OBITUARY
presentation of the Postulata on the rev1s10n of the Ratio
Studiorum for the consideration of the Fathers of the Con- I
I
gregation.
By its Thirty-eighth Decree the Congregation, while committing to Father General the task of the actual revision of
the parts of the Ratio pertaining to Philosophy and Theology '·
for Ours, recommended that Father General appoint a commission to help him in the revision. Father Ledochowski 1
proposed that the congregation reserve to itself the selection ~
and approval of the members of the proposed committee.
Accordingly each assistancy selected two names. Father
Phillips was first choice of the Assistancy and thus became a
member of the commission for the revision of the Ratio. In
the report which he submitted ,to the Editor of the WoODSTOCK
LETTERS, Father Phillips offers some interesting details of the
work of this committee. It '\vas actively engaged for some
342 days, beginning May, 1938. There were 135 sessions in
all, each of which lasted about two hours. Counting the preliminary work for each session, he calculated that this
amounted to some 800 clock hours of labor for each member.
The work was concluded in June, 1939 and the new Ratio
was promulgated on July 31, 1941. Father Phillips arrived
back in the States in the Summer of 1939.
He did not return to_Woodstock as dean of philosophy. Instead he was appointed director of the Graduate School at
Georgetown University. He was to man this post from 1939
till 1943. As provincial he had always insisted that our
graduate schools should not attempt to emulate the.."complete
graduate departments of the opulent state and private uni·
versities. He believed that each graduate department should
specialize and concentrate along certain lines without un·
necessary duplication, so that, taken together, the different
schools would offer reasonably complete graduate courses.
This was probably his policy at Georgetown. In addition to
his duties as director, he was revisor for both Woodstock and
Georgetown from 1936 to 1943. He took this extra work
very seriously.
His skill in finance made him a logical candidate for the
post of procurator of the newly formed New York Province in
1943 and he held this post till 1949. He was now in his sixty·
sixth year, when he undertook this burden and after some
I
!
1
�OBITUARY
87
months almost died after a very serious operation. As it was,
he all but lost vision in one eye, due to a blood clot. When he
took over the post of procurator, the big problem confronting
the two provinces was an equitable division of the funds, and
in Father Phillips both provinces found an objective and just
arbiter. The long, painstaking labor involved in drawing up
the list of assets will hardly ever be realized and it was in
addition to his regular duties of a procurator of a large
province. Assistance he had, of course, in this arduous work,
but his was the final responsibility.
Towards the end of 1948, before he could put the final
touches to his report on the financial division, he suffered a
stroke, from which he recovered much to his surprise. Once
during his hospitalization, as he used to love to tell the juniors,
he was taken for dead and preparations were being made for
the disposal of the "corpse," when he came back to consciousness. On leaving the hospital he spent some time recuperating
at the Fordham infirmary and in January, 1949 went to Shrub
Oak for further rest. The stroke had taken quite a toll from
him and never again was he completely his old self. He knew
that another stroke would carry him off and often mentioned
this. Writing to the Rector of Syracuse on December 9, 1951
he says: "My health, although it does not satisfy the doctor, is
really good. It surprises some that think of me only as an
'old man.' So do not think that I will disappoint you, although
I know I may get a stroke any time. But we are in God's
hands, so that never troubles me."
At the time of the stroke he was in his fifty-first year in
the Society and Father Provincial thought it time to relieve
him of further high responsibility. In the Spring of 1949 he
journeyed to St. Andrew-on-Hudson to be spiritual father of
the formed Brothers. At once he wanted to give points to
them every night but superiors realized this would be too
much for him, so he had to content himself with alternation
with others.· He made a real job of what might have been a
sinecure. But Father Phillips was never the man to retire
from life and labor. Rather he retired to other work and his
ingenuity in this respect is remarkable in a man of seventytwo years of age, who had been in delicate health all his life
in the Society.
In a way life was now a second spring for him inasmuch
�88
OBITUARY
as his direct influence especially over the younger men and the
Brothers widened perceptibly. He became more and more
lovable, as he grew older and as God, the Divine Artist, put
more and more finishing touches to his sanctity. The Brothers
and those juniors who came to him for confession, or sought
his direction, found him a very kindly and sympathetic priest,
who reflected the sanctity that he inculcated. He would encourage them to keep on trying to be good Jesuits. One of
the juniors remarked that the only time he appeared worked
up was when he tried to convince one who needed it that the
fruit of the sacrament of penance should be peace of mind.
Another favorite exhortation of his was to do all their actions
for the love of God.
Almost bewildering is the account of the number and extent
of the work projects in whicD. this septuagenarian was engaged. Father Haitz, then minister at St. Andrew, states that
Father Phillips frequently came to him to ask for more work.
In addition to his occupations with the Brothers, he frequently gave points to the juniors. Twice each week he
literally shared in the outdoor work period of the novice
Brothers. He would often be seen going out in his old faded
duster to trim bushes and cut off dead branches. Towards
the end he was told to stop his hard work, so he would go out
to direct the juniors in .their outdoor work and would occupy
himself in cleaning up afterwards. At picnics he would
cheerfully share in the work of washing dishes after the meal.
One of his major projects at St. Andrew was the surveying
of the property, and characteristically, there was much preliminary research in the records of the city of Poughkeepsie
for the legal limits of the property. He started some preliminary surveying for a projected dam at the reservoir.
When Father J. Joseph Lynch, noted seismologist and
physicist at Fordham, needed a new tripartite station at St.
Andrew to determine the source of a two-second frontal
microseism, he could count on the interest and help of Father
Phillips. The careful survey map of the property, which
Father had now completed, was indispensable. Father
Phillips checked and re-checked the distances between the
apices of the triangular station that had to be set up. Then
he started to train some of the juniors to read the records of
the microseism as they appeared.
�OBITUARY
89
The last work project which he undertook was that of
estimating the total cubic capacity of Duck Lake, formerly
known as the Upper Pond. If it were ample enough, it might
prove to be -an added supplementary source of water in case
of a fire. Actually this was true and the insurance rate of
St. Andrew was lowered. During this project a junior would
tow Father in a little dinghy over the lake in different directions, while he took frequent soundings at fixed intervals.
Just four days before he died, he posted the results of his investigation on the juniors' bulletin board. There was great
merriment over the sign. Father had correctly calculated the
capacity of the lake and translated it into gallon capacity.
But in his final summary he misread the previous figures and
made the capacity ten times the true figure. Next morning
the juniors found the sign amended in his own hand.
During the villa season he usually went to Monroe as spiritual father for part of the time -at least. The points which he
gave were always enjoyed and he would share in their games,
often teaching the juniors mathematical games of his own.
His genuine charity was shown in his great devotion to the
sick. Twice each day he would visit the infirmary, after duly
getting permission from Father Rector, Father Master and
Brother Infirmarian. Twice each day, too, he would play
checkers with an invalided Brother, who loved the game.
Usually Father Phillips lost, though as he told one of the
infirmarians, he had tried in his room to work out some
mathematical means of winning the game. But experience
triumphed over mathematical skill, though not over the
humble mathematician. One of these visits would usually
coincide with mealtime for this invalided Brother. So Father
Phillips would push his wheelchair to the infirmary kitchen
and there serve him his dinner. It was his custom to offer
the Holy Sacrifice in the infirmary chapel, where he communicated the sick. One of the infirmarians informs us that
Father Phillips frequently urged him to be good to the sick.
The community at St. Andrew appreciated the loving faithfulness, the patience and simplicity, the regularity of this
hard-working, perfect old priest, who with all his learning
Was as simple as a child and as observant as the most exact
novice. But the night was coming on, when no man could
Work. And death did not find him dismayed. Upon his ar-
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OBITUARY
rival at St. Andrew he told Father Rector that he was
practically blind in one eye, had had a stroke and that in
about two years, the stroke would have its telling effect. He
could expect to find him lying on the floor dead some morning.
If it was not a prophecy, it was at least the truth. When he
had returned from Gabriel's Sanatorium in 1906, he had a
presentiment of an early death. In that he was mistaken.
But now his thoughts were often on death and without any
morbidity.
Like St. Ignatius he never feared death. This is abundantly
clear from the meditations on that topic in his annual retreats.
Only once, when he was provincial, did he betray a little
anxiety, not indeed of death itself, but that he did not fear it.
So he pondered its meaning and implications. Around Easter,
1952 he must have been thinking ..of death and he expressed it
in a letter to his niece Mary, who replied as follows:
It was nice to read in your letter that you are in good
health, but it made me very sad when you said you have a feeling
that you won't live very long. What makes you think such gloomy
thoughts?-though, as you say, it is really a joyful thought to
think of going to sleep here and waking up with Christ welcoming
us . . . •
A Brother Infirmarian tells us that one day he was conversing with Father Phillips and the subject of death came up.
Father remarked: "That is. the only thing I have to look forward to. I am ready when God wants me." This remark
shows that he had recovered, or rather maintained, the same
attitude towards death that had always characterized his life
in the Society. He would have agreed with St. Paul that death
was a prelude to the time when "we shall be with the Lord
forever" (I Thess. 4, 16).
God called his servant home on the morning of May 9, 1952.
The previous evening he had given points to the Brothers and
had been almost jocular, when he spoke of St. Peter's attempt
on Malchus' ear. A Scholastic who confessed to him that
night noticed that Father Phillips seemed to find difficulty
getting up from his prie-dieu and that he asked the Scholastic
to repeat several times, which seems to argue that his con.centration and memory were failing him. That night he did
something very unusual for him at that time. He took a
shower before going to bed. After that he had thrown his
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habit about him, when he had the fatal stroke. Father
Minister saw the light in the bathroom sometime after ten
o'clock and, again, at five-thirty in the morning. He sensed
at once that something was wrong and called Father Master.
Together they opened the window of the bathroom that faced
on the cloister and there they saw Father Phillips still breathing, lying where he had fallen some seven hours before. He
was anointed at once and shortly thereafter passed into
eternity. As Father Minister expressed it: "He seemed to
have been waiting for this last sacrament." May we not
see in this final grace vouchsafed him the presage of the fulfillment of the effects of this sacrament, according to St.
Thomas-"a preparation for immediate entrance into glory?"
A distinguished member of the Province, on learning of
Father Phillips' death, wrote: "Our saintly Father Phillips
has gone home; and how much at home he will feel with all
the faithful selfless servants of our great Master! The hidden
simplicity he cherished so dearly in life did not desert him in
death. Ask him to pray for me in my many needs."
A fellow novice of Father Phillips wrote: "There is no need
of my telling you that he was a man of prayer and I attribute
that kindliness and mellowness that came to him during his
later life in the Society to that prayerfulness. He seemed so
recollected, as if communing or taking advice with his soul
(or God) in every step he took. He had himself always in
control. He was gentle and sweet and most considerate of the
shortcomings of others."
God was the reality of his life. He saw all things in God
and them all in Him. That was the source of his simplicity,
of his communings at every moment. God was his mountain
of strength, the fountain of his joy, the anchor of his hope,
the witness of his actions, the compass and gyroscope in all
difficulties and trials. And this "fact of God" he learned in
and through Christ, with Whom he was ever "walking ha.nd
in hand, under the mantle of Mary," Christ's mother and his.
No wonder that a master of novices could write of him: "It
is not hard to see Christ in our Father Provincial."
HUGH
J.
BIHLER,
S.J.
�TRIBULATIONS
Sometimes the sinner is stricken that he may be amended,
as it is said to one in the Gospel, "Behold, thou art cured.
Sin no more, lest something worse befall thee". (John 5, 14).
For the words of his deliverer indicate that it was past sins
which were exacting all the violence of the pain which he
had endured. In some cases the person is smitten, not for the
obliteration of a past offence, but for the avoidance of a
future one, which the Apostle Paul openly testifies of himself, saying, "And lest the greatness of the revelations should
puff me up, there was given me a thorn for the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to buffet me" (II Cor. 12, 7). For he who says,
not that he was puffed up, but, lest he should be puffed up,
clearly shows that by that stroke it is held in check that it may
not take place, and that it is not a fault that has taken place
now clearing away.
But sometimes the person is stricken neither for past nor
yet for future transgression, but that the alone mightiness of
the divine power may be set forth in the cutting short of the
striking; whence when it was said unto the Lord concerning
the blind man in the Gospel, "Who has sinned, this man or his
parents, that he should be born blind?" The Lord answered,
saying, "Neither has this man sinned, nor his parents, but
the works of God were to be made manifest in him" (John
9, 2 f.) : in which manifestation what else is done, saving that
by that scourge the excellence of his merits increased, and
while there is no past transgression wiped away, the patience
may engender a mighty fortitude.
Job then, with all the surpassing powers whereby he-·was
sustained, was known to his own conscience and to God; but
had he not been stricken he would never have been the least
known to us. For his virtue had its exercise indeed even in
peaceful times, but it was by strokes that the report of his
virtue was stirred up to fragrance; and he, who in repose kept
within himself all that he was, when disturbed did scatter
abroad the odour of his fortitude, for all to know. For as
unguents, unless they be stirred, are never smelt far off, and as
aromatic scents spread not their fragrance except they be
burned, so the saints in their tribulations make known all
the sweetness that they have of their virtues.
ST. GREGORY THE GREAT
�Books of Interest to Ours
ROl\IE AND IRISH INDEPENDENCE
The Holy See and the Irish Movement for the Repeal of the Union with
England, 1829-1847. By John F. Brodrick, S.J. Rome, Gregorian
University Press, 1951. Pp. xxvii-237. $2.40.
This book is outstanding for readability and prudent judgment of
historical evidence. The style is such that a reader only moderately interested in the subject matter would easily be convinced to read on attentively to the end, and feel he has a good insight into the character
and interests of such men as Daniel O'Connell, Archbishop MacHale,
Metternich, and Aubin.
The history developed in the book first presents a picture of the Irish
movement for Catholic Emancipation and shows how this popular movement was definitely encouraged by the entire Irish hierarchy and, it
would seem, all the priests, although at first the clergy felt they should
remain aloof from political matters. When O'Connell succeeded in obtaining Emancipation, he set about destroying the legislative union that
bound Ireland to England for all its laws, and deprived Ireland of a
domestic legislature. Here again he hoped to be aided by the clergy,
and in this he was largely successful. However there were two schools of
thought among the Irish clergy with regard to problems that were
partly political, partly moral. One school, led by Archbishop MacHale,
believed that the clergy should join the people in an attempt to use nonviolent means to obtain justice; the other school, led by Archbishops
Murray and Crotty, believed the clergy should remain in the sanctuary
and not take sides on political matters. Thus in November, 1841,
O'Connell reported that of the clergy, one archbishop and ten bishops
were members of his Repeal Organization, and he believed "none of the
hierarchy were hostile . . ."
Pressure was constantly being applied to Pope Gregory XVI to have
the Irish clergy disassociate itself from the Repeal movement. Thus
Aubin, the English unofficial, but paid representative of England at
Rome, and his successor, Petre, together with the Austrian Minister,
Metternich, requested that the Pope publicly censure the Irish clergy who
backed O'Connell. Gregory XVI did not do that, but in 1839 and again,
more forcefully, in 1844, he wrote to the Irish Primate and the bishops
through Cardinal Fransoni, urging that they seek solely the salvation of
souls and the good of religion. Though the rescripts caused much confusion, they did not change the conduct of the Irish clergy. Oddly,
the English press strongly commended the Pope's action, while the Irish
appealed to the oath that Catholic officeholders had to take to illustrate
their contention that the Pope had no right to direct Catholics in temporal
matters. Some interesting apparent intellectual somersaults which
Father Brodrick pointed out: the British held that the clergy should
keep their concerns within the sanctuary, but forgot that principle when
a clergyman sided with them, and of course, labored hard to have the
�94
BOOK REVIEWS
Pope force a vital decision in a temporal matter, by urging the clergy to
forget politics. O'Connell, too, seemed to find himself in difficult positions: he was very concerned to have the backing of the clergy and always gave them prominence in public meetings, yet he went to great
lengths to prevent papal pronouncements in matters political from being
accepted in Ireland. He made his own O'Neill Daunt's remark: "As
much theology from Rome as ever you please, but no politics."
Father Brodrick takes a calm, objective view of the evidence. His
research must have been difficult, but in view of his success, I believe he
could write several similar volumes on the Church and the Fenian
Movement, or the Church and the move for independence in the present
century. And I believe the book should be reprinted in this country to
incease the likelihood of a wide reading.
THOMAS HENNESSY, S.J.
SUBLIME THOUGHTS Sil\lPLY EXPRESSED
Novissima Verba. The Last Conversations of Saint Therese of the Child
Jesus. New York, Kenedy, 1952. Pp. xvi-152. $2.25.
This revised English translation of Novissima Verba will be welcomed
by many. The earlier edition which left much to be desired has long
been out of print. The new translation is very well done and Cardinal
Spellman has written a beautiful and timely introduction.
The confidences of St. Therese which her sister, Mother Agnes of
Jesus, carefully recorded, show the young Carmelite at the peak of
her sanctity. Here we have holiness in the pure state. Other saints
were great leaders, theologians, teachers. Therese, who was by no
means devoid of talent, never had occasion to exercise it except on
practical sanctity.
From her letters it is obvious that Therese addressed herself to Pere
Almire Pichon, S.J., as early as 1887 when she was still in the-world. "I
thought, as you have concerned yourself with my sisters, that""you would
be kind enough to take on the youngest too," she wrote. On her death
bed she sent him a long letter which has unfortunately been lost.
Therese said, "My whole soul was in it."
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
Life Begins With Love. By E. Boyd Barrett.
Pp. x-114. $2.50.
Milwaukee, Bruce, 1952.
This little book contains a detailed, practical treatment of the important aspects of charity. The doctrine is based on the holy scriptures
and on the Imitation of Christ. Many fine examples enliven the text.
In general, however, the treatment is analytical rather than inspirational
and appeals more to the head than to the heart.
EDWARD A. RYAN, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
95
EIGHTEENTH CENTURY PHILOSOPHICAL SPECULATIONS
Theoriae Corpuscularcs Typicac in Universitatibus Societatis Jcsu in Sacc.
XVIII et 1\lonadologia Kantiana: Doctrina J. Mangold, G. Sagner, R.
J. Boscovich, B. Stattler. Auctore Josepho Feyer, S.J. Romae,
Catholic Book Agency, 1951. Pp. 69.
All Scholastic philosophers (but especially Jesuits), interested in the
important modern history of their subject and already familiar with the
impressive but incomplete researches of Bernhard Jansen, S.J., [ (1)
"Deutsche Jesuiten-Philosophen des 18. Jahrhunderts in ihrer Stellung
zur neuzeitlichen Naturauffassung," Zeitschrift fiir katholische Theologie
57 (1933) 384-410, and (2) Die Pflege der Philosophic im Jesuitenorden
wiihrend des 17-18. Jahrhunderts (Fulda: 1938)] will welcome with
interest and enthusiasm this component monograph on four representative Jesuit spokesmen of the same (somewhat deplorable) era. The essay
is neatly expository, soberly critical, and historically accurate. The
brochure is an excellent addition to a contemporary Jesuit philosopher's
library.
For the author is correctly convinced that this pioneer study is a contribution to the history of modern philosophy: "cognitio enim scholasticae
sacculi XVIII. multum confert ad intelligendum ortum idealismi inertiamque philosophiae christianae coaetaneae ad eum praecavendum,
ac etiam originem ncoscholasticae, cuius incitamentum praecipuum ipsa
insufficientia philosophiae tunc vigentis suppeditabat" (p. 5).
The four Jesuit philosophers whose work is here subjected to detailed
exposition and incisive criticism are: (1) Joseph Mangold (1716-1787)
who after seven years as professor of philosophy and theology at
Ingolstadt, was thereafter rector of two other colleges in Germany. He
published in 1755-1756 his three volume Philosophia rationalis et experimentalis hodiernis discentium studiis accommodata; (2) Gasparus Sagner
(1720-1781) was Dean of the Philosophical Faculty at the University of
Prague, and published in the years 1755-1758 his four volume Institutiones philosophicae in usum scholarum ex probatis veterum recentiorumque sententiis adornatae; (3) Rogerius Josephus Boscovich (1711-1787)
functioned as professor of philosophy and mathematics in the Roman
College where in 1758 he published his major work: Theoria
philosophiae naturalis redacta ad unicam legem virium in natura existentium; and ( 4) Benedictus Stattler (1728~1797), professor of both
philosophy and theology at Innsbruck, where from 1769-1772 he published his seven volume treatise on Philosophia methodo scientiis propria
explanata.
In Part I (pp. 9-40) the author expounds in sequence the logical
anatomy of each system. Irrelevant details are wisely omitted and the
respective analyses are gems that exhibit neatly the structure of each
philosopher's speculations. Future historians of philosophy can here
borrow with confidence the thumb-nail sketches that are needed to complete their story of this period.
In Part II (pp. 41-61) the author first discusses the very ambiguous
concept of vis as it is employed in each system, and then displays in de-
�96
BOOK REVIEWS
tail how the notion is employed by each representative in the interpretation of extension as well as in the analysis of substantial unity and
processes of change. The section closes with a brief but pointed comparison of these philosophical systems with Kant's 1756 treatise: Metaphysicae cum geometria iunctae ttsus in Philosophia naturali, cuius Specimen I continet Monadologiam Physicam.
Sample results of this penetrating study are: (1) "Paucis rem absolvendo, dicere possumus omnes quattuor auctores convenire in negatione
illius strictae unionis, qua ens compositum vere unum ens, unam substantiam constitueret. Fideliter servant doctrinam Christiani Wolff:
'In ente composito nihil datur substantiale praeter entia simplicia .••
Essentia enim entis compositi non constat nisi meris accidentibus'-sc.
figura, magnitudine et situ partium, quorum omnium fundamentum est
coniunctio elementorum totum constituentium . . . Pro mutatione explicanda facilis ex his dabitur conclusio: quaelibet mutatio ad motum
localem partium reducitur. . . ." (pp. 55-56); (2) "Fundamentum commune omnium quattuor auctorum, et cum iis fere omnium philosophorum
huius aetatis his paucis verbis exprimi potest: 'Nihil potest dividi, nisi in
tot partes, quot iam prius determinato numero actu existentes continebat'" (p. 62); and finally (3) "specialem considerationem meretur Boscovich, qui ut vidimus, non deductione quadam aprioristica, sed ope legum
empirice stabilitarum ad affirmationem inextensorum pervenerat. Prima
facie fortasse ita res appareret, ac si praeconcepta illa idea multitudinis
partium actu existentium nullum, vel saltern non magnum momentum
in systemate eius haberet. Et tamen, adversarius iste principii rationis
sufficientis argumentum suum tam originale tamque a reliquis diversum
eidem superstruit fundamento, ac ii, qui ope principii ab eo reiecti
statim ad existentiam inextensorum concludunt. Etiamsi enim principium continuitatis in mutationibus velocitatum admittatur, et consequenter tamquam certa affirmetur virium repulsivarum existentia,
illegitimus tamen dici debet transitus, quo Boscovich ex repulsione inter
distinctas particulas vigente statim ad impossibilitatem extensionis continuae (quam cum contigua manifesto identificat) concludit. Hie latet, si
quidem non nimis clare apparet, suppositio illa fundamentalis, quam
supra ut notam characteristicam omnium istorum systematum indicavimus. Materia continua ideo disrumpitur viribus repulsivis, quia
supponitur multitudinem continere entium repulsive-ergo contra invicem-agentium, quae igitur independenter actu existunt" (pp. 63-64).
To have clearly disengaged this significant point from the welter of
Boscovich's deceptive novelties is a commendable achievement in criticism
and should serve to bring hereafter the legendary reputation of
Boscovich for exceptional acumen back to the more modest dimensions
that he rightly deserves.
The format of the brochure is neat, the typography clear, and while
there are numerous printer's errors, they are minor and easily corrected.
It is, in sum, an invaluable brochure and, one may hope, only the
prelude to future researches of the same calibre in the same field.
JOSEPH
T.
CLARK, S.J.
�THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXII, No. 2
MAY, 1953
CONTENTS FOR MAY, 1953
ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT. ___________________________________ 99
Charles Chamussy
MODERN XAVIERS IN JAPAN_ _________________________________________ no
George Minamiki
FATHER HENRY HARRISON________________________________________________________________ US
Robert A. Parsons
SOCIAL EXPERIMENT ON THE PARANA----------------------------------------148
F. Rawle Haig
HISTORICAL NOTES
Archaeology Serves History ----------------------------------------------------------------156
OBITUARY
Father John A. Morgan ...---------------------------------------------------------------------171
Father Francis X. BimanskL.....................------------------------------177
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
Christ as Prophet and King (Fernan) _________________________________________________ 181
The Fire of Francis Xavier (McGratty) ______________________________________ 182
Saints for Now ( Luce) ---------------------------------------------------------------------183
Sea of Glory (Thornton) -----------------------------------------------------------·184
Listen Sister: Thoughts for Nuns (Moffat)-------------------------------------185
The Theory of Transfinite Numbers in the Light
,
of the Notion of Potency (Elliot) _______________________________________________________187
The Christmas Book (Weiser) ---------------------------------------------------------190
Practice: A Pool of Teaching Experience (Knoepfle) ..............................191
Be Not Solicitous. (Ward) ..................................................................................191
I
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Charles Chamussy (Lyons Province) is the Father Rector at
St. Joseph's University of Beirut in Lebanon.
Father Daniel J. Hourigan (Province of Upper Canada) is Professor
of sacred scripture at Jesuit Seminary, Toronto, Ont.
Father Robert A. Parsons (Maryland Province) is Professor of
philosophy at Georgetown University, Washington, D. C.
l\lr. George H. l\linamiki (California Province) is in second year of
theology at Alma College, Los Gatos, Calif.
Father Frederick G. Geheb (Chicago Province) teaches at St. Ignatius High School, Chicago, Ill.
1\lr. Francis R. Haig (Maryland Province) is in his third year of
philosophy at Bellarmine College, Plattsburg, N. Y.
Father J. Harding Fisher (New York Province) is Spiritual Father
at Woodstock College, Woodstoc~, Md.
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WOODSTOCK
LETTERs to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a one·
inch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contri~utor.
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT
St. Joseph's University of Beirut, founded in 1875 by the
Fathers of the Society of Jesus, has for more than seventy-five
years accomplished a cultural and social service on behalf of
the youth of Lebanon and the other countries of the Middle
East. It possesses a Theological Faculty which directs the
studies of its Oriental Seminary, a Faculty of Medicine and
Pharmacy, a Law Faculty, an Engineering School, an Institute
of Oriental Letters (Middle Eastern languages, literatures
and antiquities), a School of Social Service, and a Secondary
School. In the Bekaa region it directs an astronomical, seismological and meteorological observatory and two experimental
stations at Tanail and Ksara for the agricultural development
of the country. Its students in all departments at present
number approximately three thousand.
Its teaching staff aims especially at forming in the young
a social sense and at awakening in them the desire to work for
the economic and cultural development of their country.
Several projects, stressing still more this social formation,
have actually been drawn up but their accomplishment is
hindered by lack of necessary funds. Since Point IV would
foster any plan aiding the economic and social progress of
lands as yet insufficiently developed, St. Joseph's University
with this in mind would request grants for the projects which
are set forth in the following reports and whose accomplishment can be assured only by credits advanced under Point IV.
Institute of Oriental Letters
Lebanon, predominantly an agricultural country, has only
three or four large factories employing more than five hundred·
workers. Out of a total population of about 1,300,000, the peasantry numbers 750,000 and city dwellers (in large and small
cities) 550,000 approximately. The urban population is roughly
divided as follows: 90,000 industrial workers and artisans,
200,000 students at all levels (superior, secondary and primary
l
The Point Four Program, designed to help the people of Africa, Asia,
and Latin America to create a better life for themselves by showing them
how to conserve and develop their God-given resources, was proposed by
President Truman in the fourth point of his 1949 Inaugural Address.
�100
ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
studies), 260,000 merchants, public officials, those engaged in
the liberal professions, the banks and the armed forces.
Since Lebanon obtained its political independence, it has
embarked on a social reorganization that is still in its beginnings. Certain professions have been given a legal status:
lawyers, doctors, engineers, journalists, and others.
A Labor Code has been established, embracing general legislation dating from September 23, 1946 to which were added two
previous legislative decrees; a decree of May 4, 1943 referring to working accidents; a decree of May 12, 1943 establishing a minimum wage and _family allocations. This code
however is as yet very incomplete.
Labor unions have been authorized since 1946. About eighty
have been formed (company or workers' unions) but their activity, for want of competent direction, is not national in extent.
It can be said that the dominant attitude is still individualistic; even among the elite there is little social sense and
less knowledge of social planning.
There exist at Beirut three centers of social teaching: the
American University, the Law School of St. Joseph's University, and the Institute of Oriental Letters.
Instruction at the American University is given in the Department of Sociology under the direction of Professor Baty.
It embraces the teaching of sociological theory and principles,
social philosophy, humarf and rural ecology, anthropology, the
practical study of social problems, and a school of applied knowledge.
The Law Faculty of St. Joseph's University provides a
course in industrial legislation as a partial requiremeni for the
French licentiate. The matter of this course includes both general social legislation and its applications to Lebanon.
The Institute of Oriental Letters prepares its students for
a certificate of sociological studies, including the general sociology of the Middle East, ethnology and Lebanese folklore,
and Islamic sociology.
The teaching of sociology is at present directed almost exclusively to future magistrates, lawyers or professors. It is not
sufficiently extended to the groups able actively to organize the
country on a sound social basis. Mention has already been
made of the want of social spirit among the leaders of the vari-
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
101
ous classes of society as well as of their ignorance of methods
and institutions realized in the Occident.
Hence it seems necessary to institute sociological studies
more suited to the needs of the country: to provide a solid
formation for future directors of social services and professional groups (liberal and industrial professions, banking, and
skilled labor), as well as to avert harmful social teachings that
are already proposed and threaten to spread.
For this purpose we plan to establish a chair of labor unionism and applied sociology, and to engage as professor an Occidental specialist, in order to train leaders of workers' unions
who in their turn will instruct others.
To bring such a specialist and to establish him at Beirut and
to provide his salary a grant under Point IV would be necessary.
The Medical School
In Lebanon, from the medical viewpoint, there is to be noted:
(1) A bad distribution of doctors. Although there is one doctor
for every thirteen hundred inhabitants (one to every thousand
is considered normal), they are too numerous in the large cities
where they can scarcely find work, while in the country it is
often necessary to travel for long distances to find one. This
is a result of the inconveniences of village life and of the poverty
of the peasants who cannot provide a medical man with enough
for a decent livelihood. (2) A serious lack of general hygiene
and of preventive medicine. The homes of the workers and
peasants are unhealthful; essential sanitary installations are
wanting; water used for drinking and domestic purposes is
often polluted. Parents frequently lack the most fundamental
notions of hygiene and the care of children. Antimalarial measures and the inspection of drinking water and sanitation are
still insufficient or nonexistent over large areas of Lebanon and
Syria. (3) The need of developing practical instruction in preventive medicine for medical students and student midwives
and nurses. The role of midwives and nurses is especially important. If it were possible to choose girls of ability and of
some education, acquired in the villages, in order to train them
as nurses and midwives, they could, at the end of their studies,
establish themselves in the mountainous regions more easily
than doctors and could render service to the people in general
�102
ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
as teachers of hygiene and the care of children. The government then might be induced to set up posts for visiting nurses,
especially in the villages which are without doctors.
To remedy some of these deficiencies requires the intervention of the state, but others could be supplied by medical
schools, if they had the trained personnel and technical equipment necessary. If aided financially under Point IV, the Medical School of St. Joseph's University could accomplish progress in the following directions. The practical teaching of
hygiene and preventive medicine to medical students requires
field transportation of these students-for example, for malarial control, visits to plants for purifying water, group investigation of means to better the hygiene of an unhealthful
site. For this purpose we would need a bus able to
transport between twenty and thirty persons. Medical
students and student-nurses b~jng trained in medico-social investigation go at present in small groups into the slums adjacent to dispensaries already established. This service is completely insufficient for want of personnel. We would need to
plan for an extension of this work requiring the services of two
additional medico-social workers. The student midwives
have established a visiting service to the homes of needy women
who come in large numbers to be delivered at the maternity
hospital dependent on the Medical School of St. Joseph's University. They give the mothers practical advice for the care
of new born and young infants. A midwife or a social worker
on a full time basis is needed to direct this service, to draw up
a filing system, and to insure regularity in the visits. .
Assistance received would be applied not only to-·provide
social services, but especially to assure the education of medical
students, and student midwives and nurses in preventive medicine and social hygiene.
Briefly, then, we would request subsidies for the purchase
of a bus with a capacity of thirty persons, the salary of
two medico-social workers, and the salary of a midwife supervisor.
As a further step we plan to send teams of students in medicine and nursing into the villages to educate the people in hygiene
and preventive medicine, to discover contagious diseases often
• unperceived (tuberculosis and trachoma), and to prescribe the necessary care. Also planned is the establishment of
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
103
regular medical circuits and a free consultation service in regions deprived of doctors and too poor to obtain medical care
in any other way. Besides the bus, then, this would demand
an X-ray truck for lung examinations.
School of Social Studies
The Lebanese School of Social Education aims at forming
social workers whose competence and worth will correspond to
the social needs of the country. From its inception the School
of Social Education has been recognized as an institution of
public utility by official decree of the Lebanese Government.
In September, 1949 it acquired the right to grant Lebanese state
diplomas of social training conferring the official title of social
worker. At present it is the only institution of social formation officially recognized in Lebanon, although remaining under
private auspices. The teaching of social theory is imparted by
a staff recruited from the faculties of law and medicine of St.
Joseph's University. Practical training and case work are provided in two Social Centers for the care of mothers and infants
which the School has established in two of the poorer quarters
of the city, and which also fulfill another urgent need of the
country: the instruction and training of young mothers of
families. These two Centers offer the following medical services: advice on pre-natal care, on breast-feeding; clinics for
maladies of the eye, ear and throat, and for skin diseases;
general medical treatment.
An assistant social director is in charge of each Center and
several doctors offer their cooperation and services. Each day
at the Center there is provided for mothers a regular instruction, accompanied by practical demonstrations, informal talks,
a workshop and the showing of educational films. Home visits
are a regular feature. A summer camp attached to the Center
provides each year a month in the mountains for the children
most in need of it.
The School of Social Education and its Social Centers receive
no financial grants. Up to the present the gratuitous cooperation of the School's teaching staff has permitted the imparting
of a solid social training to the students, but to provide for the
Present needs of the country the School and its Centers should
extend their activities.
�104
ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
For this the following plan has been made for the training
of women social workers: to intensify the training of professional social assistants and to increase their number in view
of the social work being extended in Lebanon by the newly
established Ministry of Social Affairs which now seeks to incorporate into its services a number of graduate female social
assistants; to develop at the same time by courses, informal talks, conferences, documented visits and practice tours,
the social consciousness of a wider public and to acquaint with
social problems the women of tomorrow who will be able to
influence the social evolution of the country.
The School of Social Education should, then, set up larger
quarters including lecture and demonstration halls; equip a
library for study and research in all social fields; organize a
social documentation service; provide for the students a film
projector for educational purposes; and establish burses to pay
the expenses of deserving students of limited means and to
cover the expenses of documented visits, practice projects and
field trips outside the city.
A plan has also been made for the extension of the Social
Centers: to increase the medico-social services. For this the
Centers should acquire more and more equipment and modern
instruments; to train young mothers by setting up meeting
and demonstration halls furnished with workin,g equipment; to
prepare girls for their future work by providing courses in
housekeeping, the care of children, and domestic hygiene; to
set up an emergency fund to aid needy families in case of sickness, unemployment or other accidents; and to increase the
facilities of summer camps for the poor by improving:-the water
supply, installing modern kitchens and laundries, thus to permit the better training of the children who benefit by them.
These projects would entail large expenses. To what extent
could financial aid be advanced under Point IV to begin their
realization?
Engineering School
The Engineering School provides for governments and for
large companies, national or foreign, a testing service for various materials: concrete, bricks, asphalt, tiles, electric lamps,
and a soil analysis service. The equipment it possesses for
these testings is be,ginnirig to be insufficient. To the one hun-
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
105
dred ton Ansler press we have, should be added a press of five
hundred tons. Other equipment is needed to measure the wearing, hardening, and permeability of mortars. We have limited
facilities for study of photo-elasticity. Brake testing equipment is also needed in the testing of automobiles. We possess a
photometric table and photometers. There is need of a lumenmetric sphere and standards.
Circumstances have provided the Engineering School with a
professional staff of outstanding architectural ability: Mr.
Joseph Naggear, brid,ge and road specialist, former Minister
of Finances, member of several commissions on urbanism and
related questions; Mr. Charles Nehmeh and Mr. Henry Edde,
perhaps the best known builders in Lebanon, who have both
made studies in housing in Lebanon. Mr. Naggear has specialized in city-housing both in Beirut and in Lebanese vacation centers, and in the development of a style in accord with
national traditions. Mr. Charles Nehmeh is the author of two
important projects: the establishment of a rest center and a
convalescent home on the slopes of Mount Lebanon, and the
construction of a model city near Beirut, similar to that of
Heliopolis in Egypt, to be named Roosevelt City. Mr. Henry
Edde is especially interested in slum clearance projects. He has
in mind the investigation and statistical study of unhealthful living quarters and of those who occupy them; a study
aimed at the reclassifying of housing facilities on a technical,
legislative, economic, and social basis; a study of construction methods for cheap but healthful and comfortable housing.
He believes that, by simplifying building processes and by using
prefabricated materials, a dwelling could be completed at a cost
of about thirteen hundred dollars, which would permit a rental
price of about fifty dollars a year.
In addition to the slum clearance projects, these two professors have also undertaken an analysis of building methods
used in Lebanon, and their systematic improvement by proper
orientation of buildings, heat- and sound-proofing, heating and
sanitation ducts, interior room lay-outs, and new types of
building material.
At present this research is being carried on in spare time
and cannot be widely advertised. Help under Point IV would
Permit the professors to give more time to these investigations,
�106
ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
to finance publications (secretary, draftsman, printing costs)
and to start carrying out their projects.
This laboratory, directed by Mr. Zallum, doctor in industrial
chemistry of the University of Bologna, has already done extensive work for local industry, but it needs modern equipment
for spectographic, electrolytic, microchemical, and polarographic analyses.
There is need of improved apparatus, such as electric furnaces and drying ovens, microanalytic scales, polarimeter, refractometer, and metalographic microscope.
Sociological Training Tours
Lebanon acquired political independence only recently and
hence its social condition is extremely complex. Its agriculture
is on a large and small scala;.. its industry bikes the form of
handicrafts and incipient industrialization; Lebanon's working
class is in process of growth, but is suffering from unemployment (emigration often deprives the country of its best elements). The refugee problem devolves around Assyro-Chaldeans, Armenians, Palestinians. The economy is still feudal
in some sections. The labor 1,1nion movement is in danger of
being absorbed by Communism. The situation is highly complex for a small country and urgently requires the formation
of leaders conscious of social problems and of solutions already
applied in lands longer independent.
The purpose of the sociological training tours of St. J oseph's University is to form each year about thirty young men
of ability who, after investigation and personal work,."may put
at the service of their country a social training of which it
has need.
Two encampments were held in Lebanon to render the participants aware of the situation and the needs of their country.
These experiences convinced the directors of the need of enlargin,g the field of activities by putting the campers in contact with industrialized countries. In 1950 the encampment
took place in France with work in factories, introduction to
centers of social re-education; and in 1951, in Nordic countries
with investigations on housing, conditions of life, socal security
legislation.
In 1952 St. Joseph's University would like to send thirty
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
107
young people to complete their training in the United States
of America. His Excellency, Mr. Charles Malik, Minister of
Lebanon at Washington, has been informed of this project and
intends to investigate its feasibility.
Other similar encampments and tours are planned but they
involve a substantial expenditure. It would be regrettable if
young men without means could not benefit by such training in
the same way as their wealthier companions.
There is no disputing the educational profit and the broadening of view derived by young Orientals from close and sometimes grating contact with the demands of modern life. The
welfare of Lebanon requires such training, and for this reason
we would request your interest and help in making it available
to the largest possible number of young people.
Rural Development
The rural development of Tanail-Ksara, directed by Jesuit
Fathers of the Middle East in collaboration with St. Joseph's
University, is located in the Bekaa Plain region at Chtaura,
Lebanon. The Bekaa Plain is the most important agricultural
region of Lebanon, but penury here is widespread and brings
in its train undernourishment, unhealthful housing (a single
room for a whole family), and endemic diseases, especially malaria and typhoid. Such conditions are encouraging a dangerous expansion of Communism.
The causes of this penury are, first, lack of social organization; second and more important, low agricultural yields which
prevent the inhabitants from turning their lands to full account. On the other hand, a Communist cell of the Bekaa
region was completely destroyed last year by the social amelioration of the workers.
The site of Tanail-Ksara was ceded to the Jesuit Fathers in
1860 by the Ottoman government as indemnity for the
massacre of four Jesuit missionaries in the Druze revolt of
that year. At that time it was an uncultivated marsh where
malaria made permanent settlement impossible. The Jesuits
drained the swampland and made it into a relatively model
farm.
This development constitutes a pilot project for Lebanon.
It is important to note that most peasants in the Bekaa region
t
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ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
are insufficiently evolved to profit by teaching. They learn by
example and imitate what they see successfully accomplished
by others. For ninety years they have been accustomed to
come to Tanail to see modern occidental methods of agriculture
put into practice, in order to apply them to their own lands.
Thus they have learned at Tanail how to drain marshland, sort
out wheat for seeding, employ chemical fertilizers; how to use
agricultural machinery, engage in truck gardening, apply European vinicultural methods, and plant orchards.
Consequently, any agricultural advance made at Tanail-Ksara
had great importance for the whole Bekaa region, because what
is done at Tanail is gradually introduced elsewhere. Such
progress realized at Tanail-Ksara will have a greater and
more widespread influence than any other teaching project,
for the peasants of Bekaa ~~yho are quite suspicious, have
learned during the last ninety years to trust the Jesuit
Fathers.
At present the following types of demonstration could be
usefully staged in Tanail-Ksara: Scientific cattle feeding,
by the construction of silos for winter fodder. The people of
Bekaa are now accustomed to feed their cows with chopped up
straw, from which they derive a low milk production. They
should be taught scientific cattle feeding methods. With silos
they could be shown how to increase milk output by better
feeding, thus to raise health standards among the children of
Bekaa who are now undernourished for want of milk.
Modernization of the cattle barn and dairy of Tan~il would
exemplify a model stable and hygenic milk and butter. production. The importance of an irrigation project would be to
show how water might be found and used effectively to double
agricultural yields by making possible two harvests each year.
Purchase of modern equipment, especially of a wheat combine (mechanical harvester and thresher), would show how
harvesting losses might be avoided. In Bekaa wheat is still
threshed on threshing floors by methods used twenty centuries
ago. Improving the Ksara wine cellars could teach the
wine makers of the Chtaura region (the wine center of Lebanon) how to improve their wines by refrigeration. Improving the tree nurseries of Tanail would help reforestation
of Lebanon with cedars, pines, eucalyptus, and other trees.
�ST. JOSEPH'S UNIVERSITY
109
Tanail would wish to tranform the orphanage it conducts
into an agricultural and trade school. To improve its present
setup there are needed workshops for mechanics, carpentry,
and electrical training and so forth. A small canning factory could be set up to obtain wider outlets for farm produce, and to train workers in an industry that has an important future in Lebanon: tomato juice, pickle, and fruit canning. The Tanall dispensary cares for the sick among the poor
of the central Bekaa region (forty-five to fifty thousand patients
yearly). Medical consultations and medicines are gratuitous.
The increased numbers using this dispensary (sometimes three
hundred patients in one day) make necessary better equipped
quarters.
If sufficient funds could be advanced to effect these improvements, the Tanail-Ksara rural development project would be
transformed into an up-to-date model farm that would serve
as a practical example for the whole Bekaa region. More than
any teaching program this example would be effective in improving agriculture and raising standards of life in the Bekaa,
for the people of this region for more than ninety years have
been accustomed to imitate what they have seen done at TanailKsara.
Such are the projects whose accomplishment would be assured by the generosity of the Administrators of Point IV.
CHARLES CHAMUSSY, S.J.
* * *
Jesuit Novitiates Round The World
The universality of the Society of Jesus is mirrored in its seventy-one
novitiates spread round the world. Persecution has closed four of these:
in Bohemia, Hungary, Romania, and Czechoslovakia; that of Turin has
been temporarily attached to the one in Rome. Mission lands have
twelve novitiates: in India there are four; in Africa, two (in the Belgian
Congo and Madagascar); Japan, Java, Lebanon, the Philippines, and
Tinos, one each; and the refugee Chinese novitiate is now functioning
in Manila. Latin America, including Mexico and Cuba, boasts fourteen
novitiates. There are eight in the United States; five in Spain and
Italy; three in Brazil and Germany; two in Belgium, Canada, and
Mexico.
ECHOS: August 1952
�MODERN XA VIERS IN JAPAN
GEORGE MINAMIKI,
S.J.
Our account of the labors of the Modern Xaviers in Japan
begins with a passing reference to St. Patrick, and for this
we make no apologies. For in Japan, March 17 is the Feast of
Finding of the Christians. On this day in 1865, after the
doors of Japan were opened for overseas trade by the arguments and cannons of Commodore Perry, a French missioner
who was in charge of a chapel for the foreigners in the open
port of Nagasaki was accosted by a group of Japanese who
asked him three questions: "Are you married? Is Papa-sama
in Rome the head of your church? Do you honor Mariasama ?" Thus were the Christians found, these descendants
of the first converts of St. Francis Xavier. Without priests,
without six of the sacraments, they had kept the faith for
over two hundred years. Soon freedom was granted to the
Church and a new missionary era opened. The French
Fathers began other stations in the islands; then came the
Sisters of St. Maur and those of St. Paul de Chartres; after
them, the Marianists and the Trappists. But even with the
arrival of the Religious of the Sacred Heart and the Dominicans, the Jesuits were yet to make their appearance.
In 1905 Bishop William Henry O'Connell of Portland,
Maine, was sent by the Holy Father as special envoy to Japan.
On hearing that he was trained by the Jesuits in Boston and
that he was friendly to the Society, the Japanese entreated
him to send their first missioners back to them~· and thus
soon afterwards, Pope Pius X assigned to the SoCiety the
task of founding a Catholic university in Tokyo.
With the arrival of the three Jesuits, a German, a Frenchman, and an American, Father Rockliff (later provincial of
California and first rector of Mt. St. Michael's), the new mission began. For practical purposes the international venture
was consigned to the Lower German Province. The First
World War, however, interrupted their early efforts. Two
years after the Armistice, the Hiroshima Mission was added
to the labors of the missionaries. Then the Great Earthquake
of Tokyo reduced the school in the capital to a heap of rubble;
but with aid coming from the entire Society a new edifice was
�MODERN XAVIERS
111
built. In 1938 a high school was begun in Kobe at the request
of the Bishop of Osaka. Then the Second World War caused
heavy incendiary damages on the campus in Tokyo, and in
Hiroshima total destruction by the atom bomb blast. But the
Mission recovered sufficiently to be made a vice province and
a second high school was started near the American Naval
Base in Yokosuka. In Hl47 the Ordinaries of Japan entrusted
to the Society the Inter-Diocesan Seminary of Tokyo, and
finally in this fourth centenary (1952) of the death of St. Francis Xavier, the task of erecting a third high school in the atombombed district of Hiroshima was committed to the California
Province.
With this as a brief overall background, we shall set off on
our round of the Jesuit houses with a short visit first to Sophia
University, or in Japanese, Jochi Daigaku, which is located
near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Compared with institutions like Louvain, Fribourg, or Fordham, Sophia can hardly
be called a Catholic school. But when one considers that only
150,000 people out of a population of 84 million are Catholic,
then the presence of 331 Catholics in a student body of 1142
takes on a more hopeful appearance. Still, statistics alone
do not tell the story of the hardships that marked the short
history of Sophia: the sacrifices demanded of our students
who, because of their faith, were kept out of certain industries; the strictures imposed upon the Fathers by pagan customs which forbade cassocks in the classrooms; the privations
forced upon the Belgian Jesuits who were incarcerated during
the recent war by the Kempei or Japanese Gestapo; the heroic
suffering endured by an eighty year old Japanese Jesuit who
was forced by wartime legislation to assume the presidency
of the school and to march with the students to the national
shrine to bow to the ashes of the war dead.
As a matter of fact, the period after the signing of the surrender in 1945 might be called the real beginning of Sophia.
Only after the political and social changes occasioned by the
benevolent policy of the former SCAP and General MacArthur, has Sophia been able to develop according to the
designs of its founders. Yet we must remember that Sophia,
though the most important work of the Society in Japan, is
but one among 418 similar colleges and universities in Japan.
�112
MODERN XAVIERS
Within a short radius of 10 miles there are 5 universities with
student enrollment exceeding 10,000. Almost within the
shadow of Sophia the Protestants with the backing of influential Americans have begun their inter-denominational postgraduate university with pledged funds amounting to 10 million dollars. Despite these handicaps, earlier this year Sophia
was among the small number of 36 universities which were
approved as the first and only official Association of Japanese
Universities. One of the members of the governmental committee which carried on the work of screening the schools for
this Association was a Japanese Jesuit, Father F. X. Oizumi.
However, the real story of Sophia is the story of the men
who make Sophia what it is today. We might suggest that
you accompany us to the visitors' call room through which
each morning the members of the Sophia community pass on
their way to their various labors. Breakfast-which here
means coffee, a slice of German bread, and if you are lucky
some cheese--is no sooner over than Father Herzog is heading for his faithful jeep. Father, besides being a doctor in
sociology from Fordham, is also the editor of the Japanese
Reader's Digest and has to report early to his office. Then appears the inimitable Father Roggendorf. He has time only to
give us his greeting and off he goes on his two-cylinder motor
bicycle headed for Kyoiku Daigalm, the famous teachers' college, where he has been invited to lecture on English literature. As you see his vehicle disappear in the distance, you
would hardly realize that this is the man who organized the
Laymen's Theology Course, prepared the first major·convention for Catholic educators, and founded two Japaiiese publications. Perhaps by now you hear loud chatterings at the
doorway-the students are waiting for Father F. X. Bosch,
a popular figure on the campus, though his is the unenviable
position of dean of discipline. He spends much of his time
giving talks on ethics and religion to students in outside universities, a feat which is witness to the fact that he talks Japanese like a native. Close upon his heels comes the ever efficient
Father Miller from Maryland who with Father Farrell of
Chicago organized the coeducational International Division of
the University to enable the GI's and other American civilians
to continue their Jesuit education in the shadows of the
���I
i
!
'
MODERN XAVIERS
113
Korean conflict. Then we meet Father Roggen, head of the
Graduate Department. He seems slightly perturbed today,
wondering no doubt what effect the talks of one Margaret
Sanger are having on the people. Father happens to be the
chaplain of the Association of Catholic Doctors. We must
meet one other personage. He is no other than Brother Gropper, chief architect of the mission. No house goes up in the
Vice Province without his recommendation, and for years
the tab, "Gropper-built," has been more reliable than any
other trade name on the market. Well, if we should stay a
little longer, we would have the pleasure of meeting all the
other members of this community, the many Japanese visitors
such as the Catholic Chief Justice who come frequently to see
the Fathers, and of course the many army and navy chaplains
who make Sophia one of their principal rendezvous spots during their stay in the capital. However, we are pressed for
time and must bid farewell to the Japanese doorkeeper,
Zaimonsan, who by now must be dozing away, his favorite
pastime.
After a short ride of two tramway stops we pay a quick
visit to the scholasticate, familiarly called "Miki House,"
dedicated to the Japanese Saint. Except for its Superiors,
the house is composed entirely of native Scholastics. There
are fifteen of them and some of them have seen action in the
last war. In the eyes of the Vice Province they are the real
hope of the mission. We would like to become better acquainted with all of them but are forced to decline the kind
invitation .of Father Keel, the Swiss Minister from the Missouri Province, for our train is due to leave in a few minutes
from Tokyo Station.
We are now ready to depart from this capital of six and a
half million people. The station platform moves slowly behind
us. You must not count on finding an empty seat in the train,
especially if you are going third class ; and if you do not like
crowds, well, you will have to learn to become accustomed to
them, for all this pushing, jostling, elbowing is just another
reflexion of the plight that eighty-five million people find
themselves in, crowded into an area equal to the size of the
State of Montana.
Soon the train passes through the harbor city of Yoko-
�114
MODERN XAVIERS
hama, and then heads in the direction of Yokosuka. A few ,
miles from this American Naval Base we alight from the train
at the town of Taura. We are fortunate today, for one of the
Spanish Scholastics returning in the jeep from an errand for
Father Minister spots us in our Roman collars, and after a
short ride of two miles or so we are in full view of Eiko
Gakuen, located on the shores of Uraga Strait through which
in 1945 the "Mighty Mo" passed for the signing of the surrender. The giant moorings along the concrete piers and the
general layout of the plant reveal that this location was formerly a submarine repair base, a fit environment for a Jesuit
house. A moment after our arrival we are surrounded by a
crowd of Scholastics, thirty-five strong, students at the Language School. After burying themselves all morning under
an avalanche of Oriental hieroglyphics, they find any visitor a
good reason to tear themselves away from their books. Father
Rector Forster of Oregon fias seen us from his second story
window and soon disentangles us from the crowd to lead us
into the refectory for it is almost noon. When you reach table
you are struck by the international flavor of the community.
One never knows whether he will sit next to a Basque, a Brazilian, a New Yorker, a Hungarian, a Frenchman, or even an
Irishman. No less than twenty provinces are represented. The
saving features in all this are that English is the house language, that knives an_d forks are used at table, and of course,
the common charity of the Society.
Here, at Eiko, the nee-missioners labor for two years at the
language; but to be sure all is not work. On Thursdays many
make pilgrimages, so to speak, to pagan shrines and temples
of which this territory abounds; on feast days some set off
to scale the heights of Mt. Fuji, while others are content to sit
through a few hours of Kabuki plays in some Tokyo theatre.
After two years of this, that is, of study, they are ready for
active service, and that may mean the classroom, the dormitory, or the mission station.
Across from the Language School stands Eiko Jesuit High
School. Lunch period is not yet over for the students as the
principal, Father Voss, leads us through the rooms. The
students take their lunches inside, managing their portion of
rice and fish with bamboo chopsticks. No doubt you have
noticed how meager their fare is. Perhaps one of them ap-
�MODERN XAVIERS
115
proaches the teacher asking permission to leave early for the
yard since he forgot his lunch box at home. An experienced
regent knows that usually this is only another way of saying
that mother just did not have enough to go around. Later on
in some unembarrassing way he will see to it that the hungry
lad has his first real meal in days.
Much as we would like to stay, we must bid farewell to
Eiko. Backtracking up the peninsula we head for Nagoya,
scene of the labors of the Divine Word Fathers, and then for
Kyoto, the city of a thousand temples and headquarters of
the Maryknoll Fathers. Here too the Dominicans are busily
engaged in the work of the apostolate at their St. Thomas Institute, putting the finishing touches on their translation of
the Summa. Finally we reach Osaka, the industrial center of
Japan and the recent target of the B29's. The entire coast
from Osaka to Kobe which was lined formerly with the heavy
industrial plants of the Mitsubishi's was battered down by
the incessant poundings of the American bombers. But our
thoughts are presently interrupted by the rousing cheers we
hear in the distance-we are reminded that we are near
Nishinomiya Stadium, home of Japanese professional baseball, where fifty thousand enthusiastic fans turned out to see
Joe Dimaggio in one of his exhibitions slam "a few" out of
the ball park and run jauntily around the bases.
Soon we approach Kobe and we are in full sight of the famous Rokko Mountains. If you know where to look, you can
make out the faint outline of the concrete building of Rokko
Jesuit High School, the last edifice to go up in this area before
the bombing of Pearl Harbor. We have not time to pay them
a visit but perhaps you have noticed a few youngsters looking
curiously at our Roman collars. If you look at their caps you
will know by the insignia that they are some of our Rokko
students who ride to school on the train. You can always
make them out by their neat uniforms and their short cropped
hair. They are typical Kansai boys, much more free and gay
than boys elsewhere on the islands-and noisier, too. They
are the sons of the soldiers who in the Manchurian war were
adjudged the most recalcitrant group in the Japanese army;
they are also the boys who during the air attacks of the last
war used to tear themselves loose from their mothers to run
out of the shelters to watch almost gleefully the beautiful dis-
�116
MODERN XAVIERS
play of fireworks being dropped by the B29's in their mission
of destruction. Suddenly one of the youngsters points to the
window and beckons us to look outside, for there is Father
Hughes, a New Englander and teacher at Rokko, speeding
along the highway on his motorcycle-on his way most likely
to administer the sacraments on board a transport heading
for the Korean waters.
We leave the boys at Kobe Station and continue on to
Himeji and then to Okayama where the Scheut Fathers have
their mission stations and where the Notre Dame Sisters recently established their college for women. With our arrival
in Okayama we have finally entered the Mission Territory of
Hiroshima which includes five Prefectures under the supervision of the Vicar Apostolic, a Japanese Jesuit, Monsignor
Ogihara. To one who looks at the missions in terms of working alone in the bush, teachin$ God's words to superstitious
pagans, building his own chapel, and running away from
"bright lights and landlords," no better paradise can be imagined. Here the missioner lives in the midst of the Japanese
least affected by contact with the West except by way of the
atom bomb. All told, there are some six and a half million pagans in this area and, besides the Scheut Fathers, there are
only thirty Jesuits distributed among the twenty-three mission stations. One might pause to wonder how the gospel will
be brought to all these _people through the labors of a mere ·
handful of missioners; but meantime, there is work to be done
and there is no time to be given to such disquieting thoughts.
There are only two large churches in this area. One is the
Memorial Church of Peace constructed almost on ~the spot
where the Bomb fell. It stands there as the Christian answer
as to how true peace can be attained, a monument of salvation
and not of destruction. Nearby is located the Novitiate of
St. John Goto where fourteen native novices are being trained
in the religious life by Father Arrupe, the Basque master of
novices. The other church is the Memorial Church of St.
Francis Xavier in the City of Yamaguchi and it is here that
we shall terminate our journey. Nearby stands a large monument dedicated to Zaberio-sama, as the Japanese call the
Basque Saint. This monument was originally built in 1925
• by the people of the city to honor the Saint. It consisted of a
large cross of granite with the bronze bust of Xavier in the
�MODERN XAVIERS
117
center and his coat of arms on the back. After the bombing
of Pearl Harbor the military confiscated the metal part of
the monument for war purposes. But the people of Yamaguchi, though mostly Buddhist, preserved their deep devotion
to Zaberio-sama and considered it their duty to restore this
memorial. And so after the war when the sacred arm of their
Saint was brought to Japan to commemorate the four hundredth anniversary of Xavier's landing on the islands, they
took the occasion to build another monument in his honor.
Thus, even today Francis Xavier exerts his influence over the
people whom he loved so much during his lifetime. We entreat him to continue his care and protection over the J apanese and with this earnest prayer we leave the Modern
Xaviers of the Vice Province of Japan, two hundred strong,
to continue the work of Zaberio-sama in his favorite mission.
* * *
Roman Breviary for the Society
A Roman Breviary for the use of the Fathers of the Society has recently appeared, beautifully executed on the presses of the pontifical
publisher, Marietti. The work, which was spontaneously undertaken by
the publisher with Father General's approval, calls for special notice
inasmuch as it is the first edition of the Breviary in which the Proper
of the Society of Jesus, with its own special feasts and rubrics, has
been handily interspersed among the parts of the Breviary common
to the whole Church. The book has, besides, a certain elegance and
clarity, with suitable repetitions and a convenient arrangement of
material, so that the priest is not forced to turn too frequently from
one part of the text to another, as he prays.
This report is intended to bring the work to the attention of Ours,
and to assure that in some fashion, at least, our gratitude to the courteous and distinguished publisher may be publicly expressed. The Breviary is not on sale at the Curia, but at the offices of the publisher.
From MEMORABILIA, S.J.
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
ROBERT
A.
PARSONS,
S.J.
In the will of Peter Dubuc, dated October 14, 1693, we
read: "And further I give unto father Smyth, now or late of
Talbot County in the Province of Maryland the sum of fifty
pounds like silver money." 1 Catholic historians for quite a
number of years were much interested in the identity of
Father John Smyth, who knew Peter Dubuc so well, and who,
as we know by inference, said Mass in Philadelphia earlier
than 1693. Martin I.· J. Griffin, the editor of the American
Catholic Historical Researches, was certain that Father John
Smyth was an alias for Father Thomas Harvey of the Society,
the founder of the New York Mission of the English Jesuits.
Father E. I. Devitt was equally convinced that Father John
Smyth was Father Henry Ifarrison of the Society, the assistant of Father Harvey. Father Thomas Hughes in The History of th~ Society of Jesus in North America wrote: "The
great character among the Jesuits (in New York) was Fr.
John Smith, that is Thomas Harvey." 2 The authority for this
statement was the Researches of Martin Griffin, citing the
will of Peter Dubuc of October 14, 1693 bequeathing £50 to
Father John Smyth. 3
I think that enough time has elapsed since the controversy
of Martin Griffin and Father Devitt to ask the question once
more: Was John Smith the alias of Father Thomas Harvey,
or of Father Henry Harrison?
At the beginning of this study let us put two dates together,
the first found in Brother Henry Foley's Records of the English Province and the second in the will of the Franciscan,
Richard Hobart of Charles County, Maryland. Foley writes,
"In the Catalogue of 1685 Father Thomas Harvey is mentioned as being in the Mission of New York, and in the following year he was declared Superior. In 1696 he went into
Maryland and died in· the same year, aet. 71." 4
The Jesuit Relations give a much fuller picture:
Governor Thomas Dongan brought with him to New York (1683)
an English Jesuit, Fr. Thomas Harvey, and within a year or two,
Fr. Henry Harrison and Fr. Charles Gage also were sent thither.
The intention of the English authorities was to counteract the
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
119
influence exerted on the Indians by the French Jesuits, and to form
a village of Catholic Indians under English influence. They also
acted as chaplains to the Governor, and for a time maintained a
Latin School. This school was to be the nucleus of a Jesuit College
in New York, but all their plans failed, on account of the Revolution in England and the consequent usurpation of the New York
government by Jacob Leisler (Dec. 1689). These Jesuits were
driven from the colony, but Harvey returned in the following year,
and continued his position for several years, until broken health
compelled him to return to Maryland where he soon after died. 5
If we now look at the will of the Franciscan, Richard Hobart of Charles County, Maryland, in the year 1698, we
notice that he left personalty to the Jesuits, William Robert
Brooke, John Hall, Nicholas Gulick, and John Smith, and to
his Franciscan confreres, Christopher Plunkett and Thomas
Massey and most probably to two other Franciscans that bore
the aliases of John Bredd and Thomas Piper. 6 Since Father
Hobart's will was probated in 1698, and since Father Harvey
had died in 1696, it should be apparent that Father Harvey
was not Father John Smith. And, since Father Charles Gage
was back in England in 1688 and left the Society in 1693,7 it
should be apparent that the alias Father J olm Smith fitted
the only other Jesuit who was in America at that time, namely
Father Henry Harrison. Father Devitt pointed out in his
controversy with Martin Griffin that it would be remarkable
for Father Harvey to have two aliases, Barton and Smith,
and for Father Harrison to have none. Yet for the sake of
congruity we can see why Father Harrison should appropriately bear the alias John Smith, because thirty-five years previous in 1650 in England, a namesake, Father Thomas Harrison of the Society, who was judicially murdered at Lancaster
Castle, 8 bore the alias John Smith. Father Henry Harrison
of the New York Mission in assuming this alias had a patron
in heaven to invoke in time of need and trouble. With this
fact established, namely that John Smyth of Peter Dubuc's
will was in reality Father Henry Harrison, we can readily
see how certain contradictory and disconnected facts concerning the New York Mission and Pennsylvania can be harmonized and put in their proper place.
One of the best guarded secrets of the Jesuit Maryland
Mission was the work of the Jesuits among the Indian tribes:
the Piscataways (Conoys), Conewagos and the Susquehannas
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FATHER HENRY HARRISON
(Conestogas) .9 This Mission, as we shall see, lasted continuously from 1634 to 1644. Then it was allowed to lapse and
finally was broken up in the Clayborne and Captain Ingle
Rebellion. The Indian tribes on both sides of the Susquehanna
were Hurons.
Maryland :Mission's Apostolate Among the Indians
There are many references to the Maryland Mission's
apostolate among the Indians. A Jesuit Relation of 1670 mentions the Conestogas, stating that they were instructed and
baptized and that some had been found by Fremin who had
been instructed by Maryland Fathers.10 The "Relation" of
Father Andrew White is filled with the apostolic work of the
Jesuits among the Indian tribes of Maryland. Father Philip
Fisher, alias Thomas Copley1 later on followed some of them
to their new habitat along tli'e Susquehanna River. 11 Father
Pierron from New France in 1674 recognized that the tribes
along the Susquehanna River belonged to the English Assistancy.12 As we shall see, Father Henry Harrison worked
among these Indians for almost ten years. At a council held
at Conestogue below Lancaster July 8, 1721, Governor Keith
warned the Indians not to be deluded by the Jesuits and interpretersY Father Joseph Greaton, the founder of the Pennsylvania Mission, started his missionary work among these
Indians, 1726-30.14 In l744 Father Richard Molyneux, superior of the Maryland Mission, was present with these Indians
as interpreter at the important treaty at LancasterY Father
Thomas Diggs from 1742-1752 was vice-superior,· _in the
Indian mission known as Susquenock,t 6 a territory· of the
lower Susquehanna River in Maryland and Pennsylvania,
where once the all powerful Susquehanna Indians lived.U
The reason why this apostolic work was such a well
guarded secret was because the Indian problem in colonial
times was explosive politically. The Colonial Archives of
Pennsylvania are filled with the meetings between the governors and the various Indian tribes; at one time with delegations of the conquerors, the Five Nations (later, the Six Nations); at another time with the conquered, the Susquehannas
or Conestogas, the Conoys, and the Delawares. The early
• archives of Massachusetts; New York, Maryland, and Virginia
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
121
show the anxiety of the various governors to placate the
Indians on their western borders. For, over all the colonies
hung a great fear, the fear of the redman converted to Popery
by the Jesuits, ready to take up arms for France and drive
the English colonists into the sea, or worse, to subject all
good Protestants to the See of RomeY The Five Nations,
whose center was at Onondaga, New York, were always in a
strong position up to the American Revolution, because they
held the balance of power between the English and the
French. Officially the Five Nations were under the aegis of
the English, but emotionally those nearest the English Colonies were pro-British while those nearest New France were
pro-French. 19 The Jesuits in Maryland knew how explosive
the entire Indian problem was; consequently they hardly ever
advertised the work among the Indians of their assistancy.
In fact Father Joseph Mosley at a much later date (1774},
writing to his sister in England, said, "Indians? We've ne'er
a one in any of our congregations, the law forbids us to meddle with them." 20 Yet from quite a number of facts and a few
letters we can get a rather clear picture of the apostolic work
of the Jesuits among the Indians, most of it, as we shall see
in a locale that is now part of Pennsylvania, along both sides
of the Susquehanna River, from the Blue Mountains to the
headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay. 21
When Thomas Dongan was governor of New York, Sir
John Werden left him a memorandum: "Touching Susquehanna River or lands abt or trade in it, wch the Indians convey to you or invite you to, we think you will doe well to preserve yr interest there as much as possible that soe nothing
more may goe away to Mr. Penn or either New Jerseys." 22
The Onondaga and Cayuga Sachems on August 2, 1684
spoke to Thomas Dongan :
Wee have putt all our land and our selfs under the protection of
the Great Duke of York, the brother of your great Sachem; we have
given the Susquehanna River which we wonn with the sword to
this Government and desire that it may be a branch of that great
tree that grows here, whose topp reaches to the sunn, under whose
branches we shall shelter ourselves from the French or any other
people, and our fire burning in your houses and your fire burns with
us, and we desire that it may always be so, and will not that any
of your Penn's people shall settle upon the Susquehanna River; for
our young folks or soldiers are like wolfs in the woods, as your
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FATHER HENRY HARRISON
Sachem of Virginia know we having no other land to leave our wives
and children. 23
Thomas Dongan said almost the same thing when writing
to London:
Further, if Pennsylvania be continued as by Charter, running
five degrees to the Westward it will take in most of the five Nations
that lye to the Westward of Albany, and the whole Beaver and
Peltry Trade of that Place, the consequence whereof will bee the
Depopulation of the Government for the people must follow the trade.
Those Indians and the people of this Government have been in
continual peace and amity one with another these fifty years.~ 4
In this same report Governor Dongan made a distinction
between those Indians (the conquered ones) who have been
friendly for fifty years, and the conquerors, the Five Nations,
whose allegiance was always doubtful. The basis of the Governor's thought and endeavors \vas the rich peltry trade with
these two groups of Indians. William Penn had tried to buy
the lands on both sides of the Susquehanna River from the
Five Nations but was turned down. 25 In the interests of
England, Governor Dongan kept three things separated in his
mind, his policy towards the Indians on the great River, his
dealings with the Five Nations, and especially with the
Senecas who lived north of its two great branches, and
thirdly his desire to bring back from Canada the race of Catholic Indians who had migrated there when the English captured New York. Along the Susquehanna River he sent two
Jesuits to live with the conquered tribes, for on May 2, 1686
he wrote to Monsieur de Denonville, Governor of Ca1i~da:
I have had two letters from the two fathers that live among our
Indians, and I find them somewhat disturbed with an apprehension
of warr, which is groundless, being resolved that it shall not begin
here, and I hope your present conduct will prevent it there, and
refer all differences home, as I shall doe, I hear one of the fathers
is gone to you, and 'tother that staid, I have sent for him here lest
the Indians should insult over him, 'tho it's a thousand pittys that
those that have made such progress in the service of God should be
disturbed, and that by the fault of those that laid the foundations
of Christianity among these barbarous people.2a
And in another letter to De Denonville from Dongan on
• July 26, 1686 we read: "For my part I shall take all imaginable care that the Fathers who preach the Holy Gospel to
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
123
those Indians over 'Whom I have power bee not in the least ill
treated.'' 27
The Catholicity of Governor Dongan's policy towards the
evangelization of the conquerors, the Five Nations, is, to say
the least, questionable. In dealing with these Indians the peltry trade came first, because of its paramount interest to England; the evangelization came second. As we have just read,
he knew that the French Jesuits had evangelized these peoples
long before the English conquered the Dutch in New York.
And to the English, the Governor included, the French in any
form, whether voyageur, explorer, Jesuit or Recollect Missionary, or the Grand Seigneur of Canada, were all enemies
and must at all costs be driven out or supplanted. To salve
his conscience he chose the latter course, that is, to supplant
the French priests with English priests. 28 Writing to De
Denonville he said:
'Tis true I ordered our Indians if they should meet with any of
your people or ours on this side of the lake without a passe from
you or me that they bring them to Albany. 29
I have ordered our Indians strictly not to exercise any cruelty or
insolence to them (the Missionary Fathers) and have written to
the King my Master who hath as much zeal as any prince liveing
to propagate the Christian faith and assure him how necessary it
is to send some Fathers to the natives allyed to us and care would
then be taken to dissuade them fr.om their drunken debauches
though certainly our Rum doth as little harm as your Brandy and
in the opinion of Christians is much more wholesome; however to
keep the Indians temperate and sober is very good and Christian
performance but to prohibit them all strong liquors seem a little
hard and very turkish.30
On June 20, 1687 he wrote to De Denonville: "I am daily
expecting Religious men from England which I intend to put
among those five nations.'' 31
On August 21, 1687 De Denonville pulverized the arguments of Dongan:
When you arrived in your present government did you not find,
Sir, in the whole of the 5 Iroquois villages, all our missionaries sent
by the King, almost the entire of whom the heretic merchants have
caused to be expelled even in your time, which is not honorable to
your government. It is only three years since the greater number
were forced to leave, the fathers Lamberville alone bore up against
the insults and ill treatment they received from the solicitations of
your traders. It is not true, Sir, that you panted only to induce
�124
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
them to abandon their mission? You recollect, Sir, that you took
the trouble under the guise of duty, so late as last year, to solicit
them by urgent discourses to retire under the pretext that I wished
to declare war against the village of the Onont:lgues. What certainly had you of it, Sir, if it were not the charge and prohibition
you had given them not to send the prisoners I demanded of them
and they surrended to me? You foresaw the war I would make,
by that which you were desirous of waging against me through
them, and which you have waged against me through the Senecas.
In this way, Sir, it is very easy to foresee events.32
On August 22, 1687 Governor de Denonville waxed even
more eloquent and devastating when he attacked Governor
Dongan's p~oposal to supplant the French with English
priests. He wrote:
I should think, Sir, that you ought to have waited the decision of
the differences between our ·Masters relative to the boundaries,
before dreaming of introducing religious men among the Five Nations, your charity, Sir, for the conversion of these people would
have been more useful to them or more honorable to you had you com•
menced by lending your protection to the missionaries they had for
the advancement of religion, instead of taking pains to drive them
from their missions and prevent them converting the heathen.
You cannot deny, Sir, that should our missionaries leave, these poor
infidels will be a long time without instruction if they must await the
arrival of your religious men, and until these have learned the
language. 33
That De Denonville -was speaking the truth is proved by
Governor Dongan's earlier message to England. In speaking
of the French he wrote :
They have fathers still among the five nations aforementioned,
viz. the Maquaes, the Sinicaes, Cayouges, Oneides and'" the Onondagues34 and have converted many of them to the Christian
faith, and doe their utmost to draw them to Canada, to which they
have already 6 or 700 retired, and more like to doe, to the great
prejudice of this Government, if not prevented. I have done my
endeavors and have gone so far in it that I have prevailed with the
Indians to come back from Canada on condition that I procure for
them a peece of land called Serachtague (Saratoga) lying upon
Hudsons River 40 miles above Albany & there furnish them with
Priests. Thereupon and upon a petition of the people of AlbanY
to mee setting forth the reasonableness and conveniency of granting
to the Indians their requests I have procured the land for them,
altho it had formerly been patented to the people of Albany & have
promised the Indians that they shall have Priests & that I wiJI
build them a Church & have assured the people of Albany that I
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
125
would address to his Maty and to your Lops (Lordships) that care
may be taken to send over by the first, five or six, it being a matter
of great consequence.
These Indians (the Five Nations) have about ten or twelve
castles as they term them & those at a great distance one from
another; soe that there is an absolute necessity of having soe many
priests, that there be three always traveling from Castle to Castle
& the rest live with them that are Christians.
By that means the French Priests will be obliged to retire to
Canada, whereby the French will be divested of their pretence to ye
Country & then wee shall enjoy that trade without any fear of being diverted.a5
Governor Dongan's dealing with the Five Nations with regard to sending them missionaries fell through, as did his
scheme at Saratoga. But the Indians on the lands around the
Susquehanna River were evangelized by a Jesuit for almost
ten years.
Pertinent Annual Letters
The reason the English Province sent three men to labor
among the ten or fifteen Catholics of New York City 36 is a
fact that is often distorted. Ostensibly it was on account of
the ill-starred Latin School of the city, 37 but it is apparent
that there was a mucq deeper reason. And this becomes
clearer when we analyse the pertinent Annual Letters of the
Maryland Mission. In passing, the first thing that we notice
about certain of these Latin letters is that they were not
translated correctly; the second thing that we notice is that
their background, political and geographical, taken for
granted in those days has disappeared. The English translation often was so deliberately toned down that it gives a completely different sense. The political background is seen in
various archives of the Colonies and the geographical is seen,
not in our maps, but in those used by the Jesuits of those centuries. For instance the Latin triennial letter which deals
with the founding of the Maryland Province was translated
as follows into English:
The affair labored under heavy and many difficulties, for
in leading the colony to Maryland, by far the greater part were
heretics, the country itself a meridie Virginiae ab Aquilone, is
esteemed likewise to be a New England, that is two provinces full of
English Calvinists and Puritans, so that, not less perhaps greater
danger threaten our fathers in a foreign, than in the native land
�126
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
in England. Nor is the Baron himself able to find support for the
Fathers, nor can they expect sustenance from the heretics, nor
from the Catholics for the most part poor, nor from the savages
who live after the manner of wild beasts. 38
Here is the literal translation of the same Latin passage:
The expedition labored under neither light nor few difficulties.
For since the colony to be brought into Maryland would be for the
most part heretical, and since this region would be bounded by
Virginia on the south and New England on the north, that is to
say two provinces full of English Calvinists and Puritans, not less,
but perhaps more difficulties loomed up before our Fathers in an
alien England than in England itself. And the Lord Baron could
never be budged to donate even one obol for the support of our
fathers. And so they could expect a living neither from the heretics
separated from the faith, not from the Catholics for the most part
poor, nor from the savages li':ing after the manner of beasts. 39
There is quite a difference_ between the first translation and
the second. The first is blurred and toned down on purpose;
the second shows us two things: first, the attitude of the
Jesuits to Lord Baltimore who would not even contribute the
smallest possible Jewish coin 40 to the 1\'J:ission, and second,
the map that the Jesuits had in their libraries, that is, the map
of the anonymous A Relation of Maryland printed in 1635, 41
which clearly shows Virginia on the south of Maryland and
New England on the north. We must remember that neither
New York nor Pennsylvania were founded by this time, and
accordingly New England was all that territory north of
Maryland. With this map before us, that is, the one that the
early Jesuits used, a cryptic letter or two of Father Copley
written in double talk become crystal clear. He bad asked
permission from the Very Reverend Father Generai Mutius
Vitelleschi to go to New England and in his letter he used the
cryptic words opus bonae spei. 42 Taking the words at their
face value one might suspect that Father Copley wanted to
evangelize the Puritan Saints of the Charles River, but when
we look at the map of A Relation of Maryland we notice that
the only mentioned inhabitants on the map which shows lower
New England were the Susquehannas who lived on both sides
of the Susquehanna River. Now we understand what the
opus bonae spci meant. And in due time the General blesses
"the work of good hope." 43 With the aid of another letter of
Father Copley's and another map we can figure out where
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
127
both he and Father Starkey were in 1650 and we can find the
exact locale and can make a shrewd guess about the death of
Father Copley with the aid of a bit of news that St. Isaac
Jogues knew. 44 However, this leads us too far afield and is
the matter of another article. I merely wish to point out that
the apostolic labors of the Jesuits along the Susquehanna
River is almost as ancient as the founding of the Maryland
Mission.
Since this article deals primarily with the work of Father
Henry Harrison among these Indians we obtain the proof by
the same method outlined above. We have seen already that
two priests were working among these Indians. 45 In the
triennial Latin Letter of 1696 we notice the same two purposeful errors: the toned down English translation and the
lost background, political and geographical. For the purpose
of clarity I shall give the pertinent Latin original. In the first
part of the letter the writer describes the work of the Jesuits
among the white settlers from the earliest days of the mission.
The entire second half deals entirely with their work among
the savages. Here is the second part:
Cum aboriginibus, minus quam in votis esset, commercium nee
missionem ad eos ullam certam instituere adhuc nostri, quia singuli
fere in silvis ferarum more et venationis causa, qua sola aluntur,
mutatis frequenter sedibus, degunt sine ullo pago proprie dicto,
licet urbes vocent tot hominum intra 5 vel 6 leucarum ambitum
degentium numerum eumque qui illis praeest regem, qui vere pluribus talibus praesunt imperatores audiunt. Borum unus, plures
illorum in primo huius missionis decennio baptizati sunt. Majus
cum eis in Novo Eboraco cum eorum 5 gentibus commercium, vendentibus illis pelles ursinas, castoreas aliasque varii generis. Hie
septennium exegit unus e nostris, sed ante triennium coactus exire,
ut furori cederet uxoris novi gubernatoris, a principe Aurioco
submissi, non quidem titulo religionis ejectus sed quod in regis sui
legitimi Jacobi obsequium posset multos trahere delatus, in Marilandiam venit.46
Father Hughes, following the original English translation
of this letter, writes:
The documentary record of 1696 simply reads: "In New York one
of Ours spent seven years, but three years ago he was forced to
leave, owing to the fury of the wife of the new governor that had
been appointed by the Prince of Orange, not indeed that he was
expelled on the plea of religion, but that he had been denounced
as capable of bringing many to the service of their legitimate King
�128
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
James, and so he came to Maryland." As it is quite clear that the
Governor, Colonel Fletcher had no need of his wife's interposition
to police the province against Jacobites we infer that "the fury of
the lady for its political integrity of New York was a screen for
something else."
And in a learned footnote Father Hughes infers that the interest of the good lady and the governor was in piracy and in
a certain Capt. Kidd in particular.
All through this passage Father Hughes took it for granted
that the writer of this letter was speaking about Father
Harvey. 41 If one looks at the Latin original with its balanced
sentences and Ciceronian phraseology, it is apparent that the
writer was talking about the apostolic work of some New
York Jesuit among the Indians. It is clear that the writer
was contrasting the work of the early Maryland Jesuits
among the Indians with som~one in particular (unus e nostris) who was doing the same· kind of work from a base in
New York. In the first ten years ( decennio) of the Maryland
Mission, that is, from 1634-44, one emperor and many Indians were baptised. But there was more fruit amongst
these same Indians by one of Ours who labored in New York.
Majus cum eis in Novo Eboraco, etc., is literally translated.
"There was more fruit with those Indians in New York who
sold to the Five Nations bear skins and beaver skins and such
like." Then follows the_ connecting words: Hie septennium
exegit unus e nostris. Here for seven years one of Ours labored. The word hie is not New York City, because both the
Dutch and the English saw to it that no Indians lived in or
near the city. The decennium of the early Maryland Mission's apostolic work among the Indians is balanced against
two periods of later apostolic work-a septennium-and a
triennium (almost) which would make roughly a second
decennium. Certainly ante triennium does not mean three
years ago; the author would have used tres annos abhinc.
Ante triennium means before three years, that is, some time
over two years.
The unus e nostris who performed almost ten years of
apostolic work among the Indians was certainly not Father
Harvey. He was much too old for that hazardous and onerous
• work; the almost ten years amongst the Indians who had no
fixed abode would see him on such a mission between his
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
129
fiftieth and sixtieth years. Besides this work was going on
in 1697-8, two years after Father Harvey was dead! 8 Consequently he was not the unus c nostris. Secondly, it was not
Father Charles Gage of the Society; he lasted just two years
in New York and went home. 49 That it was Father Henry
Harrison is obtained by the process of elimination. He was
the only one left. He was physically fit, just thirty-two years
of age when he came to New York in 1684; secondly, when
Governor Dongan was negotiating with the Five Nations at
Albany in 1687 he did not take Father Harvey with him, he
took one who knew the Algonquin dialect, Father Harrison.•o
Locale of Father Harrison's Labors
The next point to clarify is the locale of Father Harrison's
labors. It certainly was not at Saratoga among the Conewaugha Indians; these Indians refused to come to New York,
as is apparent to anyone reading the documents relating to
Governor Dongan. When these Indians finally migrated they
settled along the Susquehanna River." 1 Neither was Father
Harrison working among the Five Nations; we would have
learned that from De Denonville or from the J csuit Relations.
But as Governor Dongan told the Governor of Canada, he was
working with another Father along the Susquehanna River. 52
The Governor called these Indians "ours" in contradistinction
to the Indians of the Five Nations, our allies. The other one
working for a while with Father Harrison was Father Charles
Gage.
This locale was in perfect harmony with the traditions of
the English Province. It certainly is in keeping with the correct translation of the Letter of 1696. The author was treating about the same Indians tribes who had once been in Maryland and were now in some spot in New York State, that is,
the Susquehanna River. That the French Jesuits recognized
the jurisdiction of the English Jesuits over this locale is seen
from the following citation from the Relations. In 1674 when
Father Jean P. Pierron came from his visit to Acadia and
Massachusetts to Maryland,
he found two of our English fathers, dressed like seculars, and a
brother like a farmer, having charge of a farm which serves to
support the two missionaries. They labor successfully for the con-
�130
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
version of the heretics of the country, where there are in fact many
Catholics and among them the Governor. . . . As these two fathers
do not suffice Fr. Pierron cheerfully offers to assist them, and at the
same time to establish a mission among the neighboring savages
with whose language he is familiar. But there are many obstacles
in the way of this project which seem incapable of execution;
because this is a mission belonging to Our English Fathers who
should themselves ask Fr. Pierron's aid; because it is in another
Assistancy and the Father does not wish to leave that of France,
and finally because a considerable sum is needed to commence to
carry out the project.sa
We notice in 1674 when the English Jesuits had no men to
evangelize these Indians, that is, those that lived along the
Susquehanna River, that they claimed this territory as being
in their own Assistancy and that the French Jesuits respected
that claim. Quite a number of these Indians lived below the
40° parallel, which Maryland considered to be in its own territory. If we compare the-·foregoing account in the Jesuit
Relations with the English Letter of 1696 we can readily see
that one of the great cares of the English provincials was to
send someone "to labor among the neighboring savages." And
we have seen that the one destined for that mission in 1684
was Father Henry Harrison.
With this established we can now put a number of facts
in their proper order. Henry Harrison was born in Antwerp
of English parents in the year 1652. 54 He entered St. Omers,
the Jesuit School in Flanders, about 1666 and in 1673 entered
the Society of Jesus as a novice at Watten just three leagues
distant. 55 The Maryland catalogue mentions him in New
York, working with Father Harvey in 1684 whep he was
thirty-two years of age. Here he began the septeniiiiim, mentioned in the Annual Letter of 1696, and labored with the Indians who lived on both sides of the lower Susquehanna River.
Looking at the very early maps of Pennsylvania we notice a
trail starting from present day Harrisburg running almost
due east and ending in upper New Jersey. This was the "forbidden trail" on which no white man or conquered Indian was
allowed to enter. 56 As we learn from Governor Dongan's letter of May 22, 1686, Father Harrison had a companion,
Father Charles Gage. When the two men came down from
New York they were obliged to pass through Burlington, New
Jersey, then over the Delaware River to Bristol, down the
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
131
road to Philadelphia. Then they went west along the trail
that was to be called the Lancaster Pike, until they came to
Conestogue. A little farther they came to Wright's Ferry
which took them over the Susquehanna River. As they entered the Conewago Valley it was filled with the conquered
tribes, living in the dense forests that grew there. 57 By this
time the Andastes or Susquehannas were a conquered nation.
These Andastes, commemorated in the Jesuit Relations, 58
often mentioned in the early Maryland Archives, 59 and spoken
of by Father Andrew White in his Relations,60 were the
fiercest of all the eastern Indian tribes. Finally, in 1672 they
were conquered, and were now a nation whose members were
called Nephews and could make no decisions unless ratified by
their Uncles, the Sachems of the Five Nations, whose chief
Council Fire was at Onondaga, far to the north over the Endless Mountains. 61 All this territory which was visited later
on by Father Joseph Greaton in 1726 from a base on Pipe
Creek, a tributary of the Monocacy River, was to be the locale
of the Conewago Mission, founded by Father William Wappeler in 1742, and consolidated by the giant missioner, Father
James Pellentz in 1787.
As we learn from the Letter of 1696 this mission had no
definite site, because the tribes had no fixed abode and had
to travel great distances to obtain their food. Then came
trouble between the French and the neighboring Indians, the
Senecas. As we learn from Dongan's letter, one of the Fathers
went to Canada (undoubtedly Father Harrison, because he,
being born at Antwerp, knew the French language) and
Father Charles Gage was recalled to New York City. In 1687
Father Harrison was at Albany with the Governor dealing
with the Five Nations. In 1688 Father Harrison was back
with the Indians on the Susquehanna River. On this trip, as
he stopped in Burlington, he made the acquaintance of an old
classmate at St. Omers, John Tatham, whose alias was John
Gray. 62 John Tatham was a merchant, "locally suspected of
being a Roman Catholic," 63 agent for Dr. Daniel Coxe of London (one of the owners of West New Jersey). John Tatham
had one of the largest libraries in America64 and was known
to William Penn as "a Scholar and averse to the Calvinists." 65
The next stop for Father Harrison was with Peter Dubuc who
�132
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
lived in a rented house in Philadelphia. He undoubtedly said
Mass in both houses. Peter Dubuc, the goldsmith, was quite
friendly with the Quakers, and undoubtedly introduced Father
Harrison as Father John Smith to them. The Quakers of
Philadelphia had quite a number of relatives who lived on the
eastern shore and in Ann Arundel County.
Then came the Orange Revolution in England and the
imitative Rebellions in 1689 in Maryland under Jack Coode
and in New York under Jacob Leisler. Eventually the news
of the Revolution got to Father Harrison's ears and he hurried
back through Philadelphia and the older Quaker town, Burlington, neither of which felt the shock of the Revolution,
and took up his abode with William Pinhorne in Monmouth
County, New Jersey. 66 The little flock of Catholics in New
York scattered to the neighboring state or even farther, to
Pennsylvania. And the ex-Governor went into hiding.
After Colonel Dongan was ··relieved of his commission as
Governor, April 22, 1688,67 he retired to his estate at Hempstead.68 He evidently thought it safer to be in America than
in England with a triumphant William of Orange on the
throne. However, when Jacob Leisler seized power for himself in New York City on May 31, 1689, Colonel Dongan became a "hunted man" as one of his contemporaries wrote. 69
On July 9, 1689 Dongan put to sea in the brigantine that he
owned, but soon put b~ck to shore on account of seasickness.70 Among the wild rumors going the rounds in New York
was the story that Colonel Dongan had an arsenal on his
estate. There evidently was some truth to that story. A quite
plausible theory is that when he left his estate on JJily 9, he
took a number of rifles and blunderbusses down the ·sound,
around New Jersey and up the Delaware Bay to John Tatham's house in Burlington, because in the latter's inventory of .
goods is included a considerable number of rifles and blunderbusses that does not fit into John Tatham's role as a scholar.
Pretty well authenticated is the fact that Colonel Dongan was
in New Jersey during the early part of 1690, for Mr. Van
Cortland, writing to Sir Edmund Andros, said : "Governor
Dongan was confined in his house at Hemstede, but is gone to
New Jersey." 71 Colonel Bayard hinted strongly that Colonel
Dongan had a number of guns aboard his brigantine for he
wrote:
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
133
I have been aboard myself and see; she is loaded with pipe-staves
and flowers and designed for Madeira; as for the Guns the Captain
told me that if I would give him security, that if he was taken by
the Turk or any of his people to redeem them, that then he would
leave his guns, but I thought that might cost possibly three or four
thousand pounds if such a thing should fall out and would not
venture to give such security, and the guns are his own and I could
not take any man's goods by force beside the Captain swears that
if any come aboard, he will cut them over the pate or knock their
brains out.7 2
Escape from America
Although Father Harrison was reported in Ireland in 1690
and Colonel Dongan in London in 1691, circumstantial evidence points to the fact that the ex-Governor and his
Chaplain went to Ireland in the same ship. Dongan had many
reasons for going to Ireland; Father Harrison had none. Dougan's uncle, Richard Talbot, Earl of Tyrconnel, had been
made Lord Lieutenant of Ireland on January 17, 1687. John
Evelyn in his diary, a book that has all the marks of having
been doctored years after the recorded events, wrote this
entry: "17 Jan. 1687. Lord Tyrconnel gone to succeed the
Lord Lieutenant (Clarendon) in Ireland, to the astonishment
of all sober men and to the evident ruin of the Protestants
of that kingdom, as well as of its great improvements going
on."7a
On October 24, 1687 Dongan wrote to James II: "May it
pleas your Majestie: Since Judge Palmer went away, I received a letter from the Earl of Tyrconnel, wherein he lets
me know it will be requisite for your Majesties service that
I goe home." 74
And home to Dongan meant Ireland, for he was born at
Castletown in County Kildare in 1634. "His father was Sir
John Dongan, a member of the Irish Parliament. His mother
Mary was a member of the distinguished Talbot family." 75
When we start investigating the avenues of escape from
America in those days for persons who were hunted by the
intolerant governments, we notice that there were only two
ports where one could ship out in comparative saftey, Philadelphia and Burlington. Judging from the way that the people of Boston treated Sir Edmund Andros immediately after
the Orange Revolution, we can rule that port out as one of
�134
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
the avenues of escape to Europe/ 6 Then too with Jacob Leisler watching every ship that left New York we know that
Dongan would have little chance of putting out to sea from
that harbor. In Maryland the situation was just as impossible.
When Jack Coode, the ex-Anglican minister, suddenly flowering out in a Colonel's uniform on July 25, 1689,11 took control of the Province he gave orders that no ship was to leave
Maryland except in convoy. 78 We notice that Henry Darnall
managed to ship out on the Thomas and Susanna (Captain
Thomas Everard, Commander) by subterfuge, but he seems
to have been the only one who escaped to England. 79 When
he found it impossible to leave Maryland for England he first
went to Philadelphia and missed shipping from that port80
and then came back to Ann Arundel County. He wrote: "On
the 26 of September when (l\lajr Sewall then being sick) I
myself got a passage hither in one Everard."
The Quakers of Philadelphia and Burlington were extraordinarily uninterested in the accession to the throne of King
William; consequently neither town was rocked with rebellion. Their Majesties, William and Mary, were officially announced as occupying the throne of England, and after the
announcement the Quakers went quietly about their business.
From the Annual Letters of Maryland, Series of 16851690 we learn that bec~use of the Rebellion in New York a
Father walked from that city to Maryland. This was Father
Thomas Harvey, the superior of the New York Mission. He
was back again in New York in the following year as we learn
from the Jesuit Relations, 81 and consequently we have."an.other
reason showing that Father Harvey was not Father Smith of
Talbot County, Maryland. Father Harvey met Peter Dubuc
of Philadelphia in 1689 and again in the following year, 1690,
when he was returning to New York. In 1693 he certainly
\vas not Father John Smith, late of Talbot County, Maryland.
If Peter Dubuc were writing of Father Harvey in his will he
would have mentioned him as of New York or late of New
York. Father Harvey stayed in or near New York until he
finally retired to Maryland in 1696 to die. In the same Annual Letter we also read that the other Father, "after many
perils of the sea, even being captured and robbed of his possessions by Dutch pirates, eventually came safely to France." 82
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
135
John Tatham was part owner of the sloop Unitie with
James Johnston of Monmouth County, New Jersey. This ship
carried tobacco from Maryland and Virginia to England. 83
And since John Tatham was such a~ ardent Jacobite and good
Catholic, I think it safe to say that the two priests, Father
Harrison and Father Harvey, accompanied Colonel Dongan
to Burlington, that Father Harrison and the Colonel shipped
out of that port to Ireland, and that Father Harvey went the
rest of the way by foot to Maryland. The only reason why
Father Harrison should go to Ireland was to accompany the
ex-Governor since he still considered himself to be his chaplain. After the two landed in Ireland; Father Harrison took
ship for Flanders and was captured by Dutch pirates. On
February 2, 1691 he took his last vows 84 and in the following
year he was back in Maryland ready to being the triennium
among his beloved Indians.
On October 21, 1692 Governor Benjamin Fletcher, Esquire,
who was in charge of the Colony of New York was also appointed over the Proprietary of Pennsylvania. 84 The new
governor like so many others that came from England was
busily engaged in making his fortune at the expense of the
colony. His successor, Richard, Earl of Bellomont, proved
that fact through many dreary pages of dispatches sent to the
Lords of Trade and Plantations in England. 8 ~ Fletcher was
noted for his inordinate vanity which everyone except himself recognized. When the French and Indians fell on the
hapless hamlet of Schenectady, Fletcher got up a leisurely expedition against the marauders and when he arrived on the
scene the enemy was not in sight. Immediately the Indians of
the Five Nations gave him a nickname: Cajenquiragoe, Lord
of the Great Swift Arrow,S 6 which one of his white contemporaries said was, "design'd as a droll on the man and his
vain glory ... the Indians bestowed that name on him as a
sarcasticall pun." After receiving the forced praise of the people of Albany, coming home to New York and receiving a gold
cup worth £120, which was never paid for, he composed a
Pamphlet entitled, "A Journal of the late actions of the French
at Canada with the manner of their being repulsed by His
Excellency Benjamin Fletcher, their Majesties' Governor of
New York, impartially related by Colonel Nicholas Reyard
and Lieutenant Colonel Charles Lodowick who attended his
�136
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
Excellency during the entire expedition," which was printed
in London for Richard Baldwin in 1693.
The other interest of Benjamin Fletcher was. in the establishment of Trinity Church in New York. 89 He was ably assisted in this by his wife. A bone of contention was the
"King's Farm" outside New York City, which was given to
the Vestry of Trinity Church by Fletcher. The proceeds of
the King's Farm had been set aside for the Latin School run
by the Jesuits in New York. Governor Dongan had made
this assignment but was told by James II to annul it.
Fletcher's attachment to the new church was called into question by a contemporary who wrote:
After this all you will perhaps wonder when I tell you that this
mans bell rings twice a day for prayers and that he appears with
a great affectation of piety, but this is true, and it is as true that
it makes him all the more ...ridiculous, not more respected. For we
are a sort of a downright ·blundering people that measure mens
piety by their practice than by their pretence to it, or ostentation
of it. 90
The church wardens, however, were of a different opinion,
for Colonel Fletcher, by his great zeal, generous liberality, and
indefatigable industry in the latter part of his government brought
so far to perfection that before his departure, he was divers time
present (to his own and the general satisfaction of the lovers of
the English Church and Nation) at the public worship of God, of
which (if we must not say he was the sole founder) it is an offence
of truth and an injustice to him not to affirm that he was the
principal promoter, a most liberal benefactor to it, and that without him to this day it never had had a being.91
His attachment to the Anglican religion is sho\Vn in the
following:
When Governor Fletcher also took over the Proprietary of
Pennsylvania he tried to make the Church of England the established church, but Wm. Penn blocked him by writing the following
letter: "I hope Lord Somers with the other great and just men will
easily think that it was never intended that Pennsylvania should be
a church plantation."n
One of the great preoccupations of the Anglican Church in
New York was to send their own missionaries to the Indians
and it was either over this fact or the possession of the revenues of the King's Farm that Father Harrison ran afoul of
the wife of Governor Fletcher. In reading over the Annual
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
137
Letter of 1696 we notice that he was driven out of the Indian
mission along the Susquehanna River, not by the title of religion because that would have alienated the Catholic Indians
there, but because of a serious political charge, namely, that
he would turn all the Indians there into J acobites, who in turn
would be a menace to all the colonies. Certainly the author
of the Annual Letter was not talking about the ten New York
Catholics of 1696 becoming Jacobites and thus being a serious
threat to the Colony. 93
Father Harrison Recalled
When the English Provincial heard of this second failure
of the Indian mission he recalled Father Harrison from Maryland and sent him as English Penitentiary to the Holy House
at Loreto in Italy. 94 Father Harrison's health was never too
good; and the Provincial thought that a more benign climate
would be beneficial to the missionary. While Father Harrison was in Italy the Holy See became interested in the faculties that the Jesuit Fathers used in Maryland. In answering
a questionnaire sent him by Father Francis Porter (Rome),
Father Harrison said:
All the aforesaid countries and islands are under the heretical
Bishop of London. When I was sent by my Superior to those missions, there was not as yet any English Catholic Bishop. Afterwards, four such were created under the Catholic King, James. But
to which one of them the aforesaid countries are subject, I do not
know. At all events, when I was on those missions, there was no
Vicar Apostolic there; but all the missionaries depended upon their
regular Superiors alone.o5
Towards the end of the year 1695 Father Thomas Harvey,
broken in health returned to Maryland and died in the following year. When news of his death was received in England, Father Harrison was recalled from Italy and once more
was sent to Maryland. 96
Before Father Harrison returned to Maryland he went to
London and sought out Colonel Dongan and told him the
whole story about the Indian Mission and how the wife of
Governor Fletcher was the principal cause of his expulsion
from the lands on the Susquehanna. Now Colonel Dongan
had an extreme dislike for William Penn and resisted all efforts towards Penn's acquisition of the lands along the Susque-
�138
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
hanna. But on January 12, 1696 Colonel Dongan had a
change of heart. The Catholic missions came first now. The
interests of England in the fur trade and the integrity of the
Province of New York came second. He made the amende
honorable; he deeded the entire territory to William Penn
for the trifling sum of £100 and a peppercorn rent for the
next thousand years. In this way he had his revenge on
Governor Fletcher and his wife at the expense of his animosity to William Penn. 91
Father Harrison returned to :Maryland in 1697 to find the
Jesuits once more established on their lands. In 1698 Father
Hobart the Franciscan died on his estate in Charles County
and, as we have seen, remembered Father Harrison in his
will. When Father Harrison returned to the Indian Mission
on the Susquehanna River he_ \Vas surprised to learn that the
Indians of the Five Nations ·aid not recognize the deed of
Colonel Dongan to William Penn. 98 The Sachems of the Five
Nations considered that the Susquehanna Indians were incapable of selling these lands in the first place because they
were a conquered people, and secondly they had merely given
them to Dongan in trust. Still Father Harrison continued
working among these peoples, returning once in a while to
Maryland. We get the last glimpse of him in a letter of John
Talbot, rector of St. M::j.ry's Church, to Richard Gillingham,
dated November 24, 1702. As usual the news was a little late
but it was authentic.
The papists have been zealous and diligent to send pr_iests and
Jesuits to convert the Indians to their superstitions; 'tis wo~derfully
acted, ventured and suffered upon that design; they have indeed become all things, and even turned Indians as it were to gain them.
which I hope will provoke some of us to do our part for our holy
faith and mother, the Church of England. One of their priests lived
half a year in their wigwams (i.e., houses) without a shirt and when
he petitioned Lord Bellomont for a couple he was not only denyed
but banished. Whereas one of ours in Discourse with My Lord
of London said "who did his Lordship think would come thither that
had a dozen shirts."99
Father Harrison's Death
We now put the last pieces of the puzzle in their proper
place and we have the complete picture. The Maryland Cata-
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
139
logue for 1700 speaking of Father Harrison says, "He was
on his way but nothing has been heard of him," and in 1701
it records his death without mentioning the day or place,
"Aet. 49." 100 If we look at the Latin text we get another picture: "De P. Henrico Harrison qui eo tendebat nihil adhuc
audimus." 101 Father Hughes thought that the phrase qui eo
tendebat meant that he was coming from England to the
Maryland Mission, but such a conclusion could not be correct.
The Maryland Catalogue places Father Harrison in Maryland
in 1697, the will of Father Hobart proves him there in 1698,
and the letter of John Talbot shows that he was working along
the Susquehanna a little later. The Latin phrase qui eo
tendebat was one of those cryptic phrases understood by
every Jesuit in England-it meant he was on his way there,
that is, to the secret Indian Mission of the Jesuits along the
Susquehanna River.
In the following year his death is recorded not by a question mark but by a period. If the Jesuits were not certain of
that fact they would never have given the year of his death
as a fact. In a learned article by Anna Dill Gamble entitled,
An Ancient Mission among a Great People, we learn that the
Jesuits in Maryland were often in touch with their confreres
in New France by Indian runners who travelled from St.
Thomas' in Maryland to Quebec to obtain faculties and holy
oils from the Archbishop. 102 Undoubtedly one of these runners brought news of the death of Father Harrison in 1700.
In the Georgetown University Library is a Manuale Sacerdotum according to the Salisbury rite, which the English Jesuits
used in England and in Maryland. At the beginning of the
book on ten blank pages, the Our Father, Hail Mary, the creed,
the gloria, the ten commandments, and three precepts of the
Church are written by hand in English and translated into an
Algonquin dialect. This book undoubtedly was brought back
to St. Thomas' along with the chalice and patten and his vestments as a mute and sure testimony of Father Harrison's
death in 1700, so that the next year's Maryland Catalogue
could record his demise with certainty. If he was murdered
by the Twightwees (Miamis), a tribe that had advanced to
the headwaters of the Potomac River and was always a
source of apprehension to the authorities of Maryland and
�140
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
Pennsylvania, he emulated his namesake, Father John Smith,
the alias of Father Thomas Harrison who was judicially
murdered at Lancaster Castle in 1650.
In closing this article we notice that none of the horrors of
the wars between the Five Nations and the Catawbas took
place in the Conewago Valley; neither did any of the greater
horrors of the aftermath of the French and Indian War take
olace in these parts. The Catholic Indians, though a conquered race, always striving for their independence from the
domination of the Five (Six) Nations, respected too much
~lte memory of the great Jesuit who labored so long among
them and whose peaceful spirit hovered over the lands of the
Susquehanna.
NOTES
tAmerican Catholic Historical Researches in the future will be referred to by its initials ACHR. Vol. 14, pp. 177-78 gives the entire will.
Vol. 15, pp. 65-68 gives the controversy between Martin Griffin and
Father Devitt, S.J.
2Thomas Hughes, S.J., The History of the Society of Jesus in North
America, Vol. 2, p. 148. Henceforth, The History of the Society of
Jesus in North America will be referred to as Hughes, Text or Documents.
SHughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 151, note 8.
4 Records of the English Province of the Society of Jesus, Part the
First, p. 343. Henceforth, referred to as Foley, Collectanea.
5 Jesuit Relations, Thwaites, Vol. 64, p. 280.
6 The Maryland Calendar of Wills, composed and edited by James
Baldwin, Vol. II, from 1685 to 1702, p. 162. Henceforth, referred to as
Md. Wills, Baldwin.
Hobart, Richard, Chas Co.
7. May, 1698
14 June, 1698
To William Hunter, Robert Brookes, John Hall, Nicholas Dewlick,
Christopher Plunkett, George Tubman*, each child of Maj. Wm.
Boarman** to son (unnamed) of Anthony Piper, Mary Benson,
Leonard Brooke and his wife, and to Ann Brooke and their hrs.
personalty.
Exs. Anthony Neale, Wm. Boarman, Benj. Hall.
*Father Hobart was a very charitable individual. George Tubman was the Anglican rector of Portobacco. Dr. Bray at his
visitation had this to say about this divine. "Lastly as to place; it
so happens that you are seated in the midst of Papists, nay within
two miles of Mr. Hunter, the chief among the numerous priests at
this time in this province; and who, I am credibly informed by the
most considerable gentlemen in these parts, has made that advantage
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
141
of your scandalous life, that there have been more perversions made
to Popery in that part of Maryland, since your polygamy has been
the talk of the country than in all the time it has been an English
colony." Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 443; see also note 18.
Nicholas Gulick was dismissed from the Society in 1696. (Hughes,
Vol. 2, p. 681.)
**:Major William Boarman had a Catholic chapel on his plantation
in Charles County. Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 450. :Md. Wills, Baldwin,
Vol. III, p. 140. One should not confuse the John Smith (Catholic)
of Charles County who died in 1705 (:Md. Wills, Vol. III, p. 71)
with the John Smith who is numbered among the Jesuits and Franciscans of this Will. Father Hobart, noted for his charity, would
not purposely exclude Father Harrison, who was at St. Thomas'
1697-8, and include in his will the polygamous Anglican divine,
George Tubman.
7Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 683.
8 Foley, Collectanea, Part the Second, p. 914; also recorded in Records,
Vol. 1, pp. 664-5.
9 The names in brackets are the Pennsylvania names for the same
tribes.
toGilmary Shea, Catholic Missions, p. 291.
11 Cf. note 60 of this article.
12 Cf. note 53 of this article.
13 Colonial Records, Pennsylvania, Vol. 3, pp. 129-30.
14 The author has another article on Father Joseph Greaton, S.J.,
showing how he started his apostolic labors among these Indians from
the plantation of James Carroll, called "Pork Hall" situated on Pipe
Creek, one of the tributaries of the :Monocacy River.
15 This is recorded in the :Memorial to the Earl of Halifax. See ACHR,
Vol. 9, p. 42. "The :Maryland Memorial to the Earl of Halifax states
that during the treaty of June and July 1744 the Superior of the Maryland Jesuit :Mission, Father Richard :Molyneux, S.J., was in Lancaster
with the Indians. He had been brought there evidently by the Proprietary of Pennsylvania and had been frequently at Worral's Inn
consulting with the Pennsylvania Commissioners."
16
Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 691. Father Thomas Digges, S.J. (1749)
"in Susquehanock", 1750 "in Sequanock" V. Superior, 1752 "in Sequanock
Superior."
17 Consult map in Narratives of Early Maryland, Clayton Colman Hall
(Chas. Scribner, N. Y. 1910).
18
This expression is seen verbatim in almost every non-Catholic controversial booklet or broadside of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. There must be somewhere in England a master copy of anticatholic propaganda of the sixteenth century which told all good
Protestants what was the proper thing to say when talking about the
Catholic Church.
Colonial Records, Pennsylvania, Vol. 3, p. 441. "August 26, 1732.
At a meeting with Tyoninhogoron and other chiefs, the Proprietor,
�142
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
Governor and others being present, the chiefs say that the French
priests and others that come among them speak nothing but Peace
to them."
19For fuller information on this subject vide Conrad Weiser, Friend of
Colonist and ll!ohawk, by Paul A. W. Wallace; Phila., University of
Pennsylvania Press, 1945.
20Records of the Cath. Hist. Soc., Vol. 17, p. 259. On Oct. 3, 1774
there were no Indians on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, where Father
Mosley worked. They had all started migrating to Pennsylvania from
the year 1690 to 1709. Vd. Arch. of Maryland, Proceedings of Council,
1687/8-1693, p. 181.
21See Deed of Thomas Dongan to William Penn, described later on in
this chapter. Cf. note 97.
22New York Colonial Documents, Vol. 3, p. 350.
23/bid, p. 417.
HJbid, p. 393.
25/bid, p. 418.
26/bid, pp. 455-6.
27/bid, p. 460.
28/bid, p. 440.
29/bid, p. 463.
30/bid, p. 463.
31/bid, p. 465.
32/bid, pp. 467-8.
33/bid, pp. 471-2.
34 "The Mohawks, keepers of the eastern door, were a part of the Five
Nations Confederacy (the Iroquois) whose chief towns and council fires
dotted the forest along the Ambassador's Road between the Hudson
River and Niagara. From east to west first the Mohawks, properly the
Caniengas, the People of the Flint-Mohawk being a name given to them
in derision by their enemies, the Delawares, whose nation, having
originated the League, was known as the Eldest Brother; then the
Oneidas, or People of the Standing Stone; the Onondagas, or."I>eople of
the Mountain; the Cayugas, the Great-Pipe People, and the .-Senecas,
or people of the Great Hill." Conrad Weiser, Wallace, p. 19.
35New York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 3, pp. 393-5.
36New York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 4, p. 166.
"In obedience to Yr Excell Comds I doe returne a List of the
Roman Catholicks in the Citty of New ,Yorke, which are:•
Majr Anthony Brockholes*** Peter Cavilier John Fenny*
Mr. Thomas Howarding
John Cooly
Phillip Cunningham
John Caveleir
Christiane Lawrence
Mr. William Duglas**
signed Pr Will. Merrett Mayr."
*John Fenny (on page 310 same Vol.) was a Popish taylor and a
beggar on May, 1698 according to Richard, Earl of Bellemont, Gov.
N. Y., noted for his dealings with Capt. Kidd. See pp. 470 and 762articles of agreement.
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
143
**Mr. William Douglas bought land in Cecil County, Maryland. See
author's article on Father Thomas Mansell, S.J.
***Majr Anthony Brockholes retired toN. J. Idem, Vol. 3, pp. 657, 721.
aTNew York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 4, p. 490. Report of Bellomont
to the Lords of Trade, April 13, 1699. "Besides Mr. Attorney Generall
assures me that in Colonel Dongan's time, he, to make his court to
King James, desires this farm might be appropriated to the maintenance
of a Jesuit School; but King James (bigot though he was) refused,
saying he would'not have his Governors deprived of their conveniencies."
Bellomont had been trying to get this farm (the King's Farm) for
himself, but his predecessor Fletcher had given the same to the
Trustees of Trinity Church. See also Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 147.
asFoley, Series VII, p. 364.
39The Latin text is in Hughes, Documents, Vol. I, p. 178.
40 See Ezechiel, Chap. 45, v. 12. "And the sicle hath twenty obols.
Now
twenty sicles and five and twenty sides, and fifteen sides make a mna."
41 This booklet is very rare.
There are only two copies known to
exist, one in the British Museum and the other in the New York
Public Library, 5th Ave. and 42nd St., New York.
42 Hughes, Documents, Vol. 1, p. 31. "Quoad excursionem attinet Rae
Vae in Novam Angliam non habeo ego quod opponam. Perpendat ipsa
diligenter difficultatem operis suis cum consultoribus, et si rei bene
gerendae spes affulgeat per me licebit."
Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 24. "In the month of February, leaving
Starkey there to undertake 'a work of good promise' (opus bonae spei)
Copley penetrated into Maryland."
43 In March, 1648 Copley reported to the General (Documents, Vol. 1,
pp. 128-9.) "Iter terrestre per silvas jam nuper apertum est duorum
dierum a Marilandia in Virgineam, ita ut in una missione jam
comprehendi potest utraque regio," i.e., Virginia and Maryland. In a
footnote pp. 24-25, Text, Vol. 2. As to the road lately opened "a two
day's journey," compare Mobberly. "From St. Inigoes house (on St.
Mary's River) to the Potomac is supposed to be five miles, the distance
from the said house to the Virginia shore, twelve or fifteen. This led
us to believe that the new road was from Potomac to Jamestown in
Virginia. The Rev. E. I. Devitt, S.J., is of the opinion that the road
was from Maryland on the eastern shore to Accomac; that in Accomac
Father Rigbie had died; that there too Fathers Starkey and Copley
lay hid and subsequently ended their days."
N.B. Both of these theories do not stand on a firm foundation because both Father Hughes and Father Devitt were using the English
translation in Brother Foley's Records. "Iter terrestre per silvas"
is not a road; it is an Indian trail. This trail was the Monocacy Trail
opened up by the Seneca Indians in their wars against the Tuscaroras
and the Catawbas in the Carolinas. This Indian trail started at
Wright's ferry, down through Conewago, along the Monocacy River,
over the Potomac at "Patriomeck" (on the Map of the Relation) or
Potowomeck on John Smith's map of 1606. It was to this place on
�144
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
the upper Potomac that the Piscataway Indians had fled after one of
the incursions of the Susquchannas. Therefore from some place on the
Susquehanna River to Potowomeck in Virginia the journey was two
days; from the same place Father Copley could reach lower Maryland
in two days along the trail that came through Deer Creek. It was to
the same place, Pottowomec (Harper's Ferry) in Virginia, that the
Jesuits fled in 1655-6 after the Battle of Providence. At Accomac they
would not have been safe; besides they could have obtained wine at
the Inn; but at Potowomcck they would have been safe and would
obtain no wine. The scenery given in the Latin letter vasta /lumina
shows that there were at least two rivers. The two rivers that meet
at Harper's Ferry are the Potomac and the Shenandoah.
~•Catholic Missions, Gilmary Shea, last chapter.
~5Cf. notes 26 and 27.
46Hughes, Documents, Vol. I, p. 140.
47Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 152.
•sHughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 682.
~uHughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 683. "1686-1687, in N. Y.; 1688 back in
England; left S.J., 1693."
50Thomas Dongan, Colonial Governor of Netv York, 1683-1688; by Rev.
Joseph Patrick Phelan, M.A., Litt.D.; LL.D., P. J. Kenedy & Sons, p. 67.
"Fr. Harrison accompanied the Governor to Albany in 1687 and spent
the winter there."
51Conewago Collections, by John T. Reily, p. 1049. "The Indians that
gave our Conewago its name were refugees from this old St. Lawrence
Mission country, of a tribe at war with and conquered by the Five Na•
tions-not native dwellers of this section, but hiders from Iroquois
vengeance."
52Cf. note 26.
53 Jesuit Relations, Thwaites, Vol. LIX, pp. 72-74.
54 Foley, Collectanea, Part First, p. 335; Hughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 682.
55 Ibid.
56 0ne of the authorities on the Indians of Pennsylvania and the Six
Nations is Mr. Paul A. W. Wallace, Annville, Pa. In his fo.tthcoming
book he will discuss the various trails of the Indians in these parts.
According to him there were various trails for different purposes, war,
vacation, hunting, and the other secret trail known as the Forbidden
Trail.
51Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 24, pp. 469470. "Letters of the Rev. Richard Locke of the Society of Propagating
the Gospel in Foregin Parts" by Benjamin F. Owen. The Rev. Locke
in 1746-1752, talking about Conewago, wrote: "There is a public
Popish Chappel supplied by the same Jesuite as supplys Lancaster
with abundance of Papists, but as the whole Country is one continued
wood, tis impossible to find out the number of ym."
58 That this fort was there we learn from John Smith's map of 1606,
• and from Augustine Herrman's map of 1670. That the fort was
destroyed we learn from Thornton Seller's map of 1681. For a fuller
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
145
description see Miss Anne Dill Gamble's article in Records of American
Catholic Historical Society. "An ancient mission among a great
people," Vol. 60, p. 125 seq. Thwaites, Jesuit Relations, Vol. XXXIIIvd. Father Ragenau 1647, Father Jerome Lalemont's description of
these people in same volume.
~9In 1652 the authorities of Maryland made an alliance with these
peoples.
60Hughes, Documents, Vol. I, p. 104. Sasquehanoes, gens bellis assueta, etc,
6 1Conrad Weiser, Wallace, passim in dealing with relationship of conqueror to conquered. For the "Endless Mountains" see Lewis Evans,
Map. A Map of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York and the
Three Delaware Counties: by Lewis Evans, MDCCXLIX.
62 The names of the students at St. Omers from the beginning have
been lost, however, the names of the first five students in their class
standing are extant, and among these is John Gray. Extract of letter
of Father H. Chadwick, S.J., archivist, Stonyhurst College, England.
"The other John Gray was in Figures in 1661 (perhaps came that
year?) and in Grammar in 1663; if he went on normally to Rhetoric he
would have left at the end of the school year 1666-1667."
63 Burlington Court Book of West New Jersey, 1680-1709, edited by H.
Clay Reed and Charles J. Miller, The American Historical Society,
Washington, D.C., 1944, p. Iii.
64 See author's forthcoming article on John Tatham. See Records of
American Catholic Historical Society, Vol. VI, pp. 117-133.
6
~ACHR, Vol. 20, p. 166.
66
New York Historical Documents, Vol. 4, p. 398.
61
N.Y. Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 3, p. 550.
68
lbid, p. 655.
69
/bid, p. 721. "Coli: Dongan has been hounted by the sd Leysler
from place to place and last come hither, where I hope he may be quiet."
This letter was dated May 26, 1690, Boston.
10lbid, p. 595.
11 /bid, p. 716.
12
Documentary History of New York, O'Callaghan, 4 Vols. Albany,
1849-50. Vol. 2, p. 30.
13
Diary, John Evelyn, p. 272.
HNew York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 3, p. 492.
15
Thomas Dongan, Governor of New York by Rev. John H. Kenedy,
p. 14.
76
Governor Andros, by no means a Catholic, was kept a prisoner for
quite some time in Boston. Thomas Newton, writing to Captain Nicholson, expressed his doubts about the safety of Colonel Dongan in
Boston. Cf. note 69.
77 "The Declaration of the reason and motive for the prest appearing
in arms on His Majtys Protestant Subjects in the Province of Maryland'' was signed by John Coode and his associates on July 25, 1689.
�146
FATHER HENRY HARRISON
Archives of Maryland, Proceedings of the Council, 1687/8-1693, pp.
101-7.
18/bid. p. 197 Nicholson to Coode. "I am alsoe to give. you notice
tht in persuance of His Majesties commands, that noe · shipps be permitted to goe for Europe but in Fleets etc." p. 187-same to same"hope you will take care that noe Shipps or Vessells be permitted to
sayle from thence until the 24th of July next."
19Jbid, p. 175.
80Jbid, p. 157.
81 Cf. note 5.
"But all their plans failed on account of the Revolution
in England and the consequent usurpation of the New York government
by Jacob Leisler (Dec. 1689). These Jesuits were driven out of the
colony, but Harvey returned in the following year, and continued his
position for several years, until broken health compelled him to return
to Maryland where he soon after died."
S2Documents, Vol. 1, p. 138. "Alter in Marylandiam pedestri itinere
profectus est; alter, post multa maris discrimina, a piratis etiam
Hollandis captus et spoliatus, tandem incolumis in Galliam pervlmit."
saNew Jersey Archives, Cale~dar of New Jersey Records. First
Series, Vol. XXI, p. 221. "Jun~· 15, 1691. Bond. John Tatham and
James Johnston, owners of the sloop Unitie to Matthias de Hart, master
thereof, to hold him harmless in regard to his freight of tobacco."
On page 260, ibid, we learn that James Johnston lived in Monmouth
County. Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 335, speaking of Henry
Harrison: "In 1690 the same Catalogue (Maryland) records him as in
Ireland."
B 4 Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 335.
8fiNew York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 3, pp. 860-1.
6
B New York Colonial Manuscripts, Vol. 4, passim.
81/bid, p. 22.
88/bid, p. 222.
89 /bid. For this item see New York Colonial Manuscripts, pp. 463,
473, 483, 813.
DOJbid, p, 224.
91/bid, pp. 526-7.
-- •·
D2Pennsylvania lllagazine of History and Biography, Vol. 73, p. 367.
98 See note 46.
94
Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 335. "On April, 1695 he
left Rome for Loreto to take the place of Fr. Philip Wright there as
English Penitentiary."
96 Dublin Review, No. 134, 1904, p. 68. "The London Vicariate Apostolic and the West Indies" by Rev. Thomas Hughes, S.J. Father
Hughes also treats at length on this subject in Text, Vol. 2, Chap.
XVIII, p. 567 seq. The citation of Father Harrison to Father Francis
Porter is found in Propaganda Archives. America, Antille, I. f. 287.
96
Foley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 335. "In 1697 he reappears in
Maryland."
D7Deed of Thomas Dongan to William Penn, January 12, 1696.
The tract of land lying upon both sides of the River commonlY
�FATHER HENRY HARRISON
147
known by the name of the Susquehanna River and the lakes adjacent: in or near the Province of Pennsylvania in America beginning with the Mountains or head of the said River and running
as far as into the Bay of Chesepeake with all isles etc. which the said
Thomas Dongan lately purchased of or had given him by the
Sinneca Susquehanna Indians. Pennsylvania Archives, Vol. 1664•
1747, p. 121.
9sConrad Weiser, \Vallace. Canasatego speaking, "\Ve have had your
deeds interpreted to us and we acknowledge them to be good and
valid, and that the Conestogoe or Susquehannah Indians had a right
to sell those lands to you, for they were then theirs, but since that
time we have conquered them, and their country now belongs to us,
and the Lands we demanded satisfaction for, are no part of the lands
comprized in those deeds."
DDHills, History of the Church in Burlington, New Jersey, p. 27.
xooFoley, Collectanea, Part the First, p. 335.
totHughes, Text, Vol. 2, p. 682.
1° 2 Records of American Catholic Historical Society, Vol. 60, p. 125
seq.
* * *
A JESUIT PRIEST'S PRAYER
Dear Jesus, have mercy on me again and grant me the grace always
to be sincerely sorry for all my sins; always to obtain pardon for all
my sins; always to avoid all deliberate sins the rest of my life; always
to overcome all semi-deliberate sins that might offend God, dishonor the
Immaculate Heart of Mary and harm souls; always to love You with
all my heart; always to love Mary Immaculate with all my heart; always
to love all mankind with all my heart by doing all I can now and the
rest of my life and after my death to help all mankind love You forever;
always to be a holy Jesuit priest and apostle of Your Most Sacred
Heart and of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; always to do the holy
will of God perfectly; always to say Mass well daily; always to make my
spiritual exercises well; always to make my particular examen well;
always to do penance well and to take recreation well; always to think
and choose and say and do and suffer what You want me to in the way
You want me to; always to choose what will better help me be a
holy Jesuit priest forever; always to be attentive to and obedient to
and grateful for the inspirations of divine grace; always to give and
receive the Sacraments well; always to receive You well daily in Holy
Communion, to receive You well often in Spiritual Communion; to
receive extreme unction well and Holy Viaticum well when I am dying.
And I humbly beg these same graces or similar graces for all the rest
of mankind for the greater glory of God, the honor of Mary Immaculate,
the salvation and sanctification of souls, and for all the intentions ever
commended to my prayers. Amen.
PAUL E. DENT, S.J.
�SOCIAL EXPERIMENT ON THE PARANA
F.
RAWLE HAIG,
S.J.
With the expulsion of the Society of Jesus from the Spanish
territories in 1767 there came to an end a great experiment
in concrete philosophy. For approximately a century and a
half Jesuit missionaries had been striving to Christianize a
barbarous people and to create among them a Catholic social
order. It was a supremely arduous, heartbreaking, yet glorious attempt. It is a story eminently worthy of our consideration.
Preliminary Notions
The Spanish avalanche began its tumultuous advance down
the South American contin~.nt in December of 1531 when
Pizarro launched his spectacular attack on the Inca empire
of Peru. By 1533 Atahualpa, last of the Inca monarchs, was
dead and the Conquistadores, richer by the fifteen million dollars that was to have been his ransom, had entered Cuzco in
triumph.
But the Spaniard never forgot that one of his chief purposes in coming to America was the spread of the Faith of
Christ. Conquest and colonization might proceed rapidly, but
never far behind and often far in advance of the iron-armored
soldiery would go the missionary: Franciscan, Dominican,
Capuchin, and Jesuit. 1
Native tradition had it that a white man had on<;e passed
through South America teaching the people the sign of the
cross and promising some day ~o send them missionaries.
Strange as the legend may sound, nevertheless the fact remains that many traits of the ancient Peruvian religions
bore considerable resemblances to Christianity. 2 Some Peruvian Indians, for example, were not unacquainted with incense,
processions, and the monastic life. Early missionaries found
the parallels so close that they imagined the Indians must
indeed have received Christian instruction at some time in
the past. Therefore their conversion was more of a "leading
back" to something already known than a turning to something new. The Indian missions all over South America consequently became known ·as reductions.
�SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
149
Beginnings
In 1587, Alonso Guerra, Franciscan bishop of Asuncion,
asked the Jesuits to help evangelize the savage tribes of Paraguay. In the sixteenth century the name Paraguay denoted
the entire southern half of the continent from Bolivia to the
extreme tip. Actually, of the thirty reductions of "Paraguay,"
only seven were in the present country of that name. 3 The
remaining were located in northern Argentina and southern
Brazil.
The three Fathers who answered the call of the bishop
worked heroically for several years but with little success.
For a moment the Jesuits hesitated, wondering if it might
not be better to give up a project which they had not the men
to accomplish. In 1607, however, Father Diego de Torres returned from Rome with an appointment as provincial of the
new Province of Paraguay which Father General Aquaviva
had determined to erect. Any hesitancy was over.
Several factors urged the Fathers to the foundation of the
reductions along the Parana and Uruguay rivers. The Spanish conquerors had aroused the hatred of the Indians by
their unbridled cruelty. The attitude of the- conqueror was
most clearly evinced in the institution of the encomiendas
and the servitium personale, a social order strongly reminiscent of European feudalism but much more severe. Philip
III, however, in an effort to help the missionaries, had explicitly exempted the Indians of the reductions from such
treatment. 4
Another factor determining the establishment of the reductions was the notoriously bad example of the colonists.
Just as Xavier in India had found the Portuguese traders his
worst enemies, so too in the early days of South America the
missionaries found it impossible to counteract the demoralizing influence of many of the whites.• The reductions of Peru,
for instance, had been brought to ruin by the presence of
Spanish colonists. 6 Consequently the Jesuits were quite satisfied to build separate Indian villages at a considerable distance from the white invaders.
To convince the Indians to found and settle in the reductions was a hazardous and difficult task. The missionary, accompanied by some friendly native caciques (chiefs), would
�150
SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
journey to the prospective tribe, call a meeting of the Indian
leaders, and describe the advantages of establishing a separate
village where the food supply would be secure, where their
children could be educated by the Fathers/ and where they
could learn of the gospel of Christ. Sometimes the Christian
Indians alone went out and attempted to persuade their nonChristian brothers to come back with them. It was a "touchand-go" business in which twenty-nine Jesuit missionaries
lost their lives for the Faith.
The Jesuits used the reduction technique in many sections
of South America, establishing in all approximately one hundred.8 The most famous, ho\vever, are the thirty of Paraguay
with which we are dealing.
Trials and Successes
Most tragic of the external conditions that "fostered". the
growth of the reductions were the slave raids. The Portuguese had settled to the north of Paraguay around Sao Paulo.
From there they sent out raiding parties into the interior in
search of Indians who might be brought back to be sold as
slaves. Beginning in 1618 the Mamelucos or Paulistas (they
were called both) began penetrating into the area of the
Jesuit reductions. The Indians flocked to the reductions for
protection while the Jesuit missionaries sent out plea after
plea for help to the Spanish officials. No help was forthcoming. In fact it appears that there was no little connivance between the Spanish officials and the Portuguese slave traders. 9
The losses of the reductions were heartrending. Over thirty
thousand Indians were kidnapped from the reductions of
Guayra from 1628 to 1630 alone. The missionaries first attempted to meet the threat by moving whole reductions south
to be out of the reach of the Paulistas. When this expedient
failed, the Jesuits took the one measure left to them and under mandate of the King began the formation of an Indian
army. When the Paulistas returned in 1639, the Indians, under Spanish leadership, were waiting. At Caazapaguazu they
met and broke the raiding party. The Paulistas tried once
more in 1641 and this time met complete disaster at Mborore.
. They did not return again in force for over a hundred years.
Successively forced to defend themselves against the Spanish
�SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
151
encomienderos who desired to enslave them, against nuisance
raids by the Mamelucos, and against attacks from neighboring hostile tribes, the reductions maintained themselves nonetheless in relative prosperity. While the native population
was being exterminated on all sides, the Guarani, the nation
involved in the reductions, continued to increase. Only one
power was to prove strong enough to crush them, that of
intrigue at the court of Madrid. But before turping to the
tragic close of the Jesuit reductions, it will be profitable to
consider them in themselves.
Social Organization of the Missions
In the government of the missions the Jesuits followed
two principles, one that of Las Leyes de las Indias, the admirable Spanish Indian code adopted in 1680 which decreed
that native villages should be ruled, as far as possible, as
Spanish towns/ 0 and the other a general principle of not demanding a change from native procedures except where absolutely necessary.
Each reduction therefore was set up physically and governmentally like a Spanish pueblo. In the center was a large
square flanked by the church, residence of the Fathers,
schools, hospital, and long, communal dwellings of the Guarani laid out in a straight-line pattern coverging on the
plaza.U
The government, while under the supervision of at least
two missionaries stationed at each reduction, was carried out
by the native caciques. The native head of the mission, the
corregidor, was chosen for life by the missionary and approved by the Spanish governor of the province. The council,
or cabildo, was elected each year by the outgoing council and
similarly approved by the missionary and governor. It consisted of two alcaldes, administrators of justice, an al{erez
real or royal standard bearer, and regidores who were the
subordinate police officials of the little village. 12
It is the economic organization of the missions, however,
which has aroused the most interest. From old tribal customs the reductions inherited a strong socialistic flavoring
which the Fathers were unable and, to an extent, did not desire to change. 13
�152 .
SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
In accordance therefore with Guarani traditions and in
keeping with the necessities of tropical life, land was held in
common. Given into the charge of the caciques, it was apportioned by them to the individual families. This plot of
land (abamba) could not be sold and the alcaldes saw to it
that each family worked hard enough to produce an immediate sufficiency for itself and a surplus to be stored for its
personal use during the winter months. These stores were
bagged, marked with the family's name, and kept in common
granaries. Such a procedure was necessary to ensure that
the naturally improvident Indians would have food during
the winter months and in case of famine.
The tupamba (God's acre) was a piece of communally tilled
land whose produce was used to pay officials, support the poor
of the mission, and alleviate 'Yant wherever it occurred. Cattle were also held in common,· for the Fathers never succeeded
in convincing the Indians to raise and care for their own.
Meat, therefore, which was the common staple of the Indian
diet, came from the common slaughterhouses. The Indians
raised on their own land maize, manioc, cotton, wheat, rice,
tobacco, and fruit.
Most important of all the products of the reductions, however, was mate, a South American tea. Only toward the close
of the missions did the Fathers succeed in cultivating the
plant within the confines of the village huerta (orchard).
Most of the time the Indians had to go out and collect the
leaves of the plant in the midst of the jungle under conditions
of hardship and danger.
.
Strangely enough, mate was the substitute used by .the missionaries to seduce the Indians away from their notorious
habits of drunkenness. 14 Periodically the Indians used to go
off on three-day sprees using a type of native liquor made
from corn or honey. The Fathers would first convince them
to cut down the orgies to two days, then one day, and finally,
after about two years of such cajolery, the custom would die
out completely. Instead the Indians took mate!
As the Guarani were particularly adept at manual trades,
the German lay brothers who came to aid the Spaniards soon
trained the Indians as expert craftsmen--carpenters, blacksmiths, painters, dyers, instrument makers, artists, and bookbinders. These latter helped the missionaries to care for the
�SOCIAL EXPERil\lENT
153
nine thousand volumes, a thousand of them in Guarani, found
in the missions at the expulsion of the Jesuits. The size of
these libraries gives some indication of the vast amount of
scientific observation and research that the Jesuits performed
while working among the Indians. Their achievement is acknowledged by modern ethnologists. 15
The Jesuits of course made no secret of the fact that the
reductions were pure theocracies. The day began with Mass.
The workers went to the fields singing religious songs. The
feast days were celebrated with a brilliance characteristic of
Indian tastes. And lest it be thought that this manner of life
was forced on the Indians, one need only recall that the missions averaged three thousand Indians and two Jesuits. Yet
never once did the Indians rebel against the Jesuit supervision.
The Close of the Missions
Never once, that is, until the "behind-the-scenes" political
forces at Madrid set the wheels in motion to crush the Jesuits
and to destroy their work. And even then it was to protect
the Fathers that the Indians rebelled.
In 1750 Ferdinand VI signed a secret treaty with Portugal
handing over to her the territory of the seven reductions on
the left bank of the Uruguay in exchange for the disputed
colony of San Sacramento at the Uruguay's mouth.
The missionaries were stunned. The treaty meant that the
thirty thousand Indians on those reductions would have to
leave their homes and emigrate to the other side of the Uruguay. Despite all the Fathers could do, the Indians rebelled,
refused to permit the Jesuits to leave the reductions, and took
the field in the tragic War of the Seven Reductions. They
were defeated of course with terrible losses. The remnants
crossed the river with the Fathers and attempted to begin
again.
In 1759 Ferdinand VI died and Charles III became king.
Within two years he abrogated the Treaty of 1750 and fifteen
thousand Indians returned to their old homes. But the damage
had been done. Now the enemies of the Jesuits could always
whisper that the Jesuits had urged on the Indians to rebellion
out of a desire for personal power and kingdom. 16 Charles
III gradually weakened until finally he set his seal to the de-
�154
SOCIAL EXPERil\lENT
cree of expulsion of the Jesuits from Spanish America (1767).
Bucareli, Spanish governor of the region, waited for a year
to execute the order until he could gather substitutes for the
missionaries.U Then he came, troops and all-a singularly
futile gesture since, if th.e Indians did not resist, the troops
would be useless, and if they did, the handful of soldiery could
never have stood against them.
The reductions did not recover from the blow. Franciscans
attempted to replace the Jesuits but the missions gradually
decayed until they were totally abandoned early in the nineteenth century. Today only ruins remain.
Thus ended the Society's most famous and successful social
experiment. Catholics are often upbraided for dealing only
in abstractions and for merely mouthing moral inanities
strictly divorced from reality. ·Here is one example of a group
of Catholics face to face with· a supremely difficult situation
who found within the riches of Catholic social doctrine the
answer they needed.
NOTES
tEdwin Ryan, D.D., The Church in the South American Republics.
(Westminister, Md.: The Newman Book Shop. 1943), p. 31.
2/bid., p. 32.
3 Pablo
Hernandez, S.J., Organizaci6n Soc-ial de las Doctrinas
(Barcelona: Gustavo Gili. 1913), Vol. I, p. lf.
Guaranies.
4 "He tenido por bien que los que se redujeren de nuevo a nuestra santa
fe Catolica . • • no se cobre tributo por tiempo de diez aiios, ni se
encomienden." ("I have considered it expedient that those who return
again to our holy Catholic Faith (i.e., the Indians. See page 1.) should
not pay tribute for a period of ten years nor should they be •placed on
encomiendas." Translation, the author's) Cedula real of Jaii. ·30, 1607,
as given in Hernandez, op cit., Vol. I, p. 511.
6 James Brodrick, S.J., Saint Francis Xavier.
(New York: The Wicklow Press. 1952), pp. 203, 206-7.
6 Cath. Encyc., Vol. XII, p. 696, column 2.
7 This was a particularly strong inducement for the Guarani.
See
Hernandez, op. cit., p. 389f. The complete story of how the Indians
were persuaded to form reductions is also in Hernandez, ibid., pp.
383-405.
8 Cath. Encyc., Vol. XII, p. 690, column 2.
9 Hernandez, ibid., p. 17.
10
Webster and Hussey, History of Latin America. (Boston: D. C.
Heath & Co., 1941), p. 103.
11 Cf. the diagrams of several missions given in Hernandez, ibid., fac·
ing p. 106.
�SOCIAL EXPERIMENT
155
12A}fred Metraux, "Jesuit Missions in South America," Handbook of
South American Indians. Julian Steward, editor. (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1944), p. 648.
•sJbid., p. 652f., where Metraux gives an impartial evaluation of
Jesuit collectivism. His whole account is generally reliable but also
repeats some of the strange motions once held about the missions, i.e.,
the use of force to persuade some Indians to join the missions and a
special "spy system" composed of children. Unfortunately he gives no
documentation. For a documented account confer Hernandez, op. cit.,
pp. 90-97 and 308-405. In respect to the children even the Catholic
Encyclopedia (Vol. XII, p. 693, column 1.) has the odd notion that they
ate their morning and evening meals in common in the college courtyard.
Of course, they ate at home. Hernandez, op. cU., p. 92.
HHernandez, op. cit., pp. 73-5.
uMetraux, op. cit., p. 645.
16Cath. Encyc., ibid., p. 699, column 1.
•7Hernandez, op. cit., p. 37.
* * *
Vineyard of Latin America
The formation of the clergy in Latin America is for the most part in
the hands of our Fathers. At Rome, to begin with, in the Brazilian
College and the "Pio Latino Americano" there are a total of 243 seminarians from South America. In the national Mexican Seminary ·at
Montezuma, U.S.A., there are 360 theologians and philosophers. Our
Fathers run the Counciliar Seminary in Guatemala, in Ecuador the
minor Seminary of Cuenca with 40 seminarians, and in San Salvador
the central major Seminary with 193 seminarians.
In Venezuela, the Society takes care of the major archdiocesan Seminary of Caracas where there are at present 32 Theologians, 24 Philosophers, and 62 in classical studies, and also the minor Seminary of
Coro. Colombia sends seminarians to our University of St. Francis
Xavier at Bogota, and Jesuits run the minor Seminary in El Mortifio
(125 students).
In Brazil, the largest country of South America, Jesuits direct the
Central Seminary of Sao Leopoldo where there are 127 Theologians
and 184 Philosophers, and also minor seminaries in Cerro Largo (97
students) and Santa Maria ( 180 students).
Argentina boasts a Jesuit-directed major seminary at Buenos Aires
with 188 seminarians and a minor seminary with 141 students. The
minor seminaries in Chile (474 students), Uruguay (40 students), and
Porto Rico (98 students), the major seminaries in the Dominican Republic with 162 seminarians, and Uruguay with 77, complete the list of
Jesuit-directed diocesan seminaries in Latin America.
In all almost 3000 seminarians are being prepared for the South
American apostolate under the direction of Jesuits.
tcHos: August 1952
�HISTORICAL NOTES
ARCHAEOLOGY SERVES HISTORY
EXCAVATIONS AT FORT STE MARIE AND AT ST. IGNACE, NEAR
MIDLAND, ONTARIO
On the feast of the Patronage of St. Joseph in 1940 the
ruins of old Fort Ste Marie at Martyrs' Shrine near Midland,
Ontario, passed once more into the hands of the Society of
Jesus, and since the Summer of 1941 the sit~ has been the
scene of painstaking archaeological investigation whose chief
aim has been the redraft of the plans of the buildings and the
determining of the form and shape of the various walls and
palisades that made up the ancient residence of St. Mary-onthe-Wye. At first consideration it might seem a hopeless
task. The fort had been dismantled and the missionaries
had carried away with them everything that could be made
use of in furnishing and building the new fort on Christian
Island, and whatever was left was given over to the flames
lest it serve as a shelter to the Iroquois. Only a charred
ruin remained in the Summer of 1649; and season after
season, three centuries of rain and wind and frost have worn
to dust all but the masonry of its towers and fireplaces.
Two forces have been at work protecting the ruin; the accumulation of fallen leaves and the grassy sod have helped
to cover the nakedness of the ruin, but on the o~her hand
the disrupting roots of trees and underbrush have conspired to pry asunder the very stones of wall and chimney.
One hundred years ago the early settlers ploughed up the
level plots to make their garden; only the rough, irregular
rectangle between the four stony mounds that once were
towers was left undisturbed.
Twice during the last century the ruins have been visited
and examined by members of the Jesuit Order. In 1844,
just two years after their return to Canada, Father Pierre
Chazelle, S.J., made a special trip to locate the ruins, and
eleven years later, Father Felix Martin, S.J., made an expedition to examine them in greater detail. "The four corner
�HISTORICAL NOTES
167
bastions," he wrote, "stood four to six feet high." It was
before the days of photography so he sketched the ruins in
water colours and drew up a detailed ground plan of the
fort as he believed it to have been before its destruction.
Father Martin's diagram has proved both a help and a
hindrance to subsequent students. The measurements and
description of what he actually saw have been a help in
trying to revisualize the fort as it stood in the eighteenfifties, but since he had few facilities for investigating below
the surface and the remains of the charred beams had long
become buried, his conjectures and deductions have led those
who followed him to many false conclusions, notably with
regard to the extent of the old fort and the moat system he
professed to describe in detail.
Relying on the accuracy of Father Martin's plan the Jesuit
Fathers invited the technicians of the Royal Ontario Museum
(which is subsidiary to the University of Toronto) to undertake the excavation of the plot between the four bastions,
believing this to be the entire fort. Dr. H. J. Cody was then
president of the University and Dr. C. T. Currelly, director
of the Museum-both of these gentlemen took a personal
interest in the work. Mr. Kenneth Kidd, ethnologist at the
Museum was placed in charge of the field party. He came
to the task with practical experience derived from excavation
work in Egypt and exploration of Indian sites in Algonquin
Park. Assisting Mr. Kidd were Mr. J. H. Classey, in surveying and measuring; Miss W. Needler, egyptologist at the
Museum, in recording and photographing; the late Miss L.
Payne, in cataloguing; and Misses B. Maw and M. Thompson.
All of these were technicians of the Museum Staff whose
services were graciously contributed by the University for
the project. Two Jesuit Fathers worked with them at
different times: Father John McCaffrey, now rector of
Loyola College, Montreal, and Father Daniel Hourigan, the
writer of the present article, then parish priest of Waubaushene. The Martyrs' Shrine provided the services of five or
six workmen to cut the trees, do the heavier digging and
push the wheel-barrows. The work consumed two summers,
1941 and 1942. In 1942 the war effort curtailed such non-
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HISTORICAL NOTES
essential projects and Mr. Kidd finished what little work
remained almost singlehanded.
The report on the excavations has been published by Mr.
Kidd in a handsome 250-page volume printed by the University of Toronto Press. Much of the report is necessarily
technical, but there are in addition to the forty maps and
drawings in the text, fifty pages of beautiful plates illustrating the work at various stages and showing samples of
the masonry and specimens of the iron and brass objects
discovered.
Accurate measurements and exact description are the hallmark of scholarship, but for the uninitiated the conclusions
drawn from the data discovered are of greater interest. When
the loose stone and soil accumulation of three centuries were
removed, the four bastion t~nvers stood out prominently. The
great twin towers on the east were twenty-five feet square
and still stood three to four feet high. The southwestern
tower was smaller, about fifteen feet square. The northwestern tower was found to be quite irregular and its remains
were in poor condition. While the other three displayed
first-class masonry, it seemed to be almost a dry stone wall
(without mortar) and it was judged improbable that it ever
bore any considerable super-structure. The inner corners
of the eastern bastions were connected by a stone wall, and
halfway between them was a seven-foot break-probably the
main gateway of the fort. The charred wooden sill was still
in position. Between the northern bastions there was also a
wall, unbroken seemingly by any gateway, but tbere was a
channel or covered ditch which passed underneath -the wall,
bringing flowing water into the enclosure. These walls were
"probably in Jesuit times supplied with wooden super-structures. No defense work was found along the south except
the moat."
Within the compound were found three stone fireplaces,
one of them adjoining the northwest bastion. Its chimney
had been partly of brick and its hearth was unusually long
and shallow. Another fireplace, the greatest, was centrally
located and faced the west. It showed signs of having been
used more than the ot_hers. The third fireplace was some
twenty-five feet farther south. It was a double fireplace,
�HISTORICAL NOTES
159
the two hearths having a common flue between them. There
were at least two buildings: the northerly one, about twenty
feet by thirty, was thought to have been the chapel. It was
connected to the northwest bastion by a narrow doorway beside the fireplace. The latter was built almost all the way
across the northern end of this building. Some of the charred
floor supports were still in position, while large, flat stones
irregularly placed, seemed to have supported sills that had
long since disappeared. There were many nails in this areaon the whole site some thirteen hundred nails were found,
varying in length from one-half inch to eight inches. There
were no objects found in this building that definitely established it as a chapel, but we must bear in mind that the
fort had been dismantled and everything useful was carried
off to Christian Island.
The other building within the enclosure was about twice
as large and was divided into rooms; the fireplaces facing
different directions led to that conclusion. This building
was thought to be the Fathers' living quarters and was
probably two storeys in height. The main chimney had been
a tall one, perhaps about twenty-eight feet in height, a rough
estimate, for we suspect that much of the loose fallen stone
had already been carried away.
One of the most interesting tasks in which the present
writer helped was the careful examination of what was left
of the charred wooden flooring that extended in front of the
great hearth. It was one of the best preserved sections of
flooring that we found. In the cracks between the boards we
found a little section of a rosary; this seemed an intimate
link with the seventeenth century occupants of the central
residence of St. Mary amon,g the Hurons. Near the same
place several coloured beads were found and also a few
charred grains of corn and beans that had lodged in the
cracks of the flooring and had been calcinated when the fort
was burnt.
Almost in front of the main hearth was one of the most
puzzling finds. There was a box-like pit about thirty inches
long and two feet deep. At the bottom were the remains of
two wide boards that once covered its floor; a large six-inch
iron hook was once fastened to them. Technically such a little
�160
HISTORICAL NOTES
chamber is called a cyst. In his report Mr. Kidd says: "There
is no indication as to its use, but it is possible that it was a
sort of cooling cellar for perishables and that the tray (he
believes that the two boards were once a tray) was for raising
and lowering them into the pit." Others have thought that
it may have been used for a more important purpose, as a
safe storage place (comparatively fire-proof) for books and
documents. The Indians were of such an inquisitive nature
that few places were safe from their meddlesome fingers.
The room with the great hearth was probably seldom empty,
and hence this place beneath its floor would be as safe
as any, for anything that was highly prized. When the cyst
was first discovered (the day before the feast of the Martyrs,
1941), we thought it might be the place where their precious
bones were once hidden away after the fall of St. Ignace.
Near the residence but t(r the west was made another significant religious find, the little silver medal of SS. Ignatius
and Francis Xavier. The silver was quite black, but the
inscription was as legible as the day the metal was struck.
It was oval in shape and about an inch long, and had a little
projecting flange at the top for cord or pin. One face bore
the bust of St. Ignatius; he is dressed in a Roman cloak
with a high stiff collar; he wears a sort of halo and is facing
right with hands clasped before a crucifix at eye level. Around
the rim is a Latin inscription in customary abbreviations
which, translated, reads: "Blessed Ignatius Loyola, Architect (auctor) and Founder of the Society of Jesus." On the
reverse is a similar representation of St. Francis Xavier. He
too has a halo but is facing the left towards a radiant sun,
and his hands are crossed on his breast. The translation of
his inscription runs: "Francis Xavier of the Society of Jesus,
Missionary (praedicator) to the Indies and Japan." These
two Saints had been recently canonized when the medal was
lost three hundred years ago. Beyond doubt the medal once
belonged to one of the missionaries, or at least to one of the
French lay-helpers (donnes) on the mission. St. Ignatius,
not yet one hundred years dead, had drafted the rule of life
that they were following, and St. Francis Xavier, best known
perhaps of St. Ignatius' first companions, was the young Society's first great missionary.
�Artist's conception of Fort Ste Marie (1639-1649), based on archaeological discoveries at Midland, Ontario
-----
--------·-~.------
�--
�HISTORICAL NOTES
161
Was there at one time a little chapel in the southwest
bastion? In it was found a little sanctuary bell, made of iron
and shaped like a half orange. Its little clapper was missing
but the fastener was still there. The ground floor of this
bastion, about twelve feet square, had only one door and that
on the north side, hence within the compound, and would have
served as a quiet little chapel for private Masses; there
were sometimes twenty priests at the residence when they
gathered from their mission centers.
We would have to duplicate Mr. Kidd's report if we were
to enumerate and describe all the interesting specimens discovered. The beautiful vase of venetian glass that appears as
the frontispiece of his book was painstakingly reconstructed
from its many fragments found in the diggings. There were
all told some forty thousand different items catalogued, many
of them, however, mere bone fragments or bits of hardware,
such as nails, clamps and broken tools; among the latter were
thirty-eight broken axes. "Since Europeans in the wilderness
would prize their axes above most other possessions and take
good care of them, the damage shown on so many specimens
argues strongly for Indian use." There were also finer household articles, scissors, a silver needle case with the remains
of three needles, a thimble, a padlock, several keys, even a
small iron corkscrew! Between the Fathers' living quarters
and the southwest bastion were the remains of a forge, and
around it were found many nails and fragments of iron
scrap.
On the whole the results of the first part of the excavation
were at once gratifying and disillusioning. Gratifying, in as
much as we felt that whatever lay hidden had been brought
to light and that every secret of the fort's remains had been
investigated and put on record for all time. But at the same
time we had, unreasonably perhaps, hoped for more. In our
ignorance and inexperience we thought that the exact ground
Plan of every building would be brought to light and we would
be able to reconstruct the picture in still greater detail. We
Will be forever indebted to the University of Toronto, to the
Royal Ontario Museum and to Mr. Kidd for the accurate,
Painstaking investigation of the first section of old Fort
Ste Marie.
�162
HISTORICAL NOTES
Post-War Period '
During the latter years of the late World War, the excavations at the old fort were at a standstill. Though we would
gladly have explored the area outside the European compound, as it was called, the means of doing so were lacking.
It was impossible to engage men to do work that did not
contribute to the war effort, and so once again the grass began
to grow over the recently uncovered ruin.
As the war tension eased and labour and building supplies
beeame available it was deemed advisable to make some beginning of the restoration of the Fort which would be a token,
at least, of what we hoped ultimately to do. This seemed
the more imperative since 1949 was the tercentenary year of
the deaths of the Martyrs arid would focus attention on the
Fort which had been their home. The Fathers realized that
the work of research and excavation was incomplete, but
they felt that some units, the bastion towers, for instance,
had been thoroughly examined and that their restoration
would not interfere with further work on other parts of the
fort. Great quantities of stone had been set aside during the
excavation~stone that had fallen during the centuries from
higher parts which have long since disappeared-and with
this stone the three most regular bastions were rebuilt to a
height of fourteen feet under the direction of Mr. Lindsay
Wardell, architect, of Toronto. The old walls were not solid
enough to bear the weight of a superstructure and yet it
seemed a crime to demolish masonry that had survived three
hundred years, so the new bastions were built outside the old.
Hence within them may be seen the original walls just as they
remained in 1947 and they are thus preserved for all time for
future generations to revere. The cornerstone of the restored
northeast bastion was blessed on September 8 by His Eminence Cardinal McGuigan in the presence of their Eminences
Cardinal Griffin of England and Cardinal Gilroy of Australia,
and laid by acting Premier Leslie Frost one month later.
Considerable uncertainty remained about the type of beams
to be used on top of the bastions and the exact shape of the
roof that should cover t~em. Not wishing to take any steps
that future research might prove to be incorrect, Very Rev-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
163
erend Father Provincial and Father Lally, Director of the
Martyrs' Shrine since 1928, decided to call a round-table conference of recognized authorities on architecture of that
period and others, in order to reach a decision that would be
as accurate as the pooled wisdom of experts could insure. The
meeting was held at the Shrine on November 18, 1948, and
the following took part in the discussion: Very Reverend
Father Nunan, acting provincial during the absence of Father
Swain in India; Dr. Marius Barbeau, anthropologist and archivist of the National Museum of Ottawa; Mr. C. W. Jefferys, Canadian artist and historian; Mr. Kenneth Kidd,
ethnologist at the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto; Mr. Wilfrid Jury, curator of the Museum of Western University,
London; Mr. Lindsay Wardell, architect, Toronto; Father J. S.
McGivern, S.J., historian and perhaps the greatest living authority on the Jesuit Relations; Father Lally and his assistant,
Father Fallon. The minutes of this meeting were never published, but the policy adopted was that of prudent waiting,
lest by some too hasty decision something might be introduced into the restoration which would later be proved an
anachronism or not in harmony with the newer discoveries
that were then being made.
In the meantime attention was drawn to another site intimately connected with the fort-St. Ignace II where the martyrdom of Brebeuf and Lalemant took place. The descriptions
of the place left in the Relations had so far not been sufficient
to identify the site. The eminent archaeologist Father Arthur
Jones, S.J., had, at the beginning of the century, chosen one
location which he thought verified the descriptions given and
a shrine had been built there in 1907, but with the years the
conviction grew that it was not the St. Ignace of the Relations. It was undoubtedly an Indian village site but not the
one described by Father Ragueneau. The names of Thomas
Connon of Goderich, Alphonse Arpin of Midland, Mr. W. J.
Wintemberg of the National Museum of Ottawa, Dr. Sherwood Fox, then president of Western University, London, are
all connected with the continued search for a site that would
verify the known factors from the Relations: two league distance (about six miles) from Ste Marie, one league from
Fort St. Louis and in the same direction, and the site itself,
�164
HISTORICAL NOTES
a plateau capable of containing a viiiage of seven hundred and
surrounded on three sides by a deep ravine with a narrow level
entrance in the east. The data seemed quite definite and yet
in that hiiiy district there was more than one tongue of land
that seemed to satisfy the conditions. The search narrowed
considerably when Mr. Wintemberg identified the post molds
of the ancient palisade around the site on the Hamilton farm
in the summers of 1937 and 1938. His discovery is reported
in the book St. Ignace by Dr. Fox (page 96) :
Traces of the palisades consisting of round humus-filled cavities,
from two to four inches in diameter, and about two or three feet
deep, formed by the decay of the posts, and which were much softer
than the surrounding soil, were found to extend almost clear around
a ten-acre field. Even the gateway of the stockade was traced. To
find these, the top soil covering the fine yellow sand had to be
removed and the post molds _uncovered one by one, each mold
being marked by a wooden stak"e as soon as it was located so that
its position could be measured and marked on a map. In many
cases the molds were at regular intervals, and from one to about
two feet apart, and they followed the irregular outline of the hill
on which the site is situated.
Mr. Wintemberg died in April, 1941 before his notes were
published. Dr. Fox interested the curator of his University's
Museum, Mr. Wilfrid Jury, in the task and it was his work
of plotting the positions of twenty-six long houses on the site
in 1946 that removed the last lingering doubts from the
minds of all-St. Ignace II lay on the corner of the Hamilton
farm.
How did Mr. Jury carry on his investigation? Let U$ quote
~ ·
from Dr. Fox's book (page 101) :
Mr. Jury sank trenches that cut through the once cultivated sand
down to the subsoil. The bottoms of the trenches, when slightly
scraped, revealed here and there the gray imprints left by the decayed ends of posts. Probing these imprints downward to their very
tips he ascertained that the posts had been buried in the ground
to depths varying between eighteen and thirty inches. In conformity with regular Indian practice the point of each post had
been burnt into the form of a sharp cone. Throughout the site the
charred coatings of such points, which have resisted decay, are
clearly discernible in the outlines of house walls and palisades.
The diameters of such molds range between four and eight inches.
The next season Mr. Jury turned his attention to the site of
�HISTORICAL NOTES
165
Teanaostaie, where St. Anthony Daniel had been martyred.
A monument had been erected at the place traditionally believed to be the location of the ancient village (about onehalf mile southwest of the church of Mount St. Louis and
about fourteen miles from Fort Ste Marie). By careful research Mr. Jury proved conclusively that it was merely the
site of a pre-Christian village. This he did by showing the
abundance of Indian objects in the soil and the absence of
articles of French manufacture, and by demonstrating that
the palisaded area was too small to house a village of two
thousand souls. Then he located another site, about a mile
nearer the fort, within sight of Mount St. Louis Church,
which gave abundant evidence of French occupation, knives
and tools that could have come only from the missionaries.
This village was much larger than the former and was better
provided with a supply of water. In these investigations
Father J. S. McGivern, S.J., an earnest student of 1-Iuronia,
collaborated with Mr. Jury, putting at his disposal his intimate
knowledge of the Jesuit Relations.
It was not until 1948 that Mr. Jury came to Fort Ste Marie
where the University of Western Ontario graciously allowed
him to devote his time to archaeological research. Kind
friends enabled Father Lally to provide him with helpers:
the curator's devoted wife, Mrs. Elsie Jury, as secretary; Mr.
Fraser Metcalfe, a student from Western University, as draftsman and cartographer; Paul Buchanan, a high school boy and
several workmen, engaged as circumstances permitted. Two
Jesuits, Father James McGivern and Father Dennis Hegarty,
late chaplain with the Canadian Army, have both devoted
considerable time to the project under Mr. Jury's direction.
Dr. Yaroslav Pasternak, Ph.D., an archaeologist from Lwow
and Bonn Universities, whose published works in his field
have won him a European reputation, also helped Mr.
Jury throughout one season. Many of the guests at the
Martyrs' Shrine Inn, both clerical and lay, have profited by
the opportunity of working under Mr. Jury's guidance, at
this important task. And during the Summer of 1950 a
Summer School of Indian Archaeology was held at the Shrine
with an enrollment of twenty students, many of them
school teachers anxious to learn how history can be read from
�166
HISTORICAL NOTES
ashes and post molds as from documents left by our forebears.
Mr. Jury is a man of extensive experience in his own field.
He has made Indian archaeology the hobby of his lifetime. He
first learned the elements of it from his venerable old father
who paid a visit to the old fort and charmed everyone by
the keen interest he showed in his son's work. Fairfield, Ontario, near London, was the site of an important Neutral
village where Mr. Jury's research won for him recognition
by the scientific world. Mr. Jury displays an almost intuitive
flair for interpreting contours and soil formation, and in reading soil markings he enjoys a national reputation. The results
of his work have not as yet been completed and as a consequence are not yet available in summarized report form,
but so far they have exceeded our hopes in ascertaining the dimensions of the fort buildings_ rind in locating the long sought
for cemetery.
One of the most gratifying features of Mr. Jury's excavations has been the proof of the greater area of the establishment. Instead of being limited to the part we had learned
to call the European compound (the area of fifteen thousand
square feet enclosed by the bastions), it was established that
there were palisades on the north and south running to the
river bank where there had been twin timber bastions, corresponding to the two great stone bastions on the eastern
front. This area was eighty thousand square feet or about
five times larger than the former calculation. When trenches
had been sunk the soil markings of the post molds were plainly
visible even to an inexperienced eye and in some place.S _shreds
of the cedar posts were still in the soil.
When the outline of this large new section had been determined, its interior was carefully examined. This part of
the property had been under cultivation for a number of years
and the top soil had been turned again and again, but beneath
this disturbed soil evidence was uncovered of buildings that
once surrounded a central court.· Their doorways were discerned and the five cellars beneath several of them were excavated. In one of these cellars were found two little objects
of note: a much corroded but still recognizable little hook
• such as would be used on_a Jesuit cassock, and a little phial
of pale green Venetian glass. This little flagon, about five
�HISTORICAL NOTES
167
inches tall, has a very pleasing shape and may well have been
a Mass cruet.
Besides the post molds that indicated the structures built
around the open court there was another set, not in alignment
with any of the above, that outlined a sizeable long house.
This was thought to be Ste Marie's first building in 1639, an
Indian-style lodge or long house built near the riverbank and
at an angle to it. The presence of some tree or trees may
have determined the axis of the long house. Because this
primitive house was later demolished to make way for later
construction, the details of its structure are not as evident
as those of the later and more permanent buildings erected
by the French workmen probably around 1645-46.
In one of these buildings, the one on the south side of the
inner court, a piece of masonry was brought to light which
has proved one of the many enigmas to which no definitive
solution has been found. It is described by Mr. Jury in
the Midland Free Press Herald:
The stonework is shaped like a flattened capital H. The horizontal bar joining the two uprights is much longer than the uprights themselves. The outside measurement is fourteen feet in
length and the uprights are nine feet nine inches. The thickness
of both uprights and crossbar are two and one half feet. The
length of the crossbar between the uprights is ten feet five inches.
This stone foundation must have been built to carry a substantial
upper structure, since it is four feet in depth and solid enough
to carry a house wall today, though three hundred years have
elapsed since its construction. Its meaning has not yet been
determined.
The hypothesis that it might have been the base of a double
fireplace was ruled out since there was no evidence that the
well-tooled stones that formed it had ever been subjected to
heat and there was no evidence either of ash in the immediate
vicinity. Mr. Jury is inclined to think that it was the foundation of an altar, perhaps of a double altar like the papal altar
in St. Peter's where Mass can be said at either or both sides;
others have preferred to search further for a solution. Some
army officers from a neighboring camp offered the suggestion
that it may have been the foundation of the belfry or bell
tower. We know that there was a large bell at Ste Marie
which was later taken to the new fort on Christian Island.
�168
HISTORICAL NOTES
Pieces of it have been found there; one segment is in the
Shrine Museum. Such a large bell would need a solid turret
in which to hang and the scaffolding may well have required
a solid foundation in the shape of that described above.
One impressive feature of the second season's work was
the moat or canal which extended west from the south bastions to the river. The source of fresh spring water for the
fort had already been traced to a point across the present railway track. The water flowed through a boxed channel or
aqueduct whose boards were still in place, under the northern
curtain and through the centre of the European compound;
and now the heavy hand-hewn planks at the bottom of the
great moat seemed to indicate the course the waste water or
sewage took on its way to the river. This flume was at a low
level so that even in the winter it might be able to function
under the ice. The row of cedar posts along the side of the
moat were all of equal length and were tipped with blackthey had burnt to water level in mid-June three hundred years
ago! Other features of the great channel or moat are not
equally clear and will bear further study.
On of the most significant discoveries was the existence of
a "lock" system by which the level of the water could be
raised above that of the river. Hence the canoes could be
floated in by an arrangement of triple locks, perhaps the first
of its kind in Canada or even North America, according to a
prominent civil engineer. The moat or canal contained several
hewn-out cedar logs which served as connecting pipes to the
river. One of these, about nine feet in length, is considered
among the largest and oldest relics of this workmanship in
Canada.
In his report of 1855 Father Martin had vaguely indicated
that the plot south of the fort as he knew it, was the Indian
compound and contained the church, a hospital, and a guest
. house where transient families might be given shelter. The
presence of a stucco house on this part of the property prevented earlier investigation. At the time of sale in 1940 the
owners had reserved for themselves ten years' use of this
house, but in the Spring of 1950 the lease expired and the
house was demolished and the area carefully explored. It
• yielded the outlines of three buildings which seemed well
�HISTORICAL NOTES
169
adapted for the use suggested in Father Martin's report,
namely the church, guest house, and hospital. The largest,
thirty-nine feet by seventy-nine, may well have been the
church.
·
But the climax of last season's work, in the estimation of
all, was the discovery of the cemetery south of the buildings
just described and almost five hundred feet south of the northernmost palisade of the fort. All told, twenty-one graves
were opened and examined. The bodies were buried three
feet below the surface in the clear white sand (the subsoil
elsewhere under the fort is clay). Most of the bodies were
buried in coffins about six feet in length. These were seventeen inches wide at the foot and twenty-four inches at the
head. Some were square, others rounded. Coffin nails were
numerous in the lines of dark gray soil that had been the wood
of the coffins. Within the coffins two complete rosaries were
identified as well as many odd beads and bits of corroded metal
that may have been crosses or medals. In one was a fourteen
inch clay pipe! One skeleton held a pair of blue porcelain beads
in its hand; this was thought by Dr. Alan Skinner, professor
of anatomy at Western University, to have been that of a
white man. Now we know from the Relations that Donne
Jacques Douart was slain on April 28, 1648 and was buried
"near the fort."
The over-all picture is necessarily sketchy and will remain
so until the excavation has been completed and the data discovered has been coordinated and studied. In the meantime
though, and forever after, the Jesuit Fathers will remain indebted to Messrs. Kidd and Jury and all the others who worked
with them in this excavation of Fort Ste Marie, for by their
discoveries we are able to implement the Jesuit Relations, so
tantalizingly reticent about the details of the great establishment on the Wye that was the forest home of the seventeenth
century Jesuits in Huronia.
Fort Ste Marie will always be dear to Canadians and Americans. It was from Fort Ste Marie that St. Isaac Jogues went
in 1642 to Quebec for the last time and later to martyrdom at
Auriesville, New York, in 1648. It was from Fort Ste Marie
that St. Anthony Daniel went to meet martyrdom at Taenaestaye in 1648 two days after making his annual retreat at Fort
�170
HISTORICAL NOTES
Ste Marie. It was to Fort Ste Marie that the mangled bodies
of Saints John de Brebeuf and Gabriel Lalemant were carried
for burial after their heroic martyrdom at St. Ignace in 1649.
It was from Fort Ste Marie that SS. Charles Garnier and Noel
Chabanel left for Christian Island with the other refugees in
1649 after seeing their "Home of Peace" devoured by flames.
It was at Fort Ste Marie that the Jesuit Martyrs prayed, meditated and prepared for martyrdom from 1639 to 1649. It is to
Martyrs' Shrine at Fort Ste Marie that two hundred thousand
pilgrims of today flock annually to imbibe something of the
spirit of martyrdom so sorely needed today and to receive
some of the spiritual and bodily cures reported so often there
through the intercession of the Jesuit Martyrs, declared in
1940 Patrons of Canada with St. Joseph, at the request of the
entire Episcopate for Canada.
DANIEL J. HOURIGAN, S.J.
* * *
Attention: Librarians
It sometimes happens that one or other house of the Society, shortly
to be discontinued or transferred to a new location, wishes to dispose
of all or part of its library.- At the same time other houses, newly
established, desire to acquire collections of books. In such cases Ours
often enter upon negotiations with externs, involving financial loss, because they do not know with whom they might negotiate about the
matter within the Society.
.
Consequently, it seems that we could offer a valuable service~to some
of Ours, if an information center were to be established with us, the
sole function of which would be to advise librarians where opportunities of acquiring or selling such collections of books may be found. If
anyone wishes to avail himself of this service, he should acquaint us
with his plans. It will be enough to indicate in a general way the type
of books offered for sale or desired. We shall communicate the collected information to all who apply to us, but negotiations should then
be carried on directly between librarians. We propose only to establish
the initial contact between them. Letters should be addressed:
Redazione MEMORABILIA
5, Bargo S. Spirito
Roma ( Italia)
. Translated from MEMORABILIA, S.J.
�OBITUARY
FATHER JOHN A. MORGAN
1880-1949
John A. Morgan was born in New York City on October 18,
1880. He attended St. Francis Xavier College there and entered the Society at Frederick on August 14, 1896, more than
two months before his sixteenth birthday. Father John H.
O'Rourke was master of novices and rector during the four
years young Morgan spent at Frederick. In the juniorate he
had Father Elder Mullan and Father Raphael O'Connell as
professors of poetry and rhetoric.
During the Summer of 1903 Mr. Morgan went to Woodstock for philosophy under Father Henry Casten, Father
James Daw.son and Father Timothy Brosnahan.· After the
then customary five years of regency, he returned to Woodstock for divinity studies under Father Walter Drum, Father
William Duane, Father Timothy Barrett, Father Henry
Casten, Father Joseph Woods and Father Hector Papi. Father
Burchard Villiger and Father William Brett were rectors of
Woodstock during his philosophy course and Father Anthony
Maas, while he was a theologian. Father Morgan was ordained by Cardinal Gibbons on July 30, 1911 and made his
tertianship at Poughkeepsie under Father Thomas Gannon,
1913-1914. He pronounced his last vows as a Jesuit on August
15, 1922.
John Morgan's active years as a Jesuit were divided between the classroom and the ministry. He taught for five
years as a Scholastic in Boston College, Holy Cross, and Fordham and for five years as a priest at Holy Cross, Brooklyn,
and Boston College. As a Scholastic, except for one year of
poetry, he taught high school classes. As a priest he was professor of rhetoric. When in 1918 he was taken from the classroom by his superiors it was somewhat of a surprise to many.
He had been an excellent teacher, able to command progress
and affection from his pupils. But it proved a wise change
since Father Morgan was to do his real work in the thirtyone years of his ministry.
�172
OBITUARY
After a year as chaplain in the City Hospital at Boston,
Father Morgan spent the rest of his life as operarius andretreat master; seventeen years in Philadelphia, five in Baltimore, four in New York City, three at Inisfada and one at
Guelph, Ontario.
In the ministry Father Morgan's outstanding characteristic
was his zeal. It drove him, as it did St. Paul, from the time
of his ordination to his death. To parish and retreat work
he gave himself wholeheartedly from the very beginning:
preaching, hearing confessions, directing sodalities, instructing individuals and groups, interviewing those in distress,
those seeking enlightenment, and those who aspired to greater
holiness, giving missions and retreats to all classes. These
were so many ways of showing his deep interest in God's children who sought his assistance:
God had fitted him well for -his work. He had a heart brimming over with affection. He had a voice that responded to
every shade of emotion. His sympathy with those in need or
in sorrow tempered his exposition of revealed truth with gentle kindness although his clarity of mind made him uncompromising in his appreciation of ideals.
There was a marked individuality in his thought, for he
was never content to repeat what others had said before him;
and his words took on new color with each new audience. He
was not perhaps a greaf orator but he was a most convincing
and appealing talker. This was evidenced by the fact that in
whatever city he labored crowds pressed about him and never
seemed to tire of listening to him. One instance o.f this is
furnished by the Working Girls Sodality at Willing's Alley in
Philadelphia. Week after week for years, with great inconvenience to themselves, these sodalists crowded St. Joseph's
Church.
There was another thing about Father Morgan's ministry
which added to its appeal. He was sincerely humble and had
a very poor opinion of his fitness. This took away from his
preaching anything like aggressiveness and gave just enough
of a suggestion of hesitancy and diffidence to disarm criticism
and conciliate his audience. It also gave a distinct charm to
his message.
The most striking thing, however, about Father Morgan
�OBITUARY
173
was his transparent love of souls. His supernatural charity
was reinforced by natural affection. He liked people. They
were God's beloved children and his brethren. It was easy for
him, therefore, not only to translate his love for God into love
of his neighbor for God's sake but also to love them for themselves.
Father Morgan had an ardent personal love for Christ and
since Christ loved souls, he was tireless in his efforts to bring
men to his Master. Some idea of the courage of his ministry
may be gained from events at its beginning and end. As
chaplain in Boston City Hospital during the Spanish influenza
epidemic in 1918-1919 he was night and day at the bedside of
the victims with never a thought of his personal risk. Those
who witnessed his devotion were amazed that he did not contract the disease. In the Summer of 1949 he went to Nova
Scotia to give retreats to priests and religious and intended
to press on and preach to the fishermen of Labrador. He set
out on this final mission fully conscious that the touch of death
was on him. Those privileged to listen to his message that
year were also well aware that their retreat master was on the
brink of the grave. The result was that he impressed them
most profoundly.
Divine Providence is a mysterious thing and is not conditioned by the little minds of men. God's designs on His children are transcendent and, since soul differs from soul,· He
leads them to heaven by different ways. Some souls are led
along sheltered, sunlit paths. They are given vivid faith,
happy dispositions, deep convictions, strong wills. They are
shielded from severe temptations. Their smiles seem to reflect
God's blessed smile all the days of their lives. Others must
walk along trails that are deep in shadows, they must be content with the cold light of truth, they must struggle with difficulties, glory in their infirmities and be satisfied with the
measure of divine grace that is sufficient for them. If they
smile it must be through their tears. This latter road is reserved for strong souls, and this was the way along which God
led Father Morgan.
His greatest trial was, no doubt, that he had little of the
joy of faith. He had to accept the truths of revelation solely
on the word of God. This of course is true of all Christians.
�174
OBITUARY
But to many it is given to be so intimately aware of the divine
presence that they seem to walk hand in hand with God most
of the time. They are so deeply conscious of God's love for
them that a supernatural glow of happiness is almost always
theirs. The graces they receive so illumine and inspire their
souls that they are seldom, if ever, aware of the encircling
gloom. Desolation is an occasional incident in their lives; consolation is their daily bread.
It was not so with Father Morgan. God did not treat him
as a child, but as a veteran, inured to hardship. He believed
with a cold belief and had to be content to know and to do
what God commanded. This was hard, it demanded heroism,
but it purified his love, making it all for God and quite unselfish. And yet Father Morgan was able to make the faith
bright and attractive for others. No one but God knows how
many there were for whom he lifted the veil and to whom he
brought horne how sweet a thing it is to love the Lord. It was
this divine gift which brought so many to him to be enlightened, which made his confessional so popular, which attracted
crowds to his discourses, which made the faithful eager to
seek his counsel, and which so filled his days that for him sufficient rest was an unknown luxury and fatigue his almost constant companion.
Another difficulty in_ Father Morgan's life was his lack of
worldly wisdom. God left him with this disability-if it can
rightly be so called-for his purification in the crucible of
pain. He possessed the simplicity of the dove but lacked something of the wisdom of the serpent.
~·
-He had so absorbing a love for God and was so singleminded inhis love of souls that he, at times, rushed in where
others would have hesitated or turned back. Had he been
more gifted with discretion, he would not have found himself
in situations 'Yhich he had not foreseen and which caused
embarrassment to himself and others. But he was so sensitive
and responsive to the needs of others, and at the same time
so conscious of the absolute purity of his own intentions that
he sometimes forgot the courtesy due to chanceries, which
others would have remembered, partly perhaps out of motives
of personal security. Souls needed help and he hastened to give
it, where others would have paused and asked advice, and so
�OBITUARY
175
not left themselves open to misunderstanding. As a consequence he several times incurred the displeasure of ecclesiastical authority and was severely treated. This was, of
course, to be regretted but God permitted it for Father Morgan's chastening, and it was a consequence of his burning
zeal. It caused him great humiliation and pain. But his superiors understood him and merely transferred him to other
fields of labor.*
Another source of pain in Father Morgan's life was his
constant sense of unworthiness. Few priests of his day influenced religious and lay persons more profoundly than he
did. Wherever he went his ardent love for Christ and his
desire to bring others to love Him, affected deeply and permanently those who listened to him. He was endowed by God
most generously with apostolic gifts. All this should normally
have been a source of great consolation. It rather humiliated
Father Morgan. He was tireless in his zeal but he felt that
he was doing little for Christ. He was greatly and gratefully
loved by those to whom he ministered and yet he had an acute
sense of loneliness. He was well thought of and admired and
his help was assiduously sought, but he lived a hidden life
that had few compensations.
Father Morgan's frank expression of this sense of unworthiness was at times very embarrassing to others. An example in point was the speech he made on the occasion of his
golden jubilee. About him were gathered his devoted friends.
These, it may be noted in passing, were few in number. This
was, perhaps, not strange since his aim was to be all to all
men. But these few friendships were marked by true loyalty.
At his golden jubilee dinner his friends praised him for the
noble servant of God that they knew him to be. His reply
was first a profession of deep gratitude to his earthly mother,
to his beloved Society, and to the Church-all of whom, he
*Some may be surprised that this subject is discussed within the
narrow confines of an obituary. It was thought, however, that the
only way to avoid a trite and almost meaningless eulogy was to include some mention of the fact. The treatment accorded Father
Morgan shows the loving kindness of superiors and their patience.
It should serve as a warning to Ours that at all times due consideration must be given to diocesan authorities, no matter what the
merits of the case may be thought to be. The Editor.
�176
OBITUARY
said, had loved him, cared for him, put up with him, protected
him, kept him safe. Then he made a humble avowal of his
utter uselessness as he conceived it. He expressed his wonder
that, in spite of what he felt himself to be, he was still loved
and had long been loved and dearly loved by his mother, by
the Society of Jesus, and by God Himself. His sincerity
wrung the hearts of his hearers. It was a soul-searing experience that no one who heard it will ever forget. It was something in the nature of a general confession made on the
threshold of death. It was the cry of a noble heart literally
plunged in humility.
Father Morgan's death was like his life. Stricken while
preaching in Nova Scotia, he submitted to medical examination which showed that he was far gone with cancer. He was
brought by plane to St. Vincent's Hospital in New York City,
where his case was pronounced 'hopeless. He himself realized
that his days were numbered. God had made his last appeal
for souls through him and was now summoning the exhausted
priest, tired at last unto death, to rest from his labors and
make ready to go home. Father Morgan was neither surprised nor reluctant. God had taken from him one by one
most of the things that the heart of man loves, and now was
asking the sacrifice of what man loves most, his life. Father
Morgan made his sacrifice gladly. Those who visited him
found him cheerful, more cheerful than in his days of health.
It seemed as if the radiance of God's smile had at last broken
through the clouds.
There was only one thing, apart from his conformity to
God's Will, that Father Morgan could still do for the glory
of the Divine Master to whom he had given himself more than
half a century before. He could still with extreme difficulty
say Mass. Every morning he rose from his bed of suffering,
forced his body, in spite of increasing weakness, to the chapel
and said his lntroibo. He no longer wondered if this was to
be the last time he would celebrate that particular feast. He
knew that very soon he would say his last Mass. At times,
perhaps, he wondered how he could, even in heaven, reconcile
himself to the fact that he could no longer offer the Holy
• Sacrifice. He knew theology's answer, but the Mass had been
his life, the very beat of his heart, the breath of his lungs.
��"~~-~' .;.:~
~,' ~"
FATHER FRANCIS X. BIMANSKI
�OBITUARY
177
At last there came a day when from the altar he returned
utterly exhausted to his room. With sadness in his voice, he
said to the nun in attendance, "Sister, I have said my last Mass.
Tomorrow I shall go." On the morrow, September 30, 1949,
he died. May he rest in peace.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
FATHER FRANCIS XAVIER BIMANSKI
1871-1952
An era in the annals of Cook County Hospital, Chicago, has
ended. Father Bimanski, referred to by a fellow chaplain as
"Cook County's Corporal of Christ", is dead.
Father Francis Xavier Bimanski (Buman) was born in
Sion, Switzerland, April 2, 1871 and entered the Society at the
novitiate in Blyenbeck, Holland, November 23, 1889. The
saintly novice master, Father Maurice Meschler, greeted him
at the door. Under this skilled master of the spiritual life, he
laid the solid spiritual foundation that was to carry him
through over sixty-two years of fruitful labor in the Society
of Jesus. His juniorate was made at Wijnandsrade, followed
by two years of philosophy at Exaten and one at the newly
opened philosophate at Valkenburg.
After a brief term of teaching at the Collegium Dei Nobili
at Cremona, he came to America and taught for five years
at St. Ignatius College, Cleveland. His theological studies were
made at Valkenburg and Cracow, Poland, where he was ordained priest by Bishop Novak on April17, 1904.
Returning to America he was assigned to the Polish Mission
Band and spent ten years in that work. Early in 1914 he was
assigned as chaplain at Cook County Hospital, Chicago.
On February 5, 1914 Father Bimanski began his work at
the hospital, a work that was to continue until his death
thirty-eight years later. During all these years he labored day
and night, scarcely missing a day, and ministered to thousands
of all races, colors, and tongues. A gifted linguist, he was able
to care for many poor immigrants at the hospital and he endeared himself to all by his cheerful, patient, and sympathetic
�178
OlliTUARY
ways. He arra~ged his work so that it would not conflict with
the work of the doctors or nurses. His understanding of the
demands and restrictions on the time of both patients and hospital personnel was absolute and complete and he governed his
own time accordingly.
The tuberculosis patients were the object of his special attention. Even on days when he would have been free from hospital work he always paid a visit to the tuberculosis hospital.
Entertainment for his beloved tuberculosis patients was arranged every Monday evening.
Father Bimanski showed great tact and diplomacy in arranging for a chapel when the former chapel building was demolished. Through his efforts a large spare room was acquired
in the main hospital building. With the aid of religious and
lay friends he was able to equip the chapel. And for years now
Mass has been said daily in the hospital where there is a regular schedule of Sunday Ma~ses for the hospital personnel and
such patients as are able to attend. Due to community use of
the present chapel by some of the Protestant denominations,
it is a great tribute to Father Bimanski's quiet diplomacy
that proper respect for the Catholic altar has been obtained
from all who used the chapel.
Father Bimanski used his gifts as a linguist to good advantage. He was the author of several pamphlets to assist the hospital staff. His Polish for the Clinic saw four editions and was
advertised in the medical journals of Chicago and New York.
All the city hospitals received copies, and even the United
States Army did not want to be forgotten. Father received
hundreds of letters from doctors throughout the nation asking
for copies of this pamphlet and others like it in Italian, Lithuanian, and Bohemian. His pamphlets for nurses, Reminders
and Ideal Nurse, went into several editions. He also published
Helps for Chaplains. These writings were the fruit of his work
at County Hospital.
On two occasions Cardinal Stritch personally congratulated
Father Bimanski for his work at the hospital. On November
22, 1940 His Eminence wrote: "I have read closely your report
on the work of the Catholic chaplains at Cook County Hospital
for the year 1939. I want to say to you that this report edified
me greatly for it shows intelligent, pious, priestly work for
the salvation of souls . : . These patients for the most part
�OBITUARY
179
are poor and among them are many of our weak and wayward
sheep. I do not know of anything that I want better done in my
archdiocese than the care of these souls of my flock." In February, 1923 the late Father General Ledochowski, who had
once been his provincial, wrote a personal letter to Father
highly commending him for his work as chaplain.
In 1918 Father Bimanski began his hobby of repairing
watches and clocks to relieve the tedium of his hospital work.
At first he met with opposition from the trade but by his :firm
and patient persistence he overcame all resistance. And in time
some of the best horologists in the nation became his staunch
friends. Through friends thus gained he became a life member
of the Horological Institute at Washington, D. C. He was once
chosen to give the invocation at a national meeting of horologists in Chicago.
Father Bimanski was deeply devoted to the Society. He practiced the virtues that should adorn a Jesuit life. He loved
poverty as a mother and he certainly at times felt its effects.
He was content with the barest necessities for his personal
use. Strict with himself he was liberal to others. Money given
him for carfare and articles of clothing often found their way
to others whom he considered to be more needy than himself-a source of privation to himself but often the needed approach to win a soul for Christ. A man of deep piety, he was
devoted to Mary and the saints of the Society. He had a good
sense of humor; he was humble, cheerful, sincere, reticent
about himself, and above all he was ·always calm and unperturbed. Though he was always busy, he was nevertheless willing to break off his work to lend a helping hand or to give a
word of advice. He was always deeply loyal and he demanded
loyalty from others. A layman remarked at his wake that
Father Bimanski was a man who demanded loyalty and got
it because he himself was so loyal. In short he made himself
all things to all men.
During the last eight months of life he acted as spiritual
father for the St. Ignatius High School community, with whom
he lived when he was not on duty at the County Hospital. He
labored zealously in the preparation of the monthly conferences to the community. His instructions were brief but to
the point-the fruit of long experience and much reflection.
Father Bimanski was stricken while on duty at the County
�180
OBITUARY
Hospital on the evening of January 31, 1952. He was at once
taken to St. Anthony's Hospital. Everything that medical science could do was done for him. After some weeks in the hospital he was· able to return home and he made his annual retreat. But his improvement .in health was only temporary. On
April 21 he returned to the hospital, but all treatment was
in vain. For nearly forty-eight hours before his death, priests
from the St. Ignatius community took turns in keeping an almost constant vigil at his bedside. The end came suddenly,
though not unexpectedly, on Sunday, April 27-the feast of
St. Peter Canisius-just twenty-five days after his eightyfirst birthday. The priest in attendance then had barely
time to give him a last absolution before his great soul was
gone.
Reverend Father Provincial·celebrated the funeral Mass in
Holy Family Church on April· 30-the feast of the Solemnity
of St. Joseph. Members of the Cook County Hospital Staff and
of the Board of Commissioners acted as honorary pall bearers.
Burial was in All Saints Cemetery.
The Board of Commissioners of Cook County passed resolutions of condolence at the passing of the gentle Chaplain who
had so influenced the conduct of the affairs of Cook County
Hospital. At the instigation of Doctor Karl Meyer, head of the
medical staff of Cook County Hospital, Mr. William Steene, a
well-known portrait painter, executed a beautiful picture of
Father Bimanski. This portrait is to be placed in the library
of the new Doctors' Building of the Cook County Hospital.
FREDERICK G. GEHEB, __S.J.
* * *
0 Lord Jesus Christ, Who didst mercifully grant that the Blessed
Virgin Mary, Thy Mother, be the guide of St. Ignatius in the way of
sanctity and the Queen and Mother of his family, this blessing we beg of
Thee: that all of us who are blessed with her protection here on earth
may rejoice in the sight of her glory in heaven. Amen.
-from the Mass of Our Lady, Queen of the Society of Jesus,
April 22.
�Books of Interest to Ours
COLLEGE RELIGION
Christ as Prophet and King. By John J. Fernan, S.J.
l\1oyne College, 1952. Pp. xviii-309. $3.50.
Syracus~,
Le
Two of the Maryland Province colleges introduced their students to
a new religion course in 1941. For a text they used a set of printed but
unpublished notes. Catholic educators had been wondering how,
in practice, to establish the teaching of religion as the central and unifying course in the college curriculum. To this old problem the proposed plan brought a new approach, based on the acceptable assumption
that theology for the laity has a teleology distinct from that of a seminary course. In briefest form this aim has been expressed as the presentation of Catholic truth in such a way that students will deepen their
understanding of it as an organic whole, and be impelled to live out
intelligently their functions as members of the Mystical Body of Christ.
This aim consequently determined the content of the course (in emphasis, at least), the order of presentation, and even the teaching
method itself. The student was to make intimate contact with the Person of Jesus Christ: His life, the life He communicated to His Church,
the new life He gives to each individual. The approach was historical
and heavily scriptural. After the war the experiment was adopted by
two more colleges in the Maryland Province and three in the New York
Province.
Christ as Prophet and King, a text for Freshman year, appears therefore as the first published manual for this new religion course. The
many interested Jesuits who have followed the discussions and successes
of this teaching experiment gratefully welcome Father Fernan's contribution. This volume and the other three now in preparation suggest
that the new course is established on a desirably permanent and official
level in the New York Province.
The text has a four-fold division: an introduction to the gospels, a
background to the life of Christ, the public life of Christ (with a chronology and comparative synopsis), and a dogmatic summary of Christology and ecclesiology. Test questions and suggested readings follow
many of the chapters.
As Father Fernan indicates in a preliminary acknowledgment, much
of the unpublished text of 1941 has been repeated without alteration.
It would seem highly significant that after a decade of critical analysis
and classroom experimentation the original draft was still judged
worthy of almost verbatim incorporation. The additions made to the old
text quite naturally prompt a comparative evaluation. One might reasonably conclude these new chapters were the result of some recognized
need to round out the Freshman syllabus.
The outline of Jewish history is a valuable addition. The pre-Christian eras are sketched from the time of Adam to the rule of the Roman
�182
BOOK REVIEWS
procurators in Judea. The chapter on inspiration offers a good synopsis
of the fact, nature, extent of inspiration, and so forth.
One might question however the advisability of including a section
on the credibility of the gospels. This chapter, dealing with the authenticity, integrity and historicity of the gospels, follows the familiar
lines of this tract as it is handled in De Revelatione. To a teacher not
thoroughly familiar with the precise tone and goal of the entire course,
this chapter might imply a definite commitment in favor of an apologetic
approach in Freshman year. This implication, I take it, was just as
definitely not intended by Father Fernan since such an approach is
clearly written out of the statement of objectives. From the student's
viewpoint, this section might possibly pose more distracting questions
than it can hope to answer.
No review questions are found after the sections on the public life
of our Lord. It might be that in the development of the public life,
above all, the teacher would profit by very particularized directives in
harmony with the general aim of the course.
The dogmatic summaries at the_end of the text are clear, thorough,
and admirably compact. Critics of the new course have at times voiced
fretful doubts about an apparent lack of dogmatic content in the syllabus. Indirectly, but quite convincingly, Father Fernan solves those
doubts with his excellent summaries of De Verba and De Eeclesia.
The attractive format of this textbook deserves the highest commendation. The neat printing, as well as the generous use of subtitles and
italics, make for simplified reading and handy classroom reference.
TERRENCE J. TOLAND, S.J.
SAINTS AND HEROES
The Fire of Francis Xavier. By A1·thur R. !l:fcGratty, S.J. Milwaukee,
Bruce, 1952. Pp. viii-295. $4.00.
Pope Pius XI termed St. Francis Xavier not a missionary but an
apostle. For "not only did he, by his sweat and toil, convert many barbarous peoples and lead them to a holy life by his own practice of heroic
virtue, but he established them most solidly in the Christian faith and
opened up to Catholic missionaries vast regions that hitherto had been
closed on every side to the preaching of Christianity."
Just how the son of Navarre became the Apostle of the Orient is the
subject of Father McGratty's latest work. The problem is stated in this
fashion: "How best, then, catch the stature of the man? Pcrh::!.ps, after
all, by sensing the accumulative effect given by a progress through the
successive chapters of that amazing decade Francis spent tolling in the
East." Thus, though the biography is chronological, it is not a chronology. Occasional paragraphs of reflection enable the author to search
the spirit of the Apostle. In that search one aspect is stressed, Xavier's
striving for constancy in his converts. A letter to Rome drops a hint
�BOOK REVIEWS
183
of the efforts: "Thus, after many sessions together, and much work,
I put together the prayers. When I had them by memory, I walked
through the whole area, ringing my bell, summoning all the boys and
men who would come. Thereafter I taught them twice every day for
a month." This catechizing, his care for providing priests to carry on
his work, and the school for native boys at Goa amply testify to Xavier's
appreciation of the aim of the Church's missionary apostolate.
The narration of the work in the Indies is straightforward and clear,
with no distractions due to historical controversies. Still, in one instance
the reader may wish that the author had mentioned the historical dispute about the death of Yajiro, the first of Francis' Japanese converts.
A few months after Francis left Kagoshima, so we read, Yajiro became
a river pirate and died in China. Historians also offer a less tragic
ending, that after being driven into exile Yajiro was killed by pirates.
Then there is the question of names. Every biographer tackling
foreign languages must decide on the transcription of proper names.
In the present work they are in general anglicized, a laudable practice
indeed. Nevertheless, there are occasional lapses that make, for example, an Antonio here into an Anthony there.
But these minor flaws are more than compensated by the skillful
section on Xavier's youth. In many lives of saints the early chapters
are hurdles in the path of the story. It is fortunately not so here.
The lively narration and frequent flashes of insight will make Xavier
even more widely known and loved than he now is. Although Jesuit
readers may find the unsophisticated approach less attractive than that
of Father Brodrick's more historical study, they will find the volume
fully deserving its place on the ever growing shelf of modern hagiography. It will impress upon ourselves and many others the treasure
we have in this brother whose career is "perhaps unique in· any history
of men's endeavor to further a cause."
JAMES J. RUDDICK, S.J.
Saints For Now. Edited by Clare Boothe Luce. New York, Sheed and
Ward, 1952. Pp. 312. $3.50.
This is a thoroughly admirable, apt, and appetizing book. Anthologies
can turn out to be pretty dull affairs, but not this one. According to
the jacket-blurb, Clare Boothe Luce asked a score of her friends to do
a short essay on a favorite Saint. Mrs. Luce is indeed fortunate in her
friends. Fifteen men (only one a priest) and five women (only one a
nun) responded with twenty brief biographies or appreciations of
eighteen Saints, Francis of Assisi and John of the Cross each having
been chosen by two writers. It is usual in speaking of such a group of
People, to describe them as distinguished. In this case they are. Some
of the contributors are celebrated, almost all of them are well-known.
They know their Saints, they obviously admire their Saints, they even
�184
BOOK REVIEWS
understand their Saints. In addition, these people can write, and in
the pages of this book they do, to the vast satisfaction of at least one
.. reader. The curse of anthologies is, of course, unevenness. In the present instance the standard of both substance and style is not only high,
but extraordinarily level. Incidentally, the lead essay, Saints, by Mrs.
Luce, explains the objective and title of the book: to compile the brief
biographies of a handful of Saints whom contemporary people find a
working source of inspiration for the living of contemporary life. As
we might expect, this essay is itself superb.
As in all contemporary hagiography, the emphasis in these short lives
is not on austerities and marvels but on personality and (so to speak)
individual philosophy. Consequently, the Saints treated emerge with
clarity and persuasiveness. Even Saints of whom little is known become
remarkably real, and those-like Simeon on his pillar whom we neurotic moderns inevitably regard as a bit peculiar-come through, in the
end, as reasonable and attractive folk. The work of the distaff con·
tributors is especially fine, particularly the candid study of Augustine
by Rebecca West and the perfectly charming life of Hilda of \Vhitby
by that Sister Madeleva who, practically singlehanded, has prevented
me and many another distracted male from despairing altogether of
contemporary womankind. Among the other essays I particularly liked
St. Helena Empress by Evelyn Waugh and St. Simeon Stylites by
George Lamb. I preferred Kate O'Brien's St. Francis Xavier to John
Farrow's St. Ignatius Loyola, but perhaps it is difficult for a Jesuit to
be detached on the subject of Ignatius. Bruce Marshall's The Cure of
Ars I found faintly disappointing, but only because Mr. Marshall deliberately muzzled the mordant satire which I like best in him.
The .book is adorned, if that be the proper word, with seven illustrations, the frontispiece representing Sanctity or Saint For Now (it is
called both), and the other six picturing various saints. St. John of the
Cross has not only two essays but two illustrations, which may prove
something or other. For the most part these objets d'art are definitely
Illustrations For Now, but they do not hurt the book, nof will they
harm the ordinary reader. Just don't let the children get· too near
them.
VINCENT P. McCoRRY, S.J.
Sea of Glory. By Francis B. Thornton. Prentice-Hall, New York, 1953.
Pp. 243. $3.00.
While World War II history has been thoroughly covered by Army,
Navy, and Air Force histories, the memoirs of leading statesmen, and
the biographies of generals, there was a particular incident, devoid of
any political significance or real military importance, but one of deep
religious meaning, which Father Thornton has recorded for us.
When the old troop ship Dorchester was making her last futile ef·
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forts against the sea after being stricken by a German torpedo, four
chaplains remained arm in arm on the deck praying. Thirty minutes
was the limit of endurance in the icy water of the North Atlantic even
with a life jacket, and they had given theirs to soldiers who had been
caught without their own. Added significance was given to their act of
heroism by the fact that they represented all American faiths, Protestant, Jewish, and Catholic. Secular commentators all over the country
were reminded of the text from St. John: "Greater love hath no man
than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." All had left
dearly-loved families for the call of God to serve Him and their fellow
men. They volunteered for a great cause and were found acceptable.
Their sacrifice was a source of inspiration to the whole nation and to the
members of the armed forces in particular. Thanks to Father Thornton's work, it will continue to send its message to younger generations
faced with the same problems of service to God and country during war.
FREDERICK
J.
REISERT,
S.J.
LIGHTS FOR NUNS
Listen Sister: Thoughts for Nuns. By John E. Moffatt, S.J.
York, McMullen, 1952. Pp. 210. $2.75.
New
This book, with its modest subtitle, is the fruit of Father Moffatt's
many retreats to Sisters both in this country and in Canada. The
form in which the author has shaped these thoughts recalls the earlier
work of Father Charles and Father Lippert, though, unfortunately,
this author possesses neither the grace of style of the former nor the
poetry and the profundity of the latter. Nevertheless, if these short
essays are read with close and prayerful attention, the thoughts they
contain will benefit many Sisters.
The subjects treated follow the round of problems which arise in
convent life. Confession, prayer and the distractions which disturb it,
presence of God, death, reverence, are all handled here once again but
Father Moffatt has generally something new to say which is worth
hearing. His chapter on supernatural attractiveness is especially good.
Here he cautions Sisters against exploiting their own personalities in the
false belief that in this they will bring to God those for whom they
Work. Americans of the "advertising age" are particularly subject
to this illusion and the author firmly but tactfully shows them that
this is no way to God but a cul de sac.
There is so much that is worthwhile in the book that the reader is
saddened to find many half-truths repeated in it which often manage to
slip into the armory of spiritual writers who fail to relate their teaching
constantly to reality. An example of this "easy thinking" is the
frequent evocation of novitiate days as the ideal time to which all
religious should strive to return. But if noviceships are characterized
by fervor, they represent also a period of physical and spiritual
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BOOK REVIEWS
immaturity. Though, at times, religious do lose their early fervor, it
is demanding a psychological impossibility of them to expect them to
return to that prior state. They must regain their fervor, of course,
but it must now be a deeper and more substantial quality, chastened
and matured as they should be by the saddening reality they have
glimpsed in their days or years of sloth. The spiritual life must always
advance even from the pit of tepidity; it cannot be a series of endless
returns to an idealized past.
Again, Father Moffatt's treatment of the "rights" of religious leaves
much to be desired. He tells his Sisters that they have the "right"
to be humble, to be neglected, to be treated with injustice. \Veil and
good, this is a part of the picture. But the other side deserves at least
passing mention. The author must surely have heard of convents
where The Review for Religious, for example, is reserved to the superior
in order that subjects may not prove troublesome. The fact remains
that the Church and religious constitutions grant real rights to subjects
and it is well that they should know them. The number of Canon
Law Institutes for religious women .held during recent summers testify
to a growing awareness of this need: Perhaps these institutes rather
than exhortations to meekness will proffer the solution for the troubling
number of defections after ten and fifteen years in religion, which
has affected some congregations of religious women.
Finally in his treatment of higher studies, Father Moffatt shows a
lack of comprehension of the real difficulties involved in graduate work
in first-class universities and especially of the burdens which these
difficulties impose on religious women. Here his position is always
"slanted" negatively. He talks of Sisters "strutting ... because of the
degrees . . . won." These Sisters may "slave" for their degrees but
what are their motives? "Well, it will set me a bit above my companions." As for their "Ph.D's," Our Lord will "not be awed by
that." Unless they are also "Doctors of Sanctity," they will gain
nothing substantial from them.
All this is true in part. Sisters, like priests, may become vain over
such things. But why is no mention made of the tremena~us help
these same Sisters give the cause of God literally by their "blood,
sweat and tears"? Is the intellectual life essentially opposed to the
spiritual life, or doe~ not the problem lie in showing these Sisters how
they may become saints by means of, and not in spite of, their learning?
We do not all go to heaven along the same road, even though we belong
to the same religious congregation. There are other saints in the
calendar besides Therese of Lisieux, even among women. We should not
forget the existence of Catherine of Siena, to say nothing of Theresa of
Avila.
The reason why these points have been so sharply made is that, by his
restatement of these half-truths, Father Moffatt is repeating a spiritual
• teaching which needs thorough revaluation. Such "truths" cannot fail
to spread a patina of unreality· over spiritual endeavor and so make it
harder rather than easier for intelligent religious to achieve that which
�BOOK REVIEWS
187
they long for with all their hearts, the complete dedication ·of their
entire selves to the work their Master has given them to do.
FRANCIS J. McCooL, S.J.
PHILOSOPHICAL SPECULATIONS
The Theory of Transfinite Numbers in the Light of the Notion of Potency.
Excerpta ex dissertatione ad lauream in Facultate Philosophica
Pontificiae Universitatis Gregorianae. Auctore Clyde J. Elliot, S.J.
Romae, Typis Pontificiae Universitatis Gregorianae, 1952. Pp. 87.
The present thesis is "a critical examination of Cantor's theory from
the vievrpoint of mathematics and philosophy in order to see whether an
actual infinite must be postulated" (p. 14). Hence "the method of this
thesis . . . [is] a critical examination of the fundamental notions and
theses of the theory of transfinite numbers for the purpose of rejecting
the philosophically false base of the actual infinite and substituting in
its place the potential infinite" (p. 15). The conclusion is "that the
theory of transfinite numbers, far from forcing us to accept the actual
infinite, obliges us to retain the potential infinite. It is only through the
notion of potency, whose manifold presence we have already pointed
out, that the theory of transfinite numbers can be given a satisfactory
interpretation" (p. 85).
The present thesis, despite other incidental merits, unfortunately fails
to make its central points and succeeds, if at all, only in demolishing a
straw-man. This failure results from several basic misconceptions that
undermine the entire enterprise. It is of importance therefore to disengage and exhibit these serious misinterpretations.
The author for example alludes to the law of formation, the successive
addition of 1, for whole numbers, and then remarks: "the law of formation ... [is not] sufficient to give us all the individual integers. That law
of formation, the successive addition of 1, is an endless process. We are
not speaking here of the physical impossibility of writing down all the
whole numbers on paper, but of a conceptual impossibility. Even if we
were to consider the process in our imagination as going on for millions
of years, or even millions of centuries, the process would not be complete
nor would all the integers be given. Thus the law of formation which will
give us the individual whole numbers, cannot give us all these numbers.
The numbers must be formed one after another. The process can never
be complete. Wherever it is stopped, we have only finite numbers which
do not exhaust the possibility of the production of more finite numbers
by the same process" (p. 35). The basic confusions here, if not gross, are
at least crude. For it is a mistake to suppose that mathematics imposes
on individual lay intelligence the presumably arduous task of a personal
construction of the number series. It is therefore difficult to take seriously
the writer's optimistic proposal that "in place of Cantor's definition we
Would suggest that a set is a multitude in fieri according to a certain
law" (p. 36).
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BOOK REVIEWS
Similar misconceptions provoke the important query and reponse: "Is
there not then a contradiction in a number greater than all the numbers
which have no greatest? It seems so to us because we believe that the
totality of whole numbers can never be completely exhibited. The impossibility of actuating all the individual whole numbers is not due to a
weakness of our intellect but to the nature of the number series itself.
Its actuation is always a fieri which contains a further potentiality that
can never be completely actuated ... This is the reason why we see only
illusion in what Cantor calls the region of numbers 'outside the endless
number series 1, 2, 3, .• .'" (p. 46). But Cantor is both precise and clear
on the subject, while the author is seriously confused. For it is a confusion to identify as synonymous "whole" and "bounded whole." For
there very well may be a whole that is very properly without one or more
appropriate bounds. Cantor thus correctly distinguishes an endless set
from a set in general. For a set may or may not have terms and hence
last members. And it is therefore no contradiction, nor even the
semblance of one, to maintain that (1) the set of all natural numbers does
not contain a greatest and thus last integer, and yet (2) it is whole, entire,
integral, and complete. For all lhe natural numbers are comprised
within it, no natural number is omitted from its embrace, all of its
elements are natural numbers, and there is no element in it which is not a
natural number.
Father Elliot moreover strives to make clear just where and why he
undertakes to differ from Cantor. For [for Cantor] "it was sufficient to
give a definition of such a [transfinite] number that would make it
determinate and would so establish its relationship with other numbers
that there would be a clear distinction between them. But we require a
contact with reality to ensure the objectivity of our concepts. If there
is no such contact, the concepts developed have a purely speculative
interest and cannot serve for practical applications. Such applications
are only possible when the conditions assumed by the definition are fulfilled. Such, for example, is the case of the non-Euclidean geometries
which are true for the type of space presupposed by the initial postulates
and not for the ordinary space which is Euclidean" (pp. 46-217). Here
the baleful effects of interpreting mathematics as the reflective study of
ens quantum in the second degree of formal abstraction take their full
and relentless toll. The orientation here is hopelessly erroneous. For the
traditional mystery within Scholasticism concerning the application of
mathematics to physics is solved without residue by isomorphism, not
abstraction. A mathematical physics is possible if, and only if, when, and
so far as there just happens to be an identity of relational structure amid
a disparity of relations and relata. Such isomorphism is no surrender
to a reprehensible subjectivism in epistemology. For it leaves empirical
knowledge as objective as a responsible realist could demand without
the necessity of denaturing mathematics from its native function as a
purely speculative science of relations or of order. And in particular
there are not any different types of space. There are only different
metrics which give rise to the-misnamed non-Euclidean geometries. It is
therefore impossible to heed with serious intent the author's remark that
�BOOK REVIEWS
189
"with regard to their objective practical value, they [transfinite numbers]
are indeterminate signposts in an illusory space" (p. 48).
And it is simply a major mistake of fatal proportions to report that
"the process of counting or numbering is used to determine whether two
sets are equivalent or not, that is, whether they have the same power
or not. Thus Cantor writes: 'We say that two aggregates M and N are
"equivalent" . . . if it is possible to put them, by some law, in such a
relation to one another that to every element of each one of them corresponds one and only one element of the other'" (p. 48). I respectfully
submit that the quotation from Cantor docs not warrant the interpretation
here given to its content.
Nor is it to any purpose to present Cantor's neat and profound distinction between Realitat [Entitiit] and Zahl and then to conclude that
"one thing is clear enough and that is that he admits that there are more
elements in one set [of all whole numbers] than in the other [of only
even numbers]. With this admission the long-accepted principle about
the whole and the part remains secure" (p. 52). But such comfort,
although obtainable in other ways, is here counterfeit, because grounded
on a confusion. It was clear to Cantor, as it was to Aquinas in his own
way (Summa theologica 3. 10. 3. 3), and in fact still is to many discerning persons, that (1) although the set of all natural numbers is
somehow more rich in elements than the set of all (but only) the even
numbers, (2) its cardinal power or number is identically the same. This
precious insight is proof enough that one must get accustomed to the
sharp and significant distinction between (a) numerically greater, and
(b) entitatively, ontologically, superior, richer, or "greater." For it is a
mistake to suppose that the purely incidental coincidence of entity and
number, familiarly associated with finite sets, is a general metaphysical
law that rules all sets of elements without qualification.
It is moreover not improbable that many serious students of Cantor
will construe as an impertinence the remark that "it is impossible, even
conceptually, to have the totality of the natural numbers in all their
individuality. The concept derived from that set must reflect the nature
of the set. If there is an inexhaustive potentiality in that set, our mind
would do violence to the objective nature of that set in conceiving it as
completely actuated in all its individual elements. Our mind does not
form concepts in this violent way. When A 0 [Cantor's first transfinite
cardinal power] is defined as the concept corresponding to this set given
in its totality, that definition is not a naturally formed concept but an
artificial creation of a mind that has not carefully examined the object
it would define" (p. 58). It would indeed be violence to intelligence to
conceive the last element in an endless collection. But it is also a re•
grettable type of intellectual violence to maintain that an endless set
cannot be whole, integral, entire and complete by adequate and determinate definitional construction.
And if it be correct to argue that "if A 0 is the mental representation of
the set of whole numbers, it must represent that set as it is objectively,
that is, with its potentiality" (p. 59), it is surely a misconception of
Cantor's exquisite theory to construe A 0 as "the mental representation of
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BOOK REVIEWS
the set of whole numbers," and an error of fundamental proportions to
regard that set "as it is objectively, that is, with its potentiality." And
one may honestly ask the author: if "we cannot concede that the concept
of the totality of the number series which would include within itself all
the natural numbers and yet leave room for the formation of other
numbers, is a true concept, conformed to the true reality of our number
system" (pp. 83-84), then what numbers, please, are not included in
that set?
In conclusion one may note (1) that in traditional AristotelianThomistic metaphysics act and potency are indispensable and indissoluble
correlatives, so that (2) the "potential infinite" becomes meaningless in a
system where the "actual infinite" (in magnitude or multitude) is contradictory and unreal. It is impossible therefore to agree with the
author that "the theory of transfinite numbers, far from forcing us to
accept the actual infinite, obliges us to retain the potential infinite"
( p. 85). There is a deplorable ignoratio elenchi here. For the real
'issue is not between an actual infinite multitude and a potential infinite
multitude, but as Cantor saw and was at great pains to make perspicuously clear, between the actual finite.and the actual transfinite.
JOSEPH T. CLARK, S.J.
CHRISTMAS THE WORLD ROUND
The Christmas Book. By Francis X. ·weiser, S.J.
Brace, 1952. Pp. 188. $3.00.
New York, Harcourt,
This collection of Christmas customs is not only a little cyclopedia on
the subject but an inspiring testament to the faith of Christian peoples of
each age. Written in a delightfully easy style, the book almost belies the
patient research that had to go into its making. Since there is nothing like
it in English, the book deserves wide circulation and may be used very
effectively by priests in lectures and sermons to reveal the religrous origins
of our most treasured Nativity festivities.
"All the countries which have no more legends will be condemned to
die of cold," wrote a poet of our time. It is interesting to note how each
national genius has created traditions from its inner warmth (and how
sadly true are the poet's words of the Puritans who tried to kill the
legends). The simple piety of the poor whether in the Ukraine or the
Tyrol enlisted whatever mid-winter material they had to welcome the
Infant King. Drama, liturgy, song, vegetation, light, even so domestic a
thing as pastry are all given a Christmas flavor that enriches them and
us. Many people would be surprised to learn that there is a religious
significance to the Christmas tree, the poinsettia, mistletoe, holly, candles,
cookies and the exchange of presents. Father Weiser has told the storY
of all these and many more in neatly arranged chapters.
NICHOLAS J. CARROLL, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
191
Practice: A Pool of Teaching Experience. Edited by Rudolph J. Knoepfle,
S.J. Chicago, Loyola University Press, · 1952. Pp. 354. $2.50.
Monotony is the curse of every profession but nowhere is it more
noticeable and disastrous than in the teacher's trade. Practice with its
245 successful teaching techniques and methods is designed to help the
harassed teacher who anxiously seeks to inject the tonic of variety into
his work. Father Knoepfie, the founder of the quarterly, Practice, has
edited this present volume which represents contributions from 175
Jesuits.
The various subjects and the number of articles devoted to each are
arranged in the following order: English (80), public speaking (15),
Latin and Greek (55), religion (13), social sciences (21), physical
sciences (18), classroom procedure (43). Since English teachers are
most vocal on the throes of the rut, the preponderance of articles on
English should not be surprising. Most engaging of all the suggestions
are the ones which help the student read a deeper meaning into the accepted routine of ordinary life, e.g. having a definite point of view when
he peruses the sports page, or glances at an editorial, or studies a
Saturday Et·ening Post cover, or watches television. Effecting an integration between class work and life cannot fail to be appealing. The
majority of the teaching techniques, however, concerns an effective
method of presenting grammar rules, conducting reviews (always a
problem), correcting homework, promoting concertationes.
Only thirteen articles deal directly with the teaching of religion. This
summary treatment seems to reflect the general lack of vitality in the
teaching of religion on the high school level. Perhaps the curriculum is
at fault. However, the dearth of articles on the formal teaching of
religion is offset in part by the numerous suggestions involving the
natural introduction of spiritual topics in the secular subjects.
Easy reading might be the characteristic mark of this book. The
authors of the articles write clearly and succinctly, sometimes humor•
ously, but almost always manifesting fine psychological insight. Other
welcome features include tasteful illustrations, intelligent organization,
a comprehensive book list for students of the classics, and a complete
index.
The veteran teacher, eager to conduct stimulating classes, would consider the effort well worth while if a thorough perusal of Practice
yielded only one helpful idea. He should find many.
EDWARD F. MALONEY, S.J.
Be Not Solicitous. Edited by Maisie Ward. New York, Sheed & Ward,
1053. Pp. 254. $3.00.
Be Not Solicitous is a refreshing series of essays by thirteen very
refreshing people, mothers and fathers of families, with but one exception, who have been willing to accept Christ's invitation to put aside
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BOOK REVIEWS
solicitude for the things of this world in order to seek more surely the
kingdom of heaven. In her introductory essay Maisie Ward tells us "the
theme of this book is God's Providence in relation to Catholic families
who put their trust in Him." Because trust in God is a most fruitful
virtue, the essays indicate the high spirituality which can be found in
Catholic family life and which is actually found in the ordinary lives
of these most ordinary people who have found the secret for most extraordinary living. That secret is abandonment to the will of God.
"The case for abandonment is this . . . . It solves the whole complex
problem of human existence at one stroke. He who lives in absolute
abandonment to the will of God shares in the power and wisdom of God.
He can know or do anything God wills him to do. . . . Superficially
nothing is changed. . . . Substantially God has taken over (p. 88)."
The constant insistence that Christian family life is the indispensable
means for the survival of our Christian faith and culture is another
theme which receives almost equal treatment with the main theme of
the essays. Christopher Dawson has written: "If the Catholic theory of
society is true, the supersession of the family means not progress, but
the death of society, the end of oiif age, and the passing of European
civilization." It is a message which is very timely today. It recalls
Abbe Michonneau's plea for the Christianization of the family as a
family rather than of its members as members, even of its children, because it has not always been true that when the Church won the young,
she also secured the next generation. The young must live in the bosom
of the family and if this is shallow or thorny soil, the good seed will be
choked and die. Editor Ward tells us:
"Somehow we must get back to conceiving the family, not the individual, as the unit . . . it is too easy for propaganda, for waves of
enthusiasm, to sweep off their feet masses of the young. . . . The absolutely necessary counterweight must be found in the family, in the
balance it gives between generations, in its possession of treasures of
wisdom and tradition. . . . (Pp. 10-11)."
The future of the Christian family would indeed be secure j! it could
be entrusted to people like the authors of this collection.
~
The essays themselves treat a variety of subjects. While indicating
the role trust in God should play in Catholic life, they show us the
relationship that is possible between family life and poverty, spirituality,
the apostolate, and community in the Mystical Body. Of special interest
are the essays entitled "Abandonment," "Marriage and Spirituality,"
"The Joy of Poverty," and "An Interracial Catholic Marriage."
JOHN J. McCoNNELL, S.J.
�THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXII, No. 3
JULY, 1953
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1953
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
____________ 195
A NEW WAY TO THE HEART OF INDIA ?___________ 218
Swami Dindass
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES ___________________ 224
Francis J. Marien
HISTORICAL NOTES
Letters of Father James Pye Neale----------------------------c---238
OBITUARY
Father William J. Brosnan-------------------------------------271
Father Walter J. Mills ___________________________.278
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
The Catholic Mind Through Fifty Years (Masse) ____________.284
The Church and Modem Science (Vollert; Pius XII) ___________ 286
Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Warrior (Sievers) ______________ 286
The Life of James Cardinal Gibbons (Ellis) _____________ 287
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Francis J. l\larien (California Province) is a student of philosophy in the Graduate School at St. Louis University, St. Louis, Mo.
Father William Repetti (Maryland Province) is Director of the
Archives at Georgeto·wn University, Washington, D. C.
Father J. Harding Fisher (New York Province) is Spiritual Father
at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
Father William A. Donaghy (New England Province) is the Father
Superior at Campion Hall, North Andover, Mass.
1\lr. Francis P. Dinneen (Maryland Province) is in first year theology
at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
* * *
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WooDSTOCK
to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid greatly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contr.Pil]tor.
LETTERS
* * *
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, }g42, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars YearlY
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, l\IARYLAND
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
The Miracle at l\lonroe 1
The philosopher and theologian will have to wait till Judgment Day to declare definitively if Gonzaga Retreat House
merits the title "miracle" late or stricte dictum. In the
interim its story should be told, for the story of Gonzaga is
the story of faith and sacrifice uncommon in our times. In
a word, it is the story of a retreat house, the first retreat
house for youth in America, constructed largely by youths
themselves and wholly by volunteers.
Though the major work was finished after thirteen months
of labor in time to have eight retreats in the five weeks before
the formal dedication on June 7, 1952, the story itself dates
back before the war. It stems back to Mount Manresa and
Loyola at Morristown, back even to Manresa-on-Severn where
Father Raymond J. H. Kennedy in the late 1930's was conducting occasional retreats for high school seniors of the
Baltimore-Washington area. After a short time there he
was transferred to Loyola Retreat House in Morristown and
he brought his hobby with him. It was then that his boys'
retreats took on a pre-induction cast, for with Pearl Harbor
and the war every high school senior automatically became
a pre-inductee, and pre-induction retreats became a crying
need of the day.
Of Boys and Retreats
1\Iost of the retreatants came from Jesuit schools, entire
classes from the senior year, usually broken up into groups
of thirty-five or so. Some few non-Jesuit schools managed
to get in, but most of them had to be turned away, for Father
Kennedy was likewise giving men's retreats and the houses
were geared primarily for the older retreatants. It was the
same story when he was transferred to Staten Island with the
status of 1942. There the superior, Father Thomas H. Moore,
who eyed the work sympathetically, gave Father Kennedy
free rein to corral all the boys he could. Retreats were held
for them in midweeks, and once, at least, in October, 1943
a pre-induction retreat was held concurrently with a weekend men's retreat for a group of public high school boys.
All through the war and after it these boys' retreats con-
�196
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
tinued, Father Kennedy conducting all but one or two of them
until the Feast of Christ the King in 1949 when he suffered
a heart attack during his 399th retreat.
It might have been the end of a tremendous job well done
had he not been dreaming since 1944 of a retreat house just
for youth and, had the good Lord in His providence not
provided against this very day.
Either it was all pure chance or all part of the miracle that
a Scholastic, John W. Magan, who up to now had rather
scorned the idea of boys' retreats, and was teaching at the
Crown Heights School of Catholic Workmen in Brooklyn,
New York, had a few free days toward the end of April in
1942. The seniors from Brooklyn Prep School were scheduled
to make their retreat at Morristown, and a Scholastic prefect
was needed. No other could~be obtained, so Mr. Magan was
sent. The effects of the retreat on the boys who were making
it began to become apparent to him, and, while he was sitting
in the bus waiting to go home, the thought occurred to him,
"If a retreat can do so much to our •boys, what could it do
for boys in public schools?"
It was the first Friday in May of 1942. It was this thought
that was ultimately responsible for the opening of Gonzaga
just a few days short of ten years from that date.
A few weeks after tliat Brooklyn Prep retreat Mr. Magan
visited Father Kennedy who by this time had been trans-ferred to Staten Island, and asked him about the possibility
of a public high school retreat. "You get the boys· and I'll
conduct the retreat," was Father Kennedy's reply, aiid a date
was set for the following Easter Monday, almost a year away.
It seemed so simple-to get twenty-five high school boys, the
minimum number needed-to make a closed retreat. Yet after
almost a year of work there was not even one. Pastors and
curates had been contacted and the only results to show were
a pair of thinly worn shoes and a ringing in the ear constantly
echoing, "Boy, you don't know what you're doing. Why,
when we first had released time instruction in this parish
two hundred kids showed up out of a possible four hundred
and of the two hundred present fifty percent hadn't been to
• Mass in four years." Yet it never seemed to dawn on the
priests concerned that the retreat was the answer to their
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
197
problem and that a little cooperation might spell the end of
their defeat. No one so much as offered the name of a
possible student contact, and no one had yet signed up for the
retreat now two weeks away.
On Passion Sunday morning, feeling pretty low, Mr. Magan
made his way to the Brooklyn Carmelite convent there to
ask prayers that he get his twenty-five retreatants. The
nuns promised to pray, and with that he went to Mount
Vernon, New York, to visit a Protestant friend who promptly
gave him the names and addresses of eight fourth-year public
high school boys who were about to go into service, two of them
before Easter. These two, Charles Broussard and William
Manley, signed up for a men's retreat over the following
week-end and two others of the eight signed up for the
Easter Monday retreat.
Contacting a public high school teacher in Brooklyn on the
same Sunday evening, he was invited to Manual Training
High School on the following day. There the assistant
principal introduced him to another teacher who ·forthwith
gave him a list of one hundred names and addresses of the
senior boys who were thought to be Catholics. In only one
case of the hundred did she make a mistake and that one
happened to be a very devout High Episcopalian. It was a
very different story he had previously obtained from another
high school principal-supposedly a fervent Catholic-who
advised him, "If you were to ask me and if I were to look
most carefully, I might be able to tell you if the boys were
white or black, but I have no way of knowing if they be
Catholic, Protestant, or Jew." The Manual Training teacher
who proved so cooperative upon hearing of this other, succinctly remarked, "I can't tell you if the boys are Catholics
either. But I know which ones went to St. Augustine's grammar school and which ones have Italian names." Armed with
the list she had given him, Mr. Magan spent his free time in
the remaining two weeks climbing the rickety stairs of the
tenements in South Brooklyn and knocking on doors of families too poor to have bells. It added up to twenty-seven prospects by Holy Saturday night and twenty-six retreatants on
Monday afternoon, the one defection being the brother of a
seminarian who talked him out of it by conveying the im-
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GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
pression that a retreat meant going into one's shell instead
of emerging from it.
Because of the success of this first effort, another retreat
for public school pre-inductees was organized for October of
the same year and dozens of other boys were rounded up to
fill in the gaps of more conventionally organized groups.
Remote Plans for Gonzaga
By the time June and theology came around, Mr. Magan's
interest in boys' retreats had overshadowed his initial enthusiasm for sociology and labor schools and, with the approval of
Father Provincial, he planned to devote any free time he
might have at Woodstock to the study of the Exercises and
the problems of young men.> With this idea in mind, he
visited Father Kennedy on -the Sunday before he left for
theology. On the way to see him the thought of a boys'
retreat house entered his mind. No sooner had he reached
Manhattanville College where the meeting was to take place
than Father Kennedy suggested to him, "Someday we're
going to have a boys' retreat house, and we're going to call
it Manresa-Gonzaga." Only God knows which of the two
had first thought of the idea. In any case both men were
only dreaming.
But Father Kennedy-was in a more practical position to
dream than was a first-year theologian. So practical was
his vantage point that within a few years time boys to whom
he had given closed retreats and who were now in uniform,
sent him of their service pay an aggregate of ten tliousand
dollars in five and ten dollar bills. At last the boys' retreat
house was getting a foot to stand on.
Plans were to build a house on Staten Island on the
·property next to Mount Manresa, and five acres of property
were actually purchased for this end. Manresa itself was to
cede to Manresa-Gonzaga five acres of its own property, thus
giving in all a sizeable site for a retreat house.
But apparently God in His goodness did not want the
house built there, at least not the first boys' retreat house,
• for just at this time he called to himself a prominent Catholic
layman who had promised to contribute fifty thousand dollars
and to induce five other men to make a like contribution.
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
199
With that kind of money the house could have been built and
an architect friend of Father Kennedy had actually drawn
up plans. But the untimely death of the prospective donor
caused the whole thing to collapse and the boys' retreat house
fund remained ten thousand dollars, being added to now and
then by a dollar or two in change.
Four years passed by in the meantime and Father Magan
was now ordained. Father Kennedy, whose retreat-giving
pace had quickened every year, was showing signs of weakening and on at least three occasions was forced to take a rest,
twice in a hospital. A small portion of his retreat schedule
fell to Father Magan, but the bulk of it was assigned to
Father Jus tin McCarthy, when Father Kennedy's physician
ordered a total rest.
In the meantime Father Kennedy had been residing at
Xavier, where Father Magan was likewise stationed, assigned
to giving occasion~} retreats and promoting Brothers' vocations. With the June status of 1950, Father Kennedy went
to LeMoyne and, as a farewell word to his protege, advised
him, "It's up to you to build that boys' retreat house."
Never had a more hopeless assignment been given, for in
addition to having a status of his own, Father Magan's sole
contacts were the boys of South Brooklyn whom he had
organized for retreats several years before and other more
or less underprivileged young men whom he had met in the
interim. Nor had he any knowledge of building. But God
can make up for human deficiencies and this time He did it
with a vengeance.
Monroe
Father Provincial needed a secretary for the Summer of
1950, his regular amanuensis being scheduled to make a Holy
Year pilgrimage. He called Father Magan to Kohlmann Hall
and there the opportunity came.
One morning's mail brought an advertising brochure offering for sale the New York Military Academy at Cornwall.
It was only a shot in the dark, but as he gave it to Father
Provincial, the temporary secretary remarked, "I could think
of a good use for this place. It would make a fine boys' retreat house." The Provincial was not impressed and replied,
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GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
"We're ·buying no more property until we find a use for
Monroe." That ended the discussion but started a new train
of thought. And as Father Magan made his retreat at Woodstock prior to taking his final vows on August 15, 1950, the
dominant thought of eight days' meditation was Monroe,
Monroe, Monroe. He had not seen the place since his juniorate
villa in 1939, but vague recollections of the past seemed to
say that Monroe could become a retreat house.
. After the Mass of his vows on the feast of the Assumption,
Father Magan, accompanied by his father and a friend,
drove down to the old Seven Springs Mountain House to see
if his retreat ideas had been a light or a distraction.
The structure, a building of Civil War vintage, once a
famous summer hotel which· had housed such notables as
General Grant, Oscar Wilde,. Sarah Bernhardt, and Edwin
Booth, and which gave George M. Cohan his locale when
rewriting Earl Derr Biggers' Seven Keys to Baldpate had
been obtained for the Society in the early nineteen hundreds
by Father William J. Walsh, who at the time was pastor of
Our Lady of Loretto parish on the lower east side in New
York. To it for several years he brought his Italian boys,
about two hundred strong, for their summer vacation. In
the beginning he used the building in its primitive state,
though he transformed- the old carriage stable into a beautiful mountain chapel. On the fourth of July in 1913 a fire
of unknown origin swept the entire place, virtually nothing
being saved but the lives of the boys, the chapel, and the exterior walls of the house.
..With the ingenuity manifested in all his building projects
(he likewise had charge of the construction of Saint Andrew·
on-Hudson and the Seven Springs Sanatorium), Father Walsh
turned a mass of rock and burnt mortar into a castle-like
structure, ideal for a retreat house.
That was the building which Father Magan found on
August 15, 1950. On September 8 he again visited the place,
this time in the company of his father and Father William T.
Wood who, as a classmate with some knowledge of boys'
retreats, he felt would be able to disillusion him if, in his
interest in getting a retreat house started, he was seeing too
much in the possibilities at Monroe.
�Gonzaga Retreat House and the Chapel of the Boy Jesus
��GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
201
With Father Wood's encouragement then, he wrote Father
Provincial on that same day suggesting the possibility of using
the Seven Springs Mountain House for boys' retreats. The
structure was now rapidly disintegrating since for nearly
thirty years it had not been kept in repair and had been used
in its rather primitive state for nothing but a juniorate villa.
for three weeks every summer.
Father McMahon promptly acquiesced to Father Magan's
request for permission to bring a committee of the student
counsellors of the Metropolitan Area up to Monroe to inspect
the house with a view to determining its suitability as a boys'
retreat house. And on Sunday, October 13, 1950, Father
Anthony LaBau (Fordham Prep), Father Thomas Burke
(Regis), Father Paul Guterl (Loyola School), Father Jerome
Kleber (Brooklyn Prep), and Father Gerard Knoepfel
(Xavier) in the company of Father Magan made the proposed
inspection.
It was all part of the miracle or pure chance, if you prefer,
that Father Magan was once more back in Father Provincial's
office at the very time of this visit. Thus he was not only
able to type up the list of proposed alterations in Father
Provincial's presence and mimeograph them all right next
to his office, but, much more importantly, was in a position
to answer all questions in his mind, each one as it came.
More than that, he was there on the spot the day after
the visit and at Father Provincial's request was able to get
in writing the opinions of the committee for presentation to
the province consultation on the following day and, when the
consultors approved the scheme, to put it in form for Father
General and Cardinal Spellman.
Call that fate if you will, but whatever it was, the Lord
never worked more deftly in bringing about the arrangements
of His Providence, for now, when this phase of the work was
done, Father Magan's latest term as Father Provincial's
secretary once again expired.
On the feast of St. Stanislaus, 1950 Father McMahon
informed Father Magan that Father General had approved
of his scheme and a month later wrote to him of the Cardinal's
blessing on the work, adding the line, "I have written to
Father Hughes (rector of Saint Andrew) and Father Tuite
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GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
(superior at the Monroe Sanatorium) telling them that you
are in charge."
Of Plans and Planners
At this point the project should have collapsed, for Father
Magan had not ambitioned the assignment for himself. He
had never driven a nail correctly in his life and on principle,
all through his course in the Society, had deliberately avoided
mingling in any work which might have had any mechanical
implications, secretly scorning his fellow Scholastics who were
adept with hammer or saw. But the Lord had His own way
of providing. It came in the chance meeting late one night
of Father Magan and an unknown Xavier High School freshman.
The lad, still in his militarY·· uniform, was lolling around
the porter's lodge at nine o'clock in the evening. Father
Magan chanced to stop in at the time and, surprised at seeing
the boy, exchanged a word with him. One thing led to
another and, before the brief conversation was over, the boy
had mentioned that his scoutmaster was a marvelous craftsman with wood. It gave Father Magan a light and when he
left the boy, he phoned the scoutmaster, Richard H. Neubeck,
and asked him to pay him a visit.
Dick Neubeck, a young lad of twenty-three, was at Xavier
the next day and Father Magan, still very naive in the ways
of construction, asked him to make a few wooden lighting
fixtures. His thoughts centered more on decoration than on
the real reconstruction of the house. It would have--been a
trivial job for one who was a craftsman with wood, but
Neubeck did not jump on the band wagon as quickly as Father
Magan hoped. "Let me see the place," was his laconic reply,
"and then I'll give you my answer."
The following Saturday morning, in the company of Mr.
Denis Corney, a contractor from Orange, New Jersey, and
Mr. Charles Stumpp, an architect from Perth Amboy, the
pair visited Monroe. The two professionals had offered themselves for the day that they might give some advice and
check over the meagre plans which Father Magan had.
Probably more through sympathy than anything else, Corney
and Stumpp were virtually silent during most of their visit,
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
203
and made very few suggestions. They did confess however
that the scheme in Father Magan's mind would run to a lot
of money-probably $150,000 if the work were put out on
contract. 2 But that was never in his mind. He felt from the
start that the work could be done almost solely with volunteers. Messrs. Corney and Stumpp admitted that it could,
were enough volunteers assembled. How many, they did not
say, nor did they give the priest, now trying his hand at
building for the first time in his life, any inkling of what a
task he had taken upon himself-or had been assigned by
superiors, depending on how you considered it.
Dick Neubeck, on the contrary suddenly became quite vocal.
Ideas started sprouting in his mind and with his vivid
imagination, he saw a finished house and literally thousands
of boys making retreats in it. He saw besides, with the
vision which goes with faith, how important the work would
be were it to result in even a single soul being saved from
hell. That was all that was needed and he started making
plans. Before the day was over he had called the Provincial's
Socius from a restaurant where he and Father Magan had
gone to talk over things and, within an hour, Gonzaga was
well under way. 3
Ten thousand feet of lumber were to be cut down at the
Port Kent Villa and delivered to Monroe. This was enough
to start on, this and the plans which N eubeck promised to
draw up.
Night after night, after spending his days purchasing
ladies dresses for Montgomery Ward, he worked making plans
for a boys' retreat house. When the plans were finally done
and delivered to Father Provincial, together with a note of
approval from Mr. Stumpp, the architect, Father Magan was
called to Kohlmann Hall to give an account of things. The
Provincial, his Socius, and Father Laurence J. McGinley, one
of his consultors, asked a few simple questions, while the
other consultor present, Father James Barnett, simply looked
on in silence. Then it was his turn. For about an hour he
quizzed Father Magan about the condition of the roof, the
walls, and the electric wires in them. There was not a thing
worth asking about, which he forgot to bring up. And somehow
the answers came, though most of the questions had not entered Father Magan's mind until Father Barnett had asked
�204
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
them. At one point Father McGinley lightened the tension of
the cross-examination by remarking, "This reminds me of the
name of Father Brosnan's book Faith and Reason," pointing
as he said it, first to the priest on the witness stand and then
to the prosecutor. When it was all over and Father Magan
was leaving the room, someone remarked to Father Barnett,
"You asked him the questions and he surely gave you the
answers." But to this day Father Magan does not know
where most of the answers came from, unless it was from
above. And someone above must have given him the answer
to the biggest question of all "How much will it cost?" for
when the requested cost estimate was submitted to Father
Provincial, the total figure came to thirty thousand dollars,
just about the sum in the Boys: Retreat House Account which
had been accumulated over the years. In addition to this thirty
thousand dollars there were to be three other expenditures,
for a new roof, for paint, and for food for the volunteers.
And though Father Magan's figure of thirty thousand dollars
was, naturally speaking, largely a matter of guess work,
when the financial report was submitted at the end of the
building project, the total expenditures, exclusive of that
spent for the three deductibles, was $29,517.29.
Volunteers All
But this was not so fantastic as the actual construction
itself.
It started on Easter Monday, March 26, 1951, when Father
Magan, in the company of four college boys, Robert Vogt,
William Boyan, William Branigan, and Joseph Kazanchy went
to Monroe to start reconstructing the house. 4
The next day a few others came and until Saturday of
Easter week nothing was done except to remove debris and
to get things set up so that Neubeck might set to work.
Temporary quarters were arranged in the present director's room. Double-deck navy bunks were put up in each
corner and an old table in the center of the room which was
to serve for several weeks as dining room, bed room, kitchen,
and recreation room of what virtually became an unofficial
religious community, the personnel of which was to change
from day to day.
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
205
It was a lot of fun, pioneering in this way, but it spelt selfsacrifice and plenty of it for the boys who centered around
Father Magan in getting Gonzaga going. At first the days
were sometimes fairly warm, but in the evenings the
thermometer seldom indicated 32°, with the consequence that
running water was a luxury as yet unknown, and the allpurpose living room was heated solely by the warmth of a
fireplace which gave off more smoke than heat. Blankets
over the windows helped keep out the cold, ,but they likewise
kept out light and added one more inconvenience to a life
that was made up of them.
Though spring was approaching, the winter had not waned
and, just as Simon Flemming drove up with the ten thousand
feet of green lumber from Port Kent, a snow storm of
blizzard proportions made the blood freeze in the veins of
the boys who unloaded it. But their hearts were warmed by
the thought that, come Saturday morning, this lumber would
make its way into the walls of the house.
Truth to tell, however, it was to be less simple than that.
A winter storm of one day became a spring downpour the
next and now, for the first time, Father Magan realized the
horrible state of the building. One after the other, the rooms
began to show leaks; wash basins were set to catch the water
in every front room of the house and all of them overflowed.
The blankets on the windows now served a new purpose,
sponging up the water which dripped in through the walls and,
to some extent, preventing the beds from becoming drenched.
Chins dropped as the boys began to realize how woeful conditions were. And Father Magan, whose chin was the lowest
of all, was all set to call the Provincial to admit defeat at the
start. But his heart had been set on getting a boys' retreat
house and, though it now seemed further than ever from
reality (considerable money had already been expended),
he could not give up so soon.
As a last resort he summoned a weather-proofing contractor
to give him an estimate. The gentleman came on the following Saturday and without so much as going into the building
to see the extent of the damage, took out a tape measure and
started to measure the walls. Within ten minutes he had set a
price of seventy-five hundred dollars on a hit and miss job
�206
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
which would not have been adequate, and which would have
covered only a portion of the building.
Up to this time the big bugaboo in the entire enterprise
had been the heating system. This had to be installed by
experts and on a strictly business basis. The best estimate
to date was twenty-three thousand dollars. 5 Add seventy-five
hundred to this and the entire ·budget was gone, with a considerable debt remaining: The deal was unthinkable, for in
addition to heating and weather-proofing, the thirty thousand
dollars had to supply all the plumbing, a new water system,
seventeen new rooms, including an entirely new kitchen and
dining room, vast electrical changes, and furnishings for the
whole house.
It seemed at last that the time of reckoning had come and
with it the time for humiliations. But there had to be another
try before throwing in the sponge, so Father Magan called
a Mr. Charles Pavarini, a protege of Father Walsh from the
old Loretto parish days, and now a large cement contractor.
Pavarini frankly admitted he knew nothing of weatherproofing, that his work was entirely different, but he suggested a call to the New York arch-diocesan building commission, hoping that that office might recommend the right
man. The name of George Hamilton was forthcoming and he
proved to be the ideal. Unlike the Catholic contractor who had come up previously,
Mr. Hamilton, a Protestant, head of the United Construction
Company of New York, spent over two hours looking around
the building, climbing over the parapet and inspecting every
crack. When he was through, instead of giving a figure as
the other man had done, he simply asked, "Who are these
boys working here?" Upon being told, he replied, "Then
you don't want me for this job. These boys can do it for
you. I'll do it if you like, but an adequate job will cost
$12,500. There's no need for getting me. Let me teach a
couple of them how to do the work, then I'll furnish the tools
and the basic materials and come back every week or so to
check up and to supervise the work." 6
The Port Kent lumber that was to be used as stuffing for the
• walls of the new rooms found itself instead being used for a
tremendous scaffold across the face of the building. That
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
207
was the first step to be undertaken if every bit of cement
was to be removed and then all put back again to make the
structure waterproof. Though the winter chill was still to be
felt in the air the job was undertaken as if it were really a
pleasure. Amid the glow of automobile headlights and that
of extension lights hanging out the windows, the scaffold went
up largely by night, that more important work might be
··
accomplished during the day.
Nor did the late hours lessen the calibre of the work. When
asked if the scaffold was strong enough for unskilled workers
to mount it, Mr. Hamilton replied, "It's at least five times as
safe as the legal requirements." And safe it must have been,
for it supported a countless number of workers-for nearly
six months. That was how long it took to accomplish the
work on the outside of the building, before anything substantial could be done on the interior.
The work ran on apace all during the summer vacation, as
Gonzaga played host to an average of twenty boys who stayed
on from the end of classes in June till they convened again
in September. Chipping and pointing, pointing and chipping
was the order of the day. The work was tedious in the extreme and almost imperceptible, but it was being done.
To supervise it, during the whole of the job, the Lord sent
Gerald Leo Heaphy. Jerry, a lad of about twenty-three, had
been the receptionist at St. Ignatius Rectory in New York for
a year or two before Gonzaga began. His Irish ancestry and
English accent, together with his facility for subtly teasing
Ours, had endeared him to some of the community and made
him despised by the rest. As he had quit the job just about
this time, he looked up Father Magan whom he had met once
or twice at the switchboard. It was only then he happened to
hear of Monroe and went there just when a supervisor was
necessary for the pointing operation. It was to him that Mr.
Hamilton taught the ins and outs of the trade and it was he
who measured the depth of every crack cut in the wall and the
mix of each hod of cement. Though he had been born with a
silver spoon in his mouth he became a day laborer at Gonzaga
and stayed on for six months, until the pointing job was done.
Lest any should forget him, his co-workers made sure to give
him a special place in Gonzaga Associates' theme song, sung
�208
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
to the tune of the then popular "Mockingbird Hill":
When we're out on the scaffold
And our fingers hurt,
And mad Jerry Heaphy, treats us like dirt,
When he falls from the scaffold we all will repent
But you can bet your sweet life it was no accident.
Of Destruction and Construction
Pointing the building was not the only outside job, nor was
it the hardest of them. At least as formidable was the ditch,
two of them in fact, the one running from the chapel to the
pump house, a distance of eighty odd feet, and the other four
hundred feet from the pump house to the furnace room of the
main building where the water tanks were to be set. Each
ditch had to be dug four feet deep, and most of the way was
through rock and shale. A local contractor refused to set an
estimate on the cost of doing the job mechanically for fear of
what he might run into, so the volunteers had to dig it by
hand, the toil being brutal every inch of the way.
Easier but requiring more skill was the construction of the
chapel furnace room, a cinder block structure, which had to
go up adjacent to the pump house to furnish heat for the
chapel and the water system. The masonry on it was done
largely by Stanley Pardo; a third year student from St. Peter's
Prep, and Thomas Rizzo, a Fordham Law School freshman,
neither of whom had ever seen cement until he saw Gonzaga.
The chimney was put up by a most unlikely lad, Donald Murray, a Fordham College graduate, at the time working as an
aetuarian in the Metropolitan Life.
For the rest, the summer work seemed more like destruction than construction. Floors had to be ripped up in almost
every room of the building and plaster had to be taken down.
Even as every bit of cement had to be removed from the outside front of the building, so every bit of plaster had to be
shorn from the front interior walls. The old dining room
floor, made of a beautiful oak, had to be removed before the
heating could go through. And the concrete floor in the
present dining room had to be torn to bits for the installation
• of sewer lines. A wooden partition wall in the old carriage
garage on the ground floor came down at eleven· o'clock one
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
209
night to make way for the fireproof walls which now separate
the kitchen and furnace room. It was the same story in every
part of the house and was succinctly summed up at the October
meeting of the New York Fire Department Holy Name Society by a fireman who had fallen in love with Gonzaga:
"These 'boys have been working all summer. They have the
floors torn up and the walls torn down. Now we have to get
in and help."
Surely some one had to-for by this time most of the
younger boys were back in school or college and the lads in
their twenties were back at their jobs again.
Knowing this would happen, Father Magan awoke with
cold sweats during the last half of the summer, for he knew
the lads would have to go back to their classes and he knew
of no one who could replace them.
But the good Lord knew and sent a New York fireman,
Lieutenant Frank Magan (pronounced McGann), a hitherto
unknown cousin of Father Magan (pronounced May-gin) to
visit Gonzaga just before Labor Day. The visit was timed
just right-just in time to bring the needed replacements, as
the boys returned to school.
Like his cousin the priest, the Lieutenant could not hammer
a nail, but he knew many men who could and he knew how to
get them to Monroe to do the masonry, the carpentry, or
whatever had to be done. When he did not know a man for
the job, he simply went out and found one, for by this time
Gonzaga, the Retreat House for Youth, meant more to him
than most anything in life. Like the boys who were there
before him, he was overcome by the place, and he would not
be content until he saw it finished. His enthusiasm was contagious, and soon the Fire Department in every borough of
New York City had recruits making regular excursions there.
But they were not picnics in any sense of the word.
Living in the still cold building, where water lines froze up
at night and where the dirt and grime of construction followed
them to bed, was no more attractive to firemen than it
had been to the boys. Still they came one week after another
until the work was done. And the boys too continued to come
on week-ends and in vacations, so that seven days a week the
Project was going on-the one group replacing the other, and
an constructing the house.
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GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
During all this time Dick Neubeck was the brains and the
boss of the job. Arriving at Monroe after work on a Friday
night, he personally supervised the work and did much of it
himself until about eleven o'clock Sunday evening, when he
would leave instructions with Father Magan on what the replacements should do. And the replacements were not only
firemen but their friends as well, and friends of the boys who
labored, and friends of the friends besides. When the roster
is counted, the number exceeds three hundred-only a handful
of whom were so much as passing acquaintances of Father
Magan when the work began.
As a matter of fact, the ten boys who originally offered
their services, and on whose word permission for the construction was originally obtained from Father Provincial, never
set foot in the house.
Of those who did work, h~wever, men and boys alike, almost
all have a story to tell. And every room at Gonzaga tells a
story too!
The kitchen, for example, now tiled and modernly equipped,
is fabulous in itself.
Originally it was a workshop of the poorest sort. Measuring
twenty feet by twenty it had two unfinished wooden walls, two
unfinished stone walls, a concrete floor, and an unfinished
wooden ceiling. As the furnace room was to be set next to it,
one of the wooden walls had to be torn down and much of the
floor, the best thing in the room, had to be ripped up to make
way for heating and plumbing pipes. The demolition of the
wall was begun at eleven on a Saturday night, a cre\y of about
ten boys going at it with sledges and wrecking bars. This was
the first night work on the interior of the house, but not the
first at Gonzaga. From the very beginning volunteers had
become accustomed to it when a scaffold which had to cover
the face of the building was constructed half in the dark and
half in the shadows caused by artificial lighting. From the
start, skilled work took precedence over rough work of this
sort which was relegated to the after supper hours, often
continuing to one or two in the morning. Later on in the
project, as time pressed in and the first retreats were ever
coming closer, some of the fancier jobs went on a swing shift
also so that the pump house roof went on at one in the morn·
ing, the paint in the reception room went on at two o'clock,
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
211
the kitchen ceiling went up at three o'clock and the last of
the beds were sprayed as the sun started rising over Schunnemunk at four o'clock on April 20, just two days before the
opening of the house.
But the new kitchen had to be opened months before the
house itself, in order to feed the workers who were coming
in every day, some staying for a few hours and some for as
long as six months. 7
The temporary bedroom-kitchen-parlor setup of the pioneering days became a thing of the past when the first spring
thaws of 1951 enabled the old kitchen to be opened, thus giving
the luxury of running water and a night's sleep free from
smoke. It did not give a modern kitchen however, nor one
that was in any way suitable for a retreat house. The plans
called for an entirely new setup in another part of the building, and when the interior work was begun, the new kitchen
held high priority. Room was made for an eight-foot cubed
walk-in refrigerator, a dishwashing machine, and the other
essentials. A cinder block wall replaced the demolished
wooden one, while furring and wire lath cover the other three.
But a wire lath wall is hardly a wall at all and needs to be
covered with plaster, and in a kitchen, with tile as well. The
problem was, who could do it. Willing hearts and strong
backs had accomplished much at Gonzaga that should have
been left to skill, but up to this point even generosity had not
made plaster stick. What little amateur plastering had been
tried had failed miserably. The need was for professionals.
And when it came to setting tile-the need was more obvious
still. But up to now there were neither tile men nor plasterers
in the Gonzaga Associates.
And again the Lord had the answer, and He must have
laughed as He gave it, for He let Father Magan call every tile
man around and visit a plasterers' local union in Harlem to
solicit the help he needed, but which would not be forthcoming,
at least not from those he contacted.
From the Lord's Warehouse
But like everything else at Gonzaga when the crisis really
came, the solution came as well.
With 20° temperatures in November the old kitchen could
�212
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
not be heated, nor the waterlines to it kept from freezing. The
new one simply had to be opened before the real cold set in,
else the project was doomed to lie dormant for the remaining
months of the winter, with the possibility of never starting
again. The new kitchen therefore simply had to be done.
Week after week, as he went to the city, Father Magan endeavored to find the men for the job and always returned to
Monroe, hoping that the next week would be it, until one Sunday night a Mr. James Welsh phoned and advised him to call
a Mr. Andrew Brady. Who Mr. Brady was or why he should
call him, Father Magan did not know. Jimmy had simply said,
"He might be able to help you." When the call was put
through, Father Magan sounded foolish as he told Brady,
"Jim Welsh said I should call· but I really do not know why."
The "why" became apparent ..as Brady identified himself as
the head of the Tile Layers Union, but Father Magan's spirits
dropped as the union president explained, "Really I can't
promise a thing." Yet he must have done something, for a
week or two later a call came from Mr. Harry Florence, the
Union's delegate, who in no uncertain terms told Father
Magan to be home that afternoon. As he came into the house,
he gruffiy asked to be shown to the job. After a five minute
inspection, he promised (the tone of voice was more that of
a threat) to return on- Saturday with four men. Saturday
morning came, and with it and Harry Florence, came not four
but fourteen tile men. They worked all day setting up the
tile, a few returning on Sunday to complete the job. As the
last block was being polished, an old Irishman amo~g them
asked the priest in charge: "Father, what are you doing with
the floor." "Nothing," was the answer, "we haven't any
money." "But, Father," said the old man with a brogue, "it
looks like hell. You have to do something with it." He would
not take "No" for an answer. "Ask Harry," he said, "and
have him do the floor." The protest that Harry had just done
the walls, a job worth $750.00, meant nothing to the Irishman.
"If you can't ask him," he said, "I can." Within an hour Mr.
Florence told Father Magan, "The guys want to do your floor.
Get the stuff and we'll be up next week." Another protest that
the budget would not stand the price of material fell upon deaf
ears. "Take this stuff back, there's fifty bucks right there,"
Harry said, pointing to the wall tile that was left over, and
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
213
"get another fifty and buy the stuff for the floor." "But I
can't return this tile," Father Magan insisted. There are
signs all over the distributor's place saying, 'Absolutely no
returns', and besides where can I get the other fifty?" But
Harry and the Lord had the answer for that one: "Tell that
Guinea I said 'Take it back.' " He did; and he refunded fiftytwo dollars to Gonzaga. When Father Magan went to Xavier
the following Wednesday there was a check awaiting him for
another fifty dollars-the total cost of the floor.
The day the kitchen floor went in, Harry Florence warned
Father Magan in advance, "Listen, we're not putting in the
floor for the shower room. One of these guys is going to ask
me to do it. But I'm telling you right now the answer's
'No.' " But that was simply Harry's way of talking. Without
so much as being asked, he and one of his men came back on
several occasions to put tile backings on the wash basins
in forty-nine of the rooms, and on his last trip UP-the day of
the formal dedication, he promised to do the shower room
floor before he got through at Gonzaga.
Tile men, however, generous and skilled though they are,
do not do plastering. The kitchen needed that too and it
needed it in a hurry, as the Lord must have been informed,
for just three days before Harry Florence's Tile Layers
Union of New York made their tangible contribution, the
New York Herald Tribune on November 1, 1951 fully wrote
up Gonzaga in a huge feature article embellished with four
pictures.
That same day, Father Magan drove up to Mount Vernon
where the Pontiac station wagon (a gift to the retreat house)
had been purchased four months before. He was after a
speedometer which had broken the day the car was purchased,
but why he chose this day to go, only the Lord can say. It was
the right day, however, for as he crossed from the Bronx into
Westchester County, a Mount Vernon police car followed him
several miles right into the garage. As he emerged from the '
car, a young detective whom he had not seen since they were
grade school friends, greeted him, "That was a ·swell writeup you got in the Herald this morning." At lunch the two
talked about the retreat house and as the tile men left on
Saturday, the detective was helping a friend of his, a professional plasterer, put the white-coat on the walls.
�214
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
The kitchen was now about finished but the plastering was
not. In fact it was hardly even begun.
The deterioration of the exterior walls of the buildings had
wreaked havoc with the insides, and every inch of plaster had
to be replaced. Whenever a really unskilled volunteer arrived, there was always a good job for him-knocking the old
plaster down. After a time so many walls were shorn of it,
it appeared it might never get back, until one Sunday afternoon Ace and his Lieutenant marched into Gonzaga. The
workers were having dinner in the barn-like dining room, as
the two unknown men burst in on them. "Who's Father
Magan?" the little one asked, as his husky cigar-smoking companion seemed to stand guard behind him. "They tell us
you're doing a job here. We~r~ plasterers, we'd like to look at
it." Taking them at their word Father Magan invited them
to remove their coats and pick up a trowel at once, but they'd
have none of it. They wanted to see the job. That was all
they had come up for. Before going home however, Ace,
the little man, spoke for himself and his partner: "Maybe we
can help you. We'll see. We'll see."
Father Magan reported the visit to Dick Neubeck who replied, "He'll probably send you a 'fin' in the mail." Nor was
Father Magan himself- any more optimistic, until Thursday
evening when a lady called him on the telephone, and promised
that her husband, the plasterer, would be up with eight men
on Saturday. Like the tile men who came before them,
plasterers seemed to like crowds, and on the day il.ppointed
Ace brought fifteen professionals to get the job done in a
hurry. These men whose labor normally costs twenty-five
dollars for a five-hour day, returned again and again with
Ace always leading them, until the plastering was done. When
it was, Ace, who proved to be Mr. Alfonse Squitteri, the father
of a Junior at Saint Andrew, seemed almost disappointed
that he could no longer use his plastering ability to advance
the cause of the house which he had learned of from his wife
who in turn had heard Father Magan speak at a Jesuit
Mothers' Guild Meeting. It was the most unlikely place in
the world to look for plasterers, but then the Lord is always
doing the unlikely-especially at Gonzaga.
�. GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
215
Christ's Work
Practically speaking, He had to, for on a chill day in
February, 1950 Father Magan and Dick Neubeck had tacked a
small holy-card copy of lbarraran's Sacred Heart on the
crumbling wall of what would become the reception room,
then loaded with plasterboard, and as they placed it there,
they made a consecration of the project to Him, promising
that when it was finished they would replace it with a
more suitable picture. In that picture and in the promise of
the Sacred Heart to priests of the Society to give them power
to do things beyond their fondest hopes, Father Magan placed
his trust. Nor was it placed in vain.
Though humanly speaking he frequently could not foresee
any means of fulfilling his promise to Father Provincial to
complete the house with the aid of volunteers and was on
more than one occasion seriously tempted to telephone him to
say it was all a mistake, he held off one day at a time, hoping
that the morrow might bring something out of the blue, as he
and Dick N eubeck told the Sacred Heart at Mass each
morning, "This is Your job, Lord, and You have to get it
finished." Every time the Ordo permitted, Father Magan
said the Mass of the Sacred Heart and the one intention he
carried to the altar was the finishing of the house.
When it was just about done, the Lord sent women-folk to
add the distaff touch. It was on Saturday, April 19, 1952,
three days before the first retreat that the ladies came en
masse. It was the only day for female volunteers, but they
came sixty strong, flanked by forty men to help them clean
the house. They came in a chartered bus and in about a
dozen cars. They came in from the Bronx and Brooklyn,
from Queens, and Greenwood Lake. Armed with their own
vacuum cleaners, their mops, and their scrubbing brushes,
they came to give the feminine touch to what their men had
done. 8
Every window in the house received its share of glass
wax. Every inch of woodwork was polished till it gleamed.
Every wall and floor was made fit for a king to come to. And
He came that evening after benediction of the Blessed
Sacrament, when Gonzaga Retreat House was reconsecrated
to the Sacred Heart and another Ibarraran picture, this time
�216
GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
a work of art, was solemnly hung on the main wall of the blue
reception room. That picture, please God, will always hang
there as a token of gratitude to the Sacred Heart for giving
Gonzaga its start, as a portent of future blessings, and as a
memento of the Gonzaga Associates who felt what Dick
Neubeck expressed in his Benediction Day address on June
7, 1952.
Father Magan did not plan this house. Father
Provincial did not plan it either. No Jesuit really
planned it. But then again, He \Vas a Jesuitthough a very youthful one. He had calloused hands
because they were the Hands of a Carpenter, and He
planned Gonzaga a very long time ago. Had He
cared to do so, He could have built it alone. But He
wanted to share with us.'the privilege of building it
and we are here today ~to express our gratitude for
the privilege conferred on us.
NOTES
tOnly the Recording Angel could hope to give a full account of the
origins of Gonzaga. Only He knows the details. This article is intended
to give the merest outline of a unique foundation. The reader would
do well to consult the books of heaven to learn details which have
escaped mention here.
2 The post factum estimate of the work accomplished was $250,000.
3 When Father Provincial told Father Magan of Father General's
approval of the scheme, he asked him "What are you going to call the
house?" Father Magan replied with ·Father Kennedy's "Manresa
Gonzaga," but the Provincial demurred, thinking the dual name might
lead to confusion with Mount Manresa, the mother of aii American
retreat houses, and then the name Gonzaga was decided upon.
4 At this writing, Vogt and Brannigan are Jesuit Novices. Kazanchy
is a Franciscan postulant. Of the four original workers only Vogt was
previously known to Father Magan. Boyan he had met but once before.
The others accompanied Vogt.
5 The final total cost of plumbing, heating, and water supply, including running water in every room, was less than this initial low
estimate for the heating alone.
aFor over six months Mr. Hamilton faithfully carried out his pledge,
coming to Monroe from New York nearly every other Saturday. Besides
'his knowledge, he invariably brought with him a supply of paint or tools
or something else equally useful, and he literally refused to take more
than a cup of coffee for his charity.
�GONZAGA RETREAT HOUSE
217
TBesides Gerald L. Heaphy, two other boys, Ronald A. Clark of Coney
Island and Walter Sabol of Bayonne, voluntarily worked at the retreat
house for six months each. Clark, a lad of nineteen, who cooked all the
meals during his sojourn there, became fabulous as a chef. Sabol
specialized in the more mechanical things.
sAs one more sign of God's Providence affecting Gonzaga, an almost
uncontrollable brush fire which might have destroyed the house, broke
out at high noon on the Ladies' Day. Were it not for the forty men on
hand-many of whom were New York City firemen-the work of
thirteen months might have been destroyed in an afternoon.
* * *
A
POSITIVE SPIRITUAL LIFE
On July 25, 1542 a thought occurred to me which I had
often had before, that if a man wishes to purify his soul more
and more, he should keep his first intention always directed
to God, and in this consists his profit. Hence we must not fix
our chief attention, as I have often done up to this time, on
remedies for troubles, temptations, and sadness. For he who
sought our Lord solely and chiefly in order to be free from
temptations and sadness would not seek devotion principally
for itself, but, on the contrary, would seem to show that he
would little esteem it, unless he were suffering; and this is
seeking love from a fear of imperfection and misery and in
order to escape evil. For this reason God, in His justice and
mercy, allows you to be troubled for a time because your
affections were not directed to Him; and in order that you may
shake off tepidity and idleness, He sends you these pains and
distresses as goads and spurs to urge you to walk on in the
way of the Lord without seeking rest, until you repose solely
in God himself, our Lord Jesus Christ. Nay, even though you
were not to feel any trouble from the enemy or any temptations or evil and vain feelings or imperfections, you ought never
to remain inactive, as do the tepid and idle and all those who
care only not to fall or go back. Do not be content with
merely not falling or going down hill but "lay up in your heart
ascensions," increase and progress towards interior perfection;
and this not only from fear of any fall but from love of
holiness. Desire and thirst after spiritual things, not as if they
were remedies against bad or vain feelings but on account
of what they are and contain in themselves. Thus you will at
length attain to the perfect love of God, and so you will no
longer think of things vain and idle nor fear sins which are
the hindrances which impede our attaining to God and being
intimately united with and at rest in Him.
BLESSED PETER FABER
�A NEW WAY TO THE HEART OF INDIA?
SWAMI DINDASS*
India is predominantly an agricultural country. About
87 per cent of the 400,000,000 inhabitants of the subcontinent
of India live in 700,000 villages and hamlets, both on the land
and from the land. Among them almost all castes are represented: Brahmans, Kshatrias, Raj puts, right down to the aborigines and Pariahs. Mass conversions to Christianity without
exception have taken place only among these aborigines and
Pariahs. Their proportion among the 4,500,000 Catholics of
India is estimated at from 75 to 85 per cent.
The Church and the Hindu Farmer
What is the Church doing for this far greater mass of
farmers from the Hindu castes and the Mohammedans? The
answer to this question is as discouraging as it is brief: this
main ,body of the population of India seems completely untouched by any Christian influence. If you were to show 95 to
98 per cent of them a picture of Christ or a crucifix, not one
of them could give you the meaning or the name of these
things.
The question of mission work among these agrarian Hindu
castes demands the greatest attention and the most penetrating study of all missionaries and thinking Catholics of
India, especially today, since the independence of India has
brought the Hindus into power, a democratic constitution has
been adopted, and the development of a flourishing b·ody of
farmers is being given much attention. These facts make an
attempt to get closer to these Hindu farmers and to bring
Christ to them a necessity for us.
Up till now, most missionaries and their superiors, too,
perhaps, seemed convinced that an attempt of this kind is
*Under the name Swami Dindass, the author explains his new tech·
nique of approaching the Indian Mission problem. In reality he is a
Flemish Jesuit, Father Quirijnen, former novicemaster at Hazaribagh,
India.
• • •
Translated by Francis P. Dinneen, S.J., from Die Katholischen Missionen, Aachen, 1953, Heft 1, pp. 14-16.
l
�HEART OF INDIA
219
destined to fail right from the outset. "Why," they say, "does
the Hindu farmer feel no attraction to us, as opposed to the
downtrodden aborigines and Pariahs? He lives only from
day to day. Materially, he is well off; intellectually, he is
fully occupied by the observation of the prescriptions of his
caste. He has the Hindu feasts for his religious needs and
sacrifices, superstitious views and usages for every event in
his life. Besides that, he is earthy, greedy, and proud. Thus
there is no ground here in which the seeds of the gospel can
take root."
But we must inquire seriously whether these views have a
factual basis, capable of standing close scrutiny, or whether
they are not merely just made up and passed on from one
missionary to another. Are they founded on mere chance contacts of the missionaries with their Hindu neighbors, especially in business and lawsuits, or upon the reports of experiments of other missionaries that ended in failure?
We cannot permit ourselves any deception in this matter.
We will never win India as a Nation to Christ, if we do not
convert these Hindu farmers. If we do not bring them the
gospel, the communists, with their great promises, will win
the masses for themselves. Then we will bitterly regret having
missed our chance. For they are, after all, worthy men, hardworking farmers, who most probably possess the traditional
qualities of the country population of other lands: healthy
morals, sober judgment, a deep feeling for religion; qualities,
which when completed and ennobled in Christ, make the
farmer the chief support of the Catholicity of a land, as our
experience elsewhere has already shown.
Have we not failed to win them up till now, because we have
never really made a well thought-out and persistent effort to
do so? Or were we mindful that in their case, we were no
longer dealing with an aborigine or a Pariah, so that in our
approach to them, we might have been mistaken?
A New Approach
A few years ago the Indian Jesuit, Father Alvares, after
ten years of fruitless labor, following the usual method among
the Hindus, obtained permission from his young superior to
try a new approach, as a Sannyasi or Sadhu (Indian mendi-
�220
HEART OF INDIA
cant monk). He settled among the Lingayats, a well-to-do and
influential middle caste, as Swami Animandanda. He assumed
the externals of a priest of this caste: a saffron-yellow robe,
long beard, uncombed hair, going about bare-foot with a pilgrim's staff and turban. This is the way our new Sannyasi,
who is a Brahman by descent, sought to approach the Lingayats. As a "man of God" he went from village to village,
begged, ate the food of the people, abstained from meat, fish
and eggs, visited the sick, was sociable with everyone and explained that he was a priest who wanted to pray for them and
offer the true sacrifice in their midst, in order to implore
the blessings of God upon them, their houses, fields, and herds.
He wanted to teach them the way of perfect liberation and
eternal life. The people of the .Lingayat caste received him as
a real Sannyasi, listened to his. words, gave him food, allowed
him to spend the night in their temples, and attended his Mass.
The life was hard, but what joy he had, when after two years
he was able to baptise his first convert from the Lingayat
caste and had a number of catechumens under instruction. A
lay helper from Goa generously attached himself to him,
shared his strict way of life and helped him in his apostolate.
Two young Jesuits of the same mission are being trained for
this promising mission among the Lingayats.
The superiors of the Ranchi Mission also permitted a similar experiment to be made in the district of Hazaribagh, where
one can travel sixty to a hundred miles in one direction
through heathen villages, without coming across a .Catholic
church or even a single Catholic. Relying upon the· prayers
and sacrifices of a small group of interested missionaries and
friends, I set about this work, built myself, first of all, a little
open hut on an out-of-the-way spot on the extensive property
in Hazaribagh, put on a saffron-yellow robe, hung a large
rosary around my neck, and went around for the most part
bare-headed and bare-footed. Christ's command, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" gave me the courage
for this experiment.
From this place, I visited all the neighboring villages and
talked to the people, mostly caste-Hindus. I accosted them
• on the roads, in the fields,.behind their herds, on the threshing
floor, at the forge, in the village streets. I inquired how things
l
�HEART OF INDIA
221
were going with them, what their problems were, what caste
they were, their names. I made notes and tried to learn their
Hindu dialect, which was quite different from the literary
Hindi that I spoke. Since, as a European, I did not know very
accurately how a Sannyasi should live, the first approach was
not easy, until I took some good, cheap medicines along with
me one day. As soon as I entered a village, the people, men,
women and children, surrounded me. The sick were brought.
I gave them the medicine and prayed aloud over them. Soon
I was being invited into the inner court, and gradually, even
into the living rooms for a meal or to visit the sick. I was
never permitted to go away hungry, and was besides even
given rice for dinner. What I was able to save in money for
food in this way, I could use to buy more medicines. Thus we
presented gifts to each other in the name of God-the
Christian Sannyasi and the heathen people. The bonds of
friendship between me and the people became more and more
intimate. Gradually I had begun to play a part in the concerns of their every-day life.
But I still had to live more closely among the people, in
order to spend the evenings with them, too. But I did not
push myself on them. I waited until a few farmers invited
me into their village. That happened after a few months.
Men of the carpenter caste asked me if I would come and
stay among them. "Good, I shall stay-but where'! Will you
help me build a hut?" "Sure," they chorused. One man
gave me a piece of land, and the others helped me build the
hut on it. It had only one room, and was situated near the
village in a quiet spot near a brook.
That is where my headquarters are now. From here I
undertake my trips into the villages. Now I can more
easily meet the people and stay with them in the evenings.
After the day's work, they squat around me, chatting and
listening. The question of the missionary's approach was
solved.
And the Success?
When an Indian farmer transforms a section of jungle into
a rice field, he does not expect a harvest the first year. He
knows that there is still a good deal of heavy work to be
done: underbrush, thorns, and grass to be rooted out, stumps
�222
HEART OF INDIA
and roots of ancient trees to be dug up, and the ground must
be turned, spade by spade, and levelled. Only then can the
first seeds be finally sown, but still without any thought of a
great harvest. After a few years he, or his sons, after he has
died over the task, will be able to bring back wheelbarrows
full of fine paddy, unshelled rice.
So it was clear to me, that much time and work are necessary for Christian fruit one day to ripen in Hindu fields.
Therefore, I was not astonished nor even in the slightest bit
discouraged, when I could show the bishop no results. Conversions of adults? None. Catechumens under instruction?
None.
However, these months of trying and experimenting are
sufficient to bring some important bits of information to
light.
1) These Hindu farmers approve of the settlement of a
Christian missionary among them, in a situation where his
character of "man of God" is easily recognizable. As such
they greet him, support him willingly, and believe that they
are serving God in so doing. They are confident that his
mere presence as a Sannyasi in their midst wards off much
misfortune, and his prayer calls down the blessings of Heaven
on them. When I stopped in another village for a few days,
there was great concern in my original home, for they were
afraid that I wanted to leave it entirely.
2) Even within the first year there were many opportunities of speaking with individuals and small groups about
moral and religious truths, both natural and revealed". . I was
able to root out some superstitious practices. For instance,
there was a woman with a frightful sore on her foot, so
that she was wearing an amulet against the evil eye. I
dressed her sore twice a day and each time said a prayer for
the return of her health. After a few days I asked her to
take the charm off. But she wanted to wait until her husband
returned. In his presence, I dressed the sore again, pointed
at the charm and said "That's useless, and an insult to God."
"You're right", he nodded, and had his wife take off the
amulet.
3) In danger of death, they made no objection when I
gave their sick and their children the "great blessing of
Christ, which washes the soul clean and gives everlasting
1
�HEART OF INDIA
223
life." They would even get the water for baptism themselves. Thus I was able to baptise eighteen people quite
publicly.
4) Abstinence from ,beef is essential, while the avoidance
of all other kinds of meat, fish, eggs, smoking, and such
delicacies strengthens the esteem in which the missionary
is held. For even though the majority of them will eat game
and goats occasionally, they still expect that their Sannyasi
is above such satisfactions. They put great value on his
care to lead their life in all respects, such as going about barefoot, eating their food, speaking their dialect, being interested in all their goings-on. They especially like him to
visit their sick and be friendly toward everyone, especially
their children.
5) This life of a Sannyasi-missionary is not beyond the
strength of a European. Even though I'm no giant of
strength and never have had an iron constitution, I still
finished the first year in good health.
The clear outlines of a solid method have now been revealed.
The goal is certain: the leaven of the gospel must be mixed
into Hinduism, while the full Christian life is lived in the
daily contact with the Hindu. This method will undoubtedly
lead one day to the conversion of adults, especially if the
blessing of God is called down upon the undertaking by the
assiduous prayer of others.
Note by Editor of Die Katholischen Missionen: As Swami Dindass
recently wrote us, his experiment will probably be broken off, or carried
on under a different form. At the Bishops' Conference for India in
October, 1951 Bishop Bouter of Nellore issued the following statement,
based on his questionnaire to the Indian Bishops, regarding this type
of mission technique: "The wearing of the Sannyasi dress as an experiment is generally approved, with the provision that it be undertaken
only by a few men, and these chosen carefully."
* * *
0 God, Who didst fortify Thy blessed martyr John with indomitable
perseverance to sow the seed of the Catholic faith in India, let his merits
plead with Thee, and grant that as we celebrate his triumph, so we may
also imitate his faith; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the Mass of St. John de Britto, Feb. 4.
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
FRANCIS J. MARIEN, S.J.
We are allindebted to Father William J. Young for his excellent translation of Father Dudon's St. Ignatius of Loyol{L.
Nothing can detract from the substantial value of the original
or of the translation. Those who peruse the "Notes and Appendices" will, however, come across a section concerned with
the question: "Did the Blessed Virgin dictate the Exercises
to Ignatius?" Father Dudon's answer is a simple, "No." It is
the purpose of this article to suggest that such a question
and answer may be misleading. It is one thing to affirm or
to deny that the Blessed Virgin dictated the Exercises. It is
another thing to ask whether or not Our Lady played a unique
part, intervened in some special·manner, in their composition.
There is scarcely a house or church of the Society which
does not contain a picture or stained glass window depicting
Our Lady presenting St. Ignatius with the book of the Exercises or hovering beneficently over the penitent of Manresa,
approving his work, instructing him as he composes his immortal manual. It is a fair question to ask what historical
fact these pictures represent.
In this article we shall briefly review the controversy on
the part Our Lady played-in the composition of the Exercises
as it appears in the writings of Jesuit historians from 1897 to
1943.
In 1894 Father Henri Watrigant published a bookl.et devoted to this subjecU Cast in the form of letters to-·a correspondent who wishes to know what foundation exists for
the tradition of a special intervention of Our Lady in the
composition of the Exercises, the book is divided into four
parts.
In his introductory letter, Father Watrigant is careful to
point out that, although the early Fathers of the Society held
for a kind of divine inspiration of the Exercises, whenever
the term "inspiration" is used it has not the precise technical
sense employed in fundamental theology. Moreover the legend
which usually appears beneath the well-known pictures men·tioned above, Deipara dictaf!te, Ignatius discit et docet, should
be made to read Deipara docente instead of dictante, as the
idea of a word for word dictation could be nothing but a pious
I
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
225
byperbole. 2 The author hopes nevertheless to give enough evidence to justify the consoling conclusion of Reverend Father
Anderledy who maintained: " ... non solum pie, sed fidenter
credimus, S. lgnatium quae docuit quaequae praecepit, suggerentem sibi habuisse optimam matrem, Virginem Immaculatam.''3
The first letter dealing with "Raisons de Convenance" need
not detain us. The second is concerned with historical evidence. The author, in the first place, strongly insists on the
fact of the wide-spread tradition of Our Lady's intervention,
a "general persuasion" in and out of the Society for three
centuries. In support of the existence of the tradition he appeals to many authors of the seventeenth century including
Pucci, Rho, Gonzalvez, N olarci, Vida, Lyraeus, Bourghesius,
Negronius, Roth, Nieremberg, Civore. 4
The author admits that he is unable to quote any explicit
document dated earlier than the first part of the seventeenth
century. But as evidence of the antiquity of the tradition, he
quotes a letter of Father Pucci of Barcelona to Father Ignatius Victor written in 1640: "At Manresa and in all that
region it is regarded as a certain tradition transmitted from
parents to children that St. Ignatius wrote his book in Manresa with the aid of the mother of God and was enlightened
by particular heavenly illuminations." 5
In this same letter Father Watrigant appeals to the evidence of the manuscript history qf the old college of Belen at
Barcelona. As this document figures prominently in the controversy, it will be well at this point to indicate what the
document is and what authenticity is advanced in its favor.
In 1872 Father Fidelis Fita made known the discovery of
an unedited manuscript, the "Annales" or Annual Letters of
the College of Belen. 6 On page twenty-one for the year 1606
these words are found:
Father Laurence of Saint-John passing through Manresa learned
from Senor Amigant that the Blessed Virgin dictated the Exercises
to our Blessed Father Ignatius following an ecstacy that he had
before the Virgin of the Annunciation (a domestic shrine) of his
house ... (this) they learned from the mouth of the Saint himself
when he was staying with his family. 7
There is no doubt that Ignatius was indebted to the Amigant family at Manresa. The name appears prominently in
�226
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
the processes for beatification carried on at Manresa.8 Father
Watrigant considers this document to be the principal evidence for the local tradition, but insists that the word "dictation" is not to be taken in our modern strict sense.
Father Watrigant is hesitant about citing the authority of
Laynez. He is content to say that some writers have invoked
his name in favor of the tradition. From Father Virgilio
Nolarci he quotes the following passage:
Fathers Laynez and Polanco . . . have testified without any
hesitation both by word of mouth and in writing that St. Ignatius
had no other instructor than that which he received from heaven;
that God was his principal teacher, principal because the Blessed
Virgin was also given him as teacher.9
Father Garcia, writing in 1685, is quoted as saying: "The
thrice-holy Virgin was equ~;~,liy the . . . instructress of the
author of the Exercises as 1?. Laynez has affirmed." 10 Unfortunately Father Watrigant is unable to find an express
statement connecting Laynez with the tradition before 1685.
Much has been made by the protagonists of the tradition
of a painting commissioned by Reverend Father Vitelleschi
and sent by him to Manresa in 1626. This famous picture
depicts Our Lady appearing to Ignatius as he composes the
Exercises. Father Watrigant argues that this act of the General can hardly be explained unless one supposes at least an
oral tradition of Mary's special intervention.U
Under the heading of "Divine Testimony," Watrigant cites
the revelation .made by the Archangel Gabriel to Venerable
Marina de Escobar and quoted by Father Luis de la...Puente in
his life of Father Balthasar Alvarez. In this vision the Archangel made known to Marina that Our Lady acted regarding
the Exercises as foundress, protectress, and helper. 12 We
shall see later how the critics deal with this revelation.
Another supernatural event is presented as divine testimony. It is the heavenly visitation reputedly accorded to the
Venerable Canon Jerome of Palermo. Father Frazzetta who
wrote his life gives an account of his last moments during
which he told his confessor that the Blessed Virgin in an apparition to him had commended his zeal for the Exercises of
Ignatius and assured him that she herself was the author of
this method of meditation, and whoever used it would render
to her a most agreeable and glorious homage.U
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
227
After considering such evidence Father Watrigant proposes
and solves certain objections of Constantin Cajetan, a Benedictine monk. This remarkable man, sometime custodian of
the Vatican library, had a burning zeal for the glory of his
order. He claimed that the Summa Theologica usually attributed to Aquinas was actually the work of a Benedictine.
According to him the Imitation of Christ was also to be ascribed to Benedictine authorship. It was inevitable that he
should eventually claim that the Exercises were merely
adapted and paraphrased from the Exercitatoria of the Benedictine, Garcia de Cisnernos. His contention was that since
Ignatius borrowed from Cisnernos, there was no need to invoke any special intervention of Our Lady. 14 It is interesting
to note that not only Cajetan's book but also the response by
the Jesuit Father Rho were placed on the Index as excessively
acrimonious. 15
Cajetan's principal arguments can be summarized as follows: 1) If the Exercises were revealed by Our Lady why
does Paul III in his approbation say they were composed
from Scripture and the practice of the spiritual life? 16 2)
Why does Polanco say they were written by Ignatius out of
his own internal experience and the wisdom gained from the
direction of souls ?11 3) Why does Orlandini say they resulted
from usage and daily observation ?18 4) Why does Ribadeneira say: Ex accurata observatione eorum qu:e sibi contigerant,
conscripsit ?19
Father Watrigant's answer is simple: "No one of these influences necessarily rules out the others. Mary is a cause, an
important cause, not the only cause." 2° For Father Watrigant the evidence he has presented is sufficient, looked at in
its entirety, to justify moral certitude in the special intervention of Our Lady. 21
The distinguished historian, Father Antonio Astrain, by a
single footnote in his well-known history of the Society in the
Spanish Assistancy 22 exerted "an enormous influence" 23 which
served to lessen in many minds the certainty and even the
Probability of what he called the "pious belief" that Our Lady
inspired the Exercises.
In summary fashion the belief is rejected because there is
no sound documentary proof of it to be found during the century immediately following Ignatius' stay at Manresa. No
�228
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
allusion in the writings of Laynez himself justifies using his
name in favor of the belief. The evidence of Senor Amigant
and the Belen manuscript is refuted by the enormity of its
claim: a book written by the Blessed Virgin. One cannot
suppose that St. Ignatius, so cautious about mentioning spiritual gifts and experiences even to his closest sons in the Society, would have divulged them to comparative strangers.
Father da Camara, first biographer and close confidant of
Ignatius, would certainly have mentioned it if he knew of it.
In none of the writings which we possess of Laynez, Da
Camara, Polanco, Nadal, Ribadeneira, Orlandini, and Maffei
is there any mention of it. Father de la Puente does not give
historical testimony but mentions only certain revelations of
the Archangel Gabriel to an unnamed person.
The judgment of Father Pietro Tacchi Venturi subtantially
concurs with that of Astrain. In his history of the Society in
Italy he relegates consideration of this subject to an even
briefer footnote, expressing the opinion that it does not seem
worthy of critical examination. 24
According to him the tradition finds no foundation in the
available source material of the sixteenth century but was
widely diffused in the seventeenth century, thanks to the
revelations of the Venerable Marina de Escobar upon whom
the Church has pronounced no judgment.
One should rather use the words of Ignatius himself, as
recorded by Polanco, in describing the supernatural assistance
accorded him in the composition of the Exercises: "non tam
libris quam ab unctione Sancti Spiritus et ab interna experientia et usu tractandarum animarum." 25
•
Father Arturo Codina, one of the editors of the Monumenta
Historica Societatis Jesu, upholds the validity of the tradition.
His defense of it, printed in the "Prolegomena in Exercitia"
of the volume devoted to the Exercises,2 6 is substantially the
same as the treatment he gives the subject in his work on the
origin of the Exercises. 27 This latter work, published in 1926,
will briefly engage our attention.
Father Codina argues that the famous painting commis~
sioned by Father Vitelleschi in 1626 did not start the tradition
• but presupposed it. He recalls, what all parties to the dispute
must admit, that according to Da Camara God taught Ignatius
at Manresa as a teacher instructs a child, and that during this
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
2,29
period he was favored with visions of the humanity of Christ
and of the Blessed Virgin, which visions greatly confirmed
Ignatius in the faith. Codina is disposed to see in this implicit
evidence of Our Lady's intervention.
He suspects that some historians find it difficult to accept
the tradition because they give the picture commissioned by
Father Vitelleschi a rather too material interpretation. As
for the evidence given by Marina de Escobar (the "unnamed
person" in Astrain's account), Codina points out that De la
Puente who records the revelation was a wise and prudent
man, whose own virtues have been declared heroic by Clement
XIII. His judgment is not easily to be set aside.
In his critical investigation of the manuscript of the College of Belen Codina remarks that although the passage in
question was an addition on the original script, it is contemporaneous to the rest of the manuscript and is written by the
same hand. 28
In the statement of Senor Amigant, ascribing the Exercises
to the "dictation" of Our Lady, the word is to be taken in a
wide sense as Father Watrigant had previously insisted. As for
Astrain's objection that the humble Ignatius would not have
communicated such graces to outsiders even supposing he received them, Codina argues that it is certainly established
from the processes of canonization that Ignatius gave the Exercises to Angela Amigant and other pious women who would
naturally have praised the Exercises. Ignatius might very
well have told them that their praise should be directed to
the Blessed Virgin who was in good part responsible for
them. 29
Codina is confronted with an embarrassing difficulty regarding the evidence of the Belen manuscript and the quotation from Senor Amigant. A certain Juan Amigant was questioned in the process for beatification conducted at Manresa.
Article twenty-nine of the form used in questioning witnesses,
asked about revelations and supernatural illuminations, and
other details. Here would be an occasion, it would seem, for
a member of the Amigant family to say under oath what he
knew about Our Lady's intervention. There is no recorded
statement by Amigant on this point. 30
Codina admits that this silence presents a serious difficulty.
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OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
"It might be," he suggests, "that in this particular the record
is inexact or incomplete." 31
Relative to the testimony of Amigant, Codina quotes a
passage from a codex manuscript "Piedad de los Amigant,"
a family history in possession of the Marquis de Palmerola. 32
According to this document St. Ignatius gave the Exercises
to Angela Amigant after the Blessed Virgin had dictated
them.
Codina, unlike Father Watrigant '':ho held for a moral
certitude, is content to declare that the venerable tradition
has solid probability in its favor. It contradicts nothing
that is certain and agrees with all that is known of Ignatius.
He concludes by saying that we are certain there are many
undiscovered letters written by and about Ignatius, and that
one day the discovery of one~ Of these may throw new light
on the tradition. In any case Ignatius did not want the
approval of the Exercises to depend on a revelation but on
the judgment of the Church. 33
Perhaps the most enthusiastic protagonist for the tradition is Father Juan Sola. Though his defense in some particulars will seem more vigorous than conclusive, he has
offered some forceful considerations. In two articles published in 1931, he adval!ces fearlessly against the attack on
the tradition. 34
Much is made of the statement of Pius XI in his Apostolic
Letter of December 3, 1922, "Meditantibus Nobis," in which
he says: "In illo Minorissano recessu, quemadmodai?_n sibi
essent praelia Domini praelianda ab ipsa Deipara didicit
cuju,s tamquam ex manibus illum accepit . . . codicem . . .
Exercitia Spiritualia." 3 ~ Likewise the statement of Father
Anderledy already quoted in this article is brandished
effectively.
The venerable author, who had already written in defense
of the tradition forty years previously, 36 asks in the light
of such solemn documents if it would not give scandal and
disedification publicly to resist or not to conform with these
pronouncements. Moreover, since this pious belief singularly
• honors the mother of God and St. Ignatius, places the Exercises in high esteem, and gives a more exalted notion of the
Society-"should I (in opposition to tradition) follow my own
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
231
proper judgment or that of a few who bring together only a
collection of negative arguments ?" 37
•
Sola is most anxious to dissipate the idea that the tradition
is rejected by all or even most modern authors in the Society.
He claims for support Fita, Watrigant, Codina, Drive, Tarre,
Poire, and Creixell. ss
As for the argument that there is no evidence of the
tradition during the first century after Ignatius' stay at
Manresa in 1552, he stresses the evidence of the Belen manuscript of 1606 which he considers irrefragable. He appeals
to the already existing tradition presupposed in the picture
commissioned by Father Vitelleschi in 1626 and reminds us
that Father Andres Lucas, writing in 1633, is able to speak of
the tradition as "ancient." 39
Against Astrain's argument that Ignatius would not have
told the Amigants of his supernatural favors, Sola responds
that Ignatius, generous and noble, grateful for the least
benefit received, had communicated to Fathers Mercurian,
Laynez, Polanco, Nadal, and Da Camara many consoling
visions. Why then should he not tell the origin of his treasure
to a noble woman who had succored him, often receiving
him into her home, and tending him in his illness-a woman
moreover who had made the Exercises under his guidance ?' 0
Although the Enciclopedia Universalllustrada likens Marina
de Escobar to St. Theresa of Avila, it declares that her
writings have received no wide acceptance in the Church and
that they contain facts unacceptable to the critic.H Sola
has little patience with the critics and contends that the
unquestioned virtue and solidity of Father de la Puente gives
authority to the statement of Marina de Escobar, which he
quotes without hesitation. 42
In concluding Sola pleads that the tradition be guarded as
a precious relic and quotes Canons 1285 and 1286, arguing
by analogy that if a relic has been long venerated, that is,
for three centuries, no conjecture or merely probable argument may be permitted to disturb its veneration! 3
As we mentioned above, Father Paul Dudon in his recent
work on St. Ignatius declares 44 that while certain authors
admit the tradition of Our Lady's dictation of the Exercises
to be respectable, Fathers Astrain, Tacchi Venturi, and
�232
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
Watrigant reject iU 5 Furthermore Ignatius himself said
he was the author. His generation commonly attributes the
book to him and the Church speaks of it as his. None of
the historians of the century after Manresa speaks of the
dictation and it does not figure in any of the canonical
processes. The tradition goes back only to 1606. The "Annales" or manuscript of Belen, which is the first document to
mention it, does not deserve credit as the mention of the
dictation is after the fashion of an addition interpolated in
the primitive text. The first Jesuit who went to Manresa
in 1573. received from the Amigants their recollections of
Ignatius, but there is no word of the dictation. Finally Juan
Amigant, who according to the manuscript spoke to Father
Saint-John (de San Juan), gave evidence at the process conducted at Manresa in 1606 out he says nothing of the dictation!6
Two observations are in order about these remarks of
Dudon. He has made the tradition consist in a belief in a
dictation in the strict sense. This, as Fathers Watrigant and
Codina have pointed out, is untenable. The corrections and
additions made by St. Ignatius in the text from time to time
rule out the idea of a word for word dictation. However the
leading modern defenders of the tradition hold for a special
intervention on the part of Our Lady and not for a dictation
as Dudon understands it. The question for Fathers Watrigant and Codina is this: Did Our Lady intervene in some
special way in the composition of the Exercises.? They
believe there is solid reason for concurring with a- tradition
admittedly three centuries old which maintains that she did.
As for the Amigant reference in the Belen manuscript,
as we have already seen, Codina, while admitting that the
passage in question is a gloss on the original text, maintains
that it is contemporaneous with the original and written by
the same hand as the rest of the text.
In 1943 Father Manuel Quera published two articles in
which he re-examines the question and reaffirms the validity
of the tradition.H He asserts that Dudon raises a pointless
issue when he questions a dictation. None of the· defenders
of the tradition hold for a dictation as he understands it!8
Against Astrain's argument that there is no documentary
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
233
evidence for the tradition before 1606, he appeals, as did
Sola, to the writers of the seventeenth century, to Andres
Lucas especially, who could refer to the tradition as "certain,"
"constant," and "ancient." 49 The right of prescription should
have some place here. Moreover the tradition has received
the solemn approval of a General of the Society and of the
Supreme Pontiff. 50
The argument of Astrain and Dudon that no mention of
the tradition is found in the writings of Da Camara, Laynez,
Polanco, Nadal, and Ribadeneira is answered by Father Quera
who says that besides being merely negative, the same argument can be used against the popular belief concerning the
cave of Manresa. There is no mention of the cave in the
writings of any of these Fathers with the exception of
Ribadeneira, who is on record as saying: ''Quod steterit P.
Ignatius in quadam spelunca prope montem Serratum, licet
aliqui id dicant, pro certo non habet testis." 51 Yet Jesuits
have generally accepted the tradition of the cave, and that
long before Father Pedro Leturia made known in 1925 the
discovery of a Latin text written in 1556 by John Albert
Widmanstadt, the earliest and. only known text of the period
referring without qualification to the cave as a place where
Ignatius prayed. 52 Quera like Codina wonders if some day a
newly discovered document will not more clearly explain and
justify the tradition. 53
Relative to the manuscript of Belen, the testimony of the
Amigants, and the assertion of Astrain that Ignatius would
not have communicated his visions to these people, Quera
quotes a very significant passage from a letter of Ribadeneira
to Father Gil, rector of the college of Barcelona, in which he
says that Ignatius communicated to Pedro de Amigant and
Senora Angela de Amigant the things that passed in his
soul, visions, raptures, and other interior things. Ribadeneira
says that he learned all this from Dr. Sarrovira to whom the
Saint had foretold the whole course of his life. Ribadeneira
adds that he had heard the same thing himself from Ignatius,
although the Saint was very cautious about revealing the
favors he had received. 54 This remarkable document not
only concurs neatly with the Belen manuscript but it completely explodes the aprioristic argument of Astrain against
it.
�234
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
As for Dudon's argument based on the silence of Juan
Amigant at the process for beatification, Quera gives the
surprising answer that Amigant and the rest of the witnesses said nothing about the "dictation" or intervention
of Our Lady for the simple reason that they had no opportunity to say anything about it.•• It is true that Amigant is
on record as answering only five questions none of which
involved article twenty-nine, the article which treated in a
general way the supernatural experiences of Ignatius at
Manresa. 56 This article did not ask if the witnesses knew of
any specific revelations, but simply asked the rather vague and
general question: Did they know that Ignatius had such
experiences ?57 It is most likely, if not certain, on the other
hand, that the Juan Amigant of the process, a close relative
of the Amigants who befriended Ignatius, did know of such
experiences as the letter of Ribadeneira indicates. The
argument based on his silence, accordingly, loses its force.
By way of conclusion, Quera expresses the hope that his
effort may serve to dissipate the cloud of suspicion and
indifference that surrounds the tradition, a cloud created by
modern historians who in treating it so lightly have shown
an unwarranted disdain of it.
In the light of the evidence presented to the controversy
it seems reasonable to maintain that, while the proof for the
special intervention of Our Lady may not be absolutely established by documentary evidence at our disposal, nevertheless
such evidence as we have favors th~ tradition. Tiw" arguments advanced by those who oppose the validity of the tradition are merely negative and in s.ome instances groundless.
Finally there remains the undeniable fact of the tradition
itself carrying with it the prestige of prescription.
A further question might be asked. Granting that Our
Lady did intervene, what was the nature of the intervention?
In what way was Mary responsible for the Exercises? How
shall we understand her "dictation;'?
Surely we need not invoke Mary's aid to explain the detail
or even much of the general structure of the Exercises. One
• should leave room for the. influence of the Vita Christi, and
the Flos Sanctorum as well as the Imitation of Christ,
probably also for the Exercitatoria of Cisnernos. Nor should
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
235
we limit the dynamic originality of Ignatius himself. Probably
the best explanation of our problem is to be sought in the
"Ephemeris S. P. N. Ignatii." 5 s Here the Saint's constant
recourse to Our Lady and his mystical union with her are
clearly in evidence. We have Ignatius' own testimony in these
pages about the help he sought and received from the Blessed
Virgin in composing certain parts of the Constitutions. It
seems quite legitimate to conclude that Our Lady's intervention in the composition of the Exercises took a somewhat
similar form.
NOTES
lHenri Watrigant, S.J., La Tres Sainte Vierge a-t-elle Aide Saint
Ignace d Composer le Livre des Exercises Spirituels? (Ucles, 1894).
Pp. 110.
2 /bid., p. 6.
8 "De Cultu Cordis J esu Provehendo," Epistolae Praepositorum Generalium, IV, (Brussels, 1908), p. 105.
•op. cit., PP· 21-30.
5 Quoted from the work of John Rho, S.J., Joannis Rlw Mediolanensis
Societatis Jesu Achates ••. de Sancti lgnatii Institutione et Exercitiis,
(Lyons, 1643), p. 128. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 22.
6 Fidelis Fita, S.J., (1835-1917), La Santa Cueva de Manresa, (Manresa, 1872), p. 17. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 22.
7 Fita, op. cit., p. 47.
Cited by Watrigant op. cit., p. 22. For correction of text as given by Watrigant, Astrain and Creixell cf. Arturo
Codina, S.J., Los Origenes de los Eje1·cicios Espirituales, (Barcelona,
1926), p. 90, (translation mine).
8
"Processus Remissorialis Minorissensus," Monumenta [gnatiana,
Series 4, (Madrid, 1918), pp. 697-753. Cf. pp. 716-717.
9 Virgilio Nolarci, S.J., (Carnoli), Vita del Patriarca sant' lgnatio,
(Venice, 1689), p. 39. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 26, (translation
mine).
1
°Fran~,;ois Garcia, S.J., Vida, virtudes, y milagros de San Ignacio
de Loyola, (Madrid, 1685), p. 61. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 26.
HOp cit., p. 28.
12
Louis du Pont (de la Puente), Vie du P. Balthasar Alvarez, (Paris,
1628), p. 481. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 33. Cf. The Life of
Balthasar Alvarez, (London, 1868), II, pp. 191-193.
13 Michel Frazzetta, S.J., Vita, virtu, miracoli del Vener. Servo di Dio
D. Girolamo di Palermo, (Palermo, 1681), p. 140. Cited by Watrigant,
op. cit., p. 35.
14 Constantin Cajetan, De religiosa sancti lgnatii ••• Institutione,
(Venice, 1641), p. 200. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 37 ff. Cf.
"Cajetan, Constantin," CathoUc Encyclopedia, III.
�236
OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
ucf. Watrigant, op. cit., p. 37; Codina, Los Origenes, p. 168.
lG"Pastoralis officii," (1548). Cf. Canutus-Hilarius Marin, S.J.,
Spiritualia Exercitia Secundum Pontificum Documenta, (Barcelona,
1941), pp. 10-11.
17Polanco, "Quidam de Societate Jesu . . .," (prefatory letter to the
first vulgate version of the Exercises), Monumenta Ignatiana, Series
2, (Madrid, 1919), p. 218.
1B0rlandini, Historia Societatis, LI. Cited by Watrigant, op. cit.,
p. 38.
19Ribadeneira, Vita Ignatii Loiolae, (Antwerp, 1587), p. 49. Cited
by Watrigant, op. cit., p. 38.
200p cit., pp. 37 ff.
21Ibid., p. 36.
22Antonio Astrain, S.J., Historia de la Campania de Jesus en la
Asistencia de Espana. (7 vols., Madrid, 1902-1925) I, p. 160.
24Pietro Tacchi Venturi, S.J., Storia della Compagnia di Gesu in
Italia, (3 vols. Rome, 1922), II, P:··40.
2•Polanco, op. cit., p. 218.
26 Arturo Codina, S.J., "De Ope a B. Virgine lgnatio Collata ad
Excercitia Conscribenda," Monumenta Ignatiana, Series 2, (Madrid,
1919), pp. 39 ff.
27Codina, Los Origenes de los Ejercicios, (Barcelona, 1926), pp. 85 ff.
2Sibid., pp. 90-91.
29Ibid., pp. 91-93.
30/bid., p. 92. Cf. "Processus Remissorialis Minorissensus," op. cit.,
pp. 716-717.
s10p. cit., p. 92.
32Ibid., pp. 92-93. Cf. Monumenta Ignatiana, Series 4, II, (Madrid,
1918), pp. 511-513. Unfortunately this manuscript as well as that of
the College of Belen was destroyed by the Reds in the recent civil war.
330p. cit., p. 93.
34Juan M. Sola, S.J., "La Intervenci6n de la Virgen en loS"""Ejercicios
Espirituales," Manresa, VII, (Barcelona, 1931), pp. 40-56; 145-169.
s•Acta Apostolicae Sedis, XIV, (1922), p. 629.
86San Ignacio en Manresa, (Barcelona, 1891), num. 24.
Cited by
Sola, op. cit., p. 40.
31 0p. cit., p. 47.
SBibid., pp. 48-50.
s9Andres Lucas, Vida de San Ignacio, (Granada, 1633), pp. 80-81.
Cited by Sola, op. cit., pp. 53-54.
400p. cit., pp. 145-146.
41 "Escobar (Marina de, la Venerable)," Enciclopedia Universal Ilustrada, XX, (Barcelona), p. 801.
420p. cit., pp. 150-152.
43/bid., pp. 168-169.
44 Paul Dudon, S.J., Saint Ignace de Loyola, (Paris, 1934), p. 616.
45 lt would seem that Dudon has oversimplified the case by listing
�OUR LADY AND THE EXERCISES
237
Watrigant with Astrain and Tacchi Venturi. It is only too clear that
Watrigant respects much of the evidence which the other two reject.
•60p. cit., p. 616.
Hl\Ianuel Quera, S.J., "Influjo de la Santissima Virgen en la Composici6n del libra de los Ejercicios," Manresa, XV, (Marzo, 1943), pp.
64-72; 164-176.
4B0p. cit., p. 65.
•gLucas, op. cit., p. 84. · Cited by Quera, op. cit., p. 169.
50Qp. cit., p. 175.
5t11Jonumenta lgnatiana, Series 4, II, p. 904. Cited by Quera op. cit.,
p. 68.
52Leturia, S.J., "Un texto desconocido del afio 1556 sabre la Santa
Cueva," Manresa, I, (1925), pp. 43-52. Cited by Quera, op. cit., p. 68.
53Qp. cit., pp. 68-69.
HJuan Creixell, S.J., San Ignacio de Loyola, (Barcelona, 1922), p.
134. Cited by Quera, op. cit., p. 164. Cf. ll!onumenta Ribadeneirae,
(Epistolae Addendae) II, p. 502.
550p. cit., pp. 166-167.
56 Cf. "Processus Remissorialis Minorisscnsus," op. cit., pp. 716-717.
fi7Qp. cit., pp. 175-176.
58 Monumenta lgnatiana, series tertia, tomus I, pp. 86-158.
* * *
RECOLLECTION
For keeping up continual recollection of God this pious
formula is to be ever set before you. "Deign, 0 God, to set me
free; Lord, make haste to help me" (Psalm 69, 2), for this
verse has not unreasonably been picked out from the whole of
Scripture for this purpose. For it embraces all the feelings
which can be implanted in human nature, and can be fitly and
satisfactorily adapted to every condition, and all assaults. Since
it contains an invocation of God against every danger, it
contains humble and pious confession, it contains the watchfulness of anxiety and continual fear, it contains the thought of
one's own weakness, confidence in the answer, and the assurance of a present and every ready help. For one who is
constantly calling on his protector, is certain that He is always
at hand. It contains the glow of love and charity, it contains
view of the plots, and a dread of the enemies, from which
one, who sees himself day and night hemmed in by them,
confesses that he cannot be set free without the aid of his
defender.
a
JOHN CASSIAN
�HISTORICAL NOTES
LETTERS OF FATHER JAMES PYE NEALE
In May, 1952 the Georgetown Archives received from Professor E. C. Barker of the University of Texas a packet of
•
one hundred and thirty letters written by Father James Pye
Neale to his mother over a period of thirty-seven years.
Although there are considerable repetitions, many family references and trifling details in the letters, they afford some
interesting glimpses of the old Maryland Province, Father
Neale's contemporaries in the Society, the work of the Jesuits
in caring for the parishes of the Counties, and the difficulties
of a parish priest in the "horse-and-buggy" days. The letters
have been studied, and in the.. following pages is gathered the
material which should be of general interest.
Early Years
James Pye Neale was born in Charles County, Maryland, on
February 19, 1840 and on September 15, 1852 entered Georgetown College with his two brothers, Eustace and Francis.
Their father, a doctor, had died and they were the wards of
Captain James H. Neale of Portobacco. Nicholas Stonestreet
of Charles County assisted in supporting the boys by paying
twelve hundred dollars for the expenses of the first two years
of their schooling. Their mother had gone to Texas to live
with relatives either shortly before or after their entrance into
Georgetown College.
- On January 16, 1857, while he was in poetry class at college, Pye Neale wrote to his mother and, among other things,
told her:
In this last Christmas at college, we had no mince
pies and apples, nor invigorating eggnog and apple
toddy; but we had college pies and turkeys with cakes
and candies, and last, though not least, the life-giving
coffee and bread. Though we had no home-faces to
share our mirth, we fed our hopes. We skated, we
whistled, we read, we wrote, we went out in town, we
ate and drank-but· didn't get drunk. Such was our
Christmas.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
239
Louis Freeman, writing from Worcester College, says
he spent a dry Christmas, and that the people up north
did not even know-0 shame !-did not even know what
one meant by eggnog . . . . We have very cold weather
now, and plenty of skating, the ice being nearly three
feet thick. ... The excitement of the forthcoming fourth
of March is at its apex. Have you heard anything about
the Negro insurrections? They are rife in Charles
County, but there are strong patrols always on the road.
Northern abolitionists are supposed to be the instigators.
The "fourth of March" to which he referred was the inauguration of President James Buchanan.
James Pye Neale, or Pye Neale as he was known to his
contemporaries, graduated from Georgetown College on July
6, 1859 and was the valedictorian of his class. James
Buchanan, the president of the United States, presided at
the commencement. A long gap in the letters to his mother
now follows. On July 20 following his graduation Neale
entered the novitiate. of the Maryland Province at Frederick,
Maryland. After three years here Mr. Neale taught for one
year in Baltimore and six years in Philadelphia.
At Woodstock
In 1869 he commenced his philosophy at Georgetown and
was among the pioneers who opened Woodstock College later
that same year. Both the next letter written on April 6,
most probably in the year 1870, and the succeeding ones were
all written from Woodstock and describe his days of philosophy and the work of beautifying the new house. Many
family references are also revealed and the emotional character of Pye Neale can be seen, a trait which had much to do
with his eventual departure from the Society. The stationery
of the letter of April 6 is rather unique. The paper is folded
into a four-by-six sheet and bears the first picture of Woodstock College at the top of the page. In the course of the
letter he said :
By this time I hope we have all learned the necessity
of labor and will bring up children no longer to idleness.
Constant employment is the best training for youth,
hearty work and hearty play interspersed. We of the
�240
HISTORICAL NOTES
old generations of southern people were injured by not
being kept steadily at work when we were young. How
much more gladly would I look back to have waited on
you, to have brought water, chopped wood, etc., instead
of having servants attending to me as well as to you. I
should feel proud to remember having done something
more than receive favors from you.
Woodstock. January 5, 1871. There are 120 in the
community. . . . The chapel was decorated for Christmas with 1,500 yards of greens .... The crib was erected
in the parlor. Statues of Our Lady, St. Joseph, the
angels (big and little), shepherds of all sizes, sexes and
ages; sheep, goats, dogs, all made in Naples and presented
by a friend. Bethlehem, backed by rocks, range of mountains, with clouds painted by -Scholastic. Hills, cave
with sno•v:-capped roof,~· real fountain (a yard high),
real pine trees on the rocks. Open to the public.
Charles County people made a public protest against
the spoliation of the Holy Father and published it in
the Mirror. It was worthy of the old place, or at least to
be expected that they should do something of the kind.
The county is looking up, materially and spiritually, at
the same time.
Woodstock. September 3, 1871. The house retreat
was given in elegant Latin.... The teachers from Georgetown and Loyola Colleges spent their vacations at St.
Inigoes and had a delightful time....
Rosecroft, lately belonging to the Hardy faW:ily, has
been given to the Sisters of the Sacred Heart and they
will open a school there. There are fifteen applications
already. A lady of the Hardy family has joined the
Order....
I told you, I believe, that Miss Jennie Neale, Nellie and
Hortense Digges are to open a school at Mt. Airy. There
are five applications for matriculation. My advice to
them is to go and join the Order of the Sacred Heart
and be done with it....
Fr. Vicinanza has been moved from St. Thomas to
Leonardtown. He was up lately and I asked him about
everybody from Glymont to Newport. Aunt Mary and
the three Thomas ladies live with Dr. C. H. Pye. Mass
a
�HISTORICAL NOTES
241
is still said in the church your father built. All the old
Pyes are buried in the yard near it. It made my hair
stand on end with enthusiasm when I looked at the
graves of so many holy, truly holy, members of the
family. For God's sake, take care of the children in
Texas and let them know how good and pious their
ancestors were; how charity and mildness made them
fall from princely wealth into poverty. It remained for
the modern generations to put the stigma of dissipation
on the old escutcheon. Olivia was with Edmonia at
"Longevity" and there they might now be living rich
and happy, but for a fool's advice. The next Pye that
wishes to marry his cousin should be bastinadoed, hunted
and ridden on a rail to Van Dieman's Land. We'll have
whole batches of young donkies branded with a P, to
show that they are of the Pye ranch, if that thing goes
on any longer. . . .
Father Stonestreet spent a day here recently and told
me something that may interest you. Cousin Nick last
December woke up suddenly from sleep after midnight
in a terrible perspiration, and saw standing before the
bed on which he lay, his dead sister Filomena and in the
Visitation habit. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, but
there she stood, and as she moved towards the door, he
followed till she disappeared. Not to disturb his wife,
who was in a delicate condition, he said to himself: "As
I am up, I will wake the boys for hog killing". He
superintended that most unideal work till near breakfast
time when word was brought to him that his wife had
been delivered of a daughter'. He went immediately to
the house and was met inside by a nurse with the child
in her arms, but, wonderful to say, there in broad daylight this man of business and practical lawyer could
see no· infant but Sister Filomena in her nun's dress,
and no straining of eyes could dispel the vision. Of course
he wondered a great deal. The child has been named
Filomena and has been dedicated to the Blessed Virgin
Mary. . . .
Rosecroft, mentioned in the above letter was on the northern side of the mouth of St. Inigoes Creek. Some who spent
their villa at St. Inigoes will remember it as the home of
�242
HISTORICAL NOTES
Captain Kennedy. The Sacred Heart school did not prosper;
one factor was the refusal of Father Provincial for reasons
not stated, to allow the Fathers at St. Inigoes to undertake
the duties of chaplain.
Woodstock. Noyember 14, 1871. I went with some
Scholastics lately to see· the new Mount Hope building,
and it was well worth the twenty mile walk .
. Woodstock. December 3, 1871. Your old friend Father
Matthews (and I may add, relative) was disinterred
lately (about three weeks ago) for removal to a new
grave yard, for old St. Patrick's is to be demolished and
a fine new church raised in its place. Father M's body
was incorrupt, so that a great many of his old friends
had the pleasure of looking on his face and recognized
him easily. He was puried in 1854, you will remem··
ber. . . .
The Sisters of the Sacred Heart opened last September
down at St. Inigoes. . ..
The Maryland elections went pretty much as they
should have done. A piece of bigotry was very nicely
foiled in Howard County. The Methodists, because Mr.
Carroll (the descendant of Charles Carroll of Carrollton)
is a Catholic, determined to crush him and nominated one
of the "class leaders" and moved every stone to be successful, but it wai all for nothing....
The incorruption of Father Matthews' body was petrification, due to the silica-bearing water from the springs in that
locality. When the foundation was dug for the: Gonzaga
auditorium in 1896, springs, which are still flo;ing, were
uncovered and also quantities of petrified wood.
Woodstock. January 7, 1872. Your talk about "old
times" was particularly suited to the season. A few
such letters written by our old people in the counties
would be historically valuable. I had a plan of getting
Uncle Charlie to write down all that he had heard or
seen, and I know that the old man would have been
delighted at the task of putting his family traditions and
reminiscences into clear and orderly form for the perusal
of coming generations. Unhappily, records are not the
only things that Marylanders have been careless of.
We can scarcely realize the grand old set who, a few
�HISTORICAL NOTES
243
generations back, were sending their children to Europe
to be educated, who acted like noble men and lived like
saints. Though that day with its glory is gone, you
have children who can be taught a lesson, a good solid
lesson, from the sufferings of their parents. You ought
to drive the lesson home to them and tell them that the
Pyes of old allowed their generosity and good-heartedness to smother their prudence, that where a father with
four strong sons and fifty servants fell from affluence to
poverty (at Oakland) now one young man with hired
hands is piling up money with ease (Frank Hamilton).
Does this sound too worldly-too much as if money were
the main thing? Money enables one to keep select company and to obtain good education and do many good
works, and good people ought to have plenty of it,
though they should be willing to throw millions away to
please God.
Woodstock. April 20, 1872. The spoiling, I think, is in
the character and previous life of a boy when there is no
special difficulty about his college life. Georgetown is
now a hundred miles ahead of what it used to be in
morality and discipline. I am dying to hear that Dick
is there and. has a year saved. If possible, by any way
or measure, let him not suffer the horror of a shabby
appearance. Dress him well. It helps a boy along wonderfully at college to be respectably dressed. See to it
yourself that he be attended to on this point and make
sure of it. I, who have been around colleges since '52 and
before, in one way or another, know this to be true.
Woodstock. May 5, 1872. A friend'bought in Paris
the grandest monstrance I ever set eyes on. . . . The
altars in Loyola are of marble and statues imported
from Italy. The crucifix of papier mache is lifelike, lifesize and colored most artistically. It was brought from
Italy by Father Paresce to be carried around on great
missions and set up in the church of the mission.
Theology
Since Mr. Neale had seven years of regency immediately
after his juniorate we find him passing directly from phi-
�244
HISTORICAL NOTES
Iosophy to theology in the Summer of 1872, and so his letters
continue from Woodstock.
Woodstock. March 21, 1873~ · I wish you could see the
work being done on our grounds here. I have a share
in the rougher part of the work. Last week I was engaged in getting a wild honey-suckle, or more properly
an azalea, ten feet high, with all the earth around the
roots, up the hill. Five of us could not manage it, and
a mule and a cart being brought to the rescue, poor old
"Kate" slipped up at her first step on the frozen ground,
and three of us were nearly "murdered" getting her up
on her pins again. She was allowed to munch chopped
corn for the rest of that day. The next day I went four
miles down the river with a wagon. We dug up thirtyfive little holly trees and they are now struggling with
the wind on the brow of our hill where "plot bands"
have been laid out for ornamental shrubbery. In front
of the house of course an ornamental fountain, then
further out a fifteen-foot vase, and at distances around,
seven statues, flowers, etc., in proper places. The expenses for these things are being borne by a kind friend,
for we have no money to spend on such unnecessary
things, and we are content to get outside and inside
living for the body. We have about a dozen Italians
working for us. They are a quiet, pious, honest, wellintentioned set of men. You know they were swindled in
New York and we took them in out of charity and
-managed to give them work.
Woodstock. April 20, 1873. We have put down hundreds of ornamental trees, erected five splendid vases,
the gift of a friend. In the midst of our lawn, around
which winds a road planted on both sides with alternate
arbor vitae and Norway spruce, is a raised and sodded
plateau on which are the grand twelve-foot high center
vase and eight-feet corner ones, with the exquisite angels
holding shells on their heads for flowers. Everything is
the gift of a friend ....
I endorse your sentiments about St. George and England. It is not wonderful that we who are as English
as English can be for generations back should be at-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
245
tached to the great, old, wicked, splendid motherland.
We are sorry for her, but we do not hate her.
Woodstock. August 2, 1873. I wish I could send you
a photograph of our garden with the Sacred Heart standing in the center. If I can get one of my own I shall
certainly send it. They cost twenty-five cents, I believe ..•.
The class to which I belong is to be ordained on the
20th of December coming....
Woodstock. August 26, 1873. I am delighted to be
able to send you a picture of the statue erected in the
center of our garden on the 20th of June last. The copy
is a rejected one and the only kind I could get, as I can
not raise twenty-five cents to pay for a good one....
In our little cluster of huts at Woodstock there are fiftyeight children. Twelve children in one family is common
here. Scarcely any one ever dies except of old age or by
a railroad accident.
Woodstock. November 15, 1873. I told you in my
last letter, which by this time must have reached you,
of the tremendous change that is to be worked on me by
the hands of our Archbishop on the 12th of December.
I hope you will give me the aid of those prayers to which
I attribute most of the good things that have happened to
me in my life. I hope you will give some more of those
prayers that an interior and complete change may be
effected in me.
Woodstock. March 20, 1874. I can not help thinking
how sad it is that while that poor old colored woman who
was the first one to whom I gave Communion had many
zealous men and women looking after her and instructing
her, the descendants of old and glorious ancestry, whose
family has kept the faith through bloody martyrdom,
should grow up and get married without even making
their first Communion. Mixed marriages can do more
harm than the sword of the executioner. The saddest
thing you have ever written in your letters was the
account of the religious ignorance in which our young
relatives have been suffered to grow up. They have been
taught all sorts of sciences and arts except the first and
most important-their catechism, and that among well-
�246
HISTORICAL NOTES
educated Catholic parents and relatives. It is hard to
understand.
I taught the little Negroes when I was a boy and have
taught night schools to street Arabs, and still teach our
darkies here one hour every night their prayers, catechism, reading, writing, arithmetic, and singing, and
there is nobody to instruct my relatives in what they
need most to know.
The Pyes in England that had gone over to Protestantism have been corning back of late years, while it looks
as if in one more generation their relatives in America
would desert the old faith ....
Father Stonestreet was very well when I last heard
from ·him though he has too much of the drag and haul
of a parish priest to att~nd to. Father Curley is still at
Georgetown College and digs in his garden. He performs pretty much the same round of duties as of old.
He was lame a year ago but has now thrown away his
crutches and taken a new start. Father Maguire is still
doing a giant's work, though there are broad lines of
gray in his locks.
Woodstock. June 6, 1874. Two of our servants have
just returned from a visit to Charles County, and I was
talking to one this morning who heard Mass last Sunday
at St. Thomas'. He describes them just as you knew
them to be years ago. He saw Uncle Robert and all the
people, old and young, from both sides of the creek, of
African and non-African descent.
.:.
Young Frank Digges is working a farm. . George, who
would make a fortune out west or down south, is almost
starving. Eugene Digges, than whom there are scarcely
one hundred better educated men in the country, though
district attorney, does poorly. There are too manY
trying to live on brain work where there is very little
demand for such work. Hanging around that dead country was not in the nature of your father's children or
grandchildren. Though the memory of Frank's terrible
death makes me shudder, still it might have .been, if
possible, worse if he had remained stagnating in Charles
County.
Mrs. Middleton is at last relieved of her sufferings
�HISTORICAL NOTES
247
and left her property to Frank Posey. He was to have
married Emma Jameson of Newport, but because of his
not appearing at the last moment, the bride fainted away,
and her brother and others trotted away to Prince
George's County to bring up the bridegroom to face the
music. They found him in Alexandria, would not hear
his apologies, and appointed him one week to get ready
for carrying out his contract. There is very little
romance in the county except of the heartbreaking kind.
I can not tell how I feel as I count over the fine fellows
and young dames that have not met with anything but
bitter disappointment, whose forelife was spent in blind
frivolity and idleness and whose afterlife is one dreary
round of unconsoled, unfamiliar drudgery. Most of them
bear it in a religious spirit and it has elevated and
bettered them spiritually, so that I hope that God has
yet some good blessing in store for them, though that
will be better if deferred to the next life....
A Neale from Cobb Neck was elected Mother at the
Georgetown Academy lately, but refused to accept. . . .
We are putting our grounds in order. A grand colossal
statue of Our Lord as He appeared to B. Margaret
Mary goes in front of the house; a bronze St. Joseph,
holding a beautiful Infant, little over life-size-an excellent figure and countenance-stands at the east end.
A statue of Our Lady, of corresponding height, at the
west. How happy I would be if a friend of mine could
have the honor of putting the angel guardian at the
back door? Our back door, however, is no mean place,
at least will not be when the back yard is finished ....
We had all the boys from Loyola and some from
Georgetown out with us on Thursday after Whitsunday.
They played baseball, took dinner in the shade near a
spring, rowed in our boats on the river, and enjoyed
themselves with all the wildness of city boys unused to
the freshness and freedom of the country. They came,
packed away in carry-alls with teachers, cooks, and waiters; a hack accompanying containing the President. You
can imagine the howling, shouting, and singing along the
fifteen miles to Baltimore.
Woodstock. June 30, 1874. You speak of a letter of
�248
HISTORICAL NOTES
Sister's and ask if I would like to see it. Why, I would
wear it as a relic. I have no memento of her and what
could be more appropriate than a letter of hers whose
letters to me at Georgetown College were beyond all value
in every way. I saw her grave four years ago when
we walked the thirty-nine miles to Frederick, and felt
glad to see where it was. Think of poor Frank lying in
a Presbyterian church yard. It makes me start right
up with horror. The descendant of old Catholic ancestors,
who bled for the faith, to be lying there among heretics....
I suppose you read in the papers about the pilgrimage
to White Marsh, for Frank Leslie had pictures of it and
there were reporters on .the ground from the Tribune
and the Herald.
_'
We lately erected a fine statue of the Blessed Virgin
(about seven feet high). There is a plot of grass with
ellipses cut for flowers, in the middle of a tall mound,
two blocks of granite on which there is a metal pedestal
and then the statue. It is at top of the hill just
as the road enters the garden. It is all shaded by fine
oaks and poplars. An angel with a vase of hanging
petunias stands at each corner and four vases are set to
match, lower down._
At Loyola in Baltimore
The status of 1874 sent Father Neale to Loyola ip Baltimore where he taught rhetoric and poetry for two· years,
·
and his next letter is as follows :
Loyola College, Baltimore. March 14, 1875. I saw
Dickie at Georgetown last week and was delighted with
him. I could not talk to him at all for every word he
uttered brought tears to my eyes. When he began to
speak of "Cousin Frank" I had to stop him, and turn him
short to some other subject, for all the boys were looking
at us. If we had been alone I would have let him talk
on and just cried my eyes out. It would have done me
so much good. One of the afflictions of my iife is to
have no power to conceal my feelings and to feel every
little thing in such a way that people think I am crazy....
�HISTORICAL NOTES
249
So many farms in Cedar Point have been taken by
colored persons (as tenants) that we thought of getting
Fred Douglas to buy us out.
Loyola College, Baltimore. May 16, 1875. It is Whitsunday, and after renewing vows at six, attending the
boys at seven, who begin today the six Sundays of St.
Aloysius, giving Communion twice, besides at my own
Mass at eight, then posting off in a carriage to St.
Martin's at West End to help in the ten-thirty Mass,
then refusing a carriage and walking home so as to be
with the family at dinner, I feel free until five, when I
will go over to assist in the May procession of the
Colored Sisters, after which we will have our own grand
evening service of Vespers, May devotions, and solemn
Benediction...•
The boys are inviting me every day to go fishing,
promising to supply lines, worms, eatables and everything. Dear kind darlings, they are too good for me.
What do you think a little stammerer gave me the other
day? A bottle of cologne. If he had been older I might
have regarded it as a hint, as one of the boys did a cake
of brown soap that he received at Christmas.
In 1875 Father Neale went to Cold Spring, Pennsylvania,
for the villa. This was a run-down old resort in the region of
Harrisburg, that seems to have been left to St. Joseph's College. It did not prove satisfactory and seems to have been
sold about 1880. Father Neale wrote:
Cold Spring Villa, Pearson, Lebanon County, Penn.
July 7, 1875. Dick has gone to Charles County and will
soon be telling you about all of his experiences there.
Unfortunately things are at a low ebb for the Pyes. The
Neales are little better, and the Digges nearly as badly
off. There can scarcely be a day of resurrection for any
of them in that land. . ..
Well, you ought to see the place where we are. In the
coal regions of Pennsylvania, between two mountain
ridges, like a boat in the trough of the waves. The
scenery on the way to this place is the prettiest I have
seen and at the same time most varied. Harrisburg was
a prettier place than I expected. We stayed there some
hours admiring churches and the State House where
�250
HISTORICAL NOTES
the Pennsylvania legislature pulls wires and sells votes.
We expect Bishop Shanahan to spend some days here,
as we are in his diocese. There is no dwelling within
many miles of us, the woody mountain ranges stretching
far off in uncultivated native ruggedness. They say that
bears and rattlesnakes are found about here.
Having returned to Baltimore after the villa, Father Neale
wrote, on August 21, 1875:
After the overwhelming grandeur and splendor of the
larger cities I am glad to be back in old quiet Baltimore.
Baltimore is one of the fastest growing cities of the
country and is losing some of its simplicity.
Loyola College, Baltimore. October 10, 1875. I have
been over to Georgetown College and had a talk with
Father Stonestreet. He is as cheerful and healthy as
possible, bringing down liis fat by the method of Dr.
Bantung. Though he says he is now sixty, at which age
the Church exempts from fasting (women at fifty), he
intends to take advantage of an old man's privilege, not
be very hard on himself as he has hitherto been....
We have about 120 as fine boys as ever lived. Education is everything. You can easily pick out the boys
whose parents do their duty, without knowing anything
about them except what you can get from observing their
behavior. Loyola College, Baltimore. November 8, 1875. We
have 13.0 boys. I have started the practice of reading
prayers at Mass every day from the Roman: missal,
translated, so that there is conformity with the priest, so
much praised by the saints, and variety in the matter,
so much liked by boys.
The next letter was written from Woodstock on July 23,
1876, saying:
You may not remember that you wrote me a letter
just after my graduation at college, urging me to study
out my vocation and exhorting me to follow it. The
letter only reached me when I had the habit of the Society, and I read it in the garden of the novices. I was
lately reading over that precious letter in which you
spoke as one inspired· by the Holy Ghost....
I am, by a singular favor, passing my vacation at this
�HISTORICAL NOTES
251
blessed house in company with all the devout friends of
my youth who took their first vows with me and all now
ordained like myself, after sixteen years of all sorts of
experiences.
.
We will start next Thursday, 23rd of July, for St.
Inigoes where we will have two weeks on the salt
water....
A great number of young men have been sent to the
Centennial and when they come back we gather around
and "pump" them, to get out of them all the marvels
they have seen and adventures they have met. Last
year in August I was driven through the Centennial
grounds by some boys who used to be in my class, and on
last 22nd of February a gentleman paid my fare and took
me over to Philadelphia to see the buildings and illumination of the city on that day. To stand in the main building, exactly as it then was, and look over its eighteen
hundred feet of length, and its twenty-one acres of level
flooring, was an experience that is hard to tell anything
about....
I had arranged with a gentleman to attend the exhibition of Notre Dame of Maryland, where we would have
seen General Grant and the Archbishop together, but rain
prevented....
At Georgetown
In the summer of 1876 he was changed to Georgetown,
and wrote on December 30 :
I had my hands full up to the last of the school days.
Then I started for Alexandria. Said the High Mass
on Christmas Eve and preached at it. Heard confessions at night until bed time. Got up at four next
day. Sang a solemn High Mass at five o'clock, at which
there were three hundred Communions (to the dozen that
used to be a few years ago). At ten o'clock I sang
another High Mass.
Georgetown College. May 9, 1877. A little boy to
whom I was giving private lessons in Greek (great
grandson of Thomas Jefferson) got very sick lately; so
sick that we feared that we would lose him. His mother
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HISTORICAL NOTES
and father came on and, to our great relief, he recovered
and we sent him home to recruit. The weather is not
at all like May weather. I have a fire in my room all
the time and wear a cloak when I go out.
Georgetown College. June 13, 1877. Old St. Patrick's
has been torn down and the new St. Patrick's rises
majestically on nearly the same site . . . ~
You know there is a grand new Visitation Convent
built in Washington to which they are soon to move,
after twenty-six years' stay in their dear little old
family-like residence.
The Visitation Convent which was new in 1877 occupied
the block bounded by Connecticut A venue and 17th Street,
L and De Sales Streets, and w~s then quite removed from
downtown activity. The Convent and school remained until
about 1918, and Fathers from Ge.orgetown served as chaplains.
That city block is now occupied by the Mayflower Hotel and
the name "De Sales" is a memento of the Convent's existence.
In the summer of 1877 Father Neale, while in charge of
the parish at Bushwood, wrote from Leonardtown on August
21:
I have been up to my congregation and back three
times since I wrote to you last. This last time I had
the usual variety of iJ:!teresting experiences, some sad but
nearly all joyful. I found that three had been buried
while I was away, to two of whom I had given the
Viaticum, and to one the last sacraments. They were
well prepared. I blessed their graves with consofation.
But I must tell you that I have been sleeping around
in the houses and renewing remembrances of what used
to take place at home, when we lived at Lochleven. There
is a part of the parish miles and miles away from the
church where there are a great many old persons who
can not get to the church. I went to the house on
Friday evening, stayed all night, ate an old country
supper, had a good sleep and the next morning went into
the parlor, where we had, the day before (I and a widow
lady, the oldest in the house) arranged the altar with
· vestments, chalice, etc., all of which belonged to the lady
herself, who bought them from a Mrs. Neale who went
to Texas last year. There were over thirty Communions
�HISTORICAL NOTES
253
and baptisms-a whole Protestant family at once
"dipped." There is no end to the confessions, Communions, baptisms, etc. I'll say Mass at another private
house next week.
My parish had a dinner last Wednesday and I rode
down to it. It was really well gotten up, and the ladies
and gents all deserve the greatest praise. We had it in
a big barn-a splendid place, plenty of shade and freedom and a large smooth-floored room for dancing. They
began to dance right after dinner, with three fiddles and
a banjo. I had to leave early; but they kept up the fun
long after my departure. One part of the sport was a
speech from an old crazy gent called "Boss Bailey,"
who imagines himself a candidate for all sorts of high
offices. I do not dine out at all, nor visit, as I see no
special fruit from such things, and it is an expensive
way of making the acquaintance. I have two boys that
come daily to take lessons in Latin and Greek, and I
teach a colored boy at night, and over all the good Brother
expects me to superintend wine-making, and putting up
of tomatoes, etc., so that I do not know where I am half
the time.
9:30 P.M. I had to stop to say litanies, examine my
worthless conscience and prepare matter for tomorrow's
meditation. In the meantime a letter was put on my
table-orders to be in Baltimore next Wednesday. So
I am not to stay in the blessed old counties.
Assigned to the Counties
He was wrong about leaving the counties, for the orders in
Baltimore sent him to White Marsh in Prince George's
County, and on September 8 he wrote:
Collington Post Office. I arrived here yesterday in a
rain storm. . . . Poor p~ople around here in abundance
and we must share their poverty. Two little girls were in
at Mass this morning and three at catechism (preparing
for First Communion), despite the rain which has
favored the farmers and ducks for three days. I had a
grand, most pleasant, and edifying time down at Leonardtown and grew to admire the splendid people in the
two congregations I attended.
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HISTORICAL NOTES
October 13, 1877. I saw the Park Street Sisters lately
and had a fine talk; they all wished to be remembered to
you. Sister Xavier has gone to Washington to "boss" the
new convent there.
Father Neale's stay at White Marsh was not very long and
his next assignment was St. Inigoes, St. Mary's County.
He wrote:
St. Inigoes. January 30, 1878. Off last Friday at
4 P.M. on a sick call, eighteen miles through rain
and dark and mud. Saved from neck or leg breaking by
the providential grasp of the young man I took along
in the buggy. Gave last sacraments to ten; married
three (couples), twenty miles apart; arranged for two
more couples; baptized a man of twenty-two, and a
baby; arranged for several 'to enter the Church; said Mass
across the Patuxent in Caivert County, gave Communion
to some fifty, etc.; on the rush all the time, grabbing
meals and beds where I could get them.
Back today, Wednesday, found a handful of letters,
but proof sheets of prayer book on which I am working
did not arrive. Many letters to write and little matters
to arrange before starting off again day after tomorrow.
I have managed to call on several sick people. A girl
who died last week 1Yas conscious only till she had finished
her confession and then-blank. Candles to be blessed
and a thousand arrangements to be made when I get
back to St. Nicholas.
I tell you all this to show why the cultivation i>f bulbs
is not indulged in by the present dwellers in St~ Inigoes.
We have to scratch for· a living. With your letter came
one from Charles H. Pye begging a loan of ten dollars.
I'll send all I can scrape....
We see from the above letter that Father Neale had been
given the distant parishes of the St. Inigoes' residence, which
meant that he had to drive about seven and a half miles,
over abominable roads in bad weather, before reaching his
nearest parishioners, those around Park Hall, and then
another three and a half miles to Great Mills. Three miles
north of Great Mills was the church of St. Nicholas; the
greater part of the parish is now covered by the Patuxent
Naval Base, with the church being used as a post chapel. We
�HISTORICAL NOTES
255
also see from Father Neale's letter that, when opportunity
offered, he crossed the Patuxent, several miles wide at this
point, to say Mass for the Catholics in that section of Calvert
County. Some four miles south of Great Mills is the parish
of St. George's at Valley Lee. After another four and a half
miles one comes to the strait separating St. George's Island
from the mainland, and on the island is the church of St.
Francis Xavier. The present writer had some experiences in
these same parishes in 1922, but with an automobile; and only
some personal experience enables one to appreciate the hardships of the horse-and-buggy days over wretched roads.
The province catalogue of 1879-1880 puts Father Pye Neale
at St. Inigoes, and combining this with a letter from Frederick, dated September 17, 1879, we gather that his tertianship did not consist of much more than the long retreat.
Frederick. September 17, 1879. I am in old Frederick town again. Though I have not visited my sister's
grave in the convent enclosure, I said the first black
Mass I could for the repose of her soul. I know that I
owe her a great deal. This is a heaven on earth. . . .
There are a great many things here to recall the past.
Old St. John's College, where so many Charles County
boys went to school, the old families still about, with
whom they boarded. Judge Taney's grave in the garden
in which we recreate daily, the Blue Ridge Mountains
that are visible from the back piazza at Mt. Airy. I feel
at home in Frederick, doubly more on account of the
years of noviceship passed here. I left here at the beginning of the war and of course feel an interest in
noting all marks of the great conflict. I read the names
of several hundred Confederates on a line of tombstones
yesterday, and you know with what emotions. Poor
fellows! Far from home, but well treated by the nuns
and Jesuit novices; most of them converted before they
died.
I have come here to make what is called my last probation. We begin a thirty-day retreat tomorrow and
leave the world for the desert-nothing but prayers
and good reading and meditation from 5:30 A.M. to
10 P.M., and not one word spoken, and then the probability is that I will be sent back to St. Inigoes.
�256
HISTORICAL NOTES
Father Neale's surmise in regard to his status was correct;
his next letter was from St. Inigoes on November 28, 1879.
I have, by the count, twenty-six letters to be answered
at once, and have to start off to St. George's (twenty
miles distant) where I'll stay three days, sleeping in the
sacristy, and far from able to write letters or do anything civilized. This lazy old slavery-cursed land is as
uncivilized in many respects as if Lord Baltimore had
arrived last year. This reminds me that I baptized a
baby last Monday named Leonard Calvert Cecil. · When
I went to put it in the register it came right after the
name of Jacob Calvert. I have lost all my reverence
for the Calverts. True and deep history does not make
them show well. Whenev.er I pass over the site of old
St. Mary's City (as I will tomorrow) and see rio sign
of the old town left, though I pass right in front of
where the old town hall stood (now a seeded wheat field),
I feel that the punishment of God on half-hearted
Catholicity is there. Maryland Catholicity was a sickly
thing from the beginning; but since the war it has begun
to improve. They still have the old spirit of starving
their priests. I had two tournaments, two dinners and
a rafHe, but from all realized very little, because we had
bad weather each ti!lle. One of my parishioners will pay
her pew rent in turkeys.
I have had a new picture of "Our Lady of Perpetual
Help" put up in St. Nicholas, and will have a grand
frame put to it this week. The altar will also be_.regilded
and painted. A young Irishman does these jobs for
nothing and paints the churches from roof to floor, not
charging a cent. An Irishman down here volunteers to
support a priest for his church by himself. Give me
the Irish-they are the only true Catholics. I expect to
have a triduum at St. Nicholas before the Immaculate
Conception. I have bought a crib for Christmas, and
the life of Christ in figures to be set up in groups, illustrating various scenes in Our Lord's life. These will
be good for teaching catechism to those who can not
read. I have my darkies singing in quartet and find
it very little trouble to teach them.
My latest idea is to have a floating chapel, a steam-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
257
boat with a chapel on board. A young man in Boston
undertakes to collect twenty-five hundred dollars for it,
and will get Ben Butler to lecture for me. He thinks it
will cost fifteen thousand dollars, but I will buy an old
boat for a thousand dollars and rig her up nicely. The
old Columbia sold last week for one thousand dollars.
My next idea is to get spirited hard-working colonists
to take land in the counties. We have one form of
colony already. Two hundred and seventy children from
New York have been distributed in Maryland. The
people who adopt them are generally very well pleased
with them. Two Sisters of Charity from New York
were down last week and I had the pleasure of accompanying them on a tour of inspection to see how their
children were doing. I wish I could get them to establish themselves here and open a Catholic school. ... The
grand new building at Georgetown is up to the roof.
Undated Letters from St. Inigoes
Father Neale frequently failed to put the year on the date
of his letters, but there are some extracts which are worth
recording.
St. Inigoes. Just about to sit down to write to you
after getting off a letter to Eustace and here comes a
sick call twenty miles away that will not let me come
home for three or four days.
December 14. Just starting on a fifty mile ride. Mass
at Piney Point before I get back.
St. Inigoes. December 29. Busiest time of the year.
Four sermons in three days and two more before the
end of the week. Keeps me lively if the several hundred
confessions and four marriages and a funeral, etc., didn't
do it. Leaving very heavy in heart on twenty-nine sick
calls. This is life! Real life! I love it. The people
treat me like a king; are as kind as if I were everybody's
relative.
St. Inigoes. January 24 (probably 1880). I received
a letter from a widow, along with yours, saying she
had difficulty getting a piece of paper to write on. She
belonged to one of the richest families in the state; but
�258
HISTORICAL NOTES
in a week or two her last property will be sold for debt.
I was stopped on the road by another woman with seven
children, to whom I gave all the money I had and some
biscuits, sausages, butter, sauce, cheese, etc., that I had
picked up in my travels. There are the most urgent calls
on all sides of us. A little orphan girl was dumped down
and left in our yard yesterday, and is staying with our
black cook. We have gotten homes in Maryland for
about three hundred orphan children picked off the
streets of New York, and generally they are getting
along splendidly. . . .
The St. Mary river is covered with ice that has been
there for three or four weeks. Icebergs are formed on
shore by the wind and tide. Very few ducks. A black
man gave me two lately; I gave one of them to a sick
man and the other to the poor woman mentioned above.
I have received a present of six turkeys and a big Cochin
chicken and will get a game rooster next week. That is
the way they pay pew rent nowadays.
I think of turning an old store into a church and calling it the chapel of the Holy Name, on account of a
picture I will hang in it, with the name of God on it in
Hebrew, Latin and Greek.
St. Inigoes. February 25. I once imagined that I had
tied a horse to a fence and, a few minutes after, I found
that I had not when he tore away and broke my
buggy....
We have had the deepest of snows and no~ ·the profoundest of mud. I have been constantly on the road. It
is always my luck to be out in big rains and storms,
and so I always go bundled up like an Esquimau, prepared for the worst. . ..
St. Inigoes. March 7. You are off the track when you
put the Pyes behind the N eales and Taneys. A Pye
girl married a lord in England; their daughter, another
lord; and their daughter again married Henry IV, whose
son was Henry V of Shakespeare fame. Lords of Kilpeck castle were the Pyes from the time of the Norman
conquest. Their name is not their original one-that
I have not heard, but it is Welsh "Ap-Hugh" (son of
Hugh) the same as McHugh and Fitzgerald. It became
�HISTORICAL NOTES
259
Pugh, but the Welsh pronounce u as long i-therefore
Pugh and Pye are the same. One Pye was a poet
laureate of England, but no great shakes, the poorest
of all of them, though very learned. To have kept the
faith in England is a title to the highest nobility-to
lose it in Texas is the opposite.
St. Inigoes. July 13. I can hear the Scholastics
tramping up and down the brick wall. Crowds are
coming in from the boats, etc. They have a big tent
pitched alongside our house for outdoor recreation. Their
glee club and band give splendid vocal and instrumental
music.
We had a High Mass at the church on Sunday. And
as old Mrs. Langley, my dear friend at whose house I
have so often stayed even weeks at a time, had often
said, "When I am buried, I want to have the Jesuits all
in church and have them sing Mass over me," I came
as near as I could to granting her wish. As I was
celebrant of the Mass I said it for her, and so informed
her husband who had come ten miles to receive Communion. I would have felt bad not to have seen her
wish carried out; for she was one worthy of everything.
She had a whole day visit from her favorite Maria Cecil
the day before she died. When a little girl, she used
to drive the old patriarch Father Carbery in his buggy,
used to read to him in their house, and used to feel his
immense double chin with her little hand. She has
always been a great favorite of the Jesuits and trained
four orphan boys for the novitiate, two of whom were
models, even in that holy house. I can not tell how I will
miss her in every way. The last time I stayed all
night at her house and said Mass in her room, there
were more than twenty darkies (many of them her old
slaves) who showered the most tender attention and
marks of affection on her. This was five days before
she died. She was lifted into the kitchen where she
superintended the making of my most favorite kind of
pudding and said it made her sick to see them so awkward about it. She made me bless her as I went out of
the door for the last time.
St. Inigoes. Undated. Just back from St. George's
�260
HISTORICAL NOTES
(twenty miles) where I stayed five days to prepare all
who might come for confirmation. Took two Protestants
into the Church while there. Start in two hours for St.
Nicholas (fourteen miles) with old Jack Straw, a slow
horse. My young horse turned me out a week ago and
cured me of the chills, but hurt his own foot kicking the
buggy to pieces. He is a splendid horse and I will raffle
him off to help to build a church to St. Michael near
Point Lookout. I must begin to pack up.
St. Inigoes. April 4. We have had several consoling
conversions lately in our little congregations. Nearly
all the Protestants who become engaged to my Catholic
parishioners enter the Church before marriage....
In Baltimore lately, at our church, Father Maguire
gave a mission at which -there were seven thousand communions, twenty-nine converts, two hundred new members admitted to the Sodality, etc. That is the kind
of work Father Maguire is always doing, all over the
country.
St. Inigoes. November 13, 1880. It grieves me to
hear that you are suffering from the cold. I am in the
same fix. I need three stoves. The stove in the place
where I sit at home is so far gone that I take tomato
cans, remove the heads, and put them around the pipe.
I have five on my single section of pipe.
At the Factory, my new chapel of the Angel Guardians,
I wrap up well with a blanket when I hear confessions,
for I can see through the floor and sides of trie walls,
and have no fire.
At St. Nicholas I have put up, or intend to try to put
up, an old broken stove, the holes filled with a plaster
of salt and ashes, which the ladies of the church took
down in summer for fear that visitors would see it. So
you see I am poorly off in the stove line--to say nothing
of St. George's where it smokes so that I have often in
cold weather to raise the window or put out the fire and
go to bed early.
If I could have foreseen that your other sons would
not support you, I could not have entered religion. I
threatened Frank that if he did not do something for
you I would have to leave the Society of Jesus, as I
�HISTORICAL NOTES
261
was not at that time in Holy Orders; but he begged me
not to do it, said he would be able to support you, and
went to see you soon after with money for you. Eustace,
after I made the same threat, began to send you money.
Eight dollars would buy you a coal oil stove, which would
be the easiest managed; but eight cents are hard to get
here. I say Mass daily to pay for the house in which
I live. The people expect me to travel day and night
in order to give them the sacraments-all for nothing.
Two or three decent people of the Captain Neale type
are the support of the churches. The Captain's daughters are struggling along and, with the Digges, living
very poorly. All in the counties are poor.
St. Inigoes. April 20, 1881. I rush from one end of
the county to the other. Saturday last, after a week
through the rain, fifty miles at a clip, I go up six miles
to see a group of people, seven of whom wish to enter
the Church; see three other families in the same place;
strike for the post office, several more miles, calling at a
place or two.
At church, my waiter sick; people for confession; baby
to baptize; man, thirty-two years old, to enter the Church
and get married, making the sixth marriage I have on
hand at present. Thank God there will be two nuptial
Masses, as there should always be. The parties in one
marriage are both to be baptized and then married.
I say office and next morning some fifty confessions,
two Masses, catechism, business affairs about church
improvements. Plan for a missionary trip broken up by
a fever after Mass, and the Calvert County people will
look across the Patuxent in vain for me and my Irish
fiddler. Out before sunrise to give Easter Communion
to old people that could not walk to church, then some
thirty others at church to be heard, then Mass, then
off to the shore to see an important case. Meet little
children who let out just the thing about which I wish
to scold the mother, and I meet her on the shore and
get along quite well with her.
Call on an important helper of the church and arrange
plans; strike for a place called California, six miles off,
and meet gangs of my colored people on the road, and as
�262
HISTORICAL NOTES
my buggy is full of blessed palms I give all hands a piece.
They come out to the gates and hold up their little children for me to see, and ask them if they "know who that
is?" I get to California after meeting a man who has a
good deal of liquor in him, who gives me a lecture, saying
he and several others won't come to church unless I do
something differently. The boys are playing at the school
house and I get one to feed my horse. Go into the school
house and hear the girls read; the teacher, whom I
baptized two years ago, asked me if I have Protestant
relations.
I take dinner with Mrs. Cecil; arrange to come up for
Mass (twenty miles) next week; see D. about his little
daughter who wants a l1ome; see about old Mrs. K. who
has not walked for months; meet old J. C. with Emily
and tell him to make his Easter next week; have a good
talk in the store; have a long talk in the road with a
very smart Methodist whose child I refuse to baptize
unless he promises it shall be raised a Catholic. Down
the Three Notch road at 1:30 P.M. for home; pass the
tents of the railroad surveyors; meet Lucy and husband and give them a talking to. Drop in at Mrs. U. to
see about chairs she is to cover for me at the church;
leave the material which Mrs. Key has presented, give a
cent to each of the boys and girls and an egg apiece, pay
a bill for tree planting, call in to arrange with a lady
for her husband's funeral Mass; meet man driving a
steer and give him a letter that I have carri;d· in my
pocket for a week; leave a book, like the black one I
sent you, for the man who carries the mail.
Men all drunk around the post office. I drive through
them fast; one fellow falls off his horse in the middle of
the road and reaches up his hand, as he sees me, to
shake hands, his mouth all bleeding. I apologize and
go by at a gallop. Meet a man whose wife is to be buried
at noon tomorrow; girls at the Academy as I go by, and
cadets courting.
Called to see about a marriage-"Knocked in the head,"
says the old man, "she has a husband alive." I dash
on after scattering palms and medals among the Catholics and others. Find that a couple have gone by water
�HISTORICAL NOTES
263
to be married by me, but when I get to the church (St.
Ignatius) they are gone. Meet on the road a convert that
I am preparing and he greatly consoles me by his fervor.
Get home towards dark and find that Father Vigilante
has gone to Baltimore. Say office, study up some difficult
questions of practical theology till I can not hold my eyes
open.
Next morning (raining) chink up the boat that leaks
terribly and cross the river to Rosecroft to have a contract signed-Sam not at home-his cook treats me
badly-bring old Jane Turner back with me, who asks
all about my mother, etc. Great crowd at the funeral.
I walked up to the church after writing some letters
about marriages and gave them to a darky, Joe Neale,
to carry to the post office. Tried the organ to see if it
was in good order. This is a specimen of my hurlyburly life; no sameness ; no day like another; no rest;
I am on the road all the time.
St. Inigoes. June 25, 1881. It would have done you
good to have gone with me to the poorhouse last week,
where I went to see two of my old friends whom I lately
took into the Church before they went to that place, of
which they had such a dread, but with which they are
now well satisfied and would not leave for anything.
One of them, Miss Betsy Brady, an old midwife, seventy
years old, a bright talker, wanted me to get her a pair
of specs, a large print prayer book and some plugs of
tobacco, and that was all she cared for in this world....
Confirmation just over; forty-two in St. George's (a
congregation of converts) and eighty-nine in St. Nicholas,
with a good thirty in the Factory where I hold church
in an old store. I will have a balloon raising and a supper
at the Factory soon. If you could only see Mrs. Cecil,
my great friend, at whose home I always stay. She has
a gang that has already made the jubilee twice and they
are going to make it twice every month till January,
1882. She gets up novenas and all kinds of devotions
in the village, teaches some fifty children on Saturdays
and is a kind of religious authority.
St. Inigoes. November 30, 1881. I am in a fidget,
about to start on my regular twenty-five mile tramp. As
�264
HISTORICAL NOTES
soon as the rain stops I will be off. Going through the
country now is not what it used to be. The people in old
times had enough to eat for man and beast and a bed to
offer a traveler. You can form no idea of the general
run-down, poverty-stricken condition of everything and
everybody here. I have been here five years and just
beginning to realize it now. Laziness and whiskey are
of course at the bottom of it and we will have to wait
till the grandchildren of the slave holders are dead before we will have a sensible, practical, hardy set of
people. I think the people are a great deal better than
they used to be-more religious-and although they have
not yet become entirely convinced that priests do not
live on air, they support the churches or come nearer
to supporting them than ..they used to do. The man has
come for me.
St. Inigoes. September 3, 1882. My plan for serving
this country, Virginia and the Eastern shore is to have a
floating church. The Catholics are scattered here and
there, unable to build churches, and a floating church
could minister to the spiritual wants of a hundred
neighborhoods at the lowest expense and with the greatest convenience to the priest and the people. I find it a
great sport dashing. around the country on trips of twenty
and thirty miles. It is like a constant picnic. Day before
yesterday I started after a woman with heart disease
eighteen miles away, took dinner with some .splendid
people near there, and another sick lady (cOngestive
chills) who had been taken suddenly and did not expect
me.
I struck for the Factory village where I have a little
girl whom I am trying to get into an asylum. We have
given homes in Maryland to 480 orphans from New York
City. This little girl is paralyzed. From the Factory,
where I looked after my church music and a school for
the coming year, appointing a new organist and teacher,
my way was to the Forest. The prettiest set of little
children in the whole world are in the house where I
stopped, and I had great amusement with them. I had
to take some of them with me the next morning as
guides for some distance. I baptized a baby and attended
�HISTORICAL NOTES
265
the old grandmother, a holy old woman. I was forced
to stay with my greatest friend on the road who had some
splendid fish for dinner, baptized another baby, visited
some very dear children, one of whom serves Mass beautifully, and whom I would like to see educated for the
priesthood; saw my little paralytic and gave her a big
apple.
Then I struck for home, only twelve miles away, stopping
here and there, meeting many. I called in at one of my
good converts and had a delightful talk. At the next
place I called there was a couple with a two-year old and
a little orphan nurse. I gave crosses to the little ones
and, as I turned to go, the mother said : "When you come
by again I want you to christen me and take me into the
Catholic Church." I will go there tomorrow. So I run
around. Always more than enough to tend to, but all
consoling with very little exception. People here are
good.
St. Mary's County
Father Neale's estimate of the people of St. Mary's County
seems to have fluctuated according to varying conditions.
His project of a floating church merited consideration in
those days when much of the travel was by water and the
roads were frightful. In the early twenties of this century
a "show boat" plied the waters of the Potomac and its tributaries in Maryland and Virginia and drew people for distances of twenty miles. When it was proposed to extend a
good road through St. Mary's County at the end of the first
World War it met with opposition on the ground that it would
cause an increase in taxes.
St. Inigoes. May 31, 1883. It is hard for outsiders
to understand the complete prostration of the higher
classes of Maryland and Virginia in these tide water
districts. One thing they have preserved, thank God, and
that is their honest and orderly and peaceful dispositions.
Their houses are still open to share their crust with a
stranger. We have no robbery or murder amongst us.
Everybody is polite and good humored. Bob Freeman
tells me that sometimes when he is leaving the state for
travel through the South he actually weeps-sheds tears
�266
HISTORICAL NOTES
at the prospect of the hardhearted, selfish, irreligious
people among whom he has to go after leaving the gentle,
childlike people of St. Mary's.
I have never been much in favor of a railroad through
the county for the reason that, while it may bring money
and material improvement, it will also bring rascally
tramps and other thugs, of whom our people know
nothing at the present time. A man said a few years ago,
on returning from Arkansas where he had, to the surprise
of his friends, sold off a fine estate at a sacrifice: "Why,
my dear sir, I would rather live in Maryland than own
the whole state of Arkansas." . . .
I had a most delightful time yesterday, and in fact
for the past ten days. ·c Father Walker and I have
"swapped" pulpits, as tHe· Methodists say, and last Sunday I met my old friends of St. Inigoes, this Sunday, of
St. Michael's, which is near Point Lookout and a new
church. . . .
I met a Protestant lady on a sick call the day before,
who had been raised thirty years ago in the Georgetown
Convent. What a style the nuns give their girls! After
Mass yesterday when I had talked to everybody, old and
young, white and black, in the sacristy, a Baptist woman
wanted me to step- over to her house and baptize her
baby. Her husband was a Catholic, but was not her
husband till a few minutes before I left. I often catch
them that way and make them marry....
I stopped on the road and took dinner with-- a lively
and intelligent Irish family. Here I got a contribution
of five dollars-to help to build the new chapel of the
Holy Face that I am trying to get up ....
We are having a bake oven, a new range with four
places, two new boats and all sorts of improvements for
the coming of the Scholastics. Father Walker has kindly
invited me to accept an offer made to him to go up to
Baltimore and come down with the Scholastics on a
chartered steamer. As there will be music, and the trip
made in the day time, I'll enjoy it immensely and will
take my cornet mouthpiece along, for they make a fool
of me by making me play "Araby's Daughter" as a
solo and I'll have to brush up a new Negro song and
�HISTORICAL NOTES
267
prepare a new story "of de old sow what had free pigs."
This church of the Holy Face, built by Father Neale, has
been replaced by a new building to the west and on higher
ground, with a rectory dedicated to St. Francis Regis and a
school of the Little Flower.
St. Inigoes. September 12, 1884. The two letters
you sent I was glad to see; but took little satisfaction in
seeing evidence that the family is destined to lose the
faith entirely. It was a sad day for the descendants
of the grand old Pye family that came out with flying
colors from the terrible Protestant persecution of England, when they went to settle in a land where there was
no Mass and no sacraments and no Catholic school.
While Father Mac is rebuilding the old church at
Cornwallis Neck where the Pyes lie with their most
Catholic coat of arms on their tombs, it is sad to know
that the grandchildren of the saintly James Booth Pye
are straying from the faith, intermarrying with heretics, and worse than heretics, with women who regard one
Church as good as another. I see nothing cheerful in
such marriages but a great deal to grieve over.
St. Inigoes. May 7, 1885. I expect to go on a little
trip tomorrow. Mr. Edwin Coad comes over the river
in a boat and I will take him in my buggy on my regular
round; at 4:00 P.M. strike for Langley's, ten miles away,
splendid old couple and two fine boys, on the bay shore.
Talk about everything until twelve o'clock, for both are
very learned men and splendid characters-may meet
Col. Vannort and have some war talk. Beads out loud
at night and spiritual reading by one of the boys. Mass
next morning and all receive Communion-they receive
every two weeks. We will feast on rock fish, snapping
turtle, and a pudding that the old lady makes, and I
declare that it is the finest in the world.
Saturday we start off ten more miles to Lucy's (Coad's
daughter) and I drop him. I go back to the church of
St. Nicholas, ring the big St. James bell, 1,120 pounds,
and have my singing, catechism and confessions. Sunday, big crowd to confession five to ten, then Masssinging by my darkies, baptisms, etc. Then away we go
again, perhaps over the Patuxent to a town in Calvert
�268
HISTORICAL NOTES
County, to let the people there make their Easter. Go
over by sail boat and come back by steamer on Monday
after Mass. Then Mr. Coad and I start off again and
try to find an excuse for not going home any sooner
than we can help.
St. Inigoes. July 31, 1885. I have been to Charles
County since I wrote to you and you can imagine the
emotion that came over me when I caught sight of the
old steeple of St. Thomas. I took meals down in the old
cellar. Chapel Point is a fine summer resort with two
fine hotels. It was hard to realize where I was as I heard
the bands of music and saw the crowds of people wandering over the plateau where there was once the old grave
yard. The grave yard lQoks prettier up on the hilltop in
front of the church.
··
Brief Excerpts
August 13. Woke at Glymont. Thought of mother and
Father Stonestreet, who were both born there in my
grandfather's house. Breakfast at Gonzaga with Fathers
McGurk, B. A. Ma,guire, O'Connell, Brennan. Scholastics
from the south on their way to Woodstock, at dinner.
B. and 0. Railroad ·by way of Point of Rocks. Arrived at
Frederick late. John Eisenhower, Brent Matthews, Peter
Howle's son on the train with us. Barry Smith takes his
habit tomorrow. Negro whistlers on the street a_:rof yore.
August 14. Struck by Father Pardow's points· to the
juniors. Toner giving retreat at the convent. Big Father
McDonald's litanies very devout; splendid Benediction,
Frank Connell at the organ.
August 15. At the convent to see Sister Agatha. Began retreat. Father Jerome Daugherty gone to take his
last vows.
August 16. How De Wolf and Sourin come to mind
when St. John's begins Mass! How I think of Taney Digges and Nace Saunders when the Frog-eye meeting house
crowd begins to how~!
August 20. Mr. Robert Curran called and gave me a
pipe and box of tobacco; Brother Ryder a fine pair of
�HISTORICAL NOTES
269
shoes; Bausenwien the skull cap of Father Bapst;
Brother Welch wire for springs of cornet.
August 21. Another big batch from West Park,
novices.
August 23. Feast of Most Pure Heart of Mary. Ben
Carroll, Fabian Gough, Charles Raley, from St. Mary's
County, with four others took the Jesuit habit.
August 24. Left Frederick, and changed at Relay for
Washington.
August 25. Train to Baltimore. Father McGurk has
paid off all the ground rent on Loyola. Took the Sue
and got off at Jone's wharf.
Jone's wharf, about a mile up St. Inigoes Creek from the
villa and residence of St. Inigoes, later became known as
Grason's wharf, when Senator Grason occupied the property.
St. Inigoes. October 16, 1888. My little school goes on
well enough and the girls do all the singing in the new
church of the Holy Face, even the High Mass. I keep
everybody else out of the ,gallery.... We are just finishing St. Michael's new church and it is truly beautiful.
It stands on a high hill over the Chesapeake, and its
gilded cross, fifteen feet high, can be seen on the eastern
shore....
I went to give the last sacraments lately to an old man,
eighty-six years old, who used to go to confession to
Father Francis Neale. He had a likeness of Father
Francis Neale, which I took away from him and have
before me on my desk.
St. Michael's church at Ridge stands eighty feet above sea
level and a fifteen-foot cross on top of the church could probably be seen from the eastern shore of the bay, fifteen miles
distant, on a clear morning.
Last Years
Leaving St. Inigoes, Father Neale spent two years on the
mission band and then about two years at Conewago. There
are two letters written from Missoula, Montana, in 1892; one,
dated 1893, from Gethsemani, Kentucky, without "S.J." after
his name; and one, dated September 12, 1894, from Elmwood,
near Chicago. There is nothing of special interest in these
�270
HISTORICAL NOTES
last letters, nor any mention of leaving the Society. There
are two photographs of Father Neale in the Georgetown
Archives and Father Francis Barnum, S.J., who knew him
personally, wrote the following notes on the back of the photographs.
One of the most lovable of men, full of kindness and
beloved by all the Province. Most zealous and full of
sacrifice in the County missions, but all the time a little
erratic. Around 1892 he started for Alaska, but got only
as far as Spokane. His head evidently gave out, for he
could not decide on any place. He drifted from the Society and finally died in a public hospital.
All who knew him loved him for his sweet, sunny disposition and admired him for his self-sacrifice and devotion to his work. Some said harsh things afterwards and
that he was not well balanced, but God's judgement is
not as ours. One thoughtless deed led to another and so
his last years were full of misery. His last end was as
sad as sad could be. Poor dear old friend, God rest his
troubled soul.
F. B., S.J.
The official date of Father Neale's departure from the Society was May 26, 1893- and nothing more was heard of him
until he was found in a hospital in Philadelphia. Father Noel
was chaplain of the German hospital on Girard Avenue during
the period 1901-1906. The late Father Mark Smith. learned
that one day, while Father Noel was making his rciunds, he
saw an unconscious, bearded man whose face seemed familiar,
but he could not place him. He mentioned this to Father
Jerome Daugherty; the latter went to the hospital and recognized Father James Pye Neale, but he died without regaining
consciousness. We are left in ignorance of what vicissitudes
he experienced after his last letter of 1894. Requiescat in
pace!
WILLIAM C. REPETTI, S.J.
�OBITUARY
FATHER WILLIAM J. BROSNAN
1864-1951
William Brosnan was born in New York City on November
27, 1864. A handsome young man of wealthy and cultured
background, he graduated from St. Francis Xavier College
and took a law degree at Columbia University before joining
a prominent law firm in 1885. When required in his work as
a lawyer to pursue a course of action which he considered to
involve deceit and falsehood, young Brosnan refused and
shortly after, under the guidance of his spiritual director,
Father William Pardow, he entered the Society at Frederick,
Maryland, on May 6, 1886. Father Archibald Tisdal, master of
novices and rector during William Brosnan's first fifteen
months there, spent long periods away from the novitiate because of ill health. In later years Father Brosnan, in one of
his flashes of humor, used to say that he had been formed as a
Jesuit principally by the public reading of pious books. This
impressed him the more since as manuductor he was for a
time, charged with arranging the details of noviceship life. At
the end of August, 1887 the situation changed and Father
Michael O'Kane became rector and master of novices.
William Brosnan's studies in the Society were not prolonged.
He had a year of juniorate at Frederick, three years of philosophy and four of theology at Woodstock. Between philosophy and theology he had the five years of regency customary at the time. As a Scholastic Mr. Brosnan taught at Fordham and Xavier with marked success. He was kind, expansive,
interested in the boys, their confidant and trusted friend. He
never lost his fondness for these early pupils and to the end of
his life rejoiced to talk about them and his association with
them. Not long before his death, Father Brosnan told one of
them that he had remembered him by name in every Mass he
had ever said.
At Woodstock during Mr. Brosnan's time Father Pierre
Racicot, Father Edward Boursaud, and Father Burchard Villiger were rectors. He had as professors, among others, Father
William Brett, Father James L. Smith, Father Anthony Maas,
�272
OBITUARY
Father Patrick H. Casey, and Father Timothy Barrett. Mr.
Brosnan was beadle of the philosophers. It was at Woodstock
that his aptiude for metaphysical reasoning made itself evident. No doubt his legal studies had their share in shaping
the development of this special talent.
Father Brosnan was ordained on June 28, 1900 at Woodstock by Cardinal Gibbons, and made his tertianship under
Father Henry Moeller at Florissant, Missouri, 1901-1902. Although details are lacking, it is known that Father Brosnan's
third year influenced him profoundly. He pronounced his last
vows on August 15, 1903.
Father William Brosnan taught philosophy to Ours from
1902 to 1944-more than forty, years, a feat unparalleled in
the Eastern United States Prov.inces of the Society except by
the even longer career of his brother, Father John Brosnan,
as a professor of various sciences at Woodstock. From 1902
to 1906 Father William taught logic and general metaphysics
to th'e first-year philosophers; from 1906 to 1909, cosmology
and inferior psychology to second-year philosophers; from
1909 to 1912, rational psychology and natural theology to
the third-year men. From 1912 to 1944 he taught natural
theology. All these years were spent at Woodstock except for three, 1925-1928, when the philosophical faculty of
Woodstock was transferred temporarily to Weston, Massachusetts. Father Brosnan is listed as professor of the history
of philosophy during the year 1912-1913. For twelv.e years
(1921-1925, 1930-1938) he was consultor to the rector ~f Woodstock.
The life of Father Brosnan, once he was appointed to teach
Ours, fell into a very definite pattern. He had been given
work to do for God and he had no thought but to accomplish
his task as perfectly as possible. He was to teach philosophy
to young Jesuits, and he made it his object to fulfill this
duty perfectly. Eventually, as we have seen, he was assigned
the task of teaching natural theology .. This became his one
absorbing interest. All other concerns were dwarfed by his
study of the Divine Being as far as It is knowable by human
reason. His life's work was the task of instilling his own
knowledge into the minds of his pupils.
No one who did not know Father Brosnan intimately could
�FATHER WILLIAM J. BROSNAN
��OBITUARY
273
possibly understand how his brilliant mind could have centered
itself so exclusively on this single subject. But to one who
knew him well, it was inevitable that it should be so. He was
a man of profound obedience, and accordingly he obeyed
orders. He was completely dedicated to God, and he found the
study of God deeply satisfying. Rapidly realizing that atheism
and the alarming growth of religious indifferentism were menacing the very existence of God's Kingdom, Father Brosnan
devoted the best years of his life to safeguarding its foundations. For over thirty years he studied and taught his beloved specialty, at Woodstock and in summer schools, in Latin
and in English. He remodeled, recast, improved his proofs,
explanations, and answers to difficulties, until he arrived at
the exact phraseology that conveyed his thought. He was now
an authority in his field, immersed in it as much as any
specialized scientist.
As a teacher Father Brosnan was not so much concerned
with provoking and stimulating independent investigation as
with imparting exact knowled,ge. He was convinced that it was
far more important to provide his students with the truth
than to acquaint them with modern errors. Father Brosnan
accomplished his purpose, but it is difficult to imagine the
dogged persistence with which for so many years he kept so
unrelenti~gly at his task and the inexorability with which he
demanded that the students should give an exact account of
what he had taught. This latter trait made him, of course,
unacceptable to some. But Father Brosnan's single-mindedness came from conviction. He lived and died with steady deliberation. The things that were pleasing to God he did always.
Father Brosnan's lnstitutiones Theologiae Naturalis were
printed by the Woodstock College Press in 1919 and published by the Loyola University Press (Chicago) in 1921. The
book was quite generally praised by reviewers as a model
textbook, distinguished by brevity and clarity. It was also
pointed out that the collateral apparatus of American and
English opinion on the subject, which the author had assembled, was unique in works of the kind. Father Brosnan
had introduced contemporary Scholasticism to American mid
English thought on theodicy. Some reviewers found that he
�274
OBITUARY
had not taken like advantage of the resources of contemporary Scholasticism and had notably neglected Dominican
thinkers. Perhaps this was inevitable in one whose approach
was frankly and uncompromisingly molinistic. Father Brosnan preferred in general to omit Scholastic disputes altogether or simply to give his own view.
In the course of time Father Brosnan's lnstitutiones appeared in English in three compact volumes entitled God and
Reason (1924), God Infinite and Reason (1928), and God Infinite, the World and Reason (1943). The reactions of reviewers to these works followed the same general lines as in the
case of the Latin work. His clarity and brevity and his knowledge of American and English thought were again extolled.
Once more it was pointed out that Scholastic controversies
had been restrained. All wer~ of the opinion that Father Brosnan was at his best in handling the problem of God's Providence and the problem of evil. On that subject he had said
all that could be said from the viewpoint of unaided reason.
Father Brosnan's books sold well; so well, indeed, that the
author projected a second edition. It was a sorrow for him
to find that his publishers, although willing enough, could not
fit the new edition into a program which had to be curtailed
because of wartime shortages.
Father Brosnan's absorption in the thought of God, as far
as He can be known by reason alone, led to and was accompanied by his interest in God as portrayed in revelation.
This was inevitable in a Jesuit, especially one on the staff at
Woodstock, and in one who was charged with teiiching the
most important part of the "handmaid of theology." But his
interest in revelation seems to have been ascetic rather than
dogmatic.
His own appreciation of the majesty of God made him
strictly observant of the divine good pleasure. Common life
and community interests were his guiding stars. His selfcontrol was rigid. He had promised to keep the rules, and he
did so with an inflexibility that knew no respite. It was the
same in his order of the day. He attended evening recreation
even when he was very old and in pain. Having to retire early,
he left the recreation room precisely at twenty-two minutes
after seven; he made his preparation for the morning medi-
�OBITUARY
275
tation and examination of conscience without fail. Similarly
he rose earlier than the community. He always took the same
place at table and at recreation. He visited the cemetery and
prayed for the dead always at the same time; and the same
hour found him each day making the Way of the Cross. Although in later years he could not join the community in the
recitation of the Litanies, they were read by him privately
and at a fixed time. In everything his life was planned even to
details and was never directed by impulse. His service of God
was never left to chance. His was an orderly life, carefully
arranged and rigidly observed. What he did seemed always
the result of a deliberate act of the will. The mortification
implied in this is really frightening. He had found the best
way for himself personally to serve God and he followed it,
no matter what the cost. It was a lonely life, but a life
lived courageously for God. The domination of his every act
by will power was his most prominent characteristic. At the
same time it was quite obvious that this exactitude was not
something he imposed on himself, but something that
flowered out of his closeness to God.
A great disappointment in Father Brosnan's life was his
inability during most of his priestly career to give retreats.
He had studied the Spiritual Exercises with close attention
and had labored tirelessly at expressing exactly their lofty
ideals. He was never satisfied with the results attained but
was constantly improving his meditations and conferences.
He had learned much about the service of God and, in the
early years of his priesthood, found great joy and no little
success in imparting to others the secrets which were his.
However after some years he contracted an incurable malady
which caused a pronounced and continual shaking of his
hands. This made it difficult, at times impossible, for him to
give Holy Communion to others. He could not therefore conduct a retreat unless he had another priest with him to distribute Communion. In the beginning of his illness he was
able to secure this assistance, but eventually it became very
difficult to find a priest who was free. In his last days Father
Brosnan no longer gave retreats, to his extreme regret. This
was one of the greatest sorrows of his life. He did not however cease to strive to make men love God as He deserves to
�l
I
276
OBITUARY
be loved. He continued to work on his retreat and at the very
end of his life was preparing it for publication. This chronic
illness also prevented him from saying Mass in public and
preaching sermons. But this exclusion from the public work
of the ministry led him to concentrate more and more on the ·
interior life and upon close union with God.
His physical disability was further increased by an injury
to his knee which made walking very difficult. As a consequence he was excluded from many forms of recreation, employment, and spiritual activity for which he was eminently
qualified, and also from companionship with fellow Jesuits.
His life necessarily became solitary but as he visited less with
men he walked more with God. He was not naturally an aloof
sort of a person but rather a ·companionable man and good
conversationalist. Circumstances however modified his way
of living.
Towards the end of his life Father Brosnan, growing old
in the midst of a relatively young faculty, became very much
of a recluse. He was too feeble to teach, he had outlived
almost all his old friends, to whom his loyalty had ever been
absolute, and he found it hard to make new ones. The sphere
of his interests narrowed perceptibly; and although he still
tried to keep abreast of what was going on in the world, this
concern was perhaps more fictitious than real. As a consequence he withdrew more and more into himself and apart
from the community. This isolation, this lack of companionship accentuated the nervous irritability from which he had
been a lifelong sufferer, and of which he was painfully and
regretfully conscious. Any deviation from regular routine
tended to upset him. The weight of the years pressed ever
more heavily upon him, and he came to realize with increasingly painful experience that for extreme old age medicines
are no tonic whatever. Nevertheless soldier that he was, he
would permit himself no relaxation. With minor exceptions
he followed the community life to within a few days of his
death and if the stern hold he kept on himself gave him a
somewhat forbidding exterior, it did not hide from anyone
that Father Brosnan was a man of great courage and patience,
• wholeheartedly dedicated to Jesuit ideals, full of the love of
God and of true devotion to Our Lord and Our Lady.
�OBITUARY
277
No one doubted that Father Brosnan was a holy man,
heroic in devotion to duty, heroic in endurance, heroic in
spiritual combat. Being naturally somewhat reticent about his
own affairs, he kept the secret of the King. All indeed were
conscious of his intense spiritual life, but few, if any, penetrated beyond the outer portals. About him there was an
atmosphere of the deeply spiritual priest, totally supernatural
in outlook, of one who had seen the truth and at great cost to
himself was living it as it was given him to see it. In his last
years he seemed to be marching forward, resolutely to keep
his rendezvous with death. He was utterly unworldly and
was determined that nothing should keep him or deflect him
from the path on which he had set his feet. His face was set
towards Jerusalem, the heavenly Jerusalem, and he gave the
impression of one who found the way long and difficult, but
would march on or stumble on with grim determination to
the very end.
His end mirrored the rest of his life. He died as he had
lived, according to plan. He was not surprised or caught unprepared. He was not afraid. God asked him to die. He
acquiesced wholly in the divine will. When after sixty-five
years spent in the Society he came to his last illness, he did
not depart from his lifelong manner of action. He asked the
Brother Infirmarian if he was in danger of death. The answer was in the affirmative. Then he put another question,
"Is there any hope of recovery?" This time the Brother answered, "No." Accordingly Father Brosnan set about the
business of dying. He submitted graciously to the kindly
ministrations of others, he took nourishment and medicine
when they were offered to him. But he seemed to have lost
interest in all things earthly. Mter he had received the last
sacraments, without visible sign of emotion he made his
thanksgiving, and from that time maintained an unbroken
silence. He seemed to have said farewell to life and to have
begun his final preparation to meet God.
With some few exceptions those who visited him during
the three days of his last illness received no sign of recognition. He lay with his eyes closed. This was due in part to
the growing congestion in his lungs; yet when the Brother
asked him if he knew him, he answered, "Yes." But he said
�278
OBITUARY
no unnecessary word. He gave no sign of impatience or of
pain. He did not complain or moan, and it was difficult to
know whether he was conscious or not. The doctor did not
want him to be disturbed and said that complete rest was
imperative. And so Father Brosnan lay on his death bed in
the midst of self-imposed solitude until he breathed his last.
Quietly, without trouble to anyone, in full conformity to the
divine will, he went home to the Lord and Master whom he
had served so long and so well. It was April 22, 1951. May
he rest in peace.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
FATHER WALTER W. MILLS
1898-1952
This age of ours, for which Sorokin's scalding epithet
"sensate" seems to be the only adequate adjective, has seen
much analysis but little understanding of pain. Literature
explores the snake-pit of insanity, the weird world of alcoholism, the subliminal sewers of unmentionable aberration:
medicine's lamps are peering feebly through the crepuscular
lands of the psychosomatic and science has exhausted its ingenuity in inventing analgesics. But for all this, the sum
total of man's real knowledge of pain is scarcely more impressive than the maunderings of Dolly Winthrop, on this
involved topic, in Silas Marner. The reason would seem to be
that the typically modern man has lost the old concept of pain
as a sacramental mystery, a participation in the Passion, a
means whereby the member can become more like his thorncrowned Head. In the Christian scheme of things pain was
not merely to be anesthetized but canonized; it was not only
a cause of misery but a chance for merit;, saints prayed for it
and received it with resignation and even rejoicing in the
dear, ingenuous days before aspirin so largely supplanted
• aspiration.
.
These thoughts are evoked by the death of Father Walter
Mills who, after more than thirty bed-ridden years in hospi-
�OBITUARY
279
tals, sanataria, and houses of the Society, died on June 27,
1952. There are many people born. sickly and weak; suffering
hag-rides them all their lives; illness with them is not an interlude but a career, not a distressing parenthesis but the
very thesis of their days. They never knew the boisterous
vitality of full health, the velvet exhaustion from exertion
which so readily melts into rest, the satisfaction of coordinated muscular effort. Theirs is a difficult lot but far more
onerous still is the fate of the man who is suddenly reduced
from exuberant health to helplessness. To all his other aches
such an individual adds that exquisite agony which is the pain
of loss. Such was Father Mills.
Born December 4, 1898 in East Boston, of Lawrence and
Mary Mills who had come out from Cork, he was the youngest
of eight brothers and two sisters. He attended Assumption
School, was an enthusiastic swimmer and boater at Jeffries
Point, and even then was loved and admired by his young
companions because of his athletic prowess and natural leadership. The family moved to Dorchester in 1909 and Walter
completed his primary education at Westville School in 1913.
He continued his education at Boston Latin High School and
finished the traditionally excellent and difficult course there
with honors in June, 1916. While he was in high school, he
played regular third base on a team which had the future
big-leaguer, Fred Maguire, at second. Here, too, his contemporaries testify, he was most popular with his schoolmates;
nor was it the easy popularity bought at the price of principle
because even then coming events were casting their shadows
and Walter was a boy unshakably Catholic, outspokenly contemptuous of anything unclean. After school he would always help his mother with the innumerable chores that
devolved on the mother of a la~ge family before going out to
Fields Corner for the baseball or football he liked so well.
The next year at Boston College he was strongly influenced
by Father de Butler, and at the end of his freshman year he
left for the novitiate at Poughkeepsie. Splendidly proportioned, an athlete of superior ability who could stroke a ball
with major league authoritativeness or drop-kick forty-five
yards, he was also well equipped intellectually for the work
of the Society, and as a novice he must have seemed to be the
�280
OBITUARY
ideally rounded candidate. His was always a masculine and
attractive disposition, illuminated by a ready wit, warm companionableness and the ability to philosophize in that denim,
homespun way which, in the New England idiom, has come
to be characterized by the phrase "cracker-barrel" wisdom.
Not that he was a bloodless, cardboard silhouette of sanctity.
He was quick to notice the faults of others and, at first, to
comment on them; but as he matured in charitableness he
came more and more to reserve his critical acumen for the
consideration of his own faults. Well-balanced, generous,
spiritually susceptible, he completed the first four years of
his course. Life was an exciting prospect to Mister Mills
when he went to the newly completed Weston College for his
philosophy. Then, in his second year, the dread tuberculosis
which was to dog the rest of" his days, struck; and for three
years he spent his second noviceship of suffering in a sanatarium.
Hope returned however, and for a year Mr. Mills taught at
Holy Cross College and entered theology in 1927. One of his
classmates tells about the sad day when he knocked and entered Mr. Mills' room to find him staring wide-eyed at a crucifix he held in his hand. To the classmate's inquiry, Mister
Mills replied that he had just gotten word that he must return to the sanatarium and, at that point, his vocation within
a vocation actually began. Years afterwards another of his
classmates asked him how he had been able to endure so
patiently the years of inactivity and suffering. Father Mills
mentioned the scholastic distinction between God's permissive
and directive will. Some physical evils God permits through
the simple operation of natural laws, as when a man falls
into a hole and breaks his leg. "But," he added, "there is also
human suffering which is, so to speak, the result of God's
directive will. There are certain souls He elects for suffering
and I know that I was so chosen. I cannot tell you how happy
I am in this: for me, God's will is ri,ght in this sickness, this
bed, this room."
Everything was taken from him. His. magnificent physique
• began to wither, surgery collapsed one side of his chest; his
arms-and he once ruefully but humorously confessed to this
writer that he had been proud of them in the days of his
�FATHER WALTER W. MILLS
��OBITUARY
281
youth, the days of his glory-shrivelled. But all this while
his heart grew and the soul-sculpture of grace was forming
Christ to full stature within him. As Fran~ois Mauriac wrote
of Charles du Bos: "He was aided by illness; or rather he
knew how to extract advantage from illness, by dint of courage and renunciation. For illness alone does not help; contrary to what Pascal writes, it is not the natural state of the
Christian; it does not predispose us to the Christian life, it
inclines us on the contrary to think only of our own body, and
makes us prisoner to physiological phenomena ... When the
invalid succeeds in making the illness the auxiliary of gracethen it becomes a short cut to God." It is true that a sick
person can become introverted, egocentric, self-pitying; he
can make horizons out of his own eye-lids and live within his
own mind which to him becomes less a kingdom than a squirrel-cage. Sickness, on the other hand, widened Father Mills'
vision; visitors were constantly amazed at his interest in their
work, the work of the Province and the whole Society, all of
which he so faithfully subsidized with his prayers. On only
one subject was he reticent and that was himself. He would
prefer to dismiss any discussion of his own condition with a
light reference to the nine holes he had played that day or
the vigor with which "he was hitting them."
Little did the stalwart, young Mister Mills, making his retreats long ago, realize that someday he would jest about his
poor, broken body. Little did he realize how God would specify
for him the oblation of the Kingdom, the Two Standards, the
Third Mode of love which he spoke so confidently in his first
long retreat; how literally Divine Love would take his own
profession of human love as he made it in the vow formula.
Yet God strengthens the shoulder to which He fits the cross,
and as Walter Mills' body grew weaker his soul waxed valiant. Even the doctors, primarily interested in his physical
condition, could appreciate the terrific internal and spiritual
drama which was the core of his life. One of them who cared
for him at Saranac, writing to the Rector of Weston, after
Father Mills' death declared: "I have just heard of the death
of Father Mills. I want to express to you my sincere sympathy
over his going. I had a wonderful letter from him in Feb-
�282
OBITUARY
ruary, 1951 in which I learned anew of his sublime resignation to the cross he had to bear for so many years."
In the long hours of introspection and loneliness he codified
his ideals and expressed them after years of thought into an
offering which he renewed daily. It is such an intimate revelation of a soul that, although the writer had Father Mills'
permission to use it, he still feels that it is almost intrusive
to eavesdrop on a man's direct conversation with Our Lord.
On the other hand, it would be an unwarranted suppression
which would deprive Father Mills' survivors of the inspiration
and edification they would undoubtedly receive. The offering
is rather lengthy since it recounts and reconsecrates all of
the activities and reactions of a sick person; but perhaps
some excerpts will indicate the·· scope and spirit of the whole
document. After a brief and luminous apostrophe to Our
Lady, Father addresses the Divine Master Himself:
Dear Jesus, through the hands of your Blessed Mother, I offer
you my desires:
To love You with a consuming love to the point of utter annihilation.
To lead a life of unquestioning Faith, seeing Your holy will in
everything that happens in my life.
To lead a life of perfect trust in You.
To surrender myself completely and unconditionally to You. • • .
I offer You my desire to lead a life of severe penance for a thousand years for my own and others' sins and ingratitude.... I give
You my will, believing it is Your holy and blessed will j;nat I be
sick and I offer my heart with its desire to love You, my body and
soul for You to dispose of as You see fit, my every thought, word
and action today and for the remainder of my life, my sickness and
what I will endure as a result of it, in body, mind and soul, everything that is hard, disagreeable, painful and humiliating in body,
mind and soul. I offer You the confinement, the duration, the loneliness, the obscurity, the monotony of my sickness, the being taken
for granted and being in a state of chronic dependence and all that
implies.
In great detail this extraordinary spiritual testament goes
on to list all that Father was able to offer to God: his sensi• tiveness, his self-love and the agony it cost him, his anxieties
about the past, his fears Of the future. The purpose of the
offering was essentially reparative:
�OBITUARY
283
I offer You all this, dear Jesus, in reparation and expiation to
Your infinitely loving and lovable Heart for the ingratitude, coldness and indifference of all mankind; and for the insults and offenses heaped upon Your tender and loving Heart by mankind in
general, especially by those whose lives are consecrated to You.
I offer it for the conversion of the leading Communists of the
world, the conversion of the Russian people . . . . for the spiritual
and physical well-being of all missionaries, for the fruitfulness of
their labors and for temporal blessings on all the missions throughout the world, especially Jesuit missionaries . . . for the temporal
and spiritual welfare of Weston and all its members, that they
may each be more holy and more learned, the learning to be used
entirely for You.
Lastly for the salvation of wayward, fallen and sinful priests.
I unite this offering, dear Jesus, with Your sufferings on the Cross
as I am privileged to do as a member of the Mystical Body an·d I
place it in the wound of Your Sacred Heart, where I beg You, according to Your promise, to make it fruitful, perfect, and selfless.
When one glimpses, from these fragmentary quotations, a
soul that fragrant, it is not surprising that one of Father
Mills' classmates should write, telling about a soul-shattering
grace which he received shortly after Father Mills' death.
Though not a strictly mystical grace he says, "it was so unexpected and so far above anything I could have deserved or
won by the merits of my past religious life that I am more or
less convinced Father Mills' intercession had a lot to do with
it."
In that letter also you have an intimation of the respect
and affection with which all who knew him regarded Father
Mills. It was a great grace to have known him; his memory
will be forever a flame and a flag; his life was a rebuke to all
of us who confuse action with achievement, motion with progress; in the long years of his suffering he wrote in deed a
gloss on the patristic sentiment that it is not hard to give up
what one has but very difficult to give up what one is. May
he rest in peace.
WILLIAM A. DONAGHY, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
THINKING WITH THE CHURCH
The Catholic 1\lind Through Fifty Years. Edited by Benjamin L. Masse,
S.J. New York, America Press, 1952. Pp. xxii-681. $5.00.
The Catholic Mind is by no means the least significant of the many
farsighted projects launched by the late John J. Wynne, S.J., in the
service of the Catholic Church in America. This publication has several
times changed its format since its inception in 1903 (the most radical
change is that a single issue now contains a dozen or more articles,
whereas prior to 1915 it was restricted to one); but the most characteristic of its original intentions, to reprint from other sources articles
representing contemporary Catholic thought, has been preserved. This
policy, in an age of digests and picture magazines, gives The Catholic
Mind its distinctive position among" .~atholic publications today.
It is a policy, moreover, that might lead one to expect that the fifty
year anniversary volume edited by Benjamin L. Masse, S.J., would
illustrate the unfolding of American Catholic thought on specific topics
though the past half century. But such is not the case. Paging through
the 104 articles which the editor has judged worthy of preserving in
this more permanent form, the reader grows suspicious that the title of
the book is a misnomer. A little computation confirms the suspicion:
the first decade of publication is represented by no articles; the second
by 7; the third and fourth by 12 apiece; and the fifth (coinciding, incidentally, with the editorship of the compiler) by no less than 71.
These statistics are not presented by way of adverse criticism. There
is, it would seem, good reason for this disproportionate emphasis on
recent times. For if Father Masse has really gleaned the golden grains
from the period prior to 1930, then he is to be thanked for having
spared the reader more of the same. Their almost invariable .effect is
to dull an appetite that has been whetted by the more fruitfui years.
Why this poverty of material from the early years? Is it that the
magazine failed for so long a time to fulfill Father Wynne's announced
aim of printing "the best" in Catholic thought? Perhaps. But one
suspects a more plausible answer-that in those dim years before the
Great Depression "the best" was simply not good enough to meet
Father Wynne's correlative aim of printing only what was of "permanent value." If this be the case, then along with the New Deal, the
decade of the thirties ushered in a renascence in American Catholic
thought that has been far-reaching indeed. For the existence and richness of such a renascence, the present volume gives eloquent testimony.
The priest seeking source material for sermons and lectures, the layman hunting out the Catholic outlook on particular problems of our day,
and all Catholics incurably addicted to the devouring of magazine articles will be grateful to Father Masse for the work that went into the
preparation of this. volume. On a few topics the selections are inade-
�BOOK REVIEWS
285
quate-the Catholic mind on education, for example, is hardly represented by the few entries given under this heading; and Catholic
scientists will chafe at the smattering of platitudes assigned to their
·subject (with one exception: Some Limitations of Science by Thomas E.
Murray, which should be required reading for all science majors). But
these sections are more than compensated for by the treatments given
to the liturgy, the Catholic press, human rights, and labor relations. In
the midst of such abundant harvest, however, one is hard put to point
out the best.
Although poorly bound, the volume is handsomely printed and has an
adequate index.
JOSEPH
v.
LANDY, S.J.
The Church and Modern Science. Evolution of the Human Body. By
Cyril Vollert, S.J.; Modern Science and the Existence of God.
B11 Pope Pius XII. New York, America, 1952. Pp. 48. $.25.
This booklet should be of interest to the natural scientist, philosopher,
and theologian. In the first article, a reprint from the Proceedings of
the Sixth Annual Convention of the Catholic Theological Society of
America, Father Vollert summarizes the fossil evidence that bears on
the evolution of the human body: first, the group known as Australopithecus; secondly, the "pre-humans," Pithecanthropus and Sinanthropus;
thirdly, Neanderthal man; fourthly, a number of other forms that are
harder to classify. Two texts from Genesis (1/27; 2/7) are cited and
discussed in relation to an evolutionist interpretation. The mind of the
Magisterium is expressed in quotations from the 1941 allocution to the
Pontifical Academy of Science, and in the encyclical Humani generis.
A philosophical discussion follows in a section entitled: Causality and
Human Evolution. After citing St. Thomas' description of the first man
commonly proposed by theology, Father Vollert then summarizes four
theories that have been designed to reconcile faith or theology with the
probable conclusions of anthropology and paleontology: the regression
theory; the homo faber theory; the theory of pre-Adamites in a state
of pure nature; and a reconsideration of original man's natural perfection. The article concludes with a possible clue to the solution of
this complex problem of human origins.
In the second article, the address of the Holy Father to the Pontifical
Academy of Science, November 22, 1951, the importance of modern
science for the argument for the existence of God based on the mutability of the cosmos and on the teleological order which stands out in
every corner of the macrocosm and microcosm, is presented in summary
fashion by Pope Pius XII. The discoveries made by astronomers and
nuclear physicists within recent years have contributed towards
strengthening two of the classical proofs of St. Thomas for the existence
of God.
JAMEs A. McKEOUGH, S.J.
�286
BOOK REVIEWS
GREAT AMERICANS
Benjamin Harrison: Hoosier Warrior. By Harry J. Sievers, S.J.
Chicago, Henry Regnery Company, 1952. Pp. xxi-331. $5.00.
The name of President Benjamin Harrison strikes no responsive
chord in our memory of the past presidents of the United States. This
man whose term came between the two terms of Grover Cleveland, is
overshadowed in history by such figures as Cleveland, Garfield, Beveridge,
Blaine, and others. Harrison's short, almost accidental, term of office
excites little curiosity about the man, mainly because there was so little
to arouse curiosity. Lacking a worthy biography, he has remained up
to the present the honest, capable yet rather austere and distant man of
the textbooks. The first volume of Father Harry Sievers' biography of
Harrison erases that picture and in its place portrays for us a sincere,
hard-working, deeply Christian man of warm affections and fine qualities
of leadership. This biography shol.!_ld rank as the definitive life of a
definitely great American.
··
While completing his doctoral work as a Scholastic at Georgetown,
Father Sievers, in search for a dissertation topic, contemplated a
monograph on the presidential election of 1892. This led to research in
the Harrison Papers in the Library of Congress. The gathering of
more materials for the project led to archives in Indiana, Harrison's
home state, and especially to the Benjamin Harrison Memorial Home
in Indianapolis. It was here that Father Sievers came in contact with
the Arthur Jordan Foundation. This philanthropic foundation has
taken an interest in the home of the ex-President and has been
restoring it, as well as collecting materials of biographic interest.
Since Father Sievers' projected dissertation would necessarily include
a review of Harrison's life and administration, he asked the executors
of the fund if they would be interested in publishing his monograph.
Mter some correspondence, they responded by requesting him to undertake a biography of this, the twenty-third President. All past-attempts
to do so had failed, for one reason or another. Father Sievers undertook
the work in 1949. Making use of the Library of Congress collection of
over forty thousand pieces, the Indiana collections and many other
monographs and unpublished manuscripts, Father has produced the first
volume of a very scholarly and readable book.
This present volume is concerned with Harrison's rise from frontier
boyhood in Ohio to political figure in Indiana and Brigadier-General
at the Grand Army review which brought the Civil War to a close.
A self-made man in many respects, Harrison graduated from Miami
College in Ohio in 1853. One of his classmates was the famous Harmar
Denny, who was later converted in England, and, entering the Society,
labored as a priest in the Maryland-New York province. Harrison
• himself was a Presbyterian with rather severe religious convictions,
yet also with an inspiring faith 'and trust in God and prayer, as appears
frequently in his personal letters to his wife. Like many a pioneer lad
�BOOK :REVIEWS
287
be took readily to politics. Even in these early years his political
capabilities and influence were making themselves felt; and they continued to be felt during the war when be served with the Indiana
Volunteers.
Father Sievers bas done excellent work in thawing out this hitherto
cold, severe "curmudgeon" of the White House. With an understanding
pen he has traced the tender heart and sensitive soul that was Benjamin
Harrison. It will be interesting to follow the Hoosier Warrior through
his years of political prominence in the forthcoming volume of this preeminent piece of historical scholarship.
WILLIAM H. OSTERLE, S.J.
The Life of James Cardinal Gibbons. By John Tracy Ellis.
Bruce, 1952. 2 vols. Pp. 1442. $17.50.
Milwaukee,
A truly remarkable American-Catholic churchman has been given
his due. In the more than fourteen hundred pages of these two
volumes, Father John Tracy Ellis, professor of American Church History
in the Catholic University of America, has illuminated the many facets
of the career and character of Cardinal Gibbons. Yet these pages do
more than recount a biography; they depict large segments of the
Church's American story. For during a major portion of his eighty-six
years, James Gibbons played a dominant role in the drama surrounding
the struggling years of the growth of the Catholic Church in the United
States.
Doctor Ellis' painstaking scholarship has produced a work which
will be a valued source book and model for many future biographers
and historians as more of the life of the Church in America is retold.
This is not a popular book, but neither is it one which will appeal only
to those professionally concerned about the Cardinal of Baltimore and
the Church in America. The author's engaging, unadorned style,
coupled with the uncommon achievements of G1bbons' life, should be
sufficient to command the attention of any mature reader.
This is not to pronounce the biography flawless; it is not. And the
most disturbing blemish is that the spark of life flashes out so seldom
in the whole two volumes. Except for a few momentary vital contacts
with the charming personality of the Cardinal, the reader might well
conclude that he knows all about the man but has not had the pleasure
of meeting him personally. That is quite unfortunate, for possibly
the most remarkable thing about Cardinal Gibbons was the magnetizing
impact of his personality on those who met and dealt with him.
One might regret, too, that Doctor Ellis chose to treat of nationalism,
secret societies, the Knights of Labor, and the school controversy in
separate chapters, although Gibbons met those issues at approximately
the same time. The author's choice does untangle a complex situation;
it makes for a clearer understanding of the individual issues; but it does
�288
BOOK REVIEWS
not bring the reader fa~e to face with the compound problems which
confronted the Cardinal during the latter portion of the nineteenth
century. In other chapters this same procedure of dealing with units
leads the author into inevitable repetitions.
Other strictures might be made, but they are minor and cannot dull
the excellence of Father Ellis' work. This is a good biography of the
man who, during the most critical era of American Church history,
demonstrated to the United States and the world that a Catholic prelate
could be both deeply devoted to his Church and intensely enamored of
the American way of life. It is a story well worth reading.
JOSEPH D. AYD, S.J.
-·
�THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXXII, No. 4
NOVEMBER, 1953
CONTENTS FOR NOVEMBER, 1953
AN INSTRUCTION OF VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL
ON THE SODALITY OF OUR LADY___________
291
THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD OF NEW YORK CITY_
Neil P. Hurley
DOCTRINE OF FATHER JEROME NADAL
ON THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES OF ST. IGNATIUS._____
Joseph F. X. Erhart
301
317
HISTORICAL NOTES
The Huron Sodality of 1653-----------------------Woodstock to Plattsburg________________________
335
360
OBITUARY
Mr. John F. Walsh____________________________
Father Alberto Hurtado_______
--------------
364
367
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
The Two Sovereignties (Lecler)________________________
The Life of Archbishop John Ireland (Moynihan)___
The Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola (Rahner)______
Retreat Notes (Keating)
Obedience______________
A Moulder of Men (Nevils)-------------·---The Faith and Modern Man (Guardini)
We and the Holy Spirit (De Grandmaison)_______
A Layman's Way to Perfection (Eiten)________
Perfection Is for You (Higgins)___________
How to Read the Bible (Poelman)
Of Sacraments and Sacrifice (Howell)---------------The Sacred Heart Encyclicals of Pope Leo XIII
and Pope Pius XI (Moell)__________________________
374
375
376
378
378
379
380
381
381
382
383
383
384
PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED-----------------Inside Back Cover
�CONTRIBUTORS
Father Joseph F. 'X. Erhart (Maryland Province) is a tertian at St.
Robert's Hall, Pomfret Center, Conn.
Father Stephan F. Latchford (Maryland Province) is in fourth year
theology at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
Father Francis X. Talbot (Maryland Province), author of several books
on the North American Jesuit Martyrs, is stationed at the retreat house,
Manresa-on-Severn, Annapolis, Md.
1\lr. Neil P. Hurley (New York Province) is a third year philosopher
at Bellarmine College, Plattsburg, N. Y.
Mr. Daniel F. X. Meenan (New York Province) is a regent at Canisius
High School, Buffalo, N. Y.
l'tlr. Renato Poblete (Vice-Province of Chile) is in second year theology
at Woodstock College, Woodstock, Md.
Note to Contributors
It would be well when submitting contributions to the WOODSTOCK
LETTERS to observe the following: type triple space, leaving a oneinch margin on either side of the page, i.e., approximately sixty spaces
to a line. This will aid gre;ltly in determining ahead of time the length
of articles submitted to us, and leaves sufficient room for the insertion
of printing directions. Subheadings should also be used, at least one
to every other page, in articles and Historical Notes. Pictures, fairly
large and clear, should accompany obituaries and other articles, as far
as possible; these will, of course, be returned to the contribntpr.
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1942, at the post office at W oodstoek,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Five Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, IIIARYLAND
�AN INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY OF OUR LADY
TO THE WHOLE SOCIETY
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers in Christ:
Pax Christi!
Two years ago, when the Congress of the Promoters of the
Sodality of our Lady was held at our Curia, I promised that
at the proper time I would send an Instruction in which would
be gathered together certain practical conclusions arising
from the Congress. What I then promised I am carrying out
today.
The purpose of this Instruction is once again to impress
upon all of Ours how necessary it is to promote increasingly
each day the Sodalities of our Lady and to bring them on to
an ever more perfect state. I particularly desire to give to
promoters, presidents of secretariates, and directors those
practical norms by which they may overcome the principal
obstacles that often confront them in the execution of the
office entrusted to them.
You should above all keep before your eyes those words
which the Supreme Pontiff wrote to us at the beginning of the
above-mentioned Congress: "Relying upon the help of God
and of His Mother, conscious of the desires and commands
of the Vicar of Jesus Christ, putting aside every doubt and
hesitation, advance zealously the work of the Sodality of our
Lady, as its nature and laws require" (A.R. XI, 810).
In these words and in not a few other documents Pius XII
clearly shows what great confidence he places not only in the
Sodalities of the Blessed Mother but also in those whose
natural responsibility it is to promote them.
Even if the Supreme Pontiff had not spoken so frequently
and so lucidly of the importance of the Sodality, this same
duty would rest upon us from our very vocation. It is enough
to consider how ardently many lay persons aspire to a spiritual
and apostolic life according to the norms of the true and
genuine Sodality of our Lady. A sane and deep devotion to
Mary helps much, especially in our times, as experience testifies, to stimulate their zeal. If we have it at heart "to think
with the Church," we will earnestly and perseveringly work
to support and foster the Sodalities of Our Lady.
�292
INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY
I commend myself most earnestly to your Holy Sacrifices
and prayers.
Rome, November 21, 1952, Feast of the Presentation of the
Blessed Virgin Mary.
The servant of all in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus
An Instruction on Promoting and Perfecting the Sodality
of the Blessed Virgin Mary
I. Selection
1.-In order that Sodalities of our Lady may not be improperly established and affiliated;· a prudent period of probation
must precede their canonical erection or at least their affiliation. Before a new Sodality is affiliated, a list of questions,
drawn up for this purpose, must be filled out by its director
(see Appendix).
2.-That apostolic nucleus which we gather together into
Sodalities should be a select one, so that only those are received who give solid promise that they will observe faithfully
the Common Rules (and particular rules, if any be added)
and will not prove unworthy of the profession which Sodalists
make in their consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
3.-A careful selection does not mean that a nucleus, and indeed a select one, exercising its apostolate within:its own
proper bounds, cannot be gathered together and trained from
any group of men, even the most humble, in any state of life.
For everywhere may be found those who, with the inspiration
and help of God's grace, desire and follow a more perfect
Christian life, such as is fostered by the Sodality.
4.-Those who, either because of age or of deficient formation or for other reasons, do not yet seem ready for admission
into the body of the Sodality, are not for that reason to be
deprived of all the formation offered in the Sodality. For
various ways may be devised by which a Sodality, while exer• cising its own apostolate, .may inject its apostolic leaven into
a larger group. Thus, to ·give but one example, a Sodality, by
means of one of its sections, will be able to promote a less re-
�INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY
293
stricted organization which is open to many and in which the
faithful in accordance with their ability, may be trained in
some of the practices of a more fervent life and apostolic zeal.
5.-As regards younger and immature boys (or girls), these
may be received either as "Aspirants," to undergo probation
in the Sodality properly so called, even though the time of this
probation must be extended beyond the customary period, or,
rather, as members of a group which in some way imitates
the true Sodality and prepares its associates for eventually
becoming members of a Sodality properly so called. A temporary consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary and a promise
to observe some rules concerning the reception of the Sacraments and daily prayer are recommended for these groups
(thus, in various places, The Junior Sodality, Blau-Ring,
Maria-garde, Sodalities of the Holy Angels, of St. Stanislaus,
and the like) .
G.-Maturity here is not to be taken so much in the sense of
years as in the sense of spiritual and moral capacity to grasp
thoroughly the essential rules of the Sodality of our Lady,
such as those that treat of making the Spiritual Exercises and
meditation, and also in the sense of ability to understand and
willingness to accept the perpetual consecration and its consequent obligations.
Each country or region may determine its own minimum
age of admission.
7.-According to the spirit of the rules, the practice is to be
encouraged whereby the time of probation is not limited to the
minimum of two months but is extended so as to afford a
greater opportunity to the candidates both for solid training
and for the necessary preparation for the perpetual consecration.
II. Ascetic and Apostolic Formation
8.-The director must, before all else, take care that the
Sodalists are solidly formed in the interior life, more profoundly instructed in the faith, trained in the assiduous use
of prayer and the Sacraments, and in that asceticism as is
described in the rules. This training should be carried on
with such earnestness and over such a period of time as to
give hope that the Sodalists, living among pagans of today,
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INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY
will not fall away from their purpose of a more perfect life.
For the assertion of St. Ignatius, namely, "for they are the
interior things from which force must flow to the exterior"
( Const. P. X. 2 [813] ; Summ. Const. Reg. 16), applies in like
manner to· Sodalists as it does to religious.
9.-All Sodalities should exercise the apostolate, either,
preferably, as Sodalities and through their sections, or through
individual Sodalists sent into other apostolic organizations, if
this should seem to be for the greater glory of God, safeguarding always the personal apostolate of all the Sodalists in
their daily lives.
10.-Special training should be extended by the director to
those who are suited for a higher vocation, i.e., to the religious
or priestly state. In this solicitude he should keep in sight
the general principle that vocations develop best in a suitable
environment or in the association with persons of the highest
character.
11.-It is necessary that the director willingly listen to the
council of the Sodality and leave to it a greater freedom of
action; indeed the lay assistants of the director should be so
trained that left to themselves, as in the time of war or persecution, they would be able by themselves to keep the Sodality
alive and active.
12.-Among the works of zeal in our time, it is hoped that
social action will by no means occupy the last place. Above
all it seems that deliberations and actual works involving
mutual aid among the different classes of Sodalists sht>uld be
fostered.
13.-In the Sodality, devotion to Mary differs in nowise
from the common, solid devotion of Catholics to Mary; however, in its ardor it should be unparalleled. It should be promoted as most suitable for all purposes, for men and women,
old and young: let them learn never to be ashamed to profess it.
III. Mutual Union and Collaboration
14.-It is very much to be desired that there exist among
Sodalities of different nations a closer cooperation not only in
sending news regarding Sodality activities, but also, should it
be desired, in undertaking works calculated to sustain the·
world-wide "battle front."
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15.-It is necessary that our Sodalities, actuated by the spirit
of brotherly harmony and of complete subordination to the
counsels, wishes, and commands of the universal Church and
of the pastors of the dioceses, collaborate in any work of zeal
whatever and with any apostolic group. The independence, it
is true, with which the Apostolic Constitution Bis saeculari
endows the Sodalities and wishes kept, must be maintained;
but at the same time the Sodalities should, with humility and
abnegation, show in word and deed that they are part of the
army of the Church.
Sodalists should always be foremost in undertaking whatever bishops order and recommend for their dioceses.
16.-There is no cause whatever to fear that jealous rivalry
with Catholic Action or other works may arise, provided only
we proceed with that right intention, by which all should be
guided, of acting only for the glory of God. On the part of the
Sodalities there should never be wanting that spirit of charity
and humility by which disagreements are either prevented or
settled, while friendship is fostered between the directors of
both associations. They should refrain from all controversy,
whether written or oral, but should, when occasion demands,
set forth the truth with offense to no one.
IV. Federations
17.-It is conducive to the greater glory of God and honor of
our Blessed Mother for the Sodalities of the same kind or of
the same territory to set up, where possible, a permanent federation with a common council.
18.-No federation should be formed without the consent of
superiors, namely of the bishop or of the provincial, who ought
also approve the statutes. If Sodalities directed by Ours are
to be united in federation to those directed by externs, then
the consent and approval of both superiors are required.
19.-In establishing the council for a federation, a certain
analogy should be maintained with the establishing of a council for a Sodality itself so that lay persons would be by no
means excluded but would rather be given important positions,
due dependence toward directors being always safeguarded.
20.-Present day conditions of society seem to demand that
the federations, recommended in Rule sixty-eight, so extend
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beyond national borders as to constitute a world-wide league.
In this way the Sodalities of our Lady will, from their more
widely extended union, gather a more abundant harvest and
foster a more efficacious cooperation with other world-wide
apostolic associations.
V. Promoters
21.-In each province a suitable Father should be assigned
to the office of promoter and so designated in the catalogue.
He should be entrusted by the provincial with the special care
of everything pertaining to our Sodalities. The same should
be done in vice-provinces, even though dependent, and in at
least the larger missions.
·,
Where one Father is not enough, two or three should be appointed to whom different parts of the province should be assigned; or what is better, to whom the different types of
Sodalities should be assigned.
22.-The promoter should be chosen with great care and
appointed early enough to enable him to become well acquainted with the teaching and practice of the Sodality. He
should be edifying, a man of mature age, obedient to superiors,
one capable of being entrusted with much authority, prudent,
energetic in undertaking and in completing projects, able to
win the friendship of others, and to promote harmony and
unity of action.
In order that he may devote himself seriously to his. .duties,
let him be free, as far as possible, from other cares.
23.-The objectives for which the promoter should strive
are these:
a) that excellent directors of Sodalities be thoroughly
trained. It should be his care, then, in accordance with the
power granted him by the provincial or the superior of the
mission, that the statutes of the generals concerning the training of Ours, from the novitiate onward, be observed; that,
with the consent of the rector, Marian Academies or similar
activities be organized in our scholasticates, especially in the
• houses of philosophy and th~ology, and that the tertian Fathers
be given instructions in this matter. As far as possible,
directors should also receive practical training by working
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297
for some time with a Father who is already experienced in
the art of directing Sodalities.
b) that our Sodalities be so closely conformed to the desires of the Supreme Pontiff that they may be an example to
other Sodalities. Our Sodalists should be conspicuous for the
spirituality, the fruitful apostolate, the spirit of collaboration
with all, which are especially insisted upon in the Apostolic
Constitution Bis saeculari.
c) that, although the care of girls and women is by no
means to be neglected, Sodalities of men should be promoted
beyond all others, particularly of those men who may some
day exert influence in public life; Sodalities of workmen are
expressly recommended.
d) that he foresee how the good will of externs, especially
of prelates, may be won for the Sodalities.
e) that he give careful attention to the truly catholic and
universal meaning of the Sodality, and hence foster communication with the Central Secretariate at Rome, by exchange of letters, by sending news items to be published in
the world-wide periodical, etc.
f) that he bring about in a practical way a continuity
among the various Sodalities, so that their members pass from
one to another and, as far as possible, remain throughout their
whole lives in some Sodality. Thus, for example, high school
Sodalists, going on to a university, should become members of
the university Sodality. Then, when their studies are completed or they have married, they should transfer to a men's
Sodality. If there are several men's Sodalities (for example,
one for men of the armed services, one for professional men,
another for craftsmen), they should transfer to the one which
best suits their calling.
24.-The promoter should not restrict himself to these more
general measures, but should visit the Sodalities and directors
and be ready to receive directors who come to him for discussion and consultation.
25.-Since the work of the Sodality is so apostolic and so
suited to the needs of the present time, not only directors of
Sodalities, but also superiors, teachers, operarii, and indeed
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INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY
all of Ours, should give their wholehearted assistance to the
promoter.
VI. Secretariates
26.-Because the number of Sodalities under the direction
of our Society is in most countries small, secretariates should
be set up, either national or provincial or regional, as is already laudably done in many nations.
27.-The secretariate (or its president), since it has no
authority, can impose no regulations, but exists to assist all
those who have any part in the direction of Sodalities.
28.-The secretariate is, as it were, a laboratory for all
Sodalities, both ours and those~'of externs, to assist them by
teaching, advising, answering ~difficulties, giving practical direction, supplying books and periodicals, organizing conventions, and supplying various items, etc.
29.-Let the president of the secretariate exercise approximately the same duties as those assigned to the promoter in
numbers 22, 23, and 24, observing, however, due regard for
the difference of authority, as is explained in the following
number.
30.-Since one and the same Father is usually entrusted
with the duties of promoter and of president of the secretariate, he should avoid confusing these functions, so that on the
one hand, the provincial, if he wishes, may really, by means of
the promoter, govern the Sodalities under our directiOn, and
on the other hand, the secretariate may provide humble s-ervice
and help to the Sodalities directed by externs when requested
to do so.
31.-Since most Sodalities (95%) are directed by the secular
clergy, the president of the secretariate should see to it that
priests become acquainted with the Sodality and in this way
come to esteem it highly. In order that this end be attained,
the following principal means should be employed:
a) Sodalities of priests should be promoted;
b) seminarians should understand well the nature of the
• Sodality and even establish a Sodality among themselves;
c) there should be a monthly magazine for moderators
which would offer them instruction, solve their problems, and
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INSTRUCTION ON THE SODALITY
299
present them with practical means for directing Sodalists;
d) occasional meetings of moderators should be held.
VII. External Matters
32.-The name Congregation or Sodality of our Lady,
wherever possible, should be retained or restored. When,
however, because of evil circumstances, the good of souls demands otherwise, a different name may be employed for ordinary use, including, if possible, the name of Mary and certainly
in every case retaining the canonical title of Blessed Virgin
Mary at least in juridical documents.
33.-0ther external matters which are not essential but
merely secondary should not readily be changed because their
effectiveness has been proved, very often by long experience;
those, however, may safely be changed which clearly stand
in the way of a greater good.
Rome, November 21, 1952.
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS,
General of the Society of Jesus
APPENDIX
A Draft for Affiliating Sodalities of Our Lady to the Prima Primaria
(a certain form for the use of those who in the various nations have
charge of affiliation)
To the Moderator of the Sodality
Reverend Father,
Since the Sodality of which your Reverence is the Moderator desires
to be affiliated, according to norm II of the Apostolic Constitution Bis
saeculari, to the Prima Primaria Sodality of the Roman College, I ask
your Reverence kindly to answer the following questions, that it may be
determined whether your Sodality fulfills the essential conditions set
down by the Holy See and common to Sodalities of Our Lady everywhere
in the world.
Questions:
1.-Has your Sodality already been validly erected, namely, with a decree granted in writing by a competent Ordinary? At what time?
(day, month, year)
2.-Did the Ordinary, moreover, give his consent, and this in writing,
that affiliation to the Prima Primaria be requested? At what time?
3.-Has your Sodality adopted as its own the Common Rules of the
Sodality of Our Lady, the observance of which, in substance at least, is
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necessary for obtaining affiliation? If your Sodality has other rules,
they should be sent to us.
4.-In the enrollment of Sodalists, are only those selected who, by no
means content with the ordinary way of life, are sincerely eager to be
so formed in the Sodality that they can be set before their contemporaries as models of Christian life and apostolic zeal?
5.-Are only those enrolled as Sodalists who bind themselves to the
Blessed Virgin Mary by a complete and perpetual consecration, by which
they promise to fight with all their strength in the Sodality for their
own Christian perfection and eternal salvation and for that of others?
Are only those submitted to this perpetual consecration who, because
of sufficiently mature age and fitting preparation, seem able to understand rightly and fulfill faithfully the obligations of the consecration?
What is the minimum age for admission?
6.-Does your Sodality, according. to Rule 5 of the Common Rules,
hold its meetings once a week or,. if extraordinary difficulties prevent
this, at least twice a month?
..
7.-Is an all-embracing apostolate, under obedience to the hierarchy,
to spread the kingdom of Christ and defend the rights of the Church,
considered among the chief ends of your Sodality?
8.-What works of the apostolate does your Sodality carry on, or in
what does it collaborate?
9.-Is the Moderator, legitimately appointed, a priest, so that those
who are not priests help in the direction of the Sodality only under his
authority?
10.-Is your Sodality, in .accordance with its rules, completely dependent on the Hierarchy in all things?
(Place)
(Day)
(Month)
(Year)
(Signature of the Moderator)
-· ·
...
•••
0 God, Who, to promote the greater glory of Thy Name, didst
strengthen the Church militant with a new army by means of blessed
Ignatius, grant that with his . help and after his example we may
• courageously do battle here on. earth, and thus deserve to be crowned
with him in heaven; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the Mass of St. Ignatius, July 31.
�THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD OF NEW YORK CITY
NEIL P. HURLEY, S.J.
"Faith then cometh by hearing; and hearing by the word of
Christ." (Romans 10:17) As many New Yorkers, who have
happened upon a meeting of the Catholic Evidence Guild, will
testify, these words of St. Paul are still true today. Perhaps
it was at Poe Park in the Fordham area of the upper Bronx,
or at 86th St. off Lexington Ave., where the casual passer-by
was first attracted by a young lady or gentleman addressing a
gathering from a portable platform. As he listened, the
curious listener heard the speaker unfold some truth of Catholic teaching in a simple, direct, intelligible manner. Afterwards there followed questions from the crowd. The topic
discussed might have been purgatory, or the Real Presence,
or the Church and Bible, or the Catholic attitude on labor.
But whatever the matter treated, the speaker, though nowise
different in appearance from the average pedestrian in the
audience, seemed to be serious, polite, and well-informed. In
turn, the questions asked by the crowd were quite sincere. A
rather revolutionary technique, our listener would reflect,
even though he were a Catholic. However, by simple enquiry,
his suspicions would be allayed when he discovered that the
Cardinal Archbishop of New York, His Eminence Cardinal
Spellman, has blessed this street-corner apostolate with his
approval, and that the Catholic Evidence Guild for twentyfive years has, in one way or another, carried on the apostolate
of spreading God's word.
To compete at Columbus Circle and on street-corners with
atheists, Communists, radicals, and intellectual incendiaries
of every sort would seem to be a distinct compromise of the
Church's dignity and reputation. But the Catholic Evidence
Guild has not only disproved the mistaken impression that
street-corner preaching befits only an impoverished religion,
but it has shown, through its success and the respect it commands, that even in the twentieth century in a metropolis of
eight million people the evidences of the faith can be presented
just as St. Paul presented them to the Athenians on the hill
of the Areopagus or St. Francis Xavier in the streets of
Yamaguchi. And indeed, in these two instances, with more
visible results.
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
Foundation of the Guild
Catholic Evidence work in the English-speaking world is
not very old. It began in the United States in 1917 when two
converts from Socialism, Mrs. Martha Moore Avery and Mr.
David Goldstein, took to expounding Catholic doctrine from
an outdoor public platform, which later was replaced by an
"autovan." With the support of Cardinal O'Connell, Archbishop of Boston, the "Catholic Truth Guild" was founded
with Mrs. Avery as president and Mr. Goldstein as secretary.
In England the formation of the Westminster Guild took
place on April 24, 1918. Its pitch (i.e., the regular outdoor
meeting place) at Marble Arch in London's Hyde Park soon
became distinguished by such notable speakers as Father Vincent McNabb, O.P., Maisie Ward and her husband, Frank
Sheed. The next thirty-five-years witnessed the spread of
Evidence Guilds throughout the United States. During this
period Guilds were founded in Boston, Baltimore, Washington,
Oklahoma, Detroit, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Texas, New York
City, New Orleans, Waterbury, Conn., and Hays, Kansas. It
is with the growth of the New York City Evidence Guild that
we are here concerned.
The Catholic Evidence Guild of New York owes its organization directly to a retreat given at Manresa, Staten Island,
to the St. Thomas Aquinas Sodality of Fordham University
School of Law in March, 1928. Father Gerald C. Treacy, S.J.,
the retreat master, insisted on the great need for lay apostles
in the modern world. With this inspiration, Messrs. J.ames V.
Hayes, Thomas J. Diviney, and Balthasar J. Funke approached
their former Professor of Jurisprudence, Father Francis P.
LeBuffe, S.J., to ask advice about forming a Catholic Evidence
Guild. Following Father LeBuffe's suggestion, these three
succeeded in interesting about ten other fellow graduates of
the Fordham Law School in their vision. In March, 1928 the
first meeting was held at the offices of Messrs. Hayes and
Uihlein on 43rd St., New York City, under the direction of
Father LeBuffe. Father had long been entertaining a plan
to train a group of intelligent lay Catholics in theology with
the hope that they could thus exert a greater influence on their
• own environment. So, in the Providence of God, the moderator, Father LeBuffe, and several young zealous Catholic law-
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
303
yers were brought together to give birth to the New York
Catholic Evidence Guild.
Two possible methods of procedure were proposed in the
beginning: (1) the English Guild method-with the more immediate and functional purpose of preparing speakers for
specific topics; (2) Father LeBuffe's own program which
aimed at training, on a broad and slow basis, lay theologians
well-versed in dogma. The second alternative was unanimously adopted by the group. Father promised his newlyformed Guild that if they gave him one night a week for ten
years, he would do something with them. Despite the understandable desire to do immediate apostolic work, the group had
to satisfy itself with three years of training in lay theology
before the late Patrick Cardinal J. Hayes allowed the group
to be active. The Guild's original purpose of street-corner
preaching was not judged to be suitable at this time. Instead,
the Cardinal encouraged the Guild to undertake radio broadcasts.
As a result, beginning in 1931 and continuing for seven
years, Guildsmen gave seven hundred talks on various Catholic doctrines. The broadcasts were given over many stations.
Two in particular were Station WMII in Brooklyn, and a
New York City Station, WLWL. Some of the titles of talks
given then were: "The Sanctity of Marriage," "If Christ
Lived Today," "Greed and the New Deal," "Why Ask for
Money?" One amusing incident occurred when a radio listener, deceived into thinking that group broadcasts of a supposed meeting at Columbus Circle were real, showed up there
for an expected outdoor meeting.
Guild members during this period, though still not engaged
in street-corner preaching, taught by the written word as
well. They published articles in both Catholic and non-Catholic magazines; wrote and collaborated on pamphlets and letters to editors, public officials, state and national legislative
groups. In addition to this, the Guild participated in and
conducted talks and group discussions with non-Catholic and
Catholic groups. The more important Catholic groups before
which talks and discussions were held, were the Knights of
Columbus, Holy Name meetings, Communion breakfasts,
Newman Clubs, and Sodality organizations. Besides, permis-
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
sion was obtained from both the New York and Brooklyn
Chanceries to address non-Catholic groups anywhere except
in a church of another denomination. During this time the
meetings of the Guild were moved from the offices of Messrs.
Hayes and Uihlein, where they were first held, to the Catholic
Club of New York at 120 Central Park South, and later to the
Club's new quarters in the Waldorf-Astoria. Meetings for a
time were also held at the offices of the America Press.
When permission was finally obtained for outdoor preaching
in 1936, the radio work was continued along with the outdoor
activity, but it was soon found to be impossible to develop the
two techniques simultaneously with any success, especially
with small numbers. However the Guild still possesses most
of the broadcasts then given and these have served to help
Catholic groups all over the world, and particularly in the
Philippine Islands. It was during this period that the Guild
also gave weekly talks to retreatants at Manresa, Staten Island.
Outdoor Preaching
The Guild's first outdoor meeting was in 1936 at Columbus
Circle. The first night that the group went up to the Circle
to hear Mr. James V. Hayes give the Guild's maiden talk, it
was most apprehensive. Father LeBuffe nervously fingered
his beads all the way up from the office of the America Press
where he was assigned at the time. From the very start,
however, the conduct of the Guildsmen impressed the audience
in contrast with the reactionary techniques of other le"ss orderly speakers at the Circle. It was feared at first that the
audience might prove unmanageable by urging excessively
aggressive difficulties, by heckling and, all in all, by disregarding the rules of the Guild. These provide that the speaker
talk for ten or twelve minutes uninterruptedly with the remaining hour dedicated to questions germane to the topic
being discussed. However with very few exceptions the audience has always abided by the Guild's program. Once in the
early '40's at a meeting on the corner of 11th St. and 2nd Ave.,
a Communistic neighborhood at the time, the crowd became
antagonistic to Harold W. Abrams, a Guildsman who was
·denouncing Communism. One Guild member distinctly heard
someone utter the threat: "If I had a gun, I'd shoot you."
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
305
However, by the grace of God, the difficult situation resolved
itself, and the Guild was deprived of its first martyr.
Wherever talks have been given by the Guild, whether in the
Bronx, or Manhattan, or Staten Island, the audience has always been respectful. The American sense of fair play undoubtedly is the reason. Once when a speaker was explaining
annulment and divorce, an objector posed a difficulty on the
existence of God. Despite the speaker's insistence that the
question was outside the range of the topic discussed, the
questioner was relentless. The crowd then intervened, murmuring: "That's not her subject," to which the undaunted objector replied: "I want to learn something about God." With
that, the crowd dispatched the persistent fellow, giving him
the well-known "bum's rush." Following this the crowd returned to press home its difficulties against the Church's
position on annulment and divorce.
It was in the Fall of 1935 and the early part of 1936, as a
result of a series of lectures on religion to the alumnae of the
College of New Rochelle, that Father LeBuffe, assisted by
Miss Mary T. Shaughnessy (now Mother Mary Celeste,
O.S.U.), resolved to form a women's Catholic Evidence Guild.
The first members consisted of alumnae of New Rochelle College, about sixty in all. However, at the first meeting of the
women's Guild, it was decided to open the group to all women
graduates of Catholic colleges. Most of the original members
dropped out when preparations for talks were assigned.
Although the women's Guild co-existed for two years with
the men's, Father LeBuffe finally judged it best to consolidate
both groups into one. To avoid duplication of time and energy,
and to preserve Father LeBuffe's health, the men, who had
earlier opposed having women in their Guild, consented to this
move. At first it was thought that the women would not speak
on the street-corners, but later this decision was reversed. The
women had helped the men in their work on the radio, and
with Miss Mary Shaughnessy's appearance at Columbus Circle
in the summer of 193.9, they took their part in the street
preaching as well. Needless to say, they have provided some
excellent speakers, and it is because of them that during the
war, when most of the men were in service or out of the city,
the Guild still functioned normally.
�3Q6
CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
Because of the Catholic Club's rule excluding women, the
Guild now moved to the Woolworth Building and the new
quarters provided by the Fordham University School of Education. When Fordham moved from the Woolworth Building
the Guild accepted the hospitality of the Fordham School of
Social Service on East 39th St., near Lexington Ave. But
due to the growth of the School's enrollment the Guild was
again obliged to vacate. This time it moved to the Parish
House Annex on East 83rd St., next to St. Ignatius' Church at
980 Park Ave. Meetings were held in this Parish House
Annex for about three years.
A New Horne
It was then that the Guild moved to its present location at 113 East 85th St. in th~·convent of the Helpers of the
Holy Souls. The story behind this move is as follows. Rev.
Mother Mary St. Anne and Mother Mary Loyola (who as
Louise Mooney had been a member of the Guild) asked Father
LeBuffe if his Guild would help the Sisters in their instruction
of converts. Father, who had long dreamed of a Catholic Information Center, proposed this as a counter-plan. As a result, a room in the rear of the Convent on 85th St. was placed
at the disposal of the Guild. Yeoman service was rendered
by both the men and women Guild members in readying this
room for occupancy. The walls were washed and painted; the
floors were scrubbed and scraped; the woodwork was stained.
Now the problem was: how could the room be furni~lied and
equipped with a library? Again the arm of the Lord was not
shortened. The Young Women's Catholic Club was closing
at the time, and through the generous co-operation of Miss
Constance Armstrong, a desk, some chairs, and bookcases
were provided. Other furniture was donated by friends of
the Sisters. An appeal by Father LeBuffe himself to Fordham, St. Andrew-on-Hudson, and other Jesuit houses, as well
as to convents and personal friends whom he contacted in his
travels as Regional Secretary of Sodalities, brought many
necessary books on doctrinal, apologetic, ascetical, and other
. subjects pertaining to the faith.
On April1, 1951 the Center was opened, and it has been the
meeting place of the Guild since that time. The Center is open
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
807
every evening Monday through Saturday from 7:00 P.M. to
9:30 P.M. and on Sunday from 3:30 P.M. to 9:30 P.M. The
members of the Guild take turns working each evening at the
Center. This group is known as the Catholic Evidence Auxiliary and numbers approximately twelve members.
It is here that, during the winter months from September
to May, Father LeBuffe each Monday evening conducts the
training meetings in preparation for the summer street-corner
meetings. The outdoor program is confined to the period of
mid-May to mid-September, since speaking in the chill evening
air brings loss of voice. At the indoor training meetings the
Guild is given the wherewithal to present the important doctrinal teachings of the Church in a clear and engaging manner
for non-Catholic listeners primarily. It is well to remember
that none of the members is required to be a trained theologian
or an accomplished orator, though some do obtain quite a bit
of proficiency-laywise-in both fields.
The usual requirements for membership in the Guild are:
(1) a desire to spread God's Kingdom among men by means
of the spoken word; (2) an average degree of responsibility
and intelligence; (3) some ability and poise in public speaking
(though this may be acquired by practice, if the other conditions are satisfied); and (4) fidelity as a Catholic, of course.
The meeting, open to both members and those interested in
becoming members, is begun by Father LeBuffe with the following prayer, composed by a member of long standing, Mr.
John E. McAniff:
St. Paul, help us in our work on the street-corner, to see in every
aimless question, a human soul groping in the dark for truth; in
every conceited declaration, a human soul desperately grasping for
the dignity of which it has been robbed; in every aggressive challenge, a human soul steeped in the conflict between this world
and the next; in every angry denial, a human soul shrinking from
the Sacrifice of the Cross; in every false statement a human soul
misled by false prophets; in every scornful laugh, a human soul
deprived of the only Real Joy; and in every listener, the image
and likeness of God. Amen.
On his last visit to Rome in 1950, Father LeBuffe arranged
to have a framed copy of this beautiful prayer of the Guild
hung on the wall of the sacristy of the Basilica of St. Paul's
Outside the Walls. This prayer was first presented by Mr.
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
McAniff, then president of the New York Catholic Evidence
Guild, at the Eighth Annual Convention of the National Catholic Evidence Conference held at Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 4, 1939 in his address entitled "The Catholic Evidence
Guild on the Street Corner."
In Training
After the reading of the Guild's prayer, the meeting is
under way. The first of the two hours is given over to Father
LeBuffe, who instructs the Guild in the dogmatic teachings of
the faith. Father has a rare gift of crystallizing the abstruse
and formal tracts in theology for the benefit of lay minds.
Like Monsieur Jourdain in Moliere's play, who had been talking prose all his life ·without realizing it, Father LeBuffe exclaims: "Here I have been teaching kerygma tic theology for
twenty-five years without knowing it." Although Father LeBuffe's booklet, Let's Look at Sanctifying Grace, might be
called the textbook of the course, still Father does not confine
himself to any curriculum or definite schedule of instruction.
Granting to the Guild the large liberty of the children of God,
Father LeBuffe does not restrict questions. Any questionson the subject or off it-may be and usually are asked. As a
result, over the years Father has traversed many diverse fields:
angelology; the theology of the sacraments-both of the Old
Law and the New; the metaphysics of the Trinity; sanctifying
grace; Liturgy; Church history; missiology; Mariology and
Christology; eschatology; phases of Canon Law and_.Moral
Theology; as well as other sundry points of dogma and. philosophy.
Of course, these points are not treated with the scientific
precision that is required in the theological tracts as taught
in a seminary. There the more difficult and obscure questions
of the faith are stressed (e.g., the problem of grace and free
will). Since the Guild has a different objective, Father
LeBuffe, in his talks, rather accents the more fundamental
points of the Church's dogma, with less emphasis on logical
unity. The treatment of the Church's truths, in short, is more
Pauline than Thomistic in its form of presentation. Father
LeBuffe unfolds the Kingdom of God for his Guild members:
incorporation and redemption in Christ; the modes of God's
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
309
indwelling in the soul; the sacramental system; the meaning
of our baptism; the share that sanctifying grace gives in God's
very life.
The consequence of this unique course of instruction has
been that over a period of time the Guild begins to perceive
the grandiose plan of God, Who in Christ wishes to draw all
men to Him. The "Glad Tidings" of Christ's coming, taught
with unction by a holy and learned priest to an exemplary
group of Catholic laymen, has produced a remarkable effect on
the personal sanctity of the lives of the Guild members. As
Father LeBuffe himself has remarked: "It is amazing how
much the Guild has deepened spiritually under the impact of
the dogma.'' It is this first hour of the meeting that attracts
the members and the members-to-be. Any member of the
Guild will agree that Father LeBuffe's disquisitions in theology and scholastic philosophy, with questions interspersed
by the Guild, are the real soil in which the devotional and the
intellectual life of the street-corner apostle takes root and
develops.
Apart from the importance of helping the Church to combat
anti-Catholic prejudices and explain the reasonableness of the
Faith, the Guild's success, with God's help, has been largely
due to the invaluable training that most laymen would find
difficult to obtain anywhere else. The interior relish and the
personal realization that comes from prolonged consideration
of the inspiring truths of revelation and of God's redemptive
plan are the most tangible rewards that accrue to a Guild
member. From the very start, the Guild's program has had a
delicate balance between theory and practice as well as between the personal sanctification of each and the correlative
obligation to communicate their faith-the pearl of great
price-to others. In large measure this balance has been the
psychological key to the Guild's success under God.
During the second hour of the meeting, practice talks are
given by the members themselves. At this point the Guild
turns into a hostile street-corner crowd. Although actual
conditions are only simulated, giving the appearance of mock
combat, the Guild's objections are naturally more barbed and
subtle than those of the average American pedestrian. Needless to say, whoever successfully survives this "baptism under
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
fire" is quite assured of being prepared to meet the real foe,
who is, of course, usually less astute. At least two practice
talks must be given: one before the entire Guild itself; the
other before a special board of examiners which determines the
speaker's competence to represent the Guild and the Church,
too, in public. The meetings are brought to a close with the
following prayer, also composed by Mr. McAniff:
St. Paul, we dedicate to you the Catholic Evidence Guild of New
York. Alone we can do nothing, but through your intercession
before the throne of Almighty God may we bring to those who are
in darkness a small ray of the blinding light which you saw on the
road to Damascus. We humbly ask your patronage and assistance
and the grace to follow your example. Amen.
The Guild has always paid its own way by means of the
contributions of its members at the end of each meeting. In
accordance with Father LeBuffe's desire to keep "red tape"
and organization at a minimum, the government of the Guild
is purposely simple. The honorary president is Francis Cardinal Spellman, Archbishop of New York. Father LeBuffe has
been moderator for twenty-five years. In addition, there is a
board of directors, and an executive committee of three who
act with the moderator's_approval. A secretary takes care
of the necessary correspondence, purchases, the drafting of
the speaker's schedule each season. There has never been any
rivalry for official positions or the least attempt at self-advancement. On the contrary, it was found necessary t"6 make
it a Guild rule that no one should refuse an office once proffered. The simplicity of the Guild's structure and the informality that has always prevailed has created strong bonds of
personal loyalty between Father LeBuffe and the members,
and also among the members themselves. In fact some members have met their spouses through the Guild meetings. The
esprit de corps is exceptional, and one might truly say that the
Guild is more an organism than an organization.
In 1933 a National Catholic Evidence Conference was
.launched, with Cardinal HaY.es' permission, at the old Catholic
Club building at 120 Central Park South, New York City.
Mr. James V. Hayes was elected its first president.
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311
Co-Workers
Later on, in 1936, Mr. Edwin J. Duffy (now Father Duffy),
then a senior at Holy Cross College, joined the Guild. Upon
graduation he entered St. Joseph's Seminary, Dunwoodie in.
Yonkers, N.Y., and began to interest his fellow seminarians in
the work of the Guild. Consequently in the 1937-38 season,
the seminarians joined the lay members in their street-corner
program during the summers. The two groups, lay and seminarian, have grown very close together. Each year two meetings are held at the Seminary in Yonkers. Both groups participate. The first meeting, held in the spring, has for its
purpose to plan the summer work. The one in the fall reviews
the summer program and pools the experiences of all for
everyone's mutual benefit.
From time to time, courses of lectures for prospective converts are given at the Information Center by Father James E.
Rae from Dunwoodie, and some other priests who, like Father
Rae, were Guild members as seminarians. These lectures were
begun in the summer of 1950 and though the attendance was
small, the earnestness and sincerity of those who came compensated for the absence of numbers. Guild members gener'ously attended in order to be able to greet those who attended
the lectures. Father Rae, who is professor of dogmatic theology at Dunwoodie, along with the other diocesan priests has
helped the Guild immensely in this work.
Besides the street-corner work and the early radio broadcasts, other fruit has been derived from the Guild's activities.
We have already mentioned the group discussions and lectures
which the Guild conducted for the Confraternity of Christian
Doctrine, the Sodalities, the Knights of Columbus, and other
Catholic groups. In addition, classes of instruction were conducted at one time for Catholic students at Columbia and New
York University. Also, in the early days of the formation of
the Jesuit labor schools of the Metropolitan Area, the Guild
played a definite role. Guildsmen taught at three labor
schools: the one at St. Francis Xavier High School at 16th
St. in New York City; the second, at St. Peter's College in
Jersey City; the third, at the Crown Heights Labor School in
Brooklyn. In fact, when Father William J. Smith, S.J., began
the Crown Heights Labor School, he approached Father Le-
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
Buffe with the problem of forming a faculty. Father called a
luncheon meeting at which Messrs. Hayes, Brenner, McAghon,
and Atkinson were present. After the meeting, Father Smith
turned to Father LeBuffe and said, "I have three-fourths of my
faculty already." One of these men, Mr. O'Brien Atkinson, a
retired advertising man, was a vital force, during his twelve
years with the Guild, in training its members in the technique
of preparing a speech. To this end he wrote a pamphlet entitled Broadcasting Your Talk which was published by the
Paulist Press. Later, he enlarged this into a book entitled
How to Make Us Want Your Sermon. This book sold over
five thousand copies for its publisher, John F. Wagner, and
even now is still quite a favorite with the clergy throughout
the United States. With Mr. 4tkinson's death, Miss Isabelle
Mullen has carried on the all-important task of training the
Guild's street-corner apostles.
From its inception, a yearly retreat has been insisted upon
for the Guild members. At first these retreats were held at
Manresa and then at Morristown, New Jersey. However,
when the Guild admitted women, permission was obtained from
the late Bishop Griffin of Trenton and from the nuns at Georgian Court College, to give a joint retreat for both men and
women at the College. The first retreat of this type was held
in 1942 and was very probably the first such group retreat for
men and women ever held anywhere in the world. The men
lived in one of the residence halls and the women in another.
Strict silence is insisted upon and has always been observed
to the great edification of the nuns and newcomers. Guild
members may bring friends provided that they observe the
complete retreat silence enjoined on all.
Another spiritual hypodermic that the Guild avails itself of
is an idea which Father LeBuffe hit upon. It is the half-day
of recollection. Three or four times a year at the Convent of
the Helpers of the Holy Souls, under the usual retreat conditions of strict silence, the Guild observes the following order:
at 8:15 A.M. Mass; at 9:00 breakfast with reading; at 10:00
a conference; at 11:00 another conference; at 11:45 benedic·tion~ at 12:00 out and horne for the family Sunday dinner.
This half-day of recollection has had great success and offers
great possibilities for other Catholic groups.
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
313
Pioneers
The influence of the Guild, through God's grace, has been
far reaching, especially as its members have moved to other
sectors of the country. The pioneering spirit of the Guild
members is ever alive. As Father LeBuffe insists: "Once the
smoke of battle gets in your nostrils you can never be the
same." For instance, four ex-Guild members, Mr. Louis J.
Abrams, his wife-the former Rita Murphy, Harold Abrams,
and Lyons T. Carr moved to the Camden diocese, and only last
year, with Bishop Eustace's approval, inaugurated a new
Catholic Evidence Guild. Their first street-corner work took
place in the summer of 1952. The meetings were held on Friday evenings and the New York City group supplied one
speaker each week, although the Camden Guild paid all expenses. Despite the competition of the Jehovah's Witnesses
from the opposite corner, armed as they were with both an
organ and a public address system, the Guild still held its own.
All in all the season was quite successful.
Another outgrowth of the New York City Guild's activities
has been the founding of a Catholic Evidence Guild in Columbus, Georgia, by Mr. George Gingell and his wife. Mr.
Gingell moved south to take charge of radio station WRBL,
and his one-man radio crusade against bigotry in Georgia has
been inspiring. Another Guildsman, Mr. William Maday, has
done remarkable work in Polish over radio station WLIB
ever since 1949, while other Guild members have begun discussion groups and Catholic action groups in the neighborhoods to
which they have moved.
The seminarians of St. Joseph's in Yonkers render invaluable aid to the Guild. A number of vocations have been fostered among members of the Guild, both to the sisterhood and
the priesthood. A rough estimate reveals one Ursuline Sister,
one Good Shepherd, one Charity nun, two Cenacle nuns, two
Helpers of the Holy Souls, a Missionary Father of Lyons, and
two Jesuits. One, the author, belonged to the Guild for two
years (1945-47) and participated in the Guild's outdoor preaching program for two seasons. The other Jesuit, Father Myer
F. Tobey, was ordained this past June at Woodstock College
in Maryland. We have every reason to believe that we have
as intercessors before the Heavenly Throne seven members of
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
the Church Triumphant: Balthasar J. Funke, Thomas Nolan,
Daniel Boyle, John Molanphy, Francis Brady, Paul Dearing,
and O'Brien Atkinson. Paul Dearing worked for N.C.W.C.
War Relief in the Empire State Building. He was killed in
the ill-fated airplane crash that happened in the summer of
1945. Only the evening before he had been preaching the
word of Christ to a suffering world.
Over the twenty-five year history of the Guild, a number of
priests have generously taken over Father LeBuffe's place
when he was absent, due to travel or illness. In 1930, when
Father LeBuffe was hospitalized for some months, Father
Charles I. Doyle, S.J., acted as moderator. Later, in 1945-46,
Father Stephen V. Duffy, S.J., carried on the work for a while.
And again in 1950 when FatherLeBuffe was called to Rome,
Father James E. Rae of St. Joseph's Seminary kindly acted as
temporary moderator for three months. Father Florence
Sullivan, S.J., also filled in for Father LeBuffe.
Two very recent developments indicate the further growth
and spread of the Guild's influence. In 1951 Father McTigue,
O.P., professor of theology at Albertus Magnus College, New
Haven, Conn., consulted Father LeBuffe on his religion course.
He wanted to know how he might further the interests of the
students therein. As a result of Father LeBuffe's suggestion
for a modified Catholic Evidence Guild during the second year,
the young ladies of Albertus Magnus are seriously training
for work with the New York City Guild in the summer.time.
The second noteworthy development is the establishniimt at
Fordham University in the Bronx of a student branch of the
Guild by Mr. Philip Nicolaides, a member of the Guild who is
doing graduate studies at the University. With the assistance
of Mr. Avery Dulles, S.J., and Father Herbert D'Souza, S.J.,
who conducts the training there during the year, the young
Fordham students are being equipped to participate in the
Guild's outdoor program.
We have seen then that the fruit of the New York City
Catholic Evidence Guild has been varied and rich. Like all
things spiritual there is much that cannot be grasped with ten
fingers. Nevertheless the fruit of the Guild's apostolate is
evident. Although no satisfactory answer can be given to the
inevitable and oft-repeated question: "How many converts do
�CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
315
you make?" still the Guild is confident that it has won much
good will for the Church and its teachings. No serious doubt
exists that many people, who before entertained preconceived
and biased notions of the Church's doctrines, have jettisoned
their prejudicial beliefs because of the polite conduct, the
sane exposition, and the earnestness of the Guild members.
Many Catholics, too, are deeply impressed that the Church
takes such direct means to eliminate ignorance and bigotry,
even though many at first are wary of the group's right to
represent the Church. One real incident will illustrate the effect that the apostolate of the Guild exercises on Catholics.
While on her way home from shopping, one woman, weighted
down with groceries, for a long while stood, bundles and all,
to hear the Guild, so pleased was she that her Church was not
taking a back seat to Communism in zealous presentation of
its teachings. The Catholic Evidence Guild serves a definite
need, one that was foreseen by our Blessed Lord Himself"Going forth, teach all nations."
Inner Growth
Actually, the most tangible results from the activities of the
Guild are found in the members themselves. Since they are
forced by the nature of the work to examine critically Catholic
dogma at its deeper and richer levels, it is only natural that an
assimilation of the doctrine in this way should lead to a greater
awareness and love of God's revealed truths and His teaching
Church. The Guild member must ponder and meditate the
truths of the Church if he thinks it worth preaching to others.
Undoubtedly, the generosity and prayer-life of each Guild
member wins from the Holy Spirit a special unction which
renders these truths a matter of the heart as well as of the
intellect. What more efficacious way is there of deepening
one's love and knowledge of the faith and its mysteries than
to discover Christianity through the Church's official sources
with intention of transmitting this knowledge to others?
Contemplata tradere aliis-this has been the set purpose of
the New York City Evidence Guild: a remarkable group of
some fifty-five average American citizens who are spiritually
extraordinary. Many are daily communicants. Their ordi-
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CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD
nary temporal roles include secretaries, nurses, students,
housewives, Wall St. lawyers, and school teachers.
The years of zealous apostolic endeavor, the intense faith in
a work with little visible results, the prayerful study of the
wonderful message of divine grace, generosity and loyalty and
often self-sacrifice-all of these have left their mark, the mark
of the "insignes"-on the Guild members. "The Spirit breatheth where He will," our Blessed Saviour has told us (John
3 :8). And in this particular instance it happens to be on the
street-corners of the metropolis of the world. With St. Paul
the Guild members can say: "For I am not ashamed of the
gospel. For it is the power of God unto salvation to every
one that believeth ..." (Romans, 1 :16). The Guild has well
earned the high praise bestowed-Qn it by His Eminence Cardinal Spellman (then Archbishop) when, addressing the Catholic
Evidence Conference, held on November 16 and 17 in 1940 at
the Hotel Commodore, he said : "You men and women taking
part in this work are engaged in a truly apostolic work. You
are doing work exemplified by Christ and His Apostles. You
are messengers of the gospel, messengers of truth. We are
proud of the New York Evidence Guild ..."
And on April 26, 1953 when the members of the Catholic
Evidence Guild of New York, together with their moderator,
Father Francis P. LeBuffe, united to celebrate their first
quarter of a century of sowing God's word, they, too, could
justifiably be proud.
* * *
0 God, Who for the defence of the Catholic faith didst arm Thy
blessed confessor Peter with virtue and learning, grant in Thy loving
kindness that through his example and counsel, those who have gone
astray may return to the way of salvation, and the faithful remain
constant in their allegiance to the truth; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
-from the l\lass of St. Peter Canisius, April 27.
�DOCTRINE OF FATHER JEROME NADAL
ON THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES OF ST. IGNATIUS
JOSEPH
F. X. ERHART, S.J.
The scope of this paper is to discuss some ideas of Father
Jerome Nadal on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. In
studying the Exercises Father Nadal's authority is of great
value. This is evident from the fact that he was officially appointed by St. Ignatius to give the authentic interpretation of
them in all the houses of Spain and Portuga}.l
The chief document by Nadal is a controversial one. About
1550 the Archbishop of Toledo obtained a copy of the Exercises and gave it to some Dominican Fathers for examination.
Certain passages of the Exercises were severely criticized as
allegedly being too much like the teachings of the "Alumbrados." The criticisms were actually written by Father
Melchior Cano and Father Thomas de Pedroche, professor of
Theology in the College of St. Peter Martyr in Toledo. There
is no record of Cano's work, but Pedroche's violent attack is
preserved in the Monumenta Historica. 2 It was in answer to
Pedroche that Nadal undertook to write an Apology of the
Exercises. This Apology lay in manuscript for more than
three centuries in the dust of the archives, and was discovered
and published (1895, 1905) by the editors of the Monumenta
Historica Societatis Jesu. 3 We shall be concerned with this
Apology.
In his attack4 Pedroche quotes a passage and proceeds to
censure it. In his reply 5 Nadal, having repeated the text and
censure, not only gives a direct answer, but often takes occasion to give lengthy explanations of the idea in question.
Before speaking of the Exercises, Pedroche has a few things
to say about St. Ignatius. He says that Ignatius was cited by
the Inquisition for heresy, that he was a Quietist ("uno de los
dejados, y alumbrados"), and that he fled to Rome to escape
the lnquisitors. 6 Referring to the Society's boast that the
Exercises were composed by Ignatius not so much with the aid
of books, as with the unction of the Holy Spirit, and from his
own experience and practice,T Pedroche voices his suspicion
of a Spaniard of so little learning that he could write (not in
Latin) but only in vernacular Spanish. Besides he sees a
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NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
likeness to the "Alumbrados" who exaggerate the importance
of private inspiration. 8 Furthermore the title of the order,
"Society of Jesus," is proud, schismatical, and injurious to
the whole of Christian society. Reserving this title to Jesuits
relegates the rest of men, by implication, to the society of the
devil. 9 Nadal answers10 these reproaches in handy and sometimes amusing fashion. We shall pass over his reply and
proceed to the criticism of the Exercises themselves.
Who Should 1\lake the Exercises?
Text. The Exercises are not to be given to everyone indiscriminately.11
Censure. If they are an excellent short cut to perfection,
why are the Exercises restricted? If they are blighted with
error and superstition, why are- .they permitted to endure in
hiding? 12
Reply. The Society does not claim that the Exercises are a
short cut to perfection. The Church wants publication restricted, wants the Exercises explained and given by Jesuits,
lest they be misunderstood. One making the Exercises needs
a guide. They are given to everyone who wants them, and to
those whom we think will use them properly. Nadal adds
that if Pedroche thinks the Exercises are no good, he should
advise that as few as possible see themY
Length of Exercises
Text. The Exercises should be concluded in thirt~: days
more or less.14
Censure. By what authority does Ignatius say thirty days
is enough for spiritual exercises? Does he find it in Scripture, in the lives or writings of the saints? It is a wonder
that Christ, the Evangelists, St. Paul and the other Apostles
didn't discover these exercises, which in such a short time, so
easily, so efficaciously suffice for perfection.15
Reply. 16 Before answering directly, Nadal takes this opportunity to give a general explanation of the purpose of the
Exercises. The name of spiritual exercises is applied to any
method of preparing and disposing the soul to free itself from
inordinate affections, and after it has freed itself from them,
to seek the will of God concerning the ordering of life for the
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
319
salvation of one's soul.17 This is obviously the purpose of the
meditations, examens, confession, Holy Communion, and election.18 It is certainly not claimed that one emerges from the
Exercises confirmed in perfection.
Here Nadal makes an important fundamental point. To
give the Exercises is to preach the Gospe}.1 9 "Repent for the
Kingdom of Heaven is at hand." 20 This is the message of
Christ; this is the message of the Exercises. The first part of
the Exercises leads the soul to contrition and penance for sin.
The General Confession, which puts off the old man and puts
on the new, is followed by Holy Communion, which unites us to
the Kingdom of Heaven. In the last three weeks, the meditations on the life of Christ teach the Kingdom of Heaven, the
life of the spirit. Likewise the Exercises try to start the
exercitant off on the three ways of the spiritual life, the purgative, the illuminative, and the unitive. In this framework,
with the help of various rules, and under the retreat master's
guidance, the exercitant is prepared for the election.
Then Nadal gives a direct answer to the question of why
thirty days. 21 We don't make an arbitrary time-schedule of
spiritual progress. We simply establish a logical order for
the consideration of certain divine truths. Experience has
taught that thirty days more or less is an apt period of time
for these particular considerations. After all, a retreat has
to end sometime. It is the formality of a retreat that is
limited to thirty days. If the exercitant wishes to continue, he
may devote his entire life to prayer. As a further defense 22
Nadal appeals to tradition, reminding the reader of how the
Church is accustomed to assign certain numbers of days for
fasting, prayers, alms, visits to Churches, length of novitiate,
etc.
11th Annotation
Text. "It is of advantage to him who is rece1vmg the
Exercises of the first week, that he should know nothing of
what he has to do in the second week." 23
Censure. It is false and imprudent to say that knowledge
of what leads to perfection can impede the acquisition of perfection. It is vain and superstitious to say that ignorance of
the means to perfection will help towards perfection. 24
Reply. 25 Nadal points out the wisdom of this annotation.
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NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
St. Ignatius wanted the retreatant to concentrate on one thing
at a time. Many important truths are proposed for consideration, but the peculiar strength of the Exercises derives from
their logical order.
It is against the background of the end of creatures and the
end of man that one best sees how reasonable are the principles of indifference and tantum quantum. Then he is best
able to see· the ugliness of sin and is disposed for real sorrow.
In the second week, when inordinate affections have been
put aside, the life of Christ is studied as a concrete example of
the positive side of perfection. The 11th Annotation stresses
the idea that the second week will be more profitable if the
proposed fruit of the previous meditations has first been attained.
Pedroche's objection may come,from an improper emphasis
on knowledge as a fruit of prayet', whereas the Exercises are
built on the theory that the chief fruit of prayer is in the
operations of the will. 26 Nadal adds that even if knowledge
were the chief fruit of prayer, the best approach still would
be to concentrate on one thing at a time. Suppose the retreatant were given the matter of all the exercises on the first
day!27
Length of Each Meditation
Text. The exercitant should occupy himself for at least an
hour in each of the five Exercises that will be made each day. 28
Censure. It is foolish and superstitious to say that an hour
suffices for perfection. One hour's time may be good for ~orne,
harmful to others.29
Reply. 80 Nadal's reply is summed up in one concise sentence, "I have told you a thousand times ... in the Exercises
we seek the beginnings of perfection; they don't necessarily
establish a man in the state of perfection." 31 It has been a
practice in the Church, and especially in religious orders to
have a definite time prescribed for prayer. The hour is urged
as a minimum, but the exercitant is free to go longer. If a
man isn't thought fit to make the Exercises, or if he just can't
spare the time, then a half-hour or any other amount is allowed. The great value lies in the merit that can be gained
from holding out for an hour if the prayer seems to be unsuccessful.
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
321
Function of Retreat Master
Text. "He who gives the Exercises must not incline him
who receives them more to poverty or to a vow, than to their
contraries, nor to one state or manner of life, more than to
another: for although outside the Exercises we may lawfully ... nevertheless, during the time of the Spiritual Exercises, when the soul is seeking the Divine will, it is better and
more fitting that its Creator and Lord Himself communicate
with the devout soul ... so that he who gives the Exercises
must himself not be influenced or inclined to one side or another, but keeping as it were in equilibrium like a balance,
allow the Creator to act immediately with the creature, and
the creature with its Creator and Lord." 32
Censure. 33 You don't allow preaching or persuasion to elect
some particular good, but let the retreatant follow the interior
urging of the Holy Spirit. If such counsel is profitable outside retreat, why not during retreat? To urge a man to
prescind from all spiritual writing and teaching, and to commit himself to interior inspiration-this is Quietism. It is
rash, scandalous, and heretical.
Reply.u Nadal admonishes Pedroche that he misinterprets
the Exercises: " . . . must not incline . . ." is explained in
the second part of the Annotation, "it is better and more fitting ..." We have here an exposition of the function of the
retreat master.
The Exercises usually are concerned with electing a state of
life.35 But they are not given in the same way to everyone.
If a person is judged unfit for the religious life, or if he already has a vocation, we don't propose the election to him in
the same way, but simply propose some meditations. If he
has already decided to enter religion, we try to strengthen
that resolution.
But those who are undecided and desire help can greatly
profit from the lgnatian election. First of all the soul must be
cleansed (Principle and Foundation, Confession, etc.) in order
that the exercitant can see the truth clearly. Sinners can see
the truth clearly, but only speculatively, not practically, not
with the heart and affections. We seek not simply knowledge
of the life to be lived, but knowledge joined with a strong
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NADAL ON TilE EXERCISES
desire to take up that life. This knowledge is best sought in
meditations on the life of Christ, which are adapted to making
an election. During these meditations one prays for help to
make the proper election.
The point of this 15th Annotation is that the director should
not interfere with the free workings of grace. It is hoped
that the retreatant, properly disposed, submissive to God's will,
and humbly praying for divine guidance, will be rewarded
with the grace to know God's will. During prayer the retreatant consults God and not the retreat master. All the
spiritual wisdom of the Church is employed to launch the exercitant into his meditation. And after the meditation the director examines and judges the experience and advises accordingly; but during the actual meditation the exercitant is on his
own with God. It is only inter ~xercitia ipsa that the director
stays in the background. At aU other times he is available
for consultation and advice.
Thus the charge of Quietism is unfounded. In their prayer
the Quietists neglect the ordinary natural and supernatural
means and presumptuously expect private inspiration,
whereas the Exercises bring to bear all the treasures of theology and human learning in disposing the exercitant to beg
for grace. Finally Nadal suggests that Pedroche would better
appreciate the Exercises_if he spent some time in making
them instead of attacking them.
Indifference
Text. "Debemus absque differentia nos habere circa res
creatas omnes, prout libertati arbitrii nostri subjectae sunt et
non prohibitae." 36 "Quod in nobis est non quaeramus sanitatem magis quam aegritudinem." "Quod in nobis est honorem
contemptui non praeferamus."
Censure. In a lengthy criticism Pedroche undertakes to
prove that the notion of indifference is contrary to Scripture,
to the natural law, and to the end of irrational creatures.
Regarding riches, poverty, and the necessities of life, Scripture does not teach men to be indifferent, but just the opposite: " ... and for my state of life, be neither poverty mine
·nor riches. Grant me only. the livelihood I need." 37 Having
food and sufficient clothing, with these let us be content." 38
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
323
This principle is against the natural law, which inclines
men differently towards different things. The inclination to
love one's friends differs from the inclination to love an enemy.
Naturally one loves himself and family more than others. And
a man simply is not naturally indifferent to his own life, to
reputation, fame, and wealth. Since Ignatian indifference
runs counter to these natural inclinations, it is against the
natural law.
Thirdly, indifference is contrary to the very nature of irrational creatures, which in greatly different ways contribute to
man's well-being. Consider for example the utility of the
heavens, elements, farm-products, as compared with fleas,
mosquitoes, and bats.
The Ignatian doctrine of indifference is based on a false
premise, namely: all created things are of equal help to man
in attaining his end. From this it would follow correctly but
falsely that we should make ourselves indifferent to all created
things.
Concerning sickness and health the natural law impels men
to stay healthy and avoid sickness. Besides, good health more
than sickness helps man to attain his end. Therefore men
should do all they can to enjoy good health. Two considerations confirm this position. First, God made man healthy
rather than infirm. Secondly, good health per se is useful to
man; whereas only per accidens is sickness of any value.
Therefore, contrary to Ignatius, we should wish for health
rather than for sickness. Otherwise we would select food
and other means calculated to impair health rather than the
best means to conserve it. Likewise, against all our instincts,
we would prefer the mutilation of our bodies rather than
keeping them sound.
In the matter of honor and dishonor, Pedroche claims that
indifference would be against the natural law and against
those texts of Scripture 39 which extol the value of a good name.
Reply.40 Before answering the objections Nadal proposes
to explain and prove the notion of indifference. This he does
after the manner of a thesis in Scholastic theology. Here as
all through this document, Nadal wishes primarily to demonstrate with the precision of the School the orthodoxy of the
proposition that has been censured. 41
�324
NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
In his declaration of the thesis, Nadal notes that the word
"quapropter" ("quapropter debemus absque differentia, etc.")
indicates that indifference is a conclusion from what precedes
in the Foundation. This is taken up in the proof. "Debemus"
means debitum ex consilio, not debitum ex praecepto, because
all the Exercises are a matter of counsel, and therefore one
who is not indifferent in making his election does not necessarily sin, but it is better to use it. "Circa res creatas omnes":
we are so to join our wills to God and to the foundation (end
of man and of other creatures) that we desire and elect nothing except with regard to God's will. "Absque differentia
...": in electing creatures we should allow no preference for
one above another, insofar as it is left to the liberty of our
free will to do so and is not forbidden. Besides what is positively prescribed and forbidden~· God left a great number of
means indifferent, in order that ·we might choose among them
with merit to ourselves. We should not fail to be indifferent
towards those things which God left indifferent.
After this exposition of terms Nadal proposes a series of
proofs, 42 from Scripture, Tradition, 43 and reason. Of these we
will give here only a summary of the section44 where he shows
how indifference is a conclusion from the first part of the
Foundation.
In the Foundation the Jirst principle is that man was created to praise, reverence, and serve God, and by this means to
save his soul. The second principle is that the other things
·on the face of the earth are created for man, and to help him
in the prosecution of the end for which he was created ..: From
these principles two conclusions are drawn. The first contains
a rule of conduct: whence it follows that man is to make use of
creatures insofar as they help him towards his end; and he
ought to withdraw from them insofar as they hinder him from
it. The second conclusion is a consequence of this rule on the
use and avoidance of creatures: wherefore we must make
ourselves indifferent to all created things . . . desiring and
choosing only that which better leads us to the end for which
we were created. In what is left to our free choice we should
not desire or elect any means according to our own prefer• ence; but we should seek God's will in the matter, and our
selection of means should Be motivated by a loving desire to
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
325
fulfill God's will. We should not be universally (in universali)
indifferent, because works of supererogation and counsel
should always be praised and preferred to their contraries.
The doctrine applies in particular cases, in the election of a
particular means. The deciding factor in the election of means
should not be our own will, but the will of God.
After these positive arguments Nadal takes up45 the difficulties proposed by Pedroche. We shall give a summary of
the replies. In Proverbs 30 :8 Solomon prays God to grant
him wealth and not poverty. Nadal replies that this prayer is
not worthy of a person who desires to live a life of perfection.
The prayer would have been better if it had proceeded from a
spirit of indifference. The other text, 1 Tim. 6 :8, is the same
as praying for one's daily bread. This is consonant with
religious poverty and with the notion of indifference.
The objections from the natural law and from the nature of
irrational creatures Nadal dismisses briefly. Pedroche is
speaking like a natural philosopher and not as a Christian
theologian. Besides the natural law, there is the Divine Law
which directs man to a supernatural end. One of the means
proposed for best attaining this end is indifference. Indifference is beyond nature, it is supernatural, and is in the spirit of
the Gospel. The Law of Christ, grace, the counsels, the desire
to die for Christ, loving one's neighbor-no more than these
is indifference against nature. All of them strengthen the
natural law and subject it to God.
Charity as Motive of the Election
Text. "The first rule is that the love, which urges and
causes me to choose such or such a thing, descend from on
high from the love of God." 46
Censure. It is rash, scandalous, heretical to say that the
election should be made out of divinely infused charity (the
theological virtue). How could those without grace make an
election? Besides, this is to say that an election cannot be
made out of a motive of fear; which doctrine would be contrary to Scripture.41
Reply. 48 Nadal has a splendid discussion on the whole idea
of the election. It is a paraphrase and commentary on the
�326
NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
treatise on the election at the end of the Second Week. We will
be able to note only some significant points.
Usually the Exercises are made with the purpose of electing
a state of life. This is clear from the first annotations, from
the Principle and Foundation, from the logical order of the
meditations, from the rules for the discernment of spirits, and
from the careful treatise on the election. Nonetheless they can
be and often are given to those who are not concerned with
electing a state of life. In electing those things which lead to
one's end, we counsel not merely what suffices, but what is
better and more useful for attaining that end. We instruct
the retreatant not to work backwards, first selecting the means
and then adapting them to the end; rather the end is first
considered, then election is mad~. of the means most conducive
to that end. All this is done with. the guidance and assistance
of the retreat master. 49
There are three times in which a sound and good election
may be made. 50 The first is when God so moves and attracts
the will that the course of action to be followed is unmistakable. The second is when light and knowledge is obtained
by experiencing consolations and desolations, and by experience of the discernment of various spirits. The third is a
time of tranquility, when the soul enjoys the use of its natural
powers freely and quietly. In this third time the exercitant is
not moved by consolation or desolation; he freely exercises his
powers of intellect and will. We can presuppose the influence
of faith, hope, charity, the other virtues and gifts of thfr.!Joly
Ghost. Because before the election there are exercises calculated to arouse sorrow for sin, there is confession and Holy
Communion. There is a searching examination of conscience
and earnest prayer guarded by continual effort to put aside
all distractions. Besides, the election is given to those who
are disposed for the third degree of humility. Against the
background of this preparation the exercitant uses his natural
powers of reasoning to make his election, and it is sure that
grace is not wanting. Surely this exercise is far removed
from the methods of Quietism.
• If the election is not made in the first or second time, there
are two methods of making it'in the third time. 51 Nadal passes
over the first of these two methods and treats of the second,
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
327
which is the one attacked by Pedroche. Pedroche asserts that
it is heretical to say the election should be made from a motive
of charity. ·Nadal replies that, as far as possible, charity
should motivate not only the election but all our actions, and
proceeds to review the place of charity in the supernatural
life. 5 2
The exercitant should strive to arouse in himself an affection of divine love and make his election accordingly. But this
only if it is possible. If it is impossible, he is encouraged to
make the election out of any worthy motive, be it salutary
fear or simply common sense.
Nadal then gives a method of election for the different
classes of people without sanctifying grace. Of course the
best approach is to convert them and give them all the Exercises, so that the election is made as envisioned in the book of
the Exercises. However the Exercises can be adapted to
every class.
lnfidels. 53 If they can be brought to believe in one God and
pray to Him, the Foundation can be accommodated to them.
They can be given the meditations of the First Week (omitting
confession and Communion), and led to the sorrow for sin
which was required of infidels even before Christ's coming.
There can be added considerations from the natural law and
from any Catholic doctrines they may accept. At first nothing
should be proposed on the Trinity or Incarnation;, but the
meditations on the Kingdom and the Two Standards can be
given and referred to the One God. If all these exercises have
been completed, an election, adapted to the individual, is in
order. Our main purpose is to get them to love and beg help
from the one true God.
Heretics. 54 They should find the Foundation and the whole
of the first week acceptable. If the deadline for making the
Easter duty is not near, the first week will be made without
confession and Holy Communion. As with infidels, they should
have a "negative" attitude towards the truths they deny as
heretics, i.e., they should prescind from them for the time
being and concentrate on those truths which are acceptable
to them. Emphasis should be placed on sorrow for sin in the
hope that abandoning the sins, which may be the root of their
�328
NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
errors, they will be better prepared to recognize their intellectual errors and accept the Faith.
If the heretic is not converted after the First Week he should
be given meditations on the life of Christ (always prescinding
from the doctrines wherein he has erred). Simple contemplations and the application of the senses are to be preferred to
subtle intellectual speculations, the main purpose being to
exercise the soul in humility..
If after this he still persists in his error, he may be engaged
in quiet debate. The heretic will set forth his arguments, and
the instructor will propose the Catholic doctrine. Then the
instructor will compare the two positions and explain the
proper conclusion. If this discussion is of no avail, he is to be
·
helped by prayer. 55
Catholics in mortalsin. 56 There is no special problem here.
They make the Exercises in order, are restored to the state
of grace by the sacrament of penance, and then proceed to
the election.
There are some further considerations 57 on the relation between charity and other motives for making the election.
Even for these classes of people without grace, Nadal insists
that charity should be the motive of the election. Actions
motivated by fear, force,~emotion, persuasion, are good but
imperfect, and should be considered as preparation for the
perfect motive of charity. Love of God should be the chief
factor of our whole lives, but this does not deny a place for less
perfect motives. Nor are these other motives neglected..in the
Exercises. Consider the second method of making an election,
the section we are considering. The first rule proposes the
love of God as a motive. If this is not forthcoming, the second
rule uses common sense by instructing the retreatant to follow
the advice he himself would give to an imaginary stranger.
The third and fourth rules use fear as a motive, when the
election is supposed to take place on the deathbed or on
Judgment Day. By employing these less worthy motives we
try to bring the retreatant to the point where love of God is
the dominating consideration.
• Text. "... so that he who chooses, feel first in himself
that the love, which he has more or less for the thing he
chooses, is solely for the sake of his Creator and Lord." 58
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
329
Censure. According to Ignatius men can feel divine love
and the theological virtue of charity. Not only can he, but he
should. Furthermore he can and should feel that all his affections proceed from infused charity. This is against Catholic doctrine. 59
Reply. 60 Nadal proposes to write a complete answer to this
objection, but never gets to it. The five pages he does write
are mainly taken up with dialectical and grammatical arguments. Incidentally he indicates how his answer would have
run. He says that the experience in question is spiritual
consolation of soul which God in His infinite goodness frequently bestows. We can hope for it and seek it, but it is not
necessary. We don't claim to have a sensible knowledge of
infused charity; rather, this spiritual sweetness can be a sign
that our actions truly spring from the love of God.
God Working in Creatures
Text. "The third point is to consider how God works and
labors for me in all created things." 61
•
Censure. Vain is this contemplation in which we think of
God as laboring for us, so that the sight of His efforts and
fatigue should move us to love Him. It is true that God works
in creatures insofar as He makes them work for us, but this
should not lead us to think of God as working Himself. 62
Reply. 63 Scripture speaks of God as working, and attributes to Him anger, sorrow, regret, and so forth. This does
not mean that there is passion or imperfection in God. God
in His goodness speaks to men in language we can understand.
Thus gently but firmly He leads us to contemplate Himself and
His operations. He does not wish to say that His operations
are marred by imperfection; He wants to teach that certain
effects·come from Himself, which effects in creatures are the
result of passion. Words signifying passion, when attributed
to God, indicate His strength of purpose and the decisiveness
of His actions. Salutary fear arises in a man when He thinks
of infinite power enraged against him unless he repents of his
sins. 64
Another consideration is that, when God is said to be angry,
we think of Him as exhibiting a greater exercise of His power.
The work of creation and conservation might be thought of as
�330
NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
proceeding from God's ordinary power; whereas the notions
of anger, regret, labor, mercy, sorrow, etc., are used to indicate a special exercise of power. 05
This language of Scripture is also explained by the Humanity of Christ. Labor and suffering were to be experienced
by God in Christ. So even in the Old Testament, the experiences of Christ were attributed by way of prophecy to God. 66
The thought of the work done by Christ should move us to
love. And this is work done by God. For in Christ the Word
of God suffers thirst, weariness, grief, is scourged, crowned
with thorns, and crucified. These are the labors of the Word
of God. Though divinity suffers nothing, still those sufferings
move men to love, not only because they are the work of the
Human Nature, but because through the Hypostatic Union
they are the work of God. In tne· Incarnation, it is God who
comes down to earth and becomes subject to the limitations
of the flesh.
Even prescinding from the Incarnation, God can be considered as working in creatures. Though in God there cannot
be sorrow, repentance, or labor, yet Scripture attributes them
to God in order to inspire such emotions in men. This is what
Ignatius has in mind: the contemplation of God's working in
creatures shows how God loves us. Realization of this love is
calculated to move men to-repent of their sins, to love and
serve God.
In the Foundation it was said that all other creatures on
earth were created for man. The Contemplation for Obtaihing
Love considers (second point) the fact that the power, goodness, and love of God dwell in creatures. The third point
considers how this divine power dwells in creatures.
Everything that God created is good; each creature has its
specific goodness; and the totality of creatures is good. Compared to the goodness of God, this total perfection is insignificant. Compared to the original sum of goodness in the world,
the total has been lessened by man's sin. And compared to
the degree of goodness destined for man in his final end, all
creation is groaning for the glorification of the just.67 Before
enjoying final beatitude men have not yet reached the degree
of goodness destined for them: Life is a struggle to be freed
of corruption and imperfection. God is ever present in crea-
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
331
tures, graciously assisting man in this struggle: God's power
is exercised not only in creation, in the operations of the
angels, and in the glorious realm of grace, but He cooperates
with the least perfect creatures, with the least noble actions.
He cooperates not only with actions that attain perfection,
but even with actions that are imperfect, whether this imperfection spring from utility or necessity, or is the result of sin.
Thus God preserves in existence and gives His concursus to
the evil actions of the devil and of sinful men.
Of course God suffers no change or imperfection from this
activity, which is, as it were, humble and abject. And to be
moved to love of God, it is not necessary that God actually
demean Himself to abject labor. The idea of St. Ignatius is
that contemplation of such activity on God's part ad modum
laborantis should stir men to greater love of their Creator.
And as was said above, the Incarnation gives added significance to this consideration. God Incarnate actually did labor,
suffer, and die for men.
Apparition to Our Lady
Text. First Christ appeared to the Virgin Mary.68
Censure. 69 This flatly contradicts the Gospel of St. Mark,
who expressly says that Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene.70
Reply. 11 Briefly here is Nadal's explanation of the apparent
contradiction. Our Lord appeared first to His Mother for a
special reason, the traditional argument from propriety. All
the apparitions recorded in the Gospels were to furnish to the
world proof of the Resurrection. The apparition to our Lady
was not intended to be used as an apologetic argument. So
the apparition to Mary Magdalene is rightly called the first,
since it was the first of those intended to bear witness of
Christ's victory over death. The editors of the Monumenta
note that this is the opinion of Knabenbauer, following Suarez,
Salmeron, Maldonatus, etc. 72
There are several more passages criticized by Pedroche, but
they are left unanswered since Nadal didn't finish his projected
work. Some of the sections he did write remain without the
corrections be obviously intended to make. It is perhaps unfortunate that he didn't discuss the proposition, which ac-
�332
NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
cording to the editors of the Monumenta was most strongly
censured. 73 It is the caution of St. Ignatius on speaking about
predestination in the 14th Rule for Thinking with the
Church/4 The text Pedroche quotes is as follows: "etiam si
plane compertum definitumque esset salutem nemini contingere, nisi praedestinato." 75 Pedroche says this implies that
it is possible for the non-predestined to be saved. 76 The editors
of the Monumenta dismiss the difficulty easily: the authentic
meaning is to be had from the Spanish autograph which means,
"etiam si compertum definitumque sit." 11
Some of the ideas we have recorded may not seem to be of
great value today since many of them have become familiar
through subsequent studies of the Exercises. But Nadal's
stature in the early history of the Society gives prestige to
this document and makes it worthy of careful consideration.
It is interesting to compare the esteem in which the Exercises
are held today with their former position when such objections
could seriously be urged. Many of Nadal's other writings on
the spiritual life are preserved in the four volumes of the
Monumenta devoted to him, and any time given to them will
be of value in understanding Ignatian spirituality.
NOTES
Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 64950. P. Bouvier, S.J., £'Interpretation authentique de la meditation fondamentale dans les Exercises de saint Ignace. (Bourges; Tardy, 1922),
pp. 15-16 and note 1.
~- -·
2 Monumenta Historica
Societatis Jesu, Historia Societatis Jesu,
Chronicon Polanci, III, 335-38. This is the Chronicon of Polanco, volume
III, and is hereafter referred to as Chron. Pol. III. See note 4.
3 Bouvier, op. cit. p. 16.
M. Nicolau, S.J., Jeronimo Nadal, S.J., Sus
obras y doctrinas espirituales (Madrid, 1949), pp. 79-80.
4 Censura Exercitiorum S. Ignatii a P. Thoma de Pedroche, O.S. Dom.,
Confecta et Archiepiscopo Toletano Oblata anno 1553. Chron. Pol. III,
501-24.
6 Monumenta Historica Societatis Jesu, Epistolae P. Hieronymi Nadal,
IV, 820-73 (hereafter referred to as Epist. Nadal IV); and Chron. Pol.·
III, 525-73. The Apology of Nadal is incomplete (see Epist. Nadal IV,
820), and is published in two parts.in the Monumenta. Anyone wishing
to read the Apology in its logical order should read as follows:
Epist. Nadal IV, 820-23.
Epist. Nadal IV, 823-26.
1
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
333
Chron. Pol. III, 527-73.
Epist. Nadal IV, 826-73.
6 Chron. Pol. III, 503.
7 Ibid., 504; Directorium in Exercitia Spiritualia S.P.N. Ignatii, Prooemium, 5§?2.
8 Chron. Pol. III, 504.
9 Ibid., 506, 533.
1o Epist. Nadal IV, 823-24; Chron. Pol. III, 528-30, 533-39.
11 Chron. Pol. III, 505.
12 Loc. cit.
1s Ibid., 531.
u Chron. Pol. Ill, 507. This is from the 4th Annotation, Exercises 5§?4.
15 Chron. Pol. III, 507.
16 Ibid., 539-49.
11Ibid., 540. This is from the 1st Annotation, Exercises 5§?1.
18 Chron. Pol. III, 540. "Quid igitur quaerimus per has meditationes
nisi ut ne statum vitae temere suscipiamus? Investigamus . . . qua via
nobis ingrediendum sit ut ad perfectionem contendamus, ac semper
quoad vita haec sit superstes, contendamus .•."
19 Ibid., 543-44.
20l\latt. 4:17.
21 Chron. Pol. III, 544.
22 Ibid., 54 7-48.
23 Ibid., 507. This is from the 11th Annotation, Exercises 5§?11.
24 Chron. Pol. III, 507.
25 Ibid., 550-58.
26 Ibid., 555. "At nos qui fructum orationis, meditationis, contemplationis, in voluntate ejusdemque operationibuR constituimus, neque qui
plura intelligit eum magis profecisse ex meditatione censemus, sed qui
sensum maiorem spiritus ac cordis retulit, eum sapienter versatum in
oratione intelligimus."
21 Ibid., 555-56.
2s Ibid., 508. This is from the 12th Annotation, Exercises 5§?12.
29 Chron. Pol. III, 508.
3o Ibid., 559-62.
31 Loc. cit.
32 Ibid., 509. This is Annotation 15, Exercises 5§?15.
83 Chron. Pol III, 509.
34 Ibid., 563-69.
85 "Attinent exercitia fere ad statum vitae eligendum." Ibid., 564.
86 Ibid., 510. This and the two following sentences are from the Principle and Foundation. They are treated separately by Pedroche on
pages 510, 513, 514.
s1 Prov. 30:8.
88 1 Tim. 6:8.
�NADAL ON THE EXERCISES
334
Ecclesiasticus 41:15; Prov. 22:1; Ecclesiastes 7:2.
Chron. Pol. III, 572-73; Epist. Nadal IV, 826-40. On indifference
and the whole of the Foundation one might profitably consult Bouvier,
39
4o
op.
cit.
Nicolau, op. cit., p. 80.
Epist. Nadal IV, 827-37.
43 Ibid., 833.
Actually Nadal never wrote the argument "ex sacris
doctoribus" in the folio pages he left blank for this purpose.
H Ibid., 827-28.
43 Ibid., 837-40.
46 Chron. Pol. III, 515.
This is the first rule in the Second Method of
Making a good and sound election. Exercises ~184.
47 Chron. Pol. III, 515.
4s Epist. Nadal IV, 840-59.
49 Ibid., 840-842.
50 Ibid., 844.
See the Second Week, The Election, ~175-78.
n Epist. Nadal IV, 846. Exercises .$178.
52 Epist. Nadal IV, 846-47.
..
5a Ibid., 849.
u Ibid., 850.
3 ~ "Oratione juvandus est."
I suppose Nadal means prayer by the
retreatant and by the retreat master.
56 Ibid., 850-51.
57 Ibid., 851-53.
58 Chron. Pol. III, 516.
Exercises ~184.
59 Chron. Pol. III, 516. Also pp. 522-23.
6o Epist. Nadal IV, 855-59.
6 1 Chron. Pol. III, 518. Exercises ~236. This is from the third point
of the Contemplation for obtaining love.
62 Chron. Pol. III, 518-19.
6a Epist. Nadal IV, 859-70.
64 Ibid., 860-61.
63 Ibid., 861.
66 Loc. cit.
67 Rom. 8:22.
Gs Chron. Pol. III, 519. Exercises ~299.
69 Chron. Pol. III, 519-20.
ro Mark 16:9.
n Epist. Nadal IV, 870-73.
12 Ibid., 872, note 2.
73 Chron. Pol. III, 336.
u Exercises ~367.
73
This wording is found in some older editions of the Exercises.
Chron. Pol. III, 336, note 2.
·ra Ibid., 523.
rr Ibid., 336.
41
42
--
�HISTORICAL NOTES
THE HURON SODALITY OF 1653
The first Sodality of the Blessed Virgin, in what is now
Canada and the United States, was that established three hundred years ago among the Huron Indians on the Island of
Orleans, near Quebec. This Congregation was understood to
be, and was fully described as an authentic Sodality by its
founder, P. Pierre Chaumonot, by the Superior of the Mission
of New France, P. Francois Le Mercier, and by the other missioners at Quebec who had been Sodalists in Old France. Affiliation with the Prima Primaria was impossible under the
circumstances and conditions. But this Huron Sodality incorporated in its aims and procedure the Rules of the Sodality
as then organized in France. 1
This Huron "Congregation of Our Lady," in its inception
and in its short history, is fully described by P. Chaumonot
and P. Le Mercier in the Relations of 1653-54 under the chapter heading: "De la Premiere Congregation de Nostre Dame
parmi les Sauvages." Frequent references to it and the
Sodalists are made in the subsequent Relations. In like manner P. Du Creux, who often supplements the Relations with information gleaned from the returned missioners, speaks of
this Congregation as "the Sodality of Holy Mother which was
established for the first time, this year, in the Island of Orleans." These statements would negative the assertion, sometimes made, that there existed a Sodality of some sort during
the latter 1640's in the Huron homeland. 2
When one considers the strength and the popularity of the
Sodality in the Jesuit colleges, churches, and Professed Houses
in France, it seems rather strange that the Jesuits at Quebec
had not organized the pious habitants and officials in a Sodality prior to 1653. Yet the first reference to such a Congregation is that contained in the Jesuit Journal for 1657:
"On February 14, Ash Wednesday, P. Poncet held, in his room,
the first meeting of the Congregation of Our Lady. Twelve
were present." This would confirm the statement made above,
that the first and pioneer Sodality in North America was that
of the Huron Indians. 8
�336
HISTORICAL NOTES
The founder of the Sodality among the Hurons was P.
Pierre Joseph-Marie Chaumonot, S.J., who, as will be told
later, came down to Quebec with the Huron refugees in 1650
and established them on the Island of Orleans the following
year. He had as his assistant, P. Leonard Garreau, who also
accompanied the Huron Christians in their flight from their
native country. It was their hope, as it was that of P. Le
Jenne, as far back as 1632, that a Christian community of natives could be modelled on the famed Reductions of Paraguay.
The conditions for such an experiment seemed to be ideal in
1651 on the Island of Orleans.~
The members of the Sodality were the Hurons who had survived the ruin of their nation and had migrated to Quebec with
the certainty that there among the French they would find
sustenance against famine, escape from the epidemics, and
security and protection against "their Iroquois conquerors.
Most of them belonged to the prominent and most devout
Huron families. They were, likewise, the most loyal and faithful to the Blackrobe missioners. For more than ten years
they had been stricken down by blow after blow and had suffered everything except death. They had embraced the Faith
sincerely and were not only docile in their spirit, but avid to
gain heaven after the imminent death that threatened them.
Within the next five years death would claim many of them,
through disease and through torture in the Iroquois fires.
Almost all of those who escaped death, would be merged in the
cabins of their Iroquois masters.
I. The Hurons Come To Quebec
The earthly doom of the Huron race, under the Providence
of God, seems to have begun with the advent of the missioners
among them and seems to have been completed with their full
acceptance of the Faith. The progressive deterioration of
this once dominant and proud people was caused by a succession of epidemics and a weakening of morale in war-pursuits.
Through all of these years of disaster the converts to Catholicism grew in number and influence. By 1649 the missioners
could claim that the Hurons were a Catholic people, even
th.ough a segment remained pagan.
In March of that year after the martyrdoms of Jean de
�HISTORICAL NOTES
337
Brebeuf and Gabriel Lalemant, and through the following
summer, the Huron homeland was so completely devastated
that not a Huron village remained and not a Huron dared to
tread the ancestral trails. The population had been dwindling through a decade, so that, in this fateful year, it may be
conjectured that there were only about ten thousand who had
escaped death and remained in their own country. G
By the Autumn of 1649 the survivors had dispersed in all
directions. Some took refuge with the Neutrals, Petuns, and
Eries, only to find death and ruin when these nations were
massacred by the Iroquois. Other large family groups took
canoe to the north of Lake Huron and attempted settlements
about Michilimackinac. Many sought safety in the long journey to the south and joined themselves with the Andastes, or
Susquehannocks, in what is now Pennsylvania. Still others
penetrated to the west and, uniting with the fugitives of their
own racial stock, came to be known as the Wyandots. 6
In utter desolation and profound despair P. Paul Ragueneau
decided to abandon the mission center of Sainte-Marie in June,
1649 and to build a new Sainte-Marie on the Island of St.
Joseph, separated from the mainland by a narrow channel.
Here, frenetically, he hoped to salvage the Christian Hurons
and to establish a rallying place for those who had fled to the
four points of the compass. Before the winter the French had
erected a stone fort on the island and named it Sainte-Marie II.
About three hundred families, from the three major Huron
nations and from the adopted clans and villages, joined the
Blackrobes and built their longhouses near the French fort.T
The twelve months that followed were filled with incredible
horror. The French and the Hurons lived in perpetual dread
of further Iroquois incursions. Famine gripped them, and
they lived on acorns and roots, though the Blackrobes shared
what little food they had. Influenza and other diseases spread
rapidly, especially among the women and children who had
been starving for months. It may be surmised that the deaths
numbered well over six or seven hundred. Through this winter of hopelessness, desolation, and death, however, these
Huron Catholics held tenaciously to their Faith in God and
put their full trust in the Blackrobes and their French aides. 8
In the late Spring of 1650 P. Ragueneau realized, with a
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HISTORICAL NOTES
heart that was breaking, that Sainte-Marie II on St. Joseph's
Island could not be maintained and that the Huron Mission
must be abandoned. Some Huron elders and chiefs petitioned
him to lead the remnants of their people down to the protection
of the French at Quebec. The exodus from the Island of Saint
Joseph was executed in dread and danger on June 10, 1650.
Sixty Frenchman, including thirteen priests, four laybrothers,
the donnes and workmen, bade farewell forever to the land
sanctified by the blood of the martyrs and shrouded the glorious hopes of planting the Cross of Christ in the countless
villages of the unknown nations of the West. 9
The six to seven hundred Hurons, "starved skeletons," according to P. Ragueneau, who had survived the winter, were
of divided opinion. About three hundred, in family groups,
were determined to undertake .. the nine hundred mile water
journey down the Ottawa and St. Lawrence to seek a haven in
Quebec rather than to face the hazards of the blood-thirsty
Iroquois. About the same number resolved to remain on the
Island of St. Joseph and, as long as possible, defy the Iroquois
in the French fort. If they found this impossible, they promised, under the leadership of Stephen Annaotaha, the protector of P. De Brebeuf, to migrate to Quebec. 10
After fifty days of labor and fear down the rapids of the
Ottawa, the Huron flotilla beached the canoes at Quebec on
July 28, 1650. The three hundred and more Hurons, though
received with Christ-like charity, created a severe economic as
well as sociological problem. Quebec at that time counted a
permanent population of not more than four hundred h1ibitants
and officials, struggling to support themselves by arduous
labor in their cleared fields, receiving insufficient aid from
France, and impoverished by the loss of the fur trade, due to
the Iroquois scourge.11
The Hurons set up their camp on the hillside below the
Hotel-Dieu. The Hospital Sisters, the Ursulines and those of
the colonists who were able, gave daily rations of food to
about one hundred Hurons. The Jesuits, whose resources that
year were comparatively slender, had to find means for feeding
the other two hundred during the entire winter. The mouths
·increased during the autumn and winter by new groups who
wandered down to Quebec.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
339
To end this intolerable situation for the Hurons as well as
for the French, P. Ragueneau, as the acting superior, and P.
Chaumonot, as the Huron pastor, believed that they had found
a perfect solution. They contracted for the sale, or more
properly, a permanent lease of a tract of land on the Island
of Orleans. Here they planned to establish a self-supporting
Huron colony. The site, still called l'anse du Fort, was on the
south-western tip of the Island, five or six miles below Quebec
and in clear vision from the Rock. Part of the land was already cleared and ready for sowing corn. The cove opened
into the St. Lawrence where there was fishing; and the back
country, as well as the neighboring river bank, offered a great
expanse of forests for hunting. The place, it was thought,
could be easily defended by the French from Iroquois ravages.
The contract was signed on March 19, 1651, and on March
29 P. Chaumonot with two donnes, Eustache Lambert and Le
Pierre, took possession. By April 18 they had staked out
thirty holdings of the cleared fields, the largest being only
half an arpent, the remainder ranging from twenty to forty
perches. By May the squaws and girls were busily planting
their corn and the men were erecting their longhouses according to the traditional style. The French donnes and workmen were engaged in building a French house for the priests
and their helpers. 12
Wrote P. Chaumonot:
When we arrived in Quebec, these poor strangers were entrusted
to my care, and I was responsible for them all one winter. In the
Spring (1651) I took them over to the Island of Orleans, a league
and a half below Quebec, to some land which we had. There we
made them fell trees and till the fields, and the maize that they
sowed flourished marvellously. Apart from the French, whom we
employed and paid for this work, we engaged also these savages,
that they might help themselves in the following way.
They had no means of maintenance and every day we used to give
them, as charity, bread and sagamite, as they call it, which is soup
made with peas, rice, or maize, and seasoned with meat or fish.
They received these rations according to the amount of work they
did. At first some of them grumbled, thinking that we were taking
advantage of their toil. But when they saw that, after having
fed and clothed them at our expense ever since their arrival in
Quebec, we did not reserve to ourselves one inch of the land newly
cleared at our expense, but that, on the contrary, we apportioned it
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HISTORICAL NOTES
equally among all their families, they heaped blessings on our
heads.13
In his Relation, dated September 21, 1654, P. Le Mercier
relates:
When we left the Hurons in the year 1650, after the country had
been laid waste by the cruelty of the Iroquois, our design was to
take away with us the Christian families that could accompany us,
and thus to save at least some remnants of a people that God had
called to the Faith and who, one day, should serve as seed for restoring Christianity to all these regions ••• Those who followed us found
with us salvation of soul and body. In order to give them a fixed
abode-since the Hurons are not a nomadic nation-they were
assigned a section of the Island of Orleans, separated from the
French and in sight of Quebec, about two leagues below it. We
had to feed them, both adults and children, for the first two years, and
to build them a church and a fort to protect them against the
invasion of the Iroquois, the fear. of whom followed them everywhere. It was necessary to furnish them with kettles and hatchets,
and even to provide clothing for the greater number of the families;
and we have been obliged to continue this expenditure for a great
many poor, sick and disabled persons. In short, we are their
fathers, mothers, and all.H
During 1651 other bands of Hurons who had been wandering from place to place came down to the St. Lawrence and
settled, some at Three Rivers and the majority on the Island
of Orleans. The largest of these caravans was that which had
remained on St. Joseph's fsland, had removed up the Bay to
Manitoulin Island, and finally, under Annaotaha, resolved to
put themselves under French protection. It may be estimated
that these additional souls numbered about six hundred.: All
of these, also, had to be fed, clothed, equipped and settied on
Orleans.
In his Relation, dated October 4, 1652, P. Ragueneau records:
We have had a redoubt, or kind of fort, built to defend them
against the Iroquois; it is about the same size as the one that was
among the Hurons at the place called Ahouendae. We have also
had a very neat chapel erected, and a little house for our own
lodging. Our good neophytes' cabins are very near us, under the
shelter of the Fort.1~
During the next few years the Huron Colony was prosperous, well-behaved, and as happy as it could be under the Iroquois threat. These implacable demons had pursued the Huron
�HISTORICAL NOTES
341
fugitives through all the western areas in which they sought
haven. They were now inflexibly determined, by war, deceit,
and every form of perfidy, to subdue the Hurons who clustered about Montreal and Three Rivers, and who settled on
Orleans. Their ultimate aim was to force the Hurons to unite
with them as "one people of a single cabin," or to exterminate
them. Another enemy that had plagued the Hurons ever since
the arrival of the French among them was that of disease and
pestilence. During the first few years on Orleans influenza,
or pleurisy, as it was called, was widespread, and caused many
to die, despite the sacrificial care of the Nuns at the HOtelDieu.16
The Faith of the Hurons deepened and their piety expanded
marvellously under the fatherly care and tutelage of P. Chaumonot and P. Garreau. According toP. Le Mercier: "Devotion and faith reign in that little redoubt. In addition to the
public prayers and daily Mass in the chapel, with the reception
of Communion on Sundays and Feast Days, prayers were recited in the cabins, morning and evening." 11
It cannot be assumed, as the Relations seem to imply, that
this was a colony of saints. For the most part it is true the
ancient superstitions were not practiced openly, and dreams
were no longer the ruling destiny of their existence. But the
transplanted savages brought with them not only the filthy
mode of life to which they were accustomed in their former
villages, but also their savage natures, which were still prone
to sexual promiscuity, and were ingrained with deceit, thievery, and the spirit of vengeance. However, it must be understood that these people had been in close contact with the
French culture for only a little more than twenty years, and
that the renunciation of paganism and the conversion to Catholicism, of even the oldest few, did not date back more than
a decade and a half.
II. The Establishment of The Sodality
In his Relation of 1653-54 P. Le Mercier describes the Sodality:
What has most promoted the spirit of fervor in this Huron Colony
is the devotion they have adopted during the past year to honor
the Virgin. Our Fathers, who have charge of the Colony, in order
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HISTORICAL NOTES
to inspire its members with greater zeal, have formed a Congregation, to which they admit only those men and women who lead
exemplary lives and who, by their virtue, render themselves worthy
of this grace.
At first the Congregation consisted of only ten or twelve persons,
whose fervor was redoubled when they were chosen in preference
to the others, and were expected to support the dignity of the
exalted title, "Servant of the Virgin!"ls
The prefect and his assistants were chosen by the members,
"wisely chosen," adds P. Le Mercier, for they were men of rare
and exceptional virtue, filled with holy zeal. The membership
was rigorously selective and limited, for the founder, P.
Chaumonot, knew and adhered to the Rules of the Sodality, as
followed in France. This selectivity, of course, had its immediate repercussions. Many other.wise pious souls complained
that they were not admitted, and demanded of P. Chaumonot
the reason for their exclusion. He told them the reasons very
frankly. To one he pointed out that he was negligent in attending the public prayers. To another he stated that he did
not take sufficient care in nourishing the spirit of God in his
family. To a woman he said that she was too quick-tempered;
and to another, that she was a scandal-monger. They accepted
the strictures humbly and endeavored to remedy their defects
and make themselves worthy_of being "Servants of the Virgin."
According to the Relation, "from month to month, our Fathers
are obliged to receive many of those who deserve it. They
[the Hurons] accept their membership with inconceivable delight, since they fondly hope that, being worthy children of
the Virgin, they will be sure of salvation."19
•
The regular meetings of the Sodality were held on Sunday
and Feast Days. At break of day the chapel bell was sounded
to call the members of the Sodality, "the elite of the Faithful,"
to their early morning devotions. At this assembly, which
lasted about an hour, P. Chaumonot relates: "Instead of the
Office of the Blessed Virgin, which they do not know how to
recite, they chant their Beads in two choruses-the men on one
side and the women on the other, the latter being the more
numerous." Before beginning the recitation of the Rosary,
either P. Chaumonot, or the Prefect, Chiakha Oachonk, or the
Assistant Prefects, Louis Atharatou and Chaose Sondeaskon,
reminded the Sodalists that they were under eyes of Marie
�HISTORICAL NOTES
343
(Warie) . They then sang the prayers of the first decade in
a Huron rhythm, lustily. Following the recitation the leader
delivered an exhortation, which was followed by a period of
silence. Then they began the second decade, followed by another sermon and silence. And thus through the five decades.
A few examples of the nature of these discourses are given
by P. Chaumonot. The leader would declare that the true
worship of the Virgin consisted in hating sin, and that this
must be the distinguishing mark of a child of Mary. At another time he would orate:
My brothers, it is when we are tempted that the Blessed Virgin
discovers those who really love her and pay her respect. When
tempted, let us say to Warie: "Holy Virgin, I love your Son Jesus
more than this pleasure which is tempting me." If you continue to
be tempted repeat the same words, and remember this: "Whoever
loves Jesus cannot love sin."
Before the end the Huron preacher would counsel them as
to how pleased the Virgin would be if she saw that they did
not forget her when they left the chapel. He exhorted the
Sodalists that, when they went out they were "to say repeatedly
from the bottom of your hearts: 'Holy Virgin, I wish to serve
you.' "2o
At a later hour on Sunday morning the Sodalists attended
the public Mass for all the adults at which many of them received Communion. At this Mass the women, who had very
beautiful voices, as the missioners affirmed, chanted in Huron
the Gloria, the Creed, the Pater Noster, etc. A Mass for the
children was celebrated later in the morning and was followed by instructions and catechism lessons, with small presents for those who excelled.
About noon the Sodalists once more assembled in the chapel
to hear a sermon and to recite the Rosary, after each decade
chanting a Huron hymn. The Sodalist's Sunday closed about
dusk when all the members gathered again for the recitation
of the Litany of Jesus or Our Lady, for the singing of hymns,
and for Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. 21
After describing the meeting of the Sodality, P. Du Creux,
in his History of Canada, comments:
All this is very artless, but it has a greater effect upon the
hearts of the faithful than the stately eloquence so much sought by
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HISTORICAL NOTES
the Sodalities in Europe. In their simplicity the Hurons are close
to Him whose conversation is with the simple. All they desire is
to be holy and without spot. In this they are so favored by the
Lord that as soon as they become enrolled in the Sodality, whether
they be maids or matrons, evil men abandon all hope of leading them
astray. 22
Several instances of the strength and purity of the women
Sodalists are instanced by P. Chaumonot and included in the
Relation written by P. Le Mercier. When a dissolute man,
attracted by a girl, was told, "She is a Daughter of Mary," he
knew he could not gain her. When improper advances were
made, a girl would say: "I am a Daughter of the Blessed
Virgin." A Sodalist, roused to anger very justly, was calmed
when they reminded her: "A Daughter of Mary does not take
revenge." The favor most frequently asked by the Sodalists
who, with all the Hurons, lived llnder the unmoving cloud of
death, was that the Blessed Virgin would ensure them the
grace of a blessed death and an eternity in Heaven. 23
The first Sodalist to die, from the so-called pleurisy, was a
woman about thirty years of age, Madeleine Anderosa. Her
only delight was in reciting the Rosary and meditating about
God. If P. Chaumonot or P. Garreau inquired as to how she
felt, she would say: "My brother, do not trouble yourself about
this feeble body which will decay. Speak to me about God;
that alone gives me comfort." Shortly before her death, she
cried out, as if in ecstasy: "My good Jesus! Oh, how beautiful
You are. You have pity on me! You take me to Heaven, for
I am going to die."u
Another Sodalist to die of the deadly influenza was tlie famous Armand Jean Andehoua. He was one of the pioneer
seminarists who attended the school for Huron boys conducted
by the Martyr, P. Antoine Daniel. At the age of eighteen he
was baptized at Quebec in 1638. He became influential in the
councils, even though a young man, and with his wife, Felicite,
and his children, migrated to Quebec and· settled on the Island
of Orleans. Of him, P. Chaumonot wrote:
For seventeen years he had never been untrue to his baptismal
promises. After the establishment of the Congregation, he had even
redoubled his fervor. Every day he heard two Masses, however
• severe the midwinter cold might be. He heard them with his hands
clasped, kneeling on his bare knees, with a respectful devotion that
had nothing of the savage in it.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
345
When taken sick, he asked to be received in the Hotel-Dieu,
"in order to be with the 'Holy Maidens'-for thus the Hurons
designate the Nuns." Shortly before his death at the age of
thirty-six, he exclaimed: "I have no regret in departing from
this life. I have no fear of death, because Jesus will have pity
upon me." 25
When the "violent fevers" attacked the villagers on Orleans,
"the leading members of the Sodality visited and consoled
the sick,'' P. Chaumonot related, "and their visits were
more agreeable to them [the sick] than were my own visits.
Our members of the Congregation, in their own sickness,
manifested the same piety that they recommended in others."
In the pagan days the medicine-man and his followers ranted
and roared about the sick. In this Catholic Colony the choir
of women chanted the sacred hymns for the comfort of the
afflicted.
One of the Sodalists named Andrew was wounded in the
leg by a musket-ball at the time of the Iroquois attack in May.
He contracted tuberculosis and, "ripe for Paradise,'' died on
December 31, 1656. "Great was the honor accorded him by
the whole village and especially by the Congregation," records
the Relation. Groups of eight Sodalists kept constant vigils
of prayer by his body, and "the leading members of the Congregation brought to his cabin a gift of a moose-skin, beautifully painted, as a burial robe; they also supplied the food for
a burial feast to all who were invited." 26
The pioneer missioner, P. LeJeune, then in France, includes
in the Relation of 1656-57, a letter he received from one of
the missioners, probably P. Chaumonot.
Our savages are doing well [the letter states]. It seems to me
that they manifest much more Faith and piety than usual, especially
those who belong to the Congregation, who number eighty--probati
omnes testimonio fidei et pietatis. They observed the time of Advent
with special fervor; each one endeavored to make more solid progress
in virtue. Many, who considered one Mass too short to satisfy
their devotion, heard two Masses every day. Some came to pay
homage to the Blessed Sacrament in the morning, before the hour
of prayer; others came regularly at noon. Neither the cold nor
the bad weather could dampen their fervor.2r
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HISTORICAL NOTES
III. The Huron Sodalists Address the Pads Sodalists
For many years the Sodality of Our Lady attached to the
Professed House of the Society of Jesus in Paris had, as one
of its charitable objectives, the support of the Huron Mission.
This help the Sodalists intensified when they learned of the
catastrophe which had fallen upon the Hurons in 1649-50.
At this time P. Charles Lalemant, the founder and first superior of the Mission of New France and later its procurator,
was the superior of the Paris Professed House and, undoubtedly, the director of the Sodality. This included in its membership some of the highest nobles of France and personages
most prominent in Paris, many of them graduates of the renowned Clermont College of Paris, and that of La Fleche,
where reposed the heart of Henrf IV. Their contribution of
funds and goods must have been extraordinarily generous in
1652-53 and must have stirred the deepest gratitude in the
hearts of P. Chaumonot and P. Le Mercier, who still had the
problem of supporting the Hurons. 28
The Hurons themselves, well aware of the generous charity
of their benefactors, wished to express their gratitude and to
fulfill their immemorial protocol of exchanging present for
present. The Sodality leaders, who were also the civil chiefs,
held Council during the summer of 1654 as to the nature and
the form of the acknowledgement to the Paris Sodalists. They
voted to send a "wampum" collar, such as they employed in
their ritual of treaty-making and in their messages of goodwill to other nations. The beads for the collar, or broad·belt,
were to be taken from the treasury of the Sodality. The design for the collar and its size were determined by the Prefect
and his Assistants, the execution of it was left to the women. 29
The treasury of the Sodality was composed of the porcelain
beads contributed by the Sodalists who had the custom of
setting aside one bead for each Rosary they recited during the
week. Each Sunday the beads were applied to the relief of
the poor and needy. It would appear, from a statement by
P. Le Mercier, that that summer the treasury was rich. He
relates:
Some Huron women joined in a contest as to who paid the greatest
honor to the Blessed Virgin, both by exemplary living and by addressing prayers to her, especially by reciting the Rosary . . . In
�HISTORICAL NOTES
347
order that the frequency with which they recited it might be to
their good Mother's honor, they put aside each time one of their
pearls or diamonds-these are their porcelain beads .•. The Father
[Chaumonot] has noted down on paper that these pearls amounted
to five thousand, counting from the day of the Assumption to the
fifteenth of October. I am sure that not all those who are enrolled
in the Confraternity of the Rosary [in France] recite their chaplets
as often as do these good neophytes.so
An ordinary collar or belt usually consisted of twelve hundred beads. For very special purposes it might be double that
number. In this case, with the fruits of the contest, the collar
may have been an enormous one of five thousand beads. The
background, or field, was white. Instead of the customary
geometrical pattern of dark beads, this collar carried the
words Ave Maria Gratia Plena. According to the intention of
the Huron Sodalists, it was to be a votive offering that the
Paris Sodalists would lay before the statue of Our Lady, their
patroness.
With their votive collar they sent a dedicatory prayer to the
Virgin, composed by themselves and written in Huron by P.
Chaumonot on a sheet of birch bark. In Huron the prayer
begins:
Tsendaon de Aronhiae esendagerati annonhias koui essannontenk ... Translated into English, it supplicates the Blessed
Virgin as follows:
Accept, Lady of Heaven, this gift offered to you by the chosen
ones of your Huron servants. It is a collar full of mysteries, composed of our most precious gems. It has a heart and a voice, and
brings you a greeting like unto the greeting of the Angel Gouriel
[Gabriel] in the days of old. We have nothing of greater value,
nothing dearer to our hearts to offer you so that, by your help, we
may gain heaven. 31
In order to explain the votive offering and prayer, and to
express their personal compliments to their benefactors of the
Paris Sodality, they asked Echon (P. Chaumonot) to "paint"
their words. Their letter is, in reality, a speech or address
made by the prefect, Oachonk, or the eloquent Taieron. P.
Chaumonot, who was a genius in Indian languages, transcribed
the letter, quite fittingly, on the Indian paper, thin lamina of
birch bark. In the Relation he translates into French what
he calls the "tenor" of the letter.
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HISTORICAL NOTES
The Huron original begins:
Ennnhiek ourochen ata atiaou endeontera aawenhon aiawachienda ..••
The conclusion, with the signatures of the officers, is as
follows:
Awatakhen te etsinnonronk -tvannionek awa Chiakha
Oachonk -tvarue harihwa sennik Louis Atharatou, annen Chaose
Sondeaskon.
The English translation reads:
My brothers, we offer you our respect honestly and without
artifice. It was only a year ago that our hearts were opened. Then,
for the first time, it occurred to us to venerate Mary, the Mother
of Jesus. At that very time we learned that there were bands
of pious men everywhere in the world ready to say in their hearts
to her: "Mother of Jesus, thou seest my heart, thou seest I do not
lie when I say, Mary, I desire to honor you."
We have been told that Paris is a very fine village, and that you,
who are very much honored among men, in turn, take special glory
in the veneration of Mary. You have gone before us; we wish to
follow you. The Mother of Jesus who often turns her eyes on the
poor, has impelled you not to neglect the needy; and so, for many
years you have sent us costly gifts.
We have met together and we have said: "What shall we, in turn,
send to these mighty Servants of the Virgin? They do not need
our trifles; they are rich. -We shall send them a collar of wampum,
in which are written the first three [sic] words of the greeting sent
from Heaven by the angels to the Virgin." The number of beads
in the collar show how many times we have recited the Rosary in
the space of two moons. Moreover, each black bead has th~'value
of two white beads.
~ -·
Present this belt to her and say that we have resolved to venerate
her. We should like to honor her as much as you do. But we are
not clever enough to serve her in the same way. We shall honor
her more when the Mother prays to her Son to give us the hearts
and minds to worship her. If this comes to pass, we know that it
will please you as much as it pleases us, because you venerate her
more than we could.
A laborer rejoices when he sees all the ears of corn ripening
in his field. In time of harvest he is sad if some ears do not ripen.
The Virgin Mother of God regards you as grain growing ripe in
her fields for the joys of heaven. She looks upon us as ears not
yet ripe; as yet, we do not have sense, and we have only begun to
venerate her; for this she is sad. You who love her, beg Jesus to
make all the grain in the Virgin's field to grow ripe soon, and to
ripen as she wishes.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
349
When you recite the Rosary, remember us. We, in turn, will
remember you. We are brothers, since the Mother of Jesus is our
Mother as well as your Mother. She loves us, and we wish to
love her.
We have asked Echon to write to you in our name. For, though
we can speak, we do not know how to put down on paper what we
think.
James Oachonk, Prefect of the Sodality, Louis Taieron and Joseph
Sondouskon, Assistants, present their respects and sincere greetings.
The thin sheet of birch bark was folded in the form of an
envelope, and on the reverse side was addressed:
To Messieurs, the Members of the Congregation of Our Lady in
the Professed House of the Society of Jesus in Paris.
From the Christian Hurons of the Congregation of Sainte-Marie,
on the Island of Orleans, near Quebec, in New France.sz
The porcelain collar and the documents were included in the
bundle of mail sent by P. Le Mercier in the ships that sailed
for France in October. It was, presumably, received by P.
Charles Lalemant and, though no record is extant, it may be
deduced from other evidence that the Paris Sodalists were
deeply touched by the Huron gift and duly presented the
votive offering to Our Lady. The prayer and the letter were
published in Huron and French by the famous printer of the
day, Sebastien Cramoisy, in the Relation of 1653-54, about
February, 1655 and, according to an unfriendly critiC, "were
circulated through all France and drew tears of devotion from
all."
To complete the record, it seems well, but with regrets, to
quote the bitter strictures by the Recollect, P. Christian Le
Clercq, on the Jesuit Relations as a whole and, in particular,
on the Huron Sodality of Our Lady. LeClercq's history, published in 1691, had, as its express purpose, to exalt the labors
of the Recollects, the first missioners to New France, and to
destroy the credit and the prestige of their Jesuit successors.
In a sardonic attack on the Relations, with special reference
to that of 1646, which the English translator, John Gilmary
Shea, characterizes as a "burlesque," Pere Christian rants:
It is wonderful to learn of .•. the faith of the Hurons, so ardent
that it could not be contained in one village; they pass to neighboring nations. We see among them a kind of martyrdom, evangelical
preachers, fanciful prophets who announced divine vengeance,
�350
HISTORICAL NOTES
fathers who resist children, husbands converted at the entreaties of
their wives. We hear of some who roll in the snow and of others
who make a bed of live coals and firebrands in order to extinguish
concupiscence. They receive extraordinary impressions of the spirit
of God, in view of His intimate presence, in prayer, communion,
and the fervent exercise of virtue. They believe without difficulty
the most sublime mysteries of religion. They support the truth in
dogmatical disputes with their still heathen countrymen. So many
favors of a visible, miraculous Providence, of tangible blessings, we
find expressed in all these Relations! Visions, revelations, prodigies
are not exempted.
Continuing this diatribe, P. Christian ridicules the Huron
Sodality on the Island of Orleans:
All France has admired and accepted with singular edification
the wonderful operations of grace on the Huron Church in the
Island of Orleans; the fervor, regularity, uniform assiduity of the
Indians; how the Sodality of the .. Reverend Jesuit Fathers was in
such great favor among them that, in 1654, they had already eighty
Sodalists. The Letter of Association of this Indian Sodality, written to the Sodality of the Professed House at Paris, was circulated
through all France and drew tears of devotion from an.aa
A very restrained answer to P. Christian was given by P.
Francis X. Charlevoix, S.J., who first arrived in New France
about fourteen years after the publication of Le Clercq's book,
and who later wrote a most comprehensive history of New
France. Writing of the I_Iuron Christians on the Island of
Orleans, he attests:
As they were the flower of the Christians of that nation, as they
had not abandoned the Lord in the miseries wherewith H!J had
permitted them to be afflicted, and as they had borne the scandal of
the Cross with patience and resignation, in a way especially
admirable in neophytes, it is easy to conceive their fervor at a
time when everything led them to gratitude toward Him who giveth
death and who quickeneth-always for the good of His elect. Besides, they lacked no assistance which could serve to nourish their
piety.
The most fervent were formed into two Sodalities, one for men
and the other for women. These Congregations produced among
those fervent Indians the same fruits of holiness that were then
admired in all the parts of the world in which such Congregations
were established.
This we say, notwithstanding what is written by an author
[Le Clercq] who had every reason to distrust his information, and
whose profession should have rendered him more reserved in speaking of things about which he could not possibly be informed.s4
�HISTORICAL NOTES
351
IV. The Dispersion of The Huron Sodalists
The five nations of the Iroquois Confederacy that had decreed doom upon their blood relations, the Hurons, during the
1640's resolved anew in their councils in the early 1650's
to pursue the Huron refugees no matter where they might
find asylum. They were determined either to exterminate the
Hurons or to compel them to unite with themselves in Iroquois
villages and thus form, as they said, "one cabin." The most
numerous and cohesive group of Hurons was that on the Island
of Orleans, together with a smaller colony near Three Rivers.
These became the bloody objectives of all the Five Nations,
and for the French, as well as for the Hurons and Algonquins,
the St. Lawrence became a river of blood.
Nevertheless, the Iroquois, with cunning sagacity and hiding
their persistent unity of purpose, held councils with the French
and protested by oratory and pledges that they desired peace.
Foremost in these councils were the Mohawks and the Onondagas, with the western Senecas also making their bids. While
holding public council with the French and their Indian allies
and inviting them to send Blackrobes to their villages, the
Iroquois were secretly negotiating with the Hurons to separate
themselves from the French and to migrate as a body to the
Iroquois country. Fearing with good reason the destruction
of the French colonies in New France and desiring nothing
more ardently than peace with these implacable enemies, the
French agreed to release the Hurons, if they should so wish,
and sent P. LeMoyne on an embassy to the Mohawks, and P.
Chaumonot, with other missioners and a large party of
Frenchmen, to inaugurate a French settlement among the
Onondagas.
During all these specious peace-talks the Mohawks especially were committing sneak-attacks on the French, Algonquins, and Hurons, to such an extent that no one, whether
near his home or along the river and trails, felt secure from
captivity or death. Thus, on April 25, 1656 more than three
hundred Mohawks talked peace at Three Rivers but concealed
their purpose of attacking the Hurons on Orleans. Though
diverted at this time from their objective by P. LeMoyne, they
did not abandon it.
On May 19, during the night, forty canoes of Mohawk braves
�352
HISTORICAL NOTES
slid silently past Quebec, and the warriors secreted themselves
in the woods about the Huron colony on Orleans. On the next
morning, Saturday, the Hurons, after attending Mass at dawn
as usual, were walking leisurely toward their corn-fields.
They were frozen by the Iroquois war-screech and were attacked by their war-painted enemies on all sides. Some were
killed, many were huddled together as prisoners, and some
few gained safety within the palisaded fort. 35
Our loss [reported P. Le Mercier] consisted of seventy-one persons,
including a large number of young women who were the flower
of that Colony ••• Among the captive Hurons were eleven members
(men) of the Congregation who, in the extremity of their misery,
did not lose the spirit of piety. One of them was James Oachonk,
then the prefect of the Sodality, and the most fervent of all our
Christians. When that good Christian found himself a prisoner,
instead of singing of his warlike achievements, he took for the theme
of his song what he had most at h~iirt. 36
The victorious band of Iroquois, with their prisoners, arrogantly paddled past Quebec, without any effort of the French
to attack it. They camped on the south shore of the St. Lawrence, opposite Three Rivers. There they began the preliminary tortures on Oachonk and some of the other men. During
these Oachonk chanted:
Do not pity me! Do not look upon me as unfortunate! I do not
fear the fires which my blood can extinguish. I fear only the fire
of hell which never dies out. This life means nothing to me, for
my thoughts carry me to heaven.
According to P. Le Mercier: "He sang this chant in so powerful a voice that he made himself heard at a distance of ne-arly
a league and a half [sic], and the water and wind brought his
words to our ears." 37
P. Chaumonot, who had left his Orleans Hurons on May 12
in order to go on the Iroquois-Onondaga Mission, was at Three
Rivers. He wrote to P. Le Mercier:
I have seen the flower of the Huron Sodality carried away into
captivity by the pagans, together with many others whose devotion
would appear extraordinary even in a cloister. Praise be to Him
forever, since bene. omnia fecit. I had the happiness of visiting
them three times in the Iroquois camp, about half a league from
Three Rivers. I confessed them all, after making them pray to
• God ••. Among them was a young woman, eighteen years of age,
named Agnes Aoendoens, who was baptized by the late P. Jean
�HISTORICAL NOTES
353
de Brebeuf. I heard her confession and, truly, I have never seen
any one more innocent. A person shut up in a cloister could not
better preserve her piety. In short, I cannot find words to express
to you all that passed on that occasion.ss
The Hurons were conducted to the Mohawk country. All
were spared and given to Mohawk families except six of the
leaders, who were condemned to torture and death. One of
these was James Oachonk, the prefect of the Sodality and the
civil chief. Another was the war chief, Joachim Ondakont.
This latter was "a great warrior, whose life had been but a
series of combats and victories." He was already burned up
to his waist, his fingers had been cut and mashed, and he was
covered with blood. He was to be killed the next day. But
during the night, though guarded in a cabin by fifty Mohawk
braves, he escaped, and naked, burned and wounded as he was,
without food, he wandered through the forest for fifteen days,
until, fortunately, on the shores of Lake Ontario he met P.
Chaumonot and the French party on its way to the Onondagas.
He related the story of the heroism, the zeal, the spiritual
defiance of Oachonk during the fiery and bloody tortures.
"Previous to his misfortune," added P. Le Mercier, "this man's
fervor had relaxed and he seemed to be only half a Christian."
After witnessing the saintly example of Oachonk, "he was so
happily changed that he cannot sufficiently bless God, or sufficiently praise the Christians, in whom he observed examples
of a virtue beyond reproach." 89
One of the torturers told a similar story of Oachonk to P. Le
Moyne when he came on an embassy to the Mohawk village.
That Iroquois, who had helped to burn him [Oachonk], said to
Ondessonk [P. Le Moyne]: "We have never seen anyone who loved
the prayer like that man. He prayed to God continually on the scaffold and exhorted his fellow sufferers to think of heaven and of God
who awaited them there. He called out aloud to the Huron
Christians: 'My brothers, remember that all the Frenchmen assemble
today in the Church to offer the sacrifice to God. They pray to
God for us; let us do the same, on.our part. If our enemies do not
permit us to say our prayers aloud in our usual way, as we did on
the Island of Orleans, let us all pray secretly in our hearts. As
for me, I fear neither their torches nor their hatchets,· heated
red hot. They shall never prevent me from speaking to God, to
beg Him to have pity on a poor man who has so grievously and
so frequently offended Him.'" The Iroquois added: "There was
something more than human in that man. We tortured him, to
�354
HISTORICAL NOTES
foree a ery out of his lips. But he only continued to sigh gently
and he always kept his eyes fixed on the sky as if he were speaking
to someone. We could not hear distinctly what he said, but he
often repeated these words: 'My brothers, I am going to Heaven
where I will pray to Him-Who-Made-AU for your salvation.' Up
to the last sigh that we forced from him by the violence of the
tortures, he spoke of nothing but Heaven."4 0
Mter this Mohawk raid of 1656, the Hurons realized that
they had no choice but a complete surrender; and the French
concluded that they were powerless to protect their Huron
wards. The Hurons had planned to play off the Mohawk
against the Onondaga. As they should have known, they were
outwitted and as a result exasperated both these nations the
more.
Though living together as one people in one village, the
Hurons on Orleans retained their clan independence and were
governed .by their own chiefs. These clans or nations were:
the Bear Nation, whose capital town had been Ossossane; the
Rock Nation, which had formerly lived at Cahiague and who
had joined the people of St. Ignace, where P. Brebeuf and
P. Lalemant were martyred; the Cord Nation, in whose village of Teanaustaye, Antoine Daniel was martyred and cremated. During the Winter of 1656 in clan councils and in
general assemblies, the chiefs debated as to what must be done
in their grave plight. Negotiations, meanwhile, were being
carried on with the Mohawks and Onondagas and to a lesser
extent with the Oneidas and Senecas.
By the Spring of 1657 each of the Huron nations had reached
its own decision. The Bears elected to trust themselves to
the Mohawks and, under the pledge of safe conduct, migrate
to their country in a body. The Rock people had exchanged
presents with the Onondagas and pledged themselves to go to
their country. The Cord Nation declared that it would remain
with the French and rejected all the advances of the Iroquois.
Their spokesman gave their verdict: "I see the whole river
bristling with long and great teeth. I would be in danger of
being bitten if I were to embark at present. There will come
another time." 41
The end of the sojourn of the homeless Hurons in their
!'second homeland" on the Island of Orleans was inevitable.
P. Jean de Quen inscribed a melancholy, heart-rending entry
�HISTORICAL NOTES
355
in the Jesuit Journal for 1657: "June 2. 14 Huron women,
with several little children, embarked in 7 Agnieronon (Mohawk) canoes, in order to go and live at Agnie. Here begins
the destruction of the Hurons." (Italics inserted) 42
During that same June the Onondagas, in whose country P.
Chaumonot, P. Le Mercier, and other missioners had begun a
most pretentious mission-center, came to claim the Huron
Nation of the Rock. The French, knowing that P. Chaumonot
and the Blackrobes would welcome their children, cooperated
and carried the refugees up the St. Lawrence to Montreal in
three shallops. There, after a short delay, the Onondagas
took their part of the prey in their canoes. On the way the
Onondagas butchered some few of the Hurons. The rest
they brought to their villages and shared with them their fires
and cabins.48
In August the Mohawks peaceably beached their canoes in
the almost deserted cove on Orleans. In utter resignation the
last of the Bear Nation was trundled into the little boats and
began their journey into a Mohawk oblivion. Their only consolation was Ondessonk, who had lived with them in their
freedom at their village of Ossossane, and who now was the
Blackrobe apostle of the Iroquois.''
The Cord Nation, that had been the most resistant to the
Faith and the most cruel to the Blackrobes in Teanaustaye,
proved to be the most loyal to the French, in whom they put
their entire faith and hope for survival. Since they could
have no security and no peace on the Island of Orleans, they
were accorded land for a fixed habitation below the French
Fort of Quebec. It may be conjectured that, at this time,
they numbered about one hundred and fifty souls. In 1668
they moved from Quebec to the neighboring settlement of
Notre-Dame de Foy, and in 1673 they established themselves
at Notre-Dame de Lorette, which later was known as 1'Ancienne-Lorette. Toward the end of the century they built themselves a new habitation called la Jeune-Lorette.' 5
After his return from the abortive Onondaga Mission, P.
Chaumonot once more assumed the pastorate of the Hurons,
whom he fathered for the next thirty-five years. He was
forced to surrender his care of them in 1692, and shortly afterwards, on February 21, 1693, he died at Quebec, aged eighty-
�356
HISTORICAL NOTES
two years, fifty-four of which he had lived with his beloved
"savages." 46
In these later migrations of the Hurons, P. Chaumonot preserved his Sodality as it had existed on the Island of Orleans.
After his death, it is believed that his Jesuit successors perpetuated it for a century, until the Suppression o.f the Society
of Jesus and the death of the last Huron missioner, P. Thomas
Girault, in 1794. In the beginning of the nineteenth century,
the Hurons were merged with the French in the parish of
St. Ambrose, la J eune-Lorette; but in 1904 they regained their
identity and had their own pastor in the new church of NotreDame de LoretteY
According to I' Abbe Lindsay, the Huron language is forgotten, and "save for some rare chants of which the meaning
is not known, save for some glos~aries preserved jealously in
archives, save for some names of war chiefs long departed, all
else is gone." But not all is gone, for the Faith taught the
Hurons at Teanaustaye by St. Jean de Brebeuf, and the piety
nurtured among them by P. Chaumonot on Orleans have survived all their tribulations during more than three centuries.
FRANCIS X. TALBOT, S.J.
'NOTES
1 The basic material for this article is derived from the three chief,
contemporaneous sources:
a) The Jesuit Relations. Edited in French and English by R;uben
Gold Thwaites. Cleveland: The Burrows Brothers, 1899. (This edition
will be referred to, hereafter, as J.R. with volume and page number
added.)
b) La Vie du P.J.M. Chaumonot. Cramoisy. Paris. 1688. Autobiographic du P. Pierre Chaumonot et son Complement. Edited and annotated
. by P. Felix Martin, S.J. Paris, 1885. (To be referred to as Chaumonot.)
c) Historiae Canadensis Libri Decem. Franciscus Creuxius, S.J.·
Paris, 1664. Translated into English by Percy J. Robinson under the
title: The History of Canada. Toronto: The Champlain Society, 1951.
(Hereafter noted as Du Creux.)
2 J.R. 41-147.
Du Creu;x;. 2-676.
3
It may be assumed that P. Poncet was inspired by his close friend,
p, Chaumonot, to inaugurate the first French Sodality.
J.R. 37-265. Note. Charles de Lauson, Seigneur de Charny, son of the
�HISTORICAL NOTES
357
then Governor of New France, was appointed the first prefect of the
Sodality. Later he returned to France and was ordained a priest.
~Pierre J-M. Chaumonot was born in France in 1611 and entered the
Society of Jesus in Rome, 1632. In 1639, on his arrival at Quebec, he
was shipped to the Huron Mission and accompanied P. De Brebeuf to the
Neutrals in 1640. He returned to Quebec in 1650 and settled the Hurons
on the Island of Orleans. In 1655 he helped to establish the Onondaga
Mission among the Iroquois. When that collapsed in 1658, he resumed
his pastorate among the Quebec Hurons and remained with them till
1692. He died the following year at the age of 82.
Leonard Garreau, born 1609, came to New France in 1643 and was
assigned to labors among the Algonquins, Hurons, and Petuns. In 1649
he was with P. Charles Garnier, whose body he recovered and buried,
and whose bones he carried to St. Joseph's Island. He died September 2,
1656 from wounds received in an Iroquois attack near Montreal.
5 The Huron country was a small peninsula jutting out into Georgian
Bay, oft' Lake Huron. Sainte-Marie I, the home of the missioners, is at
the site of the Shrine of the American Martyrs.
J.R. 36-250. Note. P. Ragueneau states: "War and pestilence have
destroyed more than ten thousand Hurons." Before 1649 the total
Huron population was estimated at a little more than twenty thousand.
6 0ld Huronia.
Arthur E. Jones, S.J. Toronto: Bureau of Archives,
1909, p. 447. "'Migration of the Hurons after their Dispersion."
Relation Abregee. F. J. Bressany, S.J. Edited by P. Felix Martin,
S.J. Montreal, 1852, p. 399. Appendix 10.
7The Huron name for the Island of St. Joseph was Ahoendoe. It is
now known as Christian Island.
8 J.R. 35-75, fi'. This graphic Relation of 1649-50 was written by the
superior, P. Paul Ragueneau.
9J.R. 35-183, fi'. 41-137.
1°The Jesuits in North America. Francis Parkman. Boston, 1867,
p. 426. Parkman wrongly states that "the greater part of the Hurons
chose to remain" on the Island of St. Joseph.
11
Histoire des Canadiens-Fran~ais. Benjamin Sulte. Montreal, 1882,
III-51. Suite gives the following population figures for 1653: Quebec,
400; Three Rivers, 175; Montreal, 100.
Marie de l'Incarnation: Ecrits Spirituels et Historiques. Reedites
par Dom Albert Jamet. Quebec, 1936, IV-286. Jamet notes that the
population given by Mere Marie, of 2,000 French in New France, is an
exaggeration.
12J.R. 36-117.
1sChaumonot. 109.
HJ.R. 41-137.
uJ.R. 37-181. The Fort, being about the same dimensions as that of
Sainte-Marie II, was 100 feet square, with palisades some 14 feet high.
Since it undoubtedly followed the same pattern, within the palisades
�358
HISTORICAL NOTES
were the chapel, the rectory, and a courtyard, for the gathering of the
Faithful in peace times and for protection in an enemy attack. The first
chapel was built, in the Huron style, of bark. This was the first chapel
on the Island of Orleans. A more substantial edifice of wood was built
by the donnes and workmen. According to the Jesuit Journal of 1653:
HJuly 2. The Chapel on the Island of Orleans was blessed sub titulo
Visitationis Beatae Virginis by P. Jerome Lalemant." (J.R. 38-179)
The first chapel for the French was erected in 1652, and adjoined the
house of Gabriel Gosselin. (L'Ile d'Orleans. Pierre G. Roy. Quebec,
1928, p. 54, 57.) The corn-fields during 1652-53 were enlarged by another 300 arpents. (J.R. 40-223)
18J.R. 40-229.
lTJ.R. 41-141. Du Creux. 2-675.
lsJ.R. 41-147. Du Creux. 2-676. A Sodality of Women in the seventeenth century, it must be admitted, was an innovation.
19J.R. 41-149.
2oJ.R. 41-149. Du Creux. 2-677.
21/bid.
22Du Creux. 2-677.
23J.R. 41-151.
Les Annales de T:Hotel-Dieu. 95. J.R. 36-209; 43-67; 44-261. The
first Indian native to become a Nun was the daughter of Huron Sodalists.
Genevieve Agnes Skannudharoi attended the Ursuline school and lived
with the Hospital Nuns. After a lingering illness, and having manifested heroic sanctity, at the age of fifteen, she pronounced her vows
shortly before her death in 1657 and was given the name of Sister Genevieve Agnes de To us les Saints.~
UJ.R. 41-157.
2~J.R. 41-161. Confer: J.R. 12-93, 105; 23-175; 24-107.
26J.R. 43-237.
2TJ.R. Ibid.
28J.R. 36-71.
Histoire de la Compagnie de Jesus en France. P. Henri Fouqueray,
S.J. Paris, 1925, V-256. Passim, vols. I, II, III, IV. The Professed
House in Paris was one of the first establishments erected by Henri IV
at the time of the restoration of the Society in France. Henri IV and
Louis XIII frequently attended Mass and Vespers in the Church of St.
Louis, to which Louis consigned his heart. The influence and prestige
of the Sodality was paramount.
29Jn pre-French times, the wampum beads, or circles, were sculptured
from the white and purple of oyster shells, the dark-colored portions
being held in higher esteem and value. When the French introduced
porcelain and glass beads, these were substituted for the shell beads,
and became the small currency of trade. The violet, purple and black
beads were priced double those of white and other pale colors.
soJ.R. 41-165. 40-233. Du Creux. 2-680.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
359
- uvu Creux. 1-139. J.R. 41-173. The text used for the Huron original
and the English translation is that of Du Creux. The Huron text of
Du Creux differs from that carried in the Relation in the spelling and
the division of the words. The term "mysteries" is used in the same
sense that we speak of the mysteries of the Rosary.
32Du Creux. 2-681.
J.R. 41-171. The English translation used is that
from Du Creux, with some verbal changes. This seems to have a more
authentic flavor than the translation offered by Thwaites. Du Creux
does not publish the Huron original.
There is a variation in the spelling of the names in the Huron and the
French texts, as published in the Relation. Atharatou becomes Taieron,
and Sondeaskin is spelled Sondouskon. Chiakha is Jacques (James)
and Chaose is Joseph.
J.R. 43-119. Oachonk died an heroic, saintly death after being horribly
tortured by the Iroquois two years later in 1656.
J.R. 36-215. Atharatou, or Taieron, was the orator who made an impassioned plea, accompanied by wampum collars, to the Ursulines to
remain in Quebec after the fire in their monastery in 1650.
Chaumonot was first called Aroniatiri by the Hurons. He was named
Oronhiaguehre in the Neutral dialect. After the death of De Brebeuf,
he was ..resurrected" with De Brebeuf's name, Echon.
P. Le Mercier, the author of the Relation of 1653-54, uses the first
person: "which I wrote in their name." He was, undoubtedly, copying
from a report sent him by Chaumonot. His Huron name was Chailose.
33 Establissement de la Foi.
P. Christian Le Clercq. Paris, 1691.
Translated into English, under the title: First Establishment of the
Faith in New France, by John Gilmary Shea. New York, 1881, I-395.
UHistoire de la Nouvelle-France. P. Fran~ois X. de CharlevoU;.
Paris, 1744. Translated into English by John Gilmary Shea under the
title: History of New France. New York, 1866, II-259.
35 J.R. 43-117.
36 J.R. 43-119.
Lettres de Mere Marie de l'Incarnation. Edited by l'Abbe Richaudeau.
Paris, 1876, II-108. Mere Marie states that six were killed and eightyfive taken captive. This is also the number given in Les Annales de
l'Hotel-Dieu, p. 91.
arJ.R. 43-119.
38J.R. 43-123.
aoJ.R. 43-123.
40/bid.
4tJ.R. 43-193.
J.R. 36-141. The people of the villages of St. Michael and St. John
the Baptist had alre11dy surrendered to the Senecas and were with them.
c.J.R. 43-49.
'sJ.R. 43-51, 199.
�360
HISTORICAL NOTES
44J.R. 43-187. After the death of P. Jogues, P. Le Moyne was "resurrected" to the name of Jogues, Ondessonk. He was formerly known as
Wane.
' 5 Notre-Dame de Ia Jeune-Lorette. !'Abbe Lionel Lindsay.
Montreal,
1900.
46 About the countryside the French people still refer to la JeuneLorette as "The Village of the Savages."
4TNotre-Dame de Ia Jeune-Lorette. Passim. Letter of P. Georges
Gagnon, Village-Huron, Province of Quebec.
WOODSTOCK TO I:LATTSBURG
It dawned bright and warm this seventh day of July, 1952,
at Bellarmine Hall. Regular Villa order was had till
ten in the morning, with the Itinerarium added after the Community Mass. At ten we boarded three large buses that were
grandly advertised as being air-conditioned, but which failed
to conquer the heat of that day. At eleven-fifty the buses arrived at Woodstock. The theologians had eaten at eleventhirty to make way for us, so after examen we had the rare
privilege of having lunch, our last meal at Woodstock, in our
shirt-sleeves, at twelve-thirty. A crew of philosophers served
the meal. The theologians left for villa at one o'clock and
were seen off by the philosophers. Then quies prevailed, and
those who wished could rest for two hours before the .long
trek began.
- •
After coffee we boarded the B & 0 buses, bid goodbye to
Father Rector and those of the faculty who were home, and
had our last look at Woodstock. There were pictures taken of
our departure, which took place at three-ten. At three-fiftyfive the three buses arrived at Mt. Royal Station, and we
streamed out of the buses to be met by the gaping eye of a
motion picture camera. Father Farren had arranged this to
help publicize the fund-raising campaign for Shrub Oak. Rev.
Father Nugent (Provincial of Maryland) was there to mark
the historic event and witness our departure. After a few
more photographs for the Baltimore Sun, we wandered out to
the platform to wait for our train.
�Domestic Chapel at Bellarmine College
Science classroom of Philosophers
.....
n~ll---:-
.... 1"1 .... 11 ..............
�--
�HISTORICAL NOTES
361
The Royal Blue arrived on schedule, so we departed from
Baltimore at four-thirty, in the three foremost cars which
were reserved for us (two coaches and a diner). The traveling was delightful in the large, comfortable, air-conditioned
coaches. Most took immediate advantage of the reclining
seats and remained engaged in quiet conversation and viewing
the scenery. A few began to sing, and some started a traveling
bridge-game which lasted from Baltimore to Albany. Dinner
was served in two shifts beginning at five-fifteen. · The food
was so good that the one serving, which practicality permitted, was scarcely enough. At seven-forty-five we· arrived in
Jersey City and were promptly herded into waiting buses,
which left almost immediately by ferry for Manhattan. On
the ferry all left the buses to catch a glimpse of the famous
skyline-some few for the first time. We were fortunate to
arrive when we did, for the sun was just setting on the Jersey
side of the river, and the city was resplendent in reddish gold
colors. After a few minutes, back to the buses we went and
off the ferry to Grand Central Station, where we arrived at
eight-twenty, in four waves. There were a few curious eyes
as the first bus unloaded. But by the time the fourth bus disgorged the last wave, the passers-by were agape. One man in
the terminal insisted he saw well over two hundred priests
passing through. Another person, seeing one of the Scholastics
limping from an infection on his foot, noted that these were
chaplains home from Korea.
After leaving our bags on the train, we were free to do what
we wanted for a half-hour. When we boarded the train we
met with the first of the only two hitches in the entire trip,
both of which were completely beyond our control. For when
we got on the train, we discovered that on one of the two cars,
the air-conditioning system was out of order. The engineers
gave it a quick repair job, and said that when we started
moving the car would quickly cool down. We "started moving" at nine o'clock and sat patiently waiting for the car to
cool down, but it was not to be so. After a while many started
wandering back to the second car to cool off and then return.
The trainman promised that the system would be repaired at
Harmon (but it wasn't) and at Albany (again we were disillusioned). Finally, as the night air grew cool, the car became
more comfortable. A few minutes after stopping at Pough-
�362
HISTORICAL NOTES
keepsie we roared past the darkened St. Andrew's Novitiate.
About all that was seen here were the boats tied up in the
Hudson.
At 12:04 A.M. we arrived in Albany, but the soft-drinks
and sandwiches did not-and this brings us to the second and
last hitch. For after the sandwiches had been sent for, we
were apparently pushed onto a siding someplace and forgotten.
Finally they brought us to the proper track, and there was the
food. Only it was one-ten by this time, so we went hungry till
eight that morning when we had breakfast. At one-twentyfive, we left Albany, some forty-five minutes late. But during
the night all but seven minutes were made up. By the time
we left Albany, most were asleep. The car that didn't have
air-conditioning did have two advantages over the other. First
of all, due to the popularity of the cool car, there were enough
empty seats so that almost everyone..was able to turn the seat
in front around and enjoy a makeshift bed for himself. Between this, the reclining seats, and the pillows, a fairly comfortable night was had by most. The second advantage of the
warm car was that, being older, it had the light-bulbs within
convenient reach. These were promptly loosened, and so the
night was spent in darkness, disturbed only by the glare of
the other car, that found its way through the doors. When we
awoke around four-thirty, we }Vere dazzled by the light of the
sun, reflected off water. This was our first view of Lake
Champlain, and we were duly impressed. At six we arrived
at Port Kent, where we were met by some regents who took
our luggage in the truck, while we walked the short distanc~
to their Villa. We were able to go to Mass immediately,
though breakfast was had as usual at eight. When we arrived
at Loyola Villa, we were placed under Father McGinty, superior, and Father Walter, minister. Father Devlin, our
superior at Bellarmine Hall, who had made all the arrangements for the Grand Move, and who made the weary trip with
us, and to whom a great debt of gratitude was owed, rested for
the morning, and then started on the long trip back to Woodstock to look after further details.
Considering the trip of the night before, relatively few went
to bE}d. Most spent the day rowing and swimming, or sitting
in the parlors talking to regentS. From Tuesday till Friday
�HISTORICAL NOTES
363
we had regular villa order, i.e., the same as we had at Bellarmine Hall. Two groups of twelve "volunteers" spent two days
apiece at our new home, cleaning and washing. They brought
back magnificent descriptions that whetted our appetites to see
our new home. Saturday was spent in cleaning up, and after
this a softball game was played with the regents. That night
the retreat began. The present second and third year philosophers made a separate retreat under Father T. H. Moore,
while the regents were directed by Father H. C. Avery.
Monday morning, the morning the retreat ended, we went
back to the buses, this time for a very short, and final, trip to
our new home. We left Port Kent around nine-thirty and
arrived at Bellarmine College at ten-fifteen, where we were
met by our new Rector (the first at Bellarmine College),
Father T. E. Henneberry, and our Minister (whom we had
had previously at Woodstock), Father J. J. Sheridan. Our
new home lived up to all our expectations, with its magnificent
building and the golf course, chip-and-putt course, and beach.
The front of the building was covered with scaffolding, as the
work of renovation went on, but it was clearly evident that a
sturdy, substantial, and pleasant building had been provided
for us. After greeting the new first-year men who had arrived about four days previously, we went to our rooms to set
about unpacking. Our delight with the rooms was not less
than our delight with the grounds. The view consisted of a
grand panorama of valley and mountain to the front, and of
the lake and the distant shore of Vermont with its mountains
to the rear. The domestic chapel was a work of art-fitted out
under the careful eye of Brother Mahlmeister, who constructed
the substantial pews and altar himself, and under the loving
direction of Father Kenna, who had directed the entire work
of renovation so successfully.
So we were here at last. After all the months of planning
and working, the operation was completed. As Father Moore
said in his retreat, "The Society has provided us with a wonderful house; now it is up to us to make it a home." And this
last, but essential, ingredient is being added by the wonderful
spirit of generosity and cooperation manifested by all.
DANIEL F. X. MEENAN, S.J.
�OBITUARY
MR. JOHN F. WALSH, S.J.
1921-1952
Father Broderick in his life of St. Francis Xavier notes
that practically all the people who gave testimony at Goa
about Francis' activity on the trip to India have something to
say about his unfailing cheerfulness and good humor. That
is a great tribute to a saint, for unfailing good humor is a
virtue of noble proportions. We find a similar tribute in all
the letters sent to WOODSTOCK LETTERS about Mr. Walsh.
Everyone has at least a paragraph. on his wonderful sense of
humor and his unceasing spirit of. happiness. They say a lot
more, of course, but that one point is impressive. All of us
who knew Jack are going to remember him as a supremely
happy man. He was considered thoroughly dependable by
superiors, he was respected by his extern friends, and to his
fellow Scholastics he was a model Jesuit and a delightful
person.
John and David Walsh were born on May 14, 1921 in Washington, D.C. Jack always remained deeply attached to his
twin brother and used to delight his fellow Jesuits with tales
of their boyhood in Northwest Washington. At St. Gabriel's
parish school Jack received his early training. For several
years he served the Mass of His Excellency the Most Rev.
John M. McNamara, Auxiliary Bishop of Washingfon.
Though Jack's head was as full of football and baseball as any
American boy's, yet he did rather well at school.
In his days at Gonzaga High School a boy could easily have
fallen into one of several student circles. Jack Walsh seemed
to span them all. His honor cards testify that he worked
hard at his studies. On the football field he was one of the
best ball-carriers in the city. The Walsh brothers more than
held their own on one of Gonzaga's most rugged teams. Those
brief flashes of temper that we saw occasionally during games
at Wernersville were reflections from the Gonzaga days, when
he :was used to fighting and w!nning. With more academic
extracurricular activities added to his busy high school days,
�MR. JOHN F. WALSH
��OBITUARY
365
he was the obvious choice for the Civitan Award at the end
of his senior year, marking him as Gonzaga's finest of the
class of 1940.
Many thought that Jack would begin studies for the priesthood after high school, but he was undecided. During his one
year in the pre-medical course at Georgetown he came under
the influence of the saintly Father Aloysius Hogan, S.J. Perhaps this helped him to his final decision to apply for entrance
into the Society. Brother Walsh was admitted to the Novitiate at Wernersville on July 30, 1941. He was immediately
at home in the quiet life of the noviceship. During his four
years at Wernersville he was appointed to many of those
little positions of trust, so much a part of the life in our houses
of study.
Mr. Walsh was sent to Spring Hill, Alabama, for his philosophical studies. Immediately he won the esteem of superiors
and Scholastics alike, and had the somewhat unusual honor of
being appointed beadle in a scholasticate of another Province.
Those who were with him at Spring Hill were deeply impressed by his faithfulness to the Sandtown Mission, a catechism class for Negro children. For three Y,ears he never
missed the weekly walk there. Mr. Walsh's superior at Spring
Hill writes:
Jack had that beautiful personality which is proper to wholesome
American youth matured in a thoroughly Catholic home. He
mingled easily with his companions and adjusted himself, apparently without effort, to changing environments . . . In religion
these fine qualities of personality and character placed Jack with
those who merit the highest praise . . . As a religious, I believe
Jack is worthy of the high esteem expressed by Leo XIII on the
occasion of the canonization of St. John Berchmans.
Mr. Walsh's three years at Scranton Preparatory School
have been described by superiors, students, and fellow teachers.
In recent years we have developed a tendency to be sceptical
of the perfect success story. Yet the record and our fresh
memories allow no other story. This young Jesuit spent his
Regency period in the way that we have come to consider the
ideal. He was a successful teacher, loved and respected by
his students. His hard work as a basketball and baseball
coach, moderator of the school paper and assistant Sodality
moderator,. served only to make him more faithful to his
�366
OBITUARY
spiritual duties. All the Scholastics who were at Scranton
with him can quote long lists of famous "Walsh Sayings" that
helped to make their recreation room a pleasant place. He was
always most willing to take on extra work, even though it was
not asked, such as running an extra Sodality meeting for the
athletes who had to miss the regular one. A pious Scranton
lady, seeing Mr. Walsh out with his boys filling a truck with
old rags to help some school drive, was moved to say, "Glory
be to God! Picking rags, and him a Jesuit!" Our missionaries in India will always remember those regular gifts from
Mr. Walsh's class of 2A. By all this extra work done with
and for the boys, he endeared himself to them, so that a recreation room saying of his became literally true when news of his
death reached Scranton. He used to say, "The boys wept
when I descended the rostrum." ·t
Jack had always enjoyed goo(l· health, and was noted for
his seemingly inexhaustible energy. At. Scranton he once
asked a fellow Scholastic to go with him to a wake. This man
readily agreed, thinking of some such means of locomotion as
a street-car. He was amazed to find out that Jack intended
to walk all twenty-five blocks. Thus no one was alarmed when
he became ill in the spring of his first year of theology at
Woodstock. However it soon became apparent that something more than pneumonia was causing his high fevers. A
serious heart condition was-discovered, and it was determined
that he should receive the last sacraments. During the anointing at Mercy Hospital in Baltimore Jack noticed that one of
the Sisters was crying. "Don't cry,'' he said. "This haplJens
all the time." To the amazement of the doctors, even on· his
last day he was able to recognize visitors and speak in a
strong voice. They would hardly have expected him to be
able to speak at all in his condition. Mr. Walsh's constant
concern was to cheer and comfort his loved ones. During the
afternoon of April 16 the doctors drew off fluid from behind
the heart. During this painful procedure Mr. Walsh was conscious and joked with the chest surgeon. About eight o'clock
in the evening he could breathe only with difficulty. His eyes
were on the crucifix on the wall. To Father Rector he said,
"If I keep my eyes on Him, I can stand it." Father Rector
gave him a crucifix to kiss and imparted absolution and the
�OBITUARY
367
Apostolic Blessing just before he slipped quietly to his reward.
To sum up in one sentence a man's life, even a young man's
life, is a difficult thing to do. If it is to be done in Mr. Walsh's
case, perhaps the Jesuits who lived with him would put it this
way: "He combined a deep personal holiness with a spirit of
warm camaraderie to produce one of the finest personalities
among our contemporaries and an ideal model for present
day American Scholastics." At the Solemn Pontifical Requiem
Mass offered at St. Gabriel's Church, Bishop McNamara gave
this moving summary:
John Francis Walsh died with the heart of a priest. We think
he died before his time, but it was God's will that he should in this
way complete the sacrifice begun on the day he entered the Society
of Jesus. In life he found peace in doing the will of God; in accepting death as God's will he enjoys peace in its fulness. "In
His will is our peace"-and only there.
STEPHEN
F. LATCHFORD, S.J.
FATHER ALBERTO HURTADO
1901-1952
On August 18, 1952 Father Alberto Hurtado, S.J. died in
Santiago, Chile, at the age of fifty-one. The Chilean press
and radio commented on his death; in Santiago's city hall men
of various political parties praised his life and work; the
Congress of Chile voted to erect a statue to his memory. In
the words of one Chilean senator, Father Hurtado "was the
most eminent man produced by the nation in our day."
A crowd of more than five thousand persons from the lowest
to the highest ranks of society walked behind Father Hurtado's
cortege for forty blocks to the church where he was buried.
So ended in this world a life that was truly outstanding.
Before his entrance into the Society of Jesus, Father Hurtado's life was moulded to apostolicity by his work among the
poor as a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, as a
Sodalist among his companions in the University. In August,
1924 he took a law degree for which he wrote a thesis on "Domestic Work in Chile." That year he entered the Society of
�368
OBITUARY
Jesus. After his noviceship in Chile, he studied philosophy at
Barcelona and theology at Louvain. The Very Reverend John
Janssens, S.J., present general of the Society of Jesus, was
Father Hurtado's rector in theology so that Father Janssens
could testify years later to a South American Bishop: "In all
my long years as superior, I never saw a more zealous soul
than Father Hurtado." After earning a doctorate in education
at Louvain, Father Hurtado returned to Chile to spread generously the message of God in the most varied apostolic work.
The most typical note of his apostolate was his realistic
view of the problems of his milieu. He was the bearer of an
eternal message that he had to impart in time, and the dispenser of a life to be shared with men, but he had to reckon
with both time and men. He desired that his labor should be
as realistic as his ideals were spiritual. The first of these
realistic approaches to the apostolute was his analysis of religious sociology in his book, Is Chile a Catholic Country?
The title and the thesis of the book were startling. It is so
sweet to sleep, lulled by illusory statistics. It is easy to dream
that a country is Catholic because the census and the number
of baptized so declare; it is easy to regard exterior manifestations of piety as superior to those vital works of the Church
which demand constant sacrifice. Other statistics based upon
the number assisting at Mass, the number of Christian marriages, the number of those. fulfilling their Easter duty, as
well as personal observations, convinced Father Hurtado that
the ideal was very remote. Ten or fifteen percent of the
Chilean population attended Mass. Fifty percent were married in the Church.
- ·
Father Hurtado's book provoked a storm. It lashed consciences towards profounder action. It was an orientation
for Catholic Action as well as a call to youth to whom it presented a vast field of endeavor.
Father Hurtado's realistic insight made him aware of a
vital need of the Church: vocations to the priesthood. Where
the Church lacks the necessary number of priestly vocations,
she is radically sick. The advance of the Church is continuous,
but if she lacks the vital human channels of her supernatural
life, she is doomed to decline. To help supply this need, he
published some pamphlets and the book, The Choice of a Way
�FATHER ALBERTO HURTADO
�--
�OBITUARY
369
Parents, fearful perhaps that God would call one of
their children to His service, accused Father Hurtado of
"fishing for vocations." They did not understand that such
vocations were born of a contact with the fiery soul of an
apostle. His interest in vocations bore much fruit in many
hours dedicated to spiritual direction. Because of this direction, more than one hundred boys entered upon studies for
the priesthood. Father's interest in vocations was also manifested in the construction of a Jesuit Novitiate. The former
Novitiate in Chillan was totally destroyed in 1939 by an earthquake. He raised funds for a new Novitiate by literally begging from door to door. Adjacent to the Novitiate, he built a
three storey retreat house, modern in every respect.
In 1940 Father Hurtado was appointed national director
of Catholic Action for Youth. This position gave him the
opportunity to travel through the entire country, organizing
and strengthening various Catholic Action groups. In this
work he fashioned youth into true men who were at the same
time deeply Christian, tireless before the urgencies of the
present, and selfless in their cooperation in the apostolate of
the Church. At this time he published the book, Points of
Education, on the formation of the man, the Christian, the
leader. Conferences, retreats, personal direction were to be
the basis of the spiritual formation of the new generation.
It is in connection with Father Hurtado's work as a retreat
master that one glimpses something of his deep spirituality.
He gave many retreats each year. The most noteworthy of
these was the one given annually during Holy Week to some
two hundred young men, university students and the elite of
the Catholic Action movement. Observers have noted the effect which Father Hurtado's conviction, faith, and devotion
to Christ had on these young men. His conferences and points
for meditation left them deeply stirred and recollected; it
seemed that they received a share in his own highly spiritual
inner resources. The reason for this might be found in a remark of Father Hurtado that during the retreats he gave, he,
too, made the exercises with the exercitants. Otherwise, he
felt that his own spirit of prayer and recollection would not .
be attuned to the spirit of the retreat. It was an example of
the Ignatian spirit which recommends that force flow to the
of Life.
�370
OBITUARY
exterior action only by reason of the purity, depth, and richness of the inner life. Father Hurtado also wrote two other
books for young men, Affective Life During Adolescence, and
Crisis of Puberty and Education for Chastity. These few observations help to show the entire bent and direction of Father
Hurtado's life, a life dedicated to the formation of youth in
Christ. His single pedagogical doctrine and technique, his
whole secret was: "Love and serve."
In 1945 Father Hurtado was engaged in the social apostolate. He recognized that the Church of Christ could not
exclude the working class without denying her mission. He
published the book, Social Humanism, notes on social education for parents and teachers. After a year of study in the
United States, he published another book, Christian Social
Order, a documentary study of· the social doctrine of the
Church according to the writingS' of Popes and Bishops.
Yet Father Hurtado was not born to be a mere intellectual.
His personality impelled him to action. It seemed that his
temperament would not permit him a life free from intense
activity. As soon as he foresaw the possibility of a period of
idleness, immediately he laid plans for new projects. Above
all, the needs of his environment urged him to action. He had
seen thousands of abandoned men without a place to spend the
night, whole families wanqering from place to place without
homes. The Salvation Army alone maintained lodgings for
these people. In the city of Santiago, five thousand abandoned
boys slept beneath the bridges of the city or crouched in the
streets, covering themselves with newspapers or huddled together with their mongrel dogs for warmth. Often the~-news
papers casually noted that five or six persons had been found
dead of cold. These realities moved Father Hurtado to undertake his famous work, the Home of Christ. His object was
not only to provide food and shelter for those who had none but
also to offer to these men new possibilities in life. Within a
·year he had converted three large houses into dwelling places
for destitute men, women, and .boys and was assisted by a
group of trained social workers in the rehabilitation of the
poor. During the year 1951 Father Hurtado's Home of Christ
.provided shelter for 164,467 people. Between the years 194551, the total of those helped was 846,038.
�OBITUARY
.,. .... . . .
371
For the young men, the Home of Christ was not merely a
place where they were transient guests. It was a home. After
a period in which they acclimated themselves, they entered
upon the work of readaptation to a new way of life. They received primary instruction at the Home of Christ and then attended various technical schools according to their abilities.
They were trained as plumbers, carpenters, electricians, and
on a farm outside the city, farmers were trained.
Each night Father Hurtado would drive his small truck to
the bridges and slum areas of the city to find these homeless
waifs and bring them home. It was difficult to win their confidence to the point where they would come of their own accord
to the Horne of Christ. Father Hurtado often found the boys
filled with resentment, suspicion, and distrust. After they
arrived at the Home of Christ, the boys proved unused to
discipline. They were conditioned to the all but subhuman
behavior of the streets. Many of them would run away from
the Home of Christ. Father Hurtado would patiently seek
after them to bring them back. Even the dogs provided a
difficulty. The boys would not be separated from their mongrels. Father Hurtado met this problem by fitting up a special
kennel in the Home of Christ.
In 1949 Father Hurtado formed a society devoted to the
relief of the housing shortage. This society was a cooperative
for the construction of low-cost housing for workers. Three
hundred houses out of a projected thousand are already built.
The need for such housing is evident from the rapid growth
of the population which increased from 400,000 to 1,200,000
in the past 30 years. Inadequate housing conditions which
saw 400,000 persons at least, living in circumstances unfit
for human beings, resulted in serious detriment to morality.
A hut of one room, on the average, served six people. Promiscuity, therefore, and malnutrition prevailed. Education, religion, the very sense of morality were all but non-existent.
Father Hurtado insisted that it was futile to preach morality
to these people until some improvement in their economic
situation had been made.
Almsgiving, no matter on how large a scale, was not enough,
Father Hurtado realized. Charity given out of the fear of
justice was not charity. The working class had to be defended
�372
OBITUARY
and protected in their just demands. It was necessary to work
at the level of justice. Consequently, ASICH, the Association
of Chilean Trade Unions, was born. The object of ASICH
was the education of union leaders. Through the efforts of
ASICH in cooperation with many technical consultants, laws
were formulated and proposed to the Congress of Chile for
the improvement of the economic condition of the working
class. ASICH established a legal bureau which intervened on
behalf of workingmen in disputes with employers. This Association also published a newspaper called Union Tribune to
acquaint workers with the Christian social mind. Further,
ASICH is a member of the International Confederation of
Christian Trade Unions.
The movement which formed the ASICH, however, remains
in a nascent stage and by no means indicates that the labor
movement has been penetrated~.deeply by Catholic social
thought. The Chilean labor movement remains under Communist and Socialist domination. In the national council of
the Chilean confederation of workers, among the twenty highest leaders, three men from ASICH are to be found.
To guide Christian labor leaders, Father Hurtado wrote the
book, Syndicalism. When doctor's orders forbade external activity, he wrote his last book, Professional Morality.
Beyond these material achievements, Father Hurtado's main
contribution stands in the~ creation of a social conscience
among the Catholics of Chile and in gaining understanding
and respect for the social teaching of the Church among nonCatholics. This was accomplished by constant preaching,Jectures, conferences, and chiefly by his obvious sincerity. - ·
It must not be thought that Father Hurtado neglected the
intellectual class. One year before his death he founded the
monthly magazine, Mensaje, to bring the Christian vision of
life to bear on contemporary problems.
An enumeration of the works of a man will not depict his
personality. An attempt to describe Father Hurtado might
make use of the words of his lifelong friend, His Excellency
Msgr. Manuel Laraine, a Chilean Bishop, who said:
The works that he founded can die with the passing of years as
perish all human things. But a monument more lasting than bronze
• will project into time the great "Call to our social duty which Father
�OBITUARY
373
Hurtado has given to us. His attempt to implant his social doctrine
did not lack the cross of criticism and the gall of misunderstanding.
No dreamer's Utopia, no romantic exaltation, no bitter hatred
inspired his firm position and his straightforward teaching. To
be witness to a doctrine, not yielding before fear nor flattery, not
faltering though one's position is often misunderstood, not deviating
from the true path which one's doctrine should follow, this is no
easy task but it requires fortitude born of profound conviction,
serenity which knows that God will in time have justice, a vision
of eternity which bestows true value upon men and their problems.
This is the legacy which Father Hurtado has bequeathed to us.
Father Hurtado was an attractive personality and possessed
a happy and optimistic spirit which he could communicate.
He greeted everyone with a smile and the question: "What
can I do for you, patroncito (my little patron) ?" The same
happiness which he shared with the laity, he gave more generously to his fellow Jesuits. Impulsive of character, when
once he saw a work to be done, he was a man of action, yet he
was not deaf to the advice or contrary opinions of others,
although no advice could dissuade him from a work prompted
by his conscience. He never lost heart. In circumstances
which would discourage others, he would say: "For every
door that is closed to us, God will open ninety-nine." It was
his mission to open new horizons, to begin works, but he was
criticised because he appeared to force others to tend the seeds
which he had planted. The whole dynamism of his many enterprises finds adequate explanation only in his profound love
for Christ and his fellow men. His spirit of religious obedience was remarkable.
Of the many tributes paid to the memory of Father Hurtado,
the most touching perhaps was a newspaper editorial written
by a man who had lost the Faith. After expressing deep admiration for Father Hurtado, the editor wrote: "Those who
believe can pray for him and be consoled. I cannot find such
consolation. Therefore, for me his death is bitter, without
remedy, final."
RENATO POBLETE, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
CHURCH AND STATE
The Two Sovereignties. By Joseph Lecler, S.J.
sophical Library, 1952. Pp. x-186. $3.75.
New York, Philo-
In a most enlightening way for our time, Don Luigi Sturzo has portrayed systematically the expansion of consciousness through human
process by which man has penetrated the world around him with ever
richer and deeper levels of rationality. Good and evil, peace and calamity, truth and falsity, coupled with every type of human reaction to
apprehended values, have all by their dialectic tension jogged on this
processive infusion of rationality into man's total experience. Great
books are obviously helpful toward an appreciation of human experience
and tradition, and this little volume of Father Lecler is an outstanding
contribution toward clarification of a problem that has vexed mankind
ever since the distinction between the sacred and the temporal was injected into the human process by Christ. ' For as our understanding of
human realities, individual and especially social, develops, so too does
our sense for the nuances and tonalities of unchanging dogma in its
application to the concrete grow more confident.
Father Lecler, S.J., an editor of Etudes and a professor at the Institut
Catholique in Paris, published L'Eglise et la Souverainete de L'Etat in
1946, of which The Two Sovereignties is a translation. The book attempts a clarification of a most complex social problem--social on the
level of the sacred as well as on the level of the temporal and political.
It offers a doctrinal treatment of the basic Catholic principles governing
the Church's attitude toward the question of State sovereignty. This is
then complemented by an historical survey of the various incarnations
of these principles.
Father Lecler does not say the final word. That will come in its
proper time from the magisterium.. Meanwhile Catholic scholars are
working towards a solution. However, the book is very valuable in.its
insistence on the fact of a true progress in Catholic dogma, eveii. In
relation to the State. Nor has the dogma involved here been enunciated
with anything like the clarity of, say, a Trinitarian formula. The
Church has so long been involved in the business of defending her rights
against the persecutions which revelation indicated would always be
with her, that there have been few periods when a truly dispassionate
investigation of dogmatic ultimates could be undertaken. Hence Father
Lecler trumpets the absolute necessity of turning to history as a help
in discerning between "solidly-founded tradition and merely provisional
orientations." History as a discipline makes caution a habit, and in
this dogmatic field few intellectual qualities are as necessary as caution.
There is possibly no sphere of action and theory in modern society where
an uncautious zeal, however well intended, can so readily quench the
smoking flax. Nor is this caution a :pusillanimity in defending Catholic
truth, since there is much puzzlement in competent Catholic quarters
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BOOK REVIEWS
about the validity of many statements put forth by various private
Catholic sources as true Catholic doctrine.
Certainly the claim of the publishers that this book is likely to remain
a standard authority on the relationship of Church and State is not
completely without foundation. It is an important book, and that not
the least ii1 its observations on the modern phenomenon of the lay state.
FRANCIS
J.
GROGAN,
The Life of Archbishop John Ireland. By James H. Moynihan.
York, Harper, 1953. Pp. xii-441. $5.00.
S.J.
New
The years between 1875 and the end of World War I were turbulent
ones for the Church in the United States. In the center of the turmoil
stood John Ireland whose Irish heart would not permit him to turn away
from a good fight. Moved by zeal for the Church and love of America,
he plunged into the controversies concerning nationalism in the Church,
the school question, and the so-called heresy of Americanism. Although
the outcome was not all that Archbishop Ireland had wished, he never
surrendered, however much he wearied of the struggle as the years
passed by. Impatient with those who hesitated or delayed, sometimes
imprudent, he hurt tender feelings with his bluntness. Adversaries
struck back, of course. He expected that, and he complained only when
he thought an unfair blow had been landed. The Church owes this
apostolic warrior a debt of gratitude.
By becoming the first worthwhile biographer the Archbishop has had,
Monsignor Moynihan has attempted to pay some part of that debt. He
has indicated, as he set out to do, "the vision, the courage and the
myriad activities of 'the Apostle of the West,' as well as the contribution
which during half a century he made to Church and State." Readers
will be impressed by the tireless efforts Ireland made, the good he accomplished, the range of his interests, and the liberalness of his views. All
are included, with numerous quotations from the Archbishop's own works,
in this story of his life.
Little fault can be found with what is included in the book; a certain
amount of repetition is the inevitable result of bypassing the ordinary
chronological approach to biography in favor of separate essays. When,
for instance, the author writes of "The Educator" in chapter ten, he
cannot avoid repeating some of the things he already put down in his
chapter on "The School Question."
The chief objection to the work is that Monsignor Moynihan has not
allowed enough of Archbishop Ireland to come through to the reader.
His imprudence is mentioned but carefully concealed; so, too, is his impatience. His wit and humor are nowhere to be found in these pages,
while the force and color of his personality are apparent only in some
of the quotations from his own works.
Although one might wish for a more intimate personal acquaintance
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with the dynamic Archbishop, he will find here a readable and interesting
record of his multitudinous labors and lofty aspirations.
JOSEPH D. AYD, S.J.
IGNATIAN SPIRITUALITY
The Spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola, An Account of Its Historical
Development. By Hugo Rahner, S.J. Translated by Francis J.
Smith, S.J. Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. xv-142.
It is not enough to know only the final form of a thing, but also its
genesis and development. This truism, as old as Aristotle, has served
as a point de depart for Father Hugo Rahner, S.J., in his scholarly
study of the apostolic spirituality of St. Ignatius. First written at Innsbrock in 1947, and shortly after translated into French, this important
study of Ignatian spirituality is now made available in English by
Father Francis J. Smith, S.J., of the Chicago Province.
After a first reading of this unusually.. useful and truly inspiring commentary, the first thought that comes to mind is: "How has the author
managed to say so very much that is so worth-while in the compass of so
few pages?" And a rereading of the slender volume only underlines
the query. In less than 125 pages of text, Father Rahner has given us
as deep an insight into "the nature of the ideal of perfection" of the
Spiritual Exercises and the Society of Jesus as is, we think, humanly
possible. There is a conscious spareness and economy of words in the
author's style that only makes for a clearer presentation of the "genesis
and development" of our spirituality. He has given us that combination
,.of unction of the spirit and tradition" without which it is impossible
to gain a complete understanding-either of the Spiritual Exercises or of
our Society.
The genuine stamp of devoted and painstaking scholarship is heremake no mistake of that. But the author has succeeded in "breaking
through the surface of texts in the sources," and has uncovered tO .us
•'those depths which lie beyond the pale of pure history, where the
countenance of St. Ignatius in his contemplation of God takes on those
unforgettable lineaments which he has handed down in the books of his
spiritual experiences and in the books of the foundation of his Order."
(p. xi) Not content with this, Father Rahner has very tellingly and
beautifully placed the ideal of Ignatius and his Order into the general
stream of the history of the development of perfection from Apostolic
times until the Saint's own day and beyond. This he has achieved by
contrasting, while at the same time indicating the essentially similar
features of, St. Ignatius and that other Ignatius of Antioch, Basil,
Benedict, and Augustine, and lastly Catherine and Bemardine of Siena.
In each of these little gems of comparison we see the pre-eminence of
mystical contact with God, the Pauline "solicitude for all the churches,"
and 'the constant submission to the ·Church of Christ. "Every grace
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377
must be measured by the law of the Church; every love, by the spirit of
obedience; every spirit, by the Mystical Body of Christ, our Lord." (p.
xiii) St. Ignatius is unquestionably a man of the Church.
Naturally, certain facets of this mystico-apostolic spirituality are highlighted as a result of our study. First there is the ideal of service that
Ignatius meant himself and his sons to render to Christ's Body, the
Church-a service that must be characterized by the magis and the
caritas discreta that so mark the actualization of Ignatius' ideal. Speaking of this "discreet love" Father Rahner remarks: "No one can have a
right understanding or make an unfailingly correct use of this discretion, except one who has from prayerful experience learned to know the
source from which it springs; that is, from knowledge, enlightened by
grace, of the discernment of spirits, or, to speak theologically, from
knowledge of the relation existing between nature and grace, between
Christ and the world." (p. 42) The mark of service to be rendered to the
Mystical Body of Christ is found in the Society's ••illimitability"-to be
measured only by Christ and the daily battle for the salvation of His
Church-and in the Society's "readiness to dare and do all, never allowing
itself to be wholly confined within the limits of peaceful forms and tasks."
(p. 109)
As we make our way through this incomparable study of Ignatian
spirituality, we are forcefully reminded of those words of Father Lindworsky's: "Each one must to a certain degree himself become the
founder of the Order, grasp the ideal of the founder, animate himself
therewith, and apply it to himself in his particular conditions." (Psychology of Asceticism, p. 22) One might truly say that this book was
written in order to implement these words, and to fit them for use by the
Jesuit of today. For it perfectly fulfils the need of each of us to grasp
the ideal of our holy founder and to animate ourselves with that boundless love which burned within his saintly heart. Nor must the mystical
origin of the Society deter us from laying hold of this ideal of perfection.
"An intensive study of theology must compensate for our deficiency of
Ignatius' gift of sudden insight 'into the connection between the mysteries of our Faith and of the Church.'" And Father Rahner points to
three tracts of theology of the utmost importance for a right understanding of the Spiritual Exercises and the ideal of our Society. These
are: the theology of sin; the theology of the Kingdom of Christ as a war
waged against Satan; and the theology of the discernment of spirits.
(pp. 94-6)
"Therefore, we may sum up the results of this historical survey on the
ideal of perfection, as it should be lived in the Spiritual Exercises and
in the Society of Jesus, in the following words: Service in the Church,
under the banner of the ·Cross, for the glory of the Father." (p. 111)
And the spirit in which such service is to be rendered? 'A triple lovea love of discipline, reverence and self-forgetfulness.
Here, then, is a study that all of Ours must read, and reread-and
make its message the subject both of meditation and fervent prayer.
JOHN F. X. BURTON, S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Retreat Notes. By Joseph Keating, S.J. Edited by Philip Caraman,
S.J. .Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. xi-129. $1.75.
Father Joseph Keating, S.J., is best known for his work with The
Month. For thirty-two years, from 1907 until his death in 1939, he
served on its staff; for all but the first five years he was its editor. His
literary work consequently needs little introduction to English and
American readers. Now his posthumous Retreat Notes come as a worthy
supplement to his many other published works. Father Philip Caraman,
S.J., has edited the spiritual diaries which Father Keating kept of his
yearly retreats from his long retreat in the noviceship in 1883 until his
death. From these, beginning with the year 1910, when his retreat reflections become more direct and original, Father Caraman has selected
his insights into the retreat meditations. They make a worthwhile contribution to the literature on the Exercises.
The book is planned on the lines of the Exercises with its weeks and
meditations. For each meditation the editor has assembled in brief paragraphs the more striking inspirations which Father Keating received in
prayer. Each paragraph represents a distinct meditation and although
very compressed, the observations which .. Father Keating makes are
generally very stimulating. It is a humble book, only 129 small pages,
but for its compression of thought on the one hand and the power of its
message on the other, it is most admirable. It is a book which has to be
read very slowly but it well repays the reader by its discerning knowledge
of the Exercises and the spiritual life, the depth and maturity of its
spirituality, and the glimpses it gives us of the inner man. It will prove
useful both for those who give retreats and for those who make them.
JoHN J. McCoNNELL, S.J.
Obedience. By various Authors. Westminster, Newman, 1953. Pp. 289.
It is the purpose of this present volume of essays to dispel many of the
clouds of ill will and misunderstanding that shroud this ••christifyin~'
virtue. High-lighted throughout are the difficulties that confront the
youthful aspirant or candidate of today, so immersed in a milieu that
seeks personal salvation in a spirit of unbounded independence. His (or
more properly her) particular problems vis-d-vis obedience are given a
thorough airing; and appeal is made to reason and Revelation in arriving at methods of training and other ••adaptations" necessary in
modern religious life.
Obedience is the fourth in a series of studies undertaken by the
Editors of the French Dominican review, La Vie Spirituelle, and translated into English by an anonymous "C. P." The essays are divided into
those dealing with: History, Doctrine, Psychological Maturity, Experimental. The concluding chapter is on the total surrender that perfect
obedience demands, and is easily one of the best of the collection.
Although the essays were intended for women religious (and some are
�BOOK REVIEWS
379
written by women-religious and lay), it is surprtsmg how much in
common we have with the distaff side of the cloister-in this matter of
obedience. Human nature is the common lot of us all, irrespective of
sex, and it is human nature with which obedience must grapple. The
accidental differences which one must expect are, of course, given special
treatment. But this in no way detracts from the value of the book for the
Jesuit, whose ideal of perfection is so identified with this virtue of
obedience. Three of the chapters are written by Ours, and one of them
comments on St. Ignatius' contribution to the literature (and practice) of
obedience.
The problem of the lack of initiative that threatens the obedient religious; the necessity of love in the will if obedience is to be a "human
act" and so productive of a "human" personality; the inter-relation of
intelligence and faith, and its consequences on the ticklish subject of
"blind obedience"; and finally the function of the virtue as it is animated by love in the formation of Christ within us, are some of the more
valuable items of interest. The need for self-donation, and self-surrender
over self-realization are stressed throughout. There is scarcely a page
that will not yield inspiration and further understanding of this so
important virtue that thereby we may be led to a more complete practice
of obedience.
JOHN F. X. BURTON, S.J.
• • •
MOULDER OF MEN
A Moulder of Men, John H. O'Rourke, S.J. By W. Coleman Nevils, S.J.
New York, Apostleship of Prayer, 1953. Pp. xv + 284.
In compiling this memoir, the author has permitted Father O'Rourke
to write his own life and to speak for himself as master of novices, as
editor of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart, as preacher and retreat
master. Out of the immense amount of matter at his disposal, Father
Nevils has chosen typical examples of Father O'Rourke's writings, sermons, conferences, and meditations. From them all and from the
writer's skillfully interwoven commentary, there emerges the picture of
a Jesuit after the heart of St. Ignatius. In the memoir Father O'Rourke
stands out as pre-eminently contemplativus in actione, a man who
practised what he preached, who drank the chalice of humiliation and
was not unacquainted with sorrow, who refused, in spite of much pain,
both physical and mental, to mitigate his labors but went on day after
day with a smile on his lips. And his death was even more heroic .than
his life.
Father Nevils was well fitted to write this memoir. He spent the first
four years of his religious life under Father O'Rourke's care. He lived
with him at Poughkeepsie, when Father O'Rourke was instructor of
tertians. He made two Long Retreats under Father O'Rourke's direction and was frequently in touch with him during Father O'Rourke's
literary and apostolic life. He himself was deeply influenced by Father
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O'Rourke's teaching and example and was well aware of the extent of
the influence which Father O'Rourke exerted on others, both within and
without the Society. He had a profound and lasting admiration for
Father O'Rourke's tireless zeal, his apostolic energy, his spirit of
poverty, his ardent love of Jesus Christ, and his personal holiness.
Father Nevils might easily, therefore, have been led into writing a
panegyric. He has not done so. His memoir is marked throughout by
an admirable restraint and is a sober presentation of facts. The style,
as in his other books, is facile, simple, unaffected, with a gracious undertone of humor. Himself no mean moulder of men, he has given us an
inspiring portrait of a great moulder of men. Those who read the book
will be grateful for it. It is good to know that we have had, and still
have, men like Father O'Rourke.
J. HARDING FISHER, S.J.
• • •
LAY APOSTOLATE
The Faith and l\lodern l\lan. By Romilno Guardini.
theon Books, 1952. Pp. vii-166. $2.50.
New York, Pan-
In the preface to the twelve essays that form the book under review,
Monsignor Guardini reminds the reader of their special history. Written during the late war, they were prompted by a desire of the author to
inform and strengthen the minds of a confused people in Germany.
Originally twelve lectures delivered in a Berlin church, these essays were
distributed as letter enclosures until their suppression by a hostile government. Each grew spontaneously from the questionings and doubts of
Christians in a period of severe spiritual threat.
Guardini re-examines and clarifies for modern man various fundamental truths of the Catholic faith, and he selects those that are especially challenged in the world today. In order, his subjects are adoration,
God's patience, God's dominion and man's freedom, the Lordship of
Christ, providence, revelation as history, faith, doubt in the stage!( of
life, dogma, the saints, the devil, and purgatory. The author writes ~rom
personal experience with the contemporary problems of man, and undoubtedly he is in close contact with the modern mind. He is a theologian who restates fundamental truths with a warmth and persuasiveness. Without being polemical, his apologetic writing is eminently clear
and instructive for priest and layman. This is indeed an appealing and
rewarding book by one of the foremost theologians in Europe today.
His reflection on the distinctive character of a Christian is particularly
appropriate today when Christian life is threatened: HTo stand firm, the
Christian will have to gain a deeper and purer understanding of his
own nature. He must know the sacred history which stretches from the
beginning of the world down through all the mighty acts of God to Christ,
and from Christ to himself. He must believe in a much more actual way
in p_rovidence in his personal life--not in the sense of a wise, universal
order, but in the sense that his own destiny is being guided by his Father
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BOOK REVIEWS
in heaven, and that the salvation of what appears to him a casual, but
what to God is a precious existence, is linked with the coming about of
God's kingdom. Through this understanding every happening will take
on meaning, every hour be significant in its demands."
MARSHALL B. WINKLER,
S.J.
* * *
We and the Holy Spirit. By Leonce de Grandmaison, S.J. Translated
by Angeline Bouchard. Chicago, Fides, 1953. Pp. xix-223. $3.75.
The notes used by Father de Grandmaison in his conferences to a
group of schoolteachers are here assembled into a program for lay
apostles. His is a plain hard diet-docility, labor, prayer, purification.
The apostle's sanctity is rooted in a desire to spread the Kingdom of
God. Its atmosphere is habitual prayer and docility to God's inspirations; its reward, besides a harvest of souls, is apostolic joy.
In teaching mental prayer he makes excellent use of citations from
Sts. Bernard and Augustine to show how a text from scripture can be
savoured and how thought merges into affective prayer. Yet his chief
contribution in this field is his concept of "virtual prayer," a conscious
preference of apostolic interests over selfish concerns, God's plans over
human plans, the Spirit of Christ over the spirit of the world. "It is
truly prayer because it unites us to God, makes us docile to His inspirations and attunes us to His will .••• It is called 'virtual' because it continues long after the few positive acts from which it flows, and it has an
impact on our life that is far out of proportion to the time devoted to
these positive acts."
Style is the book's main defect. Often the notes are too brief and
abstract to be meaningful; and the translation, though generally well
done, is a bit too literal. The result is phrases like "martyrizing zeal"
or words whose English meaning is different from what the author intends. Then, too, Father de Grandmaison would doubtless have been the
first to delete many fleshless mediocre chapters whose only recommendation is his name.
The book is more suited to occasional meditation than a continuous
reading. On the whole it offers to the educated lay apostle suggestions
that are practical as well as inspiring, and to friends of Father de Grandmaison a rewarding view of his spirit and ideals.
JOSEPH E. KERNS, S.J.
A Layman's Way to Perfection. By Robert B. Eiten, S.J.
Grail, 1953. Pp. 117. $1.75.
St. Meinrad,
"The matter treated here should provide enough material for a twohour course on the Spiritual Theology of Perfection for the Laity."
In the light of this, the author's purpose, the book should be judged a
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BOOK REVIEWS
success. It is concise, moves clearly and systematically through the call
to perfection, the concept of perfection, sin and the counsels-all in terms
which a layman would readily understand.
Practicality is its outstanding virtue. It does not merely praise
spiritual reading but suggests a few titles; and after advising the reader
to draw up a way of life with definite ideals, it offers a sample program
and describes some of the organizations in the United States today for
laymen aiming at perfection. Awareness of the layman's special problems is apparent in its suggestions for making the Catholic home an attractive place to live, or in its treatment of devotion to the saints, a
section especially useful in this age of novenas.
The style is suited to a textbook, plain, clear, with bare outlines often
preferred to a more literary treatment of topics such as meditation and
the general examen. Though technical Latin terms are remarkably well
translated, the examples are often weak and dilute a book that is otherwise rich in content.
The treatment is rapid, sketchy, and designed to be supplemented by a
teacher. However, directors in search of a brief clear guide for laymen
aspiring to perfection might do well to consult this book.
JOSEPH
E. KERNS, S.J .
• • •
Perfection Is for You. By Thomas J. Higgins, S.J.
1953. Pp. x-271. $4.25.
Milwaukee, Bruce,
This series of twelve conferences on phases of the ascetical life, originally intended for Religious but here adapted to laymen, is obviously the
product of many years' work. The author's contention, very well expressed in the preface, is that ~"Inspiration, to be genuine, must be
grounded upon faith and reason, and that groundwork should be manifest." The book that results is notable for a theological depth that is
rare in works of this type.
Scripture, the Summa, and a host of authorities are marshalljld. to
support or illustrate ideas. Almost every page is fortified with appropriate quotations from the Fathers. The author's own observations,
such as those on the relations of subjects and superiors, are often penetrating and always marked by common sense. If there is a defect here,
it is the failure to deal more concretely with the particular problems of
laymen. The book still tends to discuss asceticism in general, and too
many of the examples have meaning only for Religious.
The style is always clear, tends to be abstract, and requires slow,
thoughtful reading. An unhappy choice of words makes it uneven at
times. Colloquialisms like "smithereens'' do not sit well amid theological
terms and such heavy phrases as "making us like unto God."
The first two chapters with their description of perfection and the
soul's progress toward it, are the book's outstanding contribution. On
the whole it is a happy blend of aoctrine and inspiration and should
�BOOK REVIEWS
383
arouse in educated laymen with a reflective turn of mind a· desire for the
life which it describes.
JosEPH E. KERNs, S.J.
• • •
How to Read the Bible. By Abbe Roger Poelman. Translated by a
Nun of Regina Laudis, O.S.B. New York, Kenedy, 1953. Pp. 113.
$1.50.
This self-teaching guide to the inspired word, translated from the
popular French edition Ouvrons la Bible, deserves a place on the shelves
of the Catholic laity. Though little more than a set of program notes
to help the uninitiate follow the score, the book is accurately gauged to
encourage the ordinary person who knows not where to start nor how to
proceed through the ponderous Scriptures.
The author actually makes the Old Testament look less awesome by
his method of simply highlighting salient aspects, persons, and events in
the chronicle and by suggesting for reading brief snatches of more
memorable passages. In this way the thread of continuity is easily fol-·
lowed and the reader is more apt to be impressed by the historical consistency of God's dealing with our race. Frequent and appropriate cross
reference, especially to the New Testament, brings out the Messianic
design very fittingly.
Since this is a "how-to" book and not a commentary, one ought not to
argue with the author for according more space to the Pauline writings
than to Gospels and Acts together. For like a useful set of Ignatian
points, the notes offer a minimum prelection for profitable reading without taking away the reader's joy of discovery. In our age of religious
illiteracy when men run more than they read, this kind of aid serves a
blessed purpose.
NICHOLAS J. CARROLL, S.J.
• • •
Of Sacraments and Sacrifice. By Clifford Howell, S.J.
The Liturgical Press, 1952. Pp. xi-171. $2.50.
Collegeville,
Seeking to attract new readers, the editors of Worship (formerly
Orate Fratres) requested Father Clifford Howell, S.J., to do a series of
articles which would help "the beginner," new to the liturgical point of
view. The popularity of the series warranted their reappearance under
one cover. Of Sacraments and Sacrifice is the result.
The title indicates the general division of the book, yet hardly indicates
the scope of the material covered. Opening with an explanation of the
purpose of the liturgical apostolate as "mature Catholicism" or the
active participation of the laity in the liturgy, Father Howell deftly
guides the reader through the fundamentals. The notion of the supernatural and the life of grace, the doctrine of the Mystical Body, the
sacramental order, and what is involved in the terms "liturgy" and '"worship" all receive clear explanation. With his sight set on the uninitiated,
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BOOK REVIEWS
criticism of the sketchy treatment given such profound doctrines would
hardly be fair. The reader may be disappointed, however, that the treatment of the sacraments individually is so brief. The historical picture
of the sacrament of penance as practised about the sixth century will
evoke lay-folk interest.
With the conviction that Catholics do not understand the Mass, precisely because they do not understand the meaning of sacrifice, a detailed
exposition of its nature and meaning is given. There follows a brief
explanation of the theology of the redemption in the perfect sacrifice of
Christ. The notion of the lay priesthood plus a chapter on completing the
sacrifice by accepting God's return gift in Holy Communion receive due
treatment. The Dialogue Mass is promoted, while Father Howell scores
heavily against private prayers during the Mass-a public act.
The two final chapters differ widely from the general theme. The vitality of our liturgy having been lost (not in substance but in outward
form), a liturgical reform is advocated. The Mass in the time of Pope
St. Gregory is envisioned as having attained particular excellence with
the social nature of the sacrifice made apparent by differentiation of
function by the participants. The priel!~ doing all in today's Mass
performs a "one-man sacrifice." The key problem of public worship today
is posed as, "extrinsic difficulties of the esoteric liturgy we have had for
centuries have produced an intrinsic difficulty of mental maladjustment."
It is a question of private devotions versus public worship. The solution
is seen in a reorientation of the public mind from, "the hyper-sentimental, individualistic, self-centered type of piety, to the dogma-filled,
communal and Christocentric type enshrined (or should one say buried)
in the liturgy."
Father Howell is no radical, nor does he advocate any revolutionary
readjustment, yet he is progressive. He is convinced that the reform
will come. Meanwhile he gives hhnself to preparing the faithful with
partial solutions.
JOHN E. BENNETT, S.J.
• • •
--
The Sacred Heart Encyclicals of Pope Leo XIII and Pope Pius XI.
Edited by Carl J. Moell, S.J. New York, America, 1953. Pp. 72.
$.25.
On the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Miserentissimus
Redemptor, Father Moell has edited this commemorative pamphlet which
contains four encyclical letters on devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
It is dedicated to Leo XIII, the Pope of Consecration, and to Pius XI,
the Pope of Reparation. Each letter is followed by a brief outline. The
collection closes with an excerpt from Pius XII, on the Unity of Human
Soci,!'lty.
JAMEs A. McKEouGH, S.J.
��
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Woodstock Letters
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Jesuit Archives & Research Center
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JA-Woodstock
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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2017-2
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99 items
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 82 (1953)
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1953 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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JA-Woodstock-082
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BX3701 .W66
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eng
lat
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JA-Woodstock
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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407 pages
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1953
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77c26006c50314ebed500e3e729aec43
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Woodstock Letters
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n79046634" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits</a>
<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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BX3701 .W66
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Jesuit Archives & Research Center
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives & Research Center
Saint Louis University
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JA-Woodstock
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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2017-2
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99 items
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 81 (1952)
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1952 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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JA-Woodstock-081
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BX3701 .W66
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lat
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JA-Woodstock
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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425 pages
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1952
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85c850d9429e60e69116c1e281e5b441
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Text
A.M. D. G.
THE
WOODSTOCK LETTERS
A RECORD
OF CURRENT EVENTS AND HISTORICAL NOTES CONNECTED
WITH THE COLLEGES AND 1\IISSIONS OF THE
SOCIETY OF JESUS
VOL. LXXX
223
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE
1951
FOR CIRCULATION AMONG OURS ONLY
�INDEX TO VOLUME LXXX
I :;:;
I/1'---x
ARTICLES
Boston College High SchooL________________________________________________ 227
Carroll House ......-------------------------------------------------------- 45
China l\Iission in Exile __________________________________________ 327
Contemplating the Saints ..------------------------------------------------------ 37
Death of Our German Scholastics at Herrsching _____________ 341
For Bread and Wine ______________________________________________________ 99
Glenmont Retreat House ... ----------------------------------------Green House Burns ------------------------------------------------------:Illustrious Jesuit Visits New Orleans______________________________
Influence of the Retreat Movement_____________________________________
Jesuit Mission in Ajacan ----------------------------------------------Modern Jesuit Mystic ________________________________________________________
New Church of St. Ignatius, Chestnut Hill, l\Iass._______________
New Deal in 1\Ianila ....... ~--------------,.--------------------------------------Politburo Retreat ------------------------------------~------------------------------------Priests' Institute for Social Action ... -------------------------------------Twenty-fifth Anniversary of Jesuit Missions _______________________
157
55
49
1
351
143
51
160
163
13
320
CONTRIBUTORS
ALEXANDER, C. A., Twenty-fifth Anniversary of
J estt it 11!is sions_________________________________________________________________________ 32 0
AREVALO, CATALINO, Priests' Institute for Social Action,
1950 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 13
BURRUS, E. J., Illustrious Jesuit Visits New Orleans____________ 49
COLLINS, JOHN, Obituary of Bishop Emmett_______________________ 325 •
DONAVON, HUGH C., Obituary of George A. Gilbert ___ :____________ 171f -FITZSIMONS, MATTHEW J., Obituary of George Johnson ...... 387
JAEGER, ODILON, A Modern Jesuit Mystic_______________________________ 143
KRIM, FRANCIS, The New Boston College High SchooL ______ 227
LIPMAN, JOHN K., Obituary of Pius L. Moore_______________________ 79
LOO!IHE, ALBERT J., The Green House Burns__________________________ 55
The Jesuit Mission in Ajacan ________________ 351
Obituary of John J. Wynne____________________ 61
MAHER, ZACHEUS J., Influence of the Retreat Movement________ 1
Obituary of Joseph R. Stack ________________ 167
McCooL, GERALD A., A Modern Jesuit Mystic _______________________ 143
�McCusKER, WILLIAM C., Obituary of James J. Walsh ________ 177McGoVERN, THOMAS A., The Green House Burns___________________ 55
MoNAHAN, LEO P., Obituary of Charles J. Mullaly________________ 253
MuLLER, OscAR, A Modern Jesuit Mystic ________________________________ 143
O'DONNELL, THOMAS J., For Bread and Wine________________________ 99
O'HARA, ALBERT R., China Mission in Exile.................................. 327
O'MARA, JOSEPH, Contemplating the Saints__________________________ 37
STECKLER, GERALD, Obituary of Nicolaus Fox_____________________ 85
Obituary of William Smith ____________________ 263
WEISS, ARTHUR A., Politburo Retreat------------------------------------ 163
WIESEL, HENRI J ., Carroll House______________________________________________ 45
ZoRN, GEORGE, Glenmont Retreat House ____________________________________ 157
Publications of American Jesuits in 1950 _____ 397
Statistics of American Assistancy ineunte
1951, and whole Society ineunte 1950 ____ 53
BOOK REVIEWS
BOASE, LEONARD, S.J., The Prayer of Faith (John J. Nash) 277
BOYTON, NEIL, S.J., Nothing Ever Happens to Me (Joseph
D. Ayd) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- .416
CASANOVAS, IGNACIO, S.J., Commentario y Explanacion
de los Ejercicios Espirituales de San Ignacio Loyola
(Bernard W elzel) -------------------------------------------------------------------- 403
CAYRE FULBERT, A.A., The Vital Christian (John J. Nash) 278
CHRISTIE, JOSEPH, S.J., and LAWSON, \VILLIAM, S.J., Red
Letter Days (John J. Nash) ________________________________________________ 189
CLAUDIA, SISTER M., I.H.M., Guide to the Documents of
Pius XII (John J. Nash) ______________________________________________________ 412
CORBISHLEY, THOMAS, S.J., Roman Catholicism (Gustave
\Veigel) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 282
CREHAN, JOSEPH, S.J., The Osterley Selection from the
Latin Fathers (Walter J. Burghardt)---------------------------- 413
DESPLANQUES, F., S.J., Living the Mass (W. Norris Clarke) 187
DUHR, JOSEPH, S.J., The Glorious Assumption of the Mother
of God (E. A. Ryan)--------------------------------------------------------- 91
ENGELBERT, OMER, The Lives of .the Saints (Walter J.
Burghardt) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 408
ESPINOSA POLIT, AURELIO, S.J., Our Happy Lot (James
M. Carmody)----------------'----------------------------------------------- 405
FAHERTY, WILLIAM B., S.J., The Destiny of Modern Woman
(Walter J. Burghardt)-------------------------------------------------------: 411
FoRD, C. DESMOND, S.J., Pathfinders of Christ and Saints
As Guides (John J. Nash) ____________________________________________________ 186
GRAEF, HILDA, The Case of Therese Neumann (W. Nonis
Clarke) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 280
HAWKINS, HENRY, S.J., Partheneia Sacra (Joseph A. Slattery and John J. Nash>------------------------------------------------ 281, 191
�HURLEY, THOMAS, S.J., Fath~r Michael Browne, S.J. (James
A. Devereux)___
----------------------- 405
KENDALL, KATHERINE, Father Steuart (Kurt A. Becker) 273
KENNEDY, J. H., Jesuit and Savage in New France (Joseph
A. Slattery) ___________________________________________ 269
KRENZ, LEO M., S.J., Our Way to the Father (John J.
Nash)
----------------------88
LAwsoN, WILLIAM, S.J., For Goodness Sake (Joseph A.
Casey) ----------------------276
LAWSON, WILLIAM, S.J., and CHRISTIE, JOSEPH, S.J., Red
Letter Days (John J. Nash) _________________________________ 189
LEARY, JoHN P., S.J. (ed.) Better A Day (J. Calvert Brown) 271
LEBUFFE, FRANCIS P., S.J., Meditations on the Prayers of
the Mass (W. Norris Clarke) _______________________________ 411
L'Hom, F. X., S_J., Alter Christus: Meditations for PriestB
(Dominic W. Maruca>------------------------------------ 409
LaNGRIDGE, W. H., The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
of Loyola (George Zorn)----------------------------------- 401
LoRD, DANIEL A., S.J., His Passion Forever (John J. Nash) 188
LUDDY, AILBE, O.Cist., The Nazarene (David W. Carroll)_ 274
MARTINDALE, C. C., S.J., The Meaning of Fatima (Albert
J. Loomie)------------.----------------- 96
MCCARRON, HUGH MICHAEL, S.J., Tlie Family of God: A
Study of the Catholic Church (Joseph T. Clark) _________ 283
McGRATH, FERGAL, S.J., Newman's University: Idea and
Reality (Vincent Biehl)-------------------------------------------------- 413
McGRATTY, ARTHUR R., S.J., I'd Gladly Go Back (John J.
Nash) ------------------------------------------------------- 406
McGRATTY, ARTHUR R., S.J., The Sacred Heart: Yesterday
and Today (Robert T. Rush)------------------------------------ 271
MooRE, THOMAS H., S.J., The Risen Dead (James M.
Carmody) ---------------------------------------------------- 278
NAsH, ROBERT, S.J., Living Your Faith (John J. Nash) ___ 275
O'RAHILLY, ALFRED, The Family at Bethany (Edwin D.
Sanders) ------------------------------------------------------ 87
OWENS, SISTER M. LILLIANA, S.L., Jesuit Beginnings in
New Mexico (Albert J. Loomie) ----------------------------- 190:
PLATTNER, FELIX ALFRED, Jesuits Go East (John J. Nash) 26f -PLUS, RAOUL, S.J., Living With God, Some Rare Virtues,
Simplicity (John J. Nash) ____________________________________________ 277
PRAT, FERDINAND, S.J., HEENAN, JOHN J., S.J., (tr.),
Jesus Christ: His Life, His Teaching, and His Work
(Edwin D. Sanders)--------------------------------------------------- 192
PUHL, Lours J., S.J., The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius
(George Zorn)------------------------------------------------------- 185
RING, GEORGE C., S.J., Religions of the Far East (Hugh
J. Bihler >----------------------------------------------------------- 188
ROPER, HAROLD, S.J., Jesus in His Own Words (Avery R.
Dulles) ---------------------------------------------------------- 274
�RYAN, MARY, Introduction to Paul Claudel (Joseph A.
Slattery)-------------------------------------------------------SHANAHAN, EMMET A., Minnesota's Forgotten Martyr
(Clifford M. Lewis)--------------------~----------------------------SIWEK, PAUL, S.J., The Philosophy of Evil (Ralph 0. Dates)
SIWEK, PAUL, S.J., Une Stigmatisee de Nos Jours, Therese
Neumann de Konnersreuth (W. Norris Clarke)____________
SoNTAG, P. J., S.J., Meditations for Every Day (Robert
T. Rush)----------------------------------------------------------SWEENEY, FRANCIS, Baroque Moment (Joseph A. Slattery)
WILMOT, CHRISTOPHER, S.J., Lift Up Your Hearts (J. Harding Fisher)----------------------------------------------------
279
94
415
92
410
272
407
GENERAL INDEX
Administration of Society, recent changes in administration of 197
Ajacan, Jesuit mission in 351-86
Alonso 365
American Jesuit publications in 1950 397-400
Araneta farm 330-33, 333, 337-40
Araneta, Vicente 26
Arevalo Family 336
Atherton, Lawrence 157
Aulneau, Jean Pierre 94
Baguio 334ff.
Barber, Samuel 105
Beauce, Father :l27
Bengzon, Jose 335
Borgia, Francis 353ff.
Boston College High School 227-34, pict. 227
boys, training of in our schools, 222ff.
Brownson, Henry 106
Bruckner, Ernest 328, 331-2 ·
Brunner, George J., obit. 75
Burkhardt, Father, 324, 329, 334
Carillo, Diego 354ff.
de la Carrera, Juan, relatio of 368ff., 378ff.
Carroll House 45ff., pict. 45
Catholic University, and Carroll House 45ff.
Ceballos, Br. Sancho 357
Chabanel Hall 336-7
Chestnut Hill, Mass., new church of St. Ignatius 51-2, pict. 51-2
China Jesuits in Philippines 327-40
�Chinese Language School 336-7
Clark, Francis X. 20
~
colleges, recently accepted 199, advances in staffing 201
Congregation of Procurators, addresses of Fr. General 195-225
Cowley Fathers 402
Cox, Ignatius 320
Cullum, Leo 329, 330, 333, 336
Curia, staff of 196
death of German Scholastics 341-50
Delaney, John P. 18, 31
Desautels, Jean 337
Dillon, Father 322
Dio, Brother 330, 332, 335
dogmatic theology, value of 224
Dolin, Peter 320
Don Luis 356-9, 363-64, 374ff.
Dufresne, Etienne, obit. 245-4 7
Early, John 106, 130
El Retiro San Inigo, obit. of Fr. Stack 167ff., pict. 167
Emmett, Bishop Thomas A., obit. 235-45
Faulhaber, Cardinal 346
Florida, early Spanish exploratio'n· 351ff., Jesuits invited 352,
Jesuits depart for 354, and Franciscans 380
Fox, Nicolaus, obit. 85
Franciscans, arrival in Florida 380
Frumveller, Aloysius F., obit. 247
Furay, Harry B. 27, 335
General, Rev. Fr., addresses to Congregation of Procurators
195-225, letter on Humani Generis 291-319, on spiritual condition of Society 202-225
Georgetown University, sketch of Patrick Healy 99ff.
German Scholastics, killed at Herrsching 341ff.
Gilbert, George A., obit. 175
Glenmont Retreat House 157ff., pict. 97, 156
Gomez, Br. Gabriel 357
Gregorian University 223
-- __
growth of work of Society, colleges and seminaries 199, ecclesiastical institutes 200, numbers 196
Gschwend, Joseph 322
Hanley, C. Justin 157
Haskins, George 119, 125, 129
Hartmann, Br. Andrew, obit. 265
Hawkins, Henry 191, 281
Healy, James 100ff.
Healy, Patrick F., subject of "For Bread and Wine" 99ff.
Healy, Sherwood llOff.
Hennessey, James 330-2
�Hennessy, Charles J. 46ff.
Herbert, Nicholas 47
Herrsching, death of Scholastics 341ft'.
hierarchy, relations with Society 195, 199
Hogan, Walter B. 17ft'., 160
Hugendobler, Paul 330
Humani Generis, letter of Fr. General on 291-319
Irish Jesuits at Hong Kong 329
Jesuit Missions, twenty-fifth anniversary 320ff.
Johnson, George, obit. 387
Kelly, Laurence 322
Kilmartin, Br. James L., obit. 180
Kinghsien, Seminary 328ff.
Klippert, Father 335ft'.
Landivar, Rafael 49-51
Latin America 199, 200
Lenerz, John, obit. 72
Linares, Br. Pedro 357
Los Banos 336ff.
Lynch, Denis 332-3
Mahlmeister, Br. Clarence F. 158
Martinez, Pedro 354
Maxcy, Joseph F. 19
McGehee, Junius 47
McGinley, James J. 13ff.
McMahon, James 320, 333
McMenamy, Francis 322
Meany, Stephen J. 160
Menendez de Aviles, Pedro, exploration of Florida 352ff., correspondence with Borgia 355, invites Jesuits to Florida 352,
report on Province of Florida 380, voyage to Ajacan 368ff.
Mercat Cross, new periodical 287
Messenger, editions suppressed 287
missionaries, methods of 222
missions and Society 206, increase in 1926-51, 320ff.
Moore, Pius L., obit. 79
Miiller, Francis, at burial of German Scholastics 348
Mullaly, Charles J., obit. 252, pict. 253
Mulligan, Edward C., 159
Neumann, Therese 92, 280
"new theology" 213
O'Brien, Paul 339ff.
O'Hara, Albert 28
parishes, acceptance by Society 218
Parsons, Wilfrid 45ff.
�- pedagogy, need of courses for Ours 213
persecution of Ours 198
Philip II 352ff., Cedula of 365
Philippines, Priests' Social Action Institute 13ff., Chinese exiles
in 327ff.
Pickel, George J., obit. 66
Powell, William 47
publications of American Jesuits 397ff.
Quiros, Luis Francisco 356ff., 358-613, 365, 374ff.
Relationes of Juan de la Carrera 368ff., 378ff., of Juan Rogel
363ff., 367ff.
recollection, and formation of Ours 207-9.
religious observance 209-11
retreat movement 1ff.
Reus, John Baptist 143ff.
Rodrigo, Francisco A. 26
Rogel, Juan 353-4, 363, 367, 370ff.
Rudden, Francis J., obit. 77
Schaal, N. 19
Scholastic philosophy, value of 224
Sedeno, Padre 368-9
·
Segura, Juan Baptista, arrival in Florida 354, before entrance
into Society 356ff., letter to Juan de Hinistrosa 361ff., death
365, 374ff.
seminaries, recently accepted 199
Sinclair, Mr. 336ff.
Smith, William, obit. 263
· · Spellman, Cardinal 328
spiritual condition of Society, address of Fr. General 202-25
Spiritual Exercises, 1ff., 37ff., 163-5, 185, 216-18
Stack, Joseph R., obit. 167
statistics for American Assistancy 1951, whole Society 1950 53
Stritch, Michael I., obit. 70
Sweeney, James P. 157
third probation 215
Torralba, Aloysius 27
training of boys 221ff.
Tuffer, Michael 111
Villareal, Brother 354, 368
vocations, increase in 196
Walsh, James J., obit. 177
Weiss, Arthur A. 29
Woodstock, Green House fire 55ff;, pict. 1
Wynne, John J., obit 61
Zehetner, Father 331
��THE WOODSTOCK FIRE m' JANUARY 21, 1951
(The critical phase~• .firemen direct a stream of water on the Philosophers' Wing which had
caught fire from the Green House. In the background other firemen are seen directing a stream
of water on the ruins of the Green House. For a description of the fire see l'P· 55 if.)
�THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
FEBRUARY, 1951
VOL. LXXX, No. 1
THE INFLUENCE OF THE RETREAT
MOVEMENT
ZACHEUS
J. MAHER, S.J.
The subject :assigned for our present discussion
could be approached in a variety of ways. In retrospect, it might be asked: What impression has the
retreat movement during the years of its marvellous
growth since the dawn of the century, made on the
spiritual life of the nation, and by nation we mean the
country as a whole, and not merely the Catholic element thereof?
On looking to the future, one might seek to learn,
in view of its present magnificent proportions, to what
extent the movement might rightly be. expected to
affect the moral and religious consciousness of the
nation in the years to come.
Further, one could ask for .a delineation of the
fields in which such influence should be exerted, or
for a determination of the manner and guidance under
which it ought to be exercised. The nature of this
influence, too, presents another interesting subject of
discussion.
I
L
This address was delivered at the National Catholic Laymen's Retreat Conference in Los Angeles, April 21-23, 1950,
under the title: The Influence of the Retreat Movement on
National Sanctities.
�2
RETREAT l\IOVEl\IENT
Thesis
My selected approach may be stated as a thesis in
the following terms:
1. The primary influence of the retreat movement
is individual and interior, the consequent is social and
exterior;
2. This consequent influence, however, is not immediate but mediate, nor is it to be restricted to matters exclusively religious or moral;
3. The mode and measure of this influence is to be
determined by those whom the Holy Spirit has set
to rule over the Church of God: the sovereign pontiff,
the hierarchy and those to whom these have committed supervision over this apostolate.
I-a: The primary influence of the retreat movement is individual and interior, '
Surely one need not pause'' to demonstrate this
truth to the present assemblage. The direct aim of the
retreat is to re-establish, if lost, or to intensify, if
present, that union of the individual soul with its
Maker, which is of the very essence of the supernatural
life, and this, per Chris tum Dominum Nostrum.
I-b: The consequent influence of the retreat is
social and exterior.
Not to be misunderstood at the outset, I hasten to
assert that this influence is not called consequent, in
the sense that it is a by-product of the retreat. On
the contrary, it necessarily flows therefrom, at least as
far as the retreat is concerned. A scholastic might calL:_
it "equally primary," but we shall not cavil at
nomenclature, provided our meaning be clear.
Pius XI thus authoritatively expresses it in Mens
Nostra:
"Moreover from this perfection of Christian life,
which is manifestly obtained from the spiritual exercises, besides that inward peace of soul, there springs
forth spontaneously another most choice fruit, which
redounds to the greatest advantage of the social life,
namely the desire of ,gaining souls to Christ, which is
�RETREAT 1\IOVEl\IENT
3
known as the apostolic spirit. For it is the genuine
effect of charity that the just soul •.. burns to call
others to share in the knowledge and love of that
Infinite Good which she has attained and possesses."
And lest anyone say that this applies only to the
clergy, the Pontiff adds: "Our own regions require
compact companies of pious laymen who united to the
apostolic hierarchy by close bonds of charity, may
help it with active industry, devoting themselves to
the manifold works of Catholic Action."
Intense Apostolic Spirit
I
A direct result of the retreat, therefore, is to imbue
the retreatant with an intense apostolic spirit so that
he may have the will and the generosity to spend himself and be spent in the cause of Christ, in as far as
his individual character, attainments and circumstances may warrant him to participate actively in
the great apostolate of the Church. And I believe that
it is precisely in instilling this spirit into men that the
major contribution of the retreat movement to the
spiritual well-being of the nation consists.
For reasons it is not pertinent to our subject to
recount, the laity have hitherto not been sufficiently
conscious of this, their responsibility. Pius XI stressed
the gravity thereof in his encyclical on atheistic communism: "Be ye doers of the word and not hearers
only, deceiving your own selves. The most urgent
need of the present day is, therefore, the energetic and
timely application of the remedies which will ef. fectively ward off the catastrdPhe that daily grows
more threatening. We cherish the firm hope that the
fanaticism with which the sons of darkness work day
and night at their materialistic and atheistic propaganda will at least serve the holy purpose of stimulating the sons of light to a like and even greater zeal for
the honor of the Divine Majesty."
And Pius XII in his too little known allocution to
Renascita Cristiana thus exhorts the members of the
movement: "Resolved as you are to observe fully in
�4
RETREA'l' MOVEMENT
your own lives . . . the sacred law of God, you wish
in the field in which circumstances planned by
Providence have placed each one of you, to collaborate in leading souls back to the one Lord and Master
. . . Such is the meaning of the entire work of
redemption, and every apostolate, whatever may be
its form, is but a participation in that redemptive
work of Christ." 1
The great cry across the length and breadth of the
land is for workers and for yet more lay workers in
the cause of Christ, for men, Pauline in spirit, who,
fired with zeal, will not measure time nor effort nor
cost nor convenience in their endeavor to spread the
Kingdom of Christ, and this out of sheer personal devotion to Him and out of thankfulness for what He has
done for the race, and for each individual member of
the race, in the ultimate expression of His love, which
was His redemptive death on the Cross.
"Give me," cries Pius XII, "in every parish a
handful of laymen, alert, well-informed, devoted, and
I will change the face of the earth." 2
Now it is the duty and the supreme responsibility of
the retreat movement, but not exclusively so, to furnish
the Church with just such a body of men, men who
strive to fulfill the ideal held up by the sovereign
pontiffs in their great directives on Catholic Action.
The qualities needed in such men are precisely those
which the retreat of its very nature tends to engender
and will engender provided the retreatant himself
_:
place no obstacle to their development.
These are the men who sense the value of cooperation; they realise how much it means to a cause if
many will do the little thing that thus the big thing
may be done. These are they who see the meadows
green in springtime, and know they are such because
each single blade of grass has made its contribution to
1Catholic Mind, July, 1947.
2Quoted by William E. Burke in his address to the Eastern
Unit of the CEA, Atlantic City, November 26, 1949. Cf. College News-Letter, December, 1949.
�RETREAT MOVEMENT
5
the coloring of the landscape; these are they who
learn more than industriousness from the ant; these
are they who seek no human recognition for the efforts
they expend, who are not disappointed if it be not
forthcoming; for they look to God alone for their
adequate reward. They know how fleeting is praise
from the lips of men, as transient as the voice which
utters it. These are they who are content to remain
in obscurity, the hidden men, the forgotten men but
the so necessary men, working all the while out of
love for Christ. These are they who spread the fire
which the Master Himself came to cast on earth and
wished so ardently that it be enkindled.
To the retreat houses of America and to the retreat
masters we say: Give us such men and give them to
us in abundance. This is your responsibility, this your
privilege, this your magnificent opportunity.
Social Influence
To substantiate my second proposition: That the
consequent objective, the exterior and social influence
which the retreat movement should exercise on the life
of the nation is not to be restricted to matters exclusively religious or moral, I quote again from Pius
XII in his allocution to Renascita Cristiana:
"To wish to draw :an exact line of separation between religion and life, between the natural and the
supernatural, between the Church and the world, as
if they had nothing to do with each other, as if the
rights of God were valueless iJ:f all the manifold realities of daily life, whether human or social, is entirely
foreign to Catholic thought and is positively antiChristian.
"The more, therefore, the powers of darkness bring
their pressure to bear, the more they strive to banish
the Church and religion from the world, the more
there is need on the part of the Church herself, of
steadfast and persevering action in order to reconquer
and place all fields of human life under the most
�6
RETREAT l\IOVEl\IENT
sweet empire of Christ, so that His spirit may breathe
more abundantly, His law reign with a more sovereign
sway and His love triumph more victoriously. Behold
what we must understand by the Kingdom of Christ.
"The task of the Church is indeed arduous, but they
are simply unwitting deserters or dupes, who in
deference to a misguided supernaturalism, would confine the Church to a 'strictly religious' field as they
say, whereas by so doing they are but playing into
the hands of their enemies."
These words of His Holiness :are tremendously
significant. They are the Magna Charta of the Church's
liberty, as ancient as her divine constitution, but
modern in their renewed expression today. They are a
direct denial of the contention of the enemies of the
Church, whether in our own or, in other lands, that
her activity must be restricted. ,to the sanctuary and
the sacristy. Because of them, factious groups in
America assail her, the Nazis in their heyday assaulted
her and Russia today along with her satellites, jails
and tortures and murders those who would vindicate
this, her divine prerogative.
"All fields of human life," says the Supreme Pontiff,
must be placed under the most sweet empire of Christ,
and the reason is clear: for all human relations,
whether domestic, civic or social, whether industrial or
professional, whether national or international, all,
since they are pertinent to man, must necessarily have
a religious and moral aspect, and as such, fall under
the magisterium of the Church, the one and only-·.
divinely constituted guardian and expositor of faith
and morals.
To bring the mind of the Church to bear correctly
upon any given human relationship, however, requires
that the one doing so be well versed in the twofold
aspect of that relationship: the religious or moral, and
the technical or specific.
To speak authoritatively on labor relations, for instance, a man must be quite conversant with labor as
such, and with the ethics of labor as well. To speak
�RETREAT 1\iOVEMENT
7
rightly on medical relations he must know both the
moral and the medical phases of the problem.
Now, I respectfully submit that it is not the province
of the retreat movement either to provide in whole or
in part, or to delay upon the imparting of this moral
or technical information during the course of a retreat.
The retreat house is not a college or a university.
It is not a seminary nor a seminar. It is not an institute of social service nor a labor college. It is not
a town hall or a study club, not a forum nor a table
round which men gather for discussion. All these have
their time, their place and their worth, but not during
the retreat. The retreat is a solitude wherein the soul
communes with God for its own sake that it may
later commune with men for their sake, and the more
exactly the retreat adheres to its primary purpose the
more perfectly will it secure its consequent objective.
Latent Possibilities
I seek not to narrow the horizon of the retreat;
rather I labor to broaden it. Hitherto the range of
vision has been too circumscribed. Palomar has revealed unsuspected planetary galaxies; perhaps a
deeper penetration of latent possibilities may do a like
thing for the retreat movement.
The magnificent achievement of the present by no
means exhausts its potentialities. Designed to do a
definite work, it should never swerve from its great
objective. But there are other activities, vital to the
well-being of Catholic life, and.. vital to the spiritual
life of the nation as well, to which the retreat movement can give tremendous impetus and which it can
foster in a variety of ways. To such works as these the
movement is bound, not as to works of supererogation,
optional :at pleasure, but by the strong law of charity,
and now particularly, because of the religious chaos
in which we live.
The movement must not only fire men with zeal
so that they will dedicate themselves to this apostolate
-
�8
RETREAT 1\IOVEl\lENT
of the laity, but it must contribute towards their training, so that, skilled in the two-fold aspect of human
relations, they may effectively influence their fellow
men, whether these be of our faith or otherwise, and
through them, the nation.
I make no pretence of entering on a complete
enumeration of these activities nor of presenting a
detailed description of how this contribution is to be
made. I do indicate avenues of approach, in the hope
that others may follow through.
I must premise a remark or two:
It is a mistake to contend that a continuously increasing attendance at any one retreat house is a
desideratum. There is a saturation point beyond which
a retreat loses its characteristics, defeats its own purpose, and becomes unwieldy.· When that point is
reached, there is need of another retreat house in
that locality and it should be welcomed by the incumbent. God knows there is work enough for all and
more than enough, and glory too. Nowhere have we
drained the pool of prospective retreatants. There is
room for a variety of works; there is room for a
variety of workers as well. Pertinent are the words
of Pius XII in his Encyclical Mediator Dei on the
liturgical movement:
"As far as the various ways of carrying out these
exercises are concerned, let every one know clearly and
with certainty that there are many mansions in the
Church on earth, not less than in heaven, and that a·
monopoly can be held by no particular form of asceticai ·
discipline. There is one Spirit who nevertheless
breatheth where He will and by various gifts· and
various ways directs the souls which are illuminated by
Him to the attainment of holiness. Let their liberty,
however, and the supernatural action of the Holy
Spirit in them be something sacrosanct, which let no
one by any right disturb or trample on." 8
Further: The generous and universal response of
aAmerica Press Edition, p. 72, n. 179.
�RETREAT MOVEMENT
9
the men to the material needs of the house gives
evidence of their deep appreciation of the work and
assures its support. It should not take long for a
house to be economically secure, even though it carry
a debt. The financing of the activities I am about to
propose should not deter one from undertaking them.
Go to the Workman
First and foremost: "Go to the workman." Pius XI
gave this directive to the clergy in his encyclical on
atheistic communism, but it is applicable to the layman
and to the retreat movement as well. Had it been better followed, many countries in Europe would not
now be lamenting the fact that the workman has been
lost, or largely so, to the Church.
Thus speaks the Holy Father: "To priests in a
special way We recommend anew the oft-repeated
counsel of Our Predecessor Leo XIII to 'go to the
workingman.' We make this advice our own, and faithful to the teaching of Jesus Christ, and of the Church,
We thus complete it: 'Go to the workingman, especially
when he is poor and in general: go to the poor.' If the
priest will not go to the workingman and to the poor,
to warn them or to disabuse them of prejudice or
false theories, they will become an easy prey of communism."
What is done in other lands can be done in our
own. With the cooperation of management and of
labor, hold conferences in the factory. Oarry the retreat, or the best substitute you can devise for it,
to the workingman in the shops 'and centers of occupation. Management has made tremendous strides in providing facilities for the rest, relaxation and refreshment of its employees to keep them physically fit; give
them to see the effectiveness, even in a material way,
of this spiritual uplift and they will cooperate in making these conferences possible. Do not expect numbers
at the outset. Oaks do not grow overnight.
Next, establish and support houses wherein days
of recollection may be held, right down in the heart
-
�10
RETREAT l\IOVEMENT
of the industrial area. This is not said in criticism of
the locations commonly chosen for our retreat houses.
These justify their selection, but this further step
is necessitated by the very circumstances of the times
in which we live.
Go further and conduct a house of recollection on
Skid Row where everyone is welcome and everything
is free. Was it not thus that guests were gathered for
the wedding feast? No man is so far down that we
cannot or ought not stoop to lift him up; no man has
wandered so far but that we cannot reach out a hand
and lead him back. Is all this a fanciful dream? God
grant it may come true.
The other line of possible activity has to do with
the training of those men who, imbued by the retreat
spirit, will give themselves wholeheartedly to the
apostolate. The doers of the word and not the hearers
only.
Some retreatants may be qualified by previous training to engage in this apostolate at once; others may
not. The retreat movement should collaborate in providing the necessary instruction, either at the retreat
house itself or elsewhere.
Does it not seem a pity that the splendid appointments of our retreat houses lie idle for the greater
part of the week? Could they not be utilised during this
time for the conduct of study clubs, and for all such
like means of imparting the instruction needed for
the effective worker, instruction which should not be
given during retreat time itself?
Or if it be that a neighboring college or local parish
organization provide this instruction, then the retreat
house should mesh into the activity in such wise as to
lend it maximum support. Time forbids me to go into
detail or to enumerate other possible activities.
My last proposition states that all these activities,
if and when undertaken, must be carried out under
the supervision of the hierarchy, suppositis supponendis. This point is clear beyond discussion. It is
emphasized for the record.
�RETREAT MOVEMENT
11
I hope my few remarks have not sounded involved
or contradictory. A summary may clarify latent uncertainties.
The retreat is primarily and essentially concerned
with the interior spirtuallife of the individual, but not
exclusively so. From it results that zeal which will find
expression in an apostolate active in the salvation of
souls.
This activity, however, requires definite preparation,
but this preparation is not the immediate objective of
the retreat, nor is it to be undertaken during the
retreat. In doing so lies the great danger, the great
temptation.
Yet from this it would be erroneous to conclude that
the retreat movement should be unconcerned about external activities; on the contrary, participation in
these should be two-fold:
1. To provide men for the work and to imbue them
with a strong apostolic spirit;
2. To cooperate in furnishing these men with the
definite preparation needed, and this either at the
retreat house, but out of retreat time, or by cooperation
with other agencies which provide the same. And all
this is to be done under the direction of the hierarchy.
With this I rest my case, for it would be presumptuous on my part to attempt to set before this audience
either the tremendous need there is for a spiritual
regeneration of the nation or to emphasize the part
the retreat movement could and would play in this
rebirth were each retreatant to measure up adequately
to the expectation, in his regafd, of the movement
itself, or of the nation or of the Church.
RECOLLECTION
For keeping up continual recollection of God this pious
formula is to be ever set before you. "Deign, 0 God, to set me
free; Lord, make haste to help me" (Psalm 69, 2), for this
verse has not unreasonably been picked out from the whole of
Scripture for this purpose. For it embraces all the feelings
-
�12
RECOLLECTION
which can be implanted in human nature, and can be fitly and
satisfactorily adapted to every condition, and all assaults. Since
it contains an invocation of God against every danger, it
contains humble and pious confession, it contains the watchfulness of anxiety and continual fear, it contains the thought of
one's own weakness, confidence in the answer, and the assurance of a present and every ready help. For one who is
constantly calling on his protector, is certain that He is always
at hand. It contains the glow of love and charity, it contains
a view of the plots, and a dread of the enemies, from wh'ich
one, who sees himself day and night hemmed in by them,
confesses that he cannot be set free without the aid of his
defender.
This verse is an impregnable wall for all who are laboring
under the attacks of the demons, as well as an impenetrable
coat of mail and a strong shield. It does not suffer those
who are in a state of moroseness and anxiety of mind, or
depressed by sadness or all kinds of thoughts to despair of
saving remedies, as it shows that He, who is invoked, is ever
looking on at our struggles and is n.ot far from his suppliants.
It warns us whose lot is spiritual success and delight of heart
that we ought not to be all elated or puffed up by our happy
condition, which it assures cannot last without God as our
protector, while it implores Him not only always but even
speedily to help us.
This verse, I say, will be found helpful and useful to every
one of us in whatever condition we may be. For one who
always and in all matters wants to be helped, shows that he
needs the assistance of God not only in sorrowful or hard
matters but also equally in prosperous and happy ones, that
he may be delivered from the one and also made to continue
in the other, as he knows that in both of them human weakness is unable to endure without His assistance.
We must then ceaselessly and continuously pour forth. the.
prayer of this verse, in adversity that we may be delivered; .
in prosperity that we may be preserved and not puffed up.
Let the thought of this verse, I tell you, be conned over
in your breast without ceasing. Whatever work you are doing,
or office you are holding, or journey you are going, do not
cease to chant this. When you are going to bed, or eating, and
in the last necessities of nature, think on this. This thought
in your heart may be to you a saving formula, and not only
keep you unharmed by all attacks of devils, but also purify
you from all faults and earthly stains, and lead you to that
invisible and celestial contemplation, and carry you on to that
ineffable glow of prayer, of which so few have any experience.
JOHN CASSIAN
�PRIESTS' INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL ACTION 1950
CATALINO AREVALO,
S.J.
A warm, sultry morning in early April: gathered
in the Ateneo College Assembly Hall are over one
hundred priests. Some wear black cassocks, one is
garbed in the brown robe of Saint Francis, most (in
this warmest time of Manila's year) are in cool, plain
white. Their sincerity brings new life to the tired adobe
walls wherein they have assembled-ruined walls which
at various times helped to enclose a normal school, a
college, a seminary, and most recently an unsuccessful
air-raid shelter.
And quickly the ruins become a symbol: something
is dead and will not rise; something else, however,
is being born, and will live to bear much fruit. A new
spirit, perhaps, a new confidence. Certainly a new
eagerness to know and to tell about the Catholic Social
Program in this beloved land which an industrial revolution is now bruising and a Communist state may yet
embrace.
The Reverend James J. McMahon, S.J ., rector and
president of the Ateneo de Manila, walks up to the
platform, leads the traditional Hail Mary and extends
to all the welcome of the Ateneo. PISA 1950 has begun.
Busy Prelude
It is an auspicious beginning. For Father James J.
McGinley, S.J. (by the grace of the Fulbright Act,
first director of the Ateneo's Department of Social
Sciences), organizer of this first Priests' Institute for
Social Action, the event has something of the nature
of both an end and a beginning.
Hectic weeks of preparation have preceded this
morning's simple opening. Back in the late fall of 1949,
Father William F. Masterson, S.J., then rector of the
The first Priests' Institute for Social Action-PISA-was
held at the Ateneo de Manila, Manila, Philippines, April 10-14,
1950.
�14
SOCIAL ACTION
Ateneo, started planning. Approbation, enthusiastic
approbation, had come from His Excellency the
Apostolic Delegate. The Archbishop of Manila had
pushed it with fullest support. To all the bishops, letters had been dispatched at their request, announcing
and describing the details of the proposed Institute,
and summoning delegates to Manila. All through the
last few weeks of Lent, in Passion Week and in Holy
Week, telegrams, letters, notes, telephone calls had
poured in: "expect five from Bacolod, make eight
reservations name vicar general Jaro diocese, must
arrive day late please reserve space, etc."
For at least two weeks every available duplicating
machine in the school buildings had hummed with
ceaseless activity as page after page of mimeographed
notes hurried forth to be stacked and stored for later
assemblage into oversized manila envelopes. This was
the "big brown kit" that was to ..serve both as textbook
and reference book throughout the week-and after.
Included were copies of the Bishops' pastoral entitled
Social Security, outlines for lectures, reprints of
articles, sermon outlines for the coming year back at
parishes and missions, and an outline-bibliography for
each class, each "quickie" talk, each "special event." A
so-called diary accompanied this, with a page for each
item on the whole busy week's schedule. Each page
gave time, place, topic, for a particular event, and
told the student which sheets should come out of this
"kit" for each talk, etc. It also gave him space and
incentives for note-taking!
_:
On Easter Sunday morning, Jesuit Scholastics (John
King, Vincent Towers, Miguel Varela, Bartholomew
Lahiff, Catalino Arevalo, and others), and Ateneo
Sodalists (Sixto Roxas, Antonio Quintos, Luis Sison,
Manuel Lim, Joaquin Lim, Arturo Consing, Raymundo
Hontiveros, Salvador Gonzalez, Guillermo Soliven,
Enrique Esquivel, Miguel Avanceiia, and many others)
were still assembling the packets, sharpening pencils,
readying the registration office, and putting finishing
touches to the PISA 1950 "exhibit."
�SOCIAL ACTION
15
A responsibility entrusted to the Social Order Club,
unit of the Ateneo College Sodality, this exhibit room
housed charts, diagrams, labor school outlines, pictures,
pamphlets, books, and film strips (with projector and
screen arriving a bit later!) literally from allover the
world. England, Australia, France, Belgium, Canada
and the United States-and interested people in each
of these places-had managed to get something worthwhile here in time, even after too short a notice! The
collegians set up these items under four headings: the
problem, the Communist challenge, the Catholic
answer, and what priests can do about it. India ink,
cartolina, colored ribbon and thumbtacks had been the
order of the day for quite some days but the result
was worth it: a supplement to PISA that used still
another means to repeat essentials of the whys and
wherefores of the Catholic social program. With goodhumored practicality, these young men set up the
opening unit of the exhibit right next to the only
water-cooler in the immediate neighborhood!
Outstanding auxiliary to the exhibit was a series of
illustrations for each paragraph in the Bishops' pastoral, Social Security. There were eighteen of these,
produced during the wee hours by one of Ateneo's
artist-students. They were posted in the lecture hall
itself, nine on a side, and were an inspiring silent
lecture going on at all times of the day and night.
By late Easter Sunday afternoon, when everything
was in readiness a travel-stained, travel-weary parish
priest came into the director's office. This priest had
been on the dusty road since nine that morningstraight from the land of the Huks. He wanted to make
sure of registration!
And then Easter Monday morning priests arrived
at the PISA office from all over Manila, most having
already arrived in Manila itself from distant provinces,
towns and parishes. They had come by bus, by plane, by
car, by ship, by train, from every part of the Islands.
And when the local statistician took over, it became
clear that one hundred and twenty-three priests finally
�16
SOCIAL ACTION
had arrived for the first PISA. They represented fourteen dioceses and archdioceses, as well as an apostolic
vicariate (Mountain Province) and an apostolic prefecture (Mindoro). Twelve religious orders and congregations had sent representatives, and priests were with us
from twenty-five provinces and ten cities. Most were
from rural and agricultural districts.
In addition to the seventy-five members of the
diocesan clergy, representatives of the following Orders
and congregations totaled forty-eight: Congregation
of the Mission of Saint Vincent de Paul (C.M.),
Congregation of · the Immaculate Heart of Mary
(C.I.C.M.), Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer
( C.SS.R.), Mill Hill Missionaries (M.H.M.), Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate ( O.M.I.), Order of
Discalced Carmelites (O.C.D.); Order of Friars Minor
Capuchin (O.F.M. Gap.), Sacred Heart Missionaries
(M.S. C.), Society of the Divine Word (S.V.D.), Society of Foreign Missions of Quebec (P.M.E.), Society
of Jesus (S.J.), and Society of Saint Columban
(S.S.C.).
Not counting twenty-three Jesuits-several of whom
were from nearby communities-an even hundred
priests had come to PISA 1950 from as far north
as Tuguegarao and from as far south as Davao and
Cotabato. And these were the voices that responded
to Father McMahon's first Hail Mary of the week.
But while this first session marks an end to the
busy period of preparation, it is only the beginning 9f
a still more hectic week. Every waking hour will betaken up with the thousand little details that must be
attended to: arrangements for Masses (See Mr.
Esquivel, please) ; Father So-and-so's telegram has to
be sent (Father King, are you free just now?), notes
distributed for the afternoon session, this Father's
query speedily answered, "One paper in my .set of
notes is missing, Father, can you supply it?"-"Where
may I get that book on credit unions ?"-"Cancel
Father So-and-so's reservation for lunch"-and so
�SOCIAL ACTION
17
on, ad infinitum. But of this, perhaps more later. We
'must be getting on with our story.
Monday, April Tenth-The First Day
Father McGinley gives a brief introduction to PISA:
"The objective is to provide you with facts, motives
and methods in your social apostolate. Everything
about and in this Institute is aimed at one or all of
those three goals."
The first class is launched by Father Walter B.
Hogan, S.J. (Director of the Philippine Institute of
Social Order) . A humorous incident provides a symbolic beginning. Father Hogan tacks a map of the
Philippines to the blackboard. It is hung upside down.
"That's a symbol of our present economic system," he
remarks, righting the map. Very briefly, Father Hogan
points out the basic social program in the Philippines:
there are some twenty millions of people in the Islands;
population is growing daily (it will be forty million in
1980) ;. very few own land; tenancy is widespread and
in provinces where tenancy is greater, the problem of
peace and order, the Huk problem, is more serious:
"E.ven as we gather here, just sixty miles away, the
Communist troops are also gathered."
Father McGinley's class then follows. It is an introductory summary of the Catholic social programthe documents and their meaning-on the purpose of
property, the di,gnity of work and of the worker,
and the authority of the Church in social matters.
He makes the point that it is a genuine program,
not just a heap of haphazard suggestions, and that it is
ours, as priests, to propagate and to foster.
His Excellency, the Archbishop of Manila, drops in
at merienda time, begins the next session with a few
words to the assembled priests. "The five days set aside
for the Institute are not days of leisure," he says. "They
should be days of earnest effort, of coming to grips with
the very many and very grave problems facing our
country today. The effort should be eminently worthwhile. If the priests in our country were to join in
-
�18
SOCIAL ACTION
an organized social apostolate, with God's help, we
may yet achieve the righting of the social disorder.
Debemos organizarnos-this Institute may well be
the beginning of such an organized effort."
Father John P. Delaney, S.J., has the third morning
class. His talk on the role of the family in social reconstruction is stimulating and practical. "We may well
ask ourselves," he begins, "why reconstruct the social
order?" The answer: for the sake of the family. He
finds the family nowadays abdicating: parents laying
aside their responsibilities, passing them on to school
and state. And yet the work of educating the child is
first and foremost theirs, as parents! A pressing need
is for the priest to re-educate the family: the family
must be made to realize its dignity, its importance, its
responsibilities. The priest must constantly teach the
dignity and beauty and importance of the vocation of
marriage. It is in God's plan the vocation of most people, and yet we constantly fail to explain its ideals to
the laity. Young men and young women about to get
married are hungry for the highest spiritual ideals
for their married life. Father Delaney is explaining the
idea of "Cana Conferences" as the bell rings to end
PISA's first morning.
Lunch time at the College store is pleasant and
friendly. Talk and discussion are animated and familiar. A short selection from Quadragesimo Anno
starts the meal. Then the padres take over. As the
Institute progresses, this friendly family spirit be-·
comes more and more evident. It is one of the finesi ·
things about this Institute.
The first discussion period in the early afternoon
(3 :30 and is it warm!) proves lively and interesting
from the outset. A Father from Indang, Cavite, poses
this difficulty: the parish priest, more often than
not, does not have the opportunity to instruct the wellto-do on their social obligations as employers. The duty
therefore falls on Catholic schools (in Manila, above
all) where most of our well-to-do people study. And
judging from employers who are graduates of our
�SOCIAL ACTION
19
Catholic colleges, the schools have fallen down on the
job! Father Hogan points out that co-operation is
needed between the school and the parish. The ideal
would be to have the school properly instruct young
persons on their obligations and then send them on to
the parish priest who would follow up. Father Delaney
admits that sometimes the schools have failed to teach
the social doctrines of the Church, adds that sometimes, too, the school is not to blame. Both the teacher
and the pastor must have patience. The social doctrines
are still new to most people. We must do everything
towards educating our people to them, but the fruit
may not be visible at once. It may take generations. A
Father from Meycawayan gets a hand for reminding
us that priests must begin reconstructing the social
order by practicing social justice in the sacristypaying their own employees adequately.
Father N. Schaal has dropped in for the discussion.
He is Pastor of an Indian flock at San Agustin Church,
Isleta,· New Mexico, U.S.A. He is in Manila only for a
few days on the way to Rome. The director asks
Father Schaal to recount his work with members of
his unusual parish. While far away, its problems may
be very close. Our guest tells the story of winning
over his people by becoming a farmer like them ("We
must not be ashamed to work with our hands,") helping them raise better crops, get commodities for lower
prices. "It has been said," he states, "that what the
Philippines needs are good priests. I will say now
after I have been present at this gathering: What the
Philippines needs are more good priests."
In the first of the two "quickie" talks that follow,
Father McGinley discusses the Apostolic Delegate's
masterly analysis of the social problem in the Philippines (address to the Knights of Columbus last fall).
Briefly: the weaknesses of liberal capitalism are the
only real sources of strength for atheistic communism.
Father Joseph F. Maxcy, S.J., director of the Catholic
Welfare Organization, then gives a brief history of
this agency of the hierarchy, stressing its aims, its
-
�20
SOCIAL ACTION
accomplishments, its services. He points out the
readiness of C.W.O. to handle a variety of problems
for priests and illustrates this by reconstructing a
typical day at "the office."
Time out for supper. At seven-thirty, there is a talk
on the Mystical Body of Christ. This is given by
Father Francis X. Clark, S.J., rector of Sacred Heart
Novitiate. After an inspiring resume of the theology
of the Mystical Body, Father Clark shows the practical
bearing of this sublime doctrine on daily life, charity,
the working together of bishops and clergy, of diocesan
and regular priests, of clergy and laity. The talk is
a fitting climax for a hard but wonderful day.
Tuesday, April Eleventh: Down to Work
As the first class begins, there is an even bigger
number of priests present in th~ hall than yesterday.
Father Hogan has an eight-foot map of the Philippines now. His talk begins on a note of self-examination: we must beware of absorbing the mentality of
our day, the mentality of those about us, the "praise
and honor and glory to the rich man"-the worship
of wealth. Unless we are watchful, unconsciously we
make this attitude our own. We must preach the
Gospel of Christ whole and entire, even the text:
"How difficult it is for those who have riches to
enter the Kingdom of God!" This requires faith and
the courage we so often lack. The present social .
order makes it almost impossible to see the image of~·.
God in the workingman. And ninety-two per cent
of our flock are workingmen!
In Father McGinley's class which follows, a whole
period is spent thumbing four documents: Quadragesimo Anno, Rerum Novarum, Statement of the American Hierarchy (1940), Statement of the Philippine
Hierarchy (1949). We take four or five points only,
and find them reappearing constantly in each of these
"handbooks" for reconstruction of the social order.
In the third class, Father Hogan continues on the
�SOCIAL ACTION
21
subject of unionism: its necessity, naturalness, and
logical role in an economic system such as ours. In
fact this topic flows right through the luncheon talk
and reappears at the discussion that afternoon. A
Father from the Manila Archdiocese requests Father
Hogan to give a factual summing-up of the status
of trade unionism in the Philippines. It is not a very
encouraging picture: the trade union movement is
directed by Communists on the one hand, by racketeers
on the other. The hope we have is in proper organization of small unions, honest unions, and the gradual
affiliation of these into a large, responsible labor body.
Here a Father from the J aro Diocese asks the PI SA
faculty for a program outlining practical action for
individual parish priests, and suggests that a mimeographed bulletin be issued periodically to those who
have attended PISA. It would make a fine followup for the future. The point is discussed in lively
fu~~.
•
The director then calls on a Belgian Father who
has worked with labor unions in the mining districts
of the Mountain Province. This priest knows his
miner parishioners at prayer, at work, and at play.
For the present, he thinks, there are two tasks in
his area which must be carried out before any real
progress can be made: the laborers must be properly
educated to trade unionism, and (perhaps more important) the officers of unions must be trained to responsible and honest leadership.
A bombshell lands on the discussion floor. One
Father eloquently pleads for an honest facing of the
living wage problem on our part as priests. It is
easy enough to calculate what the living wage should
be, but do we ourselves pay it, always? We can only
preach social justice effectively if we begin by practising it. To this all agree, and a few common sentiments
become clear thereafter: it is only too true that we
priests, in many cases, lack a practical realization
of the economic consequences of the Gospel. It is
about time we faced the question honestly and stopped
�~
22
SOCIAL ACTION
"kidding" ourselves. Is it lack of faith on our part,
that we do not do all we should in this regard? Conversation continues animated both inside and out of
the lecture hall during the short "break."
At four-thirty, Father Herman Martens, C.I.C.M.,
of Paco, traces the history and constitution of the
Young Christian Workers. He recounts the first
beginnings of the Y.C.W. in Paco: the realization that
the workingman's living conditions in the city are
such that only with serious difficulty can the Christian
laborer remain really Christian. For instance, there
is no such thing as home or family-life for most
workingmen-with four families in one barong-barong.
He stresses the need for priests to take the initiative,
to go from house to house, to bring the laborer back
to .living a Christian life in his own environment.
All afternoon the heat has been unbearable. So
we take an unscheduled paus'e in the patio shade,
toward the end of this class.
Time for the special event has been advanced from
seven-thirty to six-thirty at the request of the majority
of priests attending the sessions. This evening starts
off with Father McGinley discussing the living wage
as treated in official Catholic pronouncements: meaning of this "decree of nature more ancient and more
imperious than any bargain between man and man,"
nature of the right and obligation involved, norms
for determining a "fair day's work," and the responsibility on society as well as on employers. He.
contrasts paternalism with the papal expression of.
rights and wrongs in the boss-worker relationship.
Father Hogan next brings up an as yet incomplete and unpublished survey prepared with the aid
of the Institute of Social Order. This is a factual,
minutely-detailed study of living costs in and around
Manila, for a family of five supposedly maintaining
a standard of decency and frugal comfort. Some think
the final figure high. None are able to decrease it by
much-and retain the requirements for decent family
living. All realize it is something well above the
�SOCIAL ACTION
23
current wage scale in and around Manila-whether
on farm or in factory.
"If this is a radical conclusion," Father Hogan
states, "then we must remember that we start out
with radical premises: Christ's teaching on justice
and charity, on the use of wealth, etc. How far are
we-in our practial evaluation of property, for instance
-from the early Christians!"
The evening closes with two films: "Crucifers to
Walsingham," an inspirational picture on the 1948
pilgrimage of 15,000 persons to the shrine of Our
Lady of Walsingham, England (produced by the
Catholic Film Society of London), and an F.A.O.
March of Time release: "The Battle for Bread."
Wednesday, April Twelfth: Right in the Middle
Father Hogan leads off the day's first session with
a question: "In the face of the prevailing chaos in
economic life, where must we look for a solution?"
Not in government action. Not in voluntary action
toward social reconstruction by the employers-at
least not in the city of Manila, where such action
is certainly not forthcoming. In labor action, then.
In the organization of labor unions founded on Catholic social principles that will in time prove strong
enough to win for the workingman, peacefully but
strongly, his dghtful means to decent human living.
In this field the priest must act through the layman.
The Institute of Social Order is helping organize
many responsible labor unions, so that a large group
of good unions may become a force for real progress
in the industrial set-up in the Philippines. "You're
dreaming big, you may say. It is the only way to
dream, nowadays."
Father McGinley, in the second period, takes up
the point that a priest-as a priest, not because he
happens to be interested-has a definite role to play
in the reorganization of social economy. He reviews
some statements on this from Benedict XV to Pius
�24
SOCJ.AL ACTION
XII. He sums it up by applying the motto of Pius
X: "to restore all things in Christ."
In the third class, Father Delaney points out that
indoctrination in Christian social principles must be
given right with the catechism lessons. He once more
stresses the need of training the family: not father,
mother, children separately, but the family precisely
as a family. One very effective means of training the
family is the "Cana Conference." After giving a
brief account of how the movement started, Father
Delaney lines up a typical Cana Conference day,
explains the role of the priest-director in these retreats, and emphasizes the paramount importance of
making the Mass the center of family life. The concepts of love and sacrifice, of the vocation of marriage,
of parenthood, of family unity can all be tied up
very effectively and very beal!tifully with the Holy
Sacrifice of the Mass.
In response to a difficulty channeled through the
question box, Father McGinley opens the afternoon
discussion period by pointing to a basic defect in
the paternalistic system: the substitution of charity
for justice. True, paternalism may bring certain
benefits with it, but in the end it offers no solution
to the social problem, since it does not touch the
fundamental point: recognition of the worker's
rights contractually wherever contracts are helpful.
After all, this is the economic security and inde.
pendence of which the Encyclicals speak.
A Mill Hill missionary from troubled N egros in the
Visayas reveals his experience that the present level
of education of workingmen makes it impossible to
build up a union. There is great difficulty in teaching
some workers even basic concepts of trade unionism.
Father Hogan acknowledges this difficulty. The work
is often discouraging for that very reason, he states.
But, convinced of the necessity and importance of
solving the problem, we have to get unions started
and we have to keep working to do so.
�SOCIAL ACTION
25
Another priest from the same area recounts
difficulties he has met: opposition from otherwise
friendly groups-those who help support the Church
no less! He asks two questions: 1) Is it prudent, at
the present time, to preach the social doctrines of
the Church from the pulpit; could we accomplish more
by going about this business slowly and quietly, without arousing needless resentment by thundering it all
at once from the pulpit? 2) What if employers tell
you that even professedly Catholic organizations do
not pay a living wage? A faculty member answers:
"1) Yes, it is prudent, it is necessary, and it is about
time we made it clear from the pulpit that it is as
genuine a mortal sin to defraud workingmen of their
rights as it is to have two wives. The unjust, as well
as the unchaste, wind up in hell unless they mend
their ways. Setting aside human respect, we must be
willing to preach that and to face the consequences
of preaching that. 2) What is wrong, is wrong!"
The first "quickie" talk of the afternoon, on the
thorny question of relations between Church and
state, is given by Father Austin V. Dowd, S.J. He
raises several points and questions in an all too short
period; the state is a perfect society founded on the
nature of man; its purpose is the temporal common
welfare of the members of the state; the Church is
likewise a perfect society, founded by Jesus Christ,
the Son of God; it is independent of all states, and
exists for the salvation and perfection of all men.
Now how far can the authority of the state enter
into the workings of the Church? And how far can
the Church, with its sacramental and teaching functions, mingle and mix with the state?
These two questions are almost but not quite identical. Father Dowd traces the evolution of three kinds
of "states,"-each illustrating a different answer to
both of the above questions: the benign, the secular,
and the confessional state. He highlights the problem
of preserving freedom of conscience without foster-
�26
SOCIAl.. ACTION
ing indifferentism, and concludes by pointing to the
need of much more study about relations between these
two: a free, independent, and divine Church, on the
one hand, and a perfect society called "the state"
on the other, rightly supreme in its temporal orderalbeit the temporal must yield to things eternal, always.
Then Mr. Francisco A. Rodrigo, in an interesting
discussion of the Palma book case (making obligatory
for public school children an unsatisfactory translation of an inaccurate and even distorted account of
the life of Jose Rizal, a genuine national hero), points
out that lack of vigilance on our part is in large
measure to blame for the foisting of the Palma book
on our school children. We discovered the plan to
make the Palma book required reading only after
the book had been translated, ._printed, and several
thousand copies were on their.. way to Manila. We
made our voices heard post factum. Had we discovered
the plan early enough, we could most probably have
stopped it.
Another point Mr. Rodrigo emphasizes is this:
There is a deplorable lack of informed and assertive
Catholic public opinion. The local press seems to be
infected with an anti-Catholic bias. In the Palma
book hearings, reporting in local dailies consistently
misinterpreted the Catholic stand. Hence the great
need for well-informed and well-trained Catholic
newspapermen.
In the evening, Mr. Vicente Araneta exhibits three .
films: on gardening techniques, on co-operative dairy-·
farming, on the harvesting in Bukidnon. Between reels,
he answers not a few questions from interested priests
-on practical farming techniques, on methods of soil
enriching, on fertilizers, insecticides, poultry raising.
The number of questions evidences great interest 1n
these farm-matters. A trip to Mr. Araneta's agricultural school (Balintawak) is proposed for tomorrow.
After some urging from his audience, Mr. Araneta
comments on his recent capture by dissidents (Huks)
in Cavite. He states once again his conviction that
�SOCIAL ACTION
27
most of the dissidents have taken to the hills because
they are unable to make a decent living under existing
political and economic conditions. He also believes
that another amnesty, together with the granting of
homesteads in Palawan, may point the way to eventual
solution of disorder in Central Luzon. The session
breaks up late, with several priests asking Mr. Araneta
for titles of books on farming, for prices of tractors,
etc. It has been an absorbing and stimulating evening.
Thursday, April Thirteenth: Follow-Through
The first class is a down-to-earth talk on the social
problems of the agricultural parish, by Father Aloysius
Torralba, S.J., assistant pastor at Basilan. Father
Torralba points out that th~ farm areas supply the
population for the cities, and that ultimately, problems
in the rural parish are problems of concern to all
priests. He feels that rural parishioners are not easily
aroused to take part in parish life. Apparently, they
need greater community spirit, mutual faith, and a
sense of belonging to one another. It is essential therefore, through preaching, teaching, use of co-operatives
and parish activities, to put it across to rural parishioners that the parish and its parish life are theirs,
their obligation and interest.
Father Harry B. Furay, S.J., gives a class on the
nature of Catholic Action, its functions and its possibilities. He points out that the lay apostolate has
always existed in the Church as a necessary result of
the character given in Baptism and Confirmation.
This lay apostolate was given the particular form of
Catholic Action by Pope Pius XI. Father Furay also
highlights the work a parish priest can and should
do now and first to bring his laity to the level- of
social consciousness where formal Catholic Action is
possible for them: for the young, vital religion-in-life
education; for older people, instructional stress on
marriage as a vocation, and on the Mass as the center
ann perfect expression of unity.
�28
SOCtAL ACTION
After the merienda period, Father Albert P. O'Hara,
S.J., presents cooperatives and credit unions and their
particular usefulness for the social apostolate. He
stresses some essential points: follow the Rochdale
principles, they are tried and true; credit" unions are
credit unions, not banks; co-operatives are not a
total solution to the social question.
After lunch today, a small group of priests motors
to the Araneta Agricultural Institute for an instructive inspection of the poultry unit. They learn about
raising chickens on wire flooring, kinds of feed, how
to recognize good layers, etc.
In the discussion period, Father Furay says that
the stress on Catholic Action units does not mean we
should abolish all confraternities and other useful parish organizations. It is often true that these organizations fulfill functions of Catholic Action. He reads the
Apostolic Constitution on the ·sodality of Our Lady
wherein the Holy Father declares that the Sodality
of Our Lady is Catholic Action in the fullest sense of
the term.
A question from the floor: "What is to be done
with actively operating and fruitful parish units when
episcopal directives order the establishment of Catholic Action organization in the parish?" Father Delaney
suggests that a central unit of Catholic Action be
formed, made up of the heads of the already existing
organizations, and that the activities of the Catholic
Action organization be funnelled through the already.
existing units. Another priest believes this course ,
of action to be wholly in keeping with the mind of
papal and episcopal directives on this point.
At this turn in the discussion, a priest-editor from
among the group discusses the usefulness of a newspaper in the social apostolate. His particular paper
is the provincial weekly of a Southern province. It
is not, in the strict sense, a Catholic, or diocesan
paper. A page or two is given over to formally religious
news. If the parish priest can get a good college-trained
editor from Manila, and operate his own press, ·he
�SOCIAL ACTION
29
can accomplish great good by properly giving the
news in his province, and by giving provincial readers
a correct Catholic approach on current questions.
Another priest is asked to tell about something
for which he is getting to be famous: a daily "rosary
hour." He explains that he has set up three amplifiers,
with sixty loudspeakers attached (the farthest six
kilometers from the Church). Daily he broadcasts
news, recites the rosary in English and Pampango,
invites parishioners to give talks on religious topics,
broadcasts lives of saints. Especially after the working hours, these programs are listened to by a very
great percentage of the townspeople.
During both of the "quickie" talk periods today,
Father Arthur A. Weiss, S.J ., shares the fruit of
his studies on the vocational group order-social economy as set up in accord with principles of Quadragesimo Anno. Just before his talk begins, a valuable
study of the 1948 law reorganizing Belgian economy
along lines similar to the occupational group order is
distributed. The original of this article arrived in
the Philippines but a week before the Institute began.
Father Weiss goes into considerable detail in outlining
an application of the vocational group order plan to
the tobacco industry in the Philippines.
The evening's special event has three parts. All
bear on communism, a topic foremost in the minds
of all, but confined to the explicit work of one evening
in accord with PISA's spirit of accentuating the
positive.
Father McGinley leads off with emphasis on the
past. This centers around four notions: atheistic materialism, mechanical evolution of institutions, eco. nomic determinism, and the class struggle. The combination makes for no solution to any social problem,
but does provide a vivid temptation to all pushed aside
in the economic race for survival.
Then Father Hogan gives the facts on communism
in the Philippines. Right now Communists have an
organized army, Communist troops walk in and out
�~
30
SOCIAL ACTION
of towns only a few miles from Manila, and the
triumph of communism-barring a sudden, vigorous
resurgence of Catholic life in the Philippines-seems
all too probable. Father Hogan reads photostat copies
of the Balgos and Capadocia farewell letters (Party
leaders who recently took to the hills with the Huks).
"They send a shiver up my spine," he says, "for these
things are said in dead earnest. These letters are not
mock-heroic."
The two talks are followed by recordings: G_.ommunism-U. S. Brand. These provide a dramatization
of Communist techniques in the United States, written
in 1948 by Morton Wishengrad, and based on authentic
documents. The transcriptions (six records, twelve
sides) have been sent air-freight by the American
Broadcasting Company. They., give an excellent and
revealing picture of the American Communist.
It is getting late, however, and only a handful are
able to stay to the end. Some have to travel far. Some
have not yet had their evening meal!
Friday, April Fourteenth: The Last Day
It is the last day of a hard week. Much ground has
been covered, and covered rather hastily. There is
still a great deal to do.
Father Hogan's class sets the tone for the day:
where there is a serious attempt on both sides-capital
and labor-to reform the economic set-up, communism
doesn't have a chance. History proves that; the Com•
munists admit it. As right now the first step in this
direction seems to be the formation of good labor
unions, the Institute of Social Order will be glad
to help this work anywhere, by supplying model constitutions, "know-how," cautions, and contacts. He
concludes with a few words on the labor school I.S.O.
has established in Manila. Labor law, parliamentary
procedure, Christian social principles are taught by
a faculty sincerely interested in labor, and the aim
is the formation of competent and honest labor leaders.
The next class is on the achievements of Catholic
�SOCIAL ACTION
Sl
Action. Father Lorenzo Guerrero, S.J., gives plentiful
illustrations of specialized Catholic Action drawn from
several lands and countries. He hits on the point
of conversion of a social environment by persons
from that environment itself, and deals briefly with
the role of the chaplain. More time is devoted to the
well-known inquiry method: observe, judge, and act.
After the break for merienda at the College store,
where there is much "shop" talk, Father Delaney
takes up his favorite theme: the Holy Sacrifice of
the Mass. Many priests volunteered the opinion, later,
that they found his session the most inspiring of all.
There is a catching enthusiasm that Father Delaney
gives-for the tremendous power of the Mass as the
center of individual, family, and parish life. The Mass
can be (and has been) made the subject of talks
to the same parishioners for at least a full year, he
maintains. The Mass, when tied up to daily living,
becomes the inspiration for full Christian life. Our
people want this inspiration and appreciate it. Much
interest and comment is aroused by the talk. Father
Delaney also promises to discuss two evils very widely
spread in the Philippines today: the double standard
of morality, and excessive parental authority.
After the lecture, the camera-man comes in for a
couple of shots of the entire Institute in session; two
more group pictures follow, in front of the administration building. Then the Institute recesses for lunch for
the last time.
Discussion today during the first afternoon period
is really animated. A member of a religious congregation eloquently makes the point that perhaps religious engaged in school work should-in a needed
effort to help busy pastors-go out on Saturdays and
Sundays to the street corners, if need be, there to
give the whole of the Gospel to the people in the
streets, and to bring the Mass to more of those who
need it most. It is a stirring statement. Several ask
for the microphone as the discussion rolls back to
a previous high-water mark: the necessary coopera-
�32
SOCIAL ACTION
tion between teacher and pastor, school and Church,
in all matters of the social apostolate.
The last "quickie" talk is Father Delaney's summing
up of his ideas on the Mass: we should teach our
people to tie up the Mass with their daily lives, their
daily sacrifices. At every moment Mass is going on in
some part of the world. We can offer, with the drop
of water put in the chalice, our sufferings and sacrifices
to make the oblation come from the whole Christthe Mystical Body-Christ and His members.
Really Special Event
There is something of the triumphant joy of Easter,
and something of the warm loveliness of May, about
this evening. Two nights ago, in the PISA office "bullsession" that followed the special event of each day,
the thought of a pilgrimage ahd consecration to Our
Lady came to one of the PISA faculty: why not a
simple act of dedication of our social apostolate to Our
Lady of the Fields?
Tonight there are over one hundred and fifty priests
present, including the Ateneo community. In little
bands of three, of four, of five, they form and wend
their way, telling Our Lady's beads, to the little shrine
set up this afternoon under the trees of South Field.
It is reminiscent of a seminary evening, perhaps, of
a noviceship evening. Fittingly so. The last few days
have been a kind of noviceship, something of the
fervor and devotion of younger and more dream-fired_·
days has been enkindled in this gathering. It is fittingthat the flame thus kindled be set up before Her shrine,
in an act of homage to Her who is Mother of Priests
and Patroness of this little land.
The evening breeze fans the candles as the Ave,
Ave rings out, the song of more than a hundred men,
through the evening. Gathered around the shrine, the
priests recite an act of consecration to the Queen. It
has been written for this evening by one of the PISA
faculty, and it is a stirring prayer:
Immaculate Mary, Mother of God,
�SOCIAL ACTION
33
Mother of the first Christian family,
Spouse of a carpenter,
Mother of Christ who is worker and teacher and healer
and priest,
Mother of all priests,
Patroness of the Philippines,
In this hour of crisis for our land and for the world,
We, priests of the Philippines, assembled in the Priests'
Institute for Social Action, solemnly consecrate to you our
studies and our labors for the reconstruction of a truly
Catholic social order, and for the reign of justice and charity
in this small part of the Kingdom of Your Son entrusted
to our care.
We consecrate to you our parishes and our people, the homes,
the schools, the farms, and factories of our land.
We beg of you to grant to us, your priests, a deep Christlike love for all mankind, especially for the poor, the suffering,
the needy and the oppressed.
Grant us a passion for justice and charity, a sympathetic
understanding of social problems and the wisdom to find the
Christian solution to all of them.
Grant us patience, courage, tact and an abundance of burning zeal, that with all the energy of mind and heart and body
we may dedicate our lives to the establishment of the Peace
of Christ in the Reign of Christ in our own beloved country.
Dedication completed, the long line again files across
the dark fields, singing the traditional Lourdes' "Ave,
Ave." They file into the Quonset chapel for benediction
of the Most Blessed Sacrament. The Apostolic Delegate
presides from his throne. Celebrant is Father Avendano, parish priest of Anti polo. Deacon is Father John
Vincent Dunne, S.S.C., Malate Church. Subdeacon is
Rev. Father Joseph de Haes, C.I.C.M., Pasig Catholic
Church. At the organ is Father Vicente E. Gozo,
chaplain of the Philippine Constabulary.
It is a triumphant and inspiring benediction: but it
could be nothing else, with one hundred and fifty
priests assembled in this chapel, their voices joining
in Eucharistic song. One prays 'Let this upper room be
the birthplace of a spirit that shall, please God, give
new life to our land.' "0 Corazon divino, el pueblo
Filipino te da su corazon .... en pueblos y en hogares
• · .. tu reinaras sin mengua ..•. de Aparri hasta Jolo."
�34
SOCIAL ACTION
The last event is a friendly, fatherly talk from the
Apostolic Delegate. This is only the beginning, he says.
From this gathering you must go forth to action.
There is so much work to be done. The workingman
must know, it must be proven to him, and you must
prove it to him, that the Church is interested in him;
that the priest will work for him, will fight for his
rights. Only if we band together, now, before it is
too late, to preach and bring to action in season and
out of season the social teachings of the Church: to
employers, the duty of the living wage, of justice and
charity; to workingmen, the right and need to organize
in responsible unions: and only if we go about our
work as earnestly as the Communists spread their
teaching, only if we do these things can we save
our country from communism. You have begun well,
now go back to your parish~s; fired with a new zeal,
filled with a deepened knowleage, to restore the land
to Christ.
The applause is deafening. And quickly someone calls
for three cheers: for the Apostolic Delegate, for PISA.
Finally refreshments come forth from their hiding
place, put there carefully by still another Jesuit
Scholastic! Then plans of action are discussed over
coke bottles, schemes thrashed out over a dish of ice
cream.
The family oneness of priests is tangible here tonight.
Tomorrow, planes, and buses, and ships, and trains
will take these priests back to their towns, back to
their posts, to take up tasks for a moment laid aside;
in the interests of a conspiracy to bring the workingman and his country unto Christ.
The week is over. It has been hectic for the director
and his staff: it has been busy for the priests. It has
been lively, interesting, inspiring. It has certainly
been timely in the Far East! All through it has run a
buoyant friendliness, a young hopefulness. And it has
been a thoroughly priestly Institute. Much has been
heard and seen, and the amount of matter has seemed
to many overwhelming. Yet the ground has just been
�SOCIAL ACTION
35
scratched. There was no time for so many other points!
And all the doing remains.
By next year, perhaps, they will gather again to
see what fruit PISA 1950 has brought forth, what bit
this pioneer band of priests may have done to bring
the whole social order-the domestic, political, and
economic life-of this troubled land nearer to the
pattern of the Kingdom of Christ.
REVERSAL OF TRADITION
Scholasticism and mysticism had, it is true, a great deal
in common. Certain great names were revered in both traditions: St. Augustine, for instance and Dionysius the pseudoAreopagite. The Aristotelianism of the schools had, through
these Fathers, neoplatonic attachments which rendered the assimilation of mystical theoria both possible and easy. Medieval
intellectualism in this respect bore little resemblance to
modern rationalism. Above all, the Catholic faith, the dogmas,
the asceticism and the moral teaching of the Church, provided
a common frame within which the spheres of speculation and
spirituality were contained: the two together, in a sense,
making up, though at different levels, one life of contemplation. The life of the intellect was not divorced from that of
the spirit. The notion of the profane science, in the modern
sense, that is to say, a science pursued in complete abstraction
from, and indifference to, Divine science, was unfamiliar and
would have been unwelcome. Such a conception would have
appeared to the Middle Ages to be indeed a profanation of
science in every sense of the word. All knowledge, even
secular knowledge, had, in some sense, as its ultimate end,
the contemplation of eternal Truth.
Such was the ideal but not every student, of course, attained it. Too often, even in the ages of faith, one comes
across what has become almost the rule in modern times, a
science practically severed from the life of prayer and
religious contemplation. Philosophy and canon law, and dogmatic theology itself thus, incongruously, assume the type of
profane sciences. It is here that, from the theologians' side,
trouble was most apt to arise for the mystic. Dogmatic
theology had been systematized, while ascetical and mystical
theology had not. The two kinds of activity differed, necessarily,
�,I
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• REVERSAL
in their method, and sometimes, regrettably, in their spirit.
They were different modes of apprehension of the same objects,
and it required a certain combination of gifts to perceive the
fundamental unity between them. The great masters and
moulders of scholastic theology had been men of exalted
prayer; but the case was otherwise with many of their successors. It might be difficult to say when the rationalizing
spirit came in: perhaps with the Nominalists; perhaps in the
first instance, through the faculty of arts (i.e., philosophy),
rather than through dogmatic theology.
The great defect on the side of the contemplatives was a
lack of well-defined method. It was this that the sixteenth
century supplied, largely through the influence of St. Ignatius
and the Spiritual Exercises. The insistence in that work on
the need of caution in doctrinal controversies, and on the
paramount duty of not departing from the mind of the
Church and of holding in reverence all the branches of sacred
science, shows how clearly the author perceived the possibility
of danger in unrestrained pursuit of mystical experience. He
and, still more, his school, have .. been accused in consequence
of hindering the natural development of contemplative life in
souls. The Society, it is said, deliberately stereotyped for
itself and for those who came under its direction a method
of prayer essentially opposed to contemplation,-the so-called
method of the Exercises: a complex method, putting in motion,
and concentrating on some particular subject, all the powers of
the soul, imagination, memory, intellect, and will. The subject
matter of mental prayer would thus be limited, apparently, to
things which could somehow be expressed in terms of imagination and sense-experience. Suprasensible mysteries, the nature
and attributes of God, would be excluded. Multiplied reflections
and acts would be substituted for the one act of simple continuous attention to God which is the foundation of contemplative prayer.
This is what some modern Catholic writers term the revel'sal
of tradition in regard to prayer which has characterized the
spirituality of the last three centuries. We find no proof of it
in these authors. There is some divergence between the
practice of prayer in modern active Orders and that which we
find in the monasteries of the Middle Ages. One type of life is
best suited by one method, another by another. But, as regards
prayer and contemplation in general, there has been nothing
that merits to be called a reversal. The points in which
prudent directors in all ages agree are far more numerous and
more important than those in which they differ.
REVEREND FATHER JOSEPH BOLLAND,
S.J.
�CONTEMPLATING THE SAINTS
JOSEPH O'MARA, S.J.
It is a commonplace amongst us that the Spiritual
Exercises of St. Ignatius are not meant to be confined
to times of retreat. Not only is their atmosphere and
spirit to be carried into our daily lives, animating and
directing our spiritual course, coloring our outlook,
penetrating our activities, regulating our desires and
informing our aspirations; but the individual meditations and contemplations remain the constant subject
matter of our prayer. Year in, year out, we move
familiarly among the gospel scenes, steeping our minds
and hearts in the words and person of our Lord, firing
our enthusiasm at His example, strengthening our
weakness in His suffering, calming our fears in the
peace and joy of His Resurrection. The pivotal meditations, too, continue to throw their concentrating light
on our diffused and ill-defined reflections, to bring our
more-or-less hazy thoughts and velleities to focus in the
clear-cut demands of the Foundation, the Kingdom,
the Two Standards. There is one exercise, however,
which, perhaps, comes in for little reconsideration during the year; which, even in retreat time, is seldom, if
ever, allowed the advantages of an Ignatian repetition.
Indeed, it has all it can do to introduce itself to the
exercitant before the retreat is over. I mean, of
course, the Contemplatio ad Amorem. Yet it is a contemplation that merits to be pondered again and again
with prayerful understanding. Its secrets are unending, and the successive discovery of them will but
light up another acre of the immense field of God's
love for us; and our hearts will be renewed, however
lightly, in the spirit of the "Take, 0 Lord, and receive."
It is not our intention, however, to go through the
whole exercise as it stands. Rather shall we take a
single example of God's revealing love, and hint at
how this example might be developed through the four
points of the Contemplation as given by St. Ignatius.
The examples set forth in the book of the Exercises
�88
TilE SAINTS
are well known to us-we are to "call to mind the benefits received, of Creation and Redemption and particular gifts." This very general enumeration of the items
in the endless series of God's gifts to us may be reviewed and studied in detail according to our particular
taste and spiritual inclination. Perhaps we might find
sufficient matter for many a repetition of the Contemplatio in the example of the saints, that is, God
giving Himself, dwelling, working, mirrored in His
saints-and this for me, to excite me to a return of
love.
The Saints
·"
"Mirabilis Deus in sanctis suis. Wonderful is God
in His saints." This cry is frequently on the lips of
the Church, a cry of triumph and gratitude at the
mighty exaltation of some of her children. The saints
are her living and concrete~ justification, the fullest
realization of her spirit, the first fruits of her own
final and definitive ,glory when she shall have arrived
at "the fullness of the stature of Christ." They are
more than this: they are public benefactors in view
of whose merits and at whose intercession God opens
His ever-ready hands to let fall on His Church still
greater evidences of His love, a still further sharing
in His life. But over and above this work of intercession, in addition to their quality of being the first
fruits of the Church's glory, the saints play another
role in the spiritual life of the Church: they reveal
Christ. In the words of the Abbe Huvelin, the saints
are "living images painted by Christ Himself for His·
Church, that He might recall some of His features to
her mind and console her in her widowhood." Our Lord,
whom St. Paul calls "the image of the invisible God,"
is miniaturized for us in the saints; and if God gave us
everything in His Divine Son, so did He give us somethin,g of Himself in His saints. Looking on the saints,
in their heroism and in their humdrum fidelity, in their
greatness and even in their weaknesses, in their
fundamental sameness and in their astounding variety,
we may glimpse something of the Giver of all good
�THE SAINTS.
89
gifts "with whom there is no change nor shadow of
alteration;" and seeing Him, we may come to love
Him, according to the measure of His grace within
us.
"Pondering with much feelin,g how much God our
Lord has done for me, and how much He has given me
of what He has, and that the same Lord desires to
give me Himself as much as He can"-it is thus that
St. Ignatius tells us in the first point to look on the
gifts of God. Our eyes are to be held not so much by
the gifts as by the act of giving. For the purposes of
this contemplation, God might be defined as 'The
Giver.' He would seem to have but one thought-to
hand Himself over to us. The smallest of His creatures,
the most insignificant event, is but the occasion and
the mark of His generosity. He will not allow His
omnipotence to be baffled by His own infinite perfection and, if He cannot set up another God, He will
share Himself, He will put Himself into all His gifts,
put Himself in them to the limits of their capacities.
And in this giving of Himself to His creatures,
God is especially manifest in His saints. Even in the
common run of Christians God's gift of Himself is
very wonderful. If, with the Psalmist, we can exclaim: "What is man, that Thou art mindful of him?
Or the son of man, that Thou visitest him? Thou
hast made him a little less than the angels; Thou hast
crowned him with glory and honour, and hast set
him over the works of Thy hands;" with still greater
reason can we proclaim the glory and the magnificence
and·the condescension of the Lord our God, who shares
His most intimate life with the soul in sanctifying
grace. This mysterious communication of the divine
life, we shall never understand here on earth. If we
may not understand it, yet, by watchin,g its workings
in the souls of the saints, we may at least guess something of its nature and of the concentrated intensity
with which it can be possessed.
�40
THE SAINTS
Family Likeness
There is a fundamental sameness in all the saints:
a sameness which, while being an indispensable element in their holiness, is likewise its primary evidence. This family likeness among the saints is but
their common and wholehearted acceptance of the full
implication of our Lord's words: "If any man . . .
hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sister, yea and his own life
also, he cannot be my disciple . . . So likewise every
one of you that doth not renounce all that he possesseth, cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14 :26,33). "For
he that shall save his life, shall lose it; and he that
shall lose his life for my sake, shall find it" (Matt.
16 :25). A saint is one who gives himself. The setting
of the gift may differ, the ways- and details of the giving be widely divergent, changing with all the play of
temperament and circumstances; yet, amidst all these
variables of sanctity, the one function that remains
constant is the fundamental gesture of total self-surrender. We see it in the motto of St. Margaret Mary:
"In love, nothing must be held back"-a motto realized
in the hard, dry immolation of Paray-le-Monial; we
see it in the cruel self-stripping of the Cure d' Ars, for
whom to be a priest meant to sacrifice one's whole
life for others for Christ's sake, and who acted on this.
The outwardly simple, childlike surrender of herself
to God of Theresa of Lisieux merely translates into.
another idiom the knightly vigil of arms of lgnatiu::r: ·
each of them is a faithful rendering of the original
text: "Behold, we have left everything, and have followed Thee." Go through the long calendar of the
saints,-kings and peasants, mothers and virgins,
priests and laymen-and you meet a company not of
"unusual ladies and gentlemen," to quote the delightfully unhappy phrase of an anti-Catholic bigot, but of
men and women who have lost their lives and found
them again transformed in the life of God within
. them.
�THE SAINTS
41
And we may learn from this transformation something of the way God gives Himself in His saints. If
holiness in the saints expresses itself essentially as a
surrender, it is because charity, which is the rootprinciple of sanctity, is God's own Love brought down
to the limits of human weakness and informing this
weakness with a divine strength, narrowed within the
framework of a created canvas and straining to break
beyond the barriers. For God's Love, given to a soul,
is always operative, always exacting. When it enters a
soul, it turns immediately to the work of giving, to
answering its own invitations; it sets up an echo of
itself, which is thrown back on the Giver. Like the
Divine Goodness itself, the Love of God in the soul
is, according to the measure of God's giving, expansive, communicative. And at its highest manifestation,
in the saints, it is nearest its Divine Exemplar and
Source, in being a total giving. If the saint can give all,
it is because his love is a sharing in the all-giving Love
of God.
The Same Terms
And then, says St. Ignatius, consider "that the
same Lord desires to give Himself as much as He can,
according to His divine ordination." If we simply stop
short in amazement before the wonder of God's selfgiving in His saints, we are missing the specific character of the Contemplatio. The same God, whose life
has so abundantly nourished and supported the saints
is waiting to share Himself with me-but on the same
terms, that is, according to the abandon with which I
allow that life to possess me and to work itself out in
me. Half-measure acceptance means a stemming of divine generosity, and full acceptance means full giving
on God's part, a giving which in our own lives will
issue in an entire handing over of ourselves to God
and His service. "And with this to reflect on myself,
considering with much reason and justice, what I
ought on my side to offer and give to His Divine
Majesty, that is to say, everything that is mine, and
�42
THE SAINTS
myself with it, as one who makes an offering with
much feeling: Take, 0 Lord, and receive."
On the words: "He was in the world, and the world
was made by Him," St. Augustine writes: ','How, then,
was He in the world? As the Maker, directing what
He has made. For He made not the world after the
manner of an artisan ... (for) although the workman
is close to his work, yet sits he in a place distinct
from that in which is his handiwork. But God, in
making the world, pervades it; everywhere is He
present in the making, nor withdraws Himself afar
off, nor handles from without, as it were, the mass
which He fashions ... by His presence He rules what
He had made." And in the saints, this indwelling of
God in the soul reaches such an intimacy and intensity that, in some instances, it becomes sensible even
to profane appreciation. But quite..~part from any outward showing, the presence of God in the saints is a
real thing and a very powerful thing. All the forces
of the saint are gathered about this central presence,
are drawn together and held by the tension of this
divine indwelling. God has given Himself in no passing
way to them: "If any man shall hear my voice,
and open to me the door, I will come in to him and will
sup with him, and he with me;" "If any one love me,
he will keep my word, and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him, and will make our abode with
him." The "I live, now not I, but Christ liveth in me,"
of St. Paul is just a fuller and more vivid expression of
the same saint's description of a soul in grace: "You
are the temples of the Holy Ghost." And again I consider with St. Ignatius how God is "likewise making a
temple of me, being created in the likeness and image
of His Divine Majesty; reflecting as much on myself in
the way which is said in the first point, or in another
which I feel to be better."
Individual Oblation
And so through the third and fourth points. How
<!od not only gives Himself in His saints, takes up His
~·
�THE SAINTS
43
resting-place with them, but also how He works in
them and how His divine attributes are mirrored in
them: Mirabilis De'u.s in Sanctis suis . . . faciens
prodigia-working wonders. And first, the wonder
of the saints' own lives, the wonder of divine love
working itself out in human terms. We have already
noticed the common self-surrender which marks the
essence of sanctity in the saints: the details of this
oblation in individual souls could hold us for many a
long day-Chabanel, conquering his deadly disgust of
mission life by a vow of stability; Francis Regis, already dying with fever, but determined not to cheat
his distant flock of its promised gospel, pushing on
across the mountain in the snow; Peter Claver, mothering his Negroes and burying his lips in the wounds and
ulcers which had set his senses in revolt; Francis
Xavier, all alone except for his Chinese servant and the
companionship of Christ crucified, handing over his
soul to God on Sancian. Nor is it only in the heroic
that the divine action betrays itself: it is even more
evident, perhaps, in that underlying calm of everyday
fidelity-the amazing ordinariness of John Berchmans is as revealing of God's working as are the dreadful particularities of the lives and martyrdom of Brebeuf and Jogues.
Finally, the God, who has given Himself in His
saints, who lives and works in them, is, by the very
force of His giving, of His indwelling and of His action, mirrored forth for us to see. "Let your light so
shine before men:" the divine life easily breaks
through the thin veil of human gesture, and God is
made visible within the limits of man's imperfection.
This fourth point of the Contemplation -is, perhaps,
the most accessible of all. Must we not be drawn to
love the God who shows us the hem of His garment
in the strong purity of Aloysius, in the sturdy forthrightness of Stanislaus, in the serene simplicity of
Alphonsus, in the wise innocence of Peter Faber, in
the clear-sighted humility of Claude de la Colombiere?
They are only broken facets of the oneness of His
�44
::,.
..'"'
THE SAINTS
Sanctity; they give us piecemeal and blurred in the
half-light of faith the infinitely simple plenitude, the
ever-changeless activity, the condescending and exacting love of the Triune God. Yet partial and imperfect
interpretations of the Godhead that they are, they
have this advantage for us, that they are written in
our own language~we can read them and, in faith
and love, understand them: and having studied them,
we can never be quite the same again.
It was, perhaps, some such thou,ghts as these that
inspired the words of a saintly French girl, Antoinette
de Geuser, writing during the first World War to her
younger brother, then a Scholastic in the Society: "To
know certain saints is to love them. To know certain
virtuous men is often to feel for them a human
affection. To know St. Ignatius and the Jesuits is, it
seems to me, to love God' in them, since their human
selves they have altogether effaced, that He and He
only may possess their souls. They are the Psalmist's
words made flesh: Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed
nomini tuo da gloriam. And there, it seems to me,
perfection lies." The calendar for the year is dotted
with the names of our saints and blessed: may we
come to love God in them and, loving Him, be "as
one who makes an offering with much feeling: Take,
0 Lord, and receive."
OUR MOTHER
'."
The coming of Christ through Mary was God putting·tiimself
under obligation to God. The Incarnation put us into relations with God the Son and Father. And at the same time it
put the human race into the same charmed circle of relations.
That is the reason why, one day on the mountain-top, Jesus
taught us to say "Our Father" and another day, on another sad
mountain-top, His dying lips taught us to say "Our Mother."
Mother's love is boundless. No matter how much God blesses her
with offspring, she loves each as all and all as each. Friends'
love often fades. It is for the day and when the day passes the
friendship passes with it. Mother's love never changes, nor
grows old, nor passes away. Whilst she lives, it lives.
FATHER VINCENT McNABB
���HISTORICAL NOTES
CARROLL HOUSE
To establish for the historical records the origin and
development of Carroll House, we must turn back to
1939 when Father Wilfrid Parsons was approached
by the then Dean of the School of Social Sciences at
Catholic University, Monsignor Francis J. Haas, to
take over the courses which had been given by Monsignor John A. Ryan who was at that time retiring
from active teaching. When this proposition was
placed before our superiors, they did not feel that a
substitute for Father Parsons could be obtained on
such short notice, nor did they think it quite right that
he should teach at .b oth Georgetown University and
Catholic University.
Not so very long after the request from Monsignor
Haas, the Rector of the University, the late Bishop
Joseph M. Corrigan, went to Rome and during his audience with the Holy Father renewed this request with
the criticism that the non-participation of the Society
in the Catholic University was a cause of definite detriment. He later saw Very Reverend Father General
who was most sympathetic to the plea and promised to
write to the American Assistancy. His letter dated
March 24, 1939 is to be found in the Acta Romana, IX,
439, "De Relationibus fovendis inter nostra Collegia
Universitaria et Catholicam Universitatem Washingtoniensem." Suggesting that the Society make some
gesture towards the University on the occasion of its
golden jubilee, he said:
"The form I would wish this contribution to take is
that the Society, on the campus, or very near thereunto, inaugurate a Jesuit house of graduate studies.
"Since, for various reasons, no more than a few,
perhaps ten or twelve, of Ours will at any one time
pursue studies at the University, it will not be necessary to secure a very large residence.
"Such men however and only such men, should be
�46
HISTORICAL NOTES
assigned to this house who by their lives as religious
will edify all and who by their achievements as students will reflect honor on the Society, and, let us
humbly hope, will exercise a good influence on the
University as a whole."
When the invitation to Father Parsons was renewed
and duly transferred to Father Provincial, his appointment to the Catholic University faculty followed
in due course and was so noted on the 1940 status.
To Father Parsons, therefore, must go the distinction
of being the first Jesuit to be detailed for the full-time
work of lecturing at Catholic University. The late
Father Kent Patterson taught there at the summer
session of 1938.
Up to this time there had been no move made
towards securing a residence~ To reside at Georgetown and travel over to the .Qatholic University each
day for lectures and seminars was thought to be too
great a burden and so Father Parsons was authorized
to rent in the immediate neighborhood of the campus
a small residence for himself and the three Jesuits who,
living at Georgetown, were attending courses at
Catholic University. After much searching, a small
residence at Tenth and Kearney, N.E., was leased for
ten years, and to it came Father Charles J. Hennessy as
minister, Father James E. Moynihan of the New England Province, Father Lawrence P. McHattie of the
Missouri Province, and, for a few months, Father
James Carroll of the New Orleans Province.
There was absolutely nothing elaborate about the
first Carroll House. Erected as a Protestant church, and
then left vacant when the congregation built a brick
church elsewhere, it had been converted into two
bungalows. Father Parsons put these back into one
dwelling by cutting a door through, and in the following year, 1941, made extensive improvements by
outfitting a small chapel, seven bedrooms, toilets and
showers in the attic.
Only those who lived at the old house can appreciate
what the difficulties were-difficulties arising from the
�HISTORICAL NOTES
47
Washington summer heat and the Washington winter
cold, the thin walls, the crowded living conditions. But
let it be recorded that through the nine years of
occupancy the old house held together year after year
a happy congenial community. All the early members
of the small community on Tenth Street had an exhilerating sense of pioneering which enabled them to bear
the various inconveniences in high spirit. This was
carried on even after it became clear that the onset of
the war was going to make it impossible to secure
building materials for a new house.
Father Hennessy was succeeded after his death in
1942 by Father Junius McGehee as minister. He in
turn gave way to Father Nicholas Herbert and later
Father William Powell. Father Parsons remained as
superior until September, 1945 when the writer was
appointed and instructed to locate property on which
a permanent residence might be erected. Brookland
and its environs was searched for vacant land near
the University. It took five years to realize that vacant
land near the University did not exist or was not to be
had. One parcel of land adjoining the Redemptorist
Fathers almost came into our possession. We looked
at many houses and acres, but all of them were too
far situated from the University to make them attractive. Finally in the spring of 1950, perhaps through
desperation, we proposed to purchase the leased house
at Tenth and Kearney and make extensive improvements to it. A plan was drawn and submitted to the
District office, only to learn that the Board of Zoning
would first have to pass on it. To argue our appeal
before the Board, legal counsel was engaged and,
after much debating, the Board was willing to allow
an "ecclesiastical family" not exceeding fifteen members to occupy the Tenth Street house.
Just at that time, in early May, 1950, it was learned
that the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine's, Kentucky, intended to sell their Otis Street property.
Quickly contacts were made, the Zoning Board was
forgotten, and every effort exerted to obtain St. Cath-
�~
48
HISTORICAL NOTES
erine's House of Studies. Final settlement was made
in late June and the deed was recorded on July 31.
On August 10 the two remaining Sisters moved out,
and on the following day we moved in. After nine years
of waiting we had at last acquired a home built in
1940, ten minutes walk from the campus, dignified in
appearance, adequate in its appointments, and sufficiently adapted to house comfortably sixteen students
in addition to a superior.
The photograph will show it to be a brick structure
with limestone trim, a basement and three floors, all
first-class fireproof construction. The first floor is given
over entirely to community affairs-a parlor, a large
chapel which now has three altars, community room
and superior's room. Above, on the second and third
floors, are the students' rooms· and baths. A covered
porch, with open sun deck ab'ove, adjoins the recreation room. At the rear there is a large garden. The
basement affords rooms for kitchen, pantry, dining
room, library shelves, storage and a laundry.
How much use has been made of Carroll House since
its inception in 1940? Ninety-one Jesuits, Priests and
Scholastics, have lived at Carroll House in these past
ten years, which computation includes summer sessions and scholastic semesters. These have come from
the provinces as follows: California 16, Chicago 7,
Maryland 9, Missouri 10, New England 23, New Orleans 11, New York 8, Oregon 3, and four from out-of~the-country provinces.
The subjects which they have taken range thus:·
anthropology, biology, chemistry, classical languages,
economics, education, family guidance, history, journalism, library science, mathematics, patrology, psychology, psychiatry, physics, preaching, Romance languages, sociology, social sciences, social work and
speech and drama.
Up to June, 1950 the following degrees were
awarded: Master of Arts 13, Master of Science 3,
Bachelor of Science in Library Science 6, Bachelor of
i
�HISTORICAL NOTES
49
Sacred Theology 1, Licentiate of Sacred Theology 2,
Doctor of Philosophy 9. Several others, naturally, are
pending at this writing.
In addition to Father Parsons in the Department of
Political Science, several others of Ours have served
or still are on the faculty. Father Michael J. Gruenthaner of the Missouri Province has been teaching Old
Testament in the second semester since 1944. Father
Brendan Connolly of the New England Province has
just been added to the staff as a full-time instructor
in the Library Science School. Father William C. Bier
of the New York Province taught from 1944 to 1946
in the Department of Psychology.
It is generally felt that the intentions of Very Reverend Father General and Bishop Corrigan have been
realized: both the University and the Society have
profited by the innovation. Members of the hierarchy
and of the University's governing body have frequently expressed their ,gratification at what the Society has done, in sending both professors and students ; and many of Ours have experienced a heightened regard for the University. Several professors
also have registered happiness at having good students from the Society in their classes.
HENRI J. WIESEL, S.J.
AN ILLUSTRIOUS JESUIT VISITS NEW ORLEANS
Father Rafael Landivar belonged to that group of
Jesuits who were unjustly banished from New Spain
by Charles III in 1767. Landivar was born in the old
city of Guatemala in 1731. At the age of fifteen he
received his M.A. from the University of San Carlos
in that same city. He entered the Jesuit Order near
Mexico City in 1750. Hence it was most appropriate
that his remains should be returned to his native
country and his native city on the bicentenary of his
�60
HISTORICAL NOTES
birth into the reHgious life for which he sacrificed all
that was dearest to him.
At the time of the expulsion of the Jesuits, he was
Rector of the College of San Francisco de Borja in
Old Guatemala City. So dear and sacred to Father
Landivar was the religious order to which he belonged
that he chose banishment from his native land rather
than compromise his lofty ideal. He could have remained had he been willing to give up his allegiance to
the Jesuits. Guatemala is now righting partially an
injustice committed one hundred and eighty-three
years ago by their foreign sovereign; this Guatemala
is doing by welcoming back her most illustrious son
and Jesuit poet who once sang "Hail, dear mothercity, fair Guatemala, hail-joy of my life, its fountain
and its source."
Father Landivar tried to beguile the bitter years
of exile in Bologna, Italy, by composing in Latin verse
an epic on New Spain Rusticatio Mexicana in fifteen
books of over five thousand lines. In it he gives a
panoramic view of the lakes of Mexico ; his heart goes
out to the workers of the gold and silver mines; he
sings of the fiestas and sports of his native land; he
exhorts the youth to turn their minds to worthwhile
interests. In this epic no less than in the whole of his
life he proved an emine!lt educator of youth who had
their best interests at heart. Two editions were printed
before his death in 1793 and in recent years numerous
translations into other languages attest to its worth
and popularity.
__
True patriot that he was, he never failed to speak
of Guatemala except as his beloved mother country.
Heroic priest that he was, he sacrificed all to remain
true to his high ideal.
Guatemala, as other Latin American countries, owed
much to its exiled Jesuit sons. They effected two worldwide achievements for their native lands. First,
through their writings they pointed out the misdeeds
of certain colonial officials, and thus they hastened
the day of independence. Secondly, through their
��CHURCH OF SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA
Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
�HISTORICAL NOTES
51
numerous literary, historical and scientific publications, they made known the high culture that existed ·
in the colonies, and gave a convincing proof that the
colonies were worthy of independence. The expulsion
of men like Landivar deprived these countries of their
best educators and dealt education and general culture
a blow from which many have not yet recovered.
Father Rafael Landivar must have smiled from
heaven when he observed how different his return to
his native land was from his sudden departure.
For one hundred and fifty-seven years Father Landivar's earthly remains rested undisturbed in the Church
of Santa Maria Muratelle of which he had been the
parish-priest. Two years ago the students of the University of Guatemala petitioned their government to
have their nation's most illustrious son brought home.
On March 15 of last year, the Jesuit poet's remains
reached the New Orleans Airport where they were met
by a delegation from Loyola University and brought
first to the community chapel and later to the Church
of the Holy Name. Here they rested until Thursday
evening when a special act of homage was paid him.
Father Landivar was back in a Jesuit community for
the first time since his unjust and cruel exile of 1767.
His remains were flown from New Orleans to
Guatemala in a special plane christened in his honor
Rafael Landivar. May this loyal and heroic Jesuit call
down from heaven many blessings upon his persecuted
people! Since 1871 Jesuits have not been allowed in
Guatemala; Landivar may accomplish from heaven
what his brothers cannot do on earth.
E. J. BURRUS, S.J.
NEW CHURCH OF SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA,
CHESTNUT HILL, MASSACHUSETTS
On July 31, 1949 the new Church of Saint Ignatius
of Loyola at Lake Street and Commonwealth A venue,
Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts was dedicated by Arch-
�62
HISTORICAL NOTES
bishop Richard J. Cushing of Boston. The church,
a strikingly graceful example of Modern Gothic
architecture erected at a cost of $750,000, has a magnificent setting of ancient trees witfi. a parkway and
reservoir as a background. Nearby are the handsome
buildings of Boston College in a similar style of
architecture, and the new church forms an harmonious
extension to the collegiate group. The plan is in the
form of a cross, and the church, which seats one
thousand is 170 feet long by 55 feet wide. The exterior
is of Weymouth Seam Face Granite with limestone
trim. A slender tower rises over the baptistry, and
serves as a belfry for amplified electric chimes, and
as a ventilating fan room.
Before the Boston College Library was built, the
faithful of the neighborhood had been attending mass
in the small domestic chapel i.n· St. Mary's Hall, the
Jesuit faculty residence of Boston College. But as early
as October, 1925, the auditorium of the library then in
process of construction was sufficiently finished to
warrant Cardinal O'Connell's granting permission to
have Sunday masses there. One year later, in October
1926, the auditorium and the college chapel in St.
Mary's Hall were together designated as the temporary
"church" of a newly created St. Ignatius Parish. The
parish was to be served by Fathers connected with
the college and when circumstances permitted, it would
have a church of its own. Not until twenty-three years
later did the parish move into a church of its own.
The territory of the new parish was carved out of af
least five surrounding parishes, lying in the three ·
cities of Boston, Newton, and Brookline. Father
Thomas M. Herlihy is the present pastor, assisted
by Fathers Joseph J. Clink and J. Austin Devenny.
·-·
�SIDE VIEW OF CHURCH OF SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA
Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
��HISTORICAL NOTES
53
AMERICAN ASSISTANCY-INEUNTE 1951
SehoPrleets laBtles Brothers Total
319
71
740
350
California
1041
379
9!
568
Chicago 59
724
3!8
Maryland -·· 317
1120
122
373
625
Missouri
305
66
993
New England 622
528
203
38
New Orleans 287
"1397
100
585
New York - 712
224
47
562
Oregon - · 291
7105
2736
597
TOTALS --- 3772
Pro Tin~
-
Increase
Per~nt
P. s. D. Total Iner8 20 5
33
U7%
11 14 -2
23
2.26%
1 26 1
28
4.02%
8 17
25
2.28%
3 6
D
0.91%
11 13 4
28
5.60%
21 33 2
56
4.17%
-3 8 1
6
1.08%
60 137 11 208
3.01%
Maryland is the only province in the Assistartcy with
more Scholastics than priests. At the other extreme,
New England has more than twice as many priests as
Scholastics.
The largest absolute increase was New York's 56.
The largest proportionate increase was in the New
Orleans Province with 5.6%.
Whole Society
Prlesta
Ineunte 1950 · · - 15162
Seho.
10013
Bro.
5404
Total
30579
P. S. B.
144 372 90
Total
606
The augmentum during 1949 was 606. Of this increase the American Assistancy contributed 198' or
31 7o. But at the beginning of 1949, the American
Assistancy with a total of 6699 constituted only 22%
of the Society. In other words 22% of the Society
was responsible for 31% of the increase during 1949.
During 1949 the coadjutor brothers increased by
ninety throughout the world. The American Assistancy
during this same year showed an increase of fifteen
coadjutor brothers; which fifteen represents 16i%
of the total of ninety. In other words, the American
Assistancy's 22% of the Society was responsible for
only 16i7o of the increase among the coadjutors.
At the beginning of 1950:
Throughout the entire Society,
Priests constituted
49.67o
......
�54
HISTORICAL NOTES
Scholastics constituted
Brothers constituted
32.7%
17.7%
At the beginning of 1950:
In the American Assistancy,
Priests constituted
53.8%
Scholastics constituted 3.7.7%
Brothers constituted
8.5%
At first glance it is somewhat surprising to observe
that the American Assistancy, usually considered
young in its membership, should show a larger per,
centage of priests than the whole Society. However,
it should be noted that the percentage of Scholastics
in the U.S. is also higher, and that the ratio of Schola~
tics to priests in the u.s. is greater than for the s~
ciety as a whole.
_'
Finally, note that the percentage of Brothers in the
U.S. is somewhat ·less than half that for the whole Society.
GEORGE ZORN, S.J.
ADJACENT VALLEY
Yet whosoever is speaking concerning God, must be careful
to search out thoroughly- whatsoever furnishes moral instruction to his hearers; and should account that to be the
right method of ordering his discourse, if, when opportunity
for edification requires it, he turn aside for a useful purpose
from what he had begun to speak of. For he that treats of
sacred writ should follow the way of a river; for if a river;·
as it flows along its channel, meets with open valleys on its
side, into these it immediately turns the course of its current,
and when they are copiously supplied, presently it pours itself
back into its bed. Thus unquestionably, thus should it be with
everyone that treats of the Divine Word, that if, in discussing
any subject, he chance to find at hand any occasion of seasonable edification, he should, as it were, force the streams of discourse towards the adjacent valley, and, when he has poured
forth enough upon its level of instruction, fall back into the
channel of discourse which he had proposed to himself.
ST. GREGORY THE GREAT
�HISTORICAL NOTES
55
THE GREEN HOUSE BURNS
On January 21, 1951, St. Michael's Hall, usually
called the Green House, burned to the ground. Built
thirty-nine years ago as a temporary living quarters
for philosophers, it had a baptism of fire a few months
after it was opened when "Claver Mansion," the adjoining workmen's quarters on the present site of the
Print Shop, died a victim of flames, buckets, and battering rams. On this occasion the Green House was
saved by spreading wet blankets on the roof and
corners.
A temporary three-story structure, the Green House
was to house members of the Woodstock Community
in its forty rooms until 1946. For the past few years
it was living quarters for about eighteen workmen
employed about the College. Its extra rooms were
used for storage, and on the ground floor were a
chapel, a tailor shop, and some speech rooms equipped
with microphones and recorders. One of these held
the music library of the choir.
Shortly before 3 :00 A.M. on the night of the fire
James Ormond, an employe of the Woodstock Press,
was awakened by the odor of smoke. Hurrying down
stairs he discovered its source in the tailor shop in
the southeast corner of the building. He rushed back
and woke up a few men on each floor and told them
to awaken the others. He then ran to the main house
where he met Father James Griffin who hastened to
remove the Blessed Sacrament. The porter summoned
the Woodlawn Fire Company. Meanwhile all the workmen, assisted by Brother David Orr and Brother J oseph Wolf, had escaped from the building minutes before increasing smoke and heat would have made it
impossible.
Some philosophers living in the wing of the College close to the Green House were awakened by the
crackling and glow of the flames. Mr. John Duggan
sounded the code signal of a fire in the Green House
on the house bell, and then Mr. John Fitzpatrick set
�56
HISTORICAL NOTES
off the fire siren which wailed piercingly for several
minutes through the corridors. Research the next day
revealed that at least three of Ours had slept through
it. How long the fire had been going is unknown, but
it is certain that it had made considerable headway
before any equipment reached it. Everyone rushed
to the fire a few steps behind the crew, which had its
two fire engines in the garage closest to the Green
House. While the other trucks and cars were driven
to a safe spot, the engines moved into position. The
La France "pumper" was placed by a hydrant connected with the house water tanks, the Chevrolet
tank truck was driven along the side of the building.
Within the Green House two men tried to use the
corridor hose on the flames, but there was no pressure
at all and the smoke became too thick to risk remaining in the building any longer. Outside, there were
exasperating delays. Two hoses were joined to the
hydrant; one sent a heavy stream against the flames
until it burst, the other when directed into the tailor
shop, couldn't work because of a faulty connection.
The Chevrolet, holding 270 gallons of water proved
temporarily useless, since a kink in the hose still coiled
on the truck had to be traced.
At 3:31 the Woodlawn volunteer firemen had arrived, and the tank truck was used to keep the men
and fire hoses safely wet down in the intense heat
that soon was felt by everyone near the fire. The
College equipment, barely adequate if it had fun~
tioned immediately, was now pathetic against the
flames bursting through the back wall. Helped by a
draft through the broken panes of the tailor shop,
the blaze had begun to engulf the entire south front.
When the four hoses directed by the College and
Woodlawn fire crews began to beat steadily on the
flames, the strategy had been reduced to containing
the fire in the Green House and preventing the Print
Shop and garages from going up. While additional
help from the fire companies of Pikesville, Catonsville, Owings Mills, and Dundalk (thirty miles away,
�HISTORICAL NOTES
67
southeast of Baltimore) began to arrive, two related
campaigns were being conducted. One centered around
the Print Shop and the other around a former swimming pool, popularly called the Lagoon.
Adjoining the Green House, the Print Shop is
built of cinder block, and its wooden roof under slate
shingles was but a few feet from the blaze. The valuable presses, plates, type, paper, and books-not to
mention mimeographed notes-wen: threatened. The
door was locked, so one of the windows was broken
and a scholastic climbed in, and began to pass things
out. Father Edwin Sanders arrived almost immediately with a key and large scale unloading operations
were begun. There seemed to be at least seventy-five
scholastics carrying out at random whatever happened to be at hand, from set type to examen books.
Considering the damage and disorder that resulted,
the necessity of "operation Print Shop" has since been
questioned . .
At the Lagoon the new road which the fire crew
had constructed along the south bank in the fall of
'49, proved its value. In time three pump trucks from
the volunteer companies were parked along this road
and together forced water up the long hill to the fire
area at the rate of eight hundred gallons a minute.
One of the College fire crews cut holes in the ice and
the hoses were dropped into place. Two theologians
slipped. into the water up to the waist in the process.
A troublesome delay occurred here when the driver
of the Woodlawn engine was unable to find the filter
carried in his truck. Scholastics and firemen dragged
the hoses from the engines up the hill and a constant
supply of water was assured although the water tanks
of the house had been drained to a low level.
On the top of the hill three trucks from Baltimore
had arrived. By 4:15 there were fifteen fire engines
at the college including two ladder trucks, three ambulances, and an auxiliary flood-light truck. Water
streamed on the flaming Green House, the roof of the
Print Shop, and the roofs of the garages. The two
�58
.
HISTORICAL NOTES
large trees in front of the Green House suddenly
erupted into flame. Fanned by a steady breeze, the
fire had made the Green House an inferno. The heat
was so intense that men a hundred feet away shielded
their faces with hats and handkerchiefs.
Before the walls collapsed the fire entered its most
dangerous phase. Flame, cinders, and intense heat
from the south end of the Green House had ignited
window frames and ledges in the philosophers' wing.
Smoke poured into the rooms. Fighting the fire in the
three corridors was a chaotic and haphazard venture,
yet valuable work was done. The scholastics removed
furniture from the rooms, kept windows and doors
closed as much as possible, wet down the interior of
the window frames with corridor hoses and fire extinguishers brought from all Qver the house. They
succeeded in extinguishing some window fires and
when the regular firemen assumed control of the inside, the job was well in hand.
Once the walls of the Green House collapsed, there
was no danger of further fires starting in the main
building. Of those then burning, the most troublesome
and dangerous were those under the cornice. Firemen, using corridor hoses and axes from the inside,
and Dundalk's powerful aerial ladder from the outside, took care of this and the remaining window
fires. Shortly after 5:00, the last bit of flame about
the house was extinguished. The windows in about a
dozen philosophers' rooms had been ruined; the eaves.
and cornice above ripped open; granite blocks in the- .
corner of the house were split by the heat so that
pieces chipped off for several hours after. The damage
caused by water was also considerable.
Firemen soaked down the ruins of the Green House
until 7:00 A.M., when the last trucks departed. Mass
for the community had been at 5:00 A.M. and at the
early breakfast, the first of many post-mortems was
held. It seemed clear that great credit was due to
Jimmy Ormond for his clear-headed action in saving
the lives of his fellow-workmen. While bad luck ham-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
59
pered the College fire crew when the hoses burst (these
were county equipment) and pressure failed in the
early minutes, it was fortunate in many other ways.
All the brush fires that the showers of sparks started
in the nearby woods were quickly put out. If it were
the dry season a forest fire would have been a definite
danger. Moreover, when the flames were at their
highest with embers and sparks falling thickest, the
wind was blowing away from the College. This was
the hand of Providence, for the captain of the county
fire company remarked that if the wind had shifted
at that time, the roof of the philosophers' wing would
have ignited and carried the fire down the old section
of the house. The wind did shift later; but the danger had passed. Finally, the time and labor invested
by the fire crew in building the road beside the Lagoon
and in checking all the corridor hoses had paid dividends.
As was to be expected with Ours, the fire was the
occasion of some humor and irony. There was the
time when a two man bucket brigade attacked the wall
of flame with four pails of water; there were excited
firemen who fell over hoses; there was the group of
volunteers who hurried up the hill dragging the wrong
hose. An urgent phone call to one volunteer company
saying "The Green House is on fire" brought the sleepy
response, "Let the plants burn." When a Baltimore
radio station received the same puzzling news flash,
its commentator went on the air with this statement:
"At Woodstock College, the Green House, no ordinary
green house, is on fire." Because of the exaggerated accounts in the early news flashes, there were generous
offers of help from the hospitals in Baltimore and
Jesuit superiors throughout the country.
The following day photos taken by Mr. Edward Gillen and Mr. Joseph Watson appeared in the Baltimore
Sun, the Baltimore News-Post and the Washington
Post, and were circulated on the wire service of the
Associated Press. Movies of the fire, taken by one of
the firemen, appeared on the Baltimore television
�60
HIST01UCAL NOTES
newscast. The total loss, originally reported in the
Sun at $20,000, did not include the loss of the work-
men's effects, the choir's library, speech equipment,
tailor apparatus, and chapel furnishings. Experts put
the loss at about $140,000.
Since the fire, many stories have come to life. Some
cannot be included for want of space, some are apocryphal while others can never be verified. Yet all will
agree that the soaring flames were one of the most
memorable sights of a life-time. It had been a sixalarm fire, meriting the attention of a city battalion
chief and five county chiefs. The rhythmic beat of
Woodstock life had been interrupted. To one of the
faculty this was not so. "We have a fire," he is reported to have said, "every thirty years." If this be
true, we now have thirty years to speculate on the
material object of the next fire.
T. A. MCGOVERN, S.J.
ALBERT J. LoOMIE, S.J.
TWO GIFTS
The Catholic tradition on the meaning of the words "Woman,
behold thy son" gives us a fair idea of Our Blessed Lady's place
in tradition. From the first times, I believe, these words wer~
taken to mean that Our Divine Lord on the Cross had two
thoughts in His poor suffering mind. He was a son; thus He.
thought of His Mother. He was a Saviour, and He thought
of sinners.
The longing to see His Mother's grief stayed
made Him give her St. John as her son. The longing to comfort
His shepherdless flock made Him give His own Mother to be
their Mother. You may deny this tradition and say it is untrue;
but you cannot deny that for hundreds of years it was held to
be true; and you have a hard task before you to prove that your
opinion is truer than the constant opinion of the second and
third centuries. His last two gifts were His Body and Blood.
and His Mother.
FATHER VINCENT McNABB
�OBITUARY
FATHER JOHN JOSEPH WYNNE
1859-1948
A tribute to Father Wynne must labor under certain difficulties in its composition. First, there is the
problem of compressing seventy-two years of varied
and useful activity into some sort of perspective. Then
also there is the problem of delineating some idea of
the personality that was responsible for currents that
still influence American Catholicism today. Fortunately
there is a partial answer available in a series of papers
read at an academy celebrating the Golden Jubilee of
Father' Wynne in 1926. They were published a year
later under the bellicose title, Fifty Years in Conflict
and Triumph, by the Xavier Alumni Sodality of New
York. One paper was a "Retrospect" by the Jubilarian
himself. It is a valuable memoir that gives some idea
of the man and is the source of the quotations on
these pages.
John Wynne was born in New York City on September 30, 1859. He entered the parish school of Saint
Francis Xavier, staffed at that time by the Christian
Brothers. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree
from Xavier College at the age of seventeen. In those
days the curriculum of the Catholic colleges was patterned on the European six year course which the student b~an at the age of eleven. Before graduating
John Wynne went with a group of his classmates to
make a retreat at West Park, which was being readied
for its opening as a novitiate that summer. He looked
on the exercises as something that "would do no
harm." At the end of three days he had decided to
become a Jesuit and entered the Society of Jesus on
July 30, 1876 at West Park.
The novitiate was situated some miles above
Poughkeepsie on the west bank of the Hudson. His
Master of Novices, Father Isidore Daubresse was already of some repute in the diocese of New York. He
�62
OlliTUARY
had taught theology, been adviser to Archbishop
Hughes and Cardinal McCloskey and the spiritual
director of several convents. Later John Wynne wrote
of his particular emphasis on decorum: "The Master of
Novices used to insist a great deal on the virtue of
modesty in the old Roman sense, and in its peculiarly
Christian observance. At first it seemed to us that
he was dwelling unnecessarily on external manner of
observance, and we mentioned this to him. He very
humorously answered: 'Even so, some of you need
that, and you may be very glad some day if you will
acquire even that much.'"
After he had pronounced his first vows, John Wynne
was given only a year of classical studies. He recalled
with pleasure a private study of Chrysostom's eloquence which he made under one of the juniorate
teachers who "was never tired of pointing out what
he called the urbanites of Chrysostom, and the principle which he said he had learned from Schiller, that
one could tell a master of style more by what he leaves
out than what he puts in."
In 1879, the New York Mission was united with the
Maryland Province to form a new province, and instead of going to Louvain for philosophy as was customary, John Wynne went to Woodstock. His recollection of his studies at the young college needs no
comment: "The studies, which a young Jesuit makes
in philosophy are about as leisurely as studies can be.
I never doubted for a moment that many, if not all,
of the Scholastics could do in less time what now re-.
quires seven years. But it is not so much the studies;.
it is the extraordinary friendships, the exchange of
knowledge, of confidence, of experience, of aspirations
that make life useful and interesting at Woodstock.''
During these years, John Wynne acquired a taste for
biography. Considering the bold initiative he displayed
in his later projects, it is quite characteristic to read
this remark on his readings: "It seemed to me that all
the men of whom I read had at some time or other in
their lives hesitated and dreaded to make the forward
step which afterward led them to greatness. I think
I
�OBITUARY
63
the reason why men and women do not accomplish
great things is because of this dread of attempting
something beyond the ordinary."
In 1882 John Wynne began his regency. During
the next five years he was to teach mathematics and
classics at Xavier and later at Boston College. He returned to Woodstock for theology and on August 24,
1890 he was ordained by Cardinal Gibbons. A short
time before receiving Holy Orders, the young Jesuit
was sent to Keyser Island for a rest after a serious
illness. There he translated from the French manuscript Bressani's account of the death of Father Jogues.
Although he attached no significance to it at the time,
it was his first activity towards the canonization of
the North American Martyrs.
After theology Father Wynne's first assignment was
to the staff of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart.
Aside from the period of tertianship at Frederick in
1895, he was to work for the Apostleship of Prayer for
seventeen years. He increased its number of centers
from 1600 to 8000, and, as he saw it, this widespread
organization prepared the Catholics of the United
States for Pius X's desire for frequent Communion
and the later popularity of the Holy Hour. The industry of Father Wynne had brought the circulation
of the Messenger to a new high, and he proudly recalled its fine pictures, choice book reviews and its
ability to develop unknown writers. Convinced of the
apathy of American Catholics in world affairs, he
sought to stimulate them by editorials on current
events. His most famous piece was a criticism of American policy in the Philippines entitled "The Friars
Must Stay." Before publication, it was sent to Theodore Roosevelt and on the President's request it was
brought to the attention of the State Department.
Upon the request of Archbishop Ireland, Father
Wynne collaborated with Dr. Edward Pace of the
Catholic University in translating a Sunday Missal,
and soon after, a Daily Missal for American Catholics.
He also found time to assist Father O'Neill in plan-
�64
.
OBITUARY
ning the rejuvenation and extension of the then moribund Holy Name Society. In 1909 since the United
States had few magazines for Catholic discussion of
world and national affairs, John Wynne founded the
magazine America. He held the post of editor for only
one year. Previously, Father Wynne had had a lengthy
personal interview with Pope Pius X. He recalled the
audience in these words: "Among other things I requested His Holiness to give me a motto or maxim for
America which was soon to appear. In his humorous
manner he said: 'I might give you one, but will you
live up to it?' I begged him to give it so that I might
try. 'If,' said he, 'after you finish your work as editor,
you can lay down your pen and say honestly you have
never written a bitter word a,gainst any one, let me
know and I shall send you a pair of wings.' " Father
Wynne later remarked that ;while :he never got his
"wings," he felt certain that)1e hadn't lost the friendship of any of those criticized in his editorials.
In 1905 John Wynne was named associate editor of
the Catholic Encyclopedia. In company with Bishop
Shahan, Dr. Pace, Dr. Herbermann and Dr. Pallen he
furthered that enormous project with all his energy.
Its completion in 1914 is a tribute to the thousands of
letters he wrote begging for contributions in both
money and articles from Catholics all over the world.
The Encyclopedia was written when the condemnation
of Modernism was forcing many Catholic writers to
avoid any novelty in their theological outlook, yet Cardinal Farley constituted the editorial board its O\Yll
censors. In a conversation with Pope Pius X, Father
Wynne mentioned that someone had differed with some
of the articles. His Holiness replied: "Nothing of consequence; at most a fault of expression here or there.
What a blessing it would have been if there had been
fewer difficult expressions in the writings of St.
Augustine." On the completion of the set in 1914,
Father Wynne together with each member of the editorial board was awarded the Apostolic Benediction
- and the medal Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice. The Dublin
�OBITUARY
65
Review praised the Encyclopedia as "the greatest triumph of Christian science in the English tongue."
In addition to his other activities, since 1892 John
Wynne was Director of the Shrine of the Martyrs at
Auriesville and Editor of the magazine The Pilgrim
of Our Lady of Martyrs. As part of this job, he had
striven to further the cause of canonization of Saint
Isaac Jogues and his companions. His book The Jesuit
Martyrs of North America was the first popular treatment of the history of the Huron Mission. After years
of effort in the many details required to verify miracles
and popularize the cult, the martyrs were beatified in
1925 and canonized in 1929. A new process in honor of
Kateri Tekakwitha had been begun earlier and he remained Vice-Postulator of that cause until 1940.
In the face of the great projects that John Wynne
initiated and pushed to completion, he found time
somehow to edit the magazine Anno Domini and organize the League of Daily Mass, to lecture on religion
at Manhattanville, to act as chaplain to the New York
Knights of Columbus, and become associate Editor of
the Universal Knowledge Foundation. At Cardinal Farley's request, he worked for some years for the reunion of the Churches with the Protestant churchmen,
Dr. Gardiner and Dr. Silas McBee, on the magazine
The Constructive Quarterly.
In all his many activities---and this account has mentioned only the most famous-Father Wynne was the
first to thank the many Jesuits who assisted him. He
realized that his work was often outside the usual
fields of the Society's labors, but no one can look at
his career without remarking on its similarity to the
labors of St. Peter Canisius. Like the Hammer of
Heretics Father Wynne strove to impress on his
country the principles and traditions of the great intellectual heritage of Catholicism. Obviously a man
who could foster projects over such a long period of
years must have been capable of great enthusiasm and
determination. Much of his literary work he looked
upon as but the necessary beginnings of a Catholic
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OBITUARY
intellectual life in America. Most of his books have
been superseded by more authoritative works, but that
is something that he himself desired. In 1926, he said:
"Our Catholic writers, with few exceptions, write on
religion only. Not five of them command attention in
general literature. Until that number is multiplied a
hundredfold, we shall never be able to impress on the
world our ideals."
That is the vital contribution John Wynne was
glad to make. He was of that small far-sighted group
who appreciated at the turn of the century the needs
of the American Church. With high courage and self
sacrifice Father Wynne made certain that something
was accomplished. The biography of John Wynne
must inevitably be written if American ecclesiastic
history is to record a true picture of the Church during
his lifetime. In a period when the American hierarchy
was characterized by large ideals and large personal
antipathies, he made a success out of projects that
required the greatest tact. The hackneyed adjective
"Herculean" must be applied to his efforts, but the
facts are there in his pamphlets, in his books, and what
is in many way "his Encyclopedia." He was honored
with medals and degrees and was the friend of the
great and the near-great of the Church in America,
but throughout his remarkable career, he was the Vir
Deo Conjunctus he determined to be on July 31, 1878,
seventy-two years before.
ALBERT J. LOOMIE, S.J.
-FATHER GEORGE J. PICKEL
1869-1948
Nine days after conducting his last class in
chemistry, a graduate course in plastics, Father George
Pickel died in Cleveland, May 21, 1948, at the age of
eighty. A few weeks before, he had celebrated his
�OBITUARY
67
sixtieth anniversary as a Jesuit. Excepting three years
as President of St. Ignatius College from 1907 to ·
1910, all of Father Pickel's years were spent in the
classroom.
George Pickel was born of German immigrants at
St. Louis, Missouri, July 6, 1867. His high school and
college work was done at Sacred Heart College, Prairie
du Chien, and when eighteen he received there the
A.B., the only degree he ever boasted. After a threeday retreat at Campion he decided to join the German
fathers who -were his teachers. He was sent to Blyenbeck castle in Holland for his novitiate, but he returned
to Prairie for his juniorate. He taught one year at
Canisius, two more at Ignatius College, Cleveland.
Besides the usual assignment to a class he was assigned a special subject to teach, stenography.
He returned to Holland in 1894 and, at the newly
opened Ignatiuskolleg at Valkenburg, spent seven
years in philosophy and theology. He was ordained
in August, 1900, and from 1901 to 1903 studied physics and chemistry at the University of Goettingen.
In 1903 he returned to this country to make his
tertianship as one of the class of six at Brooklyn,
Ohio.
Then during his third year of teaching sciences at
St. Ignatius College, Cleveland, he was made acting
rector. In January, 1907, he became rector and in the
next three years saw the college through its transfer
from the Buffalo Mission to the Missouri Province.
With the permission of his friend, Bishop Ignatius
F. Horstmann, he opened up the Loyola High School
as an East Side branch of St. Ignatius College. With
Father Frederick L. Odenbach he did all he could to
encourage the sciences at St. Ignatius and by 1910 he
had bunt his own wireless. He sought to acquire on the
East Side a new site for St. Ignatius College, though
this project, like his plan for a lay advisory board
and his attempt to get financial aid from the late
C. A. Grasselli, was only accomplished by others many
years later.
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OBITUARY
A brief for St. Ignatius College which he presented
to Bishop Farrelly used the now familiar expression
"an endowment of men" to explain the Jesuits' contribution to the diocese. He explained this as contributed
services equivalent to interest on an endowment, just
as we do today.
Ill health forced Father Pickel to leave Cleveland
in 1910, and he taught chemistry and physics for fifteen
years at Campion and two years at Spring Hill, not to
mention some summer courses at Creighton, before
returning to Cleveland. In 1927 he became professor
of chemistry and head of the department at John
Carroll, teaching steadily for twenty more years even
when president protem. in 1937-38.
To those who were privileged to enjoy Father
Pickel's companionship over an extended period of
time; his tall, impressive stature appeared like a symbol
and a vital expression of his finely molded character.
His outlook on life in general and on the duties of
his vocation in particular always remained on a high
spiritual level. Not less significant was the slight stoop
of his head and shoulders. From his student years to
the end of his life he had always been an earnest reader
and searcher, especially in his chosen field of chemistry.
Even more admired by his colleagues was his keen
interest in the well-being of his brethren and his
students. The most conscientious attention was given
to drawing up a course of studies for each student
under his direction. To quote from the diamond jubilee
address of Professor Frank D. Burke, for many years·
his associate in the Department of Chemistry, "Being-·
a Jesuit and subscribing enthusiastically to the teaching philosophy of the Ratio Studiorum of his order he
believes in educating the whole man." According to
Father Pickel's educational scheme "a student must
not only be thoroughly grounded in his professional
field but must receive also a sufficient cultural background to understand his environment and above all,
a sufficient philosophical heritage to make of him a
complete citizen, under the Catholic ethic." For this
�OBITUARY
69
reason one of the requirements for a chemistry major
was "a minor in philosophy by which his (the student's) whole life, both professional and private, must
be lived." Father Pickel's devoted and active zeal in
maintaining these high standards was as well known
to all as was the kindly, modest, and unaffected manner
in which he bestowed his patient and untiring help.
This habitual attitude might be taken for granted
in a man of his calling. There were, however, in his
case the unmistakable evidences of an exalted spiritual viewpoint which reached down to all the apparently insignificant details of his daily life. "Nihil
humani a me alienum puto" would be a true statement of Father Pickel's attitude toward his environment both in and outside the community. A more
adequate and complete analysis would have to be
expressed in the words, "Nihil vitae spiritualis a me
alienum puto."
As long as sufficient physical strength remained, in
fact until a short time before his death, he delighted
to serve mass whenever there was a need of a server.
It could not escape notice that even in his advanced
age his spirit of self-denial prompted him to fast or
at least to retrench in his food. At times his breakfast consisted only of coffee and bread when there was
no question of loss of appetite or ill health. Yes, he
had his favorite dishes, the unusual nature of which
at times amused both himself and his brethren. His love
of fidelity and regularity at community exercises was
so manifest that at his diamond jubilee an intimate
associate could publicly testify : "We could almost
regulate our community exercises by the appearance
of Father Pickel."
Those who knew him intimately could, of course,
easily recognize in him a natural and happy predisposition to calm and composure, an innate quality of
steadfastness and perseverance. His mild and candid
disposition always proved engaging and reassuring to
all who dealt with him. While these advantages of
nature and education are kept in mind, the evident fact
�70
OIDTUARY
remains that in his character there had developed a
fine synthesis of nature and grace which constantly
gave evidence of the strong influence of the latter upon
the former, of a keen sense of his obligations, and of
the faithful and generous cooperation of the recipient
·with his spiritual opportunities.
Father Pickel's genuine interest and love for his
brethren made him a most genial and delightful
community man: never obtrusive or meddlesome-in
fact habitually rather inclined to keep his counselstill always a present and pleasant companion who
found his delight in being in the company of his
brethren and in sharing their recreations and amusements as well as their problems. He played his game
of cards as every other enthusiast, winning or losing
with vibrant vocal accompaniment. Father Pickel did
not accept the prevailing American attitude toward
collegiate sports. Their publicity value did not impress
him and he was not backward in expressing his views.
His own hobbies included photography, plastics, and
an attempt to develop a blue rose.
His confreres who knew him best would hardly be
interested in searching out the slender threads of
human frailty in a personality which consistently
aimed so high and came so close to the ideal of
religious perfection.
-FATHER MICHAEL I. STRITCH
1862-1949
Although he was never the president of any college
or university nor a superior or administrative officer
of any kind, Father Michael I. Stritch was one of the
better known Jesuits of the first half of the twentieth
century. He was certainly one of its most gifted. In his
day, and that day lasted over thirty years, he was one
�OBITUARY
71
of the Society's most brilliant preachers and lecturers.
Particularly in Detroit, Omaha and St. Louis was he
known, sought after and appreciated. And all the while
he was among the greatest of teachers.
By his own admission both the date and place of
his birth are not certain. He gave September 8, 1862,
for the former, and Williamstown, County Galway,
Ireland, for the latter. He attended the primary and
secondary schools of his native Ireland until his
eighteenth year and then came to the United States.
After two years of work in and around Springfield,
Ohio, Father Stritch spent a year at Wittenberg College in that city and then a second year at Xavier University in Cincinnati. It is said that those engaged in
teaching the classics at Wittenberg advised him to go
to a Jesuit school since he knew as much Latin and
Greek r.s did any member of their staff. After one
brief year at Xavier he entered the novitiate at Florissant, April 10, 1884. His novitiate, juniorate and tertianship were all had at Florissant, his philosophy in
St. Louis and his theology at Woodstock, where he was
ordained on June 28, 1898, by Cardinal Gibbons.
Father Stritch pursued no formal special studies as
the term is understood today. Few men, however, spent
more time in specialized study than he did. He made
himself ably conversant with practically every phase of
philosophy and theology in order to pass on the fruit
of his endeavor to others in the classroom and from
the pulpit. Many of the great scientific topics of the
day he made his own with crystal clarity and discussed
them with acclaim in the light of Catholic truth, or
refuted their distortion by agnostics or bigots. His
love and knowledge of Shakespeare and a large part
of English literature, particularly poetry, enabled him
to speak of these with insight and familiarity, while
the countless long passages he would commit to
memory were ample token of the industry of the man
and the remarkable training he had given to that
faculty.
In what might be styled extra-curricular work
�-72
GBITUARY
Father Stritch's greatest achievement was undoubtedly
his mastery of Dante. He had always possessed a quite
good reading knowledge of French and German; he
learned Italian well in order that he might study
Dante in the only proper way. His lectures on the great
Italian poet were highly informative and inspiring
and profound, as well. To appreciate Dante and translate his genius for others required a scholar of equal
breadth and depth of understanding. That was why
Father Stritch knew Dante as he did.
Above everything else, however, Father Stritch was
a teacher among teachers. His presentation of his subject matter was always clear, masterful and an inspiration to his students. His ordered and concise summaries
of whole sections of philosophy were nothing short of
brilliant. The most regrettable thing about Father
Stritch is that apparently he never possessed the
patience required for writing. Few, if any, of his
sermons or lectures were ever written; there were no
retreat notes, though he had given scores of retreats,
particularly to priests; his forceful and coherent philosophy courses never found their way into textbooks;
he left no appreciation of Longfellow, Wordsworth· or
Tennyson, no word about Shakespeare, not even a line
about Dante. But in a multitude of hearts inside the
Society and out he left a large library of grateful
memories. This brilliant Jesuit priest aided many and
inspired more. May God bless him for it.
He died in St. Mary's Hospital in St. Louis on
December 31, 1949, in his eighty-eighth year, simiJlY.
of the infirmities of age.
BROTHER JOHN LENERZ
1875-1949
Most of the priests of the Missouri province knew
Brother Lenerz since he was stationed at the tertian-
�OBITUARY
73
ship in Cleveland for more than forty years. There
he was a familiar sight as he guided plough or harrow
behind his plodding horse or scattered feed to the
chickens or strolled into the house bearing a basket
of eggs. Older priests will remember more remote
times when the tranquil atmosphere of the tertianship
was interrupted momentarily by agonizing squeals of
pigs that were slaughtered by a deft stroke of Brother
Lenerz' knife. However, few tertians, because of
circumstances, ever got to know him well and to
understand his deeply religious character.
He was born on October 29, 1875 at Roxbury,
Wisconsin. On September 4, 1899, not quite twentyfour years old, he entered the novitiate at St. Stanislaus, Cleveland, whither the novitiate of the Buffalo
Mission had just been transferred from Camden.
It is a rather striking fact that, though Brother Lenerz was a Jesuit for more than fifty years, he lived in
only two different houses. After completing his novitiate he continued on at St. Stanislaus until 1940 when,
upon the doctor's recommendation, he was transferred
to St. Mary's College, Kansas, where he labored until
his death.
His chief occupation during his long stay in Cleveland was that of farmer. Though the work was so
heavy at certain seasons that he needed assistance, he
always did a large share of the toil himself. He raised
various crops of which corn and potatoes were the
mainstays. He also took care of the chickens and, in
the early days, tended the cows and pigs.
His detachment is impressively illustrated by the
f·act that at St. Mary's he eagerly accepted an entirely
different kind of work, painting, and kept at it for
more than four years, spending most of the time
inside. In 1945, his health gradually declining, Brother
Lenerz was appointed assistant refectorian and did his
work faithfully. When this became too difficult for his
waning strength, he was made porter.
For many years he suffered much from asthma, and
seldom if ever, had a complete night's sleep. Sleep
�74
OBITUARY
was always slow in coming, and when it did, he would
wake up after an hour or so, get up to inhale a medicinal vapor and then try to fall asleep again, often unsucessfully. He would sometimes mention this insomnia to others, but never in a complaining manner.
During the last several months of his life he resided
in the infirmary, but did not become bed-ridden until
several weeks before his death. When the other patients
were considerably inconvenienced by one who unwittingly caused disturbance at night, Brother Limerz
never complained. His only comment was that God
allowed this "for his greater merit."
He was unusually fervent in devotion to our Blessed
Mother, and had a keen interest in her apparitions at
Fatima and, later on, at Lipa. If chance visitors betrayed only a scanty knowledge of these apparitions,
he could not conceal his surprise. He kept up-to-date
about them by reading regularly magazines like the
Scapular, Our Lady of Fatima, St. Anthony's Visitor,
and Fatima Findings. He never read secular newspapers or magazines of any kind.
During his last few weeks on earth, Brother Lenerz
suffered intensely, especially from a cancer that spread
up and down from his sinuses, causing severe headaches, blindness and a congested throat. His heart too
was failing so that his arms and legs swelled. All
visitors were highly impressed by his spirit of resig:.-"
nation. He expressed genuine thanks every time a
priest dropped in to give him a blessing.
On the afternoon of February 14 he received a
tiny particle of the Host as his final Viaticum. During
the next two days he was unconscious most of the
time and passed away peacefully about four in the
afternoon of February 16, thus completing a life which
had mirrored all the virtues which the Society expects from her Brothers.
�OBITUARY
75
FATHER GEORGE J. BRUNNER
1892-1949
Father George Brunner went peacefully to his reward November 22, 1949. He had been unwell since
summer and had gone to the hospital for a check-up,
but he returned very shortly and had resumed his
teaching. On November 6 he became seriously ill and
was taken to the hospital that evening. The doctors
finally diagnosed his malady as an infection of the
blood stream. It grew worse and pneumonia set in.
At seven o'clock of the morning of November 22 Father
Minister was with him and told him in response to his
inquiry "How am I?" that there seemed to be no
imminent danger. Father Minister left when they
brought Father Brunner his breakfast About eleven
o'clock he called the Sister and asked for a priest to
give him absolution. She went to get the chaplain and
when she came back to the room Father Brunner was
already breathing his last. He died about eleven-thirty
that morning.
Father Brunner was born at Amberg in Bavaria,
January 5, 1882. He attended the local gymnasium
which occupied buildings of the college of the old
Society with the IHS monogram still over the main entrance. As a boy George used to read stories of the
missions and of the Indians and the Wild West. He
dreamed. of being an Indian missionary and at the
age of sixteen, in 1898, he left home for America.
At first he thought of the Capuchins and attended
St. Lawrence College at Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin, as a
postulant. However he soon decided this was not his
vocation and went to Canisius College in Buffalo and
from there entered the Society August 2, 1902. His
novitiate and juniorate years were spent at St. Stanislaus, Cleveland and his philosophy at Woodstock. During the five years of his regency he was occupied with
the teaching of mathematics at Campion College,
Prairie du Chien. In 1914 he was sent to St. Louis
�76
-oBITUARY
University for his theology and was ordained in 1917
by Cardinal John Joseph Glennon. His tertianship was
made at Cleveland under Father Burrowes in 19191920. During Lent of that year he was on the Mission Band. Prairie was again to become the scene of
his labors in the summer of 1920.
A new experience came to him in 1923 when he was
sent for one year as Exchange Professor of Physics
and Mathematics to Campion College, Regina, Saskatchewan. The following year he was assigned to John
Carroll University in Cleveland and from there, in
1926, he was transferred to Loyola University in Chicago where he took over the operation of the Seismological Observatory. But his health, never very robust,
gave way and he underwent a serious thyroid operation while there. As a result of his malady he was
usually too warm and even on cold days he worked
with windows wide open.
His achievements in the field of seismology, his study
of deep earthquakes, his Depth-Time-Distance Chart,
his many papers read before the meetings of learned
societies are well known to all of us and do not need
recounting.
Father Brunner was a very regular religious and
often displayed a delightful sense of humor. After
breakfast every day came the reading of the breviary,
usually in shirt sleeves down in the garden beside the
church, except on Sundays and Holy Days when he
went to the sacristy to distribute Holy Communion as
a volunteer iri case extra help were needed. In t,lie
afternoon, rain, shine, or snow, he took a long walk
and without overcoat or umbrella because, as he told
Father Minister, "It is better to be wet on the outside
than the inside."
Those of us who were privileged to know Father
Brunner intimately appreciated him as a man of high
ideals wrapped up in a bundle of emotions. He was an
artist who loved nature, delighted in drawing and
painting and had no mean gifts in those lines. His was
a sensitive, retiring nature.
�OBITUARY
77
FATHER FRANCIS J. RUDDEN
1877-1950
Father Rudden was born in St. Louis on June 3,
1877. As a youth he was gifted with a splendid
physique and excelled in various sports, especially in
baseball and swimming. He was so adept in the latter
that he once sought a sponsor who would pay his expenses for an attempt to swim across the English
Channel. He was also endowed with intellectual abilities and did well in his studies.
After completing his college course at St. Louis
University, he entered the Society at Florissant at the
age of twenty-one. After the four years at Florissant
and the regular course of philosophy, he taught one
year at Xavier's College in Cincinnati and four more
at St. Mary's, Kansas. Having completed his theology
in St. Louis he was sent to St. Francis Mission as prefect of studies and discipline. This was followed by
tertianship under Father Joseph Grimmelsmann at
Cleveland.
Since the German Fathers in Bombay, India, were
interned during World War I, Father Rudden was one
of four Missouri Province Fathers sent there to help
out his Grace, Archbishop Alban J. Goodier, S.J.
Father Rudden spent the first two of his six years in
India as a teacher at St. Francis Xavier's High School
in Bombay. He then became assistant pastor at Quetta,
Beluchistan in the Province of Bombay, and during
his last year in India, pastor of St. Patrick's Cathedral
in Bombay itself.
Upon his return to the States in 1922 Father Rudden
spent the rest of his active life doing pastoral work
at Campion, Chicago, Detroit, Stann Creek, Cleveland
and St. Louis. In 1935 he became chaplain at St. John's
and Barnes' Hospital in St. Louis and the next year
was appointed assistant at Holy Trinity Church, Trinidad. In January, 1937, he was transferred to St.
�78
QBITUARY
Mary's College, Kansas where he served for some
months as pastor of Our Lady of the Snow on the Pottawatomie Reservation.
He was the first pastor of the Gesu Parish connected
with the old St. Ignatius College, Cleveland, and held
this post for three years (1926-29). When he came
there he had a scattered flock, but neither church nor
rectory. By his diligent efforts he was able to procure a
residence and to accumulate some funds for a church.
When Father Rudden disembarked at Belize, British Honduras, in 1931, he suffered a nervous shock
from which he never completely recovered. No word
had reached his ship of the terrible hurricane that had
devastated Belize the day before his arrival. He entered a desolate town, with its inhabitants half crazed,
with most of its homes wrecked and scattered about
the streets, with several of his· fellow Jesuits still lying
dead in the ruins of St.John's College. It was one of the
few experiences of his life about which he was reluctant to speak.
During his thirteen years at St. Mary's Father
Rudden underwent a gradual physical and mental impairment. For the last ten years of his life he could not
say Mass, largely because of a lack of coordination of
his motor muscles. After a hernia operation some six
years before his death, he suffered a pronounced mental deterioration and gradually lost completely the
power of speech. During most of this time he was su~
ficiently "compos" to feel keenly the humiliation -of
his condition, but bore up with remarkable patience.
At St. Mary's he revealed the deep kindness of his
character, never indulging in ,gossip or manifesting any
symptoms of ill will towards superiors or anyone else.
He had an engaging way of rehearsing his past experiences. He had become acquainted with Ghandi in
India and once took dinner at his home.
On February 8, 1950 Father Rudden died peacefully
in the infirmary at St. Mary's.
�OBITUARY
79
FATHER PIUS L. MOORE
1881-1950
The China Mission of the California Province
sustained a great loss on October 12, 1950, when
Father Pius Leo Moore, S.J., quietly passed to his
reward at the O'Connor Hospital in San Jose, California. In him the Mission lost one of its most zealous
members; it lost its great provider, whose only thought
was to raise the means necessary to carry on the work
in China and, temporarily, in the Philippines, and to
send out to the missionaries those many little articles
of food and convenience that would make their work
easier and more efficient.
Pius Moore was the youngest of eight children born
to Joseph A. Moore and Mary Kenny Moore. His birthplace was Spirit Lake, Iowa, where he saw the light
of day on July 10, 1881. Shortly thereafter the
family moved to Oregon, and Pius grew up in the
vicinity of Portland. He received his high school education at Gonzaga, in Spokane, and on August 13, 1900,
he followed the example of three of his sisters in
embracing the religious life. On that day he entered
the Sacred Heart Novitiate at Los Gatos, California,
and from the very first he manifested an ardent interest in missionary work. He took as a special patron
St. Francis Xavier and all during his life he cultivated
a warm devotion to this primary patron of the Missions.
After three years at Los Gatos, Mr. Moore taught
for two years in Lewiston, Idaho, and then spent
another three years studying philosophy in Spokane.
As was the custom then, there followed another four
years of teaching, all at Gonzaga. During this time he
exercised his missionary spirit by teaching catechism
at the Japanese Mission near Spokane. In 1912 Mr.
Moore went East to Woodstock College for his course
of theology, and there, on June 27, 1915, he was one
of the class of twenty-four Jesuit theologians who
�80
OBITUARY
were raised to the priesthood by His Eminence, James
Cardinal Gibbons. Upon completion of his four years
of theology, Father Moore returned to Los Gatos for
tertianship.
His first assignment in 1917 must have brought
great joy to his heart; it was to work among the
Japanese in the mission in San Francisco which had
been established some years previously by Father
Pockstahler. Here he labored for two years, making
an effort to study a little of the language and looking forward to the day when he could really follow
in the footsteps of Xavier in the land of Japan. But
this goal seemed more remote than ever when, on
August 22, 1919, he was installed as Rector of St.
Ignatius College in San Francisco, succeeding the
Reverend Patrick J. Foote, S.J., as head of the institution which was still housed in the temporary buildings
erected in 1906 on Hayes Street.
Father Moore's first concern was to provide suitable
living quarters for the rapidly growing faculty of St.
~gnatius College and High School. Through the assistance of a generous benefactress, the present faculty
residence was constructed, only half large enough for
the 1950 faculty, of course, but quite adequate for the
needs of 1920. One of the immediate results of the installation of the Fathers in their own house up on the
hill was the rapid expansion of the high school student body, which now had more available classroom
space. In the course of a few years it grew from 150
to 750 boys, a growth that was to be equaled in the
college department when that moved into its own
building some years later.
After his six years as Rector of St. Ignatius had
passed, Father Moore hoped to realize his ambition of
going to Japan, but it was not to be. He was sent to
St. Joseph's Church in Seattle, and after a year as assistant there, he was assigned to Gonzaga College,
where he became acquainted with the young Scholastic,
Mr. Carlos Simons, with whom he was soon to be associated in a bold, new venture. For, with all hope of
�OBITUARY
81
getting to Japan gone, and with there being very
little chance of working in the Philippines~Father
Moore's second choice-the door to China suddenly
swung open.
For some years the French Jesuits in Shanghai had
realized the need for an English school in that
metropolis. A group of Chinese Catholic laymen were
equally anxious for such a development. One of these,
the famous Chinese philanthropist, Loh Pa Hong, made
a special trip to Rome to urge Very Reverend Father
General to send some American Jesuits to China.
Father Ledochowski promised his help and requested
the California Province to provide missionaries for this
new undertaking. The Provincial at the time was
Father Joseph Piet, who responded to the appeal by
appointing Father Moore to head the first band of five
California Jesuits to labor in China. Along with Father
Moore was Father John Lennon and three Scholastics,
Carlos Simons-later to be killed by bandits on December 31, 1940-Thomas Phillips and Cornelius Lynch.
This band of pioneers left San Francisco in the late
summer of 1928 and on September 21 ( ?) landed in
Shanghai, missionaries at last!
Father Moore spent two years in an attempt - to
absorb some of the Chinese language, one in Shanghai
and one in Nanking. He never did become very proficient in it, and in 1930 he returned to Shanghai when
the newly established high school was opened by the
California Jesuits. He first taught here, and then became director of the school, both in its first location
in the French Concession of Shanghai, and later when
it was moved over into the International Settlement. In
1933, Father Leo McGreal was appointed Rector of this
Shanghai Gonzaga, and Father Moore took up the
duties of Procurator and Minister, which he fulfilled
until the summer of 1937 when he was called home
to become the first mission Procurator of the California Fathers in China. The outbreak of the SinoJapanese War.that summer made it appear at first as
if he would be unable to get out of Shanghai, but on
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.OBITUARY
September 8 he was finally able to leave that city on
his way back to the States.
Now began the final phase of Father Moore's life----one which occupied him, with the exception of two
years, up to the very end. Now he was able to give
full expression to his missionary zeal, not in the actual
work on the missions themselves, but in gathering together the necessary means to keep the men in the
field operating. Now he lived, talked, dreamed only the
Mission; now his only thought was to gather money
and supplies to send to the men in China. Strangely
enough, no one ever guessed it, and certainly he never
gave any indication of it, but Father Moore confided
to one of the Fathers later on that it was only by overcoming feelings of the utmost repugnance that he
could bring himself to going around and asking people for money. Certainly, in :the course of time he
really did conquer these fee1ings; either that, or he
became a master dissembler. He always gave the impression that he was doing you a real favor by letting
you contribute to the support of the Mission, and that
he derived great pleasure in the process.
After four years on the job, Father Moore made
plans to visit the mission field in China, and in October,
1941, he left San Francisco in the company of Father
John Lennon, who was returning to China after
spending a year home on sick leave. Due to the tension
in the Far East, their ship took the southern route
via Manila, bringing the two Fathers to Shanghai
about November 18. In three weeks the Pacific W~r
broke out and any hope of returning to America in·
January or February had to be abandoned. Father
Moore remained at the Church of Christ the King and
helped out in the parish work. So passed 1942 and
the first few months of 1943. Then, in company with
all Americans, British, Belgians, and Dutch in Shanghai, the California Jesuits were locked up in concentration camps; Father Moore was at Zikawei with the
greater part of his confreres, still hoping that something would turn up to enable him to get back to
�OBITUARY
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his labors in the province. Something did turn up; the
necessary arrangements were completed for him,
Father Lennon, and Brother James Finnegan to be
repatriated on the second trip of the Gripsholm. They
left Shanghai on a Japanese ship in September and
changed to the Gripsholm at Nova Goa in India.
If he had not been caught in China by the war,
Father Moore would never have had the opportunity
to visit the tomb of his beloved missionary exemplar
and patron, St. Francis Xavier. Even as it was, it still
appears somewhat of a minor miracle that he was
able to do so. There has never been a really satisfactory explanation of why Father Moore and Brothel'
Finnegan, alone of all the passengers boarding the
Gripsholm, were able to leave the dock and make
the trip to the Saint's last resting place. Certainly,
Father derived intense satisfaction from this "pilgrimage" and he always regarded it as one of the special
favors that had been granted him.
Back on the job in December, 1943, Father Moore
relieved Father Paul O'Brien who had been pinchhitting for him. Until the end of the war there was
no possibility of sending things to China, but he
still managed to notify the Fathers in Shanghai, by
a roundabout way, of the Mass intentions that he had
collected for them. And once the war was over and
communications restored, Father Moore started the
ball rolling. Each group of new men that went to
China brought with them a generous quantity of
food, sweets, and other little gifts that Father had
carefully gathered and packed for his men on the
mission. Lookin,g back now, the amount of work that
he accomplished, mostly by himself, seems to us incredible. He traveled far and wide begging help in
every shape and form. From the apple growers in
Washington he received donations of crates of fine
apples; from the fruit men in the Santa Clara Valley
he got sacks of dried fruit which was a God-send to
the men out there. Mass intentions he begged from
all over the States and during the three years follow-
�-QBITUARY
ing the war he sent an average of five thousand intentions a month for distribution to the missionaries
in China. As a matter of fact, Father Moore was almost
the sole support, not only for our Californians, but also
of the many missions that were staffed by Europeans
whose help from their home countries were entirely
cut off.
His ceaseless expenditure of energy, however, began
to take its toll. On December 8, 1947, Father Moore
suffered what was probably a slight stroke while saying Mass in San Jose, and it laid him up for several
months, leaving a noticeable effect in the weakening
of his already weak eyesight. As soon as the doctors
permitted, he was back on the job but moved around
with perhaps a little more caution and moderation
than before. At the end of 1948, Father Lipman was
brought back from China to help with the Procurator's
work, which relieved Father- 'of considerable detail.
The time was approaching for the completion of his
fifty years in the Society, and Father Moore's hopes
and prayers were that he would be spared long enough
to celebrate the Jubilee. His three sisters, all members
of the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of Providence,
had celebrated the golden jubilee of their religious
life, and Father Moore was praying to keep a perfect
average in the family. Two of them, Sister Pancratius
and Sister Mary of Mt. Carmel, had already been
taken by death, but Sister Margaret Mary was still
at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Yakima. A brother, Hugh
Moore, was the only other survivor of the original
eight children. Neither he nor Sister Margaret Mary
were able to be present at St. Ignatius Church in San
Francisco on August 13, 1950, when Father Pius sang
his golden jubilee solemn high mass, but both of them,
along with forty-three other members of the various
Moore families, were present at a gathering near Portland when Father was enabled to make a trip North to
visit them.
When he returned to San Jose towards the end of
September he looked tired and drawn. Around mid-
�OBITUARY
85
night on September 28, one of the Fathers in the
residence at San Jose noticed a light burning in the
bathroom, and on investigating, found Father Moore
lying unconscious in the shower where he had probably
been for two or three hours. The Father anointed him
and called the rescue squad to revive him, but without any result. Father Pius was taken to the O'Connor
Hospital in San Jose where, after several days, he
recovered partial consciousness. However, he was
unable to talk and probably could not see. On the
evening of October 12 the nurse noticed that he
suddenly began to breathe very heavily and to perspire
profusely. Within three or four minutes his soul had
gone to join the countless other valiant missionaries
before the Great White Throne.
Father Pius Moore will be missed. He will be
missed by the California Jesuits in China and Manila
for whom he was always so thoughtfully provident.
He will be missed by his fellow Jesuits here in the
province. He will be missed by his myriad friends for
whom he always had a kind word and a helping hand.
But we are certain that our good Mission Procurator
who always had such a tender devotion to the Blessed
Mother and Saint Francis Xavier, will not forget
those whom he left behind. The good that he did for
us while here in our midst he will continue to do now
that he has taken his place with them for all eternity.
JOHN K. LIPMAN, S.J.
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BROTHER NICOLAUS FOX
1863-1950
All his life, Brother Nicolaus Fox worked on the
Indian Missions. In every place, he was noted for his
farming and gardening ability. He was a great enthusiast of sports and music. No matter where he was sent,
�86
~OBITUARY
he always succeeded in forming first class Indian
bands. He loved basketball and baseball, being the
official umpire of all the latter games while he was
stationed at St. Paul's, Montana. This veteran of 58
years of religious life died in a Portland hospital,
January 28, 1950.
Nicolaus Fox was born in the year 1863 at Trier,
Germany. As a young man, he served in the German
army, and was regarded as the best marksman in his
regiment. In 1890 he left Germany for the United
States, with the determination to seek his fortune in
the western states.
He entered the Jesuit Novitiate of the Rocky Mountain Mission, located at that time at DeSmet, Idaho,
on January 9. 1892. He pronounced his first vows of
the Society at Gonzaga College in Spokane in 1894.
During the succeeding five years at Gonzaga he took
charge of farming and similar duties at St. Michael's
Mission.
In 1899 he was stationed at Holy Family Mission,
Browning, Montana, a mission that was subsequently
closed. From 1901 to 1909 he labored at DeSmet Mission in Idaho. This was followed by a three year
sojourn at Holy Rosary Mission in southern South
Dakota. St. Paul's Indian Mission in St. Paul's,
Montana, was next to receive the benefits of his labors
from 1912 to 1917.
He went back to Holy Family Mission in Browning, Montana, for four years, before receiving hi.s
status for a practically permanent location at St. Paul's
Mission. He labored at this mission from 1921 to 1949.
In the latter year, due to failing health, he was sent
to St. Francis Xavier Novitiate, Sheridan, Oregon,
to live out the rest of his days.
GERARD STECKLER, S.J.
�Books of Interest to Ours
ADMIRABLE DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
The Family at Bethany. By Alfred O'Rahilly, President of University College, Cork. Cork University Press, 1949, 216 pp.,
24 pp. of plates. 12/6
Dr. O'Rahilly, who some years ago merited our gratitude for
his very excellent life of Fr. William Doyle, S.J., again makes
us his debtors. The Family at Bethany is a devotional, theological, and exegetical study of the Gospel passages which
refer to those friends of Our Lord, Mary, Martha and Lazarus,
who welcomed Him so often and so affectionately to their
house at Bethany. The method of exposition is uniform for all
the chapters. There is first an English translation of the Gospel
text, followed by brief exegetical notes, which justify the translation and indicate difficulties of interpretation. Then comes
the commentary: not a verse by verse explanation but paragraphs of exposition or description or narrative, which place
the whole scene vividly before us.
Though he warns us in his preface that he is no specialist
in the field either of theology or exegesis, every page proves
that the author is fully acquainted with the best results of
modern Catholic and non-Catholic research. He brings to the
exposition of the various texts a wide erudition, sound judgment,
and an accurate knowledge of all the problems involved. But his
primary aim was devotional. And here he has succeeded most
admirably. For instance, in his comments on the anointing by
the sinful woman in the house of Simon we read the following:
"Simon thought He did not mind. She thought He did not
notice; both were wrong. For now He has declared for all
time that He did observe both neglect and service, and that
He accepted the latter as making up for the former. This sums
up the idea of reparation. We have here the first great
revelation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus." Such precious thoughts
recur constantly.
The title of the book is completely satisfied, it would seem, by
a consideration of the visit of Our Lord to Bethany (Luke, c.10),
the resurrection of Lazarus (John, c.ll) and the anointing
in the house of Simon the Leper (John, c.12 and parallels).
But any study of the family at Bethany must also take into
account the problem of the identity of Mary with the unnamed
sinful woman and with Mary Magdalen. Dr. O'Rahilly was
therefore happily forced to enrich his book still further by
t . addition of distinct chapters on the sinful woman, Mary
Magdalen and the other women on Calvary and at the burial
of Christ, Mary Magdalen and the risen Christ. Though from
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BOOK REVIEWS
the very beginning it is clear that he favors the thesis of
identity, he appreciates the value of the opposing arguments. At
the present time, when many exegetes of renown vehemently
insist that the sinful woman, Mary of Bethany and Mary
Magdalen are three distinct women, he is content to make out
a case for identity which may be held "without detriment to
one's intellectual integrity or exegetical competence."
A unique feature is a series of pictures from all periods of
Christian art, which represent the various characters and
scenes connected with the family at Bethany. The author assures us that more such studies will be forthcoming, if this
one receives a welcome that will make their publication financially possible. We hope that his gifted pen will not be silenced
for lack of such support.
EDWIN
D.
SANDERS, S.J.
POINTS BY THE SPIRITUAL FATHER
Our Way To The Father: Meditations for each day of the year
in four volumes. By Leo M. Krenz, S.J. Milwaukee, Bruce
Publishing Co., 1950. pp. xx-518; viii-411; viii-535; viii516. $15.00.
This posthumous publication of an American Jesuit is a landmark in the history of Jesuit asceticalliterature in our country.
In size and scope the work surpasses any previous contributions
to this field by members of the Society in the United States.
In the same respects the work compares favorably with such
classics as the works of Avancini, Croiset, and Cuvelhier. In
itself the work is admirable and has already proved to be a
great boon to communities of religious women. It would be
presumptuous, however, to say that Our Wa:v To The Father
will attain the status of a classic in spiritual writings. The
ascetic who publishes a book of points has much in common-'
with the teacher who publishes a textbook. Each contributes
much to the training of his readers but neither, unless he be
the rare exception, escapes the keen criticism of his colleagues.
Both will help many but satisfy few.
Our Way To The Father is a .series of meditations for each
day of the year. The matter is distributed through four volumes
which total more than two thousand pages. Volume 1-From the
First Sunday of Advent to the First Sunday of Lent. Volume
II-From the First Sunday of Lent to the Ascension. Volume
III-From the Pre-Pentecost Novena to the Thirteenth Week
after Pentecost. Volume IV-From the Fourteenth Sunday
after Pentecost to Advent.
�BOOK REVIEWS
89
This, of course, is the obvious outline for such a series of
meditations. In the notices about the book one is led to expect
a better plan than the volumes in fact manifest. "The subject
of each Sunday's meditation is the Sunday's Gospel, the
atmosphere of which is then carried through the entire week"
(Vol. I, p. v). This statement calls attention to what some
will find unsatisfactory in the series of meditations. There is
an abundance of atmosphere but a dearth of down-to-earth
direction. The ~general plan, despite its apparent unity based
on the liturgical seasons, appears to be somewhat desultory.
Father Krenz has selected his individual meditations with
excellent spiritual taste and discernment. Their subject matter
is comprehensive and no important area in the spiritual life
is . neglected. The number and treatment of the meditations
on the Sacred Heart, Our Lady, and on the Church mirror the
truly Ignatian soul of the author.
The defects of the work are, perhaps, inevitable in the light
of the fact that the author's avowed purpose was to meet
the present and practical needs of religious women. His volumes
are ideal for communities in which the points for meditation
are read in common each night. In such circumstances the
uniform length, the fixed formula and somewhat prolix development of each meditation may very well guarantee the best
results. Moreover, it is evident that the author wished to give
something more than points for meditation. The editor notes
that in the meditations one finds "continual doctrinal exposition touching upon the widest domains of dogmatic, moral and
ascetical truths and principles, an invaluable source of continued
religious education as well as a profound spiritual asset" (Vol.
I, pp. v-vi).
It will seem to many that this very universality of objective
is a defect. Nothing is omitted with the result that everything
seems to be obscured. The unquestionable richness of the work
seems, at times, to be that of jungle overgrowth rather than
of a garden. This defect is evidenced most clearly in the second
preludes which are emotional soliloquies rather than the clearcut petitions which characterize the Spiritual Exercises. The following example taken from the meditation for the second of
January, is typical. "Second Prelude: 0 Jesus! Jesus! In the
excess of Thy merciful love, grant that I may enter into the
mystery of Thy holy name so truly, that for its thousand
memories, its ever present services, and its astounding promises
for time and for eternity, I shall appreciate honor and love it
ever more as, of all names given and to be given to man or
angel, the most excellent and most powerful, and by far the
loveliest and sweetest: Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!" (Vol. I, p. 160).
In his first preludes also Father Krenz is somewhat dis-
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BOOK REVIEWS
concerting at times with such directives as, "Look deep into
the Heart of God, as it is revealed by His eternal Son Incarnate: 'As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must
the Son of Man be lifted up'" (Vol. III, p. 126), or, "in the
spirit of faith look into the innermost soul of Christ in the
first moment of the Incarnation" (Vol. I, p. 53). Without
questioning the validity, beauty, or force of such expressions
one might venture the opinion that they do not fulfill the
Ignatian function of the composition of place. As a matter of
fact, it seems open to discussion whether Father Krenz is using
the terms "First Prelude" and "Second Prelude" in a strict
Ignatian sense. Even in the meditations on the life and passion
of Our Lord, which correspond to the Second and Third Weeks
of the Exercises, there is never a "Third Prelude." In the
text of the Spiritual Exercises, at the end of the first contemplation of the first day, we read: "Here it is fitting to
mention that ... the same three preludes are to be made during
this and the following weeks, changing the form of these last,
according to the subject matter." ,
It is more than likely that thos.e who use or will use Our
JVay To The Father would find the above criticism captious.
The meditations are very good and the four volumes deserve the
attention of Ours. It is unfortunate that the work has not been
indexed and that the "Table of Contents" is practically useless
as a subject reference source. The books contain a wealth of
material for sermons, conferences and retreats. They are a
compilation of solid spiritual considerations expressed in
the language of one who has tasted the sweetness of Christ and
wishes to bring others to the Father through Christ. With a litthe more effort the editors and publishers could have presented
the series with apparatus that would permit a much wider use
of the writings of Father Krenz.
The second volume is the best of the four. If it could be
made available as a single volume, perhaps with the title, .
"'Meditations on the Passion and Risen Life of Christ," it- .
would appeal to a much wider reading group than those who are
interested in a four-volume series of daily meditations for a
full year.
The author, Father Leo M. Krenz, died in his eighty-first
year on April 13, 1947 in Saint Louis. He was the Spiritual
Father of the community of Saint Louis University during the
last seventeen years of his life. Previously he filled the office of
Master of Novices at Florissant for several years and he had
been the Spiritual Father of the Jesuit community in Denver.
Our JVay To The Fathers is redolent of the mature wisdom,
the experience, and the holiness of its author. Through it he
becomes spiritual father to a larger community than those
�BOOK REVIEWS
91
in which his earthly life was passed. Ours will find it worth
their while to be familiar with Our Way To The Father and
thus to profit by the suggestions of one whose work for more
than twenty-five consecutive years was the spiritual formation
and direction of his fellow-Jesuits.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
EXTREMELY HELPFUL TO PRIEST AND THEOLOGIAN
The Glorious Assumption of the 1\lother of God. By Joseph
Duhr, S.J. Kenedy. xi & 153 pp.
Father Duhr published this book in French in 1947 (his
preface is dated December 8, 1946) with a view to furthering
the definition of Mary's As~umption as much as he could. It is
impossible to tell how well he accomplished his aim, if at all;
but in organizing his matter to show that the Assumption is
revealed he did manage to anticipate the ·bull of definition
in large measure. For this reason his work is exceptionally
interesting.
He begins with a chapter on the theological principles which
ought to guide our judgment when we try to decide whether a
particular truth has been revealed. This chapter turns out
actually to be a brief review of how some doctrines. developed:
a very sound statement of the process with several practical
examples, but without any attempt to theorize. He then shows
at length that this process is at work in the development of the
Assumption, so much so that a definition is possible; and it is
here especially that his organization is confirmed by the bull.
He concludes with a plea for the definition on the ground that
it is opportune.
There are three particular points which are extremely
helpful to the priest and theologian. One is that it is not always
necessary to go back and search Holy Scripture and tradition to
find out whether a doctrine has been revealed; as a practical
measure it is sufficient to find out whether the Church today
actually teaches the doctrine as revealed. If so, this very fact
is enough assurance that the doctrine has God for its witness.
Another point is that if you treat the Assumption as a doctrine,
you should not handle it on historical grounds; if you ask
whether the Assumption has been revealed, you should not
come to an answer dictated by the reliability or unreliability of
the Apocrypha. Doctrine and history are distinct fields, and
the ways of proceeding in each field are equally distinct.
There is a principle here that applies to many doctrines which
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BOOK REVIEWS
have, or seem to have, a connection with history. Lastly, Father
Duhr indicates the force of the distinction we have just noted
by pointing out that as historical belief in the Assumption
decreased, for it was based on the Apocrypha, dogmatic belief
based on Mary's privileges grew stronger. In this simultaneous
decline and growth we have a concrete example of how to
support doctrine by theological and not by historical reasons.
This brief resume of some of the matter in Father Duhr's
book shows that his interest is primarily doctrinal. It is, however, inevitable that a work which is so sound should be inspiring and devotional as well. The translation, which is lucid
and firm, was published in this country on November 15, 1950
and is both timely and worthwhile.
E. A. RYAN, S.J.
SUPERNATURAL OR HYSTERICAL?
Une Stigmatisee de Nos Jours, -:r:_herese Neumann de Konnersreuth: Etude de Psychologic Religieuse. By Paul Siwek,
S.J. Paris, Lethielleux, 1950. 174 pp. 325 francs.
The reading of this brief but scholarly study of religious
psychology should produce a sobering effect on any criticalminded Catholic. Fr. Siwek's technique of carefully analyzing
the evidence and confronting it with the relevant medical
data on hysteria leaves one more than ever convinced that the
attitude to take in the presence of this and similar cases is
one of reserve as to their supernatural origin. The object of
his study, in fact, is to use the Konnersreuth phenomena as an
example of a general methodology for dealing with such cases.
The conclusions can be summed up as follows. On the one hand,
there is no reasonable ground for suspicion that Theresa is guilty
of any conscious fraud or simulation. Her simple, genuine piety, _
regular frequentation of the sacraments, and the close observa- ~
tion of the parish priest and villagers for almost twentyfive years render such an hypothesis implausible. On the other
hand, there is as yet no decisive proof that the phenomena
manifested in her life necessarily require any miraculous divine
intervention. In fact, the evidence points to the contrary.
Neither the visions of the Passion nor the stigmata nor the
fast of Theresa meet the requirements laid down by the
recognized doctors of mystical thology. St. John of the Cross
and Pope Benedict XIV (in his classic treatise on the norms for
canonization) warn that one must be suspicious of· the supernatural character of fasts or ecstasies or visions which have
�BOOK REVIEWS
93
been preceded by some malady of natural ongm, particularly
by hysteria in women. Now the starting point of the marvels
in "Theresa's life was an attack of nervous paralysis, followed
later by convulsions and hysteria traumatica, brought on by
terror and exhaustion during a fire when she was twenty. A
doctor later diagnosed her as an hysteric temperament of a
rare degree of intensity. This basic diagnosis has never been
successfully broken down despite the efforts of her supporters
to discredit or explain it away. Fr. Siwek uses it as a key in
seeking a possible natural explanation of the phenomena.
Thus Theresa's fast began with an apparent paralysis of
the throat and stomach muscles which left her unable to swallow
or retain either food or liquid of any kind. Such symptoms
frequently occur in hysteria cases, as well as prolonged fasts
following thereupon (Benedict XIV records one of four years).
An absolute fast of some twenty-five years, however, would
still not be possible naturally. But there is one seriously disturbing fact about this supposedly absolute fast of Theresa
which in Fr. Siwek's eyes raises a doubt that must be answered
before any further credence can prudently be given to it.
During the one period of her life when she was submitted
to continuous observation (by four nuns for two weeks-and
the rigorousness even of this was afterwards questioned) a
chemical analysis of the products of bodily evacuation was made.
This showed them to be those characteristic of a person in a
state of genuine starvation. But another, taken only two days
after this period, revealed that their content had already begun
to change, and a third, nine days afterwards, was found to
correspond to the state of a person who eats and drinks norinally.
Why there should be this difference in bodily functions during
this period is certainly not easy to explain in the hypothesis
of the supernatural character of her fast unless we are willing
to conceive of God as indulging in a bit of very disconcerting
humor. Fr. Siwek advances as a possible natural explanation of
the whole problem the hypothesis that, since Theresa is in a
state of mental prostration and dullness during the two days
after her Friday ecstasies and since it is during this time
that she recovers her normal weight, she may possibly consume
small quantities of food and drink in the course of these
days in a quasi-unconscious or automatic manner and desist
when her full self-possession returns. It was this and other
similar doubts which led the bishops of Bavaria to request a
second and more rigorous examination ten years later, to be
carried on within a Catholic university clinic. The request,
unfortunately, was violently rejected by the father of Theresa.
As regards the stigmata, Fr. Siwek shows that the correlation between them and hysterical temperaments is very high.
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Thus of the several hundreds of modern cases which have been
examined scientifically, all have been found to occur in persons
suffering from nervous troubles, usually of an hysteric nature.
All but two have been in women, usually accompanied by a
cessation of the menstrual flow (as in the case of Theresa).
Nor have all been remarkable for holiness. One doctor was able
to induce by suggestion on a young girl stigmata much like
those of Theresa. Thus most Catholic experts in the matter now
agree that the stigmata of themselves can never be taken as a
sure sign of the supernatural. They may follow naturally from
high religious sensibility in an hysteric temperament.
As for Theresa's impressive visions of the Passion, they fail
to live up to one of the fundamental norms laid down by St.
John of the Cross and Benedict XIV. According to the latter no
vision is to be considered as authentically supernatural in which
the visionary does not afterwards remember what he has seen,
heard or said. It is not in accord with the dignity of a human
person, they say, that God should use it as a mere automaton.
Now the visions and ecstasies of Theresa are of just such a
nature. Their supernatural origin, therefore, remains, to say
the least, dubious.
Fr. Siwek puts a question mark also after Theresa's supposed gift of speaking in ancient tongues such as Aramaic,
since the method used by the Aramaic scholar who affirms it
was not scientifically satisfactory. Her pronunciation was so
indistinct by itself that he used to repeat the Gospel quotation
in several different ancient languages, asking her to indicate
which one corresponded to what she had heard in her vision. The
opportunity thus left open to suggestion is obvious.
In the final analysis Fr. Siwek is unwilling to come to any
definitive decision for or against Theresa Neumann, but the
sum of his evidence points rather to a negative than to an
affirmative judgment. The most valuable lesson of the book,
however, is the example of the author's own precise scientific
methods of analysis.
W. NORRIS CLARKE, S.J.
MARTYR IN MINNESOTA
Minnesota's Forgotten Martyr. By Reverend Emmett A. Shanahan, St. Mary's Church, Warroad, Minnesota. 34 pp.
This short monograph commemorates the heroic life and
death of Jean Pierre Aulneau, young Jesuit priest slain by the
Sioux Indians at the Lake of the Woods in 1736. Its publication is occasioned by the appeal of Bishop Schenk for help to
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95
construct in Warroad, Father Shanahan's parish, a church in
memory of Father Aulneau.
Father Shanahan writes very entertainingly of Father
Aulneau's heroism in caring for plague-stricken sick on the
voyage from France, and of his arduous journey with the explorer La Verendrye through the lakes and forests to far-off
Fort Saint Charles. This wooden palisaded structure had been
erected on an island in the Lake of the Woods just inside the
American territory, which juts up into Canada at that point.
After a few months of hard labor among the Indians, Father
Aulneau, accompanied by twenty Frenchmen, set out on June 5
for Mackinac to obtain needed supplies. Stopping at a small
island just across the Canadian border, they were surprised
and slain by a band of Sioux Indians. The bodies were later
recovered by La Verendrye and buried in the chapel at Ft.
Charles. The fort was abandoned and knowledge of the location became most vague with the passing years. In 1908 a group
of Jesuits on vacation from Saint Boniface, Manitoba, climaxed
a series of discoveries by unearthing the palisades and fireplaces
of Fort Saint Charles, and there in the chapel they found the
remains of the slain Frenchmen, among them the easily identifiable headless skeleton of Father Aulneau.
The pamphlet is particularly valuable for its photographs of
the skeletons of Aulneau and the son of La Verendrye and of
the skulls of the other slain Frenchmen; for its pictures of the
expedition to the site, and various objects unearthed there.
A map and plan of the fort are contributed by two Catholic
sisters of Crookston. The sources listed by Father Shanahan
include The Aulneau Collection edited by Rev. Arthur
Jones, S.J., Montreal, 1893; "Discovery of the Lake of the
Woods," Rev. Father d'Eschambault, 1937; "Discovery of the
Relics of the Rev. Jean Pierre Aulneau, S.J.," by Rev. J.
Paquin, S.J. (leader of the party), 1911; Bulletin of the Historical Society of Saint Boniface, V, part 2, by Judge L. A.
Prud'homme, 1916; "Out of the Grave," by Rev. T. J. Campbell, S.J., Saint Boniface Historical Society, 1915.
Those interested in filling in details should consult an article by another member of the exploration party, "The Finding
of the Body of Father John Peter Aulneau, S.J.," by John M.
Filion, S.J., in THE WooDSTOCK LETTERS, XXXVIII (1909) 1636. This is a dramatic and humorous account of the discovery.
The writer gives rather sound conjectures concerning the motivations for the mass murder, growing out of a rivalry between
the Sioux and the French-sponsored Cristinaux. The letters of
Father Aulneau and of others concerning him are to be found
passim in volumes LXVIII-LXXI of the Jesuit Relations. They
tell the story of an ideal Jesuit who deserves to be better known
by his modern brothers, who fell bravely in what was charac-
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terized by his friend Father De Gonnor as "the hardest and the
most utterly. destitute" mission in Canada.
CLIFFORD
M. LEWIS, S.J.
PSYCHOLOGY OF FATIMA
The Meaning of Fatima. By C. C. Martindale, S.J., New York,
P. J. Kenedy, 1950. vii, 183 pp.
To quote the author, the purpose of this little book is "to
stress the psychological elements in this story more than the
pictorial, than the devotional or the moralizing." It is divided
into two unequal parts. The first is a lengthy treatment of the
early apparitions from May to October in 1917. Father Martindale seems to stress these early events as giving "the meaning
of Fatima" and not the rather sensational later revelations.
Having stated in the introduction the documents and commentaries published in various languages that he has· consulted, he fits each detail into a very smooth, well-written
narrative. The conversations of the three fortunate children,
Jacinta, Francisco, and Lucia are here set down with all the
fidelity the records afford.
The epilogue will be the most interesting part to those
familiar with the story of Fatima. In it Father Martindale
divides the evidence into two themes. The first is that in every
apparition of 1917 Our Lady called for amendment of life and
the recitation of the rosary. The "preternatural phenomenon"
of the whirling sun is but a sign that is to be "transcended as
soon as possible." The second deals with the new themes of
the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the subordinate one, the
conversion of Russia. This summarizes the various revelations
of 1925-1942, but as to the problems that arise, Father Martindale gives but a few suggestions. He rightly points out that the
conversion of Russia, after the world's consecration to ·the
Immaculate Heart, seems rather mechanical and unlike the
course of Christian history. To this reviewer he fails to clarify
the request for reparation to Our Lady. Since theological reparation is for sin, any reparative act must be made to God;
perhaps, as in the "Morning Offering," it is to be made through
Our Lady. The words of Lucia seem to contradict this.
The book is readable and is evidently a sincere attempt "to
solve some of the difficulties of those who cannot enter into
the imagination of Portuguese people." Curiously, it bears no
imprimatur, nor is any reason for its omission offered by the
publisher or Father Martindale.
ALBERT J. LoOMIE, S.J.
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THOMAS J. O'DONNELL,
S.J.
In the early morning of January 12, 1910, a plain
wooden casket was carried into the ivy-covered Dahlgren chapel at Georgetown. The students assembled
there were witnessing the closing episode in the l!fe
of a family which was great in both Church and
state. The dear old Jesuit who used to sit at his window in the Georgetown infirmary during the sudden
storms on the Potomac and give conditional absolution
to the crew of a floundering boat was dead. It was the
funeral of Patrick F. Healy.
The story as reported by one who knew the Healys
well, had begun back in the eighteen-twenties, when
the Monroe Railroad and Banking Company was laying
a roadbed through Bibb County, near the fast-growing township of Macon, Georgia. One day a wealthy
planter of the district struck up an acquaintance with
one of the Irish immigrant laborers named Michael
Healy. This first casual meeting was followed by another, and then another, and by the time the acquaintance had blossomed into a real friendship, Healy
was a frequent dinner guest at the big plantation
house. On these occasions he noticed the quiet and wellbred attractiveness of the young slave who served at
the table. From the first, he had been impressed by her
genteel manner, for she was the planter's natural
daughter and had been brought up in the mansion. But
before very long Michael Healy realized, perhaps to his
dismay, that he was in love. The early records are
obscure as to quite what happened when he asked for
her hand in marriage. The planter was not only willing but anxious and pleased, and it seems that he
sent them to Boston, for they could not be married in
Georgia. Nonetheless, they could live together there,
Our title is from Countee Cu11en's verses:
Not for myself I make this prayer,
But for this race of mine
That stretches forth from shadowed places
Dark hands for bread and wine.
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and so Michael Healy with his young wife, Eliza, soon
returned to Macon to open a little country store and
there, along the banks of the Ocmulgee, to raise his
famous family.
Although Georgia society, had it known, would have
frowned heartily on such a union, God blessed it with
ten children, seven sons and three daughters. Michael
was thirty-four years old and his Eliza seven years
younger when the first child was born on April 6, 1830.
It was a boy, and they called him James Augustine.
Years later, when he was a bishop, he used to remember with gratitude that his birthday was the feast of
Our Lady's Motherhood.
About two weeks after James' second birthday, on
April 16, 1832, his first brother was born and named
Hugh Clark. Patrick Francis followed him after two
more years, on February 27, 1834. 'When the fourth
son, Alexander Shenvood, came orr· January 24, two
years later, they noticed that he bore the physical characteristics of his mother's race.
The first daughter, Martha Ann, was born in Boston on March 9, 1838. The following year the family
was back in Macon, and that September another son
was born, whom they named Michael, after his father.
Little Eugene came on the last day of June, in 1842,
and with him sorrow visited the family for the first
time. He died before that year was out.
Early Education
It was the period of "pauper education" in the South,
and the little country store was doing quite well, so
meanwhile the older boys had been sent North for
their education. After James, presumably together
with Hugh, Patrick and Sherwood, had spent several
years in the Quaker schools on Long Island and in New
Jersey, they all went to Worcester in the late summer
of 1844 and enrolled at Holy Cross. James, perhaps the
most talented of the four, helped matters along by
working as a surveyor's assistant in whatever free
time he had.
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101
Although their background was Catholic, none of
them had yet been baptized. This will seem less strange
if we remember what a slave to bigotry Oglethorpe of
Georgia had been, and that by its fundamental law
the colony was forbidden to receive a Catholic within
its borders. There had been little progress since the
War for Independence. In the year of little Michael's
birth, for example, the Catholic Directory gives us some
idea of the religious conditions in the South: "Columbus, SS. Philip and James-Rev. James Graham. The
same clergyman attends two or three times a year,
Macon and its vicinity, and several stations in the western part of the state, as also the Catholics of the vicinity in Alabama, Diocese (sic) of Mobile, at the request
of the Rt. Rev. Dr. Portier." The word "vicinity" has
a very broad meaning there, and it is quite understandable that Father Graham and the Healy family
did not cross paths.
And so it was not until the close of the students' retreat that first year at Holy Cross, November 18, 1844,
that the four brothers were baptized by Father James
Moore, and their names entered in a bible at the college. Two other students were baptized together with
them that day. They were William Brownson and
Henry Francis Brownson of Chelsea, Massachusetts.
Their father, the well-known Orestes A. Brownson, had
been received into the Church just short of a month
earlier.
Holy Cross Days
After two semesters at the Prep, James was ready
for Holy Cross College. Back in Macon that year, 1845,
another little sister, Amanda Josephine, was born on
January 9. The last girl was born on the day before
Christmas Eve the year following, and was called
Eliza after her mother.
The years at Holy Cross slipped by happily enough
for the four brothers. They studied hard and stood
well in their classes. In the warm weather they went
swimming in the sand pits and on the winter holidays
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they held skating parties. Many a pleasant evening was
spent around the fire in the room of Father George
Fenwick, who in after years was to remain their closest
friend and most intimate confidant. They were interested in the Brownsons too, and James often noted the
policy of Brownson's Review in his diary. All of them
were talented and well trained and kept out of trouble
with little difficulty, although on at least one occasion
they did run foul of the authorities. Major, the college
dog, had died, and the brothers arranged an elaborate
funeral for him, with sermon, burial service, and all.
Perhaps they thought Major deserved a Christian
burial, for the mastiff had always gone swimming in
the sand pits with them and would never leave his
post until every single man was out of the water. It
had been the dog's unique and inveterate custom, too,
never to touch a bite of dinner until after the mid-day
Angelus had sounded. The funeral ~resulted in severe
reprimands from the discipline office.
A few months before James received his bachelor's
degree and foreshadowed his brilliant preaching career
as valedictorian at the 1849 commencement, back in
Macon another little brother had come on January 23
and was named Eugene after the child who had died
in his infancy. This second Eugene, for all his innocent
lovableness, was destined to cause his older brothers
more worry and anxiety than any of the rest.
Adventure and Pain
The time was coming now for the older boys to begin to think about what they were to do with their
lives. Hugh was definitely cut for the business world
and by the turn of the century had taken a position
with the firm of Manning, Ingoldsby, and Smith in
New York. He was loved and respected by his employers and seemed to be at the beginning of a successful career. His father had passed on to him some
of that business sense which had made the little
country store so successful and, in a manly way, he
had the quiet grace and charm of his mother.
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103
James, by this time, had definitely heard the call
of Christ and, although he was devoted to the Jesuits
of Holy Cross, he decided that his path did not lie
with them. It must have been a hard decision for him,
for even in later life he looked longingly toward the
Society, but never could bri:n,g himself to feel that God
wanted him there. During the September after his
graduation, he went to Montreal, where the Sulpician
Fathers had their seminary, to begin his studies for
the priesthood and, as he hoped, for the diocese of
Boston. Like his birthday, the day he entered was
another feast of our Lady which he always celebrated
afterwards in a special way. It was the feast of her
purity, September 26, 1849. It was during this year,
too, that Patrick first thought of applying for admission into the Society of Jesus.
If sorrow had already come to the scattered family,
it was to come again now, and more heavily than they
ever could have expected. The last Christmas had left
them rejoicing in the birth of the second little Eugene,
but by the following Christmas day the older boys
were to find themselves forced into a sudden manhood
and their little brothers and sisters were to be orphans.
Mrs. Healy's heart had never been strong and on
May 19 of that 1850 the mother of the family was
dead. The owner who had begotten her and arranged
her marriage with Michael Healy because he had
feared that, at his own death, she might be "sold down
the river," had made a wise choice. In the twenty years
of her married life she had given ,ten children to this
husband whom she loved, and one of them was waiting
to receive her, with God.1
tThere is slight reason to doubt that Mrs. Healy died at this
time. The above date and details are from the novice master's
record of Patrick Healy's admission to the novitiate and from
his own diary of 1879. Such evidence would seem to discount
stories of Mrs. Healy's keeping house for James when he was
a pastor in Boston, and of her causing some comment by a
visit to Georgetown while Patrick was rector. However, in
1868 James, the Pastor of St. James Church, Boston, made a
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At the Holy Cross commencement that spring,
Patrick Healy was among the graduates. He said a
fond good-bye to the "old hill" and his many friends
in ·worcester, and went down to New York to spend
some time with Hugh. A few weeks later, on July 6,
Hugh wrote from his business office to Father Fenwick,
back at Holy Cross: "From Pat's conversation I am
pretty well convinced that he is resolutely determined
to join your Society. I have written to Father on the
subject, strongly urging him to give his consent
thereto. I think it will be granted. If not, what course
do you advise to adopt? I sent Pat out to see St. John's
College to wait for the news and reply from home, as
that place will offer no inducement for him to throw
up his vocation. As for Sherwood, I think we can get
him into a situation. Sherwood and Pat are both now
well informed of their situations in life. I saw a very
intimate friend of ours from Macon" yesterday and he
says Father is enjoying excellent health."
Unfortunately Hugh does not add just what these
"situations in life" were. It could have had nothing to
do with their vocations or financial status, for neither
had been settled up to this time. Sherwood was only
fourteen and it is well known how late color-consciousness sometimes develops in the young. Sherwood was
the most distinctly negroid of them all, and perhaps
Hugh had thought it best to talk the matter out with
him, to prepare him for some of the hurts that were to
come.
If ever a young man loved and looked out for his
younger brothers, it was Hugh Healy. His maturing
care for them and their own deep devotion to him are
beautiful traits that appear unmistakably in their
correspondence. It was his happy privilege now to assume this role, but before many months he was to have
trip to Smyrna aboard the clipper "Armenia." Eliza and
Josephine were certainly with him, and he made the following
entry in his diary under date of January 27: "Another ugly
night without sleep to us. Mother is quite unwell. Josie and
Eliza spent an uncomfortable day in bed."
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105
no choice in the matter. Michael Healy's "excellent
health" did not last, and by the end of August word
came suddenly that he, too, was dead. Little Michael
was eleven years old and ready to follow his brothers
to Holy Cross. He entered that autumn but did not
prove to be the student that James and Patrick had
been.
Patrick himself, meamvhile, had settled the matter
of his vocation and a few weeks after his father's
death was received, on September 17, 1850, at the old
Jesuit novitiate in Frederick.
Father Samuel Barber was the novice-master and
noted in his diary that Brother Healy's health was not
strong, and might even be called quite poor at times,
due to a heart that was weak. Sometimes he was subject to fainting spells, infrequent, however, and not
severe. Father Barber, knowing of Mrs. Healy's sudden death, sometimes worried as to whether or not
this heart ailment in his young novice was hereditary
and chronic. Patrick soon made manifest the sincere
virtue and sensible, light-hearted holiness which were
to characterize his life, although, as Father Barber
again noted, neither his parents nor relatives could be
called extremely pious.
Except for his physical weakness, which he never
was to overcome completely, Patrick entered the novitiate well equipped for the life before him. He ha~
finished seven years of Latin studies and had proven
himself proficient in both poetry and rhetoric as well
as logic, metaphysics, and natural theology. In Greek
he had read in Homer, Thucydides, Demosthencs, and
Sophocles. In mathematics he had finished arithmetic,
algebra, geometry and trigonometry, and was at ease
in almost every phase of music, both vocal and instrumental. He could speak French, too, and a little Spanish.
He told his novice-master that sometimes he had
vacillated in his resolve to enter the Society, but had
finally come to the novitiate because he felt that God
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wanted him to be a priest and that, for his own part,
he felt that in the Society he would be more happy
than anywhere else.
Among the seven first-year philosophers at Frederick was his good friend of Holy Cross days, Henry
Brownson, who appears, however, to have left the
Society while Patrick was still a novice. Among the
tertian Fathers whom Patrick met on holidays was
the young Angelo Paresce, only thirty-four years old
then, who became novice master on the following May
23, fifteen months before his final vows. John Early
was in the tertianship too, and his sudden death some
thirty years later was to shift to Patrick's shoulders
the burdens of governing Georgetown.
Deep Anxieties
While Patrick was now quite happy in the chapel
and the scullery at Frederick, things were not faring
as well for James in the seminary at Montreal. It would
soon be time for him to be called for tonsure and minor
orders and many things were deeply disturbing him.
In the first place, the new diocese of Savannah had
been erected duri~ the previous year, and Francis
Xavier Gartland of Dublin had been consecrated its
first Bishop. Its limits included James' birthplace and,
if he were to study for the Boston Diocese, as he
wished to do, there was the question of an exeat.
This brought new worries to his mind, already taxed
by the family's financial situation which was becoming
a real problem. In a letter of March 19, 1851, he told
his beloved Fenwick that "I am sometimes in great
trouble which no one understands except my confessor.
Every letter from Hugh seems to add new afflictions."
James explains in this letter that the family affairs
are in complete disorder. Even little Michael's tuition
at Worcester has become a real problem. He adds he
does not know "which way to turn."
Hugh had been trying to straighten things out as
best he could, but it was a hard job for a lad of nine-
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107
teen. Already there was trouble over the father's will
and Hugh had written to Father Fenwick the previous
October, only two months after his father's death:
"Dear Father Fenwick, alias Dad: Without doubt you
have been waiting for some news from us for some
time, and with some anxiety, for you always appeared
to take a deep interest in whatever concerned. us. A
friend of ours, Mr. Logan, the present Mayor of Macon,
writes us, or rather Mr. Manning, that on inquiry he
finds the will to be legal and feasible. So far Providence
has most signally favored us. I would rather you would
keep Michael in ignorance of Father's death, as he
might tell Mike Healy of Worcester, and his people
must know nothing about it if possible. We are all
well and in good spirits. Keep secret as much as possible. Tell none of the boys nor teachers who are not
obliged to know it by their duties."
There is more here than can be seen on the surface;
just what, it has been impossible to ascertain. At any
rate poor Hugh did not have to bear the burden much
longer.
There are more distracting worries than money, and
James had not referred to mere financial difficulties as
the "great trouble which no one understands except
my confessor." The simple matter of his exeat had
brought this sensitive young seminarian deeper
troubles which plunged him into the depths of despondency. Almost on the eve of his minor orders, he
doubted whether the mother and father whom he had
so deeply loved and respected had ever been really
married. He was haunted by the obscurity of his own
legitimacy. He was wondering if he could ever be ordained. He sat down on April 10, that 1851, and unburdened his soul to the one in whom the Healys confided most, their Fenwick at Holy Cross: "My exeat
promises to be a troublesome affair, and in order to
understand each other, although such things are better
spoken than written, I shall show you as clearly as
possible what I know of the difficulties of the case.
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In the first place the Bishop promised to obtain my
exeat, and might not relish my applying to another,
after having engaged to take the matter in hand. This
obstacle will be easily removed, if you speak to him
as you are perhaps more acquainted with the circumstances than he or even myself. You will be obliged
to obtain an exeat for Pat and you might obtain both
at once. This is the least difficulty. In an exeat it is
necessary to mention the marriage of the parents. My
father assured me that he and mother were really
married; and you assured me of the same thing. Their
marriage, however, was certainly contrary to the laws
of the state, and you know that some theologians contend that such a marriage is null, although this opinion
is not the most general.
"Granting, however, that this is no objection, in the
next place it is not at all certain th~t my mother was
baptized; and consequently the validity of the marriage is rendered very improbable. Supposing however
that she was baptized, which is by no means certain,
the marriage cannot be proved unless by showing the
register or at least the marriage certificate. Being
against the laws of the state, it is by no means probable that the marriage was ever recorded on any public register, and I have heard nothing of any marriage
certificate being found among the papers, although it
may possibly be there. No great search has yet been
made for it, and I should like to make the search myself, for the fact of a marriage might embarrass our
claim to the property which will probably be peacefully left to us." James closes the matter with a simple
but as we shall see later, quite important observation,
that, if the marriage had been performed by some
magistrate or parson, Bishop Gartland of Savannah
would never be able to find the certificate.
Father Fenwick, who had never failed them, easily
ironed out all these complexities. Certainly Bishop
Fitzpatrick of Boston offered no difficulties, for all concerned were his intimate friends. The Healys were to
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109
Father Fenwick as his own sons, and the late Bishop
of Boston was his brother.
George and Benedict Fenwick had entered the Society of Jesus together in 1806 when the Order had
been permitted to reorganize under the superiors in
Russia. Bishop Marechal had consecrated Benedict
Fenwick second Bishop of Boston on All Saints Day in
1825, the year before the Healy boys entered Holy
Cross. That college had been founded by the new
Bishop and placed in charge of the Jesuit Fathers. His
close friend and episcopal coadjutor had been John Bernard Fitzpatrick, whose early vocation to the priesthood Bishop Fenwick had encouraged and cultivated,
and whom he had placed on his staff immediately after
young Fitzpatrick's ordination in Paris. In 1844 Bishop
Fenwick had requested that Father Fitzpatrick be consecrated as his coadjutor, and two years later, at Fenwick's death, Bishop Fitzpatrick became the third
Bishop of Boston. Quite naturally the friends of the
Fenwicks were his favorite sons too. No wonder James
had selected Boston for his home diocese.
Paths of Grace
And so on June 14 of that 1851, James received tonsure and minor orders in the chapel of St. Sulpice in
Montreal, and on the previous day, down at St. Francis Xavier's in New York, Hugh had been sponsor at
the baptism of his little brother and sisters, Josephine,
six years old, Eliza a year younger, and little Eugene
just two and a half.
Eliza and Josephine were sent to Canada to board
with a Catholic family in Montreal, where James could
keep an eye on them. Hugh gave Eugene a home with
himself at his boarding house in New York, out at
Bloomingdale.
On the following June 5, James received the subdiaconate at Montreal, and then sailed for France to
continue his theology at the Sulpician seminary at Issy,
near Paris. Another vocation was maturing about this
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time much to the surprise of James at least, and he
had scarcely landed on the continent when another
Healy was enrolled in the Montreal Seminary. Sherwood was following his elder brother to the altar. From
now on, wherever James would go, Sherwood would
soon follow.
The only rift in the family concord seems to have
come between Sherwood and Michael. It is impossible
to determine the details of the difficulty, but it would
seem to have arisen from the disparate characters of
the brothers. The faculty at Holy Cross could already
attest that Michael was quite recalcitrant and hotheaded for a lad of thirteen, and perhaps the new
seminarian, on his part, was a bit self-righteous. At
any rate shortly after Sherwood began his studies in
Montreal he confided to Father Fenwick in a letter:
"Mike is in Quebec. Jim sent him fhere, not expecting
that I should ever come here." And two years later,
when Sherwood was in France and no one knew, or
soon would know, quite where Michael was, Sherwood
suffered a qualm of conscience and wrote to Patrick:
"I read your last letter to Jim in which you spoke
rather harshly of me. I am not disposed to be angry
with you for it, for I am convinced that I really deserve a rebuke, and I am sincerely sorry, and heartily
ashamed, of my conduct towards Mike, asking the Almighty Dispenser of all things, to let me feel rather
than him, the effects which my negligence of him may
have produced. And I will try to remedy what cannot
be undone by praying often and fervently for him, and
asking etc. But notwithstanding, there were many particulars in your letter, which I could contradict, and
though my conduct was very culpable, still I am not
unable to give several excuses, which though they
would not entirely exculpate me, yet they would induce to moderate somewhat your opinion in this matter. But enough-! confess myself in fault and beg pardon both of Mike and of all others whom I may have
scandalized."
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The girls were not to be outdone by their brothers
in vocations, and during the summer of 1853 Martha
became a postulant in the Convent of Notre Dame in
:Montreal. That autumn found Patrick be,ginning his
period of teaching in Philadelphia, where old Saint
Joseph's College had been opened just two years before under Father Felix Barbelin. The enrollment had
already grown to a hundred and twenty-six, and
Patrick was teaching third year grammar, second year
French, algebra, evidences and penmanship. It was a
busy time for the new master. The day at Saint Joseph's opened with Mass for the students at eight,
after which classes continued until five in the evening,
"\vith a long recreation at midday. It may seem to us
now a rather Spartan system. The regulations demanded that, for students, the hours of home study
should be from "six to eight in the evening and from
six to seven in the morning," and Father Villiger,
scarcely a stern disciplinarian, had written on the first
page of the school diary: "Strict silence must be
observed in the corridors, no loud talking or noise will
be permitted in Willing's Alley. There will be no playing in the neighborhood."
It was a happy little community which opened to
Patrick just south of where Fourth Street crosses
Walnut, and he found intimate as well as interesting
friends there. Father Michael Tuffer, for example, who
was teaching German and caring for the parish and
nearby missions, had been put on Brother3' trial on
the continent as a Scholastic-novice, back in 1820.
When the novice master died and there was a change
among superiors, an almost incredible thing happened. Brother Tuffer was forgotten. No one spoke
of his Brothers' trial ending, and he did not think
it was his place to do so. In 1830 he took his final
vows as a temporal coadjutor, and went on about his
work. In 1844 a former fellow-novice, then a Father
Vis1tor from Rome, visited the house and discovered
the oversight. And after the twenty-four years of
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Brother's trial, l\Iichael Tuffer was given Deo Gratias
and sent to Georgetown for theology. In 1846 he took
his Final Vo\vs for the second time.
Deeper Sorrow
By the end of August of that year, 1853, Sherwood
was ready to follow James to France to complete
his studies Ylith his older brother at Issy. But with
his sailing deep sorrow came once again to the family.
Hugh had done his best to settle the difficulties
connected with his father's will, and had found homes
for his little brothers and sisters. He was young to
have to bear the burdens of caring for a large family
and the routine confinement of his position with the
New York firm must have palled upon him, for he
now adopted the habit of occasionally rowing about the
New York harbor for exercise. Not being naturally
too robust, several drenchings from rain storms had
weakened his resistance. Hugh was deeply devoted
to Sherwood and, although opposed to his going to
France, when Sherwood sailed early that September,
Hugh rowed out toward the vessel on which he was
embarked to wave goodbye to him. It was an elder
brother's last bon voyage. When he reached the middle
of the river a steamboat struck and swamped his
smaller craft. Hugh who was very much frightened
and completely soaked, had lost both oars in the
bargain. With great difficulty he regained the oars
and succeeded in getting back to land. Patrick describes the whole incident in great detail in one of his
letters. Hugh felt ill that night, and when he returned
to the boarding house from business the next day he
was much worse. The fever developed into typhoid and
about the fifth day delirium set in. The Jesuit Father
Ferard was sent for and administered the last sacraments. He said afterwards that Hugh's soul had been
in the best dispositions and this elder brother courageously resigned himself to his fate. It was clear that
Hugh was close to death. Patrick rushed up from Phil-
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adelphia to be at his bedside, but the sick man recognized him only at intervals. At these times his only
care seemed to be whether the beloved Fenwick was
praying for him. After two weeks of this semi-delirium, on the morning of September 17, about ten
o'clock, he began to sink rapidly and within fifteen
minutes died peacefully and without struggle. A slight
motion of the arms had been the only indication that
his young soul was passing to its GDd. He was twentyone years and five months.
Patrick wept bitterly at his bedside. Sherwood received the sad news the day after his arrival at Issy.
He and James, who had just returned from an enjoyable vacation, were grief stricken. James wrote
back to Patrick that during the whole day he could
do nothing but repeat, "Hugh is dead, Hugh is dead."
Patrick told Father Fenwick that "we buried him in
the Cathedral Cemetery of New York and I much regret to say that painful incidents are connected with
this part of my narrative which, however, I will omit
at present. I have narrated them to Father Provincial."
Hugh had been, as his brother wrote of him, "very
highly esteemed by his friends who were very few
and select. They all declare him unexceptionally the
most regular and exemplary young man they had ever
known." To his brothers, Hugh's loss was the severest
of blows.
Patrick was the eldest left in America now, and
though not in a position to take char,ge, he was far
from indifferent to the situation. Immediately after
Hugh's death he traveled to Canada to console his
sisters. Josephine and Eliza were taken from the private homes in which they were staying and made halfboarders in the convent of Saint John in Montreal.
After a visit with Martha, who was now Sister Saint
Lucy of Notre Dame, and whom he found "very happy
in her choice of life," he was back in the States. However he did not return to Philadelphia but the new
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Provincial, Father Stonestreet, sent him instead to
Holy Cross where he could be closer to the children until James would return from France. He was teaching
third and fourth year humanities, algebra, French,
and penmanship again, besides being assistant student counselor, and his "brats," as he affectionately
called his students, kept him a busy man. He complained that Hugh's death had left him wearied and
depressed, and he longed for James' return. The
estate in Georgia still remained unsettled and a source
of disturbance.
Michael was with Patrick at Worcester, but little
Eugene, now four years old, was still with the Protestant family in New York where Hugh had been boarding. This was an additional source of worry for Patrick
arid he told Father Fenwick that "I am only waiti;g
to hear from James, to take him away from their
grasp. They are exceedingly kind to him, but he will
grow up a heathen if left in such a condition. Do give
me some advice as to the best course to pursue. He
is a fine looking, healthy and intelligent little child."
In his next letter to Issy, Patrick urged James to
return as soon as he could be ordained. He also wrote
to Father Fenwick, asking him to urge the same when
he a,gain communicated with France, reminding him of
the veneration in which James held him, "and with
how great submission he naturally looks up to you."
New Wounds
Nor were these the only cares of the young Scholastic. His change to Holy Cross had been helpful for
his little brothers and sisters, but it only brought
added wounds to his own sensitive nature. New England was seething with abolitionism at this time, but
perhaps even the New England youth could pass quiet
but cutting remarks about their young professor who
had been born of a slave. It hurt Patrick more deeply
than they could have known, and Father Fen-
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wick, who had been moved to Frederick, was no longer
there to comfort him. Patrick wrote to him on N ovember 23, 1853: "Father, I will be candid with you.
Placed in a college as I am, over boys who were well
acquainted either by sight or hearing with me or my
brothers, remarks are sometimes made (though not
in my hearing) which wound my very heart. You know
to what I refer. The anxiety of mind caused by these
is very intense. I have with me a younger brother,
Michael. He is obliged to go through the same ordeal.
You may judge of my situation at periods. 'At periods,'
I say, for thanks to God I have felt this affliction but
once since my return hither. I trust that all this will
wear away, though I feel, that whilst we live here,
with those who have known us but too well, we shall
always be subject to some such degrading misfortune.
Providence seems to have decided thus. I will say no
more of this now; at a future interview (if we should
meet again) I will explain, if necessary, why I say so."
Shortly after James received his brother's letter urging his return, he wrote that he was to be ordained
to the priesthood on the following Trinity Sunday, and
asked Patrick and Father Fenwick to wait until then,
assuring them that thereupon he would sail for the
States as soon as possible.
The year 1854 opened with matters resting very
much as they had been. In France, James was rapidly
approaching the day of his ordination. He still felt
a longing to follow Patrick into the Society of Jesus
and wrote counsel to his Jesuit brother "not to repine
at labors which others would embrace with joy and
exaltation, if such had been the good pleasure of God."
When Patrick received the letter he wrote to Father
Fenwick about his love for his own vocation, adding
that "James seems to think that Heaven closed the
gates of the Society to him-in every letter he speaks
in this tone. What a pity that such a promising youth
should be unable to read the secrets of his fervent
heart."
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James also wrote to Patrick of their brother who
was with him at Issy: "Sherwood is doing wonders in
philosophy. He is one of the soundest heads in his
community and is already looked upon as one of the
deepest thinkers of his course. He is as fat as butter,
and I scold him so much, that he can hardly be tempted
to injure his eyesight by too great an eagerness for
reading."
Bishop Fitzpatrick of Boston was on his way to
Rome at this time, together with Father Haskins, a
young convert. The Bishop had made his studies under
the Sulpicians at Issy, too, and stopped there en route
to Italy, promising to return on his way back to
America and have a visit with his close friends, James
and Sherwood.
The time was approaching for Sherwood to be tonsured. He, too, was foreshadowing~ ·his future by his
more than usually keen insight into metaphysics, and
had matured into a slight but handsome young man.
He bore, however, the physical characteristics of his
mother much more distinctly than the others. His
kinky black hair, dark complexion and heavy lips betrayed him at once as an American Negro. James had
suffered so much over the matter of his own tonsure
that he naturally wished to spare Sherwood the same
difficulties, and seeing a solution in Bishop Fitzpatrick's proposed visit, he wrote to Patrick that
March : "He (Sherwood) will don his cassock in a
week or two. I have not spoken of it to anyone, but
intend to get the Bishop of Boston to tonsure him on
his .return from Rome to escape useless questions."
Several days later Sherwood himself wrote to Patrick
at Holy Cross to inform him that: "The Bishop and
Father Haskins passed by here a few days ago on their
way to Rome. I suppose you know that I am for Boston if there is any chance of my living there as a
priest; if such is not the case, I will look towards some
order. Will it be yours? We'll see."
Fortunately for himself Sherwood, like Patrick, was
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gifted with a sense of humor which enabled him to
take such things in stride, and in the same letter he
informed Patrick: "To tell you that I am content
would not be telling you enough. I can say with all sincerity and without the least exaggeration that I am
happy, yes, very happy. I hope you can say as much
for yourself." He added, perhaps with a smile, that
after ordination James would begin to think about
getting started for the States, but not to expect him
before the end of the summer.
Jesuit IG.dnapper
Meanwhile the young Jesuit had received his older
brother's answer to his apprehensions about having
Eugene grow up in that Protestant family. Eugene was
now at the impressionable age of five and James agreed
heartily with Patrick's sentiments on the matter. They
both felt that it shouldn't be neglected until James' return, so Patrick decided to act at once. It wasn't a
simple undertaking, as Patrick describes it in a letter
to Father Fenwick: "I left here on Thursday night.
The next morning I arrived at the enemy's camp. Fortunately they had not received my letter, in which I
had requested them to hold him (Eugene) in readiness.
Before they became aware of the object of my visit,
smiles greeted me on every side. It did not take me
long to discover that they were ignorant of my intentions. I resolved, therefore, to poise the egg forthwith. I spoke and lo! how changed the scene! Tears fell
fast, obstacles unforeseen arose-he has no suitable
clothes. 'Mother is not justly treated,' say the daughters. 'Mr. Manning ought to have more respect for
our feelings,' says the mother, and so on. Such were
the cries, uttered in no very harmonious voice, which
grated on my music-toned ears. The hardhearted
Jesuit remains unmoved. Finally, seeing that my determination was fixed, the mother obstinately refused
to let him go unless her bill against Hugh was paid
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down on the spot. I must here make a slight digression. The bill in question was that of Hugh's illness.
He was sick four weeks in their house. The charge was
$150. Said $150 Mr. Manning had not as yet paid, not
having been appointed administrator until about a
week previous to my arrival. As soon as I heard this
blunt refusal, I posted into the city, obtained a promise
from Mr. Manning to have it paid as soon as called for
and again hurried back to Bloomingdale. The child,
however, was not to be found. But I was too cunning
for them. I had watched their motions and observed
them taking the little boy to school. I started instantly
for th~ school and again I was defeated-a person had
been dispatched by a nearer route to secret the child.
When I arrived there he was gone. I induced the Mistress (one of the daughters) to re~urn to the house
with me. They were all very cool_.the old lady was said
to have started for the city to receive the payment. I
offered to go into the city with the lady and the child,
and to return the child, if she were not paid. 'No!'
The sons returned from the city. Even force could not
avail me. Again I posted to the city and brought out
my guardian. After much persuasion and sundry
threats, they allowed me to convey the child. I started
for Worcester the next morning and on Tuesday next
conveyed him to Roxbury where I placed him under the
charge of Mrs. Johnston, the wife of the artist who
formerly resided in the Bishop's house in Boston. The
little boy cried heartily to return but it was no go.
Don't you think this quite a newspaper adventure?
The wind carried off three of our chimneys about a
fortnight ago, together with the roof of our ice house."
Ebb and Flow
Spring came to Paris in 1854. On the morning of
June 10 Archbishop Sibour imposed his consecrating
hands upon the bowed head of a happy young man. It
was Trinity Sunday and James Augustine Healy was
a priest of God. A short time afterwards he said good-
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bye to Sherwood, who was busy with his last year of
philosophy, and took passage for the United States.
James had been happy in France and would have
liked to remain there. He knew of no place in the world
which pleased him more than St. Sulpice, but he was
needed at home.
Father Fenwick was waiting to see him and anxious
to help him settle happily in America. Some we~ks
before he had written to Patrick, asking him: "Why
don't you get Fr. Ciampi to arrange it so that Jim
should spend a year or more if he chooses at Worcester
and help you in teaching the young idea how to shoot?
For it would seem to me that Father Stonestreet will
have no small difficulty to supply the several institutions the next scholastic year. Were Jim there he
would be the support of the school." This plan, however, did not materialize, and when James arrived in
Boston he sought out Father Haskins, the friend he
had met with Bishop Fitzpatrick in France.
George Haskins, after his graduation from Harvard,
had been ordained to the Episcopal ministry in 1830.
As chaplain of the Boston Reformatory he met Father
William Wiley, a convert who had learned his theology
from the lips of Bishop Benedict Fenwick in the latter's house. George Haskins, too, was converted and
became a Catholic in Father Wiley's home in November 1840. In 1844 he was ordained at St. Sulpice in
France and two years later, in Boston, he founded the
"House of the Angel Guardian for Wayward Boys."
He was giving his life to this great work of charity,
and it was to Father Haskins that James now turned.
He took up residence with him in the little house down
at 2 North Square, and the two men found a firm bond
of congeniality between them. A short time after his
arrival James wrote to Father Fenwick: "Contrary to
my expectations of some time past, I find myself, once
more, in America, and decidedly fixed, at least for
the present. What time may bring about, I cannot
tell, but I don't think I shall ever realize your predictions. In any case, since then I shall be only an out-
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sider, it remains for me to requite my poor gratitude
and, if ever the opportunity should present itself, by
my little services, the debt of good deeds which I
am proud to acknowledge towards your illustrious
order, and above all towards you, my ever kind Father
and excellent professor. Wherever I have been, my·
conduct, thank God, has not been such as to disgrace
either myself or my former instructors and if, in my
wanderings I have acquired many warm and zealous
friends, next to the blessing of God, I attribute it to the
excellent teachings received at Holy Cross."
James had been very young when he went to
France, and it was a changed Boston to which the
young priest returned. Many of his old friends had
died and he told Father Fenwick that finding him still
alive was one of the blessings of a kind Providence
which he had dared not hope for.· Worst of all, Hugh
was gone, and during those first few weeks back home
James wrote of him: "Poor fellow, his death was the
severest stroke that ever befell me. We had grown up
together and all our lifetime had been so cordially
united in our dispositions and sentiments, it is only
now that I begin to realize his death. When I left
America, I thought to precede him to the other world,
but I am still living,-oh! may it be for God's greater
glory!"
The little brother whom he had left at Holy Cross had
grown to be a lad of fifteen with a quite violent temper
and a propensity for being anywhere except where
he was supposed to be. Already Michael had decided _.
once that he had stomached about all the Latin and
Greek he could stand and concluded that it would be
much more fun to take to his heels. But he didn't
really go through with it the first time and showed
signs of repentance. Now that James was back in
Boston, Michael was the first problem to be solved.
He decided that since France had done himself and
Sherwood so much good, maybe a little of the same
wouldn't hurt Michael. Certainly he had not shown any
great promise thus far, but seemed willing to study in
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real earnest now. His elder brothers wanted to give
him a fair chance, so that autumn Michael was packed
off to a petit slhninaire in France. It was not, as James
observed, "to make a priest of him, but to give him
a chance to redeem his lost time and character."
That was the initial mistake. Caelum non animam
mutant, qui trans mare currunt, and the young voyager
did not exactly fall in with his brothers' hopes. If he
had been unable to hold himself down to Holy Cross,
it is easily imagined how he felt about a French petit
seminaire. Out of his guardian's reach, before long
young Michael had taken passage as a cabin boy and
was sailing the seven seas.
Meanwhile the new priest had other things to
distract him. The "dread white horseman" rode
through Boston that late Summer, and from Father
Haskins' little parish house James went forth in his
wake. Armed with the holy oils and carrying the
Blessed Sacrament he visited victim after victim as
the cholera spread through the city. The disease never
touched him, but to plunge into such a sea of suffering
so early depressed him. He wrote to Father Fenwick
that he had seen more poverty during this short time
than ever before in his life.
Father Thomas Mulledy, who was dean and spiritual
father at Worcester, felt that James had a predisposition to the blues. It is true that he was not strong.
There was suspicion of heart trouble, as with Patrick,
and the young priest was constantly expecting an
early death. In France he had not expected to live until
his ordination day, and now he wrote to Father Fenwick from Boston: "I am well satisfied in all respects
and only hope that your prediction of my death before
reaching my twenty-sixth year may prove exactly
true. I am willing to labor as long as I can, but I
think that he who gets out of such responsibilities as
those which weigh upon us, soonest and safest, is the
happiest of men.
"Now you will think me downhearted, but you are
mistaken. I am as gay and light of heart as ever I
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was, but I envy (pardon the word) the lot of those
who die young and innocent, and often ask them to
pray for an early and happy death for me."
Bishop Fitzpatrick told James that he was to move
to the Cathedral as soon as a room could be prepared
for him in the new episcopal residence. It was pleasant
news despite his fears as to whether he had health and
strength for the new position, and he wrote: "I am to
be secretary and perhaps will have charge of St.
Vincent's Church, though I am afraid of such a burden,
not only on account of the responsibility but on account
of my health which I think will be broken down by the
duties attendant upon that charge."
Even now he had overtaxed his throat with too
much preaching and he felt that his reserve was very
low. As he prepared to take up this quite important
position in the Bishop's household' he wrote to his
devoted friend and kind father at the Jesuit novitiate
in Frederick: "Could you not obtain for me strength
of throat, but much rather strength of soul, from our
Lady of the Novitiate. I would be eternally grateful to
her that gave it, and to you who obtained it. If that
makes you laugh, you must nevertheless not forget to
pray for me, that I may be able to fulfill nothing else
but the adorable will of Almighty God. I beg you to
recommend me to the prayers of all those of the
Society whom I have known and who happen to be
near you, and for yourself I am sure you will not
forget to pray for your old pupil in Jesus Christ."
The previous plans for Sherwood's early tonsure
had not worked out, and he received the order that
Christmas over in Paris. He was studying theology
now, and during the winter and the following spring
of 1855, he suffered a great deal from constant ill
health. The malady was not yet a cause for real worry
but later he was to develop a swift and fatal tuberculosis.
Patrick had not been well either and James persuaded him to take a short trip and visit Sister Saint
Lucy and his little sisters in Montreal. He found
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Martha quite happy, "a content and promising young
novice" and "the tallest nun in the community."
Patrick was soon back to Worcester and his teaching
at Holy Cross, and he wished that Father Fenwick
could look in and laugh at what he called the "Babellike confusion" of his morning class, with four Americans, two Canadians, one Irishman, and, as he said,
"two unsophisticated Cubans and one grand Canuque."
James's health did not break under his new duties.
On the contrary it began to improve and he put on
weight. Each Sunday he celebrated two Masses and
preached at both of them, and sang Vespers in the
evening. The number of his penitents, always increasing, was testimony to his kindness and skill in the
confessional, and he was rapidly becoming the most
popular preacher in Boston.
In fact he was a little too popular in some eyes
for his own liking, as he himself wrote that spring to
his old professor of Holy Cross days, who had been
chiding him: "I am still at the Cathedral, much to
the satisfaction of some young lady, as would appear
from the citation in your letter. It is all gas. I write
my sermons, but neither read nor commit them to
memory. I talk simply and to the point, follow a regular
and clear plan, and if she thinks it is so, so charming,
I wish her joy of it. I do not know who she is, nor do I
care to know."
But with all this popularity, the young Cathedral
preacher, of whom one of his parishioners later said,
"He was a colored man and I remember it was quite
well known and talked about," wrote to Father Fenwick at this time: "If I could have been as safe elsewhere as here, I should have desired never to show my
face in Boston." He did not bother to add, as Patrick
had done, "with those who have known us but too well."
Patrick almost adored his priestly brother. James
often went over to Worcester to see him, and wrote
to their mutual friend in Frederick of how admirably
he seemed to succeed in his differen~ positions, adding
that he was "extremely well liked by the students, but
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at the same time vigilant with regard to discipline.
And Patrick did not hesitate to poke fun at his
elder brother when, as he said, "People will persist
in asking him how much older I am than he; of
course this is galling to one of such beardless prospects."
Early Fruitions
Bishop Fitzpatrick, too, was well pleased with
his new curate and secretary, and by the autumn of
that 1855 had relieved him of parish duties to appoint
him the first chancellor of the Boston Diocese.
Martha had finished her novitiate days and on September 15 was professed at Notre Dame in Montreal.
Patrick, still in the interminable regency, felt that
after five years in the Society it was time to think of the
renunciation of his property, but the affairs in Georgia
were still foo unsettled. As usual he put the whole matter into the hands of James and Father Fenwick,
asking the latter to advise what course to take. "I
wish to do all things as they should be done. Teach me!"
Sherwood, meanwhile, had decided that he would
like to finish his theology and be ordained in the
Eternal City. He had written to James and asked
his permission to go down to Rome, and James, of
course, had graciously agreed.
Both for Sherwood in Rome, and for his brothers, the
next few years slipped uneventfully by. James preached
and attended to the chancery. Patrick said he worked
"like a major" and rendered himself quite a favorite
by his assiduity and fervor. "He has the reputation
of being the most satisfactory preacher among the
clergy in Boston. His style is quite simple and pious."
Patrick himself was obscurely busy at Holy Cross.
In Christmas week of 1856 he alm6st lost his life,
rescuing a young man who had fallen through the ice.
He loved skating. James sent him a fine new pair of
blades and some fatherly advice, and Patrick wrote
to Father Fenwick: "Yesterday I received a very pious
note from James (and he is becoming very much so
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nowadays) in which he ,gave me some very salutary
advice and made the proposal of commencing a new
and more perfect life for the new year. The proposal
is made in all sincerity and I shall endeavor to live up
to it. James desires that I should become a real Jesuit,
such as he has met with; a man of interior spirit,
of deep religious feelings, a model and leader of souls
to God. You must pray that this wish may be verified."
And his brother's wish was verified, in the long and
holy life of Patrick Healy.
By the Spring of 1859 there was another Father
Healy in Boston. Sherwood had been ordained in Rome
on the previous December 18 and had sailed for New
England, to see whether he could "live in Boston as a
priest." Sherwood had followed James to Holy Cross,
to Canada, and then to France; and now back in
America, Father Haskins was the first to whom Sherwood turned.
The results of George Haskins' great work of charity
had outgrown the little house on North Square and
during the previous year he had purchased land on
Vernon Street in Roxbury, to erect the new House
of the Angel Guardian there. He, personally, was
governing and directing the new institution, which
found in this zealous convert its soul and inspiration.
But his zeal was not limited to this project of his
heart. He still remained the father and pastor of North
End Boston, and when he understood that the people
out at Roxbury needed a church too, he opened to them
the chapel of his reformatory. When Sherwood came to
Vernon Street, Father Haskins put him in charge of
this chapel-parish, and found in him an able and
zealous co-worker. Immediately Sherwood was a
favorite, but the people of the parish could not help
remarking the distinctly negroid appearance of the
young and talented curate, and Bishop Fitzpatrick
wrote to Archbishop Hughes on July 10 that year,
praising the new Father Alexander Sherwood Healy,
and adding significantly, "He has African blood in his
veins and it shews (sic) directly in his exterior."
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Sherwood did not stay long at Roxbury. By the time
the last services had been held in the Old Franklin
Street Cathedral on September 16, 1860, and the
Melodeon on Washington Street had been rented until
a new structure could be built, James was not only
Chancellor, but also Rector of the Cathedral (or should
we say, of the Melodeon). It was not long before
Sherwood, as a member of the staff, was living with
him at the South Street residence. Meanwhile Patrick
had finished his teaching at Holy Cross and had sailed
from America. After a long stop-over at Rome, he
proceeded to Louvain in Belgium, to prepare for his
priesthood by studies in theology. Father Fenwick had
not been there to welcome Sherwood home or to
bid "God-speed" to Patrick. He had died in the winter
of 1857 and was buried at Georgetown.
The year 1863 was the appointed time for Sister
Saint Lucy at Montreal to pronounce her final vows in
the Congregation of Notre Dame. But though her noviceship had been so happy and promising and her religious life so successful, still she did not feel that God
had called her to the perpetual vows. She left the
convent, once more to become Martha Ann Healy, now
of West Newton, Massachusetts.
It was around this time that Archbishop John
Hughes of New York was casting about for another
seminary. The Methodist University at Troy had
failed four years before, and Archbishop Hughes
bought the buildings. He sent to France in hope of
having the Sulpicians staff a new seminary at Troy,
but they already had two houses of study in America,
and, moreover, did not care to undertake the government of an institution which "had no enclosure nor
gates," so they declined the offer. Then the Bishop of
Ghent agreed to staff the project and sent Canon Louis
Joseph Vandenhende, the moral professor of his own
seminary, as its rector. Sometime during that summer
of 1864, while James was at the Cathedral with Sherwood, Canon Vandenhende stopped in London on his
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way to his new post. He was a very retiring and studious old gentleman and when he asked to visit some
places of interest in London, a young man of the party
returning to America was appointed his guide. Though
the Canon was a very scholarly if somewhat unpractical sightseer, all went well until the guide
spotted a playing field. It never occured to him, perhaps, that Canon Vandenhende did not even know what
"cricket" was, and the youth kept his venerable charge,
utterly at a loss, watching the game for two hours.
The young man was sixteen years old, and his name
was Eugene Healy. This is almost the last word about
Eugene. He had been at Holy Cross two years before.
We know that he turned out to be quite a successful
gambler, and was always a source of considerable
anxiety to his brothers, being considered "the black
sheep" of the family.
James's and Sherwood's happy years of reunion
came to an end with the opening of the new seminary
on Ida Hill, October 18, 1864. James continued as
Chancellor and Sherwood remained officially on the
Cathedral staff, but among the five professors who constituted the faculty of the new house of studies at
Troy, the Rev. Alexander Sherwood Healy was listed
as professor of moral theology and director of discipline.
In the spring of the following year, 1865, Patrick
was ordained in Belgium. He did not return at once
to the States, but remained on the Continent for his
year of tertianship.
Shortly after Patrick's ordination, Martha started
taking vows again, but this time not in religion. She
had met and fallen in love, like her mother, with an
Irish immigrant, one J erimiah Cashman of Boston.
She married him that summer and they set up housekeeping in West Newton, Mass. Their first child, a little girl, was born on February 25, four years later.
They called her Agnes Mary, and the Boston vital
statistics listed her as "white."
Ten years had passed since young Michael had run
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away to sea. The little lad who had so chafed under any
restraint had found in the sea the complement to his
adventurous nature. There was scarcely a place on the
globe he had not visited, and from cabin-boy he had
advanced to the bridge in the merchant marine. Often
the life at sea had been unkind to him, but it had
hardened and made a -man of him, and he loved it.
Now in this spring of 1865, just five weeks and a day
before General Lee surrendered at Appomattox, this
young Georgian entered the Revenue Service of the
United States of America. He was twenty-six years old,
and a third lieutenant. During this same year Sherwood
was relieved of his moral class to assume the responsibility of the director of the seminary at Troy.
Toward the close of 1866, Patrick returned from
Louvain. His first assignment as a priest was to the
chair of philosophy at Georgeto~Vn.. The scholasticate
was there at this time, and Patrick was first put
teaching ethics and metaphysics to the young Jesuits.
In one way it was a return to his Alma Mater. Due
to the extreme bigotry in New England, Holy Cross
had been unable to confer the baccalaureate at the time
of his ,graduation; hence his degree had been conferred
by Georgetown College. His close friend and former
rector at Holy Cross, Father Antony Ciampi, S.J.,
came to Georgeto\vn that year as prefect of Trinity
Church, and the famous Father Benedict Sestini, S.J.,
was lecturing in physics and mathematics.
Achievement and Forebodings
Meanwhile, early that spring, on April 2, James
had changed his position and place of residence in
Boston. At the turn of the century, the population
trend toward South Boston had warranted the erection of a parish. At first, a place in Albany Block had
been rented for a church. Later the old Turn Hall on
Washington Street and then a museum on Beech
Street had been used, and by the autumn of 1855, a
new church had been erected at Howard and Albany
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Streets, and dedicated under the patronage of Saint
James the Greater. Since 1857 its pastor had been the
former Rector of the Cathedral, Father John J. Williams. And now at the death of the Healys' close
friend, Bishop Fitzpatrick, Father Williams was appointed to the See of Boston. He likewise was a close
friend of the Healy brothers, and almost his first
episcopal act, on April 2, 1866, was to appoint James
to this pastorate of Saint James in Boston, which he
himself had vacated.
James had not forgotten Father Haskins and the
overburdening needs of his people in Roxbury. Soon
after taking this important pastorate, Father Healy
arranged that the Redemptorist Fathers should open
a mission in Roxbury, where today stands the beautiful church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.
On February 2, 1866, the Society of Jesus put its
final and complete stamp of approval on the young
professor of philosophy. Father General Peter Beckx
had written from Rome in the previous year that
Patrick Francis Healy was to be admitted to the four
solemn vows of the Jesuit profession. Now, on this
feast of the Presentation, the Society officially declared
him to be a well balanced man of more than usual
intelligence and holiness. Shortly thereafter he was
made dean of studies at Georgetown.
During the autumn of 1869 Sherwood resigned
from Saint Joseph's Seminary at Troy. His duties
there as director of the seminary and professor of
liturgy and sacred eloquence had been too exacting
for his steadily decreasing vitality. From the very
beginning Father Fenwick had feared the change to
Troy for him, and had written to Patrick on June
10, 1864: "About Sherwood, I feel more apprehensive.
He has never been strong and appears to me to have
some symptoms of consumption....
"I question very much whether the duties of a professor at the seminary will lighten the burden for
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him and I also fear the climate of Troy, which, in
winter, is far more severe than that of Boston."
By now the disease had made steady inroads and
was leaving its mark on him, but his health was not
the only reason for his resignation from Troy. When
the Vatican Council opened in Rome on December 8,
Reverend Alexander Sherwood Healy was present as
Bishop Williams' Theologian. When Sherwood returned to Boston after his brilliant work at the Council, Bishop Williams appointed him Rector of the
Cathedral of the Holy Cross. About the same time
Patrick, in addition to being Dean, became VicePresident of Georgetown.
Georgetown's President
Father John Early, Patrick's old friend of Frederick
days, was President of the College. He was advanced
in years and his severe illness, due to a serious kidney
disorder, left practically the whole burden of administration to the young Vice-President. On l\'Iay 22,
1873 Father Early was stricken with paralysis at the
after-dinner recreation. He soon lapsed into a coma
and died quietly on Friday, two days later. From that
moment, save for the formal "reading in" on the feast
of Saint Ignatius Loyola, July 31, 1874, Patrick Healy
was President of Georgetown University. A few years
later John Gilmary Shea wrote of him, as he accepted
this heavy responsibility: "He was an extraordinary~
man, eminent even among the Presidents that had
graced the roll of Georgetown. His finished scholarship, exceptional administrative ability and varied
experience, marked him as the one fitted in the highest
degree to succeed to the vacant presidential chair."
The nine years through which Patrick directed
Georgetown have been recorded as a time of exceptional improvement and advance for that university.
Nothing was too large to attempt, or too small to
escape his notice, if it might be for the betterment
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of the place to which he remained fervently devoted
for the rest of his life.
In fact, one of his first reforms brought amusing
results. On December 12, 1873, a few months after
he became Rector, he abolished, once and for all, the
old European custom of reading at meals in the students' refectory. Perhaps Patrick himself had suffered from too much of a good thing at Louvain. He
hadn't liked Louvain in general, and it is easy to
imagine some of the particulars that irked him. At
any rate the students were overjoyed at this innovation, and took steps to make it known. On the day
appointed for "no more reading" the student band
struck up a lively tune as soon as the graces were
finished, and after dinner the faculty was serenaded
at some length in the quadrangle.
More than once it has been objected that Patrick
Healy could never have been of Negro parentage, and
still be appointed President of the South's great
Jesuit university. He was loved and respected by the
best families of Washington and at home in Virginia's
most elite society. Quite clearly the McSherrys, the
Dahlgrens, the Riggs and the others who were always
proud to receive him did not know that he was a
Negro. It is not clear that it would have made any
difference if they had known. But what they did most
certainly know was that Patrick Healy of Georgia
was a perfect Southern gentleman.
It was the era of reconstruction and the recent war
had been fought, some believed, to free the land of
the stigma which had marked his mother's birth, but
the rebels who were being reconstructed always
seemed to consider Father Healy as one of themselves.
When American Catholics made their great pilgrimage to Lourdes in 1874 two Georgetown students,
Eugene and Frank Ives, carried with them an American flag from Georgtown. It was to be blessed by
the Holy Father in Rome and later to be deposited
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at Lourdes. After the audience with the Pope, Frank
Ives wrote back to Father Healy, July 22, 1874:
"The dreams of our lives were at last realized, but
the fact of the Holy Father being a prisoner in the
Vatican spoils half the pleasure of seeing it . . . It
was, however, quite amusing to see our looks of
contempt on Victor Emanuel's soldiers, and whenever we passed one of his flags it was with a sensation not unnew to some of us, especially the Southern
pilgrims." Later in the same letter the young Johnny
Reb continues, to one whom he knows will understand:
"At one of the audiences the flag was blessed. You
cannot tell what my feelings were as I knelt before
him with the staff grasped tightly while he spread
the American colors out (over mother, Aunt Clara,
and myself, three rebels) and read the inscriptions.
Mother said it was a sign that ·J'ihe must give up
thinking of the lost hopes of a once prosperous nation,
and try and love that fla,g which has crushed her
people into submission."
And while Frank Ives wrote that he bragged about
Grant and the Congress until, as he told Father Healy,
..you would think I was a born politician and Yankee,"
he added as his reason: "I don't want to let these
Europeans think that I am disgusted with the government. But wherever I am alone with Americans a
great change takes place."
Mrs. Ives too, wrote to Father Healy from Brussels
that: "I also had Masses offered for all the souls who
had fought and died under that flag-especially the
Union soldiers, and promised our Blessed Lady that
I would be a reconstructed rebel on her platformthat is, to pray for my enemies and do all in my
power for the good of the country."
They could write all this to him and know that he
would completely understand and share their sentiments, and the wife of the Union general who cut a
path through Patrick's native Georgia from Atlanta
to the sea could write: "Pray remember the General
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sometimes in the Holy Sacrifice," and know that he
would understand her too.
It is interesting to note that Frank Ives, while studying at Feldkirch, observed the following in one of his
letters to Father Healy: "In the 'Herald' received
yesterday I was surprised to see the fearful state of
the country down South, that is, the boldness of
the Negroes; no doubt it will all end in a war of races,
which will be a most horrible affair."
Sometime in 1874 another daughter was born to
Martha and J erimiah Cashman. They named her
Mary Josephine Sherwood, after her uncle and aunt.
Eliza, the youngest of the little sisters and her
mother's namesake, was by now a grown woman of
twenty-eight. Bishop Williams of Boston had acted
as her guardian, and on April 15, 1874 a close friend
wrote to Patrick from the "Hotel Dieu de S. Joseph"
in Montreal: "I suppose that now you are perfectly
satisfied since Eliza is going to enter religious life.
I expect to see her here by Thursday next. I have
looked forward with such pleasure to the time when
she would come." And again, two weeks later, the
same friend wrote to Patrick: "Eliza is now in
Montreal and expects to enter next Thursday. She had
a pretty hard struggle in leaving home but I think the
worst is not yet passed."
Whatever this "worst" was, it passed without harm.
Eliza entered the Convent of Saint Joseph that May
first, and on the nineteenth of July two years later she
• was professed as Sister Saint Mary Madeleine. Later
she became superior of a convent and one of her
subjects wrote of her that she was "a perfect religious, of exquisite distinction both in intelligence
and manner."
Portland's Bishop
In the summer of that same 1874 Bishop Bacon of
Portland, Maine, embarked for Rome, to visit the
Eternal City and try to recoup his broken health.
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Only the bishop and his physician knew the gravity
of his illness, but he attempted the voyage as a last
resort, taking with him his life-long friend, Archbishop McCloskey. When the ship docked at Brest in
France he was so ill that he remained in the Naval
Hospital there while the Archbishop went on to
Rome. After some time his companion returned and
Bishop Bacon was carried aboard the "Pereire." When
they reached New York he was taken at once to Saint
Vincent's Hospital, to die.
That was November 5, 1874. A Papal Bull, dated
February 12 of the following year, appointed Reverend
James Augustine Healy to the vacant see of Portland. He was consecrated on the following June 10, in
his Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, by his
intimate friend Bishop Williams of Boston. A contemporary review wrote: "His" .. elevation, though
eminently wise, was looked upon as a blow to the
Catholic interests of Boston greater than any that
had preceeded it."
At the time of his appointment he had just begun
the erection of a new Saint James Church, further removed from the smoke and noise of the Boston and
Albany Railroad yards. He went to his new post a
slight, good-looking prelate, not very tall-soft spoken
but decisive in both speech and manner; and, as one
of his parishioners remarked, "a mighty good business
man." Those who knew him speak of his fine features,
the fringe of whiskers just showing above his Roman
collar, and the clear traces of his Negro blood.
Brief Brilliance
The parish which he left, Saint James in southside Boston, was taken over by his brother, Father
Alexander Sherwood Healy.
Sherwood had never been strong and now his failing
health took a sudden turn for the worse. Within a
few weeks after James' consecration it was clear to
himself and Patrick that Sherwood's complaint was
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that which they had so long feared and hoped against,
the dread consumption. When James came down from
Portland that Summer to assist Bishop Williams with
the consecration of the new Saint James parish church,
its young pastor was a marked man, and James could
see that the progress of the disease was to be swift and
fatal. Sherwood dragged through that summer in a
living death. On September 8 he was taken to Carney
Hospital in South Boston. After lingering for a few
more weeks, he died there on October 21, 1875. He was
thirty-nine years old.
It is no wonder that Saint James parish has been
called "the mother of bishops." Father Williams was
called from there to the see of Boston, and James
Healy was called from its care to the bishopric of Portland. Sherwood had been talked about as the logical
choice for Bishop of Springfield when that diocese was
established in 1870. Moreover the long vacancy of the
see of Hartford at this time, following the death of
Bishop McFarland, has been explained by the reported
fact that word had come from Rome appointing
Alexander Sherwood Healy as the fourth Bishop of
Hartford. That see is said to have been left vacant in
expectation of a sufficient improvement in Sherwood's
health to warrant his consecration.
Patrick and James mourned deeply the death of
their younger brother, to whom they had been so
intimately and tenderly devoted. Bishop Gabriels wrote
of him: "Father Healy was an able theologian, an
interesting lecturer, and a fine musician. It was he who
composed the first statutes of the Diocese of Boston,
as well as a much-used grammar of plainchant; he
also introduced the so-called "Troy Magnificat.' "
By The Hilltop
Georgetown's popular president had just turned
forty and was in his prime. During the next few
years he wrote, in achievement and stone, a brilliant
chapter in the history of that university. The summer
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of 18~5 saw a new gymnasium built and the grounds
were graded and landscaped. One day Father Healy
noticed that there was little water available in case
of fire, and soon pumps had been installed to draw the
water from the Potomac at the foot of the hill, with
hydrants placed at strategic points on the campus.
At the fifty-sixth annual commencement, the first
of Patrick's incumbency and before he was officially
rector, he conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws on
the Honorable Richard T. Merrick of Washington, an
alumnus who had been a captain in the Mexican war.
A year later, under Patrick's direction, Captain Merrick presented eighteen shares of Metropolitan Railroad stock to the college for the Merrick Debating
Medal. This was followed by the founding of the
Morris Hospital Medal and the Toner Scientific Medal.
Senor Thomas M. Herran ~was an alumnus of
Georgetown and a friend of Father Healy. He was the
son of General P. A. Herran who had been President
of the Republic of Colombia from 1840 until 1844 and
Colombian Minister to the United States from 1847
until1862. It was his son, Senor Thomas Herran, who
after various important diplomatic positions in London, Hamburg and Washington, successfully brought
to a close the Panama Canal negotiations with the
United States by the signing of the Hay-Herran
Treaty on January 22, 1903.
On March 12, 1875 Senor Thomas Herran wrote
to Patrick from his home in Medellin: "Through
Lewis Johnson you will receive two cases, one sent
by Dr. Uribe containing Indian antiquities, mainly
pottery, half of which is intended for the College
Museum and the other half for the Smithsonian Institute. Though it is all sent in one lot, I presume that
you will have no difficulty in arranging the division
with the Institute.
"The second case of which I have spoken contains
two duplicate collections of rare 'orchids' which I
send, one for the College and the other for the
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Smithsonian. Though the same case contains both collections you will perceive that they are separated by a
piece of canvas; reserve either and please send the
other ...."
This fine collection of ancient Indian pottery had
been made by Dr. Manuel Uribe in the State of
Antioquia, and was the remnants of the Catias,
Natabes and Tahamis, Carib coastal tribes. It recalled
the days when Jesuit missionaries had learned the
languages and the arts of the natives from Hudson
Bay to Patagonia. It was placed in the College
Museum.
Sefior Herran sent more than pottery for Georgetown's advancement. His son Leoncio was there, and
in February of 1875 he wrote to its President that
he was sending more South American boys to the
university.
The respect and confidence with which this famous
diplomat lvoked upon Patrick is clear from one of
his letters, written from Medellin on May 10, 1875
after Leoncio had been cutting capers at Georgetown: "In reply to your kind letter I am about to
give a few instructions in reference to Leoncio, but
I leave it entirely to you, without any restriction
whatever, to modify them as your judgment may
dictate, with the assurance that whatever course you
may pursue will receive my entire approbation . . . .
P.S. I leave Leoncio's letter open that you may read
it before delivering it ..."
New buildings were badly needed for the growing
university, but so far no one had found either the
courage or the funds to begin the enterprise. Patrick
sent plans to Rome and they were approved by the
Father General. In 1877, while a tremendous excavation was being made in front of Dahlgren chapel to receive the foundations, Georgetown's courageous President sat poring over the alumni list to see who was
going to pay for it. The Healys were builders and the
building was begun. That same year James completed
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the twenty-three thousand dollar Kavanagh School
in Portland, which had been left unfinished by Bishop
Bacon.
The building at Georgetown was to be 312 feet
long and 95 feet wide at the pavilions. The work was
pushed vigorously and by the end of the year the
cornerstone was in place. When December came again,
the roof was put on the north pavilion. In the following April several workmen missed death from a
falling plank by a fraction of an inch, and on May 1
the whole structure was threatened by a fire which
broke out in a nail keg on the roof. Two weeks later
the cross was placed on the gable of the south pavilion.
The central tower was finished by July of 1879, and on
Independence Day the national colors waved from the
highest point they had ever reached in the District
of Columbia. Unfortunately the man who was responsible for it all was not there to enjoy it. Patrick's
health had broken under the strain of responsibility
and worry. Some months before, he had started for
California, a broken man, unable to eat and unable to
sleep.
To Try Again
·The trip to California was made down the East
coast by boat, across Panama by train, and up the
West coast to San Francisco. Father Joseph O'Hagan,
who was President of Holy Cross College at the time
and whose health had also broken, accompanied
Georgetown's ailing President on the voyage. Patrick
was a close friend of Father O'Hagan and he forgot
his own illness to care for this older and more seriously
stricken brother Jesuit. He wrote sad letters back to
Father Mullaly at Georgetown as Father O'Hagan
grew weaker and weaker with the voyage. They
crossed Panama and on December 15, 1878, while
they were at sea off Nicaragua, the dying Jesuit
breathed his last. Patrick buried him in Mexico and
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afterwards his body was exhumed and removed to
Worcester.
Patrick went on alone to San Francisco. He found
congenial company on the boat and in California with
several alumni of Georgetown and Fordham. General
Rosecrans served his Mass when they landed, and he
wrote back to Georgetown of his meeting with Paris
Cody, a niece of Buffalo Bill.
For a while he felt his health improving under the
California sun. Encouraging and witty letters came
back to Father Mullaly, the Vice President of Georgetown, and the acting rector answered: "I cannot thank
you too much for your letter received yesterday-it
is so bright and cheerful-like yourself. I was
beginning to worry very much about your falling into
the condition of last summer: sleeplessness and want
of appetite, but now I feel relieved." Father Mullaly
knew that Patrick was anxious about the building of
his dreams, and he added in the same letter, February
27, 1879: "The weather has been very unpropitious for
the building. The only thing we can do is to get out
the stone and timbers. I hope by the middle of next
month to see the outside work, with the exception of
the towers, beginning to draw to a close."
But the vacation in California was not a time of
consistent improvement in the Jesuit's broken health.
The sleepless nights and dreary days returned at
intervals, and it was felt that the doctor had mishandled the case. Father Mullaly wrote to Patrick
again on March 21 : "It seems that the crucible of
suffering is to be yours some little time longer ... I
am most afraid you are fretting about us here and
that this disturbs and prevents your sleep ... If you
can only get your regular rest all things will go well.
That fool of a doctor ought to be kicked out of the
community for his infernal malpractice. I hope the
remedies you are taking will soon drive the poison
out of your system." The sick man stayed on in California for some months, and for reasons other than
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health. If the new building at Georgetown was to be
finished according to plans, funds had to be found
somewhere, and soon. Patrick had made good contacts
in the West, and now, when he was not conducting a
retreat, he was seeking out some prospective benefactor for Georgetown and its building.
Father John Mullaly was his intimate friend as well
as his coadministrator. They had been novices to-gether at Frederick, and when Patrick wrote that he
was on his way home in easy stages across the States,
Father Mullaly replied: "Your letter from Chicago
reached me this morning. Like the days before vacation, I shall begin to count the days 'til you come."
The 1879 commencement was held within the rough
and still unfinished walls of the new Healy building. The President of the United States, Rutherford
B. Hayes, conferred the degre~:;; and it was Father
Mullaly's deep regret that Patrick could not be there.
He was back, though, that autumn, when the last
outside slate was set in place on November 11, just
short of two years after the structure had been begun.
It was a justly proud and happy day for Patrick
Healy. Four days later he had the following notice
read in the community refectory at dinner: "As the
new college, under the blessing of God, has been completed, exteriorly, without any untoward accident to
mar the memory of its erection, it is meet that we
testify our gratitude to Him in a becoming manner.
Wherefore, Rev. Father Rector requests that on:
tomorrow, the feast of the Patronage of the Blessed~ ·
Virgin Mary, the priests will offer the Holy Sacrifice
of the Mass, and those who are not priests their Communions and Beads, in thanksgiving for this great
favor, and in petition that He, Who has given us to
begin, will vouchsafe to raise up benefactors who
will enable us to complete, the great work undertaken
to His greater .glory. All are, moreover, requested to
further this petition to the utmost until the new building shall be thoroughly equipped for occupancy."
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As the work on the interior of the Healy building progressed, Patrick gave the last years of his
presidency to the formation of the Georgetown
Alumni Association. It had been attempted before by
others, but the plans for the most part had remained
little more than plans. Now he took the matter to
hand and pushed it in earnest, and the commencement of 1881 witnessed a larger ,group of Georgetown alumni than had ever been gathered together
before. The oldest graduate present had matriculated
seventy years before.
Father Healy's constant appeals to them for funds
were not in vain, and early in 1882 his burden was
lightened when James Coleman, an alumnus in San
Francisco, sent a check for ten thousand dollars. As
an expression of gratitude, the hall housing the collected antiquities was called The Coleman Museum.
The trip to California had proved but a transient
benefit, and again at the beginning of this year
Patrick was prostrate with the illness whose permanency was now all too evident. He fought with all
his strength to carry on, but weakness and his
physician's advice prevailed, and on February 16, 1882
he resigned the presidency of Georgetown.
In 1865 Michael had entered the United States
Revenue Service as a third lieutenant. He was made a
captain sometime around 1884 and assigned to patrol
the Alaskan waters. His exploits in command of the
revenue cutters, "Bear," "Thomas Corwin" and
"Thetis" supply material for another story. For almost
twenty years he rendered his country invaluable service in the northern waters, protecting the fishing industries, maintaining law on our newly-acquired possessions, and aiding in a number of scientific expeditions.
Most of the time he was the only representative of
the government in Alaska, which made his powers
autocratic. The reports concerning him in the National
Archives indicate a strict disciplinarian, rough in his
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language, respected by most, feared by some, hated by
others. While in general he was as seamy and hard as
the sea itself, yet he was capable of a gentle understanding of human frailties and, at times, was even
tender.
He remained devoted to Patrick and James, who
loved and understood him. On one occasion he was
attacked in the WOODSTOCK LETIERS by one of the
Alaskan Missionaries, and Patrick wrote vigorously in
his defense. He retired from the Revenue Service in
1903, and died of a heart ailment on August 31, 1904,
having received the last sacraments consciously.
The story of James Augustine Healy as Bishop of
Portland must also be left to a later writing. For
twenty-five years he was an excellent administrator,
enthusiastic builder, and devoted pastor of souls. He
died on August 5, 1900.
As for Patrick after he resigned from Georgetown
he never fully regained his health. An extended vacation with James in Portland restored his strength to
some degree. For most of the twenty-five years left
to him he labored in pain, but never ceased to labor.
The greater part of this time was spent in the care of
souls in Providence, in New York, and in Philadelphia.
There was little more than an empty shell when he
returned to the Georgetown infirmary in 1908. He died
there on January 10, 1910, and it was just at sunrise
on the morning of January 12 that his body was
carried into Dahlgren Chapel, where our story began.
-·
�A MODERN JESUIT MYSTIC
OSCAR MUELLER, S.J. and 0DILON JAEGER, S.J.
If Brazilians thought of Sao Leopoldo at all three
years ago, they thought of it as a pleasant industrial
city of some 30,000 people. It meant a little more to
the Jesuits of the country because their newest house
of studies, the Colegio Cristo Rei, had been built on
its outskirts a little while before to house the philosophers and theologians of the Southern Brazilian
Province. Today Sao Leopoldo is beginning to mean
much more to the people of Brazil. It has become a
place of pilgrimage. In small groups, or in hundreds,
as happened last July on the third anniversary of
his death, the faithful have been coming to pray at the
flower-covered grave of Father John Baptist Reus in
the little cemetery of the Jesuit scholasticate. There
is reason, too, for believing that their prayers are
being answered, and that the saintly, retiring Jesuit
whom the people of Sao Leopoldo used to call "the
praying Father" has become a powerful advoc:ate for
his people. In ever-increasing numbers reports of
spiritual and temporal favors obtained through his
intercession are appearing in the Noticias para os
nossos a.migos, the magazine which the Province of
Southern Brazil publishes for its friends and benefactors. It is remarkable, astonishing in fact, that
such extensive popular devotion should have arisen
in a period of three years. Nor is there any natural
explanation which can be offered for it. Father Reus
was not widely known at the time of his death, and
his life of unobtrusive sanctity had nothing spectacular
This article was compiled by Mr. Gerald A. McCool, S.J. The
excerpts from the spiritual diary of Father Reus have been
translated from a series of articles by Father Oscar Mueller,
·s.J., Rector of the Coiegio Maximo de Cristo Rei which have
appeared during the past few months in Notidas para os
nossos amigos. Most of the biographical data was sent to us
directly by Mr. Odilon Jaeger, a theologian of the Province of
Southern Brazil.
�144
JESUIT
~IYSTIC
about it which might appeal to the popular imagination. The explanation has to be sought els·ewhere. It
is found in the gradual publication of the spiritual
diary which Father Reus kept at the command of his
superiors for the greater portion of his life in the
Society. In its pages is found the history of a soul
whom God had raised to the highest stages of mystical
prayer; and the events of the past three years give
reason to believe that God now wishes the world to
learn of the remarkable graces which He granted
to Father Reus during his lifetime, and of the heroic
way in which this obscure Jesuit responded to them.
The Jesuits of Southern Brazil have begun to hope
that some day, perhaps soon, the elderly Father whom
they buried in 1947 may be raised to the altars and,
like St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, be honored by the
Church as a great Jesuit mystic. -,
..
Our Lady and the Child Jesus
Father Reus was not a native Brazilian. He was
born in Pottenstein, a small town of the Bamberg
diocese, on July 10, 1868. His family was not prosperous, but it was penetrated with the sturdy Catholic
spirit of the German country-folk. His uncle was a
parish priest and his mother, Anne Margaret Reus,
was a woman of more than ordinary piety, who took
the religious education of her eight children with
extreme seriousness. It was not surprising, then, that
her fourth boy should turn out to be a pious child,
but, even in those early days of childhood, John Reus'
piety was marked with the signs of special graces.
In his later life, he wrote of the pain which he had
suffered because of his distractions at the time of his
First Communion, on Whitsunday, 1880. The devotion
to our Lady, around which centered so many of the
great graces of his closing years, took an apostolic
turn in the years of his boyhood. He spoke of his
Queen with enthusiasm and devotion to his fellowchildren, and even to adults, and the solid results of
his juvenile apostolate are evidence that, even then,
-·
�JESUIT MYSTIC
145
he knew how to improve people without getting on
their nerves. The children were solidly instructed in
the use of their rosaries, and over three hundred fellow-townsmen were persuaded to adopt the devotion
of our Lady's scapular.
Financial difficulties seemed to threaten for a time
the vocation to the priesthood which he felt was his,
but the winning of a scholarship to the Bamberg
Gymnasium enabled him to prepare himself for admission to the diocesan seminary. After the completion of his milita.ry service in 1890, he was able to
enter it and begin his studies for the priesthood.
At the beginning of his seminary career, mental
prayer was a mystery to him, and he could not understand what the seminarians who remained in the
chapel after evening prayers were doing there. Instruction made meditation comprehensible but not
easy. The young seminarian began to cast about for
helps in making mental prayer, and, in doing so, he
came upon a novena to the Infant Jesus. He made it the
subject of his meditations. That decision, it would
appear, was one of the first of his great graces.
Shortly after beginning the meditations on the Infant
Jesus, the seminarian who had found it so hard to
pray became conscious of an irresistible attraction,
which led him to spend hours in prayer before the
Blessed Sacrament. "I had never known before," he
wrote later in his diary, "the immense love of Jesus
which is irresistible for those whom He loves. I went
frequently to the chapel now . . . I longed ardently
for Holy Communion, approaching the sacred table
every day, even during the holidays, always wearing
a surplice as the regulations of the seminary required." Encouraged by his confessor's :assurance that
there was no danger of illusion in yielding to this attraction, the future Father Reus continued his long
vigils before the Blessed Sacrament. It was while.he
was kneeling close to the tabernacle during one of
these vigils in 1892, that the sensible presence of God
was experienced for the first time. It appeared to
�146
JESUIT .l\IYSTIC
~
him that he had entered into God who was present
there before him, and that he had submerged himself
in the Divine Being.
The year 1892 was also the year of his vocation to
the Society of Jesus, but, although the young seminarian was convinced that God was calling him to
the Society, the Bishop of Bamberg had other ideas
on the subject, and it was not until the year after his
ordination that episcopal permission was secured and
he was able to enter the novitiate on October 16,
1894. "Although the cares and sacrifices have cost me
tears," he wrote to a friend at that time, "still I am
so happy that I praise the day on which I received the
vocation to the Society of Jesus." In another letter
which was written at the beginning of his noviceship,
Father Reus spoke of the great love of our Lady which
filled his soul. It was to her, he felt, that his religious
vocation was chiefly due. "0· .. Mary, my beloved
Mother," he wrote on the day of his devotional vows,
"you have called me to the Society of Jesus and have
given me the grace to make my vows today. Receive
me entirely so that I may be your servant. Protect
me and communicate to me the virtues of your most
pure heart, so that I can become a saint." The vocation to hi,gh sanctity is mentioned again in the notes
of the Long Retreat. "0 Jesus, beloved spouse of my
soul," one passage runs, "I am certain I can become
what You want me to be-a saint-but not one of
brilliant sanctity; rather one whose sanctity is
despised by men. Mary, my bountiful mother, protect
me so that I may persevere!" An obscure sanctity
which sought its expression in penance and exact
observance of rule was the ideal of his noviceship,
and it remained the dominant characteristic of his
fifty-three years in the Society. The resolution of his
Tertianship Retreat was the continual. practice of the
third degree of humility, in order to follow Christ in
His humiliations and sufferings. And because it
seemed to him that his resolution could be carried
out more perfectly in India or Africa than in the
-·
�JESUIT MYSTIC
147
home-Province, he asked his superiors to be assigned
to one of those missions.
The mission-status of 1900 sent Father Reus overseas, but it assigned him neither to India nor Africa.
His destination was a third mission which had been
entrusted to his Province, the Mission of Southern
Brazil. A few months were passed at Sao Leopoldo
learning Portuguese and then the new missionary was
assigned to the Jesuit college in the city of Rio Grande.
Here he was to spend five years as teacher and prefect
of discipline and seven more as Superior. They were
uneventful years, and during them neither Father Reus
nor anyone else, as it would appear, had any inkling
of the great mystical graces which God would give him
immediately after his departure from Rio Grande.
Great Mystical Graces
Weak health was the reason for the change which
brought him to Porto Alegre in 1912. In September
of that year it became evident that God was working
in his soul in a most wonderful manner. His spiritual
diary mentions the first of the great graces which
came to him during his morning meditation on the
sixth of September: "Suddenly Mary, the Lady of
my heart and my Love came to me. I perceived that
she had come in company with St. Joseph. I could speak
with my sweetest Mother. She remained until the end
of the meditation and even beyond that. She remained
in my room the entire day, and every time that I
entered it, I felt impelled to raise my biretta to
salute her." The next morning Christ impressed on
him the stigmata which, ralthough it never became
visible, remained with him for the rest of his life
and caused him acute and prolonged suffering. Father
Reus went to spend the Christmas of that year in the
town of Born Principio and his diary gives the following account of the vision which was granted to him
there during the Christmas Mass: "0 sweetest Jesus!
(I received) the same graces (as on the previous
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JESUIT .•.1\IYSTIC
days-i.e. · he rested on the heart of Jesus and was
united to the Blessed Trinity). During the Mass I saw
You present as a little child in my heart. I believe
that it was not an illusion. In the second part of my
meditation I was united to the Word of God. It was
the first time that this took place."
The status of 1913 appointed Father Reus to the
pastorate of our parish in Sao Leopolda. During that
year the special graces continued, and, under the date
of December 25, 1913, the following entry is found
in his diary: "I was united to the Word of God, feeling
and understanding His omnipotence and His infinite
majesty and, at the same time, my own nothingness.
I did not perceive the sacred humanity (of the Word
of God). Jesus, grant that I be Thine and that I may
love Thee! I am almost afraid to offer Thee my love,
0 infinite Being!"
In the following year he received his appointment
as spiritual director to the seminarians of the diocesan
seminary in Sao Leopolda. The thirty remaining years
of his life would be devoted to the formation of future
priests. Until 1942 his care would be given to the
diocesan seminarians of Sao Leopolda, and from 1942
until his death he would be the spiritual director of
the philosophers and theologi·ans of his own Province.
By 1914 the intense fervor which he experienced
during the celebration of Mass had become quite
noticeable, and from that time on, Father Reus preferred to say his Mass in private, with no one present
except the Scholastic or Brother who was appointed
to serve him. His work as spiritual director and professor of Liturgy made demands on his time, but
despite his busy schedule, Father Reus had become
"the praying Father'' of Sao Leopolda. His prayer
was almost without interruption. The Divine Office
and the Rosary were recited every day before the
Blessed Sacrament, and the ejaculations offered every
day for the souls in Purgatory often numbered 20,000.
But the service of God demanded more of him than
prayer alone. In 1916 he took the vow of always doing
-·
�JESUIT l\IYSTIC
149
the more perfect thing and kept it faithfully until
his death. Two more vows soon followed, the first to
propagate the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
and the second to labor for the spreading of devotion
to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. God was pleased
with the holocaust of the saintly spiritual director, and
in the spiritual diary of this period we read the consoling words which our Lord spoke to him in prayer:
"I will bless this house on your account."
The seminarians were not the only souls in Sao
Leopoldo who had the privilege of Father Reus'
direction. For years he was chaplain to the Franciscan
Sisters in that city, and it was during this period that
another greatly privileged soul came under his direction. She was Sister Maria Antonia, and so convinced
was Father Reus of her heroic sanctity that he undertook the editing of her private diary after her death
in 1939. When he was near to death in 1944, he turned
to her for help and remained convinced until his death
that his recovery from that illness was due to her
intercession. Perhaps it was Sister Maria Antonia who
was confessing to him at the time when the vision
of the Child Jesus came to him !aS he was sitting in
the confessional of the Franciscan convent on December 22, 193,7. "While I was hearing the confessions of
the Franciscan Sisters today," the diary runs, "I
exhorted them to prepare themselves well for the
coming of the Child Jesus. Then, suddenly, within the
Sister who was confessing, I saw the Infant Jesus in
the center of a brilliant light. I saw Him within
other Sisters too, tand the light, at times, was dazzling
in its brilliance."
Frequent Visions and Ecstacies
This vision belongs to the last period in the spiritual
development of Father Reus. In this period, taking in
roughly the last thirteen years of his life, his visions
and ecstacies became much more frequent. They
centered around the Holy Trinity, the Child Jesus,
�150
JESUIT "'MYSTIC
the Sacred Heart and our Lady, and they came to
him more commonly at Mass, or during his meditations and visits to the Blessed Sacrament. The remainder of this article will be concerned, in the main, with
an account of some of the more remarkable among
them, and it seems best, in view of the greatness of
these spiritual favors, to leave their description, as far
as is feasible, to the words of Father Reus himself.
Among the published excerpts from his diary, the following accounts of his visions of the Infant Jesus are
perhaps the most striking:
December 24, 1936: "This morning while I was vesting for Mass I suddenly saw the Child Jesus before
me. He was of the same size as an ordinary child, and
light streamed from Him. I paid no attention. At
noon, during the examination of conscience I saw the
Child Jesus resting His head on rpy shoulder. He was
seated, it appeared, on my left arm and placed His
little arm around my neck. I could not doubt the
reality of this fact. I tried to free myself from this
vision, but to no avail. It continued until five-thirty
this afternoon, and I could distinctly feel the pressure
of the little arm around my neck. This grace, like the
others, fills me with holy fear, because I recognize my
own wretchedness and, at the same time, the incomprehensible goodness of God. One thing, however, is
certain. These graces, given even to me, are an irrefutable proof of the infinite mercy of the Heart of
Jesus."
January 2, 1937: "I was in the confessional, and
while I was absolving a penitent from his mortal sins,
I felt the Child clasping my neck, and it seemed that
His little arm was drawing me closer to Him, as
though to express His gratitude for my having freed
the penitent from those sins which caused Him so
much pain. I heard many confessions after that, but
they were only of venial sins and I experienced nothing
unusual."
January 4, 1937: "While I was hearing confessions,
I felt and saw after the absolution, the Child Jesus
~
�JESUIT MYSTIC
151
as He embraced me with His right arm and tenderly
placed His face close to mine . . . Afterwards, when I
was out in the sunlight, I saw the face of the Child
Jesus. It was surrounded by an aureole of light so
brilliant that it outshone the rays of the sun. It was
not dazzling in its brilliance but it was indescribable
in its beauty ... In one of the visits which I made to
the Blessed Sacrament, I saw my heart enclosed in
the Heart of Jesus. Flames poured from both hearts
but those which poured from the Heart of Jesus were
greater."
December 16, 1939: "I suddenly saw very clearly
the Child Jesus within me, surrounded by light. I saw
Him afterwards embrace my heart with His little arms
and exchange it with His in proof of love . . . Reflecting on the motive which Jesus could have for
granting me such an extraordinary sign of His love,
and one which was so humili'ating for me, I saw then
that it could only be because of my exceeding wretchedness. He is the Saviour and He desires to save. He
wishes to save my heart from the wretchedness in
which it has been plunged until now. I am convinced of
this. The vision lasted during Holy Mass and has
lasted until the moment in which I am writing."
December 20, 1941: "At the Offertory I saw the
Child Jesus once again, this time over the paten and
chalice, at the moment in which I was elevating them
and offering them to the Divine Father. In the ecstacy
I saw the ·Blessed Trinity and the empty throne of
the Divine Saviour. The Child Jesus was in the center
over the altar. Higher still over it w:as the Holy
Mother of God whose face reflected most tender
pleasure as she watched her little Son who was offering Himself in sacrifice for the salvation of men. She
was sharing in the pleasure with which the Holy
Trinity was considering the Divine Sacrifice. Like the
opening of a beautiful flower, Mary's lips parted in
a smile of indescribable love, the smile of a loving
mother who gazes happily on the son of her heart.
How can a priest remain indifferent in the presence of
�152
JESUfT l\IYSTIC
all this! The surrounding choirs of holy angels are
overcome with astonishment and profound adoration
at the most lofty mysteries which take place on the
altar."
January 1, 1944: "In the Holy Mass, at the Memento
for the dead, I saw the Blessed Trinity, and between
the Divine Majesty and the altar, the Child Jesus.
Rays went out from the Child Jesus in the direction
of Purgatory . . . It was the visible representation of
the prayer which the Church makes: 'Grant we beseech
Thee to them (the holy souls) a place of light and
peace!' The holy sacrifice is light for the souls who
are suffering in the darknes'S of Purgatory."
January 1, 1947: "At Holy Mass, three ecstasies of
love. The first at the Consecration. The second before
Communion. While I was saying, 'Lord I am not
worthy' and was about to ra~se the sacred host to
my mouth I had to stop to give 'free rein to the ardor
of my heart, and then I saw, as always, the Child
Jesus, who, with a loving smile, stretched out His little arms toward me. The third after the Communion."
The phrase "I saw, as. always, the Child Jesus"
refers to the vision of the Child Jesus in the sacred
host which was given to Father Reus in every Mass
which he celebrated from the day of his golden
sacerdotal jubilee, January 11, 1943. On more than
one occasion, his spiritual diary contains the simple
notation: "The Child Jesus, as always."
It was to be expected that the workings of grace in
the soul of Father Reus would be accompanied with_:.
great interior sufferings. His diary tells in the succession of its entries something of the pain which
goes hand in hand with the mystic's ecstasies. Sometimes it is given in a fleeting hint, as in the following entry: December 24, 1943: "I saw at a great height
the Most Holy Trinity, and in the center, between the
throne of the Divine Majesty and the altar, Jesus,
fastened to His cross, surrounded by the holy angels
in deep adoration ... From the moment of His Incarnation, the Divine Saviour had the cross always before
�JESUIT MYSTIC
153
His eyes. That is the reason why we all can say, 'with
Christ I am fastened to the cross.' " Other entries
tell of the agonies of fear and humiliation which filled
his soul at the moments of the heavenly visitations:
October 31, 1934: "A kind of confusion and terror
fills me when I think of the greatness of the favors
and the wretched state of my soul."
April 8, 193.7: "When I ascended the steps after the
prayers at the foot of the altar at Mass today, I saw
that Jesus was waiting for tme in front of the
tabernacle. His Sacred Heart was clearly visible. While
I was rising after kissing the altar, a thing happened
which I would never have dreamed of. My beloved
Jesus leaned forward toward me and embraced me
with both arms. This extreme of love humiliated me
deeply because I know so well who and what I am.
But what can I do? I can only repeat my plea: 'Make
me truly love Thee!' "
Physical Suffering
The very intensity of Father Reus' love for our
Lord in the Blessed Sacrament was the cause of
extreme physical suffering to him. Every time that he
entered a church or chapel where the Blessed Sacrament was kept, his heart was flooded with fire, as it
seemed to him. The heart itself was the center of a
burning pain of such excruciating proportions that,
as he radmitted, it seemed at times to be greater than
he could bear. It was on such occasions that his fellow-Jesuits would be given a faint glimpse into the
world which lay beyond the veil of Father Reus'
seemingly ordinary Jesuit life. They would hear him
groan softly, and see him part his cassock slightly and
draw his underclothing raway from his burning chest
in an effort to obtain relief. His diary gives us the
history of one such episode in the entry for June 4,
1934:
"I was making the Way of the Cross. As I was
genuflecting before leaving the chapel, I found that
�154
JESUIT "MYSTIC
I could not rise. I saw a flame dart from my burning
heart toward the tabernacle and I saw another torrent
of fire and love come from the tabernacle which
made me groan because of its great heat."
On June 17, 1934, he speaks of the constancy of
the suffering brought on him by his great love for
our Lord: "My union with Jesus is visible, and is felt
without interruption day and night. In the first visit
which I make to the Most Holy Sacrament at rising
and whenever I am alone with my beloved Jesus, the
interior fire is so fierce that I cannot bear it without
drawing the clothing away from my breast. This
is the case every day." Four years later, on August 9,
1938, another notation reads: "It has happened many
times that during the evening Benediction as the
Blessed Sacrament was being exposed a flame of love
began to burn in my heart from t~e' moment in which
the sacred host became visible and continued until the
sacred host was replaced in the tabernacle at the
end of the Benediction. Yesterday, as the priest was
giving the blessing with the Blessed Sacrament, I
saw the graces of that benediction descend on my
heart like a river of fire which completely inundated
it."
It was during one of these evening Benedictions, on
June 15, 1939 that one of the high points in Father
Reus' sufferings and mystical graces was reached.
Joy, confusion and terror swept simultaneously
though his soul and intense physical pain filled his
body as he knelt quietly in his pew before the Blessed
Sacrament. He had been granted the great grace of
the transrnutatio cordiurn. The history of his ecstasy
is narrated in the entry for that day: "Yesterday
(Vigil of the Feast of the Sacred Heart) I experienced
from the beginning of the evening Benediction a
great fire of love. Suddenly there was a terrible sensation in my breast as though something were being
violently torn from it. I was terrified. My heart had
been torn from my breast, and my beloved Jesus,
appearing above the altar, took His heart and placed
~-
�JESUIT MYSTIC
155
it within my breast, and then took my heart and
placed it within His breast. I could not doubt it. I
felt deeply confused and almost wept, since it is
absolutely impossible for me to correspond to so great
a love. All I could do was repeat with great insistence
the prayer: 'Only make me love Thee. Ask what Thou
wilt. Everything is Thine. Help me to please Thee.
I know not what there is in this heart of mine which
deserves such a grace.' Then it seemed to me that I
heard my beloved Jesus say: 'If it pleases me to act
thus, what is that to thee?' I will place my trust in
the heart of Jesus. Whatever He does is good."
His Profound Humility
The VISions which he received were a source of
holy fear to Father Reus. At times, he seemed almost
to distrust them. "I saw the Divine Infant in the
consecrated host," runs the entry for January 11, 1943,
but we possess a more thorough proof of the real
presence than these visions in the words of Christ
Himself: 'This is My body.'" That such favors could
be given to a sinner and a "criminal" like him seemed
one of the unfathomable mysteries of the divine love.
His humility would never allow him to believe that
any spiritual progress was being made because of
them, and a provincial, who asked him once at manifestation time how things were going spiritually,
got the blunt answer: "Things are getting worse every
day.'' Admissions of that sort were easier to get from
Father Reus than even the slightest hint of the
wonders which God was working in his soul. What
we do know about those wonders comes from the
notations which were made under the command of
his superiors, and they were made simply and left
to stand without polishing or emendation. It is significant that Father Reus never retracted a single line
of them.
The circle of Father Reus' influence during his life
was comparatively limited. The seminarians and
�156
JESUIT MYSTIC
Jesuit Scholastics knew him as a professor of Liturgy
and spiritual director. He had something of a reputation as a spiritual writer. Several books, "The Heroic
Act on Behalf of the Souls of Purgatory," a prayerbook, "Orai" and a "Course of Liturgy" have been
published. The last is, perhaps, the most widely
known. He was a writer of articles as well, and several
of them appeared under his name in Brazilian ecclesiastical reviews. Except to his seminarians and
readers, and to the limited number of layfolk and
religious whom he had met as their pastor or director,
he was unknown. It would seem, however, that it is
in the order of Divine Providence that Father Reus
should now be made known to the world. How else
can one explain the amazing interest that has been
shown in him during the past three years? The
hundreds of pilgrims who come· to pray at his tomb
are convinced that Brazil has- ·been blessed in our
generation with a great servant of God. This, too, is
the conviction of the hundreds of others who have
requested relics, and the thousands who have asked
for the novena-leaflets which bear his picture, a sketch
of his life and a short prayer. The large number of
spiritual and temporal favors which have been attributed to Father Reus' intercession would appear to
give support to this conviction of the faithful. It is
too early to receive any definite pronouncement from
ecclesiastical authorities, but the Jesuits of Southern
Brazil are praying earnestly that such a pronouncement may come soon and that it may be favorable.
Their concern is shared by Very Reverend Father
General, who has written to their Province and
ordered a thorough examination and documentation
of every reported favor, and he added as he did so,
"The hand of the Lord has not been shortened."
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��HISTORICAL NOTES
JESUIT RETREAT HOUSE, GLENMONT
Early in 1945 Mrs. Mary Parker Corning Iglehart,
a Protestant, presented the beautiful Old Corning
Manor House and Fann to Bishop Gibbons of Albany,
New York, as a gift. The Bishop was anxious to see
a house of retreats for laymen in his diocese. Realizing
that the well-known Corning Estate, with its forty
acres of beautiful grounds and its accessibility from
downtown Albany, would be a most suitable site,
Bishop Gibbons offered the property to Father James
P. Sweeney, S.J., Provincial, an old friend and his
fonner altar boy.
When Father C. Justin Hanley, S.J., the first
Director of the Retreat House, arrived in September
1945 to begin the work of renovation, he found not
a stick of furniture in the mansion, except a wooden
kitchen chair painted green and yellow, the Corning
racing colors. The chair is still there as a kind of
relic of the days when the talk was of politics and
horses. Father Raymond Rooney, Chancellor of the
Albany Diocese, graciously invited Father Hanley and
his assistant, Father Lawrence Atherton, to be his
guests at the Chancery, while the new retreat house
was being prepared. By the end of October they had
obtained a few beds and begun to live at Glenmont.
Life was a little on the rugged side during those early
months as these few excerpts from the house diary
testify:
October 13, 1945: Father Atherton left to give
retreats to students at Convent Station, N. J.,
and Fordham Downtown School. Before leaving he painted the top of the old station
wagon with roofing pitch.
November 15, 1945: Father Atherton painted
the room for the private chapel on the third
floor.
January 27, 1946: Father Raymond Rooney,
�158
HISTO!{ICAL NOTES
Chancellor of the Albany Diocese had lunch
here today with Father Atherton and Father
Hanley. He came to see, as he put it, "whether
you have been eating, or whether you have
lost your can opener."
January 29, 1946: Father McQuade, Provincial, stopped in to see us. As he sinks into one
of our three chairs, in one of our two painted
rooms, he laughs and says, "Why, this is
living in the lap of luxury."
March 2, 1946: Father Atherton, Brother
Mahlmeister, and Mr. Ferguson (the caretaker) had the job of carrying all the lumber
for the retreat benches and dining tables
through the heavy snowdrifts from the hill
road to the mansion. It took three hours to do
the job. All were exhaust~d at the end of it.
March 30, 1946: Scrubbed up the floor of the
large south-side bedroom; Father Atherton
did the scrubbing and scraping-with a coat
of alcohol (the non-drinkable kind) the floor
showed up in excellent condition.
Since there was no altar or chapel at Glenmont for
Mass, the Fathers drove over to Kenwood in the
station wagon whose roof leaked despite Father Atherton's ministrations of pitch, and whose many windows
could never be shut. This trip enabled them to have
breakfast at the convent, a rather welcome treat,
since they prepared the other meals over hotplates,
with an occasional lunch at the railroad station for~·
diversion.
In January 1946, Brother Clarence F. Mahlmeister,
S.J., arrived at Glenmont. With his workshop first
located in what is now the chapel, he began to make
the beautiful chairs and kneelers and to perform many
other wonders of woodworking and cabinet making.
The ballroom became a fine chapel under his expert
hands. He renovated the right wall of the room to
match the paneling on the left one, and made the
�HISTORICAL NOTES
159
unique individual chapel seats which all admire. He
also made other chairs, as well as tables and bookcases.
The Retreat House owes a great debt of gratitude to
Brother Mahlmeister because of the high quality of
his workmanship and his personality.
After Father Hanley had overcome the difficult
initial stages of renovation and won many friends in
the Diocese, he was succeeded in 1946 by Father
Edward C. Mulligan, S.J. The new Director had recently been released from the service where he
had been overseas as a naval chaplain. Father Mulligan
completed the renovations by October. During these
months the Fathers at the Retreat House spoke in
many churches of the Diocese and started organizing
future groups of retreatants. In November Bishop
Gibbons formally opened the Retreat House and celebrated Benediction with Father Joseph Murphy, S.J.,
Provincial of the New York Province, assisting. On
that opening day more than five hundred people made
a tour of inspection of the house and ,grounds.
The week-end of December 6, Father Atherton
gave the first retreat to !a group of men from St.
Thomas Parish, Delmar, N. Y. A commemorative
plaque with the names of the first retreatants now
hangs in the entrance hall. In June 1947 fifty-two
pioneer promoters and captains met at the Retreat
House to form the Laymen's Retreat League of the
Albany Diocese, whose purpose is to advance the retreat movement in that area and to promote retreats
at the Glenmont Retreat House.
On September 8, 1948 Father Atherton left to take
up his new duties as professor of philosophy at Fordham. Up till then there had been fifty-three retreats
at Glenmont, of which Father Atherton had given
thirty-one. Father McQuade spoke for all when he
said, "Truly I am indebted to him for his great work
at Albany. The first days of the Retreat House will
always record the debt we owe to him."
Meanwhile in January 1948 Father Mulligan had
been transferred to St. Peter's College, Jersey City,
�160
HISTORICAL NOTES
~
and Father Stephen J. Meany, S.J., chaplain of New
York's Sixty-ninth Regiment in the recent war, became the new Director. As chaplain he participated
in the invasion of Makin Island advancing inland
with the front lines. He saw one of his men wounded
and as he went up to help him, he was drilled himself by a Japanese machine gun in his right elbow,
chest and shoulder, winning the Silver Star. A book
called Father Meany and the Fighting 69th has appeared. Father Meany served five years in the Army,
and had been Business Manager of America and Assistant to the President of Fordham University before
taking up his present post at Glenmont. Under his
direction attendance is growing ·and the retreat movement is flourishing in the Albany Diocese. Forty weekend retreats a year are given, and some twelve hundred retreatants attend annually .. , An attractive four
page monthly, lgnatian Weeken:¢, goes out to the
retreatants and helps maintain their interest throughout the year.
GEORGE ZORN, S.J.
NEW DEAL IN MANILA
Under date of February 20, 1951 Reuters sent out
the following dispatch from Manila: "The Rev. Walter
B. Hogan, a tough Philadelphia Jesuit priest, has
given Manila dock workers a new deal .and has broken
the monopoly that controlled cargo handling on the
Manila waterfront for decades.
-· "The outstanding feature of the change-over is that
the dockers now collect their own pay daily and direct
from the employers' cashiers. Payment for work on
the waterfront formerly was made in lump sums to
union leaders who passed on payment to job captains,
thence to gang foremen and finally, after many deductions, to the individual worker.
"Since there has always been a large surplus of
available labor, the individual seldom dared to protest
�HISTORICAL NOTES
161
against any deductions. He could not risk the displeasure of the union bosses, on whom his job depended.
"The union bosses were responsible for the number
of men actually working in each gang and for reporting and collecting pay for them. Since the union had
complete control of the situation, the shipowners or
agents seldom dared complain about any possible disparity between the number of men reported and the
number actually on the job.
"Father Hogan spotted the dangerous opportunity
afforded by this system to a Communist bid for control of the waterfront and set in motion the forces
that brought about the change-a change that many
feared could not be achieved without serious outbreaks
of violence.
"Father Hogan was a member of the Jesuit mission
here before the war and returned to Manila in 1946
with a special mission: to teach the Roman Catholic
Church's ideas of social justice based on the encyclicals
of Leo XIII.
"Working with a young Filipino assistant, Johnny
Tan, he met opposition from every direction. Employers saw in this 'meddlesome priest' a threat to
their high profits. Trade unions, petty crooks and
graft-loving politicians also feared that their own
comfortable incomes might be in jeopardy.
"Some workers saw Church interference in labor
matters as another scheme being tried by employers
and Government further to depress their standards
through an illusion of social reform. The tradition of
the Church's alliance with the ruling and privileged
classes was built up in Manila during 300 years of
Spanish colonial control, when the Archbishop of
Manila was also the deputy governor of the colony.
"Employers first tried to have Father Hogan
silenced by appealing to United States authorities in
the islands and to his Jesuit superiors in Manila and
New York.
"But as time went on, Father Hogan succeeded in
�162
HISTORICAL NOTES
collecting around him a small group of honest enthusiasts and incipient labor leaders drawn chiefly from
the ranks of skilled workers.
"In face of bitter opposition from the former operators, the New Deal has come into force. Time alone
can show whether the new leaders will be able to
maintain the trust of the men, but if they do, they
believe their example cannot fail to exert a strong
influence on the conduct of unions and workers elsewhere in the port and city of Manila."
The Philippine Clipper for January 1951 carried
the following paragraphs:
"The Manila Bulletin for January 5 carried three
paragraphs under the caption-27 Unions ask priest's
ouster. Said the Bulletin, in part: 'Heads of 27 Manila
labor unions (sic) jointly urged President Quirino
recently to order deportation proceedings against Rev.
Fr. Walter Hogan, Jesuit labor priest, for allegedly
undermining the local labor movement ... They also
accused the labor priest of allegedly undermining the
peace and order program in the Phillippines through
use of communistic ideologies and tactics.'
"Father Hogan and the 'Free Worker' have been
influential in bringing about the recent new deal along
the Manila waterfront. The union which formerly
handled the labor and arrastre contract had been depriving the workers of their money. It was not uncommon for a man to be deprived of as much as forty per
cent of his pay. For example, slingmen working thirteen hours at night would be entitled to approximately
eighteen pesos. They would receive only ten and the-- other eight would go to the 'union leaders.' The daily
operation of the arrastre service on Manila's waterfront involves about 1,000 workers. Father Hogan
hopes that the good that can be done for them will
quickly spread to all the waterfront men.
"In this connection it is interesting to note that another Jesuit, a member of theN. Y. Province, Father
Philip Carey, has recently been praised for similar
campaigning for New York dock workers. Malcolm
�HISTORICAL NOTES
163
Johnson in his recent book 'Crime on the Labor Front'
(McGraw-Hill, publishers) classifies Fr. Carey as
'among the most effective advocates of labor reforms
on the New York docks.' Mr. Johnson won the
Pulitzer Prize in 1948 for his series 'Crime on the
Waterfront' in the New York 'Sun.'"
POLITBURO RETREAT
On Wednesday, October 18, 1950, in a well executed series of raids on several sections of the city of
Manila, the Philippine Government's M I S (Military
Intelligence Service), assisted by Manila police officials,
rounded up 150 Communist suspects. The most satisfactory catch was made in Room 504 in the Samanillo
Building on the Escolta. With this raid in the
Samanillo Building the nerve center of the Communist
movement in the Philippines had been exposed since
it included the ranking officials of the Politburo-the
local Communist secretariat which directs all Huk
operations throughout the Philippines.
After careful screening at Camp Murphy, thirty out
of the one hundred fifty suspects were sent to the
state penitentiary at Muntinlupa in the province of
Rizal. This group, charged with rebellion, murder
and arson, numbered twenty-one men and nine women
and included the members of the Politburo, namely the
Executive Chairman, the Secretary of Finance, the
Chief of Research and Propaganda (a member of the
Philippine Office of Foreign Affairs), the Chief of
Military Operations, the Secretary of Organizational
Plans, the Secretary of Education and the Chief of
Travel and Communications (a woman). Perhaps
no group in the world could be considered as less
favorable to a proposal to make the Spiritual Exercises
of St. Ignatius or anything even remotely connected
with the Exercises.
But prayers were asked and an approach was made.
Father Weiss canvassed the group at Muntinlupa and
�164
HISTORI€AL NOTES
found them not only willing but even anxious to hear
a Jesuit expound the Catholic philosophy of life. At
first reluctant to listen to talks on religion, later they
expressed willingness to hear something about God
and his relations to society. The next step was to
contact the Government authorities. The Secretary of
National Defense, the Secretary of Justice and the
Director of the Bureau of Prisons granted the necessary permissions and passes. Father Albert O'Hara,
a member of the California Province and an exile from
the Jesuit missions in China, was also granted permission to give a talk on Communism in China. Because
there were no trials scheduled for the last three days
of Holy Week, the retreat was to be given on Holy
Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. The opening points were given at 8 :30 Thursday morning.
There were four talks each day: -8 :30 to 9 :30, 10 :30
to 11 :30, 3 :00 to 4:00 and 6 :30 .. to 7:30. As things
turned out, interest was so keen that the talks always
went over the time allotted and a lively discussion followed every talk. To attend these talks it was necessary that all thirty retreatants be released from their
cells to which they returned afterwards.
For readers who might be interested in knowing
what form a retreat to Communists might take, the
following is a schedule of the talks. First Day, the
existence of God (rejection of dialectical materialism
and its autodynamism). The existence of a spiritual
soul (consideration on Engels' material mind and
Marx's conscious will). The use of creatures ( eco- _
nomic determinism). The abuse of creatures (private ~ -property and the maldistribution of wealth). Second
Day. Sin (Marxian ethic, the class struggle). Death
(fatalism of materialism). Hell (Communism's false
securities). Heaven ("pie in the sky"). Third Day.
Need of religion ("the opium of the people"). Redemption and Revolution (revolution of the spirit vs.
the spirit of revolution). The Two Standards (Christ,
Marx). The Final Victory (Love over Hatred).
It was not possible to give the third day of the re-
�HISTORICAL NOTES
165
treat. At about eight o'clock on Good Friday, towards
the end of "evening points" the prison was alerted. It
was learned that the Huks intended to stage a raid
whose main purpose was to release the members of the
Politburo. Quick action was necessary. All thirty
retreatants were hurried off to Manila where they
were put aboard a ship anchored in the Bay.
At present I am making contacts with the military
authorities and hope to resume the experiment by
pitting the book of the Exercises of St. Ignatius against
the "Communist Manifesto" of Marx and Engels. I am
engaging the enemy at close range.
ARTHUR
A. WEISS, S.J.
THE MISSIONARY
One may truly say that life on the missions is the final test
of the vows which are the life-engagement of the religious.
The missionary is not only a poor man, but he suffers in all
instances some privation, and in the majority of instances great
privation of personal needs. Much more trying, however, than
any personal wants is the lack of those material aids without
which he sees opportunities for good lost forever. In order that
his engagement of priestly and religious chastity be not infringed, he has to use with more than ordinary fidelity every
resource provided for him by the rules and the traditions of the
religious life, since a solitary life and exposure to every possible
situation bring their dangers. Not only is his entire missionary
�166
THE MISSIONARY
enterprise an act of direct obedience undertaken in response to
the call of the supreme authority of the Church, the Holy
See, by whom the mission fields and their personnel are designated, but a spirit penetrated with t'le high ideal that this
vow sets before him is necessary, if his life-work is not to be
ruined by pettiness and self-will.
In the popular conception, the missionary's life is pictured as
a spectacular life-gesture, which begins and ends with a grand
act of courage. That he needs courage, both moral and physical,
is plain enough. However, in its actual working, it is a daily fare
rather of endless patience, endurance of numberless trifles, quiet
acceptance of petty snubs and of situations that seem anything
but heroic, and a good solid substratum of plain hard work, all
the year round, which is more than ordinarily flavored with
monotony. Above all he needs an infinite reservoir of charity.
It is not enough to love the world or the mission-field in the
abstract, it has to be loved in the particular, with the rind on,
so to speak, and sometimes the rind is not very palatable. The
great broad considerations of charity are not what count: it is
the application to the individual, in the concrete.
Then there is loneliness. The rare~type of man who is a
natural born solitary is a natural born failure, as a rule, in
the mission life. It is as hard, if you are dressed in a cassock,
to be ten thousand miles away from the United States, in
strange climates, amid queer languages, queerer smells, hot
suns and assorted creepers and crawlers by day and night, as
if you are garbed in a palm-beach suit. The memory of home,
kindred, country and friends grows rather than lessens with
isolation.
For a man who has spent most of his life in the mission field,
one memory stands out above all others. It is not the memory of
hardships, which, after all, are only a momentary impulse to
greater trust in God, and greater compassion for poor mankind. Nor is it the thought of the joy with which God can
reward long and patient efforts or the satisfaction of seeing
sodden apathy, degradation and despair change to a world of
happiness, intelligence and hope. But it is the recollection of
the companionship of one's own religious family: of persons,
grown dear by knowledge and experience and mutual forbearance, and of deeds, which can only be understood by those who
have labored in common for a common goal. The greatest privation for the missionary, outside of being reduced to inactivity
by sickness, is that of being deprived of the company of his
fellows. There is no greater help and satisfaction than such
companionship, where God's work permits it to exist, and, as
in all other phases of the mission life, that which is granted
far outweighs all that of which one is deprived.
FATHER JOHN LAFARGE
--
��--l
:::
�OBITUARY
FATHER JOSEPH R. STACK, S.J.
1879-1950
The writing of an Obituary is greatly simplified
when, as in the present instance, the subject has left
a fairly complete diary, clearly written and carefully
arranged.
Father Joseph R. Stack was born in San Francisco
on January 12, 1879. For some reason, which he does
not mention, he attended Lincoln Grammar, famous in
its day, and would have continued his education at
another public school had not his father and mother
insisted that he register at St. Ignatius College. This
he did "rather unwillingly," as he notes, "and I
would have left the school had I been permitted to
do so. But my parents were determined that I should
remain. By the end of the year I had become quite
attached to the college. The Scholastics especially appealed to me."
Little did he then realize that this determination
of his parents shaped the whole future course of his
life, for during that year the idea of entering the
Society of Jesus developed. He and a sister who was
also trying to settle her vocation (she later joined the
Little Sisters of the Poor) made the Novena to St.
Francis Xavier. Father writes: "On the last night
of the novena, whilst praying during Benediction, I
seemed to hear a voice say to me distinctly 'You are
to be a Jesuit.'" Another sister entered the Dominican
Community of San Rafael and a niece became a Maryknoll Sister.
There was but one obstacle to his entrance, and that
a serious one: his poor health. As a boy he had always
been delicate, suffering greatly from asthma and
frequently missing class in consequence. Doctors and
superiors were skeptical about his ability to live the
life of the Society. Others thought to take a chance,
�168
OBI'l'UARY
and their counsel prevailed. However, doubts as to the
advisability of his continuance became more pronounced because of continued ill health during the
novitiate. His vows were delayed for nine months. An
accident on the ball field accentuated his poor condition
and started a series of headaches from which he never
fully recovered.
In an entry made in 1943 Father Stack notes with
· gratitude to God that he has outlived many of his
sturdier companions, though "the going has been
pretty rough at times: several major operations, ten
minor ones and a deal of bronchial asthma made life
hard enough."
During his entire course Father Stack could never
apply himself to his books for any length of time,
but a quick mind and a retentive memory made it
possible for him by attendance ~t· lectures and by outof-class discussions, to acquire much that others secure
only by formal study. With the readiness of speech
that was his he used to full advantage the knowledge
he had thus attained.
His were the days when juniors were often called
upon to teach before beginning philosophy. In the
spirit of the times, and because of poor health, Father
Stack began his regency at Santa Clara. Discipline was
rigid, prefecting extremely confining, the prevailing
system requiring "that wherever there were boys there
must be a prefect, one at least, and perhaps seV'eral."
This told on his nerves. In 1905 he began philosophy at
Spokane, returning to Santa Clara upon its completion. --· .·
The next was a trying year, but was offset by a change
to Gonzaga College, where, as he remarks, "I spent
one of the most pleasant years of my life (so that) I
was really sorry when told to go to theology in 1910."
Woodstock was always dear to Father Stack. He
treasured the remembrance of his four years there
with deli,ght. Ill health made studies difficult. Nevertheless, he passed his Ad Grad, as he was informed by
the Rector, "with considerable distinction."
Since at this period of his life he seemed to enjoy
�OBITUARY
169
better health in the Northwest, he was sent to
Spokane, then to our parish in Missoula, interrupting
his stay there to make his tertianship at Los Gatos,
and returning to take over the pastorate at Missoula.
His stay of four years was not a peaceful one, disturbed as it was by the determination of the Bishop to
divide the parish, and, further complicated by a
difference of opinion as to procedure, which arose between himself and Father Provincial. All three are now
with God nor is there any need of recounting the
controversy.
Missoula was followed by a year at Tacoma and
then Father Stack was assigned to what was to prove
to be his major life's work: the founding of two retreat houses in California and the giving of laymen's
retreats.
If there be a vocation within a vocation in the
Society it may be said that lay retreats were the
special vocation of Father Stack. In these he did
his greatest work and in this ministry he will be
best remembered.
"I had felt from my earliest days in the Society,"
he writes, "that sooner or later I would be given a
chance at this kind of work. Hence I tried to learn
what I could about the Spiritual Exercises and the
proper way of handling them. I have always tried
to stay close to the Spiritual Exercises, and this no
matter what group I was addressing."
He certainly "was given a chance at this kind
of work." Apart from giving many retreats to nuns
and students, and assisting the Maryknoll Sisters in
inaugurating retreats for women at Mountain View,
California, he gave the first retreat for laymen at
Mount St. Michael's, Spokane, setting a pattern which
has been followed to this day. He also ,gave a retreat
for men at Port Townsend, Washington, hoping thus
to establish a retreat house for the Seattle area,
but the attempt proved abortive.
Later at Santa Monica, California, he conducted a
retreat under pioneering conditions which had much
-
�170
OBITUARY
to do with the furtherance of retreats in the Southland
and eventually led to the formation of the Loyola
Laymen's Retreat Association and the establishment
of Manresa of the West.
In Phoenix, Arizona, while conducting a retreat
for men, he notes a temptation to depart a bit from
the Exercises which was occasioned by the Question
Box, there in vogue. He writes: "There is no doubt
that the men enjoy this departure from the Exercises.
I have been wondering whether it would be wise to
have it, say during the last hour before supper on
the last day of the retreat." He never introduced the
practice nor did he finally approve it.
Father Stack's retreats to priests were well received. These he gave over the years in the dioceses
of Tucson, San Diego, Portland, Oregon, Baker City,
and Spokane.
·
The story of the lay retreaf ''movement in the
United States is an interesting one and has deep
roots in California. Father Stack continuously sought
to vindicate for his native state the prerogative of
having inaugurated the movement, and with this in
mind he wrote and spoke largely on the subject. But,
as so often is the case, the controversy was multum
de verbis. A clear definition would have obviated
much discussion. The development of laymen's retreats in California, however, is definitely bound up
with the activities of Father Stack. This is beyond
dispute.
For years, summer retreats had been held at Santa
Clara, but in the early twenties, the time had come
for the establishment of a house for all year round
retreats. Father Stack was assigned the task, a delightful one to him. By a stroke of good fortune, or ought
we not rather say, in answer to earnest prayer and
after diligent search, he happened upon what many
deem the most beautiful retreat house site in America:
El Retiro San Inigo at Los Altos, located 37 miles
south of San Francisco, in the hills, overlooking the
charming Santa Clara Valley.
__
�OBITUARY
171
The site was purchased in December 1924. The first
retreat was held in April 1925. Archbishop Edward
J. Hanna gave enthusiastic approval to the work,
declaring it to be one of "the finest things the
Jesuits have done in my archdiocese."
Father Stack's personality, his determination in
face of difficulties, his unusual ability as a retreat
master, all these gave an impetus to the movement
which continues to this day. He built for the future
in his retreat program and he built well. He knew
that oaks do not grow overnight. He was patient and
willing to wait. Gladly he gave retreats at the outset
to as few as five or six, certain that in due time the
numbers would assume larger proportions.
Two things he insisted upon with unrelenting
severity: that the retreat should last three full days
and that silence should be observed throughout the
entire retreat, except for a brief recreation period
each night after supper.
Many there were who said that he was too demanding, that so strict a schedule could not be observed,
that men could not be induced to come for three days,
that only the rich or the white collars could make
such a retreat. Time has proven all these contentions
wrong. The weekly average at El Retiro is now well
up to sixty or seventy, with occasional retreats for
as many as one hundred, and these are drawn from
every walk of life: rich and poor, employer and employee, artisans and mechanics, professional men and
unskilled laborers.
But this writing purports to be the life story of
Father Stack and not an account of the retreat movement in California.
In 1928, Father Stack attended the First National
Laymen's Retreat Conference, held that year in Philadelphia. Very few were present. Later, in 1946, he attended a similar conference in Boston and could rejoice at the tremendous growth of the movement in the
interim. One thing, however, gave him great concern:
the attitude of not a few of Ours towards these
�172
OBITUARY
conferences revealed by their apathy and by their
absence. To the objection raised by some that "we have
nothing to gain by attending these conferences"
Father replied: "Perhaps we have something to contribute. After all, we have the Spiritual Exercises
and St. Ignatius is the heavenly patron of the Retreat
Movement." He took a wider view of the subject
too and felt that Ours should cooperate in the movement as one of far reaching conse.quences for the
general good of the Church.
After seven years as Superior at Los Altos, when
the retreat house was well established, Father Stack
was sent to Santa Barbara, first as assistant and
later as pastor, continuing as such for nine fruitful
years. It was during this incumbency that he attended the Eucharistic Congress at Manila, having
previously made a pilgrimage with the Knights of
Columbus to Lourdes and Rome.-··
Santa Barbara is quite a city for civic functions,
clubs, town halls and the like, and Father was in constant demand as a speaker. His ease of expression,
his vivacious manner, his interest in the social problems, his concern about the evils of the day, all
these combined to render his addresses both interesting and profitable and to bring great prestige to
the Society and to the Church. His memory is still
treasured in that city.
Returning to Los Altos to enjoy what he thought
would be a long period of quiet apostolate among the
retreatants, he was unconsciously garnering strength -for what was to prove to be his final contribution to
the retreat movement in California: the establishment
of a permanent retreat house in the Los Angeles area.
This was a far more difficult assignment than the
founding of El Retiro. Conditions were entirely different. Yet, with high courage and firm resolve he looked
over twenty-three possible locations, to eventually
decide upon Manresa of the West, situated near Azusa,
some 25 miles from Los Angeles Civic Center.
Here, too, though both the Passionists and the Fran-
�OBITUARY
173
ciscans were conducting large retreat houses on a twoday basis, he insisted upon the three-day tradition
which had been inaugurated by the late Father Joseph
Sullivan for the summer retreats long held at Loyola.
As at Los Altos, so at Manresa, the beginnings have
not been easy, but the prospect is equally substantial
and time will again prove the wisdom of the decision.
But the work and the worry of this latest undertaking were taxing a physique far from robust. The
years, too, were mounting, fifty-one of which had now
been spent in the Society. In October of 1947, he suffered a slight stroke and was ordered to rest, but he
did not give over. In December of that year a severe
attack of the flu weakened him still further. He had
planned to give the retreat of January 29. His final
entry reads: "The virus struck me again last night and
I have been in my room all day trying to beat it down.
Hope I am well for Thursday." He needed but to compare the handwriting of this entry with that of the
first in his diary to note the danger signal. He did
give the retreat, but it was the last he ever gave. In
mid-February of 1948 he was again stricken, this
time more severely, losing to a considerable degree
the power of speech and of locomotion.
Hospitalized first at Burbank and later at San Francisco, his condition never really improved to any extent. Months were spent in the infirmary at Los Gatos
and at Santa Clara. The days dragged on tediously
for one who had been so active, but he remained cheerful in spite of a discouraging incapacity. Whether or
not, inwardly, he was aware of the hopelessness of a
final recovery is difficult to say, for he repeatedly contended that he would give retreats again. But it was
not to be.
In early August, 1950, he suffered the severest
stroke of all. For two weeks he lingered in a comatose
condition and then, on August 16 went quietly to a
great reward.
Looking back over long years of acquaintance with
Father Stack, the remembrance is clear of his intense
devotion to Holy Church and to the Society. He was
�174
OBI!UARY
greatly concerned about the spiritual and temporal
welfare of each, and to the services of both he gave
his best energies. His inability to remain long at a desk
compelled him to seek relief in the frequent companionship whether of Ours or of parishioners, of friends or
of retreat house neighbors. His genial manner, his
sprightly conversation, his wide range of topics made
him a welcome visitor among a large circle of friends.
He used to the utmost the talents God had given him,
was generous of his time, worked up to the limit of
his capacity and was buoyant in spite of his many ailments.
Weaknesses of character there were, as there are
in every one, but what purpose it would serve to comment on these in an obituary notice is difficult to see.
Faults are not for imitation, and need but be known
if only in the abstract, to be avoided.
The traditional low Mass of .Requiem was offered
for Father Stack by Very Reverend Father Provincial
Joseph D. O'Brien, in the Mission Chapel of the University of Santa Clara; interment was in the community plot in the Santa Clara cemetery.
ZACHEUS J. MAHER, S.J.
EL RETIRO
The death of Father Stack occurred in the same year as the
silver jubilee of El Retiro San Iiiigo of which he was the
founder and where he was Superior and retreat master for
seven years. At the time of his death and owing largely to __
his efforts El Retiro can offer the following concrete evidences
of progress and development.
When Father Giacobbi offered the first Mass there on March
15, 1925, there were only the Wellman mansion and a log cabin
to house Jesuits and retreatants. Now there are the thirtyroom dormitory building (1928), the Rossi Memorial Chapel
(1929), St. Robert's Hall on the recently acquired Prosser
property, Marini Hall and Pereira Hall (the last three all
constructed since 1941).
The first year listed 29 retreats totaling 225 retreatants.
The jubilee year listed 59 retreats and 3,766 retreatants, including 130 non-Catholics.
�OBITUARY
175
FATHER GEORGE A. GILBERT
1874-1950
Requiem Mass for the soul of Reverend George A.
Gilbert, S.J., nationally known botanist and horticulturist was celebrated by Very Reverend Father
Provincial, Joseph D. O'Brien, S.J., in the Mission
Church, on the University of Santa Clara campus,
Thursday, July 13, 1950. Interment was in the Jesuit
plot in the Santa Clara Catholic Cemetery. Having
enjoyed good health during his fifty-four years in
the Society, Father Gilbert died after a short illness
at the O'Connor Hospital in San Jose, July 10.
Born in San Jose, March 14, 1874, Father Gilbert
graduated from San Jose High School and San Jose
Normal. He entered the Society of Jesus on June 10,
1896, and spent the next five years at the Novitiate
of the Sacred Heart, Los Gatos. After completing
his juniorate studies, he was sent to Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington, for his philosophy.
In 1906 he was assigned to teach physics at Old
Saint Ignatius, now the University of San Francisco,
and after three years in the classroom returned to
Gonzaga University where he pursued his studies in
theology. He was ordained a priest in St. Aloysius
Church, Spokane, by His Lordship, the Right Reverend
Edward J. O'Dea, Bishop of Seattle, on June 29, 1911.
His tertianship was made at St. Andrew-on-Hudson,
Poughkeepsie, N. Y.
During the next three years he acted as Assistant
Pastor at St. Francis Xavier's Church, Missoula,
Montana. The Catalogue shows that his duties there
were many, for besides being Procurator, he was also
Director of Studies in the High School, moderator of
Sodalities, director of St. John Berchmans Sanctuary
Society, director of dramatics, athletics, and prefect of
the choir. In 1916 he was made General Prefect of
Discipline and Athletics at Gonzaga University. In
1917 he returned to St. Ignatius College, San Francisco,
-
�176
OBITUARY
where he taught physics in the college and high school
until 1924. In the fall of 1924 Father was assigned to
Loyola University in Los Angeles, and continued
his work in the classroom as professor of physics
in the college and high school. He likewise was
Moderator of Athletics, Confessor of the House, and
Consultor. Father remained in Los Angeles until the
fall of 1930.
From the fall of 1930 until his death on July 10,
1950, Father was attached to the University of Santa
Clara. For seven years, from 1930 to 1937, he acted as
prefect in Nobili Hall, and taught mathematics and
religion.
At Santa Clara Father was able to devote his spare
time, and eventually his full time to the care of the
Campus Gardens, and the Galtes Memorial Museum.
Following up his hobby as a botanist and horticulturist which he adopted during ~his high school days
in San Jose, Father set to work and classified all
campus trees and flowers with metal markers. He
was well known as the Curator of the Mission Gardens,
and has made it one of the area's beauty spots.
He ear~ed considerable campus fame for his guided
tours of the University Gardens and took great pride
in his Rose Garden. It was while working with
Reverend George M. Schiener, known as the "Padre
of the Roses," that he developed a deep crimson rose
which he named "The Santa Clara."
Each spring it was his custom to play host to flower
lovers from all over the State-and to exhibit his
famous collection of "California Wild Flowers," which
he had collected himself on various tours through
the State.
·
It was a most common sight to see Father conducting groups · of school children through the gardens
and museum, and he has done much to build up in
the minds of the young, the romance of the Missions
of California.
For over ten years Father acted as chaplain to the
Carmelite Sisters of Santa Clara, celebrating Mass for
~
�OBITUARY
177
them daily, and assisting at all their Benedictions
in the Carmelite Chapel.
Father Gilbert's life, filled with good deeds during
his fifty-four years in the Society, his closeness to God
while working amongst his flowers, and the prayers
of appreciation said by the Carmelite Sisters for his
attentive service, fortified him in his last illness, and
prepared him for his eternal rest and peace with God.
HUGH
C. DONAVON, S.J.
MR. JAMES J. WALSH
1926-1948
James J. Walsh, S.J., died suddenly on March 20,
1948, at St. Francis Xavier High School, New York
City, while playing basketball with some of his students. He was twenty-two years old, and only four
and a half years in the Society. That is not a long
time, but quite long enough for him to have attained
many of the high ideals set by himself and the Society.
Mr. Walsh was born on February 22, 1926 at St.
Albans, Long Island. On graduation from St.
Catherine's Grammar School, he won four scholarships to high schools, and chose Brooklyn Prep. There
he was an outstanding student, and was active in
extracurriculars, literary, athletic and spiritual. He
graduated in August, 1943, and was awarded the gold
letters of Brooklyn Prep as the most representative
student of the class.
He had long desired to become a priest, and during
his high school years, a Jesuit. On August 14, 1943,
he entered the Society of Jesus at St. Andrew-onHudson. For the next two years, he was one of seventy,
unassuming, generous and friendly novices. In the
juniorate, his fine qualities of mind and soul became
more apparent. Though somewhat handicapped by a
lack of Greek studies, it did not take him long to make
--
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OBITUARY
~
up the lost time. He had a flair for appreciation
and composition which made his literary studies a
delight. Once he had begun to find his own way, he
directed his talents to the help of others. His characteristic generosity and friendliness led him to aid those
less gifted. During an entire month, he daily digested
the three classes for one of the juniors who was ill.
Those in the infirmary were the special object of his
thoughtfulness, and his visits, sparked by his keen \Vit
and conversation, were most welcome.
Towards the end of his juniorate, Mr. Walsh was
writing the Latin panegyric on St. Robert Bellarmine,
when he was informed that he was to take his oral
examinations in five days. He had lost the sight of
his left eye in childhood, and superiors had decided on
a series of operations. It is a tribute to his ability
and his resignation that he succeeded in delivering
the sermon and doing well in th~. oral examinations.
The next six or seven weeks were spent in the
hospital and infirmary with a great deal of suffering
and inconvenience. In July 1947, he came to Woodstock for philosophy; but in September there was
another operation in New York. The first week after
the operation was one of intense pain, but he never
once mentioned his sufferings or annoyance. He made
a definite effort, in spite of his discomfort, to become
an active part of the community in which he was staying. This operation was not successful, and another attempt was necessary. Though keenly disappointed, he
never complained, a masterly piece of resignation
to the Will of God. While recovering, he offered his -services to the other Scholastics; and spent a substantial part of his day with one of the Fathers
who was a partial invalid.
In November, he returned to Woodstock, and it was
decided that he should finish the remainder of the year
as a regent. At Thanksgiving, Mr. Walsh was teaching Latin, civics, and religion to the freshmen at
Xavier High School. Naturally he was somewhat apprehensive because of his lack of training, but he
�OBITUARY
179
resolved his doubts by a firm act of trust in God.
His gratitude for the help given by the other regents
was sincere; and in return he was anxious to do something for them,-to proctor an examination, or to
substitute for a sick teacher. In February he became
moderator of the track team, a source of special delight to him. Into all of his activities he poured an
enthusiasm that was both prudent and wholehearted.
And behind all his actions was the dominant motive of
doing something for God. A hint of his own ideals
and motives can be gained from the chance lines of
a letter: "It seems to me that our sanctification is
going to come down very much to a few simple ideas.
We love God; we love men in the only way that
matters, i.e., by helping them to Heaven. It all seems
so simple at times. We Jesuits are here to help peOple to Heaven. Everything else in life flows from these
two ideas."
On Saturday morning, March 20, 1948, he held a
special class for some of his poorer students. After
lunch he invited the other scholastics to play basketball with the boys. About thirty minutes later, he
collapsed on the floor. He was dead before priest
or doctor could arrive.
The good he accomplished especially during his
last few months of life can be partly measured by the
sorrow of his classes and of the members of the
Jesuit community. For his students, he was something
of an idol and model; for the Jesuits, a devoted and
observant brother in Christ. God had called a man
who was obviously most ready to answer the summons.
He had a fine sense of balance in his spiritual and
active life. His generosity, his zeal and his thoughtfulness all sprang from those two principles: "We love
God, and we love men by helping them to Heaven."
WILLIAM C. McCUSKER, S.J.
-
�180
OBil'UARY
BROTHER JAMES L. KILMARTIN
1887-1950
Brother James L. Kilmartin died piously in the Lord
at 10:55 P.M. on August 16, 1950, in the sixty-third
year of his age, the thirty-third of his religious life,
and in the twenty-eighth year as Provincial Socius
Coadjutor.
James L. Kilmartin, the son of Thomas and Bridget
O'Brien Kilmartin, was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, July 2, 1887, the youngest of six children-four
boys and two girls. He was educated· in the public
schools of that city. As a boy he was an athlete of
some distinction, and he kept his enthusiasm for sports
through all his years. He had a shrewd, active mind
and could illustrate his conclusions and observations
by comparisons from baseball· .. or football with an
aptitude that was quite unique. Many of his characterizations in this field became minor classics so that a
quotation from "Brother Kil" could win a smile, that
was sure, and very of,ten a recognition of finality, a
sureness that the last and best word had been said.
Of his own prowess he said little, but legends grew
and featured him as the pitching or home run hero
in games that found him pitted ag:ainst other high
school stars, later to be met as his brothers in Christ
in the Society.
After graduating from Somerville High School,
James Kilmartin enrolled in a business school and
took the course in typewriting, stenography, etc. This-- -·
was to prove a real asset to him in the work that God
had marked out for him in the future. After completing this course he took the examination for Government service and obtained appointment to the Post
Office Department. He remained about ten years in
this service for which he always retained a great
esteem, and with whose members he ever maintained
cordial relations. His ability was recognized and he
gained advancement in the service. It is believed that
�OBITUARY
181
just before he resigned from the Department he was
employed as a "trouble shooter," placating those who
had a complaint about mail delivery, etc. In later
years, if one made adverse comments about the mail
service, the good Brother would make a little speech
about the intricacies of sorting, directing, and delivering. So convincing was his portrayal of the almost
perfect record of poor, overworked, tired, fallible
human nature in this regard that one found himself
forgetting his grievance. This loyalty to his former
service was but a feeble shadow of the loyalty he was
to display in that service of the Master, to which God
was about to call him.
Brother Kilmartin does not seem to have discussed
his spiritual life with any but his spiritual advisers, so
we have no details about his call to the religious life.
However, in the years when, as Socius Coadjutor, he
interviewed Lay Brother applicants, he held fast to
the opinion that an applicant who had the ability and
energy to obtain and hold "a job," might be presumed
to have a spiritual motive and to be useful to the Society and find in it that self-fulfilment which Christ
promised to His true followers, whereas an applicant
who was not of that calibre would need to give proof
that he was a bona fide "prospect," and not one who
was just seeking "a port in a storm." That bit of
methodology, plus fifty other reasons, indicates that it
was from a spiritual motive, and by reason of the grace
of God working in his soul, that James Kilmartin
sought admission into the Society, in his twenty-ninth
year, and at a time when he was doing very well as far
as material welfare was concerned.
Fr. Maas was Provincial at the time that James
Kilmartin made his application. He was favorably impressed by the applicant and sent him to St. Andrewon-Hudson to begin his postulancy. Brother Kilmartin
formally began his noviceship on May 13, 1917,
about two months before his thirtieth birthday.
On the completion of the usual ;f;w;o years of noviceahip, he pronounced the first vows of the Society. After
�182
OBITUARY
a few months as a coadjutor veteranus at Poughkeepsie, he was sent to Woodstock College in 1919, where
he acted as wardrobe custodian, and at times as assistant buyer, until the year 1922.
In a letter dated June 24, 1921 F.ather General had
decreed that the territory of New England should be
separated from Maryland-New York to become a vice
province still under the general supervision of the
Maryland-New York Provincial. On July 31, 1921, Fr.
Patrick F. O'Gorman was named Vice-Provincial
of New England, "Regio Novae Angliae" as it
was designated in the catalogue. Fr. O'Gorman
carried on for a full year without any designated
assistant at Boston College, which was the official
residence, the College supplying secretarial assistance
when need required it. After a year, however, the
volume of business correspondence, etc., in the now
functioning Vice-Province required the appointment
of an assistant who would give full time to the details
of office work. Father Laurence J. Kelly, the then
Provincial of the Maryland-New York Province, chose
Brother Kilmartin to be this assistant and, after calling him to New York for an interview, sent him on
to Boston to begin his duties as Socius Coadjutor. The
diary of Father Minister at Boston College has this
notation under date of September 27, 1933: "Brother
Kilmartin and Brother Ramspacher arrived this morning. Brother Kilmartin is to be Brother Socius to
Father Vice-Provincial." The Brother Ramspacher
mentioned here is, of course, the dean of Coadjutores _: .
Socii, and no one could be better fitted to brief the ·
"tyro" Socius on the duties and obligations of that
office.
For the next four years Brother Kilmartin was the
Father Vice-Provincial's "memory and good right
hand," as a priest Socius was not appointed until
December, 1926, after the New England Province had
been fully erected, and a provincial named. Brother
Kilmartin's previous training and experience stood
him in good stead now, and he set himself to or,ganiz-
�OBITUARY
183
ing and systematizing the office procedure to the end
that it might function smoothly and almost automatically. He was a perfectionist, and all through the
long tenure of office he was constantly on the watch
for methods which might expedite or improve the
functioning of that office. Official announcements and
communications had to ,go out at the appointed times,
be correctly typed or mimeographed, and go by the
most expeditious route. His former Post Office experience and constant contact with former co-workers
helped him enormously in this drive for the best and
surest procedure. He made himself a most important
cog in the wheels of administrative efficiency of the
Provincial Curia.
Though the office of Socius Coadjutor was really his
life's work, in which he spent practically all of his
religious life-twenty-eight out of thirty-three yearsthere is not much that one can say of these years which
were necessarily concerned with work that was confidential, except that he proved himself to be an
operarius inconfusibilis. The fact that he held this
position of trust through all the administrations from
the very beginnings of the Province is ample proof
that he merited the trust reposed in him. This was
further evidenced on the occasion of the celebration
of his silver jubilee in that office, when all the Provincials and Socii of the New England Province-past
and present-gathered to show their esteem of the
Brother and express their appreciation of his services.
He was first and foremost ,a good religious, ever most
faithful and careful in his spiritual duties; and he tried
by example and counsel to be a steadying influence on
those of his grade who seemed to be in need of
encouragement. He had sound common sense, and he
became a rather keen judge of character. Towards
superiors he was obedient and unassuming, and he
never betrayed the trust that they reposed in him. TOwards externs-doctors, surgeons, tradesmen, and
others with whom he came in contact in the carrying
out of his duties-he was always courteous; and he
�184
OBITUARY
gained their respect and esteem. Towards Ours he
was ever a brother in Christ, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he was loved and esteemed by all.
Though bothered by diabetes during the last ten
years of his life, Brother Kilmartin maintained his
robust physique and boundless energy. However,
during the last year of his life, he consistently lost
weight and consequently his energy and enthusiasm
flagged. He entered the hospital in May, 1950, and
underwent a long and serious operation on June 10.
The doctors were optimistic about his complete recovery, but his diabetic condition had so taken its toll
that he was not able to rally sufficiently. On August
16, 1950, after more than two months of intense suffering, which he bore with edifying patience and
resignation to the will of God, _this true son of St.
Ignatius died.
..'
Brother Kilmartin's funeral was held at St. Ignatius'
Church, Boston College, on Augus,t 19, and the great
number of Ours from all houses of the Province attested to the esteem and affection in which he was held
by his brothers of the Province which he served so
faithfully, and in the establishing of which he had no
small part.
JAMES M. KILROY, S.J.
SUMMER SCHOOL OF CATHOLIC ACTION
During the coming summer the twenty-first session of the
Sodality-sponsored "Summer School of Catholic Action" will
be held in eight cities of the United States, from New York to
·Oregon and from Missouri to Texas. Intensive courses will be
conducted for one week in St. Louis (June 11-16), Omaha
(June 18-23), Duluth (June 25-30), Spokane (July 9-14),
Houston (July 30-Aug. 4), Erie (Aug. 13-18), New York
(Aug. 20-25) and Chicago (Aug 27-Sept. 1). The courses
will be built around the Annual Statement of the Bishops of
the United States, "Citizen of Two Worlds." The theme of
this year's S. S. C. A. will be the supreme importance of Religion in the formation of the Christian Citizen.
�Books of Interest to Ours
NEW TRANSLATION OF EXERCISES
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius; A new translation
based on studies in the language of the Autograph. By
Louis J. Puh!, S.J. Westminster, Maryland, The Newman
Press, 1951. xv-216 pp. $2.25.
Not striving to translate literally, for that has been well
done by Morris, Ambruzzi, Rickaby, and Longridge in recent
years, Father Puhl's intention was to produce a clear, idiomatic, and readable translation which would render the true
meaning of the original Spanish. He matches "idea with idea,
Spanish idiom with corresponding English idiom, Spanish sentence structure with English sentence structure, and the quaint
forms of the original with the forms common at present." He
has broken up long rambling constructions and made shorter
separate sentences of them. The constantly recurring participial construction, so characteristic of St. Ignatius' Spanish,
has generally been rendered in English by a finite form of the
verb. Thus, at the conclusion of the "Principle and Foundation," solamente deseando y eligiendo becomes, "Our one desire
and choice should be what is more conducive to the end for
which we are created."
Father Puhl avoids the practice of transliterating Spanish
words into their English cognates, for, he claims, this is the
source of many errors, does not faithfully express the thought
of the Spanish, and develops a technical, esoteric terminology
which discourages use of the Exercises. The Spanish annotaciones become in English, "Introductory Observations." To
justify this, Father Puhl says, "What St. Ignatius meant by
annotaciones is clear from examining them. That they are to
serve as some kind of introduction is clearly stated in the title.
Evidently, therefore, they are introductory observations and
that is what we have called them. 'Annotation' has not such a
meaning in current English and apparently never did have."
In like manner the familiar "composition of place" (composicion viendo el lugar) becomes "Mental representation of the
place"; "Election" (eleccion) becomes "Choice of a way of life,"
and Father Puhl devotes an entire page to his justification of
this translation, quoting Nonell's Estudio Sobre el Texto, and
Allison Peer's Studies of the Spanish Mystics to support him.
In a six-page preface, the author sets forth the apologia for
his translation, and in an appendix of thirty-seven pages gives
in each case the reasons for the translation adopted when it
differs from the traditional wording. Father Puhl, who is
professor of ascetical theology and spiritual father at the
�186
BOOK REVIEWS
Pontifical College J osephinum, Worthington, Ohio, reveals himself as a careful and competent Ignatian scholar in his preface
and appendix and as a man who did not lightly decide how to
translate any passage. All will be grateful to him for the
production of a smooth, modern translation faithful to St.
Ignatius' thought. We may be disturbed at times by the
unfamiliar phrases he presents, but this is all to the good if it
sends us back to the literal version and the autograph and
results in closer personal study of the Exercises.
It remains to be said that the convenient marginal numbering of the paragraphs first employed in the Marietti edition
of 1928 is also a feature of this new translation. The use of
this standard numbering system is increasing, and it is convenient for referring to the Exercises, and making cross references. The typography and format of the book are very attractive, but St. Ignatius' golden little book emerges as far from
little under Newman's lavish treatment. The edition is at
least twice the size of the Morris edition. And the beautiful
little 1928 1\Iarietti edition is only one-fifth the size of Newman's present issue, yet it rivals the' American edition in its
excellent paper, binding, and large, crisp, readable type. And
Marietti contains both the Spanish and Latin versions!
GEORGE ZoRN,
S.J.
WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD
Pathfinders of Christ. Edited by C. Desmond Ford, S.J. Burns
Oates, 1948. vii-111_pp. 7s 6d.
Saints As Guides. Edited by C. Desmond Ford, S.J. Burns
Oates, 1949. viii-130 pp. 6s.
Ours who work with adolescents will find these two volumes
worth their weight in gold. Father Ford (English Province) _:
has gathered in each of the volumes, one for Scouts and the
other for Girl Guides, biographies of ten Saints who exemplify
the virtues to which the young should aspire. For the boys
there are Thomas More, Camillus de Lellis, Tarsicius, John
Bosco, Peter Claver, Ignatius of Loyola, Francis of Assisi,
Isaac Jogues, John the Baptist and Paul of Tarsus. The models
for the Girl Guides are our Blessed Mother, Joan of Arc, Teresa
of Avila, Zita, Frances Xavier Cabrini, Elizabeth of Hungary,
Bernadette, Teresa of Lisieux, Clare of Assisi and Mary Magdalen. That eminent Doctor of Hagiography, Father C. C.
Martindale, has written a prologue for each of the volumes.
These prologues, "Looking to Our Lord" and "Into Their Com-
�-
BOOK REVIEWS
187
pany," are excellent essays and should be read by all who are
interested in the lives of Saints as practical means of spiritual
development. When books are labeled as these are for young
people, publishers should clarify the significance of the label.
Certainly in the case of these two books the label "'For Adolescents" should be qualified by a strong sensu aiente. Adults,
lay and religious, will read these lives with pleasure ~nd
spiritual profit.
J. J. N.
GOLD MINE OF REFLFECTIONS
Living the Mass. By F. Desplanques, S.J. Translated by
Sister Maria Constance, Sister of Charity of Halifax.
Westminster, Md., The Newman Press, 1951. 180 pp.
$2.75.
As we all know from sad experience, our appreciation of even
the most sacred and momentous spiritual actions can have its
keen edge dulled by daily repetition. The Mass, unfortunately,
is no exception to this law of human frailty. Hence it is
necessary that at regular intervals we stimulate ourselves to a
fresh realization of the rich spiritual significance hidden in the
words and actions of the Mass. The present work, well translated from the French of Fr. Desplanques (Province of Champagne) and attractively printed, comes the nearest to answering this need of any book we have seen in recent years. It is a
gold mine of richly suggestive reflections on the words and
actions of the Mass, following it step by step in the form of a
continuous meditative commentary. The ingenious typographical arrangement of the text, disposing the key thoughts or words
in distinct sense lines, is in itself an invitation and a help to
meditation.
The dominant themes running through the commentary are
the active union of the people with the priest on the altar, the
social solidarity of all Catholics welded together in the unity
of the Mystical Body by participation in the common action
and the common Food of the Eucharistic Sacrifice, and above
all the continuity of our vital participation in the Mass with
our daily life outside the Mass. Hence the apt subtitle: "The
Ordinary of the Mass and the Ordinary of Life." The added
subtitle of the French edition, "The Mass for Those Who Are
Not Priests," indicates its special appropriateness for our
Scholastics and Brothers. But a few merely verbal adaptations
make it equally valuable for priests.
W.
NORRIS CLARKE,
S.J.
�188
BOOK REVIEWS
DIVINE PAGEANT
His Passion Forever~- By Daniel A. Lord, S.J. Milwaukee,
Bruce Publishing Company, 1951. xi-135 pp. $2.00
Not the least talent of Father Lord (Chicago Province) is his
universally aclmowledged proficiency as a writer and director
of drama. The dramatist's objective is to convey to an audience "the illusion of the first time." In this excellent book
we have such a presentation of the Passion. But it is no illusion. We, the audience, are made to realize how truly we
participate in this divine and continuing pageant <>f Christ's
suffering. Father L<>rd's applications are not vague. Some
readers might find them plain-spoken to the extent of tactlessness. Such readers might remember that the Passion is the
drama of . Our Lord's tactlessness. After his introduction
Father L<>rd presents his long "Cast of Characters" and shows
how each is, so to speak, the prototype of some modern type of
man or woman. There are the cowards and the villians, the
heroes and heroines, the mob and the tragic chorus. The interludes, with two exceptions, are constructed around the last
words of Christ on the cross. ( Tre-ore preachers note for
future reference.) In a book that is consistently interesting
and worth-while the reader will find the interlude "Villainy
Changes the Plot" especially good. Or, perhaps, you will prefer
another. We will agree, I am sure, that it holds the audience
spellbound to the author's prayerful epilogue: "Let me, gracious Hero of Calvary, move steadily through scene after scene
to Your outstretched arms and the welcoming home-coming in
the house of my Father and King."
J. J. N.
PHILOSOPHIES AND RELIGIONS
Religions of the Far East. By George C. Ring, S.J., Milwaukee,
Bruce 1950. $6.00.
Europe may well be the cockpit of the dreaded next World
War. But one of the greatest stakes of this titanic struggle will
be the Far East. To understand what is involved in that stake,
we must grasp the significance of the philosophies and religions
that have molded those peoples for so many centuries or even
millenia. It is precisely here that Father Ring's book takes on
a most timely interest. For he has interwoven both the political
and spiritual histories of these peoples.
Starting with China's Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism
in their historical settings, Father Ring takes us next to
-- •·
�BOOK REVIEWS
189
Japan, where Shintoism, Confucianism and Buddhism vied with
each other at times and blended at others. Perhaps the best
section of the book is devoted to the tortuous intricacies of
Indian philosophies and religions: Vedic, Brahmanic, Vedantic
and Hindu on the one hand and Buddhism and J ainism on the
other. It will be hard to find a clearer exposition of these
systems anywhere. Masterful is the exposition and evaluation
of Bhakti devotion in renascent Indian polytheism. The story of
Islam and its truly remarkable spread in Asia and Africa
brings the book to a close.
We are much indebted to Father Ring for this scholarly,
exceptionally well-written book. Seminaries, universities and
colleges needed just such a text as this. It ought to be a joy
to chaplains of Newman Clubs, as it will offer to students,
subjected to tendentious courses in comparative religion and
philosophy, an excellent counteractant, based on a true interpretation of these various religions and philosophies.
If a student of religions might offer a few suggestions, they
would be the following. The various Indian philosophies could
be given more adequate treatment and the mutual influence of
aboriginal and Aryan religions should be given more prominence,
as Father Koppers, S.V.D., has done it in his recent book: Der
Urmensch und sein Weltbild. Tibetan Lamaism, with its problems of the influence of Christianity, seems to demand consideration in connection with Buddhism. The new data, reported by
Father Cieslik in the N.R. de Science Missionaire VI, 175-192,
256-272, on the instigation of the Japanese persecution of
Christianity in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, will be
of added interest today. Finally, Father Henninger, S.V.D., has
studied and documented in great detail Mohammed's prodigious
borrowings from both Christianity and Judaism. They are reported in the same periodical.
These suggestions should not be construed as criticisms of
an outstanding book.
HUGH J. BIHLER, S.J.
INSUFFICIENTLY KNOWN
Red Letter Days. By Joseph Christie, S.J., and William Lawson,
S.J. Burns Oates, 1950. 154 pp. 3s 6d
John is a World War II veteran. He resumes his studies at
the University where he finds the philosophy of Communism
and is captivated by the specious ideology. In the correspondence between John and his father, a recent convert to Catholicism, Father Christie and Father Lawson have presented a
--
�190
BOOK
~EVIEWS
compendious and competent treatment of the conflict between
C<lmmunism and Catholicity. In this instance the choice of the
epistolary form is a happy one. The reader sees with startling
lucidity the cogency with \vhich Communism marshals its arguments and the thoughtful reader realizes that such arguments
are not to be refuted by a few stock aphorisms. Unfortunately
the book has not received sufficient publicity in this country.
It should be well known to any one wise enough to be concerned
about the impact of Communistic ideas on intelligent men and
women, Catholics included. We want more pens just like the
pen of harried "dear old dad."
J. J. N.
JESUITS IN THE SOUTHWEST
Jesuit Beginnings in New Mexico, 1867-1882. By Sr. l'f!. Lilliana
Owens, S.I..~., Revista Catolica Press, 1950, 176pp.
This eminently readable book should serve as an example
for other studies in modern Jesuit history. The various lacunae
in the history of the Assistancy need to be filled in, and the
New Orleans Province has made an excellent start in this account of the Jesuits in the Southwest. The book opens with an
essay that gives the complete details of the arrival of the
Neapolitan exiles in Santa Fe, their success in retreats, missions and parish work, and their efforts to found colleges in Las
Vegas and Morrison. Each detail is meticulously noted, various
published secondary sources are corrected, and the research
in the archives at St. Louis and Denver and the various diocesan
and parish diaries and registers- is made available. Two long
documents make up the latter half of the book. One is an
interesting account of the nine hundred mile trek of the Jesuits
from Leavenworth to Santa Fe, and the survival of two Indian
attacks. The other is a seventy page diary of the Mission from
1867 to 1875, giving many details of parish work in the cattle
country.
Despite the stiff, formal prose of Sr. M. Lilliana, a considerable amount of the color of the post-bellum Southwest filters
into the narrative. There are many human details about
Archbishop John Lamy, who was the first Bishop of Santa Fe
and the prototype of Willa Cather's famous Archbishop. There
is the story of Donato Gasparri, S.J., who had himself appointed deputy sheriff just to order a divorced man who wanted
to marry a Catholic to get out of Santa Fe or go to jail.
There is an account of the efforts against cholera epidemics
_
...
;
i
�BOOK REVIEWS
191 -
when the priests and sisters proved their charity in many ways.
This year is the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Revista
Catolica Press and the story of its early days is included in
the narrative. Sr. M. Lilliana is a member of the Congregation
of the Sisters of Loretto, whose early history is closely linked
to the activities of the Society of Jesus in the Southwest.
This is the first monograph in a series entitled "Jesuit
Studies-Southwest." There is a moving tribute to ninety-three
years of Jesuit endeavor in New Mexico in a foreword by
Archbishop Byrne of Santa Fe, and Dr. Carlos Castaneda, the
distinguished Latin American historian, has written a florid
introduction describing the missionary efforts of the early
Spaniards who first brought the faith to the "Land of the
Pueblos."
ALBERT J. LooMIE, S.J.
AN El\IBLEl\1 BOOK
Partheneia Sacra. By H. A. Hand and Flower Press, Simnells,
Aldington, Ashford, Kent, England, 1951. 63s.
Father Henry Hawkins, S.J., alias Brooke, was occupied with
a rather serious game of hide-and-seek with pursuivants for
some twenty-five years before his death at the Tertianship in
Ghent on August 18, 1646. His preoccupations did not debar
him from the apostolate of the pen, and in 1632 his '''Partheneia
Sacra" was published in Rouen under the pseudonym "H. A.".
There is slight doubt on the subject of his authorship. The
book itself merits our consideration for three reasons. It is a
better than average book of devotion to the Blessed Virgin. It
certainly deserves a significant place in the history of ascetical
literature in the English language. Finally, it is a splendid
example of that form of literary composition known as an
"'Emblem Book." The "Emblem Books," which had a great
popularity in the seventeenth century, were slide-lectures in
book form. They were didactic in character and the text was
closely linked with the numerous illustrations. The Jesuits
made full use of this device and thus established a title to
primacy in the field of visual education three hundred years
ago. The title page gives a conspectus of the contents: "Partheneia Sacra or The Mysteriovs and Deliciovs Garden of the
Sacred Parthenes; symbolically set forth and enriched with
piovs devises and emblemes for the entertainment of devovt
sovles; Contrived al to the honovr of the Incomparable Virgin
Marie Mother of God; for the pleafure and devotion efpecially
of the Parthenian Sodalitie of her Immaculate Conception."
J. J. N.
�192
BOOK REVIEWS
Jesus Christ: His Life, His Teaching, and His Work. By Ferdinand Prat, S.J.
Translated From The Sixteenth French
Edition. By John J. Heenan, S.J., 2 Vols. The Bruce
Publishing Company, Milwaukee. Pp. xiv-560; xii-558.
In a very true sense, it is impossible to write the complete
and perfect life of Christ. The Gospels do not supply the material for a biography, such as a modern historian might write
of Napoleon or Lincoln, and besides, who can ever hope to
fathom the "unsearchable riches" which lie hidden in the earthly
life of the God-Man? Fr. Prat did not attempt the impossible,
but, like all the Christographers who preceded him, he was
content to emphasize a particular point of view.
Since he was an excellent theologian and an expert exegete,
and moreover thoroughly acquainted with the geography and
archaeology of Palestine, it is not surprising to find him telling
us that his purpose was "'to place the life of Christ in its historical and social milieu, to situate the events in time and space,
to elucidate briefly the ideas and expressions, which seem obscure and really are so for us, because they reflect the customs
and institutions of another age, or bear. the impress of a foreign
and strange language, to compare the narratives of the four
Gospels so as to profit by the teaching''which each one presents
to us without forcing the narrative of one into another."
The work then is on the side of scholarship rather than of
devotion. Fr. Prat omits all the practical reflections and moral
considerations which are found in the more meditative lives of
Christ. But the scholarship is never of the dry as dust variety.
As we read, we cannot help saying with Cleophas and his friend:
"Was not our heart aglow as He spoke to us?"
Fr. Prat writes for readers who have some knowledge of the
Gospels and wish to acquire more. In the main text we are
given the fascinating picture of Christ, Our Lord, His joys
and sorrows, His conflicts and His triumphs, even His failures.
Learned footnotes support and explain the interpretation
which has been adopted, while the special notes at the end of
each volume discuss the deeper and more controversial problems ..of archaeology, chronology and dogma.
With a scholar's passion for perfection, Fr. Prat always
refused requests for permission to translate his work. After
his death in 1938 Fr. Cales, S.J., added some corrections which
had been suggested by various reviewers. It is this edition
which Fr. Heenan has translated into a smooth, idiomatic
English which is a delight to read.
It is a pleasure to recommend this book very highly to all of
Ours. It will prove especially useful to religion classes and
those giving retreats.
E. D.
SANDERS, S.J.
�THE
WOODSTOCK
LETTERS
VOL. LXXX, No.3
JULY, 1951
CONTENTS FOR JULY, 1951
ADDRESSES OF FATHER GENERAL TO THE
CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
September 27, 1950 --------------------------------------------------------------- 195
September 30, 1950 -------------------------------------------------------------- 207
HISTORICAL NOTE
The New Boston College High School ---------------------------- 227
OBlTUARY
Bishop Thomas A. Emmet ----------------------------------------------- 235
Father Etienne Dufresne --------------------------------------------------- 245
Father Aloysius F. Frumveller ---------------------------------------- 247
Father Charles J. Mullaly -------------------------------------------------- 253
Father William Smith -------------------------------------------------------- 263
Brother Andrew Hartmann ----------------------------------------------- 265
BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS
Jesuits Go East ------------------------------------------------------------------- 267
Jesuit and Savage in New France ------------------------------------ 268
The Sacred Heart: Yesterday and Today ----------------------- 270
Better A Day ----------------------------------------------------------------- 271
Baroque Moment -------------------------------------------------------------------- 272
Father Steuart ________________ -------------------------------------------------- 273
Jesus In His Own Words ---------------------------------------------------- 274
The Nazarene ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 274
Living Your Faith -------------------------------------------------------------- 275
For Goodness Sake ---------------------------------------------------------------- 276
�BOOKS OF INTEREST TO OURS (Continued)
Living With God --------------------------The Prayer of Faith -------------------------------------------The Risen Dead --------------------------------The Vital Christian ----------------------------------------------------Introduction to Paul Claude! --------------------------The Case of Therese Neumann -------------------------------------Partheneia Sacra -------------------------------------------Roman Catholicism ------------------------------------------------The Family of God -------------------------------------------------
277
277
278
279
279
280
281
282
283
CONTRIBUTORS
Father Francis J. Krim is a member of the Faculty of Boston
College High School.
Father John H. Collins of Bobola House, Boston, is Mission
Procurator of the New England Province and Editor of
Al Baghdadi.
Father James Daly, the well-known essayist, is Spiritual Father
at the University of Detroit.
Mr. Leo P. Monahan (Maryland Province) is a theologian at
Weston College.
1\lr. Gerard G. Steckler (Oregon Province) is a philosopher at
Mt. St. Michael, Spokane.
-· .
:
For Jesuit Use Only
Published four times a year, in February, May, July and November.
Entered as second-class matter December 1, 1~42, at the post office at Woodstock,
Maryland, under the Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription: Three Dollars Yearly
WOODSTOCK COLLEGE PRESS
WOODSTOCK, MARYLAND
�ADDRESS OF
VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL TO THE
CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS,
SEPTEMBER 27, 1950.
Reverend Fathers in Christ: During the past four
years our Society has enjoyed such proofs of the confidence and benevolence of the Vicar of Christ our
Lord, our highest superior on earth, that we ought
to blush with embarrassment. And such favors we
are utterly unable to reciprocate, for in our wholehearted service of the Church and of the Roman Pontiff-the end for which our holy Founder instituted the
Society-we fail in too many points. This predilection
of our common Father should, therefore, urge us on to
an even greater manifestation of our docility and religious observance. I can confidently say that however
great our proofs of affection to the Supreme Pontiff
may appear, they can scarcely-indeed they cannot at
all-equal his proofs of affection to us.
1. The Society and its works enjoy the esteem and
favor of by far the greater part of the Episcopate. If
from one source or another less pleasant reports come
in, the cause is not infrequently-and I say it
advisedly-some fault or mistake of one of Ours;
for it may happen that some Jesuit, impelled by zeal
for an immediate good or by love of his order, will
ignore the need of co-ordinating his efforts with those
of the secular clergy or of other religious orders laboring in the vineyard of the Lord. It is not for us (as I
explained in my letter On Our Ministries 1 ) to establish this co-ordination, but for the Hierarchy of the
Church, whose servants we are. Difficulties very seldom arise when we conduct ourselves with due humility and obedience.
Nor should we be too much disturbed about that
emulation between the secular clergy and religiousan emulation often quite healthy in itself-which crops
up so frequently in the history of the Church. Each
branch works for its greater perfection in every way;
�196
ADDRESS OF t'ATHER GENERAL
each is spurred on by the other's example; each does
battle for the same Lord under the banner of the same
Church. And if at times it happens that some out of
human fallibility should appear to belittle the religious
state-a state that has received more than enough
approval from the ordinary and perpetual magisterium
of the Church-we should with all due modesty and
fairness explain the real attitude of the Church, but
in a way that is consonant with charity.
2. The Curia of the Society misses very much two
outstanding members who were prematurely called
home to God: Reverend Father John Hannon in the
performance of his duties as English Assistant, and
Reverend Father Carl Brust, formerly Assistant for
Germany, but at the time of his death the Rector of the
German College here in Rome. The exemplary charity
of these two men toward the Qliurch and toward the
Society has been and still is an inspiration and source
of strength to us all.
3. In proportion as the Society has grown, so too
has the work of the Curia. Hence it is that we have
been forced to call in new aids to bolster the present
staff. In particular, to prevent Father General himself from being overburdened with work-and thereby
doing harm to the whole Society-it seemed preferable
to transfer the direction of all Institutes in Rome which
were immediately dependent upon him to a delegate,
who, in the capacity of a provincial, will have immediate control over them. This delegate will, however,
consult the General about their direction at frequent_:.·
intervals.
There has been a steady increase in numbers in far
the majority of provinces. There are regions-for example, France and Italy-where vocations are wanting.
But even in those places we can hope to remedy the
situation by slow and unremitting spiritual efforts, by
faithful adherence to our Institute, and, most of all,
by means of the Spiritual Exercises ,and Sodalities. So
it is that the Society, which in 1947 numbered 28,839
members, has increased to 30,579 in 1950.
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
197
4. By a more convenient division of the territory of
Northern Spain, four provinces have been set up instead of the former three. All were established as
full-fledged provinces from the beginning and in all
of them the number of members is growing and the
scope of their ministries is being extended. Three new
independent vice-provinces have been erected: the
Swiss, Maltese, and Japanese. The Tchad Mission in
Africa, which was taken in charge by the Province of
Lyons during the last General Congregation, was elevated to the status of an apostolic prefecture soon
afterwards. The new mission of J amshedpur in India,
carved out of territory that formerly belonged to the
Calcutta and Ranchi Missions, has been entrusted to
the Maryland Province. The Yanchow Mission in
China; which the California Province has cared for as
a mission dependent upon the Shanghai Mission, has
been set up autonomously and elevated to the rank of
an apostolic prefecture. In the Shanghai Mission of
China and the Poona Mission of India the secular
clergy have for the most part taken charge. This
has left the Fathers of the Provinces of France and
of Lower Germany and Switzerland free to teach in
institutes in addition to continuing their labors in the
mission stations still remaining to them. The new
Apostolic Prefecture of Haichow-still under the care
of the Province of France-has been separated from
the former Diocese of Shanghai. The Ahmedabad Mission of India has been erected as a diocese under the
care of the Province of Eastern Castile. The Caroline
Islands, formerly a mission of the Andalusian Province, were transferred, first to the care of all the
provinces of the American Assistancy, and then to
that of New York alone. Other changes in mission
administration include these: Upper Canada has undertaken the Calcutta Mission; Sicily has adopted the
Mission of Fianarantsoa after releasing the Greek Mission to the Vice-Province of the Near East; Ireland
has taken over the mission of Lusaki; and, quite re-
-
�198
ADDRESS OF'"FATHER GENERAL
cently, the Vice-Province of Australia has bound itself
to assist the Ranchi Mission in India.
5. Meanwhile the Vice-Provinces of Lithuania,
Rumania, and Slovakia together with the Provinces of
Bohemia and Hungary are suffering persecution. Almost all of our houses have been confiscated; the members of the various provinces have been either put in
prison or sent off to concentration camps. Our apostolic work has been practically suspended. The future
holds little hope either. In both provinces of Poland
and in the Vice-Province of Croatia many of the
superiors and subjects have been cast into prison.
Those who have not been so treated are meeting with
greater and greater hindrance to their ministeries
from day to day.
In China, moreover, Communists occupy all our missions except those in the cities of Hong Kong and
Macao; and though Ours do not work without fruit,
they work under disadvantages. Because of the peculiar conditions in China, the provincial control over
the missions there was suspended and the missions
were all united under the authority of a single Visitor
-though they remain more or less distinct under their
respective religious superiors. This system of administration was begun during the civil war. It has proved
practical, and, since the .Communist conquest of the
country, even necessary.
The strength of soul and the complete surrender of
personal conveniences and even of life itself by those
who in Europe and Asia are cut off by the Iron Curtain~· .·
are not only a great consolation to us but a source of
edification as well. These men not only accept their
lot, they embrace it happily and eagerly. The plans of
the divine ,goodness are yet unknown, of course, but
we can hope that this persecution is a pledge of future
success and triumph just as was recently the case in
Mexico and Spain. Thus the enemies of the Church
continue to seek to destroy the vineyard of the Lord,
but they succeed only in "pruning the vine that it may
bear more fruit." 2
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
199
6. The confidence of the Episcopacy of which I
spoke earlier is evidenced toward the Society by the
fact that more than fifty colleges, seminaries, and universities in various parts of the world have been offered to us. Though we have accepted only a few of
these, we have accepted as many as our resources will
allow; for example, the colleges in Hamburg in Germany, Yokosuka in J1apan, Delft in Holland, Pamplona
in Spain, Lisbon in Portugal, Arequipa in Peru, Adelaide in Australia, Davao in the Philippine Islands,
Dublin in Eire, and two for the education of natives
in the Belgian Congo. We have accepted the care of
regional seminaries in Christchurch in New Zealand,
Tokyo in Japan, in Puerto Rico, and in Mexico, and a
university for higher studies in Kisantu in the Belgian
Congo. In all these institutions we have already begun our work. We shall soon begin colleges in Ruanda
in Central Africa and in Morocco. At the same time,
in an effort to expand more necessary activities, we
have been forced to close colleges at Brussels and Liege
in Belgium, and in France at Lyons, Villefranchesur-Saone, Tours, Brest, Boulogne, and St. Affrique.
It certainly seems prefemble to suspend or close down
other less useful houses in still other places.
If one weighs the matter well, he must certainly
recognize that the Society is needlessly involved in
works which, though not absolutely unnecessary, are
at least less urgent-and that in localities where the
secular 1and regular clergy are numerous. At the same
time there are other regions where Catholics and infidels alike are deprived of spiritual assistance. I am
thinking of the vast territories of Latin America
where, for no other reason than a shortage of priests,
the people are an easy prey to Protestants and Communists, both of whom are making great progress and
will before long, if they continue as they are doing at
present, carry off a large segment of the Catholic
world. I would like you, therefore, to plead with your
provincials that they consider, in addition to the
needs of their own provinces, the conditions that exist
�200
ADDRESS
OF~FATHER
GENERAL
elsewhere, and that they put off what I would call the
spirit of provincialism. Unless we moderate this attachment to our own concerns, it will by its very nature
do damage to souls and to the Church. Provincials
must adopt a "dual outlook" 3 and consider "the common good of the Society (or rather of the Church)
and promote it generously, even at cost to their own
provinces." 4
Further proofs of the external progress of the Society are the new eccles1astical institutes that have
been established. Houses of philosophy have been
staffed at Braga in Portugal, Tullamore in Eire, and
Louvain in Belgium, and Tokyo in Japan. A theological curriculum has been organized at Eegenhoven near
Louvain in Belgium, and one for philosophy and theology together at Sao Leopoldo in Brazil. The philosophical faculty at Montreal in· Canada has received
power to grant the ecclesiastical doctorate. Last of
all, I must mention the recognition which has been
given to the program of studies together with the
ecclesiastical courses of the University of Bogota in
Colombia.
7. We fondly hope that the congresses of the Apostleship of Prayer and of the Marian Congregations
being held in Rome will adV!ance the apostolic efforts of
the Society. The apostolic constitution Bis Saeculari
certainly is calculated to~ advance them even beyond
all expectation. I know of no more important document in the history of those same congregations.
The present condition of world affairs demands that_:.·
matters affecting the whole Society and requiring correction and adjustment take priority in the consideration of the General over the many routine details, however much these latter may conduce to the praise and
service of God our Lord. Works suspended on account of the war have been resumed almost everywhere-and this in spite of the fact that in many places
almost no government assistance was received. It has
been the charity of the Society ·and of the faithfuland especially the diligence and stubborn courage of
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
201
our Fathers and Brothers in Germany, France, Belgium, Holland, and Poland-that has restored all that
was ruined by the war. Rather, I should say their
diligence and courage have bettered conditions. As I
mentioned at the time of the l1ast General Congregation, I cannot refrain from recalling now the untiring
charity of our American provinces after the war. May
this be a satisfaction to them: veritable wonders have
been accomplished by means of the subsidies they sent,
because the diligent and competent planning of Ours
have kept expenses for rebuilding our houses far below
the usual costs of such work.
We are particularly happy, however, to see that our
spiritual and apostolic ministries in many localities
are on the increase and are flourishing with renewed
vigor. The Spiritual Exercises of our holy Father
Saint Ignatius are being given with great success in
various places. For example, in the Spanish Assistancy closed lay retreats of from five to eight days are
being made by fervent exercitants in an atmosphere
of perfect silence. In many sections Ours are showing
renewed ardor in staffing colleges: the American Assistancy has taken the lead through its diligence in
preparing skilled teachers in the various branches of
learning, and by the co-ordination of efforts by means
of general prefects of studies in each province and in
the Assistancy as a whole. The French Assistancy is
hard at work renewing the spirit of the Ratio in undergraduate fields according to the best principles of modern pedagogy. The English Province has modified the
Ratio for juniorate studies in an effort to give its members a more professional training for teaching classical
subjects. In many localities, for example, in the
United States, Cuba, the Philippine Islands, Italy, and
even-in the near future-in India, Ours have founded
institutes for studying social conditions and for disseminating Catholic social doctrine. In France, Belgium, and Holland VJarious attempts-adapted in each
case to local conditions-have been made to win back
workers who have fallen away from the Church. From
-
�202
ADDRESS
OF~FATHER
GENERAL
the results of these experiments we shall be able to discover what methods will best serve in other countries.
The Spanish Assistancy deserves mention for founding
many trade-schools for the young. These schools have
been attached to some already existing college or residence. And if we keep in mind the vow by which we
oblige ourselves to teach Catholic doctrine to the young,
we cannot give too much praise to the Sodalists of
Mexico for their zeal. In imitation of their brothers
in Spain they have allowed no labor or sacrifice to prevent them from teaching Christian doctrine with zeal
to tens of thousands of children from the poorest of
homes. They have thus effectively counteracted ignorance of religion, which might have resulted from
the shortage of priests. The provinces of Belgium and
Holland have similarly exerted themselves in perfecting methods of catechetiool teaching.
8. I must be content with merely mentioning some
works-even some of great importance. But the hidden scholarship of our historians among the Bollandists, in the Gregorian University and its affiliated
Biblical and Oriental Institutes, in the Vtatican Observatory, and in other universities and schools wins glory
for God and helps to further the cause of the Church.
The constant devotion of our Fathers and Brothers in
the colleges, residences, parishes, and foreign missions,
which is perhaps known ori1y to God, is a. certain pledge
of divine favor and a proof of the thriving spirit of the
Society.
By far the greater part of the Society's works is_:.
pursued in seclusion and escapes the eyes of men. It is ·
ever so in human affairs. Extraordinary events which
devi,ate from the regular way are noted and discussed;
but the ordinary, the constant, the courageous are
buried in oblivion.
This age-old law holds not only for events in the outside world, but much more so in the hidden places of
the heart. Therefore it will be well to mention briefly
something of our internal spirit. First of all, most of
our members-as is proved in various ways-are not
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
203
just fiaithful to the substance of our religious life; they
are afire with zeal for perfection. But in such cases
we must take into account grace and the call of Godtwo factors that are not equal in the case of all individuals. Of course, we are all called to the faithful
observance of our Institute and to indefinite progress
in the practice of charity. However, just as all are
not endowed with equal gifts of nature, so individuals
are not all chosen to strive for the same form and
degree of holiness. We can afford to be indulgent,
therefore, in judging the faults and external defects
of men who ~are otherwise quite sincere and welldisposed.
9. As far as we may judge from the external symptoms of which I spoke, the spiritual condition of the
Society may be pronounced healthy. That essential
of all charity-the whole-hearted discharge of our duty
-is certainly fostered. In many cases it is fostered
most generously. Many of Ours burn with zeal, forgetful of personal comfort and health. When the superior clearly expresses a wish or asks that something
be done-! do not say "commands," for that is rare
among us-there are scarcely any who would withhold
their genuine obedience. Rather, Ours commonly and
with ease arrive at such perfect obedience of the will
that they firmly strive with all the powers of mind
and heart to bring to a happy outcome whatever the
Superior has entrusted to them. Ours do not so easily
achieve, however, that higher and more difficult perfection of obedience by which, with humble abnegation
of their own judgment, they refrain from criticizing
the Superior and even with heart and lips sustain and
defend him. As to the deep humility which is so pleasing to God and which has been so highly praised by our
holy Father Saint Ignatius, I would hesitate to say
that we all show the same proofs of it that we do of
zeal and endurance in work.
A want of that degree of humility seems to be the
characteristic failing of this age. Find me a youth or
adolescent who does not insist on being able to pass
�204
ADDRESS OF"'F'ATHER GENERAL
judgment in any and every case-or who does not
insist that he knows everything. How rarely do we
hear men reply: "I would rather not say; because I do
not know all the facts of the case or because I have not
had enough experience in the matter." Instead, how
often do we not in speech or in writing pass judgment
on things we know very little about. It pains me when
I hear Ours thoughtlessly and with a dangerous absence of restraint call into question the acts and teachings of the magisterium of the Church and even of
the Holy See itself. I wonder whether there is throughout the Society the vigorous spirit of "thinking with
the Church,'' which the rules of our holy F~ther Saint
Ignatius stress and which sound theological doctrine
demands.
The holy and fruitful freedom of enquiry into the
deepest treasures of revelation must be coupled with
such prudence that in the inter-Val of waiting for pronouncements by the Church, the spouse of Christ and
authentic interpreter of Holy Scripture, we strive to
preserve the deposit of faith safe from all risk of error.
Thus, to illustrate by a comparison, if in the realm of
chastity a little imprudence is already a violation of
the virtue, so if we treat matters of faith without full
prudence-! would not say recklessly-we suffer a blot
on our conscience.
Let all of Ours, young and old alike, be truly humble.
It opens the w.ay to maintenance of faith in its purity.
It leads as well to readiness and peace of soul. It
leads, too, to a blessing that is wanting at present and _:.
one of which all who are entrusted with the details of
our common life and of our apostolic work complain in
every part of the world-perfect co-operation among
ourselves under our superiors. "For nothing is difficult unto the humble; and nothing hard unto the
meek." 5
10. What I said to the whole Society in my first
letter, On Fostering the Interior Life, will bear repetition, if I may judge from the communications of provincials and rectors. It happens far too easily, through
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
-
205
the fault either of individuals or of superiors, that our
Fathers and-€specially where there are few-our
Brothers are burdened with such a load that the mind
and body of man cannot support it. As a result, Ours
have no time for prayer-the soul of all apostolic endeavor now as in the past. And if to this infringement
upon time for prayer we add the fact that many have
lost heart and grown inconstant and remiss in prayer
because of the difficulties intrinsic to it, I for one cannot feel confident about the future spiritual progress
of the Society. The spirit of self-denial will gradually
dissipate itself, as will the spirit of zeal, and the virtue
of chastity. will be less impregnable. Such will be the
results, unless all superiors recall that they must make
an account to God of the souls of their subjects and
consequently, "in season and out of season," 6 with
fatherly but unwearied care urge their subjects on to
earnest and unflagiging efforts at prayer-or bring
them back to prayer if they have lapsed. Most especially solicitous should the superiors be for those who
are a few years out of tertianship and have reached
the full maturity of their natural powers; for the years
from forty to fifty are the most dangerous.
We have, to be sure, our share of the defects and
failings of this age. It would be impossible to avoid
them altogether. Some of Ours-and they are more
numerous now than ever before-shy away from the
silence, the recollection, the constant, hidden, and unvaried routine of work, and from the austerity, external mortification, regularity, and discipline of religious
life. Small wonder it is that in this troubled world
where men are constantly on the look-out to enjoy
life's pleasures and conveniences and constantly hunger for the unusual or sensational that nerves give
way, and that will-power weakens, and minds lose their
calm self-possession. Masters of novices, spiritual
fathers, tertian instructors, and, most of all, superiors,
should be careful not to relax the Institute and discipline of the Society because some find it too hard and
disagreeable. Let us for a while-as long as necessary
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ADDRESS OF "FATHER GENERAL
-admit fewer to probation and vows. Let us advise
a greater number to leave the Society even after their
first vows, if we judge them unsuited to our life. But
let our Society remain such as our Founder and the
Church herself desire it to be: a company of such,
namely, as sincerely strive to be "men crucified to the
world and to whom the world is crucified." 7
Whoever examines the Society inside and out will
surely thank God from the bottom of his heart that,
though constantly engaged-together with the rest of
the Church Militant-in conflict against persecution
from without and against the snares and delusions
from within, the Society still manages by the help of
God's grace to give a ,good account of itself in His
service. Relying on prayer and earnest labor, we hope
that the Society will continue to increase not just in
numbers but most particularly in merit in the sight of
the infinitely wise God.
NOTES
tActa Romana, XI: 309.
2John 15:2.
Rules of the Local Superior. No. 18.
Rules of the Provincial. No. 81.
~saint Leo, as quoted in the Epistle on Obedience, No. 15.
3
4
Gil Tim. 4:2.
TSum and Scope of Our Constitutions.
The Society and the Missions
More than five thousand Jesuits are working in the thirtyeight foreign missions which are entrusted to the Society exclusively and in the twelve others which are shared with mem- __•.
hers of other orders and congregations. These missions are scattered over the entire earth from India to China, from
America to Japan, from Africa to Alaska, from Oceania to
Madagascar. They contain some 200,000,000 peoples, one
eighth of the population of the world.
Although some eighty religious institutes have members engaged in foreign mission work, twelve per cent of the total
mission personnel belongs to the Society. Twenty-three per
cent of the Catholic publications and eighty per cent of the
Catholic universities in mission lands are under the direction
of the Society.
-Compagnie, September-October 1950
�ADDRESS OF
VERY REVEREND FATHER GENERAL TO THE
CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS,
SEPTEMBER 30, 1950
Reverend Fathers in Christ: During my former
talk with you I dealt in some detail with the present
condition of the Society. Now, in this present talk
I am required by the Formula for the Congregation
of Procurators to recommend to you what would seem
to promote the common good of the Society.1
Different times have different difficulties and dangers. The Society like other Orders-and like the
Church herself-has had her shortcomings even as she
has them today. And just as individuals must contantly reform their lives and to that end must use
examination of conscience, confession, recollection, and
the Spiritual Exercises, so our Society as a whole, if it
is not to deteriorate and lose its useful function in the
Church, stands in real need of sincere examination,
humble confession of its :f:aults, and a firm purpose
of emending whatever may have gone amiss in the passage of time by reason of human frailty.
Is the spirit of our times worse than it has been in
the past and are morals more corrupt? It is not my
purpose to settle this question-nor would it be useful.
What we think of the present in comparison with the
past is of small importance; what is of much more
importance is that we adopt what is good in the age
while ,avoiding or checking the evil.
Among the matters which ought to be improved, I
shall point out a few. Some of the more urgent problems only, not all. In matters of reform, the more we
recommend, the less we amend. I shall treat first of
our religious spirit; next, of the formation of Ours;
finally, of our apostolic labor.
It seems to me that our religious spirit suffers-or
unless we are watchful will suffer-in three ways:
from an over-eagerness especially among our young
men to avoid silence and solitude with God; from a
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ADDRESS OF FATHER GENERAL
lessened esteem among the members of some sections
for religious observance; a wide-spread lack of love for
poverty, humility, and the cross of our Lord, which
Saint Ignatius praised so highly as the third degree of
humility.
1. This flight from silence and the recollection of
study, from reflection and prayer in retirement with
God is a common obsession of our time. For reasons
that you all know well-as I remarked in our previous
conference-many have lost their stamina. The training of boys and adolescents has grown indulgent.
Those who have been habituated to worldly pleasures
in every shape and form learn self-control only with
difficulty. We often notice the absence of personality
-that strength of character which prevents a man
from being led and enables him rather to set his and
other men's steps in the direct path to God. In my
letter On the Interior Life I treated this matter at
length. 2 Many in the scholasticates-and even in the
novitiates-tell me that our young men are filled with
the most generous and sincere desires to labor fruitfully for God. Yet it is only with difficulty that they
submit to a life that calls for silence and solitude.
Superiors must take care that our novices be firmly
grounded in them and that they learn to live so united
with God that in after years they may reach that difficult pitch of perfection which consists in finding God
in all the circumstances of life. Do not let them suppose that from the very start they can without trouble
or strenuous effort suddenly become "contemplatives in
action." Rather, they must devote themselves long
and humbly to the purgative way, which is and will
continue to be the beginning of all sanctity.
And no matter how long it has been since we finished
the probations of the Society, we all must bear in mind
that we literally remain on probation in God's sight as
long as we live. We are subject willy-nilly to that
universal law: the less frequent and enduring our
recollection, the less successful will be our teaching;
the less familiar we are with God, the less fruitful the
-·
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
209
outpouring of His grace upon our apostolic labors.
The life of man is short; and, what is more, the life
of a priest is serious. We must give some time to
necessary recreation, of course, for we are men and
not angels. But if in addition to this time we spend an
appreciable part of our day in idle reading, in frequent
and prolonged visiting, in attendance at worldly amusements, how, I ask, dare we stand for judgment by a
Saviour, who sees so many of His flock neglectedsimply because no one will tend them. Superiors
should help their subjects-even the older ones-by
their counsel and exhortation to grow in their love of
silence and to cling to it. If the provincial needs men
for his province, he should encourage his subjects to
a better appreciation of a life hidden in God. As soon
as he does, he will find one man of this caliber worth
any two others.
2. In my letter On the Interior Life, which I mentioned just a moment ago, I treated at some length the
lowered esteem for and slackened interest in religious
observance; so there is no reason why I should rehearse it all here. Certain it is that we have not been
perfect in the past, nor shall we ever be. We all make
mistakes, and we shall continue to do so. It is one
thing to make mistakes through human weakness, to
recognize the mistakes, and to set about remedying
them; but it is something else to try to rationalize
them by arguing that regular observance is out of
step with the times and not what our holy Founder
intended.
It must be clear to all that in the context of the
religious life we do not mean by regular observance
any merely external fidelity or, as the saying goes,
an empty formalism. Nor do we imply a kind of stoic
rigor that resembles the legalism of the Pharisees.
Nor, most certainly, do we sanction the servitude of
fear. Any such observance would hurt the religious
spirit rather than help it. It would dry up the heart
instead of expanding it. It would never unite man to
God. The yoke of the Lord is sweet, and His burden
�210
ADDRESS OF FATHER GENERAL
light. It is light and sweet because taken up out of
love. Does not our holy Father Saint Ignatius counsel
us in the opening of the Constitutions that the internal
rule of charity ought to motivate our lives? Our observance ought to be animated by a whole-souled intention of pleasing God as His sons. If we have such an
intention, we shall make \Yonderful strides toward
our goal of charity.
For what else is our observance than a yoke of
humility and penance, which by means of the vows of
religion we have taken upon ourselves through love of
God and our nei,ghbor? Do the words of our Lord:
"Unless you become like little children, you will not
enter into the kingdom of heaven," 3 not apply to our
times? On the contrary, does the materialism and
pride of our time not call for an undiminished and
unadulterated practice of the counsels of the Gospel?
Our obedience, therefore, {~r by no means to be
changed-as some would have it-into a mere fraternal
co-operation with the superior, who may either win his
subjects over to his views by persuasion, or may be
persuaded to follow the views of his subjects. The
superior, to be sure, should command with circumspection and only after weighing all particulars; and his
commands should be given in a fatherly and modest
way. But the superior should still be the one to command. The subject, however, is the one to obey. And
if it is necessary, he should do so with complete surrender of his own judgment. He should obey, therefore, simply because the superior commands, and be-~ _
cause what he commands is commanded in the name
and by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Nor should anyone argue for charity as against
obedience. As if any charity could be worthy of the
name which is not conformed to the will of God. No
one can love his neighbor as he should who does not
love God with his whole heart. And no one loves God
with his whole heart unless he complies with God's
will down to the smallest expression of His good
pleasure.
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
211
And if anyone tries to be quit of religious observance
by appealing to the true spirit of our holy Father Saint
Ignatius and by saying that our Founder wished his
sons to be spiritual and led by the Holy Ghost, not
hampered by insignificant rules, I would ask him to put
aside all his pre-conceived notions and read the documents of history: the letters of our blessed Father,
the instructions which he wrote, the customs approved
by him, as well as the instructions of Father Jerome
Nadal, which he left in all the houses when he was
promulgating the Constitutions and writing his commentary on them-a commentary that gives us such a
faithful image of the spirit of our Founder. There
he will see, unless I be mistaken, that Saint Ignatius
imposed an observance of the rules that required complete fidelity. And he did it more inflexibly than any
of the generals who succeeded him. Let us appeal to
the spirit of Saint Ignatius, if we will, but only to
stress what he himself left us in writing: "Let us all
constantly labor that no point of perfection, which by
God's grace we can attain in the perfect observance of
all the constitutions, and in the fulfillment of the particular spirit of our Institute be omitted by us." •
We all, to be sure, find the inflexible regularity of
the religious life a real penance. Not only throughout
the day but throughout our whole lives it deprives
us of our liberty and subjects us to the will of another.
But is this not a part of that "continual mortification"
which is so salutary and which our holy Father Saint
Ignatius called a sure approach to the heights of perfection? More efficacious than any mortification of the
body is the mortification that weakens and crushes our
self-will. Once our egoism and pride have been curbed,
divine grace makes an easier entrance into our souls
and prevails over anything that might be inflexible
there. 5
3. How can this love of the cross and of penance, at
once so opposed to the spirit of the world and so close
to the spirit of Saint Ignatius, be better awakened in
our hearts than by constant prayer and contemplation
�212
ADDRESS OF FATHER GENERAL
of Christ in His labors and sufferings? True enough,
"Jesus has many who love His heavenly kingdom, but
few who bear His cross." 6 But today, even as in the
past, the redemption of the world from sin will be
accomplished only by the cross. It is our duty "to fill
up in our flesh what is lacking of the sufferings of
Christ for His body, which is the Church." 7
Among the many things that keep us from leading
genuinely penitential lives are the conveniences which
the modern way of life has introduced. It is hard to
distinguish which of them we should use in our effort
to serve God more efficiently and which we ought to
pass up. Some help very much for efficiency; for example, an automobile can enable one missionary in
Central Africa to do the work of several. But there
are other conveniences which, though pleasant, are
simply superfluous and we can help souls more by doing without them than by using them.
And if we are in doubt whether to use some convenience or not, we ought to choose the path of poverty
and austerity; choosing "poverty with Christ poor
rather than riches, contempt with Christ contemned
rather than honors"; and we ought to do it "in order
to imitate and be more actually like Christ our Lord." s
This is the perfection of charity!
I hope soon, God willing, to write to the whole Society on this matter. Saint Ignatius considered it of
the greatest importance. The apostle of today must
realize how important it is that the spirit of the Gospel be reflected in his life as in a mirror. Men today_:_
are moved most successfully when they see the sincerity of the preacher in whom actions correspond to
belief. If we religious do not change our lives and by
our example and teaching draw others to the practice
of prayer and penance, where are men to look for the
necessary ,grace to save this topsy-turvy world? So
much for our religious spirit; now let me speak briefly
of the formation of Ours.
4. At the present time the Church praises-as do
many outside the Church-the general plan of our
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
213
training in the Society. For this reason we should
cling to the Constitutions and to the correct interpretation and practice of them that has prevailed for generations in novitiates and scholasticates. I insist that
we should not endanger our Society by lightly putting
aside the tried and true rewards of experience in favor
of experiments of dubious value.
Many of the provinces report one crying need :
namely, the more immediate preparation of Ours either
as teachers or prefects in the work of training boys
and young men in our colleges. The most important
element by far in this preparation is the spiritual
formation effected by the Spiritual Exercises of our
holy Father Saint Ignatius along with the traditional
asceticism of our way of life. Of corresponding importance are those general courses which our Scholastics complete in the juniorate and in philosophy. Today, however, these no longer are adequate. They must
be supplemented by courses of a distinctly pedagogical
aim. We cannot rely on common sense alone nor on
the natural gift for teaching that some possess. For
in addition to the fact that God has not endowed all
men with equal talents, it is not fitting that Ours learn
the very elements of their teaching and practice at
the expense of our pupils. It is up to the provincials
to anticipate the needs of their own regions and to
propose the improvements that they think ought to
be adopted. The Society has a right to expect that her
members be equal to-or even better than~any competent teacher, whether it be in the theory or the practice of teaching. We should have good reason to blush
if, after educating youth for centuries, we could not
today admit inspectors into our schools without trembling for our reputation.
5. The whole Society has rightly been concerned
over the difficulties of doctrine which have arisen in
one of our otherwise most esteemed assistancies. After
the vain attempts of Father Ledochowski, my predecessor of pious memory-and especially after those of
the Vicar-General Father de Boynes-to avert the im-
�214
ADDRESS OF~FATHER GENERAL
pending disaster, our Holy Father himself delivered
a solemn warning from Castel Gandolfo in 1946. In it
he urged those who were apparently teaching a "New
Theology" to return to humility and prudence. 9
And since this evil was the result of a too great
deviation from Scholastic philosophy, it was first necessary to reform the system of teaching in vogue in the
houses of philosophy throughout that assistancy. Once
certain changes among the professors had been effected, the business of reform got under way and even
now is making way satisfactorily. The reform in
theology, however, was not achieved so easily. Admonitions, both public and private, were administered
time after time. Censures were invoked. Works which
were being circulated in manuscript form were suppressed. Some of our men were, forbidden to write on
specified subjects. Several books, which could not
have been given approval, were condemned. But
these and still other measures proved futile, sad to say,
because our Fathers were blinded by an illusion and
could not see that they had strayed from the right way.
It was obvious, once a thorough visitation of all the
scholasticates of the assistancy had been made, that
the evil had rooted itself so deeply in the members
of the Society-and more especially in others outside
the Society-that the ordinary remedies at the disposal
of the General would not cure the evil.
When doctrines have been sown broadcast and have
taken deep root, merely disciplinary authority cannot .
accomplish anything. Ours were not the only parties·· .·
involved in the matter; the error had welled up not
from one source but from others as well. Therefore,
when the Holy See took the business in hand, the Society could only rejoice. It was not only the reputation
of the Society that was at stake. Rather, it involved
the preservation of the Catholic faith in many soulssouls who had been deceived by an excess of confidence
and by the semblance of zeal.
Hence it was that immediately upon the publication
of the encyclical Humani Generis, I made it a point to
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
215
thank the Sovereign Pontiff in my own name and in
that of the Society. And since the encyclical so perfectly satisfied our hopes and desires in this matter, it
seemed useless to assure the Pope of the Society's
whole-hearted obedience.
Nothing remains save the work of putting into effect the various provisions of the encyclical. Had this
Congregation not intervened, we would surely have accomplished it already, for most of the preparatory
work has been done already.
In the future, however, we must be more careful and
humble in observing not only the definitions of the
extraordinary magisterium of the Church, but the
doctrine of the ordinary as well. Would that some of
Ours had not strayed from the wise norms set down
in our Institute. The experience of the Society through
the years shows that these norms are by no means
a hindrance to healthy progress in the science of
theology.
At the same time, if we are not thoroughly acquainted with this crisis and have not carefully examined the 'books and other writings which were connected with it, we must be careful not to bandy about
thoughtless remarks at the expense of truth, justice,
and charity. On the contrary, let us copy the paternal
spirit of the encyclical and continue to respect those
who in the ardor of their zeal and in their enthusiasm
for learning have fallen-albeit in good faith-into
error.
6. Finally, as to the Third Probation, there is danger in some quarters of its lapsing from the true intentions of Saint Ignatius and from the standards of solid
training. I notice that the tertian instructor, in order
to humor the tertian Fathers, not infrequently grants
them more latitude than is fitting in matters of religious observance, in writing letters, and especially in
undertaking ministerial work. The Third Probation
should be, in the words of our holy Father Saint Ignatius, "a school of love." In the course of it, just as in
the course of the noviceship, the interior life-and in
-
�216
ADDRESS OF-FATHER GENERAL
particular, the practice of abnegation and earnest
prayer-should be fostered before all else. Ministerial
work is permitted during this time only as a sort of
exercise or experiment aimed especially at abnegation.
Such ministries, therefore, should be lowly, not very
gratifying, and rather hard. And they should not require a great deal of preparation.
In addition to the practice of the interior life, the
tertians should be given some study of the Instituteof the Exercises, first of all, and then the Constitutions.
Our dear tertian Fathers should not be surprised that
the conquest of self demands the renunciation of any
and all claims of pride and self-love. It is the duty of
the instructor to teach and try them in ways suited to
men of solid learning and of some experience. The
tertians, though, in the spirit of the Gospel should become as little children, and conduct themselves with the
sincere and simple obedience of· novices.
Let us not, pray, belittle the Third Probation at the
very time that other religious and even secular priests
are seriously thinking of copying it in order to meet
the needs of today's apostolate. On the contrary, let
us make it with more strength and efficiency and pursue it with a more docile humility.
7. With these few words on our religious spirit and
on the formation of Ours~.. we can profitably consider
some aspects of certain works in the apostolic life of
today. As I mentioned before, though, I shall not deal
with everything but only with a few subjects that call
for more explicit consideration.
Certain it is that Ours are giving the Spiritual Exercises with the utmost fruit in every part of the worlda ministry almost without equal for producing those
apostles and leaders which the Church needs everywhere. But it is to be feared that through a certain
want of apostolic boldness (which seems to be nothing
so much as a failure to trust in the efficaciousness of
divine grace), we do not offer the true Exercisesespecially to laymen. In some places a day or a dayand-a-half of recollection goes by the name of the
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
217
Exercises. I ,am heartily in favor of such days of
recollection-particularly when they are given for the
benefit of those who can only get away from their daily
work with difficulty. But these are not the Spiritual
Exercises of Saint Ignatius.
Since all men in the world of affairs-even the most
heavily pressed-are accustomed every year to take
a holiday and rest for a relatively long period, what,
may I ask, is there to prevent us from encouraging
them to spend three, five, or even eight days in rest
for body and soul? There in the peace of the Exercises
and in silence with God they will find better rest than
anywhere else. When Ours have been bold enough to
propose such a course, a good number of laymen have
responded generously. Free from all else, they attend to their souls with fervor and in unbroken silence
for several days at a time. Furthermore, in places
where Ours have not been courageous enough to suggest it, laymen themselves have not infrequently asked
that they might have the opportunity to make the
Exercises. Is this the way it should be? Should priests
need to be quickened to greater zeal by the laity? or
should the priests not rather urge the laity onward
to a course of higher perfection?
I do not believe there is any need of repeating what
my predecessors have said and what I have repeated
in my letter On the Spiritual Exercises: "The director
of the Exercises who asks but little, will get but little in
return; and if the Exercises are made too easy, they
will be given scant respect." 10 I would not insist on
my point with such assurance and emphasis, if I had
no experience from other sources to bear me out.
I was surprised to learn that, in spite of the repeated
admonitions of the generals, Ours are in many places
-and even in houses of formation-giving series of
conferences during the eight-day retreat which are
quite different from those of the Exercises of our holy
Father Saint Ignatius. Or they make a practice of
giving long sermons, which rob the exercitant of time
that would be more fruitfully spent in reflection and
�218
ADDRESS OF )<'tATHER GENERAL
prayer. It has never been said that such procedures
are without any fruit; but their fruit is certainly less
than that of the Exercises. Therefore I ask the provincials as the parties responsible before God for the
spiritual progress of their religious subjects, to be
watchful-epecially in houses of formation-that all
that has been recommended in this matter be observed.
Provincials will find that in this day of shortages of
help there is no better method of forming the efficient
men who are so sorely needed.
8. In some provinces there seems to be a firm conviction that in the changed conditions of today we
should not refuse the administration of parishes-a
ministry from which Saint Ignatius intended that we
should be free. However, if we investigate the reasons
for his prohibition-and we can find them explained
by Father Jerome Nadal-we shall see that all of the
reasons apply today. 11
It is not fitting (so speaks Father Nadal) for us to
be subject to the jurisdiction of bishops or for us to
acquire rights to the income from a benefice or salary
or, finally, that we should lose our freedom as missionaries-a freedom that makes it possible for superiors
to send us to any region where the need of souls is
greater.
Even in his day Nadal made obvious exceptions of
such places as Germany and India 12 where we were
compelled to undertake parish work because of the
need of souls that resulted from the shortage of
priests. But even then he wished Ours to be only
quasi-pastors, appointed only for a time, who would
be satisfied with food and clothing and who would
acquire any income that might accrue not for themselves but for the bishop.
At the present time there are missions where no
secular clergy are to be found or where their number
is so small that they cannot handle all the parishes.
In such places the Society accepts and retains without
demur the ordinary care of parishes at the behest of
the bishop. There are other regions, such as the
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
219
Netherlands, England, and North America, where because of the dearth of priests Ours were formerly accustomed to take care of parishes. With the passage of
time and the increase of the clergy, this inveterate custom is still observed and bishops very often agree to
grant parishes to Ours-but not the residences that we
can accept according to our Institute. This is but one
of the ways of limiting the exemptions of religiousexemptions which some in the course of the history of
the Church have thought were irreconcilable with the
necessary unity within a diocese. But as is evident
from daily events, we have the duty of maintaining our
exemption intact, both because the Holy See wishes
it and because the salvation of souls requires it.
No one has ever questioned that much good is accomplished in parishes. But, as I tried to point out in
my letter On Our Ministries,' 3 all cannot do all that
needs to be done in the Church. The Society is not
founded to take care of parishes, but to do other works
which are concerned with the extraordinary care of
souls and without which the Church cannot accomplish
her duty. For despite the arguments, all ministries
are not reducible to the work for souls in a parish.
Therefore, I cannot allow-as a few would seem to
wish-that in regions where thus far we have no parishes the Society should agree to accept them instead of
residences. On the other hand, if there are places
where parishes have multiplied and some one or other
of our residences has become useless, we should of our
own free will suppress it. For it is contrary to the
spirit of our holy Father Saint Ignatius to remain in a
place where the good of souls does not require us. I
must insist strongly that the provincials should not
imagine that any house once established-even long
established-should necessarily be kept. The Institute
does not permit the closing of a house without good
reason after it has once been accepted, but it does permit the closing. And to refuse to consider the suppression of a house when there are good reasons for its
suppression, would be opposed to that freedom of move-
�220
ADDRESS OF "FATHER GENERAL
ment which Saint Ignatius desired for his Society.
Time and again the Holy See has insisted that in
regions where the clergy is numerous-such as in
some parts of Europe, yes, and in North Americawe should give up some works and betake ourselves to
other countries where we can relieve the great spiritual
need of the regions. Besides those regions which we call
foreign missions, there are others-as for instance, almost all of South America-where such spiritual need
exists. I should like provincials who think they have
no men to spare to consult the Annuario Pontificio for
the statistics of the dioceses served by their provinces.
Let them compare the statistics with those of any diocese in South America and, still more, with those of
any entire nation. Let them compare the number of
Catholics with the number of priests, secular and religious, both in their own countries and in the others. 14
It is our duty according to oiir vocation to be not
parochial or provincial in heart, but Catholic.
9. There is much that could be said about our colleges,
but I wish to point out only one subject lest I appear
·unappreciative of their fruitful apostolic work in
almost every part of the world. I notice that in many
provinces there are some who think they are bringing
our training up-to-date when they eliminate compulsory exercises of piety for_ our students. In particular,
they single out the obligation of attending daily Mass
in the places where the custom still prevails; and they
would do away with it entirely. There is one instance
of a rector who did not want his community to know ~: .
what had already been published on the subject in the ·
Acta Romana.
In the training of youth today we too easily forget
the principle that boys and adolescents are not mature
men and that the standards for the latter cannot be
used for all. The boy needs help, and so does the
youth, if he is to learn self-control. Before his son
has learned how to act according to conviction, the true
father is in duty bound to constrain him always in a
fatherly yet firm way to do what is right. It is one
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
221
thing to take care that when we use compulsion we at
the same time instil into the young the principles of
righteousness according to which they will later act on
their own initiative; but it is something else to eliminate ~all compulsion from the very beginning. The
saying still remains true: "He who spareth the rod
hateth his son." 15 The training of students in our
colleges ought to continue strong and manly. The
same punctilious discipline should not be given to old
and young alike, but the discipline should be tempered
as the students advance in years. External discipline
should be animated by the internal spirit, so that it
can be increased or lessened in particular cases as the
end proposed is attained. Nevertheless it should always be firm as the training of the Society has traditionally been. The fruit of lax discipline is only too
evident, is it not?
And in order that our training may not become too
lenient, provincials should be on their guard against
granting more amusements than are good. They should
be chary about allowing the radio and movies to the
students. The facts show that these amusements easily
do harm but rarely are beneficial. Our norm should
be: not what the students find pleasant, but what will
benefit them.
I implore in the Lord all superiors not to shut their
eyes to any moral laxity in the training of the young.
The standards of modesty in our colleges have frequently been so slighted that I have been put to the
blush in the presence of those who have shown me
photographs of the activities in our schools. We must
teach our pupils the true concept of purity, nay rather
of Christian modesty, not the license of the modern
age. Not all it is true, nor even many are called to
the state of virginity. But all are bound to keep their
chastity inviolate. Even in after years when married,
these young men must preserve their Christian sensibilities, restrain their concupiscence, and abstain
from unlawful pleasures. What if we teach them in
action to narrow the field of modesty, to gratify their
�222
ADDRESS OF .£ATHER GENERAL
morbid curiosity, to take imprudent chances regarding
what they read, and watch, and listen to? You all
realize that youth-even modern youth-far from being strong is very weak as regards this virtue. Unless
the young are humble and prudent, and unless they
learn to avoid the pitfalls, they will go the way of
nature.
10. Recent persecutions and other hardships have
turned the spotlight upon the spirit of abnegation and
zeal of our missionaries among the pagans. I would
like to call our missionaries' attention to two things,
however.
The first is: scarcely ever before has there been so
much talk as at present about adapting our methods
to the mind and manners of the natives of missionary
countries. But at the same time I am forced to admit
that I do not always find actions corresponding to the
words. Provincials and superidrs should take care
that all who are sent to the foreign missions learn to
the best of their ability the native language spoken
by the people. Too many of our missionaries are satisfied with using their mother tongue and have not
acquired any command of the native languages which
are utterly indispensable to us in our ministry. The
work of spreading the Gospel suffers much harm in
many places because of thi~ lack of abnegation.
The second matter to which I alluded is this: we
should be most careful not to introduce into foreign
lands the customs of our native land and home province
in respect to the externals of our way of life, our food,
clothing, or living quarters. In such matters as these
the foreign mission cannot observe the customs of the
home province. In the poorer regions our manner of
life, making all allowances for prudence and the claims
of a higher good, ought to be poor and-again as far
as prudence will allow-it ought to be adapted to the
manner of living in that section. And since our missionaries are perfectly aware that the salvation of
souls is effected more by sacrifice than by preaching,
they will not shrink from those hardships.
~
.
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
223
11. Last of all, my office obliges me once again to
recommend to the provincials the works common to
the whole Society. Chief among them is the Gregorian
University, together with its affiliated Biblical and
Oriental Institutes. Since the Holy See hopes through
the instrumentality of these institutions here in Rome
to form such a select body of secular and regular clergy
for the whole world as will be utterly devoted to the
Holy See; and since we are the agents of the Holy
See, the Holy Father expects the General to staff these
institutions with men eminent for solid learning and
skill in training clerics and religious, giving these institutions priority over all others. But unless all the
provinces follow the custom of the Society in vogue
both before and after the suppression and send firstclass men, who are highly recommended by their methods and experience and enjoy a reputation for training
and skill, to teach ,at Rome, the intentions of the Holy
See will be frustrated and the Society will be derelict in
her principal duty.
The provinces often complain that the Roman biennium does not deserve unqualified praise and that its
training of future professors and scholars leaves something to be desired. The Church and the Society are
certainly interested in seeing that the seminaries produce professors who are as well trained as possible.
However, the answer to these legitimate complaints
rests almost entirely upon the provinces from which
the complaints come. Send us from the provinces professors such as we need for conducting the biennium
or triennium that lead to the doctorate. Great fruit
will accrue to the good of all the scholasticates as well
as to the houses of study conducted for secular and
religious clergy, for it is here that their future professors attend the courses leading up to their doctorates.
At present we are directing our attention to the building up of the ascetical branch of our theological course,
for it is very much in demand.
Those who are destined for further specializationparticularly if they must make their studies at state
-
�224
ADDRESS OF £ATHER GENERAL
universities so commonly steeped in materialistic ideals
-should lay a solid foundation in Scholastic philosophy
and dogmatic theology. I know very well that there
are some-even among Catholics-who consider it a
fault in us to place so much stress upon Scholastic
philosophy and dogmatic theology. But the very errors
of our day convince me the more strongly that far from
abandoning this safe course we ought rather to hold
to the beaten track that much more insistently. Modern science, indeed, demands that the Catholic philosopher and theologian make use of the latest findings
of the positive sciences in all their variety. Our professors should try to satisfy these demands as well as
they can. But our world, riddled as it is with agnosticism and relativism, needs an even deeper examination into the speculative branches of learning.
For-and this is the gist of the matter-the salvation of the world today, even as .. in the past, is to be
found in Christ alone. "There is no other name given
to men by which we must be saved"; "there is no salvation in any other." 16
Our Society, together with the Church of which she
constitutes but the least part and which she delights to
serve whole-heartedly, has always held and continues
to hold this truth. From it the Society derives the
flaming zeal with which we_are enkindled and by which
we are carried forward to do our utmost-whether it
be in houses of formation and study, in universities
or colleges, in centers for writers or preachers, in forei,gn missions, in residences or parishes with their
multifarious interest in the apostolate. I have but
one aim: that our zeal, which will never be free from
the blemishes of human weakness, may grow brighter
from day to day and give a more effective light. If we
are to realize this, we must be strangers to any presumption that we can rest upon our laurels and preen
ourselves upon our progress. Day by day we must
improve ourselves and strain forward to ever greater
perfection-a grace that I ask the Saviour to grant
us in His infinite mercy.
�TO CONGREGATION OF PROCURATORS
225
NOTES
tForm. Congr. Proc. n. 27.
2Acta Romana, XI, 147-176.
sMatt. 18:3.
4Const. P. VI, c. 1, n. 1.
5"Flectit quod est rigidum," cf. the Veni, Sancte Spiritus in
the liturgy of Pentecost.
6/mitation of Christ, Bk. II, ch. 11.
7Col. 1:24.
sspiritual Exercises, Second Week, Concerning the Modes of
Humility (167).
9 Acta Romana, XI, 57-58.
toActa Romana, XI, 470.
11 Scholia in Const., P. IV, c. 2, V
Nee cwram animarum.
t2Scholia, 1. c.
tsActa Romana, XI, 309-310.
Hitaly has about 60,000 priests for 45,000,000 inhabitants;
Brazil with the same number of baptized inhabitants-but
scattered over a territory thirty times as large has hardly
6,000 priests. This is but one example out of many.
t5Prov. 13:24.
tnCf. Acts 4:12.
0
-:
-------+~~·-------
SPIRITUAL ENERGY
Idealism, however fervent and absorbing, must never be an
excuse for vague and unpractical emotion. As already pointed
out, the genius of St. Ignatius consisted in his careful and
methodic exploitation of religious energy. Steam is of no use,
rather a nuisance, until we have a cylinder and piston for it.
How much spiritual fervor goes to waste without a particular
examen and definite applications! A gallon of petrol might
be used to blow a car sky high; with care and inventiveness it
can be used to propel it for miles. These comparisons will show
us that Ignatius though a soldier might be even more aptly
described as a spiritual engineer. There is always this touch
in Jesuit spirituality. Not too much of the spectator's aesthetic
appreciation of a mighty spiritual cataract, rather a tendency
to calculate its horsepower and to get it harnessed and guided.
In the case of a naturally impulsive, emotional, and perhaps
wayward character like Father William Doyle the effects and
�226
SPIRI'IUAL ENERGY
advantages of this applied science of the soul are particularly
obvious. Not only in his own case, but especially in directing
others, he sought not to deaden energy, not to paralyze willpower, not to kill emotion, but to convert them all into driving
forces for the mills of God. And God's mills grind exceedingly
slow! The just awakened energy of the novice usually seeks
to expend itself in weird ventures, in sudden outbursts, in
anarchic violence, in impossible outlets. Ordinary life with its
dull tasks and sluggish routine seems unworthy of the high
ideals and chivalrous emprise of one who has caught the accents
of Christ. So too thought the erstwhile Don Iiiigo, now Christ's
pilgrim clad in the picturesque aristocracy of sheer beggary.
Far otherwise did he think as he toiled at Latin grammar in
Barcelona, learned logic at Alcala, and studied theology at
Paris. And finally this great stream of spiritual energy which
started with wild turbulence in Loyola and Manresa is conveyed-sluiced and piped as it were-to a dingy room in Rome
where Ignatius dealt with administration and correspondence.
ALFRED O'RAHILLY
RESURRECTION
It was right that the Institute that prescribed, loved, and
practiced obedience with so much perfection in each of its
members should also as a religious body give an example of
heroic obedience. The highest test of every virtue is death.
St. Paul, extolling the obedience of our Divine Lord, by which
the world was saved, tells us that, "He was obedient unto death,''
and so, at the sound of the voice that alone commanded his
obedience, Ignatius and his great Society, died and made no
sign. 0 grand and heroic death, the greatest of all the great- •
nesses of Ignatius!
-Every Order in the Church represents some feature of the
life and character of our Divine Lord, Jesus Christ. His contemplation and prayer are represented by St. Benedict and St.
Bruno; His evangelical and abject poverty by St. Francis; His
labors in preaching by St. Dominic and so of others. There was,
however, one phase in the life of the Blessed Savior yet unrepresented in the Church, and that was His glorious life after
His Resurrection from the dead; the great privilege of representing this was reserved to St. Ignatius and the Jesuits. They
are the only body in the Church which died and rose again.
FATHER THOMAS BURKE, O.P.
���HISTORICAL NOTE
THE NEW BOSTON COLLEGE HIGH SCHOOL
The morning of November 13, 1950 saw almost
half the student body of Boston College High School
start their trek to the new Promised Land, the first
unit of the new building. There must have been many
departed Jesuits who had a new happiness added to
their eternal glory when this little army of juniors
and seniors streamed along the Old Colony Boulevard
to their new school building standing in isolated
beauty against the deep green of Boston's inner harbor. Many readers of WOODSTOCK LETTERS could
easily imagine seeing mingled with these youngsters
the saintly figures of Fathers Bapst, McElroy, Gasson, Lyons and a legion of other giants who nearly a
hundred years ago and since had labored to make B. C.
High the outstanding Catholic high school in the East.
Doubtlessly they were now interested in this epochal
change.
The change of location had long been considered.
Time had left its marks on the old site. What was
once a residential district had become a slum area,
the elevated nearby broke the peace so necessary for
the quiet of a school. The area is now listed as "Skid
Row," and it was inevitable that many parents should
complain they were averse to sending their boys
through this district, however much they desired that
they attend famous B. C. High. Time had also taken
its toll in the building: falling plaster in the classrooms, seamy floors, leaky roofs, sagging stairs, inadequate and broken furniture all pointed to a decrepit old age, and it was felt that to spend money
on repairs was to throw good money after bad.
Moreover the location on a city block was outmoded;
modern schools demand not only suitable buildings but ·
a campus for class and athletic activities. No changes
on James Street could bring about the desired result.
Back in the 'thirties Father Wessling had drawn plans
�228
HISTORI€AL NOTES
for a completely new school and rectory beginning
with the tenements on Newton Street, but there was
never any hope that a new school on the old location
would fulfill all the requirements.
Hence it was that under the regime of Father Hewitt
it was decided to look for a suitable piece of property.
Many sites were considered, among them a plot at
Forest Hills and one in Mattapan on the border of
Milton; but though they were admirably situated near
a rapid transit, a necessity for our widely scattered
student body, the sites were otherwise not ideal. Then
it was that in 1949 our attention was called to the
present site in Dorchester bordering South Boston and
near immense Columbus Park. A group of businessmen had applied to the City Council for a franchise to
build an auto-racing track on the location, and though
the franchise was granted, it was later rescinded when
the neighbors complained, and~ "for some unknown
reason, mentioned that Boston College High School
had been interested in the property. We were not
interested at the time, but we soon were when the
location was inspected. So after competent engineers
had made tests and assured us that the land was suitable for our purpose, the purchase was made.
The site commands a splendid view: the property
is situated on a broad, long finger of land that points
to the outer harbor; its base is the Old Colony Boulevard that connects the South Shore and Cape Cod with
Boston. The finger points at the many islands dotting
Boston Harbor, while immediately to the left are the
old war-barracks of Camp McKay (soon to be replaced
by a housing project); beyond this camp bends the
long crescent of Carson Beach and world-famous L
Street lying along Old Harbor, and in the distance
are the heights of South Boston from which Washington watched the British evacuate Boston, and beyond
as a background rises the hazy outline of Boston
proper. To the right lies Dorchester Bay dotted with
beaches and boat clubs, with the Neponset River in
the distance and a backdrop of the Milton Hills.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
229
The whole site comprises some hundreds of acres
of land, some under water. We own some three million, one hundred thousand square feet, or roughly
sixty-five acres. Our land lies on the right side of the
finger with a long frontage on the Boulevard and extending pear-shaped far out on the peninsula. Opposite the property, some hundreds of yards back of
and parallel to the Boulevard, runs the AshmontCambridge Rapid Transit with Columbia Station
about seven minutes walk from the school building.
Recently the Metropolitan District Commission took
over all the beaches and parkways from the City of
Boston, erected a police station opposite Columbia
Station and generously provided a traffic officer to
direct the heavy, two-lane traffic before the school.
So the school has the excellent advantages of auto and
train accessibility, and even constant police protection.
The land itself at one time consisted of marshes
indented by inlets, but had been filled in over many
years with excavations, cinders and dumpings to the
depth of more than ten feet. Since there was plenty
of property, it was decided not to build high, so a twoand-a-half storied building was planned by Maginnis
and Walsh, architects of many Catholic school buildings and churches and famous for their structures at
Boston College. The Raymond Piling Company sank
about one hundred and fifteen caissons through the
debris, silt, peat and blue clay to the underlying hardpan, and above these reinforced concrete pilings, was
poured a mat of concrete. The ground-level of the
building is about twenty-five feet above the bottoms of
the pilings. From this point the Walsh Brothers Construction Company took over. Below the basement
was built a moisture-proof tunnel in the form of an
H about eight feet high and ten feet across and running the length of the building and the width of the
wings; in this tunnel are slung at the height of a
man's waist all the pipes and mains, a gesture to the
laborer's convenience. This H tunnel is connected in
turn with the boiler room that rises two floors.
�230
HISTORICAL NOTES
The whole building was planned for practicality and
economy, although there is a simple and effective
beauty to the unit. As one approaches from the Boulevard the building is set back about a hundred yards;
a circular road leads in and out, facilitating entrance
and exit, then bends around the left of the building
to the rear, where there is a large macadam area for
parking and trucking, and beyond a larger treated
area for playing and recreation. All the roads are
lighted and spotlights for the tower are being installed.
The building is of red brick with limestone parapet
and finishing, a square limestone tower faced with a
large clock rises in the center and the tower itself is
surmounted by a tall, slender chrome-steel spire with
the cross at the top. The ends of each wing are faced
with limestone the same width as,the center and give
a pleasing symmetry to the whole. Carved in the
stone of one wing are the names o.f some of the classical masters, Homer, Virgil, etc., while on the other
wing are inscribed the names of some Church-greats
Aquinas, Loyola, Bellarmine, etc. Every room has
a long picture-window so there seems to be as much
window space as wall. At each end and in the middle
are the large doorways glassed above the doors to
the roof.
The construction inside- is as near fireproof as
possible. The floors and roof consist of hollowed tile
reinforced by steel, over which is poured concrete; the
separating walls are of cinderblock of double thickness,
and ensuring quiet. The floors of the corridors are
terrazzo ; of the rooms asphalt tile of a pleasing
variety of mixed colors; of the toilets small, inlaid
tiles; of the stairways a dark green slate; all the ceilings of classrooms, corridors, etc. are covered with
fireproof acoustic panels. All the rooms have connecting doorways leading from one classroom to another,
and eventually to a stairway in the wing or middle
of the building, so that in case of fire each group will
have its own exit and stairway and will not have to
use the corridor. The over-all result of materials
�HISTORICAL NOTES
231
used and their arrangement is not only fire-resistance
and durability, but a surfacing that should be easy
to keep clean.
In entering the main doorway a short stairway
leads to the large foyer beyond which are the deans'
offices, private consulting rooms, secretarial offices,
etc. Along each corridor wall on both sides (the same
holds true for each of the three floors) steel lockers
are built flush with the walls and above each locker is
a compartment that opens and locks with the bottom
locker; each boy has his own locker and compartment
with a combination lock; the benefit of these is evident: no more limp, wet coats hanging along classroom
walls, no more tripping over muddy rubbers and
galoshes, no more aging lunches in the desks. There
is also a tactical arrangement of toilets : one toilet
in each side of the main corridors, so that there are
six in all, not counting the private ones. The classrooms are gems of light, air and cleanliness, walled
in with a double thickness of cinderblocks painted
li.ght green or tan. The flooring is of asphalt tile and
the ceilings acoustic paneling. A window runs the
length of each classroom, each window, except on the
north side, shaded with an adjustable fibre-glass drape.
The lighting is soft and indirect, Mazda, not fluorescent, with concentric hands around the bulb to minimize eyestrain. The lighting is seldom used except on
rainy days, as the large window provides ample light.
All rooms are heated by Nesbitt heaters that are
automatically controlled and give the same result as
air-eonditioning, since all the air that is heated is
freshly drawn through louvres that lead directly to
the outside and is vented through air ducts in the walls
by a powerful blower in the boiler room. The desk
and chair are one unit, not fastened to the floor, and
adjustable to any size and shape. What an improvement on the unpredictable furniture of B. C. High-onthe-James!
At one end of the corridor and occupying the whole
wing is the library, beautifully floored with maroon
�232
HISTORICAL NOTES
and ,gold-tinted white asphalt tile, lined with dark oak
plywood paneling, solid oak shelves and long tables to
match. Beside the library is the librarian's office
and check room.
At the other end of the corridor and also occupying
the complete wing is the tastefully apportioned Sodality Chapel. Pews, altar, the two confessionals and
paneling are all in dark oak. The canopy and backdrop of the altar are of powder-green velvet with
gold-embroidered lettering, the tabernacle, canonicals
and crucifix of gold. The Stations of the Cross are of
carved pear wood made by a master in Italy. Besides
the two confessionals in the rear there is another built
into the wall, its screen leading directly into the office
of the student counselor but its entrance in the Chapel.
The sacristy is in the rear of the altar and to save
space the drawers for the vestments have been built
into the back and under the altar. The Chapel will
seat one hundred and seventy-five. Donations and
promises have been made for stain..,glass windows,
but no design has been decided upon as yet. The
Chapel has been donated by the Catholic Alumni Association in memory of their Chaplain, Father Mellyn, S.J.
The upper floor is a duplicate of the first with these
differences: above the library and occupying the whole
wing is the Physics lecture room with its laboratories
and a storeroom; in the center of the building is the
Chemistry lab and storeroom occupying the space corresponding to the foyer and offices on the floor below;-· .·
there is also a teachers' room with cloakroom and
toilet that occupy the space of a classroom. From the
central stairway another stairway leads to the tower
and to the roof. In the tower are the works of the
large clock, the gift of the class of 1950.
The basement is divided into two main parts: half
houses the cafeteria floored in red, square tiles, the
walls and columns faced with li.ght-tan porcelain tiles.
Here is installed the most modern equipment in
chrome-steel and all arranged for quick self-service.
�HISTORICAL NOTES
233
Three hundred can be seated here and served with
great dispatch, but to facilitate the kitchen work each
year is served separately. Certain boys earn their
lunch by helping to serve, cashier and help after
meals. Incidentally the new school has afforded new
and more practical uses for "jug" delinquents, such
as cleaning utensils, mopping, etc., as well ·as other
innumerable tasks in other parts of the building that
the utilitarian eye of the Disciplinarian can spot, such
as cleaning corridors, stairways and classrooms. Under
the Government's School Lunch Subsidy Plan a boy
may obtain a V·aried and nourishing lunch for twentyfive cents, consisting usually of meat, fish or eggs, potatoes, vegetable, bread, butter and milk. Behind the
cafeteria is a large modern kitchen with every facility: gas baking oven and cooking range, mixers,
peelers, walk-in icebox and refrigerator, storerooms,
mechanical devices for dishwashing in a separate room,
toilets and cloakroom for the help, etc. There are
also two dining rooms for the lay and Jesuit faculty.
The cafeteria has proved a boon for student and
alumni meetings, and later will fit into the activities
of a proposed Mothers' Club.
The other half of the basement has been divided
into rooms for a variety of purposes: here are the
bookstore, offices for the yearbook, the Botolphian, and
debating-all neat, airy and lightsome; also the emergency light-generating room, workshops, etc. In the
far wing the space is given over to locker rooms for
the athletes, showers, toilet and first-aid room.
This, then, is the first unit to inaugurate the New
Boston College High School. The plan was many
years in its conception and fulfillment, but all look
hopefully and prayerfully to its full fruition. The
plan calls for a sophomore and freshman unit and a
rectory, both to be connected with the present unit by
passageways that have already been provided in the
finished unit. The full plans call for a chapel, gymnasium and other buildings, but so far they are only.
in the prayer stage. His Excellency, the Archbishop,
�234
HISTORICAL NOTES
is very eager that we start the other school building
and the rectory, for he feels that the upkeep of the
finished unit and the plant on James Street will be too
much of a drain on our slender finances. But a start
has been made. Ground was broken in September of
1949. The cornerstone was laid by the Archbishop
in May, 1950 and the building was occupied in November of the same year. We are financially panting
for breath at the moment. But we know that certain
expenses will not have to 1be duplicated in future
building, for the land was undeveloped when we
started, which meant expenses for bringing in the
facilities for water, sewerage, electricity, gas, firealarm, etc. A good piece of land around this unit has
been filled, graded and landscaped, the rest can be
finished at our financial leisure. _So all in all, much
has been gained. But the great~st gain has been in
our joy in having made our first step, in our hope
that this step will bring recognition and help from our
public and friends, in our pride that we have provided
an institution that is second to none in equipment and
conveniences for the furthering of what we know to
be real education. After all, we have changed the
location of Boston College High School and provided
long-felt wants, but we have not changed the spirit.
FRANCIS
J. KRIM, S.J.
Mexican Boys-Town
The Jesuit College of Guadalajara has assumed the responsibility of government and support of that city's "Ciudad de
los Ninos," a community of 300 orphans modeled on Msgr.
Flanagan's famous "Boys-Town." Archbishop Garibi of Guadalajara has assigned six sisters to take care of the day-by-day
work of running the school, but the spiritual care of the
orphans still rests with our Fathers, and the supervision of
the school remains the care of their Rector, Father Manuel
Figueroa. Very Reverend Father General has shown his interest and approval of our Mexican "Boys-Town" by becoming
one of its patrons.
�OBITUARY
BISHOP THOMAS A. EMMET
1893-1950
"Most Rev. Thomas A. Emmet, Born in South Boston, Massachusetts, August 23, 1873; entered the
Society August 14, 1893; died in Boston, October 5,
1950."
With these simple notations the 1951 Catalogue of
the New England Province recorded the passage of
the eighth Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica from a long, full
life, nobly adorned with the charity of Christ which
urged him on to rich accomplishment in his many and
varied fields of labor.
As a young altar boy in the Gate of Heaven Church,
South Boston, Thomas Addis Emmet, whose father
was a descendant of the Protestant Irish patriot, drew
from the inspiration of the good Sisters of St. Joseph
a love for the things of God that led to a priestly vocation. The eighth of nine children born to Edward and
Julia Emmet, he attended the Lincoln Grammar School
and later Boston Coll(\ge High School, from which he
entered the novitiate at Frederick, Maryland August
14, 1893. He was one of fifteen novices from the Boston area that year, which saw an entering class of
forty-four.
In 1895 the Provincial, Father Par'dow, instituted
at Frederick a three year juniorate course for those
who had entered the Society from high school. Besides
absorbing a fair amount of classical lore during the
next three years the young Scholastic exhibited as
junior beadle an executive ability which characterized
him throughout his studies and in positions of trust in
later life. At Frederick he trudged the roads of the
famous old city and he grew to love the Sunday trips
to teach catechism at nearby mill towns. He was
especially fond of a spot in the south side of the
Monocacy River near Araby, where on Thursdays the
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OBITUARY
Scholastics would mount a huge rock and practice
oratory.
After the usual three years of philosophy at Woodstock came two years of teaching at St. Francis
Xavier's, New York, followed by three years as prefectin-full of the Junior Division at Georgetown. In this
latter capacity the versatile regent displayed marked
ability in plannin,g out-of-class activities for the large
groups of healthy small boys and in preserving order in
dining-room, dormitory, chapel and classroom.
In due time he was ordained priest at Woodstock by
Cardinal Gibbons on July 31, 1909. The next three
years found him again Prefect of Discipline at Georgetown, this time for the entire College and High School.
After a year of tertianship at Tullamore, Ireland, he
returned to this position, in which he ruled hundreds
of young men whose respect and confidence he gained
by his firm but tactful policy. "
For the rest of his life Bishop Emmet retained his
affection for Washington and his legion of friends
there. He had an unusual memory for names. At a
luncheon in his honor by the Washington Chapter of the
Georgetown Alumni Association at the Willard Hotel
he stood for close to an hour greeting the men by their
first names though some he had not seen for twenty or
thirty years. His contacts with the men of Georgetown covered a period of more than thirty years and
in 1942 the University conferred on him an honorary
degree.
The status of 1916 appointed Father Emmet to the-- .office of Minister of St. George's College, Kingston,
Jamaica. At the time the Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica
was His Excellency, Most Rev. John J. Collins, S.J.,
formerly Rector of Fordham and a veteran Jamaican
missionary. Father William O'Hare, S.J., later to be
Bishop Collins' successor, was the Mission Superior.
During his five years' stay in Jamaica, Father Emmet
became known for his extraordinary preaching ability.
In addition to his duties of Minister at Winchester
Park, he assisted generously in parish work, with the
�OBITUARY
237
result that his name was a household word in all the
mission stations from Morant Bay to Mandeville, a
distance of some ninety miles along the south shore of
the Island.
Success as a preacher was largely responsible for
Father Emmet's recall to the States in 1921 and his
appointment to the Mission Band of the MarylandNew York Province, with residence at St. Mary's,
Boston. In New England and the mid-Atlantic states
he went from city to city, reclaiming souls to Christ
and pleading in particular for help, spiritual and financial, for Jamaica.
Father Emmet's connection with his next assignment goes back as far as the year 1911, when he returned to Georgetown after ordination. In that year
a drive began to remove the Preparatory School at
Georgetown from the University campus to a location
outside the city. Father Emmet along with the Rector, Father Donlon, looked at many possible sites and
finally with the sound advice of an alumnus, Mr.
George E. Hamilton, decided on the present location of
the Prep School on the Rockville Pike at Garrett Park,
Maryland. Construction work on the new building began in 1915, but due to the war the first class did not
enter until October, 1919. In 1923 Father Emmet was
appointed Headmaster and for the next six years
worked indefatigably with construction problems, development of the ninety-two acres, enrollment, studies,
and the religious growth of the school. To him most
of all Georgetown Prep stands as a monument.
In November 1929, having established the Prep on
a sound academic and financial basis, Father Emmet
relinquished his post and returned for a brief period to
the Mission Band. In the meantime His Excellency,
Most Rev. Joseph N. Dinand, who had succeeded
Bishop O'Hare as Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica, became
unable through failing health to carry on his arduous
labors. On June 28, 1930, Father Emmet was appointed to succeed him.
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OBITUARY
The news of his appointment was the occasion of
general rejoicing to all the Catholics and non-Catholics
of the Island who had come to know and revere him
during the years 1916-1921. St. Mary's, Boston, was
the scene of his Episcopal consecration as Bishop of
Tuscamia and Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica on September
21, 1930 at the hands of His Eminence, Cardinal William O'Connell, assisted by Rt. Rev. John B. Peterson,
Auxiliary Bishop of Boston and Rt. Rev. John W. McNamara, Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore. The Rev.
Richard J. Cushing, later to become Archbishop of
Boston, preached the sermon.
The new Vicar Apostolic arrived in Kingston on
Monday, October 20, 1930. That evening at services in
the Cathedral the Brief of Appointment was read and
His Lordship formally assumed, office. He addressed
the congregation with words of -deep gratitude, first to
God for His goodness and then to his friends and his
flock for their sincere congratulations and prayers.
He took the occasion to express his appreciation of the
loyal services of Father Francis Kelly, Superior of the
Mission, who during the absence of a Bishop, had faithfully administered Vicariate affairs. On the following
afternoon Sir William Morrison, Kt., presided over a
public reception at Winchester Park, which many
prominent men and women attended, among them
government officials, clergy of various religious denominations and officers of the Salvation Army.
For the next twenty years until his voluntary retire- ~:
ment in March, 1950 Bishop Emmet worked assiduously for both the spiritual and material advancement
of the flock entrusted to him. There is scarcely a
corner of the Island to which he did not travel at frequent periods to administer confirmation, bless new
foundations and meet his people. Although Jamaican
roads improved with the years, there were many occasions on which more remote stations could be reached
only by horse or on foot through the bush. Bishop
Emmet did not disdain making his way as any ordinary
�OBITUARY
239
missionary did, come fair weather or foul, with an ease
and graciousness that endeared him to all.
As Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica it was inevitable that
Bishop Emmet should deal often with people not of
his faith, but he never did so without honor to himself
and the Church which he represented. Non-Catholics
held him in high esteem and felt that the Catholic
Church in Jamaica was blessed in having as its leader
a man of such sterling qualities as to win the respect
of the entire Jamaican community. He bore himself
always with dignity, he was straightforward, affable,
pious, simple in his mode of life, and scrupulously exact
in the execution of ecclesiastical functions.
His episcopate embraced twenty years of constant
growth and expansion for the Jamaica Mission. An
over-all comparison shows that from a mere 45,000
in 1930 the Catholic population increased by 1950 to
83,500. From a personnel of twenty priests, three
Scholastics, and three Brothers in 1930 the Mission in
1950 could boast of an increase to sixty-two priests,
four Scholastics and four Brothers. Besides the communities of Franciscan, Dominican, and Mercy Sisters,
all of whom showed at least a slight increase, the community of native sisters, founded shortly before Bishop
Emmet's arrival, in 1950 numbered forty-five. The
introduction in 1940 of Marist Sisters from Bedford,
Massachusetts, to care for the Leprosarium in Spanish
Town proved a boon to patients and to the community
at large. In these twenty years the number of
churches grew from fifty-seven to seventy-one, the
number of elementary school pupils from a little over
5,000 to nearly 12,000, secondary school students from
800 to 1,400. The Alpha Industrial School had in
1950 an enrollment of 681. St. George's Extension
School, begun in 1942, gave courses to 300. Three
native diocesan priests and four native Jesuit priests
were working on the Mission. Parish centers which in
1930 numbered twelve with forty-seven attached mission stations now number fourteen with sixty-four attached stations.
�240
OBI'FUARY
Bishop Emmet was instrumental in arousing enthusiasm for Catholic Action projects which through
the zeal of individual Fathers and lay workers have
contributed greatly to the moral, social and economic
progress of his flock. The Cooperative movement and
Credit Unions have spread through the Island; the
Holy Name Homestead plan is showing the way in a
better housing movement; parish sodalities, the
League of the Sacred Heart, the Holy Name Societies
and branches of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul
have air increased both in numbers and in kinds of
activities, making for a truly high standard of Catholic
living. Bishop Emmet would be the first to point out
that all this splendid progress made under his pastoral
guidance would not have been possible without the
splendid zeal and untiring efforts of the individual
Jesuit missionaries and the gene.rous cooperation of
Jamaican Catholics, and in many instances, non-Catholics. Likewise, it is unquestionably true that a great
deal of the funds necessary for these many enterprises
originated in the United States through the efforts of
missionaries in charge of the various mission stations.
Perhaps the most gratifying point of all is the fact
that in the vast majority of cases the money came
from people of ordinary means who definitely made
sacrifices to spread the Kin,gdom of God on earth.
On January 10, 1937 the Centenary Celebration of
the Apostolic Vicariate of Jamaica opened with all the
grandeur that became the occasion. Visiting prelates _.
and clergy from the United States, England, the Antilles, and South America marched in procession from
the Bishop's Residence to Holy Trinity Cathedral for
the celebration of Pontifical High Mass at nine o'clock.
The visiting bishops were: Rt. Rev. Joseph A. Murphy, S.J., Vicar Apostolic of British Honduras; Rt.
Rev. Edward Meyers, D.D., Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster (London); Rt. Rev. George Weld, S.J., Vicar
Apostolic of British Guiana; and Rt. Rev. Charles
Wollgarten, C.M., Vicar Apostolic of Costa Rica.
�OBITUARY
241
Father Francis X. Delany, of New York, a former
Superior of the Jamaica Mission, delivered the sermon.
Father Delany had been speaking only ten minutes
when His Lordship, Bishop Emmet, suddenly slumped
fo.rward in his throne. An altar boy hastened to
the sacristy and brought some smelling salts which
revived His Lordship momentarily. However, a few
minutes later he collapsed again and was carried to the
sacristy door and upon recommendation of a doctor
was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital. Father Delany
resumed his sermon and in due time Bishop Meyers
entered in full pontificals and proceeded with the Mass.
Fortunately Bishop Emmet responded to treatment of
a recurrent stomach ailment and was able in a short
time to return to episcopal duties.
A highlight of the Centenary Celebration was the
production by a cast of five hundred of a pageant,
Jamaica Triumphant, written and directed by Father
Daniel A. Lord, S.J., Sodality Director and Editor of
the Queen's Work. The pageant, scheduled for four
nights, had to play to capacity audiences for two extra
performances. The Kingston Gleaner described it as
"a spectacle without a peer within living memory and
unequalled in our annals; and, more than that, a spectacle of thought-provoking retrospect, looking back
on centuries of progress in Christendom generally,
and in particular on the progress of the world in this
fair isle."
Bishop Emmet was the first Bishop to live apart
from the Winchester Park community, having taken
over the new Bishop's Residence purchased by Bishop
Dinand and standing just outside the Winchester Park
property on North Street, three minutes' walk from
the Cathedral. In 1945 the Superior of the Mission
and the Editors of Catholic Opinion also moved from
Winchester Park to a separate residence on North St.
adjoining the Cathedral ground. St. Joseph's Hospital
acquired a new addition and the Leprosarium a new
building.
At the reception given to Bishop Emmet on the
�242
OlUTUARY
occasion of his golden jubilee in the Society in 1943,
the speaker representing Jamaican Catholics paid the
Bishop this tribute: "All these accounts of achievement in the material order will remind the Catholic
laity of this Island that they owe to your Lordship a
debt of gratitude that they can hardly hope to repay.
And yet we feel that all you ask in return is that
we and our children after us should live up to the
ideals you have set before us and carry out the precepts you daily preach and follow the example you
have nobly given.
"We, the members of your flock, feel that you would
have us remember that the true advancement of the
Church is not to be measured by the number of schools
or churches that have been built, or even by the numerous works of mercy and social welfare performed
and fostered under your Lordship's generous guidance. These are like milestones erected along the
broad highway of human progress. But what of the
narrow and often lonely pathways of the soul! Of
what use to count off the milestones unless they tell
of advancement along the road to the eternal city of
God! We have counted the milestones because we
recall, as we know your Lordship would wish us to
recall, that unless these be but the outward signs of
inward spiritual advancement, then has our journey
been without profit.
"It is because your Catholic laity recognizes this
fundamental truth that we count ourselves blest in the
knowledge that we have, in our guide and shepherd,:
one upon whom we can count to show us the true- -·
way, not by precept alone but by the lesson of a long
life of self-denial and devotion to duty. We have the
inestimable advantage of always knowing that we
are asked to do nothing, to make no sacrifice that
those who ask it have not made over and over again.
We know that we are secure in our leadership and
we rejoice in that knowledge."
An outstanding event in the history of Jamaican
Catholicism took place on May 30, 1948 when Bishop
�OBITUARY
243
Emmet ordained to the priesthood Leslie X. Russell, a
native Jesuit. Only once before, in 1902, had Jamaicans witnessed the ordination of one of their own,
when Bishop Gordon conferred holy orders on a
member of the Salesian Congregation. A crowd of
fifteen hundred witnessed the ceremonies in which in
three successive days Father Russell received the
orders of sub-diaconate, diaconate and holy orders.
Bishop Emmet took special pride in the event, while
the unusually tense interest of the congregation testified to the fact that the people of Jamaica realized
the tremendous significance of what was taking place
before their eyes. Catholics were present from every
part of the Island to see one of their own raised to
the service of the altar and they returned to their
homes with hearts filled with joy and memories that
would last a lifetime.
Towards the end of the year 1949 Bishop Emmet
made a difficult decision. Although still vigorous and
fully able to stand the round of trips to various stations on the Island, he decided that it would be wise
to ask the Holy See to consider appointing a successor
before he should become too feeble to carry on. Accordingly he submitted his resignation, which after
some months the Holy See accepted, appointing him
Apostolic Administrator until such time as his successor should be appointed. In February, 1950, Rev.
John J. McEleney, Provincial of the New England
Province, was named Vicar Apostolic of Jamaica. At
the end of March Bishop Emmet bade farewell to his
beloved Island and arrived in Boston in April. From
then until the time of his death he resided at the
Provincial house, enjoying the relaxation which release from episcopal duties afforded, taking short
walks, renewing old acquaintances, and appearing occasionally at Church functions.
His sudden death at the Provincial residence in
Boston came as a shock to Father James H. Dolan,
Vice-Provincial, and other members of the community.
He had been planning to go to Washington for a week
-
�244
I
OBITUARY
or so, an indication that his general health was
good. Only a few days before he had attended the
consecration of two new auxiliary bishops of Boston.
One of the Fathers describes his last moments as
follows: "On Thursday evening, October 5, we were
at dinner and the Bishop appeared all right. He had
exchanged remarks on the weather and then become
silent. After a minute or so he put his hand on his
chest and started to cough. I could see the blood
going quickly from his face. When he started to
slump Father Murray braced him in his chair and I
stepped over and gave him absolution. We got the
oils immediately and Father Sheehan anointed him.
It was obvious that he would not last long. All the
Fathers and Brothers knelt and I read the prayers for
the dying. Two doctors arrived and examined him
and pronounced him dead at 6:40. His death was
due to a coronary thrombosis."~··
The body of Bishop Emmet lay in state at St. Mary's
Church from 4:30 P.M. Sunday until the funeral
Mass on the following morning. His Excellency, Most
Rev. Richard J. Cushing, D.D., who had preached on
the occasion of Bishop Emmet's consecration and
again in 1947 at the celebration of his golden jubilee
in the Immaculate Conception Church, Boston, presided at the low Mass offer_ed by Father Dolan. Burial
took place in the cemetery at Weston College.
The suddenness of their Bishop's passing affected
his people of Jamaica visibly. At every mission station they flocked to the Mass celebrated in his memory._:_.
They crowded Holy Trinity Cathedral to the doors
to attend the Solemn Requiem Mass celebrated by
Father Walter J. Ballou, the Superior of the Mission,
with Father Denis T. Tobin, Rector of St. George's
and Rev. Sydney J. Judah as officers, and His Lordship, Bishop McEleney presiding. In his eulogy Bishop
McEleney echoed the feelin,g in the hearts of all, when
he said:
"We pay tribute to the surpassing merit of His
Lordship, Bishop Emmet. Jamaica received in 1930
�OBITUARY
245
as head of the Catholic Church a man whose culture
and refinement of character were matched by a singular courage and dauntlessness. To his high office he
brought learning and dignity which never detracted
from his humble and friendly demeanor. We crowd
this Cathedral today, the scene of so many sacred
functions in which he presided, to mourn his decease,
to pay tribute to his surpassing merit and to pray for
the repose of his soul. We mourn a gentle, noble prelate of the Church, knowing that our loss of him on
earth is his gain and ours before the throne of God,
where this new advocate of ours will dry our tears
and plead our cause at the tribunal of mercy and love.
We mourn his passing with candid affection and with
Christian reflection on the day to come when we in
turn must go to God to give an accounting of our days
and deeds."
JOHN H. COLLINS, S.J.
FATHER ETIENNE DUFRESNE
1859-1950
Father Etienne Dufresne, veteran Indian missionary, died in Montreal on March 10, in his 91st year.
He was the last but one of the older missionaries,
the other being Father Joseph Richard, still busily employed at our school at Spanish and steadily making
progress towards the century mark, with only three
and a bit more years to go, and not limiting his horizon
even there if the Lord beckons him on farther.
Etienne Dufresne, known to his earlier contemporaries on account of his diminutive stature as TitQuenne, which might be rendered "Tiny Steve," was
born on St. Patrick's day, 1859, and entered the Society
in 1879 at the age of twenty. His course of studies
in the Society was of the summary sort, as the
catalogue shows. Only one year of juniorate and then a
first year of philosophy at the Immaculate Concep-
-
�246
OBiTUARY
tion, Montreal, while his second (and final) year was
spent prefecting and teaching at the Indian Residential
School at Wikwemikong, Manitoulin Island, with a
companion philosopher, Joseph Richard, the two meanwhile preparing together their de universa philosophia,
doubtless in their spare time. More surprising is it to
read that during the three following years, while carrying on his work in the school, he is marked as Stud.
cas. consc., which means he must have been studying
also his dogmatic theology on the side, for at the
end of that period we find him ordained priest and becoming forthwith Missionarius excurrens. With this
convenient system of telescoping, he had managed
within six years from the noviceship to complete
his juniorate, his philosophical and theological studies,
and to have to his credit, in addition, four years of
regency.
..
His tertianship was made five years later, in 1892-3,
at the Novitiate in Montreal. In the interval he had
learned Indian and had done mission work.
Father Dufresne was to become the most travelled,
or at any rate the most moved about, of all our Indian
missionaries. At one time or another, he was entrusted
with every mission post all over Manitoulin Island and
around the whole territory of the Georgian Bay, both
islands and mainland from Waubaushene, eastward
and northwards, and around Lake Nipissing and
down French River, and along the whole northern
coast-line of Lake Huron as far west as Garden River
and thence northwards along the eastern shore of Lake -· -·
Superior. How he could properly look after so many
posts in the course of one year as the catalogue shows
him, will remain a mystery. His intrepidity in plying
rivers, bays and the open water of the north channel
in every kind of weather won him the admiration and
respect of the Indians. In 1920 he ,got bogged down at
Garden River for ten years. He was then aging and in
1930 he was brought to Spanish where he made himself useful until 1947.
It was at Spanish that he was to make his great
�OBITUARY
247
discovery. Our first returning French missionaries in
the 1850's were students, and their excellent library at
Wikwemikong, later removed with the school to
Spanish, and now, in part, to the Seminary Library in
Toronto, contained among other solid volumes, many
of the collected works of the Fathers. This is where
the old man's discovery was made. Father Dufresne
took to St. Augustine with such enthusiasm and was
wont to quote him so frequently as to acquire a new
nickname-"Augustine." But to the old Ojibway missionary a great joy and a great grace had come into
his life with this tardy discovery of the Doctor of
Grace.
In 1947, increasing infirmities made the old man
more dependent on the attentions of the infirmarian
and at his own suggestion he was transferred to the
Immaculate Conception, Montreal, in the Lower
Canada Province, to which he belonged. Here he would
receive excellent care and at the same time might
enjoy the companionship of those of his own tongue
and, what perhaps he valued still more, of friends
nearer to him in age.
And now after many decades of labour in the vineyard and a few final years spent in edifying patience,
after keeping his fiftieth, sixtieth and seventieth anniversaries, he has gone to rejoin his old comrades of
those hard missions of earlier days. With his passing
we lose the last link, but one, with the great missionaries of the past, nearly all of whom Father
Dufresne had known, and under most of whom he had
lived for several years.
FATHER ALOYSIUS F. FRUMVELLER
1872-1950
Father Frumveller died August 23., 1950, two weeks
after the sixtieth anniversary of his admission to the
Society, as the result of a fall a few days before on the
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OBITUARY
steps leading down to the domestic chapel, when his
hip was fractured.
He was born in Detroit on March 7, 1872. After
attending St. Mary's Parochial School he entered the
classical course of Detroit . College. In those days,
the classical course had three years of high school and
four of college, the last year devoted to the study of
philosophy. It would be interesting to know whether
anyone ever went through the course as brilliantly as
Father Frumveller. The school catalogues contain
a very remarkable record of excellence. He made the
first two years of high school in one, receiving a premium for promotion and a grade of 100 at the end
of the year. After that his grade was 100 every year
except twice when it was only 99.
He made the last two years jn St. Xavier, Cincinnati, when his family moved to ..that city. His record
there was much as it had been in Detroit. In rhetoric
class he was first in evidences of religion, Latin, Greek,
original composition, mathematics, chemistry, physics,
in everything except precepts of rhetoric. He won
the intercollegiate Latin contest for the second time,
having won it the year before in Detroit; also the
gold medal for the best catechetical essay. This year
he was one of the speakers of the Philopedian Society
at its public exercises. His subject was "The English
Language." In the crowning year of the course, philosophy class, he took the highest honors and at the
Commencement delivered an address on "General Ideas .
of Rights and Duties." During the year he had been~· .·
appointed defender in Applied Logic in a public disputation.
This very remarkable record would prepare one to
read that he was a youth who kept to his schoolbooks
pretty closely. The late Father Vincent Siefke, a
classmate at St. Xavier, who entered Florissant on the
same day with him, had a different story. He said
that "Frum" was a popular member of the class, was
interested in sports, and on occasion could put on a
good show as a juggler. He would tell of going to an
�OBITUARY
249
opera with him, and on coming home after it, listening
to him play all the arias in it from memory. On Sundays he served as organist in a suburban church.
His musical talent was highly developed. He must
have been taken in hand at an early age by his mother,
who, as Ellen Finegan, had been a teacher of music.
In his Jesuit Scholastic years he was always in charge
of the music. He trained and conducted the Scholastic
orchestras, choirs and quartets and even composed a
spirited St. Louis University March. The gramaphone recording was locally popular and for many
years it was a usual number for the orchestra at
Commencement and other public occasions. He spent
one summer at the Benedictine Monastery in Conception, Missouri, learning the Gregorian chant. Some
years after his ordination his active interest in music
fell off, but he continued to play the organ and lead
the singing at community Benediction until the time
of his death. His singing was on the practical side
rather than the ornamental, but it was animated and
strong and could bolster a sagging chorus admirably.
As a Scholastic he went through the regular sequence, with one year juniorate and an interruption
after his second year of philosophy when an emergency in St. Xavier took him there to teach mathematics and astronomy. The following year he returned to St. Louis to finish his philosophy and to
teach calculus and analytic geometry to Ours. The
remaining four years of regency were spent in St.
Louis giving courses in mathematics, astronomy, and
geology, in the college and scholasticate. Teaching
Ours, was, and is, unusual for a Scholastic. But he
took it as a matter of course and so did everyone. He
never put on airs or threw his weight about or looked
complacent. He could not if he tried. And this was
true of him all through his life.
He began his theology in St. Louis in 1901, was
ordained in 1904; and, after his last year and tertianship in Florissant, went abroad to study mathematics
at the University of Munich, where he remained for
�250
OBITUARY
two years, returning to St. Louis to receive his Ph.D.
In 1909 he was at Marquette in Milwaukee teaching
mathematics and taking on various other duties. There
he remained until his final assignment to Detroit in
1927.
One can only surmise why he never attained, or
tried to attain, that high distinction in his chosen field
towards which his talents pointed. Shortage of men
in the colleges and absence of leisure for private
study is at least a partial explanation. But other
reasons suggest themselves. He liked to take his part
in the community life rather than be all but buried
in the delving of a specialty. Moreover, he discovered
in himself a certain facility in religious guidance,
apostolic work which made academic honors look
rather pale and insipid. On the, day of his funeral
the following letter arrived from the postmaster of a
small town in Iowa: "Dear Father Frumveller, America, September 2, notes your anniversary. My congratulations. In 1924-26 I sat in your classes at Marquette. Now, twenty-five years later, all the mathematics I need is to add up the value of postage s1amps.
I still recall with pleasure your classes. Another highlight of those years: Your Lenten instructions given
in Gesu. Father, I am better for having known you.
So today an extra Ave for you."
Men who were in his religion classes in Detroit
in the 'twenties still tell you how popular they were.
He left a partial list of some hundred retreats which
he had given, many of them to priests. He welcomed
opportunities of spiritual instruction to nuns and
their lay sodalities. He was regularly a preacher in
our church in Milwaukee and in Detroit. As for his
mathematics, the only interest he showed, outside that
of his routine class-work, was his avid reading of advanced books on the subject and his subscription to
learned mathematical journals. For several years he
was the science editor of Thought.
A notable instance of his apostolate among men was
his appointment as Chaplain of the Detroit Fire De-
�OBITUARY
251
partment. When the University was still on Jefferson
Avenue he would now and then drop in at the neighboring fire-engine house on Larned. His acquaintance
with the firemen grew and expanded to other firehouses until he became a sort of unofficial chaplain.
He soon received official appointment to the office
which he had created. Dr. Stefani, the community
house-physician tells of his amazement one day when
he saw a fire-truck stop on Livernois at the University
to pick up "Father Frum," who climbed to the seat
next to the driver to be whirled off to the fire in glory.
Later the Department bought him a Ford car and
supplied him with a fireman chauffeur. The inscription on the doors read: "D.F.D." with a cross; on the
license plate a red placard, marked "Chaplain." When
Father Frumveller because of infirmity could no longer
remain in active service, a successor was appointed to
what seems now to be a permanent office in the Department.
When the remains of Father Frumveller lay in
state at the University, a fireman's helmet was placed
on the bier; and a guard of honor, consisting of two
firemen in uniform in fifteen-minute shifts, stood at
attention by the coffin. Six firemen were pallbearers.
A police motorcycle escort with sirens blowing led
the funeral. A Fire Commissioner and other officials
followed in cars and the procession detoured from the
direct route to the cemetery in order to pass a fireengine house where the crew were lined up at attention while it went by. The flags on all the city
fire-houses were at half-staff. One result of the first
chaplaincy was the laying of some small ghosts of
prejudice in the Fire Department. The firemen have
furnished a room in the recently built addition to the
Jesuit Retreat House, to be known as the Father
Frumveller Memorial Room.
Father Frumveller will be long remembered by
those who lived with him for some striking oddities.
Up to the time, eight years before his death, when he
was struck by an automobile after his morning Mass
-
�252
OffiTUARY
in the church across the street and suffered a fracture
of the back and one leg, he never needed u doctor's
services. He said he had never had a pain nor an ache.
And this was all the more remarkable because he
flouted the usual laws of preserving health. In eating he acted on the principle that the only food good
for a man was the food he liked. He passed the
salads and greens and made up on the meat and fish.
He said balanced diets, calories and vitamins were
modern follies. His drinking water had to be iced
winter and summer to be satisfactory. If he were
caught in the rain and. drenched, he let his shoes and
clothes dry upon him and he never caught cold. He
thought it ridiculous to take a walk simply for the
exercise. He never put on weight nor lost any, keeping in good working trim. After three months in the
hospital, with his patched up back and leg, he resumed
his regular regime and teachinlt till a few years before his final accident when the untrustworthiness of
his legs as he crossed the campus forced him to relinquish the classroom.
He was a conscientious religious and his manner with
his brethren was genial. If he were challenged to
an interchange of sheer nonsense he generally accepted with alacrity and could be wildly fantastic,
giving a funny eldritch screech whenever he scored
a point. Seeing him then one could understand how
Alice in Wonderland was written by a famous mathematician. Like most men with great powers of con- .
centration, he was sometimes self-absorbed and oblivi- ~· .
ous of amenities, but in a boyish fashion which seldom
gave offence.
He continued in his last years to say Mass every
morning but with great difficulty. His free handling
of the litur,gy sometimes caused comment, but mostly
only smiles. Anyone who saw him painfully managing
three flights of stairs to make long visits in the chapel
every day, could trust him to say Mass with devotion.
He was inclined to undervalue external form and
ceremony in everyday life. While he paid homage
��CHARLES J. MULLALY, S.J.
�OBITUARY
253
to the essentials of propriety, he was prone to regard
the embellishments as necessarily insincere and artificial. No pomp and circumstance for him. It was a
boyish weakness. The episode of our Lord's defense
of the .little children against the shocked apostles had a
special appeal for him. With him the St. Theresa of
France came before her of Spain. In his sermons
and retreats he always dwelt on the need of approaching Christ and His angels and saints with the directness and simplicity of a child.
JAMES J. DALY, S.J.
FATHER CHARLES J. MULLALY
1877-1949
To his many friends and acquaintances among the
clergy, religious and laity, word of Father Mullaly's
death at the Jesuit Novitiate, Wernersville, on Tuesday, October 25, 1949, brought a feeling of sorrow for
the loss of a holy priest and dear friend. Newspapers
and periodicals which four years previously had
honored him on the occasion of his golden jubilee as
a Jesuit, paid their final tribute to one whom many
people considered the greatest apostle of the Sacred
Heart in the United States within our times. Truly
apostolic in its scope and aim, the life work of this
remarkable Jesuit tells a story of extraordinary devotion and love for the Sacred Heart and the Society
of Jesus.
Born in Washington, D. C., on September 19, 1877,
Charles J. Mullaly was tlle son of Charles and
Catharine Groghan Mullaly, the first couple to be
married with a Nuptial Mass in the then newly-built
Church of the Immaculate Conception in that city. He
received his early education in the parish school of the
Immaculate ,and later at Gonzaga College, from which
he graduated in June 1895. The memories of these
two places lived with him throughout his life and
�254
.OBITUARY
he frequently spoke with affection of his home pa,rish
and high school days with the Jesuits.
On August 14, 1895 Charles Mullaly entered the
famous old novitiate of the Society at Frederick, where
he had as novice-master, the renowned Father John
H. O'Rourke. Here in this historic old town of Maryland passed the first five years of his life as a Jesuit.
(In those days the juniorate course was three years.)
A fellow-Jesuit looking back on the years when he
and Father were novices together remembers him as
very devout, shy and rather frail. In fact, poor health
was something which he had to cope with often in
in his seventy-two years. Yet on occasion Father was
heard to remark that his health never interfered with
his work, and that he had been the only one to survive
the little group of four who shared the same dormitory
during noviceship days. Three of the group died at
an early age of consumption.- ..
When Father Mullaly came to Woodstock in 1900
to begin philosophy, superiors were greatly concerned
about his eye-sight. So impaired was his vision at this
time that it was feared he could not proceed with the
Society's difficult course of studies. Doctors had forbidden him to use his eyes for more than ten minutes
a day. It was only a few years before his death when,
to encourage another Jesuit, he told of the day that
he had been summoned-by the Rector at Woodstock
who asked him how he ever expected to continue the
course under such a handicap. His reply on that occasion was one which reflected the outlook of his whole".·
life: "God has called me to the Society, and He will
see that I stay here." Though his philosophy had to
be interrupted by a year of teaching at Fordham, he
returned to complete the last two years of that study
which he successfully mastered. Many were to learn
in his later life that he could still explain the subtle
points of philosophical questions and distinguish as
cleverly as any student of the reasoned science.
From 1904 till 1908 Father was ag~ain back at
Fordham as a teacher and prefect, and was able to
�OBITUARY
255
finish the ordinary five years of regency. He passed
down many a story of the rugged life, especially for
a prefect, in our boarding schools of those years. That
he had been a good disciplinarian none who knew him
could doubt, for until the end of his life he retained
the sense of humor, of fair play and ability to handle
a difficult situation which endeared him to all.
In the summer of 1908 Father Mullaly was back at
Woodstock for theology and what he thought would be
a four-year stay. To his surprise orders were changed
and I think anyone of Ours who knew him at Wernersville could retell almost verbatim the story of that
sudden change. Shortly •after his return to Woodstock,
Father Anthony J. Maas, the Rector, sent for him:
"Mr. Mullaly," began the Rector, "I see you are not
staying with us." "Not staying," replied the bewildered
theologian, "but, F·ather, where am I going?" "To
Spain," was the Rector's reply. "Spain, but where in
Spain?" asked the Scholastic. "To Tortosa, Mr. Mullaly; there is a train out of here this afternoon and
you are to be on it," said the Rector. "And I was,"
Father afterwards told us laughingly.
This was his only briefing for the next four years
of life as a theologian at the Colegio de Jesus, Tortosa,
Spain. The experience of those years made a lasting
impression. At the time of his arrival, Spain was in
the throes of •an anti-Catholic revolution and everywhere churches and religious houses were being set
on fire by a radical element. Such scenes Father often
saw from the windows of our college there, and he had
hair-raising accounts to relate of the extraordinary
means Ours had to take to protect themselves from
violence and death. As usual, anti-Catholic propaganda
in our country was destroying the facts. Father Mullaly was among the first to put the true story before
the American public and his vivid writings on the
affairs in Spain at that period won him the post of
Spanish correspondent from 1909 till 1912 for the
newly-founded review, America. His years in Spain
and his knowledge of the Church there again proved
�256
OBIJ'UARY
valuable to Catholic journalism in making known the
truth about the Church and refuting attacks made
on Spain, especially, during the last civil war there.
When secular newspapers published false reports concerning the conflict, F·ather not only in his own writings but by the information he supplied to Catholic
papers and periodicals did much to refute the
various calumnies published against Catholic leaders
and the Catholic people of that country.
As a student of theology he made the acquaintance
as teacher and friend of the internationally famous
Jesuit moralist, Father John Baptist Ferreres. Often
he spoke to us of the saintly life of this learned
priest, and it was a ,great joy to him when he learned
in 1944 that Father Ferreres' cause of beatification
had been introduced at Rome. (An appreciation of
Fr. Ferreres was written by Fr. Mullaly for the
Woodstock Letters in the Marclf,··1944 issue.)
Ordained a priest in 1911, Father remained in
Spain for the fourth year of theology, and on his return to the States in 1912 was assigned to teach at
Gonzaga for a year before tertianship which he made
at St. Andrew-on-Hudson.
With the long course of studies completed, the status
for 1914 sent him to Fordham as Prefect of Discipline.
This was his work for tw9 years, and then followed
a year of missionary work in Reading, Jamaica. The
variety of occupations was valuable as preparation for
the work which he was to undertake in 1917 when, on
returning to this country, he was assigned to the
staff of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart. Thus began
the labors which were to occupy the major part of
his priestly life.
For four years Father Mullaly was Assistant Editor,
and for twenty-one years Editor of The Messenger
and National Director of the Apostleship of Prayer.
His administration is often referred to as the modern
era of The Messenger of the Sacred Heart, which era
really had its beginning in the phenomenal work of
his two immediate predecessors, Father John H.
~
�OBITUARY
257
O'Rourke and Father John Corbett. When the former
became Editor in 1907, The Messenger had a circulation of about 27,500 ; when he finished his term in
1917 there were 342,000 subscribers. Father Mullaly's
first great project was to build on Fordham Road the
beautiful stone structure which now houses the efficient plant and office building of the League and
Messenger. Thus with the newest methods and machinery he was able to add illustration and color to his
magazine which continued to reach over 300,000
readers each month. This was no small achievement
when we consider it was necessary at that time to
increase the subscription rate from fifty cents to a
dollar a year. Yet all this still fell far short of his
ideal. He envisioned the enrollment of every American
Catholic in the League of the Sacred Heart and the
appearance of the Messenger in every Catholic home.
No effort was too great which would further this end.
But his most enduring monument was the knowledge
and love of the Sacred Heart which he brought to so
many thousands of hearts and homes.
Even with all this activity, Father found time to
write and publish many books ,and pamphlets which
enjoyed widespread popularity. His message was
mostly for the lay audience, though there is much in
his writings for religious too. Along the lines of
story-telling, his little books, The Priest Who Failed
and The Bravest of the Virginia Cavalry, found their
way into many Catholic homes. Besides these he
wrote many stories with a Catholic theme, and so
great was the output at times that, besides his own
name, he wrote under three noms de plume: Francis
Goodwin, Paul Winslow and William B. Woods. Much
to his amusement he received under these three names
invitations to join v,arious literary societies. In 1937
appeared the little booklet, Could You Explain Catholic
Practices?, which he wrote to help the faithful better
understand the content of the Faith, and which he
thought would be useful to have for inquiring non-
�258
OBITUARY
Catholic friends. This work reached an audience of
over 65,000.
The ,great amount of retreat work which he did
among Sisters brought him face to face with the
numerous difficulties they encountered in their lives
of dedication and sacrifice. With a view to helping
them spiritually he compiled the two little books
Spiritual Reflections for Sisters, perhaps his best
known work. Translated into four languages, the circulation was more than 102,000 copies.
At the time of his golden jubilee as a Jesuit, it was
computed that Father Mullaly's many articles in
various publications numbered more than a hundred
million copies,-no slight accomplishment when we
realize that, during the years while this writing was
being. done, he found time to participate in the works
of numerous associations. Among other posts for many
years he held office in the Catholic Press Association
and formulated its advertising ethical code. He contributed to the Catholic Encyclopedia, was a consultor
for the permanent organization for National Eucharistic Congresses, a Trustee of Fordham University, a
member of the Board of Directors of the Xavier Free
Publication Society for the Blind and for two years
Director of the Woodstock Aid Association. For years
he was Superior at Kohlman Hall and associated with
the Loyola House of Retreats at Morristown and the
Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs at Auriesville. In 1929
he was the preacher at the Solemn Pontifical Mass for
the International Eucharistic Congress held in:
Chicago, and his personal efforts did much to further- ·
and popularize the cause of Venerable Kateri
Tekakwitha. It was his happy experience to see the
First Friday Communion of Reparation introduced
into nearly every parish in the United States.
While conducting a pilgrimage of members of the
Apostleship of Prayer to Rome for the beatification
of Blessed Claude de la Colombiere in 1929, he wrote
for one of his columns in the Messenger: "We could
not but help wishing that the day will soon come
�OBITUARY
259
when there will not be a single Catholic in the United
States who is not a member of this great band of lovers
of Christ, who daily strive to spread His Kingdom
and to sanctify their lives by the 'Morning Offering,'
and by the practice, especially, of the Third Degree or
Communion of Reparation."
The labors of these busy years took their toll. His
health, which had never been vigorous, began to force
a let-up on some of his activities. Towards the end of
his tenure as editor he underwent several serious
operations at St. Vincent's Hospital in New York.
Doctors felt that he was living on borrowed time, and
he himself began to realize that the hour was near
when he would have to relinquish the work he loved
so much and turn his efforts to less strenuous .tasks.
The status of 1941 brought the change. Before the announcement of his retirement was made public, Father
Provincial felt that he could do valuable work as
spiritual director for our Scholastics. True to the
Ignatian indifference he had practiced all his life,
Father refused to state a preference when given his
choice of any one of our houses. He was assigned to
Wernersville as spiritual father to the juniors and
community.
With his usual enthusiasm he undertook the new
post and for the last eight years of his life he did truly
great work for the younger generation of Jesuits. At
the Novitiate his work for the Sacred Heart did not
diminish, but was merely channeled into different
streams. Here his devotion to common life was a source
of edification to all. Eager that the juniors should grow
in the spirit of the Society, he took a keen interest in
all their activities, great and small, and their lives
were enriched with the priestly care he showed for
their problems. For the discouraged, there were always
words of cheer; when someone had difficulties with
studies, he was understanding and encouraging. If he
thought that a Scholastic was misunderstood or treated
unfairly, he was the first to befriend him.
Father arose each morning before the bell summoned
�260
OBiTUARY
the community, and he offered Mass in the small
infirmary chapel. Afterwards he brought our Lord in
Holy Communion to the sick, to whom he was always
very devoted. When the juniors returned to their rooms
after breakfast, he was already at his desk and the
day's work had begun. His door was always open for
those who needed his help.
Diligent preparation went into his retreats, tridua,
points and monthly exhortations which he worked out
in careful outline. With a very practical outlook he
tried to prepare the juniors for their future lives as
Jesuits. A man of prayer himself, he was anxious that
those who came under his spiritual care should live
prayerful lives of intimate union with our Lord. The
practice of frequent spiritual communions throughout
the day was one among the many beautiful devotions
he taught us, and a means he used himself to live close
to the Sacred Heart of Christ in word and work. His
was the Jesuit's manly devotion to our Lady. He
dearly loved the Society and jealously ,guarded against
anything which would hurt its spirit or reputation.
At story-telling Father Mullaly was a master. He
put so much into a story that, when it was finished,
one couldn't miss the point he wished to illustrate.
Those who made his tridua will long remember the
famous story of the difficult mission of Fernando Po
with which he used to illustrate the doctrine he never
tired preaching-utter abnegation of self-will, selflove and self-interest. To him these were a Jesuit's
worst enemies and he constantly warred against~:.
them. This was the doctrine by which he lived and the
stimulus which saw him through many trials. On
occasions when he was not well another might offer to
substitute for him in ,giving points or an exhortation;
but so long as he could keep going he would never
give in. The monthly casus was prepared long before
the scheduled date, and the "his in mense" sign appeared on the juniors' board notifying them with
punctual regularity of the bi-weekly colloquia. His
exhortations treated any phase of a Jesuit's life, from
�OBITUARY
261
travel suggestions for those who would be journeying
to distant parts for philosophy to a deeper insight into
lgnatian spirituality. This latter was back of his
insistence that our Scholastics in their early years
of formation should be guided in the ascetical life
solely by the masters of Jesuit spirituality. He often
joined the juniors in their afternoon recreations and
could enliven any gathering with his stories of the
past. Every place he had lived and each experience
had become a part of him to give to others.
On first acquaintance one might have gotten the
impression that Father Mullaly was by nature stern
and rigid. But to one in difficulty the reserved exterior
readily vanished and the warm priestly heart was
there to help. He was very sensitive and recoiled from
anything unrefined or vulgar in those who were called
to be companions of Christ. Having suffered ~a great
deal himself from thoughtlessness on the part of
others, he tried to instill in our young men a charity
and thoughtfulness for all. These qualities he taught by
example and word, for he was a perfect gentleman
as well as ~n inspiring priest.
August 15, 1945 marked the completion of Father
MuHaly's fifty years in the Society. In keeping with
his wishes the event was quietly cel~brated and
limited to the community at Wernersville and a few
life-long Jesuit friends. The congratulations he received from every part of the world were a grateful
testimony to the consolation he had given to souls.
He was especially pleased with the recognition which
the Catholic press had given him in gratitude for
the quarter of a century he had devoted to the pioneering cause for a Catholic literature in this country.
One literary publication made the interesting observation at this time that Father Mullaly, who had
been National Director of the Apostleship of Prayer
and Editor of The Messenger, was at the time of his
golden jubilee holding a post similar to that which
Father Francis X. Gautrelet, S.J., occupied when on
December 3, 1844 he proposed his plan for an apostle-
�262
OBiTUARY
ship of prayer. The latter had been at the time spiritual
director of Jesuit students at Vals, France; the former
was directing the spiritual life of the young Jesuits
at Wernersville.
Towards the end of December, 1948 Father went to
Washington, D. C., to give a triduum to the Sisters
at Trinity College. While there he stayed at Gonzaga
and on request was taken through the school buildings
which brought back many memories for him. After
dinner on New Year's, 1949, one of the Scholastics accompanied him to Union Station where he boarded the
train to return to the Novitiate. Along the way Father
had many comments to make on the changed and
changing place of his birth. This was the last visit
he made to his native city.
By March 1949 he was still active but noticeably
not well. On the twentieth he g~ve an exhortation to
the community, on the twenty-third he conducted
the monthly casus and on the thirty-first he went
over to Villa Maria to hear the Sisters' confessions.
In early spring his last eight-day retreat was given to
over one hundred Sisters of Mercy at Mount Saint
Agnes, Baltimore. At the close of the retreat some
of his immediate family came over from Washington
to visit him. They did not know that it was to be for
the last time.
On May 28 the doctor ordered him to St. Joseph's
Hospital, Reading. While there he was given many
transfusions but there was no success in establishing
a proper balance between the red and white corpuscles.-- .·
Apart from the transfusions there seemed nothing
medical aid could do to help him. He had been scheduled
to give three retreats during the summer, and all
during his time in the hospital he kept saying he
must get well in time to take care of them. On July
25, very tired and weakened, he returned to the
house infirmary. At first he would sit up a good part
of the day, but ·before the summer was out he took to
his bed for good. All during the summer and autumn
he suffered intensely, but always very patiently.
�OBITUARY
263
When he went to the hospital he must have felt
that his days were near the end. Going through the
books on his desk afterwards, markers were found
in some of them where the authors were treating of
the last sacraments or of burial. Towards the end
he slept a great deal, and may very well have pretended
to be sleeping when visitors came because the effort
to speak was too much for him. In the midst of his
sufferings he continued to think of others. To a life
already full of charities he added the final one. At the
last, learning of the serious illness of his dear friend,
Father Dominic Hammer, he offered his own life that
Father's might be spared. "Greater love than this no
man has."
LEO P. MONAHAN, S.J.
FATHER WILLIAM SMITH
1877-1950
At Port Townsend, Washington, on March 3, 1950,
died Father William E. Smith, S.J., in the 74th year of
his life and his 54th year in the Society of Jesus.
Born May 20, 1877, in Cheyenne, Wyoming, he
moved to Spokane, Washington, at an early age and
became an apprentice in the printer's trade before
entering Gonzaga College. Upon graduation he entered
the Society of Jesus, August 29, 1896, as a novice at
DeSmet, Idaho. Having spent his second year novitiate
at Los Gatos, California, he pronounced his first simple
vows in 1898.
The next three years, he taught and studied at St.
Ignatius, Montana, and from 1901 to 1904, applied himself to the three year philosophy course at Gonzaga
College, at that time the philosophate of the Rocky
Mountain Mission. He remained there as a teacher for
the year 1905. The two following years he taught at
Seattle College, the first of four such teaching assignments at that college.
�264
OBITUARY
From 1907 to 1911 he was engaged in theological
studies at St. Louis University, being ordained there
in 1910. He returned to Seattle College for a three
year teaching period, before spending the year of his
tertianship, 1915-1916, at St.-Andrew-on-Hudson,
Poughkeepsie, New York. The years 1916 to 1918 saw
him as professor at Gonzaga University; while there,
he pronounced his last vows, February 2, 1917. He
spent the years 1918 to 1924 at Seattle College, in
a role now familiar to him, that of teacher.
He got his first taste of parish work in 1925 at
St. Francis Xavier's in Missoula, Montana, where he
also found time to do some teaching in the then
functioning Loyola High School. His parish work was
momentarily interrupted in 1926 by his last year of
teaching, once more at Seattle College.
St. Jude's Church, Havre, ¥imtana, was the next
scene of his parish labors from 1927 to 1933. This was
followed by seven years as pastor of St. Joseph's in
Yakima, where he endeared himself to all by his quiet
and unassuming ways. Seattle College once again
claimed him from 1940 to 1943, not as a teacher, however, but as minister and assistant procurator. After
that, in what proved to be his last four years in the
parish apostolate, he held the office of assistant pastor
at St. Leo's, Tacoma, Washington. From 1947 to his
death, he acted as spiritual father for the tertians
at Port Townsend.
Father Smith belonged to that vast army of soldiers .
in God's Church of whom it is difficult to say much.~-_.
There was nothing particularly singular in him, but
rather he was outstanding for the general qualities of
a man of peace. His graciousness, modesty, and selfeffacement stamped him as an essentially humble man.
He was refined and dignified, yet never pretentious
or affected. His chief virtue, an unquestioning loyalty
to duty, won him the respect and veneration of those
with whom he labored, and the love of those whom he
served.
GERARD G. STECKLER, S.J.
�OBITUARY
265
BROTHER ANDREW HARTMANN
1874-1949
"Andrew Hartmann, born October 13, 1874; died
August 8, 1949. Coadjutor of the Society of Jesus."
So reads the simple inscription on the tombstone; but
it fails to tell the burning love and zeal of a man truly
devoted to the ideals of St. Ignatius and a close
model of St. Joseph.
Born in Kempten, Bavaria, he completed seven grades
of schooling and three years of night school learning
carpentry before he was called to a two year period
of military training in 1890. Four more years saw
him become a master carpenter. On September 30,
1896, he entered the novitiate at Feldkirch with the
intention of becoming a missionary. In 1902 he was
assigned to St. Anne's parish Buffalo, N. Y., as
sacristan. He was stationed there three years in spite
of the fact that he disliked the work, and longed to
do the work for which he was better fitted.
When he finally arrived at St. Francis Mission
among the Rosebud Sioux in 1905, the mission needed
a man of his abilities and character badly. He began
his work by converting an old shed into a carpenter
shop whose equipment was only a few hand tools.
School boys were sent to him as assistants and he began
training them well, although he spoke little English
and no Dakota. His external mannerism was stern, but
it covered a heart of kindness and understanding. His
patience and sincere interest in their work soon won
their lifelong confidence so that the Indians brought
their family and religious problems to him. He was as
much interested in building ,good characters as in
training good carpenters.
His skill and ability were shown in an outstanding
manner in 1916 when the frame buildings of the mission burnt to the ground in a few hours. In order to
rebuild the mission he became architect by night,
general supervisor by day. He directed several crews
�266
OBITUARY
of his trained Indian boys and men at the same time
as one building after another gradually rose from the
ground. He ordered his own supplies. And today every
building at the mission is the product of his work, including the church and its furniture.
He was loaned to Holy Rosary Mission to build their
famous Red Cloud Hall, and went to St. Stephen's
Mission to build its main and largest building. The Mission chapels, some twenty-five in number, are his
work, besides several churches in two dioceses. All
these buildings are great monuments to a great man,
but they tell only one side of his character.
As a boy he had learned to play the violin. This was
enough justification for superiors to put him in charge
of the school band. He borrowed musical instruments,
learned how to play them, then for over twenty years
taught the boys in the grades ·how to make music.
In spite of all his success he was humble and
obedient. If the man had any vanity, it was in his
flaming red beard. He wore it full, and was seen
to stroke it whenever he paused for a moment's
thought. He was a community man of exact observance, prompt and ready for each exercise, never seeking privileges, but always willing to be of assistance to
everyone, doing favors unasked. There is no doubt
that he had a temper thaE matched his beard, and,
,given cause, occasionally it broke through the surface
of his usually twinkling eyes and smiling countenance.
But he was uneasy until he had apologized and soothed __ _
the ruffled spirit.
During the last few months of his life, just short of
forty-five active years in the same house, he was
impatient with himself because his failing strength
made him depend more on others, and because his
eyes were too poor and his energies too small to allow
him to continue a full day's work; but even then he
reported regularly to his work bench repairing chairs
and other small furniture. His end, though not unexpected, came suddenly and peacefully.
�Books of Interest to Ours
A PROUD PAGEANT
Jesuits Go East. By Felix Alfred Plattner. Translated from
the German by Lord Sudley and Oscar Blobel. Dublin,
Clonmore and Reynolds, Ltd., 1950. Pp. 283. 16s.
"The whistle of winds in the rigging and the tang of flying
spume is in these pages, but it is the bravery of the men concerned, men without the slightest idea that they were being
brave, which is the real exhilaration." This is Father Brodrick's tribute to Felix Plattner's (Swiss) "absorbing and
heart-warming book." The publishers have been justly and
violently criticized for their failure to include the brief notes and
the index which are to be found at the end of the German
edition which appeared in 1946. The critics should have included in their indictment the omission of Father Plattner's
significant dedication, "Zwei Miittern zugeeignet," and of his
very brief but extremely relevant Foreword. It is there that
we learn how lucky we are to have this book which will undoubtedly become a classic of Jesuit historical literature.
Father Plattner writes:
When at the beginning of the War the borders of
our land were closed and it became impossible for me to
travel to the land of my desires, I began to console myself
by the ·study of old mission travels. And so this little
volume was born, a tribute of my grateful veneration. I
did not intend to write a commentary but rather a factual
account. Therefore the style will not be characterized by
editorial remarks but by plain reporting. Most of the
material in the pages that follow was written by the very
men who lived the experiences that are related and accomplished the heroic deeds that are recorded.
The book is a saga of the Jesuit Missions in the East from
the departure of Francis Xavier in 1541 to the death of Gottfried Xavier von Laimbeckhoven in a suburb of Shanghai on
May 22, 1786. It is a magnificent dramatization of the Spiritual
Exercises translated into historical reality. It recalls the
boasting of Paul (2 Cor. XI, 16 ff.), " ... in journeying often,
in perils from floods, in perils from robbers, in perils from my
own nation, in perils from the Gentiles, in perils in the city,
in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils
from false brethren . . . " It reads like a feature article
discussing candidates for "All American" honors in the realm
of Jesuit Mission activity, Xavier, De Britto, Ricci, Valignani,
Schall, De Goes, Verbiest, Mastrilli, and so many others of
equal or greater stature.
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BOO~
REVIEWS
The pages of Father Plattner's book are so consistently informative that it would convey a false impression if a reviewer were to single out for comment particular incidents or
characters. This is the biography of a group of men, the
story of a great social phenomenon that transcends the limits
of localized accomplishment and of individual heroism. About
the phenomenon the reader comes to realize that the success
of the missions in the East was rooted in the organization and
spirit of the Society of Jesus, especially in its disciplined and
corporate functioning and in the lgnatian principle of enthusiastic obedience.
Three features characterize the missiOnaries as a group.
First of all, and with a striking primacy, they were men who
loved the Society of Jesus with a passionate devotion. It
should be noted, lest to us who may not love her so, their
devotion may seem excessive, that for those men the measure
of their love for Christ was their devotion to the Society.
Secondly, they were endowed with rare competence and selfreliance. Their third great characteristic was the incredible
capacity for labor and for suffering -\vhich they manifested in
their failures no less than in their successes. One further impression is made upon the reader whose interest in these days
is being focused more and more upon the East. It is the
realization of the contributions of those early Jesuit missionaries to our own era. It is not easy to assess the value of all
those contributions but, as one reads Father Plattner's book,
one develops a conviction that the situation in the East would
be much worse today if the Jesuits had not gone East in the
sixteenth century.
Another Jesuit, Archbishop Roberts, has said of this book:
"It is all too rare for entertainment to be so well blended with
instruction." It is unlikely that any reader will disagree with
this opinion.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
-A 1\IAN'S ERRAND
Jesuit and Savage in New France. By J. H. Kennedy. New
'Haven, Yale University Press, 1950. Pp. 206. $3.75.
This book received an over-favorable and, in fact, a misleading notice in the 1950 "Fall Book Number" of America. The
following paragraphs are written to correct the impression
which that notice was likely to create in regard to two points.
The first of these is that the work before us is largely dedicated
to the thesis that Rousseau, Voltaire and other eighteenth cen-
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269
tury rationalists fabricated the myth of the "'noble savage"
largely out of the raw materials supplied by Jesuit accounts of
missionary experiences among the North American Indians.
Actually this point is of very minor importance in Dr. Kennedy's book. The only rationalist whose ideas he traces, even
by implication, to Jesuit sources is Rousseau and that is done
in the most summary fashion and in a single sentence which
we quote: "In the Discourse on Inequality Rousseau drew
heavily on the accounts from New France for his conception
of the savage, who, he imagined, simply existed, like an animal.'' Readers who wish to find a documented evaluation of
Rousseau's real and heavy indebtedness to the Jesuit accounts
of the savages need not read Dr. Kennedy. They will find
what they seek in Chinard's L'Amerique et la reve exotique dans
la litterature frant;aise au XVII et XVIII siecle.
The reviewer in America goes on to praise Dr. Kennedy as
"an able historian who is equally competent in portraying the
Jesuits, the Indians and the ideological relationship between
New France and the mother country." Let us grant that in
some ten years time, if the young author develops the talent
his book reveals, this praise may be merited. At the present
moment it is quite premature. Jesuit and Savage is a student
thesis, the core of which is a careful if pedestrian synopsis
of the anthropological material in the Relaticms, that is, of
various missionaries' descriptions of the physique, intelligence
and culture of the tribes with which they came into contact.
Dr. Kennedy's comment on this material represents amateur
anthropology of very questionable value. His claim to competence as a historian must rest upon his long historical account of the French settlement of Canada and of missionary
endeavor which accompanied it. This account merely as a narrative is lively, but because of awkward arrangement, far
from clear. When as a historical critic or interpreter Dr.
Kennedy attempts to deal with the ideological relationship between France and Canada he is drawn into waters beyond his
depth. There he drowns. To drop the metaphor, he is so
far from competent to deal with such matters as Catholic
theology or the ethos of our Society that as often as not, he
falls into that most ludicrous of blunders, the half-truth,
whenever he touches an idea or a value in these fields.
It is perhaps obvious to what conclusion these remarks are
tending. A gifted, earnest and honorable scholar has attempted
to interpret a characteristic Catholic enterprise, and has failed
because of the inadequacy of his religious culture. In his
bibliographical notes he complains that we Jesuits likewise have
failed to write "a comprehensive and impartial," that is, presumably, a scientific and critical history of our order. Can it
be that both secular and Jesuit graduate schools are attempting
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BOOK "'REVIEWS
tasks disproportionate to their resources? Might it be better
that non-Catholics should avoid attempting an interpretation of
an ideal of life which requires years of patient study to understand, and that clerical scholars for their part should concentrate in the rich and unharvested fields of cultural history
which every day of their religious lives, every year of their
ascetical, philosophical and theological training serves to illuminate and make more significant? Such a division of labor
seems well adapted to promote the advancement of learning.
It might increase our confidence to know that Jesuit publications would be well staffed with scholars competent to discuss
books on Jesuit affairs.
J. A. SLATTERY, S.J.
A STORY OF LOVE
The Sacred Heart: Yesterday and Today. By Arthur R. McGratty, S.J. New York, Benziger Bros., 1951. Pp. xiv-306.
$3.50.
Since it is our Lord's design that the members of the Society "must endeavor to obtain all their light from the Sacred
Heart," any book which treats of this subject should be of
interest to Ours. In the works of Fathers de Gallifet and
Bainvel we already possess a precious heritage of such writings. Nevertheless this book, up-to-date and informative, fills
a real need.
Written in the same light and fast-moving style which has
characterized the author's columns in the Messenger and his
earlier writings, this work offers a very competent treatment
of the nature and history of the devotion to the Sacred Heart.
The devotion is traced from its earliest roots, through the
storms of the Reformation and the blight of Jansenism, as it
developed through the efforts of St. Margaret Mary and Blessed
Claude de la Colombiere, and finally blossomed forth in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, thanks to Pope Leo XIII and his
successors, as one of the central devotions of the Church.
The work of St. John Eudes, the Fathers of the Enthronement, and of the other early and present day apostles of the
Sacred Heart has not been neglected; but the part played by
members of the Society from St. Peter Canisius to Brother
Claude Ramaz has been given the fullest treatment. The concise explanation of the nature of the devotion given in the first
chapter is very well done, as are the sections dealing with the
development of the Apostleship of Prayer and the League of
the Sacred Heart, and the nature of devotion to the Immacu-
~
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271
late Heart of Mary with its relation to the devotion towards the
Heart of her Divine Son. The supplement containing the
more common prayers and devotions to the Sacred Heart further enhances the value of this book.
Although The Sacred Heart: Yesterday and Today is mainly
an historical study of the background and development of devotion to the Sacred Heart, the story of love which it portrays gives it value as a devotional book as well. Though evidently the product of serious study, except for the select bibliography it will probably not be too helpful as a reference
book. Since, however, it is very easy and informative reading
and has been written by one who deeply appreciates the
message of the Sacred Heart, this book will be most helpful for
Ours who would like a general picture of the importance and
development of this devotion so proper to the Society.
RoBERT T. RusH, S.J.
THOSE WHO WALK BLAMELESSLY
Better A Day. Edited by John P. Leary, S.J. New York, The
Macmillan Co., 1951. Pp. xi-341. $4.00.
This collection of fifteen biographies, all dealing with a single
type of Jesuit religious life, covers a wide variety of the
multiple possibilities in the fulfillment of such a vocation.
Among the fifteen Coadjutor Brothers of the Society of Jesus,
who are vividly portrayed by fifteen of their modern brothers in
Christ (the authors are Scholastics of the Oregon and California Provinces, in the theologate at Alma), two belong to
the sixteenth century, six to the seventeenth, one each to the
eighteenth and nineteenth and five to our present century. Of
the group, two are French, two German, two Irish, two Italian
and two Japanese. Belgium, England, Portugal, Spain and the
United States each claim one. Three canonized saints and three
who have been beatified are included. Of these, five shed their
blood for the Faith they loved and lived. In this book we meet
a Bavarian transplanted in America, a Belgian in Africa; we
find an Italian and a Portuguese in China, an Irishman in
California, and another Italian in Alaska.
Backgrounds are carefully outlined and filled in by the
biographers. The spirit of the times in which their heroes
lived is realistically described. Moralizing is cleverly veiled
or omitted. From Preface to Epilogue the life of a Jesuit
Brother is presented as attractive, even adventurous, despite
the monotonous stretches encountered at times by those who
follow in the footsteps of Alphonsus.
A revision of the table of contents for greater clarity, and a
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BOOK "REVIEWS
close check on the accuracy of all available historical dates
will improve the second edition, which, we are sure, will be
demanded by enthusiastic readers.
J. CALVERT BROWN, S.J.
IN PRAISE OF A POET
Baroque Moment. By Francis Sweeney. New York, The Declan X. McMullen Co., 1951. Pp. 64. $2.50.
"'Who touches this book touches a man," said Whitman of his
Leaves of Grass. Father Sweeney (New England Province),
could say the same of this little book of poems which record
the high moments of his years of formation in the Society. The
pieces which 11re evidently the fruit of his days in the juniorate
and philosophate are of course derivative, that is, they show
traces of the influence of admired models, such as Housman,
Frost, Masters, Leonard Feeney and the early Eliot. But it
should be noticed that these are all contemporary and nco-Symbolist figures. They have made available a new range of
sensibility and a new instrument of 'expression, and so they
have served Father Sweeney not as models to imitate but as
liberators who have helped him to feel and convey what was
most vital and personal in his own experience. In what seems
to be the second phase of his development the influence of
Father Hopkins begins to appear, but even that highly mannered master has not caused Father Sweeney to swerve from
his path.
We expect a young poet to be sweet and fresh; a mature
man, above all a priest, to be broad, warm and strong. About
three quarters of the way through his book Father Sweeney's
voice changes. Here we catch a new tone. There is no longer
question of admiring verbal felicity or the subtlety of youthful
fancy. With The Monk to His Lord a poet of authentic power
announces his arrival. One feels that the message of Emerson
to Whitman, "I greet you at the beginning of a great career"
would not seem altogether grotesque in the circumstances.
Lest all this seem the doting fondness of an old Jesuit
Father for a young one, read the following opinions of some
highly qualified externs :
Daniel Sargent says:
This is the poetry of one who has an eye for landscape,
an intimacy with fields and hills. It will be liked for its
quiet unity, its gentle audacities, its familiar sublimity.
Mounting a step higher we find Sister Madeleva saying:
He confuses neither himself nor his readers with the
babel of contemporary poetic tongues nor their pitiable tech-
~·
�BOOK REVIEWS
273
niques of escape. Warmth and humanity, certainty, clarity,
inevitable rightness inform the entire text.
And from near the apex of contemporary poetry, Father
Thomas Merton says:
This is a book that has real poems in it. The poet has a
penetrating and wise eye, an eloquent and tender and
flexible idiom, and a heart full of sympathies which flow
along a whole level of American experience-experience
which he puts on paper as well as it has ever yet been done.
J. A. SLATTERY, S.J.
A WISE DIRECTOR
Father Steuart. By Katherine Kendall.
1950. Pp. x-270. 15s.
London, Burns Oates,
Perhaps the most striking thing about this book is that, after
following its hero from his birth in 1874 to his death in 1948,
and having learned countless details about his ideas, his activities, and his manner, the reader fails to get a clear picture of
Father Steuart. The author leaves no doubt as to her admiration (amounting, at times, to something of adulation), and she
makes a determined effort to present a complete portrait. Yet
the man, somehow or other, eludes her. Perhaps Father Steuart
was too big for anyone not of similar stature to describe. The
author makes a noble but not entirely successful attempt.
This shortcoming, however, does not destroy the value of the
book nor does it make for dullness. The style is crisp, the interest is sustained. Miss Kendall handles the English language
with easy competence, a qualification that guarantees pleasant
reading. Of special interest are the sections that deal with
Father Steuart's activities as a director of souls, an office
at which he excelled. His method is sketched in broad outline
and the details are filled in from his correspondence. These are
fascinating fragments, for, while Father Steuart wrote in a
turgid and somewhat tortuous style, what he had to say was
important and eminently worth reading. It is to be hoped that
the author, with all that correspondence at her disposal, will
make available a larger and more comprehensive selection of
this phase of Father Steuart's work. Since, however, such a
publication is not now at hand, it is recommended to those who
are interested in the guidance of souls that they avail themselves of this opportunity to see, even thus briefly, how skillfully
and artfully that delicate work was accomplished by this remarkable Jesuit.
KURT A. BECKER, S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
SPIRIT AND LIFE
Jesus In His Own Words. Compiled by Harold Roper, S.J.
Westminster, The Newman Press, 1951. Pp. ix-314. $3.25.
The many translations and commentaries on the Gospels
which have recently appeared are a welcome sign that the faith
of Catholics is being continually replenished by recourse to its
inspired sources. The present volume combines into a single
harmony all the words of Christ recorded by the four Evangelists. The beautiful Westminster version is used throughout
with indications of variant readings where the Vulgate is
notably different. Father Roper (English Province) has interwoven a brief explanatory narrative to supplement the sayings
of our Lord and to elucidate them where explanation seems
helpful. The author relies heavily on the recent studies of
Father Lagrange, Father Prat, and others, but this book was
not intended to be a substitute for such commentaries so far
as the serious student is concerned. The lay reader, however,
whether Catholic or non-Catholic, may find here a concise and
reliable introduction to the Person of Christ. Although the
style is somewhat colorless, the book is attractively arranged
and printed. Priests and religious who do not have easy access
to the various recent lives of Christ or to the Westminster version of the New Testament will be grateful to Father Roper
for providing them with a helpful companion to the Gospels.
AVERY
R.
DULLES,
S.J.
SALUTE.\U DICIT
The Nazarene. By Ailbe J. Luddy, O.Cist. Dublin, M. H. Gill
and Son, Ltd., 1950. Pp. xi-200. 10/6.
This is a story of our Lord's public life and passion. Therefore, the excellence of the subject matter being evident, we are·
principally interested in the manner in which the author cas& -·
his account of these three years. Father Luddy tells Christ's
story in modern language (perhaps too modern at times), and
he evokes the impressions, emotions and thoughts, which our
Lord's divine manliness must have roused. The book is characterized by its simplicity and by its evident eagerness to tell
its beloved story. It should give pleasure both to those who
already know that story and to those who will read it for the
first time in these pages. It is true that the Gospels stand on
their own merit but it is equally true that our weak, or at
least periodically weary, imagination needs some stimulation.
Father Luddy narrates the familiar Gospel scenes in the words
of a fictitious correspondence from two young Roman pagans
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BOOK REVIEWS
to their brother, Rusticus, a teacher of rhetoric in the city.
Lucilla and Aurelius, niece and nephew of a Roman official, are
fortunate eye-witnesses of the events which they describe to
Rusticus. Through them-and this is the great value of the
book-we apprehend with greater ease and profit the vivid
reality of the Gospels.
DAVID W. CARROLL, S.J.
PUTTING IT ON THE LINE
Living Your Faith. By Robert Nash, S.J.
tice-Hall, Inc., 1951. Pp. 311. $3.00.
New York, Pren-
This is the American edition of a book that was published
in Dublin last year under the title, Is Life Worthwhile? Either
title is appropriate for this clear and practical development of
the Spiritual Exercises which, though written for laymen, deserves a prominent place in the libraries of religious communities. Father Nash (Irish Province) has established his reputation as an outstanding author of spiritual books by his
excellent •·•Point Books," Send Forth Thy Light, The Priest At
His Prie-Dieu, and several others. This latest volume more
than sustains the author's reputation. The subject-matter is
not novel, the Principle and Foundation, the meditations of
the First Week and the considerations of the Second Week.
The treatment of the matter, likewise, is traditional; we find
no startling suggestions, no short-cuts to sanctity. What,
then, is the great merit of the book? It consists in the sane,
sympathetic and simple manner in which Father Nash expounds
his material. He makes the Spiritual Exercise81 and lgnatian
spirituality real to the individual and pertinent to personal
problems. Every truth is explained: "If you paint a beautiful
picture and give it as a present to your friend you will be
rightfully pained if you discover he has chopped it up to make
firewood." Difficulties are appreciated "'Saints,' somebody
has written, 'like all masterpieces, are made slowly.' " The
practical advice is excellent. At the close of his solid exposition
on how to take issue with temptation the author gives this summary: "Our two practical hints, then, are to let sleeping dogs
lie, and lay in a good store of harmless toys against the day
or the night of temptation."
The author of such a book sails between the Scylla of demanding too much and the Charybdis of asking too little of his
readers. Father Nash brings his volume through with admirable success. His readers will not be discouraged; neither
will they underestimate the cost of sanctity in terms of selfdiscipline. Some educators desiderate a formal course in
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BOOK REVIEWS
Christian asceticism as part of the religious training of our
students. Here is a commendable text-book for such a course.
It should be welcomed especially by our Student Counselors.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
THIS IS THE LIFE
For Goodness Sake. By William Lawson, S.J.
Sheed and Ward. 1951. Pp. 184. $2.25.
New York,
Father Lawson (English Province) begins this extremely
readable treatise on the life of grace and the supernatural virtues with an analogy from the natural order. A newly-born infant and a helpless invalid, by dint of managing to survive,
can both be said to have the gift of life. But neither would be
inclined to stand atop a mountain and, "in delighted awareness
of the throbbing vigor in his veins," shout out: "This is living!
This is the life for mel"
Life is much more and much more precious than merely not
being dead. Sadly enough, many Catholics who recognize this
truth in the natural order and accordingly develop their talents
and achieve worthwhile ambitions, fail to make the transfer
to the supernatural order. There they content themselves with
avoiding mortal sin, with merely being "not dead." Father
Lawson awakens a realization of our supernatural powers and
gives both direction and inspiration to their use. The theological and cardinal virtues, the acquisition of ease and pleasure
in God's presence, the practice of humility, the application of
a Christian set of values: all of these come within the author's
scope. His work, however, is anything but a dull catalogue of
stereotyped formulae. His lively style, replete with examples
which at once clarify and stimulate further thought, should be
most helpful to anyone who is looking for a fresh and appealing
approach in presenting Christian life to others. Sermons and·
conferences could profitably be evolved from many of his short •·
passages, enriched by one's own knowledge of the theory. He
makes some particularly enlightening remarks on respect for
the human person, a Christian use of the gift of speech (including care for the reputation of others), the virtue of hope,
confidence in God, a Catholic approach to major decisions. The
ordinary Catholic layman could read the book with pleasure
and understanding.
The final word of encouragement sums up the theme of the
book: Be ye perfect-that is, complete-by filling your life
with as much of the grace of God as it can hold, and using
that grace to the full.
JOSEPH A. CASEY, S.J.
�BOOK REVIEWS
277
DOWN TO FUNDAMENTALS
Living With God. Pp. xvi-93. $1.50. Some Rare Virtues.
Pp. vi-213. $1.75. Simplicity. Pp. 116. $1.50. By Raoul
Plus, S.J. Westminster, Md., The Newman Press.
These three books, which were published in 1950 and 1951,
are heartily recommended for spiritual reading. The first is a
reprint of a book that appeared in the early 'twenties, a sequel
to the author's well known God In Us. Father Plus (Province
of Champagne) is a master of the informal essay on spiritual
topics. He teaches pleasantly, his lessons are practical, and
he makes use of copious anecdotes. The "Rare Virtues" of
which he treats are gratitude, recollection, good use of time,
moderation, self-possession, patience, reparation and sympathy.
There is no need to belabor the timeliness of such a treatise.
The virtue of simplicity, being fundamental and pervasive, deserves the emphasis of a whole volume. Those who are too
preoccupied with worldly cares, will find Simplicity a very
helpful book.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
A COURSE IN PRAYER
The Prayer of Faith. By Leonard Boase, S.J. Wimbledon,
The Apostleship of Prayer. Pp. 134. 6s. (90c).
This book was written for such "as are seeking God in prayer
and feel within themselves an impulse or a need to grow in
mental prayer." Father Boase (English Province) is the Director of the Apostleship of Prayer in England and he writes
with a rich understanding of the pressures and problems of
modern life. The Prayer of Faith may well be considered the
best treatise on prayer published in English in our generation.
Proof of its value is the double fact that it must be read slowly
and that one rereads it with relish. Father Boase clarifies the
theory of prayer with the ability of a teacher who has mastered
his field, he diagnoses the difficulties of prayer with the assurance of a skilled physician whose remedies are reliable.
"Prayer in the first place," says the author, "means all that
we do to co-operate with God in the making of our souls." This
general definition includes duty, recreation, resignation and
prayer in the stricter sense, i.e., "loving God through some sort
of knowledge, awareness, attention, which is directed to Him,
loving Him through thinking about Him." The author follows
an unusual order by considering the hazards and the need of
faith before he treats mental prayer itself. Although the book
is concerned principally with mental prayer and treats that
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.
BOOK REVIEWS
subject exhaustively, there is an excellent chapter on vocal
prayer. 1\luch more could be said in praise of this volume and
many passages might be cited for their particular excellence.
But Jesuits should get to know the book itself. It will help
them to pray better and to direct others more effectively. And
it can be recommended to laymen and to our students who
are interested in a life of prayer.
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
l\IEDITATIONS ON THE ACTS
The Risen Dead. By Thomas H. Moore, S.J. New York, McMullen Books, Inc., 1951. Pp. 185. $2.50.
Father Moore (New York Province) is the editor of The
Messenger of the Sacred Heart. He is the author of several
spiritual books including The Darkness Is Past and I Also Send
You. The present volume is compo:Sed of reflections and the
material is based for the most part on the Acts of the Apostles.
Each chapter is a short description of some incident from the
history of the Church of the Apostles. These incidents are
recounted in a manner that makes them understandable and
real to the ordinary reader of today. The doctrinal implications and practical significance of each selection are driven home
in crisp and concrete idiom. The emphasis throughout is on
dogmas that have contemporary appeal: our social solidarity
in Christ, the newness of the life which baptism brings, the
primacy of love, and similar themes.
This book can be equally recommended for meditations or for
sermon material.
~
JAMES M. CARMODY, S.J.
..- ...·
ANOTHER FOR THE LAITY
The Vital Christian. By Fulbert Cayre, A.A. Translated from
the French by Robert C. Healey, New York, P. J. Kenedy
and Sons. Pp. xiv-137. $2.00.
This book by an eminent French member of the Congregation
of Augustinians of the Assumption is another indication of the
heartening and growing trend towards a great preoccupation
with the sanctification of the laity. Father Cayre writes for the
layman. The book is divided into two parts, the first of which
proposes and briefly develops the principles on which a Christian's life must be based, awareness of vocation, motivation of
�BOOK REVIEWS
279
charity, the primacy of Christ, and the personal responsibilities
of fostering the life of grace, of prayer and of self-denial. The
second part, "His Field of Action," applies these principles to
life in the concrete, to man's dealings with his fellow-man, to
marriage, to the performance of one's labor or profession and
to politics. The book is admittedly compendious and "suggestive rather than specific." For those who are working with
lay people and for intelligent laymen Father Cayre has written
a valuable introduction to the devout life.
JOHN
J.
NASH,
S.J.
FOR STUDENTS OF CLAUDEL
Introduction to Paul Claude!. By Mary Ryan.
Blackwell for Cork University Press, 1951.
Oxford, B. H.
Pp. 111. 7/6.
Miss Ryan's book is addressed to the student of French poetry
who has come down to the Symbolist movement. It explains
how Claude!, who, during his infidel days had absorbed the
theories of Mallarme and his circle concerning the stuff and
technique of poetry, was impelled by the light and love which
God poured into his heart on the occasion of his conversion to
develop what was sound in the Symbolists' theories and perfect
their technique by giving expression to the Christian, in fact,
to the lgnatian view of life. Miss Ryan is an old teacher
who knows the limits of the student mind and the working
conditions of the college classroom. Her work, therefore,
is an introduction. She introduces the student through the
j::areer of Claude! to an understanding of his theory and through
his theory to a grasp of the substance of his non-dramatic
poetry. The plays are mentioned only incidentally. The
present writer has used Miss Ryan's work under approximately the conditions and for the purpose for which it
was intended. It was most helpful. The only improvements
which suggest themselves concern the biographical sketch, the
bibliography and the index, or rather, its omission. The biography was a trifle vague. The bibliography surely could
have been extended to include the complete published works of
Claude!. Then the index. To an American, at least, a scholarly
book without one is as incomplete as a pantry without a canopener. The omission is all the more to be regretted since Miss
Ryan has so many valuable ideas to offer. They should be
made as readily available as possible.
J. A. SLATTERY, S.J.
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BOOK REVIEWS
KONNERSREUTH AGAIN
The Case of Therese Neumann. By Hilda C. Graef. Westminster, Md., Newman Press, 1950. Pp. 160. $2.50.
In the February issue the WOODSTOCK LETTERS reviewed the
recent book of Fr. Siwek on Theresa Neumann, Une Stigmatisee
de Nos Jours: Therese Neumann de Kannersreuth. The author,
it will be recalled, presented strong evidence to show that the
origin of Theresa's visions and other phenomena need not
necessarily be judged supernatural. The present work, written by an Englishwoman already known for her studies on the
mystics, comes to conclusions that are substantially the same
as those of Father Siwek, except that, if anything, she is more
decisively negative. Her method consists in systematically exploring, on the one hand, the possibilities of natural explanation of Theresa's visions, stigmata, etc., as deriving from
hysteria, telepathy and other such factors, and, on the other,
in applying the traditional norms for authentic supernatural
phenomena as laid down by the classic authorities on the subject in the Church. On both counts she judges that the phenomena of Theresa fail to satisfy adequately the requirements
for a genuine supernatural intervention. One of her principal
sources of evidence is the report of the medical expert of the
Sacred Congregation of Rites, published in France in 1940. His
diagnosis was that the dominant factor in the case was a grave
hysteria neurosis in which the psychic manifestations have
progressively taken predominance over the physical.
Though several of the problems involved are not adequately
covered by the author (e.g., the question of Theresa's supposed absolute fast), this book is the first really critical examination of the case available in English. Whether or not
one believes that its conclusions settle the case, it certainly
makes both enlightening and interesting reading.
W. NORRIS CLARKE, S.J.
-·
REFLECTIONS ON "PARTHENEIA SACRA"
Partheneia Sacra. By H. A. Aldington, England, Hand and
Flower Press, 1950. 63s.
These reflections complement
the brief review of this book which was published in the
May issue of the WOODSTOCK Lm'TERS.
This book which Mr. Fletcher rescues from the oblivion of
three centuries is a very fascinating historical monument. It
may even be somewhat more; but surely its main interest at
the present day is the light that it sheds on the Jesuit past
�BOOK REVIEWS
-
281
as one more proof of how the Old Society mastered and turned
to her apostolic end all that was seemly in the culture of the
Renaissance.
Partheneia Sacra is a meditation book on our Lady written
by a Jesuit, most probably Father Henry Hawkins (1571 'Z-1640),
for the use of the members of the Parthenian Sodality of the
Immaculate Conception in London. These gentlemen, if we
may judge by Father Hawkins' book, were cultured men who
shared with their contemporaries that taste for intellectual
Romanticism which is characteristic of the great Jacobean and
Caroline writers, Donne, Bacon, Crashaw, Herbert, Taylor and
Browne. Since the primary objective of the English Province
at this period was the conversion and sanctification of- the
English aristocracy, Father Hawkins combined in his book
that mixture of the erudite and fantastic which best expressed
the deepest spiritual impulse of his age. This will become
more apparent as we examine the organization of the book.
The whole treatise is an amplification of the biblical phrase,
"Hortus conclusus soror mea, sponsa." It is divided into
twenty-four heads, as, The Garden; The Rose; The Lillie; The
Violet; and so forth. Each meditation proceeds through nine
steps which embody the normal Ignatian form of mental prayer:
statement of theme, reflection, personal application and colloquy.
Let us illustrate by an analysis of the meditation on the
Violet. The first step is called "The Devise." This is a copper
plate engraving representing a plant which one may charitably
suppose to resemble a violet surrounded by a garland of laurel
or mistletoe, and surmounted by the text "Humi serpens extoller honore." The next step is "The Character"-a quaint
description of the natural history of the violet in the manner
of Fuller, Hall or any of the "character" writers of the century. We then come to "The Morals"-a description of the
virtue which is symbolized by the violet, which is, of course,
humility. This we have recalled, visualized and set in a certain perspective of significance, all this according to the technique of the Emblem books so popular at that time. The reflections follow in two steps. In the first of these the native "virtues" of the violet are expounded according to contemporary
botany. In the second is indicated an analogy between the
qualities of the violet and the excellencies of our Lady. The
reader is now prepared for prayer by another copper plate
wherein the violet is depicted as flowering in the garden under
the favoring eye of God and the parallel between it and our
Lady is celebrated in verse. The next step is a short essay
indicating the application of these ideas to human life, and
the conclusion is presented in a colloquy, a prayer addressed
to our Lady.
�282
BOOK REVIEWS
It is evident, then, what Father Hawkins has been at. He
has presented sound theological learning and moral instruction
in the literary forms which were then at their highest vogue
and novelty: the Emblem, the character, and the reflective essay.
He has like the contemporary French Jesuits Binet and
Richeome conveyed his delight in the strange and brilliant
surface pattern of creation along with the awe and adoration
excited by looking into its mysterious depths. He has made
meditation, if not easy, at least stimulating. Hawkins' ready
accommodation to the cultural pressures of his age is, of
course, a simple corollary of his acceptance of the Jesuit and
Pauline conception of the apostolic attitude, "omnibus omnia
fio." It was this attitude which in former times identified a
certain style of architecture with the Society. It once associated our writing with a certain stately manner of prose, and,
alas, with a monkey-like ingenuity in verse. In our own day
it makes the Jesuit a script-reviser in Hollywood, an arbitrator
in labor disputes, a columnist, a radio commentator, a delegate
to the United Nations, perhaps even a cartoonist, in short, a
man who shuns everything dead, even the dead past of outmoded Jesuit techniques, or a man·who has taken seriously
the mandate of Pius XII: "Quiquid boni nova aetas protulerit,
id ad majorem Dei gloriam Societas vestra adhibebit."
J. A. SLATTERY, S.J.
ENCOl\IIUl\1 ON A COMPENDIUM
Roman Catholicism. By Thomas Corbishley, S.J., M.A. (Christian Religion Series. Edited by E. 0. James. London,
Hutchinson's University Library, 1950.
7/6.)
New
York, Longmans, Green and Co., Inc. Pp. 141. $2.00
(trade ed.) and $1.60 (text ed.).
Every age needs books so written that he who runs may read.~- -·
The slim volume here discussed was written by the Master of
Campion Hall, Oxford, in order to meet the contemporary need
for a reliable synthesis of Catholicism. It is not easy to write
a work of this kind because so much must be left out. Yet
Father Corbishley (English Province) has succeeded brilliantly.
He never loses sight of the reader for whom he is writing, and
that reader is an Englishman of our mid-century, formed by the
thought, literature and preoccupations of his environment. It
is not supposed that he is a Catholic; it is presumed that he
knows little about Catholicism, or about any religion for that
matter.
The structure of the study is new and quite different from
�BOOK REVIEWS
283
similar works of the recent or remote past. The first chapter
indicates the nature of the Church. This is followed by a rapid
consideration of the historical flow of her history, studied under
the aspect of her unity. The third chapter condenses Catholic
dogma in a way that calls for applause, for it is marvelous to
see how so much could be compressed in so small a space. The
contemporary man's feeling for social questions, for history, and
for progress steer the author to an examination of the Church
from such points of view. The last chapter does another
splendid job of condensation in explaining the more patent
manifestations of everyday Catholic life. The book closes with
an appendix indicating the organizational structure of the
Church.
This is the work to be suggested to the Catholic layman or
priest who asks for a brief, practical book which a modern nonCatholic can read to find out just what Catholicism is. Although the little tome was planned to deal with a man living
on the English ·Scene, it will none the less provide satisfactorily
for an American's need.
GUSTAVE WEIGEL, S.J.
L
!
ENRICHMENT FOR CONVERTS
The Family of God: A Study of the Catholic Church. B11
Hugh Michael McCarron, S.J. New York, McMullen
Books, Inc., 1951. Pp. 196. $2.75.
With an impressive wealth of wit and wisdom Father McCarron (Maryland Province) here distils the essence of his
significant pastoral experiences in war-time Washington and
offers this ideally suited companion piece to convert instruction.
No one engaged in similar work can afford to miss the capital
contributions these pages will make to individual convert progress. Several copies should be on hand for sale or loan whereever prospective converts are likely to apply or appear unannounced. For the book is eminently successful in achieving
its difficult objective: to instil a Catholic spirit into the dry
bones of excessively formal instruction. The Family of God
is not a substitute for the conventional and standardized instruction manuals. It is supplementary to them and presupposes their serious use. Nor is it planned as a device to dispense with personal contact with an individual (priest) instructor. But it does supply what routine texts lack and it
enhances the benefits of personal contact with a competent and
personable curate.
�284
BOOK REVIEWS
The selection of topics is authentic, shrewd, contemporary
and convincing. The treatment is urbane but delightfully
simple. It exacts little of sophistication, educational or otherwise, in the reader but imparts very much that is of crucial
importance in defining "attitudes." Father McCarron knows
people, particularly contemporary convert types, and diagnoses
their difficulties with unerring directness. There are few, if
any, routine obstacles or objections, real or imaginary, that
the author does not fairly depict and then deflate effectively
less with dialectics than with a charming display of ripe and
rich human wisdom. The engaging manner of the discussion
disarms opposition while defeating it. It is a pleasure to be
thus persuaded.
It is the declared intention of these pages "to furnish a binding thread, a connecting chain of thought, for our study of religion." But the thread is never more conspicuous than the
beads, the chain never becomes overloaded with sentiment and
pietism. Father McCarron is and remains master of his key
metaphor.
There is nothing, furthermore, frt· these pages that is liable
to offend inveterate attitudes nor to insult inherited prejudices.
The tact is expert. The finesse is exquisite. And the entire book
is suffused with a spirit and a spirituality that is distinctively,
even if unobtrusively, lgnatian.
This is indeed a good book and in good hands it can be put
to very good use.
JOSEPH T. CLARK, S.J.
Under the direction of Father Montdesert of the Lyons
Province, Sources ChrtHiennes is preparing a French edition
of the complete works of St. Irenaeus. The first volume wilr
be published by the end of this summer. The Latin and Greek .·
text has been critically revised after a careful study of the
manuscripts and the most ancient translations. The new
French translation and the Introduction and notes are the
work of Father Sagnard, O.P. The publication of the second
and revised edition of the Letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch is
planned for the near future. This revised edition will include
the Letter and the Martyrdom of St. Polycarp.
�BOOKS RECEIVED
285
From The Bruce Publishing Co., Milwaukee:
*Meditations for Every Day. By P. J. Sontag, S.J.
From Clonmore and Reynolds, Ltd., Dublin:
*Father Michael Browne, S.J. By Thomas Hurley, S.J.
*Days With Our Lady. By William Stephenson, S.J.
From M. H. Gill and Son, Ltd., Dublin:
Catherine McAuley. By R. Burke Savage, S.J. (A noteworthy biography of the foundress of the Sisters of
Mercy.)
Footprints of Father Theobald Matthew, O.F.M. Cap. By
Father Augustine, O.F.M. Cap. (An informative
biography of the great Apostle of Temperance.)
Apologetics and Catholic Doctrine: Part III, Catholic
Morality. By Bernard J. Kelly, C.S.Sp. (This is a
competent and reasonably priced [5s(75c)] handbook of Christian Doctrine. It treats of the destiny of
man, the sacraments and the commandments.)
Other Christs. By Father Aloysius, O.F.M.Cap. (Bishop
Lyons of Kilmore praises these conferences to
priests as addresses to the heart in which "the old
familiar truths are put in a new light, without any
recourse to rhetoric or artificiality."-Price 6s [90c])
The Year of the Great Return. By Father Aloysius,
O.F.M.Cap. (Lenten lectures, delivered in Dublin in
1950. They are stimulating discussions of fundamental Catholic principles of practical life.-Price
ls [15c])
First Friday at Amuzu. By John Roche, C.S.Sp. (Father
Roche has compiled a brochure on the Nigerian Missions.-Price 4s.6d. [70c])
From B. Herder Book Co., St. Louis:
*Our Happy Lot. By Aurelio Espinosa Polit, S.J. Translated by W. J. Young, S.J.)
From Longmans Green and Co., New York:
*Newman's University, Idea and Reality. By Fergal McGrath, S.J.
*The Osterley Selection From the Latin Fathers. By Joseph Crehan, S.J.
From The Newman Press, Westminster, Md.:
*St. Gregory the Great Pastoral Care. Translated by Henry
Davis, S.J.
*The Destiny of Modern Woman. By William B. Faherty,
S.J.
The asterisk indicates that a review will be published in our
next issue.
�286
NOTES ON PAMPHLETS
There are times when a pamphlet is more useful than a book.
We can read a pamphlet when a busy schedule makes a book
impossible; we· can recommend a pamphlet to those who would
bridle at a book. Our readers, we think, will be grateful for
information concerning recent publications in this field of
Catholic writing. We hope to offer such a service regularly.
Recent Pamphlets
From The Catholic Social Guild, 125 Woodstock Road, Oxford
England:
Catholic Social Action. By Andrew Gordon, S.J. Pp. 12.
4d (5c)
The Menace of Materialism. By Paul Crane, S.J. Pp. 40.
1s (15c)
A Manual of Social Sermons. (With reading lists and
index) Pp. 95. 2s (30c)
From The Catholic Truth Society, 38-40 Eccleston Square, London S.W. 1, England:
The Priestly Life (Apostolic. Exhortation of Pope Pius
XII "Menti Nostrae") 9d "(llc)
What Happened At Fatima. By C. C. Martindale, S.J.
Pp. 16. 3d (4c)
Pius XII. By Herbert Keldany. 3d (4c)
The Holiness of St. Joan of Arc. By Etienne Robo. 3d (4c)
St. Joseph. By T. O'Donoghue. Pp. 20. 3d (4c)
One Church. A C.T.S. Torch Pamphlet, ed. by Most Rev.
John C. Heenan, C.M.S. Pp. 32. 3d (4c)
What is Sin? By Walter Jewell. Pp. 15. 3d (4c)
Corne, 0 Holy Spirit (A Preparation book for Confirmation for children.) By A Sister of Notre Dame. Pp.
48. 1s (15c)
From The Irish Messenger Office, 5 Great Denmark St., Dublin, ·
Ireland:
-·
The Assumption of Our Blessed Lady (Apostolic Constitution "Munificentissimus Deus" of Our Holy
Father Pius XII). Pp. 24. 3d (4c)
Pope Pius X. By Louise Stacpoole Kenny. 3d (4c) Pp. 20.
Mother Placide Viel. Pp. 20. 3d (4c)
The Irish Sisters of Mercy in the Crimean War. By
Helena Concannon. Pp. 27. 3d (4c)
It's No Use Praying. By R. Stephenson, S.J. Pp. 20. 3d
(4c)
Another Hour With The Sacred Heart. By P. O'Mara, S.J.
Pp. 48. 3d ( 4c)
�TWO NEW PERIODICALS
287
On February 11 of this year the first issue of The Mercat
Cross appeared. In the lead editorial Father Ronald Moffat
(English Province) states the objectives of the new magazine
which is published by the Jesuit Fathers from the Rectory of
the Sacred Heart Church, Lauriston Street, Edinburgh. "The
Mercat Cross is a Scottish Catholic monthly. Its aim is to help
Catholics to do two things. The first is to see clearly where
they stand as a body within the national community; and the
second, to appreciate more fully the spiritual value of the contribution they have made in the past to the life of the country,
and alone still can make ... In article, features, commentaries
we shall touch upon the ordinary affairs of life, but we shall do
so as Catholics-as did our forefathers in the marketplaces of
this country, under the shadow of the cross." The last words
refer to the title of the publication which is explained in an
article written by George Scott-Moncrieff. "The Mercat Cross"
he writes, " •.. was, of course, simply the cross erected in the
marketplace. It brought the symbol of the Faith into the hub-'
bub of commerce and daily life. It was like a piece of stone,
occasionally of wood, taken from the fabric of the parish
church and set down in the marketplace, reminding men of their
Redeemer, and bringing a benison to their life in the world."
Here is a venture which merits the encouragement of Englishspeaking Jesuits in every community. The annual subscription
rate is, amazingly, five shillings (75c). Address your subscription to: The Mercat Cross, John Clifford and Son, 230 Glasgow Road, Blantyre, Glasgow, Scotland. You will not regret
the investment.
We have received the third number of the first volume of
a quarterly publication of the Catholic Truth Society of England. Catholic Truth contains well-written and informative
articles by representative authors on subjects of interest to all
Catholics. The nine pages of "Catholic Book Notes" furnish
concise and keen reports on current Catholic literature. This
is a type of publication that will appeal to and benefit educated
Catholics. The subscription price is 2/9 ( 40c).
Suppressed Editions of the Messenger
Since the beginning of World War II, several national editions of the Messenger of the Sacred Heart have been suppressed by atheistic governments. Here is the list of those
which have been suppressed:
Country
Language
Subscribers Date of Sup.
Albania
Albanian
750
1945
5,000
Czechoslovakia
Bohemian
1939
55,000
Slovak
Czechoslovakia
1949
Ukrainian
Czechoslovakia
2,000
1945
�THE
288
~MESSENGER
Croatian
60,000
1946
Jugoslavia
1944
Jugoslavia
Slovene
35,000
Latvia
9,500 during the war
Lettish
2,000 during the war
Latvia
Lithuanian
during the war
Lithuania
20,000
Poland
Ukrainian
40,000 during the war
Rumanian
1944
Rumania
1,300
China
Chinese
2,200
1949
Total: Twelve Messengers of the Sacred Heart, published
in eleven languages and with a total of 233,000 subscribers,
have been suppressed.
Two others, one in Polish and one in Hungarian, have had
the number of copies which they may print sharply reduced
by government order. The Polish Messenger, printed at
Cracow, whose circulation before the war was 130,000 has
been obliged to reduce the number of copies printed to
25,000. The Hungarian Messenger, printed at Budapest,
whose pre-war circulation was 100,000 can now print only
50,000 copies.
As a result of these supressions; the number of Messengers has been reduced to 59. 19 of .these are published in the
Americas, 18 in Europe, 15 in Asia, 5 in Africa, and 2 in
Oceania.
-Lettres du Bas Canada, December 1950
OLD
AND
NEW
TESTAMENT
On the Old Testament the traveller gets an abundance of
fresh light from visiting the spots it mentions. When one
turns to the New Testament, how great is the difference!
There are scarcely any references to localities in the Gospel
narrative, and little or nothing turns upon the features of
the place. This makes the traveller realize that while the
Old Testament is about and for Israel; the Gospel, though:
the narrative is placed in the land, and the preaching was de:'
livered to the people, of Israel, is addressed to the world. The
Old Testament books, at least the legal and historical books,
are concerned with one people; the New Testament, with the
inner life of all mankind.
VISCOUNT BRYCE
Mr. William J. Junkin, S.J., Spring Hill College, Mobile,
Alabama, would appreciate any information concerning the
existence of a translation of the Miles Christi Jesu of Vermeersch.
�A LETTER OF VERY REV. FATHER GENERAL
ON THE ENCYCLICAL "HUMANI GENERIS."
Reverend Fathers and Dear Brothers in Christ,
Pax Christi:
The Encyclical "Humani Generis," which the Holy
Father published last summer,t envisions principally
a rather complex intellectual movement in which some
of Ours have taken part and even played leading roles.
No one who views the papal document in the light of
recent philosophical and theological disputations can
doubt this. Even apart from this, I had been aware
that the Holy Father intended to intervene in these
discussions. 2 Precisely because it was unbecoming to
anticipate his action, I could not fully explain my removing certain professors from their teaching positions at the close of the past academic year. This
step, I realize, has affected men of devoted work and
unquestioned ability. It was inevitable that this should
cause considerable pain not only to those directly concerned, but to many of their associates. Their sorrow,
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers, has been my own
personal sorrow as well. How could your father not
share in it? But after praying, reflecting, and taking
advice, I have felt obliged to employ these and similar
measures. Were I not to do this, I should be failing in
my duty to guard effectively the Society's security of
doctrine. I am quite aware that my procedure has been
severe indeed, but the Encyclical "on certain false
opinions that threaten to subvert the foundations of
Catholic doctrine" 3 is a very severe warning and the
index of a most critical situation. We must accept in a
spirit of faith this warning of the Vicar of Our Lord
Jesus Christ.
My purpose here is to treat with you of how this
Encyclical is to be taken. For it sets down norms for
our thought, our teaching, our writings-norms intended as a remedy for those more or less affected by
dangerous and erroneous opinions. But a remedy is
�292
LETTER OF FATHER GENERAL
not a cure. The ideas here treated of cannot be corrected without the humblest filial effort on the part of
their adherents. We know from Church history how
difficult such an effort is. More than once the teaching
of the Magisterium has succeeded only slowly and painfully in suppressing doctrinal deviations. Here I am
not speaking of the many who ·were unwilling to obey.
I am not speaking of them, because it is clear to me
that no one among you would even think of refusing to
obey the Holy Father. The only attitude that befits us
is perfect submission. However, between deliberate
refusal to submit and entire obedience lie several
intermediate positions, which we are more easily
tempted to hold because we are not altogether aware
of them. I judge it my duty, Reverend Fathers and
dear Brothers, to dispel this obscurity as well as I can,
so as to forewarn you against" this temptation.
It is hard for one to acknowledge one's mistake
without clearly seeing it and when through heated
controversy one is persuaded that one's own position
is strong and that of the adversaries weak. Besides,
adopted opinions are often joined with a certain procedure of attacking and treating problems, a procedure that becomes in some way a part of one's very
personality and very hard to dislodge. Finally, in such
circumstances there are often friends who, for want
of penetration or character, stress what may put the
intervention of authority in a less favorable light,
while scarcely touching on the very essentials of the:
question.
- .:
What happens in such a case? Unconsciously we
wish to reconcile what cannot be reconciled: required
submission and ideas that are dear to us. Accordingly we tend to weaken the force of texts of the
Magisterium, either by arbitrary distinctions, or by
soft-pedaling their exigencies, or by judging that they
condemn opinions more extreme than those really intended, and hence by concluding that these latter are
permissible. Everyone knows that the real meaning of
_texts often becomes clear only to those who search for
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
293
it with an open mind, whereas it is not grasped by
those who unconsciously look for what is in line with
their own preferences. The Encyclical "Humani
Generis" must be interpreted according to approved
rules of critical exegesis used by the better theolo·
gians when examining such documents. Yet it is not
enough to apply technical rules. In addition we must
search the text with indifference, ready to accept
everything there. It must be noted too that it is not
only wrong to hold to opinions directly opposed to the
Encyclical, but even those opinions indirectly so, those
namely that contradict its evident conclusions.
I emphasize these distinctions because human nature
is ever apt to be ensnared; it readily believes it is
obedient when looking for evasions. Another reason
is (you certainly expect me to be quite candid about
this): because I have learned from several facts that
it is opportune for me to be insistent; some among
you need to be instructed by their superior and father.
They seem much preoccupied with their own defense;
yet when the Holy Father speaks, another preoccupation must come first. Do they not fail to see that this is
a sort of self-defense that is the equivalent of opposing
the Holy Father? At least twice he has openly stated
that some "Catholic teachers" have been unable to
avoid these errors. 4 May one still pretend that the
Encyclical touches only those extreme positions to
which the opinions of certain theologians would lead,
if not duly curbed, or that it deals only with deformations whereby individual students have distorted
ideas of their professors? We cannot allow, Reverend
Fathers and dear Brothers, our manner of receiving
the Encyclical in any way to recall the unfortunate
dispute "de jure" and "de facto."
It is distressing to develop this any further. Yet I
am forced to do so in order to help you, particularly
those very ones to whom I may cause greater sorrow.
The Encyclical is opposed to theological relativism:
not only, regardless of what has been said to the con·
trary, the extreme relativism that smacks of liberal
�294
LETTER OF F-ATHER GENERAL
Protestantism, and which the Encyclical indirectly rejects by its whole tenor, but even a more moderate
relativism, which it expressly envisages and describes thus: "The mysteries of faith," it has been
said, "can never be expressed by adequately true
notions, but only by approximate ones, which indicate
truth to some extent and can always be revised, in
that they inevitably distort it. Hence they judge it
not absurd but altogether necessary for theology to
substitute new notions for old ones, in accord with
the various philosophies that it uses as tools through
the course of time, and thus to express in human
fashion the same divine truths in different and even,
to some extent, opposite though, they claim, equivalent
ways." 5 If we wish faithfully to interpret the mind of
the Holy Father we cannot admit that what is absolute and immutable in theological teaching is absolute
only as regards what the affirm'ition intends, but not
as regards what is represented, or that the matters in
theology that allow no variation (namely, revealed
mysteries and connected truths of reason) cannot be
distinctly conceived by equally invariable notions, but
are necessarily expressed by contingent notions which
keep the same eternal affirmations, even while changing; or finally, that truth is not kept unchangeable
when the human mind evolves, save by a simultaneous
and proportionate evolution of all notions used to express it. After distinguishing the fulness of dogma
(namely, the reality of Christ perceived in a concrete and living manner) and the concepts by which _.
we partially express this treasure so possessed, we
may not speak as though our concepts should be continually revised in order to be adapted to normative
truth, or as though they partially expressM divine
truth only on this condition: that they be referred
to the fulness of dogma attained according to a higher
mode of knowledge.
Moreover, in order not to depart from the teaching
of the Supreme Head of the Church on the value of
reason in philosophy, let us avoid speaking as if the
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
295
idea of a philosophical doctrine capable of integrating
within itself the eternal acquisitions of all other philosophies involved a contradiction, and as if the most
complete expression of philosophical truth were to be
sought in a series of doctrines, complementary and
convergent although different and even systematically
opposed. The Encyclical speaks quite otherwise. It demands that we preserve the possibility of "absolutely
true metaphysics," and it rejects the opinion of those
who "assert that realities, especially transcendental
realities, cannot be better expressed than by divergent
teachings that complement each other, though in a
certain measure opposed to one another." 6
The Encyclical speaks of two proofs: of God's existence and of the fact of revelation. Regarding the first,
among other things it requires us to hold "that human
reason, without the aid of divine revelation and
divine grace, can demonstrate by arguments drawn
from created thin,gs that a personal God exists." 7 In
order not to contradict this teaching or abusively
lessen its meaning, we must hold that the existence of
the true God can be the logical conclusion of certain
reasoning. Therefore we will deny that in this matter
true proof is reducible to this: the demonstration of
man's need to acknowledge God by a free act of faith,
unless he refuses to satisfy the essential exigency of
the will.8 We will admit too that not every proof of the
existence of God is necessarily, in the sense of St.
Anselm, an understanding of faith, that is to say, an
effort to confirm by means of reason an antecedent
affirmation of faith. Nor will we hold that every proof
of the existence of God is in fact always subject to
criticism, since the dialectical apparatus by which we
grasp it is not only often obsolete, but in any case
always inadequate to the movement of the mind, which
it tries to translate and which itself would be the real
proof. Finally, we will ,guard against otherwise weakening the natural proof for God's existence by denying
that our concepts can represent Hod in a simply true
manner. We will not say that because of the deficiency
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of our concepts the affirmation of God cannot justify
any form under which it is expressed, so that the mind
may not avoid atheism without falling into idolatry,
until the supernatural gift of the life of charity supplies an appropriate spiritual content to the affirmation
of God.
With regard to the other proof, of the fact of revelation, the Encyclical observes that thanks to divinely
given external signs "even by the natural light of
reason alone," the divine origin of the Christian religion can be certainly proved. 9 When we read these
words with reference to present-day theological tendencies, it is clear that the Holy Father confirms by
his authority the classical thesis, held by most theologians against certain modern opinions. We are not
forbidden to hold that in fact grace always enlightens
reason when it tends toward knowledge of the fact of
revelation. If the natural light of reason has, absolutely speaking, the power to discern the signs of
revelation, we are nonetheless allowed to grant that
its exercise is more or less hampered by an accumulation of difficulties. We must admit that the certitude
spoken of by the Encyclical is certitude strictly so
ealled; but this does not necessarily demand a motive
excluding any doubt whatever; it is enough to exclude
the possibility of prudent doubt. After the Encyclical
we can no longer hold that only an interior call of God
permits us to discern with certitude the meaning of
divine facts proving the divine origin of revelation ..
Nor is it sufficient to affirm that revelation offers it-·.
self as an enigma to be solved but from which one can
never be disencumbered. We will hold that human
reason, even without the help of the li,ght of grace,
has the power absolutely needed to prove with certitude the fact of revelation. Thirty years ago, my
predecessor, Father Ledochowski, forbade Ours (and
his prohibition still holds good) to hold a teaching
on faith which, among other things, includes the thesis
condemned in the Encyclical. 10 Some seem to have
thought that this thesis was forbidden by Father
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Ledochowski only within the context of the rejected
theory. Whatever this opinion may have been worth,
the text of the E.ncyclical leaves no room for such an
interpretation. Henceforward Ours cannot hold this
thesis, whatever the context in which it appears.
Elsewhere the Encyclical censures in general terms
those who "attack the rational character of the credibility of the Christian faith." 11 This is done by holding
the thesis already rejected by the Encyclical: of the
absolute need for supernatural enHghtening in order
to prove the fact of revelation. But there are other
ways of doing the same: for instance, by denying the
value of certain very important apologetic arguments.
I do not know whether the Holy Father had this in
mind, but it is my duty to warn you against this
pitfall. It is neither just nor allowed to assert that a
solid apologetic demonstration of the resurrection of
Christ cannot be founded on historical documents that
recount the most ancient apostolic preaching, the apparitions, and the empty tomb. 12 Nor may we hold that
we cannot demonstrate, using the books of the New
Testament taken as mere historical sources, that Jesus
presented Himself as Messias and Son of God in the
strict sense nor that He confirmed this testimony about
Himself by miracles and His resurrection. It is not in
keeping with the Catholic mind to say that, after
showing that Jesus in His human life gave an example
of entire obedience to God, the historian may go no
further; and that as regards the further question,
"Who is then this Man?" the historian must yield to
the believer or the unbeliever. The Encyclical "Providentissimus" speaks in very different terms: "Because
the divine and infallible Magisterium of the Church
relies on the authority of Sacred Scripture, the human
trustworthiness, at least, of the latter must be held and
proved altogether; on these books, as on the most
proved witnesses of antiquity, the divinity and legateship of Christ Our Lord, the institution of the hierarchical Church, the primacy conferred on Peter and
his successors, securely and evidently rest." 13
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The Encyclical treats the question of the freedom of
creation. "It is held," says the Holy Father, "that the
creation of the world is necessary, since it proceeds
from the necessary liberality of divine love." 14 He observes that this opinion is opposed to the teaching of
the Vatican Council. Principally there is question here
of creation in general; the particular form of creation
is left rather in the background. The Holy Father recalls that creation, which certainly proceeds from the
most liberal love of God, also proceeds from the free
choice of this love. To deny that God freely chose to
create is precisely the same as to affirm that God
necessarily created. If it is denied that creation was
freely chosen, it is futile to speak of the transcendental
freedom with which God created; for, however this
liberty is conceived, it would follow that God could
not fail to create. After this Ol!e might speak of the
contingency of creatures as meaning that no being,
apart from God, has in itself a sufficient reason for
existence, but not as meaning that it was possible for
nothing to be created; willy-nilly one would be maintaining the necessity of creation, which is rejected by
the Encyclical. It would be worse to speak not only of
the necessity of creation, but to question, if not the personality of God, at least His absolute transcendence.
I call attention to this, Reverend Fathers and dear
Brothers, because regrettably certain writings have
been spread about, treating in quite equivocal terms
of the relations between God and man. The image of
God which they naturally evoke greatly deforms the
features of the God of our faith. I shall insist no
further on this matter, as I do not believe this notion
has had any repercussion among you.
The Holy Father treats also of the immediate creation of the human soul. He touches on this truth
cursorily, but in the clearest terms: "Catholic faith
orders us to hold that souls are immediately created
by God." 1 G We know what this immediate creation of
the soul by God means: the soul is caused by God in
such a way that it is not the term of a transformation
~
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299
of any antecedent whatsoever (non ex aliquo). Opposed to this truth is a way of speaking which affirms
that the substratum of the universe is "spirit-matter"
and that the universe contains only matter becoming
spirit; or which explains that the unity of the world
is the ascent of a consciousness originally pluralized
and as it were materialized toward an ever more
spiritual state; or which holds that man is simply the
highest state known to us of the growth of this spirit
here on earth. It is evident that these assertions become no more acceptable by adding that the appearance of the human person marks a critical point and
a change of status. Even if it is added that this appearance indicates the crossing of a new threshold, we do
not for that reason achieve a doctrine of immediate
creation of the soul. For a sudden and even a specific
change which supervenes in a process of growth is not
an immediate creation.
The Encyclical observes that there are those who
compromise the true gratuitousness of the supernatural order "since they say that God cannot create
beings endowed with intellect without ordaining and
calling them to the beatific vision." 16 What is the scope
of this statement? We must say, according to the common rule of interpretation, that the Holy Father insists that we admit the proposition contradictory to
the one condemned. We must therefore hold that God
could have created spiritual beings without destining
them for the beatific vision. And the Holy Father
shows why this possibility must be upheld: by denying
it, the true gratuitousness of the supernatural order
is compromised. In other words, the traditional notion
of the entirely gratuitous character of the supernatural order implies that God could have created spiritual beings (which he does in fact invite to the beatific
vision) without destining them for it. Henceforth
then we will not say that the thesis that a spiritual
creature could have been not destined to supernatural
beatitude is simply an interpretation of dogma by
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means of defective philosophy, or that this thesis,
worked out in order to safeguard the gratuitousness of
the supernatural order, is powerless to do so; or that
it has no meaning, since the mind must go from existing things to possible ones and not vice versa; or
again that the supernatural destiny is at the same time
essential to man and gratuitous. Nor can we hold that
there are two ways of explaining the gratuitousness
of the beatific vision: one involving recourse to a possible order in which a being endowed with reason
would not be destined to this vision; another, which
would exclude such recourse and make it superfluous.
Finally we will fully a,gree that God could have created
man without destining him to supernatural beatitude; hence we will not say that this affirmation is
legitimate only as an anthropomorphic manner of expressing the complete gratuitousness of a gift which
God could not fail to offer man once He created him.
The Holy Father regrets that the "notion of original
sin is perverted, without regard for the definitions of
the Council of Trent." 17 These words should be enough,
just as, before they were written, the teaching of the
Council of Trent should have been enough, to keep us
from imagining original sin as not arising from a
fault previously committed but rather as an inborn
opposition to charity, a nec~ssary evil of the human
creature involved in matter and destined to share in
the divine life. For the Council of Trent expressly
teaches that original sin has arisen from the "prevarication of Adam." 18 How would one avoid putting
the blame on God for a sin which, independently of
any fault committed, would be the natural condition
of the human creature? This opinion is not sufficiently
corrected simply by saying that it is only a less complete explanation, that it indicates an incomplete state
of an original fault which is not fully constituted except by some sin really committed. This correction is
altogether insufficient for several reasons : in particular, because Trent teaches that Adam before his
fall was constituted by God in sanctity and justice/9
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and that the concupiscence that leads to sin has its
origin in sin. 20
The dogma of original sin is closely related to the
question of the monogenetic or polygenetic origin of
man. On this question the Encyclical contains a significant declaration. By monogenism theologians understand the propagation of the whole human race
from one single couple; by polygenism, the propagation of the human race from several sources. The Holy
Father does not grant that polygenism (understood
in the meaning just given) can be a matter of free discussion, as, within just limits, can be the theory of
evolution as applied to the origin of the human body.
He thus develops his thought: "For the faithful cannot
embrace that opinion according to which either there
have been on the earth after Adam true men who did
not descend by natural generation from him as the
protoparent, or that Adam meant a certain multitude
of first parents." 21 We see that the Holy Father did
not intend to pronounce on the old hypothesis of
"preadamites," provided that this means a human
family extinct before our human family appeared;
but granted this, he forbids us to hold polygenism,
and he gives this reason for his prohibition: "since it
cannot at all be seen how this sort of opinion can be
reconciled with what the sources of revealed truth and
the acts of the Magisterium of the Church teach concerning original sin, which proceeds from a sin really
committed by one Adam, and which is in each of us,
having been transmitted to all by generation." 22 In
other words, there is no reason to think that polygenism can in any way be compatible with our faith. A
Catholic therefore cannot call into doubt the truth of
monogenism. We will all admit that the mystery of
original sin carries with it the existence of the first
Adam, individual head of the human race like the
second Adam, but who brought upon his posterity
the ruin from which the second Adam freed them.
Speaking of original sin the Holy Father points out
that the notion of "sin in general, as an offense against
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God, and of the satisfaction given by Christ for us" 23
has also been corrupted. According to a rather recent
publication, though sin can be called an offense against
God as far as the sinner's attitude is concerned, since
he does everything he can to offend God, nevertheless
sin does not so offend God that reparation is owed by
the sinner to divine justice. Accordingly, in order to
condone the fault of guilty mankind, God could not require that Christ offer just reparation to the divine
majesty offended by sin. The reparation offered by the
divine Savior, according to this theory, is not an act
of homage whereby divine justice is placated for our
sins. The Pope forewarns against this error by forbidding us to distort the traditional notion of sin or of the
satisfaction offered by Christ. Holding to the path of
tradition, we must admit that sit~- so offends God that
we contract a debt of reparation toward Him, and the
divine Savior rendered God propitious toward us by
repairing our offense through the homage of His obedience even unto death.
I must also treat with you of the mysteries of the
real presence and transubstantiation. The Encyclical
says that there are those "who hold that the doctrine
of transubstantiation, founded on an antiquated philosophical notion of substance, must be so corrected
that the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament is reduced to a sort of symbolism, inasmuch as
the consecrated species are only efficacious signs of the
spiritual presence of Christ and of his intimate union~·
with the faithful in the Mystical Body." 24 Such notions are found in certain pages, which I like to think
were only a hasty essay, but which should never have
been written or spread about. First, as regards the
eucharistic presence. It is averred that there is a real
presence because the eucharistic consecration is the
offering of the sacrifice of the cross, more precisely because it is an efficacious offering by which the divine
Victim becomes the vivifying spirit of redeemed humanity. The eucharistic presence, as is further stated,
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must not be conceived with direct or indirect reference to place; the Eucharist gives us better than that:
It makes Christ spiritually present to men; thanks to
It, wherever we are we are near Christ, we can call
upon Him and trust in His help. It is added that we
cannot be bound by this dilemma: either Christ is present in place, though not locally; or He is present only
metaphorically or inasmuch as the host calls to mind
His universal presence among men. For, as is stated,
there is a third possibility: the consecrated host, which
must not be separated from the rite of consecration,
not only recalls the real presence among men, but is
its efficacious si.gn.
Next as regards the eucharistic conversion. The
term "transubstantiation" is called inexpedient, in that
it is bound up with an inadmissible scholastic concept.
For the scholastics hold (as these pages explain the
matter) that since the reality of the thing is the substance that underlies the accidents as a foundation,
the thing cannot really be changed unless the substance
is changed;. hence the concept of transubstantiation.
Today however we have learned to distinguish various
levels of reflection, in such a way that we know that
everything has a meaning, and so to speak an esse
that is scientific, and a meaning and esse that is religious. This latter defines a thing according to its
true reality. When therefore by the rite of consecration the bread and wine are made the efficacious symbol of Christ's sacrifice and of His spiritual presence
among men, their religious esse is entirely changed.
By the creative power they have undergone a most profound transformation, since they have been changed
in that aspect which constitutes their true reality.
This we can call transubstantiation.
It is plain that such an opinion is forbidden by the
Encyclical. For it is obvious that it cannot harmonize
with Catholic faith.
I have discovered with greatest sorrow, Reverend
Fathers and dear Brothers, that some among you, instead of firmly opposing this theory, have actually
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drawn inspiration from it. They have added, I know,
modifications and corrections; nevertheless they have
held that transubstantiation must be defined or can
be defined as a change of the meaning and function of
bread and wine (to which they have given the name
"transfinalization"). By doing this they could not
rightly imagine they were renewing an ancient Augustinian tradition, despite the fact that the medieval
theologians are said at one time to have spoken of
"spiritual flesh" to designate the Eucharist in a thoroughly objective sense, in almost direct contradiction
to the ideas of St. Augustine;· despite what has been
said of the new historical epoch that started with the
controversy over the ideas of Berengarius, after which
in eucharistic theology a dialectic of substance and
accident and of quantity taking the place of substance
was added to the dialectic of "signum" and "res"; and
despite what has been said of sacramentary realism,
which from that time has been a symbolism only in an
accessory way, since the faith in the real presence for
several centuries was guarded by a sacramentary theology with altogether different features and composition. We must not substitute a new representation
of the eucharistic mystery for that sanctioned by the
Council of Trent. We must hold that the sensible
manifestations of bread and wine show forth the substance (or substantial a,gglomerate) of an existing subject to which they are attributed; and that this substance, by a total transformation of itself, becomes the
very Body and Blood of ·Christ. We must hold too that -·
by the transformation of the substance of bread and
wine into the substance of the Body and Blood of
Jesus Christ, the very Humanity of Jesus Christ is
contained under the sacramental species and that It
becomes present on the altar in Its own proper reality,
in the place occupied by the species. For many centuries, indeed, the eucharistic mystery was not explained under so explicit a formula, but as we are
reminded in the Encyclical, sound theological method
forbids us to oppose vaguer expressions of older tra-
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
305
dition or Scripture to the explicit expressions of more
recent tradition. 25 That would be to contemn the role
of the Church and her tradition, which is to interpret
and unfold the riches of the revealed word.
The Holy Father not only speaks of the Body of
Jesus that is present in the Eucharist, but mentions
also the Mystical Body of Our Lord. He recalls what
he taught in the Encyclical "Mystici Corporis Christi,"
since some have misunderstood it with regard to the
identity of the Roman Catholic Church and the Mystical Body: 26 "Some think," he says, "that they are not
bound by the doctrine taught in our Encyclical a few
years ago and based on the sources of revelation,
namely, that the Mystical Body of Christ and the Roman Catholic Church are one and the same." 27 If anyone did not immediately understand the papal teaching, at least he should heed this second admonition.
Henceforth we may not question the fact that the
visible Church is coextensive with the Mystical Body
of Christ here on earth, nor say that they are distinguished even inadequately. We may not continue to
say that the Mystical Body is the invisible reality of
grace, of which the Church is the efficacious si,gn; and
that hence between the visible Church and the Mystical Body there is a distinction and a continuity as between sign and thing signified. For the Vicar of Christ
speaks neither of this distinction nor of this continuity, but of a real identity: the Church is one, visible
under one aspect, invisible under another, and not
really distinct from the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ.
An important passage in the EncyclicaJ2 8 deals
with scholastic philosophy (philosophia nostris scholis tradita). The Holy Father does more than stress,
regardless of what some apparently have said, the
value of moderate realism, in which laws of the mind
or first principles are also laws of being, and according to which knowledge of the world and of certain
absolute truths is possible by means of conceptual
signs. This moderate realism is common to many
philosophies, some of which are entirely opposed to
-
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our "perennial philosophy." The Holy Father also
had to insist on other matters. He notes that scholastic philosophy contains many matters that at least
indirectly touch on faith and morals and which we
may not question. Among these he enumerates, in the
first place, the principles of this philosophy and its
main assertions. Doubtless he approves of our perfecting and enriching scholastic philosophy; he observes
also that it is useful to correlate it with other great
systems ;29 but he does not want it overturned, contaminated with false principles, or regarded merely as
a remarkable but obsolete edifice. He recalls that the
special worth of our Christian philosophy is due not
only to human wisdom but also to revelation, which
has been a guiding norm for our great doctors in
their research; and he asks us to try to assist the
progress of philosophy, not oy continually opposing
new theses to those duly established, but rather by
adding truth to the truth already acquired and by
correcting errors that may have found their way into
past teachings. Finally, with regard to the philosophy
of St. Thomas, 30 the Holy Father recalls the prescripts
of Canon Law which demand that future priests be
given a philosophical formation "according to the
method, teaching, and principles of the Angelic Doctor."31 He praises the pedagogical and highly scientific
value of St. Thomas' teaching, its harmony with revealed truth, the effectiveness with which it stabilizes
the rational foundations of faith, and its aptitude for:
furthering a sound advance in philosophical research:
The Holy Father then takes up the defense of scholastic philosophy against its detractors. He rejects
complaints against its so-called antiquated form and
its method, which some have styled rationalistic. He
extols its lucid statement and solution of problems, its
precision of ideas, and clear distinctions. He approves
the fact that it maintains the possibility of an absolutely true metaphysic; he does not admit that it is
merely a philosophy of immutable essences, unable
to give, as it should today, consideration to individual
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
307
existences and the constant flow of life. He defends
scholastic philosophy against the charge of professing
a unilateral intellectualism, and eulogizes its concept
of the role of the will in man's search for truth. He
rejects the opinion that any philosophical school, provided it be corrected or complemented when necessary,
can be harmonized with Catholic dogma as can scholastic philosophy. Specifically, he excludes certain
modern schools by name. Among these, I note particularly idealism (observing that Hegelian philosophy is
certainly idealistic) and existentialism, not only atheistic but even religious existentialism if it denies the
value of metaphysical reasoning.
If some of Ours had formed a mind in philosophical
matters foreign to the method and great theses of the
better scholastic doctors, and notably of St. Thomas
Aquinas; if they did not see how they might fruitfully study present-day philosophical problems starting with the ancient scholastic teaching and in true
continuity with it, they certainly could not, without
grave infidelity toward the Supreme Pontiff, pretend
to fulfill their office as teachers of philosophy, especially teachers of future priests. 32 Nor could their superiors, without failing in their duty, entrust to them
a charge which they could not fittingly carry out. I understand that, despite a sincere will to obey, one cannot
change a habit of mind overnight; but I can by no
means approve that any one wish to teach philosophy
who cannot conform his mind to the norms set down by
the Holy Father.
In the Encyclical the norms referring to the "perennial philosophy" are preceded by those pertaining
to scholastic theology. 33 The Supreme Pontiff judges
it the highest imprudence to reject, neglect, or minimize "so many things of great value, conceived, expressed, and refined often by centuries of labor, by
men of uncommon ability and holiness, under the
watchfulness of the sacred Magisterium, and not without the light and guidance of the Holy Spirit, in order
ever more accurately to formulate the truths of
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faith." 34 And he adds: "The contempt for terms and
concepts used by scholastic theologians naturally tends
to enervate speculative theology, which, because it relies on theological reason, is thought to lack true certitude."35 A professor of dogma would not show due
deference to these admonitions if in his course he neglected scholastic theology or showed that he had little
esteem for it. If this state of mind prevented him from
being guided in his lectures by the teachings of the
Encyclical concerning theology, he should not be kept
in the teaching office, or, if need be, he should voluntarily resign the office. 36 Of course, the Holy Father does
not wish an intemperate speculation to invade dogmatic theology to the detriment of positive theology. "By
the study of the sacred sources," as he himself has remarked, "the sacred sciences are always rejuvenated;
while on the other hand, as we know from experience,
speculation which neglects the ~further investigation
of the sacred deposit, turns out to be sterile." 37 Speculative theology itself must always return to Sacred
Scripture and to Tradition; but this recourse must
not become a weapon against traditional scholasticism,
which the Encyclical makes so much of. If we wish
closer links between theology and Sacred Scripture,
this must not be, as some have said, with a view to
freeing theology from alien additions, which if not entirely vitiating theology, hlwe often placed it outside
fundamental scriptural categories.
This leads me to say something on the method of
interpreting the Bible; for the Encyclical touches -·
upon the much discussed question of spiritual and
symbolical exegesis. Obviously it does not intend to
exclude this type of exegesis, in so far as it can claim
the authority of Scripture itself and Tradition; nor
does it wish to discourage the efforts of those who wish
better to expound its value; nor does it prevent anyone
from judging that this sort of effort is rich in promise;
but it does disapprove of obvious exaggerations. We
are forbidden to say that literal exegesis should give
place to the new "exegesis called symbolic and spiri-
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMANI GENERIS
309
tual," as if this new method "would at last open
to all the Sacred Books of the Old Testament, hitherto
hidden in the Church as a sealed fountain." 38 The
Encyclical "Divino Afflante Spiritu" had expressly
warned "interpreters to place above all else this purpose: to discern and define the literal sense of the
biblical words,"meanwhile striving as far as possible
to reveal the moral and religious teaching contained
in Sacred Scripture. 39
It is certainly not in harmony with the Encyclical
"Divino Afflante Spiritu" and "Humani Generis" to
declare that the aim of Old Testament exegesis is to
explain the symbolism by which various historical
events are linked together; or that its aim is to explain
the intelligibility of history, that is to indicate, through
symbols, a certain style, and certain terms, the links
that bind together events and institutions through
the centuries. Although symbolic interpretations were
much in favor among the Fathers of the Church, it is
not right to say that what they aimed at in their exegesis was the discovery of "sacraments" hidden in
Scripture. Such exaggerations are dangerous, for the
purpose of exegesis is to search out the whole divine
meaning of Scripture. When therefore one affirms
that the sole purpose of Old Testament exegesis is to
ferret out its spiritual and symbolic meaning, is this
not to imply that the literal meaning of these books is
not a divine meaning? And if it is held that Christ is
the sole object even of the Old Testament, is this not
apparently to minimize its literal meaning? A treatise
has been published in which the human and literal
meaning of the Bible is distinguished from its divine
and religious meaning and treated as mere ornamental
framework. But the Encyclical condemns those who
insist that the divine meaning, latent under the human
meaning, is alone infallible. 40 We must hold that the
divine and infallible meaning of the Bible includes
its whole human and literal meaning.
The same treatise suggests that scriptural inerrancy
extends only to those things that the Bible says about
-
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God, that is, to religious doctrine; and that the rest
is only a vehicle of truth, in itself neither true nor
false. But the Holy Father, renewing the teaching of
the biblical Encyclicals "Providentissimus Deus,"
"Spiritus Paraclitus," and "Divino Afflante Spiritu"
rejects the notion that "scriptural inerrancy pertains
only to what is said of God and of moral and religious
matters." 41
It remains for me, Reverend Fathers and dear
Brothers, to speak to you of certain opinions concering EschatolOooy. The Encyclical makes no mention of
these; however, in this realm necessary prudence has
not always been observed, and it is my duty to remind
you of this. First, it has been said that the resurrection of the body, referred to in the Apostles' Creed, is
a reality coextensive with successive events of this
world, a reality that cannot be loc:~lized at one moment
of time rather than another, except with regard to
each individual man (in this case, it occurs at the
moment of death) or with regard to all men (in this
case, it is merely brought to completion at the end of
time). This is not the place to quote a lengthy series
of texts of Scripture, the Fathers, and the Magisterium, contradicted by this opinion. It is enough to
refer to the passage of the recent constitution "Munificentissimus Deus," which echoes them: "Nevertheless, as a general rule, God does not will to give the
just a full victory over death before the end of time.
Hence the bodies of the just themselves are subject to
dissolution after death, and only on the last day will -·
be reunited each with its glorious soul. However, God
has willed that the Blessed Virgin Mary be exempt
from this generallaw." 42
Another point deals with the nature of the glorified
bodies, of Christ and the elect; on this some have
spoken in a seriously reprehensible way. They have
spoken disparagingly of St. Augustine's opinion, which
is quite traditional, according to which the glorified
body is an individual organism, composed of distinct
members, having a particular localization. It has been
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said that the glorified Body of Christ cannot occupy a
special place, either in the experimental world or outside of this world in heaven; the body of the Risen
Christ is outside the categories of place, and His glorified flesh, freed from spatial limitations, in some way
imbues humanity like the divine presence. However, it
is clear that those who take away from the glorified
body everything belonging to the order of organisms
and particular localization, conceive it in such a way
that none of the distinctive traits of a human body,
or even of a living body, as commonly understood, remain. This cannot be admitted. For the Church, using
the common notion of human body, wants us to believe that the risen bodies are real. So, for instance,
the fourth Council of the Lateran declares: "All will
rise with their own bodies which they now possess."u
Doubtless the Church grants that the risen bodies
will be in a new state; but she does not therefore
mean that the common notion of human body used
here be emptied of all characteristic traits. Hence if
anyone fancies that he is accepting the doctrine of
the Church on the resurrection of the body, and at the
same time drops everything that distinguishes the
common notion of a human body, or even of a living
body, it is evident that he is suffering under a great
illusion. Let me point out too that an excessively
spiritual interpretation of the glorious resurrection
leads to very rash opinions on the apparitions of the
Risen Christ. Despite the Gospel accounts of Christ's
apparitions to the disciples, it is held that they cannot
be exterior manifestations of the body of Christ and
that they are to be understood as repercussions in the
sensitive faculties of the interior, spiritual manifestation of the Risen Lord.
The third point refers to the dogma of the eternity
of hell. I have heard something of an opinion to the
effect that we have grounds to conjecture that the
eternal punishment which God threatens against sinners is in fact not inflicted on anyone; for the merciful Providence of God could not fail to lead all to con-
�312
LETTER OF FATHER GENERAL
version and salvation. Who are we to judge that the
threats of the God of Majesty are no more fearsome
than this? In the description of the last judgment
,given by the divine Master, are we entitled to suppress
the sentence of damnation passed against the wicked ?44
If such a notion were widespread, the faithful would
be deprived of a wholesome fear of divine punishment.
On this occasion I wish to forewarn you against another opinion which would have the same effect. We
have no reason to imagine that at the hour of death
divine Mercy grants to each soul such light and supernatural strength that all sinners may be easily converted. If this were so, the Divine Savior would not
have repeated his warning about the need to watch
lest the unexpected arrival of the heavenly Judge take
us unawares.u
I am sure, Reverend Father.s' and dear Brothers,
that no one among you has held''all the opinions censured in this letter. Some have begun to be rather
widespread; others less so. Most of you have accepted
none of them at all. You will have noticed, as I hoped to
make plain, that some of my remarks refer not so
much to clearly enunciated theses as to opinions that
could be furthered by dangerously equivocal statements. I have not mentioned all the points touched
upon in the Encyclical "Humani Generis." Some deal
with opinions which, so far as I know, have not been
held by anyone in the Society; others with matters
that seemed to need no explanation. It is not my office
to give an authentic commentary of the Encyclical of
the Church's Supreme Head;· but it is incumbent upon
me to take effective steps that this Encyclical be heard
and followed in the Society. 46 Hence I order Ours to
conform themselves, in word and writing, to the decisions on doctrinal matters enunciated in this letter.
They will refrain from spreading any opinion to the
contrary, publicly or privately, within the Society or
outside it. They will defend none of the disapproved
propositions, nor will they attack those proposed for
us to hold. I am aware, Reverend Fathers and dear
~·
_
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMANI GENERIS
313
-
Brothers, that my predecessors have never promulgated such extensive prescriptions on doctrinal matters. But none of them was ever in such circumstances
-that an Encyclical of the Supreme Pontiff would condemn so many dangerous or erroneous opinions threatening to become contagious in the Society. Besides,
most of my prescriptions merely explain the teaching
of the Holy Father or its consequences, so as to assure
the obedience due to him.
After the serious measures which I have taken in
preceding months and which I alluded to at the begining of this letter, it would have been consoling to me,
Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers, to write principally to strengthen and encourage you. I have been
unable to do so; I have been obliged by my conscience
to send you a letter that will revive and even aggravate your suffering. However, I hope that you will
not fail to see the loving and fatherly motive that
animates my severity. I should like to tell you, as
once St. Paul did his dear Corinthians: "I write you
this not to confound you, but to warn my most dear
sons." 41 Again, I understand how distressing this crisis is for many of you: for a group of teachers, for
their friends, for many of our younger priests and
Scholastics. But, cost what it may, it is my duty to
help you ward off an evil which threatens you. More
grievous than your suffering would be the evil of deviating, more or less unconsciously, from the doctrinal norms of Holy Church. Such a deviation doubtless would gradually become more conscious, despite
efforts to disregard it, and would become a poison for
souls. Reverend Fathers and dear Brothers, none of
you can permit this evil to take root in himself, none
of you can communicate it to others, none of you can
inflict it on the Society. The reputation of the Society
is in your hands.
To this evil you will oppose a firm will to obey the
Encyclical, allowing nothing that smacks of stubbornness or refusal. The deliberate and unwavering disposition of your minds will be not to hold in the future
�314
LETTER OF FATHER GENERAL
to your opinions of yesterday in such a way that you
consider parts of the Encyclical as obstacles to be
hurdled, but rather to deny your own opinions, and to
hold the teaching of the Holy Father as the principle
according to which previous opinions are to be rejected or kept. This attitude calls for a spirit of faith
and humility; but it shows truly admirable greatness
of mind. If those among you regrettably affected by
the warning of the Holy Father know how to accept
and obey it, the Lord will draw great benefits out of
the present crisis. Certainly this is His will; but He
needs your co-operation. With the help of His grace
you will give it. You will also be eager to follow faithfully the prescripts of our Institute on the doctrine
to be held in the Society. 48 I do not wish to overwhelm
you, but is it not clear that if all our professors and
writers had been faithful to these .prescripts, we should
not now find ourselves in the present deplorable state
of affairs? True, the path of the theologian and philosopher, when facing new or difficult problems, is
fraught with danger. Yet this is no reason for us to
shirk an undertaking of supreme importance. You
have understood this, and no doubt you will continue
to understand it. But we have reason not to take up
this task without keeping our eyes on norms set up by
the Society after long experience. From the time of St.
Ignatius, who wished us to follow "the more secure
and more approved teaching," 49 the superiors of the
Society have always stressed the more solid and safer
teaching. There should correspond, on the part of all _:.
of Ours, a concern to have their thought, preaching,
teaching, and writing stamped with this sureness and
solidity as a sort of family trait.
You realize well, Reverend Fathers and dear
Brothers, that the intellectual works of your provinces,
far from proving a deficit, have produced many precious results in your philosophical and theological
faculties and houses of writers. You are rightly proud
of your periodicals and of the many important books
published in your Assistancy. Among the meritorious
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
315
works for which the whole Society acknowledges its
gratitude to you, I will personally mention several:
first, the effective will to publish work of high literary
and scientific scope; the preoccupation with work
that meets the needs of the times; the elaboration of
a living theology, closely linked with Scripture and
the Fathers. You must not jettison these values but
continue to develop them, joining them with a perfect
acceptance of the Encyclical "Humani Generis." Yoti
will also develop them with greater humility and modesty by being less concerned with rethinking, renewing, and reforming, than with conserving, deepening,
and to the extent of your powers, correcting, and perfecting. Thus avoiding exaggerated "integrism" you
will wish your judgments and words to be frankly and
filially inspired by the rule of "thinking with the
Church." Even in your research you will wish to remain in full harmony with the mind of the Church and
avoid an esotericism that would put you out of the
great current of philosophy and theology approved
by her. 50 You will cultivate in yourselves, as a very
pure expression of your spirit of the Church, a great
veneration not only toward the person of Christ's
Vicar, but also toward the teaching, orders, and directives that directly or indirectly emanate from him.
The Encyclical repeatedly insists on the obedience due
to all acts of the Holy See. 51 We must make it a point of
honor to allow ourselves no evasion, no ambiguous
state of mind; for we belong to a spiritual militia,
whose founder linked it by special bonds to the Vicar
of Jesus Christ. 52 We shall make this obedience consist especially in fidelity to the Divine King, to Whom
we have consecrated ourselves to serve Him "alone
and the Church His Spouse, under the Roman Pontiff,
Christ's Vicar on earth." 53
It is very important, Reverend Fathers and dear
Brothers, that there remain tomorrow no trace of the
doctrinal crisis which has begun to develop among
you. Rather there must be an unmistakable and unanimous rectification. This will be a work for all: some
�316
LETTER OF FATHER GENERAL
helping by prayer and genuine charity, others actually
accomplishing it by prayer and courageous submission.
You are not the only ones concerned ; the Society and
Church are no less so. This not only because you are
very dear members of both, but also because God has
imparted to you gifts that promise a widespread influence on the thoughts of others. They are concerned
because they expect much of you. As for me, Reverend
Fathers and dear Brothers, the sacrifices which I am
obliged to demand of you and the hope which I place in
your generosity make me feel all the more closely attached to you. With particular urgency I pray to our
divine Savior for you. May He grant you graces proportionate to the difficult crisis He wills you to overcome, keeping you unalterably attached to the teaching
of His Church and to His Vicar by bonds made
stronger because of this very trial.
I commend myself to your holy Sacrifices and
prayers. Rome, February 11, 1951.
Your servant in Christ,
JOHN BAPTIST JANSSENS, S.J.
General of the Society of Jesus
NOTES
lA.A.S. vol. XXXXII, 1950, pp. 561-578.
2 Cf. Mem. S. I., vol. VIII, p. 385.
3 "De nonnullis falsis opinionibus, quae catholicae doctrinae -·
fundamenta subruere minantur" (A.A.S. vol. cit. p. 560).
•Ct. A.A.S., vol. cit., pp. 564, 577.
5 "Fidei mysteria nunquam notionibus adaequate veris significari posse contendunt, sed tantum notionibus 'approximativis,'
ut aiunt, ac semper mutabilibus, quibus veritas aliquatenus
quidem indicetur, sed necessaria quoque deformetur. Quapropter
non absurdum esse putant, sed necesse omnino ut theologia
pro variis philosophiis, quibus decursu temporum tamquam suis
utitur instrumentis, novas antiquis substituat notiones, ita ut
diversis quidem modis, ac vel etiam aliqua ratione oppositis,
idem tamen, ut aiunt, valentibus, easdem divinas veritates humanitus reddat" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 566).
6 "Dictitant enim hanc nostram philosophiam perperam opinionem tueri metaphysicam absolute veram existere posse; dum
contra asseverant res, praesertim transcendentes, non aptius
e_xprimi posse, quam disparatis doctrinis, quae sese mutuo com-
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN/ GENERIS
317
pleant, quamvis sibi invicem quodammodo opponantur" (A.A.S.,
vol. cit., p. 573).
7"In dubium revocatur humanam rationem, absque divinae
'revelationis' divinaeque gratiae auxilio, argumentis ex creatis
rebus deductis demonstrare posse Deum personalem existere"
(A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 570).
8 Compare
another passage of the Encyclical: "Quarum
[theodiceae et ethicae] quidem munus esse censent non aliquid
certi de Deo aliove ente transcendenti demonstrare, sed ostendere
potius ea quae fides doceat de Deo personali ac de eius praeceptis, cum vitae necessitatibus perfecte cohaerere, ideoque omnibus
amplectenda esse, ut desperatio arceatur atque aeterna attingatur salus" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 575).
9 "Quamvis tam multa ac mira signa externa divinitus disposita sint quibus vel solo naturali rationis lumine divina
christianae religionis origo certo probari possit" (A.A.S., vol.
cit., p. 562). In the Encyclical "Communi urn rerum" of Pius X
it was already stated: "Egregius Doctor [sanctus Anselmus]
suos cuique fines constituit, utrique disciplinae philosophiae
scilicet et theologiae, ac satis monet, quodnam sit munus et
officium rationis naturalis in rebus quae doctrinam divinitus
revelatam attingunt: Fides . . . nostra, inquit, contra impios
defendenda est.-At quomodo et quousque?-Verba quae sequuntur aperte declarant: illis . . . rationabiliter ostendendum
est quam irrationabiliter nos contemnant. Philosophiae igitur
munus est praecipuum, in perspicuo ponere fidei nostrae rationabile obsequium, et, quod inde consequitur, officium adiungendae
fidei auctoritati divinae altissima mysteria proponenti, quae
plurimis testata veritatis indiciis, credibilia facta sunt nimis"
(A.A.S., vol. I, 1909, pp. 380, 381).
lOCf. Act. Rom. S. I., vol. III, pp. 229-233.
ucc Alii denique rationali in doli 'credibilitatis' fidei iniuriam
inferunt" (A.A.S., vol. XXXXII, 1950, p. 571).
I2See in this connection the 36th proposition condemned by
the decree "Lamentabili": "Resurrectio Salvatoris non est
proprie factum ordinis historici, sed factum ordinis mere
supernaturalis, nee demonstratum nee demonstrabile, quod conscientia christiana sensim ex aliis derivavit" (A.S.S., XL,
1907, p. 474).
IS"Quoniam vero divinum et infallibile magisterium Ecclesiae,
in auctoritate etiam Sacrae Scripturae consistit, huius propterea
fides saltern humana asserenda in primis vindicandaque est:
quibus ex libris, tamquam ex antiquitatis probatissimis testibus, Christi Domini divinitas et legatio, Ecclesiae hierarchicae
institutio, primatus Petro et successoribus eius collatus, in
tuto apertoque collocentur" (A.S.S., vol. XXVI, 1893-1894, p.
284).
H"Contenditur creationem mundi necessariam esse, cum ex
necessaria liberalitate divini amoris procedat" (A.A.S., vol.
XXXXII, 1950, p. 570).
I~"Animas enim a Deo immediate creari catholica fides nos
retinere iubet" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 575). See also the passage
in the Encyclical on the essential distinction between matter
and spirit (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 570).
IS"Alii veram 'gratuitatem' ordinis supernaturalis corrumpunt, cum autumnent Deum entia intellectu praedita condere
non posse, quin eadem ad beatificam visionem ordinet et vocet"
(A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 570).
I7"Peccati originalis notio, definitionibus tridentinis posthabitis, pervertitur" (Ibid.).
lBCf. Cone. Trid., sess. 5, can. 2.
�318
.
LETTER OF FATHER GENERAL
19"Sanctitatem et iustitiam in qua constitutus fuerat" (Cone.
Trid., sess. 5, can. 1).
20Cf. Cone. Trid., sess. 5, can. 5.
21 "Non enim christifideles earn sententiam amplecti possunt,
quam qui retinent asseverant vel post Adam hisce in terris
veros homines exstitisse, qui non ab eodem prouti omnium protoparente, naturali generatione originem duxerint, vel Adam
significare multitudinem quamdam protoparentum" (A.A.S.,
vol. cit., p. 570).
22 "Cum nequaquam appareat quomodo huiusmodi sententia
componi queat cum iis quae fontes revelatae veritatis et acta
Magisterii Ecclesiae proponunt de peccato originali, quod procedit ex peccato vere commisso ab uno Adamo, quodque generatione in omnes transfusum, inest unicuique proprium (A.A.S.,
vol. cit., p. 576).
23"'Unaque simul [pervertitur notio] peccati in universum
prout est Dei offensa, itemque satisfactionis a Christo pro
nobis exhibitae" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 570).
W'Nec desunt qui contendant transsubstantiationis doctrinam,
utpote antiquata notione philosophies substantiae innixam, ita
emendandam esse ut realis Christi praesentia in Ss. Eucharistia
ad quemdam symbolismum reducatur, quatenus consecratae
species, nonnisi signa efficacia sint spiritualis praesentiae
Christi eiusque intimae coniunctionis cum fidelibus membris
in Corpore Mystico" (A.A.S., vol. cit.; pp. 570, 571).
2sC{. A.A.S., vol. XXXXII, 1950, p ... 560.
26Cf. A.A.S., vol. XXXV, 1943, p. 193 ff.
27 "Quidam censent se non devinciri doctrina P.aucis ante annis
in Encyclicis Nostris Litteris exposita, ac fontibus 'revelationis'
innixa, quae quidem docet Corpus Christi mysticum et Ecclesiam Catholicam Romanam unum idemque esse" (A.A.S., vol.
XXXXII, 1950, p. 571).
2BCf. A.A.S., vol. cit., pp. 571-574.
29 Cf. A.A.S., vol. cit., pp. 563-564.
soc{. A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 573.
axc.I.C., can. 1366, 2.
a2Cf. A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 578.
ssct. A.A.S., vol. cit., pp. 566; 567.
34..Tot ac tanta, quae pluries saeculari Iabore a VIrls non
communis ingenii ac sanctitatis, invigilante sacro Magisterio,
nee sine Sancti Spiritus lumine et ductu, ad accuratius in dies
fidei veritates exprimendas, mente concepta, expressa ac perpolita sunt" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 567).
35 "Despectus autem vocabulorum ac notionum quibus theologi
scholastici uti solent, sponte ducit ad enervandam theologiaml.:
ut aiunt, speculativam, quam, cum ratione theologies innitatur, vera certitudine carere existimant" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 567).
sact. A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 578.
aT"Sacrorum fontium studio sacrae disciplinae semper
iuvenescunt; dum contra speculatio, quae ulteriorem sacri depositi inquisitionem neglegit, ut experiundo novimus, sterilis
evadit" (A.A.S., vol. cit., pp. 568; 569).
ss"Ac praeterea sensus litteralis Sacrae Scripturae eiusque
interpretatio . . . , ex commenticiis eorum placitis, novae cedere
debent exegesi, quam symbolicam ac spiritualem appellant; et
qua sacra Biblia Veteris Testamenti, quae hodie in Ecclesia
tamquam fons clausus lateant, tandem aliquando omnibus
aperiantur" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 570).
SD"Ante oculos habeant interpretes sibi illud omnium maximum curandum esse, ut clare dispiciant ac definiant, quis sit
verborum biblicorum sensum quem litteralem vocant" (A.A.S.,
·vol. XXXV, 1943, p. 310); and ~ee the rest of the page.
�ON THE ENCYCLICAL HUMAN! GENERIS
319
•oct.
A.A.S., vol. XXXXII, 1950, p. 569.
(Ibid.)
• 2 "Attamen plenum de morte victoriae effectum Deus generali
lege iustis conferre non vult, nisi cum finis temporum advenerit.
Itaque iustorum etiam corpora post mortem resolvuntur, ac
nov1ssimo tandem die cum sua cuiusque gloriosa anima coniungentur. Verumtamen ex generali eiusmodi lege Beatam Virginem Mariam Deus exemptam voluit" (A.A.S., vol. cit., p.
754.)
•aconc. Lateran., IV, c. 1.
HMt., XXV, 41-46.
45C/., Mt., XXIV, 43, 44 and Lk., XII, 39; Mk., XIII, 33-37
and Lk., XII, 35-38; Mt., XXIV, 42; Lk., XXI, 34; Mt., XXV,
1-13; Lk., XXI, 36.
46Cf. A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 577.
HI Cor., IV, 14.
•sSee especially Const. P. IV, c. V, n. 4, and c. XIV, n. 1;
Coll. Deer., d. 98-106; Acta Rom. S. 1., vol. XI, pp. 36-37.
4DConst., P. IV, c. V, n. 4.
sosee A.A.S., vol. cit., p. 567; see also the letter "Tuas
libenter" of Pius IX (A.A.S., vol. VIII, 1874, pp. 433-442,
especially pp. 440-441).
stSee A.S.S., vol. cit., pp. 568-571, 575, 576, 578.
52Exam. gener., c. I, n. 7; Const., P. V, c. III, n. 3.
5a«Soli Domino ac Ecclesiae Ipsius sponsae, sub Romano
Pontifice, Christi in terris Vicario, servire" (Form. Inst. a.
S. P. Julio III approb., n. 1).
41
Missionary Brothers
Of the 4,040 Jesuit missionaries scattered over the world,
664 are Coadjutor Brothers, 16 per cent of the total. Their
number has declined since 1941 when they numbered 700. The
war prevented the sending of replacements from many of the
European countries, and native vocations have not been sufficient to take the places of the Brothers who in former times
came from Europe.
Of the 664 Brothers on the missions; 250 are natives, a slow
increase over the years since 1915 when they numbered only
60. The Mission with the best success in securing native vocations is the flourishing one of Madura, 53 of whose 57 Coadjutor Brothers are natives. Other regions which show considerable promise in vocations to the grade of Temporal Coadjutor are India, with 100 native Brothers and 68 foreigners;
China, with 64 Chinese Brothers and 78 foreigners; Java, with
20 native and 7 Dutch Brothers, and the Philippines, with
28 Filipino Brothers and 9 American or Spanish Brothers.
-Lettres du Bas Canada, December 1950
�TWENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF
"JESUIT MISSIONS"
CALVERT ALEXANDER,
S.J.
The Society's largest missionary magazine will be
twenty-five years old this Fall. Although the first issue
did not appear until January 1927, it was around the
feast of the American Martyrs, on September 12, 1926,
that the first editor, Father Ignatius Cox (New York),
and his assistant, Father Peter J. Dolin (New England), began to prepare the copy for Vol. I, No. 1 of
Jesuit Missions.
The founders of Jesuit Missions did not foresee that
the magazine they were beginning would in the next
twenty-five years become the most widely circulated
of all the Society's missionary magazines. Hidden from
their eyes were the historical "forces which would
sharply reduce the missionary potential of the great
European countries and hasten the development of
America's part in the world missionary movement.
But they did have vision. They saw very clearly, a
quarter of a century ago, that the Church in America
had a foreign missionary destiny that was yet unrealized; that the Society of Jesus which played so important a part in the foundation of the Church in the
United States must exerCise the same leadership in
this world apostolate; and finally, that this leadership
could be most effectively achieved not by a single province but by the cooperation of all the American prov- :
inces in a missionary organ which would present to - .:
the public the united efforts of all the American Jesuits
in the mission field.
Their wisdom has been justified by the years. In
1926 there were about 175 American Jesuits engaged
in missionary work, most of which was confined to
continental North America and the Caribbean countries
of Jamaica and British Honduras. In 1951 the number
of American Jesuits actually in the mission field has
passed the 1,000 mark. The number of missions has
}ncreased from six to sixteen. It is interesting to note
�ANNIVERSARY OF JESUIT MISSIONS
321
that the expansion of the American Jesuits has been
chiefly towards the Orient. In 1926 we were just beginning our first Oriental missions, the Philippines
and Patna, India. Today most of our power and our
greatest missionary effort is expended in the Far Eastern and Middle Eastern missions which include besides
the Philippines and Patna, China, the Marshalls and
Carolines, Ceylon, Jamshedpur (India), Delhi (India),
Baghdad and Japan. The missionary personnel was
increased in Alaska, the Indian missions and in J amaica and British Honduras and a new Central American mission was taken over in the Republic of Honduras. The eight American provinces today operate
a string of missions that almost encircles the globe.
They engage in a variety of social, medical and educational works among over fifty million people. Perhaps their most outstanding achievement has been in
education. Besides the large number of primary schools
for which they are responsible, they operate one university, eleven colleges, twenty-six high schools and
four seminaries in the mission fields. American Jesuits
are today widely known as America's largest missionary organization and are leaders in the stepped-up
tempo of mission work now undertaken by American
congregations.
Purpose and Program
Jesuit Missions was founded at the beginning of this
remarkable mission expansion and the part it has
played in it over the years has been an important one.
Missionary work of its very nature is a hidden enterprise. You can build a church or college in Cincinnati
or Los Angeles and thousands of people who are potential supporters cannot help being aware of its existence
because they can see it. The same cannot be said of a
church or college in Zamboanga or Baghdad. This far
away, hidden work of the mission requires, as no other
work of the Society, an effective publicity apparatus
to make its efforts concrete and visible to the Ameri-
�322
ANNIVERSARY~ OF JESUIT MISSIONS
can public from which must come its financial support,
its vocations and its prayers for supernatural aid.
The founders of Jesuit Missions acted wisely in establishing a national magazine, instead of several provincial ones, for this important work. The number and
geographical variety of the missions operated by the
eight American provinces has made it possible for
Jesuit Mwsions to get out a more attractive and interesting magazine with a wider appeal to those interested
in mission support and vocations. The combined mission personnel of all the provinces has given the American Jesuits continual leadership in numbers of men in
the field which could not have been achieved if there
had been no national publicity organization for the
missions.
It would be impossible to mention by name all the
Jesuits who were responsible·for the establishment of
Jesuit Missions. Many were involved. There was a
general feeling abroad in the provinces in the early
'twenties that something should be done about mission
publicity on a national scale. This was best expressed
by Father Joseph Gschwend (Missouri), then a Scholastic but later the second editor of Jesuit Missions,
who attended the convention of the Catholic Students
Mission Crusade in 1924 and reported that the Society
in America was not known as a missionary order.
Others were thinking of a national mission magazine
including Father Dillon, Provincial of the California
Province, and Father McMenamy, Provincial of the.
Missouri Province. But the man whose name appea~ ...
earliest and most consistently in the negotiations towards the establishment of Jesuit Missions and the one
who was chiefly responsible for its existence was
Father Laurence J. Kelly (Maryland) who was then
Provincial of the Maryland-New York Province. As
early as 1923 he was preaching the doctrine that the
American Jesuits should have a mission magazine like
Maryknoll's. In 1925 on the occasion of the beatification of the Jesuit Martyrs he received permission from
Father General to make The Pilgrim a missionary
�ANNIVERSARY OF JESUIT MISSIONS
323
magazine carrying stories from all the American missions. This was the year of the Mission Congress in
Rome and the occasion of a directive from Father
General urging that a national mission magazine
rather than provincial ones be established. In May
1926 Father Mattern, then the American Assistant,
visited the States and reiterated the instructions of
Father General to the various provincials. Jesuit MisSions was founded as a result of this and grew out of
the old organ of the American Martyrs' Shrine, The
Pilgrim. Father Cox, then editor of The Pilgrim, became the first editor of Jesuit Missions.
While Jesuit Missions today is a much larger and
different organization than it was twenty-five years
ago, the changes that have taken place have been those
of growth from the original plan rather than deviation from it. Father Cox wrote the foundation program approved by Father General in 1926 under
which Jesuit Missions still operates. And it was his
explanation of how this program should be developed
that has guided succeeding editors and associate editors. This continuity of purpose has been an important
factor in the progress and success of Jesuit Missionsthis and the remarkable validity of the original idea
itself. Briefly, this idea was that Jesuit Missions,
while having as its chief work the publication of a
national missionary magazine, should also act as a
publicity and public relations organization for the
missions of the American Assistancy. This latter
meant that in addition to the magazine, the editors
should make use of all the modern media of publicity
to broadcast the knowledge of our missionary work to
the American public.
Today Jesuit Missions is such a public relations organization. It has a Publicity Department which sends
regular press releases and pictures to the papers, both
Catholic and secular, and to magazines as well as to
the Propagation of the Faith Directors, thus giving a
much wider circulation to material and appeals received from missionaries. Its Audio-Visual Depart-
�324
ANNIVERSARY ~OF JESUIT MISSIONS
ment has produced eight sound technicolor movies,
forty-five minutes in length, on the various missions
and three other silent versions. More than 120 copies
are presently in circulation. Nine colored slide lectures
have been produced on India, China, Baghdad, The
Moslem World, Caroline and Marshall Islands, Japan,
British Honduras, the Philippines and Yoro. These
slide lectures are more effectively used in smaller
groups than the mission movies. Exhibits have been
turned out for display at conventions and rallies. Another department takes care of encouraging missionaries to write books and finding publishers for them
when they are written. The Research Department
keeps accurate statistics on the thousand American
Jesuit missionaries and the history and geography and
political conditions of their various areas. Every year
a four-page spread on our mission personnel is prepared for the Catholic Directory, and every two years
a larger catalog of American Jesuit missionaries is
published. These publicity activities and others in
which Jesuit Missions now engages were not added immediately. It was Father Gschwend, the second editor,
who began them by obtaining permission to engage in
the publication of books and pamphlets on the mis-sions. This was in 1928. It took years of really difficult struggle because of the smallness of the staff and
lack of finances to begin these other activities.
Circulation and Income
Although these publicity activities are important-· .
and very productive of financial assistance and vocations, the editors of Jesuit Missions are never allowed
to forget that the magazine is their most important
work. For it is the magazine which supports the
publicity activities, and the method of obtaining circulation for it is, in itself, one of our most effective
publicity weapons. All of the Fathers on the staff
preach for subscriptions in the churches of the various
dioceses throughout the country, sometimes speaking
to as many as four hundred thousand people a year.
�ANNIVERSARY OF JESUIT MISSIONS
325
The result of this is money for the missions and also
subscriptions for Jesuit Missions.
Although the first purpose of Jesuit Missions is not
the collection of money, it is one of its purposes as
stated in the foundation program. Exclusive of extraordinary gifts, Jesuit Missions averages in contributions from its readers a steady income of more than
$100,000 per year for the missions. In addition to this,
Jesuit Missions has always been able to support its
staff and its various publicity activities on income
from the magazine. Because of the wide-spread and
long-range nature of its publicity activities it is impossible to give accurate figures on the amount of
money it produces for the missions each year. Some
donors send their gifts directly to the missionaries,
others to the mission procurators. But from the income
received at the office it is evident that returns increase
with a rise in circulation and decline when circulation drops.
Circulation, therefore, is the most important activity of Jesuit Missions and all recognize it as such.
Every extra subscription received means more money
for the missions and more money to engage in public
relations and publicity activities. Although Jesuit Missions today with 125,000 subscribers has the best circulation of any of the Society's many missionary
magazines, it stands a poor fourth among the mission
magazines of the United States. The leaders in the
circulation field, especially Maryknoll, have always put
more men in subscription promotion work than we
have.
Before concluding, one other important activity of
Jesuit Missions should be mentioned as showing the
wisdom of its founders. In the foundation program
Jesuit Missions was instructed "by means of its board
of editors to constitute a permanent committee for the
advancement and protection of our missionary interests." This provision has enabled Jesuit Missions to
make very important contributions to the growth
and development of the American Jesuits in the mis-
�326
ANNIVERSARY O'l' JESUIT MISSIONS
sions. From the very beginning it was seen by the editors that full-time procurators for the missions were
essential in every province. There was no single province that had one in 1927. Jesuit Missions campaigned
for this idea at the regular Provincials' meetings. Today all of the American provinces have full-time mission procurators. Jesuit Missions also organized the
American Jesuit Missionary Association which is a
union of the mission procurators and the editors of
Jesuit Missions in working out mission promotion on
a national scale. Another achievement was the formation of the Mission Secretariat which is an organization of all the Catholic mission societies in the country.
Jesuit Missions has come a long way since 1926 but
no one is more conscious than the editors of the distance it still has to travel to be a public relation~ organization worthy of the achkvements of the 1,000
American Jesuits in the mission 'field. Progress in the
missions has been much more rapid than progress in
mission publicity at home. This is unfortunate for
it puts the missionaries themselves under the disadvantage of not receiving the income that they would
get were their splendid work better known.
-·
WORK AND WORSHIP
These are the watchwords of that night which we call day.
They are certainties. Speculations are only useful inasmuch as
they lead on to work and worship. We have a kind of creative
or conserving force within us. And we have to evolve order
and beauty out of our surroundings-the brown earth, the barren sea, the souls of men; or we have to help in keeping intact such work as the progressive centuries have wrought
for mankind, and to keep earth, and sea, and human lives
from reverting to primitive chaos.
CANON SHEEHAN
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
ALBERT
R. O'HARA, S.J.
On the afternoon of Februray 15, 1949 I hurried
with many documents and a couple of handbags to
the huge customs shed at Shanghai to have my baggage inspected before leaving for the Philippines,
"Land of Exile." About twenty-five Chinese Jesuit
novices and an equal number of juniors were pulling
and tuggin,g at huge piles of suitcases and handbags.
The long, gray beard of Father Beauce, S.J., marked
him out for the seventy years that were really his
though not a true indication of the energy and good
humor with which he was carrying out his duties -as
Vice Superior and Master of Novices. Father Ralph
Brown (California Province) had been commandeered
to be Minister and Procurator of the same group.
One or two other Jesuits of the Shanghai Mission
and several Austrian Jesuits who were professors for
the Kinghsien Regional Seminary completed the first
shipload of exiles. For some of us it was with a heavy
heart that we waved "goodbye" to China, our fellow
missionaries, and our Chinese Catholics. Exile lay
ahead and we knew not what fate was awaiting China
and those we left behind. For others it was an exciting experience to leave the seclusion of the scholasticate and to travel to South China and the Philippines.
What was the reason for this exodus? The Communist threat to overrun all China had brought up
the question of moving out those men who were not
actually engaged in the direct care of souls. The decision of Very Rev. Father General was that all
should stay except the novices and juniors and their
faculty, as well a~:~ the seminarians who were entrusted
to the Jesuits for instruction. The Visitor for China,
Very Rev. Father Burkhardt, had earlier, as Superior
of the Kinghsien Mission, visited the Philippines and
arranged with Very Rev. Father Leo Cullum, Superior
of the Jesuit Mission in the Philippines, to move the
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CHINA l\IISSION IN EXILE
Regional Seminary of Kinghsien to the Islands in case
of necessity. Through the good offices of His Eminence
Cardinal Spellman, a request had been made of President Quirino to allow Chinese seminarians and religious a refuge in the Philippines if events warranted
such a move. The request had been granted and now
we were taking advantage of the offer. It was, however,
to be a slow and tortuous groping through a maze of
red tape.
The Kinghsien Seminary
The excitement of our trip on the General Meigs
was not allowed to destroy religious discipline. We
were grouped together in third class and recited
litanies in common, made points and examen by the
tinkle of a bell, and followed something of an order
of the day. Meanwhile Father $rnest Bruckner and
I slipped out of this monastery atmosphere for a briefing on the history of the seminary of which I was to
be Minister. We had been ordained together in Zikawei
in 1939. He had become Spiritual Father and Scripture
professor for the Kinghsien Seminary while I had
been teaching sociology at the National Central University in Nanking. The seminary at Kinghsien,
Hopeh in North China, had been under Communist
rule for several years. At_ first the Communists had
not molested it because the Fathers were in great
favor with the local Reds and the common people for
their generous help and protection of the people during the Japanese occupation. Finally the local offi- _:
cials were moved elsewhere and new ones came in with
orders to break up the seminary. They suddenly descended on the house, imprisoned the Fathers and
dispersed the seminarians. The latter asked for passes
to return to their homes and these were freely given.
However, instead of going to their homes, they made
their way in twos and threes to Tientsin which was
then iu Nationalist hands, and regrouped. Meanwhile
the Fathers were brought out of jail for the "Tou
Cheng" or People's Court. After a number of attempts
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
329
none was found who would accuse the Fathers of any
crime and they were released. Most of them were allowed to go to Tientsin where they found the seminarians waiting for them. They joyfully banded together and moved on to Peiping. There they bought
a new location but after two years of fairly peaceful
study the city was surrounded and in danger of being
taken by the Communists. Since it seemed certain that
they would break up the seminary as they had done before, the decision was made to evacuate the students
and their professors by plane. The Protestant missionary plane, the "St. Paul," which was evacuating
missionaries at the time, was chartered. The first
group got out safely but when the plane returned to
pick up the remaining seminarians, gunfire on the
air field frightened off the pilot. The first group, about
thirty, moved on to Shanghai where they were most
charitably received and cared for at the Zikawei Seminary. After the Reds captured Peiping the remaining
seminarians registered as poor students and again
asked for passes to go back to their homes. The request
was granted and they started out on a gigantic hitch
hike to Shanghai by devious roads and means of transportation. Trickling into the city they were met by
Father Burkhardt who comforted and encouraged
them. Following the decision to move the seminary to
the Philippines, the seminarians and several of their
professors were flown to Hong Kong. After a most
kind and charitable reception by Very Rev. Father
Ryan, Superior of the Mission of the Irish Jesuits,
and by Rev. Father Harris, Rector of the Regional
Seminary at Aberdeen, they were given a temporary
refuge in this beautiful location.
When the General Meigs reached Hong Kong on
February 17, the novices and juniors were whisked
away to a ship for Macao. Villa Flor at Macao was to
be their home until arrangements could be made for
the visas for the Philippines and for other necessities.
After a one day stay at Hong Kong which was made
most enjoyable by the hospitality of the Irish Jesuits,
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CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
I went on alone to the Philippines. February 20 found
me struggling through crowds of disembarking people
to be met by Father Walter Hogan, S.J., an old friend,
and by the imperturbable Brother Dio who for years
has skillfully extricated Jesuits by the dozens from the
clutches of immigration officials, customs officers, and
waterfront bullies. Here began a most wonderful
story of charity towards the China Mission refugees
that words fail to tell adequately and to which the
word finis has not yet been written. From the Superior
of the Mission, Very Rev. Leo Cullum, S.J., on through ·
the various rectors and ministers of the houses in and
near Manila, to the Scholastics and Brothers, our refugees were met by nothing but the most unstinted,
self-sacrificing and thoughtful charity. Father Paul
Hugendobler, at the time Vice Rector of the Ateneo
de Manila, showed me hospitality- that would be hard
to equal during my month's stay at the College. Father
James McMahon, at the time Minister of the Sacred
Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, and Father James Hennessey of the same house, immediately called to take
me to the Hacarin Farm of Don Vicente Araneta
where there were some Quonset huts which had been
used for an agricultural school and which Don Vicente
had generously offered to us for housing our seminarians.
Araneta Farm
Six huts together gave promise of taking care of
the needs of the seminary which we thought would -·
number about fifty students and six or seven staff
members. At a distance of about two or three blocks
there were two other large buildings in excellent condition but we would have to walk in the burning sun
during the dry season and .in heavy downpours over
muddy roads during the long, rainy season. As a result we did not consider them for permanent use for
our needs then. Father Hennessey and I immediately
drew up plans for the partitioning of the Quonset huts.
We had a dining room and a kitchen in the center, two
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
331
dormitories at one end for the seminarians, and a
chapel and sacristy next to the dining room. The fifth
hut supplied six rooms and a recreation room for the
Fathers, and the last supplied two good-sized rooms
for study and class with library space between for a
noise buffer. Work was started immediately according
to these plans but not rushed as the visa and immigration process gave promise of being long drawn out.
On March 20, however, Father Franz Reiterer
(Austrian Province), Vice Rector of the Seminary,
wired me from Hong Kong that Father Bruckner
would arrive in Manila about April 2 with the first
group of seminarians. Unfortunately I was just completing a retreat to the graduates of the Philippine
Women's University, Father Hennessey was in the
midst of oral exams for the philosophers at N ovaliches,
and the Fathers of the Ateneo were giving their final
exams to the students there. Novaliches is twenty-three
kilometers from Manila over rough roads, and the
Araneta farm is another seven kilometers over the
same type of road. Hence the supply and transportation problem is quite a serious one. Novaliches loaned
me an old weapon-carrier which they had just overhauled and fixed up for this purpose. It had no top and
less springs but for the first few months it was our
one link with the source of supplies.
About this time Father Zehetner (Austrian Province) arrived in Manila to help me. He did not know
much English and had never been in the Philippines
before, but since he had been on the Seminary staff
his knowledge of what was needed for that type of
life together with his good humor helped me in the
midst of a thousand cares. We made lists of all the
things that a refugee seminary would need-from
cooking stoves to toothpicks, from altars to holy-water
sprinklers, from black-boards to paper and pencils.
In all these matters Father Weiss, the Mission Procurator, the various ministers, Brothers Dio, Petilla
and Duffy helped me greatly by tips on where and how
to buy, and frequently they did the buying for me.
�332
CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
Since I had no license and did not know the city,
Father Denis Lynch, Rector of Novaliches and Master
of Novices, got me the pre-war driver for the Observatory. A devoted alumnus of the Ateneo got me a
very precious person, an honest and devoted Chinese
cook. When, as April 2 drew near, I was swamped by
the tasks both in the city and at the Araneta farm,
the Scholastics from the Ateneo de Manila generously
came to my aid. Messrs. Arvisu, Arevalo, Cullen, King
and Giron moved out to the farm and with Father
Hennessey to say Mass for them and direct their work,
they really put the place in some kind of order. Meanwhile I was making daily and sometimes twice daily
trips with supplies and completing arrangements
with immigration authorities, customs agents, and a
bus company for the arrival of the first group. There
was so much yet to be done on the.. day of arrival that
Father Lynch kindly brought about ten novices over
to the farm to tidy up about the Quonset huts. As the
ship pulled in about 2:00 P.M. on April 2, it brought
Father Bruckner and twenty-four seminarians. Although I had all the necessary documents for the release of the Chinese, Father Hugendobler, Father
Zehetner, Brother Dio and Mr. Co Ching Yuan, President of the Chinese Catholic Action Society, came
along to give me their moral and actual physical support. The preparations and precautions paid off well
for we were cleared of all red tape in about an hour.
The large bus carried us to the Ateneo for a cold drink
and a look around. The length of the trip to the Ara- -neta farm surprised the newcomers quite a bit but a
welcome awaited us at the new home. Fathers Lynch,
Doucette, and Hennessey had brought over a crate
of apples and another of oranges and a box of cookies
to be a merienda for the travellers. Father Lynch had
even procured crucifixes for the rooms and small, neat
holy-water founts for the doors. The seminarians were
much impressed by the unbounded charity that met
them at every turn.
In those days of countless demands and urgent needs
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
333
of the new men and the builders, the near-by Sacred
Heart Novitiate proved most genuinely to be a "house
of charity." The Minister, Father James McMahon,
now Rector of the Ateneo de Manila, constantly came
to our assistance when we were in difficulty and often
foresaw our needs and took care of them. Very frequently our weapon-carrier broke down or ran out
of gas; Father McMahon would send us the gas or loan
us another truck. While our carpenters were rushing
work on the kitchen to completion, we would be in need
of more tables or benches; Father McMahon would
arrange to have them made at the Novitiate and then
send them over. Father Denis Lynch was never too
busy to inquire into our needs and then send someone
or something over for us. We were grateful for the
kindness that both these superiors showed us in loaning us the very valuable Brother Pascua, and for his
own humility and whole-heartedness in planning and
personally doing all of our electrical work. I must add
a word, too, about Mr. Victoriano Davucil, my truck
driver, and Mr. Ch'en, my cook. Their loyalty and devotion made my work possible and their comic adventures made it amusingly interesting.
Final Preparation
As neither the Rector nor Prefect of the Seminary
had yet arrived, I was asked to fill these offices temporarily. However, this was a task more in name than
in fact for I had to make daily trips to Manila for
consultations with Very Rev. Father Cullum about
visas for the men who were still in Hong Kong, about
more housing and many other matters. He was never
too busy to see me nor too worried about his own
affairs to give our problems his wise and prudent consideration. He put his secretarial force to work for
us, called on clerical and government friends alike to
assist us whenever they were needed, and arranged
for a financial loan that would take care of us until
we could commence to find means of financing ourselves.
�334
CHINA 1\USSION IN EXILE
More seminarians arrived by ship and plane until
we had close to capacity for the facilities that we had
prepared. Meanwhile, more and more seminarians
from other sections of China were asking to be included. Finally we were notified by Very Rev. Father
Burkhardt that we should expect close to one hundred
and twenty students and a staff of about thirteen
priests. Fortunately Father Franz Reiterer, the Vice
Rector, had arrived in Manila to become the Prefect,
and Father John Hofinger, S.J., (Austrian) to become
Prefect of Studies. These arrivals released me for more
work on buying supplies and arranging immigration
matters in Manila. The novices and juniors in Macao
were now becoming alarmed at the Communists who
were threatening to swallow up their refuge before
we could receive them in the Philippines. During Holy
Week Father Burkhardt made a_hurried trip to Manila
to see what had already been done and to plan for the
future. Through the kindness of Father Masterson,
S.J., Rector of the Ateneo, and Father Carasig, S.J.,
we made a rush trip to Baguio to see whether the
Jesuit Villa would be large enough to serve as a temporary house for the novitiate, and to consult with Mr.
Evangelista, Executive Secretary to the President, as
to the possibility of granting visas to more Chinese
seminarians. In both cases the results were sufficiently
satisfactory. About the middle of May I flew to Baguio
again and scouted the city and its surroundings for a
larger place but nothing suitable could be found. Since
the vacation season was at an end and the Villa house_.'
was furnished and in running order, it was decided to
tell the Jesuits to come ahead as soon as their visas
were in order and transportation was available. Father
Ralph Brown cabled that sixty Fathers, Scholastics,
and seminarians would arrive by plane on the evening
of May 30. I again flew to Baguio to make final arrangements with Father Harry Furay, S.J., who had
been the Villa Superior, and to retain the cook for
what I thought might be a couple of weeks.
Since the seminarians at San Jose were on vacation
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
335
and would not be back for a few more days, Rev.
Father Gampp very charitably offered to put up the
sixty guests until we could get them registered with
the immigration officials. Father Klippert, the Mininster, arranged for a late meal since the plane would
not arrive till 7:00 P. M., and the San Jose Scholastics
pitched into the preparations more energetically than
the workmen who had been hired for the job. At
exactly 7:00 o'clock, the big four-motored plane settled down and a large crowd came out on the field to
see who was arriving. The door opened and a whitecassocked Chinese Scholastic came down the gangway;
he was followed by another and another. I had written
them in Hong Kong to prepare white cassocks such as
were worn in the Philippines so as not to be conspicuous. However, as nothing but white-cassocked
figures cascaded out of the doorway, the onlookers
gasped in amazement. One air attendant quipped, "It's
the new look." Father Klippert and Brother Dio were
on hand to help the newcomers through the maze of
customs and immigration red tape that invariably
meets new arrivals. I had all the necessary papers to
expedite the process. Mr. Jose Bengzon, an Ateneo
alumnus and acting Commissioner of Immigration,
was most kind, in this case as in all others, in helping
us to get cleared through with a minimum of trouble
and delay. Huge piles of hand luggage were cleared
and within a little more than an hour the new men
were hustled into two chartered buses. The whole San
Jose community turned out to help them with their baggage and to show them the way about the house. The
next day I brought one of the Immigration staff to the
seminary and we handled the long process of registration and fingerprinting in one of the lar,ge study halls.
On the second day we split the crowd into three groups
-the novices and juniors piled into two chartered buses
for Baguio; a small group of Chinese Jesuit philosophers were taken by car to N ovaliches to join the
American and Philippine Scholastics who were studying philosophy there; and about twelve more Chinese
�336
CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
seminarians were taken by Father Reiterer to the Araneta farm which was now bulging at the sides. As the
bus trip to Baguio would take five or six hours I took
a plane to see that everything was ready for the arrival of the novices and juniors. The Arevalo family
had kindly rented us their summer house at Baguio
near Villa Santa Rosa so that we could house the
faculty in rooms; the novices and juniors used dormitories. After spending several days in Baguio to
arrange for credit and supplies until the arrival of
Father Brown, their Minister, I returned to Manila.
Father Brown later rented the lower half of the house
directly across from Villa Santa Rosa to supply classrooms for the juniors. This was to be only a temporary
arrangement for about six months, since all of these
houses would be in demand when the next summer
season came round.
New Problems
Back in Manila new and larger problems were developing. Father Visitor had written that we should
be on the lookout for a possible location for the Chinese
Language School, Chabanel Hall from Peiping. He suggested that it might be located near the seminary or
juniorate so as to give the language students an OPportunity to practice Chinese and the Chinese to practice English. As usual Father Cullum gave himself
wholeheartedly to the solving of this problem. Through
the good services of Mr. Sinclair, a non-Catholic but .
a good friend of the Society, we discovered at Los.·.
Bafios what seemed to be an ideal location for a combined seminary and language school location. The
property had once been a United States Navy rest
camp, had numerous buildings which could be adapted
to our use, enjoyed better climate than Manila, and had
excellent recreational facilities. While going through
lengthy negotiations with the Philippine Government
for the lease of this property, the Fathers and seminarians remaining in Hong Kong and Macao became
, alarmed at the turn of events there and asked that
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
337
we arrange to receive them in Manila at once. Temporary quarters were immediately set up in the remaining buildings on the Araneta Farm although these
were located at a good distance from the Quonset huts.
There had likewise been serious and involved difficulties about the visas for the second group of seminarians. The other ,group had been covered by a special
grant from the President and his Cabinet. After much
delay the request for a second group had been
turned down but with the advice that we could bring
these seminarians in through the regular channels
as students. This method was a sure one but entailed
much expense, medical examinations, and a discouraging and wearying amount of documentary paper work
in Hong Kong and Manila. Upon arrival in the latter
city each Scholastic and seminarian had to undergo
not only the usual registration and fingerprinting but
also a special investigation by a board of lawyers and
interpreters. Lest the interpreter misquote the seminarian, or the seminarian through nervousness or
lack of experience spoil his case, I had to be present
for all of these investigations which lasted for an
average of a half hour a person.
About two weeks before this ordeal started, Father
Jean Desautels, S.J., a French Canadian and the new
Rector of the Chinese Language School, had come to
Manila by plane to seek a location for his school. At this
point we met so many difficulties with the Los Bafios
property that we gave up hope of obtaining it for our
own use. Fortunately Mr. Sinclair again came to our aid
and showed us a former army and prison camp which
had about seventy barracks on ten hectares of land.
The site was in the southeast suburbs of Manila, about
ten kilometers from the center of the city. Although
the barracks were in various stages of disrepair due
to quasi-official and unofficial looting, we quickly decided to buy them and the equipment and to rent the
land on which the central unit of houses was standing.
It contained twenty-four houses in fairly good condition and by tearing down the remaining barracks,
�338
CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
many of which were mere skeletons, we obtained
material to make the former unit ready for occupation.
When an initial start with a small contractor proved
to be progressing too slowly, we changed to Mr. George
Koster who had a large labor force and ample materials. Father Desautels stayed on the property day
after day, directing the repairs and seeing that there.
was no slowdown in the work. It was largely due to
his close supervision and his generous cooperation with
the wishes of the seminary that within about forty
days the work had progressed enough to permit moving the seminary from Araneta Farm to the new site,
about the end of October, 1949. The new location was
called Mandaluyong from the name of the nearest
townsite.
Since the language students had not yet arrived,
Father Desautels kindly allow:ed us to complete the
seminary part of the compound first. We were able
to supply much of the needed furniture out of the
surplus lumber that we had on hand. For the first few
days after moving in, the community of the Language
School consisted of only Father Desautels, Father
Mendiburu, S.J., (Spanish), the language professor,
and Brother Coloumbe, S.J., (Canadian); hence they
took their meals with us. There were two large dining
rooms leading off the same kitchen-a procedure we
had decided upon both to economize and to give the
same diet to each community, thus eliminating any
cause for dissatisfaction. New students for Chabanel
Hall began to arrive singly and in groups, but sincetheir Minister did not arrive until about Christmas,
I acted as Minister for both communities in regard to
outside business and cooperated with Father Desautels
in meeting the newcomers and piloting them through
the customs and immigration. But since the founding
of the new Chabanel Hall is to be told in another
article, I shall not speak more about it here.
Meanwhile Father Bauer, S.J., (French) and Father
Brown of the novice-junior community made such repairs and changes as they thought necessary at the
�CHINA MISSION IN EXILE
339
Araneta Farm and moved the novices and juniors
from Baguio. The Rector of this community, Father
Bauer, started a farming and poultry-raising project
which provided the young Jesuits with a healthy outdoor occupation and produced meat and vegetables
for their meals. Spurred on by this example, the seminarians and the Language School students also devoted their spare time to gardening. It was argued
with reason that these young men would one day
return to a Communist China where work would be
required of each one of them, or at least to a people
who had new ideas about hard labor.
Mandaluyong
In May 1950 Very Rev. Paul O'Brien, S.J., (American), the former Superior of the Yangchow Mission,
arrived in the Philippines as Vice Visitor for all
Chinese missionaries and Jesuits outside occupied
China. One of his first acts was to open a philosophate
for the Chinese Jesuits in connection with Chabanel
Hall and the seminary. Father O'Brien set up his
headquarters here with Father George Marin, S.J.,
as secretary. The site of Mandaluyong now houses
three communities, St. Joseph's Regional Seminary,
Chabanel Hall, and the Jesuit philosophate. They total
over one hundred and ninety members. Every Sunday
from twenty to thirty priests go out to the nearby
army camps and the small barrios to hear confessions,
offer Mass, and to preach. The Fathers are very frequently giving tridua, missions and retreats to lay
people and religious. Members of the Language School
offer Sunday Mass and teach catechism to the people
of the neighboring barrio.
The Araneta Farm community has graduated a
good number of juniors into the philosophate but has
been replenished by new arrivals from Macao. It is
normally a community of fifty to sixty. Father John
Magner, S.J., (American) was loaned to the Ateneo
de Cagayan as Minister. Fathers Eguren and Perez
were loaned to Zamboanga for mission stations there.
�340
CHINA MISSiON IN EXILE
Fathers Bourrett and Kearney and I were loaned to
the College Department of the Ateneo de Manila for
the school year 1950-51. Eleven more novices are expected from Macao in the near future. In April 1950
four seminarians were ordained priests and two subdeacons; in the following April, His Excellency, Bishop
Vitus Chang, S.V.D., ordained nine more priests.
But unless both the Chinese Communist regulations
and the Philippine laws change radically, we are faced
with the impossibility of new seminarians and novices
joining us. However, the question now arises of employing the newly ordained seminarians and of placing
the Jesuit Scholastics in teaching posts. Of equal
urgency is the task of establishing a theologate for the
China Mission Jesuits.
God in His Providence will care, for these problems
as He has lovingly settled them for us thus far. Meanwhile there is one indelible impre.ssion that will ever
remain in the minds and hearts of all of us refugees
from China-the wonderful charity of the Superior
and of the whole Philippine Mission of the Society of
Jesus. They were not content with treating us as their
own but with even greater concern than they cared
for their own. That the charity of Christ reward them
as they richly deserve will be our daily prayer.
-·
Jesuit Hyrnnographer
The new Office for the Assumption in the Roman Breviary
has hymns for First Vespers, Matins and Lauds composed by
the internationally famed Jesuit, Father Vittorio Genocesi,
hymnographer to the Congregation of Rites, whose Latin works
have won awards repeatedly in world-wide competitions in
Amsterdam and Rome.
St. lgruLtius Church Calendar
(San Francisco)
�THE DEATH OF OUR GERMAN SCHOLASTICS AT
HERRSCHING
When Scholastics ride off in an automobile on a villa
day, it is usually a chance ,group bent on a pleasure
trip. It was not so last June 19. Our brethren of the
East German Province were making a pilgrimage to
Andechs, the birthplace of St. Hedwig, the Patroness
of Silesia. Combined with that was a farewell celebration both for the Master of Novices, Father Pies, on
his departure for the new novitiate in Bad Homburg,
and also for those who had completed their philosophy.
All the Scholastics of the East German Province were
in the party, except Mr. Sendler, who had to stay at
home to take care of the transportation of some furniture. Mr. MacGrath of the English Province decided
on the morning itself to take his place. About six in the
morning the happy company left Berchmans College,
and many hands waved after them. In Andechs they
attended the Votive Mass of St. Hedwig, whose text
the Master of Novices briefly explained. Mr. Halatsch
served the Mass, and all received Holy Communion.
After this they venerated the relic of St. Hedwig with
great devotion and lingered long in prayer at the
shrine. At their earnest request the Master of Novices
gave Benediction with the shrine's marvelous monstrance.
Then be,gan the social relaxation in brotherly companionship. About eleven o'clock the journey was continued as far as the Pilsensee to the north of Herrsching for a mid-day rest. At a short distance from the
lake stood a grade crossing whose bars were supposed
to be always down, and to be raised by passersthrough. Mr. Muschalek opened them and closed them
behind the truck. During the dinner in the streaming
rain, despite limited means, a cordial ,gaiety sprang
up, a heartiness traditional in the East German Province. The carefully tended fire was like a symbol of
brotherly union. Mr. Ibrom and Mr. J ung were the
The account of the death of the German Scholastics was
translated by Father D.A . .Steele, S.J. of Fordham University.
�342
DEATH OF GERl\fAN SCHOLASTICS
chefs. Mr. Kodes said jokingly to Mr. MacGrath that
application forms to join the East German Province
were still available and that the yearly contingent
was small. After the meal some sat with the Master of
Novices inside the truck, others took refuge under a
few improvised tents. They all sang and played music
in honor of the departing Master of Novices, and Mr.
Schindler made a speech.
All too early it was time to think of the return
journey. About four o'clock the happy group left the
Pilsensee amid songs and quips. They first took the
branch road by which they had come in the forenoon.
The bars of the grade crossing were open. The driver
passed straight through, after shifting to low gear.
Since the road sloped upwards to the railroad track,
the vehicle lost speed somewhat. The tracks were
visible for not more than 120 yarps, because they took
a sharp curve into wooded country and were flanked
by thick hedges. While the truck was still jolting over
the railroad, the Master of Novices heard a whistle.
He was sitting beside the driver, while the Scholastics were in the body of the truck laughing and singing. He shouted: "Quick, a train is coming." The
driver accelerated, but too late-the electric locomotive
crashed at fifty miles an hour into the hind portion
of the truck. The driver o~ the locomotive had seen
something of a blue..,green color rise up above the side
of the embankment. All at once a heavy truck stood
directly in front of him. He applied the emergency
brakes and whistled, but the momentum was too great. -·
The curtain of the truck had been let down on the
side nearer the train, and now it blew up in the air
and enveloped the locomotive and hindered its driver
from seeing any more. The train halted only after
another hundred yards. All the Scholastics were violently thrown out, some forwards and others to the
right. They probably did not even feel the impact, because they could neither see nor hear the train, and in
the moment of collision they all lost consciousness.
Thus, after being a moment before united in brotherly
�DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
343
love on earth, they found themselves united again in
heaven in the love of Jesus. The truck was tossed into
the air and came down fifteen yards to the right in
marshy ground. One of the Scholastics lay between the
tracks, another had been dra,gged along by his clothes,
a third lay to the right of the train. These three probably died instantly.
The same can beas-sumed.£or-severarothers~ They
had been thrown out to the right and lay on the other
side of the truck in a ditch full of water. Most of them
must have hit the ground with their heads, since their
skulls and necks were broken. Mr. Raab, the least injured, told of lying between two others and wondering
why Mr. lbrom did not move. He extricated himself
and saw the others lying around without realizing
that they were dead. His only anxiety was that some
might drown in the water. He ran alongside them, but
only Mr. lbrom had his head under water, and he
pulled him out immediately. The driver's cab was
crushed inwards. Father Pies flew head first through
the window into the marsh. The driver, an employee of
the College, was free to move, and sprang onto the embankment shouting loudly: "What have I done?" Another person shouted: "Father Pies, absolution!" The
driver summoned Mr. Raab, and together they dragged
out Father Pies, who had nearly been crushed under
the heavy vehicle. Nearly all were lying on the ground,
Mr. Raab was standing, Mr. Muschalek had worked
himself upright; then the Master of Novices gave
general absolution.
Meanwhile, the train crew and passengers had gathered above on the embankment. Father Pies ~houted
to them to help, yet only two or three ventured down.
The driver of the locomotive was completely beside
himself. The Master of Novices, Mr. Raab, and the
few helpers now tried to extricate the living from between the dead, no easy task. It was most moving to
see these young men, so happy a moment ago, now
pale and lifeless. But no less moving was the resignation with which they took their fate, whether wounded
�344
DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
or dying, from the hand of God. Those still conscious
had but one anxiety, not to cause trouble to the
Master of Novices. "I can manage, help the others
first" was their frequent reply. Mr. Baudisch sat there
repeating: "I'm all right,'' but was prevented by an
ankle wound from rendering any assistance. When the
Master of Novices asked Mr. Halatsch: "Werner,
where is it hurting you?" he pointed to his chest, but
was clearly not in the full possession of his senses.
A passenger familiar with the neighboring tuberculosis hospital had promptly summoned the doctor
and the priest. Both came, and all the fatally wounded
were able to receive the last sacraments. When they
came to Mr. Muschalek, he said: "I think I shall
come through after all." Thirteen of his fellow Jesuits
were dead, gone to join the Society Triumphant. The
word was fulfilled, that the Chur.ch had sung that day:
"They are brothers in very truth;'"they have conquered
the sinful world and have followed Christ; full of
honors, they now possess the Kingdom of Heaven."
The severely wounded· and all who needed surgical attention were carried to the surgical station at Seefeld,
the rest to the tuberculosis hospital at Herrsching.
Mr. Halatsch and Mr. Keith were the first to arrive at
Seefeld. Mr. Halatsch died soon after, praying in his
pain and frequently pronol:lncing the Name of Jl'Sus.
Mr. Keith died next morning. He probably never regained consciousness. The second group included Mr.
Seidenschwarz, who died on the way. His right hand
clutched the vow crucifix he constantly wore on his _.
person.
The collision had taken place about four-thirty
o'clock. The truck driver called Father Rector in Pullach (near Munich) and broke the news to superiors
and their subjects in Berchmans College. He believed
at the moment that the number of the killed was ten.
A quarter of an hour later, a representative of the
Munich Mercury reported that a train had collided
with our truck, killing twelve and seriously injuring
seven. After a second quarter of an hour, the hospital
�DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
345
in Seefeld announced the death of two more wounded.
Meanwhile, Father Provincial was informed, and sped
at once with Father Moreau to the scene of the accident. Father Rector, Father Stasch and Brother
Motzet also drove as rapidly as possible to Herrsching.
Father Minister and Father Fank informed the
Fathers, Scholastics and novices of the fateful catastrophe. Deeply shaken, many hurried to the chapel to
pray for their fellow-religious whom God had called so
suddenly to Himself.
During the night between Wednesday and Thursday,
the mortal remains of our brethren were carried back
to the College which had so long been their home,
which had conferred on them so many joys, and which
had witnessed their zeal. The Scholastics kept a vigil
that night in the chapel for the feast of Saint Aloysius,
one of the three Jesuit Saints of Youth. "They are
signs," wrote the Vicar General of Augsburg, "that
the Society has harvested its best fruit just where it
had to sacrifice its fairest blossoms."
The sympathy extended to our College and to all
the stricken families was most extraordinarily great
and consoling. As soon as the news broke, high ecclesiastical and secular dignitaries expressed their sympathy by letters and telegrams of condolence. They
came from His Eminence Cardinal Faulhaber, His
Eminence Cardinal Frings, His Excellency, the Bishop
of Augsburg, Minister President Dr. Hans Ehard
both personally and in the name of the Bavarian
Government, Minister President Karl Arnold of North
Rhineland and Westphalia, several Ministers of States
and of the Federal Government, as also the American
authorities. The telegram from Minister President
Arnold ran in part as follows: "Please convey my
heartfelt sympathy for this heavy loss to the families
of the dead as well." It is worth particular record that
the Parliament of Bavaria paid its respects to our dead
fellow-Jesuits by rising from its seats. Its President,
Dr. Alois Hundhammer, also sent a telegram of personal condolence.
�346
DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
No less cordial was the sympathy tendered by orders
and congregations. Benedictine abbots, provincial
superiors and superioresses general gave expression
to their deep sympathy and promised prayer and remembrance at the altar. For example, a telegram sent
from Maria Laach ran thus: "We share your grief at
this severe loss, and will sing a Votive High Mass on
Monday-Abbot Ebel and Chapter." Likewise a letter
from Archabbot Benedict Baur of Beuron: "We remember at the altar, and in our daily office, not only
those who perished, but also the sorely tried superiors
of houses, and the parents. May our participation and
sympathy bring you a little consolation, if only a little."
In fraternal union, many ecclesiastical and sec- ·
ular universities, many theological and philosophical
faculties in Germany, and many diocesan seminaries,
shared our burden of sorrow. Several university professors offered sympathy in personal letters and telegrams. Numerous manifestations of condolence also
came from academic organizations and societies. Even
this does not exhaust the list of fellow-mourners, as
was shown by the large number of separate letters,
wreaths, flowers, and promises of prayer. Very great
consolation was ,given us by the fact that the people of
Herrsching kept watch before the Blessed Sacrament
all through the night after the accident.
Among the sorely tried, we must number the Society
itself, considered as one great family. Most of the colleges and residences showed us their fraternal sympathy and celebrated a Solemn Requiem. Very Reverend Father General directed that fifty Mass intentions be directed to each of the dead together with
his family. May this tale of charitable union in grief
conclude with his paternal words: "Heartfelt sympathy, and God's blessing on you all."
On the morning of Friday, June 22, we bore our
brethren to the grave. The funeral ceremonies began
in the College at nine. An unusually large congregation
had assembled for the Holy Sacrifice, which was
offered for those gone to their eternal home by His
Eminence Cardinal Faulhaber. The simple but moving
-·
�DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
347
choral music for the Mass of the Dead was sung by
a picked choir of Scholastics.
The funeral followed at once. The sixteen caskets
lay ready in the north garden of the College. The
procession wended its way outside the walls, along a
shady avenue to the cemetery. In front of the caskets
walked the clergy, headed by two prelates, secular
priests from far and near, Benedictines, Franciscans,
Passionists-all prayed together with us, at one in
sorrow, at one in grief. The novices and Scholastics
carried their dead comrades to the grave. Every casket
bore the same simple ornament, a bright cross against
the background of dark wood. A small white shield at
the upper end bore the name of the deceased in black
letters. The first casket was followed by a second, a
third, a fourth, casket after casket, cross after cross.
The long line was continued by Fathers Boegner and
Muller, Provincials of the East and Upper German
Provinces, the assistant clergy in black vestments.
and behind them His Eminence, visibly moved. Then
came parents, brothers, sisters, relatives and friends
of the departed, numerous official representatives from
state and local government, from the railroad and the
hospital, from various societies and organizations, including the newly elected Rector of the University of
Munich, Professor Dr. Schmaus. Lastly came the
Fathers of the Society, and hundreds of private mourners from Pullach and from elsewhere.
Father Boegner gave the blessing of the graves.
With the words: "Take what is thine, 0 earth, and
may God take what is His," he handed over to the
soil each and every one, announcing his name, his
age in the world, and his age in reUgion. After the
funeral proper, Father Miiller addressed words of consolation and sympathy to the mourners. He allowed
the dead to speak in their own quiet language : "Tell
our dear ones not to grieve as men do who have no
hope."
To the great question, why this catastrophe came
upon us, there can be no complete answer here on earth.
�348
DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
Only by participation in the cross can we draw nearer
to an answer, for the cross is ever dark and painful.
"That was the will of God: that He wished us to be as
we are." Indeed, it was no wild or ungovernable sorrow that spoke out of the countenances of the mourners, but rather an exultant "yes" to the mysterious
will of God filling their hearts. In this spirit, we
prayed together once again for our departed brethren.
Our Wounded
Father Pies, Mr. Raab and Mr. Baudisch are comparatively little injured, and have already returned
to the College. Father Pies will not be able to work
for some time to come, but he would like to thank
through this means all who expressed sympathy with
him. The four seriously wounded, -Mr. Muschalek, Mr.
Hundeck, Mr. Ortscheid and Ml': ..Wagner are slowly
improving, but not yet out of danger of death. The
doctors entertain good hopes of saving them all. Let
us pray for them and for the dead.
Words of Consolation of Father Provincial
The following words were spoken at the grave by
Father Francis X. Muller, Provincial of the Upper
German Province:
The extraordinary nature of this disaster bids me,
though it is not customary, to address a few words
to you here at the grave-side of our brothers who have
been called home by our Father in heaven. My words _.
are ones of sympathy and of consolation, especially
for the families of these young men, who are with us
here. I have known intimately these young hrothers
of mine who here are being laid in their final restingplace, known them from the time when they took their
first steps in the Society of Jesus. And therefore I was
aware that, from the day they said farewell to their
families and consecrated their lives to the service of
Mr. John J. Mulholland, S.J. of Woodstock College translated
the address of Father Miiller.
�DEATH OF GERMAN SCHOLASTICS
349
the Master, their loving hearts ever preserved a deepfelt sympathy for the heavy burdens of those dear ones
whom they had left behind in Eastern Germany. And
on that fateful evening, when I reached the spot where
these young men lay in blood in long rows, like the
sheaves of wheat after the harvest, they spoke to me
from their silent lips:
"Tell our loved ones that they must not be sad as
those are 'who have no hope.' Bid them remember
that day when they first taught us, as little children,
to make the sign of the Cross, that same sign with
which we consecrate our lives to our Lord. And tell
them not to ask themselves why our Lord, after all
the suffering they have already endured in the loss
and destruction of their homes, now takes from them
also their own sons, in the very bloom of youth. To
this quesiton they will never find a complete answer
on this earth. For our death is a participation in the
mystery of the Cross, and the Cross will always be
covered with the pall of sadness until the day when
they, even as we, look on the face of God and finally
come to understand that His love for us was deepest
when He sent us trials and sorrows. We have bet:ome
the grains of wheat, which our Saviour said must fall
to the ground and die, in order that they may bear
fruit. In this hour of sacrifice our lives have attained
a glorious fullness and richness, because our Lord desired to take us, just as we were, to further the spread
of His Kingdom in these times. It is true, we were
your hope for the accomplishment of the great ministry which lay ahead of us in the districts of our homeland, a country that more than any other was in need
of our labors. But, believe us, that ministry will be
accomplished through us, even though we no longer
remain visibly among you. For our lives have not been
taken from us; it is only that the manner of our living
has been changed. And this tranformation of our
lives bestows on us a power the possession of which
makes us glad to have exchanged our earthly life for
this eternal one. During our lives we desired nothing
more ardently than with all our strength to serve God
�350
DEATH OF GERl\1AN SCHOLASTICS
our Lord, and the manner of the service He wished
from us has been shown in our death.
"On their shoulders our fellow-Scholastics are now
carrying our mortal remains to their final resting-place
near the groves of Pullach. We are sure that the burden they are carrying will be for them a symbol of
the unity in which they, together with us, will carry
out the tasks ahead ...
"We will, nonetheless, remain with you, even though
our visible existence must yield to the invisible, yet
far greater, union which now binds us together."
Beloved friends in Christ, in this sad hour I have
dared to speak to you as I have, because I knew the
innermost reaches of their young souls, and realized
how completely they had given those souls, full of love,
to their God. For that reason also, standing at the
spot where they took leave of this world, I was able
to conquer sadness; for I knew .. that they had been
permitted, as sons of grace, to come home to the kingdom of the Son and His Father. That is the consolation
I offer you in this hour of your sorrow.
On that evening, as I was leaving the scene of the
accident, it was as though nature itself, which so often
has from God the power of speaking to us His messages, wanted to offer some token of comfort. Through
the darkened clouds which were gathered in the heavens over Andechs, there burst suddenly a great light,
which formed across the sky a beautiful rainbow,
a symbol of the peace which is possible even in the
time of great destruction and loss. In this peace, __
which only our Lord can give, we wish to say farewell
to our young brothers. May we always remain united
in God. Amen.
Brother John Jacob, S.J., pioneer of the Scout movement in
British Honduras twenty years ago, has been awarded the
O.B.E. His Scout encampment, said to be a model for other
groups in the colony, is visited annually by the Governor General.
Universe, July 27, 1951
���THE JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN, 1570
A DOCUMENTARY HISTORY
ALBERT J. LOOMIE, S.J.
Historical Background Of The Mission
When Juan Ponce de Leon first sighted the coastline of the present southeastern United States on
Easter, 1513 and named it after 'the feast "Pascua,
Florida" his discovery did not have much significance
to his contemporaries. Spain after consolidating her
hold on the Caribbean islands was pushing westward.
For sixty years thereafter, all the attention and
energies of the mother country were to be expended on
the Peruvian and Mexican Conquests, so as to solidify
her hegemony over Central America. During this time
the province of Florida, embracing roughly the land
between the Mississippi and the Chesapeake Bay, was
the scene of sporadic explorations. 1 De Pineda explored
the Gulf of Mexico in 1519, Lucas de Ayllon combining
exploration with slave trading established a shortlived colony on the Carolina coast in 1526. De Soto
in 1538 forced his way overland up into the Carolinas
and then turned westward. These and other arduous
expeditions resulted in several attempts at colonization but hostile Indians and difficult terrain produced
nothing but misfortune and tragedy.
Florida was a failure as an economic investment,
but it was still useful as a defensive outpost for the
Ajacan is the Spanish transliteration of the Algonquian
place name Ashadm. This was the region around the Chesapeake Bay, covering the states of Virginia, Maryland and
North Carolina. The meaning of the word is disputed. Two of
the more prominent interpretations are "beaten copper" and
..crossing place."
The author wishes to thank Father Kurt A. Becker, S.J. for
assistance in translations, and Father Clifford M. Lewis, S.J.
for notes on history and cartography. A detailed historical
study of the Segura Mission has been prepared by Father
Lewis and the author for a monograph The Jesuit Mission in
Virginia to be published next year.
�352
JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
rich colony of New Spain. It was to remain a salient
thrust out against future aggression. 2 This danger
materialized in 1562 when the Huguenots under Jean
Ribault established a colony on the island of Santa
Elena, off the coast of South Carolina. Two years
later, Rene Laudoniere founded Fort Caroline on the
St. John's River in Florida. By this move the French
commanded the homeward route of the Spanish Fleet
because the winds and currents of the Caribbean Sea
forced the use of the Bahama Channel, 3 and ships
using the Gulf Stream sailed as far north as Bermuda
before heading eastward.
To meet this French threat, Philip II called upon
one of the most able captains in his service, Pedro
Menendez de Aviles. 4 This ruthless leader planned to
maintain the Spanish hold on the province of Florida,
by forcibly driving out the French and establishing
Spanish presidios along the coast from Tampa Bay to
Santa Elena and by intensive missionary efforts among
the Indians. In this latter task, the Dominicans had
already suffered at the hands of the hostile Indians,
and when other religious orders refused to work in
such unfriendly terrain the Admiral requested the
Jesuits to labor in his province. Until this time the
Society of Jesus had been excluded from evangelizing in the Spanish overseas Empire, although Portugal
had invited Francis Xavier in 1541 to its East Indies
and in 1549 Emmanuel Nobrega had begun the Jesuit
mission of Brazil.
The ambitious plan of Menendez de Aviles envisioned
Florida as being subdued by soldier and priest. This
land of hurricanes, swamps, sandy soil and unfriendly
Indians would be salvaged by the missionary. This
was in keeping with the Spanish colonial policy of
the time, for "the mission was par excellence a
frontier institution. The missionary was the agent not
only of the Church but of the state as well. His
primary business was to save souls and spread Spanish
civilization among the heathens." 5
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
353
On March 20, 1565 Philip II in a letter to Menendez
de Aviles gave permission for four religious of the
Company of Jesus to enter the expedition of the
Admiral, "so that the faith may be taught in that
region, and the Indians be converted to our Catholic
faith and sovereignty." 6
Thus from the very
beginning the work of the Society of Jesus in Florida
was bound tightly to the political and military objectives that Philip II sought in his struggle against
the Huguenots. Obviously plans for colonization and
evangelization would be subordinated to the crisis that
the French advance had created. Menendez would be
forced to absent himself frequently from the province
and the necessary financing of the mission would be
at best very haphazard.
The F'irst Jesuit Missionaries
Although Francis Borgia, Vicar General of the
Company of Jesus had promised three Jesuits to
Menendez for his expedition, 1 their departure was
delayed by the General Congregation of the Order
in Rome in 1565. The Admiral sailed without them
from Cadiz on June 28, 1565 and at the head of a
powerful armada, he landed close to the St. John's
River and founded the city of San Agustin, the only
permanent Spanish settlement in southeastern United
States. Sailing northward, he overwhelmed the French
at Fort Caroline, pillaged the garrison and slaughtered
the helpless Huguenots. 8 The site was named San
Matteo. By keeping forces at San Agustin and Havana,
the vital Bahama Channel could· now be efficiently
policed.
With the news of the victory over the Huguenots,
Francis Borgia decided to send three Jesuits with
the next fleet sailing from Spain under the leadership of Don Sancho de Arciniega. 9 Philip II, however,
had already written to Diego Carillo, Provincial of the
Jesuit province of Castile, demanding three .6f his
Fathers for the Florida mission. Padre Ga.rillo, be-
�354
JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
Iieving that Philip II was unduly influenced by Padre
Antonio Araoz, the Jesuit Court Confessor whom he
disliked, protested to the General over the manner
of the royal request. 10 While the Spanish provincials
continued to disagree over who was to be sent from
their own undermanned communities, the fleet sailed
in April of 1566. After two years of negotiations, no
Jesuits had arrived in Florida.
A direct order from Francis Borgia cleared up the
situation, and on June 28, 1566 two priests, Pedro
Martinez and Juan Rogel sailed with a coadjutor,
Francisco Villareal for Havana. On arrival, the group
split up. Padre Rogel was to labor on the west coast
of the Florida peninsula at Carlos (Charlotte Harbor)
and Tocobago (near Tampa Bay). Brother Villareal
worked among the Indians near, Biscayne Bay at a
mission then called Tegesta. Pa9re Martinez was to
have the honor of being the first Jesuit martyr of
the New World, 11 for driven ashore in a storm, he was
killed immediately by hostile Indians near the mouth
of the St. John's River. The two remaining Jesuits
worked on for a year and a half but the results were
meager and disappointing. 12
On June 21, 1568, a new group of Jesuits arrived
at San Agustin. There were four priests and ten
coadjutors headed by Juan Baptista de Segura who
had been appointed Vice-Provincial of the mission.
Because of the difficulties in laboring on the Floridian
peninsula, it was decided that the regions further _.
north in Guale (on the Georgia coast) and Santa Elena
(in South Carolina) looked more promising for missionary work.13
The first mission founded was at Orista (an island
north of Santa Elena) and Juan Rogel,14 the veteran
of the mission, labored there for over a year. His first
reports were the most enthusiastic in the history
of the mission. The diffi~ulty with the missions along
the Carolina coast was that the Indians stayed in
villages for but three months out of the year. The
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
355
rest of the time was spent in search of food in the
forests. When the Fathers tried to gather them into
villages by giving them seeds to raise crops, the poor
quality of the soil occasionally forced the Indians to
travel twenty miles from the mission to find a fertile
spot. 1 G When the famished Spanish garrison on Santa
Elena raided the neighboring Indians for food, all the
good will the work of the Fathers had produced went
for nothing. But the experience convinced Padre Rogel
that a missionary could not preach successfully until
his flock had become accustomed to living in villages
and cultivating the earth. 18
Meanwhile a third party of Jesuits, a priest and two
coadjutors had set sail for the Province on February
7, 1570. This group was the last to be sent to Florida.
In the reports of the Vice-Provincial there was little
optimism over the future of the mission but rather a
desire for more fruitful fields of endeavor. In a letter
to Francis Borgia, Padre de Segura gave this opinion:
Though Ours are greatly consoled by the daily
occasions for suffering out of love for Christ
Our Lord and thereby advance in the interior
spirit, still as this alone does not suffice for
the fulfillment of the Institute we profess, I have
decided to make known to your Paternity, that due
to their many and well-nigh continual labors,
their health and bodily strength is failing with
but slight benefit to the souls of the natives and
with little hope of any, judging by what has been
seen up to the presentP
The Father General replied to Padre Segura that
the religious should be free to go where there is hope
of greater spiritual gain and their efforts be useful. 18
The General of the Jesuits then began an exchange of
letters with Pedro Menendez de Aviles pointing out
the hindrances to any apostolic work under the existing conditions and hinting that the Jesuits would soon
be withdrawn. He advised that missionaries of other
orders be invited into the Province of Florida and
requested that the Jesuits be removed from the
chaplaincy of the Spanish garrisons, "so that Ours
�~
356
JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
would be spared to help others and live according to
their rule." 19
The Expedition to Ajacan
With the failure of the first Jesuit endeavors along
the Floridian peninsula and the Carolina coast due to
the interference of the royal officials and the migratory
life of the Indians, the Vice-Provincial, Juan de
Segura, was faced in the summer of 1570 with two
possible courses. He could withdraw the Fathers from
the Florida mission or make a final attempt in a
district farther north named Ajacan. 20 In this latter
place the example of a Spanish garrison could not
sabotage the preaching of the Gospel. Segura decided
to go to Ajacan and there begin the preaching of the
Faith. 21 His decision was influen~ed undoubtedly by
the presence of an Indian chieftain who came from
Ajacan and had been educated in Spain after being
baptized. With the help of this Indian, named after
his sponsor, Don Luis de Velasco, the Viceroy of New
Spain, Segura planned to live for at least a year
among the natives, 22 and he believed that the absence
of Spanish soldiery would permit the Fathers to labor
without any annoyance by their countrymen.
Accordingly in mid-August of 1570, a group of
nine sailed from Santa Elena, "five members of the
Company of Jesus, and four catechists." 23 Juan de
Segura had chosen for his companions: Padre Quiros
and Brothers Gabriel Gomez, Sancho Ceballos and -·
Pedro Linares; together, with three catechists, Juan
Baptista Mendez, Gabriel de Solis, and Cristobal
Redondo, and a boy to serve Mass, Alonso de Olmos.
Because these Spaniards will figure so largely in the
accounts that follow it will be useful to give whatever biographical data is available about them.
Juan Baptista de Segura was born in Toledo in
1529. He studied Latin, Greek and Hebrew at Alcala
where he obtained the degree of Master of Arts. He
then studied theology for four years and Sacred
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
357
Scripture for two more years before being admitted
to the Company of Jesus at Alcala on April19, 1556.
A few days later he took his first vows. After teaching a few months at Medina del Campo, he went on
to Valladolid, where he reviewed his theology at the
Dominican priory of San Gregorio. After his ordination in 1557 until the time of his departure for Florida,
he was rector of the Jesuit colleges in Villimar near
Burgos, Monterey and Valladolid, where he had the
reputation of being a zealous preacher. 24 De Segura's
appointment to Florida came after he had written to
the General several times asking to be sent to the
Indies.
Luis Francisco de Quiros was born in Jerez de la
Frontera in Andalucia, but the date of his birth and
admittance into the Society are unknown. He held
various administrative posts in his Province 'and
achieved some success in working among the Moriscos
of Albaicin near Granada. He was in the last group
to be appointed to the Florida mission, which he
reached in June, 1570.25
About the three coadjutors who sailed to Ajacan,
even less is known. Brother Gabriel Gomez was born
in Granada and entered the Society there in 1568.
He is listed in the archives of the Province of Toledo
as teaching "the third class" at the college in Seville. 26
Brother Sancho Ceballos, who also taught at Seville,
was appointed to the mission very soon after his admittance into the Society, which caused Francis Borgia
to send a sharp rebuke to his provincial. 27 Brother
Pedro Mingot Linares was born in Valencia and entered the novitiate in Rome on May 31, 1564. He was
originally destined for the missions in the Portuguese
Indies; but was sent with Padro Sedefio to the
Florida Mission in the second group which arrived
at San Agustin in June 1568. 28 Four catechists went
along with the Jesuits. Nothing is known about them
except their names given above, and Padre Rogel's
testimony that they were received into the Society at
Ajacan. 29
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JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
Rather than summarize the events of the fateful
expedition as has been done in various accounts of the
Segura mission to Virginia up till now, so a selection
of documents that gives the most immediate testimony
will be translated in their entirety. Hitherto they
have been available only in excerpts or ignored completely in the standard histories.
Three documents give the details of the Jesuits'
activities. The first is a letter written by Padre Quiros
immediately on arrival at Ajacan, telling of the high
hopes of the Jesuits for their new mission. The second
is a part of Padre Rogel's Relatio, which gives the
details of the deaths of the Jesuit Fathers. Lastly
there is a translation of a Cedula of Philip II ordering the royal officials of Havana to send aid immediately to the Fathers since Segura had requested
food in a letter to the King sent ~ack on the ship that
brought the missionaries. IronicallY" the Cedula is dated
from Madrid two weeks after the massacre of the
Jesuits.
Documents
I. LUIS DE QUIROS to JUAN DE HINISTROSA, from
AJACAN, September 12, 1570.31
JHS
My Lord,
The grace of the Holy Spirit be always in your soul.
Amen. Since F·ather Vice-Provincial has no opportunity to write you, because of his concern over
despatching the pilot in haste to your land, he has
asked me to forward to you in his name an account
of our journey up till now.
After being delayed in arriving here much more
than we expected by those adversities you understand
are usual in the discovery of new regions, and by the
discomforts of the weather as the pilot will narrate to
you more at length, we arrived here and unloaded our
cargo yesterday, which was the tenth day of September. We departed, as you know, on the fifth of August
-·
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
359
from Santa Elena. We find the land of Don Luis in
quite another condition than we expected. Not because he lied in his description of it, but because our
Lord has chastised it with six years of famine and
death, which has reduced the population to less than
usual. Since many have died and others have moved
elsewhere to ease their hunger, there remain but few
of the tribe whose leaders say that they wish to die
where their fathers have died, although they have no
grain, and have not found wild fruit which they are
accustomed to eat. Neither rice nor anything else can
be had, save for a small amount obtained with great
labor from the soil which is ·very parched. So the
Indians have nothing but good will to offer us and
those who came on the ship, and certainly these
Indians have shown that in a kindly manner. They
seemed to think that Don Luis had risen from the
dead and come down from heaven, and since all who
remained are his relatives, they are greatly consoled in
him. They have recovered their courage :and hope that
God may seek to favor them, saying that they want
to be like Don Luis, begging us to remain in this land
with them. The chief has kept the brother of Don
Luis, a boy of three years who lies seriously ill, six
or eight leagues from here and now seems certain to
die. He has requested that someone go and baptize him,
and so last night Father Vice-Provincial sent one of
Ours to baptize the boy so close to death.
As I have said, the Indians are so famished, that
all believe they will perish of hunger and cold this
winter. For only with great difficulty can they find
roots by which they usually sustain themselves, and
the great snows found in this land do not allow them
to hunt for them. Seeing then the good will that this
tribe has shown, we have great hopes for its conversion
and of the service of our Lord and His Majesty and
(of finding) the entrance into the mountains and to
China. 33 Therefore, it has seemed best to Father
(Segura) to risk remaining, despite such scanty shipstores, because on our trip we have consumed two of
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JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
the four barrels of biscuit and the small amount of
flour which was given to us for the journey. We had to
help the entire ship with some supplies, as we were
ill-provisioned for the journey.
I am convinced that there will be no lack of opportunity to exercise patience and in order to succeed
we must suffer much. But it has seemed good to
expose ourselves to that risk and this espedally so,
since in your kindness you might be able to send us
a generous quantity of grain to sustain us and to give
the tribe some for sowing. As it touches the service
of our Lord and his Majesty, it would be best that you
see to it that we are supplied with all speed possible.
If it cannot be done in the winter, it is imperative that
some provisions arrive any time during March or at
the beginning of April so· that \ye can gi_ve seeds to
the tribe for planting. At this time the planting is done
here, and most of the tribe will ai:rive here after being
scattered over the region in search of food, and there
will be a good opportunity for the Holy Gospel.
Especially has the chief sought this very thing. As
to information about the land that touches the route
along which the pilot must be brought, he himself will
give it. It is not convenient to enter by the river we
did, but we did not have as good information from the
Indians as was necessary .about the place we should
have entered. And so, today, the pilot has gone overland two good leagues away to see a river, which he
will enter when \vith good fortune he comes again to
help us. Along that place he can go by water up to the -·
place where we plan to make our encampment. To
reach this spot, it is two good leagues by land and two
others or more by water, so that the goods, which we
have unloaded in this place reached by this river where
we now are, must be carried by the Indians on their
shoulders for two leagues· and then embarked in
canoes. This is too laborious.
From some Indians, whom we met further down
this river, we have some information about the region
further inland. Three or four days' journey from here
�JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
361
lie the mountains;. for two of these one travels along
the river; after crossing the mountains by another
day's journey or two, one can see another sea. If any
new information can be had with more certainty and
clarity, we will get it. Perhaps in making this trip
there is a great need for a good boat, since with the
famine and death this tribe does not have the canoes
in which the trip could be made. The pilot has managed
his voyages very well and has toiled in every possible
way and has brought all the provisions that we took
on at Santa Elena. Moreover seeing the need in which
we remain for carrying these provisions overland, he
has helped us by giving us a large earthen wine jug
for the wine, sacks for transporting the flour and a
chisel he brought along. He has also ,given us half his
supply of tar to patch up one of the canoes the Indians
have. With the great need of provisions for all the
crew, it has been thought necessary that they leave
today and we will remain here in this barren region
amid the trials mentioned above. So there has not been
opportunity to get more information or write further.
May God, our Lord, grant you prosperity in all your
undertakings in His holy service as you desire.
Given on the twelfth of September, 1570, by order of
Father Vice-Provincial
Your Chaplain,
QUIROS
My Lord,
Since I could not do more, I ordered Padre Quiros
to ,give a long account to you of everything. I am
writing to His Majesty about the conditions which I
find in this region for spreading the Holy Gospel, and
about the grave necessity in which we remain in the
course of accomplishing our mission. I believe that
there will be no need to return, but I must entreat
you anew to send us with all speed a shipload of grain,
but no other trifles, since you easily see the great
importance of this being done at once. It is for the
help and protection of the entire tribe, and for the
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JESUIT l\USSlON IN AJACAN
service of God, our Lord, and His Majesty. I am also
writing to His Majesty that you will send on to His
Majesty detailed information of the route to Axacan
(sic) as it is known. In no way does it seem best to me
to send to you any Indian boy as the pilot will explain
and for other reasons too. May our Lord protect you
unto a long life and favor you in his love and grace.
PADRE BAP. DE SEGURA
JHS
Above I had forgotten to write to you that from
the time it is understood that the sloop is to come with
the help requested, one or two Indians will be sent
with a letter to the mouth of the arm of the sea, along
which any ship coming up must sail. Thus, when they
see the ship, they will make a large smoke signal by
day and a fire by night. Furthermore, the people there
will have a sealed letter of yours -and they will not return it until they receive another like it, which is to
be a sign that those who come are friendly and are
the ones who bring the message. 34 Take heed of
this sign or inform whoever comes of it. Our letter will
carry information about the way which must be followed in entering and will serve as a guide. May our
Lord be with you. Amen.
Don Luis has turned out a_s well as was hoped. He is
most obedient to the wishes of Father (Segura) showing deep respect for him, as also to the rest of us
here and he commends himself to you and to all your
friends and lords.
By a mistake which happened, I don't know who
on the crew did it, some one made some sort of a bad
bargain in food. I see now the misfortune which followed, namely that whereas formerly the Indians
whom we met on the way would give to us from their
poverty, now they are afraid when they see that they
received no trinkets for their ears of corn. They
brought the ears of corn and other foods and asked
that they be given something when they handed them
over, saying to the Father, that they had done that
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�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
363
with the others. Since Father had forbidden that they
be given something, so that they would not be accustomed to receiving it, and afterwards not want to
bargain with us, the Indians took the food away with
them. 85
Thus it seemed good to Father (Segura) that he
should give an account of this to you since we must
live in this land largely with what the Indians give
us. Take care that whoever comes here in no wise
barters with the Indians, if need be under severe
punishments, and if they should bring something to
bargain, orders will be given that Don Luis force them
to give in return something equal to whatever was
bartered, and that they may not deal with the Indians
except in the way judged fitting here. Christ, our
Lord, be with us all, Amen.
QUIROS
II. Excerpt from a Relatio of JUAN ROGEL. 86
Menendez then returned from Spain. 87 There he had
chanced upon a Christian Indian, a native of Florida,
whom some Dominican friars traveling through that
country had brought to Mexico, where he was baptized,
his sponsor being Don Luis de Velasco, father of the
present Viceroy. 38 Thus the Indian son of a petty
chieftain of Florida was called Don Luis. The Government brought him back from Spain and he was very
crafty, for when he was brought to Padre Baptista
(Segura) in Havana, he gave out that he was the son
of a great chief, and as such our King in Spain had
ordered him given an allowance and clothing. He was
well instructed so that he confessed and received Communion and thus it seemed wise that the ViceProvincial should take him on as an interpreter, and
that he should believe that Don Luis brought with him
the help which Timothy gave to Saint Paul. 39 Taking
the enterprise to heart, Father did not wish to entrust
it to any other. Having called a meeting in Santa
Elena where Padre Rogel and also Padre Sedefio
were, he never wished to discuss who was to go with
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JESUIT 1\IIS!;ION IN AJACAN
Don Luis, and although both Fathers offered to do so
as persons experienced in that region, he did not
admit them as companions. Instead he had decided
beforehand to take with him Padre Quiros and Brother
Gabriel Gomez, both recently arrived from Spain, and
Brother Sancho de Savallos who was still a novice, and
Brother Juan Baptista (Mendez), Pedro de Linares,
Christoval Redondo, Gabriel de Solis and other young
men who sought to enter the Company. All these went
with Don Luis for the conversion of that region of
Florida. On entering the province of Ajacan, Don Luis
presently fell into evil ways and leaving the Fathers
and Brothers to themselves, he took up with women.
On the day they arrived at the place the Vice-Provincial told the pilot that after disembarking the cargo,
he should sail from the place and return to Havana.
Thus was brought about what' came to be the cause
of their death; since if they had:· remained a few days
with the ship, with the early experience they acquired
about the bad dispositions there and the little fruit
which was promised, they might have returned to
Santa Elena to wait for a better opportunity. Seeing
themselves abandoned and without other resources,
they built a small cottage where they might have
shelter and say Mass, alone, without any help, enduring great hunger and inconvenience. In order to sustain
themselves they went som~ leagues to the hills, to seek
wild fruit 40 and thus they fed themselves for six or
seven months. When Don Luis left them, he stayed in a
small village which belonged to a relative. This lay_:
about ten leagues from where the Fathers were. As
Padre Baptista (Segura) wished to begin preaching
and Don Luis did not come and they had no other guide
nor means of speaking, Padre Quiros was sent to
where the Indian was to ask him to come. Since that
unfortunate was now completely corrupted, he told
Padre Quiros to go and he would follow after; at
night he carried out his plan. For, taking his tribe
with him, Don Luis slew Padre Quiros before he
reached where p,adre Baptista (Segura) stayed. Then
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
365
the Indian went on to where Ours were, and he discovered the Vice-Provincial in bed, sick and praying.
It seemed that our Lord disposed them for that crisis,
because on the eve of our Lady's Purification, all made
a general confession and communicated with great
devotion. This was learned from a boy, the son of a
colonist of Santa Elena, whom the Vice-Provincial took
along to serve Mass. His name was Alonso, and because
of his youth or by God's design, the Indian did not
kill him. This boy described the event and said that
when Don Luis arrived with his tribe armed with
macanas and botadores, 42 he greeted Padre Baptista
(Segura) who lay as described. But raising his sword
and saluting were really one gesture, and so while
wishing him well, he killed him. All the rest were
murdered too. Then going out in search of Brother
Sancho de Savallos who at that time had gone to the
hills to get firewood, they slew him there. Only Alonso
escaped; and about him it is known that he had a
deep desire to die with the Fathers but a brother of
Don Luis stopped him by hiding him in a house and
locking him up. He was doing a kindness, when others
were murdering the Fathers. After the Indians were
sated, Don Luis summoned Alonso and told him to
show the Indians how to bury the bodies of the
Fathers as was the custom of the Christians. And so
they dug a grave in the chapel where M:ass had been
said and there they were buried.
III. Royal Cedula of PHILIP Il. 43
The King to our Governor of the island of
Cuba or your lieutenant44 in the said office. Padre Juan
Baptista de Segura has written that some religious
of the Company of Jesus, and certain catechists and
Don Luis de Velasco, an Indian, ten persons in all
had reached the provinces of Florida, where they had
been obtaining great fruit in the instruction and conversion of the natives there, and at present they intend
to continue their teaching; and since they had not
gone with provisions they were in great need of being
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JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
helped with food and something for planting to
improve their situation. As I have before me the
spiritual advancement of the said Indians and that
so good and holy a work should go ahead, it is my
will that the said religious and persons with them be
provided with food, and I command that as soon as
you see this, you order that there be sent to the
religious of the said C<>mpany of Jesus and als<> the
persons staying with them in the said provinces of
Florida, such grain as you deem necessary for their
food and support, according to their needs. In order
that they can sow a quantity of this grain as soon as
possible, give orders that the supplies be conveyed
with all speed. We command that the officials of that
island, through your kind effort, pay the cost of the
enterprise from their treasury; and we command
moreover that (you forward), 'through your kind
efforts, an account signed by the public notary of
how the grain was sent and that the sums were received and spent in this business.
Inform us of the measures taken in this regard.
Given at Madrid, on the nineteenth of February, fifteen
hundred and seventy-one.
I, THE KING
By command of His Majesty, Antonio de Herasso,
with the seal of the Council.
The Relief Expedition of 1571
The last letters of Quiros and Segura had reached
Havana in the winter of 1570 and the Fathers there
became anxious to send help at once. When the weather
was favorable in the spring of 1571, Padre Rogel sent
on to Ajacan Brother Juan Salcedo and Vicente
Gonzales, the pilot of the first voyage of Segura. 45
They found no trace <>f the missing Jesuits, but they
saw some savages walking along the beach in the
Jesuit habit. Despite this gruesome incident, Brother
Salcedo sailed home still hoping against hope that his
brethren were still alive.
Two documents give the story of this voyage. The
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
367
first is a continuation of the Relatio of Juan Rogel.
The second is an excerpt from a Relatio composed by
Brother Garrera, which although not as trustworthy
as the first account, still has the merit of being the
recollection of an actual witness, questioned by Carrera.
IV. The Relatio of JUAN ROGEL, continued.
The manner in which the death of the ViceProvincial and his companions was known with
certainty was this. Previous to their sailing Padre
Rogel, who remained at Santa Elena, was ordered to
go to Havana in a few days and beg the Governor and
the officials to send some aid. Padre Rogel went to do
this and he did the best he could, but because there was
only one pilot who knew the port in Ajacan where the
Fathers were, and the officials kept that one engaged
in other duties, it was impossible to bring help until a
year and a half went by. Brother Salcedo, who brought
as much provisions as Padre Rogel could gather, was
sent with this pilot whose name was Vicente Gonzales.
When they arrived and dropped anchor in the harbor,
they feared some evil event, and did not want to land
on the shore until some of the Company appeared or
they had notice of them. As was later learned, Don
Luis was very eager for them to land so as to overwhelm and kill them. The Indians, seeing how they
were wary and watched for the appearance of the
Fathers, used this strategy. Taking the robes of the
dead Fathers they put them on and walked along the
shore, and the rest of the Indians then called out that
the Fathers were there and to come ashore. More confirmed in their doubts, those on the ship decided not
to land at all. Meanwhile, some Indians came from the
shore to the ship. These were seized and then raising
anchor and spreading sail, they started to return with
them to Havana. However, when passing through the
strait of Bahama, they came quite close to the land,
and one of the Indians dove into the water and nothing
more was known of him. They took the other in chains
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JESUIT l\IISSIDN IN AJACAN
to Havana. They kept him under bonds at the house of
the Company in order to return with him to make
certain of the facts, (for the Indians did not want to
admit anything when they were in the boat) and the
one remaining did not divulge the truth.
V. Relatio of JUAN DE LA CARRERA, excerpt.4 6
Padre Rogel told the pilot about certain signals that
they would see when the ship reached the port, and
if the signals were not there, it would indicate that
the Fathers were dead. When the pilot came and there
were no signals, he was very wary and did not land
but before he turned back those on shore called out to
them with many signs. Then the pilot cautiously sought
to approach the shore. While they (the Spaniards)
were coming in there, the Indians. planned to surround
them in their canoes and to storm the ships. The
Spaniards fought on aU sides, ··and the guns they
brought along were less useful than a b1g pile of rocks
which the ship carried as ballast. When the Indians
saw such a rain of stones fall on them, (since there
are no stones in that land, nor do they know what they
are), they were forced to retreat with great losses
and without two Indian chiefs who were captured.
They set sail with the prisoners and without attaining
any certain news whether ~the Fathers were dead or
alive, nor was any information given by the Indians.
Pedro Menendez de Aviles Sails To Ajacan,
August 1572
As soon as Padre Juan Rogel returned to Havana
in the summer of 1571, he gathered together another
shipload of supplies and sent them on their way to
Ajacan. The ship reached Santa Elena in September
of the same year, shortly after the arrival of Governor
Menendez de A vih~s with two Jesuits, Padre Sedefio
and Brother Villareal. The Governor forbade the supply ship to go any further because of the difficult sailing conditions, giving as an excuse the fact that the
~·
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
369
two Indians captured in the summer were needed as
guides. Since the garrison a.t Santa Elena was always
short of food, he requisitioned the supplies for the
starving Spaniards. Padre Sedefio sent Rogel's ship
back to Havana with a letter saying that the relief
trip could not be made until the spring of 1572.
The Basque spirit of Rogel could not endure this
wait. In Havana he made a deposition against Governor Menendez before a public notary and then proceeded to pester the officials into sending the ship
northward with another load of supplies. When this
second load of precious provisions sailed into Santa
Elena in the winter of 1571, it was Padre Sedefio's
turn to be provoked. In a long letter to the Jesuit
General in Rome, the good Padre gave a bitter description of the well meaning efforts of Juan Rogel:
He caused the officials much annoyance by his requests that the ship be provisioned, not considering, if he considered anything at all, that they
could not approach the coast in December ... He
did not realize that all he did was futile and
without rhyme or reason, that he did but exasperate the Governor and the officials and alienate
them when we needed their favor.' 7
Needless to say, while the Governor was angry over
Rogel's independence, he was very glad to receive
another load of supplies for the undernourished
Spanish garrison.
In the spring of 1572 Padre Rogel again began his
efforts to send supplies to Ajacan and learn the fate
of Segura and his companions. The documents that
follow trace the preparations and the actual expedition
to Virginia. In a letter of March 10, 1572, Rogel
wrote to Francis Borgia that as yet there were no
definite plans. However, on June 27 he wrote
jubilantly that Menendez had arrived in Havana and
had agreed to search for the missing Fathers. The
next letter, written from the Chesapeake in August,
gives complete details on the death of the Jesuits and
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JESUIT 1\HSS'ION IN AJACAN
on the punishments inflicted on the natives there.
Finally we have valuable excerpts from the Relationes
of Juan Rogel and Brother Carrera which furnish
additional details of this last trip to Ajacan.
Documents
VI. JUAN ROGEL to FRANCIS BORGIA, Havana, March
10, 1572, excerpts! 8
Since the Governor has for his own reasons detained
at Santa Elena the ship which was going to Ajacan,
it seemed best to me in our Lord, that Brother Carrera be sent to ask the Governor not to delay the trip
so long, 49 and to ask Padre Sedeiio not to give way to
the Governor in a matter so important. I know that he
reached San Agustin, where he met Padre Sedeiio and
the Governor and all three in the same ship set out
for this port, but they have never.. arrived nor has any
vessel come from Florida at all since then. We are
afraid that some disaster has happened either with the
Indians or on the sea, what with the storms that have
been blowing. On the other hand we have hope that
they have ,gone back and reached Santa Elena, and
so we are only guessing here, at present inter spem
et metum.
I am alone here with two novice brothers. 50 The
school which Padre Baptista (Segura) founded remains standing. 51 I am engaged at present in preaching
and hearing confessions. From time to time I stay with
a Negro tribe in great need of instruction. I believe
that our Lord is served greatly and this land edified, -·
glory to God, and that fruit is seen in that they are
no longer as free in vices, and that they are gradually
emerging from the great ignorance in which they
have been.
VII. JUAN ROGEL to FRANCIS BORGIA, Havana, June
27, 1572. 52
JHS Most Reverend Father in Christ,
Pax Christi, etc. Five days after Padre Sedeiio
sailed from this port for New Spain, the Governor ar-
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
371
rived and we began to reach an understanding about
this journey to Ajacan, to go and search for Ours and
get certitude of their fate. Now, glory to God, everything is settled and we are preparing with all speed
to leave here on the feast of Saints Peter and Paul. 53
The King's officials have granted more than a thousand
ducats from the royal treasury for this trip. Thirty
soldiers and sailors are going with all their equipment; they have been payed for three months. Furthermore, there is a supply of provisions to leave behind,
when we find those who are in peace and have
gathered the harvest.
All this has been provided under a condition, namely,
after finishing our trip we will not return here by a
direct route, but it is more to the service of the Kingsince he is financing the voyage-for us to go to the
Isles of the Azores. The Governor gives no reason, but
I have understood that he wants this pilot to sail
close to Spain, and learn if there are corsairs lurking
before the treasure fleet sails. I resisted that as much
as possible, but "beggars can't be choosers." There
are no ships at present suitable for our trip as planned
except those in the Governor's command. One
purchased for this purpose was declared by the pilot
to be unsuitable because it had too deep a draught.
Since there is no other useful ship in the harbor, we
are forced to agree to the conditions that the Governor
placed. He has given me his word that he will send me
back from there, but I fear that he will arrange the
trip in such a way that he will take me to Spain. Because of his desire to take one of Ours with him, I
believe that with the Lord granting a good voyage,
this letter and the writer will arrive together in Spain.
So 'I have decided to persuade some one (on the crew)
to return directly to Havana, if the Governor does not
go in search of Ours. But from his many assurances
here, I don't think he will give up the search.
After arriving at Santa Elena, the Lord willing, I
will send here Brothers Juan de la Carrer8l and
Francisco de Villareal who are staying there. When
�372
JESUIT 1\IISSU>N IN AJACAN
leaving, Padre Sedefio ordered this. Thus we will all
await together the decision of Father Provincial in
Havana.
Nothing else presents itself to write to your
Paternity, except to beg as insistently as I can, a remembrance in the holy sacrifices and prayers of your
Paternity and the entire Company.
God our Lord grant your Paternity His Holy Spirit
and an increase of His divine grace and gifts so that
you may certainly fulfill His divine will, Amen.
Your Paternity's unworthy son and servant in Our
Lord,
JUAN ROGEL
VIII. JUAN ROGEL to FRANCIS BORGIA, Bay of the
Mother of God, (Chesapeake) August 28, 1572.u
JHS My very Reverend Father in Christ,
At the end of last June, I wrote to your Paternity
from Havana, giving an account of how, under an
order of holy obedience, I made ready to make this
journey in search of Ours who had come to these parts,
although I wrote that on the completion of the voyage
that I had to go to the Azores, because the fleet of the
Governor was going to Spain. But when Menendez
reached San Agustin he changed his plans. He decided
to make this trip in person _along with his fleet, and
on completing it to give me a ship in which I might
go back to the Island of Cuba. Thus on July 30, we left
San Agustin and after staying at Santa Elena for
five days, we arrived here at the Bay of Madre de
Dios; with me are Brothers Juan de la Carrera and
Francisco de Villareal ,and the small store of supplies
we had on Santa Elena. After this we will all go to
Havana to await the order of Father Provincial since
Padre Sedefio would order me to do that.
Reaching this bay, the Governor immediately
ordered that we were to search for Alonso, who is
the boy who came with Padre Baptista (Segura).
He is still alive according to what we hear from one
of the Indians of this region whom the pilot captured
_.
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
373
on his second trip. This Indian has come along in
chains. Anchoring the fleet in a port of this bay, the
Governor sent an armed fragatilla with thirty soldiers
to a fresh water stream where Ours disembarked
when they came here. This place is twenty leagues
from this port. It was decided to take the bound native
in my company since he knew the language. The order
of the Governor was to take a principal chieftain of
that region, the uncle of Don Luis, as well as some
leading Indians. On taking them, we were to ask them
to give us the boy and we would let them go. Everything happened in excellent fashion, for within an
hour he took the chieftain with five of his leaders
and some eight other Indians.
This was the method of capture. After anchoring in
the middle of the narrow stream, Indians soon appeared on the bank and some entered the boat. To these
the Spaniards gave gifts and made some exchanges.
When they left the boat very contentedly, others arrived. With a third group came the chief and his
leaders; one of them wore a silver paten, that Ours
had brought, as a decoration or trinket. At once
the Spaniards seized them and forced them down into
the boat and dressing the ship, passed to the mouth
of the stream three leagues away by oar. On the way,
the soldiers killed some Indians who were trying to
shoot arrows at us and had wounded a soldier.
At the mouth of the river which was very wide,
we anchored again an arquebus shot away from the
shore. Canoes of Indians came in peace, and they said
that the boy was in the hands of a leading chieftain
who lived two days journey from there, near this port.
They asked that we give them time to send for him
and bring him. This we did, and we gave them
trinkets to give the cacique who held the boy and
we stayed there waiting for him. It seems that as
soon as the chieftain learned of the capture of the
others and about the fleet and the imminent death of
the Indians, he sought to curry favor with the
Governor. For he did not want to let the boy be
�374
JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
brought to our ship but he sent him to this port with
two Indians.~ It is a marvelous thing in how short
a time the Governor learned what was happening there
from the mouth of the boy.
When the Indians did not bring the boy, we fought
off an ambush of many canoes loaded with archers
ready to attack the vessel. First there came two large
canoes filled with Indians who were so concealed that
no one was seen except the two who steered, and they
pretended they brought us oysters. Before they got
aboard, the watchman discovered them. We made
ready and the others retreated. At my request, the
steersmen were not fired upon, for we were still not
certain whether it was an ambush or whether they
came in peace. When the time was up and the boy
did not come, we waited for a night and further into
midday and finally we set sail with our captives. By
way of farewell, the pilot steered tlie ship towards land
with the excuse that he wanted to speak to them and
then he ordered a blast· from the arquebuses against
the group of Indians who were standing crowded together on the shore. I believe many of them were killed,
and this was done without my knowledge until it
happened. Then we returned to the port where the
Governor was.
Now I want to give your_ Paternity an account of
the death suffered by Ours who were here, as this
boy tells it. After they arrived there, Don Luis
abandoned them, since he did not sleep in their hut
more than two nights nor stay in the village where
the Fathers made their settlement for more than
five days. Finally he was living with his brothers a
journey of a day and a half away. Father Master 57
Baptista (Segura) sent a message by a novice brother
on two occasions to the renegade. Don Luis would
never come, and Ours stayed there in great distress
for they had no one by whom they could make themselves understood to the Indians. They were without
means of support and no one could buy grain for them.
They got along as best they could, going to other
6
-·
�JESUIT 1\IISSION IN AJACAN
375
villages to barter with copper and tin, until the
beginning of February.
The boy says that each day Padre Baptista (Segura)
caused prayers to be said for Don Luis, saying that
the devil held him in great deception. As he had
twice sent for him and he had not come, Segura decided
to send Padre Quiros and Brother Gabriel de Solis
and Brother Juan Baptista (Menendez) to the village
of the chieftain near to where Don Luis was staying.
Thus they could take Don Luis along with them and
barter for grain on the way back. On the Sunday
after the feast of the Purification, Don Luis came to
the three Jesuits who were returning with other
Indians. He sent an arrow through the heart of Padre
Quiros and then murdered the rest who had come to
speak to him. Immediately Don Luis went on to the
village where the Fathers were, and with great quiet
and dissimulation, at the head of a large group of
Indians he killed the five who waited there.
Don Luis himself was the first to draw blood with
one of those hachets which were brought for trading
with the Indians; then he finished the killing of Padre
Segura with his axe and his companions finished
off the others. This boy says that when he saw them
killing the Fathers and Brothers, he sought to go
among the Indians as they inflicted wounds and thus
they might kill him too. For it seemed better to him
to die with Christians than live alone with Indians.
A brother of Don Luis took him by the arm and did
not let him go. This happened five or six days after
the death of the others. This boy then told Don Luis to
bury them since he had killed them, and at least in
their burial he was kind.
The boy stayed in the same hut for two weeks. Because of the famine in the land, Don Luis told him
that they should go and seek grain. Alonso came in
this way to the chief where he remained. This chief
told the boy to stay and he would treat him well and
hold him as a son. This he did. Finally Don Luis
distributed the clothes of the Fathers between himself
�376
JESUIT l\IISSION IN AJACAN
and his two brothers who shared in the murders. The
boy took nothing but the relics and beads of Padre
Baptista (Segura) which he kept till now and handed
over to us. After this Don Luis went away very anxious
to get hold of the boy to kill him, so that there would
be no one to give details of what happened to Ours,
but because of his fear of the chieftain with whom the
boy was staying, he gave up the idea.
When he had learned the truth, the Governor decided to act. He told the captured chief that he must
bring in Don Luis and his two brothers for punishment, and if he did not do this, the Governor would
punish all those captured. Since three had been killed
in that chief's land, he could not escape blame for the
murders. The chief promised that he would bring
them within five days. We are waiting for this time
to elapse, and I am not sure whether the Governor
will send us on our trip to the Island of Cuba before
the time is up. He will report in Spain, God willing,
whatever action he will have taken. The country
remains very frightened from the chastisement the
Governor inflicted, for previously they were free to
kill any Spaniards who made no resistance. After seeing the opposite of what the Fathers were, they
tremble. This chastisement has become famous
throughout the land, and if this further one is done,
it will be all the more famous.
I have noticed a few things about this region.
There are more people here than in any of the other
lands I have seen so far along the coast. It seemed
to me that the natives are more settled than in
other regions I have been and I am confident that
should Spaniards settle here, provided they would
frighten the natives that threaten harm, we could
preach the Holy Gospel more easily than elsewhere.
We are keeping this boy with us. He is very fluent
in the language and has almost forgotten his Spanish.
After he was freed from captivity, we asked him if he
wished to be with us or go with his father who is
also here. He said he wanted to be with us only.
-·
�JESUIT l\liSSION IN AJACAN
377
(Padre Rogel then added in the margin: 'IJ was
deceived in this, because he had been much spoiled
after living with the Indians. He does not want to be
with us, he is not suitable.")
In order to make sure that he retains the language
and does not forget it, I am debating whether to bring
along with me an Indian boy, who has come along with
Alonso, leaving his parents and home to be with him.
Thus he might train in the language unless meanwhile
your Paternity or Father Provincial order otherwise.
For my part, I can say to your Paternity that if
it is judged in our Lord that this enterprise ought to
be begun and if you desire that the task should fall
to me, I would consider myself most fortunate. I fear
that there will be the same difficulty among these
people making conversions, as has been found in the
places where we have been. If there is to be some
fruit here, it will have to be wearing them away
like water on a rock. I believe there are less inconveniences and difficulties than in lands where I have
already been. First, because the country is so cold,
there will be no reason for long absences away from
their huts in winter. Also it appears to me that there
are more tribes and more natives in this region
than in others where I have dwelt.
When this boy was with Don Luis, following the
death of the others (Fathers), Don Luis left the
vestments and books and everything else locked up in
a chest, and on returning they took up their share ofspoils. He said that a brother of Don Luis is going
around clothed in the Mass vestments and altar cloths.
The captured chief told me that Don Luis gave the
silver chalice to an important chief in the interior.
The paten was given to one of those Indians we
captured while the other images were thrown away.
Among other things there was a large crucifix in a
chest; some Indians told this boy that they do not
dare approach that chest, since three Indians who
wanted to see what was in it fell down dead on the
spot. So they keep it closed and protected. About the
�378
JESUIT 1\USSI{)N IN AJACAN
books, Alonso said that after pulling off the clasps,
the Indians tore them all up and threw them away.
If I should learn any other details, whether those
sent out by the Governor bring in Don Luis and his
companions, I will write them from Havana to your
Paternity, when in Our Lord's pleasure, we arrive
there. 5 8
As I cannot think of anything else to write, I close,
commending myself to the holy sacrifices and prayers
of your Paternity and of the Fathers and Brothers
of the Company. God Our Lord grant your Paternity
His Holy Spirit for all success in fulfilling His divine
will.
Given at the Bay of Madre de Dios, August 28, 1572.
Your Paternity's unworthy son and servant in our
Lord,
JUAN ROGEL
IX. Relatio of JUAN DE LA CARRERA, excerpt. 59
After the Governor had given orders for the preparations, the entire company of soldiers sailed in three
ships. We touched land in the Bay of Madre de Dios.
In that harbor we discovered an excellent vineyard arranged and cultivated like vineyards in Spain, set up
in a barren spot. The vines were burdened with many
white grapes and these were large and fully ripened:
we gave much thanks that -the Lord had kept them
there waiting for us. Similarly, beyond the large vineyard were a number of trees of plums and persimmons,
like those in Spain, all rich in fruit, so that we picked
and ate them on our journey which was very pleasant,
thanks be to God.
X. Relatio of JUAN ROGEL, continued.
As the fate of the Fathers was still not known
with certainty, and the Governor was returning to
Spain, he decided to travel by way of Florida and
bring in his company Padre Rogel and Brothers Carrera and Villareal. Arriving at the harbor, the
Governor landed with a band of soldiers and he was
--
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
379
most anxious to know the fate of the Fathers and
punish the offenders. After seizing some of those
Indians who had aided Don Luis and learning the
facts, he decided to punish eight or nine of them.
Padre Rogel, with the assistance of Alonso who served
as interpreter, catechized and baptized them after
which they were hanged from the rigging of the
Governor's ship. After justice was done, Padre Rogel
asked the Governor to order some soldiers of his
guard to go to the burial site of the Fathers and remove the bodies and gather up the vestments, but
since the Governor was on the point of leaving for
(Spain) and winter approached, he could not remain
to fulfill this wish but he promised to return within a
year and come for the bodies.60
On this occasion we learned of a miracle which
happened with the sacred vestments of the Fathers
when they were killed. There was a certain Indian
eager for spoil who came on a box where the Fathers
kept the sacred vestments for saying Mass, and in it
was a crucifix. When he wanted to break and smash
the box so as to drag out its contents, he dropped dead
right there; then another Indian tried to force it
open and had a similar fate. A third Indian who had
no warning from the two unfortunates, sought to
break open the chest also, but he was a companion in
their death. As a result, the rest dared not approach
the box any more. After this the Indians kept it
carefully and would not dare touch it. Little Alonso
and also some old soldiers who came from Florida
and had been on Ajacan told this to Padre Rogel.
Conclusion
After the fate of the nine members of the Ajacan
mission was known, the few remaining Jesuits
of the Florida m1ss1on returned to Havana,
from whence the Provincial, Pedro Sanchez, ordered
them to proceed to the missions of New Spain. The
massacre of the missionaries was viewed as a divine
�380
JESUIT 1\IISSiON IN AJACAN
favor, as can be seen by the documents quoted; to their
brethren, Juan Baptista de Segura and his companions
were privileged. The first Jesuit mission in the Spanish
colonies had been a very costly failure, but its ending
made it a glorious one.
There were many circumstances working against
the success of their labors. The Indians of Florida
were constantly on the move, and if they settled for a
time near the Spanish forts, the starving ,garrisons
had no alternative but to oppress them to get food.
This made it even harder for the Spanish missionaries
to create good will. The province of Florida was
hardly an ideal site for evangelizing during these
years of the governorship of Pedro Menendez de
Aviles. Thus J. T. Connor summarizes the condition
of the province: "One can never lose sight of the
desolation and misery existing in the colony, insecurity
against Indians, pirates and poss'ibly more legitimate
European aggression, the niggardly aid given by the
mother country and the paucity of native products." 61
Pedro Menendez himself shortly before his death
wrote a lengthy report on the province of Florida.
He described the ,great injuries the warlike Indians
were doing to the scattered settlements. 62 His solution was to enslave the Indians so as to be able to
handle them more easily with his scattered forces. The
hatred of the Spanish such a move would have produced would hardly have made the preaching of the
Gospel any easier. His plan was not adopted.
A few years later the Franciscans came to the -·
province of Florida, where they began their splendid
missionary endeavors, somehow overcoming the difficulties that had prevented effective evangelization
before. 63 The experience of six years of labor and suffering were a valuable training for the Jesuits in New
Spain. There the lessons learned in Florida, Georgia
and Virginia coupled with the zeal of the early Blackrobes produced a rich harvest. Padre Segura and his
companions had not laid down their lives in vain.
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
381
NOTES
1
The political and economic background of the Florida mission
is given in Felix Zubillaga, La Florida, La Mision Jesuitica 11
la. colonizacion espagfiola (Rome, 1941), pp. 19-99.
2 H. E. Bolton, "Defensive Spanish Expansion and the Significance of the Borderlands," The· Trans-Mississippi West
(Boulder, 1930), p. 14.
8
Verne E. Chatelain, The Defenses of Spanish Florida
(Washington, 1941), p. 14.
4 An excellent account of his life is in Jeanette Thurber
Connor's introduction to Pedro Menendez de Aviles by SoliS' de
Meras (Deland, 1923).
GBolton, op.cit., p. 22.
eEugenio Ruidiaz y Caravia, La Florida, su conquista 11
colonizacion (Madrid, 1893), II, 419. The Bishop of Popoyan,
Agustino de la Coruiia, had requested the Consejo de lndas in
1564 to permit the Fathers in his diocese. Monumenta Historica
Societatis Jesu, Borgia III, 786.
7Borgia to Menendez, May 12, 1565, Monumenta Missionum
Societatis Jesu, III, "Monumenta Antiquae Floridae, 15661574" (Felix Zubillaga, ed. Rome, 1946). Hereafter cited M.A.F.
8 \Voodbury Lowery,
The Spanish Settlements Within the
Present Limits of the United States, 1562-1574 (New York,
1911). pp. 155-185.
9 Borgia to Gil Gonzales, Provincial of Toledo, Rome, Nov. 28,
1565, M.A.F. pp. 19-21; Borgia to Diego Carrillo, Provincial
of Castile, Rome, Nov. 29, 1565, M.A.F., pp. 21-23.
10 Carrillo to Borgia, Salamanca, April 28, 1566, M.A.F., pp.
57-61.
11 F.
Zubillaga, "'Pedro Martinez, 1533-1566," Archivum
Historicum Societatis Jesu, VII (1938), pp. 30-35.
12 Villareal to Rogel, Tegesta, Jan. 25, 1568, and Rogel to
Borgia, Havana, July 25, 1658, in Ruban Vargas Ugarte, "First
Jesuit Mission in Florida," United States Catholic Historical
Society, Records and Studies, XXV, pp. 75-79, 81-86.
1 3 Francisco Javier Alegre, Historia de la Campania de Jesus
en Nueva Espana, (Mexico, 1841) I, 14-22, gives details of the
famine and deaths that forced the Spanish to leave.
14 Born in Pamplona in 1529, he studied medicine at Alcala
and Valencia. He entered the Society in Valencia in 1554 and
after studying theology at Gandia, he was ordained in 1559.
He labored in Toledo as a preacher and confessor until leaving
for Florida in 1566. Zubillaga, La Florida, pp. 231-234. An excellent biography of Rogel may be found in R. Griffin, "The
Padre of the Ports," Mid-America, XXX (1948), 3-43.
15\Voodbury Lowery, II, 348-353.
16 Rogel to Menendez, Havana, Dec. 9, 1570, M.A.F., pp.
471-479.
�382
JESUIT
MIS~ION
IN AJACAN
17Segura to Borgia, Santa Elena, Dec. 18, 1569, Ugarte, op.
cit. p. 109; Sedeiio to Borgia, Guale, March 6, 1570, M.A.F.,
pp. 421-428.
18 Borgia to Segura, Rome, Sept. 7, 1570, M.A.F., pp. 437.
19 Borgia to Menendez, Rome, Dec. 8, 1570, M.A.F., pp. 468470. Segura had written that Menendez was afraid of losing
his command because of the failure of the Conquest of Florida
and wished the Jesuits to be merely chaplains for his soldiers.
Segura to Borgia, Dec. 18, 1569, M.A.F., pp. 408-411.
20 Ajacan was the name given to a region, as was Guale, and
it may well have embraced the whole area from the 36th
to the 39th parallel. "El J acan is on the coastal latitude of 36°,
the English are at present at latitude 37• ," reads a Spanish
report of the English colony at Roanoke. Cf. Katherine Reding,
"Letter of Gonzalo M. de Canco, June 28, 1600," Georgia
Historical Quarterly, VIII, 214-228. Vasquez de Espinosa in
his "Compendium and Description of the 'Vest Indies," Smithsonian Miscellaneous: Collections, Vol. 102, p. 109 places
"Virginia or Xacal, an English settlement" 160 leagues from
San Augustin, which might mean anything from 450 to 640
miles. Lowery, op. cit., pp. 458-459 cites several sources identifying the Bay of Santa Maria or Ajacan with the Chesapeake.
He believes that the Jesuits' story could be as easily reconstructed for the James, York and other tributaries as for
the Potomac and Rappahannock.
21Some years previously the Dominicans had traveled through
the region. See V. F. O'Daniel, Dominicans in Early Florida
(New York, 1930), p. 203.
22 The Relatio of Juan de la Carrera, written in 1600, presents the Fathers at Santa Elena urging Segura not to go.
There is no mention of disagreements before or after the
departure for Ajacan. M.A.F.,- pp. 553-554.
23 Rogel to Menendez, Havana, Dec. 9, 1570, M.A.F., pp.
471-479.
2iZubillaga, La Florida, pp. 317-319.
25 Jbid.,
p. 392.
-·
See Avellaneda to Borgia, Seville, Feb. 10, 1570, M.A.F.,
pp. 412-413. On entering the Society, he was described as a
gramatico muy approvechado, Zubillaga, La Florida, p. 393,
note 7.
27Borgia to Segura, Rome, Nov. 14, 1570; Borgia to Juan
de Caiias, Provincial of Andalucia; M.A.F., pp. 459 and 466.
2szubillaga, La Florida, p. 326.
29John Tate Lanning in his Spanish Missions in Ge'orgia
(Chapel Hill, 1935), p. 246 states that five Jesuits reached
Ajacan; Fathers Segura and Quiros and Brothers Mendez,
de Solis and Gomez. "'There is no evidence to indicate that
Redondo, Linares and Cevallos ever went to Virginia." Using
26
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
383
the sources that Dr. Lanning had available his conclusion
would be correct, but the hitherto unpublished letter of Juan
Rogel of August 1572 and again in his Relatio of 1607 the
names used in this article are found. Both documents are
translated below. Even more significant is the fact that
while the catechists are referred to as mancebos de doctrina
in Rogel to Menendez, Dec. 9, 1570 (M.A.F., pp, 471-479),
two years later in his August letter Rogel gives each the
title Hermano, which is reserved to a religious throughout
this correspondence.
ao A general account may be found in Michael Kenny's
Romance of the Floridas (Milwaukee, 1934), pp. 269-297. To
supplement the sources here translated, two Relationes are
available. That of Bartolome Martinez is translated by
Ugarte in Record8 and Studies XXV, pp. 129-148. Another
by Luis G. de Ore includes an account of the Jesuit martyrs
in a history of the Franciscan Martyrs of Guale of 1597. See
"'The Martyrs of Florida," Franciscan Studies, No. 18 (July,
1936).
81 Buckingham Smith Papers, II, New York Historical Society. At the end of the copy is written "Carefully corrected
by the original. Seville, July 14, 1889. B. Smith." Zubillaga
believes the letter was sent in December 1570, because it
mentions that the missionaries discovered the land covered
with snow, La Florida, p. 393 note 16. This contradicts the
evidence of the explicit date in the letter and Rogel's Relatio
which says that the Fathers gathered a store of wild berries
"y desta manera se sustentaron seis o seite meses." M.A.F.,
p. 612.
•
82Juan de Hinistrosa was the son of Emanuel Rojas, the
Governor of Cuba from 1525 to 1538. In 1555 Hinistrosa was
made Governor of Havana and in 1565 he was royal treasurer
of the island of Cuba. Cf. Ruidiaz, La Florida, II, 116. He
was a loyal friend of the Jesuits during the Florida mission
of the Society, see Segura to Borgia, Havana, Nov. 18, 1568,
M.A.F., p. 361.
UThis was the firm conviction of Menendez also. In 1565 he
wrote to Borgia: "This land of Florida should be connected
with Tartary and China, or there should be an arm of the
sea which separates and divides the one from the other, and
by which one may go to China and Maluco and return to the
land of Florida whence they departed." Monumenta Historica
Societatis Jesu, Borgia III, p. 762.
34\Vhile John Gilmary Shea was certain that the Jesuits
had landed on the Rappahannock [Cf. The Catholic World, XX
(1875), 847-856.] and Father Kenny in the Romance of the
Floridas supported this hypothesis definitely, the evidence
seems to point to another pattern of rivers and creeks for the
�384
JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
actual location of the mission. Upon entering the Chesapeake,
the Jesuits landed near Newport News and said M:ass. They
then proceeded up the James River to College Creek, known
earlier as Archer's Hope Creek. This creek was navigable for
barges even in the eighteenth century. "Two good leagues
overland" from this stream is Queen's Creek where the Chiskiak
Indians were located. There were also villages across from
here on the north side of the York River. Don Luis was probably a member of the Chiskiak Indians. The boy Alonso de
Olmos who was later rescued probably stayed with the
Kecoughtan Indians near Point Comfort. This explains his
easy escape to the Spaniards in 1572.
It should here be noted that this scheme is based not so much
on the letters of the Jesuits as on two later writers who mention
the harbor where the Jesuits landed and then describe it in
recognizable detail. See a relation by Fray Luis de Ore edited
by Maynard Geiger, O.F.M., Franciscan Studies No. 18, (1936)
44-48; Louis Scisco "The Voyage of Vincente Gonzalez in
1588," Maryland Historical Society Magazine, XXII (1947),
95-100. The last gives valuable evidence on a later voyage by
Menendez Marques. Ruidiaz y Caravii,"La Florida, II, 502 has
a good description of the harbor. Some details are added by
Solis de Meras in his llfemorial, cf. Colonial Records of Florida,
I, 208.
35 The Fathers seemed determined that the disputes over
barter that occurred previously at Santa Elena would not
harm their work at the new mission.
ssText is in li!.A.F., pp. 611-615. The autograph of this history is lost. But Juan Sanchez, in his Historia Novae Hispaniae
ab anno 1571 ad 1580, includes it in his manuscript. See
Zubillaga's introduction to the~ document in M.A.F., pp. 604606, in which he dates its composition between the years 1607
and 1611.
37The fall of 1570.
88 Don Luis de Velasco was Viceroy of New Spain from 1550
to 1564. His son of the same name from 1590 to 1595, and from -·
1607 to 1611.
ssRomans 16:21 and I Corinthians 4:7.
4°Nisperos, persimmons literally, may be taken here for wild
plums and fruit. Four decades later John Smith described the
rich vegetation of Virginia and his experiences with the persimmon. 'Plums there are of three sorts. The red and white are
like our hedge plums, but the other which they call Putchamins,
grow as high as a Palmeta; the fruit is like a Medler; it is
first green, then yellow and red when it is ripe; if it be not
ripe, it will draw a man's mouth awry with much torment, but
when it is ripe, it's as delicious as an apricot." Captaine John
Smith, The Generall Historie of Virginia, New England and
�JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
385
the Summer Isles (Glasgow, 1907), I, 53.
• 1 From other accounts, we know two others were along;
Gabriel de Solis and Juan Baptista Mendez. Cf. Rogel to
Borgia, Aug. 28, 1572.
• 2 A macana was a wooden sword or cudgel, a botador was a
heavy staff or lance.
48 The autograph is in Archivo de lndas, Santo Domingo, leg.
2828 f.16. the text is in M.A.F., pp. 642-643.
44 Menendez Marques, nephew of Pedro Menendez de Aviles.
4sGabriel de Cardenas y Cano, Ensayo cronologico para la
historia general de la Florida (Madrid, 1723), p. 143 corroborates the fact that this voyage was made.
46This history was written in Mexico in 1600 by order of
Bartolome Perez, the Provincial. The autograph is in the
Archives of the Society of Jesus in Rome, Historia Societatis
177, ff.152-161. Text is in M.A.F., p. 561.
47The details of the two extra voyages are given in the same
letter, Sedefio to Borgia, Santa Elena, Feb. 8, 1572, Ugarte,
Records and Studies, XXV, 112-116.
48 The autograph is in the Archives of the Society of Jesus
in Rome, Hispania, 116 ff.183-184. Text is in M.A.F., pp.
513-514.
49Carrera sailed on the second futile trip to Santa Elena.
50Ruiz de Salvatierra and Juan de Salcedo, who was the first
lay brother to enter the Society in the New World.
5 1 This college was started to educate the sons of the native
chieftains from Florida. See Zubillaga, La Florida, p. 395. The
college had few students and for lack of support was closed
in 1577. See M.A.F., pp. 617-625.
52 Autograph in Archives of the Society of Jesus, Rome,
Hispania 116, f. 387. Text is in M.A.F., pp. 521-523.
ssJune 29.
HThe autograph is in the Archives of the Province of Toledo
of the Society of Jesus, 1157 ff. 496-497. Text is in M.A.F.,
pp. 523-530. For the identity of the Bay of Madre de Dios
with the Chesapeake see Juan Lopez de Velasco Geografia y
Descripcion universal de las lndias, 1571-157¢ (Justo Zaragoza,
ed., Madrid, 1894), p. 172.
ssPadre Pedro Sanchez was Provincial of New Spain and the
actual superior of the Florida mission. In the absence of
Padre Segura, Antonio Sedefio was acting Vice Provincial for
Florida.
S6
The chief did not give the boy to Rogel's exploring party,
but sent him directly to the Governor's ship.
5 71t was customary in the early days of the Company to retain the title of "'Master" if one possessed the degree of Master
of Theology.
�386
JESUIT MISSION IN AJACAN
GSThis letter, if written at all, has not been discovered.
9
G Text is in M.A.F., p. 565. The Relatw of Brother Carrera
gives fewer details than Juan Rogel's. The incidents in this
excerpt are surely colored by the imagination of one writing
thirty years after the event. The description of the vineyard
is not confirmed elsewhere.
6oThe journey was never made, Governor Menendez died in
Spain in 1574.
6 1Jeanette Thurber
Connor, Colonial Records of Spanish
Florida (Deland 1925), II, xxvii.
62Jbid., I, 31-81. Document VIII "·Report of the Adelantado,"
Madrid, 1574.
GSM. Geiger, "Early Franciscans in Florida" in Colonial
Hispanic America (C. Wilgus, ed., Washington, 1936), pp.
538-550.
Work Among the Russians in France
The Society has re-established in Meudon in France the
Internat Saint-Georges which .was located at Namur in Belgium before World War II. Seven Fathers and two Brothers
manage the internat which is the residence of 132 Russian
boys. The older boys attend classes at the "Ecole d'Artois," an
extern school in the town of Meudon, and the younger boys attend classes held in the internat. A number of day-students -also come to these classes which are taught by two Jesuits,
a secular priest and a layman. The institution possesses a
beautiful chapel where Mass can be celebrated according to the
Russo-Byzantine rite. The crypt of the chapel is used for the
celebration of Mass according to the Roman rite.
The internat also runs a summer camp on the shores of
Lake Geneva. Last year 72 boys spent the summer there and a
number of Russian families rented rooms in the neighboring
village and came to take their meals at the camp. The camp
has become a little Russian summer colony where contacts can
be made with the Orthodox which, it is hoped, will lead eventually to their conversion.
�OBITUARY
FATHER GEORGE F. JOHNSON
1874-1948
All who knew Father George Johnson will realize
how difficult it is to give an account of his life. Retiring, socially shy, personally reserved, he would wither
anyone who would attempt to pierce that reserve.
Of his fifty-six years in the Society, he spent fortyfour in the classroom. Despite long years of frail
health, he taught regularly, even up to two weeks
before his death at the age of seventy-four. Externally, his faithful devotion to the work of the
Society was his observable characteristic. He contributed nothing to the published work of his field.
No record of his work is extant, but the generations
of his students are the witnesses of his achievement.
Upon them his influence was profound and lasting, and
despite a severity in his demand for exact work, there
are few if any who will not admit that he was the
greatest teacher they ever had.
A surface appraisal, then, would emphasize his
faithfulness, his heroic devotion to the teaching apostolate of the Society, and this despite weak health
that would have made many a man an invalid. But
the qualities that characterized him were his honesty
and his integrity,-his work was honest, his opinions
were honest, no matter how limited they might be,
or how severely and at times savagely expressed. He
was always himself, and this virtue of sterling in.;.
tegrity is sufficiently rare in our earthly pilgrimage
Owing to various circumstances, this is an inadequate notice
on Father Johnson. It should have been written by one of his
own generation. The loving devotion of his Jesuit brother to
him preserved, it seems, the reticence that Father Johnson
would have wished, and there are few personal details of his
early and later life. This account has been made up of comments offered chiefly by his former students, and the writer
has acted merely as editor in arranging material supplied by
others.
M. J. F.
�388
OBITVARY
to warrant remembrance and recording. What has
been said of another great teacher by his students is
permanently true of Father George Johnson, "He gave
himself to us and we are the custodians of his
memory."
The chronological details of his life, received from
his brother, Father Robert Johnson, S.J., may be set
forth in briefest outline. He was born in New York
City in 1874, and his first three years of schooling
were at a public school, where his mother was principal. His mother, it is said, was the first woman
principal in the New York City public school system.
In 1892, after finishing sophomore year at St. Francis
Xavier's College, he entered the Society at Frederick,
Maryland. The long years of teaching the classics
and English were spent as follows: three years at
Holy Cross College, six years at- Fordham College,
thirteen years in the juniorate-at St. Andrew-onHudson, and the remaining seventeen years at St.
Peter's College, Jersey City. During his regency at
Fordham, 1901-1904, he taught chemistry and mathematics; an interesting item in the life of one who was
to be, eminently, a teacher of literature. The first indications of weak health appeared during his years
of philosophy in 1897, when he was forced to interrupt his studies for two years of teaching. In 1904 a
severe illness left him with weakened lungs from
which he was to suffer all his life. What may be called
his "ministerial work" was limited to the confessional,
at the colleges, at convents, and later at the parish
church at St. Peter's. There is sufficient testimony
to show that these years in the confessional won
countless penitents through the confessor's deep sympathy and understanding. It may be mentioned that
for twenty-five successive years he was one of the
confessors at all the summer retreats for the sisters
at the motherhouse at Mt. St. Vincent, New York.
His memory is preserved at St. Peter's College by
the recent dedication of The Geo. F. Johnson Library
in the newly erected McDermott Hall, and an oil
-·
�OBITUARY
389
portrait of him, the gift of former students, is in the
library. In addition to his teaching, he had been librarian for some thirty years, and naming a library
after him is a deserving remembrance of his lifelong
love of books and of his devotion to their care.
How difficult it is to write a proper tribute to this
remarkable priest who spent, quietly and intensely,
forty-four years in the classroom! On advertence, one
would recall that Father Johnson was not "trained"
in his subject. All the more remarkable, then, that
he acquired a broad and deep knowledge of the classics.
No doubt he felt this lack of scientific training, which
would have enabled him to contribute to his field,
which is one of the modern emphases in preparing
Jesuits by advanced studies. That he did realize what
the advantage would have been to him is revealed in
a quiet remark to a student of his in the juniorate,
who was assigned in 1923 to study classics at Oxford.
When the student came to see Father Johnson before
sailing for England, and they discussed his future
work, Father Johnson said, " ... that is what I would
have wanted to do." A trifling remark, but significant
from one who ever concealed his personal thoughts.
Inasmuch as we have nothing in print by Father
Johnson, the following selection may be an example
of his incisive expression and of his definite views
on teaching Latin. It is from a letter to a Province
official in 1925.
Probably you expect a winged word from me anent the
"why" of our Latin. Well, I will be brief and candid.
Personally I never had any doubt as to why I was teaching
Latin, and at present I cannot see how anyone of us can
have. My credo is clear:
1. To teach the language itself-grammar, syntax,
idiom-as a mental training in accuracy and logic.
2. To teach translation in a dead tongue, the most completely annotated and explained of any save Greek. This
to give English vocabulary, roots, sense of word-values.
3. To teach something of a literature that has spoken
for itself for two thousand years and will do so till the
barbarians have the swing of the pendulum.
Whether any given class gain these results or do not
�390
OBITUARY
gain them, has never had anything to do with my teaching
of Latin. I am sure that Latin produces these results, conditioned in degree, of course, by my ability as a teacher and
my class receptivity. It does in fact produce them just as
well as any subject of any class produces its results. Our
students do not know one iota more about English, chemistry, mathematics, than of Latin. Hence, the "result" fallacy never obscures my conviction as to why I teach Latin.
I hold the linguistic element essential. I am totally opposed to over-emphasis on interest. And I cannot see at all
why we want a Classical Association in the Province; the
whole Province should be a C.A.
A Jesuit who, when a student at Fordham, knew
him in the years 1914 onwards, sends this comment:
"Although I was not in his class, his reputation as
the best teacher on the campus was common knowledge. He had a heavy teaching schedule, was moderator of the College magazine, and in charge of the
library. He became my spiritual-director, and I was
fortunate beyond expectation in his care. My hundred
and one scruples found in him an almost feminine
tenderness of treatment, joined with a tact and forbearance rarely matched. Of these priceless conversations which made a Jesuit of me, despite the
steady and unrelenting contrary arguments he proposed, I can only say that anything he said to force
me to sound myself and assure myself of the correcness of my decision, was answered in my mind by
his o\vn life of order, precision, and of complete fulfillment of his obligations. The spectacle of his reserved and soldier-like performance of the tasks assigned him, without show or display of any sort, moved
me more than all books or printed matter to enter
the Society. He tested me severely, by seeming to
imply that I should not or could not be a Jesuit. As
a matter of fact he did me the greatest service this
side of Heaven. If anything was calculated to soften
his Purgatory, I am sure that his patience during the
three weekly visits I made to his unencumbered and
spotlessly clean room, is the penance that did it. His
manliness, his detestation of cant, his forthrightness,
h!s fierce defense of the underdog, were to me the
-·
�OBITUARY
391
epitome of all I wanted to find in a Jesuit. A life of
order and of strong devotion to duty, free from all
ostentation and humbug, summarize for me George
Johnson. May his great and good soul rest in peace ! "
One of his former students, now a lawyer in New
York, continues the praise.
"The test of a man's greatness lies not only in
what he did, but in the way he did it. The quality of a
memory is not measured by its vividness but by its
poignancy. This is the epitaph inscribed in my heart
under the name of Father George Johnson.
"I had heard of Father Johnson ibefore I donned the
blue and white cap of a St. Peter's College freshman in
1934. The legend of his freshman classical course,
like the grace of God, had given me the strength to
decide to undertake four years of commuting from
the Bronx to Jersey City. It would have taken a most
extraordinary teacher to fulfill my youthful expectations; a most remarkable personality to overcome my
natural antipathy to crowded subways. Father Johnson did both.
"Through the first week of Latin, Greek, and English I sat, a somewhat frightened youth, expecting
a startling revelation of greatness. But it never
came, at least not in the theatrical manner I expected
it. We went right on translating as usual and composing verses each week. But before the year was finished, I realized we were accomplishing more than
mere translation. Those kindly eyes, keen behind
rimless glasses, were flitting from soul to soul, encouraging here, bridling there. A nervous student,
stumbling through a recitation, would look up for an
expected rebuke only to catch a smile stealing roguishly across his lips, -'What's the matter, John,
did you catch your tongue on one of those dangling
participles?'-his low voice would chuckle. This same
low voice, punctuated with short, pronounced breaths,
could cut the 'badness' out of a freshman heart-and
did so when needed. But the salve of a mischievous
sparkle of his eye, or a sudden compliment, was
�392
OBITJJARY
always generously applied. With all the tempering
that one who is neither man nor boy must be subject
to, there wasn't one of us who ever doubted Father
Johnson's fairness or felt misjudged. We marvelled
at his learning and thanked God for his simplicity.
We felt honored by the amount of time he must have
devoted to correcting our assignments and accepted
his criticism avidly. Thus we grew in wisdom and
grace.
"Here was a teacher who was at all times a priest
of God; an intellectual who could talk with a child.
You could read the beauty of a poem on his face as
he recited it aloud. The cadence became expression
instead of sound. The classics became something
living, something inspiring under his touch.
"This was the Father Johnson I knew, and the one
I remember. If there is any appreciation of beauty
in me, it was engendered by this l:laintly priest, whose
life was beauty personified; this giant among intellectuals who used his strength to mold lives, instead
of personal fame.
"Nor do I stand alone, for the young men who attended his classes with me, to a man, honored him
with the rare tribute of thereafter measuring every
teacher by comparison with him. Though we graduated to higher institutions of learning and got caught
in the maelstrom of war, our -enthusiasm for him never
dimmed. That is a real test of greatness."
Similar high praise came from another former student, now a Jesuit priest: "One surprising feature of
Father Johnson's rather limited fame is the universality of it. Certainly among the students of St.
Peter's before me and among those who studied with
me I can recall none who were even sparing in their
praise of him. And it was a delight for me to return
to the College in 1944 and hear him spoken of with
the highest praise. In the Society I found a great
bond with older members who lavished almost extravagant words on his talents and character. Of course,
they were music to my ear. It was with mingled
-·
�OBITUARY
393
awe and delight that we sat under him, for we had
been propagandized early and late in his favor by
his former students-both lay and clerical. Strangely
enough, he more than lived up to his advance billing.
In a somewhat lengthy experience with teachers, I can
say that no one ran him even a close second.
"Looking back, I would say that his most noticeable
talent lay in his control of the class. Not merely exterior deportment-our awe of him was enough to produce that-but more in that each student seemed to
be anxious to receive knowledge from him. They were
filled with the silence, not of inattention, but of receptiveness. I cannot recall even one instance of the
teacher's routine classroom difficulties.
"What did he communicate to us? A great deal of
knowledge and of wisdom; a love for poetry; at the
least an admiration for the Latin and Greek classics;
most vividly, a carefulness and a desire for accuracy
and perfection in everything we did.
"To emphasize the need for care, he imposed a set
of rules on us. For example: in Greek composition, he
began by deducting half a point for every wrong accent. Later the toll was raised to two and then to five
points. As a result, we worked hard to produce a
perfect Greek paragraph, then spent extra hours
hunting out the proclitic and enclitic, searching for
long syllables and short, until the finished products
were almost flawless.
"Two days each week brought Latin themes. You
could hope for no higher than a seventy, if you were
so careless as to begin a sentence with a post-positive,
enim, autem, etc.
"In our efforts at poetry, a filler (the birds do sing,
say) was sure to bring not only the ironic humor of
the man, but a less-than-passing mark. Each day without fail he examined all of us on our assigned memory.
Are these trivia? Perhaps, but the habits acquired
were not.
"Friday afternoon brought us our greatest pleasure,
Father Johnson reading our efforts at poetry from the
�394
OBITYARY
week before. He read all of them, in an ascending
order of quality, but always without the name of the
author. How we waited anxiously, dreading that ours
would be read early; how proud we were when our
poem came late or even last. To all of them he
added, sometimes acrid comments, sometimes a touch
of his own genius to give the poem a perfection you
had not even suspected was there.
"I remember that his translations of Latin and
Greek were brilliant and unusual. I have never been
able to reach again the depth of feeling that swept
through me as he translated the Apology; just as I
have never been able to find in the poems he read all
the beauty he discovered for us. In his appreciation
of poetry I think he was limited by classical standards
and the conventions of the past, but I have never heard
anyone read poetry as well as he' did. His rasping
voice was a disadvantage, but it did not hinder him.
In his reading was all the love of a lifetime of pleasurable experience with the poets. By it he was able
to give us a desire to read poetry, if only to get even
a fleeting glimpse of what had given him so much
pleasure. Though he did not parade his own spirituality, we were all struck by it. He was truly a
Christian humanist and he left us with a longing to
be true Christians as well as true humanists. Some of
his students were attracted by his example to become
Jesuits; all his students were impelled to become faithful Christians. As far as I know all still are.
"The key to his successful teaching may be seen in
his last days. He was dying of a painful illness when
a young Jesuit visited him in the hospital. As he
entered, the old man was reading a book. They talked
for a while, then the visitor asked: 'What are you
reading?' 'Nothing much,' said Father Johnson with
obvious reluctance. When his visitor persisted, he
finally showed him one of the Greek classics, and said:
'They've given me so much pleasure during my life, I
wanted to go through them once more before I died.' "
The final remembrance is from the pen of Father
�OBITUARY
395
Robert I. Gannon who was the first dean of the
newly opened St. Peter's College when Father Johnson joined the faculty in 1931.
"The reborn St. Peter's College was still in its
second infancy when the glorious news came that we
were to welcome Father George Johnson to our midst.
Influenced by subtle public relations, the people were
already referring to our pioneers as the 'Million Dollar Faculty' and it wasn't too much of an exaggeration. The teachers at least were an unusually adequate group. But now we could justify the claim
without the slightest mental reservation. The new
professor of classics was one of a triumvirate famous
in the Province. With Father Francis M. Connell and
Father Francis P. Donnelly he represented an old
school Jesuit tradition that had become a collector's
item. Not only could he handle Latin, Greek, and
English, but he had to a marked degree the three essentials of a great teacher: integrity, preparation, and
personality. He had integrity-moral and intellectual.
He was honest with himself, honest with his classes.
The merest suspicion of fraud or tyranny sent him into
a passion and how he could storm! He was prepared-remotely and proximately. His reading was
wide and deep in Latin, Greek, and English but he
checked, the night before, like a first year regent,
and went into class with every idea at his fingertips.
He had personality, plus. He scowled and barked
and rasped in an unsuccessful attempt to hide a tenderness that was almost maternal. His softest spotand that was pretty soft-was reserved for the underdog.
"I never met one of his students who did not love
him :before the end of the year, and that carried
over into afterlife. The Scholastics who were teaching in New York during the early 'thirties used to
rave to their classes and affectionately mimic Father
Johnson's 'Young Man-!' with the result that we
had the unique experience of registering applicants
each September who admitted that they chose the
�396
OBITtrARY
slums of Newark Avenue because George Johnson
was there."
One of his former students at St. Peter's told the
writer some years ago that at their class reunions, a
frequent topic of conversation among the alumni was
Father Johnson, and added in a halting way, "We all
felt this way-that we would try to avoid doing anything wrong in life because of having come into contact with a man of such integrity."
The following incident is too significant of his spiritual life to let pass. Sometime before his death,
Father Johnson had been aware of his increasing
weakness, and after teaching class on the day the
Christmas holidays began, went to the Dean of the
College to say that he felt that he could not continue
and that another teacher should be engaged for his
classes in January. Later on the ~me day his brother
Robert came from New York to see him and said:
"I have seen the doctor." "Yes." "He says you are
in advanced stages of cancer." "Yes, I know." "He
says that you have about two weeks to live." "Yes, I
know." After making preparations for his going to
the hospital, his brother Robert asked him if he would
like to arrange for a general confession. After a
thoughtful pause, Father George answered, "No, I
think my weekly confession _:vill be sufficient." This
simple answer may stand as a revelation of his inner
life. It is what you read of in the lives of the saints.
M. J. FITZSIMONS, S.J.
COURTESY
If we cannot be heroic, we can at least be courteous; if we
may not aspire to be saints, let us be content to be gentlemen.
Every gentleman is by no means a saint, but every saint must
first be a gentleman. To discipline the tongue is an essential
of Christian perfection; without it sanctity is not possible;
and it is also the first rule of courtesy.
MICHAEL KENT
�PUBLICATIONS OF Al\IERICAN JESUITS IN 1950
GEORGE ZORN,
S.J.
It is not easy to compile a complete and accurate record of
the publications of Jesuit authors in eight provinces. The generous cooperation of the Fathers Provincial of the American
Assistancy has made the task pleasant. The possibility remains
that we may have overlooked some items, dissertations, brochures, pamphlets or books, that should have been included
in this list. Our readers are requested to assist us in making
the record complete if, perchance, we have omitted any titles.
In the following list we have adopted the somewhat arbitrary
division of titles under the two headings, Books, and Brochures.
BOOKS:
1) Aspenleiter, Francis J. (Mo.): World History in Survey.
Chicago, Loyola University Press. $2.00. (High School
Text Book)
2) Bonn, John L. (N.E.): House on the Sands. Garden City,
N.Y., Doubleday. Pp. 310. $3.00. (Fiction)
3) Boyton, Neil (N.Y.): Ex-cub Fitzie. Milwaukee, Bruce.
Pp. 206. $2.50. (Juvenile Fiction)
4) Cody, Alexander (Cal.): A Memior: Richard A. Gleeson,
S.J. San Francisco University Press. Pp. 215. $3.00.
5) Donovan, Joseph (Ore.): Pelagius and the Fifth Crusade.
University of Pennsylvaina Press. Pp. 124, $2.50.
6) Ellard, Gerald (Mo.): Christian Life and Worship. Milwaukee, Bruce. Pp. 418. $4.50 (trade), $3.50 (text ed.),
Fourth revised edition.
7) Faherty, William B. (Mo.): The Destiny of Modern Woman.
Desclee de Brouwer et Cie.
8) Fraunces, John M. (Md.): The Glorious Assumption of the
Mother of God. New York, Kenedy. Pp. 153. $2.25 (Translation from the French of Joseph Duhr, S.J.)
9) Gallagher, Louis J. (N.E.): Episode on Beacon Hill.
Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday. Pp. 318. $3.00. (Fiction)
10) Heenan, John J. (Md.): Jesus Christ: His Life, His Teaching and His Work. Milwaukee, Bruce. 2 vol. $12.00.
(Translation from the French of Ferdinand Prat.)
11) Hogan, William T. (N.Y.): Productivity in the Steel Industry 1920-1946. New York, Fordham U. Press (Declan
X. McMullen Co.). $4.00.
�398
PUBLICATIONS OF
~l\IERICAN
JESUITS
12) Kelley, William F. (Mo.): The In-Service Growth of the
College Teacher. Creighton University Press. Pp. 200.
$2.00.
13) Krenz, Leo l\1. (Mo.): Our Way to the Father. Meditations
for each Day of the Year. Milwaukee, Bruce. 4 vol.
$15.00.
14) La Farge, John (N.Y.): No Postponement. New York,
Longmans Green. Pp. 246. $3.00.
15) Leahy, Charles E. (Cal.): Teen-A Book for Parents.
Milwaukee, Bruce. Pp. 116. $2.00.
16) McNamee, Maurice B. (Mo.): Reading for Understanding.
Rinehart. Pp. 464. $2.50.
17) Proceedings of the Workshop of College Teachers of Religion of the Maryland Province. Washington, Georgetown University Press.
18) Mueller, John Baptist, S.J.: Handbook of Ceremonies. St.
Louis, Herder. Pp. 460. $5.00 Fourteenth English edition, revised and edited by Adam C. Ellis (Mo.).
19) O'Finn, Thaddeus: Happy Holiday/ Rinehart. Pp. 217.
$2.50 (A Murder Mystery.) T . .Q:Finn is the pen name
of Joseph T. McGloin (Mo.).
20) Owen, Aloysius J. (N.Y.): Ignatius of Loyola. Syracuse,
Le Moyne College Press. Pp. 209. $4.50. (Translation
from the Spanish of Pedro Leturia, S.J.)
21) Renard, Henri (Mo.): Philosophy of God. Milwaukee,
Bruce. $2.75.
22) Renard, Henri (Mo.): Philosophy of Morality. Omaha,
Creighton University Press. Planograph edition. $2.00.
23) Ring, George C. (Mo.): Religons of the Far East. Milwaukee, Bruce. Pp. 350. $6.00.
24) Schmidt, Augustine C. (Chi.): Guidance. Chicago, Loyola
U. Press. Pp. 347. $1.92.
25) Siwek, Paul (Pol. Min.): Une Stigmatisee de nos fours-.
Paris, Lethielleux. Pp. 174. 325 fr.
26) Siwek, Paul (Pol. Min.): Spinoza et le pantheisme religieux.
Westminster, Newman Press. Pp. 206. $3.00.
BOOKS ON WHICH OURS COLLABORATED
27) Books for Catholic Colleges. American Library Association.
Pp. 57. $1.25. Gilbert C. Peterson (Mo.) was co-editor
with Sister Melania Grace and Ambrose Burke.
28) Bryson, Lyman (ed.): Perspective on a Troubled Decade:
Science, Philosophy and Religion, 1939-19-1-9. New York,
Harper. Pp. 901. $5.50. John La Farge (N.Y.) was a
contributor to this volume.
�PUBLICATIONS OF AMERICAN JESUITS
399
29) Facey, Paul W. (N.E.) and Timasheff, Nicholas S.:
Sociology. Milwaukee, Bruce.
30) Friedl, John C. (Mo.): Contributor to Human Relations
in Modern Business. New York, Prentice-Hall. Pp. 55.
$1.00.
31) Martin, David (ed.): Catholic Library Practice. Portland,
Ore., U. of Portland Press. $3.75. Harold Gardiner (Md.)
contributed section entitled, "'Books and Reading in the
Future of America."
32) Mihanovich, Clement S. and Schuyler, Joseph B., S.J.
(N.Y.): Current Social Problems. Milwaukee, Bruce.
Pp. 452. $3.50. Father Schuyler is the author of the
chapters on unemployment and race.
33) O'Brien, John A. (ed.): Where I Found Christ. New York,
Doubleday. $2.50. Contains the autobiographical :;ketch
"Coming Home" by Avery R. Dulles (N.Y.).
34) Owens, Sister M. Lilliana, S.L.: Jesuit Beginnings in New
Mexico 1867-1882. El Paso, Texas, Revista Catolica Press.
Pp. 176. $2.00. Gregory Goni (N.O.) and John M. Gonzalez, (N.O.) collaborated on this book.
BROCHURES:
35) Becker, Joseph l\1. (Chi.) : Current Issues in Social Security.
N.Y.U. Press. Pp. 40.
36) Burns, Robert (Cal.): A Jesuit in War Against the
Northern Indians. Reprint from the Records of the
American Catholic Historical Society, Philadelphia.
Pp. 45.
37) Corrigan, John L. (Ore.): Management and Management's
fluenced by Cultural Conditioning. Peabody Museum.
38) Ewing, J. Franklin (N.Y.): Hyperbrachycephaly as InRight to Manage Industrial Relations: A Study in
Difference. Gettysburg, Pa., Times and News Publ. Co.
39) Fitzgibbon, Gerald H. (Mo.): Religion and Medical Ethics
in the Hospital School of Nursing. St. Louis, Catholic
Hospital Association.
40) Fitzgibbon, Gerald H. (Mo.): Routine Spiritual Care for
Laymen, Doctors and Nurses. St. Louis, Catholic Hospital
Association.
41) Gallen, Joseph F. (Md.): Diocesan or Pontifical. Woodstock Press (Mimeographed).
42) Garesclu~, Edward F. (Mo.): Odes for Music. Vista Maria
Press. Pp. 64.
43) Hartnett, Robert C. (Chi): Education for International
Understanding. New York, America Press. Pp. 48.
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PUBLICATIONS OF :1\.l\IERICAN JESUITS
44) Hartnett, Robert C. (Chi.): Federal Aid to Education. New
York, America Press. Pp. 48.
45) Knoepfie, Rudolph J. (Chi.): Cicero's First Oration against
Catiline (With visible vocabulary, sense lines, basic
thought lines.) Cleveland, by the author. Pp. 51.
The Following Publications are from St. Louis, The Queen's
Work Press:
46) Corcoran, Charles (Mo.): Thus Shall You Pray. Pp. 32. 10c
47) Diamond, Joseph A. (Md.): Please Lord ••. Don't Call
Me. Pp. 32. 10c
48) Dowling, Edward (Mo.) : Cana Catechism. Pp. 32. 10c
49) Dugan, John J. (N.E.): Catholic Prayers and Doctrine for
Servicemen by an Army Chaplain. Pp. 40. 10c
50) Fitzgibbon, Gerald H. (Mo.): Spiritual First Aid Procedures for Laymen, Social lVorkers, Doctors, Nurses.
51) Heeg, Aloysius J. (Chi.): An Adult's Confession Book.
Pp. 24. 10c
52)
Preliminary Outline of Sodality-,Organization in Elementary Sclwols. Pp. 44. 10c
..
53) Le Buffe, Francis P. (N.Y.): Prayers for the Dying
(revised). Pp. 40. 10c
54) Lord, Daniel A. (Chi.): The Christmas Face of God.
Pp. 24. 10c
55)
Here's How to Learn. Pp. 32. 10c
56)
I Entered the Sem. Pp. 24. 10c
57)
A Letter to a Friend not of my Faith. Pp. 40. 10c
58)
M is for Marriage. Pp. 40. 10c
59)
Oh! Not in my Pew. Pp. 24. 5c
60) McCluskey, Neil G. (Ore.): Federal Aid to Private Schools.
Pp. 40. 10c
61)
Your Church is "Undemocratic." Pp. 16. 5c
62) Sommer, Joseph A. (Mo.): Preliminary Outline of the
High School Sodality. Pp. 16. 10c
63)
Semester Outlines. New Series Nn. 1 and 2. 10c each.
64) Southard, Robert E. (Mo.): Our Comic Book Children.
Pp. 40. 10c
65)
Problems of Decency. Pp. 40. 10c
66) Stauder, Paul (Mo.): Mary at Nazareth and Other Verse.
Pp. 48. 25c
67) West Baden College Theologians' Sodality Council (Chi.):
A Program for the Freshman High School Probation
Sodality. Pp. 36. 25c
68) Xavier Society for the Blind: The Ordinary of the Mass
(Braille). New York, Xavier Society for the Blind,
Lending Library.
-·
�Books of Interest to Ours
AN ANGLICAN ON THE EXERCISES
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. By W.H.
Langridge. Translation from the Spanish with commentary,
and translation of the Directorium in Exercitia. New York,
Morehouse-Gorham Co. Pp. xxxvi-351. $4.80.
Most Jesuit libraries have a dog-eared copy or two of this
excellent book which has been out of print for many years.
A previous review of the earlier edition appears in the WOODSTOCK LETTERS of February, 1920 (p. 113). The reissuance at
this time of the third edition of 1930 (the year of Longridge's
death) is most welcome.
William Hawks Langridge died at the mother house of the
Cowley Fathers, Oxford, England, Dec. 29, 1931 at the age of
83. He spent many years in the United States, and both here
and in England gave himself to retreat work. In addition to
the present work, he brought out several other volumes on the
Ignatian Exercises, including his Retreats for Priests, A
Month's Retreat, and lgnatian Retreats. The Cowley Fathers to
which he belonged was the first stable movement in the Church
of England towards a common religious life with vows. This
group was founded in 1865 at Cowley St. John, Oxford, England
by Richard Meux Benson (died Jan. 1915), Charles Chapman
Grafton, and Simeon Wilberforce O'Neill. In the summer each
member of the community was to make a full four week re·
treat (afterward reduced to two) and at Christmas another
retreat of one week. They are located in Boston, Canada, Japan,
India, and South Africa. Present statistics on their numbers
were not available.
Langridge's book does three things and does them very well.
First it provides a literal translation from the Spanish Autograph of the text of the Exercises. Next it gives a fine com·
mentary on the text itself, and finally furnishes a translation
of the Directory.
First a few words on the translation which is a literal one
and different in purpose from Father Puhl's recent version. "It
would have been easy," observes Longridge (p.vii), "to give
a more smooth and flowing English version by translating from
the Vulgate, but this would have been, in many places, to
paraphrase rather than to translate the original Spanish. It
seemed best, therefore, in the case of a book where the language
is so terse and full of meaning to keep as closely as possible to
the actual words of the author, even at the risk of reproducing
the harsh, and often ungrammatical character of his style.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Only so could the translation serve as a basis for the commentary which is intended to bring out and explain the meaning
of the exact words in which he has expressed his thought."
Langridge's choice of words is often felicitous. Thus in No. 142
(p. 103), the Two Standards, he translates, "consider the
harangue, he (Satan) makes to them." Morris translates the
Spanish sermon here as address, and Puhl does the same. In
No. 157 (p. 114), the Three Classes, Longridge gives, "we desire, beg, and supplicate." Morris has "desire, petition, and
beg." Puhl puts it "desire, beg, and plead."
In his commentary the author acknowledges his great indebtedness to the standard works of Roothaan, Gagliardi, de
la Palma, Diertins, Nonell, and Hummelauer. Langridge's
work is especially fine on the Principle and Foundation. He
emphasizes the truths brought out with more precision and
fuller development by Bouvier in his Authentic Interpretation
of the Principle and Foundation. The P. and F. is not to be
given in its entirety to all retreatants, says Longridge, for it
postulates a generous disposition and _ardent desire for perfection (p. 31). The rule on the right use' of creatures is rightly
termed a most exacting one and not to oe given to all. Longridge
throws into high relief the oft-neglected truth that the full scope
and lofty perfection of the P. and F. must be sought by a
careful study of the text itself, bearing in mind the kind of
p€rson for whom St. Ignatius primarily designed the Exercises,
and not forgetting the consequences St. Ignatius deduces from
the P. and F. The created things to which we should make ourselves indifferent are those that are "left to the liberty of our
free will and not forbidden." We cannot as good Christians
be indifferent to things which are of obligation and involve
sin. Our indifference is to be to-lawful things. Hence we start
off right in the P. and F. with as highly perfect a resolution as
to "desire and choose only that which leads us more directly
to the end for which we were created." Longridge again and
again ties in later passages with the P. and F. and shows their
logical connection. He gives a lucid discussion of the Sume et
Suscipe. His extended discussions on the early and key exercises are clear and penetrating. It is only on the later documents, such as the distribution of alms, scruples, discernment
of spirits, and rules for thinking with the Church, that the
Anglican author bogs down and makes few or jejune comments.
But this is small criticism of an outstanding work which I
would unhesitatingly say is the most satisfactory one volume
work in English of and on the Exercises.
GEORGE ZORN,
S.J.
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�BOOK REVIEWS
403
A COMMENTARY ON THE EXERCISES
Comentario y Explanacion de los Ejercicios Espirituales de San
Ignacio Loyola. By Ignacio Casanovas, S.J. Translated from
the Catalan by Pedro N. Isla, S.J., and 1\lanuel Quera, S.J.
Barcelona, Editorial Balmes, 1945-48. Six vols. Pp. 390, 354,
231, 307, 272, 264.
This reviewer thought he knew something about the Spirit1Ull
Exercises of St. Ignatius ••. Had he not been making his own
retreats for over thirty years and giving retreats to others?
Had he not tried to read and even to study at least the major
publications on this subject in different languages? Yet, on becoming acquainted with the work of Father Casanovas and using
it for his own retreat, he felt that now for the fin:t time the
Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius were explained to him.
This is not a collection of scholarly but theoretical discussions
of disputed questions. Nor is it an arsenal of all sorts of
learned quotations from St. Thomas and other Doctors of the
Church, the Christian Fathers, and the liturgy. It is, however,
a scholarly work by one of our best experts, containing only
solid and sound doctrine. There is not an abundance of interesting thoughts but only a few. These are intensely realized,
relished and savoured interiorly, and driven home with inescapable logic and psychology. There are no pieces of oratory
which sometimes sail under the flag of St. Ignatius. There is
no flowery literary style that fascinates by itself and thus
diverts attention from the main issue of the Exercises. We have,
instead, a plain and simple translation from the original Catalan
in language that does not want to be admired but rather to
disappear, just as does any retreat-master and the author of
the Exercises himself, in order to leave the soul alone with its
Creator. Much less do we find a repertoire of "'bed-side stories"
or examples, although, from his extensive knowledge of the
history of the early Society, the author gives in two appendices
to the second volume valuable information from the life of
St. Ignatius and the vocation of Father Nadal, which serves to
illustrate the practical application of the rules laid down for
the Election.
While pointing out that it is in perfect harmony with the
mind of St. Ignatius to insert other meditations on suitable
subjects, as indicated by St. Ignatius, Father Casanovas develops only the ordinary meditations given by the author himself in the body of the Exercises. For the First Week, to mention
an instance, we have only the meditations on the Threefold
Sin, on Personal Sins, and on Hell. Since the direct purpose of
any "repetition" is, according to St. Ignatius, to take up, develop and deepen the personal inspiration experienced by the in-
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dividual in the course of the preceding exercises, it is evident
that no book nor retreat-master can supply them. Father
Casanovas gives, therefore, none of the customary "repetitions"
which are in fact new meditations.
As Application of the Senses for the Second Week, the author
had in his original Catalan edition simply taken over the
famous text of Father Meschler ad litteram. This, as not written
by Father Casanovas himself and to save space, has been
omitted in the present Spanish edition. I regret it since it
it renders the whole work incomplete in a way. If necessary,
space could have been saved by omitting some of the extensive
Scripture texts and some of the quotations from the Exercises,
giving only the references. On the other hand, Father Casanovas gives, even on the Principle and Foundation, three application of the senses-not mentioned by St. Ignatius at all.
As is to be expected with a subject of such an abstract nature
these turn out to be rather meditations. (Cf. the Official
Directory, chapter xiv, not chapter xxi, as stated in Vol. I,
p. 182, note.)
It would exceed the space of this review to enumerate in
detail the merits of this work. I wish to- .mention, however, the
chapter on prayer in the first volume, which invites a comparison with Archbishop Goodier's excellent, yet unfinished,
study on the same subject. Father Casanovas seems richer,
not only in documentation, but also in practical hints and
methods, while Goodier's language is almost inimitable in its
noble simplicity and fragrance of genuine spiritual unction
and deep devotion-the deeper the more it is hidden under an
apparently quiet surface. Father Casanovas, too, shows much
spiritual unction but of a different kind. He has less of that
typical English or northern reserye, though, as a true son of
St. Ignatius, he, too, is absolutely sober and averse to anything
exaggerated or sensational. What makes his work particularly
valuable, however, is something else. It could only be termed
a sort of natural, not only national, affinity in temperament
and character with the author of the Exercises which he reveals on every page. It is this deep psychological insight into
the mind of St. Ignatius that pervades the whole of Father
Casanovas' work from beginning to end and makes it so extremely valuable, even more than his thorough acquaintance
with the early history of the Society or his own great practical
experience.
Father Casanovas not only wrote a long chapter on "The
Spiritual Exercises and Holiness," but practiced all this himself and even sealed it with his blood when, in 1936, he was
murdered by the Communists under particularly revolting
circumstances. It sounds almost like presentiment when he
�BOOK REVIEWS
405
speaks of the great terror which always accompanies the first
outbursts of popular fury (Vol. V, p. 70) ; or of the strength
and consolation of Christian martyrdom as a continuation and
supplement of Christ's own passion (Ibid., p. 67).
Let us hope that there will soon be an English edition. To
reduce the size and the price one might omit the extensive
Scripture readings at the beginning of many meditations,
giving only references instead. On the other hand an alphabetical
index would greatly increase the usefulness of the book. Even
so-we are under no illusion-the book will never become a
"·best-seller," not even among spiritual books, precisely because
it contains the Spiritual Exercises in their integrity. According
to St. Ignatius himself, these are only for raris lwminibus.
BERNARD WELZEL, S. J.
OUR VOCATION
Our Happy Lot. By Aurelio Espinosa Polit, S.J. Translated
by William J. Young, S.J. St. Louis, B. Herder Book Co.
1951. Pp. xi-245. $3.50.
This book is a series of conferences on the Jesuit vocation
considered in the light of the Gospels and Epistles. Father
Espinosa takes some aspect of the religious apostolic vocation
and brings to bear on its elucidation all the relevant texts
from our Lord's words and from St. Paul's letters. The Greek
text is always the starting-point of the author's exegesis and
reflections. Some of the topics treated are: predestination, love
for souls, three sources of grace.
Although destined for Jesuits the book will be profitable to
all who participate, in one way or another, in the apostolate.
An excellent feature of the book is the brief summaries of each
chapter arranged as points for meditation. These summaries
make the book convenient both for spiritual reading and for
prayer.
JAMES M. CARMODY, S.J.
A 1\IEMOIR OF AN IRISH JESUIT
Father Michael Browne, S.J. By Thomas Hurley, S.J. Dublin,
Clonmore and Reynolds, Ltd., 1949. Pp. 242. 12/6.
Father Michael Browne lived that sort of life which is
surely a delight to God and the despair of a biographer. He
did nothing but perform the ordinary ministries and say the
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BOOK REVIEWS
ordinary prayers of a Jesuit priest--with only this exception,
that he worked and prayed as a saint would.
Father Browne was born in Limerick City in April of the
year 1853, and was brought up there in a most Catholic atmosphere. A delicate constitution had at first barred his admission to the Society of Jesus, but after a visit to Lourdes,
his health was restored, and he was received at the novitiate
of the Irish Province at Milltown Park. While a novice, student,
and regent he was looked on as a saint, though a rather distant
one. From his ordination in 1890 until his death in 1933, he held
many offices of responsibility in the Society, being Master of
Novices during three separate periods, and Socius to the Provincial in the war years. However, Father Browne is remembered chiefly as a retreat-master and director of souls--indeed,
the best known and most active in Ireland at that time.
All this might now be forgotten, were it not that this master
of novices, confessor, and retreat-giver quite involuntarily convinced most people that he was a saint. Granting a certain
stubbornness and an occasional outburst of temper, he was
clearly a man of God who prayed always-a man of great
austerity, of perfect observance, and the· most tender and untiring charity.
As we learn in the preface, Father Browne destroyed all
his private papers before his death: hence, a narrative of his
spiritual development is not possible. What Father Hurley
has done is to assemble the recollections of those who knew
him, together with excerpts from his own correspondence, and
form a memoir of Father Browne's life from these two chief
sources. Perhaps, as the author says, the method has its drawbacks, but one must agree with him that under the circumstances it was the only one possible: and certainly Father
Hurley has used it skillfully and honestly. In spite of the difficulties of telling it, Father Michael Browne's life story deserves
to be remembered and reverenced by his fellow Jesuits.
J. A. DEVEREUX, S.J.
WE'RE HAPPY YOU DID
I'd Gladly Go Back. By Arthur R. McGratty, S.J. Westminster
Md., Newman Press, 1951. Pp. 205. $2.75.
One's first impulse might be to ask, "Couldn't the National
Director of the Apostleship of Prayer have chosen a more important subject than the memoirs of his childhood for his
authorial zeal?" It would be unfair to answer that question
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BOOK REVIEWS
without reading the book. Readers will answer it in the negative.
Year after year the Holy Father has recommended to the
Apostleship such intentions as, "A More Christian Spirit in
Family Life," or, "More Zealous Parental Care for Christian
Education." Father McGratty (New York Province) writes a
charming eulogy of that Christian family life that is so dear to
the heart of Christ's Vicar. The excellence of the book consists
in its happy blend of gay narrative with serious reflection.
There is no trace of egoism in these autobiographical pages.
The McGratty saga is not important as history, it is a parable
for our times. "My parents did their job. Like untold thousands
of parents across the country, in each succeeding generation,
they did their job well."
Arthur was the third child in a family of seven, six boys
and a girl. The episodes of his childhood, which he relates
with remarkably casual informality, are sufficiently amusing
to hold the reader's attention and well chosen for the author's
reflections. The main characters are Edward, Frank, Arthur
and Gerald in the juvenile roles; the adult leads are Mother,
Father and Sadie, "our nurse who helped my mother, as the
years went by, with the growing crop of seven children." Helen,
Charles and Donnie remain in the background. In the last
(and best) chapter, however, it is Donnie, the baby who became a lieutenant in the Air Corps and died in the Aleutians,
whose grave beside that of his mother symbolizes the one thing
that out of a fading past survives and carries over into the
present. That thing, the theme of Father McGratty's book, is
the love that is the joyful life of the Christian family. Lay
people will find this Catholic Life With Father fascinating.
If there be some sedate critics who question the propriety of
such a book, let them consider that this "going back" is a most
salutary thing. Thoughtful readers of Father McGratty's book
will find in it a valuable commentary on Christ's solemn warning: "Amen I say to you, unless you turn and become like
little children, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven."
JOHN J. NASH, S.J.
SUBLIME THOUGHTS SIMPLY EXPRESSED
Lift Up Your Hearts. By Christopher Wilmot, S.J. London,
Burns Oates & Washbourne, Ltd., 1949. Pp. 182. 7/6.
This is a book of comfort for those in pain. The author is
a kindly old English Jesuit, who has spent his long life ministering to his harassed countrymen, and has come to know, as only
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BOOK }U:VIEWS
priests know, how deeply they have sorrowed and how terribly
long has been their suffering. For almost fifty years privation
and pain have been their portion. Nor is the end in sight. The
future is black with foreboding and the threat of even greater
anguish in the years to come.
Father Wilmot's constant effort has been to console and
strengthen his people. One by one he has taken their trials
and anxieties and has taught them how to transform them into
beatitudes. Constantly he has reminded them that this life is
not their real life, that death is not the end, but only the beginning, and that once they have passed from the valley of tears,
they will be welcomed by our Lord in the home He has prepared
for those who love Him, in which there shall be no more separation or sorrow but only blessed security from every harm.
He himself has reached the advanced age of four-score
years, and is drifting graciously into eternity; and like his
Master he finds it hard to leave his flock. And so he has gathered
together into a little volume some of the thoughts that have
been the burden of his teaching, in the hope that they may
live after him and still be a source of strength and consolation
to his beloved people. The title of the book is well chosen, and
those who read it will be amply repaid. Father Wilmot's
thoughts are sublime with revealed truth, but they are expressed simply for simple hearts. They are steeped in the
atmosphere of war, but they lead to the land of peace. They
will be useful for laity and priest.
J.
HARDING FISHER,
S.J.
THE KING'S PEERAGE
The Lives of the Saints. By Omer Englebert. Translated by
Christopher and Anne Fremantle, New York, David McKay
Company, Inc., 1951. Pp. xi-532. $5.00.
Abbe Englebert, a scholarly and polished writer, has compiled a very valuable and reliable reference book for us of the
Church Militant. It might be called a "Who's Who in the Church
Triumphant." In this book we may find twenty-three hundred
biographical notices. Some, indeed, are very brief, a line or two,
but many of them are quite comprehensive. The author has
selected for the lengthier notices "those who left their mark
on history, or under whose patronage men and women of today
continue to be placed." The excellent arrangement according to
their feasts in chronological order makes the book an excellent
supplement to the Roman martyrology. The Abbe's preface to
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�BOOK REVIEWS
409
the English edition is a charming essay on hagiography. In two
masterly paragraphs he summarizes the common characteristics
of the saints and the sane Christian attitude towards "the
follies of the saints." The final section of the book is a ninepage list of saints specially invoked by particular classes or in
particular difficulties. Religious and priests should not consider
as esoteric the knowledge that Saint Michael is the patron of
policemen and Saint Valentine the patron of engaged couples;
or that Saint Lucy is invoked against eye diseases and Saint
Mark against final impenitence. The alphabetical index, which
is a great convenience for quick reference, covers twenty-four
pages of double columns. This is a book with which we should
all be familiar.
W. J. B.
MONTHLY RECOLLECTION FOR PRIESTS
Alter Christus: Meditations for Priests. By F.X. L'Hoir, S.J.
Westminster, Md., Newman Press, 1950. Pp. 218. $2.50.
As the first Sunday of each month approaches, priests and
seminarians throughout the world look for a touchstone which
they can apply to test the breadth and depth of their lives in
Christ. The diocesan priests of India found such a touchstone
in the meditations which Father F.X. L'Hoir fashioned for
them, chiefly from the encyclical of Pius XI, Ad Catholici
Sacerdotii.
As a professor of ascetical and pastoral theology and spiritual director of young seminarians, Father L'Hob~ was well
fitted to instil in his readers a consciousness of the dignity and
obligations of the priesthood. Beginning with a quotation from
the encyclical, or occasionally from St. Paul, he \Vould set out
for his readers the advantages, necessity, and beauty of some
sacerdotal virtue. Then he would append a brief series of
practical applications, encouraging his readers to "reflect on
themselves in order to draw some profit." And, invariably, he
would lead his readers to the Sacred Heart, "that life-giving
!.'tream" which is the ultimate source of both priest and priesthood.
Seventy-two of these meditations, which appeared in the
Clergy Monthly between 1940 and 1948, are now being published in book form. They are divided into six series of twelve
meditations, corresponding to the twelve months of the year,
and usually related to the liturgical season. The thoughts proposed were not intended by the author as a daily diet, and
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BOOK REVIEWS
consequently lose their effectiveness if taken as such. However,
as a compact and solid directive for periodic examen of one's
progress in sacerdotal holiness, they will be welcomed by anyone
who desires to become an ••Alter Christus."
DoMINIC
W.
MARUCA,
S.J.
A NEW POINT BOOK
Meditations for Every Day. By P. J. Sontag, S.J. Milwaukee,
Bruce, 1951. Two vols. Pp. xviii--476, lx-466. $10.00.
In his letter On Fostering the Interior Life, Very Reverend
Father General admitted that there is some truth in the complaint of many of Ours: "I find no good books for daily
meditation." This new two-volume work of Father Sontag, a
Jesuit working on the Patna Mission, should remove at least
one common cause of complaint. For .Meditations for Every
Day is modern both in presentation .and application, while
many of the point books commonly used have been criticized
precisely because they are "·outdated."
The two volumes are designed to follow the liturgical year,
the first volume covering the period from Advent to Trinity
Sunday, the second from Trinity Sunday to Advent. Included
are meditations on some of the better known saints such as
Augustine and Theresa of Avila as well as a number of the
Jesuit saints and blessed. But predominant is the call of Christ
to labor "like Me, with Me!" For the entire work bespeaks a
penetrating knowledge of the Spiritual Exercises. The theological and even philosophical nature of many of the meditations
may give Father Sontag's book added grace for those in studies,
while the review of many of the truths of the cathechism will
be profitable for all.
The applications made are, as one might expect, chiefly of
a social or missionary nature. There is a difficulty, however,
since these applications are often directed to the laity; but in
many cases they can easily be made to fit the life of the priest
or religious. The meditations themselves are brief (about two
or three pages), but provide ample material for our prayerful
consideration. The style, except for the number of exclamations,
characteristic perhaps of earlier manuals, is modern and interesting.
Meditations for Every Day, while by no means a panacea for
our ills in so personal a matter as the preparation of points,
has the real advantage of flavoring with modernity a solid
�BOOK REVIEWS
411
spiritual diet. Many of Ours should find it helpful in supplying
material for a varied year of prayer.
ROBERT T. RusH, S.J.
RICH SPIRITUAL SUBSTANCE
Meditations on the Prayers of the Mass. By Francis P. LeBuffe,
S.J. St. Louis, the Queen's Work, 1948. Pp. 241. $3.00.
In a recent issue of the WOODSTOCK LETTERS we praised the
book of meditations on the Mass of Fr. Desplanques, Living
the Mass (Newman). We feel it is only fitting to call the attention of our readers to another excellent work along the same
lines by one of our own American Jesuits. We are happy to
give to Fr. LeBuffe's attractively presented meditations the
same unqualified recommendation as to those of the French
Jesuit. Fr. Desplanques' approach develops at greater length
the general meaning of the Mass prayers and actions. Fr.
LeBuffe sticks more closely to the actual words of each prayer,
meditating on them phrase by phrase according to the second
method of prayer of St. Ignatius. It is no small feat to handle
successfully in this way all the prayers of the Mass, since, at
first sight, many of them do not seem to lend themselves
easily to it. Fr. LeBuffe succeeds with his habitual magic touch
in drawing an unfailingly rich spiritual substance from them
all. His book is a valuable addition to our devotional literature
on the Mass.
W. NORRIS CLARKE, S.J.
CHRISTIAN FEMINISM
The Destiny of Modern Woman. By William B. Faherty, S.J .•
Westminster, The Newman Press, 1950. Pp. xvii-206.
$3.00.
The so-called "progress of woman" in the last century has
posed many practical problems for Catholic women and their
directors. Father Faherty (Missouri Province) has studied the
papal documents which consider these problems and furnish
their Christian solutions. This book is not just another series
of exhortations. It is the authentic teaching of the Church on
a modern social question about which too many of us may think
that the Church has no definite teaching. Father Faherty has
accomplished a splendid task in compiling and commenting.
�412
BOOK REVIEWS
The authors in the truest sense are the last five Vicars of
Christ, Leo, Benedict and the three whose name is Pius. This
book is indispensable for those who wish to speak with Christian
intelligence on the political, economic and social status of women,
on the proper education and employment of women, on prostitution or "the emancipation of women." Take up the book and
read it. The topic, its treatment and the compendious presentation merit highest recommendation.
W.J. B.
THESAURUS FOR TEACHERS
Guide To The Documents of Pius XII. By Sister M. Claudia,
I.H.M. Westminster, The Newman Press, 1951. Pp. xxviii229. $6.00.
Bibliographical works, as a rule, belong in reference
libraries. This limitation to the field of research explains the
fact that such works are usually expensive. Sister Claudia's
most recent compilation, however, deserves wide circulation as
a practical handbook for all who are engaged in the works of
preaching or teaching. It is an indispensable aid for any one
who desires to teach the papal syllabus intelligently. Sister
Claudia's previous work, A Guide to the Encyclicals of the
Roman Pontiffs from Leo XIII to the Present Day, was poorly
published and remains too neglected. The present volume, which
is a masterpiece of printing and arrangement, includes all
the pronouncements of the Holy Father from his first message
to the Catholic world, Dum gravissimum, on March 3, 1939,
to his allocution to the Diplomatic Corps on December 28,
1949,-a total of 1,319 documents. There are sermons, homilies,
official messages and allocutions in addition to the more widelyknown encyclicals. Under each title Sister Claudia lists the
type and date of the document, a very brief indication of its
contents, sources in which the text may be found in various
languages and, finally, commentaries. The book is divided into
two parts. The first, "Guide to the Documents," is a fourteen
page bibliography which lists· works under the three headings,
Collections, Commentaries and Theory. The second part is the
listing of the documents in chronological order, year by year.
An appendix lists the encyclicals on a single page. There is an
excellent index of twenty-two pages, in which one can locate
with dispatch subjects, titles and names. Though many of the
documents do not have the formal solemnity of encyclicals,
they are the words of Christ's Vicar. It is good for us· to know
-·
�BOOK REVIEWS
413
that he has spoken about such things as atomic energy and
taxation, and to groups so divergent and specific as blood-donors
and boy scouts. Sister Claudia and the Newman Press are to
be congratulated-and thanked.
J.J.N., S.J.
l\IEET THE FATHERS
The Osterley Selection from the Latin Fathers. By Joseph
Crehan, S.J. New York, Longmans, Green and Co., Inc.,
1950. Pp. 109. $1.50.
This is a collection of forty-two brief passages from Tertullian to Bede. The selections were made by Father J o~eph Crehan
(English Province) and are used in a course at Campion
House, Osterley, our school for "late vocations." Father Crehan's
choice is excellent both for holding the interest of the student
and for conveying a valid insight to the style of each author.
More than one-third of the selected passages are from the
writings of Saint Augustine. Saint Leo and Saint Jerome are
honored by more than two selections. Each selection is introduced by a brief "setting" and followed by explanatory notes.
Latin departments in colleges as well as in seminaries should
take cognizance of this excellent instrument for introducing
students to the Christian tradition of Latin culture.
W.J.B.
NEWMAN'S ACHIEVEMENT IN IRELAND
Newman's University: Idea and Reality. By Fergal McGrath,
S.J. New York, Longmans, Green and Co., 1951. Pp. 537.
$7.00.
The story of Newman's pioneer work as first rector of the
Catholic University of Ireland needed to be re-told in its entirety. It has generally been written off as a failure, best forgotten save as having felicitously provided the occasion for
the composition of his justly famous Idea of a University. A
reading of the Idea in the light of Ward's account of Newman's
work in Ireland has sometimes created the impression that
Newman's mind, keen and penetrating when it dealt with the
abstract notion of what constituted a university, was overly
sensitive and unequal to the task of handling concrete problems
of practical administration. Fr. Fergal McGrath (Irish Prov-
�414
BOOKJlEVIEWS
ince), in what should prove to be a lasting contribution to
Newman scholarship, adjusts the perspective by a fuller account of Newman's activities against the background of the
educational, social and political problems of nineteenth century
Ireland. The circumstances, purpose and interpretation of the
Dublin Discourses receive a briefer, though no less competent,
treatment.
Fr. McGrath criticizes Ward's account of Newman's "campaign" in Ireland because "it omits entirely the historical
background which explains so many of the difficulties that
dogged Newman's path, and it dwells at length on the issues
in which his plans were frustrated, without a balancing emphasis on the great body of constructive work which he was
able to carry through." The causes of Newman's failure are
shown to have had deeper roots than his differences with Dr.
Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin. The ravages of the famine in
Ireland, the political situation which divided the bishops who
had supreme authority over the University, the lack of
secondary education, the failure to obtain a charter from the
Government, were factors unconducive to a healthy growth
of the nascent University. Yet Newman set up a fine medical
school, built a University church, r~ceived approval in his
selection of professors and kept the curriculum and scope of the
University from being restricted to that of a college. Fr.
McGrath's judgment on the evidence which he presents is that
"whatever defects Newman had as an administrator were of
minor import," and though "he failed immediately . . . there
was an ultimate success to come as a fruit of his labours."
The author has been aided in his task by the good fortune
of having uncovered a large amount of hitherto unpublished
material, including several thousand letters, of which he
makes judicious use. All this adds up to a work, based on careful
and meticulous research, from which the reader may estimate
for himself the character of Newman as revealed in his letters
and in the objective light of the facts. This accords with the
Cardinal's personal preference, expressed in a letter to his _.
sister in 1863:
It has ever been a hobby of mine, though perhaps it is a
truism, not a hobby, that the true life of a man is in his
letters. Not only for the interest of a biography, but for
arriving at the inside of things, the publication of letters is
the true method. Biographers varnish, they assign motives,
they conjecture feelings, they interpret Lord Burleigh's
nods, but contemporary letters are facts.
The general impression that emerges from this wealth of
complex material is one of surprise at the measure of Newman's
achievement despite the innumerable difficulties that attended
his task.
�BOOK REVIEWS
415
Although the larger portion of this book will appeal primarily to scholars, the general reader who is interested in
Newman's Discourses on the nature of a university will find
a valuable orientation in Chapters V, VI and XI: "The Dublin
Discourses," "The Idea of a University," and "The Soul of
Education." In the last mentioned chapter the enquiry into
the reasons for Newman's omission of the Fifth Discourse from
editions subsequent to the first, is extended beyond the point
reached by Mlle. Tardival who had already discussed the problem with considerable skill in her Newman Educateur. It
seems not unlikely, too, that adherents of Corcoran's theory
(that in education Newman proposed a theory of absolute
severance of the intellectual and the moral) will wish to
modify and correct their position in the light of the contrary
evidence presented in these chapters.
VINCENT BLEHL,
S.J.
THE PROBLEM OF EVIL
The Philosophy of Evil. By Paul Siwek, S.J. New York, The
Ronald Press Company, 1951. Pp. ix-226. $3.50.
The present volume is a presentation of the traditional
Scholastic doctrine on the nature, origin and finality of evil in
the world. Father Siwek, formerly professor of philosophy at
the Gregorian University, and at present, Research Professor
of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Fordham University,
brings to his task a thorough knowledge of the Scholastic
tradition, as well as a wide acquaintance with the history of
this problem.
The book is divided into three sections. The first section deals
with the nature of evil, and its significance in the various
kingdoms of living beings, plants, animals and men. This
section is largely a presentation of traditional Scholastic psychology on the three divisions of living beings.
The second section deals with the finality of evil. The chapter
dealing with the finality of evil in the realm of man has a rather
full, and, at times, moving, account of the good to which this
evil can be put by man. The final section of the book is a treatment of two contrary positions on the problem of evil-pessimism and optimism.
The book will not offer much that is new to anyone who is
familiar with traditional Scholastic doctrine on these questions.
However, it will be of service to students, and possibly to educated converts, who are not acquainted with this tradition.
RALPH
0.
DATES,
S.J.
�416
BOOK aEVIEWS
MARIO IS l\IISTAKEN
Nothing Ever Happens To ]le. By Neil Boyton, S.J. Milwaukee,
Bruce, 1951. Pp. 141. $2.00.
Father Boyton's latest book is not his best. Although it
starts like a home run, it curves foul. Twelve-year-old Mario
DeFide shoots his friend, discovers a murder, is the victim
of a burglar, and meets with an accident in the first nine
chapters, but almost nothing happens in the last sixty pages.
Boys in grammar school will be thrilled at the pace of the
early chapters when Father Boyton is at his best, writing
exciting narrative. They will scarcely notice the poor dialogue.
But whether the story will hold them till the end is
questionable.
JOSEPH D. AYD, S.J.
Book Notes
l\leditations on the Gospels. fly Bishop Ottokar Prohaszka.
New York. Macmillan. $5.50.
This is an omnibus volume -containing more than
three hundred meditation summaries from the pen of a
modern Augustine. Otto Prohaszka, whom Father
Martindale ranks with Newman, was a lecturer, preacher
and seminary director. Consecrated by Pius X in 1905,
he ruled the diocese of Szekesfehervar in Hungary
until his death in 1927. When these meditations first
appeared in English translation in the 'thirties they
were hailed as rich and profound in thought, strong and
original in presentation. They were not composed, however, as a planned book n!>r were they labored over so
as to appeal to the casual reader. This is the "light
book" of a brilliant bishop who spent two hcurs a day
in mental prayer. These meditations must have had a
great part in the spiritual formation of today's persecuted clergy of Hungary. What higher recommendation is possible?
The Spirit of Love. By C. F. Kelley. New York, Harper
and Brothers. Pp. xii-287. $3.50.
For students of Saint Francis de Sales this commentary
on his spiritual writings should be noted. The book is
written by one who was led to the Church through
those writings. Numerous quotations, a good index,
notes and an up-to-date bibliography make the work
valuable as a reference for materials concerning
Salesian spirituality.-W. J. Fogelsanger, S.J.
��
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Woodstock Letters
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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JA-Woodstock
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The Woodstock Letters were a publication of the Society of Jesus from 1872 until 1969. They were named after Woodstock College, the Jesuit seminary in Maryland where they were published. Written almost entirely by Jesuits, and originally intended to be read only by Jesuits, the Letters were "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus in North and South America." They include historical articles, updates on work being done by the Jesuits, eyewitness accounts of historic events, book reviews, obituaries, enrollment statistics for Jesuit schools, and various other items of interest to the Society. The writings of many renowned Jesuit scholars and missionaries appeared in the Woodstock Letters, including Pedro Arrupe, Pierre-Jean de Smet, Avery Dulles, Daniel Lord, Walter Hill, John Courtney Murray, Walter Ong, and Gustave Weigel. They provide an invaluable record of the work done by American Jesuits throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries.
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2017-2
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99 items
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1872-1969
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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Woodstock Letters - Volume 80 (1951)
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<a href="https://lccn.loc.gov/n81134877" target="_blank">Woodstock College (Woodstock, Md.)</a>
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<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85021157.html" target="_blank">Catholic Church--Periodicals</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004994.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--19th century</a>
<a href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh87004995.html" target="_blank">Jesuits--History--20th century</a>
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1951 edition of the Woodstock Letters, "a record of current events and historical notes connected with the colleges and missions of the Society of Jesus."
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Jesuit Archives: Central United States
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
Jesuit Archives Central United States
Saint Louis University
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Text
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PDF
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JA-Woodstock-080
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BX3701 .W66
Language
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eng
lat
Relation
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JA-Woodstock
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Reproduced with permission of the Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus. Permission to copy or publish must be obtained from the Jesuit Archives: Central United States
Rights Holder
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Maryland Province of the Society of Jesus
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2017-2
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441 pages
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1951